From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Tue, Jul 26, 2016 7:08 pm Subject: It's my intention to compensate you with 20% of the total money Hello, I am writing this mail to you with tears and sorrow from my heart. With due respect , trust and humanity, i appeal to you to exercise a little patience and read through my letter i feel quite safe dealing with you in this important business having gone through your remarkable profile, honestly i am writing this email to you with pains, tears and sorrow from my heart, i will really like to have a good relationship with you and i have a special reason why i decided to contact you. I decided to contact you due to the urgency of my situation. My name is Miss Mirian Kipkalya Kones, 27yrs old femaleand i am from Kenya in East Africa. Light in complexion, single, never marriedbut presently i am residing here in Dakar Senegal refugee camp.My father late Dr Kipkalya Kones was the former Kenyan road Minister. Him and Assistant Minister of Home Affairs Lorna Laboso had been on boardthe Cessna 210, which was headed to Kericho and crashed in a remote area called Kajonga, in western Kenya. The plane crashed on the Tuesday10th, June,2008. You can read more about the crash through the below site : http://edition.cnn.com/2008/ WORLD/africa/06/10/kenya. crash/index.html After the burial of my father, my stepmother and uncle conspired and sold my father's property to an italian Expertrate which they shared the money among themselves and live nothing for me. One faithful morning, I openedmy father's briefcase and found out the documents which he have deposited huge amount of money in one bank in Scotland with my name as the next of kin because when he was alive he deposited some amount of money in a leading bank in Europe which he used my name as the next of kin. The amount in question is $3.8m (Three Million eight Hundred Thousand Dollars). I have informed the bank about claiming this moneyand the only thing they told me is to look for a foreign partner who will assist me in the transfer due to my refugee status here in Senegal.They also told me that my late father's instruction to the bank is that the money would only be release to me when I am married or present a trustee who will help me and invest the money overseas. I am in search of an honest and reliable person who will help me and stand as my trustee so that I will present him to the Bank for transfer of the moneyto his bank account overseas. I have chosen to contact you after my prayers and I believe that you will not betray my trust. But rather takeme as your own sister or we can get married immediately i come to your country. My dearest, thing are very bad for me here in the refugee camp where i am living today. People are dying here day after day because of lack of food and poor medical treatment. Even one of us died last night and was buried today. I am afraid of what i am seeing here. I don't know who it will be her turn tomorrow. I was first year student in the university studying law before the ugly incident that killed my parents that put me in this horrible place i found myself toady. This place is like a prison as we are only allowed to go out on Monday and Friday of the week as given by the united nation rules and regulation here in Senegal. It's just like one staying in the prison andi hope by God's grace i will come out here soon. in this refugee we are only allowed to go out two times in a week. Its just like one stayingin the prison and i hope by God's grace i will come out here soon. i don't have any relatives now whom i can go to and the only person i havenow is Rev Chris Johnson who is the pastor of the Christ for all Churches here in the refugee he has been very nice to me since i came here but i am not living with him rather i am leaving in the women's hostel because the refugee have two hostels one for men the other for women. Please i want you to call me with our Pastor's phone number +221-766-883-786 if you call, tell him that you want to speak with me he will send for me in the hostel to come and answer your call. As a refugee here i don't have any right or privilledge to any thing be it money or whatever because it is against the law of this country. I want to go back to my studies because i only attended my first year before the tragic incident that lead to my being in this situation now took place Though you may wonder why I am so soon revealing myself toyou without knowing you, well I will say that my mind convinced me thatyou may be the true person to help me. More so, I will like to disclose much to you if you can help me to relocate to your country because my stepmother have threaten to kill me and that is why I stop my studies and run away before I finally find myself in the united nations camp here in Senegal where i am living now. You will also help me to place the money in a more profitable business venture in your country. However, you will help by recommending a nice University in your countryso that I can complete my studies. It's my intention to compensate youwith 20% of the total money for your services and the balance shall be my capital in your establishment. As soon as I receive your positive response showing your interest I will put things into action immediately. In the light of the above. I shall appreciate an urgent message indicating your ability and willingness to handle this transaction sincerely. AWAITING YOUR URGENT AND POSITIVE RESPONSE. . Please do keep this only to your self for now until the bankwill transfer the fund. I beg you not to disclose it till i come over because I am afraid of my wicked stepmother who has threatened to kill me and have the money alone ,I thank God Today that am out from my country,Kenya, but now In Senegal Refugee Camp.I thank God for the life of Rev as he has been helpful to me since i became close to him after his visitation to the clinic when i was sick in the camp. He has assisted me in several ways sending emails from his office. I have the documents for the claims. Yours sincerely Mirian Kipkalya Kones. From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Wed, Jul 27, 2016 9:10 pm Subject: My love, I want you to help me to transfer my money, contact My Dearest, good day, How are you ? hope fine, for me I am well with all hope to meet you after transfer ! My dearest, I prayed and fasted when I got your contact before it was revealed to me God, that you are the right man for me, which I love and appreciate our baring, without difference, and I know you will not disappoint me. God will bless and reward you for every effort you are making to help me come out from this prison called refugee camp as we are many here in this refugee camp. My love, I want you to help me to transfer my late fathers money to your account and in it you will be able to send me some money so that I will use it to secure my traveling documents and my air ticket to come over to your country and to live with you for a better life. Please, my love, I want you to contact bank so that they can advise us the possibility to transfer my money to your position. My dear, I want to come over to meet with you for the rest of my life as I have seen that you are the right man for me and I will like you to help me and the transfer of my $3.8 million dollars Honey, I love you so much, and I can wait to meet with you for the rest of my life, and I am looking towards that lovely day when I will be meeting with you for the rest of my life after the transfer of my money to your position. My dear, I would like you to send an e-mail to the bank today about the possible transfer of my 3.8 million dollars deposited ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND, which my name appears as the next of kin due to my refugee status here in Senegal. I have informed the bank about you and they are waiting for your e-mail address, so that they can use this money in their position for our meeting. Here are the contact details of the bank in Scotland, where the money was deposited by my late father is as follows, The contact information of the bank is as follows : ROYAL BANK of SCOTLAND. royalbanksemail@scotlandmail.com ROYAL BANK of SCOTLAND. royalbanksemail1@yahoo.co.uk roya.lbankes@aol.co.uk Telephone contact numbers +447907957459 Fax contact number +447031880876 The account information are as follows: Account name :. . . . . . Dr.Kipkalya Kones. Amount:. . . . . . . . . $3.8 Million US Dollars Account number:. . . . . 87423006 Next of kin:. . . . . . . Mirian Kone. Already, I have informed the bank about my intention to clam my late father deposit of which my name appears as the next of kin. The only thing the bank told me is to look for a foreign partner who will assist me in the transfer due to my refugee status here in Senegal, as a refugee I am not allowed direct claim on the money, but through an appointed representative as the united refugee law governing refugee all over the world state. Based on this information, I will like you to send an e-mail to the transfer department of the bank today with this : Attentioned Mr.Ron Teerlink the transfer of the foreign officer of the bank telling him that you are my representative and that you want to assist me transfer my $3.8 million dollars deposited by my late father of which I am the next of kin. The account information are as follows. ACCOUNT NAME DR KIPKALYA KONES AMOUNT 3.8 MILLION DOLLARS ACCOUNT NUMBER 87423006 NEXT OF KIN MIRIAN KIPKALYA KONES Darling, I will like you to keep in touch with me as soon as you hear from thisbank so that we can know the possibility to help transfer my money to your own account, please try let me know immediately after you contact the bank for transfer. Mirian. From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Mon, Aug 1, 2016 8:44 am Subject: Oh my beloved sweet Darling, Oh my beloved sweet Darling, Honey how are you today and how was your night together with your precious health which is very very important to me ? I hope you have a wonderful night over there and you are in good health and healthy, as for me honey my night was only thinking about you because I so much love you with all my heart and I can not stay with out thinking of you every day and i know that very soon I will be with you for ever. Honey I couldn't write to you since then due to the power failure here in the camp just as I was all thinking and dreaming of you so much last night together with the situation of things which is why I really need your lovely help so that I can come out from this prison called refugee camp as soon as possible. Darling, have you contacted the bank ? please send me what you received from them, if you have not please send them an email now tell them that you are my partner that want to help me in doing the transfer so that they will advice us on what to do. I am waiting to receive your favorable reply soon. Take good care of yourself for me and remember that you are my happiness and my life Kisses. Mirian From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Wed, Aug 3, 2016 10:29 am Subject: WAITING FOR YOUR REPLY Hello Darling. My darling, I have forwarded your email to the bank as my partner who will assist me in the transfer. The only thing i need from you is to inform me whenever the bank contacts you about transferring my money to your position as i am suffering here with all hopes to be with you for a better life. God bless you, my love, Yours in love, Mirian. royalbanksemail@scotlandmail.com > Telephone number 00447 - 031 - 882 - 113 Gogarburn, Edinburgh, EH1 21 HQ, UK Scotland Registered Office, 36 St Andrew Square EH2 2YB. royalbanksemail@scotlandmail.com ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND GROUP PLC HEADQUARTERSTelephone number 00447 - 031 - 882 - 113Gogarburn, Edinburgh, EH1 21 HQ, UK ScotlandRegistered Office, 36 St Andrew Square EH2 2YB. Transfer Departmen t Sir, I have been directed by the director of Foreign Operation/Wire Transfer to write you in respect of the mail we received today. Actually, we have earlier been told about you by the young lady Miss Kones that she wishes you to be her trustee/representative for the claim of her late father's deposit with our bank. Late Dr Kipkalya Kones is our late customer with substantial amount $3.8 Million Dollars of deposit with us. Hence you have been really appointed as a trustee to represent the next of Kin. However before our bank will transact any business concerning the transfer of the fund with you , we will like you to send the followings items together with your full bank information where you want us to transfer the money : 1.A power of attorney permitting you to claim and transfer the funds to your bank account on her behalf. This document must be endorsed by a Senegalese resident lawyer which she can help you to get one. 2.The death certificate of late Dr Kipkalya Kones (Her deceased father) confirming the death. 3.A copy of statement of account issued to Dr Kipkalya Kones by our bank Note that the above are compulsory, and are needed to protect our interest yours, the next of kin after the claims. These shall also ensure that a smooth, quick and successful transfer of the fund is made. We promise to give our customers the best of our services. Should you have any question(s), please contact our foreign transfer officer. Mr. Ron Teerlink on telephone number Tel Fax for more directives/clarifications. Yours Faithfully, Mrs. Shirley Eracleous. For Accounts Dept/Transfer Dept Mr. Ron Teerlink on telephone numberTel +447031882113 Fax +447031880876 for more directives/clarifications.Yours Faithfully,Mrs. Shirley Eracleous.For Accounts Dept/Transfer Dept On Wed, Aug 3, 2016 at 9:43 AM, royal bankofscotlandwrote: From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Thu, Aug 4, 2016 9:17 am Subject: My love, we have to transfer my late father's money in your position first. . How are you ? hope fine for me I'm good with all hope to meet with you in my next dream land. Remember you can call me with our Pastors Tel number +221-766-883786 if you call, tell him you want to speak with me he will send for me in the hostel to come and to answer your call. My darling, I prayed and fasted when i got your contact before it was revealed to me by God, that you are the right man for me, which I love and appreciate our Baring, without distinction, and I know you will not disappoint me. God will bless and reward you for everything you do to help me get out of this prison called refugee camp, which many of us here in this refugee camp. My love, I want you to help me to come over to your country to live with you for the rest of my life, we have to transfer my late father's money in your position. Darling can you help me in my passport, as I already told Rev. Pastor to go and ask the embassy for my new passport, so I can be with you over there in your country by the end of this week. I hope to hear from you as soon as possible today. yours in love Mirian. From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Mon, Aug 8, 2016 11:48 am Subject: THIS IS THE COST OF MY PASSPORT : EURO 280euro Honey good morning, how are you over there in my next dream country ? Hope everything is well with you? Darling as i told you that my Rev father promised to help me to go to embassy office to discover the cost of my new passport, when i meet Rev. this morning in his office and he told me that my passport will cost EURO 280euro Honey please help me and send me the money with this information here. Honey please send me the money through money gram or Ria / western union money transfer so that my Rev. father will help me get it immediately you will send the necessary informations. Please send me the control number that you use, send it immediately. important thing is question and answer and control number. . . . the name of sender like your name. . . . . . . the name of receiver Sunny JOHNSON. . . . . . My love, all i need from you is to help me get the passport, I was talking with the Reverend what and what documents do i need to go out from here. The Reverend told me that once i get passport that the United Nations will give me Certificate that will allow me move to any country of my choice. Darling i believe with the help of the Reverend i will come to you easy once i get the passport. Please darling send me the money to get the passport. I really need to meet you for a better life together. Hope for good news from you soon. Yours in Love Mirian From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Mon, Aug 15, 2016 11:22 am Subject: 280euro, THIS IS THE COST OF MY PASSPORT Honey good morning, how are you over there in my next dream country ? Hope everything is well with you.Darling, as i told you that my Rev father promise to help me go to embassy office to discover the cost of my new passport, when i met Rev. this morning in his officehe told me that my passport will cost 280euro Honey please help me and send me the money with this information here. Honey please send me the money through money gram or Ria / western union money transfer so that my Rev father will help me get it immediately send the necessary information. Please send me the control number that you use send it immediately. important thing is question and answer and control number. . . . the name of sending like your name. . . . . . . the name of receiver SUNNY JOHNSON. . . . . . My love all i need from you is to help me get the passport, I was talking with the Reverend what and what documents do i need to go out from here. The Reverend told me that once i get passport that the United Nations will give me Certificate that will allow me move to any country of my choice. Darling i believe with the help of the Reverend i will come to you easy once i get the passport. Please darling send to me the money to get the passport. I really need to meet you for better life together. Hope for good news from you soon. Yours in Love Mirian. From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Mon, Aug 22, 2016 11:14 am Subject: Dear friend, I signed a cheque of $ 500,000 in your name, Dearest friend, This isMirian that contacted you some time ago about the transfer of funds to your account as previously mentioned in my proposal, I am sending you this email to remind you of how I concluded with the said money transfer while knowing full well that you showed concern by offering the necessary help you could. I am thanking you very much for minimal assistance you gave me and for that, I intend to pay you well for good. I am very successful with the transfer of the funds that I contact you for assistance. I am happy to announce to your hearing that my husband and I are residing in the Netherlands as the transfer is completed. Because of your help and love you showed me I am giving you the sum of $ 500,000,00 I signed a cheque of $500,000,00in your name, as I am successful with this transfer. I want you to contact the Rev. Chris Johnson for the collection of this cheque. It is my desire to fulfill my dreams in life and for humanity, so take this compensation that came from my true heart. Contact him through his email below : Name : Rev. Chris Johnson revchris29@gmail.com +221.767536965 My dear, I can not take the chance of sending you mail again as my husband is watching my movements. All should be between you and the Reverend Chris Johnson. You can send me an email to tell me what he said when you contact him for the cheque. Thanking you once again. five hundred thousand US dollars showing concern. Please, I want you to accept this as a gift from my heart, I would have sent you this email before, but due to how quickly my trip with my husband was to Holland and since then he has been monitoring my movement,, as I am successful with this transfer. I want you to contact the Rev. Chris Johnson for the collection of this cheque. It is my desire to fulfill my dreams in life and for humanity, so take this compensation that came from my true heart. Contact him through his email below :Name : Rev. Chris Johnson+221.767536965My dear, I can not take the chance of sending you mail again as my husband is watching my movements. All should be between you and the Reverend Chris Johnson. You can send me an email to tell me what he said when you contact him for the cheque.Thanking you once again. God bless you and the whole family. Sincerely, Mirian. From: roya.lbankes < roya.lbankes@aol.co.uk > Sent: Mon, Sep 5, 2016 4:23 pm Subject: ROYAL BANK of SCOTLAND Telephone number 00447 - 031 - 882 - 113 Gogarburn, Edinburgh, EH1 21 HQ, UK Scotland Registered Office, 36 St Andrew Square EH2 2YB. roya.lbankes@aol.co.uk Transfer Department ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND GROUP PLC HEADQUARTERSTelephone number 00447 - 031 - 882 - 113Gogarburn, Edinburgh, EH1 21 HQ, UK ScotlandRegistered Office, 36 St Andrew Square EH2 2YB.Transfer Department Sir, I have been directed by the director of Foreign Operation/Wire Transfer to write you in respect of the mail we received today. Actually, we have earlier been told about you by the young lady Miss Kones that she wishes you to be her trustee/representative for the claim of her late father's deposit with our bank. Late Dr Kipkalya Kones is our late customer with substantial amount $3.8 Million Dollars of deposit with us. Hence you have been really appointed as a trustee to represent the next of Kin. However before our bank will transact any business concerning the transfer of the fund with you , we will like you to send the followings items together with your full bank information where you want us to transfer the money : 1.A power of attorney permitting you to claim and transfer the funds to your bank account on her behalf. This document must be endorsed by a Senegalese resident lawyer which she can help you to get one. 2.The death certificate of late Dr Kipkalya Kones (Her deceased father) confirming the death. 3.A copy of statement of account issued to Dr Kipkalya Kones by our bank Note that the above are compulsory, and are needed to protect our interest,yours, the next of kin after the claims. These shall also ensure that a smooth, quick and successful transfer of the fund is made. We promise to give our customers the best of our services. Should you have any question(s), please contact our foreign transfer officer Mr. Ron Teerlink on telephone number Tel Fax Yours faithfully , Mrs. Shirley Eracleous. For Accounts Dept/Transfer Dept 2.The death certificate of late Dr Kipkalya Kones (Her deceased father) confirming the death.3.A copy of statement of account issued to Dr Kipkalya Kones by our bankNote that the above are compulsory, and are needed to protect our interest,yours, the next of kin after the claims. These shall also ensure that a smooth, quick and successful transfer of the fund is made.We promise to give our customers the best of our services. Should you have any question(s), please contact our foreign transfer officerMr. Ron Teerlink on telephone numberTel +447031882113 Fax +447031880876 Yours faithfully ,Mrs. Shirley Eracleous.For Accounts Dept/Transfer Dept roya.lbankes@aol.co.uk Van: "benjaminchristian1@yahoo.com" < benjaminchristian1@yahoo.com > Aan: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Verzonden: dinsdag 6 september 14:17 2016 Onderwerp: BARRISTER BENJAMIN LAW FIRM BARRISTER BENJAMIN LAW FIRM Telephone +221766544795 Email ATTENTION IN RESPECT OF YOUR MAIL WE RECEIVED TODAY IN OUR NOBLE LAW FIRM, ON HOW TO PREPARE AN AFFIDAVIT OF SUPPORT AND POWER OF ATTORNEY IN YOUR NAME FOR YOU TO STAND ON BEHALF OF YOUR FRIEND MISS KONES TO TRANSFER HIS LATE FATHER MONEY FROM THE (ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND) TO YOUR ACCOUNT. OUR NOBLE LAW FIRM WISHES TO BRING TO YOUR NOTICE THAT BEFORE WE CAN PROCEED WITH THIS SERVICES WE WILL WANT YOU TO FORWARD YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION TO OUR LAW FIRM IMMEDIATELY . YOUR: 1) NAME; 2) ADDRESS ; 3) TELEPHONE NUMBER; 5) E-MAIL; 6) DATE OF BIRTH 7) COUNTRY: 8) OCCUPATION ALL THIS INFORMATION LISTED ABOVE WILL APPEAR IN THE POWER OF ATTORNEY AND THE AFFIDAVIT OF OATH SO THAT I WILL GO TO THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT HERE IN SENEGAL TO ASCERTAIN THE COST OF THE AUTHENTICATION OF THE POWER OF ATTORNEY AND THE AFFIDAVIT OF OATH BEFORE IT BECOMES VALID FOR THE TRANSFER OF THE MONEY INTO YOUR ACCOUNT AFTER WHICH OUR LAW FIRM WILL CONTACT YOU BACK WITH THE REQUIRED COSTS BEFORE ACCEPTING TO RENDER THE REQUIRED LEGAL SERVICES. I WILL SEND YOU THE EMAIL COPY OF LATE DR KIPKALYA KONES STATEMENT OF HIS ACCOUNT AND HIS DEATH CERTIFICATE WHICH YOUR PARTNER MISS KONES GAVE TO ME. I WILL SENT IT TO YOU IN MY NEXT MAIL. OUR PRIORITY IS TO RENDER THE BEST AND EFFICIENT SERVICE TO OUR CLIENTS. THANKS FOR YOUR DECISION TO WORK WITH OUR LAW FIRM IN THIS TRANSACTION. . . REGARDS, BARRISTER BENJAMIN CHRISTIAN BARRISTER BENJAMIN LAW FIRMTelephone +221766544795Email benjaminchristian1@yahoo.com ATTENTIONIN RESPECT OF YOUR MAIL WE RECEIVED TODAY IN OUR NOBLE LAW FIRM, ON HOW TO PREPARE AN AFFIDAVIT OF SUPPORT AND POWER OF ATTORNEY IN YOUR NAME FOR YOU TO STAND ON BEHALF OF YOUR FRIEND MISS KONES TO TRANSFER HIS LATE FATHER MONEY FROM THE (ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND) TO YOUR ACCOUNT.OUR NOBLE LAW FIRM WISHES TO BRING TO YOUR NOTICE THAT BEFORE WE CAN PROCEED WITH THIS SERVICES WE WILL WANT YOU TO FORWARD YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION TO OUR LAW FIRM IMMEDIATELY .YOUR:1) NAME;2) ADDRESS ;3) TELEPHONE NUMBER;5) E-MAIL;6) DATE OF BIRTH7) COUNTRY:8) OCCUPATIONALL THIS INFORMATION LISTED ABOVE WILL APPEAR IN THE POWER OF ATTORNEY AND THE AFFIDAVIT OF OATH SO THAT I WILL GO TO THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT HERE IN SENEGAL TO ASCERTAIN THE COST OF THE AUTHENTICATION OF THE POWER OF ATTORNEY AND THE AFFIDAVIT OF OATH BEFORE IT BECOMES VALID FOR THE TRANSFER OF THE MONEY INTO YOUR ACCOUNT AFTER WHICH OUR LAW FIRM WILL CONTACT YOU BACK WITH THE REQUIRED COSTS BEFORE ACCEPTING TO RENDER THE REQUIRED LEGAL SERVICES.I WILL SEND YOU THE EMAIL COPY OF LATE DR KIPKALYA KONES STATEMENT OF HIS ACCOUNT AND HIS DEATH CERTIFICATE WHICH YOUR PARTNER MISS KONES GAVE TO ME. I WILL SENT IT TO YOU IN MY NEXT MAIL.OUR PRIORITY IS TO RENDER THE BEST AND EFFICIENT SERVICE TO OUR CLIENTS.THANKS FOR YOUR DECISION TO WORK WITH OUR LAW FIRM IN THIS TRANSACTION. . .REGARDS,BARRISTER BENJAMIN CHRISTIAN From: royal bankofscotland < royalbanksemail@scotlandmail.com > Sent: Tue, Sep 27, 2016 10:33 am Subject: ROYAL BANK of SCOTLAND about transfer ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND GROUP PLC HEADQUARTERS Telephone number 00447 - 031 - 882 - 113 Gogarburn, Edinburgh, EH1 21 HQ, UK Scotland Registered Office, 36 St Andrew Square EH2 2YB royalbanksemail@scotlandmail.com Transfer Department Sir, I have been directed by the director of Foreign Operation/Wire Transfer to write you in respect of the mail we received today. Actually, we have earlier been told about you by the young lady Miss Kones that she wishes you to be her trustee/representative for the claim of her late father's deposit with our bank. Late Dr Kipkalya Kones is our late customer with substantial amount $3.8 Million Dollars of deposit with us. Hence you have been really appointed as a trustee to represent the next of kin. However before our bank will transact any business concerning the transfer of the fund with you , we will like you to send the followings items together with your full bank information where you want us to transfer the money : 1.A power of attorney permitting you to claim and transfer the funds to your bank account on her behalf. This document must be endorsed by a Senegalese resident lawyer which she can help you to get one. 2.The death certificate of late Dr Kipkalya Kones, her deceased father,confirming the death. 3.A copy of statement of account issued to Dr Kipkalya Kones by our bank Note that the above are compulsory, and are needed to protect our interest,yours, the next of kin after the claims. These shall also ensure that a smooth, quick and successful transfer of the fund is made. We promise to give our customers the best of our services. Should you have any question(s), for more directives/clarifications,please contact our foreign transfer officer. . Mr. Ron Teerlink on telephone number Tel Fax Yours aithfully, Mrs. Shirley Eracleous for Accounts Dept / Transfer Dept. 1.A power of attorney permitting you to claim and transfer the funds to your bank account on her behalf. This document must be endorsed by a Senegalese resident lawyer which she can help you to get one.2.The death certificate of late Dr Kipkalya Kones, her deceased father,confirming the death.3.A copy of statement of account issued to Dr Kipkalya Kones by our bankNote that the above are compulsory, and are needed to protect our interest,yours, the next of kin after the claims. These shall also ensure that a smooth, quick and successful transfer of the fund is made.We promise to give our customers the best of our services. Should you have any question(s), for more directives/clarifications,please contact our foreign transfer officer. .Mr. Ron Teerlink on telephone numberTel +447031882113 Fax +447031880876 Yours aithfully,Mrs. Shirley Eracleousfor Accounts Dept / Transfer Dept. Van: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > > Verzonden: dinsdag 27 september 15:23 2016 Onderwerp: CONGRATULATION This is the Mirian that contacted you some time ago about the transfer of funds to your account as previously mentioned in my proposal , I am sending you this e- mail to remind you of how I concluded with the said money transfer while knowing full well that you showed concern by offering the necessary help you could. I am thanking you very much for minimal assistance you gave me and for that, I intend to pay you well for good. I am very successful with the transfer of the funds that I contact you for assistance . I am happy to announce to your hearing that my husband and I are residing in Holland as the transfer is completed. Because of your help and love you showed me I am giving you the sum of ( $ 500,000,00 ), five hundred thousand United States dollars showing concern. Please, I want you to accept this as a gift from my heart, I would have sent you this email before, but due to how quickly my trip with my husband was to Holland and since then he has been monitoring my movement, I signed a cheque of $ 500,000,00 . dollars in your name, as I am successful with this transfer. I want you to contact the Rev. Chris Johnson for the collection of this cheque. It is my desire to fulfill my dreams in life and for humanity, so take this compensation that came from my true heart. Contact him through his e - mail below. Name : Rev. Chris Johnson Email : Phone : +221767536965 My dear I can not take the chance of sending you mail again as my husband is watching my movement. All should be between you and the Reverend Chris Johnson.You can send me an email to tell me what he said when you contact him for the cheque. Thanking you once again and God bless you and the whole family. Sincerely, Mrs Mirian. Dearest Friend,This is the Mirian that contacted you some time ago about the transfer of funds to your account as previously mentioned in my proposal , I am sending you this e- mail to remind you of how I concluded with the said money transfer while knowing full well that you showed concern by offering the necessary help you could. I am thanking you very much for minimal assistance you gave me and for that, I intend to pay you well for good. I am very successful with the transfer of the funds that I contact you for assistance .I am happy to announce to your hearing that my husband and I are residing in Holland as the transfer is completed. Because of your help and love you showed me I am giving you the sum of ( $ 500,000,00 ), five hundred thousand United States dollars showing concern. Please, I want you to accept this as a gift from my heart, I would have sent you this email before, but due to how quickly my trip with my husband was to Holland and since then he has been monitoring my movement, I signed a cheque of $ 500,000,00 . dollars in your name, as I am successful with this transfer.I want you to contact the Rev. Chris Johnson for the collection of this cheque. It is my desire to fulfill my dreams in life and for humanity, so take this compensation that came from my true heart.Contact him through his e - mail below.Name : Rev. Chris JohnsonEmail : revchris29@gmail.com Phone : +221767536965My dear I can not take the chance of sending you mail again as my husband is watching my movement. All should be between you and the Reverend Chris Johnson.You can send me an email to tell me what he said when you contact him for the cheque.Thanking you once again and God bless you and the whole family.Sincerely,Mrs Mirian. From: Lone Star National Bank < lonestarnationaban@hotmail.com > Sent: Wed, Sep 28, 2016 12:13 am Subject: Lone Star National Bank, Pharr Texas Lone Star National Bank Address: 206 W Ferguson Ave, Pharr, TX 78577, United States Tel: +19406033789 lonestarnationaban@hotmail.com ATTN: We the staffof Lone Star National Bank, Pharr Texas want to confirm the receipt of your mail to our bank,the young lady miriannlove@gmail.com have informed us about you and we have been waiting for your mail, her father deposited this money long ago before his death, it was her father's lawyer that informed us about the young lady 's parentsdeath and we sympathize with the young girl for the death of her parents because her father is a good man and oneof our big costumer.We want you to get back to us with Your bank account details where you want us to transfer the funds to and please sir, make sure you handle the money very well for her and God will bless you as you do so. Please we also need thebelow stated certificate from you andthe young lady before we will transfer the funds to you.You have to contactthe young lady and tell her to get a lawyer in Beninthat will help you people secure the following documents as soon as possible so that we will transfer the funds to you without any further delay. 1). POWER OF ATTORNEY 2). AFFIDAVITY OF CLAIM You need to bear in mind that the lawyer that will issue you people this two document most come from Beninso you need to contactthe young lady immediately you receive this mail so that both of you will put heads together and know how you are going to secure the documents, immediately you get back to us with your bank details and the documents the funds will be release to you without any further delay. We wait to hear from you as soon as possible. Yours f aithfully Mr. Rene Lopez Jr Lone Star National Ban k. Tell: +19406033789 From: Revandrew Kuma < revandrewkuma@gmail.com > Sent: Tue, Oct 4, 2016 2:20 am Subject: SEND YOUR CONTACT DETAILS FOR POSTING YOUR CHECK Hello and God bless you, YES I AM REV FATHER ANDREW KUMA THE COORDINATOR AND CONTROLLER OF THE REFUGEE CAMP HERE IN DAKAR SENEGAL, ACTUALLY YOUR PARTNER MISS KONEH HAVE TRAVEL WITH HER NEW PARTNER AND SHE LEFT WITH ME A CHECK DRAFT WITH THE BEARER NAME, SO I WANT YOU TO SEND ME YOUR CONTACT WHICH WILL ENABLE COURIER SERVICE TO SEND YOUR DRAFT TO YOUR DESTINATION YOU ARE REQUIRED TO CONFIRM YOUR INFORMATION WHERE THE DRAFT WILL BE SEND TO YOU, YOUR TELEPHONE NUMBER IS ALSO NEEDED FOR EASY COMMUNICATION AS SOON AS I CONFIRM YOUR INFORMATION I WILL SEND THE DRAFT TO YOU THROUGH COURIER SERVICE IMMEDIATELY. THE DRAFT WILL BE SEND TO YOU THROUGH DHL COURIER SERVICE TO YOUR COUNTRY SO YOUR INFORMATION IS NEEDED FROM YOU FAST, 1:YOUR FULL NAME. . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:YOUR ADDRESS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3;YOUR PHONE NUMBER. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:YOUR COUNTRY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:ATTACH COPY OF YOUR IDENTIFICATION. . . . . . . . . . . THANKS AND GOD BLESS REV . FATHER ANDREW KUMA From: revchris johnson < revchris29@gmail.com > Sent: Tue, Oct 4, 2016 2:56 am Subject: Send your informations May the peace of God Almighty be with you. How are you today ? i hope you are very fine over there. If so glory be to Almight God. My brother in Christ my name is Rev. Chris Johnson of Christ The King Church, Dakar Senegal. Miss Kones once living in the refugee told me about you and how she saw your profile and liked you to help her to come out from the camp and you tried very well to help her but you did not meet up . later contacted another person who give her the kind help she needed and now is no more living in the refugee camp. The person that helped her take her to his country. Before she traveled,she dropped a message for me. She told me to give you some amount of money and the money is in our care now .The amount of the money is usd$ 500.000 I will send the money to you. But you will send all your information to me including your address and your full name to avoid mistake. Once you send this information i will definitely send the money to you immediately.You can also call me with this phone number for more information. . . +221767536965 God bless you as i wait for your mail. Yours in Christ From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Fri, Oct 7, 2016 2:53 pm Subject: Darling, the money is only needed for the DHL office. . Hello darling, hope you are doing well over there. I wrote to the Reverend Chris now and ask him why must you pay for the check, and he explains many things to me, why you should pay. He said that the money is only needed for the DHL office. And you know that Reverend is old man and he also a man of God, and he can never lie to you. Just follow his instruction so that the DHL will send you the check. Just do inform me as soon as you received your check. I wish you the best of life. Mrs Mirian. From: revchris johnson < revchris29@gmail.com > Sent: Tue, Oct 18, 2016 3:01 am Subject: SEND YOUR INFORMATION : revchris29@gmail.com May the peace of God Almighty be with you. How are you today ? i hope you are very fine over there. If so glory be to Almight God. My brother in Christ ,my name is Rev. Chris Johnson of Christ The King Church, Dakar, Senegal. Miss Kones once living in the refugee told me about you and how she saw your profile and liked you to help her to come out from the camp and you tried very well to help her but you did not meet up . later contacted another person who give her the kind help she needed and now is no more living in the refugee camp. The person that helped her take her to his country. . Before she traveled,she dropped a massage for you. She told me to give you some amount of money and the money is in our care now. The amount of the money is usd$ 500.000.00 I will send the money to you. But you will send all your information to me including your address and your full name to avoid mistake. Once you send this information, i will definitely send the money to you immediately. You can also call me with this phone number for more information. . . +221.767536965 God bless you as i wait for your mail. Yours in Christ From: revchris johnson < revchris29@gmail.com > Sent: Tue, Oct 18, 2016 4:04 pm Subject: DHL fees about your $500,000 cheque delivery Sir, May the peace of the Lord be with you and your family, amen ! Today i hereby have no other option that to send you the money which Miss Kones miriannlove@gmail.com left for you in my care becauseleft for me here as evidence to prove that you are the right person and your delivery address is noted to send the cheque to your house. As soon as i went for the delivery/shipment enquiries DHL on how to post the cheque in regards to your destination and the Korea company I visited them and they gave me different charges based on the weight and country of destination and it is left for you to choose preferable one following the face value of your cheque being $500,000 (five hundred thousand dollars) and needed diplomatic attention it will arrive in three days. C harges are as follows : Diplomatic House Delivery Care : 210 $ Immunity Yellow Tag: 45.$ 10% vat :78 $ Total :. . . . . . . . 333 $ My dear, try your possible best to see that you send this money to me as soon as you get this mail so that i can go to the DHL office to send you the cheque before any other things. The total amount is three hundred and thirty three dollars you are to send the money through WESTERN UNION with .Please send me the information you use to send the money to western union through my email address for easy collection. Use this information and send the money. Address :No. 265 Parcel, Dakar, Senegal. First Name. . . . .John Last Name. . . . . . Chris Question. . . . . ok Answer. . . . . ok From: miriann love < miriannlove@gmail.com > Sent: Wed, Oct 19, 2016 2:12 am Subject: My dear friend, send this money to the pastor My dear friend, what you have to do now is to try and send this money to the pastor revandrewkuma@gmail.com so that he can send your check to you, as soon as you receive this gift you will use the money and take good care of yourself, so try today. Mirian If you received a similar letter, please ignore it. Do not answer it. If you do, you will end up on more of the mailing lists used by the criminals behind this fraud. Read more.... Mobile Wallet Market Will Witness Growth Based On Rising Demand For Enhanced Government Policies And Security Issues Till 2024: Grand View Research, Inc. http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/mobile-wallet-market The global mobile wallet market() is expected to reach USD 7,581.91 billion by 2024, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Growing mobile penetration with improved payment infrastructure and data connectivity are expected to offer the significant opportunity of the mobile wallet market. Increasing application of mobile wallet which includes Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay with the growing capability of paying through mobile phones, is expected to drive the market demand.Increasing demand for enhanced government policies and security issues is expected to drive the market growth. Enterprises across the industries are developing and deploying the new products for improving the productivity with increasing security. The increasing need for lowering cost of ownership and increased convenience need will continue to dictate the market development.Growing development in NFC has encouraged the consumers to use the mobile devices for making small and large payments. Proliferation and adoption of mobile payments including digital wallets and usage of apps has encouraged the non-payment technology firms to enter into payment landscape such as American Express and Jawbone. According to the U.K. Cards Association, contactless payments in the region have surged to 184% high with 179.6 Billion of transactions.Further key findings from the report suggest: Banking entities, payment gateways, businesses and payment processors are expanding with the emerging payment technologies. Proximity product type is expected to have maximum CAGR over the forecast period owing to the increased penetration of NFC enabled mobile phones. The public transportation application segment is expected to have significant growth over the forecast period, owing to changing industry trends the transit system operators are moving away from traditional payment of parking fees, displaying interactive route maps, sounding alarms in case of emergency, real time service information and service schedules. The restaurant application is expected to witness a CAGR of over 38% over the forecast period. Restaurants have started upgrading terminals for accepting the various payment methods. The technology has enabled the customer to use a mobile app to check in, pre-order, order online and make reservations. Developed regions such as North America have a well-established NFC market, owing to the high adaptability of the consumers for the new technology. Three wireless carriers, T-Mobile USA , AT&T Mobility (U.S) and Verizon Wireless (U.S) are working in collaboration with Barclaycard U.S. and Discover Financial Services to analyze and implement the NFC technology in the product list The key players in the mobile wallet market include Google Inc (U.S), Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd (South Korea), VISA Inc (U.S). Companies are focusing on developing new services and secure payment platform to enhance the market share.Grand View Research has segmented the mobile wallet market on the basis of product type, application, and region:Mobile Wallet Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2024) Proximity RemoteMobile Wallet Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2024) Retail Vending Machine Public Transportation RestaurantsMobile Wallet Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2024) North America Europe Asia Pacific Latin America MEAAbout Grand View ResearchGrand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare.Press ContactSherry James - Corporate Relations Specialist28 2nd Street, Suite 3036San Francisco, CA 94105United StatesPhone: 1-415-349-0058Email: sales@grandviewresearch.com Global Baby Food Market size will grow at a CAGR of around 6.2% between 2016 and 2021. http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/sample/baby-food-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/report/baby-food-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/inquiry/baby-food-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/buynow/su/baby-food-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com Zion Research has published a new report titled Baby Food Market (Bottled baby food, Baby food cereals, Baby food snacks, Baby Food Soup, Frozen baby food): Global Industry Perspective, Comprehensive Analysis and Forecast, 2015 2021. According to the report, the Global Baby Food Market accounted for USD 53.31 Billion in 2015 and is expected to reach USD 76.48 Billion by 2021, growing at a CAGR of around 6.2% between 2016 and 2021.Get a copy of free Sample Report @Baby food is either a total or partial substitute for breast milk for infants or toddlers of under two years. It is a soft food, which can be easily consumed by infants and babies. To meet the nutritional requirements of the baby, baby foods are specially designed by the manufacturers. Generally, baby food is prepared with required amount of proteins and iron, so that it properly helps in the babys growth and initial body development. The baby food market is classified into various segments which include product, health benefits and basic ingredients.There are mainly three forms of baby food, which are liquid concentrate, powder, and ready-to-feed. The powder is the least expensive form and it is used by mixing with water before feeding the infant. In the case of the ready-to-feed form of baby food, there is no need of addition of any liquid and mother can feed this directly to the baby. Furthermore, subcategories of baby foods include dried baby food, milk formula, prepared baby food and other baby food such as baby snacks and beverages. Cow milk-based formulas are gaining large adoption in emerging economies in the past few years. Increasing population base, rising disposable income level of individual and growing urbanization, are some of the major reasons, which are expected to be driving the baby food market in all across the globe. The decline in the birth rate in developed countries can act as a major challenge for the growth in baby food market within the forecast period.Growth in the baby food or formula market is also driven by an increase in numbers of women working outside the home. As many working mothers return to their jobs shortly after giving birth, prepared baby foods and formulas provide the tempting substitute for working mothers, bridging their desires for nutritious, healthy food with their need for convenience. Hypermarkets, supermarkets, small grocery retails, and health & beauty retailers are the key distribution channels serving in the baby food industry. Among all supermarkets are the primarily preferred distribution channel followed by health and beauty retailers. However, in developing countries like India, small grocery retailers and health and beauty retailers are among the most preferred sales channels. At present, small grocery retailers hold a relatively smaller share of the global market. Other sales channels in this market include discounters, non-store retailing and non-grocery retailers.Browse detail report with in-depth TOC @Asia Pacific market is prominent and one of the fastest growing markets for baby food among various regions due to population growth in China and India. Hence, in Asia-Pacific region, China and India hold an extensive share in the baby food market. Nestle India Ltd maintained the lead the market accounting for a major share in the market in 2015. The company has continued to leverage the reputation of its leading brands including Cerelac, Lactogen, Nestum, Nan and Nestogen. The company is focusing on enlarging its penetration to smaller cities of India.North America was the largest markets for baby food in 2015. In North America region, the U.S. accounted account the largest share in the baby food market. However, the market for baby foods in North America is expected to witness stagnant growth due to the low birth rate and less demand for baby food. The debate over legislations regarding food labeling and its advertisements are poised to exhibit challenges for baby food products sales. Parents are opting for natural ingredients and no additives containing food with major attraction on organic baby food products.Some of the main companies operating in global baby food market are Abbott Laboratories, Bledina SA, Danone SA, Hain Celestial Group, H. J. Heinz Company, Ellas Kitchen Group Ltd, Nestle S.A., Semper AB, Mead Johnson Nutrition Company, Morinaga Milk Industry Co., Ltd.Know more before buying this report @This report segments the global baby food market as follows:Global Baby Food Market: Product Segment AnalysisBottled baby foodBaby food cerealsBaby food snacksBaby Food SoupFrozen baby foodGlobal Baby Food Market: Regional Segment AnalysisNorth AmericaU.S.EuropeUKFranceGermanyAsia PacificChinaJapanIndiaLatin AmericaBrazilThe Middle East & AfricaPurchase a direct copy of report with TOC @About Us:Zion Market Research is an obligated company. We create futuristic, cutting edge, informative reports ranging from industry reports, company reports to country reports. We provide our clients not only with market statistics unveiled by avowed private publishers and public organizations but also with vogue and newest industry reports along with pre-eminent and niche company profiles. Our database of market research reports comprises a wide variety of reports from cardinal industries. Our database is been updated constantly in order to fulfill our clients with prompt and direct online access to our database. Keeping in mind the clients needs, we have included expert insights on global industries, products, and market trends in this database. Last but not the least, we make it our duty to ensure the success of clients connected to usafter allif you do well, a little of the light shines on us.Contact Us:Zion Market Research4283, Express Lane,Suite 634-143,Sarasota, Florida 34249, United StatesTel: +49-322 210 92714USA/Canada Toll Free No.1-855-465-4651Email: sales@zionmarketresearch.comWebsite: Global Yeast Market will hit USD 4.86 Billion By 2021 http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/sample/yeast-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/inquiry/yeast-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/report/yeast-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/buynow/su/yeast-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com Zion Research has published a new report titled Yeast Market by Form (Instant, Fresh and Dry Yeast), by Type (Brewers, Bakers, Bio-ethanol, Wine, Feed and Other type), by Specialty Yeast (Yeast Autolysis, Yeast Extract and -glucan) for Food and feed: Global Industry Perspective, Comprehensive Analysis and Forecast, 2015 2021. According to the report, global yeast market was valued at over USD 2.96 billion in 2015, is expected to reach above USD 4.86 billion in 2021 and is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of above 8.6 % between 2016 and 2021.Get a copy of free Sample Report @Yeast is the single-celled eukaryotic organisms classified into fungus kingdom. Yeast is aerobic, anaerobic or facultative in nature and can grow in acidic conditions. It is present in all living cells including small intestine. Edible yeast is nontoxic and has properties like rising which help in fermenting and resulting in great taste. Some of the major applications of yeast are baking, brewing, fermentation, bioremediation, industrial fuels and nutritional supplements.Increasing demand for yeast from the bakery due to high consumption of bakery products drives the yeast market. Other factors contributing to the growth of yeast market are surging use of specialty yeast in the processed and packed food. Also, high demand of bio-ethanol as fuel stimulates the growth of the market. Growing demand for alcoholic beverages has led to the high production of wine and other beverages, in turn, increase the demand for yeast. Though, yeast based products have a low shelf life and allergies caused due to consumption of some yeast species may hinder the growth of the market. Specialty yeast contains MSG; therefore stringent regulations are led by the government on its use. Nevertheless, untapped opportunities for the use of yeast in various industries are likely to open new avenues for the yeast market in the coming years.Based on yeast form the yeast market can be segmented as instant yeast, fresh yeast, and dry yeast. Fresh yeast is considered to be the potential segment owing to the high use of fresh yeast in bakery product mainly in bread and puffs due to great taste and high rising properties. Further, the yeast can be segmented on the basis of the type that are brewers, bakers, bio-ethanol, wine, feed and other types. Bakers and brewers are the leading segments due to high use of yeast in this industrial sector. Yet, wine and feed are likely to show high growth prospects in the coming years.Know more before buying this report @Specialty yeast is product originating from natural food yeast, which is used for nutrition, health, and taste. Some of the key specialty yeast are yeast autolysis, yeast extract, and -glucan. Yeast is majorly used in food and feed industry. Food segment is the most prominent market segment due to high use of yeast in food industry such as bakery, wine, and breweries.The yeast market was dominated by North America in 2015. This was mainly contributed to high consumption of bakery products along with the majority of shares in wine and brewery industry. However, North America and Europe are anticipated to experience sluggish growth in forecast period due to saturation of yeast market. Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest growing market owing to rising discretional income and changing preference over the conventional foods towards fast and processed foods. The yeast market in Asia-Pacific is projected to maintain its market in the coming years due to growing bakery and wine industry.There has been tremendous growth of wine industry in Brazil; this is likely to augment yeast market growth in Latin America. The Middle East and Africa is expected to show sustainable growth in the next years owing to rising living standards along with increasing disposable incomes and presence of abundant raw resources.The presence of various vendors in the market forces the companies to focus on R&D for innovative and cost effective products. AngelYeast Co., Ltd, Koninklijke DSM N.V., Synergy Flavors, Leiber GmbH, Chr. Hansen Holding A/S, Associated British Foods plc, Lallemand Inc., Oriental Yeast Co., Ltd., Alltech and Lesaffre Group among others are some of the major players in the yeast market.Browse detail report with in-depth TOC @This report segments the yeast market as follows:Yeast Market: Form Segment AnalysisInstant yeastFresh yeastDry yeastYeast Market: Type Segment AnalysisBrewersBakersBio-ethanolWineFeedOtherYeast Market: Specialty Type Segment AnalysisYeast autolysisYeast extract-glucanOtherYeast Market: Application Segment AnalysisFoodFeedYeast Market: Regional Segment AnalysisNorth AmericaUSEuropeGermanyFranceUKAsia PacificChinaJapanIndiaLatin AmericaBrazilThe Middle East and AfricaPurchase a direct copy of report with TOC @About Us:Zion Market Research is an obligated company. We create futuristic, cutting edge, informative reports ranging from industry reports, company reports to country reports. We provide our clients not only with market statistics unveiled by avowed private publishers and public organizations but also with vogue and newest industry reports along with pre-eminent and niche company profiles. Our database of market research reports comprises a wide variety of reports from cardinal industries. Our database is been updated constantly in order to fulfill our clients with prompt and direct online access to our database. Keeping in mind the clients needs, we have included expert insights on global industries, products, and market trends in this database. Last but not the least, we make it our duty to ensure the success of clients connected to usafter allif you do well, a little of the light shines on us.Contact Us:Zion Market Research4283, Express Lane,Suite 634-143,Sarasota, Florida 34249, United StatesTel: +49-322 210 92714USA/Canada Toll Free No.1-855-465-4651Email: sales@zionmarketresearch.comWebsite: Identity and Access Management Market Growth, Trends, Industry Analysis and Forecast to 2025 |The Insight Partners http://www.theinsightpartners.com/reports/identity-and-access-management-market http://www.theinsightpartners.com/sample/TIPTE100000169 http://www.theinsightpartners.com/inquiry/TIPTE100000169 http://www.theinsightpartners.com/discount/TIPTE100000169 The Identity and Access Management Market to 2025 - Global Analysis and Forecasts by Industries, Services report provides a detailed overview of the major factors impacting the global market with the market share analysis and revenues of various sub segments.Browse market data tables and in-depth TOC of the Identity and Access Management Market to 2025 @Identity and access management solutions provides ability to manage electronic identity for accessing information and resources System security and providing secure environment is emerging as one of the top most priorities for organization, considering the increasing incident of insider threats, which may result into loss of critical information and financial losses. Increasing compliance adherence requirement is also pushing the adoption for advanced identity and access management solutions.Rising adoption of bring-your-own-device (BYOD) trends, increasing usage of mobile devices for work, complex web applications threats are hindering the traditional solutions and models of Identity and access management, and pushing the innovation envelope for further development of advanced models and solutions which can cater according to todays dynamic requirements.Request Sample Copy @Increasing focus of enterprises towards compliances management, increasing security concerns among data sensitive industry like telecommunications, and banking, insurance and financial industry services and high mobility adoption trends are some of the factors that are driving the Identity and access management market. Low trust factor on cloud services for providing identity assurance is one of the reasons that may slow down the growth of Identity and access management solutions among various industry verticals. Increasing BYOD and mobility trends and providing solutions via hybrid model are among the factors that are expected to provide high opportunities for various Identity and access management market players that are operating in this particular market.The Identity and access management market is segmented on the basis of component into password management, audit, compliance, and governance, single sign-on., directory services and provisioning Further, on the basis of deployment type the Identity and access management market is segmented into cloud and On-premise. The Identity and access management market is also divided on the basis of end user type into small and medium enterprise and large enterprise. The Identity and access management market is bifurcated on the basis of industry vertical into telecom and IT, public sector and utilities, BFSI, retail, education, energy, manufacturing, healthcare and life sciences and others. The global Identity and access management market is also bifurcated on the basis of regions into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, South America and Middle East & Africa.Make an Inquiry @North America holds one of the largest share in the global Identity and access management market. High technical adoption trends and high awareness among end users in North American region has fueled the growth of the Identity and access management market. Asia Pacific is one of the fastest growing Identity and access management market and provides lucrative opportunity for various solutions vendors, due to increasing regulatory compliances and increasing number of connected devices.Some of the key players operating in the global Identity and access management market are. EMC Corporation, Centrify Corporation, Sailpoint Technologies, Inc., Hitachi ID Systems, Inc., Okta, Inc., Netiq Corporation , Dell Software , Microsoft Corporation , Oracle , CA Technologies and IBM Corporation among others.Inquire about discount on this report @Some of the key points covered in the report: Identity and Access Management Market Landscape Identity and Access Management Market Key Industry Dynamics Identity and Access Management Market Five Forces Analysis Identity and Access Management Market Competitive Landscape Identity and Access Management Market Revenue and Forecasts to 2025 Component Identity and Access Management Market Revenue and Forecasts to 2025 End-user Type Identity and Access Management Market Revenue and Forecasts to 2025 Deployment Type Identity and Access Management Market Revenue and Forecasts to 2025 Industry Vertical Identity and Access Management Market Revenue and Forecasts to 2025 Geographical Analysis Identity and Access Management Market, Key Company ProfilesAbout The Insight Partners:The Insight Partners is a one stop industry research provider of actionable intelligence. We help our clients in getting solutions to their research requirements through our syndicated and consulting research services. We are a specialist in Technology, Media, and Telecommunication industries.Contact Us:Call: +1-646-491-9876Email: sales@theinsightpartners.comThe Insight Partners is a one stop industry research provider of actionable intelligence. We help our clients in getting solutions to their research requirements through our syndicated and consulting research services. We are a specialist in Technology, Media, and Telecommunication industries.505, 6th floor, Amanora Township,Amanora Chambers, East Block,Kharadi Road, Hadapsar, Pune-411028 Global Military Smart Weapons Sales Market 2016: News, Report & Application https://goo.gl/4hXiWq http://www.bigmarketresearch.com/global-military-smart-weapons-sales-report-2016-market http://www.bigmarketresearch.com Global Military Smart Weapons Sales Market 2016:This report studies sales (consumption) of Military Smart Weapons in Global market, especially in USA, China, Europe, Japan, India and Southeast Asia, focuses on top players in these regions/countries, with sales, price, revenue and market share for each player in these regions, coveringThe Boeing CompanyDenel SOC LtdKongsberg GruppenLockheed Martin CorporationMBDAOrbital ATKRaytheon CompanyTextron IncDownload sample PDF copy of this report @Table of Contents1 Military Smart Weapons Overview2 Global Military Smart Weapons Competition by Manufacturers, Type and Application3 USA Military Smart Weapons (Volume, Value and Sales Price)4 China Military Smart Weapons (Volume, Value and Sales Price)5 Europe Military Smart Weapons (Volume, Value and Sales Price)6 Japan Military Smart Weapons (Volume, Value and Sales Price)7 India Military Smart Weapons (Volume, Value and Sales Price)8 Southeast Asia Military Smart Weapons (Volume, Value and Sales Price)Get Full Report Information @About Company:With the arsenal of different search reports, we help you here to look and buy research reports that will be helpful to you and your organization. Big Market Research reports have the capability and authenticity to support your organization for growth and consistency.With the window of opportunity getting open and shut at a speed of light, it has become very important to survive in the market and only the fittest and competent enough can do so. So, we try and provide with latest changes in the market that can suit your needs and help you take decision accordingly.Contact Us:5933 NE Win Sivers Drive,#205, Portland, OR 97220United StatesDirect :+ 1-503-894-6022Toll Free : + 1-800-910-6452Email: help@bigmarketresearch.comWeb: GALERIE SUPPER at Art San Diego 2016 Andreas Wachter: Ebbe, 2016, mixed media on hird fibre, 40 x 55 cm http://art-sandiego.com/ www.galerie-supper.de With great pleasure GALERIE SUPPER announces its first participation at Art San Diego from 3 to 6 November 2016. In Booth 624, works of Rayk Goetze (*1964, Stralsund), Andreas Wachter (*1951, Chemnitz), Monika Thiele (*1966, Erfurt) and Andreas Lau (*1964, Karlsruhe) will be presented.The compiled positions oscillate between painting and drawing, between surface and line. What brings them together is their reflection on the human body and to the space in which it is moving. While the works of Monika Thiele capture portraits in motion through lines drawn by threads almost rather as a moment than as a portrayal Rayk Goetze breaks the imagination of man as a unity through skilful fragmentation and a masterly understanding of colour and surface. Andreas Lau explores media spaces and the shift in the perception of men. This shift, within the alienation of images through mass reproduction plays a significant role, is the translated by Lau into a disturbing and impressive imagery. Conversely, the works of Andreas Wachter tempt us into projecting the real world into them. However, in these pieces, a place is becoming a scene, a building a protagonist. Wachter creates oil paintings, which suggest a mysterious relation between figure and architecture, between body and space.ART SAN DIEGONovember 3-6, 2016Opening: November 3, 7 - 9 pmOpening Hours: Fri - Sat noon - 8 pm; Sun noon - 5 pm---GALERIE SUPPER is specialized in contemporary art.Founded in 2002 it opened in Baden-Baden in 2012 with its current profile. The gallery promotes young, emerging artists with an unique signature. It is the intention to correlate them with renowned artists. Their positions should complement and stimulate each other, whereas every artist keeps his own characteristics.GALERIE SUPPERKreuzstrae 3D - 76530 Baden-BadenMo - Fr: noon - 6 pmSa - So: noon - 4 pmand on appointmentPhone + 49 (0) 72 21 - 37 30 450Fax: + 49 (0) 72 21 - 37 30 451mail@galerie-supper.de Therapeutic Respiratory Devices Market size $23.65bn by 2024 Global Market Insights, Inc. http://bit.ly/2dzlrWw http://bit.ly/2esSKJW http://bit.ly/2erkgpT https://www.gminsights.com Therapeutic Respiratory Devices Market size was USD 8.8billion in 2015, with 11.7% CAGR estimation from 2016 to 2024.; as per a new research report by Global Market Insights, Inc.Growing geriatric population, rising prevalence of chronic disorders, and increased demand in home healthcare institutions are the major factors slated to drive therapeutic respiratory devices market size. Technological advancements and presence of untapped opportunities in countries such as India, China, and Japan are expected to be key opportunity areas for industry participants over the forecast timeframe.Request for a sample of this research report -Global therapeutic respiratory devices market size is predominantly driven by the PAP devices. Rising prevalence of sleep apnea coupled with growing geriatric population are the key contributing factors. Furthermore, rising preference of this equipment owing to easy portability and rapid relief are responsible for expected growth. PAP devices was followed by the oxygen concentrators market owing to rising demand in home healthcare and growing demand for oxygen therapy among patients. Product innovation has led to application in the treatment of chronic as well as acute respiratory conditions, thereby propelling growth.Respiratory monitoring products utilize software applications for ensuring data collection and analysis from ventilators equipped across the healthcare system. However, the number of users tends to decline with the increase in use duration owing to the ambiguity regarding usage and side effects such as morning headaches. In case of oral appliances, a similar pattern has been observed. Use of this equipment causes excess saliva build up and muscle soreness thereby leading to reduce in patient compliances.Make an inquiry for purchasing this report @North America was the largest regional segment, with revenue estimated at over USD 3 billion in 2015. This was mainly due to U.S. therapeutic respiratory devices market share, which contributed more than half of the North American revenue on account of high respiratory disorder prevalence and promising regulatory scenario. India, China, South Africa, and Brazil should witness lucrative growth in the forecast years owing to advancing healthcare infrastructure, favorable political and regulatory scenario, and advent of new companies in these regions.Browse key industry insights spread across 126 pages with 60 market data tables & 11 figures & charts from the report, Therapeutic Respiratory Devices Market Size By Product (Nebulizers, Humidifiers, Oxygen Concentrators, Positive Airway Pressure, Ventilators, Capnograph, Gas Analyzer), By Technology (Electrostatic Filtration, HEPA Filter, Hollow Fiber Filtration, Microsphere Separation), By Filter (Nebulizer, Humidifiers, Positive Airway Pressure, Oxygen Concentrators, Ventilators), Industry Analysis Report, Regional Outlook (U.S., Canada, UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, China, India, Japan, Mexico, Brazil, South Africa), Application Potential, Price Trends, Competitive Market Share & Forecast, 2016 2024in detail along with the table of contents:Key insights from the report include: Global therapeutic respiratory devices market size was USD 8.82 billion for 2015, with revenue forecast to reach USD 23.65 billion by 2024, at 11.7% CAGR. Electrostatic technology will continue to dominate overall revenue throughout the forecast timeline, and was pegged at USD 3.1 billion in 2015. Large patient pool of COPD, asthma, and sleep apnea along with high level of awareness regarding the treatment of respiratory diseases will drive the U.S. therapeutic respiratory devices market share. Germany and France together contributed around 47% to the European revenue in 2015. The therapeutic respiratory devices industry is characterized by stringent FDA regulations, and huge capital investment in launching new products. India, Japan, and China therapeutic respiratory devices market share will drive demand in Asia Pacific. Japan has largest number of geriatric population, LATAM growth was driven by Brazil and Mexico. Key companies include Philips Healthcare, GE Healthcare, Covidien, Invacare, Smiths Medical, Care Fusion, etc. Mergers, acquisitions, and R&D investments represent the major strategies practiced by incumbent players.Global Market Insights, Inc., headquartered in Delaware, U.S., is a global market research and consulting service provider; offering syndicated and custom research reports along with growth consulting services. Our business intelligence and industry research reports offer clients with penetrative insights and actionable market data specially designed and presented to aid strategic decision making. These exhaustive reports are designed via a proprietary research methodology and are available for key industries such as chemicals, advanced materials, technology, renewable energy and biotechnology.Corporate Sales, USAGlobal Market Insights, Inc.Phone: 1-302-846-7766Toll Free: 1 888-689-0688Email: sales@gminsights.comWeb: Global E-Commerce Logistics Market to grow at a CAGR of 9.69% during the period 2016-2020. https://goo.gl/XAZJ4d http://www.bigmarketresearch.com/global-e-commerce-logistics-market https://goo.gl/vWdtq0 http://www.bigmarketresearch.com About E-commerce LogisticsE-commerce logistics has evolved substantially worldwide over the last few years. The key areas driving e-commerce are ICT, electrical, and fashion goods. Four different types of logistic functions evolved with the evolution of e-commerce is mega e-fulfilment centers, parcel hubs, delivery centers, and integrated technology, where, for example, transportation management systems are connected with shopping carts.To reach strategic locations, even e-commerce giants like Amazon and Alibaba are looking for third-party logistics providers. Small firms are not able to afford their logistics, but their growth rate is high, which makes the e-commerce logistics market even more attractive.Acquire Sample copy of this report @Global e-commerce logistics market to grow at a CAGR of 9.69% during the period 2016-2020.Covered in this reportThe report covers the present scenario and the growth prospects of the global e-commerce logistics market for the period 2016-2020. To calculate the market size, the report considers the revenue generated from different types of transportation and different geographical regions.The market is divided into the following segments based on geography:APACEuropeNorth AmericaROWGlobal E-commerce Logistics Market 2016-2020, has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.Full Report Information @Key vendorsAramexDeutsche Post DHL GroupFedExInnotracS.F. ExpressKey questions answered in this reportWhat will the market size be in 2020 and what will the growth rate be?What are the key market trends?What is driving this market?Apply For Discount on this report @About Company:With the arsenal of different search reports, we help you here to look and buy research reports that will be helpful to you and your organization. Big Market Research reports have the capability and authenticity to support your organization for growth and consistency.With the window of opportunity getting open and shut at a speed of light, it has become very important to survive in the market and only the fittest and competent enough can do so. So, we try and provide with latest changes in the market that can suit your needs and help you take decision accordingly.Contact Us:5933 NE Win Sivers Drive,#205, Portland, OR 97220United StatesDirect :+ 1-503-894-6022Toll Free : + 1-800-910-6452Email: help@bigmarketresearch.comWeb: New Release | Global Molecular Diagnostics Market with Focus on Infectious Diseases (HPV/Chlamydia) & Genetic Testing: Industry Analysis & Outlook (2016-2020) http://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=S&repid=827476 http://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=E&repid=827476 http://www.researchmoz.us/ http://bit.ly/1TBmnVG Researchmoz added Most up-to-date research on "Global Molecular Diagnostics Market with Focus on Infectious Diseases (HPV/Chlamydia) & Genetic Testing: Industry Analysis & Outlook (2016-2020)" to its huge collection of research reports.Diagnosis is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. It involves two different types of testing method: in vivo and in vitro diagnostics. In vitro diagnostics (IVD) are the medical tests which are intended to perform diagnoses from sample of body fluids in a controlled environment outside a living organism. In vitro diagnostic (IVD) tests are performed to conduct diagnoses from assays in a test tube, or in a controlled environment outside a living organism.Molecular Diagnostics is a technology used in the process of in vitro diagnosis. Molecular diagnostics involves the measurement of DNA, RNA, proteins or metabolites in order to detect genotypes, mutations or biochemical changes in the body. Molecular diagnostics market is escalating beyond the identification of infections. It is becoming an essential part of disease management and therapy. The variety of technologies used in molecular diagnostics has transformed clinical laboratory medicine. The market is further expected to see a robust growth with increased research and development.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @The global molecular diagnostics market is expected to see innovation driven growth. With recent outbreak of infectious diseases like Ebola and swine flu, they would require accurate diagnostics, which will instigate the growth of the molecular diagnostics technology in the future, thereby posing tremendous growth potential for the market. Asia-Pacific is expected to register the highest growth rate in expansion of molecular diagnostics in the coming years.The key factors driving growth of the MD market includes fast approvals for companion diagnostics reagents, increase in emergence of infectious disease, innovation and technical development, rising ageing population, and escalating global healthcare expenditure. However, there are certain factors hindering the growth of the market like high initial cost, obligation of skilled labor, and lack of proper healthcare infrastructure. The major trends featuring the market includes increasing clinical microbiological laboratories in developing nations, next generation sequencing, and increase in sale of point of care devices.The report offers an in-depth analysis of the Global Molecular Diagnostics Market with focus on Infectious Diseases (HPV/Chlamydia) & Genetic Testing. It covers the regional and global aspect of the market. Competition is concentrated in the hands of few major companies, of which Roche Holding, Abbott Laboratories, Hologic Inc., and Qiagen have been covered in the report.Table of Content1. Market Overview1.1 Diagnostics1.2 Molecular Diagnostics1.3 Purpose of Molecular Diagnostics2. Global In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) Market2.1 Global IVD Market by Value2.2 Global IVD Market Forecast by Value2.3 Global IVD Market by Segment2.4 Global IVD Market by Technology3. Global Molecular Diagnostics (MD) Market3.1 Global MD Market by Value3.2 Global MD Market Forecast by Value3.3 Global MD Market by Application3.4 Global MD Market Forecast by Region3.5 Global MD Market by Test Type3.5.1 Global HPV Market by Value & Volume3.5.2 Global HPV Market Forecast by Value & Volume3.5.3 Global CT/NG Market by Value & Volume3.5.4 Global CT/NG Market Forecast by Value & Volume3.5.5 Global Genetic Testing Market by Value3.5.6 Global Genetics Testing Market Forecast by Value4. Regional Market4.1 North America4.1.1 North America MD Market by Value4.1.2 North America MD Market Forecast by Value4.1.3 North America MD Market by Application4.2 Europe4.2.1 European MD Market by Value4.2.2 European MD Market Forecast by Value4.2.3 European MD Market by Application4.3 Korea4.3.1 Korean MD Market by Value4.3.2 Korean MD Market Forecast by Value5. Market Dynamics5.1 Growth Drivers5.1.1 Fast Approvals for Companion Diagnostics Reagents5.1.2 Rising Emergence of Infectious Disease5.1.3 Rise in Medical Check-up Participation Rate5.1.4 Innovation and Technical Development5.1.5 Clear Guidance by FDA5.1.6 Rise in Global Ageing Population5.1.7 Rising Global Healthcare Expenditure5.2 Key Trends and Developments5.2.1 Increasing Clinical Microbiology Laboratories in Developing Nation5.2.2 Next Generation Sequencing5.2.3 Targeting Anti-Biotic Resistance5.2.4 Growth in Point of Care Diagnostics5.2.5 Booming Medical Device Industry5.3 Challenges5.3.1 High Initial Cost5.3.2 Obligation of Skilled Labour5.3.3 Urgent need for Proper Infrastructure6. Competitive Landscape6.1 Global IVD Market6.1.1 Market Share Comparison6.2 Global MD Market6.2.1 Market Share Comparison6.2.2 Market Cap Comparison6.2.3 Competitive Position by Segment7. Company Profiles7.1 Roche Holding7.1.1 Business Overview7.1.2 Financial Overview7.1.3 Business Strategy7.2 Abbott Laboratories7.2.1 Business Overview7.2.2 Financial Overview7.2.3 Business Strategy7.3 Hologic Inc.7.3.1 Business Overview7.3.2 Financial Overview7.3.3 Business Strategy7.4 Qiagen7.4.1 Business Overview7.4.2 Financial Overview7.4.3 Business StrategyMake an Enquiry of this report @About ResearchMozResearchMoz is the one stop online destination to find and buy market research reports & Industry Analysis. We fulfill all your research needs spanning across industry verticals with our huge collection of market research reports. We provide our services to all sizes of organizations and across all industry verticals and markets. Our Research Coordinators have in-depth knowledge of reports as well as publishers and will assist you in making an informed decision by giving you unbiased and deep insights on which reports will satisfy your needs at the best price.Mr. NachiketState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesEmail: sales@researchmoz.usWebsite @Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Follow us on LinkedIn @ Router and Switch Market Global Industry Analysis Report, Share, Size, Growth, Price Trends and Forecast, 2022 http://bit.ly/2dzlRwc http://bit.ly/2djuFne The global router and switch market volume is predicted to cross $ 41000 million by end of the forecasted period. It is predicted to register CAGR of 2.9 % during the projected period. Wi-Fi hotspots & Wi-Fi enabled stations, broadband highways and tech-savvy campuses are predicted to contribute towards the growth & expansion of global router and switch market.The global router and switch market is witnessing substantial expansion due to factors like convergence of business & residential networks, video and Ethernet carriers. This trend is predicted to persist in future. Growing rise in use of bandwidth and Ethernet technique is one of the main factors promoting the growth of global router and switch market.The growing demand for utilization of wireless technology in day to day network communication applications like mobiles, internet & personal banking is predicted to promote the growth of the global router and switch market in future. Further, the rising demand for enterprise wireless local area network device is predicted to enhance the demand and growth of the global industry.Request for a sample of this research report @Growing demand for internet enabled equipments, development of cloud networks, growing use of cloud computing solutions and growing acceptance of virtual technology are few of the factors predicted to promote the growth of the global router and switch market.Rising demand for rigorous research & development activities has resulted in manufacture of modernized high end user friendly products that meet process needs. This has significantly enlarged the extent of bandwidth of advanced IP routing activities and this is predicted to boost the growth of the router and switch market in future.Based on the product, the global router and switch market is bifurcated into Ethernet service edge router, internet exchange router, multiservice edge router, ATM switch, service provider core router and network termination equipment. As the information/data carriers become growingly dependent on Ethernet service to transfer IP traffic in their systems, demand for these Ethernet service edge products is predicted to grow during the estimated period. Depending upon service, global router and switch market is divided into broadband aggregation service, Ethernet access service, internet data centre service and Ethernet aggregation service.Growing preference of firms demanding rapid network services at reasonable costs for connecting workers, data centres and branch offices is predicted to stimulate the Ethernet access service growth and demand during forecasted period. Based on the geographical locations, global router and switch market is bifurcated into North American subcontinent, APAC zone, European continent and rest of the world.The subcontinent of North America contributed maximum share to the total share of the global router and switch market in 2014. The reason behind the growth of the market in the subcontinent is due to the backhaul investments in mobile technology growing significantly in US as service providers buy the products for fulfilling the data demand though different LTE enabled equipments/tools.Further, the growth of the market in North America can be attributed to factors like growing broadband and mobile data traffic forcing service providers to upgrade their mobile backhaul, broadband aggregation, core network and broadband access in regions of US and Canada of North America.The enhanced growth of the router and switch market in China due to large scale growth of data and video for residential customers and firms in China is predicted to contribute towards the demand & growth of the router and switch market in APAC zone.The growth of data and video in China is due to growing demand for high definition content, multiscreen delivery and growing use of tablets & smartphones along with growing acceptance of cloud applications.Softness in public sector vertical in Europe acts as a key inhibitor hampering the growth of the router and switch market in Europe. Lower end equipment replacements are predicted to inhibit the growth of the router and switch industry in Europe.Browse key industry insights spread across 187 Pages with 58 market data tables & 52 figures from the report, Router And Switch Market Size By Service (Ethernet Aggregation, BRAS, Ethernet Access, Internet Data Center/Hosting), By Product (Service Provider Core Router, Internet Exchange Router, Multiservice Edge Router, ATM Switch, Ethernet Service Edge Router) Industry Outlook Report, Regional Analysis, Application Potential, Price Trends, Competitive Market Share & Forecast, 2015 2022 in detail along with the table of contents:Key industry players involved in the business and supporting the growth of the global router and switch market are as follows: ADTRAN Incorporation Alcatel-Lucent ECI Telecom Extreme Networks ZTE Corporation Hatteras Networks Incorporation Tellabs Incorporation Huawei Technologies Corporation Limited RAD Data Communication Networks Juniper Networks Actelis Networks ADVA Optical Networking SE Cisco Systems Ericsson Force10 Networks MRV Communications Incorporation Telco Systems Avici SystemsFractovia.org is one of India's leading in-house and free news portal. It is fully automated, and operates on a constant premise, interfacing with news sites and offering redesigned breaking features to readers across the globe. Our mission is to offer individuals opportunities for connections with news writers and distributors which they can pursue. We operate by mapping articles pertaining to breaking news, constantly and progressively, against a pre-determined word-based theme, offering important connections to readers and clients, as well as distributers.29L Atlantic Avenue,Suite L 105, Ocean View,Delaware 19970United StatesPhone: 1-302-846-7766Toll Free: 1-888-689-0688Email: sales@fractovia.org Algoworks Witnessed The Behemothic Event Dreamforce 2016 http://www.algoworks.com/ Dreamforce 2016, held annually and organized by Marc Benioff (salesforce.com) inviting businesses from around the globe, has come to an end one more time in its thirteenth edition. The four day event was packed with breakout sessions, hands-on training networking, selfies with Astro, keynote speakers and never-ending parties. The Algoworks team made it to Dreamforce for the fourth consecutive year this time and had a successful showing yet again at Dreamforce.Dreampark, the area in Moscone Centre designated for the event, experienced nothing less than professionals brainstorming, dreaming, chatting, exchanging business ideas and working. More than 170,000 individuals registered bringing to the event the same goal: to innovate business, sharpening acumen and moving ahead towards future.Pratyush Kumar, Director Salesforce from Algoworks witnessed this four-day event which was being held in San Francisco, CA. He termed the mega event as Most Epic enthralling technology session. I am privileged to be a part of an awesome journey of phenomenal technology sessions and inspirational speakers. This is a magnanimous extra-marital affair laughed Pratyush. From thousands watching the keynote from Moscone, this Dreamforce included something for everyone.This October fest happened from 4th to 7th, 2016, brought together technology pioneers, thought-provokers, industry torchbearers and many renowned trendsetters. Parties abounded at night and bars overflowed with attendees. Thousands of professionals and innovators from across the globe added superfluous excitement, inspiration, and networking to the grandeur.Mr. Kumar also cherished the thoughtful sessions taken by inspirational icons like Melinda Gates, Marc Benioff, Meri T. Barra, Christy Turlington. He was thrilled to observe the worlds largest cloud ecosystem. With so much happening in the event he left no stone unturned to connect, learn and grow. He was happy that his team joined him once more and summed up No matter what size, role or industry is, there was something to grab for any creative mind or any attentive mind attendingAn Indian headquartered B2B IT service firm. Algoworks operates chiefly in the United States from their California Office besides having a good hold on the European and Asian markets.The headquarters is based in the Delhi NCR region of Noida City, India. The US delivery center currently is based at Montecito Avenue, Mountain Views. Algoworks has expertise in key areas of ECM, CRM, mobility and Software Product Engineering.For more information please visit our websiteAlgoworks Inc.1902 Montecito Avenue, #12, Mountain View, CA 94043+1-877-284-1028 (Toll Free) Global Technologies for Cell and Tissue Analysis Products Market 2016 to 2024 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=B&rep_id=1767 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/cell-tissue-analysis-products.html http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com https://tmrresearch.blogspot.com/ Cell and Tissue Analysis Products Market: OverviewGreat strides made in the cell and tissue analysis products market have revolutionized many aspects of modern healthcare and treatments, noteworthy among which are diagnosis of different types of cancer, and autoimmune diseases. Cell and tissue analysis products find takers in industries, namely pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and research. They have a wide variety of uses stem cell research, drug discovery and development, cell biology, and other research practices.Get Sample Research Report with ToC:The report provides helpful insights into the cell and tissue analysis products market after thorough research. From a basic definition of cell and tissues and what cell and tissue analysis entails to the more sophisticated SWOT analysis, bringing to the fore strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats influencing the segments of the global market the report covers everything. It also provides distinctive graphics and segments the market based on geography. Additionally, it also uses a Porters five forces analysis that helps in determining the threat of new entrants, bargaining power of buyers and suppliers, and the intensity of the competitive rivalry.Further, the report delves into each product segment based on underlying technologies, its current market, and growth prospects. It endeavors to keep you abreast of the changing competitive landscape by furnishing details of historical developments and current market scenario and size. The researchers combine the two to predict growth prospects of the market a seven-year forecast of market growth patternCell and Tissue Analysis Products Market: Trends and OpportunitiesIncreasing medical awareness among people, government support for healthcare and growing number of diagnostic centers are the main market growth drivers for cell and tissue analysis products. Besides, increasing spend on research and development, new technologies, new product launches and rise in lifestyle associated diseases, and growing incidence of cancer, has driven demand in the market for cell and tissue analysis products. Many modern industries trying to deploy cell and tissue analysis products in their production and process leads, has also provided a fillip to the market. Increasing competition and patent expiries, however, are proving to be a drag on companies performances. Given the high capital requirements to start a business in the domain and advanced stage of technology, newcomers find it a difficult market to break into.Apart of growth drivers and restraints, the report also covers the key product segments based on their underpinning technologies. They are: bio specimen technologies that include DNA microarray and tissue microarray; cell and tissue separation products which include enzymatic dissociators, magnetic separation, laser micro dissection, and flow cytometry; and cell and tissue characterization products which comprise research antibodies, high content screening, and cell-based assays.Cell and Tissue Analysis Products Market: Region-wise OutlookGeographically, the cell and tissue analysis products market has been segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the rest of the world. Of them, North America is the prime consumer of cell and tissue analysis products. Countries in Asia Pacific such as Japan, India, and China, are also driving up demand in the market on account proliferation of research activities in various areas such as cancer and HIV and also on account of increasing diagnostic centers to cater to their peoples rising medical awareness. The market for cell and tissue analysis products, however, is highly fragmented with the presence of many large, medium-sized and small manufacturers that supply diagnostic products. Competition is stiff, with vendors constantly trying to form partnerships to guard their market share.Key Players Mentioned in the Report are:The key players operating in the global cell and tissue analysis products market are Beckman Coulter, Millipore, Thermo-fisher Scientific, Abcam, Sigma-Aldrich, and TGA Sciences.Browse Research Report on Cell and Tissue Analysis Products Market:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who us e proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Browse market research blog: UV Disinfection Equipment Market : EPA Regulations and Government Initiatives Adding to Market Scope http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=1869 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/ultraviolet-disinfection-equipment.html http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com The UV disinfection equipment market is thriving due to the benefits associated with it including its residue-less functioning, low installation and operation cost and ease of maintenance. Where the government initiatives for providing safe drinking water to citizens are further increasing the scope of UV disinfection equipment, the fast growth of healthcare and chemical industries is offering opportunities for the air and surface segments of the UV disinfection equipment market.In many places, the combination of ozone and UV disinfection is being used to create multiple barriers for Cryptosporidium (a disease causing gastrointestinal illness and diarrhea) and Giardia (the protozoan parasites causing Giardiasis). Where the average capital cost of Cryptosporidium inactivation by ozone is USD 8.1 million, it is USD 4.6 million for the combination of ozone and UV. Similarly, the annual operation and maintenance cost for water disinfection set-up of ozone is USD 460,000, while the same is USD 60,000 in case of disinfection set-up comprising a combination of ozone and UV. While chlorine takes around 15-20 minutes of treatment time in the contact tank, UV treatment takes only 6-10 seconds. Being cost effective, UV treatment technique is gaining attention from users, which is increasing its market demand.PDF Sample For Latest Advancements with Technological breakthroughs is @One of the rules of EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) in relation to drinking water treatment is Long Term 2 (LT2) Surface Water Treatment Rule under which all public water systems in the U.S. that use surface water or ground water under the direct influence of surface water, are required to reduce source water Cryptosporidium levels by 2-logs (99%). Cryptosporidium microorganisms are resistant to chlorine, which is giving an opportunity for microfiltration, ozonation and UV disinfection.However, the declining growth rate of the food and beverages segment of the UV disinfection equipment is one of the major concerns for the market. But with the improvement in the global food and beverages industry, the growth of this segment of UV disinfection market is expected to improve.A new publication released by Transparency Market Research (TMR), presents a comprehensive analysis of the global UV disinfection equipment market. The market study talks about the current market scenario and its impact on the future of the UV disinfection equipment market across the globe.The report is titled UV Disinfection Equipment Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast, 2013 - 2019.Browse the full UV Disinfection Equipment Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast, 2013 - 2019 report atTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.Transparency Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite: Mobile Payment Consumer Survey in Taiwan Market Research Hub http://www.marketresearchhub.com/enquiry.php?type=S&repid=770627 http://www.marketresearchhub.com/report/mobile-payment-consumer-survey-in-taiwan-intention-analysis-of-demographic-groups-report.html http://www.marketresearchhub.com Albany, New York, Oct 19, 2016 Driven by the efforts made by international giants to capitalize on mobile payment, a considerably large number of firms in Taiwan are jumping into the bandwagon by providing corresponding services. In a report, titled Mobile Payment Consumer Survey in Taiwan: Intention Analysis of Demographic Groups, recently added to the repository of Market Research Hub, a comprehensive analysis of the mobile payment penetration in Taiwan is provided. It analyzes the various factors having impact on the market such as the latest technological advancements and the influence of government initiatives.Request a Sample Report:The penetration of the mobile payment industry in Taiwan was possible due to the high awareness about the same across all generations in the country. According to the report, awareness about mobile payment services exceeds 70% across all age groups in the country. As consumers demonstrate increasing preference towards mobile payment options, the future of the industry in Taiwan seems promising. The report has found that nearly 20% of millennial have used mobile payment gateways. Furthermore, over 55% of mobile payment users from millennial and baby boomers prefer using mobile payment as the primary payment method option in Taiwan. The report also states that over 60% of them prefer mobile payment over cash credits.The report mainly focuses on providing a holistic mobile payment consumer survey for the market in Taiwan. For the purpose, it thus elaborates the development of the Taiwanese mobile payment market in detail. To begin with, the report has mentioned the research methods adopted and the participants of the survey. Hence, for the purpose of the study, the mobile payment market in Taiwan has been segmented based on the preferred mode of payment by traction, mobile payment distribution by age, consumer preference in terms of security identification methods, and preferred payment methods.Besides the aforementioned parameters, the report also studies in great detail the various factors influencing consumers towards opting for mobile payment. To present a 360 degree overview, it proceeds with providing an in-depth user experience analysis.On the basis of meticulous survey, the report has found that consumers perception with regards to mobile payments is going strong in Taiwan. Millennial consumers are likely to be the major influencers of the countrys mobile payment market. According to the report, millennial display the highest NFC adoption rate of nearly 40%. Despite witnessing favorable growth opportunities, persisting security concerns have been posing threat to the mobile payment market in Taiwan.This mode of payment is considered highly vulnerable to cybercrimes since it exposes confidential consumer data to cloud. According to the report a considerable 70% of the non-users in Taiwan are concerned about security of their personal data. Moreover, about 30% of millennial users attach prime importance to security and personal financial management. Therefore, for vendors to enjoy sustainable growth making their mobile payment gateways more secure is imperative. Nevertheless, with the latest advancements, the technology is not considered utopian anymore. Furthermore, with core users constituting a major percentage of the Taiwan mobile payments market, players operating therein will have ample opportunities to capitalize on in the near future. As per the report, over 60% of baby boomers and millennial will continue using mobile payment as their primary payment method in the forthcoming years as well.Browse info with TOC in a PDF Format:To study the vendor landscape of the market, the report also profiles the leading companies such as Tenpay, Alipay, and others. Strategies adopted by these companies are analyzed, besides which the report also studies their strengths and weaknesses. It includes the threats and opportunities that these market will witness in the forthcoming years as well.About Market Research HubMarket Research Hub (MRH) is a next-generation reseller of research reports and analysis. MRHs expansive collection of market research reports has been carefully curated to help key personnel and decision makers across industry verticals to clearly visualize their operating environment and take strategic steps.MRH functions as an integrated platform for the following products and services: Objective and sound market forecasts, qualitative and quantitative analysis, incisive insight into defining industry trends, and market share estimates. Our reputation lies in delivering value and world-class capabilities to our clients.Contact Us90 State StreetAlbany, NY 12207,United StatesToll Free : 866-997-4948 (US-Canada)Tel : +1-518-621-2074Email : sales@marketresearchhub.comWebsite : Loway Switzerland announces presence at GITEX 2016 Dubai www.gitex.com Loway, leading provider of solutions for Asterisk call-centers, has great pleasure in inviting its customers to GITEX 2016 edition for the professional solutions portfolio presentation.GITEX is the annual consumer computer and electronics trade show, exhibition, and conference that takes place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates at the World Trade Centre. The GITEX Shopper & Consumer Electronics Expo attracts IT professionals, technology enthusiasts and consumers as well as traders from all over the world.This year Loway official channel partner DVCOM Technology has worked to ensure a varied program of demonstrations and conferences about the new QueueMetrics call-center suite for Asterisk and the new predictive dialer: WombatDialer.The DVCOM team of experts will be at booth Z-C10, Zabeel Hall, World Trade Centre.For any information about GITEX please visit the official website atAbout LowaySince 2004, Loway develops professional reliable and customizable call center solutions for the Asterisk PBX technology.Their distinguished QueueMetrics set up modern standards in performance measurement, reporting and statistics for call centers.WombatDialer is a flexible, easy to use outbound predictive dialing platform and a perfect complement to QueueMetrics.Via Laveggio 36855 StabioSwitzerland Global PVC Market: Explores New Growth Opportunities By 2020 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/pvc-market.asp http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/3405 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is the third-most widely produced polymer, after polyethylene and polypropylene. PVC is one the most widely used plastics and is produced by polymerization of the monomer vinyl chloride. PVC has an amorphous structure with polar chlorine atoms and has fire retardant properties and oil/chemical resistance. PVC is widely used in construction, packaging, automotive and electrical industries due to the various properties such as light weight, good mechanical strength, abrasion resistance and toughness associated with it. PVC can be bifurcated into two basic forms: rigid and flexible. The rigid form of PVC can be used in manufacturing of pipes, doors and windows and plastic bottles. The flexible form of PVC can be used in plumbing, electrical cable insulation, imitation leather and signage.Checkout full Report:On the basis of product type, PVC market is classified as wire and cable, pipes and fittings, bottles and others. Based on the application, PVC market is divided into two segments: rigid polyvinyl chloride and flexible polyvinyl chloride. The PVC market is also segmented on the basis of their end-users: automotive, electrical, construction, packaging and others.Asia Pacific is the largest market for PVC market accounting for more than 50% of the global PVC market. Asia Pacific region is expected to show a good growth rate over a forecasted period due to high growth potential of building and construction industry. China represents the largest market for PVC in the Asia Pacific region. Europe is the second largest market for PVC, followed by North America.The market of Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is expected to witness a double digit growth rate in the coming years. Some of the major drivers contributing the overall market growth of Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) market include high growth in the building and construction sector, high growth in the automobile industry and growing medical devices. Some of the major restraints for PVC market include increasing competition from steel and concrete pipes and prohibited use of PVC in the construction of green building.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @:Some of the major companies operating in the PVC market include Occidental Petroleum Corporation, Solvay S.A., Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. Ltd., Formosa Plastics Group, Ineos Chlorvinyls Ltd, Xinjiang Zhongtai Chemical Co. Ltd., Mexichem S.A.B., KEM one and Axiall Corporation.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: Global Talc Market: Set to Grow Exponentially During the Forecast 2015-2021 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/talc-market.asp http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/4609 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com Talc is a mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate and is an important industrial and commercial mineral. It has broad applications as an industrial mineral due to its resistance to heat, electricity and acids and oil and grease adsorption. Talc has extensive commercial use because of its luster, softness, purity, fragrance retention, softness and whiteness. It is the softest known mineral and has a rating of 1 on the Mohs hardness scale. It can be scratched by a fingernail and is also sectile that means it can be cut by a knife. It has a specific gravity of 2.5 -2.8 and has clear luster. Talc is slightly soluble in dilute mineral acids and insoluble in water. It is a metamorphic mineral and occurs due to metamorphism of magnesium minerals such as olivine, amphibole, serpentine and pyroxene in presence of water and carbon dioxide. Talc is a tri-octahedral layered mineral and has a similar structure to that of pyrophyllite.Checkout full Report:Talc can be used as an ingredient in paints, roofing materials, ceramics, insecticides, rubber, talcum powder and insecticides among others. It is also used by the cosmetics industry, pulp and paper industry and food industry. Talc is often used to manufacture laboratory countertops and electrical switchboards due to its resistance to heat, acids and electricity. It is used by the cosmetic industry as a lubricant and as a filler by the pulp and paper industry. Talc is extensively used to make astringent baby powders that prevent rashes covered by a diaper. Talc is used by the pharmaceutical industry as a glidant (a substance that is added to powder to improve its flow ability) and by the food industry as an additive. In the European Union the additive number is E553b. In medicine, talc is used as a pluerodesis agent to prevent pneumothorax or recurrent pleural effusion. Talc is also an effective dispersing agent and anti caking agent and helps fertilizer plants and animal feeds to function efficiently and can be used for fertilizers.The paper and pulp industry remains the largest global end market for talc and is the key driving factor for the talc Industry. The automotive industry, ceramics industry and the paint and coatings industry are the other major consumers of talc. The use of talc as a filler in the paper industry is declining today but the use of talc for the manufacture of under the hood automotive parts is substantially increasing that has further lead to surge in demand for talc by the automotive industry.Asia Pacific is the largest market for talc with China, India, Japan, Bhutan, and South Korea being the key markets in this region. The Indian talc industry is the worlds third largest and continues to grow due to increase in domestic consumption. North America and Europe are other regions with a substantial market share of talc. Austria, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Macedonia, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Sweden and United Kingdom are the major consumers of talc in Europe.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @:Some of the major companies dominating the talc market are Imerys talc, Mondo Minerals, Golcha Group, American Talc, IMI FABI, Nippon Talc, Minerals Technologies Inc, the Jai Group, Aihai Talc, Behai Talc, Shuiquan Talc, Xin Talc, Haumei Talc, Guiguang Talc and Xin Talc among others. Imerys talc is the worlds leading producer of talc followed by Mondo MinAbout Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: Global Industrial Explosives Market: Latest innovations and key events (2015-2021) http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/industrial-explosives-market.asp http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/4319 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com Industrial explosives are blasting explosives with significant hazards, which are majorly used in construction, quarrying and mining industries. To enter into the industry, manufacturers require an explosives license to sell as well as sore industrial explosives or in some cases, they are exempted by the Explosives Act and Regulations. Various types of explosives and their accessories are manufactured in the industry such as safety fuse, detonating fuse, detonators, gun powder, nitro compound, ANFO (Ammonium nitrate Fuel Oil) based explosives, cartridge explosives, bulk explosives and nitrate mixtures. Asia Pacific dominated the global industrial explosives market in terms of production with more than 30 key players involved in industrial explosives industry. Some of them include Indian Oil Corporation, Hubei Kailong Chemical Group Co., and Solar Industries India Limited among others. Europe accounts for the second largest manufacturer for industrial explosives, followed by North America, particularly United States and Canada.Checkout full Report:The global industry for industrial explosives has been witnessing significant growth due to growth of its end user industries such as mining and construction. Emerging economies such as India serves as a huge opportunity for the industrial explosives industry and its accessories. The industry in India has noticed a major shift from complete dependence on imports over the past few decades to increased production and exportable surplus currently. The industry for industrial explosives comprises the activities such as selling and producing the explosives in bulk, catridge, gun powder, and ANFO based explosives of the nitrate mixture, nitro compound including boosters and PETN as well as explosives accessories such as safety fuse, detonating fuse and detonators. The mining industry accounts for the largest market share in overall industrial explosives market with coal mining dominating the mining industry for explosives, due to increasing demand for coal. This growth can be mainly attributed to the increasing demand for coal, cement and electricity in the country thus driving the market. The global market is largely driven by bulk explosives. In addition, accessories such as detonators are also leading the market due to its strong governmental policies and regulations coupled with growing usage in initiating an explosive charge. The industry for these explosives remains concentrated with various companies such as Solar Industries India Limited being one of the prominent players on account of the companys thriving record of project execution as well as a strong brand name in the field of industrial explosives.Rising construction activities as well significant growth of the mining industry is expected to boost the demand for various materials such as coal, electricity and cement. This factor is expected to drive the demand for industrial explosives which are to be used in the mining and construction activities. However, price variations in explosives are expected to slow down the growth of the market. Increasing focus towards product innovation and technological advancements as well as focus on market expansion in developing and emerging regions is expected to provide new opportunities for the industrial explosives market.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @:AEL Mining Services Ltd., Enaex, EPC Groupe, Gulf Oil Corporation Limited, Guizhou Panjiang Chemical Plant, Hubei Kailong Chemical Group Co., Ltd, Indian Oil Corporation Limited, and Solar Industries India Limited are some of the major players present in the industrial explosives industry.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: MENA Infant Milk Formula Market to account for US$ 4,219.3 Mn by 2021 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/9001 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/mena-infant-milk-formula-market/toc According to the latest market report published by Persistence Market Research, titled Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Market Study on Infant Milk Formula: Driven By Increasing Consumer Awareness of Healthy Nutrients, the mena infant milk formula market is estimated to be valued at US$ 1,976.3 Mn by the end of 2015 and is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 13.5% from 2015 to 2021, to account for US$ 4,219.3 Mn by 2021.View Sample Report @Currently, the infant milk formula market in the MENA region is mainly driven by factors such as increasing number of working women and rising popularity of infant formula, coupled with the rapid economic growth witnessed in the region. However, factors such as rising per unit prices of infant formula and high volatile raw material prices, coupled with changing consumer preferences towards local brands that manufacture cost effective products, are some of the major factors expected to restrain the growth of the market during the forecast period. The MENA infant milk formula market is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 13.5% in terms of revenue from 2015 to 2021, to account for US$ 4,219.3 Mn by 2021.Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report:The infant milk formula market is segmented on the basis of the region into GCC, North Africa and the Rest of Middle East. The GCC market is expected to be the highest contributor to the overall MENA market in terms of value share, followed by North Africa, by 2015 end. GCC is expected to be the fastest growing market over the forecast period (20152021). The growth of the GCC infant milk formula market is primarily attributed to the high presence of foreign infant milk formula manufacturers and rapid economic development in the region. Moreover, the rise in the number of drugstores is also expected to support the growth of the infant milk formula market in the MENA region. The GCC market is expected to account CAGR of 13.8% in terms of value over the forecast period. The rest of the Middle East market is expected to witness moderate growth over the forecast period, accounting for 14.1% value share of the overall market, and is expected to register a moderate CAGR of 13.5% in terms of value over the forecast period (20152021). An increasing number of working women and rapid economic development are the major factors expected to drive the growth of the infant milk formula market in the region.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a U.S.-based full-service market intelligence firm specializing in syndicated research, custom research, and consulting services. PMR boasts market research expertise across the Healthcare, Chemicals and Materials, Tech-nology and Media, Energy and Mining, Food and Beverages, Semiconductor and Elec-tronics, Consumer Goods, and Shipping and Transportation industries. The company draws from its multi-disciplinary capabilities and high-pedigree team of analysts to share data that precisely corresponds to clients business needs.PMR stands committed to bringing more accuracy and speed to clients business deci-sions. From ready-to-purchase market research reports to customized research solu-tions, PMRs engagement models are highly flexible without compromising on its deep-seated research values.ContactPersistence Market Research Pvt. Ltd305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com Allcroft Winthorp Charitable Issues First Grant from Sustainable Calamity Recovery Fund http://www.allcroft-winthorp.com Allcroft Winthorp Charitable recently issued the first grant from our Sustainable Calamity Recovery Fund (SCRF)Sustainable Calamity Recovery Fund is a field of interest fund designed to provide a source of long-term funding for recovery efforts in areas impacted by calamities.The grant is supporting its "pooled fund" that supports relief in the years to come after the local calamities that occurred. The five main projects supported by this pooled fund include [1] shelter; [2] water, sanitation and hygiene projects; [3] food security, livelihood and local development; [4] reproductive health and protection against gender-based violence; and [5] psychosocial and education support.Allcroft Winthorp Charitable is very experienced with disaster relief and rebuilding efforts, especially with those that are impoverished, and focuses its work on those that are marginalized (often women).Allcroft Winthorp Charitable's SDRF was created this year and it is overseen by the Board of Trustees of Allcroft Winthorp Charitable. Donors may contribute directly to SDRF and earn a tax deduction by making the charitable contribution. The Board makes all decisions about potential grants.Allcroft Winthorp actively supports charitable causes within its business area. Allcroft Winthorp engages in charitable donations, contributions, sponsorships and promotional donations. Donations are made to registered non-profit organizations. Other donations are also undertaken, generally to build and maintain goodwill among clients, prospective clients, suppliers and other stakeholders.In its donations, Allcroft Winthorp supports registered non-profit organizations operating in our market area. We typically will not support national charitable fundraising efforts.About Allcroft WinthorpAllcroft Winthorp offers comprehensive investment management capabilities that span nearly all segments of the global capital markets. Our investment solutions, tailored to the unique return and risk objectives of clients in more than 40 countries, draw on a robust body of proprietary research and a collaborative culture that encourages independent thought and healthy debate. As a private partnership, the firm believes our ownership structure fosters a long-term view that aligns our perspectives with those of our clients. Allcroft Winthorp combines the resources of a large, global, diversified multi-asset manager with the small-company feel of an independent, privately held partnership.Almas Tower, Sheikh Zayed Road, Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai, United Arab Emirates Automotive Sensors Market to Reach US$33.3 bn by 2021 as Demand for Safety Increases http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=230 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/automotive-sensor-market.html http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com According to the research report, the global automotive sensors market was valued at US$20.2 bn in 2014 and is expected to expand at a CAGR of 8.7% from 2015 to 2021 to reach an estimated value of US$33.3 bn by 2021. The significant growth of the global automotive sensors market in the coming years will largely be attributable to the strict government regulations pertaining to emission norms and safety of the driver.The global automotive sensors market is segmented on the basis of type, component, and geography. The types of automotive sensors sold in this market are pressure sensors, temperature sensors, motion sensors, gas sensors, and MEMS sensors. The components of the global automotive sensors market are body electronics, powertrain, chassis, and safety and control. Geographically, the global automotive sensors market is divided into Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Rest of the World.PDF Sample For Technological breakthroughs is @Out of all the types of automotive sensors in the market, the micro-electro-mechanical (MEMS) sensors segment held the biggest share due to growing demand for electronic stability programme (ESP), vehicle dynamic control (VDC), and anti-lock braking system (ABS) in emerging economies of Asia Pacific. Amongst the components, the powertrain segment held the dominant share in the global automotive sensors market. Automotive sensors are also used in climate control, airbag restraint systems, engine management systems, power steering systems, crankshaft position sensors, and camshaft position sensors.Geographically, Europe led the global automotive sensors market in 2014. This growth was mainly driven by the proliferating logistics industry, along with rising awareness about safety. The Europe market is also being led by the introduction of low-emission zones (LEZs) in the European Union, which is encouraging the usage of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs). Analysts also predict that Asia Pacific will be an attractive market for automotive sensors as governments in several countries are pushing for driver safety features to be installed in automobiles.Some of the important players in the global automotive sensors market are Infineon Technologies AG, Continental AG, Denso Corporation, Sensata Technologies Inc, Robert Bosch, Autoliv Inc., and Freescale Semiconductor Inc. The report offers an insightful take on the competitive landscape of the global automotive sensors market. By assessing the financial status, research and development activities, product portfolio, and business and marketing strategies of these companies, the report presents a fair case of the intensity of competitive rivalry in the global automotive sensors market.Transparency Market Research has published a research report about the global automotive sensors market. The research report, titled Automotive Sensors Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2015 - 2021, observes the trends and dynamics in the global automotive sensors market and presents a case study with accurate figures and statistics. The research report includes a SWOT analysis and Porters five forces analysis to identify and describe the factors influencing the global automotive sensors market.Browse the full Automotive Sensors Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2015 - 2021 report atTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.Transparency Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite: Global Transparent Conductive Coatings Market is Expected to Witness a Steady Growth by 2021 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/transparent-conductive-coatings-market.asp http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/7274 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com In recent years, the transparent conductive coatings industry has experienced many changes in. due to emerging applications and materials such as heat able glazing solutions, antistatic surface and transparent electrodes for displays and solar cells. Transparent conductive coatings are used in wide range of industries such as organic electronics markets and the touch screen markets.Checkout full Report:The glass is one of the most important industrial materials. The properties of glass can be changed by depositing transparent conductive coatings on their surface that leads to different mechanical, chemical, electrical and optical properties. Transparent conductive coatings cab be deposited on glass substrates by vapor and wet chemical deposition methods. As there are new technologies being witnessed in the market, this market is expected to show considerable growth in the near future.Transparent conductive coatings are commonly used in electrical and optical applications to enhance the visibility as they block unwanted reflections from various types of surfaces. They are used for effective glare and reflection reduction. The eyeglasses with transparent conductive coatings make it possible to see the wearers eyes clearly. Telescopes, riflescopes, binocular lenses, kiosk displays, and video glasses are the other applications transparent conductive coatings market.The global transparent conductive coatings market is mainly driven by the growing demand of these coatings from eyewear as well as the electronics industry. Solar PV modules is also another sector that holds great potential in the transparent conductive coatings market. Increasing demand for comfortable and high light-transmitting lenses and eyeglasses will provide great opportunities for the growth of transparent conductive coating products and technologies. Above mentioned factors are expected to drive the growth of the transparent conductive coating market for the forecast period (2015-2025).The global transparent conductive coating market is estimated to witness a considerable growth for the forecast period (2015 to 2025). North America region is the leading market for transparent conductive coatings due to rising demand for transparent conductive coatings for lenses, eyeglasses, and smartphone displays in this region. According to FMIs forecast, the transparent conductive Coating market in Asia-Pacific is expected to demonstrate the fastest CAGR over the forecasted period. European demand for transparent conductive coatings is mainly driven by automobile and solar industry. FMI forecasts the Asia-Pacific region to be the fastest growing region for transparent conductive coatings market for the forecast period.Key players in the global transparent conductive Coating market are a focus on product innovations and mergers and acquisitions, in order to outperform competitors. Companies in this market are focusing on finding newer applications and newer technologies for transparent conductive coatings, to grow their market and expand their reach.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @:Some of the major players of the global transparent conductive Coating market are PPG Industries Inc., Royal DSM, Hoya Corporation, Rodenstock GmbH, Optical Coatings, Essilor International S.A, Janos Technology LLC, JDS Uniphase Corporation, Honeywell International Inc, and others.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: "Global Payroll And HR Software Market Size, Share, Growth, Trends And Forecast, 2014 - 2020" available at ResearchMoz http://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=S&repid=222477 http://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=E&repid=222477 http://bit.ly/1TBmnVG The Payroll and HR (Human Resources) departments in organizations coordinate various functions like salary hikes, bonus payments, recruitment, benefit deductions, firing employees and vacation leaves. They also need to maintain data that is confidential in nature like employee information, home addresses, financial data and social security numbers. They need to take care that such confidential information is not accessed by unauthorized companies or individuals. The payroll and HR software is a fully integrated functionality that enables the payroll and HR department to operate, access, manage and process organizations various payroll and HR functions. It also helps decision makers to gain a clearer insight of organizations resources even in turbulent situations. The various modules in the software are customized depending upon the needs of organization and minimizes the amount of time spent on the administration work by the staff members. It helps manage everyday tasks more effectively, reduce duplication in work and make reorganization changes quickly and effectively.Each organization has its own specific needs. The payroll and HR software market can be segmented depending on the size of businesses as small size, medium size and large size organizations. In small businesses, where the employee size is up to 50, every employee plays an important role in contributing to the companys revenue. Even one unproductive employee can have a huge impact on the bottom line of the business organization. For this purpose, payroll and HR department need to be properly managed to avoid any unpredictable circumstances.Get a Sample Research PDF with TOC:The payroll and HR management software is customized to cater to various small business functions like performance measurement, time and attendance tracking, and compensations and retirement plans among others. In medium size businesses, the employee size ranges from 50 to 500 employees. The requirements in these organizations are similar to small size businesses but the software is customized to perform additional functions like recruitment which includes hiring and retaining potential talent, and securely streamlining administrative load by simplifying payroll administration. For business organizations with employee size greater than 500, the software is customized to manage risks and contain related costs, production and distribution of pay statements and banking services.As the global economy is improving, companies are looking for latest software solutions that can cut down costs of upgrading systems every year. New user interfaces like mobile applications which enable carrying out operations outside office premises and other features like integration with the existing systems in the organization is driving the market for payroll and HR software market. Also, the payroll and HR is a data driven function and the need to create talent analytics for taking talent related decisions and workforce planning is driving the market for payroll and HR software market. Another driver is the ability to provide customized solutions considering the current workforce dynamics. Companies prefer to invest in these customized solutions as these are affordable and improve various functions like hiring and retaining talent. However, challenges like understanding the technical requirements of organizations and integrating various modules of software to perform various functions are some constraints affecting the growth of this market.Some of the prominent vendors in this market include Taleo Corporation, SuccessFactors, Halogen Software Inc, Kenexa Corporation, PeopleAdmin and SumTotal Systems Inc.This research report analyzes this market on the basis of its market segments, major geographies, and current market trends. Geographies analyzed under this research report include- North America- Asia Pacific- Europe- Rest of the WorldEnquiry at:Reasons for Buying this Report- This report provides pin-point analysis for changing competitive dynamics- It provides a forward looking perspective on different factors driving or restraining market growth- It provides a six-year forecast assessed on the basis of how the market is predicted to grow- It helps in understanding the key product segments and their future- It provides pin point analysis of changing competition dynamics and keeps you ahead of competitors- It helps in making informed business decisions by having complete insights of market and by making in-depth analysis of market segments- It provides distinctive graphics and exemplified SWOT analysis of major market segmentsResearchMoz is the worlds fastest growing collection of market research reports worldwide. Our database is composed of current market studies from over 100 featured publishers worldwide. Our market research databases integrate statistics with analysis from global, regional, country and company perspectives. ResearchMozs service portfolio also includes value-added services such as market research customization, competitive landscaping, and in-depth surveys, delivered by a team of experienced Research Coordinators.Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-621-2074Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Email: sales@researchmoz.usFollow us on LinkedIn at: Global 1,4 Butanediol Market: Set to Grow Exponentially During the Forecast 2021 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/14-butanediol-market.asp http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/7559 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com 1,4 Butanediol, also termed as Butane-1,4-diol or 1,4-Butylene glycol, is an organic chemical compound which finds a wide-scale industrial application in production of fibres, plastics, solvents etc. among other applications in the chemical industry. 1,4 butanediol is colourless and viscous chemical compound with a relatively high boiling point is derived from Butane. The organic chemical compound is one of the stable forms or isomers of butanediol. One of the most widely used process, the Reppe Process, for manufacture of 1,4 Butanediol involves reaction of acetylene with formaldehyde. Alternatively, it is also manufactured by means of a process termed as Davy process with maleic anhydride used as raw material. Other modes of manufacture involve use of biological routes or the use of propylene oxide as a raw material. Major areas of application for 1,4 Butanediol include manufacture of Poly Butylene Terephthalate (PBT), Gamma Butyrolactone (GBL), Tetrahydrofuran, Polyurethanes, among the others.Checkout full Report:1,4 butanediol market is slated to register a steady year-on-year growth throughout the forecast period. The growth of end use industries is expected to emerge as the major growth driving factor for global 1,4 Butanediol market during the forecast period. A moderate single digit growth is projected to be registered by the market over the forecast period. The industrial growth in developing regions of the globe namely of countries in Asia Pacific region is expected to further drive the demand for Butanediol during the forecast period. The relatively volatile nature of prices of 1, 4 Butanediol raw materials is likely to act as an impediment to the growth of global 1,4 Butanediol market during the forecast period. China has emerged as a major producer of 1,4 Butanediol and houses the largest production capacity for the chemical. Thus, the growth in end use industries, the economic and industrial growth in developing regions of the globe, are expected to drive the growth of global 1,4 Butanediol market during the forecast period.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @:On the basis of geographic regions, global 1,4 butanediol market is segmented into seven key market segments namely North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific, Japan, and Middle East & Africa. Among the aforementioned regions, Asia Pacific is expected to witness a relatively faster CAGR as compared to that of other regions of the globe during the forecast period. The mature markets, namely those in Europe and North America are slated to exhibit relatively slower growth in demand for 1,4 Butanediol during the forecast period.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: Global Online Recruitment Industry 2016 Market Overview, Growth, Analysis And Development http://www.qyresearchreports.com/sample/sample.php?rep_id=832480&type=E http://www.qyresearchreports.com/report/global-online-recruitment-market-professional-survey-report-2016.htm http://www.qyresearchreports.com/category/ict-market-reports-96.htm http://www.qyresearchreports.com Global Online Recruitment Industry 2016 Market Overview, Size, Share, Trends, Analysis, Technology, Applications, Growth, Market Status, Demands, Insights, Development, Research and Forecast 2016-2020.The research report on the global Online Recruitment market provides an in-depth analysis of the industry, taking into consideration the historical development trajectory and its current and projected size. The future projections of the global Online Recruitment market are provided for the period from Online Recruitment to Online Recruitment. Furthermore, the report analyzes factors that drive and restrain the growth of the Online Recruitment market. The report also discusses prevailing market trends, prospective growth opportunities, and key strategies resulting in the growing demand for Online Recruitment.The research methodology used includes primary and secondary research. While the primary research comprises the bulk of research efforts by analysts, secondary research includes referring to company websites, annual and financial reports, industry trade journals and other technical journals, statistical databases, and news specific to companies operating in the market.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @The report studies the effect of Porters five forces on the growth of the market. This includes, bargaining power of suppliers, bargaining power of buyers, threat of new entrants, threat from substitutes, and degree of competition. The report assesses the impact of various regulations on the market. Tables, charts, figures, and statistics have been used wherever required.The study provides the market estimates and forecasts for all the segments covered. In addition to this, it gives the market positioning of key players in the global Online Recruitment market. Competitive strategies adopted by leading players are included so as to give enterprises a clear idea on how to expand their business and earn profits. The business and financial overview of each of the companies profiled in the report are included. Additionally, the recent developments by key players are also included. The report also gives information regarding collaborations, mergers, and partnerships between companies.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Table of ContentsChapter One Online Recruitment Industry Overview1.1 Online Recruitment Definition1.1.1 Online Recruitment Product Pictures & Product Specifications1.2 Online Recruitment Classification & ApplicationChapter Two Online Recruitment Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis2.1 Online Recruitment Raw Material & Equipments Supplier and Price Analysis2.2 Online Recruitment Labor & Other Cost Analysis2.3 Online Recruitment Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis2.4 Online Recruitment Manufacturing Process AnalysisChapter Three Online Recruitment Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Online Recruitment Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Online Recruitment Manufacturing Plants Distribution3.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Online Recruitment R&D Status and Technology Sources3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Online Recruitment Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four Online Recruitment Production by Regions, Technology and Applications4.1 2010-2016 Online Recruitment Production by Regions(such as US, EU, China and Japan etc)4.2 2010-2016 Online Recruitment Production by Product Type & Application4.3 2010-2016 Online Recruitment Price by key Manufacturers4.4 2010-2016 US & China Online Recruitment Capacity Production Price Cost Production Value Analysis4.5 2010-2016 Europe and Japan Online Recruitment Capacity Production Price Cost Production Value Analysis4.6 2010-2016 US and China Online Recruitment Supply Import Export Consumption4.7 2010-2016 Europe and Japan Online Recruitment Supply Import Export ConsumptionChapter Five Online Recruitment Sales and Sales Revenue by Regions5.1 2010-2016 Online Recruitment Sales by Regions (such as US, EU, China & Japan etc)5.2 2010-2016 Online Recruitment Sales Revenue by Regions (such as US EU China Japan etc)5.3 2010-2016 Online Recruitment Sales Price by Regions (such as US EU China Japan etc)5.4 2010-2016 Online Recruitment Demand by ApplicationsRead More @About UsQYReseachReports.com delivers the latest strategic market intelligence to build a successful business footprint in China. Our syndicated and customized research reports provide companies with vital background information of the market and in-depth analysis on the Chinese trade and investment framework, which directly affects their business operations. Reports from QYReseachReports.com feature valuable recommendations on how to navigate in the extremely unpredictable yet highly attractive Chinese market.Contact Us1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Web:Email: sales@qyresearchreports.com Agriculture Equipment Market to register a healthy CAGR for the forecast period, 2015-2025 http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-523 http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/toc/rep-gb-523 www.futuremarketinsights.com Agriculture equipment are the machine tools used in the various stage of agriculture such as harvesting, planting, threshing and agro processing. Agriculture equipment are replacing traditional tools: for traditional practice in land development, tillage and seed bed preparation plough and blade harrow were used but current practice includes tractors, mould board plough and power tiller.Agriculture Equipment Market: Drivers & RestraintsGrowing population at faster pace is the main driver for agricultural equipment market as it spurs the need of food which aggressively demand for better equipment for agriculture. Though agriculture equipment help in the cultivation but farmers are in having financial issues to replace the old equipment with new machinery, which hindered the growth of the global agriculture equipment market. Asia Pacific is one of the major user of tractor.Agriculture Equipment Market: SegmentationOn the basis of product type, agriculture Equipment market is broadly segmented as:TractorCombine HarvesterThrasherRotavatorRequest Free Report Sample@Self-Propelled Vertical Conveyer ReaperZero Till Seed DrillMulti Crop PlanterPower TillerLaser Land LevelerRice TransplanterPower SprayPower WeederDrip Irrigation EquipmentSprinkler Irrigation EquipmentOn the basis of process, the market is segmented into:Land Development, Tillage, Seed Bed PreparationSowing & PlantingWeed Inter CultivationPlant ProtectionHarvesting & ThreshingPost-Harvest & Agro ProcessingAgriculture Equipment Market: Region Wise OutlookAsia Pacific region is expected to dominate the market during the forecasted period aided by China and India the fastest growing agriculture equipment market. Growing population will increase the demand of food in these countries, which in return increase the demand of better harvesting machinery. Europe and North America agriculture equipment market is expected to show a moderate growth. With rapid technological advancement and growing population agriculture Equipment market is expected to increase at a double CAGR during the forecast period.Visit For TOC@Agriculture Equipment Market: Key PlayersSome of the players in the market we identified includes, CNH Industrial NV, AGCO Corp, J.C. Bamford Excavators Limited, Iseki & Co. Ltd, Mahindra & Mahindra Limited, Deere & Company and Kubota Corporation.About Us:Future Market Insights is the premier provider of market intelligence and consulting services, serving clients in over 150 countries. FMI is headquartered in London, the global financial capital, and has delivery centres in the U.S. and India.Contact Us:Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way,Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage,New York 10989,United StatesTel: +1-347-918-3531Fax: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite: Combined Heat And Power CHP Systems Market Growth with Worldwide Industry Analysis to 2025 http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-2000 http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/toc/rep-gb-2000 http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/combined-heat-and-power-chp-systems-market www.futuremarketinsights.com Cogeneration (also known as combined heat and power systems (CHP)) is a cluster of technologies primarily used for the concurrent generation of electricity and useful heat. This combined generation of heat and electricity is much more effective than separate generation of electricity and useful heat in a way that CHP systems offers improved energy efficiency, reduced managing cost, low CO2 emission and others. Growing data center capacity as business operate more processes, handle complex analytics with increasing storage requirements for customer data and employing rich media. Handling of such large data requires continuous supply of reliable power making cogeneration systems of primary importance. Efficiency level for cogeneration systems can reach up to 80 % against separate generation of heat and electricity which provides combined efficiency of 40-50 %. CHP systems for data centers are gaining traction in the market as using such plants as source of data center power leads to energy efficient and substantial cost reduction benefits. However, another technology commercially available for powering data centers includes fuel cells. Although CHP systems are less efficient than fuel cells but requires lesser fuel to generate the same amount of power and has a win when its ability to supply chilled water is factored. Some of the major benefits offered utilizing CHP systems for data centers are limited reliance over external power supply, increased energy efficiency, low site carbon emission and others.Request Free Report Sample@Global CHP System market for Data Centre: MarketDynamicsRegions with high electricity cost are readily adopting CHP systems primarily to save on their energy cost to provide base load power and using such systems to provide absorption cooling for the facility. Moreover, government initiatives to install CHP systems in data center facilities due to low CO2 emissions is also expected to increase its adoption rate thereby increasing the adoption of CHP system in data centers.Low economic life of data center IT equipment results in consumer reluctance towards adoption of CHP systems for data centers since these systems have equipment life of around 10-15 years in comparison to economic life of IT equipment which is only 2-3 years.Visit For TOC@Global CHP System market for Data Centre: SegmentationThe global CHP system market for data center can be segmented on the basis of data center types, facility size, installation type and region. By Data center types the market can be segmented into Telecoms, ISPs (internet Service Provider), CoLos (Co-located server hosting facilities), server farms, corporate data centers, university/ national laboratory and others. Based on facility the market can be segmented into less than 200 sq.ft, 200-700 sq.ft, 700-1,200 sq.ft, 1,200-6,000 sq.ft and more than 6,000 sq.ft. Based on installation type global cogeneration systems market for data center can be segmented into newly installed systems and retrofit systems. By region global CHP system market for data centers can be segmented into seven key regions namely North America, Latin America, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, Asia-Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ), Middle East and Africa and Japan.Global CHP System market for Data Centre: Key PlayersSome of the major players identified across CHP system market for data center includes ENER-G, Korea Electric Power Corporation, National Grid plc, Exelon Corporation, NextEra Energy, Inc., Chubu Electric Power Company, American Electric Power Company, Inc. and others.Full Report Analysis@About Us:Future Market Insights is the premier provider of market intelligence and consulting services, serving clients in over 150 countries. FMI is headquartered in London, the global financial capital, and has delivery centres in the U.S. and India.Contact Us:Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way,Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage,New York 10989,United StatesTel: +1-347-918-3531Fax: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite: Automotive Battery Market Expand Their Businesses With New Investments http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/automotive-battery-market.asp http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/2836 Automotive batteries are rechargeable batteries that supplies electric energy to automobiles, most essentially for automotive SLI (starting, lighting and ignition) system. Automotive batteries also provide power to automobile accessories such as radio, music players, air conditioners, wipers and charging plugs. Furthermore, the battery also serves as voltage stabilizer by absorbing abnormal transient voltages in vehicle electrical system. Based on the chemical composition the automotive battery market is broadly categorized in five different market segment, lithium ion (Li-ion), nickelmetal hydride (Ni-MH), nickelcadmium (Ni-Cd), gasoline and lead-acid. The energy density per unit weight (Wh/kg) is highest in Gasoline batteries followed by Li-ion and Ni-MH and is least in Lead-Acid batteries. Lead-Acid batteries are an aging automotive battery technology. Due to its simple or mature technology coupled with fluctuating lead prices in last few years, much of the automotives batteries research is focused on drifting away from this technology.Browse through the full Report @On the basis of application automotive battery market can be broadly categories as: two/three wheelers battery, car and light vans battery, heavy motor vehicle (HMVs) batteries and electric or hybrid vehicles battery. The automotive batteries capacity is defined by size, numbers of plate and strength and volume of electrolyte. Some of the most commonly used battery current rating standards are cold cracking amperes (CCA), reserve capacity (RC), Amp-Hour (AH) and power (Watts).Automotive battery market is expected to witness a moderate but steady growth in coming years North America is the largest automotive battery market followed by Europe and Asia Pacific. The growth rate is highest in Asia Pacific and is expected to be even higher during the forecasted period. Such high growth rate is attributed to the emergence of China as a global hub for automobile industry and increasing demands of vehicles from some of the other Asian countries such as India Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines. The increasing demand in these countries is attributed to the growing infrastructure and rising disposable income of middle class. Ni-MH segment is expected to experience highest growth rate followed by lead acid and lithium-ion segments.Fuel cell technology based automobile batteries are expected to gain wider acceptance in global market mainly due to their increased output efficiency and reduction in the pollutant bi-products. This is due to the fact that these batteries use harmless product such as oxygen and hydrogen as fuel and hence acceptance of this technology by the vehicle makers is expected to drive the global automotive batteries market.Increasing research and development in the field of battery technology for fuel cell based automobile and development of nano technology based lithium batteries along with government initiatives for electric vehicles around globe are some of the major drivers for automotive battery market, whereas constant fluctuation in the cost of raw materials such as nickel and lead, pose significant challenge for the industry.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @Some of the major players operating in the automotive battery market include Camel Group Co. Ltd., Douglas Battery, East Penn Manufacturing Co., Inc., Exide Technologies, Fengfan Co. Ltd., Johnson Controls Inc., THE FURUKAWA BATTERY CO., LTD., Zhejiang Haijiu Battery Co. Ltd, Zhejiang Narada Power Source Co. Ltd., FIAMM S.p.A., Chaowei Power Holdings Ltd., Hitachi Ltd., Shandong Sacred Sun Power Sources Co. Ltd., GS Yuasa Corporation and Shandong Sacred Sun Power Sources Co. Ltd.Key points covered in the reportReport segments the market on the basis of types, application, products, technology, etc (as applicable)The report covers geographic segmentationoNorth AmericaoEuropeoAsiaoRoWThe report provides the market size and forecast for the different segments and geographies for the period of 2010 to 2020The report provides company profiles of some of the leading companies operating in the marketThe report also provides porters five forces analysis of the market.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com Automotive Fuel Tanks Market Explores New Growth Opportunities by 2021 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/automotive-fuel-tanks-market.asp http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/3548 Fuel tank is a storage tank for fuel and a safe container for flammable fluids. In the past, steel fuel tank has been the mainstay for automotive fuel tanks, whereas in the recent scenario, plastic fuel tanks are mostly used by automobile industry. The main factors behind the drop in the steel fuel tanks are permeability, weight, packaging, safety, and cost associated with it. Around 95% of fuel tanks in Europe, 85% in U.S. and 40% in Asia are made of plastic. Some of the major factors contributing to the increasing use of plastic fuel tanks are its resistance to corrosion, light weight and ease of molding into unusual shapes.Browse through the full Report @Plastic high-density polyethylene (HDPE) fuel tanks are made by blow molding and metal (steel or aluminum) fuel tanks are welded from stamped sheets. Blow molding technology is increasingly used as it shows its capacity to obtain very low emissions of fuel. Plastic high-density polyethylene can be converted into complex shapes, allowing the tank to be mounted directly over the rear axle, saving space and improving crash safety. On the other hand, the technology used in metal fuel tank is very good in limiting fuel emissions. In the event of crash or an accident plastic fuel tanks are safer than steel fuel tanks. Unlike metal fuel tanks, many can bend and flatten, rather than tearing, rupturing and spilling gasoline, thereby safely eliminating fuel leakage as a cause of a fire or explosion. Due to the plastic fuel tanks car designers can optimize the space that is available for the fuel tank since they can be produced using very unusual shapes. Plastic can be molded around specific parts. In addition, plastic fuel tanks are corrosion resistant, whereas steel tanks require stainless steel to provide a similar level of corrosion resistance, which also means a greater cost.On the basis of type automotive fuel tanks market is divided in two broad categories: plastic fuel tank and steel fuel tank. Based on the technology automotive fuel tanks market is divided in three broad segments: Multilayer technology, barrier technology and others.North America is the largest market for automotive fuel tanks, followed by Europe and Asia Pacific. APAC region is expected to be the fastest growing market in terms of sheer volume. China and India hold the key for future market trends in automotive fuel tanks market owing to large population, increase in living standards due to higher disposable income and high growth rate of automotive industry in these regions. Germany, France and Italy are hub for some of the major automobile manufacturers in Europe where as the U.S. is the largest market in North America.Some of the major drivers contributing the overall market growth of automotive fuel tanks include high growth rate of automotive industry, government regulation and increase in environment friendly fuel tanks.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @Some of the major companies operating in the automotive fuel tanks market include Kautex Textron GmbH & Co KG, Benteler AG, Fuel System Solutions, Inergy Automotive Systems, Magna International Inc., TI Automotive Ltd., YAPP Automotive Parts Co Ltd, Kongsberg Automotive, Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd. and Visteon Corporation.Key geographies evaluated in this report are:North AmericaoU.SoCanadaEuropeoFrance, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UKoEastern EuropeoCISAPACoChinaoIndiaoJapanoAustraliaoOthersLatin AmericaoArgentinaoBraziloOthersKey features of this reportDrivers, restraints, and challenges shaping the Automotive Fuel Tanks market dynamicsLatest innovations and key events in the industryAnalysis of business strategies of the top playersAutomotive Fuel Tanks market estimates and forecasts(2015 -2021)About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com Cognitive Computing Market Expand Their Businesses With New Investments (2016 - 2024) http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/cognitive-computing-market.asp http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/9749 In the ever changing world of information technology, business organizations are left with humongous amount of data with them. This data includes very critical information for business use, but business organizations are only able to utilize 20% of whole data available with them with the use of traditional data analytics technology. To process and interpret the reaming 80% of the data that is in the form of videos, images, and human voice (also called as dark data), there is a need of cognitive computing systems.Browse through the full Report @Cognitive computing systems are typical combination of hardware and software that constitute natural language processing (NLP) and machine language, and have capability to collect, process, and interpret the dark data available with business organizations. Cognitive computing systems works exactly the phenomena of how a human brain works. These systems can process natural language, unstructured data, and can learn from experiences in similar way a human being do.In todays distributed, dynamic, and disrupted business environment requires full awareness about information that is generated from past data set available with organizations. This immensely help business organizations to control the risk associated with their business. So, the main driver of global cognitive computing market is the need to process unstructured and complex dark data set. Cognitive computing systems process and interpret the data in probabilistic manner unlike conventional big data analytic tools. However, to cope with the continuously evolving technology and data safeguarding are two biggest challenges cognitive computing market is facing.Segmentation of Cognitive Computing market on the basis of technology:Natural Language Processing (NLP):Natural language processing is used to process the human language in such a manner that a computer system can understand and interpret it. Natural language processing automates the translation process between computer and human.Machine Learning:Machine learning is subset of computer science that encompasses the study of pattern recognition and computational learning theory of artificial intelligence. Machine learning enables computer program to learn from past data and can teach themselves to do modification when exposed to new data.Automated Reasoning:Automated reasoning is the sub-discipline of computer science and mathematical logic, which is used to understand the different aspects of reasoning. Automated reasoning assists in producing computer programs that facilitates computers to reason perfectly or near perfectly.North America is expected to the largest market of global cognitive computing market. Majority of cognitive computing service providers such as IBM Corporation, Microsoft, and Google are based in North America region itself and they are also investing in the field of cognitive computing of local market. For instance, to accelerate the adoption of Watson cognitive computing system, IBM Corporation invested in Modernizing Medicine, a provider of cloud-based, specialty-specific electronic medical records (EMR) systems.Establishment of several cognitive computing startups such as Cognitive Scale is taking place in Europe region. Asia-Pacific region is expected to have moderate growth rate for cognitive computing market as rapidly rising trend of cloud based services, in small and medium enterprises, is paving the way for growth of cognitive computing market in this region. Latin America and Middle East and Africa regions are yet match the pace of global cognitive computing market.Request for Sample Report and Table of content @IBM Corporation, Microsoft Corporation, Google, Palantir Technologies, Cognitive Scale, Enterra Solutions, and Numenta are some the leading players of global cognitive computing market.The report covers exhaustive analysis on:Cognitive Computing Market SegmentsCognitive Computing Market DynamicsHistorical Actual Market Size, 2013 - 2015Cognitive Computing Market Size & Forecast 2016 to 2024Cognitive Computing Current Trends/Issues/ChallengesCompetition & Companies involvedCognitive Computing Market Drivers and RestraintsRegional analysis includesNorth AmericaLatin AmericaEuropeAsia PacificMiddle East & AfricaReport Highlights:Shifting Industry dynamicsIn-depth market segmentationHistorical, current and projected industry size Recent industry trendsKey Competition landscapeStrategies of key players and product offeringsPotential and niche segments/regions exhibiting promising growthA neutral perspective towards market performanceAbout UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com Global Transplantation Clinical Trials Industry 2016 Market Outlook 2021 http://www.reportbazzar.com/product/global-transplantation-clinical-trials-industry-2016-market-outlook-2021/ http://www.reportbazzar.com/request-sample/?pid=554821&ptitle=Global+Transplantation+Clinical+Trials+Industry+2016+Market+Outlook+2021&req=Sample http://www.reportbazzar.com/discount-form/?pid=554821&ptitle=Global+Transplantation+Clinical+Trials+Industry+2016+Market+Outlook+2021&req=Discount http://www.reportbazzar.com/ Global Transplantation Clinical Trials Industry 2016 Market Outlook 2021ReportBazzar has announced a new report titled Global Transplantation Clinical Trials Industry 2016 Market Outlook 2021 to their offerings.Browse report summery with TOC:This report studies the global Transplantation Clinical Trials market, focusing on the market development, technology, market competition, status and outlook, the data statistics includes the revenue, cost and margin by regions, by end users, by key players, from 2011 to 2016, and forecast from 2016 to 2021.This report focuses onMarket segment by product type, coveringType 1Type 2Type 3Market segment by regions, coveringUSAEUChinaJapanRequest Sample Report:Market segment by players, coveringNovartis AGAstellas Pharma IncPfizer IncSanofiBristol-Myers Squibb CompanyAmgen IncAlexion Pharmaceuticals, IncParexel International CorporationTable of ContentsGlobal Transplantation Clinical Trials Market Outlook 20211 Industry Overview1.1 Market Overview1.1.1 Market Status (definition and market size)1.1.2 Market Outlook (market potential)1.2 Market Analysis by Type1.3 Market Analysis by End Users1.4 Competitive Analysis1.4.1 Development Trends1.4.2 New Entrants1.4.3 Exterior Environment Opportunities1.4.4 Exterior Environment Threatens2 Industry Chain and Cost Analysis2.1 Industry Chain Analysis2.2 Cost Analysis2.2.1 Administrative/Communication Cost2.2.2 Labor Cost2.2.3 Cost of Rent and Utilities3 Global Market Size 2011-2016E3.1 Global Revenue of Transplantation Clinical Trials3.2 Global Revenue of Transplantation Clinical Trials by Regions3.3 Global Revenue of Transplantation Clinical Trials by End Users3.4 Global Revenue of Transplantation Clinical Trials by Key Players3.5 Global Revenue of Transplantation Clinical Trials by TypesGet Discount:About Us:Reportbazzar.com is your trusted source for the most inclusive and informative assortment of market research reports designed to empower you with the latest in industry information that translates to time and cost savings for your business. We not only help you give wing to your latent business ideas but also facilitate you in taking the best informed and strategic decisions that guarantee success in your most promising business endeavors.ReportBazzarUnited States30 Wall Street, 8th floor,New York, NY 10005.US: +1 (212) 389-6363India: +91 20 66528525Email Id: sales@reportbazzar.comWebsite: Non-Destructive Testing Equipment Market 2021 Projection with Top 10 Companies Reviewed https://goo.gl/An4BBz http://www.mrrse.com/nondestructive-testing-equipment Global non-destructive testing equipment market was valued at USD 3.21 billion in 2014, growing at a CAGR of 5.8% from 2015 to 2021. Non-destructive testing equipment are used to evaluate or inspect the materials, assemblies or components for discontinuities in characteristics without tearing down the serviceability of the part or system. These tests are often used to determine the physical properties of materials such as ductility, ultimate tensile strength, impact resistance, fatigue strength and fracture toughness. The non-destructive testing is used to ensure product reliability and integrity to control manufacturing processes. In addition, non-destructive testing equipment also lower the cost of production and sustains a uniform quality level. Stringent government safety regulations for quality control, ensure safety and reliable performance of the machines, and increasing demand to improve quality and longevity of the machines are the major factors responsible for growth of global non-destructive testing equipment market globally.The global non-destructive testing equipment market is segmented by region into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC) and Rest of the World (RoW). North America led the global non-destructive testing equipment market in 2014 and is also expected to maintain its dominance in 2021 as well in this market. The growth in North America is primarily attributed due to huge investments in energy verticals such as oil and gas. Europe held the second largest share of the global non-destructive testing equipment market in 2014 followed by Asia Pacific and RoW respectively. Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest growing regional market for non-destructive testing equipment.Request Sample Copy of the Report @The global non-destructive testing equipment market is segmented on the basis of technology into ultrasonic testing, radiography testing, electromagnetic testing, visual testing and others (including magnetic particle testing and liquid penetrant testing). Ultrasonic testing is holding the maximum market revenue share in 2014. The wide usage of ultrasonic testing in several industries such as steel and aluminum construction, manufacturing, aerospace and defense and automotive sectors are spurring the demand for this segment.Read Complete Report @The global non-destructive testing equipment market is further segmented by end use industry into power generation industry, oil & gas industry, aerospace and defense industry, automotive industry and others (including plastic and polymer, and medical). The global non-destructive testing equipment market is majorly dominated by power generation industry due to increasing number of nuclear power plants and the subsequent increasing demand for machines used in power plants. Automotive is expected to be the fastest growing end use industry in non-destructive testing equipment market followed by oil and gas industry.About MRRSEMRRSE stands for Market Research Reports Search Engine, the largest online catalog of latest market research reports based on industries, companies, and countries. MRRSE sources thousands of industry reports, market statistics, and company profiles from trusted entities and makes them available at a click. Besides well-known private publishers, the reports featured on MRRSE typically come from national statistics agencies, investment agencies, leading media houses, trade unions, governments, and embassies.Corporate Office State Tower 90 State Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207,United States Global Nano-Enabled Packaging Market Will Reach $15.0 billion in 2020 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/nano-enabled-packaging-market.asp http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/2809 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com The global nano enabled packaging market for food and beverages industry was worth USD 6.5 billion in 2013 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 12.7% during 2014 to 2020, to reach an estimated value of USD 15.0 billion in 2020.The global progress in technologies is making lives simpler and safer. Nanotechnology is one such field which is dynamically progressing and is contributing to the development of several industries, including food and beverages packaging. Nano-enabled packaging gives longer shelf life to food and beverages as compared to traditional plastic packaging. Food and beverages packaging is done through two different technologies under nano-enabled packaging-active and intelligent packaging. Active packaging has a comparatively larger market than intelligent packaging.Browse Complete Report @Intelligent packaging is growing at a faster rate as compared to the active packaging. Customers prefer traceable food and beverages packaging, since it offers information such as expiry date and best use period, present state of the consumables. The radio frequency identification (RFID) tags keep customers informed about the state of the food within the packaging. Intelligent packaging is mostly used for fruits and vegetables, meat products, and beverages. Stricter regulations associated with active packaging have been stimulating the use of intelligent packaging in Europe and North America.Intelligent packaging in the U.S. is growing mainly due to the increasing demand for fresh fruits and vegetables. Americans are shifting their breakfast preference from junk foods to fresh alternatives. The U.S. is one of the largest producers and exporters of cherries globally. With the ease in trade regulations, fruit exports of the U.S. have increased. In September 2011, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that after ten years of negotiations, U.S. cherries can be exported to Western Australia, one of the most important markets for cherries. The increasing demand for intelligent packaging in international trade (especially in fruits) is laying out opportunities for this technology in food packaging.The Food Safety and Modernization Act (FSMA) proposed by FDA in 2011 is another growth indicator for intelligent packaging wherein the fresh produce, including fruits and vegetables, are required to be scientifically grown, harvested, packaged, and stored. The farm products that come in the acts domain are lettuce, spinach, cantaloupe, tomatoes, sprouts, mushrooms, onions, peppers, cabbage, citrus produce, strawberries, and walnuts.Nano-enabled packaging finds its application in several industries, including bakery, meat, beverages, fruit and vegetables, prepared foods, and others. The increasing demand for meat products, beverages, vegetables, and prepared foods is expected to drive their respective nano-enabled packaging markets, while the market share of bakery products is expected to decline on account of the rapid growth of other application segments.Nanotechnology is at a nascent stage and, therefore, usage of nano-enabled packaging is low in the food and beverages industry. Limited numbers of buyers have more leverage to negotiate with nanotechnology companies. On the other hand, there is a plethora of companies providing nano-enabled packaging solutions to the food and beverages industry.Download Report Sample @Nano-enabled packaging market for food and beverage is very competitive with a large number of players offering an array of patented products. The major players in this industry include Amcor Limited, Bemis Company, Inc., Chevron Phillips Chemical Company, L.L.C., Klockner Pentaplast, Sealed Air, and Tetra Pak International S.A.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: SPOOKY, SCARY SPOOKY, SCARY Neighborhoods in Orchard Park are more than ready for Halloween. In the top photo, at a house at the corner of Orchard Hill Drive and Briar Hill... Bremer finds seven residential lots storing items on town property Thanks to a new property-line shot by the Engineering Department, Building Inspector Steve Bremer was able to identify seven residential lots near Highmark Stadium that were placing all sorts of... Highway Department receiving number of calls on dying ash trees Highway Superintendent Andrew Slotman warned in the spring that the ash tree population in Orchard Park would soon dwindle to zero due to the presence of the emerald ash borer.... By MICHAEL UPCHURCH When he hit his 30s, Portland writer Casey Jarman - former music editor for Willamette Week - grew preoccupied with death to an almost debilitating degree. It displaced all his anxieties about "earning money, going gray, and making some grand contribution to the world," he writes in the introduction to his new book. "Why worry about any of that stuff? Why even get up in the morning? Death always wins. ... It's a reality that not only is out to steal my future but is actively souring my present. It begs me to withdraw further from friends and family, so it doesn't hurt too much when they're gone." Recognizing that he had a problem, he reached out and talked to people, including his mother, uncle, friends and fellow writers. He also tracked down workers in death-centric fields: a hospice volunteer, a former death-row warden, a consumer-rights advocate focusing on the funeral industry. "Death: An Oral History" (Pulp, 352 pages, $22.99) is the result, and while its balance between anecdotal rambling and experience-grounded insight seems a little out of whack, there are some powerful stories here and some informative takes on our approaches and attitudes toward death. Some of Jarman's interviewees couldn't be more thoughtful. Jana DeCristofaro, coordinator of grief services at Portland's Dougy Center for Grieving Children & Families, explains why she thinks a peer-support approach to bereavement works better for kids than traditional counseling. She also notes with irony that she, like Jarman, has held back from certain intimacies in her life (no spouse, no kids, no pets) because she doesn't want "the heartache that would come when someone or something dies." Jarman catches people at raw and recent stages of bereavement and in deep-seated, decades-long anguish. Gabriel DePiero's reaction to the disorienting loss of his twin brother at age 13 is captured in a single sentence. "Here's the new planet you live on," DePiero remembers thinking. Several interviewees take comfort from the philosophy behind green funerals. "I like the idea of my body falling apart," social worker Anna Urquhart says, "and nourishing a tree." Katrina Spade - founder and executive director of the Urban Death Project, which builds "urban facilities for human composting" - echoes that thought: "There's meaning in knowing that I'm part of a larger ecosystem and knowing that I could be part of the natural world again." In asking his interviewees their thoughts on death, Jarman often elicits entire life stories that can feel digressive. But their detail usually pays off as it leads to moments of head-on confrontation with mortality. Focusing on death can sometimes mean focusing on societal ills. Black Lives Matter activist Teressa Raiford's account of growing up in Northeast Portland is an outraged litany of drug-death, child-abuse and gang-violence devastation. Another African-American testimony - Frank Thompon's explanation of how, as the superintendent of the Oregon State Penitentiary, he became an anti-death penalty crusader - is as cool and measured as Raiford's is accusatory and furious. Josh Slocum, national executive director of the Funeral Consumers Alliance, registers a different kind of protest as he lambastes the pricey bells and whistles of the undertakers' profession. "Somehow over the past 130 years," he fumes, "a form of burial that includes chemical preservation, cosmetics, field-manufactured caskets - all sorts of things that have no history in any religious tradition or in the foundations of any society - have come to be regarded as a Christian burial. It's a complete triumph of the marriage of capitalism and religion." What's missing in "Death: An Oral History" is testimony from any mainstream funeral directors or church clergy. Jarman clearly leans more toward alternative funeral practices, and his bias gets in the way of a fuller exploration of his subject. It would help, too, to get input from trained medical personnel - doctors, nurses - on their dealings with death. Hospice volunteer Andre Coberly comes close when he touches on the controversies surrounding the measures taken to prolong the lives of the dying. But it would be useful to have a professional explain the clinical process of dying - how the body actually shuts down in a slow illness - that makes forced feeding and hydration a bad idea. In the end, Jarman achieved what he was after. "I haven't 'gotten over' death," he admits. "But in talking to people who have found ways through, under, and around it, I'm measurably less terrified than I used to be." --Michael Upchurch, for The Oregonian/OregonLive *** Casey Jarman What: The author of "Death: An Oral History" discusses his book with Jana DeCristofaro of The Dougy Center and Holly Pruett of PDX Death Cafe. When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27 Where: Powell's Books on Hawthorne, 3723 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd. Admission: Free Right of Return North Williams Avenue (shown here) along with North Vancouver Avenue in late fall 2015, once home to black businesses and clubs, are now the site of construction cranes and trendy restaurants. Portland's affordable housing crisis hasn't improved, despite construction cranes throughout many central city neighborhoods. (Kristyna Wentz-Graff) Israel Bayer, executive director of the Street Roots newspaper, admits the city's chamber of commerce may not seem like a natural political partner for his homelessness and advocacy organization. In 2013, the Portland Business Alliance lobbied to give Portland the power to ban homeless people from sitting or lying on sidewalks. This year, Clean and Safe, a nonprofit managed by the PBA, paid for a controversial billboard that suggested panhandlers are addicts. But the strange bedfellows are walking hand-in-hand this fall -- backing a $258.4 million affordable-housing bond on the Nov. 8 ballot that would mark an unprecedented gusher of construction cash for the region and cinch a rare moment of unity in an often-fraught discussion over homelessness and housing policy. They're not alone. The chamber and weekly newspaper are two of the disparate groups backing Measure 26-179. The campaign pulled in close to $400,000 in the past few months from politically connected developers, nonprofit housing agencies, union groups and elected officials. The measure would fund some 1,300 affordable units, set aside for some of the poorest Portlanders. It comes one year after the City Council declared a state of emergency over homelessness -- heading to voters amid the crescendo of a statewide housing crisis. "If Street Roots and the PBA can be working together on something," Bayer said, "then you can be sure that it's a good thing and that we're going in the right direction." While no opponents have rallied to fight the measure, it has faced criticism. The number of units expected to be preserved or built pales in comparison to the city's 24,000-unit housing shortfall, and an estimated cost of nearly $200,000 per unit has raised eyebrows. Plus, the number of new units accommodated under the plan is less than 1,300. That's because hundreds of low-income residents who use housing vouchers to subsidize rents in private housing will be shifted to public housing. Eric Fruits, an economist who fought the city's 2014 street fee proposals, says officials should go back to the drawing board. He said other cities have raised less money but promised more units. Fruits cited Denver, which expects to preserve or build 6,000 affordable units for just $150 million. "They're doing something different that costs less and helps more people," he said. Bayer said Portland's bond is "a matter of life and death" for the roughly 3,000 people who could be housed or stay in existing housing as a result of the bond. Units will be affordable for those earning less than 30 percent of the median family income, or about $22,000 for a family of four. Backers say the 20-year plan would cost about $75 annually for a home assessed at $178,000. That's roughly the cost of Portland's arts tax for two adults. Related: Don't Portland homes cost more on the open market? Yes, but that's not the calculation used to levy property taxes. Curious about your assessed property tax value? Check out our reporting on the issue, or plug in your home address on PortlandMaps.com and see for yourself. "The cost of doing nothing is 10 times more expensive than the cost of being able to deliver this bond to the community," Bayer said. Commissioner Dan Saltzman, who oversees the city's Housing Bureau, said the bond is the culmination of "substantial investments" in recent years by the city and Multnomah County. The City Council voted to direct $67 million in additional urban renewal money to affordable housing projects in the next decade. It approved a construction excise tax this summer that's expected to bring in millions of dollars more for housing projects. The city is also spending tax revenue from short-term rentals on affordable housing. Saltzman said local government is doing its share, with an estimated 2,000 affordable units already under construction or in development. "Now it's time to ask voters to step up," Saltzman said. Fruits agrees that the city has taken action. But he called the city's $200,000 per-unit subsidy "bizarre." "There's a lot of bucks, and not much bang with this measure," he said. Although city officials have said the bond would pay for 1,300 units, their proposal would expand Portland's affordable housing reach by only 900 net units. That's because Home Forward, the housing authority that serves Multnomah County, has pledged to redirect some of its existing resources serving low-income families. About the bond: Inside the numbers $258.4 million over 20 years $75 - Average cost per year to Portland homeowner (with a home valued at $178,000) 1,300 - Number of units expected to be built or preserved 600 - Number of units targeted to the poorest Portlanders who earn less than 30 percent of the median family income $0.42 - Tax rate per $1,000 of assessed value for Portland homeowners Home Forward plans to shift 400 vouchers from its existing Section 8 program to buildings owned by Portland. Those 400 vouchers would no longer be used by families seeking housing in the private market. Instead, the city would set aside 400 units for families within the voucher-program -- and receive an estimated $3.15 million a year from Home Forward to cover costs. Saltzman said the city needs Home Forward and its vouchers to meet its goal of having roughly half of the units funded by the bond serving people earning less than 30 percent of the median family income. Sandra McDonough, the PBA's president, said the organization of more than 1,850 businesses didn't take its endorsement lightly. "We know that housing and homelessness is the number one issues in Portland right now," she said. "It's what we hear from voters and what we from our businesses." Housing costs for median renters in Portland rose 30 percent in the past 15 years while income rose just 7 percent, according to the voter's pamphlet. More than 100 groups of businesses and organizations support the initiative, and that bears out in the voter's pamphlet. A dozen groups filed letters in support of the plan, while no organization or individuals wrote in opposition. McDonough argues the public sector must step in and support seniors and others on poverty wages. "To get them into housing you're going to need a public subsidy. The market on its own is not going to develop the very low income housing, so you need a public subsidy," she said. If the bond passes, the City Council will appoint a five-person oversight panel to monitor spending and individual projects. Bond proceeds will also pay for buying land to build new housing. McDonough said the business alliance will stay involved and watch spending if the bond passes. "We think there are places where they can save money," she said. And while other measures on next month's ballot might cause angst on Election Night-- like Measure 97, a proposed $3 billion-a-year gross receipts tax on large corporations -- backers of Portland's affordable housing measure say they're confident. Everyone can agree, argued Street Roots' Bayer, that the city's most vulnerable residents need help. He said he's cautiously optimistic voters will "rise above the noise and vote their values." "This is not just a statement about today," Bayer said, "this is a statement about tomorrow." Saltzman cited the measure's broad support along with polling results showing its popularity. "I think we're going to win," he said. The Oregonian/OregonLive's Brad Schmidt contributed to this report -- Andrew Theen atheen@oregonian.com 503-294-4026 @andrewtheen As hundreds of staff and alumni gathered Tuesday at the University of Oregon to celebrate a $500 million pledge from its best known grad to build a science complex, the head of Oregon Health & Science University had the first word. That was by design. Though Phil and Penny Knight's seismic gift is directed at Oregon, the gathering in Eugene emphasized that closing the gap between scientific discovery and "real world" impact will require the collective efforts of peer institutions in Portland and Corvallis. The state's most prominent public universities are, in the words of one official, "better together." UO President Michael Schill has made clear he sees the school's $1 billion vision to create an applied science research complex from scratch as a win for all of Oregon. He said the new campus will "reshape the state's public higher education landscape" by training new generations of scientists. His counterparts, and a state higher education official appear to agree. "We couldn't be happier," OHSU President Joseph Robertson told The Oregonian/OregonLive. "It's a great day for the University of Oregon, and for the state." Ben Cannon, executive director of the Higher Education Coordinating Commission, said the gift "creates significant opportunities for collaboration" across the state. "This is very exciting," he added. Phil Knight graduated from UO in 1959 and ran track for Bill Bowerman, his future business partner. The two built Nike into one of the best known brands in the world. By the time Knight stepped down as chairman of the company's board this June, Nike had a market value of more than $84 billion. The Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact will belong to UO, but it will have a broad reach across the state, school officials said. Upon full buildout in a decade, the three-building complex along Franklin Boulevard in Eugene is envisioned to be a hub of research activity and innovation that will lead to new products, ideas and discoveries that better humanity and the world. Upon completion, an estimated 750 people will work at the new center, and 550 students of varying levels will conduct research. What that will mean in practical terms is yet-to-be determined, but UO envisions bringing in new experts in robotics or engineering or other disciplines to brainstorm and team up with the school's biologists, biochemists, microbiologists and other researchers. Robertson said the uncertainty is exciting. "Science is unpredictable." In Corvallis, Oregon State University President Ed Ray described the gift as "fantastic," and added he's been advocating for greater cooperation among the universities since he arrived in the state in 2003. "I told people that unless the public universities in Oregon learned how to behave as a virtual mega-university," Ray said, "we could never do what [the University of] Michigan could do for Michigan, what [the University of] Wisconsin could do for Wisconsin." "We really need to collaborate and figure out how to leverage all of the capabilities we have." The Knights' most recent half-billion-dollar gift to an Oregon institution is evidence that collaboration is starting to take root. "The three of us working together is a pretty awesome thing," Ray said of the OSU, OHSU and UO. Oregon is, in some ways, still a bit player in the national higher education picture. Oregon State and OHSU brought $336 million and $376 million in research dollars respectively into the state during the last fiscal year. UO accounted for just $117 million. Throw in Portland State University's $65 million, and Oregon's largest schools collectively still fall short of the University of Washington's $1.3 billion in research activity. Research brings more money, but also prestige to a university and a state. Ray said the Knights' gift positions UO to become a "major player" in the applied sciences world nationwide. That, in turn, has a significant effect on the school and the state's reputation. "I think it will help all of us," Ray added. Schill called his counterparts at other Oregon universities in the past few days to let them know the announcement was imminent. For Robertson, who sat on the UO search committee which hired Schill in 2015, the idea of teaming up was old hat. Collaboration between the two schools was a conversation point during Schill's job interview. Partnership between schools in a close-knit area is not new. In North Carolina, the Research Triangle consists of a number of private and public universities that flex their collective muscle. Robertson says what makes Oregon unique is the distance between the campuses. "It takes establishing a culture," he said, "not only of willing, but wanting to collaborate." In the past decade, OHSU in Portland has tried to establish a culture of teamwork with other schools. OHSU and PSU's new School of Public Health is just underway, and OSU and OHSU team up on a pharmacy program. The teamwork is doubly important as construction continues on the new home of the Knight Cancer Institute at OHSU, another project backed in part by $500 million from Phil and Penny Knight. Robertson said that "tremendous infusion of capital" at both schools in such short order raises the stakes. "I think the faculty will be more motivated to do that [collaborate], than ever before." On Tuesday, university leaders announced the Knights' gift before a packed audience of faculty, students, staff, trustees and some elected officials. Gov. Kate Brown gave brief remarks and threw up the Oregon "O." The Knights did not attend. During Schill's speech, he swept his arms back and forth swiftly, grinning ear to ear about the "simply extraordinary" commitment from the Knights. The president, who is entering his second year on the job, said the gift will play a role in transforming the state's economy. In a separate interview, he said that Oregon has been outpaced by the Silicon Valley and Seattle in economic growth for years. UO officials revealed the $500 million commitment from the Knights on the school's website Monday evening. The Knights are giving the money in $50 million increments during the next decade. The school wants to raise another $500 million from donors who have shown an interest in science in the past. The university plans to open the first building within three years, but is depending on $100 million from the state Legislature to help make the deal possible. Lawmakers approved $200 million in bonds to finance the cancer institute at OHSU previously. State support, Schill told The Oregonian Editorial Board, is crucial in achieving the vision of the $1 billion plan. "It says that the state is behind us," he said. But the Knights' gift is not contingent on state support. Oregon's higher education commission will meet in November to discuss the $100 million request. The volunteer board will face competing interests as it makes recommendations to Brown. OSU alone is asking for $69.5 million in state bonds to help pay for expansion to its Bend campus. Cannon said if Oregon approves the $100 million request in addition to other capital projects, that would represent an "unprecedented level of state support." -- Andrew Theen atheen@oregonian.com 503-294-4026 @andrewtheen Colleen and Dave.jpg Dave Luhr, Wieden+Kennedy global president and Colleen DeCourcy, global chief creative officer, are credited with crafting the agency's latest management restructuring. (Grace Rivera photo) Wieden+Kennedy, the Portland-based global agency known for clever ads for the likes of Nike and Old Spice, has made a major management shift. The agency expanded its roster of stakeholders, or partners, from 9 to 24, more than half of them representing agencies from locations other than Portland. In a statement to The Oregonian/OregonLive, the agency said the decision to expand its leadership roster was made with an eye toward its 35th birthday next year and to position the agency for its future. "Our current nine-person partner group is based on a model we've outgrown," agency global president David Luhr said in the statement to The Oregonian/OregonLive. "That group doesn't reflect the breadth of perspective and skills we want to see in the next generation of leaders, and the next, and the next. Given the size and complexity of the agency, we need more decision-makers representing more offices, more disciplines and different voices. Our leadership needs to be a bigger and better reflection of the agency we have become." The agency credited Luhr and Colleen DeCourcy, global chief creative officer, with crafting the new management structure which also jettisoned the title partner for stakeholder - several of the new "stakeholders" formerly were called "partners." "We're proud of this moment," DeCourcy wrote on the website Medium, where the agency broke the news on Monday. But DeCourcy, who works in the Portland office, used the platform for an unflinching assessment of the state of leadership and diversity at one Portland's best-known businesses. "While this change is a step in the right direction, it is still not an accurate reflection of the make-up of our agency, and the wider world," DeCourcy wrote. "We need more racial diversity and women at the top. We selected this group from a pool of agency leaders that wasn't diverse enough. What that tells us is that we have to continue to get real about why this is the case. "It's on us to support, promote and retain a much more wide-ranging group than we have over the past 35 years. We accept responsibility for making sure this leadership team grows to include that talent. We've got miles and miles to go before we sleep. This is a start." While partnership terms vary for an advertising agency, or any business, the status of partner at an ad agency typically conveys a built-in share of profits as well as a greater say in creative and management direction. A statement from the agency sent to The Oregonian/OregonLive, noting that the agency is approaching its 35th birthday, said its stakeholders "have a shared focus and role in making the agency a strong and creative leader into the next era. These people were selected because they have made consistent and significant contributions to their offices and the network." Eleven of the partners are based in Portland, where W+K was founded on April 1, 1982, and where it keeps its headquarters. Dan Wieden, who co-founded the agency with David Kennedy, who is no longer with the agency, is one of the 11. In addition to Portland, the agency's other offices are in Amsterdam, Delhi, London, New York, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, and Tokyo. Portland remains the biggest agency, with 600 of its 1,500 total employees. W+K last made a major management shift in January 2013, announcing several key appointments, including Luhr as president and two new co-executive creative directors -- DeCourcy and Mark Fitzloff. At the end of 2011, the agency announced the addition of four partners, for a total of 11. While the agency handles a variety of accounts, it is best known for its work with Nike, a client for the past 34 years. The agency, which has prided itself on saying it would remain independent forever and not follow others into corporate ownership, did not directly answer a question from The Oregonian/OregonLive about whether its headquarters would always be in Portland, saying, "Portland is our founding and biggest office. We are a global agency with eight offices around the world and we will always have an office in Portland." Wieden had the last word in the agency's news release, with this statement: "I am so damn proud of this place. We started as a ship of fools, and that, I quite firmly believe is why we have succeeded for almost 35 years. But I really never thought we would be talking about the next 35. The hope is always that the next generation does better than the one before them. I think under the leadership of Dave and Colleen, and this inspiring group of new stakeholders, we just might be onto something." --Allan Brettman 503-294-5900 @allanbrettman Eggs, almond milk, cumin, a plastic baggie of diced tomatoes... These are not the usual items brought into a prison. But once a week at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility, a group of volunteers unloads a large tote of food items for a guard's inspection. They aren't allowed to bring in metal cans, so the women with the Food As Medicine Everyday cooking program for inmates pour tomato sauce and beans into sealable plastic bags. If you are what you eat, the cooking course wants to make the women of Coffee Creek whole. Specifically, the course shows inmates how to cook with whole food ingredients that haven't been highly processed and don't contain additives. "When they're incarcerated, the focus is on rehabilitation," said Julie Briley, a naturopathic doctor who teaches the program at Coffee Creek. "This is a way to get their lives set on the right track." The cooking course is immensely popular at the prison. At the moment, there are more than 100 women -- that's about a sixth of the prison's population -- on the wait list. The program is coordinated through the National University of Natural Medicine and paid for through private donations. Up to 15 inmates at a time can enroll in the eight-week course. Each Wednesday, they spend about 30 minutes preparing a meal and another 30 minutes in a nutrition lesson, followed by time to enjoy the food together. "I can cook in the microwave but that's about it," inmate Geri Olson said, as she chopped peppers with a kitchen knife tethered to the table. "Both my parents are diabetic and I want to be able to cook better food for them when I go home." Susee Davis signed up because, "I'm nervous to cook for my kids when I get back." Davis will be released in about 10 months after serving a six-year sentence at Coffee Creek. Her son and daughter will be 11 and 10 years old when she gets out, and she'll need to relearn what they like to eat. She's been reading Food Network Magazine in prison to get ideas. "I just can't wait to cook at home again," she said. Last week, the women cooked cornbread and vegetarian chili, topped with avocado and cilantro rather than sour cream and cheese. It was the first time Davis had eaten avocado in nearly six years. The cooking program offers healthy takes on traditional foods: Their veggie chili also includes cooked spinach. Another goal is to introduce inmates to new foods like kale chips, quinoa wraps and hummus. Inmate Kari Brough experienced her first sip of almond milk last week. Her face made clear she wasn't impressed, but she wants to keep trying new things. She was diagnosed in prison with a chronic health condition and is learning about nutrition after a lifetime of eating mostly fast food. She's "55 days to the gate," she said, and wants to stay healthy on the outside. The classes are also the first time many of the women have gotten answers to their nutrition questions. Briley said some of the inmates are diabetic or pre-diabetic and "no one has ever explained it to them" in a way that makes sense. Lest you assume these women signed up just for the hot meals, the inmates were engaged and asked questions during last week's lesson on understanding food labels. One woman gave a description of partially hydrogenated trans fats as something that "causes heart disease and plaque build-up and it's bad for your body." Another was able to name the parts of a grain: bran, germ and endosperm. This is either evidence that they retained far more from middle school science than most of us or - more likely - that women who previously took the course are sharing what they learned about nutrition. Every woman I spoke to had signed up for the course on recommendation of a fellow inmate. Years ago, I served on the board of a food bank in rural Eastern Kentucky. We noticed the people who came for help - most often women with children - would skip over bags of rice and flour and instead grab frozen pizzas. It wasn't because they were lazy. It was because no one had ever taught them how to cook rice or use the flour. That was a light bulb moment, and the board worked with the local extension agency to develop cooking classes for the pantry's customers. Such programs are important as fewer students take home economics (or family and consumer sciences as it's known today) and obesity rates rise. If you didn't learn cooking and nutrition at home growing up, where will you ever learn it? The prison course is, potentially, a gift that keeps on giving. When they go home, Olson can share these recipes with her parents and Davis can cook with her children. It sets in motion a wave of awareness that can have a long-term impact on families' health. -- Samantha Swindler @editorswindler / 503-294-4031 sswindler@oregonian.com Honky Tonk Taco, the tequila-fueled taco bar from Clyde Common's Nate Tilden and chef Carlo Lamagna, has closed. "The food wasn't where we wanted it to be," Tilden said by phone Tuesday. "We feel like it's a really great space, and we want to execute at a higher level." Honky Tonk Taco opened in Andy Ricker's former Sen Yai on Southeast Division Street in July with a menu of "deliciously inauthentic" tacos, quesadillas, salads and more. The restaurant quietly took a "pause" on Monday, according to Tilden and Lamagna. Tilden, the force behind Clyde Common and a co-owner of a half-dozen Portland restaurants and bars, has been on a tear lately, opening Honky Tonk Taco, a second OP Wurst location in Oregon City and Bar Casa Vale, his wood-fired pinxtos bar, all in the past three months. Honky Tonk Taco is his first restaurant to close. "I didn't have the time to right the ship," Tilden says. For Tilden, "all options are on the table" regarding the space, including reopening Honky Tonk Taco with a revamped menu, or selling the lease. Lamagna plans to refocus on Clyde Common and his upcoming Filipino pop-up, Twisted Filipino, which will debut at the beginning of December in Southeast Portland's Holdfast Dining space. "We want to show Filipino food and all its iterations," Lamagna said. "I don't know why Filipino isn't getting that here in Portland." -- Samantha Bakall sbakall@oregonian.com Follow @sambakall The Oregonian's Michael Russell contributed to this report Astor.jpg (Google Maps) A teacher at Astor School has been put on leave in connection with an ongoing police investigation. Police went to the North Portland school Tuesday "to investigate the report that a teacher was behaving inappropriately in class and with students," said Portland Police spokesman Peter Simpson. Simpson said the teacher has not been arrested, but "preliminary information given to police indicates the behavior could be considered criminal conduct." Karl Newsome, the K-8's principal, sent out the following note to families, which is scant on details: Dear Astor Families, I wanted to let you know that we immediately placed a teacher on administrative leave today while the police are investigating a matter. While this is difficult, this is all the information that we can share right now as we cooperate with the police and their investigation. Thank you, Principal Newsome The district refused to provide more details. A message left with a Portland Police spokesman was not immediately returned. -- Bethany Barnes The air will be scented with free bouquets of flowers on Wednesday, Oct. 19, during the Petal It Forward event in which people on the street will be handed two bunches of blooms, one to keep and one to give away to a stranger. The event, held in more than 225 cities including Portland, is sponsored by the Society of American Florists to call attention to the range of floral products grown in the U.S. and the positive, instant impact of giving and receiving flowers. Studies conducted by Rutgers University and Harvard University found that flowers brighten moods, decrease stress and bring people together. In one study, 80 percent of Americans said that receiving flowers makes them feel happy. Even more people -- 88 percent -- said that giving flowers gives them a boost, according to the florist association. "That's why florists across the country are sharing happiness and spreading joy and goodwill, two bouquets at a time," says Jennifer Sparks of the Society of American Florists in a news release. "We anticipate a lot of smiles today." Tyler Meskers of Oregon Flowers in Aurora has donated more than 1,000 stems of calla lilies, Casa Blanca lilies, hybrid lilies and Asiatic lilies in assorted colors to be given away at Oregon and Washington florist shops on Wednesday. "Oregon Flowers supports the local Petal It Forward movement 100 percent because of the positive emotional benefit flowers give to people," says Meskers, whose family-owned company was started by his parents, Martin and Helene Meskers, more than 30 years ago and has grown to become Oregon's largest cut flower nursery. "Our company is proud to be a part of the coordinated effort to promote happiness." Portland-based Frank Adams Wholesale Florist collected the donations from growers, as it did at last year's debut Petal It Forward event. The title was inspired by the movie and the movement to "pay it forward," that is, respond to a kindness by doing a favor for someone else, who then does something nice for another person, and the acts of kindness spread. Wendi Day, owner of Old Town Florist in Portland's Pearl District, just heard about the event Monday but instantly jumped on board. "We want to spread flower love around Portland," she says. Day and her staff are making bouquets. Each person who comes into the shop at 404 NW 10th Ave. on Wednesday can have two. One has a tag to be given away. Day is hoping the flowers are given to people who have never received a bouquet before. "It will be fun to see what happens," she says. "It also helps to spread the word to buy local and in-season flowers. There are so many flowers grown here." Here is a list of florists participating in the flower giveaway: Bend: Donner Flower Shop Brookings: Always in Bloom Florist & Gifts Corvallis: From the Heart Floral Design Dallas: Heartstrings Florist & Artisans Eugene: Dandelions Flowers and Gifts Forest Grove: OK Floral of Forest Grove Hillsboro: Flowers by Burkhardt's Lake Oswego: R Bloom's of Lake Oswego Portland: Botanica Floral Design; Broadway Floral; Floral Sunshine, Goose Hollow Flowers, Old Town Florist and Solabee Flowers and Botanicals Sandy: Sandy Country Florist Tillamook: Sunflower Flats Castle Rock, Washington: The Flower Pot Longview, Washington: Banda's Bouquets Vancouver, Washington: Awesome Flowers, Mountain View High School floral students -- Janet Eastman jeastman@oregonian.com 503-799-8739 @janeteastman -0f8ebc571ee29b83.jpg Access was limited to portions of City Hall on Oct. 12 during a City Council vote in favor of a new police contract opposed by many residents. (Brad Schmidt/Staff) 'A SAD AND ANGRY DAY': No, Mayor Charlie Hales was not right. He won't accomplish his hiring goal, and if we actually have a crisis, he made it worse than if he did nothing at all. Commissioner Amanda Fritz was ignorant to think the public outcry was worth the 3 percent raise to hire more officers in the short term. Commissioner Nick Fish is a tool that just follows the leader. Hales is a flounder; his practice of keeping out stakeholders from their decisions is notorious, and everything he does is wildly ineffective. I'll be watching the police department's hiring numbers in the coming months to see if they get a boost. Even if -- could this not have waited six months? We have an excellent opportunity to become a leader in policing reform. I would like a community engagement platform at neighborhood levels dispersed throughout the city -- a regular neighborhood forum to discuss crime, punishment, and the job of policing. It is essential for the police department to build public trust, and the best place to get started is to listen to the communities they serve. I believe we could achieve revolutionary reform where officers are the heroes of their communities again. That is what is going to help hiring, not a 3 percent raise. I admit it is necessary to have competitive officer salaries with other cities our size, but it wouldn't have hurt to wait six months. It was a sad and angry day for Portland last Wednesday. Michael O'Connor, Northeast Portland * HALES UNDERMINES GOOD FAITH: While the public may not be legally entitled to direct input on the police contract, Mayor Hales' decision to hold a closed-door vote undermines the show of good faith made in previous attempts to hear the concerns expressed by protesters. What the mayor views as a success may consequently become a long-term source of suspicion and hostility. Given that the issues raised by protesters relate to what has become a social crisis in the national spotlight, citizens are justified in expecting city officials to set aside agenda-driven expediency in favor of deliberate and empathetic conversation -- especially if the city intends to move forward from its history of racism. Such a course of action will necessarily (and frustratingly, for many) require patience. But patience is the hallmark of any true democracy. Jacob R. Evers, Beaverton * WRONG TO HOLD CLOSED-DOOR VOTE: Members of the community made it known that they wanted their voices heard about some defects in the contract, especially around officer accountability. They arrived at City Hall for a public hearing. I was not able to be present, but I was glad to know my fellow concerned Portlanders were there, and I trusted their voices would be heard. I was shocked, disgusted and ashamed of my city when I learned they were excluded and pepper sprayed. Unaccountable police killings, particularly of African Americans and the mentally ill, have become too well-documented to ignore in this country. Portland should be different! We should be holding our officers to the highest level of accountability and setting an example for the rest of the country. To put it another way, when you have to employ officers in riot gear to keep citizens away while you approve your new police contract, you know you have a problem. Even if Mayor Hales doesn't value citizen input, I would have imagined the optics alone would have given him pause. Apparently not. Shameful. Jessica N. Bentley, Northeast Portland * THERE'S ALREADY ENOUGH SECRECY: Having retired from local government, I know that elected officials often hold executive sessions for personnel matters and union contract discussions. These sessions are announced in advance. However, Portland's City Council seems to thrive on impromptu closed-door meetings, especially on topics that citizens are concerned about and would like input into. Such actions do not represent the best interests of the public and do nothing to encourage transparency within Portland's troubling commission form of government. Decisions over issues of importance to the public such as police actions, street maintenance and safety, affordable housing and density should be publicly vetted. Otherwise there can be no public trust in the decision-makers actions. Yes, the contract vote and discussion should have been done openly and in keeping with public meeting laws. The public gets enough secrecy from the feds and state. We don't need it at the local level, too. David Krogh, Southeast Portland * BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE: Public servants should be transparent with the people they serve. Given local and national police violence on its citizens, cover-ups, and systematic corruption, matters with the police should be subject to additional scrutiny, not less. Letting the police cover their tracks and develop excuses and alibis by not immediately making body camera footage available violates at least the spirit of the freedom of information act. As digital as Portland is, why can't body cam footage be streamed live? This closed-door vote seemed to move the police away from accountability rather than towards it. Citizens should not fear their own police departments. John E. Brennan, Northeast Portland * 'A STEP IN THE WRONG DIRECTION': The entire process of negotiating this police contract has been devoid of public input and transparency, so in some ways it was only fitting for the final vote to be conducted in a location where the public was forcibly denied a voice. Although it may have been predictable, the mayor's decision to hide and force a hasty vote on an ill-considered contract was not a good decision for our city, especially not for the communities of color who are most likely to be affected by reductions in police accountability. As a current candidate for public office who believes strongly in racial justice, governmental transparency, and police accountability, I am disheartened by the mayor's decision to force this contract through despite enormous community opposition. This contract ties the hands of Mayor-elect Ted Wheeler and removes one of the best leverage tools we have to make police reforms in Portland. More importantly, this decision reiterates to communities of color -- particularly young people of color (who showed up in large numbers to each of the protests) -- that their suggestions and concerns are not valued in a meaningful way in City Hall. Our mayor should be leading the way for our city to have the challenging, often uncomfortable, discussions about the effects of structural racism and how we as a city -- one of the whitest in the United States -- can embrace diversity and live up to our progressive ideals. Last week's decision to curtail and run from those conversations was a step in the wrong direction. James Ofsink, Southeast Portland Ofsink is a candidate for Oregon Senate District 21. Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism. Tots trick-or-treat around Downtown Midland As trick-or-treating begins tonight from 6-8 p.m., the Daily News welcomes parents to send us... Midland man pleads no contest to three felonies Midland man pleads no contest to felonious assault and intent to do great bodily harm less than... Michigan AG announces 1st conviction in Boy Scouts investigation As a result of an ongoing investigation into allegations against adults in the Boy Scouts of... In an effort to boost a local hospitals chance at enhancing the care of its littlest patients, Frankenmuth Credit Union is encouraging people to vote for Covenant Kids in a nationwide video contest. The Love My Credit Union Campaign is a nationwide video contest that invites credit unions and credit union support organizations to create a short video showcasing their good deeds and charitable work. To the editor: Much has happened over the last couple of generations in our country. We have allowed abortion, calling it pro-choice which is actually the killing of innocent babies. Now recently the U.S. Supreme Court has allowed same-sex marriages. The family is no longer the family as we knew it growing up, and it has broken down. Years ago, Mother Teresa saw abortion as the greatest poverty and the cause of other social problems, including violence. We now see so much violence all over the world and in our own country. We have so much division in the United States concerning what is right and what is wrong. Mother Teresa called for withholding our votes for any pro-abortion candidates. We see and read what ISIS (Islamic terrorists) is doing by killing many innocent people all over the world, and we think that it is so terrible. Well it is! But since we are killing millions of innocent babies each year, arent we even worse? Think about it. Mother Teresa called abortion the greatest destroyer of peace. So this country will not have peace until we turn away from our wicked ways, and turn back to God. Our president and Hillary Clinton support abortion, forcing us to pay taxes for Planned Parenthood. They do not want to recognize radical Islamic terrorism, and Obama says Islam is a religion of peace. Obama is very biased when speaking about Islam and Christianity. He defends Islam and he condemns Christianity. Just look at what has happened in our country prayer was taken out of school and our freedom of religion (especially Christianity) is being attacked relentlessly. Former Atlanta fire chief Kelvin Cochran was unjustly fired because of his religious beliefs. Five pastors in Houston, Texas, had their sermons subpoenaed as part of a campaign by the mayor to silence them on moral issues. I could go on and on with more examples. What has happened to religious freedom in our country? I ask people to pray and ask God to guide them to the truth. LARRY ADAMCIK Midland Air force leadership from nations throughout the Indo-Asia-Pacific region gathered here Oct. 12 through 14 to discuss how their militaries can partner together and leverage airpower to confront regional challenges. The symposium, hosted by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, invited Gen. Terrence J. OShaughnessy, Pacific Air Force commander, as a guest speaker for the forum and he started off by commending the U.S. and Japan relationship. This indeed is a momentous year for our two nations as it marks the 65th anniversary of our strong alliance and allowing us the opportunity to share our thoughts in a gathering of such distinguished fellow airmen from so many partner nations, OShaughnessy said. 2030 is only 14 years away and while we cant predict with great detail what the future will look like, we all certainly are shaping that future as leaders in our air forces. The decisions we make today will have lasting impacts on our air and overall military capabilities well into the future. Our partnership and collaboration are fundamental to the future of air power and its contribution to regional security. Our gathering here today is a great testament to the fact that, despite the diversity and vastness of our Indo-Asia-Pacific region, as airmen, we have much in common. While in Tokyo, the air chiefs also attended the Japan International Aerospace Exhibition. With 792 Japanese and international companies, the event displayed commercial and military technology, from new air turbine components to a life-sized display of the first F-35A that JASDF recently received. A couple weeks ago, I was privileged to be with General Sugiyama in Fort Worth, Texas, where he accepted Japans first F-35, OShaughnessy said. The rollout ceremony in Fort Worth was a symbolic start to our collaboration in a new dimension, the 5th generation arena. Together with other F-35 coalition nations, this is the beginning of a new era in air power. According to OShaughnessy, regional security and prosperity are all goals that the nations share together; that the nations should work together to deepen interoperability. From working level airman to larger multilateral exercises like Red Flag-Alaska or Cope North and everything in-between, our air forces learn valuable lessons from each other, OShaughnessy said. Exercises and engagements like these not only build capability and understanding among us. It also sends a strong message to our adversaries and potential adversaries. The Indo-Asia-Pacific is our home. Its success will ultimately come from how we work together, how we leverage our individual strengths to achieve our common aspirations. Just like sports, everyone on the team brings a unique capability or talent. LYONS, Colo. How to set a tone of woodsy chic at a four-course candlelight dinner served under the stars in the Colorado foothills: Live musicians and flowers, check. Award-winning cuisine, check. Beer and wine pairings with each course, check. Marijuana pairings? Oh, yes. The 100 diners at this $200-a-plate dinner smoked a citrus-smelling marijuana strain to go with a fall salad with apples, dates and bacon, followed by a darker, sweeter strain of pot to accompany a main course of slow-roasted pork shoulder in a mole sauce with charred root vegetables and rice. And with dessert? Marijuana-infused chocolate, of course, grated over salted caramel ice cream and paired with coffee infused with non-intoxicating hemp oil. The diners received small glass pieces and lighters to smoke the pairings, or they could have their marijuana rolled into joints by professional rollers set up next to a bartender pouring wine. Welcome to fine dining in Weed Country. The marijuana industry is trying to move away from its pizza-and-Doritos roots as folks explore how to safely serve marijuana and food. Chefs are working with marijuana growers to chart the still-very-unscientific world of pairing food and weed. And a proliferation of mass-market cheap pot is driving professional growers to develop distinctive flavors and aromas to distinguish themselves in a crowded market. "We talk with the (marijuana) grower to understand what traits they saw in the marijuana ... whether it's earthy notes, citrus notes, herbal notes, things that we could play off," said Corey Buck, head of catering for Blackbelly Restaurant, a top-rated farm-to-table restaurant that provided the meal. The grower of one of the pot strains served at the dinner, Alex Perry, said it won't be long until marijuana's flavors and effects are parsed as intently as wine profiles. But that's in the future, he conceded. "It's still looked down upon as a not-very-sophisticated thing," said Perry, who grew a strain called Black Cherry Soda for his company, Headquarters Cannabis. Holding his nose to a small jar of marijuana, Perry said, "If I asked my mom or my dad what they smell, they're going to say, 'skunk,' or, 'It smells like marijuana.' But it's like wine or anything else. There's more flavor profile there." But chefs and pot growers trying to explore fine dining with weed face a legal gauntlet to make pot dinners a reality, even where the drug is as legal as beer. Colorado's marijuana retailers can't also sell food, so guests at this dinner had to buy a separate $25 "goodie bag" from a dispensary for the pot pairings. The bags came with tiny graters for diners to shave the pot chocolate onto their ice cream themselves; the wait staff could not legally serve a dish containing pot, even though the event was private and limited to people over 21. Diners were shuttled to and from the event by private bus, to avoid potentially stoned drivers leaving the dinner. Marijuana dining may become more accessible in coming months, though. Denver voters this fall will consider a proposal to allow marijuana use at some bars and restaurants as long as the drug isn't smoked, with the potential for new outdoor marijuana smoking areas. NORMAL A Bloomington man charged with eight counts of sexually abusing several teenage boys in Bloomington and Normal has been arrested in California. Bloomington police said after four months on the run, Deondre Watts, 24, was arrested Monday in Sacramento by members of the U.S. Marshals Task Force. Watts was wanted on a McLean County warrant for aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a minor boy while serving in a position of trust or authority between June 1 and July 31, 2015 in Bloomington. A second victim was allegedly abused by Watts in Normal between April 1 and Nov. 30, 2015, according to the charges. Watts was charged with eight counts of sexual abuse on June 17 in McLean County, but authorities were unable to find him. At that time, authorities asked the public for help in locating him and also possibly identifying other victims. Bond has been set at $500,000 in the sexual abuse case, meaning Watts must post $50,035 to be released. Normal Police Lt. Paul Smith told The Pantagraph previously that the investigation started in February when an adult reported the alleged abuse to Bloomington police. Watts is currently awaiting extradition back to McLean County. BLOOMINGTON The lawyer for murder suspect Kirk Zimmerman has asked a judge to seal documents and close the courtroom to the media and public for arguments on whether certain evidence should be barred from his trial. Zimmerman is charged with first-degree murder in the November 2014 shooting death of his former wife, Pamela Zimmerman. She was found by police with multiple gunshot wounds in her east Bloomington office. In his motions filed Monday, St. Louis defense lawyer John Rogers described certain potential evidence as "sensitive, private, and/or inflammatory information about defendant and about others who may be called as witnesses or who are otherwise connected to defendant." Disclosure of the information, which may be barred from trial, "would irreparably taint the jury pool for this case," Rogers argued in his motion. In a companion motion, Rogers asks that the courtroom also be closed to the media and public during arguments on the potential evidence. Because the information has not been introduced as evidence and may never be deemed admissible, "the media and public have no right to the information at this time," the defense argued. Opposing the closure motions, Springfield media lawyer Don Craven cited a 4th District Appellate Court ruling related to the 2003 DeWitt County murder case of Maurice LaGrone, who was convicted of drowning three children in a car submerged in Clinton Lake. A judge granted a defense motion to close pretrial hearings, but the ruling was reversed in the appellate court. "There is a presumption of access to such hearings, and that specific factual findings must be made to close the hearing," Craven said. "A general fear that a jury pool will be tainted is not enough." McLean County State's Attorney Jason Chambers said Tuesday that "at this point we will let the judge address these issues" related to the requests to seal records and the courtroom. Rogers gave Judge Scott Drazewski and First Assistant State's Attorney Adam Ghrist advance notice during a Sept. 27 hearing that the petitions to keep the potential evidence secret would be filed. Rogers denied that the state wants to move Zimmerman's trial outside of McLean County. Zimmerman "does not desire a change of venue, and a change of venue at this point would hamper the efforts of both parties and consideration of judicial economy, and would result in prejudice," said the motion. In other recently filed pretrial motions, Rogers asked that statements made by witnesses about Zimmerman's relationship with his 53-year-old former spouse be excluded. Statements gathered by police during their investigation from people who knew the couple are potentially damaging to Zimmerman, according to the defense. Among those who talked to police was Scott Baldwin, the man who had become engaged to Pam Zimmerman days before her death. He told police Kirk Zimmerman did not want his ex-wife to be successful or happy. Zimmerman's lawyer also is seeking to exclude the opinions some witnesses may have about Zimmerman's personality and his alleged capacity to commit murder. Those opinions were solicited by Bloomington police detectives during their witness interviews, Rogers argued. One woman who knew Pam Zimmerman described the suspect as "quiet, very strange and a distant, odd bird," according to court records. In another example cited by Rogers, Zimmerman was described as anti-social, spending most of his time in the basement playing video games. The 57-year-old suspect has apparently maintained a strong base of support, with his three children and his girlfriend beside him since his release a year ago after posting $200,035. His two teenage daughters reside with him at his home where he is confined under the terms of a pretrial release order. A Nov. 21 hearing is scheduled for arguments on defense motions. BLOOMINGTON Around 2,500 District 87 students were granted access to the shelves and databases at Bloomington Public Library this week as a way to boost literacy appreciation and learning opportunities. Through a partnership with the Bloomington school district, any student without a library card received a student card. With the card, students can check out up to three print items at a time, use the BPL computers, have access to all online library resources and use the librarys teenZone area. Were really excited about this partnership (with District 87) because it gets cards into the hands of students who havent necessarily had them before, said library Director Jeanne Hamilton. Sometimes the library is the best-kept secret in town. Hamilton said District 87 teachers will promote BPL resources historic databases, eBooks, newspaper archives and reference collections in classrooms. There are teachers who use the school media specialist as a go-between with the public library to bring more books and resources into the classroom, said Bloomington Junior High School library media specialist Jessie Nicoson. By having their own library card, students can go and pull books themselves, which can lead them to see something else theyre interested in. Nicoson said the initiative sends a message that reading is important, even outside of school. A lot of students dont have the opportunity to check out books unless its during the school year, said Nicoson. And its not just about books; there are a lot of programs they have access to like databases, online tutoring and incentivized reading programs. She hopes to see the library connection expand with frequent field trips to BPL. A library is like a shopping center, said Nicoson. Students can explore and find books themselves outside the classroom. There is a whole world of shopping to be done in a library." Students can upgrade to a full-access library card, which increases the limit of checked-out items and allows students to check out video games, DVDs and CDs. To upgrade, students must visit the library with a parent with photo ID and proof of Bloomington address. Finland's Forest and Paper Industry Continues Structural Change Oct. 19, 2016 - According to a forecast released in early October by the Finnish research firm PTT, Finland's forest industry investments will increase the export of pulp and paperboard this and next year. However, the average export prices will decline. The diminution of the production and export of paper in Finland will continue strong. High demand in China maintains a positive outlook for the export of sawn timber. Demand is growing also because of activation of the construction industry in Finland and in Europe. Pulp and paperboard exports on the increase The production and export of paper in Finland will reduce by 57 per cent this year and 34 per cent next year. This is explained by downward trend in demand, already realized by the conversion of paper machines into paperboard machines and other capacity closures. No significant change in the average export price of paper is expected. A more significant increase would require more closures of machines in Europe and a pronounced rebound in the economy. Despite diminishing production, the paper industry still produces about 40 per cent of the export revenue of the Finnish forest industry. In Finland, the production volume of paperboard will rise this and next year significantly because of expanding production capacity. However, the average export price will decrease. Decrease in export prices of pulp Pulp exports from Finland will grow both 2016 and 2017 due to increase in production capacity. There's increase in capacity in other countries as well, and especially the supply of eucalyptus pulp will be higher than before. Increase in the supply of northern softwood pulp (NBSK), important to Finnish forest industry, is quite moderate in the forecast period. However, the overall increase in supply will lead to lower prices in NBSK as well. The export price in Finland in 2016 will be 7-8 percent lower than last year. The new Metsa Group bioproduct mill in Aanekoski will start production in autumn 2017 and therefore its effects considering Finnish exports or global pricing of pulp are not fully realized in the forecast period. Also, the forest industry company UPM will increase its production of pulp in the forecast period. New records in sawnwood exports Sawnwood exports from Finland will increase significantly in 2016 compared to 2015 and will reach new record levels. The increase in demand is especially due to the positive trend in Chinese markets for spruce sawn softwood. The production of sawnwood will increase by 5 percent this year. Increasing construction activity will also raise demand for sawnwood in the domestic market. Downward trend in Finland's average sawnwood export price, already two years ongoing, will reverse only in 2017. Growing demand for wood products in main export markets as well as domestic market will increase the production of sawn softwood next year by 3-4 percent. SOURCE: PTT (www.ptt.fi) A class-action lawsuit against Michigan state and the Flint school district was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) at the federal court on Tuesday, Oct. 18. Fifteen plaintiffs have been named in the case, with the ACLU representing 11 families and over 30,000 children. It claims that the state and school districts violated three laws on education. The filing of the lawsuit comes nearly a year following the expose on the water crisis in Flint, Michigan. It alleges that the local government was liable for exposing school children to lead poisoning. It also alleges that the school districts didn't properly provide students with the right tools to counter learning disabilities brought by lead poisoning. ACLU cites that school districts in Michigan should have considered these kids for special needs education and have allocated the resources. Instead, the kids were either suspend or expelled, which has led to a high number of incidence in Flint school districts. "There isn't anything being done to help kids," Kary Moss of ACLU said, according to CNN. "We have parents asking for their kids to be assessed and that's not being done for months. There's not vision or hearing screening," the director of ACLU added. Specifically, ACLU said that the Michigan state and school districts violated laws like Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004. It is asking the courts to let Michigan school districts halt suspensions and expulsions because these are illegal. It is also asking the state to come up with remedies and special monitoring for the children, especially for ages 3-years-old to 5-years-old. The full details to the lawsuit is found at the ACLU site. The state nor Michigan's Department of Education has not commented on the lawsuit. However, a spokesperson said that the governor's office has been coordinating with schools with regards water safety and has allocated a budget for this. Three teenagers, all from Oshawa, disguised as clowns ended up in Oshawa police station after being reported to have been causing trouble and scaring people in the area of Taunton Road and Simcoe Street North, Durham authorities said. Now, the three clown teens are charged with attempt to scare the public and reckless driving. Police said that on Friday, around 3:30 p.m., they received reports about a suspicious car in the area of Simcoe Street and Taunton Road, as of CP24. Immediately they went to the area. They found one female teenager, 18, and two male teenagers, both 19, who were accused by witnesses causing a nuisance in the area. "Witnesses called police after observing a grey Saturn with three occupants, all of them wearing clown masks, stopping near other cars and pedestrians in a dangerous manner," police said according to Toronto Sun. According to the witnesses, the two masked passengers in the car were spotted opening the car doors and attempting to scare others and leaning out the car windows while the car was moving, the Toronto Sun also noted as per the Police. After hearing the stories of the witnesses, the authorities right away stopped the grey Saturn and charged the three teen clowns. The 19-year-old male teen is charged with reckless driving and attempt to scare the public, while his two companions, an 18-year-old female teen and a 19-year-old male teen are charged with attempt to scare the public, according to Global News. Durham authorities announced that they have already responded to 31 calls of creepy clown sightings since the beginning of October, according to Global news. The craze involves people disguising as clowns to scare innocent people. Threatening, scary clown sightings have been increasing over the last couple of weeks, according to Heavy.com. In fact, at least 40 U.S. states have had odd clown sightings so far, and the number keeps increasing, the report added. This is not the only time it happened in Toronto. Here's a video showing another prank that took place in Toronto School. Photo: (Photo : Dustin Campbell) The National Home Education Research Institute reveals that there are many other countries practicing homeschooling all around the world. When homeschooling started to take off in the 80s, it was mostly religious families leading the way. Things have changed, though. There are now many different families homeschooling their children for different reasons. When we lived in the Philippines, we found a preschool that we really enjoyed. Our kids had a blast and learned a lot. We had built personal relationships with our children's teachers and the school's administration. Then our eldest daughter was about to enter into first grade. So we started looking for a school. In the Philippines, it seems if you want a quality school, you are thinking of a private school. The truth is we were willing to pay for it. We visited different schools and learned about our options. Nonetheless, we never found a school we felt comfortable with. That is when we started to consider homeschooling. In the city where we lived we didn't know anyone who homeschooled. We did some research and learned about different curriculums out there. We found one we liked and we started out. From there we learned about all of the other advantages we gained. What are the advantages of homeschooling? I do a lot of travel for my work. Sometimes I can be gone for weeks. With homeschooling we are not tied down to a school. If it works out I can bring my family, then they come. Also due to a lot of circumstances outside of our control, my family has had to move 11 times in the past 15 years, three times internationally (I do not advice this). Since we did homeschool our kids, their schooling was not affected as it could have been. Actually, in spite of all the moving, all of our kids had advanced at least one whole school year. Now for us, homeschooling works. I don't see us changing that any time soon. Homeschooling, though, is not for everybody. I was talking to a friend of mine who used to have his kids homeschooled. Many days when he would get home, he would found his wife and daughters crying. His daughters were falling behind and his wife was stressed. After discussing this over with his wife, they decided to put their girls in a private school. They were processing which school to enroll their girls, and he asked them which school they would like to attend. They answered, "Any school but homeschool." After they started attending a private school they excelled and did well. So let's get to the big question -- Is homeschooling right for you? You may be considering homeschooling for a list of different reasons. I don't know what your reasons are, but here are some things you need to consider: 1- Start with proper time management. If you are going to homeschool your child/children, you are going to need one parent to be at home overseeing and teaching. That means you can't have two parents working a job, unless you are going to hire someone. 2- Do your homework. Find out what are the laws for homeschooling in your area. In the United States, homeschooling is legal in all 50 states, but they all have different laws regarding it. Find out what they are. Also learn about any homeschooling programs happening in your area. Does the public school have a program for your child to join sports? Find and talk to other parents who homeschool in your area and learn from them. 3- Be ready for the challenge. Do you (as a parent) have the temperament for it? Your patience will be tested, I promise. 4- How does your child learn? Every child is different. Some children will learn better at home with a custom curriculum than they ever would in a school. Others do better in a school environment. Learn your child's strengths and weaknesses. Find out their learning style. Also if you are considering homeschooling, there is a wide range of cost out there. Some states have programs that cover or offset some of those cost. So it will help to do some research. Homeschooling could be good for you. But learn as much as possible before you decide. For more information, please check out these sites: Facts on Homeschooling How Homeschooling is Changing America Homeschool Laws in Your State Simple Homeschool Dustin Campbell is a proud father of three active children. As a family, they lived in the Philippines, Thailand, and currently the United States. Dustin has been speaking and teaching internationally on a wide range of topics for the past 20 years, including on relationships and marriage. Dustin and his wife Haydee, with their beautiful kids, currently reside in North Carolina. Save The twin boys conjoined at the head from Ohio but are now in New York City were successfully separated via a 27-hour operation. They are now recovering but it is a long way of recovery. The parents or the twin boys, Nicole and Christian McDonald, said in a recent statement that they are relieved but still hoping for the best. In a recent interview with Nicole and Christian, they told CNN that one of the 13-month-old twins, Jadon, was able to move his left arm up to his mouth. Nicole said that it was a wave of relief for them and is a kind of relief they have never experienced in the past. According to Nicole, after Jadon got out of surgery at 7 A.M. on Friday until 2 P.M. on Monday, he was only able to move his right side. Although it was just normal for Jadon to not feel anything on his right side, his parents were concerned that he would not regain movement. Jadon has also shown more progress the next day. He reportedly started to grab at his breathing tube on Tuesday morning as he tried to pull it off. He has also smiled as his parents when he saw them. The other twin, Anias, however, has more recovery to do. He reportedly continues to have more seizures and is being treated with the medication Keppra and Ativan. These are used for seizures that last longer than 30 minutes. Anias' surgery lasted six hours longer than that of Jadon due to breathing problems and heart issues. The father of the twins, Christian, said that they are taking it one day at a time and dwell more on the positive things. Nicole also said that if she stays patient, she will see the same type of progress for Anias. Anias was able to open his eyes since the surgery. Doctors also said that the heart rate and blood pressure of Anias calms whenever his mother is near. Morning Ledger reported that Jadon and Anias were born in Chicago in September. The head doctor in charge of the operation told the parents of the boys that the children will have to go back to being a month old and re-learn a lot of things such as walking and rolling around. A GoFundMe page for the twin boys now has more than $260,000 in donation. Nicole and Christian are now asking other people who want to donate to give the money to a friend of theirs instead whose child needs kidney transplant. Obesity has long been a problem in the society, affecting more kids and teenagers. In the United States, one in six children and adolescents is reportedly obese. In a recent epidemiological study published online in Childhood Obesity, researchers from Tufts University School of Medicine found that children and teens with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are more likely to be obese during adolescence compared to non-ASD kids. Based on the email sent to Parent Herald, the study was spearheaded by Morton A. Madoff professor and Boston's Tufts School of Medicine public health and community medicine Dr. Aviva Must. In the study, experts found the rate of obesity remains steady with children ages 10 to 17 who are suffering from ASD versus the decreasing rate in children who are not suffering from autism. It was also revealed that there was no significant increase in the prevalence of obesity prevalence children with ASD. Unfortunately, the prevalence of obesity in non-ASD children was reduced by 50 percent. The Tufts University School of Medicine research also highlighted obesity discrepancies by gender and by race. Researchers observed that obesity in kids with ASD is more prevalent in boys than in girls over their adolescent stage. In connection with race and ethnicity, obesity is more predominant in white, non-Hispanic children with ASD. Childhood obesity may have long term health effects for people suffering from ASD. Experts stressed several factors should be tested for their potential role in maintaining the obesity rate observed with the school. According to Linda Bandini, Ph.D., associate professor at UMass Medical School's Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center and department of health sciences, Boston University and director of the HWRN, these factors to consider with obesity in children with autism are: sensory sensitivity, the need for routine or sameness, behavioral rigidity, use of food as a reward, mealtime and parental stresses. Bandini also added that "exercise for many teens comes in the form of competitive sports, in which children with developmental disabilities are less likely to take part." Meanwhile, further research and qualitative approaches could be done to better understand the influence of behavioral and sociodemographic factors on the prevalence of obesity among children with ASD. The latest study came after initial reports show that children with developmental disabilities, which include ASD, have higher risk of being obese. "Children with developmental disabilities face unique challenges and are not always served by health interventions aimed at those without disorders such as ASD," Must said. "The complexity of their medical needs is both why particular attention should be paid to their circumstances and why it is difficult to do so." What are your thoughts about the prevalence of obesity in children with autism? Sound off below and follow Parent Herald for more news and updates. The five-state search for abducted 4-year-old Rebecca Lewis came to an end after a hospital assistant in Tennessee helped rescue the child. Kaytlin Brown, a clinical assistant at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, saw Lewis and her alleged kidnapper, West Hogs, while she was walking down a hallway at the hospital on Oct. 10. Lewis went missing from her bed in her Lakeland, Florida home on Saturday, Oct. 8, People reported from a news release from the Polk County, Florida, Sheriff's Office. Brown, 23, told People that she saw Lewis' photo in an AMBER Alert poster via Facebook moments before seeing the child with Hogs. Brown walked by the two one more time before informing her father Carey McIllwain, a board runner at the hospital, of what she had seen. Brown and McIllwain approached Lewis and Hogs together. Brown recalled that Hogs was holding the toddler's hand while keeping his head down to hide his face. Afterward, Brown and McIllwain informed security and contacted Memphis police. Authorities arrested Hogs without incident just as he and Lewis were exiting the hospital's parking lot, according to CNN. Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky and Tennessee had all issued Amber Alerts about Lewis' abduction. Brown said that Lewis "didn't seem too fazed" about the whole thing. "I don't know if she really knew what was going on. That makes me even happier that she was so unfazed, because it's such a terrible memory to [live with]," Brown further told People. Luther Lewis and Melissa Schell, Rebecca's parents, told police that they hadn't seen Hogs in the past two years before he surprisingly visited their home on Oct. 7, NBC reported. Luther and Schell told reporters at a news conference that they grew up with Hogs and that they considered him as part of their family. The two, however, claimed that Hogs' nature changed after he went through brain surgery a number of years ago. Hogs' family told authorities that he has depression and bipolar disorder, according to Donna Wood, spokeswoman for the Polk County, Florida, Sheriff's Office. Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said that Hogs has no criminal history and does not appear to be violent. He also lived with the Lewis family in the past - a time when the young Rebecca was just an infant - but he took out a gun on the family "so the mama ran him off," CNN added. Lewis was sent back to Florida and reunited with her parents on Oct. 11. Hogs was extradited from Tennessee to South County, Florida on Oct. 13, with burglary and kidnapping as his charges. He has a $100,000 bond. George Clooney and wife Amal Alamuddin pregnancy rumors have been a hot topic online recently. However, things quickly turned sour after new reports started to claim that the actor's barrister wife has started to be a diva once again. This time, the alleged incident happened in a meeting with a UN Ambassador. If rumors are true, George Clooney and wife Amal Alamuddin should learn how to be careful with their actions since they are both public figures. As Celeb Dirty Laundry reported, Amal reportedly disrespected Iraqi UN ambassador Ali Alhakim. The international human rights lawyer used a very "dismissive" and "lecturing" tone at the ambassador all while she reportedly brought in her own camera crew without any permission. The publication continued to share that Amal even demanded to meet the prime minister. After the ruckus, sources claimed that Amal was escorted out of the event because of the trouble that ensued because of her. This was not the first time George and wife Amal landed in boiling water for the barrister's attitude. While no one really knows if these rumors are true, sources claim that all the speculations about the Clooneys should be taken with a grain of salt. Meanwhile, it was previously reported that George Clooney and wife Amal have purchased a new home in an upscale Manhattan. As Page Six noted, the couple bought a lush Manhattan condo worth $65M. Their new 6,760 square feet property allegedly has four bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms. While it was not disclosed why the couple purchased a new property, many have started to think that this could be their first step to start their own family. As Celeb Dirty Laundry previously noted, Amal is not really comfortable living in L.A. Stay tuned for more George Clooney and wife Amal Alamuddin pregnancy updates here! This service is a courtesy for our print subscribers to give them access to our online edition at no additional cost. If you haven't registered on the new site, you must do it now before you do anything else. Samsung has already agreed to compensate their Note7 component partners so that they don't lose financially for Samsung's battery issues. Well, in part at least. A new Korean report today states that "Samsung Electronics is planning to compensate for all of its partners' Galaxy Note 7 components that are in stock in order to lessen and minimize any financial loss for rear-end industries due to discontinuation of Galaxy Note 7. Its partners are welcoming compensations since they will be able to lessen financial burdens. Samsung Electronics made the announcement yesterday that it would be compensating for all of Galaxy Note 7's finished and half-finished components that are in stock and subsidiary materials that were prepared to produce such components. Samsung Electronics is going to check how much components are in stock and compensate its partners as soon as possible. It is heard that there are about 70 businesses that are associated with compensations from Samsung Electronics, and about $267 million (300 billion KRW) are going to be compensated to them." Team Leader (Vice-President) Park Jong-seo of Samsung Electronics Wireless Business Department Purchasing Team said in a statement that "We are sorry that we have caused financial trouble for our partners due to discontinuation of Galaxy Note 7." But that doesn't resolve the larger problem with some suppliers. The report further noted that sales of the Note7 were expected to snowball going forward as the product reached foreign markets. Even though Samsung's suppliers invested a huge amount of time and effort into development of components, business opportunities for them disappeared due to its discontinuation. Especially businesses that have prepared to produce components such as iris-recognition cameras or digitizers for Galaxy Note 7 are now facing a problem regarding what they should do with facilities that are supposed to produce such components. One of Samsung's suppliers said that "Even if businesses reinforce their production lines and employees, they are going to have financial burdens if major source of sales for them disappears." To ease some of that pain, Samsung Electronics announced that it would actively examine into assigning supplies of other Smartphones for its partners that are suffering due to reduction of sales. It also added that it will prepare separate measures for facilities that were set up just for Galaxy Note 7 so that they can be used for other models. While the discontinuation of Samsung's Galaxy Note7 has caused havoc and financial headaches for many of their manufacturing and component partners, customers who trusted Samsung seem to have gotten the short end of the stick. Many Samsung customers are bitterly complaining that Samsung is far too slow in assisting them in getting properly compensated for fires the Note7 caused in their homes. We covered this aspect of the ongoing Samsung crisis in our first report today titled "Compounding Problems for Samsung Could Escalate into a Wider Disaster." We noted in our earlier report that "Jonathan Bernstein, an expert in crisis communications criticized Samsung's handling of the debacle by saying that "Samsung's recall crisis management has been as defective as its product." He believes that the South Korean company needs to be far more compassionate and responsive towards affected customers. Bernstein added that "Sticking to the letter of insurance cover and doing what's right are two different things. They need to do what's right." That's certainly a measure that most think will never be accomplished. About Making Comments on our Site: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit any comments. Those using abusive language or behavior will result in being blacklisted on Disqus. Republican Governor Matt Bevin of Kentucky made these comments at the Values Voter Summit just over a week ago: Somebody asked me yesterday, I did an interview, Do you think its possible, if Hillary Clinton were to win the election, do you think its possible that well be able to survive, that wed ever be able to recover as a nation? And while there are people who have stood on this stage and said we would not, I would beg to differ. I do think it would be possible, but at what price? At what price? The roots of the tree of liberty are watered by what? The blood of who? The tyrants, to be sure, but who else? The patriots. Whose blood will be shed? It may be that of those in this room. It might be that of our children and grandchildren. I have nine children. It breaks my heart to think that it might be their blood is needed to redeem something, to reclaim something that we, through our apathy and our indifference, have given away. Dont let it happen. Bevin sounds like my father, and like so many other homeschool fathers I grew up knowing in the conservative evangelical community in which I grew up. And thats not a coincidence. Bevin is a homeschool father. The first thing I notice is the insistence that we are are living at a turning point, a moment of high drama and extreme crisis which will determine whether our nation can survive. They say this every election. Do they think we dont remember their dire predictions in 2008? A psychologist would likely have a heyday with this. Theres something there in their desire to believe they live in critically important times. It allows them to see themselves as heroes and as patriots, standing up courageously against the forces of evil. As a quick aside, the heroes in stories like these usually get carted off to jail, watch their friends killed, or otherwise suffer consequences. Whats interesting here is that Bevin (and others like him) create a hero-narrativeand enjoy the rush it gives themwithout actually running the risks faced by those in hero-narratives. Oh, they do think they face consequences. But lets be real. No one is being jailed for being politically conservative, or for being evangelical (and no, Kim Davis doesnt count). The next thing I noticed was the invoking of his nine children. In evangelical homeschool circlesin the circles in which I grew upchildren become politicized and weaponized. In this case Bevin assumes that his children will grow up to share his beliefs and political views, that his children will grow up to fight for his cause in the war he believes may be coming. But they may not. Bevins children may grow up to be LGBT-supporting feminist progressives like me. God help them if they do, because Bevin will not be happy. And yes, I do remember being taught that we might someday need to engage in a literal war against an out-of-control government. What did you think all the guns were for? My family didnt support the second amendment because we liked to hunt. We didnt hunt. We didnt support it for our protection against muggers or murderers either, not really. No, we supported the second amendment so that we would be able to defend ourselves against the government once it had become inimical to our rights. That was why we believed the second amendment had been written (which is odd, now that I think about it, because that is definitely not why it looks like it was written). No matter. We were ready. I should note that this is usually just rhetoric, rhetoric that is recycled again every election. Weve never seen a full-scale uprising like what Bevin describes, butand this is an important butfor decades now there have always been some who take the rhetoric seriously and resort to bloodshed. Timothy McVeigh, for instance, but others that are less known too. Armed militia groups became an increasing problem under Obama, and have grown only further this year. Just last week a Kansas group was caught making bombs intended to blow up local Somali immigrants andthey hopedignite a religious war. Hopefully Bevins words will remain just thatwords. But even words are dangerous. I have a Patreon! Please support my writing! Six-Year Prison Sentence Against Teachers Union Leader Upheld After Pressure by Revolutionary Guards 10/19/16 Source: International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran Branch 36 of the Tehran Appeals Court has upheld the six-year prison sentence against Esmail Abdi, the chairman of the Iranian Teachers Trade Association, confirmed Abdi in an interview with the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. Esmail Abdi, the chairman of the Iranian Teachers Trade Association Abdi said he believed the Appeals Courts decision was influenced by several alleged violations added to the indictment by the Sarallah Headquarters of the Revolutionary Guards. The alleged events, which took place while he was free on bail, were purely professional and not political in nature, said Abdi. According to a ruling delivered to my lawyer on October 7 (2016), the six-year prison sentence issued by the preliminary court has been upheld on appeal, he said. I have been given the maximum punishment for two charges: one year for propaganda against the state and five years for collusion against national security. Screenshot of document on Judiciarys site listing additional accusations against Abdi to influence Appeals Courts verdict On June 1 (2016) my lawyer and I appeared at Branch 36 of the Tehran Appeals Court. At the end of the trial I asked for sentencing to be postponed so I could have a chance to show that our activities were purely professional and not political in nature. The Sarallah Headquarters, as the detaining authority, has had the wrong impression of our activities and has claimed that they were political in nature and directed against the state, Abdi told the Campaign. The labor rights leader was arrested on June 27, 2015 by the Revolutionary Guards Intelligence Organization, a week after being barred from leaving Iran to attend an international teachers conference in Canada. In his preliminary trial, Abdi was sentenced in February 2016 to six years in prison by Judge Abolqasem Salavati of Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court for propaganda against the state and collusion against national security. Abdi said the Revolutionary Guards had petitioned the Appeals Court alleging he had broken the terms of his conditional release by visiting fellow labor activist Jafar Azimzadeh in the hospital. The Sarallah Headquarters added a statement to my case that after my release on bail I did not stop my trade union activities. As examples, they mentioned my visits with Mr. Azimzadeh and my interviews with domestic and foreign media, he said. Abdi was detained four times by security forces between 2006 and 2009 for his peaceful activism, and in 2011 he was given a 10-year suspended prison sentence by the Tehran Revolutionary Court for propaganda against the state and revealing information about security matters. Labor activism in Iran is seen as a national security offense; independent labor unions are not allowed to function, strikers are often fired and risk arrest, and labor leaders are consistently prosecuted under catchall national security charges and sentenced to long prison terms. In addition to Abdi, several senior members of the Teachers Trade Association of Iran have been arrested, jailed or sent into exile, including Mahmoud Beheshti Langroudi, Ali Akbar Baghani, and Rasoul Bodaghi. Samsungs problems with lawsuits from alleged victims of overheating batteries in the Galaxy Note7 smartphone could get compounded by consumers suing for compensation of carrier charges. The three plaintiffs in a proposed class action lawsuit in a New Jersey federal court are not suing for compensation for personal or property damage from the at times overheating and even exploding Note7 smartphones. Instead, they are asking the South Korean phone maker to compensate users for the time it took Samsung to replace and eventually discontinue the Note7s, which resulted in users having to pay for device and plan charges to cellular operators for phones they could not safely use. Samsung initially introduced an exchange program for the Note7 on Sept. 2 and eventually withdrew the product on Oct. 10 after problems were found in the replacement phones as well. The company has tried to retain Note7 customers by offering bill credits of up to US$100 to users exchanging their phones with its own smartphones. It also offered users of the phone a refund or an exchange for a Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, besides the option of a replacement with a new Note7. Interestingly the lawsuit does not refer to the bill credits and the option of a refund, which was introduced under a recall announced by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on Sept. 15. The consumers discontinued using their Note7s only to find that Samsung did not have replacement smartphones available, according to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, Newark division by users John Waudby, Robert Spuntak and Mohamad Ibrahim. Samsung instead informed consumers that they would have to wait several days, and even weeks in many cases, before receiving a replacement smartphone, the complaint said. It was not until September 21 that Samsung announced that it would begin the Note7 exchanges nationwide. And even on that date, only an estimated 500,000 replacement devices had arrived in the United States, according to the complaint, which claims that as of Sept. 27, about 40 percent of the unsafe Note7s sold in South Korea and the U.S. still had not been replaced with new devices. For about three weeks or more, consumers were left without the safe use of smartphones that they had purchased, during which period they continued to incur monthly device and plan charges associated with their Note7s, the complainants state in the filing. By Oct. 10, Samsung announced that it was discontinuing the Galaxy Note7 and a few days later announced an expanded recall of all Note7 phones. The plaintiffs are seeking to represent a nationwide class of persons and entities in the U.S. who purchased or leased a Samsung Galaxy Note7, or in the alternative separate state sub-classes of users in Nevada, Pennsylvania and California, the three states of which the plaintiffs are residents. The complaint, which seeks an unspecified damages award from the court, charges that Samsung made material misstatements and omissions about the availability of replacement Note7s, and as a result the three plaintiffs and class members were fraudulently induced to continue incurring and paying monthly charges and fees for their Note7s, which they could neither use nor replace. Samsung did not immediately comment on the lawsuit. Yahoo is asking that the U.S. government set the record straight on requests for user data, following reports saying the internet company has secretly scanned customer emails for terrorism-related information. On Wednesday, Yahoo sent a letter to the Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, saying the company has been unable to respond to news articles earlier this month detailing the alleged government-mandated email scanning. Your office, however, is well positioned to clarify this matter of public interest, the letter said. The scanning allegedly involved searching through the email accounts of every Yahoo user and may have gone beyond other U.S. government requests for information, according to a report from Reuters. However, Yahoo has called the Reuters report misleading. The mail scanning described in the article does not exist on our systems, the company said. A separate report from The New York Times suggested the email scanning was done on behalf of the U.S. Department of Justice and meant to probe for signs of code belonging to a foreign terrorist group. The recent news stories on the email scanning have provoked broad speculation about Yahoo and U.S. government activities, the internet company said in its letter. Although Yahoo respects the need for confidentiality, the company is urging more transparency over how the U.S. government goes about legally obtaining users private communications. Transparency underpins the ability of any company in the information and communications technology sector to earn and preserve the trust of its customers, the letter said. Yahoo has agreed to be sold off to Verizon as part of $4.8 billion deal. But the internet companys value may have diminished on news of the secret email scanning and a massive data breach publicized in September. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. UPDATE: Turns out the attorney general will be helping out Democratic Assembly candidate Abigail Medina prior to visiting Corona. Harris is scheduled to stop by the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 12, 1647 W. Lugonia Ave. in Redlands, at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, according to the Medina campaign. ORIGINAL POST: California Attorney General and if the polls are right future U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris will be in Corona on Sunday, Oct. 23 to show support for Democratic Assembly candidate Sabrina Cervantes, the Cervantes campaign announced in a Facebook post. Harris, a Democrat, will be at the Cervantes campaign headquarters, Suite 111, 1411 Rimpau Ave., at 2:30 p.m., the post read. For additional information or to RSVP, email cervantesforassembly@gmail.com or call 760-501-5388. Cervantes, the district director for Assemblyman Jose Medina, D-Riverside, is running against Assemblyman Eric Linder, R-Corona, in the 60th Assembly District, which includes Corona, Norco, Eastvale, Jurupa Valley and part of the city of Riverside. A win by Cervantes would put the Democrats one step closer to re-gaining the two-thirds legislative supermajority in Sacramento needed to pass tax increases and other measures without GOP support. Cervantes could get a boost from the district having about 4,400 more Democratic voters than Republicans, and higher voter turnout in presidential election years tends to help Democrats. Linder enjoys the support of Sheriff Stan Sniff, District Attorney Mike Hestrin, public safety unions, four of Riverside Countys five supervisors and in a twist, Service Employees International Union, which had not endorsed a GOP candidate in more than 20 years. The city of San Bernardino entered the final stage of its bankruptcy case in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, with a confirmation hearing that the city and its thousands of creditors have awaited for more than four years. A hearing Friday was the first in a series that city officials expect will culminate in the city exiting bankruptcy by about March. A plan that includes paying certain creditors only 1 cent for every dollar theyre owed was for the most part tentatively confirmed. This is a momentous day, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Meredith Jury said Friday. Jury ruled the city had met most of its requirements and added that she does not think the city should worry that she wont confirm the rest at a later hearing. Jury reserved judgment on two substantial issues, which are related. One regards a major dispute between the city and the Big Independent Cities Excess Pool, which provides liability coverage for the city, and the other concerns possible lawsuits involving individual employees such as police accused of excessive force. Those issues will be addressed beginning Nov. 15. Paul Glassman, the citys bankruptcy attorney, took a moment at the beginning of the hearing to mark the milestone of the first confirmation hearing. The very first hearing in this case back in August of 2012, I told the court that the day that the city entered Chapter 9 (bankruptcy) was a solemn day, he said. But since that day, the city has come a long way down a difficult path and has made great strides forward, thanks to the efforts of a number of people, many of whom are in the courtroom today. I can now say that today is a promise and hope for a better future for the city, Glassman said. Jury praised the city for its progress and said she was convinced by the citys financial models and declarations to show it could not afford to pay more than 1 percent of its debts to unsecured creditors, and she quickly ruled that the plan was feasible since no one submitted arguments objecting to that. Surprisingly, your honor, the aspect of a bankruptcy case thats most often disputed is not disputed in this case, Glassman said. The 1 percent payout didnt sit well with attorney Duane Folke, who appeared in court Friday for the first time on behalf of Paul Triplett. Another court determined that Triplett was entitled to $7.7 million after San Bernardino police in 2006 broke Tripletts jaw, arm, ribs, leg, ankle and foot, leaving him comatose for three days, Folke said. As an unsecured creditor, Triplett would get $77,000 under the plan. My client, unfortunately, given the fact that hes facing blindness, cannot accept the settlement as it stands, Folke said, showing the judge a poster-size photo of Tripletts wounds. Jury said she sympathized with Triplett but saw no legal reason to argue he didnt belong in the unsecured class of creditors, which overwhelmingly voted in favor of the plan. That leaves only the option of showing that the experts the city hired were wrong when they argued, with extensive documentation, that the city couldnt afford to pay more than 1 percent to its unsecured creditors. Other civil rights creditors, with different attorneys, have reached settlements for more than 1 percent but less than 100 percent of the amount they would be owed. San Bernardino filed for bankruptcy protection Aug. 1, 2012, swamped by a deficit of more than $45 million equivalent to 40 percent of the $112 million in revenues the city expects this year and fearing it wouldnt be able to make payroll unless a bankruptcy judge stopped creditors from collecting their debts. Contact the writer: rhagen@scng.comTwitter: @rmhagen Several years after residents began raising health concerns about a contaminated property in Riversides Arlanza area, state and federal health officials will investigate whether the land poses a public threat. The federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry announced it will advise the California Department of Public Health on an inquiry into the roughly 60-acre parcel known as the ag park, according to an Oct. 10 letter to Riverside officials. The property between Crest and Rutland avenues was once part of Camp Anza, a World War II troop staging area, and for more than 20 years it was the site of a sewer plant, which closed in 1965. A 2003 sewage spill led to the discovery that the land was contaminated with cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, and it halted plans to build homes. The state Department of Toxic Substances Control is overseeing a second environmental cleanup of the property that is now underway. HEALTH CHECKS This spring, Riverside officials asked the federal disease agency to look into residents fears that contaminated dirt from the sewer plant site has blown into the neighborhood and caused rashes, cancer and other illnesses. Officials with the federal and state health agencies could not be reached for comment Tuesday, Oct. 18. The disease registry agencys letter said it would oversee an investigation by the state public health department. It was not immediately clear whether health officials would request blood or other tests or health records from residents near the site, but neighborhood activist Marilyn Whitney said she and others are willing to provide samples and share their medical histories. Whitney has been using a neighborhood map to track health complaints and deaths of people and pets. She said residents are concerned that the health investigation wont be thorough. If theyre going to give us a line and just say, Were going to give you a general physical, thats not going to cover anything, she said. City Manager John Russo said state and federal health officials havent explained how theyll conduct the study, but he hopes it will determine whether neighbors health issues are out of the ordinary based on age and other demographics, and whether theres evidence of a link to the ag park contamination. In light of residents persistent concerns, Russo said, An objective, dispassionate scientific analysis of the concerns can only be good. State Department of Toxic Substances Control officials have said the site does not currently pose a public health threat. Spokesman Sandy Nax wrote in an email that the agency will share any data it has on the site with state health officials. NEXT STEPS When a health analysis might take place is unclear. The federal agencys letter said it would begin after state environmental regulators finish testing homes near the contaminated site. Toxic Substances Control officials have said theyre working with state air regulators to figure out where dirt from the site might have blown, and that will help them decide which homes to test. Whitney said shes afraid state officials, who have acknowledged mistakes in the first site cleanup several years ago, will abandon residents once the final cleanup is done sometime in 2017. A work group that includes residents and state toxics officials has meetings scheduled in December and February, but its unknown when an offsite testing plan might be ready or who would pay for the tests. In August, an Inland environmental group filed a lawsuit alleging the final plan to clean the ag park site is inadequate and doesnt do enough to protect residents. Contact the writer: 951-368-9461; arobinson@scng.com; @arobinson_pe Menifee city leaders have called a special meeting Wednesday in the wake of disclosures that Mayor Scott Mann is being fined for misuse of nearly $45,000 in campaign funds. The move comes amid calls for Mann to step down as both mayor and chairman of the Republican Party in Riverside County something Mann said he will not do. The meeting to discuss Manns situation and hear public comment is in response to the California Fair Political Practices Commissions announcement Friday concerning a proposed settlement with Mann in which he will be fined $60,000 for spending campaign money on personal expenses, including a trip to Malibu for a family wedding several years ago. The commissions board is scheduled to formally act on the settlement when it meets Dec.15. State Sen. Jeff Stone, R-Temecula, issued a statement pushing for Mann to quit both the council and as party chairman. Given the recent findings of financial malfeasance , I believe the best thing he can do is resign his position on the City Council as well as his position with the Riverside County Republican Party, Stone said in the release. The people need to be able to count on their elected leaders to exercise good judgment and Scott Mann has failed his constituents. His actions have shown he is not worthy of serving those who entrusted him with great responsibility. Stone endorsed Mann for mayor in the 2012 election. State Sen. Mike Morrell, R-Rancho Cucamonga, whose district encompasses Menifee, said he was disappointed to learn about the mayors actions but did not ask for his resignation. It is up to the Fair Political Practices Commission and the voters of Menifee to decide what the appropriate discipline and outcome should be regarding this matter, Morrell said in an emailed response. Neil Winter, Manns grassroots opponent for mayor in the Nov. 8 election, believes Mann should give up the post. He really should step down and let the city move forward so we can start clean and people can feel good about having an honest government, Winter said. Theres just no way he should stay in office. Mann said in an interview Tuesday he will not step aside either as mayor or party chairman, whose term expires in December. I have no intention of resigning from my positions nor suspending my campaign for mayor, he said. I am content to let the voters decide on Nov. 8. According to the FPPC in Fridays release, Mann admitted using $44,894 in campaign funds for personal use and of committing campaign record-keeping violations. He has reimbursed $17,152 to his campaign committees, state officials said. In the agreement with the commission, Mann must pay the $60,000 out of his personal funds before Dec. 1. Councilman Matt Liesemeyer who said Mann should take a leave of absence until the FPPC matter is concluded noted he was unsatisfied with Manns statement that the commissions action reflects a settlement negotiation thats over three years old. I dont know that I really agree with his passive responses that, oh, it happened three years ago, its not a big deal anymore, said Liesemeyer. It was a big deal then, and its a big deal now. Councilwoman Lesa Sobek said she has rescinded her endorsement of Mann for re-election, but otherwise wants to see what happens in the special meeting before deciding on any course of action. Its an embarrassment to our city, she said. Im just so extremely disappointed. Contact the writer: 951-368-9690 or michaelwilliams@pressenterprise.com Ashley Ippolito, a student at Temecula Valley High School, is one of fourteen students selected nationwide to attend the Frances Hesselbein Student Leadership Program Oct. 24-28 at the United States Military Academy at West Point. A news release says the 14 students were selected among hundreds of Student 2 Student members. The selections were based on commitment to the Student 2 Student program, extracurricular activities, volunteer and work experience and leadership potential. SANTA ANA Minutes before he shot and killed his live-in girlfriend, a prosecutor said, a Costa Mesa man was drunk and listening to a Guns N Roses song with the lyrics: I used to love her, but I had to kill her. Trial began Wednesday in Orange County Superior Court for Thomas Michael Wilhelm, 52, who is accused of shooting his girlfriend, 45-year-old Christine Marie Murray, in 2012 after their relationship and business partnership soured. Prosecutors accuse Wilhelm of plotting to kill Murray as revenge for taking over his long-time sprinkler business, while the defense says Wilhelm suffered from mental-health issues and was clouded by alcohol and extreme emotion over the loss of his business. He is charged with first-degree murder and faces 50 years to life in prison. Jurors must decided what his mental state was at the time of the shooting. Wilhelm had owned his business, Wilhelm Sprinkler Co., for more than 20 years. When his business began faltering he asked Murray to step in and take part-ownership, Senior Deputy District Attorney Jim Mendelson said. After two years, the couple began arguing intensely and Wilhelm grew distraught when Murray refused to give up the business and move out of their home in the 2900 block of Redwood Avenue in Costa Mesa. They both wanted the other person out of the house, Mendelson said. He told her on multiple occasions that he was going to arrange her to see God. On the night of July 8, 2012, Wilhelm broke into his neighbors home and stole a 32-caliber pistol, Mendelson said. Eleven minutes before the shooting, he sent a text message to a friend saying that he was listening to a song: Used to Love Her. He locked the couples three Great Danes in a bedroom and then shot Murray six times, Mendelson said. Her niece, who also lived in the home, arrived back from the drugstore just in time to hear her aunts last words: Tom shot me, call 911. Im dying. Murrays 8-year-old son ran next door for help. As police arrived, Wilhelm tried to shoot himself with a shotgun but the gun misfired. Police found him splashed with blood but uninjured. Please tell me shes dead, police say he said as they led him away. Murray was taken to Orange County Global Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead. Wilhelms attorney, Doug Meyers, said Wilhelm was drunk and devastated over the thought of losing his business. Wilhelm suffers from mental-health issues and self-medicated with alcohol and prescriptions pills, he said. Drunk and upset, he lost control and acted impulsively, Meyers said. Mr. Wilhelm did not have the mental state required to be guilty of murder, Meyers said. The evidence will show in those final moments he was not thinking clearly or rationally. Contact the writer: kpuente@ocregister.com Rapid population growth has become a global concern especially in developing countries due to the lack of corresponding qualitative growth in the lives of people. The 2014 State of the World Population Report by the UNFPA, discussed the enormous potential for economic growth and social development for countries with large populations, given that the right investments in human and social capital for youth development are made. The results from the 2010 Population and Housing Census (PHC) show that the demographic characteristics of Ghanas population are changing.Ghanas population growth rate of 2.5 per cent in 2010 shows that the countrys population is growing rapidly and the youth group constitute the majority of the population. The results also indicate that the age structure of the population is dominated by young people, with about 40 per cent under 15 years of age. The old adolescent (15-19 years) and young adults (20-24 years) increased from 3.5 million in 2000 to 4.9 million in 2010. Similarly, the proportion of the population up to 35 years has been high and has accounted for more than two-thirds of the total population of Ghana recorded in each of the last three censuses: 69 per cent in 1984, 75.9 per cent in 2000 and 75.3per cent in 2010 (Ghana Statistical Service, 2013). This has great potential for socio-economic growth when this youthful resource is harnessed effectively, it can result in actual energy for socio-economic change.Young people have substantial energy and resilience, and the power to induce change. This is an opportunity that must be harnessed now for great gains. This rapid growth has, however, implications for the development of the country. This population group represents a time bomb, risk or burden if neglected. Experiences from the role of the youth in civil wars and political upheavals have taught us the lesson that when not educated, empowered and gainfully employed; young people can be used to wreak havoc. Ghana faces a lot of socio-economic problems but the issue of unemployment especially among the youth of this country is hitting it all time high and leaving a lot of youth in a state of hopelessness and despondency. While many of the youth have had access to secondary and tertiary education, the expanded access to education has not correspondingly given rise to job opportunities and job creation in the country. This chronic graduate unemployment and general unemployment situation being experienced in Ghana is alarming. The disturbing issue is that though this social canker stares us in the face as a nation, the kind of actions, policies, programmes and urgency required to tame these problems has not been so effective. The policy makers continue to disregard the fact that unemployment and for that matter graduate unemployment is frighteningly real and desperately needs to be addressed. The government of Ghana cannot pretend to be unaware of this growing menace and sweep it under the carpet; the real threat for this country is not terrorism but rather unemployment. Unemployment, poverty, and inequality are very real in Ghana and all these are grounds for crimes, social chaos, conflicts and instability. The opportunity to participate in decision making process has been a major hurdle for most young people even though there have been recent calls on young people to actively participate in their countrys development since they constitute the majority of the worlds population. Adults undeniably have more experience than their younger counterparts but the experience of the adult is gained through learning and participation so until young people are given the opportunity they will not get any experience. It is through giving the youth opportunities to participate in leadership roles that they can learn and grow from their experiences. Therefore, ensuring that young people are empowered and are able to live a purposeful life is a major step in their development. Furthermore, young people should have correct information on sexual and reproductive health, for instance. They need to be protected from unwanted pregnancies, unsafe abortions, and sexually transmitted infections like HIV. It is absolutely vital that young people have universal and unhindered access to sexual and reproductive information and services. This is essential to ensure that they fulfil their potential and are able to contribute to the development of the country. There is the need to recognise that the demographic dividend is no guarantee, and neither will it occur by itself. It calls for investing in the most populous group of the country the youthful population. It also calls for putting the youth at the centre of development in order to ensure that their potential is fulfilled. Also needed is the development of adequate policies that put youth issues such as education, skills development, youth entrepreneurship and employment at the centre of national development. Source: The Ghanaian Times Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video More than 300,000 students are studying in Ghana, with 10,398 of them being international students, Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, a Deputy Minister of Education, has said. He said at the continental level, Sub-Saharan Africa's higher education sector had expanded massively over the past two decades; with student enrolments across all levels growing from about 200,000 some 40 years ago to an estimated 10 million today. Mr Ablakwa announced this, in Accra, at a two-day international symposium for Harmonisation Initiative and Third General Meeting of the Turning Joint Africa-European Union (EU) Strategy in Higher Education. The two-day conference, which brought together 130 participants, was organised by the University of Ghana in collaboration with the Africa Union Commission (AUC) and the Association of African Universities (AAU), under the auspices of the EU. The African Higher Education Harmonisation and Tuning Pilot initiative has been instrumental in addressing key areas of skills and competences for employability and transparency of curriculum, the development of a common academic credit currency, teaching, learning and assessment related to the achievement of learning outcomes, skills and competences, quality assurance and enhancement. He said Ghana, like most African countries, was at the stage of processing from low productivity agricultural economies to industrialised economies with focus on manufacturing and services; therefore a strong focus on human capital development was needed. We need highly skilled technicians, engineers, health workers, agricultural scientists and researchers; particularly in the rapidly growing sectors of extractive industries, energy, water, environment and infrastructure, he said. He said Africa needed to produce future leaders who would promote better governance and management in all sectors, and facilitate innovative solutions to societys problems. Mr Ablakwa said harmonisation when fully achieved, would among several benefits, offer adequate instruments to help institutions of higher education assess and understand their performances through meaningful comparisons among universities in a given country and among similar institutions across countries at the same stage of development. He noted that Ghana, like many other countries, was working to develop a standardised national qualification framework in line with best practices across the world. A uniform qualification framework is required to facilitate qualifications transfer across Africa, he said. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Boundaries and borders barricading African countries into sovereign states as in present day Africa is no doubt a legacy borne out of colonialism and neo-colonialism. Many Africans believe that unrestricted movement of people and goods is a catalyst for accelerated progress and development of the continent. Thus, free movement in Africa for Africans has become a burning desire in the heart of good thinking Africans, especially pan-Africanists, who have made this great issue their mission and vision. In June this year, the famed editor Baffour Ankomah who is now editor at large of the London-based New African magazine wrote extensively on this important matter in both New African and the US-based Africawatch magazine. His article can be accessed at Humanitas Afrikas African Information Centre website through the following link: http://centrum.humanitasafrika.cz/en/index Humanitas Afrika is an African-Czech and pan-African organisation based in Prague, which works to advance and enhance the interest of the global African family. The organisation has deemed it necessary and timely to recognise, appreciate, celebrate, and honour African leaders, institutions, and individuals whose policies and initiatives give greater freedom and progress to the African people and advance the course of African unity and development, by instituting an AFRICAN LEADERSHIP AND EXCELLENCE AWARD scheme that recognises, rewards, inspires, motivates and honours African leaders, individuals and institutions whose endeavours enhance greater freedom, development and unity of the African people and the mother continent. In this regard, and specifically within the last two years, Presidents Paul Kagama of Rwanda and John Dramani Mahama of Ghana have instituted policies and enacted laws in their respective countries that enhance the African unity project. They have launched commendable visa-on-arrival policies in their respective countries that allow easy access and free movement of Africans into Rwanda and Ghana. These noteworthy policies have attracted the attention of Humanitas Afrika, which has decided to honour the two presidents with the AFRICAN LEADERSHIP AND EXCELLENCE AWARD as a way of encouraging them to do more and also highlighting their example to the rest of Africa so that the banner they have raised will be emulated by other African presidents and countries. It was in this context that the head of Humanitas Afrika, Afrikatu Kofi Nkrumah, travelled to Ghana recently to present the first ever AFRICAN LEADERSHIP AND EXCELLENCE AWARD to the President of Ghana, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, at the Flagstaff House in Accra, the seat of Ghanas government. Kofi Nkrumah presented the award in the company of Mr Baffour Ankomah and his wife Mrs Elizabeth Ankomah (a Zimbabwean national), and Mr Emmanuel Hayford, the coordinator of Humanitas Afrika in Ghana. President Mahamas chief of staff, Mr Julius Debrah, received the award on his behalf. Also at the ceremony was Mr Antwi Bosiako, a senior staff member at the presidency. In addition to the award-citation, Kofi Nkrumah presented to the President a copy of one of Chancellor Williams greatest books, The Destruction of Black Civilization which he hoped the President would enjoy immensely. Chancellor Williams was an African American scholar and historian, one of Black Americas best authors and teachers, whose books, and particularly The Destruction of Black Civilization, have opened many eyes in global Africa. In 2017, the second-ever AFRICAN LEADERSHIP AND EXCELLENCE AWARD would be presented to President Paul Kagama of Rwanda. Source: Peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The United States (US) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is committed to deepen collaboration with its Ghanaian counterpart especially in capacity building for analysis of environmental data. Ms Gina McCarthy, Administrator of the US EPA, speaking during a site visit of the Ghanas EPAs air quality monitoring sites, the premises of Friends of the Earth Ghana, said there was the need for increased capacity building in the country to develop options for resolving environmental problems. She noted that the challenge in air pollution was analysing the data and coming up with actionable items to mitigate the problem. She pledged her offices commitment to support Ghana by sharing its data analysis tools to enable the country to look at costs and benefits of different options and articulate them in an effective way to make the reductions in emissions that were necessary. Ms McCarthy, who visited Ghana to explore deeper avenues for collaboration between the two countries stated: We will continue to work together and expand our ability to share data, share best practices and look at our work together, because as the President Barack Obama has made clear; what happens in Africa is important to the world. She added that it was also important for the public to be actively engaged in decision making and addressing environmental issues. The EPA and its US counterpart have been collaborating over the past years to address environmental issues. The US EPA, in 2004, supported Ghana to revamp its air quality management role by selecting Accra as one of two cities in Africa to benefit from an air quality management programme. Ms McCarthy described Ghana as a stable and wonderful partner of the US, adding that the US EPA was happy to expand its work with Ghana. Mr John Alexis Pwamang, Executive Director of Ghanas EPA said the country had been able to set up eight air quality management monitoring sites in Accra under the US sponsored programme. We owe a lot of our successes to the US EPA collaboration and we are so grateful for that, he stated. Mr Pwamang said Ghana had achieved some successes in the area of environmental protection including phasing out lead in gasoline under the World Banks clean air Initiative for sub-Saharan Africa. He noted that US EPA support with capacity building to analyse the data collected from its monitoring activities would enable them to better interpret the data for the information of the public and policy makers. He also asked the US EPA to assist its Ghanaian counterpart to acquire sustainable power source and equipment to ensure continuous monitoring and data collection. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video President John Dramani Mahama has assured citizens that the government is poised to transform Ghana into a country that will be held in high esteem on the African continent. Mr Mahama explained that his administration had laid the foundations for infrastructural development in his first term as president pending further growth if Ghanaians renewed his mandate. In the next four years, we are going to transform this country into a country that the whole of Africa will respect, he promised on Tuesday, October 18 as he addressed party supporters at Nkwanta in the Volta Region on the second day of his five-day tour of the region. President Mahama said he was not surprised at the way his opponents were attempting to downplay his efforts at building a strong country since the same treatment was meted out to Ghanas first president Dr Kwame Nkrumah. He refuted allegations that he was misapplying the countrys resources as he insisted that investing in the infrastructural sector was key to spurring development and economic activities. According to him, infrastructure like roads, hospitals, and schools remained very key to improving the conditions of citizens and felt it was rather wrong for his opponents to label them as money wasting ventures. But the chairman of the Infrastructural Committee of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Joe Ghartey, did not agree with Mr Mahama. Mr Ghartey argued that the erstwhile John Agyekum Kufuor administration invested in the sector to spur development but the National Democratic Congress (NDC) had failed to build on that feat and rather reduced investment in the sector. According to him, in real terms, the country has seen a decline in infrastructural expenditure from an average of 11.5 per cent of GDP between 2001 and 2008 to 5.7 per cent of GDP between 2009 and 2015. He revealed this at a news conference in Accra on Tuesday, October 18, to emphasise the NPPs resolve to reverse the downward trend in government expenditure in infrastructure. Even though the Mahama administration touts various achievements of investment in that sector, Mr Ghartey maintained that it is estimated that this year [2016] it will only be 4.2 per cent of GDP. According to him, the NPP had devised a comprehensive plan which would revive the sector. He indicated that the plans include a national asset protection project, an interconnected roads, railways, ports and harbours and aviation hub, a water-for-all programme, and flood control and coastline protection. Others include mainstream ICT and an affordable housing programme. He maintained that the weakest link in Ghanas development remained under-developed roads, railways, ports and harbours and aviation. Source: Ghana/ClassFMonline.com/91.3FM Source: citifmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Disqualified presidential nominee for the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP), Henry Herbert Lartey described as petty, claims by former President Jerry Rawlings that the GCPPs petition for investigations for fraud is being sponsored by detractors of the Rawlingses. Mr. Lartey petitioned the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) to investigate the former president over some $2 million he received from the late Nigerian leader, General Sani Abacha. Rawlings, who have said that the money was not a bribe but was used in organization of an upcoming election. Rawlings recently called the bluff of Mr Henry Lartey saying he was ready to subject himself to various tests to prove his innocence. Why are people worried about the level of integrity weve tried to maintain? We say we are Christians; we swear on the bible, Muslims on the Koran; Id like to invite people like him (Lartey) that we go traditional as well [Let us] invite the white mans technology (lie detector) to also come and verify the truthfulness, the integrity of my word. And for him [Henry Herbert Lartey] to be simply asked who paid him to do what he did?, he said when some queen mothers paid a courtesy call on him earlier this week. He further alleged that Henry Lartey was being sponsored by some political elements to tarnish his image but at a counter media briefing today [Tuesday], Mr Lartey said his actions were based on his desire for the truth. He said he had submitted more evidence against Rawlings to CHRAJ and was ready to reveal more damning information about the former President Rawlings and his wife Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings on the matter. There is a lot to say about him and his wife, the corruption that has gone on in this country If hes got those facts he should come out and tell us who has paid me, my father left me a lot of assets and nobody can pay me to do what hes claiming, he said. Source: citifmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video A leading member of the the NDC and former Minister of Local Government and Rural Development Prof Kwamena Ahwoi has urged the electorate to vote massively for President Mahama in the December 7th election to extend his mandate to govern the country for more development. He made the appeal today when addressing the traditional leaders and people of Yefri in the Nkoranza North District in the Brong Ahafo region as part of a 6- day campaign tour of the region by the Chief of Staff Mr Julius Debrah. Accompanying the Chief of Staff on the tour were the Regional Minister Hon Eric Opoku and some national and regional executives of the party. Prof Kwamena Ahwoi said unlike the NDC which has a clear objective of developing the country and the strategy to achieve such development the the NPP has no objective and development strategy for the country . He said the late President Mills and President Mahama involved the youth in their government because the present is for the youth not the future. According to him the youth have a lot to contribute towards national development. Worth Of A Bird In Hand Addressing the gathering, the Chief of staff, Mr Julius Debrah urged the people to vote massively for President Mahama whose wife Lordina Mahama hails from the region stressing that a bird in one's hand is better than thousands of birds out of one's hand. The Chief of Staff also asked the people of Nkoranza North to vote for Hon Kwadwo Agyei Dwumor MCE for Nkaranza North and NDC Parliamentary candidate for the constituency. The Nkosuohene of Yefri Nana Kwame Owusu said commended President Mahama for the numerous development projects he has provided to them such as schools and roads and said the people of Yefri will vote massively for the NDC on December 7th. Source: Emmanuel Akorli/PeaceFM Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video One hundred and forty-seven (147) parliamentary candidates from five political parties and eight independent candidates are contesting the 34 seats in the Greater Accra Region in the 2016 elections. Out of the number, 119 are males and 28 females. Ablekuma West Constituency recorded the highest number of contestants - three males and three females from five political parties and an independent candidate. Six constituencies also recorded the lowest number of three candidates each - Weija Gbawe, Amansaman, Ablekuma North, Dadakotopon, Tema Central and Sege. The Weija Gbawe constituency stands out as gender active constituency as all the three Parliamentary Candidate representing the National Democratic Congress (NDC), New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) are women. Mr George Kwame Amoah, Greater Accra Regional Director of the Electoral Commission (EC), who disclosed this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said Gbawe Weija and Ablekuma West constituencies registered three women each, the highest in terms of women who filed their candidature to contest. The analysis formed part of GNA Tracks Election 2016 project, which sought to sensitise the electorate on the various issues raised by political parties, elections management body (EC) and other governance institutions. The project also sought to ensure gender and social inclusion in national politics, provide voice for the youth, vulnerable groups, opinion leaders and the broader spectrum of the society, to achieve a peaceful poll on December 7. It also aimed at creating a platform to dissect the manifestoes of all political parties and provide in-depth analysis of each thematic area to the electorate to enable them to make an informed judgment. Mr Amoa said 10 constituencies namely: Domeabra Obom; Anyaa/Sowutuom; Okaikwei Central; Korley Klottey; Dadekotopon; Ledzokuku; Tema Central; Ashaiman; Adentan and Ada registered a woman each, representing the least. He said no female has filed to contest in 16 constituencies. Those constituencies are Bortianor/Ngleshie Amanfro; Amansaman; Madina; Ayawaso East; Ayawaso North; Ayawaso Central; Ayawaso West; Okaikwei North; Ablekuma South; Odododiodoo, Tema East ; Tema West; Kpone Katamanso; Shai- Osudoku; Ningo Prampram, and Sege. Mr Amoa said the NDC and the NPP filed parliamentary candidates in all the 34 constituencies; Convention Peoples Party (CPP), which filed 30 candidates; Progressive Peoples Party, 24 candidates; eight independent candidates; the Peoples National Convention (PNC), six candidates, National Democratic Party and All Peoples Congress filed four candidates each. He said Great Consolidated Peoples Party, Democratic Popular Party and United Progressive Party filed a candidate each, while the United Front Party, Independent Peoples Party and Ghana Freedom Party did not file any candidate in the Region. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The people of Diaso have conferred on President John Mahama Nkosuoo Hene to wit Development Chief of Diaso in appreciation to the transformation the people of Diaso have witnessed under his leadership. This was made known when the Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur visited the area and was welcomed by a massive crowd. The Vice President who is on a four day campaign tour to the Central Region stormed the Upper Denkyira West Constituency to continue with trumpeting on the NDCs Changing lives and Transforming Ghana agenda message. In an address to the gathering, the Vice President said continuity is key for the development of Ghana and this sums up the reason President Mahama must be given another opportunity to continue with the massive development that Ghanaians are witnessing in the education, road and other sectors. He said the NDC is a party that cares for all and is not discriminatory when it comes to sharing of the national cake. The Vice President used the occasion to introduce the NDCs parliamentary candidate for the area who also doubles as the DCE for the area, Hon Ambrose Amoah Ashyiah. Mr Amissah-Arthur said for development to continue there's the need to vote for the President Mahama and the NDCs parliamentary candidate in order to bring more development to the area. On his part the chief of the area Nana Agyei Ameyaw 11 lauded the NDC for its development projects under the President John Mahama. He said the projects that he has witnessed are unprecedented and are one that they never dreamt of. Source: Maxwell Okamafo Addo/ email: [email protected] Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The new Miss Malaika queen will be crowned over the weekend in Accra after several weeks of intense competition, grooming and numerous activities. Come Saturday October 22nd 2016, the National Theatre will come to a standstill as the 10 Final Malaika Delegates battle it out against each other to determine who wins the ultimate crown, Car and Cash. Special performances will be dished out by Joey B, Miss Vee and many other artistes. Trust these artistes to treat you to the very best of rich musical performances that will move you to dance all night long. Ten ladies will be appearing at the finals as six of these beautiful and courageous ladies were evicted at different points in the competition. Meet the 10 final delegates who will be pitching for the Malaika crown on Saturday; Dromeryda , Boahemaa , Edem, Delsey, Asiedua, Yvonne, Gyeduwaa, Martha, Hassana, Leah. For nearly 13 weeks, the ladies have gone through an intensive journey of rediscovery and grooming in preparation for the finals where one will emerge winner and gain the title of Miss Malaika Ghana 2016 and begin a new journey as a National Youth Ambassador for the campaign against the spread of Malaria. Text your favorite delegates name to 1757 to push her to the top. The 14th edition of Miss Malaika Ghana airs every Sunday @6pm on E-TV and at 7pm on GHONE TV. It is produced by CH Live with support from RENAULT from Premium Motors, Kenya Airways, Abbeam Institute of Technology, GTP Nustyle, Lydia Contraceptives and Media Partners. So who among the top 10 ladies below do you think deserves the enviable crown. Dromeryda Yvonne Edem Boahemaa Delsey Asiedua Martha Leah Gyeduwaa Hassana 0 Source: Eugene Osafo-Nkansah/Peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Lindsay Lohan recently went to Turkey in order to try to do her part and take part in some humanitarian work, helping Syrian refugees. She visited a refugee camp in Gaziantep and did the whole Angelina Jolie shebang, even putting on a medical coat and assisting doctors with paediatric checks. She received excellent reception due to her genuine enthusiasm, plus she did a press conference wearing a headscarf and told press shed studied the Quran (adding, they crucified me for it in America). The Turkish Daily Sabah reported that she had become increasingly interested in international politics and had, expressed support for Ankaras call for a change in the structure of the international body for countries outside the five permanent members to have more of a say on international issues. News site Al-Monitor reported that Lohan recited one of President Recep Tayyip Erdogans worthier mantras: The world is bigger than five, which is a major critique of the UN Security Council. Lohans compatriot Angelina Jolie has visited the same refugee camps along the Syrian border several times, but she never elicited the gushing enthusiasm afforded Lohan. While thats really cool and its good seeing celebs give a damn, more recent news is a bit weirder. Page Six is reporting that Lohan has been organising another method of assistance for the refugees in the Turkish camp shes sending them energy drinks. According to an inside source, Lohans gonna be sending the the same energy drink that she uses in her nightclub, Lohan, to the camp. Its a German energy drink called Mintanine. Their website describes them as a blue caffeine lemonade with the tag line Blue tastes woohoo. The statement Your Life Style Drink is plastered down the side of the cans, which will enhance the lifestyles of refugees living in camps after being forced to flee their homes. Healthwise, the site says that the drink doesnt contain synthetic flavors or caffeine, no taurin, no aspartam, no inosit, but it does use natural guarana. A source told Page Six: Theres hardly food, water or anything, so at this point sending anything is helpful. This is all part of Lindsays mission to help refugees. Alllllllllllrighty then. Source: Page Six. Photo: Andolu Agency / Getty. NSW police have confirmed the Sydney family of four died as a result of murder-suicide, likely from air-borne gas. The bodies of Colombian family Fernando Manrique, 44, Maria Claudia Lutz, 43, and their two children Elisa, 11, and Martin, 10, were found on Monday morning after police forced entry into their Davidson home. St Lucys primary school, where both the children attended and Ms Lutz helped out, raised the alarm on Monday when the kids failed to turn up to class and Ms Lutz didnt arrive to run the canteen. Both children were deaf and lived with non-verbal autism. The exact cause of death has not yet been determined, but police confirmed that the family likely died from the introduction of an air-borne gas delivered via pipes rigged throughout the roof, in what they described as an extensive, elaborate and well-planned operation. Whilst the cause of death will be a matter for the Coroner to determine, police are looking at the possibility the family members died from the introduction of an air-borne gas, they said in a statement. News Corp reports that neighbour Ofik Thomassian, 72, who lives directly across the street, saw Mr Manrique working on the roof on Saturday. He was right up the roof replacing tiles and using power tools of sorts, she said. He was cutting and banging and making all sorts of noise and pulling up tiles but I dont really know what he was doing. The familys dog was also found dead. Photos: Facebook. If youre going through a rough time, the best thing you can do is reach out. To speak to someone about mental health, or for 24/7 counselling, call BeyondBlue on 1300 22 4636. If you are in crisis or distress, call Lifeline on 13 11 14. If it is an emergency, call 000. After news broke earlier this week that 25-year-old rapper Azealia Banks had had an altercation with 52-year-old actor Russell Crowe at his hotel suite in Beverly Hills, every single person who read the story had one major question: Whaaaaat? Its a pretty bizarre little story; both of their stories are completely ruddy different, *PLUS* both of them have varied but lengthy histories of anger issues and erratic, threatening behaviour. Los Angeles Police Department have already spoken extensively to Banks, who claims Crowe choked and spat on her while calling her the N-word. They are now preparing to speak to Crowe. Banks has now given a detailed account of what happened that night, for the very first time. And her recount is pretty dang scary. She told The Sun that Crowe was drinking a cocktail of whisky, vodka and moonshine, as well as smoking weed. Russell had moonshine on the table, and then Russell calls for whisky, so then they just start mixing them up. You know, moonshine, whisky, vodka, and smoking cigarettes and smoking weed. Russell and I get next to each other. Hes talking to me, Im talking to him, and we start flirting. Were having a really good time. Hes got his knee on my knee, hes touching my leg, Im playing him my music, he tweets my song The Big Big Beat. Hes like, I love this, youre beautiful, this is great. So the party goes on. But there was one girl who I guess was his girlfriend. She gets next to me and I guess this is just her chance to try and size me up and see what Im about. And shes in my ear and shes like, Yeah, Russell thinks youre so hot. And I was like, Oh, really? Well thats on you girl. You know, Im not here for that. Banks goes on to say that she lightly mocked another guest shortly after, and Russell just kind of switched: He was like, Well you know what? Youre young and youve never done anything in your career so you dont know what youre talking about. Im a little offended but I was still keeping it light. I was like, Your best days are behind you. She says when this happened, a woman stood up and defended Russell. I said, Girl, this is not the right time or place for us to be fighting, like what would happen if I got up and I slapped the s*** out of you, or I took a glass and f***ing threw it at you and you were bleeding all over the place? I would be wrong and wed all be wrong, and the party would be done. Then Russell turns to me and he goes, Well, you wouldnt even get close enough to get the chance, n*****. And he says the word n***** so, like, quietly, under his breath. He calls me a n*****, and then grabs me, picks me up, he chokes me by the throat, picks me up, throws me out of the room and then spits on me. Russell ardently denies using racial slurs or physical violence against Banks, saying he grabbed her in a bear hug and escorted her out of the suite after she became violent and threateningly told guests, You would love it if I broke my glass, stabbed you guys in the throat, and blood would squirt everywhere like some real Tarantino shit. Guests in the suite at the time include director Ridley Scott and Aussie comedian Jim Jefferies, who has since tweeted this: This is 100 percent the truth. I was there, she was out of control . Russell did absolutely nothing wrong. https://t.co/9ySHgz5MGs jim jefferies (@jimjefferies) October 17, 2016 Azelia Banks is a complete liar. I was in the room. Russell Crowe is completely innocent. I would take a lie detector. jim jefferies (@jimjefferies) October 18, 2016 Azealias final comment about the incident to The Sun was: I think hes a racist, misogynist pig. This is a stain on me. My femininity feels stained. I feel stained as a woman. I feel mishandled, I feel mistreated, I feel dirty. I feel very fucking low. Well update you as more information arises. Source: The Sun. Photo: Chelsea Lauren & Ernesto Ruscio / Getty. With the Iraqi army battling to free Mosul from the clutches of ISIS, the coalition forces supporting the effort are hoping that this time will be different. In the past, the Iraqi army undertrained and poorly led -- has faltered in the face of this enormous challenge. As the battle of Mosul rages, the U.S. military may learn the hard lesson soon: You cant fabricate a good army general. You get one only after decades of proven and tested experience in battle. Related: Factbox: Once-tolerant Mosul Site of Iraq Push Against Islamic State The commander in question is Major General Najim Jabouri. In April 2015, Jabouri was named the head of Nineveh Operations that will oversee the liberation of Mosul. Jabouri, a 60-year-old Sunni, is a former Iraqi air defense brigadier general from a town to the south of Mosul. To the Americans, Jabouri is a hero and patriot. To the Iraqis, Jabouri is unqualified for his high-profile military position. Still, this man will soon lead the most critical mission against ISIS: the battle to retake Mosul. Mosul In June 2014, ISIS captured Mosul, Iraqs second-largest city in the north. The fall of the city sent shockwaves throughout the world. Within days, ISIS controlled one-third of Iraq. Four Iraqi army divisions and police forces in four provinces collapsed, and a new civil war broke out. Millions were displaced. Christians were forced to leave. Within a month, ISIS gained control of one-third of Syria as well. An Islamic caliphate, the dream of every Islamic fundamentalist, was declared. Soon ISIS was threatening Erbil, the capital of Iraqs Kurdistan region, provoking the United States to launch air raids to protect the city. ISIS massacred and enslaved thousands of Yazidis in addition to beheading Western journalists and aid workers. In the wake of its stunning success, approximately 40,000 terrorists from more than 100 countries traveled to Syria and Iraq to join ISIS. ISISs propaganda machine produced no less than 100 videos a month and controlled tens of thousands of social media accounts. ISIS continues to make tens of millions of American dollars in Syria and Iraq. Its ground operations expanded to Lebanon, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Nigeria, Cameron, Niger, Chad, Yemen and Afghanistan. Story continues Related: U.S. Helped Clinch Iraq Oil Deal to Keep Mosul Battle on Track Nothing since 9/11 has had worse consequences than the fall of Mosul. The city remains the largest ISIS-controlled population center, numbering roughly one million people. Mosul is strategically vital. It is close to Syria, Turkey and Kurdistan. It also home to half of the former Iraqi army officers and produces more grain and livestock than any other province in Iraq the military and commodity resources from which ISIS draws its strength. Without retaking Mosul, ISIS will never be defeated. If the city can be taken back, ISISs demise will be at hand. The Commander Jabouri has a speckled history in both military and civilian roles. As police commander in Tal Afar, west of Mosul, he worked with American Colonel H. R. McMaster, then commander of U.S. Army 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment and now a lieutenant colonel, to defeat a counterinsurgency operation in Iraq in September 2005. Three years later, while serving as the city mayor, General Jabouri vanished from Tal Afar. It turns out Jabouri and his family were in Washington, D.C., where he had applied for asylum while working at the United States Defense Department's Near East South Asia (NESA) Center for Strategic Studies as a Distinguished Research Fellow. Jabouri told a McClatchy reporter in October 2008 that he fled Iraq because he was afraid al-Qaeda would kill him and kill his family members. Although he was living in Tal Afar, he claimed he moved his family from their home Baghdad to the Kurdistan region after his second house in Mosul was blown up. After most of the Americans withdrew from Iraq, and Jabouri was offered a job at NESA, he seized the opportunity and took it. Graphiq David Lamm, deputy director of NESA, gave another explanation for Jabouris escape from Iraq. What happened is that Najim is a Sunni and when the government (in Iraq) changed politically later on and became Shiite, there was a security issue for both him and his family, said Lamm in a phone interview. This is not a credible explanation since every government in Iraq after 2003 has been led by a Shiite Prime Minister. The Iraqi government had not changed in 2008, the year Najim left Iraq. Related: U.S. General Says Will Not Support Shi'ite Militia I\in Mosul Campaign Ali Abbo, who headed a human rights organization in Tal Afar during the mayorship of Jabouri, told me that his disappearance in 2008 remains a mystery. The Distinguished Research Fellow? As a fellow at NESA from 2008 to 2015, Jabouri appeared in many Middle East-related seminars after the Arab Spring. He wrote several papers about the situation in Iraq and also wrote op-eds for several major publications, including The New York Times and The Guardian. Jabouri seems like a strange choice for the U.S. military and the NESA center, if only because many Iraqi military officials speak fluent English, and Jabouri is not fluent. U.S. universities and think tanks employ dozens of Arab-American scholars who are experts on regional issues addressed in his material. The Arab Spring, which occurred during Jabouris tenure at NESA, happened in six Arab countries, but not in Iraq. Jabouri had little experience outside of his country, and even his region. How did a small town mayor end up at NESA? Lamm explained, He was recommended by a friend of mine: General H. R. McMaster[Jabouri] was instrumental in setting up the Arab Awakening and working with the Americans in that province where H. R. was. He came to the United States and General McMaster contacted me and told me that [Jabouri] was a general in the Iraqi army before the American intervention there. The Awakening that Lamm referred to was a tribal anti al-Qaeda movement that appeared and spread in the central region of Iraq. It did not have a strong presence in Nineveh or Tal Afar in the far north of the country. However, that Jabouri and McMaster had a close relationship is indisputable. Tarnished Brass After his tenure at NESA, in April 2015, Jabouri was recommissioned in the Iraqi army to oversee the liberation of Mosul, which did not sit well the Iraqi military. Jabouri limited military experience and his request for asylum made him something of a pariah with Iraqi brass. Related: Iraq's Traumatized Minorities--A Test of Unity After Mosul Offensive Jabouri pretended to be a high-ranking military officer, but was instantly exposed; he also claimed master degrees in art and science from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. Instead, he was awarded an honorary degree a few weeks ahead of his arrival in Iraq from that college in those subjects. It had been pre-dated to allay Iraqi protests against the appointment of a non-general staff officer in the war against ISIS. Troubling Past If true that careless titles and a questionable research record masked his modest qualifications, what Jabouri lacks in merit could be explained as realpolitik. In April 2006, Jabouri revealed more about his past in a New Yorker article on Tal Afar. The writer reported, The Mayor had once been tempted to join the insurgency. He lost his military career in 2003, when L. Paul Bremer III, the administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authoritythe American occupation governmentdissolved the old Iraqi Army. This turn of events in 2003 was critical for Jabouri. Admitting that his dashed hopes within the legitimate Iraqi military drew him to the brink of defecting to the dark side, where he would have had the chance to assume leadership, revealed Jabouris motivation as practical rather than ideological. Perhaps most troublesome is that many of Jabouris former colleagues in the Iraqi army are now working for ISIS. Jabouri explained in The New Yorker article that Bremers dissolution of the Iraqi Army implied that army leaders who did not offer support to the U.S. would be killed. He said, Bremer gave the order that whole families die. I decided that if my children died, I would pick up my gun in revenge. I thought before that all Americans, like Bremer and the people we saw on TV, were killers and turned guns on Iraqis. Despite admitting he would have rather joined the insurgents than ally with the U.S., Jabouri was chosen as the commander of the most important battle against ISIS. The Battle Shortly after being appointed and returning to Iraq, Major General Jabouri declared in June 2015 that the long-awaited operation to liberate Mosul had begun. Two days later, he received official pushback when it was clear that only the Iraqi prime minister had the power to make such a statement. In the same month, The Daily Beast interviewed Jabouri and described his plan to liberate Mosul as fantasy. Related: For U.S. and Obama, Mosul Campaign Is Calculated Risk In March 2016, Jabouri announced another operation to retake Mosul. Despite the support of the U.S. air force, the U.S. Marines artillery and Kurdish forces, Jabouris troops made little to no advancement. For several weeks, the Iraqi army battled ISIS over the control of some insignificant villages nearby. Most telling, Iraqi soldiers were reported fleeing the liberated villages in the wake of ISISs counterattacks. General Ziryan Shekhwasani, the commander of the Kurdish troops in Makhmour, complained to the Al-Monitor in March 2016 that Jabouris Iraqi army units didnt seem to be up to the task. Remarkably, in the time that Major General Jabouri assumed his command in April 2015 until now, Iraqi forces not under his command have performed well. Government forces, Kurds and Shiite militias have liberated the cities of Tikrit, Sinjar, Ramadi, Beiji and Fallujah, and ISISs area of control in Iraq has been reduced to less than half of its former area. Jabouris press office did answer a question regarding his weak performance. Mosul in not Tikrit nor Ramadi. We dont want to liberate Mosul the way other areas were liberated. When I asked David Lamm, deputy director of NESA about Jabouris performance since he was named the commander of the Ninevah regions operations, Lamm avoided answering the question directly. But he mentioned two points: He has ties in the U.S. obviously, and he can talk to military commanders. He has a lot of credibility on the American side. It is important to Americans that he also is seen to be legitimate to Iraqis. The Jabouri tribe is one of the largest in Iraq, with one-half Sunni living in the Mosul area and the other half Shiite, located to the south of Baghdad. In fact, many of Iraqs tribes have both Sunni and Shiite branches, making the political landscape very complicated. While Jabouri is Sunni, his wife is Shiite, which allows Jabouri, according to Lamm, to bridge the gap between Sunnis and Shiites in Iraq to accomplish his mission. Related: Ministers to Meet in Paris This Week to Discuss Mosul's future The Recent Successes In July 2016, the Iraqi army pushed ISISs defense lines from the north of the city of Beiji and captured Al-Qayyarah Airfield to the west of Jabouris forces. With Iraqi forces winning ground, Jabouri had a strategic advantage to finish the job. In August, the Iraqi army and the Kurdish forces squeezed ISIS further. The Kurds captured about a dozen new villages to the east of Mosul, and the Iraqi forces controlled the town of al-Qayyarah, 40 miles to the south of Mosul. While the town was part of Jabouris area of operations, the Iraqi government used another general to lead the Iraqi forces in battlea sign of disrespect and lack of confidence in Jabouri. Today, with the Iraqi army about 40 miles from Mosul, the real battle to retake Mosul is beginning. Jabouri, who deserted his position as a mayor because he was terrified, who had not set foot in Iraq for seven years, who inflated his qualifications, and most concerning - who has no formal tactical military training to defeat ISIS, is leading the most decisive battle against ISIS in Mosul. Who Is Behind Jabouri? Given the shallow accomplishments and sketchy biographical details of the commander, why has Jabouri been given such an important responsibility? And by whom? The appointment of Jabouri has never sat well in Baghdad. The first to object to his appointment was the Iraqi minister of defense Khaled al-Obaidi. In a TV interview with an Iraqi channel after the appointment, al-Obaidi, a former Iraqi air force officer from Mosul himself, was asked by the interviewer if al-Obaidi had brought major general Jabouri from the U.S. Related: U.S. Expects Islamic State to Wield Chemical Weapons in Mosul Fight Dont ask me about this issue. Because I have nothing to do with it Go and read [Jabouris] appointment order to know how he was appointed, al-Obaidi said. When the interviewer asked him why he disowned the matter, the Iraqi minister sighed. Nevertheless, the interviewer pressed the minister further. It was not my decision, al-Obaidi clarified. But you are the Iraqi defense minister! the interviewer interrupted him. There are other parties who are higher than the defense minister, al-Obaidi replied. When the interviewer requested to see Jabouris appointment order, the defense minister said that he didnt have it because Jabouri wasnt on his ministry staff. Lamm, the deputy director of NESA, says that he was directly involved in the discussions of Jabouris appointment because, at the time, Jabouri was Lamms employee. Careful to put distance between American military leadership and Jabouri, Lamm said, We never went to the American ambassador in Iraq nor did the American ambassador in Iraq pressure anybody inside the Iraqi government to take Najim back in any capacity. It was essentially the government of Iraq reaching out to Najim. Lamm also said that Jabouris time in the United States, specifically his Master of Science in military strategy from the Command and General Staff College and from the National Defense University, was decisive. Those [degrees] were key essentials, I think, in the decision of the prime minister. We now know that the titles were honorary degrees. Lukman Faily, the Iraqi ambassador to the U.S. at the time of Jabouris appointment, told me that the decision to name Jabouri was made by the Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi. Faily said he was not involved in the matter. Ismael Alsodani was a brigadier general and the Iraqi military attache to the U.S. until November 2009. He affirmed that Jabouri never graduated from any command and general staff college which qualifies him to serve as a commanding general of fighting forces. The way he was appointed [as commander of Nineveh operations] was foggy and very questionable. He never served in the current Iraqi army nor held any position at it. I was expecting him to name a well-known officer -- one that completed the qualifying courses of military command. Alsodani told me that the Iraqi ministry of defense has a system for appointing and promoting commanding officers. There are also plenty of qualified Sunni officers from Mosul. I like other Iraqi officers was surprised that Jabouri was named. His service timeline and C.V. dont qualify him for this sensitive position. The uncomfortable interview with Iraqi defense minister al-Obaidi hinted at details to which everybody close to the matter is already privy. What seems plausible is that the U.S. military establishment convinced the Obama administration to push Jabouri back to Iraq at a strategic moment by selling him to the Iraqi prime minister. The American embassy in Baghdad has denied any American interference in the matter. Suspiciously, the individuals responsible have left without a trace, and it is the Iraqi prime ministers signature alone that sealed the appointment of Jabouri. The Iraqi prime ministers press office did not respond to our inquiry over this issue. Related: Malaysia on Alert as Mosul Offensive Stokes Fears of Militant Influx Those individuals are most likely the U.S. Army colonels who worked with Jabouri a decade ago in Tal Afar. They are now generals with much more influence in Washington politics. Lieutenant General H. R. McMaster, who is now the director of the Army Capabilities Integration Center, is said to be planning the future of the American army. He recommended Jabouri to David Lamm at NESA. When McMasters 3rd armored cavalry regiment tour in Tal Afar was over in 2006, he was replaced by Colonel Sean McFarlands 1st brigade combat team, 1st armored division. McFarland was until recently the commander of the U.S. led coalition against ISIS. Abbas Kadhim, a senior fellow at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University who specializes in the Middle East, summarized the Jabouri affair: It is clear for anyone who listens to Major General Najim Jabouris talks, and reads his published writings that these writings dont suit his very humble linguistic and scientific capabilities, which are best demonstrated by his public talks. Kadhim told me that the Iraqi prime minister made two grave mistakes by appointing Jabouri in his current position. First, he brought a former officer who wasnt in Iraq for years and gave him the most important military position in the fight against ISIS. The second mistake is that the prime minister passed over some highly competent and qualified general staff officers who have been continuously involved in the war against ISIS. This is not a professional decision that we expected from the commander in chief. A Fabricated Hero In their pursuit of a reliable Iraqi Sunni general, both the Bush and Obama administrations have fabricated a hero. But Jabouri is more a bumbling stooge than a local hero. President Bush praised him in public. News articles quoted American officers calling him a hero. They boosted him from police chief to mayor and then took him to WashingtonD.C., bestowing him with an undeserved fellowship in a Pentagon think-tank and granting him an honorary degree that he couldnt otherwise earn. Finally, he was sent back to Iraq to lead the most important battle against the worst terror group ever known. Although he still might appear to many as a magical solution to an expected post-liberation struggle in Mosul -- among the Iraqi government, the Kurds, the former governor of Mosul who brought a Turkish army battalion to the north of Mosul, and the Iranian-backed Shiite militias -- the hapless Jabouri is the U.S. choice. I will tell you if that (the battle to retake Mosul) doesnt work out, he is always welcome back here in NESA adds Lamm. Top Reads from The Fiscal Times: WikiLeaks Internet FILE - In this Oct. 4, 2016 file photo, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange participates via video link at a news conference marking the 10th anniversary of the secrecy-spilling group in Berlin. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File) QUITO, Ecuador -- Ecuador's government acknowledged on Tuesday that it cut off WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's internet access at its embassy in London after the whistleblowing site published a trove of damaging emails from Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. The foreign ministry said that while it stands by its 2012 decision to grant Assange asylum based on legitimate concerns he faces political persecution, it respects other nations' sovereignty and doesn't interfere or support any candidate in foreign elections. "The decision to make this information public is the exclusive responsibility of the WikiLeaks organization," the foreign ministry said in a statement. The recognition of the reprimand comes less than 24 hours after WikiLeaks tweeted that Ecuador had cut off Assange's access to the Internet on Saturday after the publication of Clinton's speeches to Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs. In follow-up messages posted Tuesday, the group claimed U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had personally intervened to ask Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing documents about Clinton. Citing "multiple US sources," WikiLeaks said the request was made on the sidelines of a visit by Kerry and Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa last month to Colombia to show their support for a peace deal with leftist rebels. The State Department denied the allegation and Correa's leftist government said it was acting on its own and not ceding to foreign pressures. The foreign ministry didn't specify the extent of the "temporary restrictions" on Assange, saying only that they wouldn't affect WikiLeaks' ability to carry out its journalistic activities. "While our concerns about Wikileaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down Wikileaks is false," U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said in an email. Speaking to reporters later, deputy spokesman Mark Toner said Kerry never even raised the issue or met with Correa during his visit to Colombia. "There just was no meeting," he said. "They didn't discuss any of this stuff." Assange has been holed up at the modest embassy suite at No. 3 Hans Crescent for more than four years after skipping bail to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex crimes allegations, a position which -- until now -- hasn't prevented him from continuing to play a pivotal role in exposing state secrets and backroom trade deals. WikiLeaks said unspecified "contingency plans" were in place and the site and its Twitter feed appeared to be working as usual. On Tuesday it released another tranche of emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, suggesting that the group's ability to publish has yet to be compromised. The disclosure was the 11th installation in a series of leaks that have captured the workings of Clinton's inner circle. Those leaks themselves are part of a wider cascade that have embarrassed the Democratic Party and which the American intelligence community has recently described as an attempt by the Russian government to interfere in the U.S. election. Staff at WikiLeaks and the embassy either declined comment or didn't return messages. Assange fled to the Ecuadorean Embassy on June 19, 2012, after a drawn-out and ultimately unsuccessful legal battle to being sent to Sweden, where he remains wanted over an allegation of rape. Ecuador granted him asylum, but British authorities have made clear they would arrest him if he tried to leave. London's Metropolitan Police used to maintain a visible presence outside the building, although officers were nowhere in sight when an AP journalist visited on Tuesday. Assange has carved out a life at Hans Crescent, dining on delivered food, welcoming famous well-wishers and even occasionally addressing the media from the embassy's balcony. On Saturday, former television star Pamela Anderson paid a visit. But evidence of mutual suspicion with his hosts surfaced after BuzzFeed News drew on leaked documents to detail tensions between Assange and Ecuadorean embassy staff. In targeting Clinton, Assange may have run afoul of Correa's own preference for the Democratic candidate and a renewed effort to repair strained relations with Washington. The president recently said that while a Trump victory would energize Latin Americans to reject overhanded U.S. policies in the world much in the way George W. Bush's invasion of Iraq did he personally would like to see Clinton prevail. "For the good of the United States and the world, and for my personal appreciation of her, I'd like to see Hillary win," he told the Moscow-backed RT broadcaster last month. Assange isn't likely to submit to the internet ban quietly. Over the weekend WikiLeaks released three lines of code it described as "pre-commitments," labeling them "John Kerry," ''Ecuador," and "FCO" -- an apparent reference to Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Pre-commitments are cryptographic functions that can be used to verify the integrity of material released subsequently. Thomas White, a U.K.-based security researcher and transparency activist, saw the posts as a warning to the named parties that WikiLeaks had ammunition in reserve if Ecuadorean authorities "do not continue to offer him political asylum." Donald Trump Rally at Ambridge High School Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump pumps his fist at the end of his speech during a campaign rally at the Ambridge Area High School on October 10, 2016 in Ambridge, Pennsylvania Justin Berl, For PennLive.com (Justin Berl) Donald Trump was widely criticized for trotting out Bill Clinton's sexual assault accusers ahead of the second debate. But that's not deterring the Republican nominee from taking President Barack Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother, Malik, to the third and final debate Wednesday. Malik -- an American citizen who splits his time in Washington, D.C., and Kenya -- told the New York Post he will be a guest of Trump, who he is supporting for president. "I'm excited to be at the debate. Trump can make America great again," Malik told the Post. Malik said Trump is right about the mainstream media being biased and doesn't believe the GOP nominee kissed or groped women without their permission. "I don't believe them," Malik told the Post. "Why didn't they come forward before?" Trump is rewarding that loyalty with prime seating at the third presidential debate Wednesday night. "I look very much forward to meeting and being with Malik," Trump said. "He gets it far better than his brother." Trump is also taking Patricia Smith, who is best known as the grieving mother of Benghazi victim Sean Smith. During her speech at the Republican National convention, she accused Clinton of "murdering" her son. Sean was a foreign service information management officer, killed among U.S. Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and two CIA contractors in the Sept. 11, 2012, attack on the American consulate in Benghazi. The attack occurred while Clinton was secretary of state. Smith told CNN she's "heard rumors" that she'll be the front row. "I would like to have Hillary tell me what happened," she told CNN. "I know she murdered him ... I do hope she will tell me something. I don't think she will because I don't think she's got the guts to tell me what happened (in Benghazi)." WILLIAMSPORT -- An accused heroin dealer allegedly used the phones available to inmates at the Clinton County Correctional Facility to continue to coordinate his drug operation. U.S. Middle District Judge Matthew W. Brann Wednesday cited that allegation when he refused to reconsider a magistrate judge's ruling detaining Shakeen Taylor until he is tried. Assistant U.S. Attorney George J. Rocktashel, in a brief opposing any modification of the detention order, alleged Taylor has used recorded prison phones to provide instructions on changing cell phones for the purpose of continuing drug operations. "In the prison calls, he has also directed individuals to move assets suspected of being acquired with drug distribution proceeds, including a Mercedes-Benz vehicle, motorcycles, belts, gold chains and other jewelry items," he wrote. Taylor, 21, of Philadelphia, is accused in an indictment along with Jarrett Craddock of being part of a heroin distribution network in the Williamsport area using multiple cells phones to receive customer orders. "By some witness accounts, cell phones managed by Taylor generated approximately $10,000 per day in heroin sales," Rocktashel alleged. Taylor is accused of traveling between Philadelphia and Williamsport in rental vehicles and using motels as his base of operation. "Taylor operated the drug trafficking network in a mobile and stealthy manner" Rocktashel charged. He was arrested Aug. 3 following police surveillance of alleged drug transactions between Williamsport and Danville. One of the sales was 50 bags of heroin to a confidential source, the charges state. State police said they found 53 packets of heroin the car with Taylor and Craddock. Through bank records, according to Rocktashel, the FBI identified approximately $88,000 in deposits made by Taylor between April 2014 and last October although there is no record of him being employed during that period. It is anticipated a superseding indictment will be sought against Taylor and Craddock linking them to 19 other individuals already charged with drug activity between Philadelphia and the Williamsport area, a court document states. Citing comments made by prosecutors during guilty plea proceedings in the other case, Brann wrote in his order refusing to reconsider detention for Taylor: "The hallmark of that drug distribution network at the center of these cases was the ability to quickly respond to heroin orders and deploy throughout the region, a core set of cell phone numbers well known to loyal drug customers..." The judge also referenced Taylor's penchant for firearms, noting on Feb. 20 he purchased a box of ammunition for an AR-15 rifle. Taylor and Craddock are charged with conspiracy to distribute and distribution of controlled substances. Students support striking faculty.jpg Students at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) show support for striking faculty members on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. Photo by Colin Deppen. INDIANA -- Hours after helping to initiate the first strike in the history of Pennsylvania's state university system, faculty and union members at Indiana University of Pennsylvania took to the picket line on Wednesday morning, joining their colleagues across the state in a push for a new contract. Elsewhere on campus, students wandered about in confusion, unsure if classes were being held, and, if not, what it might mean for them, and the semester's credits, if a deal isn't struck soon. Junior Cynthia Sopko said students received an email from university administrators at around 7:55 a.m. on Wednesday. "It said 'A faculty union strike has been called,' but that 'IUP was open for business,'" Sopko explained. "It said 'Faculty members are not required to strike, and classes will still be held.'" But with a large portion of the faculty now on the picket lines outside, it's unclear how many of those classes are actually taking place. Non-faculty employees of the university, who declined to be identified, told PennLive that while some students were showing up for classes Wednesday morning, they weren't aware of one that had actually been held. Vincent Lopez, former president of the university's student body, said there was also talk that if the strike wound on for long enough, and if more than 45 hours of instruction time were missed, the semester and any accumulated credits could be rendered null-and-void. State System of Higher Education spokesman, Kenn Marshall, couldn't say at what point it would become impossible to completely cover the courses' required material, but conceded that cancelling the semester and refunding tuition would be a worst-case scenario. David Downing, an English professor at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) stands on the picket line after faculty at IUP and 13 other state universities moved to strike early Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. Photo by Colin Deppen. David Chambers, chair of IUP's political science program and IUP's spokesperson with the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF), the labor union which voted to initiate the strike early Wednesday, said faculty and union members at IUP are aware of student concerns. But Chambers and his colleagues place the blame on the state university system officials, whom they're calling on to get "back to the table to make a deal." He added: "There's a lot of good will from the students, but also a lot of anxiety. The students are concerned that they've invested a good deal of work and a good deal of money, and they're understandably concerned about what will happen to those credits." But students, like Sopko, said they would continue to support the faculty members at IUP, as well as striking faculty at the 13 other state universities. "I feel it's as important to me as it is to the faculty," she said. "I pay a lot of money to be here, and I expect a quality education and quality faculty." As Sopko spoke, her striking faculty members stood nearby, just outside the university gates. Many held picket signs, including one reading "Honk for Higher Ed," a request passing motorists gladly fulfilled. By noon, the sound of car horns, and chanting and cheering picketers, had begun to swell across the campus' north end. At one point, the school's marching band joined in. Lopez said students were also planning an afternoon sit-in on campus in support of the faculty. This after he claims a similar demonstration was broken-up by campus police that morning, over the use of an unpermitted megaphone. Lopez said they hadn't obtained the necessary permit ahead of the second protest, either, adding, "We're gonna chance it. ... We support our faculty." THORNBURY TWP. -- In the unseasonable midday heat, about a dozen faculty held up protest signs outside of the entrances of Cheyney University in Thornbury Twp. on Oct. 19, 2016. The number had been much larger earlier in the day (and included students), according to the chapter union representative, but as time had passed and temperatures increased the crowd had dwindled. The faculty were protesting the breakdown of contract negotiations between their union, the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculty, and the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. The APSCUF members, which include faculty at 14 universities, have been operating without a contract from the government for more than 470 days. On Oct. 18, 2016 both groups met to share final offers, only to walk away from the negotiating table. As the strike continued, groups had not met to continue talks and an agreement had not been reached as of 5:30 p.m. It is the first time the PSSHE has had a strike in 33 years. Ivan Turnipseed, chair of hospitality and recreational management program at Cheyney, was leading his group of striking faculty in chants on Wednesday afternoon. "We're concerned about not having a contract because we think that diminishes the quality of education in the commonwealth," he said. "You can't put students first if you put faculty last." Turnipseed emphasized that the faculty want a fair contract and that the strike is a last resort. "We have absolutely no interest in going on strike," he said. "I love my students, I love what I do - but it's important for me to stand here for the quality for future education." "We want quality education for our students, and quality educators deserve a quality contract." His thoughts were shared by B. J. Mullaney, a librarian at Cheyney and the chapter president for the union. For her, the strike is also a learning opportunity for students. "The reality is, if someone learns there is value in standing up for yourself, it's an excellent lesson," she said. At Cheyney, which has a undergraduate enrollment of a 686, faculty and students have a close relationship. That's led to the student body being well informed about the strike, according to Mullaney. "We have students who feel that have a good understanding of the issue," she said. "They understand why we had to do this." The few students hanging around Cheyney campus on Oct. 19 were decidedly upset about the strike. "I feel terrible about it," said Azie Faison, a sophomore at the school. "Some students are here paying for an education but we're not getting an education because they want to go on strike." Still he placed the blame on the government, not the faculty - as did freshman Camron Jones. "It's the government's fault for not paying our teachers," he said, adding later "They get paid to teach us so we can grow up and make money and make the economy better." Turnipseed and Mullaney both expressed frustration that negotiations have ended up in a strike. "No one has time for this," Turnipseed said. "I don't have time for this. But we're going to make time if the state system refuses to negotiate in good faith." Mullaney put the blame on PSSHE chancellor Frank Brogan. "Frank Brogan has to agree to negotiate again, that's the problem," she said. "It isn't the faculty and it isn't us being on the line." This story has been updated to correct the status of contract negotiations. Park Avenue detour.jpg Park Avenue detour (PennDOT) Park Avenue at the bridge over Spring Creek will be closed for about a month for utility work starting Oct. 24, PennDOT says. Closure of the road, which is also Route 743, will allow Verizon and Pennsylvania American Water Company to relocate utilities in advance of bridge replacement scheduled to start in January. Park Avenue will be closed just north of Trinidad Avenue to the south side of the bridge. Drivers will be able to get to ZooAmerica from Route 422, and from Hersheypark Drive, drivers will be able to get to Tanger Outlets. The detour route is to take Routes 743 and 422 and Hersheypark Drive. Park Drive carries about 11,500 vehicles per day. The road should reopen by Thanksgiving, PennDOT said. PennDOT has contracted with J.D. Eckman Inc. of Atglen to replace the superstructure of the bridge, at a cost of $2,995,254. For more traffic information, follow live traffic updates, accident reports and road closures below from PennDOT, Total Traffic Network and other Twitter sources. Get a look at conditions on local roads -- via PennDOT traffic cameras -- anytime here on PennLive. For Pennsylvania Turnpike updates and possible travel delays visit the Turnpike website here. Tweet us at @pennlive with any incidents you see on your commute or send a submission to submissions@pennlive.com. WEST CHESTER -- The picket lines outside of West Chester University began around 5 a.m. on Oct. 19, 2016. Striking faculty, protesting the breakdown in negotiations between the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties and the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, held up signs that read "This is a school, not a business" and "Keep politics out of public education" outside the main entrance of the school on High Street. The faculty at West Chester were not the only ones striking, 14 different state universities joined their efforts, including Millersville University and Indiana University of Pennsylvania. It is the first time in 33 years that the State Sytem of Higher Education has experienced a strike. "I hope it gets resolved by the end of today," said Chris Przemieniecki, assistant professor of criminal justice for West Chester University. "We want to be in the classroom, we want to teach and we want to educate," he continued. "But there comes a point in time where enough is enough." "I feel bad for the students," said Jackie Butler, an adjunct professor in chemistry at West Chester. "That's who I really feel bad for - they're the one's getting the shaft. "Every day we miss, they're missing classes that we have to make up," she continued. "It's not like it's from a natural disaster... this is totally manmade and if I were a student I'd be really, really mad." Butler spent part of class on Oct. 18 giving her students the email addresses for the PSSHE chancellor, Frank Brogan, as well as Governor Tom Wolf. She urged them to contact their state representative too. "We're their constituents and they need to fix this thing," she said. Faculty were joined by students around 11 p.m., who staged their own walk-out of more than 50 students to show solidarity with the union. "I didn't expect that much support from the student body, but I'm really happy to see it," said senior Shane Lynch as he marched along. "It just goes to show how important the faculty is. That's really what a university is - the faculty. "I think [Chancellor Frank Brogan] needs to get out of bed right now and start talking," he said, his voice getting louder. "Come on, negotiate!" His sentiments were echoed by Elena Hoffman, a fellow senior at West Chester. "We really just want to get fair contracts for the professors, because if the professors don't have benefits than we're not benefited because they won't be here to teach us," she said. "And if you press them to take on more classes, then there are things that are sacrificed - like they're research... so it's really a loss for all students and professors." Lilah Saber, a junior, helped recruit students for the protest. "I'm here today just to support our professors," she said. "They deserve a fair contract, they deserve fair wages and we deserve a better education than the PASSHE system is offering us." As the students and faculty patrolled the picket lines, the Habanero Latin Band played upbeat music to keep spirits high. The band is made up of West Chester University students who felt it was important to show support with their instruments. "[We're here] to motivate people, to educate them about the issues that our teachers face," said Ian Sadock, a senior at West Chester and band member. "Hopefully we can bring our passion through our music into the negotiation table." Live coverage: This story has been updated to correct Chancellor Frank Brogan's title. Millersville strike.jpg Hundreds of students gathered at Millersville University in support of faculty who began a strike at 5 a.m. Wednesday. (Wesley Robinson | PennLive) MILLERSVILLE -- Students and their professors weren't in class Wednesday, but Millersville University was abuzz as the faculty strike at statewide universities commenced. Hundreds of Millersville University students joined thousands of students across the state in support of the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties strike that began at 5 a.m. Wednesday. Both groups were out in full force for the first day of a strike across Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education -- the first in its history. The day culminated with a protest that began in front of Millersville's library at 11 a.m. and moved across campus. Barry David, president of the Millersville chapter of APSCUF, said students understand faculty are on strike to protect the quality of higher education across the state university system. He added that the matter should have been resolved before faculty had to strike had state officials been more willing to listen. "Frankly, I'm not sure they wanted to resolve it," David said of negotiations with PASSHE. Several Millersville faculty questioned whether this matter would have come to a strike if faculty at schools like Penn State and Pittsburgh were involved. David noted that PASSHE agree to contracts with other faculty unions in saying Chancellor Frank Brogan and PASSHE have pushed too far. David also called Brogan anti-union, referencing the chancellor's statements to legislators. David pointed to several issues, including pay and responsibilities for adjunct faculty, faculty health care costs and the state's commitment to higher education funding when explaining why faculty decided by an overwhelming majority to strike. Millersville faculty spread out at three points on campus, with a fourth group picketing at the Ware Center in downtown Lancaster. Organizers provided signs, water and sunblock as a temperatures exceeded 80 degrees during the picketing and student demonstrations. In addition to students, current faculty were joined in support by retired colleagues, staff and community members who believe in the educator's cause. Millersville University police and an assistant Lancaster County district attorney were on hand, but only as observers to the peaceful protests went on into Wednesday afternoon. Millersville juniors Rachel Hentnick, Dominic Hernandez, Jantje van der Veken and Ben Zwolan said they support the faculty in the dispute, as do many of the students on Millersville's campus. "We wouldn't be who we are without them," van der Veken said. "It just seems like they care more about us than the state." Hentnick referenced the fact state faculty worked 400-plus days without a contract in explaining why students do not fault their professors for the strike. Zwolan agreed, adding that the state system could have gone back to the negotiating table before the strike but refused to listen to the faculty union. Hernandez joked that it was a nice secondary fall break before explaining that he planned to continue to study independently and try to operate normally in the midst of the uncertainty. As for the uncertainty, Zwolan said he was told to show up for his 8 a.m. class Wednesday, only to find class had been canceled. Not all students were in support of the faculty, and some voiced frustrations with the academics for going on strike and interrupting the semester. The university held an open forum and took student questions Oct. 17. Answers to questions ranging from whether to go to class and how the strike affects the end of the semester can be found here. Millersville University President John Anderson issued the following statement in response to the strike: Our students are our first priority. While it is unfortunate that APSCUF and the State System could not come to an agreement on the contract negotiations, we are hopeful for a positive resolution to this work stoppage. The State System and the faculty union concluded five days of negotiations Tuesday without reaching agreement on a new contract. As of 5 a.m., Oct. 19, the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties has called for an immediate work stoppage at all 14 universities in Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education, including Millersville University. At Millersville our students are our top concern. We are hopeful that an agreement can be reached between APSCUF, the union representing our faculty, and the PA State System of Higher Education to minimize the impact to our students. We want to remind you that participation in the strike is an individual faculty member's decision, so students should report to scheduled classes unless the university indicates otherwise. During this time, our campus will remain open with regular hours of operation. This includes: housing, dining, the Student Memorial Center, McNairy Library, IT, Health Services, Mail Services, Campus Police, Registrar's office, etc. Please contact the respective department or office for specific operating hours. Any changes to the schedule will be communicated via email and social media. Rob Spicer, a communication professor and committee member for the campus APSCUF chapter, paused from protests to encourage a Penn Manor student to look into studying media at Millersville. Spicer noted how hard it was for his fellow academics to stop working during the strike, but believes it is the right thing to do. Public faculty strike at Millersville University Posted by Wesley Robinson on Wednesday, October 19, 2016 Nazli Hardy, a professor of computer science, stressed that the strike isn't about money or any of the issues the state bringing up. She and Lexi Hutto, a marketing professor, said they both could make a significant higher amount of money working in the private sector but would rather teach and build meaningful relationships with students. Both were heartened by the support from students and their willingness to support their efforts to provide a quality education over the state's plans. Chris Hardy, a biology professor, criticized the state for using email to falsely communicate the union's message to students as the impasse worsened to the strike. Pointing to APSCUF signs addressing quality education, he emphasized that the union has conceded greatly on salary, health care and the other issues. Where the faculty are unwilling to budge, Chris Hardy said, is in time, research, professional development and the other aspects that ultimately benefit the student. For now, faculty are working in shifts, with student support, to demonstrate their protest is for the sake of the students and their education beyond the labor deal. David said the group of more than 350 faculty members at Millersville are prepared to strike as long as necessary, but he hopes both parties can arrive at a resolution soon. "We want this done," David said. Vigil for rights of immigrant families An anti-immigration bill headed for the state Senate would lead to racial profiling, immigration rights advocates say. House Bill 1885 would extend immigration enforcement rights to local officials. In this file photo from June, immigrant communities hold a vigil in Harrisburg in reaction to a recent Supreme Court decision relating to the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) program. (Daniel Zampogna, Pennlive) The head of a statewide immigration rights advocacy group is denouncing a proposed immigration bill modeled after one of the most fearsome anti-immigration measures in the country. Sundrop Carter, executive director of the Pennsylvania Immigration & Citizenship Coalition, on Wednesday urged members of the Senate to strike down House Bill 1885, which she said will lead to racial profiling in Pennsylvania and incur adverse economic consequences. "It should not pass," Carter said. "It's bad public policy. It should not be brought to vote and the Senators should recognize that it's bad public policy and should not be brought to vote but if it's brought to vote, it should fail." HB 1885, a "Sanctuaries Cities" bill, passed the Republican-controlled House on Tuesday by a 136-55 vote. One of about three introduced in this session aimed at curbing illegal immigration throughout Pennsylvania, the bill would extend to local law enforcement agencies new broad powers to enforce immigration law, including permitting and requiring municipal law enforcement officers to question individuals about their immigration status. Moreover, local law enforcement agents would be permitted to stop someone whom they suspected lacked legal immigration status. Police would be required, under the law, to report to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials anyone they suspected lacked legal immigration status. "This is basically opening up to rampant racial profiling," Carter said. "You can't tell someone's legal status by looking at them. The question becomes how law enforcement would establish that someone isn't document. Are they going to be asking everyone with an accent or anyone who looks Latino? That's a very problematic provision." The bill was sponsored by Rep. Martina White (R-Philadelphia), after Mayor Jim Kenney declared Philadelphia a "sanctuary city". A sanctuary city by definition grants sanctuary and shelter to undocumented immigrants. HB 1885 is markedly similar to a largely failed legislation in Arizona - Senate bill 1070. Last month, amid lawsuits and threats of boycotts, Arizona announced it was ending its practice of requiring police officers to demand the papers of people suspected of being in the country illegally. The move largely stunts what was once considered one of the country's most fearsome immigration law. Arizona's decision to dismantle the law came as part of a settlement with the National Immigration Law Center and other immigrants' rights groups - all of whom sued after the bill passed. In addition to raising the ire of immigration activists, Arizona's measure engendered calls for boycotts of Arizona, including from liberal cities. Carter said Pennsylvania's bill would open municipalities up to liability, in the instances where law enforcement officials released an individual who had no immigration status and that individual proceeded to commit a crime. "It's a broad bill that opens municipalities to a pretty broad range of potential lawsuits and damages," she said. HB 1885 has been denounced by Philadelphia Councilman At-Large David Oh, who this week expressed concerns that the bill would have dire implications for his city. The proposed measure stipulates that state funding would be withheld from sanctuary cities - which in the case of Philadelphia amounts to $2.7 billion. The Philadelphia City Council last month passed a resolution introduced by Oh opposing the measure's language. Philadelphia and 32 counties, in fact, have in place local policies holding that local law enforcement agencies will not hold people in custody longer than they would anyone else. The policies generally state that agencies will release someone in temporary custody unless ICE officials give the local law enforcement agency a warrant for that individual. Carter said she was disappointed at the number of Democrats in the House who voted in favor of the measure. The anti-immigration push in Pennsylvania - as in much of the country - has been widely supported by Republicans. "Democrats hold themselves out to be supporting of immigration rights but by this vote they are showing that is not true," Carter said. "If you don't take the time to look at the bill and think about what it means...people will say 'yes I'm for public safety' but this is not what it's about. It's a racial profiling bill." Norma Chase.jpg Attorney Norma Chase is pictured inside her downtown Pittsburgh office on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016. Photo by Colin Deppen. PITTSBURGH -- On Sunday, Oct. 9, attorney Norma Chase made the short walk from her downtown Pittsburgh office to a nearby university where she gathered with a small crowd for a communal viewing of the second presidential debate. Chase walked inside the hall, grabbed a seat and fixed her eyes on the screen. It wasn't long before she caught sight of a familiar face projected upon it, one that immediately grabbed her attention. Speaking to PennLive from her Grant Street office on Tuesday, Chase said she had recognized the face as that of Kathy Shelton, in an instant. Shelton has for years claimed that current Democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, subjected her to a battery of tests, derision and humiliation while serving as a court-appointed attorney for the man Shelton says raped her when she was just 12-years-old. Shelton anonymously detailed her claims in a 2014 Daily Beast article titled: "Hillary Clinton took me through hell." And on Oct. 9 she returned to the spotlight, no longer shrouded in anonymity, to restate those allegations in a pre-debate press conference hosted by Clinton's current political opponent, Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump. Most of the people watching at Point Park University with Chase that evening likely had no idea who Shelton was. But Chase did, and says she was surprised, if not shocked, to see her there on the screen. "I thought 'Oh my God,'" she recalled on Tuesday. And then her phone rang. 'Archive rat' Chase likes to refer to herself as an "archive rat." In other words, a lawyer who prefers the behind-the-scenes work of libraries and filing rooms to the center-stage action of courtrooms. Her office is a claustrophobia-inducing crush of loose leaf, books, binders and folders, all arranged in precarious-looking, floor-to-ceiling stacks. As an "archive rat," it is perhaps fitting then that her involvement with the Shelton case began there, with a virtual trawling of the paper records attached to the now 40-year-old case, in a courthouse some one-thousand miles away. On Sept. 2, Chase says she phoned the court archives in Washington County, Arkansas, where the Shelton rape case was filed in 1975, and where Shelton's attacker, then 41-year-old Thomas Alfred Taylor, later pled guilty to a lesser count of fondling of a minor. Taylor was sentenced to 10 months in jail. He died in 1992. "The phone was answered by an actual human being who turned out to be the right human being," Chase recalled. "And she said, 'Make your request by email.' And so I did, and within 15 minutes of the phone call I had a PDF." What Chase found in the docket filings contained therein surprised her. While Shelton had claimed that Clinton had subjected her to psychiatric exams and forced her to undergo multiple polygraph tests where she was "asked explicit sexual questions," the documents uncovered and made public for the first time by Chase showed otherwise. Taylor Docket Entries by GlennKesslerWP on Scribd The Washington Post, in a fact-check published the day after the Oct. 9 debate, credited Chase with unearthing the documents, which it said show that while Clinton requested a psychiatric exam of Shelton, the request was subsequently denied by a judge. While media outlets had previously reported on the case and published related court filings and motions, all had somehow failed to note the judicial rulings that followed. The Post article offers this summary of the rulings uncovered by Chase as they pertain to Shelton's psychiatric evaluation claims: "The court docket for July 28 says Clinton filed her motion for an exam. On July 29, it states: 'Hearing on Motion for Psychiatric Examination -- Motion denied. Defendant objects.'" The Post also said there is "no evidence that Clinton was responsible for arranging Shelton's polygraph test." Soon after, the author of that article, Glenn Kessler, wrote that Shelton's gofundme.com page had been altered to remove all references to "an alleged psychiatric exam and the polygraph test." Candice Jackson, the Washington State lawyer currently representing Shelton and informally advising three separate accusers of Clinton's husband, former president Bill Clinton, told PennLive on Tuesday that after independently reviewing paperwork filed in the case, Shelton admits she may have misremembered the psychiatric exam and conflated memories of law enforcement interviews instead. Jackson said some confusion was to be expected, with Shelton only a sixth grader at the time of the attack, one that also left her in a coma. "Her best recollection currently is that she was threatened to undergo a psychiatric exam, but didn't go through with it," Jackson said. But Jackson is adamant that Clinton's request for the exam speaks to her general demeanor as defense counsel, saying Clinton accused a 12-year-old Shelton of lying about the rape and even went so far as to blame the victim. "Kathy has always been consistent and clear in how she felt dragged through the process under the pressure of 'You're lying and making this up,' and that 'It didn't happen, but if it did, you wanted it to happen,'" Jackson said. Jackson said Shelton also stands by claims that she was subjected to intense questioning under polygraph testing, but is no longer sure if Clinton requested the tests or not. Meanwhile, in Pittsburgh, Chase says it is the criticism of Clinton's actions as defense attorney that prompted her to get involved in the first place. After all, she explained, this was less about defending Clinton and more about defending their shared profession. Unearthed Chase began her legal career after being paroled from the Duquesne University School of Law in 1978, three years after the Shelton case was opened and two years before it officially closed. Chase was admitted into the bar in October of 1978, and went on to focus on appellate and family law. She continues to do so now, while sharing a third-floor office space in downtown Pittsburgh with several other attorneys, some of them former public defenders. Chase refers to herself as the den mother, and says her interest in the Shelton case is well-known among her peers. It is also the latest chapter in a legal career spanning nearly four decades. In that time, Chase has appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court and also done the occasional criminal defense job, she explains. She recalls one such case, a felony matter which she refused to discuss further, that saw her criticized for representing the accused. It was that experience which helped drive her interest in the Shelton accusations, she added. "I get upset when attorneys are being attacked for handling a criminal case," she explained. Chase says it was sometime after the Pennsylvania Primary in May when she first noticed such criticism cropping up in response to a Facebook meme detailing Shelton's claims against Clinton -- "You know, the one with the crying girl," she said of the accompanying image. It was at that point that Chase says she decided to investigate for herself. She began by scouring news reports, and located a Snopes.com fact-check titled "Hillary Clinton freed a child rapist." She also reviewed the court records already released with those previously published news reports, the same which failed to note the judicial rulings that Chase herself later dug up. She says the originally published court records did include a reference to Shelton's mother, however. All references to Shelton had been scrubbed from the court documents upon their release, almost certainly because of her age at the time of the incident. State of Arkansas V. Thomas Alfred Taylor by Washington Free Beacon on Scribd Using an online background-check tool, Chase says she was able to work backwards from Shelton's mother to find Shelton herself. "I punched in [the mother] Nellie Slaten's name and up came Kathy Shelton," she recalled. In the ensuing months, Chase did nothing with that information except occasionally enter Shelton's name into search engines to see if anything new about her or the case came up. And then, one day in mid-summer, it finally did. On Aug. 9, Shelton's identity was confirmed once-and-for-all with the publishing of a Daily Mail "Exclusive." The article was the first to publicly identify her, and rehashed many of her claims about the case, including those about having undergone a psychiatric evaluation at Clinton's insistence. The article also served to further fuel Clinton's critics, and prompted new calls from the right to make Shelton, now 54, a "household name." But where many of those critics saw Clinton's handling of the Shelton case as ruthless and abusive, Chase simply saw a defense attorney doggedly doing her job. And while she does not deny that Shelton was a victim, Chase does dispute whether Shelton was a victim of Clinton's. Spokespeople for both Clinton and Trump declined comment for this article when reached by PennLive. Clinton has previously stood by her handling of the case, while Trump, in the Oct. 9 presidential debate, said of it: "The client [Clinton] represented, she got him off, and she's seen laughing on two separate occasions, laughing at the girl who was raped. Kathy Shelton, that young woman is here with us tonight." Politifact, a Pulitzer Prize winner, rates Trump's claim as "false," saying that while Clinton did laugh about the case in a recorded interview with a reporter in the mid-to-late '80s, her laughter was not directed at the victim but rather at the reliability of polygraphs and a crime lab's accidental destruction of DNA evidence. This is unlikely to appease her critics, though, some of whom argue that given the context, any laughter was inappropriate. Back on the subject of the docket filings, Chase says the documents also disprove claims that Clinton stonewalled the admission of evidence related to the Shelton case. Chase argues that the filings she obtained on Sept. 2 show no trace of suppression efforts by the defense. Her extensive blogging on the case and this subject can be viewed here. Meanwhile, the allegations made by Shelton and other Clinton accusers linger as a particularly contentious election season winds its way through the homestretch. Jackson said Shelton is stunned by all the attention she and her case have received, adding, "It's overwhelming in a lot of ways. She never wanted the spotlight but is proud of herself for telling the truth." Jackson notes that Shelton was discovered by reporters in 2014, before deciding to come forward with her claims. For Trump's part, his resurfacing of the accusations against Clinton and her husband continues to be overshadowed by similar claims dogging his own presidential ambitions. And on Chase's end, she says it appears that public opinion about the Shelton case is shifting now, whether due to her own efforts or news reports and fact-checks like The Washington Post and Politifact's. Shelton now walking back some of her claims could also cast further doubt, if not on her intent, than on her ability to recall details from four decades ago. "I tend to see more people piping-up now to say Clinton was doing her job and innocent until proven guilty and that the psych evaluation order never happened," Chase said on Tuesday. For that, she feels vindicated. And while she'll be voting for Hillary Clinton in November -- Chase describes herself as somewhere between Bernie Sanders and Clinton on the political spectrum -- Chase said her decision to support Clinton has nothing to do with the Shelton case. She also scoffs at characterizations of her as the person who cracked it. In response to those who claim she was the one who unearthed key discrepancies in Shelton's story, Chase quips, "There wasn't a lot of earth covering it." It's not clear, however, why no one else had bothered to do so before her. Also unclear are the implications for either campaign, as a result. At the debate watch party near her office on Oct. 9, Chase said while she was taken aback by Shelton's presence on the screen, she had believed it likely that the case would re-emerge at some point in this presidential race, especially given the tone of the campaigning. But even then, Chase said she was startled by how surreal it all seemed, with Shelton seated there alongside three Bill Clinton accusers on prime-time television. It was also reaffirming, she added, noting that soon after she spotted Shelton, her phone rang with the arrival of a message from a once skeptical coworker. "One colleague thought I was obsessing with this matter for no reason, and as I'm sitting down at Point Park [University] watching the debate, I get this text from him: 'It looks like your issue will be brought up at the debate tonight," Chase recalled. "I didn't say 'I told you so,' or anything," she added. Parrish Valentine.jpg Parrish Valentine (submitted) A Williamsport man is headed to Lancaster County court on charges he took nine guns from Trop Gun Shop in Mount Joy Township in May. Parrish M. Valentine, 25, was bound over for court by District Judge Janice Jimenez on nine felony counts of theft, felony counts of burglary and conspiracy, and misdemeanor criminal mischief. Police accused Valentine and co-defendant Shawn R. Prim, 29, of taking the guns in 12 seconds then fled, according to evidence presented at the hearing. They are accused of smashing a glass front door and display cases before taking the $4,200 worth of weapons. Surveillance video from the burglary which showed one of the thieves wearing Nike Air Jordan sneakers, which police found a few days later in the trunk of a vehicle occupied by Valentine during a traffic stop in Williamsport, police said. One of the stolen handguns was also found in the trunk. Valentine, who was charged Aug. 12, is in Lancaster County prison on $150,000 bail. Prim, of Maryland, waived a preliminary hearing on the same charges as Valentine in August. Lena L. Griffith, accused getaway driver, is awaiting court action. state senate.jpg HARRISBURG -- Legislation approved by the Pennsylvania state Senate would let police departments refuse public requests for copies of audio or video recordings by officers, unless a court orders its release. The bill was approved 45-5 on Wednesday without debate. It goes to the House of Representatives with just a few scheduled voting days left in the legislative session. The bill's wording was made public a day ago and covers recordings from body cameras and dashboard cameras. It is supported by law enforcement organizations, but opposed by the American Civil Liberties Union. The sponsor, Sen. Stewart Greenleaf of Montgomery County, says it'll encourage more police agencies to outfit officers with cameras. But the ACLU says it'll be nearly impossible to obtain video that's in the public interest, even if the requester is in the video. Philadelphia Generic Philadelphia skyline from the South Street Bridge. Julia Hatmaker | jhatmaker@pennlive.com (Julia Hatmaker | jhatmaker@pennlive.com) Philadelphia Police on Wednesday continued their search for a shooting suspect who injured a Good Samaritan along an iconic Center City park. According to Philly.com, police have an idea as to who shot the "courageous" 39-year-old man who on Tuesday night, attempted to stop a robbery in Rittenhouse Square. The victim remains in critical but stable condition at Hahnemann University Hospital, the report indicates. Philly.com reports that Chief Inspector Scott Small says investigators have his nickname of one of the thieves involved in the robbery, who is known as a regular in the square. Detectives also are checking cameras inside the park and business surveillance cameras. The incident began just after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday when police responded to multiple calls about a shooting in the square. Police found the victim on a walkway with four or five gunshot wounds to his chest, his torso, and a shoulder. The victim was rushed to Hahnemann University Hospital. Small described the victim as "very courageous, very brave." The victim is expected to survive. The victim was riding a bicycle when the robbery got underway. Police said he tried to stop the robbery. One of the perpetrators opened fire and both ran off. One of the suspects was described as about 5-feet-11, wearing a gray shirt with "Nike" in green letters. The second was a pudgy man, 5-feet-8, wearing all-dark clothing. LOCK HAVEN -- The Renovo man who admitted to killing his wife and then reporting her missing has asked a judge to shorten his sentence imposed Oct. 7. Clinton County Judge Michael F. Salisbury Tuesday scheduled an Oct 31 hearing on the motion filed on behalf of William J. Snyder, who is serving a sentence of 20 years, 1 month, to 52 years in prison. Snyder's lawyer, David I. Lindsey, claims in the motion for reconsideration that the judge abused his discretion by ordering consecutive sentences for third-degree murder and abuse of corpse convictions. Lindsey claims the court improperly ignored Snyder's expression of extreme remorse, his acceptance of responsibility and his understanding of how his mental health altered his judgment. He also contends the judge placed undue emphasis on the punishment and retributive aspects of the sentence. Conversely, the defense attorney claims minimal emphasis was placed on Snyder's military service that included being wounded in Iraq, his post-traumatic stress disorder diagnosis and his lack of a criminal record. The court placed significant emphasis on Snyder's temper, but Lindsey says it is uncontested his client never had been involved in a physical altercation before the incident that left his wife dead. He also contends Salisbury failed to consider the effect the minimum term of 20 years, 1 month, will have upon Snyder's children. Lindsey claims a lesser period of incarceration followed by a supervision tail would have been a more appropriate sentence. The state attorney general's office, which handled the sentencing phase of the case, opposes Snyder's motion, spokesman Jeffrey Johnson said. William J. "B.J." Snyder Snyder pleaded guilty last December to charges of third-degree murder, abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and making unsworn statements to law enforcement. He admitted that on April 5, 2015, which was Easter, he and his wife, Kelly Jo, argued. She threw a bottle of hair spray by his head and punched him in the chest, they grappled, and they fell to the floor, with him straddling her and with his hands around her neck. When he realized she was dead, he placed her body in a sleeping bag in the cellar and later disposed of the body in the Halls Run area. He reported her missing, gave police false information and prepared a fake $60,000 ransom note. Her body was found following an extensive search on April 11, 2015. An autopsy determined she had been strangled. The plea agreement would have allowed Salisbury to sentence Snyder to as little as six years on the murder charge. Hillary Clinton A bill in the Pennsylvania General Assembly that would place further restrictions on abortions has drawn the ire of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. (Andrew Harnik) A bill in the Pennsylvania General Assembly that would place further restrictions on abortions has drawn the ire of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The bill up for a vote in the Pennsylvania Senate would limit abortions to cases of medical necessity after 20 weeks of pregnancy rather than the current 24-week ceiling. Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette earlier this week that the bill could be up for a final in the near future. Maya Harris, Hillary for America senior policy advisor, affirmed Clinton's opposition to the legislation in a prepared comment. Harris said Clinton remains adamantly opposed to the "dangerous" bill that puts women's health at risk. "This bill is another example of how Republicans want to roll back the progress we've made on women's reproductive rights. Donald Trump and his running mate Mike Pence believe that Pennsylvania women should be punished for their health care decisions," Harris said. "In contrast, Hillary Clinton has spent her entire career as a strong advocate for women and their families, and will continue to fight to protect women's reproductive rights." House Bill 1948, sponsored by Rep. Kathy Rapp, R-Warren County, passed the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in June and was sent to the Senate. After it was first considered in July, the bill laid dormant until late September when it went through second consideration. The Senate could vote on the bill this week. PennLive did not receive comment from the Office of the Majority Leader by the time of publication. Pat Toomey may not be ready to say whether he plans to vote for Donald Trump, but he was unequivocal on one talking point that has dominated the Republican presidential nominee's recent speeches. "People have to believe the election reflected the wishes of the American people," Pennsylvania's incumbent U.S. senator said Wednesday. "I am confident it will and we should not be propagating any notion that it won't." On the campaign trail, Trump has repeatedly said that he believes November's election will be "rigged" against him. That, in turn, has raised concerns of a constitutional crisis if Hillary Clinton's polling advantage results in a win on election day. Toomey, who faces a tough reelection battle against former state environmental secretary Katie McGinty on Nov. 8, answered questions about a wide range of issues during a PennLive editorial board meeting. Here are several highlights from the interview, the entirety of which can be streamed via PennLive's Facebook page. 1. Will Toomey vote for Trump? Ask again later. Toomey, who has never formally endorsed Trump, continued to eschew questions about whether he planned to vote for his party's presidential nominee. He did, however, say Clinton is an unacceptable choice for commander in chief. "I can't believe these are the choices we have," he said. During Monday's Senate debate with McGinty, Toomey was asked when he would tell voters whether he planned to vote for Trump. His response was "At some point, I probably will." Toomey has less than three weeks to do that and, on Wednesday, he said nothing has changed in the last two days. 2. The elections are not rigged. Toomey's stance was firm and clear: "We have been able to build the greatest republican in the world that has thrived for 240 years, in part, because the American people have had confidence in our electoral system. It has not been perfect and it will probably never be perfect, but it works. And it is legitimate and it has integrity and everybody needs to recognize that fundamental integrity and legitimacy and respect the outcome of the election. It is really the very essence of the Republic is at stake, in this respect, and the very practical matter of healing some very deep wounds and bringing people together after Nov. 9th. In order for that to happen, people have to believe that the election reflected the wishes of the American people. I am confident it will and we should not be propagating any notion that it won't." 3. Pro-life, pro-death penalty. During the editorial board meeting, Toomey emphasized that he is "pro-life" when it comes to abortion rights but that he recognizes the need for exceptions in certain cases. He said he holds the middle ground on the issue, advocating for a ban on late-term abortions (although he couldn't define that term in specifics) as well as a ban on taxpayer funding to support them. Like many social conservatives, he also supports the death penalty. "There's a difference between innocent human life and someone who has wantonly taken human life." When asked if he believes the death penalty has been fairly carried out, he replied: "I think the answer is yes." 4. Reintroducing background check bill. One of Toomey's legislative priorities, if he's reelected, will be reintroducing the bill he sponsored with West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin. That 2013 bill would have mandated criminal and mental health background checks at gun shows and on Internet sales. "The most painful meeting I had since I got to the senate was with the parents of the Sandy Hook schoolchildren," Toomey said, expressing frustration at the lack of movement on any new gun laws in the wake of numerous mass shootings. That said, Toomey emphasized the need for a middle path. He does not, for example, support bans on high-capacity magazines and other proposals that he believes would never garner enough support to pass. "If you don't look for common ground, you won't make any progress on this," he said. 5. Are you tired of all the attack ads? So is Toomey. "It's not really much fun to watch TV in the Toomey household," he said, in response to a question about outside spending on attack ads in the Senate campaign. Pennsylvania's race is currently the most expensive nationwide, with outside spending currently over $140 million, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, in addition to the $20 million spent by the campaigns. A lot of this is a result of the Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United decision, which opened the floodgates for unlimited corporate contributions. Toomey said Wednesday that he's not opposed to spending by corporations, but he would support legislation to make it more transparent. For him, that would involve all contributions being funneled directly to the campaigns and not outside groups that are exempt from disclosing their donors. Toomey said he would introduce legislation to that effect, but he's doubtful it would ever garner enough support to pass Congress. FILE - This Saturday, May 31, 2014, file photo, shows the Starbucks logo at one of the company's coffee shops in downtown Chicago. Starbucks is pushing ahead with its expansion into China and said it is on track to having about 5,000 stores there by 2021, more than doubling the number of coffee shops it currently has in the country. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File) We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form Downtown Petoskey celebrates Halloween in style with annual parade The sun was shining on Saturday morning as hundreds of trick-or-treaters took to the streets of downtown Petoskey for the annual Halloween Parade. Big oil will focus on Brazil & Mexico deepwater projects LONDON Petroleumworld.com 10 19 2016 The deepwater oil industry is not dead, even after the brutal drop in oil prices in recent years, but activity will focus on regions such as Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico where resources are large and costs low, executives said on Tuesday. Sanctioning of multi-billion dollar projects, that take years to develop and which drove oil supply growth earlier this decade, ground to a near halt since the oil price collapse in mid-2014 as companies dealt with a sharp drop in revenue. U.S. shale oil production has been able to sharply reduce its development costs in recent years to stay profitable at $50 a barrel in some cases, John Hess, Chief Executive Officer of U.S. independent Hess Corp told the Oil & Money conference. "You will need prices in excess of $60-$80 a barrel to get the long-cycle projects running," Hess said. "We are not investing enough today to provide the projects for long-cycle that the world is going to need." "Not all deepwater is equal," Andrew Gould, board member of Saudi Arabia's state-run oil company, said. "There are really only three areas that have the critical mass to allow economies of scale. These are the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea, particularly the Norwegian area, and Brazil," he added. "These areas have the engineering and supply supporting proximity that can mobilize resources in a way that is impossible in remote areas," Gould, former chairman of BG Group, which Royal Dutch Shell acquired earlier this year, said. Gould gave the example of Statoil's Johan Castberg field development in the Norwegian North Sea where costs have been reduced from an original estimate of $16 billion to around $6 billion due to cost deflation and simplification of construction plans. Similarly, BP's Mad Dog project in the Gulf of Mexico is expected to be developed at nearly half of its original costs of $20 billion. BP Chief Executive Officer Bob Dudley told reporters at the conference that a final investment decision (FID) on the Mad Dog project might be made over the next six months. Dudley said Mad Dog II will "probably" be sanctioned this quarter or in the first quarter of next year, depending on agreement with its partners. "There will be FIDs. Investments are back but only the best ones," Dudley told reporters on the sidelines of the conference. Dudley expected oil prices to remain within a range of $50 to $60 a barrel next year and not exceed $70 a barrel by the end of the decade. "Good deepwater in areas of critical mass will be developed and it is encouraging to see operators already reacting to reduce developing costs," Gould said. The world will require around 40 million barrels per day of new oil production over the next 10 years to meet annual demand growth of around 1 million bpd and a natural field decline of some 30 million bpd, Hess said. Oil majors such as Chevron are increasingly focusing their smaller budgets production growth on short-cycle plans such as shale and shallow water projects in order to benefit from faster income. Ali Moshiri, President of Chevron's Africa and Latin America Exploration and Production said that mega projects such as heavy oil and extra heavy oil developments in Canada and Venezuela, as well as some deepwater production, will be "very difficult" to develop unless prices reach $60 to $80 a barrel. "From a practical point of view, certain projects will be pushed into the future," Moshiri said. By Anthony Esposito SANTIAGO/LA SERENA, Chile, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Unionized workers at Chile's state-owned copper miner Codelco are mulling going on a company-wide strike, possibly by mid-November, if the government does not make progress on a number of demands, union leaders told Reuters on Tuesday. Codelco, the world No. 1 copper producer, returns all its profits to the state and is funded by a mixture of capitalization and debt. The recent sharp downturn in the copper price has hit it hard when it needs to invest in new projects to keep output flowing, forcing it to scale back ambitious expansion plans. The Copper Mining Federation (FTC), which serves as the umbrella organization for Codelco's unions, will ask Chile's government for permanent capitalization for the company and to overturn a law that requires that 10 percent of Codelco's revenues support Chile's defense budget. "By (mid-November) we could be organizing a strike if we don't have a response from the government," said Marcelo Perez, director of the Caletones union at Codelco's underground El Teniente mine. Codelco declined to comment. According to Perez, the unions have not decided how long the strike could last. However, Liliana Ugarte, who heads one of the unions at the open-pit Chuquicamata mine, said on Friday that if workers were to go on strike it would likely last 24 hours. "We're going to get in touch with the Senate, Finance Ministry and the President of the Republic and following all those conversations we will again meet no more than 15 days later and see if our demands have been met. If not we will call for a 24-hour national strike, as a warning," said Ugarte. Codelco produced 843,000 tonnes of copper in the first half of the year. (Reporting by Anthony Esposito; Editing by Bernard Orr) DailyFX.com - Whats inside: Top-side parallel overcome, but other resistance stands in the way Trading conditions remain choppy, leaving trading best for those with short-term holding periods Techs on the 2-hr chart examined On Monday, we discussed slope resistance running off the 9/8 swing high. Yesterday, the DAX managed to close above it for the first time since it came into play, but hasnt yet recaptured the trend-line off the June lows. Resistance in the 10640/700 vicinity also stands in the way of the market continuing the recent advance. DAX: Daily DAX Tech Update: Short-term Trading Levels Amidst the Chop Created with Tradingview Overall market direction is lacking, which means trading at this time is best left to those willing to operate off time-frames of only a few hours to a couple of days. Dialing in on the 2-hour chart: A pair of trend-lines is extending lower. The first trend-line, which is immediately having influence on the DAX, comes in off the 9/22 high. The second trend-line, ~20 points above the first, goes back to the 8/15 swing high. There are also a couple of small swing highs in the current area from early in the month. Immediate resistance presents the first hurdle for the market to overcome if it is to move higher, and until it does we will not view the market through a bullish lens. It doesnt mean we are aggressively bearish, but we know all too well that buying into resistance (just as shorting into support) is generally a losing endeavor. A move lower will bring in the trend-line off the big Deutsche Bank-induced gap-down day low on Sep 30. We will use that as initial support should it trade down there. The convergence of trend-lines discussed brings to light the possibility of a wedge pattern reaching maturity with a little more time spent bouncing around between the upper and lower trend-lines. This would be a welcomed event given the nature of such patterns often times leading to sustained moves one way or another. For now, we will continue to keep expectations of large price swings tempered and utilize the current short-term landscape to shape our trading bias. Story continues DAX: 2-hour DAX Tech Update: Short-term Trading Levels Amidst the Chop Created with Tradingview Check out our Q4 forecasts for FX, commodities and indices. ---Written by Paul Robinson, Market Analyst To receive Pauls analysis directly via email, please sign up here. You can follow Paul on Twitter at @PaulRobinonFX. original source DailyFX provides forex news and technical analysis on the trends that influence the global currency markets. Learn forex trading with a free practice account and trading charts from FXCM. By Nathan Layne Oct 18 (Reuters) - A lawsuit by an Ecuadorean bank alleging that Wells Fargo & Co is liable for authorizing the transfer of $12 million stolen in a 2015 cyber heist can go forward, a U.S. judge ruled on Tuesday. The decision by U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan was in response to Wells Fargo's motion to dismiss the lawsuit by Banco del Austro, which sought to hold the U.S. bank responsible for failing to halt the transfers made via the SWIFT network. The 2016 lawsuit took on new importance in the wake of this year's heist at the Bangladesh central bank, in which cyber thieves used the SWIFT global messaging system to swipe $81 million from an account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. In addition to highlighting potential security risks inherent to such interbank transfers, Banco del Austro's lawsuit was also seen by legal experts as a key test of whether a so-called correspondent bank - in this case Wells Fargo - could be held liable for authorizing authenticated SWIFT transfer messages. In Tuesday's ruling Kaplan threw out breach of contract and negligence claims against Wells Fargo but denied the U.S. bank's bid to dismiss alleged violations of the New York Uniform Commercial Code, which governs whether fund transfer security procedures are "commercially reasonable." Kaplan said the court could not "rule as a matter of law that use of the SWIFT system, with nothing more, constituted a commercially reasonable security procedure in the context of this particular customer-bank relationship." Wells Fargo, which has previously maintained that it properly processed the wire instructions via authenticated SWIFT messages, could not be immediately reached for comment on Tuesday's ruling. Banco del Austro could also not be reached for comment. The $12 million was stolen in January 2015 when unidentified hackers secured a Banco del Austro employee's SWIFT logon credentials, Wells Fargo said in a February court filing. Story continues Court filings and judicial rulings show that the cyber thieves routed most of the stolen funds through 23 companies registered in Hong Kong, some of them with no apparent business activity, Reuters reported in May. Banco del Austro submitted criminal reports to police in both Hong Kong and Ecuador about the transfers, according to Hong Kong court filings. It is not clear if any progress has been made by the authorities in finding the stolen funds. (Reporting by Nathan Layne; Editing by Bill Rigby) Richie Says... The region with the green overlay is that of the Vancouver Coast and Mountains. Some of the Best Photos from the Sunshine Coast: Wedged between the ocean and the mountains is the Sunshine Coast. Image by Christoph Laue. Look at that dark dirt making up the amazing single track. Image by BCBR. The forest on the Sunshine Coast is beautiful. Image by the Coastal Crew. It doesn't get much better than the Coastal forest for getting yourself lost in the moment and your surroundings. Image by BCBR. Do you like your singletrack to be tight and twisty? Image by BCBR. Coast Gravity Park might just be the most beautifully sculpted bike park around. Image by the Coastal Crew. Bring your friends so that you can all enjoy the trails over here. Image by Paris Gore. Leave us in this forest for a week and we'll never stop exploring. Image by Paris Gore. Videos that represent the Sunshine Coast: Check Out The Trails: Other Useful Links: The Vancouver, Coast, and Mountains region offers diversity at many levels; the interface between urban and wilderness, accessibility of metropolitan lifestyle with trails right out your back door, difficulty ranging from gnarly to family friendly, a mix of old school and new, and the birthplace of the North Shore style of freeride. Its a place where any self-respecting mountain biker will feel at home.Did you know that there is a year-round bike park on the Sunshine Coast?:Curtis Robinson takes us through some amazing gravity and enduro style riding in the Roberts Creek area:The world class singletrack is what attracts the BCBR to the Sunshine Coast year after year:More goodness from recent BCBR events:While there are hundreds of miles of XC singletrack on the Sunshine Coast, don't forget to take the time to check out Coast Gravity Park:Here's a look at how the whole Sunshine coast is taking a focus from industry to tourism:Images by BCBR, Paris Gore, Christoph Laue and the Coastal Crew. Must-Read Travel Guides EAST ASIA SOUTHEAST ASIA Featured Articles Contact Copyright Disclosure If you wish to contact me for questions, collaboration inquiries, comments, suggestions, reviews or just about anything, please send an email to. I will try my best to reply quickly! Unless, of course, I'm on a trip! :D All rights reserved. All photos and content in this blog are owned by(unless otherwise stated). Parts of the articles may be excerpted (a link to this site should be provided), but not reproduced as a whole. Photos may not be used without permission. Thank you very much!Unless otherwise stated, I personally write my blog posts and it expresses my own thoughts and opinions. I pay for all the expenses of my trips (unless otherwise stated). I welcome collaborations and reviews as long as they are beneficial to my readers. All reviews on collaborations contain my own views and opinion and were not influenced by anyone. For inquiries, you may contact me here . Thank you very much! Illustration: Giuseppe JO Cafaro Every issue of POLICE Magazine this year bears a special 40th anniversary burst on the cover. That's because this magazine was launched by a San Diego police officer named Rodney Dornsife back when Jimmy Carter was the Democratic nominee for president and this grizzled 57-year-old scribe was a junior in high school. Now what we would normally do to celebrate this occasion would be a retrospective about what it was like to be a cop in the days when wheel guns were in duty holsters and in-car radios were state-of-the-art police tools. And we'll do a little bit of that in the last two articles of this special feature section. But we decided it might be more interesting to look forward instead of look back. Predicting the future is dangerous business. And it's an especially bittersweet business for those of us who went to elementary school back in the 1960s, which for all of its flaws and disasters was a time of immense optimism and crazy theories about what life would be like in the 21st century. Back then we were presented with visions of flying cars, paper clothes, colonies on the moon and Mars, tunnels across the oceans, and jetpacks for everybody. But some 50 years later we don't have any of that stuff. What we do have, however, is just as amazing. We may not have left Earth orbit with manned flights since Apollo 17 back in 1972, but we've sent a probe past Pluto. We don't have flying cars (thank God because the average person can't drive safely, much less fly), but we are soon to have self-driving cars. And well, to be honest, paper clothes and tunnels across the oceans were insane ideas anyway. The one thing many of the people who looked forward into the future from the 1960s and 1970s did get right, however, was computers. Back in their time computers took up whole floors of buildings with their tape memory systems and punch card user interfaces. Now, the average American walks around with more computing power in a cellular phone than NASA had available for the moon shots. Like I said, predicting the future is dangerous because you are pretty much guaranteed to be wrong. And that is true in any field. If you had asked law enforcement officers back in 1976 what police technology would look like in 2016, they might have talked about flying patrol cars and robot partners and handheld laser weapons. They couldn't see the wonders that would really be part of your day-to-day operations: things like license plate readers, body cameras, practical less-lethal weapons like TASERs, e-citation tools, and all the marvels of this age. So knowing we are going to be proven wrong by the time our 80th anniversary rolls around, POLICE Magazine presents this look at the future of policing and police technology in America. Illustration: Giuseppe JO Cafaro Any discussion of the future can quickly turn into talk of heavenly utopias or hell-on-Earth dystopias. Or it can lead to conjecture about things we now believe are impossible like faster-than-light travel or quantum teleportation of living organisms. However, the best way to gain real insight into what might happen in the future is to examine how we got where we are now from the past. Back in 1976 when POLICE Magazine was born, the first handheld mobile cellphone was three years old. Which means people looking forward from 1976 toward our present might be able to look at that fledgling cellular phone technology and at least make an educated guess that it would shape the future. So that's what we are going to try to do in this article. Rather than create a wish list of police gear we would all like the future to bring, we're going to try to show how the technologies in development and the events of today will affect the law enforcement officers of the future. Flying to the Scene Self-driving cars are already a reality in 2016. Two decades from now this technology will be in widespread use in law enforcement, as officers will be able to work on reports and perform other duties while their cars drive them to their destination. The self-drivers will have manual overrides for emergency situations. Thirty and 40 years out from now, we may finally see practical flying cars. However, the idea of a flying car for the masses is probably better in concept than it would be in reality. Car crashes kill thousands of people each year. Imagine the carnage if each of those car crashes slammed into a home, a business, or a school from an altitude of say 100 feet. Does that mean it isn't possible that some massive technological breakthroughs in self-driving vehicle technology, automotive engines, and aeronautical engineering won't yield a practical flying car by 2056? No, not necessarily, but it just illustrates one of the problems that must be addressed before the public starts flying around above the highways instead of rolling over them. That said, flying vehicles for first responders could be a reality in 40 years, as depicted in the movie "Blade Runner." The kinds of flight technologies seen in the Marine Corps V-22 tiltrotor aircraft or the Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) engines of the Harrier fighter jet may in the coming decades be miniaturized to the point they might be practical for emergency vehicles. Such a flying emergency vehicle would probably have a very limited ceiling of operation, say 50 feet, and the drivers would have to be very well trained, but the possibilities are intriguing. Emergency vehicles such as patrol cars, ambulances and EMT rigs, and maybe even fire trucks could have the ability to fly and hover over the road or in off-road areas. This means emergency personnel could avoid traffic and arrive much faster to emergency calls. From a police tactical point of view, a flying patrol vehicle would give officers a much better view of any scene before engaging with the public. This could be a boon to officer safety. Of course flying patrol vehicles would have to be marked and equipped much differently than today's cars. In addition to having lights on the roof of the vehicle, the underside would have to be fitted with emergency lights as well as large floodlights. By 2056 it's unlikely that patrol vehicles, whether airborne or earth-bound, will be running on fossil fuels. Twenty years from now they will probably all be electric, or at least the newest models will be. And out toward 2056, hydrogen fuel cells may be the engine technology of choice. In-Vehicle Technology Today, patrol cars are crowded with computers, radar systems, controllers for lights, radios, and the list goes on and on. In 20, 30, and 40 years into the future a lot of that clutter will probably disappear or be replaced with new equipment that we can't even imagine. By 2056 all of the information officers currently receive from in-car computers will be on a heads-up display or visible on a special helmet visor that allows the officer to see the road and detect threats. These displays will be driven by tiny computers that receive input from hundreds of sensors. They will connect with the outside world via signals from quantum computers running the cloud. And officers won't need keyboards. They will speak commands to the vehicle and the vehicle will not only understand these commandsunlike today's Siri, Cortana, or Alexait will act on them instantly. A decade or so from now, some patrol vehicles will carry small unmanned aircraft. These mini drones will deploy at the command of the officers during every police stop or call. They will be equipped with small high-definition cameras with low-light capability that will capture the entire scene from a bird's-eye view. This video will not only be captured as evidence, it will be streamed back to big data systems that will alert other officers to provide backup if the analysis indicates a threat. The drones will also have high-intensity lights the officers can turn on when needed to mark the location for incoming public safety assets, warn fellow officers that something bad is happening, or just light up the scene. The high-intensity lights from the drones could also be used to temporarily reduce the vision of suspects. As drone technology and imaging technology improves, these unmanned aerial systems will offer enhanced officer safety features such as holographic projection. A lone officer could be joined by a lifelike holographic partner to discourage an attack. These drones will also be equipped with sensors that can detect narcotics, explosives, and firearms inside vehicles. Patrol vehicles in 2056 will be equipped with front, rear, and side scanners. These cameras will read license plates and other legally mandated information motorists are required to display as the officer patrols. Patrol vehicles driving at high speeds will have the ability to scan other cars from all directions even at long distances and the system will store this data in the cloud until it is deemed no longer valuable. By 2056, the car chase will be a thing of the past. The new self-driving cars will not permit drivers to flee from police, and drivers still tooling around in older cars will also find it much harder to run from the cops. Technology will have advanced to the point that patrol cars have engine disabler systems. They are used to prevent motorists running from the police. Uniforms and Armor The officers of 2056 won't just wear uniforms; they will wear sensor arrays. Sensors sewn into their uniforms will monitor a host of biological functions such as heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, and body temperature. If the officer is experiencing distress, the sensors will send an alert to headquarters to check on the officer's well-being, which will be done remotely via surveillance cameras and other devices. GPS senders sewn into an officer's shirt have been in use for decades. They are smaller than a cellphone SIM card and can detect where the officer is located within inches. This permits agencies to pinpoint officers during emergencies, track their movements at scenes, and facilitate collaboration between officers. Armor technology is constantly evolving and improving to meet new threats. Officers in 2056 will need armor against projectiles, energy weapons, and old-fashioned blades. So future body armor will evolve from the woven and non-woven fabrics of today into a lightweight combination of fabrics, carbon nanotubes, and energy-absorbing, non-conductive gels. This combination will protect officers from rifle and pistol bullets and energy weapons. The new armor will be extremely light and made out of a breathable material that is neither hot nor cold to wear. Officers will be required to wear head and body armor at all times on duty. Today, scientists are conducting experiments with invisibility using projected images on thin reflective sheets. By 2056 these experiments will have yielded new types of shields and tactical uniforms that can cloak an officer as he or she makes a potentially dangerous approach. Tactical teams will use these cloaking tools during critical incidents. Some agencies will also provide them to patrol officers, but because they will be expensive and fragile, most agencies will restrict their use to tactical teams. Robots on Patrol The most common uses for robots in law enforcement operations today involve surveillance and hazardous device disposal. These robots travel on tracks or wheels and are actually remote-controlled by officers. But bi-pedal robots are in development. And with advances in computing power and developments in artificial intelligence, by 2056 bi-pedal semi-autonomous robots may be in service with police agencies. These robots of the near future will probably be used in two ways. They will accompany officers on patrol and help respond to dangerous situation,s or they may even supplement or replace some of the more common duties performed by law enforcement officers today. In the same way that Air Force drones are now executing missions that would in the past have to have been flown by combat pilots, it's possible that 40 years from now robots controlled remotely by officers working in a central control room may take over some of the law enforcement duties now performed by humans. On-Officer Technology Police officers today carry multiple communications and information devices, including portable land mobile radios, smartphones, and tablets. In the coming years we are going to see these devices merge into one, and by 2056 an officer will be able to receive calls for service, details about suspects and locations, and other critical information either through a worn device such as eyeglasses or an armored visor. Body cameras are the hottest law enforcement technology of 2016. In the coming decade just about every officer in the United States will carry a body cam, and this presents a major problem in terms of data storage that will have to be solved. So in the next 10 years or so, new video compression techniques will be developed to reduce the volume of data agencies will have to store. By 2056 high-definition images of almost every police encounter will be captured from numerous angles by camera systems on officers, on drones, on buildings, and even on the public. Computerized film editing will be used to compile all of this video evidence into a seamless documentary-style film of the incident. Officers will also carry drug and alcohol detection devices in the future that are much easier to use and more sensitive than current blood or breath tests. These devices will be able to determine whether a person is impaired through a quick read from the person's skin. Such alcohol and marijuana stick sensors will be carried on the officer's belt. By simply asking a driver to hold the stick, the officer could determine the exact amount of alcohol in the driver's system and any presence of marijuana. When the presence of alcohol or marijuana is detected, central dispatch will be automatically notified to monitor the situation via vehicle, on-officer, and drone cams. Facial, fingerprint, and eye scanners on officers' belts will have been in use for more than a decade by 2056. They will pull up data about a driver's history, arrest record, and warrants in seconds. Small devices will scan a person's face or eyes without physical contact. Fingerprints will also be detected by the suspect touching the device. The speed of accessing databases like NCIC will be almost instant because scans of legally mandated information tags on the driver's car will have already preloaded information on that vehicle and its owner. When a hit is detected, backup officers nearby will be automatically notified. Electrolasers and Smart Bullets The conducted energy weapon (CEW) is currently the most effective less-lethal tool in the law enforcement arsenal. But it has limitations, particularly in terms of range and follow-up shots. Current CEWs require two wired probes fired from the device to make impact with the subject to connect the circuit, and the probes spread as they leave the cartridge. That means the farther away the subject is from the officer, the harder it is to hit that subject with both probes. So one advance we can expect in the near future is a CEW that offers expanded range perhaps by minimizing the spread of the probes. But decades from now officers will have true electric guns that can fire a stream of non-lethal current at a subject at ranges of as much as 100 feet. The current will be conducted through a stream of plasma or other conductive material and follow-up shots come with each pull of the trigger. Experiments with these so-called electrolasers are already in progress. Guns that fire bullets using gunpowder are not going away any time soon. And they will likely still be in use in law enforcement for the foreseeable future, but the use of such lethal force will be heavily restricted by 2056. Because of better armor and better less-lethal weapons such as electric pistols, officers will be required by law and policy to use less-lethal tools on threats, even deadly threats, at close range. Outside the effective range of such tools, officers will still be allowed to defend themselves with lethal force. By 2056 state-of-the-art lethal weapons may include small, portable railguns that use electromagnetism to fire their projectiles. Hand lasers are also a possibility, since scientists are hard at work now on the problem of reducing the size of laser weapons. Guided bullet weapons are also likely to be available in 2056. Sandia Labs announced in 2012 that it had developed a "smart bullet" that could change directory in mid-flight to follow a laser. One sobering thought about future weapon technology is that any man-portable weapon developed for law enforcement or the military is going to be adopted by criminals and terrorists. Virtual Reality Training Contemporary law enforcement training is a combination of classroom, hands-on, and simulator instruction. As we move deeper into the 21st century, technology will play an even greater role in police training. The next generation of simulators will feature fully immersive virtual reality, which is now in its infancy with devices like Oculus Rift. Forty years from now police training may involve scenarios conducted with robots as the subjects officers must interact with. Police training in the next few decades will also expand to include much more education before officers hit the streets. Language skills in Spanish will be a nationwide requirement for all officers. Other languages in demand will include Arabic and Pashtun, as refugees from the Middle East and East Asia war zones will have established enclaves in many American cities. By 2056 high school will have become more career oriented, and in every state, there will be police high schools. Students will study general education, public service and protection, and language courses to obtain a Justice High School Diploma. These students will then be able to attend a university or college for an additional year to earn a bachelor's degree in justice studies. Most departments will require this training or the equivalent before a prospective recruit can apply to the police academy. Police academy training will have a higher percentage of basic training focusing on communication skills, cultural diversity, and conflict de-escalation training. "Intercultural police" training will now be the norm for most progressive departments. Weapon and use-of-force training will be minimized. Many hours of academy training will focus on how to use police technology. The training will include practical hands-on exercises in which students must demonstrate proficiency. The emergency vehicle operations side of academy training will be more intense and involved if recruits seek qualification for using flying vehicles. They could also be substantially less involved if officers are to be assigned self-driving patrol units. Law and Policy Both the laws officers enforce and the laws and policies that regulate officer actions will change substantially in the next 40 years. The first big change is in the area of drug enforcement. Marijuana usage will most certainly be legal nationwide by 2030. It's not difficult to imagine what that will be like. Marijuana laws after 2030 focus more on underage use and driving after use. The sale of marijuana is highly regulated and the legal farming industry is big business. But weed bootleggers are still a problem, as some violent outlaws try to avoid state and local taxes. Movement of illegal aliens into the United States from Mexico has greatly diminished as a result of development of the manufacturing industry in border towns. Yet, terrorists still come to the U.S. by the southern and northern border. Police departments along the northern and southern border go through special training on federal immigration laws, which have become more strict in order to counter the terrorist threat. As we progress toward the middle of the century, federal law will mandate that every person arrested in the U.S. will be processed with metric facial print, eye scan, and DNA samples. DNA samples are now are taken from oils or sweat from the palm of hands. They are entered into a data bank, which is accessible within seconds by law enforcement officers nationwide. All vehicles in the U.S. are now required to have front, back, and side information tags that can be read by law enforcement scanners. Failure to display a plate results in the impoundment of that vehicle at the owner's expense. Perhaps the greatest change in American policing by 2056 will be that officers in the field will receive immediate legal guidance on their actions. Officer-worn cameras and other cameras as well as sensors will send all officer actions to analysis systems that will use artificial intelligence to judge whether the officer's actions are in-policy or lawful. If the action is unlawful or out of policy, the officer will be warned with a verbal or visual alert. Officers who continue with the action will be disciplined and perhaps prosecuted. Future Shock Looking at some of our thoughts on the future, today's officers reading this article may find some of what lies ahead exciting, some of it disturbing, and some of it scary. But the goal of this article was not to present you with an ideal vision of the future where all is well for officers and nothing has changed. It was to get you thinking about the future and how it will be derived from the present, both good and bad. The one thing we know about the future is that change is inevitable and new technologies and new ways of thinking bring pain to many people. You won't like everything about the future but you can't change it once it happens because the future is being born now. The way we live and work in 2056 will grow out of all the challenges we face in 2016, and how we react to them. Christopher Kuch holds a PhD in criminal justice. He has taught for more than 25 years and has written about a variety of police issues. Kuch served as a deputy sheriff in Ohio and is on the adjunct faculty of Galatasaray University in Istanbul, Turkey. Officer Candace Bisagna and Officer Brandi Madrid of the Albuquerque (NM) Police Department (Photo: NLEOMF) The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund has selected Officers Candace Bisagna and Brandi Madrid of the Albuquerque (NM) Police Department as the recipients of its Officer of the Month Award for October 2016. On May 29, 2016, a man climbed over a security fence on an overpass over I-40 in Albuquerque, NM. After he threatened to jump, the police were called to assist, but he refused to speak with the male officers who arrived first. Officer Brandi Madrid arrived at the scene next; this was her first experience in a situation like this. I started to build that rapport with him, Officer Madrid said. He just seemed like he had a lot he was holding within. He seemed to be very upset so for most of that time, I really just listened. Officer Candace Bisagna volunteered to help with the call because of her experience helping distressed individuals who were at risk of suicide. Upon arriving at the scene, she recognized the man as someone she had talked off a bridge just one month earlier. The officers used their Crisis Intervention Training to gain the mans trust, but then, angry drivers below began shouting for him to jump. Their shouts distressed the man again and the officers had to work to calm him down again. For us, thats frustrating because [the shouts were] amplifying his emotions, Officer Bisagna said. Wed make a little bit of headway, and someone would yell that, and wed have to go back and build it back up. Finally they blocked off the exits from where we were so no one could yell at him, and it was a lot more helpful. But the whole time, youre just kind of praying he doesnt jump. After three hours in the sweltering heat, Officers Bisagna and Madrid were able to talk the man back over the fence, and he peacefully surrendered. The Crisis Intervention Team was told to keep a closer eye on the man and get him the medical attention he needed. We are required to take whats called a Crisis Intervention Team Course where they set up scenarios, such as people who are on the edge of a bridge or are feeling like hurting themselves, Officer Madrid said. They give you the tools to successfully make a good outcome of it. Because of that, I was able to use those tools for that incident, and it really paid off. I think all of the training were provided helped us be successful, added Officer Bisagna. Just two days later, Officer Madrid helped save the life of a female who attempted to jump off another bridge in the city. Officer Bisagna and Officer Madrid expertly displayed their dedication and commitment to serving the citizens of Albuquerque with this outstanding example of service, said Sgt. Ric Ingram of the Albuquerque Police Department. Officers Candace Bisagna and Brandi Madrid are a prime example of how crisis prevention training is important for all law enforcement, Memorial Fund President and CEO Craig W. Floyd said. The devotion they showed in those extreme circumstances is honorable and deserving of the October 2016 Officer of the Month Award. Located in the nations capital, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund is a nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring the service and sacrifice of Americas law enforcement officers. The Memorial Funds Officer of the Month Award Program began in 1996 and recognizes federal, state, and local officers who distinguish themselves through exemplary law enforcement service and devotion to duty. Officers Candace Bisagna and Brandi Madrid, along with the other Officer of the Month Award recipients for 2016, will be honored during National Police Week at a special awards ceremony in Washington, DC, in May 2017. For more information, visit http://www.nleomf.org/officers/month/. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print The Clinton campaign just came out with a brilliant new fundraising tool that is likely to raise loads of money for the Democratic nominees candidacy and probably empty the bank accounts of anyone that signs up for it. The new tool, appropriately named Troll Trump, automatically donates money to Hillary Clintons presidential campaign whenever Donald Trump tweets something outrageous. Basically, money would continuously be flowing out of the participants accounts for three straight weeks until the election concludes. Hillary Clinton tweeted this out on Tuesday explaining the new fundraising program: Automatically donate every time Trump tweets something offensive with our new tool: https://t.co/XcTt51uKsd https://t.co/WPM1I9yeVv Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) October 18, 2016 As Trumps campaign continues to unravel with just weeks until Election Day, its likely that the desperate Republican nominee will only ratchet up his activity on Twitter and become more likely to as he so often does throw tantrums in the wee hours of the night. Now, when he chooses to unleash a stream of 3 a.m. tweets attacking a fallen soldiers family or a former Miss Universe, to name a few examples, itll be directly helping Hillary Clintons campaign. Its a genius new tool, but you should probably make sure your bank account is stocked with a sizable amount of money before signing up. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print While campaigning in Grand Junction, CO, Donald Trump unleashed a new bizarre conspiracy theory that the protesters at his rallies are paid Democratic plants. After complaining that the media doesnt report on his good poll numbers, Trump said, Oh and these people here. Theyre getting $1500 to do that. Fifteen hundred dollars. You see how professional they are. Look at the guy. Now, hes just walking out. So, yesterday there was a story that the DNC, Democratic National Committee, is sending protesters in here, paying them fifteen hundred dollars. Look at that guy! Hes like a pro. They got him out. Now, hes just walking. You know, its disgusting. It just came out yesterday, and I thought so. Versions of the story that Trump repeated all over the conservative media echo chamber, which is sourced to James OKeefes latest bit of nonsense. We now know where Trump gets his news. He reads it on right-wing Internet sites. Democrats dont pay protesters to object to Donald Trump. The Republican nominees own words and behavior have done plenty to organically trigger protests. Trump is badly trailing on the evening before the final presidential debate, but is he thinking about how he can win the election? Nope. Trump is feeding conspiracy theories about how the polls arent real, and the protesters arent real. Donald Trump isnt trying to win. Hes preemptively building an excuse file for his defeat. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Melania and Donald Trump have threatened to file several lawsuits in response to allegations of sexual assault made against the Republican nominee, but six people have come forward to corroborate former People writer Natasha Stoynoffs allegations against Trump. Melania Trump threatened to sue over the PEOPLE article, so the magazine responded with witnesses that corroborate their published story: Six colleagues and close friends who corroborate former PEOPLE writer Natasha Stoynoffs account of being attacked by Donald Trump in 2005 are now coming forward. Among them is a friend who was with Stoynoff when she ran into Melania Trump later in N.Y.C. The wife of the Republican nominee denies meeting Stoynoff after the attack, but Stoynoffs friend Liza Herz remembers being there during the chance meeting. They chatted in a friendly way, Herz, who met Stoynoff in college, says. And what struck me most was that Melania was carrying a child and wearing heels. The New York Times responded to Trumps lawsuit threat by virtually begging him to file it, and now PEOPLE has responded by siding with their former writer and providing evidence that both of the Trumps appear not to be telling the truth. The Trump threat to sue has been called out and exposed as more bullying hot air. Donald Trumps presidential campaign has already sunk, but there may be little left of Trumps brand after voters cast their ballots on November 8. Trumps bullying tactic has backfired, as the press wont be silenced by threats of lawsuits that arent likely to come. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Sen. John McCain breaks into a full sprint when he sees a reporter who was trying to ask him about his vow to block Hillary Clintons Supreme Court nominees. Video: Well this isn't going well: McCain literally flees a reporter asking about his comments that he'll block anyone Clinton appoints to SCOTUS. pic.twitter.com/hsbOsQb8bm Matt McDermott (@mattmfm) October 18, 2016 McCain sees the reporter and cameraman, yells, Sorry, Im late, guys, and breaks into a full sprint. Years and years of obstruction and ignoring the will of the American people have turned Congressional Republicans into track stars. Republicans have mastered the art of running away from the press. John McCain is eighty years old, but he still got to stepping, because he knows that his vow to block Hillary Clintons Supreme Court nominees is both unpopular and indefensible. The 2016 election year can be summed up by the fact that a man who survived torture as a POW in the Vietnam War has to run away because he cant defend his partys behavior. Such is the sad and sorry state of the current Donald Trump led Republican Party. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print In a press release, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) condemns anti-Semitic harassment of journalists on Twitter. The press release details the ADLs Task Force on Harassment and Journalisms new report detailing a troubling, year-long rise in anti-Semitic hate targeting journalists on Twitter. What is remarkable is that you dont even have to be Jewish to be the recipient of anti-Semitic attacks on Twitter. You only have to be critical of Donald Trump. Somehow, apparently, that automatically makes you Jewish. Which says a lot more about Trumps supporters than his opponents. According to the ADL, More than two-thirds (68 percent) of the anti-Semitic tweets directed at those journalists were sent by 1,600 Twitter accounts (out of 313 million existing Twitter accounts). These aggressors are disproportionately likely to self-identify as Donald Trump supporters, conservatives, or part of the alt-right, a loosely connected group of extremists, some of whom are white supremacists. The report explains, There is evidence that a considerable number of the anti-Semitic tweets targeting journalists originate with people identifying themselves as Trump supporters, conservatives or extreme right-wing elements. The words that show up most in the bios of Twitter users sending anti-Semitic tweets to journalists are Trump, nationalist, conservative, American and white. This finding does not imply that Mr. Trump supported these tweets, or that conservatives are more prone to anti-Semitism. It does show that the individuals directing anti-Semitism toward journalists self-identified as Trump supporters and conservatives It is no surprise that Trump supporters are prominent among the offenders, given the composition of his base. And Trump himself has not only declined to rebuke the anti-Semitism of his followers, but has himself used anti-Semitic tropes in alluding to Hillary Clintons alleged collusion with international banking. Its not surprising Trump doesnt like banks much. No American bank is dumb enough to do business with him. But that does not excuse his appeal to Nazi imagery. And we have seen how Trump supporters have singled out journalists for attack, proposing they be killed to teach them a lesson and, apparently through fear and intimidation, toe the Trump line. Katy Tur, who has been singled out for abuse by Trump, of NBC News tweeted just yesterday that, Man starts aggressively yelling "crooked press" at our enclosure. Trump security and police officer rush the man and tell him to back off. Katy Tur (@KatyTurNBC) October 18, 2016 Awful as Turs experiences are, the ADL draws attention to the fact that, The top 10 most targeted journalists all of whom are Jewish received 83 percent of those 19,253 tweets. The top 10 includes conservative columnist Ben Shapiro, Tablets Yair Rosenberg, the Atlantics Jeffrey Goldberg and The New York Times Jonathan Weisman, and CNNs Sally Kohn and Jake Tapper. The ADL report identifies the cause of the normalization of anti-Semitic language: The report, the first of its kind, presents findings based on a broad set of keywords (and keyword combinations) designed by ADL to capture anti-Semitic language on social media. Using this metric, a total of 2.6 million tweets containing language frequently found in anti-Semitic speech were posted across Twitter between August 2015 and July 2016. Those tweets had an estimated 10 billion impressions (reach), which ADL believes contributed to reinforcing and normalizing anti-Semitic language particularly racial slurs and anti-Israel statements on a massive scale. ADL CEO Jonathan A. Greenblatt says, The spike in hate weve seen online this election cycle is extremely troubling and unlike anything we have seen in modern politics. A half century ago, the KKK burned crosses. Today, extremists are burning up Twitter. We are concerned about the impact of this hate on the ability of journalists to do their job and on free speech, which is why we established this Task Force. We hope this report hastens efforts to combat the surge of hate on social media. We look forward to working with Twitter, media companies, and other online platforms to limit hate and harassment and preserve freedom of speech. Trumps base doesnt view their racism as actual racism, on the grounds that if its a fact it cant be racism. Never mind that their facts are anything but. The anti-Semitic tropes raised by Trump and his surrogates are just the most recent examples of an age-old anti-Semitism fueled by the bogus Protocols of the Elders of Zion. This document, a product of the Russian Tsars secret police, based on older material, at the end of the 19th century. It supposedly describes a Jewish plan to rule the world, and is based on attitudes dating back to the Crusades, when Crusaders would slaughter Jews (and other Christians) along their route, on the way to slaughtering Muslims at their destination. It is profoundly sad that such attitudes should not only persist today, but be championed by a nominee for President of the United States. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print We have seen that educated white males support Hillary Clinton rather than Donald Trump. This is apparently true of educated people generally. We have just seen a group of Constitutional originalists come out against Trump, declaring that, Trumps long record of statements and conduct, in his campaign and in his business career, have shown him indifferent or hostile to the Constitutions basic features including a government of limited powers, an independent judiciary, religious liberty, freedom of speech, and due process of law. Now Scholars and Writers Against Trump, a group of self-described Republicans who are writers, academics, critics, historians, and authors more than 140 of them are asking you, if youre Republican, please dont vote for Trump: Given our choices in the presidential election, we believe that Donald Trump is the candidate most dangerous to our nations founding ideals. He is a unique and dire threat to the political principles, liberties, and cultural values of justice, fairness, honesty, and decency we have long defended. We urge you to vote, as we will, for someone else. The group was organized by Cherie Harder, Thomas Mallon, and Andrew Hazlett. Harder is a writer, a former Senior Counselor to the Chairman, National Endowment for the Humanities and former White House staff; Mallon is a novelist and critic, a former Member, National Council on the Humanities and former Deputy Chairman, National Endowment for the Humanities; and Hazlett is a writer and former Chief of Staff, National Endowment for the Humanities. Another member, writer Bruce Bartlett, a former aide to Ron Paul, Jack Kemp, Ronald Reagan & George HW Bush, and who now thinks the GOP needs to go the way of the Whigs, tweeted his own appeal to Republican voters: I urge all of my Republican friends who can't vote for Trump or Clinton to stay home on election day. Perfectly respectable action. Bruce Bartlett (@BruceBartlett) October 18, 2016 One other easily recognizable name on the list for readers of PoliticusUSA is Warren Throckmorton, Professor of Psychology, Grove City College, who did so much to thwart fake-historian David Bartons Jefferson Lies, and who has steadfastly refused to let ideology get in the way of fact. As Throckmorton tweeted, #EvangelicalTrump Turn the other cheekso I can grope it. Warren Throckmorton (@wthrockmorton) October 18, 2016 Political satirist P.J. ORourke, who has rejected Trump, saying Clinton is wrong but at least its within normal parameters, is another member of the group, as is another novelist and satirist, Christopher Buckley. Trumps base demonstrably fails to think, preferring to feel. Intelligent, educated people understand the threat Donald Trump represents. This election is increasingly less an effort to put a Democratic in the White House rather than a Republican, and more a group effort to save our country from a reckless demagogue. These people can see where Trump would take America, and they want no part of it, and would save their fellow Republicans if they can, from the the candidate most dangerous to our nations founding ideals, Donald Trump. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print *The following is an opinion column by R Muse* American politics have become so bizarre, so upside-down crazy that its a challenge to even feign shock and awe any longer at whats happening on the right. There is a non-issue Republican standard bearer Donald Trump is screaming about regarding an already rigged election against him although it is still three weeks away. What is particularly odd is that over the past decade, if not longer, there has been a manner of election-rigging going on; but it has been unique to Republican-controlled states in the thrall of the Koch brothers legislative arm ALEC. Over the past few months, several Federal courts have ruled against those stinking Republican election-rigging efforts comprised of obscene voter disenfranchisement laws that primarily affect communities of color, the elderly and students because they typically do not support Republicans. On Sunday, U.S. District Judge Mark Walker ruled against what he said were existing rules that are obscene disenfranchisement and ordered Florida officials to remedy what he cited was not only a bizarre double-standard, but an unconstitutional law. Judge Walkers ruling dealt with a practice among Florida canvassing boards that immediately rejects a ballot if a voters signature doesnt match the one on file. The ruling ordered Florida officials to immediately provide voters with a method to fix or affirm their signatures. The Judge noted the double-standard in the Florida law that allows voters who forget to sign their mail-in ballots ample opportunity to fix the problem, but it does not extend that same opportunity and courtesy to voters with mismatched signatures. The ruling is another Federal Court beat-down of Republican-led states attempts to rig elections against Democrats, and they have all ruled that the various and nefarious machinations are unconstitutional and created to disenfranchise voters. Judge Walker followed suit and emphatically ruled the bizarre double-standard unconstitutional. In part the Judge said: It is illogical, irrational, and patently bizarre for the State of Florida to withhold the opportunity to cure from mismatched-signature voters while providing that same opportunity to no-signature voters. And in doing so, the State of Florida has categorically disenfranchised thousands of voters arguably for no reason other than they have poor handwriting or their handwriting has changed over time. In our democracy, those who vote decide everything; those who count the vote decide nothing. Then the Judge made a reference to a ruling in a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case about oscenity: I know it when I see it. Likewise, this Court knows disenfranchisement when it sees it and it is obscene. It is noteworthy that it was also Judge Walker who ruled in favor of democracy late last week and ordered Florida to extend its voter-registration deadline due to the devastating events surrounding Hurricane Matthew. The Judge must be losing patience with Floridas top election official, Secretary of State Ken Detzner, because on Saturday he rebuked Detzner in a separate scathing ruling connected to the same case. Judge Walker accused Detzner of stonewalling on a hearing on the lawsuit so that he could use every second available to run out the clock so there wouldnt be enough time to address problems raised in the lawsuit. Walker also alleged the Republicans actions amounted to an undeclared war on voting rights in Florida; the biggest swing state prize in the election. Republicans have been on a tear to rig elections in their favor for years, but particularly since 2008 saw an explosion of voting from people of color. The only reason the conservatives on the Supreme Court got an opportunity to gut the Voting Rights Act was because Republican states passed voter obstruction and suppression laws specifically targeting people and communities of color. Since the High Court disemboweled the VRA, Republican states have been frantically disenfranchising voters to rig elections against Democrats; something Judge Walker rightly labeled obscene and an undeclared war on the right to vote in predominately Republican states. There will be no rigged elections against Donald Trump, no matter how often and loudly he claims otherwise. However, Republicans have attempted every hateful means possible to disenfranchise a specific demographic that typically votes for a specific political party. It is election rigging and like everything untoward in American politics, it is Republicans in service to the Koch brothers and American Legislative Exchange Council who are guilty. image: Kelly Caminero/DailyBeast Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print A new poll of Kentucky reveals that Donald Trump has nearly blown a 12 point lead in Mitch McConnells home state, and now leads Hillary Clinton within the polls margin of error. A LEX 18 poll of Kentucky found that Trump is dropping like a stone in the Bluegrass State. Trump has gone from a lead of 35%-23% to a lead of 31%-28% with 29% of the electorate undecided. What is encouraging for Democrats in Kentucky is that Hillary Clintons gain in support (+5) was larger than Trumps loss of support (-4). The Kentucky poll is a good reminder that Trumps slide isnt only occurring in national polls. Donald Trump is in decline in solid Republican territory. So far, Trumps slide hasnt harmed down-ballot Republicans in Kentucky, but Republican incumbents in swing states might not be so lucky. The nation is less than three weeks away from election day, and there are serious questions about whether Donald Trump will win deep red states like Arizona, Utah, Kentucky, and Texas. Election day could be more than a Democratic victory. The 2016 election could be a landslide rejection of Donald Trump, and everything that the Republican Party has come to stand for over the past eight years. What is unfolding is nothing less than the destruction of the far-right led Republican Party. Portfolio English Edition's premium content is available only for subscribers Learn about the hottest news of the day, along with immediate follow-up analyses and 1000's of exclusive articles with full access to the premium content. Register and apply for a 14 days free trial period. Charleston, SC (29403) Today Some clouds and possibly an isolated thunderstorm late. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.. Tonight Some clouds and possibly an isolated thunderstorm late. Low 66F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%. Wesley Moore grew up in Summerville and, except for college, lived in the Lowcountry all his life. He taught English at Porter-Gaud School for 34 years, six as department chair, and began an active retirement in 2018. He and his wife Caroline live on Folly Beach, where they are celebrating p Read moreQ&A: Wesley Moore on his debut novel Today, Oh Boy EL Education CEO says a hotel employee recorded audio of an employee for the nonprofit that works in several SC school districts, mentioning both Lexington County and critical race theory, but someone spliced together the audio in a deceptive way to create a false political controversy. Read moreFox News used 'false and crudely edited' audio to target SC schools, nonprofit CEO says face recognition technology police A coalition of civil liberties groups are calling for a Department of Justice investigation into police facial recognition databases, after a damning report released Tuesday found that roughly half of American adults appear in the unregulated databases. On Tuesday, the American Civil Liberties Union, along with 51 other advocacy groups, wrote a letter decrying the technology which is being used by a growing number of law enforcement agencies across the country for its lack of oversight and potential to disproportionately affect communities of color. So far, no state has passed a comprehensive law regulating police departments' use of the technology, according to the report by the Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetown University's law school. The report also noted that police departments' use of the technology poses privacy and free speech concerns especially when photos are taken surreptitiously or via public surveillance at protests or demonstrations. "Face recognition technology has enormous civil liberties implications and its use must be closely examined to ensure that it is not violating Americans' civil rights," the ACLU's letter said. "The safeguards to ensure this technology is being used fairly and responsibly appear to be virtually nonexistent." Technological bias Although some police departments tout their technology as being free of racial bias, African Americans are particularly vulnerable to racial profiling as a result of the technology. Previous studies have found that facial recognition algorithms tend to be less accurate on African Americans than Caucasians, and the report noted that African Americans are typically overrepresented in mugshot databases anyway. "If the suspect is African American rather than Caucasian, the system is more likely to erroneously fail to identify the right person, potentially causing innocent people to be bumped up the list and possibly even investigated," the report said. Story continues The lack of both internal and external input on police departments' use of the technology also stood out; of the 52 local and state law enforcement agencies evaluated, just one of them had been reviewed and approved by elected officials, and just four had created use policies that are available to the public. "With little to guide them, most though not all police departments have not taken adequate steps to rein in this surveillance technology," the report argued. "Face recognition can and should be used to respond to serious crimes and public emergencies. It should not be used to scan the face of any person, at any time, for any crime." NOW WATCH: Here's how Paul Ryan can become the next president More From Business Insider William "Bill" Kelso, Director of Research and Interpretation for the Preservation Virginia Jamestown Rediscovery, stands next to the church where the four sets of human where found in Jamestown, Va. A team of scientists and historians announced Tuesday, July 28, 2015, that Jamestown archaeologists have identified four sets of human remains buried in the chancel of the historic settlement's first church, including Jamestown's first Anglican minister and Capt. Gabriel Archer. (Joe Fudge/The Daily Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT Electric vehicles arent a panacea. They dont reduce traffic congestion or the need to spend billions of dollars repairing and expanding our highways, the way mass transit, ride sharing and more walkable and bicycleable communities can. To the contrary, they make it more difficult to pay for the necessary upgrades, because despite some modest steps, politicians here and elsewhere have been unwilling to change our tax laws to ensure that vehicles using little or no gasoline pay their fair share for those improvements. Read moreEditorial: SC electric vehicle expansion helps state in multiple ways Dodge County EDA discusses Main Street building WEST CONCORD Members of the West Concord EDA discussed the future of the 207 W. Main St. building at its Nov. 7 meeting. The EDA chose to table any discussion on moving forward with the sale of the building. The potential buyers of the space will wait until the issue is discussed at next month's EDA meeting, according to members of the body. Houston County ADVERTISEMENT Clinic grand opening set for Saturday CALEDONIA Gundersen Lutheran will host a grand opening for the new orthopedic clinic Saturday at 8 a.m. It is at 405 S. Highway 44/76. Fillmore County Service focuses on 'Beauty of the Earth' LENORA The historic Lenora United Methodist Church will hold a Thanksgiving worship service Sunday at 4 p.m. It will focus on themes in the hymn "For the Beauty of the Earth." Attendees are invited to bring nonperishable food items for the food shelf. Refreshments will be served at the Lenora Fellowship House after the service. The church is on Fillmore County Road 24 in Lenora. ADVERTISEMENT Mower County Three blood drives planned AUSTIN There are three upcoming blood drives in Mower County. The first is 1 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Southland High School in Adams. The second is 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday at Riverland Community College in Austin. The third is 1 to 7 p.m. Nov. 29 at Mower County Senior Citizens Center in Austin. To make an appointment to give blood, download the Red Cross App, visit redcrossblood.org or call 800-REDCROSS. Wabasha County Black and Orange Gala will be Saturday LAKE CITYThe Lake City Education Foundation will hold the Black and Orange Gala on Saturday at St. Mary of the Lake. ADVERTISEMENT There will be hors d'oeuvres, drinks and dessert. Tickets cost $50 and are available at lakecityeducationfoundation.org or by calling 225-993-6706. Goodhue County Levee Road construction underway RED WING Concrete work on Levee Road from the Jackson Street Roundabout to Broad Street is ongoing this week. To facilitate the concrete repair work in the roundabout, the Levee Road/Jackson Street Roundabout will be closed until Friday, depending on weather and site conditions. Levee Road will be open from Broad Street up to the roundabout (including access to boat houses and the parking lot east of the roundabout) during the concrete repair work. Access to Bay Point Park also will be open using Levee Road and Withers Harbor Road west of the roundabout. Winona County Cabin Coffee celebrates anniversary ST. CHARLES Cabin Coffee in St. Charles is celebrating its nine-year anniversary Thursday. Coffee will be 90 cents, fresh-roasted beans will be 20 percent off and all drinks are 20 percent off between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. There also will be door prizes and free samples all day. Cabin Coffee is on U.S. Highway 14 in St. Charles. WINONA Too much class space, yet too many students. That's the paradox of overcrowding Winona Area Public Schools seems to face every fall. This fall, a time when the school district is considering options to close as many as three of its five elementary schools, was no different. The district's 1,054 kindergarten through fourth-grade students again are spread unevenly across the five school campuses. "Each year, we just have to look at the numbers," said Jefferson Elementary Principal Arthur Williams. Jefferson, along with Madison and Washington-Kosciusko elementary schools, are the ones initially targeted for closing, under a proposed option put forward by a hired architectural firm to a Winona citizen task force that will lead an effort to develop a consensus plan for the elementary schools. The first option being considered not only would close three schools, but would include remodeling Goodview Elementary and building a new elementary school on the east side of Winona. The two schools would be able to handle a combined 1,200 students. ADVERTISEMENT 'Hot spots' The plan would do away with "hot spots" that raise new organizational problems for the school district each year. For example, in terms of this year's enrollment, Jefferson was one of the "hot spots." The school started the year with 52 first-grade students and two sections of first grade, meaning 26 students per class. But the district-recommended first-grade class size is 19-24 students. In terms of managing a classroom, 26 students is just too many for teachers. The solution: Jefferson added a first-grade teacher and classroom. "The two first-grade teachers (at Jefferson) are so strong in their classroom management," Williams said. "But one of the things we really focus on is grouping the kids by reading level at that age. For the teachers, finding the time to meet with each group is a challenge." After Jefferson opened a new section of first grade, the school was left with three classes with 17, 17 and 18 students. Smaller class sizes make it simpler to connect with students, says first-grade teacher Sara Fellman. "It's easier to have smaller numbers because I can give more one-on-one attention," she said. That means better overall classroom communication and a better ability to differentiate what each individual student requires. "I can better meet their needs," she said. Part time to full time ADVERTISEMENT Other schools found different solutions to their class-size challenges. At Goodview and Madison, fourth-grade classes with 36 and 35 students, respectively, initially were covered by two teachers each in the morning and by one in the afternoon. That meant, in effect, class sizes below the recommended 25-29 target of students in the mornings but well above that range in the afternoons. Both schools opted to turn the morning part-time teacher into a full-time teacher, which left class sizes of 17-18 students. A similar solution was found at Rollingstone, where the first and second grades 12 students and 14 students, respectively were separated in the mornings but combined in the afternoons. There, too, a part-time teacher was extended to full time, which means the classes are now split for the whole day, except for classes taught to both by a specialist. The combined cost of all of the above changes the new teacher at Jefferson and the upgraded part-time positions at Goodview, Madison and Rollingstone was about $148,000. "Hot spots" such as these are found every year, and they're hard to predict. No matter where enrollment ends each June in a particular school, the numbers by fall can rise or fall unexpectedly. For example, last June, Jefferson had 48 kindergartners heading to first grade the perfect number to maintain two classes, Williams said. But by fall, four more students had been added to the mix. "Near the end of the summer, we had people almost daily coming in to register," Williams said. Once the school year started, he said, he was in almost daily contact with superintendent Stephen West and the district's human resources department. Smaller classes Each solution the district found this fall converted a potentially overcrowded classroom to one with fewer students than the district's desired range for class sizes. The situation is most starkly drawn at Rollingstone, which has 12 first-graders and 14 second-graders two grades with a target range of 19 to 20 students and there are 69 students altogether in a school building built for 110. ADVERTISEMENT "I think we're at a point where our enrollment overall is declining, and we need to see how best to use our resources," said Rollingstone Principal Dawn Lueck. Lueck and Williams say fixing hot spots is a yearly exercise that likely won't go away until a permanent solution with the district's facilities and boundaries is found. "We go through this every year," Williams said. Rochester City Clerk Aaaron Reeves will soon transition to a newly created position in the administration office and assume new responsibilities as an intermediary in the city's development process. After a city interview process, Reeves was selected from 73 applicants for the Assistant City Administrator I position, according to City Administrator Stevan Kvenvold. Reeves' start date in the new position is Dec. 8. "I'm really happy to get back into administration and really looking forward to it," Reeves said. Prior to becoming city clerk in Rochester in January 2014, Reeves had been city administrator of Cannon Falls for six years, and had been city administrator of Kenyon for six years before that. Rochester's administration requested in August that a new position be added to the office. The Rochester City Council approved the request. ADVERTISEMENT As Assistant Administrator I, part of Reeves' new responsibilities will be to improve the city's development and permitting processes by working closely with the business community and city department heads. "Development will be a part of this job, along with a lot of other things that are going to come along with it," Reeves said. "I think my work that I've been doing with development so far, as well as some of the special projects I've been working on I think all of that has set me up nicely for this new position." Reeves' move is considered a lateral transition and he will maintain his current compensation of $127,500. City administration will recommend to the council on Dec. 5 that Deputy City Clerk Valori Langseth be appointed interim or acting city clerk, according to an email from Kvenvold. Administration will also recommend changes to the clerk's job description to add communications and public affairs responsibilities to the position's existing role. Congressional candidate Jim Moylan will not let truth or distortions stop him from saying anything to get elected. It is up to political analy Read morePolitical ploys at the last part of election? It has been widely reported on conservative news outlets that the brand new National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. has virtually no room for Justice Clarence Thomas. According to this report, it treats Justice Thomas like a mere footnote while heralding the woman who accused him of sexual harassment. Mark Paoletta discusses the slight here. He argues that the story of Justice Thomas rise from poverty in a small town in the segregated south to the Supreme Court should be made known to all Americans. Absent left-wing bias, the new museum would be doing its part to make that story known. After all, as Paoletta points out, the museum has room for the candy-red Cadillac driven by Chuck Berry and the uneven-bar grips used by Gabby Douglas in the 2012 Olympics. O.J.s Bronco and Rodney King also feature. But not Justice Thomas. The point isnt only that Clarence Thomas made it to the Supreme Court, though that alone should merit his inclusion. Paoletta reminds us that even left-leaning observers like Tom Goldstein and Prof. Mark Tushnet concede that Thomas has made a strong contribution to the Courts jurisprudence. Goldstein says he can be considered our greatest current Justice. Moreover, as Paoletta explains, Thomas jurisprudence has strong ties to African-American intellectual history: A 2005 law review article by Professor Angela Onwuachi-Willig, who describes herself as a liberal black womanist, found that Thomas views are deeply grounded in black conservative thought, which has a raced history and foundation that are distinct from white conservatism. She explains that Justice Thomas voice is raced in a way that exhibits significant concern for black people. . . . Indeed as I was researching and learning about black conservative ideology, I found myself (surprisingly) nodding in agreement with some of its concepts and understandings about the issues facing the black community, even though I disagreed with the ultimate route proposed for addressing these problems. Plainly, Justice Thomas accomplishments and distinctive voice should compel his inclusion in a museum that claims a commitment to exploring what it means to be an American and how American values are reflected in African American history and culture. What is the museums explanation for excluding Thomas? Its spokesperson stated: There are many compelling personal stories about African Americans who have become successful in various fields, and, obviously, Associate Justice Thomas is one of them. However, we cannot tell every story in our inaugural exhibitions. Naturally, the museum cant tell the story of all successful African-Americans. But I doubt it can point to any African-American as successful and important as Justice Thomas who has been excluded. And lets consider other successful African-Americans whose story the museum declines to tell: Cora Brown, first African American woman elected to a United States state Senate, winning a seat in the Michigan State Senate in 1952. Alveda King, niece of Martin Luther King Jr., who served in the Georgia state legislature and is a pro-life advocate with Priests for Life. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), first African-American senator from the state of South Carolina, the first black Republican elected to the United States Senate since the election of Edward Brooke in 1966, and the first elected from the South since 1881, four years after the end of Reconstruction. Michael Steele, first African-American chairperson of the Republican National Committee, who served from January 2009 until January 2011. Kenneth Blackwell, mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio from 1979 to 1980, the Ohio State Treasurer from 1994 to 1999, and Ohio Secretary of State from 1999 to 2007. Thomas Sowell, American economist, social theorist, political philosopher, and author. Shelby Steele, American author, columnist, documentary filmmaker, and a Robert J. and Marion E. Oster Senior Fellow at Stanford Universitys Hoover Institution. Walter E. Williams, American economist who is the John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics at George Mason University. What do they have in common? All are, to one degree or another, conservative. I had looked forward to visiting the National Museum of African American History and Culture. But since the Smithsonian apparently has decided to exclude black conservatives from museum exhibits, I think conservatives should exclude themselves from being museum visitors. MarketWatch If you really want to rev up your retirement savings and minimize income taxes, the best thing to be is a late-career professional in private practice. When youre making a lot of money and are close to retirement age, you have savings options that go way beyond the levels of the typical workplace 401(k) plan. As long as you can handle a little extra paperwork and some fees, you can set up a solo retirement plan and enjoy higher limits than most employees. Dabiq is the Syrian village that ISIS promised would be the scene of an apocalyptic showdown, an Armageddon, in which Muslims would win a great battle against the infidels, consisting of 80 nations each ten thousand strong. But recently, as I noted here, ISIS had to abandon Dabiq under pressure from Free Syrian rebels backed by Turkish and U.S. air power. ISISs occupation ended not with an apocalypse, but a whimper. ISIS has an explanation, though. Will McCants of Jihadica reports that ISIS says the conditions for its apocalyptic prophesy were not present in Dabiq just now. For one thing, the Mahdi, a messiah figure, did not appear to lead the battle (the reason for his no-show is unclear). Not only that, the expected 80 infidel armies did not turn up to be defeated. Prophesy is a difficult racket. Just two years ago, ISIS was saying, We are waiting for you in Dabiq,; try to come and we will kill every single soldier. Its a long way from that talk to We said wed crush 80 eighty nations, each ten thousand strong; we didnt say anything about defeating a band rebels backed by two nations. I doubt that ISISs fall back position will be persuasive to even the biggest loser surfing the web in his parents basement looking for somewhere to act out his psychopathic fantasies. Patrick Kennedy, the State Department official who tried to get the FBI to change email classifications in exchange for helping the FBI meet its staffing needs in Bagdhad, is what they used to call a fixer. A fixer is not quite the same thing as a henchman. Cheryl Mills played that role at the Clinton State Department. Kennedy has been a fixer in both Democratic and Republican administrations. But until Hilary Clinton came to Foggy Bottom, theres no evidence that Kennedy needed to fix things corruptly. The Clintons corrupt everything they touch, so its not surprising that as Hillarys State Department fixer, Kennedy went to corrupt lengths. In the case of the FBI negotiations, the Bureau either needed extra personnel in Baghdad or it didnt. If it didnt, Kennedy should not have offered to help the FBI. If it did, he should have helped the FBI unconditionally. [Note: Though Kennedy disputes tying FBI manpower to classification of documents, the chief of the FBIs records management division says the deal was presented to him, via his colleague who spoke to Kennedy, as a quid pro quo]. Baghdad is not some way station; it is at the center of American foreign policy and national security concerns. For Kennedy to condition his assistance in obtaining extra U.S. personnel in that hot-spot on a favor for a presidential candidate is deplorable. And, as argued below, its clear that he did this in concert with Hillary Clinton. The FBI negotiation is just one example of Kennedy trying to fix things for Clinton. Steve Hayes reminds us of another. It was Kennedy who helped Cheryl Mills select Clinton-friendly members and staff for the State Departments Administrative Review Board (ARB). Clinton would later use the findings of the ARB as the key component of her defense on Benghazi. However, as Hayes says, the in-house State Department investigation of those attacks was hardly independent: The chairmen acknowledged under congressional questioning that they had advised Clinton and her team about potentially problematic witnesses before congressional hearings, provided an advanced copy of their final report to several top Clinton staffers, allowed [Cheryl] Mills to edit the report, and even briefed Clinton for two hours on their findings before they were made public. In this instance, Kennedy wasnt just fixing things for Hillary, he was fixing them for himself. Kennedy was at fault for the poor security at Benghazi. Gregory Hicks, the State Departments charge daffaires in Libya, testified before Congress that given the decision-making that Under Secretary Pat Kennedy was making with respect to Embassy Tripoli and Consulate Benghazi operations, he has to bear some responsibility for the Benghazi terror attack. As Clintons fixer, it was only natural that Kennedy assist the Clinton Foundation. The Washington Examiner reports that Kennedy was involved in pushing plans for a new $177.9 million embassy in Norway in 2011 over the apparent objections of diplomatic officials in Oslo. Norways government has donated between $10 million and $25 million to the Clinton Foundation, donor records show. Yes to $177.9 million for an diplomatic officials didnt want; no (absent help for the Clinton campaign) to two agents in Baghdad the FBI wanted badly. And no to beefed up security in Benghazi. Kennedy also helped fix it so that Brian Pagliano, the man in charge of Hillarys home-brew email server, got a job at the State Department. A State Department official told the FBI: Around the time of Clintons onboard transition, Patrick Kennedy, Undersecretary of State for Management, suggested [redacted] interview Brian Pagliano, who served on Clintons. . .presidential campaign. [Redacted] and [Redacted] interviewed Pagliano, who had an MBA form the University of Maryland. After interviewing Pagliano [Redacted] agreed he would be a good fit for [Redacted] team. Pagliano was subsequently hired on to DoS in a Schedule C position, and was tasked with assisting mainly with cost recovery planning and researching DoS technical enhancement opportunities. (Emphasis added) Kennedy claims he had no knowledge that Clinton was using a private email server. However, he exchanged dozens of emails with Secretary Clintons private email address. In fact, he emailed Clinton at two private addresses: [email protected] and [email protected] Kennedys official job at the State Department isnt fixer, it is Undersecretary of State for Management. As such, he oversees the departments compliance with federal records laws. Clintons use of a private email server undermined the departments ability to comply with federal records laws. Kennedy knew from his own correspondence with Clinton that she was using private email for State Department business. All of this is clear. The remaining question is whether Kennedy sought to have the FBI help Clintons position in the email scandal on his own or, instead, at the behest of Clinton. It seems unlikely that Kennedy would do this something this risky the FBI could have gone public immediately with Kennedys quid pro quo offer without sign off from the party he was serving. However, we need not speculate. The timing of events demonstrates Clintons involvement in Kennedys efforts. As John pointed out, quoting FBI memos, prior to the end of the conversation between Kennedy and the key FBI man on the classification issue, KENNEDY asked whether the FBI or STATE would conduct the public statements on the matter. The FBI man advised KENNEDY that the FBI would not comment publicly on the matter. Safe in the knowledge (dutifully provided by Kennedy) that the FBI would not be commenting, Hillary Clinton promptly met the press, a rare event, to deny having sent classified emails on her private email server. Thus, when Kennedy tried to influence the FBI, via a quid pro quo, to help the Clinton campaign, he was no rogue fixer. He was a fixer working closely with Hillary Clinton, as he had in the past. As President, Bill Clinton needed not just an ordinary fixer but a Secretary of Sh*t (John Podesta filled that job for a time). As President, Hillary Clinton will need at least one. Patrick Kennedy is perfect for the role. When I posted part 2 in this series yesterday morning, I did not have a comment from the prominent historian John Earl Haynes on the Rosenberg spy case story broadcast on 60 Minutes this past Sunday evening. Dr. Haynes added his comment in the responses to the post. Dr. Haynes is the co-author with Harvey Klehr of the most important books on the history of American Communism that either didnt write separately. Dr. Haynes too participated in the outstanding 2015 panel on the Rosenberg case at the National Archives that I included in that post along with comments by other participants. I am grateful to be able to include Dr. Hayness comment here: John Earl Haynes 60 Minutes interviewed me for the program. I went over in detail the evidence in Venona and Vassilievs notebooks that Ethel was a knowing and active participant in Juliusa work and recognized as such by the KGB (predecessor to be exact). They seemed to want me to say the evidence was ambiguous but it wasnt. I sent to them the complete texts of the passages in Venona and Vassiliev. They believed Julius recruited only one atomic spy, but I pointed out that Greenglass was Juliuss second atomic recruit. The first, Russell McNutt, was even directed by Julius to try get a job with the contractor building uranium separation facilities at Oak Ridge. McNutt, a civil engineer, got the job, worked as part of the design team for Oat Ridge, and provided the Soviets with key design details for the facility. They also interviewed Ron Radosh, Steve Usdin, and Harvey Klehr, who told them much the same. It appears to me that 60 Minutes had a melodramatic story line and werent going to be swayed by evidence that interfered with the pathos of their innocent wife and mother executed for husbands crimes story line. Carefully, 60 Minutes doesnt say Ethel was innocent, they let the Meeropol brothers say that repeatedly and emphatically, dont present the documentary evidence of Venona and Vassiliev, and then try to cover themselves with a tiny snippet from Radoshs interview. The program provides partial, distorted, and inaccurate history. Ever since Speaker Ryan declined to appear with Donald Trump after the Billy Bush tape became public, Trump has been attacking Ryan. His latest claim is that Ryan has backed away from Trump in order to facilitate a 2020 presidential bid. The claim is absurd. Ryan backed Trump for months when it looked like Trump might win. Now that its almost certain Trump wont win, Ryan doesnt improve his presidential prospects by backing away from the Republican nominee. Trump supporters will hold this against Ryan; hard-core NeverTrumpers will remain angry at Ryan for his initial support of the tycoon. Its unseemly for the Republican presidential nominee and the Republican Speaker of the House to be feuding just weeks before the election. But Im glad they are. Heres why. If Trump loses but the GOP maintains control of the House a highly likely scenario Speaker Ryan will be in a position to make deals with President Hillary Clinton. History suggests that he will want to make them. Recall the budget deal he struck with Patty Murray in 2013. Recall that Ryan has reached out to Democrats for infrastructure talks. Recall that Ryan favors amnesty-style immigration reform. Recall that he favors more lenient federal sentencing for felons. Recall his chumminess with left-wing Rep. Luis Gutierrez. Ryan wants to get things done. He wants to shed his Partys reputation as obstructionist. He either doesnt understand or doesnt care that obstructionism is whats preventing, or at least slowing, the lefts takeover of America. He either doesnt understand or doesnt care that nothing can get done with Democrats that doesnt include some of their core left-wing agenda items. Donald Trumps denunciation of Ryan wont alter the Speakers ambitions. But if he works with Clinton in meaningful ways, he will reinforce Trumps critique of him and alienate not just the hard-core Trumpers but also hard-core conservatives. If the 2016 GOP primaries are indicative, thats most of the Republican Party. And speaking of the 2016 primaries, perhaps Ryan will put two and two together and realize that it was the eagerness of Republicans like him to work with Democrats on amnesty-style immigration reform that fueled the rise of Trump. In sum, Ryans feud with Trump leaves the Speaker with a choice. He can wear the goat horns Trump is trying to place on his head or he can resist his desire to work with Clinton and, with Trump on the sidelines doing whatever, establish himself as the leader of the fight to block Clintons leftist agenda. If Ryan chooses to wear the horns, he wont be the Republican nominee for president and he may find his position as Speaker in jeopardy. One of the strongest arguments in favor of Trump is that if he won it would represent a stunning rebuke to the governing class in Washingtonof both parties. That is one reason why Trump is essentially running as an independent, attacking both parties after having effected a hostile takeover of the Republican Party. Ill have more to say about this starting Friday, but for now it is important to take in a story the Washington Posts Wonkblog reported a couple weeks ago that has not received the attention it ought: Washingtons governing elite think Americans are morons By Jeff Guo Recently, Johns Hopkins University political scientists Jennifer Bachner and Benjamin Ginsberg conducted a study of the unglamorous D.C. bureaucrat. These are the people who keep the federal government humming the Hill staffers, the project managers and all those desk workers who vaguely describe themselves as analysts. As Bachner and Ginsberg argue, civil servants exercise real power over how the government operates. They write and enforce rules and regulations. . . For all their influence, though, nearly all of these technocrats are unelected, and they spend most of their time with people who are just like them other highly educated folk who jog conspicuously in college tees and own a collection of NPR totes. . . In their new book, which is part ethnography and part polemic, Bachner and Ginsberg argue that Washingtons bureaucrats have grown too dismissive of the people they are supposed to serve. Bachner and Ginsberg recently sent around an informal survey to selected members of this technocratic class, and the results, they say, were shocking. Many civil servants expressed utter contempt for the citizens they served, they write in their book, What Washington Gets Wrong. Further, we found a wide gulf between the life experiences of ordinary Americans and the denizens of official Washington. We were left deeply worried about the health and future of popular government in the United States. This is not rocket science: if our public servants disdain the public they are supposed to be serving, then they not serving the public interest but their own. Thats why a lot of people are supporting Trump. (Theres quite a bit of poll data showing that Trumps stances on trade and immigration are not the big draws for his candidacy.) Whether Trump, if elected, is the right person to do something serious about this (term limits, yesterdays Trump gimmick, is not serious) is another question. Stay tuned for that. Donald Trump has waded into a quagmire of sexual groping allegations and faces doubts about his vengeful and mercurial personality. Hillary Clinton is parrying criticism for deleting public record emails and allegedly favoring Clinton Foundation donors while she was secretary of state. The latest surrogate to make a forceful case was Michelle Obama, who blasted Trump last week for allegations concerning his treatment of women. Obama won widespread attention for the speech at Southern New Hampshire University in which she cited the personal cost of Trumps remarks. CNN called her The Clinton surrogate that could finish off Trump, and the Los Angeles Times said she delivered what may be a defining moment in the presidential campaign. USA Today said the first ladys speech made shock waves for its strong and emotional condemnation of Donald Trumpall without saying his name. Leading talent agency and event firm, Temple Management Company, has officially unveiled a grand legacy concert in honour of Sunday Adeniyi Adegeye popularly known as King Sunny Ade. The concert is tagged Sunny On Sunday. The event was unveiled to the media at a press briefing, which held in Lagos on Tuesday at Four Points By Sheraton Hotels. At the event, KSA revealed that his colleagues Jimmy Cliff, Youssou NDour and Awilo Longomba would join him at the world-class concert scheduled for December 11 at Federal Palace Hotel and Casino, Victoria Island, Lagos. Speaking about the event, Idris Olorunnimbe, CEO of Temple Management Company, stated that the company was proud to shoulder the responsibility of celebrating a Nigerian music icon on a big scale that has never been witnessed before. For us at Temple Management Company, this is a national assignment that has been long over-due and we are glad to shoulder this responsibility. We want to assure fans of King Sunny Ade of a truly world-class concert. We are working with partners in South Africa and other parts of the world to deliver a befitting celebration of a legend, Mr. Olorunnimbe said. Also speaking about the coverage of the concert, Martin Mabutho, General Manager Marketing and Sales, MultiChoice Nigeria, said We are excited to broadcast the celebration of a musical legend, King Sunny Ade, whose music transcends generations and borders. We realize the impact he has had on many who love good music and we are glad to partner with Temple Management Company to bring this historic celebration to our customers. DStv and GOtv subscribers can catch the legacy concert live on channels 199 and 29 respectively, on December 11,2016. King Sunny Ade who turned 70 on September 22, 2016 has been performing for over 50 years. The veteran musician who has been dubbed the King of Juju Music has been nominated twice for the Grammy Awards. His illustrious career has produced a lot of albums featuring international collaborations with Stevie Wonder, Manu Dibango, Youssou NDour and Salif Keita among others. Nollywood actor turned lawmaker, Desmond Elliot, has called on his colleagues to assist ailing Prince James Uche, who has been down with kidney failure for the past one year. Elliot made the announcement on his instagram account on Wednesday. He posted a photo of James, a Nollywood actor, in the hospital on Instagram and captioned, When God blesses u, remember others, Prince James Uche Nollywood actor has been in hospital struggling to live for over one year now (kidney failure), my fellow artists, great people & friends pls support him, he needs dialysis, medical care & food to survive. Prince James Uche, WEMA bank PLC 0232151677, or Zenith bank plc. 1001063788. Back in July, the National President of Filmmakers Welfare Organisation of Nigeria, Sunday Awoji, had raised an alarm over Uches health. He was quoted as having said in an interview with the Tribune Newspaper in Abuja that, Prince James Uche has been very sick and incapacitated for some years now, and it has become obvious that he cannot provide the required funds to have the necessary medical attention. He is currently hospitalized in Lagos due to kidney related ailment, and urgently needed to be taken to Indian for a transplant that will gulp N11 million. A former Vice President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria, not a few fans are aware that Uche has been struggling to survive a strange illness that has kept him off the screen for eight years. In an interview he granted last year, he was said to be battling with an undefined heart disease, memory and sight loss. It was also reported that he had been served an eviction notice by his landlord, ordering him to vacate his residence at 45, Yetunde Brown Street, Gbagada, Lagos. The Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, continued its crackdown on tax defaulting companies, Wednesday, as its enforcement teams shut firms in Abuja, Sango-Otta and Lagos over outstanding debt of about N306.82 million. In Abuja, the FIRS team sealed Bolingo Hotels and Towers at the Central Business District for an outstanding tax of N24,422,572.84, which accumulated from 2002. But the enforcement team, led by Bukar Umar Gana, could not locate Etat Consulting Limited in Abuja, which has a liability of N32,448,510. The amount includes company income tax, withholding tax and education tax. In Lagos, FIRS sealed the offices of the Nigerian German Chemicals Limited, located at Oba Akran Avenue, Ikeja, over a tax debt in excess of N146.6 million. Also affected was Trident Marketing Limited, Ajao Road, Ikeja, which is indebted to the tune of N90.8 million. In Sango-Otta, Ogun State, the enforcement team shut Allied Atlantic Distilleries Limited, which owes over N45 million. The companys operations manager told the team he was not aware that the company owed such a debt, an explanation that was dismissed by FIRS officials, who shut its offices. Industrial products and equipment manufacturer Illinois Tool Works Inc. ITW is set to release third-quarter 2016 results on Oct 20, before the market opens. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at $1.49 per share. Illinois Tool Works better-than-expected results in the last four quarters resulted in a positive average earnings surprise of 2.63%. The earnings surprise was highest at 4.29% in the last quarter, with reported earnings of $1.46 per share exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.40. Let us see how things are shaping up for Illinois Tool Works Inc. prior to this earnings announcement. Factors to Influence Q3 Results Illinois Tool Works is exposed to several headwinds in the near term. This is likely to suppress its growth momentum derived from its organic and inorganic growth tactics, long-term Enterprise Strategy and sound capital allocation schemes. Among many, the prevailing uncertainties in the global economy, especially in some major developed and emerging nations, are likely to influence the companys trade relations with them. Also, forex woes are still playing spoilsports for its international businesses. Coming to the micro issues, a challenging demand environment in the Welding segment might impact Illinois Tool Works top-line results in the quarter. Also, industry rivalry and volatilities in input price & supply are major concerns for the company. Earnings Whispers Our proven model conclusively shows that Illinois Tool Works is likely to disappoint earnings in third quarter. The company lacks the two key ingredients for a possible earnings beat a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), #2 (Buy) or #3 (Hold). Zacks ESP: Illinois Tool Works has an ESP of -0.67%, with the Most Accurate Estimate of $1.48 lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.49. Zacks Rank: Illinois Tool Works currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). ILL TOOL WORKS Price and EPS Surprise Story continues ILL TOOL WORKS Price and EPS Surprise | ILL TOOL WORKS Quote As it is, we caution against stocks with a Zacks Rank #4 or #5 (Sell-rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing a negative estimate revisions momentum. Stocks to Consider Here are some companies in the machinery industry you may want to consider, as they have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter, according to our model. AO Smith Corp. AOS, with an Earnings ESP of +2.22% and a Zacks Rank #2. Caterpillar Inc. CAT, with an Earnings ESP of +2.70% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. SWK, with an Earnings ESP of +1.24% and a Zacks Rank #3. Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report STANLEY B&D INC (SWK): Free Stock Analysis Report CATERPILLAR INC (CAT): Free Stock Analysis Report SMITH (AO) CORP (AOS): Free Stock Analysis Report ILL TOOL WORKS (ITW): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research The Senate has begun investigation into the alleged repatriation of $13.9 billion by MTN with hiring of international forensic lawyers, accountants and other experts to assist in the investigation. The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions, Rufai Ibrahim, disclosed this while briefing journalists in Abuja on Tuesday. Mr. Ibrahim said that the experts had arrived Nigeria and were already working with other local forensic experts to uncover any hidden details from the documents that had been submitted. The Senate sees this as very important, it is a weighty allegation and we are going to deal with a lot of documents spanning 16 years. Based on that we got the approval of the leadership of the Senate and we have engaged international and local forensic experts, accountants and lawyers. The team has been fully assembled and they have started working; this is not going to be a normal periphery investigation because it involves a lot of documents. We will be starting the investigative hearing tomorrow, we will listen to each one of them and we will take it from there, he said. The chairman also disclosed that many private individuals and government agencies had been invited to brief it on Thursday. He said that some of those invited had already submitted requested documents and had indicated their willingness to be at the hearing. Among the invitees are MTN, Diamond Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and Stanbic Bank which had submitted their documents as well as Ahmed Dasuki and Sani Bello who did not submit any document. Others expected to appear before committee are Minister for Industries, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah; Paschal Dozie, a former Chairman of Diamond Bank, and the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria. Others listed to appear are Gbenga Oyebode and Victor Odili. Dino Melaye, who blew the whistle on the alleged repatriation, expressed happiness that the Senate had taken the matter seriously. I can tell you that even preliminary investigations have revealed that the $13.9 billion is far lower to what the outcome will look like. We have realised from these preliminary investigations that it is actually outrageously higher than the $13.9 billion, he said. Mr. Melaye said that the committee showcased sincerity in its approach and he was confident in the committee and the Nigerian Senate in investigating the matter. He assured that at the end of the investigation, the alleged money would be returned to the countrys foreign reserves. PREMIUM TIMES had an exclusive chat with Mavin Records First Lady, Tiwa Savage, at an event in Lagos on Tuesday. In the interview, the pretty mother of one spoke about her career and controversies. P.T: How have you handled all the controversies that trailed your marriage in April? TIWA: Its been the grace of God and I think I have been able to pull through by simply immersing myself in my work. PT: And the bad press and nasty things written about you? TIWA: Generally speaking all that has been written about me doesnt really affect me anymore. When I got into the industry initially, it was very difficult for anybody to realise this. But now, I have come to the realisation that the hard work you put in and the positive things that you do as an artiste always outweighs the negative. Whether youre in the media, a banker or a nurse, youre going to have people talk about you. Not everyone loves Jesus Christ so who am I to talk about people saying things about me? You cant make everyone happy. I dont try to waste time on people that dont love me, so I just spend time with people that love me so I dont disappoint them. P.T: How do you handle embarrassing moments? TIWA: I dont really think that I have had embarrassing moments like that. But I did have one recently while performing on the stage; where my cloth ripped off. I grew up around boys and my brothers teased me a lot. So, I am used to people making fun about me. I dont take life too seriously and also, Mavin Records comprises of men; Dija and I are the only females. My male colleagues are all fun to be around. So when something embarrassing happens, I just take it laugh off and never take it to heart. P.T: What is next for Tiwa Savage? TIWA: The next stage is how to work and break into the international market. I definitely dont want to forget my Nigerian roots. I think that when you sign international deal, there is this tendency to forget home. We artistes also tend to forget that the main reason they signed you is because you were doing very well at home, so you cant forget that. So, I am basically just trying to strike a balance with both audience and market. My dream is to grow the Tiwa Savage brand at home and abroad. PT: Tell us how you got signed on with Jay Zs Roc Nation? TIWA: Theres a guy called Briant Bee-High Biggs; he is Jay Zs cousin. He also doubles as Roc Nations current director of mobile strategies. He had been visiting Nigeria for few months to scout for fresh talents in Africa. The aim was to get these artistes and Jay Zs label into the global market. I guess Brian had been monitoring my music and my career through the years before deciding to go with me. I guess he went with me because I am female while his other partners/remaining scouts were getting male artists. He wanted to strike a deal with a female artiste because the biggest artistes in America like Rihanna and Adele are all females. So, he really believes that there is a market for talented female artistes. P.T : Are you not bothered by the fact that something similar crashed Mohits? TIWA: Oh no. I really dont think the international deal is what broke up Mohits and I dont really think any of us can actually talk about that issue. This is because only the two of them-Don Jazzy and Dbanj, really know what happened. But mine is a blessing and I am not going to allow what happened in the past affect me. PT: How did you feel when you met Jay Z? TIWA: It was an incredible feeling but when you meet with him, you will realize that he is human afterall. He was very chilled, very relaxed and he made us feel comfortable. It happened so fast that I didnt have time to really feel nervous. He spoke a lot about his experience and shared a lot of wisdom. Meeting him is such a great achievement but the work really starts now so we can really prove to the world that the partnership is successful. PT: Regardless of all that that has happened in your life, are you truly happy? TIWA: Of course I am very happy and I am blessed; I have a loving family, my career is getting stronger by the day. I recently signed an international deal so why wont I be happy? PT:Is acting something you want to explore? TIWA: Yes, I really want to explore acting. I starred in Shuga and Jenifas Diary. But it has to be the right role. I also think that acting takes a lot of your time and it also takes a few months out of your calendar. PT: What role would you want to play? TIWA: I wouldnt want to play a role that is similar to whom I am in real life i.e. a celebrity, musician or whatever people perceive as Tiwa savage. I will actually love to play the role of a market woman. When an American journalist and author, Anya Schiffrin, was working on her book, Global Muckraking: 100 Years of Investigative Journalism From Around the World, she thought it was expedient for her to exclude from it an investigative series from Nigeria on alleged corrupt practices of the then petroleum minister in the country, Diezani Alison-Madueke. The book, published in 2014, showcases the outstanding works of investigative journalists in different parts of the world. The series on Mrs. Alison-Madueke was published in 2011 by the rested NEXT newspaper. They were republished last year on PREMIUM TIMES, with permission from NEXT. Today, Mrs. Schiffrin, who is also a journalism professor at Columbia Universitys School of International and Public Affairs, expresses regret for her decision on Mrs. Alison-Madueke, who remains one of the most controversial public officers in Nigeria, since she left office more than a year ago. Mrs. Schiffrin, 54, said she took the decision because the then minister threatened her with a lawsuit. (We) got a series by a terrific, highly respected Nigerian journalist named Musikilu Mojeed saying that a government official, Alison-Madueke, was corrupt, Mrs. Schiffrin said in an interview with Guernica magazine, last year. I Googled (Madueke) and found an article by a British journalist saying that she was working to clean up corruption. So I contacted him and asked, Do you realize that this extremely well-respected Nigerian journalist said (Madueke) is corrupt? The British journalist was not at all defensive and said, Ill get back to you. In the meantime, I began asking people I knew in Nigeria. I started getting these very guarded and cryptic emails and messages. I think no one wanted to commit themselves in writing, but they said things like, (Mojeed) is really reliable. They didnt say, That woman is corrupt, but rather, The newspaper is reliable. Someone I knew also contacted Maduekes office. But the next thing that happens is I get a letter from her lawyer (asking not to publish these stories) because they are libelous. Meanwhile, the British journalist got back to me and said he did not stand by his original story anymore. Mrs. Schiffrin said by the time they had a rethink and decided to include the series on Mrs. Alison-Madueke, there wasnt any more space in the book. It was a tough call for her, she said. Once I got the lawyers letter, of course, I regretted the decision not to include the series even more, she said. Mr. Mojeed, who is currently PREMIUM TIMES Editor-in-Chief, was working with NEXT then, and co-authored the series on Mrs. Alison-Madueke. The series portrayed Mrs. Alison-Madueke as corruptly enriching herself and her cronies through suspicious, and sometimes secret, multi-million dollars oil deals at the countrys expense. In one of the reports, the then minister was alleged to have violated Nigerian laws and regulations, and awarded multi-million dollars oil-lifting contracts to briefcase companies owned by her U.S-based jeweller, Christopher Aire. Mrs. Alison-Madueke was arrested late last year in London by the UK National Crimes Agency for offences related to bribery and corruption, but was later released on bail, alongside four other persons arrested with her. Back home in Nigeria, the former minister has been under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Another Nigerian judge caught in the State Security Service crackdown on senior judicial officers has written to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Mahmud Mohammed, stating how the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, allegedly tried to manipulate him. Inyang Okoro, a Supreme Court judge, whose home in Abuja was amongst those raided by masked SSS operatives on October 7 and 8, said security agencies came after him because he turned down pressure to help influence the outcome of the Supreme Court ruling on Akwa Ibom gubernatorial election. In a letter dated October 17, 2016, and addressed directly to Mr. Mohammed, Mr. Okoro said operatives lured him to open his gate late at night using President Buharis name. On Friday, October 7, 2016, at about 9:00 p.m., I received a phone call from an unfamiliar caller. He introduced himself as an official from the presidency. He told me he had a letter for me from Mr. President. I immediately left my study room and went to open the door. Upon the door being opened, I saw so many heavily armed men with an inscription DSS on their uniform. One of them who was in mufti told me they were to search my house. I requested that I be allowed to inform the Chief Justice of Nigeria but they rebuffed, rather, they seized my phone from me, Mr. Okoro said. The letter, first published by Sitippe.com, is the latest in the emerging fallout of the SSS raid, which was conducted between late Friday, October 7, and early Saturday, October 8. The raid saw scores of SSS operatives swoope on the premises of the judges arresting some of them. The move, which the SSS described as a sting operation in a statement, was conducted in Abuja, Enugu, Gombe, Kano and Port-Harcourt. Seven allegedly corrupt judges were arrested in the raids while attempts to arrest more were frustrated. Mr. Okoros letter came a few days after his junior colleague, Adeniyi Ademola, wrote a similar one that was also addressed to Mr. Mohammed. In his, Mr. Ademola blamed the Attorney-General, Abubakar Malami, for his own ordeal and said the SSS operatives frightened him with their firearms. After narrating the initial tactics of the officer, Mr. Okoro went on to detail the items taken from his premises which he said included a unit of iPad, three phones, $38,800, N3.5 million and four chequebooks. He said he signed the items declaration form presented to him by the SSS after the raid. Unlike Mr. Ademola, he did not say he was forced to sign at gunpoint. Mr. Okoro, however, said the operatives refused his appeal to allow him sleep in his home and visit their office in the morning, adding that the guns they were holding also made it difficult for him to argue with them. Mr. Okoro said they asked him to explain the source of funds found in his home. I told them that having received the sum of $24,000 and 10,000 a year for the past three years of my sojourn in this court as annual medical and vacation allowances. And having spent more than 5,000 on each of the three trips I have so far made abroad, I was entitled to have more than the amount recovered from me. Put differently, my Lord, the money was the balance of my estacode received from this court for the past three years. Mr. Okoro said all the money was quite outside the estacodes he had received for the international conferences he attended since joining the Supreme Court. He told Mr. Mohammed that up till when he was writing his letter on October 17, exactly 10 days after the raid, the SSS has not confronted him with any petition or complaint from any quarters. Rather, they have grilled me asking questions on some non-existing properties around the country. They have also doubted the age of my children alleging that they are toddlers, Mr. Okoro said. This is sad and unbelievable. Specifically, Mr. Okoro accused Mr. Amaechi of being behind his ordeal. The senior jurist recounted how Mr. Amaechi allegedly visited him in the run-up to the Supreme Court decision on the appeal about the outcome of the Akwa Ibom governorship poll in 2015. The election pitted incumbent Emmanuel Udom of the Peoples Democratic Party against Umana Umana of the All Progressives Congress, who also allegedly visited the judge. Mr. Udom won the election held on April 11, 2015, and the Supreme Court upheld it on February 3. Mr. Okoro said the outcome would have been different if Mr. Amaechi had had his way. The judge said he strongly believed that this his travail is not unconnected with a verbal report he had informed the Chief Justice about on February 1, 2016, to the effect that Mr. Amaechi visited his official residence. Mr. Okoro said Mr. Amaechi approached him and said the president of Nigeria and the APC sent him to plead with the judge that they must win their election appeals in respect of Rivers State, Akwa Ibom State and Abia State at all costs. For Akwa Ibom State, he alleged that he sponsored Umana Umana, the candidate of APC for that election and that if he lost, Akwa Ibom appeal, he would have lost a fortune, Mr. Okoro said. Mr. Amaechi also said that he had already visited you and that you had agreed to make me a member of the panel that would hear the appeals. He further told me that Mr. Umana would be paying me millions of naira monthly if I cooperated with them. Mr response, as I told you on that date, was that it does not lie within my power to grant his request and I would do all within my power not to be in the panel for Akwa Ibom State. My Lord, graciously left me out of the panel for Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Okoro said. But Mr. Amaechi flatly denied the allegations on Wednesday night. In a message to PREMIUM TIMES by his media adviser, David Iyofor, Mr. Amaechi said Mr. Okoros allegations against him were baseless and spurious. He threatened to take legal action against the judge. This accusation from Justice Okoro against Amaechi is a figment of his imagination, Mr. Iyofor said. It was concocted to obfuscate and politicise the real issues for his arrest and SSS investigation of allegations of corruption against him. The claims by Justice Okoro against Amaechi are blatant lies bereft of any iota of truth or even. This is a cheap attempt, albeit political move, to drag the name of Amaechi into something he knows nothing about, Mr. Iyofor said. Justice Okoro should face his issues and leave Amaechi out of it. He will be hearing from our lawyers. Mr. Okoro also detailed how Mr. Umana allegedly paid him a separate visit in an attempt to influence the outcome of the Supreme Court ruling, adding that he was there with a clergyman. My Lord will recall that I also reported that Mr. Umana Umana visited my residence before Amaechis visit. He also made the same request of assistance to win his appeal at the Supreme Court. Mr. Umana talked about seeing the justices who would hear the appeal. Pastor Ebebe Ukpong who led Mr. Umana Umana to my house intercepted and said that the issue of seeing the justices was not part of their visit and that as a pastor he would not be part of such a discussion. Mr. Umana apologised and I advised them to go and pray about the matter and get a good lawyer. That was how they left my house, Mr. Okoro said. Notwithstanding, Mr. Okoro said members of the APC in Akwa Ibom continued to assume that he was the one responsible for their loss at the Supreme Court. Could I have resigned from the court simply because people of Akwa Ibom had a matter before it? Mr. Okoro queried rhetorically. Mr. Umana could not be reached for comments Tuesday night. Mr. Okoro told the Chief Justice he had never been involved in corrupt practice. The Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has described the voluntary return of ex-minister Musiliu Obanikoro to Nigeria as dramatic and compromised, following the latters alleged confessions to the anti-graft agency, EFCC. Mr. Fayose said he will not be distracted by Mr. Obanikoros reported confessions that he transferred N2.3billion to the Ekiti leader from the Office of the National Security Adviser to fund his 2014 governorship election. The governor, in a statement on Wednesday signed by his Special Adviser on Public Communication and New Media, Lere Olayinka, said the report was a plot by the Federal Government and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to implicate him at all cost. Mr. Obanikoro, who turned himself in to the EFCC on Monday, has been in EFCC custody since then facing interrogation on allegations of corruption and receipt of funds from the Office of the National Security Adviser without contract awards. The former minister of state for defense arrived Nigeria on Monday after leaving the country in 2015 amid the corruption allegations. He was alleged to have facilitated the disbursement of the funds to Mr. Fayose in the build up to the 2014 election in Ekiti through Biodun Agbele, an associate of the governor. A report by Punch Newspaper on Wednesday said Mr. Obanikoro had owned up to the EFCC on the transfers. A source close to the former minister also confirmed to PREMIUM TIMES that Mr. Obanikoro was cooperating with the anti-graft commission and had written at least two statements to that effect. But Mr. Fayose dismissed the report, saying it was the commissions usual media trial. This project Fayose must be implicated at all cost will definitely not put food on the tables of Nigerians and for all I care, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and its collaborators can keep running from pillar to post while I keep delivering good governance to Ekiti and its people, he said. We have gone past this stage of media trial, EFCC should rather keep its gun powder dry, when we get to the bridge, we will cross it. They said more than this in the 2006 poultry scam blackmail, despite that, I am the governor today. While noting that his reaction to the report was only to fulfill all righteousness, the governor said those who arranged the dramatic and compromised return of Senator Obanikoro to Nigeria obviously did so in continuation of their project Fayose must be implicated at all cost. He however said he was not bothered because his election was legitimately funded. As far as I am concerned, I am busy here in Ekiti attending to the welfare and well-being of my people. I wont be distracted, the governor said. He said the EFCC should also beam its searchlights on the funding of APC elections. Since we are now in the era in which financial assistance from Nigerians to fund elections is being criminalised, the international community, especially those funding EFCC must insist that the commission probes the funding of APC elections before further funds are released to the commission, he said. Nigerias Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, has charged clerics to do all within their powers to delegitimise all apostles of hatred and bad creed in the world. He gave the charge while addressing World religious leaders at a dinner to usher in a conference of faith groups with the theme Faith Works Africa: Partnership for Peace and Prosperity. Mr. Osinbajo noted the myriad of problems facing the world, including poverty, terrorism and armed conflicts, and attributed many of them to bad religious doctrines. It is crucial that we delegitimise all apostles of hatred and bad creed, he said. The Vice President noted that religion was meant to foster togetherness and ensure progress of societies. According to him, the Federal Government believes in the sanctity of all human beings and their right to belong to any religion. He added that government would do everything possible to protect that sanctity. Mr. Osinbajo expressed gratitude that no fewer than 40 religious bodies had sought to build consensus on problems besetting humanity and urged it not to relent. Also speaking, the Sultan of Sokoto, Saad Abubakar, noted that the country had its problems and was fully aware of them. The Sultan noted that Nigeria is the only country in the world where with equal Christian and Muslim populations, the worshipers co-existed in peace most of the time. He said the citizens had to work with the President to salvage the country because a stable Nigeria is a stable Africa and a stable world. Mr. Abubakar also urged the clerics to condemn what was happening in different parts of the world in the name of religion and to help in proffering solutions to other global problems. We have problems in Nigeria but in the shortest time possible we shall overcome them, the Sultan declared. The Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, added that the group wanted to make religion to work for peace and progress in the country. Mr. Onaiyekan said there were persons giving bad name to religion for some inordinate reasons, but said their moves would be made unpopular by the faithful. We are willing to make religion to work for peace and progress in Africa and the entire world. Nigeria is still an ideal nation to experience how Muslims and Christians lie together and share spiritual values, he added. The Secretary-General of the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa, Grace Kaiso, observed that Africa is a continent of faith, yet its people remain brutal to one another. He noted that Africans live along political and ethnic lines, thereby making it difficult to nurture political stability in many countries. As we think of the future of the continent, how do we restore confidence in the institutions that work for the people? We have this challenge of nurturing national solidarity so that people will think about who they are as nationals before thinking about their ethnic groups, he said. Mr. Kaiso said people had abandoned dialogue in managing their differences, adding that dialogue would eliminate the culture of guns. According to him, Africa is a continent that is badly wounded and needs leadership that is nurturing and healing. Every generation has its calling and our generation has been called to make sacrifices for the future, the cleric said. The President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Samson Ayokunle, represented by Testimony Onifade, expressed thanks to the body for converging on Nigeria at this time and pledged to support its peace initiatives. The CAN president called for fervent prayers and united action in the continent to ensure enduring peace, so that Africa would join others in the world to achieve global peace. Mr. Ayokunle noted that faith works and the importance of faith cannot be undermined in any circumstance. (NAN) Award winning Nigerian author, Chimamanda Adichie, has reacted to the state of Nigerias economy under President Muhammadu Buharis administration. Ms. Adichie described Mr. Buharis economic policies as outdated and his view of Nigerians as infantile. His intentions, good as they well might be, are rooted in an outdated economic model and an infantile view of Nigerians. For him, it seems, patriotism is not a voluntary and flexible thing, with room for dissent, but a martial enterprise: to obey without questioning. Nationalism is not negotiated, but enforced, she wrote in an opinion for the New York Times, published on Tuesday. According to the Purple Hibiscus writer, although Mr. Buhari has good intentions by believing rightly that Nigeria needs to produce more of what it consumes and he wanted to improve local production, this could not be willed into existence if the supporting infrastructure was absent. Banning goods has historically led not to local production but to a thriving shadow market. Governmental controls had mangled the economy. Many imported goods were banned, scarcity was rife, black markets thrived, businesses were failing and soldiers stalked markets to enforce government-determined prices, she added. Ms. Adichie also touched on violent clashes in the country which had become even more intense in recent times. She blamed this on Buharis aloofness and absence of sensitive leadership. Since Mr. Buhari came to power, villages in the middle-belt and southern regions have been raided, the inhabitants killed, their farmlands sacked. Those attacked believe the Fulani herdsmen want to forcibly take over their lands for cattle grazing. It would be unfair to blame Mr. Buhari for these killings, which are in part a result of complex interactions between climate change and land use. But leadership is as much about perception as it is about action, and Mr. Buhari has appeared disengaged. It took him months, and much criticism from civil society, to finally issue a statement condemning the killings. His aloofness feels, at worst, like a tacit enabling of murder and, at best, an absence of sensitive leadership. Most important, his behaviour suggests he is tone-deaf to the widely-held belief among southern Nigerians that he promotes a northern Sunni Muslim agenda. He was no less opaque when the Nigerian Army murdered hundreds of members of a Shiite Muslim group in December, burying them in hastily dug graves. Or when soldiers killed members of the small secessionist pro-Biafran movement who were protesting the arrest of their leader, Nnamdi Kanu, a little-known figure whose continued incarceration has elevated him to a minor martyr. President Buharis administration faced yet another backlash when the president was responding on Friday to his wife, Aishas claims that his administration had been hijacked by a cabal. Responding to the claims, Mr. Buhari had said, I dont know which party my wife belongs to, but she belongs to my kitchen and my living room and the other room. His comment immediately went viral on the internet. The comment made big headline in almost all the major newspapers in the country, and Nigerians were quick to push to the back burner, the release of the 21 Chibok girls, as people got talking about the impropriety or otherwise of the comment. Mr. Buharis comment was made in faraway Berlin, Germany, while standing next to his host, the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel who, as one foreign newspaper noted, seemed to glare at him. Reacting to the war on corruption, Mrs. Adichie said, Nigerians who expected a fair and sweeping cleanup of corruption have been disappointed. Arrests have tended to be selective, targeting mostly those opposed to Mr Buharis government. The anti-corruption agencies are perceived not only as partisan but as brazenly flouting the rule of law. In her recommendations, she urged the government to prioritize infrastructure, create a business-friendly environment and communicate to a populace mired in disappointment as there are no easy answers to Nigerias malaise. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested two persons for allegedly smuggling 325,640 and $30,000 ( making a total of about N175 million) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos. Nicholas Edos and Prince Hallowell, returning from Austria and Greece respectively, were intercepted during an inward screening of passengers on a Turkish airline flight. The NDLEA in a statement on Wednesday said the suspected laundered money was hidden inside envelopes and shoes. While Mr. Edos was caught with 279,190, Mr. Hallowell was found with 46,450 and $30,000. But the suspects said they received the money from their Europe-based friends to give to their different families and relatives in Nigeria. Muhammad Abdallah, Chairman of NDLEA, said the arrest was a suspected case of money laundering, adding that it had been handed over to Victoria Egbase, the Director of Assets and Financial Investigation of the agency, for further investigation. Criminal groups seek to conceal the origin of illegally obtained money, said Mr. Abdallah, a retired colonel. It is pertinent therefore for us to trace the origin of the money and prevent the introduction of criminal funds into the economy. Consequently, I have directed that the case be meticulously investigated. Preliminary investigation, according to the NDLEA, showed that both suspects are frequent travellers who are the target of International Drug Trafficking Organisations. Besides, their sources of income must be verified, the agency said. Mr. Edos, who said he was working in a bakery in Austria, said the money found on him did not belong to him. I was given by different people in Europe to give to their relatives. I have been living in Vienna Austria for over 15 years, the NDLEA quoted Mr. Edos, who hails from Edo State, as saying. The agency also quoted Mr. Hallowell as saying the money belonged to people sending money to their families back in Nigeria. I live in Athens and I work in an African shop, Mr. Hallowell said in the statement. I have lived there for 12 years. The money belongs to many people and some of them are my friends. Mr. Abdallah said the cases would be thoroughly investigated and necessary action taken as laundered funds could be used to finance terrorism and distort the economy among others. President Muhammadu Buhari has joined his predecessor, former president Goodluck Jonathan, and some groups in Ogoni land in mourning the death on Tuesday of Ken Saro-Wiwa Jr., the eldest son of late Ogoni and environmental rights activist. Mr. Saro-Wiwa Jr., 47, was adviser to three presidents, including Mr. Jonathan. He had slipped into coma on Monday after suffering a stroke on Saturday. He was placed on life support, but he died on Tuesday evening in a London hospital. President Buhari, through a statement by his media aide, Femi Adesina, sent his condolences to the Saro-Wiwa family as well as the government and people of Rivers State. The President also commiserates with the people of Ogoni Kingdom over the passage of their illustrious son, author and environmental activist, who was an ardent believer in the unity, progress and stability of his community, the statement continued. President Buhari, who has initiated the process of cleaning up the Niger Delta region, urges family, friends and associates to honour Saro-Wiwas memory by making his dream of an environmentally safe, secured and prosperous Ogoni land a reality. In a post on his Facebook account, Mr. Jonathan said: A bright star has been prematurely plucked from the Nigerian firmament. Ken Wiwa, like his father was a patriot. Adieu great son of Nigeria. Also, commiserating with the family, Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, said Mr. Saro-Wiwa Jr.s death was a major loss to the state, Nigeria and humanity. The governor said the deceased devoted his life to humanity. He added that his passage has left a vacuum that would be difficult to fill. The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People, MOSOP, co-founded by the deceaseds father, Ken Saro-Wiwa, to press for the rights of the people and resist exploitation of their environment, also expressed shock through a statement by its publicity secretary, Fegalo Nsuke. We are deeply pained by this tragic incident, the loss of our dear Ken Jr. son of our celebrated hero, Ken Saro-Wiwa. We express our deepest condolences to the family of Wiwa in particular and the Ogoni nation in general, the group said. The President of Ogoni Central Indigenous Authority, OCIA, Goodluck Diigbo, in his reaction said the sudden news of the death of Ken Saro-Wiwa, Jnr. shook the people of Ogoni tonight, October 18. We do not know the details. We are upset. He was such a bright reminder of the brightness of his father, Ken Saro-Wiwa, who sacrificed everything to try to lead the Ogoni people out of the woods. The perspective of Junior, as he was popularly addressed by the Ogoni, was that every problem and every conflict has a solution. This belief guarded his own quiet approach in tackling the dilemma of the Ogoni people, Mr. Diigbo said. Saro-Wiwa Jr., who served as aide to ex-presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru YarAdua and Mr. Jonathan, had his education at Stancliffe Hall School and Tonbridge School in England. He then proceeded to the School of Slavonic and East European Studies, also in the United Kingdom. He would have been 48 on November 28. The gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Akwa Ibom State in the 2015 elections, Okon Umana, on Wednesday dismissed as baseless allegations by Justice Inyang Okoro that he and his party attempted to induce the judge to swing the ruling of the Supreme Court in their favour. Mr. Okoro, caught in the State Security Service crackdown on senior judicial officers after being accused of corruption and abuse of office, wrote to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Mahmud Mohammed, narrating how Mr. Umana visited him, along with the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, and a clergyman, Ebebe Ukpong, in an attempt to induce him to manipulate the ruling on the Akwa Ibom governorship election petition in their favour. The security operatives had visited Justice Okoros home in Abuja to conduct a search on October 7 and 8 as part of its investigation in the case of alleged corruption and abuse of office levelled against him. At the end of the operation, the SSS said they found $38,800 and N3.5 million in cash as well as other documents pertaining to its investigation. But Mr. Okoro accused the SSS of working for the government in power to harass and intimidate him apparently for resisting pressure to help influence the outcome of the Supreme Court ruling on Akwa Ibom gubernatorial election. Specifically, he accused Mr. Amaechi of being behind his ordeal, citing a verbal report he said he made to the Chief Justice on February 1, 2016 about the former Rivers State governors visit to his official residence. Mr. Okoro said Mr. Amaechi had approached him to say President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC wanted him to plead with the Supreme Court judges, to ensure the outcome of the election appeals in respect of Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Abia States were in their favour at all costs. Mr. Amaechi has since denied the allegations, describing it as baseless and spurious and blatant lies bereft of any iota of truth. However, Mr. Umana in his reaction on Wednesday accused Mr. Okoro of making the allegation without any evidence, saying the alleged meeting was fiction. No such meeting to discuss how to bribe judges took place between him, Mr Umana Okon Umana and Dr (Pastor) Ebebe Ukpong as alleged, Mr. Umana said in a statement by his spokesperson, Iboro Otongaran. If we assume, without conceding, such a meeting took place, for a man of Justice Okoros standing and knowledge of the law, he ought to have known the legal implications of such a visit, and should have reported to appropriate authorities immediately. He did not do that, but only reacting after the authorities have established a case against him, Mr. Otongaran argued. He said Justice Okoros claim in his letter to the Chief Justice of Nigeria was not only false, it is diversionary and an afterthought. Justice Okoro should address himself to the facts of the case, which is between him and the State, and leave Umana out of it. Contrary to Justice Okoros claim, Mr. Otongaran said, Mr. Umana had no appeal before the Supreme Court from any court judgment on the 2015 governorship election in Akwa Ibom State, having won his case at the tribunal and Court of Appeal. Mr. Umana was therefore confident of victory at the Supreme Court, because of the concurrent judgments of the lower courts. But, the Supreme Court judgment had ignored the concurrent judgments at both the tribunal and the Court of Appeal. It also totally disregarded the reports of the international observers, including those of the United States government and the European Union that the elections in Akwa Ibom and Rivers states were marred by widespread violence and irregularities. Mr. Umana had issued a statement expressing disappointment at the verdict, and has since moved on and left everything in the hands of God. Justice Okoro should therefore leave Mr. Umana alone, Mr. Otongaran said. katy perry With fewer than three weeks left until Election Day, Hillary Clinton's campaign is launching a star-studded concert series aimed at mobilizing voters in swing states and big-name artists like Katy Perry, Jennifer Lopez, and Bon Jovi are on board to help. The Democratic nominee's campaign announced the Love Trumps Hate concert series to energize our supporters and encourage them to turn out to vote on Election Day or to take advantage of early voting options in their states, the campaign said in a statement. The choice in this election is clear," the Clinton campaign said in a statement. "We can either come together to tackle the big challenges facing the country or let Donald Trump keep tearing us apart with his divisive rhetoric and dangerous ideas. Thats why millions of people are coming together to support Hillary Clinton and send a clear message that love trumps hate. Bon Jovi and and Perry are both vocal supporters of Clinton. Perry performed at the Democratic National Convention in July. Bon Jovi will be performing in Pittsburgh on Oct. 27 and in Tampa on Nov. 5. Jennifer Lopez will perform on Oct. 29 in Miami. Performances from more artists will be announced soon, the campaign said. NOW WATCH: David Cay Johnston: 'There's no evidence Donald Trump is a billionaire' More From Business Insider Two bills aimed at protecting whistleblowers and witnesses directly involved in the prosecution of certain criminal cases scaled second reading for committee level consideration at the Senate on Wednesday. The Senate harmonised the two bills on the ground of similar intendment, following the Senate Leader, Ali Ndumes advice. Isiaka Adeleke (APC-Osun) originally proposed the bill for an Act to provide for the establishment and operation of a programme to enable certain persons to receive protection in relation to certain inquiries, investigations or prosecutions (SB. 157). The second bill, one for an Act to protect persons making disclosures for public interest and other forms reappraisal, 2016 (SB. 158) was proposed by Abiodun Olujimi (PDP-Ekiti). In his lead debate, Mr. Adeleke said a law protecting witnesses was usually required in the prosecution of organised crimes like terrorism. In such trials, Mr. Adeleke said the witnesses would be allowed to wear masks, bear pseudo names and receive protection from authorities. On her part, Mrs. Olujimi said this is a cardinal bill in the fight against corruption. She said fighting corruption hung on effective protection of whistleblowers. She mentioned three instances at the Ministry of Aviation, Women Development Centre and the Police Service Commission where whistleblowers were fired. Similarly, Abdulmumin Jibrin, former chairman of the appropriations committee of the House of Representatives, was just recently suspended for 181 legislative days on the ground he breached members privilege. Mr. Jibrin had hit Speaker Yakubu Dogara and other lawmakers with wide ranging accusations of abuse of office and corruption in the 2016 budget process. Dino Melaye, APC-Kogi, expressed support for the harmonised proposed legislation. Mr. Melaye said a similar bill was presented in the sixth and seventh Assemblies, but that paucity of funds and lack of political will prevented the passage of the bill. The ritual of presenting and representing this bill will end with this Assembly, Mr. Melaye said. Although Messrs. Adeleke and Olujimi said the proposed bill did not have financial implication, Senate Whip, Sola Adeyeye, said it was impossible to protect whistleblowers and witnesses without funds. Those who step out to speak in good conscience should be protected, Mr. Adeyeye said. Only two persons Messrs Adeyeye and Melaye contributed to the debate before Senate President Bukola Saraki called for voice vote. There was unanimous support, and consequently, Mr. Saraki ruled the ayes have it! He referred the two bills to Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters for harmonization and review. The committee should report back in two weeks, Mr. Saraki ruled. President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday restated his administrations commitment at ensuring all the kidnapped Chibok girls are released. The president stated this when he played host to 21 of the girls who were freed last week by the Boko Haram after over two years since they were abducted by the terror group. Mr. Buhari, who indicated that about 197 of the Chibok girls could still be in Boko Harams custody, also congratulated the parents and family of the released girls. Read the presidents full statement below: My dear children. This is a happy moment for me and for all Nigerians. I welcome you back to freedom. It is a moment your parents, the nation and the International Community have been eagerly waiting for, since your abduction on April 14, 2014. We must from the onset, thank Almighty God for this day that 21 of the Chibok girls have again breathed the air of freedom and are reunited with their parents. We are equally prayerful, that God in his infinite mercies and benevolence, will see to it that the girls remaining in captivity will be freed and returned to us soonest. All Nigerians recall, sadly the night of 14th April 2014, 276 young female Nigerian students were abducted from the Government Secondary School in Chibok Borno State by the Boko Haram. Fortunately, 57 of the kidnapped school girls were able to escape, leaving 219 in captivity. One of the abducted girls, Amina Ali was found in May 2016. And today we are here celebrating the freedom and return of another 21 girls that regained freedom on Thursday 13th October. We are equally as hopeful as we are praying, that the remaining girls will be freed and returned to us without further delay. The release of these 21 girls followed a series of negotiations between Government and the Boko Haram group, brokered by our friends both local and International. Since this Administration assumed office, we have been working towards the safe release of the girls. The Nigerian DSS, military and other security agencies have spared no effort to secure our girls. These 21 girls are the manifestation of our doggedness and commitments to the release and return of the Chibok girls. While joining their parents to rejoice and praise the Almighty, we shall redouble efforts to ensure that we fulfill our pledge of bringing the remaining girls back home. Already, the credible first step has been taken and Government will sustain the effort until all the remaining girls return safely These 21 girls will be given adequate and comprehensive medical, nutritional and psychological care and support. The Federal Government will rehabilitate them, and ensure that their reintegration back to the society is done as quickly as possible. Aside from rescuing them, we are assuming the responsibility for their personal, educational and professional goals and ambitions in life. Obviously, it is not late for the girls to go back to school and continue the pursuit of their studies. These dear daughters of ours have seen the worst that the world has to offer. It is now time for them to experience the best that the world can do for them. The Government and all Nigerians must encourage them to achieve their desired ambitions. The Federal Government appreciates the patience and understanding of the parents of all the abducted Chibok girls. We equally thank Nigerians and the International Community for their support and prayers, and for never losing confidence in our ability to secure the safe release of our girls. Once again, I congratulate the 21 released girls, their parents, the Chibok Community the security agencies and all Nigerians on this day of delight and rejoicing. The Kaduna State Government on Wednesday officially released a Gazette on Ibrahim El-Zakzaky led Islamic Movement in Nigeria, IMN, that has been declared unlawful society. The government disclosed that it did not and cannot ban any religion, but it has a duty to declare unlawful any group that threatens peace and security. Addressing a news conference in Kaduna, Governor Nasir El-Rufais spokesman, Samuel Aruwan, said government upholds religious freedoms and all constitutional rights of every resident to practice the religion of their choice. Mr. Aruwan noted that it is fundamental obligation of the government to preserve security and uphold the rights of all citizens both to practice faith and not be imperiled or be distressed by the way others exercise their faith. It would be recalled that the Judicial Commission of Inquiry chaired by Justice Muhammed Lawal Garba, along Prof. Auwalu Yadudu, Special Adviser on Legal matters under late Gen. Sani Abacha; Prof. Ibrahim Gambari; former minister of Foreign Affairs; Afakriya Gadzama, former Director General State Security Service, among others recommended the proscription of the IMN. Mr. Aruwan stressed that: It solemnly declared unlawful a specific group that continues to threaten public order in the state. The IMN was never a registered organization and it refused to conduct itself with full adherence to the laws of this state He added that IMN blithely ignored the law and neglected the obligations of civility. According to him: Other groups in the Shia tradition are active in Nigeria. Like adherents of all other faiths, they are free to practice their creed without injuring the rights of others Kaduna state has suffered and endured too many calamities, triggered by persons and groups that insist on foisting their faith or political preferences on others. It is a hallmark of civilization that every assertion of rights by a citizen is done with full acknowledgement of, and respect for the rights of other citizens Speaking on the released of the gazette, Mr. Aruwan said: Kaduna State Gazette No.21 of 7th October 2016 has declared the IMN an unlawful society. The Gazette noted that: The Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the clashes between the group with the appellation Islamic Movement in Nigeria(IMN) and the Nigerian Army in Zaria between Saturday 12th and Monday 14th December 2015,found as facts inter alia that: The Islamic Movement in Nigeria is an unregistered society and recommended that immediate steps be taken by the Kaduna State Government to proscribe it. The members of the movement have over the years engaged in acts of aggression and violence against individuals and communities resulting in clashes with security agencies which culminated in the recent deaths of at least 347 persons The movement has constituted itself into a parallel government with a uniformed paramilitary wing in complete disregard to the constitution and laws of Nigeria The movement has overtly continued with unlawful processions, obstruction of public highways, unauthorized occupation of public facilities including schools without regard to the rights of other citizens and public peace and order of the state the gazette said. Mr. Aruwan added: Gentlemen of the press, these are the facts. There is a common law in Nigeria, and it serves to protect everyone. The law courts are the appropriate platform for any citizen to challenge any legislation or order they consider improper. No citizen or group of persons can decide to disobey a valid law, without expecting that law enforcement will do its work We have warned that mob action will not be permitted under any guise. The duty of every citizen is to report every illegal action or suspicious activity to the security agencies he maintained. The Federal Government of Nigeria has pledged to take care of the upkeep of the 21 Chibok girls released recently by the Boko Haram terror group. President Muhammadu Buhari stated this when he hosted the girls and their parents on Wednesday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. The 21 girls were released last week following negotiations between the sect and the Nigerian government. The International Red Cross and the Swiss Government played some mediatory roles in the negotiations. Aside from rescuing them, we are assuming the responsibility for their personal, educational and professional goals and ambitions in life. Obviously, it is not late for the girls to go back to school and continue the pursuit of their studies, Mr. Buhari said on Wednesday. The Girls were part of the 276 female students of Government Secondary School Chibok who were abducted by Boko Haram in their hostel on April 14, 2014. A total of 57 of them were able to escape, leaving 219 in captivity. One of the abducted girls, Amina Ali, was found in May 2016. And today we are here celebrating the freedom and return of another 21 girls that regained freedom on Thursday 13th October. We are equally as hopeful as we are praying, that the remaining girls will be freed and returned to us without further delay, Mr. Buhari said. The President also said the released girls will be given adequate and comprehensive medical, nutritional and psychological care and support. The Federal Government will rehabilitate them, and ensure that their reintegration back to the Society is done as quickly as possible, he said. Mr. Buhari described the girls freedom as a happy moment for me and for all Nigerians. It is a moment your parents, the Nation and the International Community have been eagerly waiting for, since your abduction on 14th April 2014. Mr. Buhari said since his administration assumed office, it has been working towards the safe release of the girls. The Nigerian DSS, Military and other Security Agencies have spared no effort to secure our girls. These 21 girls are the manifestation of our doggedness and commitments to the release and return of the Chibok girls. While joining their parents to rejoice and praise the Almighty, we shall redouble efforts to ensure that we fulfill our pledge of bringing the remaining girls back home. Already, the credible first step has been taken and Government will sustain the effort until all the remaining girls return safely, he said. The Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, has disbursed N1 billion interest-free loans to 517 farmers associations, under the states Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme, CACS. About 4,000 farmers across the state benefitted from the disbursement. Mr. Ganduje, who launched the scheme on Tuesday at the Government House Kano, said the fund was secured from the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, for promoting commercial agricultural enterprises. The governor said the loan, which would be disbursed to small and medium scale farmers groups, is part of efforts by his administration to diversify agriculture, reduce poverty, create more jobs and enhance food security. Agricultural commodities included in the value added chain to be covered by the loan are dairy production, fishery, cotton, maize, wheat and rice, he said. He also said that in order to actualize the initiative and fast track development of agricultural sector of the economy, the need arose to reduce the credit on agricultural production to enable farmers benefit from the potential of the sector such as to increase output, generate employment and diversify the revenue base of the state. Describing agriculture as the way out of the current economic recession, Mr. Ganduje said a workshop would also be organized to train beneficiaries of the scheme on efficient management of the funds. Consequently, the governor urged the beneficiaries to make good use of the loans, warning that a special mobile court would be constituted to prosecute any beneficiary who defaults in re-paying the loans at the end of its tenor. The representative of the CBN at the occasion, Abubakar AbdulKadir, who made a presentation titled CACS Fund: Accessibility, Distribution and Recovery, explained that the loans were repayable in two years, to enable as many farmers as possible benefit. On her part, the state Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Zubaida Abubakar, who presented a paper on How to Run a Successful Agricultural Enterprise, was of the opinion that farmers should imbibe the attitude of bookkeeping, sourcing raw materials at cheaper price and maximizing time of production to ensure accountability. Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, Sani Yadakwari, a cattle breeder, whose association received N5 million assured that they would use the loan prudently. The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has refuted a story that he attacked his Katsina counterpart, Abdulmumini Usman Dikko, over the alleged abduction and forceful marriage of a 14-year-old girl, Habiba Isa. The story went viral on social media that Mr. Sanusi had expressed his outrage online at the involvement of his fellow emir in the controversial affair involving the teenage girl in Katsina. However in a quick response to the story, the Kano emir, through one of his officials, Munir Sunusi Bayero, described the story as baseless and unfounded. He said it was a callous and uncharitable move to cause disaffection between the two royal families. Mr. Bayero said the emir has no twitter or Facebook handle, and could not have commented publicly on an issue he knew little about. He said because of the respect and mutual understanding between the two monarchs, they would never use the social media if there was something between them to talk about. His Highness has no social media handles and does not even know about the issue of any teenager in Katsina or anywhere. The matter is a creation of mischief-makers aimed at causing disaffection between the royal houses, Mr. Bayero said. The official, who holds the traditional title of Danburam of Kano, noted that Mr. Sanusi had had cause in the past to condemn the mischievous use of his names on social media to comment on public issues or government policies. That was how they used the name of the Emir to say he was against governments economic policies and to make false accusations against the government of (President) Buhari. So this is not the first time they are targeting the revered Emir with mischievous and unfounded speculations, Mr. Bayero said. The House of Representatives on Wednesday called on the Federal and Kaduna State Governments to declare security emergency in Southern Kaduna senatorial district following recent attacks allegedly by Fulani herdsmen. The call followed a motion under matters of urgent national importance by Simon Arabor (PDP-Kaduna) and five others, which was unanimously adopted by members through a voice vote. Leading debate on the motion, Mr. Arabor noted that since 2011, various communities in Southern Kaduna senatorial district had been consistently attacked allegedly by Fulani terrorists. He added that the attacks resulted in deaths, injuries, loss of properties and displacement of the communities. The lawmaker also noted that the suspected Fulani herdsmen had occupied some of the displaced communities. He therefore urged the federal government to replicate what it did in Zamfara when it declared a security emergency at the wake of similar terrorist attacks, as well as set up a military strike force. Mr. Arabor said that the attacks on the communities indicated a pattern of deliberate desire to annihilate such communities, decimate their population, occupy their lands and generally create an atmosphere of terror. The lawmaker, who said that general atmosphere of insecurity pervaded the communities, also alleged that some security personnel were on ground, when the recent attacks took place. However, Mr. Arabor noted that though the state and federal governments were making efforts to restore peace in the area, the efforts were not enough. The House urged security agencies to intensify efforts to apprehend and bring to justice all persons involved in the attacks. The House also called on the federal government to set up a military strike force in the Southern Kaduna senatorial district. (NAN) The police in Rivers said they have arrested three suspected fraudsters in the state for circulating fake naira notes. The suspects, including a woman named Helen Okeke, were said to have been arrested, Tuesday, by operatives from the Rumuepirikom Division of the State Police Command. The other suspects are one Andrew Ogah and Ozoemena Okeke. The suspects photocopied N500 and N1000 denominations of the Nigerian currencies and were arrested when one of them, Mr. Ogah, attempted to deposit the money in a bank, the police spokesman in the state, Omoni Nnamdi, said. Mr. Nnamdi, a deputy superintendent of police, said the suspects would be charged to court when the police conclude their investigation. Mr. Nnamdi said the Commissioner of Police in the state, Francis Odesanya, has advised members of the public to be alert about the activities of fraudsters and other criminals in the state. The Academic Staff Union of Universities has faulted President Muhammadu Buharis dissolution of the governing council of the Obafemi Awolowo University following a leadership tussle in the institution in July. ASUU said the dissolution of the council and the removal of Ayobami Salami as vice chancellor contravened an agreement reached between the union and the federal government. The unions position was based on the report of its visitation committee set up by its National Executive Council (NEC) and submitted at a meeting of the union at the Ambrose Ali University, Ekpoma, last Friday. The committee said the council, which was dissolved, was duly constituted and should not have been tampered with. The Governing Council followed the process of selection of Vice Chancellor to its conclusion, it noted. The committee also recommended the condemnation of the action by the national headquarters of ASUU stating that the action of President Buhari breached the university autonomy agreement reached between the federal government and ASUU. The committee headed by the national vice president of ASUU, Emmanuel Osodeke, had eight members, including two zonal coordinators and three immediate past zonal coordinators. The Non-Academic Staff Union of Universities, NASU, had approached a Federal High Court in Osogbo in the wake of the crisis, demanding that the processes that led to the emergence of Mr. Salami as vice chancellor be discarded and deemed illegal. The ensuing protests and legal battles led to the intervention of the federal government and subsequent dissolution of the institutions governing council on July 1, 2016 after Mr. Salami was asked to step aside pending the determination of the suit at the court. The Public Relations Officer of the University, Olanrewaju Abiodun, disagreed with ASUU, arguing that the institution is owned by the Federal Government. Federal Government owns the university and has the right to determine the vice chancellor of the university, he told PREMIUM TIMES. The same ASUU was in OAU when President Buhari ordered the appointment of an acting vice chancellor; only the federal government can determine who is the vice chancellor of the university. However, the Federal High Court Osogbo on October 10 transferred the case involving NASU and OAU to the National Industrial Court, Ibadan, after declaring that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the case. The decision by ASUU has pitched the other unions against it as NASU and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU, have rejected the report and its recommendations. NASUs chairman, Wole Odewumi, said the decision of the Federal High Court in Osogbo was in the unions favour, vowing to resist any effort to restore Mr. Salami as vice chancellor. The Chairman of ASUU, OAU branch, Caleb Aborisade, said he would not add further comments on what had been stated in the report. But his SSANU counterpart, Ademola Oketunde, rejected the report, saying ASUU had no right to determine who becomes vice chancellor of the institution. What right does ASUU have to say a particular Prof Salami should return as the vice chancellor? Are they the Federal Government? he said. We would fight this to the last, I am daring ASUU national body, we also have national bodies. Obafemi Awolowo University cannot receive Prof. Salami again, we would rather fight it out. I am also a stakeholder in the university and the statement of ASUU holds no water. Another member of NASU who spoke under anonymity, said Prof Salami can never set his foot on Obafemi Awolowo University Senate Building, we would rather shut down the University, it is impossible. Prof. Salami has however hailed the position of ASUU, saying he had been vindicated. I am still studying the decision ,I am studying it, he said when asked by PREMIUM TIMES how he felt about the report of the visitation committee. Forty years is a long time to do the same thing over and over again. But for photographer Scott Griswold, its been a pleasure. Frankly there are not a lot of people who have been in this profession for 40 years, he says. And it occurred to me as I was looking through my older work (and) I realized that I did this or that 40 years ago. Its startling to say Ive been doing this that long. Fortunately, its something Ive loved doing for 40 years. Thats why Griswold, 64, has decided that now is the time to display a carefully curated exhibit of 180 of his works from the past 40 years in a month-long retrospective with a two-night opening from 6 to 9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Oct. 21 and 22. The colors of Cuba come to Cape May in a photography exhibit Birders are a patient bunch. Rising early, often while its still dark, they sit for hours, Many may recognize Griswolds work from his former galleries in Cape May and Ocean City. However, Griswold says that this exhibit is not like what you would have found at either gallery. Those (photos) were more decorative art things to match your walls or your sofa. This is all the good stuff, he chuckles. Its not just three seashells on the beach. The images in the show may challenge you I think theyre very sophisticated. A good portion of the images in the retrospective were taken during Griswolds extensive travels to New England, the Caribbean, the Canadian Rockies, Alaska and California, as well as a few shot locally. The running theme throughout is the form of the subject whether in nature or of a nude. There is an interesting series of images that show sand dunes in Death Valley and snow banks in Alaska taken years apart, but both with serpentine designs, that look like that they could have been taken at the same place, he says. Its interesting to see how my eye has stayed consistent. All (my photos) have a simplistic form thats the consistency. He likens good photography to good writing or good painting all of which have conciseness in common. Its like (Edouard) Manets work or early Picassos its just a line here and there. And if you move one, you realize thats where it should be. Its about knowing where something should be and where it shouldnt be just like writing or music. Art of all disciplines shares a common thread of simplicity, and its much harder to show and express a complex emotion with fewer notes or fewer lines, he continues. Everybody likes fireworks bright lights and boom, boom, boom. But not a lot of contemporary photography is like that its overdone. Having an eye for form instead of colors, an attraction for some novice photographers, was something that Griswold was taught by his father Scott Griswold Sr., a famous painter, who told him that you cant just throw things together. It can be like a symphony where everyone plays loud, but its all the wrong notes. To me, color has to make sense in the composition, Griswold explains. Many (photographers) use color to hide ... an awful lot of stuff that might not be good for the picture. Griswolds solution for knowing if its good or not? If you turn the photo into black and white and it looks good, its good. While his retrospective is open to the public in general, Griswold thinks that photographers specifically would be interested in it. I guess Im hoping there are still some photographers out there who would enjoy seeing the transition from handmade black and white photos to digital images and digital paintings all by one person spanning 40 years. I think that makes it unique. Its rare to see a work of 40 years as it developed. It will be interesting to see the flow and see how Ive managed to do it over 40 years. As pumpkins become jack-o-lanterns and ghosts emerge from the shadows, South Jersey comes to life with some frightastic fun. So get ready to pick your pumpkins, brave a haunted cornfield, hunt for some local apparitions and much more. Just be sure to come back with your head. Haunted attractions Atlantic County Cornfield of Terror at R&J Farm: Friday through Sunday, Oct. 21 to 23; open from dusk to 10 p.m. on Friday and Sunday and dusk to 11 p.m. on Saturday. Take a terrifying walk through a haunted cornfield, or for the less brave, a regular corn maze that you have to navigate through using only a flashlight. Adult tickets are $14 or $19 for the combo which includes the corn maze. Tickets for kids 10 and under are $10 or $15 for the combo. 723 W. Hershel St. in Egg Harbor City; CornfieldofTerror.com. Terror in the Junkyard: 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays through October. Get your scare on at one or both of the haunted attractions hosted by the Scullville Volunteer Fire Company. Walk the spooky maze for $5 or ride the ultra-scary hayride for $10; $13 for a combo ticket. They also have Zombie Paintball for $5. Flemings Junkyard, 353 Zion Road, Egg Harbor Township; ScullvilleFire.org. Southern Ocean County The Haunted Seaport at the Historic Tuckerton Seaport: Thursday through Saturday, Oct. 20 to 22; open from 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday and Friday and 3 to 9 p.m. on Saturday. Pirates and sea captains lost in the briny deep join monsters of all kinds for some frightening fun. Admission is $8 for all ages and $5 for the haunted hayride. 120 W. Main St. in Tuckerton; TuckertonSeaport.org Family-friendly hayrides Cape May County LeGates Farm Market: Open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Mondays through Saturdays and 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Sundays. Pumpkin hayrides, corn maze, scarecrow making, pumpkin painting and more await you at LeGates Farm Market. 3400 Bayshore Road in North Cape May. For more information call 609-886-8500. Atlantic County Birch Grove Park: 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, Oct. 20 to 22. Birch Grove Park invites families to enjoy the fall weather with their family-friendly hayride. Tickets are $5. 1700 Burton Ave. in Northfield; CityOfNorthfield.org. Sahls Father Son Farm: Open 4 to 7 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays through Nov. 5. This farm is perfect for the entire family, with plenty of activities and chances to get lost in a corn maze, take a hayride, pick a pumpkin and more. 420 W. Pestalozzi St. in Galloway; FatherSonFarm.com. Cape May County Ghost tour of Ocean City: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Oct. 21 and 22. Take a 90-minute candle-lit walking tour based on the book Ghost Stories of Ocean City, New Jersey. Hear true tales of mysterious encounters on the Flanders Hotel, the Jersey Devil, pirate treasure and more. Tickets must be purchased in advanced, $15 per person, or $10 for kids ages 4 to 12. Tours depart from 9th Street and Asbury Avenue in front of City Hall; GhostTour.com/OceanCity. Cape Mays haunted happenings: As Americas oldest seaside resort, this town is full of things that go bump in the night. Ghost writer and psychic medium Craig McManus has done the research and set the stage for some exciting and possibly frightening ghost tours A Walk with the Ghost Writer: 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21 and 6 and 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22. Join Craig McManus as he recounts his paranormal experiences through the historic streets of Cape May. Tickets are $25. For more information go to CapeMayMac.org. Physick Estate: Friday through Sunday, Oct. 21 to 23. Are you brave enough to enter this historic 18-room mansion after the sun goes down? Various tours are offered. Tickets are $12 to $15 for adults and $8 to $12 for children 3 to 12, depending on the tour. On Friday, Oct. 21 there is a special midnight event with Craig McManus. The famed medium will recount his experiences and may even channel a spirit. Event starts at 11 p.m. and tickets are $50. Located at 1048 Washington St. in Cape May. CapeMayMac.org. Ghosts of Cape May Trolley Tour: Friday through Sunday, Oct. 21 through 23. Leaving from Physick Estate, the 30-minute trolley ride will take you through the darkened streets of historic Cape May. During the tour your guide will recount tales of Cape Mays most famous spirits. Tour times vary. Tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for children ages 3 to 12. Combo tickets for the Physick Estate and Cape May Trolley Tour are $22 for adults and $14 for children. CapeMayMac.org. Ghost of the Lighthouse Trolley Tour: 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22. Take a walk down a notoriously haunted path that leads to the Cape May lighthouse and climb the 199 steps to the top, while listening to frightening yarns of local hauntings. Tickets are $22 for adults or $15 for children ages 3 to12. Purchase tickets at the Washington Street Mall information booth at Ocean Street where tour begins. Located at 401 Washington St. in Cape May. CapeMayMac.org. On the road again (and again) with Gary Allan When their time comes, many seasoned entertainers have to be dragged kicking and screaming o Parades Cape May County Sea Isle Citys annual Halloween Parade and Dance Party: 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21. The parade will march along Landis Avenue starting at 45th Street and finishing at 40th Street. Decorated floats and costumed participants will compete for best costume. Following the parade the annual family dance party will take place at the Excursion Park Band Shell. Landis Avenue and 40th Street. Excursion Park is located at JFK Boulevard next to the Promenade. Go to VisitSICNJ.com. Cape May Halloween Parade: 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 23. Cape Mays annual Halloween Parade gives families the chance to sneak in some early Halloween fun. The parade begins at Perry Street and Carpenter Lane and ends at the Emlen Physick Estate (1048 Washington St.). Before the parade, from noon to 2 p.m., kids can trick or treat at the Washington Street Mall. The Washington Street Mall is located at 401 Washington St, Cape May; DiscoverCapeMayNJ.com. Atlantic County The Historic Smithville Costume Pet Parade: 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22. Smithville is calling all pets to come in their best costumes and strut around the Village Greene. 1 N. New York Road in Smithville; HistoricSmithvilleNJ.com. Trick or treating Atlantic County Downtown Hammonton: 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22. Downtown Hammonton will host its 11th annual trick-or-treat event. Put on your best costume and hunt for candy at the shops in Downtown Hammonton. 10 S. Egg Harbor Road in Hammonton. For more information call 609-567-9014. Cumberland County NJ Motorsports Park Trunk or Treating: 5:30 to 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21. Load up your cars, decorate the trunks, dress up the kids and head to the Motorsports Park in Millville for the annual Trunk or Treat, held at the NJMP Finish Line Pub. Car participation is not mandatory, but highly encouraged. Vehicles must be pre-registered by emailing info@NJMP.com. 8000 Dividing Creek Road, Millville; NJMP.com. Family fun Cape May County Wildwood Boardwalk Pumpkin Run: 10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 22. The 5k, family fun 1 mile walk and kids 1 mile run will take off from the Wildwood Convention Center. This years race will benefit 6-year old Joey Povio, as he undergoes treatment for eye cancer. Registration takes place from 8:30 to 9:45 a.m. for $10. There will be a costume contest with categories for babies, students, adults and groups. 4501 Boardwalk in Wildwood.; BoardwalkPumpkinRun.com. The East Lynne Theater Company: 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22. ELTC actors will read Edgar Allan Poes macabre work by candlelight. Tickets are $12 for adults. 500 Hughes St. in Cape May at the First Presbyterian Church; EastLynneTheater.org. Ocean County Childrens Halloween Party: 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21. Kids can dance till drop metaphorically that is at the LBI Foundations third annual childrens Halloween party. The party will include a DJ and dancing, a costume contest, dance contest, raffles and refreshments. BYOB for adults. Admission is $5 per person. All the proceeds will benefit Stafford Teachers and Residents Together (S.T.A.R.T.).120 Long Beach Blvd., Beach Haven; LBIFoundation.org. Atlantic County Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror: 6:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21. The Adrian Phillips Theater at Boardwalk Hall kicks off its Halloween season with a showing of the first-ever vampire flick Nosferatu, accompanied by the Kimball Organ played live by Steven Ball. Tickets cost $20. 2301 Boardwalk, Atlantic City; BoardwalkOrgans.org. VINELAND An Ohio-based company is the new owner of a local enterprise with links to one of the regions favorite sandwiches. AdvancePierre Foods of Cincinnati recently bought Allied Specialty Foods Inc., which produces raw and cooked beef and chicken Philly steak products. The $60 million cash purchase comes at a time when Allied is expanding its operation. The company will eventually move from its 20,000-square-foot facility in the 300 block of Hickory Place to a new 70,000-square-foot operation here in the first quarter of 2017. AdvancePierres Chief Financial Officer Michael Sims said the company plans to add more employees to Allieds workforce. The company has 130 full-time and 60 temporary employees, he said. City economic development documents put the construction cost of the new facility, located at Forest Grove Road and Freddy Lane in one of the municipalitys industrial parks, at $13.4 million. City Economic Development Director Sandra Forosisky said Allied will move into a building whose shell was built before the national economy tanked in 2008 and remained vacant. City documents also indicate Allieds temporary employees will be made full-time workers. The company plans to increase its workforce by about 30 employees, the documents show. Forosisky said the companys expansion and promised new hires are good news for the city. This is good stuff, she said. AdvancePierre officials are also enthusiastic about the Allied takeover. We are pleased to add Allieds synergistic product platform and unique capabilities to our existing portfolio and network, said John Simons, AdvancePierres president. The Philly steak category is primed for growth, and this acquisition strengthens our position, brings us additional products and production capability, and expands our geographic reach. Former Allied owner Steve Zoll will not be involved moving forward, Sims said. According to AdvancePierre, Allied was founded in 1956 and became an innovative leader in the manufacture of raw and fully cooked Philly steak products. Allieds customer base is predominantly in the food-service industry. Allieds current facility has two cook lines, three raw slicing lines and one breakaway steak line. The new facility will have seven raw slicing-breakaway lines and four cook lines, according to AdvancePierre. AdvancePierre is a national producer of ready-to-eat sandwiches that include Philly steaks, hamburgers and peanut butter and jelly. Some of its other products include stuffed entrees, chicken tenders and cinnamon dough bites. AdvancePierre said it posted $1.6 billion in revenue in 2014 and has more than 4,000 employees. The addition of Allied further expands AdvancePierres market-leading position in the Philly steak platform, said Dean Hollis, chairman of AdvancePierres board of directors. This transaction is a great example of AdvancePierres strategy of strengthening and growing its core business through disciplined acquisitions. The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey has filed lawsuits against a charter school and four school districts, including Port Republic in Atlantic County, for what the group claims are discriminatory practices that place barriers to children of undocumented immigrants from enrolling. The ACLU-NJ charges Port Republic requires parents or guardians to show a drivers license as a requirement for proof of identity and residency in school registration. Undocumented immigrants cannot obtain licenses in New Jersey. Port Republic school Superintendent John Davis said in an emailed statement Tuesday afternoon they have been informed of the lawsuit and it appears to be based on an outdated page on the district website that does not represent what they request when parents or guardians seek to enroll their children. The lawsuit does not allege that anyone has been turned away from enrollment, Davis said. We believe our registration practices are consistent with the guidance provided by the NJ Department of Education. It truly is unfortunate that in our small community our severely limited taxpayer dollars will have to be spent on responding to the lawsuit, when a phone call could have resolved this non-issue. A review of the district website shows it does ask for a drivers license as part of student registration. Davis did not say if or when the website would be updated. The lawsuits came after years of ACLU concerns nationally that families were being thwarted in their attempts to register their children for school. In 2008, the ACLU-NJ cited 139 New Jersey school districts for requiring parents to provide a Social Security number or other proof of citizenship as part of student registration. In 2010, the state Department of Education issued guidance to districts making clear that practices that could discourage enrollment of immigrant children are forbidden. In 2014, the ACLU wrote letters to 138 school districts in New Jersey addressing the issue of drivers licenses and other practices that could identify immigration status and discourage families from enrolling their children. Port Republic was not in that group. The current lawsuits ask the courts to halt unconstitutional school-registration requirements immediately. The group also asks the DOE to monitor districts and take swift action against those that violate the law. The ACLU of New Jersey cant play a perpetual game of whack-a-mole with New Jersey school districts, and we shouldnt have to, said ACLU-NJ Senior Staff Attorney Alexander Shalom. Its the job of the Department of Education to make sure New Jersey school districts are following the Constitution, and they must take that duty seriously. A 1982 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Plyler v. Doe, forbids school districts from excluding children from enrolling based on their or their parents immigration status. New Jersey has two requirements that families must meet when attempting to enroll a child in public school: proof of age and proof of in-district residency. Both federal and state law and regulations dictate schools cannot ask about a students immigration status or discriminate based on national origin or immigration status. SOMERS POINT When St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church was looking to participate in Make a Difference Day, the day of service celebrated Saturday by churches and groups around the U.S., the list of worthy ways to serve seemed endless. Volunteers from various states have raised thousands of dollars for everything from Hurricane Sandy relief to beds for homeless teens on Make a Difference Day, according to the movements website. Laurel Marchesini, director of Lifelong Faith Formation, said a parishioner came up with the idea of participating in Dress a Girl Around the World as the service event that will take place at the church Friday. The all-day sewing event uses instructions and sewing templates to provide new dresses for girls in need of them in dozens of countries, including Thailand, India, Haiti, Brazil, the U.S. and Afghanistan. Dress a Girl Around the World dresses are new dresses made a specific way, Marchesini said. In some of the countries they will be sent to, if a young girl looks as though shes not being cared for, it makes them more susceptible to traffickers. So far, the list of participants for the event is growing. The more people who are willing to participate, the more dresses will be completed. Marchesini said at least 26 people with sewing machines are set to participate. A team of second- and third-graders will be runners to bring materials back and forth. The event is open to all ages and skills levels. So many people have donated fabric. Weve given it to people to work on and cut at home, Marchesini said. Marchesini said she got in touch with a Dress a Girl ambassador in New York who has taken trips to some of the countries to which the dresses are delivered to ensure girls are receiving them. Kids can help run back and forth, and we need people to help with the donated food, she said. Marchesini said if the event goes well this year, the church would like to continue with more events. With the materials and templates, volunteers can continue to make dresses at home. The Dress a Girl Around the World project operates year-round. Some people dont know how to sew, and thats OK, Marchesini said. There will be two different dress styles to work on. Were going to knock out as many as we can and go until 2 or 3 p.m. or until everyone gets tired or we run out of fabric. Marchesini said participants are encouraged to continue to make the dresses at home throughout the year. Instructions to make the dresses according to the specifications can be found on the Dress a Girl website. The website gives guidance on pockets and sizing and provides tutorials those participating at home may find useful. When enough dresses are turned in to St. Joseph, Marchesini will send them off. Well try it and see what happens, Marchesini said. Im sure this wont be the last time. South Jersey dog owners need to look no further than their own backyard for the best beach for their beloved canines. The Wildwoods Dog Beach was recently named one of the top 10 Best Dog Friendly Beaches for 2016 in the 10 Best Readers Choice travel award contest through USA TODAY. Only shy of the number one spot, Wildwoods Dog Beach came in second place behind Chicagos Montrose Dog Beach. Its an honor to be named among the best in the nation in anything, said John Siciliano, executive director and chief financial officer of the Greater Wildwoods Tourism Improvement and Development Authority (GWTIDA) in a press release. Marked by a 25-foot, red fire-hydrant, the dog-friendly beach on Poplar Avenue boasts a 190-yard-wide area where dogs can frolic in the surf. Many families consider their four-legged friends family members and insist on traveling with their pets," Siciliano said. "So the Wildwoods make it possible for the entire family to vacation together by offering a number of pet-friendly hotels-motels and a designated area of beach just for them." The beach was the only in the top 10 line up from the New Jersey area, although multiple beaches from California and Washington state made the list. Bellow is the full list of winners: 1. Montrose Dog Beach - Chicago 2. Wildwood Dog Beach - Wildwood, New Jersey 3. Bald Head Island - Bald Head Island, North Carolina 4. Rosie's Dog Beach - Long Beach, California 5. First Landing State Park Beach - Virginia Beach, Virginia 6. Long Beach Peninsula - Long Beach, Washington 7. Huntington Dog Beach - Huntington Beach, California 8. Cannon Beach - Cannon Beach, Oregon 9. Double Bluff Beach - South Whidbey Island, Washington 10. Jupiter Dog Beach - Jupiter, Florida A Cape May commercial fisherman charged with killing a pilot whale in 2011 has gotten a federal order prohibiting federal agents and a defense investigator from speaking to informants in the case. Defense attorney Bill Hughes Jr., of Cooper Levenson in Atlantic City, said in court documents the informants told his investigator they were threatened and harassed by federal agents. And in its submission, the U.S. Attorneys Office alleged the defense investigator misled the informants while interviewing them. The order follows an Oct. 17 teleconference between U.S Magistrate Judge Cathy L. Waldor, Hughes and lawyers for the U.S. Attorneys Office. There was no finding by the court at all about any wrongdoing, said Will Skaggs, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorneys Office in Newark. This is simply an order by the judge binding both parties. The order says people who previously had contact with the informants, including federal agents, federally deputized state agents and the defense counsels private investigator, cannot have further contact with them. The attorneys and other representatives can speak to the informants but must keep records of all conversations, the order said. We requested it after a confidential informant indicated (to the defense investigator) he had been threatened and harassed by certain individuals during the course of the investigation, Hughes said. According to court documents, Daniel Archibald is a commercial fisherman who lives in Cape May and was employed on the fishing boat Capt. Bob, a tuna boat out of Sea Isle City, in 2011. Archibald was indicted in 2015 on two counts, one of conspiracy to take marine mammals on the high seas, and one count of violating the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Prosecutors said Archibald used a rifle to shoot at short-finned pilot whales feeding on the long-line catch of the Capt. Bob and that he killed a pilot whale that washed up on the beach in Allenhurst, Monmouth County, with a bullet to its jaw. They also said they have tied the bullet found in the animals jaw to a World War II era Mosin-Nagant rifle belonging to Archibald and found on the Capt. Bob. But how the government got the search warrant to seek the gun is at issue. There will be a hearing soon on whether the evidence of the gun should be suppressed. The informants, who had been detained for minor violations in 2014, according to court documents, were offered leniency if they could help investigators with more serious cases. They were involved in leading federal agents to Archibalds rifle, according to court documents. But a brief filed by Hughes accuses the government of using one of the confidential informants to get photos of the rifle through what appears to be an illegal warrantless search by breaking into the Capt. Bob. The photos were then used to obtain a search warrant, according to the document. It is against the law for commercial fishermen to intentionally harm a seal, whale or dolphin unless trying to save human life. But the law is far less black and white when it comes to unintentional killing. A company that designs air traffic control systems will receive as much as $9.3 million in state tax credits over the next decade to move its headquarters from Egg Harbor Township to Atlantic City. Enroute Computer Solutions Inc., which employs 43 people at its headquarters on Fire Road, was considering leasing a facility in Germantown, Maryland, according to the state Economic Development Authority. The EDA approved the Grow New Jersey Assistance Program funding this month. The company has an additional 202 workers at Atlantic City International Airport who were not at risk of leaving the state, EDA documents show. The company plans to lease a 14,360-square-foot facility on the eighth floor at 1300 Atlantic Ave. for management, professional and administrative jobs and the capacity to add 38 more jobs, the state said. Atlantic County's future depends on technology, education Colorful graphics spill across the pages of the Angelou Report, while oversized text trumpet The grant is for up to $931,500 a year over 10 years and includes conditions that the company meets certain criteria over time, including capital investments and employment numbers. The space will feature new offices, a computer lab and a conference room. Enroute designs, develops and maintains air traffic control systems for the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Defense. The company also conducts engineering studies for the federal government. The move is expected to be completed before the end of the year, according to a statement from the company. The end of our lease in (Egg Harbor Township) presented us with an opportunity to explore other options to accommodate our continued growth, Anthony Curatolo, the companys founder and CEO, said in a statement. The Grow NJ Program helped make a move to Atlantic City practical. We are excited to see Trenton supporting the development of South Jersey and look forward to our part in the next chapter of Atlantic City. The company did not respond to additional requests for comment Tuesday. The EDA said the grant played a key factor in keeping the jobs in New Jersey. Egg Harbor Township Mayor Sonny McCullough said the move will hurt the owners of the building that leased to Enroute but that they can reach out to the townships Economic Development Commission for help if they wish. County Administrator Jerry DelRosso said Tuesday afternoon he was unaware of the companys move. In a statement, Enroute said the company has been supporting the FAA and its corporate partners at the William J. Hughes Technical Center and throughout the country since 1994. There have been other times recently the EDA awarded tax credits for companies moving to Atlantic City from elsewhere in Atlantic County. Former residents of the Courtesy Inn in EHT find new places to live EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP Some of the families forced to relocate from the Courtesy Inn found sh South Jersey Gas, a subsidiary of Folsom-based South Jersey Industries, received $12 million in state tax credits to offset the $50 million cost of the new South Jersey Gas building in Atlantic City. That building is part of the Atlantic City Gateway Project that includes a Stockton University campus. The gas companys parent company is remaining in Folsom. WILDWOOD Former Mayor Gary DeMarzo says he is seeking to clear his name as his malicious prosecution lawsuit against Cape May County Prosecutor Robert Taylor heads to mediation. Its very gratifying because it slowly gets my credibility back that was stripped, and that was a huge problem in this digital age, said DeMarzo, also a former city police officer. This tarnishment will now follow me forever. Taylor declined to comment on the lawsuit. DeMarzo was indicted three times in Cape May County all three of which were dropped or dismissed over alleged misuse of $348 in city funds. In his suit, filed in 2013, DeMarzo, represented by attorney Louis Barbone, claims Taylor used his position to seek vengeance after DeMarzo attempted to subpoena tapes of alleged physical abuse of a prisoner by a police officer against whom no charges were ever filed. DeMarzo said he was trying to prove selective enforcement in the case of former Sgt. David Romeo, also charged with abusing a prisoner. Last month, Superior Court Judge Noah Bronkesh dismissed all other defendants in the case, leaving just DeMarzo and former city Prosecutor Samuel Lashmans claim against Taylor, according to court documents and DeMarzo. The case will go to mediation before retired Judge Michael Donio, DeMarzo said Monday. DeMarzo has been a polarizing figure in the Wildwood political scene for more than a decade, as a cop suing the city in 2005 over alleged retaliation, to the legal challenge of his dual posts as a police officer and a city official in 2007, to his 2009 role in the recall effort that led to the ousting of then- and now-Mayor Ernie Troiano. In the indictments, the county alleged it was illegal for DeMarzo a city commissioner at the time to pay Lashman, his attorney, $348 in city funds for work related to a suit filed against DeMarzo by the city over his role as a police officer. In the new lawsuit, Taylor is being represented by attorney Matthew Behr of Marshall, Dennehey, Warner, Coleman and Goggin in Cherry Hill. Behr referred all comments on the case to spokesman Leland Moore of the New Jersey Attorney Generals Office. Moore said the state cannot comment on pending litigation. For years, Taylor dragged my family and I through this personal hell, making this ordeal a public spectacle; indictments that will now follow my family and I for the rest of my life, DeMarzo said in a statement. DeMarzo and Lashman are seeking monetary compensation for the negative impact the three indictments had on their professional and personal lives. The first indictment was dropped, and the two others were dismissed by Judge Albert Garofolo. DeMarzo ran for re-election to the City Commission in 2011 after he was indicted and lost. At the time, his opponents used his indictment in political ads against him. He ran again in 2015 and was again defeated. To the many cautionary discussions parents must have with their children these days, add another the clown talk. Its a subset of the social media talk and can be used to reinforce the rules on proper behavior online. Warning kids against trying to scare people with clown references or even threats is needed now that the nationwide creepy clown fad has spread through South Jersey. Boys and girls too young to have reliably good judgment on their own have been charged in clown-related incidents in Hamilton, Lower, Middle and Washington townships, and southern Ocean County. The charges against the 11- to 14-year-olds have included cyber-harassment and making terroristic threats and false alarms. The kids have smart phones, they act on impulse probably after joking with their friends, the possible threat is received and reported, and next thing they know the police come knocking. Sure, in nearly every case the kids meant no actual harm. But since humorously intended threats cant readily be distinguished from potentially harmful ones, all threats must be taken seriously and immediately addressed. This at a minimum wastes police time and resources, so law enforcement will need to take whatever steps needed to bring it to an end. We hope all thats required is a handful of cases with charges, mercifully dealt with by prosecutors and courts, and parents and already informed peers having that talk about scary clown humor not being acceptable. We understand that kids might enjoy making fun of the excessive sensitivities and concerns of adults. However, in a familiar social-media-driven pattern now being repeated nationwide, it goes too far. A 16-year-old in a Philadelphia suburb, for example, has been charged with threatening violence at schools in her district out of hope that school officials would cancel classes. A 15-year-old in Minnesota trying to scare an 11-year-old and others decided his clown costume would be more effective if he brandished a large butcher knife. Police in Reading, Pennsylvania, say a dispute over a clown mask contributed to the fatal stabbing of a 16-year-old. The fad seems to be nearing its end. It already has provoked the required reaction in the genuine clown industry, with Ronald McDonald adjusting his appearances and professional clowns protesting discrimination. Halloween, of course, seems sure to bring some additional incidents. The holiday has turned into a play day (and night) for children and adults, but retains a bit of its prior status as the day its acceptable to scare and be scared. (The original sense as the last day for demons to cavort before All Saints Day is nearly a trivia answer.) We hope it marks the end of the clown fad. Until then, we urge parents and caregivers to have the talk with kids, and everyone to try not to overreact. UPPER TOWNSHIP A Corbin City man was fined $1,566 after he was found guilty in court of driving his car through a flock of sea gulls in an Acme parking lot. Warren Colwell Jr., was charged by the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals after a witness said he intentionally injured gulls in the parking lot of the Acme on Route 9 on Sept. 5. Colwell did not return a request for comment. A woman who answered the phone at his home said the family had no comment. A witness said Colwell drove his car through the birds at a high speed and boasted he was doing a good thing. Apparently, they were just sitting there resting, said Sarah Wells, an animal control officer. Wells, an employee of Shore Animal Control, which is contracted by the township for animal-control services, responded to the scene after the witness called about the incident. She said a worker at McDonalds, which shares a parking lot in the Cedar Square Shopping Center, also called animal control about injured gulls in the parking lot. When I arrived, I had to chase a couple sea gulls around, Wells said. She said some of the birds were injured and two died. The woman who called in the incident had taken the mans license plate number. State Police assisted in identifying the man, Wells said. The case was taken over by the NJSPCA, which charged him with animal cruelty, she said. Colwell was in Upper Township Municipal Court on Oct. 5 and received two fines of $783 each for animal cruelty, according to court records. Wells said Shore Animal Control covers 12 municipalities in South Jersey and rarely gets calls for gulls that are maliciously injured. Most of our injured sea gull calls are in Wildwood or Stone Harbor, she said. Either they get hit by a car or some people find them injured in their yard. 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. (Adds info from Pemex exec) MEXICO CITY, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Mexican state oil company Pemex approved a joint venture for two shallow water fields in the Gulf of Mexico, the firm said on Tuesday, marking the second time the company will seek partners to boost declining crude oil output. The joint venture will cover Pemex's Ayin and Batsil fields off the coast of Campeche state, which contain 46 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) in proven reserves. The company added that the two fields contain estimated proven, probable and possible (3P) recourses of some 281 million boe. A sweeping energy overhaul finalized in 2014, which ended Pemex's monopoly over exploration and production of oil and gas also permitted the company to enter into joint ventures in a bid to reverse a slump in crude output. "(Pemex) is promoting the formation of alliances as a strategic route to improve its operations and generate profits for the benefit of the country," the company said in a statement. Falling from a 2004 peak of 3.38 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude production, output stands at about 2.19 million bpd so far this year. Pemex's partner in the shallow water joint venture could be announced in March 2017, the company said, at the same time that 15 other fields will be up for grabs in the first installment of a second set of rolling oil auctions. The company will aim to increase production by 70,000 bpd before the end of 2020, and the development of the Ayin and Batsil fields will require an investment of some $4.2 billion in infrastructure, Director General of Exploration and Production at Pemex, Javier Hinojosa, said Tuesday night in a radio interview. The executive added Pemex will use so-called farm outs for exploration and production of the onshore fields of Ogarrio, Mora and Cardenas, which have already been approved by the company's board and included in the bidding round 2.2. The company's first joint venture covers its Trion deep water block in the Perdido Fold Belt near Mexico's maritime border with the United States. Its partner on the potentially lucrative Trion field is scheduled to be announced on December 5. (Reporting by Adriana Barrea and David Alire Garcia; Editing by Andrew Hay and Vyas Mohan) (Recasts, adds context) By Agustinus Beo Da Costa and Bernadette Christina Munthe JAKARTA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Operations at Freeport-McMoRan Inc's Grasberg open pit copper mine in Indonesia have resumed after a one-day stoppage following a fatal incident at the mine late on Monday. "Today operations returned to normal," Freeport Indonesia spokesman Riza Pratama said. "While investigations are running we will continue production while waiting for further directions." He was unable to comment on output levels at the mine. Indonesia's Coal and Minerals Director General Bambang Gatot denied earlier reports that work could halt for four days while an investigation was carried out into the death of one worker and the injury of another in a bulldozer accident. "That's not right. It stopped temporarily," Gatot told Reuters. Investigators would later make recommendations to the company, he said. Virgo Solossa, an official at Freeport workers union, said the incident was not expected to result in any worker protests or strikes. "This was purely an accident." Relations between Freeport and worker unions have been strained in recent years, partly over safety concerns. Production was brought to a halt in 2015 after workers blocked access to Grasberg for five days. Workers went on strike for 10 days late last month in a dispute over conditions. Freeport Indonesia, which employs around 24,000 workers, said in December it aimed to produce 180,000 tonnes to 200,000 tonnes of copper ore per day this year. A prolonged stoppage at Grasberg could support copper prices but would also deny the Indonesian government of desperately needed revenue from one of its biggest taxpayers. London copper prices have traded flat this year after three years of declines, as a grinding recovery in global demand, driven by China, has been met by a flood of new supply. (Reporting by Agustinus Beo Da Costa, Bernadette Christina Munthe and Fergus Jensen; Editing by Tom Hogue and Richard Pullin) DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Axslogic, a leading provider of Business and Risk Analytics products for financial services, announced that RAKBANK successfully deployed all modules of its flagship product WINNOW. WINNOW is an analytics tool that provides a new early warning system that covers state of the art reporting and analysis at various stages of each financial product's lifecycle. The product, WINNOW, also enables financial institutions to profitably manage and grow their lending businesses while addressing the associated risk issues much more effectively. The analytic tool, WINNOW, improves the overall results by targeting a necessary plan of action early on for each financial product to succeed. This empowers Senior Management to set new standards of business performance, as it is built on the strength of a globally experienced team. Geoff Stecyk, COO of RAKBANK, said "We are pleased to have partnered with Axslogic, as their flagship product WINNOW effectively provides a unique analytical solution that addresses the risks associated with our lending portfolio. By identifying these risks early on, the Bank can now enable quick actions and solutions where our staff may access in-depth alerts and reports in just one click." Hari Baskaran, CEO of Axslogic, said "Axslogic is committed to providing cutting-edge analytics technology solutions across the banking industry. The goal is to help RAKBANK enhance customers' experience and lower costs while increasing customer confidence and improving the overall performance." About RAKBANK RAKBANK, also known as the National Bank of Ras Al Khaimah, is one of the UAE's oldest and most dynamic financial institutions. Founded in 1976, it underwent a major transformation in 2001 as it rebranded into RAKBANK and shifted its focus from corporate to retail and SME. In addition to offering a wide range of retail banking services, the Bank increased its lending in the SME, Commercial, and Corporate segment in recent years. The Bank also offers Islamic Banking solutions, via RAKislamic, throughout its 35 branches and its Telephone, Online, and Mobile Banking channels. RAKBANK is a public joint stock company headquartered in Ras Al Khaimah and listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX). For more information, please visit www.rakbank.ae or call +9714 213 0000. For media enquiries, please contact: RAKBANK Geraldine Dagher Geraldine@rakbank.ae About Axslogic Axslogic is a Fintech analytics enterprise software company providing cloud and on premise solutions for financial institutions engaged in consumer and commercial lending. Axslogic's Winnowcreates a new early warning exception management paradigm to manage the challenges and risks associated with such businesses. The solution disrupts the current environment under which such processes are managed using a unique patented architecture and data model. Axslogic is headquartered in Singapore, with offices in India and UAE. With marquee banks and FIs as clients around the globe, Axslogic has shown rapid growth through client satisfaction, repeat client orders and existing client referrals. Axslogic already has multiple partnerships, in addition payment solution leaders, MasterCard, Visa, and technology major, IBM. More information is available at www.axslogic.com or via email at sales@axslogic.com Contacts: Vijay vijay.kb@axslogic.com +6531525205 Related Links http://www.axslogic.com SOURCE Axslogic Pte Ltd ABU DHABI and DUBAI, UAE, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The proprietary platform draws expertise from across DarkMatter to produce this powerful tool for the assessment and prediction of cyber risk DarkMatter, an international cyber security firm headquartered in the UAE, announces the introduction of its Cyber Resilience Platform, a first-of-its-kind city-wide dashboard that helps visualise the readiness of critical entities against cyber threats. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430287 ) The platform succinctly demonstrates the cascading effect of cyber breach on separate, yet interconnected critical entities in a smart city environment, allowing for the first time, a contextualisation of the impact of a cyber breach on entities individually as well as collectively. The Cyber Resilience Platform allows city authorities to predict and react timeously to cyber threats, with the powerful tool acting as a playbook for a city to be able to see how its critical entities are working individually, and as part of a wider interconnected, smart environment. The holistic platform builds on DarkMatter's outlook to add cyber resilience end-to-end in a digital environment and is an extension of DarkMatter's Cyber Security Life-Cycle outlook, which incorporates a four-stage approach to cyber security involving planning, detection, protection and recovery. Using sensors, interconnected services and decision-making algorithms to help entities predict, monitor and manage cyber incidents in near real-time, the platform is also scalable, and transferable so entities of any size, across multiple sectors that can benefit from its predictive capabilities. Commenting on the introduction of the Cyber Resilience Platform, Faisal Al Bannai, CEO of DarkMatter said, "This platform represents DarkMatter's ability to draw expertise from across the organisation and produce tools that assess and predict the level of cyber risk in order for entities to pro-actively act in defence of their digital assets within an interconnected environment." Faisal Al Bannai continued, "Our Cyber Resilience Platform is a KPI-focused, operations-oriented tool, which for the first time looks to bridge the gap between the activities of critical entities and the state of their security. We believe this platform will gain significant traction not just from federal and municipal entities, but for all organisations operating in highly digitised, connected eco-systems where cyber vulnerabilities have knock-on effects." The platform's output from analysing resilience is used to monitor the actual status of systems, so it becomes a tool that produces actionable intelligence rather than offering just theoretical scenarios. The pace of digital transformation, and the instrumented, intelligent, and interconnected nature of modern digital networks means a more interactive and all-inclusive approach to assessing cyber resilience is required, which is what the platform delivers. Harshul Joshi, Senior Vice President and the Chief Architect of the Cyber Resilience Platform said, "Our platform is not just another box-ticking exercise. It offers real and actionable information to allow connected entities to better protect themselves and mitigate against cyber attack individually as well as collectively. I like to view our platform as working like a pain detector in the human body, which draws attention to where a problem may exist, and triggers a series of actions to correct the problem. We are looking to add immunity to digitisation and better equip entities to be able to guard against cyber threats." To see the Cyber Resilience Model demonstrated live, please visit the DarkMatter stand at booth number Z-C30, Za'abeel Hall, GITEX Technology Week, 16-20 October 2016, Dubai World Trade Centre. About DarkMatter DarkMatter is transforming the cyber security landscape. Headquartered in the UAE and operating globally, we're the region's first and only fully integrated digital defence and cyber security consultancy and implementation firm. Our elite team of global experts deliver advanced, next-generation solutions to governments and enterprises across the cyber security spectrum. We help clients simplify the enormous complexity of today's ever-evolving cyber threats. Our vision is to secure the future by protecting its technologies Our products extend to Secure Communications, Public Key Infrastructure, Innovation & Research, and Big Data & Analytics. Our services extend to Governance, Risk & Compliance, Cyber Network Defence, Managed Security Services, Infrastructure & System Integration, Test & Validation Labs, and Smart Solutions. For further details, visit http://www.darkmatter.ae SOURCE DarkMatter BOSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Strategy Analytics (SA) expands its Consumer Insights Practice with the addition of Dr. Jordan Louviere, inventor of MaxDiff, father of Discrete Choice Experiments, and internationally recognized expert in conjoint analysis. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130207/NE56457LOGO-b With a focus on providing actionable research and insights to its clients in consumer-centric businesses, Strategy Analytics is pleased to announce the addition of Dr. Jordan Louviere to its Consumer Insights Practice. Dr. Louviere has a long list of significant contributions to the field of market research that have been extensively applied in the business world. His work on choice-based measurement method, including MaxDiff Scaling, has been widely adopted by research practitioners across disciplines around the world. He has consulted with many private and public sector organizations in technology, consumer packaged goods, transportation, banking and finance, among others. He has authored several books, sits on Board of Governors for the American Marketing Association (AMA) Parlin Award (he was a 2010 recipient of AMA's Charles Coolidge Parlin Award for Lifetime Achievements in Market Research), and is on the Advisory Board of the Journal of Marketing Research. Harvey Cohen, President of Strategy Analytics, says "We are truly privileged to have the world-renowned research innovator, Dr. Louviere join our Consumer Insights senior leadership. It has been three years since we successfully launched SA's dedicated custom research practice and we are excited with our growing relationships with leading firms competing in the consumer space. Dr. Louviere's appointment is a testament to Strategy Analytics' commitment to be in the forefront of innovation in advanced analytics and to provide our clients who are seeking a better way to use research with value added analysis to address their most pressing and challenging business issues." About Strategy Analytics Strategy Analytics, Inc. provides the competitive edge with advisory services, consulting and actionable market intelligence for emerging technology, mobile and wireless, digital consumer and automotive electronics companies. With offices in North America, Europe and Asia, Strategy Analytics delivers insights for enterprise success. www.StrategyAnalytics.com Consumer Insights Practice contacts: Joy Lampe Ganvik, Vice President, +617 614 0753 jganvik@strategyanalytics.com Carlos Salazar-Velasquez, Ph.D. Vice President +617 614 0754 csalazar-velasquez@strategyanalytics.com Arleen Macaraeg-Denque, Vice President +617 614 0755 adenque@strategyanalytics.com Jordan Louviere, Ph.D., Chief Research Scientist +617 614 0726 jlouviere@strategyanalytics.com Related Links http://www.strategyanalytics.com SOURCE Strategy Analytics Faraday's SoC development platform effectively reduces the time-to-market of system products by allowing early software design ahead of chip availability. It offers an integrated environment consisting of mainstream processor core, pre-verified Faraday interface and fabric IP, along with SDK, upon which system software may be built. Further on the premises, Uranus platform demonstrates DVFS power modes management to balance trade-offs between performance and power consumption. In particular, its Turbo Mode alters the trade-off point to enable MCU core achieve 2x performance under given power constraint. "As the driver of ASIC design service innovations, Faraday's SoC development platform series aims not only to help customer's chip design but also its system development," said Steve Wang, President of Faraday. "Satisfying both ultra-low-power and high-performance needs has become the key for next-generation IoT chip design. We proudly present Uranus, the newest member of our platform series, to provide the right tool for achieving that goal." For Uranus (FIE3255) demonstration, please visit Faraday at the following exhibitions: SEDEX, Oct 26-28 in Seoul, Korea in ARM Tech Symposia, Oct 31 in Shanghai, China in Embedded Technology, Nov 16-18 in Yokohama, Japan About Faraday Technology Corporation Faraday Technology Corporation (TWSE: 3035) is a leading ASIC design service and IP provider. The broad silicon IP portfolio includes I/O, Cell Library, Memory Compiler, ARM-compliant CPUs, DDR2/3/4, low-power DDR1/2/3, MIPI, V-by-One, MPEG4, H.264, USB 2.0/3.1 Gen 1, 10/100/1000 Ethernet, Serial ATA, PCI Express, and programmable SerDes, etc. Headquartered in Taiwan, Faraday has service and support offices around the world, including the U.S., Japan, Europe, and China. For more information about Faraday, please visit: www.faraday-tech.com Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161013/428339 Related Links http://www.faraday-tech.com SOURCE Faraday Technology Corporation VICENZA, Italy, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Franco Pianegonda recently announced his intention to discontinue distribution of his designer jewellery to traditional jewellery stores, worth over 36 million USD turnover, and to sell his unique creations to his clients worldwide exclusively through his website http://www.Francopianegonda.net. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161014/428845 ) (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161014/428846 ) Franco Pianegonda, the Vicenza, Italy-based fine jewellery designer, is a favourite of celebrities who love to wear his jewellery on- and off-stage. This is a revolution of the fine jewellery brand that bears his name. In fact, after making his name as a creative talent in the early 2000's by introducing silver to designer fashionable affordable jewellery, he decided to have a closer relationship with his clients. "I am dedicated to helping women to be at their best, professionally and personally. I want to directly present all the creations I made for them. I want to interact directly with them and personally, because my jewellery is like personalized body sculpture and it is full of luminosity and vibrant when worn. Each jewel is designed for a particular kind of woman, when I design my creation I focus on a particular woman's personality, and I make it with the only intention to express that woman's sensuality, elegance, achievements, authenticity and refined sophistication," says Franco Pianegonda, chief creative talent of LA MAISON FRANCO PIANEGONDA. Franco Pianegonda exclusive and unique jewellery can be found now only on the web store reachable by typing his full name. He also personally welcomes his clients in his beautiful creative MAISON, located in Vicenza centre square, piazza dei signori, in a Palladio palace, a location that recalls the pulsing heart of the amazing building where it is located. Press contact: info@francopianegonda.net Tel +39 0444 328927 La Maison Franco Pianegonda Piazza dei Signori, C.tra delle Morette 17 36100 Vicenza, Italia http://www.francopianegonda.net SOURCE La Maison Franco Pianegonda VIENNA, Austria and RIJSWIJK, The Netherlands, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Lexogen, a transcriptomics and next generation sequencing company, announces collaboration with Bluebee, a leading provider of high-performance genomics solutions, for implementation of QuantSeq data analysis pipeline on the Bluebee genomics analysis platform. Lexogen's QuantSeq 3' mRNA-Seq Library Prep Kit has already been recognized as one of the fastest, most cost-efficient, and accurate methods for expression profiling using next generation sequencing. It is also the most preferable alternative to microarrays for this application. The data analysis for QuantSeq is based on counting of the transcripts and therefore is very straightforward and fast. By making the QuantSeq analysis pipeline available on the Bluebee genomics analysis platform the data evaluation can be easily done by any user, including those who do not have any experience with bioinformatics tools. This makes QauntSeq an exceptional tool for gene expression analysis, which is accurate, fast, affordable, and bioinformatically not challenging. "We believe that implementing a ready-to-use data analysis pipeline on the Bluebee platform is an important step forward in making QuantSeq the most easy-to-use and cost-efficient gene expression profiling workflow available," said Dr. Alexander Seitz, CEO and founder of Lexogen. At the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) meeting 2016 in Vancouver Lexogen and Bluebee will present the result of collaboration during several demonstrations at the Bluebee exhibition booth. About Lexogen Lexogen is a transcriptomics and next generation sequencing company, focusing on the development of technologies for complete transcriptome sequencing. Its portfolio includes innovative molecular biology kits, software, and services for RNA-Seq. To learn more, visit www.lexogen.com and follow @lexogen. Contact person at Lexogen: Dalia Daujotyte dalia.daujotyte@lexogen.com Lexogen GmbH Campus Vienna Biocenter 5 1030 Vienna Austria About Bluebee Bluebee (www.bluebee.com) provides high performance genomics solutions, enabling genomic labs to substantially reduce cost and time-to-diagnosis. Bluebee's unique cloud-based accelerated genomics platform enables fast, efficient and affordable processing of large volumes of genomics data. With Bluebee's private-cloud based solutions, labs can run their pipelines orders of magnitude faster without compromising the algorithms and methods used, nor the flexibility required to provide quality, sensitivity and reliability. Contact person at Bluebee: Valerie Morel valerie.morel@bluebee.com Bluebee Laan van Zuid Hoorn 57 2289 DC Rijswijk The Netherlands Related Links https://www.lexogen.com SOURCE Lexogen DUBLIN, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Global Medical Aesthetics Industry: Injectables, Energy-Based Devices, Cosmeceuticals, Cosmetic Surgery, Facial Aesthetics, Implants, Cosmetic Tourism. Market Analysis & Forecast to 2021" report to their offering. Global Medical Aesthetics Industry Report (Published August 2016) is a most comprehensive analysis on this vertically growing market. This detailed report provides strategic business development information and is supported by 180 tables & figures over 335 pages and is presented as follows: The global market for the medical aesthetics industry is presented by the following categories: - By Segment (Facial injectables, Cosmetic implants, Home-use devices, Physician-dispensed cosmeceuticals, Energy-based skin tightening devices, Skin rejuvenation devices, Body Contouring, Facial Reconstruction/Rejuvenation, Cosmetic Implants, Breast Lift, Liposuction, Abdominoplasty, Male Aesthetics) - By Sub-Market (Injectable procedures, Facelift, Laser resurfacing/Photorejuvenation, Eyelid lift, Dermabrasion, chemical peel, Rhinoplasty, Forehead lift, Lip augmentation, Breast implants, Facial implants, Buttock, calf, pectoral implants, Skincare cosmeceuticals, Skin lightening cosmeceuticals, Eyelash cosmeceuticals, Scar removal products - By Product Segment (Facial injectables, Botox, Dermafillers, Neuromodulators, Hyaluronic Acid, Collagen) - By Company (e.g Allergen, Mentor, Galderma, Valeant, Merz, Syneron, Zetiq, Ulthera, Cynosure, Solta/Valeant, Alma/Fosun Pharma) - By Market Leaders and Market Share in Cosmetic Neurotoxins, Derma Fillers, Home Use Devices, Body Shaping and Skin Tightening Devices Business strategy information can be gleaned from the following high impact analyses: - Geographic Share of Cosmetic Surgery Procedures (Top Eight Countries Globally) - Popular Cosmetic Surgeries in the USA, Brazil, Japan, South Korea & Mexico - Top Ten Cosmetic Surgical Procedures in the World, USA, UK, Germany, France, Ireland, Singapore Top Ten Non-Surgical Cosmetic Procedures in the World, USA, the UK, France, Ireland - Top Five Cosmetic Surgery Procedures in the U.S. - Top Five Countries for Noninvasive Cosmetic Procedures - Top Five Noninvasive Cosmetic Procedures in the U.S. - Price & Number of Botulinum Toxin, Hyaluronic Acid, Calcium Hydroxylapatite & Poly-L-Lactic Acid Injections, Chemical Peel, Dermabrasion, Laser Skin Resurfacing, Laser Hair Removal Procedures Worldwide & in the US, Brazil, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Germany, France & Colombia - Surgeon's Fee for Various Cosmetic Procedures in the U.S - Comparison of Cosmetic Surgery Prices in Americas (USA, Brazil, Mexico, Costa Rica) - Comparison of Cosmetic Surgery Prices in Europe (UK Vs Poland & Hungary) - Comparison of Cosmetic Surgery Prices in Asia (India, Thailand, Malaysia) - Detailed review of Cosmeceuticals used to date - Increase in Sensitive Body Issue Procedures (Labiaplasty, Stretch mark removal, Wart removal, Gynecomastia) - Increase in the number of Men undergoing surgical and non-surgical aesthetic procedures - How medical tourism in Singapore, United Arab Emirates, India, China, Poland, Turkey, Brazil, Mexico, Costa Rica is strengthening the market - Demand for Kybella and Fat Dissolving Technologies - Demand for Female Genital Rejuvenation Technology - Leading Brands of Cosmeceuticals for Hyperpigmentation, Acne, Eyelash Products, Scar Care, - Disruptive Tech Driving the Market - Nanocosmeceuticals, Liposomes, Nanocapsules, Solid Lipid Nanoparticles (SLN), Dendrimers, Cubisomes - Current Nanocosmeceutical Patents - Current Clinical Trials for Aging Skin - DNA Tests for Skincare - Personalized Dermatology - Cosmeceuticals: Major Companies and Product Lines by Acne, Collagen Stimulation, Exfoliation, Firming, Peel, Post-Procedure, Scar Reduction, Skin Lightening, Sun Protection, Wrinkle Reduction - Cosmetic Surgery Products and Technologies (Breast, Gluteal, Facial Implants, Fillers, Neurotoxins, Energy Based Devices) - Dominance of Aesthetic Applications for Energy-Based Technologies - Emerging Technologies in Aesthetic Sector (Hydroimpact, BTL Protege Intima, SculpSure, Eclipse Reverse, Eclipse MicroPen Elite, Eclipse Skinfinity RF, Eclipse Firma, Intensif, IntimaLase, FemTouch, INFINI FR, N-532 Laser System, miraDry, INTRAcel, Prima Pico, Rejuvapen Micropigmentation System, Ultherapy) A comprehensive account of company product portfolios are provided for 105 Cosmetic Surgery and Service providers globally including: - Allergen - Mentor - Galderma - Valeant - Merz - Syneron - Zetiq - Ulthera - Cynosure - Solta/Valeant - Alma/Fosun Pharma You will discover a wealth of strategic information throughout this report and find out - Who is leading the market? - Which companies are struggling? - What has the most attractive acquisition potential? - What areas your business should focus on - How to develop your business in the right direction Key Topics Covered: 1. Introduction 2. Surgical Cosmetic Procedures: An Overview 3. Nonsurgical Cosmetic Procedures: An Overview 4. Physician Dispensed Cosmeceuticals: An Overview 5. Cosmetic Surgery Products and Technologies: An Overview 6. Energy-Based Technologies for Cosmetic Procedures: An Overview 7. Emerging Technologies in Aesthetic Sector 8. Current Clinical Trials for Aging Skin 9. Market Analysis 10. Company Profiles - Aerolase Corp. - Adoderm GmbH - Aesthetic Dermal S.L. - Allergan Inc. - Allied Biomedical - Alma Lasers Ltd. - Amiea Med - Andrew Technologies LLC - Anika Therapeutics Inc. - Anteis S.A. - Apira Science Inc. - Aqtis Medical B.V. - Baby Quasar - Benev Company - Biopelle Inc. - Biotechnique Avance - Breit Aesthetics Ltd. - BTL Industries Inc. - Canfield Imaging Systems - Carol Cole Co. - Chromogenex PLC - Classys Inc. - Contura International A/S - CoolTouch Inc. - Cutera Inc. - Cynosure Inc. - Deka Laser Technologies Inc. - DermaMed Solutions LLC - Eclipse Aesthetic LLC - Edge Systems LLC - Ellipse A/S - Ellman International Inc. - Endymed Medical Ltd. - Energist Ltd. - Envy Medical Inc. - E-One-IPL - Episciences Inc. - Erchonia Corp. - EunSung Global Corp. - Eurosilicone S.A.S. - Focus Medical - Fotona D.D. - Galderma S.A. - General Project S.R.L. - Hironic Co., Ltd. - H&O Equipment N.V/S.A - Home Skinovations Ltd. - Hongkong Spring International Industry Ltd. - Human Med A.G. - Ilooda Co., Ltd. - Iluminage Beauty - Invasix Ltd. - Ispen Biopharmacuticals Inc. - Jeisys Medical Inc. - JeNu Biosciences Inc. - Laboratoires FILORGA - Lasering S.R.L. - Lexington International LLC - L'Oreal International - LSO Medical Groupe - Lumenis Ltd - Lumiere Medical - Lutronic Corp. - Medixsysteme - Mentor Worldwide LLC - Merz Aesthetics Inc. - Mesoestetic Pharma Group - Myoscience Inc. - Nagor Ltd. - Novoxel Ltd. - Obagi Medical Products Inc. - Pantec Biosolutions AG - Pacific Bioscience Laboratories Inc. - PCA Skin - Philips - Photocadmus Technologies Spain Ltd. - Photomedex Inc. - PhytoCeuticals Inc. - Pierre Fabre Dermo-Cosmetique USA Inc. - Polytech Health & Aesthetics GmbH - Pollogen Ltd - Prollenium Medical Technologies Inc. - Quanta Systems S.P.A. - Radiancy Inc. - Restoration Robotics Inc. - Rhonda Allison Clinical Enterprises - Sciton - SharpLight Technologies Ltd. - Sientra Inc. - Sinclair Is Pharma - SkinCeuticals Inc. - Skin Tech - Solta Medical Inc. - Spectrum Brands/Remington - Spencer Forrest Inc. - Suneva Medical Inc. - Super Grow Lasers Inc. - Surgiform Technology Ltd. - SurgiSil LLC - Sybaritic Inc. - Syneron Medical Ltd. - Tavger Ltd. - TavTech Ltd. - Teoxane Laboratories - The Dezac Group Ltd. - Theradome Inc. - ThermiAesthetics - Tria Beauty Inc. - Ulthera Inc. - Venus Concepts Ltd. - Viora - Won Tech Co., Ltd. - Ya-Man Ltd. - Zeltiq Aesthetics Inc. For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/7z6h7w/global_medical Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com SOURCE Research and Markets JAKARTA, Indonesia, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Semen Indonesia, the nation's largest cement maker, has achieved major savings in its operating costs by replacing coal with natural waste as fuel for electricity generation (husks and shells from tobacco, cashew and coconut production). As a result, Semen Indonesia's costs of revenue dropped 2% year-on-year in the first half of this year to Rp 7.5 trillion - US$ 577.5 million (Source: Jakarta Post). Photo - http://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20161018/8521606681 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121014/HK92339LOGO-d The resource mix in the country is also changing. Prices for solar power modules have fallen 70% in the past six years. Wind power costs have dropped 58% in the past five years. Battery prices have fallen approximately 14% annually since 2007 (Source: Energy Manager Today.) Therefore, renewable energy has become a concrete, affordable, clean and reliable alternative for corporates and private users in Indonesia willing to secure stable electricity delivery at fixed prices. In fact, unlike historic industry shifts that have been spurred by policy, these major technological advances and savings are occurring largely despite policy, because the transition leads to great improvements in cost cutting, energy efficiency, reliability, and environmental protection. To join the discussion on all developments in this industry in the country sign up for Renewable Energy Indonesia, the only trade show in Indonesia addressing exclusively Renewable Energy, which will be held at the Jakarta International Expo, Kemayoran, on 29 to 31 March 2017. The exhibition, organized by UBM plc, aims to be a platform that brings together professionals, investors and stakeholders with a sharp and exclusive focus on renewable energy and energy efficiency in order to exchange knowledge, best practices, resources and information. Conference, seminars, workshops, debates and exhibitors' presentations will add into the mix, and will complement the 3 days together with a business matchmaking platform. ABOUT UBM Owned by UBM plc listed on the London Stock Exchange, UBM Asia is the largest trade show organiser in Asia and the largest commercial organiser in China, India and Malaysia. Established with its headquarters in Hong Kong and subsidiary companies across Asia and in the US, UBM Asia has a strong global presence in 24 major cities with 32 offices and 1,300 staff. UBM Asia was awarded 'Asia's Most Reliable Trade Show Organizer Award' in Hong Kong's Most Valuable Companies Awards (HKMVCA) 2016. Contact Person: Ivan Ferrari Phone Number: +62 21 2930 5959 ext 138 Email: ivan.Ferrari@ubm.com Contact Person: Budi Sutrisno Phone Number: +62 21 2930 5959 Email: budi.sutrisno@ubm.com Related Links http://www.renewableenergyindonesia.com SOURCE Renewable Energy Indonesia - UBM Indonesia DUBLIN, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "The Future of Iran Gas Markets, Investments, Projects and Companies to 2025- Exploration, Gas Production, Gas Pipelines, Storage, LNG and Supply Demand" report to their offering. The report identifies key trends and drivers of Iran Gas markets and provides the SWOT profile of the country. Further, the country is benchmarked with peer markets to compare its position in regional markets. In addition, impact of competing assets in other countries is also evaluated. Effect of current market dynamics including price fluctuations, CAPEX declines and others on Iran Gas markets The impact of recent developments including OPEC decision to cut production at Algiers, US shale production decline, Iran government policy changes and CAPEX reductions on companies across Iran Gas value chain are analysed in detail. The research provides detailed analysis of all major risks and opportunities faced by gas companies in Iran. Short Term Risk Mitigation and Long Term Growth Strategies The research work identifies the key moves being taken by government, companies and investors to cop up with global changes and minimize the risks in current market conditions. Further, the research also identifies the strategies being taken by oil and gas players to ensure growth and beat competition in the long run. Outlook Statements - Marketed Gas supply and demand outlook, 2005- 2025 - LNG Supply and Demand Outlook, 2005- 2022 - LNG Contracted Capacity Outlook, 2005- 2022 - Iran Primary Energy mix, 2015 - GDP, Population and Investment Outlook, 2005- 2025 Analysis across value chain The comprehensive research provides opportunities, risks, infrastructure, trade and competition on exploration blocks, licensing rounds, Gas fields, underground gas storage, pipelines and LNG terminals in Iran. Feasibility study, Current Status and Expected Start Up and Impacts For all planned projects including new LNG terminals, Gas storage terminals and pipelines, feasibility study of new projects, their current status including FID/ FEED/EPC along with expected start up, construction contract details and the impact of these projects on Iran are analysed in detail. Complete Infrastructure Details Iran Gas report provides complete asset by asset details of Iran Gas infrastructure. Key details provided in the research include- - Exploration- Awarded and Available Block Details, Licensing rounds on Offer, Briefs on Successful Exploration operations, Rigs Count - Production- Field wise production information from 2007- 2014; Operational and Planned Gas Field details - Gas Storage- Storage Capacity by Terminal, 2015; Terminal details including- location, start up, operator, owners, stakes, capex and construction partners - Pipelines- Gas transmission pipelines including start point, end point, route, length, diameter, capacity, capex and operators and owners and construction partners - LNG terminals- Liquefaction/Regasification Capacity Outlook by terminal, 2005- 2022; LNG terminal details including- location, start up, operator, owners, trains/ vaporizers, storage capacity, tanks, jetty, capex and construction details Further, LNG exports/ imports, trade patterns, Sale Purchase Agreements, associated Ships, fields and other information is provided. Competitive Landscape The report provides market shares of each of the sector in Iran Gas markets including- - Company wise net weighted Gas production, 2005- 2014 - Company wise LNG capacity, 2005- 2022 - Company wise storage capacity, 2015 - Company wise Pipeline Lengths, 2015 The report also analyses three leading companies in Iran Gas markets. Business operations, SWOT Analysis and financial performance of the companies are provided. For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/8llxwn/the_future_of Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com SOURCE Research and Markets PORTLAND, Oregon, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A new report published by Allied Market Research, titled, "Micro Inverter Market by Type, Connection and End User-Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2014-2022," projects that the world micro inverter market would reach $2.7 billion by 2022. In 2014, North America dominated the market and contributed about 45% share of the overall market revenue, followed by Europe. The presence of key market players in the U.S. and rising micro inverter installation activities, primarily in residential sector, have fueled the market growth. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140911/647229 ) Summary of the Micro Inverter Market Report can be accessed on the website at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/micro-inverter-market Swift rise in demand for greater efficiency of solar energy systems and increased application of micro inverters in residential sector, as it is more cost-effective and space efficient, as compared to central and string inverters drives the market growth. However, high initial investment and tough maintenance could restrict the market growth. Moreover, it is anticipated that the rise in electricity demand coupled with increase in government spending & tariffs on photovoltaic technology would spur the global market growth. The residential segment accounted for about 77% of the overall micro inverter market in 2014. Highest installation of micro inverters in residential photovoltaic systems led this segment to dominate the overall micro inverter market. However, commercial end user segment would grow significantly and is expected to register a CAGR of 30.3% during the forecast period. This is due to the increase in installation of micro inverters in commercial PV systems worldwide as many renowned companies are launching advanced technology products. Moreover, North America has contributed significantly in the residential sector. Among various geographical regions, North America has contributed the maximum revenue share in 2014 and is expected to maintain its leading position throughout the forecast period. This could be attributed to varied factors including increase in the electricity demand due to rising population, and increased government initiatives. Moreover, improvement in renewable energy expenditure has boosted the installation of residential micro inverters in Asian countries, particularly in China, Japan, and India. "MLPE technologies such as micro inverters are swiftly gaining acceptance and market share as their costs have come down. In spite of the global dominance of string inverters, over half of all residential solar systems installed in the U.S. currently using micro inverters. In addition, increased power output of micro inverters, cost-effectiveness and enhanced safety features would fuel the micro inverter market growth in both residential and commercial sector globally. Japan, representing a significant residential market potential, is expected to provide lucrative growth opportunities for top global micro inverter manufacturers in Asia-Pacific market," states Rakesh Singh, Manager, Research, Semiconductor & Electronics at AMR. However, Asia-Pacific is projected to be the fastest growing region throughout the analysis period. Since, Japan has the highest demand for residential sector power plant PV installation due to government incentives and limited supply of micro inverters in Japan. Moreover, enhancement in solar plant installation capacity and increase in expenditures in the emerging markets (such as China and India) to satisfy the exponentially growing electricity needs in these countries have strengthened the market growth. Technological advancements for cost-effective inverter technologies in these nations offer a lucrative opportunity for the micro inverter market growth. Key findings of the study: In 2014, single phase micro inverter type led the overall micro inverter market revenue, but it is projected to grow at a CAGR of 26.2% during the forecast period Residential segment is expected to exhibit rapid growth, owing to the rising government tariffs and incentives Presently, North America leads the world micro inverter market and it is expected to continue this trend throughout the forecast period owing to the swift rise in electricity demand from countries such as U.S., Canada , and Mexico leads the world micro inverter market and it is expected to continue this trend throughout the forecast period owing to the swift rise in electricity demand from countries such as U.S., , and Japan leads the overall Asia-Pacific micro inverter market with about one-third of the market shares in the region The key players in the micro inverter market are dedicated to expand their business operations in the emerging countries with acquisition and product launch as a preferred strategy. The major players profiled in this report include Enphase Energy, Inc., ABB Group, SunPower Corporation, SMA Solar Technology AG, Delta Energy Systems GmbH, SolarEdge Technologies, Inc., ReneSola, Siemens AG, P&P Energy Technology Co., Ltd., and Involar. Summary of similar reports can be viewed at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/semiconductor-and-electronics/electronic-systems-and-devices-market-report About Us: Allied Market Research (AMR) is a full-service market research and business-consulting wing of Allied Analytics LLP based in Portland, Oregon. Allied Market Research provides global enterprises as well as medium and small businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports" and "Business Intelligence Solutions". AMR has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients to make strategic business decisions and achieve sustainable growth in their respective market domain. We are in professional corporate relations with various companies and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry. Contact: Sona Padmanabhan 5933 NE Win Sivers Drive #205, Portland, OR 97220 United States Direct: +1-503-894-6022 Toll Free: +1 (800)-792-5285 (U.S. & Canada) Fax: +1 (855)-550-5975 E-mail: sales@alliedmarketresearch.com SOURCE Allied Market Research LONDON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Milliman, Inc., a premier global consulting and actuarial firm, today announced the availability of new research detailing embedded value (EV) results for 23 major insurance companies in Europe. The report examines trends among companies reporting EVs as of year-end 2015. The report compares practises followed by major insurance companies and discusses EV reporting issues given the move toward Solvency II in Europe and the global adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards. "For European insurers the end of 2015 was a watershed with the introduction of the new pan European system of insurance regulation, Solvency II, on January 1st 2016. Some firms have reduced or ceased their Embedded Value reporting whilst others have sign posted that they will be incorporating elements of Solvency II into their future Embedded Value reporting. Embedded Value remains a useful metric for companies to report as it gives consistency with past years' reporting and is not constrained by some of the artificial limitations of Solvency II," said Milliman Principal and Consulting Actuary Philip Simpson. Key insights from the European report include: There has been a noticeable reduction in firms reporting on an embedded value basis in 2015, compared with 2014. The Solvency II directive has been implemented, and companies continued looking into aligning their EV methodologies with Solvency II, mainly those relating to the risk-free curve - there has been a continued trend of using volatility adjustment to the risk-free rate instead of liquidity premia. The CFO Forum members (that disclosed their embedded values at the end of 2015) reported a combined embedded value of GBP 248 billion ( EUR 337 billion ) at the end of 2015 compared with GBP 228 billion ( EUR 294 billion ) at the end of 2014. The majority of companies included in the study experienced an increase, of varying degrees, in their group embedded values compared with 2014. ( ) at the end of 2015 compared with ( ) at the end of 2014. The majority of companies included in the study experienced an increase, of varying degrees, in their group embedded values compared with 2014. Overall, results for new business were fairly positive for the majority of companies in our sample. The total value of new business (VNB) written by the current CFO Forum members (that disclosed their values of new business at the end of 2015) was GBP 9.7 billion ( EUR 13.2 billion ) in 2015, compared with GBP 10.3 billion ( EUR 13.2 billion ) in 2014. Interested parties may obtain a copy of the Milliman studies at www.milliman.com/ev-research or receive further information by telephoning or emailing: Philip Simpson in London at +44 20 7847 1543, philip.simpson@milliman.com; in at +44 20 7847 1543, philip.simpson@milliman.com; Tatiana Egoshina in London at +44 20 7847 1527, tatiana.egoshina@milliman.com; About Milliman Milliman is among the world's largest providers of actuarial and related products and services. The firm has consulting practices in healthcare, property & casualty insurance, life insurance and financial services, and employee benefits. Founded in 1947, Milliman is an independent firm with offices in major cities around the globe. For further information, visit milliman.com. Related Links http://www.milliman.com SOURCE Milliman, Inc. PUNE, India, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a new market research report "Natural Language Processing (NLP) in Healthcare and Life Sciences Market by Component (Technology and Services), Type (Rule-based, Statistical and Hybrid), Application, Deployment Mode (Cloud and On Premise) and Region - Global Forecast to 2021", published by MarketsandMarkets, the NLP in healthcare and life sciences market to grow from USD 1.03 Billion in 2016 to USD 2.65 Billion by 2021, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 20.8%. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160303/792302 ) Browse 66 market data Tables and 46 Figures spread through 132 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Natural Language Processing (NLP) in Healthcare and Life Sciences Market" http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/healthcare-lifesciences-nlp-market-131821021.html Early buyers will receive 10% customization on this report. The NLP in healthcare and life sciences market is growing rapidly because of the huge surge in clinical data, increase in the use of connected devices, and evolving consumer needs. "Report generation application to grow at the highest CAGR" The report segments the global market on the basis of applications that include machine translation, automated information extraction, report generation, predictive risk analytics, and others including question answering, dialogue systems, email filtering, spelling correction, and search engine. Report generation is expected to witness the highest growth rate. The report generation application is used to extract required specific information from database, XML, or spreadsheets, and use that information to generate the document as per the requirement of users. Health care organizations and clinics are in constant need for high quality clinical data and this can be achieved by using NLP technology. With the help of distinct automated semantic algorithm, report generation application reorganizes the document as per the human needs. "Statistical NLP expected to have the largest market share in 2016" The report segments the global market by type into rule-based NLP, statistical NLP, and hybrid NLP. Among these, hybrid NLP is expected to dominate the market in term of the market share. The statistical based NLP approach is one of the better approaches to generate results when large amount of data is involved. Due to huge volume availability of text and speech corpora, the statistical-NLP has shown remarkable success in the past few decades. "North America to be the largest revenue generator" The report has been segmented by region into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC), Middle East and Africa (MEA), and Latin America. North America is expected to continue being the largest revenue generator region for NLP in healthcare and life sciences vendors for the next five years, followed by Europe. Major initiatives taken for NLP technologies have their origin in this region. Increase in adoption and usage of smartphones and big data are a few of the major drivers of NLP solutions in North America. The market growth in developing regions can be attributed to the enhancements in technology. Ask for Sample Pages @ http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestsample.asp?id=131821021 Major vendors that offer Natural Language Processing (NLP) in Healthcare and Life Sciences Market solutions are 3M (Minnesota), Cerner Corporation (Missouri), IBM Corporation (New York), Microsoft Corporation (Washington), Nuance Communications (Massachusetts), M*Modal (Tennessee), Health Fidelity (California), Dolbey Systems (Ohio), Linguamatics (Cambridge), and Apixio (San Mateo). These vendors have adopted different types of organic and inorganic growth strategies such as new product launches, partnerships & collaborations, and mergers & acquisitions to expand their offerings in the NLP in healthcare and life sciences market. Browse Related Reports Natural Language Processing Market by Type (Rule-Based, Statistical, and Hybrid), Technologies (Recognition, IVR, OCR, Speech Recognition, Text Processing, Pattern & Image Recognition), by Deployment Type, Vertical & by Region - Global Forecast to 2021 http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/natural-language-processing-nlp-825.html Know More About our Knowledge Store @ http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Knowledgestore.asp About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. Contact: Mr. Rohan MarketsandMarkets 701 Pike Street, Suite 2175, Seattle, WA 98101, United States Tel: 1-888-600-6441 Email: sales@marketsandmarkets.com Visit MarketsandMarkets Blog @ http://www.marketsandmarketsblog.com/market-reports/telecom-it Connect with us on LinkedIn @ http://www.linkedin.com/company/marketsandmarkets SOURCE MarketsandMarkets Through partnerships with travel innovators and airlines, CPM will integrate blockchain-supported products for verified passenger IDs, payments, security and loyalty MIAMI, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- CellPoint Mobile, a company that provides mobile-first commerce and payment solutions for global airlines and travel companies, has launched a Travel Innovation Hub to develop and fast-track the application of blockchain technology on travel-related business services and transactions. Led by CellPoint Mobile's Chief Executive Officer Kristian Gjerding and Chief Technology Officer Jonatan Evald Buus, the Travel Innovation Hub and its partners' mission is to create blockchain-supported products and services that generate revenues for the travel sector and make travel easier. "Our goal is to work with partners who are interested in integrating practical, real-life travel solutions into our e-commerce platform," says Gjerding, who will meet with potential partners at the Oct. 23-26 Money 2020 event in Las Vegas. Based on the company's 8+ years of experience with data integration, mobility, and the authentication, verification and security of payments and travel transactions, CellPoint Mobile will work with industry partners, innovators and clients to identify and integrate into its platform key blockchain capabilities and products involving four main travel activities: Traveler/passenger identification and verification Travel security Loyalty program identity and transactions Payments Potential products will include a unified and secure passenger ID created from existing verified data (e.g., passports, visas, IDA, licenses, company and payment data, airline and travel records, loyalty program memberships and more); loyalty products that use blockchain processes to streamline and protect earn-redeem transactions in airline and travel loyalty programs; and payment products that integrate blockchain authentication, digital wallet blockchain payment processors and other services directly from CellPoint Mobile's payment orchestration layer. Mission: Revenue-Generating Blockchain Products & Services for the Travel Sector "Fully functional applications of blockchain processes are still some time away from commercial use, but CellPoint Mobile is staking a claim in the travel market now because of blockchain's potential to make the travel experience easier, more seamless and secure for airlines, travel merchants and passengers alike," says Gjerding. "We invite like-minded partners and innovators to explore blockchain's potential in the travel setting, and we look forward to fast-tracking the deployment of viable blockchain-related products and services to our travel clients." Anchored in Miami, Copenhagen and Pune, the hub invites and encourages participation, collaboration and input from airline merchants, clients and partners whose products and services fall into the four categories - chosen because of blockchain's application to security-, interaction- and transaction-related activities in the mobile environment. "The ability to uniquely and securely identify a passenger or customer opens the door to a variety of activities and transactions that could be incredibly beneficial to the travel industry," explains Buus, who notes that blockchain grew out of a need to verify Bitcoin and cryptocurrency transactions. "The simple ability to have a single, verified passenger identify from start to finish of a trip across borders, carriers, merchants, payment methods, mobile devices, etc. will be a tremendous boon to passengers, airlines and travel merchants alike. That is just one of the innovative ideas we hope to pursue with our innovation partners and collaborators." Integrating Blockchain Capabilities as They Evolve CellPoint Mobile's purpose-built, enterprise-grade, core orchestration layer decreases the massive complexity and effort required for clients to integrate operations into the payment eco-system, travel company subsystems and the mobile ecosystem. By adding public and private blockchain capabilities and products to this orchestration layer which already supports translation, normalization, security functions, operational deployment, and end-to-end, control, monitoring and reporting CellPoint Mobile clients will be able to access the blockchain universe as it evolves. For information about CellPoint Mobile's Travel Innovation Hub, or to arrange interviews contact Vanessa Horwell at +1-305-749-5342 ext. 232, or mobile +1-305-776-8817 or vhorwell@thinkinkpr.com, or Sara Leiter at sleiter@thinkinkpr.com or +1-305-749-5342 ext. 236. Partner, travel company and airline inquiries, sales@cellpointmobile.com About CellPoint Mobile (www.cellpointmobile.com) provides comprehensive and powerful commerce and payment solutions for global airlines, supporting all payment methods, all channels, all currencies and all devices. Since 2007, it has helped clients in transportation, retail and financial service sectors achieve an average 9.5% increase in incremental, direct-channel revenues. CellPoint Mobile has offices in Miami, London, Copenhagen, Dubai, Pune and Singapore. Related Links http://www.cellpoint.com SOURCE CellPoint Mobile DUBLIN, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets has announced the addition of SNS Research's new report "The VoLTE (Voice over LTE) Ecosystem: 2016 - 2030 - Opportunities, Challenges, Strategies & Forecasts" to their offering. VoLTE (Voice over LTE) technology allows a voice call to be placed over an LTE network, enabling mobile operators to reduce reliance on legacy circuit-switched networks. Powered by IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) architecture, VoLTE brings a host of benefits to operators ranging from the ability to refarm legacy 2G and 3G spectrum to offering their subscribers a differentiated service experience through capabilities such as HD voice and video telephony. First deployed by South Korean operators in 2012, VoLTE is beginning to gain momentum globally. As of Q4'2016, more than 80 mobile operators have commercially launched VoLTE services, and several roaming and interoperability agreements are already in place. Estimates suggest that VoLTE service revenue will grow at a CAGR of 34% between 2016 and 2020. By the end of 2020, VoLTE subscribers will account for more than $200 Billion in revenue. Although traditional voice services will constitute a major proportion of this figure, nearly 15% of the revenue will be driven by video calling and supplementary services. The report comes with an associated Excel datasheet suite covering quantitative data from all numeric forecasts presented in the report. Key Findings: Estimates suggest that by 2020 VoLTE services will account for over $200 Billion in annual service revenue, as mobile operators remain committed to VoLTE as the long term solution to secure a fully native IP-based telephony experience. in annual service revenue, as mobile operators remain committed to VoLTE as the long term solution to secure a fully native IP-based telephony experience. As the transition to VoLTE accelerates, mobile operators have already begun shutting down their legacy networks in a bid to reallocate additional spectrum to their LTE networks. Japan and South Korea have already shut down their 2G networks, and multiple operators in other parts of the world, including the United States , are in the processing of switching off 2G services. Some operators, such as Telenor Norway, are seeking the closure of their 3G networks as early as 2020. and have already shut down their 2G networks, and multiple operators in other parts of the world, including , are in the processing of switching off 2G services. Some operators, such as Telenor Norway, are seeking the closure of their 3G networks as early as 2020. Nearly all VoLTE operators are integrating their VoLTE services with Wi-Fi calling in a bid to offer voice services in areas where their licensed spectrum coverage is limited. The vendor ecosystem is continuing to consolidate with several acquisitions such as Sonus Networks' recent takeover of IP communications specialist Taqua. Key Questions Answered: How big is the VoLTE opportunity? What trends, challenges and barriers are influencing its growth? How is the ecosystem evolving by segment and region? What will the market size be in 2020 and at what rate will it grow? Which regions and countries will see the highest percentage of growth? Companies Mentioned Include: 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) Accedian Networks Altair Semiconductor Amdocs Anite Anritsu Corporation BroadSoft BT Group CCN (Cirrus Core Networks) Dialogic Corporation DigiTalk DigitalRoute DT (Deutsche Telekom) Ecrio EE Empirix Ericsson Etisalat Telefonica Group T-Mobile USA TNS (Transaction Network Services) Vodafone Turkey Vodafone UK VoiceAge Corporation Voipfuture W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) WBA (Wireless Broadband Alliance) Wi- Fi Alliance WIT Software x-Mobility ZTE Report Structure: 1: Introduction 2: An Overview of VoLTE 3: Collaboration, Standardization & Regulatory Landscape 4: VoLTE Deployment Case Studies 5: VoLTE Industry Roadmap & Value Chain 6: Key Market Players 7: Market Analysis & Forecasts 8: Conclusion, Key Trends & Strategic Recommendations For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/q4zn3h/the_volte_voice Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com SOURCE Research and Markets DUBLIN, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "The Future of Russia Gas Markets, Investments, Projects and Companies to 2025- Exploration, Gas Production, Gas Pipelines, Storage, LNG and Supply Demand" report to their offering. Effect of current market dynamics including price fluctuations, CAPEX declines and others on Russia Gas markets. The impact of recent developments including OPEC decision to cut production at Algiers, US shale production decline, Russia government policy changes and CAPEX reductions on companies across Russia Gas value chain are analysed in detail. The research provides detailed analysis of all major risks and opportunities faced by gas companies in Russia. The report identifies key trends and drivers of Russia Gas markets and provides the SWOT profile of the country. Further, the country is benchmarked with peer markets to compare its position in regional markets. In addition, impact of competing assets in other countries is also evaluated. The research work identifies the key moves being taken by government, companies and investors to cop up with global changes and minimize the risks in current market conditions. Further, the research also identifies the strategies being taken by oil and gas players to ensure growth and beat competition in the long run. Outlook Statements Marketed Gas supply and demand outlook, 2005-2025 LNG Supply and Demand Outlook, 2005-2022 LNG Contracted Capacity Outlook, 2005-2022 Russia Primary Energy mix, 2015 GDP, Population and Investment Outlook, 2005-2025 Key Topics Covered: 1 Tables & Figures 2 Executive Summary 3 Russia Gas Market Factsheet 4 Investment and Business Expansion Opportunities in Russia Gas Markets 5 Russia Gas Market Outlook and Forecasts 6 Competitive Landscape in Russia Gas Markets, 2016 7 Russia Upstream Gas Market Analysis 8 Russia LNG Market Analysis 9 Russia Gas storage market Analysis 10 Russia Pipeline Market Analysis 11 Competitor Operations and Business Profiles For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/kn7nsj/the_future_of Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com SOURCE Research and Markets CALGARY, Alberta, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Solium Capital Inc. ("Solium") (TSX: SUM), the leading global provider of software-as-a-service for equity administration, financial reporting and compliance, today announced the grand opening of its operating centre in Barcelona, Spain supporting the Company's growing international customer and participant base particularly in the EMEA region. "We are committed to being the leading global plan administrator in the industry. Barcelona provides a strategic additional location to continue building this promise to our customers and the market," said Marcos Lopez, Solium's CEO. "Solium is the only administrator operating in North America, Europe and Asia on a single technology and service platform - enabling our global customers to leverage support from all of our global offices seamlessly." Solium's Barcelona office is a multilingual client and participant service centre supporting Solium's European and global customers. It is also the hub for the Company's Shareworks Global Compliance product, an online database of legal and tax regulations that spans more than 170 countries. Solium began staffing the client service center in July of 2016. There are presently 20 full time employees operating out of this location. "Over the last year we've seen strong growth in new customers across the EMEA region, in particular Continental Europe, and we expect the momentum to continue," said Brian Craig, Solium's Managing Director, EMEA. "We now have the ability to offer client and participant support in most native European languages, a key competitive advantage that will help us expand our leadership position in the region. In addition, Barcelona is a world class city that attracts world class talent, making it a great location to expand our services." Solium will be hosting a formal opening celebration on Wednesday October 19th at its new office with special invited guests from the Catalonia Government's Department of Trade and Industry. "We are thrilled that Solium has decided to build its facility in Barcelona," said Nuria Betriu, General Director of Industry, Catalonia Government Department of Trade and Industry. "Solium's decision to invest in our region and create jobs in the technology sector is one that we hope other companies will replicate. We look forward to the Company's continued success and the growth of the office in Barcelona." About Solium Capital Inc. Solium Capital Inc. (TSX: SUM) provides cloud-enabled services for global equity administration, financial reporting and compliance. From offices in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe and Australia, our innovative software-as-a-service (SaaS) technology powers share plan administration and equity transactions for more than 3,000 corporate clients with employee participants in more than 100 countries. Follow us @Solium and visit us at solium.com. Certain statements included or incorporated by reference in this press release constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information under applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements or information typically contain statements with words such as "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "plan", "intend", "estimate", "propose", or similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook. Specific forward-looking statements in this press release include statements with respect to continued investment in Shareworks, and the growth of international operations and international markets. Such forward-looking statements or information are based on a number of assumptions which may prove to be incorrect, including assumptions with respect to the ability of the Company to identify, hire, train, motivate and retain qualified personnel, the Company's ability to maintain or accurately forecast revenue from its products and services, and the competitive environment in which the Company operates. Although Solium believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements or information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements or information because Solium can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. The forward-looking statements and information are based on Solium's current expectations, estimates and projections, and are subject to a number of significant risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, including general business and economic conditions, actions of competitors and partners, the regulatory environment and product capability and acceptance. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. Investor relations, Conrad Seguin, NATIONAL | Equicom, +1-416-586-1951, cseguin@national.ca SOURCE Solium Capital Inc. WASHINGTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- On October 15, 2016, the Systemic Risk Council submitted a comment letter to the Financial Stability Board (FSB) on its recent Consultative Document, in which the FSB proposed policy recommendations intended to address structural vulnerabilities in the asset management industry. "The Council is encouraged by the Financial Stability Board's focus on the asset management industry," said Sir Paul Tucker, Chairman of the Systemic Risk Council. He stated: "It is important that any risk arising from the structures and practices of asset management firms be identified and understood." "Most important," explained Sir Paul, "where those risks are material, they must be mitigated in a proportionate way before such vulnerabilities are demonstrated by a new financial crisis." In its letter, the Council expressed its support for the FSB's work on potential risks to financial stability arising from asset management structures and practices. The Council offered broad comments and recommendations under the four categories identified in the Consultative Document: (1) liquidity mismatch; (2) leverage within funds; (3) operational risk and challenges in transferring investment mandates or client accounts; and (4) securities lending activities of asset managers and funds. Specifically, the Council recommended that the FSB consider: Minimum Levels of Liquid Assets. Open-end funds invested in illiquid and opaque assets to hold a minimum level of liquid assets, the calibration of the requirement depending in part on whether "swing pricing" applies. Notice Periods for Redemption. Open-end funds invested in illiquid assets to be subject to a notice period for redemption, again taking account of any "swing pricing." Leverage Limits. Irrespective of whether they offer daily liquidity, funds invested in illiquid assets to be subject to leverage limits that become stricter as a fund gets larger, with calibration depending on whether a liquid-assets requirement applies. Stress Testing. Stress testing to be at the level of individual funds and, where relevant, system wide. Equity Requirements for Indemnities. Common equity to be held against indemnities provided by asset managers to funds they manage or to third parties. Disclosure of Asset-Manager Indemnities. Individual asset managers to disclose their aggregate contingent liabilities. In addition, the Council identified and discussed a possible area for further work by the FSB relating to unlevered funds that do not offer frequent redemption opportunities as well as provided an observation on issues that it believes should be covered in the FSB's planned future work on pension funds. The full text of the letter is available here. Systemic Risk Council Membership Chair: Sir Paul Tucker, Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School and Former Deputy Governor of the Bank of England Chair Emeritus: Sheila Bair, President of Washington College and Former Chair of the FDIC Senior Advisor: Jean-Claude Trichet, Former President of the European Central Bank Senior Advisor: Paul Volcker, Former Chair of the Federal Reserve Board Members: Brooksley Born, Former Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Baroness Sharon Bowles, Former Member of European Parliament and Former Chair of the Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee Bill Bradley, Former U.S. Senator William Donaldson, Former Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission Jeremy Grantham, Co-Founder and Chief Investment Strategist, Grantham May Van Otterloo Richard Herring, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania Simon Johnson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management Hugh F. Johnston, Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer, PepsiCo Jan Pieter Krahnen, Chair of Corporate Finance at Goethe-Universitat in Frankfurt and Director of the Centre for Financial Studies Sallie Krawcheck, Chair, Ellevate, Former Senior Executive, Citi and Bank of America Wealth Management Lord John McFall, Former Chair, UK House of Commons Treasury Committee Ira Millstein, Senior Partner, Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP Maureen O'Hara, Cornell University, Johnson School of Management Paul O'Neill, Former Chief Executive Officer, Alcoa, Former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury John Reed, Former Chairman and CEO, Citicorp and Citibank Alice Rivlin, Brookings Institution, Former Vice-Chair of the Federal Reserve Board Kurt Schacht, Managing Director, Standards and Advocacy Division, CFA Institute Chester Spatt, Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, Former Chief Economist, Securities and Exchange Commission Lord Adair Turner, Former Chair of the UK Financial Services Authority and Former Chair of the Financial Stability Board's Standing Committee on Supervisory and Regulatory Cooperation Nout Wellink, Former President of the Netherlands Central Bank and Former Chair of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision * Affiliations are for identification purposes only. Council members participate as individuals and this letter reflects their own views and not those of the organizations with which they are affiliated. Notes for Editors: The independent, non-partisan Systemic Risk Council (www.systemicriskcouncil.org) was formed to monitor and encourage regulatory reform of U.S. and global capital markets, with a focus on systemic risk. The Council is funded by the CFA Institute, a global association of more than 125,000 investment professionals who put investors' interests first and set the standard for professional excellence in finance. The statements, documents and recommendations of the private sector, volunteer Council do not necessarily represent the views of the CFA Institute. The Council works collaboratively to seek agreement on each of its recommendations. For further information please contact David R. Evanson at devanson@comcast.net or 215.460.8149 or Bristol Voss bristol.voss@cfainstitute.org or 212.705.1738 Related Links http://www.systemicriskcouncil.org SOURCE Systemic Risk Council LONDON, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- At COP 21 it was determined that approximately $19 billion of finance will be provided annually by developed countries for Africa's renewable programme by 2020. In addition, Japan announced $10bn per year in public and private finance also to reach Africa by 2020. New pledges to climate funds, including the Adaptation Fund, Least Developed Countries Fund, and the Green Climate Fund (GCF), added up to more than $1.5bn. In addition, all multilateral development banks have pledged to scale up climate finance in developing countries by 2020, to more than $30 billion per year. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430010 ) The availability of these funds will significantly hasten the pace of decisions being made by energy ministers and governments attending the Africa Renewable Energy Forum to implement renewable projects, IPP Programmes and diversify their energy mix to attract as much capital as possible into their banking and clean energy sector. The protagonists of these policies and the alchemist's of such funding including; JBIC, AFD, Renewable Energy Initiative, Africa50, AfDB, DBSA, World Bank, IFC and the governments of South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, as well as ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE) and more will gather to promote new projects and share success stories from across the continent in a collaborative format that will showcase only the most relevant and proactive partners. Some of the developers contributing Mustapha Bakkoury, Chief Executive Officer, Masen Badis Derradji , Regional Managing Director, ACWA Power , Regional Managing Director, Amine Homman Ludiye, Regional Manager, Northern Africa, ENGIE Linda Thompson , Head of development, Africa, Mainstream , Head of development, Africa, Christopher Hornor , President and Chief Executive Officer, Powerhive , President and Chief Executive Officer, Richard Avery , Regional Manager, West Africa, eleQtra , Regional Manager, West Africa, Michele Porri , Head of Business Development, ENEL Green Power , Head of Business Development, Nabil Saimi , Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Platinum Power Some of the investors contributing Jiwoo Choi , Head (Acting) , Green Climate Fund , Head (Acting) , Kohei Toyoda , Director of IPP/IWPPs EMEA , Japan Bank for International Cooperation , Director of IPP/IWPPs EMEA Alain Ebobisse, Chief Executive Officer, Africa50 Fabrice Juquois, Head of Energy Projects, TED Division, Department of Sustainable Development , French Development Agency Lucy Chege , General Manager, Energy Unit, Development Bank of Southern Africa , General Manager, Energy Unit, Yasser Charafi , Principal Investment Officer, International Finance Corporation , Principal Investment Officer, Haje Schutte , Head of Division, Development Co-operation Directorate, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development , Head of Division, Development Co-operation Directorate, Ahmed Baroudi , Director General, Societe d'Investissements Energetiques View the full agenda here and confirm your registration online immediately or contact arf@enargynet.co.uk quoting the code ARF_PR2. Contact: Patricia Carbonell, +44(0)7807756401, patricia.carbonell@energynet.co.uk SOURCE EnergyNet ASCHHEIM, Germany, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- N ew feature for mobile wallet app , Orange Cash Allows parents to control the sums of money Wirecard and Orange, one of the world's leading telecommunications operators, are broadening the range of functionalities available for Orange's mobile wallet app 'Orange Cash' in France. The mobile payment solution that is supported by the German payment expert has been extended to the new 'Orange Cash Jeune' offer, which is aimed at young users. The new feature enables the use of mobile payment for teenage kids up to 18 years under their parent's charge. Teens are increasingly using their smartphones and other devices to shop online. They want to use their smartphones for payments in stores - not cash which can be lost. Yet many don't have any bank account or payment card that they can use for those purposes. With Orange Cash Jeune, Wirecard and Orange have developed a solution to address the needs of the younger generation. The concept is simple: to create an account, parents or legal guardians sign up over the web interface of Orange Cash and install the app on their children's smartphones. Via the web interface, parents are in control of the sums of money, which should be charged on the account and get a real-time overview of the expenses. The entire financial administration is managed through the parent's Orange Cash account. "Especially for the younger generation, smartphones play a major role in their everyday life. Rather than using their parents' credit card, teens would like to use their smartphones and other devices to shop online. By adding the Orange Cash Jeune feature to the app we have succeeded in addressing a younger target group in the field of mobile payments. With this solution, teens have their finances firmly in hand at any time," said Susanne Steidl, Executive Vice President Issuing Services at Wirecard. Nicolas Levi, Director Payments and Mobile Financial Services at Orange, stated: "Our drive and innovative spirit helps us to develop the most useful and advanced services for our customers. With Wirecard on our side, we have a strong partner for shaping the future of mobile payments, while reaching out to the younger generation." Wirecard Group is responsible for processing all technical and financial processes related to the payment app and the added Orange Cash Jeune feature: this includes the development of the Orange Cash Jeune app, including the web interface for parents. Furthermore, the issuing and payment processing of the digital prepaid card is powered by Wirecard Card Solutions. Orange Cash combines contactless mobile payments with real-time loyalty and couponing deals from participating retailers through Wirecard's Card-Linked Offers platform. Since 2015, the mobile payment program has already been launched successfully in France and in Spain. About Wirecard: Wirecard AG is a global technology group that supports companies in accepting electronic payments from all sales channels. As a leading independent supplier, the Wirecard Group offers outsourcing and white label solutions for electronic payments. A global platform bundles international payment acceptances and methods with supplementary fraud prevention solutions. With regard to issuing own payment instruments in the form of cards or mobile payment solutions, the Wirecard Group provides companies with an end-to-end infrastructure, including the requisite licences for card and account products. Wirecard AG is listed on the Frankfurt Securities Exchange (TecDAX, ISIN DE0007472060, WDI). For further information about Wirecard, please visit http://www.wirecard.com or follow us on twitter @wirecard. Wirecard Media Contact: Wirecard AG Jana Tilz Tel.: +49(0)89-4424-1363 E-Mail: jana.tilz@wirecard.com SOURCE Wirecard AG ABBOTT PARK, Ill., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Abbott (NYSE: ABT) today announced financial results for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2016. Third-quarter worldwide sales of $5.3 billion increased 2.9 percent on a reported basis and 4.0 percent on an operational basis. increased 2.9 percent on a reported basis and 4.0 percent on an operational basis. Reported diluted EPS from continuing operations under GAAP was a $(0.24) loss in the third quarter, primarily due to an adjustment of $(0.66) per share associated with Abbott's equity investment in Mylan to reflect Mylan's share price as of Sept. 30, 2016 . Excluding specified items, adjusted diluted EPS from continuing operations was $0.59 in the third quarter, at the high end of the previous guidance range. loss in the third quarter, primarily due to an adjustment of per share associated with Abbott's equity investment in Mylan to reflect Mylan's share price as of . Excluding specified items, adjusted diluted EPS from continuing operations was in the third quarter, at the high end of the previous guidance range. Abbott adjusted its full-year 2016 EPS guidance for continuing operations under GAAP to $0.59 to $0.61 , and narrowed and raised at the mid-point its full-year 2016 adjusted EPS for continuing operations to $2.19 to $2.21 , exceeding its initial guidance for the year. , and narrowed and raised at the mid-point its full-year 2016 adjusted EPS for continuing operations to , exceeding its initial guidance for the year. In the third quarter, Abbott received U.S. FDA approval for its FreeStyle Libre Pro system, a revolutionary continuous glucose monitoring system for healthcare professionals to use with their patients with diabetes; submitted for U.S. regulatory approval a consumer version of FreeStyle Libre, to be used by people with diabetes to self-monitor glucose levels; received U.S. FDA approval for Absorb TM , the only fully dissolving heart stent; and received U.S. FDA approval for TECNIS Symfony intraocular lenses for the treatment of cataracts, the first and only extended depth of focus lenses for people with cataracts. system, a revolutionary continuous glucose monitoring system for healthcare professionals to use with their patients with diabetes; submitted for U.S. regulatory approval a consumer version of FreeStyle Libre, to be used by people with diabetes to self-monitor glucose levels; received U.S. FDA approval for Absorb , the only fully dissolving heart stent; and received U.S. FDA approval for TECNIS Symfony intraocular lenses for the treatment of cataracts, the first and only extended depth of focus lenses for people with cataracts. On Sept. 16, 2016 , Abbott announced the sale of Abbott Medical Optics, its vision care business, to Johnson & Johnson for $4.325 billion . This transaction aligns with Abbott's shaping of its portfolio, which has recently focused on developing leadership positions in cardiovascular devices and expanding diagnostics. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. "Strong performance in Established Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices led our sales growth this quarter," said Miles D. White, chairman and chief executive officer, Abbott. "We're on track to deliver the financial commitments we set at the beginning of the year. We also had several key product launches and continued to take strategic actions to shape our business for long-term growth." THIRD-QUARTER BUSINESS OVERVIEW Following are sales by business segment and commentary for the third quarter and the first nine months of the year: Total Company ($ in millions) % Change vs. 3Q15 Sales 3Q16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total * 1,645 3,657 5,302 4.5 2.2 3.7 2.9 4.0 Nutrition 755 1,000 1,755 3.5 (5.7) (4.1) (2.0) (1.0) Diagnostics 362 851 1,213 4.1 5.3 6.0 5.0 5.4 Established Pharmaceuticals -- 1,012 1,012 n/a 5.3 9.0 5.3 9.0 Medical Devices 519 791 1,310 6.0 6.7 6.1 6.4 6.0 * Total Abbott Sales from continuing operations include Other Sales of $12 million. % Change vs. 9M15 Sales 9M16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total * 4,831 10,689 15,520 3.5 1.3 5.9 2.0 5.2 Nutrition 2,224 2,942 5,166 3.8 (3.0) 1.6 (0.2) 2.5 Diagnostics 1,062 2,495 3,557 3.6 3.9 7.1 3.8 6.1 Established Pharmaceuticals -- 2,880 2,880 n/a 1.6 9.8 1.6 9.8 Medical Devices 1,520 2,359 3,879 2.8 4.1 5.6 3.6 4.5 * Total Abbott Sales from continuing operations include Other Sales of $38 million. n/a = Not Applicable. Note: Operational growth reflects percentage change over the prior year excluding the impact of exchange rates. In order to compute results excluding the impact of exchange rates, current year U.S. dollar sales are multiplied or divided, as appropriate, by the current year average foreign exchange rates and then those amounts are multiplied or divided, as appropriate, by the prior year average foreign exchange rates. Third-quarter 2016 worldwide sales of $5.3 billion increased 2.9 percent on a reported basis, including an unfavorable 1.1 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 4.0 percent on an operational basis. Excluding the impact of Venezuelan operations, sales would have increased 4.5 percent on a reported basis and 5.6 percent on an operational basis. International sales increased 2.2 percent on a reported basis and 3.7 percent on an operational basis in the third quarter. International operational growth was led by strong performance across Established Pharmaceuticals, Diagnostics and Medical Devices. Nutrition ($ in millions) % Change vs. 3Q15 Sales 3Q16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total 755 1,000 1,755 3.5 (5.7) (4.1) (2.0) (1.0) Pediatric 414 553 967 4.3 (9.4) (7.5) (4.0) (2.8) Adult 341 447 788 2.6 (0.8) 0.6 0.6 1.4 % Change vs. 9M15 Sales 9M16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total 2,224 2,942 5,166 3.8 (3.0) 1.6 (0.2) 2.5 Pediatric 1,242 1,664 2,906 5.0 (5.1) (0.7) (1.0) 1.6 Adult 982 1,278 2,260 2.3 (0.1) 4.7 0.9 3.7 Worldwide Nutrition sales decreased 2.0 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including an unfavorable 1.0 percent effect of foreign exchange, and decreased 1.0 percent on an operational basis. Worldwide Pediatric Nutrition sales decreased 4.0 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including an unfavorable 1.2 percent effect of foreign exchange, and decreased 2.8 percent on an operational basis. During the quarter, Abbott introduced Similac Pro-Advance and Similac Pro-Sensitive, the first infant formulas in the U.S. with a human milk oligosaccharide that offers a unique immune-nourishing prebiotic. International sales declined 9.4 percent on a reported basis and 7.5 percent on an operational basis, driven by challenging market conditions in China, partially offset by continued strong performance in Latin America and Southeast Asia. Worldwide Adult Nutrition sales increased 0.6 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including an unfavorable 0.8 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 1.4 percent on an operational basis. Operational sales growth in the quarter was led by growth of Ensure, Abbott's complete and balanced nutrition brand. Diagnostics ($ in millions) % Change vs. 3Q15 Sales 3Q16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total 362 851 1,213 4.1 5.3 6.0 5.0 5.4 Core Laboratory 220 757 977 7.6 5.0 5.7 5.6 6.1 Molecular 42 70 112 (9.6) 5.4 6.3 (0.8) (0.3) Point of Care 100 24 124 3.4 15.6 14.1 5.6 5.3 % Change vs. 9M15 Sales 9M16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total 1,062 2,495 3,557 3.6 3.9 7.1 3.8 6.1 Core Laboratory 616 2,224 2,840 3.4 3.8 7.1 3.7 6.3 Molecular 140 199 339 (3.4) 1.9 5.2 (0.3) 1.5 Point of Care 306 72 378 7.6 13.3 13.6 8.6 8.7 Worldwide Diagnostics sales increased 5.0 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including an unfavorable 0.4 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 5.4 percent on an operational basis. During the quarter, Abbott unveiled its new suite of diagnostic instruments, AlinityTM, at the American Association for Clinical Chemistry conference. The Alinity suite includes new instruments for every area of the diagnostics market where Abbott competes and incorporates features deemed important to customers, including increased automation, higher volumes, faster results, smaller size and an improved user interface. Core Laboratory Diagnostics sales increased 5.6 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including an unfavorable 0.5 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 6.1 percent on an operational basis. Operational sales growth in the quarter was led by continued share gains in the U.S. and internationally. Molecular Diagnostics sales decreased 0.8 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including an unfavorable 0.5 percent effect of foreign exchange, and decreased 0.3 percent on an operational basis. As expected, continued strong growth in Abbott's infectious disease testing business was offset primarily by the planned scale down of its genetics business. Point of Care Diagnostics sales increased 5.6 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including a favorable 0.3 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 5.3 percent on an operational basis. Sales growth was led by continued adoption of Abbott's i-STAT handheld system in the U.S. and international markets. Established Pharmaceuticals ($ in millions) % Change vs. 3Q15 Sales 3Q16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total -- 1,012 1,012 n/a 5.3 9.0 5.3 9.0 Key Emerging Markets -- 747 747 n/a 7.0 12.2 7.0 12.2 Other -- 265 265 n/a 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.6 % Change vs. 9M15 Sales 9M16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total -- 2,880 2,880 n/a 1.6 9.8 1.6 9.8 Key Emerging Markets -- 2,135 2,135 n/a 2.7 13.4 2.7 13.4 Other -- 745 745 n/a (1.5) -- (1.5) -- Established Pharmaceuticals sales increased 5.3 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including an unfavorable 3.7 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 9.0 percent on an operational basis. Key Emerging Markets include India, Russia, Brazil and China, along with several additional emerging markets that represent the most attractive long-term growth opportunities for Abbott's branded generics product portfolio. Sales in these key geographies increased 7.0 percent on a reported basis and 12.2 percent on an operational basis. Operational sales growth was led by continued strong growth in India, which comprises more than 20 percent of Abbott's Established Pharmaceuticals sales, as well as above-market growth in several countries throughout Latin America driven by commercial initiatives and locally relevant portfolio expansion. Medical Devices ($ in millions) % Change vs. 3Q15 Sales 3Q16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total 519 791 1,310 6.0 6.7 6.1 6.4 6.0 Vascular 305 403 708 9.8 2.0 1.4 5.2 4.9 Diabetes Care 96 210 306 (2.2) 19.1 20.7 11.5 12.5 Medical Optics 118 178 296 3.7 4.8 1.7 4.4 2.5 Vascular Product Lines: Coronary Devicesa) 201 336 537 4.8 -- (0.8) 1.8 1.2 Endovascularb) 76 66 142 4.6 13.7 14.3 8.6 8.9 a) Includes DES / BVS product portfolio, structural heart, guidewires, balloon catheters and other coronary products. b) Includes vessel closure, carotid stents and other peripheral products. % Change vs. 9M15 Sales 9M16 Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Reported Operational Reported Operational Total 1,520 2,359 3,879 2.8 4.1 5.6 3.6 4.5 Vascular 940 1,235 2,175 9.5 0.1 1.8 3.9 4.9 Diabetes Care 238 594 832 (18.6) 12.6 15.7 1.5 3.5 Medical Optics 342 530 872 4.2 4.9 4.6 4.6 4.4 Vascular Product Lines: Coronary Devicesa) 597 1,039 1,636 4.5 (1.5) -- 0.6 1.6 Endovascularb) 226 194 420 7.5 9.0 11.7 8.2 9.4 a) Includes DES / BVS product portfolio, structural heart, guidewires, balloon catheters and other coronary products. b) Includes vessel closure, carotid stents and other peripheral products. Worldwide Medical Devices sales increased 6.4 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including a favorable 0.4 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 6.0 percent on an operational basis. Worldwide sales of Vascular products increased 5.2 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including a favorable 0.3 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 4.9 percent on an operational basis. Sales growth in Vascular products was led by double-digit growth of MitraClip, Abbott's device for the treatment of mitral regurgitation, as Abbott continues to build the market for this first-in-class device. Strong sales growth in Abbott's Endovascular business was driven by vessel closure products and Supera, Abbott's unique stent for the treatment of blockages in the leg. In the quarter, Abbott received U.S. FDA approval for Absorb, the only fully dissolving heart stent. Worldwide Diabetes Care sales increased 11.5 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including an unfavorable 1.0 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 12.5 percent on an operational basis. International sales growth was driven by continued consumer uptake of FreeStyle Libre, Abbott's revolutionary continuous glucose monitoring system that eliminates the need for finger-sticks. In September, Abbott received U.S. FDA approval for the FreeStyle Libre Pro system, which is designed to help healthcare professionals make better, customized treatment decisions for their patients and at a significantly lower cost than other professional continuous glucose monitoring systems. During the quarter, Abbott submitted the consumer version of the FreeStyle Libre system for review by the U.S. FDA. The consumer version of the FreeStyle Libre system is designed to eliminate the need for routine finger-sticks and provides glucose data in a simple format that allows people with diabetes to better self-monitor their glucose levels. Worldwide Medical Optics sales increased 4.4 percent on a reported basis in the third quarter, including a favorable 1.9 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 2.5 percent on an operational basis. Operational sales growth was driven by continued market uptake of cataract products in the premium intraocular lens segment. In the quarter, Abbott received U.S. FDA approval and launched its TECNIS Symfony intraocular lenses, the first and only lenses in the U.S. that provide a full range of continuous high-quality vision following cataract surgery. ABBOTT NARROWS ITS FULL-YEAR EARNINGS-PER-SHARE GUIDANCE Abbott is adjusting its projected earnings per share from continuing operations under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) to $0.59 to $0.61 for the full year 2016. Abbott forecasts net specified items for the full year 2016 of approximately $1.60 per share. Specified items include intangible amortization expense, the impact of the Venezuelan currency devaluation in the first quarter and an adjustment to the equity investment in Mylan in the third quarter, expenses associated with acquisitions, including bridge facility fees, charges related to cost reduction initiatives and other expenses and the recognition of deferred taxes associated with the pending sale of the Abbott Medical Optics business (AMO), partially offset by the favorable resolution of various tax positions from prior years. Excluding specified items, Abbott is raising the mid-point and narrowing its full-year 2016 guidance range for earnings per share from continuing operations to $2.19 to $2.21, exceeding its initial guidance for the year. ABBOTT DECLARES 371ST QUARTERLY DIVIDEND On Sept. 15, 2016, the board of directors of Abbott declared the company's quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share. Abbott's cash dividend is payable Nov. 15, 2016, to shareholders of record at the close of business on Oct. 14, 2016. Abbott is a member of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Index, which tracks companies that have annually increased their dividend for 25 consecutive years. About Abbott: Abbott is a global healthcare company devoted to improving life through the development of products and technologies that span the breadth of healthcare. With a portfolio of leading, science-based offerings in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic pharmaceuticals, Abbott serves people in more than 150 countries and employs approximately 74,000 people. Visit Abbott at www.abbott.com and connect with us on Twitter at @AbbottNews. Abbott will webcast its live third-quarter earnings conference call through its Investor Relations website at www.abbottinvestor.com at 8 a.m. Central time today. An archived edition of the call will be available after 11 a.m. Central time. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 A Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements Some statements in this news release may be forward-looking statements for purposes of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Abbott cautions that these forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Economic, competitive, governmental, technological and other factors that may affect Abbott's operations are discussed in Item 1A, "Risk Factors,'' to our Annual Report on Securities and Exchange Commission Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2015, and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2016, and are incorporated by reference. Abbott undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to forward-looking statements as a result of subsequent events or developments, except as required by law. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statement of Earnings Third Quarter Ended September 30, 2016 and 2015 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) 3Q16 3Q15 % Change Net Sales $5,302 $5,150 2.9 Cost of products sold, excluding amortization expense 2,285 2,242 1.9 Amortization of intangible assets 140 151 (7.6) Research and development 352 378 (6.7) Selling, general, and administrative 1,628 1,666 (2.3) Total Operating Cost and Expenses 4,405 4,437 (0.7) Operating earnings 897 713 25.8 Interest expense, net 95 16 n/m 1) Net foreign exchange (gain) loss 9 (14) n/m Other (income) expense, net 972 (3) n/m 2) Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations before taxes (179) 714 n/m Taxes on Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations 178 118 50.4 3) Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations (357) 596 n/m Earnings (Loss) from Discontinued Operations, net of taxes 28 (32) n/m Gain on Sale of Discontinued Operations, net of taxes -- 16 n/m Net Earnings (Loss) from Discontinued Operations, net of taxes 28 (16) n/m Net Earnings (Loss) $(329) $580 n/m Net Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, as described below $883 $821 7.6 4) Diluted Earnings (Loss) per Common Share from: Continuing Operations $(0.24) $0.39 n/m Discontinued Operations 0.02 (0.01) n/m Total $(0.22) $0.38 n/m Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, as described below $0.59 $0.54 9.3 4) Average Number of Common Shares Outstanding Plus Dilutive Common Stock Options 1,476 1,505 5) NOTES: See tables on page 14 for an explanation of certain non-GAAP financial information. n/m = Percent change is not meaningful. See footnotes on the following page. 1) 2016 Interest expense, net includes amortization expense associated with bridge facility fees. 2) 2016 Other (income) expense, net includes a charge of $947 million related to an adjustment of Abbott's holdings of Mylan N.V. ordinary shares to reflect the share price as of Sept. 30, 2016. 3) 2016 Tax expense on Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations includes the impact of the non-deductible Mylan equity investment adjustment and the recognition of deferred taxes associated with the pending sale of AMO, partially offset by a net tax benefit of approximately $105 million as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. 4) 2016 Net Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, excludes net after-tax charges of $1.240 billion, or $0.83 per share, for intangible amortization expense, an adjustment to the equity investment in Mylan, expenses primarily associated with acquisitions, including bridge facility fees, charges related to cost reduction initiatives and other expenses and the recognition of deferred taxes associated with the pending sale of AMO, partially offset by the favorable impact of a net tax benefit as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. 2015 Net Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, excludes net after-tax charges of $225 million, or $0.15 per share, for intangible amortization expense, expenses associated with cost reduction initiatives and other expenses related to acquisitions. 5) 2016 Average number of common shares outstanding excludes approximately 6.7 million shares related to dilutive common stock options, which would be antidilutive. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statement of Earnings Nine Months Ended September 30, 2016 and 2015 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) 9M16 9M15 % Change Net Sales $15,520 $15,217 2.0 Cost of products sold, excluding amortization expense 6,712 6,541 2.6 Amortization of intangible assets 429 458 (6.4) Research and development 1,079 1,036 4.2 Selling, general, and administrative 5,063 5,130 (1.3) Total Operating Cost and Expenses 13,283 13,165 0.9 Operating earnings 2,237 2,052 9.0 Interest expense, net 203 49 n/m 1) Net foreign exchange (gain) loss 497 (63) n/m 2) Other (income) expense, net 999 (287) n/m 3) Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 538 2,353 (77.1) Taxes on Earnings from Continuing Operations 240 442 (45.7) 4) Earnings from Continuing Operations 298 1,911 (84.4) Earnings (Loss) from Discontinued Operations, net of taxes 288 (7) n/m Gain on Sale of Discontinued Operations, net of taxes 16 1,752 (99.1) Net Earnings from Discontinued Operations, net of taxes 304 1,745 (82.6) 5) Net Earnings $602 $3,656 (83.5) Net Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, as described below $2,310 $2,326 (0.7) 6) Diluted Earnings per Common Share from: Continuing Operations $0.20 $1.26 (84.1) Discontinued Operations 0.20 1.15 (82.6) 5) Total $0.40 $2.41 (83.4) Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, as described below $1.55 $1.53 1.3 6) Average Number of Common Shares Outstanding Plus Dilutive Common Stock Options 1,483 1,509 NOTES: See tables on page 15 for an explanation of certain non-GAAP financial information. n/m = Percent change is not meaningful. See footnotes on the following page. 1) 2016 Interest expense, net includes amortization expense associated with bridge facility fees. 2) 2016 Net foreign exchange (gain) loss includes a loss of $481 million related to the revaluation of Abbott's net monetary assets in Venezuela using the Dicom exchange rate, which is the Venezuelan government's official floating exchange rate. 3) 2016 Other (income) expense, net includes a charge of $947 million related to an adjustment of Abbott's holdings of Mylan N.V. ordinary shares to reflect the share price as of Sept. 30, 2016. 2015 Other (income) expense, net includes a gain on the sale of a portion of Abbott's position in Mylan stock and a decrease in the fair value of contingent consideration related to a business acquisition. 4) 2016 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations includes the impact of a net tax benefit of approximately $250 million as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years, partially offset by the unfavorable impact of non-deductible foreign exchange losses related to Venezuela and an adjustment to the equity investment in Mylan and the recognition of deferred taxes associated with the pending sale of AMO. 5) 2016 Earnings, net of taxes and Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Discontinued Operations primarily reflect the impact of a net tax benefit of $289 million as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. 2015 Earnings, net of taxes and Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Discontinued Operations reflect the after-tax gain of $1.752 billion on the sale of the developed markets branded generics pharmaceuticals and animal health businesses to Mylan on Feb. 27, 2015 and Zoetis on Feb. 10, 2015, respectively; the first-quarter financial results from these businesses up to the date of sale; and an unfavorable adjustment to tax expense as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from previous years related to AbbVie operations. 6) 2016 Net Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, excludes net after-tax charges of $2.012 billion, or $1.35 per share, for intangible amortization expense, the foreign exchange loss related to Venezuela, an adjustment to the equity investment in Mylan, expenses associated with acquisitions, including bridge facility fees, other charges related to cost reduction initiatives and other expenses and the recognition of deferred taxes associated with the pending sale of AMO, partially offset by the favorable impact of a net tax benefit as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. 2015 Net Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, excludes net after-tax charges of $415 million, or $0.27 per share, for intangible amortization expense, expenses associated with cost reduction initiatives and other expenses related to acquisitions, partially offset by a gain on the sale of a portion of Abbott's position in Mylan stock and a decrease in the fair value of contingent consideration related to a business acquisition. NON-GAAP RECONCILIATION OF FINANCIAL INFORMATION FROM CONTINUING OPERATIONS Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Financial Information From Continuing Operations Third Quarter Ended September 30, 2016 and 2015 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) 3Q16 As Reported (GAAP) Specified Items As Adjusted % to Sales Intangible Amortization $140 $(140) -- Gross Margin 2,877 158 $3,035 57.3% R&D 352 (22) 330 6.2% SG&A 1,628 (53) 1,575 29.7% Interest expense, net 95 (70) 25 Net foreign exchange (gain) loss 9 (4) 5 Other (income) expense, net 972 (957) 15 Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations before taxes (179) 1,264 1,085 Taxes on Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations 178 24 202 Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations (357) 1,240 883 Diluted Earnings (Loss) per Share from Continuing Operations $(0.24) $0.83 $0.59 Specified items reflect intangible amortization expense of $140 million, an adjustment to the equity investment in Mylan of $947 million, and other expenses of $177 million, primarily associated with acquisitions, including bridge facility fees, charges related to cost reduction initiatives and other expenses and the recognition of approximately $130 million of deferred taxes associated with the pending sale of AMO, partially offset by a net tax benefit of approximately $105 million as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. 3Q15 As Reported (GAAP) Specified Items As Adjusted % to Sales Intangible Amortization $151 $(151) -- Gross Margin 2,757 206 $2,963 57.5% R&D 378 (59) 319 6.2% SG&A 1,666 (46) 1,620 31.4% Other (income) expense, net (3) 12 9 Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 714 299 1,013 Taxes on Earnings from Continuing Operations 118 74 192 Earnings from Continuing Operations 596 225 821 Diluted Earnings per Share from Continuing Operations $0.39 $0.15 $0.54 Specified items reflect intangible amortization expense of $151 million and other expenses of $148 million, primarily associated with cost reduction initiatives and acquisitions. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Financial Information From Continuing Operations Nine Months Ended September 30, 2016 and 2015 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) 9M16 As Reported (GAAP) Specified Items As Adjusted % to Sales Intangible Amortization $429 $(429) -- Gross Margin 8,379 500 $8,879 57.2% R&D 1,079 (68) 1,011 6.5% SG&A 5,063 (150) 4,913 31.7% Interest expense, net 203 (139) 64 Net foreign exchange (gain) loss 497 (481) 16 Other (income) expense, net 999 (962) 37 Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 538 2,300 2,838 Taxes on Earnings from Continuing Operations 240 288 528 Earnings from Continuing Operations 298 2,012 2,310 Diluted Earnings per Share from Continuing Operations $0.20 $1.35 $1.55 Specified items reflect intangible amortization expense of $429 million, an adjustment to the equity investment in Mylan of $947 million, the impact of the foreign exchange loss in Venezuela of $481 million, and other expenses of $443 million, primarily associated with acquisitions, including bridge facility fees, and charges related to cost reduction initiatives and other expenses and the recognition of approximately $130 million of deferred taxes associated with the pending sale of AMO, partially offset by a net tax benefit of approximately $250 million as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. 9M15 As Reported (GAAP) Specified Items As Adjusted % to Sales Intangible Amortization $458 $(458) -- Gross Margin 8,218 577 $8,795 57.8% R&D 1,036 (81) 955 6.3% SG&A 5,130 (155) 4,975 32.7% Other (income) expense, net (287) 294 7 Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 2,353 519 2,872 Taxes on Earnings from Continuing Operations 442 104 546 Earnings from Continuing Operations 1,911 415 2,326 Diluted Earnings per Share from Continuing Operations $1.26 $0.27 $1.53 Specified items reflect intangible amortization expense of $458 million and other expenses of $348 million, primarily associated with cost reduction initiatives and acquisitions, partially offset by a gain on the sale of a portion of Abbott's position in Mylan stock of $207 million and a decrease in the fair value of contingent consideration related to a business acquisition. RECONCILIATION OF TAX RATE FOR CONTINUING OPERATIONS A reconciliation of the third-quarter tax rates for continuing operations for 2016 and 2015 is shown below: 3Q16 ($ in millions) Pre-Tax Income Taxes on Earnings Tax Rate As reported (GAAP) $(179) $178 (99.5%) Specified items 1,264 24 Excluding specified items $1,085 $202 18.6% 3Q15 ($ in millions) Pre-Tax Income Taxes on Earnings Tax Rate As reported (GAAP) $714 $118 16.6% Specified items 299 74 Excluding specified items $1,013 $192 19.0% A reconciliation of the year-to-date tax rates for continuing operations for 2016 and 2015 is shown below: 9M16 ($ in millions) Pre-Tax Income Taxes on Earnings Tax Rate As reported (GAAP) $538 $240 44.5% Specified items 2,300 288 Excluding specified items $2,838 $528 18.6% 9M15 ($ in millions) Pre-Tax Income Taxes on Earnings Tax Rate As reported (GAAP) $2,353 $442 18.8% Specified items 519 104 Excluding specified items $2,872 $546 19.0% Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150928/271488LOGO SOURCE Abbott Related Links http://www.abbott.com NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Task Force on Harassment and Journalism today released a report detailing a troubling, year-long rise in anti-Semitic hate targeting journalists on Twitter, with data showing that the harassment has been driven by rhetoric in the 2016 presidential campaign and identifying some of the groups and individuals responsible. ADL formed the Task Force in June 2016 in response to a disturbing upswing in online, anti-Semitic abuse of reporters. Task force advisors include working journalists, deans from two of the top journalism schools in the country, and experts on hate speech. The report, the first of its kind, presents findings based on a broad set of keywords (and keyword combinations) designed by ADL to capture anti-Semitic language on social media. Using this metric, a total of 2.6 million tweets containing language frequently found in anti-Semitic speech were posted across Twitter between August 2015 and July 2016. Those tweets had an estimated 10 billion impressions (reach), which ADL believes contributed to reinforcing and normalizing anti-Semitic language particularly racial slurs and anti-Israel statements -- on a massive scale. There was a significant uptick in anti-Semitic tweets from January 2016 to July 2016 as coverage of the presidential campaign intensified. Of the 2.6 million total tweets, ADL focused its analysis on tweets directed at 50,000 journalists in the United States. A total of 19,253 anti-Semitic tweets were directed at those journalists, but the total number of anti-Semitic tweets directed at journalists overall could be much higher for a variety of factors noted in the report. The report also shows that more than two-thirds (68 percent) of the anti-Semitic tweets directed at those journalists were sent by 1,600 Twitter accounts (out of 313 million existing Twitter accounts). These aggressors are disproportionately likely to self-identify as Donald Trump supporters, conservatives, or part of the "alt-right," a loosely connected group of extremists, some of whom are white supremacists. The words that appear most frequently in the 1,600 Twitter attackers' bios are "Trump," "nationalist," "conservative," and "white." To be clear: this does not imply that the Trump campaign supported or endorsed the anti-Semitic tweets, only that certain self-styled supporters sent these ugly messages. The data also illustrates the connectedness of the attackers: waves of anti-Semitic tweets tend to emerged from closely connected online "communities." The ADL Task Force study shows that a small cohort of journalists bore the brunt of the online abuse. The Task Force identified that some 19,253 overtly anti-Semitic tweets were sent to at least 800 journalists in the U.S. during the 12 month study. The top 10 most targeted journalists all of whom are Jewish received 83 percent of those 19,253 tweets. The top 10 includes conservative columnist Ben Shapiro, Tablet's Yair Rosenberg, the Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg and The New York Times' Jonathan Weisman, and CNN's Sally Kohn and Jake Tapper. According to the data analysis, Twitter deactivated 21 percent of the accounts responsible for the tweets aimed at journalists. The other offending accounts remain active, and ADL will be providing a list of those accounts to Twitter. ADL's Center on Extremism continues to monitor harassment Twitter and is encouraging journalists to report hateful tweets using the hashtag: #exposethehate. "The spike in hate we've seen online this election cycle is extremely troubling and unlike anything we have seen in modern politics. A half century ago, the KKK burned crosses. Today, extremists are burning up Twitter" said Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO. "We are concerned about the impact of this hate on the ability of journalists to do their job and on free speech, which is why we established this Task Force. We hope this report hastens efforts to combat the surge of hate on social media. We look forward to working with Twitter, media companies, and other online platforms to limit hate and harassment and preserve freedom of speech." While there has been a significant increase in anti-Semitic behavior since the start of the election season and spikes in activity around key campaign events, ADL's analysis did not distinguish between anti-Semitic tweets directly motivated by campaign activity and those that may be independent of it. ADL has been able to identify individuals and websites in the white supremacist world that have played a role in encouraging these attacks. While much of the online harassment of journalists was at the hands of anonymous trolls, ADL has identified two of the neo-Nazis responsible for some of the attacks. They are Andrew Anglin, founder of the popular white supremacist web site "The Daily Stormer" and Lee Rogers of Infostormer (formerly "The Daily Slave"). While both are banned from Twitter, they have encouraged their followers to tweet anti-Semitic language and memes at Jewish journalists. ADL published its first report on cyberhate in 1985. Since then, ADL has been an international leader in tracking, exposing, and responding to hate on the internet. The organization's team of experts analysts, investigators, researchers and linguists use cutting-edge technology to monitor, track, and disrupt extremists and terrorists worldwide. ADL was one of the first groups to detail terrorists' use of Twitter for recruiting, and ADL coordinates closely with U.S. law enforcement, warning it about online hate activities and trends in real time to help stop their spread and prevent harm to communities. In 2014, ADL in consultation with Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter, Yahoo, and YouTube created best practices to counter online hate that have become a template for responsibility and a centerpiece for coordination between the industry and community. And in 2016, ADL's Center on Extremism added the (((echo symbol))) and Pepe the Frog meme to its online hate symbols database. The advisors to the ADL Task Force on Harassment and Journalism are: Danielle Citron, Professor of Law at the University of Maryland; Steve Coll, Dean of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism; Todd Gitlin, Professor and Chair, Ph.D. Program, Columbia Journalism School; Brad Hamm, Dean of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University; Shawn Henry, retired Executive Assistant Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Bethany Mandel, columnist at the Jewish Daily Forward and New York Post; Jay Michaelson, columnist at The Daily Beast and Contributing Editor at the Forward; Leon Wieseltier, Contributing Editor at The Atlantic and Isaiah Berlin Senior Fellow in Culture and Policy at The Brookings Institution. As a 501c3 nonprofit organization, ADL takes no position on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for office. The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry. Follow us on Twitter: @ADL_News SOURCE Anti-Defamation League Related Links http://www.adl.org MIAMI, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A+E Networks Latin America accomplished an unusual and highly anticipated presentation of its Upfront 2017 from October 6th through 11th at the Hotel Paradisus in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, using an innovative concept communicated by the artificial intelligence figure, ALEXIA. ALEXIA is an application, acting as an element for integration, promotion and communication between all those attending the convention, which included an intense schedule of activations with brand presence flooding all zones of the host hotel, from the convention center to its beaches. ALEXIA connects participants with the total Upfront 2017 experience, with the schedule, activities and one on one interaction featuring all the elements and characteristics of social media. During the presentations, it was emphasized that A+E Networks Latin America is a User Centric Company, geared towards satisfying and entertaining its internal and external users, while its main competitive advantage lies in the emotional connection that it establishes with its users through its content and brand experiences. The presentation was led by Eddy Ruiz (President and General Manager), Daniela Martinez (SVP Corporate and Strategy Research) and Cesar Sabroso (SVP Affiliate, PR and Corporate Marketing). Eddy Ruiz highlighted the role performed by the social responsibility Una Idea Para Cambiar la Historia (History) and Valora Tu Tiempo ('Value Your Time') (Lifetime), in the corporation's priorities. He went on to emphasize the creativity of the pieces made by the UCS (User Creative Solutions) department, which creates customized solutions for advertisers' needs. Daniela Martinez, for her part, noted that nowadays people no longer buy only in accordance with the characteristics of traditional demographic audiences, but one must also stress the role played by emotional triggers, as she demonstrated in the study, User Intelligence Beyond Demographics, where she highlights seven psychographic segments with different consumption habits, behaviors and tendencies. Cesar Sabroso presented the highlights and novelties of programming together with A&E talent: Drew Manning from Fit2Fat2Fit Eoin Macken, Jill Flint and Brendan Fehr from The Night Shift, HISTORY: Juan Pablo Raba and Nadine Velazquez from Six, LIFETIME: Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman, Kim Matula, Meagan Tandy from UnReal and H2: Scott Wolter from America Unearthed. The Upfront 2017 presentation by A+E Networks Latin America included the presentation of a panel of experts, "TV Think Next," lead and moderated by Eddy Ruiz. The panel featured the participation of Ricardo Ferraris (CEO of Omnicom Media Group), Fernando Honeski (Director and Scriptwriter of Honesko), Antonio Wanderley (COO of Katar IBOPE). The presentation also incorporated Jason Wiesse VP of VAB, as a Key Note Speaker. In the convention center, participants were able to experience "A+E Studios", including a master control, a dubbing booth where clients could dub their favorite series, a surprising virtual reality experience through which one could experience the inside of a prison in the best style of A&E's 60 Days In, an education and prevention activation on breast cancer through texturized walls that enable us to learn about breast cancer prevention through the LIFETIME initiative, Valora Tu Tiempo ('Value Your Time'), a race car simulator for HISTORY's Boy Toys, together with the opportunity to get your picture taken with the stars of your favorite series in the A+E Networks Latin America portfolio. At the same time, the USC (User Creative Solutions) team demonstrated its creativity and rapid response capacity by generating immediate content throughout the duration of the convention. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429885LOGO SOURCE A+E Networks Latin America LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa., Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Air Products (NYSE: APD) today announced the signing of an agreement for the supply of multiple industrial gases to Chemours Company FC, LLC. Air Products will build, own and operate an air separation unit (ASU) in New Johnsonville, Tennessee to produce oxygen, nitrogen, and argon, and will also supply Chemours with compressed dry air and breathing air for its established titanium dioxide (TiO2) production facility. The new Air Products plant is to be onstream in the fall of 2018. "This is a great build on our existing relationship with titanium dioxide market-leader Chemours, maker of Ti-Pure brand titanium dioxide. We are very pleased to be producing and supplying industrial gases in New Johnsonville. This opportunity presents Air Products with an attractive geographic location in the southeastern United States (U.S.) where we can continue to build density and reliably supply our customers with industrial gases," said Marie Ffolkes, President, Americas Industrial Gases at Air Products. In addition, Air Products' production of liquid argon at New Johnsonville provides a location closer to merchant customer end markets in the north and central U.S. "The additional source of liquid argon coming from this new facility complements our existing supply capabilities in the Gulf Coast. The Tennessee location will assist Air Products in meeting expected growth in the argon market in northern and central regions," said Ffolkes. Air Products currently owns and operates over 300 air separation plants in over 40 countries worldwide serving varied customer applications. In addition to its plants, the company has sold, designed, and built more than 2,000 air separation plants globally. Air Products' cryogenic offerings span from plants with a capability of 50 tons per day (TPD), to single train facilities with oxygen production capacities beyond 4,000 TPD. About Air Products Air Products (NYSE:APD) is a world-leading Industrial Gases company celebrating 75 years of operation. The company's core Industrial Gases business provides atmospheric and process gases and related equipment to manufacturing markets, including refining and petrochemical, metals, electronics, and food and beverage. Air Products is also the world's leading supplier of liquefied natural gas process technology and equipment. The company's Performance Materials Division serves the polyurethanes, cleaning and coatings, and adhesives industries. The company had fiscal 2015 sales of $9.9 billion and has a current market capitalization of approximately $30 billion. Approximately 17,000 employees in 50 countries strive to make Air Products the world's safest and best performing Industrial Gases company, providing sustainable offerings and excellent service to all customers. For more information, visit www.airproducts.com. NOTE: This release may contain forward-looking statements within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on management's reasonable expectations and assumptions as of the date of this release regarding important risk factors. Actual performance and financial results may differ materially from projections and estimates expressed in the forward-looking statements because of many factors not anticipated by management, including risk factors described in the Company's Form 10K for its fiscal year ended September 30, 2015. SOURCE Air Products Related Links http://www.airproducts.com DETROIT, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Ally today announced that it has placed Ally Lucky Pennies that could be worth $1,000 each in 10 cities around the country. The initiative seeks to demonstrate the importance of valuing every cent, while encouraging Americans to look for opportunities to save. The multi-city search invites people in these cities to be on the lookout for the 100 Ally Lucky Pennies, each of which is redeemable for $1,000. Beginning today, people in Austin, Texas, Charlotte, N.C., Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, San Diego and Washington, D.C. can try to find the Ally Lucky Pennies in their cities. When found, Ally Lucky Pennies can be redeemed online from Oct.18 through Dec. 31, 2016 at AllyLuckyPenny.com. Finders can enter the redemption code located on the back of the Ally Lucky Penny on the site to begin verification as a potential prize winner. Clues to Ally Lucky Penny locations and updates on those already found will be provided on social media throughout the campaign. "Ally's Lucky Penny initiative is a great example of how we Do It Right for consumers by inviting them to be a part of the search, thus raising awareness and creating opportunities for new conversations about money," said Andrea Riley, chief marketing officer. "We hope that people will have fun searching for Ally Lucky Pennies in their cities and that the campaign will inspire people to look at money in a different way." Ally interviewed passersby in some of the 10 participating markets and asked for their thoughts about picking up pennies off the street. The response was overwhelmingly one-sided. Ally Lucky Penny aims to influence perception around the value of a penny and cause consumers to think twice about leaving any money uncollected. The Ally Lucky Pennies placed in participating cities are slightly larger than a regular penny, with the Ally logo on the front and the number 100,000 on the back, signifying how many cents the Ally Lucky Penny could be worth. "We believe every penny counts when it comes to saving, and it's important for everyone to understand that routinely saving, even the smallest amounts, is important to generating wealth over time," said Diane Morais, chief executive officer and president of the Ally Bank subsidiary. "As a relentless financial ally for our customers, we focus on offering customers competitive rates and minimal fees as a way to help their money work harder and incentivize good savings habits." To learn more about Ally Lucky Penny, and for clues and updates on the Ally Lucky Pennies and their locations, visit AllyLuckyPenny.com and follow the hashtag #AllyLuckyPenny on Twitter and Facebook. About Ally Financial Inc. Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE: ALLY) is a leading digital financial services company and a top 25 U.S. financial holding company offering financial products for consumers, businesses, automotive dealers and corporate clients. Ally's legacy dates back to 1919, and the company was redesigned in 2009 with a distinctive brand, innovative approach and relentless focus on its customers. Ally has an award-winning online bank (Ally Bank Member FDIC), one of the largest full service auto finance operations in the country, a complementary auto-focused insurance business, a growing digital wealth management and online brokerage platform, and a trusted corporate finance business offering capital for equity sponsors and middle-market companies. The company had approximately $157.9 billion in assets as of June 30, 2016. For more information, visit the Ally press room at http://media.ally.com or follow Ally on Twitter: @AllyFinancial. Media contact: Desiree Chavis 646-781-2544 [email protected] SOURCE Ally Financial SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Amendola Communications, a nationally recognized, award-winning healthcare and healthcare IT public relations and marketing agency, announced today that it is expanding its operations to Boston to better serve its growing roster of East Coast clients. The Arizona-based company, with staff in Silicon Valley and in Chicago, is pleased to establish a presence in the key healthcare and health IT hub of Boston. Boston operations will be led by Director of Marketing and Public Relations Heather Caouette, an accomplished public relations leader who most recently spent 10 years with the Westborough, MA-based electronic health records vendor eClinicalWorks. While at eClinicalWorks, Caouette was responsible for the development and execution of the company's global PR and marketing activities, which helped grow the company from 250 to 5,000 employees and included marketing, PR, events, social media, digital marketing, branding and messaging. She also assisted a variety of technology innovators, from start-ups to industry leaders, in meeting their public relations goals while with Schwartz Communications. Her work has received multiple Publicity Club of New England's Bell Ringer Awards and she has been recognized as one of PRSourceCode's 'Top Tech Communicators.' Caouette holds a Bachelor of Science in Communication from Boston University and an M.B.A. in Finance from Bentley University. At Amendola, she manages key client accounts, constructing and executing integrated marketing and public relations campaigns that align with key business objectives. Caouette is joined by Senior Writer Julie Donnelly, an award-winning former journalist who spent more than five years as the healthcare reporter for the Boston Business Journal. She has won an Edward R. Murrow Award and has been honored by the Associated Press, the Society of Professional Journalists and the Association of Capitol Reporters and Editors. Donnelly holds a B.A. in Political Science from Macalester College and an M.A. in International Journalism from City University in London, U.K. She currently provides custom content to healthcare and HIT clients including blogs, contributed articles, white papers, website copy, news releases and executive speeches. "Boston is, without a doubt, one of the most important healthcare clusters in the country, so we need to be here," said Jodi Amendola, CEO and founder. "As we build our roster of clients along the East Coast, we're pleased to offer PR and content marketing pros that can quickly respond to client needs across all U.S. time zones." To download a headshot of Heather Caouette, click here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/30327996951/in/dateposted-public/ To download a headshot of Julie Donnelly, click here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/29782681444/in/dateposted-public/ Tweet this: eClinicalWorks' Heather Caouette & Boston Business Journal healthcare reporter Julie Donnelley join @AmendolaComm http://bit.ly/2aLriaQ About Amendola Communications Amendola Communications is an award-winning national public relations, marketing communications, social media and content marketing firm. Named one of the best information technology (IT) PR firms in the nation four times by PRSourceCode, Amendola represents some of the best-known brands and groundbreaking startups in the healthcare and HIT industries. Amendola's seasoned team of PR and marketing pros delivers strategic guidance and effective solutions to help organizations boost their reputation and drive market share. For more information about the PR industry's "A Team," visit www.acmarketingpr.com, and follow Amendola on Twitter and LinkedIn. Media Contact: Jodi Amendola Amendola Communications (480) 664-8412 ext. 11 [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140404/MM99055LOGO SOURCE Amendola Communications BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- American Family Care (AFC), the nation's leading provider of urgent care, accessible primary care, and occupational medicine, announced today it will once again undertake a national campaign to promote flu prevention in the United States. Central to the effort is the company's reprise of its highly successful National Flu Prevention Week, from October 24 to October 30. During this time, flu vaccinations will be offered at little or no cost to new and existing patients visiting AFC clinics. The World Health Organization estimates that influenza is responsible for between 250,000 and 500,000 deaths globally every year. However, in the wake of AFC's efforts to promote flu shots and reduce the spread of influenza in the workplace during the 20152016 season, overall influenza activity in the U.S. was only moderate, with a lower percentage of outpatient visits for influenza-like illness, lower hospitalization rates, and a lower percentage of deaths attributed to pneumonia and influenza, compared with the preceding three seasons, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Medical experts agree that the key to replicating last year's moderate flu season is vaccination. "With more than 160 medical centers in 26 states seeing more than 2 million patients a year, AFC deals with the flu as much or more than any other health care provider outside of the federal government, so we understand the impact it can have on people and their families," said Dr. Jeremy Allen, of American Family Care. "As one of the leading providers of occupational medicine in the U.S., we also understand the effect the flu has on businesses and the economy overall." Flu Prevention Help for Employers AFC's National Flu Prevention Week has been designed to provide individuals and businesses with guidance beyond the need to be vaccinated. In addition to providing low-cost or no-cost flu shots at their clinics, AFC has also established guidelines for employers to mitigate the risk of flu in the workplace. Indeed, according to researchers at the CDC, the annual direct costs hospitalization, doctors' office visits, medications, etc. of influenza in the U.S. are estimated at $4.6 billion. Additionally, up to 111 million workdays are lost because of influenza at an estimated cost of $7 billion per year in sick days and lost productivity. "The flu takes a devastating toll on our nation's workforce," says Allen. "Employers should make sure they give workers time to go get their flu vaccination and step up the cleaning and disinfecting of their facilities to keep the workplace as germ-free as possible." Flu Prevention Hotline Established To assist in deploying flu prevention measures in the workplace, AFC has established a hotline specifically for employers interested in curtailing the spread of colds and flu in the weeks and months ahead. Employers seeking help may call (205) 271-5037 Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Central time. While supplies last, AFC is also making available workplace readiness kits, which contain items essential to reducing the spread of the influenza virus. These kits include: Paper towels Recent studies show 12 percent of surfaces that looked clean were heavily contaminated, mainly because sponges and cleaning cloths were full of bacteria from a previous wipe-up. Discarding sponges and using paper towels can help keep surfaces germ-free. Clorox Healthcare Hydrogen Peroxide Disinfectant Spray Especially during the cold and flu season, cleaning crews should use this spray to treat doorknobs, handles, light switches, phones, computer mousses, railings, elevator buttons and escalator rails. Viruses can live up to 48 hours on plastic and stainless steel surfaces. Hand sanitizer Studies find that microbes can be transferred from workers' hands to keyboards, phones and desks. This means that these surfaces may harbor 400 times more germs than the average toilet seat because they're rarely cleaned. Pens galore Employees should have their own stockpile of pens they don't share with colleagues. Pens carry a ton of germs that are easily transferred when shared. Hand sanitizer wipes Employees should have a pack on their desks, whether to clean their hands or public surfaces. Flu Prevention Checklist Lastly, in addition to the items contained the kit, AFC has also developed a flu prevention checklist for distribution to individual employees so they can be more knowledgeable themselves. One Nation. Free From Flu. To aid their effort, AFC has adopted the slogan, "One Nation. Free from Flu", which will be used across multiple marketing channels to communicate the company's goal for the inaugural year of the campaign. "Given the cost of influenza in human lives and economic impact, governments and health care organizations across the globe need to do a better job to mitigate its toll," said William L. Koleszar, Chief Marketing Officer of American Family Care. "As an industry leader, we have a responsibility to do everything in our power to make a difference from educating the public, to consulting with employers, and beyond. We believe it's simply the right thing to do." For more information on National Flu Prevention Week and how to obtain flu vaccinations at little or no cost at participating AFC clinics, visit www.NationalFluPreventionWeek.com. About American Family Care: Starting with a single location in 1982, American Family Care has pioneered the concept of non-emergency room urgent care. With its 2013 acquisition of the Doctors Express franchise, AFC has become the nation's leading provider of urgent care, accessible primary care, and occupational medicine, with more than 160 clinics and 500 in-network physicians caring for 2 million patients a year. Ranked by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest growing companies in the U.S., AFC's stated mission is to provide the best health care possible, in a kind and caring environment, while respecting the rights of all patients, in an economical manner, at times and locations convenient to the patient. For more information, visit www.americanfamilycare.com. MEDIA CONTACTS: Nancy Bostrom [email protected] 919-459-8163 Sue Yannello [email protected] 919-459-8162 SOURCE American Family Care Related Links http://www.americanfamilycare.com Dr. Schoenberg will speak in a plenary session on Wednesday, Nov. 2 at 10 am PT called "Reimagining the Hospital" alongside Dr. Eric Topol of Scripps Research Institute and Dr. Randall Moore of Mercy Virtual. Ido will discuss how telemedicine addresses the full care continuum as well as opportunities for virtual care outside the U.S. American Well executives will also present at the following premier industry events, through November 2016: Partners Connected Health Symposium Dates: Oct. 20-21 Location: Boston Details: Dr. Roy Schoenberg, Co-founder and CEO, will speak on a panel on direct-to-consumer telehealth on Friday, Oct. 21 at 8:50 am ET. Cleveland Clinic Medical Innovation Summit Dates: Oct. 24-26 Location: Cleveland Details: Dr. Roy Schoenberg will speak on a panel on the age of telemedicine on Tuesday, Oct. 25 at 3:35 pm ET. The American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) of MA Fall Conference Date: Nov. 3 Location: Needham, MA Details: Dr. Peter Antall, Chief Medical Officer, will deliver a 'TED' style presentation on how American Well is helping address gaps in care through technology, beginning at 8:30 am ET. Becker's Healthcare CEO & CFO Roundtable Dates: Nov. 7-9 Location: Chicago Details: Katie Ruigh, SVP, Product, will speak on a panel on the evolution of wearable technology on Tuesday, Nov. 8 at 10 am CT. Dr. Peter Antall will also speak on a panel on physician engagement strategies on Wednesday, Nov. 9 at 4:05 pm CT. Xconomy: What's Hot in Boston Health Tech Date: Nov. 17 Location: Boston Details: Dr. Roy Schoenberg will deliver a presentation on the future of virtual care, and touch on the Exchange, American Well's newest enterprise telehealth service that allows healthcare organizations to redistribute services with one another online. For more information on American Well, please visit: www.americanwell.com. For executive speaking inquiries, please email our events team: [email protected]. About American Well American Well transforms healthcare delivery through telehealth. We make online doctor visits accessible to everyone for one-off care issues like colds or infections, and chronic condition management, such as diabetes or depression. We deliver healthcare into people's homes and workplaces through our work with top health plans, health systems and employers, as well as our telehealth app, Amwell. A patient using Amwell can connect to a board-certified doctor of their choosing in just minutes for a visit carried out over smartphone, tablet, kiosk, phone, or desktop. American Well and Amwell are registered trademarks or trademarks of American Well Corporation in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. For more information on our services, visit www.americanwell.com. To download Amwell and have a doctor visit now, visit www.amwell.com. Media Contact: Amanda Guisbond [email protected] Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429766 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150429/212541LOGO SOURCE American Well Related Links http://www.americanwell.com NEW YORK, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Americas coating additives market is expected to reach USD 2.35 billion by 2024, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The American architectural industry has witnessed significant growth in the past few years and is expected to continue in the near future. The automobile industry is also anticipated to join the league with comparatively less influence on product demand over the next eight years. Industries including the oil and gas, marine, industrial processing, and wood & furniture in the region are also expected to add to the market value in the near future. Waterborne additives had the highest market penetration while accounting for over 49% of the total demand in 2015. Increasing infrastructure spending, particularly in the residential & commercial sectors is anticipated to steer product demand over the next few years. The favorable regulatory scenario in the region coupled with shifting consumer preference towards low-VOC content in paints and coatings may be attributed to the high growth in the segment. Further key findings from the report suggest: The Americas coating additives market demand was 348.6 kilo tons in 2015 and is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 3.8% from 2016 to 2024 to reach a net volume exceeding 480 kilo tons by 2024 Waterborne flow additives are expected to account for over 17% of the regional revenue by 2024. Growing demand for easy flow and leveling over wooden and plastic surfaces is anticipated to drive the segment growth over the next eight years. Solventborne defoaming agents demand in Brazil is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of over 3% over the forecast period. Increasing demand for deaerating automotive, industrial, wood, and furniture coatings is expected steer product demand over the next few years. Matting agents demand in Canada was 1.46 kilo tons in 2015. Surging demand for gloss effect and enhanced durability of decorative applications is expected to enhance product consumption in the region. Product demand for architecture segment in Mexico is expected to generate revenue exceeding USD 80 million by 2024. Collaborations with various designers from Brazil, Italy, and the UK for developing creative infrastructure models for residential and commercial sectors, which in turn, is anticipated to drive market growth in the region. The Americas coating additives market comprises a large number of integrated companies having immense experience in the industry and large client base globally. Some of the leading players include AkzoNobel NV, Ashland, Elementis Plc, The Lubrizol Corporation, The Eastman Chemical Company, and BYK-Chemie GmbH. Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p04230394-summary/view-report.html About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. http://www.reportlinker.com __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links http://www.reportlinker.com NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- How should women network in a male-dominated business world? How do successful women maintain a work-life balance? Are business cards a thing of the past? On October 13, Americas Society/Council of the Americas (AS/COA) assembled a group of successful executives and entrepreneurs, along with an audience of female young professionals, for its Fifth Annual Women's Hemispheric Network Conference in NYC a half-day forum crammed with personal stories, advice, inspiration, and networking opportunities to help women from throughout the Americas reach leadership positions. "As I look around the world and as I travel around Latin America, I see how important this network is, and how important it is that we inspire young women to participate in the workforce and to stay in the workforce," said AS/COA President and CEO Susan Segal. Under the slogan "Lead to Inspire, Inspire to Lead," speakers at the conference welcomed over 120 participants and challenged them to take risks in their careers, whether as part of the corporate world, in public service, or at the helm of their own businesses. "You cannot wait to be offered a political role or a political place in your organization or in your life. You must take it," said Telefonica Director of Public Affairs Global Strategy and Spain's former Minister of Foreign Affairs Trinidad Jimenez, in her keynote remarks. At a panel moderated by CNNE anchor Gabriela Frias, women entrepreneurs shared their experiences and their personal strategies to cope with failure. "I'm going to allow myself one minute, two at the most to say I'm throwing in the towel," said La Newyorkina founder Fany Gerson, recalling a challenging episode. The conversation included Beleza Natural founder and CEO Leila Velez and LOVILL Latamlex Founding Partner Cristina Lopez. MSNBC anchor Richard Lui moderated a panel on building a brand and creating quality work relationships. "Nobody knows about your hard work unless you tell them," Bloomberg's Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion Erika Irish Brown said. "People need to know your story." Head of Latin America at Pfizer Innovative Health Om Arora and EVP of Global Distribution at HBO Bernadette Aulestia completed the panel. In a panel moderated by HSBC Co-Head of Global Banking for Latin America Katia Bouazza, four of HSBC's female bankers discussed how women can take advantage of professional connections. Participants also included Head of Security Services for the Americas Alexis Meissner, Chief Operating Officer for Global Market Businesses Suzy White, and Relationship Manager for Institutional Clients Courtney Wright. AS/COA Women's Hemispheric Network launched in October 2012 as a workshop in NYC bringing together more than 100 women along with then-UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet and First Lady of Mexico Margarita Zavala, who served as keynote speakers. Since then, it has held events in Bogota, Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Miami, Lima, Panama City, Santiago, and Sao Paulo. Learn more: View videos of our Conference. Check out our 2016 events. Get updates via our portal. More information: [email protected] . . Press: AS/COA Media Relations | [email protected] | 212-277-8384 | 212-277-8333. AS/COA Women's Hemispheric Network is sponsored by HSBC. Americas Society (AS) is the premier organization dedicated to education, debate and dialogue in the Americas. Established by David Rockefeller in 1965, our mission is to foster an understanding of the contemporary political, social and economic issues confronting Latin America, the Caribbean, and Canada, and to increase public awareness and appreciation of the diverse cultural heritage of the Americas and the importance of the inter-American relationship. Council of the Americas (COA) is the premier international business organization whose members share a common commitment to economic and social development, open markets, the rule of law, and democracy throughout the Western Hemisphere. SOURCE Council of the Americas SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Antenna, an award-winning public relations agency focused on energy and smart technology companies, today announced the addition of 10 new companies to its client portfolio ranging in size from start-ups to global organizations. New clients span the agency's Energy + Sustainability and Smart Life practices with an emphasis on breakthrough technologies transforming industries such as Internet of Things (IoT), solar power, smart home and autonomous vehicles. "Antenna has a twenty-year tradition of working with companies tackling front-page issues around energy, sustainability and technology that will have a profound impact on our future," said Matt Stewart, vice president at Antenna. "As interest in these cutting-edge technologies continues to soar, innovative companies need a communications partner as flexible and creative as they are. Antenna's unparalleled communications pedigree is an ideal match for entrepreneurial companies seeking breakout velocity in these arenas." Antenna's client roster now features these innovative companies: Alta Energy , a renewable energy navigator that empowers enterprises to make smarter energy decisions, guided by expert analysis, strategy formation and project execution. , a renewable energy navigator that empowers enterprises to make smarter energy decisions, guided by expert analysis, strategy formation and project execution. Blue Pillar , the only IoT solution to unite all Energy Things onto a single platform, unleashing the power of real-time data to strengthen critical infrastructure and accelerate business. , the only IoT solution to unite all Energy Things onto a single platform, unleashing the power of real-time data to strengthen critical infrastructure and accelerate business. Civil Maps , a groundbreaking 3D mapping startup at the forefront of autonomous vehicle technology that recently secured $6.6 million in funding, including backing from Ford Motor Company. a groundbreaking 3D mapping startup at the forefront of autonomous vehicle technology that recently secured in funding, including backing from Ford Motor Company. Divergent 3D , a technology company that licenses a software-hardware platform enabled by 3D metal printing that radically transforms auto manufacturing economics and environmental impact. , a technology company that licenses a software-hardware platform enabled by 3D metal printing that radically transforms auto manufacturing economics and environmental impact. Edisun Microgrids , developer of the PV Booster TM rooftop solar tracker that increases the economics of traditional commercial and industrial photovoltaic (PV) solar systems by 20 percent. , developer of the PV Booster rooftop solar tracker that increases the economics of traditional commercial and industrial photovoltaic (PV) solar systems by 20 percent. Motus Ventures , a venture capital fund focusing on the intersection of transportation, smart infrastructure and the IoT. , a venture capital fund focusing on the intersection of transportation, smart infrastructure and the IoT. mPrest , a command-and-control software provider for utilities and IoT, which currently powers Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system. , a command-and-control software provider for utilities and IoT, which currently powers Iron Dome missile defense system. RayVio , an advanced health and hygiene company that delivers clean water and environments through ultraviolet LED technology. , an advanced health and hygiene company that delivers clean water and environments through ultraviolet LED technology. TransLoc , a transportation technology company that works with more than 140 transit providers to deliver seamless mobility for all through elegant software. , a transportation technology company that works with more than 140 transit providers to deliver seamless mobility for all through elegant software. Zen Ecosystems, an energy management provider focused on the small and medium commercial market. Antenna has earned wide recognition from the communications industry over the past year. Earlier this year, the agency won the Bronze Anvil Award of Commendation from the Public Relations Society of America in the consumer services category for its work with Doorman, an on-demand package delivery app. The company was also named a finalist for 2016 SABRE Awards North America for the initiative "Introducing the Next Big Solar Market: The Oil Industry" for GlassPoint Solar. Last year, Antenna vice president Kimberly Setliff was honored as a PR News Rising PR Star 30 & Under for 2015. "Antenna's success is a testament to our amazing team members, who bring an unrivaled level of passion and curiosity to everything they do," said Setliff. "We are rapidly expanding across three offices to support our sustained growth and look forward to adding new 'Ants' to the family." Antenna is hiring at all levels. Dynamic communications professionals interested in joining the team in San Francisco, New York or New Jersey are encouraged to apply. About Antenna Antenna is a public relations agency focused on energy and sustainability, Smart Life technology and life sciences. By harnessing the power of traditional and digital media platforms, Antenna helps innovative companies achieve breakout velocity. Comprehensive capabilities range from strategic messaging and media relations to content development and social media. Learn more at antennagroup.com. SOURCE Antenna Related Links http://antennagroup.com HONOLULU, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- ArcSling LLC is proud to introduce its Motion Converter, designed to enable an alternative energy powered un-tethering from the grid. The pendulum powered Motion Converter produces electricity by harvesting kinetic energy resulting from the rocking and swinging motions that occur in our everyday lives. The unit can also be pushed or pulled to generate electricity manually. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429803 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429804 Equipped with not only two 5V USB ports but also with a 12V port for added versatility, the unit can be used to charge cell phones, tablets and most GPS and Bluetooth devices. The ArcSling Motion Converter can also be used for charging external battery power packs to store energy for later use. The Motion Converter efficiently produces power in remote areas, unlike solar and wind energy converters that are at a disadvantage because of the intermittent nature of their energy sources. Different from large-scale wave energy converters, ArcSling's device promotes distributed energy generation and storage that does not rely on pricey utility companies. There is no need for the large invasive infrastructure associated with environmentally-harmful industrial-scale wave energy converters. ArcSling has produced a video available on http://arcsling.com/, highlighting their revolutionary technologies. ArcSling's founder Clyde Igarashi explains, "ArcSling's technologies harness the naturally-occurring kinetic energy that's surrounds us. They have the potential to be vital to the globe as the world searches for cleaner energy solutions. The Motion Converter is the first stage of ArcSling's plans. Powering smaller devices represent great possibilities and opportunities. Our ultimate goal for this technology is to be able to replace or augment batteries used in today's mobile devices with smaller, longer-lasting and more efficient technology. Energy will be "harvested" from the environment, wasting fewer natural resources." ArcSling is also working with partners to scale up their technologies for bigger devices. Primarily because of low conversion efficiencies, there is no standard technology for wave energy conversion at the present time. The company hopes to remedy this situation and looks forward to further developing technologies that harness movements which occur all around us. ArcSling is currently running a Kickstarter campaign to promote its technologies: http://kck.st/2dmNWrf. For more information go to http://arcsling.com/ or contact [email protected] Media contact: Clyde Igarashi Email 888 485-6350 SOURCE ArcSling LLC Related Links http://arcsling.com DUBAI, United Arab Emirates and ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- On Tuesday, the ASTM International Board of Directors held 20 events with government and industry leaders in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. This "Outreach Day" included an event hosted by the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Federation of UAE Chambers where Thomas announced ASTM International's 100th Memorandum of Understanding. All GCC nations as well as the Gulf Standardization Organization (GSO) have joined this program in recent years. U.S. Ambassador to the UAE Barbara Leaf provided keynote remarks at dinner. "Voluntary and technical standards are all around us, and they give confidence to people and organizations to go about their daily lives," she said. "Once people begin to learn about what standards are and why they are important, it is easy to realize that they are essential for products and services to be traded with consistency, predictability, and reliability." Leaf also joined Christian Reed, Executive Director for the Middle East and Africa at the U.S. Department of Commerce, in presenting Thomas a framed letter recognizing his leadership and his upcoming retirement, signed by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker. Throughout the day, board members and staff also visited: Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council AGE Steel Al Hosn University Delta Metallurgical Dubai Aluminum Dubai Central Laboratories, Dubai Health Authority ECIL Consulting Services Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology (ESMA) Geo-Chem Middle East Khalifa University Knauf Koltay Facades Masdar City Ready Mix Abu Dhabi Red Wing Shoes Sinterex, Takreer Research Centre Union Pipes Industry The week's activities also included an amusement-ride standards workshop as well as an event on Sunday at NYU-Abu Dhabi. On Thursday, ASTM International, the International Code Council, and the U.S. Department of Commerce International Trade Administration will jointly sponsor the Standards and Codes for Sustainable Construction Workshop in Dubai, featuring high-level dialogue with government and industry leaders (more information here). The U.S. Embassy supported several of the above events this week as part of its "Discover America" month. Helping our world work better Over 12,000 ASTM standards operate globally. Defined and set by us, they improve the lives of millions every day. Combined with our innovative business services, they enhance performance and help everyone have confidence in the things they buy and use from the toy in a child's hand to the aircraft overhead. Working across borders, disciplines, and industries we harness the expertise of over 30,000 members to create consensus and improve performance in manufacturing and materials, products and processes, systems and services. Understanding commercial needs and consumer priorities, we touch every part of everyday life: helping our world work better. Media Inquiries: Nathan Osburn, tel +1.610.832.9603; [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141021/153355LOGO SOURCE ASTM International Related Links http://www.astm.org FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- AutoNation (NYSE: AN), America's largest auto retailer, announced today that seven of its stores have been named in Automotive News' top 100 list of "Best Dealerships to Work For," all of which are repeat winners. AutoNation Honda South Corpus Christi in Corpus Christi, TX, a 4-time winner, was listed as one of the, "Top 10 Best Dealership to Work For," in the country. AutoNation continues to prove that it's not only a great place to purchase or service a vehicle but also a great place to work. The designation is awarded through a survey process administered by Best Companies Group, an independent third party, who observes the work environment dealerships offer their associates. Selection criteria include working conditions, benefits, professional development opportunities and work-life balance. Mike Jackson, AutoNation's Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and President, said, "This honor is a true testament to the hard work and focus we put into making sure our dealerships offer the best environment for our associates. In 2015, we sold over 10 million vehicles, a milestone that no other automotive retailer has ever done. Each vehicle was sold one at a time: by outstanding men and women from coast to coast. Without a solid group of professionals, we would not be able to deliver the peerless customer experience that millions of AutoNation's customers have come to expect." The other AutoNation locations, each multi-year winners, making the list were 2-time winner, AutoNation Buick GMC West in Golden, CO, 2-time winner, AutoNation Ford Gulf Freeway in Houston, TX, 4-time winner, AutoNation Chevrolet in Amarillo, TX, 3-time winner, Porsche Plano in Plano, TX, 3-time winner Valencia BMW in Valencia, CA and 4-time winner, Newport Auto Center in Newport Beach, CA. For more information about the awards and the process through which they're granted, visit www.bestdealershipstoworkfor.com. To shop any AutoNation retail location for a vehicle or find a store nearby, visit www.AutoNation.com. Investors and those seeking more information about the company should visit investors.autonation.com. About AutoNation, Inc. AutoNation, America's largest automotive retailer, through its bold leadership, innovation is transforming the automotive industry. As of September 30, 2016, AutoNation owned and operated 371 new vehicle franchises from coast to coast. AutoNation has sold over 10 million vehicles, the first automotive retailer to reach this milestone. AutoNation's success is driven by a commitment to delivering a peerless experience through customer-focused sales and service processes. Through its Drive Pink initiative, AutoNation is committed to drive out cancer, create awareness and support critical research. AutoNation continues to be a proud supporter of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and other cancer-related charities. Please visit investors.autonation.com, www.autonation.com, www.autonationdrive.com, www.twitter.com/autonation, www.twitter.com/CEOMikeJackson, www.facebook.com/autonation, and www.facebook.com/CEOMikeJackson, where AutoNation discloses additional information about the Company, its business, and its results of operations. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151110/286019LOGO SOURCE AutoNation, Inc. Related Links http://www.autonation.com PITTSBURGH, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Journalist and author Jamie Kalven's groundbreaking investigation of the fatal police shooting of a Chicago teenager prompted more public scrutiny of the case, which eventually led to a murder indictment against one officer. Kalven will discuss the investigation, especially his use of public records, during two appearances at "Right to Know: The Power of Public Records," which will be at 1 and 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27, at Point Park University's Center for Media Innovation, 305 Wood St., Downtown Pittsburgh. Reporting by Kalven shed light on what happened Oct. 20, 2014, when Laquan McDonald, 17, was fatally shot by Chicago police. Using public records and acting on a tip, he wrote a story, "Sixteen shots," for Slate that cast doubt on the police version of events in McDonald's death. The public furor as a result of Kalven's reporting prompted more scrutiny, which led to a murder indictment against one officer and recommendations to fire other officers, the ouster of the police superintendent, and a U.S. Justice Department investigation. Kalven's work will be of special interest to journalists, attorneys and college students studying fields related to communications and the law. The "Right to Know" event is free and open to the public. The 6 p.m. event is open to the public and registration for it should be done at the Right to Know Eventbrite page. Kalven has reported extensively on police abuse in Chicago and was the plaintiff in Kalven v. Chicago, in which the Illinois appellate court ruled that police misconduct files are public information. He is the founder of the Invisible Institute, a journalistic production company located on the South Side of Chicago. The nonprofit is set up to "enhance the capacity of citizens to hold public institutions accountable." Kalven has, through the nonprofit, published disciplinary records of Chicago police officers. Awards he has received for his work include the 2015 George Polk Award for Local Reporting and the 2016 Ridenhour Courage Prize, the latter of which recognizes those who persevere in acts of truth-telling that protect the public interest. Kalven is the author of "Working with Available Light: A Family's World After Violence" and the editor of "A Worthy Tradition: Free Speech in America" by his father, Harry Kalven Jr. The Press Club of Western Pennsylvania and the Center for Media Innovation are presenting the event, which is cosponsored by the Pittsburgh Black Media Federation, the Women's Press Club of Pittsburgh and the Online News Association/Pittsburgh. The Press Club of Western Pennsylvania is a nonprofit organization of communications professionals. It sponsors forums on current events and educational programs and presents the annual Golden Quill Awards contest and ceremony, honoring the best of Western Pennsylvania journalism. For membership information, see westernpapressclub.org . Founded in 1960, Point Park University is a dynamic, urban university with a strong liberal arts tradition. Located in Downtown Pittsburgh, Point Park enrolls more than 4,000 full- and part-time students in more than 100 undergraduate and graduate programs offered through the School of Arts and Sciences, School of Business, School of Communication and Conservatory of Performing Arts. Visit PointPark.edu to learn more. PR Newswire is the official wire of The Press Club of Western Pennsylvania. SOURCE The Press Club of Western Pennsylvania Related Links http://www.westernpapressclub.org SANTA MONICA, Calif., and MIDDLEBURG, Va., Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Kriser's Natural Pet, a multi-unit retailer specializing in natural pet food, supplies and grooming, announced today that it has acquired Wylie Wagg for Pets, a natural pet food and supplies chain with five stores in Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia. Wylie Wagg was founded in 2002 by Laura and Larry Clark with the goal of helping pet parents access the best in natural food, treats, toys and accessories for their pets, and continues to receive rave reviews from its customers. Kriser's looks to continue this mission, bringing its trademark education and Kriser's Approved product selection to the market, with plans to open additional Kriser's locations in the coming years. "We have tremendous respect for how Wylie Wagg has established itself as part of the pet community in D.C. and Northern Virginia," said Brad Kriser, founder and CEO of Kriser's Natural Pet. "With this effort, we are able to extend Kriser's mission of helping pets live happier, healthier lives, naturally, to an even greater number of families and communities. This marks a time of remarkable growth in our business, further positioning Kriser's as a leader in the natural pet retail sector. We are honored to assume responsibility for caring for the customers both human and furry which will remain our main focus every day." "When we were considering this change, we wanted to pass the torch to someone whom we could trust, and who shares our mission and values," said Laura Clark, founder and CEO of Wylie Wagg. "Kriser's was a perfect fit. I am excited to partner with Brad and the Kriser's team through this transition and enable our team and our customers to become part of an extended Kriser's family that has an unwavering focus on the well-being of pets and pet parents." The acquired Wylie Wagg stores will rebrand as Kriser's Natural Pet in 2017, with new storefront signage, ongoing staff training and education, and some adjustments to product assortment. Kriser's plans to hold grand reopening events at the stores to formally introduce itself to the communities in 2017. Laura Clark will play an active role in the transition and will become a member of the Kriser's team. This marks the first acquisition by Kriser's Natural Pet, expanding upon the already stellar organic growth the company has seen since its inception in 2006. Throughout its growth to now 42 stores, Kriser's has maintained its keen focus on a carefully selected inventory of natural foods, treats and supplements, as well as high quality toys and accessories, in warm, welcoming store environments. ABOUT WYLIE WAGG Founded in 2002, Wylie Wagg has long been committed to promoting the health and well-being of pets. The five-store, award-winning company offers the very best food and supplies for four-legged friends. Wylie Wagg is dedicated to making a positive difference in the communities they serve and passionately supports animal rescue. ABOUT KRISER'S NATURAL PET Kriser's, often referred to by its customers as the "Whole Foods for pets," is a multi-unit pet retailer specializing in natural pet food, supplies and grooming. Founded by lifelong pet owner and healthy pet advocate Brad Kriser, the company has opened 36 locations in four states Illinois, Colorado, Southern California and Texas based on a model of educating consumers and providing an unparalleled shopping experience in a clean and inviting store area. All products sold in Kriser's stores are carefully selected by Brad and his team, and endorsed as "Kriser's Approved" only after extensive review. In addition to carrying a large variety of natural food and treats brands, which have no corn, soy or by-products, Kriser's also offers grooming services and a wide selection of toys and supplies. At the forefront of the natural segment of the flourishing pet industry, Kriser's has grown steadily with an unwavering commitment to pets. In addition to its 2014-2015 Retailer of the Year Award from Pet Product News International and finalist spot in Pet Age's Business of the Year Awards in the Natural Products category, Kriser's also received the Best Overall Multi-Unit Pet Retailer at the 2013 and 2015 Global Pet Expos. For more information, please visit www.krisers.com. SOURCE Kriser's Natural Pet Related Links http://www.krisers.com DALLAS, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- BenefitMall, the leading provider of employee benefits, human resources and payroll products and services, announced a partnership with EaseCentral to offer comprehensive online benefits administration and enrollment to BenefitMall's brokers. Brokers will now be able to choose between EaseCentral's all-in-one software solution and BenefitMall's online benefits administration system, EmployerFocus. "BenefitMall is very excited to offer our brokers another option for online benefits administration, which will allow their clients to complete enrollments in a timelier manner and manage data quality more efficiently," said Scott Kirksey, president of BenefitMall. "Soon to be integrated with our payroll offerings, the collaboration with EaseCentral provides additional solutions that are available to our broker partners and their clients." By combining BenefitMall's unrivalled service as the largest general agency in the country with EaseCentral's best-in-class technology, this partnership creates the most broker-friendly solution in the market. Additionally, it allows BenefitMall to offer a variety of service and technology options to support brokers and their clients. "We're proud to announce our latest partnership with BenefitMall. EaseCentral is dedicated to making the HR and benefits process as seamless as possible for brokers. With this new partnership, brokers can easily access BenefitMall resources inside EaseCentral, a powerful combination for open enrollment season," said David Reid, employee benefits veteran and co-founder and CEO of EaseCentral. With a software solution that empowers both brokers and their clients to go digital, EaseCentral is one of the largest software providers to the insurance industry by supporting more than 22,000 employers and servicing nearly a million employees nationwide. This company has seen record growth since its inception in 2012 and is expanding into several new markets in 2017. About BenefitMall Headquartered in Dallas, BenefitMall partners with a network of 20,000 Brokers and CPAs to deliver employee benefits and payroll services to more than 200,000 small and medium-sized businesses. By combining payroll and benefits, BenefitMall empowers Trusted Advisors to develop the best employee programs while maintaining compliance with government regulations and Health Care Reform. BenefitMall, the largest national General Agency merged with the second largest privately held payroll company, CompuPay. BenefitMall also operates HealthCareExchange.com, the leading online community for information regarding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. More information is available at www.benefitmall.com. About EaseCentral EaseCentral is the all-in-one software solution for employee benefits, payroll and HR. Built for agents and employers, cloud-based EaseCentral makes it simple for companies to set up and manage over 50 types of benefits, coordinate payroll and HR, collaborate with employers on new hires, changes and terminations, and deliver completed tax information - all from one location. Started in 2012 in San Francisco by employee benefits veteran, David Reid, and web and engineering architect, Courtney Guertin, EaseCentral works with insurance brokers and small businesses to create seamless HR and benefits processes on a single, easy-to-use platform, and has offices in San Diego and Las Vegas. In 2015 EaseCentral was launched on the West Coast and is among the most widely adopted, fastest growing solutions for brokers and employers in the area, with over 22,000 employers and nearly 1 million enrollees. For more information, head to www.easecentral.com. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141118/159384LOGO SOURCE BenefitMall Related Links http://www.benefitmall.com ARLINGTON, Va., Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Bloomberg BNA today announced that Big Law Business West is taking place the afternoon of Thursday, October 27 at the Standard Hotel in Los Angeles. The half-day program and networking event is complimentary for in-house and outside counsel and provides big law leaders an intimate forum to share insights and best practices and learn about the changes that are impacting the business on the West Coast and nationwide. Summit information and registration is available at http://on.bna.com/DZfb305b9sC. To follow the event on Twitter, use #BigLawSummit. The company's Big Law Business website features breaking news, videos, and contributed commentary that highlight trends and developments shaping the legal industry. The Los Angeles summit features in-house counsel and law school and law firm leaders discussing the range of issues impacting big law. "Hosting this event on the West Coast offers law firm leaders and their clients insights into the evolving legal industry landscape consistent with the reporting on Big Law Business," said Scott Mozarsky, President, Cross Platform Businesses, Bloomberg BNA. "This event will shed light on the major trends and disruptive factors shaping big law including changes in service delivery and the evolution of firms and legal departments which will provide valuable context to help attorneys be that much more successful in their day to day roles." Panel discussions will focus on litigation management, strategies to recruit and retain top legal talent, and the increasing impact of cybersecurity on the law profession. Keynote interviews will be held with John B. Quinn of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP and Eileen Decker, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California. Featured Big Law Business Summit - West speakers include: Elizabeth Atlee, Sr. Vice President, Deputy General Counsel - Global Litigation, CBRE Vice President, Deputy General Counsel - Global Litigation, CBRE Elizabeth Baker , General Counsel, Twitch Interactive , General Counsel, Twitch Interactive Lucy Endel Bassli, Assistant General Counsel, Microsoft Brad Butwin , Chair, O'Melveny & Myers LLP , Chair, O'Melveny & Myers LLP Mira El Sontaby, Senior Counsel Privacy, Fox Entertainment Group David Gallagher , Investment Manager and Legal Counsel, Bentham IMF , Investment Manager and Legal Counsel, Bentham IMF Andrei Iancu , Managing Partner, Irell & Manella LLP , Managing Partner, Irell & Manella LLP Jennifer A. Jackson, Managing Partner, Bryan Cave David McDowell , Partner, Morrison & Foerster LLP , Partner, Morrison & Foerster LLP Jennifer L. Mnookin , Dean, University of California, Los Angeles , School of Law , Dean, , School of Law Greg Nitzkowski , Managing Partner, Paul Hastings , Managing Partner, Paul Hastings Ronald Sarian , Vice President and General Counsel, eHarmony , Vice President and General Counsel, eHarmony Sharon Tomkins , Vice President & General Counsel, Southern California Gas Company The summit is sponsored by Aderant, Bentham IMF, K2 Intelligence, and Major, Lindsey & Africa. About Bloomberg BNA Bloomberg BNA provides legal, tax and compliance professionals with critical information, practical guidance and workflow solutions. We leverage leading technology and a global network of experts to deliver a unique combination of news and authoritative analysis, comprehensive research solutions, innovative practice tools, and proprietary business data and analytics. Bloomberg BNA is wholly-owned by Bloomberg L.P., the global business, financial information and news leader. For more information, visit www.bna.com. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120110/DC33627LOGO SOURCE Bloomberg BNA Related Links http://www.bna.com VALENCIA, Calif., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Bioness, Inc., the leading provider of cutting edge, clinically supported rehabilitation therapies, today announced the Company will exhibit at the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (AAPM&R) Annual Assembly. The event will be held from October 20-23, 2016 in New Orleans. Attendees will have the chance to experience Bioness pain management and software therapy programs in booth #413 and also see the Bioness Technology Exhibit at booth #135. With an estimated 100 million people suffering from chronic pain, contributing more than $280 billion in annual costs to the U.S. healthcare system, there's never been a greater need for innovative pain management options.1 PM&R physicians are in a unique position to balance the benefits of prescribing opioids with alternative treatment options that improve patients' long-term quality of life, especially with patients experiencing post-stroke shoulder pain. During AAPM&R, Bioness will showcase the StimRouter Neuromodulation System, a minimally invasive, implantable, surgical device designed to address chronic peripheral nerve pain. The StimRouter targets pain at the point of origin, minimizes long-term healthcare costs and may provide pain relief when other treatments such as medications and injections have limited effect.2 PM&R physicians will also have a chance to explore clinical solutions from Bioness that support all stages of stroke rehabilitation and help patients become as independent as possible. Bioness solutions support recovery for the 5.5 million people who are affected by long-term disabilities from stroke. The Company's solutions help clinicians improve patient functional capabilities, quality of life and community reintegration. Bioness has been an industry leader supporting the efforts of skilled acute and outpatient practices for more than a decade. In addition to the StimRouter, attendees can view the following Bioness offerings in AAPM&R booths #135 and #413: Vector Gait and Safety System: is a state-of-the-art, UL certified, rehabilitation technology designed to improve patient mobility and functional independence while increasing patient and clinician safety. Vector, is the global leader in robotic overground gait rehabilitation, capable of handling patients up to 500 lbs. and providing dynamic unloading up to 200 lbs. Vector integrates Outcome Measures Module that enables clinicians to run, record and document standardized tests to measure patient outcomes within the Vector software interface. The Timed Up and Go (TUG), 10 Meter Walk test, 5 Meter Walk test, 6 Minute Walk test, and 2 Minute Walk test are all included. Bioness Integrated Therapy System (BITS) Version 2: The second generation of BITS software is designed to address the changing dynamics of the rehabilitation market by improving clinician efficiency with automated progress reports, personalized therapy programs and standardized outcome measures. The new BITS Reports Module calculates key performance metrics and makes generating quality, value-added reports easier than ever before. H200 Wireless Hand Rehabilitation System: With more than 20 peer-reviewed and published clinical studies, the H200 System has been clinically shown to improve hand and upper extremity function during all stages of stroke rehabilitation. The System delivers non-invasive, functional electrical stimulation (FES) to improve hand function, reduce muscle spasms and prevent disuse atrophy. H200 Wireless is widely used in the Veterans Administration to promote functional hand use in spinal cord injury patients that lack the ability to perform daily activities including grasping and releasing hand movements. L300 Plus System: A state-of-the-art Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) system that uses mild stimulation of nerves and muscles to help people with foot drop and thigh weakness regain a more natural walking pattern (gait). To experience Bioness first hand, visit AAPM&R booths #135 and #413. About Bioness, Inc. Bioness is the leading provider of innovative technologies helping people regain mobility and independence. Bioness solutions include external and implantable functional electrical stimulation (FES) systems, robotic systems and software-based therapy programs providing functional and therapeutic benefits for individuals affected by pain, central nervous system disorders and orthopedic injuries. Individual results vary. Consult with a qualified physician to determine if this product is right for you. Contraindications, adverse reactions and precautions are available online at www.bioness.com Media Relations Contact Information Next Step Communications [email protected] 781.326.1741 Bioness, BITS, H200, L300, StimRouter and Vector Gait and Safety System are trademarks of Bioness, Inc. | www.bioness.com | Rx Only for applicable products | 1 Institute of Medicine (US). Relieving Pain in America: A Blueprint for Transforming Prevention, Care, Education and Research. 2011. The National Academies. 2 Deer T, et al. 2016. Neuromodulation. 19:91-100. SOURCE Bioness, Inc. Related Links http://www.bioness.com Director Olijar will unveil the Year of the Rooster 2017 in honor of the Chinese Lunar New Year. The Year of the Rooster 2017 features a $1 Federal Reserve note with a serial number beginning with "8888." The introduction of the Year of the Rooster 2017 is the fourth issue from BEP's second generation of the Lucky Money Lunar Calendar product line. The product's first day of sale is Wednesday, November 16 at 8:00 a.m. (ET). The Year of the Rooster 2017 and additional currency products may be purchased by telephone, toll free, at 1(800) 456-3408; by fax (888) 891-7585 [International fax (202) 874-1788]; in the Washington, DC and Fort Worth, Texas Visitor Center Gift Shops; and, through the BEP's online store, moneyfactorystore.gov. Bulk pricing is also available for the Year of the Rooster 2017. Contact: Karen Smith (202) 874-2108 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430548 SOURCE Bureau of Engraving and Printing Related Links http://www.moneyfactory.gov California participants include people in schools, colleges, businesses, government agencies, non-profit organizations, community groups, and many others. See lists of participants along with extensive information on how to participate at www.ShakeOut.org/california . "ShakeOut encourages cross-sector, whole community conversation and action about earthquake preparedness, inspiring people to make better decisions for how they can prepare to survive and recover," said Mark Benthien, Global ShakeOut Coordinator and Outreach Director at the Southern California Earthquake Center. "The CEA is proud to support the preparedness goals of the Great California ShakeOut," said Glenn Pomeroy, chief executive officer of the California Earthquake Authority, the state's largest earthquake insurance provider. "The drill is a great reminder of how important it is to know how to protect yourself when the ground shakes. But that's only half the battle. Insuring your home and belongings from earthquake damage is also critical to survive the financial fallout after the next big one strikes." Media events for the Great California ShakeOut in Southern California on 10/20 include a major exercise at Dearborn Elementary in Northridge; an all-hazards "Safety Day" at Kinecta Federal Credit Union in El Segundo; and a City of Los Angeles exercise at Councilmember Blumenfield's District Office in Reseda. For the Bay Area, Mayor Ed Lee will join students at Bret Harte Elementary School in San Francisco and also AAA California, Nevada, & Utah will host a shake trailer and Drop, Cover, and Hold On drill in Emeryville. Event details can be found here: www.ShakeOut.org/california/media/venues "One of the most important steps families can take is to prepare themselves before an earthquake occurs," said Marianne Campbell, Vice President of Communications and Community Impact for AAA Northern California, Nevada & Utah, a proud partner with Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills. "We want to help families in our region by offering engaging ways to learn about preparedness, such as our new 'Road to Ready' game. The more people know, the safer they will be when a disaster strikes." More information about preparedness (exclusive for residents of NorCal, NV & UT) is available at AAA.com/roadtoready. KEY MEDIA RESOURCE: www.ShakeOut.org/media guidance for promoting and reporting on ShakeOut, lists of ShakeOut media venues, links to content suggestions (B-Roll, graphics, language-support), recent releases, and contacts CONTACT: Jason Ballmann Southern California Earthquake Center 213.740.1560 [email protected] ShakeOut.org, is managed by the Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC) at the University of Southern California, with funding from the National Science Foundation, United States Geological Survey, and Federal Emergency Management Agency. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430504-INFO SOURCE Southern California Earthquake Center MELVILLE, N.Y., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Canon Solutions America, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Canon U.S.A., Inc., today announced that Gasch Printing, an industry-leading digital book printer, has entered the inkjet age with the installation of the Oce ColorStream 3900Z monochrome inkjet press. Gasch Printing's evolution from offset to digital toner, and now inkjet, marks a significant ascension as the company's book publishing footprint continues to expand across the nation. Founded over 30 years ago, Gasch Printing, along with seemingly every major offset print provider, underwent major transitions as the industry rapidly evolved in the early aughts. Understanding the need to adapt to these dramatic changes, the company's forward-thinking leadership team moved from an offset environment to a fully digital toner operation a little over 10 years ago. Since then, the move has led to over 10 years of sustained growth, and ultimately ushered in a new era for the Maryland-based company and its industry-leading book publishing services. Known for providing its vast customer base with exceptional quality and turnaround time, Gasch Printing has expanded its offerings to include perfect bound books, case bound books, saddle stitched booklets, catalogs, and an array of other specialized digital book printing projects. With its steadfast approach and dedication to becoming an all-encompassing book publishing and printing provider, the company recognized the apparent need to take its technology even further and adapt to the emergence of inkjet. With the installation of the Oce ColorStream 3900Z inkjet press, Gasch Printing has effectively, and seamlessly, bridged the gap between offset and digital and paved the way for another 10 years of consecutive growth. "We knew the time was coming for us to make a major transition; it was just a matter of understanding which technology would best fit our needs as a company that specializes in book printing," said Doug Gasch, owner and president of Gasch Printing. "We are a company that has always invested in next-generation technology and automation, and this latest installation cements our commitment to not only staying relevant in the industry, but also pushing it forward." Since installing the dynamic and high-volume inkjet press, the company has experienced success in a number of different areas. Production speeds have doubled, a 50% capacity and volume increase was experienced almost immediately, and, perhaps most importantly, Gasch Printing noted unprecedented levels of high print quality. "Our main focus was and will continue to be being able to handle and treat all of our customers in a way that's both professional and supportive," added Gasch. "Our publishing, printing, and even variable data and personalization offerings have all been hugely enhanced with our new inkjet press. The quality and reliability we get from the ColorStream allows us to simultaneously offer updated solutions to existing customers while tapping into new markets and customers with strategies to help them recognize new business opportunities and understand the possibilities with inkjet technologies." The highly versatile Oce ColorStream 3900Z inkjet printer offers productivity and flexibility for high-speed color and monochrome production of transaction, TransPromo, direct mail, book, and manual applications. Helping digital print leaders like Gasch Printing grow their portfolio of offerings, the Oce ColorStream inkjet series' production and media flexibility contributes to a future-proof system that simplifies the transition of applications and business models to more sophisticated documents with variable personalization and smarter communication in both monochrome and color. "The Oce ColorStream technology is streamlining dynamic communication and providing valued Canon Solutions America customers like Gasch Printing with efficient flexibility for sustained production," said Mal Baboyian, executive vice president, Production Print Solutions/Large Format Solutions, Canon Solutions America. "This leading inkjet technology serves myriad different markets and is positioned to push the boundaries of inkjet into even more print environments. We look forward to working with Gasch Printing as they grow their business with advanced inkjet technologies." About Canon Solutions America, Inc. Canon Solutions America provides industry leading enterprise, production, and large format printing solutions, supported by exceptional professional service offerings. With the technology offerings of the Canon and Oce brands, Canon Solutions America helps companies of all sizes improve sustainability, increase efficiency, and control costs through high volume, continuous feed, digital and traditional printing, and document management solutions. A wholly owned subsidiary of Canon U.S.A., Inc., Canon Solutions America is headquartered in Melville, N.Y. and has sales and service locations across the U.S. For more information on Canon Solutions America, please visit csa.canon.com. Canon is a registered trademark of Canon Inc. in the United States and elsewhere. Oce is a registered trademark of Oce-Technologies B.V. in the United States and elsewhere. All other referenced product names and marks are trademarks of their respective owners and are hereby acknowledged. 2016 Canon Solutions America, Inc. All rights reserved. Canon Solutions America, Inc. Website: http://csa.canon.com For sales info/customer support: 1-844-443-INFO (4636) Editorial Contact: Stephanie Caro 631-330-4432 [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160719/390954LOGO SOURCE Canon Solutions America, Inc. Related Links https://csa.canon.com NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Starting next Thursday, October 27th, the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola celebrates its sesquicentennial anniversary as a Jesuit (Society of Jesus) parish with a four-day series of events. Located on New York City's Upper East Side, this Roman Catholic parish was entrusted to the Jesuit order in 1866, making it the Jesuits' first major apostolate in the Yorkville neighborhood of New York. Since then, 35 Jesuits have been installed as pastors, leading the parish through times of profound change, milestone events and significant growth. The building stands on the site of the former St. Lawrence O'Toole Church, founded in 1851 and named for a twelfth-century bishop of Dublin. In the church's early years, parishioners were primarily German and Irish Catholic immigrant families. Today, St. Ignatius is a vibrant faith community with more than 4,300 registered families, reflecting demographic changes of the city and capturing the ethnic diversity of the Upper East Side. "This significant anniversary celebrates the gift of faith, embraces the enduring tradition of Ignatian ministry and gives thanks for the longevity that has truly blessed St. Ignatius Loyola. One hundred fifty years doesn't happen by chance," said Father Dennis J. Yesalonia, S.J., Pastor of St. Ignatius Loyola. "The legacy that started with the first generation of Jesuits in 1866 and continues to this day is a testament to vision, perseverance, prayer and an abundance of grace," he added. St. Ignatius Loyola is one of 66 Jesuit parishes operating in the United States. The church attracts attendees from all over New York City and nearby suburbs. Its inclusive approach offers a wide range of ministries, services and programs geared towards children, teens, young adults and families. Since its inception, St. Ignatius has been an enduring symbol of faith, withstanding the test of time to evolve, grow and meet the challenges and needs of the community that it serves. In all of its outreach activities, the church collaborates with other Christian Churches and non-Christian Religious Congregations on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and beyond to reach those in need. In addition to its liturgies (three weekday masses; seven on the weekends) and sacraments, the parish delivers an extensive list of programs covering faith formation, community outreach and religious education. Their 'Ignite!' program is the only Catholic youth ministry in Manhattan. A popular lecture series takes place throughout the year, featuring noted speakers addressing a variety of relevant issues and topics. In 1993, the church installed a mechanical (tracker-action) pipe organ as an integral part of its services and the centerpiece of its renowned music program. Dedication of the custom-built, handcrafted organ took place after 18 months of meticulous planning and construction by the firm N.P. Mander. With 5,000 pipes and weighing 30 tons, it is the largest tracker organ in New York. One of the most complex of all musical instruments, the tracker organ sits in the back of the church, fitting inside a 160-foot-by-78-foot space of the St. Ignatius basilica. "From the outset, St. Ignatius has stayed true to its roots, ministering in the Ignatian way of prayer, community and service," noted Father Yesalonia. "In reflecting on our past, we are reminded that we are called and blessed by God's grace to be a community of true disciples, gathered in prayer and worship, to meet the needs of our parishioners and be available to provide assistance to all who approach us. We look forward to future with the same faith, confidence and hope that has sustained us over the last 150 years." All are welcome to attend any of the four-day celebrations listed below. Additional details are provided in the church's Event Guide: Thursday, Oct. 27th 7pm / Wallace Hall Lecture Fr. Thomas Lucas, S.J. "The Long Road from Rome to Park Avenue: City, Church & Jesuit Urban Mission" Friday, Oct. 28th 7pm / Church concert Ticket purchase: www.smssconcerts.org Music from 18th-century Jesuit composer, Domenico Zipoli Saturday, Oct. 29th 11am 3pm / 84th & Park Ave Family Street Fair Sunday, Oct. 30th 11am / Solemn Mass MEDIA RESOURCES: Historical Timeline (Church of St. Ignatius Loyola, 1866-2016) Images (High-resolution photos of Church interior; more available upon request) By The Numbers (Facts about the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola) About the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola (NYC) The Parish of St. Ignatius Loyola is a vibrant Roman Catholic faith community administered by the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). Located on New York City's Upper East Side at Park Avenue and 84th Street, the parish was entrusted to the care of the Society of Jesus in 1866, marking the Jesuits' first major apostolate in the Yorkville area of New York. Staffed by Jesuit priests and lay men and women, the Parish offers a wide range of ministries, including daily and weekly masses, celebration of the sacraments and education opportunities. Renowned for its music programs and acoustics, St. Ignatius owns the largest mechanical tracker organ in New York, weighing 30 tons and having 5,000 pipes. The parish is part of a 3.5-acre Jesuit complex that includes a Jesuit residence, reception hall, rectory, day nursery, elementary school and Loyola School, an independent, four-year, co-ed Jesuit high school. The church is a designated New York City Landmark and listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Learn more about St. Ignatius Loyola at http://www.stignatiusloyola.org/ . SOURCE Church of St. Ignatius Loyola Related Links http://www.stignatiusloyola.org Enterprise Connect provides the most comprehensive view of the innovation that is transforming the enterprise communications industry, and this year's dynamic keynote lineup exemplifies the range of this thought leadership. Enterprise Connect 2017 Keynote Lineup: Jens Meggers, PhD Sr. Vice President and General Manager Cloud Collaboration Technology Group, Cisco Jens Meggers is responsible for managing Cisco's cloud-focused collaboration portfolio, which includes Cisco's flagship platform, Cisco Spark, providing integrated messaging, calling and meetings. He also manages the Cisco WebEx and Jabber engineering and product management teams. Prior to joining Cisco, Meggers was Senior Vice President at Symantec Corporation where he headed the Endpoint Protection and Productivity business unit. Ron Markezich - Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Office 365 Ron Markezich is responsible for commercial go-to-market for the company's productivity portfolio, which includes Microsoft Office, Office 365, SharePoint, Exchange, Skype, Skype for Business, OneDrive and Yammer, in addition to running Office 365 deployment and usage programs. He previously served as corporate vice president of Microsoft's U.S. Enterprise and Partner Group. Prior to joining Microsoft in 1998, Markezich worked in Accenture's Electronics and High Tech Group. Jeff Lawson - Founder, CEO & Chairman, Twilio Jeff Lawson is a serial entrepreneur with over 15 years of entrepreneurial and product experience. Prior to Twilio, Lawson was Founder & CTO of NineStar, Founding CTO of Stubhub.com and Founder, CEO & CTO of Versity.com. He was also one of the original product managers for Amazon Web Services. Learn more about the Enterprise Connect Keynotes here: enterpriseconnect.com/orlando/conference/keynotes "At a time of technology and business transition for our industry, each of these Keynote speakers will bring an important perspective to help the Enterprise Connect audience understand and capitalize on the changes under way," said Eric Krapf, Enterprise Connect General Manager and Program Co-Chair. "Nowhere else will our industry have the opportunity to hear these unique insights from such top enterprise communications leaders in one place." Enterprise Connect 2017 Enterprise Connect will return to Orlando in 2017, bringing together enterprise communications professionals of all levels for an extensive three-and-a-half-day Conference focused on maximizing attendees' investments in communications and collaboration systems, services, apps and networks. The event will feature Keynotes, Breakout Sessions, Networking Opportunities and more, spanning nine tracks encompassing the major technology streams in the industry. The event will also host the largest and broadest exhibition focused on systems, software, services and applications giving attendees a chance to experience the latest tools and innovations firsthand. Follow Enterprise Connect online: Facebook: facebook.com/enterprise.connect Twitter: @enterprisecon LinkedIn: linkedin.com/groups?gid=2710052 About Enterprise Connect For more than 25 years, Enterprise Connect has been the leading conference and exhibition for enterprise Unified Communications and Collaboration in North America. Enterprise Connect brings corporate IT decision makers together with the industry's vendors, analysts and consultants to focus on the issues central to enterprise networks and communications. Enterprise Connect owns and produces No Jitter, (nojitter.com), providing daily blogging and analysis of enterprise communications, and it also serves the community with a weekly email newsletter, a Webinar Series and Virtual Events. For more information, visit enterpriseconnect.com. Enterprise Connect is organized by UBM Americas, a part of UBM plc (UBM.L), an Events First marketing and communications services business. For more information, visit ubmamericas.com. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160216/333746LOGO Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430167 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430169 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430170 SOURCE Enterprise Connect Related Links http://www.enterpriseconnect.com NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Cohen & Steers, Inc. (NYSE: CNS) reported net income attributable to common stockholders of $23.9 million, or $0.51 per diluted share and $0.52 per basic share, for the quarter ended September 30, 2016, compared with $12.3 million, or $0.27 per share (diluted and basic), for the quarter ended September 30, 2015 and $24.8 million, or $0.53 per diluted share and $0.54 per basic share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2016. The quarter ended September 30, 2015 included an unrealized non-operating loss of $0.10 per diluted share that, due to a change in accounting classification, has been reflected on the condensed consolidated statements of operations. Total revenue for the third quarter of 2016 was a record $94.4 million, an increase of 18.5% from $79.7 million for the third quarter of 2015 and an increase of 9.3% from $86.4 million for the second quarter of 2016. Financial Highlights (Unaudited) For the Periods (in thousands, except per share data) Three Months Ended % Change From September 30, 2016 June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (2) June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 U.S. GAAP Revenue $ 94,388 $ 86,373 $ 79,667 9.3 % 18.5 % Expenses $ 57,175 $ 52,242 $ 48,190 9.4 % 18.6 % Operating income $ 37,213 $ 34,131 $ 31,477 9.0 % 18.2 % Operating margin 39.4 % 39.5 % 39.5 % * * Non-operating income (loss) $ 1,356 $ 4,466 $ (7,727) * * Net income attributable to common stockholders $ 23,877 $ 24,808 $ 12,338 (3.8%) 93.5 % Diluted earnings per share $ 0.51 $ 0.53 $ 0.27 (4.1%) 90.6 % As Adjusted (1) Revenue $ 94,419 $ 86,403 $ 79,687 9.3 % 18.5 % Expenses $ 57,121 $ 52,220 $ 48,179 9.4 % 18.6 % Operating income $ 37,298 $ 34,183 $ 31,508 9.1 % 18.4 % Operating margin 39.5 % 39.6 % 39.5 % * * Non-operating income (loss) $ 394 $ 196 $ (210) * * Net income attributable to common stockholders $ 23,626 $ 21,315 $ 19,405 10.8 % 21.8 % Diluted earnings per share $ 0.51 $ 0.46 $ 0.42 10.4 % 19.9 % * Not meaningful (1) The as adjusted financial measures represent non-GAAP financial measures. Please refer to the "Non-GAAP Reconciliation" of this release for a reconciliation to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measures. (2) During the three months ended December 31, 2015, one of the company's seed investments changed classification from available-for-sale to equity method. As a result, all prior periods have been retroactively adjusted to reflect this investment as if it had been an equity method investment in prior periods. U.S. GAAP This section discusses the financial results of the company as presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP for the quarter ended September 30, 2016, compared with the quarter ended June 30, 2016. Revenue Revenue for the third quarter of 2016 was $94.4 million, an increase of $8.0 million from $86.4 million for the second quarter of 2016. Higher average assets under management and one more day in the quarter resulted in the following increases in investment advisory and administration fees for the third quarter of 2016: Institutional account revenue increased $1.7 million to $25.1 million ; to ; Open-end fund revenue increased $4.3 million to $40.9 million ; and to ; and Closed-end fund revenue increased $1.0 million to $20.1 million . Expenses Expenses for the third quarter of 2016 were $57.2 million, an increase of $4.9 million from $52.2 million for the second quarter of 2016. The change was primarily due to: Higher employee compensation and benefits expenses of $2.7 million , primarily due to higher incentive compensation which increased consistent with revenue growth; , primarily due to higher incentive compensation which increased consistent with revenue growth; Increased distribution and service fees of $1.3 million , primarily due to higher average assets under management in U.S. open-end funds; and , primarily due to higher average assets under management in U.S. open-end funds; and Higher general and administrative expenses of $0.6 million , primarily due to increased information technology and marketing expenses. Operating Margin Operating margin decreased to 39.4% for the third quarter of 2016 from 39.5% for the second quarter of 2016. Non-operating Income Non-operating income for the third quarter of 2016 was $1.4 million, compared with non-operating income of $4.5 million for the second quarter of 2016. The decrease was primarily due to lower net realized and unrealized gains on the company's seed investments. As Adjusted The term "as adjusted" is used to identify non-GAAP information. Adjustments made to the third and second quarters of 2016 and the third quarter of 2015 were attributable to the exclusion of the financial results associated with the company's seed investments, including the related tax effect. Please refer to the "Non-GAAP Reconciliation" of this release for a reconciliation to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measures. Diluted Earnings Per Share Diluted earnings per share, as adjusted, for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 were $0.51 compared with $0.42 per share for the quarter ended September 30, 2015 and $0.46 per share for the quarter ended June 30, 2016. Operating Margin Operating margin, as adjusted, was 39.5%, consistent with the third quarter of 2015 and a decrease from 39.6% for the second quarter of 2016. Assets Under Management Highlights (Unaudited) September 30, 2016 Compared with June 30, 2016 (in millions) Assets Under Management As of By Investment Vehicle September 30, 2016 June 30, 2016 % Change Institutional accounts $ 29,948 $ 29,581 1.2% Open-end funds 21,165 19,777 7.0% Closed-end funds 9,384 9,391 (0.1%) Total $ 60,497 $ 58,749 3.0% By Investment Strategy U.S. real estate $ 31,248 $ 30,981 0.9% Global/international real estate 10,056 9,984 0.7% Preferred securities 10,440 9,082 15.0% Global listed infrastructure 5,862 5,760 1.8% Other 2,891 2,942 (1.7%) Total $ 60,497 $ 58,749 3.0% Assets under management were $60.5 billion as of September 30, 2016, an increase of $1.7 billion from $58.7 billion at June 30, 2016. The increase from June 30, 2016 was attributable to net inflows of $2.2 billion and market appreciation of $609 million, partially offset by distributions of $1.1 billion. Institutional Accounts Assets under management in institutional accounts were $29.9 billion as of September 30, 2016, an increase of 1.2% from $29.6 billion at June 30, 2016. The change from June 30, 2016 was due to the following: Net inflows of $988 million from Japan subadvised accounts, primarily comprised of $964 million into U.S. real estate; from subadvised accounts, primarily comprised of into U.S. real estate; Distributions from Japan subadvised accounts of $828 million , primarily comprised of $781 million out of U.S. real estate and $46 million out of global/international real estate; subadvised accounts of , primarily comprised of out of U.S. real estate and out of global/international real estate; Net inflows of $151 million from subadvised accounts excluding Japan , primarily comprised of $72 million into global/international real estate, $71 million into global listed infrastructure, and $66 million into preferred securities, partially offset by net outflows of $80 million out of large cap value; from subadvised accounts excluding , primarily comprised of into global/international real estate, into global listed infrastructure, and into preferred securities, partially offset by net outflows of out of large cap value; Net outflows of $163 million from advised accounts, primarily comprised of $277 million out of global/international real estate, partially offset by net inflows of $98 million into preferred securities; and from advised accounts, primarily comprised of out of global/international real estate, partially offset by net inflows of into preferred securities; and Market appreciation of $219 million , including $242 million from global/international real estate and $41 million from global listed infrastructure; partially offset by market depreciation of $110 million from U.S. real estate. Open-end Funds Assets under management for open-end funds were $21.2 billion as of September 30, 2016, an increase of 7.0% from $19.8 billion at June 30, 2016. The change from June 30, 2016 was due to the following: Net inflows of $1.3 billion , including $931 million from preferred securities, primarily into Cohen & Steers Preferred Securities and Income Fund and $431 million from U.S. real estate, primarily into Cohen & Steers Real Estate Securities Fund; , including from preferred securities, primarily into Cohen & Steers Preferred Securities and Income Fund and from U.S. real estate, primarily into Cohen & Steers Real Estate Securities Fund; Market appreciation of $275 million , including $202 million from preferred securities and $72 million from global/international real estate; and , including from preferred securities and from global/international real estate; and Distributions of $157 million , including $87 million out of preferred securities and $69 million out of U.S. real estate. Closed-end Funds Assets under management for closed-end funds were $9.4 billion at both September 30, 2016 and June 30, 2016 due to market appreciation of $115 million which was offset by distributions of $122 million. Investment Performance as of September 30, 2016 % of Total AUM in Outperforming Strategies (1) % of U.S. Open-End Fund AUM by Morningstar Rating (2), as of September 30, 2016 September 30, 2014 September 30, 2015 September 30, 2016 1-Year 99% 88% 50% Not Rated 1% 3-Year 73% 87% 98% 1 or 2 Star * or ** 2% 5-Year 51% 76% 75% 3 Star *** 16% 10-Year 62% 94% 95% 4 or 5 Star **** or ***** 82% (1) Past performance of investment strategies is no guarantee of future results. Outperformance determined by annualized investment performance of all accounts in each investment strategy measured gross of fees and net of withholding taxes in comparison to performance of each account's reference benchmark measured net of withholding taxes, where applicable. This is not investment advice and may not be construed as sales or marketing material for any financial product or service sponsored or provided by Cohen & Steers. (2) Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Based on independent rating by Morningstar, Inc. of investment performance of each Cohen & Steers-sponsored open-end U.S.-registered mutual fund for overall period as of September 30, 2016. This is not investment advice and may not be construed as sales or marketing material for any financial product or service sponsored or provided by Cohen & Steers. See Additional Disclosures at the end of this release for more information. Balance Sheet Information As of September 30, 2016, cash, cash equivalents and seed investments were $224 million. As of September 30, 2016, stockholders' equity was $272 million and the company had no debt. Conference Call Information Cohen & Steers will host a conference call tomorrow, October 20, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. (ET) to discuss the company's third quarter results. Investors and analysts can access the live conference call by dialing 800-698-9012 (U.S.) or +1-303-223-4378 (international); passcode: 21818723. Participants should plan to register at least 10 minutes before the conference call begins. The presentation that will be reviewed as part of the conference call will be available on the company's website at www.cohenandsteers.com under "Company - Press Releases." A replay of the call will be available for two weeks starting at approximately 12:00 p.m. (ET) on October 20, 2016 and can be accessed at 800-633-8284 (U.S.) or +1-402-977-9140 (international); passcode: 21818723. Internet access to the webcast, which includes audio (listen-only), will be available on the company's website at www.cohenandsteers.com under "Company - Investor Relations." The webcast will be archived on the website for one month. About Cohen & Steers Cohen & Steers is a global investment manager specializing in liquid real assets, including real estate securities, listed infrastructure, commodities and natural resource equities, as well as preferred securities and other income solutions. Founded in 1986, the firm is headquartered in New York City, with offices in London, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seattle. Forward-Looking Statements This press release and other statements that Cohen & Steers may make may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which reflect management's current views with respect to, among other things, the company's operations and financial performance. You can identify these forward-looking statements by the use of words such as "outlook," "believes," "expects," "potential," "continues," "may," "will," "should," "seeks," "approximately," "predicts," "intends," "plans," "estimates," "anticipates" or the negative versions of these words or other comparable words. Such forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Accordingly, there are or will be important factors that could cause actual outcomes or results to differ materially from those indicated in these forward-looking statements. The company believes that these factors include, but are not limited to, the risks described in the Risk Factors section of the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 (the Form 10-K), which is accessible on the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov and on the company's website at www.cohenandsteers.com. These factors are not exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included in the company's Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. Cohen & Steers, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited) For the Periods (in thousands, except per share data) Three Months Ended % Change From September 30, 2016 June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (1) June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 Revenue Investment advisory and administration fees $ 86,079 $ 79,090 $ 73,487 Distribution and service fees 5,296 4,671 3,961 Portfolio consulting and other 3,013 2,612 2,219 Total revenue 94,388 86,373 79,667 9.3% 18.5% Expenses Employee compensation and benefits 30,951 28,287 25,892 Distribution and service fees 11,092 9,773 8,578 General and administrative 13,128 12,489 12,175 Depreciation and amortization 2,004 1,693 1,545 Total expenses 57,175 52,242 48,190 9.4% 18.6% Operating income 37,213 34,131 31,477 9.0% 18.2% Non-operating income Interest and dividend incomenet 367 558 291 Gains (losses) from seed investmentsnet 698 3,815 (7,748) Other gains (losses) 291 93 (270) Total non-operating income (loss) 1,356 4,466 (7,727) * * Income before provision for income taxes 38,569 38,597 23,750 (0.1%) 62.4% Provision for income taxes 14,738 13,676 11,541 Net income 23,831 24,921 12,209 (4.4%) 95.2% Less: Net loss (income) attributable to redeemable noncontrolling interest 46 (113) 129 Net income attributable to common stockholders $ 23,877 $ 24,808 $ 12,338 (3.8%) 93.5% Earnings per share attributable to common stockholders Basic $ 0.52 $ 0.54 $ 0.27 (3.8%) 91.4% Diluted $ 0.51 $ 0.53 $ 0.27 (4.1%) 90.6% Dividends declared per share Quarterly $ 0.26 $ 0.26 $ 0.25 4.0% Weighted average shares outstanding Basic 45,999 45,984 45,500 Diluted 46,544 46,378 45,830 * Not meaningful (1) During the three months ended December 31, 2015, one of the company's seed investments changed classification from available-for-sale to equity method. As a result, all prior periods have been retroactively adjusted to reflect this investment as if it had been an equity method investment in prior periods. Cohen & Steers, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited) For the Periods (in thousands, except per share data) Nine Months Ended September 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (1) % Change Revenue Investment advisory and administration fees $ 238,257 $ 228,460 Distribution and service fees 14,200 11,881 Portfolio consulting and other 7,985 6,643 Total revenue 260,442 246,984 5.4 % Expenses Employee compensation and benefits 87,278 80,270 Distribution and service fees 29,567 27,354 General and administrative 38,352 37,463 Depreciation and amortization 5,594 4,700 Total expenses 160,791 149,787 7.3 % Operating income 99,651 97,197 2.5 % Non-operating income Interest and dividend incomenet 1,467 1,040 Gains (losses) from seed investmentsnet 4,703 (9,321) Other gains (losses) 295 (952) Total non-operating income (loss) 6,465 (9,233) * Income before provision for income taxes 106,116 87,964 20.6 % Provision for income taxes 39,497 35,961 Net income 66,619 52,003 28.1 % Less: Net loss attributable to redeemable noncontrolling interest 149 163 Net income attributable to common stockholders $ 66,768 $ 52,166 28.0 % Earnings per share attributable to common stockholders Basic $ 1.45 $ 1.15 26.5 % Diluted $ 1.44 $ 1.14 26.6 % Dividends declared per share Quarterly $ 0.78 $ 0.75 4.0 % Weighted average shares outstanding Basic 45,931 45,402 Diluted 46,373 45,873 * Not meaningful (1) During the three months ended December 31, 2015, one of the company's seed investments changed classification from available-for-sale to equity method. As a result, all prior periods have been retroactively adjusted to reflect this investment as if it had been an equity method investment in prior periods. Cohen & Steers, Inc. and Subsidiaries Assets Under Management (Unaudited) By Investment Vehicle For the Periods (in millions) Three Months Ended % Change From September 30, 2016 June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (1) June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 Institutional Accounts Assets under management, beginning of period $ 29,581 $ 27,857 $ 24,545 Inflows 1,612 1,626 917 Outflows (636) (487) (394) Net inflows 976 1,139 523 Market appreciation 219 1,337 137 Distributions (828) (752) (560) Total increase 367 1,724 100 Assets under management, end of period $ 29,948 $ 29,581 $ 24,645 1.2 % 21.5 % Percentage of total assets under management 49.5 % 50.4 % 49.5 % Average assets under management for period $ 30,138 $ 28,057 $ 24,885 7.4 % 21.1 % Open-end Funds Assets under management, beginning of period $ 19,777 $ 18,146 $ 16,236 Inflows 2,592 2,393 1,230 Outflows (1,322) (1,242) (1,346) Net inflows (outflows) 1,270 1,151 (116) Market appreciation 275 855 140 Distributions (157) (375) (119) Total increase (decrease) 1,388 1,631 (95) Assets under management, end of period $ 21,165 $ 19,777 $ 16,141 7.0 % 31.1 % Percentage of total assets under management 35.0 % 33.7 % 32.5 % Average assets under management for period $ 20,863 $ 18,692 $ 16,433 11.6 % 27.0 % Closed-end Funds Assets under management, beginning of period $ 9,391 $ 9,056 $ 9,367 Inflows Outflows Net flows Market appreciation (depreciation) 115 458 (278) Distributions (122) (123) (131) Total (decrease) increase (7) 335 (409) Assets under management, end of period $ 9,384 $ 9,391 $ 8,958 (0.1%) 4.8 % Percentage of total assets under management 15.5 % 16.0 % 18.0 % Average assets under management for period $ 9,516 $ 9,160 $ 9,349 3.9 % 1.8 % Total Assets under management, beginning of period $ 58,749 $ 55,059 $ 50,148 Inflows 4,204 4,019 2,147 Outflows (1,958) (1,729) (1,740) Net inflows 2,246 2,290 407 Market appreciation (depreciation) 609 2,650 (1) Distributions (1,107) (1,250) (810) Total increase (decrease) 1,748 3,690 (404) Assets under management, end of period $ 60,497 $ 58,749 $ 49,744 3.0 % 21.6 % Average assets under management for period $ 60,517 $ 55,909 $ 50,667 8.2 % 19.4 % (1) September 30, 2015 amounts have been reclassified to show distributions separately and dividend reinvestments as inflows. Cohen & Steers, Inc. and Subsidiaries Assets Under Management (Unaudited) By Investment Vehicle For the Periods (in millions) Nine Months Ended September 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (1) % Change Institutional Accounts Assets under management, beginning of period $ 26,105 $ 26,201 Inflows 5,010 2,623 Outflows (1,705) (1,904) Net inflows 3,305 719 Market appreciation (depreciation) 2,771 (632) Distributions (2,233) (1,643) Total increase (decrease) 3,843 (1,556) Assets under management, end of period $ 29,948 $ 24,645 21.5 % Percentage of total assets under management 49.5 % 49.5 % Average assets under management for period $ 27,998 $ 25,961 7.8 % Open-end Funds Assets under management, beginning of period $ 17,460 $ 17,131 Inflows 7,007 5,081 Outflows (4,262) (4,582) Net inflows 2,745 499 Market appreciation (depreciation) 1,625 (311) Distributions (665) (1,178) Total increase (decrease) 3,705 (990) Assets under management, end of period $ 21,165 $ 16,141 31.1 % Percentage of total assets under management 35.0 % 32.5 % Average assets under management for period $ 18,892 $ 17,298 9.2 % Closed-end Funds Assets under management, beginning of period $ 9,029 $ 9,805 Inflows Outflows (86) (19) Net outflows (86) (19) Market appreciation (depreciation) 808 (443) Distributions (367) (385) Total increase (decrease) 355 (847) Assets under management, end of period $ 9,384 $ 8,958 4.8 % Percentage of total assets under management 15.5 % 18.0 % Average assets under management for period $ 9,141 $ 9,717 (5.9%) Total Assets under management, beginning of period $ 52,594 $ 53,137 Inflows 12,017 7,704 Outflows (6,053) (6,505) Net inflows 5,964 1,199 Market appreciation (depreciation) 5,204 (1,386) Distributions (3,265) (3,206) Total increase (decrease) 7,903 (3,393) Assets under management, end of period $ 60,497 $ 49,744 21.6 % Average assets under management for period $ 56,031 $ 52,976 5.8 % (1) September 30, 2015 amounts have been reclassified to show distributions separately and dividend reinvestments as inflows. Cohen & Steers, Inc. and Subsidiaries Assets Under Management - Institutional Accounts (Unaudited) By Account Type For the Periods (in millions) Three Months Ended % Change From September 30, 2016 June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (1) June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 Japan Subadvisory Assets under management, beginning of period $ 14,852 $ 13,998 $ 12,160 Inflows 1,084 874 390 Outflows (96) (33) (115) Net inflows 988 841 275 Market (depreciation) appreciation (68) 765 359 Distributions (828) (752) (560) Total increase 92 854 74 Assets under management, end of period $ 14,944 $ 14,852 $ 12,234 0.6 % 22.2 % Percentage of institutional assets under management 49.9 % 50.2 % 49.6 % Average assets under management for period $ 15,025 $ 13,963 $ 12,308 7.6 % 22.1 % Subadvisory Excluding Japan Assets under management, beginning of period $ 5,782 $ 5,584 $ 5,363 Inflows 374 162 356 Outflows (223) (191) (258) Net inflows (outflows) 151 (29) 98 Market appreciation (depreciation) 115 227 (195) Total increase (decrease) 266 198 (97) Assets under management, end of period $ 6,048 $ 5,782 $ 5,266 4.6 % 14.8 % Percentage of institutional assets under management 20.2 % 19.5 % 21.4 % Average assets under management for period $ 5,979 $ 5,635 $ 5,466 6.1 % 9.4 % Advisory Assets under management, beginning of period $ 8,947 $ 8,275 $ 7,022 Inflows 154 590 171 Outflows (317) (263) (21) Net (outflows) inflows (163) 327 150 Market appreciation (depreciation) 172 345 (27) Total increase 9 672 123 Assets under management, end of period $ 8,956 $ 8,947 $ 7,145 0.1 % 25.3 % Percentage of institutional assets under management 29.9 % 30.2 % 29.0 % Average assets under management for period $ 9,134 $ 8,459 $ 7,111 8.0 % 28.4 % Total Institutional Accounts Assets under management, beginning of period $ 29,581 $ 27,857 $ 24,545 Inflows 1,612 1,626 917 Outflows (636) (487) (394) Net inflows 976 1,139 523 Market appreciation 219 1,337 137 Distributions (828) (752) (560) Total increase 367 1,724 100 Assets under management, end of period $ 29,948 $ 29,581 $ 24,645 1.2 % 21.5 % Average assets under management for period $ 30,138 $ 28,057 $ 24,885 7.4 % 21.1 % (1) September 30, 2015 amounts have been reclassified to show distributions separately and dividend reinvestments as inflows. Cohen & Steers, Inc. and Subsidiaries Assets Under Management - Institutional Accounts (Unaudited) By Account Type For the Periods (in millions) Nine Months Ended September 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (1) % Change Japan Subadvisory Assets under management, beginning of period $ 13,112 $ 13,377 Inflows 2,858 1,234 Outflows (165) (515) Net inflows 2,693 719 Market appreciation (depreciation) 1,372 (219) Distributions (2,233) (1,643) Total increase (decrease) 1,832 (1,143) Assets under management, end of period $ 14,944 $ 12,234 22.2 % Percentage of institutional assets under management 49.9 % 49.6 % Average assets under management for period $ 13,949 $ 13,056 6.8 % Subadvisory Excluding Japan Assets under management, beginning of period $ 5,428 $ 5,480 Inflows 709 818 Outflows (638) (752) Net inflows 71 66 Market appreciation (depreciation) 549 (280) Total increase (decrease) 620 (214) Assets under management, end of period $ 6,048 $ 5,266 14.8 % Percentage of institutional assets under management 20.2 % 21.4 % Average assets under management for period $ 5,609 $ 5,565 0.8 % Advisory Assets under management, beginning of period $ 7,565 $ 7,344 Inflows 1,443 571 Outflows (902) (637) Net inflows (outflows) 541 (66) Market appreciation (depreciation) 850 (133) Total increase (decrease) 1,391 (199) Assets under management, end of period $ 8,956 $ 7,145 25.3 % Percentage of institutional assets under management 29.9 % 29.0 % Average assets under management for period $ 8,440 $ 7,340 15.0 % Total Institutional Accounts Assets under management, beginning of period $ 26,105 $ 26,201 Inflows 5,010 2,623 Outflows (1,705) (1,904) Net inflows 3,305 719 Market appreciation (depreciation) 2,771 (632) Distributions (2,233) (1,643) Total increase (decrease) 3,843 (1,556) Assets under management, end of period $ 29,948 $ 24,645 21.5 % Average assets under management for period $ 27,998 $ 25,961 7.8 % (1) September 30, 2015 amounts have been reclassified to show distributions separately and dividend reinvestments as inflows. Cohen & Steers, Inc. and Subsidiaries Assets Under Management (Unaudited) By Investment Strategy For the Periods (in millions) Three Months Ended % Change From September 30, 2016 June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (1) June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 U.S. Real Estate Assets under management, beginning of period $ 30,981 $ 29,069 $ 25,604 Inflows 2,141 2,050 937 Outflows (722) (800) (885) Net inflows 1,419 1,250 52 Market (depreciation) appreciation (135) 1,677 777 Distributions (890) (1,015) (621) Other (2) (127) Total increase 267 1,912 208 Assets under management, end of period $ 31,248 $ 30,981 $ 25,812 0.9 % 21.1 % Percentage of total assets under management 51.7 % 52.7 % 51.9 % Average assets under management for period $ 31,552 $ 29,266 $ 26,130 7.8 % 20.8 % Global/International Real Estate Assets under management, beginning of period $ 9,984 $ 10,152 $ 9,654 Inflows 231 185 170 Outflows (554) (490) (337) Net outflows (323) (305) (167) Market appreciation (depreciation) 314 203 (67) Distributions (46) (66) (41) Other (2) 127 Total increase (decrease) 72 (168) (275) Assets under management, end of period $ 10,056 $ 9,984 $ 9,379 0.7 % 7.2 % Percentage of total assets under management 16.6 % 17.0 % 18.9 % Average assets under management for period $ 10,256 $ 9,903 $ 9,633 3.6 % 6.5 % Preferred Securities Assets under management, beginning of period $ 9,082 $ 8,099 $ 6,742 Inflows 1,611 1,157 506 Outflows (435) (351) (305) Net inflows 1,176 806 201 Market appreciation 297 288 24 Distributions (115) (111) (90) Total increase 1,358 983 135 Assets under management, end of period $ 10,440 $ 9,082 $ 6,877 15.0 % 51.8 % Percentage of total assets under management 17.3 % 15.5 % 13.8 % Average assets under management for period $ 9,937 $ 8,572 $ 6,843 15.9 % 45.2 % Global Listed Infrastructure Assets under management, beginning of period $ 5,760 $ 5,272 $ 5,422 Inflows 141 245 418 Outflows (77) (49) (115) Net inflows 64 196 303 Market appreciation (depreciation) 80 337 (469) Distributions (42) (45) (44) Total increase (decrease) 102 488 (210) Assets under management, end of period $ 5,862 $ 5,760 $ 5,212 1.8 % 12.5 % Percentage of total assets under management 9.7 % 9.8 % 10.5 % Average assets under management for period $ 5,854 $ 5,486 $ 5,464 6.7 % 7.1 % Other Assets under management, beginning of period $ 2,942 $ 2,467 $ 2,726 Inflows 80 382 116 Outflows (170) (39) (98) Net (outflows) inflows (90) 343 18 Market appreciation (depreciation) 53 145 (266) Distributions (14) (13) (14) Total (decrease) increase (51) 475 (262) Assets under management, end of period $ 2,891 $ 2,942 $ 2,464 (1.7%) 17.3 % Percentage of total assets under management 4.8 % 5.0 % 4.9 % Average assets under management for period $ 2,918 $ 2,682 $ 2,597 8.8 % 12.4 % Total Assets under management, beginning of period $ 58,749 $ 55,059 $ 50,148 Inflows 4,204 4,019 2,147 Outflows (1,958) (1,729) (1,740) Net inflows 2,246 2,290 407 Market appreciation (depreciation) 609 2,650 (1) Distributions (1,107) (1,250) (810) Other (2) Total increase (decrease) 1,748 3,690 (404) Assets under management, end of period $ 60,497 $ 58,749 $ 49,744 3.0 % 21.6 % Average assets under management for period $ 60,517 $ 55,909 $ 50,667 8.2 % 19.4 % (1) September 30, 2015 amounts have been reclassified to show distributions separately and dividend reinvestments as inflows. (2) Represents transfer of assets under management not related to subscriptions, redemptions, market appreciation (depreciation) or distributions. Cohen & Steers, Inc. and Subsidiaries Assets Under Management (Unaudited) By Investment Strategy For the Periods (in millions) Nine Months Ended September 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (1) % Change U.S. Real Estate Assets under management, beginning of period $ 27,814 $ 28,357 Inflows 5,930 3,731 Outflows (2,526) (3,056) Net inflows 3,404 675 Market appreciation (depreciation) 2,769 (618) Distributions (2,612) (2,602) Other (2) (127) Total increase (decrease) 3,434 (2,545) Assets under management, end of period $ 31,248 $ 25,812 21.1 % Percentage of total assets under management 51.7 % 51.9 % Average assets under management for period $ 29,278 $ 27,822 5.2 % Global/International Real Estate Assets under management, beginning of period $ 9,476 $ 10,184 Inflows 1,193 862 Outflows (1,512) (1,451) Net outflows (319) (589) Market appreciation (depreciation) 926 (59) Distributions (154) (157) Other (2) 127 Total increase (decrease) 580 (805) Assets under management, end of period $ 10,056 $ 9,379 7.2 % Percentage of total assets under management 16.6 % 18.9 % Average assets under management for period $ 9,869 $ 10,050 (1.8%) Preferred Securities Assets under management, beginning of period $ 7,705 $ 6,342 Inflows 3,903 1,903 Outflows (1,447) (1,275) Net inflows 2,456 628 Market appreciation 610 162 Distributions (331) (255) Total increase 2,735 535 Assets under management, end of period $ 10,440 $ 6,877 51.8 % Percentage of total assets under management 17.3 % 13.8 % Average assets under management for period $ 8,773 $ 6,771 29.6 % Global Listed Infrastructure Assets under management, beginning of period $ 5,147 $ 5,697 Inflows 477 717 Outflows (304) (472) Net inflows 173 245 Market appreciation (depreciation) 670 (595) Distributions (128) (135) Total increase (decrease) 715 (485) Assets under management, end of period $ 5,862 $ 5,212 12.5 % Percentage of total assets under management 9.7 % 10.5 % Average assets under management for period $ 5,449 $ 5,638 (3.4%) Other Assets under management, beginning of period $ 2,452 $ 2,557 Inflows 514 491 Outflows (264) (251) Net inflows 250 240 Market appreciation (depreciation) 229 (276) Distributions (40) (57) Total increase (decrease) 439 (93) Assets under management, end of period $ 2,891 $ 2,464 17.3 % Percentage of total assets under management 4.8 % 4.9 % Average assets under management for period $ 2,662 $ 2,695 (1.2%) Total Assets under management, beginning of period $ 52,594 $ 53,137 Inflows 12,017 7,704 Outflows (6,053) (6,505) Net inflows 5,964 1,199 Market appreciation (depreciation) 5,204 (1,386) Distributions (3,265) (3,206) Other (2) Total increase (decrease) 7,903 (3,393) Assets under management, end of period $ 60,497 $ 49,744 21.6 % Average assets under management for period $ 56,031 $ 52,976 5.8 % (1) September 30, 2015 amounts have been reclassified to show distributions separately and dividend reinvestments as inflows. (2) Represents transfer of assets under management not related to subscriptions, redemptions, market appreciation (depreciation) or distributions. Non-GAAP Reconciliation Management believes that use of these non-GAAP financial measures may enhance the evaluation of the company's results, as they provide greater transparency into the company's operating results. In addition, these non-GAAP financial measures are used to prepare the company's internal management reports and by management in evaluating the company's business. While management believes that this non-GAAP financial information is useful in evaluating the company's results and operating performance, this information should be considered as supplemental in nature and not as a substitute for the related financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. For the Periods (in thousands, except per share data and percentages) Three Months Ended September 30, 2016 June 30, 2016 September 30, 2015 (5) Revenue, U.S. GAAP $ 94,388 $ 86,373 $ 79,667 Investment advisory and administration fees (1) $ 30 $ 29 $ 19 Distribution and service fees (1) $ 1 $ 1 $ 1 Revenue, as adjusted $ 94,419 $ 86,403 $ 79,687 Expenses, U.S. GAAP $ 57,175 $ 52,242 $ 48,190 Employee compensation and benefits (2) $ (29) $ 10 $ General and administrative (1) $ (25) $ (32) $ (11) Expenses, as adjusted $ 57,121 $ 52,220 $ 48,179 Operating income, U.S. GAAP $ 37,213 $ 34,131 $ 31,477 Revenue adjustments above $ 31 $ 30 $ 20 Expense adjustments above $ 54 $ 22 $ 11 Operating income, as adjusted $ 37,298 $ 34,183 $ 31,508 Non-operating income (loss), U.S. GAAP $ 1,356 $ 4,466 $ (7,727) Interest and dividends on seed investments (3) $ (264) $ (455) $ (231) (Gains) losses from seed investments (3) $ (698) $ (3,815) $ 7,748 Non-operating income (loss), as adjusted $ 394 $ 196 $ (210) Net income (loss) attributable to redeemable noncontrolling interest, U.S. GAAP $ 46 $ (113) $ 129 Amounts attributable to consolidated seed investments (1) $ (46) $ 113 $ (129) Net income attributable to redeemable noncontrolling interest, as adjusted $ $ $ Provision for income taxes, U.S. GAAP $ 14,738 $ 13,676 $ 11,541 Tax effect on adjustments (4) $ (672) $ (612) $ 352 Provision for income taxes, as adjusted $ 14,066 $ 13,064 $ 11,893 Net income attributable to common stockholders, U.S. GAAP $ 23,877 $ 24,808 $ 12,338 Investment advisory and administration fees (1) $ 30 $ 29 $ 19 Distribution and service fees (1) $ 1 $ 1 $ 1 Employee compensation and benefits (2) $ 29 $ (10) $ General and administrative (1) $ 25 $ 32 $ 11 Interest and dividends on seed investments (3) $ (264) $ (455) $ (231) (Gains) losses from seed investments (3) $ (698) $ (3,815) $ 7,748 Tax effect on adjustments (4) $ 672 $ 612 $ (352) Amounts attributable to consolidated seed investments (1) $ (46) $ 113 $ (129) Net income attributable to common stockholders, as adjusted $ 23,626 $ 21,315 $ 19,405 Diluted weighted average shares outstanding 46,544 46,378 45,830 Diluted earnings per share, U.S. GAAP $ 0.51 $ 0.53 $ 0.27 Diluted earnings per share, as adjusted $ 0.51 $ 0.46 $ 0.42 Operating margin, U.S. GAAP 39.4 % 39.5 % 39.5 % Operating margin, as adjusted 39.5 % 39.6 % 39.5 % (1) Represents amounts related to deconsolidation of our consolidated seed investments in Company-sponsored funds. (2) Represents amounts necessary to maintain non-GAAP compensation-to-revenue ratio in light of deconsolidation adjustment to revenue. (3) Represents dividend income and realized gains attributable to our seed investments classified as available-for-sale, our proportionate share of the results of operations of seed investments classified as equity method investments including realized and unrealized gains and losses, and amounts attributable to our consolidated seed investments. (4) The provision for income taxes is provided for at 37.32%, 38%, and 38% for the three months ended September 30, 2016, June 30, 2016 and September 30, 2015, respectively, which is the rate the company would pay on its earnings excluding the effect of non-operating gains and losses on seed investments and discrete items. (5) During the three months ended December 31, 2015, one of the company's seed investments changed classification from available-for-sale to equity method. As a result, all prior periods have been retroactively adjusted to reflect this investment as if it had been an equity method investment in prior periods. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Additional Disclosures 2016 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. The information contained herein: (1) is proprietary to Morningstar and/or its content providers; (2) may not be copied or distributed; and (3) is not warranted to be accurate, complete, or timely. Neither Morningstar nor its content providers are responsible for any damages or losses arising from any use of this information. Morningstar calculates its ratings based on a risk-adjusted return measure that accounts for variation in a fund's monthly performance (including the effects of sales charges, loads, and redemption fees), placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of funds in each category receive five stars, the next 22.5% receive four stars, the next 35% receive three stars, the next 22.5% receive two stars and the bottom 10% receive one star. Based on independent rating by Morningstar, Inc. of investment performance of each Cohen & Steers-sponsored open-end U.S.-registered mutual fund for all share classes for the overall period as of September 30, 2016. Overall Morningstar rating is a weighted average based on the 3-year, 5-year and 10-year Morningstar rating. Each share class is counted as a fraction of one fund within this scale and rated separately, which may cause slight variations in the distribution percentages. This is not investment advice and may not be construed as sales or marketing material for any financial product or service sponsored or provided by Cohen & Steers. SOURCE Cohen & Steers, Inc. For more than 25 years, the Foundation has been committed to improving access to safe drinking water in low-resource settings of Sub-Saharan Africa, Mexico and India, with investments in the water sector having been guided by global ambitions, beginning first with the call to eradicate guinea worm followed by the Millennium Development Goals' (MDGs) drinking water target. The adoption of Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6) gives the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sector a new global ambition to strive for pushing for bigger and better services. The Foundation has embraced this bold challenge with the design and release of its 2017-2021 grantmaking strategy. Taking this into consideration, within the Safe Water program area, the Foundation will make investments in three key focus areas: 1) advancing proven and promising solutions and models, 2) strengthening water governance and in-country systems, and 3) building and disseminating credible and actionable evidence. "We are pleased to announce another $19.53 million in funds to organizations all over the world, and are particularly excited about our new strategy for our Safe Water program," said Peter Laugharn, president and CEO of the Hilton Foundation. "The three approaches outlined in the strategy will be applied in an integrated way within the countries where we work in sub-Saharan Africa, with the objective of accelerating the coverage of reliable access to safe and affordable water for households, health facilities and schools in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali, Niger and Uganda." Of the $9.5 million to support the Safe Water program area, Safe Water Network was awarded $5 million to develop a market for small water enterprises (SWEs) in Ghana. $3 million was granted to World Vision for the purpose of demonstrating sustainable WASH services in all health care facilities in two districts in Mali. PATH was awarded $1.5 million to advance the development of a commercially viable on-site chlorine generator (SE-Flow) for drinking water treatment and infection prevention and control (IPC) in low-resource health facilities, schools and communities. Grants in the third quarter of 2016 were awarded to a total of 17 organizations spanning across the Hilton Foundation's priority areas, including organizations serving the most disadvantaged and vulnerable people both in the U.S. and internationally. Following is an overview of other grants awarded in the third quarter of 2016: Children Affected by HIV and AIDS King Baudouin Foundation United States, Inc. was awarded $260,000 to support the African Early Childhood Network's efforts to strengthen early childhood development research and advocacy in Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique. Additionally, $400,000 was awarded to PATH to assess the impact of health facility-based early childhood development interventions and plan for replication in Kenya. Finally, The World Bank was awarded $300,000 for the Early Learning Partnership to provide the Government of Tanzania with data on the pre-primary teaching workforce. Foster Youth $750,000 was awarded to the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy to build the capacity of community colleges to address unintended pregnancy among youth transitioning out of foster care in Los Angeles and New York. Annie E. Casey Foundation was awarded $300,000 for learning and assessment of the Learn and Earn to Achieve Potential (LEAP) initiative. Catholic Sisters Alverno College was granted $2.75 million to expand and deepen National Catholic Sisters Project (formerly known as National Catholic Sisters Week) to include three additional Catholic colleges and universities located in California, Texas and Wisconsin. $900,000 was awarded to LifeNet International to build the capacity of Catholic sisters to operate in 22 community health centers in Uganda, while Medicines for Humanity received a $250,000 grant to build the capacity of 11 congregations of Catholic Sisters in Haiti to implement effective training programs for traditional birth attendants. Finally, Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate was granted $240,000 to support research that advances our understanding of Catholic sisters. Homelessness $1.9 million was granted to Abt Associates to serve as Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning partner for Phase II of the Foundation's Homelessness Strategic Initiative. Downtown Women's Center was awarded $450,000 to build partnership and foster cross-sector programs between permanent supportive housing and domestic violence providers serving individuals experiencing chronic homelessness. Disaster Relief and Recovery Harvard University was awarded $480,000 to support continued development and scale-up of KoBo Toolbox, free and open-source suite of data collection and analysis tools that aims to facilitate better coordination and more timely humanitarian service delivery in the field. Catholic Education $550,000 was awarded to Step Up for Students to expand private school choice in the state of Alabama, in partnership with the Archdiocese of Mobile, to include Catholic schools serving low-income students. Additionally, a grant in the amount of $500,000 was awarded to Boys Town Nevada to support family services in a school-based initiative. For more detailed information on our grantmaking, please visit hiltonfoundation.org/grants. About the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation was created in 1944 by international business pioneer Conrad N. Hilton, who founded Hilton Hotels and left his fortune to help the world's disadvantaged and vulnerable people. The Foundation currently conducts strategic initiatives in six priority areas: providing safe water, ending chronic homelessness, preventing substance use, helping children affected by HIV and AIDS, supporting transition-age youth in foster care, and extending Conrad Hilton's support for the work of Catholic Sisters. In addition, following selection by an independent international jury, the Foundation annually awards the $2 million Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize to a nonprofit organization doing extraordinary work to reduce human suffering. In 2016, the Humanitarian Prize was awarded to The Task Force for Global Health, an international, nonprofit organization that works to improve health of people most in need, primarily in developing countries. From its inception, the Foundation has awarded more than $1.4 billion in grants, distributing $107 million in the U.S. and around the world in 2015. The Foundation's current assets are approximately $2.5 billion. For more information, please visit www.hiltonfoundation.org. Contact: Julia Friedman, Communications Manager, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation 818.851.3754 / [email protected] Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430441 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150916/267339LOGO SOURCE Conrad N. Hilton Foundation Related Links https://www.hiltonfoundation.org/ "The driving force behind our innovation is consumer choice. We dial into what consumers seek from our brands and implement our category-leading shopper insights to help our retail partners merchandise products to satisfy their shoppers' needs," said Edward Taylor, VP U.S. Sales and Operations for Wrigley. "Wrigley's new innovations intend to help grow the category by delivering relevant products that meet shoppers' needs. We know that consumers are often running low on gum, so we're giving them more gum in their favorite brands with the 35-stick Extra and 5 gum Mega Packs, and the new 40-count Orbit White soft chew that helps keep teeth white. We're also giving shoppers fun ways to celebrate their favorite occasions, from summer holidays to game day, with exclusive Skittles America Mix, Juicy Fruit America Pop and Skittles Trick Plays." New items Wrigley will feature at the NACS Show include: Orbit White: Orbit is introducing Orbit White, an all-new mint soft chew that is proven to help keep teeth white. Orbit White comes in a soft chew form, bigger in size than current Orbit pellets, and will be offered in two sugarfree flavors, Spearmint and Peppermint. ( January 2017 , $3.49 for 40-count bottles) Doublemint Perfectly Sweet: Doublemint Perfectly Sweet offers a new choice for consumers seeking gum sweetened only with real sugar and provides the taste people expect and love from Doublemint gum. ( December 2016 , $0.68 for 12-stick envelope pack) Juicy Fruit America Pop : Tapping into the success of this summer's special-edition Skittles America Mix, Juicy Fruit will launch new Juicy Fruit America Pop next summer. Each stick contains a blend of Cherry, Lemon and Blue Raspberry flavors channeling the delicious flavor of the red, white and blue ice pops. ( May 2017 , $1.19 for the 15-stick Slim Pack and $2.69 for the Multipack with three 15-stick Slim Pack) Skittles Trick Plays: Skittles is adding a fun twist on the popular football strategy with Skittles Trick Plays, which will keep fans guessing when the Skittles' colors on the outside don't match the flavors on the inside. Available for a limited time only, Trick Plays will be in stores just in time to engage with fans during the 2017 NFL season. (Early 2017, $0.99 for Single Pack) Extra and 5 gum Mega Packs: Wrigley is extending its successful Mega Pack line to include Extra Peppermint and 5 gum as Front End Bulk is a fast-growing segment of gum. The Mega Pack holds over twice as much gum as a standard 15-stick pack, so consumers do not have to worry about running out as 50 percent of consumers are out of stock on a daily basis. ( June 2017 , $2.49 for the Extra Mega Pack and $2.99 for the 5 gum Mega Pack). New Seasonal Items across brands including Skittles Cauldron for Halloween , Life Savers Wint-O-Green Candy Canes and Skittles Book of Awesome for the holidays as well as Altoids Love Tins for Valentine's Day and Starburst Ice Cream Flavors Jelly Beans for Easter. New items Mars Chocolate will display at the NACS Show include: M&M'S Caramel Chocolate Candies. The biggest launch in M&M'S Brand history, this innovative treat features a creamy caramel center covered in delicious milk chocolate, enclosed in a colorful candy shell. Caramel is the fastest growing flavor segment in food, growing 15 percent in 2015. ( April 2017 , $1.09-$1.39 for 1.41-ounce Singles, $1.69-$1.99 for 2.83-ounce Share Size, $2.99-$3.99 for 9.9-ounce Sharing Size SUP) Three New Flavors of Gluten-Free goodnessknows snack squares. Building on its 2015 national launch, goodnessknows snack squares adds three new flavors to its popular lineup that combines fruits, whole nuts and dark chocolate: Blueberry & Almond, Mixed Berry & Almond and Strawberry & Peanut. ( December 2016 , $1.59 - $1.99 for 1.2-ounce singles, $4.99 - $6.99 for a five-pack carton) MALTESERS Candies. As the #1 bite-sized chocolate brand in the U.K., this treat features a crispy, airy center, wrapped in a smooth, mouth-watering, chocolatey covering. ( January 2017 , SRP: $1.09-$1.39 for 1.3-ounce Singles; $1.00 - $1.70 for 3.0-ounce Theater Box; $1.80 - $2.40 for 3.52-ounce Peg Bag; $4.99 - $5.99 for 14.5-ounce Tub; $9.48 - $9.99 for 31.0-ounce Tub) SNICKERS & Hazelnut Bar satisfies with everything consumers love about SNICKERSpeanuts, caramel and nougat covered in milk chocolatewith the addition of delicious hazelnuts. ( December 2016 , $.99 - $1.09 for 1.76-ounce Single, $1.69-$1.79 for 3.23-ounce 2 to Go) DOVE Fruit Mixed Berries Dipped in DOVE Dark Chocolate. Featuring strawberries, blueberries and cranberries, this new flavor variety is the perfect combination of real fruit and America's #1 DOVE Dark Chocolate. ( December 2016 , $3.99 - $4.29 for 5.5-ounce SUP) DOVE Fruit Dark Chocolate Cherry & Sea Salt Almond. Building on the popular DOVE Fruit Cherry -- which was a top seller last year -- this new offering combines real cherries with the #1 nut in America -- almonds. ( December 2016 , $3.99 - $4.29 for 5.5-ounce SUP) TWIX White Chocolate Cookie Bars feature two crunchy cookie bars covered with smooth caramel and enrobed in creamy white chocolate. (Limited edition - October 2016 , $0.99-$1.09 for a single package of two bars) M&M'S Brand Ice Cream Bars feature chopped M&M'S Milk Chocolate Candies inside reduced fat vanilla ice cream, all smothered in creamy milk chocolate. ( December 2016 , SRP $1.79 for a 2.64-ounce single and $3.99 for a box of six 1.63-ounce bars) New Seasonal Items span each brand portfolio, from TWIX Brand Minis Cane for the Holidays to M&M'S Milk Chocolate Bottles with graphics for Valentine's Day and Easter. In addition to new product innovations, Wrigley and Mars Chocolate will introduce several co-branded initiatives at the show, including "The Candy Bowl" program that builds on the success of last year's inaugural joint Super Bowl promotion. The companies will also share details on their merchandising tools and insights, which are already being implemented with more than 18,000 retailers and provide customized recommendations on strategic product placements to maximize sales. These collaborative initiatives reflect the recent announcement from parent company, Mars, Inc., about the intent to combine the Chocolate and Wrigley segments to create Mars Wrigley Confectionery. The combination will help deliver greater value to customers, and enable the segment to address consumer trends and insights holistically in what is increasingly seen as one global confections category. Retailers can contact their Mars and Wrigley representative for details on product innovations, consumer promotions and shopper insights and visit www.marspresskit.com. About Mars, Incorporated In 1911, Frank C. Mars made the first Mars candies in his Tacoma, Washington kitchen and established Mars' first roots as a confectionery company. In the 1920s, Forrest E. Mars, Sr. joined his father in business and together they launched the MILKY WAY bar. In 1932, Forrest, Sr. moved to the United Kingdom with a dream of building a business based on the objective of creating a "mutuality of benefits for all stakeholders" this objective serves as the foundation of Mars, Incorporated today. Based in McLean, Virginia, Mars has net sales of more than $33 billion, six business segments including Petcare, Chocolate, Wrigley, Food, Drinks, Symbioscience, and more than 75,000 Associates worldwide that are putting its Principles into action to make a difference for people and the planet through its performance. Mars brands include: Petcare PEDIGREE, ROYAL CANIN, WHISKAS, BANFIELD Pet Hospital, CESAR, SHEBA, DREAMIES and NUTRO; Chocolate M&M'S, SNICKERS, DOVE, GALAXY, MARS, MILKY WAY and TWIX; Wrigley DOUBLEMINT, EXTRA, ORBIT and 5 chewing gums, SKITTLES and STARBURST candies, and ALTOIDS AND LIFESAVERS mints. Food UNCLE BEN'S, DOLMIO, EBLY, MASTERFOODS, SEEDS OF CHANGE and ROYCO; Drinks ALTERRA COFFEE ROASTERS, THE BRIGHT TEA COMPANY, KLIX and FLAVIA; Symbioscience COCOAVIA and WISDOM PANEL. For more information, please visit www.mars.com. Follow us: facebook.com/mars, twitter.com/marsglobal, youtube.com/mars, linkedin.com/company/mars. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161017/429557 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161017/429558 SOURCE Mars Chocolate North America Related Links http://www.mars.com CHARLOTTE, N.C. and SAN ANTONIO, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Conterra Broadband Services, a leading provider of private fiber-optic broadband networks, has announced that it has entered into a long-term agreement to deploy an all-fiber-optic network to support the data, video and voice requirements of the Northside Independent School District ("NISD"), San Antonio, Texas. NISD serves approximately 106,000 students and 13,000 staff members. The fast-growing school district is the largest in San Antonio and the fourth largest in the State of Texas covering over 350 square miles. The fault-tolerant, dedicated network employs multiple 100 Gbps optical fiber rings to connect all of the 127 district's schools and administrative facilities with the two Northside ISD Data Centers. Conterra continuously monitors, manages, and supports the network to ensure network performance and reliability. The network is designed to scale up to 100 Gbps for each location without the need for additional construction. "We recognized that our current network was not able to support our future educational technology needs," said Lori Jones, NISD Assistant Superintendent, Technology Services. "We needed a scalable solution to address our district's mission of providing innovative, high-quality, diverse learning experiences for all students in an ever-changing world. As a specialized fiber-optic network provider, Conterra will provide us a dedicated, resilient, fiber-optic network that will serve us and the community for many years." Conterra's EVP Greg Spraetz commented, "We are accelerating our multi-million-dollar investments in Texas by offering school districts future proof network solutions by delivering high-reliable, high-performance private networks. Conterra serves dozens of school districts in Texas including new fiber networks to support El Paso ISD & Socorro ISD, Judson & South San Antonio, and the Tyler ISD along with our recently awarded long-term agreement with the Fort Worth ISD. We continue to deliver customized, tailored, market-leading fast, secure, and reliable wide area network services that are essential to evolving educational technology platforms such as interactive video programming, cloud-based applications, mobility initiatives, and virtual learning." Ms. Jones added, "Conterra Broadband will provide us with a highly reliable, scalable, WAN that will deliver dedicated 1-10 Gbps service to every NISD location. As our technology platforms evolve to support a cloud-based environment, this new dedicated network is essential for student learning." About Conterra Broadband Services Conterra Broadband Services is a national provider of managed fiber-based, carrier-grade telecommunications solutions for schools, enterprises, healthcare, telecom carriers, and municipalities that require bandwidth intensive, carrier-grade services in major metropolitan, suburban, and rural areas. Conterra, and its subsidiaries, currently provide services to over 3,000 locations throughout the United States. For more information about Conterra, visit www.Conterra.com or call: 800-634-1374. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150929/271868LOGO SOURCE Conterra Broadband Services Related Links http://www.Conterra.com NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- ContextMedia:Health, the leader in patient outcome technologies, announced today that it has added Doug Rutz, Jeff Kabat, Martin Pitkow and Scott Simpson as Senior Vice Presidents for Life Sciences Solutions to oversee the company's goal of ubiquity in healthcare by 2020. The four hires bring decades of combined leadership across the Life Sciences, Enterprise Sales and Corporate Development, and will continue to drive ContextMedia:Health's triple-digit revenue growth in pursuit of this goal. "Today, our technology has given us the ability to deliver intelligence and information to both patients and providers as they make the decisions that drive health outcomes," said Ashik Desai, EVP of Business Growth and Analytics at ContextMedia:Health. "There is a transformation of technology and access happening at the point of care, and the explosive scale and efficacy ContextMedia:Health's platforms is leading marketers to move 10-15% of their salesforce and DTC budgets over to our channels. Through the results delivered by ContextMedia:Health's performance-based programming, our partners experience industry-leading ROI, and we are turning a new page at ContextMedia:Health. The addition of best-in-class leadership in Doug, Jeff, Martin and Scott will help us accelerate on our journey." Immediately prior to joining ContextMedia, Doug Rutz held the position of Chief Revenue Officer at ConnectiveRx, formerly PDR/PSKW. Prior to his tenure at ConnectiveRx, he served for seven years at Adheris Health, a division of inVentiv Health, as Group Vice President of Business Development and served for over two decades in leadership roles within Marketing and Sales at Novartis Pharmaceuticals. Jeff Kabat previously served as President and General Manager at Demdex, the first-ever point solution data management platform (DMP), which was acquired by Adobe in early 2011. The acquisition saw Kabat transition into the role of VP Sales at Adobe, where he oversaw operations for this SaaS offering across The Americas. Martin Pitkow joins ContextMedia:Health from SAP SuccessFactors, where he was most recently the Global VP of Corporate Development & Growth Initiatives. Pitkow contributed in a series of leadership positions in sales and general management at SuccessFactors during his 12 year tenure, including head of global Solution Sales and Chief of Staff, through SuccessFactors' successful IPO and acquisition by SAP. Scott Simpson most recently served as Head of New Sales for the South Asia Pacific Region at Google, where he oversaw the teams and operations responsible for customer growth in the region. Simpson contributed for nearly seven years at Google, where he previously held a role as Head of New Sales for Google's Emerging Markets in Africa, the Middle East and Southern Europe. His experience before Google includes seven years as the co-founder of a Michigan-based startup and a member of the finance team at the commercial real estate firm, Cushman & Wakefield. About ContextMedia:Health ContextMedia:Health is the leading provider of digital solutions at the point of care in the United States. The company's technologies impact 378 million patient visits a year at 25,000 physician practices across the nation through digital anatomy boards, patient education tablets and mobile connectivity in outpatient waiting rooms and physician consultation rooms. These health technologies deliver measurable results to patient engagement, empowering action and inspiring behavior change for people living with a chronic condition. In addition to hospitals and integrated health systems, ContextMedia:Health also partners with life science companies, medical device companies, health content publishers and medical associations to catalyze conversations between the healthcare provider and patient about lifestyle changes and therapy solutions to improve the quality of life. To find out more about brand partnerships, visit http://partner.contextmediainc.com. Media Contact: Philip de Guzman, Communications Lead, ContextMedia, (312) 636-7320, [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160713/389076LOGO SOURCE ContextMedia:Health Related Links http://www.contextmediainc.com Highly regarded real estate professionals become Principals, will focus on agency leasing and investment sales transactions; three others join SAN DIEGO, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ - Christopher Cooper, Avison Young Principal and Managing Director of the company's Southern California region, announced today that Corey Martin, Stan Nowak and their highly regarded agency leasing and investment sales team have joined the firm in San Diego. Effective immediately, Martin and Nowak become Principals of Avison Young with a mandate to expand the firm's San Diego and Southwest Riverside Counties' industrial and office sales, leasing, and investment sales practice. In the coming months, Martin will also expand his practice into the Austin, TX market to serve his clients' growing requirements. In addition, Matt Shaw joins the company as a Senior Associate, Cody Lerner becomes an Associate and Lindsay Shoffner an administrative assistant. All five of the new team members join Avison Young from Coldwell Banker Commercial in the San Diego suburb of Temecula, CA, where Martin was a Principal, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice-President and Nowak a Principal and Senior Vice-President, while Shaw was a Senior Associate, Lerner an Associate and Shoffner a Business and Relations Co-ordinator. "Corey and Stan are highly regarded real estate industry leaders who have gained considerable recognition in Southern California for their proven expertise in agency leasing and industrial and office real estate investment sales," comments Cooper. "We couldn't be more pleased to have Corey, Stan, Matt, Cody and Lindsay come on board to lead this integral service delivery platform in San Diego. The addition of this team will further our ability to provide high-level, value-added owner and investor services to our clients." Martin and Nowak each bring 11 years of commercial real estate experience to Avison Young. They are both consistent top producers and have worked together throughout their careers. "We are thrilled to have Corey, Stan and their team join Avison Young," adds Jerry Keeney, Avison Young Principal in the firm's San Diego office. "Their expertise will be a tremendous complement to our rapidly growing San Diego practice and will certainly provide the foundation necessary to expand our agency leasing and sales delivery platform. Working together, the entire team will provide owners and investors with best-in-class leasing, sales advisory and transaction services." While at Coldwell Banker Commercial, Martin received CoStar Top Office Broker awards in 2014 and 2015. He joined Coldwell Banker Commercial in 2012 as a result of its merger with CORE Real Estate Services in Temecula, a company that he co-founded. While at CORE, he held the position of President and was responsible for developing strategic real estate solutions for office and industrial properties throughout the Inland Empire and San Diego County. Prior to founding CORE, Martin was with The Garrett Group in Temecula, managing operations as well as the industrial and office leasing and investment sales practices; and was a Senior Associate with Coldwell Banker Commercial Almar RE Group in Temecula. Martin's past and current clients include Kearny Real Estate Company, Corus-Tata Steel, Oshkosh Defense, Regent Properties, Dimension Data, Fullmer Construction, Hamann Companies, and Airbus DS Communications. Recent transactions include a 68,289-square-foot (sf) office build-to-suit for a Riverside County school district with a total consideration of more than $51 million; and the sale of a nine-building, class A office and flex industrial portfolio totaling 82,137 sf for $12.3 million. "I am very excited to join the Avison Young family," notes Martin. "The firm's culture places a high emphasis on honesty and integrity while fostering a collaborative partnership that is unique in the real estate industry. Avison Young's encouragement for an entrepreneurial approach to client service and solutions is unique in our industry and sets the company apart from the rest of the service providers. The team is looking forward to expanding our market share in San Diego and Riverside Counties, and working with our new colleagues throughout North America and Europe." In the community, Martin is active with various community service programs offering support to the homeless, veterans and other citizens in need. He is an active member of Bible League, World Vision, Compassion International, Fred Jordan Missions and Far Reaching Ministries. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in cellular and molecular biology from San Diego State University. Nowak moved to Coldwell Banker Commercial in 2012 as part of its merger with CORE Real Estate Services, where he was a Senior Vice-President. Prior to joining CORE, he was a Senior Vice-President at The Garrett Group in Temecula, specializing in office and industrial leasing and investment sales transactions; and a Senior Sales Associate with Coldwell Banker Commercial Almar RE Group in Temecula. Nowak's past and current clients include First Industrial Realty, Glasswerks and Airbus DS Communications. Recent transactions include an $11.7-million, 263,000-sf, flex-industrial-building acquisition for his client's regional headquarters in Temecula; and the disposition of a 108,000-sf industrial distribution building for $7.55 million. Other recent sales include office and industrial income properties totaling more than 250,000 sf with a combined market value exceeding $23.5 million. "I am looking forward to the opportunity to expand my practice with Avison Young," adds Nowak. "The team and I were drawn to the firm because of its Principal-led, client-centric model, which will allow us to make decisions at the local level and provide a nimble, custom-tailored approach to transaction management for our clients. That's a big differentiator for us. Furthermore, Avison Young's exceptional track record in San Diego and Southern California, along with the firm's entrepreneurial work environment and client-first focus on investor services, were very appealing to us." Over the past seven and a half years, Avison Young has grown from 11 to 79 offices and from 300 to more than 2,400 real estate professionals in Canada, the U.S., Mexico and Europe. Avison Young is the world's fastest-growing commercial real estate services firm. Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Avison Young is a collaborative, global firm owned and operated by its principals. Founded in 1978, the company comprises 2,400 real estate professionals in 79 offices, providing value-added, client-centric investment sales, leasing, advisory, management, financing and mortgage placement services to owners and occupiers of office, retail, industrial and multi-family properties. For further information/comment/photos: Sherry Quan , Principal, Global Director of Communications & Media Relations, Avison Young: 604.647.5098; cell: 604.726.0959 , Principal, Global Director of Communications & Media Relations, Avison Young: cell: Christopher Cooper , Principal and Managing Director, Southern California Region, Avison Young: 213.935.7435 , Principal and Managing Director, Southern California Region, Avison Young: Jerry Keeney , Principal, Avison Young: 858.201.7077 , Principal, Avison Young: Corey Martin , Principal, Avison Young: 858.336.5501 , Principal, Avison Young: Stan Nowak , Principal, Avison Young: 951.743.0383 , Principal, Avison Young: Mark Rose , Chair and CEO, Avison Young: 416.673.4028 Chair and CEO, Avison Young: Earl Webb , President, U.S. Operations, Avison Young: 312.957.7610 www.avisonyoung.com Avison Young was a winner of Canada's Best Managed Companies program in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 and requalified in 2015 to maintain its status as a Best Managed Gold company Follow Avison Young on Twitter: For industry news, press releases and market reports: www.twitter.com/avisonyoung For Avison Young listings and deals: www.twitter.com/AYListingsDeals Follow Avison Young Bloggers: http://blog.avisonyoung.com Follow Avison Young on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/avison-young-commercial-real-estate Follow Avison Young on YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/AvisonYoungRE Editors/Reporters Please click on links to view and download photos of Corey Martin and Stan Nowak: http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/Corey-Martin.png http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/Stan-Nowak.png SOURCE Avison Young Commercial Real Estate (BC) Related Links www.avisonyoung.com HOUSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- CRG, a global healthcare-focused investment firm supporting innovative healthcare companies, announced today the appointment of Adam Whitehead as Vice President of Investor Relations in the firm's Boulder office. Mr. Whitehead will help build and manage relationships with CRG's limited partners and expand the firm's investor relations strategy. Mr. Whitehead will report to Mike Weinmann, Managing Director at CRG. Mr. Whitehead brings to CRG more than 10 years of experience in asset allocation, manager due diligence and fundraising, and established relationships with institutional investors. Previously, Mr. Whitehead spent six years as a senior investment analyst at Crestone Capital Advisors, a large multi-family office for ultra-high net worth entrepreneurs and executives. He also served as Vice President of Research for Sovereign Wealth Management. In addition, Mr. Whitehead served as Vice President of Research for Quantitative Equity Systems; Director of Research at The Bornhoft Group; and Principal and Director of Trading and Research at Warwick Capital Management. He began his investment career as a Proprietary Trader and Asset/Liability Modeler at Branch Banking & Trust. Mr. Whitehead graduated from Saint Andrews Presbyterian College, magna cum laude, in Laurinburg, North Carolina with a double major in business (emphasis in finance and accounting). "Adam brings to CRG deep knowledge of the alternative investment landscape and a strong book of contacts to continue our rapid growth," said Nate Hukill, President of CRG. "This exciting addition will help us better service our limited partners and expand on relationships with institutional investors that allocate to private capital investment strategies." About CRG Founded in 2003, CRG (previously known as Capital Royalty L.P.) is a healthcare-focused investment firm that delivers pioneering growth capital financing solutions to the global healthcare industry. With nearly $3.0 billion of assets under management across 42 healthcare investments, CRG provides growth capital to healthcare companies primarily through structured debt and senior secured loans. CRG works across the spectrum of healthcare products, technologies and services and targets investment sizes ranging between $20 million and $300 million. The firm partners with innovative, commercial-stage healthcare companies that address large, unmet medical needs who are seeking flexible financing solutions with a committed, value-add partner to achieve their growth objectives. CRG is headquartered in Houston, Texas with offices in Boulder, Colorado and New York. For additional information, please visit www.crglp.com. Disclosure: This release does not constitute an offer to sell or buy any securities and may not be used or relied upon in connection with any offer or sale of securities. It does not constitute a solicitation of clients and may not be used or relied upon in connection with any solicitation of clients. This release is qualified in its entirety by reference to the offering materials of a specific investment opportunity. Neither the Fund nor CRG makes any representation or warranty, either express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness or reliability of the information contained in this release. Statements in this release are made as of the date hereof unless stated otherwise herein, and the delivery of this release at any time shall not under any circumstances create an implication that the information contained herein is correct as of any time subsequent to such date. Neither the Fund nor CRG has any obligation to update the information contained in this release, including in the event that any such information becomes inaccurate. No person has been authorized to give any information or to make any representation concerning the matters in this release other than the information explicitly contained in this release, and, if given or made, such information or representation must not be relied upon as having been authorized. CRG and its affiliates reserve the right to modify any of the terms of any offering. Certain information contained in this release constitutes "forward-looking statements (as defined in the U.S. private securities litigation reform act of 1995)," which can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "should," "expect," "seeks," "plans," "scheduled to," "target," "anticipate," "project," "estimate," "intend," "continue" or "believe" or the negatives thereof or other variations thereon or other comparable terminology. Due to various known or unknown risks and uncertainties, including those described in this release and the offering materials of a specific investment opportunity, actual events or results or the actual performance may differ materially from those reflected or contemplated in such forward-looking statements. As a result, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. No representation or warranty is made as to future performance or such forward-looking statements. The Fund and CRG expressly disclaim any and all liability relating to or resulting from the use of this release. Media Contact: Nick Rust 212.279.3115 ext. 252 [email protected] SOURCE CRG LP Related Links http://www.crglp.com WOONSOCKET, R.I., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) today announced the national rollout of CVS Pay, an end-to-end mobile payment solution at CVS Pharmacy. CVS Pay is now part of the CVS Pharmacy mobile app, and integrates payment, prescription pickup and the ExtraCare loyalty program all into one quick scan at checkout. CVS Pay is an example of the company's larger commitment to developing digital tools that simplify the customer experience, making it easier for consumers everywhere to better manage their health. "We know that our customers lead busy lives, so our digital efforts are focused on making it easier for them to do simple but important things like picking up prescriptions. That's why we are thrilled to launch CVS Pay to CVS Pharmacy app users nationwide," said Brian Tilzer, Senior Vice President and Chief Digital Officer, CVS Health. "For our customers, CVS Pay offers more than just a payment solution: it's a seamless, quick and easy user experience that makes picking up prescriptions and shopping at CVS Pharmacy even more convenient." CVS Pay first launched as a pilot program this August in the New York City metro area and the adoption of the program as well as feedback from customers has exceeded expectations. Now available to all users of the CVS Pharmacy mobile app, CVS Pay simplifies the checkout experience for customers nationwide. CVS Pay users have the ability to refill, manage multiple prescriptions and now pick-up and pay all within the app. Additionally, customers can link their ExtraCare card with CVS Pay, meaning a single scan at checkout will process all ExtraCare deals, earn new rewards and handle payment for the transaction. For another added level of convenience, customers can also use CVS Pay at the drive-thru, where they can simply share a pickup number found within the CVS Pharmacy mobile app. CVS Pharmacy customers can begin using CVS Pay by adding any credit or debit card into the CVS Pharmacy app. They can also add their Health Savings Account and Flexible Savings Account cards. The CVS Pharmacy mobile app can be downloaded at www.cvs.com/mobile-cvs/apps. At the store, the associate will scan the barcode from the customer's app, ring up the purchases, let the customer choose a payment method from those stored within the app, and then process the payment. All verifications for prescriptions and payment take place directly in the app, so transactions are quick and easy. Once complete, the customer will receive a confirmation of payment in the app. CVS Pay is available in the CVS Pharmacy app on iOS and Android devices and works with all major credit (MasterCard, Visa, Discover, American Express), debit, Health Savings Account and Flexible Spending Account cards. CVS Pay works in CVS Pharmacy standalone stores only and is not yet available at CVS Pharmacy in Target locations. About CVS Pharmacy CVS Pharmacy, the retail division of CVS Health (NYSE: CVS), is America's leading retail pharmacy with over 9,600 locations. It is the first national pharmacy to end the sale of tobacco and the first pharmacy in the nation to receive the Community Pharmacy accreditation from URAC, the leading health care accreditation organization that establishes quality standards for the health care industry. CVS Pharmacy is reinventing pharmacy to help people on their path to better health by providing the most accessible and personalized expertise, both in its stores and online at CVS.com. General information about CVS Pharmacy and CVS Health is available at www.cvshealth.com. Press Contacts Erin Pensa CVS Pharmacy T: 401.770.4786 E: [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160421/358240LOGO SOURCE CVS Pharmacy Related Links http://www.cvshealth.com ARLINGTON, Va., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Cybersecurity education and workforce development company CyberVista today welcomes students into its first live online class for its Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) certification test preparation program. CyberVista's program is the only live online CISSP test prep program approved by (ISC), the world's largest IT security organization specializing in security education and certifications. "The demand for CISSP holders continues to outpace the supply, posing a great challenge to filling today's most critical cybersecurity positions," said Jung Lee, Head of Certification Test Preparation Programs at CyberVista. "CyberVista's test prep program offers the personalization, flexibility, and breadth of information to not only help professionals prepare for and pass the CISSP exam, but also retain the knowledge well into their cybersecurity career." Informed by sister company Kaplan, Inc.'s decades of learning science expertise, CyberVista's program utilizes highly-engaging mechanisms like lightboard technology to more closely mirror and, in some cases, exceed the benefits of face-to-face instruction. The program also includes the industry's only diagnostic tool that conducts an initial assessment of each student's level of knowledge to deliver a personalized study plan through the powerful learning management system (LMS). CyberVista's customized LMS makes it easy for students to navigate through the content. The 12-week program includes more than 300 hours of structured learning, more than 70 hours of live and on-demand expert instruction led by (ISC) certified instructors, and more than 2,000 practice questions. Courses are offered online on weekday evenings to eliminate travel and minimize the impact to jobs and other obligations of busy working professionals. CyberVista also lets participants re-take the course for free if other obligations arise. For more information about CyberVista's CISSP test preparation program, visit CyberVista's booth (406) at the CyberMaryland Conference 2016, October 20-21, 2016, or visit cybervista.net/cissp. About CyberVista CyberVista is a cybersecurity training and workforce development company whose mission is to create a cyber-ready workforce through personalized training programs that provide organizations with the people, knowledge and skills required to defend their most critical assets. With parent Graham Holdings Company and sister company Kaplan, Inc.'s innovative education technologies and personalized approach to learning, CyberVista offers a new vision for board, executive, and workforce cybersecurity education. For more information, visit www.cybervista.net. SOURCE CyberVista Related Links https://www.cybervista.net FLORHAM PARK, N.J., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- DataMotion, an experienced email encryption and health information service provider (HISP), today announced its Direct Secure Messaging (DataMotion Direct) and SecureMail services will again be participating as the technology backbone for demonstrations during ADA 2016. This is the third consecutive year DataMotion will provide the technology for the event's secure exchange of digital images and patient records between dentists, dental specialists, other healthcare entities and patients themselves. Matt Signorello, director of operations and support at DataMotion, will be a featured speaker. ADA 2016, America's Dental Meeting, is the industry's premier annual event - attended by thousands of dentists and dental professionals - and will be held at the Colorado Convention Center on October 20 - 24 in Denver, CO. DataMotion's technology will support demos during the course "Live from Denver! It's Secure Exchange of Dental Data," conducted multiple times to provide continuing educational credit for dentists and ADA 2016 participants. DataMotion Direct and DataMotion SecureMail will be used to illustrate simple, secure dental data exchange focusing on the live exchange of dental records between EMR systems. The demonstrations will show how using a third-party HISP provides the security, authentication and encryption needed to meet Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requirements. The Course Team will be led by Gregory G. Zeller, DDS, MS, associate dean for institutional effectiveness and professor at the University of Kentucky College of Dentistry. Dr. Zeller also chairs the ADA Standards Committee for Dental Informatics and leads other standards development activities. "As an advocate for the use of secure messaging technology in dental practices, we are encouraged by the continued interest in this session, and by the rapid adoption by the dental community of this technology," said Dr. Zeller. "Without question, it serves the dental patient better by improving care communications, protecting their personal information, and elevating practice efficiency. As a recognized provider of secure and private messaging services to the dental industry, DataMotion is, for the third consecutive year, an instrumental member of the team at the ADA Annual Session demonstrating standards-based interoperability through multi-vendor 'real world' demonstrations of dental data exchange." In this course, Dr. Zeller and the Course Team will show attendees how to: Evaluate digital EHR and imaging system features for successful exchange of images and data; Improve methods for securely exchanging and transmitting digital patient images and data, including CAD-CAM files; and Use consensus accredited standards-based criteria for sharing of patient images and EHR data among vendor systems. "Live from Denver! It's Secure Exchange of Dental Data" is planned for four different time slots (ET): Nov. 5 from 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. (No. 5901) and 2:00-4:00 p.m. (No. 5911), and Nov. 6 from 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. (No. 6901) and 2:00-4:00 p.m. (No. 6911). DataMotion and its reseller partners offer comprehensive secure messaging services for dentistry, including both DataMotion Direct and DataMotion SecureMail. DataMotion Direct offers easy-to-use data transfer capabilities for "real-world" healthcare communications that conform to HIPAA regulations, including secure email for sending and receiving PHI, discharge and referral documents and large images for both in and out-of-network communications. DataMotion SecureMail is a comprehensive set of HIPAA compliant email encryption services for exchanging sensitive health information with providers, partners, patients, payers and more. "Our goal at DataMotion is to deliver secure health information where and when it's needed most, making health care better, more accessible and affordable," said Signorello. "Exchanging dental images in a secure, interoperable manner is a frequent request of our dental customers, and we can make this as simple as sending an email." For more information on DataMotion, please visit www.datamotionhealth.com. About DataMotion Since 1999, DataMotion secure data delivery technology has enabled organizations of all sizes to reduce the cost and complexity of delivering electronic information to employees, customers and partners in a secure and compliant way. Ideal for highly regulated industries, the DataMotion SecureMail portfolio offers easy-to-use encryption solutions for email, file transfer, forms processing and customer-initiated contact. In the healthcare sector, DataMotion is an accredited HISP (health information service provider) of Direct Secure Messaging. The DataMotion Direct service enables efficient interoperability and sharing of patient data across the continuum of care. DataMotion is privately held and based in Florham Park, N.J. For the latest news and updates, visit http://www.datamotionhealth.com, follow DataMotion on LinkedIn or Twitter @datamotion. Media Contacts: Monica Hutton DataMotion (973) 455-1245 x510 [email protected] Marty Querzoli Davies Murphy Group (781) 418-2433 [email protected] SOURCE DataMotion Related Links https://www.datamotionhealth.com OAKLAND, Md. and VIENNA, Va., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Declaration Networks Group, Inc. (DNG) successfully launched its NeuBeam High Speed Internet service (www.neubeam.com) in portions of southern Garrett County, MD, offering residential and business broadband at speeds up to 20x greater than available offerings, with no data caps for any service packages. Today's announcement marks an important milestone in the public/private partnership between Garrett County and DNG developed to deploy state-of-the art broadband network infrastructure. The initiative was developed by Garrett County and partially funded by a matching grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC). The cooperative model pairs the County with a private partner, DNG, to develop the infrastructure needed to deliver high speed Internet services to unserved or underserved homes and businesses in targeted areas of the County. Paul Edwards, chair of Garrett County's board of commissioners, said, "We are excited to be partnering with DNG on the launch of NeuBeam. Providing robust Internet services benefits the County in many ways, including economic development opportunities and educational advancement. Having enhanced Internet is critical to the needs of both Garrett County residents and visitors alike." NeuBeam customers can now more easily connect with family and friends, stream movies, access school and training resources, play games and download music, use social media and shop online, and work from home, among other benefits. NeuBeam service for residents and businesses is currently available in several communities in southern Garrett County, and a significant network buildout is planned that will include more unserved and underserved areas of the County. Customer feedback has been very positive. Jen Durben, a Garrett County resident said, "I was beyond excited to learn that NeuBeam was available in my area. The process from beginning to end was very easy. The technical team was very friendly and great to work with. They handled the installation quickly and efficiently and I can't be happier to have high speed Internet in my home." From an economic development perspective, the launch of NeuBeam service is an important milestone representing enormous value to the County. Residents and businesses now have access to cost-effective broadband service, making possible telework, home-based businesses, and home schooling. With the introduction of NeuBeam service, the County will be able to close the homework gap for many students in the County schools who do not currently have broadband in their homes. "NeuBeam customers in Garrett County are for the first time enjoying affordable, high speed access to the Internet," said Bob Nichols, CEO of Declaration Networks Group, Inc. "DNG proudly joins Garrett County and the Appalachian Regional Commission in their commitment to provide advanced technology solutions that support the needs of the digital generation." DNG's NeuBeam service is now available in portions of Garrett County as well as several markets in Maryland and Virginia, leveraging fiber networks and unlicensed spectrum allocated by the FCC to efficiently support the use of quality broadband services. DNG is a leader in the deployment of broadband networks and pioneering wireless technologies, including TV White Space frequencies which are deployed in much of the unserved parts of Garrett County to address the challenging mountainous terrain and heavy foliage. Contact: Barry Toser, Declaration Networks Group, Inc. 703-850-7172 [email protected] For more info about DNG, go to www.declarationnetworks.com and www.neubeam.com. For more info about Garrett County, go to www.garrettcounty.org/broadband. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430411LOGO SOURCE Declaration Networks Group, Inc. Related Links http://www.declarationnetworks.com "Helping to cure and prevent type 1 diabetes through research has always been my career goal," Pugliese said to a packed room of friends, family, and colleagues. "I have been learning from all of you. It's been a remarkable journey in knowledge, and it's helping us get closer to the solution." After thanking his wife, daughter, and mother, who were in attendance, Pugliese poignantly dedicated the tribute to his late father. >>Watch Pugliese's acceptance speech video "To be awarded an endowed chair is a very high honor, and we could not be more pleased that it's being bestowed upon Dr. Alberto Pugliese," said Joshua W. Rednik, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation (DRIF), the non-profit organization whose sole mission is to provide funding to the Diabetes Research Institute, and the University of Miami's largest overall donor. "It's clear that Dr. Pugliese has the respect and admiration of his peers, within the DRI, and beyond its borders." The DRIF endowed this chair as a result of a substantial $35.6 million gift from the estate of the late Mrs. Eugenia J. Dodson of Coral Gables. Nearly $25 million was given to the DRIF, while Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine received the remaining funds. In addition to the chair, the DRIF created the J. Enloe and Eugenia J. Dodson Diabetes Center for Translational Research at the DRI to help fund scientific initiatives in cutting-edge areas, including immune tolerance, which is Pugliese's area of specialty. According to Donald E. Kubit, of Fowler White Burnett P.A. who served as her attorney and co-trustee of her revocable trust, Dodson lived a modest lifestyle because she had a higher purpose for her wealth. After her husband's death, she invested her money and allowed the investments to grow into a small fortune over 50 years. "Gene lived a truly selfless life so she could fulfill her philanthropic goals," said Kubit at the time the donation was given. Kubit was instrumental in facilitating the gifts to the DRIF and Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. "Eugenia Dodson's final estate plan was consistent with her profound desire to fund research to find a cure for diabetes and cancer." "Few stories are more inspiring than that of Mrs. Dodson. Her support of the Diabetes Research Institute and the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center has had a critical impact in cure-focused research into these debilitating diseases," said University of Miami President Julio Frenk. "I am very pleased to be here as we celebrate the installation of a new chair holder, which is truly one of the most prestigious academic tributes in higher education." "Alberto Pugliese is a connector. He's always putting patients and a cure at the center of all decision-making. Alberto is a remarkable individual," said Camillo Ricordi, M.D., Stacy Joy Goodman Professor of Surgery, Distinguished Professor of Medicine, professor of biomedical engineering, microbiology, and immunology, and Director of the Diabetes Research Institute. Ricordi also thanked Pugliese for being a great "friend and collaborator." Pugliese is dedicated to advancing type 1 diabetes research through scientific excellence, open collaboration, and the training of new investigators. For the last 25 years, he has studied type 1 diabetes from the preclinical period to the clinical diagnosis, and afterwards, in the setting of transplantation. His research has provided seminal contributions in type 1 diabetes genetics, immunology, pathology, and clinical trials. Since 2001, Pugliese has been a steering committee member of the Type 1 Diabetes TrialNet, a National Institutes of Health-funded clinical trial network, for which he has chaired several committees and initiatives. He is also Executive Co-Director of the JDRF Network for Pancreatic Organ Donors (nPOD), along with Mark Atkinson, Ph.D., American Diabetes Association Eminent Scholar for Diabetes Research and professor of the departments of Pathology and Pediatrics at the University of Florida. The endowed chair will help support Pugliese and his research in the area of immune tolerance, which was spotlighted during the inaugural Lindsey Inserra-Hughes Immune Tolerance Seminar Series at the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine. Several leaders in the field were in attendance, including respected peers like Atkinson, Paul Bollyky, M.D., Ph.D., of Stanford University, Helena Reijonen, Ph.D., and Bart Roep, M.D., Ph.D., of the City of Hope in Los Angeles, and Thomas Malek, Ph.D., Ricordi, and Jay S. Skyler, M.D., of the DRI. This event, along with the presentation of the chair, underscores the Diabetes Research Institute and Foundation's focus on the immunology/immune tolerance issues related to type 1 diabetes. As the largest and most comprehensive research center dedicated to curing diabetes, the DRI is aggressively working to develop a biological cure by restoring natural insulin production and normalizing blood sugar levels without imposing other risks. For more information, please visit DiabetesResearch.org or call 800-321-3437. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429946 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429945 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120405/DC83112LOGO SOURCE Diabetes Research Institute Foundation Related Links http://www.diabetesresearch.org Luna proactively pushes the boundaries of a traditional spot, seeking to share the stories of the often unseen and uncelebrated story of immigrants. From casting to the music, all the elements are meant to tie back to the inspiring journey of immigrants and encompass the overall message: we are truly better together. Luna collaborated with Jarritos, along with agency of record, WALO Inc. because of his belief in the importance of sharing the challenges, triumphs, and unity of the immigrant journey during this season when negative rhetoric seems to be running rampant. Jarritos, Luna and WALO Inc. hope this story does not just live on in a newsfeed but makes an impact on people's hearts, while raising awareness of an important issue that has influenced our country greatly, and will continue to influence future generations to come. "As a brand with firm roots in Mexico and completely embraced by the United States, we too are immigrants and we know the journey all too well," said Luis Fernandez, CEO of Novamex, Jarritos Brand Owner. "Our intention was to thank our consumers and celebrate the beauty of that journey, the sacrifices of previous generations, and the inherent diversity of the United States." To be a part of this journey, please be sure to visit www.jarritosthejourney.com to watch and share. ABOUT JARRITOS More than sixty years ago, Jarritos was introduced as Mexico's first national soft drink. Today, Jarritos is the leading brand in the US in the Mexican soft drink category and has become a Mexican cultural icon. Whether it is the distinctive glass bottle or the eleven unique and great fruit flavors, Jarritos can be found throughout the U.S. in major and independent grocery stores, Mexican restaurants, taquerias, catering trucks and convenience stores. Jarritos flavors are a reflection of Mexico in its array of traditional Mexican flavors made with real sugar and 100% natural flavors including: Tamarind, Mandarin, Fruit Punch, Jamaica, Lime, Grapefruit, Guava, Pineapple, Strawberry, Mango and MXCN Cola. ABOUT NOVAMEX Novamex markets a variety of Mexican food and beverage brands including Jarritos; each brand being a leader in its category in Mexico and widely recognized by Mexican-American consumers in the US. Through partnerships and long-term distribution contracts, Novamex has come to own several of these brands including Jarritos while holding distribution rights to the rest of their brand portfolio. The company was founded in 1987 with its founder's vision to offer its products to families in the United States. Novamex's success is due to a wide knowledge of its consumers' preferences and a philosophy of investing in brands for the long-term through a fully integrated marketing strategy for its ever-evolving consumer. ABOUT WALO CREATIVE, INC. Founded in 2014 in the heart of Dallas, Texas WALO Creative, Inc. is an idea shop of brand storytellers and image builders dedicated to helping clients do good work in every sense of the meaning. From strategic planning and creative concepting across all media and mediums to product innovation, WALO is dedicated to ensure brands truly connect with their core audiences and have lasting impact in the communities they serve. WALO's clients include Bonton Farms, Bonton Honey, and Jarritos among others. For more information about WALO Creative, Inc. visit www.waloinc.com. Media Contact: Ingrid Quiroz 512-644-8988 [email protected] Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7NsB9Gnhm8&feature=youtu.be Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430382LOGO SOURCE Jarritos Related Links http://www.jarritosthejourney.com TACOMA, Wash., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is expected to certify the results of a union election on Thursday, October 20th, creating a new union for doctors working at Auburn Medical Center (AMC) in Tacoma, Washington. At the vote count conducted on October 13 at the NLRB Region 19 offices in Seattle, a strong majority of the ballots cast by AMC doctors were in favor of the union. The new union will include a range of specialists including hospitalists, pediatricians, surgeons, and OB/GYNs. This is believed to be the first time a group of private sector doctors in Washington State have unionized. Doctors in California have been union members for decades, but the trend is only now starting to spread to the Pacific Northwest. Last year, a group of hospital doctors in Springfield, Oregon joined the union that represents other heath care workers at their facility. The Union of American Physicians and Dentists, which will represent Auburn Medical Center doctors, is speaking with other doctors in the region who are interested in forming unions of their own. According to UAPD President Stuart Bussey, MD, "Doctors now realize that only by unionizing can they stand up to hospital administrations that focus on efficiency and cost-cutting at the expense of patient care." Reflecting on the vote, Dr. Bussey continued, "There's obviously a good deal of solidarity among the physicians who work at Auburn. Other physicians thinking about unionizing should feel encouraged by what they've been able to do. " Virginia Stowell, MD, a surgeon at the nearby Tacoma General Hospital, was pleased to hear the news from AMC. "We were watching the election closely, and we are thrilled with the results. We will continue to organize more physicians and fight for physician-directed care in Washington." After the election results are certified on Thursday, AMC doctors will begin preparations for their first negotiations with their employer, MultiCare Health System. MultiCare, which purchased AMC in 2012, owns and operates five hospitals and multiple clinics in the Tacoma area. SOURCE Union of American Physicians and Dentists Related Links http://www.uapd.com RICHMOND, Va., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its long-term plan to bring online at least 500 megawatts of solar electric generating capacity in North Carolina and Virginia, Dominion (NYSE: D) today announced it has acquired the development rights for the 60-megawatt (AC) Summit Farms Solar facility in Currituck County, N.C. The solar facility is expected to enter service in December 2016. A subsidiary of Dominion Energy, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Dominion, purchased Summit Farms from SunEnergy1, which developed and is the construction contractor on the project. Summit Farms, located on about 650 acres near Moyock, N.C., has 25-year power purchase agreements with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston Medical Center and Post Office Square Redevelopment Corporation. "We are pleased to partner with these three outstanding organizations to add more carbon-free generation to the electric grid," said Paul D. Koonce, chief executive officer of the Dominion Generation Group, which oversees 25,700 megawatts of electric generating capacity in 11 states, including solar in operation or under development in eight states. "We will continue to seek similar opportunities helping large and small energy consumers alike reduce their carbon footprint." Other large-scale solar projects Dominion has announced in North Carolina and Virginia include: Morgans Corner Solar (Virginia Electric and Power Company); Pasquotank County, N.C. ; 20 megawatts (AC); in-service: December 2015 ; ; 20 megawatts (AC); in-service: ; Amazon Solar Farm U.S. East (Dominion Energy, Inc.); Accomack County, Va. ; 80 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: 2016; ; 80 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: 2016; Scott Solar (VEPCO); Powhatan County, Va. ; 17 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: 2016; (VEPCO); ; 17 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: 2016; Whitehouse Solar (VEPCO); Louisa County, Va. ; 20 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: 2016; (VEPCO); ; 20 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: 2016; Woodland Solar (VEPCO); Isle of Wight County, Va. ; 19 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: 2016; ; 19 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: 2016; Remington Solar (VEPCO); Fauquier County, Va. ; 20 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: late 2017; and (VEPCO); ; 20 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: late 2017; and Oceana Solar (VEPCO); Virginia Beach, Va. ; 18 megawatts (AC); expected in-service: late 2017. Dominion has electric generation facilities powered by the sun in California, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, North Carolina, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia. CustomerFirst Renewables, an advisory services firm, structured and negotiated the energy solution on behalf of MIT, Boston Medical Center and Post Office Square Redevelopment Corporation. About Dominion Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers and transporters of energy, with a portfolio of approximately 25,700 megawatts of generation, 14,400 miles of natural gas transmission, gathering and storage pipeline, and 6,500 miles of electric transmission lines. Dominion operates one of the nation's largest natural gas storage systems with 1 trillion cubic feet of storage capacity and serves more than 6 million utility and retail energy customers. For more information about Dominion, visit the company's website at www.dom.com. About SunEnergy1 SunEnergy1, LLC is a full-service solar developer and engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) firm located in Mooresville, N.C. SunEnergy1 specializes in the design and installation of utility-scale ground-mount solar photovoltaic systems. It has developed and installed more than 350 megawatts of solar facilities to date. For more information about SunEnergy1, visit the company's website at www.sunenergy1.com. About MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is dedicated to advancing knowledge and educating students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century. The Institute has more than 1,000 faculty members and over 11,300 undergraduate and graduate students. MIT's commitment to innovation has led to a host of scientific breakthroughs and technological advances, in fields ranging from aeronautics to computing to cancer research. About Boston Medical Center Boston Medical Center is a private, not-for-profit, 496-bed, academic medical center that is the primary teaching affiliate of Boston University School of Medicine. It is the largest and busiest provider of trauma and emergency services in New England. It offers specialized care for complex health problems and is a leading research institution, receiving more than $119 million in sponsored research funding in fiscal year 2015. In 1997, BMC founded Boston Medical Center Health Plan, Inc., now one of the top ranked Medicaid MCOs in the country, as a non-profit managed care organization serving Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Medicine are partners in the Boston HealthNet 13 community health centers focused on providing exceptional health care to residents of Boston. For more information, please visit http://www.bmc.org. About Post Office Square Redevelopment Corporation Post Office Square Redevelopment Corporation is the developer and manager of The Garage At Post Office Square and the Norman B. Leventhal Park above it, in the heart of Boston's financial district. The unique vision of a group of public and private civic leaders transformed an unsightly aboveground parking garage into an award-winning and inviting park, supported structurally and financially by a 1,400-space underground parking garage. SOURCE Dominion Related Links http://www.dom.com NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- When President Reagan was shot in 1981, pulse oximetry was 9 years away from being deemed a standard of care by the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA). Prior to the 1996 FDA approval of the BIS brain monitor, anesthesia was given on the basis of body weight and brain stem signs (heart rate & blood pressure). In the official journal of the ASA, a recently published study from Australia where brain monitors are NOT used found a 30% incidence of dementia after open heart surgery. Reagan died years after his surgery from dementia. Read a free, no obligation copy of "GETTING OVER GOING UNDER: 5 Things You MUST Know Before Anesthesia" by Dr. Barry Friedberg, M.D., President & Founder of Goldilocks Foundation, a non-profit, 501c3 corporation. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430489 Since 1996, the availability of direct brain response to anesthetics makes the patient potentially in control of their anesthetic dose based on the number from their forehead sensor but only if the device is used, something the ASA continues to vigorously resist endorsing as a standard of care. The non-profit Goldilocks Foundation's goal is to make brain monitoring a standard of care, but that will require the same public demand that got fathers into delivery rooms for the births of their children. Read a free, no obligation copy of GETTING OVER GOING UNDER: 5 Things You MUST Know Before Anesthesia from Goldilocks Foundation, a non-profit, 501c3 corporation. No emails or contributions are asked when pushing the download button for this book. "The bottom line," says Friedberg, "Don't let your parents, your spouse or anybody you love over 50 years old get general anesthesia without a brain monitor or you may NEVER speak to that SAME person again. The mind you save could be your own!" Read more about how brain monitoring must become the standard of care for anesthesia and sign the petition here: https://www.change.org/p/american-asssociation-of-retired-people-brain-monitoring-must-become-the-standard-of-care-for-anesthesia About Barry Friedberg, M.D. Dr. Barry Friedberg has been interviewed extensively on the subject of anesthesia and propofol by FOX, CNN, True TV, and People Magazine during the Michael Jackson murder trial. A Board Certified Anesthesiologist for more than three decades, Dr. Friedberg developed the Friedberg Method for administering anesthesia in 1992 and the Goldilocks Anesthesia protocol in 1997. He has been published and cited in several medical journals and textbooks and was honored with a U.S. Congressional award for applying his methods on wounded soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq. Related Images image1.jpeg image2.jpg Related Links Goldilocks Anesthesia Foundation Dr. Barry L. Friedberg, MD Related Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0SKomMehPw This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com SOURCE Dr. Barry Friedberg, M.D. BOSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Strategy Analytics (SA) expands its Consumer Insights Practice with the addition of Dr. Jordan Louviere, inventor of MaxDiff, father of Discrete Choice Experiments, and internationally recognized expert in conjoint analysis. With a focus on providing actionable research and insights to its clients in consumer-centric businesses, Strategy Analytics is pleased to announce the addition of Dr. Jordan Louviere to its Consumer Insights Practice. Dr. Louviere has a long list of significant contributions to the field of market research that have been extensively applied in the business world. His work on choice-based measurement method, including MaxDiff Scaling, has been widely adopted by research practitioners across disciplines around the world. He has consulted with many private and public sector organizations in technology, consumer packaged goods, transportation, banking and finance, among others. He has authored several books, sits on Board of Governors for the American Marketing Association (AMA) Parlin Award (he was a 2010 recipient of AMA's Charles Coolidge Parlin Award for Lifetime Achievements in Market Research), and is on the Advisory Board of the Journal of Marketing Research. Harvey Cohen, President of Strategy Analytics, says "We are truly privileged to have the world-renowned research innovator, Dr. Louviere join our Consumer Insights senior leadership. It has been three years since we successfully launched SA's dedicated custom research practice and we are excited with our growing relationships with leading firms competing in the consumer space. Dr. Louviere's appointment is a testament to Strategy Analytics' commitment to be in the forefront of innovation in advanced analytics and to provide our clients who are seeking a better way to use research with value added analysis to address their most pressing and challenging business issues." About Strategy Analytics Strategy Analytics, Inc. provides the competitive edge with advisory services, consulting and actionable market intelligence for emerging technology, mobile and wireless, digital consumer and automotive electronics companies. With offices in North America, Europe and Asia, Strategy Analytics delivers insights for enterprise success. www.StrategyAnalytics.com Consumer Insights Practice contacts: Joy Lampe Ganvik, Vice President, +617 614 0753 [email protected] Carlos Salazar-Velasquez, Ph.D. Vice President +617 614 0754 [email protected] Arleen Macaraeg-Denque, Vice President +617 614 0755 [email protected] Jordan Louviere, Ph.D., Chief Research Scientist +617 614 0726 [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130207/NE56457LOGO-b SOURCE Strategy Analytics Related Links http://www.strategyanalytics.com DURHAM, N.C., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Duda|Paine Architects, a premier international design firm headquartered in Durham, N.C., announces it has been selected as Lead Architect and Master Planner for the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM) new western campus master plan. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429933LOGO This expansion, located on state-owned property in Morganton, N.C., will accommodate approximately 300 students in a residential and learning community, increasing NCSSM's capacity to serve more of the state's qualified and talented students. NCSSM has commissioned Duda|Paine to assist in developing the new campus' vision and educational program plan, including architectural design, budgeting, construction phasing strategies, and new construction and renovation of existing facilities located on the property. "North Carolina School of Science and Math is a leading educational institution for high school juniors and seniors, and we are honored to take part in this campus expansion and catalyst for growth in Morganton and western North Carolina," says Jeff Paine, Founding Principal, Duda|Paine Architects. "The design of the new campus will create a place that inspires innovation and reflects the area's history and community." The North Carolina General Assembly included $58 million in funding for the new western NCSSM campus in the Connect NC Bond proposal. Voters approved the bond referendum in March 2016; the bond provides NCSSM property that currently serves Broughton Hospital and the Western North Carolina School for the Deaf. Duda|Paine was selected to create the master plan development based on its leadership, design process and thoughtful engagement. The firm will help lead an advance planning team determining the educational program, site location and design of the NCGA-funded campus. Duda|Paine has selected BELK Architecture as Associate Architect and Robert B. Salsbury as Local Architect to provide project support. The campus expansion is expected to be completed by May 2021. About Duda|Paine Architects: Duda|Paine Architects provides a full complement of design, interior design, architectural, planning and master planning services to a diverse array of international and national corporate, academic, wellness and cultural arts clients. The firm's enduring success results from an idea-based design process that engages participants and fosters inspiration to achieve visionary built work. For additional information, please call Duda|Paine at (919) 688-5133 or visit http://www.dudapaine.com. Related Links Duda|Paine Architects This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com SOURCE Duda|Paine Architects Related Links http://www.dudapaine.com BOSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Four new polls by Emerson College show Hillary Clinton increasing her favorability and her support in New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Missouri while, in Utah, Evan McMullin leads Donald Trump by 4 points, 31% to 27%, with Clinton taking 24%. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430516LOGO Presidential Ballot Clinton Trump Johnson Stein McMullin Undecided MOE NH 44% 36% 10% 6% N/A 5% 3.2% PA 45% 41% 4% 4% N/A 6% 3.4% MO 39% 47% 5% 2% N/A 7% 3.9% UT 24% 27% 5% - 31% 12% 3.6% Utah, which has voted for Republican presidential candidates in every cycle since 1964, is a cause of concern for the Trump campaign. It appears that the divisive GOP primary, which was won by conservative Senator Ted Cruz with 69%, has left voters looking for an alternative to the GOP nominee. For example, 51% of Cruz primary voters are backing McMullin while 29% are voting for Trump. Among Utah's Republican primary voters who supported the second-place finisher, Ohio Governor John Kasich, only 4% say they plan to vote for Trump in November. McMullin draws his strongest support from young people, ages 18-34. He is winning 36% of their vote while Trump and Clinton each get 22%. Trump leads McMullin 35% to 24% among those who are 55 and over. It appears Clinton is pulling away from the GOP nominee in New Hampshire and is now up 8 points, 44% to 36%, compared to her 5-point lead of 42% to 37% in an early September Emerson poll. Clinton has also seen her favorable rating in the Granite State increase 5 points, from 38% to 43%, while Trump's has increased 2 points, from 34% to 36%. In Pennsylvania, Clinton has widened her lead slightly, edging Trump 45% to 41%, compared to her 3-point advantage (46% to 43%) in September. In Missouri, Trump has lost ground to Clinton but is still up by 8 points, 47% to 39%. The number of voters who view him unfavorably has increased in the same time frame, from 51% to 56%, while Clinton's unfavorable rating has dropped from 64% to 61%. Favorable/Unfavorable Ratings NH Favorable Unfavorable Clinton 43% 54% Trump 36% 61% MO Favorable Unfavorable Clinton 37% 61% Trump 43% 56% PA Favorable Unfavorable Clinton 42% 56% Trump 36% 61% UT Favorable Unfavorable Clinton 23% 74% Trump 24% 72% In U.S. Senate races, Republican incumbent Kelly Ayotte is tied with New Hampshire Governor Maggie Hassan at 45% apiece after leading Hassan 48% to 46% in September. Ayotte has struggled to distance herself from Trump. GOP Senator Roy Blunt of Missouri is now tied with Democrat Jason Kander at 44% after trailing Kander 42% to 40% in a prior Emerson poll. The Senate race in Pennsylvania has also tightened with the GOP's junior senator, Pat Toomey, holding a 46% to 43% lead over Katie McGinty after leading McGinty by 7 points (46% to 39%) in August. CALLER ID The Emerson College New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Missouri and Utah polls were conducted October 17-19, under the Supervision of Professor Spencer Kimball. All samples consisted of only likely general election voters, per the following: NH n=900, with a margin of error (MOE) of +/- 3.2 percentage points, PA n=800 with an MOE of +/- 3.4%, UT n=700 with an MOE +/- 3.6%, and MO n=600 with an MOE of +/- 3.9%. Data was weighted by 2012 election results, age, gender, race and party affiliationThe full methodology and results can be found at www.theecps.com. Media contact: Spencer Kimball Email 617-824-3491 SOURCE Emerson College Polling Society Related Links http://www.theecps.com READING, Pa., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- EnerSys (NYSE: ENS) the global leader in stored energy solutions for industrial applications will host a conference call to discuss the Company's second quarter fiscal 2017 financial results and to provide an overview of the business. The call will conclude with a question and answer session. The call, scheduled for Thursday, November 10, 2016 beginning at 9:00 am Eastern Time, will be hosted by David M. Shaffer, Chief Executive Officer, and Michael J. Schmidtlein, Chief Financial Officer. The call will also be Webcast on EnerSys' website. There will be a free download of a compatible media player on the company's web site at http://www.enersys.com. The conference call information is: Date: Thursday, November 10, 2016 Time: 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time Via Internet: http://www.enersys.com Domestic Dial-In Number: 877-359-9508 International Dial-In Number: 224-357-2393 Passcode: 94560560 A replay of the conference call will be available from 12:00 p.m. on November 10, 2016 through midnight on December 10, 2016. The replay information is: Via Internet: http://www.enersys.com Domestic Replay Number: 855-859-2056 International Replay Number: 404-537-3406 Passcode: 94560560 A live webcast of the conference call will be available on the Company's website at http://www.enersys.com under the "Investor Relations" link. Presentation materials to be used in conjunction with the conference call will become available under the aforementioned link the evening before the conference call. About EnerSys: EnerSys, the global leader in stored energy solutions for industrial applications, manufactures and distributes reserve power and motive power batteries, battery chargers, power equipment, battery accessories and outdoor equipment enclosure solutions to customers worldwide. Motive power batteries and chargers are utilized in electric forklift trucks and other commercial electric powered vehicles. Reserve power batteries are used in the telecommunication and utility industries, uninterruptible power supplies, and numerous applications requiring stored energy solutions including medical, aerospace and defense systems. Outdoor equipment enclosure products are utilized in the telecommunication, cable, utility, transportation industries and by government and defense customers. The company also provides aftermarket and customer support services to its customers from over 100 countries through its sales and manufacturing locations around the world. More information regarding EnerSys can be found at www.enersys.com . SOURCE EnerSys Related Links http://www.enersys.com ESC Silicon Valley and BIOMEDevice San Jose will take place December 6-8, 2016 at the San Jose Convention Center in San Jose, CA. To learn more and to register, please visit: escsiliconvalley.com/ Breaking Engineering Barriers The engineering space is in constant transition. What has consistently pushed this booming industry forward are the great minds and innovative professionals stepping away from the norm and breaking through barriers. These engineers take their profession to new heights and drive advancements necessary to both the preservation and evolution of the engineering industry. To celebrate and acknowledge this trend, ESC Silicon Valley will welcome two Keynote speakers that have broken through these barriers and established themselves as both industry thought leaders and pioneers. "The importance of thinking outside of the box and staying ahead of the curve constantly innovating, constantly evolving is crucial for the engineering space," said Nina Brown, Vice President of Events for the Advanced Manufacturing Portfolio, UBM. "Our Keynote speakers have done just that, securing themselves as innovators and leaders amongst their peers. We're thrilled to have them share their stories, knowledge and experiences with our dynamic audience." Reaching for New Horizons Keynote: Alice Bowman, New Horizons Mission Operations Manager, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory Bowman is a member of the Principal Professional Staff at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, where she leads the Space Mission Operations Group and serves as Mission Operations Manager for NASA's New Horizons mission. She supervises approximately 40 staff members who operate deep-space and Earth-orbiting spacecraft and leads the team that commands and controls the spacecraft that made a historic close flyby of Pluto in 2015 and continued deeper into the solar system's distant Kuiper Belt region. In addition, Bowman has held positions with national defense space operations, systems engineering, program management, engineering management, space systems and space instrument development and deployment. In her presentation, Reaching for New Horizons, Bowman will talk about the voyage of NASA's historic mission to Pluto which culminated with the first flight past the distant dwarf planet on July 14, 2015. She'll speak about this journey through the eyes of the mission operations team and describe some challenges of piloting the small robotic spacecraft through the solar system for nearly a decade such as planning for (and dealing with) long-distance technical hiccups. This team was part of history, operating a spacecraft that had to travel longer and farther than any previous mission in order to reach its destination. The Keys to Innovation: Priming your Brain to Percolate Brilliant Ideas Keynote: Ransom Stephens, physicist, engineer, author Ransom is both well-known and highly regarded in the engineering space for his many contributions over the course of his career. As a pioneer in jitter analysis, he invented new methods for extracting signals from noise and has served on several high data rate standards. Ransom was also on the team that discovered the top quark and he discovered a new type of matter, the R(1525), a quark-anti-quark resonance including a "valence gluon." In addition to these various projects, Ransom is also dedicated to the advancement and education of engineering professionals. He has given thousands of speeches across the world, and has developed a reputation for making complex topics accessible and comical. His books span subjects about everything from signal integrity and quantum physics to parenting teens. During his Keynote address, The Keys to Innovation: Priming your Brain to Percolate Brilliant Ideas, Stephens will examine the neural processes that percolate insights into consciousness: the physics of lateral thought, the power of perspective, the value of novelty, and how your brain selects and rejects ideas before you're even aware of them. Methods for fine-tuning the balance of stress and confidence, concentration and distraction that prime our brains to innovate our way to solutions of the challenges that we each face, as well as those that we face together, will also be discussed, as will the neuroaesthetics of what makes products and discoveries good, bad, and valuable. To learn more about ESC Silicon Valley's Keynote lineup and to register, please visit: escsiliconvalley.com ESC Silicon Valley & BIOMEDevice San Jose BIOMEDevice San Jose and ESC Silicon Valley will join forces for the first time this year to bring professionals from the medtech and engineering spaces together for their co-located events in San Jose, CA. Both events will offer programs specific to the latest trends and topics taking their industries by storm. Discussions will range from the IoT and embedded hardware and software design to medical device design and manufacturing. ESC Silicon Valley (#ESCsv) & BIOMEDevice San Jose (#BIOMEDevice) Social Networks: Twitter: @ESC_Conf @MDM_Events Facebook: @ESCconf @mdmtradeshows About Advanced Manufacturing Expos & Conferences UBM's Advanced Manufacturing portfolio is the leading B-to-B event producer, publisher, and digital media business for the world's $3 trillion advanced, technology-based manufacturing industry. Our print and electronic products deliver trusted information to the advanced manufacturing market and leverage our proprietary 1.3 million name database to connect suppliers with buyers and purchase influencers. We produce more than 50 events and conferences in a dozen countries, connecting manufacturing professionals from around the globe. The Advanced Manufacturing portfolio is organized by UBM Americas, a part of UBM plc (UBM.L), an Events First marketing and communication services business. For more information, visit ubmamericas.com. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430122LOGO Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430137 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430138 Contact: Kimberly Samra [email protected] 415-947-6362 SOURCE Embedded Systems Conference (ESC) Related Links http://escsiliconvalley.com IRONDALE, Ala., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Were you taught that the Inquisition was a series of events fueled by religious fanaticism and rife with cruelty and terror? If so, prepare to be surprised by the truth of what really happened. Get the facts when EWTN premieres "The Inquisition," an original four-part docudrama co-produced by EWTN, Stefano Mazzeo, and Lux Communication. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429931 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429932 Scene from "The Inquisition," an EWTN original mini-series, which airs 9:30 p.m. ET, Wednesday through Saturday, Oct. 26-29. Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.. A special one-hour preview airs 8 p.m. ET, Wednesday, Oct. 26 on "EWTN Live" with Fr. Mitch Pacwa. Scene from "The Inquisition," an EWTN original mini-series, which airs 9:30 p.m. ET, Wednesday through Saturday, Oct. 26-29. Find EWTN at www.ewtn.com/channelfinder.. A special one-hour preview airs 8 p.m. ET, Wednesday, Oct. 26 on "EWTN Live" with Fr. Mitch Pacwa. The mini-series airs 9:30 p.m. ET, Wednesday through Saturday, Oct. 26-29. The Wednesday airing will be preceded by a special "EWTN Live" interview at 8 a.m. ET with Producer, Writer, and Director Stefano Mazzeo, and Professor Thomas F. Madden, chair of the Department of History at St. Louis University, both of whom EWTN viewers will remember from their work on a previous blockbuster mini-series: "The Crusades." "The mini-series features live action drama sequences and interviews with leading historians and churchman to reveal the truth about one of the most misunderstood periods in Church history," said EWTN President & COO Doug Keck, who served as Executive Producer of the series. "There were, in fact, multiple "inquisitions" in different countries over the centuries, including the widely misunderstand Spanish Inquisition." Filmed on location in six European countries and beautifully scored by Chorus Salvatoris, the mini-series takes on myths and heresies that are prevalent even today as well as the real reason Galileo got into trouble! For example, did you know that many misrepresentations about the Spanish Inquisition were developed over four centuries ago by Protestant Northern Europe as part of a propaganda campaign against the Catholic Church? Producer Mazzeo says that Spain was the Catholic superpower of the age and the Protestant countries needed a stick with which to attack Spain and the Catholic Church in order to cement the Reformation and secure the loyalty of their converts. In other words, they needed to give people a reason not to want to be Catholic! Of course, that's not the only reason. There was also the fact that England and Spain were locked in a battle over land in the New World, and more. What most people don't know is that "[t]he Spanish Inquisition was set up to deal with Jews and Muslims who were converting to gain social standing and power, not [because they believed in the faith]," Mazzeo said. The problem is that these fake Catholics were introducing heresies and immorality into the Church. "The main reason for the Inquisition was [to help insure] that everyone would go to heaven," Mazzeo continued, which is one reason only those who had been baptized were tried. "They did not want people to lose their souls. [Many will be surprised to learn that] while heresy was a crime punishable by death by the state, "the clerics of the Inquisition were forbidden to engage in torture or even to pronounce the death penalty!" In fact, secular "justice" in the 16th Century was so cruel that, in England, many Catholics were being tried and executed for simply being Catholics. By contrast, in countries that had an Inquisition in place, many prisoners in secular prisons blasphemed in order to be transferred and tried by Inquisitors because they were much more lenient. Yet myths about Spanish torture and cruelty which the Spanish called "the black legend" abound. So how did the black legend get started? Those expelled from the country for infiltrating the Church with their heresies began to use the printing press to write lies about the Spanish. Today, Mazzeo said, new "black legends" are being created by the modern secular media and some are still aimed at the Catholic Church. "The way Pope Pius XII is treated is a black legend," Mazzeo said. "The Crusades was a black legend of the Enlightenment period. Today, militant secularists create black legends that the Church is anti-women. For example, the witch craze hysteria that swept Protestant Northern Europe in the Early Modern Era saw thousands of women being executed on hearsay of or the testament of a jealous neighbor. In Catholic countries, where the Inquisition was in place, if someone was accused of things like sleeping with the Devil or flying, the Inquisitors became very skeptical; they were university-trained canon lawyers and theologians!" When EWTN asked Mazzeo to create a mini-series about the Inquisition for EWTN, he said, "I wanted to look into why this has such a bad reputation. Why can't people see it for what it really is? What surprised me was how in favor of the Inquisition I became." Please take note of this series and share it with your friends. It's television worth seeing! EWTN Global Catholic Network, in its 36th year, is the largest religious media network in the world. EWTN's 11 TV channels are broadcast in multiple languages 24 hours a day, seven days a week to over 265 million television households in more than 145 countries and territories. EWTN services also include radio services transmitted through SIRIUS/XM, iHeart Radio, and over 500 domestic and international AM & FM radio affiliates; a worldwide shortwave radio service; the largest Catholic website in the U.S.; electronic and print news services, including "The National Catholic Register" newspaper, and two global wire services; as well as a publishing arm. For Information, Please Contact: Michelle Johnson Director of Communications EWTN Global Catholic Network 5817 Old Leeds Road Irondale, Alabama 35210-2198 USA (205) 795-5769 Office (205) 441-6248 Cell (205) 795-5781 Fax Email SOURCE EWTN What is it that makes businesses attracted to specific parts of the UScertain regions, states and towns? And what can those states and municipalities do to make themselves more attractive to companies? Figuring this out really is key to regional economic growth in the United States, and I put these questions to a panel of economic experts in Dallas, which focused on the economy of states in that particular region: Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma and New Mexico. First off, its worth noting that economic conditions are localfor instance whats going on in northern Maine has very little to do with the economy of San Diego, but I would submit that you actually dont often hear about specific regions that much. So whats going on in that five-state region? There are a number of factors [that makes the economy in these states strong], says Don Pierson, Secretary, Louisiana Economic Development, pointing to energy, of course, but also aerospace and trade with international markets. No doubt the decline in energy prices has hurt states like Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma, but the panelists suggested the pain is less than it has been in past downturns. The university systems were highlighted as a regional strength, with Marilyn Wiley, Dean and Professor of Finance, University of North Texas, College of Business, noting that Texas is one of five states still growing its number of high school graduates over the next five years. But, fewer are coming out of high school college-ready, she said. So challenges abound. Then I asked the $64,000 question: What is it that businesses want to hear from cities, states and towns in order to move to those areas? united states map They want a supply of employees, they need and want community that will provide training and a good quality of life, says Dean Wiley. Good schools and a supportive city. I sometimes see small mid-size markets struggle, with being consistent, says Tom Stellman, CEO of TIP Strategies, Inc. Its very important for the county and government to be on same page when it comes to economic development and saying the same thing. To present a consistent face. Story continues Site selection is data driven initially, says Josh Bays, Principal, Site Selection Group. But then it becomes subjective. What do they want to hear? A unified front from the community where they can see mitigated risk of uncertainty. Pierson has a slightly different perspective: The more certainty you can build for the long haul, a pipeline with universities and community colleges to build a workforce longer term, the better off you will be, he says. The whole notion from your economics textbook that the invisible hand will solve all the problems, having spent seven years working on projects, I can tell you, you need to help speed up that process and try to anticipate those needs, says Stephen Barnes of Louisiana State University. The bottom line? While economics is to a large degree local, the takeaways about what makes for a healthy business/town relationship can be broadly applied. CHICAGO, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- This week, the WALTHAM Centre for Pet Nutrition, part of Mars, Incorporated, and a leading scientific authority and research center for the nutrition and health of companion animals, will bring together hundreds of global thought leaders in pet nutrition at its WALTHAM International Nutritional Sciences Symposium (WINSS). WINSS is one of the largest open international meetings dedicated to original research in pet nutrition. This conference brings together academics, experts representing veterinary associations and other stakeholders in the pet care industry. The symposium will address a variety of topics ranging from the importance of maintaining healthy weight in young pets to promoting healthy growth in pets and how pet nutrition needs have evolved over time. "WINSS provides a platform for scientists in pet nutrition to connect and collaborate on their findings," said Richard Butterwick, Global Nutrition Advisor at WALTHAM. "The science behind animal nutrition is paramount to finding ways to continue to develop better, healthier food options and give context to many animal behaviors." To bring this research to life, WALTHAM provides science and expertise to support Mars Petcare brands. Sharing scientific findings and demonstrating thought leadership in the area of pet nutrition is a key role WALTHAM plays in supporting the Mars Petcare vision for creating A Better World for Pets and helps inform ways Mars Petcare can best support pets and their owners. Mars Petcare is the company behind brands such as PEDIGREE, IAMS, NUTRO and TEMPTATIONS, and learnings such as these help ensure that pet owners can continue to count on these pet foods to support their pets' growth and nutrition. For more information about the work Mars Petcare does to improve the lives of pets and people, visit www.facebook.com/ABetterWorldForPets. About Mars Petcare US Mars Petcare is the world's leading pet nutrition and health care business that strives to make A BETTER WORLD FOR PETS every day. We believe that pets make our lives better and that pet ownership brings joy and benefits which should be accessible to everyone. In the United States, Mars Petcare food brands include PEDIGREE, IAMS, ROYAL CANIN, GREENIES, CESAR, NUTRO and SHEBA. Veterinary practices include BANFIELD and BLUE PEARL. Specialty brands include WISDOM PANEL Canine DNA Tests and WHISTLE GPS Pet Tracker. The company's WALTHAM Centre for Pet Nutrition is a leading scientific authority on pet nutrition and wellbeing. Mars Petcare has more than 37,000 Associates worldwide. For more information about how we're creating A BETTER WORLD FOR PETS, visit https://www.facebook.com/ABetterWorldforPets. About the WALTHAM Centre for Pet Nutrition: Celebrating over 50 years of innovative science, the WALTHAM Centre for Pet Nutrition, part of Mars, Incorporated, serves as a leading scientific authority in advancing the frontiers of research into the nutrition and health of companion animals. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160907/405264LOGO SOURCE Mars Petcare FICO's chart shows the serious delinquency rate (90+ days past due) by age over the prior two years for various credit products. The analysis is limited to consumers with activity during the period. 90+ delinquency rates for mortgages and other closed-end loans reach their lowest points for consumers in their late 60s or early 70s, before rising again. Conversely, delinquency rates for revolving trade lines (which include credit cards) decrease throughout consumers' lives. "For most loan types, delinquencies peak when consumers are in their 20s and starting to take loans," said Schulz. "Mortgage delinquencies have a flatter curve and peak later, at age 44. Delinquency rates rise for auto loans and mortgages held by people in their late 60s, but only for mortgages do they get near their earlier peak." While their delinquency rates may increase, older Americans represent a relatively small portion of the total debt tracked by the bureaus. Consumers aged 67 or older represent 20 percent of the bureau population, but they have only 11 percent of the total debt on the bureau, and only 11 percent of mortgage balances. Are Failing Memories the Cause? As observed in a recent report by the Mortgage Bankers Association, mortgage delinquency rates do increase for consumers past age 68. The MBA report suggested that these increases were due, in large part, to failing memories in older consumers. "It may be that older people forget to pay their bills sometimes, but there are other possible reasons," Schulz said. "Much of the delinquency uptick is driven by a relatively small number of borrowers who still have sizeable mortgage and auto debts into their 70s and 80s. This suggests that some delinquencies may very well be due to a common occurrence in lending those who have the resources pay off their loans over time, leaving only those more financially strapped consumers in the loan pool." For discussion of this and related topics from FICO experts, subscribe to the FICO Blog. About FICO FICO (NYSE: FICO) powers decisions that help people and businesses around the world prosper. Founded in 1956 and based in Silicon Valley, the company is a pioneer in the use of predictive analytics and data science to improve operational decisions. FICO holds more than 165 US and foreign patents on technologies that increase profitability, customer satisfaction and growth for businesses in financial services, telecommunications, health care, retail and many other industries. Using FICO solutions, businesses in more than 100 countries do everything from protecting 2.6 billion payment cards from fraud, to helping people get credit, to ensuring that millions of airplanes and rental cars are in the right place at the right time. Learn more at http://www.fico.com. Join the conversation at https://twitter.com/fico & http://www.fico.com/en/blogs/ For FICO news and media resources, visit www.fico.com/news. FICO is a registered trademark of Fair Isaac Corporation in the United States and in other countries. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20111010/CG83314LOGO Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429704 SOURCE FICO Related Links http://www.fico.com NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Flashpoint, the global leader in Business Risk Intelligence (BRI) from the Deep & Dark Web, today announced the appointment of Jennifer Leggio as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). Leggio brings nearly 20 years of experience in security and technology marketing and communications to the role after previously holding leadership positions at Digital Shadows, Cisco, Sourcefire, and Fortinet. As CMO, she will lead Flashpoint's marketing initiatives while focusing on strategic growth and accelerating the market's adoption of BRI. "I've spent the past 18 months working with buyers and influencers to better understand their threat intelligence needs, and it's become strikingly clear that Business Risk Intelligence is what organizations are seeking to enable their broader business functions to make informed decisions that mitigate risk and improve operations," Leggio said. "Flashpoint's offerings appeal to much more than cybersecurity groups, as the relevance and focus of the company's intelligence is highly applicable to diverse teams. The company's rapid growth, market influence, impressive customer traction, and world-class management team make this the exact right time to join Flashpoint. I look forward to accelerating the company's brand awareness and customer adoption as we spread BRI across the enterprise." Leggio specializes in helping startups and early-stage security companies establish positioning, cultivate thought leadership, and bolster go-to-market strategies while defining new markets or disrupting established ones to help shape the security industry. Most recently serving as Senior Vice President of Marketing at Digital Shadows, she previously was Senior Director of Security Market Strategy and Marketing at Cisco. She joined Cisco through the $2.7 billion acquisition of Sourcefire, where she was Vice President of Corporate Marketing. Leggio was also the Director of Corporate Communications at Fortinet, where she helped drive messaging, communications and digital media strategy through the company's IPO. Leggio's appointment reaffirms Flashpoint's continued attraction of industry-leading talent. In June, the company appointed Chris Camacho, previously Senior Vice President of Global Information Security at Bank of America, as Chief Strategy Officer. In the same month, the company also welcomed Tom Hofmann, formerly Cyber Intelligence Lead at PNC, as its Vice President of Intelligence. And earlier this month, Flashpoint announced that Brian Costello, previously Vice President of Public Sector Sales at Invincea, joined the company as Vice President, Global Sales & Solution Architecture. "We're thrilled to welcome Jennifer to the team," affirmed Flashpoint CEO Josh Lefkowitz. "She joins us at just the right time to help us raise awareness of Business Risk Intelligence and its increasing variety of use cases across different verticals and business functions. With Q3 reflecting this trend by exceeding our targets, Jennifer and her team are poised to capitalize on that momentum and bring BRI to an even broader audience." About Flashpoint Flashpoint delivers Business Risk Intelligence (BRI) to empower business units and functions across organizations to make better decisions and mitigate risk. The company's unique Deep & Dark Web data, expertise and technology enable our customers to glean intelligence that informs risk and protects their ability to operate. Fortune 500 and government customers utilize Flashpoint's intelligence across the enterprise, including bolstering cybersecurity, confronting fraud, detecting insider threats, enhancing physical security, assessing M&A opportunities, and addressing vendor risk and supply chain integrity. For corporations with limited experience availing themselves of Deep & Dark Web intelligence, Flashpoint has tailored offerings that deliver comprehensive reporting and monitoring on their behalf. Flashpoint is backed by Greycroft Partners, TechOperators, K2 Intelligence, Jump Capital, Leaders Fund, Bloomberg Beta, and Cisco Investments. For more information, visit www.flashpoint-intel.com or follow us on Twitter at @FlashpointIntel Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160602/374699LOGO SOURCE Flashpoint Related Links https://www.flashpoint-intel.com FLOWER MOUND, Tex., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --Today, national religious liberty law firm First Liberty Institute sent a demand letter to Flower Mound High School (FMHS) on behalf of a local parent whose business logo was censored because it included the word "Jesus." "The government censored a small business owner's logo, simply because it mentioned Jesus," Jeremy Dys, Senior Counsel for First Liberty Institute, says. "That's pure religious discrimination and it's against the law." Read First Liberty's demand letter to Flower Mound High School When FMHS asked local businesses to sponsor the school's bass fishing club, FMHS parent Wess Jones readily agreed. Jones, the owner of the boat repair company 1st Choice Marine, paid a sponsorship fee in exchange for his company's logo to be featured on the club's website and jerseys for the next four years. View potential sponsor letter After Mr. Jones provided his company logo to the school, a school official said that they could not use the business's slogan because it could put the school "in real hot water." The company's slogan, which is incorporated into the logo, is "It's not about us, it's all about Jesus." View email correspondence To Mr. Jones' surprise, not only did the school strip his logo of the slogan, but they invented an entirely new logo for him, without his consent or permission, which they placed on the fishing club's website. View screenshot of website "I just wanted to support my daughter's bass fishing team," Jones says. "I was shocked to realize that my sponsorship wasn't welcome simply because it included the word 'Jesus.'" "The government often thinks it can, or should, censor speech just because it's religious. But that's not true," Dys says. "The law requires the government to be neutral toward the religious speech of others. If they'll allow a non-religious logo, the must allow a religious logo. Flower Mound High School failed to follow the law and they must be held accountable." First Liberty asked FMHS to immediately remove the "illegitimate logo" on the FMHS Bass Fishing website and replace it with the correct logo, along with providing written assurances that the correct logo will be used on the club's jerseys and website during the next club fishing season. Read more about the case at FirstLiberty.org/1stChoiceMarine About First Liberty Institute First Liberty Institute is the largest legal organization in the nation dedicated exclusively to defending religious freedom for all Americans. SOURCE First Liberty Institute HOUSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- FMC Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:FTI) today reported third quarter 2016 revenue of $1.1 billion, down 29 percent from the prior-year quarter primarily due to lower activity across all reporting segments. Diluted earnings per share from continuing operations were $0.20, which includes total Company pre-tax charges of $43 million, or $0.15 per diluted share as detailed in the attached financial schedules. Adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations were $0.35. "Subsea Technologies achieved further improvement in segment operating margins, with third quarter results being the highest levels we have recorded in 2016," said Doug Pferdehirt, President and CEO of FMC Technologies. "The strong performance resulted from solid project execution, combined with the benefits of our cost reduction actions that continued in the quarter. We have used this downturn as a catalyst to make fundamental changes to our business model that will continue to provide sustainable benefits." Total inbound orders were $692.2 million, including $401 million in Subsea Technologies orders. Backlog for the Company was $3 billion, including Subsea Technologies backlog of $2.5 billion. "We received our second subsea multiphase boosting pump order in the quarter. This award, for ENI's Block 15/06 West Hub Development, further demonstrates our capabilities in this attractive growth segment," Pferdehirt added. "We anticipate that small order intake will continue to improve and that large project orders will follow as operators embrace strategies that improve project economics through the acceleration of time to first oil, schedule certainty, and lower costs. At FMC Technologies, our relentless focus on these key drivers is yielding benefits for our customers today and will result in even greater benefits in the future." Review of Operations Third Quarter 2016 Subsea Technologies Subsea Technologies third quarter revenue was $798.4 million, down 27 percent from the prior-year quarter, primarily due to lower inbound orders achieved during 2015 that affected the backlog coming into the year. Subsea Technologies operating profit was $119.7 million; adjusted operating profit was $125.1 million, excluding charges of $5.4 million as shown in the attached financial schedules. Subsea Technologies operating margins were 15 percent; adjusted operating margins were 15.7 percent, excluding charges. Subsea Technologies inbound orders for the third quarter were $401 million. Backlog was $2.5 billion, compared to prior-year backlog of $4.3 billion. Surface Technologies Surface Technologies third quarter revenue was $218.1 million, down 40 percent from the prior-year quarter, primarily due to the 43 percent decline in the North American rig count average. Surface Technologies reported an operating loss of $19.6 million; adjusted operating loss was $5.2 million, excluding charges of $14.4 million mainly for restructuring initiatives in North America. This is shown in the attached financial schedules. Surface Technologies inbound orders for the third quarter were $242.2 million. Backlog was $379.3 million, predominantly related to the Company's wellhead business outside of North America. Energy Infrastructure Energy Infrastructure third quarter revenue was $77.1 million, down 21 percent from the prior-year quarter, due to lower activity across the segment. Energy Infrastructure reported operating profit of $2.5 million; adjusted operating profit was $3.7 million, excluding charges of $1.2 million as shown in the attached financial schedules. Energy Infrastructure operating margins were 3.3 percent; adjusted operating margins were 4.9 percent, excluding charges. Energy Infrastructure inbound orders for the third quarter were $55.9 million. Backlog was $112.4 million. Corporate Items Corporate expense in the third quarter was $14.2 million. Other revenue and other expense, net, increased $21.9 million from the prior-year quarter to $43.8 million of expense. Items of significance included the following: $11.6 million , or $0.05 per diluted share of business combination transaction and integration costs related to the Company's proposed merger with Technip S.A.; , or per diluted share of business combination transaction and integration costs related to the Company's proposed merger with Technip S.A.; $7.6 million , or $0.02 per diluted share, of costs related to restructuring and other severance charges; and , or per diluted share, of costs related to restructuring and other severance charges; and $3.6 million , or $0.01 per diluted share, of transition costs related to facility consolidations. Net interest expense was $7.7 million in the quarter. The Company ended the quarter with net debt of $189.9 million, down $61.4 million sequentially. Cash and cash equivalents were $1.1 billion. In accordance with the Business Combination Agreement related to our proposed merger with Technip S.A., the Company has suspended share repurchase activity until the completion of the proposed merger. Accordingly, the Company did not repurchase any common stock during the quarter. Depreciation and amortization for the third quarter was $57.3 million and capital expenditures were $26.1 million. The Company recorded a negative effective tax rate of 25.8 percent for the third quarter. The tax benefit of $9.5 million reflects the quarterly impact from the change in the full year estimated earnings mix, due mainly to lower North American profit as well as tax benefits associated with the charges taken in the quarter. Summary FMC Technologies reported third quarter diluted earnings per share from continuing operations of $0.20. Adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations were $0.35, when excluding total Company pre-tax charges of $43 million, or $0.15 per diluted share. These charges included restructuring and other severance charges, business combination transaction and integration costs, transition and facility consolidation costs, and impairment and other charges. The Company recorded Subsea Technologies revenue of $798.4 million in the quarter with margins of 15 percent; adjusted operating margins were 15.7 percent, excluding charges. Total inbound orders of $692.2 million in the third quarter included $401 million in Subsea Technologies orders. The Company's backlog stands at $3 billion, including Subsea Technologies backlog of $2.5 billion. About FMC Technologies FMC Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: FTI) is the global market leader in subsea systems and a leading provider of technologies and services to the oil and gas industry. We help our customers overcome their most difficult challenges, such as improving shale and subsea infrastructures and operations to reduce cost, maintain uptime, and maximize oil and gas recovery. The company has approximately 14,500 employees and operates 29 major production facilities and services bases in 18 countries. Visit www.fmctechnologies.com or follow us on Twitter @FMC_Tech for more information. This release contains "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words such as "expected," "continue," "outlook," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which are generally not historical in nature. Such forward-looking statements involve significant risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from our historical experience and our present expectations or projections. FMC Technologies cautions you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. Known material factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in the forward-looking statements include those set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K, as well as the following: demand for our products and services, which is affected by changes in the price of, and demand for, crude oil and natural gas in domestic and international markets; potential liabilities arising out of the installation or use of our products; U.S. and international laws and regulations, including environmental regulations, that may increase our costs, limit the demand for our products and services or restrict our operations; disruptions in the political, regulatory, economic and social conditions of the foreign countries in which we conduct business; fluctuations in currency markets worldwide; cost overruns that may affect profit realized on our fixed price contracts; disruptions in the timely delivery of our backlog and its effect on our future sales, profitability, and our relationships with our customers; the cumulative loss of major contracts or alliances; rising costs and availability of raw materials; a failure of our information technology infrastructure or any significant breach of security; our ability to develop and implement new technologies and services, as well as our ability to protect and maintain critical intellectual property assets; the outcome of uninsured claims and litigation against us; deterioration in future expected profitability or cash flows and its effect on our goodwill; a downgrade in the ratings of our debt could restrict our ability to access the debt capital markets; continuing consolidation within our industry; and our dependence on the continuing services of certain of our key managers and employees. FMC Technologies undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any of its forward-looking statements after the date they are made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by law. Investor Relations Matt Seinsheimer P: 281.260.3665 [email protected] Media Lisa Albiston P: 281.931.2513 [email protected] Lisa Adams P: 281.405.4659 [email protected] FMC Technologies, Inc. 5875 N Sam Houston Pkwy W Houston, Texas 77086 P: 281.591.4000 www.fmctechnologies.com FMC TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (In millions except per share amounts, unaudited) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended September 30 September 30 2016 2015 2016 2015 Revenue $ 1,091.2 $ 1,545.0 $ 3,450.2 $ 4,935.4 Costs and expenses 1,038.3 1,422.2 3,325.8 4,426.0 52.9 122.8 124.4 509.4 Other expense, net (8.7) (12.7) (29.4) (34.1) Income before net interest expense and income taxes 44.2 110.1 95.0 475.3 Net interest expense (7.7) (8.1) (22.8) (24.4) Income before income taxes 36.5 102.0 72.2 450.9 Provision (benefit) for income taxes (9.5) 19.5 9.0 112.3 Income from continuing operations 46.0 82.5 63.2 338.6 Loss from discontinued operations, net of income taxes (1) (14.0) - (14.0) - Net income 32.0 82.5 49.2 338.6 Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interests 0.3 (0.5) 0.4 (1.1) Net income attributable to FMC Technologies, Inc. $ 32.3 $ 82.0 $ 49.6 $ 337.5 Earnings (loss) per share attributable to FMC Technologies, Inc.: Continuing operations $ 0.20 $ 0.36 $ 0.28 $ 1.46 Discontinued operations (0.06) - (0.06) - Basic earnings per share $ 0.14 $ 0.36 $ 0.22 $ 1.46 Continuing operations $ 0.20 $ 0.35 $ 0.28 $ 1.45 Discontinued operations (0.06) - (0.06) - Diluted earnings per share $ 0.14 $ 0.35 $ 0.22 $ 1.45 Weighted average shares outstanding: Basic 226.9 230.2 227.3 231.6 Diluted 228.2 231.0 228.5 232.5 (1) Loss from discontinued operations represents a tax assessment charge by the Algerian Tax Authority related to SOFEC Floating Systems, Inc., a former wholly-owned subsidiary disposed in 2006. FMC TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES BUSINESS SEGMENT DATA (Unaudited and in millions) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended September 30 September 30 2016 2015 2016 2015 Revenue Subsea Technologies $ 798.4 $ 1,093.7 $ 2,516.6 $ 3,490.3 Surface Technologies 218.1 361.0 702.3 1,170.6 Energy Infrastructure 77.1 97.1 246.3 299.4 Other revenue (1) and intercompany eliminations (2.4) (6.8) (15.0) (24.9) $ 1,091.2 $ 1,545.0 $ 3,450.2 $ 4,935.4 Income before income taxes Segment operating profit (loss) Subsea Technologies $ 119.7 $ 170.7 $ 326.4 $ 522.9 Surface Technologies (19.6) (22.5) (69.9) 67.9 Energy Infrastructure 2.5 (2.0) 7.0 6.2 Intercompany eliminations (0.1) - 0.1 - Total segment operating profit 102.5 146.2 263.6 597.0 Corporate items Corporate expense (2) (14.2) (14.7) (41.6) (45.0) Other revenue (1) and other expense, net (3) (43.8) (21.9) (126.6) (77.8) Net interest expense (7.7) (8.1) (22.8) (24.4) Total corporate items (65.7) (44.7) (191.0) (147.2) Income before income taxes attributable to FMC Technologies, Inc. (4) $ 36.8 $ 101.5 $ 72.6 $ 449.8 (1) Other revenue comprises certain unrealized gains and losses on derivative instruments related to unexecuted sales contracts. (2) Corporate expense primarily includes corporate staff expenses. (3) Other expense, net, generally includes stock-based compensation, other employee benefits, LIFO adjustments, certain foreign exchange gains and losses, and the impact of unusual or strategic transactions not representative of segment operations. (4) Excludes amounts attributable to noncontrolling interests. FMC TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES BUSINESS SEGMENT DATA (Unaudited and in millions) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended September 30 September 30 2016 2015 2016 2015 Inbound Orders Subsea Technologies $ 401.0 $ 1,049.0 $ 1,081.0 $ 2,612.7 Surface Technologies 242.2 398.1 643.8 1,030.6 Energy Infrastructure 55.9 81.8 191.8 290.3 Intercompany eliminations and other (6.9) (2.9) (14.9) (13.0) Total inbound orders $ 692.2 $ 1,526.0 $ 1,901.7 $ 3,920.6 September 30 2016 2015 Order Backlog Subsea Technologies $ 2,534.0 $ 4,287.6 Surface Technologies 379.3 495.0 Energy Infrastructure 112.4 172.8 Intercompany eliminations (2.8) (2.8) Total order backlog $ 3,022.9 $ 4,952.6 FMC TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (In millions) September 30, December 31, 2016 2015 (Unaudited) As Adjusted Cash and cash equivalents $ 1,074.2 $ 916.2 Trade receivables, net 681.0 884.0 Costs in excess of billings 638.9 638.4 Inventories, net 641.6 764.1 Other current assets 466.6 727.5 Total current assets 3,502.3 3,930.2 Property, plant and equipment, net 1,309.6 1,371.5 Goodwill 523.9 514.7 Intangible assets, net 225.0 246.3 Other assets 402.9 356.7 Total assets $ 5,963.7 $ 6,419.4 Short-term debt and current portion of long-term debt $ 19.0 $ 21.9 Accounts payable, trade 375.3 519.3 Advance payments 400.5 464.2 Billings in excess of costs 110.4 200.4 Other current liabilities 740.8 1,099.5 Total current liabilities 1,646.0 2,305.3 Long-term debt, less current portion 1,245.1 1,134.1 Other liabilities 378.7 436.8 FMC Technologies, Inc. stockholders' equity 2,678.3 2,524.1 Noncontrolling interest 15.6 19.1 Total liabilities and equity $ 5,963.7 $ 6,419.4 FMC TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (Unaudited and in millions) Nine Months Ended September 30 2016 2015 Cash provided (required) by operating activities: Net income $ 49.2 $ 338.6 Depreciation and amortization 181.1 182.5 Trade accounts receivable, net and costs in excess of billings 264.8 181.3 Inventories, net 127.3 105.2 Accounts payable, trade (156.6) (140.6) Advance payments and billings in excess of costs (182.9) (241.3) Asset impairment charges 40.2 64.4 Other (87.7) 10.9 Net cash provided by operating activities from continuing operations 235.4 501.0 Net cash required by operating activities from discontinued operations (8.1) - Net cash provided by operating activities 227.3 501.0 Cash provided (required) by investing activities: Capital expenditures (93.1) (211.0) Investment in joint ventures (52.9) (5.0) Proceeds from sale of Wireline 19.0 - Other investing 6.8 4.3 Net cash required by investing activities (120.2) (211.7) Cash provided (required) by financing activities: Net increase (decrease) in debt 95.6 (7.7) Purchase of stock held in treasury (54.8) (148.0) Other financing (11.4) (25.8) Net cash provided (required) by financing activities 29.4 (181.5) Effect of changes in foreign exchange rates on cash and cash equivalents 21.5 (35.1) Increase in cash and cash equivalents 158.0 72.7 Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period 916.2 638.8 Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $ 1,074.2 $ 711.5 FMC TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP TO GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (In millions except per share amounts, unaudited) Three Months Ended September 30 2016 2015 (after-tax) Income from continuing operations, excluding charges $ 80 $ 140 Impairment and other charges (1) (1) (45) Restructuring and other severance charges (2) (20) (13) Business combination transaction and integration costs (3) (11) - Transition and facility consolidation costs (4) (2) - Income from continuing operations, as reported $ 46 $ 82 Diluted EPS from continuing operations, excluding charges $ 0.35 $ 0.61 Diluted EPS from continuing operations, as reported $ 0.20 $ 0.35 (1) Tax effect of nil and $15 million during the three months ended September 30, 2016 and 2015, respectively. (2) Tax effect of $8 million and $5 million during the three months ended September 30, 2016 and 2015, respectively. (3) Tax effect of $1 million during the three months ended September 30, 2016. (4) Tax effect of $1 million during the three months ended September 30, 2016. FMC TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP TO GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (In millions, unaudited) Three Months Ended September 30, 2016 Subsea Technologies Surface Technologies Energy Infrastructure (pre-tax) Segment operating profit (loss), excluding charges $ 125.1 $ (5.2) $ 3.7 Impairment and other charges (0.5) (0.5) - Restructuring and other severance charges (4.9) (13.9) (1.2) Segment operating profit (loss), as reported $ 119.7 $ (19.6) $ 2.5 Segment operating profit (loss) as a percent of revenue, excluding charges 15.7% (2.4)% 4.9% Segment operating profit (loss) as a percent of revenue, as reported 15.0% (9.0)% 3.3% Three Months Ended September 30, 2015 Subsea Technologies Surface Technologies Energy Infrastructure (pre-tax) Segment operating profit, excluding charges $ 188.0 $ 41.9 $ 1.4 Impairment charges (2.1) (58.0) - Restructuring and other severance charges (15.2) (1.6) (1.7) Inventory write-downs - (4.8) (1.7) Segment operating profit (loss), as reported $ 170.7 $ (22.5) $ (2.0) Segment operating profit as a percent of revenue, excluding charges 17.2% 11.6% 1.4% Segment operating profit (loss) as a percent of revenue, as reported 15.6% (6.2)% (2.1)% FMC TECHNOLOGIES, INC. AND CONSOLIDATED SUBSIDIARIES RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP TO GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (In millions) September 30, December 31, 2016 2015 (Unaudited) Cash and cash equivalents $ 1,074.2 $ 916.2 Short-term debt and current portion of long-term debt (19.0) (21.9) Long-term debt, less current portion (1,245.1) (1,134.1) Net debt $ (189.9) $ (239.8) Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081222/LAM028LOGO SOURCE FMC Technologies, Inc. Related Links http://www.fmctechnologies.com KALONA, Iowa, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Follow Farmers is the story of how Farmers Electric Cooperative in the small Iowa town of Kalona installed nearly 2 MW of solar. The entire construction of this historic solar array is currently streaming live at followfarmers.solar. Tyler Anderson, President of Iowa Wind and Solar, surveys the project Site of the new array in Kalona, IA Farmers Electric Cooperative partnered with Iowa Wind and Solar to engineer, finance, and construct their newest solar project, a 950.4 kW array consisting of 2,880 solar panels. This brings FEC's total solar array size to nearly 2 MW. To understand the size of this array, you could think of it as enough to power more than 200 homes. This installation makes Farmers Electric Cooperative the leading solar utility in the State of Iowa. According to project lead and Iowa Wind and Solar President Tyler Anderson, "This is the first instance we are aware of in which the entire construction and installation of a solar array of this magnitude has been available for the public to watch live. We're encouraging folks to check out the live stream online at followfarmers.solar." Iowa Wind And Solar is partnering with Mevo and Livestream to make this live stream possible. Construction is ongoing, October 3rd - October 17th, 2016 at 1912 520th St SW, Kalona, IA 52247. A post-install press conference will be announced after the completion of array. Iowa Wind and Solar is Iowa's leading solar company, with offices based in Fairfield, Iowa and Bloomfield, Iowa. Iowa Wind and Solar's mission is to work with electric cooperatives to help implement solar solutions, such as community solar, with a focus on aligning values between the electric cooperative utility and its members. If you'd like more information, please contact Jen Kranz at Iowa Wind and Solar, 800-8080-SUN, or email. For access to all assets visit www.followfarmers.solar/press Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429840 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429841 SOURCE Iowa Wind and Solar Related Links http://www.followfarmers.solar/press SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) is recognizing Fundbox Founder and CEO, Eyal Shinar as one of the 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs of 2016 at its Builders + Innovators Summit in Santa Barbara, California. Goldman Sachs selected Shinar as one of 100 entrepreneurs from multiple industries to be honored at the two-day event. Fundbox has simplified and radically improved the way that small businesses get paid by solving one of the biggest pain points faced by small businesses: maintaining positive cash flow. Under Shinar's leadership, Fundbox has developed a tech-driven tool that employs advanced underwriting algorithms and deep learning capabilities to instantly advance funds tied up in outstanding invoices, helping business owners eliminate their cash flow challenges and grow their business. The product gives small businesses access to capital by the next business day and only requires that they pay for what they use, making it a great alternative to traditional financial products. "The Goldman Sachs honor as one of the 100 most intriguing entrepreneurs of 2016 is humbling," said Eyal Shinar, founder and chief executive officer, Fundbox. "This recognition is a huge testament to the Fundbox team and our laser focus on helping small businesses thrive by offering them previously unavailable financial solutions." "We are honored to recognize Eyal Shinar as one of the most intriguing entrepreneurs of 2016," said David Solomon, co-head of investment banking at Goldman Sachs. "This is the fifth year that we've hosted the Builders + Innovators Summit where emerging business leaders gather to discuss their common interests in building thriving organizations." For more than 145 years, Goldman Sachs has been advising and financing entrepreneurs as they launch and grow their businesses. In addition to honoring 100 entrepreneurs, the summit consists of general sessions and clinics led by Goldman Sachs experts, seasoned entrepreneurs, academics and business leaders as well as resident scholars. Shinar is an expert in financial services and technology. Prior to his current position as CEO and founder of Fundbox, he served as a vice president at Battery Ventures where he led many projects and investments in the areas of finance, machine learning and software-as-a-service. Additionally, Shinar was one of the first employees of Old Lane, a $5.5 billion New York-based global hedge fund (later acquired by Citigroup), and also worked for Castle Harlan, a leading $6 billion NYC-based buyout firm. Shinar earned his MBA from The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Fundbox has raised over $100 million in capital from leading Silicon Valley investors such as Khosla Ventures, General Catalyst Partners, and Spark Capital Growth. The company leverages cutting-edge technology and data science to create better financial options for the sector. Fundbox currently serves more than 50,000 small businesses and has underwritten more than 39 million invoices. For more information on Fundbox, please visit www.Fundbox.com. About Fundbox: Fundbox is the leading platform for small and medium-sized businesses to manage and optimize cash flow. Through its advanced data science and analytics capabilities, Fundbox taps into numerous data signals to assess customers and invoices for risk automatically and instantly. Small and medium-sized business owners are able to unlock capital tied up in outstanding invoices with a single click - funds show up in their bank account in as little as 24 hours. Leading Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, finance veterans, and venture capitalists, including Spark Capital Growth, Bezos Expeditions (the personal investment arm of Jeff Bezos), General Catalyst Partners, Khosla Ventures, SV Angel, former CitiGroup CEO Vikram Pandit, and other prominent investors back the company. Media Contact: Tracy Rubin/ Jill Fox JCUTLER media group [email protected] / [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430257LOGO SOURCE Fundbox Related Links http://www.Fundbox.com ABIDJAN, Cote d'Ivoire, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Join global leaders for a two-day meeting to address critical issues facing sustainability in the chocolate and cocoa sector. The meeting, hosted by the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) and Le Conseil du Cafe-Cacao, will feature prominent speakers across the sector, including government, civil society, academia, research institutes, public, and private sector representatives. WHAT: The World Cocoa Foundation 28th Partnership Meeting & Cocoa Sustainability Trade Fair is an opportunity to share the latest developments toward ensuring greater sustainability in the cocoa sector and improving farmer livelihood and will address topics including deforestation, climate change, financial inclusion, and more. This Partnership Meeting marks WCF's first in Cote d'Ivoire, the world's leading cocoa producer and is centered on the theme: "People, Planet, Profit in a Changing World." CocoaAction, industry's sustainability strategy, will be a major topic at the Partnership Meeting, with conversations focusing on alignment and scale. Click here for more information and to view the meeting agenda. The Partnership Meeting will be live tweeted from @WorldCocoa using meeting hashtag #WCFPM. WHEN: Wednesday, October 26 and Thursday, October 27, 2016 WHERE: Radisson Blu Abidjan-Port Bouet Route de l'Aeroport d'Abidjan Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire WHO: More than 60 Partnership Meeting presenters including: President of Cote d'Ivoire Alassane Ouattara * invited * First Lady of Cote d'Ivoire Dominique Ouattara Cote d'Ivoire Minister of Agriculture Mamadou Sangofowa Coulibaly Stephen Opuni , Chief Executive, Ghana Cocoa Board , Chief Executive, Ghana Cocoa Board Barry Parkin , Chairman, World Cocoa Foundation , Chairman, World Cocoa Foundation Rick Scobey , President, World Cocoa Foundation , President, World Cocoa Foundation Massandje Toure-Litse, Director General, Le Conseil du Cafe-Cacao of Cote d'Ivoire About WCF: The World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) is an international membership organization that promotes sustainability in the cocoa sector. WCF provides cocoa farmers with the support they need to grow more quality cocoa and socially and economically strengthen their communities. WCF's members include cocoa and chocolate manufacturers, processors, supply chain managers, and other companies worldwide, representing more than 80 percent of the global cocoa market. WCF's programs benefit farmers and their communities in cocoa-growing regions of Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Americas. For more information, visit www.worldcocoafoundation.org or follow us on Twitter and Facebook. SOURCE World Cocoa Foundation Related Links http://www.worldcocoafoundation.org LAKEWOOD, Ohio, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Onix announced that it will host a live, complimentary webinar titled, "Migrating from the Google Search Appliance? Get the Blueprint from a Google Search Veteran" on Thursday, Nov. 3 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EDT. The webinar will offer expert advice from Marc Berman, Head of the Onix Search division and a nine-year veteran of Google Search. Marc Berman, Head of Onix Search and Bryan McKay, Onix Enterprise Search Engagement Manager Marc will share his insights, explaining how your organization can easily transition its Google Search Appliance to a next generation enterprise search solution. With this inside scoop, you'll be empowered to continue delivering business results to your organization through enterprise search. For more information and to register for the webinar, click here. This informative webinar will specifically cover: How the Onix-Google Search Assessment will help you assess your enterprise search needs and set a Google Search migration plan. Next generation search solutions that will help you drive business value for your organization. Answers to your important search and migration questions live by industry search experts: Marc Berman, Head of Onix Search Marc Berman is the head of Onix's Search practice. He is responsible for guiding the company's search strategic vision, which empowers Onix to help new and existing customers navigate the post-Google Search Appliance world to deliver top and bottom line results for their organizations. Marc spent nine years with Google Enterprise and the Google Search Appliance team. He has guided countless companies to impactful business results through search, including Whirlpool and Stryker Instruments. Bryan McKay, Onix Enterprise Search Engagement Manager Bryan works as an engagement manager in Onix's Enterprise Search practice. He implements enterprise search technology to help customers grow their businesses, leverage information in systems and silos across the organization, tap into the network of expertise in the organization to improve collaboration and innovation and deliver an enhanced customer experience. About Onix, Your Webinar Hosts Onix has been helping organizations with enterprise search solutions for 15 years. In that time, the company has led hundreds of customers ranging from state, local and federal government agencies to manufacturers, hospitals, financial and educational institutions in the purchase, deployment and maintenance of their knowledge discovery solutions. Onix is a Google Premier Partner and sells several other search solutions including Mindbreeze, LucidWorks and Expert System. Sign up for the webinar now. Media Contact Karen Masuga Marketing Communications Manager Onix Networking Corp. 216-529-3043 [email protected] Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430407 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160419/357118LOGO SOURCE Onix Related Links www.onixnet.com By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican U.S. congressional candidates worried that Donald Trump's struggling White House bid will damage them too have seized on one of President Barack Obama's signature foreign policy initiatives to try to ward off Democrats in the Nov 8 elections. With control of the Senate and perhaps even the House of Representatives in the balance, millions of dollars has been spent on campaign advertisements criticizing last year's Iran nuclear pact, even in districts where foreign affairs generally are not a top concern. Although Iran is unlikely to be most voters' main reason for choosing a candidate, strategists said the money could be well spent. Iran provides a distraction for Republicans concerned that the unpopularity of Trump -- whose poll numbers are dropping as he fights off several allegations that he groped women -- could also sink party members further down the ballot. One typical ad, for Iowa Republican Representative Rod Blum, uses apocalyptic imagery to tie Democratic challenger Monica Vernon to the Iran agreement. "Would you give billions to an Islamic Republic that burns our flag and chants 'Death to America?' Monica Vernon would," a male voice thunders over a video montage of marching troops, nuclear weapons and protesters burning U.S. flags. Vernon, a member of the Cedar Rapids City Council, has voiced support for the nuclear deal. Blum's spot is similar to dozens rolled out on behalf of Republican candidates who argue that America's influence is weaker because of Obama and by extension Hillary Clinton, his former secretary of state who is now the Democratic presidential nominee. "Iran is a piece of the national security anxiety people feel," Republican strategist Matt Mackowiak said. "Foreign policy's really complicated. Average voters don't understand it, don't follow it closely, but they know what bad foreign policy looks like." POLITICIZED ISSUE The agreement between Iran, the United States and other world powers curbs Tehran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief and the release of frozen Iranian assets. Trump frequently criticizes the accord and promises to make much better deals, based on his business experience, if he wins the White House. The real estate magnate has hammered the Iran pact in both of his presidential debates with Clinton and it is likely to come up at Wednesday's third debate in Nevada. Reuters/Ipsos polling in May showed Americans preferred Republicans' plans for dealing with Iran by 37 percent versus 21.9 percent for the Democrats'. Every Republican in Congress opposed the Iran breakthrough. Many worried that Obama gave up too much to a country that sponsors terrorism and threatens Israel. The issue has become more politicized recently, as congressional Republicans denounced the release of cash to Iran as a "ransom" payment and charged that huge Boeing Co and Airbus contracts to sell Iran jetliners could support terrorism. In the race for a U.S. Senate seat in North Carolina on Nov. 8, a conservative spending group spent $1 million on advertising attacking Deborah Ross, the Democrat running against incumbent Senator Richard Burr, over the Iran deal. Israel also opposed the Iran accord, as did AIPAC, the main U.S. pro-Israel lobby group. Support for Israel is important to voters, especially evangelical Christians who are a wellspring of Republican support. There is more election advertising opposing the Iran deal than supporting it, but there is some backing for it. J Street, a smaller liberal pro-Israel group, spent $500,000 on advertising attacking Republican Senators Patrick Toomey and Ron Johnson, in tight re-election races in Democratic-leaning Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, for opposing the Iran pact. (Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Alistair Bell) By funding Children International's ECD program, the Guru Krupa Foundation is helping enrich the lives of children ages 3 to 5 by ensuring opportunities for learning and growth. The curriculum for the program is focused on early mathematical skills, language development, hand-eye coordination, and emotional and social development. By mastering these skills early, children are put on the right track for being successful in school. Children International believes that going to school and not dropping out is absolutely essential to building a future free from poverty. That's why education is one of the organization's key focus areas alongside health, empowerment and employment. In addition to the ECD program, Children International provides education support in a variety of ways: Providing material support for supplies, uniforms, shoes or books Awarding scholarships to attend vocational school, college or other higher education institutions Working directly with parents to ensure their kids are enrolled in school to ensure their kids are enrolled in school Creating lunch programs at schools , which act as an incentive for families to keep sending their kids to school , which act as an incentive for families to keep sending their kids to school Tutoring kids either one-on-one or in groups either one-on-one or in groups Making resources such as computer labs and libraries in CI community centers available to local schools. Learn more about how Children International is empowering kids through education. Learn more about the Guru Krupa Foundation. About Children International Children International is a top-rated humanitarian organization focused on ending poverty by helping children and teens. We take a holistic approach to our programs and work through local professional staff at each of our 70+ community centers worldwide. Our goal is that each child graduates from our program healthy, educated, employed and empowered to break the cycle of poverty. For more information about Children International, visit children.org. Follow Children International on Facebook and Twitter. FOR MORE INFORMATION: Brittany Gelbach Public Relations Children International Direct: (816) 943-3832 Email: [email protected] Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430430 SOURCE Children International Related Links http//www.children.org POINT PLEASANT BEACH, N.J., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Hammer Fiber Optics Holding Corp. (OTCQB: HMMR) (the "Company"), is scheduled to present at RedChip's Global Online Growth Conference on Thursday, October 20, 2016, at 11:30 am Eastern time. The presentation can be viewed at www.RedChip.com. A live Q&A session will follow the investor presentation. The conference includes a keynote from Thomas Jandt, branch manager and investment advisor at WestPark Capital. Jandt's presentation, titled "The Biggest Bubble in History?" will explore the history of the Fed Funds Rate, its impact on US Treasury rates, and possibilities of where we may go from here. Jandt personally assists entrepreneurs and corporations with valuable advice, analysis and assistance in preparing for the process of raising growth capital, going public and/or merger and acquisition evaluation. Mr. Jandt has over 19 years of investment banking experience, having participated in over one billion dollars in private and public capital offerings during his career as an investment banker and stockbroker over the past two decades. Jandt's presentation will air at 12:00 p.m. ET on each day of the conference. RedChip's Global Online Growth Conference brings together investors and executives of leading microcap companies, representing a broad spectrum of industries and sectors, including oil & gas, technology, mining, healthcare, consumer goods, energy, and more. More than 10,000 investors attend RedChip's microcap conference series each year. No registration is required to participate in the conference. Start times are subject to change. About Hammer Fiber Optics Holding Hammer Fiber Optics Holdings (HMMR) intends to bring alternative high-speed telecom services to poorly served areas. The Company's internet services ensure subscribers get the bandwidth that they need to run all of their applications. The Company's technology is based on a proven end-to-end system that has already been successfully deployed in eight countries. Initial commercial operations are expected to commence in New Jersey in January 2017, followed by expansion into other markets. For more information visit http://www.hammerfiberopticinvestments.com/ Forward Looking Statement This press release contains projections and other forward-looking statements regarding future events or our future financial performance. All statements other than present and historical facts and conditions contained in this release are forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended). These statements are only predictions and reflect our current beliefs and expectations with respect to future events and are based on assumptions and subject to risk and uncertainties and subject to change at any time. We operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. Forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160902/403932LOGO SOURCE Hammer Fiber Optic Holdings Corp. Related Links http://www.hammerfiberopticinvestments.com - H2 to be stronger Highlights Mined metal production at 192kt in Q2; up 51% q-o-q Integrated metal production increased q-o-q: zinc 47%, lead 25% and silver 21% Mined metal production from underground mines ramps up by 83% y-o-y EBITDA at Rs. 2,077 crore in Q2; up 84% q-o-q in Q2; up 84% q-o-q H2 to be substantially stronger than H1 Board approves Dividend Policy Hindustan Zinc Limited today announced its results for the second quarter and half year ended September 30, 2016. Mr. Agnivesh Agarwal, Chairman "The price rally in zinc continued this quarter with prices climbing 18% from the previous quarter, consistent with its strong fundamentals. Silver prices too have rallied coupled with increasing silver volumes. Favourable market scenario and Company's smooth transition to underground mining has boosted investor confidence, heralding the Company's entry in the top 25 club in terms of market capitalisation in India." Financial Summary (In Rs. Crore, except as stated) Particulars Q2 Q1 H1 2017 2016 Change 2017 Change 2017 2016 Change Sales/Income from Operations Zinc 2,697 3,126 -14% 1,925 40% 4,622 6,173 -25% Lead 496 552 -10% 340 46% 836 1,010 -17% Silver 482 385 25% 360 34% 842 666 26% Others 145 170 -15% 150 -3% 295 317 -7% Total 3,820 4,233 -10% 2,775 38% 6,595 8,166 -19% EBITDA 2,077 2,218 -6% 1,130 84% 3,207 3,897 -18% Profit After Taxes 1,902 2,248 -15% 1,037 83% 2,939 4,189 -30% Earnings per Share (Rs., not annualised) 4.50 5.32 -15% 2.45 84% 6.96 9.91 -30% Mined Metal Production ('000 MT) 192 240 -20% 127 51% 318 472 -33% Refined Metal Production ('000 MT) Integrated Refined Metal Zinc 149 211 -30% 101 47% 250 398 -37% Saleable Lead1 31 39 -22% 25 25% 55 67 -17% Zinc & Lead 179 250 -28% 126 43% 305 465 -34% Saleable Silver2,3 (in MT) 107 110 -3% 89 21% 196 184 6% Total Refined Metal Zinc 150 211 -29% 102 47% 252 398 -37% Saleable Lead1 31 40 -24% 25 25% 55 71 -22% Zinc & Lead 181 252 -28% 127 43% 307 469 -35% Saleable Silver2,3 (in MT) 107 112 -4% 89 21% 196 187 5% Wind Power (in million units) 172 159 8% 148 16% 320 286 12% Zinc CoP without Royalty (Rs. / MT) 4 54,186 50,278 8% 61,440 -12% 57,022 50,488 13% Zinc CoP without Royalty ( $ / MT) 4 809 771 5% 918 -12% 852 786 8% Zinc LME ($ / MT) 2,255 1,847 22% 1,918 18% 2,089 2,013 4% Lead LME ($ / MT) 1,873 1,714 9% 1,719 9% 1,797 1,824 -2% Silver LBMA ($ / oz.) 19.6 14.9 32% 16.8 17% 18.2 15.6 17% USD-INR (average) 67.0 64.9 3% 66.9 0% 66.9 64.2 4% (1) Excluding captive consumption of 837 MT in Q2 FY2017 & 1,921 MT in H1 FY2017 as compared with 1,514 MT & 3,698 MT in respective corresponding prior period. (2) Excluding captive consumption of 4.3 MT in Q2 FY2017 and 9.8 MT in H1 FY2016 as compared with 7.8 MT and 19.1 MT in respective corresponding prior period. (3) Silver occurs in Lead & Zinc ore and is recovered in the smelting and silver-refining processes. (4) The COP numbers are after adjusting for deferred mining expenses under Ind-AS. Without this adjustment, Zinc CoP per MT would have been Rs. 62,035 ($926) as compared with Rs. 50,236 ($771) in Q2 FY 2016 and Rs. 76,448 ($1,142) in Q1 FY 2017. For H1 FY 2017 this would be Rs. 67,821 ($1,013) compared to Rs. 50,553 ($787) compared to corresponding prior period. Note: 1) Historical numbers have been revised as per Ind-AS reporting 2) Numbers may not add up due to rounding off; historical numbers may have changed due to regrouping Operational Performance Mined metal production during the quarter increased by 51% q-o-q as per plan. The increase was primarily driven by higher ore production from Rampura Agucha open cast where ore body was exposed after high waste excavation during previous quarter in accordance with the waste-ore sequence; this increase is despite heavy rains during the quarter. On y-o-y basis, mined metal production was lower by 20% as projected due to lower production from Rampura Agucha mine. In H1, mined metal output was at 318kt as compared with 472kt in corresponding prior period, in line with plan. During this period, the production from underground mines increased by 83% y-o-y, as Rampura Agucha mine ramped up production from underground. The Company is on track to achieve full year mined metal production higher than FY 2016 with second half being substantially higher. Integrated zinc metal production during the quarter was at 149kt, up 47% q-o-q and down 30% y-o-y, in line with mined metal production. In H1, integrated zinc metal production decreased by 37% y-o-y. Integrated lead and silver metal production during the quarter increased by 25% at 31kt and 21% at 107 MT respectively compared to previous quarter. On y-o-y basis, integrated lead production was down 22% in line with mined metal production while integrated silver production was down 3%. In H1, integrated lead production was lower by 17% from corresponding prior period, in line with mined metal availability. Integrated silver production was up 6% y-o-y in H1 despite lower mined metal, on account of significantly higher production from Sindesar Khurd mine. For the full year, integrated silver production will be higher than FY 2016. Financial Performance Subsequent to adopting Indian Accounting Standards (Ind-AS) from the current financial year, excise duty is now included in 'Sales' and reported as 'Gross Sales'. Accordingly, historical revenue has also been restated. Like in the previous quarter and in accordance with Ind-AS, the Company has temporarily capitalised excess ore burden of Rs. 141 crore during the quarter (Rs. 330 crore in H1) to more closely relate the costs to actual production volumes, which is expected to substantially reverse in H2 where waste excavation will be lower. Change in method of depreciation on Plant & Machinery from April 1, 2016, resulted in higher depreciation by Rs. 175 crore during this quarter (Rs. 346 crore in H1). Revenues increased by 38% sequentially at Rs. 3,820 crore but were lower on y-o-y basis by 10% in the quarter and by 19% in H1. On a sequential basis, revenue increased due to higher volumes and metal prices, while the y-o-y decrease during the quarter and H1 was on account of lower volumes, partly offset by higher zinc & silver prices and rupee depreciation. The zinc metal cost of production per MT before royalty (COP) during the quarter was at Rs. 54,186 ($809), down 12% from previous quarter and up 8% y-o-y (5% in dollar terms). The sequential reduction in COP was mainly on account of higher volumes, while the y-o-y increase was attributed primarily to lower average grades due to change in mining mix, higher mine development and planned lower production. Cost reduction initiatives for operational and commercial efficiencies were partly offset by higher petroleum product prices and lower acid prices. The above revenue and COP resulted in EBITDA at Rs. 2,077 crore, up 84% q-o-q and down 6% y-o-y. On a sequential basis, EBITDA increase was accentuated by write back and lower provisions in 'Power & Fuel'. For six month period, EBITDA was lower by 18% in line with production, partly offset by higher silver & zinc prices and rupee depreciation. Net profit during the quarter was at Rs. 1,902 crore, up 83% q-o-q in line with EBITDA increase and down 15% y-o-y. For six month period, net profit was lower by 30% at Rs. 2,939 crore. The y-o-y decrease for Q2 and H1 was due to higher depreciation and lower investment income on account of smaller corpus despite higher mark to market gains. Expansion Projects Continuing with the high pace of mine development, the Company achieved total mine development of 14,716 metres during Q2 and 28,728 metres in H1, up 12% and 14% respectively from a year ago. With the objective of mitigating the risk of any delays in ramp up of Rampura Agucha underground mine, Stage V was conceptualized in late 2014 to extend the life of the open cast mine to 2019-20 by deepening the pit by an additional 50 metres. However, concurrent mining at Rampura Agucha is leading to geotechnical challenges in both the open pit and underground. After deliberations with internal & global technical experts, it has been decided to modify Stage V limiting the incremental pit depth to 30 metres. This will mitigate pit wall challenges and significantly reduce waste-ore ratio, providing a fresh impetus to accelerating mine development at the underground mine in a safe manner. Ore production from Stage V commenced during the quarter and is now being accelerated to complete by March 2018. The expansion target of 1.2 million MT mined metal production remains intact and will be achieved as per plan. Main shaft sinking at Rampura Agucha is progressing well and has reached the depth of 920 meters against the final depth of 950 meters. Winder erection is at advanced stage of completion and pre-equipping work of main shaft commenced during the quarter. At Sindesar Khurd mine, preparatory work for head gear erection of main shaft commenced during the quarter while up-ramp development work is progressing well. The construction of new mill of 1.5 mtpa is on track and commissioning is expected by end of the financial year, taking the milling capacity to 4.25 mtpa. Zawar mill debottlenecking along with associated power and infrastructure projects are advancing well and planned to be completed by end of this financial year. Decline development at key mines of Zawar is progressing well. Kayad project is now complete and mine has attained its rated capacity. Dividend In accordance with the recent SEBI guideline, the Board of Directors has approved the Company's Dividend Policy which entails a minimum dividend of 30% of net profits or 5% of networth, whichever is higher. The detailed policy is available on Company website www.hzlindia.com. Considering the Special Golden Jubilee dividend paid in April, no interim dividend is being paid now. Liquidity and investment As on September 30, 2016, the Company's net cash and cash equivalents was Rs. 25,166 crore, out of which Rs. 22,726 crore was invested in mutual funds and Rs. 4,331 crore in bonds. The Company follows a conservative investment policy and invests in high quality debt instruments. Earnings Call on Thursday, October 20, 2016 at 4:30 pm (IST) The Company will hold an earnings conference call on Thursday, October 20, 2016 at 4:30 pm IST, where senior management will discuss the Company's results and performance. The dial in numbers for the call is given below: Primary: +91 22 3960 0762 Secondary: +91 22 6746 5962 For further information, please contact: Ekta Singh Manager Investor Relations [email protected] Tel: +91 800 3099676 Pavan Kaushik Associate Vice President Corporate Communications [email protected] Tel: +91 99288 44499 About Hindustan Zinc Hindustan Zinc (NSE & BSE: HINDZINC) is the one of the largest integrated producers of zinc-lead with a capacity of 1.0 million MT per annum and a leading producer of silver. The Company is headquartered in Udaipur, Rajasthan in India and has zinc-lead mines at Rampura Agucha, Sindesar Khurd, Rajpura Dariba, Zawar and Kayad; primary smelter operations at Chanderiya, Dariba and Debari, all in the state of Rajasthan; and finished product facilities in the state of Uttarakhand. Hindustan Zinc has a world-class resource base with total reserve & resource of 389.9 million MT and average zinc-lead reserve grade of 11.7%. The Company has a track record of consistently growing its reserve & resource base since 2003 and currently has a mine life of over 25 years. The Company is self-sufficient in power with an installed base of 474 MW coal-based captive power plants. Additionally, it has green power capacity of 309 MW including 274 MW of wind power and 35 MW of waste heat power. The Company has an operating workforce of over 17,000 including contract workforce. Hindustan Zinc is a subsidiary of the BSE and NSE listed Vedanta Limited (formerly known as Sesa Sterlite Limited; ADRs listed on the NYSE), a part of London listed Vedanta Resources plc, a global diversified natural resources company. Disclaimer This press release contains "forward-looking statements" that is, statements related to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "should" or "will." Forwardlooking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets including the London Metal Exchange, fluctuations in interest and or exchange rates and metal prices; from future integration of acquired businesses; and from numerous other matters of national, regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements. For further information, please contact: Communications Roma Balwani President Group Communications, Sustainability& CSR Tel: +91 22 6646 1000 [email protected] Investor Relations Ashwin Bajaj Director Investor Relations Vishesh Pachnanda Manager Investor Relations Sunila Martis Manager Investor Relations Tel: +91 22 6646 1531 [email protected] About Vedanta Limited (Formerly SesaSterlite Ltd.) Vedanta Limited is a diversified natural resources company, whose business primarily involves producing oil & gas, zinc - lead - silver, copper, iron ore, aluminium and commercial power. The company has a presence across India, South Africa, Namibia, Australia and Ireland. Vedanta Limited is the Indian subsidiary of Vedanta Resources Plc, a London-listed company. Governance and Sustainable Development are at the core of Vedanta's strategy, with a strong focus on health, safety and environment and on enhancing the lives of local communities. The company is conferred with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) 'Sustainable Plus Platinum label', ranking among the top 10 most sustainable companies in India. To access the Vedanta Sustainable Development Report 2016, please visit http://sustainabledevelopment.vedantaresources.com/content/dam/vedanta/corporate/documents/Otherdocuments/SDreport2015-16/Vedanta%20SDR%20FY%2015-16.pdf Vedanta Limited is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange in India and has ADRs listed on the New York Stock Exchange. For more information please visit www.vedantalimited.com Vedanta Limited (Formerly known as SesaSterlite Limited) Vedanta, 75, Nehru Road, Vile Parle (East), Mumbai - 400 099 www.vedantalimited.com Registered Office: SesaGhor, 20 EDC Complex, Patto, Panaji (Goa) - 403 001 CIN: L13209GA1965PLC000044 Disclaimer This press release contains "forward-looking statements" that is, statements related to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "should" or "will." Forwardlooking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets including the London Metal Exchange, fluctuations in interest and or exchange rates and metal prices; from future integration of acquired businesses; and from numerous other matters of national, regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different that those expressed in our forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150422/740375 SOURCE Vedanta Limited Related Links http://www.vedantalimited.com BROOKLYN, N.Y., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Experiments by researchers at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering and NYU Shanghai have successfully cracked the veil of anonymity in Yik Yak, an ostensibly anonymous social media application. Yik Yak thrives on anonymity. Whether it's praise for a local restaurant or, in a darker use of the application, a complaint or bullying comment about teachers or peers, Yik Yak users trust that their words are untraceable. Even Yik Yak's new policy requiring user pseudonyms preserves anonymity. Yik Yak is particularly popular on college campuses and has drawn criticism as a tool for harassment. The app has been downloaded more than a million times on Android mobile devices alone. Keith Ross, the Leonard J. Shustek Distinguished Professor of Computer Science at NYU Tandon and Dean of Engineering and Computer Science at NYU Shanghai, will present the paper, You Can Yak but You Can't Hide: Localizing Anonymous Social Network Users, at the ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) Internet Measurements Conference in Santa Monica, California, this November. Ross, his students, and colleagues from East China Normal University tested Yik Yak's susceptibility to localization attacks, reasoning that if it is possible to locate the geographical origin of a comment, or "yak," as it is commonly known, it may be possible to identify the person who posted it. Experiments showed that yaks can, in fact, be localized through a fairly simple machine learning algorithm that an undergraduate computer science student could program and run in a matter of hours. Ross and his collaborators localized yaks to within 300 feet and in one experiment identified the college dormitories from which yaks originated with 100 percent accuracy. "The integrity of user anonymity is central to Yik Yak and similar anonymous social media apps, and this research shows that it's possible for a third party to compromise it," Ross said. "At this stage, we can narrow down a location to a building, which when combined with other side information could potentially de-anonymize the author of any given yak." Ross and his team, which includes East China Normal University Professor Haifeng Qian and doctoral student Minhui Xue, and NYU Shanghai undergraduates Cameron Ballard, Kelvin Liu, Carson Nemelka, and Yanqiu Wu, conducted their experiments from Shanghai. They deployed Yik Yak on two U.S. college campuses using a common technique to trick the GPS in a smartphone into believing it was on those campuses. This was important because a yak appears only on smartphones in the vicinity of where the yak is sent. The researchers designed an automated system to "place" themselves (through GPS coordinates) at many different locations in and around the campuses and record which yaks were available at each location. The system then used machine learning to process the recorded data to predict where each of the yaks was posted. Ross explained that college students often post disparaging yaks about professors or fellow students. "It wouldn't be difficult for a professor to figure out the dorm from which a derogatory yak was posted, then couple this information with student housing information to de-anonymize the yak, and that's concerning," he said. The researchers note that their experiments used the same public information collected by other users of Yik Yak, and that they attempted to analyze only the location of messages generated by members of the research team. No outside participants were involved. Ross and his colleague informed Yik Yak about the potential for localization attacks and recommended several potential privacy enhancements. Among them is improving localization authentication for users, which would make it easier to identify and block users employing forged GPS coordinates. Another strategy would be for Yik Yak to always display the exact same set of messages no matter where the app is being used on a campus. About the NYU Tandon School of Engineering The NYU Tandon School of Engineering dates to 1854, when the New York University School of Civil Engineering and Architecture as well as the Brooklyn Collegiate and Polytechnic Institute (widely known as Brooklyn Poly) were founded. Their successor institutions merged in January 2014 to create a comprehensive school of education and research in engineering and applied sciences, rooted in a tradition of invention, and entrepreneurship and dedicated to furthering technology in service to society. In addition to its main location in Brooklyn, NYU Tandon collaborates with other schools within the country's largest private research university and is closely connected to engineering programs in NYU Abu Dhabi and NYU Shanghai. It operates business incubators in downtown Manhattan and Brooklyn and an award-winning online graduate program. For more information, visit http://engineering.nyu.edu. facebook.com/nyutandon @nyupoly Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151013/276541LOGO SOURCE NYU Tandon School of Engineering Related Links http://engineering.nyu.edu Since the program's 2004 launch, FMA Live! has traveled nearly 110,000 miles to more than 1,200 schools and performed for 460,000 students in 48 contiguous U.S. states, as well as in Mexico and Canada. The one-of-a-kind show incorporates hip-hop music, dancers, student volunteers, and on-stage, interactive science experiments to demonstrate how physics is part of everyday life. "The astronauts of 2025 are sitting in our middle schools today," said Donald James, NASA's associate administrator for Education. "There is no better time to get students excited about STEM topics. Alongside Honeywell, we have created a program that provides students with an early look into the career possibilities that exist in these fields." Each performance focuses on Newton's law of universal gravitation and three laws of motion. FMA Live! is named after Newton's second law of motion [Force equals Mass times Acceleration] and uses music videos and interactive scientific demonstrations to teach and inspire students to pursue STEM careers. "In each school we visit during the tour, we bring to life the importance of subjects like science and math and encourage students to explore careers that will ultimately change the world we live in," said Mike Bennett, president, Honeywell Hometown Solutions. "The popularity of FMA Live! is a testament to its ability to both entertain and inspire students." The FMA Live! Forces in Motion experience also features an online "Teachers' Lounge" that includes National Science Standards-based teaching resources including downloadable streaming videos, music from the show, and a comprehensive educational guide with lesson plans. This digital tool maintains post-show momentum and can be incorporated into classroom learning objectives throughout the school year. To learn more visit FMALive.com. About FMA Live! Using live actors, hip-hop songs, music videos, interactive scientific demonstrations and video interviews with scientists and engineers from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the show teaches Newton's Three Laws of Motion and Universal Law of Gravity. Honeywell and NASA created FMA Live! in 2004 to inspire middle school students to explore STEM concepts and careers. The program addresses Forces and Motion learning objectives outlined by the Next Generation Science Education Standards for students in grades 5-8. Through Honeywell Hometown Solutions, the Company has a number of award-winning programs focused on inspiring students at all grade levels to embrace STEM education. The Company chose physics for FMA Live! Forces in Motion because studies have shown that the middle school years offer the best window of opportunity to get students interested in STEM careers. Supporting Resources About Honeywell Hometown Solutions FMA Live! Forces in Motion is part of Honeywell Hometown Solutions, the Company's corporate citizenship initiative, which focuses on five areas of vital importance: Science & Math Education, Family Safety & Security, Housing & Shelter, Habitat & Conservation, and Humanitarian Relief. Together with leading public and non-profit institutions, Honeywell has developed powerful programs to address these needs in the communities it serves. For more information, please visit http://citizenship.honeywell.com/. About Honeywell Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes, and industry; turbochargers; and performance materials. For more news and information about Honeywell, please visit www.honeywellnow.com. Honeywell and the Honeywell logo are the exclusive properties of Honeywell, are registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and may be registered or pending registration in other countries. All other Honeywell product names, technology names, trademarks, service marks, and logos may be registered or pending registration in the U.S. or in other countries. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Copyright 2015 Honeywell. Media Contact: Cecilia Tejeda (973) 455-3450 [email protected] Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430034 SOURCE Honeywell Related Links http://www.honeywell.com NEW YORK, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Horizon Media, the largest and fastest growing privately held media services agency in the world, is pleased to announce that its fully transparent programmatic trading desk, HX, has partnered with AD/FIN, an independent programmatic intelligence company, to further enhance accountability in programmatic media trading. The partnership makes Horizon Media's HX the first major programmatic trading desk to actively embrace independent, 3rd party verification of its programmatic transactions at the impression level, providing the agency's clients with an unprecedented level of transparency on digital media activations processed through HX. The agency will encourage clients to seek independent verification and to engage AD/FIN for programmatic price and fee transparency services. This move is part of HX's commitment to delivering on its Programmatic Advertiser's Bill of Rights, an articulation of 10 core principles that HX abides by for all campaigns. These principles include: having an understanding of tech and service charges, viewing marketplace CPMs exactly as they appear in auction data, and inventory transparency with CPMs by site, among others. With AD/FIN's ability to ingest and process bid level impression data, these analyses and more can be independently verified and delivered consistently to advertisers regardless of the DSPs and data partners being deployed by HX. With AD/FIN, HX can truly deliver on its Programmatic Bill of Rights with accountability. "We compete everyday with agencies and trading desks that claim transparency, but few, if any, can prove it. At Horizon, we stand by our commitment to accountability and see tools like AD/FIN as key to practicing what we preach," said Adam Heimlich, Senior Vice President, Managing Director, Programmatic of HX at Horizon Media. "It's exciting to have Horizon take this progressive position in the industry, giving its clients access to a level of granularity and accuracy previously unseen in programmatic buying," said Andrew Altersohn, Chief Executive Officer at AD/FIN. "For programmatic to overcome its 'black box' image, it needs more players, like Horizon's HX, committed to tangible delivery of transparency and accountability." About AD/FIN AD/FIN is an independent market intelligence company, which aims to be the definitive source for programmatic media trading intelligence and integrity. For more information, please visit www.adfin.com. About Horizon Media Horizon Media, Inc. is the largest and fastest growing privately held media services agency in the world. The company was founded in 1989, is headquartered in New York with a second full-service office in Los Angeles. Horizon Media was chosen as 2011 Independent Media Agency of the Year by Mediapost, 2010 U.S. Media Agency of the Year by Adweek, Brandweek, and Mediaweek as well as by Ad Age and as one of the world's ten most innovative marketing and advertising companies by Fast Company in 2011. In 2012, Bill Koenigsberg, President, CEO and Founder, was honored by Advertising Age as Industry Executive of the Year. Most recently, in 2014, Bill Koenigsberg was named 4As Chair of the Board and is the first person from a media agency to hold this prestigious position in the 100-year history of the 4As, the marketing industry's leading trade association. The company's mission is "To create the most meaningful brand connections within the lives of people everywhere." By delivering on this mission through a holistic approach to brand marketing, Horizon Media has become one of the largest and fastest-growing media agencies in the industry, with estimated billings of over $6.3 billion and over 1,200 employees. For more information, please visit horizonmedia.com. Contact Horizon Media Kaya Lobaczewski (212) 220-2102 [email protected] AdFin Andrew Altersohn (917) 902-0797 [email protected] SOURCE Horizon Media, Inc. Related Links http://www.horizonmedia.com While government funding helps schools and Head Start centers rebuild and reopen to children quickly after disasters, no such support is available to for-profit child care centers, which account for the majority of child care centers in America. With the exception of large chains, for-profit centers typically run on tight margins, are often underinsured and unable to qualify for small business loans due to poor credit or lack of collateral. Even when independently-run centers are properly insured, the claims process can take many months, leaving them unable to reopen quickly to serve children in disaster-affected communities. As it has after many other recent U.S. disasters, Save the Children is working to close the child care recovery gap in North and South Carolina by identifying damaged child care centers that serve the most marginalized families, and helping them recover and reopen. "The stress and chaos that follows a disaster like these floods puts enormous emotional strains on young children, and, if not alleviated, puts their continued development at risk," Corwin said. "The need for safe, nurturing care and a daily routine has never been greater for many children in the Carolinas right now. At the same time, families need to rebuild and get back to work to support their families. They need safe, dependable child care to do that." Challenges to post-disaster child care recovery has strained families in many recent U.S. disasters, including the Louisiana flooding this summer that forced 86 child care centers serving 6,000 children to close, according to Child Care Aware of America. Save the Children has raised funds to help 22 of those Baton-Rouge-area centers replace lost learning materials, equipment and furniture that are essential to safe, quality care. After Hurricane Sandy, 697 child care providers had to close for one to eight months, according to Child Care Aware. With the generous support of donors, Save the Children helped more than 100 New York and New Jersey child care centers reopen. In its Hurricane Matthew response in the Carolinas, Save the Children is targeting hard-hit communities with high poverty rates, including in Robeson County, North Carolina and Dillon and Florence counties in South Carolina. The organization is raising funds to support the reopening of at least 30 child care centers. Save the Children also responded to last year's floods in South Carolina, where it also serves nearly 5,000 children through its long-term early education and literacy programs. To support Save the Children's response to Hurricane Matthew both domestically and in Haiti please visit: www.SavetheChildren.org/Matthew. Save the Children gives children in the United States and around the world a healthy start, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We invest in childhood every day, in times of crisis and for our future. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430334 SOURCE Save the Children Related Links http://www.savethechildren.org "ARK Performance knows the Hyundai brand almost as well as our own," said Kevin Bentley, developer of the ARK Elantra Concept. "We strive to leverage the superb product development of Hyundai engineers, building upon their expertise while offering something really special to enthusiasts. The ARK Road Racer Elantra Concept offers the specific model enhancements that our customers have come to expect from ARK." Key modifications to the ARK Road Racer Elantra Concept include: Powertrain Custom ARK turbo kit using Xcargot XT26 turbocharger ARK downpipe and GRiP exhaust system Turbosmart blow-off valve and wastegate Suspension ARK DT-P coil-over system ARK front strut tower bar ARK front and rear performance anti-roll bars ARK front big brake kit Nitto Tire NT05 summer tires Exterior ARK Solus wide body kit ARK lightweight forged wheels Fiere Customs full vinyl wrap APR Performance front splitter Interior Custom diamond-stitched interior Custom sport steering wheel by ARK HYUNDAI MOTOR AMERICA Hyundai Motor America, headquartered in Fountain Valley, Calif., is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Co. of Korea. Hyundai vehicles are distributed throughout the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through more than 830 dealerships nationwide. All Hyundai vehicles sold in the U.S. are covered by the Hyundai Assurance program, which includes the 5-year/60,000-mile fully transferable new vehicle limited warranty, Hyundai's 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty and five years of complimentary Roadside Assistance. Hyundai Blue Link Connected Care provides owners of Hyundai models equipped with the Blue Link telematics system with proactive safety and car care services complimentary for one year with enrollment. These services include Automatic Collision Notification, Enhanced Roadside Assistance, Vehicle Diagnostic Alert, Monthly Vehicle Health Report and in-vehicle service scheduling. For more details on Hyundai Assurance, please visit www.HyundaiAssurance.com Please visit our media website at www.hyundainews.com and our blog at www.hyundailikesunday.com Hyundai Motor America on Twitter | YouTube | Facebook Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161013/428602 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20131002/LA90771LOGO-b SOURCE Hyundai Motor America Related Links http://www.hyundainews.com (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140310/673848 ) Electric vehicles are creating more and more of their own electricity from daylight, wind and other sources including regeneration. Regeneration converts wasted heat and movement in the vehicle into electricity, as with a turbine in the exhaust. More elegantly, regeneration prevents wasted heat and movement in the first place as with regenerative suspension giving a better ride and longer range and flywheels and reversing motors replacing burning brake disks. Shock absorbers can create electricity that controls them to give a smoother ride. This new IDTechEx Research report explains and forecasts the technologies involved in this newly key enabling technology. The report is supported by detailed technological roadmaps and forecasts of electric vehicles in 46 categories embracing on-road and off-road, on-water and underwater, manned and unmanned aircraft. When you look at this big picture, the potential for both technology and vehicle suppliers is far greater than it initially appears to be. This is the first report to look at all the technologies and all of the vehicles that will adopt them. The new energy harvesting technologies explained in the report include triboelectrics, thermal metamaterials, affordable GaAs photovoltaics and dielectric elastomer nanogenerators. We also reveal the significance of breakthroughs by little known vehicle and material companies such as Hanergy, Inergy, Sunnyclist, Sion, Nanowinn, SBL and others as we interview them from Greece to China, Australia to Canada and the UK. EH/R will be as important and sometimes more important than motors, batteries and power electronics: fabulous opportunities await vehicle, parts and material manufacturers unplugging into this future. Electric Vehicle Energy Harvesting/ Regeneration 2017-2037 is available for order on the IDTechEx website at http://www.IDTechEx.com/ehforev . Learn more about IDTechEx here. IDTechEx provides companies with tools that can assist them in making essential strategic decisions in emerging technologies. IDTechEx offers research reports, subscriptions, consultancy, introductory services and events. Contact: Alison Lewis Marketing Manager, Reports [email protected] http://www.IDTechEx.com twitter.com/IDTechEx UK: +44-(0)1223-810290 SOURCE IDTechEx SAN JOSE, Costa Rica, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Revealing figures from a detailed analysis of studies paint a panoramic picture of a surging global trade in illicit cigarettes funding groups as varied as Hezbollah and Hamas to the Central American cartel of Los Zetas. The study titled "From Ant Smuggling to an Elephant in the Market" was conducted by CID Gallup for the Costa Rican-American Chamber of Commerce, an organization that continues to support entities involved in fighting the trade of illicit cigarettes as it threatens economies, institutions the and the security of Central American countries. Due to the complexity and alarming growth of the illicit trade in cigarettes, AmCham urges more inter-governmental efforts and public-private alliances to identify approaches leading to the development of a holistic strategy. Solutions must include a review of current regulations to fight smuggling, the use of technology as an ally of security forces, raising the penalties for those committing this crime, allocation of more financial and human resources to fight this activity, and awareness campaigns. The scope of the problem to Central American economies is significant with $113.6 million USD lost due to regional taxes evaded by criminal networks. Costa Rica lost an estimated $26 million USD with Panama losing an estimated $41.0 million USD1. Another key finding of the study was further confirmation that the money from the illicit trade of cigarettes, due to its high profitability, is used to fund regional crime organizations, such as "Maras" in El Salvador and drug cartels such as Zetas and Xinaloa in Belize, which have become protagonists in trafficking and distribution of this product. The Department of State of the United States of America clearly defined the illicit trade in tobacco as a threat to national security and ratified the link existing between terrorism and illicit trade of cigarettes, stating that this illegal activity constitutes a National Threat. In Central America, consumption of illicit cigarettes varies with Panama has the highest rate of illicit incidence of non-domestic brands, 67%, after the current law regulating trade of this product came into force. Panama is followed by El Salvador with 31%, Guatemala with 21%, Honduras with 20%, Costa Rica with 16%, and Nicaragua with 5%2. Dennis Whitelaw, AmCham President said, "It is highly important to us, as a multi sector Chamber, to have on hand this type of information that shows a full view of the situation because, through this, we can generate much better recommendations and provide more comprehensive support to the State in its fight to prevent the development and entry of these products on our society", said Whitelaw. Esteban Alvarez, CID Gallup Manager, commented, "We are aware that the illicit trade of cigarettes is a phenomenon that knows no borders; thus, in recent years, this type of trade has become one of the main sources to fund criminal organizations in Central America. It is essential to review the current regulations to fight smuggling, as well as to raise awareness among the population. Additionally, it is necessary to allocate more resources and make a better use of them, especially of technological ones" mentioned Alvarez. International expert Emanuele Ottolenghi, member of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies of Washington, D.C., said, "Drug trafficking, trade-based money laundering, contraband and terror financing in Latin America have merged as a single threat: drug cartels, smugglers, counterfeiters, insurgent groups, and terrorist organizations have coalesced, sometimes against local authorities and sometimes with their active complicity and support, for their mutual benefit. The result is a toxic mix that is undermining society itself in Latin America while posing a threat to the United States and Europe as well." Efforts made by AmCham Costa Rica along with the Finance Ministry to develop a web-app involving the population in the process of reporting illicit trade through mercadoilegal.com were highlighted as an example of Private-Public sectors involved in the fight of illicit trade. Also, a replica of this web-app operates in El Salvador through radarilegal.com and in Guatemala through comercioilegal.gt Just like the other efforts made in this field, this study is part of the actions that are led by AmCham to help authorities obtain more tools to fight the different forms of illegal trade, such as counterfeit, piracy and under invoicing, which attempt against public safety, health and national economy. For further information and to confirm attendance at the press conference where this study will be discussed in more depth, please contact: Tatiana Fernandez B. | Journalist Interamericana de Comunicacion [email protected] 8828-9396 | 2240-2333 1 Frost Study-KPMG, 2015. 2 Frost Study-KPMG, 2015. SOURCE Costa Rican-American Chamber of Commerce NEW ORLEANS, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Independent community pharmacies are a critical prescription drug access point for patients, particularly in underserved areas, according to the 2016 NCPA Digest, sponsored by Cardinal Health, released at the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) Annual Convention. The NCPA Digest also documents how independent community pharmacies promote medication adherence, encourage use of lower-cost generic drugs and support local community organizations. "Independent community pharmacies continue to be a trusted source for prescription medication and expert counseling, according to the newest NCPA Digest," said NCPA CEO B. Douglas Hoey, RPh, MBA. "In towns and cities across America, independent community pharmacies treat patients like family, adapt to further promote safe and effective medication use and are active local philanthropists." According to Steve Lawrence, senior vice president of Retail Independent Sales at Cardinal Health, nearly 70 percent of all community pharmacy owners donated to at least five local organizations in 2015. Plus, in addition to filling prescriptions, 81 percent of pharmacists offer medication therapy management; 67 percent provide immunizations; 61 percent furnish durable medical goods and 57 percent perform blood pressure monitoring. "As we continue to move toward value-based care, pharmacists become an increasingly important extension of patients' wellness," said Lawrence. "And health care payers are looking to reduce the cost of care, evaluate sites of care and measure health outcomes. The relationship the pharmacist has with the patient and caregiver becomes increasingly important." "While independent community pharmacies remain a significant part of the retail pharmacy marketplace, both decreasing prescription volume and declining prescription drug reimbursement are warning signs to pharmacy owners," Hoey added. "To weather these and other trends, community pharmacy owners should consider any and all options to diversify their revenue while continuing to focus on evaluating the economics of third party reimbursements. To help, NCPA has identified a range of options and featured them online." Highlights from the NCPA Digest covering the 2015 independent community pharmacy marketplace include: There are an estimated 22,160 independent community pharmacies, including single-store pharmacies, family-run regional chain pharmacies and individually owned and operated franchisees. In the previous year there were 22,478. Eighty-two percent of independent community pharmacies serve population areas of 50,000 or less. More than 250,000 individuals are employed on a full or part-time basis by these pharmacies, bolstering state and local economies and tax revenue. Prescription volume decreased from 61,568 prescriptions annually to 60,493, likely due in part to 90-day refill requirements, economically coerced use of PBM-owned mail order pharmacies, or exclusionary pharmacy network arrangements. Generic drugs comprised 82 percent of all prescriptions dispensed. Plus 95 percent of the time community pharmacists' generic product recommendations are accepted by doctors. Such pharmacist-physician consultations occurred on average 9.7 times each day. About NCPA The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) represents the interests of America's community pharmacists, including the owners of more than 22,000 independent community pharmacies. Together they represent an $81.5 billion health care marketplace and employ more than 250,000 individuals on a full or part-time basis. To learn more, go to www.ncpanet.org, visit facebook.com/commpharmacy, or follow NCPA on Twitter @Commpharmacy. About Cardinal Health Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE: CAH), is a global integrated healthcare services and products company, providing customized solutions for hospital systems, pharmacies, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories and physician offices worldwide. The company provides clinically proven medical products and pharmaceuticals and cost-effective solutions that enhance supply chain efficiency from hospital to home. Cardinal Health connects patients, providers, payers, pharmacists and manufacturers for integrated care coordination and better patient management. Backed by nearly 100 years of experience, with more than 37,000 employees in nearly 60 countries, Cardinal Health ranks among the top 25 on the Fortune 500. For more information, visit cardinalhealth.com, follow @CardinalHealth on Twitter and connect on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/ company/cardinal-health. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100106/DC33253LOGO SOURCE National Community Pharmacists Association Related Links http://www.ncpanet.org ELLICOTT CITY, Md., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Investment Program Association (IPA) is proud to honor Mark Goldberg, Chairman of Carey Financial, LLC and President of Investment Management of W. P. Carey Inc., with its Lifetime Achievement Award. The award was presented at the IPAVision 2016 Conference with more than 450 Direct Investments industry leaders in attendance. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430300 "Mark Goldberg has been a true leader and passionate advocate for the Direct Investments industry, and has demonstrated a tireless commitment to the IPA over a period of decades," commented Tony Chereso, President and CEO of the IPA. "He has never wavered in bringing all parties together particularly our regulatory and legislative leaders in an effort to strengthen Direct Investment products on behalf of the investing public. It is truly an honor to recognize Mark for his ongoing contributions and leadership." "I am honored to receive the IPA Lifetime Achievement Award," said Mr. Goldberg. "What makes this honor particularly special is that the inaugural award was given to W. P. Carey Founder Wm. Polk Carey. I think Bill Carey always said it best. You can do good while doing well, and when you give back to an industry that has given you so much, there is nothing more rewarding. I believe this is exactly what we do at the IPA where we have developed something that is truly unique in the democratization of investing. Because we care, we continue to raise the standards for the direct investments industry through our leadership, advocacy and education." Mr. Goldberg joined the IPA Board of Directors in 2010 and in 2014 was named Chairman. In January 2015, he assumed the role of IPA's Chair Emeritus. Prior to his executive leadership positions at Carey Financial and W. P. Carey, Mr. Goldberg was President and Chief Executive Officer of Royal Alliance Associates, Inc., an independent broker-dealer and member of one of the nation's largest networks of independent Financial Advisors. Before his successful tenure at Royal Alliance, Mr. Goldberg was Executive Vice President of SunAmerica Financial Network and served as President of SunAmerica's securities affiliate in Tokyo. Mr. Goldberg is a member of the Board of Directors of St. Mary's Healthcare System for Children and serves on its Executive Committee. He is a member of the Advisory Board for Simply Money, a Registered Investment Advisor and media company. Outstanding Service Award Winners The IPA also honored Rosemarie A. Thurston, Partner at Alston & Bird LLP, and Todd Lockwood, Senior Vice President of Operations and Client Services at Cole Capital, with its Outstanding Service Award. Ms. Thurston currently serves on the IPA Board of Directors and has previously served as the Chair of the IPA Legal & Regulatory Committee. For nearly a decade she has been actively engaged, providing key insights on a wide range of legal and regulatory issues. Mr. Lockwood previously has served as Chair of the IPA Operations Committee. He has been a leader on the E-Signature Consortium, working with NASAA on its e-signature and electronic documents guidelines. "The strength of the IPA comes directly from the engagement and volunteerism of its members, who are the key drivers of our association," commented Tony Chereso. "Rosemarie and Todd are shining examples of members who give their time and talent to continuously move our industry forward. We are honored to present them with our Outstanding Service Award." About The Investment Program Association The Investment Program Association (IPA) was formed in 1985 to provide effective national leadership for the direct investment industry. The IPA supports individual investor access to a variety of asset classes not correlated to the traded markets and historically available only to institutional investors. These include public non-listed REITs (NL REITs), business development companies (BDCs), energy and equipment leasing programs, and private equity offerings. For over 30 years the IPA has successfully championed the growth and improvement of such products, which have increased in popularity with financial professionals and investors alike. Direct investments are held in the accounts of nearly 3 million individual investors, and the IPA's member companies operate or have properties in all 50 states. Today these investment products function as a critical component of effectively diversified investment portfolios and serve an essential capital formation function for the US economy. The mission of the IPA is advocating direct investments through education. Access the wealth of IPA educational materials here, or visit the IPA online for more information about becoming a member. To stay up-to-date with IPA news, follow @IPADirectInvest on Twitter. MEDIA CONTACT: Matt Tramel Chief Communications Officer Investment Program Association 212.812.9799 x223 Email SOURCE Investment Program Association (IPA) Related Links http://www.ipa.com SEATTLE, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Israels & Neuman, PLC announces that it has filed a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration claim against First Financial Equity Corp. of Scottsdale, Arizona on behalf of an aggrieved investor. The claim was filed in Phoenix, Arizona. The claim alleges that the investor was in contact with one of First Financial Equity Corp.'s former advisors, Robert J. Kerrigan, Sr., who allegedly recommended that they invest in a company called TMAC (also known as "The Materials Acquisition Company"). The investment in TMAC was purported to be an investment in "ancient slag," whereby the slag could be processed to obtain minerals and precious metals. The claim further alleges that Kerrigan represented that the TMAC investment was safe and provided for complete liquidity within six to twelve months. The TMAC investment, however, has failed to pay any distributions and resulted in substantial losses to investor principal. First Financial Equity Corp. has been added to the claim based upon allegations that it failed to adequately supervise the conduct of Kerrigan. The claim also alleges that Kerrigan recommended another investment in a company called USA Barcelona Realty; however, the claim does not allege that the USA Barcelona investment was purchased by the investor in question. FINRA barred Kerrigan from the securities industry in May 2016, for failing to respond to a FINRA investigation allegedly related to his involvement in selling investments in USA Barcelona Realty. Israels & Neuman, PLC is a securities arbitration and investment fraud law firm with offices in Denver and Seattle. Its securities fraud attorneys litigate securities arbitration cases in every state, including Arizona. Its attorneys have represented over 1,000 investors in cases to recover investment losses due to the actions of their advisor or brokerage firm. All of the firm's arbitration cases are taken on a contingent fee basis, meaning you do not pay unless money is recovered for you. If you have lost money investing in TMAC or USA Barcelona Realty, Israels & Neuman encourages you to contact our offices for a free, no obligation, review of your case. Our attorneys will personally discuss all of your rights as an investor and the remedies you have related to your losses. For more information, please call 720-599-3505, or 206-795-5798, or visit www.israelsneuman.com. SOURCE Israels & Neuman, PLC Related Links http://www.israelsneuman.com HARRISBURG, Pa., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Legendary investor Jack Bogle, founder of the Vanguard Group, will be joining a public panel discussion at the WHYY studios in Philadelphia on October 26 focusing on how Baby Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials can prepare for retirement. The panel discussion is part of a preview screening of "When I'm 65," a documentary exploring the psychology, sociology, and future of retirement. "When I'm 65" will be aired by Greater Philadelphia public television station WHYY on Sunday, November 13, at 7:00 PM. Pennsylvania Secretary of Banking and Securities Robin L. Wiessmann will deliver opening remarks and WHYY's Mark Eichmann will moderate the discussion of a distinguished panel: Jack Bogle , The Vanguard Group , The Vanguard Group Dr. Andrew Hill , Economic Education Advisor, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia , Economic Education Advisor, Federal Reserve Bank of Cindy Hounsell , President, Women's Institute for Secure Retirement (WISER) , President, Women's Institute for Secure Retirement (WISER) Dr. Joseph Friedman , Professor of Economics, Temple University "With 45 percent of Americans having nothing saved for retirement, our country is facing a serious financial challenge in the coming decades," said Wiessmann. "In Pennsylvania, we are taking proactive steps to meet this challenge head-on. With the production of 'When I'm 65,' we are helping provide information and tools so that our citizens can better plan how to fund their retirements." The town hall is free and will be held at WHYY's studios, 150 North Street in Philadelphia on October 26 at 6:00 PM. No tickets are needed; however advance registration is required. Visit www.whyy.org/events. "When I'm 65" is made possible with support from Detroit Public Television, the Investor Protection Trust, the Investor Protection Institute, and the Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities. For more information about "When I'm 65," visit www.wi65.org. Members of the public with questions about financial services or products can call the Department of Banking and Securities at 1-800-PA-BANKS (or 1-800-600-0007). To learn more about retirement and other financial subjects, visit PA Investor Education on Facebook and @PAFinancialReg on Twitter. MEDIA CONTACTS: Ed Novak (Banking and Securities) 717-783-4721 Tory Harris (WHYY) 215-351-1243 SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities Jackie Evancho dazzled American television audiences at age ten gaining global recognition with her stunning debut on NBC's America's Got Talent. Since then, she has released a string of platinum and gold albums, with sales of over 2.5 million in the U.S., acted in Robert Redford's The Company You Keep alongside Susan Sarandon and performed for President and Mrs. Obama at the National Christmas Tree Lighting in Washington D.C. Her broad successes lead Billboard Magazine to include Jackie on their list of "music movers-and-shakers under the age of 21" in 2011 and again in 2012. DENVER, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- To recognize the millions of hardworking professionals in the U.S. and around the globe who keep workplaces clean and safe, Karcher and the Building Services Contractors Association International (BSCAI) are celebrating October 19 as Thank Your Cleaner Day. There are more than 2.3 million janitor and building cleaner jobs in the U.S., according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. These trained professionals dutifully support office buildings, factories, schools, healthcare facilities, public buildings and other workplaces. Notable figures and celebrities who got their start and work ethic as professional cleaners. Karcher, the world's leading provider of cleaning technology, has teamed up with partners around the world to recognize professional cleaners. Thank Your Cleaner Day was first celebrated in 2015 by Karcher New Zealand in partnership with the Building Services Contractors of New Zealand (BSCNZ). In the U.S., Karcher North America is teaming up with BSCAI, a worldwide network of more than 2,000 member companies that provide cleaning, facility maintenance, security, landscaping and other related building services, to encourage businesses and employees to express their appreciation of their own onsite cleaning staff. BSCAI member companies will be personally thanking their own cleaning professionals for their significant contribution to the overall health and wellbeing of communities nationwide. "Sick and injured employees cost businesses billions of dollars a year in health costs and lost productivity," said Chris Mundschenk, CEO of BSCAI. "Our industry's dedicated cleaners play a key role in combatting the spread of germs and illness while minimizing interruption to employees." With more than 11,500 employees across 60 countries, Karcher is participating in Thank Your Cleaner Day and working with partners like BSCAI to call on individuals to express their appreciation to cleaners. "Many of the individuals who keep our workplaces clean and safe do so in the evenings and on weekends, and thus do not cross paths with those who benefit," said Hannes Saeubert, Karcher North America CEO. "Thank Your Cleaner Day was established to encourage ourselves and others to recognize the dedicated professionals we depend on and the valuable service they provide." Office managers and employees alike are encouraged to share the following materials, available on ThankYourCleanerDay.com, in their workplace and on social media with #thankyourcleanerday to help raise awareness of the value workplace cleaners provide and encourage others to express their gratitude: Did You Know that there are four times as many bacteria on pens than on toilet seats? Share this infographic showing the germs found on common workplace objects and surfaces. Before They Were Stars: From the Pope to Mariah Carey , learn of the notable figures and celebrities who got their start and work ethic as professional cleaners. , learn of the notable figures and celebrities who got their start and work ethic as professional cleaners. A Day Without: Watch and share this video reminding us what our workplace may look like without the benefit of professional cleaners. Choreography of Cleaning: Learn how to achieve a clean environment through organization and hard work. Portrait of a Cleaner: Hear how one outstanding cleaning professional in Texas leads a team with the mantra, "show up every day, do a good job and be willing to help one another." About Karcher North America Karcher North America is one of the largest subsidiaries of Alfred Karcher, GmbH & CO. In North America, Karcher produces and distributes products and services under the brands Karcher, Windsor Karcher Group, Prochem Karcher Group, Landa Karcher Group, Hotsy, Water Maze, Graco, Spraymart, Cuda and Shark. The company's solutions serve customers' cleaning needs in an economical and environmentally-friendly manner. Visit www.karcher.com/us for more information. About BSCAI For more than 50 years, the Building Service Contractors Association International (BSCAI) has been the Business Resource for Contractors. BSCAI represents a worldwide network of companies from across the United States and throughout the world that provide cleaning, facility maintenance, security, landscaping and other related services to building owners and managers. The association provides contractor-specific educational programs, individual certifications, publications, a members-only purchasing program, seminars, industry data and research and networking opportunities, all developed specifically for leaders in the building service industry. For more information, please visit www.bscai.org. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430217-INFO Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430218LOGO SOURCE Karcher North America Related Links http://www.karcher.com/us ROSWELL, Ga., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Kimberly-Clark Professional is harnessing the machine-to-machine connectivity of the Internet of Things to bring distribution sales professionals and their customers a smart restroom management system called Onvation Technology. The system provides up-to-the-minute monitoring of restroom conditions from any device or location, 24 hours a day. It will be introduced at ISSA/INTERCLEAN North America 2016, October 25-28, via a 360 virtual reality experience. "Buildings today are smarter than ever with sensors and software managing everything from lighting and security to HVAC systems and more," said Terry Sanchez, Marketing and Sales leader, Kimberly-Clark Professional, North America. "However, the restroom, which is one of the top three areas of tenant complaints, has been largely overlooked until now." The Onvation Difference Onvation Technology is a patent-protected system that delivers real-time data and alerts so building managers can identify and fix restroom problems before they become complaints. It can help: Cut costs and expenses Reduce waste and boost sustainability Optimize labor Enhance tenant satisfaction In addition to signaling whether dispensers are empty or full, Onvation Technology provides actionable data, analytics and insights that can help building managers better manage their businesses by gaining control of the restroom. 360 Virtual Reality Experience ISSA/INTERCLEAN attendees will be able to experience Onvation Technology first-hand at the Kimberly-Clark Booth, 2849. "Through virtual reality goggles, a 360 video and a unique environment within the booth, they will be able to see exactly how this smart restroom management system works," Sanchez added. Onvation Technology delivers and relays information through a web-based dashboard that's accessible 24/7. Here's how it works: Connected sensors are embedded into proprietary towel, tissue, soap dispensers and door counters. Real-time data is sent to the cloud over a secure network. Automatic text messages alert building managers to product and battery levels, usage, jams and overall traffic. Remote confirmation is delivered when an issue has been resolved. The system enables building managers to reallocate resources to enhance productivity. "Instead of treating all restrooms equally, managers can assign staff to the areas that actually need service," Sanchez said. The system also can be used to make informed decisions about budgeting, planning and scheduling, so building managers can be proactive rather than reactive. "Seventy-three percent of tenants say a bad restroom signals poor management," Sanchez added. "When you consider that the typical office worker visits the restroom three to four times a day, that's more than 1.1 million annual opportunities to impress or disappoint. With Onvation Technology, building managers can make sure their restrooms measure up to the rest of their properties." To learn more about Onvation Technology and other Kimberly-Clark Professional offerings, click here or visit Booth 2849 at ISSA/INTERCLEAN North America 2016. About Kimberly-Clark Professional Kimberly-Clark Professional partners with businesses to create Exceptional Workplaces, helping to make them healthier, safer and more productive. Key brands in this segment include: Kleenex, Scott, WypAll, Kimtech and Jackson Safety. Kimberly-Clark Professional, located in Roswell, Georgia, is one of three Kimberly-Clark business sectors. To see how Kimberly-Clark Professional is helping people around the world to work better, please visit www.kcprofessional.com. About Kimberly-Clark Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB) and its well-known global brands are an indispensable part of life for people in more than 175 countries. Every day, nearly a quarter of the world's population trust Kimberly-Clark's brands and the solutions they provide to enhance their health, hygiene and well-being. With brands such as Kleenex, Scott, Huggies, Pull-Ups, Kotex and Depend, Kimberly-Clark holds No. 1 or No. 2 share positions in 80 countries. To keep up with the latest news and to learn more about the Company's 144-year history of innovation, visit www.kimberly-clark.com or follow us on Facebook or Twitter. [KMB-B] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110928/DA76879LOGO SOURCE Kimberly-Clark Professional Related Links http://www.kcprofessional.com SEATTLE, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Kineta, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on the translational development of novel antiviral and immune modulating therapies announced that its CEO, Dr. Shawn Iadonato, joined a panel of leaders from other biopharmaceutical companies to discuss novel new treatment strategies in immuno-oncology. The panel presentation entitled "The Intersection of Inflammation and Immuno-Oncology: Risks and Opportunities" was conducted at the 15th annual BIO Investor Forum in San Francisco. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430180LOGO Dr. Iadonato highlighted details around Kineta's small molecule compounds that may activate the RIG-I pathway to elicit immunogenic cell death in cancer tumor models. These novel compounds were identified using Kineta's proprietary AVIiD screening platform which has also identified innate immune antivirals and vaccine adjuvants. "Cancer is typically not recognized as foreign by the body's immune system which allows tumors to grow unchecked," stated Kineta CEO Dr. Shawn Iadonato. "Kineta's immune modulators activate the RIG-I pathway and may reprogram the immune system to recognize tumors as foreign and elicit neo-antigen T-cell responses to kill cancer. Priming the tumor microenvironment may also enable other therapies to be more effective when used in combination." The BIO Investor Forum is an international biotech investor conference focused on early and established private companies as well as emerging public companies. The event features plenary sessions, business roundtables and therapeutic workshops, company presentations, and One-on-One Partnering meetings. Kineta, Inc. is an emerging and sustainable biotech company that fills a void in the biopharmaceutical industry by efficiently advancing therapies from discovery to clinical proof of concept. We actively collaborate with a broad array of private, government and industry partners to advance our innovative research in chronic pain, immuno-oncology and infectious diseases. Kineta has established and is expanding on a diverse pipeline of novel life improving therapies that address critical unmet patient needs. For more information on Kineta, Inc. visit our website, www.Kinetabio.com NOTICE: This document contains certain forward-looking statements, including without limitation statements regarding Kineta's plans for pre-clinical and clinical studies, regulatory filings, anticipated drug effects in human subjects, and financial performance. You are cautioned that such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties inherent in Kineta's business which could significantly affect expected results, including without limitation: progress of drug development; ability to raise capital to fund drug development; clinical testing and regulatory approval; intellectual property protection and enforcement; our ability to recruit and retain scientists and other key personnel; competition from other drug development companies; and legislative, fiscal, and other regulatory measures. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement, and Kineta undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the issuance of this press release. Contact Jacques Bouchy Email (206) 378-0400 SOURCE Kineta, Inc. Related Links http://www.Kinetabio.com HOUSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- LandWorks Inc., a developer of innovative land management solutions, has improved its Web AutoMapper online service that translates land legal descriptions into GIS-ready map polygons. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430080 The updated Web AutoMapper features a new interface that is easier to use, including a job detail web page that lets you review and edit your polygons before you buy. Clients can now have their property polygons mapped against USLandGrid's national land base, with the option of buying land grid townships containing the mapped property. "These changes make the Web AutoMapper even easier and more cost effective to use," said LandWorks President Jerry Bramwell. "Anyone with a need to create land maps can do so in just a few minutes at minimal cost." For about 20 percent of the cost of manual mapping, Web AutoMapper has simplified land records mapping in the oil & gas, renewable energy, mining, banking, utility, pipeline, state/local government, telecommunications, transportation, water and real estate sectors. The cost to map a legal parcel description with Web AutoMapper is $2 per polygon with the USLandGrid offered at just $7 per PLSS Township. "The USLandGrid data provides the tie between a legal description and the geography of that parcel of land," said USLandGrid Vice President of Sales Anthony Ford. "Producing polygons this way allows you to get your land positions on a map for critical analysis using the GIS." "LandWorks selected USLandGrid for inclusion in Web AutoMapper because it is the best basemap available for any industry or profession to use in mapping property legal descriptions," said Bramwell. "An important benefit of the USLandGrid is that its data layers are continuously updated as more accurate survey data becomes available." LandWorks first introduced Web AutoMapper in 2013 as an inexpensive, fast and easy method of processing many types of standard property descriptions and converting them into digital map polygons. Legal descriptions that would take days or weeks to map manually can be processed in minutes with this online software-as-a-service application. A customer simply logs onto Web AutoMapper at www.LandWorks.com/automapper and creates an account. The user then submits an Excel spreadsheet containing one or hundreds of legal descriptions in Jeffersonian Township/Range or Texas Survey/Abstract formats. Within seconds, Web AutoMapper provides an onscreen report detailing which polygons can be generated, which cannot, and shows an overview of the mapped polygons aligned to the USLandGrid. If the customer decides to proceed, a credit card is provided. For customers who don't already own the Grid, they have the option of buying it by the township along with their mapped polygons. Web AutoMapper generates a zip file of the purchased polygons and USLandGrid townships either in Esri shapefile or file geodatabase format in NAD 83 or 27 for direct download into Esri ArcGIS software as well as other popular mapping systems, such as IHS Petra, IHS Kingdom and LMKR GeoGraphix. As a Cloud-based application, Web AutoMapper brings the full power of the standalone LandWorks AutoMapper software to every level of digital map user via the Internet. Introduced in 2002, the onsite AutoMapper package is purchased by an organization and sits behind their firewall as a production-grade GIS mapping tool. The software is used extensively by organizations that must manage large tracts of land and keep property records up to date, such as local governments, energy companies and natural resource management entities. About LandWorks, Inc. (www.landworks.com) LandWorks, an Esri Gold Business Partner, provides software and services utilizing Esri GIS technology. Since 1995, the company's primary focus has been providing software products and services for managing any type of land right in any industry including oil and gas, mining, pipelines, telecommunications, electric/gas utilities, wind energy, transportation and water. With offices in Houston and Denver, LandWorks also offers fast, accurate mapping and data entry of land rights agreements, and has one of the largest GIS land mapping service staffs in the U.S. This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com. SOURCE LandWorks Inc. Related Links http://www.landworks.com NEW YORK, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Synopsis Timetric's 'Life Insurance in Brazil Key Trends and Opportunities to 2020' report provides a detailed outlook by product category for the Brazilian life insurance segment, and a comparison of the Brazilian insurance industry with its regional counterparts. It provides key performance indicators such as written premium, incurred loss, loss ratio, commissions and expenses, total assets, total investment income and retentions during the review period (20112015) and forecast period (20152020). The report also analyzes distribution channels operating in the segment, gives a comprehensive overview of the Brazilian economy and demographics, and provides detailed information on the competitive landscape in the country. The report brings together Timetric's research, modeling and analysis expertise, giving insurers access to information on segment dynamics and competitive advantages, and profiles of insurers operating in the country. The report also includes details of insurance regulations, and recent changes in the regulatory structure. Summary Timetric's 'Life Insurance in Brazil Key Trends and Opportunities to 2020' report provides in-depth market analysis, information and insights into the Brazilian life insurance segment, including: - An overview of the Brazilian life insurance segment - The Brazilian life insurance segment's growth prospects by category - A comprehensive overview of the Brazilian economy and demographics - A comparison of the Brazilian life insurance segment with its regional counterparts - Overview of various distribution channels in the Brazilian life insurance segment - Details of the competitive landscape in the life insurance segment in Brazil - Details of regulatory policy applicable to the Brazilian insurance industry Scope This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the life insurance segment in Brazil: - It provides historical values for the Brazilian life insurance segment for the report's 20112015 review period, and projected figures for the 20152020 forecast period. - It offers a detailed analysis of the key categories in the Brazilian life insurance segment, and market forecasts to 2020. - It provides a comparison of the Brazilian life insurance segment with its regional counterparts - It analyzes the various distribution channels for life insurance products in Brazil. - It profiles the top life insurance companies in Brazil and outlines the key regulations affecting them. Reasons To Buy - Make strategic business decisions using in-depth historic and forecast market data related to the Brazilian life insurance segment, and each category within it. - Understand the demand-side dynamics, key market trends and growth opportunities in the Brazilian life insurance segment. - Assess the competitive dynamics in the life insurance segment. - Identify growth opportunities and market dynamics in key product categories. - Gain insights into key regulations governing the Brazilian insurance industry, and their impact on companies and the industry's future. Key Highlights - The Brazilian life insurance segment accounted for 57.5% of the industry's gross written premium in 2015. - The segment grew at a review-period CAGR of 14.0%, primarily contributed by the expansion of the pension category. - Brazilian bank branch networks enable insurers to market products to a large customer base. - In September 2015, under the Solvency II framework, the EC granted provisional equivalence to Brazil's solvency regime. - The rise in the middle-class population and its purchasing power will drive demand for life insurance over the forecast period. Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p01591727-summary/view-report.html About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. http://www.reportlinker.com __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links http://www.reportlinker.com SALT LAKE CITY, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Lineagen, Inc., an innovative genetics diagnostic company focused on advanced genetic testing and clinical information services for complex neurodevelopmental disorders, today announced a presentation at ASHG on new methods of interpreting findings for its FirstStepDx PLUS chromosomal microarray (CMA) test. Lineagen also announced commercial launch of the presentation subject, a variant index which will provide improved clarity of interpretation. When applied to findings from FirstStepDx PLUS, the variant index assigns greater clinical importance to genetic variants that are known to be causal for these disorders and, importantly, to findings known as variants of unknown significance (VOUS). This will furnish clinicians with the most comprehensive results for the possible underlying genetic basis in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), developmental delay (DD), intellectual delay (ID), and multiple congenital anomalies (MCA). CMA is recommended as a first-tier test by multiple medical society guidelines in identifying deletions and duplications in the genetic material to diagnose chromosomal disorders underlying ASD, DD, ID and MCA. One of the key challenges of CMA testing for both laboratories and healthcare providers is the detection and interpretation of VOUS findings, since they create diagnostic ambiguity for both the provider and the family. The new variant index has been demonstrated to clarify VOUS results in about 40% of clinical cases to date, and adds increased clinical significance in about 70% of of causal findings. Lead author Dr. Karen Ho, Principal Scientist of Translational Research at Lineagen, presented a paper at the Annual Meeting of ASHG today in Vancouver, B.C., entitled "Clinical Application of a Critical Exon Mapper to Aid in Determining Pathogenicity of Copy Number Variants of Unknown Significance," in conjunction with members of The Centre for Applied Genomics at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) of Toronto, Canada. The technology underlying the critical exon mapper, or variant index, has been licensed from SickKids by Lineagen. Dr. Stephen Scherer, Senior Scientist and Director of The Centre for Applied Genomics, and his renowned team at SickKids, assembled a variant index that identifies gene regions that are highly expressed and highly conserved (i.e., not frequently mutated) in the brain and, when disrupted, are likely causal for ASD and DD[1]. Use of the variant index in interpreting findings of FirstStepDx PLUS unveils meaningful information about CMA test results, especially VOUS, which brings more clinical insight to providers and may lead directly to a change in medical management of patients with ASD and DD. "We're very excited by the data presented in the paper, as well as the launch of clinical use of the variant index," noted Dr. Robert Wassman, Chief Medical Officer for Lineagen and senior author of the presentation. "We reported here on our real world clinical experience using the variant index as part of our PrismDx Variant Information ProgramSM, in a series of 5518 individuals, in which we reported clinically relevant findings in 40% of the VOUS and incremental clinical information in 70% of abnormal findings. Further insights from the medical literature on these specific genes allow us to provide physicians with richer information for better medical management. We present several cases which illustrate how the variant index might impact clinical interpretation of VOUS and help identify critical regions that are likely pathogenic, but previously undetectable." About Lineagen Lineagen helps physicians personalize medical management for individuals with developmental delay and autism spectrum disorder by providing advanced genetic testing and clinical information services. Lineagen makes genetic testing accessible to everyone, from patient to provider, by combining simple non-invasive sampling and advanced testing and information technology with dedicated service and support. Lineagen's FirstStepDx PLUS chromosomal microarray (CMA) testing service helps providers pinpoint the cause of delay and develop a personalized healthcare management program for their patient. FirstStepDx PLUS can detect hundreds of genetic conditions and is recommended as the first-tier test for autism spectrum disorder, developmental delay and intellectual delay according to nationally accepted guidelines. The FirstStepDx PLUS test has the highest reported detection rate of any CMA. FirstStepDx PLUS uses a painless cheek swab for DNA sampling, with a detailed and personalized report that presents results in plain English. Families and providers can contact Lineagen's team of certified genetic counselors for help prior to testing and for aid in interpreting results. Additionally, the Lineagen team of specialists handles everything related to reimbursement, from pre-authorizations to appeals. For additional information, visit www.lineagen.com. Lineagen Contact: David Jansen [email protected] 801-931-6196 Uddin M, et al. Sci Rep. 2016 Jul 1 ;6:28663 SOURCE Lineagen, Inc. Related Links http://www.lineagen.com NEW YORK, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Loews Hotels announced today that Jonathan M. Tisch will resume the duties of CEO for the Company following the departure of Kirk Kinsell, effective immediately. Mr. Kinsell informed the Company of his decision to resign for personal reasons. Mr. Tisch will continue to serve as Chairman of Loews Hotels and Co-Chairman of the Board for Loews Corporation. "Loews Hotels has never been stronger. During Kirk's tenure as CEO, there have been many positive changes at Loews Hotels, and we fully intend to build on that success. We've added top talent to our already strong bench, expanded our network of hotels, and continued to improve our operations and profitability," said Mr. Tisch. "Loews Hotels will remain focused on opportunistically growing in key markets with our group hotels and resort destinations. The Company, along with its team members and partners, is committed to providing the best experience for all of our guests," Mr. Tisch added. About Loews Hotels Headquartered in New York City, Loews Hotels has three distinct brands, Loews Hotels & Resorts, Loews Regency and OE Collection. The company owns and/or operates 25 hotels and resorts across the U.S. and Canada, including the newly-acquired Hotel 1000 in downtown Seattle that will be re-branded into a Loews Regency in 2017. Loews Sapphire Falls Resort at Universal Orlando, the fifth hotel in partnership with Comcast NBC Universal, opened in July 2016. Located in major city centers and resort destinations from coast to coast, the Loews portfolio features one-of-a-kind properties that go beyond Four Diamond standards to delight guests with exciting, approachable and local travel experiences. For reservations or more information about Loews Hotels, call 1-800-23-LOEWS or visit: www.loewshotels.com. Like Loews Hotels & Resorts on Facebook: www.facebook.com/LoewsHotels Follow Loews Hotels & Resorts on Twitter: www.twitter.com/loews_hotels Watch Loews Hotels & Resorts on YouTube: www.youtube.com/LoewsHotels Read our Wish You Were Here Blog at www.loewshotelsblog.com SOURCE Loews Hotels Related Links http://www.loewshotels.com NORTHBROOK, Ill., Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- M. Holland Company, a leading distributor of thermoplastic resin, today announced the formation of a Business Development organization to coordinate sales and sourcing strategies in specific target end markets. John Zessin, who heads the M. Holland Automotive Group, has been tapped to serve as Director of the new Business Development Department, reporting to Marc Fern, Commercial Vice President. "During our recent strategic planning process, it became clear that we need to have a more focused and aligned approach in specific markets," said Fern. "The addition of the Business Development Department will allow for greater coordination across our domestic and international sales regions and will also provide our suppliers with a more focused approach within their desired markets." Added Zessin, "In addition to automotive, we plan to add market-focused teams targeting the flexible packaging, color and compounding, and medical markets initially. Teams will be comprised of Market Managers, Strategic Account Managers and Applications Development Engineers, all collaborating with our strategic suppliers and field sales force to deliver unprecedented service to these key markets." Zessin, who founded Polymer Z Corporation in 2003, joined M. Holland in September 2015 when M. Holland acquired Polymer Z to form the M. Holland Automotive Group. Zessin has spent his entire career in the automotive industry, serving in executive management positions with Monsanto, Bayer and Dow before founding Polymer Z. "Given his background and experience, John is the ideal choice to lead the new Business Development Department," said Fern. "Under John's leadership, we have experienced significant growth in the automotive market. We expect the collaborative approach John established in the M. Holland Automotive Group to yield similar successful results in these other key markets." About M. Holland: For more than 67 years, M. Holland has been the leading family-owned distributor of the highest quality application-specific plastic resins, with commercial and logistical reach throughout the Americas and beyond. The company sells about 1.4 billion pounds of resin annually sourced from the premier resin producers in the world to more than 4,000 customers. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONTACT: Alicia Webb Marketing & Communications Manager, M. Holland Company 847.254.4275 [email protected] SOURCE M. Holland Related Links http://www.mholland.com "This is a great honor and a testament toward the exceptional leadership of our enterprise," said Bryan Bogardus, chief operating officer of AF Group. "Marguerite demonstrates exceptional leadership qualities every day and has been able to consistently motivate her team to achieve success, despite the challenges and fluctuations of our industry. Her clear passion for insurance has also served to benefit the Chicago community. We are all very proud to have her represent Third Coast Underwriters and AF Group with this award." Dixen has more than 25 years of experience in the insurance industry and was named president of Third Coast Underwriters in 2010. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and is designated as a Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter and an Associate in Risk Management. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Chicago Debate Commission. Now in its 11th year, Business Insurance's Women to Watch Awards & Leadership Conference is the only recognition program that celebrates leading women from every facet of the commercial insurance industry. The program was created in 2006 to recognize leading women in commercial insurance, risk management, employee benefits and related fields such as consulting and law. About Third Coast Underwriters Third Coast Underwriters is a division of AF Group. All policies are underwritten by a licensed insurer subsidiary of AF Group. About AF Group Founded in 1912, AF Group (Lansing, Mich.) and its subsidiaries are a premier provider of innovative insurance solutions. Rated "A-" (Excellent) by A.M. Best, AF Group is a nationally recognized holding company conducting business through its brands: Accident Fund, United Heartland, CompWest and Third Coast Underwriters. Contact: Bob Lapinski (517) 708-5664 or (517) 331-4890 [email protected] AFGroupInsurance.com Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430332 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160229/338522LOGO SOURCE AF Group Related Links http://www.afgroupinsurance.com ALBANY, New York, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE) market in Asia Pacific is presently dominated by key players in China. These include Sinopec Corporation, PetroChina Company Limited, Shandong Yuhuang Chemical (Group) Co., Ltd., Zibo Qixiang Petrochemical Group Ltd., and Heilongjiang Anruijia Petrochemical Co., Ltd. Transparency Market Research has noted that China, one of the largest producers as well as consumers of MTBE in the world, has been primarily focused on business and production expansions in order to retain its lead in the APAC market. For instance, Wanhua Chemical Group Co. Ltd.'s MTBE plant in Shangdong and Huntsman Corp. and Sinopec Jinling's plant in Nanjing are two promising ventures to look forward to in 2016. Other leading companies in the APAC methyl tertiary-butyl ether market include Evonik Industries AG, PETRONAS, LyondellBasell Industries Holdings B.V., and Reliance Industries Limited. The MTBE market in Asia Pacific was valued at US$6.7 bn in 2015 and is anticipated to reach US$10.9 bn by 2026, expanding at a CAGR of 4.6% therein. Browse Latest Research Report with ToC: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/asia-pacific-methyl-tertiary-butyl-ether-market.html China's 81.9% Share in APAC MTBE Market a Key Growth Booster The gasoline additive segment of the MTBE market accounted for a whopping 93.11% share in the APAC market in 2015, emerging as the clear leader. An increase in the demand for gasoline additives in ASEAN countries and China is expected to propel the demand for methyl tertiary-butyl ether in this segment. Gasoline additives are also projected to register significant growth over the course of the forecast period, exhibiting a CAGR of over 4.0% in terms of both revenue and volume. Accounting for an 81.9% share in the APAC MTBE market in 2015, China is forecast to continue its dominance through 2024, presenting lucrative investment opportunities to market players. Registering a 4.7% CAGR during the forecast period, China is also projected to exhibit the fastest growth in the methyl tertiary-butyl ether in Asia Pacific. Get Industry Research Report Sample for more Professional and Technical Industry Insights: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=B&rep_id=15956 The ASEAN sub-region is also likely to present a rather lucrative scenario, owing to a rise in the demand for gasoline additives. ASEAN Automotive Sector Driving Demand for Gasoline Additives A key factor driving gasoline blending across the Asia Pacific region, and therefore the MTBE market, is the declining prices of raw material as well as final products. This can be primarily attributed to China. "China is one of the major methanol producers in the world and the country is likely to account for nearly 50% of the global methanol production in the next few years," the author of the study finds. The total methanol production in China is estimated to reach nearly 51 million tons in 2016, a trend that will potentially check the prices of downstream products, including MTBE, in the near future. Another factor boosting the market for methyl tertiary-butyl ether is a rise in the demand for gasoline additives, particularly in ASEAN. "The automotive industry in the ASEAN sub-region has been witnessing an upward trend in the last few years, with the number of total vehicles in major countries rising from around 130 million in 2015 to 200 million by 2025," the lead analyst states. The significant growth of the automotive sector is likely to propel the demand for gasoline additives, thereby supporting the MTBE market during the forecast period. In contrast, the availability of a wide range of petroleum-based and non-petroleum-based substitutes and the hazardous environmental effects of methyl tertiary-butyl ether pose significant challenges to the MTBE market in Asia Pacific. This review is based on the findings of a TMR report titled "Methyl Tertiary-Butyl Ether (MTBE) Market - Asia Pacific Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast 2016 - 2026." This report segments the MTBE market in Asia Pacific as follows: MTBE Market - Application Analysis Gasoline Isobutene Solvent & Extractant Others (MMA, etc.) MTBE Market - Country/Sub-region Analysis Asia Pacific China India ASEAN Browse Other Research Reports: Butyric Acid Market: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/butyric-acid-market.html Dimethyl Sulfate Market: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/dimethyl-sulfate-market.html About TMR Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The company's exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMR's experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information. TMR's data repository is continuously updated and revised by a team of research experts so that it always reflects the latest trends and information. With extensive research and analysis capabilities, Transparency Market Research employs rigorous primary and secondary research techniques to develop distinctive data sets and research material for business reports. Contact Transparency Market Research State Tower 90 State Street Suite 700 Albany NY - 12207 United States Tel: +1-518-618-1030 USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com Blog: http://www.tmrblog.com/ SOURCE Transparency Market Research Jack Olney, director of sales for Michelin Tweel Technologies, will discuss the the new product in detail at 5:305:50 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 19, in Booth 2036 (B Wing) during the Green Industry & Equipment Expo at the Kentucky Expo Center in Louisville (937 Phillips Ln.). Members of the media are invited to attend. The new 10N16.5 product will be a viable option for those skid steer machines that require the smaller 10-inch dimension. Combined with the 12-inch product, Michelin Tweel Technologies now offers sizes that support the vast majority of skid steer machines on the market today. With the all-terrain tread pattern, designed for use on a wide range of surfaces, the 10N16.5 will serve users in a variety of industries, such as rental fleets, construction and agriculture. "Responding to customer requests, we developed our newest version of the MICHELIN X TWEEL SSL to give owners and operators of smaller skid steer loader machines the opportunity to experience all of the advantages of the TWEEL Airless Radial Tire, including reduced downtime due to flats, increased operator comfort and improved productivity," said Olivier Brauen, head of Michelin Tweel Technologies. "We are pleased to broaden our offer to provide this innovative mobility solution to more customers." The 10N16.5 has a 31/32-inch tread depth with a 10/32-inch undertread for ease of retreading. The 177 pound tire can support a 3,700-pound maximum load per tire. The development of Michelin's Tweel technology is significant since many skid steer loaders equipped with traditional pneumatic tires can experience frequent flat tires. As a solution to reduce flat-tire downtime, many users resort to using foam-filled, solid tires or other alternatives that diminish traction, handling and ride comfort. The TWEEL Airless Radial Tire offers the advantages of no maintenance, no compromise and no downtime since it requires no air, thereby eliminating the risk of a "flat tire." The X TWEEL SSL also delivers the advantages of easy mounting, damage resistance, reduced operator fatigue and longer wear life than pneumatic tires.1 To learn more about MICHELIN X TWEEL Airless Radial Tires, visit www.michelintweel.com. About Michelin North America, Inc. Dedicated to the improvement of sustainable mobility, Michelin designs, manufactures and sells tires for every type of vehicle, including airplanes, automobiles, bicycles, earthmovers, farm equipment, heavy-duty trucks and motorcycles. The company has earned a long-standing reputation for building innovative premium tires. Since 1989, Michelin has received 80 J.D. Power tire customer satisfaction awardsfive times the number of all other tire manufacturers combined. In addition to tires, the company also publishes travel guides, hotel and restaurant guides, maps and road atlases. Headquartered in Greenville, S.C., Michelin North America (www.michelinman.com) employs about 22,700 and operates 19 major manufacturing plants. 1 Based on internal controlled wear tests conducted on asphalt and concrete surfaces. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20040818/MICHELIN SOURCE Michelin Tweel Technologies Related Links http://www.MichelinMedia.com This new version of the MICHELIN X TWEEL TURF is designed for landscape professionals who deal with expensive and inconvenient downtime associated with flat tires on commercial mowers. Michelin Tweel Technologies introduced the MICHELIN X TWEEL TURF 24X12N12 at GIE in 2014 in partnership with John Deere. "The X TWEEL TURF has been a tremendous success, offering customers unique benefits exclusively available with this innovative technology," said Jack Olney, director of sales for Michelin Tweel Technologies. "Extending the line with the new caster product is a direct response to customer demands for TWEEL performance in front and rear positions on the zero-turn mower." Because the X TWEEL TURF caster has no air, it cannot go flat and it eliminates the need to maintain air pressure. The TWEEL caster is constructed with high-strength poly-resin spokes that carry the load and create suspension-like characteristics for the front of the mower. This structure absorbs impact and reduces bounce for improved operator comfort while also maintaining a consistent height for a uniform cut. The caster's durable, poly-resin tread also provides long wear life. Attendees of the GIE + Expo 2016 in Louisville this week can visit booth #2036 (B Wing of the Kentucky Expo Center) for a an exclusive "sneak peek" at the MICHELIN X TWEEL TURF caster, as well as its larger siblings in the expanding TWEEL line, the MICHELIN X TWEEL TURF 24X12N12 and the MICHELIN X TWEEL SSL, now available in two sizes for skid steer machines. To learn more about MICHELIN X TWEEL Airless Radial Tires, visit www.michelintweel.com. About Michelin North America, Inc. Dedicated to the improvement of sustainable mobility, Michelin designs, manufactures and sells tires for every type of vehicle, including airplanes, automobiles, bicycles, earthmovers, farm equipment, heavy-duty trucks and motorcycles. The company has earned a long-standing reputation for building innovative premium tires. Since 1989, Michelin has received 80 J.D. Power tire customer satisfaction awards five times the number of all other tire manufacturers combined. In addition to tires, the company also publishes travel guides, hotel and restaurant guides, maps and road atlases. Headquartered in Greenville, S.C., Michelin North America (www.michelinman.com) employs about 22,700 and operates 19 major manufacturing plants. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430611 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430612 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20040818/MICHELIN SOURCE Michelin North America, Inc. Related Links http://www.michelinman.com (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140911/647229 ) Summary of the Micro Inverter Market Report can be accessed on the website at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/micro-inverter-market Swift rise in demand for greater efficiency of solar energy systems and increased application of micro inverters in residential sector, as it is more cost-effective and space efficient, as compared to central and string inverters drives the market growth. However, high initial investment and tough maintenance could restrict the market growth. Moreover, it is anticipated that the rise in electricity demand coupled with increase in government spending & tariffs on photovoltaic technology would spur the global market growth. The residential segment accounted for about 77% of the overall micro inverter market in 2014. Highest installation of micro inverters in residential photovoltaic systems led this segment to dominate the overall micro inverter market. However, commercial end user segment would grow significantly and is expected to register a CAGR of 30.3% during the forecast period. This is due to the increase in installation of micro inverters in commercial PV systems worldwide as many renowned companies are launching advanced technology products. Moreover, North America has contributed significantly in the residential sector. Among various geographical regions, North America has contributed the maximum revenue share in 2014 and is expected to maintain its leading position throughout the forecast period. This could be attributed to varied factors including increase in the electricity demand due to rising population, and increased government initiatives. Moreover, improvement in renewable energy expenditure has boosted the installation of residential micro inverters in Asian countries, particularly in China, Japan, and India. "MLPE technologies such as micro inverters are swiftly gaining acceptance and market share as their costs have come down. In spite of the global dominance of string inverters, over half of all residential solar systems installed in the U.S. currently using micro inverters. In addition, increased power output of micro inverters, cost-effectiveness and enhanced safety features would fuel the micro inverter market growth in both residential and commercial sector globally. Japan, representing a significant residential market potential, is expected to provide lucrative growth opportunities for top global micro inverter manufacturers in Asia-Pacific market," states Rakesh Singh, Manager, Research, Semiconductor & Electronics at AMR. However, Asia-Pacific is projected to be the fastest growing region throughout the analysis period. Since, Japan has the highest demand for residential sector power plant PV installation due to government incentives and limited supply of micro inverters in Japan. Moreover, enhancement in solar plant installation capacity and increase in expenditures in the emerging markets (such as China and India) to satisfy the exponentially growing electricity needs in these countries have strengthened the market growth. Technological advancements for cost-effective inverter technologies in these nations offer a lucrative opportunity for the micro inverter market growth. Key findings of the study: In 2014, single phase micro inverter type led the overall micro inverter market revenue, but it is projected to grow at a CAGR of 26.2% during the forecast period Residential segment is expected to exhibit rapid growth, owing to the rising government tariffs and incentives Presently, North America leads the world micro inverter market and it is expected to continue this trend throughout the forecast period owing to the swift rise in electricity demand from countries such as U.S., Canada , and Mexico leads the world micro inverter market and it is expected to continue this trend throughout the forecast period owing to the swift rise in electricity demand from countries such as U.S., , and Japan leads the overall Asia-Pacific micro inverter market with about one-third of the market shares in the region The key players in the micro inverter market are dedicated to expand their business operations in the emerging countries with acquisition and product launch as a preferred strategy. The major players profiled in this report include Enphase Energy, Inc., ABB Group, SunPower Corporation, SMA Solar Technology AG, Delta Energy Systems GmbH, SolarEdge Technologies, Inc., ReneSola, Siemens AG, P&P Energy Technology Co., Ltd., and Involar. Summary of similar reports can be viewed at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/semiconductor-and-electronics/electronic-systems-and-devices-market-report About Us: Allied Market Research (AMR) is a full-service market research and business-consulting wing of Allied Analytics LLP based in Portland, Oregon. Allied Market Research provides global enterprises as well as medium and small businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports" and "Business Intelligence Solutions". AMR has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients to make strategic business decisions and achieve sustainable growth in their respective market domain. We are in professional corporate relations with various companies and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry. Contact: Sona Padmanabhan 5933 NE Win Sivers Drive #205, Portland, OR 97220 United States Direct: +1-503-894-6022 Toll Free: +1 (800)-792-5285 (U.S. & Canada) Fax: +1 (855)-550-5975 E-mail: [email protected] SOURCE Allied Market Research MCLEAN, Va., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Monster Government Solutions, a leader in connecting jobs and people in the public sector and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Monster Worldwide, has been selected to provide human capital strategy, training and development, and performance improvement services to United States federal agencies under the $11.5 billion Human Capital and Training Solutions (HCaTS) contract award vehicle. The exhaustive selection process required companies to compete on criteria including past contract performance, client satisfaction, company financial health and viability, and more. "We're thrilled to have the opportunity to help meet the training, development and broader talent management needs of all federal agencies," said Steve Cooker, Executive Vice President of Monster Government Solutions. "It's a critical time for our federal workforce. Through both our comprehensive service offerings and information technology (IT) solutions, we look forward to continuing to empower federal personnel to maximize their productivity in support of mission success." Monster Government Solutions was selected based on successful demonstration of its ability to increase the efficiency of critical business processes, provide optimal professional development opportunities, support effective change management initiatives, as well as the development of key metrics in assessing an agency's human capital management initiatives. Under the HCaTS vehicle, Monster Government Solutions will offer the Federal Government a holistic set of talent management and workforce services to help personnel thrive in today's enterprise workplace. For 15 years Monster Government Solutions has provided the federal government with professional management and leadership development, customized workforce training and performance management and digital recruiting tools, as well as additional IT support of existing Human Resources (HR) systems. Monster pioneered online recruiting in 1994 and in the decades since, Monster Government Solutions has made significant investments in human capital management solutions to support the government in finding, hiring and developing its workforce. The HCaTS award vehicle will be administered by the U.S. General Services Administration on behalf of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, which will be responsible for HCaTS policy oversight to ensure that federal agencies are properly matched with HR solutions that best meet their needs. Selected companies will be competing for task orders over the 10.5-year contract term. About Monster Government Solutions For 15 years, Monster Government Solutions has been working with leaders in government and education. Along the way, we changed the way people look for government jobs and we constantly strive to make a difference in the lives of people across the country, the way employers look for people, and how organizations connect with their target audiences. Our software solutions also vastly improve the recruitment experience by increasing speed-to-hire and accelerating the onboarding process, so new employees become more productive, faster. There are nearly 100 federal government agencies that rely on Monster's federal products and services every day, including 14 of 15 cabinet-level agencies and all five branches of the uniformed armed services. Monster Government Solutions, a wholly owned subsidiary of Monster Worldwide, Inc., is a U.S. company with offices in McLean, Virginia. About Monster Worldwide Monster Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: MWW) is a global leader in connecting people to jobs, wherever they are. For more than 20 years, Monster has helped people improve their lives with better jobs, and employers find the best talent. Today, the company offers services in more than 40 countries, providing some of the broadest, most sophisticated job seeking, career management, recruitment and talent management capabilities. Monster continues its pioneering work of transforming the recruiting industry with advanced technology using intelligent digital, social and mobile solutions, including our flagship website monster.com and a vast array of products and services. For more information visit monster.com/about. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150113/168978LOGO SOURCE Monster Worldwide, Inc. Related Links http://monstergovernmentsolutions.com The results come from the 2016 Public Affairs Pulse survey, a telephone poll of 1,000 Americans conducted Sept. 1217 by Public Opinion Strategies and sponsored by the Public Affairs Council. Nearly three-quarters (74%) of Americans believe racial discrimination is at least a serious problem and 37 percent say it is a very serious problem. Similar percentages call gender identity discrimination at least serious (67%) or very serious (37%). Differences Between Political Parties Republicans, on balance, are less likely than Democrats and Independents to see discrimination across these seven areas as serious problems. The largest differences between Republicans and Democrats show up in attitudes about gender identity discrimination (46 percent of Republicans versus 84 percent of Democrats view the matter to be serious) and sexual orientation (45 percent of Republicans versus 79 percent of Democrats say this is a serious problem). The smallest difference in attitudes relates to religious discrimination (52 percent of Republicans and 70 percent of Democrats call this issue serious). Many Business Anti-Discrimination Efforts Go Unnoticed Major companies receive little credit for their efforts to reduce discrimination. One in three Americans (34%) think corporations have played a positive role in reducing discrimination of people with disabilities, and slightly lower percentages recognize business efforts to reduce discrimination by gender (28%), race (27%) and sexual orientation (26%). For discrimination by gender identity, religion and age, more Americans feel companies have played a negative role than positive role. If major companies were to take steps to prevent discrimination based on any of these factors, most Americans say they would view these efforts favorably. For full survey results and methodology, visit pac.org/pulse. The Public Affairs Council is the leading association for public affairs professionals worldwide, visit pac.org. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429914-INFO SOURCE Public Affairs Council Related Links http://pac.org BOSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Mylestoned, a provider of mobile services that helps people remember and celebrate deceased loved ones, today released The DeathScape, the first-ever comprehensive overview of the Death Care industry. You can find a copy of the deathscape at https://mylestoned.com/deathscape Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430161LOGO The DeathScape highlights the major corporations that lead the industry, like Service Corp International, Carriage and Hillenbrand, technology providers such as Consolidated Funeral Services and Tukios, consumer platforms such as Legacy.com and Everplans and suppliers such as Dodge and Messenger. For those unfamiliar with the industry, it provides a view into how the Death Care industry works, from end-of-life services, such as hospice and palliative services, to at-need funeral and cremation services, and aftercare, which focuses on grief support and memorialization. "The Death Care industry is a $26B+ behemoth, that often flies below the radar. It's massive, and provides an invaluable service to every single human on the planet - and it's transforming with the rise of social media and change in secular views about death," Mylestoned CEO, Dave Balter, said. "To that end, we thought it would be useful to provide a glimpse into the organizations that define the industry." Releasing the DeathScape now is critically important, given the industry is in a once-in-a-generation state of transformation. Cremation has surpassed burial as the primary way we lay our loved ones to rest, leading to margin erosion for many independent funeral homes. Funeral homes themselves are declining, with 10% less in 2015 than 2005, according to the National Funeral Directors Association. The rise of social media channels for communicating about the deceased has perhaps had the largest impact, as the way individuals grieve and memorialize now extends beyond the limited event that is a traditional American funeral. "It's likely that over the next decade we will see massive change in the Death Care industry," said Brett Logan, Head of Growth at Mylestoned, "Acquisitions and consolidation will continue to accelerate and the public companies will need to diversify their services to stay relevant. It's important to understand the scope of the industry in order to get ahead of these changes." The DeathScape is organized into service buckets, chronological from left to right (in the order consumers would experience the service). Technology runs across to bottom as it is generally applicable to all phases of Death Care. The end product, including market size estimates for some of the service buckets, was comprised through analysis of information published by the numerous publicly traded companies in the space, as well as aggregation of publicly available research and industry resources. About Mylestoned: Mylestoned provides mobile tools for helping people remember and celebrate deceased loved ones. The company is led by CEO Dave Balter, who previously founded and was CEO of BzzAgent and Smarterer, acquired by Tesco and Pluralsight respectively. Mylestoned is venture backed by Founder Collective, Boston Seed Capital, Converge Venture Partners and a variety of angel investors. The Death Care Industry DeathScape can be found here. Say hello: [email protected] Media Contact: Dave Balter Mylestoned, Inc (617) 982-3559 Email SOURCE Mylestoned, Inc. Related Links https://mylestoned.com WASHINGTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Three crew members representing the United States and Russia are on their way to the International Space Station after launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 4:05 a.m. EDT Wednesday (2:05 p.m. Baikonur time). NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough gives a thumbs-up shortly after launching Oct. 19, 2016, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on his way to the International Space Station with Expedition 49 crewmates Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko of the Russian space agency Roscosmos. The Soyuz spacecraft carrying astronaut Shane Kimbrough of NASA, and cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, is scheduled to dock to the Poisk module of the space station at 5:59 a.m. Friday, Oct. 21. NASA Television coverage of docking will begin at 5:15 a.m. Hatches are scheduled to open about 8:35 a.m., with NASA TV coverage starting at 8 a.m. The arrival of Kimbrough, Ryzhikov and Borisenko returns the station's crew complement to six. The three join Expedition 49 Commander Anatoli Ivanishin of Roscosmos, Flight Engineers Kate Rubins of NASA and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The Expedition 49 crew members will spend a little over four months conducting more than 250 science investigations in fields such as biology, Earth science, human research, physical sciences and technology development. Kimbrough, Ryzhikov and Borisenko are scheduled to remain aboard the station until late February. Rubins, Ivanishin and Onishi will return to Earth Oct. 30. The Expedition 49 crew will welcome a variety of cargo deliveries to the space station, including Orbital ATK's Cygnus, which launched Monday from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The spacecraft is scheduled to arrive at the orbital laboratory Sunday, Oct. 23, with more than 5,100 pounds of science and research equipment, as well as crew supplies and hardware. Included in the Cygnus shipment are payloads that will study fires in space, the effect of lighting on sleep and daily rhythms, collection of health-related data, and a new way to measure neutrons. A Japanese cargo craft is scheduled to deliver new lithium ion batteries in December to replace the nickel-hydrogen batteries currently used to store electrical energy generated by the station's solar arrays. The crew members also are scheduled to receive SpaceX's 10th commercial resupply ship and two Russian Progress resupply missions delivering several tons of food, fuel, supplies and research. For more than 15 years, humans have been living continuously aboard the space station to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies, making research breakthroughs not possible on Earth that also will enable long-duration human and robotic exploration into deep space. A truly global endeavor, more than 200 people from 18 countries have visited the unique microgravity laboratory that has hosted more than 1,900 research investigations from researchers in more than 95 countries. Check out the full NASA TV schedule and video streaming information at: http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv Keep up with the International Space Station, and its research and crews, at: http://www.nasa.gov/station Get breaking news, images and features from the station on Instagram and Twitter: http://instagram.com/iss and http://www.twitter.com/Space_Station Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430273 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO SOURCE NASA Related Links http://www.nasa.gov URBANA, Ill., Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) will commemorate the eighth National Day on Writing (#WhyIWrite) on October 20. The annual celebration of writing in all its forms and purposes aims to ensure that writing is recognized as a foundational component of educational growth and human relationships. Founded in 2009, the National Day on Writing has become a popular participatory social media event through the #WhyIWrite hashtag. This year, NCTE is launching both a new website (www.whyIwrite.us) and a unique podcast. The website will aggregate the tens of thousands of posts that are anticipated to flow in this week and beyond. The new podcast on writing will be hosted by longtime podcaster, best-selling author and digital media innovator C.C. Chapman. Upcoming guests include New York Times best-selling author Brad Meltzer, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer John Oates, Seth Godin, ESPN broadcaster Kenny Mayne, and Jonathan Fields, among others. "Writing is essential to literacy and education," said Emily Kirkpatrick, executive director of the nonprofit NCTE, the oldest literacy organization in the United States. "New technologies and globalization are driving us to communicate in different ways and at a breathtaking pace. While more people are writing in their daily lives now than at any other point in human history, we must continue to teach and encourage a broad diversity of writing, from poetry to fiction to technical writing to emails to social media posts and beyond." Last year, more than 60,000 tweets were tagged with #WhyIWrite, and the hashtag trended for the entire day. Participation spanned the globe, and the tag has stayed active all year long. The tremendous enthusiasm around this topic will be evident in interviews conducted for the new bi-monthly podcast. "As a writer, I am thrilled to partner with NCTE and to bring to light conversations about the importance and vitality of diverse writing," said Chapman. "We will continue to recruit authors across all genres, mediums, and walks of life to participate in the podcasts beyond the National Day on Writing to keep the discussion alive year-round." About NCTE: Founded in Chicago in 1911, the National Council of Teachers of English is the oldest literacy organization in the United States. With more than 25,000 members and subscribers worldwide, NCTE is dedicated to improving the teaching and learning of English and the language arts at all levels of education. For more than 100 years, the organization has been at the forefront of every major advancement in the teaching of literacy. Learn more at NCTE.org. SOURCE National Council of Teachers of English Related Links http://www.ncte.org SIOUX FALLS, S.D., Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Vance Thompson Vision, a refractive surgery and research facility specializing in laser vision correction, announces plans to introduce VisuMax SMILE. The SMILE procedure is a new procedure from Carl Zeiss Meditec designed to treat nearsightedness, or myopia. It has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for correcting nearsightedness and Vance Thompson Vision was part of those initial clinical trials. The SMILE procedure involves using the ZEISS VisuMax femtosecond laser to create a thin disc-shaped piece of tissue that is then removed by the surgeon. This changes the shape of the cornea to help correct nearsightedness. Though new to the US, this procedure has been performed internationally on over half a million patients since 2011. Dr. Vance Thompson, an ophthalmologist at Vance Thompson Vision in Sioux Falls, S.D., assisted with the clinical trials for the SMILE procedure. The procedure will complement LASIK and PRK as another option for treating nearsightedness for some patients age 22 or older. "Our research and results from the clinical trials demonstrate that this procedure provides excellent visual outcomes for patients," Dr. Thompson says. "We are excited to bring this technology to the area." According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, nearsightedness affects more than 40% of the US population, a number that has increased from 25% in 1970. "The number of people affected by nearsightedness is increasing," says Dr. John Berdahl, a surgeon at Vance Thompson Vision. "The addition of SMILE gives us more power to help more patients see more clearly. I'm honored to be a part of so many new procedures that fit patients' vision and lifestyle." To determine your candidacy for SMILE, or any laser vision correction procedure, a patient will need to be evaluated by an ophthalmologist specializing in refractive surgery. For more information, visit www.vancethompsonvision.com. About Vance Thompson Vision Vance Thompson Vision, Sioux Falls, SD and Fargo, ND, is a world-class refractive surgery center and research institute. Vance Thompson Vision provides and participates in developing the world's most exceptional technologies to improve outcomes in surgical care; all while creating a patient experience that is second to none. With more than 100,000 procedures, more than 80 FDA monitored clinical trials, and having traveled the world to advance the learning of providers everywhere, Vance Thompson Vision is the standard in quality and innovation. For more information on the international reputation of the doctors that lead studies such as this one visit the biographies of Dr. Vance Thompson, Dr. Alison Tendler, Dr. John Berdahl, Dr. Michael Greenwood, Dr. Doug Wallin, Dr. Keith Rasmussen, Dr. Justin Schweitzer, Dr. Jason Schmit, and Dr. Mitch Ibach. Contact: Matt Jensen, CEO Vance Thompson Vision [email protected] SOURCE Vance Thompson Vision Related Links http://www.vancethompsonvision.com WASHINGTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Target has grabbed the top spot among American businesses that are going solar. The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) revealed Target's ascension to the top of the list in its 2016 Solar Means Business report, issued today, which found that more American businesses are installing solar than ever before. Adding more solar this year than any other U.S. retailer, Target now has 147.5 megawatts (MW) of installed solar capacity. This is the first time Target has ranked No.1 in the report's five-year history. "We feel honored to be named the top corporate solar installer in the U.S. by the Solar Energy Industries Association," says John Leisen, vice president of property management at Target. "At Target, sustainability is a principle that drives the decisions we make across the company from the products we make to the way we run our business. We're incredibly proud of the progress we've made in improving building efficiencies and reducing environmental impact. Our commitment to installing solar panels on 500 stores and distribution centers by 2020 is evidence of that progress." Other companies recognized in the report's Top 10 for their amount of solar capacity and number of solar installations include heretofore perennial champion Walmart (145 MW), Prologis (107.8 MW), Apple (93.9 MW), Costco (50.7 MW), Kohl's (50.2 MW), IKEA (44 MW), Macy's (38.9 MW), General Growth Properties, Inc. (30.2 MW) and Hartz Mountain Industries (22.7 MW). "These blue-chip companies are proof that sustainability and profitability is not an either-or proposition," said SEIA's interim president Tom Kimbis. "Investing in solar is a common-sense decision that pays dividends for both the environment and companies' bottom lines and these leaders deserve a big round of applause. They're not only helping to create thousands of American jobs in solar, the nearly 2,000 corporate systems highlighted in this report are generating enough clean electricity to offset more than 1.1 million metric tons of harmful carbon emissions a year." Covering corporate solar installs now in 38 states plus Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico, the 2016 Solar Means Business report tracks nearly 1,100 MW of solar installations at America's top companies. To put that in context, that's enough electricity to power the equivalent of 193,000 homes every year. Also noteworthy, in just the first three quarters of 2016, the report found 142 MW of corporate solar was added in the U.S., more than was installed in all of 2015 (129 MW). "Solar plays a vital role within our renewable energy portfolio," said Mark Vanderhelm, vice president of energy for Walmart. "This is evident by our 2020 commitment of doubling solar energy projects at our Walmart stores, Sam's Clubs and distribution centers across the nation. Our focus is on finding those solar projects that are right for the business. Being recognized by the SEIA for our efforts is confirmation that we are moving in the right direction with regards to renewable energy, specifically solar." "As the world's largest owner and operator of logistics real estate, we're proud to contribute to a low-carbon future and use our properties as a platform to generate large volumes of clean electricity," said Matt Singleton, vice president, Global Energy and Development, Prologis. "We are on pace to meet our goal of 200 megawatts of solar in our global portfolio by 2020, and we appreciate being acknowledged by SEIA for these efforts." "We appreciate SEIA recognizing GGP's commitment to sustainability, which is imbedded in everything we do," said Shobi Khan, chief operating officer of GGP. "Solar energy is one of our areas of focus, and we've found that solar installations have the capability to deliver a significant amount of clean electricity to our shopping centers. Our investment in solar projects delivers benefits to the environment and strong returns to our shareholders." "We're honored to be named by SEIA as a top company for another year in a row," said Lawrence Garb, executive vice president and managing director of Hartz Mountain Industries, Inc. "Hartz continues to find the economics of the New Jersey solar market very accretive and has continued to increase its pipeline of new projects." For photos, rankings and the report's underlying data go to SEIA's multi-media landing page www.seia.org/solarmeansbiz. About SEIA: Celebrating its 42nd anniversary in 2016, the Solar Energy Industries Association is the national trade association of the U.S. solar energy industry. Through advocacy and education, SEIA is building a strong solar industry to power America. As the voice of the industry, SEIA works with its 1,000 member companies to champion the use of clean, affordable solar in America by expanding markets, removing market barriers, strengthening the industry and educating the public on the benefits of solar energy. Visit SEIA online at www.seia.org. SOURCE Solar Energy Industries Association Related Links http://www.seia.org WASHINGTON, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A new survey has found that more Americans than ever distrust social media when it comes to protecting their privacy online, and many have little or no trust that social media networks or current laws will protect them. The survey, conducted by Washington-based Rad Campaign and Lincoln Park Strategies, and supported by the Craig Newmark Foundation, updated a similar survey conducted in 2014. It found that while 80% of Americans now say they are using social media daily, 96% do not have a lot of trust social networks will protect their privacy. An infographic detailing poll results is available here. "Use of social media is up, but so is distrust," said Craig Newmark, the founder of craigslist, who helped sponsor the survey. "And many people don't think our current privacy laws are strong enough." Key findings of the survey include: -- The percentage of Americans who trust social media has decreased over the past two years; -- Only 7% of Millennials have a lot of trust that social media sites will protect their privacy and personal information. Their trust of social media sites is down 9% from two years ago. -- Adults 65+ have the least trust; -- Of those who use social media the most at least four social media sites only 14% have a lot of trust in them; -- Most of the best-known social media sites are seeing increased usage since 2014, according to responses to survey questions about which sites people use. Further, while about a third (38%) believes that current privacy laws provide reasonable protections; nearly as many (33%) find them to be inadequate. Only a very few (5%) believe current privacy laws are too strict or hindered their online activities. The online privacy threats that Americans are most concerned about include downloading a virus or malware (80%), identity theft (75%), tracking cookies placed without consent (72%), and too much personal information being made public (71%). "These numbers have barely budged over the past two years," said Allyson Kapin of Rad Campaign. "It appears almost no one believes any progress is being made to protect people's online privacy. Social networks need to be good corporate citizens and be fully transparent about how people's personal data are being used and take the necessary steps to protect their data." "As more and more stories are in the news of data being breached, we have not seen any meaningful effect in the number of people using social media sites," said Stefan Hankin of Lincoln Park Strategies. "We are however seeing a rising skepticism people hold around the ability for these companies to do the right thing when it comes to privacy and data. Social media need to do the necessary work to build more trust among users," said Stefan Hankin, president of Lincoln Park Strategies. The poll's margin of error is plus/minus 3.07% at the 95% confidence level. Millennials are defined as people ages 18-35. ABOUT THE PRINCIPALS Rad Campaign is a social change web agency that provides web development and researches trends on Internet culture. Lincoln Park Strategies is a full-service analytic research firm based in Washington, DC. MEDIA CONTACT: Bruce Bonafede 760-831-5080 Email SOURCE craigconnects MILWAUKEE, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Northwestern Mutual has been awarded the 2016 Eye On Innovation Prize for Most Innovative Digital Business Model in Financial Services by Gartner, a leading global technology consultancy, at its 2016 Symposium/ITxpo on Sunday, October 16. "This award reflects the way both our employees and our financial representatives have built a culture of innovation, and transformed the way we do business," said Karl Gouverneur, Northwestern Mutual vice president and chief technology officer. The award recognizes the leadership Northwestern Mutual has demonstrated in building a comprehensive digital innovation program and fostering a culture of innovation that engages the company at every level. That culture has created an environment that allows Northwestern Mutual to, among other things, rapidly develop and deliver new financial planning and management tools that deliver a distinctive and engaging client-advisor relationship. "Digital innovation is key to providing an outstanding experience to our clients, and we're committed to meeting their needs," Gouverneur added. The initiatives that Gartner reviewed that drove this recognition for Northwestern Mutual include: The Enterprise Venture Fund, an internal capital fund that solicits innovative concepts from and ultimately voted on by employees across the company providing funding for further research and development to the ideas most promising. Two-day rapid development hackathons that bring together teams of developers and business partners to ideate, build, test and refine new applications to improve Northwestern Mutual's business practices. Tiger teams that pair application development teams with Northwestern Mutual financial representatives around the country to identify areas where digital solutions can add value and then embark on rapid-development exercises to create, test, adjust and deliver working prototype solutions. Summing up the award, Gouverneur notes, "Our digital innovation capability allows all of Northwestern Mutual to not just participate in the digital revolution transforming our industry, but to lead and direct change yet to come." For more information on the 2016 Eye on Innovation awards, visit http://www.gartner.com/technology/eye-on-innovation-awards/financial-services/ For more information on the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, visit http://www.gartner.com/events/na/orlando-symposium For more information on Gartner, visit www.gartner.com. About Northwestern Mutual Northwestern Mutual has been helping families and businesses achieve financial security for nearly 160 years. Our financial representatives build relationships with clients through a distinctive planning approach that integrates risk management with wealth accumulation, preservation and distribution. With $238.5 billion in assets, $27.9 billion in revenues and more than $1.6 trillion worth of life insurance protection in force, Northwestern Mutual delivers financial security to more than 4.3 million people who rely on us for insurance and investment solutions, including life, disability income and long-term care insurance; annuities; trust services; mutual funds; and investment advisory products and services. Northwestern Mutual ranks 100 on the 2016 FORTUNE 500, and is recognized by FORTUNE as one of the "World's Most Admired" life insurance companies in 2016. Northwestern Mutual is the marketing name for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, WI, and its subsidiaries. Northwestern Mutual and its subsidiaries offer a comprehensive approach to financial security solutions including: life insurance, long-term care insurance, disability income insurance, annuities, life insurance with long-term care benefits, investment products, and advisory products and services. Subsidiaries include Northwestern Mutual Investment Services, LLC (NMIS), broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, member FINRA and SIPC; the Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company (NMWMC), federal savings bank; and Northwestern Long Term Care Insurance Company (NLTC). SOURCE Northwestern Mutual Related Links http://www.northwesternmutual.com TORONTO, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Global technology company Nuix today announced its Chief Information Security Officer, Chris Pogue, will present this week at Security Education Conference Toronto (SecTor), Canada's premier cybersecurity conference. With his presentation Retaking Surrendered Ground: Making Better Decisions to Fight Cybercrime, Pogue brings a unique perspective as one of the world's leading cybercrime investigators, with more than 2,000 breach investigations under his belt. Drawing from more than 15 years of experiences as a military officer, law enforcement and military instructor, and ethical hacker, Chris leads Nuix's security services organization, in addition to overseeing critical investigations and contracts, and key markets globally. "It's exciting to have Chris at the conference again this year," SecTor director and co-founder Brian Bourne said. "Not only does his background speak volumes and he is well-known around North America's IT security circles, he has a special relationship with the SecTor community and his ability to engage with our audience only adds to the experience." "His dedication to fighting cybercrime and the knowledge he has from his career is just one part of what Chris brings to the table," Bourne said. "When he takes the stage this year, I know our audience will be captivated, entertained and informed." Nuix has enjoyed tremendous growth and product innovation in 2016, including the announcement of Nuix Insight Adaptive Security, the first endpoint security platform to tightly integrate cybersecurity threat prevention, detection, response, remediation, and deception in one solution. The company is poised to launch Nuix Insight Analytics & Intelligence later in 2016, a powerful data analysis platform for security and forensic intelligence that rounds out the Nuix Insight product line. Also this year, Nuix extended its eDiscovery suite with new solutions and product releases, as well as Nuix Voice Powered by Voci, a speech-to-text engine that allows customers to discover previously inaccessible recorded speech content at up to 200 times the speed of manual transcription. Pogue's SecTor appearance will join keynote speakers Edward Snowden, Mikko Hypponen and Laura Payne's panel on the conference mainstage. Attendees can visit www.sector.ca/speakers for more information. About Nuix Nuix (www.nuix.com) protects, informs, and empowers society in the knowledge age. Leading organizations around the world turn to Nuix when they need fast, accurate answers for investigation, cybersecurity incident response, insider threats, litigation, regulation, privacy, risk management, and other essential challenges. About SecTor SecTor brings the world's brightest (and darkest) minds together to identify, discuss, dissect and debate the latest digital threats facing corporations today. Brought to Toronto by Black Arts Illuminated Inc., and unique to central Canada, SecTor provides an unmatched opportunity for IT professionals to collaborate with their peers and learn from their mentors. More information is available at www.sector.ca and you can follow the latest news and announcements on Twitter and Facebook. SOURCE Nuix Related Links http://www.nuix.com VANCOUVER, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ - Orex Minerals Inc. (TSX-V: REX OTCQX: ORMNF) ("Orex"), is pleased to announce that the Phase-III diamond drilling program on the Sandra Escobar Project in Durango, Mexico, has been completed up to hole SA-16-062. Results for holes SA-16-054 to SA-16-060, drilled in the Main and Cerro Chato Zones in the southeastern region of the project, are presented in the table below. Drilling for Phase-IV is due to start in early November. The Sandra Escobar Project is being advanced by Orex under an option agreement with Canasil Resources Inc. (TSX.V: CLZ) ("Canasil"). Highlight for this batch of holes is SA-16-057 in the Main Zone, which yielded 41.00 metres core length (33.58 m true thickness) grading 108 g/t silver, starting 45 metres below surface. This includes 11.00 metres core length (9.01 m true thickness) grading 237 g/t silver. Holes SA-16-054 and 055 are reconnaissance holes on the eastern side of the Cerro Chato Zone, which confirms that the favourable horizon in this area is silver mineralized. Holes SA-16-057 to 060 are from the southern side of the Main Zone. Additional activities on the Sandra Escobar exploration program include an Aeromagnetic and Radiometric Survey being flown by Geotech Ltd. and an initial Resource Estimate being prepared by Mining Plus, due for completion around the end of October. Metallurgical work is also being conducted, under the direction of Blue Coast Metallurgy. Initial testing shows that the native silver and silver halides are amenable to cyanidation, whereas the argentiferous manganese oxides will require a reductive leach process stage. These manganese oxides have responded well for the liberation of silver in reductive leaching during the preliminary testing phases. The metallurgical program is currently underway. Orex's President, Gary Cope says, "This is an active time for the exploration of the Sandra Escobar Project. We are encouraged by the early stage metallurgical tests and look forward to the initial resource estimate. A new phase of diamond drilling is being scheduled for November-December." Sandra Escobar Project 2015-2016 Diamond Drilling Program Holes 54 to 60 Hole From (m) To (m) Core Length (m) True Thick. (m) Ag (g/t) CERRO CHATO ZONE SA-16-054 5.00 21.00 16.00 12.26 36 Includes 9.00 13.00 4.00 3.06 48 Includes 10.00 11.00 1.00 0.77 65 (Lower Interval 1) 89.00 98.00 9.00 6.89 46 Includes 92.00 97.00 5.00 3.83 53 Includes 93.00 94.00 1.00 0.77 75 (Lower Interval 2) 128.00 131.00 3.00 2.30 31 SA-16-055 7.00 17.00 10.00 7.66 32 Includes 10.00 13.00 3.00 2.30 52 Includes 10.00 11.00 1.00 0.77 63 MAIN ZONE SA-16-056 Hole Abandoned Short of Target Depth SA-16-057 62.00 103.00 41.00 33.58 108 Includes 69.00 92.00 23.00 18.84 152 Includes 69.00 80.00 11.00 9.01 237 Includes 71.00 74.00 3.00 2.46 394 SA-16-058 101.00 115.00 14.00 11.47 28 Includes 106.00 113.00 7.00 5.73 39 Includes 108.00 112.00 4.00 3.28 50 Includes 110.00 111.00 1.00 0.82 62 (Lower Interval) 151.50 162.00 10.50 8.60 18 Includes 157.50 159.00 1.50 1.23 24 SA-16-059 52.50 55.00 2.50 2.05 24 Includes 52.50 54.00 1.50 1.23 30 (Lower Interval) 72.00 85.00 13.00 10.65 16 Includes 77.00 81.00 4.00 3.28 22 Includes 77.00 78.00 1.00 0.82 29 SA-16-060 72.00 112.00 40.00 32.76 55 Includes 78.00 101.00 23.00 18.84 69 Includes 79.00 83.00 4.00 3.29 122 Includes 80.00 81.00 1.00 0.82 185 Kluane Drilling Ltd. provides the drilling services utilizing an environmentally low-impact KD-1000 man-portable diamond drill rig. Silver mineralization is hosted in a rhyolite volcanic dome. An altered and highly permeable crystal lithic tuff unit contains disseminations of silver bearing minerals and broadly spaced stockwork veinlets. The current working model has a porphyritic rhyolite unit as an impermeable cap, which may have focused mineralizing fluids into the host permeable volcaniclastic unit. True thicknesses are estimated based on structural and stratigraphic interpretations. A map showing the locations of the drill holes is available on the Orex website. Orex maintains a QA/QC sampling protocol for the diamond drilling program, including the insertion of commercial analytical standards and blank samples. Analytical testing is performed by Bureau Veritas. Silver values are determined by fire assay with a gravimetric finish. Multi-element analyses are also determined using a 4-acid digestion and ICP-MS (Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry). Sandra Escobar Silver-Gold Project, Durango, Mexico Sandra Escobar is situated north of the town of Tepehuanes, Durango, in the heart of the "Mexican Silver Trend", midway between the mining districts of Tovar and Guanacevi and is 75 km west of Silver Standard's La Pitarrilla. This prolific trend hosts some of the world's largest silver camps and deposits, including Fresnillo, Guanajuato, La Pitarrilla, La Preciosa, Real de Angeles and Zacatecas. The project consists of 6,976 hectares of mineral concessions and covers multiple mineralized epithermal quartz veins and breccia structures. These veins form a high level silver-gold-base metals system, hosted in andesitic and rhyolitic rocks, centered on a large rhyolite dome complex in the north and silver systems in smaller rhyolite dome complexes to the southeast. Intense alteration zones and fluid flooding in permeable formations indicates the presence of bulk tonnage targets. Excellent infrastructure exists in the Sandra Escobar area, including paved road access, electrical power, water and manpower from nearby communities. Dale Brittliffe, P.Geo., and Ben Whiting, P.Geo., are Qualified Persons, as defined in NI 43-101, and take responsibility for the technical disclosure contained within this news release. ABOUT OREX MINERALS INC. Orex is a Canadian-based junior exploration company comprised of highly qualified mining professionals. Orex has several current projects: the Coneto Gold-Silver Project in Durango, Mexico, a joint venture with Fresnillo PLC, the Jumping Josephine Gold-Silver Project in British Columbia, Canada, plus this newest Sandra Escobar Silver Project in Durango, Mexico, with Canasil Resources Inc. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS Gary Cope President This News Release may contain forward-looking statements including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content of upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt of property titles, potential mineral recovery processes, etc. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements and Orex undertakes no obligation to update such statements, except as required by law. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. SOURCE Orex Minerals Inc. Related Links www.orexminerals.com PETACH TIKVA, Israel, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Oryx Vision today announced it has emerged from stealth with a veteran team from the Israeli high-tech industry to build a radically different depth sensing solution for autonomous vehicles. Oryx has raised $17 million in Series A funding led by Bessemer Venture Partners (BVP), with additional participation from Maniv Mobility and Trucks VC. BVP Partner Adam Fisher will join Oryx's board of directors. Based on nano antennas that receive light waves like radio waves, Oryx's depth-sensing solution seeks to be the first to meet the demanding depth sensing requirements of autonomous vehicles at a mass market price point. The company has already demonstrated the technology and discusses its implementation with some of the world's leading car manufacturers and Tier-1 suppliers. "Autonomous vehicles need much more powerful depth sensing capabilities than what was originally thought; existing technologies simply cannot deliver them," said Rani Wellingstein, Oryx co-founder and CEO. "We have taken a completely different approach to artificial depth sensing and managed to create a solution that will truly enable autonomous driving." Oryx was founded in 2009 by David Ben-Bassat, a world expert in electro-optics, who previously founded RFWaves and sold it to Vishay. Ben-Bassat, who bootstrapped the company raising less than $300k from Angel investors over the years, was joined by Wellingstein, a seasoned entrepreneur who sold his previous company Intucell to Cisco in 2013. The company will use the new funds to accelerate its expansion, and is currently recruiting physicists, electrical engineers and computer scientists. "Oryx has taken what theoretical physics taught us about the unique properties of light and turned it into a practical piece of technology that solves a major problem in one of the most exciting markets of the future," said Fisher. "We believe that the company's depth sensors will be critical components in many autonomous vehicles." Strict Depth Sensing Requirements In order to drive accurately and safely, autonomous vehicles need a highly detailed 3D view of their environment. Existing depth sensing solutions rely mostly on LiDAR devices, which send short laser pulses while rotating, receive the reflected light back with photo-electric sensors, and thus construct a 3D map of the car's surroundings, pixel by pixel. However, LiDAR is mechanically complicated, prohibitively expensive (costing thousands to tens of thousands of dollars) and has a severe range limit due to eye-safety considerations. Oryx addresses all these limitations. Its depth sensing system sends completely safe light pulses at the long wave infrared spectrum. Instead of rotating mechanically, it illuminates the entire scene at once and uses an array of tiny antennas to receive the returning light waves. These nano antennas, which are only 5/1000th of a millimeter in diameter, are at the heart of Oryx's innovation. They are implemented in thin-film silicon, slashing the cost of automotive depth sensing solutions by an order of magnitude. The Oryx depth sensor is poised to achieve a range of 150 meters and mega-pixel resolution, 50x better performance than LiDAR. With a much clearer view, the autonomous vehicle's computer will require simpler algorithms and less processing power to make the right driving decisions. Unlike LiDAR, the Oryx system will operate in direct sunlight and severe weather conditions. Its design also has no moving parts, resulting in greater reliability and durability. About Oryx Vision Oryx Vision develops solid state depth sensing solutions for autonomous vehicles. Based on a radically innovative depth-sensing technology, it is the first and only answer to the range and resolution vision requirements of fully autonomous driving. Oryx Vision is backed by Bessemer Venture Partners, Maniv Mobility and Trucks VC. About Bessemer Venture Partners Bessemer Venture Partners (BVP) is a $4B venture capital firm that funds consumer, enterprise and healthcare startups around the world, from seed stage to growth. BVP funded the early stages of Blue Apron, Pinterest, Skype, Twitch and Periscope and helped build 117 IPOs including Twilio, Yelp, LinkedIn, Shopify and Wix. Follow us @BessemerVP Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430200LOGO SOURCE Oryx Vision Related Links http://www.oryxvision.com In cooperation with the Belle Fourche Development Corporation and Belle Fourche Chamber of Commerce, PermianLide, the largest U.S. manufacturer of above-ground storage tanks and processing equipment for the oil and natural gas industry and resident of the new park hosted the event. Speakers to over 150 attendees included South Dakota's Governor Dennis Daugaard and U.S. Senator John Thune, RCP&E general manager, Blake Jones and PermianLide's plant manager, Bob Sieve. Both Senator Thune and Governor Daugaard spoke to the positive impact of the industrial rail park for the region with Daugaard emphasizing the importance of this unique opportunity to western South Dakota and encouraging the participants to share in the vision in the days to come. In addition to lauding the economic impact afforded the region by the 79-acre park, PermianLide took the opportunity to express their appreciation to current customers. Sieve also announced their recent receipt of three industry-related quality certifications (API Q1 Certification, API-12F Certification and Monogram, and ISO9001:2008 Certification) that collectively validate their ability to provide reliable and safe products, meeting customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements in the process. According to president and CEO, Howard Seely, PermianLide couldn't be happier with the site selection for their facility. "We selected the Black Hills area of South Dakota and Belle Fourche specifically for our Rockies Expansion to service the oil and gas plays in the region. The area has exceeded our expectations for having a great business environment and supply of qualified employees. We have gladly made significant investments in our facility and in the community and could not be more proud of the men and women who have invested themselves in our operation. They have made this location one of our top performers in terms of safety, quality, and efficiency. We are committed to the continued growth and success of our people, our company, and the region in which we live, and I look forward to continuing our strong relationship with the Belle Fourche Economic Development Commission and the surrounding region." PermianLide has more than 40 years of operating experience, with two well-known industry brands; Permian Tank & Manufacturing and Lide Industries. PermianLide has 8 manufacturing plants and two distribution centers across Texas, Oklahoma and South Dakota, where the newest plant services the Bakken, Niobrara and Powder River shale plays. Diane Morrow [email protected] 800.927.1517 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430388 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430389 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430390 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430401 SOURCE PermianLide MONTREAL, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Phoenix Wrappers today announced an equity investment in the company by Vopne Capital, a private investment firm based in San Francisco. Concurrent with Vopne's investment, the company merged its manufacturing, sales and support operations, formerly owned separately, into a new company Phoenix Wrappers. Phoenix Wrappers is a leading designer and manufacturer of stretch wrapping equipment. Formerly Phoenix-Innotech and CanAm Packaging Systems, the companies formalized their 10-year partnership by merging to form Phoenix Wrappers. Phoenix Wrappers is a fully integrated provider of stretch wrapping equipment, parts, service and support. Phoenix Wrappers is led by CEO Graham Nicholson, former head of CanAm Packaging. Graham stated: "Phoenix Wrappers has a history of manufacturing industry-leading stretch wrapping equipment known for its quality and innovation. We have formally combined manufacturing with our unparalleled customer service and support group. With manufacturing, sales and support under one roof, we are streamlining our internal processes to better serve our customers. We are excited to have Vopne Capital join as investors in our company. They share our vision of manufacturing the highest quality products and providing unparalleled customer service. They also share Phoenix Wrappers' commitment to our customers, our products and our employees." "Phoenix Wrappers is a leader in manufacturing stretch wrapping machinery," added Jim Bloom, Managing Partner at Vopne who joins Phoenix Wrappers' Board of Directors. "The company has an exceptionally talented engineering and product development team, the highest-quality manufacturing processes, and an unyielding focus on service and support. We look forward to helping Phoenix Wrappers continue its expansion to new customers and new markets, while maintaining its excellence in product design, engineering, manufacturing quality and customer service." Steve Taylor, VP of Sales for Phoenix Wrappers, added, "This marks an exciting new chapter for our company. We are pleased to have Vopne's support as we expand." About Phoenix Wrappers Founded in 1994 and headquartered outside Montreal, Quebec, Phoenix Wrappers designs and manufactures industry leading stretch wrapping machinery. Phoenix Wrappers had operated as a partnership between two separate companies, Phoenix-Innotech and CanAm Packaging Systems. The two companies merged this week to form Phoenix Wrappers, a fully integrated provider of stretch wrapping equipment, parts, service and support. With over 3,000 stretch wrapping machines deployed worldwide, Phoenix Wrappers delivers superior performance combined with unparalleled customer service. For more information, visit www.phoenixwrappers.com. About Vopne Capital Vopne Capital is a San Francisco Bay Area-based private equity firm investing in growing and profitable companies in the lower middle market. Vopne undertakes investments, recapitalizations and acquisitions of companies with experienced management teams, outstanding customer service and differentiated products. Vopne invests in a range of industries including: manufacturing, industrial and business services. For more information, visit www.vopne.com. SOURCE Phoenix Wrappers Related Links http://www.phoenixwrappers.com LONDON, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- In Aug. 2016, fertiliser storage for increasing demand in autumn began. However, limited transactions showed that the Chinese ammonium phosphate market remained stagnant. In Aug. 2016, the adjustment of chemical fertiliser export tariffs has been widely discussed within the industry. The majority of industry insiders have reached the consensus that tariffs on exports of chemical fertilisers should be withdrawn in 2017. In H1 2016, Hubei Xingfa recorded YoY falls in its revenue and net profit as a result of the depressed phosphate fertiliser market. However, CCM believes that its complete business layout covering the whole phosphorus chemical industry chain will boost its financial performance in the future. In Aug. 2016, the CISIA held a representative meeting in Lanzhou, listing a series of key measures to speed up the elimination of outmoded production capacity of inorganic salts.x In Aug. 2016, the local government of Fuquan City, Guizhou Province disclosed that various measures will be taken to promote the transformation and upgrade of the local phosphorus chemical industry. CCM predicts that local leading phosphorus chemical enterprises such as Wengfu Group and Guizhou Chuanheng will gain great support from the government. In Aug., 2016, China released an initiative to guide the shift towards industrial circular development, and solicited public opinion, planning to build a preliminary national industrial system geared towards environmentally friendly, low-carbon, and circular development by 2020. CCM believes that this will accelerate the elimination of outmoded phosphorus chemical production capacity in China. In Aug. 2016, the State Council of the P.R.C. released the Guidelines on Structural Adjustment, Transformation and Efficiency Improvement for Petrochemical Industry. Notably, the Chinese government will enhance its support on international cooperation on chemical fertiliser production. In Aug. 2016, Hubei Xingfa announced that it would invest USD3.77 million (RMB25 million) in the development of black phosphorus, a new two-dimensional semiconductor material, and put it into industrial production, aiming to consolidate its leading position by holding the most advanced technology in the industry and seize additional business opportunities. In July 2016, China's phosphorus ore market continued to be stagnant due to the depression of the yellow phosphorus and ammonium phosphate markets. The market price of phosphorus ore may further slip in the near future because enterprises' production costs are reduced following the implementation of the new resource tax on 1 July, 2016. In July 2016, China's phosphoric acid market remained depressed and market prices of the product all dropped slightly in each major production areas. CCM predicted that the market will not be able to recover in the short term considering the dropping yellow phosphorus price and the continuous low phosphate operating rate. China's ammonium phosphate market remains stagnant in Aug. 2016 In July and Aug. 2016, influenced by the EI Nino, there were heavier rains than usual in Southern China, leading to different degrees of flood disasters and significantly harming agricultural production in many regions. As a result, China's ammonium phosphate market remained stagnant and transitions were very limited even if the fertiliser storage for increasing demand in autumn had already begun. - Monoammonium phosphate (MAP) Sales were dull and the market price kept falling. As of mid-Aug. 2016, the average quotation for 55% MAP powder stood at USD252/t (RMB1,670/t), down 1.76% MoM. The main reason for this was that compound fertiliser manufacturers had sufficient inventory and purchased limited MAP, according to trade source. - Diammonium phosphate (DAP) The domestic market was so depressed and manufacturers suffered heavy pressure from their inventory and from downstream companies' requests for lower prices. As of mid-Aug. 2016, the average quotation for 64% DAP was USD338/t (RMB2,240/t), down by 6.67% MoM. In this context, many manufacturers mainly focused on their export business. However, there were also limited new orders. The FOB price was between USD327-330/t. "DAP manufacturers are facing more serious challenges in sales than in previous years. The market price may continue to fall considering that market conditions will not recover in the short term," commented trade source to CCM, "What's worse, the ex-works price of 64% DAP in some regions may even drop to as low as USD302/t (RMB2,000/t)." According to CCM's research, recently, the Chinese government has been carrying out environmental protection inspection in chemical fertiliser enterprises in Henan Province and then in Hubei Province later. According to trade source, many enterprises have been forced to suspend production for transformation and upgrade so far. This helps to ease overcapacity in the market and ammonium phosphate manufacturers are able to reduce inventory more quickly, supporting the market to recover. In addition, from 1 July, 2016, phosphorus ore is taxed by value instead of by volume, the mineral compensation expenses of all resource categories are cut down to zero, collection of the price regulation fund is stopped and the local charging funds set up illegally and targeted at minerals are cancelled. These are favourable for phosphorus ore enterprises and help them reduce production costs. For phosphate fertiliser enterprises, their costs for purchasing phosphorus ore also decline which means bigger profit margins for them. For example, Hubei Xingfa Chemicals Group Co., Ltd. expected to reduce its tax by USD3.02 million (RMB20 million) in 2016 after the phosphorus ore resource tax rate was cut from 10% to 7%. Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/4124928/ About Reportbuyer Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers http://www.reportbuyer.com For more information: Sarah Smith Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 208 816 85 48 Website: www.reportbuyer.com SOURCE ReportBuyer Related Links http://www.reportbuyer.com BEIJING, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Picoo Design executives announced today the launch of Lynx, a new security tool aimed at keeping pictures safe from snoopy intruders. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430293 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430292 With more and more anti-virus apps launching on Google Play, mobile security is no longer Android users' main concern. "I'm not worried about mobile viruses," says Ashley, a college student from US, "I'm more terrified by someone stealing my private photos on the phone." Recent surveys show that Ashley's concerns are not unfounded. 8 out of 10 Android users reported similar worries about private files being accessed by someone unauthorized. Always being one step ahead, PICOO Design has been working on improving privacy protection for Android phones since 2012, and has launched several high rated apps over the years that have helped countless smartphone users to manage and secure private data. "However," Alexander Barton, VP at PICOO Design, says, "you can search the Google Play Store and find hundreds of similar apps but you never know whether they are helpful, or even safe. If someone has access to your phone, they are going to find those private photos eventually as long as they are still on the phone." And this is where PICOO Design decided to create an app with a totally different security concept. "Lynx is different from any other privacy protection apps," Barton says, "your private data is no longer stored solely on your phone. Instead, all data is safely stored in a private cloud drive. That means losing your phone does not equal to privacy being at risk when you can always find your data on private cloud, also, by storing them on cloud drive, you can free up your phone space for more apps and games." On top of that, Lynx also makes photo and video sharing much safer by generating an access code which can be used to safely share photos or videos with friends. Last but not the least, Lynx does everything it could to guarantee the safety of user privacy, that includes Break-in Alert, Fake Lynx and multiple other premium features to make sure only the owner of the account have access to private data stored on cloud. And all these features are provided for completely free! Lynx is now available for free download on the Google Play Store with a complimentary 5GB of cloud storage space. Or you can scan the QR code to download. Media Contact: NAME Picoo Design stephensandiego(at)sina(dot)com +8610-64522392 http://www.picooapp.com/ SOURCE Picoo Design Related Links http://www.picooapp.com CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Piedmont Natural Gas today advised customers that Piedmont crews will be canvassing neighborhoods in flood impacted areas to inspect natural gas meters for signs of submersion from flooding caused by Hurricane Matthew. Any meter believed to have been submerged will be removed and natural gas service to the home or business will be turned off. Customers whose natural gas service is turned off will be notified, and natural gas appliances in the home or business will need to be inspected for safe operation by a licensed contractor before service can be restored. Customers are advised that appliances may need to be replaced if an inspection finds they have been damaged by flood waters and cannot operate safely. "Safety continues to be our top priority as we deal with the aftermath of hurricane Matthew," said Frank Yoho, executive vice president and president, natural gas business for Piedmont Natural Gas. "Although our natural gas pipeline delivery system was relatively undamaged by the storm, we know many of our customers in eastern North Carolina and South Carolina are dealing with incredible destruction and loss of property. The continued safe and reliable operation of our natural gas system is an important piece in helping our customers and the communities we serve in these areas to recover and rebuild." To help ensure the continued safe and reliable operation of natural gas service to customers and communities impacted by Matthew, Piedmont asks anyone affected by the storm to please follow these guidelines: If water has entered your home: Do not attempt to disconnect or work on or around your natural gas meter Do not attempt to relight any of your natural gas appliances. Call Piedmont at 1.800.752.7504 so we can inspect your meter and your natural gas appliances for possible damage at 1.800.752.7504 so we can inspect your meter and your natural gas appliances for possible damage Do not attempt to clear flood debris from your natural gas meter or from any other natural gas appliance, including your water heater. Call Piedmont for an assessment for an assessment Never use outdoor equipment indoors for cooking or heating. This includes natural gas grills, generators, etc. If your natural gas appliances are damaged by water: Natural gas appliances damaged by water may need to be replaced according to manufacturer guidelines and instructions When choosing a contractor for repair or replacement of your natural gas appliances, make sure the contractor is licensed, committed to safety and follows all manufacturer safety guidelines You can choose to work with Piedmont Natural Gas, one of our approved Gas Advantage Dealers, or any other licensed contractor to repair or replace damaged appliances For a list of Piedmont's Gas Advantage Dealers, go to www.piedmontng.com Gas Advantage Dealers, go to www.piedmontng.com Note that unauthorized repairs can be unsafe and may void your warranty according to manufacturer guidelines Call your appliance manufacturer if you are unsure that the work being performed is an approved repair If you suspect a natural gas leak (natural gas smells like rotten eggs): Leave the area immediately After leaving the area, call Piedmont at1.800.752.7504 or call 911 at1.800.752.7504 or call 911 Call from a neighbor's house or from another location far from the smell of natural gas DO NOT use anything electrical that may create a spark; this includes cell phones DO NOT operate any light switches DO NOT light a match DO NOT attempt to locate the source of a leak DO NOT attempt to stop a leak DO NOT return to the area until Piedmont Natural Gas or the emergency services have declared the area safe DO NOT attempt to operate pipeline valves yourself. You may inadvertently cause more danger or additional damage DO NOT attempt to extinguish a natural gas fire Customers with immediate questions or concerns should call Piedmont Natural Gas at 1.800.752.7504. Additionally, customers can also visit the company's website at www.piedmontng.com for additional information and storm related updates. Piedmont Natural Gas Piedmont Natural Gas, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, is an energy services company primarily engaged in the distribution of natural gas to more than 1 million residential, commercial, industrial and power generation customers in portions of North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, including customers served by municipalities who are wholesale customers. Its subsidiaries are invested in joint venture, energy-related businesses, including unregulated retail natural gas marketing, regulated interstate natural gas transportation and storage, and regulated intrastate natural gas transportation businesses. More information about Piedmont Natural Gas is available at www.piedmontng.com. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Duke Energy is an S&P 100 Stock Index company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DUK. More information about the company is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center serves as a multimedia resource for journalists and features news releases, helpful links, photos and videos. Hosted by Duke Energy, illumination is an online destination for stories about remarkable people, innovations, and community and environmental topics. It also offers glimpses into the past and insights into the future of energy. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook. Media Contacts David Trusty Loree Elswick Piedmont Natural Gas Piedmont Natural Gas (704) 731-4391 (704) 731-4236 [email protected] [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430345LOGO SOURCE Piedmont Natural Gas Related Links http://www.piedmontng.com BROOKLYN, N.Y., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- On November 4, 2016, 6 pm-9 pm, Pratt Institute's Brooklyn Fashion+Design Accelerator (BF+DA) will host the 2nd Annual Positive Impact Awards. The event will serve as a who's who of ethical fashion and honor pioneers in the sustainable fashion industry including ethical powerhouses Patagonia and EILEEN FISHER, innovative technology venture Bolt Threads and the Sustainable Apparel Coalition. The Positive Impact Awards (PIAs) is part of the BF+ DA celebration of two years as a Brooklyn-based social innovation entity that is supporting over 32 sustainable businesses in fashion, technology and research. From gender neutral clothing for women to 3D printed jewelry, hand crafted shoes and knitwear, the BF+DA designers collectively have reached incredible milestones including an over $1.75 million increase in revenues and job creation in Brooklyn of over 50 new jobs. "The time to adopt 21st century strategies is now. Successful businesses need to implement the core values of waste reduction, transparent supply chains, ensuring the use of ethical production methods and exploring new technologies. These are the things that are driving our future," says BF+DA founder Deb Johnson. "We're here to get the apparel industry on track." In addition to the awards, tours of the BF+DA's production lab, including demonstrations on the digital knitting machines and tours of the sustainable textile library will be complemented by BF+DA Venture Fellows opening their studios for shopping. In response to the upcoming election, Patagonia will show-off its newest initiative #VoteOurPlanet which offers information on the New York City politicians that are committed to protect "soil, water and air." The celebration will take place at the BF+DA and is open to the public by RSVP. "Getting 500 advocates for the environment and society together in one place will be a heady experience," says Ms. Johnson, "It's a movement that finally has traction." For more information and to RSVP, go here. WHERE: Pratt Institute's Brooklyn Fashion + Design Accelerator, 630 Flushing Avenue, Suite 704, Brooklyn ADMISSION: $20 suggested donation MEDIA CONTACTS: For interviews or for more information, please contact BF+DA Director of Communications, Amy DuFault at [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429870LOGO SOURCE Brooklyn Fashion+Design Accelerator Related Links http://bkaccelerator.com/engagesingle/positive-impact-awards NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Below are experts from the ProfNet network that are available to discuss timely issues in your coverage area. You can also submit a query to the hundreds of thousands of experts in our network it's easy and free! Just fill out the query form to get started: http://prn.to/alertswire EXPERT ALERTS More Lifesaving Valves to Stop Gas Leaks Will Be Required in 2017 Real Solutions to Stop Police Brutality and Gun Violence in Urban Communities MEDIA JOBS Editorial/Administrative Assistant The Real Deal (NY) Financial Market Writers TheStreet (NY) Copy Editor Law360 (NY) OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES 4 Quick Tips for Event Coverage That Resonates Near and Far Blog Profiles: Autism Blogs On PRN: Samsung Expands Recall, BuzzFeed and Twitter Partner ------------------------------------------------------------------- EXPERT ALERTS: More Lifesaving Valves to Stop Gas Leaks Will Be Required in 2017 Tom Carse Attorney Carse Law Firm in Dallas Starting next year, the federal government will require that all new or replaced gas lines for hundreds of thousands of apartments and small businesses across the U.S. must be equipped with special valves that can shut off gas automatically when a line is ruptured. The government's announcement expands the mandatory installation of excess flow valves beyond new single-family homes. The valves, priced at around $30, don't prevent gas lines from being ruptured, such as when a backhoe accidentally hits one. But by limiting the amount of gas that escapes, federal regulators say the valves can prevent a buildup of fuel that can contribute to explosions or fires. Says Carse: "These simple and inexpensive devices can save dozens of lives and millions of dollars in property damage each year. But gas companies, contractors and consumers need to understand how and where the valves should be located. Otherwise the devices will provide very little or no protection." Earlier this year, Carse filed suit against a natural gas company on behalf of residents who were injured and their homes destroyed or damaged as the result of a 2015 gas explosion, claiming negligence in the location and installation of excess flow valves. Contact: Barry Pound, [email protected] Real Solutions to Stop Police Brutality and Gun Violence in Urban Communities Cary Peterson Lobby Solicitor Robert Peterson & Fields Associates P.C. "Local law enforcement needs more funding for more training to acquire better social services skills in efforts to learn how to deal with various characters and cultures within society. I think recent discussions at the presidential debates, on a local scale, and in the media have been healthy but a bill proposition approved at Congress and signed by Mr. President followed by a check issued from Treasury to fund law enforcement and community organizations like Neighborhood Watch are the first steps to resolving this issue that's plagued America and its civilians for far too long." Peterson is a registered lobby solicitor for multiple U.S. congressional coalitions that support law enforcement and public safety. He is fluent in Spanish. Peterson is located in New York City. Website: http://www.rpflegal.com Contact: Allan Anderson, [email protected] **************** MEDIA JOBS: Following are links to job listings for staff and freelance writers, editors and producers. You can view these and more job listings on our Job Board: https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/community/jobs/ Editorial/Administrative Assistant The Real Deal (NY) Financial Market Writers TheStreet (NY) Copy Editor Law360 (NY) ***************** OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES: Following are links to other news and resources we think you might find useful. If you have an item you think other reporters would be interested in and would like us to include in a future alert, please drop us a line at [email protected] 4 QUICK TIPS FOR EVENT COVERAGE THAT RESONATES NEAR AND FAR. Events like the grand opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture provide a great opportunity to give your readers a behind-the-scenes look at a high-profile local event. Your coverage brings the experience to your audience. We sent a couple of PR Newswire's content specialists to cover the media preview, where they saw a variety of media outlets and personalities in action. They came back with some great pointers to ensure your event coverage resonates with your followers: http://bit.ly/2ent7tP BLOG PROFILES: AUTISM BLOGS. Each week, PR Newswire's Audience Relations team profiles a handful of blogs that do a good job with promoting and contributing to the conversation in their industry/space. In the latest installment, the team looks at a few autism blogs: http://bit.ly/2emt6Fe ON PR NEWSWIRE: SAMSUNG EXPANDS RECALL, BUZZFEED AND TWITTER PARTNER. With thousands of press releases published each week, it can be difficult to keep up with everything on PR Newswire for Journalists. Here are some of this week's most newsworthy releases you might have missed: http://bit.ly/2e1Saah **************** PROFNET is an exclusive service of PR Newswire. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150416/199234LOGO SOURCE ProfNet Related Links http://www.profnet.com DALLAS, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Randstad Technologies, a leading technology talent and solutions provider in Dallas and across the U.S., and the CIO Executive Council are hosting a networking event next Wednesday, Oct. 26, for women technology leaders, from 5:00-7:00 pm at the Hotel ZaZa Art House. The event is part of a series of Randstad initiatives aimed at supporting women in the information technology (IT) field. The latest national figures from the Census Bureau show that women's representation in the IT workforce is shrinking from 31 percent in 1990 down to 25 percent in 2014. Research from WANTED Analytics reinforces this trend, particularly in Dallas. There are over 10,000 current IT job openings posted by Dallas employers, who offer a median salary of $105,850 for IT professionals, making a career in IT a good target for women. Yet of the 156,000 IT professionals in the Dallas market, only about one quarter are women. "Attracting more women to IT is important to our clients," said Kathy Van Pelt, Randstad Technologies vice president of strategic marketing. "We want to not only encourage more women to explore careers in IT, but also let them know that an IT job does not just mean coding - there's a great variety of IT roles available." Randstad Technologies recently released a study focused on a segment of the IT workforce, Randstad Technologies' Cybersecurity Workforce Report - 12 Markets with High Demand for Top Talent. The report reveals 12 key markets nationwide including Dallas with strong demand for top-tier, enterprise-level cybersecurity talent. The Randstad Technologies-CIO Executive Council event is for women in IT leadership positions. Please register here if you would like to attend. Here are the event details: Wednesday, Oct. 26, 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM Hotel ZaZa Art House 2332 Leonard Street Dallas, TX About Randstad Technologies Randstad Technologies has been connecting top companies around the globe with the expert technology talent and solutions that drive their success since 1984. Our deep industry expertise and full-service capabilitiesRecruitment, Consulting, Projects and Outsourcingenable organizations to be agile, productive and ahead in the field with our wide network of specialists and flexible solutions. For more information, visit www.randstadtechnologies.com. About Randstad US Randstad US is a wholly owned subsidiary of Randstad Holding nv, a $24.5 billion global provider of HR services. As one of the largest staffing organizations in the United States, Randstad provides temporary, temporary-to-hire and permanent placement services each week to over 100,000 people through its network of more than 900 branches and client-dedicated locations. Employing 5,300 recruiting experts, the company is a top provider of outsourcing, staffing, consulting and workforce solutions within the areas of engineering, finance and accounting, healthcare, human resources, IT, legal, life sciences, manufacturing and logistics, office and administration and sales and marketing. Learn more at www.randstadusa.com and access Randstad's panoramic U.S. thought leadership knowledge center through its Workforce360 site that offers valuable insight into the latest economic indicators and HR trends shaping the world of work. Note to editors: Trademarks and registered trademarks remain the property of their respective owners. SOURCE Randstad Technologies Related Links http://www.randstadtechnologies.com GARLAND, Texas, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Holbrook Basin which is located in northern Arizona, is being hailed as the "Saudi Arabia of Helium" by those in the know who are close to the natural gas and crude oil industries. Helium is a non-renewable, technology driven resource and our global supply is running out, while the constant demand continues to grow. Recent helium prices have sky-rocketed upwards of $125/mcf for standard grade helium. The problem has been the inability to separate and store helium for market without being in close proximity to a helium processing facility. New technology has been recently developed that allows helium to be captured, separated and stored at the wellhead. Problem solved. In the past, the goal of producing helium has only been achieved by those wells that had access to these large helium processing plants. The cost to get helium to storage at a regional selling point simply exceeded the ability to make a profit. With this newly developed technology, which is small and portable, a few companies like Rare Earth Exploration, LLC are in the middle of one of the hottest lease acquisition and drilling prospects in the United States. "A true game changer," says Timothy Taylor, CEO of Rare Earth Exploration, LLC. Mr. Taylor emphasizes that "with this new gathering technology, the break-even price of helium is around $1/mcf. Now considering Grade A helium can bring as much as $200/mcf, the profit potentials are staggering." Mr. Taylor continues, "The play's already sky high potential is further bolstered by low drilling and well completion costs due to shallow target depths for helium reservoirs and conventional vertical completions with little need for fracking." Well spacing requirements have recently been reduced, adding increased interest in helium exploration in Arizona, specifically the Holbrook Basin and the Pinta Dome Field, the largest discovery of helium found, to date, in Arizona. Advances in technology and, global supply and demand have ushered in a new phase of development and excitement for these prolific Arizona helium fields as Mr. Taylor goes on to say, "The surface has only been scratched regarding helium production in the Holbrook Basin and specifically the Pinta Dome Field. With the new spacing rules you're going to see a lot of in-field drilling over the next few years in the Pinta Dome and Navajo Springs Fields." Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161013/428655LOGO SOURCE Rare Earth Exploration EAST HARTFORD, Conn., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Pratt & Whitney's PurePower Geared Turbofan (GTF) engine has entered passenger service with Spirit Airlines, which is the first U.S. carrier to fly the Airbus A320neo. The aircraft made its first passenger service flight from Detroit to Los Angeles on Sunday, Oct. 16. Pratt & Whitney is a division of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX). "Two things stood out immediately," said Jyri Strandman, vice president of flight operations at Spirit Airlines, who piloted Spirit Airlines' first Airbus A320neo on the ferry flight from Germany to Florida. "Number one was that the engines are extremely quiet. Secondly, when we landed, we noticed we had a whole lot more fuel than we expected to have." Spirit Airlines calculated that on the 2,000 mile flight between Detroit and Los Angeles, the new aircraft saved about 422 gallons of fuel compared with the previous model. Performance on other aircraft also confirms that the PurePower Geared Turbofan engine reduces fuel burn by 16 percent, lowers emissions by 50 percent and reduces the noise footprint by 75 percent. "We are very proud to see Spirit Airlines become the first U.S. airline to fly with our PurePower engines," said Rick Deurloo, senior vice president, Sales, Marketing and Customer Support. "PurePower engines are already in service with eight airlines around the world, and are yielding a better than a 99 percent dispatch reliability rate." Spirit Airlines has ordered 55 of Airbus' latest narrow-body passenger jets, each powered by Pratt & Whitney's revolutionary PurePower PW1100G-JM engines. Eight carriers are flying 22 GTF engine powered aircraft across the globe. GTF engines have earned more than 30,000 revenue hours and more than 20,000 take-offs and landings. The PurePower Geared Turbofan engine backlog continues to grow. Pratt & Whitney has engine orders, including options, from more than 80 customers in 30 countries. Pratt & Whitney is a world leader in the design, manufacture and service of aircraft engines and auxiliary power units. United Technologies Corp., based in Farmington, Connecticut, provides high-technology systems and services to the building and aerospace industries. By combining a passion for science with precision engineering, the company is creating smart, sustainable solutions the world needs. To learn more about UTC, visit the website at www.utc.com. This press release contains forward-looking statements concerning future business opportunities. Actual results may differ materially from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to changes in levels of demand in the aerospace industry, in levels of air travel, and in the number of aircraft to be built; challenges in the design, development, production, support, performance and realization of the benefits of advanced technologies; as well as other risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to those detailed from time to time in United Technologies Corp.'s Securities and Exchange Commission filings. For more information about Pratt & Whitney, visit www.pw.utc.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/prattandwhitney Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/prattandwhitney YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/prattandwhitney1925 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/pratt-&-whitney Sara Banda Alice Straight Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney +1 (860) 565-4031 office +1 (860) 565-2344 office +1 (860) 202-8644 mobile +1 (860) 830-6187 mobile [email protected] [email protected] SOURCE Pratt & Whitney Related Links http://www.pratt-whitney.com MENLO PARK, Calif., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Robert Half International Inc. (NYSE symbol: RHI) today announced it expects to release third-quarter 2016 earnings results on Wednesday, October 26, at approximately 4:15 p.m. EDT. Robert Half management will conduct a conference call at 5 p.m. EDT on October 26, following the release. The dial-in number is 877-814-0475 (+1-706-643-9224 outside the United States). It is recommended that participants dial in five minutes before the call begins. The password to access the call is "Robert Half." A taped recording of this call will be available for replay beginning at approximately 8 p.m. EDT on October 26 and ending at 11:59 p.m. EST on November 26. The dial-in number for the replay is 855-859-2056 (+1-404-537-3406 outside the United States). To access the replay, enter conference ID# 89850299. The conference call also will be archived in audio format on the company's website at www.roberthalf.com. Founded in 1948, Robert Half is the world's first and largest specialized staffing firm and a recognized leader in professional consulting and staffing services. The company's specialized staffing divisions include Accountemps, Robert Half Finance & Accounting and Robert Half Management Resources, for temporary, full-time and senior-level project professionals, respectively, in the fields of accounting and finance; OfficeTeam, for highly skilled administrative support professionals; Robert Half Technology, for project and full-time technology professionals; Robert Half Legal, for project and full-time staffing of lawyers, paralegals and legal support personnel; and The Creative Group, for interactive, design, marketing, advertising and public relations professionals. Robert Half also is the parent company of Protiviti, a global consulting firm that helps companies solve problems in finance, technology, operations, governance, risk and internal audit. Robert Half has staffing and consulting operations in more than 400 locations worldwide. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160212/332877LOGO SOURCE Robert Half Related Links https://www.roberthalf.com CEDAR CITY, Utah, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The latest 10 piece product line "Welcome Home Collection" by Scott Art Studio World Wide is meant to increase a greater sense of well being and comfort in the home. Staying on trend with stain and finish selections, these items will fit comfortably in both the modern and traditional residence. With an option to customize the family sign, Scott Art Studio is sure to please. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430183 Scott Art Studio is family owned and operated in Cedar City, Utah and is dedicated to helping our customers decorate their homes and party venues with distinct hand crafted items. We have over 21 years of combined experience in art and design. We leveraged this experience to develop both seasonal and life-long gifts and decor. Related Files 10182016 PressRelease.pdf Related Links Welcome Home 10 piece Collection SOURCE Scott Art Studio World Wide LONDON, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- On 1 3 Aug., 201 6, Xiangyang Chia Tai Agriculture and Nantong Bear Seeds signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Beijing. On 3-5 July, 201 6, the second Northern China Fresh Corn Conference, with the introduction of new crop varieties as topic, was held in Wuqing District, Tianjin Municipality. On 28 June, 201 6, the Gansu Provincial Crop Variety Approval Committee announced the withdrawal of the verification certificate for corn variety Kenyu30. Promotion and sales of the product was stopped. There are some core parents in soybean breeding program, which are the key to success in breeding, revealing their role is helpful for parent selection in hybrid breeding work. This paper reveals the genetic relationship of three soybean core parents and their derived breeding lines detected by PAV markers. CP Seed and Bear Seeds signs strategic cooperation agreement On 13 Aug., 2016, Xiangyang Chia Tai Agriculture Development Co., Ltd. (Xiangyang Chia Tai Agriculture) and Nantong Bear Seeds Technology Co., Ltd. (Nantong Bear Seeds) signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Beijing. In this cooperation, Nantong Bear Seeds will increase capital of all routine scientific research breeding and seed businesses to buy into the Xiangyang Chia Tai Agriculture. This truly realizes powerful combination and complementary advantages. Besides, this will certainly add new vitality for the development of China's seed industry. Many leaders attended this signing ceremony such as Liu Jian, former vice minister of the MOA, Zou Kui, division chief of Variety Management Division of Seed Bureau of MOA, Liu Hengyou, vice mayor of Xiangyang City, Hubei Province, He Jinlong, station master of Jiangsu Seed Management Station, Vice Secretary Zhang Shuangcheng and Director Yuan Haihe of Xiangzhou District Committee, Xiangyang City of Hubei Province, etc. Leaders from both sides also attended this ceremony such as Yang Xiaoping, vice chairman of CP Group, Xie Yi, senior vice chairman of China of CP Group, Vice Chairman Xing Jixian, Wang Fujie, senior president of Xiangyang Chia Tai Agriculture, Cheng Lun, board chairman of Nantong Bear Seeds, Ji Tao, general manager of Xiangyang company, Chen Jingyu, general manager of Yunnan company, etc. Xiangyang Chia Tai Agriculture is a large-scale modern crop seed enterprise established by CP Group. It engages in integration of breeding, production and marketing of seeds of main crops. Since its establishment in Xiangyang City, Hubei Province in 1996, it always upholds the fine tradition of "devoting to agriculture, serving farmers". At present, there are three large seed processing centres in Xiangyang City, Hubei Province, Yuxi City, Yunnan Province, and Zhangye City, Gansu Province. Their annual production and processing capacity is 50,000 tonnes. They focus on breeding, producing and popularizing fine corn hybrids. For example, for twenty years, independently-developed fine new corn varieties includes Zhengda12, Zhengda999, Zhengda619, Zhengda808, Zhengda719, etc. They have been promoted to over ten provinces and are popular with farmers. Specifically, "Zhengda619" is resistant to barren, good in resistance and fine in quality. It is one of the preferred varieties in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and is a trial control variety in corn areas there. So far the accumulated generalization area has been over 2.67 million ha (40 million mu). "Zhengda999" is eurytopic, great in quality, high in resistance and high in yield, which is also favored by farmers. Now, it has been examined and approved by Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, Chongqing and Guizhou provinces, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and southern Shaanxi province. So far the accumulated generalization area has been over 4 million ha (60 million mu). "Zhengda12" is wide in adaptation, high in unit weight, excellent in quality, and good in benefits of silage seeds. It has been examined and approved by Gansu, Shaanxi, Hebei, Henan, Anhui and Hubei provinces and Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. So far the accumulated generalization area has been over 5.33 million ha (80 million mu). For twenty years, the totally popularized planting area of fine corn varieties of CP series is around 13.33 million ha (200 million mu). It provides a direct income increase of more than USD5 million (RMB30 trillion) for farmers. "Chia Tai" brand has become really famous in domestic seed industry. The company has been entitled as "China's Top 50 Seed Industry", "National Double Excellence Foreign Investment Enterprises", "High-tech enterprise in Hubei Province", "Key Leading Enterprise of Agricultural Industrialization in Hubei Province", and "AAA Credit Enterprise in Enterprise Credit Evaluation". It also passed ISO9001 quality system authentication. Nantong Bear Seeds, founded in 2012, was jointly organized by an overseas R&D team and a domestic investment institution. Its variety R&D is mainly for the eastern North China and has radiation potential to Northwest China and huang-huai-hai area. The company shows its significant personnel accumulation effect and overall R&D advantages in a short time. This benefits from the national strategy of innovation-driven development and its own good mechanism construction. Besides, Nantong Bear Seeds has an effective variety R&D and testing system. Routine breeding techniques and a molecular assisted breeding technique are combined. Therefore, the approval of several fine corn varieties has been implemented such as Xiongyu581, Xiongyu587, Xiongyu582, Zunyu1, etc. In future, a number of highly prospective varieties will be put on market. In this cooperation, Nantong Bear Seeds will increase capital of all routine scientific research breeding and seed businesses to buy into the Xiangyang Chia Tai Agriculture. This truly realizes powerful combination and complementary advantages. Besides, this will certainly add new vitality for the development of China's seed industry. Wang Fujie, senior president of Xiangyang Chia Tai Agriculture, introduced at the meeting that new Xiangyang Chia Tai Agriculture will take responsibility for promoting "the development of whole industry chain of agriculture and animal husbandry" as well as national "food security" and "food safety". The company will also re-plan in several aspects of variety R&D, production, popularization and so on. By 2020, it plans to establish a storage base of 666,667 ha (10 million mu) for planting high-quality special corn for feed in the surrounding areas of Xiangyang City, Hubei Province, and Northeast China. In addition, the company will vigorously promote the integrated development of industries of seed, planting, feed, cultivation and food. Business philosophy of "benefiting the country, people and company" of CP Group is practiced. Meanwhile, more values are created for more users. Furthermore, the company plays a leading role for synchronous development of farmers, rural areas and agriculture. More contribution is made to national "food security" and "food safety". Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/4124929/ About Reportbuyer Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers http://www.reportbuyer.com For more information: Sarah Smith Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 208 816 85 48 Website: www.reportbuyer.com SOURCE ReportBuyer Related Links http://www.reportbuyer.com MILFORD, Mass., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- SeraCare Life Sciences, a manufacturer and leading partner to global in vitro diagnostics manufacturers and clinical laboratories, is announcing the launch of the industry's first multiplexed reference material for inherited disease testing by next-generation sequencing (NGS) at the 2016 ASHG Annual Meeting in Vancouver. The Seraseq Inherited Cardiomyopathy Reference Material was developed in collaboration with Birgit Funke, PhD, FACMG, Director of Clinical Research and Development at the Partners HealthCare Laboratory for Molecular Medicine (LMM), capitalizing on her expertise in genetic testing for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. This work will be published in the November 2016 issue of The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a genetic cardiovascular disease that is characterized by unusual thickening of the heart muscle which can lead to sudden cardiac failure or abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias). HCM represents a class of disorders where the combination of disease prevalence and genetic heterogeneity (resulting in the need to sequence many genes) has led to the rapid adoption of NGS-based gene panels. As targeted inherited disease panels continue to expand, there is growing demand for reference materials that cover a broad range of not only prevalent pathogenic variants, but also difficult-to-detect variants (such as large insertion/deletions) to expedite test development, perform comprehensive analytical validation, as well as to monitor routine assay performance. However, the traditional practice of using genomic reference materials (e.g. NA12878) and remnant patient samples that cover variants of interest can pose challenges for diagnostic laboratories as informative patient samples are often not publicly available and getting access to adequate numbers of samples can end up being time consuming and/or costly. Creating multiplexed reference samples that are tailored to specific disorders fills this void, especially in an environment of growing regulatory oversight. The Seraseq Cardiomyopathy Reference Material combines ten common pathogenic and/or technically challenging variants in a single reference sample. The variants were chosen based on a careful review of clinical sequencing data obtained over ten years at LMM. Further, the final product configuration was determined based on proof-of-concept evaluation of two different design concepts and performance that was comparable to patient-derived data. This product combines HCM variants in a well-characterized genomic background at a 50% target allele frequency that can be used for assay development, analytical validation, or routine quality control. "We are very excited to have developed, in collaboration with Dr. Birgit Funke of LMM, the first-of-a-kind multiplexed reference material for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy to expedite the adoption and accurate use of NGS-based inherited disease panels," said Russell Garlick, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer at SeraCare. "Using this technology, genomics laboratories around the world are able to characterize and monitor their assays using these highly multiplexed, rare, but clinically relevant variants in their assays. We are pleased our innovative Seraseq Cardiomyopathy Reference Material can provide the assurance in the results that LMM and others require, while also enabling them to monitor long-term performance that is simply not possible using remnant specimens or engineered cell lines." About Partners HealthCare Partners HealthCare is an integrated health system founded by Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital. In addition to its two academic medical centers, the Partners system includes community and specialty hospitals, a managed care organization, community health centers, a physician network, home health and long-term care services, and other health-related entities. Partners HealthCare is one of the nation's leading biomedical research organizations and a principal teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. Partners HealthCare is a non-profit organization. About SeraCare Life Sciences Inc. SeraCare enables the promise of precision medicine by advancing the understanding of disease and providing assurance of the diagnostic result. Our innovative tools and technologies not only provide assurance of the safe, effective, and accurate performance of diagnostic assays but also establish a framework for regulating, compiling, and interpreting data from precision diagnostics. Our portfolio includes a broad range of products such as quality control technologies, disease-state specimens and tissues for research and development, processed biological materials, and immunoassay reagents. For more information, please visit www.seracare.com and follow SeraCare on Twitter (@SeraCare). Company Contact: Sam Blier SeraCare Life Sciences, Inc. 508.244.6426 [email protected] www.seracare.com Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150729/249066LOGO SOURCE SeraCare Life Sciences, Inc. Related Links http://www.seracare.com NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Sherry-Lehmann Wine & Spirits today announced the seventh consecutive year of its time honored, philanthropic relationship with charitable organization, Keep a Child Alive (KCA). In addition to its role as the official wine and spirits sponsor of the 13th Annual Keep a Child Alive Black Ball, Sherry-Lehmann is partnering with LOUIS XIII to offer a once-in-a-lifetime auction lot, to be presented during tonight's event at the Hammerstein Ballroom. This highly-anticipated auction lot is set to include a LOUIS XIII Legacy Limited Edition Magnum. Each decanter takes four generations of cellar masters over 100 years to craft. This exclusive magnum is hand-signed by the LOUIS XIII cellar masters, each passing on their treasured knowledge to the next, patiently preserving the art of LOUIS XIII. LOUIS XIII Cognac is a precious blend of up to 1,200 eaux-de-vie, the youngest of which is at least 40 years old. The auction lot also includes a once-in-a-lifetime experience in Paris, Cognac and Cannes where the winning bidder will receive five-star hotel accommodations, dinner at a three Michelin Star restaurant, a tour of the House, and a tasting of LOUIS XIII with Cellar Master, Baptiste Loiseau. The experience will culminate with VIP access to the 70th Annual Cannes Film Festival where the winner will walk the famed red carpet before attending a film premiere as the special guest of LOUIS XIII. Last year's record-breaking auction item provided by LOUIS XIII and Sherry-Lehmann helped raise over $300,000 for KCA to utilize in the fight against HIV and AIDS. "Sherry-Lehmann is excited to be partnering once again with such esteemed brands as LOUIS XIII, Champagne Thienot, Domaine Faiveley, Maison Olivier Leflaive and Belvedere Red in support of KCA's Black Ball," said Chris Adams, CEO of Sherry-Lehmann. "We hope our seventh year participating in this wonderful event brings luck to those bidding in tonight's auction, so we can break last year's record and bring additional support to the Keep a Child Alive organization." The Black Ball will include cocktail hour, dinner, a live auction, celebrity musical performances, and the presentation of the annual KCA Humanitarian Award to legendary music executive Clive Davis. The year also marks the first time the event will be live-streamed via TIDAL. Sherry-Lehmann will be on-hand to pour premiere wine and spirits including Casa Dragones Tequila, Glenmorangie, Bacardi Rum, Bulleit Bourbon, Johnnie Walker and Tanqueray Gin. Belvedere Red will also be poured throughout the event and will be featured in the signature cocktail, The "Freak Out." For more information about Sherry-Lehmann, the official wine and spirits retailer of the 2016 KCA Black Ball, please contact Sarah Cox at Regan Communications Group: mobile: 617-763-6728 or, by email: [email protected]. About Sherry-Lehmann: Founded in 1934, Sherry-Lehmann is located in the heart of Manhattan, at 505 Park Avenue. The Sherry-Lehmann store combines old-world charm with modern sophistication, and caters to seasoned wine lovers and beginners alike. Renowned for its deep stock of fine wine and spirits from across the globe, it's helpful, knowledgeable staff, and award-winning website, Sherry-Lehmann is committed to delivering an incomparable level of customer service. Entering its 80th year of business, Sherry-Lehmann's dedication has learned many awards, including: "Retailer of the Year" (The Wine Enthusiast), "New York's #1 Wine Shop" (Zagat), and the "#1 Wine Shop in America" (Forbes). Visit www.Sherry-Lehmann.com for more information. ABOUT KEEP A CHILD ALIVE: Keep a Child Alive (KCA) was founded in 2003 by AIDS activist Leigh Blake and Grammy Award-winner Alicia Keys, as an emergency push to get life-saving HIV medications to African children and families, who otherwise would not have had access to treatment. KCA's work has since grown to include the critical components necessary for successful, life-long HIV treatment: comprehensive, holistic care that supports the complete health of children and their families, ensuring their physical, mental and social well-being. KCA provides financial and programmatic support to 7 innovative, grass-roots programs in Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda and India, serving over 56,000 people annually. With the help of its supporters, KCA continues to use its voice to raise awareness, mobilize people to take action, and rally resources in the global response to HIV. For more information, please visit keepachildalive.org Twitter: @keepachildalive; Facebook: www.facebook.com/keepachildalive; Instagram: http://instagram.com/keepachildalive See updates from the event #KCABlackBall Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430496LOGO SOURCE Sherry-Lehmann Wine & Spirits Related Links http://www.Sherry-Lehmann.com WASHINGTON, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2017/Sherwood-Marketing-Recalls-3-Squares-Rice-and-Slow-Cookers Recall Summary Name of Product: 3 Squares rice and slow cookers Hazard: The rice/slow cooker's improperly installed wiring can cause electrical shorting in the unit, posing fire and electric shock hazards. Remedy: Replace Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled rice/slow cookers and contact 3 Squares to receive a free replacement cooker, including shipping. Consumer Contact: 3 Squares at 800-390-0249 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT Monday through Friday or online at www.Get3Squares.com and click on Recall for more information. Recall Details Units: About 175,000 (in addition, 100 were sold in Canada) Description: This recall involves 3 Squares-branded Tim3 Machin3 and Mini Tim3 Machin3 rice and slow cookers with fixed power cords. The 20-cup/4-quart or 8-cup/1.7-quart programmable electric cookers are stainless steel with black molded plastic, have a control panel/keypad on the front and measure about 11 inches in diameter and12 inches tall. The 3Squares logo is printed on the front of the control panel. Model numbers starting with 3RC and ending in 3010S, 3020S, 3434, 5020 and 9010S are included in the recall. The model number is printed on a label on the side of the product. Incidents/Injuries: The firm has received three incident reports, including a cooker sparking when turned on and a cooker turning itself on. One shock injury was reported. Sold at: Home, hardware, mass merchandisers and department stores nationwide and online at Amazon, Bed Bath & Beyond, Best Buy, Costco, Get3Squares, Home Depot, Kohl's, Target, Wayfair and other websites from December 2015 through July 2016 for between $30 and $70, depending on the model and capacity. Importer/Distributor: Sherwood Marketing, owner of the 3 Squares brand, LLC, of San Diego, Calif. Manufactured in: China Note: Health Canada's press release is available at: http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/recall-alert-rappel-avis/hc-sc/2016/60610r-eng.php This recall was conducted, voluntarily by the company, under CPSC's Fast Track Recall process. Fast Track recalls are initiated by firms, who commit to work with CPSC to quickly announce the recall and remedy to protect consumers. About U.S. CPSC: The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death associated with the use of thousands of types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually. CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical or mechanical hazard. CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products - such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters and household chemicals contributed to a decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 40 years. Federal law bars any person from selling products subject to a publicly-announced voluntary recall by a manufacturer or a mandatory recall ordered by the Commission. To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury go online to www.SaferProducts.gov or call CPSC's Hotline at 800-638-2772 or teletypewriter at 301-595-7054 for the hearing impaired. Consumers can obtain news release and recall information at www.cpsc.gov, on Twitter @USCPSC or by subscribing to CPSC's free e-mail newsletters. CPSC Consumer Information Hotline Contact us at this toll-free number if you have questions about a recall: 800-638-2772 (TTY 301-595-7054) Times: 8 a.m. 5:30 p.m. ET; Messages can be left anytime Call to get product safety and other agency information and to report unsafe products. Media Contact Please use the phone numbers below for all media requests. Phone: 301-504-7908 Spanish: 301-504-7800 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20030904/USCSCLOGO SOURCE U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Related Links http://www.cpsc.gov OGDEN, Utah, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- In celebration of their incredible 1939% growth rate, and their #192 ranking on the Inc. 500 list in 2016, nearly half of all Shopper Approved employees will be traveling to San Antonio, TX to attend the Inc. 5000 Conference and Awards Gala this week. While the Inc. 5000 is an incredible feat, being ranked in the top 4% as a six-year-old company is remarkable. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430074 Co-founders Scott and Dave with their Inc. 500 award Shopper Approved was created with the purpose of providing E-Commerce clients with more quality customer reviews that were readable in more online spaces, including Google, Yahoo, and Bing. "Being ranked among the leading businesses in America is a huge honor, and we are both humbled and incredibly excited to receive this award," says Scott Brandley, co-founder of Shopper Approved. Shopper Approved is unique because of the software's ability to collect up to 70x more honest, unbiased reviews than its competitors. That ability, alongside competitive pricing, has allowed the company to grow explosively over the past few years. This differentiation strategy has made the Shopper Approved seal hold true credibility with customers when displayed on websites, and has impacted businesses small and large with a stronger online presence. "The success of Shopper Approved comes from the dedication of our employees and the partnerships we create with our clients. I am delighted for our team to achieve this recognition. I love the work we do and the people we do it with," claims Leslie Lovato, Operations Manager. The future of Shopper Approved is full of opportunity. As new technology becomes available and current software capabilities expand, Shopper Approved is expected to continue leading the market. Related Images image1.jpg image2.png Related Links Shopper Approved Makes Inc. 500 List 3rd Party Shopper Approved Review This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com SOURCE Shopper Approved TROY, Mich., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- solidThinking is pleased to launch the Click2Extrude suite consisting of Click2Extrude Metal and Click2Extrude Polymer as the next generation environment of the industry leading HyperXtrude suite. Together with this new user friendly environment, the Click2Extrude suite is being licensed and distributed by a powerful network of distributors around the world with a focus an offering fast, easy, accurate and affordable solutions to manufacturing communities. "Our new environment is designed for beginners and experts alike, to deliver an exemplary user experience by keeping all the complexities away from the users," explains Ravi Mayavaram, Director, Solver Development Manufacturing Products. "Our focus is to improve both the quality of the extrusions and the profitability of our customers." "A big step ahead in the model meshing for extrusion simulation," states Tommaso Pinter, Chief Technology Officer of Alumat & Almax Mori Group. "We reduce the time required by 50% and the element's quality is drastically better. Click2Extrude is also easy to use; a new engineer can become independent in a month's time." Key updates for Click2Extrude Metal 2017 include: Seam weld location and strength predictions to identify internal defects Charge weld and skin tracking to identify scrap and backend defects Die failure prediction Key updates for Click2Extrude Polymer 2017 include: Die swell prediction and profile shape defects Co-extrusion analysis and material interface Clam shelling and mandrel shift As a result of the updated features of Click2Extrude, users are able to drastically reduce the time of the extrusion simulation process. "With Click2Extrude's newly designed interface, I have cut my modeling and preprocessing time on average from 2 hours to 10 minutes," explains Jeff Skinner, Sales & Technical Representative of Thumb Tool & Engineering." Due to the demand for lightweighting in aerospace, automotive and other fields, the interest in aluminum extrusion for these applications is rapidly growing. Regardless of the well-established extrusion industry, the challenges that come with complex profile shapes and new alloys are putting tremendous pressure on extruders to innovate in order to meet the stringent strength and tolerance requirements. Click2Extrude is designed to help die designers and extruders meet these demands. For more information about the Click2Extrude 2017 release and to sign up for the Click2Extrude webinars scheduled for November 15 and 16, 2016, please visit www.solidthinking.com/click2extrude. About solidThinking solidThinking creates, develops, and markets technology that helps our user community bring the most desirable products to their customers faster. solidThinking software is sold and supported by a global network of distribution partners and is also available as part of the Altair HyperWorks suite. solidThinking is a wholly owned subsidiary of Troy, Mich. (USA)-based Altair. About Altair Founded in 1985, Altair is focused on the development and application of simulation technology to synthesize and optimize designs, processes and decisions for improved business performance. Privately held with more than 2,600 employees, Altair is headquartered in Troy, Michigan, USA with more than 45 offices throughout 20 countries, and serves more than 5,000 corporate clients across broad industry segments. To learn more, please visit www.altair.com. Media contacts: Altair Corporate/North America Biba Bedi +1-757.224.0548 x 406 [email protected] Altair Europe, the Middle East and Africa Evelyn Gebhardt +49 6421 9684351 [email protected] SOURCE solidThinking Related Links http://www.solidthinking.com BERKELEY, Calif., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Steep Hill, the global leader in cannabis testing and analytics, today published an early report on the prevalence of pesticide contamination in the medical cannabis supply chain in California. According to the lab's new technology and recently launched "quantified pesticide analysis," 84.3% of cannabis samples submitted in Steep Hill's Berkeley lab tested positive for pesticide residues. These results were significantly higher than expected and are cause for concern for California cannabis consumers. Myclobutanil, typically sprayed on California grapes, almonds and strawberries, is legally listed as a "general use pesticide," but heating up the chemical, as is the case when smoking cannabis, converts Myclobutanil into Hydrogen Cyanide. Hydrogen Cyanide is a Schedule 3 substance under the Chemical Weapons Convention. Of paramount concern is the extremely high level of Myclobutanil detected in cannabis samples tested by Steep Hill, which is in excess of 65% of all samples. Jmichaele Keller, President and CEO of Steep Hill, said in making the announcement, "Those in the cannabis community who feel that all cannabis is safe are not correct given this data smoking a joint of pesticide-contaminated cannabis could potentially expose the body to lethal chemicals. As a community, we need to address this issue immediately and not wait until 2018." As of today, the City of Berkeley is alone in establishing rigid limitations for pesticide testing on medical cannabis in the State of California. As newspapers have pointed out in Colorado and Washington State, pesticide contamination is a massive problem in regulated "recreational cannabis markets." Although California will not have testing regulations in place until 2018, we can look to the State of Oregon and its well-respected pesticide regulations for guidance. With California voting on Proposition 64 this November, Steep Hill seeks to work with the newly established Bureau of Medical Cannabis Regulation to establish statewide limits on residual pesticides. Steep Hill is concerned about any impurities in cannabis and has been testing for pesticides since 2011. After years of perfecting testing procedures and testing equipment, their tests are so advanced that they can determine the concentration of pesticides down to the 10's of parts per trillion, which is between 100 to 1,000 times more accurate than tests available through other labs. In Steep Hill's analysis of the pesticide testing performed in Northern California it reviewed the publicly available pesticide results from SC Labs and found they detected pesticides in less than 3% of the samples tested over a 30-day period ending October 10th. During the same period Steep Hill tested and reported pesticides in over 84% of cannabis, which would have failed under the State of Oregon's pesticide regulations. While Steep Hill was developing its new pesticide test, it subcontracted its pesticide testing to CW Analytical Laboratories. In reviewing the test results from CW Analytical it was discovered that the lab was only detected pesticides in 20.8% of the samples tested. "Steep Hill is about ensuring people get safe cannabis and giving the community the tools to make cannabis safer for everybody," said Don Land, Chief Scientific Consultant for Steep Hill. "Once people know what's there, we fully expect the industry will be responsive and responsible, and those that are not will ultimately be judged by their customers. When we introduced our accurate residual solvent test for concentrates in 2013, almost everybody had contamination in their products, at first. Now, just a couple of years later, almost nobody fails. Our solutions helped the industry become responsible." "As far as we're concerned, medicine should always be clean, safe, and effective. Unfortunately, our recent study discovered that 83.2% of the samples assessed by our triple quadrupole mass spectrometer contained pesticides that would have failed under the Oregon regulations. As of today, this tainted product could be sold in most dispensaries throughout the State of California without any way of informing the patients about the risks of pesticide exposure," said Jmichaele Keller. "With the State of California preparing to enact of the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act by January 2018, now is the time to get pesticides under control. If California expects to supply any adult with cannabis in the future, we must first focus on protecting the existing patients throughout the state." For detailed information, charts and graphs please visit http://landing.steephill.com/pesticides. ABOUT STEEP HILL Founded in California in 2008, Steep Hill Labs, Inc. is a science and technology firm that has become the industry leader in cannabis testing and analytics. Steep Hill has labs open or in development in seven U.S. states (Alaska, California, Hawaii, Maryland, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Washington State), Washington DC, and Jamaica, with many more to come making Steep Hill the largest cannabis lab network in the world. The company pioneered the first medical cannabis potency and microbiological contaminants testing methodology for use in Californiathe first state to legalize medical cannabis. Steep Hill has since developed a variety of revolutionary cannabis testing products, including the QuantaCann2 and GenKit. Steep Hill provides expert consulting services to many states, countries and municipalities, and the company is developing proprietary genetic testing, mapping and trademark protection services for the industry as well. Contact: Patrice Angle Cell: (202) 360-8087 Email www.steephill.com SOURCE Steep Hill Related Links http://steephill.com NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Steven Zimmerman has joined XL Catlin's Broker & Client Management team as Client Distribution Leader in Los Angeles, reporting to XL Catlin's US West Regional Broker and Client Management leader, Mike Soper. According to Bob Peretti, XL Catlin's Head of Broker & Client Management, Americas said: "We see abundant opportunities to help Southern California's growing business community address their insurance needs more effectively and conveniently. In fact, this is why we established our first LA-based Broker & Client Management position and Steve is well qualified to establish this new position and build our rapport with area brokers. In his new role with XL Catlin, Steve will help area brokers and businesses tap into the appropriate expertise and products across our 30-plus business insurance lines." Mr. Zimmerman joins XL Catlin with more than 20 years of both business development and broker experience in the insurance industry where he most recently served as Senior Vice President of Gallagher Bassett Services. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. About XL Catlin's Insurance Operations XL Catlin insurance companies offer property, casualty, professional, financial lines and specialty insurance products globally. Businesses that are moving the world forward choose XL Catlin as their partner. To learn more, visit xlcatlin.com. About XL Catlin XL Catlin is the global brand used by XL Group Ltd (NYSE:XL) insurance and reinsurance companies which provide property, casualty, professional and specialty products to industrial, commercial and professional firms, insurance companies and other enterprises throughout the world. Clients look to XL Catlin for answers to their most complex risks and to help move their world forward. To learn more, visit xlcatlin.com. SOURCE XL Catlin Related Links http://xlcatlin.com SALT LAKE CITY, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Dr. Craig Sweet, Medical Director of Embryo Donation International, presented research about embryo abandonment at the recent annual meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. The largest study of its kind, Dr. Sweet and his colleagues conducted a retrospective, case-controlled analysis of 182 cases from a private reproductive endocrine practice. They found 24% (44) of the patients abandoned their frozen embryos. Most IVF clinics are in possession of abandoned frozen embryos when patients do not pay storage fees or don't communicate their disposition decisions. This presents the clinics with medical, legal and ethical conundrums. The study's objective was to identify patient characteristics that made embryo abandonment more likely to occur. They studied 132 key variables, including demographics, medical histories, IVF insurance coverage, embryology data, financial information and disposition decisions. The researchers found seven statistically significant predictors of embryo abandonment. The two most relevant variables were the increasing number of children living at home and the length of time the embryos were stored. The risk of abandonment increased almost eight percent for every additional year stored. Other significant predictors included debt to the practice, not completing high school, IVF insurance coverage, a diagnosis of pelvic damage or endometriosis and a large number of cryopreserved embryos. "There was only one published small study that didn't find any risk factors," said Dr. Sweet. "We hypothesized that if we could predict who was more likely to abandon their embryos, perhaps we could intervene, educate and encourage patients to consider other disposition decisions rather than abandoning their embryos." Dr. Sweet feels additional research, such as prospective longitudinal studies, are needed to confirm and expand these findings. The strengths of the study included the size, scope and level of detail examined. The statistical significance was also quite strong, suggesting real and not coincidental findings. Dr. Sweet collaborated with researchers from two Florida universities. About Dr. Craig Sweet Dr. Craig Sweet is a board-certified reproductive endocrinologist who founded Embryo Donation International, embryodonation.com, a non-denominational, non-discriminatory full-service embryo donation practice. He also is the medical director of Specialists in Reproductive Medicine & Surgery of Fort Myers, FL. 978-273-0254 [email protected] 978-273-0254 SOURCE Embryo Donation International Related Links http://www.EmbryoDonation.com The 2017 Subaru Impreza will be offered in four trim levels: 2.0i, 2.0i Premium, 2.0i Sport and 2.0i Limited when it arrives at Subaru retailers. Models equipped with Subaru's Lineartronic Continuously Variable Transmission will arrive late 2016 while 5-speed manual models will be available in early 2017. The 2.0i starts with an extensive roster of standard features including a 6.5-inch multimedia touchscreen; Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatibility, power windows with auto up/down on both driver and passenger sides; 60/40-split fold-down rear seat; power door locks and side mirrors; multi-function display with fuel economy information; tilt and telescoping steering column; security system with engine immobilizer; carpeted floor mats; and more. The $21,195 Premium trim adds SUBARU STARLINK Safety and Security features, 16-inch alloy wheels, the All-Weather Package featuring heated front seats, windshield wiper de-icer, and heated exterior mirrors as well as automatic headlights. Premium 5-door Imprezas also feature standard roof rails (not available on 2.0i or 5-door Impreza 2.0i Sport). Stepping up to the Premium trim also brings wider option availability, including a power moonroof and driver assist technology systems. The new Subaru Global Platform, together with the SUBARU BOXER engine; Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive (AWD); and EyeSight Driver Assist Technology, represent the brand's core technologies and constitutes the basic foundation of the next generation of Subaru vehicles. Impreza's new platform incorporates a redesigned structure with optimized cross sections and highly stiffened joints between sections to significantly enhance straight-line stability, agility, and ride comfort while suppressing noise, vibration, and harshness to a degree not seen in the compact class. Specifically, the new platform increases rigidity of the unitized body structure by over 70 percent. Taking full advantage of the new stiffer platform and more powerful engine, the Impreza 2.0i Sport, available in sedan and 5-door, delivers a more fun-to-drive performance feel thanks to exclusive suspension tuning, 18-inch machine-finish alloy wheels and Active Torque Vectoring. Subaru aimed for a new ride/handling balance benchmark in the compact segment. Sport models are priced from $21,995. Exclusive exterior styling and features setting the Impreza Sport apart include standard LED daytime running lights (DRL), black-finish front grille, body-color rocker panels, and turn signal side mirrors. The Impreza Sport 5-Door features gloss black rear gate trim, while the Sport Sedan has a rear trunk spoiler. Inside the Sport, unique black cloth upholstery is trimmed with red stitching, a motif that repeats for the steering wheel, gear shift, instrument panel, and door trim. The instrument panel incorporates exclusive Sport gauges and a Multi-Function Display. The Sport comes well equipped, with upgrades over the Impreza Premium that include the SUBARU STARLINK 8.0-inch Multimedia system, and a new Harman/Kardon premium audio system is available. Keyless Access & Push-Button Start, aluminum pedals, leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift handle, and a CVT shift boot round out the Sport's enhanced standard when equipped with CVT. A revised version of the FB 2.0-liter 4-cylinder Boxer engine gains direct fuel injection and other enhancements to boost both performance (now 152-hp vs. 148 before) and drivability. In highline trims, the Lineartronic CVT (continuously variable transmission) features a 7-speed manual mode function with steering wheel paddle shifters that allow the driver to control the transmission via seven pre-set ratios. The new Impreza continues to be one of the most fuel-efficient all-wheel-drive compact sedans in America offering up to 38mpg highway on CVT models. Manual transmission model and mpg will be available in early 2017. Impreza Model City Highway Combined 2.0i Sedan CVT 28 38 32 2.0i Sport Sedan CVT 27 36 30 2.0i 5-Door CVT 28 37 31 2.0i Sport 5-Door 27 35 30 Subaru designed the 2017 Impreza to provide even higher levels of safety than the outgoing model, which was named an IIHS TOP SAFETY PICK and a TOP SAFETY PICK+ (when equipped with available EyeSight). The new platform underpinning the 2017 Impreza improves crash energy absorption by 40 percent over present models. The EyeSight system includes Adaptive Cruise Control, Automatic Pre-Collision Braking, Pre-Collision Throttle Management and Lane Departure and Sway Warning. Blind Spot Detection with Lane Keep Assist and Rear Cross Traffic Alert are also available. Also new are available Steering Responsive Headlights, which can illuminate curves as the vehicle steers into them, and High Beam Assist, which automatically activates and deactivates the high beam headlamps based on driving conditions. All 2017 Impreza models include, as standard equipment, front seat side impact airbags, side curtain airbags and a driver's knee airbag. The 2017 Impreza adds additional driver-assist technologies, including Reverse Automatic Braking and the display of steering lines for the standard rear vision camera. Reverse Automatic Braking can apply the vehicle's brakes if an obstacle is detected while reversing. A new 4-way Tire Pressure Monitoring System can detect pressure drops at individual wheels. Subaru has elevated the Limited trim for the 2017 Impreza into more luxurious territory. The exterior looks more upscale with LED headlights and distinctive "Konoji" LED daytime running lights (DRL) and standard 17-inch machine finished alloy wheels. Judicious use of exterior chrome trim and turn signal side mirrors add a touch of elegance. Limited trim Imprezas begin at $24,095. The Limited's leather trimmed interior features contrast stitching on the door armrests and instrument panel, and the 6-way power driver's seat is the first ever in an Impreza. Standard amenities include an automatic climate control system, leather wrapped steering wheel and shifter, Keyless Access & Push-Button Start and 8-inch STARLINK Multimedia audio unit. The exclusive instrument panel features white gauge cluster illumination, and new Harman/Kardon premium audio is available in the Impreza for the first time. Models equipped with EyeSight also include High Beam Assist. Lastly, the available navigation system now features maps provided by TomTom. SUBARU STARLINK Multimedia systems offer the latest in digital music playing, Bluetooth wireless capability, iPod control, smartphone integration and more. The display screen acts as the display for the standard rear vision camera, and the top-level system includes navigation. SUBARU STARLINK Connected Services comes with the Safety Plus package that offers SOS Emergency Assistance, Enhanced Roadside Assistance, Automatic Collision Notification, Maintenance Notifications, Monthly Vehicle Health Report, and Diagnostic Alerts. This package can be upgraded to the Safety Plus & Security Plus package that adds Stolen Vehicle Recovery Service, Vehicle Security Alarm Notification, Remote Lock/Unlock, Remote Horn and Lights and Remote Vehicle Locator. 2017 SUBARU IMPREZA Model/Trim Transmission Applicable Option Code MSRP MSRP + destination and delivery IMPREZA SEDAN MODELS 2.0i 5MT '01 $18,395 $19,215 2.0i CVT '01 $19,395 $20,215 2.0i Premium CVT 11,12,13,15 $21,195 $22,015 2.0i Sport 5MT 21,22 $21,995 $22,815 2.0i Sport CVT 21,22,23 $22,795 $23,615 2.0i Limited CVT 31,33,35 $24,095 $24,915 IMPREZA 5-DOOR MODELS 2.0i 5MT '01 $18,895 $19,715 2.0i CVT '01 $19,895 $20,715 2.0i Premium CVT 11,12,13,15 $21,695 $22,515 2.0i Sport 5MT 21,22 $22,495 $23,315 2.0i Sport CVT 21,22,23 $23,295 $24,115 2.0i Limited CVT 31,33,35 $24,595 $25,415 2017 SUBARU IMPREZA OPTION PACKAGES CODE 01 Standard Model N/A CODE 11 Premium Model N/A CODE 12 Moonroof $1,000 CODE 13 EyeSight +Blind Spot Detection & Rear Cross Traffic Alert +Steering Responsive Fog Lights $1,395 CODE 15 EyeSight +Blind Spot Detection & Rear Cross Traffic Alert +Steering Responsive Fog Lights +Moonroof $2,395 CODE 21 Sport Model N/A CODE 22 Moonroof + Blind Spot Detection & Rear Cross Traffic Alert + Harman Kardon Amplifier and Speakers $2,150 CODE 23 EyeSight + Moonroof + Blind Spot Detection & Rear Cross Traffic Alert + Harman Kardon Amplifier and Speaker $2,945 CODE 31 Limited Model N/A CODE 33 EyeSight + Moonroof + Blind Spot Detection & Rear Cross Traffic Alert $2,495 CODE 35 EyeSight + Moonroof + Blind Spot Detection & Rear Cross Traffic Alert + Navigation +Harman Kardon Amplifier and Speakers $3,845 Destination & Delivery is $820 and may vary in the following states: CT, HI, MA, ME, NH, NJ, NY, RI and VT. D&D is $970 for dealers in Alaska. About Subaru of America, Inc. Subaru of America, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan. Headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of more than 620 retailers across the United States. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill production plants and Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. is the only U.S. automobile production plant to be designated a backyard wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. For additional information visit media.subaru.com Contact: Dominick Infante Subaru of America, Inc. 856-488-8615 [email protected] Jessica Tullman Subaru of America, Inc. 310-352-4400 [email protected] Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429940 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429941 SOURCE Subaru of America, Inc. Related Links http://www.subaru.com SHANGHAI, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- With the successful conclusion of the 16th China International Dye Industry, Pigments and Textile Chemicals Exhibition (China Interdye 2016), Interdye Asia 2016 will take place at CNR EXPO in Istanbul, Turkey from the 10th to the 12th of November, 2016. The Asian tour, organized by the China Dyestuff Industry Association, the China Dyeing and Printing Association and China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Shanghai Sub-Council and co-organized by Shanghai International Exhibition Service Co., Ltd., in partnership with Turkey's Artkim, aims to help the Chinese dyestuffs industry transform the way it develops and execute on its globalization strategy, while continuing to implement China's One Belt, One Road initiative (the initiative that focuses on connectivity and cooperation among countries primarily between China and the rest of Eurasia) and boost trade between China and Turkey. Running concurrently with the 10th Chem Show Eurasia, the two events will serve as a platform for meaningful exchanges between China's dyestuffs industry and Turkey's textile printing and leather processing industries, which is expected to play a key role in boosting the cooperation and development of the upstream and downstream industries in the two countries. China has become a key player in the global dyestuffs market by leading the world in production, export and consumption volume of dyestuffs. As one of Turkey's major industries, the textile printing and leather processing industries have evolved substantially in recent years and is now recognized as the foundation for textile and clothing production and leather processing trade for EU countries. Despite the sluggish global economy, dyestuffs trade between China and Turkey continues to grow. Among the over 130 countries and territories to which China exports dyestuffs directly, its exports to Turkey have consistently ranked among the top eight destinations. Over the recent years, dyestuffs exports from China to Turkey have been steadily growing by over 1,000 tons annually. In the first half of 2016, China exported over 9,000 tons of dyestuffs to Turkey, placing the country seventh in the list of export destinations for the chemicals and a rise of 20 percent from the year-ago period. The rapid growth of the textile printing and leather processing industries in Turkey will continue to translate into increasing demand for dyestuffs. Interdye Asia 2016 will bring together a wide range of leading Chinese exhibitors under one roof, including Zhejiang Longsheng Group, the world's largest dyestuffs producer, as well as over 40 other industry leaders, among them, Zhejiang Runtu Co., Ltd., Zhejiang Jihua Group, Jiangsu Yabang Dyestuff Co., Ltd., Jingjin Environmental Protection Inc., Sheyang Tianyuan Chemical Co., Ltd., Zhejiang Hongyi New Material Co., Ltd., Taixing Zhenqing Chemical Co., Ltd., Suzhou Dongwu Dyestuff Co., Ltd., Dalian Dyechem International Corporation, Dankong Industry & Trade Group Co., Ltd., Taixing Jinyun Dyestuff Co., Ltd., Shanghai Printing Ink SiLian Chemical, Jiangsu Shuangle Pigment Co., Ltd. and Beijing Huaran Trade Co., Ltd. These Chinese exhibitors expect to widen and deepen their already well-established trade cooperation with Turkey's industry peers by building joint ventures and complementing each other's advantages. For more information, please visit: The official website of China INTERDYE: www.chinainterdye.com The official website of the Asian tour of China Interdye: www.interdyeasia.com Or contact: Shanghai International Exhibition Co Ltd. Ms Wang T: +86-21-62792828 E: [email protected] SOURCE Shanghai International Exhibition Co., Ltd. Related Links http://www.siec-ccpit.com NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Despite the number of years living and working as a wildlife cameraman in Europe, Vianet D'jenguet always carried fond childhood memories of the Congo wherever he traveled. In his job, D'jenguet filmed in many locations across Africa, but never in his homeland. My Congo represents his first opportunity to film in his native country and to be in front of the camera as he takes viewers to his favorite places to witness the diversity of wildlife, stunning landscapes, and friendly people. In this first-person account, D'jenguet visits sites that evoke happy family memories, tours a famous chimpanzee sanctuary, films a variety of animals and birds in vast national parks, and makes his way through a remote jungle in search of his roots. My Congo airs Wednesday, October 19, 2016 at 8 p.m. (ET) on PBS (check local listings). After the broadcast, the episode will be available for limited online streaming at pbs.org/nature. More than 20 years after his physician father, a malaria specialist, moved the family to Paris to treat students and diplomats, D'jenguet begins his homecoming in the capital city of Brazzaville where he was born. He emphasizes that there are two Congos in Africa: the Democratic Republic of Congo and D'jenguet's smaller Republic of Congo. The two nations are separated by the Congo River, the second largest in the world. As he tours the city's bustling markets, the sights and sounds remind him of his childhood with venders selling fresh fish from that river as well as a variety of fruits and vegetables. My Congo next ventures into the countryside where the wildlife cameraman shows viewers many of his favorite spots. He starts on the coast at Point Noire where his family often spent vacations and then travels to Tchimpounga, the largest chimpanzee sanctuary in Africa. D'jenguet is moved when he's introduced to young orphaned chimps being rehabilitated after being victims of poachers and the pet trade. Set up by the Jane Goodall Institute nearly 25 years ago, the sanctuary also engages with the next generation to promote animal conservation. Heading north, D'jenguet heads out in early morning to film all kinds of birds, such as huge Palm Nut vultures, swallows, kingfishers, manakins, and Pin-tailed whydah birds which resemble little peacocks. He mentions there are more than 600 species of birds alone in his homeland. But once he reaches Odzala National Park, it is clear which animal is his favorite: the forest elephant, which rarely grows taller than eight feet, but has big tusks. It is only found in the Congo basin and its growing population is protected, at least in the Republic of Congo. An eight-hour hike through the wild equatorial rainforest of D'jenguet's ancestors holds an unexpected surprise for the native son when he meets up with some of the last, indigenous Forest People. He discovers a deeper family connection to his homeland that D'jenguet's great-grandfather Sokondi still is deeply revered by the tribe as their protector. He shows how they use traditional techniques to get everything they need from the forest. Continuing through the rainforest with camera and tripod in tow, D'jenguet heads by river to what he describes as "the best place to see wildlife in the whole of Africa." It is a clearing called Mbeli Bai in Nouabale-Ndoki National Park where there are endless sightings of forest elephants, Western Lowland gorillas, forest buffalo, and sitatungas or swamp antelopes. It's here that D'jenguet ends his journey having learned more about himself, his country, and why he became a wildlife cameraman in the first place. Nature is a production of THIRTEEN PRODUCTIONS LLC for WNET. For Nature, Fred Kaufman is executive producer. My Congo is a co-production with THIRTEEN Productions LLC and BBC in association with WNET. Nature pioneered a television genre that is now widely emulated in the broadcast industry. Throughout its history, Nature has brought the natural world to millions of viewers. The series has been consistently among the most-watched primetime series on public television. Nature has won more than 700 honors from the television industry, the international wildlife film communities and environmental organizations, including 17 Emmys and three Peabodys. The series received two of wildlife film industry's highest honors: the Christopher Parsons Outstanding Achievement Award given by the Wildscreen Festival and the Grand Teton Award given by the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival. The International Wildlife Film Festival honored Nature executive producer Fred Kaufman with its Lifetime Achievement Award for Media. PBS.org/nature is the award-winning web companion to Nature, featuring streaming episodes, filmmaker interviews, teacher's guides and more. Support for this Nature program was made possible in part by the Arnhold Family in memory of Clarisse Arnhold, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, the Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, the Lillian Goldman Charitable Trust, the Filomen M. D'Agostino Foundation, Rosalind P. Walter, Sandra Atlas Bass, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and public television viewers. About WNET WNET is America's flagship PBS station and parent company of THIRTEEN and WLIW21 . WNET also operates NJTV, the statewide public media network in New Jersey. Through its broadcast channels, three cable services (KidsThirteen, Create and World) and online streaming sites, WNET brings quality arts, education and public affairs programming to more than five million viewers each week. WNET produces and presents such acclaimed PBS series as Nature, Great Performances, American Masters, PBS NewsHour Weekend, Charlie Rose and a range of documentaries, children's programs, and local news and cultural offerings. WNET's groundbreaking series for children and young adults include Get the Math, Oh Noah! and Cyberchase as well as Mission US, the award-winning interactive history game. WNET highlights the tri-state's unique culture and diverse communities through NYC-ARTS, Reel 13, NJTV News with Mary Alice Williams and MetroFocus, the daily multi-platform news magazine focusing on the New York region. In addition, WNET produces online-only programming including the award-winning series about gender identity, First Person, and an intergenerational look at tech and pop culture, The Chatterbox with Kevin and Grandma Lill. In 2015, THIRTEEN launched Passport, an online streaming service which allows members to see new and archival THIRTEEN and PBS programming anytime, anywhere: www.thirteen.org/passport Websites: http://pbs.org/nature, http://facebook/PBSNature, @PBSNature, #NaturePBS http://pbsnature.tumblr.com, https://www.youtube.com/user/NaturePBS Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110922/DC73481LOGO SOURCE THIRTEENs Nature Related Links http://pbs.org/nature Secrets of the Dead: Graveyard of the Giant Beasts , airing Wednesday, November 2 at 10 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), opens a window onto a previously unknown period of the earth's history to reveal a world teeming with creatures seemingly familiar to us, but colossal in size. In 2003, when paleontologist professor Jonathan Bloch, University of Florida, first heard that this important layer had been exposed, he and his research team rushed to Colombia. He had spent his career studying this Paleocene period in the earth's geological history. Could this be the lost world he'd been searching for? "When you open that door into the world 58 million years ago where no one else has looked, you find things that no one else has found," says Professor Bloch. "So every time we come to Cerrejon, it's very exciting because after coming for well over a decade, every time we come we find something new." Included in the findings were hundreds of fossilized leaves which indicated the environment then was similar to a tropical forest. But it was the fossils of ancient animals that stunned everyone. What was so noticeably different about them was their size. Had they found the land of the giants? "In the beginning, dozens and dozens and then hundreds more of these fossils were coming in and getting a chance to unwrap these things and kind of start piecing everything together was great," says Dr. Alex Hastings, Virginia Museum of Natural History. "Most of them were crocodilians but there were a handful of bones there that were clearly not any crocodilian. The whole structure of the vertebrae was completely different." The vertebrae they uncovered belonged to a very large snake. "This animal is going to reset everything we know about what it truly means to be a giant snake," says Dr. Jason Head, Museum of Zoology, University of Cambridge, and the world's expert in calculating body size in the largest fossil snakes. Weighing one and a quarter ton, this giant snake was five times bigger than the largest one alive today. Named Titanoboa, the 43-foot snake made headlines around the world when the findings were published in 2009. No other creature could match Titanoboa in its size and strength. Or, so it was thought, until another discovery in Cerrejon suggested that Titanoboa's rule was challenged by a giant crocodilian. Secrets of the Dead: Graveyard of the Giant Beasts follows scientists as they try to comprehend the size of this animal and uncover what made it so successful. Close analysis of fossils and scientific experiments reveal unmatched hunting prowess. So which one was the apex predator in Cerrejon 58 million years ago? The answer lies in how the creatures eat and not how they kill. Secrets of the Dead: Graveyard of the Giant Beasts is a Blink Films production in association with THIRTEEN Productions LLC for WNET in association with Channel 4. Narrator: Jay O. Sanders. Producer/Director: Elliot Kew. Executive Producers for Blink Films: David McNab and Dan Chambers. Executive-in-Charge for WNET: Stephen Segaller. Executive Producer for WNET: Steve Burns. Supervising Producer for WNET: Stephanie Carter. This program is among the full-length episodes that will be available for viewing after broadcast on Secrets of the Dead Online (pbs.org/secrets). As one of PBS's ongoing limited primetime series, Secrets of the Dead is a perennial favorite among viewers, routinely ranking among the 10 most-watched series on public television. Currently in its 16th season, Secrets of the Dead continues its unique brand of archaeological sleuthing employing advances in investigative techniques, forensic science and historical scholarship to offer new evidence about forgotten mysteries. Secrets of the Dead has received 10 CINE Golden Eagle Awards and six Emmy nominations, among numerous other awards. About WNET WNET is America's flagship PBS station and parent company of THIRTEEN and WLIW21 . WNET also operates NJTV, the statewide public media network in New Jersey. Through its broadcast channels, three cable services (KidsThirteen, Create and World) and online streaming sites, WNET brings quality arts, education and public affairs programming to more than five million viewers each week. WNET produces and presents such acclaimed PBS series as Nature, Great Performances, American Masters, PBS NewsHour Weekend, Charlie Rose and a range of documentaries, children's programs, and local news and cultural offerings. WNET's groundbreaking series for children and young adults include Get the Math, Oh Noah! and Cyberchase as well as Mission US, the award-winning interactive history game. WNET highlights the tri-state's unique culture and diverse communities through NYC-ARTS, Reel 13, NJTV News with Mary Alice Williams and MetroFocus, the daily multi-platform news magazine focusing on the New York region. In addition, WNET produces online-only programming including the award-winning series about gender identity, First Person, and an intergenerational look at tech and pop culture, The Chatterbox with Kevin and Grandma Lill. In 2015, THIRTEEN launched Passport, an online streaming service which allows members to see new and archival THIRTEEN and PBS programming anytime, anywhere: www.thirteen.org/passport. Secrets of the Dead episodes online at pbs.org/secrets Facebook: SecretsOfTheDead Twitter: @SecretsPBS Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430507LOGO Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20131218/DC35560LOGO SOURCE WNET Related Links http://pbs.org/secrets NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Warburg Pincus, a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing, today announced the appointment of Thomas ("TJ") Carella as a Managing Director in the Healthcare and Consumer group. Mr. Carella joins from Goldman Sachs, where he was a Managing Director in its Merchant Banking Division and global head of the division's private equity activities in the healthcare sector. At Warburg Pincus, he will identify, evaluate and execute investments in the healthcare industry, as well as work with the firm's current healthcare portfolio. During Mr. Carella's tenure at Goldman Sachs, he led a number of investments in healthcare services, healthcare IT and life sciences, and worked in the New York, London and Milan offices. Earlier in his career, Mr. Carella also co-founded and served as Chief Executive Officer of a software services business. "TJ has extensive experience in healthcare investing and brings tremendous acumen and expertise both to the firm and to our portfolio company management teams," said In Seon Hwang, Managing Director and Head of the Healthcare and Consumer group at Warburg Pincus. "His leadership, demonstrated track record and strong network of industry relationships will be invaluable to growing our global healthcare franchise." Mr. Carella commented, "Warburg Pincus is a leading growth investor in the healthcare industry globally. I look forward to leading new and impactful investments in the sector and assisting the team in building value across the portfolio." Mr. Carella received a BA from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. About Warburg Pincus Warburg Pincus LLC is a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing. The firm has more than $40 billion in private equity assets under management. The firm's active portfolio of more than 120 companies is highly diversified by stage, sector and geography. Warburg Pincus is an experienced partner to management teams seeking to build durable companies with sustainable value. Founded in 1966, Warburg Pincus has raised 15 private equity funds, which have invested more than $58 billion in over 760 companies in more than 40 countries. The firm's current and past healthcare investments have included Bausch + Lomb, China Biologic Partners (CPBO), Coventry Health Care, Helix, Lepu Medical, Wright Medical and Zentiva. The firm is headquartered in New York with offices in Amsterdam, Beijing, Hong Kong, London, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Mauritius, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, Shanghai and Singapore. For more information please visit www.warburgpincus.com. Contact: Mary Zimmerman / Christopher Beattie (212) 878-9201 SOURCE Warburg Pincus Related Links http://www.warburgpincus.com After nearly 300,000 dedicated readers cast their votes for 7,394 hotels, 606 cities, 500 cruise ships, and 236 islands to create the lists, White Lodging couldn't be prouder to announce that: "These are incredible accomplishments for our properties, and they are tough accolades to win from the well-traveled audience of a very highly regarded outlet like Conde Nast Traveler," said Dave Sibley, President & CEO. "We would like to recognize our passionate associates on the property teams who strive to provide the most refined experiences and memories for our guests every moment throughout their stay." About The Lodge & Spa at Brush Creek Ranch: Brush Creek Ranch is a grand western destination offering an ultra-private collection of historic guest ranches set on a 30,000-acre working cattle ranch outside of Saratoga in south central Wyoming's North Platte River Valley. A Preferred Hotels & Resorts LEGEND destination, ORVIS Dual-Endorsed Fly Fishing and Wing Shooting Lodge and Beretta Trident Lodge, Brush Creek Ranch features rolling hills, verdant river valleys, lush forests and majestic rock formations that create an environment where guests can escape in true luxury. The Brush Creek Ranch Lodging Collection includes the Lodge & Spa at Brush Creek Ranch, Magee Homestead and French Creek Sportsman's Club each of which appeals uniquely to family vacations, adult romantic and wellness escapes, elite sportsman's adventures, destination weddings and private corporate events. Offering an unsurpassed, all-inclusive luxury dude ranch adventure experience, Brush Creek Ranch provides a genuine Western spirit of hospitality and a vast array of outdoor activities that, coupled with an inspiring landscape and a dedication to sustainable ranching, come together to create an iconic leader in International luxury resort destinations. For more information about The Lodge & Spa at Brush Creek Ranch or to inquire about rates call (307) 327-5284, email [email protected] or visit www.BrushCreekRanch.com or on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. About the JW Marriott Indianapolis: The JW Marriott Indianapolis opened in February 2011. The hotel offers 1,005 guest rooms in a 33-story tower, and 103,000 square feet of onsite function space. The hotel is connected by a sky bridge to the Indiana Convention Center and has three onsite, distinctive dining options, a full-service Starbucks, a state-of-the-art fitness center, an indoor pool and a multi-million dollar public art plaza. The JW Marriott Indianapolis has also been recognized by Conde Nast Traveler's Reader's Choice Awards as number four in the top 15 hotels in the Midwest in 2015. For more information on the hotel, or to book a room, visit www.jwindy.com and follow the hotel on Twitter at @JWMarriottIndy and on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/JWMarriottIndianapolis. About JW Marriott Austin: The JW Marriott Austin opened in February 2015. The hotel is designed to host large conventions and meetings, with more than 112,000 square feet of event space, 42 meeting rooms and 1,012 guest rooms. The hotel has achieved a LEED Silver certification and two-star Austin Energy Green Building rating. The 34-story hotel is not only the largest hotel in Austin, but also the largest JW Marriott in the United States and the second-largest JW Marriott in the world. For more information about the hotel, or to book a room, visit JWMarriottAustin.com, @JWMarriottATX and facebook.com/jwmarriottaustin White Lodging Services Corporation was established in 1985 and is headquartered in Merrillville, IN. White Lodging is a fully integrated hotel ownership, development and operations company focused on developing and operating premium-branded hotels in growing urban markets across the United States. The company is a recognized leader that has defined and cultivated the ability to achieve consistent, sustainable growth among mid- to large-scale hotels. White Lodging has developed over 125 premium branded hotels over the last 25 years and its current managed portfolio consists of 165 hotels in 19 states including representation of the following leading brands: Marriott International, Inc., Hilton Worldwide, Hyatt Global, Preferred Hotels & Resorts and InterContinental Hotel Group. For more information about White Lodging, please visit www.whitelodging.com, Facebook.com/whitelodgingservices, Twitter.com/whitelodging and Instagram.com/whitelodging. Contact: Kathleen Sebastian Phone: 219.472.2861 Fax: 219.472.2273 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430484 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430485 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120210/DE51498LOGO SOURCE White Lodging Related Links http://www.whitelodging.com CARBONDALE, Ill., Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Continental Who's Who recognizes Todd Christopher Headrick, Ph.D. as a Pinnacle Lifetime Member in recognition of his contributions to the field of Higher Education. Dr. Headrick earned his Ph.D. from Wayne State University in Statistics and Measurement, and both his Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts from Eastern Michigan University. He furthered his career in academia at Southern Illinois University (SIU) in Carbondale, Illinois, where he currently teaches in the Department of Counseling, Quantitative Methods and Special Education as well as the Department of Psychology. In addition to his teaching roles at SIU, where he has been on the faculty for 17 years, Dr. Headrick has held administrative roles as Associate Dean of Research and Statistical Analysis and Department Chair of Counseling, Quantitative Methods and Special Education. He applies his expertise in mathematical statistics and statistical computing methodology. Dr. Headrick's resume includes a plethora of published work. To name a few pieces, he published a book titled Statistical Simulation: Power Method Polynomials and Other Transformations, which was listed in the top twenty of the library journal for best sellers in Mathematics in 2010, and has published over 60 articles in various journals between 1999 and 2016. To further his professional development, Dr. Headrick is a member of the American Education Research Association, the International Association for Statistical Computing, the Psychometric Society, the Mathematics Association of America, the American Statistical Association and the Institute of Mathematical Statistics. In recognition of his impressive body of work, Dr. Headrick was awarded the Outstanding Scholar Award from SIU College of Education and Human Services in 2008. He has also been a member of several university committees, including the Faculty Tenure and Promotion Committee, the Honorary Degree and Distinguished Service Award Committee and the University Distinguished Scholar Award Committee. For more information, visit www.siu.edu Contact: Katherine Green, 516-825-5634, [email protected] SOURCE Continental Who's Who Related Links http://www.continentalwhoswho.com "Fast, easy, and convenient is what consumers want, and providing home delivery is our answer," said Dennis Bassler, President, Southern Division. "We are delighted to bring this service to our customers in North Texas." To celebrate the launch and provide customers with additional savings, shoppers will receive $10 off and free delivery on their first delivery. The Tom Thumb grocery delivery service offers one-hour delivery windows and a shop-by-history feature that saves all previously purchased items for easy repeat purchasing. "We've made online shopping extremely efficient," Bassler said. "The process is simple. Customers order online and select a delivery date and time. Our personal shoppers select the items and carefully load them into the refrigerated trucks for delivery." Tom Thumb is launching the service in the metroplex with new delivery trucks to support the North Texas area. The new trucks are equipped with multiple-temperature zones so the frozen items stay frozen and the vegetables are crisp when delivered. About Albertsons and Tom Thumb Albertsons Companies is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, with both a strong local presence and national scale. The company operates stores across 35 states and the District of Columbia under 19 well-known banners including Albertsons and Tom Thumb. Albertsons Companies is dedicated to helping people across the country live better lives. In 2015 alone, with the help of generous customers, Albertsons Companies and the Albertsons Companies Foundation gave more than $270 million in food and financial support to the more than 2,300 communities they serve, improving the lives of millions of people in the areas of hunger relief, education, cancer research and treatment, programs for people with disabilities, and veterans outreach. Albertsons Companies is committed to making a meaningful difference, neighborhood by neighborhood. In North Texas, there are 48 stores under the Albertsons banner and 58 stores under the Tom Thumb banner. For further information, contact: Connie Yates, Public Affairs & Communications 214-287-5781 or [email protected] Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430194 SOURCE Albertsons Companies Related Links http://www.tomthumb.com DALLAS, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Securus Technologies, a leading provider of civil and criminal justice technology solutions for public safety, investigation, corrections and monitoring, announced today that the United States Patent Office issued five (5) new Securus patents in August to October, 2016, granted 36 patents in the last 3 years, and Securus has filed 90 new patent applications in the last 3 years. "We received word from the United States Patent Office that we were issued five (5) new patents in August to October, 2016," said Richard A. ("Rick") Smith, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Securus Technologies, Inc. "That increases our total patent portfolio to 248, the largest in our industry by far. The entire rest of the industry has 135 patents compared to our 248 patents, so we lead by 113 patents and that number is distributed among 7 different competitors." Securus' five (5) new patents are outlined as follows: Patent Number Patent Title Technical Description 9,420,094 Inbound Calls To Intelligent Controlled-Environment Facility Resident Media And/Or Communications Devices Inbound call processing systems and methods for processing inbound calls to controlled-environment facility resident media and/or communications devices employing an inbound resident call server. 9,420,118 Advertisements In Controlled-Environment Communication Systems Using Tablet Computing Devices The controlled-environment communications system selects advertisement(s) to be played on the tablet operated by the resident. 9,426,303 Location Based Services For Controlled-Environment Facilities Systems and methods for developing, deploying, providing, and/or operating location-based services for controlled-environment facilities (e.g., jails, prisons, etc.). 9,472,071 Covert Infrared Monitoring And Recording Of Images And Video In Controlled-Environment Facilities An infrared image and/or a video of one or more residents of a controlled-environment facility is captured using an imaging device of a controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or media device. 9,473,497 Exclusion Engine For Electronic Communications In Controlled-Environment Facilities An exclusion engine for electronic communications in controlled-environment facilities. This method may include receiving, at one or more computer systems, a request for an electronic communication between a resident and a non-resident of a controlled-environment facility. Mr. Smith continued, "We currently have approximately 200 software developers, over 100 field service technicians, and a large marketing and R & D Team that have good ideas things that our prison and jail customers want, things that are unique, and we routinely turn those ideas into patents. It's our biggest, most valuable asset good people with ideas that are solving our customers' problems. "Our patent portfolio includes patents in most areas of corrections communications and operations including audio calling, video calling, fraud detection, call platform architecture, call storage, inmate purchasing, billing, call throughput, inmate monitoring, word spotting, voice biometrics, and commissary services, and there are many other areas. "We issued a formal 'Patent Portfolio Bake Off' Challenge to the former leading competitor in our sector that went unanswered so we did something that was even better, I believe," said Smith. "We used our outside counsel to engage three (3) independent, well-known, intellectual property consulting firms to compare and contrast our patent portfolio with our competitor's patent portfolio. Outside counsel did not disclose who their client was, so the comparison was independent, intellectually honest and non-biased. Counsel didn't even tell the consulting firms what the list of patents was for each company. Securus didn't provide any help or assistance to aid their analysis at all. "The three (3) independent patent portfolio analyses clearly show that by virtually any qualitative or quantitative measurement, Securus' patent portfolio is much stronger, broader and valuable than the other company's portfolio," Smith said. "We did this work, spent this time and paid a significant amount of money to make clear to everyone that we have the largest and best patent portfolio that exists in the industry today - period. "We build patents around products that our customers want and that is good for inmates, friends and family, officers, investigators, victims of crimes and society I am proud of what we have contributed to our industry. We improve inmate communications, reduce recidivism, help solve and prevent crimes and ultimately save lives," concluded Smith. ABOUT SECURUS TECHNOLOGIES Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and serving more than 3,450 public safety, law enforcement and corrections agencies and over 1,200,000 inmates across North America, Securus Technologies is committed to serve and connect by providing emergency response, incident management, public information, investigation, biometric analysis, communication, information management, inmate self-service, and monitoring products and services in order to make our world a safer place to live. Securus Technologies focuses on connecting what matters. To learn more about our full suite of civil and criminal justice technology solutions, please visit www.SecurusTechnologies.com. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100831/DA57799LOGO SOURCE Securus Technologies, Inc. Related Links http://www.securustech.net DULLES, Va., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Navy awarded Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) a $255 million contract for development and production readiness of its next generation precision landing system. The Joint Precision Approach and Landing System uses GPS satellite navigation to provide more accurate landing guidance for manned and unmanned aircraft, replacing radar and beacons used in older systems. This contract was announced by the Department of Defense on Sept. 21. The contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the value to $270 million. Raytheon will complete development for an auto-land capability to be used by both manned and unmanned aircraft, as well as finalize the integration with the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter: the first aircraft to be equipped with JPALS technology. When operational in 2018, the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps will use JPALS on the F-35C carrier variant, F-35B short takeoff/vertical landing variant, and the MQ-25A multi-mission unmanned vehicle. "The JPALS solution revolutionizes landings for manned and unmanned military aircraft," said Dave Wajsgras, president of Raytheon's Intelligence, Information and Services business. "Aviators will be able to trust this technology to provide safe, secure, and reliable landing guidance, at any time of day, in all kinds of weather and environments." Developed in partnership with the U.S. Navy to provide pinpoint landing guidance on carriers in rough seas, JPALS: is tailorable to a wide range of environments including contingency operations requiring rapid deployment, or land-based airfields with curved, segmented and specialized approaches can integrate and modernize landing systems on legacy aircraft for joint interoperability JPALS improves navigational alignment prior to approach, allowing aircraft to land on any aircraft carrier or amphibious assault ship, day or night, even in adverse weather conditions. As the only military ground-based augmentation system in the world, the system features anti-jam protection to ensure mission continuity throughout a range of threat environments. About Raytheon Raytheon Company, with 2015 sales of $23 billion and 61,000 employees, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, civil government and cybersecurity solutions. With a history of innovation spanning 94 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration, C5ITM products and services, sensing, effects, and mission support for customers in more than 80 countries. Raytheon is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts. Follow us on Twitter @Raytheon. Media Contact Melanie Plunkett +1. 571.250.1102 [email protected] SOURCE Raytheon Company Related Links http://www.raytheon.com SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Voler Strategic Advisors announced the formation of a scholarship fund to assist students seeking to go to college who are in need of financial assistance. The scholarship was made possible by the generous support of Voler team members who themselves worked various jobs to support their college, and post graduate degrees. "At Voler Strategic Advisors, we are a company comprised of professionals who understand the level of sacrifice and commitment required to make our educational goals a reality," said Perla Rodriguez, Chief Executive Officer, Voler Strategic Advisors. "With this scholarship, we seek to assist a new generation of leaders who are fighting to achieve their educational goals." The scholarship will be made available to high school seniors throughout California. Currently, the selection process is being determined and will be released on Voler's Facebook page (@volersa) in December. With a mix of PhD's, JD's, MPA's and MBA's within its ranks, Voler Strategic Advisors is a firm that puts an emphasis on leveraging its collective intellectual capital to help clients build capacity, facilitate change and achieve their objectives. About Voler Strategic Advisors: Headquartered in Silicon Valley, Voler Strategic Advisors is a management consulting firm offering effective, creative solutions to complex problems. Our team of distinguished, diverse, highly experienced, and skilled professionals serve many organizations and industries throughout the country. For more information, or to access Voler's Facebook page, visit our website at: www.volersa.com. SOURCE Voler Strategic Advisors Related Links http://www.volersa.com "We are pleased to embark on this new initiative that supports Voya's broader commitment to helping individuals plan, invest and protect their savings so they can retire better," said Alain Karaoglan, chief operating officer for Voya Financial. "As more Americans take on the responsibility to prepare for their retirement, we recognize the need to help them make the right choices. Our Institute will take a scientific approach that applies lessons learned from research, along with measurement and validation, to develop solutions that can lead to improved financial outcomes." To create the Institute, Voya teamed up with renowned behavioral economist Shlomo Benartzi, professor and co-chair of the Behavioral Decision-Making Group at UCLA Anderson School of Management, who is serving as a senior academic advisor for Voya. Voya is also engaging several other leading academics, including professor John W. Payne from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business. Rick Mason, senior advisor at Voya Financial, will help coordinate the efforts for the company. Research associated with the Institute will be conducted in laboratory, panel and field settings. The Institute also plans to collaborate with Voya's employer clients and distributors to bring these concepts to life in a manner that best serves their plan participants. The Institute will support Voya across all of its businesses. Among other things, research will examine how to improve outcomes in areas such as savings rates, participation in workplace plans, portfolio diversification, creating sufficient retirement income and preventing money from prematurely leaving retirement plans (when participants cash out their savings after changing jobs). "By leveraging the latest academic research, the Voya Behavioral Finance Institute for Innovation has the potential to help millions of Americans improve their long-term financial security," said professor Benartzi. "Scientists have learned a tremendous amount about how people make decisions. With this knowledge and the Institute's unique approach, we can make a difference and help people 'get it right' when it comes to their retirement." Behavioral Finance and its Contribution to Retirement The field of behavioral finance, which applies psychological theories to finance, has offered valuable insights and solutions to help Americans achieve better outcomes. Ground-breaking areas of study have resulted in innovative retirement plan features and investment options, most notably: auto-enrollment; auto-escalation; and target-date funds. "This body of research has produced significant advancements, and the financial services industry has recognized its outcomes and benefits," said Charlie Nelson, chief executive officer of Retirement for Voya Financial. "We believe there is even greater opportunity today to improve savings rates with the data and insights available from phone and advisor interactions, as well as digital tools such as retirement plan websites, mobile devices and apps. Our goal is to be known by our clients and partners as a leader that advances this valuable research." The launch of the Voya Behavioral Finance Institute for Innovation included a forum in New York City on Oct. 18, where Nelson and Benartzi joined Voya executives, clients and distributors, along with members of the media, for a discussion on the Institute's first white paper, "Using Decision Styles to Improve Financial Outcomes Why Every Plan Needs a Retirement Check-Up." The paper, written by Benartzi, examines the two primary styles that people use to make decisions. By analyzing these decision styles, data collected from the online activities of retirement plan participants can inform a sponsor about the overall "health" of its plan and, more importantly, the actions it could take to set participants on a more effective course. "Planning for retirement is often treated as a one-time event, but the reality is that it's a long journey requiring adjustments and course corrections along the way," said Benartzi. "Plan sponsors must remember that even if employees are enrolled in a plan, they may still require check-ups to achieve a successful retirement. Research conducted with the Voya Behavioral Finance Institute for Innovation offers an opportunity to discover new solutions that can help people on their retirement journey." For more information on Voya's Behavioral Finance Institute for Innovation and to view the findings from Benartzi's current white paper or future studies, please visit Voya.com/behavioralfinance. As an industry leader and advocate for greater retirement readiness, Voya Financial is committed to delivering on its vision to be America's Retirement Company. Our goal is to make a secure financial future possible for everyone one person, one family, one institution at a time. Media Contacts: Joe Loparco Voya Financial Office: (860) 580-2677 Cell: (860) 462-6525 [email protected] Laura Maulucci Voya Financial Office: (860) 580-1278 Cell: (508) 353-6913 [email protected] About Voya Financial Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA), helps Americans plan, invest and protect their savings to get ready to retire better. Serving the financial needs of approximately 13 million individual and institutional customers in the United States, Voya is a Fortune 500 company that had $11 billion in revenue in 2015. The company had $466 billion in total assets under management and administration as of June 30, 2016. With a clear mission to make a secure financial future possible one person, one family, one institution at a time Voya's vision is to be America's Retirement Company. The company is equally committed to conducting business in a way that is socially, environmentally, economically and ethically responsible Voya has been recognized as one of the 2016 World's Most Ethical Companies by the Ethisphere Institute, and as one of the Top Green Companies in the U.S., by Newsweek magazine. For more information, visit voya.com. Follow Voya Financial on Facebook and Twitter @Voya. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150206/174115LOGO Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161017/429899 SOURCE Voya Financial, Inc. Related Links http://www.voya.com TEMPE, Ariz., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Leaders in commercial real estate, aerospace, and materials engineering with be recognized for their accomplishments this month. The three alumni will be inducted into the W. P. Carey School of Business Homecoming Hall of Fame at Arizona State University on Oct. 20. Previous inductees come from such diverse organizations as the American Red Cross, the Arizona Diamondbacks, Motorola, Wells Fargo Bank, and XM Satellite Radio. "The new honorees have all blazed a trail in their respective fields, making a difference in their professions, their community and society as a whole," says Amy Hillman, dean of the W. P. Carey School of Business. "They also set a great example for our current students that there are no limits on how far they can go in their own career paths." The 39th annual W. P. Carey School inductees are: Tariq Jesrai, retired chairman and CEO of Doncasters Group, spent the majority of his career in the aerospace industry. Prior to joining Doncasters, he served as CEO of McKechnie Aerospace, directing the strategy, operations and integration of all companies. He has also held executive management positions with Hartwell Corp., Aeroquip-Vickers, and Honeywell International. Jesrai received his MBA from the W. P. Carey School in 1991. David J. Larcher, founding principal and president of Vestar, one of the largest privately held owner-operators of shopping centers in the U.S. He is responsible for Vestar's acquisition, development, and operational activities, and acts as the key contact for Vestar's retail relationships. A member of the International Council of Shopping Centers, and the Urban Land Institute, Larcher also serves on the several boards in the Phoenix area. He earned a bachelor's degree in real estate from ASU in 1982. Guisheng Yang, chairman of Shanghai Genius Advanced Material (Group) Co. Ltd., which he established in 1992. Genius Group fills gaps in the field of engineering plastics in China and promotes the development of relevant industries. The company is noted for its independent innovation, energy conservation, and the cooperation it fosters between industries, universities, and research institutes. Yang has earned two W. P. Carey degrees in Shanghai, his MBA in 2007 and a DBA in 2015. Alumni, business leaders, and students will attend the Homecoming Hall of Fame event Thursday, Oct. 20 at McCord Hall Plaza on ASU's Tempe campus. The reception starts at 6 p.m. Advance registration is requested at wpcarey.asu.edu/fame or by calling (480) 965-3978. W. P. CAREY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS The W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University is one of the top-ranked and largest business schools in the United States. The school is internationally regarded for its research productivity and its distinguished faculty members, including a Nobel Prize winner. Students come from more than 100 countries and include over 50 National Merit Scholars. For more information, please visit wpcarey.asu.edu. Media Contact: Kim Steinmetz Arizona State University W. P. Carey School of Business (480) 965-5464 [email protected] SOURCE Arizona State University Western Gas Equity Partners, LP (NYSE: WGP ) also announced today that the board of directors of its general partner declared a quarterly cash distribution of $0.4475 per unit for the third quarter of 2016. This distribution represents a 3-percent increase over the prior quarter and a 17-percent increase over the third quarter of 2015. WGP's third quarter 2016 distribution is payable on November 22, 2016, to unitholders of record at the close of business on October 31, 2016. The Partnerships plan to report their third-quarter 2016 results after the market closes on Tuesday, November 1, 2016. Management will host a conference call on Wednesday, November 2, 2016, at 8 a.m. CDT (9 a.m. EDT) to discuss quarterly results. The full text of the release announcing the results will be available on the Partnerships' website at www.westerngas.com. Third-Quarter 2016 Results Wednesday, November 2, 2016 8 a.m. CDT (9 a.m. EDT) Dial-in number: 844-836-8745 International dial-in number: 412-317-5439 Individuals who would like to participate should dial the applicable dial-in number listed above approximately 15 minutes before the scheduled conference call time. Pre-registration is available through the investor relations page at www.westerngas.com. Pre-registrants will be issued a personal identification number to use when dialing in to the live conference call, which will enable the participant to bypass the operator and gain immediate access to the call. To access the live audio webcast of the conference call, please visit the investor relations section of the Partnerships' website at www.westerngas.com. A replay of the conference call will also be available on the website for two weeks following the call. Western Gas Partners, LP ("WES") is a growth-oriented Delaware master limited partnership formed by Anadarko Petroleum Corporation to acquire, own, develop and operate midstream energy assets. With midstream assets located in the Rocky Mountains, the Mid-Continent, North-central Pennsylvania and Texas, WES is engaged in the business of gathering, processing, compressing, treating, and transporting natural gas, condensate, natural gas liquids and crude oil for Anadarko, as well as for other producers and customers. Western Gas Equity Partners, LP ("WGP") is a Delaware master limited partnership formed by Anadarko to own the following types of interests in WES: (i) the general partner interest and all of the incentive distribution rights in WES, both owned through WGP's 100% ownership of WES's general partner, and (ii) a significant limited partner interest in WES. For more information about Western Gas Partners, LP, Western Gas Equity Partners, LP, and Western Gas Flash Feed updates, please visit www.westerngas.com. Note regarding Non-United States Investors: This release is intended to be a qualified notice under Treasury Regulation Section 1.1446-4(b). Brokers and nominees should treat one hundred percent (100.0%) of Western Gas Partners, LP's and Western Gas Equity Partners, LP's distributions to non-U.S. investors as being attributable to income that is effectively connected with a United States trade or business. Accordingly, Western Gas Partners, LP's and Western Gas Equity Partners, LP's distributions to non-U.S. investors are subject to federal income tax withholding at the highest applicable effective tax rate. WESTERN GAS PARTNERS, LP and WESTERN GAS EQUITY PARTNERS, LP CONTACT: Jonathon E. VandenBrand Director, Investor Relations [email protected] 832.636.1007 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150505/213920LOGO Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150505/213919LOGO SOURCE Western Gas Partners, LP Related Links http://www.westerngas.com GREENSBURG, Pa., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Construction has begun on a new FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) transmission substation near Burgettstown, Pa., to help meet the increased electrical usage of the area's expanding Marcellus Shale gas industry. The project also will reinforce the regional transmission system which is expected to benefit more than 40,000 West Penn Power customers in Allegheny and Washington counties. Budgeted at approximately $40 million, the project will support two natural gas processing facilities being developed in the area projected to use more electricity annually than approximately 100,000 homes. Construction crews are building foundations and raising steel structures for the new substation located in Smith Township in Washington County, with part of the facility expected to be operational by the end of the year. The project also includes erecting a new transmission line to connect the new substation to an existing transmission line nearby. Another key aspect of the project is the installation of specialized voltage-regulating equipment designed to respond to real-time electrical conditions, boosting or reducing voltage as needed to maintain consistent levels on the regional transmission network. Slated for completion in mid-2017, that work involves installing capacitor banks, circuit breakers, communications equipment, a modular control building and two large transformers manufactured in Wisconsin that each weigh nearly 280,000 pounds. "FirstEnergy's infrastructure enhancements continue to help support natural gas activity in Western Pennsylvania, said David W. McDonald, regional president of West Penn Power. "This project also will benefit existing customers by providing additional capacity and voltage support to our regional transmission network, especially commercial and industrial customers using specialized equipment sensitive to voltage fluctuations." The project is part of FirstEnergy's plans to invest more than $200 million in 2016 in the West Penn Power area to help enhance service reliability. Trans-Allegheny Interstate Line Company (TrAILCo), a FirstEnergy transmission affiliate, will build and own the new substation. West Penn Power serves about 720,000 customers in 24 Pennsylvania counties. Connect with West Penn Power on Twitter @W_Penn_Power and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WestPennPower. FirstEnergy is dedicated to safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its 10 electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The company's transmission subsidiaries operate more than 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp or online at www.firstenergycorp.com. Editor's Note: Photos of work being done on the new FirstEnergy substation project in Washington County, Pa., are available for download on Flickr. SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp. Related Links http://www.firstenergycorp.com "Safety is our first priority and we're dedicated, in every task we do, to ensuring that these units are completed safely, correctly and in a way that will deliver the most value for Georgia electric customers," said Mark Rauckhorst, executive vice president of nuclear development. "We will never compromise in our commitment to safe and high-quality construction and I applaud our entire Vogtle construction team for reaching this milestone." Georgia Power is documenting the daily progress made at the Vogtle expansion and has posted an updated time lapse video on its YouTube Channel highlighting six years of construction work in less than two minutes. So far this year, thousands of workers from across the country worked together to safely place more than 2,200 tons of rebar, weld more than 4,300 tons of structural steel, pour more than 23,500 cubic yards of concrete and lift numerous multi-million pound modules for the units into place. Most recently, workers placed six new shield building panels for Unit 3. Nearly 50 steel panels are now in place for the shield building, which encapsulates the Unit 3 containment vessel. The reinforced individual panels can weigh 10 tons or more and be filled with concrete. Once fully assembled, including more than 160 individual panels, the shield building will provide structural support of the containment cooling water supply and protect the containment vessel, which houses the reactor vessel and associated equipment. Georgia Power delivers reliable energy for customers at the lowest possible cost by leveraging a diverse generation mix, including nuclear, 21st century coal and natural gas, as well as renewables such as solar and wind. To learn more about Georgia Power's diverse generation portfolio and the Vogtle nuclear expansion project visit www.GeorgiaPower.com. About Georgia Power Georgia Power is the largest subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), America's premier energy company. Value, Reliability, Customer Service and Stewardship are the cornerstones of the company's promise to 2.5 million customers in all but four of Georgia's 159 counties. Committed to delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy at rates below the national average, Georgia Power maintains a diverse, innovative generation mix that includes nuclear, 21st century coal and natural gas, as well as renewables such as solar, hydroelectric and wind. Georgia Power focuses on delivering world-class service to its customers every day and the company is consistently recognized by J.D. Power and Associates as an industry leader in customer satisfaction. For more information, visit www.GeorgiaPower.com and connect with the company on Facebook (Facebook.com/GeorgiaPower) and Twitter (Twitter.com/GeorgiaPower). Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ny05YVhFyHE&feature=youtu.be Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20050216/CLW066LOGO SOURCE Georgia Power Related Links http://www.georgiapower.com ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Financial advisors seeking access to personalized bond management and direct purchasing opportunities now have another option other than rummaging through thousands of bonds via their trading platform. World Equity Group (WEG), a rapidly growing independent broker/dealer and registered investment advisory firm headquartered in the Midwest with $3 billion in assets, today announced its third consecutive year of growth for its bond trading desk, which offers financial advisors completely customized approach to incorporating bonds into a portfolio. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429753LOGO "We all know that bonds may be a useful tool to portfolios when seeking lower risk. The problem is that bonds often have a complex structure, many advisors avoid them because they are really unsure what they are getting their clients into," said Rich Babjak, president, of World Equity Group. "We wanted to provide a solution to our advisors that is truly customizable to each of their client's needs not just a point-and-click solution that is available to everyone." Since its inception in 2013, World Equity's bond desk has doubled the amount of assets it manages year-over-year. Sarah Simmons, a 20-year industry veteran oversees the buying and selling of bonds utilizing an extensive dealer network with Tier I institutional pricing. She is also charged with reviewing portfolios and providing guidance in bond buy/sell selections, as well as creating and executing bond ladders for the more than 170 World Equity Group advisors. "Platforms can't tell you everything. We are eliminating the electronic middle man and looking beyond just the bond rating before we make any type of recommendation to our advisors," stated Simmons. "For advisors, the direct buying of bonds may not be an option for them. Smaller advisors have an even more difficult time leveraging their scale. With our industry relationships, we are able to deal directly with the street and fight for the best possible pricing." Advisors utilizing World Equity Group's bond desk resources have found some success for their clients. Harvey E. Hutchinson IV, AAMS, president of Hutchinson Financial Advisors, Inc., recently tapped the independent broker-dealer bond desk to analyze a retail bond offering for his clients. "I could have easily gone into our custodian's platform and purchased the bond right then and there. It is just one of the true benefits and a real differentiator for an advisor working with World Equity Group being able to pick up the phone and lean on the expertise that Sarah and her team offer," said Hutchinson. "They really have the desire to understand my business and my clients. Knowing I have a resource of that caliber to tap offers me peace of mind that I am doing what's best for my clients." Advisors who interested in working with World Equity Group may email [email protected] or call (800) 765-5004 for more information. ABOUT WORLD EQUITY GROUP Founded in 1993, World Equity Group is run by top financial professionals and practicing advisors who understand the fee-based business needs of other independent financial advisors. The firm is focused on building individual relationships with every advisor who decides to join the World Equity Group family. Partners Rich Babjak and Robert Yarosz consider WEG Registered Representatives business partners, and the entire WEG team works hard to add value to each advisor's practice. The company offers a compelling array of products and services including investment banking services, alternative investments and sophisticated solutions for accredited investors, and an in-house bond desk that allow advisors to offer a wide range of solutions aimed at meeting the unique needs of each client. For more information visit www.WorldEquityGroup.com. MEDIA CONTACT: Leesy Palmer Impact Communications 913-649-5009 Email SOURCE World Equity Group Related Links http://www.WorldEquityGroup.com LOS ANGELES, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- WOW air, the ultra-low-cost transatlantic airline from Iceland, will now offer daily flights from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO) to Keflavik International Airport (KEF), making it even easier to travel to Europe from the West Coast. Fares from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Reykjavik will begin as low as $99* including taxes. Travellers can purchase tickets with a short one hour stopover in Iceland allowing them to continue their trip to one of WOW airs 31 European destinations Prices from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Amsterdam, Paris and London are now available for as low as $179* one way including taxes. Tickets reflecting these prices go on sale today. "We saw a great response to our new routes in Calfiornia this summer and are excited to begin daily flights from the West Coast to Europe beginning next Spring," said Skuli Mogensen, founder and CEO of WOW air. "WOW air is dedicated to providing customers with an easy and affordable way to travel, and continue to do so by offering low-fares and high-performance." WOW air announced its entry into the U.S. West Coast market in January 2016 with services beginning this past June. Currently, flights from San Francisco to Iceland are available five days a week, with service from Los Angeles scheduled four days a week. California routes are serviced by Airbus A330-300 aircrafts, the first wide-body planes in the WOW air fleet, which each carry 350 passengers in a single-class configuration. Seat pitch will vary from 30 inches as standard to 34 inches at an additional charge. Launched in November 2011, WOW air now connects 31 destinations across the U.S. and Europe with the Icelandic capital. WOW air's annual passenger capacity is projected to more than double in 2016 to over 1.8 million, up from approximately 840,000 in 2015. For more information on flights to Iceland and North America please visit www.wow.us. About WOW air The airline services 31 destinations across Europe and North America including Dublin, London, Paris, Berlin, and Copenhagen. Established in November 2011 by Icelandic entrepreneur Skuli Mogensen, the purple airline currently operates six Airbus A321 aircraft and recently purchased four. WOW airs fleet also consists of three Airbus A330-300 planes and two A 320-200 planes. By the end of 2017 the fleet will consist of 17 aircraft with the average age of the whole fleet only 2.5 years. For additional information and bookings please visit www.wowair.com. Contact: Anna Romano [email protected] 310 854 8296 WOW air corporate Svana Fridriksdottir VP Communications [email protected] 354 695 9359 *Based on lowest one-way fare from Los Angeles to Reykjavik (KEF), including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from LAX on Tuesdays from January 17, 2017 through April 4, 2017 and April 25, 2017 through May 30, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from San Francisco to Reykjavik (KEF), including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from SFO on Fridays from January 13, 2017 through April 7, 2017 and April 28, 2017 through May 26, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Paris (CDG) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from LAX and SFO on Tuesdays from January 17, 2017 through April 4, 2017 and April 25, 2017 through May 30, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from Los Angeles to Amsterdam (AMS) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from LAX on Thursdays from January 12, 2017 through April 6, 2017 and April 27, 2017 through May 25, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from Los Angeles to London (LGW) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from LAX on Saturdays from January 14, 2017 through April 8, 2017 and April 29, 2017 through May 27, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from San Francisco to Amsterdam (AMS) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from SFO on Saturdays from January 14, 2017 through April 8, 2017 and April 29, 2017 through May 27, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from San Francisco to London (LGW) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from SFO on Thursdays from January 12, 2017 through April 6, 2017 and April 27, 2017 through May 25, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. SOURCE WOW air HOUSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- W&T Offshore, Inc. (NYSE: WTI) announced today that it will release its third quarter 2016 financial and operational results after the market closes on Wednesday, November 2. In conjunction with the release, the Company has scheduled a conference call, which will also be broadcast live over the Internet, on Thursday, November 3 at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time (7:30 a.m. Central Time). By Phone: Dial 1-412-902-0030 at least 10 minutes before the call. A telephone replay will be available through November 10, 2016 by dialing 1-201-612-7415 and using the passcode 13648354. By Webcast: Visit the Investor Relations page of W&T's website at www.wtoffshore.com under "Presentations." A replay will be available shortly after the call. About W&T Offshore W&T Offshore, Inc. is an independent oil and natural gas producer with operations offshore in the Gulf of Mexico and has grown through acquisitions, exploration and development. The Company currently has working interests in approximately 54 fields in federal and state waters (50 producing and four fields capable of producing) and has under lease approximately 750,000 gross acres, including approximately 450,000 gross acres on the Gulf of Mexico Shelf and approximately 300,000 gross acres in the deepwater. A majority of the Company's daily production is derived from wells it operates. For more information on W&T Offshore, please visit the Company's website at www.wtoffshore.com. CONTACT: Lisa Elliott Danny Gibbons Dennard Lascar Associates SVP & CFO [email protected] [email protected] 713-529-6600 713-624-7326 SOURCE W&T Offshore, Inc. Related Links http://www.wtoffshore.com TAOS, N.M., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Wounded Warriors Family Support's Native American Veterans Support Transportation and Resources (NAVSTaR) program rolled into Taos Monday with a 2016 Ford Explorer for the Taos Pueblo tribe. NAVSTaR ensures that Native American veterans, especially those who are combat wounded, are helped in a meaningful way. The program has donated 16 Ford vehicles to tribes in eight states. These donations have topped $600,000. The Tzell and Protravel Foundation of New York provided funding for the Taos Pueblo Explorer. "Our ability to provide Ford vehicles to support our Native American veterans to get to health care appointments is made possible because of the generosity of the American people, specifically The Tzell and Protravel Foundation," said Col. John Folsom, USMCR (Ret.), founder and president of Wounded Warriors Family Support. "We are honored and privileged to have their support. Without them, today's presentation would not have been possible." Taos Pueblo Gov. Benito Sandoval and War Chief Richard Archuleta invited Folsom to the vehicle donation ceremony as a way to honor Taos veterans. "This vehicle will be used to take our veterans to the care facilities that they need," Sandoval said. "May the Creator give you many blessings. On behalf of all of our veterans, we give you our heartfelt thanks." The Black Feet Sioux, Eastern Shoshone, Gros Vetnre, Hopis, Jemez Pueblo, Northern Cheyenne, Oglala Sioux, Santee Sioux and Seminole Nation of Oklahoma are among other tribes that have received Ford vehicles from NAVSTaR. To support Native American veterans, you can contact Wounded Warriors Family Support by calling 402-502-7557 or visiting www.wwfs.org. About Wounded Warriors Family Support Wounded Warriors Family Support is an independent nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide support to the families of those who have been wounded, injured or killed during combat operations. Rated a four-star nonprofit by Charity Navigator, Wounded Warriors Family Support aids veterans and their families in healing the wounds that medicine cannot. For more information about Wounded Warriors Family Support, visit www.wwfs.org. SOURCE Wounded Warriors Family Support Related Links http://www.wwfs.org VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Zymo Research Corporation will launch its Quick-cfRNA Serum & Plasma Kit, which is currently in beta test, at ASHG 2016, Booth #112. Genetic researchers who need a reliable and robust method to purify cell-free RNA (cfRNA) from up to 1 ml of plasma, serum, or other biological fluids can use the Quick-cfRNA Serum & Plasma Kit. Isolated RNA is immediately ready for sensitive downstream applications including RT-qPCR and Next Generation Sequencing. The kit enables simple, reliable, and efficient preparation of high-quality circulating cell-free RNA (including protein-bound, exosomal, miRNA and other small RNAs) from serum, plasma, amniotic fluid, cerebrospinal fluid, saliva, and other biological fluids. Cell-free RNA naturally occurs in blood and has clinical significance. It is becoming a promising tool for non-invasive and cost effective detection of cancer and other diseases. A Zymo Research scientist testing the new Quick-cfRNA(TM) Serum & Plasma Kit. In addition to the new Quick-cfRNA Serum & Plasma Kit, Zymo Research will also be showing its Quick-cfDNA Serum & Plasma Kit. Investigators are finding that increased rates of circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) from tumors can be used as a biomarker source for early cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and monitoring of cancer therapy. Zymo Research's Quick-cfDNA Serum & Plasma Kit can be used for biomarker discovery and advanced liquid biopsy research. Liquid biopsies typically screen for free-floating pieces of DNA or RNA from cancerous cells found in the bloodstream. Researchers will capture a biological sample, such as blood or serum for disease analysis, and use that sample for a range of research applications such as RT-PCR, digital PCR, and Next Generation Sequencing. Translational genomic research is utilizing cfDNA to monitor personalized therapies based on specific tumor profiles. For these applications it is critical to recover total DNA. Zymo's Quick-cfDNA Serum & Plasma Kit uses a combination of chemical and enzymatic methods to efficiently recover total DNA (including cell-free apoptotic, necrotic, mitochondrial and viral DNA) linearly from up to 10 ml of sample. Zymo Research's Zymo-Spin technology is featured in both kits. Its unique spin-column design allows for ultra-pure DNA or RNA to be eluted in as little as 35 l of water. The resulting DNA or RNA is suitable for all subsequent analyses and molecular manipulations, such as qPCR, Next Generation Sequencing, and DNA methylation analyses. About Zymo Research Corporation Zymo Research Corporation is a privately held company based in Irvine, California, USA. Since its inception in 1994 it has been serving the academic and biopharmaceutical scientific communities by providing DNA and RNA purification products. Their goal is to help scientists reduce time in the lab by eliminating steps and making the entire DNA/RNA extraction process simpler and faster. In addition to the nucleic acid purification products, Zymo Research also offers genetic, epigenetic and transcriptome analysis services. Zymo Research provides high quality products that are simple to use yet robust in their performance. For more information, please visit: www.zymoresearch.com. Follow Zymo Research Corporation on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Zymo Research Corporation, the stylized logo, tagline "The Beauty of Science is to Make Things Simple", Quick-cfDNA, Quick-cfRNA, and Zymo-Spin are trademarks of Zymo Research Corporation and are registered with the USPTO. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161014/429018 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160506/364743LOGO SOURCE Zymo Research Corp. Related Links http://www.zymoresearch.com If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here Ranchi, Oct 15 : Jharkhand is set to witness two rallies and one shutdown this month to protest land acquisition for various projects and changes proposed to the state's two land acts through an ordinance. The opposition parties have called a rally on October 19 and a shutdown on October 24 against the police firing at Barkagao in Hazaribagh district that killed four villagers. The opposition leaders held a meeting on Friday and chalked out strategy for the rally and the shutdown. All top opposition leaders took part in the meeting. "The 'Sankalap Rally' will take place on October 19 and shutdown has been called on October 24 to protest the police firing," said Rakesh Sinha, a Congress leader, who attended the meeting. Former central minister and Congress leader Subodh Kant Sahay, former Chief Minister and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha-Prajatantrik (JVM-P) President Babulal Marandi, leaders of JD-U, RJD and Left parties also attended the meeting. On October 1, police had opened fire at protesters, in which four people, including three minors, were killed. The residents of Barkagao have been protesting the acquisition of land by the NTPC for coal block mining there. The villagers also allege that proper compensation has not been given to them. The coal blocks of Pankri Barwadih, Chatti Bariatu and Keredari were identified in 2004 with the coal yield estimated at 13 million tonnes. The foundation stone was laid for the project on November 21, 2005. Overall, 8,100 acres of land needed to be acquired, of which 4,000 acres was to be from the 'rayats' (contract tillers), 2,900 acres was forest land and 1,200 acres was government land. It was likely to affect 8,745 families. The proposed compensation was fixed at Rs 8 lakh per acre. On October 22, the Jharkhand Adivasi Sanghrash Morcha has called rally in Ranchi to protest the proposed changes through to the two land acts -- Chotangapur Tenancy (CNT) and Santhal Pargana Act (SPT). Once the ordinance is cleared by the President of India, the agriculture land could be acquired for non-agriculture purposes, like roads, power projects and malls. The opposition parties and the BJP alliance partner AJSU are also opposing the proposed changes in the and acts. "The tribal people will show their strength in the rally. No model is prepared for their development. Thousands of acres of land have been acquired in Jharkhand for different projects. The rally will highlight the feelings of the people to the Jharkhand government," Karma Oraon, the Jharkhand Adivasi Sangharsh Morcha Convener, told reporters. Benaulim (Goa), Oct 15 : India and Russia on Saturday condemned terrorism and emphasised the need to stamp out terror in all forms, apart from calling for building a legal regime on the principle of zero tolerance for terrorism, Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar said. Both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed the need to "deny safe havens to terrorists and counter the spread of terrorist ideology, stop recruitment, prevent travel of terrorists, strengthen border management and essentially have a legal regime built on the principle of zero tolerance for, or indirect support of, terrorism", he added. He was addressing a press conference here on the sidelines of the India-Russia bilateral summit. "The two leaders condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations," he said. He said India appreciated Russia's unequivocal condemnation of the terrorist attack on the army base in Uri in Jammu and Kashmir on September 18, in which 19 soldiers were killed. "The Prime Minister appreciated the strong statements and support and sympathy we got from Russia after the Uri attack. He recognised the personal role of President Putin in building the India-Russia relations over two decades. He said this relation is actually so strong, so deep, that we are responding organically to international developments and changes," the Foreign Secretary said. A joint statement issued by the two leaders also noted the "commonality of positions on important issues, including the war on terrorism", Jaishankar added. Washington, Oct 16 : Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has hinted that his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, took drugs before their second debate last week and asked that the two of them be tested before their third and final debate. "Athletes, they make them take a drug test. We should take a drug test prior to the debate because I don't know what's going on with her," Trump said on Saturday at a rally in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. "At the beginning of her last debate (October 9 in St. Louis, Missouri), she was all pumped up at the beginning. And at the end...she could barely reach her car," he said, adding that he was "willing" to undergo drug testing before their next debate on October 19 in Las Vegas. The Republican candidate, who has stoked a number of rumours about Clinton's health and stamina in recent months, criticised his rival for not programming a campaign event for this Saturday, and claimed she is not prepping for their next debate but instead is resting up for the debate even though it's still five days away. "I said forget debate prep. I mean, give me a break. Do you really think that Hillary Clinton is debate-prepping for three or four days? Hillary Clinton is resting, OK?" the magnate said. His campaign had said that when the Federal Bureau of Investigation was probing her handling of e-mails when she was secretary of state, "she said 39 times she couldn't remember anything", and maybe that was why she has to prep so much for the debate - she has a bad memory. The magnate has stepped up his attacks not only against Clinton but also against several Republican leaders for failing to support him and against the media following the release of a 2005 video in which he is heard making sexist remarks, after which a number of woman came forward to accuse Trump of sexually abusing them some years ago. "The election is being rigged by corrupt media pushing completely false allegations and outright lies in an effort to elect her president," Trump said with reference to Clinton. But the Republican candidate vowed to defeat the "rigged" system, while also denying all the accusations of sexual harassment made over the last week by half a dozen women. Seoul, Oct 17 : South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics said on Monday that it will now offer replacement phones to Galaxy Note 7 users flying out of South Korea, after the US and other countries banned the device from flights. Samsung took the step after it became apparent that transport authorities in the US, Canada, Israel and Japan have imposed a ban on carrying the Galaxy Note 7 device on flights, even if switched off or in airplane mode, following several reports of the gadget catching on fire. "We set up a counter at Incheon (International) Airport where Note 7 users can replace their phone with another phone of a different model," a Samsung spokesman told EFE news. Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics, which initially attributed the combustion instances to defective batteries, has initiated a large scale investigation into the matter after several replacement phones offered to customers following a September recall had the same problem. The spokesman said engineers are "thoroughly reviewing every step of the engineering, manufacturing and quality control processes" to uncover the reasons behind the problem. "We are looking into every possibility, and working around the clock to get the bottom of this issue," said the representative of the Seoul-based firm. Meanwhile, South Korean authorities have began a parallel probe in collaboration with Samsung. In September, the company had recalled around 2.5 million units and was forced to permanently withdraw the device from the market when the problem persisted. Samsung expects to incur operative losses of around $5.4 billion between July 2016 and March 2017 over the fiasco. Mumbai, Oct 17 : In a rare display of solidarity, Islamic scholars and clerics of all Muslim sects on Monday attacked the government for trying to introduce a Uniform Civil Code. The scholars and clerics from Sunni, Shia, Barelvi, Deobandi and Ahlehadi sects registered their protest against what they termed was "the government's interference in personal laws". In a joint statement issued after a brainstorming session, the leaders took umbrage to the Centre's proposals on Triple Talaq and other practices which they said would violate their personal laws. "Any interference in Muslim Personal Law will not be tolerated. Any efforts to impose a Uniform Civil Code in the name of social reform and gender justice will prove counterproductive," they said. The President of All India Ulema Council, Maulana Zaherudin Khan, condemned the move of banning Triple Talaq as a conspiracy to impose a Uniform Civil Code which he said was opposed by most Muslims. "We will boycott this questionnaire. No Muslim will respond to it because it is misleading and deceitful. The Uniform Civil Code is divisive and will lead to social unrest," he cautioned. "The government should respect this position of the Muslims instead of conspiring to forcibly put an end to it," said Darul Uloom Mohamadiya's President Maulana Sayed M.K. Ashraf. "It cannot force Muslims to follow other communities in issues related to personal laws as it tantamount to an infringement on their fundamental rights," Ashraf said. He said that Muslims clamouring against Triple Talaq and demanding a ban on polygamy "are a miniscule minority who do not represent the sentiments of the majority of Indian Muslims". All Indian Ulema Association President Maulana Sayed Athar Ali urged the government to refrain from interfering in the beliefs and religions of all citizens. "Muslims consider divorce, polygamy and other personal laws as an intrinsic part of their religion and are obliged to follow the Sharia in these matters," Maulana Ali pointed out. The latest move comes shortly after the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) came out strongly against Triple Talaq. The meeting in Mumbai was chaired by Maulana Ashraf and attended by AIUC President Maulana Khan; Mushwarat President Naveed Hamid; AIMPLB executive committee member Maulana Sayed Athar Ali; All India Jamiat Islami Vice-President Maulana Nusrat; Imam of Haji Ali Dargah, Mumbai, Maulana Mohammed Islam; Shia scholar Maulana Asgar Haideri and Ahlehadis scholar Maulana Asgar Imam Salfi. New Delhi, Oct 17 : The Congress on Monday hit out at Defence Minister Manohar Parikkar for his comment that "RSS ideology inspired surgical strikes", and said that he is a "national embarrassment" and "doesn't derserve to hold his portfolio". Defence Minister Manohar Parikkar on Monday said the RSS ideology inspired Prime Minister Narendra Modi and him to carry out the September 29 surgical strikes across the Line of Control. It was not possible that a Prime Minister from the land of Mahatma Gandhi and a Defence Minister from Goa with a common RSS orientation would not take such a strong decision, he said. The minister was addressing students and teachers of Nirma University here during a 'Know Your Army' programme. The minister said the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh teachings were at the back of the mind of the Prime Minister and him while ordering the surgical strikes on the terrorist launch pads. Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said: "Why is the Defence Minister always so over the top? Today, he has gone and credited the RSS for operations along the LoC." "What is wrong with this gentleman? And this is not the first time this has happened. Earlier, he said that 'like Hanuman' the army did not know their prowess until I pointed out to them their strength and capacity. Then they blame others for politicising the operations along the LoC," he added. Asked if the Congress would demand Parrikar's resignation, Tewari said: "Resignation can be demanded from somebody who has morality. By seeking his resignation, we don't intend to waste our time." The Congress asked a few questions to the BJP and Parrikar, including did Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri go to an RSS Shakha? Did Defence Minister Yashwantrao Chavan go to a RSS Shakha? Did Prime Minister Indira Gandhi who created Bangaldesh, go to a Shakha? Did Defence Minister Jagjivan Ram go to a Shakha? Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw or General J.S. Aurora, did they go to a Shakha? "Manohar Parrikar does not deserve to be the Defence Minister. This man is a national embarrassment. And the operations along the LoC were targeted more for domestic consumption rather than changing the behaviour of the deep-State in Pakistan." Asked if the Congress party's line on providing evidence on surgical strikes is same as its senior leader P. Chidambaram, Tewari said: "No one in the Congress has ever asked for evidence with regard to the surgical strikes. In fact, surgical strike is a wrong terminology -- the terminology used by the DGMO is 'Operations along the LoC'." "If the army institutionally stands up and makes a statement, we believe that statement, as we believe the statement which has been made by former Chief of Army General Bikram Singh that such operations were carried out in the past," he added. Panaji, Oct 18 : Rebel Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leader Subash Velingkar on Tuesday accused Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar of picking and choosing RSS teachings according to his convenience and timing. Velingkar said the former Goa Chief Minister should cancel government grants to English medium primary schools in the state if he really pays heed to the Sangh's values. "If Parrikar believes in Sangh's teachings, he should first ensure that government grants to English medium schools should be cancelled," Velingkar told IANS. Parrikar, while addressing an event at the Nirma University in Ahmadabad, on Monday said: "The Prime Minister hails from Mahatma Gandhi's home state and the Defence Minister comes from Goa which never had a 'martial race'. And then take this surgical strike. This was a different kind of combination. May be the RSS teaching was at the core." Velingkar was sacked from the Sangh in August this year after he repeatedly accused Parrikar and the Goa Bharatiya Janata Party of deviating from the RSS teachings and betraying the cause of regional languages by allowing english medium primary schools, most of which are run by the state's Roman Catholic church, avail financial grants. Parrikar in a Cabinet decision in 2012 had allowed continuation of the state Education Ministry's financial grants to english medium primary schools. In the run up to the last assembly elections, Parrikar had opposed grants to the same schools. Velingkar, who is also the co-convenor of the Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch, has accused the Defence Minister and the state BJP of betrayal, a campaign which eventually led to his sacking as the state RSS chief. The Manch has now floated a new political party with Velingkar as one of its mentors, and this according to the rebel RSS leaders, has worried Parrikar ahead of the Goa polls early next year. "Parrikar is actually worried because of our campaign against the BJP... The timing of his comment about his RSS teachings is therefore a suspect," Velingkar said. Damascus, Oct 18 : Syria's northern city of Aleppo calmed down on Tuesday, as Russia has halted airstrikes in the city, a security source said. The sky over hard-hit Aleppo has never been so tranquil for a long time, Xinhua news agency quoted the source as saying. Russia announced airstrikes on rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo have been halted from 10.00 a.m. (local time) on Tuesday, as a prelude to an eight-hour humanitarian truce in the city, which will enter into force on Thursday. The Thursday truce could see the evacuation of hardline rebels of the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, previously known as the Al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front. The truce and the rebels' evacuation are believed to be the outcome of a recent meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, where world powers Moscow and Washionton sought to broker a humanitarian pause and eventual political solution to the crisis. The Russian air force and the Syrian army recently upped their offensives in Aleppo in order to banish the rebels from the east of the city. The Syrian government has issued multiple statements that urged the rebels to leave eastern Aleppo and promised them a safe passage to the rebel-held city of Idlib. Meanwhile, Russia has urged the evacuation of the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham group, which is listed as a terrorist group by the UN, from Aleppo. On the other side, the US and its allies have accused Russia and the Syrian government of committing war crimes by shelling Aleppo. But observers said both Washington and Moscow are believed to have agreed on evacuating ultra-radical groups from Aleppo in exchange for a halt of Russian airstrikes. Aleppo, located near the borders with Turkey, is Syria's largest city and was once its economic hub. It has been a focal point of clashes between the Syrian army and the rebels. Ranchi, Oct 18 : Congress legislator Nirmala Devi, who is spearheading the protest against NTPC coal block mining in Hazaribagh district of Jharkhand, was arrested on Tuesday, police said. "Nirmala Devi has been arrested from Hazaribagh," said Inspector General of Police (Operations) M.S. Bhatia. She was earlier arrested on October 1 when she was sitting on a dharna with her supporters to demand a ban on the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) work in Barkagao in Hazaribagh district. She and her husband are protesting the land acquisition by the NTPC and alleged absence of suitable compensation to landowners. After her arrest on October 1, she was allegedly freed by her supporters, after which police firing on villagers had led to the death of four persons. Her husband and former Minister and Congress leader Yogendra Sao was arrested after the firing on the charge of instigating people. Nirmala Devi's son too was arrested in another case. The arrest comes a day before opposition parties' rally in Barkagao to protest the land acquisition for the NTPC project. The coal blocks of Pankri Barwadih, Chatti Bariatu and Keredari in Hazaribagh district were awarded to the NTPC in 2004. The mining work required acquisition of 4,000 acres of land from 'rayats', 2,900 acres of forest land and 1,200 acres of government land. The land acquisition was estimated to hit 8,745 families. New Delhi, Oct 18 : A new museum to showcase the election history in India since the country's Independence was inaugurated here on Tuesday. The museum inaugurated by Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi (CEC), showcases more than a hundred archived photographs, maps and references, describing the electoral journey of the country under the supervision, direction and control of the Election Commission of India, till now. The CEC was accompanied by Election Commissioners Achal Kumar Joti and Om Prakash Rawat. The museum is situated on the premises of the Chief Electoral Office, Kashmere Gate. According to the Election Commission, the museum was established to create a learning place to study India's electoral legacy, to peep into it's gold standard electoral management and to learn about democracy. "It takes us down the memory lane of election process in the largest democracy of the world. In the electoral process section, it covers all the stages of elections and it's connections with the voters in today's time. An interesting section presents the transformation from ballot box to the Electronic Voting Machine and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) in our elections," said a statement from the poll panel, describing the new museum. "The use of indelible ink is highlighted through exhibits which suggest that this is now being used in more than 25 countries in the world. An interesting segment is of the pre-independence election material put up by Delhi Archives, where electoral roll of 1923 is on display," the statement added. During the occasion, a dedicated section on Gandhi's idea of democracy was also inaugurated by the CEC, curated by the National Gandhi Museum. An exhaustive photo gallery, audio-visual display unit, election quiz and voters pledge are some of the other attractions of the centre. Latest updates on Gandhi Jayanti 2019 New Delhi, Oct 19 : Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda will reach Bhubaneswar on Wednesday and visit the hospital where 19 people were killed in a fire on Monday. "Health Minister J.P. Nadda will visit SUM hospital in Bhubaneswar today (Wednesday) to take stock of the fire tragedy which claimed 19 lives,"a senior Health Ministery official told IANS. Nineteen persons were killed in the Odisha fire in the Intensive Care Unit of the Dialysis Ward of SUM hospital on Monday evening. Another 106 were injured and are undergoing treatment. The Fire Services Department lodged an FIR with the Khandagiri police alleging negligence of the hospital authorities in adhering to fire safety norms. Four SUM Hospital officials were arrested on Tuesday in connection with the incident. New York, Oct 19 : Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker and author Michael Moore has released a documentary titled "Michael Moore in TrumpLand", his take on the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. The film was premiered at the IFC Center here on Tuesday night for free, reports hollywoodreporter.com. The 73-minute film will begin its theatrical run on Wednesday at the IFC Center (for one week only) and Laemmle Town Center 5 in Encino. "We are flying by the seat of our pants here," said Moore, who has been an outspoken opponent of Trump throughout the presidential election, at the premiere of the film. "Our goal is to have as many Americans see this over the next five or 10 days," he added. The live performance film -- which sees Moore speaking about the two candidates onstage, and supposing what would happen if each were to become the next US president -- was shot less than two weeks ago over two consecutive nights at a venue in Wilmington, Ohio. Since the film was announced, a handful of theatres have called to screen over the next two weeks before the election next month. "We will hopefully have an announcement on that over the next 24 to 36 hours. It's all coming together in a very rapid-fire way. Lots of people have been contacting us to see how they can help us," said Moore, adding that the film will soon be available on VOD as well. The movie also includes an imagined news segment that covers what would happen if Trump wins. Moore explained that he made the documentary because Democrats should not strategise for their presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's victory by solely scaring people off Trump, as support for Clinton is not necessarily locked-in. Washington, Oct 19 : Three crew members of Expedition 49/50 for working at the International Space Station (ISS) were launched into orbit from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Wednesday. The Soyuz MS-02 blasted off from the Baikonur cosmodrome at 4:05 a.m. EDT Wednesday (1.35 p.m. India time), NASA said. NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough and cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko of the Russian space agency Roscosmos are now safely in orbit, it added. Over the next two days, the trio will orbit the Earth 34 times before docking to the space station's Poisk module on Friday. The three join Expedition 49 Commander Anatoli Ivanishin of Roscosmos, flight engineers Kate Rubins of NASA and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The new crew members will spend a little over four months conducting more than 250 science investigations in fields of biology, Earth science, human research, physical sciences and technology development. Kimbrough, Ryzhikov and Borisenko are scheduled to remain aboard the ISS station until late February. Rubins, Ivanishin and Onishi will return to the Earth one October 30, NASA said. The crew will welcome a variety of cargo deliveries to the space station, including Orbital ATK's Cygnus, which was launched on Monday from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. New Delhi, Oct 19 : India and Myanmar on Wednesday agreed to closely coordinate with each other on border security while Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaffirmed New Delhi's commitment to help develop Myanmar. "As close and friendly neighbours, the security interests of India and Myanmar are closely aligned," Modi said in the presence of Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi after delegation-level talks between the two sides. "We have agreed that a close coordination to ensure security in the areas along our border, and sensitivity to each other's strategic interests, will serve the interests of both our countries," Modi said. India shares a 1,600-km border with Myanmar. Security has been an issue with insurgent groups from the northeast taking refuge in Myanmar's densely forested territory. In August, the Indian Army reportedly carried out surgical strikes in Myanmar after National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K) militants fled to Myanmar from Mon in Nagaland after being attacked. According to a joint statement, both sides "reaffirmed their shared commitment to fight insurgent activity and the scourge of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations". "Both sides expressed the view that the long-standing commitment not to allow insurgent groups to use their soil for hostile activities against the other side is essential for the prosperity of the people residing along the border," it stated. Stating that India had a robust development cooperation programme with Myanmar, Modi, in his address to the media, mentioned the Kaladan multi-modal transport project linking Sittwe port in Myanmar with Mizoram and the trilateral highway connecting India, Myanmar and Thailand among others. "From the mega connectivity projects like Kaladan and trilateral highway, to projects in the fields of human resource development, healthcare, training and capacity building, we are sharing our resources and expertise with Myanmar," Modi said. "India's nearly $1.75 billion of development assistance is centered on people and is in line with the priorities of Myanmar government and its people." The Prime Minister said that in Wednesday's talks, both sides agreed to enhance engagement in several areas, including agriculture, power, renewable energy and power sector. India and Myanmar signed three MoUs following the talks -- one on cooperation in power sector, another on banking supervision and a third on designing an academic and professional building programme for the insurance industry of Myanmar. "India will develop a varietal development and seed production centre in Yezin in Myanmar to enhance the quality of seeds," Modi said. "We will also work to develop a mutually beneficial arrangement for trade in pulses." Modi said India has offered to scale up power supply from Moreh in Manipur to Tamu in Myanmar and also partner in a pilot LED electrification project at a site designated by Myanmar. "The MoU on... power sector... will help create the framework for advancing our linkages in this important sector," he said. According to the Prime Minister, the Archaeological Survey of India will soon begin work on restoring two old temples and inscriptions of King Mindon and King Baygyidaw at Bodh Gaya in Bihar. Commending Suu Kyi for her leadership and commitment to take Myanmar forward, he said: "As a reliable partner and friend, India stands shoulder to shoulder with you." On her part, Suu Kyi said Myanmar wanted to work with India not just for friendship "but for peace and stability in the region and beyond". She said Myanmar wanted a rule of just laws "and for this we look forward to the experiences of the Lok Sabha and other legislative bodies." "We believe India with its experience can help us in our endeavours." According to the joint statement, the State Counsellor condemned last month's cross-border terror attack on Uri army camp in Jammu and Kashmir "and conveyed her deep condolences to the loved ones of those who lost their lives". Suu Kyi met Modi on Wednesday, the third and concluding day of her state visit to India. On Tuesday, she met President Pranab Mukherjee and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Though Suu Kyi is not the President as Myanmar's Constitution bars her from holding the post, the Nobel peace laureate is effectively the de facto ruler of the country. This is the first official visit of Suu Kyi to New Delhi since her National League for Democracy swept parliamentary elections and assumed power in Myanmar in March this year. Before reaching New Delhi on Monday, she attended the BRICS-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa. Her visit comes after Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw's came to India in August. New Delhi, Oct 19 : The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on Wednesday said that the Election Commission was ready to hold simultaneous Lok Sabha and state legislative polls if "certain conditions are met" and more resources are provided. One of the conditions, according to CEC Nasim Zaidi, was that there should be consensus among all political parties on the move. "The Commission can hold simultaneous elections," Zaidi said, adding that there were two things to be noted. "Firstly, several constitutional amendments will have to be made, and secondly there has to be a consensus among all the political parties," Zaidi told IANS on the sidelines of an international conference on voter education, here. "If these two things are done... then we can hold simultaneous elections. Of course, we would need extra resources... more electronic voting machines (EVMS), etc.," he added. He said that the Commission has already written to the Law Ministry about this. Though Zaidi stressed for greater voter participation for a meaningful electoral process, he ruled out the option of compulsory voting. He termed it "impractical" in the Indian context to punish those who were eligible but abstained from voting. "The provision of punishing people for not casting their votes is impractical in India given the sheer size of our electorate," he said. Manila, Oct 19 : A police van rammed into protestors at an anti-US rally in Manila on Wednesday morning amid clashes between the two sides, a media report said. The violence happened after hundreds of demonstrators marched towards the US Embassy to demand an end to the presence of American troops in the country, backing Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte's call for an independent foreign policy, Efe news reported. Clashes initially broke out after the protestors, carrying banners bearing slogans such as "Yes to independence" and "No to US intervention", attempted to break through a police line near the embassy. A police van was seen driving backwards and forwards, ramming into protestors, while tear gas was also fired. Protest leader Renato Reyes said in a Tweet that 29 people were arrested, including a doctor, nurse and a member of the media. According to Reyes, 10 protestors were injured, while a number of police personnel were also said to have been injured. He said the arrested protestors were released around 4 p.m. (local time). Moscow/Baghdad, Oct 19 : The number of people fleeing the Iraqi city of Mosul amid the ongoing military operation to liberate it from the Islamic State (IS) is "not huge" as the fighting has not reached "the heart of the city" so far, a Red Cross official said on Wednesday. "The forces haven't reached to the heart of Mosul city. Up to now, operations are going in different small areas and in the areas around Mosul, in the outskirts of the city. There isn't that massive influx of civilians fleeing yet. Some civilians are fleeing from the outskirts but the number is not huge," Sara Zawqari, spokeswoman for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Iraq, told Sputnik. On Monday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi announced the start of the military operation to retake Mosul from the IS militants. According to local media, about 30,000 Iraqi soldiers and 4,000 Kurdish Peshmerga fighters are taking part in the operation, backed by air strikes carried out by the US-led international coalition. Mosul, the second biggest Iraqi city, as well as a number of other northern and western Iraqi cities and towns, was seized by the IS in 2014. On Sunday, the ICRC spokeswoman told Sputnik that the operation to liberate Mosul from IS may lead to a humanitarian disaster forcing up to one million civilians to flee the city. Mumbai, Oct 19 : Actress Shruti Haasan says though people consider her as a rocker, she feels that she is a "romantic girl". "I'm quite romantic, but it depends, you need inspiration also, if it's a silly fellow, I can't be romantic with them. People look at me and think that I should be taken out for rock concert. I love the song 'I love you' from 'Bodyguard' because there is some innocence and fun to it," Shruti said on Zoom channel's show "Diwali Beats". Talking about actor Emraan Hashmi, with whom she shared screen space in the film "Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji", Shruti said that she was very nervous to work with him. "Emraan is a wonderful co star. Really chilled out and friendly but I was very nervous with him because 'Dil toh Baccha Hai Ji' was like my fourth film and in front of him I was even more nervous," she added. The actress also described her "Gabbar is Back" co-star as an inspiration. "Working with Akshay Kumar was amazing, I was baffled with his approach to life and how disciplined he is. He's truly an inspiration," said the actress, who is the daughter of veteran stars Kamal Haasan and Sarika. Washington, Oct 19 : The US Defense Department on Wednesday said the coordination between Iraqi government and Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the battle to free Mosul city of Iraq from the Islamic State (IS) is very good. Some 18,000 soldiers from Iraq's central army and 10,000 troops from the country's Kurdistan region were converging on the IS stronghold city of Mosul, where it is believed that around 5,000 jihadist fighters remain, Efe news quoted Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis as saying. "The level of coordination and cooperation we have seen between the Kurds and the (Iraqi security forces) has been very good," Davis said, adding "they're working together very well, collaborating just the way we would want them to". Davis dismissed the possibility that 100 to 200 US soldiers deployed in the area to provide intelligence and guidance would enter the offensive. "To be clear, the thousands of combat forces that are going to liberate Mosul are Iraqis," he said, adding that the US military role was restricted to providing precision airstrikes against IS. The spokesman reiterated US President Barack Obama's comments earlier that he was sure that Mosul would be liberated, although he could not specify when. Several towns on the surrounding Mosul plains have been liberated by the advancing Iraqi forces. Thick plumes of black smoke from burning tires and oil wells, lit by IS members to obscure their movements, were occasionally hampering air support. There have also been reports of suicide bombers for the advancing Iraqi soldiers as well as incidents of civilians being dressed up in army attire and then executed on camera for propaganda purposes. Davis noted, however, that the good progress achieved on the first day of the battle for Mosul. The city, Iraq's second largest, has languished under IS control since it fell to the terrorist group in 2014. It soon became the group's de facto Iraqi capital and it was from here that IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared a caliphate across the IS territories in Iraq and Syria. Gurgaon, Oct 19 : A 47-year-old Gurgaon resident was arrested for accommodating four foreigners and not informing about their stay here, police said on Wednesday. Amit Bafna, a resident of upscale R.D. City here in Sector 52, was arrested by Gurgaon police under the Foreigners Act 1946. Police teams have been searching guest houses, Paying Guest accommodations and hotels ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Gurgaon on 'Haryana Day' on November 1. "Bafna accommodated three Afghanis and a Yemeni national in his paying guest (PG) accommodation but did not follow mandatory rules of filling up Form C," a senior police officer told IANS. "Among the Afghan nationals is a doctor, a woman and a patient. The Yemeni citizen was here for medical treatment. All four were staying in Bafna's PG accommodation for over two months," he said. "All foreigners were carrying all necessary legal documents, so no action was taken against them," the officer added. Dhaka, Oct 19 : Myanmar has blamed a little known Rohingya Islamist group with links with the Pakistan Taliban for the recent spate of attacks on outposts along the Myanmar-Bangladesh border, a media report said on Wednesday. A statement from the office of Myanmar's President Htin Kyaw has blamed the little-known "Aqa Mul Mujahideen" for the recent attacks around Maungdaw township, a mainly Muslim area near the border with Bangladesh. Nine Myanmar policemen were killed in the attack and eight attackers were gunned down on October 8 in Maungdaw. The AMM is headed by Hafiz Tohar, a 45-year-old Rohingya from Maungdaw's Kyauk Pyin Seik village in Myanmar, bdnews24 reported. According to Myanmar intelligence, Tohar was trained by the Pakistan Taliban for six months, after which he returned to the Rakhine state to recruit young Rohingyas. Bdnews24 quoted Indian intelligence agencies as saying that Tohar's group has grown out of the Harkat-ul-Jihad Islami-Arakaan (HUJI-A). The HUJI-A chief is Abdus Qadoos Burmi, a Pakistani national of Rohingya origin, who recruited Tohar, 45, and arranged for his training in Pakistan. Qadoos Burmi is reported to be close to the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) headed by Hafiz Sayeed. He developed the HUJI-A network in Bangladesh, using the remote hills on the border with Myanmar, where coverage by Bangladesh security forces was at best limited. After training a few promising recruits in Pakistan, they were sent to set up bases on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, where new Rohingya recruits were trained in combat techniques and use of explosives. Bdnews24 quoted senior Indian intelligence officials as saying that in July 2012, JuD and LeT started Difa-e-Musalman-e-Arakaan conference in Pakistan to highlight the Rohingya cause. Indian officials say Rohingya militants could be used to disturb the Myanmar-Bangladesh border zone not only by staging attacks inside Myanmar but also by forging close links with jihadi groups in both Bangladesh and India. Jammu, Oct 19 : The Pakistan Army on Wednesday resorted to heavy cross-border firing at Indian posts on the Line of Control (LoC) in the frontier Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, defence sources said. The sources said Indian positions were targeted in Tarkundi area on the LoC, the de facto border that divides Jammu and Kashmir between the two countries. "The Pakistan Army used 82 mm mortar shells and small arms to target our positions. Our troops effectively retaliated the Pakistan shelling and firing using same calibre weapons," a defence spokesperson said. The shelling from both sides was on till late in the evening. There were no reports of any loss of lives from either side. It was the latest in a series of violations of the 2013 ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian Army alleged that Pakistan violated the bilateral truce in the same area of the LoC on Tuesday. New Delhi, Oct 19 : Farmers from 16 states in a signed petition to Prime Minster Narendra Modi have urged him to commercialise the Genetically Modified (GM) Mustard in dry areas, claiming that it would give direct benefit of Rs 1,800 crore to them. Rashtriya Progressive Kisan Association (RPKA), an umbrella consortium of seven farmers' unions, submitted the petition at the Prie Minister's Office with signatures from about 1,38,000 farmers. Favouring to roll out the GM Mustard in India's arid and semi-arid regions, farmers also criticised the anti-GM lobby, asserting "it's claims are unscientific". "No one is listening to the 80 million farmers who will, among many others, benefit by the GM Mustard. It would profit the mustard growers by directly Rs 1,800 crore," Hari Singh Yadav, a Rajasthan-based farmer who heads RPAK, told IANS. He said of total edible oil imported by India last year, about 60 per cent was mustard oil. "That was supposed to be Indian farmers' share. That oil is too coming from a different version of GM Mustard," Yadav said, adding that due to water scarcity in Rajasthan and other parched regions, the production of mustard has dropped. The GM Mustard would boost the production by about 22-30 per cent. The indigenously developed GM Mustard -- Dhara Mustard Hybrid 11 (DMH 11)-- is currently being reviewed by the Union Environment Ministry's Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC). It was developed at Delhi University's Department of Genetics. It's possible approval is being opposed by several social and environment activists who have cited several reasons ranging from environmental issues to the multi-national companies monopolising the GM seeds and thus taking over Indian agriculture. Experts, including the developers of DMH 11, however, refuted those claims. Chandigarh, Oct 19 : A clash and firing between two groups over control of a gurdwara left three people dead in Punjab's Muktsar district on Wednesday, police said. Six people, who were injured, were admitted to the Muktsar Civil Hospital. The incident took place in Mallan village of Gidderbaha sub-division, about 250 km from here. Village residents told the police that both sides fired a number of rounds. Arms, swords and traditional weapons were used in the clash. The victims were identified as Naib Singh, aged around 60 years, and Amritpal Singh and Harvinder Singh, both in their early 30s. Naib Singh was earlier managing the gurdwara. The clash took place after a Sikh religious group, led by preacher Balbir Singh, tried to take control of the shrine. Police said tension started between both sides when the Balbir Singh group, through Naib Singh, handed over a letter to present gurdwara in-charge Makhan Singh on Tuesday evening. On Wednesday, both groups, led by Naib Singh and Makhan Singh, came face to face with their armed supporters, leading to the clash. "We are investigating," district police chief G.S. Gill said. New Delhi, Oct 19 : Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Nasim Zaidi on Wednesday said the election panel was ready to hold simultaneous Lok Sabha and state assembly elections if certain conditions are met, including political consensus and more resources. He said two primary issues have to be taken care of in the matter. "First, several constitutional amendments will have to be made; and second, there has to be a consensus among all political parties," Zaidi told IANS on the sidelines of a two-day international conference on voter education organised by the Election Commission of India here. "If these two things are done, we can hold simultaneous elections. Of course, we would need extra resources, such as more electronic voting machines etc.," he added. He said the Election Commission has already written to the Law Ministry on the issue, after the ministry sought the poll panel's opinion on the 79th Report of the Department-related Parliamentary Committee on the 'Feasibility of Holding Simultaneous Elections to the House of People (Lok Sabha) and State Legislative Assemblies'. Though Zaidi stressed on greater voter participation for a meaningful electoral process, he ruled out the option of compulsory voting. He termed it "impractical" in the Indian context to punish those who are eligible but abstain from voting. "The provision of punishing people for not casting their votes is impractical in India, given the sheer size of the electorate," the CEC said. Asked how can the EC curb promises made by some political parties and candidates, or attempts to polarise the electorate on communal/caste lines, ahead of assembly elections in five states, Zaidi said once the Model Code of Conduct comes into force in these states, the poll panel will exercise all its powers to ensure free and fair elections. "The Election Commission is not helpless in any manner. We have sufficient powers bestowed by the Constitution. Once the Model Code of Conduct comes into force, we will exercise all our powers to ensure that voters cast their votes without fear or pressure or inducement," Zaidi said. Quito, Oct 19 : Ecuador says it has temporarily cut off internet access to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange over fears he was using it to interfere in the US presidential election. The move comes in the wake of the publication of leaked emails by WikiLeaks, including emails from the account of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton's campaign adviser John Podesta. The Ecuadorean Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said WikiLeaks' documents could interfere in the electoral process. It said Ecuador "respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states" and had cut off the internet access available to Assange because "in recent weeks WikiLeaks has published a wealth of documents, impacting on the US election campaign. "In that respect, Ecuador, exercising its sovereign right, has temporarily restricted access to part of its communications systems in its UK Embassy," the statement said. Ecuador clarified the move was not a result of pressure from Washington. The US denied WikiLeaks' accusations on Sunday that it had asked Ecuador to stop the site publishing documents about Hillary Clinton. The Ecuador statement also reaffirmed the asylum granted to Assange and reiterated its intention "to safeguard his life and physical integrity until he reaches a safe place". Assange's internet access was cut off on Monday morning. Assange has sought asylum at London's Ecuadorean embassy since 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex assault allegation. According to the latest leaked emails, Clinton told a Goldman Sachs conference she would like to intervene secretly in Syria. She made the remark in answer to a question from Lloyd Blankfein, the bank's chief executive, in 2013 -- months after she left office as the Secretary of State. "My view was you intervene as covertly as is possible for Americans to intervene," she told employees of the bank in South Carolina, which had paid her about $225,000 to give a speech. Mumbai, Oct 19 : Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is set to make a film on surgical strikes that India conducted on terror launch pads across the Line of Control (LoC). It will be titled "MSG - The Lionheart - Hind ka NaPak Ko Jawab". "I am going to start 'MSG - The Lionheart - Hind Ka NaPak Ko Jawab'. In the film, I will highlight the current situation of our country and answer even those who are asking to prove the surgical strike. Hopefully, we will complete the film within 25 days," Singh said at the success party of his film "MSG: The Warrior Lion Heart". "The film revolves around the terrorists and jawans (soldiers). It will also talk about the surgical strikes," he added, referring to the surgical strikes carried out by the Indian Army on terror launch pads across the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir last month. The surgical strikes came after the September 18 cross-border terror attack on an army camp at Uri in Jammu and Kashmir, in which 19 Indian soldiers died. "We are losing our jawans so often. How many of us care about them? Suddenly some people have started asking for proof. It hurts me and I thought to reply them through my film," he said. Chennai, Oct 19 : Tamil Nadu Finance Minister O. Pannerselvam on Wednesday presided over a Cabinet meeting here for the first time after the Governor allocated portfolios of ailing Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa to him. Though there was no official briefing about the hour-long meeting at the Secretariat, the Cabinet is learnt to have discussed key issues, including the Cauvery river water dispute, the Madras High Court order to set aside civic polls and bye-elections in three assembly segments on November 19. An official photograph of the meeting showed Pannerselvam seated with Jayalalithaa's picture on his desk. The Cabinet also discussed the opposition demand for a special assembly session and an all-party meeting to discuss the Cauvery dispute though the ruling AIADMK rejected such a demand last week. With Jayalalithaa admitted in a hospital since September 22, Acting Governor C. Vidyasagar Rao on October 12 allocated her portfolios to Pannerselvam and authorized him to preside over Cabinet meetings in her absence. The Cabinet met last time in July when Jayalalithaa approved the budget for this fiscal (2016-17). The Election Commission on Monday announced that the bye-polls will be held at Aravakurichi in Karur district, Thanjavur and Thiruparankundram in Madurai district on November 19. Polling was cancelled in Aravakurichi and Thanjavar during in May as the poll panel felt the conditions were not conductive then. New Delhi, Oct 19 : In a major initiative, the Indian Railways on Wednesday signed an MoU with Union Urban Development Ministry to redevelop railway stations and adjoining areas on the lines of Smart City. To enhance passenger amenities, easy access to stations and enabling optimal utilisation of land at railway stations, the MoU for 10 cities was signed in the presence of Union Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu and Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu. These stations are: Sarai Rohilla (Delhi), Bhubaneswar, Lucknow, Varnasi, Jaipur, Kota, Thane, Margao (Goa), Tirupati and Puducherry. Both the ministers lauded the joint initiative as a historic landmark that brings synergy in development of smart cities since there cannot be a Smart City without a smart railway station. "This convergence based city development will result in qualitative improvement in city life," Naidu said on the occasion. He suggested that to begin with 10 cities could be taken up for the proposed redevelopment with the involvement of National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) which has successfully executed redevelopment projects on self-financing basis. "Railway stations have been the core of city development and have become congested over time and their redevelopment offers immense opportunities for changing city landscape," Prabhu said. He said that several countries like Germany, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK and Belgium have showed interest in redevelopment and a Round Table of domestic and overseas bankers will be organised next week to discuss financing of these redevelopment projects. To be implemented first in the 100 cities included in the Smart City Mission, redevelopment of railway stations will be undertaken in AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) and HRIDAY (Heritage Infrastructure Development and Augmentation Yojana) cities extending the scope of the MoU to over 500 cities. Railway station and the adjoining area in each of these cities will be redeveloped on the lines of Area Based Development provided in the Smart City Mission Guidelines. "The joint initiative of the Ministries of Urban Development and Railways widens the Smart City development to one more area in each of the mission cities with each city required to select one area under respective Smart City Plans in the first phase," an official statement said. While the Ministry of Railways takes the responsibility of forming Joint Ventures, the Ministry of Urban Development will work with the states and urban local bodies for integrating railway station redevelopment as part of smart city development plans. The MoU states that both railway station redevelopment and Smart City concepts are part of holistic development of respective city. Redevelopment of railway station and its area as part of Smart City Plans leads to an integrated public transport hub around railway station and encourage Transit Oriented Development. Ahmedabad, Oct 19 : The Gujarat High Court on Wednesday took strict cognizance of the contractual appointment of two retired police officers, N.K. Amin and Tarun Barot, accused in the sensational Ishrat Jehan and other fake encounter cases, following a public interest litigation and asked the state government to submit details about it. A division bench of Chief Justice R. Subhash Reddy and Justice V.M. Pancholi asked government pleader Manisha Luvkumar to seek instructions from the government over the appointments of both the retired police officials. Amin, who was chargesheeted in fake encounter cases of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, his wife Kauserbi and accomplice Tulsi Prajapati and that of Ishrat Jehan, Javed Sheikh, Amjad Ali Akbar Ali Rana and Zeeshan Johar, has recently been put in charge as Superintendent of Police of Mahisagar district on a year-old contract by the Gujarat government. Barot, who is also an accused in the two fake encounter cases, has been made District Superintendent of Police, Western Railways, Vadodara, on a contractual posting of one year. Both the retired police officials had been arrested in these cases and sent to jail. While Amin has been discharged in the Sohrabuddin encounter, the case of Ishrat Jehan is still pending before the trial court. It is for this reason that retired IPS official Rahul Sharma approached the Gujarat High Court, seeking cancellation of their appointments, pointing out that it was "against the existing rules". "The aforesaid contractual appointments of retired police officers with criminal antecedents is not in the interest of a healthy police administration...They are against the provisions of the Gujarat Police Act, as also contrary to the directions issued through various circulars of the government of Gujarat," the petitioner submitted in the court. The court, however, rejected Sharma's plea for an interim stay on the appointments and posted the next hearing for November 16. New Delhi, Oct 19 : Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday wished speedy recovery to Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, who was seriously injured in a road accident in West Bengal. Abhishek, nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, sustained serious injuries on Monday when his car hit a towing van at Ratanpur, about six km from Singur on Durgapur Expressway in Hooghly district. "Sonia Gandhi has extended her good wishes for health and fast recovery to Abhishek Banerjee. Her thoughts and prayers are with Abhishek and the Banerjee family in these testing times," said an official statement. Gandhi also expressed her happiness over Banerjee's condition being stable and his responding to the treatment. Banerjee was rushed to a Kolkata nursing home where doctors said he had sustained an orbital injury in a facial bone below the eye. Mamata Banerjee has ordered a Criminal Investigation Department probe to find out if there was some foul play. New Delhi : Bengaluru, Oct 19 (IANS) By providing technology and tools, chip maker Intel Corporation mentored 17 Indian start-ups to innovate products in diverse areas, said the US-based company on Wednesday. "Of the 17 start-ups which utilised our laboratory facilities here, nine have launched products in the market and five have products ready for customer trials, while three are at the design stage," Intel India General Manager Nivruti Rai told reporters here. Intel's Indian subsidiary has set up the Maker Lab at its campus in this tech hub in January to help start-ups accelerate their hardware and systems for innovating products and solutions using its infrastructure, technology, tools and mentorship support. "The start-ups used the lab for projects spanning education, sports, health, agriculture, BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance), and e-governance across IoT (Internet of Things), cloud and client compute," said Rai. The lab also supported seven start-ups incubated by the Science and Technology Department of the Indian government under the Intel's 'Innovate for Digital India' challenge. "We are focused on innovation, systems design and entrepreneurship in India. With 15 years of commitment to research and development, we continue to build a community of innovators across the country," Rai added. As a catalyst, Intel has associated with various programmes to foster innovation and making the government's Digital India vision a reality. "It's heartening to see many products and solutions being developed by the hardware and systems start-ups using our lab as their innovations will help solve consumer and business needs and contribute to Digital India and Make in India vision," said Intel India Director Jitendra Chadda on the occasion. The company is collaborating with the government to encourage entrepreneurial and innovation talent as a not-for-profit initiative and is independent of its own research and development activities in India. New Delhi, Oct 19 : The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Wednesday accused the BJP-led central government of "misusing" Delhi Police, CBI and ACB against the "elected government" in Delhi. Addressing a press conference here, AAP leader Ashish Khetan urged Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah to cooperate with the Delhi government and not to use the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Delhi Police and Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) to "harass" the AAP MLAs. Khetan, who is also vice-chairman of Delhi Dialogue Commission (DDC), alleged that while Delhi Police is always in a hurry to book and arrest AAP MLAs, it doesn't show the same urgency in pursuing the case further. "Gulab Singh was the 14th AAP MLA to be arrested. But out of the 14 MLAs, Delhi Police has filed a charge-sheet against only one of them," he said. Delhi Police had filed charge-sheet against AAP MLA from Model Town, Akhilesh Pati Tripathi, last year in a case of rioting and assault. Tripathi was later acquitted of the charges. Khetan's remarks come after Gulab Singh, in charge of the AAP's affairs in Gujarat, got bail on Wednesday. "While granting bail to Gulab Singh, the court reprimanded the police for not disclosing all relevant information while procuring a non-bailable warrant against him," Khetan said. He added that Gulab Singh had written to Delhi Police on October 10 that he will be available for questioning from October 18 onward after Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's rally in Surat. "But Delhi Police did not inform the court about this letter while asking for the warrant," Khetan said. Gulab Singh, also an AAP legislator in Delhi, was arrested by the Delhi Police on October 16 in Surat -- ahead of Kejriwal's rally -- on a non-bailable warrant. The warrant was issued in connection with an extortion case after he failed to turn up for interrogation. Bengaluru, Oct 19 : Karnataka on Wednesday agreed to abide by the Supreme Court's directive to release daily 2,000 cusecs of Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu till its further order. "We will abide by the Supreme Court order. I would not like to say more as the case is sub-judice," said state Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister T.B. Jayachandra here. Earlier in the day, reserving its ruling on the state's appeal against the 2007 award of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal, a three-judge bench of the apex court said its Tuesday's interim order to Karnataka for releasing 2,000 cusecs daily to Tamil Nadu would continue till further orders. "The interim order dated October 4 directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu will continue till further orders," said the bench comprising Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and A.M. Khanwilkar. The state cabinet, which met here, also briefly discussed the top's court order. State Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, however, maintained that the four reservoirs across the river basin had only water for drinking purpose in the region till the onset of next monsoon in June 2017. "We do not have surplus water in our reservoirs due to deficit monsoon rains this year. We have also conveyed our distress to the expert committee with data on inflows and outflows in the dams," Siddaramaiah told reporters here later. In a related development, Farmers Protection Forum President G. Made Gowda opposed further release of water, as the expert committee had submitted to the apex court its report stating that Karnataka was facing water shortage. "There is no need to release more water to Tamil Nadu for irrigation as we need it for drinking needs. Moreover, with the north-east monsoon due to set in next week, farmers in the neighbouring state will have rains for irrigation," Gowda told reporters at Mandya, about 100km from Bengaluru. Bhubaneswar, Oct 19 : Odisha police on Wednesday issued a Look Out notice against SUM Hospital founder Manoj Nayak and his wife to ensure that they do not flee the country. Manoj Nayak owns the hospital where 21 people died in a fire on Monday evening. "In connection with a FIR lodged with Khandagiri police station, a look out circular (LOC) has been issued in respect of Manoj Nayak and Saswati Das," said Police Commissioner Y.B. Khurania. Both are the trustees of Siksha 'O' Anusandhan Charitable Trust, which runs the hospital. The state government has already lodged two FIRs against the hospital management citing negligence in terms of fire safety and evacuation of patients during the mishap. Director of Medical Education and Training Prakash Chandra Mohapatra hinted that the owner of the Institute of Medical Sciences and SUM Hospitals could be arrested. "As we have filed a case against the management of the SUM hospital, there is a chance of arrest of Manoj Nayak, who is also a member of the management," said Mohapatra. Earlier, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, who is in New Delhi to attend an event, said the state government would take stringent action against the culprits. The Commissionerate Police have arrested four persons so far in connection with the fire tragedy. Medical Superintendent Pusparaj Samantasinghar, former Executive Engineer Amulya Kumar Sahu (electrical maintenance), Fire Safety Officer Santosh Das and retired Junior Engineer Malay Kumar Sahu (electrical maintenance) were arrested on Tuesday. Chandigarh, Oct 19 : Dengue and malaria cases have registered a significant drop in Haryana this year compared with 2015 and no deaths have been reported so far due to chikungunya and other vector-borne diseases, a Minister said on Wednesday. "Haryana recorded 1,401 cases of dengue till Monday compared with over 5,200 in corresponding period of last year. The state has so far recorded 7,388 cases of malaria this year as against over 9,300 cases last year," Health Minister Anil Vij told a meeting of the department here. "No death has so far been reported in Haryana due to chikungunya, dengue and malaria, whereas 10 persons lost their lives to these during corresponding period last year," he added. The Health Department has issued 7,480 notices regarding stagnant water found in water coolers and pots. "Compared with neighbouring Delhi and Punjab, the situation in Haryana is better and under control," Vij said. Kolkata, Oct 19 : Union Minister Babul Supriyo was allegedly attacked and injured during a clash in Asansol town of West Bengal's Bardhaman district on Wednesday. While he accused Trinamool Congress supporters for the indident, a ruling party leader said the clash was an outcome of the infighting in the BJP. The clash broke out when Bharatiya Janata Party activists led by Supriyo staged a demonstration in front of Bengal Minister and Asansol North legislator Moloy Ghatak's house, accusing him of involvement in "cow smuggling". "We decided to hold a peaceful demonstration in front of Moloy Ghatak's house to protest against his involvement in cow smuggling case but hundreds of Trinamool supporters gathered there beforehand and beat up my party leaders," Supriyo said. The situation went out of hand when a mob surrounded the Union Minister's convoy and damaged his car near BNR Crossing. "The TMC supporters attacked my convoy, vandalised my car and hurled stones at me. I got hit in the chest," Babul said. Babul claimed he had permission for holding a peaceful demonstration but the state police denied it. "We did not give him any permission to hold such a demonstration. He was not supposed to go there," said Asansol Police commissioner Laxmi Narayan Meena. "Police have not arrested anyone for the attack on Babul Supriyo as no FIR has been lodged by anyone," he said. The local Trinamool leadership also denied the party's involvement and claimed it was a fallout of the BJP's internal feud. "We have checked. None of our party workers were involved in the agitation. Babul's own party workers attacked him for some unknown reason," said Asansol Mayor Jitendra Tiwari. Washington, Oct 19 : Islamic State leaders have fled the Iraqi city of Mosul which is under a massive siege by Iraqi forces, aided by the US-led coalition forces, a US general has said. Operation Inherent Resolve commander US Gen. Gary Volesky said at a briefing on Wednesday that most of the foreign fighters recruited by the terror group have remained to defend Mosul, the outfit's stronghold. "We have got indications that [Islamic State] leaders have left, a lot of foreign fighters we expect will stay," Volesky told reporters at the Pentagon. The US Army general and coalition spokesman explained that it is harder for foreign fighters to flee the area than for local jihadists. "They will be the ones [who] really want to stay and fightAbecause they really do not have any other place to go," Volesky said. On Monday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi announced the start of military operations to retake Mosul from Islamic State militants. The US-led coalition is providing Iraqi Security Forces with air power, artillery, intelligence, advisers and other support, the US military's Central Command has said. The Islamic State, which is outlawed in Russia and other countries, seized Mosul in 2014 along with a number of other Iraqi cities and towns. Parma (Italy), Oct 19 : Prosecutors said on Wednesday they are probing a manager at the company that employed two Italian engineers who were abducted last year by Islamic State militants in Libya and killed in captivity. The unnamed manager at Parma-based engineering firm Bonatti is under investigation for manslaughter and breaking employment law over the deaths of Fausto Piano and Salvatore Failla in March last year, according to prosecutors. The offices of Bonatti were also searched as part of the probe, investigators said. Piano and Failla were kidnapped, and found dead after a firefight in the western city of Sabratha in Libya in March last year in circumstances that have not yet been fully clarified. The case has raised fears for the safety of two other Italians and a Canadian who were abducted outside the remote southwestern Libyan city of Ghat last month. No group has claimed the kidnapping of Bruno Cacace and Danilo Calonego and the Canadian, identified only as Frank. All three men work for the Libyan branch of Italian engineering firm Contratti lnternazionali Costruzioni. Islamabad, Oct 19 : Amid rising tensions with India, Pakistan's media regulatory authority on Wednesday approved a complete ban on airing of Indian content in Pakistan from October 21. The decision was taken at the 120th meeting of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) held on Wednesday in the federal capital. The federal government had earlier suggested banning airing of Indian content in a tit-for-tat move after Pakistani content was completely banned by India. The ban will come into effect at 3 p.m. on October 21, and violators will be prosecuted under law, said the statement. Radio and television stations which violate the ban will have their licences suspended without a prior show cause notice, said the statement issued from the regulatory authority. The ban extends to all Indian content on cable and radio being aired in the country. "Pemra, with the authority vested by the federal government, today announces the cancellation of the one-sided rights given to India by the Pervez Musharraf government," said the Pemra statement. Earlier in October, Pemra granted Absar Alam the authority to revoke or suspend licences of companies airing Indian content without providing prior notice. On August 31, Pemra had announced that strict action would be taken against the channels airing foreign content more than the prescribed limit and traders selling illegal Direct to Home (DTH) sets. The ban order comes amid calls from certain quarters in India for a ban on Pakistani content and artistes. In India, some political groups have demanded a ban of Pakistani actor Fawad Khan starrer "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil", directed by Karan Johar. Tensions between the two neighbours have risen since the September 18 terror attack on an Indian army base in Uri in Jammu and Kashmir, which left 19 Indian soldiers dead. India said it carried out "surgical strikes" across the Line of Control on terrorist launchpads on September 28-29. Hyderabad, Oct 20 : All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) Secretary Moulana Khalid Saifullah Rehmani has said that Muslim Personal Law is a matter of life and death for Muslims. He said Muslims will shed their last drop of blood, offer their heads and make any sacrifice but will never bow to any law which stops them from obeying the orders of 'Allah' and the Prophet Mohammed. The eminent Islamic scholar was addressing a public meeting organised by AIMPLB here on Wednesday night to oppose the attempts to impose Uniform Civil Code (UCC). The public meeting held at Darussalam, the headquarters of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) and was addressed by leaders from all Islamic sects and schools of thought. A large number of women also attended the meeting, which was also addressed by five women members of the board. Moulana Rehmani made it clear that the board will neither get provoked nor be coward in dealing with the issue. He clarified that the board boycotted the questionnaire of the Law Commission as it was framed in a manner to give an impression that UCC is a constitutional process. He, however, said they were not boycotting Law Commission and that is why the board has taken up a signature campaign. AIMPLB Secretary advised Muslims to be cautious about a misleading pro forma being circulated on the social media. He said this mischievous pro forma had an additional fourth point that there is need for reforms in Muslim Personal Law. On the permissions being sought by certain Muslim organisations for taking out rallies on the issue, he advised them to follow directions of the board. Stating that UCC is an attempt to snatch the identity of Muslims, he urged the community to rise above sects and organisations for a united struggle to protect Sharia. Moulana Rehmani said Muslim Personal Law was protected by Article 25 of the Constitution, which has given citizens the right to believe, practice and preach their religion. Condemning attempts to defame Muslims, he said all surveys show that Muslims have least rate of divorce and polygamy compared to other communities in the country. Hamid Mohammed Khan, chief of Jamat-e-Islami's Telangana and Odisha unit said the National Democratic Alliance government was trying to impose UCC to cover its failures on all fronts. He said the BJP-led government was working for communal polarisation with an eye on ensuing elections in Uttar Pradesh. Condemning the attempt to bring changes to Muslim Personal Law, he pointed out that the country already has a uniform criminal law and 99 per cent of even civil laws are uniform. New Delhi, Oct 20 : Demanding a conclusive response on the whereabouts of a missing student Najeeb Ahmed, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students on Wednesday staged protests outside the Administrative Block forcing the top brass of the university to stay put in their offices. Apart from Vice-Chancellor M. Jagadesh Kumar, Rectors one and two and Registrar of the university were said to be confined inside the building. All student political parties, except Akhil Bhartiya Vidya Parishad (ABVP), took part in the blockade and vented out their anger at the university officials. The besieged Vice-Chancellor appealed to the protesting students to let them out of the building and discuss the matter. "We appeal to the students who have physically confined us to stop this and come for discussion. Let us discuss and resolve," Kumar tweeted from inside the building while students remained gathered outside. "Since the students did not let us go home in spite our appeal, we have no other option but be confined to the admin building," Kumar also tweeted. However, students have denied keeping anyone hostage and said that they were just protesting outside the building and anyone is allowed to come and go. The JNU Students' Union President Mohit Pandey denounced all claims of keeping officials as hostages and said, "We are only lying outside the building, if anyone wants he can go out over our bodies." The protests started outside the Administrative Block at 2 p.m. and grew more intense as the day wore off. "By 3:30 p.m. employees started coming out of the building on some pretext or the other even when we had no such intention to lay a siege there. We are only demanding a proper response from the V-C about what action the university is taking in finding Najeeb," Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students' Association (BAPSA) President Bhupali Magare told IANS. She said students from all political parties, including NSUI, AISA, SFI, DSU protested outside the building and there is no hostage situation. However, an ABVP leader said that the officials were confined inside the building and the protesting students were on the verge of getting violent. "They (protesters) have stooped very low that they are indulging in such cheap politics. They have kept all the entry points blocked of the building since 7 p.m. When the Proctor came to assuage them they got violent and made him run away," Saurabh Sharma of ABVP told IANS. A student named Najeeb Ahmed had gone missing on the night of October 14 from the university hostel Mahi-Mandvi after a brawl with a few ABVP students. Since then a police complaint has been filed under IPC Section 365 and a Proctorial inquiry has been initiated by the University. "This is not a small issue, but a part of a bigger conspiracy. No-one would go missing like this leaving even his phone behind. It's been five days now but there's no news of him," Rahul Sonpimple of BAPSA told IANS. On October 18, V-C had also met the parents of Ahmed and had apprised them of all that they were doing to find him. The Metrolina REIA will host its regular meeting on October 20th, with American IRA Vice President Sean McKay to be in attendance. The event is to be held at Crowne Plaza Executive Park, 5700 Westpark Dr, Charlotte, North Carolina. Sean McKay, a regular at local real estate investor association meetings, is an expert in both Real Estate IRA investing and real estate investing in general. Sean McKay notes that he enjoys both sharing information at these events while also learning from and meeting new people. This is a good event for anyone whos looking into real estate investing as an alternative to simply investing in the stock market, said Sean McKay. But it doesnt matter where you currently find yourself in terms of your strategy. You can attend these events and learn some valuable information coming from any level of real estate investing. Sean McKay noted that people who attend the Metrolina REIA meetings often range from old hands at real estate investing to those who are looking to get their foot in the door. In Sean McKays role at American IRA, a Self-Directed IRA administration firm, he has learned a lot about the laws and regulations surrounding the Self-Directed Real Estate IRA. Investors who direct their own IRAs can utilize a wide range of investments for retirement, including real estate, which is why so many retirement investors regularly attend events like the Metrolina REIA. For more information, visit http://metrolinareia.org/. The event is only $15 to non-members of the real estate association, with the meeting expected to last three and a half hours beginning at 6:00 p.m., which usually includes an early meet-and-greet for those who want to catch up with colleagues or simply meet other like-minded investors. Come on out, Sean McKay recommends. These events are fun and informative. About American IRA, LLC: Click here to claim one of our 7 Self-Directed IRA guide(s). American IRA is committed to providing every client with gold-level service, regardless of account size. Experience their expertise through their certified IRA services professionals. Enjoy the value with one low annual fee of $285 with unlimited assets and unlimited account values. American IRA clients love the benefit of no charge for "All Cash" accounts. The performance of the American IRA staff is unmatched, with quick and efficient processing within 48 hours. American IRA services thousands of clients and has over $300 million in assets under administration. American IRA was built by investors for investors, and brings their successful investment experience to the table, providing excellent educational material showing the public that their Self-Directed IRA account can invest in a variety of assets such as real estate, private lending, limited liability companies, precious metals and much more. American IRA is conveniently located in Asheville, NC and Charlotte, NC, and serves clients nationwide. The addition of BeagleBone TestDrive to its well recognized Network over USB products was announced today by Belcarra Technologies, a leading developer of USB software and network solutions. Beagle TestDrive uses the Beaglebone Black as a proxy for an OEM device. Any Microsoft system can be used as the TestDrive USB host, as a matching edition of Belcarra USBLAN driver can be automatically installed from Windows Update enabling networking functionality over USB. The modern approach to device control and management is to use a web server on the device, and Belcarra USBLAN allows automatic setup of a secure network link over USB without administrative privilege. says Belcarras President, Bruce Balden. Traditional client and server web testing tools, modern iperf and iperf3 network test tools are all available. These allow flexible network tests using either IPv4 or IPv6, UDP or TCP, various TCP options, and multiple streams. Belcarras Beagle TestDrive is provided as a MicroSD SDHC image. The Beaglebone Black can boot TestDrive without modifying the onboard firmware. Simple commands change the USB network configuration (protocol, hardware ID) dynamically until the next reboot, or take effect on the next reboot. Full documentation is available in the Beagle TestDrive Guide (http://link.belcarra.com/BeagleBone_TestDrive_Guide). Belcarra Technologies USB software, professional services and USB integration expertise keeps development costs down for OEMs, reducing risks and time-to-market. About Belcarra: Belcarra Technologies Corp. provides comprehensive IoT USB support that includes a suite of tools for networking over USB on a wide variety of systems including MS Windows, Mac OS/X, and Linux. Belcarra offers proprietary solutions as well as those within the GPL Linux USB Device Framework. Belcarra's USB solutions are developed with close attention to USB-IF and other industry standards. For more information, please contact a Belcarra representative at +1.604.617.3649, or visit the Belcarra website http://www.belcarra.com The innovator in course materials management and content integration programs since 1973, Ambassador engineers, develops and implements bookstore and technology solutions of all sizes. "AIM is a forward-thinking institution and was motivated to create a content integration program that streamlined the use of numerous hard copy textbooks, creating efficiencies and a more modern education experience," said Grinell. As students continue to become more digital-savvy and mobile-insistent, some colleges and universities are rethinking their approach to course materials. Leaders from Ambassador Education Solutions and the Aviation Institute of Maintenance (AIM) will explore these digital content trends at the upcoming CSPEN Annual Conference, including how AIM made the leap to a notepad loaded with eBooks to meet the changing needs of its students. "eBook Solutions for Trades and Industry Education" will review AIM's considerations in moving toward an integrated online solution, powered by Ambassador. Dr. Joel English, Vice President of Operations for AIM, will discuss the elements of the transition; the impact of digital materials on students, faculty and staff; and early results. Joining Dr. English is Stuart Grinell, Vice President of Business Development at Ambassador, who worked closely with AIM to architect a tailored eBook strategy. "AIM is a forward-thinking institution and was motivated to create a content integration program that streamlined the use of numerous hard copy textbooks, creating efficiencies and a more modern education experience," said Grinell. "Together we worked closely with AIM to develop and deliver an innovative, mobile eBooks solution that provides student access to their course materials in a flexible, digital format. We look forward to sharing our insight with other schools as they think about opportunities where eBooks make sense." CSPEN gets underway October 26th at the Renaissance Chicago O'Hare. Dr. English and Grinell will take the stage on Thursday, October 27th at 2:30pm. Ambassador is also exhibiting at the event, collaborating with educators on the entire print and digital course materials process, simplifying the management and delivery of all academic and supporting resources. About Ambassador Education Solutions The innovator in course materials management and content integration programs since 1973, Ambassador Education Solutions engineers, develops and implements bookstore and technology solutions of all sizes. Through its advanced supply chain technology, flexible fulfillment processes, and highly available support services, ordering course materials is intuitive, delivery is automatic and reporting is seamless. Integrating with leading SIS, LMS and Digital Content Platforms, students and faculty have simplified access to textbooks, eBooks, custom content, supplies and more, while administrators gain key insights and intelligence to manage, measure and improve programs and outcomes. For more information, please visit http://www.ambassadored.com. Elongated osteoblast with prominent filopodia on nanotube nano-textured surface. The partnership with Michigan Tech builds on Nanovation Partners strategic collaborations with leaders in nanotexturing technology, said Dan Justin, President and CEO of Nanovation Partners. Nanovation Partners, LLC and Michigan Technological University today announced a partnership agreement for commercialization of processes to nano-texturize medical implants. These advanced processes can simultaneously increase bone ingrowth and provide an antimicrobial barrier. The collaboration agreement extends Nanovation Partners leadership in commercialization of nano-texturing technology. Craig Friedrich, PhD, Director of Michigan Techs Multi-scale Technologies Institute, commented, What we're developing is a surface treatment that's more straightforward and economical than other processes. It speeds healing and is applicable to a broad range of implants. With this process, in conjunction with the technologies developed at other leading nano-technology universities and companies already in partnership with Nanovation Partners, we can fight infection and reduce inflammation. Our partnership with Nanovation Partners will speed and broaden the transfer of this technology to provide a clinical benefit for a broad range of patients. With this latest collaboration, Nanovation Partners has aligned with another well-published, recognized leader in the development of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanotubes for modifying the surfaces of medical implants. It builds on Nanovation Partners growing list of partnerships with academic researchers at the University of California San Diego (UCSD), Washington State University (WSU), and University of Central Florida (UCF), and further broadens the companys portfolio of five Issued and over 20 pending U.S. and international patents for nanotexturing processes and structures. Researchers at Michigan Technological University and Washington State University have been issued separate U.S. patents for nanotexturing processes and structures that improve bone growth and provide anti-microbial properties, addressing both initial and long-term infections following implantation. The agreements with these institutions give Nanovation Partners, in part, exclusive rights to license the technologies to medical device companies in all medical areas. The partnership with Michigan Tech builds on Nanovation Partners strategic collaborations with leaders in nanotexturing technology, said Dan Justin, President and CEO of Nanovation Partners. We are first licensing technologies focused on nanotexturing existing implant surfaces, then, when applicable, licensing nanotechnologies that further enhance the textured surface. Our licenses with the four universities extend into all areas of medicine including orthopedics, cardiovascular, and neurovascular. Having demonstrated superior properties to other nanotextured and traditional implant surfaces in numerous in vivo and in vitro studies, our nanotube structure addresses all three major deficiencies of traditional implant material surfaces, by increasing hydrophilicity, enhancing osseointegration and by providing a surface that is unfriendly to pathogenic microbes. The agreement with Michigan Tech extends Nanovation Partners lead in developing nanotexturing technology for clinical use. Mr. Justin continued, In addition to the first generation of nanotechnologies that enhance implants by nanotexturing their surfaces, the next generation of licensed technologies from our four research institution partners can be used as drug and antimicrobial delivery systems. For example, Michigan Techs technology has demonstrated extended release of the anti-inflammatory drug sodium naproxen after implant surgery in a study published in the journal RSC Advances. The technology may also be used on a variety of implants to reduce inflammation and promote healing. All of these technologies are now available for further development and licensing, and Nanovation Partners is actively seeking medical device partners who are interested in bringing this innovative approach to patients. Nanovation Partners has also recently partnered with N2 Biomedical of Bedford, Massachusetts, a leading ISO-13485 certified surface treatment provider, who can perform the nanotexturing process on a service basis for interested device manufacturers. Discover Nanotechnology at NASS (Booth #1837) in Boston, MA where Nanovation Partners will be exhibiting, October 26th through October 29th. For more information, please contact Dan Justin (info(at)nanovationpartners.com), President and CEO of Nanovation Partners, LLC. Michigan Technological University is a leading public research university developing new technologies and preparing students to create the future for a prosperous and sustainable world. Michigan Tech offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in engineering; forest resources; computing; technology; business; economics; natural, physical and environmental sciences; arts; humanities; and social sciences. Nanovation Partners LLC sponsored early research at the University of California at San Diego (UCSD) in the lab of Sungho Jin, PhD. This research showed enhanced osseointegration and reduced implant surface infection by forming tiny rows of metal oxide nanotubes on the implant surfaces. A comprehensive patent portfolio has since begun issuing with claims that cover a wide range of processes and structures. Nanovation Partners has also licensed Intellectual Property from Washington State University (WSU) related to antimicrobials with silver nano-particles on nanotubes and other nanostructures, the University of Central Florida (UCF) and Michigan Technological University related to nanotube processing. Chronic Lyme disease was once thought of as a controversial health condition, but has gained increasing acceptance in the scientific community as a worldwide pandemic. In fact, it is now recognized as the fastest growing infectious disease in the United States and Canada, with over 300,000 new cases every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control. However, even with increased recognition and ongoing scientific research, it remains largely incurable and an enigma to the medical profession. Thousands of Lyme disease patients are still desperately awaiting help. Yet recent years have brought tremendous progress in Lyme disease treatment. In a new book, New Paradigms in Lyme Disease Treatment: 10 Top Doctors Reveal Healing Strategies that Work, ten leading integrative doctors share some of the newest evidence-based treatments for chronic Lyme disease. When it is caught early, Lyme disease can be effectively treated with 4-6 weeks of antibiotics, but in many cases, it becomes chronic, at which time complex, long-term treatment regimens are required. Yet few doctors are trained to adequately recognize and treat chronic Lyme, which mimics many other conditions such as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), fibromyalgia, arthritis, Parkinsons, lupus and Multiple Sclerosis. This is because Lyme is a systemic disease that affects and creates dysfunction in every system of the body. It primarily affects the nervous system, brain, heart, joints and connective tissue, although all of the organs and systems are impacted, and effective treatment for chronic Lyme can take anywhere from six months up to several years. The challenges inherent in treating this complex disease underscore the need for better diagnostic methods and treatment tools, and New Paradigms in Lyme Disease Treatment aims to provide those. For the book, medical researcher and writer Connie Strasheim interviewed doctors from the United States, Canada and Germany, and dedicated each chapter in the book to a specific doctors protocol and treatment philosophy. The chapters encompass information on how to treat Lyme infections, as well as how to heal the body using supportive tools such as hormone replacement, nutrition and detoxification therapy. Patients can read the book to better understand the different treatment options available to them, while clinicians can read it to get a better understanding of how they can help their patients. The book also contains tools that people with Lyme can use at home and which can help them to feel better until they are able to collaborate with a Lyme-literate doctor for their care. The antimicrobial strategies that are described in New Paradigms in Lyme Disease Treatment range from long-term antibiotic therapy, to herbal remedies, ozone, hyperthermia, biomagnetism, peptide therapy and low dose immunotherapyamong others. These treatments have been proven through studies and patient experience to be effective for many. New Paradigms in Lyme Disease Treatment is a follow-up to Connie Strasheims 2009 doctor interview book, Insights into Lyme Disease Treatment: 13 Lyme-Literate Health Care Practitioners Share Their Healing Strategies. The doctors represented in the 2016 book are different than those who participated in the 2009 book, but the format of the book is similar in that each chapter is dedicated to a specific doctors treatment protocol. New Paradigms in Lyme Disease Treatment is unique from other Lyme-related books because it provides a diverse assortment of treatment options from doctors who belong to vastly differing schools of thought. It also provides an in-depth look at how to heal the body from Lyme, and not just eliminate infections, the latter of which is a strategy that is rarely sufficient for treating chronic Lyme disease. To learn more about the book, see: http://www.NewLymeTreatments.com. About the Author Connie Strasheim is the author, co-author or ghostwriter of ten wellness books, including four on Lyme disease. She is also a medical copywriter and Editor of Pro Healths Lyme disease site (http://www.ProHealth.com), as well as an editor for the Alternative Cancer Research Institute. Her passion is to help people with complex chronic illnesses find freedom from disease and soul-spirit sickness using whole body medicine and prayer, and she collaborates with some of the world's leading integrative doctors to do this. In addition to Lyme disease, Connies books focus on cancer, nutrition, detoxification and spiritual healing. To learn more about her work, see: http://www.ConnieStrasheim.org. Connie can be contacted for speaking engagements and interviews at: Connie9824@aol.com. Availability The book will retail for USD $39.95 and is available at: http://www.BioMedPublishers.com It is published by BioMed Publishing Group. It is also available in eBook format. Contact the publisher for quantity discounts and free book flyers. Jet-setters flying in and out of the Bay Area will find a rewarding offer at Larkspur Landing South San Francisco this season, one of the areas premier hotels which places guests just three miles from the San Francisco International Airport. The all-suite hotel is offering an exclusive Park & Fly Package so travelers can take advantage of its prime setting, along with extra perks and the hotels lowest available rates. The offer, which includes overnight accommodations at the iconic South San Francisco property, treats guests to round-trip airport shuttle transportation, complimentary Wi-Fi access, freshly-prepared healthy start breakfast, and parking for up to seven days for one vehicle. For parking extended beyond seven days, the rate is $15 per day. Combined with the propertys all-suite lodging, which includes full kitchens and separate living areas, the offer sets up one of the best ways for travelers to fly in or out of the city in the coming months. Were constantly looking for ways to improve the guest experience at Larkspur Landing, said the propertys General Manager. And this offer embodies that philosophy. We look forward to welcoming even more travelers through our doors as they get ready to fly out to destinations all over the world. Located in the heart of South San Franciscos bio-tech corridor, Larkspur Landing South San Francisco is close to some of the industrys biggest names, including Genentech, Rigel, and Theravance. Top San Francisco attractions like Fishermans Wharf, Union Square and China Town are also just minutes away for guests looking to explore the Bay Area during their stay. For more information, or to book the propertys new Park & Fly Package, guests can visit the Larkspur Landing South San Francisco website, or call the hotel directly at 650-827-1515. About Larkspur Landing South San Francisco Larkspur Landing South San Francisco is located in the center of the Gateway, a hub of the biotechnology industry, close to the headquarters of some of the biggest names in tech. The hotels complimentary shuttle to the San Francisco International Airport, less than 3 miles away, brings business travelers and vacationers within easy reach of the citys global travel hub. Its complimentary airport shuttle departs from the hotel every thirty minutes from 4:00am to 12:30am each day, and its all-suite accommodations feature fully equipped kitchens, separate sleeping and living spaces, and complimentary Wi-Fi to keep guests connected during their stay. # # # Mestel & Company, a leading national attorney placement company established in 1987, has announced the appointments of two Directors - Nina Haller, based in Los Angeles, and Patrick McHale, based in Chicago. Nina and Patrick will specialize in the placement of associates, counsel, and in-house counsel at law firms and corporations across various industries. Before joining Mestel & Company, Nina worked as a development professional for non-profit ventures including The David Lynch Foundation, Beit TShuvah, and Jewish Community Federation of the Greater East Bay. Previously, Nina has worked as a legal recruiter and has also practiced law as a tax associate at Loeb & Loeb in Los Angeles. Nina earned her J.D. from University of California, Hastings College of the Law and her B.A. in English & American Literature from Brandeis University. Prior to joining Mestel & Company, Patrick was a litigator for almost 10 years, working with several highly regarded litigation firms in Chicago including Cavanagh Law Group, Hall Prangle & Schoonveld LLC, Barnes & Thornburg LLP, and Lowis & Gellen LLP. The focus of his practice primarily involved complex cases with catastrophic damages, and he tried numerous cases in both state and federal court. Patrick earned his J.D. from the DePaul University College of Law, and his B.A. in Biology from Colorado College. Nina and Patrick will be great additions to our exceptional team of industry-recognized placement consultants, who are dedicated to candor, integrity, and the highest quality of service. With Nina in Los Angeles and Patrick in Chicago, we are continuing to strengthen our national presence, stated Lynn Mestel, CEO and Chairman. Their previous experience as attorneys and strong professional relationships in the legal community will be valuable when providing guidance and knowledge to our clients and candidates. For nearly 30 years, our company has developed the careers of attorneys, built best in class legal teams and effectuated law firm mergers. At Mestel, its who you know. About Mestel & Company Mestel & Company, a leading national attorney placement company established in 1987, specializes in assisting the careers of individual associates, partners and in-house counsel as well as effectuating the movement of legal teams and law firm mergers. Our experienced recruiters have first-hand knowledge of the practices and cultures of law firms and in-house legal departments, making us the acknowledged leader in our field. Mestel & Company is the only 100% employee owned company in the attorney placement industry, ensuring that each of our recruiters, as an owner, provides best in class service and is committed to the needs and sensitivity of our attorneys. A full range of flexible packaging solutions for all Industries What kind of military experience do you have? is not the typical question that a consumer brand manager might ask one of its supply chain packaging partners. However, it is a powerful point of difference that LPS Industries, a leading flexible packaging manufacturer, credits to its ability to help todays brands most effectively utilize flexible packaging. The expertise gained and technical advancements achieved over five decades in serving the tactical needs of the military has resulted in highly innovative and in some cases, pioneering flexible packaging solutions. According to CEO Madeleine Robinson, LPS Industries has been a proud supplier to the military for more than 50 years through two generations of leadership. Meeting exacting quality measures, adapting technologies to fit unique specifications and custom producing materials that perform at the highest quality standards under the most extreme conditions has been business-as-usual since my father started this company in 1959. As flexible packaging demands for consumer brands advances, LPS Industries has, and continues to adapt its tactical to practical mindset to an ever-expanding range of consumer product applications. Virtually all of our high barrier flexible packaging for consumer products has its origins in some form of military application. Robinson explains. LPS Industries will be highlighting this tactical to practical evolution at Pack Expo 2016, as it meets with current and emerging brand owners and showcases its extensive line of flexible packing solutions. A Longtime Ally in Supporting the Militarys Flexible Packaging Needs LPS Industries enjoys a long, rich history of serving the military since 1959. The company began as a material supplier and their initial entry into manufacturing was adding equipment to convert military high barrier flexible materials into bags. One of the companys first contracts with the military after adding converting capabilities involved the production of bags that could be hermetically sealed, which made them ideal for protecting metal components in a moisture-free environment. Components that need to be packaged and stored under specific atmospheric conditions demand precise performance characteristics. This is achieved by the use of specialized combinations of substrates that preserve the exact environmental conditions required. Our work with the military and the associated R&D we perform to meet their needs affords us a wealth of hands-on experience, and knowledge of a broad variety of material configurations. This translates to knowing how to precisely construct high barrier flexible material that achieves optimum performance, regardless of the performance characteristics, states Robinson. Today, the company routinely transfers this expertise to a multitude of CPG segments, including medical, prepared and frozen foods, snacks, spices, seasonings, grains, personal care and pet products, just to name a few. Whether the assignment is to develop stronger, lighter packaging, better barrier properties, features that improve security, add convenience or enhance the overall consumer experience, LPS Industries has the expertise, capabilities and, as a vertically integrated manufacturer, the overall quality control systems in place through their ISO certified manufacturing process to accomplish the mission. Drawing on Military Experience to Deliver a Smart Solution in Healthcare When a medical test manufacturer needed packaging for an at-home test that patients would mail back to the lab, LPS Industries was on the short list of potential manufacturers. While protection and containment were primary goals, other features were also required, including puncture- and tamper-resistance and a tamper evident design. Leveraging its military background in projects having similar requirements, LPS Industries was chosen to develop a foil lined medical mailer to contain, protect and secure the patient samples during transit throughout the postal system. For a very long time, it was the only mailer of its type that was approved for use by the USPS, although others tried to duplicate it soon after its release. A High Barrier Foil Packaging Solution for a Growing Health and Beauty Brand While its expected that the highest levels of protection are found in military and medical applications, quite often health and beauty products need some TLC as well. LPS Industries recently developed a stand up pouch (SUP) for a leading European health and beauty brand for the introduction of their flagship product in the United States. In conjunction with the opening its first U.S. manufacturing location, the company looked to partner with a U.S.-based packaging manufacturer with the expertise to create an attractive, foil-based SUP that would protect their highly sensitive product. LPS Industries experience with high barrier foil packaging for the military was a decisive factor in supplier selection. A winning combination of materials knowledge, manufacturing quality, print quality, value and timeliness of delivery contributed to what continues to be a highly successful partnership. LPS Industries - A Powerful Packaging Partner for brands As a vertically integrated manufacturer, LPS Industries is able to deliver the requisite combination of creative, technical and manufacturing resources to support each customers specific needs, from start-ups to multinational companies. The LPS Industries total solution under one roof, customer-centric approach and its extensive consumer and military experience combine to build and maintain powerful packaging partnerships. Through the years, there have been numerous instances where LPS Industries pioneered a solution that has had great impact on an industry and created success stories for its clients. Brand owners across the product spectrum can depend on LPS Industries for a multitude of flexible packaging options and solutions that will protect and enhance their products. LPS Industries Welcomes Members of the Packaging Media LPS Industries cordially welcomes writers, editors and publishers of the international packaging media at Pack Expo 2016, and is scheduling press appointments at this time. To schedule a meeting or interview, please call Ed Delia at 908-534-9044, or email edelia(at)delianet(dot)com. LPS Industries Specialists Scheduled to be on Hand at Pack Expo 2016 Visitors will have the opportunity to speak directly with LPS Industries experts and tap into their experience and knowledge of packaging solutions at Booth N-5275. They will be available to offer guidance on navigating the maze of packaging choices and options that customers face when trying to identifying the best solution to protect and promote their products. The LPS Industries team thrives on these challenges and has a long list of success stories in developing timely, cost-effective, customized solutions. Crown Automotive Group is proud to announce that it will be honored by Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) as a 2016 Outstanding Employer at a special event on Friday, October 21, 2016. October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and as such, the Disability Employment Awareness Celebration recognizes local businesses that are committed to hiring people with disabilities. Crown will be honored with four other businesses from the state of Florida that have a proven track record of employing individuals with disabilities. We so appreciate being recognized by such a worthy organization, said Jim Myers, President of Crown Automotive Group. The team that comprises Crown Automotive Group is our most valuable asset, and we are delighted to provide deserving individuals with an opportunity to join our team. To receive this award is truly an honor. Vocational Rehabilitation is an organization that assists those with disabilities throughout the state of Florida with training, medical treatment, accommodations and more. The organization helped 5,760 people find or keep their jobs last year, and has 90 offices across the state of Florida. The Disability Employment Awareness Celebration will be held at the Hilton St. Petersburg Bayfront, which is located at 333 1st Street South in St. Petersburg. To learn more about Vocational Rehabilitation and its mission, visit RehabWorks.org. To learn more about Crown Collision Center or Crown Automotive Group, visit CrownCars.com. ABOUT CROWN AUTOMOTIVE GROUP Crown Automotive Group has been in business for more than 40 years, and currently operates domestic and international automotive franchises in Florida, Ohio and Tennessee. The group is dedicated to customer and employee satisfaction, and is your source for new and pre-owned vehicles, parts and service, financing and more. No matter what youre looking for, you can be confident that you are getting an incredible deal and outstanding service when you visit one of the many dealerships that make up Crown Automotive Group. To learn more, visit CrownCars.com. Many people want to change the world, but it feels daunting to set out to do it alone. The Billion Acts platform was created to bring everyday people, businesses, students and organizations together from around the world, and provide a framework to help target 10 Key Focus Areas identified as the most important of our time, to create a more peaceful and sustainable world for everyone. Chade-Meng Tan, Dawn Engle and Ivan Suvanjieff, co-chairs of the Billion Acts campaign, will be speaking at the UN, October 21, 2016, to discuss a global citizens movement with the power to create peace in our lifetime, and kick off the November campaign that will focus on supporting refugees worldwide. Billion Acts is reaching out to individuals, organizations, schools, houses of worship, and community leaders to join together to bring more attention and raise awareness about an issue that affects everyone around the world. Organizations providing services or helping refugees settle into a new community; individuals educating others about the refugee crisis and providing volunteer opportunities; groups planning a community event that celebrates diversity and includes refugees; community members hosting a fundraiser to support refugees locally or abroad, we want to highlight your efforts and support your cause. Refugees with a personal story of being supported by an individual or organization while rebuilding your life, please contact: info(at)billionacts(dot)org. Everyone concerned about refugees worldwide, please visit billionacts.org during the month on November and take part in the campaign. "We work hard to remind people that they have the power to change the world by simply choosing to take action in their community. Lets not wait for others to solve the refugee issues, lets ask what each of us can do to help, said, Dawn Engle, PeaceJams Executive Director. Change starts when enough concerned citizens join together behind a common goal, and since the refugee crisis impacts everyone worldwide, a large number of individuals and organizations need to come together to truly make an impact and help create solutions to the issues that refugees face. We are trying to create a world where compassion in action is the norm...by joining together to generate One Billion Acts of Peace worldwide, we hope to reach the tipping point that leads people to want to do their part to create a more peaceful world, said, Chade-Meng Tan, co-chair of the Billion Acts Campaign. The PeaceJam Foundation has 20 years of experience creating young leaders committed to positive change in themselves, their communities and the world through the inspiration of Nobel Peace Laureates who pass on the spirit, skills and wisdom they embody. The One Billion Acts of Peace campaign has reached 12 Million Acts of Peace in more than 50 countries in just over two years, and is inviting everyone to take part in this exciting global citizens movement that is shifting the future of humanity, one Act of Peace at a time. Brindley Beach Vacations & Sales ...were well equipped to take care of and rise above any kind of destruction thats thrown our way. Brindley Beach Vacations & Sales, a leading vacation rental and real estate firm located in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, announced that its open despite the cleanup work that continues after the destruction of Hurricane Matthew. As the sign says, We are open till the letters on this sign are gone. Gov. Pat McCrory declared a state of emergency for all 100 North Carolina counties before the storm hit, and the hurricane left a significant amount of wind and water damage in its wake. Were lucky that our offices were not harmed, but we did suffer damage to three vehicles during the home inspection process, said Doug Brindley, Owner of Brindley Beach Vacations & Sales. Many of our vacation homes are dealing with water in the ground floor, siding and shingle damage, roof collapse, or ceiling water damage and water intrusion through windows and doors. Power in some areas is just now starting to be restored. The recovery process is ongoing, and its a massive undertaking. The process to inspect and report will take weeks to complete, said Brindley. And thats on top of damage caused be two large storms earlier in September. But as our loyal guests know, our Corolla office was destroyed by a fire last June, so were well equipped to take care of and rise above any kind of destruction thats thrown our way. And in spite of the hurricanes devastation, Brindley Beach was able to make their 2017 rental rates available for all vacation properties. Brindley Beach encourages all interested travelers to prepare in advance for their 2017 Outer Banks vacations. Many returning guests make their reservations many months ahead of time, and popular homes and summer weeks are always the first to go. To book your vacation, please call Brindley Beach at 877-642-3224 or visit BrindleyBeach.com. Brindley Beachs website also features frequently updated specials a pet-friendly rental search, and more than a dozen luxury homes. About Brindley Beach Vacations & Sales Service FirstFun Always! - Brindley Beach Vacations & Sales is owned and operated by Doug and Joan Brindley. They have been prominent in the Corolla and Duck real estate rental and sales industry since 1984. Doug began in the business in 1984 in one room and today its among the largest and most successful vacation/sales companies in the industry. Their primary and only focus is the delivery of exceptional service to all of their Outer Banks owners and guests on vacation. The definition of service is someone in front of you helping to solve your problems NOW. Every guest and owner of Brindley Beach Vacations experiences the true meaning of "Service FirstFun Always!" Brindley Beach Vacations can be found on the web at: http://www.brindleybeach.com/, reached via phone at 877-642-3224, or via email at Rentals@BrindleyBeach.com. This press release was formatted and submitted by Visual Data Systems (http://www.VisualDataSystems.com), the leader in online marketing for the vacation rental industry. We are a relatively small company with only 25 employees, and we work in multiple states with lower populations, yet we beat out companies that work in large metropolis areas." said Mindy Kroll, sales manager and co-owner of TMS. Every year, InfoTronics honors the top sales performances of its partners. Time Management Systems has consistently produced results and has established a pattern of excellence achieving recognition every year in this decade. The top five honorees in order of performance are: Time Management Systems, Inc., Sioux Falls, South Dakota Gorrie-Regan & Associates, Inc. Birmingham, Alabama Associated Time & Parking Controls, Dallas, Texas Advanced Time Management, Inc. Canton, Michigan Midwest Time Recorder, Inc. Naperville, Illinois About of InfoTronics Inc.: InfoTronics, Inc., a Southeast Michigan company founded in 1978, makes its wealth of experience and knowledge available to the marketplace for the benefit of companies of all sizes by providing cost-effective, easily deployable workforce management systems. Product offerings include software solutions that offer advanced features for managing labor data, calculating pay rules, scheduling employees, budgeting labor, automating benefit accruals, and tracking attendance-based merit points. InfoTronics, Inc. is a forerunner in developing software that maintains the scalability, reliability, and security requirements of small, growing, and large organizations. By utilizing an extensive North American distribution network, InfoTronics, Inc. has been able to enhance the business practices of more than 20,000 organizations. A new list ranking the Best Occupational Therapy Programs in the nation has been released by leading higher education information and resource provider Community for Accredited Online Schools (AccreditedSchoolsOnline.org). Comparing hundreds of on-campus and online vocational programs across the country for 2016-2017, the following schools earned top honors: for four-year schools, Daytona State College, State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota, Madison Area Technical College, Southwestern Oklahoma State University and Florida State College at Jacksonville; for two-year schools, Houston Community College, Eastern New Mexico University - Roswell Campus, South Arkansas Community College, Cape Fear Community College and Itawamba Community College. The first step to becoming an occupational therapist is to earn an occupational assistant degree, said Doug Jones, CEO and Founder of the Community for Accredited Online Schools. These schools are home to the best entry-level occupational therapy education programs in the nation, providing a quality education that enables students to either begin working or continue on to Graduate studies and formal certification. A comparison of more than a dozen unique data points was used to determine where each program ranked. Each school on the list was also required to meet certain baseline criteria to qualify; the Community for Accredited Online Schools requires all schools to be accredited two- or four-year institutions and hold either public or private not-for-profit status. Each college must also offer career placement services to students post-graduation. The full list of schools included on the Best Occupational Therapy Programs list for 2016 is included below. For specific data and details on where each school scored visit the full rankings page: http://www.accreditedschoolsonline.org/vocational-trade-school/occupational-therapy/ Two-year programs recognized: Augusta Technical College Cape Fear Community College Casper College Central Community College Cincinnati State Technical and Community College Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas Del Mar College Delaware Technical Community College - Owens Delaware Technical Community College - Stanton/Wilmington Delgado Community College East Arkansas Community College East Central College Eastern New Mexico University - Roswell Campus Fox Valley Technical College Harcum College Hawkeye Community College Houston Community College Indian Hills Community College Itawamba Community College Jefferson College Jefferson Community and Technical College Kennebec Valley Community College Lake Area Technical Institute Lone Star College Lorain County Community College Manchester Community College Marion Technical College Milwaukee Area Technical College Murray State College Nashville State Community College North Central State College North Dakota State College of Science Owens Community College Pitt Community College Pueblo Community College Rhodes State College River Valley Community College Roane State Community College Sacramento City College Sinclair College South Arkansas Community College Southwest Virginia Community College Spokane Falls Community College Stark State College State Fair Community College Wallace State Community College - Hanceville Weatherford College Western Technical College Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College Zane State College Four-year programs recognized: Arkansas Tech University Baker College of Muskegon Cabarrus College of Health Sciences Daytona State College Florida State College at Jacksonville Goodwin College Keiser University - Fort Lauderdale Kent State University at Ashtabula Kent State University at East Liverpool Lake Washington Institute of Technology Madison Area Technical College Maria College Mercy College Middle Georgia State College New England Institute of Technology Newman University Pennsylvania College of Technology Polk State College Remington College - Heathrow Campus Rutgers University - New Brunswick Shawnee State University South Texas College Southwestern Oklahoma State University St. Catherine University State College of Florida - Manatee-Sarasota Touro College University of Charleston University of Louisiana at Monroe University of Southern Indiana Washburn University ### About Us: The Community for Accredited Online Schools (AccreditedSchoolsOnline.org) was founded in 2011 to provide students and parents with quality data and information about pursuing an affordable education that has been certified by an accrediting agency. Our community resource materials and tools span topics such as college accreditation, financial aid, opportunities available to veterans, people with disabilities, as well as online learning resources. We feature higher education institutions that have developed online learning programs that include highly trained faculty, new technology and resources, and online support services to help students achieve educational success. environments that include highly trained faculty, new technology and resources, and online support services to help students achieve educational and career success. In the recent past, Vantage College was extremely successful in helping students in similar situations. In addition to providing the ability for former Career Point College students to transfer credits for completed courses, the Community Assistance Grant was established to ensure sufficient funds have been allocated to help offset potential gaps former Career Point College students may experience in their financial aid during the transition. In the recent past, Vantage College was extremely successful in helping students in similar situations stated Eduardo Tribaldos, CEO of Vantage College. We are committed to do the same for these impacted students. Students displaced by the unexpected closure of Career Point College needing immediate assistance should contact either the Austin or San Antonio campus to ask about the Community Assistance Grant established specifically for the Career Point College students. We firmly believe there is a solution for every situation. Whether it is evaluating credits, reviewing transcripts or financial aid options for these impacted students, we are standing by ready to assist in any way possible. stated Mr. Tribaldos. Mr. Tribaldos went on further to state We also feel our lower tuition rates, ability to provide our students with opportunities to achieve important certifications as they progress through their programs, and exceptional instructors and job placement services, sets us apart. Please contact the campuses below now to learn how we can keep you on track to graduate and secure employment in your new career: Vantage College Austin 314 E. Highland Mall Blvd, Ste 112 Austin, Texas 78752 (512) 300-2244 Vantage College San Antonio North 3201 Cherry Ridge Drive, Ste B200 San Antonio, Texas 78230 (210) 522-8000 Vantage College San Antonio South 1964 S.W. Military Drive San Antonio, Texas 78221 (210) 922-1700 Vantage College was founded in 2006 in El Paso, TX and operates through five campus locations across the state, including two in El Paso, two in San Antonio and one in Austin. Accreditation and Approvals: Approved and regulated by the Texas Workforce Commission Career Schools and Colleges Authorized by Texas Coordinating Board of Higher Education to grant Associate of Applied Science Degrees Accredited by the Council on Occupation Education to award certificates and Associates Degrees Approved by U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Texas Veterans Commission to train veterans and their dependents and survivors Authorized by U.S. Department of Defense to train active duty soldiers and military spouses Approved by U.S. Department of Education to participate in federal student financial aid programs (Title IV). The mission of Vantage College is to promote student success through relevant and affordable education programs responding to economic and workforce development needs, thus empowering our students to obtain gainful employment and career satisfaction in the shortest time possible. For more information on Vantage College, please visit http://www.vantage.edu or visit us on Facebook. Vantage College Changing Lives through Education and Job Placement David Finkelstein, Chief Operating Officer Rockin' Wellness is growing and it's exciting to have an updated, flexible operational platform that will allow us to keep pace with demand. David Finkelstein, COO Past News Releases RSS Rockin Wellness Management Team... Rockin Wellness (http://www.rockinwellness.com) announce the development and expansion of their Long Island operational base as part of its continued growth strategy. As of September 1, 2016 core order fulfillment services will be processed through Just Nutra (Nutra Group LLC), a respected specialist fulfillment house, based on Long Island. We have seen our customer base grow exponentially over the past 5 years and whilst our manufacturing operation can easily cope with the upturn in customer demand, there have been times when our fulfillment staff have struggled to keep pace. We needed to ensure that we created an operational base that could keep pace with the growing demand for our products. Were very excited to be working with Just Nutra, not only will this arrangement allow us to achieve optimal performance today, it will provide us with a solution that can grow with us. Said David Finkelstein, Chief Operating Officer, Rockin Wellness. Rockin Wellness has created a new paradigm for its business model; one based on a dynamic synergy between its social community and its operational structure. Real-time, real world interaction that creates solid customer experiences both in terms of how the products themselves help, but how the business supports that development. The holistic approach of feeding both the body and mind created a platform for the business quite unlike other health shake businesses. The development of a more responsive, efficient operational base is an important milestone in the evolution of the company. It forms just one of the many exciting, new developments for Rockin Wellness. With over 2 million Facebook followers, Rockin Wellness is set for dramatic growth in the coming years. To celebrate its 5 Year Anniversary, the company will be launching a series of special offers and promotions throughout the remainder of 2016. To access these exciting promotions, consumers should visit the companys website http://www.rockinwellness.com and enter their email address to receive these unique limited time offers. Rockin Wellness Founded in 2011 by Seth Luker, Rockin Wellness (http://www.rockinwellness.com) produces whole body, nutritional superfood smoothie and tea blends that are manufactured on Long Island, New York and shipped throughout the USA. Rockin Wellness mission is to bring natural health to the forefront of the general public through education and premium nutritional products that surpass todays highest-quality standards at an affordable price. With the healthiest lifestyle in mind, Rockin Wellness created an energizing superfood mix that has helped tens of thousands of people maintain and regain optimal health. Rockin Wellness is a great tasting, easy-to-make superfood mix that focuses on pure plant based nutrition that support the body's systems as a whole. Certified Vegan Non-GMO Dairy Free Gluten Free Superfoods & Omegas For ordering information please visit http://www.rockinwellness.com or call (855) 876-2593 Elder law attorney Anthony J. Enea, recipient of the 2016 Dr. Joseph A. Cimino Community Service Award from the Dominican Sisters Family Health Service Anthony Enea has helped many of our older patients access the benefits they need, while maintaining their financial stability. He provides a great service and is an invaluable resource to our aging population. On November 2, Westchester elder law attorney Anthony J. Enea, managing member of Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano, LLP in White Plains and Somers, N.Y., will be honored with the Dr. Joseph A. Cimino Community Service Award at the Dominican Sisters Family Health Services Hope Gala 2016. The gala, held at Abigail Kirsch at Tappan Hill Mansion in Tarrytown, is the non-profits largest annual fundraiser. The Dr. Joseph A. Cimino Community Service Award is named for the late Dr. Joseph Cimino, the former Chairman of the Board at Dominican Sisters Family Health Service, who was both a leader in healthcare and a committed community servant. Recipients are chosen for their personal integrity, professionalism and an outstanding generosity of spirit and service to those less fortunate. Anthony J. Enea has spent the past three decades educating and protecting the rights of seniors, the disabled and their families. He was recognized earlier this year with the Honorable Richard J. Daronco Distinguished Service Award from the Columbian Lawyers Association of Westchester County and is the recipient of the Above the Bar Award as Westchester Countys Leading Elder Care Attorney. Enea will be honored at the Hope Gala alongside Westchester County Executive Robert P. Astorino, who will receive the 2016 Mother Mary Walsh Award. Educating seniors and their families on the importance of protecting their savings from the cost of long-term care is extremely important to me, said Enea. It is truly an honor to be recognized by the Dominican Sisters Family Health Service, an organization vital to our community and the health and well-being of so many. The Dominican Sisters Family Health Service, an affiliate agency of ArchCare, the continuing care community of the Archdiocese of New York, offers a comprehensive suite of preventative, treatment and care management services in eleven counties in New York State. The organization has a 120-year history of providing award-winning, comprehensive visiting nurse services and home health care to infants, children, adolescents, adults and the elderly in the comfort and privacy of home. Anthony Enea has helped many of our older patients access the benefits they need, while maintaining their financial stability. He provides a great service and is an invaluable resource to our aging population, said Mary Zagajeski, President and CEO of Dominican Sisters Family Health Service (now ArchCare at Home). Enea is president of the Westchester County Bar Foundation and a fellow of the New York Bar Foundation. He is a past chair of the New York Bar Associations Elder Law Section and a past president of the Westchester County Bar Association. For more information on the Dominican Sisters Family Health Services Hope Gala 2016 or to purchase tickets, contact the Development Office at 914-941-1710, x1219 or events(at)dsfhs(dot)org. Visit the Dominican Sisters Family Health Service online at http://www.dsfhs.org. Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano, LLP is located at 245 Main Street in White Plains, N.Y. with additional offices in Somers, N.Y. Elder law attorney Anthony J. Enea can be reached at 914-948-1500 or a.enea(at)esslawfirm(dot)com. For the latest news, visit Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano online at http://www.esslawfirm.com. About Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano, LLP Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano, LLP is an AV preeminent rated elder law firm with offices in White Plains and Somers, N.Y. The practice concentrates on Elder Law; Medicaid Planning; Nursing Home and Home Care Applications; Wills, Trusts and Estates; Guardianships; Estate Litigation; Supplemental Needs Trusts; and Special Needs Planning. Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano, LLP serves Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, the Bronx, Manhattan, Long Island and Queens and is committed to providing the highest quality legal services to seniors, the disabled and their families. Visit the firm online at http://www.esslawfirm.com and http://www.westchesterseniors.com. Future City connects with an incredibly diverse range of students, providing the kind of exciting, hands-on experiences, resources, and mentorship that can make the difference between a student pursuing education a STEM career or not. Turner Construction Company and the National Building Museum are pleased to announce that DiscoverEs Future City Competition will receive the 2016 Henry C. Turner Prize for Innovation in Construction. Turner established the prize and accompanying $25,000 honorarium at the National Building Museum to recognize an advance or high achievement and exemplary leadership in the construction industry. Future City was selected for their dedication to inspiring and developing a passionate, informed, and STEM-literate (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) workforce for the 21st centuryan ever-more diverse and inclusive pool of designers, engineers to lead the architecture, engineering, and construction industry into the future. For example, of the 40,000 students who participate in the Future City Program, nearly half are girls, 30 percent are minority students, and 33 percent are students from Title I schools. The program engages students in creative and technical processes through which they imagine, design, and build cities of the future, tackling contemporary construction and sustainability challenges along the way, from managing storm water to generating green energy. The competitions 2017 challenge, The Power of Public Space, asks students to design a Future City that includes a network of innovative, multi-use public spaces that serve their citys diverse population. Engineers solve the worlds problems and the Future City Competition is doing their part to encourage students to make the built environmentand in turn, the worlda better place, said Chris McFadden, Turner vice president and member of the prize jury. The program is also strongly aligned with Turners own goals for education, which makes it a natural fit. Future City connects with an incredibly diverse range of students, providing the kind of exciting, hands-on experiences, resources, and mentorship that can make the difference between a student pursuing education a STEM career or not. Were proud to support and elevate the great work Future City is doing by presenting them with the Turner Prize. The prize will be presented by Peter J. Davoren, president and chief executive officer of Turner Construction, and Chase W. Rynd, president and executive director of the National Building Museum, at the Turner Innovation Summit in Philadelphia, November 2, 2016. The event will include a panel discussion and a student presentation. The Future City Competition is just one of the programs that make DiscoverE a national leader in educating the next generation of engineers and builders, said Chase W. Rynd. This well-deserved prize will reinforce their targeted efforts and allow them to broaden and deepen their engagement with students. The Future City Competition has big plans for the honorarium, which will support a number of strategic initiatives to enhance their programming. Three primary initiatives within the Future City program are: Providing stipends to qualifying educators in under-served schools and communities in Future City regions, including Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, New York/Albany, Texas/North and Washington State. Establishing a special award for construction innovation among Future City participants. Supporting an annual Future City Program Handbook which is considered the central tool of the program by educators, mentors, and students alike. DiscoverE is deeply committed to ensuring that our programs are accessible to all students, regardless of gender, socio-economic status or background. The Turner Prize will greatly enhance our ability to serve this diverse spectrum of students, said Leslie Collins, executive director of DiscoverE. Through these kinds of transformative collaborations with our partners, we are able to enhance our mission to develop the next generation of engineer innovators, spark the imaginations of middle schoolers, and open their eyes to the potential of the engineering profession. Members of the Prize jury are A. Eugene Kohn, chairman of Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates; Chris McFadden, vice president, Turner Construction Company; Hal Parmalee, former president, Turner Construction Company; and Jan Tuchman, editor-in-chief, Engineering News-Record. Future City is the 14th recipient of the Turner Prize, which has been awarded in the past to The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, the Engineering Department at Pennsylvania State University, Leslie Robertson, I.M Pei, Charles DeBenedittis, The U.S. Green Building Council, Paul Teicholz, Gehry Partners and Gehry Technologies, Charlie Thornton, Engineers Without Borders USA, Society of Women Engineers, and the Lean Construction Institute. About DiscoverE and Future City DiscoverE is leading a growing volunteer movement that inspires and informs present and future generations to discover engineering. Our network of volunteers in the US and abroad is drawn from the DiscoverE coalition of more than 100 professional societies, major corporations and government agencies. Together we meet a vital need: introducing students, parents, and educators to engineering, engaging them in hands-on engineering experiences and making science and math relevant. For more information, visit http://www.discovere.org. Future City is a project-based learning program where students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grades imagine, research, design, and build cities of the future. The Future City Program serves over 40,000 students annually throughout the United States and abroad. The program proudly supports a great number of underserved communities. Students repeatedly report that the program increases their motivation and excitement about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math). In addition, students and teachers report a marked improvement in students 21st Century skills. About the National Building Museum The National Building Museum is Americas leading cultural institution dedicated to advancing the quality of the built environment by educating people about its impact on their lives. Through its exhibitions, educational programs, online content, and publications, the Museum has become a vital forum for the exchange of ideas and information about the world we build for ourselves. Public inquiries: 202.272.2448 or visit http://www.nbm.org. Connect with us on Twitter: @BuildingMuseum and Facebook. About Turner Construction Company Turner is a North America-based, international construction services company. Founded in 1902, Turner first made its mark on the industry pioneering the use of steel-reinforced concrete for general building, which enabled the company to deliver safer, stronger, and more efficient buildings to clients. The company continues to embrace emerging technologies and offers an increasingly diverse set of services. With an annual construction volume of $11 billion, Turner is the largest builder in the United States, ranking first in the major market segments of the building construction field, including healthcare, education, sports, commercial, and green building. The firm is a subsidiary of HOCHTIEF, one of the worlds leading international construction service providers. For more information please visit http://www.turnerconstruction.com. Strategy May Boost Mesothelioma Chemotherapy The systemic, in addition to local, delivery of tumor targeted anti-TS RNAi system we propose...might be an effective option to extend the clinical utility of pemetrexed... Scientists at Tokushima University have tested a method they say may improve mesothelioma survival by helping chemotherapy work better. Surviving Mesothelioma has just posted an article on the new research. Click here to read it now. Doctors at the Institute of Health Biosciences took research they did last year a step further by testing a systemic (whole body) method of reprogramming mesothelioma cells to be more susceptible to the damaging effects of pemetrexed (brand name Alimta), the top mesothelioma drug. The systemic, in addition to local, delivery of tumor targeted anti-TS RNAi system we propose in this study might be an effective option to extend the clinical utility of pemetrexed in treating malignant mesothelioma, writes Dr. Amr Abu Lila, lead author of the new study. The research, published online by Molecular Pharmaceutics, used mouse models to demonstrate proof of concept. The next step will be to test the RNA interference (RNAi) method in human mesothelioma patients. Because nearly every person diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma will undergo treatment with pemetrexed at some point, we are always interested in any method that claims to be able to improve the effectiveness of this treatment, says Alex Strauss, Managing Editor for Surviving Mesothelioma. To learn more about RNAi and its potential impact on mesothelioma chemotherapy, see New Treatment Strategy Could Make Mesothelioma More Responsive to Chemotherapy, now available on the Surviving Mesothelioma website. Abu Lila, AS, et al, Systemically administered RNAi molecule sensitizes malignant pleural mesothelioma cells to pemetrexed therapy, October 14, 2016, Epub ahead of print, http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.6b00728 For nearly ten years, Surviving Mesothelioma has brought readers the most important and ground-breaking news on the causes, diagnosis and treatment of mesothelioma. All Surviving Mesothelioma news is gathered and reported directly from the peer-reviewed medical literature. Written for patients and their loved ones, Surviving Mesothelioma news helps families make more informed decisions. Monica Eaton-Cardone, co-founder and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Chargebacks911, advises merchants to prepare for new Visa Claim Resolution process changes Though Visas new VCR initiative is intended to remove friction from the chargeback process, this type of system cannot be truly effective without regulations and standards. Earlier this year, Visa announced that it will be implementing a new chargeback dispute process known as the Visa Claims Resolution (VCR) initiative.(1) Chargebacks911, a leading dispute mitigation and risk management firm, applauds Visas long-term goal of improving processes and expediting resolution but emphasizes that the move could have unanticipated implications for many merchants. The company counsels merchants to actively engage in representment and maintain detailed supporting data; otherwise, they risk losing a growing proportion of revenues to chargebacks and friendly fraud. Under the new VCR initiative, Visa aims to streamline the processing of disputed transactions, expedite resolution and eliminate invalid disputes whenever possible. However, these changes will require merchants to play a much more active role in the process. Not only must they maintain a detailed transaction database and be able to submit compelling evidence to Visa on demand, but they must be prepared to dispute the majority of chargebacks or face costly financial consequences. While Visas communications focus on the benefits of VCR, merchants are facing major changes that will require more work and effort on their behalf, asserted Monica Eaton-Cardone, co-founder and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Chargebacks911. Similar to the implications merchants are experiencing as a result of MasterCards dispute administration fee, the new VCR initiative means that merchants will have to effectively represent each and every dispute to mitigate rising chargeback losses. Considering that only 2 in 10 merchants are actively engaged in representment, the majority clearly have a very long way to go. Eaton-Cardone points out that most merchants have no training in representment methods, as it is not a prerequisite to obtaining a merchant processing account. Responding to disputes requires time and effort, and the rules can be complicated; consequently, Eaton-Cardone says there is often insufficient motivation for merchants to take action until rising chargeback fees and losses threaten their profits. She also stresses that there are currently no standards for basic record-keeping, which can make it challenging for merchants to meet the evolving requirements for compelling evidence in credit card chargeback disputes. Though Visas new VCR initiative is intended to remove friction from the chargeback process, this type of system cannot be truly effective without regulations and standards, remarked Eaton-Cardone. There is an urgent need for the payments industry to focus on compliance and address the current lack of standardization; we must first achieve industry-wide compliance before we can attain equal balance. She notes that eCommerce merchants, in particular, have been struggling to combat rising chargebacks and friendly fraud. Visa openly acknowledges that card-absent merchants may experience higher chargebacks than card-present merchants as the card is not electronic read, which increases liability for chargebacks.(2) Furthermore, Visas efforts to expedite dispute resolution may mean that merchants have less time to gather and submit evidence. Those who do not respond by the time specified on the request will not be able to remedy the chargeback.(2) I would advise all merchants to begin preparing for Visas enhanced dispute resolution process now, counsels Eaton-Cardone. This involves two key steps: preventing transaction disputes and creating compliant representment cases. Merchants who develop these capabilities internally or partner with an experienced chargeback management specialist will not only be VCR-ready, but theyll also succeed in reducing chargebacks and combating friendly fraud. For more information on Chargebacks911 and its comprehensive chargeback management solutions, as well as informational resources for eCommerce merchants and details on Monica Eaton-Cardones upcoming seminars and speaking engagements, visit https://chargebacks911.com. About Global Risk Technologies and Chargebacks911: Chargebacks911 is a division of Global Risk Technologies, which is internationally recognized as a leading provider of comprehensive risk management solutions to the payment processing industry. With offices in Europe and the United States, Global Risk Technologies manages over 200 million transactions worldwide each month. Chargebacks911 is headquartered in Tampa Bay, Florida, and specializes in chargeback mitigation and dynamic loss prevention. Founded by merchants in direct response to rising chargebacks and friendly fraud, Chargebacks911 combines insider expertise with proprietary technology and deep analytics to isolate threats, resolve disputes and maximize revenue. From small merchants to the nations largest retailers, today thousands of businesses rely on Chargebacks911s scalable, customizable and fully turnkey solutions to achieve sustainable growth and guaranteed ROI. For more information, visit https://chargebacks911.com. 1. Visa. Visa Claims Resolution: Efficient Dispute Processing for Merchants; April 14, 2016. usa.visa.com/dam/VCOM/download/merchants/visa-claims-resolution-efficient-dispute-processing-for-merchants-VBS-14.APR.16.pdf 2. Visa. Chargeback Management Guidelines for Visa Merchants; May 19, 2016. usa.visa.com/dam/VCOM/global/support-legal/documents/chargeback-management-guidelines-for-visa-merchants-vbs-19-may-16-%20v2.pdf After years of experience guiding students toward success in online education, OnlineColleges.net has relaunched as the Center for Online Education (COE). The new name formally establishes COEs transition into a holistic resource for online college students. Online education instructor and expert Melissa Venable, PhD will lead the team of subject matter experts behind the COE to help the next generation of online students look for schools, find affordable tuition, and use their degree to launch a rewarding professional career. In a field once dominated by for-profit institutions, distance education programs are now available in some capacity at most large public and private universities around the United States. The latest Babson Study on online education saw online learning grow 11.3% at private nonprofit institutions, while declining 2.8% at for-profits. In addition, public institutions now command the largest share of distance students: 72% of online undergraduates attend a public university. As new opportunities and technologies help more students pursue a degree outside of the traditional campus, finding the right program has become more nuanced and difficult than ever. The Center for Online Education aims to help students by providing college rankings, guides to popular online subjects and degrees, and resources covering everything from financial aid opportunities to technology assistance. The Center for Online Education is unique in being a one-stop resource for aspiring online college students, containing everything students need to evaluate accredited online colleges. In online education, best practices change quickly, Venable says. Its our job to stay ahead of the curve on the latest trends in online education so that we can best assist students. The site provides students with crucial, impartial information, including rankings by program and by state, alongside a national best online colleges ranking. The COE team is also committed to helping students save on their education costs, taking a similarly dynamic approach to financial aid guides and resources designed to help students succeed in an online format. Students often dont know what to expect in an online class. For that reason, its imperative for the COE to help students transition however they can. Many of the tips and resources are designed to help students not only find the right program, but to assimilate once theyre in school. There are resources about finding accredited online colleges, finding an LGTBQ-friendly school, and how to succeed in an online class format. Over the next year, Venable and her staff will be exploring all dimensions of the online learning experience, with plans to launch an online student demographics report based on data from hundreds of thousands of individuals. This analysis will inform the development of a vibrant website to help students overcome any obstacle they might face in school. ### About the Center for Online Education: Powered by a collection of online educators and experts, the Center for Online Education provides informed, research-based guides for students pursuing college degrees online. Originally launched in 2009, the Center for Online Education is proud to bring a fresh, dedicated team to energize and revitalize the resources, rankings and original research of the site. Learn more at OnlineColleges.net. With the goal of better serving visitors and potential clients, Hendershot, Cannon, Martin & Hisey, P.C. has launched a new website alongside Scorpion Internet Marketing. The law firms new site also celebrates their rebranding under the name of Hendershot, Cannon, Martin & Hisey, P.C.previously Kerr, Hendershot, & Cannon, P.C. The newly-designed website is a manifestation of the firms innovative presence in the legal community and their professional attitude toward their clients cases. It is easy to navigate and is broken up in distinct sections that offer helpful information to visitors. The home page includes information about the firm, its areas of practice, the team of attorneys, the firms values, testimonials, a list of their offices, and a simple contact form. Visitors will also find links to the firms social media profiles, including Facebook (Facebook.com/HCMHLaw), Google+, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube (YouTube.com/HCMHLaw) and Twitter (Twitter.com/HCMHLaw). The website was designed with focus on being user-friendly. In fact, in just a few moments of browsing, the home page provides a description of the law firm, how the firm can help the visitor, and a mode of contact for those interested in taking the next step. Additionally, a full profile of each managing partner can be found by clicking the appropriate link on their image. In order to be inclusive of the managing partners, the firm rebranded under the name Hendershot, Cannon, Martin & Hisey, P.C. This is an exciting moment in the firms history as members of the team take on new challenges and stepped into different roles. Located in Houston, Texas, the firms family law and business attorneys are proud of this development, reflecting on the milestones they passed to reach this point and anticipating future achievements. With more than 200 years of combined experience, the attorneys proudly offer the highest level of service available. The firm is proud to have numerous lifelong clients, many of whom return to the firm because of the relationships built during their initial case. Explore the new website of Hendershot, Cannon, Martin & Hisey, P.C. to see all that the firm has to offer. ### Hendershot, Cannon, Martin & Hisey, P.C. has been in business for more than 25 years and offers knowledgeable and trustworthy guidance to family law and business law clients. Individuals facing high-stakes legal matters are welcome to reach out to the firm at their earliest convenience. Mark Allen Joins EIS as COO EIS has the executional capabilities and experience to help even the largest organizations to harness the power of their data. Earley Information Science Corp. (EIS), a leading consulting firm specializing in information science and artificial intelligence, has named Mark Allen to be its first full-time Chief Operating Officer. The appointment, effective Oct. 3, underscores EISs steady growth in helping companies manage their information to improve operational performance and drive strategic outcomes. With 23 years of experience working with global clients to deploy digital technologies and enhance customer interactions, Mr. Allen brings both a hands-on approach and thought leadership to EIS. Marks arrival signals a new chapter in EISs evolution at a time when information management is itself being transformed by major advances in artificial intelligence, said Seth Earley, Chief Executive Officer of EIS. He has a proven track record of building teams and organizations that secure leadership roles in the marketplace by creating sales and delivery cultures that embrace change. Its an exciting time in the industry, said Mr. Allen, who joined EIS from Accenture, the global professional services firm, where he had been a Managing Director. Most companies have gathered troves of data from their digital investments over the past decade. But few have been able to consistently turn that data into meaningful information that can drive smarter decision-making to affect consumer behavior. EIS, he said, has the executional capabilities and experience to help even the largest organizations to harness the power of their data. Mr. Allens experience spans a multitude of industries and sectors in the United States and the United Kingdom, including healthcare, retail, telecommunications, automotive and financial services. Besides serving at Accenture, Mr. Allen, 45, has held senior positions at Medullan, a digital health consultancy, and SapientNitro, a marketing and consulting company. He holds degrees in computer engineering from Clarkson University and Syracuse University and attended the Edison Engineering Program at Lockheed Martin. About Earley Information Science: EIS helps organizations establish a strong information architecture and management foundation to drive strategic business outcomes and enhance operational performance. EIS has more than 20 years of experience in working with Fortune 1000 organizations globally across many industries. Corporate headquarters are in the Boston metropolitan area with consultants working on projects around the world. For more about Earley Information Science, visit our website at http://www.earley.com or contact us at info@earley.com. Adam is both irreverent and entertaining - and we wouldnt have it any other way. You'll laugh, you'll learn, and you'll come away with a deeper understanding of wine. The Garagiste Wine Festival today announced that renowned winemaker Adam Lazarre will keynote the sixth anniversary Garagiste Wine Festival. His keynote, A Peek Behind the Curtain of Big Wineries, kicks off the Grand Tasting main event on November 12th in Paso Robles. The festival also announced additional festival details, including the participation of Ascension, Onx and Pulchella wineries in the festivals first ever Illegal Blends - Garagiste winemakers break Old World Wine Rules tasting seminar and the presentation of the 2016 Garagiste Scholarship Fund to Cal Poly at the festivals Industry Night and Winemaker Shootout on November 10th. Launched in 2011 in Paso Robles, which was recently named Americas Best Wine Country Town by Sunset Magazine, the Garagiste Festival festival offers four days of events that feature over 60 micro-production winemakers pouring over 200 wines. Tickets are on sale now at http://californiagaragistes.com/buy-tickets/. "It is so fitting that Adam Lazarre is our first Garagiste Festival keynote speaker as a winemaking visionary and renegade, Adam has made both a million cases a year and a hundred, and is one of the creators of superstar wines Rex Goliath and Cycles-Gladiator, said Doug Minnick, Co-founder, The Garagiste Festivals. Adam will offer his unique perspective on winemaking at both ends of the spectrum (as well as tastes of some awesome wines) but dont get too serious, Adam is both irreverent and entertaining - and we wouldnt have it any other way. You'll laugh, you'll learn, and you'll come away with a deeper understanding of wine. In addition to his winery, Lazarre Wines, Lazarre was the mind behind the successful Villa San-Juliette and Fat Monk line of wines in Paso Robles, producing wines for the creative geniuses Ken Warwick and Nigel Lythgoe. In 2012, Adam was named one of IntoWine.coms 100 Most Influential People in the US Wine Industry. Following Lazarres keynote is the festivals signature tasting seminar and panel, Illegal Blends! Garagiste Winemakers Break Old World Wine Rules (...in France, they'd throw you in jail for these wines!), which will help attendees understand how cutting-edge garagiste winemakers, unbounded by the mandated-by-law regional blends in France, Italy and the Old World, are free to experiment using the wide diversity of grape varietals grown in the Central Coast to make unique, exciting, and high-scoring blends. Moderated by Garagiste Festival Co-founder, Stewart McLennan, the seminar focusing on this no-rules approach and features three award-winning garagiste winemakers who specialize in unique blends: Erick Allen of Ascension Cellars, Brian Brown of ONX Wines and Steve Lemley of Pulchella Winery. On Thursday night, Garagiste Festival Industry Night returns to Lefondusac in Tin City, with three seminars culminating in the third annual Great Red Wine Shootout, where winemakers will blind taste and judge each others brown-bagged wines. As part of the evening, The Garagiste Festival, which benefits Cal Poly Wine and Viticulture department, will present the 2016 Garagiste Festival Scholarship Fund to Cal Poly and its 2016 scholarship recipients. This is one of our favorite moments each year: helping support the education of future winemakers is what The Garagiste Festival is all about, said Garagiste Festival Co-founder Stewart McLennan. That, and introducing hundreds of winemakers to thousands of passionate wine consumers all while offering up a great deal of fun, lots of high quality wine and new wine discoveries in a completely no snobs allowed zone. In addition to the seminars, Industry Night, and Saturdays Grand Tasting featuring over 60 winemakers, the festival also brings back its Keep It Rockin After Party on Saturday with Burning James and the Funky Flames; Friday Night Heaven, a Rare and Reserve Wine Tasting with gourmet grilled cheese from Hurricane Kitchen, and a Paso Garagiste Wine Passport day, offering special post-festival access to winemakers and their tasting rooms, vineyards, or wineries, as well as special Paso Robles weekend packages, including hotel discounts. The festival takes place November 10th 13th at the Paso Robles Fairgrounds and other Paso area locations, including Lefondusac in Pasos hot new winery district Tin City and the historic Carlton Hotel in Atascadero. For full schedule details, go to http://californiagaragistes.com/2016-paso-fest/ Among the over 60 winemakers already scheduled to pour are: Alta Colina Vineyards, Amor Fati*, Ampere Wine*, Ascension Cellars, Asuncion Ridge, Barton Family Wines, Bodega de Edgar, Bon Niche Cellars, Bradley Family Wines*, Brian Benson Cellars*, Caldera Cuvee, Caliza Winery, The Central Coast Group Project, Circle B Vineyards*, Cloak & Dagger Wines, Copia Vineyards, Cutruzzola Vineyards, DENO Wines, Diablo Paso, Dilecta Wines, Dubost Ranch, Fableist Wine Co.*, Golden Triangle, Hoi Polloi Wines*, Hoyt Family Vineyards, Hug Cellars, Jacob Toft Wines, JPIII Wines*, Kaleidos Wines, Kendric Vineyards*, Last Light Wine Co.*, Last Summer Wine*, Levo Wines, Lynch Wines, Marin's Vineyard, MCV Wines, Michael Gill Cellars, Mollie Wines*, Murder Ridge*, Mystic Hills Vineyard, Nicora Wines, Nowell-Smith Wines*, On Your Left Wines*, ONX Wines, Paix Sur Terre, Peloton Cellars*, Powell Mountain Cellars, Pulchella Winery, Ranchita Canyon, Rockin' R Winery*, RN Estate, Ryan Cochrane Wines, Serrano Wines*, Seven Angels Cellars, Seven Oxen Vineyard, Shell Creek Vineyards*, Small + Tall Wines*, Stolo Family Vineyard, The Farm Winery, Tlo Wines, Top Winery*, Trojak-Knier Winery, TW Fermentation Co, Two Shepherds, Vinemark Cellars, Vino Vargas and West of Temperance*. *First time pouring at the Paso Festival. To preserve an intimate experience for consumers with one-on-one interaction with winemakers, tickets are very limited for the Garagiste Festivals and always sell out. To purchase tickets go to http://californiagaragistes.com/buy-tickets/. To learn more about The Garagiste Festival, and to get the latest event info, sign-up for The Dirt at http://garagistefestival.com/sign-up/. Or follow us on Twitter (@GaragisteFest) or Facebook. Sponsors include: Adelaide Inn, Bidwell Insurance, Carlton Hotel, ETS Laboratories, ClearWater Tech, Digital Dogma, Farm Credit West, Farm Supply, Glenn Burdette, G3/Diam, KSBY, La Bellasera Hotel and Suites, La Quinta Inn and Suites, Laffort, LML Graphics, mWEBB Communications, Paso Oaks Hotel, PRWCA, Tonnellerie St, Martin, TPRA, Umpqua Bank, Visit Atascadero, WiVi Central Coast, XPressFil For sponsorship info, email info(at)garagistefestival.com. *Garagistes (garage-east) is a term originally used in the Bordeaux region of France to denigrate renegade small-lot wine makers, sometimes working in their "garages" (anything considered not a chateau), who refused to follow the rules, and is now a full-fledged movement responsible for making some of the best wine in the world. The Garagiste Festivals were the first to shine a light on the American garagiste winemaker in 2011. Since then, the festival has helped thousands of consumers discover the remarkable wines of hundreds of true garagistes, who handcraft under 1,500 cases a year and pay close, hands-on attention to every wine they make. About The Garagiste Wine Festivals The Garagiste Wine Festivals (http://www.garagistefestival.com) are the first and only wine festivals dedicated to the undiscovered and under-recognized American artisan garagiste producers who are making some of the best, most exciting, handcrafted small-lot production wines in the world. Founded by fellow garagistes Stewart McLennan and Douglas Minnick, the Garagiste Festivals are committed to discovering the best and most innovative limited-production winemakers and promoting and showcasing them to a broad audience of discerning wine consumers. In addition to its flagship annual festival in Paso Robles, CA, the Garagiste Festival line-up includes Garagiste Festival: Southern Exposure, featuring Santa Ynez Valley garagistes; the Garagiste Festival: Urban Exposure, in Los Angeles; the Garagiste Festial, Northern Exposure, in the Bay Area; garagiste mini-tastings presented from So Cal to Tahoe; winemaker dinners, a newsletter, garagiste profiles and more. The festivals were named one of the Top Nine Incredible Epicurean Vacations in the world by ABC News,* one of the premier wine events of the year, by the LA Times and Best Festival by Sunset Magazines Best of the West. The festivals are produced by Garagiste Events, a non-profit dedicated to furthering the education of future winemakers and those training for employment within the wine industry. Garagiste Festivals Inc. is a 5013c non-profit organization and proceeds from the festivals support the Garagiste Festival Scholarship fund of the California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo Wine and Viticulture Department. Media Contacts: mWEBB Communications for The Garagiste Festivals Melanie Webber, melanie(at)mwebbcom(dot)com, 424-603-4340 Crystal Hartwell, crystal(at)mwebbcom(dot)com, 714-987-1016 Penn Community Bank, Bucks Countys leading independent, mutual financial organization, is pleased to announce that it has hired Nicole M. Boytin as a Commercial & Industrial Relationship Manager. She will manage a loan portfolio with a focus on the Doylestown market area while also initiating and nurturing new relationships with potential clients. Local businesses are the backbone of our communities, and when they succeed, we all succeed, Boytin said. I look forward to helping our business and economic community here in Bucks County to continue to thrive. Boytin joins Penn Community Bank with 15 years of experience in banking. She has managed client relationships as a trusted financial advisor, specializing in working with small businesses. Boytin also has been responsible for business development. She most recently served as Senior Relationship Manager at a national bank with branches throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, helping local businesses meet their financial needs while internally managing her team and supporting the banks branding efforts. Nicole is an excellent addition to the Penn Community Bank team, and her experience and connections to the Bucks County business community will prove invaluable, said Derek P.B. Warden, Chief Lending Officer. In addition to her professional experience, Boytin shares Penn Community Banks dedication to community service. She is actively involved with the Village Improvement Association of Doylestown, where she serves on the finance committee and serves on the board of Doylestown Health. Boytin, who graduated from Bloomsburg University with a bachelors degree in communications, lives in Hilltown Township, in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. About Penn Community Bank: PennCommunityBank.com holds more than $1.8 billion in assets and employs more than 300 people at 22 bank branches and two administrative centers throughout Bucks County, Pennsylvania. As an independent, mutual financial institution, Penn Community Bank is not publicly traded and operates with its long-term mission in mind: to help businesses grow and prosper, to support individuals and families throughout their lifetimes, to strengthen the local economy, and to partner with local organizations to act as a catalyst for positive growth in every market it serves. "As research and technology advances, we're committed to adopting the safest and most progressive treatment options for patients with breast cancer." Novant Health Cancer Care continues to demonstrate its commitment to offering the most advanced treatment options to patients with breast cancer by becoming the first hospital in North Carolina to use the new SAVI SCOUT radar localization system during breast conservation surgeries. An alternative to wire localization, SCOUT is an FDA-cleared device used by surgeons and radiologists to precisely locate and direct the removal of a tumor during a lumpectomy or surgical biopsy procedure. Breast cancer surgery can be physically and emotionally distressing for women, and we strive to find ways to create a better experience and better outcomes for our patients, said Dr. Peter Turk, surgical oncologist and director of the Novant Health multidisciplinary breast cancer program at Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center. SCOUT resolves one of the most difficult aspects of breast conservation surgery by eliminating the need to place a wire inside breast tissue to locate a tumor. SCOUT uses nonradioactive, radar technology to provide real-time surgical guidance during breast surgery. Rather than placing a wire immediately before surgery, a SCOUT reflector is placed in the target tissue up to 30 days before the procedure. During surgery, the SCOUT guide accurately detects the location of the reflector and the tumor. Patients are finding it much less painful and stressful relative to needle localization, said Dr. Turk. It is safer for the staff, with no sharp needles to work around in surgery, radiology or pathology. The ability to precisely locate and direct the removal of a tumor during a lumpectomy or surgical biopsy procedure enables surgeons to increase the probability of complete cancer removal and reduce the likelihood of needing follow-up surgeries a huge advantage for early-stage breast cancer patients. In addition, the ability to strategically plan the incision may result in less tissue being removed during surgery, resulting in better cosmetic outcomes. Were proud to be the first hospital in the state to be utilizing the innovative SCOUT infrared locations system, said Dr. Nicole Abinanti, radiologist and director of womens imaging with Mecklenburg Radiology Associates at Novant Health. As research and technology advances, were committed to adopting the safest and most progressive treatment options for patients with breast cancer. About Novant Health Novant Health is an integrated network of physician clinics, outpatient facilities and hospitals that delivers a seamless and convenient healthcare experience to communities in Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Georgia. Named in 2016 by Beckers Hospital Review as one of the nations 150 best places to work in healthcare, Novant Health consists of more than 1,380 physicians and nearly 24,000 employees and provides care at 530 locations, including 14 medical centers and hundreds of outpatient facilities and physician clinics. Headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the health system serves more than 4 million patients annually and in 2015 provided more than $706 million in community benefit, including charity care and services. Diversity MBA has recognized the organization as one of the 50 best places for women and managers of diverse background to work. Novant Health provides care in Virginia under the joint operating company, Novant Health UVA Health System. For more information, please visit our website at NovantHealth.org. You can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook. ### Today, Pearson released the results of its first Adult Learners Survey, measuring the attitudes of adults who are enrolled in or planning to enroll in a degree or certificate program. The poll found that traditional workplace fears of being outsourced or replaced by younger or immigrant labor are giving way to fears about keeping pace with technology. These new concerns also are driving people to continue their education. Seventy-two percent (72%) of respondents indicated they will need additional education to keep up with advancements in their field, while sixty-nine percent (69%) fear that technological advancements will make their job significantly different within the next five years. Less than half (41%) worry about being replaced by younger workers, less than one third (30%) are concerned their job will fall victim to overseas outsourcing and only one quarter (25%) worry immigrant labor will take their job. As the global economy and student population change, its clear we need new ways for people to access to higher education, said Todd Hitchcock, chief operating officer for Pearson Embanet. Adult students are stretched with their current jobs, along with family and financial commitments. The higher education community needs to look toward online education, certification programs and flexible in-person programs to meet people where they are and in a way that suits their lifestyle or career needs. That flexibility is proving to be a key need for adult students. For those enrolled and working toward a degree, less than a third (27%) are pursuing that degree only using in-person courses. The rest are using online only programs or some combination of online and in-person classes. Across current and potential students, two-thirds of those polled (66%) view online program as being as prestigious as traditional degree programs, signaling confidence in the online programs they need. Among other the key findings in the poll: Beyond concerns about keeping up with a changing workplace, adult students were also concerned with improving their overall standing in life. For those who have already enrolled in an education program, nearly half (45%) said that improving their earning potential was a primary motivation for returning to school. Thirty-eight percent (38%) said they believed furthering their education would lead to a better life and a quarter (25%) wanted to improve their position at their current job. Even with the urgency of re-skilling, the cost of returning to school is a major concern for adults, with eighty percent (80%) saying its a key barrier to completing their education. Equally important is the time commitment; with around eighty percent (79%) of adults saying the availability of classes to fit their schedules and the length of time needed to complete an education are other barriers. Four year, public colleges and universities are the preferred place for more than half of adults enrolled and working toward a degree-followed by private four-year institutions and community colleges. For-profit colleges lag far behind as preferred institutions for adult students. Adult students are more concerned about finding the right course or program subject, rather than picking an institution first. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of adult students say they selected the program or course of study first, rather than the institution. While more than a third of adult learners (36%) said they wanted to advance in their current position, less than fifth of respondents (14%) say they had gotten any advice or information from their employer and half (50%) say lack of approval or support from their employer is a barrier to completing their education. These points all signal that employers are missing an important opportunity to develop their current workforce. The poll was based on 1,634 online interviews conducted by PSB in late July and early August 2016 with US Adults aged 25-64 who were either enrolled in or planning to enroll in a degree or certificate program. Click here to view the full report. ### Pearson is the worlds learning company, with expertise in educational courseware and assessment, and a range of teaching and learning services powered by technology. With the help of our members, event sponsors, and leadership, this years EB-5 Industry Forum provided much needed momentum for Program reauthorization ahead of the December 9th sunset date Invest in the USA (IIUSA), the national not-for-profit industry trade association for the EB-5 Regional Center Program (the Program), held its 6th Annual EB-5 Industry Forum from October 10-11 in Los Angeles, California. IIUSAs EB-5 Industry Forum, the industrys most comprehensive conference for education and business development, hosted approximately 350 registrants, 23 exhibitors, and 38 sponsors at the brand new Meyer and Renee Luskin Conference Center on the campus of University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). With the help of our members, event sponsors, and leadership, this years EB-5 Industry Forum provided much needed momentum for Program reauthorization ahead of the December 9th sunset date, said IIUSA Executive Director Peter D. Joseph. The Program is constantly evolving and this has proven time and time again to be an effective forum to discuss those changes. Attendees from across the globe came to network, learn, and grow in their understanding of the EB-5 Program, particularly at this pivotal moment for this industry." October 10 kicked off the event with a case studies seminar on hot topics such as capital redeployment, project marketing and investor market diversification, and law enforcement and litigation. In the afternoon, IIUSA hosted its first-ever EB-5 Due Diligence Seminar with panels on immigration due diligence, transactional due diligence, investor fund protection and compliance with U.S. Securities Laws. On October 11, IIUSA hosted three general session symposium-style panels on the three most important issues facing the EB-5 industry: legislation and regulatory reform, program integrity and visa capacity. To compliment these panels, breakout sessions focused on the practical implications of enacting proposed legislation for both EB-5 projects and investors. IIUSA was pleased to host several distinguished guest of honor speakers who discussed their unique insights about the EB-5 industry. These included Julia Harrison, Deputy Chief, USCIS Immigrant Investor Program Office (IPO); Charles Oppenheim, Chief of the U.S. State Department Visa Controls Office; and Michele W. Layne, Regional Director U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Los Angeles Regional Office. IIUSA will next host its 10th Annual EB-5 Advocacy Conference April 26-28, 2017 at the Marriott Marquis in Washington, D.C. a hotel completed in 2014 with the help of EB-5 investment. To learn more about this conference and purchase tickets, visit the event page. ### Founded in 2005, IIUSA is the national not-for-profit trade association for the EB-5 Regional Center industry with a mission of advocacy, education, industry development, and research. The organization represents more than 260 Regional Centers and 200 Associate members, collectively representing big and small projects, urban and rural economic development, and industry sectors ranging from real estate and manufacturing to energy and infrastructure. IIUSAs members are engines of economic growth and job creation, accounting for a vast majority of capital flowing through the Program. Learn more at IIUSA.org. Ran Y. Rubinstein, M.D. Ran Y. Rubinstein, MD is excited to announce that he will be among the first surgeons in the United States to offer Juvederm Volbella XC injectable gel. In June, the filler was approved by the Food and Drug Administration as an effective way to increase lip fullness and correct perioral lines. Dr. Rubinsteins patients can expect to see the same exceptional aesthetic results they have come to trust from the extensive line of Juvederm facial fillers. Juvederm Volbella XC is among the new generation of fillers, far surpassing traditional products. Made with VYCROSS technology, this latest filler can provide patients with smooth lips that last for up to 12 months. A proprietary component from Allergan, the maker of Juvederm, VYCROSS blends different molecular weights of hyaluronic acid to ensure long lasting duration of their products. VYCROSS is also made with Lidocaine, ensuring a comfortable application. Juvederm Volbella XC was created with a lower HA concentration than other fillers, customized for the delicate tissues around the mouth. It gives providers the chance to subtly sculpt the lips with a natural looking, supple fullness. The product can safely soften perioral rhytids, or lip lines, taking years off of the appearance. The injectable, approved by the FDA for adults over the age of 21, will be available in early fall/winter from select providers. The cutting-edge technology that Juvederm Volbella XC brings todays patients is unique. Bill Meury, Chief Commercial Officer at Allergan explains, "The FDA approval of JUVEDERM VOLBELLA XC further demonstrates Allergan's commitment to developing advanced products and technologies that allow healthcare providers to better address evolving patient needs. He continues, "This approval brings to market a product unlike anything that is currently available in the United States. Only the best aesthetic professionals will provide Juvederm Volbella XC during its inaugural period. Dr. Rubinsteins years of demonstrated skill as an educator and trainer in dermal filler injections has allowed him to become to be one of the initial providers. Dr. Rubinsteins experience has earned him the Diamond Award for excellence with Allergan products like Juvederm, Voluma, and Botox. Laser and Cosmetic Surgery Specialists was founded more than 15 years ago by Dr. Ran Rubinstein in Newburgh, New York. Dr. Rubinstein completed his medical training at the prestigious Albert Einstein School of Medicine before performing his residency at the University of Medicine and Dentistry in New Jersey, and his facial plastic surgery fellowship at the University of South Florida, Tampa. One of the top facial plastic surgeons in New York, Dr. Rubinstein is double board certified by the American Board of Facial Plastic Surgery and the American Board of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery. He serves as an assistant clinical professor at New York Presbyterian Hospital, where he has been educating future surgeons since 2000. Dr. Rubinstein specializes in rejuvenating procedures for the face and neck, demonstrating skill and experience unmatched by any other surgeon in New York. Contact Dr. Ran Rubinsteins office at 845-863-1772 for more information about the exciting release of Juvederm Volbella XC. To find out if the lip injectable is right for you, schedule a consultation with Dr. Rubinstein in his Newburgh, New York office. A virtual consultation is also available for those patients coming from outside of the Lower Hudson Valley. Capistrano USD is launching a new energy initiative to provide a world-class educational environment that offers students opportunities to learn about energy use and conservation. Schneider Electric, the global specialist in energy management and automation, along with the Capistrano Unified School District (CUSD) today announced the California Energy Commissions approval of $2.5 million in grant funding for energy efficiency improvements through the Proposition 39 Clean Energy Jobs Act (Prop 39). CUSD has selected Schneider Electric to implement efficiency projects that will save the district $227,000 in annual energy costs and secure $100,000 in energy rebates. CUSD faced challenges with aging infrastructure and outdated lighting systems in its high school buildings, which led to mounting utility costs. Through the partnership with Schneider Electric, CUSD will execute an energy savings plan that will achieve more than 1 million kWh in annual energy savings and reduce its utility bills by 10 percent. The project involves installing high efficiency LED lighting in six of the districts high school campuses. The Schneider Electric team helped CUSD navigate the complex system to secure Prop 39 grant funding and develop a plan to implement the funding to the fullest extent. Prop 39, which made $550 million available annually to improve schools energy efficiency and expand clean energy programs, is an important funding source in California. The time was right for the Capistrano USD to embark on an energy savings plan because our energy costs were escalating and the advent of Prop 39 funding gave us the opportunity to pay for critical projects without taking resources from our classrooms, said CUSD Board President, Amy Hanacek. Were delighted to kick off this project and create more energy efficient spaces that will also create compelling learning opportunities for students. The energy efficiency project will offer CUSD students hands-on exposure to energy engineering and sustainable energy management, supporting the districts commitment to STEM and STEAM curriculum. Students will be involved in the auditing, monitoring, and measurement and verification of electricity usage as an educational tool to establish innovation at every level within the school system. CUSD will also use Schneider Electrics Resource Advisor software platform to measure and analyze energy spend, connecting energy data to analytics to guide decisions around energy use. Using Resource Advisor, district staff and students will be able to see energy use in real-time, determining where high energy use occurs and where energy reduction measures can be implemented. Were excited to help the Capistrano USD join many other California schools in leveraging Prop 39 funding to meet their energy savings goals, said Tammy Fulop, Vice President, Schneider Electric. At Schneider Electric, we take great pride in helping schools maximize their Prop 39 allocation to drive significant energy savings that can be reinvested into educational programs. The added component of involving students in learning about energy management is a unique and exciting part of the CUSD project which will help create the next generation of energy leaders. In addition to annual energy savings, the project will also have a substantial environmental impact, removing 261 metric tons of CO2 from the atmosphere, which is equivalent to removing 56 cars from the road or planting 10,442 acres of trees. Over the past 23 years, Schneider Electric has successfully implemented more than 575 ESPC projects across the nation, savings its clients nearly $2 billion. This project delivery method helps publicly funded entities make capital improvements over longer payback periods and offers many long-term benefits such as improved facility efficiency, occupant comfort, financial management and environmental protection. For more information on Schneider Electrics approach to performance contracting, please visit http://www.enable.schneider-electric.com. About Schneider Electric Schneider Electric is the global specialist in energy management and automation. With revenues of ~$30 billion in FY2015, our 160,000+ employees serve customers in over 100 countries, helping them to manage their energy and process in ways that are safe, reliable, efficient and sustainable. From the simplest of switches to complex operational systems, our technology, software and services improve the way our customers manage and automate their operations. Our connected technologies reshape industries, transform cities and enrich lives. At Schneider Electric, we call this Life Is On. Cost-saving strategies, like cost shifting, should be taken with a grain of salt, given the increased burdens they place on employees. -- Les McPhearson, CEO of UBA Among employer-sponsored health insurance plans, consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs) continue to increase in popularity even though they are offering less savings than a year ago, according to the 2016 Health Plan Survey from United Benefit Advisors (UBA), the nations largest independent survey of employer-sponsored benefits. UBA finds 26.4 percent of all U.S. employees are now enrolled in CDHP plans, an increase of 21.7 percent from last year and nearly 70 percent from five years ago. Conversely, CDHP plan costs have risen 2 percent from last year, according to UBA. So while they are still 3.5 percent less costly than the average plan, they offered more savings in 2015 when they were 5.6 percent less than the average plan. CDHP interest among employers isnt surprising given these plans savings over the average plan, says Les McPhearson, CEO of UBA. Employees typically pick up 32 percent of the cost, slightly below the 35 percent average employee contribution rate among all plans, making them an attractive choice for many employees as well. But like all cost benchmarks, plan design plays a major part in understanding value. The UBA survey finds that 25.7 percent of plans offered by employers are CDHPs, a 14.2 percent increase in the last five years. Regionally, however, there are major differences in CDHP popularity. UBAs survey finds CDHPs account for the following percentage of plans offered by employers: NORTHEAST 34.4% NORTH CENTRAL 32.5% SOUTHEAST 26.6% CENTRAL 21.0% WEST 14.2% CDHPs have increased in prevalence in all regions except the West, which saw the number of these plans decrease by 7.2 percent from 2015. Despite this decrease in the number of CDHPs offered in the West, there was an 18.9 percent increase in the number of employees enrolled, indicating the continued attraction to the lower premiums of such plans. While most of the country is experiencing slightly increased premiums, California has enjoyed an 11.4 percent decrease in average single premiums, finds UBA. Employers in this part of the country are actually moving away from CDHPs and toward HMOs, which the survey shows are 9 percent less costly than the average plan. Cost-saving strategies, like cost shifting, should be taken with a grain of salt, given the increased burdens they place on employees, says McPhearson. Given the higher than average out-of-pocket costs of CDHPs, this turbulence in the West (who typically leads the nation in health care trends) indicates that employers and employees are still determining the value and success of these plans, making it a cautious upward trend to watch. UBAs 2016 Health Plan Survey Executive Summary is available now at http://bit.ly/UBAsurvey or it can be downloaded directly at http://bit.ly/2016-executive-summary. For interviews, contact Carina Sammartino, Media Relations, csammartino (at) fishervista.com or 760-331-3547. ABOUT THE 2016 UBA HEALTH PLAN SURVEY The 2016 UBA Health Plan Survey contains the validated responses of 19,557 health plans and 11,524 employers, who cumulatively employ over two and a half million employees and insure more than five million total lives. While other surveys primarily target large employers, the focus of the UBA survey is to report results that are applicable to the small and mid-size companies that represent the overwhelming majority of the nations employers, while also including a mix of large companies in rough proportion to their actual prevalence, nationally. This is an important distinction compared to other national surveys. ABOUT UNITED BENEFIT ADVISORS United Benefit Advisors (UBA) is the nations leading independent employee benefits advisory organization with more than 200 offices throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. UBA empowers more than 2,000 Partners to both maintain their individuality and pool their expertise, insight, and market presence to provide best-in-class services and solutions. Employers, advisors and industry-related organizations interested in obtaining powerful results from the shared wisdom of our Partners should visit http://www.UBAbenefits.com. As the issue of housing continues to be hotly debated, one group in particular has had to compromise in order to find suitable living situations that are also affordable: Americas millennials. According to a new survey of 1000 Americans aged 18-34 from The NHP Foundation, a not-for-profit provider of service-enriched affordable housing, a majority of millennials have had to delay or rethink traditional ideas of the American Dream of home ownership. The surveys highlights include the following: 76% of millennials have made compromises in order to find affordable housing. Seventy-six percent of respondents said that they have made housing compromises in order to find something affordable. Of those who admit compromises, 46% say they live with parents or family; 43% say they have put off saving for the future; 41% say they live with a roommate; while 36% say they have had to move further away from school or work to find something affordable. Thirty percent have said they have put off home ownership entirely. Millennials, Americas largest generation, already saddled with record-breaking student loan debt, no longer think homeownership is in their future, said Richard Burns, CEO of The NHP Foundation. This group mirrors much of society, which is also frustrated by the lack of affordable housing and seeking rental options. Working to solve this problem is NHPFs primary mission. 69% of millennials are cost-burdened. Affordable housing is housing for which occupants pay no more than 30% of their income. Those who spend more than that on rent or a mortgage are considered cost-burdened, and over 69% of millennials put themselves in that category. Of those who describe themselves as cost-burdened, 67% say they are saving for the future purchase of a home; 20% say they are delaying getting married or having children; and 17% are putting off paying for preventative healthcare. Nearly one-third plan to continue renting and/or living at home, 50% prefer renting to ownership Sixteen percent said they plan to continue renting and 12% say they plan to continue living with their parents or family. Of the respondents who said they plan to continue renting, 57% said they will continue to do so because the expenses of home ownership are too great. Despite some renters forced to do so by high costs, some respondents prefer renting to ownership. Fifty-one percent said they will continue to rent because of the location of their rental and 31% said that their mobile professional life (defined as frequent moves necessitated by climbing the career ladder) was more conducive to being a renter. On the other hand, 61% of those who plan to continue living with parents or family said that they will do so because the expenses of home ownership are too great; 53% said that location was the primary reason; while 31% said they would continue to do so because of their mobile professional life. The contrast between Gen Ys housing goals and that of previous generations is stark, said Burns. In order to meet demand for quality rental options, a combination of public, private and government entities need to make sizeable investments in the countrys housing infrastructure. Affordable housing top social issue for millennials. Sixty-three percent of respondents said that affordable housing is very important to them, with 50% saying that beyond their own situation, affordable housing is a very important social issue. Fifty percent of respondents also said that they would be very likely to give to affordable housing causes by volunteering time (60%), attending events (50%), championing the issue on social media (36%) or contributing money (32%). Millennials are already well known for their social consciousness and attention to pet causes, said Burns. To see that the need for affordable housing for all resonates with this group is gratifying. Burns continues, Creating programs that encourage millennial participation is a key objective of NHPF moving forward. About The NHP Foundation Headquartered in New York City with offices in Washington, DC, and Chicago, IL, The NHP Foundation (NHPF) was launched on January 30, 1989, as a publicly supported 501(c)(3) not-for- profit real estate corporation. NHPF is dedicated to preserving and creating sustainable, service-enriched multifamily housing that is both affordable to low and moderate income singles, families and seniors, and beneficial to their communities. NHPF also provides a robust resident services program to nearly 18,000 community residents. Through partnerships with major financial institutions, the public sector, faith-based initiatives, and other not-for-profit organizations, NHPF has 43 properties located in Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Defining a truly open, interoperable standard for EV charging data is essential to growing the market for electric vehicles...OCPP represents a key step in future-proofing EV charging stations. Utilities, electric vehicle (EV) charging station suppliers, integrators, and associations from around the world are coming together to establish an international interoperability standard for EV charging data. The work of the new OASIS OCPP EV Charging Equipment Data Exchange Technical Committee will open global markets by enabling any EV charge point to connect with any central system or third-party network service provider, regardless of vendor. John Gartner, Research Director at Navigant, said, "Defining a truly open, interoperable standard for EV charging data is essential to growing the market for electric vehicles by enabling charging stations to be seamlessly integrated into grid operations. OCPP represents a key step in future-proofing EV charging stations." OCPP was initiated by the Open Charge Alliance (OCA), which is contributing the specification to OASIS for further development in the international community. Lonneke Driessen of OCA and Rish Ghatikar of Greenlots co-chair the OASIS OCPP Technical Committee. "OCPP is already the de-facto open standard for EV charger-to-network communications globally. OCPP 1.6 has been downloaded more than 7,000 times to 77 countries. It is the only open standard in the EV charging equipment management space that is in common use anywhere in the world," said Driessen. "Transitioning the work to OASIS will encourage even more companies to contribute to the standard, increasing industry confidence and adoption even further." Ghatikar added, "OCPP adoption ensures non-proprietary access and lower integration and grid connectivity costs. The standard also promises to level the playing field, making it possible for smaller players to participate in this new technology marketplace and innovations. Most importantly, OCPP provides customers with the freedom to choose their charging network partners. There are similar precedents from the advanced demand response technology deployments." "OCPP will make it easier and more cost-effective for municipalities and countries to improve their energy security and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by deploying an interoperable, grid-integrated EV charging station network," said Laurent Liscia, CEO and Executive Director of OASIS. "We are excited to see OCPP progress at OASIS, and we encourage more utilities and EV companies to get involved in the decisions that will affect them." The international community is well represented in the OASIS OCPP Technical Committee, with organizations in Australia, China, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Israel, Netherlands, and the U.S. currently participating. New members are welcome. Support for OCPP Chargerlink Strategy Director, Sibo Li, said, "OCPP is the most useful standard in the EV industry. It provides a thoughtful solution, and helps us to design platforms and business models for various major Chinese industrial players. In the last several years, while many manufacturers maintained a more traditional mindset, Chargerlink has dominantly educated the Chinese market with open standards and advanced mobile applications, advancing the EV industry. With the qualities of openness and internationalization, we believe OCPP can assist numerous new players to grow as fast as we did." ChargeStorm AB CEO/Founder, Patrik Lindergren, said, "Chargestorm has been working with connected smart charging station for the last 7 years. Joining the Oasis organization will make it possible for us to contribute to the standardization work based on our long experience in the expanding EV market." Ensto Chago CEO, Juha Stenberg, said, "It is a logical decision for Chago to participate in OCPP and relevant cloud back-end standardization. Standardization enables easier system integration and makes EV charging part of energy systems. We support the development and adoption of OCPP as it drives our goals: lower OPEX costs, sustainability and smart services." About OASIS OASIS is a non-profit, international consortium that drives the development, convergence and adoption of open standards for the global information society. OASIS promotes industry consensus and produces worldwide standards for the SmartGrid, security, privacy, cloud computing, IoT, and other areas. OASIS open standards offer the potential to lower cost, stimulate innovation, grow global markets, and protect the right of free choice of technology. OASIS members broadly represent the marketplace of public and private sector technology leaders, users, and influencers. The consortium has more than 5,000 participants representing over 600 organizations and individual members in 65+ countries. http://www.oasis-open.org Craig Shue, assistant professor of computer science A cyber defense software program developed by a WPI professor is one of only eight technologies funded this year by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Craig Shue, assistant professor of computer science, has been awarded a three-year, $350,000 DHS grant to continue his work on a program that distinguishes between user-generated information and stealthy automated malware applications to help prevent attacks on individual computers from spreading through a companys network system. Companies have increasingly complex relationships, including working with more business partners like delivery services, payment collectors, and other outside vendors who can inadvertently open the door to attack, said Shue. Attackers find the weakest point of entry to gain access to information, and often that point is within a companys network ecosystem. More than a simple firewall around a networks perimeter, Shues software allows corporate networks to understand the purpose behind data transmitted into the network. The software can identify human interaction on a computer, such as a user typing a message or opening a website, therefore letting the system know the action is legitimate. Malware or spam programs have no contact with a computers hardware when attempting to send data throughout a network, and thus would be flagged as deceptive. According to Shue, Network operators can be overwhelmed by the volume of data on their networks. They must act like detectives and manually reconstruct events to find threats. A perimeter defense wont see something happening inside a network. Our approach installs software on each computer in a network that asks a centralized coordinator for permission before enabling any action, so were basically putting a perimeter defense around each computer. Shue created the software with prior funding from the National Science Foundation. Under the DHS grant, he and his team will finalize the program and make it available for industry use. In addition to the novel approach to setting up a defense on individual computers, Shue is working to make his software affordable for businesses of any size. In today's highly connected world, attackers are targeting even small businesses, so our protections must be affordable for everyone, says Shue. Shues work was identified by the DHS Transition to Practice Program as a product that can have tremendous potential for commercial applications throughout the nation, enhance the competitiveness of individual small businesses, as well as expand areas of exploration and cooperation for all non-federal partners. In collaboration with DHS, Shue will demonstrate his software at a series of events to identify a test market partner with the goal of commercializing the product within the next two years. About Worcester Polytechnic Institute Founded in 1865 in Worcester, Mass., WPI is one of the nations first engineering and technology universities. Its 14 academic departments offer more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science, engineering, technology, business, the social sciences, and the humanities and arts, leading to bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees. WPI's talented faculty work with students on interdisciplinary research that seeks solutions to important and socially relevant problems in fields as diverse as the life sciences and bioengineering, energy, information security, materials processing, and robotics. Students also have the opportunity to make a difference to communities and organizations around the world through the university's innovative Global Perspective Program. There are more than 45 WPI project centers throughout the Americas, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Europe. Contact: Colleen Bamford Wamback, Public Relations Specialist Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, Massachusetts 508-688-4858, cbwamback(at)wpi(dot)edu One of Retrospect's loans helped this woman in India purchase a buffalo to expand her animal husbandry business I really like that a person attending a trade show in Columbus Ohio can help fulfill a $275 loan to a woman in India so that she can buy a buffalo just by stopping by a trade show booth to say Hi! Retrospect, Inc., makers of Retrospect Backup & Recovery Software announced today the successful launch of an initiative to offer financial support to small businesses in need through Kiva.org. Retrospect launched their initiative at two ASCii Group SMB Success Summits in Toronto, Canada and Columbus, Ohio. Rather than offering promotional items to event attendees, Retrospect made a $5 donation toward micro loans for each attendee who stopped at their tradeshow booth during the Success Summit events. Through Kiva.org, that money was lent in sums of $25 to small business owners around the world to fulfill varying needs. Once loans are repaid, the money will be re-lent to other businesses. Kiva is an international nonprofit, founded in 2005 and based in San Francisco, with a mission to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty. By lending as little as $25 on Kiva, anyone can help a borrower start or grow a business, go to school, access clean energy or realize their potential. Every year we spend thousands of dollars on promotional items to give out at trade showspens, snack foods, etc.things that are engaging, but dont necessarily help anyone. I decided that this money could be put to be better use if we loaned it out through Kiva.org, and as a small business ourselves, we like that we can help to support other small businesses around the world, said Retrospect, Inc.'s Director of Worldwide Marketing, Kristin Goedert. This is a great way for us to make a big impact not only in someones life, but in their community as well, since most of these businesses support a community. Plus I really like that a person attending a trade show in Columbus Ohio can help fulfill a $275 loan to a woman in India so that she can buy a buffalo just by stopping by a trade show booth to say Hi! To date Retrospect has helped to fund 13 loans, including, A loan of $125 to a woman in Negros Oriental, Philippines for the purchase both fresh and dried fish to grow her fish selling business. A loan of $275 to a woman in Gujarat, India for the purchase of a buffalo to expand her animal husbandry business and add buffalo-based dairy products to her offerings. A loan of $2500 to a man in Richmond, CA for the purchase of food service equipment for his catering business and to cover the cost of permits to sell food at local farmers markets. A loan of $1100 to a man in Iganga, Uganda for the purchase of a water filtration system to provide clean drinking water for students at the Tim Tasha School in Bugumba, Iganga. All of Retrospects loans can be viewed on their Kiva donor page at http://www.kiva.org/lender/retrospectinc About Retrospect Retrospect backup and recovery software provides small and midsize businesses with the reliability, ease of use, power, and flexibility needed to protect critical data on mixed-platform networks. Retrospect offers local and offsite backups, precise point-in-time restores, file-level deduplication, iOS remote management of multiple backup servers, end-user-initiated restores, and industry-leading customer support. With more than two decades of field-tested expertise and millions of users worldwide, Retrospect meets the needs of organizations that require the highest level of recoverability. About Retrospect, Inc. Retrospect, Inc. is dedicated to providing reliable backup and recovery tools for professionals and small-to-midsize businesses. For additional information, please visit retrospect.com. Retrospect is a registered trademark of Retrospect, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their registered holders. What started as a simple place for military women to connect with each other for one-to-one professional development is becoming a robust resource for military women to share with each other, discuss ideas in affinity groups, and connect. The AcademyWomen eMentor program today announced the launch of a newly expanded interactive community website created by military women for military women. The MilitaryWomen eMentor website offers a robust online platform that connects women of all ages and stages of their military career. The community is open to current military women and women veterans from all branches, eras of service, components (to include National Guard, Reserve and Active Duty), and ranks (enlisted and officer). The new interface is similar to familiar social media platforms with the added enhancement of personal goal setting and mentorship opportunities for personal and professional development. Military women are able to build a community of support through mentorship as well as create, react to and comment on posts, share information and resources and plan events. There is no cost to join this community. More information can be found by visiting the eMentor website at http://www.ementorprogram.org and clicking on MilitaryWomen eMentor. With only 15% of the US Armed Forces comprised of women worldwide, limited access to other military women is a common scenario. The MilitaryWomen eMentor community eliminates geographic boundaries and bridges this divide by providing a free resource to military women so that they are better equipped with the skills and information critical for personal and professional development. This community of military women joins together to discuss and offer solutions to a variety of development needs including: Developing a rewarding career path Women in the military- unique issues Family and personal options- what to consider Maintaining health and fitness while deployed Finding meaningful employment following separation from military service The MilitaryWomen eMentor community serves current, former and aspiring military women including officers-in-training, junior enlisted, non-commissioned officers, warrant officers, commissioned officers and veterans from all commissioning sources and branches of military service. The community is designed to provide a continuum of support to military women throughout various stages of their lives. An ROTC officer-in-training might be deciding if she wants to pursue an Active Duty career or join the Reserves. A Senior Airman who is starting to explore career progression options might be looking for guidance from a trusted source that has walked a path similar to hers. A junior officer might need to connect with an influential network of career mentors who can help position her for meaningful employment following her military service. A retired veteran entering the latter stages of her life might be searching for resources regarding aging and wellness. eMentor is for the mother facing her first military deployment away from her children and husband. Its for the wife, who is contemplating starting a family. Its for the woman in a same sex partnership seeking additional guidance in navigating work-life balance. Its for the budding entrepreneur who has dreams of launching her own business. eMentor is for all military women, who are certainly strong when they stand alone, but who are even stronger when united together in a community of support. Its for all of us, including women veterans who served proudly, but perhaps feel so far removed from that time in our lives that we hardly raise our hands when asked if we are veterans, says Erica Hartless, a US Army veteran and Director of the eMentor Program. Becoming a member of the MilitaryWomen eMentor community is a quick and simple process. After filling out a profile designed to customize a user experience that meets the unique needs of each participant, a protege is prompted to review and choose from a list of suggested mentors to find her ideal match. Women who have gone through military training can connect with a mentor who shares common history and can provide personal and professional development. For those who are not seeking a formal mentor, the platform has several social features for members to share information and gather resources. The enhanced MilitaryWomen eMentor community features multi-media resources centered on the pillars of: Leadership Professional Development Health & Wellness Coaching & Mentoring The expanded services and website enhancements of the MilitaryWomen eMentor community are supported by Allergan, a leader in Womens healthcare. All services are provided free of cost to participants through the generous support from individual donors and corporate sponsors who understand the value military women and women veterans provide to the nation and their communities. Erica Hartless, Director of eMentor Programs explains, What started as a simple place for military women to connect with each other for one-to-one professional development is becoming a robust resource for military women to share with each other, discuss ideas in affinity groups, and connect. About eMentor eMentor is an award winning online mentoring program that has served 6,000+ military women, veterans, cadets, midshipmen and military spouses in mentoring relationships. eMentor uses mentoring to bridge the divide between geographically dispersed and underserved communities so that proteges are better equipped with the skills and resources critical for personal and professional development. eMentor programs include: MilitaryWomen eMentor, Veteran eMentor, Military Spouse eMentor, CadetMidn Women eMentor, Military Entrepreneur (In Development) and STEMkids eMentor (In Development). Please direct questions to Erica Hartless at hartless@ementorprogram.org. About AcademyWomen AcademyWomen is a 501c3 nonprofit organization founded in 2003 as a leadership and professional development organization. Visit http://www.academywomen.org for more information. AcademyWomen membership and events are open to all who support the organizations mission. About Allergan Allergan is a leader in womens health care that is dedicated to improving the health and wellness of women. The mission of Allergan Womens HealthCare extends beyond its pharmaceutical products to ensure that all women can make informed decisions about their health and have access to high-quality medications. Allergan is committed to investing in programs that support the education and well-being of all women. For more information, visit http://www.allergan.com. HNTB continued its industry leadership and involvement at the Construction Management Association of Americas National Conference held in San Diego this month. The conference is an excellent opportunity for construction management practitioners owners and service providers to work collaboratively and creatively together to advance the CM profession by delivering innovative solutions HNTB Corporation continued its industry leadership and involvement at the Construction Management Association of Americas National Conference held in San Diego this month. More than 1,300 owners, construction managers and other industry professionals attended the conference and exhibition. HNTB continues its active engagement and participation in significant industry events like the CMAA annual conference where our professionals can share their expertise and best practices with many of our clients and colleagues, said Joe Lawton, HNTB national construction management practice leader and CMAA Fellow. The conference is an excellent opportunity for construction management practitioners owners and service providers to work collaboratively and creatively together to advance the CM profession by delivering innovative solutions. In addition to HNTBs gold-level sponsorship, Mary Jane OMeara, HNTB associate vice president, was a featured panelist in the plenary session based on the book, Boots on the Ground, Flats in the Boardroom: Transportation Women Tell Their Stories. Pioneering transportation women shared their anecdotes and career experiences that offered interesting insights about leadership and an inclusive workforce with the attendees. In all, 14 construction management professionals from HNTB attended the event. HNTBs national construction management expertise includes the Caltrans Bridges at Devils Slide in California; Elizabeth River Tunnels in Virginia; the 11th Street Bridge Project in Washington, D.C.; and Seattles Mercer Corridor Improvements in Washington. CMAA is the leading organization advancing professional construction and program management worldwide. Its membership is comprised of more than 14,000 public and private organizations, owners and individual practitioners. CMAA provides professional development, CM certification, advocacy and business opportunities to its members and the industry. About HNTB HNTB Corporation is an employee-owned infrastructure firm serving public and private owners and contractors. With more than a century of service in the United States, HNTB understands the life cycle of infrastructure and addresses clients most complex technical, financial and operational challenges. Professionals nationwide deliver a full range of infrastructure-related services, including award-winning planning, design, program management and construction management. For more information, visit http://www.hntb.com. Dr. Iswanto Sucandy He is an extremely talented surgeon; and I have no doubt he will be an immediate asset and advocate to the patients he will treat throughout the Tampa Bay community Florida Hospital Physician Group (FHPG) is proud to welcome Iswanto Sucandy, MD, to the Southeastern Center for Digestive Disorders & Pancreatic Cancer, Advanced Minimally Invasive & Robotic Surgery. Dr. Sucandy is a highly skilled, board certified, advanced GI Surgeon specializing in the surgical treatment of pancreatic, biliary and liver disorders. Dr. Sucandy completed his residency in General Surgery at Jefferson Health-Abington Hospital in Pennsylvania. He then completed a fellowship in Minimally Invasive Surgery at Yale University School of Medicine. He completed a second surgical fellowship in Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Dr. Sucandy specializes in the treatment of pancreatic, biliary and liver cancers. Hes a member of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and American Board of Surgery (ABS). He is also a member International Hepato-Pancreato Biliary Association and Society of American Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Surgeons. As the newest surgeon to join the Foregut and HPB practice in the Southeastern Center for Digestive Disorders & Pancreatic Cancer, Advanced Minimally Invasive & Robotic Surgery with Dr. Alexander Rosemurgy and Dr. Sharona B. Ross; Dr. Sucandy will work in collaboration with fellow FHPG physicians within the comprehensive and multidisciplinary team at the Digestive Health Institute (DHI). DHI includes Dr. Allen Chudzinski with the Advanced Center for Colorectal Surgery, as well as Dr. Michael Harris, Dr. Arthi Sanjeevi and Dr. Yasser Saloum with the Digestive Care Center, all located at Florida Hospital Tampa. The FHPG team of GI surgeons and hepatologists provide the highest levels of expertise diagnosing and treating primary and metastatic liver cancers, including fibrolamellar-hepatocellular carcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma. We are both honored and excited that Dr. Sucandy has joined the Florida Hospital Physician Group. He is an extremely talented surgeon; and I have no doubt he will be an immediate asset and advocate to the patients he will treat throughout the Tampa Bay community and beyond, shared Chris Jenkins, President of Florida Hospital Physician Group. The Southeastern Center for Digestive Disorders & Pancreatic Cancer, Advanced Minimally Invasive & Robotic Surgery is located at 3000 Medical Park Drive, Suite 500, Tampa, Florida 33613. Dr. Sucandy is currently accepting new patients along with Dr. Ross and Dr. Rosemurgy. For more information, or to schedule an appointment, call (813) 615-7030 or visit http://www.FHPhysicianGroup.com. About Florida Hospital Physician Group Florida Hospital Physician Group (FHPG) is a multi-specialty physician group, dedicated to improving the health and wellness of communities throughout the greater Tampa Bay region with more than 130 providers operating in over 40 locations representing over 25 medical specialties. FHPG offers patients the highest level of compassionate and multidisciplinary care through a broad range of medical and surgical services, as well as direct access to five local Florida Hospitals, a Long Term Acute Care facility, imaging centers, specialty and urgent care centers, rehabilitation facilities and home care agencies located throughout Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties. Part of the Adventist Health System, Florida Hospital is a leading health network comprised of 26 hospitals throughout the state. For more information, visit http://www.FHPhysicianGroup.com. About Florida Hospital Tampa Florida Hospital Tampa is a not-for-profit 513-bed tertiary hospital specializing in cardiovascular medicine, neuroscience, orthopaedics, womens services, pediatrics, oncology, endocrinology, bariatrics, wound healing, sleep medicine and general surgery including minimally invasive and robotic-assisted procedures. Also located at Florida Hospital Tampa is the renowned Florida Hospital Pepin Heart Institute, a recognized leader in cardiovascular disease prevention, diagnosis, treatment and leading-edge research. The recent addition of the Doc1stER shows that Florida Hospital Tampa is committed to providing compassionate and quality healthcare. Part of the Adventist Health System, Florida Hospital is a leading health network comprised of 26 hospitals throughout the state. For more information, visit http://www.FHTampa.org. Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Project Lead The Way have been selected to help dramatically scale STEM applied learning curricula across schools in Massachusetts. This grant is given to combine the strengths of two important undertakings the STEM Education Center at WPI and the Project Lead The Way curriculum. Project Lead The Way (PLTW) is a nonprofit organization that provides a transformative STEM learning experience for K-12 students and professional development for their teachers. The STEM Education Center at WPI works directly with PreK-12 teachers and is home to numerous initiatives that provide STEM solutions for schools. This new endeavor is noteworthy in its intent to provide access throughout the state. The PLTW curriculum has proven impact on student performance, interest, and outcomes. PLTW is unique because it makes the sciences come to life for students and teachers with a curriculum that is project-based, requiring students apply what they learn in hands-on assignments. This initiative will double the number of schools from the more than 100 schools who currently provide PLTW courses to over 220 and expand the number of students reached within the participating schools. As the Massachusetts Affiliate University for PLTW, Worcester Polytechnic Institute provides professional development and tactical and strategic assistance to school systems adopting PLTW programming. This is an exciting time to be in education, said Martha Cyr, who is currently the executive director of the STEM Education Center at WPI and the person kicking off this initiative. PLTWs STEM-based programs help develop skills in problem-solving, critical- and creative-thinking, communication and collaboration through hands-on activities, projects, and problems reflective of real-world scenarios and careers. Weve seen real success in school systems that have implemented Project Lead The Way courses, and at WPI, we are poised to help bring this innovative programming to more schools, more students, and more teachers here in the Commonwealth. The work is multifaceted. One component is to identify a core of PLTW teachers who will become Massachusetts Mentor Teachers, who in turn can provide specific, hands-on training to educators in school districts implementing PLTW programming. Other components include developing, coordinating, and providing Advanced Training opportunities to PLTW teachers. The Jacobson Family Foundation grant, $225,000 for three years, provides bridge funding that will expand the programs and make them self-sustaining. WPI will also be working in close partnership with a new organization, the Mass STEM Hub to help grow the number of schools using PLTW with high-quality implementation. To complement WPIs work expanding the teacher training offerings, the Mass STEM Hub will develop a comprehensive ecosystem of enrichment activities and supports around PLTW programs to maximize the impact for students. For example, Mass STEM Hub will provide grants to schools and districts to support adoption and expansion of PLTW programs, host student events and competitions tied to the PLTW curriculum to expand the programming beyond the four walls of the classroom, and work to recruit industry partners for schools to provide real-world connections to 21st century careers. At WPI, the support for growing the number of students with access to PLTW will begin immediately. Were aiming to double the number of participants in the annual conference this year, and, within five years, reach approximately 20% of the students in the state, said Cyr, noting that last years conference included more than 120 participants. The free daylong conference is a combined informational and professional development event for district administrators, principals, curriculum specialists, teachers, school counselors, and interested business and industry professionals to learn about PLTWs K-12 curricular programs in engineering, computer science, and biomedical science. WPI hosts the annual conference, provides core training, assists with the implementation of the PLTW curricular programs, and provides ongoing support to PLTW schools in Massachusetts and other New England states. This years conference will be held at WPI on Thursday, October 20, and will feature opening remarks by Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito. Click for more information. PLTW engages students at more than 9,000 schools across the U.S. in hands-on activities, projects, and problems reflective of real-world scenarios and careers. PLTWs STEM-based programs help students develop applicable skills in computer science, engineering, and biomedical sciences. Studies show that students who take PLTW courses have a better understanding of math and science concepts and are more likely to pursue STEM-related majors and careers. PLTW courses are aligned with the Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards, and are endorsed by Change the Equation. ### About PLTW Project Lead The Way (PLTW) is a nonprofit organization that provides a transformative learning experience for K-12 students and teachers across the U.S. PLTW empowers students to develop in-demand, transportable knowledge and skills through pathways in computer science, engineering, and biomedical science. PLTWs teacher training and resources support teachers as they engage their students in real-world learning. More than 9,000 elementary, middle, and high schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia offer PLTW programs. For more information on Project Lead The Way, visit pltw.org About the Mass STEM Hub Mass STEM Hub partners with schools to implement high-quality applied learning programs. Its mission is to provide schools access to and support for high-quality, in-school applied learning programming that engages students and prepares them for 21st century careers. Mass STEM Hub seeks to be a trusted resource to schools, higher education, and industry by identifying proven programs, developing supports to help ensure high-quality adoption, and creating complementary offerings (e.g., trainings, events) to supercharge the impact. By working at scale across the state, Mass STEM Hub can develop programs and cultivate partners that would be difficult for single schools working alone to create. About Worcester Polytechnic Institute Founded in 1865 in Worcester, Mass., WPI is one of the nations first engineering and technology universities. Its 14 academic departments offer more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science, engineering, technology, business, the social sciences, and the humanities and arts, leading to bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees. WPI's talented faculty work with students on interdisciplinary research that seeks solutions to important and socially relevant problems in fields as diverse as the life sciences and bioengineering, energy, information security, materials processing, and robotics. Students also have the opportunity to make a difference to communities and organizations around the world through the university's innovative Global Projects Program. There are more than 45 WPI project centers throughout the Americas, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Europe. WPI Contact: Alison Duffy, Associate Director of Public Relations, Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, Massachusetts; 508-831-6656, amduffy(at)wpi(dot)edu. The main event of the weekend is the Gathering of the Jack OLanterns on Saturday evening but there are many events and activities to take part in throughout the weekend This event is very cool and unique, one-of-a-kind in the northern region, says Harkless its just really fun and organic; theres no better way to put it. Local businesses around the Littleton region are working together to bring visitors and locals another pumpkin spectacular on the Ammonoosuc River. Littletons Gathering of the Jack OLanterns started five years ago as an idea of Dave Harkless, owner of Littleton Bike & Fitness, and has grown every year since with a great outlook for continuing the tradition this year. Daves energy and ability to coordinate all of the details of this event over the past few years is what has grown the event to what it is today, says Jessica Bunker, Downtown Director at the Littleton Area Chamber of Commerce. Its vital to have champions like Dave to make these events happen and make downtown Littleton a place for visitors and locals alike to enjoy. Last years event saw over 400 donated pumpkins set upon the rocks of the Ammonoosuc River and covered bridge, with hopes of reaching over 500 this year! Each year, local businesses in addition to the local schools organize carving parties where those wishing to participate can bring a pumpkin, or choose from donated pumpkins, to carve and drop off at Littleton Bike & Fitness to be displayed. This years carving party involvement has grown to include some additional local businesses, such as Secure Network Services and Tender Corp., who hope to contribute toward the events pumpkin goal. The main event of the weekend is the Gathering of the Jack OLanterns on Saturday evening but there are many events and activities to take part in throughout the weekend. This year, the event is expanding into some of the surrounding towns, like Bethlehem, to kick off the weekend. Boofest, held Friday at 6 pm, will take place at the Colonial Theater in Bethlehem and will feature Circus Minimus, a one-man circus-in-a-suitcase. Saturdays events kick off with the Annual Littleton Police Department Halloween Festival held at the Littleton High School starting at 10 am. One of the cant-miss events of the day is the zombie walk, taking place at 6 pm along the riverwalk area. Its great to see all of the young kids and adults that want to participate and become zombies for the evening! says Harkless, At Littleton Bike & Fitness we have the shop open and offer to do participants makeup and then we get to watch them infiltrate the entire riverwalk area. Its a great addition to the event. Another great addition to this years event, and expansion of local business participation, is the inclusion of local volunteers and food vendors. Some of the local vendors will include the Littleton Senior Center, Peace Cafe, Profile High School Arts Alliance, Farm to Fire and Tracy Girl Food Truck. Some of the other local eateries that will be open during the weekend include Schilling Beer Company, Millers Cafe & Bakery, Bailiwicks Fine Restaurant, Grille One Eleven, Beal House Inn, and Little Grill all located in downtown Littleton. All of these fun-filled activities lead up to the main spectacle, Saturday, October 29th at 6 pm, the Gathering of the Jack OLanterns; hosted by the Littleton Chamber of Commerce. This event is very cool and unique, one-of-a-kind in the northern region, says Harkless its just really fun and organic; theres no better way to put it. Littleton is known for being the cultural hub of the region and having strong community involvement. The Gathering of the Jack OLanterns is yet another event that brings the community together to showcase its cohesiveness. Bunker explains Its this community spirit that really is giving Littleton its identity. Were lucky to have such wonderful community members! For a full schedule of events and more information, please visit http://www.littletonareachambernh.com/jackolanterns or call Littleton Bike & Fitness at 603-444-3437 Our customers happiness is how we truly gauge our success, but awards and honors like this one do remind us of the positive impact we are having. Renters Warehouse, one of the largest and most awarded residential property management companies in the U.S., is adding yet another honor to its list of awards. Twin Cities Business, Minnesotas leading provider of business news, insight, and analysis, has named Renters Warehouse one of its top 10 Small Business Success Stories for 2016. The Small Business Success Stories program is in its 14th year this year. More than 80 nominations were received this year, with 10 honorees and 10 finalists chosen. The awards will be handed out Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2017, at the Hilton Minneapolis in Minneapolis, MN. I continue to be so proud of our team at Renters Warehouse, says Kevin Ortner, CEO. We work incredibly hard to professionally serve thousands of homeowners across the country with five-star customer service. We pride ourselves on innovative industry leadership and knowledgeable Rent Estate Advisors who can help homeowners and investors smartly and profitably navigate the ins and outs of residential property management. I couldnt ask for a better team who are truly dedicated to doing whats best for our clients. Our customers happiness is how we truly gauge our success, but awards and honors like this one do remind us of the positive impact we are having. Renters Warehouse, the leaders in Rent Estate, manages more than 17,000 homes for over 12,000 investors across the country, and about $3 billion worth of residential real estate. The company is also investing in its new Portfolio Services Division that uniquely serves larger, mid- to institutional-level real estate investors with both centralized services and local market expertise and staff. The company continues to be recognized for its achievements in business and in the workplace atmosphere it has established. Thus far in 2016, Renters Warehouse won five Stevie Awards, including Executive of the Year (Silver), Management Team of the Year (Silver) and Executive of the Year (Stevie Women's Awards). The company was also named to the Inc. 5000 for an incredible 7th year in a row. The Minnesota Star Tribune recently named the company to its Top Workplaces National Standard list too. Renters Warehouse exists to help homeowners and investors create wealth and financial freedom through Rent Estate. To learn more about Renters Warehouse or to find out how much your home will rent for, visit http://www.renterswarehouse.com today! -30- About Renters Warehouse Renters Warehouse is one of the fastest-growing and highest-reviewed residential property management companies in America, and the largest in Minnesota. Backed by growth equity investor and majority stakeholder Northern Pacific Group, and under the leadership of President and CEO Kevin Ortner, Renters Warehouse now manages more than $3 billion in residential real estate, servicing 12,000+ investors across 17,000+ residential homes in 32 markets and 18 states. NPG Managing Partner Scott Honour, who in 1999 was a founder of YapStone, a leading online rental property payment service provider, serves as Chairman. Renters Warehouse expertly serves everyday single-property homeowners as well as real estate investors. In 2015, the company officially trademarked the term Rent Estate to redefine the entire SFR (Single Family Rental) industry as more traditional real estate gives way to this new lucrative asset. Through their dedicated Portfolio Services Division led by Chief Investment Officer Anthony Cazazian, the company also brings professional, scalable and efficient single property management solutions to investment portfolios with both centralized services and local market expertise and staff. Not only has Renters Warehouse received the prestigious honor of being included on the Inc. 500 | 5000 list of fastest-growing privately held companies in America seven consecutive years in a row, it was also named one of the Best Places to Work in Minnesota (where they are headquartered) by the Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2016. The company was also honored as a best place to work in Arizona (a centralized corporate services center) by the Phoenix Business Journal in 2013 and 2014, and achieved a spot on the prestigious 2016 Top Companies to Work for in AZ list. Nationwide, Renters Warehouse has been honored as one of America's "Best Places to Work" in 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2016 by Outside Magazine. Recognized as pioneers in real estate, business management and innovation, Renters Warehouse has been awarded 22 Business Stevie Awards both internationally and stateside. "We are honored to be selected for this years Streaming Media 100 list," Chris Noe, Executive Chairman, Zixi. Zixi today announced its inclusion on the 2016 Streaming Media 100 list. The annual list, selected by Streaming Medias panel of industry veterans and media experts, recognizes the most innovative and influential players in the online video industry. We are honored to be selected for this years Streaming Media 100 list, said Chris Noe, Executive Chairman, Zixi. Over the past few years, the worlds leading media organizations, service providers, and technology companies have selected Zixi for a wide range of live video use cases and have standardized on our software as a core component of their next generation video infrastructures. Our inclusion on the Streaming Media 100 acknowledges the incredible momentum Zixi is experiencing and underscores our commitment to innovation in the broadcast technology industry. Zixis software enables media organizations to deliver live, broadcast-quality video over standard unmanaged Internet connections with perfect quality, total reliability, and the highest-security protection. The Zixi Platform, which can be deployed in public or private cloud evironments and leverages over 30 integrated ecosystem partners, solves the industrys biggest infrastructure challenges by providing a simple, scalable, secure, and feature rich solution for live linear, live event, and cloud-based video applications. While the big streaming services and tentpole events get all the attention, technology creators and partners often toil behind the scenes to make it all happen, said Eric Schumacher-Rasmussen, editor of Streaming Media. The Streaming Media 100 is our annual attempt to shine the spotlight on the companies that enable the creation and delivery of all of that amazing content. These companies are the ones that our editors and contributors have determined to be the cream of the cropthe most important, most innovative, and most influential companies providing streaming and OTT technologies, products, and services. Congratulations to all 100 of them. About Zixi Zixi is revolutionizing video transmission in the same way the cloud transformed computing. Zixis industry-leading software platform transforms the Internet into a broadcast-quality, global video delivery network so the worlds leading media organizations, service providers, and technology companies can enrich user experiences, create new services, reduce operating costs, and realize possibilities not yet imagined. Zixi is a privately held company led by media industry veterans and IP video experts, with company headquarters in Boston, MA. Assistant Area Manager Ken Rice speaks at the Centennial celebration today at Elephant Butte Dam. Through cycles of wet seasons and severe drought, the dam has provided consistent and dependable water to support the entire region. The Bureau of Reclamation today celebrated 100 years since the completion of Elephant Butte Dam in southern New Mexico. Officials from Reclamation, the International Boundary and Water Commission, State of New Mexico, New Mexicos Congressional Delegation, Elephant Butte Irrigation District and El Paso County Water Improvement District No. 1 marked the event during a ceremony near the base of the dam. A highlight of the event was when officials unveiled a new plaque commemorating Elephant Buttes 100 years of operation. Elephant Butte Dam is meeting its mission superbly, said Reclamation Deputy Commissioner for Operations David Palumbo, who also spoke at the event. Through cycles of wet seasons and severe drought, the dam has provided consistent and dependable water to support the entire region. Congress authorized the dams construction in 1905 to provide irrigation water to Southern New Mexico and West Texas as part of the Rio Grande Project. Reclamation completed construction in 1916. Elephant Butte is the largest dam in New Mexico, standing 301 feet tall and stretching 1,674 feet from end to end. At full capacity, it stores more than two million acre feet of water in Elephant Butte Reservoir, which is one of New Mexicos premier recreation destinations. Its hydroelectric power plant is capable of generating 27,945 kilowatts of electricity during irrigation season water releases. When it was dedicated on October 19, 1916, Elephant Butte was the largest irrigation dam in the United States and the second largest in the world. Its promise of water storage and clean energy enabled settlement and robust economic development throughout southern New Mexico and West Texas. It also helped resolve an international dispute and plays an important role in meeting international treaty obligations to Mexico. Current water levels in Elephant Butte Reservoir provide a stark reminder of the impacts of drought on the region. However, the dam continues to meet its mission even during the past decade of drought. Throughout the past 100 years, Elephant Butte Dam has provided adequate storage and regular irrigation deliveries to sustain thousands of acres of farmland. Mr. Palumbo noted the dams ongoing safe operation and continued promise for the area, Im confident Elephant Butte Dam will continue providing a stable water supply for the Rincoln, Mesilla and El Paso Valleys well into the future. Sherry Roper, a housekeeper at John Evans Supportive Living, received the 2017 Outstanding Caregiver Award during an awards presentation in Springfield. The Outstanding Caregiver Award is given to a direct care worker over the age of 55 who has provided outstanding caregiving in Illinois senior housing. The award is presented by the Illinois Department on Aging and the Affordable Assisted Living Coalition. Each year, judges review nominations for remarkable caregivers from across the state and determining the winners is a difficult task, said Jean Bohnhoff, director of the states aging department. These individuals truly deserve honor and recognition for the work they do, Bohnhoff said. Their exceptional work not only demonstrates their dedication, devotion, and commitment to helping others, but has also touched and continues to touch, the lives of countless residents across the state. Melanie Daniels, the administrator at the affordable assisted living community Gardant manages in Pekin, Illinois, wrote this nomination letter for Sherry: I am honored to nominate Sherry for the Outstanding Caregiver Award. When deciding which employee to nominate, Sherrys name did not readily come to mind. This is not because Sherry does not do an outstanding job, but because it is easy to forget she is over the age of 55 considerably older, actually, at the age of 66. She has the enthusiasm and spirit of someone half her age. "Although she now only works one day a week, it is a day that everyone looks forward to. Her smile and cheerful nature spreads through the community like sunshine. She arrives like a breath of fresh air. After her years working as a housekeeper, she has learned the little extras that each resident likes, whether it is extra carpet shampooing for Jackie or extra polishing and dusting of Bonnies angel collection. She knows that it is the little things that make a big difference. "Sherry is always gentle, patient and caring with everyone she encounters and is always happy to go above and beyond to make others happy. She makes crafts in her free time and is always happy to bring them in on her days off for the residents to share and enjoy. She has the same caring nature with our staff. She is an example of her faith, not by words or preaching, but by her patient listening skills and concern for others. "I am privileged to know and work with Sherry, even if it is only one day a week. It is one day that makes a big impact on everyone! The John Evans affordable assisted living community combines residential apartment-home living with the availability of personal assistance, help with medications, and a variety of convenience and support services. "We provide older adults with a wonderful alternative to the nursing home or struggling alone at home," Daniels said. Residents live in private apartments that they furnish and decorate to their taste. Each of the studio and one-bedroom apartments includes a kitchenette, spacious bathroom with shower and grab bars, individually-controlled heating and air conditioning, and an emergency alert system. Certified nursing assistants are on-duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Meals, housekeeping and laundry are among the included services. "Residents also benefit from all of the opportunities that are available to socialize with friends and neighbors and to participate in activities and special programs," says Daniels. The community is certified to operate through the Illinois Supportive Living program. "Our focus is on providing John Evans residents with the love, compassion and dignity they deserve and the help and assistance they need," says Rod Burkett, President of CEO of Gardant Management Solutions, the largest provider of assisted living in Illinois. "Our emphasis is on helping each resident achieve and maintain as much independence as possible for as long as possible." Other communities managed by Gardant include the Grand Prairie affordable assisted living community in Macomb and the Heritage Woods affordable assisted living communities in DeKalb, Dwight, Freeport, Moline, Ottawa and Sterling, Illinois. GateWay at River City, an assisted living community that will serve adults ages 22 to 64 with physical disabilities, will open in Peoria next month. For more information about Gardant Management Solutions, the assisted living, senior living and memory care communities Gardant operates, and the company's management, development and consulting services, visit http://www.gardant.com or call 1-877-882-1495 toll-free. N. James Turner, a consumer rights and workers rights attorney, will be speaking about the Fundamentals of Student Loan Law on October 19 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress, One Grand Cypress Blvd., Orlando, FL. The event will also be broadcast nationally. More than one trillion dollars is owed by student borrowers and nearly seven million borrowers are in default, said Turner, who will be speaking for LawProCLE, which provides quality education to legal professionals. This course, which offers CLE credits, will explain the differences in federal and private student loans, provide winning strategies for defending private student loan lawsuits, discuss the standards for obtaining bankruptcy discharge of student loans, and cover other crucial information necessary to represent student loan borrowers. Turner is a founding member of the Florida Chapter of the National Employment Lawyers Association and a member of the Labor & Employment Law Section of the Florida Bar. Defense of student loan lawsuits has become a major part of Turners practice, and in 2015 through 2016, he had over $300,000 in private student loan lawsuits dismissed. To register for Fundamentals of Student Loan Law, please visit https://lawprocle.com/products/fundamentals-of-student-loan-law-cle?variant=19503324294. About N. James Turner Attorney N. James Turner has extensive legal experience in both state and federal court at both the the trial and appellate levels. He provides professional services for wage and hour disputes, overtime and minimum wage matters, and other legal services for residents in Orlando, Kissimmee, and throughout the Central Florida area. For more information, please call (888) 877-5103, or visit http://www.ConsumerRightsOrlando.com. The law office is located at 37 N. Orange Avenue, Suite 500, Orlando, FL 32801. About the NALA The NALA offers small and medium-sized businesses effective ways to reach customers through new media. As a single-agency source, the NALA helps businesses flourish in their local community. The NALAs mission is to promote a business relevant and newsworthy events and achievements, both online and through traditional media. For media inquiries, please call 805.650.6121, ext. 361. You're Invited on Saturday, November 5th! "Southport Police Department is thrilled to be a recent new partner of Beacon of Hope Crisis Center. We are looking forward to being a part of Handbags for Hope and collaboratively making a difference!" -Chief Vaughn Past News Releases RSS A unique charity auction that combines the love of elegant purses, accessories and gifts with a desire to help victims of domestic violence will mark its 9th annual event at the Ritz Charles in Carmel on Saturday, November 5, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event will feature celebrity appearances and the donation of some celebrity purses to be auctioned, including some beautiful offerings from Laura George and her daughter, Lauren George, and Alpha Blackburn. WTHRs Chuck Lofton will return as Master of Ceremonies for the popular event. Dozens of donated purses, jewelry, local gift baskets and unique packages will be among the items to be sold in a silent auction. A live auction will also take place with special guests modeling the purses to be sold to the highest bidder. We are so pleased to once again join together in a celebration of elegance, where mothers and daughters, wives and sisters, and even a few fathers and sons come to bid on beautiful purses and many other items just in time for the upcoming holiday season of gifts, said Sandra Ziebold, CEO of Beacon of Hope. But the true gift is not the items they take home, but the impacts they make in the lives of so many who have become victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in our community. Last years event raised over $25,000 for several victims advocacy services offered by the Beacon of Hope Crisis Center. An average of more than 1,000 victims annually receive some form of assistance through Beacon of Hope programs. Tickets for this event are $50 and include lunch. Tickets can be purchased through BeaconOfHopeIndy.Org and the link get me registered. Beacon of Hope Crisis Center provides victim advocacy services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. Its victim advocacy team provides victims with emotional support and help finding resources. Advocates help victims with tasks such as filling out paperwork and sometimes go to court with victims. The Crisis Center works with other collaborative partners and organizations such as social service agencies and law enforcement for criminal justice assistance. It also has a crisis call hotline team that fields incoming crisis calls. ABOUT BEACON OF HOPE Focused on the mission of empowering victims of domestic violence to become self-sufficient by providing safety, support and education. Beacon of Hopes vision is a world in which everyone can live free from the grip of domestic violence. Beacon of Hope provides comprehensive services to domestic violence victims that include crisis intervention, court accompaniment, advocacy and outreach, assistance filing protective orders, basic needs provision, case management, counseling services, emergency hotel assistance, foster pet care assistance, emergency veterinary assistance, employment assistance, shelter and housing referrals, teen dating abuse outreach and ongoing follow-up care. Beacon of Hope, through its Victim Advocacy Service Programs offers victims of domestic violence assistance in overcoming barriers that hold them in abusive situations. Benefiting our Indianapolis community in so many positive life changing ways. Beacon of Hope is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization located in Indianapolis, Indiana. Were looking forward to the Light the Night Walk, and we hope everyone in our community will come out and show their support by helping us raise awareness and fight cancer The Zabbia Insurance Agency, a Long Island firm offering insurance and financial planning services to families and business owners throughout the Five Boroughs, is launching a charity event to raise cancer awareness and promote the Leukemia & Lymphoma Societys Light the Night Walk. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Societys Light the Night Walk is an event dedicated to raising funds used for research into cures and treatments for many types of blood cancer. The Zabbia Agency charity event will work to improve the turnout for the Light the Night Walk, as well as raising awareness and funds in memory of Victoria Tratche, a 15-year-old girl who lost her life 3 months after receiving a lymphoblastic lymphoma diagnosis. Were looking forward to the Light the Night Walk, and we hope everyone in our community will come out and show their support by helping us raise awareness and fight cancer, says Robert Zabbia, manager and owner of Zabbia Insurance Agency. Alongside his professional team, Zabbia is working to promote the Light the Night Walk and galvanize support for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society charity event by connecting with families throughout the Five Boroughs over social media and email. Zabbia Insurance is also planning a full length article discussing the Light the Night charity event, scheduled for release in an upcoming edition of the Zabbia Insurance Agency webzine Our Hometown: http://www.zabbiaagency.com/Our-Hometown-Magazine_39. Several other notable Long Island area charitable causes have received direct support from Zabbia Insurance since the beginning of the year. As members in good standing with Agents of Change, a national movement to support charitable involvement, the Zabbia team is committed to promoting local charities on a regular basis. Anyone interested in being part of the charity drive to promote the Leukemia & Lymphoma Societys Light the Night Walk is personally invited by the Zabbia team to visit this page and make an effort to further the event: http://www.zabbiaagency.com/Shining-Bright-for-Team-Victoria--Leukemia-Patients-_16_community_cause. Details regarding the Zabbia teams support of New York area charitable organizations in the past can be found on the companys Community Causes page: http://www.zabbiaagency.com/community-cause. About Zabbia Insurance Agency As a Personal Finance Representative in Nassau County for nearly 20 years, agency owner Robert Zabbia knows many local families. His knowledge and understanding of the people in his community ensures that clients of Zabbia Insurance Agency are provided with an outstanding level of service. Robert and his team look forward to helping families protect the things that are most important - family, home, car and more. Zabbia Insurance also offers clients a preparation strategy for achieving their financial goals. To contact an expert at Zabbia Insurance Agency, visit http://www.zabbiaagency.com/ or call (516) 799-6900. The new HD Marketing logo "Simply having a website is not enough to achieve success, clients need to promote this effectively through channels including organic search and social media. These are areas which, following this rebrand, HD Marketing are fully set up to accommodate." Heitz Digital LLC, a Maryland-based website design and marketing agency today announces a rebrand to reflect an expanding range of services. The firm, which is headquartered in Rising Sun Maryland, will now be known as HD Marketing, in a move which is also hoped to lead to greater brand recognition. Charles Heitz, President of the firm explained the reasons behind the new brand name, saying: "I felt that rebranding from Heitz Digital to HD Marketing better explained our company's offering." He continued: "Our newly expanded services are the direct result of responses and request from our clients for a wide range of services, including website design, social media marketing and SEO/search promotion." This new name is the latest evolution of a business which has constantly adapted to survive in the rapidly changing online landscape. Originally founded as an SEO company in the early 2000s, HD Marketing rebranded as Heitz Digital in 2011 and began to offer websites and other services in addition to SEO. Rebranding is a common recent phenomenon within the marketing industry, with many agencies dropping monikers such as 'SEO' and 'digital' as demand grows for more holistic marketing services which support all parts of the online experience. According to HD Marketing's website: Around 46% of US companies still do not have a website. 88% of businesses have a presence on some form of social media, however, most are not using them consistently to engage with existing and prospective customers. Leads generated by SEO (Search Engine Optimization) are 61% less expensive than more traditional forms of marketing, yet it is largely overlooked by clients. These are areas which HD Marketing is aiming to address. As Charles Heitz explains: "Simply having a website is not enough to achieve success, clients need to promote this effectively through channels including organic search and social media. These are areas which, following this rebrand, HD Marketing are fully set up to accommodate." Like many startups, Heitz was started from a kitchen table and has grown from these humble roots to become one of the most respected agencies in its field. Located in the middle of Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware, it is ideally located to serve clients in the Tri-State area, taking care a broad range of customers, including Charm City Natural Health, Hardbat Crossfit and Doerfer Insurance Services. The firm offers a range of self-service and managed website products, starting from just $29.99/month and has recently implemented a new help desk to help it serve clients more effectively and efficiently. You can find out more about HD Marketing by visiting their new website at: http://www.hdmarketingonline.com Notes to editors: HD Marketing is available for comment by emailing: help@hdmarketingonline.com or calling 888-846-7426 Right around the same time Mark Zuckerberg was launching his new idea for social interaction on a global scale, these parents were working on tools for communication on a much smaller scale. Companies often refer to their products as a family of brands, but Minnesota-based Beyond Adaptive and their new parent company, Connecticut-based LoganTech, take the corporate definition of family to another level. Both companies were founded by people who were searching for solutions to their own literal family members struggles in living with disabilities. Now, as these two companies come under one roof, its that same spirit of ingenuity and love for family that will propel them both forward. Right around the same time Mark Zuckerberg was launching his new idea for social interaction on a global scale, Glen Dobbs, founder of LoganTech, was hunched over a sketchpad on his kitchen table working on a tool for communication and socialization on a much smaller scale. Glens son Logan is autistic and nonverbal, meaning he cant communicate using his own voice. Instead he was using a system of symbols known as PECS. Many individuals move quite naturally from PECS into more complex, computerized augmentative and alternative communication devices, but this transition wasnt coming naturally for Logan, and his father was determined to find a solution a stepping stone from PECS into more advanced AAC technologies. The solution was released a year later and was aptly named the Logan ProxTalker. Several states away, that very same year, Julie and Cedar Vandergon were sitting at their kitchen table in Saint Paul, Minnesota brainstorming solutions for their daughter Brea, who has cerebral palsy and was facing some communication hurdles of her own. They were exploring iPad-based communication apps but Brea was unable to accurately control her hands and couldnt use the iPad without someone holding it for her. Since the iPad was still very new at the time, there werent any out-of-the-box solutions that would give Brea the independence she needed. Cedar was able to find a few products that came close but still didnt completely meet her needs, so he set to work piecing the best parts of each into a custom-made mounting arm, cradle and keyguard for Breas iPad. It wasnt long until Breas teachers and therapists took note of it and wanted the same for others in their care with similar needs. Its really no surprise that these two companies, founded by parents who are obviously kindred spirits, have found their way to one another. Beyond Adaptive is the second acquisition of this type for LoganTech. The 6dot line of Braille Products, conceived by a group of MIT students, joined the family in 2012. In speaking of this latest acquisition, Glen Dobbs said The Beyond Adaptive lines of mounting arms, device cradles and custom touchscreen keyguards are a really natural extension of our existing catalogue of products. Our target markets are very similar and the end-users of these products often use a combination of adaptive products that includes items from both sides of this coin. Cedar Vandergon added, Starting a company is very much like raising a child. You put your whole heart and soul into creating a path for it to grow and succeed. We couldnt be happier about this next step for our business and these products which have meant so much to our family. To learn more about LoganTech and their entire collection of assistive and adaptive technology products, visit: http://www.LoganTech.com. You can request a free, on-site product demonstration by visiting http://www.logantech.com/pages/demo or by calling LoganTechs assistive technology specialists at (866) 962-0966. Alpha Flight Guru The Middle East including major airport cities such as Dubai, Tel Aviv, and Abu Dhabi is a hub for both business and pleasure travel. Alpha Flight Guru, the leader in business class and first class airfare deals to cities in the Middle East such as Dubai, Tel Aviv, and Abu Dhabi, is proud to announce the latest upgrade to its region-specific informational page. The company has upgraded its page with tips and information on Middle Eastern airports, hotels, restaurants, and key sites to see at http://alphaflightguru.com/flight-deals/middle-east. The main focus, of course, is on discounted airfare, especially first and business class deals. "The Middle East including major airport cities such as Dubai, Tel Aviv, and Abu Dhabi is a hub for both business and pleasure travel," explained Alex Scoble, Chief Marketing Officer of Alpha Flight Guru. "Our upgraded informational pages helps the interested traveler begin the process of flying business class or first class at discount airfare prices as well as learn key facts and tips about the region." A Brief but Informative Travel Guide to the Middle East Persons visiting the newly updated page, should scroll down and can find more than just cheap international business class or first class ticket information. Rather, they can find a brief travel guide to the Middle East, with facts, languages, top attractions, best times to visit and more. Obviously, with Alpha Flight Guru being in the transportation sector, the information on airports and travel safety tips reflects the company's inside knowledge. For example, the newly upgraded page identifies famous restaurants for fine dining such as La Petite Maison, Dubai, where dining "doesnt get any better than this award-winning French-flavored superstar. Reservations are a must as this place is super popular." Similarly, the information page identifies the best hotels in the Middle East such as The Norman in Tel Aviv, Israel, where "This contemporary boutique hotel is certainly sophisticated in style and service. The location is right in the heart of it all, and the rooms are a posh oasis in an urban setting." Working with a Guru for Discounted Business Class or First Class International Air Fares Even better, those seeking discounted air fares can reach out to 'gurus' at Alpha Flight Guru who will combine the best of a sophisticated computer system with personal knowledge to find the best routes into the region, at the lowest prices for business class or first class air tickets to the Middle East. Interested persons can simply visit http://alphaflightguru.com/ and follow the instructions to begin a request for assistance. About Alpha Flight Guru Alpha Flight Guru brings personalized guru service to the search for cheap business class tickets and cheap first class tickets to destinations from Europe to Asia to Australia and beyond. The company's expert gurus find unpublished discount fares, both business class and first class tickets, to cities like London or Paris, New York or Los Angeles, Melbourne or Sydney. Customers simply use the company's website to enter a destination, and then let a guru find discounted, cheap, unpublished business class or first class airfares to London, Paris, Sydney and beyond. Web. http://alphaflightguru.com Tel. 800-359-5175 Many business professionals have to travel for business or to attend meetings From October 13th-17th, Skyline Marketing attended an exclusive R&R event for business leaders in the sales and marketing industry. The event saw Skyline Marketing fly out to Tenerife where they were welcomed to the 5* Gran Melia Palacio De Isora resort. The luxury resort has been voted as the best place to stay in Spain by several leading travel agencies for the past few years and offers a range of fun activities as well as a fine dining experience and luxury bar. About Skyline Marketing: http://www.skylinemarketingltd.co.uk/about-us/ Skyline Marketing were able to take part in a number of fun activities including a Jet Ski safari and a whale and dolphin watching catamaran over the R&R weekend. Additionally, the firm was able to take part in an exciting motivational meeting which saw an exciting guest speaker from within the industry share knowledge and advice to the attendees. Skyline Marketing were joined on the R&R trip by several other industry professionals which allowed them to network and gain valuable industry insight. The firm shared how the trip was not only a valuable opportunity to relax but also to develop new skills and form strong business relationships with like-minded industry professionals. Skyline Marketing reveals how they have always been focused on developing their contractors to have an entrepreneurial mindset and shared how this trip was the perfect way to show some of their contractors what they can achieve if they set their mind to it. The R&R weekend allowed the firm to connect with leading industry professionals in order to encourage this entrepreneurial attitude. The firm has returned from the exclusive R&R event having developed new marketing techniques as well as new attitudes towards planning and growth. Skyline Marketing has revealed their plans to implement these tactics in order to raise the bar, for their upcoming expansion to Manchester. Skyline Marketing offers exclusive personalised marketing services which help to drive long-lasting relationships between brand and consumer. The firm highlights how connecting with their clients ideal consumers on a face-to-face basis helps to drive these relationships as well as increase customer acquisition, brand awareness and brand loyalty for their clients. Skyline Marketing believes that travel is massively important for business professionals as it teaches them to master a number of skills including time-keeping, organisation, networking, connecting with those from different backgrounds, appreciating new cultures and much more. The firm highlights how many business professionals will have to travel for business or to attend meetings and therefore it is vital to master these skills early on which is why Skyline Marketing offers travel experiences to their contractors as a reward for hard work. Laura Trenerry, Vice President, Flight Operations West Coast Aviation Services I am excited to have the opportunity to lead such an exemplary group of aviation professionals. We are committed to raising the bar with our processes, crew training and customer service. Leading aviation services provider, West Coast Aviation Services, is pleased to announce the appointment of Laura Trenerry to the executive position of Vice President, Flight Operations. The company also welcomes back aviation veteran and newly named Director of Operations, Jerry Hansen to lead its operations team. The two newly appointed aviation professionals will bring a wealth of experience and operational knowledge further strengthening the companys commitment to providing the highest standards of aviation services. Ms. Trenerry joined West Coast Aviation Services in 2004 and has held multiple key positions within the company including her previous position as Business Operations Manager. She maintains the Drug and Alcohol Program and administers oversight with operational audits. She was instrumental to the restructuring and developmental growth of KMR Aviation, the Ontario, CA based operator and affiliate partner of West Coast Aviation Services, serving as General Manager during its transitional stage. Her leadership style and strategic planning skills have streamlined both companies business operations, flight operations and training processes. In her new position, Ms. Trenerry will be focused on safety, customer service, and operational efficiency as she manages the aircraft charter, fractional shares and management side of the company. I am excited to have the opportunity to lead such an exemplary group of aviation professionals, commented Laura Trenerry. The operational team everyone on the ground and in the air works closely together to meet challenges and develop solutions to provide our clients with the highest standards in aviation services. We are committed to raising the bar with our processes, crew training and customer service. We are focused on a growth strategy aligned with our Vision of taking the West Coast Aviation Services brand from a Western Regional operator to a nationally known service provider. A 28-year veteran in the aviation industry, Jerry Hansen returns to West Coat Aviation Services as its Director of Operations. He will be directly managing an operations team supporting numerous aircraft based in various locations while maintaining a fully compliant, safe and reliable Part 135 and Part 91 operation. He will continue to direct communications with the FAA, provide flight-line oversight, institute the companys operational plans and policies, and oversee the training of flight personnel. Mr. Hansen, along with his team Edward Walsh (Director of Safety), Ken Stave (Chief Pilot) and Jonas Bielkevicius (Assistant Chief Pilot) are committed to maintaining the highest level of safety standards and training while promoting a culture of compliance and safety. Mr. Hansen is a line pilot for the Challenger 604 charter fleet operated under the KMR certificate and holds ATP, CFI Gold Seal, MEI, CE550, HS125, and BE30 pilot certifications. We are excited to have Laura and Jerry on the team, said Gary Standel, West Coast Aviation Services President and Founder. We are looking forward to new growth to our operation. Along with the changes to its operational leadership, West Coast Aviation Services is pleased to announce the addition of a new 2016 Citation M2 to its Part 135 certificate. This highly-efficient light jet provides convenience and easy access to smaller airports not available to larger jets and airliners. Based in Henderson, NV it is available for immediate charter. About West Coast Aviation Services West Coast Aviation Services is a full-service aviation company providing Part 135 Charter Services in turboprops, light, mid-size and heavy jets; Fractional Shares of King Air B200s and 350s; Aircraft Sales & Acquisition, Management and Consulting Services; as well as Aircraft Maintenance. In business since 1987, the company is headquartered at the John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California (KSNA) and maintains charter aircraft at various bases throughout Southern California and Nevada. Its Part 145 Repair Station located in Long Beach, CA (KLGB) is an Authorized Hawker Beechcraft Service Center and Piper Service Center, Authorized vendor for Raisbeck Engineering, and Blackhawk, and is a Dealer for Garmin, Rockwell Collins and Bendix King Avionics among others. About KMR Aviation Established in 1989, KMR Aviation is a full service leader in Private Aviation. They specialize in personalized charter services and customized aircraft management solutions, delivering an unparalleled flying experience to corporate leaders, entrepreneurs and private individuals all over the world. KMR operates the largest charter fleet of wide-body Challenger 604 executive jets throughout the U.S. Domestic Wi-Fi, a personal Cabin Server and no fuel surcharge are complimentary for the Challenger fleet. Through an alliance with West Coast Aviation Services, KMR Aviation has access to a wider-range of charter aircraft, further expanding service capabilities to accommodate its clients travel needs. Committed to safety and security, both West Coast Aviation Services and KMR Aviation are Aviation Research Group/US Gold-Rated and Wyvern Registered charter operators. The companies combined fleet of more than 30 charter-ready aircraft offers clients a wide-range of travel solutions. Two Companies | One Experience For any aviation service needs, contact the team at charter(at)wcas.aero or at 800.352.6153. If you are new to iQ you can schedule a demo and learn more about this opportunity. PSFK iQ - Where Innovators Turn for Research. Our professional-grade research platform is designed specifically for Retail and CX leaders who want to know whats next. Whether youre staying current on trends or need a real-time research partner to help you get ahead, count on PSFK iQ to deliver the info you need to make your next move. Welcome Guest! You Are Here: We value your privacy. Focus Taiwan (CNA) uses tracking technologies to provide better reading experiences, but it also respects readers' privacy. Click here to find out more about Focus Taiwan's privacy policy. When you close this window, it means you agree with this policy. Welcome Guest! You Are Here: Home Regional News East Cookies What are cookies ? How do we use cookies? How to control cookies? 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You can delete all cookies that are already on your computer and you can set most browsers to prevent them from being placed.Most browsers allow you to:If you chose to delete cookies, you should be aware that any preferences will be lost. Also, if you block cookies completely many websites (including ours) will not work properly and webcasts will not work at all. For these reasons, we do not recommend turning cookies off when using our webcasting services. What Light (Razorbill, Oct. 18) is a lot more than just Jay Ashers first novel since the 2007 release of his monumentally successful Thirteen Reasons Why. Its an itch finally soothed, a check off his bucket list, a boulder off his shoulders. I had the idea for this story before I even started writing Thirteen Reasons Why, so its been percolating for a long, long time, Asher told PW. And I knew I was never going to feel fully satisfied until I wrote it. Ive been talking about it for a decade. Inspired by a story he read in his local newspaper about a family who owned a Christmas tree farm in Oregon and traveled to California every season to sell their evergreens, Asher searched for a story to tell in a setting he liked: the fragrant confines of a tree lot, visited by families in search of the perfect holiday centerpiece. He struggled. Part of the problem was hed become his own tough act to follow. Thirteen Reasons Why, his first novel, spent more than five years on the New York Times bestseller list, with more than three million copies in print in the U.S. and foreign rights sold into 37 countries. Because of the success of that book, I definitely had a hard time with trying to match what I thought people were expecting, Asher said. I had written a book that dealt with really serious issues. Was anybody going to want to read a Christmas love story from me? He voiced his concerns to his editor, Jessica Almon, who told him, Write the story you need to write. (In his acknowledgments, Asher says Almon told him What Light reminds me of a Taylor Swift song!) Like Thirteen Reasons Why, much of which is written in the voice of Hannah Baker, What Light is narrated by a teenage girl, Sierra, a stylistic choice that Asher says comes naturally to him. It felt like I was channeling her voice but Im not that sex so I did question whether I was getting it right, Asher said. He asked his wife to read an early draft to make sure 15-year-old Sierra sounded authentic. She told me, I dont know how youre doing it but dont question it. But unlike Thirteen Reasons, What Light at its heart is a romance, albeit one with plenty of friction. Sierras father has made it clear he doesnt want her flirting with the local boys he hires to load trees. The boy she falls for, Caleb, is not only a local but has a troubled past, rumored to include a violent act against his sister. It was that thread that became the most important to Asher, and how he connected the themes of Thirteen Reasons with his new novel. It says a similar thing, coming from an opposite direction. It shows the beauty of being there for people, and reaching out to them as opposed to not reaching out, Asher said. Caleb made a mistake and is trying to make up for it, but if every time you did something good, your past was brought up, youd never grow. There has to be forgiveness. The release of his second solo novel (he also co-authored The Future of Us with Carolyn Mackler) caps perhaps the biggest year of his career so far. Razorbill is issuing a 10th-anniversary edition of Thirteen Reasons Why in December. Netflix is adapting the book for a 13-episode series, tentatively scheduled for a March 2017 release, produced by Selena Gomez and Tom McCarthy, who directed the Academy-Award winning film Spotlight. Asher visited the set, north of San Francisco, when filming began. They were filming inside a coffee shop which they built and it was the exact shop that I thought had only existed in my head, Asher said. I almost cried a couple of times. These were my characters come to life, saying words I wrote a decade ago. It literally gave me goosebumps. What Light by Jay Asher. Razorbill, $18.99 Oct. 18 ISBN 978-1-59514-551-2 Thirteen Reasons Why: 10th Anniversary Edition by Jay Asher. Razorbill, $18.99 Dec. 27 ISBN 978-1-59514-788-2 After a hiatus of half a decade, literatures bossiest pig returns next April in Olivia the Spy (Atheneum/Caitlin Dlouhy, Apr. 2017), the cover of which PW unveils here for the first time. Uncharacteristically, the normally indefatigable Olivia is wearing an expression of deep concern. She happens to overhear her mother on the phone complaining about how difficult she is, and how she wishes she could send Olivia off somewhere until she develops some sense, said author-illustrator Ian Falconer. Then again, using her eavesdropping skills in the hope of finding out what she is getting for her upcoming birthday, Olivia spies on her parents. Of course, Olivia only hears part of that conversation, too, but it includes the word institution, so she asks her teacher what an institution is and he gives her a list of things, one of them being prison. Orange is the new red? At least its close to Olivias signature color. The eighth installment in Falconers bestselling series is five years in the making (although Olivia has not aged a day). Falconer, a Connecticut native and long-time Manhattan resident, switched coasts four years ago when he was hired by the Pacific Northwest Ballet to redesign the sets and costumes for their annual production of The Nutcracker, an experience he describes as wonderful but scary. Scary because a Nutcracker production is really important to a ballet company. It can mean half the companys income for a year, Falconer said. And scary because I was replacing Maurice Sendak! PNB had commissioned Sendak to design a Nutcracker for their corps in 1983, which the company used until Falconers designs debuted in 2015. Falconer had long been in awe of Sendaks work, so much so that when the legendary artist surprised Falconer by leaving him a congratulatory voice mail after the release of the original Olivia in 2000, it took Falconer a full year to work up the nerve to call him back. I was so nervous. I mean, Maurice Sendak called me? I was already overwhelmed by the success of Olivia. Every librarian in America was calling me, and all these friends, thinking I was rich and wanting to borrow money. It was hard and so sudden. Finally, Falconer screwed up his courage and dialed Sendak. After Falconer introduced himself, Sendaks response was, You absolute son of a bitch! They became friends. His work on The Nutcracker finally complete, Falconer said he felt some urgency to get back to his most famous creation. I actually had to finish this book because... ballets? They dont pay very much. They literally dont pay enough to live on, he said. No doubt Olivia is still paying his bills the series has sold more than eight million books in the U.S. alone, has been published in more than two dozen languages, and has been made into a Nickelodeon television show, which Falconer considers a grave disappointment. I could barely watch two episodes. And heres the thing. Its in my contract that I have complete artistic control, so they sent me the scripts and I would work very hard going through them, marking No. No. No, and FedEx them back the next day and the response was, Oh, were already far beyond that. We cant change anything at this point. Nickelodeons option expires soon, Falconer said, and there is interest from other animation companies, including DreamWorks. Half of me is hoping theyll pick it up and half of me is hoping it will expire so I can do something independently. I think I might be better off with a small company, somebody I could work with. Meanwhile, he was at FedEx again this week with sending his publisher the final artwork for Olivia the Spys endpapers, which feature New York Citys Lincoln Center. His years with the ballet inform the plot, too. What Olivia mishears is actually her mother making plans for a birthday surprise she asks Olivias father if he thinks Olivia is ready for a trip to the big city ballet. He answers: Of course. Its an institution. Ten minutes in, Olivia needs to use the restroom. The usher points her towards two doors, one marked Ladies, the other marked Stage, Falconer said. You can guess which door she goes through. Olivia the Spy by Ian Falconer. Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books, $17.99 April 4, 2017 ISBN 978-1-4814-5795-8 New York City loses another Barnes & Noble; Maine gains a bookstore; determined Oregon store stays open despite flooding; and more. Stephen King-Centric Bookstore Opens in Bangor: Monday marked the soft opening of Gerald Winters & Son Rare Books on Main Street. The store sells first editions, original manuscripts, proofs, limited editions, and ephemera of science fiction and fantasy authors, including Stephen King, J.R.R. Tolkien, George R.R. Martin, and J.K. Rowling. In addition, the store has a small selection of trade paperbacks. B&N to Close Its Last Store in the Bronx: In a case of deja vu all over again, the countrys largest chain announced that it would close its Bay Plaza store. A similar announcement was made almost exactly two years ago to the day. But at the 11th hour, Bronx president Ruben Diaz Jr. brokered a deal. Although Barnes & Noble is being turned out of its location, the property owner offered it a smaller space. Tucsons Antigone for Sale: Trudy Mills and Kate Randall, longtime business partners, are working with Paz & Associates to sell their store. The store, which opened in 1973, was originally a feminist bookstore but over the years it has expanded its inventory and space. Mills and Randall are selling the business only. They plan to continue to own the building to ensure that a bookstore stays in the location. Longwood University B&N Moves Downtown: The Farmwood, Va., university bookstore will move downtown to a larger location next summer. Its part of a bid by the university to increase foot traffic and encourage more members of the community to shop at the store. PSU Bookstore Stays Open Despite Flood: The Portland State University Bookstore is not letting cleanup from flooding caused by wind and rain over the weekend interfere with keeping the store open. Although the main entrance is blocked, students can enter through an emergency entrance. We are committed to staying open throughout the recovery, even if it means hand fetching each item students need, whether its a pencil or a textbook, said store manager Cory Adamski. When food writer and historian Joy Santlofer died unexpectedly in 2013, she was in the midst of completing her first book, a deep-dive into the history of food-making in New York City. To help see the project through to publication, Joys daughter Doria Santlofer launched a Kickstarter campaign in October 2015, raising more than $32,000, several thousand dollars past the campaign goal, to fund the work required to complete the book. Now, more than three years after her death, Joys book is set to go on saleFood City: Four Centuries of Food-Making in New York will be published by Norton on November 1. Alane Mason, v-p and executive editor at Norton, bought the book in 2009. At the time of Joys death, the manuscript was 200,000 words, full of amazing research and fine-grained, close-to-the-ground detail, said Mason. The contract targeted 75,000 to 100,000 words, and, according to Mason, it is not uncommon for historians to deliver over-long manuscripts. It is hard for even those with many books under their belts to wrestle the research they find when they go down the proverbial rabbit hole into a length and a narrative shape that consistently engages casual readers, said Mason. This was a first book, so Joy had a lot of work ahead of her. According to Doria, the book still required a substantial amount of editing, some additional research, photo permissions, and a large bibliography to compile. At first, Mason hoped an in-house team at Norton would be able to finalize the book. I had a kind of fantasy that maybe, with the help of an assistant, I could get the book into shape myself, said Mason. But really, it was too much to do an editor's work and an author's work of revision also, while managing a heavy load of other books. The authors husband, bestselling novelist Jonathan Santlofer, attempted to fine tune the book, but also found the task too overwhelming. We realized that what we needed was someone who could revise who also had the sensibility and contextual knowledge of an historian, said Mason. Using the resources raised via Kickstarter, Jonathan enlisted industry veteran Jack Beatty, a total pro of an editor, said Mason. Beatty, an author himself and former editor of Harpers, did a marvelous job stepping into Joy's shoes, bringing his own brilliant vision about how the book should be organized, but remarkably, staying true to Joy's voice, said Mason. Doria then took on the Herculean task of photo research and permissions clearing, while Jonathan and Joys sister, Kathy Rolland, former Ombudsman of Hunter College, reviewed Beattys edits. It was good to have Kathy reading along with me because she was an academic, a very savvy reader and a good shoulder to lean on, as was my daughter, said Jonathan. Jonathan added that Joys fellow food historians, including Jonathan Deutsch, Renee Marton, Ellen Stein, Meryl Rosofsky and Cathy Kaufman, were invaluable readers, while Jennifer Berg and Marion Nestle, her colleagues at New York University (where Joy taught in the Food Studies program) have been great supporters of the book. After a lengthy and collaborative editorial process, Jonathan said he is thrilled about the publication date nearing, but that the moment is still bittersweet. Food City is coming into the world without Joy, said Jonathan. It was not easy for me to be immersed in my late wifes work. Obviously, there is a strong emotional component for me. There were numerous obstacles along the way but I felt I could not quit, that I owed it Joy to make sure her lifes work made it to publication. Doria shares her fathers sentiments about getting the book to press. I couldn't be happier that my mother's work will finally be shared, but it's heartbreaking that she won't be here to enjoy it, she said. Working on Food City has kept us both connected to her over the past few years and it's an emotional process to have it finally completed. As part of a four-year review of their theological position on human sexuality, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA (IVCF), one of the largest ministries operating on over 660 college campuses around the U.S., issued a restatement of its belief that sexual activity outside of traditional marriage is immoral. While IVCF said it is not firing employees for supporting gay marriage or premarital sex, the organizationincluding its publishing arm InterVarsity Press (IVP)expects staff to align with the organizations position or face involuntary termination. "No current employees have to sign an agreement, but as an extension of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, we expect our employees will reflect our theological convictions as an organization, even if diffidently," said Jeff Crosby, IVP publisher. While the press has not lost any staff members in the move, Gregory Jao, v-p & director of campus engagement for IVCF services, estimates that 7-8 employees have left the campus ministry side of the organization. IVCF has hired an outplacement services firm to help those terminated find new jobs. According to Jao, staffers are not required to verbally affirm their beliefs, but are being asked to come forward if they disagree with InterVarsitys theological position. Then, the organization would initiate a two-week involuntary termination process. Even though we are asking staff to volunteer their disagreement, we are treating this as an involuntary termination because we want to treat departing staff with as much dignity as we can, said Jao. We recognize that they do not feel that their decision was purely voluntaryInterVarsity has made its position (and its expectation for our staff) clear. Deeming the termination involuntary may also yield better results when it comes to state unemployment compensation programs, said Jao, although that varies state to state. In Illinois, where IVP is headquartered, those applying for unemployment benefits must be unemployed through no fault of their own, as defined by Illinois law. This is why we have voluntary disclosure and an involuntary termination in the same process, said Jao. We were doing our best to honor our staff in a hard situation. Unlike employees, IVP authors are not being asked to indicate any support for IVP's theological summary on human sexuality. Amid some concerns about deterring authors, Crosby told PW that he is taking steps to reassure them that IVPs employment agreement has no impact on its publishing program. We will continue to seek out authors who can address topics on a broad range of issuesincluding human sexuality, said Crosby. The range of published works that IVP will do in the future will be just as broad as it has been throughout our 70-year history. The articulation of IVCF's theology of human sexuality does not have any fresh impact on what we desire to publish and are committed to publishing in the years ahead. Nevertheless, a group of 50 IVP authors, including Shane Claiborne, Dr. David Dark, Rev. Ian Morgan Cron, submitted a public letter to Jao, raising concerns and protesting the organizations theological paper, according to Religion News Service. Responding to the letter, Jao told PW, We hope our authors realize that this has been our historical understanding of whats been taught in the Bible. Our publishing program, attitude, and posture toward authors and our wide range in the Christian publishing field has not changed. InterVarsitys move has stirred controversy in the media, with critics calling it a theological purge. And as of Tuesday, nearly 1,600 concerned IVCF alumni had signed a petition on Change.org titled Calling for the reversal of #InterVarsityPurge. The petition states that InterVarsitys policy for employees excludes many Christian siblings and silences sincere disagreement and urges InterVarsity Christian Fellowship President Tom Lin, the executive team, and the board of trustees to reconsider the rule. If not changed, we fear for the future of the organization and its ability to continue to minister to students and faculty, to the ultimate detriment of the gospel message and the legacy of an organization we dearly love, the undersigned alumni wrote. This story has been updated to reflect the identities of some of IVP's authors who signed the public letter to IVCF. Two fantasy seriesone YA, and one adultthat sold in high six-figure deals just before the Frankfurt Book Fair are drawing notice from a number of foreign houses. The first, a YA trilogy called Ash Princess, was just acquired by Delacorte Press. The other, which is set in the Middle East and opens with a title called Daevabad: The City of Brass, was nabbed at auction by Voyager in a joint U.S./U.K. acquisition. Krista Marino at Delacorte won North American rights to Ash Princess at the end of last week, after a heated auction, paying a high six-figure advance for three books. The author, Laura Sebastian, who grew up in South Florida and volunteers at New York Citys Housing Works Bookstore, was represented by Laura Biagi at the Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency. Biagi said the series is perfect for fans of An Ember in the Ashes and Red Queen, as well as those who root for Sansas grit on Game of Thrones. It follows a princess who, at age six, sees her country invaded and her mother, the queen, murdered. A decade later the princess, whos been held as a kind of prisoner in her own court, has, as Biagi put it, learned to survive under relentless abuse. When rebels infiltrate the country the princess joins with them to seduce, then kill, the prince. But, Biagi continued, the heroine will have to ultimately decide how much of herself she's willing to sacrifice along the way. The Naggar agency has received a number of offers from foreign publishers at the book fair, where Jennifer Weltz is handling sales. Biagi said that Weltz confirmed major activity in Germany with a number of houses in other countries, including the U.K. and France, who are currently reading the manuscript and [being] very active. In the second deal, S.A. Chakrabortys book was bought, jointly, by Priyanka Krishnan at Harpers Voyager imprint in the U.S. and Emma Coode at Voyager UK. Agent Jennifer Azantian, who has her own shingle, represented the author, selling world rights to the three books. The auction for the series involved nine editors, Azantian said, and the preempt happened within four days of her sending the book out on submission. An epic historical fantasy, Daevabad follows, Azantian said, the possibility of a centuries-old religious war being reignited by a young, female con artist. The con artist, who has healing abilities, as Azantian explained, strikes up a friendship with a fiery djinn prince who dreams of revolutionizing his fathers corrupt regime. But, in a world where loyalty is a magical bond and grievances last for millennia, she soon learns that working with the enemy even to make peace can have deadly consequences. Priyanka said she was drawn to the series for a multitude of reasons, including the fact that it is set in Egypt and the Middle East, as opposed to the more common western European-centric titles that most SFF series take place in. Beyond that, though, the editor said she was beguiled by the way Chakraborty drew upon the history of the Mughal Empire, the Sunni-Shia conflict, Persian and Indian folklore, and Islamic tradition to create this wonderfully rich world; it feels relevant to current events, and yet its action-packed, delicious escapist storytelling at its best. A resident of Queens, N.Y., Chakraborty has published short fiction in a number of literary magazines; shes also an organizer of the Brooklyn Speculative Fiction Writers' group. And, interestingly, Azantian found the author through social media. Chakrabortyand her manuscriptcame to the agent through a literary Twitter event called #DVpit, hosted by the Bent Agencys Beth Phelan. It was created to highlight work by, as its mission statement declares, marginalized voices. Chakraborty pitched Azantian during a #DVpit session, and the agent wound up taking on the author, and her project, in quick succession. Correction: An earlier version of this story stated that these books were drawing foreign interest from houses in Germany; the series are currently drawing general foreign interest, with the trilogy Ash Princess drawing specific interest from a publisher in Germany. Additionally, Laura Sebastian does not work at Housing Works Bookstore; she volunteers there. And in Ash Princess, the heroine does not masquerade as a commoner as initially stated; she has been kept as a prisoner, of sorts, in her own court. In Daevabad the religious war referred to is not nascent, it is centuries-old. And the auction for the book involved seven editors, not nine. Additionally the preempt for the book happened within days of sending it out, not the auction. Stand by us, the other Turkey, pleaded exiled Turkish journalist and newspaper editor Can Dundar, who presented the German translation of his new memoir We Are Arrested: A Journalists Notes from at Turkish Prison on Wednesday morning at the Frankfurt Book Fair. Sitting alongside fair director Juergen Boos and his literary agent Nermin Mollaoglu of Istanbuls Kalem Agency, Dundar spoke frankly about his frustration with the failure of Western countries to engage with the government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan which has imprisoned thousands, including hundreds of writers and journalists and has effectively ended freedom of speech as we know it. Dundar was editor-in-chief of Turkeys Cumhuriyet newspaper and writes of having been was arrested and sentenced to solitary confinement in November 2015 after reporting on illegal Turkish arms shipments. He wrote the book very quickly, by hand, said Mollaoglu, who underscored the urgency in getting the story published as soon as possible. English rights to the book have been acquired by the U.K. house, Biteback Publishing. Asked if she feared for her own security in representing dissident Turkish writers, Mollaoglu replied, It is a risk, but I like this risk. It is something I must do for myself, my agency, my future and my country. Mollagous Kalem Agency celebrated its 10th anniversary with a large party in Frankfurt on Tuesday night and instructed partygoers to wear something with the color red. Erdogans crackdown was the topic of conversation at the party and several key figures in the Turkish publishing community (all of whom declined to be named) underscored that censorship was rampant and and there was a great deal of uncertainty about what the future holds. In his press conference, Dundar noted that there remains just one television station and three newspapers who are willing to criticize the government; meanwhile, scored of publishers have been closed as well. For his part, Frankfurts Boos noted that it was just eight years ago that Turkey was the guest of honor at Frankfurt and Erdogan and author Orhan Pamuk shared the same stage and exchanged ideas. That could never happen now, said Boos. In fact, the fairs opening ceremony on Tuesday night featured a speech by the European Parliament President Martin Schulz, which proclaimed his "full solidarity" with "all authors and journalists languishing in Turkish jails. In addition, Heinrich Riethmueller, who is the head of the German Publishers and Booksellers Association, read a letter by novelist and rights activist Asli Erdogan which he said had been smuggled out of prison. "I cry out to you from behind stones, concrete and barbed wire, he read. Conscience is being trampled upon in my countrythey are trying to kill off truth. In a talk at the 2016 Frankfurt Book Fair, International Publishers Association president Richard Charkin, who is executive director Bloomsbury, said the situation in Turkey is of grave concern, and that the international publishing community stands in solidarity with Turkish publishers. I went there two or three weeks ago and it's pretty horrible, Charkin told fairgoers. Were supporting them as much as we can, but it's a really difficult situation. The plight of Turkish publishers has been a prominent issue at the 2016 Frankfurt Book Fair, in the midst of a so-called purge, by the Erdogan regime, following a failed coup attempt this past July. Reports suggest that upwards of 30 publishers have been shuttered, and thousands of authors, journalists, academics and intellectuals have been arrested, or dismissed. Charkin visited Turkey October 1-2, and released a statement on the IPA website after the visit condemning the governments actions. If the government continues its vengeful persecution of any individual or organization whose views differ from its own, he observed in that statement, then Turkish publishing, and the countrys creative industries as a whole risk decimation. In the 30-miunute talk, Charkin also defended last years decision to extend IPA membership to Saudi Arabia and China, a move that has generated criticism among members concerned with state censorship and abuses in those countries. Charkin stressed that the two nations were admitted by a member vote. Its called democracy, he said. There are people who disagree, and thats okay. Otherwise there wouldn't be any point in having the election the first place. But, he suggested that engagement with Saudi and Chinese publishers was the more effective path forward. It's just an instinct, he said. I am not a legal bureaucrat, I'm a publisher. And what publishers do is publish, and part of publishing is engaging. So instinctively, on a purely personal level, I think engagement is better than disengagement. Does anyone really think it would make a difference if China was not a member of the IPA? Would that help, not talking to them? I think that's crazy. The fact is, they are members, they come here, they discuss, the meet, they learn, we learn from them. I just think it's a no-brainer, frankly. Asked whether being admitted to IPA might confer respectability on some odious regimes, Charkin was blunt. Well, the United Kingdom is a member of the IPA, and we just brexited which is one of the most stupid things weve ever done, and odious, he quipped. But he stressed that countries are not members of IPA, publishing associations are, and he doubted that any nations reputation could be burnished by IPA membership. China's a member of United Nations, he added. Being a member of the IPA, or not being a member of the IPA, is neutral. Charkin also stressed the importance of IPAs work in the copyright arena. Without strong copyright protections, he said, There is no freedom to publish. He noted that copyright was currently under attack in several territories, criticizing dangerous proposals to make more exceptions to copyright. He quoted Gordon Graham, former publisher of Butterworth: Where information is free, there's little freedom of information, he said. The sum truth of that is, if you're not paying for something, someone is, and you don't necessarily know who it is. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Commerce released its latest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) report. GDP is defined as the total dollar-value of goods and services produced by the economy. It serves as the key indicator on the health of our economy. The clinic usually waits to bill patients their share of the total cost after the State Employee Group Insurance Program pays for the majority of the cost, The State Journal-Register reported. But payment for certain plans are at a standstill during the ongoing state budget crisis. The clinic, which is owed $68 million, has decided to ask patients to pay their share of bills regardless of whether Illinois' share has been paid. "Under normal circumstances, Springfield Clinic would not bill the patient's responsibility (co-insurance) until after the claim had been paid by insurance," said a letter sent to patients last week. "However, because the state is so delinquent in its payments, Springfield Clinic has decided to temporarily deviate from our standard billing practice." Requesting the payment from patients will help the clinic catch up, said Mark Kuhn, the clinic's chief administrative officer. He also noted the clinic does offer payment plans for its patients. "We're just doing catch-up on member balances," he said Fully insured plans that cover state workers, which include Health Alliance, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois and Coventry Health Care, have continued to voluntarily pay health care professionals and hospitals. Despite the fact that the state is far behind on paying the plans their monthly premiums. The clinic's payment requests will apply to future medical services and for claims remained unpaid for the past 12 to 18 months. The clinic hasn't decided if they will ask patients in the future to also pay the state's share of their bills, however, according to Kuhn, the clinic would reimburse patients after receiving the state's payments. Some Rock Island County residents have expressed concerns at receiving invitations in the mail to apply for absentee ballots with return envelopes provided that send those applications to a post office box listed as "Vote by Mail Center." The applications also give the address of the Rock Island County Clerk's Office as an option for mailing. The invitations are perfectly legal, and the the applications end up with the county regardless of which mailing option is used, according to deputy county clerk John Brown. The clerk's office itself sends out applications for mail-in ballots only when requested to do so, he said. However, authorized political organizations can send out the applications and typically target those who have voted in party primaries. The Vote by Mail Center is authorized by the Democratic Party of Illinois, Mr. Brown said. Historically, Republican organizations have done the same thing, he said. The applications sent directly to the Vote by Mail Center are turned over to the clerk's office, which then sends the absentee ballot directly to the voter, Mr. Brown said. The application is the same as is found on the county clerk's website, including the office address for returning the completed application. On Monday, the office received 505 applications from the Vote by Mail Center along with 350 as of about midday on Tuesday, Mr. Brown said. Once received by the clerk's office, the application signature is checked by election judges, as is the returned ballot. Mr. Brown said. The Vote by Mail Center does not handle the ballots themselves, he said. In a new court filing, District Attorney Kevin R. Steele sought to counter claims by Cosbys lawyers that the 2004 allegations are too old to defend against, arguing that Cosby spent years fighting to keep under wraps damaging evidence his own testimony that ultimately helped lead to his arrest. That testimony, sealed in a 2005 deposition, was made public by a federal judge last year and became a basis for the charges in December. This wealthy, celebrity defendant, armed with a cadre of high-priced lawyers, made sure that his incriminating deposition testimony remained a closely-guarded secret for a decade, Steele wrote. It is (Cosby) himself who has used the legal system to keep the deposition secret and used a scorched earth approach to criminal justice in an attempt to delay and derail this case. Steeles arguments were in response to a sweeping motion Cosbys lawyers filed this month in yet another attempt to convince Montgomery County Judge Steven T. ONeill to throw out the case, using arguments the judge has previously rejected. ONeill has scheduled four days of hearings in November and December to settle disputes over what evidence prosecutors will be able to present to jurors at Cosbys June trial among them, a disagreement over whether they can use Cosbys testimony from the 2005 civil suit filed by accuser Andrea Constand. In his filing, Steele noted Cosbys deposition transcript in which the entertainer acknowledged sexual contact with Constand and that he had used drugs in encounters with other women offered detectives evidence they did not have in 2005, when they first investigated her claims that she had been drugged and sexually assaulted at Cosbys mansion in Cheltenham. Whats more, Steele said, the public release of Cosbys damning admissions prompted dozens of women to come forward with accusations that mirrored Constands claims. Prosecutors hope to call some of them to testify against Cosby at trial. This new information suggested that had committed scores of sexual assaults over nearly half a century on a scale rarely seen, or even imagined, Steele wrote. Cosbys lawyers argue that they cannot properly defend their client against Constands decade-old allegations and claims from other women, some of which stretch back further. His memories are too faded and he is too blind to recognize many of his accusers, they said in their filing, which also noted several key witnesses have since died. If our justice system is allowed to be distorted and abandoned for Mr. Cosby, none of us are safe, a spokesman said Tuesday. Cosby has denied sexually assaulting anyone and pleaded not guilty to three counts of aggravated indecent assault. EDITOR'S NOTE This is part of Divided America, AP's ongoing exploration of the economic, social and political divisions in American society. RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) When Manasi Gopala immigrated to America, she finally got the chance to row crew. As a child in India, she had dreamed of the sport from watching Olympic telecasts. Now, twice a week, she pulls a pair of oars as her scull glides along tree-lined Lake Wheeler, far from her birthplace of Bangalore. Gopala is among throngs of educated Indians who have moved in recent years to North Carolina's tech-laden Research Triangle and other areas across America. A 39-year-old software developer, she peppers her emails with an adopted "y'all." She became a U.S. citizen three years ago. "America had given me the opportunity to pursue my own life," she said. Increasingly, the face of U.S. immigration resembles Gopala. For all of Donald Trump's talk of building a border wall and deporting 11 million unauthorized immigrants who are mainly Hispanic and for all of the enduring contention over illegal immigration immigrants to the U.S. are now more likely to come from Asia than from Mexico or Latin America. And compared with Americans overall, immigrants today are disproportionately well-educated and entrepreneurial. They are transforming the nation in ways largely ignored by the political jousting over how immigration is affecting America's culture, economy and national security. As of three years ago, Census figures show , India and China eclipsed Mexico as the top sources of U.S. immigrants, whether authorized or not. In 2013, 147,000 Chinese immigrants and 129,000 Indians came to the U.S., compared with 125,000 Mexicans. Most of the Asian immigrants arrived in the United States legally through work, student or family visas. Immigrants are also more likely now to be U.S. citizens. Nearly half of immigrants over the age of 25 18 million people are naturalized citizens, compared with just 30 percent back in 2000, according to Census figures. Simultaneously, more Mexicans without documentation are returning home. The number of Mexicans in the United States illegally tumbled nearly 8 percent in the past six years to 5.85 million, the Pew Research Center found. Border Patrol apprehensions, one gauge of illegal crossings, last year reached their lowest point since 1971. With the share of U.S. residents born abroad at its highest level in a century, immigrants increasingly defy the stereotypes that tend to shape conversations on the issue. Consider: About 40 percent of Indian immigrants hold a graduate degree . Fewer than 12 percent of native-born Americans do. And earnings for a median Indian immigrant household exceed $100,000 more than twice the U.S. median. A majority of Chinese immigrants have come to the United States to seek education. China has become the dominant source of foreigners attending U.S. universities, with 304,000 student visas in the past academic year. India is second, with 133,000 visas. In addition, a quarter of immigrants from China hold graduate degrees. Since 2011, a majority of Indian and Chinese immigrants have been between ages 15 and 29. Their youth means they're likely to have children born as U.S. citizens, who will then become prime contributors to American population growth in the years ahead, according to an analysis by Census officials. The influx of Asians has not only reshaped the face of America's immigrant population. It has also sharpened the divide within the immigrant population between well-educated Asians and arrivals from Mexico and Latin America who have little money or education. The result is that America's 40 million-plus immigrants more and more reflect the extremes of America's economic spectrum, from super-rich tech titans to poor agriculture workers. Yet economists say immigrants from both ends of the divide are benefiting the economy. At a time when the growth of the U.S. workforce has slowed, immigrants and their collective spending have become a key source of economic fuel. These disparate groups of immigrants have helped reshape towns and cities, populated new suburban housing developments and revived main streets in some decaying rural communities. The changes flash into view on a visit to the political swing state of North Carolina. The proportion of immigrants in the state's population has quadrupled from 1990 to nearly 8 percent. Similar trends have emerged in Georgia, Colorado, Oregon and Washington. None of these states approaches the more than 20 percent share in California and New York. Yet the transformations are evident in a drive across the dense highways that connect North Carolina's Research Triangle. The suburbs sandwiched among Chapel Hill, Durham and Raleigh have exploded with plazas crowded with upscale lunch spots and designer gyms. Indian immigrants have put their distinctive stamp on this area. Their prevalence here is similar to the many educated Chinese immigrants who have settled around Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York. On evenings in the Research Triangle, many of the cars on Aviation Parkway pull off to stop at the 20-acre Hindu Society of North Carolina in Morrisville, which hosts yoga classes and religious services. In 2000, when the society's temple was built, Morrisville was home to just 230 Indians. Now, there are 4,300. Those with roots in the community dating to the 1960s recall a period when a grocery run for authentic Indian ingredients required a five-hour drive to Washington, D.C. Those treks are no longer necessary. Their rising numbers have established a broad community of Indians that has made it easier for new arrivals to integrate than it was for prior generations. "Now, you come from India, you don't really have to know anything else," said Pranav Patel, a 57-year-old software developer. "The system is here to help you adjust. There are no real hardships." Asked how they have been received in the community, about a dozen Asian immigrants said they have generally been warmly accepted despite the national furor over immigration. One, oncologist, Dr. Neeraj Agrawal, said he could recall a patient having to overcome an initial reluctance to be treated by a foreigner. But that was a rare exception. "There's a dramatic change in attitudes about skilled, educated immigrants: 'You're welcome. You're a good neighbor. You're a good addition to society,'" said Agrawal, who was born and educated in India. In August, Gopala went to the Hindu Society to celebrate India's independence day. Over the entrance of the temple is the symbol for "om," representing knowledge a reminder of education's vaunted status. Music blared over the crowd amid dancing and honors paid to statues of deities. Gopala enjoyed the festivities. Yet she saw few white and black guests sharing in the moment. Weeks later, she wondered: Did part of integrating mean inviting others to share your culture, to welcome neighbors with samosas and other delicacies? One prominent outsider did show up: Gov. Pat McCrory, a Republican in a heated re-election campaign that has been fueled in part by a crackdown on illegal immigration. McCrory flattered the crowd. "This is the best of America," he said, sharing the stage with a life-sized statue of Mahatma Gandhi. "This is the best of India. We work together. We learn together. We can pray together. We love family values together." Not all immigrant groups enjoy that same Southern hospitality from North Carolina's government. McCrory has backed laws to deny basic services and forms of identification to immigrants without legal status and their children. The governor signed a law last year barring North Carolina cities from helping unauthorized immigrants, whom he has associated with crime, and overcrowded schools and hospital emergency rooms. His policies are premised on the belief that less-educated immigrants without legal status are burdens for taxpayers. But the arrival of Mexican immigrants helped save Duplin County, a quiet stretch of leafy tobacco fields and prefab homes about 70 miles south of Raleigh. Until the 1990s, Duplin County's population had been roughly a flat 40,000 for 50 years. Then Hispanic farmworkers began immigrating, and the population nears 60,000 today. About 7,200 immigrants now live in Duplin County, most from Latin America; there are no clear estimates of how many are there legally. Nearly three out of four didn't finish high school, but even these immigrants have helped rural North Carolina opening businesses and keeping farms in operation despite harsh work conditions. One Mexican immigrant arrived in North Carolina nearly two decades ago illegally, after a brutal crossing where he saw a fellow Mexican robbed. Having dropped out of school at 13 with little fluency in English, he took whatever jobs were available. Planting and cutting tobacco was the hardest, he said. In one case, a building contractor offered to pay $500 a week, only to give him just $350 after five long days of labor. The immigrant said there was no one to protect him from this abuse. Ultimately, this immigrant, who agreed to speak only anonymously because of his legal status, saved enough to open a small business. "For me, this my pueblo," he said of his adopted country. "I love this place." Americans' sentiments about him and other immigrants have largely hardened along racial, political and demographic lines. Overall feelings toward immigrant workers remain negative. But sentiment has improved since 2006, possibly a sign that the growth of educated immigrants has begun to reshape attitudes, according to a Pew survey released this month. Two-thirds of Republicans and 54 percent of whites said they think immigration harms U.S. workers. But a majority of Democrats, Hispanics and the college-educated said they felt immigrants made society better off. By comparison, almost all economists view immigrants as helpful even essential for the nation's continued prosperity. On the one hand, some visa programs have deprived U.S. workers of jobs. And some companies have been accused of hiring cheaper foreign workers to replace older workers in similar jobs. But academic research has debunked the claims that immigration on the whole takes jobs away from natives, said Bill Kerr, a professor at Harvard University's Business School whose research has shown that immigration helps business formation. "Ultimately, our economies are able to grow, absorb people and do a number of dynamic things," Kerr said. Because of the aging U.S. population causing more retirements, most economists say immigrants are needed to ensure that the workforce increases at a sufficient pace to sustain overall growth in the long term. Anti-immigration groups such as the Federation for American Immigration Reform argue that the United States should cap all immigration levels. These groups contend that lesser-educated workers from Latin America diminish economic growth because they receive government-funded health care and education. And they argue that the jobs that are going to educated immigrants should be directed toward U.S. citizens. "Trying to grow your economy through the importation of bodies is rudimentary and Neanderthal-like," said Dan Stein, FAIR's executive director. "It's backward." Other research disputes this claim, finding value among the largely Hispanic group of less-educated immigrants. For every dollar spent on health care and education, North Carolina got $11 back from Hispanic residents in terms of consumer spending and taxes paid a finding that includes unauthorized immigrants, said James Johnson, a demographer at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. While much of the debate has focused on the economic effects of immigration, many opponents fear a burden on taxpayers and the cultural changes in a nation coming to grips with its widening diversity. The anti-immigrant rhetoric has concerned Gopala. She feels fortunate to no longer be among the millions of foreigners still applying for U.S. residency. "I got very lucky that my green card was processed when immigration wasn't a bad word," Gopala said. "America had given me the opportunity to pursue my own life. On the day you're born in India, your life is written. But here, that is not true." The student was injured in September when he was thrown to the floor multiple times by a contract employee at a Columbus school, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. The person involved in the alleged incident no longer is associated with the Muscogee County School District, a spokeswoman said Tuesday. The boys attorney, Renee Tucker, said Wednesday that the boy likely will remain at Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston, where the amputation took place, for an additional 30 days. Physical therapy likely will be necessary before he can return home. He wants to see his siblings, Tucker said. It has yet to be determined if the student will again attend the school where the alleged incident took place, she said. The boy was enrolled in an alternative program at Edgewood Student Services Center when the incident allegedly happened, the district said. The program is for students who have been temporarily removed from their regular school because of violations of behavior rules. The alleged incident happened when the boy was trying to leave the classroom for the main office so he could call his mother to pick him up, Tucker said. The contract employee allegedly stopped the boy and slammed him to the floor to prevent him from leaving. The student said he was thrown to the floor a second time when he tried to leave again. It is our understanding that there were issues concerning the safety of the child and others in the room, which called for the use of restraint per state guidance, the district said in a statement. Physical restraint is allowed in Georgia public schools and educational programs in those situations in which the student is an immediate danger to himself or others and the student is not responsive to less intensive behavioral interventions including verbal directives or other de-escalation techniques. MOSCOW (AP) Deep in the woods on the outskirts of Moscow, a sudden burst of gunfire sends a flock of birds screeching into the sky. A dozen people dressed in military fatigues scale a crumbling, abandoned high-rise with Kalashnikovs strapped to their backs. This is a "war camp" organized by the ultra-nationalist Eurasian Youth Union, known as ESM, the youth wing of the broader Eurasian movement. Such camps, which are on the rise in Russia, imitate a broader Kremlin policy of "patriotic education" that has seen a marked increase in government funding in recent years. The ESM camps serve as breeding grounds for the volunteers who fought alongside Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine and are now producing a new generation of trained fighters. "We are in a state when NATO moves closer to our borders and today's youth needs to be trained in order to prevent those attacks," says ESM leader Anton Bryusov. The nationalists see the West as their key enemy, but some are dissatisfied with President Vladimir Putin's handling of the war in Ukraine and believe he has not gone nearly far enough. "War with Ukraine is inevitable, but so far we have done only half of the task," says Alexander Dugin, the leader of the Eurasian movement. "We have united with Crimea, we have provided help to Novorossiya, but we didn't liberate Novorossiya." Nationalists had believed in what was known as the Novorossiya project, which aimed to carve out a swathe of traditionally Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine and reunite it with Russia. Instead, the conflict has created two breakaway pro-Russian regions in Donetsk and Lugansk, but they formally remain part of Ukraine. Still, despite their dissatisfaction over Ukraine, the bulk of nationalists remain supportive of the current regime, said Andrei Kolesnikov, an expert on Russian domestic politics at the Carnegie Moscow Center. "Mostly, the nationalists who are more or less rational are pro-Putin. Those who are really radical are against Putin because he hasn't finished the story in Donbass," he said. Plus, he added, "if they ended up going too far and presented a real threat to the regime, their activity would be stopped." Dugin, a far-right political ideologue with close ties to the Kremlin, chalks up Putin's handling of the situation in Ukraine to the political realities of Western pressure and economic sanctions. "I am irritated by the slowness of Putin's reform," Dugin said, speaking in his TV studio a stone's throw from Red Square. "When we are hesitating, we are losing; when we are making decisive steps we are winning." Dugin denies he is in the Kremlin's pocket, insisting they regard ESM as "a dangerous force that they cannot be lead or rule because we follow a strict line of our ideology." But research carried out by the Russia-based Center of Economic and Political Reforms shows that between 2013 and 2015, the ESM received presidential grants totaling more than 18.5 million rubles (nearly $300,000). Carrying out his own training in the woods, not far from the location of the ESM "war camp", Sergei Andreev, the 25-year-old founder of a small, far-right youth group called Right Anarchist, is polishing his Kalashnikov. Unlike most of his peers, he does not support Putin's presidency. "Putin is like all other leaders in the modern world: He just wants to hoard money and resources so that his family lives well," Andreev said. Behind him, the Right Anarchist flag a skull and crossbones flutters above a crackling camp fire. "There is no great idea behind him. He uses it to cover up his political manipulations." The numbers of far-right supporters like him who openly position themselves against Putin is small, and it's unlikely this discontent poses much of a threat to the Kremlin. "Part of the Putin regime is far right and ultra-nationalist . however, Putin would crush any ultranationalist force that's not loyal to the Kremlin," says Anton Shekhovtsov, an expert on the far right who has extensively chronicled Dugin and his followers over the past decade. "If it's not instrumental to them, they would ban them or crush them or put their leaders in jail." CALDCs Halloween Celebration A Real Treat! The Central Astoria LDCs 7th annual Batty Over Halloween Celebration held on Sunday, October 23rd was a real treat for everyone who came out. Despite... Meng Brings NASA Astronaut To Queens On October 17, U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Queens) brought NASA astronaut Dr. Jonny Kim to Queens where he met and spoke with students at Francis... Celebrating Columbus The Federation of Italian-American Organizations of Queens (FIAO) held their annual Columbus Day parade in Astoria, on Saturday, October 8, during Italian Heritage Month. The... Dijksma is reportedly looking to terminate Prorails current status as a legal entity wholly-owned by the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and convert the organisation into a state administration with the aim of strengthening government control and influence over the infrastructure manager. Prorail has been sharply criticised in recent years for poor performance, frequent serious disruption to operations, and exceeding budgets in new construction projects. Prorail issued a statement on October 17 expressing surprise at the unexpected media reports and asserting that it has not been informed by the ministry of any proposals to change its legal status or structure. However, Prorail states that studies into the future of the organisation are underway and negotiations are still taking place with the Ministry of Infrastructure. It also points out that disruption resulting from infrastructure-related incidents has fallen sharply since the appointment of a new senior management team under the leadership of CEO Mr Pier Eringa. Dijksma is due to meet the Parliamentary Commission for Transport and Infrastructure at the end of this month to discuss the future of Prorail. Stakeholders including Netherlands Railways (NS) and rail freight operators have urged the government to retain the existing status and structure of Prorail. The procurement is part of the Pavlodar Tram Project which aims to renew one-third of the citys 86 vehicle tram fleet and upgrade the 1524mm-gauge network which is electrified at 600V dc. This includes the replacement of turnouts, track and overhead electrification, and the installation of a GPS monitoring system, for which tenders will be sought soon. The project is being funded by a Tenge 2.5bn ($US 7.5m) loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and a Tenge 910m grant from the Kazakhstan government. The Akimat regional government will also provide support for the project. The ERBD loan was granted in May 2015 following a partnership agreement signed with Kazakhstan government a year earlier. Pavlodar is located in the northwest of the country and has a population of 330,000. Receive information about the latest railway tenders worldwide by subscribing to Global Rail Tenders. The highly anticipated natural history show Planet Earth II will be available in China at the same time as its UK debut, following a co-production deal between BBC Worldwide and Chinas Tencent. The deal , which marks the first time BBC Worldwide will co-produce a documentary with a video platform in China, will see the six part series stream in China on Tencents v.qq.com platform and its video app.Narrated by David Attenborough and produced by the BBCs Natural History Unit, Planet Earth II is shot in Ultra HD and uses the latest camera stabilisation, remote recording and aerial drone technology.A decade ago, Planet Earth redefined natural history filmmaking, giving us the ultimate portrait of life on Earth in HD. Planet Earth II is set to be another game changer. It will reveal our planet from a completely new perspective, using significant advances in both filming technology and our understanding of the natural world, said David Weiland, EVP Asia, BBC Worldwide Jeff Han, vice president, Tencent Online Media Group and general manager, Marketing & Video Content Co-operation said: Weve been partnering with BBC Worldwide for some time now, working with them to bring in premium documentaries for our audiences in China. This co-production agreement signifies a new level in our relationship which we hope to grow further.BBC Worldwides Weiland added: This production partnership is an affirmation of the shared commitment we have in producing ambitious natural history content. Tencents involvement will bring this landmark series to a wider Chinese audience across Greater China.Planet Earth II will take the audience closer to nature and allow them to experience the wilderness as if they were there, the BBC claims.The series is co-produced with BBC America, ZDF, Tencent and France Televisions. Mattel Creations has announced a raft of content deals with Chinese broadcasters and digital platforms for its childrens TV classic Thomas & Friends. State broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) has acquired the show, along with Chinese digital platforms LeEco, China Mobile and Air Media, following the theatrical release of Thomas & Friends: Sodors Legend of the Lost Treasure in China earlier this year.The Thomas & Friends franchise goes from strength to strength with its global appeal to parents and children. Thanks to our content distribution strategy, we see new generations of families all around the world discovering the contents powerful message of friendship and camaraderie as well as humour, action and fun. The brands expansion into Asia has seen phenomenal growth and this latest deal with CCTV will further cement this once it starts to TX next year, said Kate Schlomann, VP global grand marketing for Thomas & Friends.A Thomas & Friends channel has also recently launched on Youku (China), with the show now reaching around 3 billion people, across the countrys digital video platforms Other Asia-Pacific broadcasters which will take new Thomas & Friends content include Japans NHK, Global TV in Indonesia, GMA in the Philippines, South Koreas KBS, TVNZ in New Zealand and Hong Kongs TVB.Thomas the Tank Engine was created over 70 years ago by a British clergyman, the Rev W Awdry, as a book for his son. The TV series and films those books have since given birth to are now enjoyed in more than 150 territories and in over 40 languages.Mattel also announced at MIPCOM that in the UK, Thomas & Friends would move to Cartoonito from its current home on Nickelodeon Junior in 2017. Come and enjoy Read more [...] Pakistan cable operator InCable has opted for Exset to create and deploy value add and dynamic advertising services across its network. We have worked with InCable to understand the market pressures it faces. Were now supplying the powerful DMS 5.0 as well as surrounding technology. This includes high cost-effective, DMS-integrated Newland set-tops and EPG services together with dynamic ad insertion, said Mahmood Ulhaq (pictured), Exsets director of business development in Asia.InCable benefits by receiving set-tops with DMS integrated; the ability to create and launch services via the EPG; security options; and the DMS publishing engine. Then theres also the enhanced EPG UI and its smart advertising capabilities, he added.Pakistans cable industry had been working towards an analogue switch off date at the end of September, set by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authoritys ( PEMRA ), although has not recently reported on the progress of digitisation.We are providing operators with the ability to create services in a digital world over and above video, adding massive additional value to their proposition, helping them drive the digital transition. This helps them in their arguments to convince subscribers to move to digital by creating a whole range of services at a price point that is attractive to the population. In turn, this increases their revenue and will reduce churn, said Ulhaq.Irfan Goraya, managing director, InCable added: We very carefully looked at the market and we chose not to go with the cheapest option because we know that route has failed people in the past. We wanted a comprehensive solution that can help power our digital network rollout from both a technical and business perspective. Exset is providing that, not least with its consultancy services. Abu Dhabi Media (ADM) has become the first company in the Middle East to successfully broadcast a channel live over telco dus cloud-based unified IP infrastructure. As part of a demonstration at GITEX in Dubai, ADM broadcast its LIVE HD channel end-to-end through the cloud, from ingest through to editing, media asset management, playout and live transcoding for broadcast and over-the-top OTT ) service.We have a dedicated team of expert broadcasters and creative professionals working with the most advanced equipment in the region to broadcast and produce great TV. Our team is strategically located in the regional hub of Abu Dhabi, said Ali Buali, CEO of LIVE. We are thrilled to have partnered with du to deploy its innovative media cloud solution and bring next generation broadcast technologies to life for our stakeholders and viewers.UAE operator du has created an ecosystem of cloud hardware and software partners specialised in media industry to facilitate the operation. One of its leading partner companies, Imagine Communications, already provides broadcast playout, media asset management, traffic, scheduling and graphics services for ADM.We are delighted to be involved with this broadcast at ADM and have deployed a range of broadcast operations solutions to ensure that we can maintain live on-air transmission, using cloud services, in the event of a failure. This broadcast is not about getting any pictures on air but about guaranteeing the continuity of ADMs live operations is maintained from the cloud, said Paul Wallis, Imagine Communications director of sales, Middle East and North Africa.The entire live operations can be switched to the cloud and run live from anywhere using our Versio integrated playout in the cloud platform, alongside our Nexio Motion MAM and SelenioFlex Live transcoding solutions in tandem with du media cloud services, said Wallis.Hany Fahmy Aly, executive vice president enterprise business, du, added: We would like to congratulate LIVE for being so quick to act and broadcast our media cloud solution for the first time in the region. At du, we continue to work with visionary partners, including Imagine Communications, who are not afraid to push the envelope when it comes to technology. We are very pleased to be pioneering the first operator hosted media cloud solution. Mother of former Yukos security chief pleads for her sons pardon MOSCOW, October 19 (RAPSI) The mother of former Yukos security chief Alexei Pichugin sentenced to life in prison for masterminding several murders has appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin for pardoning her son, according to her open letter published in the Novaya Gazeta. Alla Pichugina wrote in the letter that her son is a non-public person who has not been going to litigate or to be at war with somebody as well as to be engaged in politics. Pichugin is 54 years old and he is not in good health, she added. He could not and cannot bear false witness against people in order to please somebody. It conflicts with his Christian worldview, Pichugina said in her letter to the President. In the summer of 2016, Pichugin lost an application for pardon. Alexei Pichugin has lodged a petition for pardon as this was the only legal chance for his release. He has already been refused, his lawyer Ksenia Kostromina said in June. According to investigators, a criminal group killed several people between 1998 and 2002, including Nefteyugansk mayor Vladimir Petukhov in 1998, on orders from former Yukos shareholder Leonid Nevzlin. In 2009, Nevzlin, who moved to Israel in 2003, was sentenced in absentia to life in prison. Pichugin was found guilty of murdering Petukhov and received a life sentence in 2008. The murder of Petukhov provoked a public outcry 17 years ago, when several media outlets speculated that he was directly involved in the re-division of Russias oil assets. Investigation into Petukhovs murder was suspended. In December 2015, former Yukos owner Mikhail Khodorkovsky was charged with organizing the murder of Petukhov. The Basmanny District Court of Moscow issued an arrest warrant for Khodorkovsky and put him on the international wanted list. Two Russians arrested in Colorado over alleged illegal hi-tech exports face trial in NY Context Two Russian nationals arrested in US on charges of illegal export of microelectronics MOSCOW, October 19 (RAPSI, Vladimir Yaduta) Russian nationals Dmitrii Karpenko and Alexey Krutilin arrested in Denver, Colorado, on charges of implication in illegally exporting high-technology products from the United States to Russia, are to be transferred to New York, where they face a trial. This order (a copy of which is at RAPSI disposal) was signed by Judge Kristen Mix, of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado yet on Tuesday. The Russian nationals refused to take part in pre-trial hearings in Colorado agreeing to the whole process including bail hearings to take place in New York. Matthew Belcher appointed by the court to defend Krutilin has confirmed to RAPSI that the trial is to be held in New York, since the criminal case being brought against the two Russian nationals emanates from that state. Karpenko and Krutilin were arrested along with Alexey Barysheff, a naturalized citizen of the United States. Charges brought against Karpenko, 33, and Krutilin, 27, also indicated in the case materials as David Powell and Simon Fox, are based on the evidence presented by NSA agent Susan Ruiz. According to her, the arrested men allegedly conspired to deliver cutting-edge microelectronics to Russia via companies BKLN Spectra, Inc. (Spectra) and UIP Techno Corp. (UIP Techno), registered by Barysheff in Brooklyn in 2015, without receipt of the governments permit. As law enforcers in the U.S. believe, defendants have deceived suppliers of microelectronics about product customers, provided forged shipping documentation and falsely classified the exported devices on records furnished to the Department of Commerce. However, technology products were delivered to Russia through Finland. According to Ruiz, Karpenko and Krutilin arrived to New York on October 1 and planned to return to Russia on October 7. On October 3, they travelled to Denver, Colorado, where the next day allegedly attempted to get in a U.S. Air Force base located in Colorado Springs. They could face up to 25 years in prison and a $1 million fine is convicted. MOSCOW, October 19 (RAPSI, Diana Gutsul) The Moscow District Military Court will question a high-ranking investigator for especially important cases of the Russian Investigative Committee, Marina Molodstova as a witness in the criminal case over killing prominent opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, RAPSI learnt in the court on Wednesday. The court has granted a motion of a prosecutor who believes that it is necessary to reveal circumstances related to a pack of bullet cases found on the crime scene as well as material evidence research protocol. Earlier it has been reported that Deputy Chairman of the Russian Investigative Committee, Major General of Justice Igor Krasnov will testify in the case. Major General has not given his testimony yet. The murder of Nemtsov is considered by jury trial. On September 29, the Moscow District Military Court formed a panel of jurors selecting 22 people to make 12 main and 10 reserve members to examine the case. At the end of June, Russias Investigative Committee reported that investigation into the case of Zaur Dadayev, Anzor Gubashev, Shadid Gubashev, Temerlan Eskerkhanov, and Khamzat Bakhayev who stand charged with a contract murder in the composition of an organized gang, and of illegal acquisition, transportation and possession of firearms, had been completed. According to investigators, in late September 2014, Ruslan Mukhudinov, a former officer in the Chechen Interior Ministry, and some unnamed persons offered Beslan Shavanov and the five accused to murder Nemtsov for 15 million rubles ($237,500). Nemtsov was murdered in central Moscow on the night of February 28. In the 1990s, the politician held a number of high-ranking posts in the Russian Government. In the 2000s, he joined the opposition. Prosecution of Shavanov was dismissed in November 2015 because of his death by self-destruction in the course of his apprehending in Chechnya. Investigation into Mukhudinov, the alleged mastermind behind this high-profile murder, who has been on the international wanted list since 2015 and other unidentified persons, is still going on. Google appeals dismissal of lawsuit against antimonopoly watchdog MOSCOW, October 19 (RAPSI) Google has filed an appeal against courts decisions upholding the Federal Antimonopoly Services (FAS) ruling to fine the corporation 438 million rubles ($6.7 mln), RAPSI learned in the Moscow District Commercial Court on Wednesday. On October 10, the Moscow Commercial Court dismissed one of Google's appeals against the ruling. A motion to dismiss the appeal was filed by Google itself during preliminary hearings on October 5. The corporation claimed that the court is already reviewing a similar lawsuit by Google that was filed on August 26. Duplication of lawsuits happens to commercial courts because plaintiffs file the same lawsuits in paper and digital forms simultaneously. On August 17, the Ninth Commercial Court of Appeals has dismissed an appeal filed by Google against a ruling that the US company had broken Russian anti-monopoly legislation by abusing its dominance on the Russian market of mobile applications. In early August, FAS announced that it had fined Google 438 million rubles for violating administrative legislation. On September 18, 2015, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) found Google guilty of violation the legislation. On March 15, 2016, the Moscow Commercial Court dismissed Googles petition requesting to abolish the FAS decision and order issued in September 2015, which stated that the company had violated the Federal Law on Protection of Competition and accusing it of abuse of dominance on the market of preinstalled applications in the Android operating system. Alleged Russian hacker arrested in Czech Republic MOSCOW, October 19 (RAPSI) Embassy of Russia in Czech Republic has confirmed the arrest of a Russian national on suspicion of hacker attacks, RIA Novosti reported on Wednesday. As previously reported, Czech police in cooperation with FBI announced that alleged Russian hacker suspected of cyber attacks on targets in the U.S. had been arrested. The arrest of a Russian citizen was conducted by Czech authorities at the request of a court in one of the U.S. states, the agency quoted the embassys representative Aleksey Kolmakov as having said. The Russian embassy makes all possible efforts to defend the suspect in cooperation with his lawyer, according to Kolmakov. We insist that the arrested man should be turned over to Russia, he added. Russian lower house adopts bill on donated blood storage Context New law on blood donors enters into force in Russia MOSCOW, October 19 (RAPSI) The State Duma has passed in the first reading a bill on storage of donated blood, RIA Novosti reported on Wednesday. The bill would amend the Federal Law on Donated Blood and Components Thereof. The draft law authorizes Russias government to lay down rules of supply, banking, transportation and clinical use of donated blood. This initiative is aimed to bring Russian legislation in line with the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union, an explanatory note to the bill reads. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale Buy real estate. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale in US and Canada. Search Real Estate , We're sorry, this article is not currently available We told you about the X Elles at the Rebelle Rally earlier this month. The event began on the 13th and runs through the 22nd. This 7 day off-road navigation rally [is covering] more than 2000 km through the Nevada and California deserts with no GPS or electronics. It is not a race for speed, but a unique and demanding event based on the elements of headings, hidden checkpoints, time, and distance using maps, compass, and road book. Here's a couple of updates on Team 137, the X Elles, who are sponsored by Combat Flip Flops. Rebelle Rally Day One Over 100 grueling off-road miles and 12 checkpoints. The X Elles hit all 12 and tie for first place. Rebelle Rally Day Two A day of shakeups. The X Elles are now in 4th place, missing some gear, backtracking, but still smiling and positive. Amazing fortitude and attitude. Last week, Combat Flip Flops CEO, Griff, announced that for every checkpoint The X Elles hit, they will fund a week of school for an Afghan girl. At the close of day 2, thats 25 weeks of school! Click the link to follow the race here: http://www.rebellerally.com/live/. About The X Elles as they describe themselves. The X Elles were created to do one thing, inspire women around the world. In 2012, The X Elles were established to race in the Rally Aiche des Gazelles du Maroc, the longest, hardest, all female off-road Rally raid in the world. In the 4 years since, Rhonda Cahill and Rachelle Croft have continued to race, competing twice in Morocco to bring awareness to sexual abuse and hope with their campaigns 1 in 4' and #youareloved. Whether raising their kids, speaking, training, or filming, these women live to inspire people around the world. About Combat Flip Flops in their own words. Combat Flip Flops is a veteran-owned small business creating economic, educational and life-saving opportunities for those living in conflict areas. Working with self-determined entrepreneurs affected by conflict, Combat Flip Flops willingness to take bold risks, build community connections, and create distinct designs communicate, Business, Not Bulletsflipping the view on how wars are won. In 2016, through the brands Unarmed Forces (consumers and supporters) one year of school has been funded for 134 Afghan girls and over 5,000 square meters of land mines have been cleared in Laos, allowing children to safely walk to school and farmers to harvest their land. To keep up Combat Flop Flops, please visit their website. 'We had sex almost daily';Teacher tells Dr. Phil boy threatened to 'burn (her) life down' if she broke off relationshipPOSTMEDIA NETWORKFirst posted: Tuesday, October 18, 2016 12:41 PM EDT | Updated: Tuesday, October 18, 2016 01:57 PM EDTA disgraced teacher fired for having sex with a 17-year-old student is claiming the boy seduced her.Mary Beth Haglin canned from her Iowa teaching job told Dr. Phil the boy swept her off her feet."He did so with such intelligence and such an elevated vocabulary that I was completely duped by the whole facade, the 24-year-old told the TV psychologist. "He caught me in my weakest moments, and he used that to his advantage.The teacher-turned-stripper said the boy wooed her with handwritten notes and steamy texts."I did ignore a lot of that at first because obviously, I knew that it was illegal, not allowed, frowned upon everything," she said.Finally, she says she succumbed to the teens charm even though she knew what was in her heart was taboo.We had sex almost daily in his car, my car, his mom's house, and his dad's house, the teaching temptress said, adding she wanted to end their illicit romps but the boy threatened to rat her out."When things got way out of control, and I wanted out, he began saying 'I will light a match and burn your life down, Haglin added.She could be jailed for two years -- even though she believes shes the victim.Meanwhile, Washington state high school teacher Olivia Sondheim, 25, has been arrested for allegedly having sex with a male student, the DailyMail.com reports The Lynnwood High School choir teacher has been charged with first-degree sexual misconduct with a minor, according to the site.Officials say in the DailyMail.com story the much married Sondheim and the student (16 at the time) became close and the relationship turned sexual. Her photo was still on the school web page.She wrote on the choir page: I am excited to get to know each and every one of you, the news agency reports.mary beth haglinolivia sonheim When voter registration concluded on Oct. 11 in Georgia, a potential swing state in the 2016 election, the push for Georgia voters to have their voices be heard was at an all-time high. Since Aprils election, the new Student Government Association administration at the University of Georgia has passed more than a dozen resolutions, several bills and made major changes to university policy. FILE - In this May 3, 2008 file photo, members of the Dixie Cups from left, Rosa Lee Hawkins, Joan Marie Johnson and Barbara Ann Hawkins perform during the 2008 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in New Orleans. Johnson, one of the founding members of the New Orleans girl group who had a No. 1 hit in 1964 with Chapel of Love, died of congestive heart failure at a hospice in New Orleans on Oct. 3, 2016. She was 72. (AP Photo/Dave Martin, File) SHARE By MARK KENNEDY, AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) Joan Marie Johnson, one of the founding members of the New Orleans girl group The Dixie Cups, who had a No. 1 hit in 1964 with "Chapel of Love," has died at a hospice in New Orleans. She was 72. Johnson, who was only with the group for its first few years because she was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia, died of congestive heart failure Oct. 3, according to former bandmate Barbara Ann Hawkins. Their "Chapel of Love," written by Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry, supplanted the Beatles' "Love Me Do" as the No. 1 song on both the pop and R&B charts. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame later included it in the 500 Songs that Shaped Rock & Roll. It turns out the trio arranged the vocals on the spot. "When Ellie and Jeff first played 'Chapel' for us, we looked at each other, like, 'You really want us to sing that like that?' They said, 'Well, how do you want to sing it?' So I said, 'Give us a minute.' So we went in the corner and started singing. We walked back to them and when we sang it the way it was recorded, they were just, 'Wow! That was awesome,'" Hawkins said. The trio's other hits include "People Say," ''You Should Have Seen the Way He Looked at Me" and their version of a traditional New Orleans song "Iko Iko." Though they meet all the qualifications for entry in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, so far they have not been invited to join. "We went through a lot because it was the early '60s and we went through a lot as far as race and a whole lot of other things. We had a manager who wasn't really in our corner, but there were a lot of good times," Hawkins said. Johnson started the group as a teenager and asked Hawkins to join. Hawkins soon asked if her sister, Rosa Lee, could also join. When they were about to go to New York to set up music deals, Hawkins' grandmother called over to the Johnson house to find out more about her and her family. Soon the grandmother started laughing and the Hawkins sisters eventually realized that Johnson was their cousin. "I had never even met her," said Barbara Ann Hawkins. The trio would eventually be signed to Red Bird Records by the songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. But the traveling and inconsistent meal times took their toll on Johnson, who dropped out of the group. She is survived by a sister, Ida, and a brother, Howard. A memorial is planned at the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses on Oct. 18. ___ Online: http://www.thedixiecups.org In this Oct. 2, 2016 photo, diners smoke marijuana as they eat dishes prepared by chefs during an evening of pairings of fine food and craft marijuana strains served to invited guests dining at Planet Bluegrass, an outdoor venue in Lyons, Colo. Chefs and pot growers trying to explore fine dining with weed face a legal gauntlet to make pot dinners a reality, even where the drug is legal. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley) SHARE By KRISTEN WYATT, Associated Press LYONS, Colo. (AP) How to set a tone of woodsy chic at a four-course candlelight dinner served under the stars in the Colorado foothills: Live musicians and flowers, check. Award-winning cuisine, check. Beer and wine pairings with each course, check. Marijuana pairings? Oh, yes. The 100 diners at this $200-a-plate dinner smoked a citrus-smelling marijuana strain to go with a fall salad with apples, dates and bacon, followed by a darker, sweeter strain of pot to accompany a main course of slow-roasted pork shoulder in a mole sauce with charred root vegetables and rice. And with dessert? Marijuana-infused chocolate, of course, grated over salted caramel ice cream and paired with coffee infused with non-intoxicating hemp oil. The diners received small glass pieces and lighters to smoke the pairings, or they could have their marijuana rolled into joints by professional rollers set up next to a bartender pouring wine. Welcome to fine dining in Weed Country. The marijuana industry is trying to move away from its pizza-and-Doritos roots as folks explore how to safely serve marijuana and food. Chefs are working with marijuana growers to chart the still-very-unscientific world of pairing food and weed. And a proliferation of mass-market cheap pot is driving professional growers to develop distinctive flavors and aromas to distinguish themselves in a crowded market. "We talk with the (marijuana) grower to understand what traits they saw in the marijuana ... whether it's earthy notes, citrus notes, herbal notes, things that we could play off," said Corey Buck, head of catering for Blackbelly Restaurant, a top-rated farm-to-table restaurant that provided the meal. The grower of one of the pot strains served at the dinner, Alex Perry, said it won't be long until marijuana's flavors and effects are parsed as intently as wine profiles. But that's in the future, he conceded. "It's still looked down upon as a not-very-sophisticated thing," said Perry, who grew a strain called Black Cherry Soda for his company, Headquarters Cannabis. Holding his nose to a small jar of marijuana, Perry said, "If I asked my mom or my dad what they smell, they're going to say, 'skunk,' or, 'It smells like marijuana.' But it's like wine or anything else. There's more flavor profile there." But chefs and pot growers trying to explore fine dining with weed face a legal gauntlet to make pot dinners a reality, even where the drug is as legal as beer. Colorado's marijuana retailers can't also sell food, so guests at this dinner had to buy a separate $25 "goodie bag" from a dispensary for the pot pairings. The bags came with tiny graters for diners to shave the pot chocolate onto their ice cream themselves; the wait staff could not legally serve a dish containing pot, even though the event was private and limited to people over 21. Diners were shuttled to and from the event by private bus, to avoid potentially stoned drivers leaving the dinner. Marijuana dining may become more accessible in coming months, though. Denver voters this fall will consider a proposal to allow marijuana use at some bars and restaurants as long as the drug isn't smoked, with the potential for new outdoor marijuana smoking areas. And two of the five states considering recreational marijuana in November California and Maine would allow some "social use" of the drug, leaving the potential for pot clubs or cafes. Currently, Alaska is the only legal weed state that allows on-site marijuana use, with "tasting rooms" possible in commercial dispensaries. But that state is still working on rules for how those consumption areas would work. For now, marijuana dining is limited to folks who hire private chefs to craft infused foods for meals served in their homes, or to special events like this one, limited to adults and set outside to avoid violating smoke-free air laws. Guests at the Colorado dinner were admittedly experimenting with pairing weed and food, many giggling as they toked between bites. It became apparent late in the evening that a rich meal doesn't counteract marijuana's effects. "What was I just saying?" one diner wondered aloud before dessert. "Oh, yeah. About my dog. No, your dog. Somebody's dog." The man trailed off, not finishing his thought. His neighbor patted him on the back and handed him a fresh spoon for the ice cream. Diners seemed genuinely curious about how to properly pair marijuana and food without getting too intoxicated. "I am not a savant with this," said Tamara Haddad of Lyons, who was waiting to have one of her pot samples professionally rolled into a joint. "I enjoy (marijuana) occasionally. I enjoy it with friends. I'm learning more about it." She laughed when asked whether marijuana can really move beyond its association with junk-food cravings. "I have also munched out after being at the bar and drinking martinis and thinking, 'Taco Bell sounds great,'" she said. SHARE By Sean Longoria of the Redding Record Searchlight Redding is working with other local water agencies to put together a plan to manage groundwater, city officials told the Redding City Council on Tuesday night. The city, along with Shasta County, Anderson and three water districts, are working against a June deadline to establish an agency to administer a future plan. Otherwise, the county could assume control or even the state. "This is so important because we don't want the state to come in and tell us how to manage our groundwater," Redding Mayor Missy McArthur said. State laws passed in 2014 require the groundwater management plans for Redding's water basin and others, Crane said. Redding Public Works Director Brian Crane is working with his counterparts in other agencies and local water district managers on a formal agreement for the agency, which would be composed of members from its members. From there, a public presentation is set for early December to gather input before the agency is formed by the June deadline. Absent the formation of an agency, the California State Water Resources Control Board would take control of groundwater management and Redding and other agencies would also face fees by the state. "It's not just them coming in and managing, but we're going to pay for their management" Crane said. In other action, the council asked city staffers to deliver an update on the police body camera program. The city is in negotiations with the Redding Peace Officers Association over the camera program. Redding Police Chief Rob Paoletti has said he's ready to put a pilot program in place, but is waiting on a deal with the union. City Treasurer Allyn Van Hooser provided an update to the city's upcoming change for what types of credit cards are accepted as payment for city services. Redding won't accept American Express because of high processing fees while commercial utility customers won't be able to pay with MasterCard. The move will save the city at least $250,000 per year, Van Hooser said. Community Services Director Kim Niemer also updated the council on the city's annual Community Creek Clean-up, which pulled about 1,600 pounds of trash from the north side of the Sacramento River Trail between the Market Street Bridge and the Quartz Hill Road Trailhead. Next year's cleanup is set for Oct. 7. The council also discussed in closed session but took no reportable action on an offer to buy the former Redding Police Department building on California Street downtown. This article has been updated to reflect the California State Water Resources Control Board would assume management of the area's groundwater if local agencies don't form an agency to do so. SHARE By Nathan Solis of the Redding Record Searchlight Shasta County supervisors Tuesday accepted a half-million dollar state grant to develop a stabilization unit for adults undergoing a mental health crisis. Now, the unit's fate rests on Redding voters' approval of Measures D and E in November. To operate the four-bed unit, the county would depend on a mix of funding sources. The city of Redding would provide $1 million a year for 10 years if the sales tax is approved. The other $1 million a year would come from the county, Medi-Cal funding and funds the state has provided since it implemented prison realignment under Assembly Bill 109. Without the sales tax, Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) Director Donnell Ewert said he's unsure how the county would pay for the crisis unit. "We would come back to the board to identify other financing options if (Measures D and E) do not pass," Ewert said. "It would be difficult moving forward." If Redding voters approve the new tax, the county would begin its search for a provider to oversee the crisis unit. The county closed its own psychiatric hospital in 2004 and sends patients undergoing severe mental crises to other counties for treatment. HHSA has explored reopening a hospital in the past, but Ewert said nothing has materialized. Redding City Council member Gary Cadd disagrees the sales tax is needed to operate the crisis unit and said the county has the funding. Cadd wrote the opposition argument to the sales tax measures and said a stalled county courthouse project leaves extra funding on the table. "They're just sitting on the money that's earmarked for that project," Cadd said. "There are funds around that could be used for the mental health unit. It's a county problem." Cadd said the sales tax money would go into the city of Redding's general fund and, he believes, ultimately would not be spent on what is laid out in Measure E, the companion piece that spells out where the money is allocated. Proponents of the tax dispute that. The sales tax for Redding would also go to funding the Redding Police Department, Shasta County Sheriff's Office jail space, Redding Fire Department and a sobering center. Susan Power, Shasta County National Alliance on Mental Illness president, said hospital emergency rooms are crowded with people undergoing mental health crises. "It doesn't work well," Power said. "The hospitals are not equipped to work that way. A unit would make a world of difference for families who are trying to help a loved one." As a parent of an adult son who has experienced mental health problems, Power thinks any large city should have a crisis stabilization option for a person who can feel a problem building up. Having a crisis unit means someone can recover quickly and not overcrowd local emergency rooms, she said. SHARE By Damon Arthur of the Redding Record Searchlight A group has stepped forward to purchase and resume operating Iron Mountain Mine near Redding, considered one of the most toxic waste sites in the United States. Joseph Dzida, an attorney from Los Angeles, was in Shasta County Superior Court this week asking a judge to allow his client to purchase the mine from the estate of its previous owner, who died in 2013. Dzida said he represents Felicia De Jesus Rivera, the longtime companion of the former owner, Ted Arman. He is also working with Chris Costello, a consultant who said he has worked on other environmental cleanup sites in California. The group wants to buy the 4,400-acre mine site about 10 miles northwest of Redding for $10,000 and remove materials such as minerals and sulphuric acid to sell them. Dzida filed a request with the court to either purchase the property or have John McKinley, a lawyer from Stockton, removed as administrator of Arman's estate. McKinley, Dzida and lawyers for AIG Specialty Insurance Co. were in court Monday to argue the case before Superior Court Judge Monique McKee, who has not made a decision. From the late 1880s to the mid-1960s gold, sulphur, zinc, iron and copper were mined at the site. Arman purchased the property in 1977, but by the early 1980s the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had declared the area a toxic waste site. EPA officials say the water coming out of the mine is some of the most acidic in the world. The water from the mine is treated onsite by adding lime, which raises the pH level to the point the water is not dangerous. Minerals in the water are also removed when they attach to the lime, EPA officials said. The lime is separated from the water after treatment. The cleanup at the mine is expected to continue for decades. Dzida and Costello, though, said they are interested in the mine water because it is so acidic. Costello said their plan would be to ship the sulphuric acid-laden water offsite to a processing plant. Sulphuric acid has many uses, including as an agricultural fertilizer. He did not have an estimate of when work would begin or how many people would be employed in the project. "It is Joe, Felicia, her daughter Cindy, and my hope, that if we should win, we will then be able to finally move forward on a most excellent and positive win, win way for all of the stakeholders in this stalled-out dilemma," Costello said. McKinley, though, argued against selling the property or removing him as estate administrator. He said he has plans to develop materials on the site into a fertilizer called Ag-Gel, and the proceeds would benefit a charitable foundation that Arman wanted to establish. He said several other people have approached him over the years with proposals to remove minerals and other materials from the site, but nothing has come to fruition. McKinley said he was contacted by Dzida, Costello and others, but he did not reply to them because he felt they were trying to take advantage of Arman and the estate. However, Scott Davis, a lawyer for AIG, which is paying for a large portion of the cleanup, called proposals to make money off the former mine a "pipe dream." "As a practical matter, nothing of value will ever occur at this site," Davis said in court. It isn't likely the EPA would allow any work on the property and the agency's process to evaluate proposals would take many years, Davis said. EPA officials, however, did not dismiss the idea of resuming commercial activity at the site. Michelle Huitric, a spokeswoman for the EPA, said her agency would have to approve any proposals to remove materials from the property. Any work to remove material from the site could not interfere with the cleanup work, and disposal of materials would have to be done safely and according to federal and state laws, she said. Andreas Fuhrmann/Record Searchlight California Department of Fish and Wildlife Lt. DeWayne Little cleans up an irrigation hose Tuesday at a former illegal marijuana growing operation in the national forest in eastern Shasta County. The operation was raided by authorities in July, and the cleanup is being conducted by the U.S. Forest Service, which manages that section of the forest. SHARE Andreas Fuhrmann/Record Searchlight California Department of Fish and Wildlife Lt. DeWayne Little looks at a garbage pile in a seasonal creek bed Tuesday at an illegal marijuana growing operation in eastern Shasta County. Andreas Fuhrmann/Record Searchlight An irrigation hose is camouflaged Tuesday at an illegal marijuana growing operation on U.S. Forest Service land. By Joe Szydlowski of the Redding Record Searchlight BURNEY Not long after dawn Tuesday, Lake Britton's still waters reflected a dulled mix of the fiery-red oaks, more common green conifers and clouds tinged silver. But not that far from the reservoir's one-lane bridge in eastern Shasta County, state and federal law enforcement agents, scientists, fire crews and others prepared to hike through steep, rain-soaked terrain beneath towering cedars and pines. They were heading to an area on U.S. Forest Service land where water pipes weaved in and out of the earth underneath scattered, small clusters of fertilizer bags and pesticide containers and the remains of a 250-acre marijuana grow complex that was raided in July. Along the way, biologist Mourad Gabriel picks up a Halloween candy-size, yellow wrapper with a half-moon chunk bitten off. "What does that look like to you? That looks a lot like a rabbit or a rodent chewed on it," Gabriel said, holding the now-empty package of bromethalin, a poison for rodents. "Easily." GOING TO POT Among the first targets of the growers is the most critical element itself: water. The growers established an elaborate yet jury-rigged 18-mile irrigation network that drained the nearby creek, said Joyce El Kouarti, public affairs officer with the Lassen National Forest, one of 10 organizations that partnered in the cleanup. The growers work long hours to build, maintain and conceal the grow site, said Lt. DeWayne Little, an agent with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. They will thread the piping under bark, through underground roots and even under Forest Service roads to hide them, he said. Those streams' lost water leaves the local insects and amphibians, already suffering from pesticide and other chemical runoffs, even more in danger, Gabriel said. Smaller mammals are poisoned by traps left out to deter the rabbits and rodents, which eat the marijuana leaves, Gabriel said. That works its way up the food chain, affecting animals that hunt, but don't live, near the grows including the endangered spotted owl and some game animals, which growers may also poach. But the types of trash become more diverse after group members reach a camp, which was ringed by a solar-powered electric fence, said Brianne Roudeloush, public affairs officer with the California National Guard, which will airlift the piping and other rubbish out of the area on Thursday. Animals had turned over much of the camp's kitchen, Gabriel said, holding a can punctured by a bear's canines. In a nearby, dry creek bed lay several piles of garbage bags, sleeping bags, dirty clothes and food packages. Many such items peppered the camp's living area, including a relatively clean pair of boots and Star Wars flip-flops. In another area, only food garbage had been tossed likely to lure bears away from camp, Little said. MORE NEEDED El Kouarti says the cleanups arose out of a multi-organization partnership coordinated by Lassen National Forest. They hope to disrupt the much more expensive infrastructure, meaning setting up shop would become much more expensive. But they can't clean up every site. When agents raided grow sites over the summer, they only had time to eradicate the pot, whose plants were destined for other states, and arrest suspects there, said Tony Magarrell, a special agent with the Forest Service. Agents' manpower allowed only 40 raids in the eastern North State and far fewer cleanups, he said. El Kouarti expects 6,000 pounds of trash to be hauled out of the site near Lake Britton. The camp had been occupied previous years and some of previous years' trash, including a bag of used trimmers, remained in the creekbed, Little said. The problem is too few personnel, Magarrell said. The two Forest Service law enforcement personnel need at least six to 10 fellow officers to raid a site, which may have up to 20 growers with firearms, he said. As for those who stumble across such illegal grows, Gabriel suggests they follow his fellow scientists' lead: "Do a 180 and go back out the way you came." SHARE By Sean Longoria of the Redding Record Searchlight The Redding City Council on Tuesday night will hear an offer to purchase the former downtown police station. Council members will discuss the offer from Equity Streams, LLC, in closed session. City Manager Kurt Starman said the company submitted a proposal to buy the property but Tuesday will be the first time the council will consider it. Equity Streams bought the former Redding Moose Lodge property on Lake Boulevard and sold it to Best Value Storage to repurpose the building for storage units. Up to $375,000 from the sale would go toward building a sobering center, though if such a center is already built by the time the buildings are sold, the city would use the money to pay down debt on the new police headquarters next to Redding City Hall, Starman said in a report to the council. In other business the council will discuss in closed session contract negotiations with the Redding Peace Officers Association. It will also receive reports on the 2016 Community Creek Cleanup and Parke Diem, an update on the development impact fees and a report on the city's guidelines for which credit cards it will accept for payments. Reporter Sean Longoria will offer live coverage of the meeting below, on Twitter or at http://scrbliv.me/2365661. SHARE Jack Hopkins By Amber Sandhu and Joe Szydlowski, Record Searchlight Photos: Deputy Jack Hopkins procession Local law enforcement officials met a slain comrades procession in Bella Vista Thursday, falling in behind as it headed into Redding and south to the Shasta County Coroners Office. Modoc County Sheriffs Deputy Jack Hopkins died instantly after being shot Wednesday responding to a domestic disturbance near Alturas, investigators have said. Just as the procession left Alturas Thursday, they named a convicted sex offender, Jack Lee Breiner, 47, as the suspect. As the law enforcement vehicles rolled into Bella Vista, they passed under an American flag swung from an Anderson Fire Protection District ladder truck. Nearby, a few civilians watching placed their hands over their hearts, as Shasta County law enforcement vehicles left Deschutes Road and joined in the procession one by one. In Redding, more locals both in public safety uniforms and street clothes lined the street. Officials with the Redding Police Department, Shasta County Sheriffs Office, California Highway Patrol and Redding Fire Department joined the procession with the Modoc County Sheriffs Department. This is just our way of showing respect for the sacrifice that hes made and a chance for Redding to show their respect as well, Redding Police Chief Robert Paoletti said. Along Lake Boulevard, across from the Walgreens pharmacy, retired Redding police Cpl. Mike Woods, 50, stood at attention as the procession passed him and his Back the Blue flag. As he and an off-duty California Highway Patrol officer saluted, Woods father, daughter and wife watched in somber silence, reminded of the risks Woods undertook. You just try not to think about it. He goes to work just like anybody goes to work. You dont think about it until he comes home and you can breathe again, said Deneen Woods, 50, Mike Woods wife. You cant think about it. Youll make yourself sick. Woods daughter Danielle Taylor, 26, brought her son Nico. The day sparked strong memories for her as well. When he (went) to work, youd make sure to tell him you love him before he left, she said. As the procession passed Woods, his father and his wife wiped the corners of their eyes. The off-duty CHP officer bit his lip and declined to comment. On Lake Boulevard, Redding firefighters had another ladder truck flying the U.S. flag in honor of Hopkins, said Capt. Ron Utvich. As the procession weaved through Redding, firefighters from each fire station stood to honor Hopkins at various points, he said. In (emergency) services, were all kind of one big family, he said. I know if we had a fallen firefighter, law enforcement, theyd be out here supporting us. The procession honored Hopkins, 31, who was shot and killed after responding to a family disturbance call at a property near Alturas around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. Investigators say Breiner fled the scene but was confronted by Sheriff Mike Poindexter. He was shot and is expected to survive. Hes being treated at a Redding hospital. Shasta County Undersheriff Eric Magrini said Modoc County officials reached out to Shasta County because they have a forensic pathologist on staff at the coroners office. By 1 p.m., Hopkins body arrived at the coroners office on Breslauer Way. Shasta and Modoc county officials lined up in front of the coroners office and saluted as Hopkins body, which was covered in an American flag, was taken away. Magrini laid a rose by Hopkins feet. Officials exchanged hugs and consoled one another, some shedding tears. Sgt. Mike Main of the Modoc County Sheriffs Office said hed always remember Hopkins as a guy with the highest level of integrity and good moral character. He was a good friend, good law enforcement officer, he said. And he meant a lot to all of us and were all hurting. Live updates from earlier in the day follow: Update 1:28 p.m. Law enforcement officers consoled each other in front of the Shasta County Coroner's Office as the procession bringing Hopkins' body ended there about three hours after it began in Alturas. Update 12:56 p.m. Arriving on Lake Boulevard, the procession is now moving toward downtown Redding. Law enforcement vehicles that met it in Bella Vista followed into town. Update 12:39 p.m. The procession has passed through Bella Vista and will arrive in Redding shortly on Highway 299. Road closures are expected in Redding as the procession turns south on Market Street and heads through Downtown, starting at Market Street and Trinity Street at the north end and at least to Yuba Street on the south. Market Street downtown is also closing to southbound traffic. Law enforcement officers and members of the public lined the roads to greet the procession in Bella Vista, and as it passed people stood in the crowd with their hands over their hearts. Update 12:28 p.m. The procession is about to arrive in Bella Vista, where members of public safety professions and the public will pay respects as it passes on toward Redding. We have reporters, photographers and videographers stationed along the route and will be bringing you live updates, photos and video. Scroll down for specific information about the route. Update 12:10 p.m. The procession for Modoc County sheriff's deputy Jack Hopkins is expected to arrive in the Redding area at about 12:30 p.m. Local law enforcement will meet the procession in Bella Vista at My-T-Fine Foods, Shasta County Undersheriff Eric Magrini said. From there, the procession will head west on Highway 299, then turn onto North Market Street to California Street in downtown Redding, then to South Market Street to Breslauer Way, arriving at the Shasta County Coroner's Office. Follow along with live coverage of the precession below or at http://scrbliv.me/2368136. Update 10 a.m. Thursday The body of Modoc County sheriff's deputy Jack Hopkins will be transported to Redding today. The Modoc County Sheriff's Office said Hopkins' body will leave Modoc County at about 10 a.m. after passing through Main Street in Alturas. From there, the procession will move to Highway 299 toward Redding, the Sheriff's Office said on Facebook. The procession should arrive in Redding at about 12:30 p.m. via Highway 299, then turn onto North Market Street. From there, the procession will go on to California Street in downtown Redding, then to South Market Street to Breslauer Way. Local law enforcement will meet the procession in Bella Vista at My-T-Fine Foods, Shasta County Undersheriff Eric Magrini said. The Shasta County Coroner's Office is conducting Hopkins' autopsy. Law enforcement, emergency responders and the public are intived to view the procession in honor of Hopkins, according to the Sheriff's Office. Original story The Modoc County sheriffs deputy who was shot and killed while responding to a disturbance call near Alturas was identified tonight by the sheriffs office. He was identified as Jack Hopkins, 31, who has worked as a deputy there since 2015. "He leaves behind extended family and co-workers who will miss him," a sheriff's office spokesman said. "The Modoc County Sheriffs Office is overwhelmed with the outpouring of support and generosity for all of the sheriffs office staff," the statement added. "Please continue to keep our law enforcement community and first responders in your prayers and respect the familys and law enforcements privacy." The officer is the second Modoc County law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty since 1901. A suspect in the deputy's killing was arrested Wednesday, the sheriff's office said. The violent killing shocked and saddened residents of the rural northeastern California county. Things like this dont happen in the community, said Miguel Castro, 55, of Alturas. Castro, a 12-year resident whose family owns and operates Harolds Frosty burger joint on Main Street, said his heart goes out to the officers family, as well as to the entire law enforcement community. Its sad, he said, noting that he has a number of law enforcement customers. But, he said, he has yet to learn the name of the deputy who was killed. A video of a procession this evening in Hopkin's honor and memory was posted on the Modoc County Sheriff's Office Facebook page. Deputies were responding around 10:30 a.m. to a call on County Road 115 about 10 miles south of Alturas when Hopkins was fatally shot. The California Highway Patrol, the Alturas Police Department and the U.S. Forest Service also responded to the scene after a call about an officer-involved shooting went out, the sheriffs office said. The suspect, who has not been identified, was arrested shortly afterward, the sheriffs office added. It did not say if the suspect may have been wounded. A sheriffs spokesman said Wednesday evening that additional details about the shooting are expected to be released around 10 a.m. Thursday when the office holds a news conference in Alturas. Meanwhile, the shooting is being investigated by the Shasta County Sheriffs Office and the California Highway Patrol, the sheriffs office said. The Modoc County Sheriffs Office said earlier in the day in a brief statement that the deputy was involved in an active-shooter incident, but it did not release any other details. County government offices in Alturas were placed under lockdown in the morning after the initial reports of the shooting. Modoc County Administrator Chester Robertson said he was locking down all government facilities in the Alturas area, but he had no further information about the incident. The deputy killed is the fourth law enforcement officer in California to die in the line of duty in the past two weeks. The slaying comes after two Palm Springs police officers were shot to death during a domestic disturbance call and a Los Angeles County sheriffs sergeant was shot and killed in the high desert town of Lancaster while answering a burglary call. The Modoc County deputy is the second Modoc County law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty in 115 years. According to a California law enforcement memorial website that lists the names of officers killed in the line of duty, Constable Herbert Scott Walker was shot and killed May 12, 1901. Walker, 31, was shot and killed after joining the Shasta County Sheriffs Office in a manhunt for two escaped prisoners. As the posse came upon the prisoners, a gunfight ensued and Walker was shot in the left hip. He died the following day. The Associated Press contributed to this report. SHARE Cal Thomas Modern journalists have little in common with those I was privileged to know when I was a copyboy at NBC News in Washington in the '60s. Today's "journalists" will disagree, but as numerous surveys have shown, the public trust in what is collectively called the media has sunk to an all-time low. Only the media think they don't have to change and can continue to sell a product more and more people refuse to buy. WikiLeaks dumps of Clinton campaign emails with reporters should contain enough proof for any reasonable person that big media is in the tank for her. In what may be unprecedented, The New York Times allowed Hillary to edit her own quotes. John Harwood, chief Washington correspondent for CNBC, showered praise on Hillary in emails to her campaign chief John Podesta. Clinton staffers discussed which emails to release and which to delete. She has claimed the deleted emails were personal, not work related. A Chapman University survey has found the top fear of American voters is corruption in government. If true, why do so many intend to vote for Hillary, perhaps the most corrupt politician ever to seek the presidency? The WikiLeaks documents also expose Hillary's private vs. public contradictory statements on several subjects. The Washington Examiner reports these include transcripts of paid speeches she has tried to keep secret. Three years ago, Hillary told an audience at a luncheon for the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago Vanguard that the flow of Syrian refugees into Jordan had put Jordan's security at risk. About the thousands of Syrians pouring into Jordan, she said, " ... they can't possibly vet all those refugees so they don't know if, you know, jihadists are coming in along with legitimate refugees." She wants to increase the number of Syrian refugees entering the U.S. by many times the current rate. If they pose a security threat to Jordan, why wouldn't they pose a threat to America? Even FBI director James Comey says he can't guarantee proper vetting for so many refugees and other immigrants, many of whom lack the most rudimentary forms of identification and verifiable work history. During the second presidential debate, Hillary expressed support for a no-fly zone over parts of Syria to help stem the humanitarian crisis. But, in a paid speech for Goldman Sachs in June 2013, she indicated she was skeptical about whether such a strategy would work. "To have a no-fly zone," she said then, "you have to take out all of the air defense, many of which are located in populated areas, so our missiles, even if they are standoff missiles so we're not putting our pilots at risk you're going to kill a lot of Syrians. So all of a sudden this intervention that people talk about so glibly becomes an American and NATO involvement where you take a lot of civilians." There is much more, including private praise for Wall Street and big banks that paid her six figures for speeches with little content, but public criticism and promises to exert more government control over them if she is elected. In a West Palm Beach, Florida, speech last Thursday, Donald Trump honed his attack against the media, the establishment and the Clintons: "The establishment and their media neighbors wield control over this nation. ... Anyone who challenges their control is deemed a sexist, rapist, xenophobe, and morally deformed. They will attack you. They will slander you. They will seek to destroy your career and your family ... (and) your reputation. They will lie (and) do whatever is necessary. "The Clintons are criminals ... and the establishment that protects them has engaged in a massive cover-up of widespread criminal activity at the State Department and the Clinton Foundation to keep the Clintons in power. Never in history have we seen such a cover-up as this." He's right and this should be his line of attack in the third and final debate Wednesday night. Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com. This is a sentence I've always wanted to write: "I have something in common with Elton John." Dreams do come true because that something is a deep love of Chicago band and former RedEye cover stars Whitney. In an interview posted today by the New York Times, writer Nathan Reese facilitated a phone conversation between John and Whitney drummer Julien Ehrlich. It's a conversation that touches on family, new music in 2016 and the joys of playing albums live in concert. The whole piece is worth reading in full, but I will say that Elton John called "Light Upon The Lake," Whitney's debut album, one of his favorites of the year. The record is No. 1 on our mid-year list, toothat's another thing we have in common with Sir Elton John! Click the link here to read the entire interview. Advertisement By the way, this also isn't the first time John has expressed his love for this Chicago seven-piece band. In July, he played "No Woman" on his Beats1 Radio Show, "Elton John's Rocket Hour." @joshhterry | jterry@redeyechicago.com Shastri took the first big step to transform Indias agriculture, the benefits of which his successors reaped in plenty, says A K Bhattacharya. In a recent article, eminent historian Ramachandra Guha wrote about Indias second prime minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri. Mr Guha argued quite convincingly that in spite of his many achievements, Shastri did not get his due either from the nation or from the Congress party, which he had served for his entire life. Shastri took the first big step to transform Indias agriculture, the benefits of which his successors reaped in plenty, defended the country ably against Pakistan and, most importantly, made India a vibrant democracy by not allowing religion or religious considerations to come in the way of governance. And yet, Shastri remains largely a forgotten leader. Shastri died in 1966 in Tashkent soon after signing a peace treaty with Pakistan in the wake of a short-duration war. But there has been no major initiative to commemorate Shastri on his 50th death anniversary this year in a manner that befits the great leader. While Mr Guha acknowledged Shastris role as one who helped usher in Indias green revolution and successfully countered Pakistans attack, there is one aspect of his leadership that has so far been largely ignored - his changed approach to the idea of controls and statism in economic policy matters. Indeed, Shastri is arguably Indias first economic reformer, much ahead of P V Narasimha Rao, who too ushered in reforms and like Shastri has been forgotten by the Congress. One of the reasons for Shastri not getting his due is perhaps because his attempt to usher in the first phase of reforms is clouded by many misconceptions. For instance, it is widely believed that the devaluation of the Indian rupee in 1966 was decided and implemented by Indira Gandhi after she became the prime minister. It is true, that it was under her prime ministership that the rupee was devalued, but it is not often recognised that the decision to devalue the currency, a necessary step, was taken by Shastri. I G Patel, who was working in the finance ministry at that time, has recounted in one of his essays how the decision to devalue the currency had been taken in principle and conveyed informally to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) when Shastri was the prime minister. Indeed, Shastri had taken an equally bold step before intimating the IMF about his governments decision to devalue the currency. His finance minister, T T Krishnamachari, was not comfortable with the idea of devaluation. As Medha M Kudaisya notes in her biography of G D Birla, the only man that stood in the way of India agreeing to removing government controls on imports and industrial activities and devaluing the currency was Krishnamachari. For Shastri, the state of the Indian economy after the ravages of the war had left the country with no option other than agreeing to the IMF-World Bank prescriptions for economic liberalisation and currency devaluation. So, Shastri used a clever tactic to remove Krishnamachari as the finance minister. For Krishnamachari, this was the second time in his political career that he had to step down as the finance minister. Once under Nehrus prime ministership, he had to resign after the Mundhra scandal broke out. Now, under Shastri, there were allegations of malfeasance against Krishnamacharis son. Shastri refused to clear him of those charges until investigations were completed and he wanted his finance minister to step down till the inquiry to be conducted by a Supreme Court judge gave him a clean chit. Krishnamachari took it as an insult and offered his resignation, which Shastri promptly accepted and appointed Sachin Chowdhury as the new finance minister. Shastri did not live long after that. His successor, Indira Gandhi, retained Chowdhury as the finance minister and agreed to implement the decision on devaluing the currency taken by Shastri. It is, of course, a different matter that she did not fulfil the other part of the commitment to dismantle the control and permit raj. Shastris reformist credentials were also evident from his economic team. All his team members S Bhoothalingham, Dharma Vira, I G Patel and L K Jha believed in the urgent need to unshackle the economy and go in for reforms to realise the potential of the Indian economy by modernising agriculture and allowing the private sector to operate with relative freedom from controls. Even in Shastris Cabinet, the departure of V K Krishna Menon and K D Malaviya signalled his preference for a regime that would move away from licences, relying more on the markets. Winds of change were also felt in some decisions of the government under Shastri. In August 1965, the prime minister announced in Parliament that government controls over economic activity would be reconsidered. Soon thereafter, regulations for sectors such as steel and cement were relaxed. Whats more, Shastri even ordered a review of all major public sector projects which had not taken off by then. As Kudaisya writes in The Life and Times of GD Birla, Shastri even tried to decentralise governance by shifting decision-making on projects from the Planning Commission to different economic ministries. A national planning council was set up that reduced the scope and role of the Planning Commission. It is a pity that Shastri died prematurely without implementing most of his ideas on economic reforms, deregulation and decentralisation. But it is a national shame that nobody in India remembers Shastri for having dared to usher in those reforms at that time. Apart from cotton, copper, petroleum and industrial machinery, India does not export much to China. This means that India buys six times the merchandise it sells to China, points out Abhishek Waghmare. Image: Chinese crockery for sale in Mumbais Manish market. The 500-shop market, next to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, sells mainly Chinese goods, from fancy lights to toys. Photograph: Abhishek Waghmare. Indian politicians are currently leading a campaign to boycott Chinese goods. But an IndiaSpend analysis shows why this will fail: China is Indias largest trade partner, a sixth of Indias imports are Chinese, up from a tenth in 2011-12, while Indias exports to its rival have halved over the same period. Imports from China grew at 20 per cent over two years and 5 per cent over five years, to $61 billion. These goods range from power plants and set top boxes to Ganesh idols. This is despite the fact that Indias imports have generally fallen over the last five years - from $490 billion (Rs 23 lakh crore) to $380 billion (Rs 25 lakh crore) - because of a fall in global oil prices. Indias exports to China have fallen from $18 billion (Rs 86,000 crore) in 2011-12 to $9 billion (Rs 58,000 crore) in 2015-16. Apart from cotton, copper, petroleum and industrial machinery, India does not export much to China. This means that India buys six times the merchandise it sells to China. Source: Trade between India and China, Export Import Data Bank, Ministry of Commerce; figures in $ billion The export-import imbalance Cellphones, laptops, solar cells, fertilisers, keyboards, displays and communication equipment - including earphones - these are Indias chief imports from China, according to our analysis of ministry of commerce data. Source: Export Import Data Bank, Ministry of Commerce; figures in $ billion Other major imports from China include tuberculosis and leprosy drugs, antibiotics, childrens toys, industrial springs, ball bearings, LCD and LED displays, routers, TV remote controllers and set top boxes. The political storm Despite this, political leaders including Sharad Yadav of Janata Dal (United) from Bihar, Himanta Biswa Sarma, the newly inducted finance minister of Assam, and Anil Vij, health minister of Haryana, are appealing for a boycott of Made In China goods. People should not buy Chinese goods. Instead, Indian goods should be used. Trade with China is affecting our country. China is not our friend nation. China can buy weapons with whatever money it earns. There is a possibility that the weapons are given to enemy countriesWe should focus on Make in India, Vij was quoted by Indian Express on October 4, 2016. Stagnant manufacturing figures China was referred to as the worlds manufacturing powerhouse by former Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan and chief economic advisor Arvind Subramanian in a February 2006 research paper. India, however, failed to match its neighbor in this process, asserted the paper, published by the US-based National Bureau of Economic Research. Stagnating indices for the manufacturing sector show that India is still struggling to compete with China. Despite a record foreign direct investment of $55 billion in 2015-16, private investment in manufacturing is still sluggish. Why China bazars are popular IndiaSpend visited Manish market, the hub of imported Chinese goods in Mumbais heart. Chinese products here are cheaper, available in bulk, neatly packaged and easy to buy. If the 50 different types of LED lamps that I sell were available from say, Surat, at a cheaper rate and at my doorstep, why would I go for Chinese lamps? asked a lamp distributor and retailer, requesting anonymity. If I had to buy these in India, this collection would cost me double. China moved forward with rapid market reforms from the 1980s, propelled by the establishment of special economic zones. Land and labour reforms helped it ramp up its production capacity. The result is that Indias iron, steel and fertiliser production is a tenth of Chinas. Source: Department of Fertilisers, Government of India, XFA Finance, Wikipedia; figures in million tonnes Chinas export story is also driven by ease of market access. Take the example of Sumant Kasliwal, who runs an apparel e-commerce start-up in Mumbai. After two years of shopping for merchandise in India, he switched to China two years ago. His sales have tripled since. Market access is easier in China Customers rarely have to waste time in China searching for markets and products, said Kasliwal. It took him less than a week to buy a three-month consignment that ranged from jewelry to fabric. Even small market-towns like Yiwu - comparable to Varanasi in terms of population - have a one-stop, dedicated market for all consumer durables, from fashion to home accessories, with cost and quality options, he said. In India, it would take us weeks. Source: Trade between India and China, Export Import Data Bank, Ministry of Commerce; figures in $ billion Abhishek Waghmare is an analyst with IndiaSpend. Powered by Indiaspend.org is a data-driven, public-interest journalism non-profit Land acquisition costs have gone up to almost 50% of total project cost. High land acquisition cost may derail Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkaris ambitious plans to execute expressway projects, even as the government seems to be on track to achieve its goal of constructing 30 km of road every day. Gadkari has announced Rs 2 lakh crore investment for constructing expressways in the poll-bound states of Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. Of these, projects worth Rs 30,000 crore are already underway in UP. But officials said land acquisition cost may prove to be a real challenge because of the steep cost involved. Expressways, by definition, are greenfield projects and involve huge land acquisition cost. According to an expert, the land required for an expressway is at least five times more than what is needed for expansion of an existing highway. This is because an expressway is a 100 per cent access-controlled road with bridges and underpasses. Similarly, the cost of constructing an expressway is as many times higher than expanding an existing highway. As much as Rs 10-12 crore per km of cost is incurred in the expansion of a highway from two-lane to four-lane. The number would be five to six times higher in a greenfield project like expressway. Estimates suggest land acquisitions costs constitute around 50 per cent of the total cost of the expressway project. On an average, an expressway is built at a width of 100-feet. The cost of land acquisition varies from state to state and can even differ at two locations in the same state, an official said. However, citing an example, an analyst put the approximate cost of land in Punjab, where one of the proposed expressways will pass through, at Rs 1.5 crore per acre. Speeding up of expressways has been tried before during the United Progressive Alliance regime, a former government official told Business Standard. But, the land cost held them back, he pointed out. Also, the states had sought incentives from the central government for constructing expressways. Where will the money come from? he asked. The government needs to set aside Rs 20,000 crore worth of debt only for possession of land, as it plans to execute several projects, including one connecting Jaipur. Gadkari would soon meet the chief ministers of Haryana and Rajasthan to work out the modalities for the Delhi-Jaipur expressway, a road ministry official said. The Western Peripheral Expressway (Kundli-Manesar-Palwal) and the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal) are among other projects delayed for over a decade. These are likely to be completed by December 2017. The projects would benefit Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, as they will open both the rural as well as the urban areas for developing commercial spaces and townships along the expressways, apart from generating revenue. The projects are also expected to improve air pollution levels in Delhi and decongest the national Capital. Another project is the New Delhi to Katra (Jammu & Kashmir) expressway, which would also reduce travel time to Amritsar by about two-and-a-half hours. The Delhi-Amritsar-Katra expressway would be executed on an alignment cutting across Jind in Haryana and connecting Amritsar via Barnala in Punjab. The project -- that would come up at a cost of Rs 60,000 crore -- would reduce the distance between Delhi and Katra by 110 km. The distance from Delhi to Katra via National Highway-1 is 729 km. In addition, the government has prepared a blueprint of expressways stretching across 18,000 km. But experts remain sceptical of the ambitious announcements made by the minister, mainly on account of land acquisition cost involved. At present, there are only a clutch of expressways in the country, including the Mumbai-Pune expressway, that was built at a cost of over Rs 1,600 crore and became fully operational in April 2002. In order to complete the proposed projects on time, the road construction pace has to be set at 30 km per day, as promised by Gadkari, after he took charge in May 2014. According to officials, the central government would be able to meet the 30-km-a-day road construction target, thanks to massive project awards in 2015-16. Around 10,000 km of highway projects are expected to be constructed during FY17. For the government to keep road construction pace at 8,000-9,000 km a year, 10,000-12,000 km of projects need to be awarded each year for the next few years. Since 2013-14, on an average, around 4,000 km of projects have been awarded by the National Highways Authority of India alone. This, according to an expert, is a slow pace of project award. In April this year, the minister announced that 25,000 km of national highways will be awarded in 2016-17, against the 10,000 km awarded in 2015-16. The construction target was set at 15,000 km, against 6,000 km constructed last year. Of the total length of 25,000 km of highways, 15,000 km fell under the target of NHAI and 10,000 km under the road ministry and the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation. Image: The Mumbai-Nashik expressway. Photograph: Wikimedia Commons. IRDAs condition that treatment under AYUSH has to be at a government hospital or an institute recognised by the government makes insurance cover difficult. Insurance companies have started coming out with policies covering alternative treatments after the new health insurance regulations earlier this year allowed coverage for AYUSH (ayurveda, siddha, unani and homeopathy) treatment. Religare Health Insurance recently launched a version of its healthcare plan, Care, covering AYUSH treatment. There is a renewed focus on alternative treatment. That is why we are offering AYUSH coverage in our enhanced plan, says Anuj Gulati, MD and CEO, Religare Health Insurance. Insurers, however, are taking baby steps towards it. Based on the sum insured, the cap starts at Rs 15,000 and goes up to Rs 50,000. This means that even if you opt for the highest sum assured under Care, which is Rs 75 lakh, the maximum amount you will get for AYUSH coverage is only Rs 50,000, or less than 10 per cent of the sum assured. This is the biggest drawback of such policies, says Mahavir Chopra, director-health, life and strategic initiatives, Coverfox, an insurance broker. Most of these plans dont give full cover on the sum assured. The cover can be low in case of hospitalisation. Some companies offer it as a percentage of the sum assured, say 10 per cent. In such a case, if you take a Rs 10 lakh cover, you can get up to Rs 1 lakh for AYUSH treatments. Bajaj Allianz General Insurances Health Care Supreme offers this product. The good news here is there is no cap on the sum assured and consumers can claim up to whatever sum assured they have opted for. Rashmi Nadargani, vertical head-health underwriting, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance, says: We cover all ailments that are covered under allopathy and not the kind of treatment. The kind of treatment is the doctors protocol. We want to give the consumer the flexibility to undergo whatever treatment wherever he wants to get cured. However, there is no cashless facility for AYUSH treatment and it is only on reimbursement basis. This is because most ayurvedic hospitals find it difficult to meet the criteria required for empanelment of hospitals. These include a certain minimum number of beds, 24-hour monitoring, emergency care, registration of the hospital, qualified doctors, etc, explains Nadargani. As claims have to be approved on the basis of the patients history and the kind of treatment, insurers need to check whether the disease is eligible for coverage. A lot of treatment might be done for cosmetic and wellness purposes, too. Also, insurers check if hospitalisation is needed or it can be treated in the out-patient department. Religare offers cashless facility for AYUSH treatment, but only at its network hospitals. Besides these complications, the Insurance and Regulatory and Development Authority of Indias condition that cover can be provided for AYUSH treatment but the treatment has to be at a government hospital or an institute recognised by the government or accredited by the Quality Council of India or the National Accreditation Board on Health will make things difficult. Ayurveda can be very open-ended. There are several spa-like centres that offer such treatment. Hence this condition that treatment should be only at government- recognised hospitals, Chopra adds. Image: Crystal Therapy at the spa facility in ITC Grand Central, Mumbai (image used for representational purposes only). Photograph: Courtesy ITC Grand Central, Mumbai/Luxury Collection Hotels and Resorts Foxconn is yet to submit its land requirements to the Maharashtra government to set up its factories, say Sanjay Jog, T E Narasimhan and Raghu Krishnan. Maharashtra is waiting for its largest foreign direct investment of $5 billion, 14 months after Terry Gou, founder of Taiwanese electronics contract manufacturer Foxconn, committed himself to transforming electronic manufacturing in the state. Foxconn is yet to submit its land requirements to the Maharashtra government to set up its factories. It has also not begun work on an iPhone assembly unit in Navi Mumbai, slated to open in August. Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation officials say they do not have a new timeline for the Navi Mumbai plant. They are also unaware of Foxconns requirement of land notified in Chakan-Talegaon near Pune and in Khalapur in Raigad district for new factories and research facilities. I dont think Foxconn had any intention of investing $5 billion in the state, said Alberto Moel, research analyst at investment management firm Sanford C Bernstein. Moel, based in Hong Kong, tracks technology firms. Foxconn did not respond to a questionnaire sent on October 13. MIDC officials are also jittery that Foxconn may look southwards to expand production in India. The Tamil Nadu government has already made a pitch to Foxconn to reopen the Nokia plant, but Gou wants a waiver of all dues and fresh incentives. For Foxconn, a unit in Chennai could be a better base than in Maharashtra, but Tamil Nadu government officials say there has been no progress on this front. To be fair, Foxconn is expanding in India. In the one-and-a-half years since it set shop in SriCity in Andhra Pradesh, Foxconn has scaled up production to one million smartphones for companies like Xiaomi, Lava, Micromax and Asus. The firm employs over 10,000 workers and plans to add another unit with the potential to employ over 3,000 people. People familiar with Foxconn's plans say the firm wants to set up seven units in India, but decision will be taken in Taiwan. It is bullish on India because of the smartphone opportunity, said an industry executive who has met Gou in his office in Taipei. Indias billion strong mobile subscribers has attracted 40 electronics and mobile manufacturing companies to the country. The government also wants to promote India as an export hub for mobiles. Foxconn is the biggest manufacturer for Apple, the world's largest smartphone maker, and could follow its client to India. But, Apples plans to produce in India, a growing market for its high-priced smartphones, are not clear after the government rejected its proposal to make refurbished iPhones in the country. If its customers (Xiaomi, OnePlus, Apple) want to sell in India and need to assemble in India, Foxconn will likely make the necessary investments, said Moel. It is not a matter of appetite, it is purely business. Image: Workers at a Foxconn factory in China. Photograph: Reuters. Note: Pankhuri Gidwani's beautiful smile, toned body and kind nature will win your heart! Lucknow-based Pankhuri Gidwani is just 18 but is already an Internet sensation. A second runner up at Femina Miss India Grand 2016, Gidwani is all set to make India proud at the prestigious pageant Miss Grand International. She'll be competing with 84 divas from across the globe on October 25 in Las Vegas, United States. She's the youngest beauty queen representing the country on an international platform after Priyanka Chopra. While we all wish for her victory, here are some pictures that prove she rightly deserves to win the title. IMAGE: Is this for real? Just see how this beautiful belle carries the colourful traditions and festivals of India embossed on her outfit for the 'National Costume Round' as part of the beauty contest. Photograph: Kind courtesy Miss Grand India 2016-Pankhuri Gidwani/Facebook IMAGE: Pankhuri just got wings to fly. Shining bright in a yellow-grey swimsuit, she is a pure patakha (bombshell). Photograph: Kind courtesy Miss Grand India 2016-Pankhuri Gidwani/Facebook IMAGE: While she soaks up the sun in a bikini, she looks nothing less than a million bucks! Photograph: Kind courtesy Miss Grand India 2016-Pankhuri Gidwani/Facebook IMAGE: An enviable slender frame only comes when you sweat it out everyday! The fitness freak is good at striking a balance between her strenuous workout sessions and relaxation hours. Photograph: Kind courtesy Pankhuri Gidwani/Instagram IMAGE: Now how many young models get to share the frame with the Badshah (superstar) of Bollywood. For Pankhuri, second from right, it was a dream come true moment. In the picture above, she is accompanied by Femina Miss India World Priyadarshini Chatterjee, extreme left, and Femina Miss India first runner-up Sushruthi Krishna. Photograph: Kind courtesy Pankhuri Gidwani/Instagram IMAGE: She even rocks the ethnic avatar in embroidered separates for brand FBB's (Fashion by Big Bazaar) festive collection shoot. Photograph: Kind courtesy Pankhuri Gidwani/Instagram IMAGE: Quite evident, she loves to travel in style! She looks stunning in a white quirky print Roxxluxe skater dress when she arrived in Las Vegas. Photograph: Kind courtesy Pankhuri Gidwani/Instagram IMAGE: When off-duty, she's goofing around with her fellow contestants and taking tours in Las Vegas. Photograph: Kind courtesy Miss Grand India 2016-Pankhuri Gidwani/Facebook IMAGE: It's all in the genes! Here she poses for the shutterbugs with her mother, right after winning the Femina Miss India Grand title this year. Photograph: Kind courtesy Pankhuri Gidwani/Instagram IMAGE: She aims to "bring a change in the way we perceive INDIA globally." See how this young heart freely interacts with underprivileged children from a rural area in the country. Photograph: Kind courtesy Miss Grand India 2016-Pankhuri Gidwani/Facebook IMAGE: So what if it isn't a cute dog or a cat, Pankhuri is an animal lover and can cuddle up a desi goat too. Photograph: Kind courtesy Miss Grand India 2016-Pankhuri Gidwani/Facebook IMAGE: Her toned figure, glowing skin and that 100 watt smile sets Pankhuri apart. We couldn't take our eyes off this gorgeous picture from her initial modelling days. Photograph: Kind courtesy Pankhuri Gidwani/Instagram IMAGE: Captioning this picture 'Cheat look', she proves that models don't have to starve to look their best. Photograph: Kind courtesy Pankhuri Gidwani/Instagram IMAGE: OMG! Now that's one hell of a transformation. Notice how different our Femina Miss India Grand 2016 looked earlier, left. Photograph: Kind courtesy Pankhuri Gidwani/Facebook > More glamour features here A little while earlier in the evening, a journalist from a well-known Delhi newspaper phoned me up for a 'byte' on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's enigmatic remark on Tuesday at a Bharatiya Janata Party rally in Mandi in Himachal Pradesh that the Indian Army 'is no less' than the Israeli army about 'doing such a thing' as our surgical strikes on the Line of Control on September 29. That set me thinking. I first told my interlocutor evasively that it all depends on the audience Modi had in mind. Modi has an inscrutable mind because he only said the other day to his own folks, 'No more chest-thumbing, guys,' and now he himself did precisely that. So, my interlocutor asked whether Modi had in mind the electorate in Uttar Pradesh that Modi had in mind. I doubted it, because all those street-smart Tiwaris and Thakurs and Yadavs are not going to vote on the basis of such a flippant remark on election day -- not even the headstrong Jat in the western edges of UP. Now, what about the international impact? I said Modi got his facts wrong. Because, in the last big war Israel fought, the Lebanon War in 2006, it got so nicely checkmated -- and, by a resistance movement known as Hezbollah -- that for another decade the Israeli army has been staying home. Modi's reverie is about a mythical world where Moshe Dayan (the Israeli defence minister during its wars in the 1960s) lived -- and died. The Israeli army's forte now is to do sly things such as to give support to the Al Qaeda affiliate Nusra in Syria to advance the 'regime change' agenda. Or, to undertake reprisals on Palestinian communities living in the West Bank and Gaza whenever a rocket is fired from that side into Israel. Surely, Modi can't be having such 'tit-for-tat' in mind, which are, after all, a manifestation of the stalemate in the Arab-Israeli conflict and Israel's helplessness to shift the calculus of strategic balance decisively in its favour through political or military means. Internationally, Israeli army operations have been deemed excessive and adversely commented upon by the UN and the human rights bodies. Therefore, it is not a smart analogy for Modi to dwell upon when India is campaigning for permanent membership of the UN Security Council. In diplomatic terms, Modi may have even created some embarrassment for India. The Palestinian ambassador in Delhi must be a sad man. His Arab counterparts in Chanakyapuri must be furious that Modi admires the Israeli army, which humiliated the Muslim Middle East and rubbed the Arab nose in the dust. Minister of State for External Affairs M J Akbar must now host a party in Hyderabad House to say, 'Sorry, Excellencies, you know our prime minister.' It is entirely conceivable that even Israelis may disapprove of Modi's remark. They never hide behind alibis. Here, on the contrary, we are still quibbling whether the surgical strikes were conducted 'along' the LoC or 'across' the LoC. The government refuses to be categorical. The Israeli generals speak up like generals and won't expect merit certificates from civilians who never fought a war. Their television cameras will proudly display the audacity of their valorous acts on the battlefield. They will carry war trophies. They won't allow themselves to be portrayed on billboards in inner towns as sidekicks of some political parties. Curiously, Modi seemed to have been unaware that government officials in Delhi admitted on Tuesday that similar military operations were undertaken by previous Congress governments also. So, if the Indian Army has finally graduated to the level of the classy Israeli army in valour and professionalism, shouldn't the credit go to Pranab Mukherjee and A K Antony? Given the above, then, why did Modi say such a thing? As you know, I am always for simple explanations even when complicated people are involved. Remember, only the day before, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had said something about surgical strikes -- 'I wonder that a prime minister from the land of Mahatma Gandhi and a defence minister from Goa which has no martial race and surgical strikes... maybe the RSS teaching was there, but this was a very different kind of combination.' Now, Modi couldn't have liked such a cavalier remark. Indeed, Parrikar should never have bracketed himself with Modi. That was an act of blasphemy that could invite divine retribution. Parrikar was free to speak for himself. Period. On top of it, he referred to Modi as Gandhian! Parrikar could have just glanced through Facebook to know that if the 'core constituency' adores Modi, it is because they see him as the antithesis of Gandhiji. Gandhiji's chest wasn't even 40" broad. He was a slightly built man -- a sparrow one feels protective about. Yet, if we admire his toughness, it is about the grit of the mind of a frail-looking man who took on a superpower. To my mind, Modi put Parrikar on the mat by making such a 'Martian' remark in Mandi. Modi would prefer to wear the Martian look and take the credit for surgical strikes. He may not even want to share it with the RSS -- leave alone with Parrikar. 100 days have passed since the current unrest in Kashmir began. As a tentative normalcy returns to the valley, Kashmir remains on edge. Tariq Hamid Karra, who resigned from the PDP and as the Lok Sabha MP from Srinagar, reveals why he feels totally irrelevant in Kashmir. IMAGE:'Modi has missed the bus in Kashmir,' says Tariq Hamid Karra. Photograph: PTI Photo Even as Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti tried to find ways to calm the unrest that erupted in the valley after Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Burhan Wani was killed, Tariq Hamid Karra resigned from the Peoples Democratic Party and as the Lok Sabha MP from Srinagar. Elected to the Lok Sabha in 2014, Karra was a close aide of the late chief minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed and was one of the PDP's founding members. Karra told Rediff.com's Syed Firdaus Ashraf why he resigned from the party and his Lok Sabha membership. This telephone interview was recorded a couple of days before the terrorist attack on the army camp in Uri, in which 19 soldiers died. IMAGE: Demonstrators try to hurl stones at a police vehicle during a protest in Srinagar. Photograph: Danish Ismail/Reuters Why is a leader like you who defeated National Conference patron Farooq Abdullah in the 2014 general election disillusioned with the PDP? There are two reasons. First, the PDP alliance with the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh)-driven BJP. This issue I have been raising for the last 16 months now. Second, the present dispensation's killing of innocent protestors and the extent of brutality. Were you unhappy with the PDP joining hands with the BJP to form a government when Mufti Mohammad Sayeed was alive? Not at all! The PDP was floated on a certain premise and that included: Facilitate the resolution of the Kashmir issue within the parameters of the Constitution; Bring the Hurriyat and the Government of India to the table to negotiate the returning of power projects, as we have been suffering losses due to the Indus Water Treaty ; ; Return of our Pandit brethren back to Kashmir; And (deal with) the excesses meted out to people during Dr Farooq Abdullah's National Conference government. We had created the PDP as a buffer, as on the one side there were the separatists and on the other there were hyper-nationalistic forces. We wanted to have a political breathing space for the people of Jammu and Kashmir. We were often branded as being soft separatists as well. After the 2014 election, we swept all three Valley seats. I was one of them, the second was Mehbooba Mufti and Muzzafar Baig was the third person. We fought this election against the National Conference. When we fought the state elections, the focus of our campaign was to keep the BJP out because the Narendra Modi wave had come into state politics as well by that time. We sought a vote against the BJP and the people responded to that. We emerged as the single largest party. Later, we shook hands with the same party whom we opposed in the elections to form the government. What was the compulsion to align with the BJP and form the government? Muftisaab gave an argument that as far as building relations with Pakistan is concerned, the Congress will not be able to help us because they were out of power. He further said that we would need liberal funds to fill the gap of infrastructure and other administrative issues because Kashmir had suffered in the devastating floods of 2014. As far as I am concerned, I was clear that getting into an alliance with the BJP would be a danger because of their past and their political ideology. I suggested that we sit in the Opposition rather than get into an alliance with the BJP. Muftisaab did not listen to me, but others followed him and got into an alliance. I publicly requested him and had warned him of dire consequences. IMAGE: A protestor in a balaclava jumps over burning debris. Photograph: Danish Ismail/Reuters How would Muftisaab have handled this situation after Burhan Wani's killing? I cannot comment on that. Burhan Wani became a trigger. It was not that big an issue, but I do not want to undermine it. Wani's death was a flashpoint. The alienation started from day one when the BJP got into alliance with the PDP. It was an alliance between diametrically, ideologically and temperamentally opposite people. The Kashmiri temperament does not accept hyper nationalism. That does not mean Kashmiris are communal -- they are one of the most secular people on Indian soil, but they cannot accept the ideology of the RSS which I call cultural ingression, administrative ingression, ideological ingression and even religious ingression which is very visible all over India. We Kashmiris are not against Hindutva, but against Hinduisation. Modi has been, since the last two years, playing politics to Hinduise India. But Kashmiri Pandits were driven out by Kashmiri Muslim fundamentalists. How can you say Kashmiris are secular? I have a counter-question. Radicalisation of Hindu extremism in India is termed as nationalism and glorified, but radicalisation of Kashmiris is called terrorism? Kindly do an appraisal of what is defined as extremism in Kashmir and what it means in the rest of India? Why are PDP leaders not coming forward and solving problems in Kashmir? After all, the people voted for your party in the last elections. You need to come to Kashmir to seek an answer to this. Every mainstream politician has become irrelevant today in Kashmir. You have to go to the genesis of the problem. We are simply pruning the branches of the tree. We are not going to the root cause. The alienation has political history behind it. It has a history of broken promises, brutality and discrimination. We have so much of bitter history. Forget about others, I am a mainstream politician and today I feel totally irrelevant (in Kashmir). We also have a history of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in Kashmir. I do not deny that. Pakistan's involvement in Kashmir could not have been possible had there not been a fertile ground for it. Passing everything on to Pakistan rather than accepting India's failure in Kashmir is not a smart policy. 5 percent of Kashmiris instigate terrorism and 95 percent want to live in peace. How far is this true? Who said that? (Chief Minister) Mehbooba Mufti said that... She has not explained this (theory). Why was curfew not lifted for the 95 percent? Why were they not allowed to perform their religious rights (on Bakri Eid)? This is contrary to what she has said. This is absurd. IMAGE: A boy looks back at a member of the security forces in Srinagar during curfew. Photograph: Cathal McNaughton/Reuters One fear is that Kashmir may end up resembling the Tahrir Square in Egypt if curfew is lifted. Is this possible? This (issue) has been mismanaged from day one. This is the total failure of the government. The BJP's mindset of non-denial is adding fuel to the fire (in Kashmir). They are using veiled threats, which is infuriating the people. What can Prime Minister Modi do to win the hearts of Kashmiris? He cannot! Modi has missed the bus in Kashmir. He was rather never interested in winning over Kashmiri hearts. But he spoke of peace and went to Lahore to meet Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. (Interrupts) Jingoism never works in politics. Has the government erred in making the Hurriyat leaders irrelevant in Kashmir's politics? The Centre and the state government made the biggest blunder by making the Hurriyat irrelevant. They (the Hurriyat) could have played a positive role despite whatever we say about their politics. By saying that they should leave for Pakistan, and that they should do this and that. This is against the national interest. Hinduisation will not be accepted by the general populace of India. Indian taxpayers' money provides for the security, safety and other facilities of the Hurriyat leaders who time and again raise anti-India slogans. You have to solve this problem politically. Jingoism will not work. If someone shouts anti-India slogans, it hurts me as an Indian... This is not only in Jammu and Kashmir. You have been going through this since Independence, in the north-east and with the Maoists. You talk to them, but are shy of talking to Kashmiris. You talk to these people unconditionally, but you put pre-conditions on Kashmiris. I don't think this is going to work. You seem to be disillusioned with the situation in Kashmir. As Ghalib would say, 'Koi umeed nazar nahi aati, Koi soorat nazar nahi aati' My uncle G M Sadiq was the state's chief minister. My aunt Zainab Begum was a minister in the Sheikh Abdullah cabinet. I have held ministerial positions like finance, law, forest, ecology, planning, tourism, housing and urban development. Our family has enjoyed power since 1947 and nobody has raised a finger against us. My sister-in-law is also in the present government, but I have not asked her to come out of the government. I have thrown an appeal to all elected people to peep into their conscience and act accordingly. If a person like me is so disillusioned, you can imagine what other Kashmiris must be thinking. I am telling you this is the last chance India has. You can eliminate terrorists, but not terrorism. You must have a heart and adopt a humane policy. You have to show the maturity of (then prime minister) Atal Bihari Vajpayee to solve the Kashmir problem. He too was from the BJP and had an affinity with the RSS. Modi has an attitude like Alexander the Great for Kashmir. This will not work in Kashmir. Pokemon Party, Oct. 21 The Plattsmouth Public Library, in conjunction with the Community Center, is hosting a Pokemon Party on Friday, October 21, 6:00-8:00 pm, at the Community Center. Activities include making a Pokeball catapult, a scavenger hunt, and cookie decorating. Games include Plinko, Catch the Charizard, Wii Pokemon, and a Pokemon and Trainers game. Pizza is free, and so is the event. You don't have to be a member of the Community Center or the library. Join us for lots of fun! Medicare Part D Open Enrollment Sessions, Oct. 20-Dec. 1 Mary Ann Holland, Nebraska SHIIP Counselor, will be conducting three Drug Plan Comparison events in the Plattsmouth Public Library in preparation for Medicare Open Enrollment. The dates are Thursday, Oct. 20, Tuesday, Nov. 15, and Thursday, Dec. 1. Open enrollment for Medicare Part D (the prescription drug benefit) will be Oct. 15 through Dec. 7. Everyone who is currently enrolled in a drug plan and those who will be new to Medicare beginning in January should seek a drug plan comparison. Medicare Advantage plans, also known as Medicare health plans, utilize the same open enrollment period from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7 with coverage beginning the first of January 2017. To make an appointment, contact the Extension office in Cass County at 402-267-2205. Flu Shots, Oct. 25 Sarpy/Cass County Health Department will be providing flu shots in the Plattsmouth Public Library auditorium on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 10 a.m. 1 p.m. The cost is $30. No appointment is needed. Adult Reading Program Ends Oct. 28 Theres only a few days left to participate in the Plattsmouth Librarys adult reading program. Recommend a book, and it will be placed on the Thumbs Up Table for others to enjoy and will earn you five tickets for the giveaways. Find tokens around the library in the scavenger hunt or answer fun questions about the library to earn more tickets. Grand prize is an Amazon Kindle Fire; other prizes are good for free meals at local restaurants. Entry is free and easy. The program ends on Oct. 28. Islamic State jihadists are barring civilians from leaving Mosul on Tuesday and using them as human shields, as the battle for the Iraqi city entered its second day, a Pentagon official said. IMAGE: Peshmerga forces advance in the east of Mosul to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq. Photograph: Thaier Al-Sudani/Reuters Its quite clear Daesh (Islamic State) has started to use civilians as human shields by allowing families to stay in buildings likely to be targeted by air strikes, Abu Mahir, who lives near the citys university told Reuters. The battle, which began Monday, has so far focused on the villages surrounding Iraqs second-largest city, most of which are traditionally Kurdish. Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis said IS had for weeks kept Mosuls estimated population of 1.5 million from escaping, with the start of the offensive offering them no respite. United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric said an estimated 200,000 people are expected to be displaced in the first weeks of the offensive, growing to as many as one million under a worst-case scenario. For now at least, Iraqi authorities and the US-led coalition want civilians to stay put, fearing they will be executed if they are caught leaving. The International Organisation for Migration said Islamic State may use tens of thousands of residents as human shields to hold onto their last city stronghold in Iraq. IMAGE: The offensive began on Monday with US President Barack Obama saying it would be a difficult fight but Islamic State will be defeated in Mosul. Photograph: Azad Lashkari/Reuters The IOM said there was a likelihood of chemical attacks by the jihadists, who had used such weapons previously against Iraqi Kurdish forces. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said safe routes had been secured for civilians who wanted to leave Mosul and it was the duty of the US.-led coalition to prevent Islamic State fighters from escaping into nearby Syria. US President Barack Obama said it would be a difficult fight but Islamic State will be defeated in Mosul. I am confident that we can succeed, although it is going to be a tough fight and a difficult fight. It is Iraqis who are doing the fighting. They are performing effectively and bravely and taking on significant casualties. There will be ups and downs in this process, but my expectation is that ultimately it will be successful, he said. A dozen workers of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena were on Wednesday arrested for protesting against the upcoming release of filmmaker Karan Johar's 'Ae Dil Hain Muskhil' as the party rejected his statement that he will not "engage with talent" from Pakistan in future. The workers from MNS' film unit Maharashtra Navnirman Chitrapat Karmachari Sena were protesting and raising slogans outside Metro Cinema in South Mumbai. The Raj Thackeray-led party has asked the theatre management not to hold any show of 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. The MNS had given a written appeal to the theatre management urging them not to show the movie as it features a Pakistani actor. The party workers also raised slogans outside the theatre, police officials said. "We arrested 12 MNS activists and booked them under relevant sections of Maharashtra Police Act and also CrPC," said Senior Inspector of Azad Maidan Police Station Vijay Kadam. They were produced before a local court which granted them cash bail of Rs 5,000 each in the case (carrying out procession without permission) under the Police Act. The MNS activists were also booked under the CrPC section 151 (3) (arrest to prevent the commission of cognisable offences) in which they did not get any relief and sent to judicial custody till November 4. Seeking to calm tempers over opposition to the release of his directorial venture, Johar had on Tuesday made a fervent appeal against stalling the release, saying he will not engage with talent from Pakistan in future. However, the MNS said reality has dawned late on Johar. MNS cine wing head Amey Khopkar, after a meeting with senior party leaders and Raj Thackeray, said they were firm on opposing the release. "We will not allow the film to be screened in single screens and multiplexes. Reality has dawned late on the producer," Khopkar said. The MNS and some other political parties have opposed release of films with actors from Pakistan after the Uri terror attack, putting a question mark on the fate of Johar's movie, slated for release on October 28. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India, too, decided not to screen films with Pakistani actors in four states -- Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. A team from Johar's Dharma Productions along with filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt and Vijay Singh of Fox Star Studios had met Mumbai's top police officials and sought protection for the theatres to screen the film. Deputy Commissioner of Police Ashok Dudhe had said, "Mumbai police will provide adequate protection to cinema theatres." Here's a recap of events that occurred in India in the past 24 hours. Prime Minister Narendra Modi tries his hand on a charkha at a ceremony to distribute charkhas to women before the National MSME Awards at Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana on Tuesday. Photograph: PIB Activists of Hindu Sena set a portrait of United States presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on fire during a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Tuesday. Photograph: Kamal Singh/PTI Photo Myanmar's Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi pays floral tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat in New Delhi on Tuesday. Photograph: Shahbaz Khan/PTI Photo Police detain people of Dalit community after they blocked the traffic during a protest in Ahmedabad on Tuesday. Photograph: PTI Photo Women get their hands decorated with henna on the eve of Karwa Chauth festival in Indore on Tuesday. Photograph: PTI Photo The mangled remains of the SUV of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew and Trinamool Congress MP Abbhishek Banerjee after an accident on Durgapur Expressway at Singur in Hooghly district of Bengal on Tuesday. Photograph: PTI Photo Students jubilate after the first convocation at Rajendra Institute of Medical Science in Ranchi on Tuesday. Photograph: PTI Photo Rapid Action Force personnel flag march before the funeral procession of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh worker Rudresh in Bengaluru on Tuesday. Photograph: Shailendra Bhojak/PTI Photo All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supporters hold fire pots on their heads during a special prayer for speedy recovery of party supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in front of Apollo hospital in Chennai on Tuesday. Photograph: PTI Photo People carry the mortal remains of Sepoy Sudhesh Kumar who lost his life in firing by Pakistan, during his funeral at his native village in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday. Photograph: PTI Photo A fireman sifts through the burnt debris of the residential apartment in Cuffe Parade's Maker Chambers in Mumbai on Tuesday. Photograph: PTI Photo As Myanmar embarks on a journey of democracy and development, India on Wednesday assured it of unstinted support as the two traditionally close neighbours agreed to enhance ties in a range of areas including security and trade during talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Myanmars top leader Aung Sung Suu Kyi. IMAGE: State Counsellor of Myanmar, Aung San Suu Kyi signing the visitors book, at Hyderabad House, in New Delhi. Photograph: Press Information Bureau The two sides signed three agreements to boost cooperation in power, banking and insurance sectors besides deciding to step up ties in areas of oil and gas, agriculture, renewable energy and health care. It is Suu Kyis first visit to India after her National League for Democracy wrested power from the military junta in a landmark election earlier this year. Suu Kyi, who could not become Myanmars President due to a constitutional provision but has full control over the government, holds the position of state councillor and foreign minister. Welcoming Suu Kyi, the prime minister described India as her second home and assured that India and its friendship will stand with you in full support and solidarity. You are no stranger to the people of India. The sights, the sounds and vibrancy of Delhi are familiar to you. Welcome back, Excellency, to your second home! Excellency, you are an iconic leader, he said in a media statement. Suu Kyi had done her graduation from DelhiUniversity. In her comments, the Myanmerese leader invoked Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru and said Myanmar drew huge inspiration from the two Indian leaders in its struggle for democracy. The prime minister said as close and friendly neighbours, the security interests of India and Myanmar are closely aligned. The two countries agreed that close coordination to ensure security in the areas along border, and sensitivity to each others strategic interests, will help both neighbours, he said. IMAGE: The two sides signed three agreements to boost cooperation in power, banking and insurance sectors besides deciding to step up ties in areas of oil and gas, agriculture, renewable energy and health care. Photograph: Press Information Bureau Myanmar, considered one of Indias strategic neighbours, shares a 1,640-km-long border with a number of northeastern states including militancy-hit Nagaland and Manipur. Giving details of the talks, Modi said the two countries agreed to enhance engagement in several areas including agriculture, power, renewable energy and power sector. Let me assure you, excellency, that as you lead Myanmar to become a modern, secure, economically prosperous and better connected nation, India and its friendship will stand with you in full support and solidarity, Modi said. Effusive in his praise, Modi said, Your clear vision, mature leadership, struggle and eventual success in establishing democracy in Myanmar has inspired people across the world. It is indeed an honour for us to receive you in India. We are also grateful for your participation at the BIMSTEC and the BRICS-BIMSTEC outreach Summit in Goa a couple of days ago. Modi said Myanmar has commenced a new journey under Suu Kyis able leadership and India will always extend full support to it. It is a journey of hope and much promise. Talking about importance of connectivity, the Prime Minister said Myanmars new government was keen to connect more deeply with South Asia and South East Asia. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the State Counsellor of Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi at at Hyderabad House. Photograph: Press Information Bureau Calling the talks extensive and productive, Modi said India has a robust development cooperation programme with Myanmar and that Indias nearly $1.75 billion (Rs 11,671 crore) of development assistance is being utilised in line with the priorites of Myanmarese government and its people. From the mega connectivity projects like Kaladan and Trilateral Highway, to projects in the fields of human resource development, healthcare, training and capacity building, we are sharing our resources and expertise with Myanmar, he said. The PM said India will develop a Varietal Development and Seed Production Centre in Yezin in Myanmar to enhance the quality of seeds. We will also work to develop a mutually beneficial arrangement for trade in pulses. We have offered to scale up the power supply from Moreh in Manipur to Tamu in Myanmar. We will also partner in a pilot LED electrification project at a site designated by the government of Myanmar. He said the MOU on cooperation in the power sector will help create the framework for advancing linkages in the sector. The PM said India has also offered assistance in restoring pagodas damaged in the recent earthquake in Myanmar. Both the delegations had a working lunch. The Archaeological Survey of India will also soon begin work on restoring two old temples and inscriptions of King Mindon and King Baygyidaw in Bodh Gaya, he said. Suu Kyis visit came nearly one-and-half months after Myanmerese President U Htin Kyaw visited India. United States First Lady Michelle Obama dazzled the crowd at her final state dinner as first lady, in a floor-length rose gold chainmail gown. Bella of the ball: US President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama wait to greet Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife Agnese Landini on the North Portico for a State Dinner at the White House in Washington. Photograph: Joshua Roberts/Reuters It was a bittersweet moment for the Obamas on Tuesday as they welcomed Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife for an official visit and the final state dinner of the presidents time in office. The US first lady, who has a tradition of wearing dresses to state dinners by designers representing the nation being honoured, chose Italian label Atelier Versace for the White House dinner. Stunning beauty: The Obamas had promised they would save the best for last and Michelle Obama didnt break her promise. She looked stunning in an Atelier Versace chainmail rose gold dress. Photograph: Mark Wilson/Getty Images The sleeveless gown showcased Michelles famously sculpted arms and its draped design highlighted her figure. She enhanced the disco vibe of the sparkly dress with sleek, straight hair and side-swept bangs. The soiree for Renzi was the 13th and final state dinner for the US president, who leaves office in January. It was also one of the largest of Obamas tenure. IMAGE: Agnese Landini, the Italian Prime Minister's wife, also sparkled in a floor length, silver and grey gown next to Michelle Obama's rose gold dress. Photograph: Mark Wilson/Getty Images The president paid tribute to America's relationship with Italy during the dinner, offering a toast to the 'enduring alliance' between the two countries. Obama said that American democracy has been graced by a touch of Italy, noting that both the Lincoln Memorial and the interior of the US Capitol dome were done by Italians. IMAGE: US First Lady Michelle Obama and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi chat to each other as they walk into the state dinner. Photograph: Mark Wilson/Getty Images He also praised his honoured guest Renzi as someone who represents the energy, optimism, vision and values that can carry Europe forward. And although it's his final state dinner, Obama quoted a famous Italian -- the late Yogi Berra -- in saying, It aint over till its over. Umm, Mr Italian PM just where are you looking? Even Matteo Renzi looks distracted by Michelle's dazzling gown. Photograph: Shawn Thew - pool/Getty Images IMAGE: US President Barack Obama offers a toast to Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi at a state dinner on the South Lawn of the White House. Photograph: Michael Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images If you love the wild and animals, this is one feature you mustnt miss. The Wildlife Photographer of the Year, developed and produced by the Natural History Museum, London, announced its winners for 2016 and we guarantee you that these images will blow your mind. This years competition was one of the fiercest to date, attracting almost 50,000 entries from professionals and amateurs across 95 countries. (Please click on the photos to view hi-resolution images) Entwined lives Tim Laman, USA Winner, Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Close A young male orangutan makes the 30-metre (100-foot) climb up the thickest root of the strangler fig that has entwined itself around a tree emerging high above the canopy. The backdrop is the rich rainforest of the Gunung Palung National Park, in West Kalimantan, one of the few protected orangutan strongholds in Indonesian Borneo. The orangutan has returned to feast on the crop of figs. He has a mental map of the likely fruiting trees in his huge range, and he has already feasted here. Tim knew he would return and, more important, that there was no way to reach the top -- no route through the canopy -- other than up the tree. But he had to do three days of climbing up and down himself, by rope, to place in position several GoPro cameras that he could trigger remotely to give him a chance of not only a wide?angle view of the forest below but also a view of the orangutans face from above. This shot was the one he had long visualised, looking down on the orangutan within its forest home. Photograph: Tim Laman/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 The alley cat Nayan Khanolkar , India Winner, Urban Close At night, in the Aarey Milk Colony in a suburb of Mumbai bordering SanjayGandhiNational Park, leopards slip ghost-like through the maze of alleys, looking for food (especially stray dogs). The Warli people living in the area respect the big cats. Despite close encounters and occasional attacks (a particular spate coinciding with the relocation of leopards from other areas into the park), the cats are an accepted part of their lives and their culture, seen in the traditional paintings that decorate the walls of their homes. The leopard is not only the most versatile of the worlds big cats but possibly the most persecuted. With growing human-leopard conflicts elsewhere grabbing the headlines, Nayan was determined to use his pictures to show how things can be different with tolerance and planning. Once he had convinced the Warli people of his plan, they supplied him with valuable information, as well as keeping an eye on his equipment. Photograph: Nayan Khanolkar/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Star player Luis Javier Sandoval, Mexico Winner, Impressions Close As soon as Luis slipped into the water, the curious young California sea lions came over for a better look. He had arrived the night before at the island of Espiritu Santo in the Gulf of California, sleeping aboard his boat so that he would be ready to dive at sunrise. He had in mind a picture that needed warm light, a slow shutter speed and friendly subjects. One of the pups dived down, swimming gracefully with its strong fore-flippers (sea lions are also remarkably agile on land, since they can control each of their hind?flippers independently). It grabbed a starfish from the bottom and started throwing it to Luis. I love the way sea lions interact with divers and how smart they are, says Luis. Photograph: Luis Javier Sandoval/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Eviction attempt Ganesh H Shankar, India Winner, Birds Close These Indian rose-ringed parakeets were not happy. They had returned to their roosting and nesting hole high up in a tree in Indias KeoladeoNational Park (also known as Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary) to find that a Bengal monitor lizard had taken up residence. The birds immediately set about trying to evict the squatter. They bit the monitor lizards tail, hanging on for a couple of seconds at a time, until it retreated into the hole. They would then harass it when it tried to come out to bask. This went on for two days. But the action only lasted a couple of seconds at a time and was fast-moving. The branch was also high up, and Ganesh had to shoot against the light. Eventually the parakeets gave up and left, presumably to try to find another place to rear their young. Photograph: Ganesh H Shankar/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 The moon and the crow Gideon Knight, UK Winner, Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Close A crow in a tree in a park: a common enough scene. It was one that Gideon had seen many times near his home in Londons ValentinesPark, which he visits regularly to take photographs. But as the blue light of dusk crept in and the full moon rose, the scene transformed. The spindly twigs of the sycamore tree silhouetted against the sky made it feel almost supernatural, like something out of a fairy tale, says Gideon. Photograph: Gideon Knight/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Requiem for an owl Mats Andersson, Sweden Winner, Black and White Close Every day in early spring, Mats walked in the forest near his home in Bashult, southern Sweden, enjoying the company of a pair of Eurasian pygmy owls -- until the night he found one of them lying dead on the forest floor. Pygmy owls, with their distinctive rounded heads and lack of ear tufts, are the smallest owls in Europe, barely 19 centimetres (7 inches) long, though with large feet that enable them to carry prey almost as big as themselves. They also hunt in the day. Nesting in tree cavities, especially in conifer woodland, they form pair bonds in autumn that last through to spring and sometimes for more than one breeding season. The owls resting posture reflected my sadness for its lost companion, recalls Mats. Preferring to work in black and white it conveys the feeling better he captured the melancholy of the moment, framing the solitary owl within the bare branches, lit by the first light of dawn. Photograph: Mats Andersson/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Snapper party Tony Wu, USA Winner, Underwater Close For several days each month (in tandem with the full moon), thousands of two?spot red snappers gather to spawn around Palau in the western Pacific Ocean. The action is intense as the fish fill the water with sperm and eggs, and predators arrive to take advantage of the bounty. Having read about the drama, Tony couldnt understand why there were so few photos of it -- until he hit the water there for the first time, in 2012. The currents were unrelenting -- ideal for eggs to be swept swiftly away but a struggle for him to keep up with the fast?moving fish. Also, the light was low, and the water was clouded with sperm and eggs. That first attempt failed, but he has returned every year to try to capture the event. Noticing that the spawning ran like a chain reaction up and down the mass of fish, his success finally came when he positioned himself so that the action came to him. Rewarded with a grandstand view, he was intrigued to see that the fish rapidly changed colour during mating from their standard red to a multitude of hues and patterns. Photograph: Tony Wu/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Wind composition Valter Binotto, Italy Winner, Plants and Fungi Close With every gust of wind, showers of pollen were released, lit up by the winter sunshine. The hazel tree was near Valters home in northern Italy, and to create the dark background, he positioned himself to backlight the flowers. Hazel has both male and female flowers on the same tree, though the pollen must be transferred between trees for fertilization. Each catkin comprises an average of 240 male flowers, while the female flower is a small bud-like structure with a red-tufted stigma. The pollen-producing catkins open early in the year, before the leaves are out, and release huge amounts of pollen to be carried away by the wind. And now recent research suggests that bees may also play a role. The catkins are an important source of pollen for early bees and have a bee?friendly structure, while the red colour of the female flowers may entice insects to land on them. Photograph: Valter Binotto/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 The pangolin pit Paul Hilton, UK/Australia Winner, The Wildlife Photojournalist Award: Single image Close Nothing prepared Paul for what he saw: some 4,000 defrosting pangolins (5 tonnes) from one of the largest seizures of the animals on record. They were destined for China and Vietnam for the exotic?meat trade or for traditional medicine (their scales are thought, wrongly, to treat a variety of ailments). Pangolins have become the worlds most trafficked animals, with all eight species targeted. These Asian victims, mostly Sunda pangolins, were part of a huge seizure -- a joint operation between Indonesias police and the World Conservation Society -- found hidden in a shipping container behind a facade of frozen fish, ready for export from the major port of Belawan in Sumatra. Also seized were 96 live pangolins (destined to be force-fed to increase their size), along with 100 kilos (220 pounds) of pangolin scales (formed from keratin, the same substance in fingernails and rhino horn) worth some $1.8 million on the black market, and 24 bear paws. Photograph: Paul Hilton/ Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 The sand canvas Rudi Sebastian, Germany Winner, Details Close The pristine white sand of Brazils LencoisMaranhensesNational Park offers a blank canvas to the rain. In the dry season, sand from the coast is blown by powerful Atlantic winds as far as 50 kilometres inland, sculpting a vast expanse of crescent-shaped dunes up to 40 metres (130 feet) high. With the onset of the rains, the magic begins. An impermeable layer beneath the sand allows water to collect in the dune valleys, forming thousands of transient lagoons, some more than 90 metres (295 feet) long. Bacteria and algae tint the clear water in countless shades of green and blue, while streams carrying sediment from the distant rainforest make their mark with browns and blacks. Patterns appear as the water evaporates, leaving behind organic remains. Photograph: Rudi Sebastian/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 After protracted negotiations, Russia has agreed to lease a second nuclear submarine to India in a deal which will cost around $2 billion (Rs 13,330 crore). Sources on Wednesday said the deal was struck during the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 15 on the sidelines of the BRICS meet in Goa. However, it was not part of the slew of announcements made after the talks. The defence ministry and the navy did not offer any information on the subject since it was a strategic platform coming under direct purview of the Prime Ministers Office. Alexei Nikolski, a columnist with Russian daily Vedomosti, which broke the story, wrote, According to a source in the Russian defence industry, the long-discussed lease to transfer a multipurpose Project 971 nuclear submarine to India from the Russian Navy was signed in Goa. The Akula 2 class submarine is expected to arrive in Indian waters in 2020-21. The Indian Navy already operates an Akula 2 class nuclear submarine, INS Chakra (formerly known as K-152 Nerpa), which was leased by Russia for 10 years and commissioned on April 4, 2012 after India paid for its completion of its construction and sea-trials. India had been keen to lease a second nuclear submarine. Indian defence sources had said that Russia had linked the lease of the nuclear submarine to the agreement for four stealth frigates. In Goa, India and Russia announced an over $3 billion frigate deal. Under the agreement, two stealth frigates will be built in Russia while the other two would be built in India under licence production. The Akula 2 class submarine, though not the latest class of nuclear-powered fast-attack submarines in the world, is still considered one of the most advanced. Capable of sailing at speeds up to 35 knots (nearly 65 km per hour) under water, it is among the quietest Russian submarines. Image: Yuri Maltsev/Reuters Recent statistics show that the situation is no different across the country with several hospitals lacking the infrastructure to manage a breakout of a blaze. Dillip Satpathy & Nirmalya Behera report. IMAGE: A nurse peers out of the damaged SUM Hospital in Bhubaneshwar that killed at least 20. Photograph: PTI The fire mishap on Monday at Institute of Medical Sciences and SUM Hospitals in Bhubaneswar that killed at least 20 has brought the fire safety norms and their execution under the scanner across the country. This comes barely five years after the Kolkata AMRI Hospital blaze in 2011 that had claimed 89 lives. The police have arrested four employees of SUM Hospital including its superintendent and booked them under sections of the Indian Penal Code that deal with culpable homicide and negligence on fire matters. More arrests are likely, said Y B Khurania, commissioner of police. The state government has instituted two probes, one by the revenue divisional commissioner (central zone) and other by a three-member panel led by the director medical education and training into the incident. The state health minister, Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak, said the health department found the hospital to have flouted safety guidelines including fire prevention system and patient evacuation management. The statistics are alarming. According to a note of the director, medical education and training, Odisha government, only three corporate hospitals in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Puri, where more than 500 private hospitals and nursing homes are operating, have fire safety certificates. The list did not include the name of SUM hospital, putting a question mark on how it was allowed to operate without the statutory fire safety certificate. Even director general of police, fire services, Binoy Kumar Behera, could not provide an answer on the fire safety measures in different hospitals. We do not have any list of private nursing homes and other clinical establishments operating in the state. We are, however, taking measures for the new units coming up, Behera said. On the SUM hospital tragedy, he said, We had issued a letter to the hospital in 2013 to undertake certain firefighting measures. But, nothing has been done in the past three years. The DMET and fire services department, meanwhile, have filed separate FIRs at the local police station against the SUM Hospital authorities alleging negligence. IMAGE: The state government has order a probe into the blaze at the hospital to ascertain if the hospital flouted safety guidelines. Photograph: PTI Norms issued but no follow-up The Centre and the state governments had issued fire safety guidelines to be followed at different clinical establishments after the AMRI Hospital incident in 2011. However, there was little follow up action to ensure implementation of the guidelines. In some cases, even judicial intervention was necessary to enforce the rules. Steps to curb fires >> Regular inspection of power equipment and fire safety measures at hospitals. >> Putting in place disaster management team at each hospital >> Imparting training to designated hospital staff on firefighting measures >> Drafting separate laws with strict punishment provisions on safety issues AMRI Group of hospitals, however, claims it had spent Rs 1.5-2 core at each of its four operational hospitals after the 2011 fire to create firefighting infrastructure. Its hospitals are equipped with fire extinguishers, smoke detectors and water sprinkler systems according to the norms. This apart, the hospital installed pressurised ventilators and auto dumpers which prevent the smoke from spreading across an area and evacuate it via windows. Wherever water sprinkler systems cannot be installed due danger of short circuit, we have installed carbon dioxide sprinklers which can douse the flame, Rupak Barua, Group CEO of AMRI Hospital said. The issue is pan-India. In Tamil Nadu, especially Chennai, disposing of a public interest litigation in April, 2016, the Madras high court had asked various regulatory authorities to follow safety measures in hospitals, which use lot of electrical equipment and inflammable material. The court had asked the government to formulate policy on the fire safety measures for new hospital buildings like provision of safety ramps for easy evacuation of patients. In fact, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority has a separate annexure of Development Rules and Development Control rules for fire safety in hospitals, while the state health and family welfare department has come out with guidelines for desirable safety methods in existing hospital buildings. A senior official from the Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Service said, various departments including the Fire and Rescue Service, CMDA, district level town planning bodies, are conducting inspections on the safety measures at different hospitals and would submit the report to the high court. Overall the hospitals in Tamil Nadu are much ahead in terms of fire safety system, he added. IMAGE: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik visits the patients of SUM Hospital who were rushed to nearby hospitals after the blaze. Photograph: PTI What hospitals say Preetha Reddy, vice-chairperson of Apollo Hospital Enterprise Ltd, said Apollo has been following the fire safety stands prescribed by the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals. It is our responsibility to follow the safety norms, since we are dealing with the lives of people in hospitals, she added, while declining to comment on the overall industry scenario. However, Association of Hospitals which comprises 56 top hospitals in Mumbai will meet next week to discuss fire safety measures. The managing committee of AOH is meeting next week and the fire safety issue will be discussed. We will deliberate if new guidelines need to be issued to our members. said associations vice-president and the Hinduja hospital CEO Gautam Khanna. Already some of the big hospitals have formed in-house fire fighting units and hired retired fire brigade officers to implement safety measures. In our hospital, regular mock drills are being carried out and marshallers have been identified on each floors to guide people in case of evacuation, Khanna said. We have a team of seven fire safety officers who are trained in firefighting function. Additionally, we are conducting regular training for all our staff, said Dr Rajeev Boudhankar, CEO of Bhatia Hospital. Governments take Some health ministry officials, however, said that the Centre has no plan to convene any meeting on the issue of fire accidents in hospitals due to lack of preparedness. The Centre will only act if the states require any help. Distancing themselves from the matter, officials believe ensuring hospitals have required preparedness is a states job. While the Maharashtra Fire Prevention and Life Safety Measures Act, 2006 makes it mandatory for all buildings to have fire safety mechanisms, hospitals in the city became more proactive, following the fire in AMRI Hospital in Kolkata in 2011. In 2012, the city fire brigade issued notices to several hospitals after an inspection found violations in the premises. These included lack of proper training of staff, conversion of refuge areas in buildings into offices and blocked staircases and passages. -- With additional reporting by Aneesh Phadnis in Mumbai, Gireesh Babu in Chennai, Avishek Rakshit in Kolkata and Veena Mani in New Delhi Union Minister Babul Supriyo was on Wednesday attacked with stones allegedly by Trinamool Congress activists in West Bengals' Asansol when he was on way to a police station to stage a protest against the arrest of some Bharatiya Janata Party workers. "I was going to the police station to secure release of some of my partymen. I was hit with bricks and windowpanes of my car were damaged by TMC workers," Supriyo, Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, alleged. "They also showed black flags. I don't know why the police allowed the mob to come near my car," he said. Video footage of the incident showed Supriyo standing on the footboard of a vehicle and a stone landing on his chest. BJP sources said the Union minister received injuries in the attack. L N Meena, police commissioner of Durgapur-Asansol, said BJP supporters had planned to 'gherao' the house of TMC leader and minister Malay Ghatak situated in the Asansol Uttar Police Station area when the trouble began. According to sources, BJP workers were prevented from moving towards the residence of Ghatak which prompted them to proceed towards the Asansol Dakshin Police Station. A clash ensued between the supporters of the BJP and the TMC when the saffron party workers were proceeding for the protest. In all 57 persons have been arrested in connection with the incident, Meena said. Affirming that that they have the right to stage protests, Supriyo claimed BJP workers were beaten up by the TMC men. State BJP president Dilip Ghosh said his party had on Tuesday protested against cow smuggling in the area when they were beaten up by TMC workers. Some BJP workers were also allegedly picked up by the police whose release Supriyo wanted to secure. Local TMC leader Shivdasan said the BJP workers should have lodged protest with the administration instead of deciding to hold an agitation in front of the minister's house. Photographs: ANI/Twitter Desis gathered in Times Square, New York, on Sunday, October 16 to celebrate Diwali. Photographs: Paresh Gandhi/India Abroad New Yorkers celebrated Diwali a week and more ahead of the celebrations in the motherland with a grand event in Times Square, the city's most famous location, on Sunday, October 16. Hundreds of desis gathered at Times Square surrounded by colourful neon billboards for Broadway shows and in the midst of hordes of tourists from all over the world navigating their way through the throng of humanity, a hallmark of Times Square at most times of the day. Paresh Gandhi/India Abroad captures joyous scenes from the event. IMAGE: US Senator Chuck Schumer lights the lamp with some assistance from Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin, India's permanent representative to the United Nations, Diwali@Times Square, New York, October 16, 2016. IMAGE: Something Ambassador Akbaruddin, who most Indians will recognise from his sterling tenure as the ministry of external affairs spokesperson, said gives Senator Schumer and Ambassador Riva Das Ganguly, India's consul general in New York cause to grin. IMAGE: US Congresswoman Carolyn B Maloney, who co-helmed the successful Diwali Stamp project with Ranju Batra, addresses the crowds, as her fellow Democrat, Senator Schumer looks on. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi sends the crowds his Diwali greetings. IMAGE: A glimpse of the crowds at Times Square. Diwali@Times Square. IMAGE: Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri, India's former permanent representative to the UN, Ambassador Ganguly, Congresswoman Maloney, Ambassador Akbaruddin, Ranju Batra, the lady behind the successful Diwali Stamp campaign, Neeta Bhasin, CEO, Event Guru and lawyer Ravi Batra at Diwali@Times Square. IMAGE: And the perfomances at Diwali@Times Square begin... IMAGE: Shabbir Ahluwalia -- 'Rockstar Abhi' -- and Sriti Jha -- 'Pragya' in the popular television serial Kumkum Bhagya -- emceed the show. IMAGE: What would a desi event be without dances performed to Bollywood beats? IMAGE: Masala Bhangra's Sarina Jain, who is 34 weeks pregnant, teaches the crowd at Diwali@Times Square some moves. Superheroes, princesses and witches soon will be showing up around town. These costumed characters will be looking for treats, fun activities and maybe a few scares, and there are plenty of events planned with just those things in mind. Following is a roundup of Halloween-themed events a few of which are geared toward adults taking place in Fremont and the surrounding area: Halloween Hysteria MainStreet of Fremonts annual Halloween Hysteria is tonight. Children and their families are invited to trick-or-treat at participating downtown businesses from 5-7 p.m. The childrens costume contest will be held in the old May Brothers Building at Sixth Street and Park Avenue. Judging will begin at 5:45 p.m. There will be four age categories for boys and girls: infant to 1 year, 2-3 years, 4-6 years and 7-10 years. First National Bank at Sixth and Main streets will again be home to the popular Haunted Bank for Kids. VW Photography will be offering free spooky photos at 250 N. Main St. Non-perishable food items will be collected for Care Corps. The Fremont Area Art Association, in conjunction with Keene Memorial Library, will be hosting face painting and Halloween story time at 92 W. Sixth St. A Day of the Dead art reception at 445 N. Broad St. will feature artwork done by Geoff Semrads fifth- and sixth-grade students. Halloween Party Fremonts Hy-Vee Food Store will be hosting a Halloween party from 1-3 p.m. on Saturday. Kids are invited to trick-or-trick at Hy-Vee. There also will be a coloring activity, cookie decorating and mini pumpkin decorating. Zombie Prom A zombie prom with the theme A Night To Dismember will take place from 6 p.m. to midnight Saturday at The Gathering Hall, 750 N. Clarmar Ave., in Fremont. Guests age 18 and over are invited to join in the party in their Halloween costume and/or formalwear. There will be a cash bar, food, dancing, photo opportunities, prom king and queen contest and more. Admission is $10 per person or $15 per couple. Proceeds raised will go to Uniquely Yours Stability Support. Deadly Hollows Deadly Hollows Haunted Cemetery will be open from 6:30-10 p.m. Oct. 22, 23, 29, 30 and 31 at 351 S. Garfield St. in Fremont. Entry to Deadly Hollows is a canned food item or an unwrapped toy to be donated to Low Income Ministry. Scary Corn Maze Hearts will be racing as guests try to solve a nine-acre corn maze while trying to elude the living and the dead (40 mannequins) spooks. Camp Fontanelles scary corn maze will be open from 7-10 p.m. Saturday as well as Oct. 28 and 29. There also is a dark only maze (no spooks or surprises, though still noises) for the younger crowd. A free movie will be shown at 6:45 p.m. by the petting barn. Concessions are available. Admission is $7 for ages 12 and up and $5 for ages 3-11. Search for Treats Camp Fontanelle will host Search for Treats from 2-4 p.m. Sunday. Kids and adults are invited to bring their treat bags and make their way through the corn maze looking for people giving out treats. There is no additional cost for this event, just the entrance fee for the maze. Halloween Party and Parade Kids are encouraged to dress up in their costumes and take part in a Halloween party and parade from 10-11 a.m. Tuesday at Fremont Family YMCA. Trick-or-treating of the YMCA offices will begin at 10 a.m. There also will be cookie decorating. All kids attending are asked to bring six treats to share with others. Hallo-FUN-anza Fremont Church of the Nazarene at 960 N. Johnson Road invites everyone to a free event from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday. Hallo-FUN-anza will include food, bouncy houses, hay rides and candy. Trunk N Treat & All Halls-O-Ween Midland University, Fremont Family YMCA and Sinai Lutheran Church are once again teaming up to sponsor Trunk N Treat & All Halls-O-Ween. The event will take place from 6-7:30 p.m. Oct. 27 at Midland University. Parking will be available at Midlands Wikert Event Center. Kids are invited to trick-or-treat in the Midland University residence dorms and at the decorated trunk n treat vehicles parked on the campus streets, which are closed to through traffic. Members of the public who bring their vehicle to the event and hand out treats will be competing for a $25 prize for the best-decorated vehicle. Sinai Lutheran Church will offer hot coffee, juice boxes and a picture background so you can take pictures of your goblins. Fall Festival Good Shepard Lutheran Church at 1544 E. Military Ave. will be hosting a fall festival/indoor trunk or treat event from 6-7:30 p.m. Oct. 27 in its Community Life Center. This free event for the whole family also will include games, activities and games. Halloween Spooktacular The annual Halloween Spooktacular is planned from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Oct. 29 at Parkview Center/Park Place Plaza on East Military Avenue in Fremont. Kids are invited to trick-or-treat at the merchants. There also will be a bounce house, cake walk, pumpkin decorating, prizes and hot dogs. A costume contest will be held from noon to 12:30 p.m. The age groups are 0-3 years, 4-7 years and 8-12 years. There also will be a category for pets. There will be prizes for first through third places. Trunk or Treat Kids ages 10 and under are invited to collect candy from 2-4 p.m. Oct. 29 at Fremont Izaak Walton Park, 2560 W. Military Ave. The event also will include hayrack rides. Boo Bash Cedar Bluffs High Schools FBLA chapter and the Cedar Bluffs Fire Department are teaming up for the annual Boo Bash. The event will take place from 3-6 p.m. Oct. 29 at the Cedar Bluffs Fire Hall on Main Street. The all-ages bash will feature ghoulish games, freaky fun and frightening food. Those attending are encouraged to dress in their best costume. All activities are free. Fremont Monster Walk This years Fremont Monster Walk will be held from 2-5:30 p.m. Oct. 29 at Fremont Mall. The 5th annual event will include a costume contest at 4 p.m., games, raffle drawing at 5 p.m., food and prizes. The rock bank 3D In Your Face will be playing from 2:30-3:30 p.m. Non-perishable food items and money will be collected to support Low Income Ministry. Fall Festival Fremont Alliance Churchs annual Fall Festival will take place from 5:30-8 p.m. Oct. 31 at 1615 N. Lincoln Ave. Kids are invited to come in costume to the festival which features games, prizes, bounce houses, candy and more. Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. No one was injured in an early morning fire at a Fremont apartment complex and a fire official is grateful for a sprinkler system which exting Halloween is here! Find out when Trick-or-Treat is happening in Martinsville. The leaves are changing, the evenings are getting cooler and excitement is building as Halloween draws closer. Tom Green County commissioners on Tuesday adopted a resolution for the Sheriff's Office to use body-worn cameras. Texas lawmakers in 2015 set aside $10 million to provide 75 percent of funding for police agencies toward cameras used to document their actions. The Sheriff's Office applied and recently received a state grant of $19,610 from the Governor's Criminal Justice Division to help the TGCSO get body-worn cameras in place. The local match is $6,500. 'We have received the grant and are in the process of getting all the equipment and implementing the program,' Sheriff David Jones said in an email. Commissioners also accepted a State Criminal Alien Assistance Program grant award of $6,363. The grant is intended to offset some of the cost for housing suspects in the county jail who are undocumented immigrants. This is an annual award that the county has applied for for years. Facilities Maintenance Director Don Killam also updated commissioners on several construction and remodeling projects underway. Killam said remodeling work at the Edd B. Keyes Building, a government building, is 'rolling right along.' The project began in spring 2014 and is expected to be complete in early 2017. Killam also said 65 percent of construction-related documents for the creation of a new county detention center are ready for county officials to review. Of a proposed $53.5 million bond to be be paid off in 20 to 22 years, $45 million would be allocated for a new jail behind the Roy K. Robb Correctional Facility at 3262 U.S. 277 N., northeast of San Angelo. The remaining money will go to fund improvements to the Tom Green County Courthouse, add-ons to justice of the peace offices and other contingencies. Put John Michael Brown and Andy Knox in front of a burning building, and the Abilene firefighters are in their wheelhouse. Reading in front of a group of Bowie Elementary fifth-graders, not so much. But Brown and Knox were among the 30 or so celebrity volunteers Wednesday who took their turn reading to students at the Reading Rodeo, an annual event sponsored by Altrusa, an organization whose service projects include improving literacy. Brown and Knox read 'John, Paul, George and Ben' by Lane Smith, a somewhat historical account of the roles John Hancock, Paul Revere, George Washington and Benjamin Franklin played in the American Revolution. Their audience was 20 students in Kristen Moore's class. The students weren't the only ones who learned something, said Brown, who was a student in the original Bowie Elementary building that fronted South 20th Street. 'I learned I don't read very well in public,' he joked. The firefighters, who accompanied Joe Jones and Bob Joyce from Fire Station 2, didn't have to field any questions from the students about the American Revolution, but they did get questions about being a firefighter. For instance, do they get to run red lights? (Yes, but only when answering a call and then not without slowing down to make sure it's safe.) How much does their fire gear weigh? (50 pounds.) Do you have a dog at the station? (No.) Barbara Pollack, a retired Abilene schoolteacher, has been organizing the event for 14 years, bringing in a diverse group from the community to read. 'It's really important for the students to hear an adult from outside of the school read to them,' she said. 'So many of the students don't have parents who read to them.' The Reading Rodeo wasn't the only excitement for the students on Wednesday. Students dressed as their favorite literary characters and held a parade, as well. Taylor County commissioners amended an agreement with the city to continue housing prisoners, approved a grant resolution concerning indigent defense and honored several employees during Tuesday's regular meeting. Commissioners amended the Interlocal Cooperative Agreement between Taylor County and the city of Abilene that originated Oct. 1, 2014. The agreement allows the county to house certain prisoners for the city at a cost of $48 per inmate per day. Costs will be reviewed annually, according to the agreement. The amendment allows for automatic renewal of the agreement on Oct. 1 the beginning of a new fiscal year each year unless either party terminates. Either the city or the county can end the agreement by giving 180 days' notice, County Judge Downing Bolls said. Commissioners also approved a resolution allowing Bolls to accept a $134,571 grant from the Texas Indigent Defense Commission to assist with indigent criminal defense services. The resolution named Bolls as the authorized official to apply for and accept the grant. The funds are in addition to the $2 million the county budgets each year for indigent defense, Bolls said. Additionally, several service awards and quarterly employee awards also were presented. If you have a need for firewood, get it now while you can A man who had locked his keys in his car at a convenience store testified Tuesday that he witnessed a vehicle strike and kill an Abilene man on Halloween 2014. Emmanuel Diaz, 18, is standing trial in 104th District Court, accused of the first-degree murder of Jesse Cortinez, 58, after witnesses say he ran over Cortinez with his mother's vehicle before fleeing. Diaz was arrested in late November 2014. He has been in the Taylor County Jail since then in lieu of a $250,000 bail bond. Osiris Washington testified that he stopped to get gasoline at the convenience store at South Seventh and Butternut streets when he accidentally locked his keys in his car. While waiting for help, Washington said, he saw a black SUV, possibly a Jeep Liberty, pull up, and a couple of guys get out. Three people stood outside the vehicle, one of whom was Cortinez, according to Washington, who then testified that Cortinez talked to the two teenagers, both male, before attempting to walk away from them. One of the young men then struck Cortinez, who walked off, Washington said. The only clerk working at the store that night, Jennifer Bolender, testified that she saw three people in the parking lot as she was getting ready to close at midnight. Bolender said the first step in closing is to lock the door, which she was doing when she noticed the teenagers and the black SUV. They had not been inside the store, she said. Bolender testified that Diaz was in the driver's seat, wearing an orange shirt, and that another young man stood outside the vehicle in a white shirt. The passenger wore a black shirt. Bolender also said she noticed Cortinez, whom she recognized as a 'regular' at the store who often would come in and buy a soda. Cortinez's back was to her and she could not hear their conversation. She said she peeked outside the door and told the boy in the white shirt that he could come in if he needed to get anything but could not buy beer because it was too late. The boy in the white shirt went inside to use the restroom after turning and telling the others 'it's too late to buy beer,' Bolender testified. That was when Cortinez started to walk away and the passenger yelled at him 'Hey, old guy! Hey, old guy!' According to Washington, Cortinez began walking toward the rear of the store. The black SUV then drove around the store, hit the curb and struck Cortinez, he said. When the boy in the white shirt walked out of the store, he asked Bolender where his cousins went, according to the clerk. She testified that she told him she didn't know and that he walked away. The next moment she looked up, police were knocking on the locked doors of the store, she said. Although Diaz was a minor when the death occurred, he is being tried as an adult. If convicted, he could serve between five and 99 years in prison. Twitter: BrookeCrum_ARN Can this presidential campaign get any weirder? Sensing nothing left to lose, according to reports, Republican hopeful Donald Trump's campaign is going for broke with a scorched earth strategy, intended to make a 'Bill Cosby' out of Bill Clinton. Just as Cosby went from national hero to national pariah after a parade of women charged him with decades of sexually predatory acts, Team Trump hopes to do the same to the former president. Yes, I know, Bill Clinton's not running. His wife is. But the Trump campaign aims to smear her as an enabler of sexual violence. 'We're going to turn him into Bill Cosby,' Trump campaign CEO Steve Bannon told Trump staffers, according to a report by Bloomberg's Josh Green who quotes two unnamed Trump advisers who were present. 'He's a violent sexual predator who physically abuses women who he assaults. And she takes the lead on the intimidation of the victims.' One could question whether, with all due respect to the accusers, Team Trump believes in protecting the constitutional rights of the accused. But this particular ploy of resurrecting accusations that were investigated but never prosecuted even by special Whitewater prosecutor Kenneth Starr at least 20 years ago is not designed to debate our criminal justice system. It is intended to tar the Clintons with crimes against women, a group that turned heavily against Trump even before the new allegations came out. The new strategy began as a defensive move. Before the second presidential debate, Trump was revealed in a 2005 'Access Hollywood' hot-mic video as boasting about using his celebrity status to go after women like a sexual predator. He apologized for what he called 'locker room talk' and accused Bill Clinton of doing worse as president. He also appeared on debate night with three of Bill Clinton's most prominent accusers Juanita Broaddrick, Kathleen Willey and Paula Jones plus Kathy Shelton, who argues that Hillary Clinton, as an attorney, questioned Shelton's credibility in the 1970s while representing a man she says raped her. Ironically, just as Team Trump was about to launch a scorched-earth assault against the Clintons in the final weeks of the campaign, Trump was confronted with new charges, this time of sexual assault by multiple women. They said they were provoked into going public in much the way that Cosby's accusers had been by Trump's denial during the debate that he had laid his hands on any actual women. Trump responded to the new charges with forceful denials and, once again, new charges against the Clintons and the allegedly compliant media. With his polls having shrunk to little more than his hard-core base of supporters and Election Day fast approaching, Trump and his campaign have pretty much abandoned efforts to reach out to undecided swing voters. Instead, their hope is to discourage wavering young women, in particular, who might be turned off enough to stay home instead of voting for Hillary Clinton. As someone old enough to remember the 1990s quite well, I don't think that trick's going to work any better than the partisan pursuit of President Clinton did. Now, in the final days of a contest between two candidates with the highest disapproval ratings of two nominees in memory, we can expect the alley fight to get uglier. Yet a ray of sunshine and sanity appeared later in the week. First lady Michelle Obama gave a speech on Hillary Clinton's behalf in New Hampshire that seemed to put an overdue moral compass on this competition of scandals. She put aside her prepared speech, she said, because the idea that 'a candidate for President of the United States has bragged about sexually assaulting women' is 'not something that we can ignore' or sweep under the rug 'as just another disturbing footnote in a sad election season.' 'We have everything we need to stop this madness,' she said to enthusiastic applause. 'We have knowledge. We have a voice. We have a vote.' We also have a remarkably poignant and powerful voice in Michelle Obama. It is no wonder that many people wish that she was on the ballot. But this First Lady has made it clear that she's had it with Washington's political circus, an attitude so sensible that, to me, it only makes her sound more attractive for the job. Email Clarence Page, a member of the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board, at cpage@tribune.com. Forty-one years ago, 14 people gathered in a small room on California Boulevard in Fayetteville, Arkansas, for the wedding of an aspiring local politician and his law school sweetheart from up north. The bride wanted a small, private ceremony and got it. Ann Henry, a law professor at the University of Arkansas and a Democratic Party activist, volunteered her two-acre property for it. 'Could I have ever imagined I'd be hosting a wedding for a U.S. president, a senator, a governor and a secretary of state, and perhaps another president and they were the same two people?' Henry says now. The street on which Bill Clinton bought the $22,000 house in 1975 to persuade Hillary Rodham finally to marry him is now named after him, and so is an avenue in Little Rock. The airport in the state capital bears both spouses' names. A glittering Clinton Center, which houses the presidential library, is teeming with visitors. And yet Arkansas will be voting overwhelmingly for Donald Trump, not for Hillary Rodham Clinton, on Nov. 8. I set out to find out why. The Clintons still have close friends in Arkansas, so I started with them. Skip Rutherford, dean of the Clinton School of Public Service in Little Rock, responded in part by ticking off Clinton projects that were still going strong: Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, the neonatal-intensive-care unit at the Arkansas Children's Hospital, a project to help poor parents with preschool youngsters and the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund, and more. That these initiatives are still alive and expanding is a testament to Hillary Clinton's doggedness and ability to build working structures rather than Potemkin villages, he said. And yet these achievements haven't endeared her to most Arkansans. 'If you go to a Walmart and ask ordinary Arkansans, they won't name a single one of these,' says Rex Nelson, senior vice president at Simmons Bank in Little Rock who worked for many years as policy and communications director for former Gov. Mike Huckabee, a Republican presidential contender in 2012 and 2016. Clinton's achievements in Arkansas are, admittedly, 25 to 30 years old, which means almost half the state's voting-age population isn't old enough to remember what she did when she lived here. That might not have been a problem had the local Democratic Party been around to remind them. It wasn't. Until the mid-1990s, Arkansas was thoroughly Democratic. Now, it's largely Republican, for all the well-documented demographic, economic and social reasons. In Hillary's progressivism, Gitz says, Arkansans saw contempt. Throughout her time in the state, she failed to overcome this perception because she lacked her husband's political gifts. 'Bill is perhaps a nine-plus on a 10-point scale as a retail politician,' Nelson says. 'She's a two or a three.' Hillary wasn't standoffish, her friends say. She traveled throughout the state's 65 counties to do her homework for the education reform but where her husband talked, she mostly listened. 'She's not a chit-chatter,' Henry says. Her failure to connect was a far bigger problem than any of the Clinton scandals. 'Bill was at the center of these scandals and he remained well-liked,' Nelson points out. Hillary was not so lucky. It was interesting to me that the Republicans who have taken over the running of Arkansas from Clinton Democrats are not conservative firebrands. Members of the state Republican elite, such as popular Gov. Asa Hutchinson and Senators John Boozman and Tom Cotton are waiting out the Trump tempest, trying to make as few enemies as possible, taking no extreme positions. No revolution is going to toss out these cautious politicians. Political waves come and go, but Arkansas remains essentially the same, a relatively poor, predominantly white state with a cozy political tradition a place where centrists with personality can go a long way. Hillary Clinton may be wise to steer clear of it now but in that wisdom, there's a long-term admission of defeat in a game her husband could play better than anybody else. The house where the Clintons were married is now a museum. A TV in one of the rooms plays an endless loop of Clinton's old ads from his unsuccessful first run for Congress. One of them features a country song with lyrics about 'a new man' named Bill Clinton who is 'a lot like you and a lot like me.' The museum's director, Angie Albright, half-consciously sings along with the chorus when I ask her to play it for me. Could Hillary do an ad like this? 'Never,' Albright replies without hesitation. 'It's not her at all.' Leonid Bershidsky is a Bloomberg View columnist. Today in history: On Oct. 19, 1796, the Gazette of the United States prints an essay by a writer named 'Phocion,' who attacks presidential candidate Thomas Jefferson as having an affair with one of his slaves. The writer is Alexander Hamilton, who supports John Adams, the incumbent, for president. Alexander wrote 25 essays as Phocion, all attacking Jefferson and his republicanism. Publisher James Callender later penned reports of Alexander's adulterous affair and also Jefferson's 'concubine.' Advertisement - Continue Reading Below This just in... Rhona Smith, UN special rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights in Cambodia, speaks during a press conference in Phnom Penh, Oct 19,2016. On the eve of the 25th anniversary of the Paris Peace Accords that ended Cambodias war with Vietnam and pointed the way toward a modern state, the U.N.s human rights envoy to the country urged the nations leaders to bury the past. Rhona Smith, the U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Cambodia, said on Wednesday that her 10-day tour showed a very different nation than the one that struggled to throw off the bloody Khmer Rouge, find peace with its neighbor, and, at least on paper, establish a democracy. But she also saw a government that is too willing to live in the past. The time for the government to blame the troubles of the last century for the situation today is surely over, she wrote in a statement at the end of her official fact-finding mission. Cambodia has earned its place on the international stage as an equal sovereign state and, as such, the government must take responsibility for implementing at the national and [local] levels all those rights and freedoms in the treaties it has so willingly ratified, she wrote. While the accords marked the official end of the Cambodian-Vietnamese War in 1991, allowed Cambodia to implement a new constitution and hold elections, Cambodia is embroiled in an ongoing political crises that has seen government critics mysteriously killed, opposition party members thrown in jail and a poor record on human rights. On Oct. 10 as Smith was beginning her fact finding tour, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court jailed opposition party lawmaker Um Sam An for two years and six months and security forces attacked demonstrators protesting land grabs in Cambodia. And despite repeated calls for a more open government, Prime Minister Hun Sen appears to be in no hurry to share power with anyone outside of his family and trusted members of his Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP). While the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) is hoping to hold a gathering in the capital on the Oct. 23 holiday marking the signing of the peace agreement, the full promise of the accords still appears to remain just out of reach. I think there are still elements of the Paris peace agreement which have not yet been fully delivered upon, particularly those related to ensuring free and full elections, human rights and a strong judiciary empowered to give effect (to) and enforce those human rights accepted by the country, Smith told reporters after wrapping up her mission. The Cambodian judicial system still lacks independence, while rights workers, opposition politicians and outside observers see the courts as a tool for Hun Sen to exact retribution on his political enemies. Laws applied without discrimination Rarely do CPP politicians face charges, but the list of CNRP and other opposition lawmakers dragged before the courts is long and includes party president Sam Rainsy and deputy leader Kem Sokha, as well as opposition lawmakers like Um Sam An and Meach Sovannara. Sam Rainsy has been living abroad off and on for years as Hun Sens government has charged him with a number of offenses that observers inside and outside Cambodia see as politically motivated. Kem Sokha is under virtual house arrest since police attempted to arrest him in May for ignoring court orders to appear as a witness in a pair of defamation cases related to an alleged affair with a hairdresser. Meach Sovannara was given a 20-year sentence for taking part in a protest in Phnom Penh in late 2014. He and 10 other activists were jailed on insurrection charges for clashing with police over the closure of a protest site in the capital. Um Sam An is serving a two-year-and-six-month jail term for inciting discrimination and inciting social instability. Its imperative that the laws are applied without discrimination on any grounds including political beliefs and opinions, and that the same evidentiary requirements are applied to all charges and therefore are the basis for all convictions, Smith said. Theres a need to strengthen consistency and reasoning in all cases in Cambodia. That consistency and reasoning is severely lacking, said Cambodian Center for Human Rights Executive Director Chak Sopheap. Many human rights defenders who are often involved with helping people with land disputes; community representatives who protest for inhabitants rights; people who express their opinions on the internet; opposition members who criticize the border issues; and environmental protection activists have been arrested and sentenced to prison by the courts, she said during The International Conference on Paris Peace Accords, held in Phnom Penh on Oct. 19. Analysts who dare to openly and directly criticize Cambodias social maladies are shot and killed in the heart of the capital city, she added. In July, popular government critic Kem Ley was shot and killed when he stopped in a Star Mart convenience store beside a Caltex gas station in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh. In 2004 Chea Vichea, the leader of the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC), was shot in the head and chest early in the morning while reading a newspaper at a kiosk in Phnom Penh. Also in 2004 Ros Sovannarith, a labor activist at a major textile factory, was killed in 2004 when unidentified gunmen shot him twice as he rode his motorbike near Phnom Penh University. Three years later Hy Vuthy, a senior leader of the FTUWKC, was gunned down by two men on a motorcycle while heading home from a Phnom Penh garment factory. Peace and stability While the record looks bleak, Smith did see some bright spots. It has seen a period of relative peace and stability in this country which has benefited many, but not all Cambodians, she said. Theres much that is positive and that is worth celebrating. That was a point that government officials emphasized, saying that there is too much focus on the political battles between the ruling party and the opposition. One should not evaluate the human rights situation in Cambodia by just focusing on the political issue, Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhon said in a statement as he claimed the nation has a relatively free press. Cambodia ranks first with the most freedom of the press among the ASEAN countries, he said. While Cambodia does rank ahead of most of its neighbors for press freedom, it still sits at 128 of 180 nations in the 2016 Reporters Without Borders survey of press freedom. While the CNRP wants to celebrate, its unclear if they will be given permission as the government has failed to give the party a permit to use Freedom Park for its fete. Phnom Penh city government spokesperson, Mean Chanyada told RFA that city hall decided to forward the CNRP request to the Ministry of Interior because of the size of the celebration. Senior CNRP lawmaker Son Chhay told RFA that the party will stick to its plans. It is not the responsibility of the Phnom Penh city hall to grant or not grant permission to demonstrate, he said. The organizer is just required to inform the city government. Freedom Park has often been the location for protests against Hun Sens government. In 2009 the government officially designated the square as a place where Cambodians could express themselves freely, but it has often been closed to anti-government protestors. The park was the site when at least 16 people were killed and more than 150 injured in a grenade attack that came as Sam Rainsy and his supporters gathered there in 1997 to denounce the Cambodian judiciarys lack of independence and its corruption. Reported by RFA's Khmer Service. Translated by Yanny Hin. Written in English by Brooks Boliek. Authorities in southern China have tried two members of an unofficial Protestant "house church" on spying charges, while a third has been tried for "illegal business activities," lawyers and church members said on Wednesday. Wang Yao and Yu Lei stood trial on Monday and Wednesday at the Guiyang Intermediate People's Court in the southwestern province of Guizhou on charges of "deliberately revealing state secrets," following an ongoing crackdown on their Huoshi Church by police and religious affairs officials. "Wang Yao's trial was on Monday and Yu Lei's was on Wednesday," a fellow Huoshi church member who asked to remain anonymous told RFA. "Wang Yao's family weren't allowed to attend the trial, and neither were two lawyers hired by her family to defend her," said the church member, who is under close surveillance by police and local officials. "There have been people watching me in the past few days from my neighborhood committee and the local police station," the church member said. "They follow me wherever I go. The police have placed very tight controls on all Huoshi Church members." 'Illegal business' In Guangzhou, Li Hongmin stood trial on Monday for "running an illegal business" after being accused of printing more than 11,000 copies of 125 different Protestant tracts for distribution. Li pleaded not guilty, and Beijing-based rights lawyers Li Boguang and Liu Peifu argued that Li was merely exercising a constitutional right to freedom of religion. Li's trial was attended by around 20 close relatives, including his wife and parents, Guangfu Church pastor Ma Ke told RFA on Wednesday, adding that he was denied entry to the courtroom. "I asked them why they wouldn't let me in, because I'd applied to add my name to the list a long time ago, and they said they didn't know, but they had to go by the list of names they had, and mine wasn't on it," Ma said. "I just waited outside the court instead ... The lawyers told me that the material Li Hongmin had printed was all for internal circulation within the church," he said. Torture, ill-treatment Meanwhile, lawyers for Huoshi's pastor Yang Hua said he is suffering from a number of "serious health problems" following torture and ill-treatment during his detention. Yang "has been suffering from serious health conditions and is suffering from liver pain along with various other serious diseases," lawyers Chen Jiangang and Zhao Yonglin told the U.S.-based Christian rights group ChinaAid. "Prosecutors visited him twice, applied pressure to his feet, and repeatedly threatened to kill him and harm his family members if he failed to confess his supposed crimes," the group quoted the lawyers as saying. Yang's lawyers said they plan to sue the prosecution team for "using torture to extract a confession." ChinaAid said fellow Huoshi pastor Su Tianfu is also facing charges of "revealing state secrets," linked to reports on the persecution of Protestant house churches in China that were forwarded to foreign media organizations. Controls on religion The ruling Chinese Communist Party, which embraces atheism, exercises tight controls over any form of religious practice among its citizens. China is home to an estimated 68 million Protestants, of whom 23 million worship in state-affiliated churches, and some nine million Catholics, 5.7 million of whom are in state-sponsored organizations. The administration of President Xi Jinping regards Christianity as a dangerous foreign import, with officials warning last year against the "infiltration of Western hostile forces" in the form of religion. A crackdown on Protestant churches in the eastern province of Zhejiang has widened and intensified to other regions of China during the past year, church members have told RFA. Last month, China's cabinet, the State Council, released a draft set of draconian rules setting out measures aimed at eliminating unofficial Christian worship and "separatists" among Tibetans and Muslim Uyghurs. They include bans on preaching or running religious events in schools and on "providing religious services online." Individuals and groups are also prohibited from "organizing citizens to attend religious training, conferences, and activities overseas," according to a copy of the draft rules seen by RFA. Some of the rules call on government agencies to "take precautions against separatism, terrorism, and infiltration by foreign forces." They also impose restrictions on the acceptance of teaching posts in foreign countries, while a clause forbidding "religious activities in unapproved sites" calls on local governments to extend a nationwide crackdown on house churches not affiliated with the Three-Self Patriotic Association of government-approved churches. Shrinking space Beijing-based Xu Yonghai, who heads the Beijing Sheng'ai Protestant Family Church Fellowship, said the new rules represent a worsening of the environment for religious worship in China. "The space for those of us with religious beliefs is getting smaller and smaller," Xu told RFA on Wednesday. "They are still tolerating smaller meetings held in people's homes, but they won't allow us to meet in large venues." He said the authorities usually find some excuse to keep up the pressure even then. "They'll say we can't meet at Zhang's house; we have to go to Li's house, or that we can't meet on a Sunday, and we have to meet on a different day," Xu said. "We're hanging in there," he said. Reported by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie. Laotian girls throw buckets of water on colleagues during the water festival celebrations in Vientiane, April 13, 2012. The Lao government is tightening conditions under which foreigners marry local women in a bid to combat human trafficking, according to officials. Under new rules introduced recently, foreigners wanting to marry local women should be a resident in Laos for at least three consecutive months and have to provide a variety of personal documents for the government to conduct background checks, the officials said. The stringent conditions are aimed at plugging the marriage loophole that foreign human trafficking syndicates have been using to smuggle Lao women out of the country. The foreigners quickly get married with local women in Laos and then take them to their countries where the women are forced into prostitution and other illicit activities, the officials said. "The government has just issued a new law that basically states that if a foreigner wants to marry a Lao girl, he must stay in Laos for three months to obtain proper documents, not just obtain documents and then leave," a Lao anti-human trafficking officer told RFA's Lao service. "Many women have been missing and sold, the officer said, without giving details on the foreign human trafficking syndicates that are linked to such marriages and smuggling Lao women. The officer said that under the new rule, a foreigner who wants to marry a Laotian has to submit documents of "his nationality, background and other necessary information to Lao authorities." "The authorities will investigate and the investigation will take at least three months. If the foreigner is trustworthy, he will be allowed to marry [much] faster; but if [the application is] in doubt, the marriage will be delayed or never permitted." Smuggling rings In recent months, officials have exposed foreign sex rings smuggling Lao women to China, Thailand, and Malaysia. In May, the government reported that hundreds of girls have been trafficked into China from the northern provinces of Laos. One official had said that over the past two years, hundreds of families from provinces bordering China had approached the government requesting help in locating their missing daughters. The girls, many of them from the ethnic Khmu minority, were lured with the prospect of work, or had married Chinese nationals. Human trafficking rings are also increasingly using Thailand as a transit country to send Lao girls to Malaysia where they are sold into prostitution, according to a Lao official, also in May. Based on statistics provided by the immigration bureau of Thailands Songkla province, which borders Malaysia to the north, 48,000 Laotians crossed into Malaysia in 2011, but only 46,000 returned. Some 35 percent of Lao nationals trafficked to Thailand end up in prostitution, U.N. figures have shown. Across the border Earlier this month, a Thai official claimed that more than 500 underage Lao girls are working as sex slaves in eastern Thailand, saying that authorities in both countries need to step up the fight against human trafficking. Chuvit Kamolvisit, a Thai member of parliament and advocate for social issues, said that the girls, aged 13 to 18 years, were discovered in a karaoke bar in the Chachoengsao district of Chachoengsao province. But Thai Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung denied Chuvits claims in a statement to the Thai media, saying no such karaoke bar existed. He called on Lao officials to take measures which included more scrutiny of Lao girls traveling to Thailand to look for work and targeting officials who have assisted traffickers. A Lao draft law on human trafficking is currently under review and is likely to be put into law by 2014, officials have said. The U.S. State Department maintained Laos at Tier 2 in its annual report on human trafficking in June, saying it does not fully comply with minimum standards for protecting trafficking victims, but that it is making significant efforts to comply with those standards. Reported by Sidney Khotpaya for RFA's Lao service. Translated by Max Avary. Written in English by Parameswaran Ponnudurai. Regional civil society organizations said on Wednesday that ongoing conflicts between the government military and armed ethnic groups in two northern states have hurt Myanmars fragile peace process and imposed hardship on residents there. The CSOs held a news conference in the commercial capital Yangon to explain what they discussed about the fighting in Shan and Kachin states and the status of the peace talks at a forum they attended on Monday. At Mondays event, representatives from 90 CSOs also discussed the situation of people displaced by ongoing hostilities. They demanded that military and armed ethnic group leaders sign a nationwide cease-fire agreement (NCA) with the government that a handful of other such groups have already signed, and issue an announcement about it, said Htet Oo Wai from the CSO peace forum committee. The groups also urged the military to repair its relationship with civil society organizations. We urged the military to take the lead in regaining the good relationship between itself and civil society organizations that was destroyed many years ago, she said, but did not elaborate. Fighting in Kachin state and Shan state to its immediate south has displaced thousands of local villagers and prompted street protests by civil society groups, residents, and representatives of state political parties. We also urged military and ethnic armed groups to meet and stop the ongoing fighting, and also to resolve problems in Rakhine state as soon as possible, she said. Hostilities between Myanmar security forces and armed men flared in western Myanmars Rakhine state this month following a raid on three border guard posts in Maungdaw and Rathedaung townships which nine officers and eight assailants died. Other attackers, soldiers, and policemen were killed in subsequent clashes between insurgents supported by an Islamist group. The clashes have forced hundreds of schools to close and 3,000 residents to flee their homes. The CSOs also demanded the suspension of large investments in the states and of all business involved in natural resources, which are abundant in northern Myanmar, until there is peace throughout the country. Control of natural resources Several rights groups believe that armed ethnic armies in Kachin and Shan states continue to engage in fighting to get control of natural resources, especially land, and hydroelectric power along the Salween River. Shan and Kachin soldiers have also engaged in clashes with each other in northern Myanmar. The fighting between different ethnic groups is very dangerous, Ashin Wimala, a Buddhist monk who lives in Waingmaw township in Myitkyina district in Kachin state, told RFAs Myanmar Service. Everyones hatred has spiked, he said. This fighting must stop. The monk also emphasized the effects the conflicts have had on displaced residents and their children. For IDPs [internally displaced persons], the mental suffering is greater than the physical suffering because they have stayed away from their homes for six years on account of the fighting, he said. Peoples and childrens attitudes can be destroyed because they have to depend too much on others, he said. The ongoing hostilities in the two states threaten to undermine the peace process that Myanmars de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi has made a cornerstone of the six-month-old government. She organized the 21st-Century Panglong Conference, held at the end of August, in an effort to end decades of civil war pitting armed ethnic groups against the national military in many regions of the country. The fighting has killed tens of thousands of people and hindered economic development in the resource-rich country. Reported by Thiha Tun and Aung Theinkha for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin. A displaced resident who is a member of the Myo ethnic group carries her child at a Buddhist monastery in Kantharyar village in Maungdaw township, western Myanmar's Rakhine state, Oct. 15, 2016. Members of Myanmars Rakhine advisory commission met with national government ministers on Wednesday in Naypyidaw to discuss the security situation in Maungdaw township, where recent violence has forced thousands to flee their homes. The northern part of Rakhine state where Maungdaw is located has been placed under military control following a deadly Oct. 9 attack on three border guard posts and ensuing hostilities that authorities have blamed on insurgents linked to Aqa Mul Mujahidin, an Islamic organization active in Muslim-majority Maungdaw. Security forces have locked down the area while they hunt for roughly 400 people involved in the attacks, whom they believe to be local Rohingya Muslims who received funding and training from Islamists abroad. The Myanmar government formed the Rakhine advisory commission in late August to examine conflict resolution, humanitarian assistance, and development issues in the impoverished and restive western state. Though officials from the ministries of defense and home affairs participated in Wednesdays meeting, former United Nations chief Kofi Annan, who leads the nine-member commission, did not attend. The commission members met with us to study the problems and situation in Rakhine state, said Information Minister Pe Myint. The Maungdaw attack is new, and they want to know about it as well. Rakhine is home to more than 1.1 million stateless Rohingya Muslims whom many Burmese call Bengalis because they consider them illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh. The Buddhist majority has long subjected the Rohingya to persecution and attacks and denied them basic rights, including citizenship. The minority group which bore the brunt of anti-Muslim communal violence in 2012 that left more than 200 dead and displaced tens of thousands were later forced to live in camps, where they remain today. Food for IDPs Meanwhile, the mayhem in Maungdaw has now driven 3,000 displaced people to nearby towns, according to Rakhine state officials. More than 1,000 of them have sought refuge in the state capital Sittwe, while others have made their way to other parts of Maungdaw and neighboring Buthidaung township. Though officials have closed hundreds of state-run schools in Maungdaw as a result of the conflict, they will now arrange for children who have been displaced by the violence to attend classes, said Min Aung, the states city development minister. He also said the state government is supplying food to those who have been displaced. The Rakhine state government has provided whatever the IDPs [internally displaced persons] need, such as rice, cooking oil, and dried fish, he said. Civil society organizations from Rakhine and other states have been helping them as well. Local NGOs must rely on the army to deliver rice to other Maungdaw residents who have remained in their villages and are now running out of food supplies. Aqa Mul Mujahidin, the group that officials say has ties to insurgents who carried out the border post attacks, has links to the Rohingya Solidarity Organization (RSO), a small militant group active in the 1980s and the 1990s, but until recently believed to be defunct. But at a press conference on Monday, Deputy Home Affairs Minister Maj. Gen. Aung Soe said information indicating that the attacks were carried out by the Islamist group with links to Pakistan may be flawed, according to a report by Democratic Voice of Burma. Reported by Kyaw Soe Lin for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin. Chinese police in Sichuans Ngaba county detained and beat a Tibetan monk this week, leaving him hospitalized with severe injuries after he staged a solitary protest opposing Beijings rule in Tibetan areas, according to a local source. Lobsang Tsultrim, a monk in Ngaba (in Chinese, Aba) countys Kirti monastery, was taken into custody at around 1:00 p.m. on Oct. 17 after shouting slogans while walking along a street in Ngaba countys main town, a resident of the area told RFAs Tibetan Service. He called out for Tibetan freedom and for the long life of [exiled spiritual leader] the Dalai Lama as he walked, and when he arrived at the street in front of the Tibetan Language Middle School he was stopped by police and taken away, RFAs source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Tsultrim was then severely beaten by police and held overnight at a court house in the town, the source said. He was rushed to Ngaba Hospital the next day and is now reported to be in critical condition, he said. On Oct. 18, a group of Chinese police went to Kirti to question monks about the incident, and the presence of police and security officers has now been strengthened throughout the town, RFAs source said. Repeated protests Ngabas Kirti monastery and the countys main town have been the scene of repeated self-immolations and other protests in recent years by monks, former monks, and nuns opposed to Chinese rule. Two days before Tsultrims protest, Kirti monastery had begun a four-day event marking completion of a lavish new residence for the monasterys abbot, who lives in Dharamsala, India, seat of Tibets government in exile. Restrictions imposed on the celebration by authorities, including the banning of local students then on their holiday break, had become unbearable, and these may have triggered [Tsultrims] protest, RFAs source said. Sporadic demonstrations challenging Beijings rule have continued in Tibetan-populated areas of China since widespread protests swept the region in 2008. A total of 145 Tibetans living in China have set themselves ablaze in self-immolations since the wave of fiery protests began in 2009, with most protests featuring calls for Tibetan freedom and the Dalai Lamas return from India, where he has lived since escaping Tibet during a failed national uprising in 1959. Reported by Kunsang Tenzin for RFAs Tibetan Service. Translated by Karma Dorjee. Written in English by Richard Finney. NATO has confirmed that a gunmen has killed one U.S. soldier and one U.S. civilian near a military base in Kabul used by NATO-led coalition forces. A NATO statement said three other U.S. citizens -- a soldier and two civilians -- were wounded by the "unknown assailant, who was later killed." NATO said those killed and wounded by the gunman had been training Afghan soldiers. Earlier on October 19, Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri said the gunman was wearing the uniform of the Afghan National Army when he shot and killed at least one U.S. soldier and wounded five others at an Afghan military base in Kabul. Waziri said the attack took place a training center for Afghan special forces in Kabul's southwestern neighborhood of Rishkor. Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and dpa A Taliban spokesman has rejected reports of secret meetings with the Afghan government. On October 18, a senior Afghan official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed to RFE/RLs Radio Free Afghanistan that two secret rounds of peace talks had been held in Qatar since early September. Earlier, Britain's The Guardian newspaper reported that those attending the meetings included Mullah Abdul Manan Akhund, the brother of the late Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar, and Afghanistan's intelligence chief Mohammad Massom Stanekzai. Afghanistan's Tolo TV quoted a source from the Afghan president's office as saying Afghan National Security Advisor Mohammad Hanif Atmar also attended. But in an October 19 statement, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid rejected any reports of talks or meetings with the Afghan government, saying, "Our stance about the negotiations has not changed." The Taliban have long insisted on the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan as a precondition for peace talks. Based on reporting by AFP and dpa An ambitious new project involving more than 50 researchers from 30 countries will attempt the first full circumnavigation of Antarctica to measure pollution and climate change. The international team will travel on the Russian research vessel Akademik Treshnikov, which left its home port of Arkhangelsk in the Russian arctic on October 19. The main stage of the expedition will leave South Africa's Cape Town on December 20 and return on March 18, braving turbulent weather and hostile conditions in the Southern Ocean. The Antarctic Circumpolar Expedition will be the first scientific mission to study all the major islands in the vast ocean, as well as the Antarctic land mass, both of which are less well known to scientists than the Arctic. Projects include mapping whales, penguins, and albatrosses in the Southern Ocean; measuring the effect of plastic pollution on the food chain; and logging the extent of phytoplankton -- the base of the food chain -- and its role in regulating climate. Scientists will also take ice-core samples and study biodiversity on the continent in an attempt to get insight into conditions before the Industrial Revolution. Based on reporting by AFP and TASS Belarus has welcomed a U.S. decision to prolong the suspension of sanctions against nine Belarusian companies. In an October 19 statement, the Foreign Ministry in Minsk also expressed "confidence" that "full removal of all sanctions would lead to the more dynamic development of Belarus-America ties." The U.S. Treasury Department announced on October 18 that it had extended the suspension of sanctions against nine Belarusian oil and chemical companies until April 30, 2017. Washington imposed sanctions against the state-owned companies in June 2006 in response to human rights violations in Belarus. In October 2015, Washington suspended the sanctions for six months after Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka released several political prisoners and brokered cease-fire talks between Ukraine, Russia, and Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine. The suspension had been extended by another six months in April 2016. With reporting by BelTA PRAGUE -- Police in the Czech Republic's capital have detained a Russian citizen suspected of hacking U.S.-based websites. A Prague police spokesman said late on October 18 that the suspect, whose identity was not disclosed, was detained in a restaurant. The arrest was carried out on October 5 in cooperation with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Hours after the arrest was made public, the professional networking service LinkedIn suggested that the arrest was tied to a 2012 breach of member information. A spokesman for the U.S. Justice Department declined to confirm that or comment on a possible connection. "Following the 2012 breach of LinkedIn member information, we have remained actively involved with the FBI's case to pursue those responsible," the company said in a statement on October 19. "We are thankful for the hard work and dedication of the FBI in its efforts to locate and capture the parties believed to be responsible for this criminal activity." In May, LinkedIn said that the 2012 breach resulted in more than 100 million of its users' passwords being compromised -- vastly more than previously thought. The hacker had claimed that 117 million user e-mails and passwords were stolen in the breach. Awaiting Extradition The FBI said the man arrested in Prague was "suspected of conducting criminal activities targeting U.S. interests," but didn't give any more details. "As cybercrime can originate anywhere in the world, international cooperation is crucial to successfully defeat cyber adversaries," it said. Police video from the arrest identified the man only as Yevgeniy N. The international police organization Interpol had issued a so-called Red Notice for the man, seeking his arrest, police said. Prague's Municipal Court will decide whether he will be extradited. Spokeswoman Marketa Puci said the court ruled on October 12 that the man will remain in detention until the extradition hearing. No date has yet been set. A spokesman for the Russian Embassy in Prague, Aleksei Kolmakov, told Interfax on October 19 that the embassy "insists on the transfer of the detained Russian citizen to Russia." U.S. authorities have two months to deliver to their Czech counterparts all the documents necessary for the Czech authorities to decide on the extradition request. Russian hackers have been implicated in a number of breaches of U.S. corporations and websites. Recently, the U.S. government also accused Russia of a campaign of cyberattacks against Democratic Party organizations with the intent of influencing the November 8 presidential election. With reporting by Reuters, AP, and Interfax Ecuador's government said it temporarily restricted Internet access for Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, because it opposed the group's meddling in the U.S. presidential election. Wikileaks's websites have carried numerous leaks of the private e-mails of top U.S. Democratic Party officials recently -- leaks which have been traced by U.S. intelligence officials and private experts to Russian hackers and which U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has blamed on the Russian government. Assange has lived in Ecuador's London embassy since mid-2012 to escape Western law-enforcement action. Wikileaks said that Assange lost connectivity over the weekend, shortly after it published Clinton's private speeches to Goldman Sachs. The Ecuadoran government took responsibility for the cut-off late on October 18, saying it wanted to distance itself from Wikileaks' decision to publish documents impacting on the U.S. election, which it said was entirely Wikileaks' responsibility. "Ecuador, exercising its sovereign right, has temporarily restricted access to part of its communications systems in its U.K. Embassy," the Ecuadoran Foreign Ministry said in a statement. "The government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states. It does not interfere in external electoral processes, nor does it favor any particular candidate," it said. Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa has publicly supported Clinton over her opponent, Republican nominee Donald Trump, who has been quick to make political capital out of the Democratic e-mails published by Wikileaks that reveal internal party struggles and highlight Clinton's vulnerabilities. "For the good of the United States and the world...I would like Hillary to win," Correa told RT last month, adding that Clinton is someone who "I know personally and appreciate very much." Assange was granted asylum by Ecuador's leftist regime after a British court ordered him extradited to Sweden to face questioning in a sexual molestation case involving two female supporters. Wikileaks said it activated "contingency plans" after Assange got disconnected from the Web, and Ecuador said that its cut-off did not stop the group from continuing its "journalistic activities." On October 18, Wikileaks' Twitter feed released another tranche of e-mails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, suggesting that the group's ability to publish had not been compromised. Podesta has blamed the extensive leaks of his e-mails on Russia and said he was told by the FBI that the breach is part of its investigation into Russian hacking of the U.S. election. Wikileaks has not said where it got the e-mails. Shortly after Ecuador cut Assange's web link, Wikileaks said that the United States had pressured the South American country to rein in Assange -- a charge denied by the United States as well as Ecuador, which said pointedly that it "does not cede to pressures from other countries." U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby dismissed Wikileaks' charge. "While our concerns about Wikileaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary [John] Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down Wikileaks is false," he said. With reporting by AP, Reuters, and AFP A multi-billion-dollar space lander looking for traces of life on Mars is due to touch down on the red planet on October 19 in Europe's first attempt to land a craft there in a decade. The Schiaparelli probe's landing is part of the ExoMars project of the European Space Agency and Russia's Roscosmos. The automated landing maneuver starts 121 kilometers above the surface with rapid braking from a speed of 21,000 kilometers an hour. Mission Control at Darmstadt in Germany will be unable to intervene given the time delay of some 10 minutes. If all goes well, the batteries will provide power for a few days for data to be sent back to Earth from the Meridiani Planum in the Martian highlands. Schiaparelli has a sort of webcam on its underside that will shoot 15 black-and-white photographs of the Martian surface at intervals of 1.5 seconds. The probe left Earth from Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan in March together with the Trace Gas Orbiter, which it separated from last weekend. The trace spacecraft is set this week to enter Mars's orbit, where it will analyze the Martian atmosphere. Based on reporting by Reuters and dpa We may be witnessing the end of the extremist group Islamic State (IS) as we know it. Over the weekend, the coalition of Turkish military soldiers and Syrian rebel groups, backed by a small number of U.S. Special Operations Forces and air support, captured the Syrian city of Dabiq from IS. In and of itself, this would be an important battle. The Turkish-led coalition is now set to advance toward Al-Bab, IS's westernmost stronghold in northern Syria, a position that lies on the most important road that runs between Aleppo city and Turkey. Perhaps even more importantly, IS's propaganda states that Dabiq is the city from which the apocalypse will start. The city is so important to the extremist group that its English-language magazine, one of IS's most important recruiting tools beyond the physical borders of its "state," shares the city's name. And yet, there was no epic battle for Dabiq. The last 100 IS militants withdrew without a fight. There will be no apocalypse, it seems. But that wasn't even the main headline. On the morning of October 17, the world awoke to find that a full-throated effort to dislodge IS from its most important stronghold in Iraq, Mosul, had been launched by Kurdish Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi military, bolstered by U.S. air strikes and Special Operations Forces. An animation made by LiveUAMap shows how IS's easternmost flank began crumbling in just a few hours. Iraqi Kurdish leader Masud Barzani told Al-Jazeera that the operation had captured over 200 square kilometers of territory from IS on Day 1. Al-Jazeera also reported that this included nine villages outside the main city. Progress on Day Two was slower, but still steady. Simply put, the "dawla," the state controlled by IS, is collapsing. To be sure, the fight for Mosul will be very tough. Videos taken by international media organizations like CNN show IS fighters dug in. One fighter is seen jumping out of a hole and shooting Peshmerga fighters in an ambush before blowing himself up in an unsuccessful suicide attack. IS also launched several waves of car-bomb attacks against the Peshmerga front lines. Despite the hopes of many in the anti-IS coalition, it seems the extremists are going to fight for the villages outside Mosul, and everyone seems to fear that the fighting inside the city will be even worse. But Mosul will fall. The crumbling of the dawla is now inevitable. Turkish forces are rolling across IS's territory in Syria in the west, the battle rages in Mosul in the east, and at IS's center, Kurdish forces, backed by the United States, are within 50 kilometers from the extremist group's headquarters, Raqqa. A World War II Land Grab This situation has a historic parallel. In 1944 and 1945, the defeat of the Axis powers was already nearly guaranteed. In Europe in particular, what transpired then was a race between competing interests to capture as much territory as they could before the war came to a close. The Soviet Union stormed into German-occupied territory from the east, the allied powers of the United States, United Kingdom, and a coalition of fighters from across the world pushed from the Atlantic Ocean in the west. After the war was over, the United States sought to shape the territory it controlled through the Marshall Plan, a bid to rebuild and unify Western Europe in order to prevent future conflicts there and stop the spread of communism. The Soviets in the east were less subtle, opting to directly control the territory they had captured in the hopes of advancing their own imperial goals. The result of the final days of the war with Germany thus shaped the entire future of geopolitical and regional power dynamics, which resonate to this day. With such grand consequences, it's easy to forget that all of this was determined inch by inch, foxhole by foxhole, region by town by neighborhood, by the actions and reactions of individual soldiers and commanders on both sides. In the Middle East, Turkey, Iran, and Iraq are all competing for power, but so, too, are various sectarian groups -- Sunnis, Shi'a, and Kurds. What may appear like a united front to end IS is really a fractured coalition of powers, each with competing interests. Inside Iraq, the Kurdish Peshmerga are clearly making a power play, asserting its military might while wrangling for political -- and perhaps physical -- territory. Iraq's Kurds have wanted greater autonomy or independence from Baghdad for a very long time, and the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq granted them that opportunity. IS poses an existential threat to that autonomy, but it also presents a great asset. By the end of this campaign, the Kurds will have played a major role in the reestablishing of order in the country, and they will have proven their military effectiveness. Against this backdrop, the besieged government of Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi is struggling to win the narrative. Abadi has been locked in a prolonged battle with those who oppose his reform agenda, including his predecessor, Nuri al-Maliki, who has undermined him at nearly every opportunity. But Abadi has also had to placate Shi'ite militiamen, many loyal to the infamous Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who are frustrated at the lack of reforms and Abadi's desire to free Iraq from sectarian politics, which hard-line sectarians like Sadr blame for the growing influence of the Kurds and the previously unchecked power of IS: Sunni militants. Abadi has attempted to stress the involvement of Iraq's military in the victories over IS. In reality, Shi'ite militias played a major role in the victory over IS in Fallujah and are likely to be heavily involved in the Mosul campaign, as well. While the extent of the ties between the various Shi'ite militia groups and Iran is a complicated issue, clearly Iran is also seeking to increase or at least maintain its own level of influence in Iraq through Shi'ite dominance. Further complicating the picture: the involvement of Turkey in both the Syrian and Iraqi fronts. In August, just one month after a failed coup attempt aimed to topple the government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish forces crossed the border into Syria to launch their own offensive against IS. At the time, however, I wrote that Turkey's primary motive was obviously not the fight against Islamic State. After all, Turkey has shared a border with IS for two years. Instead, Turkey was reacting to U.S.-backed Kurdish groups that were rapidly advancing deep into IS territory, occupying space that was once controlled by moderate Syrian rebel groups that Turkey has supported for years. Not only was Turkey watching its proxies lose territory to IS and the coalition that supports the Syrian government, Erdogan was also watching one of his principal rivals -- Kurdish groups with ties to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) -- fill that vacuum. In the short term, Erdogan's gamble in Syria has produced exactly the results he had hoped. IS is retreating, almost without a fight. The Kurdish groups have withdrawn from some of the territory right on Turkey's border. About one month ago, I sat down with Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek on the sidelines of the Yalta European Strategy meeting in Kyiv. He was enthusiastically bragging about Turkey's intervention in Syria and broke the news to me that U.S. special operations forces were assisting the mission, dubbed Operation Euphrates Shield. But in comments made during a panel earlier that day, Simsek stressed that the Erdogan government is beset by enemies on all sides -- IS and Kurdish extremists had both ramped up terrorist attacks in the months preceding the coup, and then there was the coup itself. Simsek stressed the narrative that followers of Fethullah Gulen had infiltrated all levels of the Turkish government and the crackdown on dissenters and the purge of suspected Gulenists that many in the West claimed was authoritarian was really the reestablishment of democratic values. Journalists and experts present for Simsek's comments were rightfully skeptical. Still, the exchange was a clear illustration of the central issue in Turkish politics: Many aspects of Turkish society -- from the economy to the security situation to Turkey's regional standing -- have been challenged in recent years. Turkey's intervention in Syria, and the Turkish government's purge of suspected Gulenists, are Erdogan's attempt to reestablish some element of control, at least over the narrative, if nothing else. RFE/RL spoke with Ilhan Tanir, a Turkish analyst and journalist based in Washington, D.C., who stressed that Erdogan is busy creating a narrative. "The economy is doing terribly," Tanir said. In order to distract from Turkey's problems, Erdogan, much like Putin, has created external crises for him to fight, whether that be Gulenists and the Kurdish PKK at home, or IS and the Kurdish groups affiliated with the PKK beyond Turkey's borders. One consequence of the coup, Tanir explained, is that the Turkish media have either been targeted by the postcoup purge or are now echoing the Turkish government's party line. "There is no critical media left in Turkey, and so whatever Erdogan says right now goes straight to the public," he said. Erdogan, however, will soon face another problem with this narrative: His intervention in Syria is literally running out of room. With Dabiq having been liberated from IS, Turkey will set its sights on Al-Bab, a large and strategic town on a key road that runs from Aleppo city to the Turkish border. However, once Al-Bab is in Turkish control, Erdogan will have a new problem: In order to advance to IS's next stronghold, Raqqa, Turkey may have to move through territory currently controlled by U.S.-backed Kurdish groups or by the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. At the moment, neither of those options is attractive to Turkey as they could broaden the conflict and alienate either Russia or the United States -- or both. There may be nowhere to go. In other words, if Erdogan is dependent on external crises to serve his political needs, he may run out of crises. It is for this reason that Erdogan wants the Turkish military to get involved in the fight for Mosul. On October 18, Erdogan said that Turkey has a "historical responsibility" in Mosul and Kirkuk, as they were both historically Turkish land, therefore, "If we say we want to be both at the table and in the field, there is a reason." He also warned Iraq's Shi'ite militias, which have been accused of anti-Sunni atrocities, to not get involved in the fight. As of right now, however, the government in Baghdad has rejected Turkey's request to join the fight in Mosul, and on October 18 thousands protested outside the Turkish Embassy in Baghdad against a Turkish military presence in Iraq. Two of Turkey's best-known media organizations, Daily Sabah and Anadolu, said that the protests were "dangerous" and had been organized by Muqtada al-Sadr. If Turkey is not allowed to intervene in Mosul, will it try to anyway? Will Turkey attack Kurdish forces in Syria, even if it angers the United States? "What's going on in Iraq and Syria is a land grab," Tanir told RFE/RL. Various factions -- the Kurds, the Turks, the Shi'a -- are all using the fight against Islamic State to advance their own causes. And just like how the 1945 land grab in Europe and Asia set the stage for the Cold War, so, too, will the events in the Middle East impact the power struggle in the region for years to come. The views expressed in this blog post do not necessarily reflect the views of RFE/RL German Chancellor Angela Merkel said sanctions against Russia over its actions in Syria should remain an option for the European Union. Merkel said she and French President Francois Hollande will discuss Syria with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of a meeting on Ukraine in Berlin on October 19, but cautioned against expecting "miracles" to come out of the discussion. The two leaders have been sharply critical of Russia's support for the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and have accused both Russia and Syria of atrocities, such as intentionally bombing civilians and hospitals. Merkel said on October 18 that, in light of the "disastrous situation"in Syria, "no options, including that of sanctions, can be taken off the table...but the priority is that we look at lessening people's suffering in some way, and that will be an issue" in the meeting with Putin. Merkel's statement came one day after EU Foreign Minister Frederica Mogherini said the bloc was not considering putting sanctions on Russia for its actions in Syria. Based on reporting by AP, Reuters, and AFP Mohammad Nayeb-Zehi was among the hundreds of worshippers who gathered on September 30 at the Great Mosalla, a religious site in Iran's southeastern city of Zahedan, for Friday Prayers. Just hours later, the 16-year-old's family learned he was dead. Nayeb-Zehi was among the scores of people gunned down by security forces in a brutal crackdown following anti-government protests in Zahedan, the provincial capital of Sistan-Baluchistan Province, which is home to the country's Baluch minority. "He was a simple laborer and not political," Nayeb-Zehi's brother, Ahmad, told RFE/RL's Radio Farda in a telephone interview from Zahedan, adding that his sibling had been shot in the heart. "We're in pain, and we cannot accept it." The crackdown in Zahedan came amid weeks-long nationwide protests triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old who died on September 16, days after she was detained by Iran's morality police. In Sistan-Baluchistan, public anger at the authorities escalated amid reports that a 15-year-old Baluch girl had been raped by a police official in the province's southern port city of Chabahar. The violence erupted soon after protesters gathered outside a police station near the central mosque in Zahedan. Members of the crowd chanted anti-government slogans, and some threw rocks. Security forces responded with deadly force by firing on the crowd from the station, according to witnesses. Security forces also raided the central mosque and the nearby Great Mosalla and opened fire on worshippers using live ammunition, rights groups said, adding that many were shot in the head, heart, neck, or torso, revealing a clear intent to kill or seriously wound. At least 94 people were killed and 350 wounded on that day, referred to as "Bloody Friday," according to the U.S.-based Iran Human Rights Documentation Center. At least 13 minors were among those killed, including Nayeb-Zehi. The victims were overwhelmingly Baluch -- a mostly Sunni ethnic group that has long faced disproportionate discrimination at the hands of the Iranian authorities. "He was martyred inside the Mosalla while holding his prayer mat," said Ahmad Nayeb-Zehi. Nayeb-Zehi's family first visited Zahedan's Khatam al-Anbia hospital, hoping he was among the wounded. They later found his body in a seminary at the Great Mosalla. "We entered a room there and saw about 10 bodies," said Ahmad Nayeb-Zehi. "[Mohammad] was among them." He said the authorities prevented the family from filming the scene. "I told them this has to be documented, it has to be published by international media," he said, adding that footage later emerged on social media showing the gruesome scene at the seminary. The family refused to send Nayeb-Zehi's body to the morgue. Instead, his body lay in the living room for around 24 hours before he was buried. "We said he was martyred and there was no need for an autopsy," said Ahmad Nayeb-Zehi. The authorities accused Jaish al-Adl, a Sunni militant group, of attacking the police station. The group is recognized as a terrorist organization by both Iran and the United States and has previously claimed deadly attacks in Sistan-Baluchistan targeting Iranian security forces. But local and independent sources have rejected the authorities' claims. The authorities have also reported a much lower number of fatalities, announcing that only 19 people, including several members of the security forces, were killed. Ahmad Nayeb-Zehi said the authorities were "rubbing salt into the wounds of the people" by claiming "terrorists" were involved. He said he witnessed a military helicopter shooting at civilians near the Great Mosalla. "I haven't even seen such scenes in Hollywood movies," he said. "A helicopter was shooting at people. A lady was shot in front of my eyes." RFE/RL could not verify his account. But activists have accused security forces of shooting at protestors from helicopters. "I don't know what the intention of this crime was," he said. "Our only demand from the establishment is for the murderers of our [family members] to be punished." The killings have led to widespread anger in Sistan-Baluchistan, one of Iran's poorest provinces. Anti-establishment protests have been reported in Zahedan since the crackdown, including on October 14 and October 21, when protesters took to the streets after Friday Prayers and chanted "Death to the dictator." During his Friday Prayers sermon on October 21, influential Sunni cleric Molavi Abdolhamid Ismaeelzahi said senior officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, were "responsible" for the September 30 killings. "We are surprised by the silence of the high-ranking officials," he said in his sermon, which was posted on his website. "Scores were killed here without any reason. I don't have the exact number. Some have reported 90, some say less, some say more," Ismaeelzahi added. He also said people will not be satisfied until "those who killed the people" are brought to justice. The Iran Human Rights Documentation Center said the events of September 30 amounted to "a massacre of protesters by security forces." "The government's total denial of responsibility for the massacring of citizens by its security apparatus is consistent with similar past denials and is evidence that internal calls for investigation of such crimes are insufficient," said the rights group, which documents human rights violations in Iran. Thousands of people have fled the Mosul area in northern Iraq, where an offensive is underway to drive out the Islamic State (IS) group. The charity Save the Children said on October 19 that 5,000 people had crossed the border into Syria in the last 10 days and arrived at the Al-Hol camp. "Conditions there are among the worst we've seen, and we expect thousands more people to be on their way soon," said Tarik Kadir, head of the group's response to the Mosul crisis. The UN said the camp received more than 900 people in the last 24 hours and is expecting a further 3,000 people who were dropped off by smugglers and are being cleared by security. Al-Hol, which was built to house 7,500 people but currently holds 9,000 refugees, is being expanded to eventually take in 50,000 people. Camps are also being built in the south, east, and north of Mosul in preparation for a flood of civilians fleeing the city, where up to 1.5 million people are thought to be living, with up to 5,000 IS militants. Meanwhile, the chief of the Russian military's General Staff has expressed concern that IS extremists holed up around Mosul might escape to Syria. "It's essential not to chase the terrorists from one country to another but to destroy them on the spot," General Valery Gerasimov said in an October 19 statement. Gerasimov also said the Russian military was using both space and air reconnaissance systems, including drones, to "monitor the situation in the Mosul area." Iraqi troops and Kurdish fighters have taken back control of a string of villages since their offensive to retake Mosul started on October 17. WATCH: Iraqi, Kurdish Forces Liberate Villages Outside Mosul Based on reporting by AP, Reuters, AFP, Interfax and the BBC The trial of two participants in a mass protest against Kazakhstan's land reforms has been adjourned. A court in the western city of Atyrau adjourned the trial for an indefinite time on October 19 after one of the defendants, Maks Boqaev, was unable to attend a court hearing due to health problems. The trial against Boqaev and Talghat Ayan started on October 12. The two are charged with inciting social discord, intentionally distributing false information, and organizing illegal public gatherings. Boqaev and Ayan were detained on April 24 in the center of Atyrau, where thousands of people had gathered to protest against a bill on land privatization and land leasing to foreigners. The protests in Atyrau were followed by mass protests across Kazakhstan for almost two weeks. The protesters expressed concern that the bill would allow foreigners to own farmland in Kazakhstan. Rights watchdogs have called on Kazakh authorities to release Boqaev and Ayan, saying they have a right to express their views publicly. Macedonia's parliament has set December 11 as the date for snap parliamentary elections to try to end a long-running political crisis. All four main parties confirmed on October 18 that they will take part in the elections that had been initially planned for April and rescheduled for June before being delayed again over opposition claims that conditions are not ripe for a free and fair vote. The Balkan state has been in crisis since February 2015, when the leader of the main opposition party, Zoran Zaev of the Social Democrats, began releasing tapes that appeared to reveal official and widespread wiretapping, including of journalists and politicians. The tapes also appeared to have uncovered corruption among high-ranking officials, including former conservative Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski. After a string of demonstrations, the European Union stepped in to mediate a deal, urging early elections and an independent probe into the corruption allegations revealed by the tapes. The polls could pull Macedonia out of political crisis provided that "the campaign is fair and elections credible," EU delegation chief Samuel Zbogar said. Political leaders had already agreed on the December 11 date, but it was not officially approved by parliament until October 18. Based on reporting by Reuters, AFP, and dpa BRUSSELS -- One of the leading pro-Western candidates in this month's presidential election in Moldova has warned of "risks of massive fraud" in the vote, which has further divided the tiny post-Soviet state's already fractious political scene. Speaking to RFE/RL on October 19 during a visit to Brussels for meetings with officials from the European Union, Action and Solidarity candidate and former Education Minister Maia Sandu said she was "here to warn the international partners of Moldova about the risks of massive fraud of the election and to ask them to help." The presidential vote is Moldova's first by direct election since 1996, a change whose legitimacy is being challenged by the Communist Party and other opposition elements. "We do want to have democratic elections. We do deserve to have democratic elections," Sandu told RFE/RL's Brussels correspondent. "Unfortunately we can't count on the Moldova state institutions these days because they are not free and independent, and that is why we count so much [on] support from EU institutions." Moldova signed and began provisionally applying an Association Agreement with the European Union in 2014, opening up visa-free travel to the bloc but providing no guarantees that Chisinau would follow through with reforms or clean up its rampant corruption. Sandu and others have suggested that inaccurate voter lists and pressure on state employees could mar the results of the looming vote. Speaking to RFE/RL, she urged the international community to closely scrutinize the run-up to this month's elections and the balloting itself. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) was expected to field around 30 experts and long-term observers and some 200 short-term observers in Moldova for this month's vote. Opinion polls have consistently shown Socialist Party candidate Igor Dodon with a double-digit lead over Sandu and the rest of the pack in the presidential race ahead of the October 30 election, but a two-candidate runoff is likely to follow on November 13. A former Communist who has held senior government posts including as minister of trade and economics, Dodon has said his first foreign visit if he wins the presidency will be to the Russian capital. On October 18, Dodon pledged to "restore broad and friendly ties with Russia" and "initiate the development and signature of an agreement on strategic partnership with the Russian Federation," according to Interfax. Polling has shown the country divided between favoring closer trade ties to traditional partner Russia and its Eurasian Union, on one hand, and the European Union on the other. Moldova has struggled to get its political footing since flawed elections sparked mostly nonviolent street protests that helped push longtime Communist Party leader Vladimir Voronin from power in 2009. But pro-Western governments in Chisinau have proved quarrelsome and were hurt by their failure to prevent a massive multibank fraud that was estimated to have cost Moldova, one of Europe's poorest countries, more than $1 billion, or around one-eighth of its GDP. Moldova's breakaway region of Transdniester, where many residents favor the Russian language and Moscow still maintains troops, has contributed to the country's economic and political malaise. Written by Andy Heil based on an interview by Rikard Jozwiak The Pentagon has accused the Islamic State (IS) extremist group of using thousands of residents of Mosul as "human shields" to try to thwart the advance of Iraqi forces into the city. "We know they are being used as human shields, absolutely," Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis told reporters on October 18. "This has been going on for several weeks where we've seen civilians being forcibly detained and their movements being prevented where they can't get out of Mosul. They are being held there against their will," he said. Around 1.5 million people still live in Mosul and the International Organization for Migration said earlier on October 18 that IS may use tens of thousands of residents as human shields to hold onto their last city stronghold in Iraq. The group also said there was a likelihood of chemical attacks by the extremists, who have used such weapons previously against Iraqi Kurdish forces. The Reuters news agency reported that the Pentagon is expecting IS to use crude chemical weapons as it tries to repel government forces, and U.S. troops have begun testing IS shell fragments for evidence of chemical agents. Davis said the operation to retake Mosul will be "an ugly fight." Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov is against cigarette smoking and his antismoking stance has led officials to adopt and strictly enforce new rules concerning tobacco use -- all reportedly with an eye on making the country tobacco-free by 2025. Although Turkmenistan now has the lowest rate of tobacco use in the world according to the WHO, the restrictions on cigarettes must rough on many citizens of the country. If there is one thing I remember from my days in Turkmenistan its that the men smoke -- a lot. There are differing accounts about the new antismoking rules. Some Iranian media were reporting in late January that smoking had been banned throughout Turkmenistan. It never actually reached that point but the lives of smokers have definitely become more complicated. RFE/RL's Turkmen Service, known locally as Azatlyk, decided to do some investigating. The Turkmen government doesn't like Azatlyk so the country's people are understandably frightened to speak with us. But Azatlyk found a Turkish truck driver named Murad who was happy to share his experience with Turkmenistan's antismoking regulations earlier this year. "I walked out of a cafe in [the Caspian town of] Awaza and there was a market straight ahead of me," Murad said. "It was 10:30 at night. I'm walking toward the market with a cigarette in my hand. Before entering the market I put out my cigarette," Murad recounted. "At that moment someone called to me. I looked and it was a policeman." Murad asked what was wrong, to which the policeman replied, "You're smoking." 'Did I Kill Somebody?' The policeman took the bewildered Murad to the police station. Murad called home in Turkey to inform about his situation but his phone credit ran out before he could fully describe what was happening. "We were in the police station and they [police] started writing out a report," Murad continued. "I asked: 'What happened? Did I kill somebody?'" "You were smoking" a policeman shot back. Informed by Murad's family, the Turkish Consulate in Turkmenistan called Murad on his phone and he explained what happened and that he was at the police station. After the call, Murad asked again what he had done. "The police told me that people were passing by [when he was smoking]." "I said, 'What people? It's the middle of the desert. What would people be doing walking in the middle of desert at 10:30 p.m.?'" The policeman said, "You were smoking in the street. If you were smoking by your truck we still would have picked you up. You should smoke in your truck. But you can't smoke in your truck when it's moving, you have to stop." Murad's frustration was growing. He asked if he could step outside the station for a few minutes. "Where are you going?" the policeman asked. "To smoke," Murad said. "Why do you think you're in the police station in the first place?" the policeman asked. Limits On Possessing Cigarettes Another policeman who spoke Turkish arrived, apparently after the Turkish Consulate had contacted Turkmen authorities about Murad. This policeman asked Murad why he did not care about "our president's decree [on smoking in public]." "I said, 'Look, that is your law, it doesn't apply to me. My president is in Turkey."' The policeman asked Murad if people in Turkey could smoke in a public. "Absolutely," he replied. Murad told the policeman in Turkey it was prohibited to smoke in enclosed areas. "In Turkey I can openly smoke in the street and no one bothers me but here you have the opposite law," he told the policeman. The policeman reminded Murad he was in Turkmenistan and must obey the laws of the country. "I said, 'Okay, I'll obey but look at the time, it's 10:30 at night, in the middle of the desert and I was going to a shop to buy something and I threw away my cigarette before I entered the market." The police decided to release Murad and not file a report. Murad could have faced a fine of 70 manats [$18 at the official rate]. Murad shed some light on other aspects of the antismoking campaign. He said when he crossed into Turkmenistan the border guards told him an individual could enter Turkmenistan with no more than two cartons of cigarettes [equivalent to 400 cigarettes, usually]. He also said that usually when he was stopped by Turkmen traffic police they asked for a pack of cigarettes but Murad had learned you could get by with simply giving them a couple of cigarettes. He also said it was possible to purchase cigarettes all over Turkmenistan and that the prices had gone down after spiking in January when Turkmen officials erroneously interpreted President Berdymukhammedov's comments on cigarettes as meaning authorities should crack down on cigarette sales. Muhammad Tahir, the director of RFE/RL's Turkmen Service, contributed to this report. German Chancellor Angela Merkel was hosting late-night talks behind closed doors in Berlin with the presidents of Russia, France, and Ukraine in an attempt to resolve the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine. The talks at Merkel's office on October 19 were under the so-called "Normandy" format, which brings together the leaders of the four countries. Before the meeting involving Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov began, there was a separate trilateral meeting between the leaders of Germany, France, and Ukraine about a possible settlement to the conflict between the Ukrainian government forces and Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said hours before the four-country summit that Moscow did not expect any breakthrough on resolving the conflict that has killed more than 9,600 people since April 2014. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko also said he did not have "very high expectations." But Peskov said Putin and Lavrov were attending with the aim of identifying obstacles to implementing the Minsk peace agreement. The February 2015 accord, brokered in Minsk by France and Germany in talks with Russia and Ukraine that lasted 17 hours, has helped end large-scale fighting in eastern Ukraine. But clashes have continued within increased frequency in recent months and efforts to reach a political settlement have stalled. The last time the four leaders met together under the Normandy format was in Paris in October 2015. That meeting lasted more than five hours. German media reported that Merkel and French President Francois Hollande also were pressuring Putin on October 19 to ease the suffering of Syrian civilians in rebel-held neighborhoods of Aleppo that have been targeted by intensive Russian and Syrian government air strikes since a fragile truce deal collapsed on September 19. Hollande told reporters after the trilateral talks in Berlin that although the Berlin summit was focusing on Ukraine, "the end of the evening will also be dedicated to Syria." Hollande also vowed to "do everything" he could to extend a temporary truce in Aleppo, Syria. Moscow announced a halt to air strikes on rebel-held neighborhoods of the city on October 18 that appeared to be continuing on October 19. It also said that it would extend an eight-hour truce that it has called for October 20 by another three hours, giving aid workers a total of 11 hours on October 20 to try to deliver humanitarian supplies to more than 250,000 civilians who are trapped in Aleppo's besieged rebel-held neighborhoods. Both Germany and France have called for Russia and Syrian President Bashar-al-Assad's regime to implement a more sustained cease-fire in Syria in order to work toward a diplomatic solution to the 5 1/2-year-old war. As Putin and Lavrov arrived at Merkel's office for the talk on October 19, hundreds of demonstrators rallied outside the building to protest Russia's human rights record and its continued bombardment of Aleppo. The noisy group of protesters lined up dozens of teddy bears outside the Chancellery to call attention to the deaths of more than 140 children as a result of the Russian and Syrian government air strikes on Aleppo. The latest round of talks between Russia, the United States, and regional powers in the Middle East ended on October 15 without achieving any concrete results. With reporting by Reuters, AFP, AP, Interfax, and TASS The URL has been copied to your clipboard The code has been copied to your clipboard. Police in the Czech Republic's capital have detained a Russian citizen suspected of hacking U.S.-based websites. The arrest was carried out in cooperation with the FBI. Interpol had issued a so-called Red Notice for the man, seeking his arrest. (Czech police video) The International Olympic Committee stripped Russian weightlifter Apti Aukhadov of the silver medal he won at the 2012 London Games after a retest of samples came up positive for drugs. Aukhadov, 23, finished second in the men's 85-kilogram weightlifting event. Iran's Kianoush Rostami won bronze in the event, and that could now be changed to silver. The committee said on October 18 that a reanalysis of Aukhadov's samples from London resulted in positive tests for the steroids turinabol and drostanolone. The committee also found that Ukrainian pole vaulter Maksym Mazuryk, who ranked 18th in the vaulting event in London, had been disqualified after a reanalysis came back positive, also for turinabol. The ruling is the latest blow to Russia, whose track and field athletes were barred from the Rio Games and which is at the center of a unprecedented state doping scandal. A total of 98 samples have come back positive for banned substances in reanalyses from the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games. Several Russian athletes have been stripped of their medals as a result. Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP The URL has been copied to your clipboard The code has been copied to your clipboard. Dr. Mahmud Mustafa is a pediatrician in Aleppo, Syria, where just a handful of doctors remain to treat civilians caught in the fighting. Mustafa told RFE/RL's Current Time TV that staff at a children's hospital are now working from the basement to escape bombardment. Marziya says her family and two kids are unaware of "the nature of her occupation." They have no idea that every evening, when she takes a bus to the provincial center, she won't really be working as a waitress at a disco. But now, once every three weeks, she won't be working the streets of Qurgon-Teppa as a prostitute either. Those days are reserved for the morality classes she was recently enrolled in by local police. Marziya, who declined to disclose her full name, is among some 30 women signed up for the new initiative to turn local sex workers away from their profession. The main goal, according to Qumriniso Sangalieva, deputy of Khatlon Province's department of family and women's affairs, is to "help these women to get themselves on the right path." The classes, the first of their kind in Tajikistan, were organized by the department in early April. Prostitution is technically a misdemeanor in the predominantly Muslim country, and is punishable by a fine or, in the case of repeat offenders, detention. But it is still illegal, and is by no means accepted by the authorities. RFE/RL attended the inaugural session given to the women, all of whom are considered by local police to be repeat offenders as prostitutes. The speakers -- including a doctor, police officials, and community leaders -- lectured their audience on moral values and provided advice on career options. The police officials focused on the dangers sex workers faced, including becoming victims of human trafficking. The doctor focused on the prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases. Sangalieva concedes that such lessons alone are not enough to convince prostitutes to give up their profession. But the official wants to get the point across that authorities are ready to help sex workers rebuild their lives, "for example, by offering job retraining to widen their possibility of finding work." "While some of the women agreed, some didn't," Sangalieva said after the first class. 'Give Me A Job And I'll Stop' One woman, who introduced herself as Gulsora, says she attended the lecture "only because police told me to," after detaining her in a recent night raid. "The authorities need to lecture men, instead," Gulsora adds. "They need to tell men that it is wrong to leave wives and children without alimony after divorce." Unemployed and with no job qualifications, Gulsora says she was "forced by circumstances" to become a sex worker two years after her husband -- a migrant laborer in Russia -- left her. "I know what I do is wrong," Gulsora says. "Give me a job and I will stop. No one becomes a prostitute by choice." In an official survey conducted among women sex workers across Tajikistan by the Health Ministry in November, more than 80 percent of the respondents cited lack of income as their primary reason for turning to prostitution. They said they would give up prostitution if they could find a job. High unemployment is a major problem in Tajikistan, and has led more than 1.2 million people, mostly men, to travel to Russia to work as migrant laborers. 'Useful Information' In October, parliament amended the law to double the amount prostitutes can be fined to as much as $150, and introduced a two-week detention for repeat offenders. However, the lawmakers resisted calls to make prostitution subject to greater criminal charges, saying it would not end prostitution. The calls have intensified since 2013, when the authorities noted a significant rise in the number of sex workers, including underage girls in the capital and other cities. That year, the State Women's Affairs Committee said it had registered 1,641 prostitutes, up 25 percent on the previous year. In 2014, police said they exposed at least 275 brothels in Dushanbe, a substantial increase from the previous year, when 180 brothels were uncovered. There are no official statistics about the number of sex workers in Tajikistan overall. In Khatlon, authorities have registered some 70 sex workers detained in police raids, although they believe the real numbers are much higher. Prostitutes are often visibly waiting for customers near busy city bazaars, discos, and bus stations. Some of the women wait in groups, others -- like Marziya -- work alone. After her first morality class, Marziya went back to her roadside spot, a short walking distance from the central bazaar. Marziya says she hopes the authorities will eventually help her to find a decent job.She is planning to ask them in future meetings. For now she is taking home "some useful information," Marziya says, having learned about symptoms of sexually transmitted diseases and the address of a hospital that offers free checkups and treatment. Written by Farangis Najibullah based on reporting by RFE/RL Tajik Service correspondent Orzu Karim in Khatlon Province German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said Turkmenistan has agreed to discuss the possibility of giving foreign diplomats access to its prisons. Merkel was speaking on August 29 at a joint news conference with Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov in Berlin. "We talked about the fact that it would be desirable having diplomats get access to the prisons in Turkmenistan," she said. "President [Berdymukhammedov] promised that the [German and Turkmen] foreign ministers will talk about [the issue] now and that international diplomats will later be able to have a look there and assess the situation." International rights group Human Rights Watch has called on Berlin to challenge the Turkmen leader to end its secretive imprisonment of political opponents, free jailed RFE/RL journalist Saparmamed Nepeskuliev, and eliminate arbitrary bans on people leaving the country. In a statement on August 25, the New York-based rights monitor called on Merkel "to stand up for those in Turkmenistan who cannot engage their own government" during her talks with Berdymukhammedov. Human Rights Watch said in the statement that Nepeskuliev, a freelance correspondent for RFE/RL's Turkmen Service, had been tried and imprisoned "on bogus drug charges." It also said that Turkmenistan's government "forced three other Radio Liberty correspondents to cease working for the service." Berdymukhammedov said after his talks with Merkel that Turkmenistan was working on reforming its constitution and will introduce a human rights ombudsman. The Turkmen leader also said his country, which has some of the world's largest natural gas reserves, is discussing diversifying its gas exports and selling gas to European Union countries. Ashgabat has already presented the European Commission with proposals for how to proceed, he added. Merkel and Berdymukhammedov last met in Berlin in 2008 when the Turkmen leader was visiting Germany and Austria. Germany is Turkmenistan's principal foreign trading partner in the European Union, with bilateral trade worth $466 million in 2014, the most recent figure available. Much of the trade focuses on Germany exporting machinery and other industrial products to Turkmenistan, Berlin's third-largest trade partner in the region after Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Authorities in Turkmenistan have announced that the country will conduct a presidential election on February 12, 2017. Incumbent President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov is certain -- barring sickness or death -- to win a third term in office. Other presidential candidates will appear, as they have the last two times Berdymukhammedov has run for president -- on February 11, 2007, and February 12, 2012. As was true in the previous two presidential elections, these "rival" candidates will probably be people little known to the Turkmen public, participating in the campaign like actors in a staged production. The campaign and its results will be similar to what's been seen before in Turkmenistan. Berdymukhammedov took 89 percent of the vote in 2007 and 97 percent of the vote in 2012. The big difference between the upcoming election and those previous two polls is that February 2017 is coming at arguably the worst of times in independent Turkmenistan's 25-year history. So I'm curious what Berdymukhammedov tells his people this time around. Why should Turkmen voters show up at polling centers on February 12 to cast their ballots for the current president, the person they called "Arkadag" (The Protector)? I am not Berdymukhammedov's speechwriter, but I am concerned he might miss some things in the campaign speeches he delivers -- if he even bothers to campaign, that is. In the interest of presenting a well-rounded portrayal of the situation in Turkmenistan, I thought I would write a speech for the Turkmen president, in his own style. Note: The situation in Turkmenistan is no laughing matter, and I am aware of that. If the tone of this blog post is lighthearted, its message is very serious. *** Greetings, great and extraordinarily patient people of Turkmenistan! I speak to you now, asking for your vote in the upcoming presidential election. I could make a lot of promises about the future, and maybe some of them could even really happen. But today I choose to speak about the last five years of my presidency. When I asked for your vote in 2012, we were just coming off a year, 2011, in which we saw 14.7 percent GDP growth, a figure given by the World Bank. Times are different now. Last year, we registered 6.5 percent GDP growth, according to the World Bank, and this year it looks like that figure will drop slightly to 6.2 percent. As I and other officials have told you, the global economic crisis -- and not your government -- is to blame for this decrease. These new external economic problems pose new challenges for Turkmenistan. Five years ago, the price of natural gas on world markets was more than twice what it is today. I don't have to tell you that gas is almost the only thing we export, and in 2012 Turkmenistan appeared to be well on its way to diversifying its gas export routes. We exported gas to three customers, and there were plans to open two new routes to major markets. As I stand before you today, we are exporting to only two customers: China and Iran. We are sorry that our friend Russia decided at the start of 2015 not to purchase any more gas from Turkmenistan and to instead buy gas from our friend Uzbekistan. It's true. Some of the gas we export to China goes toward paying our multibillion-dollar debt to that country. It's also true that Iran pays with goods, not money. But we haven't given up on projects to build a pipeline to India and another across the Caspian Sea to Azerbaijan, where our natural gas can be sent to countries in Europe. Admittedly, those plans no longer look so promising. Our idea for a trans-Caspian pipeline to export gas to Europe has not yet been realized, and might never be, due to the objections of our Caspian littoral neighbors Russia and Iran. Our government and media continue to report about building the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline on the territory of Turkmenistan. We cannot show you any pictures of this construction, but the government will continue to remind you of progress in constructing the pipeline. Pay no attention to those who call TAPI a "virtual" pipeline. Five years ago, in northwestern Afghanistan, just across our border, people lived in relative peace. That is no longer the case. There is now fighting in all the Afghan provinces bordering Turkmenistan. So there might be some small delays constructing the pipeline through Afghanistan. The same goes for Pakistan's southern Balochistan region, which is also on TAPI's route. And since I mentioned Afghanistan, I want to repeat the words of other Turkmen government officials and tell you that there is no security problem along our border with Afghanistan. Don't listen to stories you might hear of our soldiers or border guards being involved in fighting -- or even being killed -- along the Afghan border. And don't worry that earlier this year we conducted the largest mobilization of our armed forces ever in our 25-year history and have recently been purchasing new weapons, including a missile system from China. Our policy of positive neutrality, recognized by the UN, has always been our best protection, and it is now enshrined in our constitution -- part of the same changes adopted in September that will make my third term in office a seven-year term instead of those five-years terms I've previously served. But enough about the outside world. Let's look at our achievements here at home over the last five years. As we told you earlier this year, we have reached the point in our development where the state no longer needs to provide you, its citizens, with subsidies. Turkmenistan's people are well enough off now that you do not need free electricity, gas, or water anymore, so we will soon halt these unnecessary gifts. But rest assured, these utilities will continue to be provided to you intermittently. We still face economic challenges. Some of you have lost your jobs recently, especially those in the gas and oil sector. Having brought that up, let me now mention these tales told by foreign media about unemployment in Turkmenistan being more than 50 percent. How could the foreign press and other outside organizations know this? We don't let them in. And during my third term, this government will continue to reject visa applications from undesirable foreigners seeking to come to Turkmenistan for sinister reasons of trying to obtain objective information. Our government provides facts and figures on all the things people outside the country need to know about Turkmenistan. It's all there on government websites and in state media. Some of you who are working are not receiving your wages on time. In some cases, arrears go back several months. It is especially to you that I wish to express my gratitude, because many of you, after this wait, had your wages garnished to pay for our country to build the facilities necessary to host the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games we are hosting in our capital, Ashgabat, next year. Did I say "garnished"? Forgive me. I meant to say the money you are "voluntarily" giving to help build facilities for those games. "Voluntarily" -- that's what it said on those papers that officials gave you to sign when you agreed to contribute money from your salaries. Turkmenistan continues to produce some of the highest quality basic goods. Most of you have seen the long lines in front of our stores. Turkmenistan's products are so good people are willing to queue up outside stores to wait for their chance to buy a rationed amount of these basic products. Don't forget to bring your documents with you. We do enforce purchase limits for all families. And I'll address those accusations of food shortages and higher prices for basic goods now by saying...no comment. To those of you who smoke, I say first: Shame on you. It's bad for your health. But I'll add that you can now buy one pack of cigarettes for less than $20. That's already an improvement from just a couple of months ago. True, we're limiting the number of packs you can buy, but, again, it's a bad habit. I'm talking about dollars here, but I don't need to remind you that dollar transactions are illegal now. Your government has no intention of helping these black markets that are offering seven or more manats, our national currency, for one U.S. dollar. Turkmenistan's government stands by its official rate of 3.5 manats to one U.S. dollar. Let me conclude by saying that these hard times, caused again by the economic hardships outside Turkmenistan, have not stopped this government from spending money on magnificent projects. Look at Ashgabat, the "White City," recognized in 2013 by the Guinness Book of Records as having the highest density of white marble-clad buildings. That's something to be proud of. I know most of you don't live or work in any these buildings -- very few people do -- but you do sometimes pass them. They look good, don't you think? And I'll add that the city looks much better without all those air conditioners local authorities ordered to be removed from the outside of buildings. These were only needed for the four or five months of the year when the temperature was over 40 Celsius anyway, so most of the year they were useless. And work continues at Awaza, our resort area on the Caspian Sea. We've spent billions of dollars designing Awaza and building the luxurious five-star hotels that line our Caspian coast there, hotels that already have 20 to 30 percent occupancy, on occasion. The government continues to support the arts. I don't need to remind anyone about that massive statue of yours truly on horseback in downtown Ashgabat that was unveiled in May 2015. That gold leaf really brings out the character in that work, don't you think? And I personally have been hard at work writing new books for my people to read -- 40 so far, seven this year alone. I have been working equally hard writing new songs and will continue to appear on state television performing them for you. To close, I want to speak to each and every one of you, the people of Turkmenistan, whether you're employed, or partly employed, or unemployed, a supporter of the government or one of those being treated at state expense for psychological problems, those of you who are content and those who authorities are currently trying to help find the correct, state-approved path to inner happiness. Cast your vote for me, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, on February 12. I've been your president for 10 years, and thanks to another of those amendments passed in September, there is no age limit for running for president now, so I'll be your president for who knows how long? Thanks and vote on election day! We'll know if you don't. Farruh Yusupov and Toymyrat Bugaev of RFE/RL's Turkmen Service contributed to this report The views expressed in this blog post do not necessarily reflect the views of RFE/RL Thousands of people have paid their last respects to a top separatist commander in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk. At least 5,000 mourners queued on October 19 outside Donetsk's opera theater, where the body of Arseny Pavlov, a Russian citizen who was better known by the nickname Motorola, was displayed. The ostentatious memorial ceremony was shown live on Russian state television. Pavlov, 33, died on October 16 when a bomb exploded in his apartment block in Donetsk. He headed a fighting force called the Sparta battalion. A top Donetsk separatist leader blamed the Ukrainian authorities for the blast and said the killing amounted to a "declaration of war," sparking concerns of new violence by separatists whose war with Kyivs forces has killed more than 9,600 people in eastern Ukraine since April 2014. Based on reporting by AFP and Interfax KYIV -- A group of nationalists has violently interrupted an LGBT film event in western Ukraine, an activist says. Olena Shevchenko, an activist for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community, wrote on Facebook that police did "nothing" to prevent the group of right-wing Azov and Pravy Sektor battalion members from disturbing the October 18 event in the city of Chernivtsi. Pictures shared on social media show some members wearing masks and rubber gloves, while others wore military fatigues. Contacted by RFE/RL on October 19, Shevchenko said the nationalists were around 50 in number. She also said two men -- one Ukrainian and one German -- suffered light injuries after being attacked by Azov members. Around 20 people had come to the venue to watch the 2015 documentary film "This is Gay Propaganda." Directed by a Ukrainian-Canadian filmmaker, it follows the progress of the Euromaidan revolution and the conflict in eastern Ukraine through interviews with members of Ukraine's LGBT community. LGBT advocates say the community is being ignored by Ukraine's pro-Western government as homophobic attacks continue. State media reports in Uzbekistan say nine people, including six soldiers, have been killed in the crash of a military helicopter in the eastern part of the country. The reports say the crash of a Soviet-designed Mi-171 transport helicopter occurred on October 18 in Uzbekistan's Fergana region near the border with Kyrgyzstan. A Defense Ministry statement described the crash of its helicopter as an "accident" that killed all three crew members and six soldiers on board. Uzbekistan's Defense Ministry has set up a special state commission to investigate the crash. Based on reporting by Reuters, AFP, and Uzreport We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message. Richmond-based Dominion Resources has acquired the development rights to a 60-megawatt solar facility in Currituck County, N.C., near the Virginia border, as part of a power purchase agreement with three Boston institutions looking to cut their carbon footprints. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology said in a news release that it will buy electricity for at least 25 years, along with Boston Medical Center and the Post Office Square Redevelopment Corporation, from the 650-acre Summit Farms facility near Moyock which it called the largest renewable energy project ever built in the U.S. through an alliance of diverse buyers. MIT said the purchase from the facilitys 255,000 solar panels, which will begin operation by the end of the year, is equivalent to 40 percent of its current electricity use and will neutralize 100 percent of electricity consumption for both the Boston Medical Center, a nearly 500-bed facility that is the primary teaching affiliate of Boston University, and the redevelopment corporation, which manages a park and parking garage. The financial terms were not disclosed. We are pleased to partner with these three outstanding organizations to add more carbon-free generation to the electric grid, said Paul D. Koonce, CEO of the Dominion Generation Group, which oversees 25,700 megawatts of electric generating capacity in 11 states, including solar in operation or under development in eight states. We will continue to seek similar opportunities helping large and small energy consumers alike reduce their carbon footprint. Dominion has committed to build at least 500 megawatts of solar electric generating capacity by 2020. Six facilities, ranging from the 80-megawatt Amazon Solar Farm in Accomack County to the 17-megawatt Scott Solar facility in Powhatan, are expected to begin operation this year and next. *** In other solar news, Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced the permitting of a new 20-megawatt solar farm in New Kent County under development by Correctional Solar LLC, a subsidiary of Virginia Solar. The development, near New Kent Highway and Mt. Nebo Road, which will generate enough electricity to power about 3,400 homes. Construction is projected to begin in early 2017 and is expected to last six to nine months. The New Kent County facility is the second Virginia Solar project to receive a permit by rule from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, a regulatory framework for non-utilities to develop power generation. A Richmond man was denied bond Wednesday in connection with an August homicide in the Ginter Park area off of Chamberlayne Avenue. Demontrell C. Hurdle, 30, of the 3900 block of Chamberlayne Avenue, has been charged with first-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony in the death of Desmond L. Holmes, 32, of the 7900 block of Tamarind Place in Henrico County. Meanwhile, police are still looking for a second suspect in the shooting, which occurred around midnight Aug. 21 in the 3900 block of Chamberlayne Avenue. Bernardo L. Jones Sr., 20, of Richmond is wanted on charges of conspiracy to commit murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. Jones is described as being 6 feet tall, weighing about 190 pounds and having black hair and brown eyes. Police say he should be considered armed and dangerous. Anyone who sees him is asked to call police immediately. According to court records, a witness talked to detectives 10 days after Holmes death, and again Oct. 5, but with a different account. The first time, the witness told detectives that Holmes had gotten into an argument with a neighbor in the apartment complex and then encountered two unknown men on the steps of the building. The witness went into an apartment when gunshots were heard. Earlier this month, the witness identified Jones as one of the men on the steps who pulled a gun before the witness went inside. The second man was described only as a man with a hat and beard, according to court records. The witness also said Holmes never argued with the upstairs neighbor. Police recovered a black 9 mm pistol near Holmes body. Assistant Commonwealths Attorney Sharon M. Carr said it is believed that the gun, which had its safety mechanism activated, was Holmes. Also found at the scene were four shotgun shell casings and seven .40-caliber cartridges, which indicates there were two shooters, Carr said. A jury trial has been set for Hurdle on Feb. 16. Anyone with any information about this shooting is asked to call Major Crimes Detective Amira Sleem at (804) 646-3871 or Crime Stoppers at (804) 780-1000. A former teacher at Huguenot High School began a two-month jail sentence Wednesday after pleading guilty to a pair of misdemeanor charges of sexual battery involving an underage male student attending the school. Courtney B. Stewart, 25, of the 3600 block of West Broad Street, was originally charged in March with two counts of taking indecent liberties while in a supervisory role. Both are felonies, but a plea agreement reduced the charges to misdemeanors. Richmond Circuit Court Judge Phillip L. Hairston ordered that Stewart have no contact with the victim, and she must register as a sex offender. Stewart, a Richmond native, was an exceptional-education teacher at Huguenot. It is unclear whether the student was in her class. Stewart began as a substitute with Richmond Public Schools in February 2013, and was hired for her first full-time teaching position in August 2015, according to Kenita Bowers, a spokeswoman for the schools. After her arrest, Stewart was suspended without pay, and her contract was not renewed in June, Bowers said. Stewart is no longer eligible to work in the school district in any capacity, Bowers said. A graduate of Maggie L. Walker Governors School and Virginia Commonwealth University, Stewart participated in a nontraditional graduate degree program at VCU called the Richmond Teacher Residency, which requires a four-year commitment and trains teachers to work in some of Richmonds toughest schools. Court records show the first alleged assault occurred between Nov. 24, 2015, and Dec. 24, 2015, and the second happened sometime in February. The alleged victim was the same in both cases, the records said. Detectives were investigating whether there were additional victims, but no other charges have been filed. Hairston found Stewart guilty Wednesday and sentenced her to 12 months in jail on each count. Per the plea deal, Hairston suspended one sentence completely and 10 months of the second. Ms. Stewart does wish to start her sentence today, defense attorney Craig Cooley said. He asked Hairston to give her credit for time served, about two days, when she was first arrested. Shes accepted responsibility and is ready to move on, Cooley said after court. Stewart was poised as the judge questioned her, though a crumpled tissue was balled in her hand as a sheriffs deputy escorted her to a holding cell. The Rev. Derik Jones, pastor of First Baptist Church of South Richmond, sat with the family during the short hearing and consoled them afterward. Jones currently serves on the school board, though he is not seeking re-election and his term ends this year. This doesnt define her career, doesnt define her, Jones said. This is the first step to moving on to a great career in what shes trained to do. With the elections less than three weeks away, candidates competing in two of the regions congressional districts are airing their differences not so much in debates, but in debates about debates. In the heavily Republican 7th District, Rep. Dave Brat, R-7th, and Democratic challenger Eileen Bedell, a lawyer from Bon Air, have yet to agree to a debate. In the redrawn and newly Democrat-leaning 4th District, state Sen. A. Donald McEachin, D-Henrico, withdrew from a forum with Henrico Sheriff Mike Wade, the Republican candidate, scheduled for today in Chesapeake, over a disagreement on the rules with the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce. Debates can be risky for candidates, especially for front-runners who feel they have more to lose than to gain by engaging with a rival who is eager to knock them off stride or to prompt a headline-grabbing gaffe. Campaigns battle over rules and sponsors, seeking to gain or neutralize advantage, balancing the risk of participating with the danger of being perceived as unwilling to test their worthiness in a face-to-face encounter. In the 2014 Republican primary, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-7th, did not debate Brat despites Brats requests. The tea party-backed Brat went on to an upset. Later that year, Brat and Democratic Jack Trammell, then both Randolph-Macon College professors, participated in three debate-like events before the general election. This year, Bedells campaign is accusing Brat of trying to avoid a debate most recently with Brats camp turning down a request to appear with Bedell at a forum hosted by the Center for Civic Engagement at the University of Richmond. Two dates were offered Oct. 25 and Nov. 1 but Brat said he had previously committed to events on both nights. That did not convince Democrats. I am disappointed that Dave Brat cannot seem to eke out the time for even one debate or forum, said Abbi Easter, 7th District Democratic chairwoman. He owes his constituents better than that. Bedell campaign manager Grant Hallmark accused Brat of cowardly behavior. We are immensely disappointed that our opponent and Trumps surrogate, committee member, and supporter in Virginia Dave Brat has refused to debate Eileen Bedell during this election season, he said in a statement. In an interview, Brat called the Bedell accusations false, noting that a previous invitation to debate from a group came during the congressional session. He said Bedells camp has yet to contact his office, and questioned whether Bedell really wanted to debate after all. If they want a debate, they should call my office, which they have not done yet, Brat said. I want a rational debate with anyone on the most significant issues of the day, he added, citing the economy, small businesses and foreign policy among the areas he would like to discuss. But Brat said he would not debate in an environment that is not fair or one that degenerates into a food fight thats what my competition wants. In the 4th District, McEachins camp walked from the Hampton Roads forum when the organizer would not require candidates to only use video from the event in political ads if a candidates full response was included. McEachin and Wade shared a debate stage earlier in the election cycle. They are scheduled to debate again from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday at WCVE studios in Chesterfield. It will be broadcast live on radio at 88.9 WCVE FM. It also will be webcast at ideastations.org/listen. Thats not kept Wades campaign from going after the Democrat, calling him Dodging Don. It is a shame that my opponent refuses to come down and debate the issues for the voters of Chesapeake, Wade said in a statement. As both he and I are from the Richmond region of the district I personally feel it is necessary to reach out and discuss the issues and our plans with the voters in Hampton Roads. Sadly, Dodging Don doesnt agree, but with a voting record so out of touch with 4th District families, can we really blame him? McEachin responded that, Unfortunately, my opponent, like his good buddy Donald Trump, has decided to resort to nasty name-calling instead of dealing in facts. This campaign should be about the issues, not schoolyard taunts. In Hampton Roads, my opponent refused to accept a fair set of rules. He demanded the right to use out-of-context clips in attack ads, McEachin said. I am a strong believer in open and honest discussion of the issues, but not the kind of misleading gotcha attacks we are all so tired of. The 4th District seat is coming open because Rep. J. Randy Forbes, R-4th, bolted the district to run in the 2nd District, anchored in Virginia Beach, in a bid to succeed retiring Rep. Scott Rigell, R-2nd. Forbes lost the Republican primary to Del. Scott W. Taylor, R-Va. Beach. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is returning to Virginia this weekend for a rally at Regent University in Virginia Beach, the strongest signal yet that his campaign has not given up on Virginia. The rally at the Christian university is scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday, according to Trumps official schedule. Gates will open at noon. Polls have shown Democrat Hillary Clinton with a wide lead over Trump in Virginia. Last week, the Trump campaign pushed back on reports it was pulling out of the state, saying some of its staff members were being temporarily relocated to North Carolina and insisting the campaign still intends to compete in Virginia. The rally will be Trumps first in Virginia since the campaign fired former state chairman Corey Stewart for his participation in an Oct. 10 protest outside the Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington. Gov. Terry McAuliffes office said Wednesday that the governor agrees that voter registration should be extended in Virginia due to a surge in website traffic that crashed the online registration system ahead of Mondays deadline. A civil rights group filed a federal lawsuit against the state Tuesday that seeks a three-day extension of the registration period to accommodate would-be voters who couldnt register through the website Sunday and Monday. Though the case has yet to be heard by a judge, McAuliffe spokesman Brian Coy said the governor agrees with the goal of the lawsuit. Hes asked the attorney general to work with the court to get the most expedited ruling possible, Coy said. He agrees with the request. He thinks its a reasonable request. He expects the judge will agree as well. McAuliffes office said Tuesday that the governor has no power to extend the deadline on his own because the date is fixed in state law. Given that he has no authority, the only vehicle for that would be a court ruling requiring an extension of the period, Coy said. The Washington-based Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law filed the suit Tuesday night in federal court in Alexandria on behalf of two voter registration groups and a Charlottesville couple who were locked out of the system. A hearing has been scheduled for this morning, according to the office of Attorney General Mark R. Herring. Coy pointed to a recent court ruling in which a federal judge extended Floridas voter registration deadline due to disruptions caused by Hurricane Matthew, saying it could serve as a precedent for the Virginia case. Virginia election officials said their online voter registration system had slowed to the point of being nearly completely unresponsive as Mondays 11:59 p.m. deadline approached. Several people told the Richmond Times-Dispatch they tried to register for hours, but repeatedly saw an error message saying File not found. A poll conducted for the Virginia Chamber of Commerce finds that Hillary Clinton leads Donald Trump by 9 percentage points in Virginia and that a plurality would back moving the Washington Redskins stadium from Maryland to Virginia. The poll also finds that 55 percent back the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline as described in the survey. The poll is based on telephone interviews conducted Oct. 12-15 with 500 likely voters. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points. The poll, released on the day of the third and final presidential debate, found that Democrat Clinton receives 47 percent in Virginia to 38 percent for Republican Trump, 3 percent for Libertarian Gary Johnson, 2 percent for independent Evan McMullin and less than 1 percent for Green Party nominee Jill Stein. As for the Redskins, Gov. Terry McAuliffe has been courting the team, which is looking for a new stadium site. The Redskins have said they want to announce a new stadium 10 years out, which would be next year. The survey found that 46 percent would back the Redskins moving their stadium from FedEx Field in Maryland to a new stadium in Northern Virginia, while 21 percent would oppose it. The survey found that just 23 percent back state tax incentives for the team to make such a move, while 68 percent oppose it. Regionally, the strongest support for putting the stadium in Northern Virginia comes from voters in the Richmond media market, with 54 percent in support of the idea and 19 percent against it. There also was support for Dominion Resources Inc., the Richmond-based energy company, leading the $5 billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline project. In the poll, 55 percent say they support the pipeline, as described in the survey, and 29 percent oppose it, with 16 percent unsure. According to the pollster, voters were read the following description: There is a proposal to build an underground natural gas pipeline called the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. The pipeline would bring domestically produced natural gas to families and businesses in Virginia and North Carolina to meet energy and electricity needs. The pipeline would begin in West Virginia, travel across Virginia, and end in Eastern North Carolina. Regionally, support was at 54 percent in the Washington area, 56 percent in the Richmond area, 57 percent in the Roanoke area and 58 percent in the Norfolk area, according to the poll. A proposed right to work constitutional amendment is on the state ballot Nov. 8. The survey found that 69 percent of voters support Virginias right to work law, described in the survey as meaning it protects workers from being forced to join a union as a condition of employment. The survey found that 55 percent said they would back making right to work part of the state constitution, with 32 percent saying they would vote against it. The poll was conducted by The Tarrance Group, which describes itself as one of the most widely respected and successful Republican strategic research and polling firms in the nation. A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind. TWO pen pals who have been corresponding over the Atlantic Ocean for more than seven decades with hundreds of letters travelling east and west have been reunited. Dee Gray (83), of East Bawtry Road, Wickersley, has been a pen pal with Charlotte Boyd (83), of Duluth in Minnesota, in the USA for 72 years. This week, they came face-to-face again as Charlotte spent ten days in Rotherham one of a handful of times the pair have met up. Charlotte also got the chance to meet Margaret Barker (82), of Killamarsh, who has been writing to her and her late twin sister Charlene for 72 years. Dee said that the long correspondence began in 1944 when she was 12 and her Rotherham school received a copy of a Duluth newspaper asking for people to become pen pals with people from the Minnesota city. Dee chose Charlotte from the list. Charlottes sister also started writing to Margaret and it was only a few years ago that Charlotte found out that her own pen pal lived in the same area. Dee said that she enjoyed writing to Charlotte from the very beginning. We had come through the war and it was lovely to receive a letter, she said. Dee said that Charlottes letters often included items such as stockings and sweets from her mothers shop real treats in the rationing years. For Charlotte, writing to Dee helped her discover more about the UK, and in particular the Royal Family. Charlotte said: It was far away but we looked up everything we could to find out about England in the hope that some day we would actually meet. They first got together in the early 1990s when Dee travelled to the USA and Charlotte visited here in 1999 for the first time. She said: I dont want to say Rotherham was quaint but I was impressed at how tight-knit the community is, with the flowers and window boxes. You have saved a lot of your history in your architecture. But I have to listen carefully and ask for a repeat because I dont catch the accent here. Charlotte, who has lived in Duluth since 1970, has two grandchildren, was a stenographer and secretary for many years and later began to offer voluntary help to Vietnamese people. Dees career has included work as an ice cream seller, tram conductress and in the sewing trade. The friends agreed that travelling to each others countries was something of a culture shock. Dee said that the USA is so vast, while Charlotte said: England is about the size of Alabama, and certainly more populated. Trying to fit this country and all its history into Alabama is quite perverse. Dee said that the pair now wrote more frequently than ever about once a month while Charlotte revealed she carries Dees latest letter around with her so she can re-read it. She added: We are part of each others families and have shared each others lives. Dee, who has six grandchildren, said that young people these days seemed to prefer using electronic media such as Skype rather than writing letters. But she prefers pen and paper, adding: I like to get a letter. Mrs Barker, who wrote mainly to Charlottes twin sister, spent her 82nd birthday recently with Dee and Charlotte and said that writing letters had been a pleasure. Margaret said: We used write regularly about what we had been doing and it was like reading a story. Its sad that people dont write letters now. DiamondCorp said underground mining has resumed at its Lace mine in South Africa following a government shutdown last week. Its underground operations were suspended due to a fire incident. Consequently the third party with whom it had been in advanced talks for the provision of a convertible debt facility withdrew from such discussions due to the adverse movement in the company's share price. DiamondCorp was looking to raise additional equity and/or debt from one or more parties of between 2.5 million and 3.0 million in the near term to cover the anticipated cash required to fund operations through to commercial production and positive cashflow from operations. The financial impact of the four days of mining lost as a result of the shutdown instruction has been minimised by a rescheduling of programme maintenance and the fact that the mine was ahead of its planned tonnage for the month at the time of the shutdown, said DiamondCorp. Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished Debswanas Letlhakane mine tailings resource treatment plant project (LMTRTP) is set to be commissioned next year with construction work of the project currently 80 percent complete. The plant will undergo C5 commissioning and attain full production from the third quarter of 2017, Mining Weekly quoted Debswana corporate affairs manager Naledi Dikgomo-Goulden as saying. The construction of the plant commenced in the first quarter of 2015. The objective of the project was to deliver sustained and profitable operations at Letlhakane beyond the end-of-life of openpit mining. The LMTRTP was expected to achieve a yearly production of 800 000 carats of diamonds and would provide specifically designed mining and treatment solutions to ensure optimal economic recovery of the coarse tailings mineral resource, thereby extending the life-of-mine by 25 years, Mining Weekly reports. Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished According to World Gold Council, although a weaker appetite for jewellery and slowing economy could curb purchases, demand for gold from China, the top consumer will remain strong at around 900-1,000 tons next in year 2017, which is almost 2015 levels. On the fringes of an industry conference in Singapore, Roland Wang, managing director for China at the World Gold Council told Reuters, "We believe we may keep a certain level of about 900-1,000 tonnes of annual consumption (in 2017), but it may face some challenges especially on the jewellery side and also it depends on the price and China's own economic situation." He also expects demand in 2016 to be at around 900-1,000 tonnes. China's gold demand reached 984.5 tons in 2015. Wang said jewellery traders were seeing "more demand for gold bars since late September" with investors seeking alternate investment options amid China's housing market curbs. Aruna Gaitonde, Editor-in-Chief of Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished He was from one of the most prominent branches of the royal family after that of the direct descendants of King Abdulaziz, who founded the modern Saudi state in 1932. Most death penalties in Saudi Arabia are carried out by beheading in a public square. It was unclear how many people watched the execution of Prince Turki on Tuesday. This was a strict interpretation of Shariah law. The greatest thing is that the citizen sees the law applied to everyone, and that there are not big people and other small people, Abdul-Rahman al-Lahim, a prominent Saudi lawyer commented. Saudi Arabia is one of the worlds few remaining absolute monarchies. In 1975, when Prince Faisal bin Musaid was beheaded in Riyadh for assassinating King Faisal. Ahead of the third and final presidential debate in Las Vegas, the results of a Monmouth University poll show Hillary Clinton has jumped ahead of Donald Trump among likely Nevada voters. Forty-seven percent of likely Nevada voters said they support Clinton, while 40 percent back Trump. Another 7 percent intend to vote for Libertarian Gary Johnson and 2 percent said they will choose Nevada's unique "none of these candidates" option. The seven-point lead for Clinton in the latest poll compares to a survey conducted last month showing Trump with a 44 percent to 42 percent advantage in Nevada. Monmouth said Clinton's resurgence is due mainly to younger, non-white voters moving into her column over the past month. "We saw this same trend in the national poll Monmouth," said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute. "Historically Democratic groups appear to be coming home to Clinton, especially among male voters in these key voting blocs." The release of the poll results comes ahead of the final face-to-face matchup between Clinton and Trump at the University of Nevada on Wednesday. Political pundits have described the debate as Trump's final opportunity to alter the momentum of the race following the real estate tycoon's slump in the polls amid allegations of sexual misconduct. Despite the shift at the top of the ticket, Monmouth noted that the Nevada Senate race has barely budged since the summer. The poll showed Rep. Joe Heck, R-Nev., with a 45 percent to 42 percent lead over Democratic former state Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto. Heck led by a similar 46 percent to 43 percent in September and by 42 percent to 40 percent in July in the race to replace Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. The Monmouth survey of 413 Nevada voters was conducted October 14th through 17th and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.8 percentage points. (Photo: Lorie Shaull) For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Political News The Swiss stock market ended Wednesday's session with a slight increase, extending the gains from the previous session. The market spent a good deal of the session in negative territory, but broke out higher in the afternoon. A surge in crude oil prices helped to drive the market in late trade, following the release of the U.S. crude inventory report. Traders remained in a cautious mood Wednesday, despite the late day advance. Investors were reluctant to take positions ahead of the European Central Bank announcement Thursday. Traders will also be keeping an eye on the third and final debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton before the U.S. Presidential election. The Swiss Market Index increased 0.24 percent Wednesday and finished at 8,093.78. The Swiss Leader Index climbed 0.60 percent and the Swiss Performance Index added 0.25 percent. Dufry was the top gainer of the session, with an increase of 3.4 percent. Kepler Cheuvreux confirmed its "Buy" rating on the stock, while UBS increased its price target on the stock. Credit Suisse jumped 2.7 percent and continued UBS rose 1.2 percent. Credit Suisse announced that it had reached an agreement with Italian authorities to pay about EUR 100 million to settle a tax case. The bank stocks also received support from the strong quarterly report from U.S. bank Morgan Stanley. Adecco gained 3.0 percent. The stock benefitted from an "Outperform" rating from Credit Suisse and a "Buy" recommendation from Kepler Cheuvreux. The luxury goods companies received a boost from some solid Chinese economic data. Richemont climbed 1.9 percent and Swatch added 1.5 percent. Shares of Actelion also advanced 1.5 percent ahead of its financial report Thursday. The index heavyweights underperformed Wednesday, which limited the upside move for the overall market. Nestle and Novartis both weakened by 0.3 percent, while Roche finished with a gain of 0.1 percent. In the broad market, Barry Callebaut jumped 3.8 percent after a "Buy" rating from Kepler. Helvetia also gained 3.2 percent after it received a "Buy" rating from Baader Helvea. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Market Analysis Hillary Clinton could become the first Democratic presidential candidate to win Arizona in twenty years, according to the results of a new Arizona Republic/Morrison/Cronkite News poll. The poll found that 39 percent of likely Arizona voters back Clinton, while 34 percent support Republican rival Donald Trump. Another 6 percent of likely voters favor Libertarian Gary Johnson and less than 1 percent intends to vote for Green Party candidate Jill Stein. However, nearly 21 percent of likely Arizona voters remain undecided, suggesting the race remains up for grabs less than three weeks before Election Day. Clinton would be the first Democrat to win Arizona since her husband President Bill Clinton's successful run for re-election in 1996. Before Bill Clinton carried the Grand Canyon State, no Democrat had won Arizona since President Harry Truman in 1948. Clinton has recently dispatched a number of high-profile surrogates to Arizona, and her campaign announced Monday it is spending more than $2 million on advertising in the state. The survey of 713 likely Arizona voters was conducted October 10th through 15th and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.3 percentage points. (Photo: Lorie Shaull) For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Political News Millennial Moms Review: 2022 Acura MDX is pretty close to the perfect family car I dont know if perfect is attainable, especially considering weve got the world of options when it comes to modern vehicles. Were spoiled and, as such, we have very specific needs and wants. Driving-wise, the 2022 Acura MDX is one of my favourite ... In the last 24 hours, India reported 1,326 new Covid-19 cases and eight cases, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday. ... News Story not available This story has been published on: 2022-10-31. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. This story is no longer available on our site. Several local companies successful in Best of the Best awards Several local companies them beat out national chains to take top spot in this year's Salina Best of the Best awards. The British High Commissioner, Jonathan Sinclair, has nothing but good things to say about the development of Samoa. In the country for a visit, the Wellington-based diplomat said Samoas progression from a least developing country to a middle income status country has been remarkable to observe from afar. The fact Samoa has moved from the least developing country status into middle-income status, that in itself is indication of Samoas progress over time, he told the Samoa Observer yesterday. Also listening to the governments plan to bring debt back under control the government seems to be taking sensible steps to look at controlling that. When I look at the relationship with Samoa and Samoas progress, I certainly see a country that is well run, well governed and generally prosperous. Its certainly the progress from one income bracket to the next is an international stamp of achievement. Mr. Sinclair said Samoa is extremely valuable to the United Kingdom. In some countries around the world we dont have a mission in the country, he said. So I come over as frequently as I can, probably for four or five months to bolster two way relations between the U.K. and Samoa. The focus of that cooperation is generally in the area of the Commonwealth, our joint work within the Commonwealth; its on issues on sustainable development including protecting the environment and thats an area where the countries of the E.U. and countries in the South Pacific worked very closely last year towards a successful deal in Paris. Then there are areas around good governance, supporting Samoas growth and institutions including some of the bilateral money we spend towards those projects. Theres another area of cooperation which is our scholarship programme, through that we send two bright young Samoans every year to study free of charge at one of our universities for one year masters. Thats the range of work we do while we are here. But what does the U.K. get out of this two-way relationship? There are two or three ways, Mr. Sinclair said. Often relationships are not about what you are going to get out of it, what you often see is cooperation together on the world stage. The most obvious example of that is the climate deal and the continuing work thats going on. So just last night there was a deal in Montreal to reduce H.F.C. gases which will help reduce carbon emissions by 0.5%; 0.5 degrees over the next few decades. So its not always a two way give and take, its often a collaboration on a bigger stage; thats something thats been really important over the last few years and I cant think of a more important global issue that matters to Samoa, U.K. and to New Zealand than stopping the rise of our sea temperatures. Asked whether the Brexit Referendum on the 23rd of June 2016, will cause any problems with Samoa and U.K. relations seeing that the E.U. also provides assistance to Samoa; Mr. Sinclair assures that the U.K. is still going to play their part in the European Development Fund (E.D.F.). The vote was just three months ago; I think its important to say a few things about that, he replied. First of all in the short term, nothing changes so the U.K. remains a member of the E.U. until we leave. Now that sound like a statement of the obvious and it is in a way. But it does mean that we are fully committed to playing our part and that includes the E.D.F. We provide 15% of all the money that comes under the development programme for the Pacific. So the total sum of money is about 590million ($T1,681,500,000) so our share of that is approximately 90million ($T256,500,000), so the U.K. provides 90million to the Pacific, in this from this period 2014-2020. Weve just said that we will commit to that funding until the end of that period. Now its likely that that ends after weve left the E.U. Mr. Sinclair said that what happens after that period is still being worked out. So it reinforces our point that in the short term we are committing to the region, he said. What happens in terms of relations between the U.K. and the Pacific including Samoa, after that date is still being worked out. Its only three months since the referendum and we need to work out what exactly are our strategy is towards all of these countries. Even before the referendum, there was a very important initiative that the U.K. government took called the Commonwealth Marines Economies Programme (C.M.E.P.). This is about five and a half six million pounds, purely from the U.K. to help small island developing states in the commonwealth. There is programme being piloted at the end of November in Fiji and we are inviting people from Samoa Government to come and attend that. So there is one example of us there of us committing to E.U. funds even after beyond the time weve left and another example of engaging with Samoa and other countries in the Pacific. In regards to future plans towards the U.K. and Samoa after the end of the U.Ks E.D.F. period, Mr. Sinclair said they are working that one out. There are four buckets of negotiations that are going on in the U.K. right and we have to work out our strategy, he said. One of them has to do with our relationship with the E.U. we have to disentangle our laws. The second one is to put in place a new relationship between the U.K. and the E.U. There is a third negotiation which is around updating our terms of membership with the W.T.O. And there is a fourth one which is around putting in place new arrangements with third countries. Countries we may have had a F.T.A. with through the E.U. There is quite a lot we have to work out. Whats very clear though is that the government has made it inevitable that the vote in June is not a vote to raise the drawbridge and retreat behind the English Channel. It was a vote that will unleash Global Britain and we are one of the few countries that spend 2% of our G.D.P. on defense and 0.7% of our Gross National Income on aid. All in all, the relationship between the U.K. and Samoa seems to have a bright future. It may sound a bit tripe but I really enjoy coming here and I enjoy the relationship, Mr. Sinclair said. I think there will be for the U.K. the old bump along the way in the next two year but I think at the end of this we will come out really strong. That will mean a lot of opportunities for U.K. and New Zealand, U.K. and Samoa and for other countries in the region. MEXICO CITY (AP) A Chinese-Mexican businessman who had fought extradition from the United States for years has arrived in Mexico. Deputy Attorney General Salvador Sandoval said in a news conference Tuesday that Zhenli Ye Gon would be taken to the maximum-security Altiplano prison. Sandoval showed a live feed of Ye Gon arriving at the Mexico City airport. Ye Gon had been jailed in the United States since July 2007, when authorities seized more than $205 million from his Mexico City mansion, one of the largest drug-related cash seizures ever. Ye Gon claimed chemicals he imported were for use in legitimate prescription drugs. He fought to stay in the United States because he said he couldn't receive a fair trial in Mexico. When many people deny that poverty exists in Samoa, saying lazy people are to blame, things become hard. Does it mean that there are no lazy people in Samoa therefore implying that there is no poverty or is it just a case of delusional denial? For a humble pumpkin farmer Ioane Faaola, from the village of Saleimoa, he is under no illusion that there is no poverty in Samoa. Aged 40, he agrees that the level of poverty in Samoa may not be as bad as those overseas, but there are still some forms of poverty. I do believe there is poverty in Samoa to some extent, Ioane told the Village Voice. The poverty we face in Samoa is not as bad as those other countries but its still poverty nonetheless. People are in the state of poverty because they are lazy. Thats why I work hard with my vegetable stall; I dont ever want to end up in poverty. Ioane continued on to explain that no matter how hard you work, there will always be other factors that hold us back such as the rising cost of living. For us Samoans, if we dont try to work hard to earn some money, we will end up poor, he said. A lot of money goes towards food and other basic needs like water and different obligation as well as cultural practices. The cost of goods these days isnt helping much, the prices of everything keeps climbing but you will only suffer if you start being lazy. No matter how expensive things are, just keep working hard for what you need. Ioane works hard every day to make ends meet through sales of both koko and pumpkins. I take care of my family with what I earn from pumpkin and koko sales, he said. The little I make from selling these vegetables goes straight into taking care of my childrens schooling expenses, taking care of daily meals for my family and other side expenses. I also use the money to take care of my different obligations. Even though he tries his best every day, he still runs into a few bumps along the way. Some days, the sales are really good and I earn quite a bit from the pumpkins but other days I would only be able to sell about three of them, he said. But I still stick to it no matter how well or bad the days are because it provides good money for all of us. Even on very bad days, we are still able to sell a few pumpkins so that means we earn something every day. On a good day I would make about $70. Furthermore, his everyday struggle is worth it because it takes good care of his family. My family is small and no one is employed, its just me, my wife and my children, Ioane said. This is the only way I know how to provide for my family and put my children through school. All our needs may not be met but we still manage to get by this way. We will always make money from selling these vegetables and I have come to realize that why change whats working? The outcomes, achievements and promises of the New Zealand Samoa Trade and Investment Commission (N.Z.S.T.I.C) Business Mission seminar held in Apia this week were celebrated at Letava on Tuesday night. The event, hosted by the office of the New Zealand High Commission in Apia, welcomed the 19-member delegation from New Zealand, led by Tauiliili Fatu Fuatavai, Chairman of the N.Z.S.T.I.C. The delegation made up of representatives of member companies and affiliations in the areas of shipping, freight, infrastructure, industry projects, food and beverage, real estate, farming and banking were engaged in the trade seminar held at the Tanoa Tusitala Hotel for two days. Yesterday, they visited Savaii to explore business opportunities there. On Tuesday night though, the President of the Samoa Chamber of Commerce, Tuala Pat Leota, was full of optimism about the mission. New Zealand and Samoa have a long standing partnership and we hope the mission will further strengthen this partnership, he said. The private sector is also mindful of the importance of increasing Samoas trade capacity therefore we welcome any opportunities that have arisen from this trade mission. Tuala said he hopes the mission will mark the start of a strong partnership with the view of more trade missions in the near future. We do hope though, for future trade delegations, to include members of New Zealand business community who are looking to facilitate trade in areas such as Agribusiness and tourism. Those two sectors we believe, are segments of the economy that have the most potential to boost trade between our two countries. In opening the seminar on Monday, New Zealand High Commissioner to Samoa, Jackie Frizelle, said the meeting is timely. The potential trade opportunities linked to Samoa is not to be underestimated. Theres always a lot happening in Samoa; this is a very busy, vibrant and active place, she said. You have all come at a particularly good time, when the economic environment for business development is starting to really come together. Samoa is a welcoming environment for overseas businesses especially for those who want to invest in the future of Samoa and help develop local businesses and partners. The economy here is at a point where a lot of the hard ground work is starting to pay dividends. Next the Tui Cable will be in place, which is expected to lead to faster and cheaper broadband. These benefits will be a game changer for Samoa. Samoan students are among a number of students studying at the University of the South Pacific (U.S.P) who were deregistered for outstanding fees. This meant students affected were declined access to their online notes, denied access to university resources (libraries, labs etc.) and were not permitted to attend remaining classes. This happened while the final exams are just around corner. Among the students affected is June Vaisagote, who is an Australian Aid scholarship student. I have been de-registered because of remaining unpaid accommodation fees, June told the Samoa Observer. I am currently in the process of paying my accommodation through allowance deductions and it is supposed to be cleared in the following week. Unfortunately, with this new policy which was made effective on Monday (17th), we have to come up with the money immediately to pay for the remaining fees instead of waiting for the allowance in two weeks because we were told to pay up all fees by this Friday the 21st in order for us to re-register. This policy has had a huge impact on my studies leading to finals and I am not the only one affected. June said they have two more weeks before finals and yet they were not permitted to attend lectures, access the libraries and other critical learning facilities. We cannot submit assignments and access notes and we need our notes for our preparations for exams. So to put it simply, were banned from the school, she said. This is the last week of classes and we need to put in 100% effort into this and usually hints for the finals are given out on this week but we wont have the opportunity because we are not permitted to attend classes. Rather than the school motivating their student, they have created a situation that has brought us depression and discouragement. According to June, the decision to de-register students has brought nothing but disappointment for all the students. I am disappointed with this decision to de-register students with unpaid fees, she said. Several aspects should have been considered by the VC and policy makers of U.S.P first before approval. Our sponsors have already paid our full tuition and it is only the accommodation that is not yet fully paid. It is quite unfair to ban us from sitting our papers while tuitions are already paid in full. Also they should understand that not all students are from well-off families. This includes both local and international students but mostly private students. Some families may take a little while to get money to pay for their childrens fees. The old policy was to withhold student results until unpaid fees were cleared. This makes more sense, rather than stop the students from sitting exams. We are already under pressure with assignments and upcoming finals and this situation has added onto the burden. In a Fiji Times report, Fijis Shadow Minister for Education, Mika Leawere, has called on the University of the South Pacific Vice Chancellor to step down immediately. Mr. Leawere defines the new policy as an Inhumane policy that dashes all their hard work for the semester at the 11th hour. The Deputy Vice Chancellor, Professor Richard Coll, met with students affected by the policy yesterday to discuss the matter. Contacted for a comment, U.S.P issued the following statement late yesterday evening. It is published in full below: The University of the South Pacific (USP) has re-activated student accounts today, for students who have paid their tuition fees in full but have other outstanding fees. USPs Acting Vice-Chancellor, Professor Richard Coll announced yesterday evening that the University will allow students who have fully paid tuition fees, but have not paid some other fees such as the general service fee etc., to sit for their examinations and use University facilities (e.g., submit assignments online). However he stated that the University will only release their examination results upon clearance of all outstanding fees. As advised earlier, the University is not de-registering students whose fees are paid by government sponsors and scholarship providers or through Fijis Tertiary Education Loan Scheme (TELS). De-activation is for private students who have not paid tuition fees within the time permissible under the University policy. Majority of these students are from outside Fiji. Over the semester, numerous reminder emails on fee payment deadline and fee instalment payment plans had been sent out to all students, said Professor Coll. Despite this, some students affected have not made any attempt or arrangements to pay their tuition fee. Students have always been allowed to register before the semester begins, and to help them, the University allows them six (6) weeks to pay their fees. In cases where students feel they are not able to meet this deadline, they can make arrangements with the University to pay in instalments for a further four (4) weeks. This is as per our protocol stipulated in the regulations in the USP Handbook & Calendar. The University also has a substantial bursary and scholarship scheme to help financially disadvantaged students, especially those from the region. The University assures that no student will be unduly disadvantaged due to the action taken and once again requesting the students to pay their tuition fees for re-activation of their accounts. The hearing of a motion to quash charges against the suspended Police Commissioner, Fuiavailiili Egon Keil, has been adjourned for the last time. The decision was made in the Supreme Court yesterday by Justice Lesatele Rapi Vaai. It follows an application from the National Prosecution Office (N.P.O) lawyer, Leone Sua-Mailo for a further adjournment. Mrs. Mailo told the Court the N.P.O. is in the process of engaging an independent prosecutor to handle the matter. She did not say who the independent prosecutor would be but she indicated it would be a lawyer from overseas. Representing Fuiavailiili are lawyers Komisi Koria and Leinafo Taimalelagi. Mr. Koria strongly opposed to the application for another adjournment. He said the matter has been on the list for two months now and that is way too long. The lawyer also reminded that when the matter was called on Monday this week, the prosecutor did not raise any such issue. In our respectful submission, it would be unfair to force my client and some of his family that travelled from Savaii to attend the hearing to further wait for the matter, Mr. Koria said. This matter was mentioned on 29th August for the hearing of our application and I cannot see why the counsel for the prosecution would not be prepared to proceed this morning. I urge the Court to proceed with the matter today. In response, Mrs. Mailo said she had not raised the issue on Monday because circumstances have changed. She insisted it is their view that the matter be further adjourned for the prosecution to engage an overseas independent prosecutor to counter the application to quash the charges. The lawyers were then called into chambers by Justice Lesatele before he adjourned the matter until 11November 2016. I have read both submissions and I was prepared to make several rulings in favour of the applicant in this matter, said the Judge. Fuiavailili is facing charges including unlawful detainment of a person, disorderly conduct in a public place, perjury and making a false statement in relation to the wrongful arrest of a member of the public last year. His legal team is seeking to quash the charges against their client, questioning the legitimacy of the charges. Mr. Koria argued the prosecution does not understand the nature of the allegations against his client and the charges therefore should be dropped. In a civil case, the Police Commissioner is defended by the Attorney Generals office following in lawsuit from member of the public Suitupe Misa for his unlawful arrest in August last year. Lawyer Seuamuli Sarona Ponifasio representing Mr. Misa questioned the conflicting role of the Attorney Generals office with the latest development of the A.G. Lemalu Hermann Reztlaff heading N.P.O. Lemalu was given the powers as Acting Director for N.P.O. following the suspension of N.P.O. Director Mauga Precious Chang and Acting Director Muriel Lui. Seuamuli raised the conflicting role of the A.G. in the Supreme Court last week pointing out that the A.G. is defending the Commission in the civil matter yet prosecuting him in the criminal Court. The Chairman of the Commission of Inquiry tasked to investigate the work of Judges of the Land and Titles Court (L.T.C), Lopaoo Natanielu Mua, has declined to deny or confirm reports the Judges have refused to cooperate with the Inquiry. The M.P. for Vaisigano No. 1 instead told the Samoa Observer he cannot disclose anything. You will see everything when the report comes out, he said. Asked how the Commission is going to compile a report without the views of L.T.C. Judges, Lopaoo said there is a terms of reference for the Commission to follow. The report will be provided to them, he responded. According to a reliable source, the L.T.C Judges were asked to make submissions before the Commission. But the Judges did not agree with how Parliament is going about in this and have not cooperated with the call from the Prime Minister. They declined to make submissions, the Samoa Observer was told. It was not possible to get a comment from the President of the L.T.C., Fepuleai Atilla Ropati. But the Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Justice and Courts Administration, Papalii John Taimalelagi denied any knowledge about the claims. Im not aware of it, said Papalii. It might be between them (Commission and Judges) in a written form but I do not know. In Parliament on Tuesday, Lopaoo moved a motion asking for an extension of deadline for their report. He said the Commission needed more time to finish its work. Outside Parliament, Lopaoo told the Samoa Observer there was a lot of work for the Commission to complete. When the Commission was closed, there were about 30 more people who came (late) and wanted to make submissions, he said. We then gave them the opportunity. There were a lot of people who made submissions. In June this year, Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi ordered a Commission of Inquiry to investigate the performance of the L.T.C. Judges. Tuilaepa told Parliament the Commission is to submit a report to Parliament for its October sitting. According to the Prime Minister, the privilege of being an L.T.C. Judge was being abused by some Judges who are using the opportunity as a holiday until they reach the age of 70. There needs to be checks for men and women judges of the Land and Titles Court, Tuilaepa said. If the Court does not fix its internal issues, it is the duty of Parliament to make an order with the two third support from the M.Ps in the House Tuilaepa said Parliament could submit an application to the Head of State to remove any Judge who is not performing their role with honesty. There are a few concerns about the criminal Courts which include the District and Supreme Court. But 99 percent of the complaints have shown distress from the public because of decisions from the Land and Titles Court. The truth is no matter how hard we try to make something a 100 percent, we cannot make it a 100 percent because the good wheat will always grow together with the bad ones. The Chinese government is committed to protecting the environment in the Pacific. Yesterday, the Chinese Embassy put money behind this commitment when it presented US$150,000 to the Vailima-based Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environmental Programme (S.P.R.E.P). The presentation made by the Chinese Ambassador to Samoa, Wang Xuefeng, marked 13 years of partnership between China and the organization. The Director General of S.P.R.E.P, Leota Kosi Latu said the donation is a symbol of the strong relationship between China and the Pacific. He commended the effort by the Chinese government in taking the lead on the global stage to address climate change. And as you are aware, the Paris agreement is now coming into force. And I believe that if not for the strong combined effort from China and U.S., the other countries would not have signed the agreement. And we continue to see the strong leadership from China, and that is something we appreciate. And this morning, this is a great opportunity for us to acknowledge that and also thank you for your support, so thank you very much on behalf of S.P.R.E.P and we look forward to strengthening our partnership in the future. Speaking to the Samoa Observer, Leota said China has been giving the same amount of money to S.P.R.E.P every year since 2003. He said there are no specific requirements of the funding. But we do know that in the past, theyve required the use of that funding for climate change activities. So we are looking at using some of that fund on some climate change activities and also we will be looking at some of that fund to support our core business. So we will sit down and have a look at that, but as I said, the Chinese funding to S.P.R.E.P is pretty flexible which is much appreciated, said Leota. Ambassador of China to Samoa, Mr. Xuefeng spoke about the vital role carried out by S.P.R.E.P. As we all know, S.P.R.E.P is an important organization in this region and is playing a more and more significant role in better addressing environmental issueS together with the Pacific Island Countries. The researches, seminars and projects that S.P.R.E.P has done are of both regional and world significance and relevance. He went on to say that the time he had spent here in Samoa as Ambassador has taught him so much about the significant roles of S.P.R.E.P in regards to environmental issues and climate change. I have come to learn more about S.P.R.E.P and realized the importance of the work they are doing. Among the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, most of them are environment related. In the Pacific Island Countries, environment is particularly crucial to the economy's development and peoples everyday life. As a responsible major developing country, China plays high priority on environmental issues. Domestically the Chinese Government has integrated Green Development into it's national strategy of economic and social development. During the G20 Hangzhou Summit concluded last month in China, China and the United States both formally ratified the Paris Climate Change Agreement, a move immediately hailed as a significant advance in the battle against global warming. Here in Samoa, we are committed to join the efforts of the Samoan government in addressing climate change. The Chinese Government and the Chinese Embassy in Samoa attach great importance to cooperation with S.P.R.E.P and have maintained a constructive relationship with S.P.R.E.P over the past years. AL-HUD, Iraq (AP) The mutilated bodies of Islamic State group fighters were still strewn on the ground of this northern Iraqi town on Wednesday. One was burned. Another's face was flattened by abuse. Iraqi troops on the march toward Mosul moved into al-Hud a day earlier and declared it liberated. But they found residents had already risen up and killed many of the militants in the town themselves. With the offensive to recapture Mosul in its third day, Iraqi forces advancing from the south and east are fighting to retake the towns and villages the dot the plains and line the Tigris River leading to the city. At times, they've met fierce resistance, with the militants sending explosives-packed vehicles careening toward the troops' positions. This area has been under control of the militants ever since the summer of 2014, when IS fighters captured Mosul and much of the north in a lightning advance. In al-Hud, a Sunni Arab town on the Tigris, residents saw their chance to get rid of them. On Monday, a man paraded through town with an Iraqi flag in a show of defiance, residents told The Associated Press. IS fighters shot and killed him. A group of residents gathered in a shop, news spread among the hundreds of people living in the town, and soon a crowd turned on the militants. One resident, Ahmed Mohammed, said he and others shot a militant who was hiding by an outhouse behind a shop. "That didn't work. Then one of our guys came and threw a grenade on him from the top," he said. Gasim Mohammed said his father was killed in the uprising against the militants. He kicked the head of one of the bodies. "This one smells like a dog," he said. "I hate them. Anyone I catch, I'll drink his blood. Even if it's a child," he said. It was not clear how many militants had been in the village or how many were killed. The Associated Press saw at least five bodies. The head of the Iraqi military's operations command for Nineveh province where the offensive its taking place confirmed the residents' account. "Before we reached the village they fought them and killed many of them," Maj. Gen. Najim al-Jobori said. On Wednesday, residents were celebrating. Children ran toward an Iraqi military convoy waving peace signs while others threw stones at the bodies of the dead IS fighters. Residents fired celebratory rounds into the air and cars long the main road still flew white flags of surrender. At Qayara air base, near al-Hud, a senior Iraqi general called on Islamic State group fighters in Mosul to surrender. Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati told reporters that up to 6,000 IS fighters are in the city. East of Mosul, troops have moved about a kilometer (half-mile) from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul, an Iraqi officer from the 9th Division told the AP. Over the past day, IS sent 12 car bombs against the troops, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, he said, adding that Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds. The officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters, did not provide specific figures. At least 5,000 people fled the Mosul area to a refugee camp in northeastern Syria in the last 10 days, with another thousand waiting to enter at the border, Save the Children said. Tarik Kadir, head of the group's Mosul response, said conditions there are "among the worst we've seen." More than 9,000 people in the camp only have access to dirty, untreated water and have to share 16 latrines, leaving the area polluted by human waste "with a looming risk of disease," the group said. U.N. humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien told the U.N. Security Council that no large-scale displacement of civilians has been reported since the operation began. But he said the U.N. anticipates "a displacement wave of some 200,000 people over the coming weeks, with up to one million displaced in the course of the operation in a worst-case scenario." San Diegos first Ritz-Carlton Hotel, a Whole Foods grocery, housing for all income groups and offices were approved Tuesday by the City Council in what promises to be the biggest, most expensive and densest mixed-use building in the county. This is exactly what we should be doing in downtown San Diego, said Councilman Todd Gloria in advance of the unanimous vote. This level of density would not be appropriate to any other district in San Diego. Located at Seventh Avenue and Market Street, the $400 million project by Cisterra Development is projected to be completed by October 2021. The 39-story building with a rooftop terrace and four levels of underground parking was designed by Carrier Johnson + Culture architects. The project includes a 6,000-square-foot public plaza that matches a similar space to the south in the Sempra Energy corporate headquarters, also developed by Cisterra and designed by Carrier Johnson. Another feature is the retention of the historic Clermont Hotel, which will retain its 53 single-room occupancy units. With this project we wanted to be Class A, right to the top, said Cisterras Jason Wood. The project received support from downtown business groups and the San Diego Building Trades Council but was opposed by the Unite Here Local 30 hotel workers union. They were seeking a commitment from Marriott, which owns the Ritz-Carlton brand, for a card-check neutrality agreement, which means Marriott would not oppose unionization. Instead, the hotel has committed to paying a living wage to all non-tip-earning employees, Wood said. Rick Bates, representing Unite Here, said despite future hotel guests who pay $1,000 or more for a two-night stay, a housekeeper would earn only $6 to clean each room. We dont seem to have a developer interested in that, he said. Bates also cited issues regarding potential contaminated soil issues and other environmental concerns, which Unite Here cited in challenges to the limited environmental impact report filed on the project. Wood said Cisterra is waiting to see if the union sues over the environmental concerns. Under the terms of the disposition and development agreement, Cisterra will pay the city $20 million for the site and a projected $1.5 million in sales, property and hotel room taxes annually. The city Planning Commission is scheduled to vote Oct. 27 on an appeal to the development permits approved by Civic San Diego, the citys downtown planning agency. The commissions action cannot be appealed to the council. The project is unique in many ways to any other development downtown. It includes luxury condos, market-rate apartments, and affordable rental units in addition to the hotel units, all in one tower. The 156,000-square-foot hotel component in a separate tower shares the ground floor podium that covers the block. The design includes a portion with hotel room floors that juts out from the higher tower to connect to the lower office tower at the 20th level. Above the hotel floors will be Ritz-Carlton Residences. Those condos are expected to sell starting at around $2 million each. In an interview prior to the vote, Wood said the project might have been easier to design without the hotel but Cisterra wanted to take advantage of the strategic location between the Gaslamp Quarter and ballpark district. It took a lot of time and a lot of brain power between a lot of smart people over months to figure out how to get everything to work, especially at the ground floor, Wood said. Asked if the project, referred to as 7th & Market, sets a precedent for other similar developments downtown, Wood said, This is a special project, a special circumstance and Im not sure there will be that type of opportunity to mix so many uses on one block. He said financing, being lined up by one unnamed lender, is expected to fall into place once all entitlements are secured. The city has set April 2018 as the date for concluding the property sale. If the project ultimately does not go forward after that date, the land would revert back to the city. 7th & Market at a glance Location: Block bounded by Seventh, Eighth and Island avenues and Market Street Developer: Cisterra Development Cost: $400 million with $20 million land sale by the city, the proceeds going into citys affordable housing trust fund. Financing by one lender is in the works. Schedule: Land sale by April 2018 and construction completed by October 2021; litigation threatened by Unite Here Local 30 hotel workers union. Description: 1.16 million square feet in two towers of 39 stories at 500 feet and 19 stories at 227 feet that share a common base; 887 parking spaces in four levels below and three above ground; preservation of adjacent Clermont Hotel that will include exhibits by the Black Historical Society in recognition of African-Americans heritage downtown. Hotel: Ritz-Carlton, 153 rooms in the levels 20-27 of higher tower. Housing: Below the Ritz-Carlton, 34 affordable apartments in levels 3-5, 125 market-rate apartments in levels 7-19; 59 for-sale Ritz-Carlton condos in levels 28-39;. In adjacent Clermont Hotel, 55 single-room-occupancy units retained. Office: 156,000 square feet in lower tower. Retail: 46,000 square feet including Whole Foods market on second level and accessed from Seventh Avenue street entrance. Other amenities: Roof terrace; pool, fitness center, spa; hotel ballroom; 6,000-square-foot public plaza at Seventh and Market. Almost a year after a massive natural gas leak at a storage facility near Los Angeles forced thousands from their homes, a federal task force on Tuesday released a series of recommendations to help prevent another such incident. We wanted to take advantage of the lessons learned from Aliso Canyon and analyze how we could apply those lessons to the more than 400 underground natural gas storage facilities in the country, said Franklin Orr, an undersecretary at the U.S. Department of Energy and one of the co-chairs of the task force, in a conference call with reporters. The task force made 44 specific recommendations in its 83-page report, and the U.S. Department of Transportations Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) plans on issuing a rule by the end of this year to set national standards for underground natural storage sites. Advertisement Were looking at how to make sure that nothing like Aliso Canyon happens any place else in the country, said Marie-Therese Dominguez, PHMSA administrator and co-chair of the task force. Dominguez did not estimate how much the new rule would cost but said the agency has taken part in an integrated effort with states and industry, including a pair of recommendations from the America Petroleum Institute on design, construction and operations of underground storage facilities. Some of the task forces recommendations centered on the aging state of storage sites. About 80 percent of the wells in the nations storage field were completed before 1980, with the pipes at some sites originally designed for oil production instead of natural gas. The task force also called for storage operators to phase out what is called single-point-of-failure well designs that is, requiring a secondary barrier in the casing of a well for added safety. We really need to make sure the aging infrastructure associated with this is strong enough to maintain not only our energy reliability but also public health and preserve our environment, Dominguez said. The task force report also identified 12 of the more than 400 underground storage facilities that, if suffering a major disruption of service, would potentially affect electric reliability by 2 gigawatts or more of generation capacity. California is home to two of those facilities Aliso Canyon, operated by Southern California Gas, and McDonald Island in San Joaquin County, operated by Pacific Gas & Electric. Eight of the 12 are located in the Gulf Coast region five in Mississippi and three in Louisiana. Thats one of the things were also calling for, data that will allow us to do a more detailed analysis of the vulnerabilities that exist there, Orr said. The Aliso Canyon leak occurred on Oct. 23, 2015, and took nearly four months to plug, sickening some residents in Porter Ranch and displacing thousands of households. Estimates say the leak spewed the equivalent of 84,200 metric tons of methane. California state agencies are monitoring the site and still testing the 114 wells at Aliso Canyon. SoCalGas officials said Tuesday the company is reviewing the task forces recommendations. SoCalGas, a subsidiary of San Diego-based Sempra Energy, said it has replaced the inner tubing with new pipe at every storage well that has been approved by the states Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) and said more than 40 miles of new piping have been installed. SoCalGas has cooperated fully with the task force and is committed to supporting forward-looking and reasonable regulations that promote safety at natural gas storage facilities, said company spokesman Chris Gilbride. According to the companys website, 98 of Aliso Canyons 114 wells have completed the first phase of testing and 27 have been approved by DOGGR as of Oct. 7. SoCalGas officials said this summer they were hoping some wells could be cleared for injections by September but that has not yet happened. In an investors conference call in August, Sempra executives raised the latest cost figures for the leak to $717 million. The company says it has about $1 billion in insurance coverage and in August said it had about $34 million in recoveries. Aliso Canyon has the largest daily deliverability the amount of gas that can be withdrawn from a storage facility each day of all the storage facilities west of the Rockies, estimated at 1.9 billion cubic feet per day. Energy officials across the state have warned of potential power outages due to Aliso Canyons curtailment. Some critics have said the need for underground natural gas storage sites are overblown but Orr disagreed. I think there is no question that both nationwide and in the L.A. Basin, there is a need for storage at times of highest demand, Orr told reporters. A member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Brad Sherman, D-California, lives in the Porter Ranch community. Sherman issued a statement Tuesday saying the task force recommendations were an important first step in protecting communities. But Sherman also criticized the report for not requiring sub-surface safety shutoff valves on every well. Orr said shutoff valve requirements were discussed. Its a bit of a balancing act because they provide some useful functions but they require more well interventions and more opportunities for maintenance issues and equipment problems, he said. rob.nikolewski@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1251 Twitter: @robnikolewski ALSO Southern California natural gas inventories flat Last of the Porter Ranch residents back home Aliso Canyon maybe used as energy backup Most of the five candidates running for three open seats on the Encinitas City Council in November say the city paid far too much for the vacant downtown Pacific View School property, but all it can do now is try to make the best of it. One candidate says she wont second-guess the deal because she wasnt active in city politics when the purchase was made in 2014. Another, who served on the citys negotiating committee, said he believes Encinitas could resell the property for far more than its $10 million purchase price, if the city ever wished to get rid of it. The hopefuls voiced their views during a forum hosted Tuesday night by the Leucadia-Encinitas Town Council. During the event, the two incumbents in the race --- councilmen Tony Kranz and Mark Muir --- sparred several times over the $10 million school purchase, which has long divided them. Kranz negotiated the deal and voted in favor of it; Muir opposed it, saying the price tag was too high. Advertisement On Tuesday night, Muir repeatedly said that he thought Kranz could have obtained a better deal and Kranz repeatedly said that he felt the city got an amazing piece of land at a reasonable price. The fact is that land is priceless, Kranz said at one point, describing how the former school occupies a 3-acre coastal bluff site in the citys downtown. Muir said that the Encinitas Union School District would have sold it for less, and he ought to know --- his wife served on that school board at the time. Shes now a member of the San Dieguito Union High School board. The reality is we paid way too much money for it, Muir said. Fellow candidates Phil Graham and Tony Brandenburg agreed with him. Graham, who has endorsed Muir, said the city shouldnt have purchased the land because it didnt have a plan for its use. If you were in business, you just wouldnt act that way, said Graham, a manager at a research facility who has stepped down from his job to seek elected office. Brandenburg, a city planning commissioner and a retired judge, said he wouldnt have agreed to purchase the property for $10 million, but added that the deal is done. Theres no backing up on this, he said. The final candidate in the race Tasha Boerner Horvath, who serves on the Planning Commission with Brandenburg and has been endorsed by Kranz said she wasnt active in city politics when the council made the decision. She called it a difficult topic and said she wanted to look to the propertys future, not its past. We need to make this the best it can be, she said, adding that shes heard from people that theres a lot of potential for the property which is proposed to become a city arts center. The five candidates also divided along the same lines when it came to a question about reworking the citys roadways to accommodate bicyclists. Brandenburg said the city should make its downtown pedestrian and bicycle friendly, but shouldnt put bike lanes all over the city, particularly in the eastern, more rural regions because that could impact commuter vehicle traffic. Youre absolutely right, Graham said, indicating that he was surprised to find Brandenburg shared his view. Muir said he thought bike lanes wouldnt work in some neighborhoods. Kranz said Encinitas needs to pursue bicycle route projects that connect the citys eastern edges to the coastal, north-south railroad corridor trail project, which the regional San Diego Association of Governments is funding. Boerner Horvath agreed, saying people east of Interstate 5 would like to bike to the beach. There was one area where Brandenburg disagreed with all of the other candidates --- he opposes Measure T, the city-sponsored housing plan thats on the November ballot, saying theres no guarantee that it will add any much-needed, low-income housing to Encinitas. The other candidates, who have all supported the measure, said Tuesday that it complies with state law and will help keep the city from getting sued by developers. Henry is a freelance writer in Encinitas Poway could save more than $15 million in design and construction costs by partnering with the YMCA of San Diego on a jointly owned community/senior center, according to estimates the nonprofit agency recently provided to the city. On Tuesday night, the council agreed to let the YMCA spend about $40,000 to conduct a telephone survey asking Poway residents exactly what services theyd want in the building. Sometime early next year the survey results will be presented to the City Council, which would have to decide whether to enter into an agreement with the YMCA. Construction proposals submitted by eight different companies to build a city-only community/senior center recently came in much higher than expected between $20 and $28 million leading several members of the council to say those plans may have to be scrapped in favor of something cheaper, no matter what happens with the YMCA. Advertisement Poway has already set aside $8 million for the community center construction and the city was tentatively planning to finance the remaining construction costs through bonds, which would take many years to pay off. City Manager Tina White said the YMCA estimates a 36,000-square-foot community center comparable in size to the one in the citys preliminary design could be built for about $11 million through a partnership with the Y. In a letter to the council, the YMCA said if the city paid the full cost of the project, the center could be built within two years. The YMCA said if the city paid for 75 percent of the project, the center could be built within 36 months and if the city funds 50 percent of the project, it could be built in 40 months. A number of people Tuesday night spoke against the partnership. Though some of the speakers were candidates running for City Council, others were seniors who use the current center. Leslie Hoffman, the executive director of the senior center for the past 16 years, urged the City Council not to pursue the deal with the YMCA. She said shes worried the services the senior center provides wont be met by the agency. There is not one member of the senior center that supports this, Hoffman said. There is not one member on our board who supports this. She asked the council members to reconsider their position. Your citizens have spoken. Please, please reconsider this proposal and please consider the services we provide. The council made it clear no decisions have been made and all they were doing was agreeing to let the YMCA do the survey. But they all also reiterated their position that the possibility of saving so much money on a project that was already running the risk of being killed because of the high costs was a fiduciary duty they had to explore. I see this as a tremendous opportunity to gain professional and scientific input, whether or not we end up going with the Y or whether we end up going someplace else, said Mayor Steve Vaus. He said with the YMCA offering to pay for the survey we would be foolish not to take advantage of that. Councilman Barry Leonard said the YMCA has approached the city with a proposal to do us a favor. He said the council is not committing to anything. They are an invited guest and they are bringing something to the table. LAuberge Del Mar is the No. 1 hotel in Southern California, according to the latest luxury rankings to be unveiled. In its 2016 Readers Choice Awards, the prestigious high-end travel publication Conde Nast Traveler lauded the 121-room boutique hotel in the heart of Del Mar for having spectacular ocean views that take your breath away. It was the first time LAuberge Del Mar has taken the top spot in any of the categories in the magazines annual list. Advertisement We are certainly delighted to be named the number one Top Hotel in Southern California by this highly selective group of travelers, said LAuberge general manager Terry Buchholz, in a statement. Conde Nast Travelers awards, which will appear in the magazines November issue, was a nice welcome to Buchholz, who was just named G.M. earlier this month. With its bounty of luxury properties and resorts, San Diego did well overall in the poll, which surveyed over 300,000 readers, more than double the number who participated in 2015. In the category of Top 15 Large Cities in the U.S., San Diego ranked No.10, right behind Seattle and ahead of Washington, D.C. New York, Chicago and San Francisco placed 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Perennially hip destinations like Portland, Nashville and Austin made the list but Los Angeles did not. Besides LAuberge Del Mar, three other San Diego hotels were cited among the best in Southern California: the Fairmont Grand Del Mar (6); Omni San Diego Hotel (8) and Marriott Marquis San Diego (9). Once again, San Diego County dominated the list of Top Resorts in Southern California, taking nine of the 25 entries in a swanky region that spans from Santa Barbara to Dana Point and Palm Springs. Five placed in the Top 10: Cal-a-Vie (2); Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa (4); Park Hyatt Aviara Resort (6); Rancho Bernardo Inn (8); and Omni La Costa Resort & Spa (9). The editors of Conde Nast Traveler, however, predicted that Californias upscale resort dynamic was undergoing a major shift. A number of new properties are set to open in Napa and Sonoma in 2017, the magazine said. With so many people now traveling for good wine, SoCals monopoly on Left Coast resorts may just be shifting north. For the readers poll, hotels were judged based on a five-point scale (excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor) in the areas of rooms, service, food, design, location, activities/facilities, and value. With its beach cottage-chic decor, intimate fire-pit lighted spaces, award-winning spa and fine dining restaurant, Kitchen 1540, LAuberge Del Mar scored 96.10 out of 100. That puts it in striking distance of the Top 10 hotels overall in the U.S. at No. 10 was the JW Marriott Austin, with a score of 96.71. Just over the border, in Tecate, Rancho La Puerta nabbed the No. 4 spot out the Top 25 hotels in Mexico (Western). The venerable destination resort recently added three luxury suites to the spa retreats property. Twitter: @sdeditgirl michele.parente@sduniontribune.com When it debuted in 1950, the pioneering TV variety program Your Show of Shows became such a sensation that Americans soon felt they knew the performers who crossed their tiny black-and-white screens every week. But North Coast Rep artistic director David Ellenstein actually did know some of them or would, in later years. I crossed paths with quite a number of them, says Ellenstein, who grew up in a show-biz family led by his father, the late television and stage actor-director Robert Ellenstein. Advertisement Among those he became acquainted with were such now-legendary figures as Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner, both of whom were writers on Your Show of Shows. He also met Sid Caesar a version of whom Ellenstein now happens to be playing in North Coast Reps Laughter on the 23rd Floor, Neil Simons autobiographical 1994 ode to his own experiences as a writer for the program. Laughter on the 23rd Floor When: In previews. Opens Saturday. 7 p.m. Wednesdays; 8 p.m. Thursdays-Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays. Through Nov. 20. Where: North Coast Repertory Theatre, 987 Lomas Santa Fe Drive, Solana Beach. Tickets: $39-$50 (discounts available) Phone: (858) 481-1055 Online: northcoastrep.org Caesar was the co-star (with Reiner, Imogene Coca and Howard Morris) and de facto ringleader of Your Show of Shows, a live program that deeply influenced much of TV to come. And Ellensteins encounters with the high-intensity actor (much later in Caesars life) came under somewhat telling circumstances. Ellenstein made ends meet as a bartender while launching his own acting career, and each year he worked a holiday party hosted by the actress Connie Stevens in L.A. Caesar, he recalls, was always there. And he spent a lot of time at the bar. The hard-driving performer had lifelong troubles with substance abuse, a reality that comes up in Laughter on the 23rd Floor. At one point in the play, his colleagues almost try to do a mini-intervention, says Ellenstein, who plays a fictionalized version of Caesar named Max Prince. Hes warring with the network, and they talk about how much he drinks and how many pills he takes. Still, the play, which had a healthy Broadway run but has not been staged locally in years, shapes up as a really funny and ultimately kind of poignant look at Caesars (and Simons) life and times. The veteran director Tom Markus is staging the Solana Beach theaters revival of the piece, with a cast that includes such NCRT favorites as Phil Johnson, Louis Lotorto, Nicholas Mongiardo-Cooper, Omri Schein, Amanda Sitton and Christopher M. Williams, plus newcomers Brett Alters and Caroline Drage. Ellenstein is also returning to the NCRT stage for the first time since his turn in another Simon work, Chapter Two, in 2015. I like getting back onstage once in a while, he says. Its really hard on my life. But its really good for me, both as the artistic director and as an artist, to get back in touch with what our actors are going through. As for playing Max: Its a sizable role, and hes an intense fellow. Its full-out. Ellenstein adds: I look at the play as Neil Simons valentine to those days, because all those guys talk about (the show) as being the height of creativity in their lives. And while Caesar struggled mightily to find happiness in his life, great comedy comes out of personal pain, and being able to turn that hostility around and look at it in a funny way. DID YOU KNOW? When Sid Caesar died in 2014, Mel Brooks called him maybe the best comedian to ever practice the trade. Twitter: @jimhebert jim.hebert@sduniontribune.com The small, densely populated city of Huntington Park is peppered with schools, about two dozen in 3 square miles. At least 10 are charters, and city leaders contend theyre bringing in unwanted traffic. Their solution is to try to ban new charter schools. Huntington Park City Council members voted 4 to 1 late Tuesday to extend a moratorium on new charter schools until September 2017. Both charter advocates and opponents were at the council meeting, each side armed with public speakers, wearing color-coordinated T-shirts and carrying signs. Advertisement At the back of the chambers, one woman sat holding a white poster above her head that proclaimed, Give us a chance and Save our charter schools. On the side of the full room, another woman stood holding a yellow poster in front of her that read, Stand up to unregulated charter schools! Outside the meeting room, people on both sides lined the hallway. Some argued with each other about their goals, while others cheered loudly when they heard something they liked. During public comment, parents and teachers addressed the council in English and Spanish, with charter parents extolling the quality education their kids receive because of school choice, while teachers from United Teachers Los Angeles talked about the schools theyve taught in for years and supported city officials efforts to ban new charter schools for a year. Last month, Huntington Park City Council members voted 4 to 1 to place a temporary, 45-day moratorium on new charters in the city. On Tuesday, they voted to extend that restriction for 10 months and 15 days, effectively making the ban yearlong. Charter schools are publicly funded but often are privately run. Unlike most traditional public schools, they can accept students from anywhere, not just from the neighborhoods around them. Huntington Park Mayor Graciela Ortiz isnt sure drawing students from elsewhere is in the best interest of the city. She also said she wants to see a greater focus on revitalizing businesses. The city once was a cultural and shopping destination for Mexican and Central American immigrants in southeast Los Angeles County, but local businesses have struggled recently. Ortiz says the city needs time to review its zoning policies and determine whether it has room for more schools. Our community has enough [school] options, Ortiz said. Right now our priority is going to be development and finding park space, green space for our kids. In a September report to the council, City Manager Edgar Cisneros used increased traffic to justify the moratorium. Communities within the vicinity of charter schools have experienced impacts to vehicle circulation, parking, and noise, he wrote. Its unclear whether the city has the legal authority to ban new charter schools. School districts, counties and the state are the only bodies that can authorize or reject charter schools. Cities do control zoning, however so if a charter wants to operate in a city, it often must request a municipal conditional use permit. Huntington Park would be on more solid legal ground if the ordinance banned all new schools, including private and parochial ones, UCLA law professor Jonathan Zasloff said It is not clear whether...you can use local land use authority to make education policy, Zasloff said. The California Charter Schools Assn. will consider suing the city if the moratorium passes, its attorney Ricardo Soto said before the meeting. Ortiz said the city would consider placing moratoriums on other schools if they were trying to take up more city space. Thats not the case, she said. Theyre not knocking on our door, Ortiz said. Its charter schools specifically that have been coming. In addition to being mayor, Ortiz is a counselor at Linda Esperanza Marquez High School, a Los Angeles Unified school, and a member of United Teachers Los Angeles. Huntington Parks schools are in L.A. Unified, and the teachers union has opposed charter growth in the district. Both Ortiz and UTLA President Alex Caputo-Pearl said the union did not influence, or advocate for, the moratorium. At recent City Council meetings, Huntington Park residents have spoken for and against the ordinance. Some parents with children in charter schools say that more charter options are necessary because the neighborhood schools dont provide the same quality of education. On recent state standardized tests, charter students in L.A. Unified performed better than students at traditional schools. The charter school that Maria Pinedos son attends Alliance Collins Family College Ready High School in Huntington Park has smaller class sizes than the neighborhood public schools. She said she thinks the charter pays more attention to her child than those schools would have done. Our kids are succeeding and thats what should matter to them, she said of Huntington Park officials. Reach Sonali Kohli at Sonali.Kohli@latimes.com or on Twitter @Sonali_Kohli. Times staff writer Ruben Vives contributed to this report. MORE EDUCATION NEWS LAUSD may take back control of a charter school even though its doing well academically Parents who want their kids in L.A.s most competitive magnet schools face daunting odds Bilingual education has been absent from California public schools for almost 20 years. But that may soon change UPDATES: 11:05 p.m.: This article was updated with information about the Huntington Park City Council vote. This article was originally published at 3 a.m. The father of an unarmed 19-year-old who was shot and killed by Fresno police has sued the city, saying officers should have used less-than-lethal force on his son. The civil lawsuit filed Friday in Fresno County Superior Court comes more than three months after two Fresno police officers shot and killed 19-year-old Dylan Noble at a gas station. In the lawsuit, father Darren Noble contends that officers Raymond Camacho and Robert Chavez plotted to inflict injury on his son. Advertisement The officers never had an objectively reasonable basis to shoot Dylan Noble, the lawsuit claims. They failed to first use, or attempt to use, the canine at the scene. At no time did they use, or attempt to use, a Taser, OC [pepper] spray, or other non-lethal remedies. At no time did they use, or attempt to use, anything but deadly force. Dylan Nobles death was needless and avoidable, according to the lawsuit. Attorney Warren Paboojian said Darren Noble is seeking unspecified damages as well as policy changes within the city and police department. The Fresno city attorney declined to comment about the lawsuit. Our policy is not to discuss any pending or ongoing legal matters, the attorneys office said. Local and federal authorities are investigating Dylan Nobles death, which gained national attention and sparked protests. Officers encountered Dylan Nobles pickup truck while searching for an armed suspect. They signaled for Noble to stop, but the 19-year-old did not pull over. Police chased him to a Chevron gas station, where he stopped his truck. In July, Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer released footage from the officers body cameras showing the confrontation between Dylan Noble and officers at the gas station. An officer is heard yelling: Turn off the truck. Get your hands out the window. Both hands out the window. Later, an officer screams: Let me see both your hands. Get both your hands out. Dylan Noble exited the truck and approached, then moved away from officers, who called for backup. Officers gave 30 commands, urging Noble to show his hands, lift his hands or lie down on the ground, the chief said. The young man ignored the officers orders and carried an object in his right hand. Noble yelled that he hated his life. According to the lawsuit, Camacho shot Noble twice, causing him to fall to the ground. The video footage showed Noble on the ground, moving his hands under his shirt. Camacho then fired a third round, and Chavez fired a fourth round after about 12 seconds. Noble was taken to a hospital, where he died three hours later. In August, the Fresno County coroners office released a toxicology report showing that Noble had a blood-alcohol content of 0.12 1.5 times the legal limit of 0.8 and traces of cocaine. The lawsuit claims that the city and Police Department have failed to properly train its officers in de-escalation tactics and response to situations involving mentally impaired and/or intoxicated individuals. There is a pattern and practice of police officers not being properly disciplined for their actions involving use of excessive force and prior unjustified shooting of the citys citizens, the lawsuit claims. As a result of this failure to address and discipline, the city of Fresno and its Police Department have fostered an environment and created a culture and belief that it is permissible to use excessive force, up to and including deadly force, against civilians without fear of repercussion, accountability or disciplinary action by the city of Fresno Police Department. veronica.rocha@latimes.com For breaking news in California, follow @VeronicaRochaLA on Twitter. ALSO: Protesters sue El Cajon police over arrests at vigil for Alfred Olango Brawl erupts in gunfire, with 4 people injured and 2 arrested in Palmdale Motorcyclist who disappeared during late-night ride found dead off Highway 39 in San Gabriel Mountains Add another item to Donald Trumps list of problems: More and more, his own supporters no longer think he can win, the USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times Daybreak poll has found. As the two presidential nominees prepare for their final debate Wednesday in Las Vegas, the share of Americans who expect a Hillary Clinton victory is at the highest level since the poll began in July. Among Trump supporters, the share who think he will lose has grown significantly over the last month. Thats contributing to an election that increasingly seems headed to a lopsided finish. Advertisement The Daybreak poll asks people whom they plan to vote for and which candidate they expect will win. The question of voter expectations has often, although not always, proved to be a more reliable forecaster of election outcomes than asking voters their candidate preference. Trump still has many fervent supporters who predict he will win, but, particularly among his voters who are college-educated or in higher-income brackets, expectations for a victory have dimmed. Their optimism has faded as Trumps standing in the race against Clinton has declined from a high point in mid-September. The Daybreak poll continues to show a small Trump lead, within the surveys margin of error, while the other major surveys show Clinton ahead. But the surveys all agree on the trend of declining Trump support. Ohio is crucial to win the White House. There are few signs Trump is trying to get out the vote The descent started after the first presidential debate. Despite what some analysts predicted, the public airing of a videotape in which Trump could be heard boasting that he could get away with assaulting women because of his celebrity did not trigger a meltdown of his poll standing. In the last few days, his support has shown signs of stabilizing at a lower level. That could mean Trumps backing has reached a floor, although the evidence is not yet definitive. In the polling averages, Trump receives support from about 41% of voters in a two-way matchup with Clinton and is a couple of percentage points lower in polls that include third-party candidates. That puts him in the range of lopsided losers including former Vice President Walter F. Mondale, who got 41% and lost 49 states to President Reagan in 1984, and Sen. Barry Goldwater, who took 38% against President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964s Democratic landslide. The countrys partisan division has hardened since those contests, and many more states align solidly with one party or the other. As a result, as the electoral map shows, even a Republican candidate with historically low levels of support can count on winning about 20 states with just short of 160 electoral votes and probably a few more than that. Clinton holds leads in states with 279 electoral votes more than the 270 needed to win the White House while five states remain too close to predict. The decline in Trumps standing, albeit small, has been enough to bolster Clintons edge in the largest of those toss-up states, Florida, where she has led in 10 consecutive polls over the last two weeks. Polling averages show her ahead by about 4 points there. Trumps decline has also been enough to put at least one traditionally Republican state, Arizona, into the toss-up category. The declining share of Trump voters who expect a victory could pose further problems for him. Expectations matter to campaign operatives, who try strenuously to project confidence about winning out of concern that voter beliefs about a loss can become self-fulfilling. If people believe a candidate will lose, they might be discouraged and not turn out to vote, campaign strategists worry. If that happens this year, it could trouble not only Trump but also fellow Republicans, including Senate candidates in close races in such presidential battleground states as New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Nevada. Since the Daybreak poll began in July, Clinton has led the voter expectations question. About a month ago, however, after her health suddenly became a campaign issue, her lead on that question shrank to nearly within the polls margin of error. Expectations began to shift back again in Clintons direction at the end of the month as Trump suffered one political wound after another many of them self-inflicted. Currently, 57% of those polled predict a Clinton victory and 38% say Trump will win. That expectation is consistent among all age groups and among both men and women. Those with college educations and those whose family incomes are above $75,000 a year are especially likely to predict a Clinton victory. That reflects, in part, the shift of college-educated Trump supporters toward believing that their candidate will lose. The rise in expectations of a Clinton victory comes as polls of the race have moved in her direction. Trumps support dropped about 4 percentage points from the end of September to a low point a few days ago, although it has since rebounded slightly. Currently, the Daybreak poll shows Trump narrowly ahead in voter support, 45% to 43%. In polling averages, Clinton is ahead by 7 or 8 points. The pattern of a drop of a few points since late September is consistent, however. The Daybreak poll uses a different methodology than most other surveys, which accounts for much of the difference between its result and that of the average poll. Detailed results from the USC Dornsife/LAT daily tracking poll Pinpointing what triggered Trumps decline is difficult because so many events have overlapped, starting with the first presidential debate, on Sept. 26, which a large majority of voters felt Clinton won. For much of the week after the debate, Trump quarreled with Alicia Machado, a former Miss Universe who accused him of having publicly shamed her after she gained weight. An article published by the New York Times on Oct. 2 showing that Trump might have avoided paying federal income taxes for almost two decades appears to have contributed to his slide. The story showed evidence that Trump had claimed a $916 million tax loss in the mid-1990s from the collapse of his casino business. Trump subsequently confirmed that he had used the loss to wipe out his tax liability for years. Three days after the article was published about the minimum time for the Daybreak poll to respond to an event Trumps support dropped sharply. That could have been a reaction to the tax story although it may also have been in part a delayed reaction to the debate and the subsequent focus on Machado. Trumps support continued to drop for the next week. But the Daybreak poll, as well as surveys by the Washington Post and ABC News and SurveyMonkey for NBC News have not shown a big new decline since the Access Hollywood video became public and women began publicly accusing Trump of having assaulted them. One reason for that could be that a large share of voters who support Trump a majority in many surveys say their vote is more a ballot against Clinton than one for Trump. Voters motivated by dislike of the opposition may be less likely to shift their positions when confronted with negative information about their own candidate. Another reason could be Trumps already low level of support among the groups most likely to be alienated by the charges against him. In the SurveyMonkey poll, for example, which has an extremely large sample of more than 24,000 likely voters that allows analysis of groups in the electorate, women of all ages supported Clinton. The margins ranged from 35 points among those younger than 30 to six points among those 65 and older. Among men, the SurveyMonkey poll showed Clinton winning those younger than 45 and college graduates. Trumps strongest support, as has been true from the start of the campaign, comes from older white men who did not graduate from college a group whose majority has stuck with him through every controversy. David.Lauter@latimes.com For more on Politics and Policy, follow me @DavidLauter ALSO Michael Moore to release surprise Trump film in L.A. on Wednesday Weve updated our electoral map, as Trumps fortunes dwindle Lots of people have questions about the USC/L.A. Times tracking poll; here are some answers One big reason the WikiLeaks emails arent as damaging for Hillary Clinton: Donald Trump Mosul is full of trapped, terrified civilians but as Iraqi forces and their allies move to wrest the northern city from the militants of Islamic State, one group finds itself in particularly desperate peril. Scores, perhaps even hundreds, of Yazidi women and girls enslaved by Islamic State more than two years ago are thought to remain captive in Iraqs second-largest city as the U.S.-backed offensive gets underway in earnest. Activists fear for the lives of these women and their children, even amid hopes that the extremist groups grip on the city may be broken at last. After the horrors they have already endured, its hard to believe they may suffer even more, said Khaleel Aldakhi, an Iraqi lawyer and activist who works to help spirit captured Yazidis to safety. Advertisement Thousands of Yazidi women and children were seized and men and boys killed when their traditional heartland near Mount Sinjar in northern Iraq was overrun by Islamic State in August 2014. By a U.N. estimate earlier this year, 3,200 women and children are still caught in the maw of a vast slave-holding network extending across the groups self-declared but now-shrinking caliphate, encompassing parts of Syria and Iraq. 1 / 62 A firefighter works to extinguish an oil well set ablaze by fleeing Islamic State fighters in Qayyarah, Iraq, on Nov. 9. (Chris McGrath / Getty Images) 2 / 62 A peshmerga fighter peers through curtains as he and other Kurdish soldiers move into a new house in Bashiqa, Iraq, on Nov. 9. (Odd Andersen / AFP/Getty Images) 3 / 62 A peshmerga fighter looks for militants as he and his team move between buildings in Bashiqa. (Odd Andersen / AFP/Getty Images) 4 / 62 Iraqi forces react as they watch Donald Trump give a speech after winning the U.S. presidential election. They were taking a rest in the village of Arbid on the southern outskirts of Mosul on Nov. 9 during the operation to retake Mosul from Islamic State. (Ahmad al-Rubaye / AFP/Getty Images) 5 / 62 Iraqi police try to pull a body from a mass grave they discovered in the Hamam Alil area on Nov. 7 after they recaptured the area from Islamic State. (Ahmad al-Rubaye / AFP/Getty Images) 6 / 62 Kurdish peshmerga soldiers fire artillery at Islamic State positions in Bashiqa, Iraq, on Nov. 7. (Felipe Dana / Associated Press) 7 / 62 Iraqi forces patrol the Gogjali district of Mosul a day after it was liberated from Islamic State. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 8 / 62 Families flee Gogjali after the area was liberated. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 9 / 62 A girl waves a white flag as she and her family leave Gogjali. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 10 / 62 Iraqi special forces continue to clear homes in Gogjali on Nov. 2, 2016, after the area was liberated. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 11 / 62 Iraqi special forces Lt. Col Ali Hussein Fadil and his men continue to clear the Gogjali district. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 62 Iraqi troops patrol Gogjali. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 62 Iraqi army soldiers warm themselves near the Qayyarah air base, south of Mosul, on Tuesday. (Felipe Dana / Associated Press) 14 / 62 Displaced people who fled from Islamic State-held territory sit outside a mosque guarded by Iraqi soldiers in Shuwayrah, south of Mosul, on Tuesday. (Felipe Dana / Associated Press) 15 / 62 An Iraqi Counter Terrorism Section member drives a vehicles with a broken windscreen as they advance early in the morning near the village of Bazwaya, on the eastern edges of Mosul, on Monday. (Bulent Kilic / AFP/Getty Images) 16 / 62 Members of the Iraqi counter-terrorism service drive near the village of Bazwaya, on the eastern edges of Mosul, tightening the noose as the offensive to retake the Islamic State group stronghold entered its third week on Sunday. (Bulent Kilic / AFP/Getty Images) 17 / 62 Members of the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service take shelter after a mortar shell hit nearby near the village of Bazwaya, on the eastern edges of Mosul, as they advance towards Iraqs last remaining Islamic State stronghold on Monday. (Bulent Kilic / AFP/Getty Images) 18 / 62 A member of the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Section grimaces in pain as he receives medical treatment after clashes on Monday with Islamic State militants near the village of Bazwaya, on the eastern edge of Mosul. (Bulent Kilic / AFP/Getty Images) 19 / 62 Iraqi counterterrorism members carry an injured comrade during clashes with the Islamic State near Bazwaya on Monday. Iraqi forces took control of the village near Mosul. (Bulent Kilic / AFP/Getty Images) 20 / 62 Children playfully pose for a photo as smoke rises from burning oil fields in Qayara, some 50 kilometers south of Mosul, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 31, 2016. (Felipe Dana / AP) 21 / 62 A militia fighter prepares to go into battle with his phone and bullets. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 22 / 62 Popular mobilization units are helping to clear villages southwest of Mosul, Iraq. On Sunday, they launched mortar rounds a little more than a mile from Islamic State fighters who continued to resist their advance on the city. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 23 / 62 Militiamen chant before going into battle alongside Iraqi army forces as they fight against Islamic State near Mosul. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 24 / 62 Militiamen near the village of Zarqa stand by as mortars are launched at Islamic State fighters near Mosul. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 25 / 62 The popular mobilization units received the Iraqi governments blessing to join the battle that could break Islamic States grip in the country. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 26 / 62 Militias known as popular mobilization units fighting near Mosul are made up mostly of Shiite Muslims. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 27 / 62 In the village of Faziliya, recently liberated from Islamic State, Abdul Gafur, 38, embraces his brother Mohammad Abdul Gafur, 40. The two had not seen each other since Islamic State forces took control of the village more than two years ealier. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 28 / 62 Business is brisk at the barbershops in Faziliya after Kurdish forces retook control from Islamic State militants. A bodyguard stands by. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 29 / 62 Peshmerga, or Kurdish fighters, rest after a recent battle. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 30 / 62 The remains of a bomb factory can be seen in the village of Faziliya, recently liberated from Islamic State control. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 31 / 62 A member of the Iraqi armed forces kisses a local boy after Iraqi forces entered the town of Shura, 30 kilometers south of Mosul, Iraq. Iraqi troops approaching Mosul from the south advanced into Shura on Saturday after a wave of U.S.-led airstrikes and artillery shelling against Islamic State positions inside the town. (Marko Drobnjakovic / AP) 32 / 62 Iraqi families, who already had been displaced by the ongoing operation by Iraqi forces against jihadists of the Islamic State group, flee Mosul. Iraqi paramilitary forces launched an operation to cut the Islamic State groups supply lines between its Mosul bastion and neighboring Syria. (Bulent Kilic / AFP/Getty Images) 33 / 62 Walid Abdel Nabih, 28, from Nasiriya and a father of four, moves through passageways created by Islamic State to prevent detection by drones. On the eastern front in the fight for Mosul, an Iraqi special forces unit waits for next phase of the fight to clear Islamic State operatives from Mosul. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 34 / 62 An Iraqi special forces member rides in the turret of a humvee with a Shiite religious banner flying behind him as he patrols Bartella, Iraq. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 35 / 62 As many Iraqis are returning home, others are fleeing the fighting in villages surrounding Mosul. At Camp JJadh, 3,000 people arrived in the past week, but many more are expected as the battle for Mosul continues. New arrivals line up for food, provide by the World Food Program. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 36 / 62 Children play in a dismantled car in the village of Hurriya, where fighting between Islamic State and Iraqi forces has caused many families to leave over the past months. The risk of unexploded weapons is still a concern for many in the area. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 37 / 62 Soldiers drive through the town of Qayyarah, heavily damaged in the fighting in August and again this past week as Islamic State was driven out of town. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 38 / 62 Sienna Moqtar and her daughter decorate her brothers grave with rocks. He died last week in the final days of Islamic State in Qayyarah. The bodies of two infant nephews are buried at the right. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 39 / 62 Ibrahim Atea Ahmed, left and Daham Ahmed survived the Islamic State attack, but their town was left in bad shape. Oil fires continue to burn, set by militants as a cover from air attacks. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 40 / 62 Residents wait for food and water to be handed out, but very little was distributed. The water is not fit to drink in the town. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 41 / 62 Iraqi soldiers head for the front line. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) 42 / 62 An Iraqi fighter takes a position on top of a vehicle as smoke rises on the outskirts of the Qayyarah area, 35 miles south of Mosul, during an operation against Islamic State. (BULENT KILIC / AFP/Getty Images) 43 / 62 Smoke billows from an area near the Iraqi town of Nawaran, northeast of Mosul, as Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighters march down a dirt road during the ongoing operation to retake the city from Islamic State. (SAFIN HAMED / AFP/Getty Images) 44 / 62 Iraqs elite counterterrorism forces raise an Iraqi flag after retaking Bartella, outside Mosul, Iraq. (Khalid Mohammed / Associated Press) 45 / 62 Iraqs elite counterterrorism forces raise an Iraqi flag after retaking Bartella, outside Mosul, Iraq. (Khalid Mohammed / Associated Press) 46 / 62 The commander of Iraq Special Forces Lt. Gen Abdul Ghani al-Asadi during an interview on the Bartila front line, after the city was liberated from Islamic State militants. (AHMED JALIL / EPA) 47 / 62 Iraqi Special Forces take up position in Bartila front line, after the city was liberated from Islamic State militants. (AHMED JALIL / EPA) 48 / 62 Iraqi soldiers ride in a truck advancing through the desert on the banks of the Tigris River toward the Islamic State stronghold of Mosul. (Ahmad al-Rubaye / AFP/Getty Images) 49 / 62 Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighters fire rockets from a mobile launcher near the town of Bashiqa, about 25 kilometers northeast of Mosul, on Oct. 20, 2016. (Safid Hamed / AFP/Getty Images) 50 / 62 A member of Iraqs elite counterterrorism forces advances with his unit toward the city of Mosul, on Oct. 20, 2016. (Khalid Mohammed / Associated Press) 51 / 62 A villager walks on a bare street as smoke from oil fires nearby turn the sky black in the Qayyarah area, about 60 kilometers south of Mosul, on Oct. 19, 2016. (Yasin Akgul / AFP/Getty Images) 52 / 62 Iraqi soldiers look on as smoke rises from the Qayyarah area south of Mosul on Oct. 19, 2016, as Iraqi forces take part in an operation against Islamic State to retake Mosul. (YASIN AKGUL / AFP/Getty Images) 53 / 62 A man takes a selfie in front of a fire from oil that has been set ablaze in the Qayyarah area south of Mosul on Oct. 19, 2016, during an operation by Iraqi forces against Islamic State to retake Mosul. (YASIN AKGUL / AFP/Getty Images) 54 / 62 An Iraqi sniper wearing his camouflage in the village of Bajwaniyah village, about 30 kilometers south of Mosul, on Oct. 18, 2016. (Ahmad al-Rubaye / AFP/Getty Images) 55 / 62 Smoke rises from an explosion as Iraqi forces retake the village of Bajwaniyah from Islamic State on their way to Mosul. (Ahmad al-Rubaye / AFP/Getty Images) 56 / 62 Iraqi soldiers inspect a tunnel in a building in the recaptured village of Shaquoli, about 35 kilometers east of Mosul, on Oct. 18, 2016. (Safin Hamed / AFP/Getty Images) 57 / 62 An Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighter stands amid the rubble of a destroyed building on Oct. 18, 2016, in the village of Shaqouli, east of Mosul, after it was recaptured from the Islamic State group. (Safin Hamed / AFP/Getty Images) 58 / 62 A man carries a baby at a refugee camp in Syrias Hasakeh province for Iraqi families who fled fighting in the Mosul area on Oct. 17, 2016. (Delil Souleiman / AFP/Getty Images) 59 / 62 Lt. Col. Ali Hussein, right, addresses Iraqi security forces leading a government offensive that began Monday to oust Islamic State from the city of Mosul, the extremist groups last major stronghold in Iraq. (Molly Hennessy-Fiske / Los Angeles Times) 60 / 62 An Iraqi police officer inspects his weapon at the Qayyarah military base, about 60 kilometers south of Mosul, on Oct. 16, 2016, amid preparations for the offensive to retake the city from Islamic State. (Ahmad Rubaye / AFP/Getty Images) 61 / 62 Iraqi forces head north toward Mosul on Monday, part of the operation to retake the city from Islamic State. (Ahmad al-Rubaye / AFP/Getty Images) 62 / 62 Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighters fire a mortar shell from Mount Zardak. (Safin Hamed / AFP/Getty Images) No one can say with certainty how many of these captives are in Mosul, Islamic States principal stronghold in Iraq. The city initially was a distribution hub for the enslaved women and girls, who are members of an ancient and arcane religious sect whose ethnic Kurdish adherents are despised by Islamic State as heretics and devil-worshippers. Most of the Yazidi captives were sold as slaves or given as gifts to fighters in Islamic State-held areas of Syria, human rights groups and activists say. But some either have spent the duration of their captivity in Mosul or found themselves back in the city after forced journeys between other Islamic State bastions, passed hand to hand like chattel as their husbands were killed in battle or traded them away or offered them as presents to relatives and fellow fighters. Those who have escaped or been ransomed have described conditions in Mosul as grimly similar to other areas where Islamic State holds sway: cruel medieval torments as a feature of daily life, coupled with harrowing sexual and domestic servitude in the households of fighters. Enslaved women are routinely punished by having their children abused or taken from them, with their young boys conscripted as fighters or suicide bombers. As an urban battle looms, Yazidi women and children living under the same roof as fighters face threats of a magnitude even greater than those confronted by other city residents, activists say. They could be maimed or killed in bombardment, caught up in house-to-house battles, abandoned to their fate as fighters flee or even become the target of reprisal killings. Theyre in even more danger than regular civilians, these women and children, because the fighters are all around them, watching them, living with them, said Haider Elias, president of the U.S.-based advocacy group Yazda. Some survivors have told of being forced to accompany their Islamic State captors when the fighters fled other Iraqi and Syrian cities under assault, surmising that they were intended to serve as human shields against airstrikes, said a Yazidi aid worker named Hazem, who assists freed captives in the northern Iraqi city of Dohuk. He did not want his full name published for security reasons. Yazda said that more than 1,000 Yazidi women and children were held at some point in Mosul and its environs, including the town of Tal Afar to the west, and that 100 women and girls and roughly the same number of children likely remained in the city. Lawyer Aldakhi puts the suspected total considerably higher, but some major rights groups, such as Amnesty International, believe the number of captive Yazidis in the city may have dwindled to the dozens. Really, no one knows, said Amnesty senior investigator Donatella Rovera. There isnt very much contact with those in Mosul. For those who survive and return to what remains of their scattered community, captivitys effects linger on, in the form of stigma and lack of treatment for the trauma they have suffered. The families of many freed sex slaves are dead or missing, leaving them with scant emotional and financial resources with which to rebuild their lives. Some captives face suspicion of collusion with their captors, said researcher Rothna Begum of New York-based Human Rights Watch. She described the recent arrest of one Yazidi woman by authorities in northern Iraq; out of fear, she had told police who came to the house that her fighter husband was away and then was accused of aiding him. A German organization has brought some of the freed Yazidis to Germany for psychological treatment, but that program already is closed to new arrivals. Many of those freed face years in Spartan displacement camps in northern Iraq, with no access to jobs or education. In and around Mosul, the few escape routes that existed before the offensive began were largely sealed off amid preparations for what is likely to be a long fight to retake the city, Aldakhi said. He described a nerve-racking rescue earlier this year in Mosul of a Yazidi woman, her sister and their two children. The group was sneaked into a waiting car during a brief window when their Islamic State captors attended noon prayers and then made part of the journey on foot to skirt a checkpoint where fighters who knew their captors might recognize the children, if not the women in their face-concealing veils. Such outcomes have grown rarer, he and others said. Not as many can escape as one would hope, said Begum, the Human Rights Watch researcher. And even when they are safe, the level of trauma is so very high it is very, very difficult to make a new life. laura.king@latimes.com Twitter: @laurakingLAT MORE WORLD NEWS Why thousands of Iraqi fighters have poured into Syria to aid Assad A decisive battle: Determination energizes Iraqi forces in fight to retake Mosul from Islamic State Bombs, beatings, rape: Freed Nigerian women tell harrowing tales of life as a forced Boko Haram bride Raymond Ray Mabus is proud that he has made tough decisions as Navy secretary, regrets none of them and believes history will vindicate his often controversial seven and a half years in office, he said Wednesday aboard the San Diego-based amphibious assault ship America. If youre not getting criticized, youre not doing anything, Mabus, 68, told The San Diego Union-Tribune in an exclusive interview. Mabus served as a former Navy officer aboard the missile cruiser Little Rock in the early 1970s, rose to become Mississippis governor, became an ambassador to Saudi Arabia and has now held the Navys top civilian position longer than anyone since World War I. Advertisement On Wednesday, he cited the words of the late Adm. Elmo Russell Bud Zumwalt Jr., who was chief of naval operations when Mabus was a young officer. He used to say, Ive got a long list of friends and a long list of enemies, and Im equally proud of both. And thats sort of the way I am. I dont stay up late at night over criticism, Mabus said during what will likely be his final visit to San Diego County before leaving office in January. 1 / 15 Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus is escorted on board the USS America with Cpt. Joe Olson where he met with sailors and Marines and answered questions from the men and women. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 2 / 15 Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus took a few questions from the men and women on board the USS America in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 3 / 15 On board the USS America, sailors waited to ask Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus questions about the Navys future outlook. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 4 / 15 SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, USA -- OCTOBER 19, 2016MANDATORY CREDIT: PHOTO BY NELVIN C. CEPEDA, SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNESecretary of the Navy Ray Mabus listened to question asked of him by a sailor on board the USS America in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 5 / 15 Sailors on board the USS America await the arrival of Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 6 / 15 Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus took a few questions from the men and women on board the USS America in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 7 / 15 Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus took a few questions from the men and women on board the USS America in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 8 / 15 Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus waited to be introduced on board the USS America in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 9 / 15 Sailors on board the USS America await the arrival of Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 10 / 15 Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus took a few questions from the men and women on board the USS America in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 11 / 15 On board the USS America, sailors listened to the Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus as he spoke about the Navy. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 12 / 15 Following is opening comments on the Navy and Marines, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus took a few questions from the men and women on board the USS America in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 13 / 15 Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus took a few questions from the men and women on board the USS America in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 14 / 15 On board the USS America, Cpt. Joe Olson points to a sailor who has a question for Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 15 / 15 Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus took a few questions from the men and women on board the USS America in San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) If Im doing my job, if Im making the changes, if Im not standing still, if Im making decisions, Im going to get criticized, he added. Its always astounded me that people work all their lives to get into a leadership position and then they dont lead. They dont make the decisions that you need to make. And I think that when history looks back at the actions taken and the decisions made, were going to be viewed pretty favorably. Mabus has been a lightning rod of criticism since he took the Navy job with President Barack Obamas administration in 2009. He prodded the Pentagon to end its Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy that banned openly homosexual troops from serving in uniform, angering social conservatives who thought he put political correctness before the wishes of combat commanders. He opened jobs to women on submarines, riverine patrol boats, Navy SEAL commando teams and Marine infantry rifle companies. When the Corps released a detailed study suggesting that gender integration eroded combat capabilities, Mabus dismissed it and pressed on with his plan. Mabus also tripled paid maternity leave to 18 weeks later trimmed by the Pentagon to six weeks unveiled unisex uniforms and unleashed a more stringent crackdown on alcohol and sexual abuse in the ranks. He told the Union-Tribune those were some of the decisions hes most proud of making. Were getting a more diverse force, which makes us a stronger force, said Mabus, who oversees 190,000 uniformed and civilian personnel, 3.5 million acres of land and a $170 billion annual budget. To combat global climate change and halve the militarys dependency on fossil fuels, Mabus launched an ambitious project to exploit renewable sources such as solar and wind power. That triggered a failed 2012 counter-attack on Capitol Hill to cut the flow of biofuels to warships. When we went to the floor of the Senate, we got 62 votes to keep it, including 12 Republican votes, Mabus said. So its not a partisan thing. The Mabus interview aboard the America came in the middle of a busy day for Americas 75th secretary of the Navy, with visits to workers at the General Dynamics-NASSCO shipyard and Marines at Camp Pendleton. He then spent the evening touring the reserve officer commissioning programs at UCLA and the University of Southern California. His morning began with a State of the Navy address to the San Diego Military Advisory Council, a group of defense contractors, local government agencies and nonprofits that advocate for increased military spending in Southern California. The packed audience at the Admiral Kidd Club and Conference Center inside the Point Loma Naval Base cheered Mabus for spearheading a shipbuilding drive that should lead to a 308-ship Navy by early 2021. But when Mabus concluded his talk by defending a recent decision to nix the Navys rating system for enlisted sailors, a handful of retirees denounced him with salty language and refused to stand or clap as he left the room. Combining both a sailors rank and job specialty in one long title, the Navys rating system predates the founding of the republic. Scrapping it has caused dissension in the ranks, but Mabus told the Union-Tribune that neither he nor his admirals brainstormed the plan. Recently retired Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy, Mike Stevens, unveiled it after meeting with the services highest ranking enlisted sailors worldwide, Mabus said. Mabus chided the retired community for a misplaced and unhistorical nostalgia. He imitated them in saying: When we left the Navy, when we left the Marine Corps, everything was fine. Now you guys have gone and changed it and messed it up. He added: Were at the beginning of the process. We want a lot of feedback from the fleet, but this is to make it easier to promote, easier to move to your next duty station and an easier transition out of the Navy. I dont think those are three bad things to do. The Navys combat medics called Corpsmen today were once known as Pharmacy Mates or Loblolly Boys, titles that would be absurd now, according to Mabus. I hear the things about tradition, The Navys been doing this for 241 years. Well, thats just not the case, he said. When I was in, the people in my division were radiomen and signalmen. How many of those have we got today? None. Military Videos On Now D-Day paratrooper from Coronado jumps again in France at age 96 On Now Remembering war's fallen, one name at a time On Now In Ramona, an airplane and an aviator provide living lessons on World War II 1:43 On Now Video: Navy's newest vessel sails into San Diego and a new future in surface warfare On Now Video: U.S. Navy files homicide charges over warship collisions On Now Stopping Marine hazing On Now Video: U.S. Navy Air Crew Grounded After Creating Vulgar Sky Drawing On Now Navy says Asia Pacific ship collisions were avoidable On Now Hundreds of recruits get sick at Marine boot camp On Now Cutler Dawson Talks Navy Federal cprine@sduniontribune.com About a month ago, you may recall, my granddaughter played with a French-speaking girl she met at a restaurant. The newcomer from France, we learned, was starting second-grade at the San Diego French-American School in La Jolla. After my column appeared, Christian Jarlov, the head of the 28-year-old independent school, invited me to see how our little friend was getting along in a school where French and English are spoken interchangeably. Advertisement Like many Americans, I am terrible at languages despite years of rote classwork. In graduate school, I was required to demonstrate literacy in French and Spanish, which I could read passably well. Fortunately, no one ever asked me to say anything. When it comes to hearing and speaking Spanish or French, I am your typical dumbstruck, tongue-tied American. Its like having terrible teeth, this linguistic disability. So you can understand my envy upon hearing teachers and students alternating from French to English on a campus that stretches from preschool through eighth grade. Remarkably, Spanish is part of the curriculum, too. Its easier to learn a third language when youre fluent in two, Jarlov tells me. (I so wouldnt know.) Before visiting briefly with the French girl, I was introduced to one of her classmates, a second-grade standout, who speaks Spanish and Japanese at home, English and French at school. Just think of that stretched brain, the cerebral equivalent of a yoga master. Do you think she has a leg up on the world? Jarlov, a scholarly gentleman educated in France whos taught in Louisiana and Asia, has no interest in addressing the provincial politics of California. But the irony is not lost on me. French-American School parents are paying about $16,000 a year for an educational mission that, 18 years ago, California voters rejected as bad for English-learning students. Back then, bilingual education was widely dismissed as an academic ghetto where Latino children were warehoused, allowed to speak their native Spanish and not challenged to learn English. In this jaundiced view, large numbers of students lagged behind in English and either struggled in later grades or dropped out. The old-school solution was to subject many Latino kids to the same sink-or-swim immersion that generations of immigrants had faced. Proposition 227, which easily passed in 1998, discouraged bilingual education unless parents of non-English-speaking children specifically granted a waiver. The ghetto metaphor is powerful, but its instructive that Proposition 58, the measure on the ballot that undoes 227, is not pushing as many cultural buttons as it did in 1998. In the past 18 years, views about language have expanded, it seems. More than a 100 bilingual programs are up and running in San Diego County. (Most are Spanish-English, but two incorporate Chinese with other individual schools offering French, Hebrew, German and Vietnamese, according to the county Office of Education.) More and more, it seems, parents are looking in the mirror at their bad teeth and praying the affliction is not genetic. No question, multilingual people are better looking in an intellectual sense. What parent wouldnt want their kids to shine on a global stage? Many more parents are receptive to the self-evident notion that their children, especially during the early period of maximum plasticity (Jarlovs word), can achieve the miracle of unaccented fluency in a foreign language. Jarlov loves to talk about his students going to France with their parents. In restaurants, waiters cant understand what these French children are doing with American custodians. The magic show, however, depends on a yeasty mix of students to teach each other. About a third of the SDFAS students speak French at home. There are Asians and Russians enrolled, but the majority are English-speaking kids seeking equal immersion in French and English. The French-American School attracts native French teachers but also hires American teachers. I dare anyone to call this academic setting a ghetto. Think of Californias limitless supply of native Spanish speakers. Just as important to bilingual education, we have a supply of students who, like the French girl, speak only Spanish at home, ideal complements to English speakers who aspire to speak Spanish like natives. Interestingly, opponents of Proposition 58 talk about a menacing underlying motive: The desire of English-speaking parents to get rid of the waiver and force more native Spanish speakers to enroll into bilingual schools. The insinuation: Anglo parents are hiring Latino help to the disadvantage of English learners. I find that reasoning weirdly paternal. Whats good for Anglo kids is good for Spanish-speaking kids. Period. By the way, I did catch up with the French girl at English lab. She smiled for a photograph I texted to my granddaughter, a Los Angeles kindergartner whos taking Spanish in a traditional class. In a year, I suspect, the French girl will sound like an American girl. My granddaughter wont be ordering meals in native-sounding Spanish. For what its worth, Ill be voting for Proposition 58 in large part because of the French girl. I dont believe bilingual programs were universally good in the 90s. They may have been harmful, especially if native English speakers were not in the same classroom and on the playground. I realize its probably a bridge too far to have two teachers, one native foreign-language speaker and one American, teaching small classes, as is the case at the rigorous French-American School, which is accredited in France and California. Still, Im voting for 58 because the message needs to be sent, in English and Spanish and other languages, that public bilingual (or better, trilingual) education, when done right, is the gold, not the ghetto, standard. As we were saying goodbye, Jarlov and I watched a group of preschoolers work together to push silky fabric up to form a tent. The giggling kids rushed inside as the cloth structure collapsed around them. Theyre having fun, Jarlov said. In any language, charming. logan.jenkins@sduniontribune.com Two men charged in a robbery series that included forcing women to withdraw money from ATMs were sentenced this week to life in prison. Kha Sok, 34, and David Tonn, 29, pleaded guilty to felony charges on the day set for their trial in San Diego Superior Court. Sok admitted to seven counts including robbery, kidnapping and attempted robbery with gun-use allegations linked to four incidents in November. He was sentenced Wednesday to two consecutive terms of life with parole, plus 28 years. Advertisement Tonn pleaded guilty to kidnapping and robbery for his role in a heist on Nov. 30. He was sentenced on Tuesday to life with parole. The earliest he would be eligible for parole is in seven years. During the Nov. 30 robbery, Sok and Tonn grabbed a woman as she walked to her car outside a CVS Pharmacy on Broadway in Lemon Grove, prosecutors said. They forced her inside their black SUV and made her pull out cash at several ATMs. They dropped her off in a church parking lot. Both men were arrested days later in City Heights. Tonn later admitted to a sheriffs detective that he participated in the incident, taking $500 total. Both he and Sok told authorities that they each drove at some point. Sok told the detective he initially planned to take the womans purse but forced her into the backseat of his car because she struggled, according to testimony at a preliminary hearing. He told the detective he and Tonn targeted Asian women because they had money. Sok committed similar crimes on Nov. 23 and Nov. 27. In the first, he snatched a womans purse from her in the Whole Foods parking lot on El Cajon Boulevard in City Heights. In the second, he forced his way into a womans car at gunpoint at a CVS in City Heights and ordered her to drive to ATMs. He also held a gun to a womans head and demanded her bag earlier that day. He got her bag, but when he tried to rob her male companion, the victim had no cash. Breaking News kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @kristinadavis Border Patrol agents seized more than $650,000 in cocaine and methamphetamine from two cars at a checkpoint near Pine Valley on Sunday, authorities said Tuesday. The first drug bust occurred about 9:30 a.m. when drug-sniffing dogs reacted to the rear of a Nissan Versa, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said. Agents searched the car and found 15 packages of cocaine in the rear quarter panel. The cocaine weighted 38 pounds and have an estimated street value of $456,000, officials said. Advertisement The driver, a 24-year-old man, and his passenger, a 21-year-old woman, were arrested. Later, about 6 p.m., a drug-sniffing dog reacted to the inside of Nissan Altima. Agents found 40 tape-wrapped bundles of meth stashed inside the rear door panels. The meth weighted 49 pounds and have an estimated street value of $197,520, officials said. The driver, a 28-year-old woman, and her passenger, a 29-year-old woman, were arrested. The four suspects were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration, along with the narcotics. Twitter: @D4VIDHernandez A Grossmont College student reported a gunman on campus Tuesday, but no suspects were found. The male student told authorities he was in his vehicle in a campus parking lot about 2 p.m. when he spotted a man with a handgun inside another vehicle. An on-campus daycare center was briefly locked down, said Anne Krueger, spokeswoman for the GrossmontCuyamaca Community College District. Other buildings were not locked down and classes were not interrupted while deputies swept the campus. Advertisement The deputies, who were aided by sheriffs dogs and a helicopter, did not find a gunman and determined there was no threat to the Grossmont College Drive campus about 3:30 p.m. Twitter: @D4VIDHernandez A San Diego judge has ruled against the makers of a test used by pregnant women to predict an unborn childs gender, saying the company made misleading claims about whether the product worked and was safe for consumers to use at home. Some women had testified that the test exploded when they mixed its chemicals with their urine. The city of San Diego brought the consumer protection lawsuit on behalf of California residents. In a tentative ruling dated Oct. 4, the judge said it was unlikely the IntelliGender prediction test was valid, and determined that the Texas-based companys claims that the product was more than 90 percent accurate in laboratory tests were misleading or untrue. Advertisement IntelliGender had also asserted in its advertising that real-world results for use of the product were tracking at 82 percent, that the tests were manufactured in a facility certified by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and that they were packaged in a way that expectant mothers could use the tests safely and easily in their own homes. Superior Court Judge Joel Wohlfeil said in his 116-page ruling that each of those claims was misleading or untrue, citing testimony from women who said the product had exploded when they tried to use it. A 27-year-old mother from Modesto said she bought the gender test in September 2015 and that it had worked for my friends. She was 10 weeks pregnant when she tried the product, following the instructions on the packaging. Within five minutes, she said, the lid popped off the test and everything exploded on the walls and on my face. She said her skin felt hot and itchy and she noticed red spots on her face. It also destroyed the paint on a wall. The test did, however, accurately predict she would give birth to a boy. The judge in his tentative ruling ordered the defendants to pay civil penalties in the amount of $250,000, far less than the millions sought by the city. Attorneys for the city, argued that the IntelliGender product was nothing more than Drano in a pretty box. According to court documents, the tests contained sodium hydroxide also known as lye and aluminum, which when mixed in a small container with the womans urine could cause a mini-explosion that, in some cases, left customers with chemical burns. IntelliGenders lawyers said explosions could occur when a cap on the product wasnt properly secured, a problem addressed by improving the packaging. The judge said even a modest number of explosions/cap failures... strikes the Court as inconsistent with the statement that expectant Mothers can safely take the tests in their own homes. Wohlfeil said an explosion, even one that caused only negligible injuries, is not a risk that consumers reasonably expected or assumed in taking the defendants gender predictor test. The kits cost $19.99 to $34.25, according to court documents. Gerry Braun, a spokesman for the city, declined to comment on the tentative ruling. He said the lawsuit was filed by the Consumer and Environmental Protection Unit of the City Attorneys Office, after the unit was contacted by a consumer and investigated the complaint. The city filed its lawsuit in 2012 against IntelliGender LLC and its managers: Teresa Garland and Rebecca Griffin, both described as the moms of IntelliGender, Don Garland, Kurt Griffin and others, including several retailers. The part of the lawsuit involving the retailers, including Amazon.com, Babies R Us, CVS Pharmacy, RiteAid Corp. and Target Corp., is expected to be tried later. Attorney John Palter, has said his clients marketed their product based on reasonable information as to how well it predicted gender soon after the company was launched a decade ago, and they continued to make improvements and labeling changes to the product long before any lawsuits were filed. In a phone interview Tuesday, he said the issues raised by the city could have been handled much more quickly had San Diego officials picked up the phone and called IntelliGender rather than filing the lawsuit. Despite our efforts to try to meet with the city to come up with changes in labeling that would be agreeable, the city believed that filing this case (and spending) taxpayers dollars was the right thing to do, Palter said. The city has not and did not effectively use taxpayers dollars to prosecute this case. He noted that the judge found the current labeling on the packaging of the gender tests contains adequate safety warnings to alert consumers of the dangers but the previous labeling that stated only keep out of the reach of children did not. The product is still being sold, Palter said, but his clients who started the company no longer work there full time because of the costs they incurred fighting the lawsuit. A status conference is scheduled for Nov. 10, when the judge is expected to hear objections to the proposed ruling from lawyers on both sides of the case. dana.littlefield@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @danalittlefield A University of California San Diego professor was the lead researcher on a study released Tuesday by the left-leaning Center for American Progress, which found a positive impact on the economy from unauthorized immigrants who received temporary relief from deportation through the Obama administration. Those who qualify for the program receive work permits, which, according to the study give them access to higher wages and more purchasing power. The program, known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, does not give immigrants legal status, but it allows those who arrived without documentation in the United States as children to apply for a two-year deferment of deportation with the option to renew. Advertisement Work authorization through DACA is one step to unlocking the economic potential of these young people, said Tom Wong, the lead researcher and a political science professor at UCSD. Four years into the program, were seeing positive indicators, so imagine four years down the road what these young people will be able to achieve. I think were just seeing the tip of the iceberg here. The study found that, because of the work permit, program participants increased their average hourly wages by 42 percent, from $9.83 per hour to $13.96 per hour, and many used those raises to make big purchases. More than half of those who responded to the studys survey said they had been able to purchase their first cars after joining the program. Twelve percent said they had purchased their first home after joining the program. As DACA recipients grow older the average age of folks is 25 DACA recipients are creating these larger and larger footprints in the economy through these large purchases like homes and cars, Wong said. It shows that DACA is an integration success story. Wong said many recipients have talked to him about the responsibility they feel to succeed on behalf of the undocumented community. We hear from many DACA recipients that the reason why they want to succeed is to show folks what they can do if they have legal status, Wong said. I think there is a particularly acute sense of responsibility among DACA recipients to do well to convince the public more generally that legalization will not just benefit those who become legal but society more generally. Those surveyed worked in a variety of fields from nonprofits to retail, and 21 percent worked in education or health fields, according to the study. The study also found that six percent of those surveyed had started their own businesses, about double the rate of Americans as a whole at 3.1 percent. The businesses ranged from tech startups to online craft stores to tax preparation services. The immigration debate all too often centers on the cost of immigration, but as we see DACA recipients make large purchases as well as start businesses that create jobs, and also earn higher wages, this all adds up to increased tax revenue for the federal government as well as for state and local coffers, Wong said. Since the program began four years ago, 741,546 people have been accepted, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The study includes survey results from 1,308 participants. The future of the deferred action program remains unclear as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has vowed to end the program, while Hillary Clinton plans to continue it. The Center for American Progress is closely allied with Clinton, whose campaign chairman used to head the organization. And Wong has served as an adviser about the Asian and Pacific Islander community to the White House under Obama. kate.morrissey@sduniontribune.com, @bgirledukate San Diego City Council members on Tuesday narrowly approved a new operating agreement for a controversial nonprofit that oversees downtown San Diego development. The pact, which was approved 5-4, imposes new restrictions on Civic San Diego, including more oversight and transparency and mandates for low-income housing, employee wages and local hiring. It fell short of approval in an initial vote because six votes are required for city contracts longer than five years, so supporters agreed to limit the deals term to five years so that five votes in favor would be adequate. Advertisement Supporters said the deal is imperfect, but a significant step in the right direction for CivicSD, which critics say makes backroom deals without proper transparency or oversight. It is setting a higher expectation for those who want to do business with us, providing certainty and giving us a path to go forward, said Councilman Todd Gloria, whos played a key role in the proposed pact because his district includes downtown. Gloria was joined in support by Lorie Zapf, Myrtle Cole, Mark Kersey and Chris Cate. Critics raised a wide variety of concerns. Council President Sherri Lightner wanted stricter income eligibility requirements for low-income housing in CivicSD projects. Councilwoman Marti Emerald said the pacts language wasnt firm enough and includes too many potential loopholes. Councilman Scott Sherman worried that some of the language could lead to unintended consequences and possible litigation against the city. Councilman David Alvarez said the agreement was crafted too quickly and that not enough community input was gathered. Nothing should be rushed because we are saying this is the best we can do, Alvarez said. Lightner and Emerald offered to switch their votes in favor if the pact was amended to include phasing CivicSd out of existence. The agency was created in 2012 to oversee redevelopment projects after the state eliminated redevelopment agencies. It wasnt intended to go on and on, Emerald said. In response, supporters agreed to shorten the length of the deal to five years, but declined to include any phase-out language. Prior to the vote, labor leaders and other critics said the deal wasnt strong enough to prevent CivicSD from continuing to approve projects without adequate oversight. The Downtown San Diego Partnership praised the agreement, saying its important for CivicSD to continue the work it does. A residents group from downtowns Cortez Hill neighborhood also endorsed the agreement. Councilman Gloria stressed that the council could amend or update the agreement at a future date to improve it. CivicSD board chairman Jeff Gattas called the pact a beginning and said the board was open to further revisions and review. Councilman Alvarez said promises to improve agreements after they get approved never get kept. CivicSD was created by consolidating and renaming the Centre City Development Corporation, which began overseeing redevelopment downtown in 1975, and the Southeastern Economic Development Corporation, which was created in 1981. david.garrick@sduniontribune.com (619) 269-8906 Twitter:@UTDavidGarrick Two candidates facing off for San Diego City Attorney on Nov. 8 are attacking each other on the stadium ballot measures, the handling of sexual abuse cases and whose experience fits better with the job. Democrat Mara Elliott describes Republican Robert Hickeys reluctance to take a position on the stadium measures as hiding his views from voters on the most important issue the city has faced in many years. Hickey says recent comments by Elliott indicate she might slut-shame sexual abuse victims and that her lack of experience as a prosecutor is a bad fit for an office facing a sharply increasing criminal caseload. Advertisement Elliott said last week that in sexual abuse cases involving city police officers and other workers that shed be willing to consider all evidence, including such things as the victim offering her underwear to an officer. Hickey says that position raises questions about Elliotts judgment. Its morally wrong to attack the victim in a case like that and its the wrong legal strategy, Hickey told the Union-Tribune Wednesday morning. Its going to turn the jury off and its not tactically smart. Elliott, in a separate Union-Tribune interview on Wednesday, said she strongly opposes victim shaming and that a person is never to blame for abuse they experience at the hands of others. She said the underwear offer would be information that is considered during the course of evaluating a case, noting that she has a responsibility to protect taxpayers when the city is being sued. I cant just give a black-and-white description of how any situation would be handled, she said. In the course of litigation you can discover you do have a victim. I dont think thats obvious at the beginning of a case. Lets stick to the truth and assess the case. Hickey says Elliotts position highlights her lack of any experience as a prosecutor, while he has handled 60 cases involving juries and more than 100 bench trials as a deputy district attorney. You need a leader who has tried cases to set the tone for the office, said Hickey, noting that Elliott has spent her entire career handling civil matters for the City Attorneys Office and other public agencies. He said experience as a prosecutor is particularly crucial in the wake of Californias Proposition 47, which has sharply increased the number of criminal cases handled by city attorneys. They are unquestionably handling more cases and more serious criminals than theyve ever handled before, he said. When comparing 2015 to 2014, city documents show that drug cases increased 38 percent and theft charges climbed 65 percent. Elliott said shes well aware of those spikes. But she said the increase hasnt been as large as some thought, and that the city attorneys office has softened its workload with innovative approaches like the criminal justice initiative, which allows community service instead of jail time for many non-violent offenses. Its a more manageable challenge than we knew, Elliott said. She also disputed the importance of Hickeys prosecutorial experience, noting that virtually all cases handled by the city are misdemeanors. His background is prosecuting felonies -- murder and gang cases which is vastly different than what we do, Elliott said. In addition, as a chief deputy city attorney she is more familiar with the many cases the city handles involving nuisances, consumer protection and environmental issues. He does not have the breadth of experience that this job requires, she said. On the stadium initiatives, Measure C and Measure D on the Nov. 8 ballot, Elliott has attacked Hickey for not taking a position while she opposes both because they would divert higher hotel taxes away from core city services. When you weigh in on the Chargers you are going to lose some votes, but I thought it was important to let taxpayers know that I feel very strongly about protecting their interests, Elliott said. We are looking for leaders to express how they feel on consequential decisions like this. Elliott has suggested that Hickey has been evasive because of campaign contributions hes received from the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce and others who would benefit from the measures. When Hickey speaks in public, he talks longer without saying anything than any lawyer Ive ever met, Elliott said. Voters deserve answers and its time for him to come clean. Hickey said its not appropriate for someone who might become city attorney to have positions on policy decisions, which are the purview of the mayor, the City Council and voters. Im striving not to take positions on policy matters that could end up on my desk as legal matters, he said. Im not the 10th or 11th council person. He said Elliotts position could create problems down the road. If you oppose it and then you are in court defending it, people are going to question the strength of your advocacy or your commitment to the cause because you are politically against it, Hickey said. Elliott said Hickey is being inconsistent because he has taken positions on other policy issues, such as expressing support for the citys pension cutbacks that are the subject of ongoing litigation. Elliott and Hickey are vying to replace City Attorney Jan Goldsmith, who will leave office in December after eight years because of term limits. david.garrick@sduniontribune.com (619) 269-8906 Twitter:@UTDavidGarrick The Clairemont mother of a victim in the 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, said she will attend the final presidential debate Wednesday evening at the invitation of Republican nominee Donald Trumps camp. Patricia Smiths son, native San Diegan and State Department information officer Sean Smith, was one of four Americans killed in the terrorist assault on the U.S. diplomatic compound and a nearby CIA annex in Benghazi. She has repeatedly said the Obama administration has failed to give clear and sufficient information about its alleged missteps related to the tragedy. She also has singled out Hillary Clinton, secretary of state at the time and now the Democratic nominee for president, for the greatest blame. Smith has aired her criticism on talk radio, in TV and newspaper interviews, and during a nationally televised speech from the Republican National Convention in July. Advertisement Officials from Trumps campaign called Smith on Monday and arranged for her to fly to Las Vegas at their expense for Wednesdays debate, she said. Smith will be picked up at the airport, escorted to the University of Nevada Las Vegas for the event and then interviewed afterward by conservative broadcaster Sean Hannity, she added. I have never met Donald Trump and I dont know if Im supposed to meet him at the debate. All I care is that whenever people give me the opportunity to speak out for my son, to be his voice, I will take it, Smith said Tuesday night. I will keep calling out for justice from the government. I wont give up. hieu.phan@sduniontribune.com Two of the topics to be discussed at tonights final presidential debate are foreign policy and immigration fraught, difficult issues with huge ramifications for Americas future. On the first, Hillary Clinton is infinitely more coherent than Donald Trump. The first major group of Republicans to pronounce themselves unable to support Trump as the GOP nominee were dozens of members of the partys foreign policy and national security establishment. Their critique goes far beyond their disbelief at Trumps troubling admiration for thuggish Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. They realize the danger posed by a thin-skinned, inconsistent president, someone who alternately sounds isolationist like Pat Fortress America Buchanan and belligerent like Dick Cheney. America and its traditional allies in Europe and Asia need each other more than ever to combat international terrorism and to contain an increasingly expansionist China. But Trump routinely insults these allies and likens them to deadbeats. He shows no understanding of the crucial role our alliances have played in keeping the peace and creating prosperity since the end of World War II. Advertisement The world grew less safe while Clinton was President Barack Obamas first secretary of state. But she inherited many problems, starting with wars-turned-quagmires in Iraq and Afghanistan. And it is President Obama, not Clinton, who decided to pull back the United States from its normal forceful role in trying to shape world events by instead leading from behind, as an Obama aide described it in a 2011 New Yorker article. Clinton wanted a much more active U.S. push to oust Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and in a 2015 speech indicated she wanted to do significantly more than Obama to defeat and destroy Islamic State. Her foreign policy is likely to resemble her husbands stressing cooperation with allies, willing but not eager to use military force, having as a central goal the expansion of interconnected free-market democracies around the world. This goal has been badly undercut by her flip-flop on support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, an act of pandering at odds with her history. But in general, Clinton is far more likely to be a responsible steward of foreign affairs not a wrecking ball like Trump. There is a different dynamic with immigration. When Trump says the United States should temporarily ban immigration from nations associated with Islamic terrorism until we are certain these immigrants arent inclined to terrorism, much of the media recoil and see this as biased and hateful. But to millions of Americans witnessing the chaos in parts of Europe, this seems like obvious common sense. That dichotomy holds for Trumps view that unauthorized immigrants should be deported en masse and for his blustery demand that there should be a wall on our southern border paid for by Mexico. Yet there is common sense based on a simple, vague view of the world and common sense based on the complex big picture. The United States does not have policies allowing the mass influx of refugees akin to those seen in Europe. There is relatively little evidence we do a bad job of vetting those we allow to immigrate here; exceptions dont make rules. And illegal immigration from Mexico is far less prevalent than it used to be. Broadly speaking, immigration has been an immensely important part of America and its history. That all six Americans who won Nobel prizes this month are immigrants should be a source of national pride. Clinton supports comprehensive immigration reform providing a path to citizenship for many of those without legal status, as the U.S. Senate did in 2013 on a bipartisan vote. She has joined in bipartisan votes to expand the Border Patrol. She is not the open-borders caricature that Trump pretends. On immigration, we hope Clinton realizes the next president needs to address the fears of millions of Americans, not dismiss them. But on balance, she has a much more constructive and realistic handle on the issue than her opponent and we expect that to be reflected in tonights debate. SEE ALSO: Debt, entitlements a problem Clinton ignores, Trump makes worse Donald Trump makes Joe McCarthy look good with rigged election talk Regarding Chargers need to make their case to voters (Oct. 11): A stadium is for one primary purpose to provide a venue for a sport that provides sufficient seating capacity for fans who wish to attend with a location that provides the best access, including private and public transportation and RVs. Letters and commentary policy The U-T welcomes and encourages community dialogue on important public matters. Please visit this page for more details on our letters and commentaries policy. E-mail letters@sduniontribune.com Mail: Andrew Kleske, Reader Outreach Editor San Diego Union-Tribune P.O. Box 120191 San Diego, CA 92112-0191. You can also leave a comment below Advertisement The stadium endorsed by our city leaders (and special interest parties) is at a location that provides the least service and benefit to the fans who are the main supporters. Mission Valley is the perfect venue for our stadium with much better access and, a reminder, it belongs to the city San Diego and is supported by the people of San Diego County. Building it downtown will make it more difficult (and expensive) for anyone to attend. J.B. Harrington La Mesa Why is WikiLeaks only focused on Clinton? WikiLeaks runs hacks from Hillary Clintons email servers. So why not Donald Trumps servers? Should be some interesting reading there too. And: sedition, as defined in the Constitution, 18 U.S. Code 2385, Advocating overthrow of Government. Also interesting reading. John Lynn Carlsbad Clinton is the bigger danger to democracy Your editorial Donald Trump is damaging to democracy (Oct. 18) is laughable and shows your see-no-evil bias. Donald Trump is not a polished politician. He is usually politically incorrect and often outlandish. But compare Trumps rhetoric to Hillary Clintons actions. She is totally corrupt, bleaches e-mails after subpoena, forgets everything when deposed by the FBI, engages in pay-for-play, acknowledges a hidden agenda when talking to the public and constantly lies, i.e., Benghazi video and so much more. It is very clear who is damaging to democracy. Frank C. Tecca Escondido Stop trying to make excuses for Obamacare Regarding Obamacare check-up (Oct. 15): That dog hasnt barked because its howling. What utter nonsense for columnist Catherine Rampell to try to rationalize and deceive everyone with. I get it, she wants to preserve some kind of legacy for her precious president and ideology. But please. Has the author forgotten all of the selling points that are false and misleading? If you like your plan, you can keep your plan. If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. Premiums will fall by as much as $2,500 per family. The Affordable Care Act will cost around $900 billion over 10 years. Obamacare wont add one dime to our budget deficits. If you want to support a program, great, but please provide all the facts and then make your opinion and conclusion without selective editing. Tony Tartaro Hillcrest Science deniers are only fooling themselves Darrell Issa is probably the highest ranking Republican still backing the main climate change-denying spokesman, Donald Trump, for the Climate Change Denying Party (GOP). Meanwhile, two major cities in Issas district, Carlsbad and Del Mar, are working on plans to combat rising sea levels. Carlsbads own study experts predict a 1.6-foot sea level rise by 2050 and a 6.6-foot sea level rise by 2100. It is no longer about who is the most qualified or who is the most dishonest. It is a moral choice about human survival and Earths continued ability to sustain human life. Charlie Ballbach Santee Chicano Park cartoon captured the sentiment Regarding Tragedy at Chicano Park (Oct. 18): Steve Breens editorial drawing was at once incredibly sad and amazingly beautiful. Claire Knox Encinitas Want to see more letters that appear only online? Follow @UTLetters on Twitter and UTOpinion on Facebook. Mondays apology from the nations largest police group for the historical mistreatment of communities of color at the hands of police has sparked a national conversation. The apology, delivered by the head of the International Association of Chiefs of Police at an annual meeting in San Diego, was lauded in some law enforcement circles but met mixed reactions from some black leaders, activists and other members of law enforcement for not going far enough. In widely shared remarks, Massachusetts-based chief Terrence M. Cunningham said fatal encounters between police and people of color of the past several years have fostered more mistrust between the public and the police. Cunningham called on police to rebuild that trust. For our part, the first step in this process is for law enforcement and the IACP to acknowledge and apologize for the actions of the past and the role that our profession has played in societys historical mistreatment of communities of color, he told the audience. https://twitter.com/ABC/status/788314194227572736 The speech was praised by some members of law enforcement, including San Diego Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman and San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore. But online and elsewhere, reactions to the apology which made national headlines were more nuanced. Civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson called the apology moving but said the U.S. needs real reforms and justice. Others chimed in around the country. https://twitter.com/RevJJackson/status/788185369145647105 https://twitter.com/adv_project/status/788099854773944320 https://twitter.com/owg6973/status/788359172026925057 Recent fatal police shootings in the last few years have led to tensions between police and activist groups like the Black Lives Matter movement. Some of that tension was openly displayed during a live-radio segment about the chiefs apology. Delores Jones-Brown, a founding director of CUNYs John Jay College Center on Race, Crime and Justice, told KPCCs Take Two that the apology wasnt enough because it didnt address current police practices that discriminate against African Americans. I think that is an attempt to give some credence to the feeling that folks in the African American and broader people of color community are feeling, but the apology to my tastes falls short, particularly when the president said that it's no longer the case that discriminatory policing takes place, Jones-Brown said. The conversation got heated when one of the guests, Melina Abdullah, a professor and chair of Pan-African Studies at Cal State Los Angeles and a Black Lives Matter organizer, suggested that policing comes from a history of slave-catching meant to oppress black people. Brian Moriguchi, president of the Professional Peace Officers Association in Los Angeles County, took issue with that remark. There is a strong push by those in the civil rights community to try and spin the narrative that law enforcement today is similar to the law enforcement 50 years ago, and that's not true, Moriguchi said on the air. Comments like 'slave catching' your previous guest mentioned police are not out there slave-catching. That is to inspire a racial divide and anger among people and police officers. I don't think that's appropriate at all. Like Chief Zimmerman and Sheriff Gore, other members of law enforcement lauded Cunninghams apology and said it was a good step toward repairing fraught relations between cops and the communities they serve. https://twitter.com/BrandondelPozo/status/788377919483551744 https://twitter.com/ArlingtonChief/status/788446830233214977 Yet the national Fraternal Order of Police, the largest police union in the country, found fault with Cunninghams apology because it failed to offer workable solutions to the issues. Words and apologies do not adequately address the current issues facing law enforcement and the communities that we serve, read a statement posted on its Facebook Page. Seeking workable solutions to issues that affect us all so directly is a much more worthy endeavor, one which will do far more to foster goodwill and understanding between law enforcement and the community at large. Proactive steps that address the real concerns urban decay, jobs, education, housing, and the like would benefit all Americans and we look forward to a dialogue of action not just words at this critical time in our history. Tell us what you think of the apology. Email: luis.gomez@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @RunGomez Poway City Council members unanimously agreed Tuesday night to have the San Diego YMCA proceed with a marketing survey to obtain public reaction to the possibility of a branch being built in Community Park. The council made no commitment beyond having the survey completed, at the YMCAs expense. The organization is proposing that it build a branch building at an estimated cost of about $9 million as an alternative to the city building a new community center at the same location for about $20 million. The marketing study would help determine whether there is a need for a branch, what programs are needed, what services should be offered and whether local families would be willing to join the organization. The survey will include 600 to 800 randomly selected households, cost the YMCA $30,000 to $40,000 and take up to three months to complete. Results of the survey will be made public. The city has for many years been exploring the idea of replacing the aging Community Center and Senior Center at the park and combining the two functions into a new center that would be named in memory of former Mayor Mickey Cafagna. The council has selected a mission-themed design concept and allocated $8 million in budget reserves, to be supplemented by the issuance of revenue bonds. However, city officials are now worried that the soaring cost of the building and the related costs of annual payments on the revenue bonds may place a burden on the citys general fund. Enter the YMCA with a proposal to build and run and branch instead of the city constructing a new community center. If the city paid 100 percent of the construction costs, the new branch could be completed in two years, according to the Ys proposal. It the city paid 75 percent, construction would take three years. If the city paid half, the building would be done within 40 months, according to the proposal. Before voting to proceed with the study, the council heard from a handful of audience members, most of whom said they preferred the city proceeding with a new building of its own rather than working out an arrangement with the YMCA. Issues cited included seniors being unable to afford monthly YMCA fees, the loss of city jobs and the fact that the YMCA pays less for the same positions and a feeling that the YMCA building would not be as available as the current Community Center for community and private events. Not a single member of the Senior Center supports this, Executive Director Leslie Hoffman told the council. Torrey Powers, a fourth-generation Powegian running for a council seat, said her family sold the land now used by the community center to the city for use by the community. She noted the Senior Center charges $35 a year for membership while the YMCA would be charging about $470 per year. She questioned the impact of a fully equipped fitness center on local fitness centers and questioned whether the YMCA would be receptive to allowing the branch to be used for community events. Its just not the right fit, Powers told the council. Mayor Steve Vaus said the proposed survey represented a terrific opportunity to obtain data on what the community would like to see in a new Community Park center, regardless of whether it is built and operated by the city or YMCA. Assuming the role of a skeptic was Councilman Dave Grosch. While going along with the survey idea, he noted the citys system of providing services at Community Park is not broken and that the city should look at downsizing its proposed 36,000-square-foot center in order to save costs. Many of the centers potential users live in low- and moderate-income housing in the area and might not be able to afford YMCA dues and program fees, he noted. Councilman John Mullin speculated that if the city and the YMCA cant reach an agreement, the citys fallback would not be to the current center design due to its high cost. Allocating $1.1 million a year in general funds to debt service just wont work, he said. Mullin did obtain from a YMCA representative an assurance that a scholarship program helping residents who cant afford fees could be supplemented by city funds. Eight of the nine candidates for two seats on the Poway Unified School District Board of Education were at the final public candidate forum, held Monday at the Rancho Bernardo Library. The candidates, minus challenger Carol Ware, discussed their priorities for the coming year, perceived inequities in the district, how they will keep partisanship from influencing what is best for the students and more. The event was sponsored by the Rancho Bernardo Community Council and the Rancho Penasquitos Town Council. Allison Ash from Channel 10 News was the moderator. About 30 people were in the audience to watch the forum, which ran for two hours. Each candidate had a minute to make an opening statement and one minute to answer questions, which were gathered from the audience before the event began. The candidates then had another minute for a closing statement. The first question the candidates was asked was what attributes they thought the next superintendent should have. Most gave very similar answers: the next superintendent should be honest, have integrity, possess good character and be transparent. Being able to bring stakeholders together and collaborate was another common answer, as well as the new superintendent having a vision for the future. Incumbent Kimberley Beatty said she would like to see the new superintendent have a regular presence on campuses and engage with principals and teachers, while challenger Darshana Patel said she would want the new superintendent to be a good problem solver and be able to build relationships with key stakeholders throughout the community and communicate with the community. When asked what kind of compensation the new superintendent should get, the general consensus was that it should be in line to other superintendents in California who are in districts with a similar socio-economic status to PUSD. Several candidates said they would like to see the superintendents benefits match, not exceed, those of teachers and staff. Patel said that the state Board of Education has a range of salaries and the new superintendents compensation could be around $270,000 and that she would like to see his benefits be in line with those of teachers. The candidates also had similar goals for the coming year if elected, including seeing the hiring of the new superintendent, getting the budget balanced and bringing transparency and cohesion to the community. Jimmy Karam said he would like to see a greater focus on technology in the district, especially implementing a K-12 computer science program. Terry Norwood said she would like to see an expansion to career technology education and providing more programs for alternative learners. All candidates said that they would not allow personal partisanship influence what is best for students, as being a school board member is a nonpartisan office. Debra Cooper said that while several candidates have been endorsed by political parties, it wont have any effect on what is best for students. This is not about backroom deals, said Cooper. We have to collaborate and work effectively with those groups. Chas Moriarty said that politics have never come in his decision making for teaching, just what was best for each individual child and they wouldnt enter into things on the board either. Its just what is best for the kids, he said. The candidates were also asked how the district could address inequity in schools created by foundations, as some schools have very successful foundations and others little or no funding from foundations. Several candidates suggested that a district foundation should oversee school foundations or place a limit on how much can be used per school, to help out lower-income schools. Patel said the biggest issue was schools in the middle who did not receive Title I funds but did not have parents who could spare money for a foundation. She suggested bringing back grant writing to create equity in funding for these schools. Norwood suggested sharing programs between schools and that a good leader can make the difference in disparity by directing funds where they are most needed. Nick Anastasopolous said that some schools dont have the motivation or talent to fundraise like other school foundations and that he would like to see the district get involved in creating equity, perhaps by having school foundations give 10 percent of funds raised to a district foundation. Cooper said that school foundations are independent organizations and that the district did not have the right to insist on contributions from them. Among reports at the sheriffs Ramona station: Sunday, Oct. 16 Residential burglary, 1800 block Main Street, $400 television, $800 worth of computer equipment, wallet, $150 worth of jewelry and $300 in U.S. currency. Vandalism $400 or less to farm machinery, 27800 block Slaughterhouse Road. Saturday, Oct. 15 Vehicle burglary, 16200 block Wikiup Road, purse, wallet and credit cards, occurred between 8:30 and 9 p.m. Oct. 12. Friday, Oct. 14 Male, 63, arrested, 15800 block Rosemont Lane, assault with deadly weapon: not firearm. Female, 28, and male, 25, arrested, 1200 block Main Street, use/under influence of controlled substance and possess narcotic controlled substance. Female also arrested for possess controlled substance and controlled substance paraphernalia. Thursday, Oct. 13 Male, 37, arrested, 100 block North 14th Street, exhibit deadly weapon other than firearm. Female, 33, arrested, La Brea and Letton streets, possess controlled substance. Male, 45, arrested, possess controlled substance and shoplifting at Kmart, 1800 block Main Street. Bicycle parts/accessories valued at $8.99 stolen and recovered. Hot prowl burglary and grand theft of firearms, 1600 block Wilson Road, three pistols, shotgun, two rifles, and two necklaces worth $1,700. Petty theft from vehicle, 23800 block Green Haven Lane, checkbook, sunglasses and consumable goods. Vandalism $400 or less to windows, 100 block 14th Street. Male, 26, arrested, 1500 block Main Street, post release community supervision violation. Wednesday, Oct. 12 Male, 39, arrested, 1400 block Montecito Road, felony and misdemeanor bench warrants. Tuesday, Oct. 11 Petty theft of rifle from vehicle, 300 block Seventh Street, occurred between June 1 and Oct. 11. Male, 45, arrested, Montecito Road and Main Street, use/under influence of controlled substance and possess controlled substance paraphernalia. Monday, Oct. 10 Residential burglary, 1500 block H Street, $400 television, backpack and household goods. Vandalism $400 or less, 23700 block state Route 78. Male, 19, arrested, 800 block A Street, threaten crime with intent to terrorize. Sunday, Oct. 9 Male, 46, arrested, 16100 block Arena Drive, vandalism $400 or more to pickup truck. Frontier Plumbing, 200 block Shandy Lane, victim of embezzlement over $950, occurred between March 8 and Oct. 9. The last of three presidential candidate debates arrives as Democrat Hillary Clinton expands her lead over Republican Donald Trump in national and swing-state polls. Meanwhile, Trump has continued his unsubstantiated charge that the election is rigged to favor Clinton. Election experts say the kind of fraud Trump is talking about is virtually impossible to conduct in the U.S, where national elections are decentralized and run by individual states. Advertisement San Diego Union-Tribune Government Editor Michael Smolens was interviewed by Fox 5 News about the latest developments in the presidential campaign. PREVIOUS Steve Breen sketches from tonights presidential debate in real-time. 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Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe Phoenix, AZ -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/19/2016 -- Talent Plus, Inc. is excited to announce that Talent Plus Fellow, Larry Sternberg will host former Nebraska Senator, Bob Kerrey, on his show, Mentoring with Larry Sternberg. The episode will premiere Thursday, October 20, 2016, at 10 AM Eastern Time on the VoiceAmerica Empowerment channel. Kerrey currently serves as Managing Director at Allen & Company, and is the Executive Chairman of the Minerva Institute for Research and Scholarship. Kerrey served as a U.S. Navy SEAL during the Vietnam War, and for his service was awarded the Medal of Honor. While in Vietnam, he was wounded, permanently disabled and received from this injury a great gift: sympathy for those who are suffering and an appreciation for the capacity of government to save your life. Following his time in the military, Kerrey joined the United States Senate, where he was passionate about improving American lives for the better through education. This passion steered him to lead The New School as President from 2001 to 2011 where he led unprecedented growth in education. Kerrey's experiences in the military, government and education offer a multifaceted view into the world of mentoring. Kimberly Rath, Talent Plus President and Chairman, shared the following statement, "At Talent Plus, we honor and support those who commit their lives to public service. Senator Kerrey is a nationally-regarded public servant and Nebraska native, and I am looking forward to hearing how mentoring shaped who he has become." "Senator Kerrey's intelligence, authenticity and wisdom are always enlightening. He will make us think," stated Larry Sternberg, Talent Plus Fellow and Host of Mentoring with Larry Sternberg. Sternberg serves as an innovative thinker within the human resources industry. As a talented and effective teacher with a knack for teaching and a great sense of humor, he has a reputation as an expert speaker. Through a blend of humor and inspirational advice, Sternberg delivers powerful messages. Currently, he serves as Talent Plus Fellow and a member of the Board of Directors at Talent Plus, Inc. headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska. Mentoring with Larry Sternberg, is broadcast live every Thursday at 10 AM Pacific Time on the VoiceAmerica Empowerment Channel. The program focuses on relationships shared between mentors and their mentees. Each week, Sternberg interviews a mentor or mentee to learn more about how their relationship developed and the importance a mentor plays in an individual's life, both professionally and personally. Archives of Mentoring with Larry Sternberg can be found at https://www.voiceamerica.com/show/2588/mentoring The VoiceAmerica TM Network offers the latest conversations in a talk radio format, providing education, interaction and advice on key issues live, on demand as well as through podcast download. If interested in hosting a talk show on VoiceAmerica Network, contact Jeff Spenard, President of Internet Radio, 480-294-6417 or jeff.spenard@voiceamerica.com. Contact Executive Producer, Fiona King, 480-553-5750 or fiona.king@voiceamerica.com for advertising/sponsorship or other show details. Listeners can download the current versions of the VoiceAmerica Talk Radio App at: Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.airkast.VA_MASTER&hl=en iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/voiceamerica-talk-radio-network/id412135954?mt=8# Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/AirKast-Inc-Voice-America/dp/B00IGH8WPO About World Talk Radio, LLC World Talk Radio, LLC is the world leader in online media broadcasting and the largest producer and distributor of live internet based talk radio and TV, delivering over 1,000 hours of programming weekly on its VoiceAmerica Network (http://www.voiceamerica.com) as well as live and on-demand video content on VoiceAmerica.TV (http://www.voiceamerica.tv). Featuring more than 200 hosts broadcasting to seven niche community based channels: its flagship VoiceAmerica Variety Channel, VoiceAmerica , Empowerment, VoiceAmerica Health & Wellness Channel, VoiceAmerica Business Channel, VoiceAmerica Sports, 7th Wave Channel, and VoiceAmerica Kids Channel. VoiceAmerica TV offers targeted and exclusive video programming channels. VoiceAmerica /World Talk Radio, LLC is one of the pioneers in internet broadcasting, producing and syndicating online audio and video, offering an innovative, effective and comprehensive digital broadcast platform. Digital Publishing through its 14 years of broadcast and media experience along with our seasoned staff of Executive Producers, Production and Host Services Group, VoiceAmerica /World Talk Radio, LLC provides an internet radio and video platform for new, emerging and veteran media personalities to expand and monetize their business and brand in an online digital medium. Talent Plus, Inc. is the Leading Talent Assessment Partner in the industry and an internationally recognized management consulting firm with over 300 clients in 20 countries delivering interviews in more than 20 languages. Headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska, Talent Plus also has an office in Singapore. For more information, please visit www.talentplus.com. Lewes, DE -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/19/2016 -- Report forecast the global chocolate market to grow at a CAGR of 5.32% during the period 2016-2020. Chocolate is made from cocoa liquor, sugar, cocoa butter, milk, and an emulsifier (such as lecithin) and is available in different varieties and flavors. Vendors are launching innovative products with unique flavors using ingredients like alcohol, ginger, hibiscus, and lavender. Products that use organic ingredients are also finding high demand in the market despite their premium positioning. The total number of products launched with organic claims increased from 351 in 2012 to 705 in 2015. The report covers the present scenario and the growth prospects of the global chocolate market for 2016-2020. To calculate the market size, the report considers the revenue generated from the sales of chocolates to individual consumers. The market is divided into the following segments based on geography: - Americas - APAC - EMEA According to the report, premiumization will be a key driver for market growth. The demand for premium chocolates is growing around the world, particularly in countries such as the US and Brazil. Players are positioning their premium chocolates as gifting options. For instance, In India, Mondel?z has positioned its Toblerone and Bournville brands as suitable for gifting. As part of the drive toward premiumization, players are also offering single-origin chocolate products. These chocolates are made from one variety of cocoa harvested in one region. In July 2015, Harald and Nugali, two Brazilian chocolate companies, launched their single origin chocolate products in the US market. In May 2016, Haigh's Chocolates launched four new single-origin chocolates from Ecuador, Madagascar, Papua New Guinea, and the Dominican Republic. Further, the report states that the increasing incidence of obesity among consumers worldwide is a challenge faced by the global chocolate market. In 2014 nearly 26% of the total world population were overweight and of that nearly 32% were obese. It is estimated that by 2030 nearly 74% of men and 64% of women in the UK will be overweight and nearly 42% of the US population will be obese. Global Chocolate Market 2016-2020, has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market. key players in the global chocolate market: Ferrero, Hershey's, Mars, Mondel?z International, and Nestle. Other Prominent Vendors in the market are: Amul, August Storck, Barry Callebaut, Blommer Chocolate Company, Empresas Carozzi, Cemoi Chocolatier, and Chocolate Frey. Market driver - Introduction of new varieties of chocolate - For a full, detailed list, view our report Market challenge - Rising obesity among consumers - For a full, detailed list, view our report Market trend - Innovations in chocolate manufacturing - For a full, detailed list, view our report Key questions answered in this report - What will the market size be in 2020 and what will the growth rate be? - What are the key market trends? - What is driving this market? - What are the challenges to market growth? - Who are the key vendors in this market space? - What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the key vendors? - What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors? Spanning over 62 pages and 55 Exhibits "Global Chocolate Market 2016 - 2020" report covers Executive summary, Scope of the report, Market research methodology, Introduction, Market landscape, Market segmentation by product, Market segmentation by distribution channel, Geographical segmentation, Key leading countries, Market drivers, Impact of drivers, Market challenges, Impact of drivers and challenges, Market trends, Vendor landscape, Appendix. For more information Visit at: http://www.marketresearchreports.com/technavio/global-chocolate-market-2016-2020 Related Report; Global Almond Milk Market 2016-2020 - Visit at - http://www.marketresearchreports.com/technavio/global-almond-milk-market-2016-2020 About Market Research Reports, Inc. Market Research Reports, Inc. is the world's leading source for market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest market research reports on global markets, key industries, leading companies, new products and latest industry analysis & trends. Yearly/Quarterly Report Subscription: http://www.marketresearchreports.com/subscriptions Pune, India -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/19/2016 -- Firstly, the report (2016 Mobile Phone Connector Market) provides a basic overview of the Mobile Phone Connector industry including definitions, classifications, applications and industry chain structure. The Mobile Phone Connector Industry analysis is provided for the international market including development history, competitive landscape analysis, and major regions development status. Do Inquiry Before Purchasing Report Here: https://market.biz/report/global-mobile-phone-connector-market-2016/15840/#inquiry Major Manufacturers Analysis of Mobile Phone Connector :- 1TYCO 2Molex 3Amphenol 4FCI 5Yazaki 6HIROSE 7JAE 8Taiwan Suncagey Industrial (SCG) 9KYOCERA 10LS Mtron 11UJU 12Panasonic 13OMRON 14LUXSHARE-ICT 15Acon 16LINKCONN Secondly, in the report (Worldwide Mobile Phone Connector Market) development policies and plans are discussed as well as manufacturing processes and cost structures regarding Mobile Phone Connector Scenario. This report on Mobile Phone Connector Market also states import/export, supply, Mobile Phone Connector consumption figures as well as cost, price, Mobile Phone Connector industry revenue and gross margin by regions (United States, EU, China and Japan), and other regions can be added. Then, the report focuses on global major leading industry players (in Mobile Phone Connector Industry Scenario) with information such as company profiles, product picture and specification, capacity, production, price, cost, Mobile Phone Connector Market revenue and contact information. Purchase Report Here To Get Instant Access To the Report: https://market.biz/report/global-mobile-phone-connector-market-2016/15840/ All above Company Profile, Product Picture and Specifications, Capacity, Production, Price, Cost, Gross and Revenue, Contact Information covered in Mobile Phone Connector market report. Upstream raw materials, equipment and downstream consumers analysis is also carried out in Mobile Phone Connector Market report. Whats more, the Mobile Phone Connector industry development trends and marketing channels are analyzed. Finally, The Report (Worldwide Mobile Phone Connector Industry)- Feasibility of new investment projects is assessed, and overall research conclusions are offered. Philadelphia, PA -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/19/2016 -- Pennsylvania 6 Philly, a popular bar and restaurant located in Midtown Village, Philadelphia, is pleased to announce their "Not Your Basic Brunch: Party of the Dead" event. This "Not Your Basic Brunch" event with a Halloween twist will be held on Sunday, October 30, 2016, from 2:00 PM to 8:00 PM. The staff at Pennsylvania 6 Philly will be transforming the venue into something incredibly scary, and they strongly encourage all who attend to come dressed up as their favorite dead celebrities, or in other costumes. Those who do come in costumes can even put themselves in the running to receive a cash prize and a complimentary table at their next "Not Your Basic Brunch" event. While many surprises will be in store for attendees, they should expect some great drinks and music. To learn more about the event please click here, and to make table reservations, please get in touch with Valerie Teachout at 508-410-4589 or vteachout@table95.com. Pennsylvania 6 Philly would also like to remind everyone that they are continuing to book 2016 holiday parties and events. Business owners or others will be pleased to know if they choose this top restaurant in Philadelphia to host their parties, they will have the freedom to customize them any way they want. Whether people want or need to have their parties at night or earlier in the evening, want to reserve one of their private dining spaces, or buyout the whole venue, Pennsylvania 6 will be able to accommodate. Lastly, interested parties will be happy to know that Pennsylvania 6 boasts an impressive party room on the third floor that will offer the ultimate private party experience. This acclaimed establishment located at 114 S. 12th St in Philadelphia, PA serves dinner every night of the week and is open early for brunch on Saturday and Sunday. To learn more about Pennsylvania 6 Philly, their specials, upcoming events, or how to make reservations to enjoy the best brunch in Philadelphia, please visit their website, or follow them on Facebook. About Pennsylvania 6 Philly Located just a few short blocks south of Market East Station, Pennsylvania 6 Philly is a contemporary American restaurant that features an extensive craft beer & wine list, along with a raw bar. Owned by Gary Cardi, Pennsylvania 6 is named after the oldest working phone number in NYC, which is the number of the Hotel Pennsylvania in Manhattan. The bar comes complete with white Carrera marble-topped tables, white subway tiles, dark wooden accents and large-scale photos of 1940's-era entertainers. Pennsylvania 6 Philly serves dinner, lunch and weekend brunch. For more information, please visit http://www.pennsylvania6philly.com/. Beijing, China -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/18/2016 -- On 11 October 2016, Prime Minister of Portugal Antonio Costa attended the inauguration ceremony of Chinese-Portuguese-English Machine Translation Laboratory at Macao Polytechnic Institute and delivered a speech. Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of Macao Special Administrative Region, Dr. Alexis Tam Chon Weng; Deputy Director of Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao SAR, Xue Xiaofeng; President of Macao Polytechnic Institute, Lei Heong Iok; President of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, Zhong Weihe; Global Tone Communication Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd. (hereafter refers to "GTCOM") Chairman Huang Song and CEO Yu Yang; General Manager of Commercial Press, Yu Dianli; Rector of Polytechnic Institute of Leiria, Nuno Mangas; Vice-rector of University of Coimbra, Luis Filipe Menezes and other important guests attended the inauguration ceremony. CEO of GTCOM Yu Yang, on behalf of the three parties, gave a detailed introduction of Chinese-Portuguese-English Machine Translation Laboratory. Chinese-Portuguese-English Machine Translation Laboratory is jointly established by GTCOM, Macao Polytechnic Institute and Guangdong University of Foreign Studies. It is designed to align with our country's "One Belt, One Road" initiative and to establish Macao as a commercial service platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. The three parties will carry out in-depth strategic cooperation in fields of cross-language big data think-tank, machine translation, computer-aided translation, speech recognition and semantic search. Meanwhile, they will take advantage of Macao as a meeting point of Chinese and Western culture and an exchange platform for China, European Union and Portuguese-speaking countries, to standardize the quality of Chinese-Portuguese translation, improve the efficiency of translation and set up a good example of coordination between industrial, educational and researching institutions of China and Portugal. Together with its inauguration ceremony, the joint laboratory launched the first version of Chinese-Portuguese machine translation engine for Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. It has achieved an outstanding quality and has become one of the world's best Chinese-Portuguese machine translation engines so far. In the future, the laboratory will lead further research and development in domains of Chinese-Portuguese & Portuguese-Chinese statistics-based machine translation (MT) technology, small-scale corpora-based MT technology, embedded MT technology, neural network-based MT technology and Portuguese speech recognition technology, etc. The laboratory will focus on improvement of performance and quality of machine translation, so as to provide advanced technology and platform support for Chinese-Portuguese exchange, as well as the governmental, commercial and cultural exchanges of Macao Special Administrative Region. Media Contact: Company Name: Global Tone Communication Technology Co., Ltd. Address: F/16, China Railway Construction Building, No. 20, Shijingshan Road, Shijingshan District, Bejing, China E-mail: marketing@gtcom.com.cn Website: http://www.gtcom.com.cn New York, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/19/2016 -- Thermoformed plastic products can be produced by heating a plastic sheet to a pliable forming temperature, shaping it as desirable, and trimming it to create a usable end product. Plastics can be thermoformed through various processes which include vacuum snapback, plug assist forming, and thick and thin gauge thermoforming. Different raw materials used for manufacturing thermoformed plastic products include acrylics, bio-degradable polymers, polycarbonates, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polystyrene (PS), and poly vinyl chloride (PVC). Thermoformed plastic products are usually lighter in weight and relatively-stronger compared to traditional packaging materials such as glass and woods. Thus, they are most-widely used in different packaging applications in electronic, healthcare, and food packaging industries. Browse full Report @ http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/thermoformed-plastic-products-market.asp Based on application, the global thermoformed plastic products market can be segmented into six categories: food packaging, appliances, electronic packaging, healthcare packaging, automotive, and others. Thermoformed plastic products find the largest application in the food packaging industry. Thermoformed plastic products are used in the food packaging industry as a barrier to bacteria, odor, and moisture to food products. In terms of geography, North America dominates the global thermoformed plastic products market due to the growing packaging industry and rapid industrialization. The U.S. represents the largest market for thermoformed plastic products followed by Canada in North America. In Europe, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the U.K. hold major share of the thermoformed plastic products market. The thermoformed plastic products market in Asia Pacific is expected to witness high growth rates in the next five years due to rising disposable income and increasing demand for food and healthcare packaging in the region. Japan, China, and India are expected to be the fastest-growing thermoformed plastic products markets in Asia Pacific. Increasing disposable income, increasing demand for ready-to-eat food, and increasing demand for food and healthcare packaging are some of the major driving factors of the thermoformed plastic products market. Increasing demand for thermoformed plastic products in the food industry is mainly driven by increased sales of canned and packaged food products. Increased demand for canned and packaged food products are mainly driven by changing lifestyle of people, rising urbanization, and hectic life schedule . Increasing disposable income in developing countries such as India and China is expected to increase growth of the thermoformed plastic products market. Increasing disposable income allows customers to spend more on convenience, ready-to-eat, and packaged food, which indirectly boost demand for thermoformed plastic products in the food packaging industry. According to the National Bureau of Statistics China, annual per capita disposable income of urban households in China increased from USD 2,271.0 in 2008 to USD 3408.5 in 2012. The overall annual disposable income in India median household income increased from USD 1,366.2 billion in 2010 to USD 1,587.6 billion in 2013. Increasing raw material prices act as a major restraint for the thermoformed plastic product market. The most commonly -used resins in the thermoforming process are polypropylene, polyethylene, PET, and polystyrene. PP witnessed 21% increase in price from January 2011and 20% increase since January 2012 . Other resins such as PS increases by 25% on per-pound pricing since January 2012, and 13 percent since January 2012 . Data shown here is for large-volume purchases of more than 20 million pounds per year. Request for Sample Report and Table of content @ http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/3873 Some of the major companies operating in the thermoformed plastic products market are Pactiv, LLC., Anchor Packaging, Inc., Associated Packaging, Ltd., Peninsula Packaging Company, LLC., Placon Group, Berry Plastics, CM Packaging, Clear Lam Packaging, Graham Packaging, D&W Fine Pack, Huhtamaki Group, and Silgan Plastics. Key geographies evaluated in this report are: North America U.S Canada Europe France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK Eastern Europe CIS APAC China India Japan Australia Others Latin America Argentina Brazil Others Key features of this report -Drivers, restraints, and challenges shaping the Thermoformed Plastic Products market dynamics -Latest innovations and key events in the industry -Analysis of business strategies of the top players -Thermoformed Plastic Products market estimates and forecasts(2015 -2021) About Persistence Market Research Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a full-service market intelligence firm specializing in syndicated research, custom research, and consulting services. PMR boasts market research expertise across the Healthcare, Chemicals and Materials, Technology and Media, Energy and Mining, Food and Beverages, Semiconductor and Electronics, Consumer Goods, and Shipping and Transportation industries. The company draws from its multi-disciplinary capabilities and high-pedigree team of analysts to share data that precisely corresponds to clients' business needs. PMR stands committed to bringing more accuracy and speed to clients' business decisions. From ready-to-purchase market research reports to customized research solutions, PMR's engagement models are highly flexible without compromising on its deep-seated research values. According to a team of researchers led by Southwest Research Institute scientist Simon Porter, Kuiper belt objects (KBO) JR1 and MU69 are as red as, if not redder than, the dwarf planet Pluto. JR1 (full name 1994 JR1) is a minor planet about 90 miles (150 km) in diameter. This object is currently an accidental quasi-satellite of Pluto and it will remain as such for 350,000 years. It is also a so-called plutino, a trans-Neptunian object in 2:3 mean-motion resonance with the gas giant Neptune. JR1 was observed by NASAs New Horizons spacecraft using the LOng Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) on November 2, 2015 from a distance of 1.85 AU (astronomical units), and again on April 7, 2016 from a distance of 0.71 AU, Dr. Porter and co-authors said. These were the first close observations of any KBO other than Pluto, and the first ever of a small KBO at close range. Combining ground-based and Hubble observations at small phase angles and the LORRI observations at higher phase angles, we produced the first disk-integrated solar phase curve of a typical in-situ KBO from 0.6 to 58 degrees phase angle. Observations at these geometries, a range only attainable using a spacecraft in the outer Solar System, constrain surface properties such as macroscopic roughness and the single particle phase function, they said. JR1 is currently 2.7 AU from Pluto. Our astrometric points enable high-precision orbit determination and integrations which show that it comes this close to Pluto every 2.4 million years, causing Pluto to perturb JR1. During the November spacecraft observation, the KBO was simultaneously observed using the NASA/ ESA Hubble Space Telescope in two colors, confirming its very red spectral slope. The Hubble data also suggest that MU69 (full name 2014 MU69), a small KBO about a billion miles (1.6 billion km) beyond Pluto and the next target for New Horizons, has the similar color as JR1. MU69 is actually the smallest KBO to have its color measured and Dr. Porter and his colleagues have used that data to confirm the object is part of the so-called cold classical region of the Kuiper Belt, which is believed to contain some of the oldest, most prehistoric material in the Solar System. The reddish color tells us the type of KBO MU69 is, said New Horizons team member Dr. Amanda Zangari, also from Southwest Research Institute. The data confirms that on New Years Day 2019, New Horizons will be looking at one of the ancient building blocks of the planets. The researchers presented their findings this week at the joint 48th annual meeting of the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society and 11th annual European Planetary Science Congress in Pasadena, California. _____ Simon Porter et al. 2016. The First High-Phase Observations of a KBO: New Horizons Imaging of (15810) 1994 JR 1 from the Kuiper Belt. DPS48/EPSC11, abstract #113.09 ESAs ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) will arrive at Mars later today, and will enter orbit around the planet. The ExoMars Schiaparelli module will land in a flat area in Meridiani Planum, close to the equator in Red Planets southern hemisphere. Full coverage of TGO arrival and Schiaparelli landing will be streamed live from the main control room of ESOs European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Darmstadt, Germany, starting after 9:00 a.m. EDT (6:00 a.m. PDT, 1:00 p.m. GMT, 3:00 p.m. CET). The TGO orbiter is in great shape and ready to swing into orbit around Mars said ExoMars mission controllers at ESOC. The most critical moment so far in TGOs journey will be todays Mars orbit insertion burn the long (134 min) engine firing that will slow the spacecraft down sufficiently to be captured into Mars orbit, added Thomas Ormston, a spacecraft operations engineer at ESOC. The burn will be performed autonomously by the orbiter, based on commands uplinked beforehand by the control team. Around half an hour before the burn starts, currently set for 9:04:47 a.m. EDT (6:04:47 a.m. PDT, 1:04:47 p.m. GMT, 3:04:47 p.m. CET), the spacecraft will begin turning around to point its big main engine toward the direction of travel. As this is happening, the large 2.2-m high gain antenna on the TGO will be locked into a safe boost position for the burn. As this doesnt point it at Earth, we will temporarily lose contact with the spacecraft. Also at almost the same time, the solar arrays will rotate and also lock into their safe boost position. Finally the orbiter will start reconfiguring its radios to send a beacon signal through its Low Gain Antenna. When this radio reconfiguration is complete, the orbiter will start sending out this carrier only signal. The signal will be acquired by NASAs big 70-m dish in Canberra, Australia and that will let the team on ground know that the orbiter is there. Critically it should also show a jump in frequency caused by Doppler shift as the orbiter fires its engine, allowing us to monitor the progress of the burn even without telemetry data. The Schiaparelli lander is programmed to wake up at about 9:37 a.m. EDT (6:37 a.m. PDT, 1:37 p.m. GMT, 3:37 p.m. CET) for its landing demonstration mission. Since its successful separation on October 16, Schiaparelli has been free-falling toward Mars. At the moment the lander is asleep, save for a timer that will wake it up just before it arrives at the top of the Martian atmosphere today, October 19, Ormston said. The purpose of Schiaparelli is to teach us and provide experience with the technology Europe needs to land on Mars. Thats why, no matter what happens during the descent, it is critical to hear as much as possible about every step of the journey so we can maximize our learning from Schiaparelli. There is a cooperative international listening in campaign ready to monitor signals from the landing module as it conducts the critical entry, descent and landing sequence today, leading to touch down and the start of surface science at about 10:48 a.m. EDT (7:48 a.m. PDT, 2:48 p.m. GMT, 4:48 p.m. CET), the mission controllers added. The Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope in India will listen from Earth, while a fleet of NASA and ESA orbiters listen from Mars orbit. Eight communities in remote towns of Costa Rica are set to receive drugs via pilotless aerial vehicles (drones) starting from 2017, thanks to a new programme implemented by the governments public health authority. The programme will link basic health centers in these remote communities with distribution points operated by the Costa Rican Social Security Fund (CCSS). The use of drones is expected to reduce the waiting time for receiving drugs to 45 minutes after an order is placed. Currently, patients in remote areas wait anywhere from several hours to three days to receive the medicine. Were talking about patients that need to travel for hours in difficult conditions to reach medical care. They live in adverse economic conditions and cant travel repeatedly, says Esteban Vega, the national coordinator of pharmaceutical services for the CCSS. The CCSS currently uses all-terrain vehicles, motorcycles or boats to deliver medicines in remote communities, but being so isolated increases the waiting time for supplies to arrive, particularly in indigenous areas of the western Talamanca mountain range. Were talking about patients that need to travel for hours in difficult conditions to reach medical care. They live in adverse economic conditions and cant travel repeatedly. Esteban Vega, CCSS In September this year the Costa Rican social security authority employed the firm Zipline, which specialises in delivering medical products with a drone system. The company is expected to make flight plans and test flights in the next six months. Each month the programme hopes to deliver 13,200 medical packages using this technology with a cost close to US $26.000. To ensure that drugs are used appropriately, requests will be made by a CCSS-affiliated doctor in the community. A worker will then prepare the package at a medical center nearby [close to the location that requests it], and the 10kg drone will deliver it to its destination.The CCSS is also taking steps to modernize the way drug requests are made by using electronic prescription, a new system piloted since May this year, which allows health professionals to request medicines digitally. Electronic prescriptions are key for this [drone delivery plan] to work, Vega said. The outcome of this first drug-delivery project will determine whether it can be applied in other parts of the country, or in emergencies. This assessment of suitability is fundamental to guarantee the correct application of technology, Kalema Gordon, main technology adviser in e-government of the Ministry of Youth and Technology of Rwanda, told SciDev.Net.Rwanda is using the same company to deliver blood samples to remote parts of the country from this month onwards.Finding the appropriate and feasible use of drones in Rwanda was also critical to build the right partnerships, equipment and financial support , Gordon explained, arguing that technological innovations are a means to an end, rather than the goal itself. Find out more about ZipLine in this video: This piece was produced by SciDev.Nets Latin America and Caribbean desk. The Indo-French alliance for rockets is spread across Asia, Europe and South America. The Kourou in South America houses an expansive 700 sq km European space port in the middle of lush green rain forests. That port is a heartening sight for all Indian nationals as their tricolor soars high along with the EU and French flags. According to The Economic Times, France has been the only country that has contributed the most in the space sector in partnering with India. India has always reciprocated with same zeal as France has benefitted as well from this collaboration. France helped India in launching its first ever baby rocket, back in the year 1963, and it has aided the launch of India's heavy weight communication satellite, GSAT-18 on October 6, 2016. It is quite evident that India has strong and deep connections with France when it comes to the space sector. India and France both have designed rocket engines together, have constructed satellites for each other, assisted each other in learning things that were being to one another by the other countries, and most importantly, both countries have helped train human resources in this front. All this has successfully led both countries gain the recognition of frontline space powers, each in their own right. In recent times, the Indo-French collaboration jointly made a satellite devoted to the study of Earth's water cycle, known as Megha Tropiques. This was a 1,000 kg satellite launched using the PSLV in 2011. ISRO and CNES signed a new documentation that stated the joint continuation of the mission for next four years. Establishing a new partnership, ISRO and CNES have decided to engage in a new collaborative climate mission. The French Argos data-collection instrument will fly on the Indian Oceansat-3 satellite in 2018. India and France have also begun development of a future joint thermal infrared observation satellite, according to The Wire. "India is one of the best partners and customers for France," says CNES president, Jean-Yves Le Gall further adding that in the coming times, CNES and ISRO might explore planets like Mars and Venus jointly. "After India's Mars Orbiter Mission, the next step has to be a lander. A lander on Mars is not easy, but it will be interesting to undertake," states Le Gall. As the saying goes, in space technology neither is any frontier impossible, nor is any dream too big, especially for France and India that soar high to decrypt the codes and secrets of the universe, while not forgetting the needs of the Earthlings. Studying comets allows scientists and researchers learn various facts about the initial moments of the Solar System. Hence, having accurate and reliable knowledge about their history becomes very important. A research team from Western University, Canada used statistical analysis along with scientific computing to work out the history of origin of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko or Rosetta's comet. According to IFL Science, their model showed that just 10,000 years ago the comet landed itself into its current location, i.e., an eccentric orbit between Jupiter and Earth. It was present in the Kuiper Belt lying beyond the orbit of Neptune before moving to the present location. Around 400,000 years ago, the comet's orbit might have taken it beyond Pluto. This discovery indicates that 67P is a part of a group known as the Jupiter-family comets that are highly influenced by the gas giant. These findings and results were presented before the public at the 11th annual European Planetary Science Congress (EPSC) in Pasadena, California and joint 48th annual meeting of the Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). "These results come from computations of the comet's orbit from the present to the past, which is computationally difficult due to the chaosity of the orbit caused by close encounters with Jupiter," said Mattia Galiazzo in a statement. He added further that the details are obscure but a dynamical pathway from Comet 67P's current location to the Kuiper Belt can be established. The Kuiper Belt is that region of the Solar System that extends from the Neptune orbit towards outer side. The belt is full of comets, asteroids, and many dwarf planets such as Pluto. A majority of the small objects in this belt have remained unchanged since the birth of the Solar System. This makes the findings very fascinating. Galiazzo and Paul Wiegert, his collaborator, believe that comet 67P is made up of the primordial material that has made up all the planets. Comet 67P is just a recent arrival in the inner Solar System. Before that, the comet must have spent millions of years in the scattering disk, a far-away portion of the Kuiper Belt. At a certain point, the comet's path brought it closer to Jupiter, which started controlling 67P's orbit and trapped it on its current location. Known to many, insufficient sleep affects brain function and mood. But recent studies have shown that lack of sleep can cause more serious adverse effects particularly in one's learning and personality. According to Daily Mail, researchers have found that insufficient sleep can literally shrink the brain, increase levels of stress, and impair memory. The most vulnerable are those with regularly disrupted body clock like shift workers and nursing mothers. Among the cases studied were those of airline cabin crews. University of Bristol's scientists conducted a study wherein they measured the size of the volunteers' brains' temporal lobe region using scanning technology. Dr. Kwangkook Cho led the study. The volunteers were female air stewardesses working for five years. Half of them had working intervals that were less than five days between long-haul flights, while the other half had intervals longer than 14 days. Dr. Cho found that the temporal lobe regions shrunk among volunteers with the shortest flight intervals, whereas those with longer intervals did not suffer in the same way. The said region is critical to memory. Apparently, those whose brains shrunk had higher levels of stress hormone cortisol and worse memories. Previous studies suggested that high levels of cortisol caused by post-traumatic stress and severe depression have links to temporal lobe shrinkage. Meanwhile, Independent reported how insufficient sleep affects one's learning and personality. For instance, popular New York DJ Peter Tripp pledged to stay awake for 200 hours in 1959. This was for charity purposes, and he still continued to host his radio show amidst the "wakeathon". The act affected his personality as time went by. Usually cheerful, he started cursing and insulting people including his close friends. At the end of his endeavor, Tripp showed paranoid behaviors and started hallucinating. Independent also cited other cases like those of gamblers who made less risky decisions after being awake for significantly long hours. Furthermore, experts stressed that another brain area suffers due to insufficient sleep. It is the hippocampus, which is critical for storing memories. Studies have found that lack of sleep affects a person's ability to memorize and in turn affects the process of learning. Experts also emphasized the need to understand the value of complete rest and its benefits. Snoozing is an important factor in making better decisions, learning better, and having a happier personality and life as a whole. GARNER Two women being sued by their stepfather for defamation of character and malicious prosecution say they are the ones who have been defamed. Suzan Brunes, of Klemme, and Linda Dunshee, of Urbandale, filed a defamation counterclaim last week against their stepfather, former state legislator Henry Rayhons of Garner and his son, Dale Rayhons, of Forest City. Their claim is in response to a civil lawsuit Henry Rayhons filed against them and others last year in the wake of his acquittal on charges he sexually abused his wife, Donna Rayhons, by having sex with her at Concord Care Center in Garner. Prosecutors alleged Donna Rayhons, the mother of Brunes and Dunshee, was unable to consent to sex due to the effects of Alzheimers disease. Donna Rayhons died of natural causes in August 2015. In their counterclaim last week, Dunshee and Brunes said allegations Henry Rayhons made in his lawsuit that they wouldnt let him see their dying mother in the final weeks of her life in were untrue and defamatory. They said the same of allegations that they were the ones who demanded criminal charges be filed against him and put their mother in the rest home without his knowledge. Dunshee and Brunes also accused Dale Rayhons of defamation. Their filing does not specify what Dale Rayhons said that was allegedly defamatory. Marc Harding, Henry Rayhons attorney, did not return two phone messages left Tuesday afternoon seeking comment on the counterclaim. When reached Tuesday via e-mail, Dale Rayhons said he needed to consult with his attorneys before commenting on the counterclaim. A jury acquitted Henry Rayhons of criminal charges in April 2015. Believing Brunes and Dunshee had pushed for his prosecution, Henry Rayhons and his attorney in the criminal case, Joel Yunek, attempted after the verdict to gain access to emails between the sisters, the Iowa Attorney Generals Office and the Iowa Department of Public Safety. He filed the civil lawsuit against the sisters in July. In addition to Brunes and Dunshee, Rayhons suit also includes the prosecutor who filed the felony sex abuse charge against him, Susan Krisko, as well as Concord Care Center Medical Director Dr. John Brady, medical director at Concord Care Center and the parent company of the care center, ABCM Corporation. Rayhons accused Brady of not having an independent medical assessment done on Donna Rayhons before restricting sexual relations with her husband and also deferring to the sisters in not allowing him to take his wife on outings. Krisko has since been dropped from the case. A judge ruled she was exempt from the claim. Coffee is considered to be one of the most popular caffeinated drinks out there. However, conventional people say that having too much caffeine in your drink can affect your heart. Now, a small Brazilian study has disputed that thinking and revealed that drinking high doses of caffeine doesn't seem to increase the risk of having irregular heartbeats, especially in people with heart failure. According to UPI Health News, lead researcher Dr. Luis Rohde said: "Our data reassures that most patients with heart disease might drink moderate doses of caffeine-rich beverages with no major risks." Dr. Rohde is from the division of cardiology at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul in Porto Alegre. Beverages rich in caffeine have always been believed to cause a number of heart-related symptoms including palpitations or rapid or irregular heartbeats, Dr. Rohde said. "Because of this assumption, counseling to reduce or avoid caffeine consumption is still widely recommended in clinical practice by most physicians for patients with any heart disease," he said. However, Dr. Rohde's team did not find any connection between caffeine and abnormal heartbeats. He even explained saying: "In fact, our results challenge the perception that patients with heart disease and at risk for arrhythmias should avoid or limit caffeine intake." For the study, researchers enlisted 51 patients with predominantly moderate-to-severe heart failure. Half of the group was given decaffeinated coffee combined with 500mg of caffeine over a five-hour period, while the other participants received placebo lactose powder, Global Times reported. The study also included a treadmill test an hour after the last time the participants drank the beverage. This is to test the potential proarrhythmic effect of caffeine use during exercise with the highest blood caffeine concentration. The researchers were taken aback to find no connection between consuming caffeine and episodes of arrhythmia, even during the physical stress of a treadmill test. "We did not observe any indication of a potential increased risk of ventricular or supraventricular premature beats, couplets, or non-sustained tachycardia," they wrote in the paper. Researchers' finding was published online Oct. 17 in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. Meanwhile, Dr. Christopher Granger, a professor of medicine at Duke University in Durham, N.C. and co-authored an accompanying journal editorial, said: "this study adds to the body of evidence that coffee and caffeine consumption appears to be safe from a cardiovascular perspective. He further explained that even in a high-risk group, which he referred to as "a group you might be most concerned about drinking caffeine," it showed that modest caffeine consumption was safe, reported US News. However, Dr. Granger also warned that caffeine is a stimulant and that it can somehow increase the blood pressure, although it didn't have an effect on the heart rate of those who joined the study. Dr. Granger noted that the study doesn't clear all forms of caffeine for heart patients either. "It did not take into account energy drinks that contain a lot of caffeine; there may be adverse effects from that," he said. The bottom line from this study is that "modest amounts of coffee are safe even for people who have heart problems," Granger said. A number of drugs have already been identified to have depression or other mood disorders as possible side effects including medications for asthma and acne, as well as corticosteroids, which treat inflammation, and some contraceptives. Now, experts are debating whether or not drugs given to treat high blood pressure should be added to the list. According to Medical Daily, about one in three Americans suffer from hypertension (high blood pressure), and although the results did not exactly explain how a new study suggests that those under medications to treat the disorder may be at risk of developing depression and several other mental health problems. The study, published in the American Heart Association journal Hypertension, found that common prescription medications to treat high blood pressure, such as beta-blockers, calcium channel blockers, and angiotensin antagonists, were related to visits to hospitals for a number of mental health conditions including depression and bipolar disorder. The Washington Post reported that people taking a beta-blocker or a calcium channel blocker were two times more likely to have been admitted with a mood disorder compared to those taking an angiotensin antagonist. Researchers also found that patients taking an angiotensin antagonist were 53 percent less likely to have been hospitalized with a mood disorder than those who don't take blood pressure medication. The study also revealed that thiazide diuretics were not associated with any risk for mood disorder hospitalization. These findings were based on the medical records of 144,066 adults with an average age of 56. Among the group, 32,130 people reported taking one of the four high blood pressure medications. These individuals were followed over a five-year period and 299 out of the total number of people in the group were admitted to the hospital with complaints of a mood disorder. "There is a lot of data that depression and cardiovascular disease are related ... but current hypertensive practices do not consider depression," lead study author Dr. Sandosh Padmanabhan told CNN. "This validated those (earlier) findings, but also means blood pressure tablets could be repurposed for mental health conditions." It is also important to note that since it is only an observational study. With that being said, the researchers were not able to determine the cause and effect relationship. They are not sure what's happening to the molecular levels to generate such results. However, the researchers strongly believe that the findings could have important indications, especially prevention strategies, as well as new methods of treating depression. "There could be some people who are predisposed to depression who we should not be giving these drugs," Padmanabhan told CNN, adding "if angiotensin blockers are protective, then there is a role to repurpose them." Science is indeed a line of discoveries and breakthrough. Who would have thought that human facial expression can have a difference? A new study shows how the facial expression is not universal. A team of researchers from the United States and Spain conducted a research and discovered evidence that human facial expressions are not the same as many people thought. The study was published in a paper entitled Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In the paper, they show how they carried out facial recognition studies on native people residing in New Guinea and the difference experts found in one facial expression from the majority of people around the world. In the study, four of the research team namely Carlos Crivelli, James Russell, Jose-Miguel Fernandez-Dolsa and Sergio Jarillo went to the island of Trobriand off the coast of Papua New Guinea to live with the group of people. The culture in which the researcher lived managed to exist without the interaction from the others for hundreds it thousands of years. Before the researchers tested the group of people right away, they first engage themselves in the culture by learning the language and their everyday routine. After they have adjusted, they then asked the young people to gather and sit down. They then asked the young people to look at the images of people with different facial expressions, according to IFL Science. The result of the study found that the Trobrianders has the same interpretation the same way the westerns looked at the facial expressions. However, there was one photo that differs their interpretation. When the experts showed them wide-eyed people with mouth slightly open, they viewed is as threatening while the westerns commonly associate it with fear. The research team indicates that their findings suggest that the human facial expressions are not entirely as universal as what most commonly would know. They also acknowledge that they cannot tell whether the contrast in the interpretation was due to the influence on how does the group interprets the certain emotion or whether they feel something different while looking at the images, according to Medical Xpress. China recently launched a manned space project with its Shenzhou 11 rocket into orbit carrying two Chinese astronauts. The project was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch center in notrhtern part of China. intended to test and develop China's ability to conduct more launch and explore space. The manned launch carrying two men took place at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch center in northern part of China. The men will be docking in the Tiangong 2 space lab, an experimental space entity of the Chinese government. The orbital trip will last for 30 days for both men and it is so far the longest duration of stay in space by Chinese astronauts. This recent event together with previous launches are considered as stepping stones for Chinese space projects for a possible crewed missions to the Moon or even Mars. An earlier version of Tiangong or 'Heavenly Palace' station was decommissioned earlier this year after docking with rockets prior to this current launch. Chinese astronauts on this latest space mission were 49-year old Jing Haipeng who already has a couple of completed space mission under his belt. The other Chinese astronaut is 37-year old Chen Dong. The current launch will take the taikonauts two full days before they reach the orbiting Chinese laboratory. The men will mostly spend their time in space in analyzing plant growth and development in space. They will also be administering ultrasound to themselves to scan and analyze their body's performance while they are high up in the orbiting lab. With this great event on China, only a handful of foreign media were allowed to enter inside the high security launch base to cover the launch. China is seen to be very proud of its own version of space program. While at the time being, the communist country is being criticized for continuous expansion and show of military strength especially in the Souch China Sea. China wants the world to see that this launch is different. They would also want to be portrayed as a contributing nation into the body of knowledge in space explorations. Depression has been linked with so many deaths that include suicide. Experts have been trying to find several medications with this mental illness. The current study shows that anti-inflammatory may help cure depression. A new study found that a new group of anti-inflammatory drugs may able to treat patients suffering from depression. The connection between these drugs and depression is, it may site the inflammation that is present in the mental health condition. These new anti-inflammatory drugs are used to treat autoimmune diseases such as psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis. In a review published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, experts also shared that the new anti-inflammatory drugs can also reduce symptoms of depression. However, the anti-inflammatory drugs were not tested to treat depression. But, when it was tested as treatment fir autoimmune conditions, the collected data shows that the patients have symptoms of depression. The experts added that for future research regarding these drugs to treat depression, the patients being tested is warranted. To further their research with the connection of the anti-inflammatory drugs and depression, the researcher conducted a meta-analysis. For example one meta-analysis the studied seven random controlled trials. They compared this anti-cytokine drug to a placebo. These seven trials are composed of 2,370 people that have an autoimmune condition, in a report by Live Science. As a result, the patients who were given the anti-inflammatory drugs have shown significant improvement, compared to those who were given the placebo. The result also shows that the anti-cytokine drugs might be helpful for people being treated with depression n cases anti-depressants does not work. Meanwhile, professor of psychiatry at the University of Cambridge, Peter Jones said that "it's too early to say whether these anti-cytokine drugs can be used in clinical practice for depression. We will need clinical trials to test how effective they are in patients who do not have the chronic conditions for which the drugs have been developed," according to Medical Xpress. New observations from the Hubble Space Telescope is suggesting that NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is expected to be flying an object much redder than that of Pluto. The space telescope is seeing a very red object floating form faraway. Hubble is used by the New Horizons team in studying 11 objects within the realm of frigid bodies way past Neptune's orbit called the Kuiper Belt. One of the most famous resident of the said realm is Pluto. Out of the 11 object that are being studied, 2014 MU69 is one of them which is expected to be passed by the New Horizon spacecraft on January 1, 2019. According to Amanda Zangari, New Horizons post-doctoral rerearcher from the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, upon their further observations from Hubble shows that the distant object 2014 MU69, "is even redder than Pluto, though not as red as Mars." This was during a news conference at a joint meeting of the American Astronomical Society Division for Planetary Congress in Pasadena, California. While the size of 2014 MU69's size is still a mystery to the astronomers, many of them believe that the object is just 13 to 35 miles (21 to 40km) wide. As of now, 2014 MU69 is the smallest Kuiper Belt Object that the color has been measured. Knowing the color hue of 2014 MU69, this information strongly suggests that 2014 MU69 is part of the Kuiper Belt's "cold classical" region. This region of the Kuiper Belt is said to harbor primordial objects that have changed little since the beginning of the solar system from 4.6 billion years ago. The $700 million New Horizons mission was launched way back January 2006. The spacecraft made its first-ever flyby of Pluto on July 14, 2015 and came within 7,800 miles of the distant planet's surface. The said fly-by revealed Pluto's complex and rich landscape diversity for scientists back on the ground can study. Russia is all prepared to launch its second crewed spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS), following the new line of Soyuz. This will be the first flight of its next-generation, miniature vehicle. Soyuz MS-02 will be launched on Wednesday, 19 October 2016, at 4.05 a.m. EDT from Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Russian astronauts Andrei Borisenko and Sergey Ryzhikov will fly on board the miniature vehicle for a two-day trip to ISS along with NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough. A small model of Russia's latest piloted transport spaceship will be hanging over the astronauts' heads, slinging in red, white and blue ribbon. The nation space agency, Roscosmos, sees it as a replacement for Soyuz. "Our zero-g indicator will be a toy of the new generation spacecraft," said Ryzhikov, Soyuz MS-02's commander, in an interview with collectSPACE.com, "because the [Soyuz] MS includes equipment that will be used in the new craft." This spaceship is similar to Orion Crew Exploration vehicle by NASA. It was named "Federatsiya," or Federation by a public vote. "Federation is a perfect name for a series of new Russian spacecraft," officials with RSC Energia, the contractor that is building the vehicle for Roscosmos, stated in a press release. "Russia is a federation of 85 constituent entities and each of them will be able to give its name for one of the ships." Energia is the manufacturer for Soyuz, including the Soyuz MS-02 that will take off with Ryzhikov, Kimbrough and Borisenko today. The toy version of Federatsiya imitates the shape of the spacecraft's propulsion and descent modules, into the carrier's two solar array wings. The Soyuz MS-02 crew will stay at ISS with their Federatsiya zero-g indicator a little longer than 4 months before returning to Earth in February-end. Quite similar to NASA's Orion, the real Federatsiya is being developed to go beyond lower orbit of Earth to carry cargo and people to moon. The first space flight of the full-sized Federatsiya is aimed to launch in 2023 atop Russia's future Angara heavy-lift rocket. WEST DES MOINES | A new billboard in Des Moines and comments from a Republican colleague have rekindled the debate, but Chuck Grassley remains ever adamant that the U.S. Senate should not hold hearings on the presidents U.S. Supreme Court nominee until next year after a new president and Congress are sworn in. Grassley, the Iowa Republican who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee through which Supreme Court nominations must pass, has joined GOP Senate leadership in blocking President Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominee, saying the vacancy created in February by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia should not be filled during an election year. For that, Grassley has drawn criticism and political pressure from Democrats and liberal advocacy groups. One such group, Progress Iowa, unveiled a new billboard advertisement Tuesday near downtown Des Moines that highlights the issue. And on Monday, U.S. Sen. John McCain said in a radio interview that Senate Republicans will be united against any Supreme Court nominee presented by Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, should she win. McCains office later said the senator will examine any Supreme Court nominee and vote for or against the individual, and that his comment was meant to reflect his belief that Clinton has a clear record of supporting liberal judicial nominees. Theyre basically saying that were going to process nominees, but whether we vote for them or not is a completely different thing, Grassley told reporters Tuesday after holding a public event at Unity Point Health-Methodist West Hospital here. I think based on the letter I signed on Feb. 23 to my colleagues, that we ought to let the people have a voice and a new president make a decision, it means that we will advise hopefully before they name somebody. Grassley is running for re-election to the U.S. Senate. His Democratic challenger is former Iowa ag secretary and lieutenant governor Patty Judge. Grassley said he hopes the next president, whether it is Clinton or Republican candidate Donald Trump, nominates a dispassionate judge unlike current justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor who, Grassley said, vote as a bloc all the time in an ideological way and arent always dispassionate. Grassley said he approves of a list of potential nominees presented by Trump, saying the judges have been vetted by a lot of organizations that believe the Supreme Court ought to interpret law and not make law. The new Progress Iowa billboard, which is part of a $20,000 advertising campaign, according to the organizations executive director, features a photo of Grassley and text that reads, Obstruction is not an Iowa value and points observers to the website chuckobstructs.com. West Des Moines man Dan Towers said Tuesday at a Progress Iowa news conference to unveil the billboard ad that as a U.S. Army veteran he took the same oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution as do U.S. Senators, and implored Grassley to honor that oath by holding a hearing on Obamas Supreme Court nominee. Ive voted for Sen. Grassley in the past. Ive admired Sen. Grassleys integrity, the fact that he always represented Iowans with a voice of principle and integrity, Towers said. Im asking Sen. Grassley and the senators to not only do your job in holding hearings but to uphold your sworn duty to uphold the Constitution of the United States. CLARKSVILLE Between planting and harvest this year, Randy Wedeking was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrigs disease. Farm Rescue, a nonprofit organization, helped Wedeking and wife Brenda harvest their 1,200 acres of corn in Butler County this week. The North Dakota-based group helps farmers in need by providing hands and equipment. Volunteers brought a combine and other equipment to help with the harvest. However, Wedeking wasnt going to sit it out. He drove his tractor and hauled his grain cart alongside the Farm Rescue combine. The harvest is what its all about, Wedeking said Tuesday. Ive got probably the best corn crop in my 44 years. The couple noticed something wasnt quite right during harvest last year. Randy Wedeking was getting easily fatigued and had trouble with fine motor skills. They finished harvest nonetheless. He wasnt much better in spring, but again the couple managed to get through planting. Wedeking was diagnosed with ALS in late June. Brenda Wedeking began to look for help with the upcoming harvest and found Farm Rescue. We knew the disease would progress, she said. We didnt know what condition he would be in by fall. Although Wedeking cant tie his shoes and needs two hands to brush his teeth, he ran the tractor and with family help harvested about one-third of his corn. Im going to do it as long as I can climb up into that cab, he said. Levi Wielenga, Farm Rescue equipment specialist, said he wasnt going to make Wedeking sit out the harvest as long as he can physically do it. I havent spilled a single grain, Wedeking said. That Wedeking is determined to work to finish the harvest wasnt a surprise to Wielenga. You will never stay farming if youre not determined, he said. Youre just an eternal optimist if youre a farmer. For years, the Wedekings have worked to upgrade their equipment. Randy Wedeking retired from Terex Crane in Waverly but continued to work on the farm he has shared with his wife for more than 35 years. A similar retirement from farming wasnt his plan, he said. I just wanted to do something useful right up to the day I died, he said. Wedeking choked up with emotion thinking this harvest might be his last. Once were done, thats ... thats probably going to be it, he said. The couple built the operation and finally acquired all the equipment they needed. Now he cant run it, Brenda Wedeking said. Knowing it may be their last harvest is hard on both Wedekings. As a farm wife, it kind of hurts, she said. I know it hurts my husband worse its his dream. It has been a fun ride for us, said Randy Wedeking. With their last harvest comes a new outlook. Wedeking said he feels more at peace than ever. He credits his faith and wife. I used to be high-strung and I worried about things that werent important, he said. Now Im actually living and trying to live my life to the fullest. To seek assistance or donate to Farm Rescue, go to farmrescue.org. The Wedekings also ask people to support the ALS Association at alsa.org. John Molseed reports for the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, like the Globe Gazette a Lee Enterprises newspaper. MASON CITY Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said Tuesday night Hillary Clinton has a lifetime of leadership and is ready to be president. Speaking to a crowd of about 100 at the Cerro Gordo County Democratic headquarters, Albright said, No one who has ever run for president has been more prepared than Hillary Clinton. But she warned her audience not to be confident of victory on Nov. 8. People ask me if Im an optimist or a pessimist. I tell them Im an optimist who worries a lot, she said. Albright said she has known Clinton since Clinton was head of the Childrens Defense Fund 30 years ago. She wanted to speak and help people who couldnt speak for themselves and she still does, said Albright. She said when Clinton was first lady and Albright was secretary of state, the two of them went to the Beijing Womens Conference. She was a guest but she was the superstar, said Albright. She electrified everyone with her speech on how womens rights are human rights and human rights are womens rights. She said she is indebted to Clinton for endorsing her to be secretary of state when Warren Christopher stepped down. She said a lot of names were being floated around as his successor and her name became part of what she called the great mentioning that happens so often in Washington. Albright said Clintons view was Why not Madeleine? who had been serving as U.N ambassador and she got the job. Albright, who was born in Czechoslovakia, said her proudest moment is when she became an American citizen while in college. She blasted Clintons opponent, Donald Trump, for saying the upcoming election is rigged. The American election system is the cornerstone of democracy, Albright said. Trumps contentions are foolish and are based on his thought that he is going to lose. But she spent most of her time praising Clinton and urging Democrats not to let Trump become president. It is up to you now. she said. Vote and get your friends and neighbors out. Its terribly important. CLEAR LAKE | A Clear Lake man was ordered to serve up to five years in prison after having his probation revoked last week on a felony theft conviction. Andrew R. Lukes, 36, pleaded guilty in December in Cerro Gordo County District Court to second-degree theft by check and received a suspended prison sentence and probation. He was accused of writing bad checks totaling more than $1,000 Oct. 4-6, 2015, at the Ventura Mart in Ventura. A probation violation report was filed in May of this year. Lukes was sentenced to up to two years in prison earlier this month for writing a bad check to purchase a vehicle. He also is facing revocation of his probation on a second-degree theft conviction from earlier this year in Story County. -- Mary Pieper In a letter to Canadian Transport Minister Marc Garneau, ICS secretary general Peter Hinchliffe points out the shipping industrys commitment to the goal of zero pollution as well its much improved and now impressive environmental record, especially of the tanker sector. There are now fewer than two significant oil spills (over 700 tonnes) per year, Hinchliffe points out, compared to around 25 such incidents thirty years ago, despite a doubling of the amount of oil transported by sea. The Exxon Valdez oil spill, which traumatised communities in Alaska and has drawn the ire of environmentalists ever since, occurred 27.5 years ago. Hinchliffe further emphasises the importance of Canada adhering to its obligations under the United Nations Law of the Sea, in particular the rights to freedom of navigation and innocent passage through a Partys territorial waters as enshrined in Articles 87 and 90. He also warns that such a draconian step as a moratorium might be emulated elsewhere, including by individual US states, and suggests instead that the Government considers alternative methods of risk management such as the establishment of marine transport corridors off the coast, as suggested by the Canadian shipping industry and in particular the Chamber of Shipping of British Columbia. Wholly-owned subsidiary Nakilat Shipping Qatar Limited (NSQL) will take over the management of 25 vessels - 14 Q-Max and 11 Q-Flex LNG carriers from oil major Shell in a phased transition beginning this year. Nakilat, which operates the worlds largest LNG fleet comprising 63 vessels, signed the planned transition agreement with Shell International Trading and Shipping Company Limited (Shell) on Wednesday. Shell has provided a range of shipping services to Nakilats LNG fleet since it was established in 2006 including the management of the 14 Q-Max and 11 Q-Flex LNG carriers and the sharing of Shells Shipping & Maritime global expertise. The management of the vessels will be transitioned in three phases to Nakilats in-house ship management arm, NSQL, which currently manages four large LPG carriers and four Q-Flex LNG carriers. Today marks a milestone in Nakilats history as we embark on consolidating a fully-fledged ship operation for our wholly-owned vessels, said Nakilat md, Eng. Abdullah Fadhalah Al Sulaiti (pictured). It is a pivotal strategic milestone towards Nakilats ambition of establishing an integrated maritime industry in Qatar. We are grateful to Shell for their professional management of our vessels over the last eight years and are confident of NSQL upholding the same excellent standards for our vessels, ensuring the safety and integrity of cargo from Qatar to the rest of the world. RELATED CONTENT Nakilat announces slight dip in Q3 profit to $205m The 25 vessels have reportedly delivered more than 320m cubic meters of Qatars LNG to more than 20 countries and have voyaged some 17m nautical miles - the equivalent of more than 780 trips around the equators circumference. Shell Shipping & Maritime provides commercial, ship management and technology services and is responsible for operations in 130 ports and terminals around the world. It manages a fleet of more than 40 LNG carriers and around 10 oil tankers and has more than 240 oil and LNG tankers on time charter. We are proud to be a partner with Nakilat and to continue to support Qatars vision of building a world-class shipping business, Dr. Grahaeme Henderson, vp of Shell Shipping & Maritime said in a statement. This world-leading fleet includes some of the largest and most technically advanced vessels of their type and their cargo helps ensure energy security for millions of people around the world. The Norwegian resigned from the Bahrain-based pan-Arab shipyard in August after just shy of three years at the helm for what were described at the time as family reasons. Magdy Mustafa, who has served the company for 38 years in various roles, has stepped in as acting ceo since September 1 in addition to fulfilling his current responsibilities as ASRYs procurement and contracts gm. However, ASRYs Chairman, H.E. Shaikh Daij Bin Salman Bin Daij Al-Khalifa, has confirmed the selection process for a new ceo was proceeding according to plan ahead of official announcement before December 2016. Both the criteria and the process of finding the ideal candidate to lead the management of ASRY into a new era have been very carefully considered during this transition period, he said. A combination of vision and experience will be required to maintain and strengthen ASRYs competitiveness going forward. ASRYs Board of Directors confronted the challenging market conditions at their recent 145th meeting at the companys Hidd-headquarters on 13 October. Regional and international economic pressures, regional competition in the shipyard market, as well as the fluctuations in oil price have squeezed ASRYs profits in 2016 with total sales to the end of September 2016 confirmed at $114.5m. No comparative data was disclosed. RELATED CONTENT Profits squeezed as ASRY reach 100th rig repair milestone Berge resignation confirmed as ASRY outline transition to Mustafa ASRY outlined measures to combat the challenging conditions including the appointment of a business advisory firm to assist in the assessment and creation of the best possible forward strategy for the companys future success. ASRYs facilities include a 500,000 dwt drydock, two floating docks of 252mtr and 227mtr in length, 15 repair berths with a total length of approximately 4,000m, twin 255mtr slipways, as well as a full range of workshops and service centres. MASON CITY | A Mason City man hurt in a crash on Avenue of the Saints was hospitalized in serious condition Wednesday. Steven Barnish, 54, lost control of his westbound Ford F-150 pickup about 7:30 p.m. near Thrush Exit in rural Mason City, said Cerro Gordo Sheriff's Lt. Matt Klunder. Officials say the truck rolled several times. Barnish was taken by ambulance to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa and then transferred to Saint Marys Hospital in Rochester, Minnesota. He was listed in serious condition Wednesday morning, a hospital spokeswoman said. Barnish was the only person in the truck, which was the only vehicle involved in the crash. Sheriff's deputies are still investigating. -- Molly Montag Our previous story: Man hurt in Avenue of the Saints rollover near Mason City MASON CITY A Mason City man was seriously injured when his truck rolled on the Avenue of the Saints Tuesday night. Steven Barnish, 54, of Mason City, lost control of a westbound 2004 Ford F-150 pickup about 7:30 p.m. near the exit for Thursh Avenue, said Cerro Gordo Sheriff's Lt. Matt Klunder. That's near mile marker 190. Mason City firefighters took Barnish by ambulance to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa. A hospital official said his condition wasn't immediately available Tuesday night, because he was still being evaluated. The crash remained under investigation Tuesday night. Molly Montag Check back at globegazette.com for updates on this developing story. Volunteers set off to fight invasives at Warren State Park. Photo by Mark Wedel. From the towering glory of Sleeping Bear Dunes to more modest southern Lake Michigan beaches, perhaps nothing in our state represents "Pure Michigan" better than our iconic sand dunes. But as with so many of Michigan's fragile native ecosystems, invasive weeds threaten to strangle the dunes. Exotic fungi and invasive bugs are killing the trees that are part of the dune ecosystem, while invasive water plants are choking coastal marshes and interdunal wetlands. There are around 550 miles of coastline on the Mitten's west that are under siege from alien invaders. Luckily, the combined forces of the The dunes are alive Shaun Howard, Eastern Lake Michigan project manager of the Nature Conservancy, says that preserving Michigan's dunes is a no-brainer. "It is the world's largest freshwater dune system," says Howard. "It's globally rare; a very, unique place. And I think a lot of us, especially in West Michigan and around the Great Lakes in general, lose sight of that. We have a tendency to take that amazing shoreline for granted." But that beauty depends on a complex system that can turn chaotic when thrown off balance. "The dunes are almost alive. They are a dynamic shifting mosaic of sand and species," Howard says. New homes and developments on the coast can stress the dunes, creating unexpected erosion, he says. And if you build in the wrong spot, expect to see your investment eventually "crumbling into the water," he says. Invasive plants can also cause the same effect. "When you have one species that outcompetes everything and dominates an area, it may alter those sand moving processes as well," he says. "Dunes are such a unique system, in that there's a set of plants and animals and processes that live or happen there, and nowhere else." That beauty is also "a major economic driver in the Great Lakes," Howard says. People from around the country flock to beach towns and parks. "Ecotourism and the draw to those areas are huge," he says. The dunes and coasts were one of the attractions of 2016's thriving tourist season, which the Detroit News And Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has been full of sand-climbers since ABC's "Good Morning America" ran a 2011 poll choosing it as " "We can't forget that we're also managing them for people. We all benefit greatly from the dunes being healthy and intact, and people wanting to go out and see them and spend their money when they go there," Howard says. But it's taken a lot of work. The Nature Conservancy first took on 1,800 acres of As the Nature Conservancy managed to get the lovely weed cleared, they learned that they needed to implement an "EDR" strategy "If you can find the first invasive plant on the landscape and remove it, it sure is a lot easier than waiting for it to be everywhere," Howard says. They also learned they needed to be a part of a larger force of invasive-fighters. So in 2007, the Nature Conservancy joined the Michigan Dune Alliance and received funding from the federal Together, the Dune Alliance partners learned to use many tools, including pulling, herbicides, burning, digging. Howard finds that "the majority of these plant species need to be controlled with chemicals, herbicide. It shows how aggressive they are -- a lot of these species, even pulling them out of the ground won't get rid of them." Martha doesn't know best Another significant threat to dunes is Melanie Manion, Natural Resources Supervisor for Ottawa County Parks, suspects it's spread into Ottawa's parks from arts and crafts shows in the area. Bittersweet is suffocating dune vegetation in Indiana, but it's not spreading into Ottawa's dune areas yet, she says. The parks system employs a dedicated paid staff supported by volunteers to manage those properties, embracing the early detection and removal strategy. Her most important tool is a GPS unit in the hands of knowledgeable staff. They are constantly surveying and mapping-out where invasives pop up. Then they turn to volunteers to start pulling. Sometimes herbicide is best; Manion says, but other times that kills native plants, which leads to erosion. Her other big targets Spotted knapweed and garlic mustard, two invasives that crowd out native plants and ruin the nesting areas for birds such as piping plover, are regularly pulled by volunteers, she says. "We had over 10,000 hours of volunteer labor last year." Don't move firewood Heidi Frei, Michigan DNR natural resources steward of Southwest Michigan, list the same "usual suspects" of duneland invasives: garlic mustard, Japanese barberry, honeysuckle, autumn olive, etc. "They definitely have an impact on ecology," she says. But the DNR is also concerned about keeping the trees at the edges of the dunes alive and in-place. "When you talk about removing whole forests of one species, say, stands of oak trees, that has a potential to leave a dune absolutely barren, or open it up to invasive woody shrubs like Japanese barberry," she says. One bad spot is P.J. Hoffmaster State Park, a thickly wooded landscape bordering dunes on Lake Michigan between Muskegon and Grand Haven. Some of its woods have been thinned by The disease was brought to the park by campers bringing in infected firewood, she says. A recent survey of campers at Hoffmaster and Holland State Park revealed people bringing wood from up to 600 miles away, in violation of federal and state quarantines. "I'm sure a lot of people aren't aware of it," she says, but each load of wood could mean another "emerald ash borer on our hands" "I would say that the biggest threat to the dunes is firewood movement," she says. "It just takes one load of firewood with just one insect or fungus on it, and then things are out of control." How you can help In her Ottawa parks office, Manion says dealing with invasives is like "playing whack-a-mole." Just as one invasive is brought under control, something new pops up. She points out that big environmental threats like climate change or massive habitat destruction can make one feel powerless. But invasive species are a threat "we can actually do something about" as individuals. "Every day I can pull something, kill something, change my behavior to make a real impact. There are many chances for regular folks to volunteer to join the fight," she says. "You don't have to be a Ph.D. to go out and pull garlic mustard." Manion hopes for better public education on the topic, to get people to look at these invasives as a form of biological pollution. "Because that's what they are," she says. "That pretty purple flower is the equivalent of an oil spill." Frei recommends involved with the 2,500-2,700 volunteers throughout the year are in state parks helping the DNR find and remove invasives, on the dunes and elsewhere. You can find more detail on how to get involved "If it were not for volunteers, those places would be entirely different," she says. You can find out more about invasive species at the following websites: MASON CITY A 29-year-old Mason City woman shot in the arm was listed in stable condition Wednesday at an Iowa City hospital, police said. Investigators were called about 7:25 p.m. Tuesday to a report of multiple gunshots in the area of Ninth Street Northwest and North Washington Avenue. A woman was taken by ambulance to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa and then flown by helicopter to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City for additional treatment, said Mason City Police Lt. Rich Jensen. Police arent releasing her name. Mason City Police Chief Jeff Brinkley said the victim was able to talk to officers and tell them what happened. He said the woman had a serious injury from a single gunshot wound, which police believe was inflicted by a handgun. "Theres good evidence to support that based on evidence we found at the scene, Brinkley said Wednesday evening. Police have accounted for all the rounds they believe were fired and do not believe anyone else was hit. Brinkley would not say how many shots were fired. Several neighborhood residents told the Globe Gazette they heard three shots fired in rapid succession. No arrests had been made as of Wednesday and the case remained under investigation. Police wouldnt say if investigators have identified a suspect. At this time we dont believe there is an ongoing threat to our community, said Brinkley. Anyone with information about the case can contact Mason City police at 641-421-3636. As expected, experts are raising doubts over the announcement last Saturday that Egypt's most magnificent pyramid, the Great Pyramid at Giza, contains two unknown voids or cavities. The news prompted speculation about the existence of secret chambers in the monument, strengthening the sense of mystery over the 4,500-year-old pharaonic mausoleum. According to Egypt's Independent, the Antiquities Ministry slammed as "inaccurate and hasty" the report on the cavities, which is the result of a year-long project presented by the group Scan Pyramids. The project, carried out by a team from Cairo University and the Paris-based non-profit Heritage, Innovation and Preservation, investigated the pyramid using innovative techniques, including thermography and 3-D simulation. The project also employs muography - using cosmic particles called muons, which permanently and naturally rain on Earth and are able to penetrate any material very deeply. The first conclusive results revealed two "anomalies." An unknown cavity was detected at a height of about 345 feet from the ground on the northeastern edge of the monument, while a "void" was found behind the northern side at the upper part of the entrance gate. The news spread around the world, and many outlets associated such cavities with secret chambers or hidden burials. "Our report is scientifically very accurate and no one has talked about secret chambers, but [instead] cavities," Mehdi Tayoubi, founder of the Heritage Innovation Preservation Institute, told Seeker. "The problem with pyramids is that people are always looking for sensationalism." RELATED: Great Pyramid Find: Two Mysterious Cavities With Unusual Features Built for the pharaoh Cheops, also known as Khufu, the Great Pyramid is the largest of a family of three pyramids on the Giza plateau, on the outskirts of Cairo. The last remaining wonder of the ancient world has long been rumored to have hidden passageways leading to secret chambers. But is there a Great Pyramid mystery after all? The attention has been long focused on four narrow shafts discovered in 1872. Two shafts extend from the upper, or "Kings Chamber" exit into open air. But the lower two, one on the south side and one on the north side in the so-called "Queen's Chamber" disappear within the structures, deepening the pyramid mystery. The 8-inch-square shafts remained unexplored until 1993, when German engineer Rudolf Gantenbrink sent a robot through the southern shaft. The investigation failed as the robot stopped in front of a mysterious limestone slab adorned with two copper pins. In 2002, Zahi Hawass, at that time head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, used another robot to explore the southern shaft. The operation, carried out on live television, raised more questions than answers. A camera pushed through a hole drilled in the copper pinned door, revealing what appeared to be another door. Hawass then sent the robot through the northern shaft, but another limestone slab stopped the ride. As with the Gantenbrink door, the stone was adorned with two copper pins. What's behind those doors? The question tortured Hawass for years. RELATED: Cosmic Rays Used to Peer Inside Pyramid: Photos In 2011 he again explored the pyramid using another robot, named Djedi after the magician who Khufu consulted when planning the layout of the pyramid. Designed by Leeds University, Djedi provided the first complete look behind Gantenbrink's door. Its "micro snake" camera sent back images of 4,500-year-old hieroglyphs believed to be engineering numbers. The Djedi project was halted following the Egypt revolution - and never resumed. For the new round of investigations, Egypt put aside the rather frustrating experience with robots and turned to innovative and non destructive technologies which include muons. Of the two anomalies ScanPyramids found, the "void" at the upper part of the entrance gate potentially has the most intriguing shape. "It's shaped like a corridor and could go up inside the pyramid," Tayoubi said. However he stressed that any conclusion is premature as more research must be done to define the size, the exact position and the function of such a void. "Muography for pyramids is like an X-ray for mummies," Tayoubi said. "You detect a broken bone, but you don't know why, when, how, who broke it. The debate is not if the voids are there or not, but what is their purpose." He agreed many questions can't be answered without the help of Egyptologists. RELATED: King Tut's Blade Made of Meteorite "Each specialist must establish a constructive dialogue. We are working with the best institutions in the world with the utmost scientific rigor," he added. A scientific committee led by the former minister of antiquities Zahi Hawass, approved Scan Pyramids's request to extend the time of the project for another year. "They really need this time to show us more data," Hawass told Seeker in a phone interview. "I really believe the void behind the entrance gate has to do with the construction of the descending corridor," Hawass said. "Therefore, we have to exclude the idea of a secret room." Egyptian authorities have already gone through embarrassment after supporting the theory that a secret room existed in the tomb of King Tut. Such a room would have contained the tomb of Queen Nefertiti. After much excitement, more detailed scans earlier this year showed that no secret room existed in the tomb of the boy's pharaoh. A similar outcome could be expected as the ScanPyramids team ends its research next year. The answer could be as simple as it is disappointing. Photo: The Great Pyramid's known internal structures. Credit: ScanPyramids mission WATCH VIDEO: We Finally Know How the Pyramids Were Made Mars in ultraviolet light is a wondrous place. By night, the dark side of the planet is aglow with nitric oxide. By day, clouds quickly merge together into banks that stretch 1,000 miles long. The new view of Mars comes from the orbiting MAVEN spacecraft, which this month begins a third year of studies about how the planet most like Earth in the solar system lost most of its atmosphere. When the spacecraft reaches the most distant part its orbit - MAVEN travels as far as 3,900 miles from Mars - its global view of the planet is giving scientists new insights, and in some cases first looks, at global wind circulation, ozone distribution and cloud formation. The data about the winds comes from MAVEN images of "nightglow," a common phenomenon in which an atmosphere shines at night, despite the complete absence of illumination, MAVEN scientist Nicholas Schneider, with the University of Colorado, Boulder, told reporters at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Pasadena, Calif., this week. RELATED: Comet Punch Threw Mars' Magnetism into Chaos "Nightglow is the result of chemical reactions in an atmosphere," Schneider said. "In the case of Mars, the molecules are broken apart on the day side of the planet ... and those atoms are carried by the winds to the night side, primarily the winter pole, where they then descend to higher density and recombine. In that act of re-combining, they have enough energy to give off ultraviolet photons." The nightglow molecules are nitric oxide and how they apparently spread over Mars means that computer models of the planet's flowing winds are in need of an upgrade. The new data indicates that the winds around the planet, already subject to strong seasonal changes, are more irregular than expected, Schneider said. That, in turn, raises questions about the transport of atmospheric molecules, and especially the chemistry that happens as a result, he said. MAVEN's UV view of Mars also confirms theories that what little ozone Mars has is concentrated in the dry, polar regions where there is little water vapor to break up the molecules. "The nature of the polar vortex and how long the ozone lasts through Spring provides insight into the evolution of ozone and water vapor, a coupled chemistry in the Mars atmosphere," Schneider said. RELATED: Interstellar Clouds Eroded Martian Atmosphere Perhaps the most striking new look at Mars is time-lapse imagery of clouds forming and moving across the planet. Clouds provide a way to trace atmospheric flows, and they affect the planet's energy balance, depending on whether sunlight is absorbed or reflected back into space, Schneider said. "They also tell us about the inventory of water vapor that would be available for forming clouds," he added. The images show which regions of Mars are relatively thick with atmosphere, such as the low-lying Meridiani Planum, where Europe's Schiaparelli lander will attempt to touch down on Wednesday. The atmosphere is thinnest above Mars' tallest volcanoes, including Olympus Mons, the largest known volcano in the solar system. Scientists do not yet know if the rapid buildup of Mars' cloud banks, which grow to 1,000 miles in about seven hours, is unusually fast or not. The MAVEN ultraviolet imagery is the first opportunity they've had for a planet-wide look. Images: Ultraviolet images, rendered in false color to optical wavelengths, from the Mars-orbiting MAVEN spacecraft show cloud formation, particularly around the planet's tall volcano. The tallest, Olympus Mons, appears as a prominent dark region near the top of the image, with a small white cloud at the summit that grows during the day. Three more volcanoes appear in a diagonal row, with their cloud cover (white areas near center) merging to span up to a thousand miles by the end of the day. Credit: NASA/MAVEN/University of Colorado Jimmy Irwin wasn't looking to get a paper published in Nature when he gave three of his University of Alabama undergraduate students an assignment. He told them to comb through archived Chandra and XMM-Newton telescope data for examples of bright X-ray emissions coming from galaxies beyond the Milky Way. The catch was to find examples emanating from globular cluster galaxies, a type of very old galaxy. "It seemed like a suitably straightforward project for undergraduates who can only dedicate a few hours a week to work on," Irwin wrote in an email to Seeker. Chandra had picked up a puzzling signal once before. In 2005, astronomers detected a flare from the general direction of galaxy NGC4697, a globular cluster located some 40 million to 50 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo. "Two brief flares were seen, separated by four years," Irwin writes in this week's Nature. RELATED: NASA's Black Hole X-Ray Hunter Could Solve Solar Mystery Both times, the flares grew 90 times brighter in less than a minute, and there were no associated optical emissions in the position of the flares. "It is still a bit of a mystery," Irwin said. "It is possible that (the flare) lies far beyond NGC4697, along the same line of sight, making it much more luminous than is believed, or the opposite case -- it is much closer to us, within our own Milky Way galaxy in fact, in which case it would be much less luminous than we think." So the students went hunting. "We were only hoping to find objects that varied by modest factors of three to five or so on time scales of an hour or so," Irwin said. But the searching software Irwin wrote for them to use could search for variability on all time scales, and the kids pulled in two whoppers: X-ray flares that brightened 100- to 200 percent in less than a minute. "We were quite surprised," Irwin said. At its peak, one source, located in Virgo galaxy NGC4636, was 30 times brighter than the X-ray luminosity of the entire Milky Way, he said. The second source, located near the Centaurus A galaxy NGC 5181, had a big surprise too. So far, it has flared six times in X-ray light, with some pulses as short as 22 seconds. All flares peaked in less than a minute and lasted for about an hour. RELATED: Not So Fast: Mystery Radio Bursts Far From Solved "The peak luminosity of the flares is intriguing, because it is even greater than the luminosity that can be attained by a neutron star under normal circumstances," astronomer Sergio Campana, with Italy's National Institute of Astrophysics, wrote in a related essay in Nature. Scientists aren't sure what is producing the X-rays. One idea is that a neutron star, black hole or other extremely compact object is stealing material from a stellar companion, triggering flares as the star comes close. The flares recede as the star pulls away. Irwin and his colleagues have submitted proposals for telescope time for follow-on observations. Meanwhile, the search through the archives continues. Image: Chandra X-ray Observatory's image of the galaxy NGC5128, with its hot gas and multiple X-ray point sources. The circled source flared by a factor of 200 in less than a minute on multiple occasions. Credit: NASA/CXC/U.Birmingham/M.Burke et al. Proffitt and his team observed the monkeys looking for rounded quartzite stones at Serra da Capivara National Park . The monkeys would then use these stones as "hammers," to forcefully hit quartzite cobblestones embedded in a cliff face. This action crushed the surface and dislodged the cobblestones, while the hammer would unintentionally fracture. The monkeys would sometimes lick some of the powdered material created during the process. "We are not, at any point, arguing or suggesting that any of the known archaeological record was made by primates ," lead author Tomos Proffitt, of the University of Oxford's School of Archaeology, told Seeker. "We suggest that this new data, however, raises interesting questions about the possible ways this stone tool technology developed before the earliest examples in the archaeological record appeared. It also tells us what this stone tool technology might look like." The finding means humans are no longer considered the only makers of knife-like objects, according to the new study published in Nature. Wild bearded capuchin monkeys in Brazil deliberately break stones and, in the process, unintentionally make sharp-edged objects that are similar to cutting tools made by early humans, new research finds. "This percussive behavior undertaken by the capuchins has nothing to do with cracking nuts," Proffitt said. "It seems to be aimed at crushing the surface of quartzite cobbles in order to produce quartz dust, which is then ingested and rubbed into the fur." He added it's unclear why the capuchins do this, but "that it might be centered around ingesting a particular mineral found in the quartz powder or because the lichen attached to the surface of the cobbles may have some sort of medicinal purpose, although more work needs to be done to work out exactly why they are doing this behavior." Bearded capuchins at other sites, as well as some Japanese macaques, are known to pound stones directly against each other, but the capuchins at Serra da Capivara are the only wild primates that seem to do this for the purpose of damaging the stones. As for our closest living primate relatives, chimpanzees, they craft stick tools to fish around for termites and to help with other tasks, but they are not known to make tools out of stone. Helen Roche, a director of research at CNRS, Paris-Nanterre University, told Seeker that stone-tool making among early humans began at around 3.3 million years ago. The genus Homo doesn't seem to appear before 2.8 million years ago, leaving a time gap. RELATED: Human Spite Started in Monkey-Ape Ancestor She suggests that an australopithecine might have made the tools during this gap period. These were two-legged individuals similar to humans, but had a brain that was not much larger than that of modern apes. Capuchins likely have even smaller brains, so the new findings could shed light on the minimum brain power and physiology required to produce stone cutting tools. Scientists have previously suggested that humans could teach wild monkeys skills that they could pass on to others, potentially benefitting the entire troop. In this case, someone might show the Brazilian monkeys how to use their unintentionally produced sharp-edged objects as knives for cutting plant materials and other items, but Proffitt basically said this would be a waste of time. "Monkeys can be taught to do many things, but I'm not entirely sure why you would want to teach wild capuchins to cut things," he said. "Also, I'm not sure why you would think that it would benefit them. They have evolved perfectly adequately to survive in their environment without ever needing humans to teach them anything." Photo: A wild bearded capuchin monkey hammers with a stone in order to produce quartz dust. Credit: M.Haslam WATCH: Which Evolved First: Our Hands or Feet? Marine engineers laying an electricity cable beneath the Irish Sea may have stumbled into the wreck of a WW1 German submarine which folklore says was attacked by an enormous sea monster with large eyes and glistening teeth. The wreck appears to be that of the fabled UB-85, a U-boat that has been wrapped in mystery since her sinking on April 30, 1918. According to official reports, the submarine was sunk by a British patrol boat - the HMS Coreopsis - after it was caught on the surface of the water off the coast of Belfast, Ireland. Partially flooded through a not completely closed hatch as it dove to evade the Coreopsis' gunfire, the UB-85 resurfaced and was hastily abandoned by her crew of 34. The men surrendered without resistance to the surprise of their British counterparts. The reason behind the men's odd behavior was some sort of Loch Ness' saltwater cousin, if one believes an old sea tale. RELATED: 'Sea Monster' Figurehead Emerges From Baltic Sea The story goes that the sub was recharging batteries on the surface at night when a "strange beast" rose from the sea. Captain Gunther Krech described a "beast" with "large eyes, set in a horny sort of skull. It had a small head, but with teeth that could be seen glistening in the moonlight." "Every man on watch began firing a sidearm at the beast," Krech is believed to have said. Though the animal dropped back into the sea, the forward deck plating was damaged and the sub could no longer submerge. This was the reason why the British could catch the submarine on the surface, the tale concluded. "This is probably an Internet myth," Innes McCartney, a historian, nautical archaeologist and honorary research fellow at Bournemouth University, told Seeker. The sub was found during an underwater survey for the Western Link project, a joint venture between SP Energy Networks and National Grid, which plans to lay one of the world's largest subsea power cables, connecting Scotland and England. RELATED: British WWII Sub With Crew Inside Found Off Sardinia "The images we get back from the subsea scans are incredibly detailed," Peter Roper, senior project manager at SP Energy Networks, said in a statement. "We obviously need to be aware of what lies beneath before we can start laying a power cable. In all the years I have been building power lines, I can say that this is the most extraordinary discovery," he added. Indeed, sonar images show the 100-year-old submarine largely intact on the sea floor in the North Channel, off THE coast of Stranraer in southwest Scotland. The vessel is about approximately 147 feet long, with debris spilling out of the stern end. McCartney said that at least 12 British and German submarines are known to have sunk in the waters of the Irish Sea. The features of the wreck confirm it was a UBIII-Class submarine. Only two of such subs were lost in the area - the UB-85 and its sister boat UB-82. "The archaeology of the site, namely some late-war features such as the larger deck cannon, is the strongest evidence pointing to the UB-85," McCartney said. We're certainly closer to solving the so-called mystery of UB-85 and the reason behind its sinking - whether common mechanical failure or something that is less easily explained," McCartney said. WATCH VIDEO: Real Life Sea Monsters! Pyramid received a load of spruce off the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation Cilly Cliffs project in the Swan Valley. Parke Logging out of Drummond, Mont. is taking seven million board feet of timber off the Cilly Cliffs project. All but one and a half million board feet of cedar will come to Pyramid. The sale was estimated at 14,351 tons and Pyramid bid $16.98 per ton. This made more than $702,000 for the state school trust lands in addition to the more than $200,000 they paid for forest improvement. The logs are stamped "MT DNRC Timber Sales Support Education in Montana." SEELEY LAKE As a part of Montana Forest Products Week celebrations Oct. 16-22, the Flathead Valley Habitat for Humanity chapter will be hosting a Build Day in Kalispell Saturday, Oct. 22. All seven of the large sawmills donated bunks of lumber and plywood for this Habitat for Humanity home. Pyramid Mountain Lumber, Inc. provided siding material for the house. Being opening day of hunting season, they are short of volunteers to help with the build. No building experience is needed and there will be lots of "on the job training." If interested in helping to build a Montana-made home for an area family, RVSP to Angela Wells at awells@mt.gov. Transportation may be available. Press Release October 19, 2016 Transcript of Interview of Senate President Pro-Tempore Franklin M. Drilon Q: Sir, comment ninyo sa sinabi na the President is issuing statements without consulting his cabinet? Drilon: Well, maybe he feels he does not need to consult the Cabinet, and that is his prerogative, but maybe I would suggest that more consultations be done. Precisely you appoint your cabinet as your advisory group, because no one can know everything. That is why you have experts in the various fields of governance and your Cabinet is supposed to provide you advice. Q: Was he able to respond clearly doon sa question na kung hihiwalay ba talaga tayo sa US? Drilon: Apparently he is not yet prepared, because he is to submit his recommendation to the President and to the Cabinet come November. That is why he even asked for postponement of his meeting with his US counterparts. Q: Sir, yung inter-operability raw ay magkakaproblema, so he admits na may problema talaga yung pag-shift? Drilon: That is one of the areas of serious concern: the inter-operability and that is admitted by the secretary, except in the small arms, when he said that they can live with it, but he did qualify that only in that area where the issue of inter-operability need not be addressed. Q: Yung sinabi ni Lorenzana that a decision would be made whether to terminate yung agreements sa November na, tama po ba iyon na sila-sila lang yung mag-uusap? Drilon: There are provisions in the agreement that provide for a giving of notice, and again, this is a matter for the President to decide. Of course, since he is the principal architect of our foreign policy and the commander-in-chief of our armed forces, these are political decision that he will make. Legally, it does not require any concurrence on the part of the Senate. We can make a political issue out of it but from the legal standpoint, the notice of termination can be issued by the President. Q: Yung tendency ng pangulo ng mag-issue ng statements without consulting his cabinet, is it harming our relationships with other countries? Drilon: Mas mabuti siguro na magkaroon ng consultation. Q: On Atty. James Lao, was he not prepared or...? Drilon: The problem is more than preparation, because he knew that he was going to face the Commission, and the President just came from a state visit in Brunei, he does not even know what happened there, he does now know what agreements where signed, he does not have a clear picture of what he will do in Brunei in terms of programs. I am disappointment at the responses of Atty. Lao. Q: Ma-defer siya ng CA? Drilon: His appointment has already been deferred. Q: Will he be replaced? Drilon: He should be bypassed. Whether or not the President will reappoint him during the recess is a decision on the part of the President. Q: On the PHL-US relations, will it be (unclear; healthy) for us to rescind our relationship with the US? Drilon: Will it be healthy for us? Personally and this is a personal opinion, I don't think so. I think it is to our national interest that we should maintain our relationship with our long-time ally. There is no question - and I support that proposition that we should have an independent foreign policy - but, to my mind, we can pursue that without terminating our relationship with our ally. Q: And we can even pursue our relationship with like China or Russia, without sacrificing our (relationship with the US)? Drilon: Yes, that's correct. We can pursue our relationship with China and Russia without sacrificing our relationship with our long-time ally. Q: Sir, yung mga nag-testify against Senator De Lima ay mayroon daw pending requests for executive clemency? Drilon: I don't know what is the basis of the application: is this in the regular course, or is it something out of the ordinary? I want to know the circumstances, because the Board of Pardon and Parole would process applications where it is done in regular course. If it is done out of the ordinary, I would raise the issue. But I do not know what the circumstances are. Q: Sir, is that an indication na mayroong kapalit? Drilon: For example - the reason I cannot comment immediately is because baka naman yung application ay noon pa or two years ago. Q: Sir, iyon ang pinapalabas na matagal na. Drilon: That can be checked. Q: It's still pending? Drilon: It's still pending. You cannot avoid ascribing motive in their testimony, but, to be fair, I want to see the entire picture. Q: Dapat po ba ay na-disclosed nila? Drilon: Firstly, there are certain rules before one can even be considered. Were these the sole consideration for the recommendation of pardon, or is this out of the ordinary. I want to see first. Q: Sir, di ba justice secretary yung nag-recommend? Drilon: No, it is based on the record of the national penitentiary and they submit recommendations to the Board of Pardon and Parole, which, in turn, will review this and make a recommendation to the President. Iyon ang proseso. Q: Sir, si Atty. Lao ba yung unang na-bypassed? Drilon: Good point, yes. Press Release October 19, 2016 Excerpts from the Interpellation of Senate President Pro-Tempore Franklin M. Drilon during the Committee on Appointment's hearing on the appointment of Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana Drilon: For 100 years, we have very close relationships with the United States. The numerous agreements singed on the military level - I don't have to enumerate - and many of these resulted in very perceptible and substantial military assistance. This has happened for the last century. But in the past 100 days, there appears to be a very clear shift from United States as a treaty ally to China. Would you confirm this? There is a clear pivot from the US to China. Lorenzana: Mr. Chairman, the way I read the President is that we are not actually veering away from the US and inking a treaty alliance with the Chinese. What he wanted to do is to expand our sources of materials, maybe some investment. And China is trying to give us a very generous offers. That is why part of the mission that I will do - and I will join them tomorrow in Beijing - is to look at some of the equipment the Chinese defense ministry will be showing me. Ang sabi naman po niya ay tingnan ninyo kung kailangan natin. Hindi naman niya sinabi na bumili na kayo. Check it out and ask the end-users if they need this equipment... Drilon: Would inter-operability be an issue? Lorenzana: Yes, Sir. Definitely, it will be an issue, because practically all our equipment are US-made, or made by allies of the US, and we have been training with them for the longest time, and exercising with them. So when we inject a new equipment, especially those high-tech equipment, there will be inter-operability problems. Drilon: So how do you propose to solve these inter-operability problems in the next two, three, four years...given the fact that not only our equipment but also our training has been geared towards Western armaments? Lorenzana: Yes, I agree with you Sir. There are small items that are inter-operable...But for big-ticket items like signal equipment, or drones maybe, or shift, I think it will take a long time for us to adjust in these equipment? Drilon: So hindi po realistic itong pinag-uusapan nating shift, because I assume even the manuals are in Chinese? Lorenzana: Yes Sir... Drilon: Anyway, Mr. Secretary, what is the status of our treaties particularly EDCA and defense agreements with the US. Is there decision to terminate, suspend them? Can the committee be clarified on this? Lorenzana: Mr. Chairman, I specifically asked the President for guidance on that. I asked him to give guidance on the VFA, the US troops in Mindanao, the exercises next year, and the EDCA. He told me to present these during a Cabinet meeting next month, I think November 4 or 7. I am actually preparing for this presentation because he said I would need the inputs from the Cabinet to make the decision. As of now, there is no decision to suspend training next year, the VFA still on, everything here is going, Sir. Drilon: Being the head of the defense establishment, what is your view on this issue? Lorenzana: Mr. Chairman, if the President is really intent on what he was telling the media, I think I will recommend the scaling down of the exercises next year. Maybe we will (unclear) the big exercises like the Balikatan...the sea exercise, and maybe concentrate on the training with the US involving human assistance and disaster response in counter-terrorism. Drilon: Does the Balikatan and such other exercises benefit the defense department? Lorenzana: It benefits our troops also. I remember I was a captain in the military in 1991 during the first Balikatan. Because they left the bases there was no Balikatan until the VFA was signed in 1998. Our soldiers, the AFP are telling us that yes, they do benefit on the Balikatan. On the other hand, I believe the US benefits more in these exercises than us. Drilon: So, it is mutually beneficial insofar as the Balikatan is concerned. No foreign policy is altruistic...That the Americans benefit, we should not begrudge them. They have a foreign policy, which is also be geared towards their own national interest. But it cannot be denied that we benefit from these exercises. Then why should we terminate these? Lorenzana: Mr. Chairman, I really don't know because the President has been issuing statements without consulting the Cabinet. Drilon: At least, our nominee is very honest, very candid...But honestly, he is a gentleman who would tell this Commission the truth and what is his mind, and I certainly admire him for that...Just to be clear, is there an intention to terminate EDCA, or VFA, because we have heard statements of this nature? Lorenzana: We will have to wait until our presentation to the Cabinet and we will really get the decision from the President if he really wants the EDCA terminated. Drilon: At this point, as we are talking, the termination of this long-standing agreement is still on the table? Lorenzana: Yes, Sir. Press Release October 19, 2016 Senator Gatchalian Vindicated by Dismissal of Graft Charges in Sandiganbayan Vindication was the theme of the day as the Fourth Division of the Sandiganbayan resolved to dismiss all criminal charges filed against Senator Win Gatchalian in relation to the 2009 acquisition of Express Savings Bank, Inc. (ESBI) by the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA). Gatchalian was exonerated by the Sandiganbayan upon its finding that there is no probable cause to compel the senator to stand trial for any of the charges levied against him by the Ombudsman. "Throughout this entire ordeal I have held my head up high, confident that these baseless accusations against me would not stick. Today, my honor as a man and my integrity as a public servant have been vindicated by the dismissal of these groundless charges before the honorable Sandiganbayan," said Gatchalian, who is currently in Beijing to accompany President Rodrigo Duterte on his state visit to the People's Republic of China. Gatchalian questioned the wisdom of the Ombudsman's aggressive pursuit of such a weak case against him, considering the fact that he had never been involved in the management or day-to-day operations of ESBI. Gatchalian also pointed out that his only involvement in ESBI at the time of its sale to LWUA in 2009 was his ownership of 14 shares of stock, representing .00001886062 percent of the total shareholdings of the company, valued at approximately P2,500. "Thankfully, the fairness and objectivity of the courts prevailed to clear my name. As always, I put my full faith and trust in the judiciary. I am hopeful that justice will also prevail to absolve the others involved in this case," said Gatchalian. Moving forward, Gatchalian said he was determined to rebuild his reputation as a public servant by working even harder to promote the interests of the Filipino people in the Senate. "This has certainly been a humbling experience. Through this hardship my purpose as a public servant - to help improve the lives of my countrymen - has been renewed. Now, more than ever, I am inspired to prove my worth as a public servant by performing my duties as senator with greater passion, competence, and dedication," said Gatchalian. MASON CITY U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, said Wednesday the presidential election is not rigged, as GOP nominee Donald Trump has asserted. But there are irregularities that need fixing, he said. Rigged is not the right word, said King. There is no nationwide network set up to cheat. But there are cells of election fraud that are well documented. King spoke to a high school leadership class at the Mason City Chamber of Commerce office and then spoke with the press afterwards. He said he didnt believe what some pundits are saying that the presidential election is essentially over but I certainly feel the mood of the people who think it is. What are they basing it on? The polls? he asked. I will say this Trump has to have a good debate (the one held Wednesday night). He talked about how Trump was baited by Hillary Clinton in the last debate when she mentioned his comments about a former Miss Universes weight gain. He took the bait, hook, line and sinker, he said. King said he has had many situations in his career in which he thought he was being baited. But you never know, he laughed. I might be baiting them, too. King said the will and spine of Congress will be tested, regardless of who wins the presidential election on Nov. 8. There will be two clear paths. If Hillary wins, the Republicans will be playing defense. If Trump wins, we will be busy, busy, busy, repealing Obamacare, strengthening the military and all sorts of things, he said. King has been in Congress 14 years and is opposed by Democrat Kim Weaver in the November election. He said getting things done in Washington has changed dramatically since Bill Clinton was president and politics is the cause. When he took office, he said he wanted a cabinet that looked like America. He appointed blacks, Hispanics, women who represented a lot of different backgrounds, regardless of qualifications, said King. And Obama has raised that to an art form. If it was up to me, I wouldnt care if they were all green as long as they were qualified. Press Release October 19, 2016 Legarda: Gov't, LGUs Must Be Prepared for Typhoon Lawin As Typhoon Lawin continues to threaten Northern Luzon and its nearby areas, Senator Loren Legarda today reminded all local government units (LGUs) in the path of the storm to ensure that timely information about the typhoon is relayed to the people. Legarda, Chair of the Senate Committee on Climate Change, said that LGUs, including barangay officials, should have already conducted an information dissemination campaign on the strength of the typhoon and its effects, including an expected storm surge, and the community evacuation plan. "Every barangay should have informed citizens of possible landslides, flooding and storm surge, and those in high-risk areas should have already been evacuated to safe places," she said. The Senator also reminded government agencies to carry out their respective duties in preparing for the typhoon. "We should all be on heightened alert now. We remind LGUs to ensure that no families are living in high-risk areas, release frequently updated advisories and ensure that areas expected to be affected are prepared-activate all forms of early warning systems, set up evacuation centers, evacuate families living in landslide-prone and flood-prone areas," said Legarda. She added that LGUs should implement forced evacuation when called for. Shelters for evacuees should be well designed, built strong, and prepared ahead of time with emergency supplies of food, water, medicine, shelter, and toiletries, while government agencies are ready to augment the basic needs of evacuees. Moreover, local disaster risk reduction and management officers should be alert. "Quick communication and real-time updates are vital in ensuring effective disaster response with first responders and search and rescue teams ready for dispatch anytime," she stressed. "Let us find a way to prevent damages to critical infrastructure such as transmission lines because electricity and communication lines are more important in the aftermath of disasters," she added. The Senator also called on communities to heed disaster warnings to avoid accidents. "When warned of an impending hazard, we should take safety measures. Stay indoors and do not attempt to go out especially at the height of the typhoon to avoid accidents," she said. "National and local action must promote disaster prevention with 'zero casualty' as a mindset and approach. On the other hand, citizens must do their part by paying attention to government warnings and community advisories, especially when there is a need to evacuate," Legarda concluded. Press Release October 19, 2016 Pimentel seeks increase in candidates' campaign cap Senate President Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III seeks to increase the cap in the campaign expenditures of candidates and political parties during elections that remained the same in the last 25 years. He filed Senate Bill No. 1178 recently to amend Section 13 of Republic Act No. 7166, or "An Act Providing for Synchronized National and Local Elections and for Electoral Reforms, Authorizing Appropriations Therefor, and for Other Purposes." When approved into law, candidates with political parties would be entitled to P20 from P10 for president; P15 from P10 for vice-president; P10 from P3 for a representative; P10 from P3 for governor and mayor; P8 from P3 for vice-governor and vice-mayor; and P5 from P3 for municipal, city and provincial councils. The president of the administration party Partido Demokratiko Pilipino Lakas ng Bayan (PDP Laban) said the higher amounts pegged in the proposed measure are "per voter" in the constituency of the candidate. It would be P20 from P5 for a political party and P10 from P5 for candidates without political parties. He said candidates had difficulty in trying to limit their spending in accordance with law because the costs of materials, printing and reproduction, media ads, transportation, and other operational expenses have noticeably increased in the past two decades. Pimentel cited a report of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas which showed a 259.5 percent increase in prices of commodities from 1991 to the 2015 national and local elections. "The value of P1.00 in 1991 is now equivalent to P3.60," he said, referring to records of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA). The NEDA, he said, is projecting that the P3.0 used for election-related spending in 1991 would be valued at P9.10 this year. "These amounts show that the allowable limits for campaign spending are really outdated, most especially for local candidates who cannot take advantage of the economies of scale in their purchase of materials, printing requirements, and even mass media placements," Pimentel said. He said overspending cases filed by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) against 35 local candidates for the 2010 and 2013 elections proved that candidates were struggling to spend within the allowable amounts provided by law. "The best way to address the concerns of our candidates, especially the local candidates, therefore, is to increase the amount of their allowable political campaign expenditures," said Pimentel. Political parties, however, should not be forgotten, he said, adding political parties are allowed to spend only P5 per currently registered voter to help their candidates in constituencies where they field candidates. Pimentel said local candidates should be aware of the importance of political parties, encouraging them to tap the assistance of their political parties for their campaign spending limit. "This measure is in line with the proposed policy to institute reforms in the Philippine political parties to resolve issues of campaign spending, among others, to attain a mature and stable democracy," he said. Pimentel said it would be beneficial to the voting public "since the increase in the allowable campaign expenditure may lead to better voter's education and awareness of the background and program of government of the candidates." However, he said the campaign cap of candidates for barangay posts should remain at P3 since barangay elections are non-partisan, and hence, should be less "bloody" than the other elections. He also wanted to substitute the term "gift tax" with "donor" tax which he added "is the proper term used in the National Internal Revenue Code, as amended." Press Release October 19, 2016 POE ASSURES OK OF FOI AS BILL ADVANCES IN SENATE Senator Grace Poe has assured the immediate passage of the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill that gives flesh to the citizens' constitutional right to information on matters of public concern as she sought for greater transparency in government. Poe, chairperson of the Senate committee on public information and mass media, today sponsored in plenary Senate Bill No. 1208 or the proposed FOI law and sought backing from her colleagues in the light of the publicly avowed support from the administration on the measure. "We truly appreciate the administration for its keen push of the FOI that would effectively make transparency, accountability and integrity as yardsticks in government performance. We remain confident that we will pass this FOI in the present Congress because our citizens cannot afford to wait any longer to fully exercise their constitutionally guaranteed right to access critical information," said Poe. The proposed FOI law, despite multi-partisan support in previous Congresses, faced deliberate delays and remained in limbo in the legislature for nearly three decades amid lukewarm backing from the Executive branch and their allies in the House of Representatives. The FOI bill is Poe's first legislation filed in the 17th Congress. The landmark measure-a consolidation of 14 bills-covers the Executive, Judiciary and the Legislature, demands accountability across the public sector, prescribes procedures, remedies and defines limitations for citizens' access to government record and data and even sets criminal, civil and administrative penalties for non-disclosure of information. The measure also provides for mandatory disclosures of statements of assets, liabilities and net worth of public officials. Exempted from disclosure, however, are those that will compromise national security, defense, law enforcement operations, foreign relations, trade and economic secrets and the constitutional right to privacy and safety. Under the legislation, jail time and fines will be imposed upon individuals who acted in bad faith over non-disclosure or those who willfully destroyed requested documents. No less than President Rodrigo Duterte issued marching orders to lawmakers to pass an FOI law and implement wide-ranging reforms after Malacanang issued Executive Order No. 2 implementing FOI only in the executive branch. In his budget message to Congress after submitting the proposed P3.35 trillion national expenditure program for 2017, Duterte urged Congress to act swiftly on the "long overdue" FOI?, saying the State must "uphold the people's right to demand information on government affairs, particularly on how their taxes are spent." The Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council composed of lawmakers and Cabinet, with the President as its chairman has included the FOI as among the priority measures of the Duterte administration. Poe's public information and mass media committee conducted two hearings on the FOI last Sept. 19 and 29. In the 16th Congress, the Senate approved on third and final reading its version of the FOI bill on March 10, 2014-or in record eight months from the filing of the measure. Press Release October 19, 2016 EMPOWER THE PEOPLE, DARE THEM TO ASK Sponsorship Speech of Senator Grace Poe on the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill Senate Session Hall Mr. President, distinguished colleagues, magandang hapon po. I stand here today to sponsor Senate Bill No. 1208, otherwise known as the "People's Freedom of Information Act of 2016." The said bill is a consolidation of fourteen (14) FOI legislation filed by our eminent colleagues, namely: Senators Honasan, Pangilinan, Cayetano, Escudero, Trillanes, Ejercito, Legarda, Zubiri, Angara, Aquino, Villanueva, Hontiveros, De Lima, and by this representation. Our task today is to pass a freedom of information act in order to institutionalize the constitutional right of the people to information on matters of public concern and fulfill the State's mandate to implement a policy of full public disclosure of all matters involving public interest. This is my second time to sponsor this bill, and hopefully the last. This proposed law is 24 years or one generation in the making, which compels us to finish the job during our watch, and not leave it to the next generation. Mr. President, the Senate had not only tackled the FOI bill in the past; it had, in fact, approved it on March 10, 2014, unanimously. The House, however, failed to pass the pass the bill on third reading. Natakot ata sila na malalaman na ang mga pinakatatago nilang sikreto, kung kaya ayaw nilang ipasa kaagad ang FOI. On July 23, the executive branch issued Executive Order No. 2, binding agencies under them to an FOI regime. A legislated FOI strengthens the executive FOI by filling the gaps, by funding the mandates, by providing for criminal penalties, by creating a uniform standard, by closing the loopholes, by clearly defining the exceptions, and above all, by meeting the demands of the people to create an antidote to irregularities. For example, to report on recent disturbing events, requests by journalists for drug war data were not attended to in violation of the EO, thus making the creation of a legislative measure imperative. In the quarter of a century during which this measure was in limbo, the scandals that rocked our nation had always involved infidelity in the custody of public funds. However, the collateral casualties of stealing are more heart-wrenching: When billions are lost, millions go hungry; when billions are lost, millions go to schools without classrooms; when billions are lost, millions have to endure bad public service. If there's one costly lesson we have learned from our past, it is this: Secrecy corrupts, and absolute secrecy corrupts absolutely. There are five successful general principles (SGPs) of FOI laws around the world. Please allow me to enumerate. First is to have a broad definition of information, and a legal presumption in favor of access to that information. Because openness is fundamental to the democratic life of the country, access to information should be a key feature of our government. This means that there is blanket coverage for all public information and that all official documents are presumed to be open to the public, unless expressly prohibited by the law. Our FOI bill provides for proactive disclosure, such that certain information must be published or accessible to the public, even without the public requesting for such information. Sections 8 and 9 of our bill have enumerated information that should be immediately available and uploaded on an agency's website, such as the SALN of the president, vice-president, members of the cabinet, members of Congress, Justices of the Supreme Court, among others, shall be disclosed to the public in their official website. You see, Mr. President, our proposed law is not just about transparency and accountability, it is also about creating an enabling environment for meaningful social participation in public affairs. Sa ilalim ng batas, pwede, halimbawa, kunin ang address ng mga bahay ng isang opisyal sa SALN. Pero kalabisan namang humingi pa ng litrato ng mga silid-tulugan o imbentaryo ng mga anik-anik sa loob ng bahay. Second is the requirement of having limited and strictly construed exceptions, which are enumerated in Section 7 of our bill. We will put "Do not enter' signs", but in delineating no-go zones, we must see to it that they are clearly defined. These non-disclosure areas typically cover matters of national security, operational security, trade secrets, diplomatic security, and presidential privilege. Also included are information that could compromise law enforcement operations, or endanger the life of an individual, or constitute an unwarranted invasion of an individual's right to privacy. I should stress that even if we advocate for access to information, we believe that the right of an individual to privacy is equally sacred. Hence, under section 10 our bill, the State is obligated to fully protect the right of privacy of individuals and ensure that the disclosure of personal data under the custody of the State shall be done in accordance with the provisions of the Data Privacy Act of 2012. Under our bill, all these exceptions shall be strictly construed and none of these exceptions shall be used to cover up a crime or unlawful activity. We have also provided that all exceptions shall undergo mandatory review every three years for possible reclassification and disclosure. The third trait of a successful FOI law is the creation of implementing mechanisms that cover all agencies. Thus, unlike the Executive Order, our FOI bill will cover everyone from the executive, legislative, judicial, government-owned and-controlled corporations, and even certain private individuals who have transactions with the government. Since each agency has a different department or office to which a person may request for information, we have provided under Section 11 that all government agencies shall prepare an FOI manual. The manual will be there to facilitate the effective implementation of the law. Its absence, however, cannot be used as an excuse to deny a request made in accordance with the FOI Act. This means, the FOI manual shall in no way add to the exceptions enumerated in our bill or provide for a tedious process in complying with the FOI bill as our FOI bill already provides for a uniform procedure for the access to information. Hindi naman po pwede na sa ilalim ng manual nila ay kailangan ng 12 signatories before information is made accessible to an individual. Sana kung artista pinapapirma nila e ok lang, sila pa ang magrerequest para sa autograph nila, pero hindi. Dagdag perwisyo ang dagdag na signatures. Section 12 of our bill provides that a person will have to submit either personally, by mail, or through electronic means, a request to the government agency concerned. A person who is unable to make a written request, because of illiteracy or disability may make an oral request. Once the request is submitted, the government agency should help the requesting party free of charge and provide the information within 15 days. If the government agency decides to deny the request, in whole or in part, it shall also inform the requesting party within 15 calendar days of the grounds for denial and indicate the available remedies for appeal. Again, let me remind our countrymen that 15 days may be long but certain information is already automatically uploaded in a website which can be easily accessed by our countrymen. Will the requesting party have to pay anything? Yes. A government agency may charge reasonable access and processing fees. The fourth trait of a good FOI law deals with efficiency and timeliness. For FOI to be effective, citizens must have what experts call "actionable data", which is data that is immediately usable to intervene on an urgent concern. Typically, what we see on government websites today are "after-the-fact" data. Ibig sabihin, imbes na impormasyon na makakapigil ng suntukan, ang datos na nakukuha ay yaong tapos na ang boksing. Under our bill, contracts and agreements involving an amount of at least P50 million shall be uploaded online and in full before the signing. Thus, data uploaded should not only pertain to consummated contracts but also that which will help prevent the consummation of disadvantageous contracts. The fifth trait of a good FOI is the institutionalization of penalties for non-compliance or for violation of the FOI law. This is what we call the fear factor or our whipping stick. Without penalties, kung wala pong parusa, a law will have no teeth and will simply remain lip service to the constitutional provisions upholding the people's right to information. Unlike an EO, our FOI can provide for criminal and not just administrative liabilities. Among the acts penalized are falsely denying or concealing the existence of information that should be disclosed; divulging or releasing information that is altered, tampered or modified; knowingly or wrongfully claiming an exception under the FOI law or the Constitution, when such claim is manifestly devoid of basis; and divulging or releasing information covered as an exception under the law. Our FOI bill also seeks to penalize private individuals who knowingly directed or induced or caused the commission of the foregoing acts. However, to boost compliance of government agencies, we should create a system of incentives, for more good are wrought by the carrot than by the stick. Under Section 27 of our bill we have provided for a system of incentives and rewards. Meron din pong gantimpala ang mga sumusunod nang maayos. For example, may premyo sa "Most FOI Compliant Agency of the Year". Isang milyon na halaga ng bagong equipment. Bakit hindi? The litmus test of an FOI law is how it helps the common people secure with ease, without help and without hassle, the documents he needs. Kung gustong malaman ng publiko kung bakit kada taon may bagong sasakyan ang isang opisyal ng gobyerno nila o bakit lahat ng kinakasama ng barangay captain nila ay may negosyo kahit na wala talaga silang hanapbuhay para pagkuhanan ng kapital, e di dapat may karapatan tayong suriin ang SALN ng mga opisyales nito kung ito ba ay nakalagda ng tama o hindi. Kung gustong malaman ng publiko kung saan napunta ang donasyon para sa mga nasalanata, dapat may karapatan din tayong suriin ang financial documents ng DSWD or kung anong mga ahensya na namamahala sa mga donasyon. Sa laki ng binabayad nating tax, nararapat lang na itanong ng ating mga kababayan--ni Juan at Maria kung saan napupunta ang nakakaltas sa sahod nila. Magkano ba ang magpagawa ng kalsada? Bakit kada taon parehong kalsada ang laging pinapagawa o binubungkal? Let me stress, though, that access to these documents or information should be in a language easy to comprehend, which is why the Senate's FOI version made mandatory the use of plain language in official communication. What use is information that is easily accessible if it is not easily understood? Mr. President kung hindi naman maintindhan ng ating mga kababayan ang dokumentong binigay sa kanila, balewala ang imprmasyon. Dapat madali itong maintindihan kahit pa walang abogado. Admittedly, this bill, when implemented, will incur expenses. Freedom of information does not mean that such information will come free. May gastos po sa gobyerno. That is why we provided that the amount necessary to carry out the provisions of this bill shall be charged against the agencies' current budget and shall later be included in the annual General Appropriations Act. Be that as it may, I strongly maintain that benefits far outweigh the costs of implementation. Studies show that FOI spending bears high social returns. Investments on FOI resources and technology are needed, and must be mandated, otherwise what good is a law if it ends up as an unfunded mandate? Mr. President, my dear colleagues, the FOI Act is long overdue. Let us not delay its passage anymore as it has been delayed long enough. I would like to thank the advocates, even here. I think as a junior senator, Sen. Villanueva, Sen. Zubiri and all those I've mentioned authored this more than a decade ago. I would also like to thank the Right to Know, Right Now Coalition who has always been with us to provide us with technical advice as well as feedback. Passing the FOI law is just the beginning. Beyond the law, we need to cultivate a culture of transparency and accountability. Lahat ay dapat makilahok. We need to create an environment where ordinary citizens are fearless enough to ask important questions and have the audacity to demand the truth. We should dare them to ask; dare them to act. Let us empower our people, and in doing so, improve our public institutions. Maraming salamat po. Press Release October 19, 2016 Senate adjourns session Wednesday, celebrates centennial anniversary The Senate adjourned its session today, October 19, to go on a legislative break on the same week it commemorates the institution's 100th years of service to the Filipino people. The legislative break, the first in the 17th Congress, will last until the Senate will resume its sessions on November 7, Monday. Upon resumption, the Senate is expected to turn its attention to the passage of the 2017 General Appropriations Act or the P3.35 trillion national budget for next year. Senate President Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III earlier said that he has agreed with House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez that Congress will focus and cooperate on passing the 2017 budget before the year ends. The 2017 GAA, the first national budget under the Duterte administration, is also the largest of its kind in Philippine history. "We will exert our best efforts to timely conduct our hearings and ensure the early passage of this most important piece of legislation" Pimentel said. The Senate will also work on its pending priority legislation such as the proposed bill on emergency powers for the traffic crisis, the bill on ending "endo" or labor contractualization, the SIM Card Registration Act, Amendments to the Bank Secrecy Law, and the bill on adjusting the indexation of income tax rates, among others. The Upper Chamber earlier approved on final reading Senate Bill No. 1112 which seeks to postpone the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections on October 2016 to October 2017. The measure was sponsored by Senator Sonny Angara and co-sponsored by Senators Leila De Lima, Juan Miguel Zubiri, Alan Peter Cayetano and Joel Villanueva. Meanwhile, the Senate on Monday formally kicked-off its celebration of the Senate Centennial Anniversary in a series of rites to be led by Pimentel. Pimentel unveiled the official marker of the 17th Congress after a eucharistic celebration in the Senate building. An exhibition of a marching band and parade was held in the afternoon. A concert featuring "Rivermaya" and fireworks capped the centennial celebration. The Senate Centennial Anniversary commemorates the full century of the Senate of the Philippines as a democratic institution since it was establishment on October 16, 1916 during the American period. Press Release October 19, 2016 Villar opens farm school for drug rehab program Sen. Cynthia A. Villar, in partnership with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and other government agencies, will launch on Friday a drug rehabilitation training program in a bid to help reform drug surrenderees from Las Pinas City. The training program is in line with the government's goal of helping former users of illegal drugs to go back to their normal lives and become productive citizens. "We should all work together in stopping illegal drugs abuse in our country. One way to end this is by helping former users rebuild their lives so that they can have a brighter future," Villar said. Villar said the rehabilitation training program is envisioned to help drug surrenderees jumpstart their new lives by providing them with basic information about the harms of using illegal drugs and giving them ideas for alternative livelihoods. She stressed: "We must reiterate to them the evils of substance abuse. They need to remember that illegal drugs do not only destroy their minds and bodies, but also the lives of their loved ones." "But at the same time, we need to help them look for alternative sources of livelihood so they can become productive again. I believe that agri-farming is one of the easiest and best way of earning a living," Villar added. The training program, which will be called SAGIP BUKAS: A Drug Rehabilitation Training Program for a Better Life, will be launched at 9 a.m. on Friday (October 21) at the Villar SIPAG farm school in Las Pinas. The program is in partnership with Villar SIPAG, PNP, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Health (DOH), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Agriculture (DA), and the Office of the President (OP). Other partners include the Allied Botanical Corporation, Las Pinas General Hospital (LPGH), Diocese of Paranaque, Las Pinas City Health Office, and Las Pinas City Mayor's Office. Participants to the program will be drug users from Las Pinas City who have already surrendered under the Oplan Tokhang initiative of the government. A total of 1700 drug users from Las Pinas have surrendered to the PNP. Out of this number, 120 will join the SAGIP BUKAS training program. The participants are currently undergoing medical check-ups, like X-rays and urinalysis at the LPGH. After the check-up, they will go through the assessment and screening process to be conducted by the Las Pinas City Health Office and DOH-accredited doctors. All activities are being coordinated and monitored by PNP. The drug rehabilitation training program will run for 12 weeks and will have 2 sessions a week (Thursday and Friday). The sessions will include free trainings on agri farming and health and wellness, and lectures on ethico legal aspects of substance abuse. Program participants will likewise do coastal clean-up and mangrove planting under the stewardship of DENR. They will likewise do physical training and will learn to dance Zumba. Press Release October 19, 2016 Compromise agreement on Manila Bay reclamation project alarms Villar Sen. Cynthia Villar expressed alarm over the reported compromise agreement between Cyberbay Corporation and the government on a reclamation project involving a protected area along Manila Bay. In a newspaper report, Cyberbay said its wholly-owned subsidiary, the Central Bay Reclamation and Development Corp., has entered into a compromise agreement with the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA) and the settlement includes the transfer of a portion of PRA's reclaimed land to Central Bay's "qualified assignee". In a 2-page letter dated October 18, 2016 addressed to PRA General Manager Peter Anthony Abaya, Villar said she is "deeply alarmed with this development considering, among others, that the joint venture agreement between PRA and Cyberbay Corporation was already nullified by the Supreme Court, as the news article itself says, and that the transfer may have included and/or may adversely affect the survival of the Las Pinas-Paranaque Critical Habitat and Ecotourism Area (LPPCHEA).." "How can you give away a protected area for a reclamation project? We are mandated by domestic laws as well as international convention to protect this critical habitat," Villar pointed out. The chairperson of the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources also asked Abaya to furnish her a copy of the compromise agreement PRA entered into with Cyberbay Corporation and/or its subsidiary. "As the transfer is clearly a matter of public interest, there is a need for the public to know the propriety and legal basis of the transfer of a government-owned property to a private entity in order to address apprehensions that the transfer is against public interest and grossly disadvantageous to the government," Villar further said in the letter. LPPCHEA is a protected area by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 1412, series of 2007. It was recognized as a Wetland of International Importance by the Ramsar Convention. Dubbed as Metro Manila's last coastal frontier, LPPCHEA shelters a 36-hectare mangrove forest, which is the thickest and most diverse mangrove forest along the Manila Bay area and serves as a significant spawning ground, nursery, feeding and temporary shelter of different fish species and other forms of wildlife, as well as protects the communities of Las Pinas and Paranaque cities against storm surges and high tides. LPPCHEA likewise plays a critical role for the survival of threatened, restricted-range and vulnerable bird species. Press Release October 19, 2016 Zubiri backs continued recognition of the Negros Island Region Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri expressed his support for the continued recognition of the Negros Island Region (NIR), amid statements from the executive branch of plans to abolish the NIR. Zubiri said, "the lopsided development of various areas in the island, the wide gap in poverty, and the tenuous peace and order situation with marked militarization in some areas can only be addressed when the NIR is fully operational." The Negros Island Region was created by virtue of Executive Order 183 issued on 29 May 2015 by former President Aquino. It carved out the adjacent provinces of Negros Occidental from Region VI (Western Visayas) and Negros Oriental from Region VII (Central Visayas), to form a new and distinct administrative region for the purpose of accelerating their social and economic development and improving the delivery of public services. Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said that, "The EO on the NIR is not in the budget anymore. It will be repealed." Thus, Senator Zubiri filed Resolution No. 203, calling for the continued recognition of the Negros Island Region, citing that its creation will promote efficiency in the region, enhance decentralization from the national government, and bolster economic development for local residents. Zubiri recalled that the island has been "the center of insurgency in the 1970s and we don't want a repeat of that. Remember the CHICKS area? It was one of the poorest areas in the island. It was also the site of the US-led and directed Operation Thunderbolt which, instead of installing peace, was responsible for heightening the conflict." The CHICKS area consisted of the towns of Candoni, Hino-baan, Ilog, Cauayan, Kabankalan, and Sipalay. "Twenty-three years ago, several towns in the Negros provinces were declared as Zones of Peace and Special Development Areas, The military and rebels worked towards brokering peace. We want to preserve and enhance the progress we have achieved. That is where the NIR is very relevant." "My father, Governor Jose Ma. Zubiri, is a native of Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental, making us true-blooded Negrense. I support the continued existence of the NIR because I believe it is for the benefit of my kababayans," NORTHWOOD | Despite a number of vulgar statements, U.S. Senator Joni Ernst said she would continue to support Donald Trump's Republican nomination three weeks from the general election. As an outspoken advocate of military sexual assault victims, Ernst said Trump's comments from a 2005 Access Hollywood appearance reported by the Washington Post earlier this month would not cause her to withdraw her endorsement. The tape appears to show Trump stating he could use the power of his celebrity influence to commit sexual assault against women. Ernst said she believed an allegation would need to be filed in criminal court. "Well, I am going to tell you that I am not going to defend Donald Trump on those issues," she said. "I am not going to defend him and I'm not going to condone it." "I do believe the Republican Party is where I stand," Ernst said. "I would never encourage someone to go against their ideals and values in a party platform and support ideals they don't believe in, so that's why I am sticking with the Republican ticket." A Real Clear Politics poll averaging results from the Des Moines Register, Quinnipiac and and Loras between Sept. 13 and Oct. 6 show Donald Trump leading Hillary Clinton in Iowa -- 45 percent to 41.7 percent. Ernst was speaking following a town hall-style assembly to hundreds of Northwood-Kensett high school students who asked questions ranging from her thoughts on standardized testing, the benefits and drawbacks of being a woman in an election year, responsibilities of high school students in a democracy, views on gun control, and abortion. "They are engaged and they are paying attention," she said, "and that is important that we understand that they watch everything that we do." The event was part of her own 99-county tour in the state. The key for Trump at Wednesday's presidential debate will be to focus more on policy, she said. "I have yet to hear either candidate fully spell out where they stand on jobs and the economy, immigration," she said. "You know, tell us to our faces through the debate channel where you stand on these issues. Because, we need to be making up our minds and we haven't heard a lot of that so far." When Jon Moscone learned that San Franciscos hotel tax fund no longer earmarked funds specifically for the arts, he went to the only person who would be more shocked by this news than he was: his mother, Gina Moscone. Mayor George Moscones widow said he could count on her vote. Thats how Jon Moscone came to be the leading proponent of Proposition S, which would require the Board of Supervisors to designate 16 percent of the hotel tax fund to arts and family homelessness organizations. The city levies a 14 percent tax on every hotel room that is rented, raising $380 million a year for the general fund. The mayor and the Board of Supervisors have discretion over its use, and until the recession the arts always got their cut. Revenue dropped when the economy tanked, however, and the city began diverting money away from the arts. This is a promise that the city made to its community, and we are trying to make good on the promise, said Moscone, who is chief of civic engagement at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and former artistic director at the California Shakespeare Theatre. Prop. S would not raise the hotel tax: It would only specify how the money could be used. In addition to arts funding, low-income housing and family homelessness services would receive set percentages of the taxs revenue. According to an analysis by City Controller Ben Rosenfield, $69 million would go to the arts and homeless services if Prop. S passes. That figure could rise to $103 million by 2020-21. To cover that, allocations to public transit, youth services, libraries and schools would fall by $15 million in the first year and $24 million by 2020-21, Rosenfield said. Prop. S requires a two-thirds vote for approval. There is no organized opposition. Moscones argument is that with tourism and convention business booming, the hotel tax fund is growing by 4 to 10 percent a year. That increases the size of the pie. Without a designated slice, we have no assured funding stream for the arts in San Francisco, other than money that is allocated per year by the mayors office, and none of that is guaranteed, Moscone said. Under the current system, city money goes to the San Francisco Arts Commission and Grants for the Arts, which distribute it. Hundreds of arts organizations lobby for whatever they can get. It has become a battle royal among the arts groups of all sizes, as opposed to a stable foundation that worked for decades, said Shwetika Baijal, campaign manager for Yes on S. Under Prop. S, up to half of hotel tax revenue would go to the Moscone Center, the city-owned convention complex that has long been a beneficiary of the fund. The War Memorial Complex, home of the San Francisco Symphony and Opera, would get 3.3 percent, and the Arts Commission 1.6 percent. Grants for the Arts, which helps arts organizations of all sizes, and the Cultural Equity Endowment Fund, which helps small and minority-run groups, would each get 4.2 percent. The initiative would also establish an Ending Family Homelessness Fund. Backers hope Prop. S will eventually raise $17 million a year to end family homelessness, said Martha Ryan, who has been working on this issue in San Francisco for 30 years. Ryan was considering her own ballot initiative when she was invited to join Prop. S as the co-proponent. My goal for the money is that it will be used to prevent families from slipping into homelessness, Ryan said. Once you are homeless, it is hard to get out of it. Linking the two issues broadens the appeal of Prop. S to voters who might consider spending on the arts a luxury, but not the homeless. We are much stronger as a coalition, Moscone said. We are not a coalition that is saying, Give us our money back. We are a coalition saying, What makes San Francisco great is that it supports the arts. Sam Whiting is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: swhiting@sfchronicle.com Instagram:@sfchronicle_art Theyre more than twice as hot as habaneros. They make jalapenos taste like a walk in the park. And if youre unlucky, they can cause severe bodily harm. A 47-year-old man engaged in a daredevil eating contest in San Francisco found out the hard way just how hot a ghost pepper can be when he munched into a burger topped with a puree made out of the legendary chile. The result? A 1-inch-wide tear in his esophagus and a 23-day stay at UCSF Medical Center. The ordeal, while rare, was documented by UCSF physicians in a case study published recently in the Journal of Emergency Medicine that highlights the potential danger of extreme eating. The doctors said the man, who was not identified, survived despite violently and repeatedly retching and vomiting. Doug Cannell/Getty Images On the Scoville scale a heat index designed to measure the levels of capsaicin in peppers that make them so spicy ghost peppers weigh in at 1 million units, or super-hot territory. A jalapeno by comparison clocks in between 5,000 and 8,000 Scoville units, while the worlds hottest pepper, a cross-breeding feat of spicy engineering, measures about 1.5 million. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 2 1 of 2 Courtesy photo/Houston Hot Sauce Festival Show More Show Less 2 of 2 Manish Swarup/AP Show More Show Less The restaurant where the hospitalized man got sick was also left unnamed by UCSF, but the contest was part of a trend of people consuming hotter and hotter substances in an effort to outdo one another. Is it just boredom? asked Dr. Craig Smollin, co-author of the study. Is it just this culture of, I can one-up you? Or sort of like a schoolyard culture? I honestly dont know. I dont see the attractiveness of being able to say you accomplished this. People brave or foolish enough to chew and swallow the super-hot peppers are featured in food-dare YouTube videos. They typically scream or cry, mouths held hostage by the fiery pepper that can scald the tongue for a half-hour or do worse. The man in San Francisco chugged six glasses of water after chomping down on the pepper-laced burger, to no avail. Thats when the vomiting started, and soon there was a 911 call followed by complaints of excruciating stomach pain. Smollin, consulted in the case for his expertise with the California Poison Control System, described the episode as an outlier. Theres a lot of people out there who are ingesting ghost peppers and who have been OK, who have been fine, Smollin said. But there is a possibility, yeah, you could have a reaction and have a bad complication like this. The ghost pepper itself which is spicy but not acidic couldnt alone have caused the one-inch tear in the mans esophagus, Smollin said. It was the bouts of vomiting caused by the peppers irritation. The man was released from the hospital 23 days later with a gastric tube, UCSF said, after undergoing extensive surgery to repair his throat. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Jasmine Robinson, a manager at San Franciscos Hot Licks, a chain that specializes in spicy products, said shed be surprised if the man wasnt required to sign a waiver for the challenge. Those seeking to purchase the hottest sauces in her store require such a waiver releasing the chain from liability, she said. If you have too much or you use it improperly, or if your body just has a harmful reaction to it, then we dont want to be held responsible, Robinson said. Dave Hirschkop, who set out to make the spiciest sauce in the world when he founded San Franciscos Daves Gourmet, said the question when it comes to heat has become: How far does it go? Thats why his hotter bottles now come prescribed with a label urging the customer to use one drop at a time. At some point, there is a chance that some bizarre set of circumstances will happen and someone will get hurt even worse, Hirschkop said. Or die. Michael Bodley is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mbodley@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @michael_bodley Yahoos CEO Marissa Mayer said in a statement Tuesday that she remains confident in her companys value and ability to retain its users, despite a massive data breach that analysts believe could shake up the companys plans to sell its core business for $4.83 billion to Verizon. Yahoos third-quarter earnings, released Tuesday, mostly beat analysts expectations. But the company had taken the highly unusual step of not holding its earnings call, reflecting the pressure it is under after its revelation in September that at least 500 million accounts were affected by the 2014 breach. Last week, Verizons attorney said he believed the breach could constitute a material event, leaving the door open for Verizon to potentially renegotiate the deal. In her statement, which served as her first public remarks about the data breach, Mayer said she was heartened by Yahoo users continued loyalty. The company released numbers showing that user engagement remained about the same at Yahoo after it disclosed the data breach. We are busy preparing for integration with Verizon, she said. But she offered no further details on the data breach or why Yahoo did not disclose the breach while it was holding discussions to sell its Internet properties. Yahoo said its net earnings were $163 million in the third quarter, up from $76 million a year ago and beating analysts expectations on earnings per share. But the company continues to face challenges in its advertising business. The companys revenue minus traffic acquisition costs, meaning the amount of revenue that Yahoo generates minus what it pays to partners to direct traffic to its sites, declined 14 percent to $857.7 million. That slightly missed analysts expectations of $860.8 million, according to FactSet, a financial data firm. But the failure of Yahoo a business that has struggled to remain relevant against competitors like Facebook and Google to disclose the data breach when acquisition discussions were taking place has caused speculation that Verizon will use that as leverage to change the deal terms. Consumers may sue Yahoo for the data breach, which Verizon would want to account for in its sales price, analysts said. Its quite likely that Verizon will ask for a lower price, said Roger Entner, an analyst with Recon Analytics. Verizon declined to comment on whether it would ask for a lower price or renegotiate parts of the deal. The deals contract has a clause that says that if a material event were to occur that significantly impacts Yahoo or Verizons business, the companies could walk away. Craig Silliman, Verizons general counsel, said at a meeting last week that he believes that Yahoos data breach could amount to a material event. We have a reasonable basis to believe right now that the impact is material, and were looking to Yahoo to demonstrate to us the full impact, Silliman said. If they believe that its not, then theyll need to show us that. If Verizon were to renegotiate the deal, analysts say that doesnt leave Yahoo many options, and its unclear how much other bidders would be willing to pay for the company. Research firm eMarketer projects that Yahoos share of worldwide digital ad revenue will drop to 1.5 percent in 2016, from 2.1 percent in 2015. If Verizon walks away, whoever else will buy them will offer less, Entner said. There have been instances in which companies have been able to negotiate a lower price based on a material event, said Tony Schoenberg, a partner with law firm Farella Braun + Martel LLP. He pointed to a case involving private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP, which was able, after litigation over a materiality question, to renegotiate a deal for a hotel company and pay less. The extreme thing would be (for Verizon) to pull out of the deal entirely, Schoenberg said. The more likely scenario is they will seek to renegotiate for a lower price. Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes But Neil Doshi, an analyst with Mizuho Securities USA Inc., warned that Verizon should be careful about asking for too big a discount. If they try to get too greedy, I think we could potentially see Yahoo talking to other potential parties just in case they try to push a much lower price, Doshi said. When Yahoo put its Internet properties up for sale, the company talked to 51 parties about a potential purchase, according to a company filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Yahoo has more than 1 billion monthly users across its properties, a figure thats valuable to businesses like Verizon that want to expand advertising. If Verizon does buy Yahoo, the deal is expected to close early next year. The drama surrounding Yahoo isnt new for Doshi, who has been covering the company since 2007. Its kind of a fitting closure to this whole saga, where once you think everything is done, lo and behold, something else pops up and creates uncertainty once again, he said. Wendy Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: wlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @thewendylee A 51-year-old woman was repeatedly stabbed on Tuesday afternoon in San Franciscos South of Market neighborhood, authorities said. The suspect, a 49-year-old man whose name was not released, was arguing with the woman about 4:40 p.m. on Seventh and Market streets before the stabbing occurred. He knocked her to the ground and stabbed her multiple times in the torso before attempting to run away, police said. Officers located the suspect and placed him under arrest. The injured woman, whose name was not released, was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Sarah Ravani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani MASON CITY It was full STEAM ahead for Lincoln Intermediates makerspace on Tuesday, where robots traveled down the schools hallway and sewing machines whirred alongside 3-D printers. The makerspace, which emphasizes learning in science, technology, engineering, arts and math, gives students a place to create and solve authentic problems. Theres a lot going on at once, but our groups are self-directed and independent, said teacher Morgan Leider as she worked with sixth-graders using Dash and Dot smart robots. Students used iPads to connect to the robots via Bluetooth, using an app to control movement, add sound effects and change lighting colors. Madalyn Schweitzer said shes learned to control and code electronics during her time in the makerspace. Designated groups visit the space each week for an hour and a half, generally working at two stations, which include LEGOs and circuitry. Last year it was just a library with a lot of books no one read, Schweitzer, 11, said of the makerspace, which shares space with Lincolns information center. Cameron Sackett, who was working with green screen, said he liked being able to create things, like geography projects. You can do almost everything you want, said Sackett, 11. Leider, who teaches sixth-grade science and social studies, said donations like hot glue, egg cartons and milk jugs have allowed for the geography projects. Kids have been creating amazing things with the materials, which go quickly, she said, noting each student carefully plans beforehand, to avoid waste. The makerspace will be open to the community 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, where attendees can learn more about projects fifth- and sixth-graders are working on during the school day. Hope and resolve quickly rose from the ashes of the Bay Areas worst disaster in decades. The Chronicles front page from Oct. 19, 1989, covers the aftermath of the Loma Prieta earthquake. A battered but determined Bay Area, faced with mounting casualties and soaring damage estimates, prepared yesterday to bury its dead and repair the destruction wrought by Tuesdays massive earthquake, the story read. The shaking lasted only 15 seconds, but the Bay Area would never be the same. Dozens of people were killed, many instantly when the Cypress Freeway collapsed on top of them in Oakland. While families surveyed the damage and began the trek back to normality, the region remained shaken, but resolute. This feeling was captured on the front page by The Chronicles greatest voice, Herb Caen. April 18, 1906. October 18, 1989. Yesterday dawned bright and beautiful April 18, 1906, was said to have been a gorgeous morning, too but there the comparisons stop, Caen wrote. In 06, what reporter Will Irwin described as the most pleasure-loving city of the Western continent was destroyed by the fire that followed the earthquake. As of yesterday morning, San Francisco was surviving the great shake of 5:04 p.m. the day before, but make no mistake. (Click to enlarge) It is not the same city it had been up to a split-second before the earthquake struck with devastating force. The people of what is still the most pleasure-loving city were as badly shaken as the rest of the Bay Area. Suddenly and terrifyingly, they came face to face with the reality of life in this most fragile of cities. It CAN happen here again. And yet again. The price we pay for being San Franciscans is the never-ending threat of instant disaster. More on the disaster: Read more about the Loma Prieta earthquake and see the front page from the first day of coverage. More from the Archive The Vault Home of the San Francisco Chronicle's archive and more than 150 years of journalism covering the Bay Area and beyond. See more front pages: Go to SFChronicle.com/covers to search a database of hundreds of Chronicle Covers articles that showcase the newspapers history. Chronicle Covers highlights one classic Chronicle newspaper page from our archive every day for 366 days. Library director Bill Van Niekerken and producers Kimberly Chua, Michelle Devera and Jillian Sullivan contributed to the project. Tim ORourke is the executive producer and editor of SFChronicle.com. Email: torourke@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TimothyORourke Students at San Franciscos June Jordan School for Equity were stunned and saddened Wednesday as they returned for classes following a shooting the day before that wounded four classmates in the campus parking lot. Police, meanwhile, said they were zeroing in on several suspects who fled after spraying gunfire into a group of teens, causing chaos at the small school in the citys Excelsior neighborhood, which boasts a curriculum emphasizing social justice and opposition to violence. Teachers stood silently, holding candles and burning sage, while students gathered in groups outside the school near John McLaren Park, which serves as a refuge for the students, many of whom hail from neighborhoods often plagued by crime. Of the roughly 250 students enrolled at the school, more than half did not attend classes Wednesday, officials said. This is a really difficult time for parents at the school. This is a really difficult time for the community. This is a really difficult time for the students, said an emotional Heather Lee as she dropped off her son Wednesday. I went home last night and I hugged and kissed my kids so tightly. Before classes began, students scrawled messages in chalk on the pavement of the schools parking lot, where police said the targeted shooting occurred and left four 15-year-old students wounded as school let out around 3:20 p.m. Tuesday. Police and school officials declined to specify which student or students were targeted in the attack, citing the ongoing investigation. What we will continue to do is get to the root cause of this, of why young men feel so hopeless that they would try and take another mans life so quickly, said Giulio Sorro, co-director of June Jordan. One of the victims, an unnamed girl, suffered life-threatening injuries when she was hit by the gunfire, which sent students running in panic and prompted a lockdown at the campus and at the adjoining City Arts and Technology High School. School officials said Wednesday that the girl was recovering from her injuries. Three male victims were treated for gunshot wounds and have been released from the hospital, school officials said. No one has been arrested in the attack, which school administrators said was carried out by outsiders unaffiliated with the school. Capt. Joe McFadden of the San Francisco Police Departments Ingleside Station said police were reviewing surveillance video taken from the campus and were close to making multiple arrests in the shooting. Hopefully, well have some closure on this real soon, he said. Our main priority is making sure the parents and the students feel safe. Grief counselors were on hand to speak with students while officers on foot walked around the campus, working to put students and parents at ease and prevent further violence. At least two police cars were parked near the school when classes let out for the day Wednesday. Lee said she had no apprehension about dropping off her child. Students at the school, which focuses on equity and social justice issues, trickled into class, many still dazed from the shooting. Meili Rubio, a sophomore, said she is a friend of the female victim and was focused on doing what she could to help her recover. It was shocking, she said of the moments after the gunfire erupted. It was very shocking. At least one shooter opened fire on the group, sending students, including the bleeding victims, scrambling into the school for cover. In the chaotic aftermath, police and school officials were unsure whether they were dealing with a gunman inside the school and immediately whisked students into classrooms and locked down the school and adjoining campus. Scores of officers responded within minutes, police said. And emergency personnel charged into what they thought was an active shooting situation, with no protective gear, to reach the victims quickly, said Lt. Jonathan Baxter, a spokesman for the San Francisco Fire Department. Police later determined that at least one shooter fled on foot down Brazil Avenue with a group of three other young men. Officials said the shooter, who was not identified, was 15 years old. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. There has never been something like this that has happened before at the school, sophomore Nalayah Linton said. It really just made me terrified. It really just made me scared. Interim Police Chief Toney Chaplin said city health workers will be helping students process any residual trauma and get them any help they may need. This is a city that really tries to protect the youth and look out for them, he said Wednesday at an unrelated City Hall event. When something like this happens, it hits all of us. June Jordan was designed to be small and provides individualized attention to its students, many of whom are minorities and come from low-income areas where violence is prevalent. What happened (Tuesday) afternoon was tragic for us adults in this space who have worked so hard to provide a sense of safety for these kids, said the schools co-director, Jessica Huang, standing in front of the campus in a Black Lives Matter T-shirt. Administrators were mulling whether to shorten the days schedule while encouraging students to talk about the shooting and the broader themes of what causes violence. This is my home, said 17-year-old senior Maria Zaragoza. I know students that stay here until school closes because the longer it takes to get home the better. Zaragoza lives in the citys Ingleside neighborhood, where she said crime in common. The school for her, like many others, is their place away from the trouble in their neighborhoods. Its going to take lots of time to get over this to heal from this, and it will hurt every day, she said. Chronicle staff writer Jill Tucker contributed to this report Since its birth after the financial crisis, a federal consumer watchdog agency has barely survived political fights over its power and nature. Now a federal appeals court is weighing in, trimming its independent status but stopping short of putting it out of business. Thats a result that everyday consumers and an unhappy banking world should accept. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is proving its worth in bringing order to a nearly lawless world of payday lenders, credit card firms, mortgage issuers and mega banks. Its most recent bulls-eye may be its biggest effort to date. The agency launched an inquiry that led to a $100 million fine levied at Wells Fargo for phony sales tactics and the departure days later of the giant banks top executive. While lawmakers and candidates cry out for Wall Street justice, this bureau actually follows through and gets undeniable results. The court case followed that major outcome. It drew plenty of observers wondering whether a ruling would eviscerate the infant agency, a product of the sweeping Dodd-Frank financial overhaul in 2010. Thankfully, that didnt happen. The appeals panel instead went after an important but subordinate issue of the stature of the agencys director. Its first leader, Richard Cordray, was picked by the White House which designed the bureau to be largely independent and subject to few constraints. Its a model that some Washington agencies follow in dealing with nuclear power, communications and the Federal Reserve system, while others such as the Environmental Protection Agency operate more directly under the presidential thumb. The organizational setup pleased consumer groups who wanted insulation from conservative critics wary of financial regulators. The design dismayed Republicans and business groups who feared the Lone Ranger powers given to a combative new agency led by Democrat Cordray. The three-judge panel from the conservative court found that high and mighty independence wasnt warranted when it comes to Cordrays job. He and his successors should serve at the pleasure of the president and not be protected by a nearly ironclad five-year term. The consumer czar isnt immune from White House wishes and should be treated much like a Cabinet secretary, spy agency head or top diplomat. Thats a notable check on a new agency with a hard-charging reputation. Additionally, the court case also involved a ruling that the consumer bureau had gone too far in punishing a New Jersey mortgage firm. The case may continue on via more appeals and a possible Supreme Court showdown. There are issues of separation of powers and the role of the president in running the sprawling federal bureaucracy. But the Main Street result should reassure bill payers worried about unfair late fees or credit card users given few options to dispute a charge. For now, the bureau will still be there to hold the financial industry in check. The hard lessons of the recent recession wont be forgotten. Brant Ward/The Chronicle If you are one of the thousands of San Francisco residents who have called 311 or the San Francisco Police Department to complain about the human waste, discarded needles, garbage, crime or unsightliness associated with tent encampments, then I have good news for you. I am piloting a common-sense and humane strategy to decrease the pain associated with the citys approximately 75 identified tent encampments. If implemented, this approach would cost only a fraction of the $20.6 million spent annually on policing encampments and could significantly reduce the millions of dollars spent by the Department of Public Works for encampment clean-up. Whats more, we can do this in a way that supports the health, safety and dignity of unhoused residents while working to prevent new encampments. A year ago during my mayoral campaign, I called for a Saint Francis Super Bowl Homelessness Challenge in response to the proposed Super Bowl 50 homeless sweeps. In January, Intersection for the Arts became the fiscal sponsor for the St. Francis Homelessness Challenge. I offered the idea to develop transitional eco-villages on the citys underutilized land. These sanctioned, off-grid communities would mitigate the complaints of neighbors and local businesses while meeting the health and safety needs of unhoused residents who are unable (or unprepared) to gain access to long-term shelter or supportive housing. The underlying theory is that by increasing our accountability to those living on the street, we can also increase the accountability of encampment residents to their neighbors, local businesses, the police and city workers. MASON CITY The City Council approved three more proposals for forgivable loans Tuesday in one of the city's most successful business revitalization programs. Ten businesses have now participated in the Corridor Revitalization Loan Program (CoRL) in which the city offers up to $30,000 in a forgivable loan if the owner matches the investment. In the latest agreements, Randy and Lisa OTool, registered owners of Rusty Scooter LLC, will receive a forgivable loan of $23,152 to do exterior repairs and upgrades to their business, Real Deals Home Decor, 21-23 Fifth St. S.W. The project includes roof repair, window and door replacement, parking lot repairs, installation of a screen fence, adding a decorative stone to the facade and replacing broken concrete. Total cost is $46,304. The forgivable loan will pay for half. Scott and Jaylin Anderson will receive $30,000, the maximum allowed, for upgrades to Scottys Auto Service, 1103 N. Federal Ave. They intend to build a 1,361-square-foot addition to their main office and service building. Total cost of their project is $72,000. Harold and Beverly Platts, owners of Northtown Apartments at 720, 724 and 804 N. Federal Ave., will receive $28,583 to do exterior repairs and upgrades, including parking lot repairs, new concrete in front of the garages and construction of two six-foot fences. They will receive half of the total cost of the project, $57,166. If the owners maintain ownership and the improvements for seven years, the loans are forgiven. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Oh what a difference 18 months and a contentious election make. In the spring of 2015, Supervisor David Campos and Melissa San Miguel were praising each other on Twitter. San Miguel had nominated Campos for an award from the California Democrats Chicano Latino Caucus. Campos tweeted a beaming photo of the two at the awards ceremony and called San Miguel an amazing young leader with a great future. She tweeted back that he was truly an inspiration. Well, apparently that great future Campos foresaw didnt include San Miguel challenging his legislative aide, Hillary Ronen, to replace him as the District Nine supervisor when hes termed out in January. And apparently now that San Miguel is battling Ronen, the latters boss is no longer an inspiration. San Miguel says that at a debate last week, Campos was sitting in the front row glaring at her and looking peeved. When she said 8,000 Latino families had been displaced from the Mission during Campos tenure, he shouted out that she was lying. The number comes from census figures that dated back to 2000, whereas Campos was elected in 2008. Campos tweeted after the debate that San Miguel is not afraid to lie to promote her ambition and said shes the choice of corporate & real estate interests. San Miguel tweeted back, Funny thought from a future lobbyist ... I wont hold it against you when I am elected and working for the people #truthhurts. Can these two former Twitter pals find anything nice to say about the other now? Um, no. Campos said, When we represent ourselves to the public, its important to be truthful. San Miguel says she nominated Campos for the Latino caucus award last year only because he pushed for free Muni rides for low-income youth not because she admires him as a person. It was absolutely about the policy, she said. Thats what matters to me. Heather Knight Unlikely ally: You know GOP Rep. Darrell Issa is facing a tough re-election battle when he brings President Obama into the race on his side. Issa, an eight-term congressman from Vista in San Diego County, has spent much of Obamas term slamming the president for sins real and imagined. So there were plenty of raised eyebrows when mailers featuring a full-cover picture of the president, sitting at his Oval Office desk in full bill-signing mode, dropped into mailboxes in the 49th Congressional District. Superimposed was a message from Issa: Im very pleased that President Obama has signed into law the Survivors Bill of Rights, legislation I co-sponsored to protect the victims of sexual assault. The mailer, with a tiny photo of Issa dwarfed by that of Obama, probably marks the only time Issa has publicly said hes pleased with anything the president has done. Its a tight race that makes the difference. While Issa finished on top in the June primary, Democrat Doug Applegate was way closer than expected and has tightened the race so much that the Cook Political Report now rates it a toss-up. Its a contest that may show just how toxic Donald Trumps brand is for Republicans in California. Issa has been a key supporter of the GOP presidential nominee, and he didnt pull his endorsement even after Trumps notorious video surfaced featuring him talking about making uninvited sexual advances on women. John Wildermuth Bay Area blues: Bay Area liberals and Sen. Barbara Boxer are dissed in a new radio ad released by a super PAC supporting Orange County Rep. Loretta Sanchez in her race for the U.S. Senate against state Attorney General Kamala Harris. The 30-second spot features two Republican voters in conversation, venting their frustrations about their choices in the race. Both candidates are Democrat, but were Republicans. I dont know. Maybe I just wont vote, says one. When Harris name is raised in the ad, another person responds: Harris is just another Barbara Boxer: a Bay Area liberal backed by the Democratic Party establishment. The ad is an appeal to the 26 percent of voters who told the Field Poll in September that they were undecided, along with the 12 percent who said they supported neither candidate or werent going to vote in the race. According to Federal Election Commission reports, the state Democratic Party has spent $560,000 on campaign expenses such as staff and office space for Harris, a former San Francisco district attorney. Sanchezs ad disparaging Barbara Boxer really underscores to California Democrats why Kamala is the right choice in November, party spokesman Michael Soller said. The ad was created by Californias New Frontier, which describes itself as a coalition of Southern California community and business leaders. The Sanchez campaign distanced itself from the spot. This is not an ad we would run, said Sanchez spokesman Luis Vizcaino. As for Boxer, who has endorsed Harris, she said, Nothing surprises me in politics anymore. Joe Garofoli Heather Knight, John Wildermuth and Joe Garofoli are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: hknight@sfchronicle.com, jwildermuth@sfchronicle.com, jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hknightsf, @jfwildermuth, @joegarofoli Proposition 57, potentially the most significant revision of California sentencing laws in 40 years, would allow the state parole board to consider releasing inmates who have served their basic term for a crime the law defines as nonviolent. How many inmates would be eligible depends on whom you ask. And theres quite a difference one set of numbers, based on the text of Prop. 57, is more than 23 times higher than figures used by the yes on 57 campaign, which says the measure would be enforced much more narrowly. The disparity could leave voters wondering what theyre being asked to approve. The most reliable data usually come from a neutral source like the states legislative analyst, said Rory Little, a professor at UC Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco. Its no surprise that the sponsors of the initiative would present the rosier picture, he said. Michael Macor/The Chronicle The Legislative Analysts Office, whose nonpartisan assessments of the costs of each measure appear on voters ballots, says about 30,000 current inmates in California, nearly one-fourth of the total, would be up for parole consideration if voters approve Prop. 57 on Nov. 8. In addition, 7,500 inmates entering prison each year would become eligible for parole starting about two years later, the office says. But the campaign for Prop. 57, led by Gov. Jerry Brown, says that only about 1,300 current prisoners would be considered for release, and that the numbers in succeeding years would be 1,000 to 1,500. Those figures, the campaign says, come from the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, which runs the prisons. Neither set of numbers reflects how many inmates would actually be released. Thats a decision left to parole commissioners, who are appointed by the governor and generally have backgrounds in law enforcement or prison administration. Based on input from both the Legislative Analysts Office and the Prop. 57 campaign, the difference appears to be this: The higher numbers are taken from the wording of the ballot measure and how it could be enforced, while the lower numbers reflect how the state plans to enforce it at least under Browns administration, which is already operating under federal court orders to reduce the prison population. Current sentencing is based on legislation that Brown signed into law as governor in 1976. The law requires convicted felons to serve a fixed term based on the sentence prescribed for the crime they committed and additional factors, such as prior convictions, gang membership and use of a gun, which can add decades to their confinement. The states three-strikes law, approved in 1994, requires a term of 25 years to life for a third serious or violent felony. Prop. 57 would change the 1976 law, making prisoners convicted of nonviolent felonies eligible for parole once they have served their base term. The measure doesnt define violent felonies, but a 2000 voter-approved ballot measure lists 23 crimes as violent offenses that qualify for increased sentences under the three-strikes law. They include murder and attempted murder, forcible sex crimes, child molesting, kidnapping and robbery. The Legislative Analysts Office used that measure to conclude that 30,000 current prisoners are serving time for nonviolent crimes, with increased sentences for past convictions and other factors that could be shortened by Prop. 57, said Drew Soderborg, a managing principal legislative analyst. He said about 16,000 inmates have completed their primary terms and would be immediately eligible for parole, and the others would be eligible sooner than they would be if Prop. 57 lost. The measures opponents, led by prosecutors, note that the list doesnt include some crimes most people would consider violent, such as rape of an unconscious or intoxicated person, and some cases of domestic violence or assault with a deadly weapon. Voting no, they say is essential to stop early release of violent criminals. But supporters of Prop. 57 say it would actually apply to those who clear a safety screen set up by the prison system in 2014, in response to a federal court order, to consider parole for a category of nonviolent felons serving time for their second strike under the three-strikes law. All sex offenders, as well as inmates who have recently engaged in violent acts, drug offenses or gang activity in prison would be disqualified, reducing the parole-eligible group to 7,000, said Dan Newman, spokesman for the yes on 57 campaign. In addition, he said, 5,700 of those inmates are already being considered for parole as second-strikers. That means only 1,300 would become newly eligible for parole under Prop. 57, and by the same assessment the number would be 1,000 to 1,500 a year in the future, Newman said. The campaigns calculations are one possible outcome but not an inevitable one, said Soderborg of the Legislative Analysts Office. Its difficult to be sure in the long term, he said. A new administration could exercise authority in a different way. Hadar Aviram, a UC Hastings law professor, said the lower numbers were credible and reflected the likely impact of Prop. 57 if it passed. Regardless of the size of the population, were not talking about massive early releases here, she said. Were talking about considering parole for folks with no further history or concerns about risk after the completion of their basic term. Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @egelko Pablo Picasso said that it took him a lifetime to learn to paint like a child: To create in a context untainted by convention or critics and unafraid to explore new fantasies. Perhaps thats whats so compelling about the fashion designed by the students in the SFArtsEd summer program, who range from 10 to 14 years old and attend a variety of schools across the city. At their age, clothing and art can be anything and knows no limits. In the classroom I always start by showing them a wide variety of images, says fashion camp artist mentor Tiersa Nureyev, who began the fashion program at the SFArtsEd summer camp in 2006. I like them to be aware of whats going on in fashion and art. The lessons may be for kids but the material is anything but juvenile: Nick Caves Soundsuits, the Lumps and Bumps collection by Comme des Garcons, Sandra Backlunds knitwear and the stage wardrobe of Lady Gaga are all part of the curriculum that introduces students to some of the most celebrated (and maligned) fashion/art hybrids in recent memory. Its the kind of high-concept clothing beloved by the art crowd, but Nureyev says its also remarkably accessible to kids whose views havent yet been narrowed by convention. This year, the student work was inspired by themes of identity and transformation: Every garment was made from reimagined materials Nureyev sourced from the Thrift Town store in the Mission District. TITLE Click to see the designs from SFArtsEd: "Earth Music" "Earth Music" Designer: Emilia Burkhart Model: Lily Din Inspiration: My inspirations for this piece were foxes, angler fish and many of the costumes from Hamilton. My favorite part of my costume is the fox cravat. Emilia Burkhart, 10 ? "Never Ending Blue" "Never Ending Blue" Designer: Greta Dammermann Model: Stella Nureyev-Hilburn Inspiration: My dress was inspired by a sea nymph. She lived in an ocean where the water was clear and blue and the waves were as big and as wavy as you want them to be. The sun always shone, and it was never stormy. Greta Dammermann, 12 ? "Blood Ninja" "Blood Ninja" Designer: Stella Rubin-Moore Model: Maile Din Inspiration: "My project was inspired by watching ninja shows when I was younger: I wanted to show that girls can be both strong like ninjas, and resourceful. Stella Rubin-Moore, 11 ? "Underwater" "Underwater" Designer: Ella Sinclair Model: Sofia Schuler Inspiration: The inspiration for my garment was the sea and its characteristics. For example, the main colors of my garment and their placements: The bodice consists of yellow, representing the bright live coral reefs at the surface of the ocean, and the purple skirt representing the deep dark mysteries at the bottom. Ella Sinclair, 12 ? "Night Blooming Flower" "Night Blooming Flower" Designer: Karishma Bordoni Model: Praise Odenyi Inspiration: I feel like people view flowers as a beauty of the daytime with the sun and flowers and happiness. What people dont usually think about is the beauty of flowers springing up in the night. Karishma Bordoni, 10 ? "The Meowing Mermaid" "The Meowing Mermaid" Designer: Nina Solomon Model: Drake Woodruff Inspiration: "I love cats and I was thinking a lot about whales at the time. I decided to combine the two together to make a cool creature, but I thought that a cat whale would be too difficult to do, so I changed the whale part to a mermaid." Nina Solomon, 10 ? "Once Upon a Springtime Meadow" "Once Upon a Springtime Meadow" Designer: Emma Johnson Model: Emma Johnson Inspiration: It is what I imagine a fairy would wear to camouflage herself. The vines swinging loosely around the dress give the dress movement and show how plants sway in a spring breeze. Emma Johnson, 11 ? "Forest Princess" "Forest Princess" Designer: Sophia Philpott Levi Model: Markaila Dyson Inspiration: When I started sketching this design, I noticed that it was becoming something amazing, something beautiful, a forest princess. I kept going with it, and here is the design that you see before you. Sophia Philpott Levi, 10 ? "Nerves" "Nerves" Designer: Lillian Orcutt Model: Emma Johnson Inspiration: My character Nerves is a monster that lives in the heart of the Upper West Side. She wants to be human but everybody knows she is not. Nerves has eyes all over her torso looking worried in every direction, four more shivering arms, an extra set of anxious grinding teeth on her head, and she is dripping tears. Lillian Orcutt, 10 ? "Beastiful" "Beastiful" Designer: Beatrice Waits-Mast Model: Sofia Schuler Inspiration: The story I made about my creature is that this species of octopus wanted to live on land with other humans, so she wore this outfit to try and fit in, although she never succeeded. Beatrice Waits-Mast, 10 ? "Dripping with Chains" "Dripping with Chains" Designer: Lyla Maymon Model: Tai Lum Inspiration: My garment symbolizes the concept of being trapped. The long strips of finger knitting symbolize chains; the headpiece and mask conceal a large portion of the face to illustrate oppression. A prisoner is someone who is deprived of liberty against his or her own will. Lyla Maymon, 11 ? Meet the students Meet the students Back row, from left: Designer Beatrice Waits-Mast; Maile Din modeling "Blood Ninja" by Stella Rubin-Moore; Markaila Dyson modeling "Forest Princess" by Sophia Philpott Levi; Stella Nureyev-Hilburn modeling "Never Ending Blue" by Greta Dammermann; Tai Lum modeling "Dripping with Chains" by Lyla Maymon; Praise Odenyi modeling "Night Blooming Flower" by Karishma Bordoni; Designer Karishma Bordoni; Lily Din modeling "Earth Music" by Emilia Burkhart. Front row: Sofia Schuler modeling "Beastiful" by Beatrice Waits-Mast; Drake Woodruff modeling "The Meowing Mermaid" by Nina Solomon; Emma Johnson modeling "Nerves" by Lillian Orcutt; Designer Lillian Orcutt. ? On Oct. 29, students from SFArtsEds Players performing arts program and Broadway Bound summer camp will model the costumes in a special show at the Catharine Clark Gallery as part of the gallerys Box Blur series of events inspired by artist Kambui Olujimis current show What Endures. SFArtsEd Artistic Director Emily Keeler describes the evening as a performance-art event, choreographed by Sydney Lozier, where students will create tableaux and interact with one another and the art. On a recent afternoon at the programs offices and gallery at the Minnesota Street Project, performers and designers got together to model looks from the upcoming show. As the models changed into the garments, the schoolkids vanished and the performers took over. The student designers on hand did not hesitate to adjust a seam, reposition a mask or tweak a detail to make the final look perfect. I like that were not treated like kids, says 10-year-old designer Lillian Orcutt, who attends Sunnyside Elementary. Fellow designer Beatrice Waits-Mast, also 10 and a student at Sunnyside, agrees. We get to have our own ideas, Waits-Mast says. They let us make what inspires us. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Tony Bravo is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tbravo@sfchronicle.com. Photos by Stephen Lam, Special to the Chronicle. Box Blur: SFArtsED The students will model the looks and perform to Indian Summer by Jai Wolf. Free. 6-8 p.m. Oct. 29, Catharine Clark Gallery, 248 Utah St., S.F. http://www.sfartsed.org/; https://cclarkgallery.com/events/box-blur-sfartsed This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The family of Nicholas McWherter, the man suspected of shooting a San Francisco police officer before being fatally shot by the officers colleagues, said McWherter had a deep religious faith but struggled with mental illness and lost his way before last weeks violence. His heart was strong and pure, his faith was his rock and his light, even in his troubled times, read the brief statement from the McWherter family. Mental illness is unimaginable to those with sound minds, but it is real and the problem is begging for our support. Nicholas fought a long, hard, and brave battle to defeat his disease but lost his way last week. McWherter was shot Friday night by police about an hour after he opened fire on officers on Everglade Drive near the Lakeshore Plaza Shopping Center, officials said. Officer Kevin Downs was struck in the head and underwent surgery to remove bullet fragments from his brain. He was suffering paralysis on one side of his body. The officers had been responding to reports of a man acting erratically and making threats, and did not at first know McWherter was armed, police said. After he opened fire, officials said, McWherter ran across Sloat Boulevard toward Stern Grove and later emerged from bushes at 28th Avenue and Vicente Street, still armed. Despite orders to drop the weapon, he continued to hold the gun to his chest, and officers shot him during the confrontation, police said. After being shot, McWherter still refused to surrender, police said. The officers were able to take him into custody after they deployed flash-bang stun grenades and distracted him, police said. McWherter died Sunday at a hospital from his gunshot wounds. He grew up in Pacifica with several siblings, according to one of his brothers, Jordan McWherter. Downs, meanwhile, remained hospitalized Wednesday and was listed in good condition, said Brent Andrew, a spokesman for San Francisco General Hospital. Downs is in his early 20s and has been on the force for two years. Along with being an officer, Downs co-founded Ranchin Vets, an organization that helps veterans transition from military to civilian life. The gunshot was nearly fatal, and the outcome would have been different had the bullet been 1 centimeter down, interim Police Chief Toney Chaplin said at a news conference. Downs was the first San Francisco police officer shot in the line of duty in nearly 10 years. The Police Department will hold a town hall meeting to discuss the shooting at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Scottish Rite Masonic Center at 2850 19th Ave. Our family is deeply saddened, yet steadied by our faith, the McWherter family statement said. Our hearts and prayers are with Officer Downs and his family. Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate When civilian boat Capt. Rod Stoltz took passengers out on the bay to watch the Blue Angels during Fleet Week, the last thing on his mind was piloting his vessel into the middle of a rescue mission. Stoltz recalled taking the long way around Alcatraz Island that Saturday to avoid the large crowds. Then suddenly he spotted a capsized yacht and 30 people, including three children, flailing in the water, screaming for help. There was a bunch of people in the water and a lot of debris, Stoltz said. Our main concern was getting as close as we could without hurting anyone. On Wednesday, San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee honored Stoltz, city firefighters, police officers and hospital workers who sprang into action to turn what could have been a calamity into one of the most successful rescue operations in recent memory. I was aghast at how many people were in the water, Lee said at the City Hall ceremony. No one lost their lives that day. That is hugely important when you have an event of this magnitude. Stoltz was one of 18 rescuers presented with a special Hearts of San Francisco pin for their heroic efforts on Oct. 8. Lee personally bestowed the pin on Stoltz and three other honorees: Sgt. Dan Laval of the San Francisco Police Departments Marine Unit, who pulled 10 people from the water; Fire Department Division Chief Robert Postel, who coordinated rescue efforts; and nurse Yuko Murakami, who represented her colleagues at San Francisco General Hospital. Lives were not only saved in the water, on the shore and on the way to the hospital, but in the hospital, as well, Lee said. Three children and five adults were injured when the 34-foot cabin cruiser named the Khaleesi capsized and sank about 100 yards off Pier 45 in front of hundreds of witnesses observing Fleet Week festivities. All 30 individuals who had been aboard the boat were accounted for. The boat was recovered from the bottom of the bay last Thursday, but the investigation of what caused it to sink is ongoing, said Officer Giselle Talkoff, a spokeswoman for the Police Department. However, police suspect the boat, a 1984-85 Silverton cabin cruiser, was overloaded with passengers, officials told The Chronicle. Interim Police Chief Toney Chaplin and Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White presented pins to the other rescuers present at Wednesdays City Hall event. This is a first responders worst nightmare to see so many potential victims, Chaplin said. Its why we train for things just like this. These are heroes. Sarah Ravani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani In the beginning of her first book, House A (Omnidawn), Jennifer S. Cheng writes: It is important to note that before language, children experience memories as image and sound, which is to say they experience them as poetry. Composed of three sections, each written in a different form, House A reconstructs this childlike experience of the world by blending the literal and metaphorical ways in which we build our houses and our selves. The first section is a series of letters written to Mao, intimate and conjectural, that investigate the overlapping natures of memory and longing, history both personal and cultural and rootedness. By phone, Cheng said, I think a lot about how in my particular immigrant household, how does history and how does trauma and how do all these things that I never really heard about explicitly from my parents ... how do those things become part of me? She ponders how the historical figure of Mao could be a huge presence in her house, even though her parents did not tell her stories about him. I somehow still knew about it, she said. I start to think about it as if that knowledge was built into the objects in our house, or the shadows in our house, or the way my parents moved around, or the way that they structured the furniture. Cheng was born in Texas and moved to Hong Kong, where her father grew up, when she was 8 (her mother is from Taiwan). They moved back to the U.S. four years later. We moved around a lot, Cheng said, so the idea of home or house was never necessarily a stable, physical structure. I think this is often the case with immigrants and children of immigrants, and it makes me wonder then where does our sense of home or house come from, and what are we then rooted in, or what roots us? Im really interested in that question. In House A, she asks: What if the absence of a point of reference is not something to be lamented but a structural foundation on which to build a house we fill with water? In another letter, she writes: Dear Mao, I hope you understand that what I am doing is trying to give you a history of water, which, like memory and sleep, is fluid and wafting in refracted light. History as water, so that I am giving you something that spreads. House A was selected by Claudia Rankine as the winner of the 2015 Omnidawn 1st/2nd Poetry Book Prize, but Cheng is a little distressed by the idea that they represent something permanent. Im still rewriting some of these poems, and Im still moving them around, and theyre still very fluid to me in a way, she said. But because we live in the world we live in, they have to have some kind of semblance of completion or permanence. But I dont necessarily feel that thats true with a capital T. Evan Karp is the creator of Quiet Lightning and Litseen.com. Twitter: @quiet_lightning Other book events Emma Donoghue (Room) reads from and discusses her new novel, The Wonder (7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 20, Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera, free). www.bookpassage.com Books Inc. Laurel Village presents a panel on the theme of body, with Jen Richter (No Acute Distress), Matthew Siegel (Blood Work), Vanessa Hua (Deceit and Other Possibilities) and Ingrid Rojas Contreras (7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 20, 3515 California St., S.F., free). Slovenian Lidija Dimkovska discusses her novel A Spare Life (Two Lines Press), which won the 2013 European Union Prize for Literature (7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 20, Diesel, A Bookstore, 5433 College Ave., Oakland, free). SpeCt Books celebrates the publication of an uncollected prose piece by Jack Spicer called The Wasps, with readings by Peter Gizzi and Kevin Killian (3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, Alley Cat Books, 3036 24th St., S.F., free). Andre Alexis, author of the Giller Prize-winning novel Fifteen Dogs, reads from and discusses his new book The Hidden Keys with Karen Joy Fowler (We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves) (7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, Green Apple Books on the Park, 1231 Ninth Ave., S.F. free). www.greenapplebooks.com Book party for House A: 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21. Free. Alley Cat Books, 3036 24th St., S.F. (415) 824-1761. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Airbnb is making a new effort to play nice with San Francisco, despite a fractious relationship that has heated up in recent months with the vacation-rental company suing its hometown and lawmakers considering new restrictions on rentals in private homes. The company said it is building into its website a way to automatically bar San Francisco hosts who control multiple listings, sometimes a sign of landlords running illegal hotels. Hosts with legitimate reasons for multiple listings, such as property-management companies, legal hotels or people with two or more rooms to rent in their homes, can request exceptions. The feature will take effect Nov. 1, but Airbnb said it already has jettisoned hundreds of San Francisco listings since April, when it promised to crack down on illegal commercial operators. In cities that identify as having housing challenges, we want to find solutions, said Chris Lehane, Airbnb head of global public policy. Our underlying objective is to get to the policy goal identified by San Francisco of making sure (illegal) commercial activity is not taking place on our platforms. Airbnb said that since April it has removed 213 entire-unit listings and 525 shared spaces many of them so-called hacker hostels. In addition, multiple-listing operators chose to remove another 180 listings, it said. San Francisco law allows homeowners to rent out only their own home. Since no one can reside in more than one home, having more than one listing on the site is a red flag. Informal hacker hostels, which cram temporary renters into bunk beds, often six or more to a room, are a phenomenon of the recent housing crunch and may violate planning, zoning and building codes. Many hostels relied on Airbnbs worldwide reach and its systems for booking and collecting payments. Airbnb still lists a few hostels that appear to be operating out of houses or apartments and said it continues to manually remove ones that are illicit. Airbnb has taken similar steps to remove illegal listings in New York. The company did not immediately respond to a question about whether it plans to remove multiple listings in other cities. San Francisco lawmakers and housing activists contend that vacation rentals divert permanent housing. Airbnb and its supporters counter that renting to travelers helps middle-class people make ends meet. The latest change comes as the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday began to consider legislation to limit short-term rentals to 60 days a year regardless of whether the host is present. (Hosts who had registered with the city by Oct. 11 would observe the current limitations: 90 days for unhosted rentals, and 365 for hosted ones.) That is even stricter than the 75-day-a-year cap that voters rejected as part of last years Proposition F, a San Francisco ballot initiative that Airbnb spent $8 million to battle. Airbnbs new move brings up a question: If Airbnb can take this step, why cant it implement others? San Francisco regulators frequently ask why the company wont pull the plug on whole-home listings once they exceed the citys 90-day annual cap and why it doesnt create a separate field in the online listings for San Francisco registration numbers, something it briefly offered but removed several months ago. Lehane said such changes would need to come as part of a comprehensive overhaul of San Francisco regulations and systems done in concert with Airbnb itself. We want to work with the city on a holistic approach to make sure the home-sharing laws are working, he said, referring to Airbnbs term for short-term rentals. If those in office want to solve some of these bigger issues, wed be interested in being able to participate in those conversations. For instance, on registration numbers, which now are buried within hosts listings, he repeated Airbnbs contention that the citys registration system is cumbersome. Thats part of a larger question of an effective registration system, he said. We could have an effective system, including a number that shows up on the site in a straightforward way, if the city was willing to work with us to figure that out. Airbnb is suing San Francisco over recent updates to its vacation-rental law that would hold Airbnb and other companies liable for steep fines and criminal penalties if they book guests into properties that failed to register with the city. That requirement took effect in February 2015, but only 1,650 hosts out of an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 have registered. A decision on Airbnbs request for an injunction to halt that provision is expected soon. Meanwhile the city has suspended enforcement of it. Jennifer Fieber, political campaign director of the San Francisco Tenants Union, said she was dubious about Airbnbs self-policing, noting that while it temporarily removed illegal listings in New York, some later popped back again. There are still 9,000 listings in the city that arent registered, she said. We want those peoples names to be turned over to the city, and Airbnb has that information. Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images Starbucks is pushing ahead with its expansion into mainland China, saying Wednesday its on track to have 5,000 stores by 2021, more than doubling the number of its coffee shops in the country. The Seattle coffee chain is looking to China to fuel its growth. Its grown rapidly since opening its first Chinese store in 1999, though it famously suffered a misstep nearly a decade ago when protests over a shop inside the Forbidden City led to it being closed. CEO Howard Schultz has said China could one day surpass the U.S. as the chains largest market. There are about 13,000 Starbucks stores in the United States. A married father of three children was identified as the grocery warehouse employee killed this week when police say he was run down by a pickup-truck driver he confronted stealing wooden pallets at the San Leandro company where he worked. Takeshi Watanabe, 54, died after being struck Monday morning by a pickup truck in the rear parking lot of True World Foods on the 1800 block of Williams Street in San Leandro, the Alameda County coroners office said. Watanabe was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics. He had worked at True World Foods for 23 years. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 5 1 of 5 San Leandro Police Department / San Leandro Police Department Show More Show Less 2 of 5 San Leandro Police Department / San Leandro Police Department Show More Show Less 3 of 5 4 of 5 San Leandro Police Department / San Leandro Police Department Show More Show Less 5 of 5 He was struck by the truck about 11:45 a.m. after confronting a suspect in the act of stealing wooden pallets from the yard of the business, said Lt. Robert McManus of the San Leandro Police Department. We grieve with his widow and three sons. Personally, I am tremendously moved by Takeshis desire to stop what he saw as a violation of the company, Robert Bleu, president of True World Group, said in a statement released Wednesday. I respect his courage, yet deeply regret that it cost him his life. The company is offering grief or trauma counseling to its employees after the incident. Outside of work, he volunteered in the community and was active in youth programs, said Sebastian Doroski, True World Foods human resources operations manager. He will be missed by many. Kadeem Edwards, 27, was arrested at 5 p.m. Monday on suspicion of murder after two Oakland police officers spotted the white Ford F-250 pickup that was seen fleeing the scene of the San Leandro hit-and-run. The officers arrested Edwards at East 12th Street and 47th Avenue in Oakland. Edwards, a Richmond resident, was taken to the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, where he is being held without bail. On behalf of the city of San Leandro, we offer our condolences to the family, friends and co-workers of Mr. Watanabe during this tragic time, McManus said. Edwards is expected to appear in Superior Court in Hayward on Thursday. Sarah Ravani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani LES CAYES, Haiti | GoServ Global is sending its second mission team to Haiti since Hurricane Matthew hit the country two weeks ago. Days after the hurricane hit, co-founder Ken DeYoung flew in a small team with nearly 5,000 meals, emergency supplies and building materials. A team of 11 has arrived in Haiti while another will join them at the end of the week, GoServ Global said in a news release. They are from Iowa, Indiana, Vermont and Minnesota. Members will build Safe T Homes to replace traditional buildings badly damaged at the Center of Help Orphanage. They will also rebuild a water pump house and plant crops. All 200 of the metal homes in Haiti withstood 145 mph winds with minimal damage, according to the organization. DeYoung said crops, most fruit trees and animals were swept away in the storm. "It will be months, and in some cases years, before we can look back on this," he said. "Most of the homes in the south are destroyed or unusable. Many times it takes years or generations to build a home." GoServ Global will load a shipping container with food, 20,000 pounds of steel roofing material, a skid loader, generators, chainsaws and other items that will be shipped Thursday. Sukup Manufacturing, Sheffield, has 24 Safe T Homes ready to go, but the organization needs funds to pay for the homes. It costs $7,000 to buy, ship and install one of the homes in Haiti. Donations -- 100 percent of which will support the organization's hurricane relief efforts in Haiti -- can be made at www.goservglobal.org/give. Choose "Haiti Hurricane Matthew" in the drop-down. They can also be sent to GoServ Global, Box 193, Eagle Grove, IA 50533. Write "Hurricane Relief" in the memo line. Prosecutors believe a 36-year-old man stabbed a 40-year-old acquaintance earlier this month while the victim was picking up Uber customers at the Sea-Tac airport. Kent resident Mohamed A. Mohamed is charged with first-degree assault in the Oct. 8 stabbing that required the victim to be placed on a breathing machine and undergo surgery. Senior Deputy Prosecutor Dana Cashman wrote in charging documents that the 40-year-old man was stabbed for "no apparent reason." The victim was parked in the Uber holding area about 12:30 a.m. at Sea-Tac International Airport talking to a friend on the phone when Mohamed got into his car and sat in the passenger seat, Port of Seattle police reports say. Mohamed was also an Uber driver who had known the victim for about 20 years, the victim told investigators. Mohamed reportedly told the driver to get off the phone, but he ignored him to continue his conversation with a friend. Mohamed is alleged to have begun to yell at him, his hands shaking, reports say. As soon as the victim hung up the phone, Mohamed stabbed him in the abdomen with what looked to be a large kitchen knife, according to charging papers. The 40-year-old man suffered a stab wound about 5 inches deep, police say. The two men struggled over the knife while the victim tried to keep from being stabbed again. He suffered one more cut to his right hamstring during the tussle. The victim reportedly honked the car horn to attract attention, at which point witnesses arrived and opened a door to the car. Mohamed reportedly left the vehicle and drove off in his car. Medics took the 40-year-old to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where he received surgery for his serious injuries. Police recovered a camera mounted on a nearby car that captured a vehicle quickly leaving the parking lot with several people chasing after it, reports say. The victim's family members identified Mohamed as the attacker and investigators recovered his contact and vehicle information from Uber. When he was awake, the victim positively identified Mohamed as the assailant, police reports indicate. He recounted the assault to investigators and said that while he was being attacked, he thought, "Oh my God, I'm dead." Authorities contacted Mohamed and met him at a parking lot near the Port of Seattle Fire Department in Seatac, where they arrested him. Mohamed was booked into King County Jail and released two days later on bail. Related: The rock band Oasis, Britain's hottest act in the late 1990s and early 2000s, turned down a chance to be on the soundtrack of the movie "Trainspotting" because band members thought it was about railroad buffs. The 1996 Danny Boyle film about heroin addicts and poverty in Edinburgh went on to be both a critical and commercial success, and is listed as the 10th greatest British film of all time by the British Film Institute. Kristen Wyatt/Associated Press DENVER Business owners are replacing idealists in the pot-legalization movement as the nascent marijuana industry creates a broad base of new donors, many of them entrepreneurs willing to spend to change drug policy. Unlike in the past, these supporters are not limited to a few wealthy people seeking change for personal reasons. They constitute a bigger coalition of business interests. And their support provides a significant financial advantage for pro-legalization campaigns. Christine Marie Muff, the daughter of Benjamin and Clara (Pospisil) Muff, was born Oct. 17, 1953, at Crete, Nebraska. At the age of two, she moved with her family to a farm north of Ventura. She spent time with her family until becoming a resident of Opportunity Village in 1999. She enjoyed dogs and watching movies, especially Maverick, Lassie and John Wayne movies. Christine was a true blessing to our lives. She taught our family and all that were close to her what life is all about, and that is love. Christine touched many lives at Opportunity Village and will be remembered by many, especially her special friend, Jane Trampel. Isabelle Friederika Gibbs, the daughter of Harry and Esther (Lenz) Gibbs, was born Oct. 23, 1931, on the family farm near Klemme. She was baptized and confirmed at the United Methodist Church in Klemme. Isabelle graduated from Klemme High School and continued her education at Morningside College in Sioux City where she received her degree in social work. She worked for a year for the State of Iowa Department of Human Services in Sioux City before moving to Colorado where she received her masters degree in social work from the University of Denver. Isabelle then moved to Oregon and worked as a social worker supervisor for the state of Oregon until her retirement. After her retirement, she moved back to Iowa and lived in Mason City. In 2010, she became a resident of Prairie View Apartments in Garner. Richard Lyle Dick Hill MASON CITY Richard Lyle Dick Hill, 95, of Mason City, Iowa, formerly Clear Lake, Iowa, died Monday, Oct. 17, 2016, at the Good Shepherd Health Center, Mason City, Iowa. A funeral service will be held 10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016, at Faith Baptist Church, 1807 S. Kentucky Ave., Mason City, with the Rev. Greg Gosnell officiating. Interment will be at the Clear Lake Cemetery. Military honors will be presented by the Mason City American Legion. Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21, 2016, at Ward-Van Slyke Colonial Chapel, 101 N. Fourth St., Clear Lake. Memorials may be given to the Faith Baptist Church or Hospice in his memory. Ward-Van Slyke Colonial Chapel, 101 N. Fourth St., Clear Lake, Iowa. 641-357-2193. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Students at San Franciscos June Jordan School for Equity were stunned and saddened Wednesday as they returned for classes following a shooting the day before that wounded four classmates in the campus parking lot. Police, meanwhile, said they were zeroing in on several suspects who fled after spraying gunfire into a group of teens, causing chaos at the small school in the citys Excelsior neighborhood, which boasts a curriculum emphasizing social justice and opposition to violence. Teachers stood silently, holding candles and burning sage, while students gathered in groups outside the school near John McLaren Park, which serves as a refuge for the students, many of whom hail from neighborhoods often plagued by crime. Of the roughly 250 students enrolled at the school, more than half did not attend classes Wednesday, officials said. This is a really difficult time for parents at the school. This is a really difficult time for the community. This is a really difficult time for the students, said an emotional Heather Lee as she dropped off her son Wednesday. I went home last night and I hugged and kissed my kids so tightly. Before classes began, students scrawled messages in chalk on the pavement of the schools parking lot, where police said the targeted shooting occurred and left four 15-year-old students wounded as school let out around 3:20 p.m. Tuesday. Police and school officials declined to specify which student or students were targeted in the attack, citing the ongoing investigation. What we will continue to do is get to the root cause of this, of why young men feel so hopeless that they would try and take another mans life so quickly, said Giulio Sorro, co-director of June Jordan. One of the victims, an unnamed girl, suffered life-threatening injuries when she was hit by the gunfire, which sent students running in panic and prompted a lockdown at the campus and at the adjoining City Arts and Technology High School. School officials said Wednesday that the girl was recovering from her injuries. Three male victims were treated for gunshot wounds and have been released from the hospital, school officials said. No one has been arrested in the attack, which school administrators said was carried out by outsiders unaffiliated with the school. Capt. Joe McFadden of the San Francisco Police Departments Ingleside Station said police were reviewing surveillance video taken from the campus and were close to making multiple arrests in the shooting. Hopefully, well have some closure on this real soon, he said. Our main priority is making sure the parents and the students feel safe. Grief counselors were on hand to speak with students while officers on foot walked around the campus, working to put students and parents at ease and prevent further violence. At least two police cars were parked near the school when classes let out for the day Wednesday. Lee said she had no apprehension about dropping off her child. Students at the school, which focuses on equity and social justice issues, trickled into class, many still dazed from the shooting. Meili Rubio, a sophomore, said she is a friend of the female victim and was focused on doing what she could to help her recover. It was shocking, she said of the moments after the gunfire erupted. It was very shocking. At least one shooter opened fire on the group, sending students, including the bleeding victims, scrambling into the school for cover. In the chaotic aftermath, police and school officials were unsure whether they were dealing with a gunman inside the school and immediately whisked students into classrooms and locked down the school and adjoining campus. Scores of officers responded within minutes, police said. And emergency personnel charged into what they thought was an active shooting situation, with no protective gear, to reach the victims quickly, said Lt. Jonathan Baxter, a spokesman for the San Francisco Fire Department. Police later determined that at least one shooter fled on foot down Brazil Avenue with a group of three other young men. Officials said the shooter, who was not identified, was 15 years old. There has never been something like this that has happened before at the school, sophomore Nalayah Linton said. It really just made me terrified. It really just made me scared. Interim Police Chief Toney Chaplin said city health workers will be helping students process any residual trauma and get them any help they may need. This is a city that really tries to protect the youth and look out for them, he said Wednesday at an unrelated City Hall event. When something like this happens, it hits all of us. June Jordan was designed to be small and provides individualized attention to its students, many of whom are minorities and come from low-income areas where violence is prevalent. What happened (Tuesday) afternoon was tragic for us adults in this space who have worked so hard to provide a sense of safety for these kids, said the schools co-director, Jessica Huang, standing in front of the campus in a Black Lives Matter T-shirt. Administrators were mulling whether to shorten the days schedule while encouraging students to talk about the shooting and the broader themes of what causes violence. This is my home, said 17-year-old senior Maria Zaragoza. I know students that stay here until school closes because the longer it takes to get home the better. Zaragoza lives in the citys Ingleside neighborhood, where she said crime in common. The school for her, like many others, is their place away from the trouble in their neighborhoods. Its going to take lots of time to get over this to heal from this, and it will hurt every day, she said. Chronicle staff writer Jill Tucker contributed to this report MASON CITY A shooting that injured a woman across the street from a Mason City day care was under investigation Tuesday night. Authorities were called at 7:25 p.m. to a report of multiple gunshots near Ninth Street Northwest and North Washington Avenue. Mason City Police Chief Jeff Brinkley said a woman who was shot was transported by ambulance to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa. An officer was sent to the hospital to stand by while she was receiving treatment, he said. Details of her condition and her name were not immediately available Tuesday night. No one was arrested as of 9 p.m. Investigators also were still searching for the gun, Brinkley said. A house on the southeast corner of Ninth Street Northwest and North Washington Avenue was circled with crime scene tape. Tape also had been strung around a house just south of it on North Washington Avenue. The houses are across the street from a playground at Charlie Brown Preschool and Child Care at 700 N. Washington Ave. Police officers with flashlights were searching the area, including through piles of leaves on the edge of North Washington. Several neighborhood residents told the Globe Gazette they heard three shots fired in rapid succession. Brinkley could not confirm that number Tuesday night, though he said callers reporting the incident told emergency dispatchers they heard multiple shots. "We had several 911 calls," he said. He said officers were trying to determine if the shooting was linked to a fight reported about a half hour earlier Tuesday night behind a nearby convenience store. The station on North Federal Avenue and Ninth Street Northeast is about a block from where police say the shooting occurred. EAGLE GROVE Mike Boyd is on his way out as city administrator in Eagle Grove. A separation agreement was reached at the Eagle Grove City Council meeting Monday night, according to Councilman Wally Lorenzen. Lorenzen declined to comment further on the matter. In the agreement, Boyds resignation as city administrator will be effective Oct. 29, although the city can move that date up if needed. The document also states that Boyd has been offered at least 21 days to consider the agreement. As of Tuesday night, the document had not been signed by Boyd, according to Araceli Day, deputy clerk. If Boyd signs the agreement, he will be paid his regular salary for 32 weeks from the date the resignation becomes effective. Boyds annual salary is $70,000. Boyd was not available for comment on Tuesday. The separation is mutual, according to Mayor Sandy McGrath. It was a respectful mutual decision, she said. Things are changing and theres a lot to be done, McGrath added. The next few years we want to put our best foot forward. Prestage Foods of Iowa plans to break ground on its $240 million pork processing plant near Eagle Grove in spring 2017, according to a statement by COO Jere Null. Construction is expected to be finished by late 2018. The city will now look for an interim city administrator, according to McGrath. It will also be looking for a permanent replacement, she said. We have a lot of good things coming down the pipe, McGrath said. It will be a great opportunity for someone. Boyds contract was previously reviewed in May at a special meeting, but no action was taken at that time. Boyd was on vacation during that meeting, but was on speakerphone for the session. He has served as city administrator for about six years. FOREST CITY | Two renowned speakers and authors will visit Waldorf University next week. Iowa native John T. Price, Ph.D, will give a free public reading of his work at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 24 in the Louise V. Hanson Library. He is the award-winning author of three Midwestern nature memoirs. Zohra Sarwari, a Muslim, will present "No, I Am Not a Terrorist" at 7 p.m. Oct. 26 in the university's atrium. She is an international speaker, entrepreneur and publisher who promotes dialogue and tolerance of all races, religions and backgrounds. Waldorf says its Speaker Series endeavors to bring presentations to campus promoting diversity and different perspectives. ORLANDO, Fla., Oct. 19, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Investors purchased $1.7 billion worth of U.S. life insurance face value in 2015 and growing consumer interest in life settlements is a positive indicator for the future of the industry, reported a leading industry analyst at the Life Insurance Settlement Association (LISA)s 22nd Annual Fall Life Settlement & Compliance Conference. Scott Hawkins, vice president and director of insurance research at Conning & Co., shared data and analysis from Connings just-released Life Settlements Market Review and Forecast. Conning annually publishes a market review describing the current issues facing life settlement investors -- as well as market participants -- and a forecast of projected market growth. Hawkins reported that the total dollar value of life settlement transactions last year was approximately the same as those completed in 2014 ($1.7 billion) and identified six key drivers for the future of the industry, including the positive trend that consumer demand is increasing as American seniors become more familiar with the life settlement option. The LISA conference was held October 16th-18th at the scenic Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa in Scottsdale, Ariz. The conference theme was Shaping the Future and was opened by Cyndi Poveda, chairman of the LISA Board of Directors. Theres a lot to like about the life settlement business right now, said Poveda. We have a maturing industry with some wind at our backs and were seeing additional investment entering the asset class as a result. Poveda encouraged industry participants to be focused on the long term as they evolve their business models to accommodate the projected growth in life settlement transactions in the years ahead. There are a number of institutions looking at the life settlement industry right now as a place to pursue attractive investment returns in an historically low-yield environment, said Darwin M. Bayston, CFA, president and chief executive officer of LISA. Moreover, we have tremendous upside opportunity in the years ahead, as more than 8 in 10 seniors are still unaware they can sell their life insurance policies. The keynote address at the conference was delivered by Barry M. Goldwater, Jr., a former Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California who served in Congress from 1969 to 1983. He is the son of the late Barry Goldwater, a former U.S. Senator from Arizona who was the Republican nominee in the 1964 presidential election. Goldwater addressed the current political and regulatory climate in the U.S. today and encouraged members of the industry to pro-actively communicate with elected officials in order to ensure the integrity and health of the life settlement marketplace. LISAs 2016 Fall Conference featured a lineup of several influential speakers who addressed timely issues impacting the industry, including: Seth Ard, partner at Susman Godfrey LLP, provided an in-depth review of class action litigation related to Cost of Insurance (COI) rate increases imposed by many carriers on life insurance policies; Vince Granieri, chief executive officer of Predictive Resources LLC, reviewed the 2015 Valuation Basic Tables (VBT) and their implications for life settlement portfolio management; Maggie OGara, senior counsel for GWG Life, addressed a variety of compliance and business issues related to direct-to-consumer marketing of life settlements; Nancy B. Rapoport, Garman Turner Gordon Professor of Law at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV) William S. Boyd School of Law, discussed the importance of market integrity as a key to growth of the life settlement industry; and Jeffrey Bollerman, director of the illiquid financial assets practice at Houlihan Lokey, provided an update on the condition of the tertiary market for life settlements. The main conference was preceded by a one-day Compliance Track for compliance professionals and attorneys, which featured important updates on new laws, as well as recent and pending litigation. LISA conferences are widely regarded as the gold standard for professional events in the life settlement industry. For more information, please go to http://www.lisa.org/lisa-events. About the Life Insurance Settlement Association The Life Insurance Settlement Association (LISA) is the nations oldest and largest organization representing participants in the life settlement Industry, with a current membership of more than 90 companies doing business in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The mission of LISA is to promote the development, integrity and reputation of the life settlement industry, to advance the highest standards of practice and professional development for the industry, and to educate consumers and advisors about a life settlement as an alternative to lapse or surrender of a life insurance policy. For more information, visit www.lisa.org. BLAIR, Neb., Oct. 19, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Great Plains Communications, the largest middle-mile and last-mile provider in Nebraska has partnered with full-service communications solutions provider, ACT to transport the global Hurricane Electric network into the ACT Data Center in Cheyenne, Wyoming. This new point of presence (POP) makes Hurricane Electric the first and only Tier One network provider in the Wyoming area. The transport took place over the Great Plains Communications diverse fiber route from Nebraska to Cheyenne, Wyoming. This is just one of several unique, low-latency routes on the 8,000-mile Great Plains Communications network. "Local businesses, ISPs and other network providers have been patiently awaiting the arrival of Tier One connectivity," Said Todd Foje, CEO of Great Plains Communications. "We were pleased to work with ACT who has been a diligent advocate for this level of connectivity in Wyoming. The partnership was a good fit, opening up Wyoming to the world and the world to Wyoming." This new Wyoming connectivity will allow regional enterprise customers, service providers, and carrier customers across these networks access to Hurricane Electric's global IPv4 and IPv6 network, access to the diverse Great Plains Communications routes to Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota, and of course, the ACT Wyoming and Montana footprint with handoffs scaling from 1 Gigabit to 100 Gigabit. "The presence of a major Tier One such as Hurricane Electric in ACT's footprint, combined with the expansive network Great Plains Communications offers, brings a world of opportunities to Wyoming and the surrounding region," said Advanced Communications Technology (ACT) General Manager, Aaron Sopko. "The partnership established with Great Plains Communications adds a tremendous amount of diversity to our network, opening new routes and opportunities through Wyoming and the surrounding states in the region. We look forward to working with them to bring a whole new level of connectivity to the area." About Great Plains Communications Great Plains Communications is the largest privately owned telecommunications provider in Nebraska. At the core of their service offering is an extensive, 8,000+ mile regional fiber network with community access rings, last-mile and middle-mile solutions, fully supported by their 24x7x365 Network Operations Center. The company is financially strong with a 106-year history of providing reliable and innovative solutions. Great Plains Communications prides itself on their progressive approach to accommodating the unique needs of all regional and national telecommunications carriers, LECs, ISPs, wireless carriers and other service providers utilizing superior custom engineering and custom build strategies. For more information visit www.gpcom.com About Advanced Communications Technology, Inc. Advanced Communications Technology, Inc. (ACT) is a full service communications solutions provider headquartered in Sheridan, Wyoming. ACT, a wholly owned subsidiary of Range Telephone Cooperative has been offering next generation services and high-quality bandwidth solutions throughout Wyoming and Montana since 1997. In addition to the advanced solutions ACT offers as a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier in Wyoming, the company has focused recent efforts on growing a regional network. Today the company's 1,400 mile fiber-optic network spans the entire state with connections to state-wide networks in Montana, South Dakota, Colorado, and Nebraska. All of this, coupled with ACT's involvement in INDATEL allows for diverse, unique routes to anywhere in the country. Through this network ACT is capable of offering enterprise customers, small and large, top quality high bandwidth solutions for most any application, including mobile backhaul, tier 1 connectivity, gigabit Internet services and more. ACT offers a full suite of state-of-the-art communications services such as Broadband Internet, IP transport, wavelength, dark fiber, and next generation voice services. For more information about Advanced Communications Technology, Inc., please visit www.actaccess.net. About Hurricane Electric Fremont, California-based Hurricane Electric operates its own global IPv4 and IPv6 network and is considered the largest IPv6 and IPv6 backbone in the world as measured by number of networks connected. Within its global network, Hurricane Electric is connected to 137 major exchange points and exchanges traffic directly with more than 5,600 different networks. Employing a resilient fiber-optic topology, Hurricane Electric has no less than four redundant paths crossing North America, three separate paths between the U.S. and Europe, and rings in Europe and Asia. In addition to its vast global network, Hurricane Electric owns and operates two data centers in Fremont, California, including Fremont 2, its newest 208,000 square foot facility. Hurricane Electric offers IPv4 and IPv6 transit solutions over the same connection at speeds including 10 Gbps and 100 Gbps Ethernet. For more information on Hurricane Electric, please visit http://he.net. DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla., Oct. 19, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Capstone Companies, Inc. (OTCQB:CAPC) (Capstone or the Company), a designer of innovative LED lighting solutions including power failure lighting, today announced preliminary third quarter 2016 revenue of $11.3 million, surpassing the quarterly record set in the trailing second quarter. Preliminary year-to-date revenue is expected to be $22.3 million, which is 11% higher than the previously expected revenue range of $19.5 million to $20.0 million. Stewart Wallach, President and CEO, commented, Our strategy to develop and market unique LED consumer lighting products, leverage our strong relationships with large retailer customers and produce high quality, low cost products has proven successful. Demand for our product is strong as they continue to be well received by end users and are quickly moving off our retailer customers shelves. And, given our business model, volume drives strong operating leverage and earnings. Also of note, we have greater visibility into the future and are building commitment pipelines into 2018. For 2016, the Company expects revenue to be approximately $28 million to $30 million, nearly doubling 2015s record revenue of $15.9 million. About Capstone Companies, Inc. Capstone Companies, Inc. is a designer of innovative LED lighting solutions including power failure lighting, for consumers and institutions. The Companys products are sold under the Capstone Lighting and Hoover HOME LED brands, to big box retailers, wholesale clubs, and home improvement stores throughout North America and in international markets. Capstones strategy is to utilize its low-cost manufacturing base to provide high-quality consumer products to its customers at a reasonable price, using primarily direct import distribution. Visit www.capstonecompaniesinc.com for more information about the Company and www.capstoneindustries.com for information on our current product offerings. CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 19, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GCP Applied Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:GCP), a leading global provider of products and technology solutions for the specialty construction chemicals, specialty building materials, and packaging sealants and coatings industries, today announced that it expects to release its third quarter 2016 results at 6:00 a.m. ET on Wednesday, November 9, 2016. President and Chief Executive Officer Gregory E. Poling and Chief Financial Officer Dean P. Freeman will host a conference call to discuss the results later that day at 10:00 a.m. ET. The live webcast may be accessed by visiting the Events and Presentations section of the companys website at www.gcpat.com. The call also may be accessed by dialing +1 (844) 887-9408 in the U.S. or +1 (412) 317-9261 internationally. Participants should ask to join the GCP Applied Technologies earnings call. For those unable to participate in the live conference call, a playback will be available through November 16, 2016. To listen to the playback, please dial +1 (877) 344-7529 in the U.S. or +1 (412) 317-0088 internationally; the access code is 10094188. A webcast replay will also be available in the Events and Presentations section of the companys website for approximately one year. About GCP Applied Technologies GCP Applied Technologies is a leading global provider of products and technology solutions for customers in the specialty construction chemicals, specialty building materials, and packaging sealants and coatings industries. Our products help improve the performance of our customers products, increase productivity in their application or manufacturing processes, and meet the increasing regulatory requirements impacting their industry. GCP has approximately 3,000 employees on six continents and serves customers in more than 110 countries. More information is available at www.gcpat.com. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Elegant and sophisticated, with a touch of personal whimsy. That might describe the perfect wedding, but it also describes the Tri-Valley area and why that region is making a successful marriage with many couples who are choosing to tie the knot in this lush, vineyard-dotted destination. One of the main reasons we have seen the wedding culture increase here is the vineyards and wineries, says Catherine Cheda, general manager for Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham, which routinely offers blocks of rooms for wedding guests. Were much more approachable than other more famous wine regions. Its a sentiment shared by Michelle Peters, who as marketing director for Beets Hospitality Group has seen the Tri-Valley area change dramatically in the last decade. I grew up in the Bay Area, in San Leandro, and went to school at Saint Marys, she says. Then I left California for a while, when the Tri-Valley seemed like a place with a few wineries and bunch of cows. There wasnt a lot going on. Then, when I returned, I was amazed how much has been developed here. When it comes to weddings, Peters and Cheda say the warmth of the regions wine culture is very alluring to couples who may find places like San Francisco, Napa and Sonoma more restrictive. In Napa, there are noise and time restrictions for wedding, Peters says. In San Francisco, there are restrictions on how long you have to load and unload materials, so it gets very stressful. Here in the Tri-Valley, we welcome weddings and everything that goes along with them. She says she sees the valleys location as another point in favor of attracting weddings. Its central location to the Central Valley, the Sacramento area and the Bay Area make it an easy destination. Plus, the weather is great, Peters says. The areas 60-plus wineries help, since many couples love the idea of a vineyard wedding, says Cheda, who says that she has seen the wedding market grow by up to 25 percent over the last few years. Many people have never been down here and most of the vendors work together to really showcase what we have to offer, Cheda says Many venues, wineries and event planners work with the Tri-Valley Visitors Bureau to put together weekend packages for couples that will allow guests to enjoy more than just the ceremony and the reception, Cheda said. And when it comes down to it, its all about making the couple and their guests happy, says Alyssia Lundgren, who manages events at Casa Real at Ruby Hill, one of the two major venues run by Beets Hospitality. We have a lower price-point than other wine regions, plus we can offer more in terms of services, she says. There is just a lot more flexibility. Lundgren has noticed two major recent trends in weddings. One is providing the guests with a comfortable, rewarding experience, and the other is many brides and grooms want to personalize their ceremony and especially their reception. We are able to offer unique twists either in the food or what is offered at the reception, she says. For instance, many couples are not only celebrating their marriage, but are combining cultures. So we can offer such things as broom-jumping, a tea ceremony or something else from a familys tradition that really speaks to the couple and their families. Another way that Beets Hospitality originally started as a catering company can personalize an event is with menus that may include a special host course that could be a throwback to the couples first date, a special recipe of Grandmas or a cultural food that reflects the heritage of the couple. They can also add in fun things, Lundgren says, such as a flip book of photos for the guests, roasting marshmallows, lawn games and henna tattoos. NEW DELHI In the three months since a band of youths tortured and killed 20 hostages in a Dhaka restaurant, Bangladeshi intelligence officials say theyre rooting out radicals and restoring security to the streets. Their evidence? Police raids that have killed about 40 suspected Islamist militants; hundreds of suspects detained in police dragnets; and new information on how the attack was financed by local sympathizers. There have also been no reported extremist attacks since shortly after the restaurant killings. BERLIN The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France agreed Wednesday on a road map aimed at reviving the stalled peace process in eastern Ukraine, though details of the plan still need to be worked out by the countries foreign ministers over the coming month. German Chancellor Angela Merkel had invited Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia, Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine and Francois Hollande of France to Berlin for the first four-way talks in over a year, insisting that while major progress was unlikely it was important for top-tier negotiations to continue. Im convinced it was right to reopen the channel of talks at this level again, Merkel said after the meeting. She conceded that the four didnt achieve miracles but maintained the talks were necessary in order not to lose momentum. Also discussed was the creation of so-called disengagement areas to separate the warring parties, as well as measures to improve the humanitarian situation in eastern Ukraine, Merkel said. Ukraines president said an agreement had been reached that the road map should be adopted by the end of November. Poroshenko was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying it would include all security issues, including restoration of Ukraines control of its entire border with Russia. The road map is part of an effort to implement what is called the Minsk Agreement of February 2015 on ending the conflict, in which more than 9,600 people have been killed. Poroshenko was also quoted as saying that an agreement was reached on the deployment of an armed police mission in the areas held by pro-Russian separatists. But Merkel told reporters that such a step would first require Ukraine to pass laws for local elections in the disputed territory, something Kiev hasnt yet done. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said in May that it would consider sending a mission to help conduct elections in the separatist east. The 2015 Minsk agreement brokered by France and Germany has helped end large-scale battles between Ukrainian troops and separatists, but clashes have continued and efforts to reach a political settlement have stalled. The decision to hold the meeting in Berlin follows a flurry of telephone diplomacy over the past week. Merkel told reporters afterward that the issue of Syria was also been discussed with Russia. Merkel and Hollande have been sharply critical of Russias support for Assads forces, with Merkel suggesting Tuesday that Moscow was partly responsible for atrocities, citing Syrian and Russian air strikes on helpless people, hospitals and doctors. Both indicated the possibility of imposing sanctions against Russia for its actions in Syria remained on the table and would be discussed by European Union leaders meeting in Brussels Thursday and Friday. Ah yes, IKEA: the Swedish furniture giant known for its warehouses full of inexpensive furniture, Swedish meatballs, and . . . serial-dating Chinese seniors? In recent years, IKEA cafeterias in China have mysteriously transformed into a popular destination for elderly Chinese to gather and spend time with one another, often for hours at a time. Managers at the IKEA location in Shanghai complain that many visitors do not even make purchases before settling themselves down in the canteen to socialize with strangers who are there for the same reason. Now, IKEA has had enough. The Shanghai cafeteria has announced that anyone who isn't eating iss not allowed to sit in the cafeteria, and accused the senior citizens of belonging to "illegal blind-dating groups" and participating in "uncivilized behavior." Other customers have complained that the large groups of elderly daters have at times spit in the store, and are prone to arguing with one another. "The situation has adversely affected the dining experience and security of most of our customers," read a sign put up at the Shanghai location. "It is having a negative implication for our canteen's operation. From today, the restaurant will only be for people who purchase their food first." The new rule isn't sitting so well with the elderly who relied on the space in IKEA as a meeting place. "We've been to fast food outlets like McDonald's, but there are barely any peers there," one man identified as Qiu, 86, told Chinese state-run newspaper Global Times. "We feel like aliens surrounded by youngsters. If there is another place in Shanghai where elderly people can gather, we are more than ready to pay twice as much and travel further." But maybe IKEA only has itself to blame. Most of the elderly who visit the store looking for love are family membership cardholders, a credential that earns them a free cup of coffee in the cafeteria where they're no longer welcome to sit. KHAZER, Iraq A senior Iraqi general on Wednesday called on Iraqis fighting for the Islamic State in Mosul to surrender as a wide-scale operation to retake the militant-held city entered its third day. The militants have put up fierce resistance in villages surrounding the city, where most of the fighting has been concentrated. Islamic State has sent trucks loaded with explosives careening toward the front lines and fired mortars to slow the Iraqi forces advance. Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati told reporters at a military base that up to 6,000 Islamic State fighters are inside the city. He did not say how many of them are foreigners. Islamic State captured Mosul, Iraqs second largest city, in a lightning advance in the summer of 2014. The extremist group has suffered a string of defeats over the past year, and Mosul is its last major urban bastion in Iraq. An Iraqi officer from the 9th Division said his troops were now around half a mile away from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul. Over the past day, Islamic State sent 12 car bombs, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, he said, adding that Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds. . To the north, air strikes pounded Bashiqa as Kurdish forces fired mortar rounds from an area overlooking the Islamic State-held town. Save the Children said 5,000 people have fled to a refugee camp in northeastern Syria from the Mosul area in the last 10 days, with another thousand waiting to enter at the border. The group said the overwhelmed camp is littered with human waste with a looming risk of outbreaks of disease. It said there are just 16 latrines shared by more than 9,000 people, many of whom only have access to dirty, untreated water. The United Nations believes up to 1.5 million people in Mosul will be at great risk of being targeted, caught in crossfire, forcibly expelled or used as human shields. U.N. humanitarian chief Stephen OBrien said the U.N. anticipates a displacement wave of some 200,000 people over the coming weeks, with up to 1 million displaced in the course of the operation in a worst-case scenario. The operation to retake Mosul is the largest launched by the Iraqi army since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. An estimated 25,000 troops, including Sunni tribal fighters, Kurdish forces and state-sanctioned Shiite militias are approaching the city from different directions. WASHINGTON Seeking to boost a close ally, President Obama threw his support Tuesday behind efforts that Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi is taking to overhaul that countrys political system and enhance its economy, saying that Renzis bold and progressive leadership was exactly what Europe needs at a time of crisis and soul-searching. Obama invited Renzi to the White House for the final official visit and state dinner of his presidency, telling hundreds of spectators at the arrival ceremony that we saved the best for last. Throughout Tuesdays events, the two leaders recited a long list of issues on which they agree. They want to speed economic growth through investments in infrastructure and to move forward with a sweeping trade agreement between the U.S. and the European Union. They also spoke of the importance of strengthening the NATO alliance and the need to maintain sanctions against Russia in place until that nation and Ukraine implement commitments under a cease-fire agreement brokered early last year. Beyond action on specific issues, Obama clearly sought to use the symbolism behind Tuesdays visit to show support for a leader that Obama views as one of the most promising young politicians in Europe. The star treatment came just a few weeks before voters in Italy take up a governing referendum that Renzi has spearheaded. He has said he would resign if voters reject it. While Renzi declined to directly answer whether he would follow through on that statement if the referendum is voted down, Obama did and said, I am rooting for success, but I think you should hang around for a while no matter what. Obama kicked the White House apparatus into high gear. The sound of herald trumpets and a full dose of pomp and pageantry on the South Lawn were orchestrated to welcome Renzi, one of the few world leaders to receive such a reception from the White House. After each leader spoke, they hugged briefly and patted each other on the back. I mean, look at him, Obama gushed. Hes young, handsome. Hes put forth a vision of progress thats not rooted in peoples fears, but rather in their hopes. MOSCOW Russian and Syrian warplanes halted their air strikes on Syrias besieged city of Aleppo on Tuesday in preparation for a temporary pause in the military push that Moscow has announced for later in the week, the Russian defense minister said. According to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the halt in the strikes should help pave way for militants to leave the eastern rebel-held parts of the contested city. Both Russian and Syrian air raids on the northern city of Aleppo were suspended at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Shoigu said. He described the suspension as a precursor for the opening of humanitarian corridors. Moscow on Monday announced a humanitarian pause between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Thursday to allow civilians and militants safe passage out of the city. At that time, Russian and Syrian militaries will halt any offensive actions. Syrian rebels, including al Qaeda militants, as well as the wounded and the sick will be allowed to leave to the neighboring rebel-held province of Idlib. The early halting of air strikes is necessary to declare a humanitarian pause, Shoigu said in a televised statement. It will ... guarantee a safe exit of civilians through six corridors and prepare for the evacuation of the ill and the wounded from the eastern part of Aleppo. Russian President Vladimir Putins spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the halt in the air strikes was a goodwill gesture to pave the way for Thursdays pause. The Russian military is offering yet another chance, and we hope that our partners will allow us all to take advantage of that, Peskov said. The United Nations said Russia has communicated plans for two eight-hour cease-fires in rebel-held parts of Aleppo over consecutive days this week. In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel said sanctions against Russia over its actions in Syria should remain an option. Her eyelids lay heavy, struggling not to shutter completely over her hazel-spotted pale blue eyes. Tears crystallize, balancing upon the bottom lids, grasping to defy gravity. In a voiceover, she speaks softly of abandonmentthis is Lexi, the protagonist of No Light and No Land Anywhere, played with a subdued depth by newcomer Gemma Brockis. Introduced in a fragile state fueled by a broken marriage and the loss of her mother, Lexi heads from London to Los Angeles in search her father John (Richard Sealey), who abandoned her as a child. Upon arrival in the unfamiliar city, she is met with a dismal setting and feeling of alienation. Inside her motel room, an appetite for junk food and liquor appears to be the only nourishment for the frail Lexi, and the desire to reconnect with her father is the only conviction keeping her from breaking down entirely. Within this depressing odyssey, writer/director Amber Sealey (who has been more of an actor before now in British films like The Good Night and Big Nothing) confronts her audience with a miserable, uncomfortable reality in which any semblance of hope passes without a trace. Whether it's strangers or estranged family members, the few characters with whom Lexi engages are no more hopeful than she is, and meaningful emotional connection evades her with each passing minute. No Light and No Land Anywhere is bleak, and may be best viewed as a portrait of alienation and perseverance despite despondency. It is within the awkward moments of silence between characters that the drama provides its most convincing portrayal of the complexities of human sadness. For the most melancholy of viewers, the conclusion may prove unfulfilling. But in a film in which hope, resolution and meaningful connection consistently evade the protagonist, maybe it's not without reason that Sealey has denied her audience the finality of a Hollywood happy ending in favor of the more honest nature of open-endedness. No Light and No Land Anywhere Center for Contemporary Arts, NR, 75 min Santa Fe Reporter The creamy early morning sunshine was dripping off the flossy Santa Fe clouds and drenching the adobes with a glow so ethereal and unbelievable that I knew it was time to stretch and carpe diem, baby. I put on a plum pout and my koo-koo knitted, milk-hued Devo-esque cap and headed over for a splish-splash of joe and some inspiration, 'cause heyDowntown Subscription (376 Garcia St., 983-3085) always has French fashion mag L'Officiel. L'Officiel is the crack of the style set. It's all of the fashion collections from Spring/Summer 2017. Choose either Paris/NYC or Milan/London; no ads, unedited, no trendy editors picking through and telling us what is cooljust your own eyes and opinions, your own yay or nay. L'Officiel runs about $35 and is worth every penny. You will never need to swim through a plethora of musty, murky, yucky ads like in Vogue or Harper's Bazaar or even Jalouse. But on this bright autumn morning the collections were nowhere in sight. I gasped. My tummy wiggled in a nervous jitterbug. As I placed my order for a triple Americano (I needed the extra jolt to help with the grieving process), my barista (sweet-as-pie Nicholas Valdez) complimented my goofy choice of millinery and added: "My Grandmother makes knitted hats up in Los Ojos at Tierra Wools." Apparently she even created the felted look of the woolen chapeaus. Nicholas recalled when Grandma Olivia Valdez popped a knitted cap into the washing machine eons ago and, voilait fused together and created a singular and much warmer piece. Mistakes = Brilliance. Just ask Alexander Fleming (penicillin anyone?). Hand-dyed wool hat by Olivia Valdez for Tierra Wools; Hecho tee by Nuevo Cerveza/Bloody Maria; Zia necklace by Lauren Ivy. (Amy Davis) Tierra Wools (handweavers.com) is the real deal. They create incredible blankets all from their own organic sheep (of Rambioullet and Navajo-Churro breeds) and have classes on spinning, weaving and dyeing. The original Rio Grande tradition is carried on here with great respect and honor. It is living history. The wool is hand-dyed and the colors glow in an incandescent, Maxfield Parrish-esque simmering light, deep and alive. So I veered from my original Spring/Summer 2017 story to focus on what we have in our own high desert backyard a la Candide. I love shifting, turning and changing my direction; wandering down crimson vine-draped alleys, stumbling upon anything and everything. Letting Santa Fe enchant me. And that's just what I did. I decided that it was time for a light nosh of green chile cheeseburger with fries and a side of toasted marshmallow sauce. The salty, hot fries and the gooey, sugary situation is quite luscious on the taste buds. I mean, a girl's gotta keep her figure! The Burger Stand at Burro Alley (207 W San Francisco St., 989-3360) is the mucho-needed epicurean hipster burger joint (plus craft beers) off the Plaza. They also have some of the raddest Santa Fe streetwear and, let's face it, you need the balance of viejo-skool y nuevo-skool. From their T-shirts complete with the state outline of New Mexico with the word "Hecho" plunked down in the center to their colorful zia-emblazoned caps, the merchandise is designed by Nueva Cerveza/Bloody Maria and is sick-hip and dare I say slick. Owner Bobby Joe Grubb then cued me in that he's about to open Nuevo HQ, a foodie collaboration with local businesspeople Marcos Aragon, Malisa Braselle and Tait Fletcher. Its location at 411 W Water St. will have even more fab style morsels plus local beer and wine andwait for itCaveman Coffee. My appetite was sated but my style sensors wanted some yummy dessert (ie accessories). So boom-bang-bing, I popped my knitted noggin into Vida Loca Gallery (203 W San Francisco St., 988-7410) and spied some day-glo Zia acrylic necklaces that are minimalist yet still punch up your look. Created by local artist Lauren Ivy, they are the perfect gloss for your ensemble. I also remember meeting another genius artist, Kit Evans, who has created a tote bag for his Christopher Merlyn imprint featuring the right postmodern twist with a play on the state outline of NM with the word "Entrapment" emblazoned over the enchanted square in fifties script. Again, graphically brilliant with just the right amount of wink-wink nudge-nudge irony, it's very Marfa, very Ojai, very nouveau-Catskills. So there you go. The 80/20 rule. When your mind is set on one thing but the effort is taking 80 percent outta your life, switcharoo it up to that sweet and easy 20 percent. We are indeed lucky to live in a place with oodles of history as well as up-to-date streetwear. The style in New Mexico is as swift, dynamic and mutable as the weather, and that's pretty darn fabulous. Santa Fe Reporter 1 BOB DYLAN WINS NOBEL PRIZE FOR LITERATURE, has yet to accept How does it feel? 2 POLICE ARREST YET ANOTHER WRONG-WAY DRIVER ON I-25 Maybe instead of "Wrong Way," the signs should say "Turn Around for Free Drinks." 3 LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LAB TO SEND ALL NEW RADIOACTIVE WASTE OUT OF STATE If you've been looking to transform into a mutant/superhero, you'd better get to it. 4 RED RIVER BANK EMPLOYEE WAS IN ON HEIST WITH COUSIN Great work, geniuses. 5 GARY JOHNSON AND DARREN WHITE ARE FRIENDS AGAIN YEARS AFTER MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION FALLOUT Such is the power of weed, you guys Man, we could go for some gummi bears. 6 SF MAYOR WANTS CITY TO HELP RESIDENTS REDUCE SUGAR INTAKE He just remembered that Halloween is coming. 7 CONTROLLED BURN HAS US ALL WHEEZING And it looks kinda spooky. Santa Fe Reporter Of the four seats open this year on the New Mexico Public Education Commission, the only contested race appears to be the write-in spot for District 10, representing the northern reaches of the stateincluding portions of Santa Fe County. Two Democratic candidates, Tim Crone and Anthony Trujillo, are running write-in campaigns for the board responsible for advising the Secretary of Education and authorizing charter schools. Neither candidate could be reached for comment by press time. Crone is a retired humanities professor; Trujillo's employment could not be verified. Crone, however, has the support of the current District 10 Commissioner, Jeff Carr, who vacated the seat to run for Colfax County Commission. Crone also counts the New Mexico's American Federation of Teachers as a supporter; he serves as its higher education vice president. Crone attempted to make it onto the ballot but discrepancies regarding his address disqualified him. Both candidates' campaign finance filings with the secretary of state indicate they have neither raised nor spent a single dollar toward their campaigns. A winning write-in candidate must secure at least 2 percent of the votes cast in that jurisdiction, according to the Santa Fe County clerk's office. And in this race, pundits say that requires more than 900 votes, although the state Elections Bureau did not respond to a request to confirm that figure. If an election doesn't fill the seat, the governor appoints someone to it. The other candidates for Districts 1, 4, and 9 are unopposed Democratsto staff a board on which all members are already Democrats. The sole Republican commissioner resigned in May. Editor's note: The Elections Bureau called after publication of this story to clarify that in a contested race, write-in candidates are not held to the 2 percent rule and instead the race goes to the candidate that secures the most votes. Santa Fe Reporter Last week's cover story featured SFR's free press lawsuit against the Susana Martinez administration. Today, we have an update. On Tuesday morning we learned our pre-Thanksgiving trial is now instead set to unfold with the spring blossoms. Katherine Murray, one of two attorneys representing SFR, received exciting news this weekend: Shes going to be a mother. After waiting more than two year s to adopt a child, Murray on Monday flew to Florida and met her newborn son. Co-counsel Daniel Yohalem reached an agreement with Martinez' team and District Judge Sarah Singleton to kick off the three-day trial on March 29, a Wednesday. That gives Murray ample time to decide whether she wants to continue working on our case. If not, Yohalem may need to find another co-counsel or fly solo. "We're very appreciative that the judge was able to find time on her calendar and the defendant was amenable to this change," Yohalem says. "Sometimes events in our personal lives interrupt the work we're doing and it is important to make room in our work lives for those events." We couldn't agree more. This year, we've had two staffers go on maternity leave. SFR's trial concerns whether Gov. Martinez discriminated against this paper by ignoring our request for comment while providing other media outlets answers to nearly identical questions. We also claim the administration violated public records law by delaying or denying a number of our requests. Santa Fe Reporter Pence to Campaign in New Mexico On Tuesday, Bernie Sanders at the University of New Mexico to go vote. Now were hearing that Donald Trumps running mate, Gov. Mike Pence, in Albuquerque on Thursday. Poll: Johnson Leads Trump in New Mexico Gary Johnson, the Libertarian Party presidential candidate, is of Donald Trump with at least Albuquerque-area voters. Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton is way up in the same poll with 47 percent of likely voters saying they support her White House bid. Ten percent were undecided. Candidates Plan Appeal to Undecided Voters For those 10 percent, tonights third and final presidential debate, which , may help them decide. Video Shows Wrong Way Driving on I-25 Its been a problem for a long time, but new video from the Santa Fe County Sheriffs office shows just how dangerous wrong way driving on a portion of I-25 in Santa Fe has become. . Senators Wants Artifacts Protected US Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich will host a hearing at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center today to discuss the STOP Act, legislation which would of the trafficking of important Native American cultural artifacts. Santa Fe County District Attorney Candidates Previewed SFR previews the Santa Fe County District Attorney campaign in this weeks paper and writes that the Democrat and Republican candidates have for the office. Oops! The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that the New Mexico House Clerk Denise Ramonas before sending one of the five budget tweaking bills passed in the special session, and that it still hasn't reached Gov. Susana Martinez' desk. Wolf Recovery Plan Settlement Plan Approved Lauren Villagran reports, A federal judge has requiring the US Fish and Wildlife Service to finish a long-overdue recovery plan for the endangered Mexican gray wolf within a year. Santa Fe Reporter Sky Network Television increased its annual forecast for depreciation, amortisation and impairment charges, citing a timing error. The Auckland-based pay-television broadcaster expects the costs will amount to $109.1 million in the year ending June 30, 2017, ahead of its earlier forecast of $101.3 million, owing to an error in the start date of depreciation for some assets transferred from work in progress to fixed assets, it said in a statement. The error has no cash flow impact, it said. The earlier forecast was prepared as part of documents outlining plans for the proposed merger of Sky TV and Vodafone New Zealand. Sky TV said today that the figure could be revised further if the merger is given the go-ahead because it would have to reassess the fair value of its assets and liabilities. Sky TV wants to merge with the New Zealand unit of Vodafone Group to create the country's largest telecommunications and media group, and the proposal is currently awaiting regulatory approval, with a decision due in November. BusinessDesk.co.nz Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: NZK - Resignation of NZKS Chief Executive SML - Executive Leadership Team appointment SCL - Meateor and Fayman Settlement & Market Update November 1st Morning Report NZME Investor Day 2022 Virtual Event SPG - Changes to Executive Team HGH - Details for the Heartland 2022 Annual Shareholder Meeting Smartpay - Change of External Auditor AoFrio achieves 18% revenue growth in Q3-2022 SML - Annual Meeting 2022; Chair & Director Rotations New Zealand's technology export sector delivered offshore revenue of almost $7 billion, up 13.5 percent from $6.5 billion in 2015 according to the twelfth annual TIN100 report. That was mainly driven by exports to the United States rising almost 26 percent to more than $2 billion, a figure boosted by the rising value of the New Zealand dollar. Exports to Europe grew by 12.5 percent and to Asia by 11.7 percent. Total sales rose to $9.4 billion in the year since the previous report. The details were in an embargoed media release and the full report is available to purchase on its website. The Technology Investment Network (TIN), monitors the performance of New Zealands 200 largest technology exporters in information and communication technology, high-tech manufacturing, and biotechnology. It was led by Fisher & Paykel Appliances, with revenue of $1.16 billion, with IT services company Datacom Group second with revenue of $1.06 billion. Fisher & Paykel Healthcare was third, with revenues of $816 million. Greg Shanahan,TIN managing director said, "This year's data signals that an inflexion point has been passed as the industry hits critical momentum, reflecting longer term acceleration of technology growth and a significant closure of the export earnings gap between dairy and tech." Dairy delivered export earnings of $12 billion in the year to the end of June 2015. While the Information and Communication Technology sector showed the fastest increase in revenue growth, up 17.3%, Manufacturing contributed the most revenue in dollar terms. Of the emerging companies, Pushpay delivered the largest revenue growth in the sector, increasing sales by $13 million to $15 million. Wireless power company, PowerbyProxi was second, with revenue growth of $10 million to $12 million. Retail point of sale software operator Vend was third, with sales growing by $7 million to $15 million. Wellington-based virtual reality company 8i is named as the most promising early stage company, while Palmerston North's Biolumic is second. The company uses UV light to enhance crops. Canterbury's CropLogic, which uses software to deliver optimal yields, was third. BusinessDesk.co.nz Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: NZK - Resignation of NZKS Chief Executive SML - Executive Leadership Team appointment SCL - Meateor and Fayman Settlement & Market Update November 1st Morning Report NZME Investor Day 2022 Virtual Event SPG - Changes to Executive Team HGH - Details for the Heartland 2022 Annual Shareholder Meeting Smartpay - Change of External Auditor AoFrio achieves 18% revenue growth in Q3-2022 SML - Annual Meeting 2022; Chair & Director Rotations Tegel shareholders say they're concerned about the potential impact of escrow shares on the market and a drop in the poultry companys share price which is trading 6 cents below the $1.55 price it sold at in its May initial public offering. Affinity Partners, which retained a 45 percent share in Tegel after the float, and a number of directors and senior management holding just under 1 percent, have just over 163 million shares in escrow. Tegel chairman James Ogden told shareholders at the companys annual meeting in Auckland today that the escrow details were fully disclosed in the product disclosure statement (PDS) ahead of the float. The first trigger date is in mid-December when Tegel announces its first-half results for the 2017 financial year. Affinity can sell half its shares provided the volume-weighted average price of the shares in the following ten days after the results announcement is at least 20 percent above the IPO price or $1.86. All the escrowed shares can be sold without restriction when Tegels full-year results are announced in June 2017. Ogden said Tegels weaker share price reflected a drop in the overall NZX 50 Index of 7.9 percent since early September. So Tegel is not the only issue, he said. The shares last traded at $1.49, and have dropped 10 percent this year. Affinity chairman and former Tegel chairman Tang Kok Yew, who along with Affinity's other director Brett Sutton was re-elected to the board, told shareholders the fund had been building a portfolio of food and beverage companies across Asia and aimed to make Tegel one of New Zealands leading exporters. Tegel shares were performing well after the May float, hitting a peak of $1.80 in mid-August, but have been mainly falling since which some commentators have blamed on the upcoming November float on the ASX of Australias largest chicken company, Inghams Group, which is Tegels largest competitor domestically. Ogden said it wasnt the board's place to comment on Inghams float but said in response to a shareholder question about the likelihood of increased competition that we compete in the supermarket every day and have been doing so for many years. Weaker prices for fresh and frozen poultry in New Zealand are also thought to have contributed to the share price drop. Chief executive Phil Hand said the lower prices had continued longer than expected due to a chicken glut. Tegels export revenue passed the $100 million mark for the first time in the 2016 financial year and its planning to start importing raw poultry into Australia by January. That follows it and the Ministry for Primary Industries negotiating changed market access conditions for export which previously required chicken products to be fully cooked. Australias poultry market is worth about A$7.1 billion and Tegel exported A$70 million worth across the Tasman last year, representing a 1 percent market share. Hand said hes expecting to significantly boost Australian exports this financial year and the improved market access could knock a year off its five-year target to double export revenue. The company already exports to Australia, the Pacific Islands, the Middle East, and Hong Kong and recently added the Philippines and Bahrain to the list. Hand said export markets are restricted by where it can negotiate access to with China unlikely in the near future. It can take up to five years to negotiate access, he said. Tegel can already export into Japan, a market it pulled out of three years ago after it struggled with distribution, the exchange rate, and to make a profitable margin. Hand said they plan to give Japan another go in the 2018 financial year and talks are also underway to gain market access in South Korea. Tegel is the dominant player in the New Zealand market, processing around 55 million chickens a year or half of the countrys poultry, and Hand said having a strong domestic market was central to having a strong export story. In terms of the trading outlook for this financial year, Hand said first-half sales to date were looking strong despite the soft pricing in the domestic market. The company said it was on track to achieve its PDS forecast for the full year of $625 million in revenue, up 7.6 percent on 2016. The forecast will be updated at the release of the first-half results in mid-December when it also expects to announce its first dividend. The dividend is also expected to be in line with PDS forecasts based on paying out around 65 percent of pro forma net profit after tax which is forecast to be $43.4 million for the full 2017 financial year. The first-half dividend is likely to be fully imputed and paid in the third quarter. BusinessDesk.co.nz Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: NZK - Resignation of NZKS Chief Executive SML - Executive Leadership Team appointment SCL - Meateor and Fayman Settlement & Market Update November 1st Morning Report NZME Investor Day 2022 Virtual Event SPG - Changes to Executive Team HGH - Details for the Heartland 2022 Annual Shareholder Meeting Smartpay - Change of External Auditor AoFrio achieves 18% revenue growth in Q3-2022 SML - Annual Meeting 2022; Chair & Director Rotations Estimados amigos, Les doy cordialmente la bienvenida a este Blog informativo con articulos, analisis y comentarios de publicaciones especializadas y especialmente seleccionadas, principalmente sobre temas economicos, financieros y politicos de actualidad, que esperamos y deseamos, sean de su maximo interes, utilidad y conveniencia. Pensamos que solo comprendiendo cabalmente el presente, es que podemos proyectarnos acertadamente hacia el futuro. Las convicciones son mas peligrosos enemigos de la verdad que las mentiras. There are decades when nothing happens and there are weeks when decades happen. You only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out. No soy alguien que sabe, sino alguien que busca. Only Gold is money. Everything else is debt. Las grandes almas tienen voluntades; las debiles tan solo deseos. Quien no lo ha dado todo no ha dado nada. History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce. If you know the other and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. We are travelers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share.This is a precious moment. It is a little parenthesis in eternity. The saga of Alamo Drafthouse trying to break into the NYC market is almost at an end: after years of false starts, broken promises, and more delays, the NY Times reported today that Alamo Drafthouse will open for realsies in Downtown Brooklyn on October 28th. Barring any unforeseen incidents, of course. The Drafthouse will be located at the City Point center, at 445 Albee Square West in the Fulton Mall area, near where Dekalb meets Fulton. Tim League, the founder and chief executive officer of Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, told the Times that the location has been ready to launch for several months (indeed, it was supposed to have opened this past summer) but construction delays and a "fire department signoff" held up the plans. "Its a lot more expensive and takes a lot longer than you think to do a construction project in New York," he noted. Here's the Times' preview of what you'll find there initially: The Drafthouse space is divided between two floors and includes seven theaters, all with dine-in service and reserved seating. Every theater has 4K digital projectors and one has 35-millimeter projection capabilities. A stand-alone bar, called the House of Wax, is also part of the multiplex. The programming will include new releases and repertory showings. Its first series, timed to the Halloween weekend, will be In the Mood for Gore, 35-millimeter prints of Asian horror films from the 1980s and 90s. A Monster Squad Halloween party will be held on Oct. 31 with an actor from that film, Andre Gower, in attendance. Other planned series include New in Town, with films about moving in (like The Muppets Take Manhattan and The Coca-Cola Kid), and Shouting at the Screen, with the hosts Wyatt Cenac and Donwill offering live commentary on blaxploitation films. Alamo Drafthouse originally announced in 2012 that it would open its doors at the former Metro Theater on the Upper West Side. Despite releasing an official menu for the location, that plan was cancelled by late 2013. Then after several years in development, they announced a Brooklyn location that was supposed to open this summerafter the official menu was released, that plan was delayed as well until today's announcement. If you're sensing a pattern about presumptive announcement, so has League: "Ive also learned, never put an opening date on a subway advertisement." Tickets for the theater will go on sale tomorrow morning at 8 a.m. here. Manhattan's largest real estate developer has agreed to invest $220 million in renovations for Grand Central Terminal in exchange for special zoning to accommodate its planned 63-story office tower One Vanderbilt in Midtown Eastsoon to be one of the tallest skyscrapers in the borough. Mayor Bill de Blasio joined SL Green CEO Marc Holliday to detail those improvements at a groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday, assuring a crowd of reporters alongside the massive construction site that the deal brokered between city and developer represents the "right kind of development." "This is something we would have not been able to do with public funds, given all of the demands on the MTA and all of the demands on the city, but something we could do through the right kind of development," de Blasio told the crowd. SL Green detailed that two thirds of the $220 millionthe largest private investment in MTA infrastructure in the city's historywill go towards alleviating overcrowding at Grand Central. In addition to new stairwells at both ends of the two 4/5/6 platforms, AM New York reports that the developer will also bulldoze the Hyatt Hotel basement that currently cuts into the subway, increasing mezzanine space by 40%. SL Green will also construct two new street-level subway entrances, and increase platform space by removing bulky columns that currently support the Hyatt in favor of a narrower design. (via SL Green) The city says that the renovations will make room for 2,200 more riders every hour at the station, and that the MTA will provide one additional train per hour in each direction to accommodate them. Grand Central currently accommodates about 154,000 per workday. There are also plans for a new 14,000-square-foot pedestrian plaza on Vanderbilt Avenue in the shadow of One Vanderbilt, which will take up the block between Vanderbilt and Madison Avenues and 42nd and 43rd Streets. A new concourse under One Vanderbilt will eventually connect Grand Central commuters to the $10 billion, perennially delayed East Side Access project, which will connect Long Island Rail Road trains to Grand Central. Most recently targeted for a Christmas 2022 completion, East Side Access was delayed again over the summer amid a dispute between MTA and Amtrak regarding nights and weekends construction. MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz declined to comment on how the project might impact the East Side Access timeline, instead directing us to a statement from MTA Chairman Tom Prendergast. "The MTA will continue to support innovative proposals that link development with transit investment, and we hope that One Vanderbilt is the first of many to come," the chairman said. The Grand Central renovations will be completed in 2020, according to the Mayor's office. (via SL Green). "It's understandable that there's a certain skepticism when New Yorkers hear promises about what development will do for them," de Blasio said on Tuesday. When the Barclays Center opened in Brooklyn in 2012, none of the promised 2,000 affordable apartments had been constructed (the project's first affordable housing lottery launched this past April). To appease the skeptics, SL Green has agreed to keep its most expensive upper-floor offices off the market until the ribbon cutting on the transit upgrades. "Tenants cannot move into the upper floors of this building until this infrastructure is done that the people need," de Blasio said. "I think it's a strong agreement that the city made," said Riders Alliance spokesman John Raskin on Tuesday. "Untangling these crowded subway stations is a difficult task, but these improvements are significant and meaningful." "Midtown Manhattan is an appropriate place for high-density development," he added, comparing Midtown East to neighborhoods like Downtown Brooklyn, where advocates have protested large-scale development without accompanying public transit investment. The city's 78-block Greater East Midtown rezoning proposal includes the area surrounding Grand Central, and is likely to go up for public review before the end of the year. Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer called today's groundbreaking "a first step toward the future of East Midtown." "The area around Grand Central, to the east, is going to redevelop at some point anyway," predicted Bill Henderson, director of the MTA watchdog group Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA. "I'd rather have more people come into the area with some transit improvements." He added that while the project likely won't speed up East Side Access, it could "really do some good," by making 4/6/5 platforms less congested, and allowing trains to run on schedule. Under the current circumstances, it's not uncommon for large crowds to queue around car doors, stalling trains in the station and reverberating delays along the line. "An extra train per hour will be great," Henderson said. "But the first step is getting on schedule." Correction: An earlier version of this piece incorrectly stated that SL Green is using Grand Central's air rights in constructing One Vanderbilt. In fact, a lawsuit over those air rights was settled over the summer, without those rights being transferred. The details of the settlement were not disclosed at the time; a spokeswoman for the mayor's office said that the tower can proceed thanks to a "special permit granted by City." Governor Cuomo has until the end of the month to sign a bill that would make it illegal within the five boroughs to advertise whole apartments for fewer than 30 days on Airbnb. That move will essentially kill the controversial home rental company's business in New York, and in a last-ditch effort to save themselves, Airbnb announced a bunch of new policies today, including one that would prevent hosts from listing more than one unit on the site. Still, some lawmakers remain unswayed Airbnb outlined what they're calling a "proposal" in a memo and op-ed today, presenting five new measures they hope might make Albany rethink the Multiple Dwelling Law of 2010 that prohibits tenants and landlords from renting whole apartments for under 30 days. The first proposal would require people renting their apartments to have only one home within the five boroughs; it would also prohibit short-term rentals in public housing and limit short-term rentals in rent-stabilized housing. The second proposal would mandate a registration system for short term rental hosts, one that Airbnb claims would make it easier for housing regulators to weed out bad actors. Other proposals include "providing landlords with the opportunity to set clear rules for short term rentals in their buildings"; imposing a "three strikes" policy that would kick a host off the site if they broke rules; and requiring host to pay all local and state lodging taxes. On a conference call today, State Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal, who co-authored the rental law Cuomo's currently sitting on, argued that Airbnb's "entire business model is predicated on breaking the law," and that this is an "11th-hour" effort to stay in NYC. "We do not negotiate," Rosenthal said, pointing to research that's shown rent spiking dramatically in neighborhoods where Airbnb has thrived. "Their expansion robs the city of desperately needed units of affordable housing," she said. "Our focus is on protecting hardworking families and affordable housing in this city. Airbnb and other sites like it are responsible for the loss of thousands of units of housing here." Rosenthal also criticized the new "three strikes" policy, noting that it would give commercial operators two more chances to break the law than is currently allowed. "It's really preposterous," she said. "We're not making a deal here. We have a '1 strike, you're out' policy here." State Senator Liz Krueger, who also joined in on the call, claimed that Airbnb has attempted to impose similar regulations in cities like San Francisco and elsewhere, but they haven't done anything to alleviate those housing crises. The host registration systems, she argued, have failed, since hosts don't always register, and the rules are rarely enforced. "This is not anything new. This is the model they've been attempting in various places all over the world," she said. "New York saw what was going on early, and were proactive and didn't fall for a bunch of PR stunt non-enforceable protections. Other cities around the world are coming to talk to us to ask, 'How do you stop this?'" She added, "We're trying to make sure that here in New York, we have a mechanism for enforcement. " She also noted that having New Yorkers pay business tax when renting their apartmentswhich is one of Airbnb's new regulationswould be "proof positive" that they were violating their leases, making it easier for landlords to evict tenants. Airbnb, she argued, doesn't advertise that it's illegal for tenants to rent whole apartments without being present in their homes, and doesn't care if tenants are evicted for violating the law, even though "it's very easy for platform computer companies to do pop-up screens specific to locations" that would alert users to local laws. But Krueger says Airbnb's making so much money off illegal rentals, they don't want to curb the activity. "They unfortunately don't face liabilities themselves. They're not the ones who get punished when someone gets evicted from their home," she said. "State and local lawmakers can put rules in and enforcement in to stop bad activity, but Airbnb is making money off of encouraging it." Airbnb, for its part, has long argued in favor of changing local law to allow hosts to rent out the entirety of their primary residences for short periods of time, rather than requiring a host to be present during the Airbnb stay. Rosenthal says the state does not plan on changing the law. Governor Cuomo has until October 29th to sign the new bill. nws gibson Senior Deputy Schools Chancellor Dr. Dorita Gibson will be filling in for Chancellor Carmen Farina at Wednesday's meeting of the Panel for Educational Policy in Sunnyside. (Staten Island Advance) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Senior Deputy City Schools Chancellor Dr. Dorita Gibson will be filling in for Schools Chancellor Carmen Farina during Wednesday night's meeting of the citywide Panel for Educational Policy (PEP) in the Petrides Educational Complex in Sunnyside. According to the Department of Education, Farina had a last-minute scheduling conflict that called her out of town. The move caught local school officials by surprise. "Not good," commented Community Education Council President Michael Reilly, who had been posting the meeting on his Facebook page as late as Wednesday afternoon. The PEP meeting will still take place in the auditorium of the Petrides Educational Complex, Sunnyside, to comply with its goal of increasing public access by moving the proceedings from Manhattan to the outer boroughs a few times a year. The meeting is set to begin at 6 p.m. Public comment will be allowed on the agenda items, and after that, there will be time for people to approach the microphone and have their say about whatever is on their minds. Speaker sign-up will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the door and will close at 6:30 p.m. Speakers will be limited to two minutes during the public portion of the meeting. Click here to see the agenda. NWS MCDONALDPARK McDonald Playground in West Brighton closed earlier this month for construction and will not reopen for more than a year. (Staten Island Advance/ Susan Lunny Keag) (STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE/ SUSAN LUNNY KEAG) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- McDonald Playground, a popular spot in West Brighton for youngsters and teenagers alike, will be closed for more than a year, according to the New York City Parks Department. That's the bad news. The good news, however, is that the park, located on Forest Avenue, will get a complete facelift. The project, which the Parks Department anticipates to be completed by April, 2018, will reconstruct the playground and multi-use area, according to a spokesperson. Until that time, the site will be closed, a Parks Department spokesperson confirmed. McDonald Playground is one of the initial 35 community parks selected to receive a major capital investment as part of the Community Parks Initiative. More than 60 neighborhood parks will receive full transformations, and more than 100 additional sites will receive targeted improvements and enhanced programming, according to the Parks Department. The official groundbreaking ceremony will take place on Oct. 27 at 11 a.m. The park honors Austin J. McDonald, (1892-1918) a Curtis High School graduate and New York City resident killed in the line of duty during World War I. It is one of nine playgrounds built by the Parks Department through a war memorial fund. They were simultaneously opened on July 15, 1934. NWS cowboy.png Attorney Richard A. Luthman, left, and his Tod "Doc" Mishler, a.k.a the "Outerbridge Cowboy" outlined a $50 million dollar lawsuit they've filed against Richmond County and New York City agencies outside the courthouse Wednesday. (Staten Island Advance/Kyle Lawson) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The ballad of the "Outerbridge Cowboy" continues, which now includes a notice of claim for a $50 million lawsuit and an ongoing criminal case. Prior to criminal charges against Tod "Doc" Mishler being continued Wednesday to a Jan. 9 court date, he sang cowboy songs outside the courthouse and detailed a notice of claim for a $50 million lawsuit he's filed against the Richmond County District Attorney's office, NYPD, the Parks Department and the city itself. Mishler, 80, of Ulster Park, N.Y., had his two horses, Hope II and Charity, confiscated in June after he rode them across the Outerbridge Crossing. He was charged with animal cruelty in July after a veterinarian examination by the ASPCA determined his horses were dehydrated, had not regularly been to see a veterinarian and had bleeding sores caused by the saddle, accusations he flatly rejects. Mishler refused a deal from District Attorney Michael E. McMahon's office that would have required him to give up his horses for two years and plead guilty to disorderly conduct. The notice of claim was confirmed by city officials Sept. 22, and a letter to Mishler from the bureau of law and adjustment stated "if we are unable to resolve your claim, any lawsuit against the City must be started within one year and ninety days from the date of the occurence." In addition to Mishler's claims that his horses were illegally taken from him, the notice of claim states he was "improperly seized, arrested, and falsely imprisoned by (the) NYPD... in concert with NYC Parks Department Officers..." Prior to his court appearance, Mishler sang a ballad outside of the Staten Island Courthouse, dedicated to "...all the ladies across the country, that have welcomed me with God's Love." Members of the Humane Society of the United States have said if Mishler is found guilty, he should be prohibited from owning and caring for horses. A Facebook group called Stop Doc Mishler was formed recently in opposition of the cowboy. Any money Mishler might recover as a result of the claim would be put toward drug treatment on Staten Island, according to Mishler and a second attorney he's retained for the civil case. "It's about human rights versus animal rights," Mishler said. "It's ludicrous to think I don't care about my horses, because if you don't take care of your horses you're not going anywhere." Attorney Richard A. Luthmann, who made the news in 2015 for requesting a trial by combat to resolve a lawsuit against him, said his client was "deprived his civil rights." "We have state actors who are horse thieves, and we're gonna get justice for (Mishler)," said Luthmann. A spokesman for the Richmond County D.A.'s office declined comment Wednesday. FullSizeRender(3).jpg Pharmacist Robert Annicharico, owner of Delco Drugs and Specialty Pharmacy (center) speaks at the press conference in which Assemblyman Michael Cusick, Senator Andrew Lanza and District Attorney Michael McMahon announce the donation by Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals of 10,000 drug deactivation pouches. Also featured in the photo are members of the New York Police Department and JoAnne Materna, program director for adult and adolescent services at the South Shore YMCA, Eltingville. (Staten Island Advance/ Susan Lunny Keag) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The drug epidemic on Staten Island is at an all-time high, and local elected officials are constantly looking for a solution to the ongoing problem. Their latest weapon? Drug deactivation pouches. Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals has donated 10,000 drug deactivation pouches, which will provide a safe and responsible means of disposing prescription medicine that is often abused and misused. The pouches will be distributed free through Delco Drugs and Specialty Pharmacy, located at 3833 Richmond Ave., as well as the YMCA's South Shore and North Shore locations. The announcement was made by Assemblyman Michael Cusick, State Sen. Andrew Lanza and Richmond County District Attorney Michael McMahon, who were joined by Robert Annicharico, owner of Delco Drugs, along with members of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) and YMCA Counseling Services, at the Eltingville pharmacy. The user-friendly, pouch-based systems deactivate prescription drugs and render chemical compounds safe for landfills. The instructions include adding water, sealing the bag and tossing into the normal trash. To see how the pouches work, check out this short video. Cusick said he all too often heard parents say, "My kid got hooked because they went into the medicine cabinet or somebody went into a family member's medicine cabinet without them knowing and it's that temptation that we want to take away. We want people to be able to dispose of these (drugs)." The announcement comes just days before National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, which falls on Saturday, Oct. 22. Lanza said the pouches are just one way to, "combat this terrible national crisis." "This is truly one of the more critical issues of our time ... Opioid abuse death is now the number one preventable cause of death in the United States. More people die from opioid abuse than every other unintentional cause," said Lanza. Lanza said local legislators will continue to work with the district attorney, as well as the NYPD, to find solutions to the drug epidemic. "We will make sure we do whatever it takes to save the lives of our neighbors who find themselves in the the throes of addiction," Lanza said. McMahon noted that since Jan. 1, "we've had at least 74 deaths that we are investigating attributable to heroin and opioid prescription drugs. Seventy four Staten Islanders have died." "Some people think we are not going to overcome this. We're not going to win this battle," he said, adding that Staten Island has been given the negative nickname, "Heroin Island." However, McMahon believes the battle against drugs is one we can win. "I believe what we are seeing here today is the reason that we are going to be known as the 'Island of Hope' pretty soon because I believe what we are seeing is everyone pulling together to address this problem," McMahon said. Staten Island police precincts currently have secure drop-off boxes for unused prescription pills, McMahon noted. He said the pouches are another means of preventing those suffering from addiction an easy way, "to find their next fix." Annicharico said many of his Delco Drugs customers, particularly seniors, have prescription medicine at home from when a loved one was sick that they didn't know how to get rid of. "I can't tell an elderly person to go to DEA.gov,'' Annacharico said. "Their first instinct is not to type in a website ... this is a personalized approach. Someone can come into the pharmacy now and I can give this to them. This is a simple action that any of us can take to make our community safer." JoAnne Materna, program director for adult and adolescent services at the South Shore YMCA, said the pouches are, "another tool in our toolbox to drive down the number of prescription pills in our community." She urged Staten Islanders to take advantage of this free resource. "It is our hope that the community is diligent in their efforts to safeguard their medications and that individuals and families in need of support find their way into treatment programs," she said. Senior Health Fair Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis to partner with Canterbury House Senior Residence and Staten Island University Hospital to host a free Wellness and Lifestyle Fair for seniors on Wednesday, Oct. 26 from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. (Courtesy/Advance file shot) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Senior citizens seeking free medical services and a fun, interactive chair yoga and dance class are in luck. Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis, in partnership with the Canterbury House Senior Residence and Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH), will host an annual Wellness and Lifestyle Fair on Wednesday, Oct. 26, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Community Room of the Canterbury House, located at 1331 Bay St. in Rosebank. "I am very pleased to once again join Canterbury House and Staten Island University Hospital to offer this great event," said Malliotakis (R-East Shore/Brooklyn). "We have so many seniors who have trouble paying for the most basic testing and screening. This event will provide an opportunity to learn about preventive measures they can take, right here in their own community." A variety of free medical services will be available, including flu shots, blood pressure screenings, diabetes screenings, BMI testing and HIV counseling. Services will be administered by New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, Priority One Ambulance Service, Community Health Action of Staten Island and SIUH. Other participating organizations include: the New York City Department for the Aging; the New York Public Library; Meals on Wheels; FDNY Fire Safety; the MTA New York City Transit Authority's Paratransit/Access-A-Ride, and Metrocard Mobile Sales units. This year's program features an exciting, new interactive class on chair yoga and chair dancing to oldies hits, presented by Living in Motion, at 11 a.m. For more information, please contact Malliotakis' office at 718-987-0197. The story of Anthony Weiner is just one tumble down the mountain after another. Today's further fall from grace: a federal grand jury will reportedly start hearing evidence soon about Weiner's alleged sexting with a 15-year-old girl. Remember when his sexting was just goofy fun because his last name was a slang synonym for penis? Yeah, me neither. The Daily Mail reports that federal investigators are looking to "move quickly" and could be introducing evidence of Weiner's alleged teen sexting to a grand jury by the end of October. Weiner's cellphone records were subpoenaed by the U.S. Attorney's office in late September to look for evidence of the sexually explicit messages he allegedly sent to a North Carolina teen. A legal expert the Mail spoke to suggested Weiner could be hit with a misdemeanor charge of endangering the welfare of a child, which would land him a year in jail. That's the very low end of the spectrum though, as the NY Post suggests that Weiner could be hit with a charge of sexual exploitation of a minor, which carries a 15 to 30-year prison sentence. The Daily News sources say the grand jury might not be as imminent as the Post and the Mail make it out to be, but even that story doesn't sound good for Weiner. According to the News, investigators from both the NYPD and the Manhattan District Attorney's office have been investigating the alleged sexting, and gave what they found to federal investigators who have "taken an interest" in the case. Danger, Carlos. Danger. History chair. To help 21st-century students learn about the recent past, an alumna and her husband have endowed the Harriet Johnson Toadvine '56 Chair in 20th-Century History. In honor of her 60th reunion, Harriet and Steve Toadvine worked with Skidmore's gift-planning director to establish the $2.25 million fund through a combination of outright gifts and a bequest in their estate plan. The first Toadvine Professor, announced this summer, is Matt Hockenos, a specialist in 20th-century European history. The author of A Church Divided: German Protestants Confront the Nazi Past, he has earned Fulbright, Mellon, and other grants for his scholarship. Through the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, for example, he researched the Society for the Promotion of Christianity among the Jews, analyzing Nazi anti-Semitism and missionary attitudes. Prof. Matt Hockenos Prof. Matt Hockenos Hockenos says the donors feel strongly about "helping students understand the two world wars, the Holocaust, the Cold War, economic globalization, and American ingenuityall of which have shaped their lives whether they know it or not." By establishing the professorship, he says, their gift is "sure to have an important impact on the historical literacy of the next generations of Skidmore students." Steve Toadvine, a naval aviator in postwar Korea, ran businesses that supplied military aircraft components and electromagnetic shielding and later taught business ethics at Johns Hopkins University and University College in Dublin, Ireland. Finding his Irish students better versed in history, he wanted to help Americans understand the advancements and mistakes of the 20th century that fundamentally transformed the human experience. In just a few years, students entering college will be the first cohort not born in the 20th century. The donors hope that the new chair, funded by interest from their endowment in perpetuity, will enable a wide range of students to apply history's lessons to address current and future challenges. Chinese studies chair. Skidmore's second new professorship, the Tang Chair in Chinese Studies, was endowed by financier Oscar Tang, husband of the late Frances Young Tang '61, in whose honor Skidmores teaching museum is named. A longtime Skidmore benefactor and former trustee, he has also made major donations to Columbia, Yale, Princeton, and Harvard universities, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the New York Philharmonic, and other institutions. To recognize his philanthropy to education and to arts and culture, Tang was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2005. When Tang offered to help Skidmore devote more curricular attention to China, the college's academic leaders agreed that several programs could benefit from such expertise, so they opened up the position to several disciplines. Their applicant of choice was a sociologist, Xiaoshuo Hou. A specialist in economics and society, Hou is the author of Community Capitalism in China: The State, the Market, and Collectivism. She was also the Asia editor and wrote about East Asian ethnicities and market transitions for the Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Race, Ethnicity and Nationalism. Prof. Xiaoshuo Hou Prof. Xiaoshuo Hou Hou's latest research is on electric vehicles in China, where the state is subsidizing e-buses and e-taxis but consumers still prefer gas-powered cars. She says some of the issues in China mirror those in the US: the higher price of e-cars, lack of enough charging stations, and opposition from the petroleum industry. Also, given frequent changes in Chinese laws and regulations, e-vehicle entrepreneurs face risks in getting private-business loans from state-run banks and in navigating an unsure business environment. Hou is pleased that the Tang Chair lets her teach in both sociology and Asian studies. She says she enjoys helping students explore current issues in China, from privatization to urban migration to evolving gender relations. She had heard that Skidmore students were bright and engaged, and "I've found that it's true," she says. After her very first class session, she recalls, "students were thanking me as they walked out! I never expected that." Brooklyn rapper Bobby Shmurda has been officially sentenced to seven years in prison. The sentence came as part of a deal struck with prosecutors that saw the Brooklyn MC plead guilty to charges of 4th degree conspiracy to criminally possess a weapon and second-degree criminal weapons possession. Shmurda, whose legal name is Ackquille Pollard, is 22-years-old. Billboard reports he appeared alone in Manhattan Supreme Court Wednesday morning; his co-defendants Chad Marshall (aka Rowdy Rebel") and Nicholas McCoy (aka Flea Montana) were also sentenced. Shmurda will reportedly receive partial time served as part of his sentence, and could be released as early as 2021. Billboard notes that the plea deal, which reduced the maximum possible prison stint from 15 to seven years, required that Shmurda forfeit his right to appeal. After being released, all three men will also be required to submit to five years of supervision. "I was forced to take this sentence, I did not want to take this sentence. I was forced by my attorney to take this plea," Shmurda told the court this morning. Shmurda, Marshall, and McCoy were arrested in late 2014 at the Quad Recording Studios near Rockefeller Center. Police say they found 21 weapons on the young men, including two guns and a small amount of crack in Shmurda's car (in April, Shmurda sued the city for false arrest). The young rapper was initially hit with numerous gun, drug, and conspiracy charges in what investigators alleged was a close connection to the GS9 Crips street gang. Shmurda entered his guilty plea in September after having been stuck in jail for 20 months on an uncommonly-high $2 million bond that made it impossible for his record label to bail him out. "If we made bail I would've beat the case," Shmurda told Complex a week after pleading guilty. "They just look at our skin color, and look at where we're from. I didn't get caught with anything on me and the cops lied, saying they seen me with a gun in my hand. I explained the whole situation to Epic and they were behind me all the way. We had big-money lawyers and they still couldn't do nothing because of the judge, who looked at us like black thugs." Shmurda told the music site he took the seven-year plea deal over a five-year offer as means of lowering Marshall's overall sentence. Following the hearing Wednesday, Shmurda's mother, Leslie Pollard, expressed her disappointment in the process to Billboard. "You don't have any rights in that courtroom," Pollard said. "It's heartbreaking. It's disappointing." "It was a whole setup," she said. "The judge doesn't know my son. He doesn't care." For more, this 2015 New York Magazine article looks at how the NYPD aggressively pursued Shmurda in part because of his rising hip-hop celebrity. A lot of people might think of Federal Hall as that place Occupy Wall Street used to hang around, or that place where Bane made his last stand against the Batman. But Federal Hall Memorial National Historic Site, which was opened to the public as part of the Open House New York weekend, has a much richer history that goes far beyond the famed battle for the soul of Gotham City. Federal Hall, located at 26 Wall Street in the heart of the Financial District, was first built in the early 1700s to serve as NYC's second city hall (it was built by the British, who used material from the demolished wall of Wall Street). A few years after the American Revolution, it was gutted, redesigned, and retooled to serve as the first capitol building in the newly-formed country. The newly-renamed Federal Hall became the site of George Washington's inauguration as the first presidentyou can see the bible on which Washington took his inaugural oath up above. Appropriately, the Associated Press is currently presenting a photo exhibit about the presidents in the main room of the Hall; there is also a room dedicated to celebrating the National Parks' 100th anniversary, and one in which models of the various iterations of Federal Hall are displayed. During the OHNY weekend, there were two shows daily where actors portraying Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton debated "behind closed doors" as members of the first presidential cabinet. Some other fun historical facts about the deep currents of history running through Federal Hall's marble corridors: The initial City Hall building played host to the Stamp Act Congress, which assembled in October 1765 to protest "taxation without representation." The first United States Congress met here from 1789-1790, and the Bill of Rights was ratified here. In case it's not clear by now, Federal Hall went through many different permutations over the last 200+ years. The current structure on the site was initially built as a Customs House in 1842. It was modeled after the Greek Parthenon. In 1862, Customs moved to 55 Wall Street, and the building became the US Sub-Treasury, where million of dollars in gold and silver were kept in basement vaults (until the Federal Reserve Bank replaced it in 1920). That basement, which you can see in a few photos above, still has huge round columns and a low ceiling, and in the words of photographer Sai Mokhtari, it looks like "like something out of a futuristic throwback movie." In 1882, John Quincy Adams Ward's bronze George Washington statue was erected on its front steps to commemorate the inauguration. In 1920, a bomb was detonated by unknown perpetrators across the street from Federal Hall at 23 Wall Street, killing 38 people and injuring over 400 more. This became known as the Wall Street Bombing. The building was finally given its full title (Federal Hall Memorial National Historic Site) on May 26, 1939, and then re-designated a national memorial on August 11, 1955. Almost a year after 9/11, 300 members of Congress convened at Federal Hall as a symbolic show of support for the city. It marked the first meeting there by Congress since 1790. In 2004, the site was closed for renovations after the collapse of the World Trade Center weakened the foundations of the building. It reopened on June 8, 2008. In 2012, the NYPD and the U.S. Parks Service divided the front steps in half, with one side absurdly designated as a sort of "protest cage" for Occupy Wall Street. Click through to check out all the photos of the site, and learn more information about visiting it here. By clicking Agree, you consent to Slates Terms of Service and Privacy Policy and the use of technologies such as cookies by Slate and our partners to deliver relevant advertising on our iOS app to personalize content and perform site analytics. Please see our Privacy Policy for more information about our use of data, your rights, and how to withdraw consent. Agree We rely on your support to make local news available to all Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2022. Donate today The new - temporary - host of the top-rating breakfast radio program on 666 ABC Canberra has been announced. Laura Tchilinguirian will replace outgoing host Philip Clark from November 1. But it's only for six weeks, with the permanent host to be announced in early December. Laura Tchilinguirian will take over from Philip Clak on 666 ABC breakfast. Credit:Simon Schluter Clark is finishing up this week to replace Tony Delroy on the national ABC Local Radio program Nightlife. Tchilinguirian currently presents ABC NewsRadio Evenings and has been a producer and presenter at ABC NewsRadio since 2009. A leadership ticket of Alistair Coe and Andrew Wall is being pushed to head the shell-shocked Canberra Liberals after their election loss. Internal wrangling over the post-election leadership team is continuing within the party, although current leader Jeremy Hanson is yet to publicly state whether he will stand in a spill next week. Liberal deputy Alistair Coe. Credit:Jay Cronan Three sources have confirmed that the main ticket on offer is Mr Coe as leader and Mr Wall as deputy. That has prompted some consternation within the party, who fear it would be far too conservative for Canberra, and would place two men as leaders at a time of record female representation in the Legislative Assembly. Beloved veterinarian Jan Spate was still treating animals in the morning on Wednesday as she prepared to close the doors on her business of 44 years on Wednesday afternoon. The Hall vet was suspended from practising after a number of serious complaints were made against her over a seven-year period. She signed a deed to not seek registration for two years with the ACT Veterinarians Board after an initial hearing in the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal earlier this year. The final day of her registration was Wednesday. Demonstration of support for Hall based veterinarian Jan Spate whose practice has been suspended by the vet board. Credit:Rohan Thomson However, the community came out in support of Dr Spate at the eleventh hour, with hundreds of people and their pets crowding the street in front of her premises in Hall on Wednesday. The demonstration of support came as a fundraising page set up for the vet topped $20,000 in donations to help her recover legal costs. Chants of "Jan Spate, Jan Spate" rang out through the passionate crowd, as people demanded her licence be reinstated. It's 50 years on Thursday since then ANU student Megan Stoyles attracted headlines around the world by wearing a Make Love Not War t-shirt at an anti-Vietnam War protest in Canberra in 1966 as US president Lyndon Baines Johnson - LBJ - arrived in the national capital. She still has the t-shirt and can still fit into it - wearing it as she spoke about student activism in the '60s at a 70th anniversary celebration for the ANU in August. Megan Stoyles Megan Stoyles earlier this year in the t-shirt she wore in 1966 during an anti-Vietnam War protest in Canberra as president Lyndon Johnson arrived in the national capital. Credit:Stuart Hay, ANU Now living in Melbourne, Ms Stoyles on Thursday did tell us that, contrary to popular belief, the image of her in the t-shirt outside the Rex Hotel on October 20, 1966, probably never did make the cover of Time magazine. A surprise AFL ruling has opened up the path for Geelong to secure Zach Tuohy from Carlton after the Cats were given unexpected permission to trade another first-round draft pick. Geelong will give up their first-round pick next year as well as other draft picks this year and get Tuohy and draft picks back from Carlton in the deal. The deal, if it goes through, will mean Geelong will not have had a first-round pick in three successive drafts. The surprise move to be able to trade a future first-round pick was given AFL approval after clubs - including Geelong - believed they were precluded from trading another future first-round pick given they had last year traded out of this year's first round. The corporate regulator is concerned that some life insurers with low rates of customer claim denials have actually been classifying claims that had been dismissed as "withdrawn claims". There was much attention last week on the Australian Securities and Investment Commission's revelation that one life insurer was declining 37 per cent of all claims under total and permanent disability policies. A matter of defining 'claim denials'? ASIC decides to investigate further after its brutal report into the life insurance industry last week. Credit:Jim Rice Westpac's BT Investment Group eventually outed itself as the company behind the high rate of denied claims in an after-business-hours press release on Friday evening. ASIC said its data might not be accurate because some insurers had different definitions of what constitutes a denied claim, with some companies counting withdrawn and ineligible claims as claims that had been denied. Macro-prudential policies aimed at preventing another financial downturn are "untested" and it's unclear what the impact would be in the event of another financial crisis, says Bank of England veteran Dr Paul Fisher. Earlier this year Dr Fisher stepped down from Britain's Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) where he acted as deputy head. He was formerly executive director of Supervisory Risk and Regulatory Operations at the Bank of England. Dr Fisher is visiting Melbourne and Sydney this week to raise awareness about the threat of climate change on business and investors, but also spoke to Fairfax Media about other financial market risks, including uncertainty surrounding Brexit and Donald Trump, and the legal troubles engulfing Deutsche Bank. Following the 2008 financial crisis, Dr Fisher had input into the regulator's plan to manage systemic risk through new requirements, including that banks increase capital. Australia is missing out on key events aimed at improving gender diversity due to the lack of policy initiatives designed to get women into public and private sector leadership positions, says the chief executive of Business Events Sydney, Lyn Lewis-Smith. "We are not progressing as quickly as other countries," Ms Lewis-Smith, also President of the Australian Association of Convention Bureaux, told Fairfax Media. In 2015, Australia hosted 247 international meetings, sliding two places down world rankings to 15. But the nation's market share is declining in the face of both improved convention facilities and more aggressive bidding elsewhere in the world, particularly in Asia, she said. Other nations' leaders such as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe were committed to the gender diversity cause Japan's goal is to ensure 30 per cent of leadership positions in Japanese society are occupied by women by 2020. On the personnel front, the Campaign for Accountability, a non-profit group, studied the to-and-fro between government and Google. It found that 183 people who worked under President Barack Obama through last year were hired by Google, while 58 headed the other way. Google is in Washington to "help policy makers understand our business and the work we do to keep the internet open and fuel economic growth," the California-based company said by e-mail in response to questions. Facebook's goals in the capital include protecting customers, "explaining how our service works, and maintaining an open Internet and a culture of innovation," it said in an e-mail. There have been other high-profile moves out of Washington: former Attorney General Eric Holder this year took a job at accommodation website Airbnb, and David Plouffe, Obama's one-time campaign manager, started at ridehailing app Uber in 2014. Persistent rumours have linked Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg with the post of Treasury secretary in a Hillary Clinton administration. Sandberg, a former chief of staff at the Treasury under Larry Summers, told a conference this month that she plans to stay at Facebook. Apple's Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook and Microsoft's founder Bill Gates were on a list of Clinton's potential vice-presidential nominees, according to an e-mail allegedly from her campaign chair that was released by Wikileaks. The administration's view is that tech people are welcome in Washington because they can help make things work better - and help is certainly needed. Penny Pritzker, the commerce secretary, says the government is shifting toward using technology the way business has been doing for years. It has set up a coding boot-camp for employees, while data scientists work across federal agencies to mine the archives and help improve transportation projects. 'Data as currency' "We view data as currency," Pritzker said in an interview. She travels to Silicon Valley at least once a quarter and has an advisory council of 21 tech experts. Megan Smith, the former Google manager who took a job as Obama's chief technology officer in 2014, says the long-term goal is to make government services as smooth a user experience as that offered by, say, Amazon or Dropbox. Collaboration with tech companies pre-dates Obama's creation of a special post to oversee it. Zillow Group, the real-estate website, helped the Treasury after the housing-market collapse, according to Stan Humphries, its chief analytics officer. "I was struck by how little data the government had" in areas such as price indexes or foreclosures, Humphries said. The Seattle-based firm filled the gap, offering its micro-data to Federal Reserve researchers and even, on occasion, to Neel Kashkari, then an assistant secretary at the Treasury department and now in charge of the Minneapolis Fed. "They were soon sucking up every bit of data that we had available," said Humphries. Biggest fear In Washington, favours typically come at a price though. Tech giants, which are in the habit of buying up smaller companies and also trying to tie customers to their own platforms, keep a close watch on antitrust policy. In 2013, Google - like Microsoft before it - was threatened with a potentially costly legal battle. Federal Trade Commission staff said the company "unlawfully maintained its monopoly" over internet searches, though the 20-month probe was eventually closed. "Competition policy, that's the thing they're most scared of," said Barry Lynn, a senior fellow at the New America Foundation, a Washington think-tank. "If a Microsoft-style case was brought against any of these companies, it could totally change their business prospects. It could result in radical changes to the scale and structure of their corporations." Cases have been opened in Europe against Google and Amazon, Facebook and Microsoft, said Lynn. He's a Republican, showing that concern about the growing power of the tech giants isn't confined to the political left. Not that the left doesn't share it. Clinton has talked about tougher antitrust laws aimed at ending the "abuse of economic power" by corporations. 'Their damn computers' She's also taken aim at their shifting of profits overseas to avoid taxes. Hauser, who worked at the Justice Department's antitrust division before joining the Revolving Door Project, said tech firms "are at the leading edge of tax avoidance because of the ways they've perfected moving their intellectual property overseas." He said Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew's support for Apple, after the iPhone-maker was ordered to pay back-taxes in Europe, is an unprecedented stance for a Democratic administration. Clinton's Republican rival Donald Trump proposed a tax cut for companies that repatriate profits, though it didn't win him many converts in the tech industry. Then there's the labour market. Trump has taken aim at Apple among other companies that have shifted jobs overseas. "We're going to get Apple to start building their damn computers and things in this country," he said in January. But the iPhone-maker announced this month it's setting up a second R&D centre in China. Big tech simply doesn't hire on the same scale as its heavy-industry predecessors. And technology is reshaping the workforce in other ways too, with Silicon Valley favourites like Uber and Taskrabbit at the forefront. They're central to the growth of a gig economy that's spurred calls for rules on health-care and employment insurance to be updated. Tech companies also typically back immigration rights for skilled labour that have become politically toxic, and they support trade accords that both presidential candidates oppose. They've clashed with the government over the balance between internet privacy and national security, notably when Apple boss Cook refused to help unlock an iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernardino shooters. Beyond the shopping-list of specifics, says Lynn, the industry has one overarching desire: light-touch regulation. "They want to be left alone," he said. "They want to be allowed to do what they want to do." Losers, like the Liberals, are often forced to take a new direction, such as a change of leader, but new directions are not easy if the current course reflects the composition and inclinations of the party membership. A leader who doesn't reflect his party, but is installed just for public relations, is in for a rough time. Furthermore if each election defeat is followed by a change of leader, especially in a small parliament, then a party soon runs out of decent choices and begins elevating people before their time. We are all still guessing why we got the result we did. Should either or both major parties take a new direction? Winners tend not to change course because they are triumphant. The temptation is to reject criticism but now is the chance for Labor to learn some lessons. The newly elected members must bring fresh thinking into the caucus. We are all still guessing why we got the result we did. Should either or both major parties take a new direction? Credit:Ben Plant We won't know the exact composition of this Assembly but unless there is a complete surprise we already know enough. The precise final composition does matter however. Whether the Greens win one or two seats will have an impact both on executive government and parliamentary processes. Whether the Sex Party manages to win a seat will impact on Parliament and representation. Whether a previous minister or another newcomer wins for Labor may impact on executive government. The bigger Legislative Assembly now has to deliver results. Twenty-five members must do better than 17. The increase in size was introduced not just to reflect a larger population but to enable better executive government, parliamentary processes and representation. That is the challenge facing the members of the new Assembly. Better executive government should follow a larger number of members on the government benches. This should mean not just more talent to choose from but a full suite of ministers who are able to share the ministerial load equitably and not have some ministers grossly overloaded to camouflage the weaknesses or inexperience of others. It is a truism that state and territory ministries have a long tail as the talent pool is shallower than in federal politics. ACT Labor now has the chance to prove that adage wrong. A larger government party room makes the choice of good ministers easier. But remember two factors. As the Chief Minister has already noted many of these 12 will now be new and need time to settle in. Andrew Barr may look to a temporary arrangement followed by a ministerial reshuffle in 18 months. But even that is not long for a new member to learn the ropes. Secondly, whether or not the Greens join the government or sit on the crossbench will make a huge difference. There is a conundrum. Good executive government means Shane Rattenbury should stay in the government as he is an experienced and competent minister. He is easily among the top four ministers and public personalities in the Labor-Green government. If he stays it will mean a stronger ministry and that will also enable Barr to ease one or two of his newcomers slowly into the government. However, a good parliament might be better served if there were two Greens on the crossbench. That would keep the Labor government on its toes, make for better committee work and make it easier for the Greens and the Liberals to reach out to one another, which would be a plus. The Greens will do what is best for them and what their members want, but the whole community has a stake in what is decided. The bigger Assembly also should mean a better Opposition for much the same reasons. The Opposition Leader now has more to choose from for his shadow ministry. He faces some difficult choices because now should be the time for generational change. Several of the more experienced Opposition members will probably not participate in a future Liberal government. They will move on after the next election. So newcomers must be promoted, but to do so immediately would be to throw them in the deep end. Breathless claims over lever-action shotgun are pure fiction Were sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. Were working to restore it. Please try again later. Dismiss To a well-known store selling office supplies for printer ink. Our checkout queue is served by one as another staff member stands at the entrance poised to meet and greet arriving customers. When suggested by a customer he could help out on the tills, he explains he has to stand where he is because of 'company policy'. Almost as crazy as the policy of a hardware chain where, on even a brief visit, after being welcomed, it is possible to be asked by staff "Howya doin, mate" more than half a dozen times. Re Phil Fitzpatrick's quest (C8) for a word to describe the whining, self-righteous, fake sincere voice qualities of country and western artists how about 'Trumpeting'?suggests Andrew York, Chapman, ACT. "My suggestion for a whiny adjective is sybillic and the verb is to sybilate, named in honour of Sybil Fawlty who could do the best whiny, fake sincere voice in the history of television.Ted Richards of Batemans Bay. More music issues. "My brother and I were recently discussing the best " one hit wonder" from the '70s and '80s. We both agreed it was Thunderclap Newman's Something in the Air. What do other C8ers think? Rock Lobster is banned; so is Lucky Number (C8: Why?) Geoff Gilligan of Coogee. In the event of an accident between two driverless cars, who is at fault? asks Allan Johnson, Canberra. "The manufacturer of the sensors if they failed, or the programmer of the control system! Only a C8 reader can solve this dilemma." In a recent podcast from The New Yorker, the magazine's executive editor, Dorothy Wickenden, prefaced a question about the US presidential election with a reference to "two very flawed candidates". Thankfully, the quality press has largely dispensed with the idea of false equivalence between the presidential candidates coming to the belated realisation that, as Slate's editor-in-chief put it, this election is not the business-as-usual contest between apples and oranges, but one between "apples and rancid meat", which counts as one truly poetic description of Donald Trump. I guess Wickenden was yet to receive the memo. Only one candidate expresses contempt for the rule of law and the checks-and-balances of government. Only one candidate, to understate matters, is "very flawed". The other candidate simply has "flaws". Still, there's something about Hillary that precludes measured or nuanced criticism. For now, outrage over the rancid meat masks the pervasive Hillary-hatred that simmers below the surface. Though you can glimpse the antipathy in grudging remarks about Hillary being "the lesser of two evils", and even in the unofficial crowning of the undeniably impressive Michelle Obama as the feminist hero of this election. The woman poised to make history sometimes appears an extra in her own drama. The reason cannot be found solely in her character failings: Hillary-hatred is our pathology. We are immature and more sexist than we realise. Hillary Clinton. In any other field an epic CV would be a prerequisite for the top job. In the current political climate the logic is reversed and being the consummate "insider" is considered a liability. Credit:AP Hillary's errors, missteps, misjudgments and misspoken words are battle scars from her epic political experience. For all the oceans of ink devoted to these misdeeds and mistakes, not to mention the mini-industry dedicated to digging up dirt on the Clintons, there's still no evidence to support the insinuations from right and left that she's innately slippery and corrupt. The WikiLeaks dump of apparent transcripts of Hillary's admittedly unedifying paid speeches to Goldman Sachs make for underwhelming headlines, even if Trump wasn't grabbing them. Goldman Sachs should demand its money back: she dished up false flattery and pseudo-intimacy and little else. She feels Wall Street's pain about new laws tightening regulation of the banking sector in the wake of the global financial crisis. But, well, it had to be done "for political reasons". Purr. In any other field an epic CV would be a prerequisite for the top job. In the current political climate the logic is reversed and being the consummate "insider" is considered a liability. Yet there is a sexist paradox here that Hillary-haters must grapple with: only a woman with epic experience and unassailable qualifications can legitimately contest the top job. Mediocrity and under-preparedness are luxuries only men, being over-represented in positions of power, can afford. After failing to listen to consistent calls for stronger emissions reduction targets and a credible set of climate policies, the Australian government this week found itself under growing international pressure to explain what it is doing to tackle climate change and how we will meet even the modest targets set in Paris while we continue to approve new coal-fired power stations around Australia. For a fortnight the federal government has been attacking state governments including South Australia, Victoria and Queensland on their renewable energy targets despite the fact that those states have targets much closer to what's needed to meet our Paris commitments, and they will provide demonstrable economic and environmental benefits. Without retiring coal-burning power plants that pollute the equivalent of 30 per cent of Australia's greenhouse gas emissions, it will be impossible for Australia to meet our commitments under the Paris Climate Agreement. Credit:Arsineh Houspian In Queensland, for example, a draft report of an independent expert panel Credible Pathways to a 50% renewable energy target for Queensland delivered to the Queensland government shows that their 50 per cent target by 2030 is not only achievable but can be cost-neutral and can provide an annual average of 6400 to 6700 full-time jobs between 2020 and 2030 while also reducing emissions. Against this backdrop, the Turnbull government has come under fire after a new UN expert review found that Australia's carbon emissions will be 11.5 per cent higher in 2020 than they were in 1990. The review also found that Australia's industrial emissions not counting those from forestry and land-clearing were expected to rise 33.5 per cent over the three decades. The Abbott government misled the public in a $10 million taxpayer-funded advertising campaign promoting its higher education policies after the Education Department was warned the advertisements could breach Australian consumer law. The revelation is contained in a major review of government advertising by the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) which also criticises the Department of Education and the Treasury for failing to set specific goals for controversial recent advertising campaigns. This made it impossible to assess the campaigns' "overall effectiveness and relative value for money", the review found. The campaigns examined included the 2015 Intergenerational Report campaign fronted by popular scientist Karl Kruszelnicki, who later expressed "deep regret" for appearing in the ads and vowed to donate his pay cheque to needy schools. It probably wasn't the response BHP Billiton boss Andrew Mackenzie had hoped for after he told an audience in London that the 'Big Australian' miner gets treated better by the socialist government of Chile than politicians in Australia. Hours later, Wayne Swan walked into Parliament and doubled down on his criticism of BHP as a "tax evader", describing Mr Mackenzie's public critique overnight Tuesday as a "dummy spit" In what is becoming an increasingly personal stoush, the former Labor treasurer compared BHP's use of Australia's resources to a hotel guest who stays in the penthouse, orders room service but leaves without paying the bill. BHP is in the political crosshairs at state and federal level, with new Nationals leader in Western Australia, Brendon Grylls, advocating a new $5-a-tonne mining levy on BHP and Rio Tinto to extract $3 billion more revenue a year from their vast WA iron ore operations. Defence Minister Marise Payne has refused to say whether she or Christopher Pyne is the senior minister in the critical national security portfolio. Fronting a Senate estimates hearing on Wednesday morning, Senator Payne also refused to release letters detailing the division of responsibilities between herself, Mr Pyne as Defence Industry Minister, and Defence Personnel Minister Dan Tehan, amid reports of a "turf war". Senator Payne's pointed exchanges with Labor senators over who has ultimate authority over Defence underscores the unusual arrangement the Turnbull government has in place, in which the huge portfolio is divided between two senior cabinet ministers. But junior minister Dan Tehan later told Sky News that Senator Payne is the senior minister in the Defence portfolio. Outgoing green finance chief Oliver Yates has fired several parting shots at the Turnbull government, stating its carbon goal is too weak and that coal's share of the electricity sector must dive to make way for renewable energy even with the recent SA blackout. Mr Yates told Fairfax Media that Australia's goal of cutting emissions 26-28 per cent on 2005 levels by 2030 "will need to be strengthened" if the country is to move along with other nations to prevent global temperatures rising by 2 degrees. Renewable energy's share of the power sector will to have rise sharply, the chief executive said, citing a Climate Change Authority study that was largely ignored but modelled the shrinkage of coal's share to just 20 per cent by 2030 from 75 per cent now if Australia's contribution to a 2 degree warming target is to be met. In the wake of the axing of the carbon tax by the Abbott government in mid-2014, power sector emissions have risen by 4.8 per cent on an annualised rate to the end of September, consultants Pitt & Sherry say. Predicted by no one, the issue of gun control is back on the agenda following claims the government was willing to compromise an ongoing ban on the Adler A110 lever-action shotgun in return for libertarian senator David Leyonhjelm's vote on unrelated legislation. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has insisted there will be no softening of gun laws and that the controversial firearm which allows up to eight shots to be fired in eight seconds - will remain prohibited until the states come to an agreement on how it should be classified. Why was it banned? In July 2015, the Abbott government decided to suspend imports of the Adler A110 amid concerns it undermined the Howard-era National Firearms Agreement, which heavily restricted the availability of powerful, rapid-fire guns in Australia following the Port Arthur massacre. The federal government would be "crackers" to water down a ban on importing rapid-fire shotguns into Australia because of the growing terror threat, Tony Abbott says, in comments that place him at odds with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Nationals MPs. Mr Turnbull was forced on to the backfoot on Tuesday over the import of the rapid-fire, seven-shot Adler 110 shotgun, with Nationals MPs calling for the gun to be reclassified to Category B, allowing it to be imported under restricted circumstances, such as for the eradication of feral pigs and Labor claiming the government was prepared to water down a ban in exchange for the vote of Senator David Leyonhjelm on two key pieces of industrial legislation. But as the Prime Minister attempted to turn the tables on Labor and released a letter to Opposition Leader Bill Shorten demanding the ALP back mandatory five-year minimum sentences for trafficking and stronger penalties, Mr Abbott said when he was prime minister there was no way "on God's Earth, with a heightened terror threat, we were going to allow perhaps tens of thousands of rapid-fire weapons into the country". That comment contradicted Senator David Leyonhjelm's claim, backed up by email correspondence, that he had a struck a deal to allow the Adler in to the country in 2015. Maybe it was out of juice, or perhaps he couldn't find the charger, but, for some reason, the timer on Ian Macdonald's iPad was not working on Tuesday. Which might explain why Gillian Triggs, the Human Rights Commission president and familiar fixture on the witness list of Parliament's estimates hearings, gave evidence for nearly six hours beyond her allocated time. Things were very different last Friday when Senator Macdonald set his iPad timer to loudly ring every 15 minutes while Solictor-General Justin Gleeson was trying to give evidence over a feud with Attorney-General George Brandis. In this, as in all things, his wingman, Barry O'Sullivan, had his back. It was the day when Tony became Malcolm and Malcolm morphed into Tony. At least, that's how it seemed. One was clear and yet politically moderate. The other, wordy and apparently leaning to the right. Abbott, the outdoorsie hard man and darling of disgruntled conservatives everywhere, came over all dovish, declaring his government had never considered allowing the Adler lever-action rapid-fire shotgun into the country because to do so would be "crackers" in this heightened security environment. It came as Turnbull was wading mid-stream through a couple of unscheduled days of nuanced argument in which he explained why a lethal weapon might actually be allowed in - via the lifting of a federally imposed importation ban - if the states and territories could only agree to re-classify it, ensuring tighter ownership restrictions. The take-out from this was the emergence of a new "Towny-Tony" - a man in tune with the anti-gun inner cities, against the unveiling of the hitherto unknown "machine-gun Malcolm" - the ex-greenie PM giving hope to the gun-loving he-man in the regions and backblocks of rural Australia. Day 1: First stop, the Boab Prison Tree, so called because of its reputed use as a rest point for police and escorted Aboriginal prisoners en route to nearby Derby and Broome. Yes, the ancient tree, thought to be about 1500 years old, is that big. Cameras, tablets and phones whir into life. Tour guide Trevor Boughton opens a boab fruit for us and we see how the tough nuts could have floated all the way from Africa, just one of the theories of how the trees came to be here. The seeds are apparently rich in vitamin C. We've been told to bring aqua shoes and supplied with small torches. These are deployed at our next stop, Tunnel Creek, where we wade through cool water, at times in darkness. We marvel at stunning rock formations and coo over bat colonies before emerging in a rainforest waterhole at the end of the creek, so at odds with the pindan desert around us. In Windjana Gorge, we check out rock art with local guide Tex, then walk along the banks of the Lennard River, where we come upon freshwater crocodiles, mostly lurking in the water. As the sun sets, we arrive at Bell Gorge Wilderness Lodge and are shown to our individual tent cabins, where we'll stay two nights. Day 2: I wake to the soft orange glow of the ranges nearby. The birdsong is varied and beautiful and the subtle scents of the bush are magic. I linger in my comfortable bed as the dawn slowly turns up the colours of the desert. A hearty breakfast is followed by a trek into Bell Gorge, where stark cliffs surround tiered waterholes. This is quite physically challenging and one of our party decides to rest at the first shady waterhole. The rest of us press on over the gorge and down to the stunning larger waterhole. The mossy sides mean a backwards crab entrance into the water, and we slip in, grateful for the cool of it, joyous as school kids. Purnululu National Park' beehive-like Bungle Bungle Range was "discovered" only in 1983. Credit:Trevor Creighton Day 3: We abandon the 4WD vehicle for a short trek into Galvans Gorge. Boughton introduces us to green ants, which have edible abdomens that taste like limes. I am reluctant, but when in Rome. The oasis in the gorge is not for swimming but teems with exotic birdlife. On the way out we spot a docile goanna, beautifully camouflaged on the brown dirt path. He lets us pass without fear or alarm. Then it's on to Manning Gorge, where we swim in a rainforest waterhole, replete with a sandy beach. A tinny on a rope system allows people to cross the water without getting wet. A woman is ferried across, standing proud like Cleopatra on the Nile as her minions work the ropes. We're too busy splashing and swimming about in the refreshing water to pay much heed. A gorgeous day ends at Home Valley Station. Day 4: The day begins with a Station tour as Indigenous guide Alfie explains how it works as an on-site training academy designed for Indigenous men and women from the area. He tells us that cattle operations have benefited from new Brahman stock and how dedicated breeding paddocks have been introduced to improve genetics and the station's ability to manage the herd. Climbing aboard Scarlet with us, Alfie shows us where some scenes in Baz Luhrmann's Australia were filmed, adding that Hugh Jackman stayed at the Home Valley Station during the shoot, while Nicole Kidman opted for the high-end El Questro resort nearby. We make our way to Emma Gorge. Aqua shoes in the backpack are recommended for the hike in. We swap our hiking boots for them on the bank of the waterhole, with its sharp rock edges, then swim over to the droplet waterfall as cliffs tower above. When Patty Ris sat down for a meal at the senior living facility she recently moved to, she accidentally picked the best seat in the house. Though she didn't know it at the time, sitting beside her was Henry Heimlich, inventor of the first-aid procedure designed to dislodge an obstruction from a choking person's airway with a wraparound bear hug from behind and some abdomen squeezing. Dr Henry Heimlich invented the Heimlich manoeuvre, which has saved countless lives. Credit:Henry J. Heimlich/Facebook The identity of her fellow diner could have gone unnoticed, but fate intervened. "I ordered a hamburger, and the next thing I know, I could not breathe I was choking so hard," Ris told the New York Times. Still smiling: Steven is taking the fight head-on. Credit:Mark Jesser The rarity of the cancer provided Steven with one ray of hope in his struggle with the disease. A new national trial, led by Mustafa Khasraw from the Royal North Shore Hospital, is targeting unmethylated glioblastoma , which has a prognosis of 12 months, compared to methylated glioblastoma, which is almost double. "Having no methylation of the glioblastoma means more patients die in a year," Khasraw explains. "What we're trying to do is give the standard radiotherapy treatment, but instead of the chemotherapy that has been largely disappointing in this group, give them a new drug that has shown promise in other cancers." Dr. Mustafa Khasraw is the principle investigator on the revolutionary trial. Credit:Cure Brain Cancer Foundation The study is being conducted by the Co-Operative Trials Group for Neuro-Oncology (COGNO) and the National Health and Medical Research Council with support from the University of Sydney. In addition to surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, Stephen takes the experimental drug Veliparib. The growth of the tumour has slowed since he started treatment, and although it's too early to directly link this to the trial, Margot is certain it's the cause of the success. Gaby and David Wolf in Israel after he was diagnosed with brain cancer. Credit:Gaby Wolf "Without the trial, I don't know where Steve would be in the next year," she says. "From my nursing perspective, these things go fast and the fact that standard brain cancer treatments don't work very well on these particular ones, it would've only been a matter of time." The trial is largely funded by the Cure Brain Cancer Foundation, an umbrella organisation founded by neurosurgeon Charlie Teo, with further funding from the NSW Cancer Council and pharmaceutical researcher AbbVie. The Cure Brain Cancer Foundation is supported by smaller subsidiary charities, including the The Wolfy Foundation. David Wolf was 22-years old when he was diagnosed with stage four brain cancer. He died less than a year later. His friends and family established the The Wolfy Foundation to help others affected by brain cancer. Together with Cure Brain Cancer, they raised $250,000 at their spring ball at the start of October, which goes directly to the trial keeping Steven alive. "For me and my parents, the spring ball allows us to honour my brother's legacy by celebrating life the way he did," sister Gaby explained. "David had a gift of bringing people together. He had more friends than anyone I know and he treated everyone equally, regardless of their age and background." The founders of the Wolfy Foundation, including David's parents Alan and Jackie, sister Gaby and brother-in law Alan at the fundraiser in October. Credit:Wolfy Foundation Like most young adults, David was out socialising any chance he could. His family and friends felt the perfect way to honour him was by throwing an annual party that would have made him proud. "He wouldn't want it any other way," charity co-founder and friend Brad Joffe says. While devastated by his diagnosis, David decided to live life to the fullest in the time he had. "It was a pretty big thing to face," friend Alex Goldstein said. "But he travelled a lot with his family, and started to get his mojo back. I felt he really turned a corner in terms of positivity and optimism. He was really back to his old ways. We got glimpses of his old, optimistic self." "He took it really rough in the beginning but he started to become pretty positive towards the end of it," Joffe recalled. "He enjoyed life. He said it to me a few times that 'I'm so happy this has happened to me because it's made me realise what life is'." David Wolf Centrelink fobbed-off the Commonwealth watchdog last year with a pledge to improve its performance in answering its phones that turned out to be far from the truth. The welfare agency promised the Commonwealth Ombudsman in July 2015 it would expand its "place in queue" telephone service, allowing customers to ask for a call-back and sparing them the commonplace tedium of being put on hold, sometimes for more than an hour. Senior DHS executive Hank Jongen. But the Ombudsman's office later found that the service had been "deactivated" earlier that month. The evasion has been revealed in the annual report of the Ombudsman's office, which has been on Centrelink's case for years to try to get the agency to lift its game. Former NSW Labor minister Joe Tripodi has been questioned by police after allegedly leaving the scene of a car accident in Sydney's north-west in July. Police contacted Mr Tripodi seeking clarification over the accident in Eastwood, reportedly between Mr Tripodi's BMW and a Honda Accord. The driver of the other car contacted police when he allegedly failed to stop. Mr Tripodi volunteered to answer police questions and arrived alone at Green Valley Police Station in Sydney's west on Wednesday afternoon, wearing a business shirt and jeans and holding a piece of paper. The jury in the murder trial of Gable Tostee has asked another question as they attempt to reach a verdict on the third day of deliberations. The Brisbane Supreme Court jury has been deliberating as to whether Tostee, 30, is guilty of the murder or manslaughter of his New Zealand Tinder date Warriena Wright in the early hours of August 8, 2014. On Wednesday the jury passed its fourth note to the judge asking "is language to be considered force?" Justice John Byrne told them it wasn't. Plans to built a cruise ship terminal on the Gold Coast are a step closer to becoming a reality after Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said she would consider the proposal. A day after Gold Coast's council voted 14-to-one in favour of the plan to build a terminal at The Spit, including a jetty up to 800 metres long, Ms Palaszczuk said she was open to the prospect of having two terminals in southeast Queensland. Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate says south-east Queensland is big enough for two cruise ship terminals. "If the mayor submits a business case and puts forward a proposal to the Queensland government I'm happy to have a look at it," the premier said. Ms Palaszczuk had previously told the ABC she did not feel the need for a terminal on the Gold Coast if one was also built at Brisbane's Luggage Point as planned. The Queensland government will set up two trial loan stores for low-income earners as a safer alternative to "unscrupulous" payday lenders. The Good Money stores, based in Cairns and on the Gold Coast, will complement 29 financial counsellors appointed next year to help lift struggling Queenslanders out of dire financial straits. Good Money stores will be based in Cairns and on the Gold Coast. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer "This is about reaching out earlier to help vulnerable Queenslanders to give them the skills they need to become productive and happy members of our community and our economy," Communities Minister Shannon Fentiman said on Wednesday. AAP The State Library of Queensland and therefore the previous Queensland Government - paid out "several hundred thousand dollars" in legal fees to thwart staff trying to take action after their breasts were secretly photographed by a former SLQ senior executive in 2012. "And this could all have been dealt with in 2013," an angry senior source says. A report will be tabled this week on the case of the illicit photos taken by a State Library of Queensland employee in 2012. "The costs would have to be several hundreds of thousands of dollars," the person said. That was revealed to Fairfax Media as Innovation Minister Leanne Enoch prepares to table the final report by Rachel Hunter into the illicit photographs taken on a State Library of Queensland-supplied mobile phone by the SLQ's former director corporate services Bruce MacGregor in 2012. "We're just going to have to learn to live with them." That's the verdict on cane toads from this year's winner of the Prime Minister's Prize for Science. Professor Rick Shine became an expert on the invasive amphibians after his snake research site on the Adelaide River floodplain near Darwin was overrun by cane toads a decade ago. In order to help his beloved reptiles survive the onslaught, he needed to learn about the behaviour of the toads and he has become very fond of them. "She has beautiful eyes," he said of his cane toad Galadriel in his Sydney University laboratory ahead of Wednesday night's awards in Canberra. The murder of Mohamud Muktar was frenzied, violent and most likely completely random. Thursday marks six months since the taxi driver's life was snuffed out on a Fitzroy footpath for no apparent reason at all. In Islam, life belongs to God and it's taken at a time pre-determined by Allah. Mohamud Muktar lived like he knew his life was going to be short. The money he didn't send to his mother and five brothers and sisters in New Zealand went to shopping and fortnightly hair-cuts, but mostly he'd blow it on food and friends. Smith Street in Collingwood was his favourite haunt. The 31-year-old went to a Thai restaurant at least once a week, and Vietnamese rolls from N. Lee bakery were his number one. A bus driver who crashed into South Melbourne's notorious Montague St bridge, causing 11 passengers to be hospitalised, has faced court charged with dangerous driving and traffic offences. Ballarat man Jack Aston, 53, appeared at the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Wednesday. The Gold Bus Ballarat bus slammed into the bridge in February. The Gold Bus Ballarat driver was driving about 14 delegates from a tourism conference when he crashed into the bridge on Montague St about 10.40am on February 22. At the time it took firefighters nearly an hour to free four people trapped inside the crushed vehicle. It needs restumping and urgent stabilisation to save it. Ned Kelly's childhood home is in danger of collapsing but it will be rescued with the state government stepping in to have it restored. The house built by Kelly's father, John Kelly, will be revived using traditional trade skills after a heritage audit found the home needed protection. The state government is negotiating to buy Ned Kelly's childhood home from owners David Consiglio and his wife Sharon and want to restore it. Credit:Paul Harris The Andrews government will spend $1 million on the house in Beveridge in Melbourne's outer north. The state government has also begun negotiations to buy the site from the landowners. Every one of Victoria's 79 councils is headed by a high-paid chief executive, who often enjoy annual pay rises of $10,000. Melbourne City Council has the highest paid CEO, earning at least $460,000, plus another 185 staff members earning more than $139,000. Bullying and bad behaviour Geelong mayor Darryn Lyons is facing the sack. Credit:Joe Armao Geelong council was sacked earlier this year after investigations found "bullying" had taken root at the bayside municipality. Celebrity mayor Darryn Lyons, above, allegedly swore at staff members, told one person they "should be picking up dog shit" and threatened to shut down a city business. Wangaratta council was also sacked in 2013 due to similar concerns. Secrecy Many decisions are made by Victoria's councils in meetings closed to the public, and remain secret indefinitely. Latrobe City Council is Victoria's most secretive, making almost half its decisions in closed meetings. Casey Council is Melbourne's worst, with 37 per cent of votes closed to the public. At Brimbank council, which is run by administrators, just 1 per cent of decisions are closed to the public, suggesting other councils are being overzealous in their use of confidentiality. Victorian Ombudsman Deborah Glass is so concerned about the issue she has launched an investigation into local government transparency. Dummy candidates Wyndham Council has 95 candidates running in this year's election, more than double that ran in 2012. Many can be shown to be running as "dummy candidates" - someone who stands with no intention of winning, but rather to channel their preferences to another candidate. Darebin Council also had at least five candidates whose preferences were identical - and included the same mistake on their how to vote cards. No amalgamations: Minister Local Government Minister Natalie Hutchins has no appetite for pursuing forced amalgamations but she did not rule out reducing the numbers of Victorian councils in the future.She said there was a case for greater sharing of service arrangements. "When you're talking about 79 councils there is just so much scope for them to be working together and saving money for their ratepayers," she said. Ideally, Melbourne would have far fewer councils Councillor with Melbourne City Council, Stephen Mayne, says America's biggest companies should move to Melbourne. Credit:Louise Kennerley A range of sitting councillors said on background that reform of local government was long overdue, but few were to prepared to speak publicly. Melbourne City Council's finance chair Stephen Mayne, who is seeking re-election, said that ideally Melbourne would have a handful of larger councils. "If you had your druthers, you'd have a dozen in Melbourne but it's so hard [to merge them]," he said. Cr Mayne, above, said Mr Kennett's hard-fought amalgamation of Victoria's councils from 210 to 79 was "one of his best reforms. In hindsight he could have gone bigger". Like many interviewed for this story, he said Melbourne City Council and a number of inner-city councils such as Yarra and Port Phillip could easily merge into one central city municipality. "You can hit a driver out of the steps of parliament into the City of Yarra. And the two sides of St Kilda Road being governed separately is [strange]." Melbourne only needs one council Former Melbourne City Council chief executive, a previous head of the Victorian public service and current Bank of Melbourne advisory board chairwoman Elizabeth Proust in 2013 proposed one council for all of Melbourne. "I remember a lot of people told me all the reasons it was a bad idea," Ms Proust said. But she maintained it was an excellent idea, and that local government reform was needed in Melbourne. "Think how many councils, council chief executive officers and small services we have," she said. "It may not be one mega council for all of Melbourne, but you could certainly do with three to four." She pointed to a New Zealand experience of merging councils as a success. Auckland in 2010 went from having eight city and regional councils to one "super council". But mergers mean lost democracy Rob Spence, chief executive of the body representing councils, the Municipal Association of Victoria, said there were "pluses and minuses" in the idea of merging Melbourne's councils. "The plus is that you can aggregate up the back end of the business and reduce costs. But you can do that in other way with shared services." And he said citizen access to local democracy got lost if councils were too big. Sara Bice, a Melbourne School of Government research fellow, is researching the impact of forced amalgamations in rural Queensland and NSW. She said bigger councils did not necessarily achieve the efficiency they promised. After amalgamations, Dr Bice said there was often a sense that larger communities got infrastructure and other benefits at the expense of the smaller towns, who felt a sharp loss of identity when their local council was abolished. Council bureaucracy adds to costs everywhere Merging many of the city's councils would have the benefit of streamlining planning processes for builders, architects and developers and residents who use their services. One planner who asked not to be named said that one of the hardest parts of working in Melbourne was that every council "had a different set of rules and processes" that had to be understood and negotiated. "There are some councils where you can submit planning application online and others you can look at them online and others you have to do hard copy and go in and look at it." And they pointed out that Plan Melbourne, the government's central planning document, divided Melbourne into five "sub-regions" for some purposes. "Could you do this for councils too?" The recent implosion of ousted Fox News chief Roger Ailes will become fodder for a TV mini-series. And the producer is the same one as The Purge movies, because let's face it, for many women at Fox News, Ailes's reign was a real-life horror story. According to the NY Times, Tom McCarthy, who directed and co-wrote the Oscar-winning film, Spotlight, will be an executive producer while Jason Blum, known for horror movies like 'The Purge,' will produce. Blum also had a hand in HBOs Emmy Award-winning The Jinx, about allegedly murderous real estate scion Robert Durst. Gabriel Sherman, the New York magazine journalist whose years of reporting on Ailes allegedly drove the executive to scheme on how to get back at him, is also part of the project. "[Blum's production company] Blumhouse did not say whether a TV network had agreed to license the series, nor did it give a time frame for when the series might become available," Variety reports. Ailes was accused of sexually harassing female Fox News employees in a series of damning allegations resulting from Gretchen Carlson's lawsuit against him. Carlson, who claimed she was unfairly fired as well, settled with Fox News for $20 million. Ailes has insisted he is innocent and received $60 million from Fox News for his exit. A young Perth father who purchased a house with now-collapsed builder Collier Homes says he has "no idea" whether his build will go ahead. "For the last two days I haven't slept... I'm calling everybody, every government department, the liquidators...I have no idea what is happening," he said. The 33-year-old accountant, who did not wish to be named, said construction on his family's "dream home" in Riverton was due to commence within weeks, but contact with his builder went cold on Monday following the multi-million dollar collapse of parent company, Homes Australia. "The general manager, the one that signed my contract, called me on Monday and said he was really sorry, but he had to leave the office and there was nothing he could do," the man said. State prosecutors want three children, including a 12-year-old boy, facing murder charges to be trialled in an adult court with their five adult co-accused. The boys, aged 12, 14 and 17, are accused of being part of a group of eight males who killed 26-year-old Patrick Slater outside the Esplanade Train Station in a post-Australia Day brawl. Patrick 'Paddy' Slater died at the Esplanade Train Station in Perth on Australia Day 2016 The trio, who cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared in Perth Children's Court via video link from Banksia Hill Detention Centre on Wednesday. The youngest, who was 11 years old at the time the alleged crime was committed, is believed to be the youngest person ever charged with murder in Australia. It's the robbery scenario anyone would dream of - a Perth woman contacted WA police to report a "prowler" on her property, only to receive a bunch of flowers for her trouble. The woman called Central Metro Police last week to request officer attendance to her property, to deal with a man lurking around the entrance to her house. The husband's nice gesture didn't quite work out. Credit:Stocksy The worried woman, who was reportedly staying with her young children, called her husband to let him know of the situation. WA Police said the husband started heading home "right away", and the officers arrived with lights and sirens to the property. Police raided a house in Bayswater on Tuesday night after a woman stumbled into the local police station yesterday with a possible gun-shot wound to her upper body. The 24-year-old Yangebup woman was rushed to hospital after driving herself to the station and telling police officers she had been shot. Shortly after the incident, police released a statement saying they were investigating whether the shooting occurred in the vehicle, which had a male passenger, or at another location. Nine News Perth reporter Scott Cunningham said tactical response group officers raided a home on Whatley Crescent around 9pm. Four police officers have been injured, one critically, after they were shot at during a raid on a home in southern Germany. Public broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk reported when the officers entered the home in Georgensgmund, a municipality in Bavaria, a 49-year-old man "immediately opened fire". A police van in front of the home where an anti-government extremist opened fire on police on Wednesday. Credit:AP Bavarian interior minister Joachim Herrmann told a press conference on Wednesday that one officer, a Special Deployment Commando, was critically injured in the shooting. The officer was taken to hospital, where he was operated on, but he remained in a serious condition, Mr Herrmann said. Beijing: China will consider giving Filipino fishermen conditional access to disputed waters in the South China Sea after the presidents of the two countries meet in Beijing this week, two Chinese sources with ties to the leadership said. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte plans to raise the plight of Filipino fishermen when he meets his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, on Thursday, a Philippine official told Reuters. China seized Scarborough Shoal - claimed by Beijing as Huangyan island and by Manila as Panatag - in 2012, denying Philippine fishermen access to its rich fishing grounds. The seizure formed part of a case the Philippines took to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague, which in July rejected China's territorial claims over much of the South China Sea, including its assertion of a 320 km exclusive economic zone around the disputed Spratly Islands. Bangkok: Thai authorities say they have uncovered a plot to explode bombs in Bangkok where millions of Thais are mourning the death last week of long-reigning King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan told reporters authorities have "solid evidence" that five people arrested planned to carry out bombings in the capital and nearby provinces over five days late in October. "We would not have taken action [against these suspects] if we didn't have solid evidence," he said, adding the public should not panic as security forces and intelligence agencies were doing their jobs. All of the five are from Thailand's southernmost Malay-Muslim provinces, where almost 7000 people have been killed as Malay insurgents have waged a separatist war since 2004. An armed police officer stands guard outside a pub in New York after a gunman attacked at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Credit:AP Trump has little regard for due process and the notion of innocence until guilt is proven - unless it's about him. Remember his rallying calls: Mexicans are rapists and murderers, Muslims are suspect and the women who claimed he abused them are "horrible, horrible liars". Despite the charges stacking up, Trump insists he is innocent on all counts, a legal luxury he still slavishly denies to five young men of colour, dubbed the Central Park Five, whom New York cops bludgeoned into confessing to a horrific late 1980s rape of which they were innocent; after as much as 13 years in jail, they were exonerated and received $US40 million ($52 million) in compensation when the true perpetrator was convicted and jailed for life. Jamal Skinner, left, and Evan Aronowitz model ballistic body armour ahead of NYPD plans to distribute 20,000 helmets and 6,000 vests to patrol officers before the end of the year. Credit:NYPD/AP This was the infamous case of the Central Park jogger - a young white woman who was raped and brutally beaten in a park that was seen as a Manhattan sanctuary. It was at the height of a crack epidemic, crime rates were soaring and racial tension was electric. Amid a huge public outcry, Trump paid $US85,000 for a full-page ad in four city newspapers. Under the heading "BRING BACK THE DEATH PENALTY. BRING BACK OUR POLICE!" he demanded that the alleged perpetrators, who had been arrested, be brought to justice and that the death penalty be reinstated. In a TV interview he suggested that "hate" might be a proper weapon against violent crime. The US is safer today than at nearly any other time in modern history. Harvard Law School's Fair Punishment Project The teens' testimony had been coerced - they were denied food, water and sleep while being interrogated separately, with each being bullied into making a statement in which they admitted being at the scene but blamed the others for the crime. The actual rapist confessed in 2002. It was his semen and DNA that were identified on the victim and her clothing and at the scene; there was no DNA evidence to link the teenagers, whom the cops had rounded up as "the usual suspects". Furious that minority kids had finally found justice, Trump denounced the compensation payment as "a disgrace". And last week he still harped on, telling CNN: "The police doing the original investigation say they were guilty. The fact that the case was settled with so much evidence against them is outrageous. And the woman, so badly injured, will never be the same." That a bunch of black and Hispanic kids happened to be in the park on the night of the attack was good enough for Trump. None of the five had an arrest record, but Trump claimed "they don't exactly have the pasts of angels" and looking back in a subsequent tweet, he refused to accept that his argument had been well and truly debunked - claiming, well they weren't there "playing checkers". But Sarah Burns, a co-author of The Central Park Five, counters: "So we are left with Mr Trump's presumption that because they were black and brown teenagers from Harlem, they must have committed a crime." Clinton doesn't get a free pass in this debate. She felt the need to apologise for a $US30 billion crime bill her husband, former president Bill Clinton, signed in 1994, which critics say helped to decimate minority communities and accelerate mass incarceration, and, in particular, for her use at the time of the word "super-predators" to describe a supposedly new kind of remorseless juvenile criminal, who ultimately never emerged. CNN commentator Van Jones was apoplectic as he joined the dots in the crime debate: "[Trump] came on the scene politically in New York City, attacking five innocent black boys, accusing them of what? Sexual assault. He never apologised! He said Mexican immigrants are rapists, sexual assaulters. [But] it turns out the sexual assaulter, the super-predator is the man running for president!" Trump is accused of fixing on simplistic law-and-order solutions that are more about appealing to white American insecurities than about genuinely resolving social problems. His law-and-order shtick is a straight lift from the 1960s campaign book of disgraced former president Richard Nixon. Then and now, it is read as a dog whistle appeal to white voters, a promise of "zero tolerance" policing to protect them from marauding minority crime gangs. In 1968, Nixon insisted that "doubling the conviction rate would do far more to cure crime in America than quadrupling" spending on poverty. Believing the pitch still worked, Ronald Reagan won re-election in 1984, declaring: "Government's function is to protect society from the criminal, not the other way around." Ellis Cose, author of The Rage of a Privileged Class and The End of Anger, claims that such policies are disingenuous. He writes: "The law-and-order trope is inarguably potent and it fosters this wacky notion that the US is in chaos when, in fact, violent crime is lower than it has been for decades. But never mind that. The argument for getting tough on crime has never been about reducing crime; it mostly has been about fuelling racial resentments." A study by political psychologists Mark Peffley and Jon Hurwitz finds the term "law and order" to be coded language that had been used effectively for decades. "When many whites think of punitive crime policy to deal with violent offenders, they are thinking of black offenders," they write. There is a contradiction in levels of crime and public anxiety about crime - one falls while the other rises. But according to the Harvard Law School's Fair Punishment Project, the US is safer today than at nearly any other time in modern history - there are year-on-year peaks and troughs in the graphs, but property crimes, violent crime, and homicides have all plummeted over the past 25 years, nationwide. For all that Trump says, the project is adamant in its findings about a country that has the highest rate of imprisonment in the world: "no year during the George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, or Ronald Reagan presidency was as safe as 2015". Trump is demanding national application of New York's controversial and abandoned "stop and frisk" policy, despite evidence of its inordinate impact on minority communities and expert arguments that it was ineffective in reducing crime. It was effectively a system of rampant racial profiling, despite it proving that whites were more likely to be armed than blacks and Hispanics. In 2011, 90 per cent of those stopped were young men of colour who had done nothing wrong, and, while 1.8 per cent of them were armed, the rate of gun possession among whites that were frisked was 3.8 per cent. Criminal justice reform activist Matt Haney argues: "Most criminologists believe that we have long passed the point where more incarceration is having any positive impact on reducing crime rates. In fact, there is more evidence of the opposite. People are less likely to commit future crimes if they don't spend time in jail." Trump has won endorsements from unions representing hundreds of thousands of police officers and border patrolmen, but police chiefs are wary. Early in the campaign, a coalition of police chiefs and prosecutors representing about 30,000 law-enforcement professionals wrote an open letter, in which they were scathing of Trump's "zero tolerance" policy. That's probably unkind to the boxers. But here are 10 things to watch for and what Paul Keating, the Australian king of political insults, might have added to this fraught discourse God knows what to expect when Trump and Hillary Clinton face off at the University of Las Vegas on Wednesday evening (Thursday midday AEST), a showdown that some rank with the casino city's most surreal encounter when boxer Mike Tyson kept biting Evander Holyfield's ear in a match billed as "the Sound and the Fury" in 1997. Washington: Just 20 more sleeps and a debate that could be the last big night of the presidential campaign think of it as Donald Trump's last stand. Signage outside the Thomas & Mack Centre, at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, promotes the third presidential debate. Credit:Bloomberg Can he pivot to substance over bluster? At fleeting moments in the first two debates, some detected a firm grasp of policy by Trump, but it seems the real Trump can't help himself. Going off like a two-bob watch, playing to base voters with wild declarations, like putting Clinton in jail, is not likely to increase his share of the vote. Trump seems to think he might change the calculus, by so disgusting likely Clinton supporters among moderate and independent voters that they'll stay at home. A problem a Trump pivot to presidential demeanour and policy specifics at this late stage might look disingenuous. Clinton could recall Keating on John Hewson: "This is the sort of little-boy, stamp your foot stuff which comes from a financial yuppie when you shoe him into parliament." 2.Republican heavies ashen faced: In the wake of Trump's latest groundless claim that 1.8 million dead people will vote, even his campaign manager, Kelly Anne Conway, rejected his claim there is a grand political-corporate-media conspiracy to rob him of victory. But as the historic authors of Trump's wild "rigged election" canard, they own it. As Trump ratchets up his groundless, demonic charges, GOP leaders watch as voters flee for the exits. By some analysts reckoning, collateral damage to down-ticket Republican candidates has already delivered the Senate to the Democrats and, unthinkably, the House could be up for grabs. Clinton might go back to Keating on John Hewson and conspiracies: "It was the Sydney Morning Herald, now it's the ABC. Now it's the Treasury with the Teachers' Federation wrapped in. I mean Mr Speaker he's going troppo." 3.Trump's big problem it's all in his boxers: Clinton wasn't to know how well she was setting the scene in the first debate, raising Trump's abusive treatment of a former Miss Universe, for Trump to become so mired in an avalanche of sexual assault accusations. First, the "grab-them-by-the-pussy" video in which he effectively admits to being a sexual predator; and then no less than nine women going on the record, claiming they were his victims. Trump's denials are unconvincing and in pushing his Bill Clinton-is-worse argument, Trump can be relied on to raise new allegations from Leslie Millwee, an Arkansas TV reporter who claims that the former president rubbed himself against her three times in 1980. But given public lack of interest in her husband's past conduct, Clinton might well echo a Keating taunt to Howard: "Come in sucker!" London: Hillary Clinton's obvious look of disdain for her opponent in the last tv debate has been dubbed 'Resting Hillary Face'. But scientific research suggests your face really can determine your fortune. The old adage may have it that we shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but ever since Aristotle first wrote about the art of physiognomy, people have thought it possible to deduce character traits from someone's facial features. Hillary Clinton shakes hands with Donald Trump during the second presidential debate. Credit:AP Though now dismissed as pseudoscience, perhaps there's a kernel of truth in the idea that someone's face can shape their destiny. A Princeton University study showed it takes us a tenth of a second to size up the cut of a stranger's jib and, rightly or wrongly, we react to them accordingly. Hence, research suggests that those with what we perceive to be dominant faces (fuller jaws and thicker brows) are more likely to make CEO, that juries are more inclined to believe baby-faced men are not guilty of certain crimes, and that politicians with competent-looking faces (higher cheekbones and angular jaws) have a greater chance of being elected. Yes, ramen continues to be the biggest thing to hit the New York City food scene, spawning the Ramen Burger and other spinoffs. That is why the new, 4K restoration of the hilarious and mouthwatering 1985 film Tampopo at Film Forum is essential viewing. Tampopo, written and directed by Juzo Itami, was hailed for its "erotic gusto" and "comic lustiness," as the movie weaves together various portraits of food and sex. All the stories revolve around the main narrative: Tampopo, who operates a mediocre (at best) ramen joint, and Goro, the truck driver-ramen sage who agrees to help Tampopo turn around her restaurant and become the best. Goro's character is also a satire on Clint Eastwood's characters in spaghetti Westerns, making this, ahem, a ramen Western. Roger Ebert wrote, "'Tampopo' is one of those utterly original movies that seems to exist in no known category. Like the French comedies of Jacques Tati, it's a bemused meditation on human nature in which one humorous situation flows into another offhandedly, as if life were a series of smiles," and was in thrall by its devotion to detail: Consider, for example, the tour de force of a scene near the beginning of the movie, where a noodle master explains the correct ritual for eating a bowl of noodle soup. He explains every ingredient. How to cut it, how to cook it, how to address it, how to think of it, how to regard it, how to approach it, how to smell it, how to eat it, how to thank it, how to remember it. It's a kind of gastronomic religion, and director Juzo Itami creates a scene that makes noodles in this movie more interesting than sex and violence in many another. Tampopo is playing at Film Forum starting tomorrow, Friday, October 21, through November 3. Nobuko Miyamoto, who played Tampopo and is the wife of the late Itami, will be at the 7:35 p.m. screening tomorrow night for a Q&A. Also, here is a handy guide on how to eat ramen, because after you see Tampopo, you'll definitely be craving it. For full functionality of this site it is necessary to enable JavaScript. Here are the instructions how to enable JavaScript in your web browser POINTE BLANCHE:--- Port St. Maarten and the destination will be welcoming for the first time the cruise vessel Viking Star, one of Viking Ocean Cruises vessels. Viking Cruises offers both river cruises and ocean cruises through two product lines, Viking River Cruises and Viking Ocean Cruises. The global corporation headquartered in the United States with main operational headquarters in Basel, Switzerland, was established in 1997 by a Scandinavian and Dutch consortium led by Torstein Hagen. Initially, the company purchased four Russian ships and provided a Russian river cruise product to Europeans. The following year the company purchased additional ships and continued to cater to the European market. In 2000, the company expanded into the American market, establishing U.S. headquarters as Viking River Cruises in Los Angeles, California. Through rapid expansion, the purchase of KD River Cruise lines, and unprecedented new builds, the river cruise division grew to be the worlds largest river cruise line, and currently offers cruises along the rivers of Europe, Russia, China, Southeast Asia and Egypt. In May 2013, the company announced the launch of a new small-ship ocean cruising division, Viking Ocean Cruises, which began with the maiden season of Viking Star in spring of 2015, and features Baltic and Mediterranean itineraries. In 2016 and 2017, Viking Star will be joined by two equally elegant sister ships, Viking Sea and Viking Sky. The Viking Star carries 930 guests. Classified by Cruise Critic as a small ship, Viking Star features understated elegance and modern Scandinavian design. In its debut season, Viking Star was awarded the cruise industrys highest honors, including being named Best New Ocean Ship and scoring a 5-star rating by the editors of Cruise Critic, as well as receiving the highest rating in the mid-size ship category in Berlitz Cruising & Cruise Ships 2016. Port St. Maarten and the destination are looking forward to welcoming Viking Star to our shores next week Wednesday. The cruise line has introduced new itineraries to explore the Americas and the Caribbean. The Viking Star made its first transatlantic crossing and arrived in New York en route to the Caribbean to start its winter sailings as part of its 11-day West Indies Explorer itinerary. On October 11 the vessel officially commemorated its first United States port of call in Boston. We look forward to building a strong partnership with Viking Cruises as we nurture and develop this new relationship. By 2020 the company will operate six 930-passenger ocean cruise ships; currently the two ships in the fleet sail itineraries in Scandinavia and the Baltic; the Western and Eastern Mediterranean; and the Caribbean and North America. Port St. Maarten remains cognizant of the trends and developments in the cruise industry and remains committed to the destination with respect to growing our cruise sector, Port St. Maarten Management said on Tuesday. Viking Cruises is a small growing cruise line which places emphasis on new ways to bring the lines unique destination-focused approach to more regions of the world. The lines Caribbean itineraries are inspired by iconic 18th-century navigation routes and were developed to highlight the rich history and culture of the region that includes destination Sint Maarten. Viking Star will homeport out of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The vessel will return to Europe in February 2017, with a transatlantic sailing from San Juan to Barcelona, Spain. PHILIPSBURG:--- Parliamentarians deserve vacations just like the rest of us which is the reason why Parliament goes on recess during the month of July. However, it is expected that in the month of August parliamentarians would resume their normal duties. This year, being an election year, parliament seemingly took the liberty to unofficially extend its recess by three additional months: August, September and October. The month of August was for postulation and campaigning. In September, parliamentarians interrupted their campaigning to attend the closing and opening of the parliamentary year. Now, in October parliamentarians apparently need to rest because meetings have been canceled due to the lack of a quorum. One would have expected that all MPs would show up to work, especially after the elections, and that parliament would have been buzzing with meetings to ensure that the peoples business be taken care of prior to the swearing in of the new parliament on October 31st. But parliamentarians dont seem to think along those lines. It is a pity that last week, two parliament meetings had to be canceled due to the lack of a quorum! What a shame, because the majority of these same parliamentarians were out campaigning, just a few weeks earlier, telling the people what they intend to do for them when they get re-elected. Yet many of these same parliamentarians do not have the sense of responsibility to show up to meetings. This type of behavior does not show respect for the people who elected them. Parliamentarians should at least have the courtesy to notify the President of Parliament ahead of time of their absence. The president should not have to be waiting and wonder if sufficient members will turn up for the meeting. Unfortunately, a discussion in Parliament on several crucial laws had to be postponed due to a lack of quorum. For example, the handling of the Timeshare ordinance, the appointment of the acting ombudsman and the amendment to the Civil Code to regulate the short-term contract could not be discussed due to a no show of the majority of our parliamentarians. Now mind you, during the campaign every political party and parliamentarian/politician promised to deal with the abuse of the six months contract. But yet after the elections, they are not willing to attend a parliamentary meeting to deal with this matter once and for all. On another note, prior to the elections, there were parliamentarians who called for the Minister of Justice to come to parliament to give an account of what transpired at the prison when one of the prisoners was killed by fellow inmates. Why are these MPs no longer insisting that the minister adheres to their request? Are we to conclude that MPs didnt take their request seriously? Or was this just a campaign stunt? In addition, several MPs also called for the Minister of Finance to appear in parliament to give more information on the Pearl of China project. Why havent these MPs insisted that the Minister appears in Parliament? Or was this also a campaign gimmick? Are our parliamentarians serious about the peoples business? In the private sector, this type of work ethic would never be tolerated. Four months in which hardly, if any work was done but yet parliamentarians collected their salaries at the end of each month. The people elected these parliamentarians and I am sure that the people expect their business in parliament to be handled in an efficient and effective manner. Instead, parliamentarians take a four-month extended recess with pay, do not attend meetings and also do not follow-up to ensure that the meetings, they themselves called, actually take place. Come on parliamentarians, you have to do better than this! In Sint Maarten, chronic absenteeism should not be the order of the day. What example are you setting? Wycliffe Smith Leader of the Sint Maarten Christian Party Parents currently zoned to send their children to two of the most coveted and crowded public elementary schools on the Upper West SidePS 199 on West 70th Street and PS 452 on West 77th Streethave spent the summer and early fall voicing their opposition to Department of Education proposals to redraw school zone lines. "I've heard about kids who were uninvited to playdates because their parents are in favor [of the rezoning]," one PS 452 parent told us back in July. Now the committee of parent volunteers that will ultimately approve or veto the rezoning has come out in favor of its most controversial components: A plan to move PS 452 sixteen blocks south to a larger campus near the NYCHA-run Amsterdam Houseslengthening commute times for many familiesand another to remove some of the buildings in the sprawling Lincoln Towers co-op community from PS 199 (ranked as one of the nation's top schools in 2013) to PS 191, a school with historically low test scores and, until recently, a contested "persistently dangerous" state ranking. "Our position is that this is the plan, and they [the DOE] can either stand with us or not," Joe Fiordaliso, president of Community Education Council 3 (CEC3), the voting parent group, told the NY Times. This week's letter [PDF] to the DOE from CEC3 also urges the city to add a third Lincoln Towers building to the PS 191 district, 205 West End Avenue, in addition to the proposed 165 and 185 West End Avenue buildings. According to CEC3, anything less could result in under-enrollment at PS 191 next fall, which is moving into a brand new campus at the nearby Riverside Center, a luxury residential high-rise. As for moving PS 452 south, CEC3 noted that the school's principal is in full support of the move to a larger building, and that it would behoove the city to place a high-performing school into the building that PS 191 is vacating (the move has also been endorsed by a contingent of PS 452 parents). The DOE has said that rezoning is crucial in Manhattan's District 3. PS 452 and PS 199 are less racially and socioeconomically diverse than the rest of the cityabout two thirds of the student body is white at each school, and only about 10% of students qualify for free lunch. For comparison, black and Latino students make up 81% of PS 191, where 73% of students qualify for free lunch. But Lincoln Towers and PS 452 parents, some of whom moved to the West 70s specifically to attend PS 452 or PS 199, have dug in their heels. "It seems that the people living closest to 199 are being punished by being sent to another school just because they want to somehow diversify the student body," posited Ziv Arazi, a parent currently in rezoning limbo, last month. Lincoln Towers residents have also protested that the current plan insures PS 199 zoning for yet-to-be-built luxury condominiums. PS 452 on West 77th Street. The principal, teachers and students would relocate to West 61st Street under the proposed plan (Jen Chung/Gothamist). City Council Member Helen Rosenthal praised CEC3's plan, which she said "allows for the creation of three strong integrated schools in the southern portion of the district." All of the rezoning plans up for final vote in November exclude the northern portion of District 3 west of Morningside Park, and CEC3 is urging the DOE to turn its attention to the struggling schools in Harlemissues include under-enrollment and low test scoresas soon as the rezoning drama to the south is resolved. But some parents worry that the damage has already been donethat focusing the overcrowding and diversity conversation on the southern part of the district has allowed privileged families to dominate the conversation. (A proposal to syphon some families from PS 199's zone last year was rejected outright amid UWS family opposition.) Maia Gelman, a parent at PS 75 on 96th Street, is a member of NYC Public School Parents for Equity and Desegregation, a group that has been pushing for "controlled choice" in District 3. The model, which CEC3 rejected this week, aims to ensure an even distribution of high and low income, special needs, and English language-learning students across all uptown schools. "The current three-year rezoning process has delivered the message that the CEC and DOE are primarily responsive to the concerns of privileged families," Gelman's group wrote in a letter Wednesday. "The right of other students to an equal and adequate education seems an afterthought." The CEC says it hopes to vote on the final proposal early next month. "We value the CEC's leadership and partnership, and will continue to solicit feedback, host meetings and engage in robust conversations as we work to submit a final proposal that best serves all of the students and families in District 3," a DOE spokeswoman stated. Claim: A list collects statements about rape made by Republican politicians. Rating: About this rating True Advertisment: A "Republicans on Rape" graphic widely circulated online since 2014 collects various comments about that crime supposedly made by GOP politicians in recent years: The remarks collected in that graphic were indeed all uttered by the persons to whom they have been attributed; below we offer four of the statements on video (also on YouTube), as well as the context in which they were made, and any clarifying remarks subsequently offered by their speakers. "Rape is kinda like the weather. If it's inevitable, relax and enjoy it." On 24 March 1990, Texas oilman Clayton Williams, the Republican nominee in the Lone Star State's upcoming gubernatorial election, was preparing for a cattle roundup at his West Texas ranch while undesirable weather conditions threatened to spoil the event. As he sat around a campfire with ranch hands, campaign workers, and reporters, Williams likened that day's cold, foggy weather to rape, saying, "If it's inevitable, just relax and enjoy it." Later that day Williams asserted that his comment had been a joke, and a few days later his campaign offered an apologetic statement about it: Mr. Williams said it was merely a joke and apologized "if anyone's offended." "That's not a Republican women's club that we were having this morning," he said. "It's a working cow camp, a tough world where you can get kicked in the testicles if you're not careful." Asked if some people might be offended, Mr. Williams said: "I'm not going to give you a serious answer. It wasn't a serious deal. It wasn't a serious statement." But his campaign issued a statement in which Mr. Williams said: "I feel just terrible about this. I had no intention in my heart to hurt anyone, especially those women who have been traumatized by rape. "Looking back, I realize it was insensitive and had no place at the campfire or in any setting." "If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to shut that thing down." On 19 August 2012, U.S. Representative Todd Akin of Missouri, a Republican who was challenging incumbent Democrat Claire McCaskill for her seat in the U.S. Senate, was interviewed by St. Louis television station KTVI. During that interview, Akin was asked whether he believed abortion was justified in cases of rape, and he responded by asserting that "legitimate rapes" rarely resulted in pregnancy: "It seems to be, first of all, from what I understand from doctors, its really rare. If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut the whole thing down. After his words touched off widespread outrage, Akin then issued a statement maintaining that his remarks were "off-the-cuff" and that he "misspoke in this interview": As a member of Congress, I believe that working to protect the most vulnerable in our society is one of my most important responsibilities, and that includes protecting both the unborn and victims of sexual assault. In reviewing my off-the-cuff remarks, it's clear that I misspoke in this interview and it does not reflect the deep empathy I hold for the thousands of women who are raped and abused every year. Those who perpetrate these crimes are the lowest of the low in our society and their victims will have no stronger advocate in the Senate to help ensure they have the justice they deserve. I recognize that abortion, and particularly in the case of rape, is a very emotionally charged issue. But I believe deeply in the protection of all life and I do not believe that harming another innocent victim is the right course of action. I also recognize that there are those who, like my opponent, support abortion and I understand I may not have their support in this election. Two years later, while appearing in another television interview with MSNBC to promote his new book Firing Back, Akin asserted that "legitimate rape" was a law enforcement term and that his original remark had been "intentionally misunderstood": "Legitimate rape is a law enforcement term, it's an abbreviation for 'legitimate case of rape,' he told Chuck Todd. "A woman calls a police station, the police investigate, she says 'I've been raped,' they investigate that. So before any of the facts are in, they call it a legitimate case of rape," explained Aiken. Akin believes that everyone took what he said out of context. "This was intentionally misunderstood and twisted for political purposes. It doesn't make any sense to say 'a conservative is saying that rape is legitimate,' that doesnt even add up." Time magazine noted that they were unable to find a law enforcement official familiar with the term "legitimate rape": But is "legitimate rape" really a law enforcement term? We asked some experts. "I've taught police officers, and worked with police officers on every continent in the world, and that's something I've never heard in my 50 years in law enforcement," says Dr. James A. Williams, former Chief of Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces for the U.S Department of Justice, who also worked in municipal law enforcement in New Jersey. "I've never heard of that. Never." Richard Lichten, a veteran of the LA County Sheriff's Department and expert on sexual assault investigations agrees: "I have 30 years of experience, I'm qualified to testify in federal court on the way to investigate sexual assault crimes, and I've never heard of that," said Lichten. "In all my life I've never heard of that." "Rape victims should make the best of a bad situation." On 20 January 2012, Rick Santorum, a former U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania who was then campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination, appeared on CNN's Piers Morgan Tonight program and was asked by that show's host about his stance on abortion and whether he believed abortion was wrong even in cases of incest and rape. Santorum responded by saying that although a pregnancy resulting from a rape might be "horrible," it was nonetheless a "gift of human life" and that "we have to make the best out of a bad situation": MORGAN: On abortion, you did harden your position on that as you got older. Why was that? SANTORUM: Life. You know, when I decided to run for public life, I was informed very quickly people wanted to know what my position on that was. So I went through the process of trying to better understand the facts. It became very clear to me that life begins at conception and persons are covered by the Constitution and since life people, a human life is the same as a person, to me it was a pretty simple deduction to make. That's what the Constitution clearly intended to protect. MORGAN: But do you really do you really let me ask you this. Do you really believe, in every case, it should be totally wrong, in the sense that I know that you believe, even in cases of rape and incest and you've got two daughters. You know, if you have a daughter that came to you who had been raped. SANTORUM: Yes. MORGAN: And was pregnant and was begging you to let her have an abortion, would you really be able to look her in the eye and say, no, as her father? SANTORUM: I would do what every father must do, is to try to counsel your daughter to do the right thing. MORGAN: And they are looking at their daughter, saying, how can I deal with this, because if I make her have this baby, isn't it going to just ruin her life? SANTORUM: Well, you can make the argument that if she doesn't have this baby, if she kills her child, that that, too, could ruin her life. And this is not an easy choice. I understand that. As horrible as the way that that son or daughter and son was created, it still is her child. And whether she has that child or doesn't, it will always be her child. And she will always know that. And so to embrace her and to love her and to support her and get her through this very difficult time, I've always, you know, I believe and I think the right approach is to accept this horribly created in the sense of rape but nevertheless a gift in a very broken way, the gift of human life, and accept what God has given to you. As you know, we have to, in lots of different aspects of our life. We have horrible things happen. I can't think of anything more horrible. But, nevertheless, we have to make the best out of a bad situation. "Even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen." On 23 October 2012, Richard Mourdock, the Republican candidate for one of Indiana's U.S. Senate seats, was engaged in a debate with his Democratic and Libertarian rivals when he expressed his view that "life begins at conception" and that he would only allow abortions in circumstances in which the mother's life was in danger: I struggled with it myself for a long time, but I came to realize life is that gift from God. And I think even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen. After the debate, Mourdock explained that when he said "it is something that God intended to happen," he was referring to the creation of life and not the act of rape itself: Mourdock, seeking to clarify his comments in a press conference following the debate, said he had intended to say that "God creates life," and that any interpretation of his comments to mean God "pre-ordained rape" were "sick" and "twisted." "What I said was, in answering the question form my position of faith, I said I believe that God creates life. I believe that as wholly and as fully as I can believe it. That God creates life," Mourdock said. "Are you trying to suggest that somehow I think that God pre-ordained rape? No, I don't think that. That's sick. Twisted. That's not even close to what I said. What I said is that God creates life." "In the emergency room they have what's called rape kits, where a woman can get cleaned out." On 23 June 2013, Jodie Laubenberg, a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives, was debating a measure she had introduced to the House that included a ban on abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. When Rep. Senfronia Thompson proposed an exemption for victims of rape and incest, Laubenberg argued against that exemption, saying that when a victim seeks medical care after a rape, "they have what's called rape kits, that the woman can get cleaned out, basically like" [a procedure known as D and C that is often performed after a miscarriage]. She also noted that emergency contraception is available. A few days later, after she was mocked over her remark, Laubenberg said she was "confused by Democrats' questions and misspoke" and meant to say that rape victims could "obtain emergency contraception and other treatment" at medical facilities: Rape kits are used to collect evidence in hopes of prosecuting the perpetrator. They play no role in preventing pregnancy or serving as an abortion. Laubenberg was widely mocked on social media, and opponents of the bill called her comments evidence of the misguided science behind Laubenberg's proposal. Laubenberg told North Texas talk radio host Mark Davis that she was momentarily confused by Democrats' questions and misspoke. "What I was trying to say is, when a woman goes to the hospital, that they have the procedures there" to help her obtain emergency contraception and other treatment, she said. "No, rape kits do not cause an abortion." As for the reaction, Laubenberg added: "If that's the worst that you can complain about me, go ahead." "If a woman has (the right to an abortion), why shouldn't a man be free to use his superior strength to force himself on a woman? At least the rapist's pursuit of sexual freedom doesn't (in most cases) result in anyone's death." In February 2014, the Maine Democratic Party called for the resignation of Lawrence Lockman, a Republican member of the Maine House of Representatives, when a liberal activist made a blog post detailing negative public statements about gays, abortion and rape that Lockman had made years earlier: The post by Maine Peoples Alliance activist Mike Tipping mined press clippings to unearth several offensive comments. In one, Lockman implied that HIV and AIDS could be spread by bed sheets and mosquitoes. In another, he said that the progressive movement assisted the AIDS epidemic by assuring "the public that the practice of sodomy is a legitimate alternative lifestyle, rather than a perverted and depraved crime against humanity." In a 1995 letter in the Sun Journal in Lewiston, a reader quoted a press statement by Lockman, then part of the Pro Life Education Association, saying, "If a woman has (the right to an abortion), why shouldn't a man be free to use his superior strength to force himself on a woman? At least the rapist's pursuit of sexual freedom doesnt (in most cases) result in anyones death." Lockman responded to the controversy by issuing a statement affirming that he regretted his previous remarks: Conference-Review: 13th Confocal Raman Imaging Symposium ?One of the most informative and interactive symposia of recent years,? said WITec CEO Dr. Joachim Koenen about the 13th Confocal Raman Imaging Symposium held from September 26th to the 28th in Ulm, Germany. The German microscope manufacturer annually invites researchers and specialists from widely ranging fields to the international conference to share ideas and hear about the latest developments in Raman microscopy. This year 78 scientists converged to discuss topics as diverse as life science, pharmaceutics and materials research. With confocal Raman imaging the molecules of a sample can be chemically identified and their distribution can be imaged three-dimensionally. These benefits have recently gained recognition in biological, medical and pharmaceutical research. This trend can also be seen in the conference contributions: in addition to five talks almost half of the poster contributions originated from these fields. Also a poster from the pharmaceutical field won this year?s WITec Poster Award. Tatjana Lechtonen from Ruhr-University in Bochum (Germany) was delighted to receive the award. She uses Raman imaging for the analysis of anti-cancer drugs. On her poster she explained the results of cell-response and resistance of cancer cells to Erlotinib and Neratinib. She concluded that Raman imaging shows great potential as an in-vitro analytical method for the evaluation of new anti-cancer drugs. In pharmaceutical research Raman microscopy is a relatively new method that is still being established, explained Dr. Duohai Pan from the pharmaceutics company Bristol-Myers Squibb in New Brunswick (NJ, USA). However, in his company Raman microscopy is already being applied to clinical toxicology studies and the development of new drug formulations. Through Raman microscopy Pan gains information about the crystallization and precipitation characteristics that influence the stability and solubility of the end product. Additionally the identification of polymorphs plays an important role, because even though the chemical composition of polymorphs are identical, they have different impacts on the human body. Pan investigates various samples with Raman microscopy such as emulsions, powders and even entire tablets. Prof. Dr. Malgorzata Baranska is a researcher at Jagiellonian University in Krakow (Poland). During her talk she described her investigations of vascular diseases such as arteriosclerosis. Baranska is particularly interested in the combined microscopy techniques of Raman-, atomic force and nearfield microscopy. She and her colleagues use mainly cell culture models of the endothelium and liver and tissue samples. Through Raman microscopy she analyzes stress- and drug-induced changes in the cellular processes and with nearfield microscopy she investigates living cells on the nanometer scale. The results are then compared to more established histological methods. Dr. Christian Matthaeus from the Institute of Photonic Technologies at Jena (Germany) also investigates arteriosclerosis. He reported on his work on macrophages, which uptake and store lipids and contribute significantly to the establishment of arteriosclerotic plaques. Matthaeus analyzes fatty acids and lipid transport proteins in the macrophages with Raman microscopy. Through the knowledge of the plaques? composition Matthaeus can classify the risk of those plaques causing thrombosis, strokes or heart attacks. For some time now confocal Raman microscopy has played an important role in materials science for the development of new or improved materials. The topics of the talk and poster contributions in the materials sections ranged from cement to atom-thin 2D materials. For thousands of years cement has been among the world?s most important building materials. During production vast resources and a great quantity of CO2 are produced. Additionally, an immense amount of waste is generated through the demolition of cement buildings. Dr. Biliana Gasharova from KIT in Karlsruhe (Germany) seeks to develop a more ecologically friendly and energy efficient cement production. She investigates the effects of modified production factors such as pressure or hydrothermal conditions on the composition of the cement phases and their characteristics. To image and chemically identify the cement phases she uses confocal Raman imaging. Thus she can differentiate crystalline structures and polymorph domains to help refine the production process. Completely different materials are analyzed by Prof. Dr. Georg Duesberg and his research group at Trinity College in Dublin (Ireland). They investigate new 2D materials that might one day be used in solar cells, transistors and electronic devices. 2D materials are single atom-thin layers of, for instance, nano-carbon, molybdenum disulfide, tungsten disulfide or platinum diselenide. Duesberg and his colleagues are interested in the production processes that could enable the use of these materials for industrial applications. Therefore it is important to acquire information about the number of atomic layers, possible defects in the layers and the conductivity of the produced material. Besides microscopy techniques such as atomic force microscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy, Raman microscopy is mainly used by Duesberg and his colleagues because it is very well suited to their investigations. Raman information in the low wavenumber range is particularly interesting for materials characterization. 2D materials are currently the subject of great interest worldwide. This was shown by the talks of Prof. Dr. Nedjam Bendiab from the Institute Neel/CNRS at Joseph Fourier University in Grenoble (France), and Prof. Dr. Marcos Pimenta from Belo Horizonte University (Brazil). Bendiab introduced her work on strain, mechanical resonance and charge- and energy-transition in the nano-carbon material graphene. Pimenta described his work on atomic structures in different 2D materials and compared his results from Raman spectroscopy to results from theoretical simulations. Other fields of application suitable for confocal Raman microscopy were reviewed by Prof. Dr. Vladimir Shur from Ural Federal University in Ekaterinburg (Russia). To assist the symposium attendees in following the talks from various specialist fields, Prof. Dr. Schluecker from the University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany) refreshed their basic knowledge on the physical principles of Raman spectroscopy. Along with the theoretical background Schluecker explained special Raman techniques such as resonance Raman and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Dr. Johannes Ofner from the Technical University in Vienna (Austria) explained how large data sets implemented in hyperspectral images can be efficiently analyzed. Hyperspectral images contain information from different microscopy techniques such as electron microscopy, mass spectroscopy and Raman microscopy. Instead of analyzing every image on its own, Ofner applies filters and algorithms to evaluate the images together. This facilitates the interpretation of the results. At the end of the conference the feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive. Gomathy Sandhya Subramanian from the A*STAR Institute for materials research and engineering in Singapore said, ?The specialty of the Confocal Raman Imaging Symposium is, that one meets experts in their fields but also system experts, from who you gain a lot of tips and tricks on how to apply Raman microscopy to your own sample.? Johannes Ofner from the Technical University in Vienna (Austria) highlighted that, ?During the scientific and social program it is easy to get into contact with principle investigators and the WITec staff. So it was the ideal base to exchange knowledge and experience.? The 14th Confocal Raman Imaging Symposium will be held from September 25th to 27th, 2017 in Ulm, Germany. More images and the conference review video can be found on the WITec Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/WITec.de WITec is the leading German manufacturer of confocal and scanning-probe microscopes for state-of-the-art Raman, Atomic Force (AFM), RISE (Raman Imaging and Scanning Electron) Microscopy and Scanning Near-Field Optical Microscopy (SNOM). WITecs headquarters is located in Ulm, Germany, where all WITec products are developed and produced. Branch offices in USA, Japan, Singapore, and Spain ensure a worldwide sales and support network. From the companys founding in 1997, WITec has been distinguished by its innovative product portfolio and a microscope design that enables combinations of the various imaging techniques within one system. An exemplar of the companys breakthrough development is the worlds first integrated Raman-AFM microscope. To this day, WITecs confocal microscopes are unrivaled in sensitivity, resolution and imaging capabilities. Significant innovation awards document WITecs enduring success and innovative strength. For more information, please visit www.witec.de. Greenwave Systems: The Internet of Things is not new or revolutionary its the evolution of compute and, as has always been, it is all about you Posted by Publisher Internet London, UK 19 October 2016: Learning from the past, taking security seriously and protecting the consumer must be at the heart of developing propositions for the Internet of Things (IoT) because its all about personal data, Greenwave Systems Chief Scientist advised today. Speaking at the Broadband World Forum, Jim Hunter told the packed show floor that the real opportunity in the Internet is in connecting it with people; being able to put individual pieces of data about peoples lives into context to make it meaningful. In his presentation titled The Internet of Things about you: Evolving from data to content and what you can do, Hunter went on to warn the audience that while pieces of data in isolation might be harmless, once theyre put together and a picture is formed, the information gained could be dangerous if it fell into the wrong hands. If you look at a picture, it is made up of hundreds of thousands of pixels, said Hunter. Look at one pixel in isolation and you cant identify what its for it could be of anything from anywhere and its the same with data. A single snapshot of data is meaningless without context, but align a who, what, where or when and the picture starts to build. As you begin to gather more pixels or data you can see how individual pieces fit together, then gradually you build a story and gain insight. You have information. The IoT or the IoY (Internet of You) is about defining what those individual pixels are, which can build the stories which make sense. Its then finding the part of the picture which gives the insight and information needed to provide a tailored personal service or solution. The caution, however, is around putting the right security measures in place to ensure this information cannot be used by the wrong people. As co-chair of the Privacy Security Committee on the IoT Consortium, a global group of companies helping to shape the public messaging about IoT, Hunter explained in his presentation how he is working to establish a minimum bar for understanding the importance of privacy and security when developing IoT products. Firstly we want to help companies do the right thing for the consumer and secondly, ensure theres protection in place when things go wrong, he continued. Nothing should be available online without security measures in place. Too often for developers, security is sprinkled on top rather than baked in and that just isnt good enough when youre dealing with personal data. Hunter also outlined how the IoT is not a revolution, rather an evolution of compute and about exploring the opportunities which exist in the software we develop how we make it personal. The term IoT is a misnomer the Internet was always about things connecting so were not reinventing the wheel but simply refining it for purpose and for individual users, he concluded. Anyone developing new ideas in this sector would do well to research what successes have already been achieved and build on them ensuring right from the start that security and the handling of consumer data is given the highest priority. For further information, visit www.greenwavesystems.com or to find out more about the Broadband World Forum visit www.tmt.knect365.com/bbwf. Huawei Releases Large-Capacity SuperVector Solution to Triple FTTC Site Speed LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM (Marketwired) 10/19/16 At this years Broadband World Forum, Huawei released the industrys largest-capacity SuperVector solution through copper lines. This innovative solution enables a single device to support a maximum of 384 subscriber lines. Under this solution, existing VDSL2/vectoring devices in fiber to the curb (FTTC) scenarios will be accelerated to 2-3 times the rate of original sites through board replacement. This solution also supports a downstream rate of up to 300 Mbit/s within a 300-m distance. Currently, many operators owned a large number of FTTC sites and deployed the mainstream VDSL2/vectoring solution to provide 50-100 Mbit/s bandwidth for users. For most operators, efficiently and economically delivering over 100 Mbit/s rate in the FTTC sites is their top priority. Huaweis SuperVector solution can increase the bandwidth of VDSL2/vectoring devices by 2-3 times the rate of original sites, and thereby improving operators competitiveness and granting a greater return on investment (ROI). The new solution is developed based on the commercially used MA5603T device. Huawei has deployed its large-capacity vectoring algorithm chipsets and 64-channel high-density SuperVector service boards throughout this solution. Because of the solutions architecture, Huawei can provide over 100 Mbit/s bandwidth for 384 subscriber lines simultaneously. To meet the requirements of ultra-broadband services (such as 4K videos), the SuperVector solution extends the spectral bandwidth from 17 MHz to 35 MHz, uses the vectoring to reduce crosstalk, breaks VDSL2/vectoring rate limit, and delivers a downstream rate of up to 300 Mbit/s at a 300-m distance. In addition, it is compatible with existing ADSL2+/VDSL2/vectoring terminals, which enables smooth network upgrades without user perception. The idea of SuperVector was first conceived in 2012 by Huawei. In 2014, Huawei, along with its European partners, launched the industrys first SuperVector prototype. Presently, many countries such as Italy and Germany have already commercially deployed Huaweis SuperVector solution while Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, and North Africa regions are conducting tests (including FOA tests) over the solution. Huawei, a leading company in the ultra-broadband field in the Gigaband era, aims to advance standardization and productization processes for new copper line technologies (including SuperVector and G.fast), expedite industry development, promote wider, faster, and smarter ultra-broadband networks, and bring better connection experience to users. Huawei is a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider. Our aim is to enrich life and improve efficiency through a better connected world, acting as a responsible corporate citizen, innovative enabler for the information society, and collaborative contributor to the industry. Driven by customer-centric innovation and open partnerships, Huawei has established an end-to-end ICT solutions portfolio that gives customers competitive advantages in telecom and enterprise networks, devices and cloud computing. Huaweis 170,000 employees worldwide are committed to creating maximum value for telecom operators, enterprises and consumers. Our innovative ICT solutions, products and services are used in more than 170 countries and regions, serving over one-third of the worlds population. Founded in 1987, Huawei is a private company fully owned by its employees. For more information, please visit Huawei online at or follow us on: Huawei Miranda Liu The door opened and the smell hit me instantly: pungent and sweet, musky and funky; the room was filled with the heady aroma of fermenting grapes. It was warm and humid. I could almost taste the wine on my tongue. It's the height of harvest season at the Brooklyn Winery in Williamsburg, and tons of grapes are being stemmed, pressed, fermented and bottled in three warehouse spaces adjacent to the tasting room and restaurant. It's a process that takes place every year from late summer to late fall. The winery bulks up its staff at this crucial time, with winemaking taking place seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. and sometimes through the night. Turning grapes into wine in an urban setting takes logistical prowess. It's a game of "physical Tetris," head winemaker and partner Conor McCormack said last week. You have to really love wine to do this job. The Brooklyn Winery, which opened in 2010, is unique in that its location is not in the vicinity of the vines that supply it with grapes. Indeed, unlike a winery in Napa or the Finger Lakes, the grapes, sourced from all over the country, must be sent in refrigerated trucks to Brooklyn. Idyllic images of pickups bouncing along dirt roads with grapes overflowing from their beds are not the reality here. Instead, tractor trailers maneuver the city streets. The temperature of the truck and the safety of the grapes has to be diligently monitored, McCormack said, because prematurely crushed grapes will alter the fermentation process. Once the trucks arrive on the narrow streets of Williamsburg, the winemakers take on new roles: traffic and safety enforcers. "Fifty-four foot trucks have to park on Roebling [the Winery is on North 8th Street] and we use flags and cones on the street," said McCormack. "We have one person on safety patrol, one person blocking traffic. It's very challenging." He tries to have all deliveries arrive at 6 a.m., he said, but, "you can't predict when a truck is going to come." But once McCormack, who worked for years at California vineyards, has the grapes, the playing field is level and the urban winemaker plies his craft just like his rural counterpart. "If you can get the grapes, and you can get the wine set-up, you can do it anywhere," he said. Malbec grapes fermenting (Georgia Kral / Gothamist) The process of turning grapes into wine is very specific, with some variation depending on the type of grape and the particular style of the winemaker. McCormack, for example, does not remove the stems and crush every type of grape. Instead, he allows some zinfadels and pinot noirs, among others, to break down on their own during fermentation. It may take longer, he said, but he likes the grapes to speak for themselves. In the typical wine-making process, grapes are first sorted by people standing over a mechanical conveyer belt to make sure leaves, gloves or other items don't make it into your wine. Next, red wine grapes meet a de-stemmer machine that breaks them open, separating the fruit from the stem. The grapes then move to "fermentation vessels" where, in a dance with yeast, they begin the process of converting sugar into alcohol and CO2. The white wine grape process is different: the grapes are never de-stemmed and instead are pressed first with their skins on, and the extracted juice is fermented and typically aged in stainless steel tanks, not oak barrels. The day I visited, an 11-ton batch of malbecharvested just 19 days earlier from the Suisun Valley in Californiawas moving from its first stage of fermentation into a large machine called a press. The malbec grapes spent 14 days fermenting, and when all the sugar was gone (McCormack prefers to wait until all the sugar is converted), the grapes were ready to move to the press. Two winemakers were loading the press up with the grapes from bins that each held 1,500 pounds. Each bin produces about two barrels of wine. Using hydraulic pressure, all the soon-to-be wine was pressed out of the fermented grapes. It poured into a catch basin below the machine; as loud as a tub faucet turned to full blast. That crimson gold was then pumped into oak barrels for the malolactic fermentation stage, which alters the acids present. (Clay Williams) The Brooklyn Winery processes 150 tons of grapes each year, which translates to about 9,300 cases or 111,600 bottles. It takes approximately two years before the wine is ready to be poured, but exceptions include rose, which is meant to be drank young and does not go through the second fermentation stage. The rose at Brooklyn Winery is fermenting in tanks now, and will be ready come spring. The malbec, on the other hand, needs lots of attention before it's ready. The oak barrels, stored in a back room kept at 60 degrees, will be topped off with more wine (oxygen is the kiss of death and can turn the wine to vinegar over time) and racked (a process that removes sediment) continuously over the next two years as it continues to age and mature. And while that wine does its thing, 2011 and 2012 bottles will be poured in Williamsburg and vintage bottles at their new restaurant bkw in Crown Heights. Brooklyn Winery is located at 213 North 8th Street in Williamsburg; bkwinery.com Georgia Kral covers (mostly) food and lifestyle topics and has been published in amNewYork, WNET's MetroFocus, WNYC, The New York Times and Brooklyn Based. She likes Chinese food, cats, straight-up cocktails and ankle boots paired with skinny jeans. Follow her on social @georgiakral. In October 196650 years agoChinese leader Mao Zedong appeared on Tiananmen Square in Beijing to address an audience of 1.5 million Red Guards, the paramilitary youth he had called upon to tear down the Communist Party hierarchy. "Long live the Red Guards!" he shouted, to roars of approval. "Long live the great Cultural Revolution!" That spring, Mao first called for a "Cultural Revolution," urging the working class to "struggle against and crush those persons in authority who are taking the capitalist road" and "criticize and repudiate...the ideology of the bourgeoisie and all other exploiting classes." Tens of millions of Red Guards took up his call. By the revolution's end in 1976, millions of peopleespecially intellectuals and those with ties to the previous, Nationalist government or the Westhad been denounced, tortured, or murdered. Many fled to Hong Kong, and from there to the United States and elsewhere. To this day, the period remains one of the most painful traumas in China's collective memory. Outside China, the full extent of what happened during the Cultural Revolution remained largely unknown until the late 1970s. What came through were mostly propaganda messages about class struggle, economic empowerment and educational access for the poormessages that resonated with radical leftists in the United States who were fighting for civil rights and protesting the Vietnam War. "A lot of us radicals at that time didn't know exactly what was going on. But [ideas like] reforming education were quite relevant to us," said Peter Kwong, a historian at Hunter College who during the late '60s was at Columbia University writing his master's thesis about the Red Guards. "The Chinese, through propaganda, were able to have a significant impact on the way young people were thinking." People of color were particularly inspired by Mao's call to "serve the people," seeing in it a message that was relevant to poor, marginalized communities. The Black Panther Party formed just five months after the Cultural Revolution began, and it soon became commonplace to see black radicals selling copies of Mao's "Little Red Book" on street corners. The Puerto Rican nationalist Young Lords were also inspired by Maoism. Less attention has been given to the Asian-American leftist groups that formed, including the Red Guard Party and Kalayaan in San Francisco, and East Wind Collective in Los Angeles. Here in New York, in 1969, a dozen or so young Asian-Americans formed I Wor Kuen [IWK], Cantonese for "Righteous and Harmonious Fists." The name came from a group that tried to expel Westerners from China during the Boxer Rebellion of 1900. Virgo Lee of IWK with a member of the Young Lords. (Corky Lee) "We believed U.S. imperialism was a criminal system that conducted a genocidal war in Vietnam and maintained an oppressive racial caste system at home. We believed it was irredeemable and the 'system' had to be overthrown," said former IWK leader Gordon H. Chang, who is now a history professor at Stanford University. That year, IWK members pooled their money and rented a cheap corner storefront at 24 Market Street in Chinatown, under the Manhattan Bridge, where they resolved to live collectively and "serve the people." Some dropped out of college. Four of the members held jobs, enabling the other eight to be full-time activists. Inspired by the Panthers, they adopted a uniform of berets and sunglasses. IWK protested poor housing conditions in Chinatown, organized child-care programs and bilingual education and conducted door-to-door testing for tuberculosis, which was endemic in the overcrowded neighborhood. They also organized Chinatowners to join other Lower East Side residents in a fight for a new hospital nearby, then demanded the hospital hire more Chinese speakers. The group led a successful protest against a Bell Telephone Company plan to tear down a block of housing for a switching station. They also protested the war in Vietnam, and taught young people ways to avoid the draft. Later, IWK would help defend small grocery owners who had been shut down by the Health Department for selling roast ducks and other traditional Chinese food items, eventually leading the agency to change its ordinances. Former IWK member Karen Low was just 14 when she joined the group. Her mother worked at a garment factory in Chinatown; after school, Low and her siblings helped her do piecework. Poor people in the community, Low recalled, faced "miseducation and ignorance and racism." Moreover, they were often unaware of the many social services they qualified for. "So when IWK came along, it was an opportunity to say, 'Yes, it's about time somebody is speaking for us, somebody's trying to do something for us,'" she said. Sometimes, the group joined with the Panthers, the Young Lords and other radical groups to protest larger issues, or attend political conventions. The Panthers' Ten Point Program inspired IWK to draw up a Twelve Point Program that called for "an end to racism," better housing and health care, and "community control of our institutions and land." The group even published a bilingual community newspaper called "Getting Together." "Chinatown is a ghetto to Chinese people like ghettoes are to Black, Spanish and other non-white peoples," IWK wrote in the inaugural issue. "We Asians (Chinese) in Chinatown are living in a colony controlled by foreigners (the rich, outside whites). In fact, Chinatown is not only a ghetto, but a colony of sorts. What we have to do is begin to gain power to run our own community." The article ended with a call to "Yellow Power." The paper helped publicize the group's work outside of Chinatown, and in 1971 IWK merged with San Francisco's Red Guards to form a national IWK. Alongside IWK, numerous fellow travelers in Chinatown took up Mao's call. One was Corky Lee, a photographer who in those days had portraits of Mao and Ho Chi Minh on his wall. Inspired by the Young Lords' "liberation" of an X-ray truck to offer free tuberculosis testing in Spanish Harlem, Lee proposed running a free health fair in Chinatown. He worked with IWK members, social workers and several community groups to organize the fair, which was held in August 1971. For 10 days, a fleet of doctors, nurses and technicians set up shop along Mott Street, and locals could come by to get tested for TB, lead poisoning, diabetes, venereal diseases and other conditions, with assistance from volunteer translators. The event was so popular2,500 people camethat the organizers decided to rent a garage on Baxter Street and turn it into a full-time clinic staffed by volunteers. They called it the Chinatown Health Clinic. Chinatown health fair. Despite their good works, these young leftists were viewed with suspicion by much of the community. In those days, Chinatown was a stronghold of sympathizers for the anti-communist Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang [KMT], which ruled China until the communist takeover in 1949. The KMT, which governed the island nation of Taiwan, also known as the Republic of China, viewed New York as an important base for lobbying the international community and influencing media coverage of China. It poured resources into local institutions like the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, which for decades served as the unofficial government of Chinatown. Only the Nationalist flag flew on Mott Street. The neighborhood celebrated the founding date of the Republic of China, October 10, also known as "Double Ten Day." Public support for communist China was not tolerated. "I was called a Red Guard," said Lee. "Because we were giving out medical care for free. Some of the more conservative people in Chinatown felt this was the Cultural Revolution coming to Chinatown." Gordon Chang recalled that political differences sometimes became violent. "We had fistfights; the storefront was damaged. I was stabbed by gang youth who worked with the 'reactionaries,'" he said. Like many radical groups of that era, IWK was also dogged by the police. "The Fifth Precinct was always on top of us, the Seventh Precinct was always on top of us, we were trailed and followed by the FBI," said Low. "I mean things like that happened. In those times it was pretty much a given." The organization also clashed with other leftists, including former members who formed splinter groups. Caught in the middle of all these politics were ordinary people in Chinatown who were growing weary of the decades-long diplomatic freeze between the U.S. and the People's Republic of China and longed to reconnect with friends and family in the mainland. IWK tapped into these sentiments through public screenings of propaganda films, which showcased development projects like dam construction, as well as revolutionary operas like "The White-Haired Girl" and "The Red Detachment of Women." Low recalled people angrily pouring down buckets of water and throwing things from neighboring rooftops. And yet, thousands of people attended these screenings. "A lot of them were older people, so they hadn't seen their homeland in 20 or 30 years. The only information they were getting was what organizations like IWK distributed," said Charlotte Brooks, a historian at Baruch College and author of Between Mao and McCarthy: Chinese American Politics in the Cold War Years. "They were hungry for those details." As the '70s wound on, America's stance towards the People's Republic of China began to shift. In October 1971, the United Nations voted to expel Taiwan and admit the PRC as the acknowledged representative of China. IWK cheered the news and organized a demonstration outside the UN to welcome the arrival of PRC representatives, while conservative Chinatown leaders hung banners on Mott and Pell Streets that read, "Mao's regime does not represent the Chinese people" and "We demand bloodthirsty Mao be punished." In the Chinese-American community, too, openness toward the People's Republic of China became mainstream. When the U.S. recognized the PRC in 1978, Nationalist sympathizers were bitterly disappointed, but in the broader community, there was largely a sense of relief. The IWK logo invokes the clenched fist of "Yellow Power," as well as the "Harmonious Fist" in the group's name. That same year, IWK merged with several other radical groups to become the League of Revolutionary Struggle. But by that point, the revolutionary spirit of the '60s and '70s was fading. The League formally dissolved in 1990. With time, former radicals became business owners or professionals. They settled down and had families. Today, some remain active in progressive politics, but "in different form," as Low puts it. She's spent her career as an educator and organizer. Corky Lee worked on a successful campaign to get formal recognition from the U.S. Department of Labor for the key role played by Chinese laborers in building America's railroads. In Chinatown, the legacy of IWK is still visible. On Canal, Walker and Centre Streets, there stand branches of the Charles B. Wang Community Health Center, a nonprofit that caters to medically underserved New Yorkers, particularly Asian-Americans. There are two more locations in Flushing. The Center grew out of the Chinatown Health Clinic, which in turn grew out of the 1971 health fair organized by IWK, Corky Lee, and many other idealistic young Asian-Americans. Each year, nearly 50,000 patients visit the Charles B. Wang facilities. The mission of those young radicalsto serve the peoplelives on. Eveline Chao is a freelance writer based in Brooklyn. She is the author of NIUBI!: The Real Chinese You Were Never Taught in School, a guide to Chinese slang. Chao is currently working on an oral history project about Manhattan Chinatown. Editor's note: After the publication of this story, Regina Lee, chief development officer at the Charles B. Wang Community Health Center, wrote in to Gothamist to express concern about our description of the origins of the Health Center. Her letter, along with a response from the author, follows: As a volunteer in the 1971 Chinatown Health Fair and co-founder of the Charles B. Wang Community Health Center, I am writing to correct and clarify some significant misstatements and erroneous conclusions in your article "How Asian American Radicals Brought Yellow Power to Chinatown." The person responsible for the 1971 Chinatown Health Fair was Thomas Tam. At that time, Tom was an organizer with the Lower East Side Neighborhood Health Council. The Lower East Side, which had a very successful history of community mobilization to make health services more accountable, was the target area for one of the first neighborhood health service programs funded by the national Office of Economic Development. The Health Council served as the community council for this program, which was based at Gouverneur Hospital and sought to make services more accountable to the community and strengthen resident participation in policy making. It was Tom, Marie Lam (social worker at Chinatown Planning Council), and Kai Liu (staff at Two Bridges Neighborhood Health Council) who led the successful campaign to get the NYC Health and Hospitals Corporation to hire more bilingual workers at Gouverneur. Following the tremendous community response to the health fair, Tom and the health fair organizers worked together to establish a free clinic to meet the ongoing health care needs of Chinatown residents. The Church of Our Savior on Henry Street donated free space, and we recruited volunteer doctors, nurses and students to offer 10 hours of basic health care services free of charge to all community members. We also launched patient navigator and health education programs to supplement these basic services. The volunteers who maintained the health center during those early years were mostly college students. Several years ago, the corner of Canal Street and Cortland Alley in Chinatown was named Honorable Thomas Tam Way to honor Tom's role in initiating the health fair and the clinic. IWK did not play any meaningful role in either the health fair or the health clinic. For those of us who were involved, we found inspiration from the social activism that was occurring in the US during the '60s and early '70s, such as the free clinic movement, which started in Haight Ashbury and Berkeley, and the Johnson Administrations Great Society programs that gave us Medicaid and Medicare. Our vision for a community-based health clinic was not shaped by the ideology of the Red Guards, but by Dr. Jack Geiger, who founded the first community health centers in the U.S. at Columbia Point in Boston and Mound Bayou in Mississippi. During the early '70s, several Marxist Leninist groups such as IWK, October League and the Communist Party USA had a small presence in Chinatown. I remember that many people in the community were wary about these groups because of the sharp divisions in Chinatown over US-China relations. The divisions were frequently along generational lines. The health clinic leadership was very careful to steer clear of any organizational relationships/affiliation with IWK and other radical groups out of concern that volunteers and patients would be turned off. To suggest that the Charles B. Wang Community Health Center is a legacy of IWK is an absurd conclusion. The Health Center published a 308-page history book, From Street Fair to Medical Home, in 2011 to commemorate our 40th anniversary. The book is based on oral histories conducted with Health Center founders and volunteers, as well as our archival records. The book makes no references to IWK as an initiator/influencer in the health fair or the health clinic. No founders or volunteers who participated in the interviews even mentioned IWK. Regina Lee Thanks to Regina Lee for the important supplementary information. I would like to reassure her and all the other admirable people who helped bring about the Chinatown Health Clinic and the later Charles B. Wang Community Health Center that at no point during our interviews did any former IWK members ever take credit for creating either entity. What they discussed was helping with the Chinatown Health Fair, the one-off event that preceded those entities. That involvement is corroborated in published accounts of the fair and also came up in conversations with historians, leaving me no reason to doubt the claims. I agree that IWK was not involved in the fair's later transformation into a full-time clinic; for that reason they are not mentioned in the sentence describing the founding of the Chinatown Health Clinic. I also agree that there was not a large Marxist-Leninist presence in Chinatown; as mentioned in the piece, IWK had just 12 members. As for the concluding paragraph, because the group volunteered at the fair, which became the clinic then center, I consider it fair to paint a symbolic link between the Charles B. Wang Community Health Center and the former "mission" of the group, and to portray their histories as having intersected. The story of how the Charles B. Wang Community Health Center came to be is a rich and commendable chapter in this city's history, but was not the subject of this piece. For that reason, I did not get into the important work of Thomas Tam, Regina Lee herself, and the many other people, of all political stripes, who brought about the clinic and the center. My aim in telling the story of one small group of people is certainly not to diminish the achievements of others not mentioned, and I welcome the addition of more voices and more context to this story. Author Eveline Chao responds: Something went wrong, please try again later. Invalid email Something went wrong, please try again later. Never miss Somerset's latest and breaking news again by signing up to our Daily Newsletter Production of historic Somerset ciders will continue at the Shepton Mallet cider mill thanks to a local firm according to a union. Brothers cider who previously appeared to rule itself out of buying the main part of the mill will be retaining 24 members of staff after striking a deal with Irish owners, the C&C Group. The Unite union contacted Somerset Live shortly before 3pm on Wednesday (October 19) with the good news. It followed local rumours that there was a meeting at the cider mill for workers at 2pm today. Unfortunately the detail of the deal appears to mean that 56 workers of the 80 currently working at the mill will need to look for new employment. But these workers and their families may at least have certainty now, following months of confusion about whether their jobs would be axed. Regional coordinator for Unite, Steve Preddy, said: "We don't have many details at the moment but it seems Brothers cider are acquiring the mill site. "C&C will retain the apple grind and the production of pulp. Brothers will retain 24 members of staff and make the local brands, on behalf of C&C, who will keep ownership of those brands. "There will be six management staff and 18 blue collar production workers." Mr Preddy who has been critical of the C&C Group for its treatment of its workers welcomed the good news. He added: "So there's finally some good news. It's good news for Shepton and good news for those historic cider brands. "And there's some certainty for the workers now. Now we have to go through the rigmarole of working out the details." The union's revelation followed official word from a C&C Group spokesman on Tuesday (October 18) that it hoped to announce good news "shortly". Matthew Showering, part of the family behind Brothers, appeared to rule out further involvement in the cider mill across town earlier this year. Brothers has already agreed to take over the Krones bottling line, located on Kilver Street, across the road from the cider mill's main site and he appeared to rule out further involvements. The Showerings are pulling out all the stops to make the bottling line a success and keep part of the cider mill site alive, having acquired a pasteurizer from Trinidad and a labelling machine from Russia. They hope to have it up and running by the end of October. Brothers has been based in Shepton for more than 173 years. Tina Geiger was stabbed 61 times, and Krissy Geiger was stabbed over 20 times, both suffering gashes to their necks. 1. Fill in your name or an alias. Do not leave blank or use the name 'guest' or 'anonymous'. 2. No Nivul Peh. Profanity will be deleted. When and where to Trick-or-Treat? South Bend and area times listed Find out when your municipality has set the day and hours for Trick-or-Treating throughout the South Bend area. Welcome to SwanseaOnline - your home for the best news, sports and what's on coverage of the city. Never miss a Swansea story with our daily newsletter Sign up to comment on our stories here Follow us on Facebook and Twitter | Swansea City news | Ospreys news | InYourArea A SpaceX Dragon capsule recovered after splashdown at the end of the CRS-5 mission in 2015. SpaceX plans to start reflying Dragon capsules in 2017. LAS CRUCES, N.M. SpaceX plans to reuse a Dragon cargo spacecraft for the first time next year, allowing the company to focus on production of the next generation of that spacecraft for crew and cargo missions. In a presentation at the International Symposium for Personal and Commercial Spaceflight (ISPCS) here Oct. 13, Benjamin Reed, director of commercial crew mission management at SpaceX, said the company was planning to fly a used Dragon spacecrafton its eleventh Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) cargo mission to the station in early 2017. "We will be reflying our first Dragon capsule on CRS-11," he said, using the company's designation for that cargo mission, known as SpX-11 by NASA. [SpaceX's Dragon Spacecraft Explained (Infographic)] While SpaceX designed Dragon to be reusable, the company's CRS contract with NASA required the use of a new Dragon spacecraft for each cargo mission. Reed said SpaceX has been working with NASA to demonstrate that the spacecraft can be safely reused for additional cargo flights. "It's a great example of the partnership we have with NASA," he said of that effort to win approval for the reuse of Dragon spacecraft. "We've carefully gone through a process of proving that you can reuse various components all the way up to a whole system, and how you certify that." The biggest challenge to reuse, he said, was stopping saltwater from getting inside the capsule after it splashes down. "We've been working hard to update the capsule, to ensure that you don't have to worry about the seawater issue," he said. Reed said SpaceX plans to reuse Dragon spacecraft through the remainder of its current CRS contract, which runs through SpX-20. He did not discuss how many Dragon spacecraft are available to be reused, or how many times SpaceX believes a Dragon capsule can be flown. If successful, Reed said it would allow SpaceX to end production of the cargo Dragon spacecraft. "We'll be reflying Dragons going forward, and be able to close down the Dragon 1 line and move all the way into Dragon 2," he said, referring to the next-generation version of the Dragon being developed for commercial crew missions. In addition to its current CRS contract, NASA awarded SpaceX a CRS-2 contract earlier this year for additional cargo missions. Those missions will use a version of the Dragon 2 spacecraft SpaceX is developing for commercial crew missions, Reed said, with greater cargo volume than the current Dragon spacecraft. Those CRS-2 Dragon missions will use "propulsive" landings, where the capsule lands on a landing pad using its SuperDraco thrusters rather than splashing down in the ocean. That will allow NASA faster access to the cargo returned by those spacecraft, and also build up experience for propulsive landings of crewed Dragon spacecraft. "That's a perfect step in the pathway to crew," he said. "We'll get very comfortable with doing propulsive landings with cargo first, and then with crew." This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry. Scientists from NASAs New Horizons mission have identified some cloud candidates in the atmosphere of Pluto, using images taken by the New Horizons Long Range Reconnaissance Imager and Multispectral Visible Imaging Camera, during the spacecrafts July 2015 flight through the Pluto system. None of the features can be confirmed as clouds with stereo imaging, but the scientists say they are suggestive of possible, rare condensation clouds. PASADENA, Calif. Scientists may have spotted more than a half dozen clouds in Pluto's hazy atmosphere, researchers announced today (Oct. 18). NASA's New Horizons spacecraft flew by Pluto in July 2015, revealing a bounty of unexpected details about the frozen world. For instance, the mission discovered that Pluto possesses a complex, layered atmosphere. "We've noticed a large number of concentric layers of haze, more than two dozen," New Horizons principal investigator Alan Stern, of the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, said during a news conference here at the 2016 American Astronomical Society's Division of Planetary Science meeting. "These haze layers stretch very high into the sky more than a half million feet, or 200 kilometers." [Photos of Pluto and Its Moons] Preliminary images of Pluto hinted at the presence of a cloud in the dwarf planet's atmosphere. Now, Stern and his colleagues have revealed seven bright features that might be clouds in that world's exotic skies. "If there are clouds, it would mean the weather on Pluto is even more complex than we imagined," Stern said in a statement from NASA. All these potential clouds "are similar in that they are very low-altitude, and all are very similar in length scales, measured in kilometers or tens of kilometers," Stern said. "We're not seeing decks or banks of clouds we're seeing individual, discrete cloud features," he said. All seven of these features lie near the terminator, the dividing line between day and night, "either near dawn or dusk, which suggests they may be clouds, because there are cooler conditions there where condensation processes are likely to occur," Stern said. Computer models of Pluto's atmosphere suggest that the most likely place to find clouds on Pluto are at low altitudes, where the seven features presented today are located. The models suggest that any such clouds are likely made of minor trace constituents of Pluto's atmosphere, such as acetylene, ethane and hydrogen cyanide, Stern said. The researchers cannot confirm that these bright features are clouds because New Horizons cannot confirm their altitude and thus whether they are separate from the surface, Stern said. "To confirm if these features are clouds, we need to go back to Pluto with new instruments and be there for longer periods with something like a Pluto orbiter," he said. If these clouds do exist, it remains unknown how long they might last, the researchers said. "One might expect, since they're seen near the terminator, that they're short-lived phenomena seen near dawn or dusk each day on Pluto," Stern said. "A day on Pluto is equivalent to 6.4 days on Earth, almost a week." Stern noted that Pluto is not nearly as cloudy as Earth its hazy skies appear 99 percent free of clouds. "The situation on Pluto is like that in the western United States, where the skies are not cloudy all day," Stern said. The New Horizons spacecraft is currently about 3.4 billion miles (5.5 billion kilometers) from Earth and about 340 million miles (540 million km) beyond Pluto, speeding away from the sun at about 32,400 mph (52,100 km/h). The last bits of data that the mission gathered are scheduled to be transmitted to Earth on Oct. 23, but it will still take a while for scientists to analyze all of the information. "The hard work of understanding the Pluto system is going to take years it's much more complex and nuanced than we ever expected," Stern said. Editor's note: This article previously stated that New Horizons is currently 3.4 billion miles beyond Pluto; it is 340 million miles beyond Pluto. Follow Charles Q. Choi on Twitter. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. A Chinese spacecraft carrying two astronauts has successfully docked with the uncrewed Tiangong-2 space lab, according to Chinese media reports. The Shenzhou-11 spacecraft linked up with Tiangong-2 at 3:24 p.m. EDT (1924 GMT) today (Oct. 18; 3:24 a.m. Oct. 19 Beijing time), while both spacecraft were zipping around Earth at an altitude of 244 miles (393 kilometers), China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Though Shenzhou-11 carries two crewmembers, named Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong, the docking was completely automated. Jing and Chen will soon enter Tiangong-2, then stay aboard the orbiting lab for 30 days. The duo are undertaking China's longest-ever crewed space mission; they lifted off on Sunday (Oct. 16) and will be in orbit for a total of 33 days if all goes according to plan, Xinhua reported. Astronauts Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong, the crew of China's Shenzhou-11 mission, salute and wave from inside the country's Tiangong-2 space laboratory after arriving at the mini space station on Oct. 18, 2016. The astronauts are flying a 30-day mission to the space lab, China's longest human spaceflight yet. (Image credit: China Manned Space Engineering Program) The 34-foot-long (10.4 meters) Tiangong-2 launched to orbit on Sept. 15. The 9.5-ton module is China's second-ever space lab; the first, Tiangong-1, reached space in September 2011 and hosted three dockings two of them involving crewed Shenzhou spacecraft before ending its operational life this past March. Tiangong-1 will likely fall to Earth in late 2017, Chinese space officials have said. The Tiangong program is designed to test out the rendezvous and docking technologies that China will need to build a bona fide space station, which the nation aims to have up and running by the early 2020s. China's space station will likely be considerably smaller than the 440-ton, $100 billion International Space Station; various reports have estimated that China's orbiting complex will tip the scales at about 60 tons. Shenzhou-11 is China's first crewed spaceflight in more than three years. The most recent such effort, Shenzhou-10, sent three astronauts to Tiangong-1 in June 2013. The Shenzhou-10 crewmembers spent 14 days in space the Chinese spaceflight record that Jing and Chen are poised to break. Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com. Soyuz Rocket Launches Expedition 49 Crew NASA/Joel Kowsky A Russian Soyuz MS-02 rocket carrying NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough and Russian cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko (of Roscosmos) launches toward the International Space Station from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan on Oct. 19, 2016. Soyuz MS-02 Launch View NASA/Joel Kowsky Spectactors watch as a Soyuz MS-02 rocket launches American astronaut Shane Kimbrough of NASA and Russian cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko, both of Roscosmos, into orbit from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan on Oct. 19, 2016. The trio is beginning a four-month mission to the International Space Station. Shane Kimbrough: Thumb's Up from Space NASA TV NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough gives a thumb's up sign as he launches into orbit aboard a Soyuz MS-02 spacecraft on Oct. 19, 2016 to begin his Expedition 49 mission to the International Space Station. Fiery Liftoff for Soyuz MS-02 NASA/Joel Kowsky The Soyuz MS-02 rocket is launched with Expedition 49 Soyuz commander Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos, flight engineer Shane Kimbrough of NASA, and flight engineer Andrey Borisenko of Roscosmos, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Soyuz Liftoff for Expedition 49 Crew NASA/Joel Kowsky A Russian Soyuz MS-02 rocket lifts off from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan on Oct. 19, 2016 to begin a two-day journey to the International Space Station for its U.S.-Russian crew. Bon Voyage, Expedition 49 NASA/Joel Kowsky Expedition 49 flight engineer Andrey Borisenko of Roscosmos, top, flight engineer Shane Kimbrough of NASA, middle, and Soyuz commander Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos, bottom, wave farewell prior to boarding the Soyuz MS-02 rocket for launch, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Expedition 49 Crew Says Farewell to Earth NASA/Joel Kowsky Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Borisenko (top) of Russia, NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough (middle) and cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov climb the ladder to the elevator as they prepare to board the Soyuz MS-02 rocket for launch, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Expedition 49: The Bus to Space NASA/Joel Kowsky xpedition 49 flight engineer Shane Kimbrough of NASA, left, Soyuz commander Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos, center, and flight engineer Andrey Borisenko of Roscosmos, right, wave farewell to family and friends as they depart the Cosmonaut Hotel to suit-up for their Soyuz launch to the International Space Station, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Crew Plus Three NASA/Victor Zelentsov Three new crewmembers launched from Kazakhstan this morning (Oct. 19) on a two-day trip to the International Space Station. Expedition 49 prime crewmembers sit in their Sokol suits with the backup crewmembers behind, preparing for their first check dress rehearsal activities Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. [Read the Full Story] Putting the Pieces Together NASA/Victor Zelentsov The work platforms surrounding the Soyuz MS-02 spacecraft retract in preparation for its encapsulation on Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Prepping the Rocket NASA/Victor Zelentsov On Oct. 11, 2016, the team begins the process of encapsulating the Soyuz MS-02 spacecraft in its fairing, one of the many steps to prepare for the Oct. 19 launch. WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. The picture-perfect launch of an Orbital ATK Antares rocket carrying NASA cargo on Monday night (Oct. 17) has experts across the space industry offering their congratulations for a spectacular performance that exceeded expectations. Prior to launch, pressures were high for Orbital ATK, the commercial spaceflight company contracted by NASA to fly cargo delivery missions to the International Space Station (ISS). Its last attempt at launching an Antares rocket in 2014 ended in a catastrophic failure, with the rocket exploding just seconds after lifting off from a launchpad at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, which is part of NASA's Wallops Flight Facility here on Wallops Island. [Photos: Antares Rocket Returns to Flight in Stunning Night Launch] But on Monday, Orbital ATK did not disappoint. Not only did Antares successfully blast off into space, but the rocket's performance actually exceeded expectations by soaring higher and faster than anticipated, Frank Culbertson, President of Orbital ATK's Space Systems Group, said in a post-launch press conference. He added that the extra lift will assist the company's Cygnus cargo ship, which hitched a ride into orbit on the Antares rocket to make the ISS delivery. "There's no extra charge from the Flight Systems Group," Culbertson joked. Joel Montalbano, manager of NASA's space station program, acknowledged that the mission took longer to get off the ground than expected. The launch was initially slated to lift off during summer, but was delayed to allow more time for checks, as well as due to weather events. "These things are always harder than you expect them to be in many ways, but it was done right, and that was the most important thing," he said. "It's great when things work the way they did tonight," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said during a speech on NASA TV shortly after the launch, adding that the cargo flight is critical for the space station as well as space exploration in general even for the journey to Mars. Eric Stallmer, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF), issued a statement late Sunday congratulating Virginias Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS), Orbital ATK and NASA, "on tonights successful launch of the Antares rocket and Cygnus cargo vehicle to the International Space Station." "Its great to see ISS commercial resupply missions flying out of Virginia's spaceport again, carrying commercial payloads for companies including NanoRacks and CASIS, all working together to expand the commercial space enterprise in low-Earth orbit, Stallmer added. Orbital ATK's incredible launch yesterday got Cygnus off to a great start. Now the spacecraft is on its way to the ISS, where it will dock on Sunday (Oct. 23). Astronauts aboard the space station will unload the cargo supplies and science experiments before stuffing Cygnus full of garbage and sending it off to burn up in Earth's atmosphere. Email Hanneke Weitering at hweitering@space.com or follow her @hannekescience. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. Artist's illustration of the putative Planet Nine, which may lie undiscovered in the outer solar system. PASADENA, Calif. The putative "Planet Nine" may have tilted the entire solar system, researchers say. In January, astronomers revealed evidence for the potential existence of another planet in the solar system. Researchers suggest that if this world dubbed Planet Nine exists, it could be about 10 times Earth's mass and orbit the sun at a distance about 500 times the distance from the Earth to the sun. Previous research suggested that Planet Nine would possess a highly tilted orbit compared with the relatively thin, flat zone in which the eight official planets circle the sun. This led scientists to investigate whether Planet Nine's slant might help explain other tilting seen elsewhere in the solar system. [The Evidence for 'Planet Nine' in Images (Gallery)] Now, researchers suggest that Planet Nine's influence might have tilted the entire solar system except the sun. "Planet Nine may have tilted the other planets over the lifetime of the solar system," said study lead author Elizabeth Bailey, an astrophysicist and planetary scientist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. Prior work found that the zone in which the eight major planets orbit the sun is tilted by about 6 degrees compared to the sun's equator. This discrepancy has long been a mystery in astronomy. Researchers say an anomaly in the orbits of distant Kuiper Belt objects points to the existence of an unknown planet orbiting the sun. Here's what we know of this potential "Planet Nine." (Image credit: by Karl Tate, Infographics artist) Bailey and her colleagues ran computer simulations that suggest that the tilt of the eight official planets can be explained by the gravitational influence of Planet Nine "over the 4.5-billion-years-ish lifetime of the solar system," Bailey told Space.com. Bailey did note that there are other potential explanations for the tilt of the solar system. One alternative is that electrically charged particles influenced by the young sun's magnetic field could have interacted with the disk of gas and dust that gave rise to the planets in ways that tilted the solar system. Another possibility is that there might have been an imbalance in the mass of the nascent sun's core. "However, all these other ways to explain why the solar system is tilted are really hard to test they all invoke processes that were possibly present really early in the solar system," Bailey said. "Planet Nine is the first thing that has been proposed to tilt the solar system that doesn't depend on early conditions, so if we find Planet Nine, we will be able to see if it's the only thing responsible for the tilt, or if anything else may have played a role." The scientists detailed their findings yesterday (Oct. 18) at a joint meeting of the American Astronomical Society's Division for Planetary Sciences and European Planetary Science Congress in Pasadena, California. Follow Charles Q. Choi on Twitter @cqchoi. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. DARPA has been testing the Space Surveillance Telescope in New Mexico for the last several years before handing it over to the U.S. Air Force. WASHINGTON The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has transferred operations of a telescope designed to track objects in Earth orbit to the U.S. Air Force, ahead of a move of that telescope to Australia. In a ceremony in New Mexico Oct. 18, DARPA formally handed over operations of the Space Surveillance Telescope (SST) to Air Force Space Command. The transfer comes after several years of testing and operations of the 3.5-meter telescope by DARPA on a mountaintop at the White Sands Missile Range. DARPA developed the telescope to be able to scan large regions of the sky, particularly in the geostationary arc. "SST is focused on tracking and identifying debris and satellites about 36,000 kilometers the Earth," said Lindsay Millard, the telescope's program manager at DARPA, in a conference call with reporters. "It can survey its entire GEO belt in its field of view, which is about one-quarter of the sky above New Mexico, multiple times in one night." Millard said DARPA developed several key technologies for the telescope. They include the telescope itself, with a steeply curved primary mirror to enable a large field of view. DARPA also developed the first curved charge-coupled device detector for the telescope's camera, enabling it to take images from the telescope without distortion. A high-speed shutter allows it to take thousands of images a night. Those capabilities allow SST to see more, and smaller, objects than existing systems, like the network of optical telescopes known as the Ground-based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance (GEODSS). Millard declined to say how small of an object SST could detect in GEO, but said it can detect many more objects than other systems. "We can definitely see many more what we call 'uncorrelated' tracks than the Air Force can today," she said, with "about an order of magnitude better performance" than GEODSS. Millard pegged the cost of the SST program at $150 million, which covers the telescope itself, its original camera and a second, more sensitive camera. She declined to estimate how much it would cost to build a second, similar telescope, and said DARPA is currently not pursuing a next-generation telescope. With the Air Force now responsible for the telescope, it will move ahead with plans first announced in a 2013 agreement with the Australian Ministry of Defence to move SST to Australia, helping fill a gap in coverage in the Southern Hemisphere. "That's kind of a second 'DARPA-hard' challenge that we have," Millard said of moving the telescope. The Australian government will build a new dome for the telescope at the Harold E. Holt Naval Communication Station in Western Australia. Air Force Space Command will disassemble the telescope, ship it to the new site and assemble it there. The telescope should be operational there by 2020, she said. The telescope has applications beyond tracking objects in Earth orbit. Millard noted that the telescope has also observed millions of asteroids, including discovering 3,600 new ones. "SST has become the most prolific tool for asteroid observations in the world," she said. NASA is in discussions with Australian officials about continued access to the telescope for asteroid observations once it's moved to Australia, she added. This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry. The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2016 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service. Twice a year, a group of local people gets together for what must be one of the grimmest meetings imaginable. Theyre experts in the fields of health, social services, law enforcement, and related disciplines, and theyre known collectively as the Fetal, Infant, Child and Maternal Mortality Review (FICMMR) team. Their unenviable job is to review the circumstances surrounding every death of a child from Lewis and Clark County. The purpose of the FICMMR team is not to assign blame for these heartbreaking deaths. Rather, its to look for patterns or trends among them in the hope that the team can identify ways to prevent similar tragedies in the future. They work in strict confidentiality. From a public health perspective, the death of an infant or child can be a measure of a community's overall social and economic well-being and health. FICMR is a critical process in identifying health or social issues that our community has a responsibility to address, whether through policy change or education. Since 1997, when the Montana Legislature passed a law encouraging the creation of multi-disciplinary teams to review fetal, infant, and child deaths, the Lewis and Clark County FICMMR team has reviewed dozens of them. The members have noticed a pattern: Several of these deaths involved infants who were sleeping in circumstances that may possibly have contributed to their sudden fate. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS, was responsible for 14 percent of infant deaths in Montana from 2010-2014. Could these deaths have been prevented? Well never know, but our hearts go out to the families whose lives the syndrome has shattered. Steps to safer sleep To avoid future SIDS deaths, the local FICMMR team has a strong recommendation for parents, grandparents, babysitters, and other caretakers: take steps to provide the safest possible sleep environment for your little one. Heres how: Always place your baby on its back to sleep, both at bedtime and naptime. This is the number one way you can reduce the risk of SIDS. When your baby gets old enough to turn over on its own, you dont need to reposition it. Provide baby with a firm sleep surface, such as a mattress in a safety-approved crib, covered by a fitted sheet. Avoid soft sleep surfaces, like pillows, quilts, sheepskins, sofas, waterbeds, or air mattresses. These increase the risk of suffocation. If you cant afford a safe crib, contact Lewis and Clark Public Health at 457-8900. We may be able to help you get one through the Safe Sleep for Baby Program sponsored by Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies, the Montana Coalition. Keep babys sleep area close to, but separate from, yours. Sleeping in the same room as your baby reduces its risk of SIDS; health experts recommend it until your baby is at least six months old. But baby shouldnt sleep in the same bed with you or anyone else because of the risk of suffocation. The risk is even greater if youre a smoker, very tired (and what new parent isnt?), or under the influence of drugs, alcohol, or medications that make you sleepy. Your baby should not sleep in an adult bed, on a couch, or on a chair alone, with you, or with anyone else. If co-sleeping is a traditional part of your culture, consider placing a cradle, bassinette, or bedside co-sleeper right next to your bed instead. Keep pillows, blankets, crib bumpers, stuffed animals, and other soft objects out of the crib when baby is sleeping. Keep pets and other children away, too. Babies can suffocate if they press their face up against anything soft. Dress baby in a sleeper instead of using blankets, again to avoid suffocation. Make sure nothing covers your babys head. Dont overdress your baby. Babies who get too warm during sleep might sleep too deeply and be unable to wake themselves up, which could play a role in SIDS. If the room temperature is comfortable for you, then its comfortable for your baby. Breastfeed your baby. Research shows that babies who are breastfed or fed with breast milk for the first six months of life are at lower risk of SIDS. If you like to bring baby to bed to breastfeed, put it back in its own bed when youre done. Give your baby a dry pacifier thats not attached to a string for naps and bedtime. Make sure no one smokes in your home or around your baby. Studies show that exposure to smoke is a health risk for your baby both before and after birth. It also has been identified as one of the greatest risk factors for SIDS. Even the smoke particles that settle on a smokers clothes and hair can harm an infants developing respiratory system. Avoid products that claim to reduce the risk of SIDS and other sleep-related causes of infant death, including heart and breathing monitors. They have not been tested for safety and effectiveness. Give your baby time on its tummy when its awake and someone is watching. Tummy time helps your baby to improve motor skills; strengthen head, neck, and shoulder muscles; and prevent flat spots on the head. Finally, make sure anyone and everyone who cares for your child is aware of these recommendations. The local FICMR team would be delighted to have fewer reasons to get together. Melanie Reynolds is the Lewis and Clark County health officer. One season of "Extreme Huntress" wasnt enough for one East Helenan. Taylor Reisbeck is taking aim at the title for the online hunting show, bringing her skills from the mountains of Montana for the second time up against women from both the United States and Canada. She is the only competitor in the history of the show to make the finals twice. I really wasnt sure if I wanted to go back, but now Im really glad I did, she said. It was really good meeting the other women, and now were all friends. Extreme Huntress selects six women to compete in various hunting related skills competitions at the 777 Ranch in Texas, followed by hunting on the ranch. The adventures are featured at www.extremehuntress.com with voting following each episode. Reisbeck currently sits in second place behind Lindsey Christensen from Idaho. She hopes to get Helena-area voters and Montana behind her as the women charge towards a January finish. Encouragement from Reisbecks parents, boyfriend and some of the judges nudged her application, and competing again has allowed her to open up a bit more this season. Last year I was really shy just because I wasnt used to being in front of the camera and having it right in my face, she said. People kept asking me if I thought I had more of a chance than these other girls because I competed before. I really didnt -- the vegetation was completely overgrown over last year, and every hunting experience was a lot different. Reisbecks life has changed since first competing on the show as shed like to stake a career in the hunting industry. She makes public appearances to talk about the role of hunting in wildlife management and to encourage more women and children to spend time in the outdoors. Reisbeck will make an appearance this Thursday from 4 to 6 p.m. at Stacks Clothing Co. and Antiques in East Helena for a meet and greet to promote her appearance on the show. Putting herself out there for both public praise and public scrutiny has been a learning experience as well. Contestants, including Reisbeck, have been subject of social media scorn and even some threats. Ive honestly learned and youve got to be patient with people that dont like hunting, and youve got to let people think in their own ways, Reisbeck said. Despite what their campaign ads might lead you to believe, neither one of Montanas gubernatorial candidates is purely good or evil. Both have their strengths. And as the candidates have made crystal clear in this particularly cantankerous race, both certainly have some weaknesses too. Republican candidate Greg Gianforte has come up with a list of the reasons he feels its time for new leadership in the Capitol. And while we agree with some of Gianfortes arguments, we dont believe any of them rise to a level that justifies interrupting the work of our current governor and starting over from scratch. No. 1 on Gianfortes list of reasons to oust Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock is Montanas lagging wages, which are among the lowest in the nation. Gianforte has said throughout his campaign that the very reason he is running for governor is to create, attract and retain high-wage jobs. He plans to remove barriers to job creation, including what he describes as burdensome, job-killing regulations, along with certain taxes. We wholeheartedly agree that Montanas state government is too bogged down in red tape, some of which is undoubtedly strangling efforts to create and maintain jobs. But we are skeptical about the feasibility of Gianfortes aggressive job-creation strategy, particularly his plans to completely freeze state spending and eliminate the business equipment tax in four years. Bullock is proposing less aggressive tax cuts for small businesses that create jobs. And while no governor can singlehandedly revamp the states business regulations overnight, we believe that Bullocks approach has a much better chance of becoming a reality, and that he has already made great strides in this area through his administrations private-public partnership known as the Main Street Montana Project. And we couldnt help but notice that Montanas existing business climate has worked out pretty well for Gianforte, who sold his global software company for $1.8 billion in 2011 after founding it in his Bozeman home in 1997. We also stand by the work Bullock has done as governor to promote fair elections, make health care available to more Montanans, and maintain an appropriate balance between public safety and Montanans cherished right to bear arms. Montanans tend to reject partisan politics by splitting their ballots, and Bullock has demonstrated the kind of moderate approach needed to work with legislators and other state leaders on the other side of the aisle during his nearly four years as governor. We dont want to discount what Gianforte has done for our state. As a private businessman, he has given hundreds of Montanans high-wage jobs and created an economic engine in the Gallatin Valley that has significantly contributed to local and state tax bases. Gianforte does make a good point about the lack of accountability in Bullocks office, particularly with regard to the governors use of the state airplane for campaign and personal purposes. And while both candidates have demonstrated an unwillingness to answer to the public about certain issues on the campaign trail, we do expect more openness and accountability from our sitting governor on this issue and others. In addition, we would be remiss to not acknowledge our concerns about the long-term and systemic management concerns identified in a recent audit of the Montana Child and Family Services Division, which has been widely accused of failing to fulfill its responsibilities in cases involving abused and neglected children. But we understand its easy for those who have never walked in Bullock's shoes to criticize his performance, and we hope he will work on these issues during his next term as Montanas governor. Optimization Are you frustrated with a slow pc or a hard disk not performing as it should? Try SLOW-PCfighter to speed up boot time on a slow PC, or try a free scan of FULL-DISKfighter to recover space on a full disk. The latest offering is DRIVERfighter to update your driver updater. Get complete PC optimization and extend the life of your PC with these must-have software tools. As his campaign has progressed, it has become apparent that Trump's intended audience has gotten the message. Many Jewish journalists and intellectuals have noted in recent months that the degree of overt anti-Semitism in the United States is of an intensity that they have never before experienced. On social media, Jewish names are bracketed with triple parenthesis, the Twitter version of the yellow star, and Trump himself tweeted out a picture of Clinton against a backdrop of cash, the message "most corrupt candidate ever" printed inside a Star of David. Unhinged That image originated on the extreme right, and it is far from the only time he has retweeted or tweeted such messages and memes. He has several times, for example, passed along supportive missives from alt-right activist Jason Bergkamp, who writes for the online publication Vanguard 14, which frequently addresses "white genocide" and nationalism. Trump has likewise retweeted a montage of himself as Pepe the Frog, a comic character that has been adopted by the alt-right and is increasingly making appearances at Trump campaign rallies on T-shirts and hats. His son, Donald Trump Jr., has also tweeted out images of Pepe the Frog several times. As revealing as it is, however, decoding such symbols is hardly even necessary anymore as the campaign reaches its disgusting conclusion. On October 13, Trump held one of his most unhinged campaign speeches yet. At an event in West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump said that there is a "global power structure" that has robbed the American working class. He also said that Clinton "meets in secret with international banks to plot the destruction of US sovereignty" and that the election may be "in fact controlled by a small handful of global special interests rigging the system." Such anti-Semitism-tinged claims are common on the alt-right and it's no accident they made it onto Trump's teleprompter. Buzzfeed reported that the speech was co-written by Stephen Bannon, the Trump campaign's CEO. To join the Trump campaign, Bannon took a leave of absence from his position as chairman of Breitbart News, a website that, as Bannon himself has said, is a "platform for the alt-right." Another influential member of this white-supremacist cabal is Alex Jones, the widely followed right-wing conspiracy theorist/radio host who recently gained a bit of mainstream notoriety for claiming that Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are demons and smelled of sulfur. In December 2015, Trump appeared on Jones' show and said his host has an "amazing reputation." A Warped Vision of America That visit was arranged by Roger Stone, a GOP strategist who was an advisor to the Trump campaign until last August, and who remains affiliated with the campaign. Stone helped organize the "Stop the Steal March" at the GOP convention to prevent the Republican establishment's alleged effort to rob Trump of the nomination. Stone made headlines in February of this year by referring to a Hispanic CNN personality an "Entitled Diva Bitch" in a tweet and referring to another as a "stupid negro." And then there is Trump's most recent claim that Hillary Clinton was "pumped up" on drugs during the second debate. Again, it is a notion that originated on the alt-right, appearing well before Trump's absurd assertion on the right-wing website Mad World News, the same site that recently revisited the racist right's pet theory that Michelle Obama is actually a man. The list, of course, could go on. But the evidence is clear: Donald Trump's vision of America is not one rooted in the Constitution, but one rooted in the notion that White America is under fire from all sides and must be rescued from the establishment. His Patriotic Movement is an identitarian crusade, open to those who dream of an America not for freedom loving democrats, but for those who seek a white male revolution to take the power back. And he has rhetorically armed the movement to continue beyond the election on Nov. 8. His utter rejection of Hillary Clinton as a legitimate candidate democratically chosen by a political party representing half or more of the American electorate, combined with his repeated warnings that the election is rigged, provides all the excuse necessary for the white right to carry on the fight after Election Day. It is difficult to view the recently exposed plot by a group calling itself The Crusaders to blow up a Somali housing complex in Kansas the day after the election as anything other than a response to Trump's hardly veiled call to arms. Will He Concede? In 2000, after the bruising campaign pitting Al Gore against George W. Bush ended in a recount in Florida and a Supreme Court decision essentially awarding the presidency to Bush, Gore held a speech. He said: "Now the US Supreme Court has spoken. Let there be no doubt, while I strongly disagree with the court's decision, I accept it. I accept the finality of this outcome.... And tonight, for the sake of our unity as a people and the strength of our democracy, I offer my concession." Polls indicate that the outcome of this election won't be nearly as close. But for Trump and his followers, his defeat will only be more proof that true Americans -- white Americans -- are once again being robbed. His shifting of the American narrative from a country based on the Constitution to a newly imagined homeland for downtrodden whites will not allow him to hold such a speech. Having unleashed the promise of a white-power America, it seems doubtful that his followers will slide back into the background after this election. Even if Trump declines the strongman roll he has developed for himself, the movement, the alternative definition of America, will continue. History has taught us that changing definitions, altering national myths, is an extremely difficult and often bloody proposition. That though -- that and the consequences such a shift necessarily engenders -- will be the true Trump legacy. And it is a horrifying one to contemplate. Work planned at the site will help to drive vital research into the control of respiratory activity in fungi which attack the worlds major cereal crops. With the help of a recent 1m award, including a contribution of 602,390 from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), Professor Tony Moore, of the University of Sussex, will collaborate with Agform Ltd to accelerate the development of fungicide resistance inhibitors. Fungal pathogens are adept at developing resistance to treatments by expressing an enzyme called the alternative oxidase (AOX). The novel compounds formulated by Professor Moore prevent this enzyme from being functional. With further development, these compounds may be effective for longer and require less frequent spraying of crops. The AOX Lab represents a significant investment in UK industry and innovation, as the only UK-owned commercial research facility for new agrochemical actives, in the country. Agforms existing nanotechnology capability is a successful example of the governments investment in innovative technology and research, with a number of commercial products already derived from this technology currently being marketed in the UK and the EU. It was partly funded by two grants from the Technology Strategy Board (now Innovate UK), supported by DEFRA and BBSRC. Phil Hogan, European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, instigated the formation of the sheep meat forum in response to the fragility of the sheep sector across Europe. He tasked the group, which involved representatives of EU member states, to consider the factors of falling sheep numbers and declining sheep meat consumption and how this jeopardises the many public goods delivered by sheep farming businesses. Such public goods include eco-system services, development of rural economies, animal welfare, rural tourism and preservation of heritage. Joanne Briggs, NSA Policy Officer for England, attended the four meetings in Brussels, which included the release of the report on Thursday last week (13th October). She says: The concise report, incorporating submissions from forum representatives including NSA, UK levy bodies and UK farming unions, was pulled together by an Irish team handpicked by Commissioner Hogan. It makes around 20 sound recommendations and highlights two in particular. NSA is very supportive of the recommendation to increase promotion of lamb within the EU to curb decline in consumption. The UK is the biggest producer of lamb in Europe and a global exporter and, as such, would like to see more people enjoy lamb and appreciate how consumption is beneficial for human health and allows sheep farmers to deliver a whole range of additional public goods in rural areas. Generic campaigns such as Lamb: Tasty, Easy, Fun have been instrumental in promoting an eat the landscape message and we need more of this. Sabrina Steketee is a brilliant choice for HD75 Representative. As a Jefferson County native myself, I have known Sabrina for most of her life. She is smart, inquisitive, collegial and a terrific listener. She has demonstrated a long-term commitment to making Jefferson County a great place to work and to live. Sabrina is a thoughtful, articulate contributor to and volunteer with the Boulder Transition Advisory Committee, created to address the impact of Montana Developmental Centers closure on the Boulder area and on its economic viability. Likewise, Senator Jim Keane, Representatives Ryan Lynch and Eddie McClafferty continue making extraordinary commitments to Jefferson County by lending their considerable expertise and support to the BTAC. Unfortunately, missing in action from our community BTAC deliberations has been HD75 Representative Kirk Wagoner. Although always invited, Mr. Wagoner has not participated. Recently I sent an invitation to Mr. Wagoner to attend an MDC Repurposing Committee meeting. No response. When I asked him in person to participate in our activities, he refused, indicating that he is a hermit and doesnt go to meetings. He did indicate that he has been following our activities online and would let us know if he has something to contribute. I dont want someone who wont interact with his constituents to represent me in the Legislature. I urge your support for Sabrina Steketee for HD75. She will actively solicit constituent input, research the issues and listen to all viewpoints. I know Sabrina; she will be a terrific, responsive Representative. Sincerely, Drew Dawson Boulder MISSOULA -- Only a few weeks before the election, many Montanans are unsure who to elect to the state Supreme Court. Those who have decided are split. Among registered and likely Montana voters, 39 percent said they were undecided, according to a Mason-Dixon poll commissioned by Lee Newspapers with a margin of error of 3 percentage points. In a race thats too close to call, the rest divide between Dirk Sandefur, a longtime Cascade County District Judge, and Kristen Juras, a Great Falls attorney and former adjunct professor from the University of Montana law school. Juras polled at 31 percent and Sandefur at 30 percent. This is by far the most fluid race among all the statewide races this year, University of Montana political scientist Christopher Muste said. This is the kind of situation that combines danger and opportunity for the candidates. The number of undecided voters is like a welcome mat for independent groups to spend. Montana State University political scientist David Parker agreed. It just shows you how little people know what the heck is going on here, he said. No one knows this race. It is not unusual for so many voters to be undecided in a judicial race. Analysts said it is difficult for many people to gauge what effect each candidate could have on future decisions, especially when the people running insist their job is to be impartial and avoid comments that might be viewed as evidence they would legislate from the bench. And because Montanas race is nonpartisan without party labels to which voters might default, there is little information left to guide a decision. Many end up skipping the race on their ballots. In 2014, two of the courts seven seats were contested. Nearly 374,000 Montanans cast ballots, but 71,464 people did not make a selection between incumbent Justice Jim Rice and Billings attorney David Herbert. And 43,624 people skipped the race between incumbent Justice Mike Wheat and former solicitor general Lawrence VanDyke. The gap of nearly 30,000 votes between the two races might be explained by one simple thing: money. A record $1.6 million was spent to influence the Wheat-VanDyke race, mostly by independent groups rather than the candidates own campaigns. Political action committees funded by the Montana Trial Lawyers Association and its members backed Wheat. The Republican State Leadership Committees Judicial Fairness Initiative, Americans for Prosperity and others supported VanDyke. The groups traded attack ads on television and flooded mailboxes with contradictory descriptions of the candidates. People will take that information and act upon it, Parker said. Thats why negative ads work. This years race might beat that 2014 fundraising record. Many of the same groups have returned, with the trial lawyers supporting Sandefur and the GOP group backing Juras. The latest campaign finance filings through the end of September show more than $1.1 million has been raised, about $900,000 by Sandefur or his supporters. The Republican group, however, has millions in the bank that it might direct into Montana during the final weeks as it has done in other states. To some extent, this is just name ID, name ID, name ID, Parker said of the campaigns likely strategy to pick up undecided voters. Muste noted that almost half of the uncertain voters identified as Republicans. Both candidates are going to go for that group before Election Day, he said. Its an opportunity for Juras, who is perceived as more conservative than Sandefur on some of the issues. Sandefurs ads have focused on him being a policeman and are largely designed to appeal to conservatives. Lee Banville thinks the way Juras has discussed issues and her legal expertise in the campaign is different from most previous races, which could be why she polled on par with Sandefur. I am struck by how well shes faring because not only has Sandefur spent a lot and raised a lot of money, hes also got institutional support, said Banville, the University of Montana political researcher and journalism professor. I think in some part (its) because of her overt political campaigning and all the media attention shes gotten. Usually Supreme Court candidates are like, Im going to support the law and Im going to uphold the Montana Constitution. Its apple pie and fair court, and she has been pretty outspoken about the positions she has. The independent spending in the race has been a focal point of debate between the candidates. Sandefur condemned the influence of the GOP group, which May tax filings compiled by the Center for Public Integrity show to largely be funded by business interests such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He has repeatedly argued that his experience as a district court judge has prepared him to make impartial decisions. The negative advertising is despicable, frankly, but not unexpected from these out-of-state corporate interests and their local bag men who have been doing this type of thing in other states, he said, seeing the polling numbers as a sign voters are starting to pay attention to the race. The lights are now on and people are waking up to the sharp contrast between my proven judicial experience and public service record on the one hand and on the other hand my opponents ideological agenda and a lack of relevant experience. He noted that attack ads paid for by the GOP-backed committee leave out the fact that the sentences referenced were the result of plea deals requested by the prosecutor, not prison time he decided upon after a trial conviction. Likewise, Juras has raised concerns about individual trial lawyers, many of whom have contributed more than $50,000 each to independent committees opposing her campaign and frequently have cases appear before the states top court. She dismissed Sandefurs attacks on her integrity as false, noting that she is running to bring new expertise to the court she developed in private practice. I am not the supposed activist my opponent tries to characterize me, she said. These groups are supporting Sandefur because they believe hes the best candidate to align with their special interests. What the Chamber of Commerce is seeking an attorney who brings business expertise to the court. Not an ideology that favors business, but business expertise on the court that will be helpful in analyzing and applying complicated business, farm, ranch, water and property laws. While the lawyers group had to report who contributes to their committee under state campaign finance laws, the national organizations do not have to disclose spending or who supported them financially, in large part, because of a 2010 decision by Supreme Court of the United States that gutted many disclosure requirements and ended caps on corporate spending in politics including Montanas outright ban. Some, but not all, of the GOP groups funders can be gleaned from tax filings months after Election Day. The rising tide of unaccountable, secret money in judicial elections raises serious concerns about the integrity of our courts, said Alicia Bannon, a researcher with the Brennan Center for Justice. The political pressure and potential conflicts of interest that come with it are a threat to basic fairness and to the judicial independence that is so vital to a functioning democracy. Studies by the center show that most negative ads in judicial campaigns focus on criminal justice issues or try to paint a candidate as soft on crime -- even if the money funding that advertisement comes from business interests that generally have little or no clear investment in justice issues. Instead, Bannon said those topics are chosen because they are emotional and likely to influence to voters. In Montanas race, Parker said that leaves Sandefur weakened by his 14 years as judge. Juras doesnt have a judicial record. She doesnt have a court case you can pick apart, he said. The perverse thing is it has the potential for us to be electing people who are less experienced. To combat that, Parker said Sandefur or his trial lawyer supporters would need to hit Juras hard with negative imaging of their own more than they have done so far. Muste agreed. Were in such a negative election environment this year. It would be hard, but maybe refreshing, for a candidate to try to put forward a positive message, he said. Voters are frustrated and angry. A negative campaign is more likely to resonate with that. P olice swooped on the London boss of Barratt Developments on Wednesday as the housebuilder was engulfed in an alleged cash-for-contracts scandal. Alastair Baird, 52, a near-30-year veteran of the business, was arrested by the Metropolitan Police alongside an unnamed former Barratt employee. The arrest comes 14 months after the builder launched a probe following an internal audit which relates to possible misconduct in the process for awarding and managing certain material and subcontract supply contracts in the London region, Barratt told the stock market. Barratt referred its investigation to the Met in April. It also led to civil action against a third employee which began last October, before the worker was fired in February. Baird, who has been suspended following his arrest, lives in Hampstead on one of Londons most exclusive streets, according to Companies House records. The seven-bedroom mansion, with indoor heated swimming pool and gym complex, is worth an estimated 15 million, according to Zoopla. Barratts website describes Baird as renowned for his superb relationships with key public and private-sector stakeholders and his outstanding grasp of the construction and financial issues that underpin successful development. He has been London regional managing director for five years. Two months ago Baird was toasting the completion of the purchase of West Ham Uniteds former home, the Boleyn Ground, from Galliard Homes, where Barratt aims to build 842 homes. One housebuilding boss told the Evening Standard: He is known as a really great guy who knows his business. He is very well liked, a nice, nice man. He is well respected in the industry. Following the early findings of the investigation, Barratt appointed a leading accounting firm to conduct an external review of the controls relating to the tendering and procurement processes in the London business, which was reported to the companys audit committee. Barratt said it had adopted additional controls. The builders London procurement processes differ from the rest of the group, due to the one-off nature of construction projects in the capital. Gary Ennis, manager of Barratts Southern region, will take interim responsibility for London as well, supported by other senior management. Barratt does not anticipate any material financial impact. The shares rose 5.3p to 489.1p. Chief executive David Thomas said: We are committed to meeting the highest ethical standards in all aspects of our business. We have acted decisively, launching our own thorough and comprehensive investigation. T im Allan must have one of the best contacts books in London. The public relations man began working for Tony Blair in 1992, served as Alastair Campbells deputy in Number 10 and then Rupert Murdochs director of communications at Sky, before launching his agency, Portland, at the age of 31 in 2001. Now he has sheikhs and oligarchs as well as ministers and media moguls on speed dial. But as Allan prepares to celebrate Portlands 15th anniversary with a big party at the Natural History Museum this week, he says PR has changed from a contacts business to a content business. His agency has grown from four people in a box room in Bloomsbury Square who called a few journalists to a 200-strong team on the Strand that advises on strategy, with an in-house studio that creates advertising, magazines, websites and infographics. Recent work includes an advertising takeover of the ticket barriers at Westminster Tube station for drugs giant Pfizer, a Can the Tax website for the British Soft Drinks Association in protest at plans for a fizzy drinks tax, and a glossy magazine for Qatars embassies. Asked to name other clients, he pauses to remember which ones are public. Google, Apple, McDonalds, Heathrows third runway campaign and the governments of Kazakhstan, Jordan and Morocco give a flavour, as do Portlands offices in Nairobi, Doha, New York and Washington. He is very happy to defend the work that he has done for foreign governments on openness and engagement. Clients pay well, especially if they have an unsavoury reputation or legal problems. Turnover more than doubled in three years to 22.7 million in 2015 and is heading towards 30 million, which would make it one of Londons top 10 PR agencies, rivalling Freuds and Teneo Blue Rubicon but behind Brunswick and Edelman. Allan avoids financial PR, which he says hasnt changed much in 15 years, and focuses on corporate PR, which has grown because of what he calls externalities scrutiny from social media and parliamentary select committees as well as the publics demand to know more about companies. Portland has also benefited from Londons growth as a global news and financial hub, and Allan hopes it stays that way after Brexit. More than half of Portlands work now comes from clients outside the UK. PR rivals wonder how much Blair has helped Allan. Portland grew slowly in its early years and gained momentum after 2007 when the former prime minister started advising foreign governments like Kazakhstan, a project on which Blair and Portland collaborated. Allan hasnt worked with his old boss for years and hes never sent me an invoice. Has he ever invoiced Blair? I cant remember how things were structured. Still, it says something about Portland that Jeremy Corbyns allies recently accused the agency of plotting against him, a claim that Allan says was ludicrous (as do most neutral observers). He sold 81% to Omnicom in an estimated 20 million deal in 2012 and Portlands latest accounts reveal the US ad giant has exercised its right to buy the remainder from staff, including Allans 11% stake. The price depends on Portlands profits by 2019. I love running my own business, he says, although he maintains the company is less dependent on him than many other founder-led agencies. Inside his personal office, where there are framed cuttings about Portlands 2001 launch rather than flashy art, he works at a stand-up desk, with not a chair in sight. He isnt sentimental. Portlands first client was Sky but they parted ways eventually and he agreed a non-compete deal for six months. After six months and a day, he began working for arch-rival Virgin Media. Despite all his talk about content, contacts still matter. At least half a dozen Portland staff used to work in Number 10, which he regards as an unrivalled training ground. He has also recruited a starry list of advisers, including Campbell, Michael Portillo, ex-Sky boss Tony Ball, former Treasury minister Kitty Ussher and ex-Polish foreign minister Radek Sikorski. Allans career is proof that in the world of high-end PR, its still about who you know. Gideon Spanier is head of media at Campaign I t's hard to think of a worse time for a decision on expanding aviation in the South-East to be strung out. Yet that is the signal we are getting from the Government: a decision, probably in favour of Heathrow, will be announced next week but it will go to public consultation and MPs may well vote on it only late next year. Obviously any big development such as this will have to go through rigorous planning procedures and due process, and the charitable view is that this is what the Government is doing, besides clarifying that the public and dissenting ministers will have an opportunity to have a say on its proposals and that MPs will duly approve the measure. Granted, too, some councils will want to oppose Heathrow expansion; some have fighting funds put aside. But what this risks looking like is yet more procrastination on the critical question of aviation expansion, yet another bid to kick a contentious issue into the long grass a tactic deployed by successive governments, notably David Camerons. Yet what we need now is boldness in pursuing our strategic goals. Post-Brexit Britain needs to show it is open to world trade and has a global reach. China has already expanded the number of destinations for flights from Britain. The City wants to make clear it is an international centre, hospitable to all comers. So the one thing London needs is an airport, or two, sufficiently large to accommodate greater numbers of both business visitors and tourists. This paper is not dogmatic on the site for expansion; our preference is for greater capacity at both Heathrow and Gatwick but we would welcome any decision that would meet the objective of expanding capacity. It is the function of strong government to make decisions on strategic issues. Mrs Mays preferred method in government is to consult widely and then make a decisive move: well, on this issue, where the stakes are about as high as they could be, she must give a lead. It matters. Calais children The arrival here of the first child refugees from the Calais Jungle camp has provoked controversy, with commentators questioning whether all the young people are under the age of 18. David Davies, MP for Monmouth, has been condemned by the British Dental Association for suggesting that new arrivals should be subjected to an examination of their teeth as a means of proving age. Of course it is important that the relevant authorities including the British and French governments have screening processes. But as the Home Office has made clear, there is no single technique which can be decisive. Instead, officials rely on a combination of documentation and judgment of individuals appearance. They know there is an imperative to get their analysis right. In truth, 17-year-olds can often pass for adults in any circumstances. Travelling across Europe and living in a refugee camp is hardly the recipe for maintaining a childish demeanour. There cannot be a free-for-all; the system must be credible. But once the authorities have determined that a candidate is under 18, we should trust that judgment and put compassion before cynicism. Cooking starts young Our report on the Kids Cookery School, which teaches children in schools in deprived areas how to cook, using surplus food donated by The Felix Project, which is backed by this papers Food for London campaign, is inspirational. Unless children learn to make the most of ingredients, they will struggle to eat healthily and economically. We should be teaching all children to cook. W hen the American people look at you, they see who they want to be. When they look at me, they see who they are. So says Anthony Hopkins, playing Richard Nixon in Oliver Stones film Nixon. Gazing at a portrait of John F Kennedy, the half-drunk Nixon understands the idealism the youthful President projected. He recognised himself, in contrast, as a vulgar, flawed but more accurate representation of what the American people were really like. In the same way, Donald Trump is very much a real character. He is earthy, brash and insensitive. He openly boasts of destroying Americas enemies and restoring the greatness of a lost America. His attitudes to women and minorities reflect the values of a bygone era. Yet he is as American as apple pie. The brash New Yorkers emergence as a political phenomenon has been one of the strangest developments in decades. Not since Dwight D Eisenhower has a major presidential candidate never held elected office before. Yet Eisenhower in 1952 was a widely respected national hero, a five-star general who had defeated the Nazis. He projected strength but also good old-fashioned frontier values: independence, reserve and an unfailing sense of duty. Now, 64 years later, Trump is a billionaire with a penchant for bad language and puerile antics. American friends say to me that he is very New York, meaning he is unashamedly crass and vulgar about his desire for money, women and power. Yet Trumps appeal is simple to explain. He rails against political correctness, just as he lashes out at the Chinese for stealing American jobs in lop-sided trade deals. Like every American president since the Nineties, Trump berates China for deliberately manipulating their currency. The Chinese keep the yuan undervalued to keep their exports cheap. Unlike other politicians, Trump suggests actually doing something about this. He proposes a 45 per cent tariff on Chinese imports to America. The tough-guy act is appealing to an American middle class that hasnt seen its wages increase in real terms for 15 years. To many of these ordinary, mostly white, voters in the Midwest and the South, neither the Democrats nor the Republicans have done anything to improve their situation. For 25 years, both major parties have preached the gospel of open borders, free trade and globalisation. With his talk of tariffs, massive walls and mass deportations Trump is saying in stark terms, enough is enough. Its easy to suggest that Brexit taps into the same concerns. After the referendum, a narrative quickly built up that Brexit was caused by disaffected northern voters rejecting the EU in a cry of desperation. It was widely suggested that these were the forgotten people, whom globalisation had left behind. Of course, this was a crude simplification of what Brexit was about. Its often forgotten that 58 per cent of Conservative voters (not activists) chose to leave the EU. In Maidstone and Sevenoaks, in Spelthorne and Chelmsford, across large parts of the South and West of England, Vote Leave won decisive majorities. Across the eastern seaboard of England, EU membership was rejected by a landslide. The vote in Sevenoaks was 54 per cent to leave. This reflected the English average. Sevenoaks is not known for its lack of opportunities, or its levels of deprivation. Brexit is not just about economics. It is also about culture and a sense of national identity. In this way, it does share a loose affinity with that is going on in America. Brexit voters across Britain did not share the urban-elite views of their political masters. A friend of mine, a successful City lawyer, expressed total incredulity at the thought that anyone could vote for Brexit. Theyve got to be mad, he complained. Life had been good to him. For 10 years he had worked in the City, earning huge amounts of money with which he can pay his Slovakian nanny. As far as he was concerned, his own merits had secured the enviable lifestyle he enjoyed. He remains, to this day, blithely unconcerned about the wider national picture. Trump instinctively understands the lack of connection between the governing classes and an industrial worker in, say, Ohio. Industrial workers in large parts of America are frightened that illegal immigrants will undercut their wages. They are also worried about their industrial plant moving to Guangdong province, China. Trump also appeals to a section of the population with whom Im familiar in Britain. These people feel that politicians never get anything done and are too often apologetic about their country. Make America Great Again is a powerful slogan. It implies that America was great but has stopped being so. The implicit assumption is that a strong man, perhaps even a messianic figure, will restore that greatness and lead the struggling people of America to a promised land. British politics, one hopes, is more sophisticated than this. Nigel Farage was never really taken seriously as a messiah. His beery image, complete with cigarette and blazer, did not quite have the same air of pompous megalomania as the Donald. Trumps grotesque behaviour, his obscene language and histrionics may condemn him to defeat in November. The ideas he represents, however, are likely to survive. In Europe there is growing acknowledgement that the times are out of joint. In Britain, our Prime Minister speaks of a country that works for everyone. Even the high priestess of globalisation, Christine Lagarde, the head of the International Monetary Fund, has spoken of a softer, kinder IMF to address public anger. For Trump and his supporters in America, these may just be pious words. But it is clear that politicians in Europe and the United States will actually have to deliver real policies to prevent populist discontent growing to dangerous levels. People in an exaggerated way have sometimes compared the world today to the 1930s, which W H Auden famously described as a low, dishonest decade. In the same verse, he writes, waves of anger and fear circulate over the bright / And darkened lands of the earth. This is what todays politicians are fighting against. Kwasi Kwarteng is the Conservative MP for Spelthorne T he biting cold weather is finally here thankfully. Because icy days make it legitimate to eat yourself warm: to fill your boots with all kinds of rich, creamy, cheesy fare that will warm your very bones. Eating is so much more fun when it involves double carbs and a mulled chaser. You thoroughly enjoy cultivating that extra layer of blubber. And Londons menus have filled up with food to help you get started. You should start with a Sunday roast. A long, bracing countryside walk followed by a huge plate of roasted meat with a lake of gravy is the distillation of a British winter. But even if all youve achieved by Sunday lunchtime is a crawl from your hangover pit to a pub, thats reason enough to head to the new Dirty Bones in Shoreditch: rather than serving plain old roasted chicken, they fry it in buttermilk, preventing any chance of dried-up breast. Order an extra skillet of mac and cheese to soak up the meaty juices. If (or rather when) you catch the inevitable office cold, there are worse places to fling yourself, face first, than into a stonking bowl of creamy, umami-ish soup. Laksa is the perfect comfort food, says David Tjong of Laksa Kitchen, which is settling into Kentish Towns Tolli Cafe for a winter residency on October 28. Besides traditional Malaysian soups, theres also Assam Laksa, a sour, pungent soup with tamarind and mackerel. Theres also Sambal Shiok at Blend Cafe in Harringay: Mandy Yins silky- rich curried broth has a cult following in London. Its thick and coconut-heavy with an oily, orange slick of spice an unbeatable winter-lurgy killer. For a spicy take on the trad meat and potatoes combo, go to Jikoni and order scrag end pie - the meat is cooked slowly so that it becomes tender and spicy, and topped with a fat layer of mash. Once youve blasted away your cold with spice, youll be able to smell properly the fantastically autumnal, musty musk of in-season black truffles. At Puglian restaurant Ostuni theres a heady truffle menu in which to bury your nose, like the very pigs who snuffled them out. Theres truffled-up braised ox cheek, and buttery olive-leaf pasta scattered wantonly with black Puglian tartufo and dollops of melty burrata. Its like someones cuddling you from the inside. Perfect comfort fare: Laksa / Clerkenwell Boy While youre truffling, head to Le Buns residency at Birthdays specifically for a Le Mac, its nostalgic take on a Big Mac, the godfather of all burgers, according to co-founder Andy Taylor. [Those] flavours of acidic pickle, beef, creamy burger sauce, cheap US cheese and sweet bun they stay with you, he enthuses. Its one of the ultimate tastes of childhood. And whether or not a cheeky Maccy Ds is your Proustian madeleine, a Le Bun will bring you out in the meat sweats, no matter how chilly it is outside. Its a burger of two rare-breed patties, soaked in black-truffle burger sauce, smoked pickles, American cheese, truffle beurre noisette glaze and veal jus. At brunch, try the Truffles n Waffles (waffles with truffled beurre noisette and confit chicken). Putting slow-cooked beef stew and gooey raclette in a bun and adding a dollop of Bearnaise sauce is what The Patate do best. Its a newcomer to KERBs Camden Market and the sloppy deliciousness makes icy winds blowing off Camden Lock bearable. Godfather of burgers: Le Bun Then theres new Italian market, Mercato Metropolitano, home to the focaccia col formaggio di Recco: a thin, crispy melting stracciatella cheese pie. Pizza writer Daniel Young, aka Young and Foodish, says that it elicits uncontrollable cravings even before youve taken a bite. The Poutinerie is another cheesefest its chips weighed down with curd and gravy are sure to warm you up. Over in Borough Market, people brave long queues for cheese toasties from Kappacasein Dairy, while The Lodge in Clapham is transforming into an Alpine Lodge for Jimmy Garcias Apres Ski pop-up. It starts on Friday and will be on until February. Expect fondue and hot cocktails. Youll need them winters coming. @franklymccoy Visit standard.co.uk/restaurants for the latest news and reviews from Londons food scene. Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout A s the French authorities prepare to dismantle the Calais Jungle, Londons restaurateurs and chefs have committed themselves to the cause of refugees, devising fund-raising menus and organising trips to the camp. Now you can get involved. Food Instagrammer Clerkenwell Boys #CookForSyria campaign has organised a (sold-out) feast on October 31, while there will also be supperclubs from restaurants such as Salon next month. In addition, 60 top restaurants will add a dish with a Syrian twist to November menus, with 2 from each one sold going to Unicefs Children of Syria fund. It taps into the frustration people have in feeling helpless in the face of what they see happening in Syria, says Clerkenwell Boy. Special dishes include Syrian beef tartare at Chiltern Firehouse and rice pudding with dates at Jamie Olivers Fifteen. We loved the cause and the people behind it and were keen to get involved as soon as we heard about this initiative, says Karan Gokani, manager at Hoppers in Soho. For its charity special, Gokani took inspiration from a traditional Syrian Christian beef curry and added a Hoppers touch, bringing in our favourite Sri Lankan ingredients. The result is a fantastic-sounding beef brisket kari with Ceylonese stretched roti, walnut, chickpea and pistachio sambol, smoked aubergine and pomegranate raita. Arabica Bar and Kitchen is hosting a Syrian feast on November 27 for #CookForSyria and it is involved with the Soup for Syria campaign 2 from every bowl of its chilled sweetcorn and tahini soup goes to the UN Refugee Agency UNHCR. So far more than 2,000 has been raised. Then theres roaming kitchen Mazi Mas, which cuts out the donations part by hiring female refugees as chefs. You dont have to eat out to get involved. World Vision is supporting Syrian refugee children by encouraging people to carve hearts rather than scary faces into pumpkins and sharing images on social media. Celebrities including the actress Elizabeth McGovern will compete to make the most creative heart and win a prize. You can also text HEART to 70060 to donate 3. Today Matthew Carver and Tayler Groom set off to Calais with a van full of sleeping bags, tents and other camping equipment. Carver makes Londons best cheese toasties from his van The Cheese Truck, while at Grooms Sloshed Sorbets its all about alcoholic slushies. When we heard about the planned demolition of the Jungle we decided we wanted to do something to help, explains Carver. Tents, sleeping bags and the like are in demand. Having just done 26 festivals, our unit is full of unclaimed staff camping equipment so it felt like a natural fit. Carver isnt taking toasties to Calais this time but hopes to help in the future via One Small Something. Visit standard.co.uk/restaurants for the latest news and reviews from Londons food scene. Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout M ixing your drinks is a high-stakes game but mix them with ice cream and it all changes, with sparkling effects. The latest result of this alchemy is sgroppino, combining sorbet, vodka and prosecco. Even the Italians who invented it debate whether this light, sweet concoction is best described as a dessert or a drink. At Artusi in Peckham it acts as a palate cleanser after rich cheese-and-meat based main courses. Sgroppino is a nod to the affogato ice cream drowned in coffee but the fizz peps you up. The name comes from the Venetian verb sgropare, which means to loosen or untie. It does have an unburdening effect. The prosecco and ice cream are standard but you can play with sgroppino. At The Bulgari it is mixed with gin and bergamot sorbet. Polpo has an Aperol-based take on the dessert. Owner Russell Norman says: It looks fantastic, glow-in-the-dark bright orange, and it covers the Italian tradition of agrodolce bitter and sweet at the same time. Those in the know ask for Aperol Sorbet corretto. This means corrected and the way you correct sorbet is, of course, by adding an extra shot of Aperol. Perky. The best bars in London 1 /64 The best bars in London Scarfes Bar at Rosewood London 252 High Holborn, WC1V 7EN, rosewoodhotels.com/london The Rosewood is doubly wonderful for drinkers, as theyve two fine spots. In the modern Dining Room, sit at the gin bar, which outstocks anywhere else in London, with more than 400 gins and 27 tonics. Trying to choose is impossible, but what a lovely impossibility to have. The bar staff clearly had one hell of a tasting session as they know the list perfectly. Across the way is Scarfes Bar, a brilliant, brilliant bar gladly shaken free from all the stuffiness usually found in hotel bars. The drinks are stunning, theyve often live music, it gets wonderfully busy and crackles with laughter. Go a little later and its busier, people drink more, everything is better. Bar Americain 20 Sherwood St, W1F 7ED, brasseriezedel.com As the name suggests, this is a classic American bar, and done near perfectly. One can become very fond of Bar Americain and very quickly: passing through Piccadilly Circus, it acts as a magnet a quick negroni becomes a temptation impossible to resist. Its a very beautiful place, calling to mind grand Parisian hotels of the 20s and 30s, bottles winking from the bar, staff floating through with their finery and litres of charm. Youre here to drink the classics: theyve a killer Clover Club and a straight-down-the-line Manhattan. But ask: the bartenders know their stuff and bring their A-game to any challenge tell them what you like, and theyll bring you something new. They often have specials on, as well. Top marks for the attentive staff, bringing plenty of water and bowl after bowl of popcorn both essential after a few here. Oriole Smithfield Markets, E Poultry Ave, EC1A 9LH, oriolebar.com The team behind Nightjar took their winning formula, gave it a bit of a shake up and created Oriole. Theyve live music throughout the week from Wednesday to Saturday, theres a charge per person, so watch out for that which gives any night here a bit of zip. This is a strictly seated spot, so be sure to book: once inside, its a whirlwind tour of the world, with fine details from across the globe, both in the styling and the drinks and so much cheaper than booking a holiday. Drinks are excellent, whether youre into New Orleans style classics or something from the depths of Asia: explore the menu (split into Old World, New World and The Orient) and expect something unusual and faintly brilliant, with a touch of the Tiki. Put it this way: Oriole is ideal whether you prefer drinking from a crystal tumbler, a teacup or, er, a silver crocodile. Piano Works 113-117 Farringdon Road, Farringdon EC1R 3BX, pianoworks.bar Full credit to this fun Farringdon spot: theyve worked hard to make the place better and better since opening, which is pretty good going for what was already a decent spot to begin with. The Piano Works sounds like a quiet jazz bar but instead is a hell-raising house of sound, splendidly raucous, where a house band take requests and belt out your favourite songs. The more you get involved, the more fun it is, and the place heats up the later it gets. Wine starts at 16, house cocktails are 8, but they've tons of terrific deals during the week including cocktails for a fiver (!!) Drink lots, dance lots and leave in the early hours with someone you shouldnt do. Thats what we did. Hawksmoor, Spitalfields 157A Commercial St, E1 6BJ, thehawksmoor.com Its hardly surprising the bar snacks are a highlight here have the oxcheek nuggets with a side of chips, then call the waiter over to order them over again given how good the steak upstairs is. The drinks and setting, though, match them pound for pound. The old tube tiles on the walls, the beautiful parquet floor, the copper tops and silvery black ceiling make the large space a place to settle in for the night no matter your seat, while the cocktails come with oodles of thought in each one: the new menu has homemade bitters, shrubs and syrups, and its bloody obvious everyone behind the bar is more than a little nerdy about building drinks. Shaky Petes Ginger Brew is the classic, so have it, but follow up with the Shadow Boxer, a mix of scotch, sherry and Fernet-Branca. Odd, oddly delicious. Its also a cracking place to sit for a bottle of wine. Andrew Edmunds 46 Lexington St, W1F 0LP, andrewedmunds.com Perhaps better than its ever been, Andrew Edmunds recently won The Good Drinking prize in our Restaurant Awards, and for good reason. Its a small spot, cramped to the point that coming here on a first date feels like youre being very forward indeed , with the best tables upstairs and not much to look at just settle for being distracted by someone beautiful. The food, French-ish/English-ish, is fine, but its the wine that's extraordinary. And youre here for wine: forget cocktails, they have. What a list, and so quietly marked up that youre getting a steal with almost every bottle indeed, the more expensive the better the deal. Having been going 30 years, those who knew old Soho say its one of the last bastion of such things. Drink too much gorgeous wine and come back often. The Connaught Bar Connaught, Carlos Place, W1K 2AL, the-connaught.co.uk A bar for the impossibly beautiful, a bar of high heels and glimmering lights, of perfume and leather. Aside from oddly thumping music, the Connaught is wonderfully detached from the world a place of its own, cosy and winter warm when it needs to be, light and summer when desired. The drinks, naturally pricey, are well put together and while classic in tone, come with crackles of theatre: washes in perfume bottles, branches as garnishes, smoke, the lot. Still, the martini trolley is what theyre famed for, so its only right to indulge. Afterward, head to the Champagne Room: sadly the law stops it being the cigar haven it once was, but it's still gorgeous: romantic and charming with its fireplace, dramatic with its glass ceiling and sculpture swan diving. Treat yourself to the Ruinart blanc de blanc. Damned good olives, too. Milk & Honey 61 Poland St, W1F 7NU, mlkhny.com You know a bar is good when local bartenders love it, and Milk & Honey has long been a Soho favourite for those in the know. Hidden in plain sight this terrific bar has been doing its thing for just shy of 15 years. The talent hasnt diminished, and neither has the care put into the drinks. Cocktails are strong and proper and happily, they're updating the list soon to freshen things up. At around 10 a drink, M&H is also a bargain for central London, and the quality outstrips the price. It functions as a members bar, but non-members can book up until 11pm though going earlier in the week means youre more likely to score a table. Milk & Honey is civilised, without the crushing formality. Next door is the Blind Pig, another top 'hidden' spot. Mark's Bar HIX Soho, 66- 70 Brewer St, W1F 9UP, hixrestaurants.co.uk The bad: you might not get in. If its busy, they dont squeeze people into this basement, so either be there early, or bamboozle them with charm, or dazzle them with your brilliant wit. Were kidding: just take someone hot. The good: pretty much everything else. Naturally, the bar snacks are distractingly tasty, but the drinks list is excellent, and unusual too, with a few historical recipes brought back to life. Attention to detail is everything here, so if youre not sharing one of the big old Chesterfields, head to the bar and sit and watch theres something about it thats like seeing a cardmaster turn tricks. And have a Hix Fix, just to say you have. The Beaufort bar and the American Bar at The Savoy The Savoy, Strand, WC2R 0EU, fairmont.com Glitz, glamour and lots of gold: both Savoy bars are wonderfully opulent. The world-famous American bar, recently revamped, is still up there as one of the best bars on our humble planet. The bartenders bible, Harry Craddocks The Savoy Cocktail Book, was written here, and the cocktails served today remain as finely tuned as they ever were. Whereas as other bars try to recreate the glamour of such places, The Savoy neednt pretend: everything is genuine. The palatial Beaufort is absurdly romantic, and drinks are extravagantly presented: it works for the most special of special occasions, and theres something undeniably grand about sipping away in the same place Frank Sinatra, Marlene Dietrich, Coco Chanel and Ernest Hemingway all did. If youre planning a few drinks, either be rich or take someone rich seriously. Artesian 1C Portland Pl, W1B 1JA, artesian-bar.co.uk Artesian won its accolades for its team, Alex Kratena and Simone Caporale, who ran the place for eight years and earned its reputation as the best bar in the world. Theyve sadly departed, but have left the place in capable hands, and the feel is much the same as it ever was, which is chic, glamorous, and not taking itself too seriously. While the beautiful and the rich rub shoulders, the bartenders are mixing up excellent but often slightly silly drinks but its their mischievousness that makes them so winning. Seriously impressive. Les Compagnie Des Vins Surnaturels 8-10 Neal's Yard, WC2H 9DP, cvssevendials.com Call it CVS and your night becomes considerably easier to pronounce. Sat in Neils Yard, it is one of Londons finest wine bars. Thoroughly French, of course: New World wines barely get a sideways glance, while even Italys finest is only begrudgingly given a little space on the considerable menu. This doesn't mean there is a lack of choice to the contrary, it is almost overwhelming, though they have a short by-the-glass list, and the charming staff are both well informed and passionate about what to have. In the summer, sit outdoors, in the winter, cosy up by the bar. Wherever you are, try the mystery wine; if you guess it, youll win a bottle. Have food small plates made to share, and terrifically good and drink plenty, so the bill doesnt hit as hard. The Shrub & Shutter 336 Coldharbour Ln, SW9 8QH, theshrubandshutter.com This Brixton bar felt new in the area, taking a little of east London and bringing it down south. Theyve a pleasingly patchwork approach to decor: there are jars and bottles and shakers everywhere, which gives the place a kitchen feel. The cocktails, lovely to drink on their own, are made better with the food, which is designed to match what youre drinking. The pairings initially sound a little gimmicky crayfish with vodka, venison on the side of The Deerhunter (an old fashioned, basically) but they work, so drop that sceptical streak for a moment. It gets busy, so book up, get in early, and stay late. Theyve a license until 3am, so itd be rude not to. Sky Pod at the Sky Garden 1 Sky Garden Walk, EC3M 8AF, skygarden.london The truth of it is, you come for the view, but good God it's a great view, and 360-degrees at that. Up 35 floors, if you can think of a London icon, you can probably see it. When the weather's good, get outside for some fresh air. With completely free entry and minimal security fuss, its worth making a reservation, though if youre ok to queue, theyll have you in. Cocktails arent torturously expensive, at around 11.50, and are very enjoyable the cognac-chocolate-caramel-port mix that is Black and Gold is particularly good so it doesn't feel like they're relying on the sights. Theres a sense of special occasion, and all the more so with live music on Thursday, Friday and Saturdays. Theyre hoping for jazz on Wednesdays, too. If youre tempted to eat, Fenchurch and the Darwin Brasserie are well worth trying Fenchurch is particularly good for veggies. The Gilbert Scott St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, Euston Rd, NW1 2AR, thegilbertscott.co.uk Given the golden hue here, where luxury hangs in the air like perfume, its remarkable that wine starts at as little as 5 a glass. Wine is its strong point, and likeable head sommelier Joris Beijn is a man worth knowing: he is passionate about his list, knowledgeable and accommodating. The bar is flexible, in that it is by turns ideal for a date, or a catch up with old friends, or a pre/post dinner drinks. The room is a stunner: high painted ceilings, dramatic red walls, great big bells as art, marble bar top and crystal glasses catching the light. Cocktails come in at around 14, and err on the light side: lots of gin and floral concoctions. The restaurant, next door, isnt to be missed, either, just be prepared to get an Uber home: invariably, youll stretch and tease out the evening to stay just a little longer. Gerry's Club 52 Dean Street, W1D 5BJ, gerrysclub.com A word of warning: this is technically a member's club, but you'll probably be fine if you flirt enough and don't ask for Gerry, he's long since passed. Michael looks after this place now. We've only been once very late, very drunk and with very good friends. Most old-school Soho drinking dens are dead, but this hub of actors and writers is what remains of 'Old Soho'. If you're boring, steer clear: it is a place to drink wine and beer and tell stories, to laugh uproariously and to give yourself a monumental hangover in a faintly discreet way. 68 and Boston 4-5 Greek St, Soho, W1D 4DD, 68andboston.com Boston, the bar upstairs, looks like glamorous train carriage from the golden age of cocktails but plays it a little bit safe. Wine bar 68, downstairs, is the real gem, with a wonderful way of pricing: every bottle on the list is 20, so choose what you like, not what you can afford. Better yet, if you don't fancy a bottle, they're served by the carafe (14) or glass (5.50). Wines are well picked and Denise Medrano, wine blogger and lover found behind the bar, is always working to update the list so go back to try something new. Youll probably end up getting drunk here: the pull of another bottle at just 20 is monumentally hard to resist, but hey, thats what Soho is for. If you fancy drinking something more upscale, ask theyve a few hidden wines kept hidden away for those in the know. Thats you, now. The Pink Chihuahua at El Camion 25-27 Brewer St, W1F 0RR, elcamion.co.uk Forget house infusions and drinks that take half an hour to make: sometimes a good night needs tequila and dancing. The Pink Chihuahua is built for it: theyre providing the tequila more than 300 different types of it, in fact youre there to drink it down and dance it up. Theyve all sorts of twists on Margaritas and Daiquiris, and, given youre downstairs from Mexican restaurant El Camion, plenty of bar food to indulge in too. Lots of fun, and if youre feeling more in the mood just to sit back and sip something slowly, ask about their choice of Mezcal. There's real talent here, but fun too. The Gibson 44 Old St, EC1V 9AQ, thegibsonbar.london Given the dearth of decent cocktails in Farringdon, the tiny Gibson is a God-send. Its a parlour pitched somewhere between Edwardian and Art Deco, and drinks arent simply poured here, theyre tended to, built, thought about, adored. All unsurprising, really, given the team learnt their trade at the likes of Nightjar and The Connaught. This place is doing more creatively to push bartending forward than any bar that's opened up in a while, so ask the team for recommendations and youll be presented with something magic. Youll need to ask, actually, as the menu is a novel and theres the risk of wasting the evening reading instead of drinking, and that simply wouldnt do at all. Peg+Patriot Patriot Square, E2 9NF, talentedmrfox.com The Talented Mr Fox, Matt Whiley, offers is a nice blend of things here: while the menu takes a sophisticated trip around London, with each cocktail a column of flavour, some managing chameleonic taste all within the space of a sip, the actual bar is surprisingly spare and understated. The effect is such that while drinks are upmarket, one doesnt feel obliged to sit demurely to enjoy them. Relax, have a few you might want to, as the serves arent huge. It should be said that these cocktails are among Londons most interesting, rather than Londons best: they are talking points, oddities, they put flavours together in a way that isnt available elsewhere. If youre big on trying new things, different experiences, seeing what a cocktail can do, come, its a must. If its just something reliably delicious you fancy, elsewhere may be better. Worship Street Whistling Shop 63 Worship St, EC2A 2DU, whistlingshop.com One presumes the staff here have night vision, otherwise its a complete and utter mystery how they see customers, let alone their ingredients. Still, they must do, for the output is pretty much excellent through and through at this dark spot. Its Victorian-inspired, which sounds tired and not a little tacky, but the gang from Purl have done it properly. Drinks are busy lots of fusions, blends, gasses and pressure and all sorts so its appropriate they come out of a lab. Still, all this engineering seems to be worth it, as the drinks slip down easily, the alcohol often hidden away. Make sure to take a seat in the Dram Shop, and pop in to the Gin Closet too, which operates as an honesty bar. Kansas Smitty's 63-65 Broadway Market, E8 4PH, kansassmittys.com Below bar Off Broadway a long way off, its Mexican sits this glorious den of jazz and juleps. It is a speakeasy for 2016: that is to say, it has none of the contrived mannerisms of bars which proclaim to be speakeasies, it just happens to actually be one: youll need to knock to get in, the music raves loud and hot, and the place is so crowded strangers become family after a drink or two. The house band, for which the place is named, have envy-inducing talent, and the bar has fairly recently overhauled its drinks list, and the results are good. Youll be absorbed by the music, and stay afterwards to ride the buzz of the crowd. GONG 52, Shangri-La Hotel, the Shard, SE1 9QU, .gong-shangri-la.com Gong is in the Shard, so youre there for the view alone. View it certainly does: at 52 floors up, its by far Londons highest spot to drink: consequently, sipping on a martini, one feels a little like a Bond villain pondering all thats below. Its not a huge bar, but that somewhat adds to the sense of exclusivity. Prices are, naturally, sky high: expect to pay at least 18. The drinks have plenty about them to compete with the view: presentation is everything. Theyve not skipped on the spirits making the mix, either: expect the likes of Zacapa 23 rum (heavenly stuff), Talisker scotch and Tanqueray 10 for the gin. All top drawer stuff. If this all sounds a bit intimidating, bear in mind they operate a no reservations policy, so youve as good a chance of getting in as anyone else. Mr Fogg's Salon 58 St Martin's Lane, Theatreland, WC2N 4EA, mr-foggs.com Downstairs is a pretty decent pub, busy from theatreland. Upstairs, the salon is quieter, but only a little. The walls are a glittering ballgown of 19th century curiosities, unsubtle nonsense winking away. Head to a chaise longues with a couple of friends or a date and take in something from each one of the five acts which split the menu. Drinks seem to smell especially good here, rich, relying heavily on the likes of rum, cognac and sherry. Gin lovers need not despair: theyve a room with 300 different types next door. Come elegantly dressed. Bar Termini 7 Old Compton St, W1D 5JE, bar-termini.com Do Bar Termini right and youll love it: do it wrong, and you may be underwhelmed. Tony Conigliaro, cocktail chap par excellence, and coffee maestro Marco Arrigo have built a revolving-door of a place: dont come here to linger. Expect a night of cocktails and youll leave disappointed: instead, love it in the day for the 1 espressos, and swing by in the evening for a negroni (6). Theyre small, but some of the best in the capital. One swishes in and out here, and that way, it adds a touch of Italian glamour to any evening. Trisha's (New Evaristo Club) 57 Greek St, Soho, W1D 3DX Drinks dont make a bar, and thank goodness, as the stuff served at Trishas named for its owner is uniformly pretty awful: red and white wine youd consider an insult if a friend served it at supper, prosecco wildly overpriced, terrible spirits ecetera ecetera. At more than 70, the club is Sohos oldest, and while nobody who goes there can ever remember anything changing its often quite hard to recall much about Trishas in crystal detail, as it happens nothing needs to. The bad wine and expensive mixers and paint stripper spirits are all part of the point: its a glorious drinking den, and marvellous, marvellous fun. There are characters here: the last time we were in, we sat being scared witless by an old East End gangster who said hes known the Krays. Tremendous. Long may this place live. The Fumoir Claridge's, 49 Brook St, W1K 4HR, claridges.co.uk The Fumoir will confuse you, as youll be torn between shouting about it and keeping it all to yourself. This plush purple and leather spot, deco decadence with a touch of welcome pomp, is hidden away behind a secret door at Claridges. Tiny and glitzy enough to feel like a Hollywood dressing room from the Golden Age, its little surprise the likes of Christina Hendricks adore it. For such a small place, they squeeze an awful lot in: plenty of wines, classic cocktails given a stern shake up, buckets of gin, a lovely choice of armagnac and a magnificent scotch list, gleaming with rarities. 69 Colebrooke Row 69 Colebrooke Row, N1 8AA, 69colebrookerow.com Once known as the bar with no name, henceforth they shall be called the bar with Bernards watch, as there is no other explanation for the speed with which their finely mixed cocktails arrive. Another bar from Tony Conigliaro, its earned its reputation for turning out hit after hit: the drinks list is endlessly tempting. The piano is a nice touch; that is gets played a much nicer one, and make sure to order the Prairie Oyster fun to drink, and one even for those who cant eat seafood. Bear in mind its a small spot, so youre close to your neighbours, and if you dont like strong drinks where the booze kicks, this wont be for you. Happiness Forgets 8-9 Hoxton Square, N1 6NU, happinessforgets.com Dont expect frills and fuss or the rest of it here: Happiness Forgets is cocktail bar distilled down to its very essence, and done very well their tag High End Cocktails/Low End Rent sums it up best. The bartenders are all top drawer, and their creations impeccable. Unsurprisingly, this Hoxton space has its regulars, so the crowd is always good. Tables can be booked, but half are always kept for walk-ins: try your luck, its worth it. Dry Martini by Javier de las Muelas Melia White House Hotel, Albany Street, NW1 3UP, melia.com Come to this one to brag: Dry Martini is known as Barcelonas best cocktail bar, and has been rated the fifth best bar in the world by the Worlds 50 Best Bars panel. Renowned bartender Javier de las Muelas has bought over his concept to us lucky Londoners, and with it, finely mixed and classic cocktails. No prizes for guessing that the Dry Martini is the house special if you dont think you like them, heres a place to change your mind. With more than 80 gins on the list, you could easily lose a week here. Gordon's 47 Villiers St, WC2N 6NE, gordonswinebar.com Gordons seems to get more and more crowded with each passing day, but perhaps rightly so: the beloved Embankment institution is made for knocking back bottles of wine in. Eat a few cold bites and chat into a long, unwinding evening. The wine list is good enough, but youre really here for the atmosphere: in summer, the terrace, buzzing, in winter, the caves indoors, crammed with noise, spilt wine, and joy. Social bar at City Social 25 Old Broad St, EC2N 1HQ, citysociallondon.com Youd think youre at City Social, up 24 stories of Tower 42, to eat, but if you stop in the bar, theres a good chance you wont make it to your table. The drinks come as something of a surprise: theyre so much better than one expects from a restaurant bar, inventive, put together carefully but not staidly, retaining a sense of fun. And, crucially, damned tasty. Its a dark room, and full of city types, but perfect for a few late night cocktails soaking up the view, which is really quite wonderful. Bloody pricey, but thats part of it. Ladies and Gentlemen 2 Highgate Rd, NW5 1NR, twitter.com William Borrells bolthole transcends its gimmick (which, if you hadnt guessed, is that its a converted public loo), with the help of some very handy bartenders, and its house-brewed gin, Highwayman, of which twelve bottles a day get distilled. Ladies & Gents manages well as a place for a quiet drink, or better yet, a place to quietly get roaringly drunk. Convenient indeed. The drinks are strong, very interesting, and theres plenty of odd sods on the wall to keep your conversation up. It maintains a veneer of being somewhere faintly upmarket, but youll probably end up reading from one of the books scattered around or trying to dance to the live music. Perfect for a date that gets out of hand. Bull In A China Shop 196 Shoreditch High Street, E1 6LG, bullinachinashop.london Truth it, youll need to catch this place on a good night, as weve been in often enough to know it has its good nights and its meh nights. But when the place is on, its really cooking, and easily one of the best bars in town. The cocktail list is short, but thought through, and care is taken in even the small things: they even make sure the water glasses are chilled. The chamomile and charcoal Old-Fashioned is a must, and any whisky lovers should get chatting to the bar staff, as theyve bottles which arent available anywhere else in the capital. Sager + Wilde Arch, 250 Paradise Row, E2 9LE, sagerandwilde.com Wine lovers rejoice, wine bores look elsewhere. Sager + Wilde admirably keep things unpretentious: the exposed brickwork sets the tone: theyre keeping things low key. The specials list changes regularly, and always with interesting choices introduced. Some of the wines are exclusive to this place, so youre all but guaranteed to try something new. Have a SHE + T (sherry with tonic, delicious), and absolutely do not leave without having the grilled cheese sandwich. 7 Tales at Sosharu 64 Turnmill St, EC1M 5RR, sosharulondon.com Underneath Jason Athertons Sosharu is this sexy, seedy Japanese drinking den, where youll find the hazy, debauched glamour of Tokyo after dark. Unlike so many bars underneath restaurants, 7 Tales doesnt feel like a holding pen, and drinks are precision made, with flavours leaning beyond the usual think rice-washed gin, sake, infusions of sesame, snacks like tempura. Bar snacks are an irresistible must. Callooh Callay 65 Rivington St, EC2A 3AY, calloohcallaybar.com Eccentric doesnt seem to quite cover it: enter the surreal world of Callooh Callay through an old Victorian wardrobe, catch sight of a throne and order punch out of a gramophone from a menu thats more of a sticker book. It sounds a bit ridiculous, but the bartenders really know their stuff, so for all the quirks, drinks are fundamentally pretty excellent. On the weekends, its a party bar, and DJs spin music to match: youre here for a good time. Any detectives in your gang will find there are two extra rooms in Callooh Callay to explore theyre hidden away, too, naturally. If youre good, you might even get an invite upstairs to the Jub Jub Room, where the 10-long cocktail list changes every three weeks. Fans should also head to their new offering in Angel, Little Bat. Dukes Bar Dukes Hotel, 35 St James's Pl, SW1A 1NY, dukeshotel.com Dukes is known for one reason: martinis. The St Jamess hotel was a favourite haunt of James Bond author and (very) keen drinker, Ian Fleming, who supposedly came up with the shaken, not stirred line here. Their martinis are exceptionally strong, and very large: theres a reason they wont serve you more than two. But look, break the mould: theyre a classic hotel bar, they serve a fine range of classic cocktails. Theres also a cognac and cigar garden, if youre so inclined. NOLA 1st Floor, 68 Rivington Street, EC2A 3AY, nola-london.com It would be too easy to miss this place, so do your homework and saunter in: its must more attractive than sweatily asking anyone if theyve seen the place. Drawing inspiration from the home of proper cocktails, New Orleans, the bar loves traditional drinks, builds them properly and serves them in a den of music and laughter. Unlike some places specialising in old school serves, NOLA is a place for fun: sure, it seems to say, you could have a quiet drink but why would you want to? Theres a cracking cigar terrace too, small enough that everyone talks before heading back in for one hell of a Vieux Carre. Call Me Mr Lucky 11 Southwark St, SE1 1RQ, twitter.com All the hidden bars at the Breakfast Clubs around the capital are popular, with perhaps The Mayor of Scaredy Cat Town being the best known. Call Me Mr Lucky, on Southwark Street, happens to be our favourite. Once youve flirted with the staff ask to get lucky youre taken through the restaurants kitchens to a lively bar decorated like some twisted take on a kids party. Have a go on the wheel of fortune, where youll really want to get lucky, and win a free shot, and then work your way through the cocktail list. Like any good-time bar worth its salt, this place is big on tequila, and the drinks are light-hearted fun, but here we go getting lucky again along with the quirks comes quality. By the of the evening, before youre porured back onto the street, youll swear tequila is your new favourite drink, and youll be singing the party hits they play all the way home. K Bar at The Kensington 109 - 113 Queen's Gate, SW7 5LP, townhousekensington.com K bar feels majestic and there is no other word for it because drinking here is a little like being in the captains quarters of the Titanic, albeit without the sinking feeling. There is glamour here: a kind of place to be seduced in. Cocktails wise, bar manager Ben Manchester is the man to ask for, but theres a fine list to choose from. It avoids stuffiness, and just needs to be packed out to really get cooking. Nightjar 129 City Rd, EC1V 1JB, barnightjar.com Nightjar has fame which means writing about it is redundant: people think it marvellously good, and theyve live music most of the week. Its seating only and worth booking: just be sure not to cancel, or theyll charge a steep 10 per person. They do the speakeasy theme, but well enough that it isnt too tired yet, and have plenty of old school style on the list. Pick up a pack of cards from the bar on your way out. Reverend J W Simpson 32 Goodge St, W1T 2QJ, revjwsimpson.com Bourne and Hollingsworth run this rather lovely little bar, downstairs from a small doorway on Goodge St. Service is friendly and speedy, it's comfortable, and drinks more than hold their own there's both obscure traditional mixes and modern serves made with fresh, seasonal ingredients. Luckily, with good drinks come good people, and it's a loud, happy place. Albertine 1 Wood Ln, W12 7DP, albertinewinebar.co.uk Albertine hasnt changed much since the day East Enders was commissioned there. A wine bar through and through, youll struggle to get anything else (though there are a couple of ales on the menu.) Its a place with spirit, which draws a regular, devoted crowd. They sell everything they serve, and its well worth splashing out: the mark-up gets less and less as the bottles get more expensive, meaning you can get an absolute bargain at the top end of the list. Its also the kind of wine bar you go to to overindulge. First Aid Box 119 Dulwich Rd, SE24 0NG, firstaidbox2015.com This place really is worth travelling to Herne Hill to, which must be saying something. The team behind Shrub & Shutter have thickly laid on the pharmacy theme here, with cure-all drinks. Its not an idea which sounds like it should work, and yet, how much better life would be if they were one of the emergency services. Expect saline drips, syringes, and the likes of plastic lungs their take on thirst aid but rest assured, flavours arent medicinal in the slightest. At 8 - 10 a drink, its reasonable for London, and wonderful to see a bar really trying something new. Bravo. Media Wisdom Photography - Giles Christopher Nam Long Le Shaker 159 Old Brompton Rd, SW5 0LJ, namlong.co.uk It gained fame for its celebrity fans, which include Mick Jagger and Prince Harry, but Nam Long has held on longer than most A-list haunts: its been going 30 years, and recently was given an overhaul. Its quite possibly the most Chelsea place imaginable there are literally MIC cast members floating about and its a go-to spot to drink far too much and party. The upstairs area is bright, airy, and well looked after by the excellent bartenders, while downstairs "the Opium Den" is as it sounds (though there was no opium available when we asked... ) The drinks upstairs were made with more care, but downstairs is more intimate, opulent, and better for a small groups. Some of those Chelsea types who go really are the very worst, and the drinks are outrageously expensive, but hey, its a laugh. The Vault at Milroy's 3 Greek St, Soho, W1D 4NX, shop.milroys.co.uk A bar through a bookcase: were sold. Better yet, its underneath one of Sohos finest whisky shops with stiff competition from The Vintage House so if youre taken with something downstairs, buy it on your way out. Its a simple little bar and the service is decidedly so-so, but its usually pretty busy, they play good music and have an excellent range of spirits. The menu is changed regularly, but its a good place to cram into with friends or on a date. You mightnt spend the entire night here, but for a couple of drinks on the way somewhere, or on the way back, it fits the bill perfectly. Bounce 241 Old St, EC1V 9EY, bouncepingpong.com There are two Bounce bars, one on Old Street and one on Holborn. The Old Street spot is a little more fun, graffiti adorning the walls,the Holborn spot somewhat more upmarket. Still, they both deserve a mention, and for the simple reason theyre damned good fun. Drinks here are good, with a decent spirit selection at both (and a huge number of gins in Farringdon) and a respectable selection of beers. Food is fine, simple. Still, you come to play ping pong. Theyve tables everywhere. Theres little to fault with Bounce: its a laugh, and sometimes thats all somewhere needs to be. Visit standard.co.uk/restaurants for the latest news and reviews from Londons food scene. @susannahbutter Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout I ts tempting to think about human emotions as universal. If the joy, grief, or jealousy we experience today is the same as that felt by those living on the other side of the world, or by people hundreds of years ago, then cultural and historical distance becomes less significant; inner life less dauntingly complex. From Descartes, to Darwin, to Pixars Inside Out (2015), the idea that we have basic emotions continues to offer a satisfyingly neat account of a mystifying subject. Usually we are given around six to play with: anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise. These emotions, we are told, have been felt in the same way by all people throughout time, because they are biological responses to age-old human problems. But what if its not that simple? What if the way we experience emotion is constantly changing, infinitely vulnerable to the shifting preoccupations and values of our cultures? To explore this idea, Ladybeard spoke to Dr. Elsa Richardson, from The Queen Mary Centre for The History of Emotions, about the ways in which our most private emotional experiences are socially constructed, and how everything from government policy, to gender roles, to the economy, is shaping the way we feel. You work with the first UK research centre dedicated to the history of emotions. How can emotions have histories? The word emotion itself didnt come into common usage until the 1830s. Before that, people described their passions, affectations, appetites, sentiments, or humours. It is possible to argue that human feelings have remained the same through time and only our means of expressing them has changed, but I would argue that the tools we have to describe our feelings the theoretical categories, imaginative descriptions, and cultural images that are made available to us effectively shape the way we experience the feelings themselves. If you believe, like the Greeks and Romans did, that the black bile of the liver is the cause of sadness that changes the way you feel that sadness. The meaning that individuals ascribe to their own emotional experience helps to create that experience. What is an example of an emotion that has changed over time or across cultures? Happiness has changed in interesting ways. As my colleague Tiffany Watt Smith writes in The Book of Human Emotions(2015) , in the 16th century, authors of self-help books were encouraging people to be sad. Today, happiness is seen as the most important life goal. Governments and psychologists have developed ways to measure and quantify happiness in the population, and theres a whole industry built around creating it. Happiness has always been considered a fleeting emotion, but the idea that we can actually engineer it is new. Whats particularly significant is the way that happiness has become bound up with the drive for success. So that one cannot simply be happy, one must put that happiness to work to achieve goals and thus become even happier. We have really limited the scope of what happiness might be, by binding it so closely to the idea of success and material gain. By entangling the idea of happiness with measures of health and achievement, I fear that we have transformed the feeling into another kind of work. Best books on mindfulness 1 /14 Best books on mindfulness Find your inner peace with our pick of the best mindfulness and meditation books... Mindfulness: a practical guide to finding peace in a frantic world This bestseller will get you in the right frame of mind for 2016. Based on Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) a successful form of brief meditation this book's success relies on the way in which authors Mark Williams and Danny Penman optimistically focus on adding joy to your life as opposed to ridding it of unhappiness. 10.50, Amazon, Buy it now Anti-Stress Dot-to-Dot Always thought that dot-to-dots were an activity for children? Apprently you're wrong be wrong the pictures in this book, featuring elegant buildings and nature scenes, will relax and focus your mind in a way you never thought a dot-to-dot book could. 5, Amazon, Buy it now I Am Here Now This will help enhance both your observation and creativity; with an audio track (featuring musings from mindfulness teacher Tara Brach) and a field notes page for recording purposes, I Am Here Now will enable your thoughts and emotions to take on a new lease of life. 7, Amazon, Buy it now The Mindful Workplace What better time to deploy the theories of mindfulness than at work? This book, filled with Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) techniques, provides an eight-week training course to keep your workplace attitude at its peak. 30.50, Amazon, Buy it now Get some headspace This book from Andy Puddicombe, founder of popular digital health platform Headspace, attempts to get people to take ten minutes out of their day for meditation purposes. Once the technique's been learned, these skills will stay with you for the rest of your life. 10, Amazon, Buy it now The Mindfulness Colouring Book Much like the dot-to-dot book above, this pocket-sized adult colouring book is the perfect activity for a 10-minute breather. Consider your stress and anxiety soothed. 4, Amazon, Buy it now The Little Book of Mindfulness In this day and age, it's more important to be in the moment than ever this book will help you with that. From Dr Patrizia Collard, these brief practices will rid your day of stress and have you feeling more optimistic. 4, Amazon, Buy it now Body Calm The saying mind over matter derives from the idea that our minds have the power to control our bodies if we really want them to. Equally, mental stress can have a damaging effect on our bodies. Newbigging teaches us a new self-healing meditation technique to help keep our bodies healthy and to understand the source of common stress and anxiety triggers. 11, Amazon, Buy it now The Power of Now The Power of Now has become one of the most famous mindfulness books out there. Helping us to tap into our innermost Being, Tolle guides us through various techniques to help us understand that the present moment is all that really matters. 8, Amazon, Buy it now A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled An ambassador for mental health awareness, Ruby Wax OBE has helped to make mindfulness accessible to all. Having suffered from depression herself, in this book she explores how modern living is causing us more stress and anxiety than ever as we know and see too much. Included are mindfulness exercises and tips for everyone from babies to adults; all with sound underlying scientific reasoning. 4, Amazon, Buy it now If culture determines what and how an individual feels, do our emotional repertoires differ across continents? What emotions are we missing because they are not valued by British society? Different languages contain different emotional vocabularies. In Japan there is a word, amae, which means the feeling of dependence on another person a family member, a lover, a friend and the knowledge that your needs will be met unconditionally by that person. Anthropologists have argued that amae is a key example of the way that our emotions are socially constructed: in Japans more collectivist culture, absolute trust in other members of the group is necessary in a way that it is not in more individualistic environments. That we dont have a word for amae in the English language might give us insight into what emotions are made possible within a given society. Does the fact that we have no equivalent reveal something about our attitude to gratitude or our privileging of self-sufficiency? Are there any striking examples of governments attempting to shape or control peoples emotions? My feeling is that we should be very wary of the ways that powerful institutions and governmental bodies can place particular emotions in the service of dominant ideology. Envy is an interesting example. Where jealousy is usually defined in terms of interpersonal relationships, envy is associated with the desire for someone elses material possessions. What is interesting is the way that envy has also served a political purpose: by dismissing complaints regarding wealth disparity as simply manifestations of a negative emotion, it is possible to discredit the quite legitimate grievances of the marginalised. When someone from a low-income background expresses anger at the ostentatious wealth of a city banker, say, it is easy to diffuse the political power of that righteous anger by reclassifying it as, simply, envy. Being overly emotional is something that is associated with women; if a man is emotional he is labelled effeminate. Why are there different emotional expectations for different genders? What I love about looking at the history of emotions is that it forces us to test assumptions about what is universal, constant, and pre-determined about our emotional experiences. This is particularly useful in relation to the question of how gender determines feeling. The assumption that women are more feeling than men is based on the division between rationality and emotionality, and the privileging of the former as a route to power, success, and dominance. Aligning women with the realm of the emotions has served as a highly effective way of excluding them from public discourse and action. Courage, for instance, has been predominantly thought of as a masculine virtue (at least since the time of the Ancient Greeks): to be courageous is to be manful but it also to reject the urge to be girlish, which is code for afraid. Conversely, emotional comfort has primarily been associated with women, and especially with the kind of maternal care that they are often asked to perform. Im not saying that either courage or comfort is naturally superior to the other, but its worth noting that we build monuments to the former and not to the latter. At the Wellcome Collections Feeling Emotional event in February 2016, Susie Orbach spoke about a period in her life in which she went on emotional strike. Does our culture raise women to act as conduits for the men in their lives? If so, how? Women are asked to take on the bulk of what has been described as emotional labour: we are still the primary caregivers in the home, and in the workplace we are expected to placate and please our male colleagues. This unfair division of labour is upheld by a flawed essentialist understanding of women as somehow naturally more emotionally attuned to the needs and sensitivities of others. What is especially interesting about Orbachs threat to go on emotional strike, is that this brings the language of industrial relations to bear on how we balance or manage our feelings at home. In doing so, she invites us to think about how emotions might be a kind of work in and of themselves a hidden and unpaid labour that falls disproportionately to women. Is social media changing the way we feel emotions? The kind of affective networks that social media facilitates suggest that they may be reshaping the way we feel emotions. In February 2016, Facebook replaced the like button with a range of responses Love, Sad, Angry and so on. This encourages us to formulate our response to a news story or a friends status in terms of the limited emotional categories Facebook has made available. Critics also suggest that social networks can actually fuel a kind of emotional contagion. Negative emotions spread the fastest online, with studies showing that anger is the most viral emotion. But we should be wary of viewing the relationship between media and emotions as in anyway unique to our time. Throughout history, print and images have provoked the same basic questions we are dealing with today, namely how emotions are presented, provoked and created by media? Can talking about our feelings ever be a bad thing? Ours is the culture of the over-share. Are we in danger of becoming overwhelmed or obsessed with our own feelings? Researching the history of emotions, Im struck by how often emotions are described as physically overwhelming. Less than 100 years ago it was actually possible to die of nostalgia. The last person to die of nostalgia was a U.S. soldier fighting in the First World War. Another example is love: to be in love in the Medieval period was to risk lovesickness, an amorous melancholy and erotic obsession that threatened the bodily health of the patient. Lovesickness was described by early modern writers as burning in the blood and liver a humoral imbalance caused by fixing the image of the lover in the mind. Commonly, the lovesickness patient wasnt able to understand any conversation unless it was about the beloved. A Parisian physician writing in the 12th century noted that: From the souls part are depressed thoughts and worries, so that if someone talks about something, the patient scarcely understands; if, however, he speaks of the beloved, he is immediately moved. The danger of becoming obsessed with our own feelings, and boring our friends to death with them, is apparently not specific to our own time. Ladybeard magazine is a UK print magazine that takes the form of a glossy magazine, but revolutionises the content, working in themed issues to open up old topics to vital new perspectives. Their latest edition, the 'Mind Issue' looks at the blurred spaces between the conventional ideas of 'mad' and 'sane', and in doing so, touches on a range of mental health issues. They are celebrating the launch of the issue on the 12th November in London (tickets here). The below article, from the Mind Issue, has been reprinted with permission of Ladybeard magazine, Copyright 2016 . All rights reserved. Read more from Refinery29: 30 Sleep Tips For People With Anxiety I Tried A Deprivation Tank For My Anxiety More People Were Calling RAINN's Sexual Assault Hotline After Trump's Video Leaked P rince Harry will meet the man who inspired The Horse Whisperer to learn about his pioneering methods to help traumatised soldiers. Monty Roberts will teach Harry his secrets when the two meet at the Queens Sandringham estate. Roberts, 81, said the 32-year-old prince, who left the Army last year, was keen to experience how working with horses could help former soldiers tackle post-traumatic stress disorder. The Californian cowboys work has already helped transform the lives of US veterans with psychological problems, or what Roberts calls hidden wounds. He said: The prince has learned of this work and wanted to get a greater understanding. It will be an honour to show him. Monty Roberts inspired the bestselling novel The Horse Whisperer. Roberts, who has been a trusted adviser to the Queen on her horses and corgis for more than a quarter of a century, became known as the real horse whisperer when his book on non-violent training methods was published. He was said to be the inspiration behind the character Tom Booker in Nicholas Evanss bestselling book The Horse Whisperer, which was adapted into a film with Robert Redford in the title role although Evans has since claimed he met Roberts only once and based the character on several different people. Roberts has developed a three-day programme, called Horse Sense And Healing, to help veterans. He said: I call it join-up. It is a way of communicating with a horse and offers a powerful tool to help deal effectively with the emotional trauma of combat stress and the resulting anger, social withdrawal and mistrust. Experiencing a join-up, and the all-important moment of causing a horse to trust you, can be a powerful catalyst for finding hope and positivity as part of their recovery. Prince Harry attends the Wellchild awards in London 1 /13 Prince Harry attends the Wellchild awards in London Warm embrance: Prince Harry was hugged by five-year-old Ollie Carroll who is terminally ill at the WellChild awards PA The prince delighted Ollie Carroll by making faces as they were introduced PA Prince Harry (right) reacts as he greets Noah and Oscar, the children of WellChild Special Recognition Award Winner PA Prince Harry (right) reacts as he meets Inspirational Young Person Award Winner Myles Sketchley PA PA Prince Harry gestures as he attends the WellChild Awards in London PA PA Prince Harry (centre) reacts as he meets Good Morning Britain Inspirational Young Hero Award Winner Jessica Davis PA Prince Harry (right) attends the WellChild Awards at The Dorchester Hotel in London PA Prince Harry (centre) gestures as he talks with guest PA Horses act as a mirror for a persons emotions, and participants quickly tune in as to how to manage their reactions and responses useful tools which can be used to cope with everyday life, confront painful memories and progress their recovery. It is humbling to watch how moving and transformational even such a short interaction with a horse can be. On the Queen, Roberts said: I owe Her Majesty everything. If she hadnt pushed me, I would still be a cowboy from Salinas and the world would not know about my methods of training horses with non-violence. They still regularly talk about all things equine. She always takes my calls, he said. Every year, two, three, four times a year that we get together, we discuss whats happened, we discuss what we want to do. Roberts and his team are looking for the UKs trickiest horse. Apply for your horse to feature in a demonstration at intelligenthorsemanship.co.uk C roatias coastal cities of Dubrovnik, Split and Zadar are increasingly big players on Europes beach tourism scene. But the countrys inland capital remains relatively overlooked. There are many reasons why this is a mistake, but for those in the know it is also a boon the citys relatively quiet, untouristy streets only add to its appeal. The lowdown: With a relatively small population of around a million, Zagreb is not trying to compete with the likes of Barcelona and Berlin in the city stakes. But it really punches above its weight when it comes to its culture, history and food and drink scene. Zagreb from above / Croatian National Tourist Board A large part of this is down to its long, diverse (and often troubled) history. Since originating from a Roman settlement between the 1st and 5th centuries, the city has stood firm while Croatia has varyingly been a part of Venetian, Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian empires as well as more recently Yugoslavia. Modern day Croatia only founded in 1991 pulls together influences from all of these eras, resulting in a fascinatingly hotchpotch country where Soviet and Germanic influences nestle comfortably with those from Italy and the Mediterranean. Zagreb is the beating heart of this: think Bologna meets Berlin. What is there to do? Zagreb is teeming with cultural attractions. At the top of the historical sightseeing agenda are Medieval St Marks Church and Neo Gothic Zagreb Cathedral, while the fascinating Museum of Broken Relationships is an exhibition truly unlike those youll find in other cities. Zagreb's atmospheric winding streets / Croatian National Tourist Board Visit the maze-like narrow streets of the citys Upper Town for great drinking spots, and better still take a guided tour to discover the dramatic history that has unfolded where you walk. The citys main attractions are all in easy wandering distance, though you may want to add a trip on one of the citys famous trams onto your list for good measure. Food and drink should feature highly on your itinerary, with excellent Italian restaurants and superb pizza on offer alongside meat-oriented traditional dishes at laid-back bistros with streetside seating. Locally produced wine and olive oil are matters of national pride for Croatians, so make sure you indulge relatively little money can get you something really quite special. Traditional dish: Octopus salad with lemon and olive oil / Restaurant Vinodol Theres also a burgeoning craft beer scene, mainly to be found in the citys many hip bars which also offer live music into the early hours. Where should I stay? Palace Hotel, set between the citys main railway station and the Upper Town, is housed within an Art Nouveau palace built in 1891 with grand features to match, while the centrally located Art Hotel is a less expensive but still impressive choice. For something ultra-plush, Hotel Esplanade is the where guests travelling to the city via the Orient Express used to choose to stay. How much does it cost? A city break in Zagreb is still affordable in the post-Brexit landscape, with flights regularly available from 120 return, and both food and drink relatively cheap once you land. That said, its far from the dirt cheap place that this part of the world was not too many years ago. When should I visit? Youll discover very different sides of Zagreb whether you visit in sunny summer or snowy winter. Go between June and September for Mediterranean-style sun-drenched streets or visit in December when the city goes large on Christmas markets its market was recently voted best in Europe ahead of its German and Austrian rivals. You should go here if You fancy a food and culture-filled European city break with a difference, and fewer crowds than the usual suspects. Follow Ben Norum on Twitter @BenNorum T he parents of a shy and loving business student left fighting for life after being stabbed by a gang of up to ten teenagers in south London today begged witnesses to come forward. Scotland Yard today released these CCTV images of three suspects, including one walking with the aid of a crutch, who they are hunting in connection with the vicious, unprovoked attack. Jamel Boyce, 17, a student at St Francis Xavier Sixth Form College, was stabbed multiple times in the chest and legs when he was ambushed by the gang behind a Sainsburys supermarket in Clapham at 7.10pm on Friday. Three people have so far been arrested in connection with the attack but police believe up to ten young men were in the area at the time of the stabbing. The teenagers parents, Pansy and Patrick Boyce, today made an emotional appeal for anyone with information to help catch their sons attackers. Police issued images of three suspects they want to trace after the stabbing His father said: Jamel is a very loving son, who is kind and considerate always putting others before himself. This should never have happened to Jamel and Im asking if anyone has any information concerning who has done this to please contact the police. His mother described her son as a shy, loving boy who is always smiling, adding: Jamel is my only child and Im asking if anyone knows anything no matter how small to please contact the police. Police were called by the London Ambulance Service at 7.10pm on Friday to reports that the teenager had been stabbed in Triangle Place, a residential street behind Clapham High Street. Officers and paramedics found 17-year-old Jamal, who had been with a group of friends, suffering stab wounds to the chest and legs. He was taken to a south London hospital where he remains in a critical condition. Detectives had said they particularly want to speak to members of the public who gave first aid to the stricken teenager. One of the suspects was pictured walking with a crutch Detective Sergeant Paul Graves, from Lambeth CID, said: This appears to have been an unprovoked attack on a young student who was simply going about his business that day. Jamel currently remains in a critical condition and this has caused much distress to his parents and loved ones. We believe a number of those involved in the incident are around the same age as Jamel and I am directly appealing to their family and friends. "If you have the slightest indication that someone you know may have been involved in this incident I would encourage you to get them to hand themselves into the police. We understand that some might have some concerns about speaking to the police but it is important that those with vital information do come forward and help us with our inquiry. Anyone with any information or anyone who recognises the individuals in the images is asked to contact Lambeth CID on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. Two men, both 20, arrested in connection with stabbing have been bailed until January. A 17-year-old arrested on suspicion of attempted murder on Monday is being held in custody. A second inmate has been arrested after a man was stabbed to death and another two were left fighting for their lives at Pentonville prison. Scotland Yard launched a murder investigation following reports of a stabbing at the north London jail on Tuesday at around 3.30pm. When police arrived at the scene they found three men suffering from stab wounds. An inmate in his 20s was declared dead at the scene. The victim has yet to be formally identified and police said they are in the process of informing his next of kin. A post-mortem examination will take place in due course. Two other men, aged 21 and 30, were rushed to hospital in a critical condition. Police said last night a 34-year-old prisoner was arrested in connection with the stabbing. Today, Scotland Yard confirmed a 26-year-old inmate has also been held. Detectives from the Homicide and Major Crime Command are investigating and enquiries continue. A female commuter chased a thug down a Tube platform after he allegedly threatened and assaulted an unsuspecting passenger. Footage shared online shows a bald man punching an Asian man in the face on a train at Upton Park in an apparent random attack. As the attacker flees, a woman sitting next to the victim leaps from her seat and gives chase down the length of the platform. The video, which has been shared on social media, was brought to the attention of police who confirmed they are investigating. Pursuit: The woman sprints down the platform after a 'racist' attack on the Tube / Twitter The incident took place at around 3:40pm on Monday, 17 October. Attack: The assault was captured on video by a Tube passenger / Twitter The British Transport Police said the footage was being studied as part of an ongoing investigation" and that it could not comment further. Vigilante: The woman leapt off the train to challenge the man / Twitter Outraged social media users condemned the attack but questioned what prompted the altercation in the firts place, and why it was being filmed. One tweeter wrote: Despicable but seems more to the story. No one films videos of other people randomly. Another described the attackers behaviour as disgusting. Police later said a 33-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the incident after officers were made aware of the video. The man was arrested on suspicion of "assault occasioning actual bodily harm and using threatening or abusive words/behaviour or disorderly behaviour likely to cause harrassment, alarm or distress". He has been bailed until November 14. Do you know the woman in the footage? Contact our news desk on 0203 6152500 or news@standard.co.uk T he eight-year-olds arrived mid-afternoon at Kids Cookery School, impatient to get to work. What are we cooking today? asked Douglas, looking expectantly at Cordon Bleu chef Fiona Hamilton-Fairley. Whats the thing you do before you start cooking? the founder of the Kids Cookery School asked them. Off they ran. Minutes later, hands washed, aprons neatly tied, the eight youngsters from Berrymede Junior School on the South Acton estate stood smartly at their work stations, ready to cook stuffed jacket potatoes for their dinner and fruit muffins for dessert. But first came tips about cutting down on salt, not cooking in deep fat oil and a quiz on the ingredients of muffins. Um, eggs, um, self-raising flour, now can we start cooking? demanded Douglas. Every year, more than 3,000 children aged three to 16 are taught to cook by Fiona at her base in Acton, or via the mobile unit she takes into community centres and schools. Sixty per cent of these children come from families in poverty or have special needs, including those who are dyslexic, blind, deaf, who use oxygen tanks or wheelchairs. Children mix ingredients which would have been thrown away / Matt Writtle The kids learn basic hygiene, food preparation and how to cook a meal from scratch using surplus food, said Fiona, 53, a mother of three. We might teach them how to make a pizza, lasagna, omelette, quiche or chicken and mushroom pie. Our ingredients are super healthy and super fresh. She gestured to several large cardboard boxes of peppers, mushrooms, leeks and broccoli. And for that we have Felix to thank. Kids Cookery School gets 90 per cent of its food ingredients free, delivered by The Felix Project, a charity that picks up surplus food from supermarkets and takes it to charities and which has been at the heart of our Food for London campaign. Fionas charity is also an example of the type of organisation that could benefit from grants of up to 20,000 as part of the campaigns 320,000 grants programme. Fiona Hamilton-Fairly teaches youngsters how to cook / Matt Writtle Felix saves us around 70 a week, or 3,500 a year, which is a critical saving for a small charity like ours and we will also be applying for a grant because the work we do with kids is vital to tackling food poverty and food waste in London, said Fiona. The importance of teaching children how to cook was highlighted at last weeks Evening Standard food forum when Henry Dimbleby, co-founder of the Leon Restaurants chain, advocated mandatory cookery classes for children up to age 11. We need to urgently improve the next generations cooking skills if we are to tackle food waste and food poverty, he said. Our Food for London campaign What is it? This 1 million-plus initiative seeks to redistribute surplus food to tackle food poverty. What are we doing? 1. Backing the scale-up of The Felix Project our flagship charity which picks up surplus fresh produce from food suppliers and delivers it to a range of charities that provide meals for those in need. 2. Awarding grants to groups through an open grants programme. Who can apply for grants? If you are a charity, community group or social enterprise tackling food waste and/or using fresh food to address food poverty, you can apply for a grant of up to 20,000. Apply by November 11 to The London Community Foundation at: londoncf.org.uk/grants/food-for-london.aspx Who are our backers? We have raised more than 800,000 for Felix from Citi, Sainsburys, Lush founders Mark and Mo Constantine, The Dispossessed Fund, a hedge-fund boss and the Felix Byam Shaw Foundation, which has pledged to match money raised for Felix with up to 750,000. The 320,000 grants programme is funded by Citi, D&D London and The Dispossessed Fund. HOW YOU CAN HELP The Felix Project is looking for more: 1) Food suppliers, including supermarkets, wholesalers and food outlets. 2) Charities that provide meals for those in need and could benefit from free fresh food. Please email Daisy@TheFelixProject.org Almost half of British 16-year-olds have never cooked a family meal, found a survey on behalf of Unilever and environmental charity Hubbub. It also indicated a growing reliance on convenience foods, with the number of British families eating a home-cooked meal at least six nights a week dropping from 47 per cent 30 years ago to 15 per cent today. Researchers found that, by the age of 11, 44 per cent of children had never boiled an egg and 28 per cent had never peeled a potato. For Fiona, exposing children to new ingredients, teaching them how to use food effectively and to embrace cooking as part of their skill-set is the key. The fact that food poverty co-exists with supermarkets wasting good food is plain bonkers, but I have no doubt that the solution includes educating kids to be more adept, resourceful and adventurous in their own kitchens. Fiona was a high-end freelance caterer working for bankers and corporate types in the City before she was inspired by her oldest son to start Kids Cookery School. Twenty years ago, I watched my sons school rip out their home economics kitchen and turn it into a computer suite, she said. My eldest son was five at the time and in a special needs unit for high-functioning autism and Asperger syndrome kids. I thought, if he doesnt eat well and healthily, he cant learn, he cant get on in life. So I took him and five friends and did a cookery class around the kitchen table at home. The kids loved it. And thats when Kids Cookery School began. Fiona reckons that she has taught more than 50,000 children in the past 20 years. Many of the kids who come to us eat junk food because its easily accessible. What we do is teach them how to peel a potato and how to connect with fresh food, so that they can interact with it. The children take home what they make and the recipes as well. Some of them will no doubt be teaching their parents. For 90 minutes, I watched as eight youngsters became totally immersed in stuffing potatoes with green peppers, K umbuka the gorilla, who sparked panic when he escaped from his cage at London Zoo, downed five litres of undiluted squash during his bid for freedom, it has been revealed. Zoological Director, Professor David Field, made the claim in a blog outlining the Zoological Society of London's initial investigation into what happened. Despite claims amde at the time, Professor Field said there were no broken locks and Kumbuka did not smash any windows, denying that he was ever actually "on the loose". He wrote the silverback gorilla had been taken into his private night quarters for dinner on October 13 when the incident happened Professor Field explained: "Unfortunately the door to his den had not been properly secured and a secondary security door had not yet been locked. "Weve since established that Kumbuka made an opportunistic escape from his unlocked den into the staff-only service corridor where a zookeeper was working. London Zoo gorilla returned safely after escaping enclosure "Thanks to the incredibly close bond and relationship shared by the zookeeper and Kumbuka, the zookeeper was able to continually reassure Kumbuka, talking to him calmly and in the same light-hearted tone he would always use, as he removed himself from the area." He went on: "Staff raised the alarm that triggered our standard escape response, while Kumbuka briefly explored the zookeeper area next door to his den, where he opened and drank five litres of undiluted blackcurrant squash. Escape: The gorilla seemed calm and peaceful before the incident / Rob Hogan. "Kumbuka was immediately contained in the non-public area by quick-thinking zookeepers responding to the alarm, where he was tranquilised and moved back into his den." The director said Kumbuka had been put safely back in his home within two hours and was soon "snacking on treats, and probably wondering what all the fuss was about". He wrote: "Now that the initial facts have been established, its our job to understand any contributing factors that allowed an experienced and highly trained zookeeper to make a mistake with the doors." Some have argued that, after what happened, the animal should never be put back on show. Sir David Attenborough discusses gorillas and zoos on Good Morning Britain Professor Lee, former president of the Primate Society of Great Britain, said the silverback gorillas attempted break-out signals a sense of crisis and desperation. But Professor Field said the animal had only prtrayed typical behaviour for an alpha male gorilla. He wrote: "The magnitude of personal responsibility that zookeepers feel for the animals in their care, the colleagues they work with every day and the thousands of visitors to their zoo is indescribable. "It is this sense of responsibility that provides some of our strongest security measures. We know that humans sometimes make mistakes, but these are rare. "We also know that automating every security system poses a greater risk of mechanical failure, and could lead to an over-reliance on technology that will create the kind of complacency that has no place here. "We will continue to work with our keeping teams to identify any adjustments or modifications that can help avoid any repeat mistake in future, but ultimately our trust in our people is not shaken." A young woman today told of how she fears to get in a minicab again after an Uber driver punched her in the face and racially abused her in a row over drop-offs. Taleka White, 27, was dragged from the car and hit twice across the face after her driver, Shahab Akbar, 33, flew into a rage in Addiscombe, south London. Non-emergency paramedic Ms White, who has a four-year-old son, was left with a lump on her head, bruising to her face and a bloodied wrist and knuckles. Akbar was handed a 16-week suspended prison sentence and a community order at Croydon magistrates court yesterday after being found guilty of one count of racially aggravated common assault on September 23. Ms White described the attack as a nightmare part of her life and said she has been left feeling too frightened to get into a minicab again. Injuries: Her reddened hand / Taleka White She said: I no longer trust minicab drivers. I have become very concerned about how I get home from a night out. It has taken the fun out of my life. I have become the designated driver for my friends. Prosecutor Angela Mahadeo told the court the Ms White and her friend had taken a lift using the Uber minicab app after a night out in Croydon on November 29 last year. Guilty: Shahab Akbar / Guilty: Shahab Akbar She said Akbar grew angry when he became confused over where to drop her friend. He then began to insult Ms White and called her a black c*** as she continued the journey alone before he attacked her, she said. Akbar, who is married to a teacher, had his private hire vehicle licence revoked after the assault and no longer drives for Uber. Mitigating, Ernest Aduwa told the court it was an isolated incident and that Akbar, who had been an Uber driver for two years at the time of the assault, was of a man of good character with no previous convictions. Raw: A photo of Ms White's knuckles shared on Twitter / Taleka White He told the court: Whilst he doesnt accept that he committed the offence, he does accept that the behaviour alleged is unacceptable. He would like me to tell the court that this whole experience has been embarrassing for him and has been quite traumatic and left him feeling ashamed. Speaking to the Standard after the verdict, Ms White said: I think more than anything I wanted him to admit to what he had done. He has shown no remorse at all and what he did was quite serious. In court, they said he was of good character - good character would have been to hold his hands up after he was found guilty and offer an apology. It was insulting for him to say that he was ashamed and embarrassed by what happened. He is just upset that he got caught. A spokesman for Uber said: We were appalled by this horrific incident. Uber does not tolerate violence or discrimination of any kind. "We assisted the police with their investigation and immediately stopped this licensed driver from being able to use our app. Akbar was sentenced to a 16 week prison sentence suspended for 24 months and a 200 hour community order. He was ordered to pay 500 in compensation to the victim, an 150 victim surcharge and 600 in costs. F OREIGN Secretary Boris Johnson found time in his busy schedule to rally the troops at Conservative Party HQ last night, manning the phone banks for the Witney by-election. It was, of course, David Camerons old seat, and Boris praised him. David Cameron is such a nice man, he said. Such a generous man. I dont think he would mind, I dont think he would be insulted if we got an even bigger majority. But was the party being faithful to Boris? What was notable were the jolly hecklers trying to get Johnson into hot water with their cries. Theres only one problem we face, he said, one cloud on the horizon, bigger than a mans hand what is that? Trump, an audience member heckled. No, um... its not Trump. Im becoming a master of diplomacy, as you know, and nothing would induce me to pass any comment whatsoever about the American elections. Or the Russians? another voice piped up. Cue much bluster from Boris. But then he got himself into his own tangle. The Lib-Dems are insurgent in Witney, and Boris launched into an attack on them. Just when you think youve eradicated them they seam themselves again into the byways of the countryside of Oxfordshire like ragwood, he said. Like yellow ragwood is it Japanese knotweed? Thats orange, isnt it? Nasty, Japanese, orange knotweed. Gasps followed. But not because its Japanese, he hastily added. We are on very good relations with Tokyo but we need to eradicate them. The Liberal Democrats. Crisis averted for now. -- DIRECTOR Oliver Stones new drama Snowden, based on the controversial whistleblower, sees Joely Richardson play former Guardian US editor-in-chief Janine Gibson. Does the favourable casting mean Gibson made a beeline for the premiere? I havent seen it, Gibson, now at the helm of BuzzFeed, told us yesterday. And no, I havent ever met or spoken to Joely. I hear she said that she looks nothing like me, and I can indeed confirm that I look nothing like the gorgeous, six-foot blonde glamazon Joely Richardson. Peyton and Byrne curdles and separates WE SHALL fight them on the beaches. We shall fight them in the cafes. Last month EU Brexit chief and Malta PM Joseph Muscat sent a message to Britain: You cant have your cake and eat it. It seems that he may have been correct. Restaurateur and Great British Menu judge Oliver Peytons catering company, Peyton and Byrne, is in administration. It will be split in two, with the Peyton family taking charge of the baking operations, and respected French brand Sodexo buying the arm that supplies nibbles to British landmarks like the ICA, National Gallery and Imperial War Museum.Those Europeans, coming over to our country and selling us fig rolls. Strictly and Camilla are on the menu at Fortnums Last night Fortnum & Mason launched The Cook Book, by Tom Parker Bowles featuring 300 years of the stores most delicious secrets. Strictly hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman showed support but were they on the hunt for a new addition to the programme? Judge Craig Revel Horwood has previously said the Duchess of Cornwall would be his choice. Asked about Prince Charles winning Londoner of the Decade at the Evening Standard Progress 1000 awards, the Duchess said: He didnt think he deserved it. He was thrilled but he wasnt expecting it. -- CHILDRENS charity Variety threw its inaugural Hall of Fame gala at the London Hilton on Park Lane last night, toasting performers such as Gary Barlow and Elaine Paige. Comedian Al Murray hosted, and afterwards The Londoner wondered if his incarnation, The Pub Landlord, would have voted for Brexit. Technically the pub landlord cant vote because hes died in five consecutive pub fires for tax and insurance purposes, Murray laughed. But if he could, he definitely would have voted for Brexit. Hed regret it now, though. Sometimes youve got to be careful what you wish for in life. Blessed by the royal touch Its not every day that the Queen sends a personal memo to a party, but when the celebration in question is for the re-opening of The Queens House, it all makes perfect sense. The doors to the Greenwich landmark, which was built by Palladian architect Inigo Jones for Anne of Denmark, wife of King James I, opened again for the first time in 15 months after a 3 million refurbishment, and the evening was marked by a dinner and a speech by Sir Charles Dunstone, the philanthropic co-founder of Carphone Warehouse. A huge amount of work and conservation has been undertaken for its reopening, and there are exciting new displays of paintings, said Her Majesty through Dunstone. I am also pleased to note the acquisition for the nation of the Armada portrait of the first Elizabeth especially so in my 90th year I send my warm good wishes for a happy and successful event. There isnt quite a party like a party with royal approval, is there? Melania the cover girl FOR the first time in history, US Vogue yesterday declared its official support of a presidential candidate: Hillary Clinton. Back in 2005, however, Anna Wintour made Melania Trump (nee Knauss, right) a cover star with a 14-page, Testino-lensed editorial titled How to Marry a Billionaire. In it, Vogue helps Melania organise her opulent wedding. The magazine also reveals that Donald popped the question at Wintours 2004 Met Ball, with Melania in a Versace dress that he won at a Vogue auction. He enjoyed the bidding so much that, to the thunderous applause of all present, he outbid himself from $27,000 to $30,000, observed the magazine. More recently, Wintour secured exclusive coverage of Amal and George Clooneys wedding. Perhaps she has high political hopes for them too. -- Lyrical rejection of the day: after the Nobel Prize for Literature committee failed to contact winner Bob Dylan, fans beg them to Stop knock knockin on Dylans door. M Ps have elected Labour's Hilary Benn to lead the new cross-party select committee on Brexit, with Labour's Yvette Cooper chairing scrutiny on Home Affairs. Mr Benn, who campaigned against Britain leaving the EU, will now scrutinise David Davis's department. Ms Cooper is the latest chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee, replacing Keith Vaz who stood down after being embroiled in a rent boy scandal. Former cabinet minister Ms Cooper shared a kiss on the cheek with Chuka Umunna, who missed out on the position, after the announcements were made in the House of Commons. Tory MP Damian Collins was named as the new chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee. Fellow Tory MP Stephen Metcalfe was named chair of the Science and Technology Committee. T he governments announcement that tea, jam and biscuits will be at the centre of the UKs Brexit trade strategy has been ridiculed by critics as embarrassing. The digital backlash came after Environment Minister Andrea Leadsom unveiled plans to export food and drink to foreign countries in a bid to galvanise the economy post-Brexit. Speaking at a trade fair in Paris, Ms Leadsom said the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has launched an International Action Plan for Food and Drink. She hopes it will bring 2.9bn to the British economy over five years by tapping into nine markets across 18 countries. Andrea Leadsom announced a five-year "international action plan" setting out ways to tap into nine markets across 18 countries / PA It includes an extra 185 million in exports of British products such as tea, jam and biscuits to Japan and an additional 293 million worth of exports to Australia and New Zealand to meet a growing demand for British beer and cider. Latin America's increasing interest in a wide range of British products, such as whisky and gin, could mean a potential 215 million export boost to the area, according to the plan. But the idea has been ridiculed on Twitter with users describing it as crazed and out of touch about British identity. One user, tweeting under the handle Citizen of nowhere in reference to the PM's controversial remark last week, posted: Britains Brexit plan is to sell PG Tips to India, penguins to Antarctica and Bonne Maman to France. Good job. Another wrote: So Britains Brexit plan is to sell jam and tea, to think I had no faith in the government, it's obviously being run by scholars and academics. Others pointed out that tea is not actually grown in this country. Ross Purves said: "Britain's Brexit plan is to sell tea to other countries. You know that we don't grow tea here right?" Ms Leadsom said at Monday's trade fair: Our food and drink is renowned for having the very best standards of animal welfare, quality and safety and I want even more of the world to enjoy what we have to offer. Scottish salmon, Welsh beef, Northern Irish whiskey and English cheese are already well-known globally and I want us to build on this success by helping even more companies send their top quality food and drink abroad. Theresa May announced at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham earlier this month that she would invoke Article 50 by the end of March 2017 at the latest. This means the UK will be outside the EU by 2019. T he British Army has been forced to apologise after it posted and then deleted an allegedly racist tweet. It showed a camouflaged soldier pulling a surprised face, accompanied by the caption: Being a #soldier in the jungle requires a robust sense of humour. But many outraged social media users were quick to claim the soldier is blacking up and labelled the post disgraceful. An army spokesman told the Standard: The content of the tweet shows a picture of a soldier wearing camouflage and concealment measures, standard for jungle training in Belize. Deleted: the post was removed after a barrage of furious comments We can see how the tweet may have been misinterpreted, have immediately removed it and apologise for any offence it may have caused. The image, which was posted at 10.21 this morning, shows a soldier crouched on the ground with a firearm in one hand, turning back to look at the camera. His face is entirely covered in dark green camouflage paint and he is making a shocked face, with open eyes and mouth. Despite quickly garnering 70 likes, the post was also met with a barrage of criticism and was deleted after less than an hour. Furious Twitter users claimed the sense of humour refers to the soldiers face paint and not the face he is pulling. One tweeter wrote: I detest the idea of non-white people fighting for a country that sees their skin colour as something to joke about. Several suggested that a new social media management position will be opening up at the army soon. Zoe Davis added: Looks like British Army deleted their tweet. Luckily screenshots exist! This really isnt appropriate is it! However, lots of Twitter users also leapt to the armys defence, saying that that the paint was simply camouflage required for the job and the sense of humour referred to the soldiers facial expressions. One wrote: Would you rather A. Be considered a racist or B. Be seen, then captured and possibly tortured. Its camouflage not blacking up. A deadly black widow spider was found hiding in a box of aeroplane parts at Gatwick airport by terrified workers. Staff at Aerfin, an aviation supply company, found the 4cm venomous spider while unpacking a large box of brake parts from Arizona. Stores and Logistics Officer, Rob Green, managed to coax the spider, which is native to North America, into a plastic tub before calling the RSPCA for help. Veminous: The red spots on the spider's abedoman indicate that she is a black widow / RSPCA Mr Green, 36, said: It was a bit of a shock finding her in the box. She mustve been in there for quite a while as the box was packaged up in Arizona back in December and arrived over here in July. She has done very well to survive that long in there." He said he quickly realised that the spider, which he has since nicknamed Nadia, was not a UK native. But it wasnt until I saw the red spot on her abdomen that alarm bells rang and we looked up what she was. Mr Green added: We werent frightened as I think there have been hardly any deaths from these spider bites - and Nadia was fine. We popped her in the box and called the RSPCA for help. The spider was found with two sacks filled with her eggs. Eggs: Nadia was found with two sacks of her eggs / RSPCA RSPCA inspector Tony Woodley removed the spider from the depot taking it to a specialist centre in East Sussex. Mr Woodley said: We certainly dont have many of these spiders coming into our care or call outs for their rescue! It was great these guys saved her and kept her safe - many other people probably would not have been as compassionate and kind. Spiders do give a lot of people the heebie jeebies! G ary Lineker found himself at the centre of a furious social media backlash after he described some attitudes towards young refugees in Britain as hideously racist. The former England striker and Match of the Day host posted the tweet after the first wave of young refugees arrived in London from the notorious Calais Jungle camp. He tweeted: The treatment by some towards these young refugees is hideously racist and utterly heartless. What's happening to our country? The comment prompted a storm of abuse from some tweeters who demanded Mr Lineker take refugees into his own home to back up the remark. Fourteen teenage boys arrived in Croydon on Monday but some, including MPs, expressed fears that some of the group looked older than their supposed ages. Former English Defence League leader Tommy Robinson replied: They are not children you clown. If you care that much why don't you adopt one of these "children" While William Stewart added: How about we look after OUR own before other countries? Answer that one Lineker! The Home Office defended its age assessment process against criticism, saying it worked closely with French authorities to ensure refugees were qualified to claim asylum. A US fast food chain opening branches in Malaysia has been told it cannot use the word 'dog' on menus because it will offend the country's Muslim population. Auntie Annes Pretzel Dog must be renamed Pretzel Sausage, say officials. The Malaysian Islamic Development Department told the U.S. company that the word dog should not appear on any of its menus as part of conditions to obtain halal certification. Dogs are thought to be unclean in Islam. Auntie Annes, which already has 45 outlets in Malaysia, said it will comply with the request. Malaysia is a majority Muslim country, where Muslims represent approximately 60 per cent of the countrys 30 million people. M ore than 900 people have fled the Iraqi city of Mosul and crossed the border into Syria, the UN refugee agency said today It is the first large group of civilians confirmed to have escaped since the Iraqi government began its offensive to liberate the city from Islamic State (IS). Up to 1.5 million people are thought to be in Mosul, Iraqs second-largest city, with up to 5,000 fighters. A spokeswoman for the Office of UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said that the 900 people from Mosul were now at a refugee camp in Syria. Residents reached by telephone by Reuters said IS had tried to prevent people fleeing the city and had directed some towards buildings likely to be targeted by air strikes. But the movement of a significant number of people indicates that IS militants are not able to stop everyone leaving. However, it has raised fears that some fighters might try to use the same route to flee. Iraqi Government troops are moving up from the south towards Mosul while their Kurdish allies are approaching from the east in a two-pronged campaign which began on Monday. They are still between 19 and 25 miles from the city. Progress has been slowed by suicide bomb attacks and roadside bombs. Loading.... US defence officials have accused IS of stopping civilians leaving Mosul so it can use them as human shields. Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis said: They are being held there against their will. We have not seen any change in the last day of people leaving or fleeing. Residents said IS was preventing people fleeing and had directed some of them towards buildings likely to be targeted by air strikes. The International Organisation for Migration fears IS might even use chemical weapons. The capture of Mosul in 2014 signalled the rise of IS as a major force. Government and Iraqi forces are still besieging Qaraqosh to the east, where snipers have been holding up the advance. US President Barack Obama has sought to allay concerns about an exodus of civilians from the area, saying plans and infrastructure are in place for dealing with a potential humanitarian crisis. A Texas vet who shot a cat dead with a bow and arrow and posted the gruesome photo online has been banned from working as a vet for a year. Kristen Lindsey, 33, posted a photo of a dead cat with an arrow through its head on Facebook last year. The caption alongside the distressing photo read: My first bow kill lol. The only good feral tomcat is one with an arrow through its head! Vet of the year awardgladly accepted. The Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners decided on Tuesday to suspend Ms Lindseys vet licence for one year, banning her from practising. After the one-year ban is up she will only be able to work as a vet under conditions of probation for four years. The controversial photo of dead cat Tiger sparked uproar among animal activists and a string of debates on what action to take, if any, against Ms Lindsey. Ms Lindsey, who is a vegetarian, was fired from her job at the Washington Animal Clinic, US news site My San Antonio reported. Shortly after it happened the clinic said they were absolutely appalled, shocked, upset and disgusted by the conduct. The Austin County Sheriffs Office launched an investigation but in June last year decided not to charge Ms Lindsey with a crime. The Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners received 700 formal complaints and more than 27,000 emails about Ms Lindsey in just over five months. Many people took to Twitter to complain the one-year ban was not long enough, Alyssa Flysiak called it "disgusting" while Amanda Palmer called the decision "a joke". A mericans living in London are being urged to register to vote in the upcoming US presidential election. The campaign group, Democrats Abroad UK, are making a final push to reach out to American expats in the UK who are eligible to vote. According to DAUK figures, only four to six percent of the 61,000 Americans in London are voting in this presidential election. Karin Robinson, former Vice-Chair at Democrats Abroad UK, said: Its depressing, considering that volume of people can make the difference in close races. We know that Americans abroad did make the difference in swing states in previous elections, we think it can make a difference in this one too. Cardboard cut-out of Hillary Clinton looks over the Democrats Abroad office in central London / Michael Clarke Democrats Abroad have enlisted the help of hundreds of volunteers in their central London office to connect with US voters in the UK. Karin Robinson said: I think one of the reasons you are seeing so much enthusiasm from the volunteers in this room is that they feel very strongly that Donald Trump is the worst possible face for America. Hillary Clinton and Republican candidate Donald Trump enter the final televised debate tonight with Clinton leading in most national polls in the closely fought race. Robert Ravelli, Chairman of Democrats Abroad said: It is very important that all Americans vote and they are entitled to vote when they live overseas. "In a close election and in certain swing states in the US, where electoral votes really do count, it is important that everybody does cast their ballots. How does the US election work? The final presidential debate takes place tonight - October 19 - in Las Vegas. Votes are cast on November 8 to decide the next President of the United States. T he worlds top chess grandmaster went incognito in New York when he challenged local hustlers while film star friend Liv Tyler watched on. Mozart of chess Magnus Carlsen, 25, sat down to play hustlers who had no idea of his real identity in Washington Square Park, in New York. The Norwegian chess supremo, who is the highest-ranking grandmaster in the world, was joined by close friend Liv Tyler, who looked on smiling as she took photos of the face-offs on her phone. A video shows the chess expert taking on a number of the hustlers, who said they didnt know who he was but knew he was a strong player. That moment, I didnt know who he was, said one of the players who was beaten by Mr Carlsen. 'I was just playing. I tried to win, but when I saw him make a move, already I knew it was like, you know, he's a very strong player. Movie star: Lord of the Rings actress Liv Tyler watches on. / Ian Sohr/YouTube. In like 10 moves he checkmated me. Mr Carlsen was awarded the accolade of grandmaster the highest title a player can be awarded by world chess organisation FIDE when he was just 13. By 19, he was considered the worlds best player. Unaware: One of the chess hustlers in Washington Square Park in New York. / Ian Sohr/YouTube. He and Lord of the Rings star Liv Tyler have been seen in public together on a number of occasions since they starred together in a fashion campaign in 2010. The 39-year-old movie actress smiled as she watched Mr Carlsen play in the park. 'Mozart of chess': Mr Carlsen, 25, became a grandmaster at the age of just 13. / Ian Sohr/YouTube. Another of the chess hustlers said in the video: Some people came to me and say, do you know who you are playing and I remember that I said, Im playing a strong player. Mr Carlsen said the men didnt play too badly. A North Korean zoo has been slammed by animal rights campaigners over its chain-smoking chimpanzee Azalea - who has a 20-a-day habit. The Pyongyang chimp gets through a full pack each day, can use a lighter and has also learned to ignite her smokes with discarded butts. According to her trainer, the 19-year-old primate does not actually inhale. But pictures taken at the zoo, which recently reopened after a huge refurbishment, appear to show her blowing out a huge cloud of cigarette smoke. Addicted: The chimpanzee smokes a pack a day / AP Locals are said to be delighted by the animal's tricks, which also include an ability to dance. But president of animal rights organisation PETA, Ingrid Newkirk, told Time magazine: How cruel to wilfully addict a chimpanzee to tobacco for human amusement. North Korea: Her trainer says she doesn't inhale / AP Gradually, zoos are learning that spectacles like chimpanzee tea parties, elephant rides and photo ops with tiger cubs are inappropriate and exploitive, with the big question now being, why are we keeping wild animals behind bars at all? Y ou may be reading this and wonder why in October we are suggesting that you browse the best beauty advent calendars. Its simple really: these seasonal goodies have become so wildly popular that brands have taken to releasing them when the temperature is still in the mid-20s. London may be in an official drought, but as far as some of the biggest labels on the market are concerned - it is time to start thinking about Christmas. The countdown to the big day is on and there is no better way to mark the lead up to the most magical time of the year than with a daily makeup, fragrance, candles, skin or haircare treat. While we will never turn down the joy of a chocolate-filled option, advent calendars have become much more inventive. There is one to suit every taste, interest and recipient - from cheese and jewellery to socks and treats for your pets. The most sought-after of all are the ones filled with beauty products behind the festive windows. The ever-growing demand for this type of advent calender means that they sell out fast, so dont wait to snap up the one from your favourite brand or retailer. Each year, they become more and more popular. At Boots, advent calendar sales increased by 20 per cent compared to the year before. One calendar sold every minute in the lead up to Christmas. What brands have beauty advent calendars? When it comes to choosing an advent calendar, you can be sure that your favourite beauty label will be offering some sort of Christmas-ready countdown, whether its the traditional 24 or 25 day iteration or a smaller offering for 12 days. Some of the seemingly endless selection of brands on offer are Diptyque, Jo Malone or Charlotte Tilbury, which are typically some of the most covetable as well as The Body Shop, LOccitane and Elemis. But this is only where the fun begins. You can also get multi-brand iterations from retailers like FeelUnique, LOOKFANTASTIC, Harrods, Cult Beauty, Liberty and more. The latter of which pack bestsellers from their respective virtual or IRL beauty halls with each day revealing a special surprise. What types of products feature in advent calendars? There are advent calendars in every category across the spectrum of beauty. There are designated beauty advent calendars for hair, skincare, candles, fragrance, makeup, nail polishes, face masks and ones that combine them. Some even feature golden tickets to win epic prices and vouchers, as good as cash. Some beauty advent calendars are filled with full-sized versions of the products, while others include minis. The latter gives you the opportunity to sample the formulas before committing and provides travel-friendly options that will simplify the packing process. To avoid disappointment and ensure bang for your buck, pay close attention to the quantity specified on the product line-up list. Are advent calendars worth the money? Beauty advent calendars may be packed with miniatures, which is great for all the reasons listed above, but this can also feel deceptive. Some brands claim that the advent calendars are worth extraordinary amounts and some truly are. However others are filled with small sizes of the products and the worth amount would be if you purchased the bigger sizes individually. Lets also not forget that to bulk out the days, some brands throw in other items like stickers or accessories that will just end up in landfill. On the whole, if you are already a fan of the brand or you are looking for an official introduction, the beauty advent calendars for that specific label are a great place to start. If you want lots of great products from different brands, go for the retailer route (Harrods, Selfridges, Liberty, John Lewis etc)as they will give you the greatest mix free from brand loyalty. These also tend to hold the best value. When will beauty advent calendars go on sale? Many brands will be unveiling their pre-sale links as early as right now. In the next couple of months, they will start to be sold directly on the brands websites but each one differs. We have specified release dates per calendar below. Shop the best advent calendars by price point below J ustin Timberlake left Susanna Reid red-faced after describing her as a super-hot grandma. The Good Morning Britain host couldnt stop blushing after the A-lister delivered her the rather odd compliment on Wednesdays show. Despite the fact that 35-year-old Timberlake is only ten years younger than Reid, the GMB host actually voices the role of his grandmother in the film Trolls. Seeing Reid for the first time, Timberlake seemed taken aback by her youthful appearance. Blushing: Susanna Reid and Piers Morgan on Good Morning Britain / ITV Via video link-up, the pop star and actor held up a photo of Reid, saying: Good morning Britain! Susanna, look youre here with us. You play my grandmother in Trolls and you look way too young to be a grandmother. He then moved the photo in front of his face, saying: I have a super-hot grandma. His co-star Anna Kendrick added: Your grandmother is a babe. Piers Morgan then proceeded to tease his co-star, saying: Oh my God! Thats astonishing. Thats very cool Timberlake giving it the youre too young to be a grandmother hes right in your target range. A confused Reid replied: What does that mean? Reid had a rather awkward interview with A-lister Jeremy Renner last week after he refused to take off his coat inside the studio. As she introduced the weather, she turned to the actor and said: Here is something you will be interested in - the weather forecast. You can decide whether you can take your coat off after that. J im Carrey has hit back at the mother of his dead girlfriend, saying that she became angry and bitter when he refused to buy her a house. The A-list star, who is facing wrongful death lawsuits filed by Cathriona Whites mother and her ex-husband Mark Burton, has now submitted his own 10-page declaration. Slamming Brigid Sweetmans claims that he illegally provided her daughter with prescription drugs which contributed to her suicide, Carrey has provided a detailed description of their relationship. Between 2012 and 2015, I was involved in two romantic relationships with Cathriona White, he wrote. Cathriona White and Jim Carrey split just days befrore her death in 2015 / NIGNY/Splash News Although there were times during this period we were broken up, for much of the time between 2012 and 2015 we were together as a couple, including after she reached out to me in November 2014 to reconcile and resume our relationship which lasted until her death. Carrey claims that White only married Burton for a green card after he refused to do so, despite the fact that they were still dating. To my surprise, I later learned that in January 2013 Cat married a man in Las Vegas for her green card, while at the same time maintaining her actual relationship with me, he wrote. Hitting back at Sweetmans claims that he had given his then girlfriend three sexually transmitted diseases, Carrey wrote: Normally Cat was very sweet, but when she felt rejected or upset she was prone to making up horrible stories and acting out in vindictive ways. Despite the rocky ending of our first relationship, Cat and I decided to put our breakup behind us and start seeing each other again. What followed was a new relationship, with ten wonderful, loving months together of the most beautiful relationship ever. The documents go on to claim that Sweetman asked Carrey to buy her a house in 2015 and when he declined she became angry and bitter. Sweetmans lawyer Michael Avenatt has now called the actor disgusting and dishonest in a new statement. He said: "Earlier today, Jim Carrey filed a baseless motion with the court as part of his continued attack on a grieving mother. His conduct is disgusting and dishonest. Who attacks a mother of a dead girl? When he is forced to testify under oath, the ugly truth will be laid bare. We are confident that the court will see through the nonsense Carrey is peddling. Irish born White died from a multiple drug overdose just a few days after splitting from Carey in September 2015. T he first snow of winter has arrived in Britain with the Pennines glistening bright white this morning. Pictures show a sheet of snow covering Great Dun Fell, the second tallest mountain in the range, while more snowflakes swirl in the wind. Yesterday hikers in the Highlands reported seeing snow-capped mountains as daytime temperatures dipped to just below 8C in Scotland. The rest of the UK is set for a mix of sun and showers today, with no snow on the horizon for London yet. The capital is set for a dry and sunny end to the week and weekend, as temperatures reach 15C during the day and just dip below 10C at night. Some forecasters have predicted winter 2016 will be the snowiest and coldest for years, with Accuweather claiming the UK is set for 15-18 storms between now and April 2017. L orraine Kelly suffered an awkward mix-up on her ITV chat show this morning during an interview with Patrick Robinson. The Casualty actor was asked about his time on Strictly Come Dancing in 2013 while clips of current contestant Ore Oduba played on the screen. Twinkle-toes got to the semi-finals of Strictly Come Dancing, she said, inviting him to talk about his stint on the dancefloor. You were brilliant in that. I had you tipped for a winner. Patrick Robinson on Lorraine / ITV Clips of Ore Odubas high-scoring jive from last Saturday were broadcast while Robinson answered but he wasn't fazed by it. Now heres my man, Robinson said, referring to Oduba. I mean, Ive watched the recent Strictly and this jive was just out of this world. Kelly herself pointed out the clip confusion, saying: That was Ore there that we showed but it showed [Patrick] before that. I dont know why we showed him, but never mind. Strictly Come Dancing 2016 1 /58 Strictly Come Dancing 2016 Ed Balls with his dance partner Katya Jones during Saturday's live edition of the BBC1 show, Strictly Come Dancing. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Saturday October 8, 2016 Guy Levy/BBC host Tess Daly with Tameka Empson and her dance partner Gorka Marquez after she was voted off Strictly Come Dancing Guy Levy/BBC Judge Robert Rinder with his dance partner Oksana Platero during Saturday's live edition of the BBC1 show, Strictly Come Dancing Guy Levy/BBC Claudia Fragapane with her dance partner AJ Pritchard during Saturday's live edition of the BBC1 show, Strictly Come Dancing Guy Levy/BBC Ed Balls with his dance partner Katya Jones during Saturday's live edition of the BBC1 show, Strictly Come Dancing Guy Levy/BBC Will Young with his dance partner Karen Clifton during a dress rehearsal Guy Levy/BBC Tameka Empson with her dance partner Gorka Marquez Guy Levy/BBC Danny Mac with his dance partner Oti Mabuse during a dress rehearsal Guy Levy/BBC Ed Balls Guy Levy/BBC Claudia Fragapane with her dance partner AJ Pritchard Guy Levy/BBC Lesley Joseph with her dance partner Anton Du Beke Guy Levy/BBC Naga Munchetty with her dance partner Pasha Kovalev Guy Levy/BBC Danny Mac with his dance partner Oti Mabuse Guy Levy/BBC Daisy Lowe with her dance partner Aljaz Skorjanec Guy Levy/BBC Will Young with his dance partner Karen Clifton Guy Levy/BBC Louise Redknapp Guy Levy/BBC Laura Whitmore with her dance partner Giovanni Pernice Guy Levy/BBC Ed Balls with dance partner Katya Jones Guy Levy/BBC Melvin Odoom and Janette Manrara leaving the competition, during the results show Guy Levy/BBC Anastacia with her dance partner Brendan Cole Guy Levy/BBC Laura Whitmore with her dance partner Giovanni Pernice Guy Levy/BBC Ore Oduba with his dance partner Joanne Clifton Guy Levy/BBC Daisy Lowe with dance partner Aljaz Skorjanec Guy Levy/BBC Ore Oduba with his dance partner Joanne Clifton Guy Levy/BBC Naga Munchetty with her dance partner Pasha Kovalev during a dress rehearsa Guy Levy/BBC Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly Guy Levy/BBC Louise Redknapp with her dance partner Kevin Clifton Guy Levy/BBC Naga Munchetty with her dance partner Pasha Kovalev Guy Levy/BBC Will Young with his dance partner Karen Clifton Guy Levy/BBC Lesley Joseph with her dance partner Anton Du Beke Guy Levy/BBC Judge Robert Rinder with his dance partner Oksana Platero Guy Levy/BBC Pasha Kovalev (right) and Naga Munchetty Guy Levy/BBC Lesley Joseph (left) and Anton Du Beke Guy Levy/BBC Natalie Lowe (left) and Greg Rutherford Guy Levy/BBC Ed Balls with his dance partner Katya Jones Guy Levy/BBC Ore Oduba with his dance partner Joanne Clifton Guy Levy/BBC Greg Rutherford with his dance partner Natalie Lowe Guy Levy/BBC Anastacia with her dance partner Brendan Cole Guy Levy/BBC Robert Rinder Robert Rinder and Oksana Platero dance the cha cha Guy Levy/BBC Greg Rutherford Natalie Lowe and Greg Rutherford dance the jive Guy Levy/BBC Ore Oduba Joanne Clifton and Ore Oduba dance the tango Guy Levy/BBC Naga Munchetty Pasha Kovalev and Naga Munchetty dance the waltz Guy Levy/BBC Laura Whitmore Laura Whitmore and Giovanni Pernice dance the Cha Cha Guy Levy/BBC Lesley Joseph Lesley Joseph and Anton Du Beke dance the waltz Guy Levy/BBC A spokesperson for the show revealed the reason behind the mishap: "Prior to the interview, Patrick Robinson had told the Lorraine team that Ore Oduba was his favourite to win Strictly Come Dancing so a clip of Ore on the show was prepared to be shown during the interview. "There was no suggestion that it was a clip of Patrick, or that it was a case of mistaken identity." The mix-up comes amid accusations of racism surrounding the BBC dancing competition, due to the first three contestants leaving the show being non-white. So far, Melvin Odoom, Tameka Empson and Naga Munchetty have left the show after finding themselves in the bottom two, sparking complaints on Twitter. The BBC have defended the show from claims of racism, saying: Judges judge the dancing and the dancing alone, not anything else. Ore Oduba scored the highest mark of the series so far on Saturday night, earning 39 points for his jive. Let's see if I can understand your editorial support for Clinton over Trump. He is rightfully criticized for some disgusting things he said 11 years ago. If past is prologue, then how can you accept Clinton when her history includes being: Anti-women when defending the adulterous life of her husband. Anti-business with her demand for higher taxes which will encourage more companies to leave the country. Anti-minorities with her demand for higher taxes that will diminish entry level jobs. Anti-minorities with her demand for open borders that will increase competition for entry level jobs. Incompetent as Secretary of State. Because of her actions we are re-fighting old wars that Bush had won. By leaving Iraq too soon, against all professional military advice, she opened the door to Isis and the thousands slaughtered by those criminals. Is this commander-in-chief material? Destroyed Libya, with no stable government to take over. Isis now controls a portion of Libya. Lied about the reasons for four Americans being killed in the Benghazi attack. When asked about the four dead Americans, she shrilly shouted, "What does it matter now?" How's that for a temperate mind? Her so-called reset with Russia. That was before Putin attacked Ukraine. Condescending and intemperate when calling millions deplorable. Twofaced vis-a-vis Wall Street. Publicly, she rails against them. Privately, she goes looking for money from them. Willing to lie about her computer scandal. Willing to sell access to most anyone who gave her, or her Foundation, money. The most recent outrage is the news that her campaign manager, John Podesta, and the Democrat's money man, George Soros, and the Democrat Party have set up two groups to attack the Catholic church. If their attacks are successful, then which religious faith is next? Robert Mooth, Decatur FORSYTH Ken and Linda McCollum sent their own children to parochial school, and when grandson Micah Thompson came along, they encouraged his parents to send him to Decatur Christian School. We believe in Christian schools, Linda McCollum said. We have nothing against public schools, but in Christian schools, they learn Christian values. On Tuesday, Decatur Christian held its annual Race for Education, and the McCollums were there to volunteer, as they often are. Parochial schools don't receive state funding, so fundraising is important. Tuition alone can't cover all the costs of running a school and paying the staff. The Race for Education is one of two annual fundraisers, said administrator Randy Grigg. Students ask friends and family to pledge either a flat amount or a per-lap amount, and the kids run or walk around a course behind the school building in Forsyth. Especially the elementary, they send out notes and try to get people to support them for however many laps they do, Grigg said. This is really one of our biggest fundraisers for the year and the kids just try to solicit support. High school students stood next to the course and handed out tickets as younger students passed them as a way to keep track of the number of laps each student ran. Junior Grace Miller said she's attended Decatur Christian since kindergarten and while the high school students don't do the Race, volunteering for it is their way of contributing. It's one of our biggest events and brings in a lot of money to the school, she said. The McKinneys have 13 children, 10 of them adopted, and 10 of the 13 attend Decatur Christian. Two are in preschool, three in fifth grade, one in eighth grade, three are high school juniors and one is a senior. My tuition (payment) is more than my house payment and it's worth every penny, said mom Ann McKinney, who was also volunteering at the event, where her two preschool boys, twins from China, were wildly popular with the older students. The little boys wore T-shirts with the Chinese for brother and the translation in English under it. Without the fundraisers, McKinney said, the school couldn't afford salaries and other expenses, and as it is, some of the equipment is sorely in need of updating. In addition to the Race for Education, Decatur Christian holds a spring dinner event and in November, Investment Planners and IPI Wealth Management will present The Jersey Tenors at the Lincoln Theatre, with Broadway star Brian Noonan, which will also benefit the school, Grigg said. Most of that event's proceeds will be dedicated to the scholarship fund. The money raised by the Race for Education goes into a general fund. DECATUR With over a decade over experience in nonprofits and fundraising, Julie Melton is ready to bring her skills to Richland Community College. Melton was unanimously appointed as the new executive director of the colleges foundation during Tuesday evenings meeting of the colleges board of trustees. She will begin her new role next Monday. Aside from her current role as the Director of Gift Administration for the University of Illinois Foundation, Melton has previously worked with the American Cancer Society, Eastern Illinois Foodbank, and the Presence Covenant Foundation. After her approval, Melton said she was excited to bring all the skills she has learned over the years to Richland and bring in more donors and dollars to the institution. I love how close-knit Richland is, everything is under one roof and you can really see the impact of the donations right in front of you, everyday, she said. The Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation seeking the private funds that provide distinction in the educational programs and facilities at Richland Community College. Melton will replace Richard McGowan, who retired this summer. One of the projects that private funds have helped to bring closer to fruition is the Carroll Center for Business, as board members were given a better idea on the progress of the estimated $3.5 million facility. Greg Florian, Richland vice president of finance and administration, told the board that programming and concept design were finished earlier this month, with schematic designs to be finished by the end of the month. If things stay on schedule, the board would receive bids and approve one by its February meeting, with construction to start on May 14. Construction is expected to take one year. Four schematic designs from BLDD Architects were presented to staff and faculty, who were able to provide input to better shape a single design concept that will be the basis for future construction plans. As they take those comments into consideration, Florian said they still aim to hit the $3.5 million cost estimate for the project. Funding is currently at $3.3 million, though the foundation is awaiting word of a gift from several donors. Every election, I see people lamenting the candidates and saying there isnt any reason to vote this year. Sometimes, I think its more popular to complain about the candidates and claim not to vote than to enthusiastically say that you plan to vote. Ive never understood that. I have voted every election since I turned 18. Call it being a feminist (like thats a bad word), but it took several decades of work before women were able to vote in our country. And, though women were given the legal right to vote in 1920, according to wikipedia, women did not vote at the same numbers as men until 1980. I was probably playing with my Rainbow Brites and My Little Ponies in 1980. While it was 36 years ago, it sure doesnt seem that long ago. Im excited to cast my vote each election. This year, Im excited about the presidential election. People on both sides of the aisle will tell you that your vote doesnt count. Pffft. I dont care. I get to cast a vote. In some countries, men and women are not given the right to vote. How can voting not count? Even if the conspiracy theorists who bemoan the electoral college, toss around silly statements about media conspiracies or other many excuses were right, Id still cast my vote. On this years ballot, youll find local races, such as the school board and city council. Youll see an initiative to retain or repeal the Nebraska Legislatures action to repeal the death penalty. Some of us in the Panhandle will choose our Nebraska Legislative representative. There is plenty on the ballot that affects me personally, even Early voting began last week and I plan to cast my vote via early voting this year. Ive done it a handful of times in the past and I find it most convenient. Its easy to plan into my day. According to the Nebraska Secretary of State John Gale, 26 percent of people voted early in the last presidential election, either by mail or in person. Are you interested in early voting? If so, Gale reminds voters that they have until Oct. 28 to ask that an early voting ballot be mailed and mailed ballots must be returned by Election Day, Nov. 8. Nov. 7 is the last day for in-person, early voting at county election offices. Applications to receive an early ballot by mail are available through the Secretary of States website: www.sos.ne.gov. Look under Elections for the section labeled Voter Forms. Applications are available in English and Spanish. They should be mailed to the proper county election office for processing. If you dont plan on early voting, make sure to get out to the polls. This page may have been moved, deleted, or is otherwise unavailable. To help you find what you are looking for: Enter Search Term(s): Still cant find what youre looking for? Send us a message using our contact us form. To report a broken link or other problems with the website, please include the URL. Thank you for visiting state.gov. 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Attending the event were DIICOT prosecutors and officials of the Romanian judiciary. "It is a real pleasure to me, esteemed Mrs chief prosecutor, to welcome you to the French Residence to present you with the National Merit Order in rank of Knight, in the company of your close collaborators, representatives of the Romanian judiciary and your DIICOT colleagues. (...) The quality of your activities inside DIICOT has already been rewarded with three awards bestowed on you by Romania's President and Romania's attorney general. These decorations confirm your professional commitment and devotion to DIICOT, a specialist body of the Public Prosecution Service that you have made famous on the judiciary stages in Europe," Saint-Paul said at the beginning of the award ceremony. He added that Ceh is a remarkable example of professionalism combined with a European vision. "Because in the eyes of many you are a remarkable example of professionalism combined with a European vision, I would like that to be an inspiration to the young European magistrates in general, and the young Romanian magistrates, in particular," said Saint-Paul. In 2012-2013, Ceh was seconded to the Justice Ministry to liaise with France. agerpres. The National Liberal Party (PNL) is a 'privileged partner' of Premier Dacian Ciolos, says PNL Chair Alina Gorghiu, adding that a meeting with the government head is needed to talk about a possible joint governance. "I'm certain a meeting is necessary to talk, in the near future, about all these joint projects, about possible joint governance, about his platform, about (...) the liberal government programme. (...) Mister Ciolos is not a person who has locked himself in a tower of ivory, he is not a man who won't communicate with the PNL or other parties on the Romanian stages, and yet I still think we are a privileged partner of his," Gorghiu told B1 TV private broadcaster on Tuesday. According to Alina Gorghiu, Ciolos in 'Romania 100' Platform displays some principles, but one could rule only on a government programme. The PNL leader stressed that the political party she is heading has 'voluntarily' decided to back Dacian Ciolos after the 11 December general election, as 'a decent, civilised, balanced, of stability' solution. At the same time, Gorghiu said she did not talk to president Klaus Iohannis on PNL backing Dacian Ciolos for premier after the election. "No. On what we do, in politics, we'll never discuss with the president. The president is not doing petty politics, of the political parties," concluded Gorghiu. agerpres. Romania's Police have participated alongside Europol, law enforcement authorities of other 51 countries and four international bodies in the Operation Ciconia Alba aimed to dismantle organised crime groups that were operating inside and outside the EU, ending up with 314 persons arrested, says a press release sent to agerpres on Wednesday by the Romanian Police General Inspectorate (IGPR). The operation aimed at fighting illegal migration, human trafficking, drug dealing and fraud by electronic means of payment. "As many as 314 persons were arrested during the operations, 529 human trafficking victims were identified, and 2.38 tonnes of cocaine were seized, as over 540,000 persons and motor vehicles were checked," says the source. The information collected during these global actions was used to start 449 new investigations. As part of the operation, the Romanian Police unfolded two actions to dismantle groupings specialising in human trafficking. "As many as 15 searches were conducted, with seven members of the targeted criminal groups getting arrested. Likewise, on 12 October, five Romanian police staff participated in the UK in domiciliary visits," the IGPR release adds. The deployed Police officers were constantly supported by colleagues at the operational centre at the Europol seat in The Hague. There, the Europol officers, the liaison officers and the national experts from the participating countries carried out a quick swap of information using the Europol network. As many as 24 non-EU countries participated in the operation, alongside all of the EU member states. The Operation Ciconia Alba is a third in a series of joint action days that are making the object of the EU policy for 2013 - 2017. National Liberal Party (PNL) founder chairman Radu Campeanu died on Wednesday, October 19, 2016. Liberal Radu Anton Campeanu was born on February 28, 1922, in Bucharest. He graduated the Law School and Economic Sciences in Bucharest (1945). Radu Campeanu was the chairman of the National Liberal University Youth and the leader of the students' committee on the organisaiton of the last great anti-communist protest of November 8, 1945 - initiated and headed by students. In the period 1947-1956 he was a political prisoner. After the release from prison, he worked in constructions in Bucharest. Through his family from France and Switzerland demarches, he left for Paris in exile, where he obtained political asylum on July 30,1973. There he worked with two big construction companies. Back in Romania, on January 5, 1990, he re-established the National Liberal Party (PNL), and the second day he was elected secretary general of this political formation. In the period March 31, 1990 - February 28, 1993, he was PNL chairman, and between Feb 9 - May 11, 1990, deputy chairman of the Provisional Council of National Union (CPUN). He ran for Romania's president on PNL rolls in the elections of May 20, 1990, obtaining 10.64 percent of the valid votes. In the parliamentary elections of May 20, 1990, he was elected Senator of Bucharest (until October 14, 1992) and between June 9, 1990 and October 14, 1992 he was Senate Vice President. On November 3, 1996, he ran again for Romania's president, on the rolls of the Liberal Ecologist National Alliance, obtaining 0.5 percent of the valid votes. He was Senator of Bucharest of the National Liberal Party - Democratic Party Alliance, elected on November 28, 2004, until December 12, 2008. Radu Campeanu was bestowed the 'Faithful Service' National Order, in rank of Knight, offered by Romania's Presidency (December 5, 2002). In 2008, Radu Campeanu announced he decided to withdraw from Parliament and write his memoires. Agerpres Last week, I took a break from reporting on the Trump campaign's well-deserved and long-awaited implosion to observe Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement. On this day, we symbolically beat our breasts with fists as we say the Ashamnu (literally, "we are guilty") confession: "We betray. We steal. We scorn. We act perversely. We are cruel. We scheme. We are violent. We slander. We devise evil. We lie. We ridicule. We disobey. We abuse. We defy. We corrupt ..." The confessional reads, in short, like a summary of Donald Trump's strategy over the past 16 months. But it also is a road map to recovery. This ancient ritual is based on the concept of collective responsibility: Each of us may not have committed every sin, but we atone for all sins anyway, because we are indirectly responsible for the sins of the community. The concept comes from Deuteronomy 21:1-9: If a murder victim is found and the killer is unknown, the elders of the nearest town must perform an animal sacrifice to atone for the bloodshed. Medieval rabbis developed the concept further in the Talmud, giving us the Aramaic phrase, "Kol yisrael arevim zeh bazeh": All of Israel is responsible for one another. At the end of the ugliest political season any of us has ever seen, the need to be responsible for one another has new relevance. Trump, those running his hate-filled campaign and the weak leaders of the Republican Party are directly to blame for the damage they've done to democracy and civil society. But we are all responsible for creating the environment that allowed Trump to rise. And we are all responsible for repairing our broken politics so this can't happen again. But the Trump fiasco has been more than two decades in the making, going back to Newt Gingrich's destruction of civility; Bill Clinton's personal misconduct; a Supreme Court that, in Bush v. Gore, delegitimized democracy; George W. Bush and Dick Cheney squandering the warm courage of national unity after 9/11; a bipartisan cycle of revenge in Congress; angry liberals portraying Bush as a war criminal; the fury and racial animus of the tea party and the birthers; GOP leaders too timid to tamp down the excesses; and Supreme Court decisions that allowed anonymous groups to spend unlimited sums poisoning the airwaves with vicious and false political speech. My colleagues and I in the news business deserve much of the blame. Fox News essentially created Trump as a political figure, validating his birther nonsense and giving him an unparalleled platform before he launched his campaign. The rest of the news media, and most visibly CNN, gave the entertainer undiluted and uncritical coverage (at least until he secured the nomination), sacrificing journalistic integrity for viewers and readers. If you don't report on Trump's latest action, utterance or outrage, you won't get the clicks or the ratings. And the combination of social media and a news industry fragmented by ideology allows an increasingly polarized public to choose only information that confirms their political views. Trump exploited all this. Shame on him. But shame on us for letting him. So how do we atone? Make sure he's defeated, and resoundingly, to limit his hold over the GOP going forward. At the same time, we bind up the nation's wounds by helping those non-college-educated workers who gravitated toward Trump because they've been hurt by trade, urbanization and a changing economy; a huge infrastructure-and-training bill would help. The Senate needs to return the Supreme Court to full power, and the justices need to consider how their campaign-finance rulings are destroying the electoral process. President Hillary Clinton needs to help House Speaker Paul Ryan, or whoever passes for a reasonable voice in the GOP, to isolate the extremists. We in the media -- and I fault myself for this -- need to find a way back to civic responsibility rather than rewarding the most entertaining candidate or whoever leads in the polls. And all of us need to recognize that our institutions are more fragile than we suspected. "We all own a piece of this," my rabbi, Danny Zemel, told me the morning after Yom Kippur. "The community has to own it." Just as the Old Testament required city elders to atone for an unsolved murder in their jurisdiction, "the day after the election, we all face the collective challenge of what we do next to make sure that this does not continue, to get ourselves out of this morass." Trump is to blame, but we are all guilty. Ashamnu. In the latest apparent spoof on a U.S. securities regulator's online filing system, a Chicago-area artist with a fondness for inspirational quotes claimed to have acquired about $88 billion worth of Bank of America Corp. shares on Wednesday. The filing did not appear to influence the stock price of the second-largest U.S. bank, which joins companies including Avon Products Inc., Integrated Device Technology Inc. and Berkshire Hathaway Inc. to have had fake filings attached to their ticker symbols on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's Edgar system. While the SEC did not respond to a request for comment and Bank of America declined to comment, securities experts said there was no doubt the filing was a hoax. In it, a company called YNOFACE Holdings Inc. purportedly run by Antonio Lee said it had acquired 798.4 million Bank of America shares in an exchange on Aug. 15, and purchased another 4.2 billion common shares and 100 million preferred shares on Sept. 22. The common shares alone would represent nearly half the bank's total market cap. Bank of America's largest shareholder, The Vanguard Group, has roughly 610 million shares, a stake of less than 6 percent. In an earlier filing, YNOFACE said it had implausibly raised over $1 trillion for an art fund. A quick Google search for Lee found several promotional sites describing him as a "world renowned artist, and YouTube celebrity specializing in acrylic painting." A YouTube account characterizes YNOFACE as a company that "acquires, markets, and holds original art as a capital appreciation investment based off the fundamental metrics." Lee's Twitter posts showcase colorful paintings of a beach, elephants in love and a naked person with a bird's head, along with quotes like, "When an artist follows their intuition & dreams, society can only benefit." Its avatar is a painting of a man with a big red question mark over his face. Reuters' attempts to reach Lee were unsuccessful. While Bank of America appeared unscathed by the apparent scam, past phony filings have had real world consequences. Last year, Avon shares soared 20 percent on a filing about a fake takeover bid. The alleged fraudster was arrested earlier this year. The SEC's vulnerability to phony filings has attracted the attention of Iowa Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, who wrote to the regulator last year to express his concern. The YNOFACE filing is so bizarre it is more likely a prank than a scam intended to generate profits, according to Jay Ritter, a finance professor at the University of Florida. "Serious scamsters aren't so amateurish," he said. SAN DIEGO They may not get it this year, but boosters of energy storage technologies want their sector to get the same tax credits that the federal government extends to the wind and solar industries. It would be a good economic investment for us as a government and as a nation to invest in advancing these technologies, said Matt Roberts, executive director for the industrys trade group, the Energy Storage Association. Under a bill introduced by Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., qualifying energy storage technologies such as batteries, thermal energy storage and regenerative fuel cells would get a 30 percent investment tax credit. The Heinrich bill essentially runs parallel with the 30 percent tax credit that wind and solar receive from the federal government and, like the wind and solar credits, eventually would taper off. Reps. Michael M. Honda, D-Calif., and Tom Reed, R-N.Y., have introduced a similar but more complicated bill in the House of Representatives. The prospect of a tax credit created some buzz at the Energy Storage North America conference held earlier this month in San Diego. Storage is too expensive, said Keith Martin, an attorney at the Washington, D.C., law firm of Chadbourne & Parke, one of the panelists at the conference. If the government can help with the cost-sharing, it will then get more people into the market. Under current rules, energy storage can receive a federal tax credit only if it is paired with wind and solar electricity production, most often seen when a storage component is matched with a rooftop solar system. The proposed legislation would establish tax credits for standalone storage systems. Extending the tax credit would encourage deployment of storage throughout our electric power sector, said Janice Lin, executive director of the California Energy Storage Alliance, an advocacy group. The consequences of that are dramatic for ratepayers. But in addition to the political hurdles the legislation would have to clear on Capitol Hill, there are other questions. For example, while wind and solar generate energy for the electrical grid, storage by definition captures energy produced at one time and then deploys it later. Were getting to a really tenuous connection, said William Yeatman, senior fellow specializing in environmental policy and energy markets for the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a free-market think tank based in Washington, D.C. The subsidy for wind and solar energy is already an indirect subsidy for the energy storage industry, Yeatman said, pointing to the intermittency of wind and solar that is, how solar production slumps when the sun isnt shining and wind power wanes when the breeze isnt blowing. Deploying energy storage is designed to smooth out those peaks and valleys on the grid. If the energy storage industry receives a taxpayer-funded tax credit, its basically double-dipping, Yeatman said. Those wind and solar subsidies are helping (the energy storage industry) too. The St. Louis Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority on Tuesday authorized up to $120 million in bonds to finance site preparation for the new headquarters of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. The bonds will pay for acquiring property, environmental remediation, infrastructure and other work in order to deliver the 100-acre site in north St. Louis to the federal government next year. The NGA plans to build a new, $1.7 billion western headquarters at the intersection of Cass and Jefferson avenues to replace its aging facility on the south St. Louis riverfront. Paying off the principal and interest on the bonds will be the annual $1.5 million pledged by St. Louis in earnings taxes generated from the 3,100 NGA employees. NGA employees currently pay about $2 million to the city per year from the 1 percent earnings tax, a number officials expect to grow. The state of Missouri has pledged $131 million for the project, and it will make annual bond payments of some $5.75 million by diverting state income tax payments from NGA employees. The bonds are expected to be paid off before their 30-year maturity, bond attorneys told the citys LCRA board Tuesday. Almost five months after NGA made it official it would stay in St. Louis rather than move to a site near Scott Air Force Base, St. Louis has already acquired title to most of the 551 parcels in the NGA project footprint, some through eminent domain. Some of the initial bond proceeds will go to pay off two $10 million credit lines the city used to finance initial site activities and property acquisition. It's been clear for some time now that Amazon.com has ambitions of competing more seriously in the fashion business: The e-commerce site has been investing in private-label clothing brands. It launched a nightly, QVC-like streaming show to tout its apparel. And it has lured big-name brands such as Kate Spade to sell goods on its site. It appears those efforts are paying off. New data from Slice Intelligence, an e-commerce analytics firm, underscores just how much of a threat Amazon now poses to traditional clothing retailers. Over a one-year period, Slice examined shoppers' online purchases of two wardrobe staples: Denim and leggings. The analysis included about 236,000 shoppers, and the findings show that Amazon has hustled its way to some big market share. For leggings, Amazon had the largest market share of any retailer, drawing 11.6 percent of purchases. Nordstrom was close behind with 10.8 percent market share. But other chains should be shaken by what they see here: Amazon's market share is more than triple that of Macy's, and it's more than double that of the Gap. When it came to denim, Amazon also gobbled up greater share than many brands that have been in the jeans game for much longer. Amazon had the third-largest market share in denim, capturing 9.3 percent of purchases, putting it behind only Old Navy and Nordstrom. The e-commerce site came in just ahead of Gap, which had 8.6 percent share of denim orders, and it was far ahead of Macy's, Kohl's and Levi's. Indeed, this data only reflects how people are buying two specific garments. But leggings and jeans are particularly important garments: Industry insiders have been known to say that "bottoms" are key to building loyalty to a clothing chain. When a woman finds that pants from a certain store fit her, she's hooked, and she'll hit that store up for jackets, blouses, shoes and so on. In this way, Amazon's strength in these wardrobe staples might be an early indicator that the e-commerce giant has momentum in other apparel categories. The Slice findings dovetail with other analyses that have found Amazon is turning up the heat in the clothing business. Investment firm Cowen & Co. back in 2015 forecast Amazon would easily surpass Macy's in 2017 as the largest seller of clothing in the United States. This leaves clothing and accessories brands with some difficult choices to make: They can start selling their wares on Amazon, acknowledging they might as well go where their shoppers are already on the hunt. Especially at a moment when department stores are struggling, this might be an important avenue for reaching new customers. And yet, Amazon's site doesn't exactly have a sheen of exclusivity or glamour to it. It's the so-called "everything store," the place where you buy paper towels and baby formula. For example, the chief financial officer of Louis Vuitton's parent company recently told investors, "We believe that the existing business of Amazon doesn't fit with luxury, full stop. " Even for brands that aren't as wallet-busting as Louis Vuitton, that's a trade off they'll have to consider: Will shoppers really perceive a brand as aspirational if they see its cocktail dresses next to cat food? The Slice Intelligence report also examined how online orders of leggings a cornerstone of the red-hot "athleisure" look were generally stacking up against orders of jeans. Online purchases of leggings were up 41 percent over the last year, compared to a 3 percent increase in orders of jeans. This difference is not terribly surprising, since jeans have been a staple of women's wardrobes for decades. More interesting, though, was that Slice found that, leggings are not just on a growth tear: The volume of orders for these items actually surpassed orders of denim in each of the last three months. While there is a big push in the apparel industry this season to introduce fresh denim looks such as wide-leg styles and asymmetric hems, these findings might suggest these new aesthetics may not quite have captured women's imaginations yet. SAN FRANCISCO Yahoo Inc. on Wednesday asked U.S. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper to declassify a surveillance order the company had received so it can respond to a Reuters report that it set up a special program last year to scan all Yahoo Mail users' incoming messages. Separately, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a motion before the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court asking it to release the Yahoo order and over 20 other significant rulings dating back more than a decade. Reuters reported on Oct. 4 that Yahoo had secretly installed custom software to search all of its customers' incoming emails to isolate those containing specific data matching a digital file provided by U.S. intelligence officials. The program ran for a brief period of time in the spring of 2015 before it was discovered by Yahoo's security team and taken down, according to people familiar with the matter. Privacy advocates have criticized Yahoo Chief Executive Marissa Mayer's decision not to appeal the order and said the company exposed hundreds of millions of email users to secret searches. "At Yahoo, we are deeply committed to transparency and to protecting the rights of our users. Yahoo was mentioned specifically in these reports and we find ourselves unable to respond in detail," Yahoo General Counsel Ron Bell wrote in a letter to Clapper that the company published online. Bell asked Clapper to confirm the existence of the government order, to declassify all or part of it, and to "make a sufficiently detailed public and contextual comment to clarify the alleged facts and circumstances." Timothy Barrett, a spokesman for Clapper's office, said in a statement, "We can confirm that we have received the letter and will respond to Yahoo directly." Yahoo had previously said the Reuters report was "misleading" and that the "mail scanning described in the article does not exist on our systems." When asked to give specifics on how the story was misleading, or whether the operation described by Reuters had previously existed, Yahoo had declined to comment. Pressure to declassify A number of political leaders in the United States and Europe have already been pressing U.S. intelligence officials to declassify and release the order. U.S. government sources said officials were considering whether to release more about the justification for the court order served on Yahoo under Title 1 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The ACLU filing was aided by a Yale Law School team and follows a study released this week by the Brennan Center for Justice that tallied more than 25 major unreleased rulings by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and other authorities. The ACLU said the courts have approved government hacking, attempts to force companies to weaken their encryption, and bulk collection of financial records. The ACLU team acknowledged that the government could protect parts of orders that identified specific undisclosed targets or otherwise had a "substantial probability" of hurting a compelling interest. But it said a body of opinions that constitutes secret law is incompatible with the First Amendment and the basic functioning of the judicial and executive branches of American democracy. "Judicial opinions interpreting constitutional and statutory limits on governmental authorities - including those relevance to foreign-intelligence surveillance - have regularly been available for inspection by the public ... their release is manifestly fundamental in a democracy committed to the rule of law," the motion said. Yahoo said that while its letter to Clapper specifically related to the Reuters report, "it is intended to set a stronger precedent of transparency for our users and all citizens who could be affected by government requests for user data." Additional reporting by Mark Hosenball. New Braunfels, TX (78130) Today Cloudy skies with periods of rain late. Low 59F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%.. Tonight Cloudy skies with periods of rain late. Low 59F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%. ST. LOUIS Jurors on Tuesday believed the self-defense claim of one man charged with fatally shooting another in an argument over drug money last year. Paul E. Clayton Jr., 30, of the 8800 block of Corwin Drive in Jennings, was acquitted of first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the April 2, 2015, shooting death of Clifford Williams in the citys Mark Twain neighborhood. Williams, 42, was killed at his home in the 5000 block of Queens Avenue. According to police, Williams heard a knock at the door, opened it and was pulled out onto the porch and down the front steps. Clayton then shot Williams five times in the abdomen, arm and leg. Williams uncle emerged and shot Clayton in the back as he tried to run, severing his spine and paralyzing him from the waist down. Claytons public defender, Matt Mueller, said his client went to the home to buy marijuana and the men argued over the price. Mueller said a felony amount of marijuana was found packaged inside. Clayton testified that it was Williams who brought out the gun and was shot during a struggle, Mueller said. The 9 mm caliber semi-automatic weapon was never found. We had confidence in the evidence and we believe the jury reached the right result, Mueller said. Based on the evidence, the prosecutors disagreed with the self-defense claim, a spokeswoman said. Tuesdays verdict marked the second murder trial in St. Louis Circuit Court in less than a week to end in an acquittal. On Friday, jurors found Pierre L. Davis, 37, not guilty of first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the Feb. 14, 2014, shooting death of Antoine Farrell. Davis claimed self-defense in shooting Farrell 12 times. ST. LOUIS John Brunner and Eric Greitens, whose political blood-feud rocked this years Missouri Republican primary for governor, are going at it again this time within the pages of a defamation lawsuit. Brunner was hit with the suit earlier this year by a Greitens contributor because of things Brunner said about the contributor during the campaign. New court documents show Brunner now is trying to pull Greitens into the case as part of his defense, filing a subpoena for information about discussions between Greitens and the contributor, California investor Michael Goguen. Greitens who beat Brunner and two other contenders for the Republican nomination for governor in August had been scheduled to give a deposition in the case on Wednesday, less than three weeks before the election Nov. 8, his attorneys noted in a motion filed Monday seeking to quash the subpoena. Wednesdays scheduled deposition didnt happen, pending the motion to quash. Greitens attorneys are arguing the request for information is unduly burdensome, unreasonable, and oppressive. They also seek a protective order asking that discovery not be had from Mr. Greitens ... or any other member of the Greitens for Missouri gubernatorial campaign until after Election Day. As of Wednesday afternoon, there was no hearing yet scheduled on Greitens motion to quash the subpoena. The defamation suit stems from comments that Brunner made about Goguen, a Silicon Valley investor who in 2015 donated $1 million to Greitens campaign. In March 2016, Goguen was sued by a female acquaintance who alleges years of sexual abuse. Goguen denied the allegation and filed a counter-suit against her alleging extortion. During the campaign, Brunner and two other Greitens opponents in the primary race former Missouri House Speaker Catherine Hanaway and Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder all criticized Greitens for refusing to send back Goguens money in light of the allegations. But Brunner took it a step further, falsely referring to Goguen during one gubernatorial debate as the owner of a teenage sex slave. The woman in question wasnt a teenager during her interactions with Goguen, and she didnt allege she was a sex slave. Goguens defamation suit also claims Brunner gave the public the false impression that Goguen had been criminally charged. The womans allegations were made in a civil suit. Goguen filed his defamation suit against Brunner the week before Missouris Aug. 2 primary, and it was widely publicized at the time. The latest subpoena may indicate Brunner is planning to argue that Goguens defamation suit was coordinated with Greitens campaign. The subpoena seeks all communications between Greitens and Goguen that in any way mention, reference, or discuss plaintiff Michael Goguens lawsuit against John Brunner, or ... (Goguens) intention to file or maintain a lawsuit against John Brunner. Greitens campaign declined to comment, citing the pending litigation. Brunners attorneys couldnt immediately be reached for comment. Brunners previous defense strategies in the defamation suit have included the contention that his comments were merely an expression of opinion made in the course of political discourse, according to documents. Shortly after losing the Aug. 2 primary, Brunner released a statement taking back his original comments about Goguen: I now believe erroneous and retract any statements that a contributor to the Greitens campaign was the owner of a teenage sex slave. Brunner, the wealthy former CEO of St. Louis-based Vi-Jon skin-care products, has never held public office, but has tried twice for top Missouri posts with self-funded campaigns. His bids for governor this year, and for the U.S. Senate in 2012, both ended with defeat in the primaries. Records show he spent a combined total of more than $14 million of his own money on the two races. The primary contest against Greitens was especially bitter, with the two men trading personal insults during an angry telephone conversation between them late last year which Brunner secretly recorded, and which was later publicized. Following Greitens primary victory, Brunner declined to appear at a scheduled Republican unity rally with Greitens the next day, prompting organizers to cancel the event. Joel Currier and Ashley Jost of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report. JEFFERSON CITY Although the Democratic candidate for attorney general is now backing Chris Kosters bid to become governor of Missouri, there was a time when she was highly critical of his management style. In a video clip from a debate 10 years ago, Teresa Hensley ripped Koster in his role as Cass County prosecutor, where he launched his political career in 1994. I have not tried a case since I got to the prosecutors office, Hensley says in the clip. The office was such a mess that it took me 22 months to get 18 people working together. Kosters opponent, Republican Eric Greitens, has seized on those comments, calling them a scathing indictment of Kosters time in office." But Hensley, a former Cass County prosecutor who faces Republican Josh Hawley of Columbia in her bid for attorney general, said her statement reflects a different time in Missouri politics. In 2006, when the comments were made, Koster was a Republican who was supporting Hensleys Republican opponent. Koster, who was then serving in the Senate after spending a decade as prosecutor, switched parties in 2007 and later announced he was running for attorney general, which he won in the 2008 election. Not only was there a change in the prosecutor, but also a change in that persons political party, Hensley said. Additionally, there were differences in leadership style and direction. That amount of change is difficult for any organization to handle at one time. As I have gotten to know Chris better over the years, I have developed a respect for his legal mind and leadership skills. He has a proven record of working in a bipartisan manner to accomplish things for the people of Missouri, and that is one of the many reasons I am supporting him for governor, Hensley added. Greitens' campaign manager, Austin Chambers, scoffed at Hensley's explanation. "Those are the typical words of career politicians who will always support one other when it is in their interest to do so," he said in an email. "Hensley is admitting that she decides to say negative or positive things about someone based on what party they are in and who they are running against." JEFFERSON CITY The state is on the hook for an additional $900,000 awarded to a former Missouri veterans ombudsman who won a sexual and age discrimination lawsuit against the state in July. As first reported by The Kansas City Star, a judge ruled last week that the state owes Pat Rowe Kerr the money she paid to bring her case forward, compensating her attorneys fees. The same judge also denied the states motion for a new trial. She was already awarded $1.3 million in actual damages and $1.6 million in punitive damages. A Post-Dispatch review of payouts from the states legal fund showed Kerrs award as the largest since 2013. Kerr was 56 when she was fired from her position as the Missouri Veteran Commissions senior adviser of veterans outreach. She sued on the grounds that she lost her job because her boss, Larry Kay who is still serving as the commissions director has a problem with older, successful women. For his part, Kay argued he had fired Kerr because of budget cuts that put stress on the commission. After the trial, Kay was placed on a paid leave of absence, but in a closed-door meeting the commission reinstated him as director less than three weeks later. One senator on the commission called for his resignation, and the labor union representing Missouris state workers implored Gov. Jay Nixon to step in. Celeste Bott 573-556-6186 @celestebott on Twitter cbott@post-dispatch.com JEFFERSON CITY Going into the third and final presidential debate on Wednesday, Donald Trumps national poll numbers have fallen, in part because he has lost support among women after the release of a 2005 tape featuring the GOP nominee referring to women in vulgar terms. But for female supporters such as Sara Walsh, a Republican National Convention delegate and state committeewoman for the Missouri Republican Party, questions about his recent rhetoric have been asked and answered enough times already. On and on that point is hammered. He apologized, Walsh said. If the controversy has repelled Republican women in Missouri, Walsh hasnt witnessed it. She said she had largely seen nothing but enthusiasm for Trump, often coming from women who care more about the issues than the latest scandal. Women are concerned with policy, what the future of America is going to look like, she said. Overall, Clinton leads Trump by 7 percentage points, 48.9 percent to 41.9 percent, in RealClear Politics average of national polls. Trump had been trailing among women nationally, 45 percent to 40 percent, in a Sept. 18 CBS poll, but that had gone to a Clinton advantage of 51 percent to 36 percent among women in the poll released Sunday. And Clintons surge to a 6-point lead in 13 swing states in the most recent CBS poll was due almost entirely to Trumps losing ground among Republican women, which fell from 83 percent before the tape and the allegations of sexual assault to 77 percent afterward. Still, Joyce Mushaben, a professor of comparative politics and gender policies at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, said conservative female voters might find Trump easier to relate to than Clinton. They see Trump sticking it to Hillary, Mushaben said. In his efforts to put down women, hes putting down women like Hillary. For the Missouri Federation of Republican Women, a group made up of more than 1,000 conservative women in eight districts, Trump remains the clear choice over Clinton, who will bring more regulations, higher taxes, open borders and an end to civil liberties, said Janice DeWeese, the organizations vice president. As for controversy over Trumps treatment of women, DeWeese said that it had already been addressed and that women had to decide individually how they felt. Still, for a number of Trumps former advocates in Congress, the leaked tape was the last straw. Some local Republicans, most notably Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Ballwin, took back their endorsements after the leaked tape. Wagner said Trumps comments on the tape were predatory and reprehensible, but she has not spoken publicly about Trump since. Ann has said everything she is going to say on the presidential race, Wagners communications director, Meghan Burris, said Tuesday. Its not the worst move, politically, Mushaben said. Wagner and other Republicans have taken the chance to distance themselves from Trump, she said, while still pushing for GOP candidates down the ballot. But others criticized Wagners walkback. After praising Trumps performance in the second debate, Bill Hennessy, co-founder of the St. Louis Tea Party, wrote about a fly that repeatedly landed on Clinton during the forum and used it to slam Wagner. Im guessing theres a fly in Ann Wagners face tonight. Its eating the egg, he wrote. In an earlier post, he said, Ms. Wagner seems to believe that being a woman gives her some unique moral vantage point. She forgets that shes not the only woman in America. Unlike Wagner, the other Republican woman in the Missouri delegation, Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Harrisonville, has stuck with Trump. She said that starting with the debate, she believed Trump still had time to make the case that he has the best plan forward for the country, irrespective of the damage that may have been done by the allegations. I think he needs to separate the allegations from the past with what he wants to do for the county now because his policies are what this country needs, she said Tuesday. Hartzler said that when she first heard the allegations against Trump and the 2005 tape that surfaced just before the last debate, I was disgusted. But Hartzler added that I was also disgusted with President Bill Clintons behavior when he was the president. One of my first thoughts was how ironic I think it is that Hillary Clinton says someone is unfit to be president if they say these things, yet when her husband actually did these things it was acceptable. Hartzler said she didnt think Trump needed to make gender-specific appeals to women because the case against Clinton was self-evident and strong. I think we need to focus on what (Trump) wants to do for the country now and how he is going to get it back on the right track, Hartzler continued. Hillary Clintons policies would be disastrous for this country. And I think it is important for (Trump) to continue to draw that contrast. Kristen Soltis Anderson, a Republican pollster, said that polling numbers reflected a drop in enthusiasm among Trump supporters but that he might be able to get that back if he focused on issues and populist messages on Wednesday. The best thing he has going for him is that a lot of people still kind of agree with him on the issues, said Anderson, who has conducted focus groups on what voters want. If he in this final debate can resist the temptation to make this all about bad things Bill Clinton has done I think he will be in a much better place, Anderson said. Missouri ranks among the top-performing states in the nation for boosting high school graduation rates, according to White House figures released this week. On the face of it, thats great news because the alternative returning to the dropout-factory formula is unacceptable. Missouri has marked steady and dramatic improvement in high school graduation rates during the past four years, moving from 81 percent of students receiving diplomas in the 2010-2011 school year to 87.8 percent in the 2014-2015 school year. So why not celebrate this achievement with unbridled enthusiasm? Our reluctance is based on the fact that test scores for college readiness are either flat or falling nationwide. On the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, Missouri students currently lag behind the national performance average, and the national average is far from inspiring. Americas high schools are churning out record numbers of graduates who still appear unprepared in basic reading, writing and math skills to address the real-world challenges that come with a high school degree. For many students, a high school diploma is not a passport to opportunity, its a ticket to nowhere, Michael Cohen, president of Achieve, a national nonprofit, told National Public Radio. Cohen wants higher standards and graduation requirements. This has broad implications across the job and educational spectrum. For junior colleges and four-year universities, higher numbers of underprepared freshmen mean greater demand for remedial instruction. No wonder the nationwide college dropout rate hovers near 50 percent. High schools are simply passing the basic educational burden up the chain to the college level. Increasingly, university professors say they encounter students who cannot read basic texts or compose simple, grammatically correct sentences. It means someone at the high school level has given those students a passing grade when it wasnt deserved. Employers must now question the true worth of a high school diploma if they cannot rely on it as an accurate barometer of basic skills. The nation is already flush with college graduates who are struggling to find employment, giving employers even less of an incentive to treat a high school diploma as a badge of distinction. For states like Missouri, student underpreparedness matters in terms of being able to attract companies that need a ready workforce to handle complex production demands. If employers have to worry about remedial instruction just to ensure their production stays on track, they will gladly choose to be based in other states or countries where the work force is more reliable. The terms college- and career-ready, which roll off the tongues of politicians and school superintendents with stunning regularity, are meaningless if they dont actually apply to the students who proudly don cap and gown to receive their diplomas each year. So my question is, if the department is defunded, and low pay continues, what will happen the next time the police are desperately needed and only a handful of them are available? Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. (OTC: ASTI) announced that the Company has entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement ("Agreement") with a new accredited investor ("Investor") for the private placement of $1 million of the Company's newly designated Series J-1 10% Convertible Preferred Stock ("Series J-1 Preferred Stock"). Pursuant to the Agreement, shares of the Series J-1 Preferred Stock, including the amount of any accrued and unpaid dividends thereon, will be convertible at the option of the Investor into common stock at a fixed conversion price of $0.0125 per share. There are no registration rights applicable to the Series J-1 Preferred Stock. At closing, the Company issued a total of 100 shares of Series J-1 Preferred Stock to the investor in exchange for gross proceeds of $100,000. The Company will issue an additional 900 shares of Series J-1 Preferred Stock in exchange for gross proceeds of $900,000 in six subsequent closings scheduled to occur between November 2016 and February 2017. "We are pleased to secure yet another investment commitment from a new investor," commented Victor Lee, President and CEO of Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. "The funding will provide us with ongoing working capital needs as we continue to focus on the high value specialty PV market. The new investment reinforces our Investor's belief in Ascent's strategy and the tremendous potential of the Company's unmatched award-winning flexible CIGS solar technology." By Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The California Attorney General's Office has launched a criminal investigation into Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) over allegations it opened millions of unauthorized customer accounts and credit cards, according to a seizure warrant seen by Reuters. Attorney General Kamala Harris authorized a seizure warrant against the bank that seeks customer records and other documents, saying there is probable cause to believe the bank committed felonies. The probe marks the latest setback for the bank in a growing scandal that led to the abrupt retirement of its chief executive officer, monetary penalties, compensation clawbacks, lost business and damage to its reputation. Wells Fargo spokesman Mark Folk did not immediately provide a comment in response to requests from Reuters, but was quoted in the Los Angeles Times as saying the bank is "cooperating in providing the requested information." A spokeswoman for the California Department of Justice said she could not comment on the probe. The bank's downward spiral kicked into high gear last month. The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and other regulators ordered the United States' third-largest bank by assets to pay $190 million in fines and restitution to settle civil charges that its branch staff created as many as 2 million accounts without customers' knowledge in order to meet internal sales targets. The CFPB said that high pressure sales tactics and financial incentives fueled the fraud, which was largely carried out by low-level branch employees. About 5,300 of those employees were fired. Shortly after the civil settlement was made public, CEO John Stumpf was called to testify before Congress. Observers have widely criticized his performance, with many saying he appeared ill-prepared to deal with tough questioning by lawmakers including Massachusetts Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who called for his resignation and accused him of him "gutless" leadership. Last week, Stumpf resigned and was replaced by Chief Operating Officer Tim Sloan. This is at least the second criminal probe to be opened into Wells Fargo since last month. In September a source told Reuters that federal prosecutors are also looking into the matter. An affidavit filed by Special Agent Supervisor James Hirt with the California Department of Justice reveals that interviews with possible victims of the fraud have already started. One victim, identified only as "Ms. B," told the investigator that she had declined a request by a Wells Fargo teller in late 2011 or 2012 to open new accounts. But sometime in late 2013 or early 2014, she started to receive notices that she and her husband "allegedly owned on three life insurance policies held by the bank," the affidavit says. She also told the investigator that Wells Fargo often claimed that her accounts had to be closed and reopened because of "problems" that it could never fully explain. The constant changes, she added, sometimes caused her to incur fees because her checks would bounce. Another alleged victim, identified as "Ms. C," told the investigator she noticed the bank was transferring money from her checking account to her savings account in amounts that grew over time, from $50 to $150. The bank claimed the transfers were done as overdraft protection, but it refused to provide her bank statements when she asked to see them. The seizure warrants by the state are seeking a variety of documents from Wells Fargo, including a list of all unauthorized California customer accounts created between May 2011 and July 2015. It also seeks information about fees, charges and other costs that were incurred and the identity of all Wells Fargo employees that may have opened the accounts. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Chris Reese and Alan Crosby) Network-1 Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: NTIP) announced that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board ("PTAB") of the United States Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO") issued its Final Written Decision in the pending Covered Business Method Patent Review proceeding ("CBM") relating to a challenge made by Google, Inc. ("Google") and YouTube, LLC ("YouTube") to the patentability of one of the patents of Network-1's Cox Patent Portfolio. In the Final Written Decision, the PTAB ruled that Google had failed to show that any of the thirty-four (34) claims of U.S. Patent 8,904,464 were unpatentable. In April 2015, Google and YouTube petitioned the USPTO to cancel as unpatentable the claims of the patent which is one of 12 issued patents of Network-1's Cox Patent Portfolio. In October 2015, the PTAB agreed to review all of the claims. A hearing on the merits of the CBM proceeding was held in May 2016. "We are extremely pleased with today's PTAB decision," said Corey M. Horowitz, Chairman and CEO of Network-1. "We have worked very hard with Professor Ingemar Cox to develop and protect the value of his inventions and we will continue to do so," he added. As previously announced, in June 2016, the PTAB issued its Final Written Decisions in four Inter Partes Review proceedings ("IPRs") relating to challenges made by Google, Inc. ("Google") and YouTube, LLC ("YouTube") to the patentability of four other patents from Network-1's Cox Patent Portfolio. As a result of the PTAB's latest Final Written Decisions in the CBM proceeding and the four prior IPRs, one-hundred twenty (120) claims have been found to be "not unpatentable" (i.e. valid), and in total, one hundred and fifty-three (153) out of one hundred and sixty-three (163) claims or ninety-three percent (93%) of the challenged claims of the patents have survived Google's patent challenges in the IPRs and the CBM. None of Network-1's asserted claims from the patents in its pending litigations against Google and YouTube in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York were found invalid. In April 2014 and December 2014, Network-1 initiated litigation against Google and YouTube in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York for infringement of several of its patents within the Cox Patent Portfolio acquired from Dr. Ingemar Cox which relate to the identification of media content on the Internet. The lawsuits allege that Google and YouTube have infringed and continue to infringe certain of the Network-1's patents by making, using, selling and offering to sell unlicensed systems and related products and services, which include YouTube's Content ID system. The above referenced litigations are currently subject to a stay which has been in effect since July 2015 as a result of the then pending IPRs and CBM proceedings at the PTAB. The Cox Patent Portfolio includes patents relating to enabling technology for identifying media content, such as music and videos, and taking further actions to be performed based on such identification. Since the acquisition of the portfolio, Network-1 has filed twelve (12) additional patent applications (seven (7) of which have been issued) bringing the total portfolio of granted patents to twelve (12). Five (5) applications relating to the original specification are still pending and Network-1 anticipates further issuances of additional claims for this portfolio. Dr. Ingemar Cox is currently a Professor at the University of Copenhagen and a Professor at the University College London where he is Head of its Media Futures Group. Dr. Cox was formerly a member of the Technical Staff at AT&T Bell Labs and a Fellow at NEC Research Institute. In connection with the acquisition of the Portfolio, Dr. Cox provides consulting services to Network-1 with respect to the acquired patents and the related pending and future patent applications and assists in Network-1's efforts to develop the portfolio. BARCELONA, SPAIN -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- As VMworld comes to a close, exhibitors and customers alike take time to digest the plate of current industry offerings, as well as how these offerings will be relevant in the digital transformation race. Hitachi Data Systems' VP of Infrastructure Products and Solutions, Bob Madaio, describes these initiatives and more, including HDS involvement in flash storage, convergence, and VM integration in this timely and easy-to-digest blog, A Tapas Sampler of VMworld Barcelona. Excerpt: "Hitachi Data Systems is working on a number of cloud initiatives including storage tiering to the cloud, object storage clouds and the most obvious and closely aligned to VMware, last week's announcement of Hitachi Enterprise Cloud. Available as either a usage/outcome based managed cloud or as a traditionally purchased system, it creates a ready-to-use cloud platform that's pre-engineered (on top of the HDS Unified Compute Platform converged infrastructure, automation and APIs) with VMware vRealize Suite and all the HDS or HDS Partner services a user needs to get important applications migrated and into the cloud environment." "Hitachi Enterprise Cloud creates a powerful on-ramp for our mutual customers to leverage VMware vRealize Suite as their cloud management platform in order to lower operational costs and increase business agility." -- Rob Smoot, VMware VP or Product Marketing Learn More. Join the Conversation. About Hitachi Data Systems Hitachi Data Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., offers an integrated portfolio of services and solutions that enable digital transformation through enhanced data management, governance, mobility and analytics. We help global organizations open new revenue streams, increase efficiencies, improve customer experience and ensure rapid time to market in the digital age. Only Hitachi Data Systems powers the digital enterprise by integrating the best information technology and operational technology from across the Hitachi family of companies. We combine this experience with Hitachi expertise in the internet of things to deliver the exceptional insights business and society need to transform and thrive. Visit us at www.hds.com. About Hitachi, Ltd. Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, delivers innovations that answer society's challenges with our talented team and proven experience in global markets. The company's consolidated revenues for fiscal 2014 (ended March 31, 2015) totaled 9,761 billion yen ($81.3 billion). Hitachi is focusing more than ever on the Social Innovation Business, which includes power & infrastructure systems, information & telecommunication systems, construction machinery, high functional materials & components, automotive systems, healthcare and others. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company's website at http://www.hitachi.com. Company Contact: Emily Meyer Hitachi Data Systems [email protected] Source: Hitachi Data Systems EATONTOWN, N.J., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Facebook, Microsoft, and TE SubCom, a TE Connectivity Ltd. company and an industry pioneer in undersea communications technology, today announced that TE SubCom has been named the system supply partner for the new MAREA submarine cable across the Atlantic Ocean. TE SubCom has completed the route survey and begun manufacture of the system at its facility in Newington, New Hampshire. The parties are on track to begin laying cable using TE SubCom's state-of-the-art cable installation ships next year, with a scheduled completion date of October 2017. As announced by Facebook and Microsoft in May 2016, MAREA will be the highest-capacity subsea cable to ever cross the Atlantic featuring eight fiber-pairs and an initial estimated design capacity of 160 Terabits/sec. The new 6,600 km submarine cable system will also be the first to connect the United States to southern Europe: from Virginia Beach, Virginia to Bilbao, Spain. This new southern route will provide greater diversity of connections and enhanced reliability for customers, as well as optimal connectivity to data centers on the East Coast of the United States. Led by Facebook and Microsoft, TE SubCom is constructing MAREA to be interoperable with a wide variety of network equipment. This new "open" design brings significant benefits for customers: lower costs and easier equipment upgrades, which lead to faster growth in the speed of communications for users since the system can evolve at the pace of optical technology innovation. "TE SubCom strives to provide customers with the highest standards of design, manufacture, and system installation," said Aaron Stucki, president of TE SubCom. "Being named the installation partner for the ground-breaking MAREA cable system further strengthens our position as a leading supplier of the world's most reliable fiber optic cable systems. We look forward to working with Microsoft and Facebook on what will be a highly advanced and scalable new system." "We're pleased to work with TE SubCom to advance state-of-the-art transoceanic fiber connections. This is one example of how Microsoft collaborates with industry leaders to drive innovation and build the next generation infrastructure of the internet. MAREA will offer better connections to users in Europe and beyond," said Frank Rey, director, global network acquisition, Microsoft Corp. About TE SubComTE SubCom (SubCom), a TE Connectivity Ltd. company, is an industry pioneer in undersea communications technology and marine services, and a leading global supplier for today's undersea communications requirements. As a vertically integrated supplier, SubCom designs, manufactures, deploys, and maintains the industry's most reliable fiber optic cable systems. Its solutions include long-haul and regional systems, repeaterless networks, capacity upgrades, offshore oil and gas, and scientific research applications. SubCom brings end-to-end network knowledge and global experience to support on-time delivery and the needs of customers worldwide. To date, the company has deployed more than 100 cable systems and enough subsea communication cable to circle the globe 15 times at the equator. For more information, visit www.SubCom.com. About TE ConnectivityTE Connectivity (NYSE: TEL) is a $12 billion global technology leader. Our connectivity and sensor solutions are essential in today's increasingly connected world. We collaborate with engineers to transform their concepts into creations - redefining what's possible using intelligent, efficient and high-performing TE products and solutions proven in harsh environments. Our 72,000 people, including over 7,000 engineers, partner with customers in close to 150 countries across a wide range of industries. We believe EVERY CONNECTION COUNTS - www.TE.com. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430226LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/te-subcom-supplies-marea-submarine-cable-system-300347318.html SOURCE TE Connectivity Ltd. LOS ANGELES, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- WOW air, the ultra-low-cost transatlantic airline from Iceland, will now offer daily flights from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO) to Keflavik International Airport (KEF), making it even easier to travel to Europe from the West Coast. Fares from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Reykjavik will begin as low as $99* including taxes. Travellers can purchase tickets with a short one hour stopover in Iceland allowing them to continue their trip to one of WOW airs 31 European destinations Prices from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Amsterdam, Paris and London are now available for as low as $179* one way including taxes. Tickets reflecting these prices go on sale today. "We saw a great response to our new routes in Calfiornia this summer and are excited to begin daily flights from the West Coast to Europe beginning next Spring," said Skuli Mogensen, founder and CEO of WOW air. "WOW air is dedicated to providing customers with an easy and affordable way to travel, and continue to do so by offering low-fares and high-performance." WOW air announced its entry into the U.S. West Coast market in January 2016 with services beginning this past June. Currently, flights from San Francisco to Iceland are available five days a week, with service from Los Angeles scheduled four days a week. California routes are serviced by Airbus A330-300 aircrafts, the first wide-body planes in the WOW air fleet, which each carry 350 passengers in a single-class configuration. Seat pitch will vary from 30 inches as standard to 34 inches at an additional charge. Launched in November 2011, WOW air now connects 31 destinations across the U.S. and Europe with the Icelandic capital. WOW air's annual passenger capacity is projected to more than double in 2016 to over 1.8 million, up from approximately 840,000 in 2015. For more information on flights to Iceland and North America please visit www.wow.us. About WOW airThe airline services 31 destinations across Europe and North America including Dublin, London, Paris, Berlin, and Copenhagen. Established in November 2011 by Icelandic entrepreneur Skuli Mogensen, the purple airline currently operates six Airbus A321 aircraft and recently purchased four. WOW airs fleet also consists of three Airbus A330-300 planes and two A 320-200 planes. By the end of 2017 the fleet will consist of 17 aircraft with the average age of the whole fleet only 2.5 years. For additional information and bookings please visit www.wowair.com. Contact:Anna Romano[email protected]310 854 8296 WOW air corporateSvana FridriksdottirVP Communications[email protected] 354 695 9359 *Based on lowest one-way fare from Los Angeles to Reykjavik (KEF), including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from LAX on Tuesdays from January 17, 2017 through April 4, 2017 and April 25, 2017 through May 30, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from San Francisco to Reykjavik (KEF), including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from SFO on Fridays from January 13, 2017 through April 7, 2017 and April 28, 2017 through May 26, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Paris (CDG) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from LAX and SFO on Tuesdays from January 17, 2017 through April 4, 2017 and April 25, 2017 through May 30, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from Los Angeles to Amsterdam (AMS) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from LAX on Thursdays from January 12, 2017 through April 6, 2017 and April 27, 2017 through May 25, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from Los Angeles to London (LGW) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from LAX on Saturdays from January 14, 2017 through April 8, 2017 and April 29, 2017 through May 27, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from San Francisco to Amsterdam (AMS) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from SFO on Saturdays from January 14, 2017 through April 8, 2017 and April 29, 2017 through May 27, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. *Based on lowest one-way fare from San Francisco to London (LGW) including taxes and charges, booked on www.wowair.com. Available for travel from SFO on Thursdays from January 12, 2017 through April 6, 2017 and April 27, 2017 through May 25, 2017. Restrictions and baggage fees may apply. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/wow-air-offers-daily-flights-from-the-west-coast-to-europe-300347250.html SOURCE WOW air Croatia's Prime Minister-designate Andrej Plenkovic speaks in the parliament before the government is approved in Zagreb, Croatia, October 19, 2016. REUTERS/Antonio Bronic By Igor Ilic ZAGREB (Reuters) - The Croatian parliament approved on Wednesday a new government led by the conservative HDZ party leader Andrej Plenkovic whose main task will be to boost growth and sort out fragile public finances in one of the weakest European Union economies. The new government was formed by the HDZ and its junior center-right reformist partner Most ("Bridge") after several weeks of negotiations following a Sept. 11 snap election. The government got support of 91 out of 151 parliamentary deputies. "We will be the government that knows how to bring about changes," Plenkovic told the parliamentary deputies while presenting his cabinet. He said that spurring growth and improving the business climate would be his government's priorities. "We will ease conditions for doing business and implement tax reform to make the taxation system simpler and ease burden for citizens and businesses," Plenkovic said. In the past many investors have largely shunned Croatia due to red tape, high taxes, frequently changing regulations and a slow judiciary. Plenkovic said that the 2017 budget, which is expected in November, will clearly reflect efforts to reduce the fiscal gap and public debt which now stands at around 85 percent of gross domestic product. Tentatively, the government wants to reduce the gap to two percent next year from some 2.5 percent expected this year. Among the main challenges for the new government will be disputes with Hungary's MOL over decision-making in jointly owned Croatian energy group INA, with public sector trade unions over wage hike promise, and with local banks over the forced conversion of Swiss franc loans into euros. Disputes over the promise of higher wages, dating back to 2009, and CHF loans, whose conversion cost was entirely imposed on the banks, could potentially inflict costs worth billions of kuna and undermine fiscal consolidation plans. Analysts widely believe that without measures to significantly improve the business climate, the country is unlikely to surpass the 2.5 percent growth figure in the coming years. HDZ won most parliamentary seats in the snap election following a collapse of the previous HDZ-Most government in June, after just five months in power, due to a row over a conflict of interest case involving a former HDZ leader.. Analysts believe the new government, led by the new HDZ leader, has a good chance of completing the four-year term. (Reporting by Igor Ilic; Editing by Angus MacSwan) BEIRUT (Reuters) - Hundreds of insurgents and their families left the besieged Syrian town of Mouadamiya near Damascus on Wednesday, witnesses said, in the latest rebel withdrawal from remaining pockets of opposition around the Syrian capital. Under an amnesty deal with the government, 1,800 people including 700 rebels left Mouadamiya for Idlib, the largest area under control of the myriad insurgent groups seeking to oust President Bashar al-Assad, the witnesses said. Assad has in recent months used siege and bombardment to force rebels from areas they control around Syria's main cities, allowing them to leave with their families and light weapons and surrendering territory to the government. In the last two months, while attention has focused on the battle for Aleppo further north, rebels pulled out of Daraya, west of Damascus, and two suburbs to the north, allowing Assad to consolidate control around the capital which his opponents came close to encircling at one stage in the five-year conflict. Rebels still hold areas south and east of Damascus. Assad has made a similar offer to the besieged rebels in eastern Aleppo, where the army backed by Russian jets, have been launching an offensive and where they have declared temporary ceasefires to encourage residents to depart. Rebels have accused the government of compelling them to accept such deals or face full scale assaults on besieged areas risking very high civilian casualties. They also say the deals are designed to remove Sunni Muslims from sensitive areas in cities, a charge the government denies. Wednesday's departure of rebels from Mouadamiya was not officially covered by state media and there was no announcement of the terms under which they and their families left for Idlib. Previous agreements, including the one for neighboring Daraya in August, allowed rebels to take with them light weapons and offered civilians the option of also traveling to Idlib or moving to new accommodation in government-held areas. Smaller groups of people have been leaving Mouadamiya since September under agreements struck with the government, including displaced people from Daraya who had sought refuge after their own homes were threatened. Last week hundreds of insurgents and their families left two towns on the northern outskirts of Damascus, Qudsiya and al-Hama under a similar agreement. (Reporting By Angus McDowall; Additional reporting by Kinda Makieh in Damascus; Editing by Dominic Evans) By Rory Carroll (Reuters) - A man from Topeka, Kansas, on Tuesday was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison for helping a would-be jihadist's unsuccessful plot to bomb a U.S. military base, prosecutors said. Alexander Blair, 29, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy for helping his friend, John Booker Jr., store equipment to make a bomb to kill American service members, prosecutors said. Blair admitted that he and Booker plotted to detonate a vehicle bomb at Fort Riley military base near Manhattan, Kansas. Prosecutors said that after Blair was arrested and was asked about the plan to kill service members, Blair said: "That's what they signed (up) for." Blair's attorney Chris Joseph said his client has a genetic condition, Williams syndrome, that made him easily manipulated and unable to appreciate the gravity of his conduct. A defense expert testified that he functioned at the level of an 11-year old. Joseph said he appreciated that the judge in the case saw the government's demand for five years in prison as overreaching. He said no decision has been made yet on whether to appeal. Blair's co-defendant Booker, 22, made statements on Facebook and to FBI agents that he wanted to join Islamic State and kill people and was willing to die in the process, according to prosecutors. He was arrested on April 10 in a sting operation in which he went to Fort Riley with two undercover FBI agents to detonate what he did not know was an inert bomb, prosecutors said. Booker pleaded guilty to one count each of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to destroy government property with an explosive, according to court documents. He is awaiting sentencing, but has agreed to spend 30 years in prison in the plea deal. According to court documents, Blair and Booker shared extremist views in support of Islamic State and against the U.S. military. (Reporting by Rory Carroll; Editing by Sandra Maler) Lebanese Christian leader and founder of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) Michel Aoun greets his supporters during a rally to show support for him and to mark the October 13 anniversary, near the presidential palace in Baabda, near Beirut, Lebanon Octobe By Tom Perry and Laila Bassam BEIRUT (Reuters) - Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri intends to endorse Michel Aoun for the vacant presidency, senior political sources said, and the Hezbollah ally could be elected head of state later this month. Long an opponent of the Iran-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah, Hariri would become prime minister again under the plan that could reshape Lebanese politics. It has drawn opposition in his party and a final decision has not yet been taken, allies said. The presidency, which is reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country's sectarian power-sharing arrangements, has been vacant for 2 1/2 years due to political conflicts. Aoun, a veteran politician in his 80s, has long coveted the post. It was not immediately clear if Aoun's candidacy would enjoy enough support among other politicians to secure the necessary two-thirds quorum for the vote in the 128-seat parliament. The next scheduled parliamentary session to elect a president is set for Oct. 31. Opponents of Aoun's candidacy include Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, head of the Shi'ite Amal Movement and a close ally of Hezbollah, which itself has yet to comment. Hariri, 46, led the "March 14" alliance against Hezbollah and its allies, after the 2005 assassination of his father Rafik al-Hariri. He remains a fierce critic of Hezbollah, which is fighting in Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad. The proposal, unthinkable until recently, casts new light on the predicament facing Hariri, whose standing as Lebanon's most influential Sunni politician has been shaken by a financial crisis at his Saudi-based construction business. The troubles at Saudi Oger, which has been hit by falling oil prices and cuts in Saudi state spending, have led to a cash crunch in Hariri's Future Movement. Diplomats say Hariri has fallen from favor in Saudi Arabia, which these days cares far more about confronting Iranian influence in the Gulf and Syria than about Lebanon. OPPOSITION FROM WITHIN Two senior politicians told Reuters that Hariri had expressed his intention to nominate Aoun for the presidency as part of the power-sharing deal. A third source, a member of Hariri's Future Movement, confirmed Hariri had expressed this intention, but members of his own parliamentary bloc opposed it. Fouad Siniora, a former prime minister and head of the Future Movement's parliamentary bloc, told the newspaper Daily Star that Hariri had told his MPs on Tuesday that he had decided to support Aoun's candidacy, but added that there was "no final decision yet on this matter". One of the senior sources said Hariri would announce his support for Aoun "within the coming few days". The current government of Prime Minister Tammam Salam has been paralyzed by rivalries exacerbated by regional conflict. Hariri became prime minister for the first time in 2009, but his cabinet was toppled in 2011 when Hezbollah and its allies resigned. Since then, he spent most of his time abroad. Last year, he nominated Hezbollah ally Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency, but Hezbollah stuck by Aoun. Aoun, a former army commander, heads the largest Christian bloc in parliament and has a large following in the divided Christian community. He has been a political ally of Hezbollah since 2006. A significant figure in Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war, Aoun led one of two rival governments during the final years of the conflict. In 1990, the Syrian army forced him into exile. He returned in 2005 after Syrian forces withdrew under international pressure following the Hariri assassination. Aoun's main Christian rival, wartime enemy Samir Geagea, earlier this year also endorsed Aoun's candidacy. (Reporting by Tom Perry and Laila Bassam Editing by Tom Heneghan) MAPUTO (Reuters) - The Mozambique government and opposition party Renamo have resumed talks despite the Oct. 9 killing of a senior Renamo official by unidentified gunmen, the state news agency AIM said on Wednesday. The death of Jeremias Pondeca, a member of the Joint Commission set up to find ways to overcome a standoff between the government and Renamo over a range of issues, cast a cloud over the negotiations. AIM said the talks, which were originally supposed to have resumed on Monday, did so on Tuesday after a minute's silence for Pondeca. The commission has so far reached no definitive agreement on any of the matters on its agenda, including Renamo's demands for six provincial governors and the inclusion of its militia in the army and police. The commission was also set up to prepare the ground for a face-to-face meeting between President Filipe Nyusi and Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama. There has been no progress toward such a meeting yet, with Dhlakama saying he had no interest in seeing Nyusi before signing a final agreement, AIM reported. Renamo and the government were on opposing sides in a civil war from the late 1970s until the early 1990s before a peace accord ended the fighting. But Renamo retains its own militia. In the run-up to elections in October 2014, Renamo partisans clashed sporadically with troops and police. Renamo contended that the election outcome was rigged. (Writing by Ed Stoddard; editing by Mark Heinrich) Valuers will be visiting properties in the Western Bay over the coming month to assess current land and capital values. Revaluations are done every two to three years by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council to give a snapshot of property values district-wide so it can accurately assess the value of properties at a given time. With such large movement in property values across the District since our last revaluation in 2014, its really important to bring people up to date with the value of their property, says WBOPC community relations manager Frank Begley. The valuers are out and about now and will be working in the district until the end of November. If no one is home when the valuer visits, a calling card will be left explaining the process to the property owner, says Frank. The valuers are employees of independent valuation firm Landmass Technology and have been approved by the Office of the Valuer-General. These valuations are for the sole purpose of rating and do not reflect the value of your property on the open market, nor do they reflect the sales price of any property. Also, they dont influence the total amount of rates collected by council. However, if the new value of a property has increased or decreased more than the average for the district, the new value will impact on the rates paid. Some valuations will go up, others will go down and some wont change. Valuation results on the land and capital value of properties will be advised by public notice from 12 December 2016. All property owners will receive notice of their new valuation plus a brochure with all the necessary information about the revaluation process and how to make an objection. Property owners who disagree with the new valuation are welcome to lodge an objection up until January 27, 2017. In 2014 about two percent of people objected to their valuation and all were settled through the objection process. Objection forms are available from Western Bay of Plenty Council offices and on Councils website. Completed forms should be posted to: Western Bay of Plenty District Council, Private Bag 12803, Tauranga Mail Centre, Tauranga, 3134, by January 27, 2017. Mount Maunganuis Pacific Coast Lodge & Backpackers have taken out the Tourism & Hospitality Award 2016 at the Westpac Tauranga Business Awards. Its the latest in a long list of accolades presented to the Mount business by industry organisations and consumer voting panels both in New Zealand Australia over the past three years. Co-owners Sarah Meadows and Matt Young say this latest award has given them the extra confidence they needed to maintain their growth path. Its great to be acknowledged for not just our hard work but our wonderful staff as well over the years, we couldnt have done it without our fantastic teams at both hostels, says Sarah. In recent years Pacific Coast Lodge won the TNT Golden Backpacker Award for best accommodation in New Zealand in 2014, and the Trip Advisors Certificate in Excellence in 2015. Sarah and Matt purchased the business four years ago to complement their other business, Harbourside City Backpackers, and the couple have worked hard to build both into leading accommodation and tourism businesses for the Bay of Plenty region. The awards judges noted Pacific Coast Lodge & Backpackers stood out from the other finalists by demonstrating a level of excellence across all areas. Sarah Meadows and Matt Young operate a successful business model based on a deep understanding of, and delivery to, their two diverse customer groups: backpackers and school/sporting groups. Matt believes this award shows they now have their formula right. Weve got great staff who understand how the business works, and weve got a great culture not just in the hostel but within the team - everyone is aligned together. WESTPAC TAURANGA BUSINESS AWARDS 2016 Retail Excellence Small Business: Sponsored by Gartshore Retail Interiors Winner: Furnish Finalist: Waihi Beach Chemist Retail Excellence Large Business: Sponsored by Gartshore Retail Interiors Winner: YOU Travel Finalist: Z Retail Outlets Finalist: Modern Office & Office Furniture Warehouse Manufacturing &/or Logistics Award: Sponsored by Cooney Lees Morgan Modern Office & Office Furniture Warehouse Tourism & Hospitality Award: Sponsored by Tourism Bay of Plenty Winner: Pacific Coast Lodge & Backpackers Finalist: 850 Cameron Motel Finalist: The Phoenix Finalist: Waimareno Finalist: Little Big Events Service Excellence Award: Sponsored by YOU Travel Winner: Nurtured at Home Finalist: The Relocatable House Company Finalist: Modern Office & Office Furniture Warehouse Social Enterprise Award: Sponsored by Bay of Connections Winner: EmployNZ Finalist: Waipuna Hospice Customer Service Award: Sponsored by Trustpower Winner: Fresh One Finalist: YOU Travel Finalist: EmployNZ Finalist: AJC Distribution Finalist: Waipuna Hospice Workplace Safety Award: Sponsored by ACC Winner: Z Retail Outlets Finalist: Waipuna Hospice Digital Innovation Award: Sponsored by Vodafone Winner: Waipuna Hospice Business Innovation Award: Sponsored by Ballance Agri-Nutrients Winner: Modern Office & Office Furniture Warehouse Finalist: EmployNZ Finalist: Waimarino Finalist: Waipuna Hospice Business Leadership Award: Sponsored by Powerco Winner: Tom Roper Corporate Leadership Award: Sponsored by Waikato Management School Winner: Sanford Westpac Tauranga Business of the Year: The annual event proved as popular as ever, with a large number of specially invited guests and Auto Tour partners travelling the route in cherished classic or super cars, ably supported by a beautiful Harley Davidson, with stops at France's most exclusive chateaux along the way. Following a safe passage on and off the Euro Tunnel, the first afternoons drive headed south taking the fleet in to the centre of Frances renowned Champagne region for the first night. The evening commenced with a talk from Hambledon Vineyards founder and aficionado, followed by a wine tasting with Hambledons English Sparkling Premier Cuvee going head to head with a well-known French champagne. The second mornings route took the Tour to a beautiful lunch stop in an old Cistercian Abbey in Burgundy. Following an al fresco lunch and the chance to refresh, the cars then all set off for a relaxed afternoon of driving along winding roads and breath-taking scenery. Despite the heavens opening, the spirit of expectation was not dampened as the Tour arrived at an enchanting medieval castle, with stunning views across green rolling hills and acres of vineyards well known as a haven of tranquillity. Continuing south and taking the scenic route to northern Rhone, cars gathered again, this time for a highly competitive boules competition against the local team. The next stop was Provence for delicious local wines and a gastronomic treat before and the Tours official awards ceremony with more prize giving. The following day provided the opportunity for those prepared to get up early to venture up one of the most renowned and challenging stages of the Tour de France, Mont Ventoux, and catch the sunrise. Having taken in the incredible horizon and fresh air, it was then time to negotiate the hair pin bends back down for breakfast and the final briefing. The Tour then headed towards Castellane for the last lunch at a picturesque sailing club gloriously set right on the side of an emerald lake. After a relatively short afternoons drive, the entourage gathered once more in preparation for the final descent in to Monte Carlo. The Tour was escorted by the Monegasque motorcycle police into Casino Square for the traditional welcome reception on the Salle Empire terrace at Hotel de Paris. The RWD Auto Tour was established in 2008 and has since become a traditional curtain raiser to the Monaco Yacht Show. An abandoned church is one of the locations visited in the haunting documentary "Homo Sapiens." You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close Nishith Amin, M.D. joins St. Joseph's Physicians to their team of cardiovascular specialists as an interventional cardiologist. A fellowship-trained interventional cardiologist, he will see patients at the Medical Office Centre in Syracuse and their Brittonfield office in East Syracuse. Dr. Amin earned his doctor of medicine from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School at the University of London, London, England. Following one year of family practice at Albany Medical Center, he did his Internal Medicine residency, held the role of chief resident and was a cardiology fellow at Upstate Medical University, Syracuse. Amin completed a fellowship in interventional cardiology at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, Pa., and worked more than 10 years as an interventional and general cardiologist at New York Heart Center following fellowship. He is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology (FACC) and of the Society of Coronary Angiography and Interventions (FSCAI). Greenfield, Pa. -- An Onondaga County man was killed Tuesday afternoon in a hit-and-run accident as he and another man were changing a tire on Interstate 81 in Pennsylvania. Around 12:15 p.m. John Fiore, 57, of Clay, and John Sauta, 25, of Bridgeport, stopped outside Scranton on I-81 after their vehicle got a flat tire, WNEP reported. They stopped in Greenfield Township, about 100 miles south of Syracuse. A third man -- whose name police have not released -- was with Fiore and Sauta, said The Times Tribune. The Times-Tribune reported Fiore and the other man watched as Sauta changed the tire when a pickup and trailer hit them and did not stop. Fiore and the unidentified man was rushed to a hospital, where Fiore died from his injuries, WNEP reported. It was not immediately clear how severe the second man's injuries were. The vehicle that hit the men was described by police as likely to be a white, heavy-duty pickup pulling a red trailer with several cars on. It may have damage on its the right side, including white- and green-paint markings. The Pennsylvania State Police asked anyone with information to contact 570-963-3156. Note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Sauta had been hit by a vehicle. An unidentified man was hit, not Sauta. 2014-01-30-mg-ascioti's1.JPG The death of Philomena Ascioti, center, the sole owner of Ascioti's Meat Market's, 2239 Milton Ave., will shut the store through the end of the month. In this picture, taken at the time of the shop's 100th anniversary in 2014, she stands with her sisters Rose Spagnoletti, left, and Frances Quattrone, right. (Michelle Gabel) In its first 102 years, the owners of the family-owned Ascioti's Meat Market in Solvay spanned just two generations. Ascioti's, 2239 Milton Avenue, Solvay, is closed through the end of this month due to the death of its owner, Philomena Ascioti. Her parents founded the shop in 1914. Ascioti's is now closed through the end of the month due to the death of its owner, Philomena "Fannie" Ascioti. She was 94 and the daughter of Antonio and Caterina Ascioti, who founded the grocery store at 2239 Milton Ave. in 1914. Ascioti's Market announced the news on its Facebook page: "It is with great sadness that due to the passing of the owner, Philomena Ascioti, Ascioti's Market will be closed for the remainder of the month. We appreciate your support and understanding. Thank you." Ascioti died Saturday. She is survived by two sisters and dozens of cousins, nieces and nephews, but she was the "sole proprietor" of the shop. The long-term future of the market, best known for its meats, Italian sausage and meatball mix, is not clear. Philomena's parents were natives of Italy who came to Solvay more than 100 years ago by way of Philadelphia. They initially operated the market as a full-service neighborhood grocery, but eventually it specialized in meat and related products. Over the years, it withstood the onslaught of big chain supermarkets, the expansion of the suburbs and the closing of major local industries, especially Solvay's own Allied Chemical Co. "To have a business, especially in retail, in the same family, in the same place, for 100 years is pretty rare," Dennis Connors, curator of history at the Onondaga Historical Association, told syracuse.com on the occasion of the shop's 100th anniversary in 2014. "Those that survive have strong family ties, and succeeding generations that want to be a part of it. But 100 years and just two generations? That's really unusual." In the obituary posted at syracuse.com, Philomena Ascioti was described as "a devout and generous Catholic who gave willingly and often to many charities. Fannie loved her family and enjoyed family get-togethers. Spending time with her great-great nieces and great-great nephews brought much joy to her life and many smiles to her face. After retiring, she loved to cook and discuss recipes with her sisters and nieces. She also was a caregiver for many family members." Don Cazentre writes about food, beverages, restaurants and bars for syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Contact him by email, on Twitter, at Google+ or via Facebook. winefest.JPG The Syracuse Wine & Chocolate Festival (Provided photo ) The annual Wine & Chocolate Festival held each fall at the New York State Fairgrounds was a bit of a disaster last year, perhaps a victim of its own previous success. Part of the team behind the 2016 Syracuse Wine & Chocolate Festival: Pam Levine of Galaxy Events, chef Cody Dedischew of the Marriott Downtown Syracuse, Jacqueline Baldwin-Calveric of the Carol M. Baldwin Breast Cancer Research Fund, and Cheryl Pohlman of Summitt Federal Credit Union. This year, the event has a new main sponsor and a new commitment to fix the problems that led one fest-goer to call it an "epic fail" in 2015. The 2016 fest, sponsored by Summit Federal Credit Union, is set for Nov. 26 at the fairgrounds' Horticulture Building. "We heard the complaints and this year we are making a lot of changes," said Pam Levine, whose company, Galaxy Events, stages the event each year and uses it as a fundraiser for the Carol M. Baldwin Breast Cancer Research Fund. The major change this year is that the fest will be split into two, separately ticketed, sessions: The first is 2 to 5 p.m. and the second is 6 to 9 p.m. Each session will be limited to about 1,500 people, Levine said. That should solve the major problems that plagued last year's event: The 2015 event drew more than 4,000 people, almost double the number of previous fests. That meant long, long lines, prolonged waits for service and an inadequate supply of wine and chocolate -- the reason people pay the $25 (advance price) to attend. "We know we can handle 2,200 or so (total)," Levine said. "So this gets us there." Breaking the event in two also assures every guest will get to the chocolate fountain, said Carrie Wotjaszek of Galaxy Events. The festival features dozens of vendors, offering wine, chocolate, plus spirits and other foods. The ticket price includes unlimited samplings of wine and a visit to the fountain. Other items are available for purchase. Bottles of wine are available for purchase, and the fest donates $1 from each sale to the Baldwin cancer fund. Buy tickets online. The fest also returns to the Horticulture Building this year after moving to the Exhibit Center last year. Although the exhibit center (during the fair it's the Dairy Cattle Building) sis larger, the Horticulture Building allows for a better layout to move people through, Levine said. It also offers a center space for the cooking and tasting demonstration, which will be led this year by Cody Dedischew, executive sous chef of the Eleven Waters bistro and other restaurants at the Marriott Syracuse Downtown / Hotel Syracuse. The festival is also renewing is emphasis on support for breast cancer research. Among other things, the fest encourages attendees to "pin out," or wear as much pink as possible and compete for prizes. "This year there's more chocolate and totally more pink," Levine said. Galaxy runs similar wine and chocolate events each year in Albany, Buffalo, Rochester, Utica, Binghamton and Watertown. Don Cazentre writes about food, beverages, restaurants and bars for syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Contact him by email, on Twitter, at Google+ or via Facebook. Share your opinion on this topic by sending a letter to the editor to tctvoice@madison.com. Include your full name, hometown and phone number. Your name and town will be published. The phone number is for verification purposes only. Please keep your letter to 250 words or less. 2015-04-27-eb-perlman8.JPG Alain Kaloyeros, former president of SUNY Polytechnic Institute, has been granted permission by the judge overseeing his federal bid-rigging case to go to a job interview in Pennsylvania. He is shown in a 2015 file photo. (Ellen M. Blalock) Alain Kaloyeros, a former New York state university president who resigned amid felony charges of bid-rigging, this week asked the federal judge overseeing his case for permission to travel to Pennsylvania for a job interview. U.S. Magistrate Judge Henry Pitman granted the request, according to court papers filed Monday. It's not clear from the documents what sort of work Kaloyeros is seeking, or whether it involves a permanent job. He asked for permission to travel to Pennsylvania "for employment purposes,'' according to the letter from his attorney, Michael Miller. "Dr. Kaloyeros has been invited to meet in Pennsylvania in connection with a potential consulting opportunity,'' Miller wrote. Federal prosecutors did not object to the request, Miller said. The court had previously restricted Kaloyeros to travel within New York and New Jersey. Kaloyeros was suspended without pay last month from his job as president of SUNY Polytechnic Institute, where he was one of the state's highest paid employees. He later resigned the post. But in his resignation letter Kaloyeros said he intended to return to his job as a SUNY Poly professor, where he formerly made $800,000 a year. SUNY officials have said they are "evaluating his request to return.'' Kaloyeros was arrested Sept. 22 on federal charges alleging that he steered SUNY Poly construction projects to favored companies in violation of state bidding requirements. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara has alleged in a criminal complaint that Kaloyeros, among other things, conspired with lobbyist Todd Howe and Cor Development Co. officials to rig the competition for construction contracts at a state-funded nanotech hub in DeWitt. The same day the federal complaint was filed, state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman charged Kaloyeros with bid-rigging in a separate case involving an Albany construction project and other contracts in the Capital District. Kaloyeros' attorney has said he is innocent of all the charges. He is due Monday in federal court in Manhattan for a preliminary hearing, along with other defendants in the federal case. Contact reporter Tim Knauss anytime | email | Twitter | 315-470-3023 2011-03-15-mjg-aNuke2.JPG A group of companies that own non-nuclear power plants has sued to prevent New York from paying subsidies to Upstate nuclear plants including the three reactors in Scriba, Oswego County. (Michael Greenlar) SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Several owners of fossil fuel-burning power plants sued New York utility regulators today seeking to block millions of dollars in subsidy payments for the struggling nuclear generators in Oswego and Wayne counties. The plaintiffs, including companies that own the Sithe Independence and Oswego Steam generating stations in Oswego, contend that New York's new nuclear subsidy program illegally interferes with wholesale power markets. Officials at the state Public Service Commission responded by calling the lawsuit a "frivolous'' attempt to thwart efforts to combat climate change. The PSC in August approved a new "clean energy standard'' aimed at boosting renewable energy and cutting carbon emissions. The most controversial provision was a plan to subsidize Upstate nuclear plants that might otherwise close for financial reasons, preserving their carbon-free power output for 12 years. The nuclear subsidies are a critical part of a plan to keep the 850-megawatt FitzPatrick nuclear plant running. Exelon Corp. agreed to buy the facility from Entergy Corp. and keep it running, on the condition that subsidy contracts are approved by Nov. 18. Today's lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan by a coalition of generating companies, including NRG Energy, owner of the Oswego Steam Station, and Dynegy, owner of Sithe Independence. Opponents of the nuclear subsidies contend that they will prop up inefficient generators that can't otherwise compete, artificially increasing the supply of power and reducing market prices. Meanwhile, they say, utility customers across the state are forced to pay the subsidies, which are expected to cost nearly $1 billion in the first two years and as much as $7.6 billion over 12 years. The lawsuit seeks a permanent injunction nullifying the nuclear subsidies. Officials at the PSC said in August they looked into this legal argument, after generators raised it during the PSC deliberations, and found it without merit. They say the nuclear subsidies are provided in return for an environmental benefit, similar to wind and solar subsidies that have been paid for years. Audrey Zibelman, PSC chair, denounced the lawsuit today. "The frivolous lawsuit is right out of (the) fossil fuel industry's playbook to deny and thwart actions to combat climate change,'' she said. "The Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld the rights of states to protect their environment for the welfare (of) citizens.'' According to a study by The Brattle Group, funded by Exelon and other nuclear supporters, the three reactors in Oswego County and another in Wayne County eliminate nearly 16 million tons of carbon dioxide a year that would otherwise be emitted by fossil fuel power plants. Exelon today issued a statement saying its effort to acquire FitzPatrick will continue, "notwithstanding attempts to stop it.'' Contact reporter Tim Knauss anytime | email | Twitter | 315-470-3023 Read the federal complaint by Tim Knauss on Scribd Chuck Schumer Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., will speak with the Syracuse Media Group editorial board today. In this photo provided by CBS News, on Sunday, Oct. 13, 2013, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks on CBS' "Face the Nation" in Washington. (Chris Usher) Sen. Charles Schumer is scheduled to meet with Syracuse Media Group's editorial board at 9:30 a.m. today to ask for its endorsement as he runs for his fourth six-year term. Schumer, a Democrat, was first elected to the Senate in 1998 after long stints in Congress and in the New York state Assembly. Should his party claim a majority in the chamber on Nov. 8 - and should he be re-elected - Schumer is in line to become Senate Majority Leader. Schumer's opponent is Republican Wendy Long, a New York City lawyer who ran unsuccessfully against junior Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in 2012. Last month, Long canceled a meeting with the editorial board due to a scheduling conflict and she declined to reschedule. We'll be live-tweeting from the Schumer editorial board meeting from the @CNYOpinion Twitter account. You can follow along on Twitter or in the comments below. Pose a good question and we'll ask the senator to answer, if time permits. Policeman's hand on gun A police officer holsters his gun. Syracuse police recently faced two situations where deadly force would have been justified -- but they held their fire, writes Syracuse PBA President Jeff Piedmonte. (Jupiterimages) Jeff Piedmonte is president of the Syracuse Police Benevolent Association, which represents Syracuse police officers. By Jeff Piedmonte During the past few weeks, two potential deadly force incidents involving Syracuse police officers were written about by Syracuse.com. Both of the deadly situations ended with the suspects being uninjured, arrested and taken to jail. I want to point these out as these situations occur everyday throughout police departments across the country but the media usually doesn't give them the attention they deserve. These cases were similar situations where the suspects, both times African-American males, followed police instructions and were uninjured by the officers. This illustrates how people should react when confronted by the police and how to avoid being shot. If more suspects followed officers' instructions, the officers wouldn't be faced with deciding if they need to shoot or, in some cases, hesitate and get shot themselves. Deadly confrontations similar to these end without violence everyday in this country but the public is unaware of them because the officers ended the situation without being forced to fire their weapons. In the first reported incident, a victim of a burglary armed himself then chased the suspect down the street with a knife and was violently stabbing the suspect when a Syracuse officer drove up on the scene. The officer ordered him to drop his knife and he complied. He was then handcuffed and taken into custody without incident. This "suspect" could have argued with our officer that he was actually the "victim" because of the burglary at his house and refused to drop the knife, but thankfully this was not the case. Although he was originally the victim of a crime, his actions made him a suspect who was clearly agitated. However, he complied with the orders of the officer and lived. In the second case, two officers were chasing another black male who then pulled a gun from his waistband and turned toward the officers. The officers would have been justified in shooting this suspect, but he threw the weapon on the roof of a building and surrendered. Thankfully for all involved, the suspect complied with officers' commands and avoided a tragic incident. In both of these cases, the officers could have shot the suspect, but they didn't because the suspects complied with their commands. Both of these suspects are very fortunate to have survived these encounters without being shot but they also have their own reaction to police commands to thank for it. Across the country, protesters want to focus on the very few incidents when officers shoot African-American males. If the suspects would simply comply with officers' commands, like these two suspects did, most of them would simply be taken to jail. I'm not going to say that mistakes aren't made by officers, but they are very few in comparison to the number of police encounters across the country. The two most recent cases in Tulsa and Charlotte illustrate what can happen when suspects don't comply with police orders. In the first incident in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the officer was arrested. While all of the facts are not yet in, there was enough evidence to bring charges against the officer, showing that the current system does work. However, also in this case, the suspect's refusal to follow the officer's commands put himself in the position where the officer felt compelled to shoot him. The courts will now determine if the officer acted as a reasonable officer under similar circumstances would have reacted, which is the standard of proof when force is used by law enforcement, but the situation could have been prevented if the suspect followed the original orders. In Charlotte, North Carolina, where protestors looted, injured officers, killed a protester and damaged property, the suspect did not comply with the commands and pleas from both the police and from his wife. Based on the reports that I have read, this suspect has himself to blame for his death and nobody else. Drop the gun and you live, don't drop it and remain a threat and you may die. It's pretty simple. Police officers do not come to work hoping that they will face a deadly force situation, and most never fire their weapon during their careers, but in the cases when officers are forced to shoot a suspect that trauma lives with the officer forever. In both of the cases in Syracuse, the officers were proactive and stopped the suspects based on their own observations. I feel that our community should be grateful that our officers are still proactive when there are so many people taking anti-police positions. Many officers from various agencies have the attitude that they will not be proactive because it only leads to complaints against them. This leads to high crime statistics like in Chicago. From the police standpoint these deadly situations boil down to the suspects complying with the commands of the police. If more of these suspects started following commands of the police, there would be less of these deadly encounters throughout the nation.From the police side of this situation, that is the simplest way to analyze these deadly encounters that are fracturing our relations with the community. math lesson In this file photo, Neela Goodwin, in Colleen Brigati's third grade class works out a math problem on the smart board. The teacher is teaching under the Common Core standards. They are learning measurement capacity in liquid on a vertical line in liters and milliliters. Ellen M. Blalock / eblalock@syracuse.com (Ellen M. Blalock | eblalock@syracuse.com) SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Math test scores may have increased slightly statewide, but a look at middle school grades reveals a concerning trend: Students are doing worse in math as they get older. Last year's three through eight math test scores show a precipitous drop in scores in eighth grade. The trend downward begins in fifth grade. In Central New York, only 15 percent of eighth graders scored proficient in math. Third graders scored 40 percent proficient. The problem persists beyond CNY. Statewide, third graders score 44 percent proficient, but just 24 percent of eighth graders passed. See how students in each grade and school performed in math by searching our database below. So, what's happening? Common Core is tough, especially on older students The new math ushered in by Common Core is, by design, more rigorous than previous math standards and tests. Older students are especially disadvantaged by the changes occurring in New York state because they don't have the foundation from earlier grades to build on more difficult material. Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia said in an interview that the state standards and the revision they are currently undergoing are designed to introduce concepts and skills at a young age and build on them year over year. Elia said she expects students to do better as more have the foundations of Common Core from the earlier grades. "You have a longer period of time where that student would have had exposure to the standard and it spiraled up through the grade levels," she said. From tricks to concepts The Common Core also represented a shift in how math is taught. For a long time, math was about drills, tricks and memorization. Now, math is more focused on understanding concepts. So instead of just knowing to "FOIL" -- first, outside, inside, last -- when they see an algebraic equation with two x's, students are expected to understand what a polynomial is and how it behaves when you try multiplying or dividing it. Concepts get tougher starting in about fifth grade, said Melanie Cifonelli, the Syracuse City School District's director of mathematics. "It is my feeling that the concepts get more difficult as you move from whole number operations into operating with decimals and fractions," Cifonelli said. "They behave differently. The concepts get more complex." Parents in the dark One of the first criticisms of Common Core was how its new math left parents in the dark. Where parents would see a simple division problem, students are expected now to show their work and explain how they arrived at their answer. "This isn't the way that grown-ups are used to doing this," said Sally Fisher, a math teacher at Lincoln Middle School. "Just being able to support our students at home from a young age -- it's not happening as frequently as it used to because there's not a lot of knowledge" of the concepts, she said. Best students' scores don't count in 8th grade It's worth noting that part of the reason for declines in eighth grade math scores is that the strongest math students often take a different exam. Eighth grade students can choose to take the regular eighth grade math course, or Algebra I. The scores for eighth graders who take Alegbra aren't counted in the school's averages. Often, those are the best math students in a middle school. Click here to load this Caspio Cloud Database Reporter Julie McMahon covers Syracuse University and Syracuse city schools. She can be reached anytime: Email | Twitter | 315-412-1992 Google Top Searches of 2014 List An Arizona man is facing charges in Manhattan federal court of providing material support to the Islamic State helped a New York college student who was later killed fighting in Syria join the terror group, prosecutors said in a new court filing. In this file photo, demonstrators chant pro-Islamic State group, slogans as they carry the group's flags in front of the provincial government headquarters in Mosul, 225 miles (360 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad. I (AP) NEW YORK -- An Arizona man facing charges in Manhattan federal court of providing material support to the Islamic State helped a New York college student who was later killed fighting in Syria join the terror group, prosecutors said in a new court filing. The government, in a motion late Monday night describing evidence it wants to use at Mohammed Ahmed el-Gammal's scheduled Dec. 5 trial, identified the student as Samy Mohammed el-Goarany, a 24-year-old student from Middletown who was attending college in New York City. Prosecutors also want to offer into evidence a picture of a handwritten letter from el-Goarany sent to a relative last November via an instant messaging service, informing them that he had been killed fighting in Syria. "If you're reading this then know that I've been killed in battle and am now with our Lord InshaAllah," the letter said. " ... We will win this war one day, this war between Iman (Belief) and kufr (Disbelief) between Good and Evil." When el-Gammal was charged in September 2015, he was accused of helping a student to join the Islamic State, but the student was not named, and the government did not previously reveal evidence that the student was later killed. In Tuesday's filings, prosecutors also revealed that el-Gammal and el-Goarany first met over Facebook in 2014, and then at el-Goarany's suggestion started using an encrypted messaging app that former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden used when he was on the run. Defense lawyers for el-Gammal, in a filing, opposed allowing a jury to hear about the letter, saying el-Goarany had died. They said it hadn't been authenticated and might have been fabricated so that el-Goarany could disappear and be presumed dead. An inmate at the Erie County Holding Center suffered a violent death in November 2012 by the hands of poorly-trained deputies, according to a new 25-page report from state investigators. This includes county corrections officers severely beating and strangling the inmate while he was shackled at the hands and feet. A medical examiner originally ruled the inmate died from a heart attack. The report was released in September and became public after a Freedom of Information request from the Buffalo News. Richard Metcalf was in custody after he exhibited strange behavior, WIVB reports. This includes Metcalf acting paranoid, running out of his house into the snow and breaking into the catering business where he worked. Metcalf resisted arrest after breaking into this workplace, and police used a Taser on him twice before taking him to a holding cell in Depew, New York. After his arraignment, officers transported Metcalf to the Erie County Holding Center, pending a mental health evaluation ordered by a judge, according to the state report. His treatment at the holding center has led to disputes as to the cause of his death. At the time of his death, Depew police and medical personnel told state officials that Metcalf had no significant injuries when he arrived at the holding center, which is in direct contrast of what Erie County jail authorities said, claiming Metcalf arrived with visible injuries. Metcalf's booking photo shows small cuts on his left eye and a small abrasion near his right eye, but both of those could have resulted from a fall after officers used the Taser. As he was being transported, Metcalf soiled himself, WIVB reports. That required Metcalf to shower once he arrived to the holding center. While in the shower, Metcalf "freaked out," and officers had to "take him down" to control him. Medical staff tended to Metcalf after and observed cuts and bruises all over his face. One doctor noted multiple skin abrasion and lesions to his hands and feet, and new bruises to his face, arms and legs. Once Metcalf was taken back to the holding center, his behavior worsened--and so did the beatings, according to the state report. Suffering from hallucinations, Metcalf started biting and punching himself, scraping and stabbing himself with a utensil, banging his head on the cell bars, telling officers he was radioactive and yelling the word "slaughterhouse." Officers restrained Metcalf with shackles at the hands and ankles. At least four officers tried to hold down Metcalf, who continued to resist after they took him the infirmary. When officers placed a spit mask on Metcalf, the inmate chewed through it and began spitting blood. Surveillance video showed an officer leaving the room and returning with a pillow case, which officers used to loosely tie over Metcalf's head, the report states. EMTs arrived to the scene, but officers prevented them from assisting Metcalf due to safety concerns. Metcalf was being held down on his chest to the table with his head covered, and his breathing could be heard fading away. Thirty minutes after EMTs were called, they lifted Metcalf into the ambulance and turned him onto his back. The spit mask Metcalf chewed through was still around his neck, which required scissors to remove because of how tight it was. Metcalf was no longer breathing and his heart stopped, the reports states. Deputies told investigators that they don't remember who tied the spit mask around Metcalf's neck. While emergency room doctors brought Metcalf back to life, his organs were failing, he had four broken ribs, there was visible bruising all over his body and he never regained consciousness. His family signed an order for him to be resuscitated and he died two days later. The Erie County medical examiner initially ruled Metcalf's death a homicide that resulted from heart attack caused by an outside force, noting the inmate's pre-existing heart condition. In the state investigators' report, the Medical Review Board rejected that ruling. They said the restraint methods used by Erie County Deputies caused Metcalf's death. The report states death was caused by "traumatic asphyxia with compression of the torso and neck." The Medical Review Board also found no evidence of a heart attack: "Significantly, the results of Metcalf's autopsy did not demonstrate that he had any coronary artery disease or atherosclerosis heart disease that would support the pathological diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction." The state report recommended acting Erie County District Attorney Michael Flaherty conduct a full criminal investigation and the U.S. Justice Department to again examine the Sheriff's Office for civil rights violations. Former district attorney Frank A. Sedita III initially declined to file any charges in Metcalf's death. "I offer my sympathies to the family of Richard Metcalf," Flaherty wrote in a statement. "I have received the report from the NYS Commission of Correction, and I am in the process of discussing with my colleagues our next course of action. It would be inappropriate for me to offer any further comment at this time." Warning: The video contains graphic images. Overland Park, Kan. A man tried to choke a 4-month-old child at a Wal-Mart in Kansas this morning. The baby was not injured, according to the Kansas City Star. A woman was standing in line with her child when a man she didn't know walked up and started to choke the infant. Bystanders intervened and subdued the man until police arrived and arrested him, the Star said. The baby's mother, Quisha Hill, told Fox 4 in Kansas that she often shops at the Wal-Mart where the incident took place. "I come in to grab a couple items and while I was at the counter top, speaking with the lady and bagging up my groceries, this random man comes out of nowhere and yanks the car seat out of the cart, has my baby and he's like I'm taking the baby, I'm stealing her, I'm taking her," Hill said, according to Fox 4. Photos from the scene where police say a man walked up to woman in a checkout lane & started choking her baby https://t.co/UjzNVlpmcO pic.twitter.com/v1NT0Bhnbb FOX4 News (@fox4kc) October 19, 2016 After that, the man started choking the child and Hill started screaming for help, Fox said. That's when several nearby shoppers wrestled the man to the ground. Hill said the child turned red for a few moments, but is expected to be fine. At one point, the man took the baby's car seat and put it over his head and tried to wear it like a hat, Hill told Fox. Police told the Star the man appeared to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. "Our main concern right now is for our customer and her child," a spokesperson for Wal-Mart said, according to Fox. "We're appalled this happened in our store and we're working with police to make sure they have all the information they need." Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Google + | 315-454-2112 The status of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange grew a bit murky on Tuesday after the group accused the U.S. State Department of pressuring Ecuadorian officials to block him from posting additional emails linked to presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The Ecuadorian foreign ministry on Tuesday acknowledged placing temporary restrictions on Assanges access, saying in a statement that it did not wish to interfere in a foreign election. It also said that it was acting on its own and not in response to any outside pressures. Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012 to shield himself from two outstanding sex assault charges stemming from a 2010 trip he made to Sweden. He has continued to lead the WikiLeaks organization from there. WikiLeaks earlier on Tuesday had accused U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry of pressuring his counterparts in Ecuador to crack down on the email leaks during a round of peace negotiations to end the decades-old conflict between Marxist FARC rebels and the Columbian military. Kerry held private meetings with Ecuador during a sideline period in negotiations with Columbia that began on Sept. 26, WikiLeaks claimed. The John Kerry private meeting with Ecuador was made on the sidelines of the negotiations which took place pricipally on Sep 26 in Colombia. WikiLeaks (@WikiLeaks) October 18, 2016 Assange lost his Internet connection at the Embassy at 5 p.m. on Saturday GMT, shortly after the group published Clintons Goldman Sachs speech, WikiLeaks said in an earlier tweet. We can confirm Ecuador cut off Assange's internet access Saturday, 5pm GMT, shortly after publication of Clinton's Goldman Sachs speechs. WikiLeaks (@WikiLeaks) October 17, 2016 Code Blue WikiLeaks initially claimed that a state party intentionally severed Assanges Internet link and that it had activated the appropriate contingency plans. WikiLeaks also released three tweets called pre-commitment 1: John Kerry, pre-commitment 2: Ecuador and pre-commitment 3: UK FCO. Each tweet included what appeared to be alpha-numeric cryptokeys, more than 60 characters long. The tweets set off a frenzy of speculation, including rumors that Assange had died. However, that rumor was quickly shot down. Assange had warned for several months that he would release information that was damaging to Clinton before the November presidential election. Method and Madness The method and motivation of the various actors in this most recent drama left Troy Hunt, a Microsoft regional director and MVP, at a loss as to exactly what happened this weekend. Seems a bit weird to me Ecuador has granted him asylum, he told the E-Commerce Times. Why pull his Internet? And how was the U.S. able to do it when hes holed up in a building in London? Or was it political pressure rather than technical means used by the U.S.? Kerry had nothing to do with Assanges loss of Internet access, according to State Department spokesperson John Kirby. While our concerns about WikiLeaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down WikiLeaks is false, he said. Reports that Secretary Kerry had conversations with Ecuadorian officials about this are simply untrue. Period. US Will Strike Back Assange made headlines earlier this year when WikiLeaks was connected to suspected Russian hacks of emails belonging to Hillary Clinton and her associates, as well as network intrusions of several Democratic Party organizations. The leaked emails are part of the Russian governments targeted campaign to undermine the confidence in the U.S. presidential election and possibly influence the outcome, according to U.S. government officials and cybersecurity experts. The Obama administration earlier this month officially accused the Russian government of orchestrating the cyberattacks and promised to deliver a proportional response. Officials at Ecuadors U.S. embassy referred us to the countrys Foreign Ministry, which did not respond to our request to comment on this story. WikiLeaks recently released a new batch of emails belonging to longtime Clinton associate John Podesta, who is the current chairman of the Clinton presidential campaign and was chief of staff under President Bill Clinton and counselor to President Barack Obama. Shares of Samsung Electronics fell sharply on Tuesday after the company confirmed reports that it had halted production of its flagship Galaxy Note7 smartphone, just launched this summer. The move came after several replacement phones reportedly smoldered or caught fire. Shares fell 8 percent in the Korean market. Samsung had been working with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on a voluntary recall and replacement program, spurred by reports that dozens of the new devices had burst into flames due to faulty lithium-ion batteries. Regulators also had banned them from commercial aircraft. Regulators Investigate The CPSC will continue its active investigation into the reports of phones overheating and burning in multiple states, said Chairman Elliot Kaye, who praised Samsung, along with retailers and carriers, for suspending Note7 sales and replacements. No one should have to be concerned that their phone will endanger them, their family or their property, Kaye said. Due to the ongoing safety concerns associated with Galaxy Note7 phones, it is the right move for Samsung to suspend the sale and exchange of all Galaxy Notes7s. The Federal Aviation Administration has urged passengers not to use, charge or stow any of the Galaxy Note7 phones in checked baggage. The FAA referred to last months safety alert, which notes that dangerous or defective lithium-ion batteries cannot be transported via air cargo and carry heavy restrictions for passenger or crew transit. One of the highest-profile incidents involving a Galaxy Note7 phone occurred last week, after a passenger who had boarded a Southwest Airlines plane scheduled to fly from Louisville to Baltimore reported smoke emitting from his Galaxy Note7 replacement device, according to Lori Crabtree, spokesperson for Southwest. All passengers and crew safely exited the plane through the main cabin door, she told the E-Commerce Times. Brand Damage The Samsung brand, which has enjoyed a longstanding reputation for quality, likely will take a beating, as the recall and subsequent halt of sales expose something seriously amiss in the production and quality control process at the company. This is a disaster that keeps on growing for Samsung and their brand, observed wireless analyst Jeff Kagan. This problem should never have occurred. The devices should have been tested thoroughly, and this problem should have been found before it hit the market, he told the E-Commerce Times. While Samsung has other mobile phones and other devices in its product line, the damage has spilled over to some of those other devices as well, Kagan noted. Some consumers have lost trust in the overall brand. Other companies have been dethroned for less than this, he said. Theres a perception based on anecdotal evidence and analyst forecasts that Samsung has been losing market share to Apple, which happened to release its top-of-the-line iPhone 7 within weeks of the Galaxy Note7 release. Samsung was the market leader for mobile phones worldwide during the first half of the year, with 22.8 percent of the market compared to Apples 13.8 percent, according to market share data from Gartner analyst Tuong Nguyen. In the U.S., Apple led in the first half with 36.8 percent market share, compared to Samsungs 26 percent. If you've ever worked at a business with at least 20 employees, you've undoubtedly run into "them"---the oft-dreaded, generally misunderstood, secretly sneered at (though sometimes revered) IT department. The goal of Information Technology (IT) professionals, of course, is to provide companies and their employees with the technical tools they need to not only get their jobs done, but to do so in an increasingly fast, flexible manner. Frankly, it's a tough, and often times thankless job. If your computer stops working, the network goes down, or some aspect of the company web site stops functioning, IT gets the brunt of the frustration that inevitably occurs. Beyond these day-to-day issues, however, IT is also tasked with driving changes to the infrastructure that underlie today's modern businesses. For that reason, IT has long been considered a strategic asset to most organizations. In fact, this central role has also turned the CIO---who typically runs IT---into a critical member of many business organizational structures. But the situation for IT (and CIOs) appears to be changing---ironically because of some of the very same factors that led to its rise: most notably, the need for increased agility and flexibility. The problem is, after several years (or more) of IT driven technological initiatives designed to improve reliability, increase efficiency, and reduce costs for key business processes, a large percentage of these companies have come to realize that the best solution is to have someone else outside the company take over. From more traditional business process outsourcing, through the evolution of nearly everything "as a service," to the growth of public cloud computing resources, we're witnessing the trickle of projects leaving the four walls of an organization grow into a fast-moving stream. As a result, IT departments are often doing less of the technical work and more of the management. In the process, though, they're moving from a strategic asset to a growing cost center. The implications of this change are profound, not only for IT departments, but to the entire industry of companies who've built up businesses designed to cater to IT. All of a sudden, equipment suppliers have to think about very different types of customers, and IT departments have to start thinking about very different types of partners. Arguably, it's also driving the kinds of consolidations and new partnerships between these suppliers that seem to be on the rise. All of a sudden, equipment suppliers have to think about very different types of customers, and IT departments have to start thinking about very different types of partners. The causes for these kinds of changes are many. Fundamentally, the revolution in the technology side of the business computing world has been even more extensive over the last few years than many first realized. To put it another way, though we've been hearing about the impact of the cloud seemingly forever, it's only now that we're really starting to feel it in the business computing world. Another cause is an interesting bifurcation in the challenges and complexities of the products and services that have traditionally sat under the watchful eye of the IT department. On the one hand, many previously complex technologies and systems that required specialized IT expertise have become easy enough for non-IT line of business leaders to purchase and successfully deploy. Converged and hyperconverged appliances, for example, have brought datacenter-grade compute, networking and storage capabilities into a single box that even moderately technically people can easily manage through a simple interface. In addition, managed service providers, hosted data exchanges, public cloud providers and a host of other companies that didn't even exist just a few years back are offering utility-like computing servicesthat, again, are offering increasingly easy solutions for business departments and other non-technical divisions of a company to quickly and economically put into production. More importantly, they're doing it at a significantly faster pace than what many overburdened and highly process-driven IT organizations can possibly achieve. Some IT professionals are dubious (and highly concerned) about these type of rogue shadow IT initiatives, but they don't appear to be slowing down. In fact, in the case of a hot new area like Enterprise IoT, research has shown that it's often a branch of a company's Operations department (sometimes even called OT, or Operations Technology) that's driving the deployment of devices like smart gateways and other critical new IoT technologies---not the IT department. At the other technological extreme, many companies are also finding that making the move to more cost-effective and more agile cloud-based solutions is actually proving to be much more technically complex and challenging than first thought. In fact, there's recently been talk of a slowdown within some companies' efforts to move more of their compute, software and services offerings to the cloud because of the lack of internal skill sets within IT to handle these new kinds of tasks. In addition, much of the most advanced computing work, in areas such as machine learning, AI and related areas, often requires access to specialized hardware and software that many companies don't currently have. Many IT departments are finding themselves in an awkward position in the middle where the now-easier tasks no longer require their help, and the tougher tasks take a larger supply of employees with skill sets or resources they don't currently have. The result is that many IT departments are finding themselves in an awkward position in the middle where the now-easier tasks no longer require their help, and the tougher tasks take a larger supply of employees with skill sets or resources they don't currently have. Ironically, the very technology that started to create new opportunities for IT professionals (and which many feared would take away more traditional jobs) is poised to now start taking back jobs from IT as well. Needless to say, it's a tough spot to be in. Despite these concerns, however, there is still clearly an important role for IT in businesses today---it's just becoming much different than what it used to be. For CIOs and IT to succeed, it's going to take a different way of thinking. For example, instead of evaluating products, it's increasingly going to require evaluating and managing partners and services. Instead of sticking with slow, burdensome, "we'll build it here" types of internal processes, it's going to require a willingness to explore more external options. The importance of technology in business will only continue to increase over time. As technological solutions become more ubiquitous, however, the concept of distributed responsibility for these solutions will likely become the new reality. Bob O'Donnell is the founder and chief analyst of TECHnalysis Research, LLC a technology consulting and market research firm. You can follow him on Twitter @bobodtech. This article was originally published on Tech.pinions. Julian Assange may have been cut off from the internet when his access was "intentionally severed by a state party." But the talk online surrounding the WikiLeaks founder's expose on Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is not about to die down. Netizens and media observers on Twitter and Facebook have trended with support for Assange. Others have expressed shock over Clinton's supposed backdoor dealings to court Wall Street and her alleged tactics to "galvanize" demographics such as the Latino voters. Ecuador Shut Down Assange's Internet Access On Monday, WikiLeaks said Assange had been denied internet access by the government of Ecuador, putting allegations to rest that the United States or United Kingdom may have been behind a supposed cyber attack to silence him. "We can confirm Ecuador cut off Assange's internet access Saturday, 5 p.m. GMT, shortly after publication of [Hillary] Clinton's Goldman Sachs speeches," WikiLeaks announced on Twitter. The anti-secrecy group maintained it has "contingency plans" in place and a fresh batch of emails exposing Clinton. Assange has been in asylum at the Embassy of Ecuador in London since 2012, after the leftist government of Rafael Correa guaranteed Assange's right to free speech. But the recent internet shutdown by the embassy may soon test the limit of Ecuador's support for the transparency activist. It is unclear at this point what exactly prompted the embassy to cut off Assange's access, although reports point to a reminder that Correa openly supports Clinton in the presidential race. "For the good of the United States and the world ... I would like Hillary to win," said Correa before media outfit Russia Today. But a representative of Ecuador, who spoke with Press Association, says the country remains committed to protecting Assange and upholding the political asylum. #FreeJulian Trends On Twitter And Facebook Despite the shutdown, netizens have rallied around the new information dumped by WikiLeaks concerning Clinton. The move has sparked interest in the content of about 40,000 to 50,000 emails stolen from the personal accounts of former White House adviser John Podesta, who is now in charge of the Clinton campaign. Among the issues exposed in the dump were Clinton's supposed willingness to have a "covert" role in Syria operations; her seemingly close ties to investment bank Goldman Sachs; and her campaign team's alleged strategies for defending her "flip-flopping" on gay marriage. The Clinton camp has neither confirmed nor denied the veracity of the leaks. On Facebook, more than a million netizens were talking about "Julian Assange" and his "silencing." Among Twitter's top trends on Monday morning was the hashtag #FreeJulian virtually becoming the battlecry of Assange supporters, anti-Clinton forces and those calling for government transparency. Anonymous stands with @WikiLeaks and getting out the truth of a rigged system. Censorship is never acceptable. #FreeJulian pic.twitter.com/OQgbZ0SEGw Anonymous (@LatestAnonNews) October 17, 2016 When you tear out a man's tongue, you are not proving him a liar, you're only telling the world that you fear what he might say#FreeJulian WikileaksTRUTH (@babushka_tasi) October 17, 2016 #podestaemails10 is now trending #10 with 29k tweets. Keep it going RT the corruption tell your friend, share articles on FB #freejulian Ant (@antidote925) October 17, 2016 The notion that silencing @wikileaks is ok b/c they had an agenda is sickening,dangerous & against everything America stands for#FreeJulian Amir (@amiraminiMD) October 17, 2016 If the news you watch hasn't reported anything that's going on w #wikileaks; stop watching it. It's government-controlled media. #FreeJulian Alana Mastrangelo (@ARmastrangelo) October 17, 2016 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca's ongoing Darth Vader comic for Marvel has shown exactly why Darth Vader became the pop culture icon he is today. He's ruthless while also being mysterious and complex. Did we mention ruthless? That ruthlessness is on full display in the final issue of Darth Vader, where the dark lord of the Sith personally executes not one but three characters who have wronged him. Major spoilers for Darth Vader #25 below! Turn back now if you don't want the surprises ruined! The past several issues have led up to Darth Vader's confrontation with Cylo, a scientist working on creating cybernetically enhanced individuals who could perhaps replace Darth Vader as Emperor Palpatine's enforcer. Once Vader finds out about Palpatine and Cylo's plan, he's hardly happy. After fighting through Cylo's various clones, Vader uses the Force to do a Jedi mind trick on Cylo's organic spaceship, sending it flying straight into a nearby sun. Vader, of course, escapes, but Cylo and his clones aren't so lucky. Forcing somebody to fly into a sun might seem pretty darn evil, but Vader isn't even close to being done. The series has seen Vader working closely with a woman by the name of Aphra, who helped Vader secure a personal army of battle droids, among other things. Aphra and Vader have been working behind the Emperor's back, but she at long last spills the beans to Palpatine. That meeting goes better than one might expect. Rather than being enraged by Vader's actions, Emperor Palpatine is actually pleased by them. Vader, on the other hand, is hardly pleased by Aphra ratting him out. When the two meet once again on the Super Star Destroyer Executor, Vader promptly locks Aphra in an airlock. She begs for mercy, pleading "Not like this. Please not like this." With no words or hesitation, he ejects her out into the darkness of space. It doesn't get any more ruthless than that, but Vader has one more problem to take care of. The always critical General Tagge, who is actually seen in A New Hope and manages to survive the destruction of the first Death Star, is the next subject of Vader's wrath. He force-chokes the general to death, taking command of the Executor in the process. The issue goes a long way toward reminding fans that Darth Vader, is in fact, a bad guy. However, in a post-credits scene, it's revealed that even he can be outsmarted. Aphra knew her encounter with Vader likely wouldn't go well, and so she planned accordingly by having her ship secretly parked on the far side of a nearby asteroid. After being shot out of the airlock, she is quickly reeled into her ship by her companions. Aphra, it seems, lives to fight another day. All in all, it's a fitting conclusion to the series, one that returns Vader to the formidable presence fans knew him to be in the early days of the Star Wars saga. As for Gillen, he's not done writing Star Wars just yet. He will be penning a new, still-unrevealed Star Wars comic set to start in December. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Samsung announced the global launch of its quantum dot curved gaming monitors today, targeted for professional gamers. Samsung first showcased the CFG70 curved monitor during Gamescom 2016 and IFA 2016, featuring enhanced picture quality and gamer-friendly features that all add up to an immersive gaming experience. Samsung is the first company to launch a curved gaming monitor that takes advantage of quantum dot technology, which means that the CFG70 will feature vibrant and accurate color display across a percent sRGB spectrum. Samsung claims that the monitor will feature a 3,000:1 contrast ratio, which brings out fine visual detail in games during light and dark settings. The CFG70 allows players to see more luminance alongside finer and accurately rendered details, which brings the player closer to the experience. The CFG70 represents "Samsung's most powerful and visually-compelling curved monitor to date," as stated on a press release. The curved display will be available in 24-inch and 27-inch variants. Both feature a uniform 178-degree ultra-wide viewing angle and a 1,800R curvature, which Samsung calls "Super Arena." Both monitors are integrated with AMD's FreeSync technology that enables synchronization with AMD graphics cards, delivering a refresh rate of 144 Hz that reduces stutter, input latency and image tearing. Traditional underpowered displays typically don't support these features readily, causing for some highly nauseating visual experiences due to stutter and clunky color reproduction. A dedicated and intuitive gaming user interface account for the monitor being "player-friendly" alongside hotkeys in the display's front and back panels, allowing for adjusting game settings with ease. On top of quantum dot technology features embedded in Samsung's industry-standard gaming monitor, all CFG70 units undergo rigorous factory calibration before they are shipped. The calibrations allow the monitors to deliver optimum performance and settings including white balance levels, black gamma and contrast ratios. All of these dynamic and accurate color reproduction technology ensures that a gamer never misses stellar visual components as intended by game developers. The CFG70 will rock a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution for both the 24-inch and 27-inch models. For those still unfamiliar with quantum dot technology, quantum dots are crystal semiconductors as small as a few nanometers that emit colored light. Quantum dots produce more accurate colors than mainstream display technology. While acclaimed for their technology, many have criticized quantum dot displays manufacturing-wise since it requires the use of cadmium, an element that doesn't sit well with numerous environmental agencies. However, Samsung claims that its gaming monitor employs a cadmium-free design, so it's environmentally safe. The 24-inch model will retail for $399, and the 27-inch model will retail for $499. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. HBO just released the first trailer for its upcoming mini-series Big Little Lies, and from the looks of it this show will be all everyone will be talking about when it premieres in 2017. Created by David E. Kelley (Ally McBeal) and directed by Jean-Marc Vallee (Dallas Buyer's Club, Wild), Big Little Lies is based on the best-selling novel of the same name written by Liane Moriarty. Those who have read the novel know how exciting it will be to get to see the story plays out on the small screen. Those who haven't read it yet might want to now (you won't be able to put this page-turner down) to be able to understand the hype and compare it to the book, or might instead opt to wait and be surprised to see what happens each week to week. The series will include seven episodes that follows the story of three mothers who become close friends. The women all are dealing with their own personal struggles, which include abuse and divorce among other relationship issues, along with one of their children being accused repetitively for being a bully. Along with small secrets being revealed throughout the story, it all leads up to who is behind the murder that happens during the school's anticipated Trivia Night - and the killer will shock you. The novel itself is filled with raw emotions from the women - especially when it comes to the domestic violence one of the characters endures - but is also lighthearted at times and has been praised for being the perfect "chick lit" kind of title. Despite the serious topics addressed in the book, the series is being described as a "dark comedy," with the comedy helping to balance out some of the more tough moments. Moriarty does an excellent job at pacing the story and building up the suspense, so the reader (and surely the viewer) is left wondering who is behind all the secrets and lies until the end. The trailer for the HBO series does the same thing by teasing its sexy vibe and coming to a bang with the sound of a gunshot. There are lots of twisted tales along the ride, which will help to make the new series everyone's next obsession. While the story is enough to leave a viewer hooked after each chapter, Big Little Lies features an all-star cast that includes Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman and Shailene Woodley in the three lead roles. Also starring in the series is Laura Dern, Adam Scott, James Tupper, Alexander Skarsgard and Zoe Kravitz. This lineup of actors alone is enough to have audiences ready to check out the series, while the trailer further adds to its mystery and charm. Big Little Lies will premiere on HBO in 2017, with no official date yet announced. Check out the first teaser below. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Rumors have been claiming that Apple will be unveiling the new models of the MacBook Pro and the MacBook Air this month. With October past the halfway point though, many fans have started doubting that the company will indeed be announcing the updated MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models before the month ends. A new report, however, claims that Apple is still on track to make the announcement this October on a new lineup of MacBooks. Japanese website Mac Otakara, citing information acquired from a reliable Chinese supplier, said that Apple will be launching both 13-inch and 15-inch models of an updated MacBook Pro within the month, continuing the sizes that are currently available for the laptop. The new Macbook Pro models are expected to support USB Type-C and Thunderbolt 3, with traditional USB ports, MagSafe and Thunderbolt 2 to be dropped in the upcoming devices. The report, however, claims that it will be a different story for the MacBook Air, with the company to discontinue the 11-inch model of the laptop once the new MacBook Pros have been unveiled. Apple will instead be focusing on the 13-inch MacBook Air. It should be noted that not all the reports of Mac Otakara have been spot on. The website acquires information from companies operating within the Asian supply chain of Apple, but its track record is not a flawless one. However, with several other websites claiming that Apple will be announcing new MacBook models this month, it becomes easier to believe in the truth of this report. With about two weeks to go before the end of the month though, it is still not clear if Apple will be holding an event for the announcement of the new MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models. It is entirely possible that the release will be a quieter one, made only through a simple press release and the addition of the new devices in physical and online stores. It was previously reported that with an October release of the new MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models, it would mean that the laptops will not yet be powered by the new Intel Kaby Lake processors. The MacBook Pro is also claimed to be coming with an OLED touch panel that will replace the function keys at the top of the keyboard and Touch ID technology. There were also rumors that the new MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models will come with trackpads that provide Apple Pencil support, which would expand the uses of the accessory beyond the iPad Pro. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Amid the fallout of the decision to stop production and sales of the Galaxy Note 7, Samsung said that it will be compensating suppliers of components for the controversial smartphone. Samsung said that it will be making full payments for Galaxy Note 7 parts that have already been manufactured but are still unused. In addition, the company will be sending compensation to the suppliers for unfinished parts and the materials that have been purchased for the production of the components. "Samsung will determine the inventory levels for the partner companies and carry out compensation quickly," said the company in a statement. There is no indication, however, on how much Samsung is expecting to pay in the planned payments. Shortly after deciding to temporarily suspend the production of the Galaxy Note 7 just over a week ago due to replacement units still reported to be catching fire with exploding batteries, Samsung shut down sales of the smartphone worldwide. The company then also requested owners of the device to turn off the Galaxy Note 7 and to take advantage of the different replacements offers available for the smartphone. The Galaxy Note 7 situation forced Samsung to lower its expected operating profits for the third quarter by $2.3 billion, as the company had to take into account the financial impact of the worldwide recall program launched for the smartphone and the decision to end its production and sales. The impact might not only be felt by Samsung though. Officials of the government of South Korea and its central bank have voiced their concerns that the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco could affect the entire domestic economy of the Asian country, as Samsung is an important customer for many component suppliers in South Korea. A deputy finance minister added that the effects might damage the South Korean economy over the remaining two quarters of the year. Samsung's decision to compensate suppliers will look to mitigate the impact and keep the financial burden largely within the conglomerate. It was recently revealed that tests made on the battery of the Galaxy Note 7 were done in-house, which is unconventional in the tech industry as most companies resort to third-party firms to provide the testing. Samsung's tests did not reveal any issues with the batteries for both the original batch of the smartphones and the replacement units. Galaxy Note 7 owners who still have the smartphone with them should immediately have their device replaced with another model, as the fire hazard that it carries is something that should not be taken lightly. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Since the discovery of Zika virus-infected mosquitoes in Miami Beach two months ago, the city has become ground zero of the disease in the United States. There were dozens of reported cases of infection, and the first confirmations took place back in August. Because of the news, the local economy suffered dramatically, especially after travel warnings were announced. Since then, efforts have been made to combat Zika, but aerial sprayings have proven to be inefficient in the Miami Beach area that is home to the virus-carrying mosquitoes. After multiple rounds of spraying, the county officials discovered a new pool of Zika-positive mosquitoes on Sept. 23. This week, however, Kristen Rosen Gonzalez, the Miami Beach commissioner, has unveiled a new proposal to get rid of the mosquitoes: attract bats into the city. The idea behind this is to reduce the mosquito population in a natural manner, by using other members of the ecosystem. "Aerial spraying of Naled has been used by Miami-Dade County to help eradicate the disease-carrying mosquitoes, but the presence of Zika-infected mosquitoes in the City of Miami Beach continues to be reported by County health officials," as noted in the commissioner's ordinance. The bats will not be affected by the exposure to the virus, according to most of the scientific views. However, it's entirely possible that the measure will fail to be effective, as mosquitoes fly during the day, while bats are usually active during the night, which may prevent the two species from ever entering in contact with one another. "Bats can eat up to 1,000 mosquitoes per hour and offer an environmentally friendly approach to mosquito control," explained Rosen Gonzalez. The pilot program would involve creating bat houses as a first step in attracting the animals. Additional concerns were expressed on the use of pesticides during the bats' stay in the area, as spraying pesticides could kill the animals, according to the national organization Bat Conservation International. There are previously documented attempts to attract bats into certain areas. Back in 1929, a real-estate developer faced a similar situation. However, the bats flew away instead of just moving into the environment he had especially created, which turned the entire plan into a fiasco. As of Oct. 17, there are 160 non-travel-related cases reported with Zika and 739 travel-related ones, as four new non-travel related cases and another travel-related one were reported. More than 100 of these involved pregnant women. "Large, concentrated populations of mosquitoes could provide adequate nutrition in the absence of alternative food. However, a moth provides much more nutritional value per capture than a mosquito," noted the American Mosquito Control Association. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Samsung is doubling down on its efforts to recall all Galaxy Note 7 devices. The company will install booths inside airports where users can surrender and exchange their Samsung Galaxy Note 7 device. The special booths will make it easier for users to avoid violating a serious federal ban pre-flight. Samsung is calling these booths as "customer service points" and they will appear at airports in the United States, South Korea and Australia. Samsung has recently decided to halt production of Galaxy Note 7 devices following numerous reports of the smartphone combusting randomly, often causing injuries for users who were carrying the device on their person at the time of the explosion. Samsung attempted to undo the situation by administering a recall program that lets users trade their current Galaxy Note 7 devices for a replacement unit. The fiasco seemed to have been ironed out by the recall program, that is until replacement units were found to carry the same problems found in the original ones, overheating, battery-draining and still catching fire. The U.S. Department of Transportation officially banned passengers from carrying the Galaxy Note 7 in U.S. airline flights mid-October, sending a very strong message that the devices were indeed a hazard and a detriment to safety. As per Samsung's official notice there will be seven customer service points in Australia, open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time, except for Canberra, which will be open until 6 p.m. The exchange points will be located before security screening, and will offer users an alternative device as a replacement for the Galaxy Note 7. The company is working with officials to add more customer service points in additional airports. A customer representative will assist all those who plan on exchanging their Galaxy Note 7 device, and they will get a replacement unit immediately on-site. Samsung didn't provide information regarding what the replacement phones would be, although it's likely that it'll be its other flagship device, the Galaxy S7 or S7 edge. The representatives will help the users transfer their data to the new replacement devices, and apply users' trade-in credit to their next billing. The existence of these booths suggest that Samsung is intent on rounding up all Galaxy Note 7 devices still in circulation, which per app research company Apteligent's estimate could still be over a million worldwide, as of last week. The company is currently muscling efforts to restore consumer loyalty to its own brand despite the serious effect of the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco. Even with the Galaxy Note 7 officially pulled from life support, Samsung is still set to publicly disclose just what went wrong with the explosive units. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Google Now Allows Users To Book A Cab From Search Results | TechTree.com Google has today announced a new feature that would allow users to book an Ola or Uber directly from Google Search. The feature comes with an option that allows users to choose from a menu of ride service options, directly from the Google Search App. It is also being said that the new feature is available on Mobile Search Browser as well. To refresh you, this feature was made available on the latest version of Google Maps earlier this year - featuring a dedicated tab with information for cab services in addition to the existing driving, public transport, or walking options. Further speaking on the new feature, it provides users fare estimates and pick up times as well. On request for specific information such as Taxi to Bangalore airport or more specifically Uber to Bangalore airport or Ola to Bangalore airport, the app/ browser directs the user to select a service and automatically opens the app to book the ride, all in just one tap. In cases where the app is not installed on the device, Google Search will show a link to install the app. Choosing the best transit option can be a task at times, our aim is to help users simplify their everyday travel. With this, users will be able to order, explore and make quick comparisons about the best estimated taxi fare directly from Google Search results on their mobile, said Sanket Gupta, Program Manager, Google. TAGS: Google search Its been more than three years since Louis Carr Jr. took on the CIO role for Nevadas Clark County, but now he is moving on to head up IT operations for Los Angeles premier utility provider."My last day with Clark County will be Friday November 11th," Carr wrote in an email to friends and colleagues on Oct. 14. "Since IT plays a significant role in supporting the Elections Department, this is a watershed election and Nevada is a 'purple' state, I wanted to stay through the November 8th election."In an internal bulletin, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power General (LADWP) Manager David Wright announced that Carr would be joining the municipal utility agency as the chief information technology officer effective Nov. 14.In addition to serving as the CIO for Nevadas most populated county, Carr also served as CIO for the Texas Department of Transportation and of Arlington, Texas, prior to that. During his tenure at Clark County, Carr managed $45 million in operations, 160 employees and IT across 38 departments.According to the bulletin, Carr will report to Wright on the status of critical information technology systems and infrastructure, cybersecurity and system integration. Apple fires store employees for stealing intimate photos from iPhones brought in for repairs by female customers When you take down your smartphone to a service center for repairs you generally go to the manufacturers authorised dealership to avoid any prolifering of your data from your mobile. And iPhone owners are specially lucky as Apple has very good Apple Stores to cater to repairs and service requests from millions of its Mac and iPhone buyers. But something went wrong in one such Apple retail store in Brisbane, Australia. The staff posted there allegedly stole intimate images of female customers who brought in their iPhones for repairs. Apple promptly responded by firing the staff responsible for stealing and rating customers pictures as part of a photo-sharing ring. The issue came to light after a staff member at the Carindale store noticed a technician looking through a customers phone in the repair room, The Courier-Mail reported. According to the report, the Apple store staff from Carindale store were stealing photos from female customers and sharing them on a photo-sharing ring. Further, such stolen photos were allegedly giving ranking of 1 to 10 based on their bodies on a ten point scale. One Apple staff member told The Courier Mail that such disgusting practice was also occurring at other Apple stores. In a statement, Apple confirmed the Carindale store was under investigation and staff had been fired. In a statement on the matter, an Apple spokesperson said: Apple believe in treating everyone equally and with respect, and we do not tolerate behaviour that goes against our values. We have met with our store team to let them know about the investigation and inform them about the steps Apple is taking to protect their privacy. However, there is more to it than what meets the eye. The employees from that particular store have been fired but Apple maintains that the images of such female customers have not been shared. Apple maintains that there is no evidence that female customers were victimized. Based on our investigation thus far, Apple said, we have seen no evidence that customer data or photos were inappropriately transferred or that anyone was photographed by these former employees. The Australian Privacy Commissioner is also looking into the alleged privacy breach. We are aware of the reports and will be making enquiries with Apple to seek further information, said commissioner Timothy Pilgrim. This is an important reminder that all organisations that collect and manage personal information need to embed a culture of privacy and ensure employees understand their responsibilities, he added. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced Monday that he agreed with Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to resume the cooperation agenda between both nations. | Read More Patrick Kraemer was declared mentally competent Monday to face trial in January for the April 2013 death of Traci Rataczak, his then live-in girlfriend. Kraemer, 48, appeared in Columbia County Circuit Court following transfer from the Columbia County Jail to Mendota Mental Health Institute for treatment and for competency recommendation. Judge W. Andrew Voigt ordered Kramer to be transferred to Mendota in a competency hearing on March 14 in which Kraemer argued for representing himself through his upcoming trial. Throughout proceedings, Kraemer told the court that given the opportunity, he would present facts that would speak for themselves. In 2013 the Columbia County Sheriffs Office responded to a call from a man a neighbor who had stopped by who, on the evening of April 8, told officers he went into the basement of the house and halfway down the stairs, saw the 43-year-old Rataczak hanging by an extension cord from one of the floor joists. On Sept. 11, 2014, a warrant was issued for Kraemers arrest and four days later he was charged with first-degree homicide and jailed on a $450,000 cash bond. Complicating the April hearing was Kraemers disorganized delivery and occasional cryptic comments referring to Rataczak and other members of the family. The hearing also came after a request by Kraemer to have a speedy trial within 60 days of request, shifting the timeline by months, a request that was later dropped as Kraemer also dismissed defense attorneys Steven Sarbacker and Gerald Boyle. On Monday the prosecution side of the court was filled with friends and family of Rataczak, with family of Kraemer sitting behind the defense table. I went out to Mendota with the report and we discussed it, said defense attorney Mark Frank, and he and I are both in agreement with the recommendations made within the report. Before an official decision was made, Frank asked that Kraemer be directly addressed. Mr. Kraemer, my recollection is that you claimed to be competent at all times during this proceeding and it was really only after some exploration that we went down the road that we went, said Voigt. What is your position today, do you believe that you are competent or not? Yes, I do judge, Kraemer said. Then, I have heard from everybody I could hear from about the topic and will find that Mr. Kraemer is competent to proceed at this time, said Voigt. Before moving on, Frank pointed out that in the competency report, the doctor diagnosed Kraemer with a severe bi-polar condition in partial remission. I think Mr. Kraemers ability to focus and stay on topic has a lot to do with medications he has been receiving in Mendota, said Frank. So, just to indicate for the record, I agree with the doctor, he needs to continue with those medications and if there is a failure at the jail, he could become incompetent. Voigt agreed with Frank in being hopeful of continued treatment, but that he would not make any orders of the jail or Columbia County Sheriffs Office before any indication of an imminent issue. Moving on to the trial, scheduled for Jan. 17 to Jan. 27, Voigt asked Frank, Do you think that first, the nine days will be enough time? Yes. Is it too much time? I think you would have to talk to the prosecutor on that, said Frank. Its not too much time, judge, said Wisconsin Assistant Attorney General Robert Kaiser, going on to suggest a lengthening of the court day by an hour. We would think we can do it in that amount of time. We would hope if we start at 8:30 a.m. we can go until 5:30 p.m. That would help. So youre concerned that nine days isnt enough, asked Voigt. No, I think we can do it assuming we can put in that size of day. RACINE The staff at the Racine County Jail staff received a big surprise during their shift change Monday afternoon. Kaylee, 9, and Jaydyn Kott, 6, of Silver Lake, brought 87 decorated bags filled with candy and DVDs of their favorite movie, Courageous, to give to the guards and other jail workers to thank them for their service to Racine County. In addition, the staff was treated to pizza, lemonade and cookie cakes with We Back the Blue written on them in frosting. The girls wanted to give back to the officers amidst the recent community/police tensions in the country. Were here to give back to the officers because we care about them, Kaylee said. We love them. The Kott girls were accompanied by their parents as well as their friends who helped make the bags. More than 30 people showed up Saturday at the Kott home to help the girls decorate and fill the bags. In July, the Kott sisters stopped by the Racine County Fair to give gift bags to deputies assigned to the fairgrounds. But they also wanted to thank the officers behind the scenes who staff the jail. They also plan similar deliveries to other area law enforcement agencies. When I was at the County Fair, the first thing these two did was wrap their arms around me, Racine County Sheriff Christopher Schmaling said. We appreciate everything these girls do for us and cannot thank them enough. Hugs and prayers During the shift change on Monday, each jail staff member was greeted by the children, given a gift bag and then given a hug as they entered the room. Multiple groups of staff members came in throughout the event. Each time the Kott sisters brought the staff members into a circle to pray for them. Dear Jesus, please help that these officers get all of the bad guys and please help that they will go to heaven and see the Courageous movie, Jaydyn prayed with a group of officers. Please help that they will be safe. Courageous is an independently produced, Christian-themed movie. The theme of ths movie centers on a sheriffs deputy who endures a terrible personal tragedy that causes him to question what is really important to him. The Kott sisters also were recipients on Monday. To thank the girls for their generosity to the Sheriffs Office, the Kott sisters were presented with certificates and challenge coins. This is a nice recognition and well-needed, Schmaling said. We are just taken aback by the kindness of these two little girls. Jonathan Hart for more than a year raped a young teen after telling her they were meant to be together in Gods eye. You took her childhood, her innocence and, in some ways, her life, the victims mother testified Tuesday. In Gods eye, youre going to hell. Its reprehensible to use religion to justify sexual assault, La Crosse County Circuit Judge Ramona Gonzalez told Hart before sending him to prison for six years. You did not have a relationship with a 13, 14-year-old girl. You sexually abused her, she said. You took your penis and you put it in a child, repeatedly. Hart, 47, brainwashed the victim by claiming they were in a spiritual marriage to pressure her into sex, assistant district attorney Noel Lawrence said. He justified a sexual relationship with a teen under his interpretation of the Bible, she said. This was no relationship. This was repeated sexual assault. Hart, of La Crosse, entered an Alford plea to one count of repeated sexual assault of a child for his conduct from 2014-15. The plea means he admitted no wrongdoing but conceded a jury likely would convict him. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to ask for no more than 15 years in prison. The assaults left the victim frightened and suffering from anxiety and panic attacks. Its surreal to me that were here today and the defense is going to argue that probation is appropriate, Lawrence said. He raped a child repeatedly. If justice means anything, than he deserves to go to prison today. Harts supporters described him as helpful and compassionate, a savior to those in need. I know he will show you that he is a good person, his daughter said. Please take mercy on him. Harts conduct was totally out of character, said his attorney, James Thibodeau, who argued that Hart is not a risk to the public. He asked the judge impose an extended period of community supervision with continued counseling. Hart, who also will serve four years on extended supervision, apologized to his victim and begged for forgiveness. Three Milwaukee men are in custody in Columbia County Jail after a Saturday morning traffic stop resulted in drunken driving, drug and weapons charges. The incident began Saturday around 1:40 a.m. when, according to court documents, a Portage police officer stopped a vehicle for making a U-turn on DeWitt Street near Pohlks Pub. The officer asked the driver, Tyrus J. Love, 27, to perform a field sobriety test. Love showed positive signs during the test and refused a preliminary breath test. During a search, the officer found the man had been carrying a bag of what later tested to be marijuana. As Love was being arrested another officer searched the vehicle, finding a baggie containing smaller baggies of what was proved to be cocaine, weighing 34 grams. A third officer arrived on the scene and spoke with two passengers who were in the vehicle, Jack Washington, 40, and Andre Love, 32. According to the criminal complaint, because they were cold, the two men asked to sit in the back of the squad car. The officer checked the back of the squad before having them sit inside. The officer later let Andre Love out of the back and then Washington, who, upon exiting, pointed to a baggie of cocaine on the floorboard, telling the officer it didnt belong to him. In addition to finding cocaine during the search of the vehicle Tyrus Love was driving, the officer found a .45 caliber Ruger semi-automatic handgun with one round in the chamber along with three magazines, including a high-capacity magazine. Tyrus Love was charged with operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated as a second offense, felony possession of marijuana as a second offense, and carrying a concealed weapon. Andre Love was charged with possession with intent to deliver cocaine as a party to a crime and obstructing an officer after giving the officer the name Michael Lee Richards, which was corrected after fingerprinting by jail staff. Washington was charged with one count of intent to deliver cocaine as a party to a crime. Tyrus Love was ordered to be held on $100 cash bond, while Washington and Andre Love were ordered to be held on $500 cash bond. His previous history revolves around in 2014 resisting and obstructing; in Sauk County theres another conviction for possession of cocaine and in Milwaukee, disorderly conduct, Assistant District Attorney Troy Cross said in requesting a $500 cash bond for Washington. The more troublesome one is the Sauk County case for two counts of possession with intent to distribute cocaine for which he was convicted in May 2009. In that case, Washington was given a withheld sentence and placed on probation, which was then revoked in 2011, after which he was sent to prison for 42 months, followed by 30 months of extended supervision. So that is five years ago, for a very similar type of offense, said Cross, for which he was shipped off to prison for three and a half years. The court does feel that cash is necessary in this case to ensure that Mr. Washington comes back to court, said Judge Todd Hepler, to face what could be up to a 25-year imprisonment. Each of the men were scheduled for return hearings on Jan. 10, 11, and 12, respectively for Washington, Andre Love, and Tyrus Love. The top five candidates for the U.S. Senate clashed Tuesday night over the Affordable Care Act, President Obama and how to fight for Louisiana in Washington, during the first televised debate in the race to replace outgoing Sen. David Vitter. After a mostly sedate campaign that has failed to galvanize voters, the five candidates sought to draw distinctions with the others, three weeks before Election Day. Top five Senate candidates to compete for voters' attention in Tuesday night forum televised statewide The top five candidates vying for the U.S. Senate will square off Tuesday night in the first U.S. Rep. John Fleming, who represents northwest Louisiana, repeatedly painted himself as the one true conservative, dismissing the other two Republican candidates U.S. Rep. Charles Boustany and state Treasurer John Kennedy as wannabees. Boustany, who represents southwest Louisiana and most coastal parishes, presented himself as a thoughtful conservative who achieves results. The 90-minute debate from Louisiana Tech also featured two Democratic candidates New Orleans attorney Caroline Fayard and Foster Campbell, a member of the Public Service Commission from Bossier Parish. Not seeing the video below? Click here. Campbell said he is proud to call himself a politician because he has the mindset to work with others to get things done. He repeatedly said he has challenged powerful business interests on behalf of ordinary citizens. Fayard waited until her closing statement to depict a sharp contrast between herself and Campbell and the other three elected officials. She noted that she was the only one not being paid by you to be here and added, They talk a lot about themselves. They dont talk about you ... Im not one of the good old boys. Kennedy said he has made a career out of standing up to other politicians in Baton Rouge and Washington. At one point, he ridiculed congressional spending programs for Swedish massage and pets, saying he represented the change needed in the nations Capital. Kennedy and Campbell both said they wanted voters to know that they had stood up to the spending plans of then-Gov. Bobby Jindal, a Republican who left behind a large budget deficit when he stepped down in January. Campbell noted that he is the only one of the five candidates who believes that humans are responsible for climate change and who supports lawsuits filed against the oil and gas industry demanding that they pay to restore the loss of coastal land caused by their drilling and exploration activities. The three Republicans all panned the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare, while the two Democrats said it has provided needed care to the poor. At one point, Campbell said Kennedy ought to apologize for saying during campaign events that he would rather drink weed killer than support Obamacare. Campbell said it was an inappropriate joke about suicide. Mental health is not a joking matter, agreed Boustany. Kennedy didnt back down when asked if he wanted to respond. Id rather drink weed killer than answer that, he said, prompting an audible groan from the audience at the Howard Performing Arts Center. At another point, Fleming reminded viewers that Kennedy endorsed then-Sen. John Kerry for president in 2004 when Kennedy was a Democrat running for the Senate. When you get kicked in the rear, it usually means youre out front, shot back Kennedy. Fleming, Boustany and Kennedy all said they would oppose Obamas nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court. Boustanys statement Tuesday night represented a change from two weeks ago when he told The Advocate that he didnt know enough about Garland to take a position. Campbell and Fayard said the Senate should hold hearings on Garland but said they needed to know more before saying whether they would confirm him. All three Republicans said they would vote for Donald Trump, the partys nominee, while Fayard said she would vote for Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee. The Democratic nominee, is all Campbell would say, unwilling to say her name publicly, apparently to forestall a Republican attack ad in the runoff election that would tie him to Clinton. Tuesday nights debate, which took place in Ruston, aired statewide on Louisiana Public Broadcasting three weeks before the Nov. 8 primary, when voters in Louisiana will not only choose their presidential candidate but which two Senate candidates advance to the runoff election. Under Louisianas jungle primary, both candidates who advance could be Republicans or Democrats, but the likeliest scenario will pit a Republican versus a Democrat. Analysts expect a Republican ultimately to prevail in a state where Gov. John Bel Edwards is the only Democrat elected statewide. Polls have not established a clear frontrunner, giving each of the five candidates at Tuesday nights debate reason to argue that he and or she will make the runoff. In all, 24 candidates will be on the Nov. 8 ballot in the Senate race. Early voting begins Tuesday, Oct. 25. Tuesday nights debate required candidates to register at least 5 percent in an independent poll and to have raised $1 million in campaign funds. Two prominent Republicans who also didnt make the cut were white supremacist David Duke, who is the best known candidate but is widely disliked, and retired Air Force Col. Rob Maness, a favorite of tea party Republicans. The absence of Duke and Maness benefited Fleming because the three men all fervent supporters of Trump are pitching themselves to the same bloc of voters. Troy Hebert, who spent 15 years in the state Legislature and is running as a political independent, sued to be included but lost the case. Louisiana judge refuses challenge to U.S. Senate debate criteria; only 5 of 24 candidates allowed in debate A Baton Rouge state judge refused Thursday to either block Tuesday's scheduled televised U.S Hebert injected a dose of Louisiana humor into the race Tuesday by posting a 25-minute video online where he lampoons the event and the $1 million rule by taking turns dressing up as the five candidates and the two moderators, including LPBs president and chief executive officer, Beth Courtney. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO -- The Southeast Louisiana Gumbo Group, from left, includes Kimmie Carlos, River Parishes Tourist Commission; Kyle Edmonton, Louisiana Office of Tourism; Audrey Faciane, East Feliciana Tourist Commission; Johnathon 'JT' Taylor, Livingston Parish Convention and Visitors Bureau; Tracy Browning, Ascension Parish Tourist Commission, Sharon Stam, West Baton Rouge Visitors Welcome Center; Laurie Walsh, West Feliciana Tourist Commission; Carla Tate, Tangipahoa Convention and Visitors Bureau; Tracy Frances, Visit Baton Rouge; and Eric Edwards, Livingston Parish Convention and Visitors Bureau. Growing attention to the crisis in paying for criminal defense of the indigent has led to lawsuits across the nation, with the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups challenging governments for failing to provide adequate legal defense for the poor. Louisiana is among the states affected, and ultimately our state's crime problem will be worsened if we cannot find a way to adequately fund the difficult job of criminal defense for the poor. The famous Gideon decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1960s mandates a right to an attorney when one's freedom is at risk. Even in good times, indigent defense is a hard sell politically; all too often, political leaders denounce it as welfare for criminals. Until, that is, dangerous criminals go free because they did not have a constitutionally required defense at their trials. Then, our communities suffer because we are not taking care of business. In Louisiana, indigent defense is the subject of legislative tussles on a regular basis. Some indigent defense offices either shut down or refuse to take new clients because the hodgepodge of state funding and traffic fines and other revenue sources simply isn't enough to pay the tab. A reform initiative in the last decade gave some state oversight to the local offices, improving efficiency -- but not enough to make up for the lack of funding. A report from The Marshall Project outlined the sometimes humorous results of business lawyers leaned on by judges to take indigent criminal cases in Caddo Parish. Bond lawyers handling a shooting case? Maybe it's funny to a point, but the lawyers know they don't have the expertise to really help their clients, because like anything else criminal law requires experience to do well. https://www.themarshallproject.org/2016/09/08/when-real-estate-and-tax-lawyers-are-forced-to-do-a-public-defender-s-job The problems of indigent defense have made headlines in New Orleans and Lafayette in particular in the past year, but we are no closer to a solution now. If the lawsuits over the quality of defense are successful, once again we shall find that a federal judge will be mandating a solution to a widely recognized problem that Louisiana did not find the good judgment to address in a timely fashion. Queensland's resources minister has made a spirited defence of the state's coal seam gas industry at a forum of resource-dependent councils at the Local Government Association of Queensland annual conference on the Gold Coast. During the forum on Wednesday afternoon, Natural Resources Minister Anthony Lynham said he envisaged gas-fired power stations to do the heavy lifting in Queensland going forward, even as the state heads towards its 50 per cent renewable energy 2030 target. Quilpie Shire mayor Stuart Mackenzie, from a region with a significant coal seam gas industry, told Dr Lynham he feared gas was being left out of the energy conversation as renewables became more and more politically important. "Gas seems to be off the agenda and has been lumped in as a fossil fuel with coal and, especially from an environmental point of view, it's not really talked about, especially when you're talking about future power generation," Cr Mackenzie said. The operations of wind farms nationwide are to be reviewed following the South Australian blackout, after a new study found technical issues shut many wind generators down. A second report by the Australian Energy Markets Operator into the incident was released on Wednesday and pointed to a series of voltage disturbances, which caused nine of the 13 wind farms in operation in South Australia at the time to shut down. South Australian Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis says the blackout was a ''a software issue''. Credit:ABC News via twitter "Nine of the 13 wind farms online at the time of the event did not ride through the six voltage disturbances, resulting in a loss of 445MW of generation," it said in the report, which follows a preliminary report released almost a fortnight ago. "Preliminary discussions with wind farm operators suggest this inability to ride through all disturbances was due to 'voltage ride-through' settings", which automatically disconnect or reduce output when between three to six disturbances are detected within a short timeframe, the report notes. Gary Wolter will step down as president and CEO of Madison Gas & Electric and its parent company, MGE Energy, in early 2017. Wolter, 62, will retire March 1, 2017, and will be succeeded by Jeffrey Keebler, senior vice president of energy supply and planning. Wolter will stay on as chairman of the boards of both MGE and MGE Energy. In a lot of ways, I have very mixed feelings excitement about the new chapter ahead of me; on the other hand, I put a lot of my heart and soul into Madison Gas & Electric, so its not easy, Wolter said in an interview Wednesday. Wolter has served as president and CEO of the companies since February 2000, when he took over from David Mebane in those positions, and as chairman since 2002. When he retires, Wolter will be the longest serving chair and CEO in MGEs history, the utility company said. A native of Dubuque, Iowa, Wolter has worked at MGE since 1984. He has overseen several transitions in the sources of MGEs electricity, including converting its Blount Street power plant Downtown from coal to natural gas, ending part-ownership of the now-closed Kewaunee nuclear power plant and adding solar and wind power. Wolter also guided the utility through more turbulent times when a 2014 proposal to dramatically raise the monthly fixed fee for electric customers drew a big public outcry. As a result, the company modified its request and held a series of meetings with ratepayers and local officials that concluded in April. One of the things weve tried to do is we really ramped up the community energy company, the interaction we have with the community, said Wolter. We recognize our role to try to make the community better. RePower Madison, the citizen group formed in 2014 to fight the proposed rate increase, said it welcomes the prospect of a new leader for the utility company. We call on the incoming CEO, Jeff Keebler, to help make Madison a national leader in clean energy with fair and affordable bills. Mr. Keebler can show MGEs support for this vision by immediately announcing an intention to reduce mandatory fees and accelerate renewable energy deployment, RePower spokesman Mitch Brey said in a written statement. Madison environmental group Clean Wisconsin said it has had, during Wolters tenure, a strong professional relationship with MGE as weve worked with the company to try to forge a clean energy path forward. Clean Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Citizens Utility Board formed a working group with MGE during the stormy period after the utility introduced its controversial rate proposal in 2014. Weve gotten to know Jeff Keebler and have a great respect for his understanding of the issues and his leadership, Clean Wisconsin president and CEO Mark Redsten said in an email. We are encouraged by Jeffs appointment and expect that relationship to continue, Redsten said. The Sierra Club said Keebler will take over at a time of dramatic changes in the electric industry. Sierra Club launched a campaign this summer to make Madison coal-free. Utilities around the Midwest have seized the opportunity to modernize their energy portfolios with clean energy and its past time for MGE to do the same, said Sierra Clubs Elizabeth Katt Reinders, in Madison. Keebler, 44, has been with MGE since 1995. He has a bachelors degree in finance and economics from UW-La Crosse and a masters degree in business administration from UW-Whitewater. I look forward to building on the foundation laid by my predecessors and addressing the challenges of the future, Keebler said in a news release. Established in 1896, MGE has about 700 employees. The utility reported $564 million in revenue in 2015 and earnings of $71.3 million. It provides electricity to 146,000 customers in Dane County and natural gas to 152,000 customers in south central and western Wisconsin. Its stock (Nasdaq: MGEE) has soared from $12.08 a share on Wolters first day as CEO to close at $55.90 on Wednesday, even with a three-for-two stock split in 2014. It hit a peak of $58.99 on Sept. 22, 2016. Wolter received a total compensation package of just under $1.9 million in 2015, according to MGEs proxy, filed with federal regulators. That included $938,687 in salary and bonuses; stock valued at $330,000 to be paid in 2020; and a $611,000 increase in the value of his pension account. Wolters pension will cap at $210,000 a year; his total future payments are estimated at $5.25 million. In his new role as board chairman, he also will receive annual pay of $150,000 and a $45,000 retainer fee; $1,500 per board or committee meeting or directors education program; and possible long-term incentive pay, according to a filing with the SEC on Wednesday. Wolter has been active in community organizations, as well, having chaired boards of the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce, United Way of Dane County and MadREP (formerly Thrive). He currently serves on the boards of American Transmission Co. (ATC), UW Hospital and Clinics, University Research Park, United Way, Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce MadREP and National Guardian Life Insurance Co. Gary has been an effective leader at Madison Gas & Electric Co., as well as within the greater Madison community, said Patricia Kampling, chairman, president and CEO of Alliant Energy, Madison. I have enjoyed working with Gary, and he has always been helpful and gracious to me with his time. Wolter said hes extremely grateful for the opportunities that have come with his position. Ive had the opportunity to work with great people, both internally at MGE and great people throughout the community. He said he has no specific plans at this time but he and his wife, Mari, will stay in Madison. Mike Baird has said his decision to overturn the ban on greyhound dog racing shows he is prepared to admit when his government has got it wrong. If this is true, it's time he admitted he is wrong about his support of coal mining and take back his "no doubt coal is good" statement. News that the Baird government is about to launch a major overhaul of environmental planning rules that will make miners more accountable to mining communities and the environment is welcome news. Premier Mike Baird must grasp the harm to Australia's climate pledge by the intent of his government to expand the coal industry in NSW. Credit:Peter Rae The question is: will the overhaul of the flawed environmental planning rules that affect major coal mines be in any way effective by addressing health and process, or will they be used to delay a transition from coal and an inevitable moratorium on new coal mines? Perhaps Baird has never had an expert independent scientific, medical and diplomatic briefing on the coal industry in his state. He needs to grasp the harm to Australia's climate pledge by the intent of his government to expand the coal industry in NSW, and coal's impact on the health of Australians and world citizens, especially our neighbours in the Pacific Island nations. For many of us, any discussion of gun control in this country turns our thoughts to the Port Arthur massacre, that nightmare day 20 years ago when 35 people were murdered by a madman with a rifle. Out of that tragedy came then prime minister John Howard's gun laws, and those powerful changes have unquestionably made this country safer. Reports this week that the Turnbull government may have been considering relaxing gun laws in return for Senate support for its industrial legislation are of grave concern. There is overwhelming evidence of the need to restrict guns in our communities. Liberal Democrats senator David Leyonhjelm is leading the call to allow the rapid-fire Adler shotgun to be imported into Australia, and has recently gained support from Nationals MPs Mark Coulton and Bridget McKenzie. While Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has, albeit belatedly, said the ban on the Adler will remain and that his government wants to see firearms laws made stronger, not weaker, his actions have been far from definitive and do not show the leadership demanded on such a profoundly important national issue. First lady Michelle Obama speaks Credit:AP The internet is practically "begging" Obama to run for president, as several headlines have put it. And so it seems will Democrats, if they haven't started already. On Tuesday, party figures in her home state of Illinois were quoted as saying they would try to recruit her for a tilt at the US Senate or the Chicago mayoralty in the future. Illustration John Shakespeare "We would encourage her and put pressure on her," said one. But all this is probably wishful thinking. Most importantly, Michelle Obama herself has been emphatic about her desire never to run for elected office. While it's the oldest trick in the book to play coy right up until the moment you announce a campaign (as Hillary Clinton did in the '90s), Obama's insistence feels authentic. She was famously wary of her husband running for office in the first place, and has been candid about her dislike of partisan politics and the demands of political life since. As first lady, she's spoken of her horror at seeing her children being placed in bullet-proof vehicles, and her frustration at not being able to say what she thinks or do what she wants. She's been involved in select issues (with a maternal flavour) while in the White House - campaigning for healthier food and girls' education - but hasn't got involved in policy in the way Clinton did in the '90s. "There are three things that are certain in life death, taxes, and Michelle is not running for president," Barack Obama said earlier this year. Her own very clear feelings aside, would all the goodwill she enjoys now translate directly into votes anyway, as many assume? Of course she's more than capable of holding office and would be in a stellar starting position. But much of Obama's power in this election lies precisely in the fact that she's not a candidate or politician. Though she's campaigning for a Democrat, she doesn't speak in party political terms, but rather addresses audiences as a concerned mother, wife and American, in very personal, often emotional terms, with her voice shaking and her hand on her heart. Coming from a politician, especially a woman, would a speech like the one she delivered last week have been received so warmly? By some, yes, but it's likely she would have been slammed by a chunk of the political commentariat as "playing the gender card", as Julia Gillard learnt, or being too soft. Obama is in a position to do this though as someone above the political fray, the "mom-in-chief" of the nation. As many outsider candidates have learnt the hard way, it's difficult to maintain your pure idealism and hero status when you delve into the messy world of electoral politics. Especially when it's about seeking a leadership role, and especially for women. As Chloe Angyal, an Australian-American journalist put it after the Democratic convention: "I know folks think FLOTUS would be a lock if she ran; I'm not so sure. So far, people don't love it when first ladies ask for 'real' power." Angyal went on to point out Clinton's own approval ratings crashed in the short space of time between when she left the White House, as Bill's cheated-on-but-loyal wife, and ran for the Senate in New York a year later. They went up again when she was appointed Secretary of State, but came down when she ran for the presidency. While Obama wouldn't bring the same level of baggage that Clinton would - hers and Barack's time in the White House has not been surrounded in scandal in the same way - it seems naive to think that an ambitious, party-political streak in her wouldn't be met with some of the same displeasure, distrust and plain old sexism it has in Clinton's case. Lucky for her supporters, though, she wants to continue to play a role in public life outside elected office - something "mission-based and service-focused". The power she could wield here shouldn't be written off - unburdened by being first lady, she could become an even more powerful voice or actor on whatever she wanted, but critically perhaps on issues too thorny or partisan for her previous role, such as racism or gun violence. Loading The White House isn't the only place from which to lead in America, and hopefully Michelle Obama's voice will be even stronger out than in. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spent an estimated $215,000 or more sending nearly two dozen senior bureaucrats from Canberra to Paris to attend an inhouse talkfest about ways to save money. Fairfax Media can reveal the two day junket in September included business class return travel for all 23 DFAT officers. They included John Philp, Australia's former ambassador to Afghanistan and current first assistant secretary of the consular and crisis management division and John Fisher, first assistant secretary of DFAT's corporate management division. But the entourage, which was hosted for the two day conference by Australia's ambassador to France, Stephen Brady, included a departmental psychologist, a conduct and ethics manager, and a health and safety officer, according to a list of attendees obtained by Fairfax Media. The ABC has hit back at criticism of Four Corners' investigation into the lives of asylum seeker children on Nauru, accusing those attacking the program of producing "no evidence" to back up their claims of bias. The Nauruan government has slammed the program as "an embarrassment to journalism" and Coalition senators accused the ABC of acting as a mouthpiece for activist organisations at heated Senate estimates hearings on Tuesday. Critics have accused the ABC of poor journalism by painting a dire picture of the conditions on Nauru despite not having visited the island and not seeking comment from the government of Nauru. Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said reporters at the ABC and other outlets were "advocates dressed up as journalists" who were determined to undo the tough policies that had prevented hundreds of deaths at sea. The RSL NSW has nearly $350 million in cash and liquid assets held across hundreds of sub-branches, much of which critics say is not being properly used to help needy veterans. A detailed analysis by Fairfax Media of the state RSL's finances reveals huge wealth that is concentrated in larger metropolitan sub-branches and regional centres, and that RSL headquarters acknowledges needs to be better exploited for veterans services. Fairfax Media has been told of cases in which sub-branches were handing out "beer cards" of up to $500 value with every membership renewal, sub-branch executives wanting to fly themselves and their spouses to Thailand and Indonesia to personally view the tailoring of their RSL blazers, and fully-paid trips for executives and their spouses to overseas battlefield sites. There have also been cases of sub-branches having gold commemorative badges made for members. Tony Abbott has a new answer to the question that has been dogging him for more than a year: Do you want to make a return as prime minister? "It's not a question of what I might like, it's a question of what the party room wants and the party room wants to end the revolving door prime ministership," Mr Abbott told ABC 7.30 host Leigh Sales on Wednesday night. "The party room wants this government, this PM to succeed. That's what I want and that's what I'm doing my best to bring about." Continuing to frustrate Malcolm Turnbull, Mr Abbott said he wasn't expecting a vacancy in the Liberal leadership "any time soon" but he retained his right to speak out. Amanda Seyfried has never been afraid of discussing her struggles with mental illness and in her latest interview the actress opened up about living with obsessive-compulsive disorder and the stigmas that surround seeking help. In a candid discussion with Allure magazine, Seyfried, 30, revealed she has been taking anti-anxiety medication for 11 years. And the Mamma Mia and Les Miserables star happily admitted she will keep taking the medication for the forseeable future, just like individuals would for any other illness. "You don't see the mental illness: It's not a mass; it's not a cyst. But it's there." Credit:Lintao Zhang "I had pretty bad health anxiety that came from the OCD and thought I had a tumour in my brain," says Seyfried. "I'm on Lexapro, and I'll never get off of it. I've been on it since I was 19, so 11 years. I'm on the lowest dose. "I don't see the point of getting off of it. Whether it's placebo or not, I don't want to risk it. And what are you fighting against? Just the stigma of using a tool?" "Knowing that a lot of my fears are not reality-based really helps" Credit:Scott Trindle/ Allure Magazine She continued, "A mental illness is a thing that people cast in a different category [from other illnesses], but I don't think it is. It should be taken as seriously as anything else. You don't see the mental illness: It's not a mass; it's not a cyst. But it's there. Why do you need to prove it? If you can treat it, you treat it." Discussion of her mental health arose after Seyfried revealed that she had the stove removed from a guest house on her Stone Ridge, New York property for fear that someone could start a fire. "I always worry about people and how they use stoves. Which is just a controlling thing," she said. "(It's) about the gas. You could so easily burn down something if you leave the stove on. Or the oven." Before being diagnosed with OCD, Seyfried believed her anxiety was manifesting from a physical health problem. While the actor continues to battle her insecurities and fears she says she has coped better with age. In the days before her unexpected death, life appeared happy for Maria Claudia Lutz. The 43-year-old had recently finished a teaching degree she had juggled while looking after the complex needs of her two children, Martin and Elisa, who both had autism. That juggle had been significantly aided with a recent increase in disability assistance to help her family. On the last day Mrs Lutz's closest friends saw her alive, they remembered her appearing "excited" after a meeting with a National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) team. 6/6 Kerry Washington attends the Smithsonian Associates's "Scandal-ous!" discussion with the cast and executive producers of ABC's "Scandal" at the University of District of Columbia Theater of the Arts on April 28, 2016 in Washington, DC. Credit:Getty Le Tigre Lounge, one of Madison's most distinctive bars, full of kitschy tiger decor, is closed, at least temporarily, its owner said Wednesday. "It might be a month, it might be two months. I'm not sure for how long right now," said Steve Josheff, who bartended beside his father, the elder Steve Josheff, for almost 18 years before his father's death in August 2015. It was just the two of them behind the bar always, the younger Josheff, 45, said. "It was just me and him. I was the young one, he was the old one." The younger Josheff goes by his middle name, Paul, because as his dad liked to say, 'It's too small of a place to have two Steves,' " Josheff said. Josheff put word out on social media about his bar's temporary closing because he didn't want people to stop by and find it closed, but he is not yet ready to talk about its future. "I'm just trying to figure stuff out," he said. "It was the hardest decision for me to close down for the time being. Josheff made the decision Saturday, but made the announcement of its temporary closure Wednesday. A sign on the door says, "Sorry everyone, Le Tigre Lounge will be closed temporarily. Friend us on Facebook for approximation of reopening. Thanks, Paul." Josheff said his father started the business in the 1950s as the Fireside Lounge on Regent Street and moved it to its current location, 1328 S. Midvale Blvd., in the 1960s, when it became Le Tigre. "Le Tigre is a Madison staple that has an iconic status and I will reopen ASAP," Josheff said. It's had the same liquor license that whole time, he noted. The bar is part of an aging shopping strip next to the Beltline. Josheff said it will be nice to get the construction on Verona Road done by the time he reopens. Building unions have slapped a construction ban on the site of a historic Carlton pub demolished illegally on the weekend. And they say the company that purchased the Corkman Irish Pub for $4.76 million last year should be forced to surrender the land to Melbourne City Council. The 159-year-old pub, formerly known as the Carlton Inn, was knocked down without a demolition or planning permit sparking five separate government investigations into what laws may have been broken. The pub, which had a heritage overlay, was already at the centre of a police arson investigation over a fire that broke out there the week before. Young house hunters of Australia, continue munching on $22 smashed avocado on sourdough. The real problem keeping you out of the property market may be the "exorbitant" price of coffee, Australia's most senior treasury official has suggested. Smashed avocado can set punters back $20. Credit:Chris Hopkins Under a grilling in a Senate estimates hearing Treasury secretary John Fraser said Melbourne had the most expensive coffee prices in the world. He made that bold assertion after being asked if he had "upgraded" his advice on whether "millennials" were spending too much on extravagant breakfasts rather than saving for a house. A volunteer firefighter who had a beef with his local CFA station and lit bushfires as payback has been jailed. County Court judge Mark Taft said Andrew Robert Briggs' crimes struck "at the heart" of communities such as Great Western, in western Victoria, where the disgruntled firefighter lit a fire in March 2013 and four more in November and December of 2014. Briggs lit the first fire after being left off a CFA team that fought an extensive blaze. Credit:AFR Briggs lit the first fire about a month he had been left off a CFA team that fought an extensive fire, the court heard on Wednesday. Briggs' fire was contained to five square metres and investigators found paper there, including an IGA receipt with his name on it. It sounds like a scene ripped out of a Charles Dickens novel; a homeless man standing in court charged over a few silver coins. But that's exactly what Billy Griffiths says happened to him in Melbourne, after he was found by police begging on Swanston Street. Billy Griffiths, who has been homeless for about three years Credit:Justin McManus Sitting in the cap at his feet was 15 cents. In a hangover from the Vagrancy Act, which was abolished in 2005, "begging or gathering alms" remains an offence in Victoria and is still enforced, with 825 begging charges laid in the past 5 years. Vienna: The building where Adolf Hitler was born may be spared demolition, but emerge heavily disguised. On Monday, Austria's Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka told the daily Die Presse, "The Hitler house will be demolished." "Debatable": Austrian Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka. Credit:AP On Tuesday, he told reporters that the term "demolished" was debatable but the building would be so thoroughly redesigned that it "will not be recognisable". The "house", a large, three-storey Renaissance-era structure in the town of Braunau am Inn, next to the Austrian-German border, had a tavern on the ground level and apartments on the upper floors. Anti-American protests turned violent in Manila on Wednesday as a Philippine police van rammed into protesters, injuring about 10. People screamed in horror as the van repeatedly drove wildly back and forwards as protesters hit it with wooden batons they had seized from police. Associated Press TV footage showed people being run over. Police fired tear-gas and arrested at least 23 people among the crowd of about 1,000. Democrat Hillary Clinton's campaign needled Republican Donald Trump on Tuesday over his suggestion that if he is elected president, he might hold a pre-inaugural meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, joking that any strategy session would be redundant. "It's unclear why Donald Trump needs to meet with Vladimir Putin on November 9 since he's already repeating all his talking points, pushing his policy agenda and taking advantage of his espionage operation," Clinton spokesman Glen Caplin said. "Rest assured that as president, Hillary Clinton will stand up to Putin in the face of his unacceptable behaviour, not coddle him." Trump said Monday that he would be willing to meet with Putin before Inauguration Day if he is elected president on November 8. Such a meeting would break sharply with the precedent that a newly elected president defers to the sitting one in matters of state. "I think I could see myself meeting with Putin and meeting with Russia prior to the start of the administration," Trump told conservative radio host Michael Savage during an interview. "I think it would be wonderful." She had seen her face superimposed on the body of a concentration camp inmate. She had been called "a slimy Jewess." She had been told she "deserved the oven." One anonymous individual had electronically harassed her for 19 hours straight. Things got so bad that Bethany Mandel, a 30-year-old freelance writer in Highland Park, New Jersey, decided one afternoon last spring to drive to a nearby gun shop. A mother of two small children, she now keeps a .22 in her home. The report found 2.6 million anti-Semitic messages were posted on Twitter in one year. Credit:Glenn Hunt What had she done to provoke so much vitriol? She posted some messages on Twitter drawing attention to the fact that Donald Trump seemed to have a lot of anti-Semitic supporters. In some respects, Ms Mandel's story has become a familiar one. She is among hundreds of Jewish journalists who have been the target of anti-Semitic attacks on Twitter during the 2016 presidential campaign, according to a new report by the Anti-Defamation League. Washington: Donald Trump's family is further from the national spotlight than usual as the Republican presidential nominee gets closer and closer to the biggest test of his life: Election Day. Trump lifted his children up to the highest levels of his company and the television show that put him in millions of households across the US. But they're playing less visible roles in his campaign as the nation focuses on its closing weeks, a surprising turn after headlining all four nights of July's Republican National Convention. Viewed as a crucial asset in her father's play for millennial and female voters, Trump's daughter Ivanka received rave reviews for her convention speech and was poised for a leading role in advocating for his candidacy. But Ivanka, who had a confrontational interview in September with Cosmopolitan.com, a popular site for young women, has been mostly limiting her appearances on the trail to smaller events. After more than a week of silence on the remarks her father made in 2005 boasting of groping women - he denies actually committing sexual assault - Ivanka finally said flatly that the lewd remarks were wrong. A crack cocaine dealer formerly from the village of Oregon has been sentenced to three years, one month in prison. Arwin Lacy, 26, of Madison, was sentenced by U.S. Circuit Judge James Peterson in federal court in Madison on Tuesday. Lacy pled guilty in August to a charge of distributing cocaine base, also known as crack cocaine. The U.S. Attorney's Office said an investigation into Lacy's drug activity started in April of 2015, when he sold 3.5 grams of crack to an undercover investigator. Lacy was arrested in April of 2016, with 287.3 grams of marijuana, 8.31 grams of crack and a stolen firearm found in his vehicle. Veronica Dunne, the star of the Disney Channel's K.C. Undercover, made her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in Chicago at the Ambassador Theatre on October 17. She will be in the musical until November 26. In addition to her work on the Disney Channel, Dunne recently wrapped production on the Lionsgate film The Ninth Passenger with Jesse Metcalfe. The actress got her start onstage in the Lythgoe Family Production of Cinderella with Broadway veterans Shoshana Bean and Jennifer Leigh Warren, and went on to star in the stage productions of Into the Woods, Chicago, Cabaret, and most recently, the world premiere of Joe Iconis' new musical, The Black Suits. Loading... Featuring classic tunes by John Kander and Fred Ebb, Chicago tells the story of Roxie Hart, a nightclub dancer who murders her on-the-side lover after he threatens to walk out on her. Desperate to avoid conviction, she dupes the public, the media, and her rival cellmate, Velma Kelly, by hiring Chicago's slickest criminal lawyer to transform her crime into a barrage of sensational headlines. Recipient of six 1997 Tony Awards, the revival is directed by Walter Bobbie. For tickets and more information, click here. Monday 05 September, 2016 Reliable information reaching Biafra writers desk has it that the life of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indi... A pulseless, non-breathing man who had overdosed on heroin was guarded by his dog, who bit a paramedic trying to help revive the man, the man eventually coming around and the paramedic treated for the dog bite. The incident happened Tuesday afternoon at a West Side residence, the Madison Fire Department said. The man was found unconscious in the basement. Someone told the responders the man had just come back from an addiction assistance meeting. "The patient's dog was resting on his chest when paramedics approached to administer emergency medical care," said spokeswoman Cynthia Schuster. "The dog growled and barked just before lunging at and biting one paramedic on the hand." Paramedics were able to shoo the dog out of the room so the victim could be helped. "The man was not breathing and paramedics determined he had no pulse," Schuster said. Narcan, epinephrine and oxygen was given to the man, and chest compressions were administered, but no pulse was found until after about eight minutes of chest compressions. By the time he arrived at the hospital emergency room, his pulse was strong. "Hospital staff also treated the paramedic who had been bitten by the patient's dog, stitching up a small laceration on her hand," Schuster said. On the latest round of statewide tests, fewer than half of Wisconsin public school students in grades three through eight scored proficient or better in English language arts or math. The results, released Tuesday by the state Department of Public Instruction, showed 42.5 percent of students scored in those top two categories in English language arts, while slightly fewer, 42.3 percent, scored proficient or advanced in math. The state simultaneously released scores from the ACT college readiness assessment, now required of all high school juniors in Wisconsin. In this second year of the requirement, the composite ACT score for public school students was 20.1 out of a possible 36, up one-tenth of a point from the prior year. The test in the lower grades, administered last spring, is called the Wisconsin Forward Exam. Its equivalent for students with significant cognitive disabilities is called the Dynamic Learning Maps exam. The statewide scores reported by DPI include results from both tests. The Forward Exam replaced the problematic Badger Exam, which was used only once and had itself replaced the long-running Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Exam. Because of this upheaval three tests in three years state officials say comparisons across years should not be made. While the latest results generally show scores lower than those on the Badger Exam, the decline does not mean students are losing ground, said Viji Somasundaram, director of DPIs student assessment office. The Forward Exams cut scores the methodology used to determine categories of achievement align with the states increased expectations for students and are thus more stringent than before, she said. The state also released results Tuesday from the much smaller pool of students who took the Forward Exam in private schools that are part of the states controversial voucher program. At these choice schools, as they are called, only 19.1 percent of students in grades 3-8 scored proficient or advanced in English language arts and only 14 percent scored proficient or advanced in math. Jim Bender, president of School Choice Wisconsin, said those scores dont tell the full story. Choice programs are composed predominantly of low-income students, so their scores should be compared to the subset of public school students who are economically disadvantaged, he said. When we make those comparisons, voucher students actually score higher on every metric across every program, he said. To cite one example, 19 percent of voucher students in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program scored proficient or advanced in English language arts, compared to 14.9 percent of economically disadvantaged students in Milwaukee Public Schools, Bender said. It was all part of a day that saw a huge amount of achievement data released by the state, including scores in social studies in grades four, eight and 10 and in science in grades four and eight. About half of public school students passed the science and social studies portions. Achievement gap Scores from both the Forward Exam and the ACT continued to reflect stark achievement gaps across racial, ethnic and income groups. Gaps also are apparent for English language learners and students with disabilities. For instance, while 50.9 percent of white third-graders tested proficient or advanced in English language arts, the comparable figures were 15.1 percent for black students and 26.5 percent for Hispanic students. Economically disadvantaged students had a composite ACT score of 17.4, compared to 21.3 for those students who are not economically disadvantaged. I remain troubled by the achievement gaps that persist in Wisconsin, State Superintendent Tony Evers said in a statement. As a state and within our communities, we must work together to raise awareness of this problem and implement policy-driven solutions. It is not an issue of one student or one school district, it is an issue that impacts us all. Local results Scores on the Forward Exam in the Madison School District were lower than state averages, though last years high school juniors in Madison improved on prior ACT scores in the district and exceeded state averages. In grades three through eight, 34.5 percent of Madison students scored proficient or advanced in English language arts, while 35.4 percent scored proficient or better in math. Student results are given one of four labels advanced, proficient, basic or below basic. Andrew Statz, executive director of accountability for the Madison School District, said the district continues to rely more heavily on its internal testing through the Measures of Academic Progress test, or MAP, than on a statewide assessment. Thats in part because MAP measures a students growth over time, not just proficiency, and it can be given at intervals throughout the year, he said. Also, like so many other assessment officials in districts throughout the state, Statz said the instability in statewide tests continues to make year-to-year comparisons difficult for now. In the first year of any test, its always wise to be cautious, he said. Were seeing some good movement in the right areas on the (MAP) tests were using, and we think that, given time, we might see the same movement on the Forward Exam. We certainly have a very concerted planning effort in place to improve student achievement and narrow gaps. The Forward Exam data will become much more useful once we have another year or two of trends, said Tim Schell, director of curriculum and instruction for the Waunakee School District. Im really hoping the states able to stay with a consistent assessment for a few years. That absolutely will be the case, said DPI spokesman Tom McCarthy. State officials signed a 10-year contract with Minnesota-based Data Recognition Corp. to provide the Forward Exam. On the ACT, 45.8 percent of Madison juniors scored proficient or advanced in English language arts, up from 44.3 percent the prior year and better than the state average of 40.8 percent. In math, 38.7 percent scored proficient or advanced, up from 36.8 percent the prior year and above the state average of 34.8 percent. Opting out The percentage of Wisconsin students opting out of statewide testing dropped but was still sizable in some districts, including Madison. The number of opt-outs had ballooned during the 2014-15 school year, part of a national movement of parents souring on standardized testing. In Madison, 737 elementary and middle school students chose not to take the Badger Exam, about 7 percent of eligible students. Statewide, about 2.7 percent of students opted out that year. For the Forward Exam, 492 Madison students in grades three to eight opted out, about 4 percent of the tested student body, Statz said. Thats still a pretty big percentage, he said. He speculated that more parents are willing to sign on to the Forward Exam because it appears it will be around for a while. I think the one-time nature of the Badger Exam caused some people to say, Why bother? he said. So they took a pass. Statewide, about 98.8 percent of public school students took the Forward Exam, DPI said. In the first year of any test, its always wise to be cautious. Andrew Statz, executive director of accountability for the Madison School District Your Ultimate Investing Toolkit Sign up for MarketBeat All Access to gain access to MarketBeat's full suite of research tools: Portfolio Monitoring Top Stock Lists Premium Reports Stock Screeners Live News Feed Premium Support Free for your first month. Telecom Argentina S.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services in Argentina and internationally. The company offers telephone services, including local, domestic, and international long-distance telephone services, as well as public telephone services; and other related supplementary services, such as call waiting, call forwarding, conference calls, caller ID, voice mail, itemized billing, and maintenance services. It also provides interconnection services, such as traffic and interconnection resource, dedicated Internet access, video signals transportation in standard and high definitions, audio and video streaming, dedicated links, backhaul links for mobile operators, data center hosting/housing services, dedicated links, layer 2 and layer 3 transport networks, video links, value-added services, and other services. In addition, the company offers mobile telecommunications services, including voice communications, high-speed mobile Internet content and applications download, online streaming, and other services; and sells mobile communication devices, such as handsets, Modems MiFi and wingles, and smart watches under the Personal brand. Further, it provides internet connectivity products, including virtual private network services, traditional Internet protocol links, and other products; data services; and programming and other cable television services. The company was formerly known as Cablevision S.A. and changed its name to Telecom Argentina S.A. in January 2018. Telecom Argentina S.A. was founded in 1979 and is based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Banc of California, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Banc of California, National Association that provides banking products and services in the United States. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, money market, retirement, and interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing demand accounts, as well as certificate of deposits. It also provides various commercial and consumer loan products, such as commercial and industrial loans; commercial real estate and multifamily loans; construction loans; single family residential mortgage loans; warehouse and indirect/direct leveraged lending; home equity lines of credit; small business administration loans; and other consumer loans. In addition, the company offers automated bill payment, cash and treasury management, foreign exchange, card payment, remote and mobile deposit capture, automated clearing house origination, wire transfer, direct deposit, and internet banking services; and master demand accounts, interest rate swaps, and safe deposit boxes. Further, it invests in collateralized loan obligations, agency securities, municipal bonds, agency residential mortgage-backed securities, and corporate debt securities. As of December 31, 2020, the company operated 29 full-service branches in Southern California. The company was formerly known as First PacTrust Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to Banc of California, Inc. in July 2013. Banc of California, Inc. was founded in 1941 and is headquartered in Santa Ana, California. Democrats plan to introduce a bill next session that would block candidates from coordinating with supposedly independent groups and regulate so-called issue ads in the run-up to an election. The proposals, which have little chance of passing a Republican-controlled Legislature, come on the heels of a shuttered John Doe investigation into Gov. Scott Walkers recall campaign. Investigators found evidence Walker raised millions of dollars including from corporations that stood to benefit from legislation that later passed for the Wisconsin Club for Growth, which used the money to help Walker and Senate Republicans win the 2011 and 2012 recall elections. Unlike a campaign committee, Wisconsin Club for Growth isnt subject to campaign finance limits and isnt required to disclose its donors. The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled such coordination was protected by the First Amendment and that advertising sponsored by Wisconsin Club for Growth was issue, not express, advocacy. Last session, Republicans amended state law to make clear that candidates can coordinate with groups as long as the groups dont expressly advocate for them or against their opponent. Rep. Chris Taylor, D-Madison, said her bill would specify that coordination includes any election activity not made entirely independently of a candidate. She also would regulate so-called issue ads which dont use specific words such as vote for or vote against a candidate, but are intended to influence the outcome of an election based on federal election law. Federal law defines electioneering communications as any broadcast, cable or satellite communication that refers to a clearly identified candidate for federal office 30 days before a primary or 60 days before the general election, and is targeted to the relevant electorate. Taylor would have any group that spends $10,000 or more on an electioneering communication report the disbursement and the identities of donors giving $1,000 or more. Taylors bill also would include in the definition of express advocacy the functional equivalent of vote for and vote against, which Republicans removed from the law because it was subject to broad interpretation. And it would also ban candidates from controlling separate political action committees or segregated accounts. The State Ethics Commission recently ruled that a state lawmaker could legally launch his own PAC. There are candidate campaign limits for a reason, Taylor said. Candidates arent supposed to be able to get around those by coordinating with these outside groups and funneling their donors to these outside groups that can take secret, unlimited money. Thats really where we see this danger of corruption. Republican leaders didnt respond to a request for comment. Taylor announced the proposal at a press conference Wednesday where Democrats also called on the Ethics Commission to open a new investigation into Walkers fundraising activities based on evidence from the John Doe investigation leaked to a British newspaper. They previously asked Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne to investigate. The U.S. Supreme Court recently turned down a request from Ozanne and two other Democratic district attorneys to hear their appeal of the state courts decision to halt the investigation. Madison Ald. Rebecca Kemble told fellow City Council members Tuesday she will fight criminal charges after she was arrested Oct. 10 in North Dakota where protests are continuing over a controversial oil pipeline. Kemble, 18th District, told council members that a court date is set for Jan. 12 on the four charges she is facing: destruction of evidence, resisting arrest, engaging in a riot and criminal trespassing. Kemble, who was acting as a legal observer, told council members she witnessed peaceful prayer demonstrations and peaceful encampments of folks who have been historically oppressed and pushed to the limits. The Morton County Sheriffs Department said it was a riot. In a press release, the sheriffs department said two people had locked themselves onto private equipment near St. Anthony, and later two dozen people were arrested after refusing to leave private property near the pipeline site. Kemble was in North Dakota to deliver to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe a copy of a resolution the City Council passed expressing solidarity with the protesters. Kemble said Tuesday that after she was arrested, she was strip searched by authorities, describing it as very humiliating. It was really awful, you guys, and Im still coming out of the shock of having witnessed things and experienced things that are happening. You cant even believe that theyre happening, she said. Last week, Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney cut short the length of time some of his deputies would be in North Dakota to assist authorities there, citing community concerns about their involvement in the situation and reduced reimbursement. Mahoney said his office originally planned to have deputies rotate on one-week shifts for three weeks, but he ended the arrangement after the first week, in which Kemble was arrested. Kemble said she was glad Mahoney decided to stop sending deputies to North Dakota. Pipeline opponents say the 1,200-mile-long project could endanger water quality and encroaches on sacred tribal land. A recent NBC News poll (taken before the infamous tape of Donald Trump bragging of sexual assault) showed that if the election were held today, only 63 percent of LGBT voters would vote for Hillary Clinton. Thats well below the 76 percent of LGBT voters who voted for Barack Obama in 2012. The remaining 37 percent of LGBTs are split among Trump (15 percent), Gary Johnson (13 percent), and Jill Stein (8 percent). Given the choice between Clinton and Trump alone, the LGBT voters split 72-20with Clinton still polling below Obamas 2012 numbers. WTF is going on? No one can deny that Clinton is by far the better candidate on LGBT issues; indeed, she (or her campaign) penned a remarkable op-ed on the subject earlier this month. Rather, the reason seems to be that people believe LGBT issues are not at stake in this election, and so theyre voting based on other factors. (Indeed, LGBT issues didnt even come up in the vice presidential debate, with one of the most anti-gay governors in the nation sitting at the table.) Of course, there have always been gay Republicansmostly wealthy, white gay menand theyve always had the same basic point of view: that while they disagree with the GOP on gay issues, they agree on a whole lot of other things, and those other things are more important. Peter Thiel, who just announced a $1.25 million donation to the Trump campaign, is just the latest, libertarian-ish version. But now, with same-sex marriage in the rearview mirror, there appear to be more gay people with that perspective. And not just the publicity-seeking provocateurs, bumbling second-tier celebrities, and the same old neoconservative, homonationalist gay Republicans who have backed Trump so far. Those guys cant account for 37 percent of the LGBT community. And yet, LGBT issues are indeed at stake, and a Trump/Pence administration would be a disaster for LGBT people. Here are five reasons why. 1. The Supreme Court With marriage equality the law of the land, the Supreme Court has returned to its usual role as electoral sleep aid. But gay voters should wake the hell up. Trump hasnt just proposed conservative justiceshes proposed ultra-conservative justices to the right of the late Justice Scalia. Mark my words, if Trump is elected, gay marriage will be overturned within a decade. And thats just marriage. Its not hard to envision the federalists on the court allowing states to pass sodomy laws again. Not to mention upholding Turn the Gays Away and other anti-LGBT laws like North Carolinas HB2. Not to mention denying LGBT people the status of a legally protected class deserving of extra protection. Not to mention denying that transgender people even exist. If you dont think the Supreme Court is a vital LGBT issue, youre not paying attention. 2. Mike Pence Its generally understood that Donald Trump intends to delegate much of the grunt work of the presidency to his vice president, Mike Pence. This will be especially true on cultural issues, which Trump doesnt care about but half of the Republican base does. In terms of social policy, a Trump administration will be a Pence administration. And that should be terrifying. In a famous interview on ABC News, Pence refused to say whether his religious liberty law, one of the worst in the nation, would or wouldnt allow businesses to discriminate against gays, despite being prompted six times by George Stephanopoulos. Pence refused to say whether its OK to fire gay people for being gay. He has endorsed the horrifying and ineffective practice of gay conversion therapy. But those specific examples really are just the superficial symptoms of a much deeper, and sincere, religious conservatism. This isnt meant to demean Pences views; its not about homophobia, or some kind of pathology. These positions reflect what Pence, like 30 percent of Americans, sincerely believe is the right way forward for America: a return to traditional Judeo-Christian values and morality. And that is the foundation for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of policies. A Trump-Pence administration will promote creationism and traditional sexual/gender norms in schools, end funding for HIV prevention and research, return us to the Reagan-Bush days of abstinence-only education, increase faith-based initiatives and funding to conservative religious organizations, and undertake a thousand tiny actions that wont make the headlines but will gradually turn back the clock of Americas moral progress. Pence doesnt think its been progress, he thinks that our new freedoms are a sign of moral decay. 3. Transgender People Weve reported many times on how the transgender community has experienced a backlash before even getting a frontlash: the outrageous anti-trans bathroom panics around the country, the horrifying levels of violence against trans people (especially trans women of color), the discrimination and economic hardship faced by trans people every day. But I think weve all understated the threat here. Transgender, as a category, barely exists in federal law. What few protections exist are predicated on a legal theory that sex discrimination includes gender-identity discrimination. That is a delicate thread. And lets remember, many people, especially religious conservatives, simply dont think that trans is a thing. They think that Caitlyn Jenner is just a confused man, that transgender identity is a mental illness. In other words, transgender will stop being a thing as far as the federal government is concerned. Protecting trans people from discrimination? Might as well protect dragons from being hunted. Its easy to turn back the clock on gay rightsbut on trans rights, the clock hasnt even started ticking yet. 4. The Rest of the World While life for most LGBT people has definitely gotten better here in the United States, it has not in many parts of the world. In Russia, Brazil, Indonesia, Nigeria, Malaysia, East Africa, and Central Asia, life has gotten worse: more dangerous, more violent, less protected by law. One of Clintons unheralded accomplishments was remaking the State Departments policy on LGBT equality worldwide. Under her watch, the notion that LGBT rights are human rights became U.S. government policyand with that shift came funding, diplomatic efforts, and countless internal policies that have helped LGBT people who live in dangerous places. All that would be instantly erased in a Trump administrationand reversed. At the very least, Trumps America First isolationism would bring about a withdrawal of all of this support. Almost certainly, however, the U.S. would join with Russia in promoting the so-called natural familyi.e., heterosexual marriage with fixed gender roles. Pences constituency in the Christian right has made it a top-tier issue, and it will almost certainly become U.S. government policy to oppose LGBT equality anywhere in the worldincluding where LGBT people are most vulnerable. 5. Discrimination in the Name of Religion For the last two years, weve been talking about the Religious Freedom Restoration Acts that are the latest weapon in the rights culture war against women and LGBT people. Pence, of course, is king of the RFRAs. Well, get ready for a new acronym: FADA, the First Amendment Defense Act, which Trump has pledged to sign if elected. FADA is RFRA on steroids. It allows businesses and individuals (including doctors, pharmacists, teachers, and counselors) to refuse to serve gay people, protects anti-gay hate speech (because religion), enables adoption providers to refuse to place children with same-sex families, and allows a host of other anti-LGBT actionsall with the mere pretext of religious belief. Forget the North Carolina law. FADA would be a nationwide law that would go well beyond anything North Carolina or Indiana has done. It would be a national catastrophe for LGBT people, instantly superseding and erasing non-discrimination laws across the country. It would be the worst anti-gay law in a generationand Trump has promised to sign it. Had enough? Ive got more. Trump would undo all of Obamas pro-LGBT executive orders, thus enabling government contractors to discriminate against LGBT people again, and enabling gay government workers to be fired for being gay. Trump would ensure that it remains legal to fire someone for being gay or transas it currently is in 28 states. A Trump-Pence administration could easily make it extremely difficult for same-sex couples to adopt children. I could go on and on. It doesnt matter that Trump isnt personally homophobic. It doesnt matter who Trump hung out with at Studio 54. It matters who hes hanging out with today, what his stated positions are, who his base is, who his running mate is, and what his political calculations would be as president. If you care about LGBT equality but think its irrelevant enough that you can cast a protest vote, or a vote on other issues, you are wrong. Approaching the new season of Black Mirror, series creator Charlie Brooker found himself spitballing new techno-nightmare ideas to fuel the acclaimed dystopian anthologys jump to Netflix. Once again, he took inspiration from the gadgets, apps, and programs weve come to rely on IRLthe digital tools we eagerly upload into our lives without considering how each like, swipe, and double tap might be changing how were hardwired. Whenever he pitched a concept to co-executive producer Annabel Jones that made her recoil with an, Oh, that would be horrible, he knew he was onto an idea worth turning into its own episode. And yet for all the disturbing visions he served up in Black Mirrors first two seasons and its slate of six new stories, Brooker maintains hes an avid advocate of technology. Hed just like us all to think twice about what its doing to us as we scroll through our daily lives, increasingly connected and yet more disconnected than ever from one another. Im quite dweeby and Im actually really quite pro-technology, which people dont expect, he told The Daily Beast last month in Toronto, grinning gregariously at the irony. The story ideas come out not from us going, Whats the Black Mirror take on Tinder, but more like, Heywouldnt it be WEIRD if this happened? Im not the Unabomber! he laughed. I dont think that social media should be shut down for the millennials who stare at their phones all day long. I think that we are coming to terms with very powerful tools that weve invented that have ramifications its like weve suddenly grown a massive new limb and were flailing it around. And its amazing! Its astounding. Its brilliant. But its also causing us to sometimes inadvertently, and sometimes deliberately, cause harm. So thats what were coming to terms with. The result of Brookers continued meditation on our brave new tech-addled future is a new sixer of unrelated near-future nightmares that hit with more urgency than ever. Having greater resources at his disposal this time around means theyre longerthe riveting Hated in the Nation is a chilling 90-minute police procedural that, of course, takes even more sinister and unexpected turns involving the internet and honeybeesbut Brooker also seems more thematically ambitious in his third and biggest season to date. Men Against Fire tackles the ugliness of incentivized war. Shut Up and Dance plays on paranoia over the privacies we unknowingly give up on the internet. Playtest ventures into the alt-reality escapism of gaming with dazzling visuals and a visceral gut-punch. Black Mirror, streaming Oct. 21 on Netflix, is undoubtedly the best horror movie of this Halloween season. But critics instantly noticed a shocking undercurrent coursing through this new season: optimism. The hopefulness is particularly strong in its best episodes, the social media-obsessed Nosedive and the exquisite 1980s neon dream San Junipero, which have other crucial elements in common: Theyre both led by strong female performances and feature Bechdel test-shattering plotlines. Half of this seasons episodes are anchored by fiercely written female characters, two by non-white stars, and one unfolds the most romantic thread yet in the series between two women. Brooker says that the diversity of this season came partly in the casting, and partly by shaking up the writing processand that the show is all the richer for it. I was conscious that previously we had a lot of male protagonists on the show, he said. I remember thinking, Well, what happens if I just default to female leads for a while and see what happens? I also dont tend to comment on race in things that I do because I think it would be kind of patronizing. Its more interesting to not do that; to have the most diverse casting you can get. I dont tend to specify the race of characters. I quite often swap the gender of characters as well. The Joe Wright-directed satire Nosedive hits closest to How We Live Today, anchored by an unself-conscious turn by Bryce Dallas Howard as Lacie, a woman clinging desperately to the fragile anxiety-ridden sanity wrought by a world driven by likes, people-pleasing, and her social-media profile. Brooker describes it as a pastel nightmare, one where Howards Lacie is trapped in a vortex of projection in which the facade of happiness and success belies the truest, bitterest, most human expression of all: that nobody is as perfect as they seem to be online. But if Nosedive (and the also female-driven Hated in the Nation) are examples of how Black Mirrors capsule allegories can instantly change your perspective on firing off that next selfie or tweet into the ether, San Junipero is a different kind of rarified gem. Directed by Owen Harris, who also helmed the deeply affecting Be Right Back, the 1980s-set tale stars Halt and Catch Fires Mackenzie Davis as a shy young woman named Yorkie, who meets Gugu Mbatha-Raws hedonistic Kelly one night in an idyllic California seaside town and has her life changed forever. For Davis in particular, San Junipero arrives in the middle of a run of high-profile science-fiction-tinged roles including The Martian, her not-sci-fi but sci-tech AMC show Halt and Catch Fire, and the upcoming Blade Runner sequel Blade Runner 2049, which she recently wrapped in Budapest. The showrunners initially had her in mind to play Kelly, but Davis gravitated toward the painfully reserved Yorkie, she told me. Maybe because I felt like I had done a Kelly in some capacity before, she said. I understood her, but with Yorkie Id never played a woman like this. I wanted to have some kind of interior experience with this person who wasnt comfortable in her own skin, this blossoming young female experience. She strikes a crackling balance with the magnetic Mbatha-Raw, the pair unfolding one of Black Mirrors most surprising and soulful episodes with a chemistry that carries the narrative through an unexpected conceptual leap. Its one that also marks the series first same-sex love story with an unshowy sense of naturalism. Its the most progressive story! exclaimed Brooker. Davis revealed that the series stars are just like us: Large doses of Black Mirror doom and gloom send them into an existential panic, too. I cant watch consecutive Black Mirror episodes, she admitted. I go into a black hole and think about shit and examine my decisions and things that Im tacitly agreeing to. Its a very intense experience for me to watch an episode. But San Junipero and Owens other episode, which is also heartbreaking, have a more palpable optimism to them than a lot of Black Mirror. Between her Black Mirror stint and her turn as punk programming prodigy Cameron Howe on Halt and Catch Fire, Davis is still, like Brooker, not as wary of our brave new tech future as you might think. She mostly only lurks on Twitter and deletes apps on the regular. [But] what we talk about and think about so much on Halt is that theres so much goodwill in creating technology and new innovations, she said. Its to connect, and its to educate, to improve. The idea is often pure at heart and comes from quite an idealistic place. But the idea does not equal the execution and the intent doesnt equal the reality of a thing. What I like about San Junipero is that it is very optimistic but it doesnt end with you going, Its bad, or Its good, Davis added. There is a darkness to it even though it is very hopeful. But it does show that everything comes from a very beautiful place. Of course we want to create a world where you have chances. But there will be people who pervert that technology or misuse it. You cant pretend that it will ever exist in the intended way. Brooker himself reached a point of clarity in recent years, turned off from the alluring toxicity of Twitter so much so that he penned a warning against online outrage into Hated in the Nation. And last September, the news hed been waiting years to hear seeped into the international news cycle: The very first episode of Black Mirror, in which a British prime minister modeled after David Cameron is forced to have sex with a pig, had apparently come true. The real-life David Cameron allegations did briefly make Brooker question if he was living in his own surreal Black Mirror-esque nightmare, he admitted. Genuinely, when that happened, it was so weird, he marveled. But as much as Id love it to be true, I bet it isnt. I did that evening think that maybe the whole of reality is a simulation that I am imagining or is designed to fuck with me, which is not a thought that you should really entertain. Its quite narcissistic and mind-mangling. He considered how politics might factor into the next season of Black Mirror. I kind of miss when everything was meheveryone was like, meh, and I fucking hated it. But now everythings either fucking brilliant or a disaster and politics has gone the same way. A few years ago everyone was complaining that politicians were all bland or the same and now youve got Donald Trump or weve got Jeremy Corbyn. I miss the middle. I miss the boring, bland middle. It felt more stable. Everyones just so fucking angry. Theres definitely something in everything becoming so polarized, he added, furrowing his brow. But I dont quite know what the story is yet. I asked the onetime videogame journalist what he makes of Gamergate culture since in this season he tackles gaming and Twitter, but not where those worlds so loudly overlap online. I found [Gamergate] just inexplicable and saddening, he said. The fundamental thing at the heart of that, which I dont understand, is why its a problem critiquing the content of games. In the 90s, Duke Nukem was machine-gunning lapdogs. Even then it was like, Well, thats not great. Why its a controversial thought, I simply dont understand. Maybe there was an innate defensiveness of being a sort of traditional old-school gamer where youre being told that games are evil and violent, and I wonder if this reaction was at the core of it. It is a small minority of people who were very active in it. But no ones deleting old games. Twitter, he declared to controversial reactions in his 2013 Channel 4 documentary How Videogames Changed The World, is the ultimate videogame, even if most of its 313 million active monthly users dont realize it. It encourages polarized debate; it means that you are rewarded for having an extreme point of view, he explained, unintentionally echoing anti-Gamergate critic Anita Sarkeesians theories on the psychological rewards of trolling on the internet. I think generally social media encourages you to be entertaining, and when I say entertaining I mean strident. It encourages that thinking and that expression. It feels like being in a pub at about 11 oclock at night when everyone could go either way. The man behind Black Mirror, then, seems more cautiously wary of technology than necessarily for or against itand hyperaware of the fact that whatever the doodad, Twitter or Tinder or Oculus or beyond, these apparatuses only amplify the human impulses that have always existed within us. San Junipero is the ultimate optimistic view of where we could end up, he mused of Black Mirrors most philosophically uplifting story yet. But I alternate between the two. I look at my kids, who are 2 and 4, and I look at the world theyre in. In some ways Im really jealous that the 4-year-old gets to look at something like Minecraft on an iPad at the age of 4. I learned to find my way about playing Doom. I had a terrible sense of direction but playing Doom forced you to retrace your steps all the time, so I learned to find my way around London by playing it, he laughed. But I also had a lot of nightmares. LAGOS, Nigeria For two and a half years, their parents, their fellow citizens and people around the world have been demanding, pleading, begging the terrorists of Boko Haram to bring back our girls. Indeed, soon after more than 200 young women were kidnapped in the northeastern Nigerian town of Chibok in April 2014, the campaign to win their freedom went viral. Even the first lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, held up the famous hashtag on Twitter: #BringBackOurGirls. But it is only now, after long negotiationsindeed, what some officials are calling confidence buildingbetween Nigerias government and a faction of the terror organization, that we have seen a few of the victims released, and of those 21 girls, as many as 18 reportedly are now mothers. The extent of their trauma and confusion, at this point, one can only begin to imagine. These were educated young women sitting for a science exam when the Boko Haram militants abducted them. Afterward, when the Christians among them had been forced to convert to Islam and most or all were compelled to marry their kidnappers, which is to say they were raped, some may have found ways to try to accept their situation. And then the babies were born, and with them came new and difficult emotions, as we have seen in other parts of Africa where rape has been used as a weapon of war. All that is clear at the moment is that the negotiations to free those released so far, and perhaps many more in the future, were prolonged, difficult, and demonstrate just how complicated the war against Boko Haram has become. A statement on Twitter last Thursday by Nigerian presidential spokesperson Garba Shehu said the liberation of the 21 Chibok girls is an outcome of negotiations between the administration and Boko Haram brokered by the International Red Cross and the Swiss government and that negotiations will continue for the release of the remaining young women held captive. The Swiss government confirmed it was involved in the release, and that it helped coordinate talks between Nigerian officials and Boko Haram. At the request of the Nigerian government, Switzerland facilitated contacts between government representatives and emissaries from Boko Haram, Swiss foreign ministry spokesman Pierre-Alain Eltschinger said. Switzerlands engagement was motivated by humanitarian reasons. Various media are reporting that the released girls were exchanged for four Boko Haram prisoners in the northeastern town of Banki, close to the border with Cameroon. Nigerias information minister, Lai Mohammed, denied any such trade was made. This is not a swap, it is a release [of the hostage women], the product of painstaking negotiations and trust on both sides, Mohammed said. As soon as the necessary confidence was built on both sides, the parties agreed on the date and the location of the release of the 21 girls. Just what those confidence-building measures were, and whether they included the release of prisoners, Mohammed did not say. After the girls were handed over to security officials who assessed them, they were taken to Nigerias capital, Abuja, where they met with the countrys vice president, Yemi Osinbajo, for an official welcome. I can confirm they are in good health, Osinbajo told reporters. In the next few days or months we will be able to negotiate the release of more of the girls. The Nigerian government late on Thursday identified the girls as Mary Usman Bulama, Jummai John, Blessing Abana, Lugwa Sanda, Comfort Habila, Maryam Basheer, Comfort Amos, Glory Mainta, Saratu Emannuel, Deborah Jaafaru, Rahab Ibrahim, Helen Musa, Maryamu Lawan, Rebecca Ibrahim, Asabe Goni, Deborah Andrawus, Agnes Gapani, Saratu Markus, Glory Dama, Pindah Nuhu, and Rebecca Mallam. All 21 girls were reunited with their families on Sunday in a highly emotional atmosphere during a special Church service in Abuja. I did not know that a day like this will come that we will be dancing and giving thanks to God among people, Glory Dame, one of the rescued girls said on behalf of her fellow captives, hinting at the hardships they had experienced. We had no food for one month and 10 days, be we did not die. We thank God. She said she narrowly escaped a bomb blast in the forest. Nigerias president, Muhammadu Buhari, while speaking at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Friday said about 100 more schoolgirls are still in the hands of the terrorists somewhere in the Lake Chad Basin area which include Cameroon, Niger and Nigeria, and that the government hopes to get enough intelligence to go about securing the rest of them. Earlier this week, Buharis office said Boko Haram jihadists have expressed a willingness to negotiate the release of 83 more Chibok girls, and that the release of the 21 girls on Thursday was a demonstration that the particular Islamist group negotiating with the Buhari administration truly does hold the women it says it does. These 21 released girls are supposed to be tale bearers to tell the Nigerian government that this faction of Boko Haram has 83 more Chibok girls, Buharis spokesman, Shehu, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. The faction said it is ready to negotiate if the government is willing to sit down with them. As many as 276 schoolgirls were kidnapped from their dormitory in Chibok in April 2014 as they prepared to sit for a major science exam. About 57 of them escaped not long after, and one was rescued by Nigerian forces with help from local vigilantes in May. The release of the 21 schoolgirls reduces the number of students still unaccounted for to 197. We see this as a credible first step in the eventual release of all the Chibok girls in captivity, said Information Minister Lai Mohammed. It is also a major step in confidence-building between us as a government and the Boko Haram leadership on the issue of the Chibok girls. Just last month the government announced that it had entered into talks with Boko Haram, but those broke down when the jihadists, after agreeing on a prisoner swap, issued a new set of demands. The pattern was a familiar one. John Paden, an American scholar who is close to the president, writes in his just-published biography, Muhammadu Buhari: The Challenges of Leadership in Nigeria, that Boko Haram originally demanded 5 billion (about $5.6 billion) in exchange for the release of the schoolgirls. On several occasions, prisoners were taken to Maiduguri to facilitate an exchange. But these negotiations stalled when Boko Haram demanded a ransom of 5 billion for the girls, writes Paden, a professor of International Studies at the George Mason University in Virginia. The Nigerian government was not going to accede to Boko Harams extra-ordinary demand for a vast sum of money which would no doubt be used to fund future attacks, Paden concluded. A Nigerian government official The Daily Beast privately last month that the jihadists also asked for the release of terrorists linked to the al Qaeda-backed group that masterminded the bombing of a United Nations building in Nigerias capital, Abuja, in 2011, and which has murdered a number of foreign nationals. The government wasnt willing to negotiate the release of these persons, the official said. Freeing them will put the country greatly at risk. Boko Haram has been plagued with dissension and divisions, as some factions have pledged allegiance to the so-called Islamic State, or ISIS, while others are more closely aligned with the core al Qaeda organization. The Boko Haram leader originally associated with the Chibok kidnapping was Abubakar Shekau. But he appears to have been overthrown earlier this year by a man calling himself Abu Musab al-Barnawi, who vowed to end attacks on Muslims and places used by Muslim faithful. He accused Shekau of failing to adhere to the teachings of Islam by killing fellow Muslims, including members of his own jihadist group. It appears that the Nigerian governments negotiations have been with the new Boko Haram leadership, not the old. And, indeed, the Nigerian military announced recently that it had killed a number of Boko Haram top commanders and fatally wounded Shekau in an airstrikea claim Shekau later surfaced to refute. It is not clear if Shekau and his loyalists still hold some of the Chibok girls. Although the government denies there was a swap and says no ransom was paid for the release of the 21 schoolgirls, those with knowledge of how the jihadists operate are of a different opinion. Its hard to come to terms with the fact that the schoolgirls release did not involve a prisoner swap, says Bala Chabiya, co-founder of the Hands of Love Organization, an initiative that works with rescued victims of Boko Haram. The militants have over time demanded for the release of fighters in exchange for the schoolgirls, and I tend to believe that is what happened, said Chabiya, who has counseled a large number of Boko Haram victims. For those who have campaigned more than 900 days for the girls release, all that matters for the moment is that theyve returned, and have brought hope with them for others still held. I can only weep right now. You know that kind of cry that is a mix of multiple emotions, tweeted Obiageli Ezekwesili, co-convener of the #BringBackOurGirls movement. We cry out and use them as a Point -Of-Contact for the rest 197. A Kentucky cop was accused of excessive force for nearly two decades. Now hes heading to federal prison for tasing and arresting a man who swore at him. Matthew Corder, 52, was sentenced to 27 months on Monday for violating Deric Baizes civil rightsan incident captured on Corders body camera and which the Department of Justice used to seal his conviction. According to prosecutors, the Bullitt County sheriffs deputy fired on Baize with an electroshock weapon after Baize told the cop to fuck off. The October 2014 tussle began when Baize came home to find Corders squad car in front of his trailer and asked him to park elsewhere. Corder, who had been responding to another call in the trailer park, told Baize to mind his own business. In response, Baize told Corder to fuck off, twice, before he entered his residence, prosecutors say. But the officer wouldnt let it go. Corder banged on Baizes front door and ordered him to come outside. Youre gonna come out here or youre gonna be issued [a citation], Corder said, according to court documents reviewed by The Daily Beast. Baize again refused to exit his trailer and told Corder to get a warrant. I dont need no warrant, dude, Corder replied. Right now you were out here hollering at me, and you ran in, which means theres exigent circumstances, so back yourself out here. Corder then stepped inside the trailer and wrestled Baize to the ground, saying, I aint playing with you. Youre about to get your ass tased. Seconds later, Corder tased Baize in the neck, the side, and the back, court papers say. Its not the first time Corder allegedly abused his authority. According to prosecutors, in 1997, while working for the Louisville Police Department, he pepper-sprayed a mans face during a traffic stop. A year later, he allegedly broke a black suspects nose with a flashlight. (The man, Adrian Reynolds, would later die of unrelated injuries in jail.) In 2002, Corder allegedly pulled out his gun and handcuffed a tow-truck driver who came to repossess his SUV. He released the driver after he agreed to let Corder keep his vehicle, prosecutors say. Yet Corders career in law enforcement didnt end until 2015, when authorities determined he filed a false report to arrest Baize. According to court papers, Baize apologized for swearing as the deputy handcuffed him. Fuck that. You get to go to jail tonight, Corder seethed in his own body-cam footage, before adding, I told you that you was gonna get tased, didnt I, if you didnt put your hands behind your back? Thats why I was asking you why Baize tried telling Corder. You know why, Slick, Corder fumed. You sit up there and tell me to fuck off? After Corder threw Baize into the patrol car, he warned, Next time you tell a police officer to fuck off, you might want to think about it. Corder charged Baize with disorderly conduct, fleeing and evading, and resisting arrest. But a sheriffs office supervisor reviewed Corders arrest report and body camera footage and determined there wasnt enough evidence against him. Even though the charges were dropped, Baize would spend two weeks in jail, lose his job, and get evicted from his trailer, court papers show. Baize was unable to file a civil suit, prosecutors say, because the Bullitt County district attorney had him sign a probable cause stipulation before the charges were dropped. The sheriff forwarded the Corder probe to the FBI, according to WDRB, which first published Corders body-cam footage. After a four-day trial in July, a jury convicted Corder of two counts of willfully depriving Baize of his constitutional rights under color of law. He faced 11 years in prison for the charges, the Courier-Journal reported. When reached by phone Tuesday, Corder declined to comment on the case but said he plans to appeal his conviction. Corders attorney, Donald Meier, did not return messages for comment. Court papers show Meier asked for probation or home incarceration for Corder, stating that losing his job is a significant, serious punishment. As a convicted felon, Corders plans of becoming an aircraft mechanic in the future are ruined, Meier wrote. To place Mr. Corder, a former law enforcement officer, in prison, can be problematic and possibly place him in a situation more dangerous and punitive than what would be the case for an ordinary citizen, Meier wrote. The attorney made note of multiple awards Corder received over the years, including a Medal of Valor for disarming a man threatening customers at a White Castle. Mr. Corder has no criminal record, Meier said in court papers. He is absolutely not a danger to society. He has no desire, nor possibility of ever becoming a law enforcement officer again. The feds, however, didnt take Corders past lightly. Prosecutors said Corder was fired from three law enforcement agencies over his 15-year career as a police officer. Corder was allegedly investigated four times for excessive force during his employment with Louisville police from 1991 to 2003. The department reprimanded him twice for conduct unbecoming an officer and suspended him for insubordination, prosecutors say. In 2009, Corder joined the Audubon Park Police Department but was allegedly fired during his probationary period over an off-duty road rage incident. He was employed by the Bullitt County sheriffs office from 2013 to 2015. Prosecutors noted two prior incidents where Corder abused his official authority to retaliate against civilians who disrespected him, court papers show. In June 1997, a painter identified only as J.W. and two coworkers were stuck in rush-hour traffic on Interstate 265. They decided to follow several other vehicles using an emergency lane to access the exit, court papers state. Corder blocked J.W.s van when he attempted to drive around Corders patrol car to reach the exit. Then the cop got out, pointed his gun at the crew and ordered, Put your fucking hands in the air, prosecutors allege. Corder allegedly grabbed J.W., handcuffed him and shoved him into the squad car. At one point, J.W. yelled, Fuck you, to which Corder replied, What the fuck did you say, boy? before pepper spraying J.W. in the face. Corder arrested J.W. on charges of reckless driving and resisting arrest. The case was eventually dismissed, and J.W. filed a civil lawsuit alleging Corder violated his civil rights. The city settled the suit for an undisclosed sum, court papers state. In October 2002, Corder ambushed three agents who were attempting to repossess his Lincoln Navigator. The supervisory agent showed Corder paperwork to identify themselves, but Corder said he didnt care who they werehed shoot anyone who moved, prosecutors claim. When the tow-truck driver asked the supervisor to call cops, Corder brandished his badge and barked, I am the fucking police, court documents allege. Corder allegedly pushed the driver against his patrol car and arrested him for disorderly conduct. Then the cop made a deal: Hed release the driver if the repo agents would leave and let him keep his vehicle. But before he removed the handcuffs, Corder warned the trio hed arrest them if they reported the encounter to internal affairs, prosecutors say. (Corder's defense attorney denied any such deal at trial.) Louisvilles then-police chief Robert C. White fired Corder over the incident months later. White also accused Corder of violating policy by moonlighting while on leave, when he was supposed to be recuperating from a car wreck, the Courier-Journal reported. (In 2006, the cop fought his firing but the police merit board unanimously upheld his termination.) Jefferson County prosecutors charged Corder with tampering with a witness, unlawful imprisonment, and official misconduct among other violations. A jury ultimately acquitted Corder of all criminal charges. Corders ex-wife testified that Corder had no idea of the repossession and that he believed the agents were thieves. In 1998, Corder also came under scrutiny after the death of Adrian Reynolds, a black man who was arrested for domestic violence on New Years Day. An internal affairs probe found that Corder punched Reynolds, 34, breaking his nose, but that his actions were justified, the Courier-Journal reported. Corder told authorities Reynolds attacked him and that he hit Reynolds with a flashlight to defend himself. Reynolds died six days later of a blunt head injury, following a struggle with corrections officers who allegedly tried to stop him from suicide in jail. (That officer, Timothy Barnes, was acquitted during a 2002 retrial.) The man had already arrived at the jail badly beaten by Corder, and his bloody mugshot spurred protests in Louisville. Its not brutality. Its not racism. Its police work, said Rick McCubbin, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, at the time. Reynoldss mother sees things differently. She keeps an enlarged photo of his swollen eyes and nearly unrecognizable face, injuries he suffered during his arrest. In a 2002 interview, Reynolds told Louisville mag Todays Woman that local police treat minority suspects differently. I want justice, not just for Adrian but for all black men, she said. Last week, the mother-turned-activist told WDRB she was pleased with Corders conviction in the unrelated case. That old saying that goes around comes around, Reynolds said. Just wait, and it will happen. How many millionaires do you think there are in New York City? Ive asked this question more than a thousand times. The answer might surprise you. Late last year, the consulting firm Capgemini released its annual United States Wealth Report, which put the number of these high-net-worth individuals living in the New York metropolitan area at an astonishing 963,000. Why do I keep asking this question? Because as a cofounder of a public high school in the Bronx, and founder of a small educational nonprofit, the Foundation for Letters, Ive seen our public education system struggle for attention and funding for years. Im always trying to convince those with significant means to give a small percentage of their fortune to improve urban public educationa cause that tends to be low on their list of charitable priorities because they dont tend to live in underserved communities of color. They don't see themselves as natural stakeholders in the fight to improve urban public education. But they should. Ironically, getting millionaires to support public education isnt always the fiercest fight. Theres been an increasingly bitter debate in Democratic and education reform circles about the ethics of asking for external support for public schools. Some activists and educators believe that private support for public schools isnt progressive. They believe that the mere mention of the words "external" or private are threats to teachers and insults their understanding of the role that poverty plays in the existence of the achievement gap. In their view, the only ideologically pure way to improve public education is by demanding more public funds. I believe theres a practical problem with this approach. This year, the New York City Department of Education will spend $23 billion to serve just over one million students, translating to $23,000 per student. Thats roughly 25 percent of the entire New York City budget, and its unrealistic to think there will be the political will to raise taxes enough or cut other areas sufficiently to allow for a doubling of the education funding. Thats likely what it would take to achieve something close to parity with private schools. At many private boarding schools, tuition now regularly exceeds $58,000 per year. Their boards then direct additional funds annually from multimillion-dollar endowments to offer scholarships to low income students. I was once one of those lucky students. I was raised in Newark, New Jerseya challenging urban environment today, and even more so 30 years ago. In 1985, when I was 13, I was in trouble. I was expelled from one middle school (coincidentally, the same one attended by Newarks current mayor, Ras Baraka), and was surrounded by crime and gang violence. My family, neighborhood, and existence were racked by the poverty, drug abuse, and violence that are still endemic to urban life. Then, Williston Northampton, a private boarding high school in New England, sent an admissions officer to recruit at my school in New Jersey, as part of an effort to improve diversity on Willistons campus. What he saw was an ordinary kid. I was far from the smartest kid in my class. I was not the best athlete, the funniest, or the most artistic. I wasnt even close to the hardest working or the most popular. But for some reason, Mr. Southworth poked his head into Mr. Bankss science class, took a look at my unspectacular project (a motor made with a shoebox, a battery, and a stick), and saw something in me. In my English class, he peeked into my book of rhymes, then asked me to interview. Thanks to that interview, I was accepted to Williston, given the chance to escape a difficult environment and exposed to educational opportunities that would never have been possible for me otherwise. I was given the opportunity to graduate from Yale, to work on Wall Street, and to become a high-net-worth individual. I was one of the lucky onesthe exception, not the rule. In 2016, 38 percent of New York students in grades 38 achieved a proficient (passing) score on the English Language Arts (ELA) test. Yet only 26.5 percent and 27.2 percent of Black and Hispanic students did so. White and Asian students, by comparison, achieved proficiency at dramatically higher rates: 58.8 percent and 58.9 percent respectively. These percentages show that students of color, often residents of low-income urban areas, enter ninth grade well behind their more affluent, often white or Asian contemporaries. From my own involvement in helping to educate them, I know that these students struggle not only to reach college readiness, but to enterand more importantly, to stay enrolledin college. The difference isnt just moneyits the culture of support surrounding the students. Most urban, lower-income parents dont have the means, the time, or in some cases the education to advocate for their children in the same way a private schools PTA can. And public schools dont have individual boards of trustees to advocate for them. At my nonprofit, the Foundation for Letters, our goal is to create such advocacy groups. We call them External Support Organizations. Just like our private-school counterparts, we work to facilitate coordinated support fromamong othersas many of those 963,000 local millionaires as possible to help us close that funding gap, and to participate firsthand in how the funds are used. Our first ESO, the Advisory Board of the Urban Assembly Bronx Academy of Letters, the school I cofounded, raised over $4 million overallmore than $2.5 million of it from individual donations. [Disclosure: Daily Beast Editor-in-Chief John Avlon served on the Bronx Academy of Letters board.] In 2013, the New York Daily News ranked the Bronx Academy of Letters among the citys top 25 high schools. The approach has proven its value. But its also shown us that donor dollars arent enough. Writing a check makes you a donor. Becoming involved in the educational experiences of children you dont know, makes you a stakeholder. Sadly, its much easier to get a millionaire to write a $1,000 check than to volunteer for three hours on a Saturday to help a high school senior with a college essay. But the combination of financial and volunteer support from a single individual is transformative. So when I ask you how many millionaires there are in New York City, its not only because Im imagining the potential impact that could come from the fact that there are 500 millionaires in NYC for each of its 1,856 public schools. Im also elated at the prospect of 500 volunteers showing up at an urban school in an under-served neighborhood to help kids write better college essays. Education reform has barely been a topic of conversation in the general election, let alone the presidential debates. But its one of the few areas where there is a proven path for transcending the divisiveness that characterizes contemporary politics while making measurable progress in closing the income gap and achievement gap, one person at a time. Mike Jackson is executive vice president of Capital Markets at Supernova Companies, co-based in Chicago and New York. He is founder and volunteer CEO at the Foundation for Letters, a co-founder of the Bronx Academy of Letters, and chair of the investment committee at the Williston-Northampton School. He holds a B.A. from Yale University. On the day of the third and final presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton , the Trump-aligned supermarket tabloid the National Enquirer published its latest alleged scoop: and, as luck would have it, its a bombshell. The WORLD EXCLUSIVE 9-PAGE SPECIAL INVESTIGATION breathlessly details how the former Secretary of State and First Lady is a sex-crazed, evil, prolifically polyamorous, bisexual (or at least bi-curious), and ruthless power-hungry supervillain, with a taste for criminal conspiracy and character assassination aimed at enemy bimbos. Its a story that has everything you could want in a sleazy, so-bad-its-good Hollywood productionlike the plots of Fatal Attraction and Basic Instinct and the intrigue and open-marriage-ness of House of Cards were rolled into one story, but with even cheesier dialogue, somehow. It has clandestine sex romps, mysterious death, dirty tricks, prostitutes, LIES AND SPIES, secret plots, and a woman hell-bent on manipulating her sex-crazed self all the way to the White House. It also has exclamation points! Lots and lots of exclamation points!! The Enquirers conspiracy-theory-mongering investigation (some of which you can read below) is divided into four chapters, including THE BOMBSHELL PROOF HILLARY SILENCED BILLS SEX VICTIMS, HILLARYS PLOT TO KILL MONICA (via smear campaign), HILLARYS GAY LOVERS & THE VINCE FOSTER DEATH COVER-UPTHE TRUTH AT LAST, and concluding with CONFESSIONS OF A CLINTON BAGMAN! IN HIS OWN WORDS. The centerpiece of the cover story is Hillarys BAGMANa fixer who has seen the errors of his Clinton-loyalist ways, and spilled his guts to the Enquirer about the Clintons sex-hypocrisy, describing an endless string of sexual stories arising from what effectively was the Clintons open, polyamorous marriage. I am coming forward now because of the endless attention the alleged indiscretions of Donald Trump have received, the source says, explaining the convenient timing of this Enquirer yarn. Nothing I have heard comes close to the sexual and moral corruption of the Clintons. And why hasnt the full scope of Hillary Clintons sexual corruption reached the front page of The New York Times, yet?? Money, of course. Loads and loads of filthy Clinton hush money. Hollywood superstars, busty bimbos, strippers, hookers and shady figures from Americas underworld have all been SECRETLY paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in hush money for more than two decades in a sordid scheme to help Hillary Clinton become president! the story begins. The women received the sleazy payoffs through Hillarys political hitman recruited from the ranks of Hollywoods devious fixers by a top film and television executive. The juiciest part of the Enquirers cover story lies in the alleged revelations on amorous Hillarys wild, swinging sex life. [Her fixer] arranged a lesbian romp for bi-sexual Hillary with a prominent Hollywood identity! the Enquirer blares. [He] squealed about a lusty rendezvous he arranged for Hillary that FINALLY proves the lesbian rumors that have dogged her for decades! Hillary Clinton is a secret sex freak who paid fixers to set up illicit romps with both men AND women! the report continues. Oddly enough, rumors that Hillary Clinton is a lesbian murdereror that Bill Clinton is a cocaine-addled deviantare nothing new. Authors Robert Morrow, Edward Klein, and Trumps longtime adviser and political ally Roger Stone have written books making such outlandish claims about the Clintons supposed drug habits, sexual preferences, and blood-splattered history. Trump himself suggested earlier this month that Hillary was also screwing around behind Bills back. The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment regarding whether Trump sees any merit in the Enquirers latest bombshell on his rivals torrid lesbian dalliances and sexual corruption. And much in the same way that the rise of Trumpism has helped push leading conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and his team at Infowars more and more into the American mainstream consciousness, the success of the Trump presidential campaign has elevated the National Enquirer, a publication long famous for printing unsubstantiated gossip and ridiculous stories about the Illuminati and space aliens. Early this year, the Enquirer officially endorsed Trump, making it one of the very few printed news sources in the country to do so. In the same March issue that TRUMP MUST BE PREZ! the Enquirer also bashed Trumps primary opponent Marco Rubio as nerdy. The Republican presidential nominee has long been a fan of the pro-Trump supermarket tabloid, and has reportedly forged during this election a political alliance with his friend David Peckerthe CEO of American Media, Inc., which publishes the Enquirer. Theyre very close, a source close to the Enquirer told New York magazine last October. The insider also told New York that Team Trump was the source behind a cover story on rival candidate Ben Carson, headlined, Bungling Surgeon Ben Carson Left Sponge in Patients Brain! (Both the Trump campaign and Pecker denied the allegations of collusion.) Trump is a big friend of Pecker, a source told the Daily News, stating that the real-estate mogul is protected by the Enquirer. So no John Edwards-type investigations Some of the staff are furious. Trumps such fertile ground, and it drives them crazy to not only be staying away from it, but running puff pieces for him. In March, when the Enquirer published a hit piece on Ted Cruz involving A HOOKER, A TEACHER & COWORKERS: 5 romps that will destroy Ted Cruz! and a sex-in-closet tale, Trump and his campaign used the article as a weapon against Cruz. The National Enquirer did a story, Trump said at the time. It was their storyI have no idea if its right or not. They actually have a very good record of being right. Months later, when the publication ran a story suggesting that Cruzs dad was in New Orleans passing out pro-Castro pamphlets with President John F. Kennedys assassin (sidenote: there is no actual evidence for this), Trump widely promoted the news, and got his allies in mainstream media, including Fox News host Sean Hannity, to help him to do so. Now, with Trumps rivals in the GOP primary long since vanquished, it is only rational that the Trump-loving tabloid would turn its attention to Hillary Clinton BLOCKBUSTERS. Despite their extremely cozy relationship, the Enquirer hasnt always been kind to to Trump. In years past, it would publish thinly sourced stories about Trumps own sex life, particularly ones about him getting cuckolded or two-timed. TRUMPS MISTRESS CHEATS ON DONALD WITH TOM CRUISE, a cover story, dated March 27, 1990, alleged, promising sizzling details inside. (Another issue from the same month declared that TRUMP MISTRESS IS PREGNANT, leading to Ivana Trumps heartbreak.) The love affair between the mogul and the tabloid is now, however, very much mutual. There have been few presidential candidates in recent history that have generated the kind of discussion that Donald Trump has, Pecker told The Daily Beast back in March. Its no surprise that the readership of the Enquirer recently told us that they wanted to read more about Trump than any other 2016 candidate. A national liberal political group reportedly fired a Wisconsin operative after heavily edited secret video recordings by a conservative group showed him boasting about recruiting agitators to stir trouble at Donald Trump rallies. Scott Foval, former national field director for the group Americans United for Change, also is seen discussing a hypothetical plan to carry out voter fraud. The hidden-cam video footage was released by conservative activist James OKeefe and his group, Project Veritas Action. Foval responded Wednesday by telling the Wisconsin State Journal in a statement that the secret recordings are a ruse designed to distort his comments. Foval said he and his associates only did above-board, legal, legitimate organizing work. He did not directly address in the statement whether he helped send agitators to Trump events, as he appeared to discuss in one video. All who view these recordings should remember that they were speculative conversations where we attempted to correct a misguided idea put forth by OKeefe and his cronies, and we did not take the bait, Foval said. Fox News reported late Monday that Foval is no longer associated with Americans United for Change, which does media outreach and organizing on behalf of Democratic causes. CNN reported Tuesday that Foval has been fired. Social media profiles for Foval said he is from the Madison area. The Veritas videos show a series of spliced footage of Foval interspersed with hidden footage of other operatives supporting Democrats, narrated by OKeefe who has a history of releasing secret footage that critics said was edited to intentionally mislead viewers. In the first of the Veritas videos, Foval discusses efforts to send volunteers to Trump rallies to provoke his supporters waiting in line to enter the events, in the hope that they will respond with violence. Conflict engagement in the lines at Trump rallies were starting anarchy here, Foval says in one clip. He also suggests at one point that skirting laws to win elections is acceptable. It doesnt matter what the ... legal and ethics people say, we need to win this (expletive)! Foval says in one recording. Foval says in the video that his firm, Foval Group, contracts with an intermediary group, Democracy Partners, thats on the payroll of the Democratic National Committee. The DNC distanced itself from Foval. In a statement to CNN on Tuesday, DNC interim chairwoman Donna Brazile described Foval as a temporary regional subcontractor whose statements dont follow DNC policies or values. We do not believe or have any evidence to suggest that the activities articulated in the video actually occurred, Brazile told CNN. A second Project Veritas video released Tuesday depicts Foval discussing what appears to be a hypothetical plan of voter fraud. It is not clear from the recordings if there is a plan to carry it out or if the discussion is purely speculative. Lets just say in theory if a major investigation came up, of major vote fraud that way, how would they prove it? And who would they charge? Foval says. Americans United for Change and the Democratic National Committee did not respond to requests for comment from the Wisconsin State Journal. In July, the DNC paid $26,000 to Mobilize, the consulting firm of liberal activist Robert Creamer, to, among other things, stage Democratic events outside Trump rallies. Creamer, who also was caught on tape and stepped away from campaign activities after the videos aired, hired Foval as a subcontractor. A Clinton campaign spokesman said the campaign backs cutting ties with Creamer and Foval. OKeefes group has a history of hidden-camera stings in Wisconsin. He has secretly recorded and released footage of Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Russ Feingold and former Republican state Senate President Mike Ellis. OKeefe was convicted in 2010 as part of a scheme to illegally make recordings at the office of then-Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu, a Democrat. There were 2.6 million anti-Semitic tweets on Twitter last year, with a total reach of 10 billion impressions. Of that, 19,253 of them were specifically directed at Jewish journalistsmyself, and my Daily Beast colleague Sally Kohn, included. Remarkably, two-thirds of the tweets originated from just 1,600 accounts. And even more remarkably, Twitter has deleted only 21 percent of them. These are some of the numbers from the report released Wednesday by the Anti-Defamation League, entitled Anti-Semitic Targeting of Journalists During the 2016 Presidential Campaign. For the first time, the report quantifieswith some significant surprisesthe extent of anti-Semitic harassment online on Twitter since the rise of the Donald Trump campaign and the resurgence of the alt-right, specifically the period from August 2015 to July 2016. But the numbers dont tell the whole story. I was an adviser to the ADLs task force on harassment, although the hate-tweets I was tagged inpictures of me in death-camp gas chambers (with Donald Trump pressing the gas button and the caption Youre Fired); an endless torrent of kike, faggot, and other slurs; lots of gleeful boasts that Trump would finish the work Hitler startedpale in comparison to those aimed at the primary targets in the ADL report. Indeed, one of the reports most shocking revelations is that 83 percent of the anti-Semitic tweets directed at journalists targeted only 10 people. People like Ben Shapiro and Bethany Mandel, two conservative writers turned Trump critics. And Julia Ioffe and Jonathan Weisman, who warned of the looming fascism in the Trump movement (which, of course, the hate tweets exemplify). And others whose great offense was reporting on Trump while being Jewish. The true alt-right is steeped in Jew-hatred, Shapiro told The Daily Beast. Writing that off as mischievous and trolly as publicists for the alt-right do, is a vicious lie. The result, anecdotally, has been a profound chilling effect, and a normalization of the abnormal. Weisman quit Twitter entirely, frustrated with the social-media giants refusal to honor its own terms of service and inability to distinguish between legitimate political speech and bigoted harassment. Personally, I am quite certain this piece will provoke another storm of anti-Semitic tweets. Part of me wants not to write it. Second, as the ADL report emphasizes, when there are 10 billion chances to see the kind of vicious, murderous, slanderous, filthy, and, yes, deplorable bigotry that we thought had been consigned to the dustbin of history, the hateful becomes normalized. Machen Amerika Great photoshopped onto the gates of Auschwitz. Jude stars photoshopped onto pictures of Jewish journalists. Endless variations on anti-Semitic images and language. I think the alt-right rock has been turned over, said Shapiro. If they believe theyre gaining power and credibility, this is just the start. Whos to blame? Well, obviously, the trolls themselves, first and foremost, and secondarily, white supremacists like Andrew Anglin and Lee Rogers. But racist scum like them have always existed. And while, as a 501(c)(3) eager to work with businesses to solve problems, the ADL dances around the two most obvious villains, I am not thus constrained. They are Donald Trump and Twitter itself. First, despite nearly a full year of anti-Semitic harassment of Jewish journalists, Trump has not once condemned it. Where the fuck are you, Donald Trump? This is your daughter and son-in-law whom your followers are calling rats and bloodsuckers; its your grandchildren they want to burn in ovens. And yet, noonly repeated dog-whistling, like Trumps recent references to global conspiracy of bankers and media elites. Sad! Further, as the ADL report notes, incidents of anti-Semitic tweets spike together with Trump-related news events: Feb. 29, when Trump refused to disavow the Ku Klux Klan; May 17, when Melania Trump accused Ioffe of provoking the attacks against her; March 13, when Trump blamed Bernie Sanders for violent protesters at his rallies. And then, of course, theres Trumps starring role in the tweets themselves; the cozy relationship, via Steve Bannon, between Trump and the alt-right (and anti-Semitic conspiracy nuts like Alex Jones); and the entire race-baiting, white-America-first themes of his campaign. Hope Hicks, press secretary for the Trump campaign, told the Daily Beast that we have no knowledge of this activity and strongly condemn any commentary that is anti-semitic. We totally disavow hateful rhetoric online or otherwise. Reallyno knowledge of this activity thats been going on for months, features Trumps name and likeness, and has been reported throughout the mainstream media? Trump is not encouraging these tweets; the ADL report makes clear that a small handful of alt-right demagogues are. But hes not condemning them either, and hes clearly seen, by the tweeters themselves, as the great anti-Semitic messiah. Its worse than sad; its a national disgrace. And then theres Twitter. Waving the tattered flags of the Arab Spring, Twitters position is that it is a platform for the free, basically anonymous exchange of ideas, and that includes offensive ideas. If you require users to identify themselves, they cant be safe from authoritarian regimes, snooping bosses, or the NSA. Plus, they point out, you can easily block users you dont want to see, although your name, likeness, and personal information can still be shared with those users thousands of followers. In the words of one targeted journalist, thats like walking down the street with your ears plugged, while right behind you a bigot is shouting that youre a bloodsucking kike. I cant hear you! The biggest shock in the ADL report is that this entire campaign of harassment is coordinated by a relatively small number of trolls, most of whom have words like white, nationalist, and Trump in their bios. Gosh, couldnt Twitter, a company with a $11.9 billion (and falling) market capitalization, come up with some innovative solutions to go after these 1,600 bad actors? How about requiring users to identify themselves if they repeatedly tweet out offensive images? How about adding more staff to investigate reports of harassment? How about actually enforcing your own terms of service, rather than hiding behind the free speech banner? Or maybe Twitter doesnt want to lose the trolls and their ad-viewing eyeballs? The situation, it must be noted, is similar to Twitters anemic response to the epidemic of rape threats directed at women, and racist bile directed at people of color. (Or, in the case of comedian Leslie Jones, both at the same time.) Yes, some people are banned, before popping up again in a hateful game of Whack-a-Mole. But too few, too late, and with too much effort. Twitter is not doing remotely enough. Indeed, we don't even know where these tweets are coming from. Bethany Mandel, one of the journalists most targeted by them, said that In a perfect world I wouldve loved to see information on the origins of these accounts. Many people, myself included, believe these accounts not to be American supporters of Trump, but instead Russian troll farms. If that is the case, the Russian government is interfering even more than we originally thought in our electoral process, trying to intimidate journalists who are covering the campaign. But with Twitter either lacking the ability or the will to track these users, we dont know the answer. Racist lowlifes have long drifted in the backwaters of Americas political sewer. They are, to quote their hero, sad, pathetic losers. And I am sure that if Twitter decides to finally cut them off, theyll slink back to Reddit, 4Chan, and other, seedier venues. But Twitter ought to be different. Its technology enables the rapid sharing of information, and often productive dialogues across political lines. It is an invaluable tool for journalists in particular. It would be a shame if it went down, a victim of its own pseudo-libertarianism. I dread going on Twitter after this article runs. In part, Im afraid of the real-world damage these trolls can inflict; colleagues of mine have been doxxed, stalked, and harassed in person. But in part, the online harassment itself is degrading. Theres something uniquely disturbing about being humiliated in front of tens of thousands of virtual users, in bigoted terms that most of us thought belonged to the distant past. Its debasing; youre pulled down into the muck where these trolls live. And its demeaning, because youre powerless to stop them, because Twitter prefers them to you. I lost a dozen members of my grandparents families in the Holocaust. I know it will not happen again, not in the United States anyway. I know that the people sending me pictures of mass graves are among the most profound losers in our society. And I know that I should have a thick skin. But Twitter is letting these racists spit on my grandparents graves. 2.6 million times. Updated 11:45 am, 10/19: This piece was updated to include quotations from sources and additional reporting by Lloyd Grove. Your reputation is amazing. I will not let you down. Donald Trump, the former reality-show host turned Republican presidential nominee, uttered those very words to Alex Jones during an appearance on the round Texans Infowars program in December. Jonesfor the blissfully uninitiatedis an alt-right conspiracy theorist who believes the United States government was behind the Oklahoma City bombing, the September 11 attacks, and is poisoning our drinking water in order to turn American citizens gay. He is also, by his own admission, a close adviser to candidate Trump. Joness most despicable theory is his belief that the Sandy Hook massacre was staged. On Dec. 14, 2012, Adam Lanza shot and killed 20 young children and six adults at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Sandy Hook is a synthetic completely fake with actors, in my view, manufactured, said Jones on the Jan. 13, 2015, edition of his radio show. I couldnt believe it at first. I knew they had actors there, clearly, but I thought they killed some real kids. And it just shows how bold they are, that they clearly used actors. (There is absolutely no evidence to support this odious claim.) Trumps Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, condemned his disturbing alliance with Jones in an Aug. 25 speech targeting the alt-right, along with an anti-Trump ad released by the Clinton campaign on Oct. 16. Mark Barden, whose 7-year-old son Daniel was murdered in the Sandy Hook shooting, is also appalled by the cozy relationship between Trump and Jones. The Republican presidential nominee of the United States is being advised by a delusional sociopath. It speaks for itself, Barden tells me. What else can you say about that? Its disgusting. The occasion for our chat is Newtown, Kim A. Snyders heartrending documentaryone of the very best of the year, in factthat follows the parents, first responders, and school staff as they deal with the aftermath of that horrific day at Sandy Hook Elementary. Snyders film delicately articulates the concentric circles of impact, as we witness the tragedys toll on this once-idyllic, tight-knit community. Most of the films screen time is devoted to Barden, a loving, sympathetic father and husband by day and a musician by night. Daniel was the youngest of three children he had with his wife, Jackie, and the loss still haunts him. This is almost four years now, so for everyone else its kind of ancient history. But our particular journey through this has not been one of creeping in and out of consciousness, says Barden. Every second of the day I am forced to consider the fact that my sweet little Daniel is gone and hes gone forever, and hes gone because someone shot him to death. Those are the recurring themes that I live with every waking and sleeping moment. Its unrelenting. The couple used to go for long walks around the neighborhood, counting their blessings that they were able to live in such a picturesque place filled with the friendliest of people. In the wake of this unspeakable tragedy, its been the experience of my wife and me that this community has wrapped itself around us with love and support in a way that I didnt even know was possible, he says. Newtowns opening chapters are devoted to testimonials from grieving parents who lost their children in the tragedy, and the effect is devastating. At around 9 a.m. on the morning of Dec. 14, 2012, Lanza, a deeply troubled young man with Aspergers syndrome, shot his mother, Nancy, in the head. He proceeded to take her car and, armed with two semiautomatic pistols, a 12-gauge shotgun, and a Bushmaster XM-15 E2S semiautomatic rifle, drive five miles to Sandy Hook Elementary School. There, he targeted two of the schools first-grade classrooms, killing 14 children in one and six in the other, along with six adults. After firing 154 rounds, Lanza turned the gun on himself. Many of the parents interviewed in Snyders film lay part of the blame on Lanzas parentsin particular his mother, whod not only neglected to seek the proper treatment for her disturbed son, but also encouraged the 20-year-olds gun fetish. Their home was a veritable armory, filled with multiple weapons and thousands of rounds of ammunition. Police even discovered a gun safe in Lanzas bedroom. I definitely hold both parents responsible. They absolutely were partially negligent, says Barden. I think they made some really bad choices and lacked a fundamental understanding of what their child was dealing with, and how to manage that. I think it should be a wake-up call for parents across America to be intimately in touch with their children and more proactive with how they are living their lives. In the wake of the shooting, the Sandy Hook families filed a lawsuit against Remington, the gun manufacturer responsible for the Bushmaster AR-15 rifle, alleging negligent entrustmentor that the gun maker knew of the risks posed by the deadly semiautomatic weapon yet sold them to the private citizens anyway. Just last week, a Connecticut judge dismissed the suit citing the PLCAA, or Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (the families plan to appeal). Theyve also gone toe-to-toe with the National Rifle Association, fighting for common-sense gun-law reformsincluding closing the gun-show loophole and calling for more extensive background checks. The thing to know about the NRA is that the majority of the membership does not agree with what the leadership is doing, or the way theyre doing it, says Barden. Most of the membership of that organization would agree that we can do a better job of modest reforms around firearm ownership. The NRA is not the organization it once was. The organization used to be an honorable hunter-sportsman group that promoted firearm safety, and theyve subsequently morphed into nothing more than a lobby for the gun manufacturing industry with the sole intent of selling more units for the almighty dollar. Its unfortunate that they use fear to increase their profit marginno matter what the cost. He pauses. After a mass shooting, the NRA jumps on it and tries to capitalize on it by selling more unitswhich is despicable. The whole notion of more guns will make us safer is a fallacy every way you look at it, whether philosophically or statistically. Whos the good guy with the gun? Is it an undercover officer? A vigilante? Who knows who that is? If you play it out, it just doesnt work. If you allow yourself to be fed that and act on it, then youre part of the problem. Barden and many of the other Sandy Hook families have also formed Sandy Hook Promise, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to honor all victims of gun violence by turning our tragedy into a moment of transformation by providing programs and practices that protect children from gun violence. Sandy Hook Promise helps to train teachers, students, and parents to know the signs of a troubled person and then take the necessary steps to get that person the help they need before it turns into a tragedy. So far they have trained one million students. I look back to December 13, to the days, the weeks, the months before my sweet little Daniel was murdered, says an emotional Barden, who serves as the advocacy director for Sandy Hook Promise. I think of all the signs and the signals that were offered where somebody who was trained could have intervened and changed that trajectory. I want to be able to do that for other families. In January, Barden introduced President Obama as he unveiled new executive actions to reduce gun violenceincluding improving background checks, providing 200 more ATF agents to help enforce existing gun laws, researching smart gun technology, and investing $500 million in mental-health care. Barden commends Obamas efforts to implement modest, common-sense gun reforms, saying he feels a fatherly kinship with him, while criticizing the intransigent Congress, many of whom seem beholden to the gun lobby. The 2016 election is also a consequential one when it comes to gun laws. On one side you have Hillary Clinton, whos fought for gun control her entire political career, and on the other you have Donald Trump, whos not only aligned himself with a deplorable Sandy Hook truther and been endorsed by the NRA, but also wants to make concealed-carry permits valid nationwide, and believes more gunsnot fewerare the key to reducing gun violence in America. The voters need to look into their hearts and see it for what it is, says Barden. They need to look beyond the fear-mongering and the lies that the gun lobby sells to its constituents with the sole interest of profiting off their misinformation and lack of education on the issue. Americans need to look into their hearts, educate themselves on this issue, and vote accordingly. Its clear that despite their best efforts, Russia has failed to shift the polls in Donald Trumps favor, The Daily Show host Trevor Noah said Tuesday night. So yesterday, Trump turned to his other Eastern European ally for help. Of course, Noah was talking about Melania Trump, who finally sat down for a pair of interviews with CNN and Fox News following a rash of sexual-assault accusations against the Republican nominee. Wondering why it took her 10 days from the release of the 2005 tape in which Trump boasts of grabbing women by the pussy, the host said, from the looks of it, she was using that time to practice her lines. Viewed side-by-side, Melania Trumps interviews on Fox News and CNN sounded remarkably similar. She may not have been plagiarizing Michelle Obama this time, but on the bright side, Noah said, At least shes only plagiarizing herself now. On top of that, she seemed to blame Billy Bush for egging on her husband. So, wait, youre telling me the guy who says hes going to tax China, wall Mexico, and knock the hell out of ISIS, that guy cant handle himself in a conversation with Billy Bush? Noah asked. He got egged on? Yeah, apparently Donald Trump gives in to peer pressure a lot quicker than we realize. With that, he suggested Trump jump into a volcano, saying, Youre only supposed to only do it if you have a mega-big penis and have sex with a lot of supermodels. On Melania Trumps attempt to equate her then-59-year-old husband with a teenage boy, Noah said, I guess I understand that, because if you convert, then 59 is technically only 16 in douche years. But this left Noah with one question: If he does act like a teenage boy, why would we let him be president? Finally, Melania Trump told Anderson Cooper that fighting cyberbullying would be one of her top priorities should she make it to the White House. Thats a smart move by Melania Trump, pledging to fight online bullying, the host said. Because you realize she can probably cut it in half just by taking her husbands phone away. Has she seen Donald Trumps tweets? Noah asked. Melania fighting cyberbullies would be like if Ted Cruzs wife started a campaign to end creepy smiles. With Donald Trump calling on Hillary Clinton to take a drug test before their third debate Wednesday evening, its the perfect time to bring up one of the biggest campaign issues that major news organizations have avoided: His long, deep, and strange involvement with a major cocaine and marijuana trafficker. Trump presents himself as the most ardent law-and-order politician ever. Yet throughout his adult life Trump sought outand worked closely withmore than a score of criminals, including Mafia associates, Russian mob associates, violent felons, con artists, swindlers, and most significant of all, the embezzler and mob associate Joseph Weichselbaum, a thrice-convicted felon. Long ago, when Trump was the big man in Atlantic City, he got his helicopters to bring his high-rollers in and out of town through a company formed by Weichselbaum, to whom he also entrusted maintenance of the Ivana, Trumps personal helicopter. Spy, a satirical magazine that often made fun of Trump, reported that Weichselbaumat that point a twice-convicted felonpersonally piloted the Trumps in that copter. Weichselbaum also had another business: importing drugs from Colombia and shipping them from Bradford Motors, a Miami-area car dealership he partly owned, to Cincinnati. When Weichselbaum got caught, his case was handled in a most unusual way, with both Donald Trump and one of his siblings in starring roles. This relationship between the Republican presidential nominee and a major drug trafficker, revealed in court filings and other public documents, has never been explained by the candidate. Trump should be asked in every venue right up to Election Day for a complete and detailed accounting of this relationship. Trumps loud sniffling through the first two debates prompted all sorts of speculation. His lagging performance at the end of the first debate, when he lost focus and went off on yet another attack on comedian Rosie ODonnell, further fueled that speculation. Former Vermont governor and prominent Democrat Howard Dean suggested that Trump snorted cocaine ahead of the first debate, an especially fraught diagnosis even for a physician. The candidate says that he does not drink or use drugs and never has. I have no evidence to the contrary. Deans rank speculation, and the questions raised on social media about Trumps sniffling in the second debate, might have been the end of the issue except that Trump decided to breathe new life into it. At campaign rallies Trump said that it seemed to him that Clinton was the one on drugs. Trump declared, against the visible evidence, that Clinton was the one exhausted by debating, suggesting this was because the effects of drugs had worn off. Trump is well known for projectingtaking things that apply to himself and saying that they apply to others. His comments about Clinton, who was alert and stood with good posture through both debates, did not help him. But any questions about his personal drug use are small potatoes compared to his long, deep embrace of Weichselbaum. Trump risked his lucrative casino license to demonstrate his unflagging loyalty to a convicted drug trafficker. The unusual relationship between Trump and Weichselbaum deserves at least as much attention as the Republican nominees refusal to make public any of his tax returns or the questions about what was contained in the Democratic nominees tens of thousands of emails that she says were private and that State Department staff deleted. Yet, to use Trumpian language, I alone am raising the issue of his drug-distributor pal. Law enforcement reports long ago identified Weichselbaum as a Mafia associate. At one time he was actively involved in cigarette-boat racing in Miami, a sport that attracted a number of high-level criminals ranging from fellow drug traffickers to corrupt financiers like Charles Keating, the poster boy for the savings-and-loan scandals of quarter century ago, who came in second in a race where Weichselbaum ran third. Trump needed helicopters to fly high-rollers to Atlantic City. The selection of Damin Aviation was odd given that there were better-financed helicopter companies with longer track records. Damin was set up as a lightly financed tax-sheltered operation that benefited from lavish state of New Jersey subsidies. Despite that structure, it soon went bust and reemerged as NimadDamin spelled backward. It went bust again. Through all this Trump stayed with Damin, run by Josephs brother and continuing to him, instead of switching to any of the other helicopter providers. Because Weichselbaum was then a twice-convicted felon, New Jersey gambling regulators eventually insisted he not be involved with providing helicopter services to the Trump casinos. Yet Weichselbaum continued collecting a $100,000 salary (more than $220,000 in todays money) and a company car and driver from Nimad. And Trump kept using the company that paid Weichselbaum even though he was supposedly no longer involved, which technically met the requirements imposed by casino regulators. According to his indictment, Weichselbaums more lucrative business was having drugs delivered to Bradford Motors, the Miami-area car dealership he had an ownership stake in. At one point, he helped load up to 1,500 pounds of drugs at the time into cars that mules drove to the Cincinnati area for distribution in Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee, testimony and his confession established. Trump learned of the indictment shortly after it was filed in October 1985, New Jersey Casino Control Commission records show. At that point Trump should have cut off all connections to Weichselbaum because failing to do so could cost him his casino license. The New Jersey Casino Control Act requires owners to prove by clear and convincing evidence that they do not consort with criminals. The United States Supreme Court upheld this law because a casino license is a privilege, not a right. Instead of abandoning Weichselbaum, Trump did him the first of several favors. Two months after the indictment, Trump rented apartment 32C in the Trump Plaza Apartments on E. 61st St. in Manhattan to the Weichselbaum brothers, according to New Jersey Casino Control Commission records. Trump personally owned the unit. It was an odd arrangement. The brothers were to pay about half the rent in cash and the rest in unspecified helicopter services, which would be hard to establish without a thorough audit, according to those casino regulatory files. Meanwhile, Weichselbaum agreed to plead guilty in Federal District Court in Cincinnati. His Ohio lawyer, Arnold Morelli, asked that sentencing be done either in Miami, where Bradford Motors is located, or Manhattan where the confessed drug trafficker lived. Instead the case somehow ended up in New Jerseyand in not just any courtroom, either. It came before Judge Maryanne Trump Barry, Trumps older sister. After three weeks Judge Barry recused herself, explaining to the chief judge that her husband, Trump casino lawyer John Barry, and she had flown in the helicopters of a confessed drug trafficker. At the time, there was only a signed order reassigning the case, but not explaining the reasons for doing so. Six years passed before Barrys reason for recusalpotentially damaging to the federal judiciaryemerged in a book by investigative reporter Wayne Barrett. Then Trump wrote a letter on Trump Organization stationery pleading for mercy for Weichselbaum. He called him a credit to the community. Trump also described the drug trafficker as conscientious, forthright and diligent, not the sort of language a law-and-order presidential candidate would be expected to apply to a drug trafficker who moved more than 11 pounds of cocaine in one shipment alone and more than three quarters of a ton of marijuana in another. When New Jersey gaming regulators first asked Trump about this letter he denied writing it. When they came back with a copy of the letter, Trump said under oath that his signature was on the page. What else he may have been asked is unknown because the New Jersey Attorney Generals Division of Gaming Enforcements report did not indicate that Trump was asked the obvious questions: What prompted you to write the letter knowing you could lose your casino license over it? What were your business dealings with Weichselbaum beyond helicopter services? Did you invest in the drug deals? Trump has never answered questions about this, including when he called me at my home on April 27 to tell me that unless he liked what I wrote about him he would sue me, something no other candidate for office has ever done in my half century of reporting. Trumps letter worked. Weichselbaum served just 18 months, while the mules who merely drove the drugs got sentences of up to 20 years. When time came for parole, Weichselbaum said he had the required job and a place to live. He told authorities he would be Trumps helicopter guy. Then he moved into Trump Tower. Its more than reasonable, indeed critical, that Trump be pinned down on just what motivated his unusual actions in the Weichselbaum case. He needs to be asked why, as he is now doing with Vladimir Putin, he went out of his way to make sure Weichselbaum knew that in Donald Trump he had a totally loyal ally who would never turn on him. Having a tax cheat in the White House four decades ago and another a heartbeat away was bad enough. Why in the world would we want the ally of a drug trafficker anywhere near the Oval Office? Wednesday evening, debate moderator Chris Wallace will have the opportunity to ask Trump why he stood by this convicted felon, risking his casino empire in the process. Until Trump offers real answers, we have no way of knowing whether he simply displayed the kind of bad judgement he attributes to Clinton or was knowingly involved in Weichselbaums drug business. When Donald Trump loses the presidential election, Republicans and conservatives will start looking for people to blame. That is, if Trump concedes. To the constantly growing list of outrages against common decency and democratic traditions Trump has committed throughout this campaign we can now add sowing mistrust about the legitimacy of our electoral system. Trump is fomenting an hysteria amongst his already fanatical supporters that, when he loses, could lead to civil disorder and even violent insurrection. The Trump campaigns hunt for turncoats has already begun. Among Trumps most die-hard supporters, literally nothing their candidate has done or could do will ever convince them that nominating a racist, dictatorial, misogynistic, conspiratorial, sociopathic, reality television show star for the highest office in the land might have been a bad idea, never mind unpatriotic. No, they will say come November 9, Trumps loss will have been the fault of, in the words of Laura Ingraham, a globalist cabal of Republicans-in-name-only and highfalutin conservative intellectuals who refused to support the nominee. I will hold all these arrogant Never Trump people accountable after they have sabotaged DT, Fox News host Sean Hannity angrily tweeted in August. Lets be clear: Trump backers have no one but themselves to blame for having foisted a mentally unstable man-child with literally no redeeming qualities upon the country. So determined are they to avoid responsibility for this that they have crafted an elaborate theory assigning culpability for Trumps impending defeat not upon the candidate but those who warned he would lose. Considering these conservatives soft spot for Weimar-like stab-in-the-back myths, a more fitting historical analogy for the confrontation were soon to witness amidst the rubble of the GOP is the political state of affairs in postwar Berlin. Like the victorious Allies who worked to rid Germany of National Socialist influence, so too will the GOP need to cleanse itself thoroughly of the cowards, opportunists, and authoritarians who collaborated in the rise of the closest thing this country has ever had to a nationwide fascist movement. Whats needed after Trump loses isnt, as writers more magnanimous than I have proposed, an amnesty wherein everyone simply forgives and forgets, but something closer to de-Nazification, or the lustration of communist officialdom that Central and Eastern European countries carried out after the collapse of the Soviet Union. For as much as the candidate and his supporters like to portray his campaign as a bottom-up movement that successfully seized the reins of power from a resistant cabal of Republican elected officials and conservative elites, the Trump phenomenon was all along aided and abetted by people in positions of influence and responsibility who repeatedly displayed a shocking lack of judgment, moral courage and patriotism. Herewith is a list of those individuals and institutions that made a conscious decision to enable a ludicrously unfit reality television show star in his quest to become leader of the free world, thereby conscripting themselves in what has become a Russian influence operation, and thus taking America to the brink of disaster. Ill always remember where I was when (1) Chris Christie endorsed Trump. Christie was first of the 16 Republican presidential contenders to support the eventual nominee, and his announcement was all the more startling coming from a twice-elected, moderate Republican Governor with solid establishment credentials. Christies endorsement was a decisive moment, opening the floodgates for other Republican elected officials to back Trump. Almost immediately after joining the Trump Trainand in a sign of things to come for others who would hop on itChristie began debasing himself, audibly taking orders from Trump on the campaign trail and allegedly fetching him fast food. Despite the serial humiliations, Christie has remained one of Trumps most servile surrogates, defending the nominees five-year history of challenging President Barack Obamas citizenship with arrant nonsense such as, It wasnt like he was talking about it on a regular basis. In the summer of 2015, Buzzfeeds McKay Coppins reported rumors that Trump was secretly funneling cash to (2) Breitbart.com in exchange for favorable coverage. Today, considering the seamless integration of Breitbart as a quasi-official mouthpiece into the Trump campaign (whose new CEO Steve Bannon was previously chairman of the conservative website), that allegation is moot. Breitbart.com is now the leading voice of the alt right, an innocuous euphemism for the peddlers of white nationalism, xenophobia and conspiracy theory invigorated by Trump. Trump has broken with GOP orthodoxy on a whole host of issues ranging from free trade to entitlement reform to foreign policy. So one would think that, if Trumps threatening violence at the Republican National Convention did not prevail upon party officials to oppose his candidacy, his repudiation of GOP policies would. Yet (3) Reince Priebus and the (4) Republican National Committee he chairs have done nothing to resist Trumps rise. On the contrary, Priebus blocked any attempt to challenge Trump from the floor of the convention and has gone so far as to threaten penalties against those Republican presidential candidates who refuse to endorse Trump. What makes Priebuss betrayal especially egregious is that he was the RNC Chairman who commissioned an autopsy on the partys 2012 electoral loss urging greater Republican engagement with women, youth and minorities. These are precisely the groups most repelled by the man Priebus now embraces, riding on his private jet like a giddy school boy. Decent Republicans should oust Priebus from the party chairmanship; the only job suitable for him is cleaning toilets at Trump Tower. Not long ago, (5) Sean Hannity berated Republicans who failed to meet his absurdly high threshold of conservative ideological purity. Today the Fox News host has become Trumps most sycophantic media supplicant, regularly hosting the candidate for televised town halls that are little more than campaign rallies. Bluto Blutarsky meets Brick Tamland with a little bit of Archie Bunker thrown in. This meathead, overgrown frat boy would have made a fine broadcaster on East German state television circa 1973 so boundless is his ideological flexibility and opportunism. According to Republican operative Dan Senor, (6) Mike Pence once told him that Trump would be unacceptable as the GOP presidential nominee. Fast forward a few months and the Indiana Governor, facing a competitive reelection, accepted Trumps offer to become his running mate. The ostentatiously Christian Pence remains loyal to Trump, whom he describes as this good man, despite Trumps admission (in essence, to Billy Bush and Howard Stern) to being a sexual predator. Many of the Republicans now calling upon Trump to leave the ticket have suggested Pence take his place, as if the vice presidential nominee wasnt tainted by putting a more respectable, professional gloss on what is an explicitly racist and authoritarian political enterprise. When (7) Newt Gingrich assumed the House speakership after the 1994 Republican revolution, he included NATO expansion in his fabled Contract with America. Today, echoing the Kremlin-friendly rhetoric of the Republican nominee, Gingrich shamefully says that Estoniaone of Americas strongest allies in Europe and a NATO member in good standingis a suburb of St. Petersburg and not worth defending from Russian attack, despite our sacred treaty obligation to do so. Gingrichs embrace of Trumpism (and its attendant ideological contortions) has been one of the more remarkable debasements of this election season, proving once and for all that this porcine pseudo-intellectual is not only a moral disgrace but also a complete and utter fraud. When he ran for president in 2008, former New York City Mayor (8) Rudy Giuliani campaigned on an embrace of the Bush Doctrine. Now, he supports a candidate who accuses George W. Bush of not keeping us safe and lying America into war. When the tape of Trump bragging about grabbing womens genitalia became public, Giuliani was one of the few Trump surrogates willing to go on television in his defense. Though his anti-crime policies were often the target of unfair criticism from lefty civil libertarians, Giulianis hysterical defense of the despotic Trump means that no one can reasonably deny his authoritarian instincts, and we should shudder at how Americas Mayor might deploy them were he to receive a cabinet appointment in a Trump administration. Perhaps due to her beauty, serene composure, and ability to translate her fathers half-literate ramblings into semi-coherent policy proposals, (9) Ivanka Trump has remained unscathed by her fathers 16-month effort to ruin the family name. Which is inexplicable, because all that Ivankas involvement in this campaign has revealed is that shes the pretty face of a white nationalist political movement, a truly bizarre place for a University of Pennsylvania-educated, Upper East Side doyenne to wind up. As for her husband, the pathetic and pussy-whipped (10) Jared Kushner, he is equally if not more appalling in his role as the Jewish facade of a campaign steeped in anti-Semitic innuendo. Trumps thuggish sons (11) Donald Jr. and (12) Eric would be hawking flyers for $150 suits on Sixth Avenue had they not been born into massive wealth, and if actual billionaire Mark Cuban is right that the stigma attached to the Trump brand is permanent, the inheritances of the entire Trump brood will be wiped out and theyll be forced to undergo some sort of humiliating, permanent pauperization a la Trading Places. As Republican leaders in the Senate and House, respectively, (13) Mitch McConnell and (14) Paul Ryan could have communicated to their caucuses that non-endorsement in this years presidential race was a viable option. Instead, they behaved as gutless followers, refusing to embrace Trump wholeheartedly but endorsing his candidacy nonetheless. For their trouble, they have had to repeatedly and explicitly condemn Trumps transgressions against decency and common sense, all the while telling voters that this man is equipped to be President of the United States. The trio of Trumpkin CNN talking heads (15) Kayleigh McEnaney, (16) Jeffrey Lord and (17) Corey Lewandowski are the Baghdad Bobs of this election cycle, literally willing to defend any and all of Trumps absurdities. Their motto might as well be the title of the classic 1989 John Cusack film: say anything. No one ever heard of these grasping opportunists before the summer of 2015 and if theyre lucky no one will remember them after this election is over. Like many of the GOP operatives who have glommed onto him, pollster (18) Kellyanne Conway was once a Trump critic, accusing him of building a lot of his business on the backs of the little guy and saying things that arent true. Conway, who made a name for herself as the go-to consultant for GOP candidates trying to appeal to women, now finds herself defending a sexual predator in her role as Trump campaign manager. Throughout the GOP primary, Trump ridiculed (19) Marco Rubio as little Marco. One of the first candidates to really hit hard at Trump on the campaign trail, Rubio rightly called him a con man and an erratic individual who could not be trusted with the nuclear codes. Shortly after dropping out, however, Rubio endorsed the man who just weeks earlier he had warned could bring about nuclear holocaust and said he would be honored to speak on his behalf at the Republican National Convention. Little Marco indeed. His supporters claimed that (20) Ted Cruzs refusal to endorse Trump at the GOP Convention was a characteristic example of his commitment to principle. But Cruzs reputation as a politician who would never sacrifice his sense of integrity has always been undeserved. Since entering the Senate in 2012, Cruz cultivated the very sort of rejectionist, radical right constituency Trump later exploited, and he was chummy with Trump throughout the first six months of the race, hoping to win over the frontrunners base. Its only fitting that Cruz is now manning Trump phone banks trying to convince people to vote for the man who speculated that his father was involved in the JFK assassination. The California-based (21) Claremont Institute bills itself as devoted to Recovering the American Idea, namely, individual liberty, constitutional democracy, and small r republicanism. Which is why its so bizarre that Claremont would emerge as the leading center of intellectual advocacy for Trumpism, an ethno-nationalist, populist creed that scorns the very ideals upon which this country was founded. About 20 Claremonsters people associated with the Institute or its intellectual godfather, the deceased political scientist Harry Jaffasigned a declaration entitled Scholars and Writers for America in favor of Trump. None of the conservative movements constituencies has been so supportive of Trump as evangelical Christians, with the troglodytic triumvirate of (22) Ralph Reed, (23) Tony Perkins (23) and (24) Jerry Falwell Jr leading the flock. These are men so shameless, craven and hypocritical that they expect their endorsements of an admitted sexual predator and perpetual adulterer to be taken seriously after having zealously supported the impeachment of Bill Clinton on account of his sexual ethics. Finally, no list of Trump enablers would be complete without the plurality of (25) Republican primary voters who awarded him their nomination. These people, who would without question surpass Trumps loyalty test by supporting him even if he shot someone on Fifth Avenue, are just as Hillary Clinton described: deplorable. Ridding the GOP of Trumpism and its enablers means more than just a few pink slips. To heal the corrosive damage inflicted upon the body politic by the Trump campaigns normalization of mendacity, rank bigotry and authoritarianism, conservatives must purge these people from polite society and shun them for the rest of their professional lives, much as William F. Buckley Jr. did with the John Birch Society. (Though I agree with George Takei, who writes in this space that those transgressors and offenders who one day come to regret their actions and atone for their mistakes ought be forgiven.) Everyone who played a part in this outrage, from the RNC bigwigs to the Breitbarters on down to the Pepe-the-Frog avatar-wielding Twitter trolls, need to face consequences for their dangerous and disgusting behavior. Let the record show that, when America came as close as its ever come to electing a bona fide authoritarian president, the above individuals collaborated with evil. Hillary Clinton is heading to Vegas, and she has everything to lose. The last debate of the ugliest presidential contest in modern memory will tee off tonight and Clintons latest email scandalcosponsored by WikiLeaks and, quite possibly, the Russianswill be top of mind. Since WikiLeaks first released internal Democratic National Committee communications in July, the Trump campaign has for all practical purposes outsourced its opposition research efforts to Julian Assange. And as a result, everyone with internet access now has an unprecedented view into the inner workings of a notoriously secretive and press-averse campaign. The emailsthe validity of which the campaign wont confirm or denydepict a team consumed by poll numbers, optics, and conference calls. And though Clintons aides have pushed to frame the debate as a chance for Clinton to a finally talk policy, the drip-drip-drip-drip-drip of Assanges email dumps could drown out any high-minded debating about, say, entitlements. After all, who wants to talk about reforming the tax code when hackers just leaked emails of top Hillary aides saying she hates to apologize? Chris Wallace, who will host the debate, last interviewed Hillary Clinton on July 31 of this year, right after WikiLeaks released hacked emails from the DNC that precipitated the resignation of DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz. And he pressed her on whether or not she thought Putin wanted Trump to win. Clinton didnt answer the question, instead of arguing that it certainly looks that way. And thanks to the latest email releases, Putins alleged interference is more interesting than ever. Tonight, Wallace will have more material than ever, not the least of which are the transcripts to three speeches she gave to Goldman Sachs and then tried to keep from being publicized. WikiLeaks released what it says are those transcripts, and they have lots of interesting tidbitsfor instance, her claim that Congress passed the Dodd-Frank financial regulation package in a hurry because it felt like it had to do something, rather than out of pure devotion to the principle of stricter Wall Street regulation. The emails also show one of her long-time allies saying her trouble with apologizing is a pathology, and another top aide suggesting she wouldnt push for anti-bribery legislation on the campaign trail because the issue is REALLY dicey territory for her. Clintons team is betting that the circumstances of the emails release will be more interesting than their actual contents. We expect that Donald Trump is going to have to answer for his refusal to even acknowledge the Russian role in the recent election-related hacks, emailed campaign spokesman Brian Fallon. (While its true that the U.S. intelligence community is confident that the Russians participated in the hacks, those same spies have been notably silent on the issue of how the hacked files made their way into Assanges hands.) At the last debate, he again dodged the issue of the Russians involvement, even though he had already been briefed by U.S. intelligence officials about the state-sponsored nature of the hack. His unwillingness to speak out against this unprecedented interference in our electionscombined with his campaigns and companies many connections to Russiaraise troubling questions about whether he has had advance knowledge of any of these activities. And if his non-stop Twitter feed is any indicator, hell rip Clinton for comments her aides made in the WikiLeaks emails. Those emails, thus far, dont include anything proving Clintons campaign engaged in criminal behavior. We have nothing to do with the hacks and we certainly had nothing to do with the terrible content of the emails. Hillary Clinton and her campaign continue to try and evade responsibility for these emails, along with Benghazi, her private server, and all of the other disasters that she should own once and for all. Despite the steady stream of emails (many of which show Clinton aides and allies making uncharitable comments about each otherfor instance, Podesta saying a Texas Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee was stalking him), Clinton has seized a comfortable lead in the national polls, as well as in most battleground states. The RealClearPolitics average shows her with nearly a seven point lead in polling that includes the two third-party candidates. In other words, Clinton has largely been able to skate on WikiLeaks revelations, despite Assanges best effort to maximize their damage. Meanwhile, Trumpwho dominated campaign coverage for a year and a halfnow complains the national media isnt doing enough to push his preferred narrative on the WikiLeaks emails. He even suggested that one leaked email, where a Politico columnist asked Podesta to fact-check part of a story he was writing, was evidence this is a media-rigged election. Unlike Clinton, Trumps polling numbers have only nosedived for the last two weeks since The Washington Post reported he once bragged about grabbing women by the pussy without their consent. In the last presidential debate, he promised to try to incarcerate Clinton if elected and tried to make an issue out of Bill Clintons past sexual misconduct. He also said he had never sexually assaulted anyonea remark that prompted ten women to publicly accuse him of sexual misconduct. His campaigns circumstances have only grown more dire since then, which means hes likely to feel completely liberated on the debate stage. After all, when youre Donald Trump, how bad can things get? And Assange has given him a host of ways to needle Clinton. For instance, he might point to an email that long-time Clinton ally Neera Tandennow the president of the Center for American Progresssent Sept. 4, 2015 where she said apologies were Clintons Achilles heel. She gets into a rhythm when theres tons of interviews, Tanden continued. But I definitely recommend having her beat up a punching bag (or a staffer but that is unpleasant) before she goes on. She really needs to exorcise the injustice of it all. A few days later, Tanden expressed more frustration at Clintons struggles with saying she was sorry for using a private email address to conduct State Department business. This apology thing has become like a pathology, she wrote in an email to Podesta on Sept. 9. I can only imagine whats happening in the campaign. And apologies werent the only problem area for Clinton that her aides highlighted. In another email, top Clinton advisor Jake Sullivan concedes she isnt great at talking about the issue of bribery. He sent that email on March 1 of this year to Podesta and Center for American Progress president Neera Tanden. In it, he shared a list of a ideas for government reform that really have currency. Second on his list was this: Strengthen bribery laws to ensure that politicians dont change legislation for political donations. He then wrote the number 62, indicating that 62 percent of soft partisan voters the campaign had polled would like the idea. Further down in the email, though, Sullivan suggested that an anti-bribery campaign message would be a strategic error when Bernie Sanders was getting momentum by lambasting Clinton for her ties to Wall Street banks. The second idea is a favorite of mine, as you know, he wrote, but REALLY dicey territory for HRC, right? Sanders used her off-the-record speeches at Goldman Sachs events as a cudgel, arguing she should release the transcripts to prove there was nothing untoward about her interactions with the bank. Clinton and her team studiously refused to release those transcripts, and we never would have known what was in themexcept that just this past weekend, WikiLeaks released them, too. And those transcripts included their fair share of eyebrow-raising commentsincluding the suggestion on Clintons part that more wealthy people should run for office because donors cant manipulate them, and that deep-pocketed donors should push Republicans to be more compromising. Another eye-popping tidbit from the leaked emails is that Chelsea Clinton had serious concerns that a consulting firm helmed by Clinton family allies was trying to profit off its connection to them in ways that could have been ethically suspect. Chelseas concerns generated enough tension that Doug Band, who heads the firm, Teneo, emailed Podesta to call her a spoiled brat kid who hasnt found her way and has a lack of focus in her life. All available polling evidence indicates Clinton is likely to win the presidency in November. So Wednesday night, she could set a high-minded tone for her would-be presidency to an audience of upwards of 80 million Americans. Or Trump, with a major assist from Assange, could use the unprecedented leaks to remind voters why so many of them view her as dishonest and untrustworthy. The audience will be massive, the pressure will be astounding, and the world will be watchingincluding, if he can, the most famous resident of Londons Ecuadorian embassy. Sometimes you cant just plan for the ball. You have to plan for the hangover, too. No matter how 2016 ends, headache will haunt the country for years to come. Lets start with the most obvious but less likely scenario: Donald Trump wins the presidency in perhaps the biggest black swan event in the history of American politics. Whether you think Trumps presidency would be an unfolding disaster of biblical proportions (The Potomac! Its turned to blood!), or the unfolding of a biblical prophecy to save America (The Winning! So. Much. Winning!), or something in between, no one can deny the enormous change it would represent, and the hostility and fear it would likely elicit from various institutions and constituencies, particularly the news media, but also Hollywood, higher education, our NATO allies, unions, left-wing activists and perhaps even Wall Street, the Pentagon and much of the federal bureaucracy. Fortunately, Donald Trump has the Lincolnesque qualities of political subtlety, magnanimity and foresight to quell any such misgivings. Theres no need to dwell on that scenario right now, as Trump seems poised for the worst showing by a GOP nominee since Barry Goldwaters drubbing in 1964. But a Trump defeat may carry quite a wallop as well. Over the last few days, as hes begun to realize that hes self-sabotaged a winnable race, Trump has taken to claiming that any loss will be the result of a rigged election. When his surrogates, including running mate Mike Pence, Rudy Giuliani and Newt Gingrich, insisted Trump was merely complaining about hostile media coverage, Trump ran to Twitter to insist that, no, no, many polling places are rigged too. Trump never misses an opportunity to humiliate those who would try to save him from himself. Trumps strategy makes no sense in terms of cobbling together a winning electoral coalition, but it is a cynically savvy way of locking in market share for what may be his next venture: a media empire designed to fan the flames of cynicism, paranoia and alienation for the populist forces fueling his presidential bid. If that happens, one can expect the feuding on the right to continue well into 2017 and beyond. And even if Trump shows a level of graciousness in defeat that is hard to fathom right now, the hard feelings on the right will endure for a long time to come. All of this has gotten a lot more attention than the equally inevitable headaches a Clinton victory will entail. During the Cold War, the Russians mastered the use of slow-acting poisons to kill victims long after they were stabbed with an umbrella tip. Fittingly, the WikiLeaks emails may act like ricin or anthrax, wreaking havoc on Clintons presidency long after theyre released. In a normal election year with a normal GOP nominee, the WikiLeaks revelations might prove fatal to Clintons candidacy. Instead, it seems almost a sure thing that they will poison Clintons presidency for years to come. The allegations of pay-for-play between her foundation and the State Department, her speeches to Wall Street, the animosity of some of her closest advisers for Catholics: All of these things will have a long half-life. As will her manifest lies about the use of her private server. The populist Sanders-Warren wing of the Democratic Party has been given ample evidence to support their suspicions of Clinton as a conniving and cynical politician. The populist Trump wing of the Republican Party and large swaths of the rest of it is already locked into the belief that Clinton is a singularly nefarious force in our politics. If elected, she will have fulfilled the only mandate that unites large numbers of voters: Shes not Trump. (Nearly a third of her voters say that is the No. 1 reason they are voting for her.) Right now, and for the foreseeable future, America is being torn asunder by populist passions on the left and right that lead people to distrust nearly every major institution in this country. Fortunately, Hillary Clinton has the Lincolnesque qualities of political subtlety, magnanimity and foresight to quell any such misgivings, right? I have learned the hard way not to put my personal life on the Internet. But suffice it to say that, God willing, things should be pretty much back to norm... 2 weeks ago Love old or unusual movies but never know when they're on? Here are several I recommend: THE MAN WITH TWO BRAINS. The great Carl Reiner directed this fabulously daffy comedy about a neurosurgeon (Martin) who ends up with +1 brains. Kathleen Turner really shines in a great comedy role, as does an uncredited Sissy Spacek as the voice of the extra brain. Also, Martin's character has arguably the greatest name in cinema history. Trust me. This is a ridiculous 80s comedy that I heartily recommend! Best line: "Into the mud, Scum Queen!" THE MAN WITH TWO BRAINS (1983). Cinemax, Monday, October 17, 7:10 a.m. THE GOOD EARTH. I saw this film for the very first time in 2010 at the Turner Classic Movies Classic Film Festival in Hollywood. At the screening we had the extraordinary experience of watching Luise Ranier, the 100-year old star of the film, discuss it with TCM's Robert Osborne. The movie, which stars Ranier and the great Paul Muni, is an adaptation of Pearl S. Buck's classic novel of the struggles of a pair of poor Chinese peasants in the early 20th Century. It's a beautiful movie, with tremendous art direction, writing and acting. The locust attack is quite impressive, even by today's special-effects standards. THE GOOD EARTH (1937). Turner Classic Movies, Thursday, October 20, 8:45 a.m. THE SHALLOWS. It's Beauty vs. the Beast in this taught, well-made guilty pleasure. The underrated Blake Lively stars as a comely surfer playing hooky from medical school to visit a beautiful, hidden beach her dead mother loved. The only problem is, there's a monstrous great white shark there to ruin her plans. It's true that the shark does seem a bit more interested in biting things to death than eating them (check the dead whale) but who cares, it's a movie. The scenery and the star are beautiful and director Jaume Collett-Serra keeps ratcheting up the stakes and the tension admirably. This is the best shark movie since "Open Water." THE SHALLOWS (2016). Now available on Amazon Instant Video and Vudu. HIGH-RISE. Not for the faint of heart! This brand-new adaptation of the famous dystopian novel by J.G. Ballard. Tom Hiddleston stars as a young doctor in 1970s Britain who moves into a self-sufficient ultra-modern high-rise apartment building. Designed so the residents would basically never need to leave the premises, the building gradually descends into class warfare between the rich residents of the upper floors and the mere peasants beneath. The strong cast includes Luke Evans, Jeremy Irons, Siena Miller and Elisabeth Moss. The movie is violent, disturbing, and fascinating. HIGH-RISE (2016). Now available on Netflix. Trivia Question #655: Which epic Steven Spielberg film is based on another of J.G. Ballard's books? Answer to Trivia Question #653: "Slum Dog Millionaire" has a plot that hinges on a Three Musketeers trivia question. Bryan native Ray Ivey is a writer and movie fan in Hollywood, Calif. He would love to hear from you at rayivey@ca.rr.com. You can also visit his blog at www.starkravingray.com. I think that's the main message, the main conclusion and observation that I have found while doing this report. Who is responsible? I think of course the ones that are really mainly responsible for implementing and deliniating protected areas are states, because that is what they do. But the ones that are also facilitating the establishment of this kind of protected area are conservation organisations, and donors. I think all of them collectively will have to bear some of the blame, because each of them have roles to play in the establishment of these protected areas. Of course the degree might be different in different cases, but still it's the state that has the obligation to protect the rights of indigenous peoples. "The traditional lands of indigenous peoples are being declared protected for purposes of conservation at a rapidly increasing rate. Current estimates indicate that 50 per cent of protected areas worldwide have been established on lands traditionally occupied and used by indigenous peoples and in some regions this territorial overlap is higher, such as in Central America, where it reaches around 90%. "In this regard, it is important to underline that studies have demonstrated that the territories of indigenous peoples who have been given land rights have been significantly better conserved and protected against deforestation than the adjacent lands." From Statement to the UN General Assembly. The donors and the conservation organisations know very well that there are existing standards that should be implemented by the states. But somehow I don't think they are actively engaged in encouraging and supporting the states to be able to comply with the human rights obligations. What is your message to the funders of such initiatives, and how accountable are they for any wrong-doing at the ground level? Well I think that the ones that are funding these kind of organisations and initiatives have to take responsibility in terms of doing the necessary due diligence in designing and shaping these protected areas, in terms of whether these initiatives are going to involve indigenous peoples. Has their consent been obtained? Were they informed about it? I think that's a basic thing to do. I think that donors should think seriously about these things. They cannot abdicate the responsibility to do proper due diligence. The agencies granting money or investing money in a particular endeavour wouldn't like that money to be used for something that will violate human rights, or that will further even destroy the kind of biodiversity that they are wanting to protect. "The loss of the guardianship of indigenous peoples has often placed their lands under the control of Government authorities who have lacked the capacity and the political will to protect the land effectively. "It is particularly disconcerting that in many countries where indigenous peoples have not been awarded land rights over their traditional territories there are increasing incursions of extractive industries, agribusiness expansion and mega-infrastructure development, even inside protected areas." From Statement to the UN General Assembly. In my report, I asked the donors to ensure that whenever they are giving money that these rights are also being taken care of. They cannot give money away and then when something goes wrong just disown it, or say they have no responsibility for that. I think everybody has a responsibility for the wrong that's happened because of all these initiatives. And I think it's right for all these different players to acknowledge these kinds of things that are happening. Of course they will say that these are things that happened in the past, not really much now, but I don't think so. And the report that you came up with from the Rainforest Foundation UK shows that it's still continuing up to the present. I wouldn't be receiving the complaints, the allegations, if everything is happening in the right way. What is your message to the general public? Do you think that they can trust the vision of conservation that is being promoted? I think that the general public has to be made aware about the reality of the findings in the world today of the areas that are still protected in a better sense, in terms of biodiversity being still vibrant and being protected, in terms of biodiversity being used in a sustainable way. Those areas are overlapping with indigenous peoples' territories. That kind of message has to be made more public, be made more known. In truth the better protected areas are areas where indigenous peoples live. It's because they still continue to practice their traditional systems of protection. Their livelihoods are very much aware of sustainable use of this biodiversity. So the world should know that. "Traditional indigenous territories encompass around 22 per cent of the world's land surface and they coincide with areas that hold 80 per cent of the planet's biodiversity. There is increasing recognition that the ancestral lands of indigenous peoples contain the most intact ecosystems and provide the most effective and sustainable form of conservation." From Statement to the UN General Assembly. The world should see the maps where protected areas being managed by government are destroyed, while protected areas for the management by indigenous peoples are better, the forest is more, the forests are kept in better shape. Even the flora and the fauna in those forests are still there. The public has to know that. Because if that is known, then the direct correlation between respect for human rights and particularly land rights, territorial rights, resource rights, the respect for those rights is correlated directly with the protection of the ecosystem. And I think that is the message that's not being made widely known. I believe that if people really see the evidence, they will know that that is what's really happening. Then there will be a stronger push for the governments to respect human rights, and to decrease the kind of discrimination that they have against indigenous peoples, or the mis-perceptions that they have about indigenous peoples, and support them in their bid to have their land rights respected as well as give them the chance and support to be able to continue doing what they are doing, which is keeping these ecosystems in a better shape. What role do you see for participatory approaches like community mapping? Those activities have really helped a lot in terms of making visible the contribution of indigenous peoples in ecosystem management. Because it's the maps that will show the overlap of indigenous territories with better sustained protected areas. It's the resource inventories that are being made that makes all this visible as well. But more importantly, the participatory mapping processes, the participatory resource inventories, the community based monitoring systems, are the kinds of approaches that should be provided to indigenous peoples so that they will be able to produce the evidence that it's their knowledge system that they are using that allows for this kind of picture to emerge. It's also important, of course, if they have all this data in their hands, then they can also influence the land use plans, even at the government level. We have examples where indigenous peoples map their territories, they did the resource inventories, and on the basis of that they made the plans of how to use the lands in more sustainable ways. "In Honduras, I witnessed that the lack of full recognition, protection and enjoyment of indigenous peoples' rights to ancestral lands and natural resources is a fundamental problem as is impunity for the increasing violence against indigenous peoples. "During my visit, I met with Berta Caceres, an indigenous Lenca activist who was killed four months later (on 3 March 2016) because of her protests against the Agua Zarca dam project, even though she had been awarded precautionary protection measures from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. "I will continue to monitor the investigations into Ms. Caceres' murder and urge the State to hold the perpetrators accountable and break the vicious cycle of impunity." From Statement to the UN General Assembly. They have the plans in terms of integrated approaches like landscape approaches, and then they go to the municipal government and tell them, "These are the plans that we would like you to implement because these are the plans that, these are what we have been doing in the past and this is what has protected our forest, our water sources. "And if you are not going to support this plan, and do the kinds of plans that you do, which came from top down, from the national government down to you, then there's no hope for us to sustain our territories." I think there should be much more support for those kinds of things, because that's the way to ensure participation. That's the way to ensure respect for the rights of indigenous peoples. Those are the ways that will emerge, that will come up with all this data, and information, that proves what they have been saying since time immemorial. Any technology, any approach, that will surface these kinds of contributions, can be used by indigenous peoples collectively to get states to respect their rights better, and conservation organisations to change the ways that they are doing things. What is the role of Rainforest Foundation UK and similar kinds of solidarity organisations in your view? Vicky Tauli-Corpuz: I think RFUK and other similar organisations, I think that your role is really to help document these kinds of realities that are happening on the ground, bringing it widely for the public to know more about. And helping in the advocacy work to both international organisations, to the UN, or to the governments so that they will change the ways that they are acting in relation to parks and conservation initiatives. I think that kind of role is very important. It's something that a lot of indigenous peoples are still learning: how to communicate this more widely; how to write it in a way that's understood by the dominant populations. So I think that's one role that RFUK can play. "Rights-based conservation measures continue to be hampered by the legacy of past violations and by the lack of legal recognition by States of indigenous peoples' rights. Conservation organisations and indigenous organizations could be powerful allies in their mutually shared goals to safeguard biodiversity and protect nature from external threats such as unsustainable resource exploitation. "Protected areas continue to expand, yet threats against them from extractive industry, agribusiness, energy and infrastructure projects are also increasing, and thus the urgency to address effective, collaborative and long-term conservation is of paramount importance. "The escalating incidence of killings of indigenous environmentalists further underlines the urgency that conservationists and indigenous peoples join forces to protect land and biodiversity from external threats." From Statement to the UN General Assembly. The other role is of course for you to work jointly with indigenous peoples in their bid to strengthen their campaigns to get their rights protected and fulfilled, in their bid to be really protected, you know, from being killed. A lot of indigenous activists protecting their lands have been killed in the process. I think that RFUK and others, if you hear of these kinds of things or if you are monitoring that there might be a possibility that this will happen, you can help alert the world about it, so that it might be prevented. In terms of advocacy, you are the ones who can help advocate, at least in terms of areas where indigenous peoples themselves cannot even go. I mean you are working with the Pygmies, and you know how difficult it is for them to even go to the capital. If you can bring them along with you, so that when you do your advocacy work they are also with you, that will be very helpful and that will strengthen the possibilities for them to talk directly with those who are creating these problems for them. What is your vision for indigenous peoples currently negatively affected by conservation? What does sustainable conservation mean to you? Vicky Tauli-Corpuz: I hope they will be brought back to their territories, and I don't think that we should give up on them being in that kind of situation. I think that's so inhuman. There are some human conditions where they are found, in places where they are forced to live because they have been displaced from their territories. It's really unacceptable. My vision is that one day they will be able to be brought back to their own traditional territories that their rights to these lands will finally be recognised, that their identities as indigenous peoples will also be recognised. "While there is increasing evidence that indigenous peoples' traditional lands and territories hold highly preserved ecosystems and biodiversity rates, the important role played by indigenous peoples as environmental guardians still fails to gain due recognition. According to the United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre, in 2014, only less than 5 per cent of protected areas worldwide are governed by indigenous peoples and local communities." From Statement to the UN General Assembly. Then they will be working in equal partnerships with states and conservation organisations, in securing those lands as well as protecting them. That's my dream, for those that have displaced. I hope that there's a possibility for those kinds of things to happen. I hope that the conservation organisations who somehow had a role to play in this will also develop programmes that will eventually bring them back to their own traditional territories and let them assume the livelihoods that they have been doing. Your report is great! What's your hope in terms of how it can provoke change in how the UN system works on conservation issues? Well, the UN system is composed of all different players. The main owners of the UN, of course, are the states. So when we talk of the UN system we are talking about the states, and we talk about what states should be doing in terms of their compliance with international human rights standards and environmental standards as well. So that's one thing. But UN agencies or programmes who have something to do with conservation have to do better as well. For instance, I mentioned something in the report about UNESCO, the World Heritage Commission, where in some instances, it resulted in the same thing, indigenous peoples also are being displaced. So I'm calling on the UNESCO for instance, to also abide by the UN principles, ensuring better participation, respecting the rights, etc. "Under international human rights law, indigenous peoples have the right to self-determination, land rights and to participate in decisions affecting them, such as the establishment and management of protected areas. States should recognise and protect the rights of indigenous peoples to own, develop, control and use their communal lands and to participate in the management and conservation of the associated natural resources." From Statement to the UN General Assembly. I hope the UN bodies, the agencies, the programmes, they will be able to show in practice that they are the leaders of respecting human rights, in promoting sustainable development, or sustainable conservation. Those are the kinds of actions that they need to take. Then, of course, the other players within the UN. I mean the ones working at the national level whether this is UNDP, or the UN country teams. In terms of helping or building the capacities of governments to be able to abide by their obligations, they should not shy away from pushing governments - I mean in terms of preventing governments from evicting indigenous peoples from their territories because these are designated as protected areas. If you are there at the country level and there is such a report that comes out, then it is your responsibility to at least reach out to those who can do something about it. And I think that's just right, because you are the UN, the UN has its own principles, its own values, that it's supposed to be implementing. "Since 2003, IUCN has committed to promote that all protected areas be managed with participation of indigenous representatives in compliance with the rights of indigenous peoples and that mechanisms be established for the restitution of indigenous peoples' traditional lands and territories that were incorporated in protected areas without their free and informed consent. "The majority of the large conservation organisations have adopted specific policies on indigenous peoples' rights, and several have developed specific guidelines on how to implement free, prior and informed consent in their projects. However, these policies have been slow in transferring from paper to practice." From Statement to the UN General Assembly. Unfortunately in some cases it's like they don't know, they don't really do what is needed. Especially at the national level. I think there are many standards existing already, I mentioned that in my report. The problem is the implementation of these standards, and implementation is something that is always faced with a lot of challenges and obstacles. I think that everybody that's engaged in this process should join hands and push themselves, make themselves more sensitive to human rights and human rights based approaches, so that lives of those people whose rights have been violated will improve, they will finally be able to have more dignity, and they will be able to pursue the kind of development or conservation that they themselves want to pursue. Joe Eisen is Research and Policy Coordinator for the Rainforest Foundation UK. The report: Vicky Tauli-Corpuz presented her 'Statement of Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to the UN General Assembly' on 17th October 2016. This article was originally published on Conservation Watch. Proposals to get fracking started in South Africa first surfaced in 2008 when three multinational oil and gas companies asked for permission to prospect in the Karoo. Those applications are still pending and so whilst to date, fracking has not commenced either in the Karoo or elsewhere in the country those companies anxious to get started have not gone away and if current applications are successful, an initial fracking exploratory phase could start in a matter of weeks. While oil and gas companies insist on the prospect of job creation, economic growth and energy sovereignty, concerned communities including farmers, conservationists, and environmental activists warn that arable land and water resources would be rapidly depleted if fracking were to go ahead. Several transnational as well as local companies have registered their interest in prospecting for unconventional gas resources in South Africa but whilst the application to frack the Karoo came to a halt due to a government-initiated strategic assessment that was released earlier this month, there are still sustained efforts to advance with the applications to prospect in large parts of KwaZulu-Natal province, as well as in the Free State and in the Eastern Cape. A joint report by the Academy of Science in collaboration with the Department of Technology concluded there has not been enough research to date to take an informed decision and in addition, scientists have expressed concern that regulatory oversight for potential fracking might also be insufficient. Under existing laws, oil and gas companies have to go through three to four separate environmental impact assessments before they can actually start extracting. However, the initial scoping rights have been granted by South African Petroleum Agency (PASA), which considers fracking a viable option' to obtain gas in principle. President Jacob Zuma is also willing to give fracking a chance stating: "We will find practical opportunities to enhance the economic opportunities the shale gas sector has to present." But even the promised prospect of significant job creation is in doubt following a debate in the recently published Shale Gas report which pointed out the specialist skills set needed for shale gas exploration would be virtually non-existent in the country. The most advanced exploration application proposing to explore a vast stretch in the Eastern Cape from South of Lesotho to Mount Fletcher is currently under review with PASA. Texas-based Rhino Oil & Gas has submitted an environmental impact assessment that might trigger the first exploration phase in a matter of weeks in and around the Matatiele municipality. Local residents are concerned not only that the exploratory boreholes might cause harm, but that future fracking operations would wreak havoc to the agriculture and water supply. Matatiele local municipality has identified "Nature, Agriculture and Tourism" as its "investments of choice". And councillors have argued that fracking would be incompatible with the municipality's agenda, an anti-fracking view that is shared by traditional leaders who fear that grazing land and agriculture would also suffer if fracking were to go ahead. Among Asian Americans, Filipinos have the largest percentage of registered voters supporting the candidacy of Donald Trump for US president, a recent survey shows. Based on the results of the National Asian American Survey released October 5, 27 percent of Filipino-American participants were for Trump, followed by Japanese-Americans (22 percent) and Vietnamese-Americans (20 percent). On the other hand, at 7 percent, Asian Indians have the smallest percentage of registered voters supporting the Republican candidate. Many Filipinos see Trump as an alter-ego of their new president Rodrigo Duterte. Duterte like Trump promised, and still promises, to make the Philippines great again. With powerful conviction he promised his people that he would end crime in six months, would provide great jobs for everyone and would stand up to all the foreign countries that were bringing The Philippines down. The survey also showed 57 percent of Fil-Ams prefer Hillary Clinton, the Democratic candidate, over Trump, while 6 percent would vote for the "other candidate," and 10 percent did not know who to vote or refused to identify their candidate. Trump, a 70-year-old mogul who has portrayed himself as tough on national security, launched his presidential campaign with his vow to build a wall on the US-Mexican border. He also said he would prioritize the deportation of illegal aliens who have committed crimes and who are overstaying in the US. He also once proposed to temporarily ban Muslims from entering the US. Interestingly, the same survey showed a large percentage of Filipinos, or 65 percent, oppose the proposed ban on Muslims. However, the survey also shows Fil-Ams have the largest percentage who oppose giving Blacks equal rights as Whites (22 percent), and largest percentage of opposing entry of Syrian refugees (41 percent). Fil-Am Psychology professor EJR David said it is not surprising that many Filipinos are anti-immigration and anti-People with color. In his August 6 article on Psychology Today titled "A Brief Note on Immigration, Colonial Mentality, and Kapwa," David said this could be chalked up to "colonial mentality." "Colonialism and contemporary oppression has taught us that the United States of America is utopia, that White is right, that West is best, and that Christianization is civilization," he said. David said he found out through research that colonial mentality could also be expressed by a desire to "separate ones self from others who are perceived as inferior." Telephone (landline and cell phone) surveys of 2,238 Asian American and 305 Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (NHPI) adults were conducted between Aug. 10 and Sept. 29, and respondents were offered to complete the survey in English or in one of nine Asian ethnic languages. Given that two-thirds of the Asian American population is immigrantsa figure that reaches four-fifths among Asian American adultsoffering the survey in languages other than English ensures a more representative sample of the Asian American population than typical surveys. A report released by the team on Oct. 5 details results from the initial wave of data collection focuses on 1,694 registered Asian Americans and 261 registered NHPIs. Specific Asian groups included Chinese, Asian Indians, Filipinos, Koreans, Vietnamese, Japanese, Hmong, Cambodians, and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders. Additional results focusing on Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders will be released in the coming weeks. Among other key findings of the survey: Asian American and NHPI registered voters rank the economy, national security, racism, government, and immigration as the most important problems facing the country. Nearly one-quarter (23 percent) of Asian American millennials (between the ages of 18 and 34) state that racism is the most important problem facing the country, and close to three-quarters (72 percent) of all Asian Americans support the government doing more to give blacks equal rights with whites. Asian Americans hold progressive views on many policy issues, including health care, education spending, racial justice, and the treatment of Muslim immigrants. But, they are split on allowing Syrian refugees to enter the U.S. and are conservative on legalizing marijuana. Guest Commentary By Hugh Stephens The news that Canada and China have agreed to begin negotiations toward reaching an extradition treaty has led to a hasty rush to judgment. A number of commentators have been quick to pillory the proposal, citing amongst other concerns: Chinas high rate of executions, lack of due process and transparency in its brutal judicial system, and political motivations behind the current anti-corruption drive. There have also been suggestions that Canadas agreement to start discussions was a quid pro quo for the release of Kevin Garratt. The criticisms of Chinas legal system, while fully justified, miss the essential point, which is that there are a number of good reasons for Canada to try to negotiate an extradition treaty with China. When I say reach an extradition treaty, I mean the right extradition treaty, as was made clear by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau when he stated that Canada has high standards for such treaties and would follow a rigorous process consistent with Canadian values. Canadas most recent extradition treaty (with Italy, replacing an earlier treaty) defines an extraditable offence (it must be a crime in both countries), outlines standards of evidence required, and lists a number of mandatory and discretionary reasons why either party can refuse extradition. One can assume that a treaty with China will contain these conditions, and more. While China does not have an extradition treaty with most western countries, it has one with Australia (not yet ratified by Australia), France, and Spainall countries with a strong rule-of-law tradition (Spain in recent years). Therefore it is not inconceivable that Canada and China can find common ground, although the negotiation will not be easy and could take a number of years. The federal government has assured Canadians that there was no direct connection between the release of Kevin Garratt and its agreement to start discussing a treaty; and there probably wasnt any explicit linkage. The Chinese wanted to get an irritant out of the way before Premier Li Keqiang visited Canada and couldnt lose face by releasing Garratt during Trudeaus visit. The fact that there was constructive dialogue between the two countries at the most senior level no doubt helped resolve the issue. It is most unlikely that the Trudeau government would agree to begin negotiations on a long-term and complex extradition treaty just to secure release on one consular case. Rather, the decision to proceed rests on the need to put legal issues with China on a firm and transparent basis. It has been reported that Chinese agents have entered Canada posing as tourists in an attempt to track down fugitives from President Xi Jinpings anti-corruption campaign, and to persuade them to return to China to face the music. These activities, known as Operation Fox Hunt, are widely known and have taken place in a number of countries besides Canada. While not excusing these actions, which offend Canadian sovereignty, it is worth noting that such activities go back a long way, even before the launch of Xis anti-corruption drive. Notorious smuggler (and briber of Chinese officials) Lai Changxing, who entered Canada in 1999, claimed refugee status and fought extradition to China for 12 years before he was finally repatriated. Lais saga was no doubt a contributing factor to Chinas ill-advised self-help methods of pursuing convicted criminals abroad, but the best way to deal with these matters is to establish a front-door mechanism to replace the current back-door approach. Regular dialogue with Chinese authorities and a legal framework to handle cases like Lais would be a marked improvement over the status quo, and would help put an end to Chinese freelancing. That is the first benefit for Canada. A second would be a means to control the enormous flows of hot money from China to Canada. No one knows for sure how much money is flooding into Canada, but the results are well known in terms of an inflated property market in metro Vancouver and suspicious high rollers at British Columbia casinos. Canada gets its fair share of the illegal outflow of money from China, in part because of weak enforcement of money-laundering regulations and lax enforcement at airports where suitcases of undeclared money have been seized, and then returned to their owners on payment of a nominal fine. In most other countries the funds are confiscated. According to a report in the International Business Times last year, 26 of the top Chinese economic fugitives had sought refuge in Canada. Canada does not need these people. The surest way to stop the flow of hot money and corrupt officials from fleeing to Canada is to put in place an extradition treaty. They will quickly go elsewhere. Just the fact that Canada and China are talking about extradition (and the talks may go on for many years), will act as a significant disincentive. This is a second major benefit for Canada. If Canada is able to conclude an agreement with China on the basis of its current extradition model and the assurances given by the prime minister, it will have helped nudge China closer to international judicial standards, and in the process will have removed a potential bilateral irritant, thus allowing Canada-China relations to move forward in other areas. China is pushing an agreement, in part to help it expand its network of bilateral treaties and tighten the noose on corrupt officials. This gives Canada leverage to get the kind of agreement that will be acceptable to the Canadian public. Here is yet another collateral benefit for Canada. The critics are quick to condemn the Chinese judicial system, and to jump to the conclusion that Canada will become complicit. The best way to deal with China is to engage on the basis of Canadian interests and values and build a network of bilateral, legally-based treaty arrangements that will define the terms of co-operation. That is far better than decrying the Chinese system, but doing nothing about it. Hugh Stephens is a distinguished fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada and an executive fellow at the School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary. Grab a homebrew with these Burlington Makers of Beer The Burlington M.O.B. Makers of Beer meets nearly every month to discuss and sample each other's beers. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Apple is taking a new approach to it's physical presence by redesigning its retail locations into "town squares." But how soon will any changes hit Greenwich Avenue? At a Fortune Most Powerful Women conference in Laguna Niguel, Calif., on Monday, Oct. 17, 2016, Apple's retail chief Angela Ahrendts said the approach is all part of an effort to market retail locations as products themselves and as potential "town squares" in the cities they reside. "The store is now the biggest product we produce and we have five new features [these include iPads, iPhones, Watches, Macbooks and Apple TVs]. Accessories are avenues, and the huge digital screen in each store is the forum," Ahrendts told Fortune. Fortune reports 95 Apple stores will be fully redesigned by the end of the year, the first of which have already taken place in San Francisco and Londoncheck out the gallery for a look inside San Francisco's Apple Union Square location. Associates at Greenwich Avenue's Apple store said they were unaware of any potential redesigns for their store coming soon. A request from Apple on whether Greenwich's store would see a redesign was not immediately returned. Any alterations planned for Greenwich's store may change the name too, as Ahrendts told Fortune Apple is no longer referring to retail locations as "stores." "Apple Greenwich Avenue Square," perhaps? This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate NORWALK Wheels Bus riders and other Norwalk Transit District customers voiced alarm over proposed service cuts during a public hearing at City Hall on Tuesday evening. Barbara Garner said she relies upon Wheels Routes 7 and 8 to get to work, her credit union and shopping. She envisioned life becoming more difficult if the routes are eliminated on weekends, as proposed for Jan. 1. I cant bank, I cant work, and its hard enough to live in Norwalk, Garner said. Im willing to get out here and work to support my family, and you guys are taking away our rides. And youre also taking away bus drivers, who are family people. They have to earn a living also, and you have some awesome drivers. Garner was among about 40 people at the hearing in the Community Room of City Hall. A second hearing is scheduled for Wednesday at 10 a.m. in the Community Room of the South Norwalk Community Center, 98 South Main St. The hearings come as the Transit District puts forward fare hikes and extensive service cuts to close a $3 million deficit that officials say is growing. We chose and we selected the non-productive services with the least amount of impact on our riders, Transit District Executive Director Kimberlee A. Morton said. The Transit District has proposed boosting Wheels fares from $1.50 to $1.75. Rides for seniors and disabled persons would go from 75 cents to 85 cents. Transfers would be eliminated and replaced with a 90-minute pass good throughout the larger system. Riders at the hearing complained more about the cuts than about the fare increases. Josephine Kaye, a Westport resident, noted that the door-to-door service for disabled people is on the cutting block. She said she relies upon the service to get to the Darien YMCA for therapy. People tend to take things for granted, Kaye said. If you know other towns and other places and other cities, youll know what a marvelous job is being done here. Transit District officials trace the growing deficit to rising operational costs and cuts in state aid. State Sen. Toni Boucher, R-Wilton, blamed the latter on lawmakers in Hartford. Im really saddened by the outcome of a lot of budget cuts that didnt have to be, Boucher said. David Levinson, Norwalk Community Colleges president, urged the Transit District not to eliminate the shuttle service that runs between the college and South Norwalk Train Station. A large number of students, faculty and staff rely on the shuttle for (the) daily commute to college and work, Levinson said. Lydia Tucker showed a petition which she said contained the signatures of 541 riders opposed to the various service cuts. The Transit District has put forward alternatives to ease the pain. For example, NCC shuttle riders would be encouraged to use the Wheels Route 11 bus. After two public informational sessions, the district has put forward other alternatives, which were laid out in a summary sheet Tuesday night. In one example, although the Wheels Route 2 service would be eliminated, a new Route 1 service would be introduced with Route 2 destinations. And while Danbury Link trips operated by the Norwalk Transit District would be cut, the Wheels Route 4 service would be extended to Wilton Center, Monday through Friday every 60 minutes. The Casa de Vampiros in Managua, Nicaragua stood in the heart of the second poorest country in Latin America during the reign of the brutal dictator, Anastasio Somoza. Blood was drawn there the blood of poor Nicaraguans. Then the plasma was separated out and sent to the United States. Not for nothing, of course. The recipient paid for the donors plasma. Fifteen dollars was the going fee. Somoza got $10. The donor received $5. That gave a professor of engineering an idea. The professor asked his students to design a pipeline to transport human blood from Nicaragua to the United States. The students began by discussing the optimal diameter for the pipe and methods for keeping the blood from coagulating. But the professor did not allow the discussion to continue for long before he demanded to know why not one of them had objected to the question. This is a class in engineering not ethics, was the answer he was given. Jose Ortega y Gasset would not have been surprised. In 1930 as the Nazis were rising to power in Germany the Spanish philosopher published his The Revolt of the Masses in which he wrote your modern day specialist is a learned ignoramus, which is a very serious matter because in politics, in art, in social usages and in other areas outside his field of expertise he will adopt the attitude of primitive, ignorant man and be capable of serving barbaric causes. Then, as Ortega y Gasset predicted, we had learned ignoramuses serving the causes of Adolph Hitler and Hideki Tojo. Soon it will be Halloween and children will be confronted with fictional monsters of all kinds. But as the years pass they will need to learn to contend with real life monsters. And in order for them to develop the skills to do just that more and more universities around the world are offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in human rights and more and more high schools are challenging their students to address human rights issues. Therefore, to encourage high school students to think about those issues and consider a career in human rights, every year the Kemper Human Rights Education Foundation (khref.org) offers a prize to a student judged to have written the best answer to a human rights question. Last year Michael Tashash, a student at Norwalks Brien McMahon High School, won an award for his essay Black Lives and Rights Matter. This year the prize is $1,000 and the question is: What do you think is the most important human rights issue the next President of the United States will face and what do you think s/he should do about it? Richard M. Kemper, a lieutenant in the United States army, was killed in France during World War II. The Kemper Human Rights Education Foundation is a non-profit organization established in 2008 that seeks to motivate students to contribute to the effort to create a world where everyones human rights are realized. That is the world for which Lieutenant Kemper and others died fighting. You can learn more about the Kemper Human Rights Education Foundation and its human rights essay contest by going to khref.org. Paul Cantor is a resident of Norwalk. This years presidential campaign has been very contentious and many will be happy when the election is over. But there are so many extremely important decisions the voters must make in Hall County, across Nebraska and throughout the country on Nov. 8. Its especially important to residents of Grand Island who will be asked to decide whether the city should be allowed to levy an additional half-cent sales tax in order to pay for infrastructure work. Most of Grand Islands voters also will decide who will be representing them in the Legislature, with the District 35 seat to be filled. We urge anyone who isnt already registered to vote to complete the registration process by the Oct. 28 deadline. With only 10 days left, now is the time to ensure that you can have a voice in this election. If you want registration materials mailed to you, the request must be postmarked by this Friday. You can also register online at www.nebraska.gov/apps-sos-voter-registration/ through 5 p.m. Friday. In-person registration can be taken care of at Hall Countys election office in the Hall County Administration Building at 121 S. Pine St. Voters can register there or update their registration if they have moved from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays through Oct. 28. Early voting is also underway and any registered voter can go to that office to vote until 5 p.m. Nov. 7. Hall County has more than 32,500 registered voters. Election Commissioner Dale Baker expects more than 30 percent of them to cast ballots in this election. Thats a larger percentage than in most elections, but its still discouraging to know that less than one-third of those who are registered will exercise their right to vote. We all tend to complain when we think our elected leaders arent making the right decisions or are just ignoring the needs of their constituents. But the best way for us to speak up is to vote for the people we believe will do the best job in our local, state and federal governments. In Nebraska we have a big advantage in being able to vote in advance of the election. We dont have to be available to vote on Nov. 8. But we do have to make the effort to cast a vote. Now is the time to vote. Lets well surpass our election commissioners expectations. Montgomery County woman gets prison sentence in Bensalem drug death Corrine Smith will spend up to 10 years in prison for providing the drugs that killed a man in Bensalem in 2020. When Philip Alabi, a Nigerian chemistry graduate student and teaching assistant at SIUE, saw how quickly college textbooks became outdated and of little value in the United States, he felt compelled to salvage the textbooks and ship them to his alma mater in Nigeria, Tai Solarin University of Education. Since June, Alabi has accumulated over 900 used textbooks which he plans to ship to Nigeria on Oct. 21. Hes seeking funding support to pay for the shipping costs through an online crowd-funding site, www.generosity.com/education-fundraising/1000-books-for-a-nigerian-university-tasued. Alabi explained that he first realized the difference in the value of a textbook in the U.S. versus at home not long after he arrived at SIUE. When a stack of textbooks remained on a table in front of the chemistry office for a few days after the spring semester, Alabi said he inquired about the books. I had seen the books there for days, and Im like, are these books for sale? he recalled wondering. And I went in and asked one of the professors and he said, 'Oh, you can have any of them. Pick any one you like. They are giving them out.' I think somebody retired from the department. I looked at these books and I said, so they have this much books to give out to just the classmates, maybe they have this much books to give out to somewhere else, Alabi recalled. He explained that access to textbooks in Nigeria is nothing like it is in the U.S. He talked about how students in Nigeria rely primarily on professors notes because there are no subject-specific, current textbooks in Nigeria like what Americans have readily available for their use. He also commented about the extreme expense of textbooks and how he as an undergraduate student struggled to be able to afford purchasing a textbook. Personally, while studying for my undergraduate degree, I experienced difficulties sourcing for and acquiring academic materials. This, no doubt, had a tremendous downside effect on my performance, Alabi said. The fact that American colleges tend to replace textbooks each year with the most current textbook available was also a major difference to textbook use in Alabis home country. He marveled at how in the U.S. Americans consider a textbook published in 2013 or 2014 as old, while in Nigeria a textbook published in 2010 would be considered old. He began a book drive collecting college textbooks from others in his department and then reached out to other departments via email within SIUE. This (book) drive was born out of the need to help more Nigerians get access to relevant information and textbooks that are needed for advancing their careers, education, and lives, Alabi noted. Since Alabi began collecting textbooks in June, hes quickly accumulated over 900 which he stores in his graduate assistant office in the Science Lab West building on campus. His attention turned to raising the necessary funds to ship the books home when he learned that it would cost $840 just for the transportation, via ship, to Ghana, and then an additional fee would be incurred to transfer the books to a bus for transportation to the library of his alma mater, Tai Solarin University of Education, in Nigeria. Alabi created a crowd-funding page on generosity.com with a goal to raise $1,050 which will cover the shipping fee, the bus transportation costs and credit card fees on his crowd-funding page. Any money left over after paying the shipping costs and fees will be donated to similar book projects like Books for Africa or Textbooks for Change. As of Thursday, Alabi had raised 20 percent of his goal, but hes hopeful he can reach the full amount by the end of next week. These books should be shipped on the 21st of October. It takes five weeks to get to Ghana on a ship, Alabi noted. Since embarking on this project, I have learned a lot and have come to understand that love and the desire to help is still a significant part of our society today, Alabi said. My ultimate desire will be to see these books in the hands of a student back home enjoying the read and learning new things from the texts, illustrations and pictures displayed. The lasting social and economic change that comes from more Nigerians knowing better is what I seek to achieve. Visit www.generosity.com/education-fundraising/1000-books-for-a-nigerian-university-tasued to learn more or make a donation. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tangguh Chairil (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, an infantry major in the Army and first son of ex-president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has joined the race for the Jakarta gubernatorial seat. He will face incumbent governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama and the ex-minister of education and culture, Anies Baswedan. Among the candidates, Agus nomination is the most surprising. He had not even been named in opinion polls before he registered for the election. His military background has also generated negative sentiment, with some suggesting his candidacy represents the militarys comeback to social and political affairs, an echo of the past dwifungsi (dual function) doctrine during the New Order era. Agus is not alone. There are other former military men participating in local elections all over the country. In Poso, Central Sulawesi, Marine Corps Lt. Col. Darmin Sigilipu just lost the 2015 regent election. In Merangin, Jambi, Try Herman Efendi has declared his candidacy in the 2018 regent election. In South Sulawesi, Maj. Gen. (ret) Andi Tanribali Lamo and Navy Col. Abdul Rivai Ras have announced their bid for the 2018 gubernatorial election. Concern over a military comeback may have been fueled by some lawmakers, who proposed a revision of Law No. 8/2015 on regional elections, which, if realized, would no longer require candidates from the military or police force to quit before they contest elections. The move faltered as the revision was deemed contradictory to Law No. 34/2004 on the Indonesian Military (TNI). Another reason may have been a statement by TNI commander Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo, who wishes to see soldiers exercise their right to vote someday. Agus candidacy, as well as that of other former military men, will not be narrowly viewed as representation of the militarys return to public service. Like Agus, they have to retire before registering for the contest. Besides, the TNI has declared neutrality in elections. The candidacies of men with military backgrounds shall be perceived in terms of the constraints that the TNI places on their career paths. In Kompas on Aug. 16, Evan A. Laksmana wrote about Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) research on the pattern of TNI officer transfers, which found stagnancy in officer promotions from 2005-2015 and a lack of transparency in the TNIs personnel policy. Indeed, there have been a large number of TNI transfers recently. In August, the TNI transferred 43 generals and in September, 45 more. Most of them were horizontal transfers, where a position was reassigned to another officer of equal rank or a graduate of the same military academy. The problem with these transfers within the TNI stems from the increasing number of military academy graduates, the decreasing number of strategic positions within the TNI in the Reformation era and a longer military career path than in the past. Now, the TNI has 395,500 active personnel, 300,400 of which are from the Army, 65,000 from the Navy and 30,100 from the Air Force. When the government remains unable to fully guarantee soldiers welfare, a personnel-heavy TNI posture is unwarranted. Personnel expenditure has taken the largest share of the defense budget for many years approximately 40-45 percent leaving very little for the greatly required military modernization to achieve the Minimum Essential Force by 2024. Highlighting the clash between personnel and modernization expenditures, recently Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said the government would cut defense equipment purchases and committed the budget to the needs of TNI personnel in border areas. Under the Yudhoyono administration, personnel growth was curbed to zero in order to increase the budget for defense system modernization. The personnel-heavy approach also clashes with the decreasing number of strategic positions within the TNI in the Reformation era, which restricts the TNI from taking social and political offices. The need to accommodate the large number of personnel within the few positions available has led the TNI to adding new military appointments, transferring personnel to agencies that are supposed to be civilian in nature (e.g. Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, State Intelligence Agency [BIN], National Search and Rescue Agency [Basarnas], Maritime Security Coordinating Board [Bakorkamla], State Secretariat), or extending territorial command. Other problems in the TNI personnel policy a lack of institutionalization, professionalism and transparency have a negative impact on TNI organizational unity. In the midst of these organizational constraints, a military career now is not as promising as it used to be. Unsurprisingly, many TNI personnel now look for other career options outside the military domain: local government positions, only now they compete for those positions not under the privilege of dwifungsi. __________________________________ The writer, who lectures at the Department of International Relations at Binus University specializing in international security, obtained a Masters degree in defense studies from the Indonesia Defense University and a Masters degree in intelligence studies from the University of Indonesia. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin James McGrane (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Human deaths caused by infections of superbugs, or drug-resistant bacteria, are increasing. And, the superbugs themselves are a nightmare for medical staff as they are notoriously difficult to treat. Importantly, while the misuse and overuse of antibiotics in human healthcare have stoked fears, another issue not highlighted enough in the conversation on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is whether the way we produce our food and manage our farms contributes to AMR. Put simply, food and farms are alternative routes through which the superbugs spread. Over the past 50 years, food production methods have been intensified in response to population and economic growth. As a result, the use of antimicrobial drugs in agriculture has been steadily increasing. Antimicrobials are undeniably important in treating diseases of farm animals and plants, but their misuse puts us at great risk, as in many cases they are used in healthy animals for promoting animal growth and preventing disease outbreaks. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations estimates that about 60,000 tons of antimicrobials are used in livestock each year. With the growing demand for animal products, global use is projected to rise by 67 percent by 2030 to 106,000 tons. Antibiotics are also being used in aquaculture fish farms and in crop production, leaving residues of these drugs to be found in water, soil and plants (albeit to a lesser degree). As flagged by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon: The spread of antibiotic-resistant infections from live farm animals to meat and people has been documented. This is a major concern. Despite the serious threat posed by AMR, unfortunately, there are insufficient data from countries on the level of antimicrobial use (AMU) and AMR related to animals and their products. Much improved surveillance systems are urgently required to address this deficit before this global threat intensifies. This is where FAO, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) joined forces in a Tripartite partnership that elaborated a Global Action Plan on AMR that can be used as a blueprint for countries to develop their national action plans. During the much applauded 71st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Sept. 21, 2016, global leaders reaffirmed their commitment to developing such national action plans. By mid-2017, governments must already have put in place national strategies for tackling AMR and AMU in their food and agricultural sectors. FAO has pledged to assist countries in fulfilling this goal, and will encourage governments in doing so to adopt a One Health approach that involves public health and veterinary authorities, the food and agriculture sectors, environmental specialists, financial planners, and consumers. Agriculture is one of the key sectors of the Indonesian economy and collaborative actions are indeed crucial. Based on livestock intensification patterns, Indonesia is already among future hotspots for AMR, along with Myanmar, Nigeria, Peru and Vietnam, as noted by veterinary epidemiologist and food safety expert Delia Grace in the Review of Evidence on AMR and Animal Agriculture in Developing Countries, published by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). Also, based on aquaculture growth projections, Indonesia is again a future hotspot, along with Thailand, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India and Chile. This should serve as an early warning for Indonesia to pay attention to AMR in the aquaculture sector too. So, whats on Indonesias checklist? In addressing AMR in food and agriculture, efforts should be focused on four key areas: awareness; evidence; governance; and practices as proposed in the FAO Action Plan on AMR for 2016-2020, and as aligned with the Global Action Plan. This means improving awareness of AMR; building national capacities for surveillance and monitoring of AMR and AMU; strengthening governance related to AMR and AMU; and promoting good practices in food and agricultural systems and the prudent use of antimicrobials. On the farm, prevention is the key, so animals do not get sick and need antibiotics in the first place. Best practices for hygiene, biosecurity and animal health care and husbandry therefore need to be implemented. This includes observing the withdrawal period the time needed for animals to eliminate antibiotics from their bodies after treatment and so avoid residues in meat. Indonesia already has shown a positive trend to limit the low-dose use of antimicrobial drugs to promote the growth of livestock. FAO is currently working in close collaboration with the Agriculture Ministry in the finalization of the AMR Road Map and the National Action Plan for AMR Control. A decree establishing the AMR Control Committee (KPRA) based at the Ministry of Agriculture is also on its way. Once established, the Agriculture Ministry-based KPRA will collaborate on AMR control activities with the KPRA based at the Health Ministry. A Minister of Agriculture Regulation (Permentan) on AMR Control is also being prepared, along with guidelines for monitoring and surveillance for AMR and AMU. Yes, there is still a long way to go. But with strong international cooperation and solid multi-sectoral collaboration at the national level, Indonesia is set to be on the right track in combating superbugs. Indonesian farmers and producers, veterinary professionals and authorities, policymakers, and food consumers are all responsible for curbing the threat. As Jose Graziano da Silva, director-general of FAO, puts it, agriculture must shoulder its share of responsibility []. *** The writer is a veterinarian with extensive experience in managing animal health programs in developing countries. Currently he is the team leader of the FAO Emergency Center for Transboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) Program in Indonesia supporting the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture in the control of zoonotic and emerging infectious diseases. --------------- We are looking for information, opinions, and in-depth analysis from experts or scholars in a variety of fields. We choose articles based on facts or opinions about general news, as well as quality analysis and commentary about Indonesia or international events. Send your piece to community@jakpost.com. For more information click here. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Sri Probo Sudarmo (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Commuting in and out of Jakarta is characterized by packed buses, crowded trains, congestion and pollution. While apartment buildings proliferate, attracting residents with their investment potential, the poor are gradually pushed to the periphery. It leads to a burning question: Who belongs in the city? We tend to forget that Jakarta extends beyond the special capital region (DKI). In developing business centers, we are left with the issue of finding space for housing and other residential needs. It makes us wonder whether or not a director general or deputy minister should coordinate the capital. Jakarta is home to 9.7 million people at night, but 12.7 million people inhabit the city in the daytime according to 2014 data. The disparity of 3 million people can be accounted for by adults who commute to the city by day but reside outside the city with their families. Naturally, the Jakarta workforce resembles a pyramid with the richest few at the top and the impoverished masses at the bottom. Some people reside in Jakarta in luxury houses, apartments, dense villages or on the outskirts of the city, while others reside outside the capital in Bekasi, Tagerang, Depok and Bogor or even in Karawang and Rangkasbitung. If we divide the pyramid by location, most likely the upper middle class can afford to live closer to the center of the city and those who possess less wealth further outside the center of the city. We watch the consequences of this every day, passengers aboard a train or a bus smashed in like canned sardines and immobile automobiles frozen in traffic. We often complain about global inequality. It is said that roughly 67 people control the assets for 1.5 billion people. In terms of inequality, Indonesia remains below the average ASEAN country. While equality is increasing in Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines, Indonesias income gap is widening. The GINI index measurement moved up from 0.35 in 2007 to 0.4 in 2015 according to the Central Statistics Bureau (BPS). In Jakarta inequality is growing. A multitude of evictions have relocated low income residents to housing far from their jobs, severing their social and economic ties and adding to their living costs. The city has become increasingly exclusive. At the end of 2015, World Bank identified the main causes of income gaps as inequality of opportunity, unequal jobs, high wealth concentration and low resilience among the poor. Indonesia has ratified the UN-Habitat Agenda, which states the right of every person to receive adequate nutrition and housing. It implies spatial justice, peoples right to have access to public services and security of tenure, to be affordable to everyone. If this cannot be achieved due to soaring property prices, then the consequence is to stop serving the concentration of capital. It is the governments responsibility to induce growth centers in areas to deliver space for every citizen and regulate the market. There are mechanisms available to the government, including controlling land usage, allocating specially designated areas, housing management through co-ops, assistance for land registration and President Joko Jokowi Widodos kampung deret (village neighborhoods). Many of the evicted settlements occurred before the Law on Water Resources, and its regulations, Government Regulation No. 38/2011, and some occurred before independence. Efforts have been lacking to enlighten citizens on spatial plans or on how to build along rivers. Various rights to register land, including the 1961 Agrarian Law or Government Regulation No. 24/194 on registering land without documents, have not been explained to people in villages. Meanwhile Jokowis agenda Nawacita requires citizens to be knowledgeable as a prerequisite of human development. The late governor Ali Sadikin said in 1977 people that are forced to live in the margins of the city are those who need more attention and to receive the benefits of development. Residents replied, we want to be guided, so that we can do business without the fear of being targeted by the police. Instead of evictions that involve hundreds of police, military personnel, public order officers, costly equipment and clouds of asbestos fiber escaping from roofs during demolitions, why not help people decide on optimal solutions and to resettle peacefully without destroying their assets? There are many groups of volunteers and academics who have been working in villages and have appealed to the governor for participatory approach. This week, Indonesia is attending the Habitat III - UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development in Quito. It is difficult to imagine what ideas will represent Jakarta in this conference, especially in response to the sustainability challenge. A key question that the government needs to answer is: Who belongs in the city? *** The writer, an architect and urban planner, is a member of the Settlement Forum (Forkim). --------------- We are looking for information, opinions, and in-depth analysis from experts or scholars in a variety of fields. We choose articles based on facts or opinions about general news, as well as quality analysis and commentary about Indonesia or international events. Send your piece to community@jakpost.com. For more information click here. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Daniel Murdiyarso Bogor, West Java Wed, October 19, 2016 The ratification of the Paris Agreement by the EU, representing 28 countries, on Oct. 4 marked the surpassing of the 55 percent global emissions threshold for the agreement to enter into force. Having been ratified by 75 countries that account for 58.9 percent of global emissions, the agreement will enter into force on Nov. 4 (30 days after EU submission), just a few days before the 22nd session of the Conference of Parties (COP22) starts on Nov. 7 in Marrakech, Morocco. Although Indonesia is not one of the parties that make the Paris Agreement enter into force, the House of Representatives Commission VII approved its ratification bill on Monday. The House has set Oct. 19 as date for ratifying the agreement. Like in other cases of international treaty ratification, the House only adopts one article stating that Indonesia ratifies the treaty. The process took longer than expected because the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) document was attached to it. Lawmakers needed to be convinced that the intention to reduce national emissions by 29 percent from the business-as-usual level in 2030 will not harm economic development. Now, Indonesian delegates are full of confidence as they head to Marrakech. There are at least four reasons for Indonesia to get excited and work harder. First, ratification will allow Indonesia to sit in the first Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement, known as CMA1. Indonesia can take part in shaping the new treaty that will be implemented in 2020. It is important to set the new tone of the common but differentiated responsibility and respective capacity (CBDR-RC) principle. Second, Indonesia can start interacting in the funding mechanism under the Paris Agreement, including the Green Climate Fund. It is well known that Indonesias bulk work in the NDC is land use. Early action may be pursued to realize the implementation of the long-awaited REDD+ mechanism under the Paris Agreement. Third, being an archipelagic country that is vulnerable to sea level rise, it is also timely to explore adaptation mechanisms under the Paris Agreement, such as joint mitigation and adaptation and legally binding loss and damage. Fourth, Indonesia is to expand coal-fired power generation, which will be the biggest emission factor after land use. Technology transfer under the Paris Agreement has to be tapped and integrated into the domestic development agenda. The main goal of the Paris Agreement is to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping the global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The Paris Agreement pursues efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees. That does not mean that the agreement only deals with climate change mitigation. The Paris Agreement also aims at strengthening the ability of countries to adapt to the impacts of climate change. After two decades of climate negotiations, Paris finally managed to put mitigation and adaptation measures on equal footing. The notion of integrating climate change adaptation and mitigation in the Paris Agreement is very strong. To meet these ambitious goals, a new technology framework and an enhanced capacity building framework will be put in place, supporting action by developing countries and the most vulnerable countries in line with their national objectives. Starting in 2020 the Green Climate Fund will be mobilized to raise US$100 billion per annum. Globally, under the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change high scenario parties have pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 36 billion tons of CO2 equivalent by 2030. The pledge was initiated at COP15 in Copenhagen in 2009, known as the Copenhagen Accord, within which countries were encouraged to state their emission reduction target, base year and date of achievement. After five years of waiting, COP20 in Lima came out with the so-called Intended Nationally Determined Contribution to guide parties to submit their pledge prior to COP21 in Paris, which then transformed into NDC to be submitted prior to Marrakechs COP22 this year. Domestically, Indonesia will have to nurture the submitted pledge. Ratification places responsibility on the entire society. It is the role of the government to address any identified weaknesses and mobilize strength, including by enhancing the capacity to combat land-based emissions, which are by far the largest burden as far as emission reduction is concerned. ___________________________ The writer is a professor at the Department of Geophysics and Meteorology at the Bogor Agriculture University (IPB), principal scientist at the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), member of the Indonesian Academy of Sciences (AIPI) and former national focal point to the UNFCCC. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Julia Suryakusuma (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Donald Trump is precious cant get enough of him! I confess, I have a morbid fascination for the buffoonish, hyper-narcissistic, xenophobic, misogynistic, mentally and emotionally retarded Republican presidential candidate who could have his name included in a sex offender registry. If the unthinkable happened, and he did become the US commander in chief, youd have to add the title Groper in Chief, the epithet Nickolas Kristof, a New York Times columnist had for Trump. Ironically, one of the largest democracies and the self-proclaimed leader of the freeworld is giving a great example of what not to do through its current US presidential election on so many different aspects of political and social life (see excellent piece by Warren Fernandez, Toxic Trump and trumped up foes, The Jakarta Post, Oct 15). The latest scandal Trump scandal emerged on Oct. 7 in the form of a leaked video where Trump made lewd comments about women, bragging that he had assaulted women and that he was entitled to do so. When youre a star, you can do anything [] grab them by the [...]. The video was from 2005, the year he married his third wife, the former Slovenian model Melania Knavs. Newly married and already itching to get into other womens pants? Poor Melania. But then, she must have known of his reputation with women when she married him. In an interview with CNNs Anderson Cooper, she dismissed the lewd language in the video as boy talk. OK, shes the kind of wife who stands her man, as did Hillary when the Monika Lewinsky-Bill Clinton sex scandal broke out. But what about a Trump supporter who wore a T-shirt with the words Trump can grab my, followed by an arrow pointing to her crotch? As Hillary would say, deplorable not to mention degenerate, disgusting and imbecilic too! As could be expected, the controversial video drew a barrage of responses, and more than a dozen women who came out saying that Trump had made unwelcome advances by kissing them and touching them inappropriately. There was condemnation, not just from women activists and leaders but even Trumps erstwhile supporters and 54 fellow GOP members who withdrew their support for Trump. The most meaningful statement against Trump came from Michelle Obama. On Oct. 14, she gave an impassioned, powerful speech in New Hampshire, as part of her campaign to support Hillary Clinton to be the first female president of the US. She pointed out that it was a week of contrasts, as on Oct. 11, they had just celebrated the International Year of the Child at the White House. She claimed the lewd video had shaken her to the core. Imagine, exposing children to language that was painful for adults, let alone kids. Dismissing Trumps language as locker room talk is an insult to decent men who use locker rooms. Further, this was a powerful individual speaking freely and openly about sexually predatory behavior [] bragging about kissing and groping women. Obama rightly pointed out that strong men notably those who are supposed to be role models dont need to put down women to make themselves feel powerful. But while Trumps case is particularly obnoxious, there are in fact many men like him, secretly insecure men who need to belittle women to make themselves feel superior. Even so-called educated, intellectual men display this kind of behavior in subtle or overt ways. The theme for this years International Year of the Girl Child is Girls Progress = Goals Progress: A Global Girl Data Movement. It makes sense: figures from the UN Women tell the true picture. Some fast facts: 700 million women alive today were married before 18 more than one third were married before 15. Its worse for poor girls: They are 2.5 times more likely to marry during childhood. The figure in developing countries is even scarier: one in three girls is married before age 18. This means the futures of 47,700 girls are side-tracked every day. Every day! The detrimental effects of early marriages are widely known: they are more prone to face sexual and physical violence; they are less educated because they are pulled out of school to engage in domestic duties. Due to being poorly educated, they cant advocate for themselves. Pregnancy happens soon after marriage, even when they are not mentally or physically ready. This has an effect on the offspring, and so the cycle continues. According to UN Women, every day over 20,000 girls in developing countries give birth. Thats over 7 million a year. On the other hand, educated girls marry later. With secondary schooling alone, girls are six times less likely to marry than their uneducated sisters. The highest rates of child marriage are in Sub-Saharan Africa, followed by Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and North Africa. How does Indonesia fare? With Islamic conservatism on the rise, its getting even harder to abolish this practice despite the fact that the law stipulates the marrying age for females is 18. This is the reason Indonesia still ranks among the ten countries with the highest number of young brides. UNICEF estimates that in Indonesia each year 50,000 girls under 15 gets married and 340,000 under 18. While women activists in Indonesia consistently place child marriage in their list of practices to eliminate, they face a uphill battle. Last year a court in Jakarta threw out a petition by campaigners to increase the marrying age to 18. Invoking the Quran, conservatives say that if the girls dont get married off, it would make them have sex outside of marriage. Right, resort to empty moralism as usual rather than face the facts. Trumps lewd video was pretty cringe-worthy, but it had the unintended effect of raising awareness about girls and womens rights. Its pretty amazing that the contest for the US presidency is between a misogynist against a defender of girls and womens rights. Its a known fact that improving womens education, health and opportunities is good for society in general. So its a no-brainer right? Its clear who Americans should vote for, and we Indonesians support it! *** The writer is the author of Sex, Power and Nation. --------------- We are looking for information, opinions, and in-depth analysis from experts or scholars in a variety of fields. We choose articles based on facts or opinions about general news, as well as quality analysis and commentary about Indonesia or international events. Send your piece to community@jakpost.com. For more information click here. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. The nations border areas have now moved center stage, with the Villages, Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration Ministry determined to turn them into investment-friendly destinations. The ministry is eager to encourage more investment in the areas close to Indonesias neighbors by developing them into more investment-friendly destinations. Presented by Ministry of Village, Disadvantaged Region, and Transmigration, Republic of Indonesia Indonesia has border areas in 187 sub-districts in 41 districts/municipalities in 13 provinces and there are 10 districts/municipalities that have 92 frontier islands, according to Presidential Regulation No. 78/2005. The development of border areas and frontier islands is important to ward off the encroachment of Indonesias neighbors and protect the nations sovereignty. Indonesia has traditionally embraced two main approaches in the development of underdeveloped border areas: security and wealth distribution. Programs like transmigration to border areas are conducted to prevent expansive occupation by neighboring countries as well as to increase the prosperity of the community living in border areas. "We had a terrible experience with the Sipadan and Ligitan islands case, as the islands were given to Malaysia in 2002. Despite the international court favoring Malaysia due to the British colonial history, the fact that we did not develop it was terrible," the Ministrys Director General for Specific Area Development, Suprayoga Hadi, told The Jakarta Post on Monday in his office. However, as the government tries to cut the budget, the ministry's fund basket continues to get lower. The 2015 revised budget of Rp 9.03 trillion (US$691.16 million) has been lowered to Rp 8.59 trillion in 2016 and according to the latest 2016 budget revision plan, the budget will be cut to Rp 6.51 trillion. "The Rp 2.08 trillion cut is significant and will affect most of the ministry's programs to develop border and underdeveloped areas," he said. President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo, reviewing border post Sei Pancang (Patok 1) Indonesia-Malaysia in Pulau Sebatik, December 16, 2014. The ministry hopes this year budget cut will be compensated with a larger budget in the future as economic conditions improve. However, it is a seemingly daunting task within a two-year time frame. Using corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds, such as what is done in big cities like Jakarta, is not possible. This is because companies are tied to their adjacent operational area. For example, Freeport cannot run a CSR program in Sumatra and Chandra Asri cannot run one in Papua. If CSR funds were used in other areas, locals would be disappointed. "Therefore we need to find a new approach or paradigm for the development of underdeveloped border areas: the 'investment' paradigm," he said. The new investment paradigm aims to make border areas more investment friendly. Suprayoga claims that border areas have their own potential economic resources. Sebatik Island of Nunukan District - a border post between North Kalimantan and Sabah, Malaysia is an example. Many Indonesian palm oil plantation workers from Bugis in South Sulawesi and Banjar in South Kalimantan have brought their families there. "The father works in Malaysia but the family lives there and the children get an education in Sebatik-Nunukan. The father makes a weekly visit, bringing money from Malaysia to feed his family," he said. It is difficult for workers children to access education in Malaysia due to the high tuition fees, therefore they pursue their education at Indonesian schools near to the border. If more and more households follow suit, with children pursuing proper education, the border post will be home to trained human resources in the future. To achieve this objective, the minister can collaborate with the Education and Culture Ministry and Manpower Ministry to open schools or vocational education. When the communities are ready to work, investors can enter by opening more productive investment, such as rubber or palm plantations. Kicking off in early November 2015, the Ministry has released a border area investment potential profile book. In collaboration with Gadjah Mada University, it listed the respective potential sectors of border areas, predominantly agricultural and mineral commodities, available basic investment infrastructure as well as investment opportunities in the border areas located in 41 districts/municipalities across the country. However, inviting investors into border areas will not be such an easy job. The government still needs to provide basic infrastructure such as sanitation, electricity, and communications technology because investors do not want to have to build the area from scratch. Despite being unable to build main roads, as that is the job of the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry, the Ministry of Village could build non-status supporting roads. It also could provide a clean water sanitation facility through a reverse osmosis machine that filters filthy water and converts it into drinkable water, particularly in frontier islands. Electricity is also provided through a solar cell system, and telecommunication needs are provided with mini BTS. After the fulfillment of basic requirements, investors will then look for incentives. Tax holidays, and other non-financial assistance such as import tariff waivers are what investors are looking for. "We saw a good example in Morotai, North Maluku; after it was declared as a special economic zone for tourism, facilities were provided, then investors started to invest there," he said. Morotai Island has an area of 245,000 hectares, four times that of Singapore. It has fishing and tourism potential as numerous historic battles took place there, including World War II skirmishes between the US and Japan. General Douglas MacArthur selected the island as his base, and numerous warplanes, ships and artillery sunk in the Morotai Sea, creating many coral reefs. Giant property developer Jababeka has established PT Morotai Jababeka to develop one of the northernmost islands in Indonesia. The company will further build houses, tourism zones, hotels, a fisheries center, and commercial zones in the area of special economic zone located in the border area of Pulau Morotai District. Foreign investors from countries such as Taiwan have expressed their interest in joining the project with a required total investment of Rp 6.8 trillion. We are currently designing a program for other border areas, maybe not giving them special economic zone status, but at least the facilities for investment will be close to what special economic zone [areas] get, Suprayoga said. Looking into past experiences, the ministry is now looking for a more sustainable way to develop border areas. Other than Morotai, the ministry is also focusing on two more border districts, namely Sabu Raijua in East Nusa Tenggara; and Western Southeast Maluku in Maluku; and also addressed two nonborder underdeveloped districts, namely East Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara, and Sarmi in Papua. Sarmi and East Lombok have agriculture and fisheries potential, while Sabu Raijua has fisheries potential, Pulau Morotai has fisheries and tourism potensial, and Western Southeast Maluku has potential in mining. Western Southeast Maluku, as we know, has oil and gas potential with the Masela block, he said. District residents Nanga Badau, Kapuas Hulu, was waiting for transport under a banner that read We are border citizens, our body and soul for The Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI)". Nangan Badau directly adjacent to the East Sarawak, Malaysia. Photo taken February 16, 2012. The existence of mineral resources increases the interest of the investors to enter an area of potential resources. However, to develop an extractive industry in an underdeveloped area is risky, especially when dealing with public land. Like what happened to Medco groups wood pellet company PT Medcopapua Industri Lestari in Merauke during 2011, the traditional customary community demanded Rp 65 billion compensation for the rent of their customary land, Suprayoga said. It added more costs for the company, and Medco said it could not afford such an amount. With a sudden higher cost of operations along with a decreasing timber price, Medco decided to stop its subsidiarys operations in 2014. In light of this, the minister is trying to initiate a more people-based approach. Building prosperity with a more sustainable model that involving the community. "We designed an agriculture estate for land-dominant areas, adapting plants based on their topology and culture. For the water-dominated areas we designed for aquaculture estate. We are also pushing for secondary industries for making more value added to the potential commodities, as well as further promoting tertiary sectors, therefore the objective is not only for traditional industries but also for tourism and service business," he added. Other than the border areas and frontier islands, as of 2016, 23 border districts are categorized as disadvantaged regions and seven districts that already graduated from their previous status of disadvantaged regions in 2014 still have to be supported despite their 'disadvantaged area' status having been lifted. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Jessicha Valentina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Following a recent BBC report about possible western influence on Chinas Terracotta Army, Emperor Qin Shi Huangs Mausoleum senior archeologist Li Xiuzhen has issued a statement claiming that the report was out of context and had overstated her explanations. A BBC article published on Oct. 12 said archaeologists had discovered that the inspiration of 8,000 life-sized Terracotta warrior figures found in the tomb of the First Emperor near Xiaan, Shaanxi province, China, may have come from Ancient Greece. The article quoted Li's statement, saying, We now think the Terracotta Army, the acrobats and the bronze sculptures found on site were inspired by Greek sculptures and arts. However, China Daily reported that Li had said the BBC report cut down her full comment and ignored her main points. I think the terracotta warriors may be inspired by Western culture, but were uniquely made by the Chinese." She mentioned there were other factors that contributed to the making of the Terracotta Warriors, such as soil, craftsmanship and Chinese traditional funeral culture. The archaeologist also pointed out that she did not share the same idea as Professor Lukas Nickel from the University of Vienna who in the article mentioned, I imagine that a Greek sculptor may have been at the site to train the locals. Li said her opinion was the opposite. "I am an archaeologist, and I value evidence. I've found no Greek names on the backs of terracotta warriors, which supports my idea that there was no Greek artisan training the local sculptors," Li said. (kes) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Anick Jesdanun (Associated Press) New York, United States Wed, October 19, 2016 Google's ambitious new smartphone, the Pixel, doesn't offer a lot that's new. Yet it's still one of the best out there. Google achieves that by pulling together the best features from Apple, Samsung and other phone makers and offering them at prices comparable to iPhones starting at about $650 for the regular, 5-inch model and $770 for the 5.5-inch "XL" edition. Both versions go on sale Thursday through Verizon, Best Buy and Google's online store. I tested the Pixel XL model; the regular version has identical features except for its smaller display and battery still enough for 13 hours of internet use, according to Google. With either, you get an excellent camera and a strong voice assistant that promises to get smarter all without the bloat common with other Android phones. The Pixel isn't quite an iPhone replacement, as Google wants you to believe ; hardware is just part of what makes an iPhone an iPhone. But it might serve up a strong challenge to Samsung, especially as people look for alternatives to the fire-prone Galaxy Note 7 . __________ THE CAMERA The Pixel's image quality is superb though purists may quibble. Colors in some shots look too strong and clean to me, thanks to software processing intended to reduce distortion and improve detail (something all phones do to some extent). But automation pays off in another way: The Pixel will automatically combine successive shots into an animated "GIF" file, offering a fun way to share a toddler's steps or a dog jumping. For video, the Pixel's stabilization technology compensates for shaky hands and other movement, matching what the iPhone and Galaxy phones can do. The Pixel borrows a quick-launch feature from Samsung phones. Just double tap the power button to start the camera, even if the phone is locked. To switch between the front and rear cameras, just double twist the phone like a door knob a feature Motorola, which Google once owned, has long offered. Low-light images taken with the Pixel in three museums aren't as crisp as those from the iPhone 7 and Samsung's Galaxy S7 (which has the same camera as the Note 7). But differences are small, and the Pixel does better than typical smartphones. Where the Pixel falls short is in extreme close-ups, such as shooting a flower petal or a small bug; photos were typically blurry. The Pixel's selfie camera is also inferior, with no front flash or control over the focus. But it's fine in good light and at typical distances for selfies. (Read also: Google Pixel XL benchmarks emerge on the net) __________ THE ASSISTANT Google's voice assistant, simply known as Google Assistant, will seem familiar to those who have used Apple's Siri or Amazon's Alexa features. Google's version goes further in offering daily updates such as weather and news, though plenty of apps already offer similar capabilities through notifications. Google is also better at remembering preferences say, if you prefer temperatures in Celsius and at integrating with its own services, such as Translate and Photos. But Assistant doesn't yet sync with a similar Assistant in Google's Allo chat app and upcoming Home speaker. And it isn't as proactive as the Google Now assistant already built into Android phones. Google Now, for instance, will look through your Gmail account for flight reservations and remind you when to head to the airport. It will analyze your daily commute and warn of delays. Assistant waits for you to ask. Assistant holds up well compared with Siri and Alexa, but for more, swipe from left to right to get the old Google Now back. Google says Assistant will eventually get the Google Now functionality. This Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016, photo taken with Google's Pixel XL smartphone shows a reservoir at New York's Central Park. With Pixel's camera, image quality is superb, though photo purists may quibble. Colors look strong and clean, as though theyve been processed with software.(AP/Anick Jesdanun) __________ OTHER FEATURES If you need help, you can reach Google's customer support and enable screen sharing reminiscent of Amazon's Mayday help feature. And the Pixel will work with Google's upcoming Daydream View virtual-reality headset, much as Samsung phones have Samsung's Gear VR. Long-pressing an app icon brings up a menu of shortcuts, such as getting directions to home or launching the selfie camera. It's similar to the iPhone's 3D Touch. The Pixel also offers "Night Light," a feature that tints your screen amber by filtering out blue light that might keep you up at night. Apple calls it Night Shift. Pixel owners get unlimited storage of photos at original resolution, though that's a little like offering Google search for free. Google Photos already offers unlimited storage at up to 16 megapixels; the Pixel's camera is 12 megapixels. The free offer will make a difference for those who take video in ultra-sharp "4k" resolution, but the default setting is lower, at 1080p, which is already free at Google Photos. (Read also: Google's new lineup of phones and gadgets: A quick glance) __________ WHAT'S MISSING The Pixel will be OK if you spray it with water, but don't drop it in the pool. You also can't expand its storage with a memory card, as you can with the S7 and Note 7 though for $100 more, the Pixel's 32 gigabytes of storage quadruples to 128 gigabytes, and the free online storage should take care of your photos and videos. The battery isn't removable, though that's true for most phones these days. Those looking for a Note 7 replacement will find the Pixel missing a stylus. If you're an iPhone user, you'll have to brace yourself for the switch to Android, which would entail buying new apps and learning new ways to navigate. __________ MAKING THE SWITCH Google tries to make it easy to switch. The phone comes with a transfer cable, and the set-up process walks you through transferring photos, music and video, as long as it's not encrypted (so scratch iTunes video). But apps won't switch over from iPhones; you need to buy them again. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ni Nyoman Wira (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Following its success at the Indonesian Film Appreciation awards, road-drama Salawaku is set to compete and premier globally in the Asian Future category at the 2016 Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) in Japan. Salawaku is also nominated for eight categories at the Indonesian Film Festival (FFI), two of which are Best Film and Best Director. As the directorial debut of Pritagita Arianegara, Salawaku narrates the story of Salawaku (Elko Kastanya), a boy who lives in a small village in Seram Island, Maluku. One day his sister Binaiya (Raihaanun) goes missing and Salawaku escapes from his village to find her. In the middle of his journey, Salawaku meets Jakartan tourist Saras (Karina Salim) and Kawanua (JFlow Matulessy), who later help him search for his sister. Initially, the film was to be released locally before going global. Now, however, Salawaku will only be available for local audiences in early 2017 due to the upcoming activity in Tokyo. The TIFF organizers only gave us two choices in terms of screenings; a world premiere or a film festival, explained producer Ray Zulham. Of course we want to make Indonesia proud, so we chose the world premiere and postponed the local screening schedule. (Read also: Tokyo film festival lineup to include 12 Indonesian films) The cast and crew of 'Salawaku' during a press conference in Jakarta on Tuesday.(JP/Ni Nyoman Wira) While other films usually change their titles when in international competition, Salawaku will stick with its original title. We prefer to use Salawaku, which expresses Indonesia more, said co-producer Michael Mike Julius. We actually created this film to raise awareness of two important factors, said Ray Zulham. The first is about women and the second is about local folklore. Thus, we have told a story about culture in Seram Island that may be unknown to people. Karina perceived her role as a challenge. Saras is straightforward, risk-taking and a tomboy, she said, adding that Salawaku was far from a romance film. My character Saras aborted her own baby and prior to filming, I learned from people who had experienced that. Karina's character, Saras, had an abortion and has trouble forgiving herself for it. She then goes on a trip to Maluku where she meets Salawaku. Filmed in Piru in West Seram regency, Salawaku offers magnificent scenery of Seram Island, including its underwater beauty. It took more than seven hours for the crew to reach the shooting location. The shooting process took 17 days, said Mike. (asw) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Tangerang Tue, October 18 2016 Endangered species are smuggled abroad via Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, using school backpacks, suitcases and childrens toys to fool airport officers, an official said on Monday. The Agriculture Ministrys Quarantine Agency chief, Banun Harpini, said as many as 58 snakes, two turtles and a lizard that were intended to be delivered to Australia, China, Malaysia and the Philippines had been seized by the airports officials from July to October. Among the 58 snakes, there were rattlesnakes, which could endanger flights if they escaped, Banun said as quoted by kompas.com, adding that most of the animals were identified as protected and critically endangered species. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, October 18 2016 Thousands of people wearing green shirts gathered at Ocean Ecopark of the Taman Impian Jaya Ancol amusement park in North Jakarta on Sunday morning to join a running event called Astra Green Run to work toward making a better environment for the city. The organizer of the event, diversified conglomerate Astra International, committed to planting one tree for each person who participated in the event. Astra International head of environment and social responsibility Riza Deliansyah told reporters on Sunday that about 2,500 people joined the event, so 2,500 trees would be planted by the company. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, October 18 2016 Indonesia and Iran discussed the importance of international cooperation in addressing the problem of terrorism during a meeting between top officials here on Monday. Overall, both sides exchanged opinions on how to fight against terrorism and violent groups, Iranian Ambassador to Indonesia Valiollah Mohammadi said following a meeting with Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto as quoted by Antara news agency. Mohammadi said the problem of terrorism, which poses a threat to the region and the world, should be handled jointly between countries. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Jakarta gubernatorial hopeful Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono said producers of Betawi batik needed to be more creative in designing motifs so that they could attract a wider range of customers. While visiting Terogong village in Cilandak, South Jakarta, which is known for its Terogong Betawi batik, on Wednesday, Agus promised to promote the product at the national level and internationally if he is elected Jakarta governor in the Feb. 15, 2017 poll. "I'm grateful to have the opportunity to meet Betawi batik craftswomen. I hope we can promote this batik to make it a nationwide and even worldwide commodity," he said. Agus, who also tried to draw batik with a canting (copper vessel with a spout-like nib) with dozens of craftswomen watching during the visit, said that with more interesting motifs, Betawi batik could become a choice of young people. Besides meeting the batik-makers, Agus also held talks with the villagers. During the talks, Agus promised to bring improvements to the city, including in security, education and prosperity. During the visit, Agus also inaugurated a post of a support team in the village by signing a banner bearing his picture and that of his running mate, Sylviana Murni. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 National Narcotics Agency (BNN) officers have shot dead one of three suspected members of a drug gang allegedly trying to smuggle 100 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine from Aceh Tamiang, Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, to Medan, North Sumatra. BNN personnel said they were forced to shoot dead the alleged trafficker, identified only as JUM, as he had attempted to escape during a raid in front of the Imperium residential complex on Jl. TB Simatupang, Medan, North Sumatra, late on Tuesday. The suspects body is now at the Bhayangkara Police Hospital in Medan. BNN psychotropic unit director Brig. Gen. Anjan Pramuka has confirmed the incident. We arrested the two other syndicate members, he told journalists at the location of the raid. Anjan refused to provide more details on the drug operation, saying only that the BNN would issue a press statement on the arrest on Wednesday. Sources that asked to remain anonymous said the operation, led by Brig. Gen. Eko Daniaanto and Comr. Satria, two investigators from the BNN headquarters in Jakarta, began when the agencys officers were suspicious to see a car moving at high speed from Aceh Tamiang to Sunggal, Medan. The officers chased the car and stopped it across from the Bina Kasih Hospital on Jl. TB Simatupang. One of three passengers in the car, JUM attempted to resist the arrest, prompting the officers to shoot the Aceh Tamiang resident, who died on the spot. The BNN officers then arrested the two other suspected drug traffickers, identified as Abdul Manan, 51, and Irwan, 33, both Aceh Tamiang residents. (ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Araminta Setyawati (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19 2016 The pulp and paper industry is still stagnant this year because economic growth in the largest markets, the US and Japan, has not yet recovered. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has cut its forecast for the world economic growth to 3.1 percent from 3.8 percent at the beginning of this year. According to the IMF forecast, economic growth for the US and Japan is estimated at 2.2 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively. The amount of pulp and paper exports to the US was 12 percent of total exports in 2015 and 11 percent for Japan. The Indonesian pulp and paper industry contributes to the growth of the industry in the national economy. It is still growing, although overshadowed by falling demand due to the increasing role of electronic media and internet technology. The consumption of paper in the world has a growth of 2 to 3 percent per year. The pulp and paper industry still grows every year. The growth in the first half of 2016 is 2.3 percent compared to the first half of 2015. The main driver of growth is the growing market in the paper and printing industry in Indonesia. Note that paper consumption per capita per year in Indonesia is still low, 32.6 kilograms. This number is much lower than other countries paper consumption per capita each year, such as Malaysia with 100 kg and Japan at 242 kg. Paper consumption, especially in ASEAN countries and the US, is a great opportunity for Indonesia to increase paper exports to these countries, considering that Indonesia is currently the ninth largest pulp producer in the world and the sixth largest for paper. The industry has high competitive advantages and has the potential to dominate the world market. Another factor providing a positive climate for the pulp and paper industry is that pulp prices tend to be flat in the world market because demand is relatively weak. This condition has a positive impact on domestic paper mills because the pulp products will not be exported but instead go to the domestic market. The construction of two factories for pulp and paper in South Sumatra and Riau, which will begin production next year, will benefit from this market condition. An important risk factor that threatens the pulp and paper industry is the limited Industrial Plantation Forest (HTI) to supply resources to the industry. Based on data from the Environment and Forestry Ministry, in the first quarter of 2015, HTI land area in Indonesia reached 10.54 million hectares. However, the HTI land currently in use is only 4.9 million ha. The remainder has been converted into various businesses, primarily palm oil plantations. The area of palm oil plantations is estimated at 10 million to 13 million ha. The pulp and paper industry has almost the same size area, but the area of productive land is less than half. Note that the cost of raw materials in the paper industry is up by 60 percent. Failure to keep the ideal amount of productive HTI land has led to an unsustainable raw material supply and an increase in production costs. The impact of forest fires last year led to a reduction of HTI land area. Some permits for land production are still frozen following the forest fire. License suspension and prohibition regulation shutdowns are not only applicable in the areas burned but also throughout the area of operations. Another risk factor is the potential imposition of an anti-dumping policy by export countries. US anti-dumping authorities suspect dumping of uncoated paper made by the Indonesian paper industry. The price of gas is another risk factor. Rising gas prices can affect the cost of production because gas purchase in the industry is the second largest after the cost of raw fiber materials. Production capacity is also important in determining the performance of the pulp and paper industry. Installed capacity of pulp production to date reached 8 million tons. In the next four years, pulp production capacity is expected to increase to 10 million tons. Meanwhile, the paper production capacity would also increase to 17 million tons in 2017. At the end of 2014, the installed capacity of industrial production was about 10 million tons of paper. The larger the installed production capacity is, the larger the resulting production will be as well. This may encourage the fulfillment of domestic demand and increase exports of pulp and paper. Another consideration is the potential for Indonesia to become the largest pulp and paper producer in the world. Indonesia has a number of advantages, such as an abundance of available area and natural resources (SDA). The potential of natural resources will be value-added products that have broad spillovers, especially in creating jobs with a large multiplier effect. _____________ The writer is an economist at Bank Mandiri to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Agnes Anya (The Jakarta Post) Wed, October 19 2016 Amid an alarming rat infestation in the capital, the Jakarta administration is set to establish an incentivized hunting program to prevent outbreaks of diseases caused by rats. The program is called the Rat Eradication Movement, in which residents will be rewarded Rp 20,000 (US$1.50) for each rat they exterminate, said Jakartas Deputy Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat. There are so many rats here. They are dangerous for our health as they can carry diseases, like pestilence, said Djarot at City Hall on Tuesday. With this program, we want to invite residents to help reduce rat infestation in the city. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Gonzalo Solano and Raphael Satter (Associated Press) Quito, Ecuador Wed, October 19, 2016 Ecuador's government acknowledged on Tuesday that it cut off WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's internet access at its embassy in London after the whistleblowing site published a trove of damaging emails from Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. The foreign ministry said that while it stands by its 2012 decision to grant Assange asylum based on legitimate concerns he faces political persecution, it respects other nations' sovereignty and doesn't interfere or support any candidate in foreign elections. "The decision to make this information public is the exclusive responsibility of the WikiLeaks organization," the foreign ministry said in a statement. The recognition of the action comes less than 24 hours after WikiLeaks tweeted that Ecuador had cut off Assange's access to the internet on Saturday after the publication of Clinton's speeches to Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs. In follow-up messages posted Tuesday, the group claimed US Secretary of State John Kerry had personally intervened to ask Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing documents about Clinton. Citing "multiple US sources," WikiLeaks said the request was made on the sidelines of a visit by Kerry and Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa last month to Colombia to show their support for a peace deal with leftist rebels. The State Department denied the allegation and Correa's leftist government said it was acting on its own and not ceding to foreign pressures. The foreign ministry didn't specify the extent of the "temporary restrictions" on Assange, saying only that they wouldn't affect WikiLeaks' ability to carry out its journalistic activities. "While our concerns about Wikileaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down Wikileaks is false," US State Department spokesman John Kirby said in an email. Speaking to reporters later, deputy spokesman Mark Toner said Kerry never even raised the issue or met with Correa during his visit to Colombia. "There just was no meeting," he said. "They didn't discuss any of this stuff." Assange has been holed up at the modest embassy suite at No. 3 Hans Crescent for more than four years after skipping bail to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex crimes allegations, a position which until now hasn't prevented him from continuing to play a pivotal role in exposing state secrets and backroom trade deals. WikiLeaks said unspecified "contingency plans" were in place and the site and its Twitter feed appeared to be working as usual. On Tuesday it released another tranche of emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, suggesting that the group's ability to publish has yet to be compromised. The disclosure was the 11th installation in a series of leaks that have captured the workings of Clinton's inner circle. Those leaks themselves are part of a wider cascade that have embarrassed the Democratic Party and which the American intelligence community has recently described as an attempt by the Russian government to interfere in the US election. Staff at WikiLeaks and the embassy either declined comment or didn't return messages. Assange fled to the Ecuadorean Embassy on June 19, 2012, after a drawn-out and ultimately unsuccessful legal battle to being sent to Sweden, where he remains wanted over an allegation of rape. Ecuador granted him asylum, but British authorities have made clear they would arrest him if he tried to leave. London's Metropolitan Police used to maintain a visible presence outside the building, although officers were nowhere in sight when an AP journalist visited on Tuesday. Assange has carved out a life at Hans Crescent, dining on delivered food, welcoming famous well-wishers and even occasionally addressing the media from the embassy's balcony. On Saturday, former television star Pamela Anderson paid a visit. But evidence of mutual suspicion with his hosts surfaced after BuzzFeed News drew on leaked documents to detail tensions between Assange and Ecuadorean embassy staff. In targeting Clinton, Assange may have run afoul of Correa's own preference for the Democratic candidate and a renewed effort to repair strained relations with Washington. The president recently said that while a Trump victory would energize Latin Americans to reject overhanded US policies in the world much in the way George W. Bush's invasion of Iraq did he personally would like to see Clinton prevail. "For the good of the United States and the world, and for my personal appreciation of her, I'd like to see Hillary win," he told the Moscow-backed RT broadcaster last month. Assange isn't likely to submit to the internet ban quietly. Over the weekend WikiLeaks released three lines of code it described as "pre-commitments," labeling them "John Kerry," ''Ecuador," and "FCO" an apparent reference to Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Pre-commitments are cryptographic functions that can be used to verify the integrity of material released subsequently. Thomas White, a UK-based security researcher and transparency activist, saw the posts as a warning to the named parties that WikiLeaks had ammunition in reserve if Ecuadorean authorities "do not continue to offer him political asylum." ___ Joshua Goodman in Bogota, Colombia, Matt Lee in Washington and Alastair Grant in London contributed to this report. Satter reported from Paris. ___ Online: Raphael Satter can be reached at: http://raphaelsatter.com (**) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Nethy Dharma Somba (The Jakarta Post) Jayapura, Papua Wed, October 19, 2016 The fixed fuel price program in Papua, initiated by President Joko Jokowi Widodo in Dekai, Yakuhimo in Papua on Tuesday is vulnerable to misuse, therefore it needs serious law enforcement to avoid players from taking advantage of the scheme at the expense of the people, an expert says. Initiating the idea is not enough but we need clear rules and serious law enforcement against anyone who misuses the subsidy, Yusak Reba, an expert from state Cenderawasih University said Wednesday. Reba said the fixed price was very low for Papua and West Papua standards, which is Rp 6,450 (49 US cents) per liter for Premium gasoline, Rp 5,150 per liter for diesel and Rp 2,500 for kerosene. The prices of fuel in Papua and West Papua could reach between Rp 50,000 Rp 100,000 per liter. The President has said the government would monitor the implementation, but still, we need clear regulations with punishment. Who will supervise the prices in remote areas? Reba went on. Bintang Mountains Regent Costan Oktemta said he would make a bylaw to support the fixed price scheme. If there is no clear regulation, the cheap fuel will be all bought by someone with a lot of money, who will sell it to people at much higher prices, Costan said. Costan said his administration would determine the ceiling price of Rp 10,000 per liter for Premium and diesel fuel. Currently, the price of Premium is Rp 50,000 because of the limited supply. (evi) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Tangerang Wed, October 19 2016 An Australian man was detained on Monday evening by immigration officers at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, for alleged involvement in a pedophilia case, a top official said on Tuesday. Alif Suaidi, the head of the immigration office at the airport, said the man, identified as BD, was a passenger on an Air Asia flight to Jakarta from Kuala Lumpur. Alif added that BD had been refused entry into the country and had been forced back to Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday. We cooperated with Air Asia to return the Australian man, he said as quoted by tribunnews.com. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19 2016 The National Police have revealed that the majority of police officers caught exacting illegal levies are from the Jakarta Police. As many as 33 officers from the Jakarta Police have been arrested so far, a figure well above the number of officers caught from other regions. Most of the officers were caught allegedly taking money from people arranging drivers licenses. We are now in an open information era. So there is no need to maintain our image [by hiding the report]. We want to improve [our service] and clean up [our institution]. So, there is no need to cover it up, Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Awi Setiono was quoted by kompas.com as saying on Tuesday. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Bekasi Wed, October 19 2016 The Bekasi administration launched 20 bajaj vehicles (three-wheeled taxis) in the Permai Housing on Tuesday morning. Bekasi Mayor Rahmat said the city administration would eventually deploy 120 bajaj vehicles across all districts in Bekasi. We hope the fleet can help transport residents within the housing complex, he said as quoted by tribunnews.com. Rahmat said he was optimistic that the vehicles would be useful for the residents traveling from the housing complex to the main roads. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dylan Amirio (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 A regulation requiring local content for smartphones sold in Indonesia is not stopping domestic sales of Apples new iPhone 7. Many local online sellers and small kiosks are selling iPhone 7s despite Apple not officially being allowed to sell the smartphone in Indonesia because of a rule that requires 20 percent local content both software and hardware in smartphones sold in the country. Advertisements for the iPhone 7, announced to the world on Sept. 7, can be seen on online platforms such as Bukalapak, Tokopedia and MatahariMall. The sellers seem to enable payments through major banks. Third party and secondhand dealers online are selling the iPhone 7 at prices ranging from Rp 11 million to Rp 20 million, while the US pricing for its cheapest, lowest memory iPhone 7, the 32GB model, is set at US$649 (Rp 8.5 million). A majority of the posters on these platforms originate from the Batam and Sumatra areas, with sporadic sellers in Jakarta and Bali as well. Since the nearest official market for the iPhone 7 is Singapore, it is possible that some sellers might have obtained the coveted smartphones from Singaporean stores or related distributors. While the activity itself is technically illegal, online marketplaces are finding it hard to control the constant popping up of iPhone 7s on their sites. Platforms such as Bukalapak have already taken measures to take down illicit listings of the iPhone 7, as requested by the government. Its technically illegal, but we are doing our part to filter posts about it. However, that doesnt necessarily stop sellers from posting the item again under modified descriptions, said Debora Rosaria, Bukalapaks legal manager. Bukalapak is ultimately built on user-generated content, making total control of restrictions difficult due to the free nature of the black market, she said, adding: What can be asked from the users is to let us know if iPhone 7 advertisements are being posted. Apples official Indonesian distributor Erajaya Group declined to comment on the story. The government plans to raise the threshold of both hardware and software local content requirement to 30 percent next year in an industry ministerial regulation on the calculation of local components in cell phones and tablets. The regulation was introduced to ease pressure on the trade balance, which saw surging imports of phones contributing to trade deficits, as an emerging middle-income segment resulted in a demand boom for smartphones. The restrictions also explain why the previous iPhone 6S smartphone and the SIM-card enabled iPad Pro have not entered the Indonesian market as well. However, the Wi-Fi only iPad Pro is currently on sale at Erajayas stores such as iBox. In terms of fulfilling the software aspect of the ministerial regulation, Communications and Information Ministry acting spokesperson Noor Iza said it would be ideal if Apple committed to opening a research and development center for software application development to increase local content in iPhones. As of now, the iPhone 7 has not been cleared to enter the market because it has not fulfilled the ministerial regulation requirements yet, Noor said. Samsung and Lenovo are among smartphone makers that have established local factories to meet the made in Indonesia regulation, as well as Advan, Evercross and Smartfren. Some content made in Indonesia include product boxes, manual books, screws and assembly. Meanwhile, Chinese phone maker OnePlus has exited the country, while Xiamois Redmi Note 3 shut off its 4G feature for official sale in Indonesia to comply with the regulation. Despite the vague legality of iPhone 7 sales, as well as that of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 with the 4G feature, the black market pops up and sells the items below the radar because there is demand for the smartphones. The desires are reflected in 24-year old CIMB Niaga employee Kamadiputra Surianegara, who is intrigued by the phones new jet black color and camera. Its just different and looks cool, he said, referring to the phones new dual-lens camera, which is considered new for Apples standards, and the popular Jet Black color option that has sent Apple fans worldwide into a frenzy of interest. A handful of local buyers have purchased the smartphones through Singapore, the closest place to Indonesias western area that can legally sell the likes of the iPhone 7, which is infamous mostly because of the divisive feature of not having a 3.5-millimeter headphone jack. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 House of Representatives Commission VI head Teguh Juwarno has said the House would secure enough votes to support the operation of state-owned PT Semen Indonesias cement factory in Rembang, Central Java, following a Supreme Court case review decision in favor of the people of Kendeng mountain. The parliament gives its political support to PT Semen Indonesia in Rembang so it can continue its operation there. We support Semen Indonesia and the State-owned Enterprises Ministry to continue the legal process so the factory can operate in accordance with the investment plan, Teguh said in a statement made available on Tuesday. The legal effort, he said, included filing a case review at the Supreme Court. This is important because the investment there has reached 90 percent, he said. The Supreme Court decision has given a negative signal for the investment climate. The cement factory in the Kendeng karst mountain range that spans three regencies in Central Java (Rembang, Pati, and Grobogan) has been met with fierce protest from farmers there including nine women who have cemented their feet in front of the Presidential Palace as a form of protest. The farmers say that agriculture already provides enough money and food for the population and insist that they do not need factory jobs because their fields are fertile. They are also worried the cement factory will drain water from the water-rich karst mountain and dry their agricultural land. (evi) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Marguerite Afra Sapiie (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 House of Representatives has unanimously endorsed a bill on the ratification of the Paris Agreement on climate change to step up the country's commitment in fighting global warming. The endorsement followed a series of discussions, including with the Environment and Forestry Ministry, about key points of the convention before passing it into law. "All political factions have agreed to follow up the deliberations at the House's steering committee and Commission VII, namely to take [the ratification] to the plenary meeting," Commission VII chairman Gus Irawan said during the meeting on Wednesday. The ratification aims to formalize the country's commitment to reducing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, within an international framework reached by the UN in 2015 in an effort to curb global warming. According to Gus, Indonesia already had a set of regulations that could support the implementation of the Paris Agreement, including Law No. 5/1960 on agriculture as well as Law No. 17/2004 that ratified the Kyoto Protocol and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. More than 170 world leaders have signed the deal, but it won't take effect until 55 countries accounting for at least 55 percent of global emissions have ratified or accepted it through their domestic procedures. 28 countries accounting for 39 percent of emissions, including the world's two biggest emitters, the United States and China, have already ratified the deal, Associated Press has reported. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Senior economist Mari Elka Pangestu has said human resources posed a key challenge for Indonesia to develop its digital economy. As the governments ambitious target of achieving US$130 billion in e-commerce transactions in 2020 requires a lot of trained workers, Indonesian start-ups have been facing difficulties in finding adequate amounts of talent, she went on. Even smartphone application-based ojek [motorcycle taxi] Gojek has had to acquire two Indian companies to fulfill their need for programmers," Mari said during a Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) seminar on the digital economy in Jakarta on Monday. The former trade minister said that as Indonesias e-commerce sector got bigger, more people specialized not only in basic coding but also in web security and big data, as well as infrastructure experts, would be needed. We must address our need for talent with specialized skills. Coding skills can be obtained through short vocational training but people who want to get engineering skills must go through longer formal education," Mari said. The government is set to launch an 'e-commerce roadmap' as one of components of its 14th economic package. Thirty one initiatives are being prepared to tackle seven issues in the e-commerce sector, including human resources and education. (ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Agus Dermawan T. (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19 2016 A painting by Ida Bagus Made Widja (Batuan), Dance Performance More than 100 works of art from Keliki and Batuan, two villages in Bali known for their traditional Balinese paintings, are featured in the Keliki Miraculous, Batuan Jocularity exhibition at Hadi Hadiprana Gallery, Jalan Kemang Raya 30, South Jakarta. The exhibition, running until Oct. 23, will showcase 100 unique works from Keliki and 10 paintings from Batuan. Keliki art is known for its remarkably detailed miniature paintings ranging from 5 centimeters to 30 cm. Meanwhile, Batuan art is known for its style, originating in the 1930s, and has emerged as a premier style of Balinese art. While Batuan paintings make us smile, Keliki works make us think. Keliki is the most amazing painting school in Bali and perhaps the country, said Hanifah Komala, a collector, who opened the exhibition. The exhibition is the second Keliki-Batuan exhibition in Jakarta. The first took place in 2008. Indonesian collectors should spend time with these extraordinary paintings. European and American art collectors and investors have been purchasing these painting for decades. French and Spanish investors frequently take home Keliki art, collector and politician Jusuf Wanandi said during the previous exhibition. Realizing the importance of this art, Hadiprana Gallery decided to provide a space for the exhibition. Since the gallery was founded in 1962, then called Prasta Pandawa, Balinese paintings have been part of our collection. So the Keliki and Batuan exhibition is a necessity, said Hendra Hadiprana, the gallery owner, who is also an architect and an interior designer. Paintings from Keliki began with a unique coincidence. Keliki is located in Payangan village, Ubud district, 4 kilometers north of Ubud village. Ketut Sana, a Keliki resident, worked in Ubud, where he was acquainted with artists Gusti Nyoman Sudara Lempad and Wayan Gerudug. Ketut became interested in painting and when he returned to Keliki, he took the torn paper sheets left by Gusti and Wayan, measuring half of his hand span, on which he drew images. Ketuts visual horizon further expanded as he got a job at Dewata art shop in Batuan village, where he discovered Wayan Rajins detailed and intricate paintings, mostly small in size, similar to his initial drawings. Ketut was inspired by Rajins spirit, which encouraged making miniature paintings. Meanwhile, he included Ubud and Batuan styles into his work. Ketut continued to paint and taught Keliki people how to paint, as well. By 1980, hundreds of children were painting. A school was founded and dozens of promising painters enrolled, using pens, brushes and penelak (pointed palm-leaf ribs or bamboo sticks) to smear acrylic paint and water colors on paper. Tempo described Keliki art as created by the hands of gods. Keliki painters can only paint when the sun is out. We need maximum light, which only comes from the sun, said Wayan Nengah, a Keliki painter. Keliki artists can only work until age 40, as they are unable to handle such intricate details thereafter. The Keliki exhibition features work by Wayan Surana, Made Ocen, Ketut Periksa, Wayan Lanus, Made Jongko, Gusti Beseg, Made Sutama, Ketut Pasek, Nyoman Cemeng among others. The exhibition visitors have expressed frustration with the intricacy of the work, the gallery should provide magnifying glasses so we can see the unbelievable details. Paintings from Batuan evoke a different story. In Batuan, Sukawati district, Gianyar regency, since the early 20th century, traditional art has evolved, initially featuring tantrism, fables and mythology. Batuan painters prefer water colors or tempera as their medium. Ida Bagus Made Widja, Ida Bagus Made Togog, Nyoman Ngendon and Ketut Nama are well-known Batuan artists. Their art has been studied and collected by scientists Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson from Princeton University in the US. Part of the collection was auctioned by Christies in Singapore in 2001. Batuan paintings maintain an enticing atmosphere (tenget in Balinese). In the beginning, most of paintings accentuated black and white colors known as sigar mangsi in Balinese. For additional colors, if any, only dark green and brown were applied so the paintings appeared monochromatic. Batuan painters have adopted tourism and rituals in Bali as themes for their paintings, usually presented in a satirical fashion. The sigar mangsi tradition is being abandoned as bright colors are taking its place. Wayan Bendi, Ketut Sadia, Ni Gusti Natih Arimini, Wayan Diana and Made Griyawan are Batuan artists of the 1980s who exhibit these trends. Batuan art keeps us young as the paintings keep us laughing, said a tourist visiting Bali. Photo by Agus Dermawan T to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19 2016 Body language: The Artemis Danza contemporary dance company will perform I Bislacchi - A Tribute to Fellini at the Ciputra Artpreneur theater on Oct. 21. One of the most beloved dance companies in Italy, the Parma-based Artemis Danza will return for a third time to Jakarta with its highly acclaimed production of I Bislacchi A Tribute to Fellini at Ciputra Artpreneur Theater, South Jakarta, for one performance on Oct. 21. Under the leadership of Monica Casadei, the companys acclaimed adaptation of the works of legendary Italian film director Frederico Fellini will be presented as part of a celebration of Italian Language Week, which is themed Italian and Creativity: Brands and Costumes, Fashion and Design, held worldwide from Oct. 17 to 21. The performance will be brought to Jakarta by the Embassy of Italy and the Italian Cultural Institute Jakarta, in collaboration with Ciputra Artpreneur. Artemis Danza represents the theme title and Casadei herself is a fashion designer who created all the costumes inspired by the movies of Fellini, said Italian Cultural Institute Jakarta director Michela Linda Magri at a recent press conference. The dance company is renowned for utilizing the dancers body as an instrument to translate and transform the strong imageries, scenes and characters of Fellinis works to create a visually striking and highly dramatic production. Casadeis choreographic language, which is characterized by vigorous and energetic gestures, will ensure a unique presentation of the fascinating, colorful, fantastical and humorous world of the recipient of honorary Oscar for Lifetime Achievement at the Academy Awards in 1993. I Bislacchi, translated as The Weirds, embodies the odd ball characters that appeared in several films chosen by Casadei, including Fellinis Casanova, La Strada and Ginger e Fred. Casadei initially had a competitive career in rhythmic gymnastics then studied classical ballet and modern dance in Italy, London and Paris, where she moved in the late 1980s. In Paris, choreographers Pierre Doussaint and Isabelle Doubouloz fostered her professional growth. She was also influenced by martial arts training she had received in Paris while attending the Academie dArts Martiaux et dArts Contemporains. She attained 2-dan in Aikido and a teaching certificate at the Academie Autonome dAikido of master Kobayashi Hirokazu. In 1994, Casadei founded the Compagnia Artemis Danza in France and, with the company, she moved back to Italy in 1997. From 1998 to 2007, she was in-residence at the Teatro Due - Teatro Stabile of Parma and Reggio Emilia. She has created more than 30 ballets for Artemis Danza and has also choreographed many theater and opera performances. The company had made its debut in Jakarta in 2011 and returned for the evoking Traviata an adaptation of Giuseppe Verdis La Traviata based on Alexandre Dumas play La Dame aux Camelias last year. The theatrical dance will be accompanied by music from composer and pianist Nino Rota, who received an Academy Award for Best Original Score for The Godfather Part 2. The dance company will bring seven dancers and for the performance will collaborate with local dance students, including the dancers from Indonesia Dance Society founded by Juliana Tanjo. Casadei with her Artemis Danza will present the interpretation of films and interesting characters. It will be an unforgettable show as it combines humor, colors and other aspects into a single performance, she said. Photo Courtesy of Ciputra Artpreneur Theater to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan Wed, October 19, 2016 The Japanese consul general in Medan, North Sumatra, said Tuesday evening that his office had been mandated to give Rp 4 billion a year to help the people of North Sumatra. Consul General Hirofumi Morikawa said during dinner with the press in Medan that the funds would be for used to develop public facilities such as school buildings, clean water facilities and drug rehabilitation centers. This week we will visit Sicanang in Belawan to help people there develop a trash bank, said Morikawa, who has been the consul general in Medan for one and a half years. Morikawa said the liked his job in Medan because the people were friendly and relations between people were harmonious. He also thought that Medan and other cities in North Sumatra had lots of development potential. We will invite Japanese investors to come here to see investment opportunities, he said. (evi) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ayomi Amindoni (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Improving basic infrastructure has become a top priority for the administration of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla in its attempt to boost efficiency in logistics and improve the country's competitiveness. After two years, the Jokowi administration has taken several measures to accelerate infrastructure development, including a sharp increase in government investment in strategic projects and deregulation to simplify licensing procedures that had hampered progress. However, the government has acknowledged that it is not easy to realize this dream, due to a lack of funding. To that end, the government has shifted financing schemes to no longer depend primarily on the state budget, but instead involve domestic and foreign companies in public-private partnerships (PPP). National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) head Bambang Brodjonegoro recently said this was the new scheme for infrastructure funding in the future. "At least the government has already laid the foundation; [the next task is] to get PPP projects going," Bambang said, adding that some current infrastructure projects were already running under the PPP scheme, such as the mega power plant in Batang, Central Java. The government has provided numerous incentives to attract investors, such as viability gap funding, and availability payment. To cut transportation and logistics costs and reduce economic disparity between Java and the rest of the country, the government has set up 101 projects under the theme of connectivity, including projects for 52 toll roads, 17 airports, 13 seaports and 19 railway links. (evi) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Two years of President Joko Jokowi Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla administration has shown positive improvements in the education sector, an education expert said Wednesday. Totok Amin Soefijanto, deputy rector for academic affairs at Paramadina University, said the government had done well in paying more attention to schooling in remote areas. The Jokowi-JK administration has made breakthroughs by giving better access to education in less developed, remote and peripheral areas. Many children in remote areas can now go to school, he told The Jakarta Post, adding that it was in line with the governments nine-point Nawacita vision on developing Indonesia from its borders. The government has also engaged parents in their childrens education by requiring them to accompany their children on their first day at school, thereby strengthening family ties, he said. In terms of teacher professionalism, Totok said, the Jokowi-Kalla administration had taken the initiative to conduct competency assessments and professional development programs for teachers. The Teacher and Lecturer Law stipulates that a professional teacher must have both certification and a bachelors degree. In fact, only about 3 million teachers had either, he said. The government has taken care of this issue and is keeping the learning process going in Indonesian schools. At the same time, the Education Ministry continues to improve teacher professionalism, he explained. Despite the positive side, Totok said many teachers had difficulty building a students character. For instance, a teacher often asks students to be prompt while in fact he often comes late, he said, arguing that teachers who wanted to teach values must practice those values. (win/dan) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ayomi Amindoni (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Having spent two years in office, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has stated that 2016 is the year of national development acceleration, including fast-tracking infrastructure projects, capacity building, and economic deregulation. Since Oct. 20 2014, Jokowi has implemented several reforms in the energy sector as part of efforts to spur growth amid the prolonged global economic slowdown. The growth momentum has been maintained by focusing on three pillars: shifting the economic paradigm from consumption-based to production-based growth; well-targeted subsidies for poverty alleviation; and pushing for more equitable development outside Java. Read also: Jokowi's second year: Visible infrastructure commitment Presidential chief of staff Teten Masduki explained that the government had reallocated Rp 211.3 trillion from fuel subsidies to other productive programs, with the biggest chunk going to infrastructure followed by transportation, agriculture, the maritime sector, education, social services and health. In the field of infrastructure, the government is speeding up the construction of ports, highways and railways to support connectivity, as well as the construction of 35,000 megawatt (MW) power plants to revamp Indonesia's electrification ratio. "After 71 years of independence, Indonesia only has a power capacity of 52 GW [gigawatts]," Teten said. In terms of deregulation, the government has issued 13 economic policy package to create a better business climate, aiming to increase the country's ease of doing business. In terms of human development, Jokowi's administration is boosting vocational training. (ags) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ayomi Amindoni (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Infrastructure acceleration is among the nine key programs (Nawacita) of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla's administration in a bid to increase the country's competitiveness. During the first two years of his presidency, Jokowi increased the infrastructure budget significantly, from Rp 290.3 trillion in 2015 to Rp 317.1 trillion in 2016. It will be further increased to Rp 346.6 trillion next year. "The commitment is visible and the results can already be seen. For example, Terminal 3 at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, as well as the construction of the trans-Sumatra and trans-Java toll roads," Samuel Asset Management economist Lana Soelistianingsih said on Tuesday in Jakarta. Read also: Jokowi's second year: The year of development acceleration Nonetheless, she argued, many of the projects were partial and yet to provide integrated infrastructure to support public transportation and meet citizen's basic rights. According to Lana, this was due to the government's limited fiscal power to invest in the public sector. "However, private participation has been seen in some of the projects," she went on. In 2016, a number of projects that have shown significant development are the Light Rail Transit (LRT), Kalibaru Terminal in Tanjung Priok port, Patimban port, Batang coal-fired power plant in Central Java, Serang-Panimbang Toll Road, airport revitalization and Palapa Ring project. (ags) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 The Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) is carrying out a preliminary investigation into suspected cartel practices committed by telecommunications operators XL Axiata and Indosat Ooredoo, the commissions top official said. We are still collecting information about it. Our focus is to question them about their motive for establishing a joint venture named One Indonesia Synergy, KPPU head Syarkawi Rauf told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday. The KPPU is of the opinion that the joint venture company, which was established to engage in infrastructure development, might be used for possible cartel practices. This is because both companies could work together in determining tariffs, dividing geographical areas for their products and coordinating to restrict the output of their products. The antimonopoly agency is worried about such a situation because XL Axiata and Indosat Ooredoo should be in competition against each other. On Tuesday, KPPU summoned XL Axiata representatives to its headquarters in Jakarta to get more information about the case. Indosat Ooredoo had answered its summons a day before. Both companies have denied the allegations, claiming that the joint venture company is part of their cost efficiency efforts in the development of their 4G LTE network. XL Axiatas corporate communication general manager, Tri Wahyuningsih, claimed One Indonesia Synergy was not yet operational. The company will start its operations in March 2017, she said as quoted by Kompas. Responding to the statement, Syarkawi said: This is why we are telling them now that there is the potential for cartel practices if the joint venture comes to fruition. XL Axiata representatives who came to KPPUs office on Tuesday declined to comment on the matter. (win/ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Local e-commerce company Bukalapak is not worried about Chinese giant Alibabas plan to expand into Indonesia as local players can still compete with foreign ones, the companys co-founder said. Bukalapak co-founder and chief financial officer Muhammad Fajrin Rasyid said that unlike social media, which adopted a general model for their users worldwide, e-commerce business models needed a so-called local touch. This was because customers preferences for goods, methods of payment and logistic systems were different in each country, he went on. "Our customers mainly buy 'local goods' such as sambal [traditional hot relish] and they prefer to use cash on delivery as a method of payment. We must understand things like this," Fajrin said at a Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) seminar on the digital economy in Jakarta on Monday. He further said that some foreign e-commerce companies had fallen victim to their own poor understanding of local customs. Japanese online market Rakuten Belanja Online closed in March while German-backed online delivery service Foodpanda Indonesia was shuttered on Oct. 3. "We are sure our customer to customer [C2C] model is still suitable for Indonesia. We have 1 million sellers and our mobile apps have the highest rate by users compared to other e-commerce companies," Fajrin said. During the event, Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) deputy of investment planning Tamba Parulian Hutapea confirmed that Chinese tech giant Alibaba would enter the Indonesian market soon. The company has bought German e-commerce company Lazada and plans to use the latters resources in Indonesia to make entry into its market. (ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Viriya P. Singgih, Grace D. Amianti and Prima Wirayani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta/Malang, East Java Wed, October 19, 2016 Against the governments expectations, the amount of funds repatriated under the tax amnesty remains low and experts point to the unappealing investment options onshore as the main culprit. As of Tuesday evening, the repatriated funds only stood at Rp 143 trillion (US$11 billion), less than 15 percent of the Rp 1 quadrillion targeted. The figure has remained flat since early this month. The government hopes the amount of repatriated funds will be high, as they are expected to help drive the sluggish domestic economy, which in 2015 expanded at its slowest pace in the past six years. President Joko Jokowi Widodo has even appeared in a television commercial, urging wealthy Indonesians to help build the country. However, the government needs more than just nationalism to lure tax amnesty funds back into the country. In the view of a Bahana TCW fund manager, big taxpayers are more comfortable investing in physical items that they can actually see, such as property. Bahana TCW chief economist and investor relations director Budi Hikmat said during his visit to Singapore, he observed that wealthy Indonesians preferred to invest in property or to have their assets managed by family offices or conglomerates. [Talks on] mutual funds dont resonate with them, he said recently. The Tax Amnesty Law allows repatriated assets to be invested onshore either in the financial or real sector through several investment mechanisms such as government and corporate bonds, mutual funds, stocks, gold and property for a minimum of three years. The latest data from the Directorate General of Taxation shows that a majority of the repatriated funds came from cash and cash equivalents, reaching almost 70 percent. Only 16 percent of the repatriated funds came from investment or securities, reflecting the reluctance of taxpayers to let go of their securities investments. Moreover, participants of the first phase and the second phase which will end in December have until year-end to bring home the funds, resulting in the slow progress. It seems many of them dont know where to invest yet, Bahana TCW president director Edward P. Lubis said. The lack of US dollar-denominated instruments hinders the repatriation as well, a fact acknowledged by bankers. According to them, a major reason why few funds are being repatriated is because the country lacks attractive investment products in banks and the overall financial industry, particularly US dollar-based instruments. HSBC Indonesia managing director and global markets head Ali Setiawan said the program should have been complemented by US dollar-based instruments since all of the incoming assets would be in US dollars. There are only a few foreign currency-based instruments available to absorb the funds, namely regular US dollar time deposits in banks. US dollar mutual funds and corporate bonds are exceedingly rare and they are plain vanilla compared to the investment instruments that taxpayers use overseas that have sophisticated structures and higher yields. Ali said he doubted big taxpayers would be interested in directly investing in infrastructure projects, like those offered by the State-Owned Enterprises Ministry, because the government did not offer clear yield calculations to compensate this type of high-risk and long-term investment. However, despite the slow progress, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati is upbeat that the repatriated fund target is still feasible. The government is currently revising eight regulations to further ease investors, including the facilitation of non-cash asset repatriation such as in a global bond. The repatriation can be carried out in phases as well and the three-year lockup period will only begin after the assets enter the countrys financial system. Investors will also be allowed to channel their investments as capital within a limited liability and the use of capital will be adjusted to a companys own policy. _________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Liza Yosephine (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has passed a resolution on the formation of the Contact Group on Peace and Conflict Resolution (CG-PCR), originally proposed by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo. "The CG-PCR should be used as a forum to share experiences, strategies and knowledge in the search of common solutions on challenges faced by the Muslim people," Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said at the OIC ministerial meeting in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, according to a statement from the ministry received on Wednesday. Initiated by Jokowi in 2015, the CG-PCR aims to serve as a forum for OIC member countries to share experiences and strategies on a wide range of political and security matters in the Islamic world, as well as to provide input for a solution that is both functional and action-oriented, the statement said. The consultative forum would be a platform to draw up joint strategies to face problems such as radicalism, extremism and terrorism that could emerge in the context of both intra-state and inter-state conditions. The OIC member countries, along with the organization's secretariat are expected to further discuss the modalities and format of the CG-PCR meeting to ensure that these forums are focused and are member-state driven. The 43rd session of the Council of Foreign Ministers in Tashkent also passed 114 additional resolutions related to issues of common concern, including conflicts across several OIC member countries such as in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia and Yemen, the statement further said. (ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Liza Yosephine (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has praised Indonesia's commitment to supporting the peace process and independence of Palestine during the 43rd session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. "[OIC secretary general] Iyad Madani has emphasized that the implementation of the 5th OIC Extraordinary Summit on Palestine Al Quds Al Sharif in Jakarta, in March 2016, was a breakthrough that had recalled the importance of the settlement of conflicts in the Middle East as a whole," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday, in a response to comments made by the OIC leader. Madani conveyed appreciation to President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration for its support of the worlds efforts to achieve peace in Palestine. His praise was echoed by the foreign ministers of Palestine and Kuwait. Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi is currently attending the annual meeting, along with 23 other foreign ministers, where the theme this year takes focus of education. Uzbekistan's interim President Shavkat Mirziyoyev noted the importance of the theme, pointing out its relevance in addressing the challenges faced by the Muslim world today, with education as an entry point to support the peace process by bolstering innovation and creativity. Madani stressed the importance for OIC to take a role in developing cooperation initiatives among member countries in the field of education, as well as ensuring peaceful conditions to avoid a repeat of various conflicts. (ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Kelvin Chan (Associated Press) Hong Kong Wed, October 19, 2016 Tensions flared at Hong Kong's legislature Wednesday as pro-Beijing lawmakers prevented a pair of newly elected representatives advocating independence for the Chinese region from getting a second chance at taking their oaths. Sixtus Leung and Yau Wai-ching of the radical activist Youngspiration party were among five lawmakers expected to redo their swearing-in so they can take office. They were part of a new wave of activist candidates who were elected last month amid a rising tide of anti-China sentiment in semiautonomous Hong kong. However, after two others recited their oaths properly, the pro-Beijing lawmakers staged a walkout, depriving the chamber of the quorum needed to continue. They blasted Leung and Yau apologize for being disrespectful and insulting China and demanded they apologize. The council's president adjourned the meeting after 15 minutes because there were not enough members to continue. At the legislature's opening session a week ago, the duo and two other pro-democracy lawmakers modified their oaths, which call for lawmakers to pledge allegiance to the "Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China." Leung, 30, and Yau, 25, had mispronounced China as Shina, an archaic Japanese term for the country that's seen as derogatory. Leung crossed his fingers while taking the oath while Yau combined "republic" with a curse word. They were getting a second chance after the top court rejected an unprecedented last-minute legal challenge from the government Tuesday evening. Hong Kong's Beijing-backed top leader and justice chief had sought to bar the pair from taking their oaths again. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Youkyung Lee (Associated Press) Seoul Wed, October 19, 2016 South Korean prosecutors said Wednesday they indicted the Lotte Group's founder, his mistress and all of his three children on embezzlement, tax evasion and other charges. Five family members including Lotte's founder Shin Kyuk-ho, 94, and the group's current chair, Shin Dong-bin, 61, together allegedly evaded a total US$76 million in taxes and embezzled $46 million of company funds, Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said in a statement. Three others are the founder's older son Shin Dong-joo, 62, his daughter Shin young-ja, 73, and his 57-year-old common-law wife Seo Mi-kyung. The prosecutors said the Shin family members also incurred $123 million of losses to Lotte companies as the family used their outsized influence to control corporate funds and to make decisions favorable to them, not to shareholders. When Lotte sold its businesses to the founding family members, they were sold at prices way below market value. But when Lotte bought businesses or stocks from its founding family, it had to pay premiums, the prosecutors said. For example, Lotte sold its lucrative popcorn business at its movie chains to the founding family members, allowing them to monopolize the profits from selling popcorns to moviegoers. The profit should have gone to Lotte Shopping, which operates one of the biggest movie theater chains in South Korea, the officials said. Lotte also paid a total 50.8 billion won ($45 million) as salaries from 2005 to 2016 to two of the founder's children even though they did not hold any positions or have any duties with the company. Founding families that control chaebol, the big businesses dominating the South Korean economy, have been convicted in the past. The chiefs of Samsung, Hyundai Motor and SK have been found guilty of white color crimes but later received presidential pardons. It is unusual for prosecutors to seek charges against the entire family of a major South Korean business. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Rosita, a resident of Sukapura subdistrict in North Jakarta, arrived at the subdistrict office at 9 p.m. on a recent morning to have her photograph taken for her application for an electronic identity card (e-ID). She was hopeful that she would be served quickly, as she had heard about significant improvements to public services in the city. Yet she knew that she would have to wait a little, because many others had come earlier than her. She tried to be patient, but became furious upon finding that some other people entered the room without queuing. I have come here earlier, but they just bypassed, said Rosita angrily, as reported by kompas.com on Wednesday. Other residents supported Rosita and said that jumping the line for a shortcut service happened commonly. By the noon lunch break, Rosita had still not been called up and, when the service resumed again at 1 p.m., she was prepared to get her turn. But she was disappointed again. How can it take that long to get served! she asserted. Similar disappointment was expressed by Suhadri, who said he had to seek permission from his private-sector employer three times to apply for the e-ID card. And now, I still have to wait again for my turn, Sudri added. Finally, Rosita was served, after waiting for seven hours. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Farida Susanty (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19 2016 The rich and famous can now depart on a jet plane to various Indonesian cities as the government eases a regulation on foreign registered private jets. Traveling by private jet is now possible after the Transportation Ministry issued a Ministerial Regulation No. 109/2016 on noncommercial and chartered foreign jets, effective on Sept. 14, which allows foreign-owned private jets to fly from one domestic airport to another. Previously, private jets could only travel to one international airport in Indonesia and were barred from making domestic flights. The regulation supports strategic national interests, such as investment, tourism and other activities related to the national economy. The jets, however, must obtain a special permit and flight approval from the Transportation Ministrys Air Transportation Director General, as well as diplomatic clearance and security clearance from the Foreign Ministry and Indonesian Military (TNI). Application request can be submitted online. The jets will be allowed to fly domestically for a maximum of 180 days but first must land at an international airport to undergo customs, immigration and quarantine procedures. The regulation is good news for the tourism sector, which has become the current administrations focus for boosting the domestic economy. In the past, wealthy people traveling by private jet from Thailand could only go to one destination, like Bunaken, North Sulawesi. They couldnt also go to Raja Ampat in Papua. Wasnt that senseless? Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said on Tuesday. Affluent individuals will play a significant role in the economy due to their capacity to spend money. The Tourism Ministry estimates that the spending amount of the jet-setters is equal to the spending of 30,000 regular tourists. Arief went on to say that many of the wealthy tourists who travel by jet would also travel by yacht later, which is another way to boost the countrys tourism industry, as spending per yacht is estimated to reach up to US$1 million. The Tourism Ministry hopes the regulation will pave the way for the government to reach its 20 million foreign tourists target by 2019. The number of foreign visitors stood at 7.36 million from January to August, according to data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS). The goal for the full year is set at 12 million. Transportation Ministrys senior adviser to public communications and international affairs Dewa Made Sastrawan said that the regulation was part of the governments attempt to facilitate all stakeholders, including businesspeople. Meanwhile, the importance of domestic flights for jet planes is also acknowledged by French jet manufacturer Dassault Falcon. Dassault Falcon Asia Pacific president Jean-Michel Jacob said jet travellers were usually business leaders, such as chief executive officers of major corporations. A lot of them are business people looking to invest and establish businesses in the country, he said. Data from the company show that there were 52 business jets owned and operated in Indonesia in 2015, a 16 percent increase from the figure in 2014. Some of these jets are foreign owned. The company estimates that its Indonesian market can be expanded to accommodate at least 100 companies as business people crave comfort during long flights. The Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) welcomes the regulation. Kadin vice chairperson of transportation Carmelita Hartoto said it would boost tourism as well as positively impact many business players. However, we also urge the government to ensure security and safety for such flights, she said. --------------- To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,500/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Farida Susanty (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 The rich and famous can now depart on a jet plane to various Indonesian cities as the government eases a regulation on foreign registered private jets. Traveling by private jet is now possible after the Transportation Ministry issued a Ministerial Regulation No. 109/2016 on noncommercial and chartered foreign jets, effective on Sept. 14, which allows foreign-owned private jets to fly from one domestic airport to another. Previously, private jets could only travel to one international airport in Indonesia and were barred from making domestic flights. The regulation supports strategic national interests, such as investment, tourism and other activities related to the national economy. The jets, however, must obtain a special permit and flight approval from the Transportation Ministrys Air Transportation Director General, as well as diplomatic clearance and security clearance from the Foreign Ministry and Indonesian Military (TNI). Application request can be submitted online. The jets will be allowed to fly domestically for a maximum of 180 days but first must land at an international airport to undergo customs, immigration and quarantine procedures. The regulation is good news for the tourism sector, which has become the current administrations focus for boosting the domestic economy. In the past, wealthy people traveling by private jet from Thailand could only go to one destination, like Bunaken, North Sulawesi. They couldnt also go to Raja Ampat in Papua. Wasnt that senseless? Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said on Tuesday. Affluent individuals will play a significant role in the economy due to their capacity to spend money. The Tourism Ministry estimates that the spending amount of the jet-setters is equal to the spending of 30,000 regular tourists. Arief went on to say that many of the wealthy tourists who travel by jet would also travel by yacht later, which is another way to boost the countrys tourism industry, as spending per yacht is estimated to reach up to US$1 million. The Tourism Ministry hopes the regulation will pave the way for the government to reach its 20 million foreign tourists target by 2019. The number of foreign visitors stood at 7.36 million from January to August, according to data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS). The goal for the full year is set at 12 million. Transportation Ministrys senior adviser to public communications and international affairs Dewa Made Sastrawan said that the regulation was part of the governments attempt to facilitate all stakeholders, including businesspeople. Meanwhile, the importance of domestic flights for jet planes is also acknowledged by French jet manufacturer Dassault Falcon. Dassault Falcon Asia Pacific president Jean-Michel Jacob said jet travellers were usually business leaders, such as chief executive officers of major corporations. A lot of them are business people looking to invest and establish businesses in the country, he said. Data from the company show that there were 52 business jets owned and operated in Indonesia in 2015, a 16 percent increase from the figure in 2014. Some of these jets are foreign owned. The company estimates that its Indonesian market can be expanded to accommodate at least 100 companies as business people crave comfort during long flights. The Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) welcomes the regulation. Kadin vice chairperson of transportation Carmelita Hartoto said it would boost tourism as well as positively impact many business players. However, we also urge the government to ensure security and safety for such flights, she said. ______________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Wasamon Audjarint (The Nation/ANN) Bangkok Wed, October 19, 2016 The New King will be the one to endorse the new constitution before it comes into force in accordance with the governments planned road map towards democracy, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said Tuesday. It is resolved now that once the mourning ceremonies have passed a period of seven or 15 days, it should be appropriate to follow the (2007 charters) Article 23, Prayut said after a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. Article 23 specifies: [I]n the case where the Throne becomes vacant and the King has already appointed His Heir to the Throne under the Palace Law on Succession, BE 2467, the Council of Ministers shall notify the President of the National Assembly. The President of the National Assembly shall then convoke the National Assembly for the acknowledgement thereof and shall invite such Heir to ascend the Throne and proclaim such Heir King. Prayut said: Please do not cast doubts on the succession to the throne. It will follow the charter, palace law and customs. Our road map will also certainly be unaffected. The premiers remarks, together with the road maps requirement that the charter draft be promulgated within a few months, suggested the possible period when the new king will be crowned. Constitution drafter chief Meechai Ruchuphan submitted the final draft of the charter to the Cabinet on Oct. 11, while the prime minister had 30 days to consider before seeking Royal endorsement. That endorsement that will require up to another 90 days, meaning that the charter draft should be promulgated, at the latest, by February next year, said Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam, a legal expert. Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, the only legitimate heir to the throne, has not yet assumed the throne because he has preferred to join the public mourning for King Bhumibol Adulyadej before proceeding with the succession. The Crown Princes decision temporarily delayed a process designated by Article 23, referred to in this case by the current charter draft, in which the president of the National Assembly would invite the heir to ascend to the throne and proclaim him king. In the interim period before the heir is proclaimed under Article 23, the president of the Privy Council, Gen. Prem Tinsulanonda, became Regent pro tempore and acting head of state in accordance with Article 24. The Regent would act on behalf of the throne only on the basis of necessity, Prayut said. During his news briefing, Prayut emphasized that the government would strictly adhere to the road map without delay |during the mourning period. The government would also continue to drive the country forward, including adopting the late Kings initiatives, including the sufficiency economy philosophy to help the Kingdom to achieve the 2030 UN Sustainable Development Goals, Prayut said. Please turn your grief into uniting power and use your wisdom to move forward, he said. We also have to help create correct understanding together. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Bullit Marquez and Bogie Calupitan (Associated Press) Manila Wed, October 19, 2016 A Philippine police van rammed into protesters, leaving several bloodied, as an anti-US rally turned violent Wednesday at the American Embassy in Manila. At least three student activists had to be taken to a hospital after they were ran over by the van driven by a police officer, protest leader Renato Reyes said. Associated Press TV footage showed the van repeatedly ramming the protesters as it drove wildly back and forth after activists surrounded and started hitting the vehicle with wooden batons they seized from police. In front of horrified crowds, including videojournalists and photographers, the van suddenly charged backward then sprinted forward twice over a space of about 20 meters (60 feet), barreling through the scattered protesters and hurtling some to the side like bowling pins. A few got ran over but somehow managed to stand. Some screamed in surprise, others hurled stones at the van and yelled invectives. A speaker called the police "puppies of imperialists" on a loudspeaker. "There was absolutely no justification for it," Reyes said of the violent police dispersal of about 1,000 protesters. "Even as the president vowed an independent foreign policy, Philippine police forces still act as running dogs of the US" Police lobbed tear gas and arrested at least 23 protesters who broke through a line of riot police and hurled red paint at the officers and a US government seal at the start of the rally at the seaside embassy compound. A firetruck doused the rowdy protesters with water to push them back, but they took hold of the water hose and confronted the outnumbered police with rocks and red paint. After breaking through the police corridor, they scribbled "US troops out now" and other slogans at the embassy's tall fence with red paint. The protesters, consisting of students, workers and tribespeople, were demanding an end to the presence of visiting US troops in the Philippines and to support a call by President Rodrigo Duterte for a foreign policy not dependent on the US, the country's longtime treaty ally. The activists came from the largest left-wing umbrella group called Bayan (Nation), which has organized regular anti-US protests in front of the embassy for decades, most of which are peaceful. Duterte was on a state visit to China, where he is seeking to repair relations strained under his predecessor over territorial conflicts in the South China Sea. He is also seeking to expand two-way trade and investments and financing for badly needed infrastructure projects. Amid an uneasy relationship with the US, Duterte has tried to reach out to China and Russia, bringing uncertainty to his country's long alliance with America. But the protesters also opposed the president's effort to lean toward China. "The Philippines will not be dictated on, whether by the US or China," they said in a statement. The Philippine National Police did not comment immediately Wednesday. The violence happened as the police and Duterte are under increased international scrutiny for their alleged role in the killings of thousands of drug suspects and pushers as part of the president's war on illegal drugs. ___ Associated Press writer Jim Gomez contributed to this report. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Daxim L. Lucas (Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN) Beijing Wed, October 19, 2016 The Philippines is set to negotiate a deal with China to jointly explore energy sources in the disputed West Philippine Sea. According to The Inquirer, officials of the Duterte administration were holding talks with their Chinese counterparts to finalize a deal that could see both governments work hand-in-hand to find oil or natural gas in what is also known internationally as the South China Sea. What we are looking at is a deal that will first cover exploration activities in the uncontested areas, said an administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, as sensitive discussions were still ongoing. When questioned about which potential areas would be considered uncontested, given that Chinas so-called nine-dash line territorial claim encompasses most of the South China Sea, the official stated that these may be areas closer to the Philippines, including the Recto Bank, that are firmly under the Philippine governments control. Forum Energy Plc. holds the license for Service Contract 72, which covers the Recto Bank, known internationally as the Reed Bank. The company is a subsidiary of Manuel Pangilinan-led Philex Petroleum Corp. Pangilinan is one of the business tycoons joining the official business delegation of Dutertes four-day state visit. Forum Energy was licensed a few years ago by the Department of Energy to conduct a drilling survey in a petroleum exploration area, but the territorial dispute later prompted the government to issue a moratorium on exploration activities. Were still finalizing it, but we will finish this deal in time, the administration official said. Another member of the delegation of President Dutertes state visit said the proposed deal called for Philippine-China cooperation to start work closer to the Philippines and away from the disputed reefs and islets as a confidence-building measure between both sides. The issue of sovereignty will not be touched, he said, adding that once a more comfortable working relationship has been established, both sides can proceed to discuss the more sensitive areas around the South China Sea. If sealed successfully, the joint energy exploration agreement would mark one of the most dramatic foreign policy turnarounds in recent Philippine history. Under the aegis of the US support, the Philippine government had sued China in The Hague-based International Court of Arbitration, winning a unanimous decision that struck down Chinas nine-dash line claims. China does not recognize the decision. Its always good to build stronger partnerships with our neighbor China, said Victor Manhit, managing director of think tank Stratbase. However, any joint exploration deal must be based on the existing laws, Manhit remarked. Manhit noted that the Constitution, which empowered the executive branch to deal with China, was specific in its mandate that the territorial integrity of the country must not be compromised in any way. Manhit cautioned against using a formula first proposed under the Arroyo administration in which the Philippine and Chinese governments would conduct joint seismic explorations as a prelude to possible commercial energy deals while sidestepping sensitive sovereignty issues. We have to be careful because sovereignty is a non-negotiable, he said. It would open a lot of doors [to other potential claimants] if we give in, he emphasized. Manhit added that the current talks between the Philippine and the Chinese governments would reveal the true nature of Chinas intentions toward the Philippines. This is a test to see if they are really our friends or are just bullying us, he said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Masajeng Rahmiasri (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, October 19, 2016 Raja Ampat is no longer a foreign destination for diving enthusiasts from around the world. One of its main islands, Misool, has been named one of the Top 100 Global Destinations. Various traveling programs have been created to boost tourism to the regency, including a cruise program by state-owned ship operator Pelni. For those planning to visit Raja Ampat for the first time, here is a guideline on how to reach the West Papuan region. (Read also: Thailand issues tourist guidelines for mourning period) Reaching Sorong Before entering the Raja Ampat area, travelers need to reach Domine Eduard Osok Airport in Sorong, West Papua. Both direct and indirect flights are available from Jakarta to Sorong at one-way prices starting from of Rp 1.4 million (US$107). Unfortunately a direct flight from Bali is not yet available. Transferring to Sorong harbor After arriving in Domine Eduard Osok, travelers should head to Sorong harbor to catch a boat to Waisai, the capital of Raja Ampat regency, which is located on Waigeo Island. To reach the harbor, visitors can opt for a 10-20 minute taxi ride that will costs around Rp 100,000, an ojek (motorcycle taxi) for around Rp 20,000 or local minibuses that will cost less but may take considerably longer to get there. (Read also: Banten eyes more tourists with Baduy Festival) From Sorong harbor to Raja Ampat Upon arriving at Sorong harbor, you have these options to get to the Raja Ampat Islands: public ferries, speedboats, regular boats or aircraft operated by private carrier Susi Air. The two-hour ride on a public ferry is one of the most popular options, with fares starting at Rp 130,000 for an economy class seat. The ferry will depart from or to Sorong at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On Saturdays, it will only depart at 2 p.m. or 12 p.m. from Waisai to Sorong. Meanwhile, regular boats take about four hours and cost around Rp 100,000 per person, as reported by kompas.com. Speedboats are faster and will take travelers straight to their lodgings, which is why they may cost a million rupiah or more. Those opting to fly with Susi Air will need to contact the airline directly, as it has only a tentative flight schedule. Island-hopping in Raja Ampat The main activity for tourists in Raja Ampat is island-hoppingvisiting the four main islands of Raja Ampat, namely Waigeo, Batanta, Salawati and Misool, or perhaps the smaller islets. As the fare may be high, it is advised to arrange transportation and accommodation with your host prior to arrival in Waisai. (kes) (Read also: Must-see artworks at National Gallery Singapore) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Nurni Sulaiman (The Jakarta Post) Medan, North Sumatra Wed, October 19, 2016 More than 1,600 scholarships are available annually for Indonesians interested in studying in the EU. EU Ambassador to Indonesia Vincent Guerend said the scholarships aimed to provide students with resources to better shape their future. "We hope it will help them further excel in their field of expertise and that upon returning to Indonesia they will be able to contribute to the development of their country. We also hope they will come back with good memories of Europe, Guerend told The Jakarta Post during the EU Scholarship Fair in Medan, North Sumatra, on Wednesday. The number of Indonesians studying in Europe is said to increase from year to year. "In 2015, more than 6,000 Indonesian students departed for Europe, bringing the total number of Indonesians studying in the continent to 9,000; this includes those with scholarships funded by the EU and the Indonesian government, as well as self-funded students," said Guerend. (Read also: Papuan students receive US scholarships) Among the exhibitors at the event are the EU, the British Embassy/British Council, Irish Embassy, Swedish Embassy/Study in Sweden, the Polish Embassy, Campus France/IFI, DAAD Germany, Nuffic Neso Netherlands and Uni-Italia. In addition to sharing information at their booths, the exhibitors also gave presentations to visitors throughout the day. A participant, Sekar, who graduated from North Sumatra University, said that among her favorite countries to study were Germany, the Netherlands and France. The EU is set to organize another event in November, the European Higher Education Fair, in Jakarta, Yogyakarta and Surabaya. (kes) Read the digital edition 2020-09-25 E-Edition The Jewish Advocate is a not-for-profit reader-supported 501(c)3 organization. We rely on your donations which are tax-deductible. A Moving Image takes an interesting look at gentrification in Brixton. As Nina, played by Tanya Fear, returns to the area after some time away in East London, she rails against the presence of hipsters and wealthier people in the area. However, things are made more complex when she is seen as a symbol of gentrification by those around her when she tries to make a film on the subject.The film is truly a product of people coming together in community. Film-maker Shola Amoo raised 4,782 on Indiegogo and the rest of his 7,000 goal outside of the website to get the project off the ground. A Moving Image premiered at the London Film Festival last week, and is on show at the Hackney Picturehouse and Brixtons own Ritzy cinema. You can also get involved. The moviesis asking people to take part in the conversation by sending in videos of gentrification in their communities. Unfortunately, The Content Is Not Here You have arrived at this page because the page or post you were looking for no longer exists. 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The Ecuadorian national emblem attached to railings outside their London Embassy, Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016. Midway through releasing a series of damaging disclosures about U.S. presidential contender Hillary Clinton, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says his hosts at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London abruptly cut him off from the internet. The news adds another layer of intrigue to an extraordinary campaign. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) Trick or Treat: Why do we do it? According to the National Retail Federation, Halloween is the countrys second largest commercial holiday, boasting an estimated $3.1 billion in candy sales. The roots of the holiday stem from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain in which people gathered during the Middle Ages, dressed and performed as ghosts and demons... Covering the gap The lump shows up at a routine mammogram. The thyroid has enlarged. Theres blood in the stool. The EKG reading is abnormal. Every one of these indicators are symptoms of potentially life-threatening conditions or disease. These conditions are often identified through preventive screenings at the local health department, and additional... KICK OFF EVENT The BCHF welcomes Tim Tebow on Thursday, November 10. The Heisman trophy winner will speak at the Burke County High School J.D. Smith Auditorium at 6:30 p.m. Tickets sales benefit the foundation and its mission to serve our communitys underprivileged. For tickets, call 706-55-3456. Breast Cancer; Burke Health asks if you are at risk Convenient appointments using state-of-the-art 3D technology can be performed right here in Waynesboro at the new Burke Imaging building at the Burke Health campus. Other than skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer in American women, accounting for 30% of all diagnosed cancers. In addition, early onset breast... India is keen on the possibility of setting up a fertilizer plant in Algeria -- a joint venture to tap the rich resources of phosphate possessed by the North African country. Talks had been underway, between India and Algeria, on the modalities of setting up of the fertilizer plant. On Wednesday, with the intention of giving the process a political push, Minister of State for fertilisers and chemicals Mansukh L. Mandaviya held discussions with the Algerian Industry Minister Abdessalem Bouchouareb. Algeria is estimated to have a phosphate reserve of around five billion tones, and it is keen that India harvest it as part of a joint venture. The Indian share in the project is proposed to be 49 per cent. Todays talks are a major step in concretising the proposal of setting up of the company as a joint venture. Now, India has to come up with a proposal on the composition of the Indian plant details of the financiers, demarcation of responsibilities and the company which will provide the engineering expertise. Mandaviya was accompanying Vice President Hamid Ansari on a two-day visit to Algeria, and a major thrust of the visit is to firm up Indias cooperation with the north African nation in the fields of hydrocarbons and fertilizers. India is keen on obtaining a share in the phosphate reserve, as it will help in bringing down the import bill of phosphates, with the country importing more than 96 per cent of its requirement. Officials say that it will also help in lightening the subsidy burden on fertilizers. Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs, Sujata Mehta, said India was looking forward to explore cooperation with Algeria in new areas like in fertilisers, pharmaceuticals, space and information technology. The phosphate reserve is estimated to be more than five billion tonnes, and Indias investment in the project is likely to be in the range of USD five to seven billion. Indian Ambassador to Algeria, Satbir Singh, said that the Indian involvement will be a combined effort of both government and private sectors. Around 90-95 per cent phosphate being used by Indian fertiliser companies is imported and the production cost is also very high. If India can join hands with Algeria by providing funds and technology to set up a fertiliser company by using Algerian phosphate and gas, and the fertiliser is taken to India, the cost would be quite low, he said. The subsidy burden of the government for fertilisers, which is Rs 86,000 crore to Rs 90,000 crore per annum, will also come down, he said. The Indian fertiliser industry produces about 12.28 million MT of nitrogen and 4.37 million MT of phosphatic nutrient production. India ranks second in the production of nitrogenous fertilizers and third in phosphatic fertilizers. According to a report by Department of Fertilisers, by the year 2016-17, fertilizer demand in the country is projected to increase to about 336.77 lakh tons of urea, 124.13 lakh tons of DAP, 59.48 lakh tons of SSP and 47.93 lakh tons of MOP. Bilateral trade between India and Algeria stood at 1.5 billion per annum, a large chunk of which was related to the import of oil and oil products to India. India exports automobile, auto components, buffalo meat and garments to Algeria. Last few weeks have turned out to be tumultuous for Karan Johar and his upcoming film, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. His video message, with a heartfelt plea to political parties opposing the release of the film, hasn't worked in the film's favour. The Week has learnt that the Maharashtra Navnirman Kamgar Sena is not sympathetic to the filmmaker's plea and has issued notices (the copy of which is in our possession) to cinema chains asking not to release the film or face consequences. The letter, issued in Marathi, says, Indians sincerely feel that you should not screen films in which features artistes from Pakistan, as the country has been constantly launching cowardly attacks to spread terror in India. Recently,18 jawans died when an army base in Uri was attacked. Now, the time has come for us to show our swabhimaan. As a patriotic duty, we are requesting you not to release films with Pakistani actors. Later, signed by Dr Manoj Chauhan, president MNKS, the letter urges the cinema chain again with a threat. It says, We urge you to agree to our request, otherwise we will have to show you our fierce deshseva. Further, highlighting a few lines, it says, If you do not adhere to our request, those of your workers associated with our Union won't work with you. While the cinema chains have received the letter, they are not ready to speak on the matter as of now. Facing unprecedented warnings of a rigged election from Donald Trump, state officials around the country are rushing to reassure the public, and some are taking subtle steps to boost security at polling places because of the passions whipped up by the race. This election the environment is unlike any before, South Carolina Election Commission spokesman Chris Whitmire said. Some states are trying to coordinate with local law enforcement to tighten security without making a heavy-handed and potentially illegal show of force. And some schools that double as polling places have canceled classes on Election Day for fear of agitated voters and demonstrators in school hallways. Over the weekend, a firebombing heavily damaged a local Republican Party office in North Carolina. No injuries were reported. And after a bomb threat at the Arizona GOP headquarters on Monday, the state party said it will probably hire security guards. As Trumps poll numbers have dropped amid accusations from multiple women that he groped them without consent, the Republican nominee has warned that the election is about to be stolen from him on Nov. 8 by backers of Democrat Hillary Clinton. Trump has called on people to act as election observers in certain areas of the country to help prevent fraud a move that has stirred fears of voter intimidation and confrontations at the polls. In North Carolina, state election officials are coordinating with sheriffs to make sure law enforcement agencies know the location of each polling place on Election Day, in case they need to be called. And in South Carolina, election officials have asked local law enforcement to increase patrols near voting locations while being careful not to oversaturate the area and intimidate voters. Given the nations long history of intimidating black voters, especially in the South, local officials must tread carefully in stepping up security. In South Carolina, for example, authorities said that under state law, police are not allowed to enter polling places unless they are summoned by election officials. If it is not done correctly, not only can it intimidate voters, it can also be against the law, said Adam Gitlin, counsel for the Brennan Center for Justices Democracy Program at the New York University School of Law. Many states have laws that specifically provide that election officials are the ones who are in charge of keeping order. In Falmouth, Maine, local officials decided to call off classes at public schools that will be used as polling places on Election Day. Mr. Trump has a way to get people excited, I would say. Its on both sides. I think everybody has seen it on TV enough to be concerned, Falmouth Police Chief Ed Tolan said. We dont need those kinds of demonstrations with students on school grounds. In Washington, city election officials will meet with the federal Homeland Security Department to discuss security at polling places and will take extra measures if necessary, Board of Elections spokeswoman Tamara Robinson said. Officials in a number of states said they are following standard security procedures for elections and not taking any special precautions beyond that. There is a reasonable level of paranoia, said Ken Menzel, general counsel for the Illinois Board of Elections. But Im not hearing that the level of paranoia is much different from in previous years. In metropolitan Atlanta, the Cobb County Sheriffs Office said that the Georgia Constitution requires the county sheriff to provide security at each polling place and that the department does that for every election. Officials also sought to reassure the public that the election is secure against rigging. Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, a Democrat, said Trumps comments were dangerous and divisive. In Tennessee, GOP Secretary of State Tre Hargett said the election will be fair and honest. Anything that causes people to have less confidence to vote, I frown upon. Regardless of what party that comes from, he said. In heavily Democratic Philadelphia, a city Trump singled out as a place to watch for fraud, elected leaders bristled at such allegations as an attempt to disrupt voting and discourage minorities from going to the polls. We will not tolerate any sort of foolishness on Election Day, and its even insulting to suggest that Philadelphians would, said Democratic City Councilwoman Cindy Bass. (AP) As reported by YWN-ISRAEL, Israel last week announced it is suspending all cooperation with UNESCO following the UN-affiliates latest outrage, its resolution denying any Jewish connection to Har Habayis and the Kosel. The draft vote was ratified by UNESCO on Tuesday, the first day Chol Hamoed Sukkos in Eretz Yisrael as reported by YWN-ISRAEL. Following is President Reuven Rivlins response to the draft resolution. There is no festival more connected to Jerusalem than Sukkos, began the President. The festivals of Israel all highlight the inextricable bond between our people and our land, and no forum or body in the world can come and deny the connection between the Jewish people, the Land of Israel and Jerusalem and any such body that does so simply embarrasses itself. The President added, We can understand criticism, but you cannot change history. The President made the comments as he was joined at his residence by children of Presidents Office staff members to decorate the Presidents sukkah in preparation for the upcoming festival. Before helping the children hang decorations and pictures in the sukkah, President Rivlin welcomed them and said, I want to wish all the people of Israel a happy and joyous Sukkos, which we are able to celebrate thanks to the dedication and hard work of the security services who deserve our praise. He concluded by inviting the Israeli public to the traditional Open Sukkah at the Presidents Residence, Come and be welcomed in the sukkah, he said, which is the sukkah in your house. The Presidents Residence is the home of all citizens of Israel. From here, go to the Kosel not out of a need to explain to anyone the connection between us and the Western Wall, but because there is no greater elation than to be at the Kosel in Israel. Deputy Foreign Minister Hotevelys response: The Executive Board of UNESCO has disgraced its international mandate in this politicized and distorted resolution. The fact that more states abstained than supported the resolution underscores the deep reservations of many states with regard to this shameful resolution. The countries that supported this resolution have lent their voice to the lie propagated by the Palestinians that the Temple Mount is an exclusively Islamic site. This falsification of history is an affront to the ancient Jewish and Christian connections to Jerusalem. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Thirty-three IDF orphans celebrated their bar/bas mitzvahs in a day-long event in Jerusalem organized by the IDF Widows and Orphans Organization. The day of celebrations began at the Herzl Museum, where the children learned about the roots of Zionism and the Jewish State. Following the museum visit, the moving bar/bas mitzvah ceremony began with the IDF Chief Rabbi Brigadier-General Rafi Peretz and IDFWO Chairperson Tami Shelach presenting the boys with their first set of tefilin, after which they were called up to the Torah with musical accompaniment from the Chief IDF Cantor and his choir. The bas mitzvah girls received religious books and candlesticks, while the non-Jewish orphans also received religious items in accordance with their own faiths. The ceremony was followed by a seuda and event at the Jerusalem Theatre in the presence of President Reuven Rivlin, IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkott and Minister of Defense Avigdor Lieberman. The Israeli children were joined by A.J Voelke, a Jewish American boy who lost his father in Afghanistan while serving with the US Army. Tami Shelach, Chairperson of IDF Widows and Orphans Organization: We are one large family that has turned our loss into hope for a better future. I want you all to know that we will always be there for you. To your wonderful parents, I say look around at the incredible children around us that you have imbued with the love of the Land and People of Israel, be proud of yourselves, that after everything that youve been through you have still raised magnificent children. President Reuven Rivlin: I know that all of you will continue to be a source of hope to make the world a better and more peaceful place. We will accompany you always as you continue to grow and make your families and the People of Israel proud. Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman: I am happy to be here and honored to give you a blessing on this day. We will continue to stand by your side, to help with the pain and longing. I want to thank IDFWO on another year of successful programs. All of Israel adopts you into their hearts. Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkott: I know how much you miss your parents and spouses, no words can help the pain, I want to thank IDFWO and Tami Shelach, for always providing a helping hand, a shoulder to lean on and an open heart. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem/Photo Credit: IDFWO) The man accused of setting off bombs in New York City and New Jersey is out of the hospital and behind bars. 28-year-old Ahmad Khan Rahimi, the suspect behind the pipe bomb on the Jersey Shore and the pressure cooker bombs in Chelsea, was moved Tuesday to the State Prison in Trenton by the New Jersey Deptartment of Corrections. He had been recovering in the hospital since he was shot seven times by police in Linden Sept. 19th. Rahimi is charged with five counts of attempted murder of a police officer for the shootout during his capture. Rahimi pleaded not guilty last week to charges he tried to kill police officers before they captured him. An attorney entered the pleas as Rahimi appeared from his hospital bed in Newark in his first public appearance since last months bombings and police chase. (AP) Ecuadors government acknowledged on Tuesday that it cut off WikiLeaks founder Julian Assanges internet access at its embassy in London after the whistleblowing site published a trove of damaging emails from Hillary Clintons presidential campaign. The foreign ministry said that while it stands by its 2012 decision to grant Assange asylum based on legitimate concerns he faces political persecution, it respects other nations sovereignty and doesnt interfere or support any candidate in foreign elections. The decision to make this information public is the exclusive responsibility of the WikiLeaks organization, the foreign ministry said in a statement. The recognition of the reprimand comes less than 24 hours after WikiLeaks tweeted that Ecuador had cut off Assanges access to the Internet on Saturday after the publication of Clintons speeches to Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs. In follow-up messages posted Tuesday, the group claimed U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had personally intervened to ask Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing documents about Clinton. Citing multiple US sources, WikiLeaks said the request was made on the sidelines of a visit by Kerry and Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa last month to Colombia to show their support for a peace deal with leftist rebels. The State Department denied the allegation and Correas leftist government said it was acting on its own and not ceding to foreign pressures. The foreign ministry didnt specify the extent of the temporary restrictions on Assange, saying only that they wouldnt affect WikiLeaks ability to carry out its journalistic activities. While our concerns about Wikileaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down Wikileaks is false, U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said in an email. Speaking to reporters later, deputy spokesman Mark Toner said Kerry never even raised the issue or met with Correa during his visit to Colombia. There just was no meeting, he said. They didnt discuss any of this stuff. Assange has been holed up at the modest embassy suite at No. 3 Hans Crescent for more than four years after skipping bail to avoid extradition to Sweden over crime allegations, a position which until now hasnt prevented him from continuing to play a pivotal role in exposing state secrets and backroom trade deals. WikiLeaks said unspecified contingency plans were in place and the site and its Twitter feed appeared to be working as usual. On Tuesday it released another tranche of emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, suggesting that the groups ability to publish has yet to be compromised. The disclosure was the 11th installation in a series of leaks that have captured the workings of Clintons inner circle. Those leaks themselves are part of a wider cascade that have embarrassed the Democratic Party and which the American intelligence community has recently described as an attempt by the Russian government to interfere in the U.S. election. Staff at WikiLeaks and the embassy either declined comment or didnt return messages. Assange fled to the Ecuadorean Embassy on June 19, 2012, after a drawn-out and ultimately unsuccessful legal battle to being sent to Sweden, where he remains wanted over an allegation of rape. Ecuador granted him asylum, but British authorities have made clear they would arrest him if he tried to leave. Londons Metropolitan Police used to maintain a visible presence outside the building, although officers were nowhere in sight when an AP journalist visited on Tuesday. Assange has carved out a life at Hans Crescent, dining on delivered food, welcoming famous well-wishers and even occasionally addressing the media from the embassys balcony. On Saturday, former television star Pamela Anderson paid a visit. But evidence of mutual suspicion with his hosts surfaced after BuzzFeed News drew on leaked documents to detail tensions between Assange and Ecuadorean embassy staff. In targeting Clinton, Assange may have run afoul of Correas own preference for the Democratic candidate and a renewed effort to repair strained relations with Washington. The president recently said that while a Trump victory would energize Latin Americans to reject overhanded U.S. policies in the world much in the way George W. Bushs invasion of Iraq did he personally would like to see Clinton prevail. For the good of the United States and the world, and for my personal appreciation of her, Id like to see Hillary win, he told the Moscow-backed RT broadcaster last month. Assange isnt likely to submit to the internet ban quietly. Over the weekend WikiLeaks released three lines of code it described as pre-commitments, labeling them John Kerry, Ecuador, and FCO an apparent reference to Britains Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Pre-commitments are cryptographic functions that can be used to verify the integrity of material released subsequently. Thomas White, a U.K.-based security researcher and transparency activist, saw the posts as a warning to the named parties that WikiLeaks had ammunition in reserve if Ecuadorean authorities do not continue to offer him political asylum. (AP) A former ally of Republican Gov. Chris Christie is on the witness stand for a third day in the criminal trial stemming from lane closures at the George Washington Bridge in 2013. Bill Baroni and former Christie staffer Bridget Kelly are charged with causing traffic jams at the bridge to punish a Democratic mayor who didnt endorse Christie. Kelly is also expected to testify. Baroni testified this week he believed a former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey colleague who pleaded guilty that the lane realignment was part of a traffic study. Prosecutors contend that was a cover story to mask the plots true intention. Baroni and Kelly face nine counts each, and the most serious carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence. (AP) [PHOTOS IN EXTENDED ARTICLE] Health Minister Yaakov Litzman on the first day of chol hamoed Sukkos in Israel visited attack victim Rav Mendel Deitsch, 63, who is recuperating from surgery in Tel Hashomer Hospital. The rav was assaulted and left for dead in the Ukraine earlier this month. He was treated initially in a local hospital, and then arrangements were set into place to fly him back to Israel, and he has since undergone neurosurgery for his extensive head injuries. Family members are reporting their fathers condition is quite serious. He is still in a medically induced coma and on assisted breathing, calling on the tzibur to be mispallel for Mendel Mordechai ben Miriam bsoch kol cholei yisrael. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) A report prepared by IDF Major-General Yossi Bachar before Operation Protective Edge stated Israel was not really aware of the scope and magnitude of the threat posed to Israel by the Hamas tunnel network from Gaza to southern Israel. As a result of this report, the Prime Minister and his cabinet were unaware of the magnitude of the threat and the IDF was not properly prepared to address the tunnel warfare. According to the Galei Tzahal (Army Radio) report, the IDF was not aware of the level of sophistication of the Hamas tunnel network and its lack of preparedness did result in operational failures during the 2014 counter-terrorism military offensive in Gaza. The report quotes a defense establishment official, who explains the IDF kept the findings of the report quiet. The IDF spokesman released a statement that the findings of the probe have been studied and incorporated in military operations in an appropriate fashion including an increase in the number of soldiers trained for tunnel warfare. While cabinet ministers expressed shock upon hearing of the report, both Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman insist they were unaware of the report until hearing about it from Galei Tzahal. It is reported that former Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon was informed of the findings of the report. Yaalons office said: This was an internal military review, explaining the cabinet is not expected to focus on internal IDF reviews of an operation, adding An abstract of the findings was presented to the cabinet, but only as a general reference and nothing more. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) John Allan, chairman of Barratt Developments, is becoming something of a legal eagle. The former Deutsche Post finance director and Dixons top honcho was parachuted into the chairmans seat at Tesco in 2015 after the hurried departures of Phil Clarke and Sir Richard Broadbent. This followed the discovery of a 263m black hole in Tescos accounts. Subsequently, three former Tesco executives have been arrested on fraud charges amid an ongoing Serious Fraud Office inquiry. Now it has all started to go horribly wrong at Britains biggest volume housebuilder Barratt. A regulatory announcement revealed Alastair Baird, the regional managing director for London, has been arrested and suspended from the company after an internal audit discovered misconduct in the awarding and managing of contracts. Building bridges: The experience of the past makes it all the more important that Barratt observes the strictest standards of integrity Another former Barratt employee, a 47-year old woman, has also been arrested by the Metropolitan Police. Meanwhile, at the High Court a former Barratt person, Michael Neill Fitzpatrick, is involved in a civil action, which claims he was in receipt of secret profits, bribes or commissions from sub-contractors. It is no secret that the construction and housebuilding industries have in the past developed unsavoury relationships with the local officials and contractors with whom they work closely. The most notorious case occurred in 1974 when architect John Poulson was jailed for five years after being found guilty of conspiracy to make or receive corrupt gifts. Most of the recipients were public officials and the case cast a pall over the whole construction sector for many years. The experience of the past makes it all the more important that the nations quoted housebuilders observe the strictest standards of integrity. At a time when Theresa Mays government is seeking to fast track housebuilding because of desperate supply shortages, any events which cast aspersions over the governance of the industry have to be fully probed. Investors, for the moment, seem unbothered. But how long before reputational damage starts to hurt the share price? The disclosures also raise questions as to whether a company chairman can be too thinly spread. Allan creditably stepped down as chairman of FTSE newcomer Worldpay when he took on the role at Tesco which after all is Britains flagship global grocer. Acting as clean-up crew at Barratt is a task he probably could have done without. Wall Street surge The contrast between the bounce back of the US investment banks and their European counterparts could not be greater. The last quarter was a boom period for Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs as well as broader-based American banks with strong brokerage operations including JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. What a contrast this is with their European counterparts. Deutsche Bank struggles for survival against a slew of negative forces including the US Department of Justice, hedge funds shorting the banks shares, a perception of capital weakness and what the International Monetary Fund seems to regard as a broken business model. Credit Suisse, less in the limelight at present, wrestles with similar problems and UBS has moved from the broader investment banking model to an institution focused on wealth management. Barclays still has a credible investment bank with a strong client list, great debt management skills and a chief executive in Jes Staley steeped in the industry. But it is too thinly capitalised and continuously seeking to put out regulatory fires ranging from alleged wrong-doing in its foreign exchange department, to the long-running dispute over Middle East funding, to the sub-prime mortgage settlement in the US. It is competing with the New York-based banks with one arm tied behind its back when it might have been better focusing on Africa rather than taking itself off the map. Morgan Stanley has reported a 61.7 per cent jump in quarterly profits hard on the heels of Goldman Sachs 34 per cent lift. Both banks seem to have benefitted from the increased turnover in income from trading bonds, shares, currencies and commodities post Brexit. Turbulence has produced real dividends. The reality is that they are also benefitting from the diminution of competition as the European players have been knocked out of the reckoning. Having restored their dominance, the US investment banks should be prepared to improve their governance. They could start by playing fairer with clients, as Britains Financial Conduct Authority is demanding. That means no more fiddling of the numbers in performance league tables and giving the smaller guys a look in when it comes to the big initial public offerings. It is unacceptable, as happened with the Royal Mail in the UK, that smaller market players and investors are frozen out because the likes of Goldman deliver preference to sovereign wealth and hedge funds. Mobile meltdown The combination of the launch of the iPhone 7 and Samsungs exploding Galaxy Note 7 has sent Apple shares soaring, and with a market value of 517bn it is top dog in Wall Street once again. Commodity boost Anglo-Australian miner BHP Billiton has flagged early signs of a commodities recovery as it predicted oil and gas markets would improve over 12 to 18 months. It came in a trading update in which it reported a 6 per cent fall in copper output for the three months to September 2016, compared with a year earlier. Driving force: BHP Billiton predicts oil and gas markets will improve over 12 to 18 months Shares fell 0.5 per cent, or 6p to 1218p. Double expresso Starbucks is pushing ahead with expansion into China by more than doubling its presence and putting it on track to have 5,000 stores in the country by 2021. Starbucks chief executive Howard Schultz that China could one day surpass the US as its largest market. China growth Chinas economic growth held steady in the latest quarter, shored up by a lending boom and consumer spending that helped make up for weaker trade. The worlds second-largest economy grew by 6.7 per cent in the three months ending in September, compared with a year earlier, which was better than some forecasters expected. Model sales Europes largest online fashion retailer Zalando has hinted at rising sales and profits as it prepares to go head-to-head with Asos. The German retailer increased its profit forecast amid a better-than-expected autumn season and is now forecasting earnings of up to 6 per cent, an increase from its previous forecast for 4-5 per cent. Tariff checks Households and small businesses on expensive energy tariffs will be recommended cheaper alternatives once new measures are approved. The Competition and Markets Authority is in the process of finalising measures that will require suppliers to provide details of customers, who have been on tariffs for more than three years. Express revenues Eurotunnel shrugged off concerns over Brexit to post upbeat third-quarter figures and issued bullish comments in the wake of the EU referendum. The firm said our business has never been stronger and there is no sign of slowdown in the UK economy. Revenues for the third quarter of 2016 grew 4 per cent to 286m, compared with the same period in 2015. Pay bonanza Bankers at US lender Morgan Stanley took home an average 61,000 in the three months to September 30. New figures show the firm paid its 55,256 employees a total of 3.3bn in the period. Profits rise Demand for black clothes in Thailand to mourn the death of the countrys King has caused a rush in Tescos South Asian outlets. Thais are crowding shopping malls and department stores to stock up on black clothes as they begin a year of mourning for the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Tesco Lotus, which stocks Tesco products and is part-owned by the British retailer, is among the stores that have seen a boost in sales from Thai shoppers. It has brought in up to five times more stock than normal and introduced a Sharing Ribbon project to hand out black ribbons to customers. And it has joined other big local retailers Central, The Mall and Big C Supercentre in discounting black clothes. Salinla Seehaphan, corporate affairs director of Tesco Lotus, told Thai paper The Nation: Our stores receive a fresh stock of black and white shirts every day to serve the demand nationwide. Bank of Montreal provides diversified financial services primarily in North America. The company's personal banking products and services include checking and savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, and financial and investment advice services; and commercial banking products and services comprise business deposit accounts, commercial credit cards, business loans and commercial mortgages, cash management solutions, foreign exchange, specialized banking programs, treasury and payment solutions, and risk management products for small business and commercial banking customers. It also offers investment and wealth advisory services; digital investing services; financial services and solutions; and investment management, and trust and custody services. In addition, the company provides life insurance, accident and sickness insurance, and annuity products; creditor and travel insurance to bank customers; and reinsurance solutions. Further, it offers client's debt and equity capital-raising services, as well as loan origination and syndication, and treasury management; strategic advice on mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, and recapitalizations, as well as valuation and fairness opinions; and trade finance, risk mitigation, and other operating services. Additionally, the company provides research and access to markets for institutional, corporate, and retail clients; trading solutions that include debt, foreign exchange, interest rate, credit, equity, securitization and commodities; new product development and origination services, as well as risk management advice and services to hedge against fluctuations; and funding and liquidity management services to its clients. It operates through approximately 900 bank branches and 3,300 automated banking machines in Canada and the United States. Bank of Montreal was founded in 1817 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada. Red Hat, Inc. provides open source software solutions to develop and offer operating system, virtualization, management, middleware, cloud, mobile, and storage technologies to various enterprises worldwide. It offers infrastructure-related solutions, such as Red Hat Enterprise Linux, an operating system platform that runs on hardware for use in hybrid cloud environments; Red Hat Satellite, a system management offering that helps to deploy, scale, and manage in hybrid cloud environments; and Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization, a software solution that allows customers to utilize and manage a common hardware infrastructure to run multiple operating systems and applications. The company offers application development-related and other technology solutions, such as Red Hat JBoss Middleware, a solution for developing, deploying, and managing applications; integrating applications, data, and devices; and automating business processes in hybrid cloud environments; The company's application development-related and other technology solutions also includes Red Hat cloud offerings, a software solution that enables customers to build and manage various cloud computing environments; Red Hat Mobile, a software development platform that enables customers to develop, integrate, deploy, and manage mobile applications for enterprises; and Red Hat Storage, a software solution that enables customers to manage large, unstructured, or semi-structured data in hybrid cloud environments. It also provides consulting, support, and training services; and realtime operating system, distributed computing, directory services, and user authentication. Red Hat, Inc. has collaboration with Juniper Networks Expand to provide a unified solution for enterprises designed to manage and run applications and services. The company was formerly known as Red Hat Software, Inc. and changed its name to Red Hat, Inc. in June 1999. Red Hat, Inc. was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. Alibaba Group Holding Limited is an eCommerce and Internet technology giant headquartered in the People's Republic of China. Its core platform, Alibaba.com, is the worlds 3rd largest eCommerce platform by sales. The company, through its vast network of subsidiary companies, provides the infrastructure and marketing to help merchants of all sizes develop their brands and to connect with customers in the People's Republic of China and internationally. The company also aids other businesses with a vast array of digital and logistical solutions with a reach that spans the globe. Alibaba was co-founded by Jack Ma in 1999 when it became clear the Internet and digitization were the future of commerce. Mr. Ma is a billionaire investor, businessman, and philanthropist who believes in an open and free-market economy. The company went public in September 2014 with an IPO on the NYSE. The IPO set a record with its valuation of $25 billion and the company is now worth more than $225 billion and ranked among the 10 most valuable companies by market cap. Alibaba is also ranked 5th largest globally in regards to its work in AI, and it owns the world's largest B2B, B2C, and C2C eCommerce portals. In 2022, Alibabas Singles Day event brought in $139 billion to set a new one-day record. The principal purpose of Alibaba Group Holding Limited is to open the Chinese market and connect it to the world. The company operates through seven segments including China Commerce, International Commerce, Local Consumer Services, Cainiao, Cloud, Digital Media and Entertainment, and Innovation Initiatives and Others. The companys eCommerce platforms include Taobao Marketplace, Tmall, Alimama, 1688.com, Alibaba.com, Aliexpress, Lazada, Trendyol, and Daraz. Taobao Marketplace is a social-media eCommerce platform while Alimama is a monetization platform for entrepreneurs. 1688.com and Alibaba.com are wholesale marketplaces where individuals and businesses can connect with bulk items and the remainder are eCommerce retail platforms and search engines targeting specific markets. In addition, the company also operated a retail chain called Freshippo and Tmall Global which is an import platform for eCommerce. Other digital services provided by Alibaba include Taoxianda, which is a digital integration service for FMCG goods and grocery retailers, and Cainiao Network which is a logistical services platform complemented by Ele.me, a delivery and services platform. Alibaba also supports the infrastructure of the Internet with a range of products and services that include computing, storage, network, security, database, big data, and IoT connectivity. This segment includes a suite of cloud-based services such as Alibaba Pictures and content platforms that provide streaming media. GameStop Corp. is a specialty retailer founded in 1999 and headquartered in Grapevine, Texas. The company was originally known as GSC Holdings Corp. but later changed its name following its IPO. Originally a brand of then dominant Babbages, Gamestop altered the way video games were distributed and it is now the world's largest retailer of video games and video game accessories. The company went public in 2004 and operated 4,573 stores at the start of 2022. Brands under the company umbrella include Gamestop, EB Games, and Micromania as well as 50 pop-culture-themed Zing Pop locations. Gamestop Corp. provides video games and entertainment products through its global network of e-commerce properties and stores. The company sells new and pre-owned gaming platforms and accessories like controllers, headsets, memory cards, and gaming software as well as in-game products like digital currency, downloadable content, and games. The company also sells new and used memorabilia and collectibles. Genres include TV, movie, comic book, and game characters as well as many other items from pop culture. GameStop Corp. also operates Game Informer, a magazine and website dedicated to the gaming industry including reviews, updates, and new developments in technologies. Game enthusiasts enjoy two primary benefits of using Gamestop. The first is access to the full range of games and gaming accessories. The second is the ability to sell or trade their old equipment and games for fair prices. All old equipment is refurbished to a like-new state before resale. In 2021 Gamestop announced it was entering the world of cryptocurrency. The company revealed plans to build an NFT (non-fungible token) platform for listing, selling, and holding digital or digitized artwork and collectibles. The beta version launched in 2022 and has so far seen great success with an average daily volume exceeding $1 million. The NFT marketplace also featured Web3.0 games in which characters and in-game items are held forever on the blockchain. As of September 2022, the most successful retailer on the NFT marketplace was Gamestop Presents, a collaboration of cover art from Game Informer Magazine. Sales at the time were just under 168 ETH or about $221,500.00. GameStop began a slide in 2016 following a series of bad investments that included a foray into the world of mobile phones. The slide came to an end in late 2021 when shareholders using the Reddit thread Wallstreet Bets orchestrated a short-squeeze and brought on the age of meme stocks. Trinity Industries, Inc. provides rail transportation products and services under the TrinityRail name in North America. It operates in two segments, Railcar Leasing and Management Services Group, and Rail Products Group. The Railcar Leasing and Management Services Group segment leases freight and tank railcars; originates and manages railcar leases for third-party investors; and provides fleet maintenance and management services. As of December 31, 2021, it had a fleet of 106,970 owned or leased railcars. This segment serves industrial shipper and railroad companies operating in agriculture, construction and metals, consumer products, energy, and refined products and chemicals markets. The Rail Products Group segment manufactures freight and tank railcars for transporting various liquids, gases, and dry cargo; and offers railcar maintenance and modification services. This segment serves railroads, leasing companies, and industrial shippers of products in the agriculture, construction and metals, consumer products, energy, and refined products and chemicals markets. It sells or leases products and services through its own sales personnel and independent sales representatives. Trinity Industries, Inc. was incorporated in 1933 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Our portfolio of high quality UK commercial property is focused on London Offices and Retail around the UK. We own or manage a portfolio valued at 13.7bn (British Land share: 10.3bn) as at 30 September 2020 making us one of Europe's largest listed real estate investment companies. Our strategy is to provide places which meet the needs of our customers and respond to changing lifestyles - Places People Prefer. We do this by creating great environments both inside and outside our buildings and use our scale and placemaking skills to enhance and enliven them. This expands their appeal to a broader range of occupiers, creating enduring demand and driving sustainable, long term performance. Our Offices portfolio comprises three office-led campuses in central London as well as high quality standalone buildings and accounts for 65% of our portfolio. Our Retail portfolio is focused on retail parks and shopping centres, and accounts for 31% of our portfolio. Increasingly our focus is on providing a mix of uses and this is most evident at Canada Water, our 53 acre redevelopment opportunity where we have plans to create a new neighbourhood for London. Sustainability is embedded throughout our business. Our places, which are designed to meet high sustainability standards, become part of local communities, provide opportunities for skills development and employment and promote wellbeing. In April 2016 British Land received the Queen's Award for Enterprise: Sustainable Development, the UK's highest accolade for business success for economic, social and environmental achievements over a period of five years. Under Armour, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the developing, marketing, and distributing performance apparel, footwear, and accessories for men, women, and youth. The company offers its apparel in compression, fitted, and loose fit types. It also provides footwear products for running, training, basketball, cleated sports, recovery, and outdoor applications. In addition, the company offers accessories, which include gloves, bags, headwear, and sports masks; and digital subscription and advertising services under the MapMyRun and MapMyRide platforms. It primarily offers its products under the UNDER ARMOUR, UA, HEATGEAR, COLDGEAR, HOVR, PROTECT THIS HOUSE, I WILL, UA Logo, ARMOUR FLEECE, and ARMOUR BRA brands. The company sells its products through wholesale channels, including national and regional sporting goods chains, independent and specialty retailers, department store chains, mono-branded Under Armour retail stores, institutional athletic departments, and leagues and teams, as well as independent distributors; and directly to consumers through a network of 422 brand and factory house stores, as well as through e-commerce websites. It operates in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. Under Armour, Inc. was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. The following companies are subsidiares of Sonoco Products: Associated Packaging Technologies Inc., Can Packaging, Clear Lam Packaging Inc., Clear Pack Co., Conitex Sonoco (BVI) Ltd., Corenso Holdings America Inc., CorrFlex Graphics LLC, Demolli Industria Cartaria S.p.A., Engraph Inc., Graffo Paranaense de Embalagens S/A, Hayes Manufacturing Group, Highland Packaging Solutions, Laminar Medica, Matrix Packaging Inc., PT Conitex Sonoco, PT Papcor Asia Pacific, PT Papertech Indonesia, PT Sonoco Indonesia, PenPack LLC, Peninsula Packaging Company, Peninsula Packaging LLC, Penpack S. de R.L. de C.V., Phoenix Packaging Corp., Plastique Holdings LTD, SMB GmbH, SPC Capital Management Inc, SPC Liquidation LLC, SPC Management LLC, SPC Resources Inc, SR Holdings of the Carolinas LLC, Sebro Plastics Inx, Sonoco (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Sonoco (Taicang) Packaging Co. Ltd, Sonoco (Weifang) Packaging Company Ltd, Sonoco Absorbent Technologies LLC, Sonoco Absorbent Technologies Limited, Sonoco Alcore - Demolli S.r.l., Sonoco Alcore AB, Sonoco Alcore GmbH, Sonoco Alcore N.V., Sonoco Alcore Nederland B.V., Sonoco Ambalaj Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Sonoco Asia Holding S.a.r.l., Sonoco Asia LLC, Sonoco Asia Management Company LLC, Sonoco Australia Pty Ltd, Sonoco Board Mills Limited, Sonoco Bonmati S.A.U., Sonoco Canada Corporation, Sonoco Capseals Liners Limited, Sonoco Comercial S. de R.L. de C.V., Sonoco Consumer Products Dordrecht B.V. (fka Dorpak B.V.), Sonoco Consumer Products Europe GmbH (fka Weidenhammer Packaging Group GmbH), Sonoco Consumer Products Hellas S.A. (fka Weidenhammer Hellas S.A.), Sonoco Consumer Products Limited, Sonoco Consumer Products Mechelen BVBA (fka Weidenhammer Belgium BVBA), Sonoco Consumer Products Montanay SAS (fka Neuvibox SAS), Sonoco Consumer Products Poland Sp. Z.O.O., Sonoco Consumer Products SAS, Sonoco Consumer Products South Africa (PTY) Ltd., Sonoco Consumer Products Zwenkau GmbH (fka fka Weidenhammer Plastice Packaging GmbH), Sonoco Cores and Paper Limited, Sonoco Deutschland GmbH, Sonoco Deutschland Holdings GmbH, Sonoco Development Inc, Sonoco Elk Grove Inc, Sonoco Embalagens Ltda. (fka Sonoco Embalagens S.A.), Sonoco Flexible Packaging Canada Corporation, Sonoco Flexible Packaging Co. Inc, Sonoco Graphics India Private Limited, Sonoco Hickory Inc, Sonoco Holdings Inc, Sonoco Holdings UK Limited, Sonoco Hutchinson LLC, Sonoco IPD France SAS, Sonoco Iberia S.L.U., Sonoco International Holdings GmbH, Sonoco JV GmbH & Co. KG, Sonoco Kaiping Packaging Co. Ltd., Sonoco Limited, Sonoco Luxembourg Holding S.a.r.l., Sonoco Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Sonoco Milnrow, Sonoco Netherlands Holding II BV, Sonoco Netherlands Holding III BV, Sonoco New Zealand Limited, Sonoco Operadora S. de R.L. de C.V., Sonoco Packaging Limited, Sonoco Packaging Tapes Limited, Sonoco Paper Mill & IPD Hellas SA, Sonoco Paperboard Group LLC, Sonoco Partitions Inc, Sonoco Phoenix LLC, Sonoco Pina S.A.U., Sonoco Plastics B.V., Sonoco Plastics Canada ULC, Sonoco Plastics Germany GmbH, Sonoco Plastics Inc, Sonoco Poland Holdings B.V., Sonoco Polysack A/S Inc, Sonoco Polysack Limited, Sonoco Products Company UK, Sonoco Products Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Sonoco Protective Solutions Inc, Sonoco Recycling - International Trade Group LLC, Sonoco Recycling LLC, Sonoco Reels Limited, Sonoco Retail Packaging S. de R.L. de C.V., Sonoco S.A. de C.V., Sonoco SAS, Sonoco Saudi Limited Company, Sonoco Services LLC, Sonoco Singapore Pte. Ltd., Sonoco TEQ Holdings Ltd, Sonoco TEQ LLC, Sonoco TEQ Ltd, Sonoco TEQ Sp. Z.o.o, Sonoco Taiwan Ltd, Sonoco Thailand Ltd, Sonoco UK Leasing Limited, Sonoco Venezolana C.A., Sonoco Venture International Holdings GmbH, Sonoco Ventures UK Limited, Sonoco Wisconsin Rapids Core Plant LLC, Sonoco Wisconsin Rapids Inc, Sonoco Wisconsin Rapids Paper Mill LLC, Sonoco Yatai Pinghu Packaging Co Ltd, Sonoco de Colombia Ltda, Sonoco do Brasil Participacoes Ltda, Sonoco do Brazil Ltda, Sonoco of Puerto Rico Inc, Sonoco-Alcore AS, Sonoco-Alcore Oy, Sonoco-Alcore S.a.r.l., Sonoco-Alcore Sp. Z.O.O., Sonoco-Engraph Puerto Rico Inc, TPT Limited, Tegrant Alloyd Brands Inc, Tegrant Corporation, Tegrant International Inc, Tegrant Property Holdings LLC, Tegrant de Mexico S.A. de C.V., ThermoSafe Brands Asia PTE LTD, ThermoSafe Brands Europe Ltd., Thermoform Engineered Quality LLC, Trident Graphics Canada Corporation, Trident Graphics NA LLC, Tubo-Tec Nordeste Industria, U.S. Paper Mills Corp., Weidenhammer Chile Ltda., Weidenhammer Packaging Group, Weidenhammer UK Ltd., and Wisenberg U.S. Inc. Read More Capita plc provides consulting, digital, and software products and services to clients in the private and public sectors in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates through Public Service, Experience, and Portfolio divisions. The company offers solutions for finance and accounting, procurement, property and infrastructure, travel and event, and workplace administration. It also provides customer experience transformation, contact management, collection, complaint handling, customer acquisition and retention, customer experience system and software, and data and analytics. In addition, the company offers capita licensing and support, support, digital policing, and engineering practice; education service and local education authority software; various solutions that help businesses create connected experiences that deliver right message across organisations, customers, and suppliers; solutions for central and local government services; corporate learning, fire service college, employability, and capita apprenticeship solutions; and employer branding and marketing, flexible workforce solutions, agile resourcing solutions, executive and specialist recruitment, background checking and vetting, and digital HR management and transformation solutions. Further, it provides pension administration and software, pensions consulting, and data, insights, and remediation solutions; automation, critical communication systems, finance and payment software, local education authority software, management information systems, and workforce management software solutions; cloud, cyber security, digital connectivity, IT services, robotic process automation, and workplace IT; and actuarial, defence, financial, healthcare, housing, legal, public safety, utility, and welfare and employability services. The company was formerly known as The Capita Group plc and changed its name to Capita plc in January 2012. Capita plc was founded in 1984 and is based in London, the United Kingdom. Q&A with PA-16 candidates Robert Matzie and Rico Elmore Both Beaver County natives, Matzie and Elmore have expressed their interest in making Beaver County a better place in their own unique ways. John Ingle/Times Record News Dan Quigley, right, chief operating officer of USA800, and Vice President of Operations J.R. Metzen talk about the high turnout of applicants during the first two days of the call center's first three-day job fair Tuesday and Wednesday in Wichita Falls. More than 150 people out of about 250 applicants were hired Tuesday alone, and the company's goal is to hire 300 in 30 days. SHARE By John Ingle of the Times Record News The Wichita Falls City Council approved Tuesday morning a $3.4 million economic development incentive package, paving the way for inbound call center USA800 to create about 650 new jobs over the next couple years. The measure passed by a 6-1 margin. District 5 Councilor Tom Quintero, the district in which the business will be located, was the only member of the council to vote against the agenda item. The call center will be at 2236 Airport Dr., which is located inside District 5. Tom Davis, CEO of USA800, said he anticipated a favorable response from councilors on the incentive package, but he was still "absolutely excited" to see the council vote in favor of the offer. He said all they have to do now is officially sign the agreement with the Wichita Falls Economic Development Corp., which offered and approved the incentive package during a meeting on Sept. 30. "It's been a delight to work with everybody we've been in touch with. From our perspective, we're so glad we made the choice" to come to Wichita Falls, he said. "The first two weeks of hiring fairs, I think, validated we made a very good choice." USA800, which specializes in inbound phone calls to assist with sales, customer care, tech support and retention, has hired almost 300 employees to staff the call center, Davis said, and the first training class will begin next week. He said some qualified applicants will be put on a wait list because of the high volume that turned out for the company's job fairs. The company has said it would like to hire more, sooner, but training space in the facility limits how many employees they can train at one time. According to a study completed by Midwestern State University economics professor John Martinez, the economic impact of USA800 with 300 jobs over a seven-year period is estimated to be $98 million, and $203 million if 600 jobs are created. Jim Dockery, deputy city manager for Wichita Falls, said the entire process of recruiting USA800 to Wichita Falls, the WFEDC offering a competitive package and the city council approving it went smoothly and is a decision that should prove to be beneficial for the city and the company. He said the cash-for-jobs incentive means USA800 has to keep those positions filled for 12 months before they are reimbursed the incentive moneys. The $3.4 million package includes $2.6 million in cash-for-jobs and another $800,000 for training. TRN Archives SHARE By Bridget Knight of the Times Record News Modern teachers might be aghast at this picture of Miss Kate Haynes and her class at the Wichita Falls school at 13th and Broad in 1907. Haynes, the namesake of Kate Haynes Elementary School, was managing 30-plus elementary students that year in the brick building that has originally been built as a high school. Some were obviously "economically disadvantaged," to use today's euphasism, or at least their parents chose to put their money into less frivolous things than shoes, which several youngsters in the front row lack. And while only one of these children displays even a slight smile, all seem to exude a stoic, pioneer spirit that must have persevered less than two decades after the city was wrested from the prairie. Attached to the photo are the names of only three of the students Joe Kell, Arthur Stipe and Clarence Dodge, with no indication of which of the students they were. The building in the background is also long gone, having been torn down in 1928 to make way for a new Austin Elementary School.

Torin Halsey/Times Record News The Graham B. Purcell Federal Building has been a landmark in downtown Wichita Falls for more than 80 years.

SHARE By Christopher Collins of the Times Record News A federal judge has affirmed that an injunction against the Obama administration in Texas v. United States can be applied nationwide, blocking the Departments of Justice and Education from enforcing guidance on bathroom access for transgender students across the country. Wednesday's ruling in a Wichita Falls federal court could also affect several other lawsuits in which U.S. attorneys are involved, including United States v. North Carolina, the case that kicked off a national debate over transgender rights earlier this year. The injunction also makes clear that the Obama administration may not withhold federal funds from districts that do not comply with its guidance on transgender access to "intimate areas" inside schools. Texas is joined in the litigation by 14 co-plaintiffs, including conservative states, school districts and individuals. The lawsuit was filed in May. However, the ruling gives U.S. attorneys the go-ahead to proceed with other lawsuits previously held in limbo by the court order. The injunction, ordered by Judge Reed O'Connor in August, forbade the Obama administration from enforcing guidance it issued to school districts in May, but U.S. attorneys later argued the ruling's parameters were too vague. They asked for additional direction from the court before proceeding with almost 20 other related lawsuits. O'Connor now has specified that U.S. attorneys may go ahead with some of their cases regarding transgender rights, but only those that don't center on bathroom access. Thus, Wednesday's ruling represents a partial victory for both Texas and the Obama administration. "The court's reaffirmation of a nationwide injunction should send a clear message to the president that Texas won't sit idly by as he continues to ignore the Constitution," Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton wrote in a news release. "The president cannot rewrite the laws enacted by the elected representatives of the people and then threaten to take away funding from schools to force them to fall in line." Representatives of the U.S. Departments of Justice and Education could not be immediately reached. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump gestures during the first Republican presidential debate at the Quicken Loans Arena Thursday, Aug. 6, 2015, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) SHARE Toni Fransen, Byers The latest news concerning Donald Trump's behavior took me back forty-five years. I had just graduated from college with a BSBA in Management and was in Houston looking for an entry level management position, even though I was told by employment agency employees (all male) to essentially "stick to retail or secretarial work." I did find management positions and continued to advance my career, even though more than once I was inappropriately approached by supervisors (again, all male) but was told to "just keep my head down and take it." Well, I couldn't, and would leave to find other work. This is a story that has been told too many times by women of my generation who did not have sexual harassment laws or other support to protect us. Donald Trump is a throwback to these men in power who got away with behavior that is not only unacceptable, but illegal today. His attitude and behavior toward women and a long list of other segments of society sickens me. That he continues to get away with it infuriates me. Hillary Clinton would not have been my first choice for President, but she is now. The alternative is a man who deserves to lose this election. He has done too much damage and has had a negative influence on too many people who refuse to see the man behind the facade he has created. SHARE Make it stop. Won't somebody, please, make it stop? I realize my plea is in vain. We have three more weeks of this appalling spectacle in which a ridiculous comic-book villain a cross between the Joker and the Penguin is trying his best to destroy American democracy. Yes, Donald Trump, I'm talking about you. Three weeks. That's normally the blink of an eye, but the time between now and Election Day yawns like an eternity. How many new outrages will test our capacity to be outraged? How many more quisling Republicans will stand before microphones and pretend their party's nominee for president is fit for the office? How many early-morning tweetstorms will a certain set of unusually short fingers unleash upon a weary and anxious nation? Look, I happen to believe Hillary Clinton would be a good president. You may disagree, but no one seriously doubts her ability to do the job. By contrast, does anyone really believe it would be safe, let alone wise, to put someone as impulsive and thin-skinned as Trump in command of the most powerful military machine the world has ever known? The thought would be laughable if it were not so frightening. So yes, this is a scary election. And no, it is not safe to take anything for granted. The bottom should have fallen out from under Trump's poll numbers long ago, but it hasn't. For those who see Trump the way I do, it is unfathomable that he would have the support of 40 voters, let alone 40 percent of the electorate. I understand being tired of politicians and politics-as-usual. I understand frustration at Washington's perpetual gridlock and stasis. I even understand the appeal of a candidate who promises to be a wrecking ball, demolishing the old system so we can start over. But Trump is not a revolutionary who just happens to be an egomaniac. He is an egomaniac who says what his supporters want to hear so that they will bathe him in the adulation he pathologically craves. He isn't doing this to make people's lives better. As Lady Gaga sang, he lives for the applause. He decided early on that racism, bigotry and xenophobia would be major planks in his platform. He rails against losing American jobs to China, although that's where his garish Donald J. Trump neckties are made. He invites Russian cyberwarriors to interfere with our election process by hacking into Clinton's emails. He refuses to learn anything about domestic or foreign policy, offering nothing but patriotic slogans and some desultory "plans" with numbers that don't remotely add up. I'll enjoy having the luxury of four years to explore the complex societal factors that led to the rise and fall of the Trump phenomenon. But first things first: We have to make sure it falls. Which means we have to make it through the next three weeks. The passage of days will indeed be painful. As Clinton extends her lead in most of the swing states that will decide the election and even challenges in reliably red states such as Utah, Arizona and Georgia Trump becomes increasingly unmoored from reality. On Monday morning, he took to Twitter to make such pronouncements as: "Can't believe these totally phoney [sic] stories, 100% made up by women (many already proven false) and pushed big time by press, have impact!" And: "Of course there is large scale voter fraud happening on and before election day. Why do Republican leaders deny what is going on? So naive!" And: "WikiLeaks proves even the Clinton campaign knew Crooked mishandled classified info, but no one gets charged? RIGGED!" He was referring to the highly credible claims by numerous women that Trump groped or kissed them against their will, which he bragged about doing on the now-famous "Access Hollywood" tape; his own unsubstantiated, indeed wholly imaginary, claims of voter fraud; and his unrequited wish for some kind of smoking gun in the hacked emails released by WikiLeaks. Trump isn't campaigning, he's flailing. Three more weeks. We have another debate to survive, though I can't imagine at this point why either candidate would look forward to the experience. Trump lost the first two encounters, according to every scientific poll, which means he probably will lose the third as well. And Clinton could have a more meaningful policy discussion with an Irish setter. We are a resilient nation. We have survived worse, though perhaps not weirder. Soon we get to tell an unfunny clown what we think of his act. Eugene Robinson's email address is eugenerobinson@washpost.com. He writes for The Washington Post Writers Group. Steve Barnes' Table Hopping blog marks its 10-year anniversary on Wednesday, Oct. 19. At 2:15 p.m., to be exact. With more than 15,000 posts and 187,000-plus comments, it's the most widely-read food and restaurant blog in the Capital Region. Read more at http://blog.timesunion.com/tablehopping/ Deadline Friday for high school musical entries If you want to be considered for the inaugural High School Musical Theatre Awards for the Capital Region, your time is almost up. Interested schools only have until Friday to apply for the local awards, presented by partners the School of Performing Arts at Proctors and the Times Union, in association with the Broadway League, taking place at Proctors Theatre in Schenectady at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 20. Winners of the best actor and best actress awards will go on to represent Proctors and the Capital Region at the National High School Musical Theatre Awards ceremony, at Manhattan's Minskoff Theatre, on Monday, June 26. They will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to New York, where they will receive professional instruction and compete with students from other regional programs for the title of best national high school actor and actress. A panel of judges will review productions at registered schools, nominating participants in 10 categories, including best ensemble, best student orchestra, best supporting actor and actress. For more information, visit http://proctors.org.hs Film shines 'Light' on 'House' "Breathing Lights" is not only a temporary art installation in Albany, Troy and Schenectady that literally illuminates vacant homes and buildings in those cities at night; it's now also a film promoter of sorts. Opalka Gallery has teamed up with WMHT Educational Telecommunications and the PBS documentary series "POV" to present a screening of "Herman's House" at the gallery at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27. "Herman's House" tells the story of New Orleans native and former Black Panther Herman Wallace, who went to jail in 1967 for a robbery he committed, and then placed in solitary confinement for 40 years starting in 1972 for killing a prison guard, which he denies doing. Artist Jackie Sumell met with Wallace to ask what kind of house a man living decades in a small jail cell would dream of. Director Angad Singh Bhalla eventually filmed this unlikely and unique collaboration. Following the film, "Breathing Lights" lead architect and executive director of TAP Inc. Barbara Nelson will be joined by Anthony Farley, professor of jurisprudence at Albany Law School, and Karen Murtagh, executive director of Prisoners' Legal Services of New York, to discuss the film, the criminal justice system and art as action. Opalka Gallery is located at Sage College of Albany, 140 New Scotland Ave., Albany. Admission to the film screening and discussion is free. For more information, call 292-8607 or email griffa@sage.edu. Dem 'Bones' connected to Hubbard Hall Hubbard Hall and host Kelvin Keraga once again team up for a Halloween storytelling fundraiser to benefit Hubbard Hall's Arts Education Scholarship Programs. "Whispering Bones" will take place 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29, on the hall's mainstage. The evening of ghost stories and scary tales told by some of the region's best storytellers will raise money to ensure that no student at Hubbard Hall is ever turned away from a class based on financial limitations. This year's featured cast includes: Siri Allison, Barbara Chepaitis, Stephanie Moffett-Hynds, Erin Ouellette, Tony Pallone and Catherine Seeley. General admission tickets are $10, student tickets are $5. For more information, call 677-2495 or visit http://hubbardhall.org C.J. Lais Jr. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate BRUNSWICK Police are investigating the "possible connection" of a man killed in Troy Monday and the body of a second man found in a Cropseyville creek Tuesday, Rensselaer County Sheriff Patrick Russo said. Both deaths have been ruled homicides. The peaceful evening air on Blue Factory Hill Road was shattered by a screech Tuesday night when a woman walking her dog spotted a man's body in the creek below. "Dogs were barking and the woman was screaming," a neighbor said. Russo said the body of a Hispanic male was pulled from the Blue Factory Creek and an autopsy is being performed Wednesday afternoon. Russo said the body hasn't been identified yet but it is suspected the man was connected to the Troy homicide victim. County Sheriff evidence technicians have arrived on scene, focusing in on one spot. Watch the video, shot through binoculars: pic.twitter.com/Vp7HijuSnr Emily Masters (@emilysmasters) October 19, 2016 Javier Gomez, a 23-year-old native of Mexico, was found dead Monday in his East Glen Avenue apartment, Troy police spokesman Capt. Daniel DeWolf said. Neighbors said Gomez's throat was cut and he was lying in a pool of blood when they responded to a family member's screams upon finding his body. They said they had heard people running down the stairs of the second floor apartment earlier in the day. Russo and DeWolf declined to comment on the cause of death for either victim or the evidence collected at the scenes. Rensselaer County District Attorney Joel Abelove visited the crime scenes the nights both investigations began, spokesman John Desso said. Abelove routinely visits death investigation scenes where foul play is suspected, Desso said. The woman who spotted the body in Brunswick called 911, a neighbor said. Numerous police vehicles arrived soon after, and remained through the night and into the morning. The body was found along the Blue Factory Creek, which runs into the Quacken Kill. There is no running water in the creek because of this year's drought and the water is covered in fallen leaves. A still active crime scene here. Sheriff's deputies are investigating a man's "suspicious death." His body was found at about 6pm Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/qKReqT0LGa Emily Masters (@emilysmasters) October 19, 2016 Investigators knocked on neighbors' doors overnight for permission to search local farmland for clues. Evidence technicians from the State Police and the Sheriff's Office crouched in the wooded area between the creek and the roadway's guard rail midday Wednesday. Blue Hill Factory Road has been closed and cordoned off between Route 2 and South Road since the investigation began about 6 p.m. Tuesday. SARATOGA SPRINGS - Broadway's beauty is a token of yesterday's splendor shown in pictures from the early 19th century. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate On Warrant Wednesday, the State Police issued the following notices of outstanding arrest warrants, including a warrant for a man wanted in Colonie for allegedly stealing jewelry and family heirlooms he sold at a pawn shop. William A. Conway, 30, is wanted on charges of criminal sale and possession of a controlled substance. He is wanted by the State Police on an arrest warrant out of Moriah Town Court for the alleged sale of heroin. Shawn M. Vetrano, 41, is wanted by State Police for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend in front of their child May 27 in Richfield Springs. Accused of child endangerment, menacing and harassment, Vetrano is wanted on a town court warrant. Derren M. Brooks, 31, is wanted in the town of Alabama for an arrest warrant that alleges he violated an order of protection on Nov. 24. State Police said he has not been seen since the incident. Kiley Cahoon, 23, is wanted out of the city of Rochester for allegedly she possessed a small amount of a controlled substance. The incident stems from a September arrest. Maddison B. Hartsfield, 20, is wanted by State Police in Poughkeepsie on forgery charges. The charges stem from a July arrest where troopers accused Hartsfield of stealing, forging and cashing checks from a former employer. Troopers said she failed to appear in court for a September appearance. Timothy M. Cooperider, 35, is wanted by State Police in Colonie for allegedly pawning jewelry and other heirlooms that troopers said he took while working for a storage company. A Guilderland town justice issued warrant for Cooperider in December. Troopers said he was last known to be living at Second Street in Albany. Sammy Lee, 27, is wanted in Cicero Town Court for allegedly stealing items from a home in the town and then selling the items at a pawn shop. The arrest warrant was issued on Sept. 28. Olawale Akingboyle, 21, is wanted by State Police on Long Island for charges of criminal impersonation, unlicense operation of a motor vehicle and traffic violations. Akingboyle was stopped on the Southern State Park in 2015 and given tickets. An arrest warrant was subsequently issued in Nassau County First District Court, troopers said. Jeremy B. Arias, 22, a passenger in a car allegedly involved in an chase in the town of Montgomery is wanted by State Police. On June 14, troopers tried to stop the vehicle on Interstate 84 for alleged speeding. The driver took off, hitting a police car while driving through the median. State Police said Arias was a passenger in the car and knew it was stolen. Troopers said a bench warrant was issued for his arrest after he failed to appear in Wallkill Town Court. Erika R. Gomez, 35, is wanted on a bench warrant for alleged drunken driving. State Police said was drunken when she was involved in a car crash on June 15, 2008. State Police in Tarrytown said the crash occurred on the Thruway. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate New York Sexual assault survivors and other women sat on the sidewalk outside Trump Tower during a Manhattan protest on Tuesday. Organizers say the protest, which also emphasized the concerns of immigrants and women of color, was one of a series being held nationwide. About 200 women, dressed in black, participated in the half-hour protest. Most of them sat on the sidewalk. Police stood by but did not intervene. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump lives in Trump Tower and runs his campaign there. He campaigned in Colorado on Tuesday. A spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a comment request. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Baghdad On the eerily quiet streets of Mosul, fighters from the Islamic State group are killing suspected spies, blocking roads and planting bombs ahead of a showdown with Iraqi forces. Residents who have endured more than two years of militant rule describe a city under siege, and they say a new sense of terror has set in since Iraq announced the start of a long-anticipated operation to liberate its second-largest city. Three residents who spoke with The Associated Press by telephone described a ghost town where people only venture out to buy basic goods that are increasingly running low. They said large groups of IS militants have left the city in recent weeks, but those who remain have become increasingly brutal, killing anyone suspected of trying to communicate with the outside world. For that reason, the residents spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing for their safety. "The situation inside Mosul is terrifying," said one of them, a merchant. He said he has stocked food, water and cooking gas for 40 days and bought an oven to bake bread. IS released a propaganda video Tuesday showing bustling streets in Mosul, with residents going about their business, with one grilling meat over open coals, and saying all is well. The individuals who spoke to the AP painted a very different picture. They say IS militants patrol Mosul's streets on bicycles or motorbikes to make for smaller targets from the air. Other fighters are preparing for war by closing roads with sand berms and concrete walls, and readying barrels of oil and tires to set ablaze in order to obscure the visibility of warplanes from the U.S.-led coalition. The extremists also have grown increasingly paranoid and violent. On Sunday evening, a resident said the fighters shot a man twice in the head in front of his family and neighbors. His crime: possession of a SIM card for a cellphone. A few days earlier, five men accused of spying were killed by a firing squad in a public square. Mosul is completely dark at night because IS forbids the use of any generators, fearing the lights could draw airstrikes. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Colonie A $2 million expansion will give the region's low-income residents more access to fresh produce and dairy products, officials hope. The Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York recently began expanding the distribution and office areas at its Albany Shaker Road warehouse. The 62,000-square-foot facility, which employs 65 and receives more than 112,000 pounds of items each day, had become so cramped that a hiring freeze was put in place and storage space was almost nonexistent, Executive Director Mark Quandt said. The lack of space also limited the food bank's ability to distribute fresh produce, which spoils more quickly than frozen and normally less-healthy food. The expansion will allow the food bank to triple the type and amount of produce immediately available to the 1,000 agencies it supplies. The ability to move more fresh food will also cause less waste, as backlogged products won't spoil awaiting pickup. "The new area is going to be a godsend for us," Quandt said. Since the 2008 recession, Quandt said the food bank, which unlike a pantry or soup kitchen distributes to agencies rather than individuals, saw local needs skyrocket. Though the sharp increases did taper around 2011, he said, needs have not necessarily decreased. He couldn't say if the need for expansion, paid for though fundraising efforts, is a good or bad thing, but did note that the food bank has received donations at a higher rate than ever before. "I don't view it as good or bad," he said. "I just see it as the reality we face right now." "In a very broad way, it's unfortunate that so many people are hungry," he said. But the expansion, which was precipitated by an overflow of food and employees, is a "recognition that we have a very generous community." Increasingly, poor Americans have relied on charitable organizations for food. In 2015, 42 million Americans including 13 million children lived in food insecure households, according to Feeding America, the national network of food banks. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. Fluctuating gas prices and other seemingly insignificant changes have direct consequences for those unable to spare a few extra dollars in income, Quandt said. A 2014 Feeding America report found that nearly half of those who use local food assistance programs were considered working poor, meaning their wages were not enough to lift them out of poverty. About 43 percent were white, 26 percent were African-American and 20 percent were Latino, the study found. Funds for the project were raised by the food bank. rdownen@timesunion.com 518-454-5018 @robert_downen Albany Facing pressure from state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to reveal whether multi-trillion dollar oil reserves could be at risk under climate change regulations, energy giant ExxonMobil wants a Texas federal court to block his probe. In legal papers filed Monday in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas, Exxon is claiming Schneiderman is part of a conspiracy to silence climate change dissenters and cites emails obtained by a conservative legal think tank linked to fossil fuel interests and Kansas petrochemical billionaires Charles and David Koch. Schneiderman and Exxon are at odds over an August subpoena served on PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accounting firm for Exxon, seeking details on how Exxon values reserves of oil and natural gas currently in the ground. This came after Schneiderman and 19 other state attorneys general in March announced an investigation into Exxon for its internal science on connections between greenhouse gas emissions and man-made climate change. This spring, Exxon added about $800 billion in value to its known reserves, bringing the total to nearly $3 trillion, which could last for 16 years at current production rates, according to company filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Schneiderman is investigating whether Exxon is misleading investors on risks that reserves could be devalued through potential regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by reducing fossil fuel use. On Friday, Scheiderman filed in state Supreme Court to force Exxon's accountant to release records, which were due in early September, and that the company now claims are nearly all legally confidential as privileged communications. He noted that other energy companies have reduced known reserves values to reflect potential greenhouse gas emissions reductions, which the U.S., Europe, China and other major industrialized countries agree are needed to prevent potential runaway climate change. Said Schneiderman spokeswoman Amy Spitalnick, "As we've seen for months, Exxon will do everything in its power to distract, delay, and avoid any investigation into its actions, which may have violated state securities and consumer fraud laws. Exxon's latest claims in its stunt litigation in Texas are meritless." In July, the Texas chairman of the congressional Committee on Science, Space and Technology, Rep. Lamar Smith, subpoenaed Schneiderman's office for his records of his investigation into Exxon, which the attorney general refused to provide. The fossil fuel industry is the dominant source of Smith's campaign contributions, according to the opensecrets.com web site. On Monday, an Exxon press statement accused Scheiderman of "improper political bias" to support an "agenda for financial gain" that was not specified. Exxon also claimed the multi-state investigation was a "conspiracy" meant to "suppress speech" and "delegitimize" the company. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. Other states in the investigation include Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maryland, Virginia, California, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and the District of Columbia, as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands. The group is also defending proposed federal rules over power plant greenhouse gas emissions from a court challenge by states aligned with fossil fuel interests. Exxon claimed bias because of a meeting Schneiderman and other state attorneys general had this spring with environmental groups, including the Union of Concerned Scientists, a scientific advocacy group that supports the international scientific consensus linking fossil fuel emissions and climate change. Emails outlining the meeting were obtained through a Freedom of Information law request made in Vermont by the Energy & Environment Legal Institute, a not-for-profit conservative think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. The group has financial and staffing links to the fossil fuel industry and the Koch brothers, who have been involved in national and state efforts to roll back climate and energy regulations. In New York, another Koch-supported group, Americans for Prosperity, lost a legal challenge to undo the state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which limits power plant emissions, in 2012. Schneiderman defended the state in that case. bnearing@timesunion.com 518-454-5094 @Bnearing10 In the worst-kept secret in Capital Region restaurant circles this fall, there have been significant and in my view detrimental changes at Salt & Char, the pricey steakhouse that opened in Saratoga Springs over the summer to great fanfare, including much from me, as a result of the involvement of the internationally acclaimed chef Gray Kunz. Kunz, who is a financial partner in Salt & Char and its parent company, The Adelphi Hospitality Group, would say little on the matter. He told me, "I'm focusing on the Adelphi," the historic hotel next door to Salt & Char, on Broadway in downtown Saratoga, that Kunz and partners are gut-renovating for a spring opening. The hotel will have a bar, all-day dining and a brasserie. Salt & Char is now being run by its general manager, Christophe Chatron-Michaud, and its executive chef, Braden Reardon. While Kunz would not address the matter directly, I'm comfortable saying, based on interviews with about 10 people who are current or former employees or are otherwise familiar with the inner workings of the restaurant, that Kunz has not set foot in Salt & Char for more than a month. Although he still gets his own page on the restaurant's website, under the "chef" tab, Kunz is no longer involved in the restaurant, sources said. Most significantly, he had nothing to do with the fall dinner menu, which to me looks dumbed-down and far more generically Traditional Steakhouse than the Kunz-developed opening menu. Where there was once a small but diverse list of eight appetizers, the new menu has 15, many yawningly predictable. Seriously, a kale Caesar? Among other new additions: shrimp cocktail, French onion soup, crab cake and oysters Rockefeller. In a nod to off-season wallets and upstate tastes, there are now two pasta dishes ($24 spaghetti Bolognese, anyone?), plus three fish entrees, one vegetarian, one chicken and one pork. The steaks seem largely the same, with the addition of a $29, 8-ounce hanger. (Otherwise, steaks average nearly $58.) The changes were the result of a battle between Kunz and his business partners, according to my interviews. In an effort to lower food costs and unknown to Kunz, the restaurant sometimes ordered cheaper food that violated the fresh-local-seasonal mandate originally set down by Kunz and articulated on the restaurant's "philosophy" page, which starts with this: "We at Salt & Char are committed to supporting local farmers that follow organic and sustainable farming practices in all phases of operations." For example, I saw photos of tomatoes from Mexico in the Salt & Char cooler during late August peak season for local tomatoes. I've also seen photos of slabs of beef clearly stamped "choice," when the steaks, according to the menu, are prime and wagyu, as well as photos of bags of frozen vegetables. (The photos' authenticity was confirmed by four former employees, one current staff member and one supplier, all of whom said they saw the same or similar things at the restaurant.) Every source I spoke to, none of whom would talk on the record, as they feared reprisal, said the cost-cutting changes and use of inferior ingredients infuriated Kunz. Staff loyal to him were let go or quit in protest; I'm told between a third and a half of the kitchen staff didn't survive track season, and there also was churn among front-of-house employees. Management at five area restaurants told me they've received applications from former Salt & Char staff, who described fleeing an atmosphere riven by dissent. Toby Milde, president of Richbell Capital, which has The Adelphi Hospitality Group among its holdings, angrily dismissed the allegations of turmoil and a change in food philosophy when we talked several weeks ago. He attributed them to disgruntled former employees who were fired for inferior performance or let go as part of downsizing necessitated by the transition to a slower fall season. He repeatedly emphasized that Kunz remains a financial partner in the hospitality group. Reardon said Wednesday the nonlocal tomatoes were a one-time ordering mistake, not representative of a conscious decision to save money on food cost. Four sources dispute his characterization. Reardon said the restaurant remains committed to local sourcing. He said the menu changes were the result of an effort to broaden the restaurant's appeal. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. What's sad about this to say nothing of being confusing and possibly deceptive for patrons paying at least $100 apiece for dinner is what appears to be a quick abandonment of some of the founding principles of a distinctive restaurant that opened at a high level and was guided by a world-class chef with a four-decade commitment to a top-notch dining experience. (While running the kitchen at the former Lespinasse in Manhattan during the 1990s, Kunz held four stars from The New York Times for nine years. Reviewing Salt & Char in August for the Times Union, Susie Davidson Powell gave it four stars.) Changes started after less than two months, which surely cannot be enough time to gauge financial viability and longterm customer patterns especially when those first months were during summer in Saratoga. But this, alas, is a familiar story in the restaurant world: Property developers have the money and the desire for the cachet of an upscale restaurant without full understanding of the realities of the hospitality business; they need chefs; and there's a reason most chefs aren't as rich as property developers. Here's hoping Kunz can work things out with his partners to build and maintain in the Adelphi brasserie a restaurant that reflects his talents and principles. sbarnes@timesunion.com 518-454-5489 @Tablehopping http://facebook.com/SteveBarnesFoodCritic Washington Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's name had long circulated on alleged short lists of Hillary Clinton vice-presidential possibilities, but the New York junior senator's presence among the hopefuls won official recognition Tuesday as one of 39 mentioned on a hacked email. The Clinton campaign's consideration of Gillibrand was confirmed in one of the hacked WikiLeaks emails of campaign chairman John Podesta, which lists Gillibrand among the 39 hopefuls. Podesta said in the March 17 email to Clinton: "I have organized names in rough food groups." Those "groups" were defined by gender, race and ethnicity as well as military or business background. He described the list as a "first cut." Gillibrand's name was in a cluster of women, all Democratic senators. Among the other names: Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin. Gillibrand spokesman, Marc Brumer, said the senator would have no comment on her name being on the purloined Podesta list. The email was part of a trove hacked from the Gmail address of Podesta and turned over to WikiLeaks. Senior government officials have said they are almost certain that hackers in Russia penetrated Podesta's account. Russian hacking and possible links to Russian President Vladimir Putin or his inner circle have become a 2016 campaign issue, with GOP candidate Donald Trump saying it's uncertain who is responsible and Clinton casting doubt on Trump's relations with Putin and business dealings in Russia. Ultimately Clinton picked a Senate colleague, Tim Kaine, D-Va., but the listing confirmed her arrival at the upper echelon of young Democrats with a potential future on the national stage. As a VP pick, Gillibrand would have been the bookend of a two-woman ticket. "Gillibrand will one day make a strong candidate for national office because she's really smart, hard-working and has very little political baggage," said Lawrence Levy, director of the Center for Suburban Studies at Hofstra University. "But there was not much chance she was going beyond the 39 as a running mate to another New Yorker." Although Clinton hails from suburban Chicago and never lived in New York before her successful Senate run in 2000, she resides in Chappaqua in Westchester County with her husband, former President Bill Clinton. Gillibrand is an Albany native. In picking a running mate, "the candidate observes the Hippocratic Oath to do no harm, but once beyond that they want to know what a VP pick can do to help," said Levy. "Tim Kaine is a moderate from a state that is part of the Clinton firewall. Another New Yorker wouldn't broaden electoral map at all." For a time last summer, speculation focused on Warren and the feasibility of a two-woman ticket. Warren refused to respond to a query from CNN, but Brumer told the network: "Sen. Gillibrand thinks two women on the ticket clearly would be a fantastic idea." Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. Gillibrand may not have brought much geographical or cultural diversity to the ticket. But she and Kaine did share one advantage: Serving in the Senate from home states with Democratic governors who would appoint successors if Clinton won the election. At age 49, Gillibrand has carved out a name for herself on specific issues she finds compelling. Chief among them is the scourge of sexual assault in the military and on campus. But she's also at home on more wonky issues such as dairy price supports for upstate farmers. "She'll make a terrific candidate for national office someday, but not with another New Yorker at the top of the ticket," said Levy. dan@hearstdc.com INVESTOR ALERT: Goldberg Law PC Announces an Investigation of Banc of California, Inc. and Advises Investors with Losses to Contact the Firm Goldberg Law PC announces that it is investigating Banc of California, Inc. ("Banc of California" or the "Company") (NYSE: BANC) concerning possible violations of federal securities laws. If you purchased or otherwise acquired Banc of California shares and would like more information regarding the investigation, we advise you to contact Michael Goldberg or Brian Schall, of Goldberg Law PC, 1999 Avenue of the Stars Suite 1100, Los Angeles, CA (News - Alert) 90067, at 800-977-7401, to discuss your rights without cost to you. You can also reach us through the firm's website at http://www.Goldberglawpc.com, or by email at [email protected]. This investigation focuses on whether Banc of California and certain of its officers and/or directors violated federal securities laws. On October 18 2016, Seeking Alpha published an article alleging that certain Banc of California insiders had undisclosed ties to individuals accused of involvement with the collapse of Gerova Financial. If you have any questions concerning your legal rights, please immediately contact Goldberg Law PC at 800-977-7401, or visit our website at http://www.Goldberglawpc.com, or email us at [email protected]. Goldberg Law PC represents shareholders around the world and specializes in securities class actions and shareholder rights litigation. This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161018006790/en/ [October 18, 2016] Rue La La Announces E-Commerce Capabilities in China BOSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Rue La La, an innovative e-commerce destination known for connecting world-class brands with the next-generation shopper, announces it is now connecting world-class brands with customers across China. Rue La La will expand its reach to Members in China and throughout 219 countries and territories, offering them women's and men's fashion, home decor, accessories, and more. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160211/332479LOGO With Rue La La, Members can shop designer brands like UGG, TOD's, Valentino, and Chloe at pricing of up to 70% off. Each day, new styles are added to the shopping site. Inventory is limited and sales run for a short time. "We're excited to extend Rue La La to China. Providing phenomenalexperiences while serving up great brands at amazing values is what Rue does so well in the United States. It's thrilling to be able to share our brand and capabilities with a new audience," said Mark McWeeny, CEO, Rue La La. Members in China and outside of the U.S. will be able to shop the site via desktop and mobile desktop. To celebrate the launch in China, Members will receive subsidized shipping of $9.95 on orders of $100 or more. Membership to Rue La La is always complimentary. To become a Member, log on to www.ruelala.com. A prompt for an email address and password begins your shopping experience. About Rue La La Rue La La strives to be the most engaging off-price, online style destination connecting world-class brands with the next generation shopper. ?Each day, Rue La La Members discover the most desired men's, women's, and children's apparel and accessories; home decor and accents; and exclusive destinations and experiences. ?Rue La La's engaging approach to retail has brought theater and excitement to online shopping, creating a captivating e-commerce destination that strategically supports its brand partners and inspires its Members daily. ?Rue La La is ranked #8 on Internet Retailer's 2016 Mobile 500 List. Visit us at www.ruelala.com. ?? Contacts: Trisha Spillane Rue La La 617-790-3666 [email protected] [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] By PTI: Mumbai, Oct 19 (PTI) A dozen workers of MNS were today arrested for protesting against the upcoming release of filmmaker Karan Johars "Ae Dil Hain Muskhil" as the party rejected his statement that he will not "engage with talent" from Pakistan in future. The workers from MNS film unit Maharashtra Navnirman Chitrapat Karmachari Sena were protesting and raising slogans outside Metro Cinema in South Mumbai. advertisement The Raj Thackeray-led party has asked the theatre management not to hold any show of "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. The MNS had given a written appeal to the theatre management urging them not to show the movie as it features a Pakistani actor. The party workers also raised slogans outside the theatre, police officials said. "We arrested 12 MNS activists and booked them under relevant sections of Maharashtra Police Act and also CrPC," Senior Inspector of Azad Maidan Police Station Vijay Kadam told PTI. They were produced before a local court which granted them cash bail of Rs 5,000 each in the case (carrying out procession without permission) under the Police Act. The MNS activists were also booked under the CrPC section 151 (3) (arrest to prevent the commission of cognisable offences) in which they did not get any relief and sent to judicial custody till November 4. Seeking to calm tempers over opposition to the release of his directorial venture, Johar had yesterday made a fervent appeal against stalling the release, saying he will not engage with talent from Pakistan in future. However, MNS said reality has dawned late on Johar. MNS cine wing head Amey Khopkar, after a meeting with senior party leaders and Raj Thackeray, said they were firm on opposing the release. "We will not allow the film to be screened in single screens and multiplexes. Reality has dawned late on the producer," Khopkar said. The MNS and some other political parties have opposed release of films with actors from Pakistan after the Uri terror attack, putting a question mark on the fate of Johars movie, slated for release on October 28. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India, too, decided not to screen films with Pakistani actors in four states -- Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. A team from Johars Dharma Productions along with filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt and Vijay Singh of Fox Star Studios had yesterday met Mumbais top police officials and sought protection for the theatres to screen the film. Deputy Commissioner of Police Ashok Dudhe had said, "Mumbai police will provide adequate protection to cinema theatres." PTI DC MR ND GK BK RSY RG --- ENDS --- advertisement [October 18, 2016] KeepTrax Announces Issuance of a Broad U.S. Technology Patent for its Innovative Mobile Location Platform HYDERABAD, India and DALLAS, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- KeepTrax, Inc., a Naya Venture portfolio company specializing in Location-as-a-Service, today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ('USPTO') has issued U.S. Patent 9,432,944 for determining whether a mobile device user is substantially stationary within a geo-fence. This patent broadly protects the methods used by KeepTrax that leverage mobile device sensors to efficiently deduce a user's motion state to trigger actions such as location data capture, content delivery, and other field-oriented requirements. "We are pleased that this latest patent issuance covers the core technology underlying the KeepTrax location capture and curation platform," said Kedar Benegal, Founder and CEO of KeepTrax. "This fundamental patent covers not only current market applications of our technology, but establishes a precedent for other patent applications that have been submitted on our portfolio of next-generation automatic journaling, tracking, geo-profiling, and location-based machine learning solutions." The patent issuance reinforces that KeepTrax is on the leading edge of location-based services and motion-sensing technology. KeepTrax today offers a range of solutions including: KeepTrax fo Field Management: A solution specifically for field force/sales force management, this version allows integration with client and sales prospect databases to develop rich field visit histories, and also real-time tracking, messaging, and monitoring features. Captured data can be easily shared with peers and managers in real-time, and integrates seamlessly with standard CRM solutions. KeepTrax for Travel: A travel-optimized version of KeepTrax that allows travel companies ( travel agencies, airlines, hoteliers, etc.) to deliver branded location journaling solutions to their customers. The offering includes base KeepTrax features and more advanced sharing and travelogue capabilities. In addition to allowing travel companies to offer advanced journaling to their travellers, the solution also provides rich data capture and curation capabilities to develop insights to help better understand user behaviors and preferences. KeepTrax SDK: Advanced APIs and iOS, Android and Web SDKs available to developers that want to integrate KeepTrax features and functions into their own apps and sites. In addition to pin capture and curation (name, dates, times, locations, photos, calendar, etc.), the platform offers advanced reporting and analytics tools and capabilities for a range of use cases and geo-profile development. About KeepTrax: Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, KeepTrax is backed by Hyderabad-based Venture Capital firm Naya Ventures. KeepTrax has developed an innovative Location-as-a-Service platform that leverages GPS and other mobile device sensors to convert physical location visits into context-rich digital pins. The technology is being applied today to a range of use cases, from travel journaling and user geo-profile generation to field sales optimization and location-based insight development. To learn more about KeepTrax please visit http://www.keeptraxinc.com. Media Contact: David Novak Executive Vice President, Corporate Development Email: [email protected] Meenakshi K VP - Media Relations H&B Consulting Email: [email protected] Phone: +91-7702048735 [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] L&T Technology Services Inks Multi-Million Dollar Contract with Global Semiconductor Firm L&T Technology Services, a leading global provider of digital engineering solutions, announced that it has secured a new multi-year, multi-million dollar contract with a large global semi-conductor company to provide verification support on their expansive portfolio of offerings and products. This strategic tie-up between the two companies will enable the customer to strengthen its product offering and capitalize on market opportunities with superior quality products. "L&T Technology Services' focused effort on key customers is paying dividends. We have been awarded a multi-year partnership with one of the world's most respected technology companies. We will continue to provide cutting edge services and solutions to global customers," said Dr. Keshab Panda, CEO & Managing Director, L&T Technology Services. Over the years, L&T Technology Services continues to foster a strong culture of innovation, nurturing curiosity towards new technologies, and has worked with its customers and alliance partners to produce innovative suite of technology patents. With a track record of developing contemporary solutions and building products that are technologically advanced, L&T Tecnology Services is committed to offer state of the art technology to all its customers. About L&T Technology Services Limited: L&T Technology Services Limited is a subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro Limited with a focus on Engineering R&D Services servicing customers including a number of Fortune 500 companies globally. We provide ER&D services to manufacturing, technology and process engineering companies, to help them develop and build products, processes and infrastructure required to deliver products and services to their end customers. We offer design and development solutions throughout the entire product development chain across various Industry verticals such as industrial products, medical devices, transportation, telecom & hi-tech, and the process industry. The company also offers services and solutions in the areas of mechanical and manufacturing engineering services, embedded systems, software engineering and process engineering. For "new" technologies, we provide solutions and services in the areas of product life cycle management, engineering analytics, power electronics, M2M connectivity and the Internet-of-Things (IoT). With a multi-disciplinary vertical industry expertise and multi-domain presence, we help clients achieve an advantage through value engineering of existing products, processes and services. Headquartered in India, L&T Technology Services Limited has 9,406 employees, 12 global delivery centers in India and overseas, 27 sales offices in India, North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia and 31 labs in India as of March 31, 2016. For additional information about L&T Technology Services log on to www.lntTechservices.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005510/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] Campaign Monitor Unveils Email Marketing and Automation for Microsoft Dynamics Campaign Monitor, the leading provider of professional-grade email marketing and automation software for fast-growing businesses, today unveiled Campaign Monitor for Microsoft (News - Alert) Dynamics. Now every Microsoft Dynamics CRM customer has seamless integration with Campaign Monitor's leading email marketing and marketing automation solution. Professional marketers want sophisticated tools to create personalized email campaigns and automated customer journeys, without technical complexity. With Campaign Monitor for Microsoft Dynamics, every marketer can harness customer data to tailor communications, sending more targeted email marketing campaigns that drive customer engagement and revenue. "Microsoft Dynamics is the CRM of choice for hundreds of thousands of fast-growing companies worldwide," said Kraig Swensrud, CMO, Campaign Monitor, "With Campaign Monitor for Microsoft Dynamics, marketers are empowered to easily create branded and personalized email marketing campaigns that engage customers and drive business results." Campaign Monitor for Microsoft Dynamics brings powerful email marketig and marketing automation features to Microsoft Dynamics customers, including: An easy-to-use, drag-and-drop email builder to create visually stunning email campaigns Personalized 1:1 marketing campaigns with customer data from Microsoft Dynamics Professionally-designed email templates that work on any mobile device Sophisticated marketing automation to trigger customer journeys with CRM data Rich reporting around email campaign engagement to drive higher ROI Pricing and Availability Campaign Monitor for Microsoft Dynamics is generally available today on the Campaign Monitor App Store at no additional cost to customers. For more information visit www.campaignmonitor.com/microsoft. About Campaign Monitor Campaign Monitor is the leading provider of professional-grade email marketing and automation software for fast-growing businesses. With the simplicity of Campaign Monitor's drag-and-drop tools, more than two million customers at 200,000 companies worldwide, including Adidas, BuzzFeed, Chandon, Rip Curl, the San Diego Chargers, Topshop, Sephora, Vice Media and Virgin grow their business with powerful email marketing and marketing automation. Founded in 2004, Campaign Monitor has offices and 24/7 live support in 20 cities globally, including San Francisco, New York, London and Sydney. Learn more at www.campaignmonitor.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005473/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] Shipt to Launch Harris Teeter Grocery Delivery in Charlotte Shipt, an app-based grocery delivery service that serves 30 major metropolitan areas across the country, and Harris Teeter, a North Carolina-based supermarket chain, today announced an official partnership to offer grocery delivery from Harris Teeter in the Charlotte metro area. The partnership between Shipt and Harris Teeter began last year when the supermarket launched grocery delivery in the Research Triangle. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005719/en/ "One thing is very clear in the Charlotte region - people love Harris Teeter. By providing great groceries and focusing on customer satisfaction, Harris Teeter has established itself as one of the most well-respected brands in the region," said Bill Smith, founder and CEO of Shipt. "We look forward to deepening our relationship with Harris Teeter, and expanding the number of stores we shop throughout Charlotte. We are ready to bring the convenience of grocery delivery to more people, while also further investing in community initiatives focused on families and addressing hunger relief." Through Shipt's mobile or desktop app, members browse a full selection of grocery items available at their local Harris Teeter store andchoose a convenient one-hour delivery window. A Shipt Shopper visits the local store to hand pick and deliver the items to the member as soon as one hour after the order. For just $99 per year, Shipt members receive unlimited grocery deliveries on all orders over $35. Shipt does not utilize surge pricing, even for deliveries during peak times or holidays. To celebrate Shipt's partnership with Harris Teeter, Shipt is offering $25 in free groceries to annual members who sign up prior to the launch of Shipt in their area. Shipt displays an ongoing commitment to each community it serves. Locally, the company has worked with the Cam Newton Foundation, and will continue to identify opportunities to work with Harris Teeter's community initiatives. Shipt also will partner with local organizations that are dedicated to addressing hunger relief for families and children. "With Shipt, Harris Teeter is able to expand its delivery options beyond its current ExpressLane delivery. Shoppers now have a choice in how they get their groceries delivered to their doorstep," said Danna Robinson, communication manager for Harris Teeter. "We look forward to building upon our existing online grocery offering by partnering with Shipt." Leading up to the launch, Shipt will grow its existing network of shoppers and recruit additional shoppers to shop and deliver orders to Shipt members. To apply to be a Shipt Shopper, visit Shipt.com and click "Get Paid (News - Alert) to Shop." Grocery delivery will be available from more than 50 Harris Teeter stores in the Charlotte area. Shipt's Charlotte coverage includes the greater Charlotte metro area and surrounding communities of Concord, Mooresville, Cornelius, Mint Hill, Waxhaw, Lake Wylie, Stanley, Denver, Huntersville, Indian Trail, Matthews, and Weddington, as well as Fort Mill and Rock Hill, S.C. For more information, including an interactive map of the coverage area or to sign up for a membership, visit Shipt.com/Charlotte. About Shipt Shipt delivers fresh groceries from local grocery stores through a community of shoppers and a convenient app. Actively delivering to 30 cities across the country, Shipt is the nation's fastest growing online grocery marketplace. Shipt partners with leading grocery retailers and local stores to provide members with unparalleled convenience and exceptional service that simplifies the grocery shopping experience. Shipt offers unlimited grocery deliveries for $99 per year. The company has offices in Birmingham, Ala., and San Francisco. For more information, visit Shipt.com. About Harris Teeter Harris Teeter, with headquarters in Matthews, N.C., is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR). The regional grocery chain employs approximately 30,000 associates and operates stores in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Maryland, Delaware, Florida and the District of Columbia. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005719/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] Kimberly-Clark Professional Aims to Make Your Restrooms as Smart as the Rest of Your Building ROSWELL, Ga., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Kimberly-Clark Professional is harnessing the machine-to-machine connectivity of the Internet of Things to bring distribution sales professionals and their customers a smart restroom management system called Onvation Technology. The system provides up-to-the-minute monitoring of restroom conditions from any device or location, 24 hours a day. It will be introduced at ISSA/INTERCLEAN North America 2016, October 25-28, via a 360 virtual reality experience. "Buildings today are smarter than ever with sensors and software managing everything from lighting and security to HVAC systems and more," said Terry Sanchez, Marketing and Sales leader, Kimberly-Clark Professional, North America. "However, the restroom, which is one of the top three areas of tenant complaints, has been largely overlooked until now." The Onvation Difference Onvation Technology is a patent-protected system that delivers real-time data and alerts so building managers can identify and fix restroom problems before they become complaints. It can help: Cut costs and expenses Reduce waste and boost sustainability Optimize labor Enhance tenant satisfaction In addition to signaling whether dispensers are empty or full, Onvation Technology provides actionable data, analytics and insights that can help building managers better manage their businesses by gaining control of the restroom. 360 Virtual Reality Experience ISSA/INTERCLEAN attendees will be able to experience Onvation Technology first-hand at the Kimberly-Clark Booth, 2849. "Through virtual reality goggles, a 360 video and a unique environment within the booth, they will be able to see exactly how this smartrestroom management system works," Sanchez added. Onvation Technology delivers and relays information through a web-based dashboard that's accessible 24/7. Here's how it works: Connected sensors are embedded into proprietary towel, tissue, soap dispensers and door counters. Real-time data is sent to the cloud over a secure network. Automatic text messages alert building managers to product and battery levels, usage, jams and overall traffic. Remote confirmation is delivered when an issue has been resolved. The system enables building managers to reallocate resources to enhance productivity. "Instead of treating all restrooms equally, managers can assign staff to the areas that actually need service," Sanchez said. The system also can be used to make informed decisions about budgeting, planning and scheduling, so building managers can be proactive rather than reactive. "Seventy-three percent of tenants say a bad restroom signals poor management," Sanchez added. "When you consider that the typical office worker visits the restroom three to four times a day, that's more than 1.1 million annual opportunities to impress or disappoint. With Onvation Technology, building managers can make sure their restrooms measure up to the rest of their properties." To learn more about Onvation Technology and other Kimberly-Clark Professional offerings, click here or visit Booth 2849 at ISSA/INTERCLEAN North America 2016. About Kimberly-Clark Professional Kimberly-Clark Professional partners with businesses to create Exceptional Workplaces, helping to make them healthier, safer and more productive. Key brands in this segment include: Kleenex, Scott, WypAll, Kimtech and Jackson Safety. Kimberly-Clark Professional, located in Roswell, Georgia, is one of three Kimberly-Clark business sectors. To see how Kimberly-Clark Professional is helping people around the world to work better, please visit www.kcprofessional.com. About Kimberly-Clark Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB) and its well-known global brands are an indispensable part of life for people in more than 175 countries. Every day, nearly a quarter of the world's population trust Kimberly-Clark's brands and the solutions they provide to enhance their health, hygiene and well-being. With brands such as Kleenex, Scott, Huggies, Pull-Ups, Kotex and Depend, Kimberly-Clark holds No. 1 or No. 2 share positions in 80 countries. To keep up with the latest news and to learn more about the Company's 144-year history of innovation, visit www.kimberly-clark.com or follow us on Facebook or Twitter. [KMB-B] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110928/DA76879LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/kimberly-clark-professional-aims-to-make-your-restrooms-as-smart-as-the-rest-of-your-building-300347351.html SOURCE Kimberly-Clark Professional [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] Trend Micro Raises Bar with XGen Endpoint Security First to add high-fidelity machine learning to a blend of cross-generational threat defense techniques OTTAWA, Oct. 19, 2016 /CNW/ - Trend Micro Incorporated (TYO: 4704; TSE: 4704), a global leader in cybersecurity solutions, today announced the availability of XGen endpoint security. This new offering is powered by the XGen blend of cross-generational threat defense techniques that intelligently applies the right technology at the right time, resulting in more effective and efficient protection against a full range of threats. Trend Micro's unique approach uses proven methods to quickly identify benign data and known threats, freeing its advanced techniques, such as application control, exploit prevention, behavioral analysis and machine learning, to more quickly and accurately identify unknown threats. Trend Micro is the first to infuse 'high-fidelity' machine learning into its approach uniquely analyzing files both before execution and at runtime, using 'noise cancellation' features like census checking and whitelisting to reduce false positives. New threats appearing as rapidly as technology changes, but old threats continue to circulate and plague enterprises Endpoint security has evolved dramatically over the past 25 years. In the early days, nuisance malware or spam was the only concern. However, the booming underground hacker economy, ever-changing IT landscape and risky user behavior have given rise to an exponential growth in sophisticated threats like phishing, targeted attacks, mobile malware and now ransomware. Recently, a single ransomware variant compromised an estimated 100,000 cmputers per day1. These dynamic challenges, combined with the cumulative volume of attacks made worse with more than 500,000 new threats identified daily2 have made it harder than ever for organizations to stay protected. Despite promises by some security providers, time has shown that there is no silver bullet when it comes to defeating the myriad of cyber threats each new class of threat requires purpose-built protection techniques. "The name XGen was carefully chosen to indicate the cross-generational technology fueling our approach, which is built on years of experience and provides customers with better protection against the evolving range of threats they face," said Eva Chen, chief executive officer for Trend Micro. "We've been using machine learning for years as part of our global threat intelligence, the Trend Micro Smart Protection Network. Now, we're raising the bar by infusing 'high-fidelity' machine learning into our blend of protection techniques to specifically tackle more advanced threats like ransomware, while other vendors, including relatively new 'next-gen' endpoint security companies, only offer one or two 'one-size-fits-all' protection techniques." XGen endpoint security is available today as part of the Trend Micro Smart Protection Suites. The suites include a range of integrated endpoint, email and web gateway security capabilities designed to protect users in their daily activities, with centralized visibility and control to speed time to response for IT. With 28 years of experience and more than 155 million endpoints protected, Trend Micro continues to demonstrate its unwavering commitment to innovation in the area of endpoint security. "New threats are appearing as rapidly as technology changes, but old threats continue to circulate and plague enterprises," said Doug Cahill, Senior Analyst for ESG. "What comes next should embody a design that is multi-generational, based on an architecture that can transcend technology, threats and end-user computing behaviors. It's exciting to see that Trend Micro is addressing this challenge with the introduction of XGen endpoint security." Trend Micro has been named a leader in Gartner's Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms since 20023. In 2016, Trend Micro placed furthest to the right in the quadrant for Completeness of Vision. About Trend Micro Trend Micro Incorporated, a global leader in cybersecurity solutions, helps to make the world safe for exchanging digital information. Our innovative solutions for consumers, businesses and governments provide layered security for data centers, cloud environments, networks and endpoints. All our products work together to seamlessly share threat intelligence and provide a connected threat defense with centralized visibility and control, enabling better, faster protection. With over 5,000 employees in over 50 countries and the world's most advanced global threat intelligence, Trend Micro enables organizations to secure their journey to the cloud. For more information, visit www.trendmicro.com. 1 Ransomware Victims Urged To Report Infections To Federal Law Enforcement, September 15, 2016 https://www.ic3.gov/media/2016/160915.aspx 2 500,000 new threats identified daily as part of the Trend Micro Smart Protection Network http://cloudsecurity.trendmicro.com/us/technology-innovation/our-technology/smart-protection-network/index.html 3 Trend Micro positioned in Leaders Quadrant under the names Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection and Magic Quadrant for Enterprise Antivirus SOURCE Trend Micro Canada Technologies Inc. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] Beeks Financial Cloud Expands Global Network to Equinix HK1 IBX in Hong Kong Beeks Financial Cloud Ltd, a global leader in financial cloud infrastructure, announced today that the company has fully deployed its hosting, colocation, and low-latency connectivity offerings in Equinix's (News - Alert) International Business Exchange (IBX), located in HK1. The new location is Beeks' eighth data center worldwide and second in Asia, joining Equinix TY3 in Tokyo. With this expansion to Hong Kong, Beeks has created new opportunities to reach clients and brokers in China, offering secure and fast connectivity in an area where internet connections are often unstable. Hong Kong (HK1) to New York (NY4) dedicated fiber is already live and immediately available to Beeks clients. Additionally, Hong Kong (HK1) to London (LD4) will be available in November; Hong Kong (HK1) to Tokyo (TY3) will be available in December. All of this will allow Chinese brokers, banks, and trading firms to source and provide liquidity globally, plus expand the reach of international financial firms to transac business in China. "We've listened to our customers, and we're thrilled to now be able to offer them reliable connectivity and hosting in Hong Kong," said Victor Hendrix, Global Director of Sales & Marketing at Beeks Financial Cloud. "Our presence in HK1 will be extremely valuable to our customers as we continue to connect the globe and offer new opportunities to source liquidity." This announcement comes on the heels of another expansion for Beeks, as the company unveiled its brand new, state-of-the-art Network Operations Center (NOC (News - Alert)) at their headquarters in Glasgow, UK earlier this month. The Beeks NOC is a centralized location from which the company provides real-time monitoring of the health of its Global Financial Cloud. The company is currently in the process of recruiting 20 new staff to be based at the center. ABOUT BEEKS FINANCIAL CLOUD Beeks Financial Cloud is a UK-based low-latency service provider for institutional capital markets. With eight data centres globally and low-latency connectivity between sites, Beeks Financial Cloud focuses on reducing barriers to entry and time to market for institutional clients trading forex/futures and equities. For more information, visit: www.beeksfinancialcloud.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005833/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] PetSmart Acquires a Top Online Pet Adoption Platform, AllPaws, to Enhance Adoption Efforts PetSmart Inc., the largest pet specialty retailer and leading resource for pet adoption in North America, today announced it has acquired AllPaws, one of the largest online and mobile platforms that matches those looking to adopt a pet with pets ideally suited for their home, family and lifestyle. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. "Pet adoption is core to our purpose-driven business, and the acquisition of AllPaws offers a smart technology platform to accelerate our in-store adoption program even further," said Michael Massey, president and chief executive officer for PetSmart. "Our leadership role in pet adoption has led to a record-setting seven million pets adopted from our stores since we started the in-store adoption program in 1994. More than 3,000 current animal welfare partners -- plus thousands of additional rescues and shelters -- will be able to use AllPaws as a digital hub to promote adoptable pets, which we believe will result in even greater success in finding forever homes for pets across North America." Approximately 5,000 animal rescues and shelters across North America directly utilize AllPaws to promote their adoptable pets. Thousands more animal welfare organizations will be able to use the centralized PetSmart AllPaws platform to create, populate and update detailed profiles for adoptable pets to increase their exposure and chance of being adopted. Prospective pet parents can then use AllPaws to search for pets by various search categories such as breed, age, gender, energy level, training stage, temperament and geo-location in order to find the pet best suited for their home, family and lifetyle requirements. "We are thrilled to join the PetSmart family and to contribute to its mission of helping save pets' lives through adoption," said Darrell Lerner, AllPaws founder. "When we set out to develop AllPaws, we wanted to take a fresh and modern approach to pet adoption that combines a sophisticated, user-friendly functionality with deep social integration in order to connect prospective adopters with the best pet match possible. With PetSmart's scale and PetSmart Charities adoption program leveraging more than 1,470 stores that serve as adoption centers, we believe AllPaws has found its forever home with PetSmart." The AllPaws pet adoption platform -- free to all users -- offers a comprehensive solution on the web and a fun, engaging mobile application experience on iPhone (News - Alert). Its iPhone app is frequently the top ranked adoption app on iTunes and has grown nearly every month since its launch in 2014. The platform has strong traffic, typically averaging 800,000-900,000 visits per month. For every 30 seconds a PetSmart store is open, a pet is adopted, totaling 1,400 pets lives saved every day. Through these efforts, nearly 500,000 pets find forever homes every year. About PetSmart PetSmart, Inc. is the largest specialty pet retailer of services and solutions for the lifetime needs of pets. At PetSmart, we love pets, and we believe pets make us better people. Every day with every connection, PetSmart's passionate associates help bring pet parents closer to their pets so they can live more fulfilled lives. This vision impacts everything we do for our customers, the way we support our associates and how we give back to our communities. We employ approximately 53,000 associates, operate 1,477 pet stores in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico and 203 in-store PetSmart PetsHotel dog and cat boarding facilities. PetSmart provides a broad range of competitively priced pet food and pet products and offers dog training, pet grooming, pet boarding, PetSmart Doggie Day Camp day care services and pet adoption services in-store. Our portfolio of digital resources for pet parents - including PetSmart.com, PetFoodDirect.com, Pet360.com and petMD.com - offers the most comprehensive online pet supplies and pet care information in the U.S. Through our in-store pet adoption program with independent nonprofit organizations, PetSmart Charities and PetSmart Charities of Canada, PetSmart helps to save the lives of more than 500,000 homeless pets each year. About AllPaws AllPaws offers a fresh and modern approach to pet adoption that combines sophisticated online dating functionality and a deep social integration. Built by a team with deep roots in the online dating space, AllPaws has grown nearly every month since launch and has 850,000 registered users. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005975/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] Genesis DynaSpectrum Awarded Best of What's New by Popular Science LED powerhouse Lighting Science is proud to announce that their innovative biological LED lamp, the Genesis DynaSpectrum, has been named a Best of What's New 2016 product in the Home Category by Popular Science magazine. The magazine's yearly round-up reviews thousands of new products in the science, home and technology spheres to determine just 100 winners that represent "a significant step forward" in their respective category. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006064/en/ GENESIS DYNASPECTRUM AWARDED BEST OF WHAT'S NEW BY POPULAR SCIENCE (Photo: Business Wire) "The Best of What's New awards honor the innovations that shape the future," says Kevin Gray, Executive Editor, Popular Science. "From life-saving technology to incredible space engineering to gadgets that are just breathtakingly cool, this is the best of what's new." The Genesis DynaSpectrum is the world's first commercially-available luminire focused on improving the user's health and productivity. The Genesis emits a spectrum of light that mimics daylight and twilight to regulate the body's natural circadian rhythm 24/7. The lamp dynamically changes, with or without user interaction, between Lighting Science's biological LED spectrums, GoodDay - to enhance natural energy and focus - and GoodNight - to promote a healthy and restorative sleep. "Beware of the imitators who claim to achieve health & wellness, sleep, and productivity benefits using old fashioned 'color temperature' shifting methods," says Fred Maxik, Chief Technology Officer and founder of Lighting Science. "Our Genesis platform and its DynaSpectrum light engine is the first all-in-one HealthE lighting solution in the world. DynaSpectrum allows us to deliver a biologically-optimized spectrum of light for every time of the day - on demand." The Genesis DynaSpectrum technology is so effective at regulating circadian rhythms that NASA is installing a customized version on the International Space Station this fall, where astronauts experience 16 sunrises and sunsets every 24 hours. The Genesis also makes for the ideal desk light or bedside table lamp. On-board sensors monitor local air quality to assist in improved breathing, allergy-relief, cognitive function and sleep. The unit comes with multiple control options, an easy, app-based color/spectrum setting, and can be switched to auto-mode to sync GoodDay and GoodNight spectrums to your local time anywhere in the world. The November/December Best of 2016 issue of Popular Science is now available at newsstands everywhere. About Lighting Science Lighting Science (OTCQB:LSCG) is a global leader in innovative LED lighting solutions that designs, manufactures and brings to market advanced, intelligent products for consumer and commercial applications. We are committed to using the science of light to improve the lives and health of people and our planet by inventing breakthrough, biologically-friendly LED lamps and lighting fixtures. Lighting Science is headquartered in West Warwick, RI, with research and development facilities in Cocoa Beach, Florida, and offices in China. Find out more about us and our products at www.lsgc.com and join us on Facebook, Twitter (News - Alert), LinkedIn and the Lighting Science Blog. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006064/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] Anesthesia Business Consultants Unveils MACRA Made Easy Platform at ANESTHESIOLOGY 2016 Anesthesia Business Consultants (ABC), a leading provider in billing and practice management for the anesthesia and pain management specialty, is pleased to announce they will be attending the ANESTHESIOLOGY 2016 Annual Meeting in Chicago, IL, held this weekend October 22nd - 26th at the McCormick Place. This five-day event allows you to participate in world-class education presented by thought leaders in the specialty, enhance your professional skills and discover what's new in anesthesia care. ABC will be introducing its pioneering MACRA Made Easy platform which prepares our clients for the changes due to go into effect next year with the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), as part of CMS's Quality Payment Program. Fee-for-service has been the traditional methodology for reimbursements, but as CMS transitions to a pay-for-performance methodology, it is easy to get lost in the acronyms and the policy. ABC's MACRA Made Easy platform guides clients through the changes and provides a structured and practice-specific platform to ensure that a practice is not only protected from penalties, but puts itself in line for incentive payments. ABC has led the way with our proprietary Qualified Clinical Data Registry (QCDR) program and we will continue to provide that pathway to success for anesthesia and pain management providers. Tony Mira, President and CEO of ABC, states, "The theme at this year's ANESTHESIOLOGY 2016 is 'Leading the Future of Health Care,' which fits right in with ABC's QCDR program and our over-arching platform to guide our clients through the transition to the Quality Payment Program-MACRA Made Easy. The government's change from a fee-for-service model to a pay-for-performance methodology requires providers to track and maintain standardized metrics on their quality performance. QCDR reporting offers the greatest level of flexibility and alignment with anesthesia practices and is the recommended approach for all providers to comply with these governmental quality requirements. ABC can help usher you into the future of healthcare with our new QCDR and our MACRA Made Easy platform walks you through the steps." You can find ABC at Booth #4028 of the McCormick Place. About Anesthesia Business Consultants Anesthesia Business Consultants (ABC), established in 1979, is the nation's largest billing and practice management company dedicated to the complex and intricate specialty of anesthesia and pain management. The heart of our perioperative suite of products is ABC's proprietary practice management software F1RSTAnesthesia. Our newest tool is F1RSTClient, the premier client portal that allows clients' secure and seamless access to ABC's applications. F1RSTAnalytics, our powerful suite of dashboards and reports, provides "Insight at Your Fingertips" offering real-time data prowess and providing the data to aid in operating your anesthesia practice as an effective clinical organization and successful business. Our solutions provide accurate, prompt and complete billing and revenue cycle management. Our exclusive focus improves your cash flow and profitability. Visit ABC at: www.anesthesiallc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006067/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] The Indian Air Force chopper crashed near the Mana Pass in Uttarakhand, no casualties reported so far. By Manjeet Negi: An Indian Air Force helicopter today crashed near the Mana Pass in Uttarakhand during a military drill. No casualties have been reported so far in the accident. The Mi17 V5 helicopter crashed immediately after it took off from Ghastoli helipad near Mana Pass. The helicopter had two officers of the IAF and jawans of the 12 Grenadiers of the Indian Army on board. advertisement The accident took place when the army and the IAF were participating in a joint military exercise between the Mana Pass and Badrinath. Today's drill was part of week-long war exercise jointly conducted by the army and the air force along the India-China border. #FLASH IAF MI-17 v5 crashed after taking off frm north Badrinath.All crew safe,no damage to civil property.COI ordered. More details awaited ANI (@ANI_news) October 19, 2016 (Awaiting more updates) --- ENDS --- PRSA CEO, Joseph Truncale, to Speak at West Virginia University's INTEGRATE Conference Joseph P. Truncale, Ph.D., CAE, chief executive officer of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) will be offering advice to strategic communications professionals during West Virginia University's INTEGRATE Chicago conference. Truncale will present "The Adaptive Professional: A Look at the Rapidly Changing Requirements for the Public Relations/Strategic Communications Professional," on Wednesday, Nov. 2 in Chicago. Based on recent studies of thousands of public relations professionals working in a variety of settings and at various points in their careers, PRSA sought to identify how their role is changing. Truncale will offer insight into what organizations require of the public relations professional and how those skills integrate with other organizational operating units, as well as the skills that savvy professionals will add to their portfolio to ensure future relevance and enhance their ability to bring unique value to the stakeholders. "PRSA is proud to be a part of this career-fostering event," said Joseph P. Truncale, Ph.D., CAE, PRSA CEO. "As an association that strives to further the profession and the professional, I am happy to speak at our University Partner's event. We both share common goals of providing guidance and thought leadership to keep public relations and communications practitioners relevant and growing in their skill set." Truncale specializes in strategy, customer analysis and organizational effectiveness. For the first time, West Virginia University's INTEGRATE conference is traveling to the Midwest to provide professionals withthe latest integrated marketing communications techniques and strategies. The conference will be held in The Loop, one of Chicago's most vibrant neighborhoods featuring attractions for sightseers, foodies and night owls alike. WVU Reed College of Media's INTEGRATE Chicago will be held November 1-2 at Michigan Plaza and is hosted by the College's online Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) graduate program. After the success of holding INTEGRATE in Washington, D.C., last fall, the IMC program decided to expand the conference from its usual home in Morgantown, West Virginia, and make it available to their Midwest market in Chicago. INTEGRATE begins with a professional networking event the evening of Nov. 1, where attendees can meet peers from across the United States, and concludes at 4 p.m. on Nov. 2 with an agency tour of Energy BBDO after a day filled with top-level industry speakers. Additional speakers include J. Bryan Bennett, author of "Competing on Healthcare Analytics"; Clarissa Beyah-Taylor, vice president, Pepco Holdings Communications at Exelon; Andy Crestodina, co-founder and strategic director of Orbit Media; Andres Ordonez, chief creative officer at Energy BBDO; and Hugo Perez, executive vice president, global head of content and innovation at Zeno Group, The Content Factory. Click here for more information about WVU's INTEGRATE Chicago and how to register. About the Public Relations Society of America PRSA is the largest professional organization serving the U.S. public relations community. With a mission to "advance the profession and the professional," PRSA provides news and information, thought leadership, continuing education and networking opportunities; sets standards of professional excellence and ethical conduct; and advocates for the business value of public relations and greater diversity among public relations professionals. Based in New York, PRSA comprises 111 local Chapters; 14 Professional Interest Sections that focus on specific industries and practice areas; and the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), which is active at more than 340 colleges and universities. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006155/en/ [October 19, 2016] Top 4 Drivers Promoting Growth for the RFID Smart Cabinet Market, Reports Technavio Technavio analysts forecast the global radio-frequency identification (RFID) smart cabinet market to grow at an impressive CAGR of more than 14% during the forecast period, according to their latest report. The research study covers the present scenario and growth prospects of the global RFID smart cabinet market for 2016-2020. The market size is calculated on the basis of revenue generated from the sales of RFID smart cabinets. The report also presents major market vendors in the Americas, APAC, and EMEA. On an average, a hospital loses more than 15% of its assets in a year owing to fraud or misplacement of hospital supplies. In order to eliminate such losses and enhance time efficiency, hospitals are focusing on upgrading their infrastructure and incorporating RFID technology to keep track of their inventories. Therefore, the healthcare sector is the predominant end-user of RFID smart cabinets, accounting for 90%-95% of the revenue share in 2015. Request a sample report: http://www.technavio.com/request-a-sample?report=49852 Technavio's sample reports are free of charge and contain multiple sections of the report including the market size and forecast, drivers, challenges, trends, and more. Technavio hardware and semiconductor analysts highlight the following four factors that are contributing to the growth of the global RFID smart cabinet market: Growing need for inventory management in hospitals Rising government funding for hospitals Increasing healthcare spending Supply chain inefficiencies Growing need for inventory management in hospitals The use of RFID smart cabinets reduces manual efforts in maintaining, tracking, and managing inventory in hospitals. Smart cabinets also minimize loss and misplacement of supplies. RFID smart cabinets from LogiTag Systems enable hospital staff to track the status of medical devices being used by the patients, the access time of devices, and expiration date of supplies to manage costs. Advantages of RFID smart cabinets Enable accurate, real-time tracking at item level Help nurses focus on patient care rather than inventory records Reduce inventory waste Eliminate manual counting of supplies Eliminate the situation of stock-outs Reduce hospital-supplier disagreements over the supplies Rising government funding for hospitals An increase in funding from governmental agencies for hospitals across the globe is another major driver for market growth. In 2013, the Australian government spent an additional amount of USD 40-USD 45 billion in the healthcare sector, compared with the amount spent in 2003. In 2014, Welsh Government invested USD 430,797 in a RFID tagging system under the project named Invest-to-Save Fund. Sunil Kumar Singh, a lead embedded systems analyst at Technavio, says, "Hospitals across the world are showing a keen interest in enhancing their infrastructure to avail funding and achieve operational excellence. As hospitals are aware of the benefits of RFID smart cabinets, which can track drugs and devices and notify of the expiry dates of drugs, they have started adopting these cabinets." Increasing healthcare spending Continuous R&D and ongoing clinical trials have resulted in better product designs that incorporate advanced technological features. The development of the healthcare industry and its infrastructure have led to an increase in healthcare expenditure. Developed countries in the Americas and Europe spend the most on healthcare. Developing countries have to increase their spending dramatically to provide basic health insurance coverage, develop a primary healthcare service system, and improve the availability of medications in rural and suburban areas. This is expected to result in the reformation of public hospitals and healthcare facilities, thereby increasing the demand for laser equipment, propelling market growth. The healthcare spending in different geographies is illustrated in the table below: Regions Healthcare Spending (% of GDP) North America 17.50% EMEA 17.10% South America 8.00% APAC 6.70% Source (News - Alert): Technavio Supply chain inefficiencies "In the retail landscape, goods move through many stages and get distributed at every stage. Thus, to keep track of the inventory distribution and accurate details of distribution is very difficult. In addition, the trend of omnichannel retailing has made inventory tracking even more complex," asserts Sunil. Another complex task of retailers and manufacturers is accurate demand planning due to inefficiencies such as incorrect data and delayed data flow through the supply chain. Manufacturers may obtain point-of-sale (POS) data from retailers, but without information about stock levels during inventory transportation, it is not possible to plan for demand accurately. Top vendors: LogiTag Systems Mobile Aspects TAGSYS RFID Skytron SkyeTek SATO Vicinity Stanley InnerSpace WaveMark Browse Related Reports: Global RFID Readers Market 2016-2020 Smart Thermostat Market in APAC 2015-2019 Global RFID Readers Market 2016-2020 Do you need a report on a market in a specific geographical cluster or country but can't find what you're looking for? Don't worry, Technavio also takes client requests. Please contact [email protected] with your requirements and our analysts will be happy to create a customized report just for you. About Technavio Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. The company develops over 2000 pieces of research every year, covering more than 500 technologies across 80 countries. Technavio has about 300 analysts globally who specialize in customized consulting and business research assignments across the latest leading edge technologies. Technavio analysts employ primary as well as secondary research techniques to ascertain the size and vendor landscape in a range of markets. Analysts obtain information using a combination of bottom-up and top-down approaches, besides using in-house market modeling tools and proprietary databases. They corroborate this data with the data obtained from various market participants and stakeholders across the value chain, including vendors, service providers, distributors, re-sellers, and end-users. If you are interested in more information, please contact our media team at [email protected]. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005431/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] IMPORTANT INVESTOR ALERT: Khang & Khang LLP Announces an Investigation of Banc of California, Inc. and Encourages Investors with Losses to Contact the Firm Khang & Khang LLP (the "Firm") announces that it is investigating claims against Banc of California, Inc. ("Banc of California" or the "Company") (NYSE: BANC) concerning possible violations of federal securities laws. If you purchased shares of Banc of California and want more information, please contact Joon M. Khang, Esquire, of Khang & Khang, 18101 Von Karman Avenue, 3rd Floor, Irvine, CA (News - Alert) 92612, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or by e-mail at [email protected]. This investigation focuses on whether Bancof California and certain of its officers and/or directors violated federal securities laws. On October 18 2016, Seeking Alpha published an article alleging that certain Banc of California insiders had undisclosed ties to individuals accused of involvement with the collapse of Gerova Financial. When this information was disclosed to the public, shares of Banc of California fell in value. If you have any questions concerning this notice or your rights, please contact Joon M. Khang, a prominent litigator for almost two decades, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or by e-mail at [email protected]. This press release may constitute Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006298/en/ [October 19, 2016] "Hacker Lab" Event Shows How Cyber Criminals Attack Homes - and How to Stop Them At a recent "Home Hacker Lab" event sponsored by Hartford Steam Boiler (HSB), part of Munich Re, and Prescient Solutions, an ethical hacker revealed how cybercriminals work - and what consumers can do to protect themselves. The October 13 workshop in New York City mounted a remote cyber-attack on an Internet-connected model home inside the American Modern Insurance Group claims training facility in Ohio. The event demonstrated in real time how hackers choose their targets, enter a system, and the harm they can do once they infiltrate a home. Key takeaways for homeowners included: Most attacks happen via traditional means, through home Wi-Fi systems, emails and computer browsers. Hackers are quickly finding new entry points through smart Internet of Things (IoT) technologies. Roughly 80 percent of consumers report using a home network connected to the Internet. One in ten consumers have experienced a cyberattack via their connected home systems.* The Hacker Lab was presented by HSB, a leading specialty insurer of data and information risks, and Prescient Solutions, a Chicago-based IT outsourcing firm. The lab was designed to help educate and provide home cyber defense ideas for consumers. "Hackers are exploiting common security flaws and using them to breach home networks, computers, IoT and mobile devices," said Eric Cernak, vice president and cyber practice leader for Munich Re. "Once cyber criminals have access, they can steal personal and financial information, hold computer files for ransom, and hijack anything from webcams and thermostats to smart TVs." Jerry Irvine, chief information officer of Prescient Solutions and member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Cybersecurity Leadership Council, agreed that consumers face a real threat and need to increase safety protections in their home networks and connected devices. "The good news is that homeowners can take steps to protect themselves from destructive criminal intrusions," Irvine said. "Understanding what hackers look for and how they premeditate an attack are critical to building up a home defense system. The important thing to remember is that hackers are imperfect and can be disrupted." The Home Hacker Lab also featured a risk management discussion with Cernak and Timothy Zeilman, vice president and counsel for HSB. The discussion included insights about ways to prevent a cyber-attack; the financial costs; and what consumers must do if/when they're hacked. HSB and Prescient Solutions provided the following risk-management tips to secure home systems: 1. Keep systems updated with patched and security updates. Install the most current Windows, OS/iOS, updates/patches and applications. Regularly update firmware on routers and all other devices. 2. Separate social media from financial activity. Use a dedicated device for online banking. Use a different device for email and social meda. Otherwise, just visiting one infected social site could compromise your banking machine and your financial accounts. 3. Secure the network to which the devices connect. Don't broadcast your wireless router/network name. Change default usernames/passwords on home routers and smart devices. Activate wireless router encryption, use WPA2, not WEP. Do not connect smart devices directly to the Internet linked to home computers, but rather through a separate IoT firewall. 4. Set up two-factor authentication for all online accounts. Create complex passwords (nothing that can be easily guessed, such as children's names, birthplace, etc.). Use secondary authentication; this sends a secret code to your phone verifying your identity. 5. Secure your smartphone. Many people still do not use passcodes to lock their smartphones. Don't be one of them. Almost all IoT devices are controlled by a smartphone app, so phones have become key entry points to homes. 6. Think before purchasing or installing apps on smartphones or tablets. Make sure you read Privacy Policies before downloading. Do not download any apps that prompt you to quickly download, as they may contain malicious code and security flaws designed by hackers. 7. When not using Bluetooth, turn off the feature. Mobile phones, tablets and many new smart items in the home have Bluetooth functionality (smart speakers, set-top boxes, baby monitors, etc.). Such devices have recently been hacked into because their owners left on the Bluetooth option. 8. Purchase only new devices in unopened packaging from reputable retailers. As with any expensive device, there is a black market for counterfeits that have limited security protections. Do not be tempted to buy such devices. 9. Wipe/reset to factory defaults. When replacing connected devices or selling a home, devices should be restored to factory default settings. This will ensure that personal information contained on the devices is removed. 10. Check insurance policies closely. While a typical Homeowners Policy may cover the costs of the resulting damage (theft, spoilage, etc.), they generally do not respond to costs associated with restoring the systems that have been compromised in the attack. *Research by Zogby Analytics and HSB Group Hartford Steam Boiler (HSB), a member of Munich Re's Risk Solutions family since 2009, is a leading specialty insurer providing equipment breakdown, other specialty coverages, inspection services and engineering-based risk management that set the standard for excellence worldwide. We focus on clients and partner with them to craft inventive insurance and service solutions to cover existing and emerging risks posed by technological change. Today, as throughout our 150 year history, our mission is to use our engineering knowledge and insights to help clients prevent loss, advance sustainable use of energy resources and build deeper relationships that benefit business, industry, public institutions and consumers. HSB holds A.M. Best Company's highest financial rating, A++ (Superior). For more information, visit www.hsb.com and connect on LinkedIn, Twitter (News - Alert) and Facebook. Prescient Solutions is a Chicago-based IT consulting company that provides onsite, remote, managed and cloud-based services to small, mid-sized and global organizations, as well as government entities. For more than 20 years, its expert team has advised organizations on best practices in IT and cyber security, and guides executives in IT decision-making and implementation across all systems and networks. For more information call 888-343-6040, or visit http://www.PrescientSolutions.com. Munich Re stands for exceptional solution-based expertise, consistent risk management, financial stability and client proximity. This is how Munich Re creates value for clients, shareholders and staff. In the financial year 2015, the Group - which combines primary insurance and reinsurance under one roof - achieved a profit of 3.1bn on premium income of over 50bn. It operates in all lines of insurance, with over 43,000 employees throughout the world. With premium income of around 28bn from reinsurance alone, it is one of the world's leading reinsurers. Especially when clients require solutions for complex risks, Munich Re is a much sought-after risk carrier. Its primary insurance operations are concentrated mainly in the ERGO Insurance Group, one of the leading insurance groups in Germany and Europe. ERGO is represented in over 30 countries worldwide and offers a comprehensive range of insurances, provision products and services. In 2015, ERGO posted premium income of 17.9bn. In international healthcare business, Munich Re pools its insurance and reinsurance operations, as well as related services, under the Munich Health brand. Munich Re's global investments (excluding insurance-related investments) amounting to 215bn are managed by MEAG, which also makes its competence available to private and institutional investors outside the Group. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006307/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] United States District Court for the District of Columbia Rules in Favor of Watkins Incorporated in McCormick Slack-Fill Case On October 17, 2016, United States District Court Judge, Ellen Segal Huvelle, issued an order denying McCormick & Co.'s (McCormick) motion to dismiss claims alleging the company had "slack-filled" its black pepper containers. The lawsuit, filed by Watkins Incorporated (Watkins) in June of 2015, alleged that McCormick illegally reduced the contents of its black pepper containers by up to twenty-five percent without reducing the size of its containers-an action that is commonly referred to as "slack-filling." "There can be no question that McCormick falsely tried to deceive consumers into believing that there wasn't any reduction in the contents of their pepper containers, otherwise why wouldn't they have reduced the size of their pepper tins and bottles by twenty-five percent?" says Mark Jacobs, CEO of Watkins. "We're very pleased that Judge Huvelle ruled that Watkins has standing to pursue its claims under the Lanham Act." In the October 17 ruling, the order by Judge Huvelle states, "Moreover in this case, the size of McCormick's containers (with reduced contents) is exactly what makes them misleading because consumers cannot see the amount of their contents." "We're happy that Judge Huvelle confirmed that Watkins can continue its lawsuit against McCormick for slack-filling its pepper tins and bottles," says Jacobs. "In Judge Huvelle's ruling, she determine that 'Watkins has made sufficient allegations to establish that McCormick's slack-filled packaging caused Watkins to lose sales.'" "Our consumers are extremely important to us and we will continue to uphold our commitment of providing them with quality spices, extracts, home and body care as we have done for the past 148 years," says J.R. Rigley, President and CMO of Watkins. A copy of Judge Huvelle's order is available upon request. About J.R. Watkins Crafted in the USA Since 1868Naturally. The J.R. Watkins Co. creates gourmet spices and extracts, personal care and home care products with only the finest natural ingredients. From the bluffs high above the Mississippi River in Winona, Minnesota, comes the purity of J.R. Watkins. Our tried-and-true products have been good and natural through and through since 1868. J.R. Watkins products are available at a variety of North American retailers and online at JRWatkins.com. For more information, visit JRWatkins.com or follow J.R. Watkins on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006422/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] Global Payments Announces Full Support for Android Pay in Hong Kong Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN), a leading worldwide provider of payment technology services, is pleased to offer merchants in Hong Kong the ability to accept Android (News - Alert) Pay, which will enable more payment choices for Android mobile users in-store and in-app. Android Pay is a digital mobile wallet which is easy to setup and use. Customers can download the Android Pay app and add an eligible credit or debit card. Simply tap the Android smartphone on any contactless terminal and the payment is sent for authorization. Android Pay is designed to align with industry tokenization standards. Actual credit or debit card numbers will not be sent, and virtual account numbers are securely created for transactions. Details of a customer's card information are not released to the merchant, and customers are notified immediately when a purchase is made. Global Payments allows Hong Kong retail store and mobile app merchants to accept credit and debit card payments from customers with Android Pay. Our in-store merchants can offer customers the convenience of digital wallet payment through contactless readers. Meanwhile, mobile app merchants can minimize cart abandonment rate as customers can skip filling out lengthy shipping and billing details manually. "Residents of Hong Kong love mobile technology - with nearly 80% owning a smartphone - and are some of the fastest adopters of new products and technology in the world," said Leonie Valentine, Managing Director of Sales and Operations, Google (News - Alert) Hong Kong. "We're excited to bring the simplicity and security of mobile payments to Global Payments' merchants in Hong Kong with Android Pay. People can now easily tap and pay with Android smartphones in stores and in apps when they're on-the-go." "We are thrilled to support the further global expansion of Android Pay in Hong Kong," said Frank T. Young, SVP, Global Product and Innovation. "We look forward to enabling more physical store and mobile commerce merchants in Hong Kong to take advantage of this omnichannel payment innovation." About Global Payments Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN) is a leading worldwide provider of payment technology services that delivers innovative solutions driven by customer needs globally. Our technologies, partnerships and employee expertise enable us to provide a broad range of products and services that allow our customers to accept all payment types across a variety of distribution channels in many markets around the world. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia with more than 8,500 employees worldwide, Global Payments is a member of the S&P 500 with merchants and partners in 30 countries throughout North America, Europe, the Asia-Pacific region and Brazil. For more information about Global Payments, our Service. Driven. Commerce brand and our technologies, please visit www.globalpaymentsinc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006120/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [October 19, 2016] The Optical Society Elects Ursula Gibson as 2017 Vice President The Optical Society (OSA) is pleased to announce that its members have elected Ursula Gibson of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway, as its 2017 vice president. Three directors-at-large were also chosen during this year's election: Mark Brongersma of Stanford University, USA; Pierre Chavel of the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique and Institut d'Optique, France; and Martijn de Sterke of University of Sydney, Australia. The announcement was made today during The Optical Society's 100th Annual Business Meeting at the Frontiers in Optics (FiO) and Laser Science (APS/DLS) conference in Rochester, New York, USA. By accepting the vice presidency, Gibson makes a four-year commitment to OSA's Board of Directors. She will serve one year as vice president in 2017, followed by one year as president-elect in 2018, president in 2019 and past-president in 2020. Along with Gibson, the new directors at large, Brongersma, Chavel and de Sterke, will begin their terms on 01 January 2017. They will hold their positions for three years. "Ursula joins the Board at a time when the field of optics is better recognized by the world," said Elizabeth Rogan, CEO of The Optical Society. "Combined with her leadership in optics, Ursula's years-long involvement with OSA will help us steward the Society into our second century." Ursula Gibson held elected positions on the OSA Board of Directors from 2002 to 2005, served on the International Commission on Optics Bureau as an OSA representative from 2011 to 2014 and been an active OSA member for three decades. During Gibson's career she has contributed to seven books, holds three patents and has refereed over 100 journal articles. Currently, Gibson's research focuses on semiconductor-core optical fibers and MBE grown fibers for mid-infrared applications. "I joined The Optical Society during the early stages of my career, and this organization played an integral role in molding me into the professional that I am today," says Gibson. "My long-time affiliation with this Society makes this election a special honor. I look forward to working with a community that encourages the development and flourishing of the careers of the next generation of innovators and thinkers." Gibson received her Ph.D. in physics from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA, in 1982. Upon receiving her doctoral degree, Gibson held a doctoral graduate research grant at Bell Labs (News - Alert), Murray Hill, New Jersey, USA before moving to an associate professorship at the University of Arizona, Optical Sciences Center in Tucson, Arizona, USA. In1990, Gibson moved to Dartmouth's Thayer School of Engineering, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA to accept an Associate Professorship position. Over the course of her career, Gibson has held several visiting positions, including the United States Air Force Academy, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Tampere University of Technology in Finland, Chalmers University in Sweden and the University of Queensland in Australia. From 1997 to 1998, Gibson was also the NASA/ASEE Visiting Research Fellow and in 2004 she was selected to be a member of the NASA Network of Educator Astronaut Teachers. In 2008 Gibson was awarded the Fulbright Scholarship to fund research in "Nanostructured ZnO for Wood Preservation." Today, Gibson is a professor of physics at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Norway and concurrently holds an adjunct professor in the Department of Applied Physics at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology and the Chemistry Department at Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA. "We are pleased to welcome Ursula, Mark, Pierre and Martijn to the Board," said Rogan. "Their efforts to advance the field of optics and photonics, combined with their dedication to publishing and extensive educational programming for the next generation of researchers is on par with the mission of OSA." Mark Brongersma is a Fellow of The Optical Society and is a professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Applied Physics at Stanford University, California, USA. Brongersma leads a research team of ten students and four postdoctoral researchers in the "Mark Brongersma's Group Plasmonics and Photonics" program at Stanford University. In his research, Brongersma is dedicated to the development and physical analysis of new materials and structures that find use in nanoscale electronic and photonic devices. A doctoral graduate from the FOM Institute in Amsterdam, Netherlands, in 1998, Mark Brongersma has gone on to become a trailblazer in the field of optics. During a postdoctoral research fellowship at the California Institute of Technology, California, USA, Brongersma studied light manipulation with metallic nanostructures below the free space diffraction limit, coining the term "plasmonics" in the process. The new device which he helped discover, exploited the unique optical properties of nanoscale metallic structures to route and manipulated light at the nanoscale. Brongersma has also authored and co-authored over 175 publications, many of which have been featured in Science and Nature. He also holds patents in the area of silicon microphotonics and plasmonics. He is a co-founder of Rolith, Inc., Pleasanton, California, USA, a manufacturer of advanced optical nanostructures. For his work on plasmonics, he received a U.S. National Science Foundation Career Award, the Walter J. Gores Award for Excellence in Teaching, the International Raymond and Beverly Sackler Prize in the Physical Sciences for Physics. Pierre Chavel graduated from the Universite Paris-Sud, Orsay, with a 'docteur es sciences' in physics in 1979. Since 1972, he has been a research scientist at CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), working at the Institut d'Optique - Graduate School. His research interests include subwavelength diffractive optics, digital image processing, optical coherence, speckle and optoelectronic computing. His publications include some 120 articles in refereed journals and he edited or co-edited several books. He also holds 12 patents. He has taught courses on physical optics, coherence, geometrical optics, optics in computing, speckle, Fourier analysis and Fourier optics at IOGS and other institutions. As a participant or principle investigator, he has been involved for many years in research projects funded by the European Union "Framework Programme" for science and technology. From 2004 through 2009, he chaired the board of shareholders of one high tech startup company in the field of biophotonics. He served as the Director of Laboratoire Charles Fabry (1998-2009, 2013-2014) and is serving as a deputy director for the Saint-Etienne site of Institut d'Optique, also working there with Laboratoire Hubert Curien. He was a visiting scientist at the Image Processing Institute, University of Southern California, Los Angeles during 1979-1980, and a Xiing Sheng Chern Visiting Professor at the Institute of Modern Optics, Nankai University, Tianjin, China (2007-2010). A Fellow of OSA, SPIE and the European Optical Society, he served on the board of SFO, the French Optical Society (1983-89 and 91-95) and as the Secretary of the International Commission for Optics, 1990-2002 and as a chair of a number of scientific conferences, including CLEO Europe 2000 and CLEO Europe 2003. He is also the President of the French Physics Olympiads (2011-present). Martijn de Sterke, University of Sydney, Australia, has been affiliated with The Optical Society for nearly 30 years. Martijn de Sterke holds a Bachelors of Engineering and a Masters of Engineering from the University of Delft, Netherlands, completing his Ph.D. in optics from the University of Rochester, New York, USA, in 1987. Upon the completion of his doctorate, de Sterke joined the faculty at the University of Sydney in 1991, becoming a Professor in Physics since 2003. From 2001 to 2006, de Sterke was an Associate Editor for Optics Express. In 2007, de Sterke was promoted to Editor-in-Chief of the journal. Under his esteemed guidance, the journal witnessed an increase in annual paper submissions, nearly doubling to over 6,000 annually. He has been the Chair of OSA's Board of Editors since 2014 and has shown a commitment to research and education as an OSA Traveling lecturer. He held the position of Program Chair at the 2011 CLEO Pacific Rim conference and the QELS conference in 2013. Martijn de Sterke has published more than 300 refereed journal papers and book chapters covering various topics within optics and photonics, including nonlinear optics, guided-wave optics, and wave propagation in random media, periodic media, solar energy, plasmonics and metamaterials. About FiO/LS Frontiers in Optics (FiO) 2016 is The Optical Society's (OSA) 100th Annual Meeting and held together with Laser Science, the 32th annual meeting of the American Physical Society (APS) Division of Laser Science (DLS). The two meetings unite the OSA and APS communities for five days of quality, cutting-edge presentations, in-demand invited speakers and a variety of special events spanning a broad range of topics in optics and photonics-the science of light-across the disciplines of physics, biology and chemistry. The exhibit floor will feature leading optics companies, technology products and programs. More information at: FrontiersinOptics.org. About The Optical Society Founded in 1916, The Optical Society (OSA) is the leading professional organization for scientists, engineers, students and entrepreneurs who fuel discoveries, shape real-life applications and accelerate achievements in the science of light. Through world-renowned publications, meetings and membership initiatives, OSA provides quality research, inspired interactions and dedicated resources for its extensive global network of optics and photonics experts. For more information, visit osa.org/100. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006487/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] IoT Tech Expo: The Leading Internet of Things Events Arrives in Silicon Valley Tomorrow The IoT Tech Expo North America 2016, which is taking place at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Silicon Valley will open its doors from 8:30am on October 20th for two days of top level content, discussion, case studies, networking, live demo's and more. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006560/en/ The leading IoT event series will arrive in Silicon Valley on October 20-21st (Graphic: Business Wire) There are plenty of dynamic panel discussions over across the two days covering the entire IoT ecosystem and here are just a few snapshots of the key verticals the expo covers. Automation, advanced manufacturing and the workforce. 2pm, October 20th, Connected Industry track. Join representatives from EDF Energy, Convetit, Clearblade and Momenta Partners to discuss digital labour, new factory concepts, and a manufacturing model that uses the full capabilities of the IIoT. Future directions for the IoT in insurance. 10.50am, October 20th, Connected Services track. CRC Farm Bureau, Aite and Acord get together with other insurance innovators to discuss how to drive more customer value through IoT innovation, the importance of data transparency and importantly - what can the insurance industry learn from other industries' IoT experience? Raising the bar - can IoT improve our fitness and performance? 12pm, October 21st, Wearables track. Connected cars, autonomous driving and the future of mobility. 4.10pm, October 21st, Connected Living track. Innovators from GeoTab and Navigant join speakers from Ford, Renault and Panasonic (News - Alert) to detail all the latest developments in the IoT automotive space. They'll discuss immediate issues such as progress in vehicle design alongside more fundamental questions of how we will perceive mobility in the future, and what the IoT means for the future of the transport ecosystem. Tackling data security and privacy challenges of the IoT. 2.30pm, October 21st, Data & Security track. Experts from both public and private sector join forces to discuss the security challenges of IoT development, addressing the risks of Big Data and the importance of balancing privacy and data utility. An essential topic in the progression of internet of Things exploration. Digitalising heavy industry. 10.40am, October 21st, Connected Industry track. Representatives from WirePas, Synapse, Harbor Research and Caterpillar come together to discuss the challenges, opportunities and evolution of heavy industry and the IIoT. What new tools and systems are enabling digitalisation? How far have we come and much further can we go? Come along to find out all the answers. Smart grids, sustainable cities and innovations in energy. 4pm, October 20th, Smart Cities track. Speakers from Xaptum, Centrica, Wi-Sun Alliance and Schneider Electric (News - Alert) talk smart grids, business strategies for energy efficiency and public-private partnerships. This panel provides the link between enterprise, government and energy to drive home the importance of how open, networked cities can benefit everyone from citizens to multinationals. How retail blends physical and digital worlds using the IoT. 12.30pm, October 20th, Connected Services track. Speakers from Softbank (News - Alert) Robotics, Leantegra, ABI Research and Bloomingdales/Macy's discuss the evolution of IoT in retail, how this affects the customer relationship and what part other areas such as wearables and NFC might play in furthering the future of retail in the physical and digital spheres. There's so much more to see, but drop in on any of these and you'll be sure to get energised for your own journey of IoT discovery at the expo. You can register for a pass to the IoT Tech Expo North America here: http://www.iottechexpo.com/northamerica/ For the latest IoT and industry news, visit http://www.iottechexpo.com/blog For speaking, sponsorship and exhibitor enquiries please contact the team at [email protected] or call on +44 (0) 117 980 9023. NOTES FOR EDITORS About IoT Tech Expo The IoT Tech Expo World Series (www.iottechexpo.com) hosts top level content and discussion, introducing and exploring the latest innovations in the Internet of Things arena. It brings together key industries including Manufacturing, Transport, Health, Logistics, Government, Energy, Retail and Automotive. Upcoming events taking place in Silicon Valley and London. IoT Tech Expo North America: 20-21st October, Santa Clara Convention Center, CA (News - Alert) IoT Tech Expo Global: 23-24th January 2017, Olympia, London IoT Tech Expo Europe: 1-2 June 2017, Elstree Berlin View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006560/en/ 'Hiding in plain sight': Libby German's grandparents react to charges Richard Allen, 50, charged with two counts of murder in the deaths of Libby and Abby, was 'hiding in plain sight,' Libby German's grandparents said. By Ashish Pandey: Nara Lokesh, son of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday declared his family's assets. He claimed that his is the only political family that has announced their assets and liabilities for the sixth consecutive year in the country. Lokesh, who is the general secretary of Telugu Desham Party (TDP) announced his personal and family assets detail in Guntur. advertisement Majorly the Nara family derives its income from Heritage Group, a public listed company engaged in milk and vegetable retailing business claimed Lokesh. As per the declaration Chief Minister and TDP chief Chandra Babu Naidu has properties worth Rs 3.73 crore while he has loans and liability of about Rs 3.06 crore. A HOUSE AND AN OLD CAR Naidu owns a house in Jubilee Hills Hyderabad which costs Rs 3.68 crore, while he has an old ambassador car as a four-wheeler. Also read: Abolish Rs 500, 1,000 notes to curb black money: Chandrababu Naidu The CM of Andhra Pradesh has cash balance of only Rs 3.59 lakh claimed Lokesh while providing the details about the family properties. Further Lokesh claimed that his mother Bhuvaneshwari owns assets worth Rs 33.66 crore, while he has has properties worth Rs 14.50 crore and his wife Nara Brahmani owns assets worth Rs 5.38 crore. Also read: Andhra Pradesh to implement Real Time Governance GRANDSON RICHER THAN FATHER Interestingly as per the declaration N Lokesh's one and half years old son N Devansh, who is the youngest in the Nara family is richer than the father and grandfather Chandrababu Naidu. As per the declaration the grandson has properties worth Rs 14 crore, including a house worth Rs 9.17 crore in posh Jubilee Hills of Hyderabad apart from fixed deposit worth Rs 2.40 crore and cash balance of Rs 2.31 crore. Also read: Andhra Pradesh postal and telecom circles inaugurated --- ENDS --- By PTI: From Achinta Borah Algiers, Oct 19 (PTI) Vice President Hamid Ansari today left for home after concluding his five-day trip to Hungary and Algeria during which he held discussions with the leaderships of the two countries on strengthening bilateral ties. Ansari held talks with Hungarys President Janos Ader, Prime Minister Viktor Orban and other top leaders as both the countries agreed on the need for elimination of the menace of terrorism and sought a strong global legal framework and sustained global action to deal with the threat. advertisement India and Hungary also signed two MoUs, including one on water management, during the three-day trip to the central European country. The Hungarian Prime Minister had said his country set up a working group on technology to explore the possibilities of bilateral cooperation in various issues, including defence production for mutual benefits. The Vice-President expressed Indias appreciation for the support extended by Hungary to Indias membership of the Missile Technology Control Regime and for its Nuclear Suppliers Group membership bid. During his two-day visit to Algeria, Ansari held wide- ranging discussions with Algerias President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal and Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra and stressed on taking the India-Algeria ties to a new level and to "rejuvenate" the bilateral relations, officials said. Ansari also met President of Algerian National Peoples Assembly Mohamed Larbi Ould Khelifa and President of Council of Nations Abdelkader Bensalah and discussed with them various issues of mutual interest. Other issues like anti-terror cooperation between India and Algeria also figured in the meetings the Vice President had with the Algerian leadership. India is keen to join hands with Algeria to explore the possibilities of setting up a multi-billion dollar fertiliser project, bearing in mind the phosphatic reserves available in the North African country which is estimated to be more than 5 billion tonnes. A preliminary meeting on the issue was held here between Minister of State for Fertilisers and Chemicals Mansukh L Mandaviya and Algerian Minister of Industry and Mining Abdessalem Bouchouareb and if the discussions lead to setting up of a joint venture mega fertiliser company in Algeria, the price of fertiliser in India is expected to come down along with the subsidy burden of the government with regard to fertiliser. Mandaviya is accompanying the Vice President. PTI ACB ASK --- ENDS --- By PTI: From Achinta Borah Algiers, Oct 19 (PTI) As part of efforts to "rejuvenate" Indias ties with African nations, Vice President Hamid Ansari today met the top leadership of Algeria and discussed with them the ways to further strengthen bilateral ties in various areas including anti-terror, trade and economy. Ansari held wide ranging discussions with President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal and Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra and stressed on taking the India-Algeria ties to a new level and how to "rejuvenate" the bilateral relations, officials said. advertisement Other issues like anti-terror cooperation between India and Algeria were also figured in the meetings the Vice President had with the Algerian leadership. Secretary (West) in the External Affairs Ministry Sujata Mehta has said terrorism is not new for Algeria and it has fought a very difficult terror group in the recent past. India is also keen to join hands with Algeria to explore the possibilities of setting up a multi-billion dollar fertiliser project, bearing in mind the phosphatic reserve available in this North African country which is estimated to be more than 5 billion tonnes. A preliminary meeting on the issue was held here today between Minister of State for Fertilisers and Chemicals Mansukh L Mandaviya and Algerian Minister of Industry and Mining Abdessalem Bouchouareb. The price of fertiliser in India is expected to come down along with the subsidy burden if the talks between the two countries lead to setting up of a joint venture mega fertiliser company in Algeria. Mandaviya is accompanying the Vice President. Ansaris visit to Algeria came after a long "cooling off" period which, officials said, was over now. "They (Algeria) want cooperation and we want cooperation. Both sides want the relations to be strengthened," Ansari had said earlier. Algerias President Bouteflika was the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in 2001. Ansari, who arrived here from Hungary on Monday night as part of his second leg of two-nation tour, yesterday met President of Algerian National Peoples Assembly Mohamed Larbi Ould Khelifa and President of Council of Nations Abdelkader Bensalah and discussed with them various issues concerning both the countries. PTI ACB ZH --- ENDS --- The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus arent mere consolation prizes to Apples pricier flagships. They pack a ton of good features, including blazing fast processors, solid cameras and wireless charging. And because of they're relatively low prices, they're still some of the best phones you can buy today. Starting at $449 and $549, respectively, the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are also considerably more affordable than the iPhone 11. Between the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, our top pick remains the Plus because of its larger screen, longer battery life and more versatile dual cameras. However, the iPhone 8 remains one of the best small phones on the market, and an excellent choice for one of the best used smartphones, given how it's gone down in price over the years. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Design Im torn about the look of the new iPhones. On the one hand, the new glass back looks elegant while being less slippery than my matte black iPhone 7 Plus. Apples new phones are also built stronger, with the company claiming that the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus boast the most durable glass ever on a smartphone. This is due in part to a deeper strengthening layer. (More on that in a moment.) On the other hand, seeing bezels this large on a late-2017 phone above and below the display seems dated compared not just with the iPhone X but also the Galaxy S8 and other Android phones that are going the edge-to-edge route. My complaint isnt just about aesthetics; having smaller bezels makes it easier to use a phone with one hand and fit it in a front pocket. I do like how the strong 7000 series aluminum band on the iPhone 8 is color matched with the pearlescent rear. On the gold iPhone 8 Plus I tested, the back looks like a true rose gold and less pink than previous model. I also tested the silver iPhone 8, whose back is a less exciting gray. The new iPhones are also available in Space Gray. For us minimalists, theres no small type saying where this device was assembled or its model number beneath the word iPhone. Now, it just says iPhone. Measuring 5.5 x 2.7 x 0.29 inches and weighing 5.2 ounces, the iPhone 8 is a bit heavier and a smidge thicker than the iPhone 7 (5.4 x 2.6 x 0.28 inches, 4.9 ounces), but I barely noticed the difference. Im guessing the extra girth comes from adding the wireless-charging capability and reinforced glass back. The iPhone 8 Plus (7.1 ounces, 0.3 inches thick) sees a similar small bump up versus the iPhone 7 Plus (6.6 ounces, 0.29 inches). While the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus still lack a headphone jack, music lovers will appreciate that they sound better sans headphones, thanks to stereo speakers that are now 25 percent louder. When I streamed An Honest Mistake by The Bravery, I noticed deeper bass and more natural-sounding vocals on the iPhone 8 versus the iPhone 7 Plus. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Durability We tested the toughness of the iPhone 8 by dropping it on its face onto wood from a height of 4 feet and 6 feet; we then dropped it on its edge and face onto concrete from 4 feet; we then dropped it on its edge and face from 6 feet onto concrete. The iPhone 8 survived drops from 4 and 6 feet onto wood without incurring any damage. A 4-foot drop on its edge onto concrete caused a minor crack and scratching along the bottom, which grew larger with a face drop from 4 feet onto concrete. Apple's phone lasted all the way up to a 6-foot face drop onto concrete, when its screen stopped working. The result of this testing was that the iPhone 8 achieved an okay toughness score of 4.9 out of 10. To see the results of other smartphones, as well as our complete scoring methodology, check out our smartphone drop tests. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Specs iPhone 8 iPhone 8 Plus Price $699, $849 $799, $949 CPU A11 Bionic A11 Bionic Capacity 64, 256 GB 64, 256 GB Rear Camera 12-MP Dual 12-MP (f/1.8, f/2.8) Front Camera 7-MP FaceTime HD 7-MP FaceTime HD Unlocking Method Touch ID Touch ID Colors Space Gray, Silver, Gold Space Gray, Silver, Gold Screen Size (Resolution) 4.7-inches (1334 X 750) 5.5-inches (1920 X 1080) Size 5.5 x 2.7 x 0.29 inches 6.2 x 3.1 x 0.3 inches Weight 5.22 ounces 7.13 ounces iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Performance If ever there was an apt name for a processor, A11 Bionic is it. This chip absolutely smokes every Android phone on the planet. The A11 Bionic is a six-core CPU, with two performance cores that promise a 25 percent boost in performance over the A10, and four high-efficiency cores that promise up to a 70 percent improvement. Last but not least is an Apple-designed GPU thats supposed to be 30 percent faster. On Geekbench 4, which measures overall performance, the iPhone 8 was in another league, turning in a multicore score of 10,170. The iPhone 8 Plus was a bit faster at 10,472. The Galaxy Note 8, complete with Qualcomms Snapdragon 835 chip and 6GB of RAM, scored 6,564. That means the iPhone 8 is a whopping 54 percent faster than the fastest Android flagship. To put those numbers in perspective, the iPhone 8 also beats the 7th-generation Core i5 MacBook by a tad, which turned in 9,213 on Geekbench 4. The Dell XPS 13, our favorite Windows laptop, hit 7,159. For more on one these comparisons mean, see our in-depth article on the iPhone 8's performance. There was an even bigger performance gap on 3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited, which measures graphics performance. The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus notched 62,352 and 64,412, respectively, compared with 39,834 for the Note 8. So Apples handsets pack about 63 percent more graphics might. What about real-world performance? We edited and exported the same 2-minute 4K video clip on the iPhone 8, Galaxy Note 8 and Galaxy S8 using the Adobe Premiere Clip app, and it wasnt even close. The iPhone 8 finished the task in 42 seconds, compared with more than 3 minutes for the Galaxy Note 8 and more than 4 minutes for the Galaxy S8+. The iPhone 8 also opened larger apps faster than both its predecessor and the top Android phone right now. It took the handset 11 seconds to fully load the Injustice 2 game, compared with 14.53 seconds for the iPhone 7 Plus and 19 seconds for the Note 8. For more results, including opening a large file, check out our in-depth iPhone 8 speed tests. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Cameras With a bigger and faster sensor, the 12-megapixel camera on the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus takes some of the best-looking photos Ive seen from a phone. In fact, some shots I took outshone the stellar Galaxy Note 8, which was previously rated our best camera phone. Now the iPhone 8 Plus is in the top spot, and you can check out our camera face-off with the Note 8 to see the results for yourself. Take this photo of colorful flowers near Madison Square Park. The leaves edges on the iPhone 8 shot have a subtle orange toward the tip and more sharpness overall, while the Note 8s photo isnt as well defined and misses some of the gradation in hues. In low light, the iPhone 8 and Note 8 were dead even regarding detail, but the iPhone 8 produced more natural-looking colors with this group of toys. Furby in particular has the right pink, and the Tygra figure in the iPhone 8 shot is less blurry. The iPhone did a better job overall with this tricky image of the Flatiron Building, as the flower in the foreground is sharper and the blue sky and clouds look realistic. On the Note 8, the sky got blown out, but the building itself pops more because its brighter. But the Note 8 fought back in another shot of a fountain; while the iPhone 8 offered more detail when zoomed in, Samsungs image made the leaves look brighter in the surrounding trees. Just as with the iPhone 7 Plus, the iPhone 8 Plus offers a true 2x optical zoom via its second telephoto lens, but now you can have a lot more fun with portraits. Portrait Mode stil artfully blurs out the background with the so-called bokeh effect and it looks a little more natural now while a new Portrait Lighting feature (in beta) lets you adjust the lighting of your shots before and after you shoot with several effects. I took some portrait photos of my colleague Caitlin, and I was very impressed with the subtle but powerful changes Portrait Lighting can make to a photo. When I switched from Natural to Studio light, Caitlins face became brighter without blowing out the shadows. The Contour setting introduced more contrast and shadows, which is kind of like adding makeup. The Studio Light feature is the most ambitious effect, as it strips out the existing background and makes it totally black. And, if you want something even more dramatic, you can go for black and white with Stage Light Mono. However, the Stage Light effect could be hit or miss; you need to get in pretty close to the persons face to get the best results, and long hair can look a bit unnatural when it gets cut off and put on black. In addition, I noticed that this effect took longer to process than the others. To be fair, Portrait Lighting is in beta and could improve via software updates. The iPhone 8 Plus doesnt have all the fun. There are new Live Photo effects in iOS 11 that work with both new Apple handsets. Loop replays the action, while the even cooler Bounce plays the motion backward and forward, as seen in this jump by my colleague Kenneth. The Note 8 still has one key advantage over the iPhone 8 Plus in that both of the dual lenses on Samsungs phone have optical image stabilization, which means better low-light performance when zooming and steadier footage when shooting video. The iPhone X will have OIS on both lenses. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Video The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus both step up their video game, as they now record 4K resolution video at up to 60 frames per second (up from 30 fps before), and you can now capture slo-motion footage at a super-slow 240 fps without sacrificing sharpness, as its in 1080p. Other phones like the Note 8 and Galaxy S8 are stuck at 720p. The Sony Xperia XZ Premium shoots at a much slower 960 fps, but thats also at 720p. To evaluate the 4K capabilities, I shot some footage at Bryant Park in New York City, and I could make out nearly every crook and cranny in a water fountain, including the angry stone faces spitting out the water. The iPhone 8 also had no problem rendering multiple birds as they flew by without distortion. I could even see the fine mist from the fountain as I panned to the right toward the sun. Im a sucker for slow-mo dog footage, so I turned the iPhone 8 Plus on my golden retriever to see how it could handle him retrieving a tennis ball. The grass could look a little crisper, but it was still pretty cool to see his fur swaying and jowls bouncing as he ran toward me. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Augmented reality Thanks to iOS 11, you can enjoy augmented-reality apps using Apples ARKit technology on any phone running the software with an A9 or newer chip. So that means even the iPhone SE and older iPhone 6s can use a growing number of truly immersive apps that employ the cameras live view and overlay anything on top, from games and home furnishings to educational content. But the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus (as well as the upcoming iPhone X) have been especially optimized for AR via the A11 Bionic chip, calibrated cameras and a new gyroscope and accelerometer. I tried out a few apps and came away impressed, but I was also left wanting more, as theres not a ton of options yet. What is available shows off ARKits potential. The InsightHeart app, for example, displays the wireframe of a human in front of you along with his heart. You then you can learn about this very important organ by getting in really close and looking at it from multiple angles. I can see a lot of people using the Ikea app to figure out how furniture looks in their abode before they buy. I replaced the desk in my home office with a white Micke desk and added a chaise from the Soderhamn collection. The iPhone 8 did a pretty good job scanning the room even without much light, though the furniture itself looked more like animations than the real thing. The Thomas & Friends Minis app is something I wish I had when my kids were younger. You can build your own train tracks right on the table in front of you. I felt like a kid again when the train jumped in the air off one of the ramps and flipped right in front of me. You can even walk around the virtual track to take in different views. Its pretty amazing. Other ARKit apps are on the way, including an MLB app that will show you a live view of whos on what base when youre at the game, along with key player stats. And Im really looking forward to Warhammer 40K Freeblade, a robot-fighting game. I spent a bit of time with The Machines, a real-time multiplayer strategy game, and I was impressed not just with the graphics but how the sound intensified as I got closer to the action. What Id like to see is a dedicated section in the App Store for AR experiences, which Im guessing is on the horizon, given the overhaul of the App Store that iOS 11 has introduced. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Displays Given that the iPhone X boasts a beautiful 5.8-inch OLED display with 2436 x 1125 pixels, and the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus sport 5.8 and 6.2-inch quad OLED screens, theres no question that the LCDs on the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are a step behind. They just dont have the sharpness, wide viewing angles and perfect blacks the OLED competition has. Nevertheless, Apple has made some improvements to the 5.5-inch, 1920 x 1080 screen on the iPhone 8 Plus and the almost-puny-by-modern-standards 4.7-inch, 1334 x 750 panel on the iPhone 8. For starters, the True Tone feature has migrated from the iPad to the iPhone, which automatically adjusts the white balance on the display to match the ambient light. This can reduce eye strain. The two LCDs also benefit from a wide color gamut, as evidenced when I compared a photo of a lake; a gray house looked more white on the iPhone 7 Plus screen, and greens looked more lush on the iPhone 8 Plus. On our lab tests, the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus delivered a very good 119.6 percent and 122.5 percent of the color gamut. Thats great for an LCD, but trails OLED phones like the Note 8 (204 percent) and the Galaxy S8 (183 percent). Apples phones do offer very accurate hues, though, as they turned in a Delta-E accuracy ratings of 0.89 and 0.25 (0 is perfect). Samsungs OLED handsets do well here, too, as the Galaxy S8 scored 0.28 and the Note 8 0.5. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Battery life Despite the serious speed boost, both the iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus offer slightly longer endurance than their predecessors noteworthy since Apple was only promising similar battery life to the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus with its new phones. On the Toms Guide Battery Test, which involves continuous web surfing over 4G LTE (in this case T-Mobile), the iPhone 8 lasted 9 hours and 54 minutes, which is slightly above the 9:40 smartphone average. The Galaxy S8, by comparison, turned in a longer runtime of 10:39. Last years iPhone 7 hit 9:03. The iPhone 8 Plus lasted an even better 11 hours and 16 minutes, which will put it on our list of longest-lasting phones and also puts it on a par with the Galaxy Note 8 (11:11). The Galaxy S8+ was in the same ballpark at 11:04, while the older iPhone 7 Plus lasted 10:35. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Wireless charging The good news is that the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 finally support wireless charging, and they should work with any charging pad that supports the Qi standard. When using Belkins $59 Boost Up pad, I found that the iPhone 8 Plus charged at about the same pace as when connected via Lightning cable. In the case of this Belkin and the similarly priced Mophie Charging Base, both will support faster wireless charging at 7 watts once Apple rolls out an update later this year. Theyre currently outputting 5 watts, which is the same as the standard Lightning wired charger. The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are capable of reaching 50 percent charge in just 30 minutes over a wired connection, but only if you invest in additional gear. Youll need to spring for a 29-watt USB-C power adapter ($49) and a USB-C to Lightning cable ($15 to $25). Thats pretty crappy given that phones like the Galaxy S8 come with a fast wired charging adapter and cable in the box. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Software In day-to-day use with the iPhone 8, Id say the biggest changes youll notice in iOS 11 will be the new Control Center, Live Photo effects in the camera and a more immersive App Store. Siri also has a more natural-sounding voice. Control Center is now easier to use because it crams more controls into a smaller space. For instance, the wireless controls and music controls are now on the same screen. When you long-press on one of the controls, youll see additional options, such as Night Shift and True Tone for brightness. However, Im still waiting for Apple to make it easier to change Wi-Fi networks by long-pressing the Wi-Fi icon. If you want to discover new apps, and youre tired of scrolling through top lists, the new App Store will be a breath of fresh air. You can see spotlight stories on specific apps, and theres a redesigned Games section that makes it easier to discover new titles in multiple genres. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus review: Verdict The $699 iPhone 8 and $799 iPhone 8 Plus represent a leap forward in performance and camera quality, but I wish they came in packages that looked and felt more new. Thats why Im personally waiting for the $999 iPhone X, which also adds Face ID and a more colorful OLED screen. Still, both iPhones 8 have very good LCD screens, better sound than their prededessors, wireless charging and strong battery life and for more accessible prices, to boot. If youre into Android, Samsung doesnt make you choose between getting a cutting-edge design and spending close to a grand. The $750 Galaxy S8 and $850 S8+ deliver great cameras and edge-to-edge OLED screens for just a bit more than the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus. However, neither Galaxy phone can touch the performance of the iPhone 8, and I expect them to trail Apple on the augmented-reality app front. Want dual cameras? Youll have to spend $930 and up for the Note 8, which approaches iPhone X territory. Overall, my pick between the two new iPhones is the iPhone 8 Plus. It gives you a significantly bigger screen than the iPhone 8, longer battery life and more versatile dual cameras for just $100 more. The regular iPhone 8 is good, but 4.7 inches just doesnt cut it for me anymore. Credit: Shaun Lucas/Tom's Guide Brisbane quartet The Bear Hunt have just released the vid for their recent single Who Made You God?, filmed and directed by Ian Powne (of Stress of Leisure) and by all accounts, there was a bit of improvisation involved. The band were setting up to shoot at Via Studios when the lights blew, and they had to make do with what they could find, but the dark and gloomy result ended up suiting the mood of the track perfectly. They then crammed themselves into a tiny Toyota to hit the town for the rest of the footage, tackling bumpy roads and somewhat erratic driving to bring us this video but from chaos comes art. The Bear Hunt recently toured the new single across the country with a bit of help from Pretty City, Claws & Organs, The Aves, Wasters, The Goldhearts and Being Jane Lane. Were hoping they didnt have to pile into the hatchback for that one! Newcastle music lover Laura Kebby has hit out at the punters in her local music scene. In a fiery open letter published via Newcastle Live, Kebby has taken members of the Newcastle scene to task for the rampant violence she frequently sees at gigs. Im writing this because Im getting desperate, Kebby says in the piece. Because the crap you keep pulling is sending me insane and makes me long for 14 hour train trips to Melbourne to go and see shows. Dont play dumb, ok enough is enough. Kebby opens with an account of how she left a recent Hard Aches gig in relatively good spirits, only to open up Facebook the next morning to find that the gig had once again been the scene of violence, as many gigs in Newcastle are, Kebby alleges. Its happening all over Newcastle, she writes. I saw the Smith Street Band last year and came home with a ripped T-shirt and a black eye. Not an accidental black eye. I was punched in the face in the pit and this is not the first time. Yes, I can hear it already: If you dont like the pit stay out of it. No way. This is not at all about that. I have been front row at many a gig, and in the middle of many a mosh pit of much, MUCH heavier gigs than the ones Im talking about. As Kebby stresses, this is not about bemoaning the fact that shes come home with a scrape or a bruise after a gig. The issue, she writes, is that Newcastle has somehow bred a community of punters who are intentionally out to hurt other people. At a Luca Brasi gig earlier this year, I saw a girl get dragged into the pit only to be pulled out just in time before she was fly-kicked to the face. The same thing happened at the Pup gig earlier this year, Kebby continues. Ive seen groups of people at these gigs blatantly turn their back on whoever is performing on stage, to run at an unsuspecting punter fist-first for what? For the sake of music? Its punk rock, man, one guy told me as I pulled him off the floor, bloody-nosed, full cut. As Kebby notes, the problem is not restricted to punk gigs. At the Alex Lahey gig a month or so ago after she had finished playing not one but TWO fights broke out on the dance floor, the author recounts. Have you checked the Facebook pages of the bands you apparently love the most lately? Kebby adds. Every single time some idiot decides to behave like how they think a true punk lad is meant to behave, the bands comment. They do. And they will stop coming. They will stop coming here. Indeed, numerous bands, including The Smith Street Band, Camp Cope, High Tension, Luca Brasi, and Spiderbait, just to name a few, have taken an active role in calling out unacceptable behaviours from punters in their crowds. But its important to note that the gigs these bands have cited as being the scene of violence and assault were not in Newcastle, and violence, sadly, takes place at gigs all over the country. Is Newcastle a particular outlier in this regard? As far as Kebbys concerned, its only a matter of time until the bands get fed up with such behaviour and stop coming to non-city destinations like Newcastle. You can read her entire op-ed via Newcastle Live here. OVERWHELMING DEMOCRATIC PARTY SUPPORT IN KANSAS CITY THREATENS JASON KANDER IN THE LONG RUN GIVEN GOP CRITICS ACROSS THE STATE CLOWNING HIS EMBRACE OF A FIERCE LIBERAL!!! "Politician Jason Kanders partisan tone and liberal voting record have attracted the most extreme elements of the professional left to his campaign, and now the liberals standard-bearer joins Kanders crusade for higher taxes, more ObamaCare and amnesty for illegal immigrants. Liberal U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, known for her angry, sarcastic tone campaigned with Kander in Kansas City, proving once again that Kanders votes, views and values are totally out of touch with Missouri families. Rich Chrismer, a communications advisor to the Missouri Republican Party: Elizabeth Warren isnt the first Washington liberal to campaign for Jason Kander, but she is one of the most extreme and radical. Elizabeth Warren, Hillary Clinton and Chuck Schumer are supporting Jason Kander because they know he would be a reliable rubberstamp vote for their liberal agenda, even when that agenda is at odds with Missouri views and values . . ." most everybody in Kansas City across party lines wants MO SecState Jason Kander to win. LIKE IT OR NOT . . . KANDER'S CHANCES HINGE ON WINNING OVER MISSOURI'S CONSERVATIVE GOP VOTERS AND THE KANSAS CITY LIBERAL CELEBRATION CLEARLY DAMAGED THE PROGRESS OF THIS CRUCIAL CAMPAIGN STRATEGY!!! Despite his efforts to move away and distance himself from Kansas City, a recent cowtown Democratic Rally could threaten to stop Jason Kander's meteoric rise to power in a close race for the U.S. Senate.To wit . . .As always, Kansas City media keeps locals stupid when it comes to Red State controversy . . .This town was only fed the upside of a recent event . . .Sounds nice, right?Well, here's the word that's circulating among the GOP majority throughout the state . . .Money line . . .In fairness,In this town, the argument of the upstart young man facing the old school D.C. insider has been completely successful on both sides of the aisle.But that's the problem and one of the inherent contradictions of life in Kansas City . . . Local logic doesn't extend far outside city limits.And so, while Kansas City crowds cheered their all-time favorite politicoof the past decade, the outpouring of support threatens to cost Kander the election in yet another Kansas City jinx for successful people trying to escape the mediocrity of this dreadful little town.You decide . . . Alonzo Washington: "The Legends has only been warning its employees but I have sources everywhere & I found out about it to warn the whole community." A suspicious dude with a striking resemblance tohas been seen hanging around a shopping destination in Kansas City, Kansas and now the most prolific anti-crime activist wants to put the public on notice.Even better . . .Developing . . . Turkish President Recep Erdogan once more revealed his expansionist Neo-Ottoman vision, during a provocative speech in the north-eastern region of Rize. Addressing a number of issues linked to the Turkish involvement in surrounding conflict regions, including Syria and Iraq, Erdogan made reference to the borders of our heart, presenting his understanding of contiguous borders of other countries that he claimed were historically tied to Turkey. In an excerpt of his megalomaniacal speech, Erdogan went so far as to say that in their minds, Turks could not separate Andrianoplis from Thessaloniki, Greeces second largest city! We express our respect to the geographical borders of nations, but we cannot mark borders on our hearts, he noted. In his speech, the Turkish President brought up the borders of countries spanning from Thrace and the Balkans to north Africa, western Europe and the Caucus regions, adding that Turkey is not only Turkey. Except the 79 million Turkish citizens, Turkey has a responsibility to hundreds of millions of brothers in geographic areas connected with us culturally and historically, he underlined. His speech caused a strong reaction by the Greek Foreign Ministry, which released a statement pointing out that Thrace was Greek and any other thought is dangerous and unacceptable. The statement called the Turkish President to order, claiming his inflammatory speech undermined regional stability. The public stirring of historical, and especially border disputes, that have been irrevocably and definitively settled in the Lausanne Treaty by laying down an objective and binding status quo for all, is provocative and undermines the regional stability, the statement read. The Ministry went on to say that the respect of International Law and Treaties warranted the voicing of responsible views detached from outdated revisionisms. Read more here. RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report At least 240 Greek enterprises from the agro-food sector participated in this year's SIAL 16 international food fair in Paris At least 240 Greek enterprises from the agro-food sector participated in this year's SIAL 16 international food fair in Paris, a "global showcase of the food chain". SIAL Paris brings together all factors in the production and distribution of food, revealing trends and innovations that will set the food industry of tomorrow. This year's fair attracted 7,000 enterprises from 104 countries. From the 240 Greek enterprises, 100 participated in the framework of the Greek pavilion organized by Enterprise Greece. The remaining -most of which have a history of experience and contacts with SIAL- exhibit their products in theme halls. The Greek pavilion is promoting to motto "Greece, invest in taste", a motto chosen by Enterprise Greece. "We come to the world's largest food fair, coordinating a national effort to promote the agro-food sector," Christos Staikos, president of Enterprise Greece told ANA. "Our main slogan is "invest in taste", in life quality, to the good life that Greek products offer. We show there are opportunities for investments in the agro-food sectr in Greece, which has high added value and it is one of the basic sector we want to strengthen as a national strategy," he said. Enterprise Greece covers 30 pct of cost for each businessman participating in the national pavilion, with each basic participation costing around 5,000 euros. Read more here. RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report President Nicos Anastasiades told delegates at the Institute of International and European Affairs on Wednesday that he is cautiously optimistic that a solution to the Cyprus Problem will be reached soon President Nicos Anastasiades told delegates at the Institute of International and European Affairs on Wednesday that he is cautiously optimistic that a solution to the Cyprus Problem will be reached soon. Anastasiades travelled to Dublin, Ireland on Tuesday for talks with, inter alia, Irish President Michael Higgins and Taoiseach Enda Kenny. The President told attendees at the IIEA that Cyprus is believes that Europe holds many of the answers to the Cyprus Problem. He added: We believe that our capacity as a member state of the EU more than adequately addresses any security concerns and provides the best guarantee for all Cypriots. Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded and illegally occupied its northern third. UN-led peace talks are aiming to find a solution to the 42-year old issue. GUARANTOR POWERS Anastasiades also told delegates at the IIEA that Greece has made its position clear that it no longer wants to be a guarantor power any more and that the UK keeps a very positive position saying that unless both communities ask, it is not interested to continue being a guarantor power. That leaves Turkey, with Anastasiades saying they are the only remaining guarantor power who wants to continue [being as such]. The President affirmed that it is crystal-clear that maintaining third country military troops or guarantees in 2016, in an EU member state is not only unnecessary but also an anachronism in todays world. SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES Updating the attendees on what are currently the most significant differences on the negotiating table at present, Anastasiades outlined: [They] lie in the core and fundamental chapters of territory which is linked with the chapter of property - and security and guarantees, which will weigh significantly as to whether a solution would be feasible. He said that if he and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci find solutions to these differences, I am hopeful that a solution can be reached soon even before the end of this year. The President commented that if Turkey showed a similar degree of commitment, [to] engage constructively and proceed with concrete and tangible steps, [that] will positively reinforce the negotiating process. BREXIT WILL HURT US THE MOST Anastasiades also referred to the UKs decision to leave the EU following the Brexit vote, saying that it represents another major challenge for Cyprus and Ireland. As a result of our extended ties with the UK, we are the two countries that will probably be the most affected by this [decision to leave the EU]. He assured that we, on our part, are already in the process of identifying the areas that will be affected by Britains exit from the EU. We have a particular concern on fiscal issues and taxation, where we will lose a partner within the EU with whom we often saw eye-to-eye. Read more here. RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report Ashton Kutcher's organisation Thorn, rescued at least 6000 human trafficking victims in 2016--a majority of whom were targeted online. By India Today Web Desk: Actor-activist Ashton Kutcher whom you probably know from Hollywood flicks like No Strings Attached, What Happens in Vegas, A Lot like Love among others, recently shared how his organisation has rescued at least 6,000 trafficking victims in 2016. Kutcher, who co-founded the organisation Thorn with his ex-wife Demi Moore in 2008, appeared on The Today Show and shed light on the disturbing statistics that dominate the world of human trafficking today. Kutcher and Demi Moore founded Thorn in 2008. Photo: Reuters advertisement Speaking to the hosts of the show, Kutcher said that a majority of human trafficking victims are approached and targeted online--something that his organisation aims to tackle. Also Read: Forced into prostitution at 10, this woman is the warrior you probably haven't heard about "We're building digital tools to fight human trafficking. Basically, the purchase and commerce for human trafficking is happening online, just like everything else now, and so we're building digital tools to fight back against it," Kutcher was quoted as saying. Thorn rescued at least 6,000 victims in 2016 alone. Picture courtesy: Twitter/Gabriela Gutierrez (@justgaby78) With technology and social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Google as loyal aides, Kutcher's Thorn recognises "predatory behaviour" and saves individuals from the claws of the immensely rampant issue of human trafficking. Reportedly, 70 per cent of the rescued victims in 2015 were sold online at one point or another. Also Read: Abused, insulted and tortured for 20 years, this woman's tale still reeks of hope "People are posted and sold online multiple times a day. As far as the ad that was posted up [for me], there was a girl who eerily looked like me..just [like] you can go find a car, there was a picture, and a description, and a price," Asia, a survivor was quoted as telling Thorn. While the recovery of 6,000 trafficking victims and 2,000 traffickers is encouraging, Kutcher's NGO now aims to eradicate child pornography. --- ENDS --- Sorry... ..An error has occured: If you have any queries about this error, try emailing feedback@mirror.co.uk and we'll do what we can to help you. ZID:308457493 Nakheel, a leading Dubai-based developer, has registered a net profit of Dh3.91 billion ($1.06 billion) for the first nine months of this year, up 8.3 per cent over the profit of Dh3.61 billion ($982 million) for the same period last year. One of the worlds leading developers and a major contributor to realising the vision of Dubai for the 21st century, Nakheel said its third quarter results too were on expected lines registering a Dh955 million ($260 million) profit for the third quarter, up 22 per cent over Dh781 million (213 million) last year. The Emirati firm pointed out that the results reflected stable market conditions. As with previous results periods, Nakheels development business, with its ongoing handovers of properties to customers, and the companys growing retail, leasing and leisure businesses all contributed to the results for the period, it stated. On the performance, Nakheel chairman Ali Rashid Lootah said: "The growth in our net profit for the first nine months of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015 is a sign of a stable and mature local real estate market. The results also reflect positively on our business strategy to invest in our income-generating asset portfolio." "We expect to further consolidate on our position and finish the year on an even stronger note," he stated. Nakheel currently has more than 2,300 units at various development projects under construction, including 934 units nearing completion at the new Warsan Village community. It is also investing around Dh40 billion ($11 billion) in expanding its retail, hospitality and residential leasing portfolios with a host of new projects under way that will further contribute to and strengthen its overall financial position. Nakheel has around 13 million sq ft of leasable space under development at new, large-scale retail projects across Dubai, while its hospitality portfolio comprises 16 hotels and serviced apartment complexes with over 5,200 rooms between them. The company is also doubling its residential leasing stock by adding over 18,000 new units to its portfolio. "The last nine months has seen a range of significant achievements for Nakheel, including the biggest milestone in our history: settling all of the Dh4.4 billion ($1.2 billion) of trade creditor sukuk that was due on August 25. This was the last outstanding obligation from the financial restructuring concluded in August 2011," said Lootah. "We thank the Government of Dubai, without whom this milestone would not have been possible, for its ongoing support. With the restructuring behind us, we can now operate with more flexibility to achieve our business and financial objectives.," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Dubai-based global shipping terminals operator DP World has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the government of Ukraine to collaborate on matters of mutual interest, including the development of logistics capability in the country. On a recent visit to Ukraine, DP World Group chairman and CEO Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem signed the MoU with the Ukrainian Minister of Infrastructure Volodymyr Omelyan and later met with President Petro Poroshenko, Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, senior ministers and officials. At the meetings, Bin Sulayem also delivered a letter of intent from DP World for its P&O Maritime subsidiary to develop the tug and pilot boat services of Odessa port on the Black Sea, said a DP world statement. President Poroshenko underlined Ukraines encouragement of foreign investment and welcomed the agreement between the Ministry of Infrastructure and DP World. Bin Sulayem said Ukraines geographic location on the Black Sea and potential for investment supported by favourable foreign and domestic policies provide a promising environment for the growth of the logistics sector. He added that DP Worlds Constanta Terminal in Romania, a state-of-the-art facility with excellent deep-draft access, also enjoys a strategic geographic location in the Black Sea and the MoU reinforces DP Worlds commitment to develop world class logistics facilities in the region. Prime Minister Groysman said that foreign investment was a top priority for the government especially in sectors such as power, agriculture, infrastructure and IT and emphasised the suitable business environment of the country. Bin Sulayem said there was substantial scope for cooperation because of the skilled manpower and location of Ukraine with industrial zones being one specific area to explore. He also expressed DP Worlds readiness to cooperate on the development of customs operations through the use of electronic technologies. Bin Sulayem said: We see major growth potential for trade on the Black Sea, backed by our Constanta terminal, helping to connect Far Eastern and regional markets with Europe and the rest of the world. Seamless cargo movement supported by efficient infrastructure and services along multi-modal transport links is essential to profitable trade growth. To attract investors we must find innovative ways of working together through public-private partnerships, with a focus on infrastructure provision, developing financial markets, mitigating risks and eliminating red tape. The UAE and DP World have developed into knowledge exporters owing to our global experience, expertise and business success. The UAE and Dubais success as a trade hub are proof of this and were excited at the opportunity of strengthening our partnership with the government of Ukraine to further their goals of economic growth. The agreements build on DP Worlds role as a developer of trade and logistics globally, in partnership with governments in 40 countries with 77 operating marine and inland terminals. Trade between Dubai and Ukraine amounted to more than Dh1 billion ($272 million) in 2015, with the majority being imports to Dubai, followed by exports and re-exports. Total trade in the first half of 2016 has already crossed Dh500 million, the statement said. - TradeArabia News Service German engineering giant Siemens revealed that it is preparing to sign a major deal with Iran to develop the country's railway system, said a report. Top Siemens officials will arrive in Tehran on Friday to discuss the deal which is expected to be worth over 2 billion ($2.25 billion), added the Iran Daily News report, citing Reuters. The deal will involve an order for track technology and Ice 3 trains a model of intercity train in use in Germany, it said. Germany's Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt is also expected in Tehran on Friday. Dobrindt is expected to discuss the expansion of mutual cooperation over a variety of areas. He will head a major trade delegation, added the report. Eat, a restaurant discovery and real-time reservations platform has raised a post-seed funding round of $2 million, led by Bahrain-based investment fund Pinnacle. The company has raised $2.9 million in funding to date. The latest round of investment will be utilised to expand eats existing presence in Dubai and Bahrain, while simultaneously launching in other GCC markets, said a statement. Founded in 2014, eats consumer facing apps, available on web, iOS and Android, allow diners across Bahrain and Dubai to discover fine-dining restaurants and make real-time reservations. Eats consumer app positions itself as providing a curated list of only the very best dining venues per market, and currently has 200 restaurants available in Dubai, including exclusive eateries such as the Palazzo Versaces Enigma, Hakkasan, and Michelin chef Jason Athertons Marina Social. Its Bahrain market offering currently includes 80 restaurants, including Michelin-led restaurants CUT by Wolfgang Puck and Masso by Chef Susy Massetti. The companys second product, a table management software, provides restaurants with a comprehensive, iPad-based reservations and table management solution. Its an extremely exciting time for us, one which will see eat expanding operations across several new markets. As with all our previous rounds, a significant portion of the investment will go towards marketing and customer acquisition in those markets, while also continuing to build new features in response to the needs of our clients, said Nezar Kadhem, co-founder of eat. We have gone through a significant planning stage and are now in a position to carry out our next period of growth. The new round will see eat reach even more diners in the region, with a prime focus in Dubai, and a wider adoption of our table management product at hotels and restaurants in not only the Middle East but other markets too. Eat already has agreements with many of the larger hotel chains in the region, including the Marriott, Four Seasons, The Taj Group of Hotels, The Ritz Carlton, and Starwood. Besides its activities in the GCC, the company also has clients in countries such as France, St. Barthelemy, Columbia, Bulgaria and the UK. Eat was founded in 2014 in Bahrain and following an initial investment of $100,000 lead by the Bahrain-based angel investment company Tenmou, launched eat for restaurants, an iPad-based table reservations app for restaurants. In 2015, a further $300,000 was raised through Tenmou, which had gathered notable Bahraini investors such as Fawaz Algosaibi, Redha Fathalla and Mohamed Almoayyed among others, and the companys consumer app, restaurant discovery and reservations by eat was launched in the Bahrain market. A third round later on in the year raised another $500,000 from private investors from the GCC and France, giving the company the ability to expand quickly into the Dubai market after announcements by global competitors of plans to move into the UAE. Having seated over 1,000,000 diners via its software at the end of 2015 in Bahrain and acquired over 90 per cent of the fine-dining market with its restaurant manager product, eat dedicated the majority of its remaining investment to securing and growing its market share in Dubai, the company said. Despite growing competition from regional and international companies 2016 has seen the company continue to expand its fine-dining restaurant discovery and real-time reservations service in the UAE, now offering real-time reservations at over 200 of Dubais most exclusive restaurants via its mobile and web app, it added. TradeArabia News Service Brazil deliberates exploring the GCCs lucrative fruit market to further expand its food trade with the region, said the secretary general of Apex Brasil, the Brazilian trade and investment promotion agency. According to a recent research conducted by Apex Brasil, the South American country should concentrate on increasing the import of fresh eggs, Brazilian nuts, lemons and limes, grapes, melons, and cloves to expand its list of food supplied to the Arabian Peninsula. The survey is based on the study of Brazils share in local imports and the expansion in the purchase of imported food by the GCC countries. In 2014, the UAE imported $69.6 million worth of lime of which only 9.7 per cent was supplied by Brazil. While competing countries increased their sales by 29.8 per cent between 2010 and 2014, Brazil surged its sales by 43.4 per cent for the same period. Likewise, the UAEs import of grapes is $85.9 million per year and Brazil expanded its supply to 185.6 per cent between 2010 and 2014 while other supplying countries increased only to 21.5 per cent. Lastly, Brazil accounts for 27.7 per cent of import of fresh eggs to the UAE. The study, though important, relies primarily on the data collected from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the UAE as these are the regions premier destination for global food and beverage exports as well as Brazilian imports. Of the total exports from Brazil, the UAE accounts for 0.63 per cent, while it was 0.56 per cent for Saudi Arabia with food and beverage category accounting for 1.1 per cent and 2.5 per cent in the respective countries. Dr Michel Alaby, secretary general and CEO, ABCC, said: In the light of the recent survey indicating tremendous potential in food trade with the GCC countries, Brazil is exploring to expand in the fruit category. The demand for foreign food has surged significantly in the Arabian Gulf driven by population growth, low local production, and high economic standard. Responding to the demand, Brazil has also increased its share of fruit imports to the region. At ABCC, we extend all our help to Brazilian food exporters and offer them a platform to reach out to food trading companies in the Gulf for furthering mutually beneficial bilateral ties between the two regions. Brazil holds 82.1 per cent stake in the raw chicken and 61.4 per cent in refined sugar in the KSAs food sector. In the UAE, on the other hand, it accounts for 76.8 per cent share in raw chicken and 70.3 per cent share in refined sugars. With strong hold of in the UAEs and Saudi Arabia food market, a further growth in the fruit category will give a strong economic boost to Brazil. TradeArabia News Service Etihad Airways is working with air traffic management specialists NATS to deliver operational enhancements across its network, and improve the way the airline works with air traffic control providers and airport operators on airfield management procedures. Guy Allison, a specialist from the NATS team at London Heathrow Airport, is currently based within the airlines Network Operations team working on a variety of projects including airfield operations around the Midfield Terminal Project at Abu Dhabi International Airport - one of the largest investment programmes in the Middle East. NATS is assisting the airline by sharing its experience in the management of low visibility procedures in the UK, the flow of aircraft on the airfield, and improving the way the airline manages its processes around aircraft handling. With a growing fleet, the airline wants to ensure operational efficiency in all areas of its hub operation. Chris Youlten, senior vice president of Network Operations at Etihad Airways, said: Were delighted to be working in partnership with NATS as part of our continuing efforts to improve the experience for our passengers. By improving aspects of our operational efficiency across the global network, we are able to refine the experience for our customers; ensuring our flights consistently operate to schedule and we are recognised as a world leader for on-time performance. NATS has been working with aviation partners in the UAE since 2006, where it has its regional headquarters. The company continues to expand its footprint in the Middle East, with offices in both Oman and Qatar, providing dedicated, locally-based operational and training expertise. NATS also has a long term engineering and operational transition project team working in Kuwait. Ben Kiff, director at NATS Middle East, said: Etihad Airways is one of the worlds leading airlines and its a privilege to be working with them to not only benefit their operations but the wider Abu Dhabi aviation community. The industry recognises the need for increased collaboration, and air traffic management - which is seen as the glue that connects airport and airline operations - can offer a unique perspective. It is great to see Etihad Airways taking such a leadership position in this regard. During 2016, Etihad Airways has continued to expand its global network of over 100 destinations. The airport hub in Abu Dhabi is undergoing significant investment to allow continued growth and push passenger numbers over 30 million annual journeys. - TradeArabia News Service The global deployment of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, which can accurately track passengers baggage in real time across key points in the journey, can enable the air transport industry to save more than $3 billion over the next seven years. Global IT provider Sita and the International Air Transport Association (Iata) revealed that the highly accurate tracking rates of RFID technology could reduce the number of mishandled bags by up to 25 per cent by 2022, mainly through efficient tracking. The Sita/Iata Business Case released today at the Iata World Passenger Symposium taking place in Dubai, outlines how this will provide a major saving for airlines and deliver more certainty for passengers. In particular, RFID will address mishandling during transfer from one flight to another, one of the key areas identified by Sita and Iata where the technology could help improve baggage handling rates. RFID technology will ensure that airports, airlines and ground handlers are able to keep track of bags at every step of the journey and ensure the right bag is loaded onto the correct flight. The technology also supports Iatas Resolution 753 that requires by 2018 airlines keep track of every item of baggage from start to finish. The deployment of RFID would build on the already significant savings delivered by the smart use of technology for baggage management. According to the SITA Baggage Report 2016, technology has helped reduce the number of mishandled bags by 50 per cent from a record 46.9 million mishandled bags in 2007, saving the industry $22.4 billion. This improvement comes despite a sharp rise in passenger numbers over the same period. Jim Peters, chief technology officer at Sita, said: The airline industry is on the brink of a revolution in baggage tracking. Deploying RFID globally will increase accuracy and reduce mishandling rates. This is a win-win situation passengers will be happier, operations will run smoother and airlines will save billions of dollars. Andrew Price, head of Global Baggage Operations at Iata said: Over the past few years we have seen more work to help airlines introduce and reap the benefits of RFID technology through better oversight of their baggage operations. This has included trials and of course the Delta Air Lines implementation. The advances in the technology and the immense benefits it brings to the airline industry has prompted Iata to revisit and fully explore the benefits of RFID today. Initial deployments of RFID by airlines, such as Delta Air Lines, show a 99 per cent success rate for tracking bags, helping further reduce the number of mishandled bags. David Hosford, manager of baggage performance strategy at Delta Air Lines said: We are investing in RFID to further improve our baggage handling rates and improve the customer experience. RFID technology provides us with more data and more precise tracking information throughout the baggage journey. The Sita/Iata business case shows that the improvements in handling rates do not come at a great cost. RFID capabilities can be deployed for as little $0.1 per passenger on average while generating expected savings of more than $0.2 per passenger. With some big airlines and airports already introducing RFID technology, combined with the fact that it is compatible with existing barcode technology, adoption of RFID across all airports could provide a positive return for airlines, both in cost savings and passenger satisfaction. Sitas and Iata's assumptions are based on RFID being deployed in 722 airports (representing 95 per cent of passenger numbers globally) over a six-year period between 2016 and 2021 while the savings are calculated over seven years to 2022. The figures for 2016 take into account the RFID infrastructure already deployed or about to be deployed at multiple induction points on the baggage journey. Sita's research into RFID and baggage tracking is part of its ongoing investment in research for the benefit of the entire air transport community. Baggage tracking is one of the five community research programs that Sita has launched to address some of the industrys most pressing challenges. The others are identity management; the facilitation of Iatas New Distribution Capability (NDC); an industry-wide disruption warning system; and enhancing cybersecurity across the industry. - TradeArabia News Service For a limited time only Qatar Airways travellers from UAE can redeem a discount of up to 10 per cent off flights across the airlines global network when booking through their smartphones or tablets. Travellers can simply type qatarairways.com into their devices browser and use the promotional code 'Mobile' to book flights to more than 150 places across the world. From October 17 to 24, travellers can book travel via Qatar Airways mobile site, for travel between October 20, 2016 and June 14, 2017. Passengers can book fares as low as Dh1,720 ($468) to London, Dh3,270 ($890) to Atlanta, Dh2,310 ($628.7) to Barcelona and fares starting from Dh4,160 ($1,132.3) to Sydney. Qatar Airways is offering the exclusive promotion as part of a campaign to introduce its newly-refreshed mobile website, which is now available in 12 languages. With an innovative range of mobile services, Qatar Airways is making it even easier for its passengers to explore the world and make big plans on small screens. In its new form, the mobile website allows travellers across the world to take more control of their journeys on the go. Qatar Airways chief commercial officer, Dr Hugh Dunleavy, said: More of us are conducting business on the go reading the newspaper on our smart phones, paying bills via apps, and fitting those personal tasks in when we can. Our travellers want the convenience to book and adjust their travel arrangements when they want to, in the language they prefer. As we continue to expand our network and destinations around the world, we are proud to offer travellers access to our world-class services in 12 of the most commonly spoken languages in the countries we fly to, through our mobile- website. This, of course, is in line with our commitment to provide our travellers with a superior experience from the moment they book their journey right through to its end. To celebrate this with our travellers , we are offering a special 10 per cent discount for all tickets sold via our mobile site from UAE between October 17-24. Qatar Airways new mobile website, accessible at www.qatarairways.com through handheld Apple and Android devices including smartphones and tablets, is available in Arabic, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Portuguese, Spanish, Russian, and Turkish. Through the mobile website, passengers can make new bookings amend the dates and destinations of their existing bookings, check in online, purchase excess baggage, select seat and meal preferences, modify special service requests, redeem Qmiles, and perform a variety of other functions. Travellers will also be able to check flight status, become a member of Qatar Airways Privilege Club, and subscribe to newsletters. Travellers will enjoy going places on Qatar Airways expanding network of more than 150 destinations, flying via one of the worlds top 10 airports, Hamad International Airport in Doha. Passengers can now discover new destinations added to the airlines network in 2016, including Adelaide (Australia), Atlanta (US), Birmingham (UK), Boston (US), Helsinki (Finland), Los Angeles (US), Marrakech (Morocco), Pisa (Italy), Ras Al Khaimah (UAE), Sydney (Australia), Windhoek (Namibia) and Yerevan (Armenia). Krabi (Thailand) and the Seychelles will join the airlines routemap in December. - TradeArabia News Service Prime Minister Modi met State Counsellor and Foreign Minister of Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi in New Delhi on Wednesday, the third and concluding day of her three-day state visit to India. By Indo-Asian News Service: Prime Minister Modi met State Counsellor and Foreign Minister of Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi in New Delhi on Wednesday, the third and concluding day of her three-day state visit to India. "An old friend from the East, a partner in our common Progress. PM receives Myanmar State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at Hyderabad House," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted along with a picture of the two leaders. advertisement An old friend from the East, a partner in our common progress. PM receives Myanmar State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at Hyderabad House pic.twitter.com/YnwDQkBki2 Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) October 19, 2016 Following delegation-level talks headed by Modi and Suu Kyi, the two sides are expected to sign some agreements. #IndiaMyanmar: Partners in Progress - The two leaders witness the exchange of agreements in sectors of power, banking and insurance pic.twitter.com/JAttQY4ccA Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) October 19, 2016 SUU KYI MEETS PRANAB, SUSHMA On Tuesday, Suu Kyi met with President Pranab Mukherjee and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Also read: Sushma Swaraj meets Suu Kyi as India, Myanmar agree to strengthen border security, socio-economic ties Although Suu Kyi is not the President as Myanmar's constitution bars her from this, the Nobel Peace laureate is effectively the de facto leader of the country. This is the first official visit of Suu Kyi to New Delhi since her National League for Democracy (NLD) assumed power in Myanmar in March this year. SUUKYI ATTENDED BRICS-BIMSTEC MEET IN GOA Prior to reaching New Delhi on Monday for the state visit, she attended the BRICS-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa on Sunday. Her visit comes after Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw's visit to India in August this year. --- ENDS --- Inbound arrivals to Saudi Arabia will reach over 20 million by 2020, as the religious tourism sector flourishes in line with increasing demand to join the annual Haj pilgrimage, according to consumer insight firm Canadean. The companys latest report finds that the Haj represents a major tourism opportunity for both domestic and international stakeholders, particularly hotel groups and tour operators, as over two million pilgrims will travel to Saudi Arabia in September to visit Islams holiest site in Mecca. This will help Saudi Arabia to offset its recent losses in oil revenue, which accounts for 40 per cent of the countrys GDP, with tourism contributing just 3.5 per cent of GDP in 2015. Gillian Kennedy, analyst at Canadean, said: While the Haj is an established ritual in the Islamic world, its importance as a tourism destination has been transformed in recent times. The Saudi government is investing heavily in new hotels and spending more than $13 million a year renovating historical religious sites. Specific landmark hotel openings in the pipeline include the Abraj Kudai hotel, which will be the world's largest hotel with 10,000 rooms, built at an estimated cost of $3.6 billion. According to government statistics, tourist expenditure during Haj season will increase by 30 per cent over last years figures and reach $6.9 billion in 2016. The increase is expected after the Saudi government ended the limit on Haj pilgrimage visitors as previous overcapacity incidents caused violent episodes amid serious crowding at the Haj. Kennedy added: Despite previous incidents, demand to visit the Haj continues to grow with over three million visitors a year, and tourist accommodation is witnessing a major increase in prices. With at least 40 per cent of pilgrimage expenditure used for accommodation such as hotels or fully-furnished apartments, there are a plenty of investment opportunities with significant revenue potential emerging in the Saudi Kingdom. Already, 13 of Meccas 15 old neighborhoods have been rebuilt to make room for hotels and commercial spaces. Moreover, one square meter of land in the area surrounding the Grand Mosque is currently valued at $122,350, resulting in much of the native population selling their property to the government or to real estate developers. - TradeArabia News Service Parents of conjoined twins seek financial aid from government to pay for the surgery of the infants. By Sahidul Hasan Khokon: Parents of conjoined twins from Habibganj district of Bangladesh have sought assistance from government to help pay for the surgery to separate the infants. Josna Begum, a housewife, gave birth to a pair of conjoined twins on Tuesday. The twins were delivered at around 1pm at New Life Care Hospital in Habibganj. Josna and her husband Mohammad Jalil are both natives of Muradpur village of Baniachong Upazila of Habibganj district. advertisement "Head, hands and legs of the two babies are separate but they have a joint abdomen. We have to examine the babies first. If other organs too are separate, then the babies can be separated," said Dr Rakib Ansari, child specialist at New Life Care Hospital. Ansari added that an operation to separate the babies would be hugely expensive. POOR PARENTS APPROACH GOVERNMENT "I am poor and I do not have the ability to pay for the treatment of the babies," said the father of the twins. The parents also sought help from the government. "We have recommended them to take the babies to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical College in Dhaka. But the parents are unable to take the babies there as they are poor," said Chairman of New Life Hospital Ehteshamul Haque Shamim. This is the second incident of conjoined births in Bangladesh. On October 16, a pair of conjoined twins were abandoned by the parents at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital. The girls are now under the supervision of the hospital. Also read: Meet Bangladesh's Benjamin Button, a newborn who resembles an 80-year-old --- ENDS --- Celebs are in no mood to accept the dictatorship of aam aadmi contestants as they join hands to give it back to them. By India Today Web Desk: Bigg Boss 10 will be high on drama on Day 3, as celebs will finally decide to retaliate against aam aadmi contestants, by showing them the mirror. Rohan Mehra, who was so far silently and smilingly obeying the orders of maaliks, will finally lose his cool when Manoj will challenge him at the dining table. advertisement Celebs will also gang up to give it back to Om Swami, whose unreasonable behavior has been irking one and all. Rohan will be punished by Priyanka for spilling water on her; later in the day, Rohan will settle the score in a very unexpected way. Here's a look at all the squabbles that will take place on Day 3. Also read: Om Swami to Priyanka Jagga; these are Bigg Boss 10's most hated contestants so far Om Swami vs Mona Lisa: Om Swami will ring the hukum ki ghanti in the middle of the night to ask for food. Mona Lisa will raise objection to it, saying the maaliks have called it a day already, and it is unfair to wake them up in the middle of the night. Gaurav Chopra will join the argument by saying, that baat hoti hai sahi aur galat ki aur sahi aur galat dikhta hai. Priyanka Jagga will tell Om Swami that a certain celeb contestant has called him Buddha. Gaurav Chopra will confront her and ask her why she's talking on behalf of Swami. Karan will join Gaurav in the argument. Swami will apparently threaten the celebs again by saying, "Main apne asli roop mein aa jaunga." Karan will then say that all the contestants including the celebs are aam aadmi here and Swami shouldn't think that he is one step above anybody. Rohan Mehra vs Priyanka Jagga: Rohan will accidentally spills water on Priyanka and the lady will punish him by asking him to wash her clothes in the middle of the night. "Apne aap ko bada hi star samajhne lag gaya hai, zero hai tu," says Priyanka. Rohan Mehra vs Manoj Punjabi: Rohan and Manoj will have a war of words at the dining table when Rohan will say something like," Kuch to main kar sakta hun, karna chahun to." To which Manoj will violently reply saying, "Tere sapne mein bhi nahi kar sakta." Manoj will lose it completely and walk up to Rohan and warn him against using terms like 'hum' aur 'aap', while housemates qill try to pacify him. "The problem is hum achcha banana chahte hai, lekin aap log achche nahi hai," says Rohan, leaving Manoj shocked. advertisement --- ENDS --- When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site. Micro-apartments are gaining traction in cities like New York, Paris and Madrid, where real estate tends to be astronomically expensive and proximity to amenities desirable enough that people are willing to trade size for location. In Kharkov, Ukraine, the second-largest city in the country and a cultural and industrial hub, Ukrainian design firm One Studio created this modernist, yet comfortable and functional, micro-apartment for a weightlifter. One Studio Seen over at Home Designing and measuring just a touch under 200 square feet, the apartment is nevertheless packed with everything that one might need to live well, thanks to some clever space-saving details. There's a flexible living room space outfitted with a grand sofa and another window bench for guests, all with a great view of the city. One Studio One Studio There's a cozy but functional galley kitchen right under the stairs that still manages to get in a four-burner stovetop, and an eat-in counter folds up to become a wine rack. And of course, the requisite storage stair, with alternating treads, painted an energetic red. One Studio One Studio Upstairs is the bedroom, which feels quite spacious, as it almost completely overlaps the living room area below, save for a sliver of shared window space. One Studio One Studio One Studio The bathroom is quite something: the integrated sink-and-washer is brilliant, though it's hard to tell if this is merely a rendering or a real photo. But the concept is great for small bathrooms that can double as a laundry room. And the fishtank shower with a floor of stones cleverly brings in a bit of nature into the mix. One Studio One Studio One Studio I'm wondering if there's health benefits to showering with a fish, but I digress. Thanks to a creative strategy of overlapping spaces, functions and unexpected features, this micro-apartment manages to integrate a lot of original concepts to enlarge a small space. See more over at One Studio. Bigg Boss 9 winner Prince Narula wants his close friend VJ Bani to win the reality show. By India Today Web Desk: Everyone's favourite reality show Bigg Boss Season 10 has started off with a bang. While fights have already started in the house, people have even chosen their favourite contestants. Even celebrities. Confused? We are talking about former Bigg Boss contestant and TV personality Prince Narula. The reality TV star, who had won Bigg Boss Season 9, has come out in support of his close friend VJ Bani. advertisement The Bigg Boss Season 9 winner has encouraged his friend Bani to stay strong on the show. Good luck @banij I knw u gona Rock dis show #biggbosshouse #roadieslife#roadiesrock show them how tough we r Nd don't mess with us #friendforlife A photo posted by Prince Narula (@princenarula) on Oct 18, 2016 at 12:58am PDT Prince recently posted a picture of himself and Bani on his personal Instagram account. He had captioned the picture as, "Good luck @banij I knw u gona Rock dis show #biggbosshouse #roadieslife#roadiesrock show them how tough we r Nd don't mess with us #friendforlife." Bani and 'aam aadmi' contestant Priyanka Jagga have already had a war of words in the house. Also read:Exclusive: I want to make friends for life in the Bigg Boss house, says Lopamudra Raut There are seven celebrity contestants who will be seen on the show this season--VJ Bani, Rohan Mehra, Gaurav Chopra, Mona Lisa, Karan Mehra, Rahul Dev, and Lopamudra Raut. Whereas there are eight 'aam aadmi' contestants in total--Priyanka Jagga, Om Swami, Akansha Sharma, Navin Prakash, Lokesh Kumari Sharma, Manveer Gurjar, Manoj Punjabi, and Nitibha Kaul. Bigg Boss 10 airs every Mon-Fri at 10:30 pm, and every Sat-Sun at 9 pm on Colors TV. --- ENDS --- The state government's massive crackdown following the protests on Hizb-ul commander Burhan Wani's death is the biggest so far . The police crackdown in Jammu and Kashmir is the biggest in the state's history. (Photo: PTI) By Shuja-ul-Haq : The Lashkar-e-Taiba's threat to the Baramulla SHO after 44 people were arrested for terror-related activities shows the massive impact of the state government's biggest crackdown in the Valley in recent times. As the unrest in Kashmir following the death of Hizb-ul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani on July 8 enters 103rd day, the police have arrested more than 100 people in different parts of Kashmir in the last 24 hours. In other words, at least four people have been arrested by the state police every hour. advertisement Going by some official figures, at least 446 people have been arrested across Jammu and Kashmir in a week till Monday. ALSO READ: Kashmir unrest: Unidentified men set two vehicles on fire in Srinagar Given the numbers and the intensity of the crackdown, many are calling it the biggest in the state's volatile history. Sources put the total number of arrests in the state anywhere between 5,000-7,000 in the last three months. ALSO WATCH: THE PUBLIC SAFETY ACT Records suggest that hundreds of people have been booked under the stringent Public Safety Act. Some put the number close to 450 which is the highest the Valley ever recorded. Under the act, an individual can be detained for a maximum of two years without a court order. ALSO READ: Kashmir unrest: Protesters wave China and Pakistan flags in Baramulla South Kashmir, which has been the nerve centre of the protests, has seen the biggest crackdown in the state. In the four districts of Anantnag, Kulgam, Shopian and Pulwama, neraly 1,800 people have been arrested and another 500 detained under preventive detention. FROM INDIA TODAY MAGAZINE: What went wrong in Kashmir and how to fix it FROM INDIA TODAY MAGAZINE: Handling a hostile Pakistan 700 HOUSES SEARCHED Central and north Kashmir too have witnessed major crackdown the police. Baramulla, a relatively calm district, saw a massive search operation launched by the police and the army across the district before 44 people were arrested on Monday. According to the locals, more than 700 houses were searched by the army, the police, the Border Security Force and the Central Reserve Police Force. ALSO READ: Kashmir unrest: 12-year-old dies in pellet gun firing, clashes erupt "Large quantity of incriminating material such as petrol bombs, Chinese and Pakistan flags, LeT and JeM letter head pads, unauthorised mobile phones and seditious anti-national publicity material were seized during the raids," an official statement read. CRITICISM FROM OPPOSITION The crackdown has got the Opposition, mainly the National Conference (NC), furious. Taking a dig at the Mehbooba Mufti government's campaign to promote tourism, Omar Abdullah had tweeted: "I'm all for promoting tourism in to the valley but at a time when 90 people have died, 10,000+ injured, scores blinded it's out of place". advertisement The former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir accused the Mufti government of disrupting the normal life of the people in the state. "It's ridiculous that kids haven't seen the inside of school for 3 months & the CM wants tourists to forget the turmoil & come visiting," Abdullah had tweeted. It's ridiculous that kids haven't seen the inside of a school for 3 months & the CM wants tourists to forget the turmoil & come visiting. Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) October 4, 2016 ALSO READ: Watch how Kashmiri youth rescued an army jawan trapped inside a mangled vehicle Mufti after attending a high-level meeting in New Delhi in August to discuss the Kashmir unrest had said Central government needs to initiate dialogue with the locals. "There is a need to apply balm to the wounds of the Kashmiri people. These are our own people. If a dialogue can improve the situation in the Valley, we should do it," Mufti had said. advertisement ALSO READ: Kashmir not part of India on these globes sold in Kerala ALSO READ: India rejects Pakistan's references on Kashmir at UN --- ENDS --- Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 19 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council had virtually reached a consensus on compensation for the states and once that decision is formally endorsed, the issue of finalising the tax rate structure under the GST regime will be taken up at the next meeting of the council on November 3-4. The third meeting of the GST Council, which is the decision making body, ended today a day ahead of schedule without reaching a decision on the GST tax structure. Jaitley said the GST rate structure would be decided in the next meeting of the council. He said the options were whether to do it in the GST rate structure, introduce a cess or some other structure that might be used for compensation. He said once this decision was finalised, deciding on the GST tax structure would become easier. After the tax structure is finalised, the only remaining issue will be draft legislations which will be taken up in the fifth meeting of the council. Since the winter session of Parliament is commencing from November 16, the government will be keen to wrap up the process before that as it has set a deadline of April 1 for implementation of GST. He said the council also discussed the issue of dual control and dual authority of the Centre and States over the assessess. Since the principle has been decided that a single authority will oversee an assessee, it is yet to be decided as to how it will be divided. The GST Council has discussed possible GST rates, including a four-slab structure of 6, 12, 18 and 26 per cent with lower rates for essential items and highest band for luxury goods. The idea being mooted is to have a cess on the highest category or demerit goods to compensate the states. Since the rate structure was only proposed yesterday, the states would be keen to seek some time to peruse the proposals and their revenue implications. Jaitley said while the argument of less slabs in the GST rate structure is a good, it should not led to loss of revenue for the government or more burden on the tax payer for the sake of uniformity. He said two standard rates of 12 per cent and 18 per cent are under discussion. He said given the current taxation structure in the country, the idea is to fit the items closest to their existing tax rate rather than cause huge jumps for taxation of items. New Delhi: Beverages major Coca Cola India has dropped Salman Khan as brand ambassador for its soft drink Thums Up after four years of association and the company is in talks with young star Ranveer Singh to replace him. The contract with Salman had expired last month and the company has chosen not to renew it. The company's decision is more to do with the image of Coca Cola, sources said. When contacted, Coca Cola India declined to comment. pti Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 19 After being appointed Congress in-charge of Punjab, senior party leader Asha Kumari was today also given the charge of the Chandigarh unit. Chandigarh was so far being handled by former minister and party veteran Kamal Nath, who is also the Congress general secretary for Haryana. Im grateful to the Congress leadership for reposing faith in me. I will take the charge of Chandigarh shortly. I hope all Congress leaders of Chandigarh will work together for the upcoming municipal elections, Asha Kumari told The Tribune today. Asked how she proposed to unite the warring factions in the Chandigarh Territorial Congress Committee, Asha Kumari said she was confident everyone would work harmoniously for the larger interests of the party. Factions led by former minister Pawan Bansal and former Chandigarh Congress chief BB Behl have been at loggerheads for long and unity in the Chandigarh unit has suffered. Congress president Sonia Gandhi is aware of the factional wars. Asha Kumaris appointment as Chandigarh in-charge is seen as a calculated move by Sonia to bring unity to a divided house. Asha has successfully brought rival forces together in Punjab, where elections are due next year. In Punjab, she is credited with getting bete noires Capt Amarinder Singh and Partap Bajwa; Preneet Kaur and Brahm Mohindra and many others together. Even in Himachal Pradesh, where Asha Kumari is an MLA, she is seen as someone who has put the party interests before personal interests considering she has stood with Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh despite differences with him. She, in fact, led Virbhadra Singhs defence after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raided his house in Shimla on his daughters wedding day. Asha Kumaris elevation is being seen in the Congress circles as the party leaderships attempt to build her profile for a future role in Himachal Pradesh where she is seen as a potential successor to Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. Tribune News Service Mohali, October 19 With the arrest of a member of the Shutter gang last night, the Mohali CIA claims to have worked out the case in which thieves took away an ATM containing Rs 18.43 lakh from a branch of Punjab National Bank at Dappar, Lalru, in the wee hours of Octorber 16. The police have arrested Dharminder Singh, alias DM. The remaining four members of the gang kingpin Ranjit Singh, his brother Dharamraj, alias Dhamma, Krishan Kumar, alias Ballu, and Pittal, all residents of Mauli Jagran, manged to give the police the slip. The police claimed to have recovered two vehicles a Tata crane and an Esteem car used for taking away the ATM after cutting it with a gas cutter. However, the police are yet to recover the ATM. Mohali Senior Superintendent of Police Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said all gang members were hardcore criminals. More than 150 cases of dacoity, loot, robbery, vehicle theft and theft in shops and houses have been registered against the kingpin, Ranjit Singh, in Punjab, Chandigarh, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh while DM has over 10 cases of similar nature registered against him in various police stations. Both had recently come out of Ambala Jail on bail, said the SSP. He said all five of them were involved in the Dappar ATM theft case. After coming out of jail, the gang members committed thefts in some stores at Panchkula. They then went to Solan in a stolen Maruti car and committed thefts in six shops there after breaking open the locks. After their return, the gang members stole a Honda City car from Mohali and went to Phagwara where they again broke into five shops. The gang took away the Tata crane from Kharar on their return and abandoned the Honda City car in Mohali. The crane was used for taking away the ATM from Dappar, said the SSP. He said the ATM had been kept by Ranjit and Dharamraj at some place. When our team, along with a team of the Chandigarh Police, raided the thieves residences at Mauli Jagran last night, their family members and relatives attacked the police with bricks, stones and blunt weapons and also threw LPG cylinders on them. In the melee, four thieves managed to give the police the slip while DM was arrested from Harmilap Nagar near Baltana later, said Bhullar. A case under Sections 395 and 379 has been registered at the Lalru police station in connection with the ATM theft. Tribune News Service Bathinda, October 19 Bahadurpur, a village near Bareta town of Mansa district, is still longing for the statue of naib subedar Nand Singh, the lone winner of the twin bravery awards of Victoria Cross and Maha Vir Chakra. The demand for an entry gate in the name of this great martyr is still awaiting approval. At the age of 33, Nand Singh, a loyal solider of the Indian Army (by then, a jemadar, who was not even required to go into the battle) chose to lead his platoon of D Coy in a desperate but successful attack to rescue his battalion from an ambush in Uri in Kashmir in December 1947. He was killed in action but his body was never recovered, mentions former chief minister and Member of Parliament Captain Amarinder Singh in his book Lest We Forget. In 1944, as jemadar in the British Indian Army, Nand Singh received its highest military honour Victoria Cross for his bravery against the Japanese forces on the Arakan front in Burma during the World War-2. On March 12, 1944 on the Maungdaw-Buthidaung Road, Burma (now Myanmar), naik Nand Singh, commanding a leading section of the attack, was ordered to recapture a position gained by the enemy. He led his section up a very steep knife-edged ridge under heavy machine-gun and rifle fire and although wounded in the thigh, captured the first trench. He then crawled forward alone and wounded again in the face and shoulder, nevertheless captured the second and third trenches. On December 12, 1947 he laid down his life fighting Pakistani intruders in Jammu and Kashmir. Captain Amarinder Singh, who himself hails from the 1st Sikh regiment, had mentioned a detailed story on Nand Singh (September 24, 1914 December 12, 1947) and recalls that it was later discovered that the Pakistanis recognised Singh because of his decorated VC ribbon and took his body to Muzaffarabad, where, in the most abominable manner, it was tied spread-eagled on a truck and paraded through the city with a loudspeaker proclaiming that this would be the fate of every Indian VC. Nand Singhs body was later thrown onto a garbage dump, an emotional Captain Amarinder recalled, lamenting that the state government had failed to take care of the statue of this great soldier of the Indian soil, even though it was located on the Badals own turf. Captain Amarinder Singh was here to clean the statue of the martyr. Gurpreet Singh, member of panchayat and cousin grandson of the martyr at Bahadurpur village regretted that the state government had not only forgotten his family and the village but even failed to meet the demand of the villagers to set up an entry gate in the name of the great soldier. The gate at the entry is our demand and Rs 10 lakh has been approved for it but not even a single brick has been laid. We were informed by senior officials of the Army that a statue of this great martyr was made but they were yet to get any space and approval for installation. We demanded that the statue should be installed at Bareta Kainchiyan but the administration is yet to approve space for installation, he said. Nand Singh and his four brothers Chanda Singh, Dhanna Singh, Arjan Singh and Sarwan Singh were sons of Bhag Singh, he added. G Parthasarathy RELATIONS between Pakistans elected government and the countrys all-powerful military establishment become tense and coup prone whenever Nawaz Sharif is elected Prime Minister. This is rather ironical since Sharif entered politics with the blessings of the military in the early 1980s. The then military dictator General Zia-ul-Haq had sought the support of Nawazs father industrialist and steel magnate, Mian Mohamed Sharif to contribute for the establishment of a new Muslim League Party. General Zias military Governor in Lahore, Lt Gen Ghulam Gilani Khan, duly provided the support for Nawazs meteoric rise in politics. It was the backing of the military and the ISI chief, Lt Gen Asad Durrani, that enabled Sharif to cobble together an alliance of Islamist parties to prevail over Benazir Bhuttos Peoples Party in 1992. Sharifs whimsical and authoritarian functioning thereafter led to serious differences with then President Ghulam Ishaq Khan. The President was infuriated by the involvement of Sharif and his handpicked ISI chief Lt Gen Javed Nasir, in the 1993 Bombay bomb blasts. In the meantime, Sharif had developed an acrimonious relationship with his army chief, Gen Asif Nawaz, whose sudden death, attributed to arsenic poisoning, led to suspicions of Sharifs involvement. Sharif was duly sacked by President Ishaq Khan, but briefly restored to office by the Supreme Court. The army chief, Gen Waheed Kakkar, forced both Sharif and the President, out of office shortly thereafter. Sharifs relationship with the army was equally stormy in his second term. He peremptorily sacked his highly respected and apolitical army chief, Gen Jehangir Karamat. He was then ousted, jailed and exiled by Karamats successor, Pervez Musharraf, following differences over who was responsible for the Kargil fiasco. Sharifs relations with the army have been no less tumultuous in his third term. Like in the case of his appointment of Musharraf, Sharif erred in this third term by his appointment of Gen Raheel Sharif as army chief. He ignored the fact that General Raheel was a protege of General Musharraf, who would challenge the PMs efforts to have Musharraf tried for treason. Raheel Sharif predictably warned not only Nawaz, but also the Supreme Court, to back off from efforts to arrest and imprison Musharraf. His success in this effort only whetted Raheels appetite for taking over control of foreign policy, particularly relations with India, Afghanistan and even the US. China duly played on the Generals huge ego, by suggesting that it was the Pakistan army alone that could provide security for its $46 billion One-Belt, One-Roadproject. Over the past three years, Raheel Sharif has taken over control of Pakistans foreign policy and the countrys internal security. He undermined the successful meeting that Nawaz had with Mr Modi in Ufa by not permitting his DGMO to meet his Indian counterpart. He then undermined any chance of a rapprochement with India by the attack on the Pathankot air base, just after Mr Modi had extended a hand of friendship by visiting Lahore during the wedding of Nawaz Sharifs daughter. General Sharif has taken over the conduct of relations with Afghanistan to such an extent that when the Taliban, which has links with the ISI across the border, mounts terrorist strikes in Afghanistan, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani speaks to him rather than Nawaz Sharif! General Sharif has shown similar disregard for constitutional norms on issues of internal security. He mounted a large-scale attack on the Pashtun tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, ruthlessly using artillery and air strikes after the Pakistani Taliban attack on the Army School in Peshawar. These operations, named Zarb-e-Azb, have rendered 8,00,000 tribals homeless, with an estimated 50,000 fleeing into Afghanistan. The entire operation was mounted in the face of opposition from both provincial and federal governments and without parliamentary approval. Raheel Sharif showed similar disregard for the views of these governments in his crackdown using the army-controlled Paramilitary Rangers to crush the MQM Party in Karachi. In the meantime, the brutal army repression in Balochistan continues. Despite being lauded as a saviour by sections in Pakistan, Raheel Sharif has laid the foundations for prolonged unrest in three of Pakistans four provinces. In these circumstances, the Nawaz government hit back with leaks to the Dawn newspaper, alleging that support of the army and ISI for groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba, JeM and the Haqqani Network in Afghanistan had led to the diplomatic isolation of Pakistan, with even all-weather friend China expressing misgivings. This sentiment echoed widely in Pakistans parliament. The fact that Indias surgical strikes has been welcomed by the US and European parliament and that this has accompanied a boycott of the SAARC Summit in Islamabad, has given Nawaz Sharif more political space to act. He can now move to replace Raheel Sharif, who is due to retire on November 29, with a person of his choice. This will happen, unless, in the meantime, the Supreme Court acts against Nawaz Sharif on allegations of corruption and money laundering, or if a proposed agitation by Imran Khan paralyses Sharifs government and invites army intervention. Nawaz Sharif may, therefore, name the new army chief well before November 29. General Sharif will likely recommend the most senior officer, Lt Gen Zubair Hayat, presently the chief of general staff, to be the next army chief. Hayat is highly regarded and briefly headed the Strategic Plans Division of Pakistans Nuclear Command Authority. But Sharif will be wary of appointing a trusted buddy of General Sharif as the next chief. Hayat could well be kicked upstairs to the largely ceremonial, but senior-most post of chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC). As the CJCSC heads the Nuclear Command Authority, Hayats appointment could be justified on the grounds of his earlier association with it. In that case, Sharif could look lower down the list and could possibly appoint Lt Gen Iqbal Ramaday, who has impeccable family credentials and is presently Corps Commander Bahawalpur, or Lt Gen Qamar Bajwa, said to be a competent officer, who evidently has reservations about extremist jehadi outfits. Bajwa presently holds the same post that Raheel Sharif did before he was appointed as army chief. Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 19 The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has summoned the Delhi Police and the CBI seeking explanation for the "delay" in sending the information sought in connection with allegations of torture and suicide of family of BK Bansal, former Corporate Affairs Director General, who was facing a CBI probe in an alleged bribery case. In separate notices to S. Balasubramony, AIG (CBI) and Deputy Commissioner of Police (East District) Rishi Pal, DCW chief Swati Maliwal pointed out that the sought information has not been provided by them even after the lapse of 20 days and 15 days respectively. "The Commission takes a strong note of the fact that despite the passage of over 20 days, the sought information has not been provided," read the notice to AIG, CBI. The Commission observed that the replies dated September 29 and October 10 were found to be "unsatisfactory and inadequate" and did not provide the sought information. Earlier, the DCW had sent notices to the CBI twice dated October 3 and September 29 seeking information regarding alleged suicide and torture of the family of Bansal and the suicide note. "To explain the unreasonable cause of delay in furnishing the above information, you are hereby summoned to appear before the Commission for the purpose aforementioned on October 25 at 3 pm," said the Commission. "If you fail to comply with this order without lawful excuse, you will be subjected to the consequences of non-attendance as provided in law," it added. Similarly, Deputy Commissioner of Police (East District) has been told to appear before the Commission on October 25 at 4 pm. According to the Commission, the Delhi Police in its reply dated September 30 had failed to provide the sought information pertaining to the case of Bansal. So now the police have been summoned to produce the records, including reply to October 3 notice and reason for failure in providing timely response. Even if some may question caste-based division and promotion of businesses and link Tuesday's announcement of incentives by the Prime Minister at Ludhiana to the forthcoming assembly polls, any help to Dalit entrepreneurs is welcome. A hub to facilitate technology knowhow, easy loans and increased government procurement from industrial units run by Dalits may give more Dalits the confidence to venture out in this risky, unfamiliar territory. Politically, the BJP needs to change its anti-Dalit perception created after the Hyderabad, Dadri, Una and Mewat incidents before it faces the electorate in Punjab and UP. Punjab has a 31.94 per cent Dalit population, which was a reason enough for holding the PM function in the poll-bound state. The event offered Narendra Modi an opportunity to attempt a Dalit outreach. Good as he is at talking, Modi made an impact. My Dalit brothers and sisters should not stand in queue to seek jobs, instead they should give jobs to others, he said, adding that his "head hangs in shame" over atrocities on Dalits. The prime ministerial concern also put the spotlight on the grisly killings of Dalits in the recent past in Punjab by the liquor mafia whom the BJP-SAD government appears helpless to control, partly because some of its own are in the business. The brutality of the murders provoked statewide anger. The Punjab Dalits are a divided lot. But given their numbers, no party can ignore them. The BJP has appointed a Dalit to head its state unit but factionalism limits his appeal. Soon after he took over in April, Sampla was not invited to a state-level party function on Ambedkar. The Congress Dalit leaders too bicker in public. AAP enjoys Dalit support in Delhi but in Punjab it is yet to be tested. The Akali Dal woos Dalits with freebies but, apart from unchecked crimes against Dalits, its neglect of rural schools and dispensaries has hit them hard. Dalits largely depend on government education and healthcare. Honouring a handful of Dalit businessmen or giving more to the creamy layer is not enough. It is those at the bottom who need hand-holding to climb out of poverty. Tribune News Service Chandigarh, October 18 Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today approved the creation of Charkhi Dadri as the states 22nd district. He also gave a nod to 10 new subdivisions, most of them in the constituencies of BJP legislators, as many tehsils and three sub-tehsils. The decisions were taken at a meeting of the Cabinet held under Khattars chairmanship. The recommendation for the new district and re-organisation of sub-tehsils, tehsils, subdivisions was made by a committee headed by Agriculture Minister OP Dhankar. The Cabinet approved the creation of Charkhi Dadri district on the proposal of Deputy Commissioner, Bhiwani. However, the committee recommended that the adjoining villages not proposed to be included in the district by the Deputy Commissioner might also be given an option to be part of the new district by giving a 30-day public notice. Two more new districts are in the offing with the committee having also recommended the names of Gohana and Hansi. The Cabinet also approved proposals for upgrading as sub-divisions Ambala Cantonment in Ambala district, Badhra in Bhiwani district, Badkhal in Faridabad district, Narnaund in Hisar district, Badli in Jhajjar district, Uchana in Jind district, Gharaunda in Karnal district, Radaur in Yamunanagar district and Punhana in Mewat district. The proposal of creating Kalanwali subdivision in Sirsa district was also reviewed and recommended. State Agriculture Minister OP Dhankar said, The committee framed the criteria for upgrading and only those fulfilling the conditions were recommended. We have not played any politics. We didnt even realise that most of the sub-divisions fall in constituencies of the BJP MLAs. The DM asserted that every Whatsapp group must add district administration's special number- 9955948775. By Sujeet Jha: In the wake of communal tensions in Bihariganj town in Madehepura district of Bihar, the District Magistrate Mohammed Sohail has ordered the inclusion of district administration's phone number in every Whatsapp group. The group admin will face strict action of he refuses to comply. The DM asserted that every Whatsapp group must add district administration's special number- 9955948775. advertisement ALSO READ: Cops say WhatsApp group admins to go to jail if rumours spread through app In fact, the order further directed all Facebook groups operating from the district to send a friend request to 'Madhepura monitor'. The District Magistrate held social media responsible for igniting communal tension in the district during the immersion of Durga idols and Tazia processions. Consequently, he issued the orders for mandatory compliance in order to ensure law and order in the district. He believes that strict vigilance of groups on social media platforms may help curb spread of rumours in the area. Incidents of communal clashes were reported last week from Gopalganj, Bhojpur, Madhepura and east Chamaparan districts of Bihar during the immersion of Durga idols and Tazia processions, following which Internet services were suspended in several Bihar districts. A committee has also been formed to look into all the social media groups in Madhepura. It is, however, not known how the district officials will manage lakhs of whatsapp accounts and Facebook groups. ALSO READ: Delhi HC okays WhatsApp privacy policy, says users can delete account for privacy Facebook, WhatsApp honeytraps: Border villages, police cautioned on bogus Pakistan messages --- ENDS --- Geetanjali Gayatri Tribune News Service Chandigarh, October 19 The Haryana Government seems to be working on a definite pattern strengthening its party base with the announcement of a new district, subdivisions, tehsils and sub-tehsils. The Opposition, however, is not enthused. It claims the BJPs slogan Haryana ek, Haryanavi ek has been hollow. Sources said the BJP, elected on a non-Jat card, is trying to consolidate its position among Jats. The government has approved district status for Charkhi Dadri, while a committee led by Jat minister Om Prakash Dhankar has recommended upgrade of Hansi and Gohana as districts. The government is yet to take a decision on the recommendation. Charkhi Dadri, Hansi and Gohana are part of the Jat belt, where the BJPs hoping to gain ground by next Assembly elections. The party has tried to woo Jats while appeasing its legislators. This festive season, they have been gifted with subdivisions and tehsils in their constituencies. But the Opposition awaits the BJPs promised uniform development. Of 10 new subdivisions and as many tehsils created after a Cabinet nod yesterday, most of them fall in constituencies of BJP legislators who are either ministers or have been accommodated as Chief Parliamentary Secretaries (CPS). Barring Kalanwali, represented by SADs Balkaur Singh, and Punhana, represented by INLDs Rahish Khan, all subdivisions are in constituencies of BJP legislators. The Cabinet upgraded sub-tehsils Ambala Cantt in Ambala district, Badkhal in Faridabad district, Bass in Hisar district, Uchana and Alewa in Jind district, Ladwa in Kurukshetra district, Raipur Rani in Panchkula district, Matlauda in Panipat district and Kalanwali in Sirsa district. Besides, it recommended tehsil status for Badli in Jhajjar district. Dhankar has bagged a subdivision and tehsil in Badli, the constituency he represents, while Finance Minister Capt Abhimanyu has benefitted because Narnaund in his constituency has been upgraded to a subdivision and Bass, to a tehsil. The other beneficiaries include Health Minister Anil Vij, Transport Minister Krishan Lal Panwar, CPS Seema Trikha, and Uchana MLA Prem Lata, wife of Union Minister Birender Singh. Of 10 subdivisions, six have gone either to ministers or CPSes. No area either with the Congress or the INLD was considered for upgrade. This exposes the BJPs lie of bringing uniform development, INLD state chief Ashok Arora said. Congress MLA Kuldeep Sharma said the BJP promises, and slogans of Sabka saath, sakba vikas and equitable development lacked substance. The slogans are hollow. The BJPs words are nothing, but lies, he said. Dhankar, however, justified the Cabinet decision. The committee framed criteria for upgrade. Areas that met the conditions were recommended. There has been no politics in this. We didnt realise that most of the subdivisions fall in constituencies of BJP MLAs, he said. Other BJP MLAs said every government promoted its legislators. Our government has been large-hearted in upgrading subdivisions of two MLAs from rival parties. This shows there is no bias, one of them said. Parvesh Sharma Tribune News Service Chandigarh, October 19 The inflow of petty and irrelevant complaints at the CM Window is creating problems for its officers. So far, the web portal has received 10,258 complaints, which require no action. Sources said such complaints include theft of slippers, permission to adopt animals, buffalo thefts, house theft and many more. So far, the portal has received 2.10 lakh complaints, out of which 1.69 lakh have been disposed of, action is being taken on 9,500, 10,258 requires no action, clarification is sought for 4,259, action taken report has been received in 4,602 and 9,475 are overdue. Bhupeshwar Dayal, CM OSD (Grievances), could not be contacted. Sirsa tops the list of performance, as it has disposed of 5,275 complaints, followed by Hisar (3,968), Bhiwani (3,801), Rohtak (3,578), Faridabad (3,5030, Rewari (3,108), Yamunanagar (3,089), Kaithal (2,778), Palwal (2,568), Mahendragarh (2,527) and Sonepat (1,942) and other districts. Over two years have passed, but we are still receiving irrelevant complaints. Many still send complaints about court cases, old theft cases and against the authorities for not fulfilling their demands. There is a need to spread awareness about our working, said a senior officer. The monthly analysis of complaints shows that the state police have received 44, 713 complaints, out of which 1,314 are yet to be redressed. The Development and Panchayat Department has received 20,382 complaints, out of which 2,502 are yet to be redressed. A government spokesman said the state government had directed all its officers to take quick action over all complaints. Saurabh Malik Tribune News Service Chandigarh, October 19 To cut down on pendency of cases in lower courts, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has called upon them to be in control of the proceedings and not permit prolonged litigation. In a matrimonial dispute, Justice Anita Chaudhry asserted that litigation had the capacity of eroding relationships and the courts were duty-bound to prevent corrosion. Before parting with the order, it is necessary to mention the petition filed in 2013 has still not been decided. The litigation can really corrode human relationships and it is the duty of the court to curtail it. There is no need to hurry, but procrastination should not be manifest. The courts should be in complete control over the proceedings and should not permit the litigation to be prolonged, and if either party is delaying the proceedings, necessary steps should be taken. The assertion came on a petition filed by a constable from Rajasthan against a Sirsa Additional Sessions Judges order issued in June 2014. The Judge had allowed monthly interim maintenance to the constables wife, reversing the order of a Magistrate, who had dismissed the application for the same. The court was told the marriage was solemnised in November 2010. The wife had not only alleged dowry demand, but also ill-treatment. She alleged that she was thrown out of her husbands home. In February 2013, she had filed a petition under Section 125 of the CrPC for maintenance. The Additional Sessions Judge, in his order of June 13, 2014, had awarded maintenance. The Judge was of the view that even if the wife had a professional degree, it would not matter. She would have to gain sufficient experience to earn and there was no allegation she was working as a doctor in an institute or had opened her clinic. Justice Chaudhary asserted that the wife, in her petition under Section 125 CrPC, did not disclose she was a physiotherapist or was earning. But in the FIR lodged in September 2013, she had mentioned being a physiotherapist. Allowing the plea, Justice Chaudhary set aside the Additional Sessions Judges order, after observing: She is capable of earning. The trial court is yet to consider the case on merit. It will have to determine whether a qualified woman who can get a job can sit idle and insist on maintenance. Everyone has to earn for himself or herself or at least make an effort and would not sit idle. Los Angeles Scientists, including one of Indian origin, have found that people who suffer from migraines harbour significantly more microbes in their mouths with the ability to modify nitrates. "There is this idea out there that certain foods trigger migraines chocolate, wine and especially foods containing nitrates," said Antonio Gonzalez, from University of California, San Diego in the US. "We thought that perhaps there are connections between what people are eating, their microbiomes and their experiences with migraines," said Gonzalez. Nitrates, found in foods such as processed meats and green leafy vegetables and in certain medicines, can be reduced to nitrites by bacteria found in the mouth. When circulating in the blood, these nitrites can then be converted to nitric oxide under certain conditions. Nitric oxide can aid cardiovascular health by improving blood flow and reducing blood pressure. However, roughly four in five cardiac patients who take nitrate-containing drugs for chest pain or congestive heart failure report severe headaches as a side effect. Using publicly available data from the American Gut Project, a crowd-funded citizen science effort managed by Gonzalez and colleagues sequenced bacteria found in 172 oral samples and 1,996 fecal samples from healthy participants. The participants had previously filled out surveys indicating whether they suffered from migraines. The bacterial gene sequencing found that bacterial species were found in different abundances between people who get migraines (migraineurs) and non-migraineurs. In terms of bacterial community composition, the team did not find huge differences in either fecal or oral samples from migraineurs compared to non-migraineurs. Researchers, including Naseer Sangwan from the University of Chicago, then used a bioinformatic tool to analyse which genes were likely to be present in the two different sets of samples, given the bacterial species present. In fecal samples, they found a slight but statistically significant increase in the abundance of genes that encode nitrate, nitrite and nitric oxide-related enzymes in migraineurs. In oral samples, these genes were significantly more abundant in migraineurs. The study was published in the journal mSystems. PTI Ravinder Sood Palampur October 19 Union Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences Dr Harsh Vardhan has urged local entrepreneurs to develop industries around local bio-resources of high commercial values. The Union Minister, who visited CSIR-Institute of Himalayan Bio-resource Technology, here, last evening, stressed bio-resources in Himalayas should be used for identification of new bio-molecules of therapeutic importance, and developing crop varieties to withstand increasing biotic and abiotic stress in face of changing climate conditions. He exhorted young scientists and research scholars to play a great role in this area. Dr Vardhan, whos also Vice-President of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), said since land holdings in the state were small, farmers could form societies and approach the institute for technical know-how to improve production. Climatic diversity in the Himalayan region, he said, offered unique opportunities to develop range of products and technologies such as low calorie sweeteners, enzymes and microbial based products of societal and industrial significance. He advised the adoption of green technology and application of nanotechnology. He noted that the Himalayan region had a vast bamboo resource which should be exploited for the development of various industrial products such as wooden board, textile yarn and activated charcoal. Observing that Himalayas are highly suitable for cultivation of high-value medicinal, aromatic and other crops of commerce, he suggested that CSIR should develop a network of entrepreneurs for cultivation, processing and marketing of the produce in an organised manner. IHBT Director Sanjay Kumar apprised the Union Minister of technologies given to various entrepreneurs and industrial partners and signing of the pact with Mozambiques tea industry for transfer of tea wine technology. The minister inaugurated the pilot plant facility for nutraceuticals, Academy and Technology Extension Block, and hydroponic and aeroponic facility. He interacted with institutes scientists and students, and entrepreneurs and farmers, who benefited from the institute in the area of floriculture, tea, medicinal and aromatic plants, food, sweeteners and enzymes. Appreciating the technical support given to floriculturists that has boosted their income threefold, he asked the institute to ensure supply of quality planting material to farmers and provide scientific back-up for the success of the industry. He was happy to note that the institute had promoted the ready-to-serve local cuisine Kangri Dham which is preservative free with longer shelf life for wider marketability. Pratibha Chauhan Tribune News Service Shimla, October 19 With the proposal to set up a Trauma Centre under public private partnership (PPP) mode at the Indus Hospital here not materializing, the health department is now exploring the possibility of setting up the facility at the newly built building of the Ripon Hospital, near the gurudwara. A team of the Health and Family Welfare Department today visited the new building on the Cart Road which is now complete and has to be put to use. The team has been assigned the task of assessing the suitability of the building for the setting up of the Trauma Centre, which was to come up at Indus Hospital. The decision to decide the final site of the Trauma Centre will depend on the report of this committee. Though the members State Health Commission had visited the Indus Hospital in May earlier this year and given the go ahead but with the state government having some reservations about investing huge amount in a private hospital, the second option of having the Rs 40-cr Trauma Centre at Ripon is being explored. The trial run of the 108 ambulance was also held and the Indus Hospital, located near St Bedes College was found to be quite suitable. The proposal to sign an MoU with the Indus Hospital was placed before the Cabinet twice but with the council of ministers having some reservations it was not approved. The Cabinet has serious reservations about investing Rs 40 crores in a private hospital and the reins of the Trauma Centre being in the hands of Dr Balak Ram Verma, founder and owner in his capacity as chairman, revealed sources in the Health Department. The ministers felt that in case Dr Verma decided to terminate the agreement, the government would be at a loss. In case the Cabinet nod would have been given, this would have been the first joint venture in the medical field in the state. The Union Health Ministry has approved five Trauma Centres to be set up in Himachal. These are to be set up at Kangra, Palampur, Mandi, Hamiprur and Rampur. Since there is great space constraint at the IGMC, it was decided to set it up at the Indus Hospital as a joint venture. Tribune News Service Jammu, October 19 Under the provisions of the Border Defence Cooperation Agreement, 2013, the Indian and Chinese armies today held the second joint exercise Sino-India Cooperation 2016 A. As part of the ongoing initiative to enhance interaction and cooperation between the countries, this was a sequel to the first exercise held on February 6, 2016. Soldiers of Chushul Garrision from India and Moldo Garrision from China participated in the exercise. During the daylong exercise on humanitarian aid and disaster relief, a simulated situation of an earthquake striking an Indian border village was tackled with joint teams carrying out rescue operations, evacuation and rendering medical assistance. The Indian team was led by Brig RS Raman and the Chinese was led by Sr Col Fan Jun. The exercise not only refined the drill to provide succour to border population in case of a natural calamity but also increased cooperation between the two border guarding forces. Samaan Lateef Tribune News Service Srinagar, October 19 In violation of norms, government-owned J&K Medical Supplies Corporation Limited (JKMSCL) has procured equipment worth Rs 1.12 crore for Indira Gandhi Dental College Hospital, Jammu, without floating tenders. Official documents reveal that JKMSCL has procured 60 dental units, 20 dental chairs and two dental X-ray machines worth Rs 1,12,99,304 in May for the dental hospital. The equipment has been procured from Bangalore-based Confident Dental Equipment Limited through its Jammu-based office after the JKMSCL shot a letter to the company. Kindly make it convenient to arrange and supply items mentionedfor dental college hospital, Jammu, in exigency, on one-time basis only, reads the JKMSCL letter to the company. Officials said the equipment was procured to be installed in the new block of the dental hospital, which was inaugurated by Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti. Sources said the exigency shown by the government to procure the equipment without floating tenders was to benefit relatives, who represented the company in J&K, of some officials in the JKMSCL and dental college. However, the Managing Director, JKMSCL, Dr Yashpal Sharma, said the decision to procure the equipment on emergency basis came from the the Health Department. We just facilitated the procurement of these items. The government wanted to procure them in emergency because it has to inaugurate the new block of Dental College Hospital, Jammu. After the PDP-BJP government dissolved the procurement committees of tertiary care and peripheral hospitals, the government constituted the JKMSC on June 1, 2015. The JKMSCL was established for setting standards of quality, transparency, and accountability in the procurement of drugs, medicines and medical equipment in the state. However, since its inception it has remained in news for wrong reasons after it created a shortage of supplies in the hospitals across the state. The JKMSCL website reads that the corporation procures drugs through an open tendering process from the original manufacturers under the most transparent system. Majid Jahangir Tribune News Service Srinagar, October 19 The infiltration from across the Line of Control (LoC) has witnessed a 163 per cent increase as compared to the last year. According to the data, 33 militants have sneaked into the Kashmir valley during the three-month-long unrest. The state government is yet to determine the exact number of youth who have joined militancy during the unrest. The Multi-Agency Centre (MAC) figures have revealed that 87 militants have infiltrated into Kashmir this year till September-end. Last year, only 33 militants had managed to infiltrate. MAC is a nodal agency comprising officials of the Intelligence, Army, BSF, RAW and the J&K Police. It is responsible for the security and intelligence inputs pertaining to the country. According to the MAC figures, during the first six months this year till the killing of militant commander Burhan Wani, 54 militants have managed to sneak into the Valley from across. 33 militants have managed to sneak into the Valley during the three-month unrest, said a government source quoting the MAC figures. He said at least 124 infiltration attempts had been recorded this year. There has surely been an increase in the infiltration bids from across this year, sources added. In 2014, the MAC figures had revealed that 65 militants had managed to sneak into the Valley. Defence sources said militants from across were making desperate attempts to sneak into the Valley as snow would close the mountain passes along the LoC in the region for the next six months. They said more than 300 militants were waiting at nearly two dozen launch pads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to infiltrate into Kashmir. General Officer Commanding of the Srinagar-based 15 Corps Lt Gen Satish Dua on Tuesday said militants were present on the other side despite the Army carrying out surgical strikes on September 29. We do see a presence (of militants) across the Line of Control. The very fact they are infiltrating in different places and several such encounters have taken place is an ample proof that they are still there and continue to make attempts to infiltrate. But we are ready for any challenge, Lt General Dua had said. This year, security forces have killed over 110 militants and over half of them have been killed while trying to infiltrate. During the ongoing unrest, nearly 30 militants have been killed along the LoC. Vikram Sharma Tribune News Service Jammu, October 19 Since its inception in 2006, the majestic Kala Kendra, designed to cater to the needs of art and cultural pursuits of the state, has turned out to be a white elephant. After the structure came into existence, it was left on its own mercy with no institution coming forward to own the building. The proposal was mooted by the Central and state government in which the Jammu Development Authority (JDA), too, was roped in for providing land for raising the monument. Today it stands neglected as no government authority holds itself responsible for its caretaking as well as maintenance of the structure, which is withering away with the passage of time. Kala Kendra is a society registered under the Registrar of Societies Act and funded by the Union Government of India and is not under direct occupation of any state institution. However, J&K state Art Academy as well as the Archives and Museums Department were called to take up the institution in parts for pursuing art, culture and museum activities here. While the other monumental structure of Abhinav Theatre, which is under the direct occupation of the Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages (JKAACL), is flourishing since its reopening by the late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed in December 2015, Kala Kendra looks dejected and forlorn. I had taken up the issue with Governor NN Vohra, who also admitted that in principal the structure raised for art and culture activities of the state should be a part of the J&K Art Academy, said Aziz Hajini, secretary, JKAACL. He said since the reopening of Abhinav Theatre, the JKAACL had been flooded with cultural activities and had Kala Kendra been it part, half of the load could have been shifted to the venue, which would have created a much bigger impact in the region on the cultural front. On the maintenance and administration of the huge structure, the authorities of controlling institutions expressed helplessness saying that lack of coordination between the JKAACL, JDA and Archives and Museums Department is telling upon the building adversely, which is fast losing its grandeur. A small piece of work to be executed in the Kala Kendra has to move in three different offices before reaching the JDA for completion, which is quite cumbersome, said one of the caretakers of Kala Kendra. The JKAACL, which owns the painting and studio part in Kala Kendra, has its own staff posted there. Their salary is drawn from the academy only, informs JKAACL secretary Hajini. Soujanaya Sharma, Director, Local Bodies, who holds the additional charge of the administrator of Kala Kendra, said he had earlier passed on the charge to Savita Bakshi, then additional secretary of the JKAACL, since there was a post of administrator in Kala Kendra, but due to Governor NN Vohras intervention, he was again given back the charge. It has been rendered defunct for the past some time, but recently we have prepared a calendar of activities and soon Kala Kendra will be seen bubbling with activities, assured Soujanya Sharma. He said that magnificent building that could serve as an attraction for the tourists of the state by variegated artistic performances could enhance its value also vis-a-vis revenue aspect and could earn money. Except for some insignificant number of painting exhibitions held in one of its small hall on the ground floor and couple of other functions held on its first floor, the elephantine structure remains generally empty and unattended throughout the year. Rocky Yadav, son of JD(U) MLC Manorama Devi, who had gunned down teenager Aditya for overtaking Rocky's car, was granted bail by the Patna High Court today evening. Rocky Yadav, son of JD(U) MLA Manorama Devi and dreaded gangster Bindi Yadav, had killed a teenager for overtaking his car in May this year. By Rohit Kumar Singh: The Patna High Court today granted bail to Rocky Yadav, accused in the Gaya road rage case which took place in May this year. In the Gaya road rage case, accused Rocky Yadav, son of JD(U) MLC Manorama Devi and dreaded gangster Bindi Yadav, had gunned down 16-year-old Aditya Sachdeva who had allegedly overtaken Rocky's SUV while he was coming back home from a birthday party. advertisement When Aditya and his friends had overtaken Rocky's SUV, angery Rocky chased them and then gunned down Aditya. Also Read: Bihar teen shot dead by JD-U leader's son for overtaking in Gaya ROCKY GRANTED BAIL, ADITYA'S FAMILY MEMBERS SHOCKED After the incident, Rocky had gone on the run. Few days after the gruesome killing, Rocky was arrested by the Gaya police from a factory owned by Rocky's father Bindi Yadav. Rocky was granted bail by the Chief Justice Iqbal Ahmend Ansari today evening. With the news of Rocky getting bail, the family members of Aditya Sachdeva are in a state of shock. The High court had completed the hearing on the bail application filed by Rocky Yadav and had reserved the order. By evening, Rocky was granted bail. Also Read| Bihar road rage: Rocky Yadav arrested, legislator mother suspended Also Read| All you need to know about Rocky Yadav's dad Bindi, known as Terror Of Gaya After Rocky's bail, he is expected to come out of the jail in the next one or two days. In this high profile road rage case, Rocky Yadav's MLC mother Manorama Devi and gangster father Bindi Yadav were also arrested, but were also released on bail earlier. Also Read: Bihar road rage: JDU leader's son Rocky Yadav arrested from Bodh Gaya Now, Tejaswi Yadav compares Bihar road rage killing to Pathankot attack --- ENDS --- Nonika Singh As winds of acrimony continue to blow fast and strong, heres a sane voice and a strong votary of collective heritage. Madeeha Gauhar, an eminent theatre person from Pakistan, is not a new name for Chandigarh or the region for that matter as her plays have run to packed houses in the City Beautiful. The woman, who believes in the power of art to mend broken hearts, in an email interview, speaks her heart out... You have received so much love and adulation in India. How do you look at the current impasse? It is unfortunate and frustrating. But I am sure it is a temporary phenomenon and the acrimonious blame game is not shared by the people on both sides. There have been such stand-offs in the past and have not deterred us from our work for peace. Do you think banning Pakistani actors in India and banning Indian films in Pakistan is any solution to any problem? Banning is never a solution. In fact, it produces the opposite results. Banning Pakistani actors is not going to affect their fan-following in India and taking off Indian movies from Pakistani screens will definitely not reduce the Pakistani viewers appetite for Bollywood. People find other ways of reaching out. Even before Bollywood discovered Fawad Khan or Ali Zafar and Zindagi channel brought Pakistani TV dramas to Indian homes, Pakistani dramas were popular among Indian audiences. On this side of the border, video shops have never stopped offering Bollywood movies even in the times of war. Music from both sides could not be contained by the border fencing ever since Partition. Do you believe actors are soft targets and the first axe always falls on them? Unfortunately actors, artists or sportsmen are the first target of hard-liners because they are popular and prominent. Attacks on artists are convenient for scoring political brownies. It is interesting to note that trade across the border goes on as before. Diplomatic relations continue as usual. But the release of Shah Rukh Khan or Karan Johars film faces problems. Your play Bulha that has been so acclaimed in India talks of universal love and brotherhood. Do you feel this more than any other is the time to talk of collective heritage? The Indian audience response to our play Bulha has always been overwhelming, even in places like Kashmir and Kerala. We performed Bulha at a festival in Thrissura few weeks after the Mumbai attacks (which we strongly condemned). There was a protest outside by the local BJP. I invited them to see the play and they were the first to come on stage to appreciate the plays message of peace and tolerance. Our theatre for peace festivals were inaugurated by the BJP Minister for Culture in Delhi and BJP Mayor in Chandigarh. Theatre, films, music and literature transcend political divides. We have shared history and heritage of thousands of years. These bonds cannot be broken by war-mongering and demonisation of each other by vested interests on both sides. Do you think artists from both countries need to speak in a collective voice? Or, the clamour that is growing louder by the day has no place for sane and reasonable point of view? Artists speak the language of love and goodwill. They must speak collectively and forcefully, but not through screaming matches on the media but by carrying on singing and dancing and performing. We have performed all over India in easy and tense times. In 2012, when the performances of our play on Manto in Delhi was cancelled due to LOC tensions, theatre activists and civil society arranged alternative venues and the performances were well attended. We have invited many Indian theatre groups to perform in Lahore and they have always been showered with affection. Earlier, this year, Indian directors (Kewal Dhaliwal and Usha Ganguli) have directed plays for us. We are going to carry on with our cross-borders cultural forays come what may. Do you see a way forward? There is no other way. We not only share geography, but also history, culture, literature, art destiny. The only way is the way forward. I am sure sense and sanity will prevail and our leaders will get down to solving the problems through dialogue and negotiation. What would be your message to India and to your home country? Do not lose hope, have faith. Do not listen to the preachers of hate and violence. Let the songs of Bulleh Shah, Bhagat Singh and Kabir drown acrimony, hatred and intolerance. nonikasingh@tribunemail.com Shivani Bhakoo Tribune News Service Ludhiana, October 18 Applauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the surgical strikes in PoK recently, president of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Punjab, Vijay Sampla said the entire nation was proud of it and salutes the Army for proving that India had the courage to give a befitting reply. At the same time, Sampla said PM Modi was the lone Prime Ministerwho wants the SC/ST section to progress. Rather than being job seekers, the SC/ST should become job providers is the vision of Prime Minister, Sampla added. Welcoming PM Narendra Modi and other Union Ministers at the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) here during the launch of two schemes for the MSME sector, Sampla said under the leadership of the PM Modi, the poor, needy and SC/ST sectors were being benefitted. Almost 32 per cent of the total population in India belong to SC/ST category, which needs to progress if the nation has to grow at global level. He said Make in India, Skilled India, Stand-up India- these are not mere slogans, but campaigns initiated by the PM for uplifting the poor, needy and the nation at large. Union Minister for MSME Kalraj Mishra said the scheme for making SC/ST hub would boost the entrepreneurs. The SC/ST sector will become self-reliant as there will be an assured marketing of their products up to 4 per cent now (government agencies will procure their products). He added that under the leadership of PM Modi, khadi- the Indian product has gained a lot of popularity. Khadi Vastra Nahin Vichar Hai- under this slogan, khadi manufacturing had provided employment to over 10 lakh people in the country. On this occasion, awardees (MSME sector) from all over India were awarded with the National Award by PM Modi. There were 225 total awardees, but PM Modi presented awards to a few of them for their immense contribution to the MSME sector. Lucknow, October 19 The infighting in the Samajwadi Party shows no signs of abating, with Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday announcing his decision to embark on 'Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra' alone from November 3. The announcement gave rise to speculation that Akhilesh may give the party's silver jubilee celebrations that begin here on November 5 a miss. Party insiders said any attempt to derail or stop him from going ahead with the yatra could lead to another crisis in the party. In a letter written to party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, the Chief Minister said all political parties have already begun their campaign for the Assembly polls. "I had decided to take out the yatra from October 3 but it was cancelled due to some reasons. I will take out the 'Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra' from November 3," he said. Akhilesh has also sent copies of the letter to state party chief Shivpal Yadav and National General Secretary Ram Gopal Yadav. He said yatra's detailed programme would be sent to district presidents and party workers eventually. The announcement led to talks that Akhilesh might skip the party celebrations because he was unhappy with expelling young leaders from the party. Earlier in the day, Akhilesh, Shivpal Yadav, and Mulayam held a closed-door meeting at party supremo's 5 Vikramaditya Marg house to discuss poll strategy. According to party sources, Akhilesh is adamant on his demands of revoking the expulsion of the young leaders, some of who are MLCs, and having his say in the ticket distribution. Akhilesh had earlier announced his decision to take out the yatra from October 3 through his twitter handle with a picture in which he was seen sitting inside a bus. It was seen as a move to counter uncle Shivpal, who had been appointed the new state party president in his place. Akhilesh hit back over his removal from the party post by stripping Shivpal of his key ministerial portfolios, bringing the family feud in the open. Through the yatra, Akhilesh is expected to highlight his government's development works, rally support for the party and demonstrate support for him among the party cadres. Party sources said Mulayam Singh Yadav has so far managed to pull back the party from the brink every time it faces any threat. This time too he has to move swiftly to take care of the concerns of the CM and his supporters, they pointed out. PTI Amaninder Pal Tribune News Service Chandigarh, October 19 With Punjab going to the polls in a few months, the fact that over 20,000 proclaimed offenders (POs) and absconders continue to elude the state police has had the Election Commission of India (ECI) worried. Their number during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections stood at 18,094. A report submitted to the ECI by the state police reveals that 20,877 POs and absconders, facing criminal charges and against whom cases have been registered in various police stations, remain out of reach of the police. Of them, 7,502 were declared POs under Sections 82 and 83 of the CrPC and 13,375 either disappeared during trial or failed to report back after bail. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) The police have been able to make a mere 346 arrests since September 1 when the ECI issued directions that a status report on all POs and absconders be submitted at regular intervals and action be initaiated against them. A staggering 7,397 POs and 13,134 absconders are at large. We have already given directions to trace and arrest POs and absconders involved in heinous crimes. Special teams have been constituted for the task, said RN Dhoke, IGP (Hqs). Also, the state police have executed 4,223 non-bailable warrants since September with the execution of 2,804 pending. The ECI is concerned and has conveyed that every PO and absconder who has committed a heinous crime should be put behind bars before the elections, said a senior officer. Hyderabad, October 19 Former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira and three others have been arrested by the Hyderabad police in connection with an FIR registered against them here in the alleged multi-crore rupee fraud involving the multi-level marketing company QNet. The Central Crime Station (CCS), a wing of the Hyderabad police, has made a breakthrough in a case of cheating which involved QNet and its Indian subsidiary M/s Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, by arresting four directors of Vihaan, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Detective Department) Avinash Mohanty told reporters here. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) Michael Joseph Ferreira (78), Malcom N Desai, MV Balaji and Srinivas Rao, all directors and shareholders of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, who were earlier arrested in Mumbai by Maharashtra Police, have been brought to city on PT (production transit) warrants and arrested, the DCP said. On October 13 last year, a complaint was lodged by one Suman Ghosh, an assistant manager in a private bank here, wherein he stated that he paid Rs 16 lakh (via DD) in the name of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, on the promise of getting business. But they did not give him any business despite collecting the amount. Based on the complaint, a case under Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating) of the IPC, besides relevant sections of the Prize, Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, Mohanty said. He said during the course of investigation into the case registered here, on October 8 (this year) they received information from the EOW wing of the Mumbai police that the four accused persons, who are directors of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, were arrested and remanded in judicial custody. Subsequently, the Hyderabad police filed an application at a court in Mumbai seeking their custody in connection with the case registered by them. The Mumbai court then granted transit remand and the Hyderabad police took Padma Bhushan recipient Ferreira and three others into custody and brought them to the city on Tuesday night. PTI Yash Goyal Our Correspondent Barmer, October 19 It has been 33 years since Laxmi Kanwar heard from her husband but she is hopeful that he would return safe one day. Her husband accidentally crossed the Indo-Pakistan border in Barmer district of Rajasthan in 1983 while he was grazing goats. And this belief has made her observe the Karva Chauth fast every year for the long life of her husband Bhagu Singh for the past 33 years. Sixty-five-year old Laxmi Kanwar, having two sons and a daughter, now all married, does not know whether her husband, who was taken in custody by Pakistani Rangers, was in jail or living elsewhere in Pakistan. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) Whenever she hears that the Pakistan government is releasing Indian prisoners, her hope rekindles and she starts decorating her house, informing villagers that her husband would be arriving shortly and she would extend him a warm welcome. But when nothing turns up, she gets disappointed. Arjun Singh, who was just three when his father was detained, says, My mother is optimistic about the return of my father. She is dedicated to the family and observes the Karva Chauth fast every year. We have tried to reason with her, but she has faith and says he would return one day as the goddess would hear her prayers. Arjun, who runs a small business, says, We have approached the External Affairs and Home ministries and the PMO in the past three decades to locate my father. We have urged local MPs and MLAs besides the Chief Minister to intervene, but to no avail. And when the evening falls on the Karva Chauth day, Laxmi looks at the moon and takes out a framed picture of her husband before breaking her fast. And she does not forget to remember the day when Laxmi of Panion village had married Bhagu of nearby Dhanau village some 46 years ago. Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 19 In a path-breaking occurrence, the armies of India and China on Wednesday conducted their first-ever joint exercise in eastern Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir. The move will be watched across the western border in Pakistan. This is the first military cooperation of New Delhi and Beijing in J&K. The two nations conduct exercises at other locations in the country. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) This is the same spot where the two countries fought pitched battles in 1962. The two countries do not have an earmarked boundary and the Line of Actual Control (LAC) its alignment is disputed by both. During the daylong exercise on Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR), a fictitious situation of earthquake striking an Indian Border village was painted. Thereafter, joint teams carried out rescue operation, evacuation and rendering of medical assistance. The Indian team for the exercise was led by Brigadier RS Raman and that of the Chinese was led by Sr Col Fan Jun. The exercise refined the drills to provide succour to the border population in case of natural calamity but has also increased the level of trust and cooperation between the two border guarding forces along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh. The joint exercise, compliments the 'Hand-in-Hand' series of the India-China joint exercises and the effort of both the nations to enhance cooperation and maintain peace and tranquility along the border areas of India and China. New Delhi, October 19 Resolving to expand security ties, India and Myanmar on Wednesday decided to boost cooperation in a vast range of areas, including guarding the 1,640-km-long border, even as the two traditionally close neighbours asserted that the states which encourage, support or finance terrorism must be hold accountable. The two sides inked three pacts to enhance ties in power, banking and insurance sectors after comprehensive talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Myanmars de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi while sectors like oil and gas, agriculture, renewable energy and health care were identified for deeper engagement. The Prime Minister told Suu Kyi that India will stand with Myanmar with full support and solidarity in the countrys new journey towards democracy and development while noting that the security interests of both the neighbours are closely aligned. We have agreed that a close coordination to ensure security in the areas along our border, and sensitivity to each others strategic interests, will serve the interests of both our countries, Modi said in a press statement in presence of Suu Kyi. In her comments, the Myanmerase leader invoked Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru and said Myanmar drew huge inspiration from the two Indian leaders in its struggle for democracy and was looking for Indias support for the countrys development aspirations. The Prime Minister said it was agreed to enhance bilateral engagement in several areas incluidng agriculture, power, renewable energy and power sector. A joint statement said State State Counsellor Suu Kyi condemned the Uri terrorist attack while Modi condemned the recent armed attacks against three border posts in the northern part of Rakhine State. Both sides condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations as well as all acts, methods and practices of terrorism wherever, by whomever, against whomsoever committed and agreed that the fight against terrorism should target terrorists, hold to account terror organisations, networks and also states that encourage, support or finance terrorism in any way, it said. It said terrorism is first and foremost a violation of human rights and that there can be no justification for extending support, financing, provision of material resources or training to terrorists who destroy innocent lives. The two countries also called for the expeditious finalisation of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UN. Both sides shared the view that maintaining security along the border is essential for the socio-economic development of the border area. In this regard, both sides underlined their mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, and reaffirmed their shared commitment to fight insurgent activity and the scourge of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, the statement said. The two countries expressed commitment not to allow insurgent groups to use their soil for hostile activities against each other and stressed the need to resolve outstanding boundary demarcation issues as soon as possible. Myanmar shares a 1,640-km-long border with a number of North Eastern states including militancy-infested Nagaland and Manipur. India has been raising with Myanmar the issue of several North East militant outfits having training camps in that country. It was that the border guarding forces on both sides would further coordinate and exchange information. Welcoming Suu Kyi, the Prime Minister described India as her second home and assured that India and its friendship will stand with you in full support and solidarity. You are no stranger to the people of India. The sights, the sounds and vibrancy of Delhi are familiar to you. Welcome back, Excellency, to your second home! Excellency, you are an iconic leader, he said. Suu Kyi had done her graduation from Delhi University. Modi said both sides will also work to develop a mutually beneficial arrangement for trade in pulses. As a reliable partner and friend, India stands shoulder to shoulder with you, said Modi. Effusive in his praise, Modi said, Your clear vision, mature leadership, struggle and eventual success in establishing democracy in Myanmar has inspired people across the world. Let me assure you, Excellency, that as you lead Myanmar to become a modern, secure, economically prosperous and better connected nation, India and its friendship will stand with you in full support and solidarity. The joint statements said both sides agreed to coordinate, through diplomatic channels, the setting up of immigration facilities at the Tamu-Moreh and Rhi-Zowkhathar border crossing points for easy movement of people. It said India also agreed to support Myanmar in creating police training infrastructure and to share expertise in developing training manuals, including in forensics and cyber-security. The Myanmarese side invited Indian companies to participate in competitive tenders for petrochemical and petroleum products, marketing infrastructure and the setting up of LPG terminals. Calling the talks extensive and productive, Modi said India has a robust development cooperation programme with Myanmar and that Indias nearly USD 1.75 billion of development assistance is being utilised in line with the priorities of Myanmarese government and its people. The Prime Minister said India will develop a Varietal Development and Seed Production Centre in Yezin in Myanmar to enhance the quality of seeds. Suu Kyi said the new Myanmerese government wants to significantly deepen engagement and expand existing cooperation with India, asserting that the intention is to depend on each other. It is Suu Kyis first visit to India after her National League for Democracy wrested power from the military junta in a landmark election earlier this year. Suu Kyi, who could not become Myanmars President due to a constitutional provision but has full control over the government, holds the position of State Councillor and Foreign Minister. Suu Kyis visit here came nearly one-and-half months after Myanmerese President U Htin Kyaw visited India. PTI Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 19 India today promised to work with Myanmar as it embarked on a voyage of development under a democratic set-up and to extend assistance to promote trade ties while fast-tracking implementation in areas of cooperation identified by both countries. PM Narendra Modi, who held bilateral talks with visiting Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi here, welcomed the senior leader to her second home while praising her stewardship. Your dynamism and popularity is leading your country to develop agriculture, infrastructure and industry, strengthen its education and impart skill to its youth, build modern institutions of governance; connect more deeply with South and South East Asia; and provide security to its citizens, he said. Suu Kyi, who studied here, is on her first visit to the city in a new role as after her National League for Democracy was voted to power. She could not assume the presidency due to a constitutional provision. Conveying her condolences to the loved ones of those killed in the Uri terror attack, Suu Kyi condemned the incident. In a joint statement, both sides condemned terror and agreed that fight against the scourge should target terrorists, hold to account its organisations, networks and also states that encourage, support or finance terrorism in any way. PM Modi said: As close and friendly neighbours, the security interests of India and Myanmar are closely aligned. We have agreed that a close coordination to ensure security in the areas along our border, and sensitivity to each others strategic interests, will serve interests of both our countries. On her part, Suu Kyi invoked Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru and said the country drew inspiration from the two Indian leaders in its struggle for democracy. The two countries agreed that close coordination to ensure security in the areas along border, and sensitivity to each others strategic interests, will help both neighbours, he said. India and Myanmar share 1,640-km border along the northeastern states of Nagaland and Manipur. India and Myanmar also signed three pacts, including one each on cooperation in power, academic and professional building for insurance industry and banking supervision between central regulators. Washington, October 19 An Indian-American social-worker running for the US Congress from New Jersey is confident of winning the seat and dislodging a four-time Republican veteran in the November 8 general elections due to Donald Trumps rhetoric and lewd remarks about women. Things are changing fast. I have a very good chance now, said Peter Jacob, 30, a Democrat who is running for the US House of Representative from 7th Congressional District in New Jersey which is known to be a strong Republican bastion. Trumps unpleasant rhetoric and lewd remarks about women appears to be changing the dynamics of New Jersey, which over the past several decades has repeatedly sent Republican leaders to the Congress. On Saturday, hours after his morning door-to-door campaign, he managed to convince a Trump supporter to vote for him, Jacob, who was born in Kerala, claimed sitting in his small single-family home in a Union neighbourhood of New Jersey. A recent internal survey shows he has narrowed the gap with his opponent Leonard Lance. While Lance is supported by 37 per cent of the registered voters, he is being supported by 34 per cent. Jacob, who spend several hours a day in his door-to-door campaign, said he plans to reach out to most of his 5,00,000 voters before the election day either personally, or by phone, email, letters and television advertisement. Based on his interaction with the voters, he feels that this time there would be a high voter turnout. PTI By PTI: Jammu, Oct 19 (PTI) Hitting out at opposition National Conference for projecting separatists as key stakeholders in Kashmir, BJP today alleged that the NC is fuelling the ongoing unrest by its "anti-peace" statements and playing with the career of Kashmiri students. "Not even a single day passes when the NC leadership is not making statements which are detrimental to peace and normalcy in valley and are thus adding fuel to the ongoing unrest, the statements are aimed at projecting separatists as key stakeholders in Kashmir", BJP Jammu and Kashmir unit president Sat Sharma said here. advertisement It is very unfortunate that NC is not concerned for the well being of Kashmiri masses and the development of the valley, he alleged. "The NC leadership did not even hesitate to play with the career of the students while making repeated demand for postponement of JKBOSE examinations, when the students themselves are approaching the Chief Minister and the Education Minister for holding examinations in time and are against postponing the same", Sharma said. He said both the Centre and the state government are working hard to restore normalcy in the valley. Both are committed to early resumption of education across the valley and now even students are defying bandh calls and attending classes but contrary to it NC is demanding postponement of exams. "Not even a single appeal has emerged from any leader of NC to the youth to shed stone pelting. None of them have condemned killing of policemen or soldiers in attacks by terrorists", the BJP state president said. While the entire world condemned the Uri fidayeen attack, the NC preferred to maintain stoic silence, he said. "What the NC has been doing during all these days of unrest in Kashmir is unhealthy politics", Sharma said and alleged that the "NC leadership wants to promote Pak agenda by repeatedly demanding talks with Pakistan and involvement of separatists, which is highly unfortunate". PTI AB RG --- ENDS --- Legal Correspondent New Delhi, October 19 The Rajasthan Government has moved the Supreme Court challenging the acquittal of Bollywood actor Salman Khan by the state High Court in two chinkara poaching cases. On July 25 this year, the High Court had acquitted Salman in both the cases one for allegedly killing a chinkara on the outskirts of Jodhpur on September 26, 1998, and another two days later. The actor was in Rajasthan shooting for the film Hum Saath Saath Hain at the time. The trial court had sentenced him to imprisonment for 5 years, but the High Court set aside the conviction. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) In its appeal, the state government has sought an immediate stay of the High Court judgment and a direction to Salman to surrender and serve the sentence. The High Court had erroneously exercised its revisional powers to set aside concurrent findings of two lower courts, the state pleaded. Salman had ample opportunity to cross-examine eyewitness Harish Dulani, the driver of gypsy, but the actor intentionally did not examine him and as such this should not go in his favour, the state pleaded. Minor discrepancies in trial could not dilute the entire prosecution case and the High Court had failed to see the entire circumstances which proved his guilty beyond doubt. While the conviction was based on material evidence, the High Courts ruling was on hyper technical grounds which was unsustainable, the state pleaded. New Delhi, October 19 After protracted negotiations, Russia has agreed to lease a second nuclear submarine to India in a deal which will cost around $2 billion. Sources today said the deal was struck during the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 15 on the sidelines of the BRICS meet in Goa. However, it was not part of the slew of announcements made after the talks. The Defence Ministry and the Navy did not offer any information on the subject since it was a strategic platform coming under direct purview of the Prime Ministers Office. Alexei Nikolski, a columnist with Russian daily Vedomosti, which broke the story, wrote, According to a source in the Russian defence industry, the long-discussed lease to transfer a multipurpose Project 971 nuclear submarine to India from the Russian Navy was signed in Goa. The Akula 2 class submarine is expected to arrive in Indian waters in 2020-21. The Indian Navy already operates an Akula 2 class nuclear submarine, INS Chakra (formerly known as K-152 Nerpa), which was leased by Russia for 10 years and commissioned on April 4, 2012 after India paid for its completion of its construction and sea-trials. India had been keen to lease a second nuclear submarine. Indian defence sources had said that Russia had linked the lease of the nuclear submarine to the agreement for four stealth frigates. In Goa, India and Russia announced an over $3-billion frigate deal. Under the agreement, two stealth frigates will be built in Russia while the other two would be built in India under license production. The Akula 2 class submarine, though not the latest class of nuclear-powered fast-attack submarines in the world, is still considered one of the most advanced. Capable of sailing at speeds up to 35 knots (nearly 65 km per hour) under water, it is among the quietest Russian submarines. PTI Hyderabad: Billed as the first such initiative in the country, students of government residential schools across Telangana will get Android tablets pre-loaded with curriculum material. The first set of the tablets, each costing Rs 13,000, will be distributed among 1,120 students in 14 schools. The remaining schools across the state will receive the tablets in a phased manner in the coming months, the Telangana Social Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society (TSWREIS) has announced. TNS Asansol (WB), October 19 Police arrested 57 people on Wednesday after some people suspected to be activists of the Trinamool Congress hurled bricks at Union Minister Babul Supriyo while he was on his way to a protest. "I was going to the police station to secure release of some of my partymen. I was hit with bricks and windowpanes of my car were damaged by TMC workers," Supriyo, Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, claimed."They also showed black flags. I don't know why the police allowed the mob to come near my car." A video of the incident showed that Supriyo was standing on the footboard of a vehicle when a rock hit his chest. Sources in the BJP claimed the minister was injured in the incident. Durgapur-Asansol Police Commissioner LN Meena said BJP supporters were going to TMC minister Malay Ghatak, which they planned to gherao, but were prevented, making them head to a police station instead. Some TMC activists once again tried to block their way, sparking clashes between the two parties. Supriyo also claimed that TMCs activists had even beaten up some BJP workers. The saffron party said that some activists were arrested on Tuesday after they protested cow smuggling in the area. Supriyo was heading to the police station to get them released, state BJP president Dilip Ghosh said. Local TMC leader Shivdasan said the BJP workers registered their protest with the district administration instead of deciding to hold protests in front of the minister's house. PTI Sarika Sharma Tribune News Service Chandigarh, October 19 Where is the pistol used in Saunders murder? Eight decades later, access to 160 files lying at the Punjab State Archives in Lahore has provided important leads that the pistol could be lying either at Lahore Fort, Police malkhana, Gwalmandi, Lahore, or the Punjab Police Academy at Phillaur. File numbers 76 and 77 provide important leads to the possible present location of the entire material recovered from the revolutionaries who were facing trial in the 1929 Lahore Conspiracy Case, which included the Saunders murder case. The total number of exhibits produced in the court was 825. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) The four broad categories included unlicensed weapons, bombs and bomb-making material, sundry chemicals, ammunition, and a few banned books. According to the files, bombs, arms, ammunition, clothes, utensils, books, photos, letters, notebooks and other sundry material of personal use were produced in the case. The seized books numbered around 300. Going by the record of files 76 and 77, not only Bhagat Singhs pistol, but all the weapons used by revolutionaries of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association could possibly be stored at either Lahore or Phillaur. Recently, Aparna Vaidik, an associate professor of history at a private university in Haryana, was allowed to see the records. Bhagat Singhs .32 bore pistol was also made case property. The pistol was bearing number 168896. Now one thing is clear that the pistol is not lying along with the files. On the basis of information available in the Lahore files, we can locate it with some serious effort, says Harish Jain, a Chandigarh-based publisher. As per the records, on October 9, 1930, two days after the judgment, Malik Fateh Khan, registrar of special tribunal of the Lahore Conspiracy Case, sent a communication to Lahores District Magistrate that he has been ordered by the tribunal president that all the exhibits in the Lahore Conspiracy Case deposited in the malkhana should be handed over to you. He also requested him to direct the District Nazir (aide of the Deputy Commissioner) to make ready a sufficiently commodious room for the reception of exhibits. In a different communication, on October 8, 1930, even JM Ewert, who later headed the Intelligence Bureau, had written to the DIG (CID) to preserve the material as it can help in training the new recruits in how to investigate criminal cases. He said the exhibits could be procured with permission of the special tribunal registrar and kept in the Phillaur Museum. When Principal [of the police academy] gets them, he should give good descriptive labels to each and every exhibit, catalogued and intelligently used. In response, the DIG (CID) asked SP H Jenkins as to who would be the best person to handle the material. The SP suggested DSP (CID) NK Niaaz Ahmad Khans name. However, on October 16, 1930, the DIG ordered, Please arrange to take over all the exhibits and have them kept meanwhile in Fort [Lahore] until we have time to go into this matter. Later that day, the police managed to get orders from two judges of the tribunal that all the exhibits should be handed over to Khan. Thus, Khan became custodian of each of the 825 exhibits recovered from the revolutionaries, handed over to him by the court in trust without any order of disposal. NK Niaaz Ahmad Khan was the last link, says Jain and adds, Thus, the Lahore files give a clue that either the weapons are in Lahore or in Phillaur. (Series concludes) Sarika Sharma Tribune News Service Chandigarh, October 18 The ideal of our party was attainment of complete freedom and to attain it we practice terrorism. These were the words of approver Phanindra Nath Ghosh during the magisterial trial in the 1929 Lahore Conspiracy Case. Ghosh said this during the cross-examination by Bhagat Singhs comrade Shiv Verma, who forced him to speak the truth. Before the special tribunal headed by GC Hilton ordered hanging of Bhagat Singh and his comrades, a trial of the revolutionaries went on for almost 10 months in a specially designated court at Central Jail, Lahore. It was presided over by Special Magistrate Sri Krishna. On May 4, 1930, the trial was taken over by the special tribunal. While the complete record of the magisterial trial has never been available, some of it forms part of the 160 files lying at Punjab State Archives in Lahore. Files 57 to 60 contain records related to the trial that took place between July 10, 1929 and May 4, 1930; later, the trial was conducted by a special tribunal. According to historian Malwinderjit Singh Waraich, even the cross-examination questions were obfuscated by the court, which are important to study the mind and conduct of the court itself. File 57 has more than 1,600 pages and holds records of statements transferred from the special magistrate to the special tribunal. According to Dr Aparna Vaidik the first to gain access to the files the cyclostyled file has a list of all the statements that were transferred. The ones which were transferred are in binding, she notes. The next three files 58, 59 and 60 contain the proceedings of Special Magistrate Sri Krishnas court. Historians say the magisterial trial was of immense importance as it was the only trial in which Bhagat Singh and his comrades participated; they boycotted the special tribunal. Their hunger strike happened during this period and it was very important as far as their struggle was concerned; Jatin Das lost his life during it. This is the period when they quite actively took part in the proceedings and cross-examined witnesses, especially the approvers from whom they tried to establish the objectives and ideology of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association, says Harish Jain, a Chandigarh-based publisher and Bhagat Singh researcher. While there is mention of the proceedings in the contemporary newspapers, details of the trial are not much known as the records pertaining to it are not accessible. This is because though the special tribunal took over the records of the magisterial trial, much of these did not form the part of the tribunal proceedings. What is known is that the lengthening trial of the magisterial court was generating sympathy for the revolutionaries, causing a lot of heartburn in the British administration. To cut it short, the Viceroy promulgated an ordinance to establish a special tribunal consisting of three High Court judges. On May 5, 1930, it took over the trial from the Special Magistrate, which was soon boycotted by the revolutionaries after the merciless beating of Bhagat Singh in the court. On another occasion, the magistrate ordered them to display good behaviour to which the revolutionaries replied that they had not come to be taught in a school, but to receive justice in the court. New Delhi, October 19 At least three pending judicial requests, including one relating to 1984 anti-Sikh riots witness, along with 13 extradition pleas from India may be discussed between the CBI Director and Royal Canadian Mounted Police Commissioner Bob Paulson who is visiting here. Paulson, who will be delivering DP Kohli memorial lecture here tomorrow on the theme of Policing in 21st Century, will hold discussions with CBI chief Anil Sinha. They said at least three Letters Rogatory or judicial requests to Canada hovering around a corruption case, a cyber crime and examination of a witness of 1984 anti-Sikh riots involving Congress leader Jagdish Tytler are likely to crop up during the discussion. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) The agency had taken over investigation in the FIR registered at Bara Hindu Rao police station relating to anti-Sikh riots at Gurdwara Pulbangash in North Delhi, where three persons were killed on November 1, 1984, a day after the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. It had filed a closure report and claimed that it could not get in touch with Narinder Singh, son of an eyewitness who is believed to be in Canada. Arms dealer Abhishek Verma had claimed that Tytler had allegedly helped Narinder Singh to settle in Canada. Besides, the sources said, India is also likely to raise the issue of 13 extradition requests which are under process, including for some wanted persons facing charges of terror and drug trafficking among others. India had signed Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with Canada in 1998 to facilitate assistance in criminal matter. After the signing of MLAT, Canada has so far processed eight Indian judicial requests relating to human trafficking, bank fraud, anti-corruption among others. PTI Aman Sood Tribune News Service Patiala, October 18 A Supreme Court Bench comprising Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and AM Khanwilkar today decided to take a final call on October 24 on whether to condone the delay and stay the warrant of execution of the death sentence (of Vikram Walia and Jasvir Singh ) on October 25 at 9 am, as ordered by the Hoshiarpur District and Sessions Judge. The October 24 hearing will last 30 minutes. There will be no adjournment. Walia and Jasvir are on death row for kidnapping 16-year-old Abhi Verma from outside DAV School in Hoshiarpur and killing him with an overdose of anaesthesia. The 2005 brutal killing had caused public outrage. Lawyers of the two convicts had moved the apex court, pleading that the hearing of their review petitions be reopened. Lodged in Patiala Central Jail, the two were to be hanged at 9 am on October 25. On August 7, President Pranab Mukherjee had rejected their mercy petitions. The admission of the convicts plea for reopening review petitions was their last hope. The Patiala jail authorities are now waiting for the final orders. Tribune News Service Bathinda, October 19 Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder, whose book Lest We Forget has a detained mention of Subedar Nand Singh, lambasted the Badal government for failing to maintain his statue here. He along with party workers and leaders took upon himself the task of cleaning the statue of Victoria Cross and Maha Vir Chakra decorated Subedar Nand Singh of the 1st Sikh Regiment. He expressed anguish over the pitiable condition of the statue installed at Fauji (Shaheed) Chowk. He said there was no point in setting up memorials and installing statues if the government could not ensure their proper maintenance. He urged the Indian Army to take over the upkeep of such properties to prevent their degradation. Our martyrs deserve no less, he said. Himself hailing from the 1st Sikh Regiment, Amarinder described the condition of the statue as yet another glaring instance of how little the Badals care for martyrs and their memorials. Amarinder today met farmers at Gidderbaha, Muktsar, Bathinda and Faridkot on the third and last day of the Kisan Rath Yatra. Meanwhile, the PPCC chief claimed that there was no plan yet to enter into an alliance with the CPI. Will resign as MP after poll Gidderbaha: PCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh today made it clear that he would not resign as MP for contesting the state assembly elections. I will resign only after the results of the elections. This is the convention and I had even contested the Lok Sabha elections from Amritsar while being the MLA Patiala, he said. Ravi Dhaliwal Tribune News Service Gurdaspur, October 19 The Deputy Commissioner (DC) here has formed a high-level team in view of the abnormally large number of complaints of quackery flooding in from rural areas. The team, comprising of senior police officers to give it legal teeth, would nip in the bud the scourge of quackery. For the past two years, the officials of the Health Department have fanned out in the region to check the spread of quackery but the results were not forthcoming. This was reflected in the fact that not even a single FIR was registered in this time period. Taking cognisance, DC Pardeep Sabharwal has now asked Civil Surgeon (CS) Dr Hardip Singh Ghai to assist the team in visiting villages where quackery is rampant. Civil hospital doctors claim that there has been a sudden spurt of patients who end up visiting them for treatment after quacks have played havoc with their health. Superstitions, fuelled by illiteracy, give birth to quackery, admit officials. Sources said the growth of electro-homeopathy colleges across the state was acting as a catalyst in producing quacks. These colleges are not recognised by the government. I have reports that there are some colleges functioning in Gurdaspur. These medical shops should be immediately shut down. The team formed by me will take legal action against these colleges. It is a well know fact that gullible youth take admission and end up doing roaring business in villages, the DC stated. Dr Ghai said his department had despatched a Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) to remote border areas from where several complaints had been received. This unit comprises of a medical officer and other para medical staff. We are doing our best but the laws governing quackery are archaic in nature following which hundreds of people who indulge in unethical medical practices go scot free, he lamented. We have to deal with quackery under the Indian Medical Degree Act, 1916, which is soft on illegal doctors. Under this Act, only a nominal fine can be imposed. Till some drastic changes are brought, quacks knocking out a cavity with a chisel and hammer using no anaesthetic will remain a common occurrence, opined Shaminder Kaur Ghuman, President of the Gurdaspur Nurses Association. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is apparently leading the BJP campaign in Uttar Pradesh, with no other leader in the picture. But will this backfire? Prime Minister Narendra Modi is again the face of UP campaign. But will this backfire? Photo: AP By Siraj Qureshi: With the UP Assembly elections approaching, everyone in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)- from its workers to even assembly candidates- are apparently fully dependent on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Just like Modi initiated the BJP's Lok Sabha election campaign in UP with his landmark public rally in November 2013, the Prime Minister is again expected to come to Agra in November and officially launch BJP's UP campaign from the same ground. advertisement The local BJP candidates are banking on Modi's arrival before they even begin their campaigns. Agra MP Ram Shankar Katheria is hopeful that Modi will launch the party's electoral campaign from the Koti Meena Bazar grounds in Agra. The local residents, on the other hand, believe that in the mad rush to present Modi's face everywhere, the BJP is losing the plot. Also Read: BJP sounds poll bugle in Uttar Pradesh without chief ministerial face, PM Modi to lead rallies DOES BJP HAVE NO OTHER LEADER THAN MODI? Senior citizen Rama Shanker Sharma said that PM Modi had a far bigger responsibility than taking care of the BJP in Uttar Pradesh. He said if the BJP did not have any other leader of Modi's stature, then how could the party hope to give a proper representation to the people of UP before the central government? "Increasing the number of Modi's rallies in UP only goes on to prove that the BJP is fast becoming a one-man-wonder, which is very detrimental to the party that had once maintained an internal democracy", he said. Sharma said that the way the BJP was trying to cash on Modi's image as a strong leader after the surgical strikes, reeked of opportunism and this had never been the party's character. He asked why the party was not telling the people of UP who will be their Chief Ministerial face. "Certainly Modi cannot become UP's Chief Minister and remain the Prime Minister too", he said. BJP WILL GIVE TICKETS ON CANDIDATES' ABILITY AND POPULARITY Talking to India Today, BJP's state president Keshav Prasad Maurya said that the party was working on developing a road map for the coming Assembly elections. He said that those leaders who were defecting from other parties, including the Samajwadi Party, should not think that their tickets were confirmed. "The ticket will only be given to a candidate on the grounds of his ability to win elections, and his popularity," he said. Maurya said that the BJP would never leave the Ram Temple issue, but their first priority was the country's development. advertisement WATCH THE VIDEO HERE: Also Read: Mahesh Sharma's Ayodhya visit reignites Ram Mandir row ahead of UP election The BJP state president made it clear that the party's doors were closed for the 'Saifai family'. Maurya asked what Congress wanted to prove by bringing a failed politician like Sheela Dikshit into UP as its chief ministerial candidate. WILL BJP WILL THE UP ELECTIONS? He said that the BJP would win the 2017 Assembly elections in UP just like the 2014 general election, under the guidance of PM Modi. advertisement Maurya said that there were about 1.47 lakh booths in UP and on most of them, the party has formed Booth Committees. PM Modi will hold at least one rally in six divisions of UP and BJP national President Amit Shah will personally handle the party's electoral campaign in the state. Also Read: Opinion poll: BJP ahead in Uttar Pradesh on back of OBC support He confidently claimed that the party would win at least 265 seats in the 2017 UP Assembly elections. The Chairman of the Bhartiya Muslim Vikas Parishad, Sami Aghai, said that Modi misled the people of India in the 2014. He said the BJP would not win the 2017 UP elections as the people have become a lot wiser since the previous deception by Modi, and no matter how hard Modi would try, the party will never be in power in UP. Also Read: SP leader Azam Khan's dig at Modi: Can make tea, play drums, I am fit to be PM With eye on UP elections, Lord Rama to get a museum in Ayodhya Also Read: India Today-Axis Opinion Poll for Uttar Pradesh: BJP dream run to continue, but a hung Assembly likely --- ENDS --- advertisement BD Kasniyal Pithoragarh, October 19 The BJP organised a Dalit sammelan at Berinag in Pithoragarh district on Wednesday. Almora MP and Union Minister of State for Textiles Ajay Tamta inaugurated the sammelan. He said the state government had failed to protect the interests of Dalits though the Congress used their mandate to come to power. Successive Congress governments in the state has neglected the Shilpkar community, which worked towards giving shelter, cloth, utensils and various other things to upper caste members of society since centuries, said Tamta. Meanwhile, Congress Dalit face and Rajya Sabha MP Pradeep Tamta today addressed a Dalit sammelan in Almora. He said it was the Congress that takes care of the Dalit community while formulating development plans in the state. Dalits in the state understand the political designs of the BJP to lure them only to humiliate them later. This is evident by the delayed visit of BJP leaders to Bheta village after the cruel incident took place there last fortnight, said Pradeep Tamta. Tribune News Service Dehradun, October 19 After giving a call for forcible closure of the Corbett Tiger Reserve on October 22, agitated residents of Ramnagar are now blaming politicians for failing to give them respite from a man-eater tigress. Forest and administration officials have failed to locate the man-eater tigress that has killed two persons in the region and injured two other. The search is on for it for nearly a month now and even a helicopter and drones have been pressed into service but the tigress has been evading being detected by forest officials. Barring a camera trap photograph that is being used to identify the tigress, no forest official has so far sighted the beast. Munish Kumar, a resident of Ramnagar, said both forest officials and political parties lacked willpower to locate the man-eater tigress and gun it down. He added this was not the first time that Ramnagar residents were facing the wrath of a tigress but there had been several incidents in the past when man-eater tigers had created terror for villagers. Significantly, the Ramnagar residents today visited the local goddess temple. They gathered at the Bhagwati temple at Kania village in Ramnagar and offered prayers to the Goddess seeking relief from tigress. Harish Pant, who organised the worship, said the tiger was considered asvahan (vehicle) of mother Goddess and thus we have prayed to her towards providing succour to the villagers from the wrath of the tigress. Interestingly, some forest officials also took part in the worship. Ajay Ramola Tribune News Service Mussoorie, October 19 The plight of St Marys Indoor Hospital, which once catered to the needs of a large number of people, has left residents of Hakmans Compound (Ward No. 7) peeved. The hospital lies closed for over two decades now. Residents have often demanded reopening of this medical centre, but nothing has been done so far. Besides, the absence of street lights and railings alongside the link roads that lead to the hospital has added to the residents woes as commuting here, especially during night hours, is a Herculean task. The historic hospital, also known as European Cottage Hospital, survived on donations and meagre payments collected from patients. Senior citizen Hugh Gantzer says the hospital was run by the Municipal Council before the Independence that continued to manage it for several years before handling it over to the American Medical Mission Sisters of catholic order later. Nuns ran it for a couple of years, but when they found it difficult to operate on their own, they handled the keys of the building to Joseph Francis Gantzer (MBE), one of the members of the committee that owns the hospital building. JF Gantzer later handed it over to the state government. The hospital near Kulri Bazaar acts as an outdoor unit while this hospital in Ward No. 7 near Gun Hill was known to serve indoor patients mostly from villages around Mussoorie. Subsequently, the hospital after serving as an indoor unit was converted into residential quarters and all medical services were stopped due to unknown reasons thereafter. Over the years, the heritage building continues to crumble, and today it is in a state of dilapidation. Efforts were made to reconstruct it in 2006 by then Mussoorie MLA Jot Singh Gunsola wherein around Rs 80 lakh was released in the first phase and remaining Rs 5 crore was promised later. However, the project was shelved due to the indifferent attitude of the consecutive governments, resulting in the dismal state of the heritage hospital. The roads leading to this hospital building neither have railings nor street lights, causing problems to residents as they avoid commuting here at night, especially during rains. Ward councillor Arvind Gusain said the condition of the hospital was dismal as its building was about to collapse in the wake of no maintenance or repair. The government has to take care of it. Resident said water seeped through the tin roof during the rainy season. They said the government should come up with a solution to their problems. Washington, October 19 US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump faces a formidable challenge on Wednesday (6.30 am IST on Thursday) when he and Democrat Hillary Clinton face-off in their third and final debate as Trump tries to reverse his standing in an election that appears to be tilting away from him. Damaged by accusations that he made unwanted sexual advances toward women, which he denies, Trump will get his last best chance to sway large numbers of American voters when he faces off against Clinton at the University of Las Vegas, Nevada. This one is important if Trump is going to have any chance to get back into this race, said Republican strategist Charlie Black. Hes going to have to talk about issues effectively and not get down in the mud, and he needs to talk about jobs. For Clinton, who leads national opinion polls and leads in most of the battleground states where the November 8 election is likely to be decided, the 90-minute debate offers her a chance to make her closing argument on why she is the best suited to succeed President Barack Obama. Its hard to imagine at this point anything that could happen in this debate that could change the overall dynamic of this race, said Democratic strategist Steve Elmendorf. I cant imagine what Donald Trump could do positively or a mistake Hillary Clinton could make to change the trajectory of this race. In a campaign that has been more about character than policy differences, both candidates enter the debate ring a bit wounded from recent events. Trump has spent the past week denying and defending himself from charges that he groped women. Clinton has struggled to get past a flap over her handling of classified emails while US secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. She needs to be able to answer the email question, said Democratic strategist Bud Jackson. She hasnt quite hit that nail on the head yet. She should do better this time. And she should expect the unexpected. But Trumps troubles have loomed the largest, weighing down the New York businessmans extraordinary political run at the worst possible time. This has prompted him to lash out at what he feels is a political and media system rigged against him, an apparent bid to discredit the process before the election takes place. Obama said on Tuesday that Trump needs to stop whining and make his case to the voters. Republicans who have watched Trump shoot himself in the foot time and again said the Las Vegas debate was a final opportunity to appear presidential. Trump needs to make a real closing argument and stop the personal attacks and come across like a commander-in-chief, said Republican strategist Scott Reed. I see it as another important cog and really another important evening in the whole very complicated puzzle, Trump told conservative talk radio host Mike Gallagher. Reuters Trump? Clinton? Many young Americans prefer giant meteor Young Americans are so dissatisfied with their choices in this presidential election that nearly one in four told an opinion poll they would rather have a giant meteor destroy the Earth than see Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton in White House The tongue-in-cheek question was intended to gauge young Americans' level of unhappiness about their choices in the November 8 election, said Joshua Dyck, co-director of UMass Lowell's Center for Public Opinion The choice alluded to the Twitter hashtag "#GiantMeteor2016," a reference to an imaginary presidential candidate used to express frustration about this year's election choices Some 53% of the 1,247 people aged 18 to 35 said they would prefer to see a meteor destroy the world than have Republican New York real estate developer Trump in the Oval Office, with some 34% preferring planetary annihilation to seeing Hillary win Qayyarah (Iraq), October 19 Iraqi forces prepared to retake the country's largest Christian town from the Islamic State group on Wednesday, a key milestone in their progress towards the jihadists' main hub of Mosul. News of the move to recapture Qaraqosh sparked jubilation among Christians who had fled the town, with many dancing and singing in the city of Arbil. Launched on Monday, the long-awaited advance on Mosul was making quick progress but US President Barack Obama joined a chorus of warnings the battle for ISIS' last Iraqi stronghold would be tough. Officials have said the retaking of Mosul in Iraq's largest military operation in years could take weeks or months and warned that the hundreds of thousands of civilians still in the city could be used as human shields. Federal forces stormed Qaraqosh, about 15 km southeast of Mosul, on Wednesday but ISIS fighters remained in the town. Units from Iraq's elite counter-terrorism service (CTS), which has done the heavy lifting in most recent operations against ISIS, were poised to flush jihadists out of the town, officers said. "We are surrounding Hamdaniya now," Lieutenant General Riyadh Tawfiq, commander of Iraq's ground forces, told AFP at the main staging base of Qayyarah, referring to the district that includes Qaraqosh. "There are some pockets (of resistance), some clashes, they send car bombs but it will not help them," he said. Displaced Christians held early celebrations last night in Arbil, the capital of the autonomous region of Kurdistan, where they fled after Islamic State seized the town. After gathering for a group prayer outside a church in the city, some in the crowd sang, danced and clapped their hands, while others held lit candles. "Today is a happy moment. There is no doubt our land will be liberated and we thank God, Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary," said Hazem Djedjou Cardomi, a journalist among the crowd. Qaraqosh was the largest of many Christian towns and villages seized by the jihadists who swept across the Nineveh Plain east of Mosul in August 2014. The mass exodus it sparked displaced a large proportion of Iraq's already dwindling Christian minority, sending most into the neighbouring Kurdish region. Qaraqosh was a town of around 50,000 people in 2014 and is home to at least seven churches, making it a key hub for the more than 300,000 Christians still in Iraq. Three days into the operation, Iraqi forces were closing in on Mosul from several directions, including the south where federal troops and police have been battling through IS defences and retaking villages as they work their way up the Tigris Valley. On Wednesday, Iraqi forces reached the village of Bajwaniyah, about 30 kilometres south of Mosul. AFP Moscow, October 19 Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with the leaders of Turkey and Iraq about battle for Mosul, where Iraqi forces are fighting to oust the Islamic State group, the Kremlin said on Wednesday. Putin "wished the Iraqi army and its allies complete success in their objectives", the Kremlin said in a statement on his conversations with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. He also informed the Iraqi leader about the "measures taken by Russia to defuse the situation" in the Syrian city of Aleppo. Moscow announced on Tuesday that Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo ahead of an eight-hour "humanitarian pause" in the battered city on Thursday. Putin is to attend a summit on Syria in Berlin later on Wednesday with the leaders of France and Germany. In a separate conversation, Putin also discussed the battle for Mosul with Erdogan, the Kremlin said, but gave no further details. The long-awaited offensive against Iraq's second city began on Monday with air and ground support from a US-led coalition. Turkey said on Tuesday it would continue to take part in the air operation after Ankara agreed a deal with its coalition partners. Plans for the offensive were marked by tensions between Iraq and Turkey, which insisted on being part of the operation despite objections from Baghdad. AFP India has "outmanoeuvred" Pakistan by effectively branding it as a "regional pariah" during the Goa BRICS-BIMSTEC summit, strengthening its case for the NSG membership, state-run Chinese media said today. By PTI: India has "outmanoeuvred" Pakistan by effectively branding it as a "regional pariah" during the Goa BRICS-BIMSTEC summit where the country presented itself as a "bright spot", strengthening its case for the NSG membership and a permanent seat in UNSC, state-run Chinese media said today. "Given the uneasy background of Indo-Pak tension, which escalated last month, India's inclusion of BIMSTEC (The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) bore even thicker geo-strategic connotations," an article in the state-run Global Times said. advertisement INDIA MADE PAKISTAN A REGIONAL PARIAH "As India invited all countries in the region except Pakistan, it in effect consigned Pakistan to be a regional pariah," the article titled 'India uses BRICS to outmanoeuvre Pakistan', said. Also read: BRICS Summit: PM Modi slams Pakistan, calls it mothership of terror Referring to India's decision not to attend the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit to be held in Islamabad after the Uri attack, it said, "The collapse of the SAARC summit presented India with a rare opportunity to get rid of any constraints Islamabad may have over the regional group, as the same group would soon assemble in Goa in the absence of Pakistan". BIMSTEC also made a major difference to India at the Goa summit, it said. GOA BRICS SUMMIT STOOD APART "A major difference between the Goa summit and the previous ones was that New Delhi put the (BIMSTEC) in tandem with the BRICS meeting," it said. By bringing regional countries - Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan - together with the major emerging economies of the BRICS, the daily said, India breathed legitimacy and substance into an otherwise "hollow and moribund acronym organisation". Also read: After BRICS meeting, Goa Congress attacks state govt for U-Turns "While the rest of the BRICS members would never openly endorse either side in the Indo-Pak tension, India in a way secured its stance vis-a-vis Pakistan by taking advantages of its agenda-setting powers for the summits," it said. "While the prospect of BIMSTEC as a more effective alternative to SAARC remains ambiguous, a subcontinent grouping without Pakistan balancing and checking a dominant India may well raise suspicions and fear for smaller countries," it said. SUMMIT PUSHED FOR INDIA'S NSG BID The summit also helped India to push for its membership in the NSG, which was blocked by China, as well as for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council (UNSC), it said. "The BRICS summit brings India an ideal mechanism to articulate and push for its reformist demands together with like-minded countries. This common front became particularly valuable for New Delhi, especially as its arduous bids for Nuclear Suppliers Group's (NSG) membership as well as for a permanent seat on an enlarged United Nations Security Council have both met with frustration," it said. --- ENDS --- advertisement If you're still addicted to Uptown Funk, this piece of information is going to make you really happy! By India Today Web Desk: Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson's Uptown Funk has not just dominated playlists but also music charts since its initial release. So what we're going to tell you shouldn't really come as a surprise, honestly. Reportedly, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has awarded the addictive track a diamond certification--making it "only the 10th act to reach 10 million sales for a single." advertisement Also Read: #GRAMMYs: Bruno Mars' Uptown Funk wins Record of the Year; Taylor Swift conquers Album of the Year According to Billboard, Uptown Funk has sold over "12,422,016 in downloads and 938,694,569 audio streams" in the United States of America alone! The video is believed to have been streamed over 1.9 billion times. Also Read: Uptown Funk to Blank Space: Billboard's list of top 10 songs that ruled 2015 The track which managed to clinch the Best Record Grammy Award 2016, has received the honour two years after Uptown Funk was first released in 2014. via GIPHY --- ENDS --- By PTI: Muzaffarpur (Bihar), Oct 19 (PTI) With a video of two sonsof a murder accused mercilessly beating their Dalit classmatehere going viral on social media, the duo have been sent to aremand home even as police assured security to the family ofthe boy. The maternal grandfather of the boy, a class XII student of Kendriya Vidyalaya in Gannipur here, lodged an FIR with SC& ST police station on Monday. advertisement In the FIR he also claimed the entire family was terrified because the father of the two brothers is a notorious criminal lodged in jail outside the district in a murder case. According to Deputy Superintendent of Police Ashish Anand, the two brothers have been sent to remand home after being presented before Juvenile Justice Board yesterday. They have also been removed from the school which gave them forced Transfer Certificate. School principal Rajiv Ranjan had lodged a written complaint with the Kaji Muhammadpur police station. The purported video of the incident shows the two brothers -- one of them a student of class XII and the other of class XI -- pushing and thrashing the victim in presence of some other schoolmates on September 25. Meanwhile, police has assured security to the family of the boy. "I have given my phone number to the family to call me any time if they feel insecure. I have also directed Kazi Muhammadpur police station to ensure that the family is not hurt by anybody in the wake of the incident," Anand told PTI. He said he had told the school Principal that there should be no inconvenience to the boy in the school in the wake of the incident. Union Minister of State for HRD Upendra Kushwaha had taken strong note of the video and on his directive a team of Kendriya Vidyalaya officials had paid a visit to the school on October 14. PTI CORR SNS CR ZMN PS --- ENDS --- Photo of Transit full-size van courtesy of Ford. Its a great year for sales of cargo vans. The National Truck Equipment Association recently revised its 2016 forecast for U.S./Mexico Class 1-3 commercial van sales upward from a previously forecast 7% year-to-year gain up to 10% this year to be followed by an 8% increase next year. Perhaps thats partly because buyers are finding lots more than tires to kick when they check out the latest models. David Sowers, head of Ram Truck brand marketing, says the Great Recession built pent-up demand, with the average age of vans climbing to 10 years. It now stands at 7 years. Last year, Class 1-4 vans and chassis sales reached almost 400,000. We expect that to rise by 10 to 15% this year, Sowers says. Pent-up demand is being met, and theres growth in small businesses since 2009 thats also driving sales. Both fleets and small business owners are buying more vans. He says the two largest groups of buyers are delivery and mobile worksite operations. Lots more delivery vans are being sold to UPS and FedEx, and Ram has secured a contract for 12,000 units with the U.S. Postal Service. Ford says total commercial van sales for 2015 were 423,094, including full-size and compact commercial vans, according to Yaroslav Hetman, Fords brand manager for Transit, Transit Connect and E-Series. Year to date through August, the segment is up 16%, with total van sales of 312,705 vs. 268,625 last year. He says much of that growth is being driven by sales of the full-size Ford Transit, adding that Ford sold more vans in August 2016 than it has at any other time in history. We are literally selling every van we can build even with three production shifts and capacity utilization above 100%, says Joe Langhauser, full-size van product manager for General Motors Fleet. In 2015, we sold 46,000 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana cargo vans. In the first eight months of 2016, weve sold more than 27,000. Demand has been strong across the board, but weve seen an influx of customers who are in the landscaping and catering businesses. Mathias Geisen, general manager of marketing for Mercedes-Benz Vans USA, says sales numbers are steadily increasing and were in the process of signing important contracts with fleet companies. As for this years outlook, Geisen says the full-size Sprinter has a well-established [customer] segment and the mid-size Metris continues to build momentum. We knew wed have a pioneering role with the Metris because the mid-size segment was vacated by the Chevy Astro/GMC Safari a while ago. Photo of Chevrolet City Express courtesy of General Motors. GMs Langhauser says more than 10,000 Chevrolet City Express compact vans were sold last year and well be in the same range this year. He says the City Express, a derivative of the Nissan NV 200, is an important vehicle for us because the broader our portfolio, the more we can serve as a one-stop shop for our customers. The Nissan NV200, according to Mark Namuth, senior manager, commercial vehicle sales, is the right size for owners wanting smaller, more efficient work vans. He notes that the NV200 body was extended 7.9 inches beyond models sold in other global markets to provide more cargo capacity for North American customers. Hetman says Ford invented the compact commercial van segment with the introduction of Transit Connect in 2009. It continues to outsell all the other models that have entered the space. Customers from a wide range of industries, including home security, shuttle and delivery, have adopted Transit Connect. Rams Sowers points to a lot of down-sizing or right-sizing vehicles by customers. We think our ProMaster City offers a great combination of fuel efficiency and productivity. He says its rated for 28 mpg, offers a payload higher than most light-duty pickups and that it drives like a car, with a great turning radius and visibility. We sold over 90,000 of these units in 2015. Photo of Ram ProMaster City courtesy of FCA US. Once the right size van is selected, total cost of ownership is the key purchasing consideration, says Fords Hetman. Our full-size Transit offers up to 46% better fuel economy than the E-Series [it replaced] and provides best-in-class gasoline engine maximum cargo capacity of 487.3 cubic feet when properly equipped up to 75% more than the largest E-Series van. Transit vans also deliver as much as 4,650 pounds of maximum payload capacity. Safety is becoming more and more important, especially when it comes to active safety features supporting the drivers and avoiding accidents and, therefore, also keeping downtime low, says Mercedes-Benzs Geisen. Our vans offer a portfolio of safety features, including Collision Prevention Assist, Attention Assist, Lane Keeping Assist, Blind Spot Assist and Crosswind Assist. Hetman says the latest safety features have been incorporated into Ford vans, from Blind Spot Assist in Transit Connect to Lane Keeping Alert in Transit. These features are in addition to traction control, electronic stability control, side-wind stabilization, and the use of high-strength boron steel to reinforce key points around the vehicle. Nissan offers telematics, backup cameras, and rear sonar as some of our active safety features, says Namuth. We are seeing an increase in the ordering of these active safety features. Photo of NV full-sie van courtesy of Nissan. GMs Langhauser says connectivity is playing a bigger role in the purchase decision. Thats why we leverage the OnStar safety systems built-in hardware and software to power Commercial Link, a telematics platform that gives access to key information such as location, miles driven and fuel consumption. We also offer the General Motors Fleet Track System, which pairs OnStar with a scalable cloud-based fleet monitoring platform developed by Telogis. Upfitting critical Smoothing the complex upfitting process is now a key differentiator for marketing vans. The sooner [customers] can put a finished vehicle on road, the faster they will see financial returns, says GMs Langhauser. With our ship-through process, upfits can be ordered directly through the dealer. And the GM Upfitter Integration Group can provide technical assistance to the hundreds of upfitters that modify our vehicles. The Nissan Commercial Upfit Program offers customers a wide selection of cargo management packages, graphics packages, or cash allowance, according to Namuth. Our ship-through program offers fleets Nissan-approved upfits at our factory locations. Ford offers 64 different configurations of vans directly from the factory, Hetman says. Through our ship-through upfitter network, the possibilities for customization by leading upfitters are endless. Photo of Metris mid-size van courtesy of Mercedes-Benz. Geisen says Mercedes-Benz customers are searching for a complete solution in a simple ship-thru process. Vans with shelving, refrigeration or other popular upfits will be available as a key-ready solution. To assure the highest quality, we work with three major upfitters, AutoTruck, Knapheide and SmartLiner. Rams Sowers notes that an upfit center is located next to the ProMaster assembly plant to handle everything from the standard stuff to customized requests. Fuels and powertrains Many fleets are committed to reducing their environmental footprint and fuel consumption, notes GMs Langhauser. We also see real potential for small-displacement turbo diesel powertrains in the fleet arena, because they are powerful, durable and fuel efficient. Fords Hetman says customers want the power of choice to be able to smoothly flex to the needs of their businesses. This is why we offer two different gasoline powertrains, a diesel engine, as well as propane, CNG and FFV engine options. Also, several upfitters, like XL Hybrids, cooperate with us on hybrid powertrains. However, relatively cheap fuel has diminished the investment that we previously saw in CNG or LNG products, notes Nissans Namuth, particularly in the infrastructure to support those alternative fuels. Photo of GMC Savana courtesy of General Motors. When it comes to step vans, typically built on Class 4-7 chassis, more than anything electricity is now in the air. Hybrid-electric powertrains are being offered by several step van builders. For example, Freightliner Custom Chassis, which also offers CNG and hydraulic hybrid power, makes a hybrid-electric vehicle chassis for walk-in vans. Other electric step vans now available include the Workhorse E-Gen, which uses an electric-battery hybrid drive, and the all-electric Motiv Power Systems drive option offered by Morgan Olson on its Route Star walk-in model. Chevrolet Chevrolets compact City Express offers 122.7 cubic feet of customizable cargo space, a turning diameter of only 36.7 feet, and a payload capacity of 1,500 pounds. Its DOHC 2.0L, I-4 engine with variable valve timing is rated at 131 hp and 139 lb.-ft. of torque. The full-size GMC Savana and its Chevy Express stablemate offer a 2.8L Duramax turbo diesel and 8-speed automatic on the long and short wheelbase versions of 2500 and 3500 series models. Standard features now include Rear Park Assist and a rear-vision camera. Mercedes-Benz The Metris alone fits in the mid-size van category, Mercedes-Benz says. The rear-wheel drive truck is powered by a 2.0L four-cylinder gasoline engine, rated for 208 hp and 258 lb.-ft. of torque, mated to a 7-speed automatic. The powertrain, with optional Eco start/stop function, boasts a service interval of up to 15,000 miles. Ford Fords full-size Transit now comes in 64 configurations, including new 350 regular-wheelbase van, with single rear wheel and 9,500-pound GVWR. The 3.7L engine is now standard on dual-rear wheel vans, which lowers the base price and provides for CNG or LPG power. Nissan The full-size Nissan NV has standard supplemental front seat-mounted side-impact air bags and roof-mounted curtain side-impact air bags for front outboard occupant head protection. The rear-wheel-drive van can be powered by a 4L V6 or 5.6L V8; both mated to a standard 5-speed automatic transmission. Ram The compact Ram ProMaster City is powered by the 2.4L Tigershark I-4 engine, mated to a 9-speed automatic. Its steel unibody architecture cuts curb weight to offer payload up to 1,883 pounds. It provides 131.7 cubic feet of cargo space. A two-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by her neighbour in Kallukatai near Perungudi of Chennai. By Pramod Madhav: An inhumane act of a two year old girl sexually assaulted has shocked the city of Chennai. A two-year-old girl was abducted and assaulted by man identified as Vijay on Tuesday. The incident took place near Perungudi where the neighbour of the minor girl assaulted her. The incident came to light after the girl's mother heard the girls cries from Vijay's residence. advertisement The woman told the police that the girl went missing while she was playing outside. As she went close to check the voice, she was shocked to find her daughter tied up, gagged and locked inside a dark room. The girl's mother knocked on the door aloud as she saw a man next to her child. She identified the man as Vijay, a resident from Triplicane who had come to visit his relative. When confronted by the girl's mother, Vijay told her that the girl had fell down from the bed and hurt herself. A crowd gathered hearing the commotion, Vijay slipped away from the place. The parents told the police that the girl told them about what Vijay did to her. Neighbours noticed that talcum powder was sprinkled over the bed possibly to conceal blood stains. Also read: Safest city to crime capital: Is this the new Chennai? The mother said that the police were reluctant to file a complaint initially but did it anyways after the she repeatedly insisted. Doctors discovered nail marks all over the child's body and took samples for further testing. Police filed a complaint under sections 3 and 4 of POCSO Act and began to search for the predator. On Wednesday morning police nabbed Vijay, who according to them was hiding under the bushes near Perungudi railway station. There are close to 50,000 families that reside in Perungudi and the shocked residents are asking for capital punishment for anyone who commit such an unspeakable crime. Also read: Chennai: Woman Infosys employee hacked to death at railway station, CCTV footage shows attacker --- ENDS --- A person convicted of stealing beer from a convenience store or taking clothes from a retailer may have messed up their lives. They dont think that the so-called minor offense could mean jail time. Or it could be that when they committed that offense it crossed the line and violated federal law. David Phillips, Tulsa County assistant public defender, and his team John Seidenberger, also a holistic defense specialist, and Ashley Salisbury see and deal with these issues as they defend those charged with these crimes. The office also is considered a training ground for young attorneys. We have many of the same questions that felony attorneys face, he said. These include search and seizure, the Miranda Rights, and whether or not there is sufficient evidence in the case. The only real difference between a misdemeanor or felony conviction is the amount of jail time the person is exposed to and the impact of a felony conviction. A person in the United States on a legal status may find that has been jeopardized. Most people know that a convicted felon cannot carry or own a weapon, Phillips said. Yet a conviction for domestic assault and battery charge means the same weapon prohibition applies because of federal law. A first-time misdemeanor conviction of larceny of merchandise from a retail store carries a year in jail, he said. Additional problems are encountered if the person is a repeat offender. People of all ages commit misdemeanors, Phillips said. The majority are ages 18-35, which is also a common age range for those caught driving without a license or driving under the influence. Many get the message when they are convicted of a misdemeanor DUI and must pay $5,000 in attorney fees and court costs. Public defenders involved with misdemeanor cases suffer the same problems and possibly more than those working on the felony docket. Many with mental illnesses or other difficulties commit misdemeanor crimes, Phillips said. These are difficult because society hasnt made proper adjustments to provide for their care, and its harder for his staff to deal with them because few tools are available. While some convictions carry a one-year jail sentence, many are only 30 days and wont be on probation. Public defenders also deal with a group with persistent alcohol-related issues, many often arrested for public intoxication. The age range for this offense skews upward, he said. There is a movement away from jails to treatment centers for those offenders. Some are belligerent when they encounter the defense lawyers, but most realize they made a mistake and want to do whatever it takes to correct the error and move on. There is a tendency among those dealing with addiction problems to find ways to feed their habit, but for the most part, they are cooperative. People react to different situations, said Phillips, who has been a trial attorney for 26 years. He noted its a good training ground for young attorneys, and the staff has a spirit of camaraderie. I may get a case, but we talk about the cases and issues, Phillips said. If I have a problem, I go to another attorney and ask if they ever had that problem. Young attorneys seek Phillips out in some cases. They also are encouraged to partner with felony attorneys on some cases and maybe sitting second chair on a trial or working on a case writing motions. We try to keep communication lines open so they can become better attorneys, he said. Tulsa County Public Defender Rob Nigh and first assistant Stuart Sutherland realize it is a training ground, Phillips said. Many have come through the office and became good attorneys in either private or corporate practice or different agencies. Phillips welcomes the opportunity to speak to the public about the public defenders office. I tell people you are only as good as your last case, he said. The best advertisement is word of mouth, and I understand this office gets a bad rap. You always are going to have disgruntled people. We, as an office, have made a tremendous effort to make sure our clients get to know us and make sure they get the best service we can possibly give. Phillips said he has had clients from many years ago come up and say they appreciated how he helped them. That is the type of rapport each attorney strives to have with his clients, he said. It is nice to have that reputation when you walk down the street and a former client says How are you doing Mr. Phillips? he said. 918-581-8480 By PTI: Hyderabad, Oct 19 (PTI) A CISF Inspector was today booked for "misbehaving" with a woman CISF Sub-inspector here, police said. According to Pahadishareef police station Sub-inspector S Chandra Reddy, the woman SI filed a complaint, accusing Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) Inspector Ashok Kumar of "passing comments and harassing" her, following which a case under relevant sections of the IPC was registered. advertisement The CISF Inspector and the woman SI were posted at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport. No arrest has been made yet and further investigations are on, police said. PTI VVK DK RC BAS --- ENDS --- ABC has defended its Four Corners report on refugee children in Nauru, The Forgotten Children, amid criticism by the government of Nauru and conservative politicians that the ABC were advocates dressed up as journalists. Criticisms suggest footage included facilities no longer in use and that material had been provided by Amnesty International. Yesterday ABC issued a statement from Director of News, Gaven Morris: ABC News stands by the reporting in the Four Corners program The Forgotten Children, which aired on Monday night and told the important story of the more than 100 refugee children who are living on Nauru in their own words and those of some of their teachers. Claims made by the Government of Nauru and the Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection, which were also raised during a Senate Estimates hearing yesterday and uncritically repeated in The Australian today, are not correct. The Nauruan government and the DIBP may contest Four Corners assertions but they have produced no evidence to cast doubt upon them. As the Nauruan government routinely refuses journalists access to report on offshore processing, and charges prohibitive fees for media visas which are not refunded if the applications are refused, Four Corners relied on a range of sources for footage. This included hiring a freelance camera operator on Nauru to gather footage, as is routinely done on many stories. The key interviews with the children were conducted remotely by Four Corners, and their stories were subjected to the programs usual rigorous fact-checking processes. Four Corners checked and verified the veracity of all footage used in the story through a number of sources. The case presented by the story is also supported by some 2000 incident reports obtained by Four Corners. These unredacted reports document incidents affecting the young witnesses in the program and corroborate their evidence. The program was made in this way out of necessity. Otherwise, the stories of these children would not have been told. To specifically address some of the claims: The hospital shown in the film is where the late Omid Masoumali was taken to in April this year, as stated in the program. This is supported by video of Mr Masoumali in hospital which the ABC obtained but decided was too gruesome to put to air. Amnesty International states that the hospital was not equipped to treat Mr Masoumalis burns and did not provide him with a bed sheet. Four Corners understands that the new part of the hospital to which the Nauruan Government refers was not connected to water and sewerage at the time referred to in the program. According to some reports, it is still not fully functional. The school toilets shown in the program are the toilets that greeted the children when they were sent to the Nauruan schools. This is when they were filmed and also how they were described in the program by one of the teachers who saw them at that time. There can be no doubt about this. The video of school fighting shown was filmed near the school and provided to Four Corners by sources on the island, as were the other videos. The fact that some of those also have appeared on YouTube does not cast doubt on their veracity. There is no suggestion that the violence shown did not occur, and it is typical of the violence reported by Amnesty International, the teachers, the students and many other witnesses. Four Corners requested an interview with the Immigration Minister, Peter Dutton. Mr Dutton requested that any interview be live, which is not part of the Four Corners format. The Minister was offered a live interview on the episode of Lateline immediately following the programs airing and also on AM the next morning. He declined both. Four Corners also requested permission to speak with Brisbane Catholic Education, the providers of education support on Nauru. The information required regarded school attendance figures; our request for this information elicited the following response from the Department: Attendance in schools in Nauru is a matter for the Government of Nauru. On Friday afternoon the Department offered a background interview with you on Education support offered in Nauru with a Departmental spokesperson, which is not what had been requested and was not helpful. Updated for clarity: Contrary to claims, the Department did not offer or provide any images or footage to Four Corners relevant to its report. The Australian Film Television & Radio School has announced four new Heads of Discipline in Directing, Documentary, Visual Effects and Cinematography. Head of Directing is Rowan Woods, one of Australias leading directors for film and television. Rowans credits as a director include The Kettering Incident, Nowhere Boys 3, The Straits, Little Fish and The Boys. Rowan is also an AFTRS graduate (1993). Dr Rachel Landers has been appointed Head of Documentary. Dr Landers has been a lecturer at AFTRS since 2009; most recently she has been subject leader Non Fiction, developing and running the BA (Screen) and teaching the Master of Screen Arts. She is an accomplished filmmaker and historian, whose film credits include the recent documentaries Lest We Forget What and The Inquistion and the book Who Bombed The Hilton. Head of Cinematography is Kim Batterham. Kim has been a lecturer and subject leader in cinematography since 2009 while continuing his substantial career as a DoP in film and television, most recently shooting the 21-part series Lost Tools of Henry Hoke, the documentary Black Panther Women and the drama series Chandon Pictures. Other credits include the seminal documentary series First Australians. Head of Visual Effects is Susan Danta. Winner of the UNSW Art & Design Deans Awards for Teaching (Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning) in 2014, Susan is an accomplished content creator and animator. She was the series creator, director and animator of the acclaimed documentary interstitial series Heirlooms and has worked in recent years on design and animation projects for Shine Australia, SBS Television and Disney Channels AUNZ. AFTRS CEO Neil Peplow said: I am thrilled to confirm these new members of our team across the Discipline areas. Rowan, Rachel, Kim and Susan each have impressive careers as filmmakers as well as in teaching and I know our students across the curriculum will benefit from their incredible expertise and experience. AFTRS recently announced a further eight new Heads of Discipline Head of Editing is Roland Gallois, Head of Sound is Stephen Murphy, Head of Producing is Peter Herbert, Head of Screenwriting is Dr Pieter Aqulia, Head of Radio is Fyona Smith, Head of Screen Studies is Matt Campora, Head of Design is Igor Nay and Head of Interactive is Catherine Gleeson. Disclaimer: AFTRS advertises at TV Tonight. After all those Emmy accolades its no wonder anthology series American Crime Story has been renewed for a third season of 10 episodes. A second season, which looks at the Hurricane Katrina saga is already due in 2017. Now Ryan Murphy will oversee a third season set to explore the July 1997 assassination of designer Gianni Versace, based on Vanity Fair writer Maureen Orths book Vulgar Favors. Writer Tom Rob Smith is set to pen at least the first two episodes. Police in Miami were on the verge of capturing serial killer Andrew Cunanan, wanted for five slayings, when he committed suicide 8 days after Versaces death. Both second and third seasons will film concurrently in early 2017 with the Versace murder likely to be in 2018. American Crime Story airs in Australia on TEN. Source: Hollywood Reporter TEN has apologised to Thailands Ambassador to Australia, Chirachai Punkrasin, after a complaint about Mondays episode of Have You Been Paying Attention? using footage of a Thai woman wailing over the death of Thailands beloved King Bhumibol Adulyadej. While it may not be the intention of the Network 10 to cause offence, the programme needs to show greater cultural sensitivity and media professionalism when it deals with a topic that makes reference to another country, institution or culture, Mr Punkrasin wrote to the network. He said the shows panel had been mocking people who are feeling intense grief at the passing of their Monarch to be very inappropriate, disrespectful and certainly not amusing and requested the segment be removed from replay and social media. Online the moment attract a pile of criticism and has even made news online in the Bangkok Post, which is currently published in black and white as part of the nations deep mourning. A TEN spokesperson said in a statement, Network TEN has written to the Ambassador of Thailand in Canberra to apologise for the inappropriate comments made on the program. In no way was any disrespect intended and we sincerely regret any distress caused. The video has been taken down from TENs website and other social channels, and will be edited to remove this segment, prior to the episode being broadcast or made available again. Defaming, offending or mocking the Royal Family in Thailand is a severe breach of lese majeste laws and can attract up to 15 years imprisonment. The Australian Government has advised Australians travelling to Thailand to demonstrate respect for the Thai people, refrain from any behaviour that may be interpreted as festive, disrespectful or disorderly. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was the worlds longest reigning monarch at the time of his death and Thailand has declared an official mourning period of one year. https://twitter.com/damomcfadden/status/788322831327125505 Source: Fairfax By PTI: Visakhapatnam, Oct 19 (PTI) Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has played a major role in safeguarding the maritime interest of the country, Director General of ICG Rajendra Singh said today. Addressing a gathering after Commissioning the Inshore Patrol Vessel (IPV) of ICG Ship Rani Gaidinliu at Coast Guard Jetty here, he said the changing security Scenario in the Maritime domain dictates the need for coastal security on a 24X7 basis where the coast guard have to maintain a constant vigil. advertisement Singh said the Indian Coast Guards fleet Strength has gone to 123 Ships and 62 Aircraft From 1997. He said ICG ship Rani Gaidinliu, named after the freedom fighter from Manipur, will Primarily focus on surveillance at the sea, coastal patrol, anti-smuggling operations, protection of fishermen, beside the routine Search and Rescue Operations. ICGS Rani Gaidinliu is the fourth of its class and has been designed and build ingeniously by Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL), Visakhapatnam. The Vessel is equipped with the most advanced and sophisticated Navigational and Communication sensors and equipment, Singh said. It is 51-metre in length, 330 tonnes displacement, capable of achieving maximum speed of 34 knots. The ship is fitted with the state-of-the-art communication, navigational equipment and 30 mm CRN-91 gun on-board as main armament. It will be based at the Krishnapatanam Port. Indian Coast Guard Region (East) Inspector General, Rajan Bargotra, Deputy Chief Minister of Manipur Gaikhangam, Flag Officers and other civilian officers also attended the function. PTI CORR ARS TIR --- ENDS --- Links to the story about the art history professor who is charged with forgery and her difficulties in the Franklin Pierce art department (lawsuits, etc.), the decline in MFA applicants, and a new book about painting from David Salle. Theres been a charge of art forgery in Reading, Vermont, and the alleged perp is no stranger to court battles. According to the NY Times, Lorettann Gascard, an art history professor at Franklin Pierce College in New Hampshire, sold a bunch of forged Leon Golub paintings to art collector Andrew J. Hall (who, BTW, recently added one of Deborah Browns paintings to his collection), and then she disappeared. According to the report: She said that she had gotten to know Golub while attending his classes at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, N.J., in the late 1970s, and they became close friends until his death in 2004, according to court papers But, she also told people that: she grew up in New York and earned her doctorate at the Free University in Berlin. Nonetheless, At Franklin Pierce, she taught undergraduate art history and drawing, and supervised the college art gallery. In 2004, she did research in Germany with support from the Fulbright program. Four years later, she contributed a chapter about the conflicting female ideals under the Nazis to a book about art and eugenics. Generally liked by her students [and sometimes notcheck out Rate My Professor], she often walked around campus wearing white gloves and dark glasses, faculty colleagues said in interviews. Ms. Gascard was an artist herself, practicing a technique called rust art, and her work sold at auction in one instance for $45,000. She told colleagues at the college that she had been friendly with Golub and his wife, but they do not remember her mentioning that she owned any of his paintings. But between 2009 and 2011 the Gascards consigned at least eight works they attributed to Golub to auction in New York, including six at Christies and one at Sothebys, where Mr. Hall purchased them, he said in the suit. The auction houses relied on the story the Gascards told them about the paintings provenance, according to the filing. Reading the article, I was reminded of one of my former colleagues, an art history professor like Gascard, who liked to drop names and allegedly left a previous institution under mysterious circumstances involving sales of artwork from the universitys collection. Once, I remember, her husband (who, come to think of it, claimed friendship with Donald Trump) was transporting paintings for an exhibition she had curated. He stopped in midtown for a sandwich, and his car, along with all the art inside it, went missing. Anyway, back to Gascard. A quick Google search reveals that the professor had a troubled relationship with other faculty and administrators at Franklin Pierce, where she taught from 1997 and coordinated the art gallery since 1998. She sued the university and administrators for discrimination and emotional distress over several issues, including retaliation for taking family leave, denial of her application to serve as coordinator of the Fine Arts Department, and removal from her role as gallery coordinator. The Times article says she has vanished, but I suspect she may have gotten a settlement from Franklin Pierce and left the community, which, by 2015 when she was told she was no longer the coordinator of the gallery, had undoubtedly become a toxic environment for her. Trigger warning: For academics, her battle may sound all too familiar regardless of what side you may be on. Read more. - According to artnet News, the number of applications submitted to pricey MFA programs have been declining. Across the country, art schools have minted a growing number of visual art MFA programs over the last 10 to 15 years. Many of them now face a challenge, as application numbers and enrollment figures are falling, according to the better part of a dozen insiders who spoke to artnet News, some of them on condition of anonymity. Apparently, though, applications to fully-funded programs like the one at the University of Connecticut (my alma mater) are on the rise. Read more. - David Salle has written what looks like a terrific a book about painting. In the NY Times review, Dwight Garner says that: Mr. Salles mission in How to See is to seize art back from the sort of critics who treat each painting as a position paper, with the artist cast as a kind of philosopher manqu. Mr. Salle is more interested in talking about nuts and bolts, about what makes contemporary paintings tick. Theory abounds, but concrete visual perception is at a low ebb, he maintains. In my view, intentionality is not just overrated; it puts the cart so far out in front that the horse, sensing futility, gives up and lies down in the street. Nobody ever loved a painting, he says, for its ideas. Read more. Related posts: Search: MFA art programs, inexpensive, top 10 MFA programs, bigstudios, graduate assistantships Burri: On fire at the Guggenheim Flayed, torn, and punctured at MOCA Hi, my name is Scott C. Waring and I wrote a few books and am currently a ESL School Owner in Taiwan. I have had my own UFO sighting up close and personal, but that's how it works right? A non believer becomes a believer when they experience their first sighting. You witnessed it, your perceptual field changes, so now you need to share it. I created this site to help the UFO community get a little bit organized. I noticed that there was a lot of chaos when searching for UFO sighting reports, so I hope this site helps. I wanted to support those eyewitnesses who have tried to tell others about what they have seen, yet were laughed at by even closest of friends. More and more each day the governments of the world leak bits and pieces of UFO information to the public. They have a trickle down theory in hopes of slowly getting citizens use to the idea that we are not alone in universe and never have been. The truth is being leaked drop by drop until one day we look around and find ourselves neck high in it. The discovery of alien species in existence is the most monumental scientific event in human history, suppression of that information is a crime against humanity. About me: I live in Taiwan. I OWN MY OWN ENGLISH SCHOOL, AND ONCE HAD 5 SCHOOLS. Am Former USAF at SAC base (flight line). Age: 42 Educ: BA in Elem ed. Masters in Counseling ed. I had two UFO sightings, (30+bus size orbs) in military and in 2012 personally saw the UFO over Taipei 101 building on New Years Day (and recored it). Ukraine has huge potential so that to integrate into the digital economy space of the European Union, Ukrainian First Vice Prime Minister, Minister for Economic Development and Trade Stepan Kubiv has said. I see huge potential in the sphere of digital economy. European Commissioner [for Digital Economy and Society Gunther] Oettinger has represented a full action plan for Ukraine's joining this area. This is a very big market. And it shows that Ukraine, taking into account the success in the issues of IT, software, is ready for this cooperation, Kubiv said following his visit to Brussels, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. He also recalled that the IT sphere adds five percent of income to Ukraines GDP. At the same time, the official noted that several correspondent laws should be adopted for the further development of digital economy in Ukraine. Stepan Kubiv also said that he preliminary agreed with representatives of the European Commission to hold the forum on digital economy and technology in Ukraine. iy The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the Investment Support Office and appointed Canadian lawyer Danylo Bilak its director. This has been announced at a government meeting on Wednesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. Canadian lawyer Danylo Bilak is the Office director. He will fulfill all the tasks that have been set for him, First Deputy Finance Minister Oksana Markarova said, when representing the Office. She also added that the Office will be financed by Western NIS Enterprise Fund(WNISEF). iy By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 19 (PTI) Beverages major Coca Cola India has dropped Bollywood superstar Salman Khan as brand ambassador for its soft drink Thums Up after four years of association and the company is in talks with young star Ranveer Singh to replace him. The contract with Khan had expired last month and the company has chosen not to renew it, according to industry sources. When contacted, Coca Cola India declined to comment. The companys decision to not to renew the contract with the 50-year-old actor is more to do with the image of Coca Cola, which is seen as a young brand, a source said. advertisement "That explains why Coca Cola is talking to a much younger star like Ranveer Singh," the source added. Khan has been among the top celebrity endorsers reportedly charging Rs 5 crore per year per brand. Recently, he had courted controversy when he supported Pakistani artists saying "they were not terrorists" in the wake of a debate on whether they should be allowed to work in Indian movies after the Uri attack. Coca Cola India had roped in Khan as its brand ambassador for the second time to endorse its Thums Up brand in October 2012 replacing another Bollywood star Akshay Kumar. He had earlier endorsed the brand in early 2000s. At that time, Coca-Cola India had also signed an agreement with Being Human -- The Salman Khan Foundation -- to jointly promote, conceive and execute charitable and social activities. PTI RKL MKJ --- ENDS --- During a meeting of the Fourth Committee of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, the Ukrainian delegation to the United Nations has called on the international community to respond to illegal arrest of journalist Roman Sushchenko and assist in his immediate release, own Ukrinform correspondent reports. One of the recent examples of the Russian cynical campaign against independent mass media was the unjustified detention of Ukrainian citizen journalist Roman Sushchenko, who was arrested in Moscow on September 30, 2016 on baseless charges, said speaker of Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the UN Oleh Nikolenko Roman Sushchenko "is steadfast and independent defender of freedom of speech, known for his publications about illegal actions of Russia against Ukraine." Numerous articles and reports by the Ukrainian journalist are freely available, the diplomat said. "We call on the international community to respond to this unacceptable case of persecution of the Ukrainian journalist in Russia and use all available tools to facilitate his immediate release," the representative of Ukraine said. Fourth Committee of the UN General Assembly deals with special political issues. On Tuesday, the committees meeting was dedicated to the issues of media and information. As reported, Ukrainian citizen, own Ukrinform correspondent in France, Roman Sushchenko was detained in Moscow on 30 September 2016, where he arrived on a private visit. iy Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has met with King Harald V of Norway on Tuesday, October 18, the presidents press service reports. In the course of the audience, His Majesty noted historic importance of the first official visit of the Ukrainian President to the Kingdom of Norway. Petro Poroshenko thanked His Majesty for supporting Ukraines territorial integrity and significant practical assistance, reads the report. President Poroshenko noted the attention that His Majesty gave to the situation in Ukraine, which was particularly reflected in a recent throne speech during the opening of this years session of the Norwegian Storting that stated that Russian actions in Ukraine are unequivocal violation of international law. President Poroshenko also noted the importance of support from Norway to the defense sphere reform and modernization of the Armed Forces. iy Ukrainian MPs have approved an appeal by the Verkhovna Rada to member states and institutions of the European Union for the completion of ratification of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU. A total of 235 MPs voted in favor of the corresponding resolution, No. 5238, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. The Ukrainian parliament called on the government of the Netherlands together with the EU institutions "to make a balanced decision that would equally take into account the interests of people of the Netherlands, Ukraine and the European Union. The Ukrainian lawmakers also appealed to the parliament of the Kingdom of the Netherlands with a request to avoid adopting a decision that will be of a discriminatory character towards Ukraine and will threaten the implementation of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union. iy The Polish company Farm 51 has developed the world's first virtual tour of Chornobyl and Prypyat Chornobyl VR Project. The initiators plan to open the virtual reality museum in the Chornobyl exclusion zone in November. The press service of the State Agency of Ukraine for Managing the Exclusion Zone said this after the meeting between the head of the agency, Vitaliy Petruk, with the creative team of the project. "The State Agency of Ukraine for Managing the Exclusion Zone has supported the initiative of the Polish Farm 51, which developed the project, the Chornobyl VR Project," the world's first virtual tour of Chornobyl and Prypyat. The initiators plan to open the virtual reality museum in the zone in November," the statement says. The idea of the project is to use 3D-technology so people can take a virtual journey through the facilities that are located in the exclusion zone. In particular, during the familiarization visit those wishing to do so will be able to "visit" the Chornobyl nuclear power plant, abandoned apartment buildings, the amusement park all located in Prypyat, which became a ghost town back in 1986 after the Chornobyl disaster. pd A nursery student, Nandini, died after falling into an open septic tank of Sant Surjan Singh International School in Swaroop Nagar. Nandini's mother and relative after the poor girl's death. Photo: ANI By Arvind Ojha: A four-year-old girl today died after falling into a 20-feet septic tank of a school in Swaroop Nagar, Delhi. Nandini, a nursery student, accidentally fell into an open septic tank at around 2 pm on Tuesday while she was returning home with her mother and younger brother. She was rushed to the Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh but was declared dead on arrival. advertisement The police said that the 20-feet deep and 50-feet wide open septic tank was of Sant Surjan Singh International School. They have registered a case against unknown persons and are investigating the matter. Nandini was a student of Camp Convent High School in northwest district of Delhi. Also Read: 6-year-old child dies after falling in school's water tank in Delhi --- ENDS --- With more than 3,700 cases of chikungunya and 15 deaths, and another 19 deaths from dengue, political parties are aware that there is credible amount of anger among Delhiites on the issue. And thus can hamper their chances in upcoming civic-polls The Swaraj India attacked AAP ministers and MCD chiefs for going abroad when the city was reeling under an outbreak of vector-borne diseases. By Mail Today Bureau: The bugle for elections to Delhi's three municipal corporations is set to be sounded in December. And the villainous mosquito could prove to be the undoing for both reigning kings - BJP in the civic bodies, and AAP at the state government. With more than 3,700 cases of chikungunya and 15 deaths, and another 19 deaths from dengue, political parties are aware that there is credible amount of anger among Delhiites on the issue. SWARAJ INDIA TO STAND FOR CIVIC POLLS advertisement Swaraj India, the newly launched electoral front for Swaraj Abhiyan, has also declared its intention to contest the polls. Its leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan have already started attacking the AAP over the mosquito menace. Attacking Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for his tweet that he cannot even buy a pen after the Delhi HC, Yadav said that at the same time, the CM ordered 600 fogging machines. "If a man cannot buy a pen, how can he buy 600 fogging machines? It's a game where there is minimal attention to governance. It's pure cynicism," Yadav said. Also Read: MCD election: AAP's big dent into Delhi civic body BJP dominated for 10 yrs, Cong is close second VECTOR-BORNE DISEASES IN DELHI Referring to the outbreak of vector-borne diseases in Delhi, Yadav also attacked the BJP and the central government. "All the powers responsible for governance in the city have abdicated it. When the entire media was pointing out that Delhi's ministers were abroad, the North Delhi mayor from BJP was abroad too," Yadav said. "The sheer lethargy of the BJP-led MCD is matched by the political cynicism of AAP," he added. The BJP has dominated the 272-member civic body for nearly a decade now. However, in the May 2016 by-election, it fell short of both the Congress and AAP. While the Congress won four of the 13 seats up for grabs, AAP, making its civic poll debut, won five seats, which was disappointing for it as it was hopeful of replicating its Assembly election success and win all 13. The BJP bagged only three seats. The current BJP-helmed MCD's tenure is set to end in April-May 2017, following which elections will be held. CONGRESS HAS LAUNCHED THE CAMPAIGN The Congress has launched a campaign to connect with voters in preparation of the polls, especially with a focus on 21 Assembly segments where sitting AAP legislators face the threat of disqualification over the office-ofprofit issue. "The campaign process has begun with the appointment of sector in-charges in 12 of the 21 Assembly constituencies where AAP MLAs are likely to face disqualification. The campaign will cover all the 13,000 polling booths," Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken told reporters. In the first phase of the campaign titled 'Meri Delhi-Mere Sapne', feedbacks will be collected from voters through a questionnaire. Their suggestions to improve civic conditions in the city will also be collected. advertisement AAP has also not fallen behind in the race. It held protests this week against the mayors of the three MCDs on the issue of sanitation and vector-borne diseases. Labour Minister Gopal Rai, who participated in the protests against EDMC and NDMC mayors, branded the civic bodies as acronyms for malaria, chikungunya and dengue. AAP spokesperson Richa Pandey said: "Even the CAG has pulled up BJPruled MCDs for their failure... the MCDs have failed to control the spread of diseases in Delhi." --- ENDS --- By India Today Web Desk: Recently, a video clip that showed Republican Party nominee Donald Trump blowing his trumpet about how he 'scored' on women, even those who weren't consensual, went viral. While his face cannot be seen, Trump can be heard yapping about how women like to be "grabbed by the pussy". "I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab 'em by the pussy," Trump can be heard saying. advertisement People had a lot to say about it. When some called him a sexual predator, his wife pitched he was "egged on" to say those things. Trump defended himself by referring to his remark as "locker room talk". And instead of apologising, he said his "locker room" chat is not one of the more "serious problems" in the world. Im not proud of my locker room talk. But this world has serious problems. We need serious leaders. #debate #BigLeagueTruth Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 10, 2016 First Lady Michelle Obama had a lot to say: Meanwhile, American author Laura Hillenbrand used her experience of being sexually assaulted to dissect Trump's so-called "locker room talk". Author of best-selling novels such as Seabiscuit and Unbroken, Hillenbrand's Facebook post isn't an opinion piece; she doesn't call Trump names or lash out at Americans who support him. In fact, she doesn't even take his name. In a haunting flow, Hillenbrand only tells her story of the time a man forced himself on her, how he literally grabbed her the way Trump casually ridicules, and how it made her feel. In between, she repeats Trump's remark, like a reminder to the reader. READ HILLENBRAND'S MOVING ACCOUNT HERE: "I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab 'em by the pussy." "In the winter of my junior year in high school I met a guy in one of my classes. Tall and handsome, he possessed a crackling electricity, a supple self-possession that drew people around him. He shone. We had a couple of brief, charming conversations. One night, on a whim, I flipped through the little blue student phone book, found his number, and asked him to lunch. He turned me down, not rudely, but without hesitation. I was embarrassed, but wasn't emotionally invested, and forgot about it, and him, almost immediately. Several months later, I was in a record store with my best friend, Anna, when we ran into him. When we said we were going to a movie, he said he'd tag along. He was nice enough, but said little to me. I assumed he wanted the arrestingly beautiful Anna, and that was fine with me. But after the movie, when he walked us back to our neighborhood, instead of turning the corner to go with her, he stayed with me. When I went into my house, he followed me in." advertisement If he didn't stop, there would be nothing I could do to save myself "I felt awkward and confused. I hadn't flirted with him, nor he with me, and I was sure of his indifference, even to friendship. We had little to say, so I turned on the TV and we sat down to watch. Then, tumbling. He was against me, his mouth roughly on mine, his hands on my body. My back was against something hard and I realized that in an instant, he'd taken me to the floor and climbed on top of me. He was muscular and about six-foot-two, oppressively heavy on my small body. I could barely breathe or move. I was, for a few seconds, completely passive. Some of it was my surprise, which left me disoriented and unsure of what was happening. Some of it was the authority he carried, in his handsomeness, his shine, his stature, his overawing maleness. The power of him rendered me deferential, untrusting of my instincts, paralyzed. "When you're a star, they let you do it." advertisement He pushed his knee between my legs, and I felt him under my skirt, grasping crudely at my panties. Blind, I threw a hand down to stop him, and my palm met not his hand, but his bare penis, hard, hot, and wet. Startled, I realized that while we'd been watching TV, he'd been unzipping his pants and baring himself next to me. His weight, his breath, his smell, his muscle, the harsh stubble of his mouth, his penis, were overpowering, smothering. I was drowning under him. Seconds after quietly watching TV beside me, he was trying to force himself into me. I twisted beneath him, trying to push his penis away. I said no, no. If he didn't stop, there would be nothing I could do to save myself." I felt sure I'd violated some sacrosanct rule "*No.* He stopped. Abruptly, he got off of me, and I breathed. He stood and angrily zipped his penis into his pants. He grabbed his jacket and stormed from the room. advertisement Lying on the floor, my clothes in disarray, I felt ashamed and guilty. I felt sure I'd violated some sacrosanct rule. I was supposed to please him, let him have what he wanted, wasn't I? Wasn't his anger, the unalloyed purity of his righteousness, proof? I followed him as he swept out the door. I felt distressed, not for me, but for him. I felt compelled to apologize, to explain. It felt more dangerous to have stopped him than to have let him do what he wanted to me. At the end of my front walk, he spun around and moved toward me, his face menacing, contorted with rage. I stopped, frightened. He shouted, the force of it so powerful that his long upper body bent at me. I see that image now and think: He's a bolt of lightning. "What do you WANT?" His voice rose and broke on that last word, spat at me with bitter contempt and incredulity. Blazing in that word was his outrage at his thwarted entitlement, something that belonged to him that I'd stolen. What could a little nothing like me want, other than to be used by him?" He believed unequivocally he had the right to violate my body "I was an outgoing girl, but in no way promiscuous, in no way a girl anyone might have thought was easy. The boys I'd dated had all been sweet and respectful. I'd never so much as flirted with this guy. All I'd done was to ask him to lunch, months before. Yet he believed unequivocally that he had the right to violate my body, without preamble. No smile. No words of endearment. No question. No consent. I wasn't even certain he knew my name. He'd led with his penis. All he saw in me was a body part men like him have a name for. "Grab 'em by the pussy." He believed he was the one wronged. At that moment, I believed it too. I told Anna what had happened and, with her sweetly fierce loyalty, she promised that if she found him, she'd kick his balls with all the strength in her. It was her fury that made me realize I had no place feeling ashamed. It was only then that I realized what this had been. From that night I carried a lasting, deep-set difficulty in trusting that I could be desired for more than my body, but I was surer of what was mine. Months later, when another guy tried to force himself on me, I instantly shoved him almost to the floor, told him off, fled as he chased me, jumped in my car, and, as he opened the door and tried to bull his way in, floored the gas and peeled out onto the street as the guy dropped away and the door swung wildly." It was the vile words aired during this presidential campaign that brought him to [my] mind "I saw the young man from school only once more, passing him on my way back to class from lunch. His gaze slid over me with unaffected indifference. In the years since, I've almost never thought of him. It was only the vile words aired during this presidential campaign that brought him vividly to mind again, as they've brought other such men to the minds of dozens of my friends, my sister, and so many other women. For many of them, the stories are much, much worse, leaving wounds from which these women have never recovered. Wounds of which they still cannot speak. If ever I cross paths with him, and he speaks of having known me, I'll reply that he's mistaken. This is the truth. He knew nothing of me, because he had no interest in knowing me. The only thing I knew of him was his penis as he tried to force it into my sixteen-year-old body." --- ENDS --- In an online fatwa, the Darul Uloom Deoband asks the IAF officer to quit his job if he is not allowed to grow a beard. The Deoband has issued an online fatwa on the query of an Indian Air Force officer. (Photo for representation: Reuters) By India Today Web Desk: The Darul Uloom Deoband, the country's prominent Islamic institution, has issued an online fatwa directing an officer of the Indian Air Force to quit his job if he is not allowed to grow a beard. If Prime Minister Narendra Modi and earlier Manmohan Singh can have one, it is unconstitutional to not allow an IAF officer to keep a beard, a Deoband official said. advertisement The fatwa says that if the officer's financial condition is stable then he should quit his job. WHAT WAS THE OFFICER'S QUERY The fatwa comes on the query of an IAF officer who had approached the institution to help him decide what he should do if he is not allowed to grow his beard: continue shaving it every day or quit the job. ALSO READ: Muslim soldier wants to move SC after being discharged by Army for sporting a beard The officer had written that while joining the armed forces he did not have a beard. Now, after 10 years in service, he wants to grow one. The IAF however, he said, doesn't allow its officers to keep a beard. KEEP ASKING FOR FORGIVENESS The Islamic institution in its fatwa said that if he can support his family financially without the job, then he must quit. However, if can't do that then he must continue with his current job but keep asking for forgiveness from Allah. The fatwa directs him to continue his search for a new job. ALSO READ: Sepoys dismissal over beard upheld by Tribunal PRIME MINISTER HAS A BEARD Chairman of the online division of the Darul Ullom Deoband Mufti Arshad Farooqui said there is no law in the country that bans armed force personnel from keeping a beard. "The Indian constitution too allows people from different faiths to follow their customs," Farooqui said. According to Farooqui, if the officer faces pressure from his seniors to not grow a beard then he must go the court and such senior officers should be sacked. ALSO READ: Why Rustom gets the Navy uniform and pretty much everything wrong In a country, said Farooqui, one of the most important positions is that of a Prime Minister, and even he is not stopped from growing a beard. "Manmohan Singh was the Prime Minister for several years and he had a beard. Our current Prime Minister Narendra Modi too has keeps one," he said, adding that it is unconstitutional to not allow and IAF officer keep a beard. ALSO READ: Muslim cop in Kerala moves HC for permission to grow beard ALSO READ: In a landmark declaration, Sikh US Army Captain will be allowed to wear turban while on duty --- ENDS --- advertisement With various film bodies imposing a ban on Pakistan actors after the Uri attack, the Government has said there is no plan to stop people-to-people contact between the two countries. By PTI: With various film bodies imposing a ban on Pakistan actors after the Uri attack, the Government has said people-to-people contact between the two countries would continue and there was no plan to stop it. This was conveyed by Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs during discussions on Indo-Pak relations with a specific reference to the surgical strikes across the LoC on September 29. advertisement PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE CONTACT TO CONTINUE "People-to-people contact would continue and there was no plan to stop it," he told the panel. Also read: Raveena Tandon on Pak artists ban: It's a petty topic in comparison to terrorism In the aftermath of the Uri terror attack last month in which 19 Indian jawans were killed, the MNS issued an ultimatum to Pakistani artists to leave India. They also threatened to stop the screening of films featuring artistes from Pakistan. PAK ARTISTES BANNED Subsequently, Indian Motion Pictures Producers Association passed a motion to ban the artistes from the neighbouring country. Also read:Karan Johar breaks silence on ADHM: Won't work with Pak artists hereafter The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India recently decided not to screen the films with Pakistani actors in four states -- Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. --- ENDS --- One of Yale's long-held tradition is naming its classrooms after its celebrated alumni and recently it has named another classroom to its first black student. James W.C. Pennington, who escaped from slavery in 1837 entered Yale despite the law that time prohibiting black student to receive education in Connecticut. Although he entered the prestigious university, he was treated unfairly because of his color. He was not allowed to speak during class, use the library, or even earn a degree. In a way, he seemed nonexistent at the campus at that time. After he left Yale, he became an abolitionist and a minister. One of his popular quotes was, "There is one sin that slavery committed against me, which I can never forgive. It robbed me of my education." According to Greg Sterling, the dean of the divinity school, by honoring Pennington, the man whose voice was not permitted to speak a long time ago in the halls of Yale will have his name repeated forever. Sterling was also the strongest advocates in naming the classroom after Pennington, which he announced during the commencement exercises in Yale in 2015. During that time, racial tensions were also getting high-strung as African-American women were reportedly banned from a Halloween party by a fraternity on campus. The dean further explained that the move to name the classroom after Pennington is not just to honor him and acknowledge how African - American students have made an impact in the history of the university but also for students to find some emotional release after a year full of tension. When the decision was announced, students and staff have received the news with vigorous enthusiasm said Sterling. "Part of the reason this decision was made is that Yale is based on tradition and that tradition is largely, but not entirely, white. This is a way for students who haven't been able to lay claim to Yale's history to have a chance to do so," he continued. The latest iOS 10 beta rolls out to developers and that could mean one thing for Pangu jailbreak tool. iOS 10.1 on beta 4 and iOS 10.0.3 update: What it means for Pangu jailbreaking tool? Apple released iOS 10.0.3 for its devices but the updates are apparently minor. The intention was to fix connectivity problem in iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. In fact the update is exclusive for the newest iPhone devices, ArsTechnica has learned. As for the iOS 10 beta 4, there are a lot of bug fixes in the version but it is currently available for developers. The patch should be able to make iOS 10 more stable in the future and within days, the beta 4 version will be released for public, BGR reported. The jailbreak community may have heard words about Pangu giving up on iOS 10 jailbreak but apparently that's not all true. In fact, the team did a great job in pointing out the security vulnerability in iOS 10 a few months ago at MOSEC. With that being said, Pangu may have been working for it for months and the recent updates in Apple iOS could simply mean a step closer to Pangu iOS 10 jailbreak software. iOS 10 jailbreak Pangu status It has been a month since iPhone 7 was launched and Pangu has not come up with any tool to break the restriction in Apple's newest OS version. The Chinese hacking team may be waiting for Apple to release the iOS 10.1 before rolling out a jailbreak for public download. Previously, tech blogger iCrackUriDevice said that Pangu could be waiting for the iOS 10 to get in stable mode before launching a crack. This is to prevent any wasteful jailbreak that may not be working as Apple could roll out a newer version anytime soon. Another report argued that Pangu could have the iOS 10 jailbreak wrapped up until it is ready for release. Will we see any iOS 10 jailbreak tool in Christmas or earlier? Stay tuned for more information! iOS 10 jailbreak Pangu discussed in the video below The university's atmosphere has changed a lot in the last 50 years. Then, going to college meant going out into the big world and taking responsibility for your life as an adult. It was the beginning of independence, discovery and maturity. Today, universities are taking away the freedom as much as they can thinking that these young men and women cannot be trusted to take charge of their own life in campus. Today's university environment is a far cry from the one that Frank Furedi remembers. Mr. Furedi, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Kent wrote in the Times Higher Education (THE) his recollection of how different it was then when we attended college at McGill University back in 1965. He observed that back then, "Universities were far more tolerant of diverse views and opinions than the rest of society." They questioned everything to open up the school to new ideas. Four years later, he did postgraduate work at the Soas, University of London where in the climate was familiar. "The 1960s radicals organised free-speech movements and regarded any form of censorship as unacceptable. They were rule breakers rather than rule creators, and they refused to recognise the right of university administrators to exercise any authority over their behaviour." To Frank Furedi the starking contrast between his generation and this one is the infantilization of the the academe. Today's activists are demanding safe spaces from the sensitive topics and trigger warnings to words some students might find to be offensive or depressing. Back in the day, student activists were fighting for freedom, today some of them are demanding comfort. Instead of allowing college students to live and make decisions as adults, universities are promoting mandatory activities to students and their parents. In Princeton for example, freshmen students are required to use the residential college system. There are already 6 buildings for the system to date, it is planned however to add one more and to expand the coverage of the system to include sophomores. The planned expansion doesn't only mean adding more buildings for student housing, it would also include requiring both freshmen and sophomores to purchase a meal plan as part of their "Princeton experience". Beni Snow, a sophomore in the university wrote at Princetonian, "The University should be in the business of furthering knowledge through research and education. I fail to see how mandating where we live falls into the equation. We're Princeton students, not children. Let us live how we want." Matt Johnson also expressed concern over the effects of treating students like children. It is turning our universities into nurseries, citing that, "While you're digging into the Play-Doh, munching on cookies, blowing bubbles and coloring inside the lines - yes, these were actually the featured attractions at a safe space set up for Brown University students who were afraid of being triggered by a debate about sexual assault in fall 2014 - the conversation is going on without you." A few centuries back, philosopher Immanuel Kant answered the question, "What is Enlightenment?". In the first paragraph he wrote, "Sapere aude." Dare to know. Kant asked the reader to "have the courage to use your own understanding" without another's guidance. This is why students go to college and attend higher education institutions - to be enlightened and to know more so they can grow and not just to be "employable" but to contribute to the common good. Kant emphasized that in order to be enlightened, there must be freedom and that the public must be free to use reason at all times. However, when we dictate how students in the university should live and provide them with an escape when classroom discussions get overwhelming, aren't we preventing their growth? In honor of University of Maine's most famous graduates, the school is creating a Stephen E. King Chair in Literature. But that does not mean the famous author is getting the position. That honor goes to an English professor the school chooses. The University of Maine is now accepting applications from different English professors to fill the position, cites Seattle Times. When an English professor becomes a chair, the appointment will then begin in August next year and will hold the chair position for five years. The chair position is also renewable. This position will have undergraduate education as its central focus. Also, the position is partially endowed by the Harold Alfond Foundation. Why did University of Maine suddenly came up with this kind of position? It is to honor Stephen King himself. Author Stephen King is the University of Maine English Department's celebrated graduate. Stephen King studied at the University of Maine in 1966. He graduated in 1970 with a degree in English as a Bachelor of Arts. During that time, he wrote a column for "The Maine Campus," the school's news paper. His column was titled "Steve King's Garbage Truck." He spent most of his time attending writing workshops and even took odd jobs to pay for his course. As a student, he worked as a janitor, an industrial laundry worker and even a gas pump attendant. After he graduated, he did not became famous right away. He sold short stories to the Cavalier - a men's magazine. He tried to teach in high school but he couldn't find a post right away. Later on, he was able to teach at Hampden Academy. Now, he is a well known American author. And to make sure his works are commemorated, the Fogler Library at the U of Maine holds many of his papers. Some of his written work are now being adapted into movies, such as his novel "It." Celebrity hotelier Vikram Chatwal is under the radar for allegedly trying to set two dogs on fire. He used aerosol can and lighter to set two dogs on fire after getting annoyed with a woman walking her dogs outside his home. By India Today Web Desk: In another case of brutality against dogs, Indian-American hotelier Vikram Chatwal is under the radar for allegedly trying to set two dogs on fire and has been charged with criminal mischief. Vikram, 44, has surrendered before police early this morning. A New York Police Department officer said that he has been charged with criminal mischief, torture and injure animal, reckless endangerment and arson. advertisement According to a report in a local news website patch.com, the charges arise from an incident that occurred on October 7 in which Vikram allegedly got into an argument with a woman who was walking the dogs outside his home. Vikram allegedly pulled out a lighter and aerosol can, and used them to burn the two dogs, the report said. According to a police report, the dogs suffered minor burns in the incident. Chatwal is expected to make a court appearance in the case later today. --- ENDS --- The road to education is still not around for everyone. During First Lady Michelle Obama's live broadcast in Glamour's "A Brighter Future: A Global Conversation on Girls' Education," girls from around the world express their concerns regarding the goal towards giving everyone the right to education. Partnering with Glamour Magazine's Editor in Chief, Cindi Leive, Michelle Obama faces two Liberian girls who were in Washington, DC as part of the "Let Girls Learn." "Let Girls Learn" is a United States Government initiative that is dedicated to giving girls the opportunity to education. Their trip to Washington is a follow up to Michelle's last visit to Liberia and Morocco this June 2016. When the girls attended a luncheon at the Liberian Embassy in Washington, the girls talked about their personal challenges, cites VOA News. The girls explain that some of their friends' education has been affected by the Sande women's secret society. It is a society that focuses on female circumcision or rather female genital mutilation. According to Shalita Jill from the Frank Emmanuel Tolbert high school in Monrovia, the Sande issue is huge in where she comes from. After being mutilated, the girls lose the opportunity to learn for a year. This is a traditional practice that prepares them for marriage. Activists from all over the world are rallying against this practice. Recently, actress Emma Watson challenged Africa to end early childhood marriages. Another hurdle to their path to education is the loss of family. Some girls suffer the loss of parents from the recent Ebola crisis. Jill adds that because they are not financially capable without parental care, they are unable to go to school. According to the U.S. Embassy in Liberia, investing in adolescent girls through education benefits will benefit everybody in the entire community and economy. "When girls remain in school, they are more likely to marry later, have fewer and healthier children, and earn an income that they will invest back into their families and communities," according to a statement from the embassy. The presumed iPhone 8 is said to be shaping up for its rock star launching as Apple celebrates its 10th iPhone Anniversary in 2017. Latest leaks and rumors about iPhone 8 describe how Apple has done its works of magic on the anniversary phone. Check out the latest leak specs and features here. Redesigned Home Button Removing the physical home button is believed to be one of the biggest changes that can be seen in the presumed iPhone8. Though this technology is already available in the newly launched iPhone 7, an enhanced virtual home button is expected for the anniversary phone. The Touch ID sensor is believed to be integrated on the virtual home button. Functionalities Embedded on the Display Apple has reportedly received a patent for embedding light sensors in the display. This technology aims to be applied not only to the light sensors but also the camera and earpiece to be embedded directly on the display without affecting the touch screen functionality, according to BGR. A Touch ID sensor is also expected to be embedded directly to the display, which allows the user to gain access to the phone through the use of fingerprint sensors that will automatically verify the log-in details of a certain user. Bezel-Free Display Bezels are nowhere to be seen in the next-generation handset of Apple. Since the home button, camera, ear-piece and light sensor are targetted to be embedded on the display, iPhone 8 is perceived to be a bezel-free phone. For this reason, the screen display of the iPhone can be extended down past the Home Button. Furthermore, iPhone 8 is rumored to feature a flexible OLED display that will replace the traditional backlighting used in LCDs. According to Mac Rumors, Apple is currently negotiating with Samsung for the production of OLED displays and is perceived to be investing in AU Optronics, an AMOLED suppier. By Ashish Pandey: A teenage girl committed suicide in her hostel room in Hyberabad's Sri Chaitanya College as she didn't want to study being away from home. Sathvika, 16, was an intermediate first year student at the college. She committed suicide in her hostel room yesterday, after setting herself on fire, when other students were in college attending classes. While the police found no suicide note but the investigation revealed that Sathvika had called her mother minutes before taking the extreme step, telling her that she didn't want to stay in hostel. advertisement SET HERSELF ON FIRE Police Inspector K Ramesh said, "At around 2:30pm, the students who came for lunch to the hostel noticed smoke coming out from Sathvika's room. She had set herself on fire. When we reached, we just found her charred body. We shifted her to Gandhi Medical College hospital. We have taken samples from the body and the ash, to investigate it further." Sathvika had joined Sri Chaitany College earlier this year after passing out from Nizamabad's Vishakha Public School. Sucide of the young girl has shattered her parents who reached Hyderabad after hearing the news. A case of suspicious death has been registered by Miyapuri Police. The postmortem report of the deceased is awaited. --- ENDS --- UW Awards Record 2,860 Degrees in 2015-16 Destiny Rudolph, of Cheyenne, receives a hug from a faculty member during the UW College of Education commencement ceremony in May. A record 2,860 degrees were awarded by the university during the 2015-16 academic year. (UW Photo) The University of Wyoming granted a record 2,860 degrees in the past academic year, including an all-time high of 2,159 bachelors degrees. The increases reflect the universitys efforts to improve student retention and completion. We are delighted that more and more students are leaving the University of Wyoming with degrees that lead to high-paying jobs, employment security and rich, fulfilling lives, UW President Laurie Nichols says. As we increase our efforts to enroll more students and help them succeed, we expect the number of graduates to continue rising. The 2,860 degrees granted in the 2015-16 academic year broke the record of 2,810 set in 2011-12 and was up from 2,767 in the 2014-15 academic year. Likewise, the 2,159 bachelors degrees in the past year broke the record of 2,062 in 2011-12 and increased from 2,022 in 2014-15. UW also granted 93 doctoral degrees in 2015-16, second only to 103 in 2013-14. UWs fall enrollment record was set in fall semester 2012, when 13,929 students were enrolled. Since then, UWs freshman retention rate has increased from 73.9 percent to 76.4 percent, and its five-year graduation rate has gone from 60.6 percent to 62.2 percent. Significant efforts have been made to help students succeed at UW, including enhanced tutoring and early interventions for struggling students, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs Anne Alexander says. These investments are paying off for our students, and we intend to do even more to lift our retention and completion rates. Those efforts include more program-level articulation agreements with community colleges, assuring that transfer students will have taken the correct courses to graduate on time at UW; enhanced advising; a newly streamlined and simplified general studies program; and four-year curriculum maps for every major. According to the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, UWs overall graduation rate of 54 percent exceeds the national average of 42 percent, and its freshman retention rate of 76.4 percent tops the national average of 68 percent. In addition, the average annual salary for new UW graduates -- $46,100 -- is significantly above the national average of $33,400 for college graduates. And 55 percent of those receiving UW bachelors degrees graduate with no student loan debt, 23 percent higher than the national average. UW Awards Record 2,860 Degrees in 2015-16 Secia Porreco, of Arvada, Colo., celebrates receiving her degree from the University of Wyoming College of Health Sciences during the colleges commencement ceremony in May. A record 2,860 degrees were awarded by the university during the 2015-16 academic year. (UW Photo) The University of Wyoming granted a record 2,860 degrees in the past academic year, including 246 to students from Colorado. The increases reflect the universitys efforts to improve student retention and completion. We are delighted that more and more students are leaving the University of Wyoming with degrees that lead to high-paying jobs, employment security and rich, fulfilling lives, UW President Laurie Nichols says. As we increase our efforts to enroll more students and help them succeed, we expect the number of graduates to continue rising. The 2,860 degrees granted in the 2015-16 academic year broke the record of 2,810 set in 2011-12 and was up from 2,767 in the 2014-15 academic year. Likewise, the 2,159 bachelors degrees in the past year broke the record of 2,062 in 2011-12 and increased from 2,022 in 2014-15. UW also granted 93 doctoral degrees in 2015-16, second only to 103 in 2013-14. UWs fall enrollment record was set in fall semester 2012, when 13,929 students were enrolled. Since then, UWs freshman retention rate has increased from 73.9 percent to 76.4 percent, and its five-year graduation rate has gone from 60.6 percent to 62.2 percent. Significant efforts have been made to help students succeed at UW, including enhanced tutoring and early interventions for struggling students, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs Anne Alexander says. These investments are paying off for our students, and we intend to do even more to lift our retention and completion rates. Those efforts include more program-level articulation agreements with community colleges, assuring that transfer students will have taken the correct courses to graduate on time at UW; enhanced advising; a newly streamlined and simplified general studies program; and four-year curriculum maps for every major. According to the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, UWs overall graduation rate of 54 percent exceeds the national average of 42 percent, and its freshman retention rate of 76.4 percent tops the national average of 68 percent. In addition, the average annual salary for new UW graduates -- $46,100 -- is significantly above the national average of $33,400 for college graduates. And 55 percent of those receiving UW bachelors degrees graduate with no student loan debt, 23 percent higher than the national average. Akula class 2 is believed to be the quickest submarine built by Russia. Armed with cruise missiles and torpedoes, Akula class 2 can strike enemy ships, submarines and also targets on the land. By India Today Web Desk: India is set to sign a $2 billion deal with Russia to acquire a second Akula 2 nuclear-powered attack submarine. According to sources, the deal, which is still unannounced, was signed along with a slew of other defence deals worth more than $5 billion during the recently concluded BRICS Summit in Goa. ALSO READ: All you need to know about INS Arihant, India's first indigenous nuclear submarine advertisement India already operates 1 Akula-class nuclear submarine, INS Chakra, which was leased in 2012 for 10 years. The second nuclear submarine will also be leased for 10 years. Akula 2 is believed to be the quickest submarine built by Russia. Armed with cruise missiles and torpedoes, Akula 2 can strike enemy ships, submarines and also targets on the land. The nuclear submarine is expected to track Chinese nuclear powered attack submarines which are increasingly frequent visitors to the Indian Ocean. ALSO READ: Modi, Putin to sign $1 billion Kamov chopper deal during Goa BRICS summit --- ENDS --- VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- Ever since I was a young child I have been fascinated with airplanes and flight. While in kindergarten, I lived in Enid just north of Vance Air Force Base where for hours I would stand in my front yard and watch the T-37s and T-38s fly overhead. I loved the flying so much I even told my mother, "I'm going to fly those airplanes someday." For me it was about the airplanes. However that changed when I met Captain Mickelson, Gen. James Robinson Risner and Colonel Silva. Captain Mickelson was my kindergarten teacher's husband and a T-38 instructor pilot. He was serving in the aftermath of the Vietnam War when opinions of the military were at an all-time low. Yet when I met him he was professional and proud. His appearance and demeanor were perfectly within regulations and he was the personification of "excellence in all we do" as an Air Force officer and pilot. Colonel Silva was my ROTC commander and a Vietnam-era F-4 pilot. Colonel Silva carried a strong sense of duty. Despite his college friends moving to Canada to evade the Vietnam War draft, Colonel Silva chose to put "service before self" so that his friends could have the right to choose not to. General Risner spoke at my church in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a year after his release from the Hanoi Hilton, where American prisoners of war were held by North Vietnam. He shared stories of the horrible torture he endured while in captivity yet shared that his faith in God and faith in his fellow Airmen helped him persevere. General Risner displayed great courage and "integrity first" even when his life was in jeopardy so that his men might have hope for rescue and survival. I don't pretend to compare my service with that of patriots like Mickelson, Risner or Silva. However I do understand that any and all service means a great deal to the American citizens we serve. When I hear "thank you for your service from appreciative civilians, I realize that what they are truly saying is Thank you for your integrity to preserve the rights and freedoms of our great country. Thank you for your selfless service to protect her citizens and the ones we love. Thank you for your excellence in doing your job well so you can safely return home to the ones who appreciate you. So why do I serve? I decided to serve because I wanted to honor Captain Mickelson, Colonel Silva, General Risner and Airmen like them. Airmen who have served with integrity, selflessness and excellence before these were Air Force Core Values. I have served to defend what is important to our American ideals and the legacy of liberty. I have served because I love America. I continue to serve because I want to positively shape and mentor the future leaders of our Air Force and of our great nation. Why do you serve? Air Force Core Values Integrity first Service before self Excellence in all we do Japanese Chef Masaharu Morimoto will welcome his first Las Vegas restaurant Friday, October 21 with a celebration. The Iron Chef America star will host Kagami Biraki, a traditional Japanese sake ceremony where the lid of a new sake barrel is broken open (Photo credit: MGM Resorts, International). Photo credit: MGM Resorts, International. The rice wine is then served to guests to bless the venue with harmony and good fortune. Following the cask breaking, Chef Morimoto and MGM Grand executives will cut a ribbon to officially open the resorts newest dining destination. St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital will host its third annual St. Jude Against All Odds celebrity poker tournament at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 5, inside The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada (Pictured: Daniel Negreanu Bryan Steffy / WireImage / www.BryanSteffyPhoto.com). The evening will include a red carpet welcome, cocktail reception, dinner, both silent and live auctions, as well as competitive play of Texas Holdem. The event raises awareness and funding for St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital, which is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. A committee of amateur and professional poker players organized this tournament led by local business leader Tanya Amid and six-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner Daniel Negreanu. Event sponsors include ChoiceCenter, NFM Lending, Shift4 Corporation, Poker Central and the Anthony Robbins Foundation. Several celebrities and professional athletes are planning to show their support for the mission of St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital by walking the red carpet and participating in the tournament alongside professional poker players. Among them will be Dan Cox, Shannon Elizabeth, Bryan Greenberg, Ryan Gonzalez, Dule Hill, Micah Johnson, Geoff Stults, Kevin Zegers and the list keeps growing. St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital is unlike any other hospital, said event co-chair Daniel Negreanu, six-time WSOP Champion. Every one of us has been affected by cancer in some manner and the poker community is honored to be able to provide support to a great organization like St. Jude. Tournament buy-in is priced at $600 per person and tickets to the exclusive dinner are priced at $200 per person. Poker players will have the chance to win the Grand Prize: a seat in the 2017 WSOP Main Event. The second place finisher will receive a getaway to Fijis Namale Resort & Spa. We are thrilled for the continued support of Daniel and the entire poker community who make this unique and interactive fundraiser possible year-after-year, said Bret Roy of ALSAC/St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital. Thanks to fundraising and awareness events like this one, families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food because all a family should worry about is helping their child live. Last night, Ron Wood, world-famous musician and member of The Rolling Stones, enjoyed an unforgettable evening on The Las Vegas Strip at one of the most celebrated shows in town, Michael Jackson ONE by Cirque du Soleil (Photo credit: Cirque du Soleil). Video: The Rolling Stones Ron Wood at Michael Jackson ONE httpvh://youtu.be/rZthXEjz0ME The legendary guitarist was joined by his friends and family for the 7 p.m. show at Mandalay Bay, where he was spotted in the audience jamming out to some of Jacksons greatest hits. Following the performance, he enjoyed a private meet-and-greet with the cast and happily took photos backstage, noting some of his favorite moments including Billie Jean and Man in the Mirror. By PTI: Swaraj said members of BIMSTEC- Bhutan, Bangladesh, Swaraj said members of BIMSTEC- Bhutan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand ? represented the "polar opposite" of a terrorism "promoting polity". "They are focused on improving the quality of life of their people, on skills and employment, on education and health, and on the quality of governance and the deepening of democracy. advertisement "These are nations who are actively promoting connectivity, cooperation and contacts amongst themselves. Their interface with the BRICS has a message in itself. This is that a world changing in a positive direction as reflected by the BRICS has its regional expression in a community like BIMSTEC that is able to visualize a prosperous collective future," Swaraj said On Indias chairmanship of BRICS, Swaraj said "we took the BRICS outside the conference room and endeavoured to instill it in popular thinking." Talking about major initiatives by BRICS, she said the Summit represented a further advancement in terms of the breadth and focus of its discussions, adding the grouping has transformed over the years. "Initially, its deliberations concentrated more on economic and financial issues. But over the years, it has broadened to cover larger global issues, even as it has promoted the creation of BRICS institutions and mechanisms. "Key initiatives like a BRICS Rating Agency that can complement the New Development Bank, or the Railways Research Network and an Agriculture Research Platform that will allow us to leverage our specific strengths for mutual benefit are tangible goals that we believe can take the group forward," she said. Swaraj said a total of 115 events were organised in the nine months of Indias chairmanship of the bloc. PTI MPB DV --- ENDS --- Vietnams digital economy has seen significant growth over the last decade and is expected to be valued at US$57 billion by 2025. The countrys digital... Indian rescue workers trying to help victims of a massive fire at the SUM hospital building in Bhubaneswar, the capital of coastal Odisha state. (AFP Photo) The four from Bhubaneswar city hospital in eastern Odisha state are facing initial charges of "homicide not amounting to murder" and negligence after a fire broke out in the intensive care unit on Monday. "All the four staffers were taken into custody late on Tuesday. They include medical superintendent, an engineer and two others," Bhubaneswar police commissioner Yogesh Khurania told AFP. Khurania said they arrested the staff after receiving a compliant from the Odisha state government, adding more arrests are likely to follow. Three of the four detained staff had been suspended by the hospital for negligence earlier Tuesday. The fire broke out in the dialysis ward of the hospital before quickly spreading to other wards, killing 19 seriously ill patients who were unable to flee the blaze. Another patient died in hospital on Tuesday, police said. About 40 critically ill patients were in the ICU of the private SUM hospital in state capital Bhubaneswar when the fire broke out. In all more than 100 were rescued by firefighters who smashed windows to get them out of the burning building. "Some patients were evacuated by breaking a window on the first floor and then they were lowered to the ground floor. And some of them were evacuated through the adjoining operation theatre which was empty at that time," said Odisha's health secretary Arti Ahuja. "There are about 106 people who are (now) in different private and government hospitals," she told the NDTV news channel. In a separate incident, two people died on Tuesday morning when a high-rise luxury apartment block in the western city of Mumbai caught fire. The cause of the blaze was not immediately clear. Such disasters are relatively common in India, partly because of poor safety standards. In 2011 more than 90 patients were killed in the eastern city of Kolkata when a fire raged through a private hospital, trapping many people inside the building. Most died from inhaling toxic gases. Ahuja said the hospital in Odisha had been sealed off and a detailed inquiry would be carried out to establish the cause of the disaster. Local television stations showed images of firefighters wearing masks smashing glass panes to enter the building. Police inspector Sharat Kumar Sahu said more than 100 firefighters had battled the blaze for around five hours until it was brought under control. Most of the critical patients were on ventilators and died in the blaze, he said. The state's chief minister Naveen Patnaik said he had visited the evacuated patients in hospital and ordered an inquiry into what he called a "tragic incident". A government relief fund would bear the cost of their treatment, he said on Twitter. Lucia Real-Martin After the global economic crisis, emerging countries like Vietnam are reconsidering and reinforcing their financial apparatus. To create a healthy competitive environment, what Vietnam needs to do is to enhance auditing standards to meet the international demands. VIR talks with Lucia Real-Martin, director of Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) emerging markets-Asia about this matter. What do you think is the role of strengthening the current ability of auditing staff to create an attractive business environment in Vietnam? We believe that audit has a critical role in creating an attractive business environment in Vietnam. With business being globalised, Vietnamese businesses are now not just competing with others in the ASEAN region, but from around the world. which leads to greater interest and expectations. That increased interest will mean businesses will be subject to greater scrutiny. International businesses and potential investors will rely on independent audits of Vietnamese organisations to give them confidence that the organisations they seek to do business with are well run and have an excellent chance of sustaining their success in the future. This is why the audit industry has a crucial role to play in the future success of Vietnam. A strong and stable auditing and accounting environment with qualified accounting professionals will raise the level of professionalism within the corporate and public sectors. This will further strengthen the corporate governance agenda within Vietnam which will benefit both domestic and international investors. Which favourable conditions can ACCA bring to Vietnam to reach this target? We have considerable experience of working in the audit industry around the world, and we are delighted to be able to work closely with the State Audit of Vietnam, the Ministry of Finance as well as the Vietnamese accounting professional bodies to ensure that audit standards and quality are maintained. Through our good working relationship, we share the same objective of developing and improving the quality of accountants and auditors as well as their contribution for the profession. Our globally recognised qualification, which is being achieved by Vietnamese finance professionals, is a clear indication to international organisations that they can expect the highest levels of skill and diligence from Vietnams auditors and accountants. ACCA has been actively promoting the value of audit in Vietnam as well as globally. In recent publications, we explore its value and future, look at what private sector auditors can learn from the public sector, and report on a series of audit roundtables from around the world. What do you think about the harmonisation of auditing standards in the ASEAN and Vietnam as the country is integrating into the world economies, which requires the close conformation of international common practices and standards? We believe that wider economy benefits from global standards in accounting and auditing. Global standards such as the International Financial Reporting Standards and the International Standards on Auditing are designed to deliver comparability and transparency at the global level, which help investors and businesses make more informed decisions. Benefits flow from eliminating the differences between national standards regimes and converging around a common international standard. How will the application of international standards help Vietnam become more attractive to foreign investors? The adoption of international standards by Vietnamese businesses will enable investors, who are equally comfortable investing in a range of global equities as in national blue-chips to be able to compare Vietnamese businesses on a like for like basis with businesses in other countries. The greater transparency that standards bring means that investors will feel their money is at less risk than using accounts drawn up to standards with which they are not immediately familiar. Using international standards, therefore, is likely to make Vietnam an even more attractive prospect for international inward investment. Can you comment about Vietnams auditing and accounting industry? We believe Vietnams auditing standards are of good quality, and we are working closely with our local partners in the government, professional accountancy bodies, universities and employers to support the development of high quality standards. Figures from local accounting and auditing professional bodies show that there is a need for more than 9,000 trained and qualified auditors by 2020 and ACCA is committed to helping young Vietnamese by equipping them with the skills they need to become qualified accountants and auditors. Customers buy fish in Thua Thien Hue Province. The MoIT would support the province to sell seafood in storage. - Photo cand.com.vn The ministry said it would take these steps, after inspecting the quality, as well as hygiene and safety for 490 tonnes of sea fish caught offshore of Thua Thien Hue and stored at four enterprises in the province. Earlier, the enterprises had proposed that the state offices provide support for them in monitoring the seafood inventory, including providing connections between seafood suppliers to domestic and foreign markets, and financial assistance for the province in trade promotion activities related to storage and consumption of seafood. To ensure the safety of the inventory, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has required the provincial Health Department to soon announce the results of the quality, hygiene and safety of seafood inventories. Then, the ministry would connect with distributors, dealers and retailers nationwide to sell safe seafood stored in Thua Thien Hue. For seafood not meeting safe standards, the ministry would require the province to destroy the fish and offer compensation according to existing regulations. In the meantime, the ministry has continued communications regarding demand and supply, to create favourable conditions for the consumption of quality seafood in the central provinces. Co le pagoda Nestled about 100 km to the south of Hanoi, Nam Dinh is easily accessible by train, car, and motorbike thanks to very good roads from Hanoi. The province has nearly 4,000 historical and cultural relics including Phu Day temple, and Co Le, Keo, and Luong pagodas and Ngoi bridge and the Nam Dinh flag pole which carries rich cultural value. Many local relics are closely associated with famous Vietnamese figures including Nguyen Hien, Luong The Vinh, poets Tu Xuong and Nguyen Binh and former Party leader Truong Chinh. There are more than 70 craft villages involved in woodcarving, lacquer, rattan weaving, and ornamental tree plantations. More than 100 traditional festivals take place in the province every year attracting thousands of visitors. The Phu Day temple, Tran temple, Vieng market, and the seal-opening festivals are among the most popular. Do Vu Loi of the National Architecture Institute said Its cultural heritage and religious establishments are advantages for Nam Dinh in developing its tourism. Cultural relics and their significant values date back to the Ly, Tran, and Le dynasties. Many studies on the value of this heritage has been carried out. Tapping this heritage could bring major cultural and social benefits to the province. Historical and cultural relics from the Tran dynasty have enabled Nam Dinh to develop a form of spiritual tourism. Festival and craft villages have also been promoted for tourists. Nguyen Cong Khuong, Head of the Tourism Section of the provinces Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism said Nam Dinh is the homeland of the Tran dynasty. 750 years ago, the Dynasty was established and flourished here. Thus, the province has rich cultural resources. There are many traditional festivals that are closely associated with the local relics, many of them are spring and village festivals. The wet rice culture is well reflected in local festivals and the arts such as water puppetry art and the duck catching festival. Craft villages are also one of our tourist attractions. Nam Dinh province has a coastline of 72 km along which many marine tourist sites were set up including Thinh Long tourist site in Hai Hau district and Quat Lam in Giao Thuy district. In particular, the Xuan Thuy National Park with an ecosystem of mangrove forests is a destination for migrant birds. It is the first Ramsar site in Vietnam and Southeast Asia and also a favorite destination for visitors. Nguyen Phuc Hoi, Vice Director of Xuan Thuy National Park said Xuan Thuy National Park is a submerged land located on the estuary. Its typical ecosystem is the submerged ecological system representing northern Vietnams sea and includes mangrove forests, lagoons, and sand banks. The park still retains the ecological system of the Red River mouth region. Local rural villages with their customs and traditions typical of the Red River Delta civilization are ideal for tours. Local specialties such as beef noodle, the wet rice paper spring rolls of Khe village, and Siu Chau peanut candies are among many attractions of Nam Dinh province. By PTI: From Achinta Borah Algiers, Oct 19 (PTI) India is keen to join hands with Algeria to explore the possibilities of setting up a multi-billion dollar fertiliser project, bearing in mind the phosphatic reserve available in this North African country which is estimated to be more than 5 billion tonnes. A preliminary meeting on the issue was held here today between Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers Mansukh L Mandaviya and Algerian Minister of Industry and Mining Abdessalem Bouchouareb. advertisement The price of fertiliser in India is expected to come down along with the subsidy burden if the talks between the two countries lead to setting up of a joint venture mega fertiliser company here. Mandaviya is accompanying Vice President Hamid Ansari, who is on a two-day visit to Algeria as part of his two-nation trip. Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs Sujata Mehta said India was looking forward to explore cooperation with Algeria in new areas like in fertiliser, pharma, space, IT etc. Algeria was equally interested in Indian participation in development of phosphate mines and production of fertilisers through joint venture, she said. The estimated phosphate reserve in Algeria is estimated to be more than 5 billion tonnes and possible Indian investment in the sector is expected to be USD 5 to 7 billion. Indian Ambassador to Algeria Satbir Singh said if the preliminary talks result in finalisation of some agreement in future, there has to be a consortium of Indian companies from both government and private sectors which would contribute generation of funds, technology and all necessary requirements for setting up of a mega project in Algeria. "Around 90 to 95 per cent phosphate being used by Indian fertiliser companies is imported and the production cost is also very high. If India can join hands with Algeria by providing funds and technology to set up a fertiliser company by using Algerian phosphate and gas, and the fertiliser is taken to India, the cost would be quite low...the subsidy burden of government for fertiliser, which is Rs 86,000 crore to Rs 90,000 crore per annum, will come down," Singh said. Indian fertiliser industry is producing about 12.28 million tonnes of nitrogen and 4.37 million tonnes of phosphatic nutrient production. India ranks second in the production of nitrogenous fertilisers and third in phosphatic fertilisers. According to a report of Department of Fertilisers, by the year 2016-17, fertiliser demand in the country is projected to increase to about 336.77 lakh tonnes of urea, 124.13 lakh tonnes of DAP, 59.48 lakh tonnes of SSP and 47.93 lakh tonnes of MOP. advertisement Bilateral trade between India and Algeria stood at USD 1.5 billion per annum, majority of which are related to importing oil and oil products to India. India imports automobile, auto components, buffalo meat, garments among other things from the North African country. PTI ACB MKJ --- ENDS --- Photo: VGP/Quang Hieu He welcomed the Japanese business delegation to seek further cooperation and investment in Viet Nam. The PM hailed the development in Viet Nam-Japan relations in all areas, especially after the two elevated their relations to the Extensive Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia. He praised the cooperation between the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and the JCCI. Japan is currently the largest Official Development Assistance (ODA) provider for Viet Nam and ranks second among largest investors in Viet Nam with US$42 billion in 3,000 projects. He proposed the JCCI cooperate with the Vietnamese functional agencies to successfully launch the action plan to accelerate prioritized industrial areas in the Viet Nam Industrialization Strategy as well as effectively realize the sixth phase of Viet Nam-Japan Joint Initiative and its next phases. The Government chief also suggested the JCCI support the Japanese small and medium-sized enterprises to invest in Viet Nam in fields of electronics, agricultural machines, agricultural and aquatic product processing, shipbuilding, environment, energy and automobile production. The two sides need to take full advantages of opportunities brought from the achievements in the political relations, commercial polices and new free trade agreements, he asserted. Mr. Yoichi Kobayashicho said that at his meeting with the MPI, the Committee made proposals for improving the investment environment in Viet Nam and requested the Vietnamese functional agencies to tackle difficulties for Japanese enterprises operating in Viet Nam. He expected that in the future, more Japanese businesses will invest in Viet Nam, mentioning to the number of more than 1,600 Japanese enterprises launching their operation in Viet Nam. A red warning poster reading "Dioxin-contominated area. Livestock and poultry raising and fishing are probihited" near Danang airport, a former US airbase in Vietnam. (Photo: Hoang Dinh Nam/AFP) The US sprayed the defoliant over large swathes of southern jungle during the Vietnam War to flush out Viet Cong guerrillas, and Vietnamese victims' groups have long blamed the toxic residue for deformities and disease. Though Washington has disputed the link between dioxin exposure and bad health, the US government has committed to help clean up toxic land. The countries, whose relations have warmed in recent years, on Tuesday began treating 45,000 cubic metres of soil contaminated with dioxin at Danang Airport, a task expected to be finished by mid-2017. "I am encouraged by how this project continues to be a symbol of our honesty about the past, dealing with what remains and turning an issue of contention into one of collaboration," US ambassador Ted Osius said at the scene, according to a statement. The first phase of the clean-up, which also treated 45,000 cubic metres, was completed in May. "The long-term impact of the project will be the elimination of potential health risks associated with dioxin exposure from the site," the US embassy statement said. Osius and Vietnam's Vice Minister of National Defence Nguyen Chi Vinh switched on a thermal treatment system on Tuesday at a ceremony in Danang, where they were photographed before a giant mound of covered earth. The thermal technology heats the contaminated soil to temperatures high enough to break down dioxin into harmless compounds. Danang Airbase was a key site in the defoliant programme, and much of the 80 million litres (21 million gallons) of Agent Orange used during "Operation Ranch Hand" was mixed, stored and loaded onto planes there. The airbase is considered a "dioxin hotspot", where concentrations of toxic contaminants from Agent Orange are well above the globally-accepted maximum standard. Victims groups say rates of cancer, birth deformities and other dioxin-related diseases are higher than the national average around the site. The government says up to three million Vietnamese were exposed to Agent Orange, and at least 150,000 children were born with birth defects as a result. About ten Japanese companies are rumoured to be pouring $2 billion into the Vietnamese real estate market. According to Than Thanh Vu, chairman of Sao Khue Investment and Trade Promotion Corporation, the company has just taken a delegation of Vietnamese real estate companies to Japan to find cooperation opportunities. Many Japanese companies showed interest in luxury hotels, trade centres, office towers, and high-end apartments in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. Most notably, Sumitomo plans to erect a $100-million office tower and Toshin to develop a so far unnamed, $200-million project. According to Vu, many Japanese companies are choosing to tap into the real estate market of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi through the means of M&A. Their reasons include the drying up empty land supply and the complicated procedures making it difficult to make direct investments. He added that many Japanese investors have requested his company to advise them on buying luxury apartments and hotel projects in Vietnam. Le Hoang Chau, president of the Ho Chi Minh City Real Estate Association, said that even though the Japanese companies have yet to sign an agreement, the possibility is a good sign. The resources and management capacity of domestic real estate companies are now higher than before and now is a good time for them to call for foreign capital, he said. He also said that Vietnam and Japan have many similarities in culture and geography, and the two countries have become comprehensive strategic partners, making it an opportune time for Vietnamese companies and Japanese investors to rely on each other. Vietnamese companies need capital for big projects, because, according to current regulations, projects with higher-than-20 hectares must keep the owners equity at a minimum of 15 per cent and find professional management partners. Meanwhile, Japanese investors show a growing thirst to make foreign real estate investments. In the initial phase, e-visa will be issued on a trial basis for tourists from major source markets of Vietnams tourism sector, a source from the VNAT told the Daily. However, the Government has not chosen what markets for the trial run, the source said. International arrivals in Vietnam last year totaled over 7.94 million, with most of them coming from China, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Malaysia, the U.S., Russia, Singapore, Thailand and Australia, shows data of VNAT. Among those major markets, Vietnam has offered visa exemptions for tourists from South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. VNAT said it will organize two road shows to promote Vietnams tourism in Kaohsiung and Taichung cities in Taiwan between October 18 and 20, as well as attend a bilateral meeting on tourism between Vietnam and Taiwan to discuss measures for boosting tourism development cooperation between the two destinations. File photo by ABACA PRESS Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., speaking at the Democratic National Convention at in Philadelphia in July, lambasted Donald Trumps campaign for president during a rally for Hillary Clinton in Reno, Nev., on Tuesday. Photo by LOS ANGELES TIMES A study in the American Journal of Public Health found that students whose oral health was rated good, fair or poor were about three times more likely to miss school because of dental pain compared with kids with very good or excellent oral health. By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 19 (PTI) As Myanmar embarks on a journey of democracy and development, India today assured it of unstinted support as the two traditionally close neighbours agreed to enhance ties in a range of areas including security and trade during talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Myanmars top leader Aung Sung Suu Kyi. The two sides signed three agreements to boost cooperation in power, banking and insurance sectors besides deciding to step up ties in areas of oil and gas, agriculture, renewable energy and health care. advertisement It is Suu Kyis first visit to India after her National League for Democracy wrested power from the military junta in a landmark election earlier this year. Suu Kyi, who could not become Myanmars President due to a constitutional provision but has full control over the government, holds the position of State Councillor and Foreign Minister. Welcoming Suu Kyi, the Prime Minister described India as her second home and assured that "India and its friendship will stand with you in full support and solidarity." "You are no stranger to the people of India. The sights, the sounds and vibrancy of Delhi are familiar to you. Welcome back, Excellency, to your second home! "Excellency, you are an iconic leader," he said in a media statement. Suu Kyi had done her graduation from Delhi University. In her comments, the Myanmerese leader invoked Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru and said Myanmar drew huge inspiration from the two Indian leaders in its struggle for democracy. The Prime Minister said as close and friendly neighbours, the security interests of India and Myanmar are closely aligned. The two countries agreed that close coordination to ensure security in the areas along border, and sensitivity to each others strategic interests, will help both neighbours, he said. Myanmar, considered one of Indias strategic neighbours, shares a 1,640-km-long border with a number of northeastern states including militancy-hit Nagaland and Manipur. Giving details of the talks, Modi said the two countries agreed to enhance engagement in several areas including agriculture, power, renewable energy and power sector. "Let me assure you, Excellency, that as you lead Myanmar to become a modern, secure, economically prosperous and better connected nation, India and its friendship will stand with you in full support and solidarity," Modi said. Effusive in his praise, Modi said, "Your clear vision, mature leadership, struggle and eventual success in establishing democracy in Myanmar has inspired people across the world. "It is indeed an honour for us to receive you in India. We are also grateful for your participation at the BIMSTEC and the BRICS-BIMSTEC outreach Summit in Goa a couple of days ago." MORE PTI MPB RT --- ENDS --- advertisement remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. The U.S. military says one of its service members and an American civilian were killed Wednesday in a shooting near a coalition base in the Afghan capital, Kabul. Another service member and two U.S. civilians sustained injuries and were in stable condition, according to an official announcement. The shooter, wearing an Afghan army uniform, was instantly shot and killed in retaliatory fire by international forces. The victims were conducting duties as part of the larger NATO mission to train, advise, and assist the Afghan security services, said the U.S. military, adding an investigation is being conducted to determine the circumstances of the event. "Any time we lose a member of our team, it is deeply painful" said General John Nicholson, commander of U.S. forces and the Resolute Support mission. "Our sympathies go out to the families, loved ones, and the units of those involved in this incident, he said, vowing such incidents will not deter U.S. and coalition forces mission to help Afghan partners create a better Afghanistan. Other insider attacks Earlier, Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri told VOA the foreign military personnel were visiting an Afghan National Army base in Kabul when they came under attack. In May, gunmen wearing Afghan soldier uniforms shot dead two Romanian military officers during a training session in the southern city of Kandahar. Insider attacks involving Afghan and foreign soldiers have become rare in recent years because of joint preventive measures and protocols put in place. However, such attacks within Afghan security forces are common. Late last month 12 Afghan soldiers were killed by two colleagues at a security outpost near the troubled northern city of Kunduz. The shooters later facilitated the advancing Taliban to take control of the facility. The insurgent group often claims shooters are its members who have infiltrated Afghan army and police forces. The Anti-Defamation League in the U.S. said Wednesday that thousands of anti-Semitic hate messages targeted Jewish journalists in the last year after many of them wrote articles that were perceived as even mildly critical of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. The group, which monitors ethnic slurs and bigotry against Jews, said that 19,253 anti-Semitic Twitter comments were sent to 800 reporters between August 2015 and July. It covered the period when Trump took command of the Republican presidential nominating contest while besting 16 other candidates to become the party's standard bearer in next month's election against Democrat Hillary Clinton. A Trump campaign spokeswoman, Hope Hicks said in a statement to the New York Times in response to the report that We have no knowledge of this activity and strongly condemn any commentary that is anti-Semitic. The Anti-Defamation League said the anti-Semitic comments came from 1,600 Twitter accounts and that the senders were "disproportionately likely to identify as Donald Trump supporters, conservatives, or part of the alt-right, a loosely connected group of extremists, some of whom are white supremacists." The group said it was not implying that the Trump campaign supported or endorsed the anti-Semitic tweets, "only that certain self-styled supporters sent these ugly messages." The ADL said that 10 journalists, all Jews, bore the brunt of the anti-Semitic attacks, receiving 83 percent of the comments on their Twitter accounts. The list of targeted journalists included conservative columnist Ben Shapiro, Tablet's Yair Rosenberg, Atlantic magazine's Jeffrey Goldberg, The New York Times' Jonathan Weisman and CNN's Jake Tapper. Some non-Jewish journalists were also targeted because they were perceived to be Jewish, the group said. The ADL said the comments were likely "connected to the anti-Semitic tropes related to Jews controlling the media, and the media controlling the government." Jonathan Greenblatt, ADL's chief executive, said, "The spike in hate we've seen online this election cycle is extremely troubling and unlike anything we have seen in modern politics. A half century ago, the [Ku Klux Klan] burned crosses. Today, extremists are burning up Twitter." Police in Europe arrested a total of 314 people from 52 different countries and broke up several international human trafficking rings this week during round-the-clock coordinated raids, Europol announced Wednesday. The massive operation was coordinated from the Europol headquarters in The Hague, where Europol officers and experts from each of the countries gathered to direct the action in real-time. Simultaneously, 16 Europol specialists were deployed on the spot in several countries across the world, Europol said in a statement. From there, they worked hand-in-hand with investigators to provide forensic support, analytical reports and live crosschecks against Europols databases. Europol said the operation disrupted the most dangerous criminal networks currently active, and focused on cases related to illegal immigration, human trafficking, drug trafficking and cybercrime. The trafficking networks based in Nigeria, Asia and Eastern Europe are the most active in Europe, officials said. In one instance, police performing checks on a brothel in Austria also found a cannabis plantation. In another case, police uncovered a fake travel agency in Greece that was facilitating illegal immigration and human trafficking, according to the statement. In total, police identified more than 500 human trafficking victims, intercepted 745 migrants and seized more than two tons of cocaine and 180,000 euros. Ecuador's decision to temporarily cut Julian Assange's internet access is a sign that the WikiLeaks founder could be overstaying his welcome at the country's London embassy or so some in Britain hope. British officials have long expressed frustration at Ecuador's decision four years ago to let Assange take refuge in the embassy to escape arrest on sexual assault charges he faces in Sweden. "I do hope that this is the precursor to them coming to their senses and finally forcing this man to face justice in the way that he should," said Davis Lewin, a political analyst at London's Henry Jackson Society think tank. The Quito government confirmed it cut Assange's internet access Tuesday to prevent him from meddling in the U.S. election, after WikiLeaks published documents and messages hacked from the presidential campaign of former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Matter of principle "The government of Ecuador respects the principle of nonintervention in the affairs of other countries, does not interfere in current elections, nor does it support any candidate in particular," said a statement by the Ecuadoran Foreign Ministry. The emails that WikiLeaks disclosed suggest that Clinton's campaign worked to discredit a woman who accused her husband, former President Bill Clinton, of rape. WikiLeaks accused Clinton's successor at the State Department, John Kerry, of personally petitioning Ecuador to cut Assange's internet access. Officials in Washington have rejected the charge and strenuously denied that Kerry was involved in any way. How Ecuador reached its decision to sever Assange's internet connections is unclear, nor has there been any indication of how long the "temporary" change in his status will remain in effect. However, analysts say it is a sign that Ecuadoran officials do not regard their longtime guest as positively as they did in 2012, when he first arrived at their embassy in London's upscale Knightsbridge district. Honored guest At the time, Ecuador's left-leaning president, Rafael Correa, treated Assange as an honored guest. Correa joined with the late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez in lambasting the U.S. and Western policies and presenting Assange as a champion of democracy and free speech. Recently, however, Correa told an interviewer that if he were American, he would vote for Clinton. "I know her personally and I have great appreciation for her," he said. "For the good of the United States and the good of the world, I'd want Hillary to win." WikiLeaks' supporters, including some high-profile figures, are occasionally seen outside the embassy. Canadian-American actress and model Pamela Anderson expressed concern for Assange's health and was seen this week delivering a vegan meal to him. But analysts say Assange's fortunes appear to be changing as the political climate in Latin America and much of the rest of the world shifts. Leftists disillusioned Correa's term is about to end and Venezuela's economic failures have disillusioned many Latin American leftists. In Britain, critics dispute any notion that Assange's practice of leaking confidential or secret documents reflects a true commitment to democratic values. Some, like Davis Lewin, see a troubling double standard in Assange's crusade. "One has to ask: Why is it only anti-American? Why is it only disclosures that hurt Western institutions, Western political leaders?" Lewin asked. "One has to wonder why it is that Assange has never done anything to hurt Russian interests. And I think the answer is, people will have to make up their own minds about that." Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari told the 21 Chibok girls rescued this week that he will redouble efforts to find those still missing two years after their kidnapping. We shall redouble our efforts to bring the rest back home, Buhari said Wednesday. Aside from rescuing them, we are assuming the responsibility for their personal, educational and professional goals and ambitions in life. It is not late for the girls to go back to school and continue the pursuit of their studies. Nearly 300 girls were taken from their school in 2014 in Chibok in northeastern Borno state, where Boko Haram has waged a seven-year insurgency aimed at creating an Islamic state, killing thousands and displacing more than 2 million people. Last week, the rebels released 21 girls in the first negotiated release brokered by the International Red Cross and the Swiss government. Boko Haram controlled a large portion of Nigeria at the start of 2015, but Nigerias army, aided by troops from neighboring countries, has recaptured most of that territory. The workers have no formal training, machines and or safety gear as they fill gunpowder into small earthen pots, rocket tubes and paper shells. By Shripal Shaktawat, Sushant Pathak, Jamshed Adil Khan , Nitin Jain: Coated in explosive dust, children and their parents handle a potential disaster in homes and fields near Delhi to produce flurries of colourful stars that illuminate the Diwali skies. They have no formal training, machines and or safety gear as they fill gunpowder into small earthen pots, rocket tubes and paper shells. advertisement That's how a large, unorganized part of the country makes fireworks for Diwali, Dussehra and other celebrations, a chilling investigation by India Today has discovered. About a 45-minute drive from the national capital, every second house in Ghaziabad's Farrukh Nagar has apparently turned into a fireworks factory as demands rise around the festive season, India Today's special investigation team observed. Watch video here: Most of their workforce was found to be of children, adolescents and women. They were seen using explosives to make crackers in a catastrophic, amateurish manner. For them, the louder the product detonates, the better it is -- which means they had no know-how about the use of gunpowder and its limits for consumer fireworks. They applied guess rather than technical expertise. "We'll fill it up this way and press it down. Else, it will explode," explained a worker, his hands smeared black. "So will it explode if it's fully filled?" asked India Today's undercover reporter.. "Yes. And the impact will be harder," the worker replied. NORMS IN INDIA India has exhaustive norms to regulate display, storage and production of explosives. Chemical compositions of fireworks are well defined with permissible limits in the Explosives Rules of 2008. They also enlist extensive do's and don'ts and internationally - practised safety requirements. But enforcement is terribly weak. In a ruling last November, the Delhi High Court compared fireworks with firearms. "It is not as if firecrackers are capable of any less harm than an arm within the meaning of (the) Arms Act," it noted. "Owing to less stringent control on use, firecrackers are available far more easily than an arm and are rampantly used and which has over the years resulted in incidents of fire and injury caused by firecrackers, on the occasion of Diwali, having become a routine affair and multiplying annually." Also read: Boycott of Chinese goods boomerangs, traders won't have a blast this Diwali Chinese goods boycott are hitting Diwali sales of Delhi markets Indian social media's call to boycott our goods hasn't hurt us: Chinese media India Today found that the police looked the other way as they patrolled the Farrukh Nagar fireworks belt of Ghaziabad. Only 60 fireworks operators, according to official sources, are licensed in this neighbourhood. advertisement But as many as 300 units have come up in Farrukh Nagar, many of them heavily overloaded. Several fireworks makers seemed least bothered about licensing conditions. "What's the capacity here, kilo-wise?" India Today's investigative reporter asked a unit owner. "It's mentioned in the license for factories," replied Mustafa Ali, the owner. "So, how many kilos (of explosives) are you entitled to?" asked the reporter further. "The license is at home. It's listed there," answered Ali, casually. Whistling red, yellow and green sparkles that brighten Diwali, also possibly conceal another dark, terrifying reality -- child labour. Picture for representation. Photo: Reuters ILLEGAL MAKESHIFT FACTORIES In the world-famous Taj district of Agra, a three-hour drive from the national capital, India Today's SIT saw young boys and girls producing fireworks in illegal makeshift factories. They were seen fixing the fuse, loading flower pots and filling firewheels on barren, dusty grounds in shacks in Agra's Dhaurra village, away from residential neighbourhoods. Also read: Agra traders call for boycott of Chinese products on Diwali Govt readies to defuse Chinese firecrackers ahead of Diwali celebrations advertisement China to Chandni Chowk: Dangerous and illegal Chinese crackers flooding markets before Diwali Their operatives told India Today's undercover reporters they get customers through word of mouth. Most of their clients, said Dhaurra's fireworks makers, were retailers from the NCR region. Customers pick up the consignments themselves, said Sonu Singh, who ran an illegal factory in the village. "Do you keep getting orders?" asked the undercover reporter. "There was one recently from Faridabad for 10,000 (crackers). They came here to take the delivery," replied Singh. India Today's investigative reporters secretly filmed almost every corner of his largely roofless factory. YOUNG LIVES EXPOSED TO LIFE-THREATENING SITUATIONS Workers, children and adults alike, were in direct contact with hazardous ingredients and explosives. They had no gloves to cover hands or protective suits. A small fire could spell mutilation, death and disaster. In its report on the fireworks industry from its hub of Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu, the nation's child-rights watchdog NCPCR noted how young lives were exposed to life-threatening situations and disease. According to its findings, around 90 per cent of children employed in fireworks were found to have contracted asthma, eye disease and TB. advertisement Many of them were also found to be victims of psychological, physical and verbal abuse, the NCPCR observed. Picture for representation. Photo: Reuters In an illegal fireworks units of Dhaurra village, exploitation of child and other workforce also appeared acute. They were paid ten paise for making one cracker. A middleman, Praveen, revealed to India Today's investigative team that police were though paid enough to keep the business going. "Many policemen are greedy. They take their share (of bribes) and don't return," Praveen claimed. Around 25-30 people could have died in this village in the past from fireworks accident, he added. --- ENDS --- Images of drones are often associated with surveillance and military attacks. But a California-based technology startup is trying to change that image from one that causes fear to one that inspires hope. Zipline International is using drones to deliver vaccines, medicine and blood to some of the most hard-to-reach populations in Rwanda. The company designs and manufactures small airplanes called Zips. The drones weigh about 12 kilograms and deliver up to 1.5 kilograms of medical products to any location within a 75-kilometer radius, said Keller Rinaudo, chief executive of Zipline International. The startup began making deliveries early this month, reaching out to 21 hospitals and health centers in rural Rwanda. It plans to expand the work. "Over the next few months we are going to be handling about half of all deliveries of blood transfusions for the country," Rinaudo told VOA. The government of Rwanda delivers about 65,000 units of blood a year, and 50 percent of that is going toward preventative measures such as postpartum hemorrhaging, or excessive bleeding following childbirth. Rinaudo said health workers can request blood drops using text messages and the drones deliver them in about 30 minutes. After a request has been made, a Zip will be loaded with the medical product that the doctor ordered, dispatched and sent to a specified location. The drone descends to about 10 meters and drops the medical product into a container called a mailbox, then flies home and is available for another flight. "It can be really difficult to get even 30 or 40 kilometers to reach certain populations, and so Zipline is designed to take a trip that could take hours and, instead, be able to deliver that medical product in a matter of minutes," Rinaudo said. "Each Zip can fly a total of about 150 kilometers. That means we can go 75 kilometers out to drop a package and 75 kilometers back. We do that on a battery." His company chose to launch in Rwanda because it is a country on the cutting edge of innovation in health-care technology. "They are trying to do new things. It is also a country with really challenging terrain, known as the land of a thousand hills," Rinaudo said. First-time challenges Rinaudo admits that doing something for the first time ever is a challenge. In the initial stages, he said they were faced with the challenge of working closely with the civil aviation regulator in Rwanda to implement modern regulatory practices. "Now, Rwanda is actually one of the first countries in the world that has a comprehensive regulatory framework that allows commercial use of drones," Rinaudo said. Rwandan President Paul Kagame said that the country's institutions are working together to make sure proper regulations are in place to enable innovation. "In order for us to gain the full benefit, we need to provide relevant education and training, as well as communicate to our citizens the importance of this new technology, in the simplest ways, so that they are able to understand," he said Oct. 14 during an inauguration of medical delivery drones in Muhanga District. There have also been operational challenges in terms of integrating with the existing health system in making sure they deliver all medical products in a way that is 100 percent safe. "It is always hard, but the impact that we can have on a lot of these patients that we are delivering products to is vast," Rinaudo said. Expansion and partnership plans After launching in Rwanda, Zipline received a request from the White House to deliver blood and medicine to some remote areas of the United States. "What has been so exciting about the work that we are doing in Rwanda is that as soon as the government announced what we do, we started receiving calls from ministries of health not just across Africa, but also in other parts of the world," Rinaudo said. "A month ago, we just signed a partnership with the White House to bring the work that we are doing in Rwanda of delivering medical products instantly to rural communities in the United States." Currently, this San Francisco-based robotics company has a team of 42 people, the majority of whom are aerospace and software engineers focused on designing and improving the system on a daily basis. "One of the most exciting things about launching this kind of radical technology in developing economies is it represents a powerful way for them to leapfrog the absence of infrastructure or other challenges that have prevented many of these countries from growing quickly in the past," Rinaudo said. China's public order to keep away from a rare, environmentally unique ocean sinkhole in the Paracel Islands signals a new effort to tighten its grip on a tract of water disputed with Vietnam and monitored by the United States. The Chinese city of Sansha ordered on its website this month that tourism, fishing and unauthorized research teams avoid the 301-meter-deep (987-foot) Dragon Hole on a Beijing-held islet in the widely contested South China Sea. China is expected to protect the ecologically rare blue hole, the deepest feature of its kind in the world, rather than develop it. China looking to solidify claims to the South China Sea Protection of the hole may deter foreign criticism of Chinas maritime expansion, such as reclamation work. Andrew Yang, secretary general with the Chinese Council of Advanced Policy Studies think tank in Taiwan said the keep-out order also tells other governments China is digging into its maritime claims with more than landfill and coast guard vessels. I dont consider environmental protection is the priority for Chinese concern, he said. However, I think sovereignty is certainly the top issue for Chinese interests. Therefore I think exclusion (of the blue hole) for the Chinese interests is very much related to the sovereignty issue. A spectacular hole The Dragon Hole measures 130 meters wide at the top and 36 meters across at the bottom. A China Central Television video of the hole shows a diver swimming next to vertical underwater cliffs above a seabed of coral and groups of small tropical fish. The government that claims 95 percent of the 3.5 million-square-km (1.4 million-square-mile), resource-laden ocean has come under fire for landfilling as much as 3,200 acres (1,295 hectares) of tiny islets, including in the Paracel archipelago. The blue hole is on the Paracel islet of Yongle. Fabrizio Bozzato, an associate researcher specializing in international affairs at Tamkang University in Taiwan, calls the blue hole protection a showcase opportunity. Theyre being very destructive in other parts of the South China Sea with their piling of sand on atolls and rocks, and the number of fishing reef species in the South China Sea has decreased sharply because of Chinas human activities, so the Chinese need to implement a public diplomacy initiative, he said. Ecological protection The citys order to keep out is meant to help protect the hole and a nearby coral reef ecosystem, Beijings official China Daily newspaper said. Blue holes are named for the water color and researchers are keen to study them. Exclusive environmental protection work locks in Chinas claim to the Paracels, said Yun Sun, senior associate with the East Asia Program at the Stimson Center, a U.S.-based think tank. From the Chinese perspective, thats a way to show the other countries and show the world that its really ours, not because we took it by force from the Vietnamese but also because hey were managing it, Sun said. China's historical claims Beijing has built up its claim to the Paracels since 1956 as it expands across the bigger sea to acquire seafood, gas, oil and territorial control. That year, China took Woody Island, the largest of 130 tiny land features in the archipelago. Chinese authorities have allowed tourism in parts of the Paracels, which lie equidistant from China and Vietnam. They have been accused of letting some visitors poach endangered species. Some reports have said China has surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island. The world arbitration court ruled in July against the historical basis China uses to claim most of the ocean. Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam and the Philippines claim all or parts of the South China Sea. They fear China is looking for ways to keep asserting control over the sea despite the July verdict. Vietnam especially may worry, as it has lost some of the Paracels to China. In 2014, the two sides also sparred over an oil rig that China put in the disputed waters. The United States values the sea for its shipping lanes and urges China to cooperate more with rival maritime claimants. Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton are heading to their third debate late Wednesday in their acrimonious run for the U.S. presidency, the last time millions of Americans will have a chance to see them square off as they trade taunts and policy positions on a wide range of issues. Clinton, the one-time U.S. secretary of state looking to become the country's first female president, will show up on the debate stage in Las Vegas, Nevada, with a growing lead in political polls over Trump, the brash real estate tycoon running for elected office for the first time. It is perhaps his last best chance to cut into her seven-percentage-point advantage less than three weeks before the November 8 election. Both have declared each other as unfit to become the country's 45th president when President Barack Obama leaves office in late January. They traded barbs on their Twitter accounts ahead of their high-stakes face-to-face encounter. "Even if Trump's bullying, bigotry, and misogyny weren't disqualifying, his policies would be," Clinton said. Trump said, "If we let Crooked (Hillary) run the govt, history will remember 2017 as the year America lost its independence. Drain the Swamp." Fox News television anchor Chris Wallace plans to quiz Trump and Clinton about six topics: immigration, social benefit entitlements for Americans and the country's long-term debt, Supreme Court appointments, the economy, foreign policy, and each candidate's fitness to serve as president. Both candidates will get two minutes to answer a question and then to respond to the other, with Wallace asking follow-up questions. Trump and Clinton have sparred on the debate stage two times already, with credible polls showing she won both times. But analysts thought Trump performed better in his second match-up with her 10 days ago and could, with a strong debate performance and pointed attacks on her, give undecided and wavering Clinton supporters new reason to consider casting a ballot for him. Some U.S. states are already holding early voting. Challenges for both candidates Both candidates are facing new questions since the last time they met. Disclosures from Clinton's tenure as the country's top diplomat from 2009 to 2013 and her use of a private, unsecured email server rather than a secured government server continue to raise questions for some voters about her judgment and honesty. Government investigators concluded that she was "extremely careless" in her handling of national security material in her email chains, but that no criminal charges were warranted. She has on numerous occasions conceded she made a mistake in using a private email server based inside her New York home, but has rejected Trump's claims she endangered national security. This week, a new document released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation depicted one of Clinton's State Department aides attempting to get a classified document downgraded to unclassified in an apparent effort to support Clinton's claim that she never knowingly sent or received classified material in her chain of emails. Thousands of emails hacked from the computer of her campaign chief John Podesta and disclosed by WikiLeaks are posing other problems for Clinton. Among the leaks were friendly overtures to Wall Street she made in three 2013 speeches to executives at the investment banking firm of Goldman Sachs for which she was paid $675,000. Trump's declining fortunes in national polls stem from the disclosure two weeks ago of a 2005 tape of him riding on a bus on a Hollywood back lot in which he made lewd comments about women and boasted he could grope them with impunity because of his celebrity status. Trump, once the host of a television reality show, apologized at the second debate for his crude remarks, calling them "locker room talk," and denied that he actually made unwanted advances on women. But within days, at least nine women claimed Trump had made untoward sexual overtures on them over several decades, often kissing and groping them in much the same way he described on the tape. He called the women's accounts fabrications that never happened, but several of the women described his advances contemporaneously to friends and co-workers shortly after they occurred. Trump's wife Melania defended her husband in two television interviews this week and said she had accepted his apology for his taped remarks. Trump and his wife have blamed the U.S. national news media in concert with the Clinton campaign for the continuing controversy over the comments. In recent days, Trump, while presenting no evidence, has claimed that the outcome of the election is "rigged" and that voter fraud will turn the election in Clinton's favor. Obama, at a White House news conference Tuesday, said Trump should "stop whining" and instead make his case to U.S. voters why he should be elected. The streets of the Kinshasa were quiet Wednesday after the opposition called for a general strike. The main opposition coalition in the Democratic Republic of Congo is protesting a deal signed earlier this week between President Joseph Kabila and a smaller opposition platform that would postpone elections by nearly two years and leave Kabila in office in the interim. Kinshasa experienced a so-called "dead city day" for the third time this year. It is similar to a general strike and designed to show the populations discontent with the government. Children are to stay away from school and adults from work. The main opposition coalition, the Rassemblement, called the strike to demand Kabila step down in December at the end of his second and, under the constitution, final term. Near the central market, a young man named Kabia Ndaye says Kinshasa supports the strike because it is for them. It is because the people are unhappy with the leaders of the country. Observing the strike is a sacrifice, Ndaye admits, but a patriotic sacrifice. Kinshasas normally chaotic early morning streets were quiet and nearly empty. Shops were sealed off with steel doors and public buses carried only a few passengers. But many market traders, money changers, and mobile credit vendors were working by midday and some shops opened as well. Big sacrifice Kinshasa is a city of more than 10 million people, the vast majority poor and only a fraction with salaried employment. Taking a day off work could mean a day without food or for the fortunate few with salaries risking punishment. Several state employees said they had been instructed to work during the strike, but would not give more detail. At work crafting baskets, carpenter Herman Ibanda says the strike is a bad idea. He says for the little people in Congo, everyday life means going out and looking for something to eat. He said the countrys politicians should sort out this crisis among themselves so the little people do not suffer. Last month, street demonstrations resulted in dozens of deaths as security forces and protesters clashed. There had been fears similar problems might arise Wednesday. In the Limete neighborhood, an opposition stronghold, police used tear gas to disperse a group of opposition-supporting young men, but calm soon returned, and the strike appears to have remained free of violence in the capital. Kabilas ruling coalition had called on the people of Kinshasa to ignore the strike, warning them a day without work is a day lost for the electoral process. The Croatian parliament approved on Wednesday a new government led by the conservative HDZ party leader Andrej Plenkovic, whose main task will be to boost growth and sort out fragile public finances in one of the weakest European Union economies. The new government was formed by the HDZ and its junior center-right reformist partner Most, or Bridge, after several weeks of negotiations following a Sept. 11 snap election. The government got support of 91 out of 151 parliamentary deputies. "We will be the government that knows how to bring about changes," Plenkovic told the parliamentary deputies while presenting his cabinet. He said that spurring growth and improving the business climate would be his government's priorities. "We will ease conditions for doing business and implement tax reform to make the taxation system simpler and ease burden for citizens and businesses," Plenkovic said. 2017 budget In the past, many investors have largely shunned Croatia due to red tape, high taxes, frequently changing regulations and a slow judiciary. Plenkovic said that the 2017 budget, which is expected in November, will clearly reflect efforts to reduce the fiscal gap and public debt which now stands at around 85 percent of gross domestic product. Tentatively, the government wants to reduce the gap to two percent next year from some 2.5 percent expected this year. Biggest challenges Among the main challenges for the new government will be disputes with Hungary's MOL over decision-making in jointly owned Croatian energy group INA, with public sector trade unions over a wage hike promise, and with local banks over the forced conversion of Swiss franc loans into euros. Disputes over the promise of higher wages, dating back to 2009, and CHF loans, whose conversion cost was entirely imposed on the banks, could potentially inflict costs worth billions of kuna and undermine fiscal consolidation plans. Analysts widely believe that without measures to significantly improve the business climate, the country is unlikely to surpass the 2.5 percent growth figure in the coming years. HDZ won most parliamentary seats in the snap election following a collapse of the previous HDZ-Most government in June, after just five months in power, due to a row over a conflict of interest case involving a former HDZ leader. Analysts believe the new government, led by the new HDZ leader, has a good chance of completing the four-year term. Eduardo Cunha, the former head of Brazil's lower house of Congress who led the impeachment drive against former President Dilma Rousseff, was arrested Wednesday on corruption charges. Cunha, one-time leader of the Evangelical Christian caucus in the House of Deputies, is accused of receiving millions in bribes from the purchase of an oil field in Benin by state-run oil company Petrobras, which led to his arrest Wednesday. In a separate case before a federal court in Rio de Janeiro, Cunha is also charged with taking $5 million in bribes in relation to contracts for two drillships for Petrobras, which is known formally as Petroleo Brasileiro SA. Leonardo Cavalcanti, a spokesman for the federal police, said Cunha was arrested in the capital Brasilia. He was flown Wednesday afternoon to the southern city of Curitiba, where he will stand trial before anti-corruption judge Sergio Moro. Cunha was expelled from the lower house last month in an overwhelming vote by his peers in the chamber. That stripped him of legal protections that effectively give politicians immunity from all courts except the severely backlogged Supreme Court. Judge Moro, by contrast, is known for acting with speed and Cunha's case could be ruled upon before the end of the year. Preventative arrest Brazil's federal prosecutors said in an emailed statement that Moro accepted their request that Cunha be subject to "preventative" arrest. They said there was a risk of Cunha obstructing the investigation and raised "the concrete possibility" he would flee Brazil because of "hidden funds abroad and his dual nationality." That means that the former congressman, who also holds Italian citizenship, can be held for an indefinite period. Cunha has said he is innocent. It was not immediately possible to contact his lawyer, who was with him when he was arrested. Cunha's apprehension is the latest high-profile action in the sprawling investigation into the sprawling graft scheme at Petrobras. Prosecutors say Brazil's biggest construction and engineering firms paid billions in bribes to executives at the oil firm and politicians in return for bloated contracts. To date, nearly 200 executives and former politicians including popular former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva have been charged in the Petrobras probe and 83 have been found guilty. Prosecutors are seeking 38 billion reais ($12 billion) in damages from companies and individuals involved. Lightning rod Cunha is a longtime member of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB) of current President Michel Temer, who served as Rousseff's vice president and took over in May during the impeachment process against her. Cunha in August became the first sitting politician to be charged in the case. Two sources close to Temer told Reuters that the order at the presidential palace is to remain silent on Cunha's arrest, mainly because of concerns that he may turn state's witness and implicate fellow PMDB politicians, whom Cunha lashed out against for not defending him against the recent criminal charges. Cunha is a lightning rod of ire for those who opposed Rousseff's impeachment, carried out on the grounds that she broke budgetary rules. Rousseff and her supporters say she was the victim of a "coup" carried out as an attempt to halt the Petrobras probe and they pointed to Cunha as the crudest example of that effort. Federal prosecutors in Curitiba, who have led the Petrobras investigation, have said they will not allow any politician to halt their work and fought back vocally against scattered attempts by lawmakers to impede their efforts. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, working with Czech police, arrested a Russian citizen in Prague on Wednesday in connection with attempted cyber-attacks against the United States. Last week, the Obama administration formally accused the Russian government of hacking U.S. institutions in an attempt to influence the upcoming presidential election, though police gave no indication the arrested man was connected with the election hacking claims. Without going into further detail, Czech police spokesman David Schon said the aim of the operation was a Russian citizen and that it was carried out successfully. WATCH: Video of hacker arrest A statement posted on the police website said the suspect was detained at a hotel in Prague. Police said he collapsed during the arrest and was given first aid before being transported to a hospital. The statement said a Czech court will decide whether the suspect is extradited to the United States, though no timetable was given. Russia has been accused of trying to aid Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump over rival Hillary Clinton after embarrassing emails from the Democratic National Committee released earlier this year led to the resignation of leader Debbie Wasserman-Schultz. Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied any involvement in the hacks. Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump meet in their third and final presidential debate Wednesday in Las Vegas, Nevada. Trump trails Clinton in public opinion polls, and Wednesdays debate may be his final opportunity to change the trajectory of the race with less than three weeks to go until Election Day. The latest Real Clear Politics polling average finds Clinton leading Trump by 6.4 percentage points. Clinton also has an edge in most of the key battleground states, though the latest CNN-ORC surveys in Nevada, North Carolina and Ohio show close races despite Trumps recent political troubles. Trump: Its Rigged! Trump continues to tell supporters they are fighting the Clinton political machine and a biased news media. He told supporters at a rally in Bangor, Maine, that they face an uphill battle until Election Day. It is a rigged system, folks, but we are not going to let it happen, he said. Trump has also lashed out at allegations from several women who have accused him of making improper sexual advances in the past. Trump issued a flat, all-purpose denial on the recent allegations at a rally Friday in Greensboro, North Carolina. These are lies being pushed by the media and the Clinton campaign to try and keep their grip on our country, he said. They are all false. They are totally invented, fiction, all 100 percent and totally and completely fabricated. Clinton: No shortage of surrogates Clinton has been immersed in debate prep in recent days. In her last rallies before the debate, she has often turned the focus to core issues including the economy. Number one, weve got to get the economy working for everyone, not just those at the top, and we can do this! she said during a rally in Seattle, Washington. Clinton is getting plenty of help on the campaign trail from her husband, former President Bill Clinton, as well as President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. Michelle Obama took issue with Trumps vulgar comments about women on a recently released videotape from Access Hollywood stemming from 2005. This was a powerful individual speaking freely and openly about sexually predatory behavior, she said. Trump losing women voters Trump has slipped in the polls in the wake of that video and the allegations from several women, and the controversy appears to be hurting him with some of the very voters he needs to appeal to in order to broaden his coalition. This is not the behavior that is going to endear him to college-educated white women. That is who he needs, said Tom DeFrank, a veteran political analyst with National Journal. He spoke on VOAs Issues in the News program. Trumps erratic campaign approach in recent days has even befuddled some Republicans, who are looking for a more stable standard-bearer in the final weeks of the campaign to help protect Republican seats in Congress. Democrats are still seen as a long shot to win control of the House of Representatives, but the battle to see which party controls the Senate is very much in question. In the final debate, Trump may have to offer undecided voters some assurances that he can modify his behavior before he can win over their support. So I think he does have a lot more to show voters, said John Fortier of the Bipartisan Policy Center. Not that he is a traditional candidate, not that he is going to look like everyone else, but at least that he is acceptable and gets over a certain bar, so I think that is an issue for him. Clinton expects WikiLeaks attacks Clinton is also likely to be on the defensive in the final debate in the wake of new WikiLeaks revelations about comments she made about Wall Street banks and various campaign concerns expressed by members of her staff during her primary battle with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Most experts think she will remain cool, as she has in the previous two debates. I think that for Hillary, she needs to let Trump be Trump. She needs to continue to be her calm, composed self that she was in the first debate, said American University expert Austin Hart. Longtime Republican strategist John Feehery predicted that Trump and Clinton will have vastly different approaches heading into the final debate. I think Hillary is going to play it safe because I think she believes she has the lead. I think Trump is going to go for broke because he believes that he has got to make up ground and kind of attack her, Feehery said. A handful of states will decide In the final weeks of the campaign, both candidates will focus on a handful of so-called swing states where the election outcome will likely be decided. Trumps path to 270 electoral votes must include victories in Ohio, Florida, Nevada, North Carolina and one or two additional battleground states. A Clinton victory in one or two of those key states could secure her status as the next president. At the moment, Clinton leads in many of the key swing states, though some of the margins are slim. Her campaign is also considering expanding into traditional Republican territory in the final weeks, including Georgia and Arizona where the polls suggest a close race. Clinton was generally considered the winner of the first debate on September 26, while Trump supporters were heartened by his more aggressive approach in the second debate where he made Clinton the focus of numerous attacks. Authorities are trying to detain the embattled former governor of Veracruz state, who is under investigation for alleged corruption and whose whereabouts are unknown, a senior Mexican official said Wednesday. Interior Secretary Miguel Angel Osorio Chong told Radio Formula that officials weren't sure where Javier Duarte was, but thought he was in the country because immigration authorities had no record of him departing. Still, he said federal prosecutors were preparing a request for Interpol to issue an international arrest warrant if he was found to have left. Duarte was last seen in the state capital of Xalapa, Osorio Chong added. "Security agencies are working to locate him," he said. Duarte stepped down as governor October 12, a month and a half before his term was supposed to end. At the time, he said he wanted to confront the corruption allegations, which he has denied. The governing Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, has stripped Duarte of his party rights. Prosecutors have opened at least two investigations targeting the ex-governor for possible illegal enrichment, embezzlement and breach of public duty. The attorney general's office announced Tuesday that two women had been arrested for their likely involvement with illicit funds and organized crime. Authorities said only that they were part of the Veracruz case, but a federal official who was not authorized to speak publicly and requested anonymity said they were "fronts" for Duarte and helped launder money for him. Critics say vast sums of state funds disappeared during the nearly six years Duarte led Veracruz, which has been plagued by rising drug gang violence as the Zetas and Jalisco New Generation cartels battle for control in the Gulf Coast state. At least 16 journalists were killed in Veracruz during Duarte's time in office, and hundreds of people have disappeared. In June, the PRI lost the Veracruz governorship for the first time since the party was founded over eight decades ago. Governor-elect Miguel Angel Yunes accuses Duarte of looting the state government, and he campaigned on promises to hold him accountable. "Javier Duarte departs with his pockets full and leaves a Veracruz on fire," Yunes said. In August, Duarte expressed willingness to cooperate with prosecutors and traveled to Mexico City to make his own corruption allegations against Yunes. Prosecutors are also hunting for former Sonora state Governor Guillermo Padres, of the conservative National Action Party, on suspicion of corruption. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says an agreement was reached Thursday on sending an armed OSCE police mission to separatist eastern Ukraine to help enforce the Minsk peace accords. A deal was reached Wednesday at talks in Berlin that also included German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and French President Francois Hollande. Details on the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) mission still need to be worked out, as well as details on a roadmap on implementing the Minsk cease-fire. The primary responsibility of the OSCE police would be to ensure security for local elections in eastern Ukraine, a major condition of the Minsk agreement. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said the number of areas where opposing forces are physically separated also need to be expanded to strengthen the cease-fire and prevent a flare-up of hostilities. The talks were Putins first visit to Berlin since the fighting in eastern Ukraine erupted in early 2014 and came a day before the 28 leaders of the European Union meet to discuss relations with Russia, including sanctions over its involvement in Ukraine. The 2015 Minsk agreement mediated by France and Germany has brought on fewer large-scale battles between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine. But the fighting has continued and efforts to reach a political settlement have stalled. The agreement, signed in the Belarusian capital by representatives of Ukraine, Russia and the separatist rebels, calls for Ukraine to decentralize power and adopt laws providing for self-governance in areas of eastern Ukraine currently controlled by the separatists. Ukraine has accused Russia of not doing enough to influence rebels to relinquish control over parts of the Ukrainian-Russian border. Russia, for its part, has accused Ukraine of not adopting the constitutional amendments Moscow says it was obligated to introduce granting autonomy to parts of eastern Ukraine. All sides involved have already agreed to the terms of the peace deal signed in 2015, though it has failed to stop the fighting in the area. By PTI: Islamabad, Oct 18 (PTI) Pakistan today said India wants to use water as a weapon against it by "flagrantly violating" its international treaty obligations. Special Assistant to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Tariq Fatemi also condemned Indias human rights violations in Kashmir; called for international communitys attention towards Indias "belligerent and aggressive designs". "Fatemi also condemned the stated intent of India to use water as a weapon against the people of Pakistan, in flagrant violation of its international treaty obligations. He charged that such an action could only be contemplated by an irresponsible state," Pakistan Foreign Office here said in a statement. advertisement Pakistan had earlier warned the unilateral revocation of the Indus treaty by India will be considered as an act of war. Fatemi, who leading Pakistan?s delegation to the 43rd session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Foreign Ministers meeting in Uzbekistan, called upon the international community to reject the Indias claim that Kashmir is an integral part of India. Characterizing Indias claim as "ridiculous", Fatemi said that the Jammu and Kashmir is recognised by the United Nations as an international dispute between two sovereign member-states. He called upon the Muslim community to continue its support for the Kashmiris in their just struggle for the right of self-determination. He "called for fair, independent and transparent inquiry into the grave human rights violations by the Indian security forces in Kashmir". PTI NSA AKJ NSA --- ENDS --- Soon after Iraqi lawyer Khaleel Aldakhi and his wife heard the chilling news that Islamic State militants were enslaving Yazidi women and children in Iraq, they began plotting a rescue mission from their home in the northern city of Dohuk. During a 2014 visit to refugee camps in Iraq's Kurdistan region to get more information about the Yazidi women and girls who had disappeared, Aldakhi met a couple whose 17-year-old daughter was being held captive by the Islamist group. They offered Aldakhi their phone so he could talk to the young woman, who had managed to keep in touch with her family. "She was saying that she wanted to commit suicide," said Aldakhi, 39, who was speaking through an interpreter in New York. "I told her, 'I'm going to help you. ' " Days later, Aldakhi and a quickly assembled network of collaborators had freed the girl, Maha, and smuggled her out of Mosul, where she was being held captive. Two years on, Aldakhi and his wife, Ameena Saeed Hasan, have turned what they thought would be a one-time rescue mission into a full-time underground operation, which they say has saved some 170 girls from Islamic State. Their work has won them an award from U.S.-based activist group Human Rights First, which was to host a gala dinner Wednesday in recognition of their courage. "After we rescued one and two girls ... the families heard we helped girls, so they came to us and gave us the locations of their daughters," said Hasan, 36, a former member of Iraq's parliament who once represented Sinjar district, where the couple used to live. Thousands affected Islamic State killed, captured or enslaved thousands of Yazidis when it overran Sinjar town in northern Iraq in August 2014. The United States, the European Parliament and the Council of Europe have described the group's actions against the Yazidis, a religious sect whose beliefs combine elements of several ancient Middle Eastern religions, as genocide. The United Nations estimates that more than 3,000 Yazidi women and girls are still being held captive, some as sex slaves. As parents of a young daughter, Aldakhi and Hasan said they could not tolerate other families' suffering. "It's affected me most as a woman and as a mother," said Hasan, who carries around a mobile phone whose cover displays a picture of their 7-year-old daughter in a bright red dress. About one in every 100 abducted girls and women is in contact with the couple's secret network of dozens of underground collaborators deep inside IS-occupied territory, Aldakhi estimated. Since their first rescue, they have received thousands of calls from enslaved women and desperate families, the couple said. Planning, safe houses Each rescue operation involves precise planning, accomplices and drivers willing to put their lives on the line, as well as safe houses to hide the girls, who sometimes are in touch using a smuggled cellphone. Logistics for each rescue can cost between $3,000 to $10,000, money that mostly comes from the Iraqi Kurdish authorities, Aldakhi said. The constant life-or-death operations take an emotional toll, said Aldakhi. "It's very difficult to hear someone say they need to be rescued and [you] say you're not able to help, especially when they are women," he said. "At the beginning I couldn't handle it. I couldn't sleep at night." The couple do not rule out an attempt on their lives even though they now live in the relative safety of Dohuk, Iraq. Despite the dangers, Aldakhi said he could not give up the work. "I won't stop this work until this work stops," he said. Food outlets selling hot dogs in Malaysia have been asked to rename their products or risk being refused halal certification. The Malaysian Islamic Development Department, a religious governmental body, said it adopted the ruling because it is confusing for Muslim consumers in that it contains no dog meat. Dogs are deemed unclean in Islam. The U.S. fast food chain Auntie Annes was asked to rename its popular Pretzel Dog. It is more appropriate to use the name Pretzel Sausage,' the Islamic departments halal director Sirajuddin Suhaimee told local media. Malaysian Tourism and Culture Minister Nazri Aziz criticized the ruling. Hot dog has always been known to be a Western food, Azis said. It comes from the English language. It is a Western food. Please do not make us seem stupid and backward, he said. Auntie Annes said it will comply with the request. Its halal executive, Farhatul Kamilah, said on her Facebook page that the chain has proposed several new names and is waiting for the Islamic departments approval. Muslim majority Malaysia practices a moderate form of Islam, but conservative attitudes are on the rise. The mutilated bodies of Islamic State group fighters were still strewn on the ground of this northern Iraqi town Wednesday. One was burned. Anothers face was flattened. Iraqi troops on the march toward Mosul moved into al-Hud a day earlier and declared it liberated. The residents, they found, had risen up and killed many of the militants in the town themselves. With the offensive to recapture Mosul in its third day, Iraqi forces advancing from the south and east are fighting to retake the towns and villages that dot the plains and line the Tigris River leading to the city. At times, theyve met fierce resistance, with the militants sending explosives-packed vehicles careening toward the troops positions. This area has been under the control of the militants since the summer of 2014, when IS fighters captured Mosul and much of the north in a lightning advance. Residents see their chance In al-Hud, a Sunni Arab town on the Tigris, residents saw their chance to get rid of them. On Monday, a man paraded through town with an Iraqi flag in a show of defiance, residents told The Associated Press. IS fighters shot and killed him. The news spread among the hundreds of people living in the town, and soon a crowd turned on the militants. One resident, Ahmed Mohammed, said he and others shot a militant who was hiding by an outhouse behind a shop. That didnt work, he said. Then one of our guys came and threw a grenade on him from the top. Gasim Mohammed said his father was killed in the uprising against the militants. He kicked the head of one of the bodies. This one smells like a dog, he said. I hate them. Anyone I catch, Ill drink his blood. Even if its a child. It was not clear how many militants had been in the village or how many were killed. The Associated Press saw at least five bodies. The head of the Iraqi militarys operations command for Nineveh province, where the offensive is taking place, confirmed the residents account. Before we reached the village, they fought them and killed many of them, Maj. Gen. Najim al-Jobori said. On Wednesday, residents were celebrating. Children ran toward an Iraqi military convoy waving peace signs while others threw stones at the bodies of the dead IS fighters. Residents fired celebratory rounds into the air, and cars along the main road still flew white flags of surrender. IS urged to surrender At Qayyarah air base, near al-Hud, a senior Iraqi general called on Islamic State group fighters in Mosul to surrender. Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati told reporters that up to 6,000 IS fighters are in the city. East of Mosul, troops have moved about a kilometer (half-mile) from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul, an Iraqi officer from the 9th Division told the AP. Over the past day, IS sent 12 car bombs against the troops, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, he said, adding that Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds. The officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters, did not provide specific figures. Thousands flee At least 5,000 people fled the Mosul area to a refugee camp in northeastern Syria in the last 10 days, with another thousand waiting to enter at the border, Save the Children said. Tarik Kadir, head of the groups Mosul response, said conditions there are among the worst weve seen. More than 9,000 people in the camp only have access to dirty, untreated water and have to share 16 latrines, leaving the area polluted by human waste with a looming risk of disease, the group said. U.N. humanitarian chief Stephen OBrien told the U.N. Security Council that no large-scale displacement of civilians has been reported since the operation began. But he said the U.N. anticipates some 200,000 people over the coming weeks, with up to 1 million displaced in the course of the operation in a worst-case scenario. Islamic State commanders, including founder Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, are huddling in bunkers in Mosul, where they are directing the defense against an Iraqi-led offensive to retake the city, Iraqi military intelligence officials say. We have intelligence that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and several of his close commanders live in those underground tunnels, Major General Fadhil al-Barwari, head of the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Bureau, told VOA in a telephone interview from the front lines near Mosul. Baghdadi, the Muslim fundamentalist religious teacher who declared the caliphate in Mosul in 2014, is one of the key targets for the invading Kurdish and Iraqi forces. He has much invested in Mosul, from directing IS brutality against residents to dictating its latest defense plans, analysts say. Rumors of Baghdadis death surfaced recently. But allied intelligence officials say they now believe he is still in Mosul. Hoshyar Zebari, a senior Kurdish official and Iraqs former finance minister, told Reuters news agency that based on solid intelligence reports, Baghdadi and IS explosives expert Fawzi Ali Nouimeh remain in the city. "We dont know (if) many (IS) leaders are left in Mosul, Barwari said. We do know, however, that many of their foreign commanders have been moved to border areas between Syria and Iraq. Before the Mosul offensive began on Sunday, intelligence reports said that some IS leaders moved out of the city into rural areas of Iraq and Syria. Top IS leaders prepared for the battle by ordering the digging of defensive trenches, creating tunnels and covering alleyways with sheets to shield fighters from airstrikes, according to intelligence reports. It appears that IS commanders have set out a strategy of carrying out suicide attacks on Iraqi forces from the southern front and Kurdish forces from the eastern front. Once IS fighters have been cornered inside the city, Kurdish and Iraqi commanders say they expect IS to display thousands of civilian human shields and possibly unleash chemical weapons attacks. On the battlefields around Mosul, former Baathist military men from the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein are helping to direct the IS fighters strategy. Ex-Baathists, at odds with the Iraqi government, became aligned with IS as it emerged in 2014. They helped lead IS battles that seized territory in Anbar province and northern Iraq. Saddam-era military leaders found a cause in IS Sunni ideology which opposes the Shiite government leadership in Baghdad. Iraqi leaders know about Mosul better than foreign commanders of the organization and they have experience in fighting the Iraqi military, said Watheq al-Hamishi, director of the Iraqi Group for Strategic Studies, a Baghdad-based group that advises the Iraqi government. The ex-Baathists came into bigger play after IS foreigners were moved out of the city weeks before the offensive began, Hashimi said. They (IS) changed their entire leadership, empowered the former Baathists within its ranks and transferred foreign commanders and their families to other areas under their control, Hashimi said. Former Baathists are keeping a desperate population inside Mosul in check, analysts say. The Iraqi leadership within (IS) that enabled the rise of the would-be caliphate are the (same) commanders largely administering Mosul, said Nicholas A. Heras, a Middle East researcher at the Center for a New American Security in Washington. They are most responsible for building alliances and networks within the local population that facilitated (ISs) rise and rule, he said. But observers point out that ex-Baathists are less brutal than the foreign IS commanders, who have unleashed waves of violence inside Mosul. Many of (ISs) foreign commanders are far more reviled than the local Iraqi (IS) commander, Heras said. The foreign commanders will be the first leaders of IS that will be singled out for attack by local residents of Mosul and the surrounding area. Cynthia Salcido may make a living cleaning casino restrooms and picking up broken glass, but she and the members of the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 make up the backbone of the casino industry in Las Vegas, Nevada. The union is training its members to encourage people to vote. They also have plans to make sure their voices are heard when all eyes are on Las Vegas for the last presidential debate. Its a hard election but Im pretty excited with Hillary [Clinton]. Hopefully if she wins we will have our first female president, said Salcido, who has two daughters, one of them named Hillary. She said it is sometimes hard, as a single mom, to make ends meet, but it could be worse. More tourists are coming back since the 2008 recession, when Las Vegas was hit hard, said University of Nevada, Las Vegas, public policy professor Robert Lang. It was over reliant on tourism and when the fun ended on the last decade and people stopped spending freely on consumerism then the crash happened. And it happened deeper here. There was a big loss, especially in construction employment, that never really recovered, Lang said. The tourism sector has been booming again.. conventions are back. Were going to build a large stadium. Weve got an expansion of the convention center due. So theres a kind of optimism about how things are going with the economy in the larger sense. Small businesses, housing market The Fashion Show mall on the Vegas Strip has thriving small businesses, such as Flip Flop Workshop. In less than a year, the build-your-own flip flop store has grown to include two locations in Las Vegas, and its looking to hire more employees. We have approximately 20 employees total but were growing, said Regional Manager Shaunna Fisk. Weve seen definitely in this mall especially weve seen new businesses that are coming from all over the world and the United States. Nevadas housing market is also bouncing back from the recession. Scott Beaudry with the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors remembered how homeowners suffered during the recession. They went from selling gobs and gobs of new homes, resale home to virtually, a sharp 75 percent decrease in sales. Beaudry said people are starting to buy again. Now we actually see those boomerang buyers who actually lost their homes able to come back, actually get approved for a mortgage and get that American Dream right back which is home ownership. Marsala Hottot is now looking for a new house. She said the economy is a big issue for her when choosing a presidential candidate. I don't really like either one of them but ideally I want the one that's going to make and put emphasis on making this country and economy stable, said Hottot. Recession The economy is also one of the main issues that drives Luis Espinosas choice for president. I think Trump is the better choice. Personally I think the greedier, the more money the business owner wants, common sense tells me hes going to have to open up more businesses. When he opens up more businesses hes going to employ more people, said Espinosa. Espinosa is not alone in supporting Trump. Lang said some people support Trump because of the painful recession. There is a share of voters who were stung by that who feel still the residual anger of that loss, and theres also a large number of white working class in the state, that is whites who do not hold college degrees, high school degrees and Trump has pretty good in with those voters, thats been one of his key bases, Lang said. Lang said about 10 percent of voters in the state are still undecided or are voting for a third party candidate. He says with a strong union effort to get Democrats to the polls, more people in the state, may be voting for Clinton on election day. But no one is making a real prediction, because Lang said, this election has been so unpredictable. Snap. Snap. The lanyard hooks grab onto the thick nylon straps that wrap around two trees. Seth Burt is ready to settle into his hammock to study. The Ohio State University (OSU) senior is a registered independent. He voted for the Republican presidential candidate four years ago and supported Republican Donald Trump early into this year's race. But he says his strong Christian background doesn't mesh with either candidate. "I don't like Trump's women issues or his foreign policy, and I don't think (Hillary) Clinton's policies are good either." So this year, he will sit out the election and hope Washington gets the message that it needs "to become more current and start trying to reach us." OSU Freshman Lyka Delafuente, who was born and raised in the Phillipines, says she was excited that she finally reached the age to vote, but "now, I don't really want to vote for either one," she says. Delafuente plans to vote anyway and finds herself convincing her friends to vote, even if they don't like the choices. Millennials vote "against" It's that lack of enthusiasm that has resulted in a USA Today poll that shows millennials who are voting aren't necessarily supporting a candidate, as much as voting against the other candidate. The poll shows that 36% of millennials are supporting former secretary of state Clinton to keep businessman Trump out of the White House. And that 36% of millennials are supporting Trump to keep Clinton out of the White House. But overall, millennials overwhelmingly support Democrat Hillary Clinton 68% to 20%. Herb Asher is an Ohio State University professor who has written books called "Presidential Elections and American Politics" and "Comparative Voting Behavior." He says that because a higher number of millennials support Clinton, she stands to lose more. "If they don't vote," he predicts, "she gets hurt by that more than Trump does." Millennials could swing Ohio... if they tried Millennials are the largest generation in the U.S. In the last presidential election, Barack Obama won 62% of the millennial vote in Ohio. A Tufts University survey shows he would not have won the battleground state, had his competitor split the youth vote with him. College junior Andrew Langen says no matter who is elected, he expects millennials to spark a change. He predicts "more interest in third parties and the decline of the two party system." With three weeks left until voting day, the number of undecided voters young and old is three times higher than at this point in the last election. Polls show it as high as 15 percent. In contrast, only 5 percent of the electorate was undecided at this stage in 2012. Cleveland.com's data expert Richard Exner says the candidates need to reach the undecideds. "The no vote and the undecided are probably going to decide the election," Exner says. Traditional Republicans now undecided Not just college students, but many older voters are also undecided. Visiting the "Rock, Power and Politics" exhibit at Clevelands Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Steven Salinger is a registered Republican who will vote for Libertarian Gary Johnson. He says the electorate is tired of lifetime politicials who build generations of family politicians. He says Donald Trump voters don't necessarily support the Republican candidate "It's an anti vote, against the establishment." Deb Glisson has voted Republican her whole life, but is now undecided. Her son is stationed on a U.S. navy submarine. Glisson says she just doesn't feel good about the campaign. "There's just so much bashing to get to be president," she says. "I don't feel like they are leaders for me." Iraqi and Kurdish forces moving on Mosul are bracing for heavier resistance as they advance toward the Islamic State's last major stronghold in Iraq. Yet even as confidence in the operation grows, there are fears the most treacherous terrain may lie outside the city itself. Far from pits filled with oil, an assortment of bombs and other of IEDs (improvised explosive devices), or even cadres of IS fighters willing to battle to the death, the greatest danger may be a desire for vengeance and competing sectarian claims to cities and towns on Mosul's periphery. Even without actual violence, it could be enough to destroy the agreements and alliances currently holding Iraq's various anti-Islamic State forces together. "There are flashpoints everywhere," said Michael Pregent, a former intelligence officer now with the Hudson Institute. "You win a battle, and you say you won the war," he warned from Iraq, characterizing much of the initial success as nothing more than "temporary victories." Pregent and others caution that many of the towns taken in the early stages of the Mosul operation, to the south and east of the city, have been depopulated. And even before the populations left, many of them were predominantly Sunni. As a result, many of Iraq's Shia militias, known as Popular Mobilization Forces (PMFs) have so far held back. But to the west, all that changes. Tal Afar "There is Tal Afar," warned Amnesty International's Donatella Rovera. "Tal Afar is a very different game." Tal Afar fell to Islamic State during the terror group's surge across Iraq's Ninewa Province in June 2014. Many of the city's 150,000 to 200,000 ethnic Turkmen residents fled, including a vast majority of Shia, fearful of the wrath of IS and the hardline Sunni Turkmen who stayed. Now, some of the Shia militias have their sights set on taking the city from IS and the group's Sunni sympathizers. "The Shia Turkmen militias and others, that's their territory as far as they're concerned," Rovera said. Drawing lines Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and other top Iraqi officials have repeatedly given assurances that the PMF will not cross into Mosul itself. But outside of Mosul the lines are blurry, with both Iraqi and U.S. military officials admitting the PMF will play a role. "As far as what the Shia PMF's role is, that's up to government of Iraq," U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Gary Volesky, commander of the land component for Operation Inherent Resolve, told Pentagon reporters during a video briefing Wednesday from Baghdad. When pressed on whether that could include a PMF role in Tal Afar specifically, Volesky demurred. "I'm not going to comment on Tal Afar because today we are focused on Mosul, he said. In contrast, PMF leaders have not been shy about sharing their intentions. "Our sector of operations is the western axis of operations, part of which will certainly be in the direction of Tal Afar," PMF operational commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis said during a news conference Tuesday in An Najaf, Iraq. "The operations are proceeding." Shia reality Analysts like Patrick Martin at the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War have no doubt Shia PMF leaders will make good on their word to move on Tal Afar, and that the impact could be far-reaching. "The Popular Mobilization has listed it very prominently as one of the targets for their operations," Martin said. "That has a large potential for sectarian violence." There are also fears that there may be little the Iraqi government, or anyone else, can do to rein in the PMF. Many of its members take orders from neighboring Iran and have been accused by humanitarian groups of committing war crimes on Sunni civilians elsewhere. One U.S. official speaking to VOA on condition of anonymity prior to the start of the Mosul operation conceded the prominent role of the Iranian-backed Shia militias "is a reality" of how Iraq works. "The Shia militias are still leading the way, particularly the Iranian-led organizations," said Phillip Smyth, a University of Maryland researcher who specializes in Shia militia activity. "I worry about the aftereffects of that and who's really going to be running Iraq," he said. In South Korea this week, a controversy has erupted over a nearly decade old U.N. North Korea human rights vote that could frame the 2017 presidential election as a clear choice between relying on punitive measures only to pressure the Kim Jong Un government to end its nuclear program, or renewing engagement efforts. A recently published memoir by former Foreign Minister Song Min-soon alleged that in 2007 South Korea voted to abstain from a United Nation resolution to condemn North Korean human rights violations after consulting with Pyongyang. One of the officials allegedly involved in the decision making process to consult with North Korea was Moon Jae-in, who is a prospective 2017 presidential candidate and former chairman of the opposition Minjoo party of Korea. In 2007, Moon was chief of staff to President Roh Moo-hyun. In 2012 he ran for president in a three-way race, but lost to President Park Geun-hye. Opposition under attack The controversy has sparked a harsh debate in the National Assembly in Seoul, with the Minjoo Party denying there was any communication with North Korea prior to the U.N. vote. Minjoo Party Spokesman Yoon Gwan-seok claims President Parks ruling Saenuri Party is taking the incident out of time and context to attempt to smear Moon and the opposition as soft when it comes to dealing with the repressive North Korean state. They are using all intimidating words such as 'collusion', 'approval' and 'pro-North,' said Yoon. Moon has said the decision to abstain from the human rights vote was made by the Roh administration at a time when engagement polices, that emphasized increasing economic aid and exchanges, were fostering increased inter-Korean cooperation. If you go back to 2007, North and South Korea had a second Korean summit. North (and) South Korean prime ministers had agreed on 45 items for mutual cooperation. The situation in 2007 was quite different from now, said North Korea analyst Moon Chung-in, who was an adviser to the late President Roh and holds the title of distinguished professor emeritus at Yonsei University in Seoul. Ruling party on offense But the former Minjoo party chairman has been vague about his role in the 2007 incident. The Saenuri Party has gone on the offensive and is forming a task force to investigate if there was a conspiracy to consult with Pyongyang in advance of the vote, and what was the extent of Moons involvement. Moon Jae-in is ridiculing South Koreans by saying 'I do not remember' while he did not answer whether he agreed or opposed the North Korean human rights resolution, said Saenuri Party Spokesman Kim Sung-won. Larger debate Prior to the 2012 presidential election, the Saenuri party accused Moons Minjoo Party of giving up South Korean sovereignty over the Northern Limit Line maritime border during a 2007 inter-Korean summit. Later summit documents were declassified and it was revealed that both sides agreed to create a jointly enforced fishing and peace zone. But the charge helped Park win by depicting her as a strong leader and Moon and his party as too easily manipulated by the Kim leadership in the North. However during the legislative elections earlier this year, attempts made to depict the opposition as weak in the face of the increasingly aggressive and nuclear North were not so effective. The opposition parties this year gained the majority in the National Assembly with many voters expressing concern over the Park administrations hardline North Korea polices. I would argue that kind of so-called pro-North Korea coloring campaign has kind of become subject to the law of diminishing returns, said Professor Moon. Parks critics say her exclusive reliance on punitive sanctions and strong military deterrence has not made the country safer nor have they restrained the North. Kim Jong Uns threatening rhetoric and his militarys continued nuclear and missile tests make it unlikely any South Korean party will endorse a return to unqualified engagement with the North. But Professor Moon says whoever ends up as the opposition party candidate will likely offer an alternative to the status quo that will combine some hardline policies with dialogue and negotiation efforts. The Palestinians are pushing for a U.N. Security Council resolution threatening "consequences" if Israel continues building Jewish settlements in lands the Palestinians want for a future state. Palestinan Ambassador Riyad Mansour on Wednesday accused Israel of continuing to break international law. "The global calls for cessation of Israeli settlement activity and crimes against the Palestinian people must be backed with serious practical measures to compel Israeli compliance with the law," he told the council. Mansour said an end to Israeli settlement activity and a withdrawal from Palestinian territories were "imperative for realizing a just, lasting, comprehensive Palestinian-Israeli peace." Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon did not talk about settlements in his remarks to the council, but denounced what he said would be a one-sided resolution against Israel. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed all of Jerusalem, contending it had the right to build in those areas to help ensure its security. Views of Russia are playing a surprising role in the 2016 U.S. presidential elections. The U.S. government has formally accused Moscow of conducting cyberattacks to influence the elections in favor of Republican nominee Donald Trump. Russian President Vladimir Putin denies any meddling. But that is just one issue involving Russia where Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton disagree. In the last two years, Russia has adopted a more assertive foreign policy: first with its takeover of Crimea and support of Ukrainian separatist rebels. Second, with its intervention in Syria on behalf of the Bashar al-Assad regime. Moscow's actions have been a frequent topic of this years presidential debates and rallies. Democrat Hillary Clinton has taken a tough stance. "I want to emphasize that what is at stake here is the ambitions and the aggressiveness of Russia. Russia has decided that its all in in Syria, and theyve also decided who they want to see become president of the United States, and its not me, said Clinton. The antipathy appears to be mutual, said analyst Thomas Wright of the Brookings Institution. Putin blames Secretary Clinton for the protests against his return to power in 2012. He thinks the United States, and particularly the State Department, was behind those, said Wright. For his part, Donald Trump has sought to downplay his earlier positive comments about Putin. "I don't love [Putin], I don't hate [him]. We'll see how it works. We'll see. Maybe well have a good relationship. Maybe well have a horrible relationship. Maybe well have a relationship right in the middle," said Trump. Trumps position on Russia differs dramatically from nearly all mainstream Republican and Democratic foreign policy leaders, according to terrorism expert Malcolm Nance. "He believes that Russia's positions - the obsolescence of NATO, the destruction of the European Union, leaving Russia to have full rein in Eastern Europe, as it sees fit and allowing Russia to do what it wants with Syria are almost a checklist of Vladimir Putin's requirements, said Nance. But where Clinton and others see Russia's aggressiveness, Trump sees an opportunity. "I think it would be great if we got along with Russia because we could fight ISIS together, as an example. But I dont know Putin," said Trump. To the Clinton campaign, the hacking of her campaign e-mails is evidence that Russian President Putin would like to see Trump become the next U.S. president. The Trump campaign says voters should pay more attention to the potentially damaging content of the Democratic Party e-mails, instead of who is behind the hacking. Soldiers of Chushul Garrision from India and of Moldo Garrision from China participated in the exercise. By India Today Web Desk: As part of the ongoing initiative to enhance interaction and cooperation between India and China, under the provisions of Border Defense Cooperation Agreement, 2013, the Indian and Chinese armies today held the second joint exercise "Sino-India Cooperation 2016". This was a sequel to the first exercise held on February 6, 2016. Soldiers of Chushul Garrision from India and of Moldo Garrision from China, participated in the exercise. advertisement During the day long exercise on Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR) a simulated situation of earthquake striking an Indian Border village was painted, thereafter joint teams carried out rescue operations, evacuation and rendering medical assistance. The Indian Team for the exercise was led by Brigadier RS Raman and that of the Chinese was led by Sr Col Fan Jun. The exercise was a great success and has not only refined the drills to provide succor to the border population in case of natural calamity but has also increased the level of trust and cooperation between the two border guarding forces along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh. The joint exercise, compliments the hand in hand series of the India-China joint exercises and the effort of both the nations to enhance cooperation and maintain peace and tranquility along the border areas of India and China. --- ENDS --- A police van repeatedly rammed protesters engaged in an anti-U.S. rally outside the U.S. Embassy in the Philippine capital, Manila, leaving several people injured. About 1,000 protesters gathered Wednesday in front of the embassy to call for an end to the U.S. military presence in the Philippines. Police fired tear gas and used water cannon to disperse the crowd. Demonstrators hospitalized Video showed protesters surrounding a police van and hitting it with wooden batons before the driver started repeatedly ramming them with the vehicle. One protest leader, Renato Reyes, said at least three of the protesters were hospitalized. At least 23 protesters were arrested during the rally, after they threw red paint on a group of police officers. The protesters support President Rodrigo Duterte's call for a foreign policy that does not depend on the United States, a longtime ally. Duterte shifting away from US In recent weeks, Duterte has increased calls for a foreign policy that does not involve cooperation with the United States and has attacked President Barack Obama personally, calling him a son of a whore. The activists, who came from the a large left-wing umbrella group called Byan (Nation), have protested in front of the American embassy for decades, most of which were peaceful. China visit During the protests, Duterte was on a state visit to China where he is trying to improve strained relations and expand bilateral trade and investment opportunities to improve his country's deteriorating infrastructure. Amid an uneasy relationship between the Philippines and the United States, Duterte has made overtures to China and Russia, creating more uncertainty to his country's long alliance with with the U.S. The protesters, however, are opposed to Duterte's outreach to China. In a statement, they said, "The Philippines will not be dictated on, whether by the U.S. or China." The violent protests occurred as Duterte is under international scrutiny for allegedly ordering the killings of thousands of suspected drug dealers and users in his war against illegal drugs. Scientists using new technology have announced some intriguing new discoveries while peering deep inside the great pyramids of Giza. The results come from the Scan Pyramids group, a collaboration between the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities and a host of international tech companies and universities. The team has been using high-tech muography, thermal imaging and 3-D scanning techniques to fully map the interior of the Great Pyramid of Khufu. The team is also working on the nearby pyramid of Khafre, and two others, the Bent pyramid and the Red pyramid. But the results on Khufu are the ones that are grabbing headlines. What is Khufu again? Khufu is generally known as the Great Pyramid of Giza. It's the oldest and largest of the three pyramids on the Giza plateau. Scientists believe it took about two decades to build and was finished around 2560 B.C., serving as the tomb of Pharaoh Khufu. It stands 146 meters high and was the largest man-made structure in the world until the 1300s, when the Lincoln Cathedral was built in London. It was first explored in 820 by a caliph named Abdullah Al Mamun, who tunneled into the pyramid until he eventually hit one of the hidden inner passageways. Since then, archaeologists have been combing the pyramid, trying to discover its secrets. But the Scan Pyramids team is adding an exciting new chapter in the continuing work to fully explore this last standing wonder of the ancient world. The team used a mapping technique called muography to visualize the interior of the pyramid. Muons are charged particles similar to electrons, and scientists say they are "highly penetrative." Think of them as X-rays on steroids. They are also everywhere, and millions of them pass through our bodies every day. VOA spoke with Mehdi Tayoubi, who heads the Heritage, Innovation and Preservation Institute, one of the main partners in the Scan Pyramids group. Muography is a fairly common scientific technique that Tayoubi says has been used to "look behind walls at Fukushima or to monitor magma chambers for volcanos, for example." The team has adapted the process to work inside the pyramids. Muons are absorbed by stone, so the team laid muon-sensitive plates, which look like giant X-ray plates, in the interior of the pyramid and then exposed them to the muons zipping through the pyramid. The muons that hit the plates, rather than the stones, create images. Those images suggested empty spaces or "voids" inside the pyramid. "The more dense the stones," Tayoubi says, " ... the more the muons are absorbed. That means if in certain angles we have more muons, we are able to identify voids." That's where some of the headlines you've been seeing about the discovery of new chambers inside the pyramid come from. But Tayoubi was quick to point out that voids don't mean new chambers, or new corridors. "When we 'see' a void," he says, "the question is not, 'Is there or not?' The questions are what exact size, what purpose, what exact shape, et cetera." All Tayoubi can say is that they can "confirm the presence of two previously unknown cavities." The team knows the most about the void on the northeast edge of the pyramid. "We can estimate that this void ... has a surface of about 9 meters squared, squared," Tayoubi says. The other void on the north face, the team knows little about. But about those headlines, Tayoubi says, "We are not talking about hidden chambers." What? No hidden chambers? Now the real work starts. This is a giant pyramid of solid stone, and even with the muography, Tayoubi says, "We can't look very deeply." And while he does say one of the voids seems to have a corridor shape, that "doesn't mean that it is a corridor." So what's next for the team? It's waiting for more results on muography that was done in the Queen's Chamber, which sits below the King's Chamber, where the sarcophagus, presumably of Khufu, was interred thousands of years ago. What is clear is that the pyramid may indeed have some mysteries to divulge, and the research, while far from being definitive, is noteworthy. The team is also using thermal scanners, and drones equipped with 3-D mapping technology, to scan not only the interior of the pyramids, but the entire Giza complex. Even if the team doesn't discover any new chambers or corridors, the result will be an incredible addition to the decades of research on the pyramids, and the entire pyramidal complex on the Giza plateau. Quebec is moving ahead with a law to ban face coverings in the public sector in a move criticized as marginalizing Muslim women and potentially inflaming anti-immigrant tensions in the mainly French-speaking Canadian province. The proposed law prohibits anyone giving or receiving government services, such as a provincial government-issued health card, from wearing face-covering garments. As an example, it would prevent a woman from donning the face-concealing burqa while trying to get a Quebec drivers license, and prohibit a civil servant from covering her face. The Quebec government is holding hearings before a vote on the legislation, which is likely to pass because of the centrist Liberal partys majority in the legislature. Quebec says the law is aimed at ensuring the religious neutrality of the state. Critics say a law is not required and only affects a small number of Muslim women who wear burqas or niqabs. Its an unnecessary exercise, said Amira Elghawaby, a spokeswoman for the National Council of Canadian Muslims, adding it could isolate and victimize women who wear the face veil. Like France, Quebec has struggled at times to reconcile its secular identity with a rising Muslim population, many of them North African immigrants. The face covering, or niqab, became a big issue in last years national Canadian elections, especially in Quebec, where the vast majority of the population supported a ban on them at citizenship ceremonies. France in 2004 passed a hotly contested ban on veils, crosses and other religious symbols in schools, which appeared to be a model for Quebecs Charter of Values that the previous provincial government tried to introduce in 2013. Quebecs justice minister has said the law is not an attack on Muslim women and respects individual choices. Our approach in this file would be balanced and respectful of greater principles such as gender equality and the recognition of rights and fundamental freedoms, said Justice Minister Stephanie Vallee. The latest legislation, Bill 62, is a watered-down version of that charter, and opposition lawmakers say it does not go far enough. Parti Quebecois legislator Agnes Maltais said Bill 62 fails to include services provided by municipalities, a key point of contact between civil servants and the public. Maltais said the law should be amended to prevent all state workers in positions of authority such as judges and prison guards from wearing religious symbols. The lower house of Russian parliament, Duma, has unanimously approved a decree signed by President Vladimir Putin to suspend a deal with the United States on the disposal of weapons-grade plutonium. Earlier this month, Putin said there is an emerging threat to strategic stability as a result of Washington's "unfriendly actions." Putin said the agreement would be restored if the United States withdrew its forces deployed near Russia's borders and revokes anti-Russian sanctions. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told lawmakers Wednesday Moscow could take other steps that would be painful'' for the United States if Washington ratchets up sanctions against Russia. Under the agreement signed in 2000 and renewed in 2010, both nuclear powers were obliged to dispose of weapons-grade plutonium from their defense programs. The Russian decree Wednesday also claimed the United States is unable "to ensure the implementation of its obligations to utilize surplus weapons-grade plutonium." Based on the 2010 agreement, each side would dispose of 34 metric tons of plutonium by burning it in nuclear reactors, a quantity large enough to make almost 17,000 nuclear weapons. Russia and the united States viewed the deal as a symbol of U.S.-Russian rapprochement and increased cooperation between them toward nuclear non-proliferation. But ties between Moscow and Washington plunged to the lowest point since the Cold War when Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and supported pro-Moscow separatists in eastern Ukraine. Washington has been instrumental in imposing Western economic sanctions on Russia for its role in the Ukraine crisis. Russian warships off the coast of Norway are carrying fighter bombers that are likely to reinforce a final assault on the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo in two weeks, a senior NATO diplomat said Wednesday, citing Western intelligence. The fleet passed by Bergen, Norway, on Wednesday, the diplomat said, while Russian media have said it will move through the English Channel, past Gibraltar and into the Mediterranean Sea to the Syrian coast. "They are deploying all of the Northern fleet and much of the Baltic fleet in the largest surface deployment since the end of the Cold War," the diplomat said on condition of anonymity. "This is not a friendly port call. In two weeks, we will see a crescendo of air attacks on Aleppo as part of Russia's strategy to declare victory there," the diplomat said. Photos of the vessels have been released by the Norwegian military, taken Monday. A Norwegian newspaper quoted the head of the Norwegian military intelligence service saying the ships involved "will probably play a role in the deciding battle for Aleppo." IS is reported target Russia, which supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with an air campaign against the Western rebels in the devastated eastern part of Aleppo, has said the deployment will target Islamic State militants in Syria. But the NATO diplomat said the additional military firepower was designed to drive out or destroy the 8,000 rebels in Aleppo, the only large city still in opposition hands, and allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to start a withdrawal. An intensified air campaign in eastern Aleppo, where 275,000 people are trapped, would further worsen ties between Moscow and the West, which says the Kremlin may be responsible for war crimes. NATO officials also say that strategically, Russia's airstrikes are securing its interests by protecting Assad and Russia's Syrian port in Tartous, which boosts its access to the Black Sea that it controls after taking the Crimean Peninsula. "With this assault, it should be enough to allow a Russian exit strategy if Moscow believes Assad is now stable enough to survive," the diplomat said. The fleet off Norway includes Russia's only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov, which is carrying jet fighters, and the Soviet-era nuclear-powered battle cruiser Pyotr Velikiy, or Peter the Great. Other Russian vessels in the group include anti-submarine warships and support ships, Russian media have said. Somali authorities have arrested Al-Jazeera journalist Hamza Mohamed along with a fixer and a cameraman after they returned to the capital from territory controlled by al-Shabab militants. Secretary General of the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) Mohamed Ibrahim Moallimu visited the three in prison Wednesday. "Hamza told me they went out of Mogadishu to do their job, and that on their way back they were stopped by NISA (National Intelligence and Security Agency) security forces who arrested them, Moallimu said, urging the government to release them immediately. Information Minister of Somalia Mohamed Abdi Mareye, in an interview with VOA Somali, confirmed the arrest of the three journalists and says the security forces are questioning them. As far as we know, the journalists have entered the country without informing the government, the Ministry of Information and Security agencies about their arrival, and then they travelled to a terrorist-held area where they received a big welcome, he said. They will be asked about how they entered the country, how they contacted the leaders of the terrorist organization, and who they met in those remote areas, Mareye said. Mareye declined to identify members of al-Shabab leaders the journalists allegedly met but he said the Somali government considers it a crime to make propaganda for terrorists. Interviewing terrorists Mareye alleged that the three were planning to leave the country with a one-sided story and intended to leave the country without the governments knowledge. He said they will be released once the questioning ends unless criminal implications come up. Asked if interviewing al-Shabab leaders would be considered as a crime by his government, Mareye said terrorists are not a legitimate force. VOA Somali has contacted Al-Jazeera's office in Mogadishu and has not received a response. In a story posted on Al-Jazeera website, the organization said, Mohamed has frequently travelled to the country over the past few years to cover politics, economics and culture for Al Jazeera with accuracy and integrity. The statement said Al-Jazeera is hoping ... that he will be released without further delay". Meanwhile, Somali authorities on Tuesday released the editor of a local newspaper. The editor of Xog-Ogaal newspaper Abdi Aden Guled welcomed his release after three days in prison that came as a result of negotiations between the government and the National Union of Somali Journalists. He said he was visited in the prison last by the Director of the National Intelligence and Security Agency General Gafow and the Secretary General of NUSOJ Moallimu. General Gafow asked me some questions, he said you are free and your equipment will be returned in the morning, Guled told VOA. Guled said after a three-day shutdown, the newspaper will be available in the streets Thursday morning. He said the security agents who arrested him complained about a picture published by the paper last week which they viewed as graphic following the killing of civilians by al-Shabab in El-Ali town. Americas presidential elections may be getting much of the worlds attention right now, but in the Horn of Africa, another countrys electoral season is also underway. Somalia hopes to elect a president, as well as members of two houses of parliament, by the end of November. Somali parliament member Abdiweli Qanyare says overall, the election process is going smoothly. So far, we are not seeing much complaint, said Qanyare. But anyway, wherever elections happen, there are people who will complain and people who will say its not fair. Even in the first world. So, legitimacy at the moment is fine. The Special Representative of the U.N. secretary-general for Somalia, Michael Keating, says there are challenges in conducting the elections, like security threats, since Somalia is attempting to recover from three decades of war and lawlessness, while still battling threats from al-Shabab. Also, there is the absence of a national ID system, and a lack of institutional capacity and memory. Im cautiously optimistic that this is going to go well, even though its going to be very messy and even though, as somebody said to me, it is possibly the most complicated electoral process on planet Earth, of all time, said Keating. New parliament There will be a new federal parliament, consisting of an upper and lower house. State assemblies will elect the 54 members of the upper house. The lower house will consist of 275 members, elected by 14,025 delegates selected by 135 clan elders. Voting for upper house candidates has begun, while polls for the lower house are scheduled to start Sunday, Oct 23. Both houses will then elect Somalias president on November 30. But not everyone, including Abdi Samatar, a Somali-born economic geographer at the University of Minnesota, is pleased with the arrangement. This is not an election, Jill, its a selection, said Samatar. A group of people are going to pick up candidates for parliament. Ordinary citizens have no way of influencing that, in any sense of the word. So its really a charade of a selection, of an election, I should say. International concerns The United Nations, African Union, United States and European Union issued a joint statement October 16 expressing concern that individuals with a history of criminality, violence and terrorism are being presented as candidates for the upper house of parliament, saying it represents a regressive step. But parliament member Qanyare argues that if someone has not been found guilty of doing something illegitimate, they have the right to run for office. Because, according to our constitution, it says that someone can be elected if he has not been convicted in the court [in] the last five years, said Qanyare. So I believe they are within the framework of the legality. Keating says that rejecting candidates who have been implicated in rights abuses would reaffirm Somalias commitment to ending the culture of impunity. But if we get through this and the results are legitimate, and it is not marked by excessive violence, then it is a huge confidence boost for Somalis, and its going to really set the stage for Somalia to go to another level, said Keating. Many are hoping that next level includes nationwide one-person, one-vote elections by 2020. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has proposed instituting term limits on members of Congress as part of a multi-pronged package he says will clean up American politics. "The time for congressional term limits has finally arrived," he told supporters Tuesday in the western state of Colorado. "Not only will it end our government corruption, but we will end the economic stagnation that we're in right now." U.S. presidents are constitutionally limited to two terms in office. There is no such limit on members of the House of Representatives or the Senate, many of whom stay in office for repeated terms. In the 2012 election, more than 90 percent of incumbents won re-election. Trump's other proposed reforms include banning former members of Congress, their staff, and those who served in the executive branch of government from working as lobbyists for five years, and instituting lifetime bans on foreign lobbyists raising money for U.S. election candidates. President Barack Obama on Tuesday criticized Trump's praise for Russian leader Vladimir Putin, saying his "continued flattery" is "unprecedented in American politics. Trump has said he views a better U.S. relationship with Russia as an opportunity for the two countries to fight as partners against the Islamic State group. He suggested this week that if he wins the November 8 election, he might visit Moscow even before being sworn in as president. A spokesman for his opponent, Democrat Hillary Clinton, criticized those comments along with others Trump has made during the campaign. "It's unclear why Donald Trump needs to meet with Vladimir Putin on November 9th since he's already repeating all his talking points, pushing his policy agenda and taking advantage of his espionage operation," said senior spokesman Glen Caplin. "Rest assured that as president, Hillary Clinton will stand up to Putin in the face of his unacceptable behavior, not coddle him." Clinton did not make any public appearances Tuesday ahead of Wednesday night's third and final debate between her and Trump. During the previous two debates, each invited guests with the apparent aim of unnerving their opponent, including Trump inviting a group of women who accuse Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton, of sexually assaulting them. Wednesday's guest list includes Trump's invitation of Obama's half brother Malik, who has said he will be voting for Trump. Malik, a U.S. citizen, is three years older than the president, with whom he shares the same father. The two men were once close, with Malik serving as best man at the president's wedding, but they have drifted apart in recent years. Malik Obama also criticized some decisions by his brother and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, especially the move to oust former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. Clinton has invited billionaire Mark Cuban, who has sharply criticized Trump, as well as Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman. The guests are seated in audiences that have in each of the previous debates been asked by moderators to not react to what the candidates say with any applause, cheering or boos. An average of major political polls from the past two weeks indicated Clinton leading Trump by about seven points. That advantage has spurred Clinton to expand her efforts into states that Republican candidates usually win, both as a move to help her own chance in the election and in a bid to boost the chances of more Democrats retaining or winning seats in Congress. Clinton's campaign said it will spend $2 million more on advertising in the southwestern state of Arizona, which has been won by a Democratic presidential candidate only once in the past 16 elections. It also plans to send one of it most popular surrogates, first lady Michelle Obama, to the state on Thursday to hold a rally for Clinton. Recent polls indicate Clinton and Trump locked in a tight race in the state, located just along the border with Mexico. In addition, the Clinton campaign is also increasing its efforts in Missouri and Indiana, two Midwestern states where Trump leads. But both states have closely contested Senate races that Democrats and Republicans view as important in their efforts to win political control next year in the Senate, where Republicans now have a majority. Trump told supporters Tuesday he does not believe the poll results and furthered his warnings of election fraud. "They even want to try and rig the election at the polling booths where so many cities are corrupt and voter fraud is all too common," Trump said. He also renewed his attacks on media outlets, which he has said throughout his run for president are treating him unfairly. "Now, there's a voter fraud also with the media because they so poison the mind of the people by writing false stories," Trump said. Trump has produced no evidence of voter fraud or other claims he has made, like alleging that Hillary Clinton was on drugs during their debate earlier this month. There is scant evidence of vote fraud in United States elections, with one study saying there were only 31 instances of voter impersonation from 2000 to 2014, a period in which one billion votes were cast in a long list of elections. A survey by the political website Politico and the polling company Morning Consult suggested many Americans are skeptical about the integrity of the national election, with 41 percent of voters believing that the election could be "stolen" from Trump. There was a wide partisan split in the poll results, with 73 percent of Republicans, but only 17 percent of Democrats, agreeing that there could be massive vote fraud. President Obama said Tuesday that Trump should "stop whining" and instead focus on convincing voters to support him in next month's election. "I have never seen in my lifetime or in modern political history any presidential candidate trying to discredit the elections and the election process before votes have even taken place," Obama said at a White House news conference alongside the visiting prime minister of Italy. "It's unprecedented. It happens to be based on no facts." Trump's claims of vote fraud involve both the early voting that has been going on for the past few weeks as well as claims there will be further problems on election day that would lead to Clinton being unduly declared the winner. Obama said that no matter the outcome, he expects the result of the vote to be honored. "If he got the most votes, it would be my expectation of Hillary Clinton to offer a gracious concession speech and pledge to work with him in order to make sure that the American people benefit from an effective government," he said. "And it would be my job to welcome Mr. Trump, regardless of what he's said about me, or my differences with him or my opinions, and escort him over to the Capitol [on inauguration day in January] in which there would be a peaceful transfer of power," the president added. "That's what Americans do." Obama was elected in 2008 and is finishing the second of his maximum two terms. He will turn over the White House to his elected successor about 10 weeks after the election. Obama and Vice President Joe Biden have appeared at campaign events in support of Clinton, who served as secretary of state during the first term of their administration. U.S. presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton go up against each other Wednesday night in their final debate before voters choose who will be the next leader of their country. The 90-minute debate in Las Vegas, Nevada, will cover a range of issues, including immigration, the economy, foreign hot spots and the candidates' fitness to be president. With election day looming on November 8, the debate stands as one of the last chances for Clinton and Trump to make an impression on a national audience. Each will likely be asked to address issues that have dogged their campaigns, including Clinton's use of a private email server when she was secretary of state and allegations of sexual misconduct against Trump. An average of major political polls from the past two weeks indicated Democratic candidate Clinton leading Republican candidate Trump by about seven points. That advantage has spurred Clinton to expand her efforts into states that Republican candidates usually win, both as a move to help her own chance in the election and in a bid to boost the chances of more Democrats earning seats in Congress. Clinton's campaign said it will spend $2 million more on advertising in the southwestern state of Arizona, which has been won by a Democratic presidential candidate only once in the past 16 elections. It also plans to send one of its most popular surrogates, first lady Michelle Obama, to the state on Thursday to hold a rally for Clinton. Recent polls indicate Clinton and Trump locked in a tight race in the state, located just along the border with Mexico. In addition, the Clinton campaign is also increasing its efforts in Missouri and Indiana, two Midwestern states where Trump leads. But both states have closely contested Senate races that Democrats and Republicans view as important in their efforts to win political control next year in the Senate, where Republicans now have a majority. Trump told supporters Tuesday he does not believe the poll results and renewed his warnings of election fraud. "They even want to try and rig the election at the polling booths where so many cities are corrupt and voter fraud is all too common," Trump said. Trump has produced no evidence of voter fraud or other claims he has made, like alleging that Hillary Clinton was on drugs during their last presidential debate. A new survey by the political website Politico and the polling company Morning Consult indicates many Americans are skeptical about the integrity of the national election, with 41 percent of voters believing the election could be "stolen" from Trump. There was a wide partisan split in the poll results, with 73 percent of Republicans, but only 17 percent of Democrats, agreeing that there could be massive vote fraud. While controversies surrounding Donald Trump loom large in the presidential race, the Republican nominee is also a focus of legislative contests that will determine which political party controls Congress. Trumps candidacy dominated the first five minutes of Mondays debate between Republican Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and his Democratic challenger, Katie McGuinty a contest both political parties desperately want to win. Asked whether they back their respective parties presidential candidates, McGuinty affirmed that she supports Democrat Hillary Clinton. Toomey indicated he remains on the fence regarding Trump. I have not reached a point where I can endorse Donald Trump, Toomey said. We have two badly flawed [presidential] candidates. McGuinty then criticized Toomey for not ruling out endorsing a guy who has bragged about sexual assault. The exchange illustrated a primary Democratic line of attack nationwide: tying Republican lawmakers to their partys nominee. Republicans have responded in a variety of ways. John McCain of Arizona was one of several Senate Republicans who rescinded his endorsement of Trump after video from 2005 was released in which the business mogul spoke of groping women. Others, like John Thune of South Dakota, joined McCain in unendorsing Trump, only to reverse course days later and say that he intended to support the nominee. In Florida, Senator Marco Rubio stood by his endorsement of Trump, arguing Democrat Hillary Clinton is worse. I dont trust Hillary Clinton with classified information, Rubio said. She has proven she cannot handle it. Republican strategists say their partys congressional candidates are in a bind. The biggest problem for a lot of these Republicans is their base supporters, the ones who are going to come out and vote; they are still supporting Donald Trump, said Washington-based Republican consultant John Feehery. A lot of these members are thinking, How do I win? And if it helps them to condemn Trump in swing districts, they are going to do that. If its better for them to be quiet, theyre going to do that. And if its better to support Trump, theyre going to do that, Feehery added. After eight years of Democratic control, Republicans won a slim Senate majority in 2014. Democrats would need to gain four seats to recapture the majority if Clinton wins, five seats if Trump is elected. I think we will win a majority in the Senate, said Democrat Chuck Schumer of New York. The Republican Party is in shambles and their candidates incumbent senators cant decide what to do with Trump. This years political terrain would seem ideal for Senate Democrats. Republicans are defending more than twice as many seats as Democrats, including several in Democratic-leaning states. Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky doesnt underestimate the challenge his caucus faces. Sort of like a knife fight in a phone booth, McConnell said. It could go either way. But polls dont show a Republican wipeout in the making. The partys most senior senators are comfortably ahead in their re-election bids. Many others trail their Democratic challengers by only a few points. Rubio is among those leading in the polls, telling Floridians his voice is needed as a counterweight to a possible Clinton presidency. No matter who wins this election, you are going to need people in the U.S. Senate willing to stand up to the next president of the United States, Rubio said. Even so, Feehery concedes that Trump could cost Republicans seats in both houses of Congress the only question is how many. If Donald Trump loses the election by 10 points, the House [[of Representatives]] is in danger. The Senate is going to be a toss-up anyway, Feehery said. By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 18 (PTI) JNU administration has requested all relevant Central agencies, including National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) and CBI for help in tracing a student who has been missing since Saturday even as the campus continued to be on the edge with protests continuing for the fourth day. Classes were also boycotted due to the strike called by the JNU students union. advertisement A student of School of Biotechnology, Najeeb Ahmed, allegedly went missing on Saturday following a brawl on the campus the night before. An FIR for kidnapping and wrongfully confining a person was lodged at Vasant Kunj North police station yesterday after the police received a complaint from the students guardians. Asserting that the university is seeking help from all relevant Central agencies to help trace Ahmad, JNU said in a statement, that "Delhi police have been approached to investigate the matter and the administration is regularly in communication with the police. Police has informed that they have already registered a case under section IPC 365 and doing the investigations". "All PCR vans in Delhi and all SSPs throughout India have been alerted and efforts are being made to trace the student. Further, the police has intimated all the six neighbouring states and put the information on Zip-net in Northern Zone. Moreover, all relevant central agencies, including NCRB and missing section of CBI have been requested for help," it added. The situation remained tense with the left-backed JNUSU and ABVP levelling allegations and counter-allegations. ABVP alleged that there is inconsistency in the statements of the JNUSU president Mohit Pandey and the roommate of Najeeb Ahmad and demanded a probe. Meanwhile, a group of students of Mahi-Mandvi wrote to the chief proctor specifying nine names claiming that they came to the hostel on Friday night and assaulted him. Also former JNUSU joint secretary, Saurabh Sharma, an ABVP member has been asked by the chief proctor to appear on October 21 for some clarification. However, the reason behind the summon is not clear from the letter. ABVP also staged a protest at the administrative block demanding efforts from the administration and police to find Ahmad. PTI GJS RG --- ENDS --- The United Nations says the war in Afghan has caused more than 8,000 civilian casualties, including nearly 2,600 deaths, in the first nine months of 2016. The U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, UNAMA, while releasing the casualty toll Wednesday, renewed its call for all parties to the conflict to prevent harm to civilians. The Mission said it has been deeply concerned by the continuing increase in child casualties since 2013. Child casualties "In the first nine months of 2016, UNAMA documented 2,461 child casualties [639 deaths and 1,822 injured], a 15 percent increase on the same period in 2015. Ground engagements caused more than half of all child casualties in 2016. The report blamed Taliban-led anti-government forces for causing 61 percent of all civilian casualties. While this represents a 12 percent decrease from the same period in 2015, UNAMA continues to document anti-government elements perpetrating illegal and indiscriminate attacks, as well as deliberate targeting of civilians, the agency warned. Fighting against insurgents Fighting between Afghan forces and insurgents has again been cited as the leading cause of civilian casualties, showing an 18 percent increase this year. Suicide and complex insurgent attacks, and improvised explosive devices or IEDs are cited as other major causes. The report noted a 72 percent increase in civilian casualties from aerial strikes by pro-government forces this year, saying one third of these were caused by international military forces. There were more than 11,000 conflict-related civilian casualties in 2015, marking the highest number of casualties since 2009 when UNAMA began documenting them. The conflict has since intensified, with Taliban insurgents expanding their activities to many more Afghan provinces this year. The Afghan war is estimated to have caused 70,000 civilian casualties, including over 25,000 deaths since the counting began seven years ago. Plea to better protection of civilians Increased fighting in densely populated areas makes it imperative for parties to take immediate steps to ensure all feasible precautions are being taken to spare civilians from harm, said UNAMA Chief Tadamichi Yamamoto. The report accused pro-government Afghan forces of causing 23 percent of all civilian casualties, noting a 42 percent increase compared to last year, primarily due to the use of indirect and explosive weapons and aerial attacks. UNAMA added it was unable to ascertain responsibility for eleven percent of civilian casualties which resulted from the ground fighting in the first three quarters of 2016. The majority of the remaining casualties, it stated, were caused by unattributed unexploded ordinance. There is an urgent need for the government to implement the National Civilian Casualty Prevention and Mitigation policy and for anti-government elements to cease the use of indiscriminate and illegal devices and tactics, said Yamamoto. U.N. officials are also worried over the rising number of civilian displacements the conflict has caused this year. They have warned more than a million Afghans will be on the move by end of 2016, including tens of thousands of Afghan refugees returning mostly from neighboring Pakistan. The total number of the returnees has exceeded 400,000 since the start of the year, according to U.N. estimates. The United Nations says Russia's extension of a truce in the Syrian city of Aleppo is not enough time to allow humanitarian aid to be delivered to besieged civilians. Russian Lt. General Sergei Rudskoi said a "humanitarian pause" Thursday in Aleppo will last from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., three hours longer than originally planned, to allow civilians and rebels to safely leave the city's eastern side. Rudskoi said the 11 hour truce will allow militants to exit the city using two of eight humanitarian routes, one leading to Turkey and the other a pathway to the rebel-held province of Idlib. But Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has yet to honor the cease-fire extension and rebel troops have indicated they will not leave their positions. "Before we can do something really meaningful ... we need assurances from all parties," said U.N. humanitarian agency spokesman Jens Laerke. Russia's three hour extension is inadequate, said Laerke, adding the United Nations needs fighting to stop for "a minimum of 48 hours" to allow UN humanitarian aid teams to mobilize. The United Nations said about 250,000 civilians are in desperate need of supplies on Aleppo's eastern side and hundreds of others who urgently need of medical care also need to be evacuated. U.N. and Red Cross trucks packed with supplies have been sitting near the Turkish border for weeks, awaiting guarantees the trucks can safely deliver relief supplies. Syria and Russia halted airstrikes on Aleppo on Tuesday, and Rudskoi said both countries are keeping their warplanes at least 10 kilometers away from the city. Syrian and Russians warplanes had been been bombarding the area in an attempt to reclaim Aleppo from rebels. President Barack Obama's half-brother Malik is attending Wednesday's final presidential debate, as a guest of Republican nominee Donald Trump. The president's paternal uncle in Kenya tells VOA that he believes Malik has allowed himself to be used as a political tool by the Trump campaign. Sayid Obama also says Malik is the only family member he knows who supports the Republican presidential candidate. "I haven't seen anybody who supports Donald Trump," Sayid Obama told VOA from his home in Kisumu, Kenya. "With exception of Malik the rest they hold [Democratic candidate] Hillary [Clinton] in high esteem." Sayid Obama says, however, that he does not speak to Malik often and has not seen him since President Obama's visit to Kenya last year. But he is perplexed as to why Malik has accepted Trump's invitation to attend the debate, not to mention why he supports the Republican in the first place. "I don't see why he is accepting himself to be misused to fight the president," Sayid said. A US citizen Malik Obama, a Maryland voter and U.S. citizen currently living in Kenya, has endorsed Trump after a long history of supporting the Democratic party. I like Donald Trump because he speaks from the heart, Malik Obama told the New York Post. " 'Make America Great Again' is a great slogan. I would like to meet him." Malik expressed "deep disappointment" with President Obama's administration. Born in Kenya, Malik Obama met his younger brother Barack for the first time in 1985. Malik ran for office in Kenya in 2013, promising to combat unemployment and poverty in the county of Siaya by using his connections to the U.S., but lost. Australia says an underwater drone will be used in the continuing deep sea search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. Australias Transportation Safety Bureau said Wednesday it will fit one of the ships involved in the deep-sea sonar search with a special drone that will be used to investigate several pieces of debris identified in previous explorations as having some man-made properties. "The ROV (remotely operated vehicle) will be tasked to reacquire and investigate, through video imaging, a range of sonar contacts which have been identified during previous deep tow operations," the ATSB said in a statement. "Winter weather conditions have, until now, prevented the safe deployment of the ROV, but now sea states are improving." The search will take place off Australias western coast, where officials say theyve found more than 20 so-called sonar contacts that require further examination. The Malaysia Airlines flight vanished more than two years ago on March 8, 2014, while travelling to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur. There were 239 people aboard. Despite a massive search effort conducted off the Australian coastline where investigators believe the plane crashed, there has been no sign of the plane or the passengers aboard. The search of a 120,000-square-kilometer area where the plane is suspected to have gone down is scheduled to be completed by January or February, Australian transportation officials said Wednesday. When that search area is completely cleared, the governments of China, Malaysia and Australia agreed to permanently suspend the effort, unless credible new information arises. A southern California man convicted of trying to become a fighter for the Islamic State terrorist group was sentenced Monday to 30 years in prison. Muhanad Badawi, 25, was convicted earlier this year of conspiracy to aid a foreign terrorist organization and other crimes. The significant sentence the defendant received illustrates the gravity of this crime and the threat the defendants posed to the United States, Deirdre Fike, assistant director in charge of the FBI's Los Angeles office, said in a statement. Badwadi also was sentenced to a lifetime of supervised release. Authorities say Badawi and 25-year-old Nader Elhuzayel, also of California, concocted a scheme for Elhuzayel to fly to the Middle East to fight for Islamic State, and that Badawi lent him his debit card to buy a one-way plane ticket to Israel with a six-hour layover in Turkey. The evidence at trial showed that Elhuzayel and Badawi used social media to discuss Islamic State beheadings and other terror attacks. In recorded conversations, the two discussed how it would be a blessing to fight for the cause of Allah, and to die in the battlefield. Defense attorney Kate Corrigan, who has said Badawi never intended to fight for the Islamic State, had requested half the amount of prison time and 20 years of supervision. She cited his lack of criminal history and age and said she planned to appeal the sentence. The real message from todays hearing is that anyone who thinks they want to support ISIS or even dabble in its rhetoric better be ready to serve a lot of time in prison, she wrote in an email according to the Associated Press. Badawi moved to the United States as a child from Sudan, where he was born. He lived in Orange County, California, and studied engineering. While in custody, Badawi stopped eating and dropped from 140 to 109 pounds before a judge ordered him force-fed last December, according to the Associated Press. Elhuzayel was sentenced three weeks ago, also to 30 years in prison. The United States and South Korea on Wednesday announced a further strengthening of their security alliance with the start of talks on an "extended deterrence" against a nuclear North Korea. The U.S. is considering the permanent deployment at its bases in South Korea of B-1B and nuclear capable B-52 bombers, F-22 stealth fighter jets and nuclear-powered submarines, according to defense and diplomatic sources. Wednesday's establishment of a high-level Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group is being accompanied by unusually blunt public comments from the U.S. secretaries of defense and state about the possibility of nuclear war initiated by Pyongyang on the Korean peninsula. "Any use of nuclear weapons will be met with an overwhelming and effective response," said U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter at the start of security talks with the South Korean defense and foreign ministers. South Korea's security is guaranteed by the "full spectrum of U.S. defense capabilities," Carter said in a reference to the American nuclear defense shield protecting the U.S. ally. Dagger against our throats Carter made his comments while seated alongside U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and two South Korean government officials Minister of National Defense Han Min-koo and Minister of Foreign Affairs Yun Byung-se. Hours later, Kerry, at a news conference with Yun, repeated the same stark rhetoric and predicted "North Korea will never attain its goals through threats and intimidation." Yun, at the start of the talks, said Pyongyang is nearing the "final stage of nuclear weaponization," compelling the United States and South Korea to utilize "all tools in the toolkit" to defend themselves and make the North Koreans "feel the panic under their skins." Han then said that North Korea's nuclear weapons and missiles are akin to "a dagger against our throats." THAAD deployment Rounds of UN-led sanctions have done little to deter North Korea from additional provocative nuclear and missile tests. While continuing to work for denuclearization, "we need to ensure working together that the DPRK pays a price for its dangerous actions," Kerry said, using an acronym for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Amid what he termed a "pivotal moment" on the Korean peninsula, Kerry added that the United States will deploy to South Korea "as soon as possible" a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery. China and some in South Korea oppose the deployment of the anti-ballistic missile system, contending it unnecessarily exacerbates tensions in the region. North Korea has conducted five nuclear tests its most powerful yet just weeks ago. And its latest ballistic missile launch, deemed a failure by international observers, occurred just days ago. Kerry maintained that the military option to stop North Korea's ongoing nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs is "a last resort." Analysts reactions Wednesday's tougher language from top U.S. officials caught some by surprise, but it will be welcomed by hawks who argue that diplomacy and economic sanctions have failed to deter Pyongyang. "I don't think this stronger rhetoric is going to deter them from taking the next step, whatever their next step is," said Pacific Forum CSIS adjunct fellow Tara O, the author of "The Collapse of North Korea: Challenges, Planning and Geopolitics of Unification." Other analysts question the prospect of basing U.S. Air Force bombers in South Korea. "I don't see why you need B-52s and B-1s on the peninsula. That puts them within DPRK short-range missiles, and therefore more vulnerable than if they remain at Andersen [Air Force Base on Guam]. They can fly to Korea in a few hours," said Troy University international relations professor Daniel Pinkston, author of "The North Korean Ballistic Missile Program." Basing such aircraft and THAAD on the Korean peninsula would cause China "to be in an uproar" and officials in Pyongyang and Beijing to assert that such forward deployed assets are intended to deter the Chinese, Pinkston told VOA. Carter's stark reference Wednesday to nuclear retaliation is expected to raise serious questions about the nuclear option, said O, a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel who did three tours of duty on the Korean peninsula and also specialized in regional security matters at the Pentagon. "Someone has to make a decision on what will be an acceptable cost if we are to carry out anything beyond rhetoric," O told VOA. The two Koreas have no diplomatic ties and have technically remained at war since a devastating 3-year conflict in the early 1950s ended in a stalemate. The Korean War drew in Chinese forces supporting the North, while a U.S.-led United Nations coalition countered the North's invasion of the South. The International Criminal Court on Wednesday convicted Congolese warlord Jean-Pierre Bemba and four others of witness tampering. This was the second trial for Bemba at the court in The Hague. The former vice president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is serving an 18-year sentence for war crimes and crimes against humanity related to widespread abuses by his forces in the Central African Republic. In this case, Bemba and four members of his legal team were found guilty of bribing and otherwise influencing 14 defense witnesses to try to tilt the outcome of his first trial. They face up to five years in prison. This was the ICC's first case dealing with witness tampering, and it will most likely not be its last. Presiding Judge Bertram Schmitt described the actions of the accused as "clear and downright criminal behavior." "Today's judgment sends the clear message that the court is not willing to allow its proceedings to be hampered or destroyed," he said. "It sends the message that those who try to distort and interfere with the administration of justice of this court do not go unpunished." Similar allegations have cropped up in other ICC cases, particularly those dealing with post-election violence in Kenya. Cases against Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto, who both faced charges of crimes against humanity, were ultimately dropped for insufficient evidence. The prosecution cited allegations of witness tampering, bribery and threats. Reacting to Wednesday's verdict, Human Rights Watch noted three people had been arrested on charges of witness tampering in relation to the Kenya cases. A senior U.N. official says humanitarian agencies will take advantage of a 72-hour cease-fire in Yemen to rush life-saving aid to tens of thousands of people in areas that have been cut off by the conflict for a long time. The cease-fire is to go into effect Wednesday night. The U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen says the window for delivering aid is very slim and limited to areas where the fighting has stopped. Speaking on a telephone line from the capital, Sanaa, Jamie McGoldrick tells VOA the fighting is still going on in many areas and he does not expect the cease-fire to kick in throughout the country at the stroke of midnight. As you know, in any crisis as you come towards the cessation of hostilities or peace talks, there is always an intensification of fighting. And, even this morning in Sanaa, we had airstrikes," said McGoldrick. "So I think people will use this, the gap between now and the cessation of hostilities to try and ramp up or get themselves in a different position, and especially as we move, hopefully toward peace talks. The United Nations reports 80 percent of Yemens 24 million people are in need of humanitarian aid. It says the formal economy has all but collapsed. Unemployment is massive. It says 14 million people are short of food and going hungry. It adds three million people, mostly children under five, need nutrition assistance. This applies especially for the nearly 1.3 million children who are acutely malnourished. McGoldrick says 72 hours is not a lot of time. So aid agencies will deliver relief supplies that are stocked in warehouses close to areas that have been out of reach for a long time. If it is only 72 hours, we have got to be realistic. We will not get much done in that time beyond what we are doing already," said McGoldrick. "We might be able to enter some pockets, which have been cut off for some time. In terms of the widespread ability to respond, it is not going to be something we can do easily. We are asking for this to be open-ended. We are asking for this to be a long, permanent and lasting cease-fire. McGoldrick says a long-lasting break in Yemens civil war could enhance prospects for peace. In the meantime, he says aid agencies are in desperate need of money to carry out their life-saving operations. He says the year is almost over, yet the United Nations has received less than half of the $1.63 billion dollars it needs for 2016. The representatives of Tibetan settlements in India, Bhutan, and Nepal gathered in Dharamsala, North India for the 11th annual settlement officer's meeting from October 17 to 20. Dr. Lobsang Sangay, head of Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) spoke at the inaugural function and called on the 43 Tibetan settlement officers to follow up on the 2014 Rehabilitation Act passed by Indian Government and to present project plans for the 23 million dollar grant aid awarded to CTA by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) over the next five years. Tenzin Nawa, Kullu settlement officer and Chonor Samdup, Orissa settlement officer spoke to VOA's Tibetan service on their future plans. The officers are scheduled to participate in workshops on leadership, 'Middle Way policy,' and seven agendas set for the meeting within the next three days. Since the collapse of the cessation of hostilities agreement during Aid, a rift has opened between the carefree atmosphere of Western societies and the gravity of Russian and Chinese societies. In Moscow, the television broadcasts information on anti-atomic shelters and assault course team games, while in Washington, everyone laughs at the paranoid Russians who believe that there may be a Third World War. And yet the two major powers are sending one another signals that would scare anyone. After the US threatened to bomb Syria, Moscow has broken its agreement on the limitation of plutonium stocks, and ajusted its launch system for nuclear weapons by firing three intercontinental missiles. The spokesperson for the Russian army has warned his counterparts, and announced that his armement was capable of destroying all US aircraft, whether they be cruise missiles or stealth fighters. The chief of staff for the US land army proudly replied that in case of a frontal war, the aviation and marines of both armies would quickly be neutralised, and that Washington would win the war on the ground. These bellicose declarations did not particularly impress the Russians, but worried members of Congress to the point that 22 of them wrote to President Obama to ask him to promise not to be the first to start a nuclear war. Moscow gave instructions to its diplomats on post in the NATO countries to repatriate their families and prepare to leave in their turn. In former times, the Romans assured that If you want peace, prepare for war. (Si vis pacem, para bellum). The idea was that during a period of international dispute, victory would be won, without war, by the side that seemed capable of winning by the use of military might. The fact is that the Russian population is preparing for war (for example, this week, 40 million Russians participated in excercises for the evacuation of buildings and fire-fighting), while the Western populations continued to shuffle unconcernedly through their shopping malls. Of course, we can hope that reason will prevail and that we will avoid a Third World War. In any event, this sabre-rattling attests to the fact that the gamble that has been playing out for the last five years in Syria was not what we thought it was. While at the beginning, the State Department was working to implement its plan for the Arab Spring - in other words the overthrow of the regions secular regimes in order to replace them with the Muslim Brotherhood - Russia and China quickly concluded that the world could no longer be governed by the United States - and that they should no longer be in a position to decide the life or death of the People. By cutting the historic Silk Road in Syria, and then the new Silk Road in Ukraine, Washington inhibited the development of both China and Russia, forcing them to work together. The unexpected resistance of the Syrian people forced the United States to risk their world domination. The world, which had become unipolar in 1991 with Desert Storm, is now on the point of returning to its bipolar state, and will perhaps even become multipolar later on. In 1990-91, the change of world order had been imposed without war (the invasion of Iraq was not the cause, but the consequence), but at the cost of the interior collapse of the Soviet Union. The quality of life for the ex-Soviets diminished drastically their society was profoundly disorganised, their national wealth was pillaged on the pretext of being privatised, and their life expectancy was reduced by more than 20 years. After having at first believed that this defeat was the fault of Sovietism, we know today that the fall of the USSR was also perhaps especially the fruit of economic sabotage by the CIA. It is therefore not impossible to to attain a new balance of world power without a generalised confrontation. And in order to avoid a World War, the discussion between John Kerry and Sergey Lavrov has progressed from the battle of Aleppo to a general cease-fire for all of Syria and also Yemen. And in fact, we have seen the announcement of an 8-hour truce in Aleppo and a 72-hour truce in Yemen. The problem is that the United States can not retreat to equality with Russia from its uncontested first place which they took by force and then used so poorly without paying the price, either alone or with their allies. Strangely, the five Arab states, Turkey and Iran, who had been invited to Lausanne by Kerry and Lavrov, left apparently satisfied by the meeting. Yet it was their future which was in question. None of them seem to think that heads had to fall, like those of the Warsaw Pact. In the present situation, it is possible to abstain from wiping out part of Humanity, but the importance of the US withdrawal will be measured by the number and importance of the allies they will have to sacrifice. According to a local myth, a newlywed bride, whose husband was murdered here, cursed this town. Now, most women believe that observing the traditional Karva Chauth fast will cost their husbands their lives. By Siraj Qureshi: Women across the country may be celebrating the Karva Chauth festival today, fasting and praying for the long life of their husbands, but there is a town in Mathura where it's believed that observing this fast will lead to the death of their spouse. Although there is no scientific explanation for this belief, the women of Surir town in Mathura are steadfast in following this belief. advertisement According to a local myth, a newlywed bride, whose husband was murdered here, cursed this town. Now, most women believe that observing the traditional Karva Chauth fast will cost their husbands their lives. Incidentally, there have also been some untimely deaths in this town that have only cemented this belief. THE MYTH Local resident Suresh Chand Sharma narrated the tale to India Today. Sharma says a Brahmin youth from Ram Nagla village was passing through Surir with his bride in a bullock cart on Karva Chauth, when some locals alleged that he had stolen the bulls on the cart. They then proceeded to beat him to death. Furious at losing her husband, the woman is said to have cursed the entire locality. The widow is said to have subsequently killed herself by committed 'sati' on her husband's funeral pyre, further fuelling the superstition. SATI TEMPLE Sharma claims that after the incident, a number of local women lost their husbands after observing the Karva Chauth fast. This cemented the belief that 'Sati' has cursed the town. Since then the women here refrain from observing any fast on Karva Chauth and have even constructed a temple of 'Sati' where they pray on Karva Chauth for the long lives of their husbands. In fact, Sunahari Devi, another local, claims that since the temple was built and the women began praying here, unnatural deaths of young men in this locality have stopped. According to another local belief, before mounting his horse to bring home his new wife, a groom first prays before 'Sati' for her blessings and only after that, the wedding procession begins. --- ENDS --- On 16 October 2017, General Ali Mamelouk, head of Syrian State Security, made an official visit to Cairo, where he met his Egyptian counterpart. The two men spoke about the fight against the jihadists, whose parent company, the Muslim Brotherhood, was constituted in Egypt in 1951 by the Anglo-Saxon secret services. The current Brotherhood took its name from that of the secret society created by Hassan el-Banna in 1928, and dissolved in 1949 after a wave of political assassinations, including the murder of the Prime Minister. On 8 October, Egypt voted in favour of two projects for Resolutions to be presented to the Security Council, one from France and the other from Russia. Both projects were rejected by return vetos [1]. The recent history of Egypte is chaotic. In 2011, it was the victim of a colour revolution organised by the National Endowment for Democracy, which ended with the resignation of President Moubarak [2]. It then fell victim to a coup detat by the Muslim Brotherhood, who blackmailed the Presidential Electoral Commission into proclaiming the election of Mohamed Morsi, who in fact had lost [3]. Finally, it suffered another blow with the destitution of President Morsi by the army at the request of all political parties except the Muslim Brotherhood. The current President, Marshall Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, first of all outlawed the Brotherhood and fought against it. He transmitted to Saudi Arabia the proof of a conspiracy by a faction of the Brotherhood to overthrow the Wahhabi monarchy, and received in exchange considerable financial support for his country. Last April, he offered King Salmane the islands of Tiran and Sanafir, causing uproar throughout the country [4]. This decision was invalidated by a tribunal and remains unsettled. So far, President Sissi has failed to fight efficiently against the Muslim Brotherhood, and has not been able to protect the Christians from them either, despite his engagements. He has installed a repressive system which is aimed at fighting the Brotherhood as well as defending a traditionalist concept of society. On 8 October, Saudi Arabia reacted violently against Egypts support for the Russian proposition presented to the Security Council. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has announced the start of the battle of Mosul. The mass of the Atlantist Press is rejoicing about the coming liberation of the city, currently occupied by Daesh. In reality, the Iraqi army is only acting as a facade in this conflict. The real firepower belongs to the Coalition led by the Pentagon, followed by the anti-terrorist units (Special Forces) directed by the Prime Minister, and finally by the Shia, Kurd and Sunni militias. The inhabitants of Mosul had welcomed the arrival of Daesh, and a good number still support them. However, this does not necessarily mean that they adhere to Daesh ideology, but see it as the arm which will help them recover the power they enjoyed before the overthrow of President Hussein. In case Daesh should offer resistance, the Pentagon will have no scruples about indiscriminately bombing the 1.5 million inhabitants of the city. It has constructed an emergency camp to shelter 800,000 people who may flee the combat zone, but has provided nothing to take care of the wounded or to feed them. In reality, Daesh should withdraw from Mosul and retreat freely into Syria, as was previously the case for Falloujah [1]. As from now, Washington might well accept civil peace in Syria and let Damascus worry about Daesh. Chief Minister Addresses Brussels Think Tank Immediately after his arrival in Brussels on Wednesday morning, the Chief Minister addressed a think tank comprising politicians, EU officials, lawyers, journalists and representatives of major European institutions. In his address, Mr Picardo looked back over Gibraltar's changing relationship with, first, the EEC and later the EU. He also described the way in which Gibraltarians began to feel 'part of the Brussels family' when the European Commission began to show its support for Gibraltar over the issue of the frontier queues. He later went on to describe the strength of support on the Rock for the 'Remain' campaign. 'Whilst we are still passionate Europeans, we will respect the outcome of the Referendum,' he said. 'However, our relationship with Britain goes back over 300 years whilst our relationship with the EU goes back just 40.' Following the Chief Minister's address, James Nicholson MEP described how the Brexit decision would affect his constituents in Northern Ireland. Mr Nicholson stressed that, following Brexit, Northern Ireland's border with the Republic of Ireland would be a border between UK and Europe in exactly the same way that Gibraltar's frontier would be a border between Britain and Europe. The two speakers then answered a range of probing questions from the audience. Mr Picardo spent the afternoon in one-to-one meetings with senior officials and with representatives of various EU countries. One of these meetings was with Werner Langen, an influential German MEP and another meeting was with Guy Verhofstadt MEP who is the European Parliament's Brexit negotiator and who was the Belgian Prime Minister for three terms. 'Around Brussels I have found a great deal of interest in Gibraltar's post-Brexit position,' said Mr Picardo. 'People seem to be aware of our position, more so perhaps than of Britain's other Crown Territories and Overseas Territories. The needs of Scotland, Norther Ireland and Wales also need to be factored in so the Brexit negotiators must approach the problem with an open mind. They must be prepared to consider new solutions and not just be hidebound by old ideas. I think that Gibraltar's issues are very well understood in London so we need have no worries on that score.' On Thursday, the Chief Minister will take part in a major conference entitled, 'The State of Europe: Disruption, Disorder and Division - Crunch time for Europe.' In 2015, Eddie Huang wrote a lengthy and excoriating piece for Vulture about the making of Fresh Off the Boat. Huang voiced his frustrations with how the show watered down its source material to make a family-friendly version of his life, without the nuance and the grit hed expected. For the past couple of seasons, Ive quietly agreed. But coming off of last weeks strong premiere, Breaking Chains sees the fictional Huang family and the strong writers room at Fresh Off the Boat getting a little more comfortable in their skin. I dont know if this episode would pass Eddie Huangs muster, but for me, it worked. Change is afoot in the Huang household. Business is booming at Cattlemans Ranch, thanks to a TV above the bar and (possibly) free dessert. And the little angels are moving on up in school, too. Eddies an eighth grader now, imbued with the specific brand of hubris unique to 13-year-old boys. Emery, sweet boy that he is, graduated from elementary school and is prepared to enter the wild and woolly world of the sixth grade. Each child responds to this in their own way: Emerys excited, Evan is in deep mourning, and Eddie well, Eddie has some tricks up his sleeve to help his little brother navigate sixth grade and its attendant horrors. Emerys optimism is shattered by the presence of Eddies binder. The binder, you see, is a detailed account of the lies Eddie has told over the years, a gentle stretching of the truth about their cultural heritage. Essentially a primer for getting by via the exploitation of ignorant white people, its an essential document that has made Eddies life easier and will hopefully do the same for Emery. If this hammock of lies werent so problematic for Emery, it would actually be genius. Theres the celebration of Harvest Day, a holiday that doesnt exist; double tater tots instead of green beans because Chinese people cant process chlorophyll; a better locker that doesnt involve the number four because its bad luck; a 1:15 p.m. nap on a desk facing west, to better sense if China is coming for Taiwan, and my personal favorite, a succinct explanation for Eddies preference to do things at the last minute, as per Chinese superstition. Great! The path is clear; the map well-written and exceedingly easy to follow. In the words of RuPaul, dont fuck it up, Emery. Heres the thing: Eddie and Emery are not the same people. Emery is basically a Goldendoodle puppy, all good cheer and fluffy hair and sweet earnestness. He wants to do stuff like sign up for karate club, learn photography, and maybe even take on the violin. But, as explained by Eddie in one of the first actual fights Ive seen these children have, thats what white people expect him to be. Eddies first day in middle school was a nightmare: People made fun of what he was eating, he ate lunch with the janitor, and everyone treated him like an alien because he was the first one. He broke the chains. His suffering cleared the way for his brothers to flourish, but he didnt consider the possibility that they wouldnt want to flourish in the same way that he did. Eddie did the work to fight against the model minority stereotypes and Emery, poor sweet Emery, is trying to ruin it. Leave it to Evan to straighten this out. In what is perhaps my favorite scene this week, Evan screams at Eddie for ruining Emerys life before he even had a chance to start it. Eddie, scared straight by his youngest brother, yells, Everything you touch turns to dog doo! at him in the middle of the street, and signs Emery up for karate the next day. While Jessicas children grapple with complex issues related to identity, shes dealing with something similar. For starters, her house is a mess. Like, an actual mess. Louis tries to help by hiring Mary, a well-intentioned cleaning tutor to help out around the house. Youd think that Jessicas complaints about the cleanliness of her home mean that she wanted a cleaning lady, right? You are mistaken. You are sadly mistaken. Marys first day on the job goes great! Jessica micromanages her in a way that brought to mind my mother instructing me how to clean the floors, and Mary, bless her, cant hang. She quits, Jessica drives her home, shakes her down for gas money, and is done with it. Jessica Huang said shed clean the house herself. And she probably would have if it were not for Louis diverting her to the Cattlemans while Mary did the job instead. Lo and behold, Mary the house cleaner does a bang-up job! The bleach stain on the couch is gone. She touched up the rhubarb with model paint on Jessicas beloved collection of colonial mice figurines. But despite how good the house looks, Jessicas still sad. Of course she hates cleaning no one really cares for it but a family is supposed to take care of things themselves. Hiring out strangers to handle tasks like cleaning means youre running the house like a business. Even if they can afford it, Jessica wants to clean because she wants to feel like shes needed. Taking care of her family and resenting them afterwards is normal. Perfectly normal. Authenticity Index A change is also afoot for the show itself, possibly rendering the authenticity index obsolete. It seems like the Huangs have finally found their footing and are really digging into issues without having to sprinkle bits and bobs of Chinese things around as a nod to viewers like me who will cry out in happy recognition. Regardless, there was a lot in here that rings true, but none so much as Jessicas entire arc. As I mentioned above, watching her breathe over the cleaning ladys shoulder gave me flashbacks to cleaning the floor on my hands and knees as my mom offered gentle suggestions for my technique. Hearing Jessica plainly express that cleaning the house makes her feel needed made me cry. And Eddie expertly exploiting the tiny throwaway bits about Chinese culture, like the number four being bad luck, at the gentle expense of white peoples ignorance is brilliant. So, the entire episode gets five years worth of Harvest Day celebrations for nailing just about everything right on the head. Since Star-Lord, Gamora, and the rest of the Guardians of the Galaxy are occupying their own remote section of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, its been quite a while since weve seen them in action: They dont get to take part in avenging, and theyre a little too far away to engage with superhero civil wars, which is why todays teaser trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was such a delightful reintroduction to the gang. But what can we glean about their coming adventures from this short clip, and what was left out of the trailer thats even more promising? I was lucky enough to see a whole hell of a lot more Guardians 2 footage this past summer at Comic-Con, so below, Ill try my best to contextualize the trailer for you as we move through it nearly shot by shot. First, we float through a spaceship hallway, which provides one of the many circles well see in this teaser trailer. Are they all meant to evoke the shape of a planet? Or do circular things just look cooler? This scrawled space-suit addendum (which has got to be from Rocket, right?) immediately reestablishes Guardians irreverent sense of humor. We catch a brief glimpse of Drax (Dave Bautista) from behind before we get this shot of Gamora (Zoe Saldana), which Im including because her lace-front has got all sorts of flyaways. (You all know I love a superhero wig, and Im not going to apologize for it.) This shot comes from the same wrecked-forest sequence we see later in the trailer, and if I remember correctly from the Comic-Con footage, its in this setting that we first meet Kurt Russell as Star-Lords father, though the character isnt introduced in this trailer. This evocative intro reestablishes Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) as he stands at a circular precipice. I wonder if this is meant to provide a clue to the characters parentage, since this image of a man contained in a planet-like circle nicely foretells Russells role as Ego, a living planet that can take the guise of a man. (Or, once again, it could just be because circles are dope.) Now, some action. This look at sword-wielding Gamora comes from what Im pretty sure is the first scene in the movie, as the Guardians pursue a dangerous bounty by taking down a many-tendriled space beast. We got to watch the first half of the sequence at Comic-Con, and it begins with the Guardians waiting for the interdimensional monster to show up and passing the time by cracking jokes at each others expense. These two images come from a later sequence we saw nearly in full, as Baby Groot helps engineer a prison break for Yondu (Michael Rooker) and Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper). The Ravager captain has been betrayed by his own mutinying men, and he gets his revenge by coaxing Baby Groot to find a deadly fin stashed somewhere on his ship. Once its found, Yondu sends his fin-arrow on a circuitous path to take out every remaining Ravager, and their bodies fall in slow-mo as he, Rocket, and Groot walk out unscathed (a sequence set to Jay & the Americans song Come a Little Bit Closer in the actual film). Here, the Guardians discover Nebula (Karen Gillan), who exited the last movie on pretty sour terms with her sister Gamora. The two continued to clash in the additional footage I saw, but director James Gunn has implied that Nebula will become a full-blown member of the Guardians by the end of the film. Took a little while before we got to see Chris Pratts handsome face, huh? This is another shot from the films potential first sequence, as Star-Lord suits up to take on the giant beast hovering above what looks for all intents and purposes like a giant, galactic sundial. Its getting harder and harder to be a working member of Blue Man Group. The trailer chooses this moment to really crank up Hooked on a Feeling, the song now inescapably associated with the first Guardians film, though the very different trailer I saw at Comic-Con was scored to The Chain by Fleetwood Mac, a likely track on Star-Lords new Awesome Mix. As Star-Lord pilots the Milano, you may notice that hes rocking sideburns like an original cast member on Beverly Hills 90210. Dont be afraid to experiment with your personal grooming, Star-Lord! Remember our first tantalizing shot of Gamora from earlier in the teaser? Its from this sequence, as the Guardians arrive at a wreckage site and greet both Ego and his companion Mantis (Pom Klementieff, playing another new Guardian). This shot, too, seems to be the reverse look at our first glimpse of Star-Lord from earlier in the trailer. Note the circle. Can a non-dancer like Gamora ever truly find love with a dance machine like Star-Lord? Cutely, that is the subject of the trailers only run of dialogue. Secret weapon Drax attempts to console an unlucky-in-love Star-Lord, a moment thats quite wonderful for several reasons: Not only is that hug a funny beat, its a reminder that for all their razzing, the Guardians really care about each other deep down. That heart, I think, was one of the reasons the first film was such a success. Or, maybe it was because of Baby Groot. If you advanced that theory, I certainly wouldnt argue with you. Photo-Illustration: Vulture In a throwaway moment on Netflixs Luke Cage, Cornell Cottonmouth Stokes insultingly calls his cousin Black Mariah. It took me until this brief, venomous jab to remember who Alfre Woodards cunning local politician, Mariah Dillard, was based on. Black Mariah, as shes named in the Marvel comics, debuted just a year after Luke Cage, in 1973. Like much of the early Hero for Hire comics, her characterization is steeped in uncomfortable stereotypes. Shes essentially a criminal mammy figure whose physical largesse were meant to be repulsed by, rather than the nature of her crimes. When you place her origins and Woodards take on the character side by side, its hard to imagine they are the same person. Showrunner Cheo Hodari Coker and his writing staff reimagine Mariah as someone far more complex and dangerous than her comic counterpart would suggest. On the Netflix show, Mariah is a shrewd, power-hungry city councilwoman who uses the language of black resistance to further her goals, even as her actions harm the very community she wants to protect. This contradiction makes Mariah not only the most fascinating foil for Luke, but one of Marvels best antagonists to date. Shes also an important reflection (albeit to a heightened degree) of the strictures real black women face, stuck between who they truly are and who the world wants them to be. Black women throughout the history of this country have been excluded from normal means of attaining power and autonomy. I wouldnt go so far as to call Mariah a feminist icon (and she doesnt have to be, nor does any character, to be worthwhile), but shes able to be something black women, both fictional and real, rarely have the opportunity to be: selfish. Her arc is symbolic of what happens when a black woman has had enough of the expectations thrust upon her and decides to put herself first. Through flashbacks, the show fleshes out the expectations placed on Mariah since her youth. She must keep her head down, study, and never want too much. Her ambition is meant to help others primarily her cousin, the drug lord Cottonmouth, the community of Harlem not herself. In real life, black women are told sometimes subtly, other times loudly that our desires are inconsequential; what matters is upholding a black community that doesnt always have our best interests at heart. The series is at its best when it interrogates the expectations thrust on black women, and illuminates the complicated choices they make in navigating them. One of the smartest things Luke Cage does in this regard is fleshing out the relationship between Mariah and Cottonmouth, and positioning them as representatives of opposing arguments these scenes ultimately give us our deepest insights into who Mariah thinks she should be. She is ostensibly interested in making Harlem great again, and creating a legacy built on the type of unerring respect that lands your name on the side of buildings and in history books. Cottonmouth wants to reap immediate benefits hes not interested in helping the black community or becoming a part of the pantheon of lauded black heroes the show name-drops regularly. (Theyre both motivated by selfish desires hes just more honest about it than she is.) As the series progresses, the divide between the cousins turns dangerous. Every hit Cottonmouth takes leads to public blowback for Mariah, forcing her to make exceedingly more ugly choices. Episode seven operates as an origin story for both of them, culminating in the shows most gut-wrenching sequence Mariah beating Cottonmouth to death in a fit of rage. Here, the shows representation of Mariah becomes more nuanced, because its the moment something switches in her. By blaming Mariah for her sexual assault at the hands of her Uncle Pete, Cottonmouth forces her to dredge up who she is under the image shes forced to present to the world. Woodard colors her performance with subtle hints of something unhinged, hysteric, underneath her cool exterior. Its there in the icy edge of her voice when she suggests the many ways Cottonmouth can kill Luke. And most crucially, its undeniable in her refusal to acknowledge that shes the true inheritor of their grandmother, Mama Mabels, legacy. Mama Mabel is a figure who haunts the edges of the narrative for the first few episodes. Each time her name is said, it comes across as a curse, suggesting that even though shes long dead she still evokes a sense of fear. It isnt until episode seven that she comes into focus. Mama Mabel ran a criminal empire but notably refused to sell drugs to the people of her community. She gained power through a mix of cunning, fear, insight into those around her, and obsessive loyalty from others. This is a woman who cuts off the finger of a lackey just as quickly as she comforts a near catatonic teenage Cottonmouth after he witnesses a brutal murder she ordered. She may operate within the shadows, but the people of Harlem know her as someone who can get things done. Need protection? A turkey for Thanksgiving? Go to Mama Mabel. Cottonmouth was groomed to take her place, but it is Mariah whose expensive education taught her how to move through multiple worlds who truly inherits her grandmothers skills, ambition, and darker qualities. On the surface, Mama Mabels kindness toward the community feels selfless. But upon closer look, its a way for her to gain loyalty, and as a result, more power. Every move she makes is ultimately in her own self-interest, and on her own terms. On a lesser show, Mariahs hints of madness would come to define her arc, as it sometimes does on female-antihero-driven shows (see: UnREAL). Its instead used to telegraph her characters inner philosophical conflict. Her arc shows her struggling between being two different people: the upstanding politician trying to renew Harlem to its former glory, and the morally bereft criminal, and true heir of Mama Mabels legacy. In episode 12, she tells one of the shows many villains, Shades, [Cottonmouth] saw things in me I avoided my whole life. Now Im becoming that person he always saw and I always denied. In this way, Mariah is the embodiment of the revolutionary, poetic spirit Luke Cage aims for. More than anything, the series wants to subvert our expectations about black identity by using a superhero tale to create a new mythology. It fails to do that with its main hero, who is too burdened with having to be important in the television landscape, yet still safe enough so he doesnt threaten Marvels usual audience that much. But with Mariah, the series is able to create a blistering new portrait of a popular archetype. Crime dramas love a good kingpin, from James Cagneys deranged rendition in White Heat (1949) to televisions Tony Soprano. But we rarely see queenpins. In this way, Mariah disrupts the expectation that for black characters to be worthwhile, they have to be good, respectable, self-sacrificing. When was the last time you saw a 60-something black woman queenpin who outsmarted every man, leaned into her ambitions, and survived? Mariah isnt the only captivating black female antihero on television. Viola Daviss Annalise Keating on How to Get Away With Murder and Kerry Washingtons Olivia Pope on Scandal fit within this tradition. But because those series are nighttime soaps, they seem less interested in ruminating on the psychology of these women than using their heinous deeds to power the next outlandish twist. Luke Cage makes the psychology of Mariah a driving force in the series. Marvel has long had issues creating well-rounded characters of color. While Mariah is a step forward, if Luke Cage were as bold as itd like to be, it would be Mariah, not Diamondback, who would emerge as the shows most important villain. But for all its faults, the series has a surprisingly feminist bent. I lost count of the number of scenes in which the only people talking were black women over the age of 30 all of whom exhibited depth that would be startling on any television show, let alone a Marvel property. And, as the first season progresses, Mariah deepens: She not only accepts but thrives in her new role, filling the vacuum Cottonmouth left behind. She also grows to resemble Mama Mabel in ways shed rather not face. Take, for example, how she answers Shades when he asks what shell do if the Harlems Paradise hostess who she paid to be her alibi for the murder of Cottonmouth folds under pressure: Well have to kill her. And everybody else in that apartment. Which would be a damn shame. Duke Ellington used to live in that building and Count Basie too. Id hate to bring down the market value. In this brief scene, we get our clearest look at Mariahs quicksilver nature: her deep admiration for Harlems black history, her capability for detached violence, her steeliness in the face of any problem. Woodard is able to gracefully move between put-upon kindness to keen-eyed menace with a level of subtlety that is virtually unseen within a genre as blunt as superhero adaptations. Arguably, Mariahs most damning decision comes later, when she uses the tragic beating of teenager Lonnie Wilson to her advantage. The innocent Lonnie is beaten by a black cop for not giving up information on Lukes whereabouts. Seeing an opportunity, Mariah galvanizes Harlem in order to rehabilitate her political career, using the publics fear of superpowered vigilantes to encourage the NYPD to buy weapons that can harm those like Luke. Sure, this makes Luke Cages politics somewhat contradictory and simplistic when it comes to the illustrating the ills of the black community. But it also further complicates Mariahs character, proving that for all her claims about having Harlems best interests at heart, the only thing that matters are her own. She may be a somewhat over-the-top portrait of what happens when black women stop sidelining their desires for the goodwill of others. (Yes, being raised by a criminal mastermind has left her twisted.) But there is something radical in seeing a black woman operate like this. What struck me even more was how the series acknowledges her sexuality, and uses it to further empower her. Being a brown-skinned, middle-aged woman would preclude her from having any carnal energy on another show. But one of the greatest strengths of Luke Cage is its ability to imagine the diversity within black womanhood. Who you calling a spinster? she asks Luke. I can wear your narrow ass out. In the series finale, after her unequivocal win, she looks at Shades with unbridled lust before kissing him and sauntering away. Shades looks back at her with a mix of desire and admiration. Mariah has that effect. Shes an unexpected creation within a genre that at times feels like it falls into the same traps. In many ways, I was eager to see her succeed more than Luke. And this isnt because of the usual issue that villains are more interesting than the heroes they come up against. Its because shes a more human character than Luke, a more frightening antagonist than Diamondback, and a more violent individual than Cottonmouth. Just when you think you have a handle on her, Woodard adds notes that bring new layers of understanding. The undercurrent of every black art form, from Afrofuturism to hip-hop, is the desire for black people to be seen as fully realized human beings imperfect yet whole. Mariah Dillard, in her own way, is the realization of this desire, and her humanity makes her a more compelling foil for Luke. Essentially, they both desire the same end result keeping the spirit of Harlem alive. They both pride themselves on earning respect and maintaining a noble image. But Luke is positioned as a savior a figure whose goodness runs so deep, it limits our understanding of who he is as a man. Mariah doesnt have that problem. Thanks to the deft reimagining of an ornery comic character through both Woodards performance and the writing Luke Cage does something Marvel hasnt been able to do elsewhere: create a complex female character whose intelligence and willpower makes her tower over the men around her. Not only does Mariah put herself first, but unlike her male counterparts, she ends up on top: Cottonmouth is dead, Shades is her right hand who knows his place, and Diamondback is in police custody after getting a beatdown by Luke so severe he needs hospital treatment. The series closes with her overlooking the bustling Harlems Paradise, a kingdom she can now call her own. Long live the queen. Rejecting the eight petitions from farmers, a bench headed by Justice JS Khehar stated that any land acquired for Rohini Residential Scheme-1981, of any village of Rohini area, cannot be returned to former land owners at all and they can only apply for "enhanced compensation only" under New Land Acquisition Act. By Harish V Nair: Around 24,000 families waiting for the past 35 years for a plot in Rohini to build their dream home can finally breathe easy. The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed petitions filed by the farmers who had challenged the land acquisition. The DDA have all along been citing this as the biggest hurdle in developing several plots ahead of their allotment. The land owning agency had been telling the court that the villagers had even turned violent in their attempts to stonewall work for roads, drains and sewers. advertisement Rejecting the eight petitions from farmers, a bench headed by Justice JS Khehar stated that any land acquired for Rohini Residential Scheme-1981, of any village of Rohini area, cannot be returned to former land owners at all and they can only apply for "enhanced compensation only" under New Land Acquisition Act. LANDMARK ORDER It is a landmark order for developing agencies and government authorities across the country facing litigations seeking return of the land once acquired for development purposes. However, even as the SC delivered the order, 5,000 applicants for the plots have already passed away. Though the order was against farmers, it is the DDA which faces the real test as it cannot any longer take refuge in the "dispute with land owner farmers" argument to deprive fully developed plots to registrants. Also Read : Real Estate Act: Centre will notify rules for 5 union territories this week DDA OWES ANSWERS DDA also owes some answer to the court as on a contempt petition filed by Rahul Gupta. He is one of the allottee who has been leading the legal battle for all registrants and is represented by advocates Prashant Bhushan and Rohit Kumar Singh. The SC bench has sought a status report on the compliance of its orders of March 10 last year to hand over developed plots to all the allottees by July 31 this year. The DDA gets three weeks time to do it. The same bench had on that day issued an ultimatum to then DDA vice-chairman Balvinder Kumar to meet the deadline or face stern action. "Things are not going right. This is a fraud being committed on the people. Not giving developed plots is a further fraud. The residential scheme was of 1981 and we are now in 2015. We are giving you time till July 31, 2016. If you don't complete allotment of fully-developed plots till then, you are in solid trouble. I repeat you are in solid trouble. DDA officials will be going to jail. Please do not take court orders lightly," the bench had told Kumar who had been summoned to the court. advertisement Also Read: Builders have developed an attitude to make commitments to buyers, not fulfill them: Supreme Court Drawing a time table, the court had said 11,000 allottees in sectors 28, 29, 30 and 34 should be given "fully developed land with water connection, road and sewerage that should be handed over by April 10, 2015" The DDA and Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd were asked to make arrangements for temporary power connection to these areas by June 30, 2015. Permanent connections will be provided after that, as and when requested. The bench also said the complete development of the remaining 14,000 plots in sectors 35, 36 and 37 should be completed by July 31, 2016 and electricity and water connections have to be provided in these sectors by June 31, 2016 - a month before allotment. "It is the hard-earned money of the public. You shall not sit over it. If they have invested something, some benefits should flow out of it. And remember please do not give undeveloped plots. If there is some hindrance, we shall assist you. Call in the Delhi government authorities and the police. If the Transco (state transmission utility) is not cooperating in giving power, we shall direct them. Do not cite any excuse. Just give them the plots," the SC had told DDA bosses. --- ENDS --- advertisement Lashkar-e-Taiba issued a warning to Baramulla SHO after 44 persons were arrested on Monday. By Ashraf Wani: Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) has issued a warning to the Baramulla SHO after 44 persons were arrested for terror-related activities on Monday. In a massive multi-agency crackdown in the Old Town of Baramulla on Monday, security agencies seized petrol bombs, Chinese and Pakistan flags, LeT and Jaish letter pads, illegal mobile phones and other material during the raids, a defence spokesman said. advertisement Sources said the crackdown was the first major one in Baramulla in more than a decade. EXTENSIVE CRACKDOWN An extensive search operation was launched by the security forces in Old Town, Baramulla reportedly being used as safe havens by the terrorists. The security forces sanitised the area searching over 700 houses in a span of 12 hours. Based on specific inputs, 44 persons have been apprehended during the operation. In addition, a large number of suspected hideouts were busted during the prolonged search operations. --- ENDS --- The U.S. Department of Educations Office for Civil Rights launched a Title IX investigation of Baylor University on Tuesday in response to a complaint former Title IX Coordinator Patty Crawford filed with the office. OCR opened the investigation after receiving a complaint from the former Baylor Title IX coordinator, department spokesperson Dorie Nolt said in a statement. Consistent with federal privacy statutes, OCR typically does not identify the specific parties, including complainants, involved in our civil rights cases. In this instance, the complainant has given permission for OCR to identify her and has spoken publicly about her complaint. Baylors case is one of 281 Office for Civil Rights investigations active at 215 colleges and universities. Opening a complaint for investigation in no way implies that OCR has made a determination on the merits of the case, according to a statement from OCR. Rather, the office is a neutral fact-finder. It will collect and analyze all relevant evidence to develop its findings. As a policy, the Department will not disclose any case-specific facts or details about the institutions under investigation. Once the case has been resolved, OCR will notify the institution, the complainant and public, as appropriate. Crawford has said she never had the authority, resources or independence to do her job. She resigned Oct. 3, after less than two years as Baylors first full-time Title IX coordinator. I am pleased that the Department of Education has taken a particular interest in this important matter, Crawfords attorney Rogge Dunn said. Dunn said Crawford recently met with a federal investigator regarding her complaint. He also said she is out of state for job interviews. Ken Starr was fired as Baylors president after regents reported fundamental failure in the schools Title IX implementation efforts after an investigation by Philadelphia-based law firm Pepper Hamilton LLP. Art Briles was fired as head football coach, and Ian McCaw resigned as athletics director after being sanctioned. Two other athletics staffers were removed. Baylor, which faces four Title IX lawsuits, has touted progress made on the 105 recommendations given to the school by Pepper Hamilton to improve institutional response to sexual assault. Baylor interim President David Garland sent a letter to the Office for Civil Rights saying the university will cooperate in the investigation, Garland said in a prepared statement. Should the OCR identify additional areas of improvement, we will work on those immediately, he said in the statement. We are whole-heartedly committed to cultivating a safe and supportive environment for all members of the Baylor community. Baylor Board of Regents Chairman Ron Murff did not return voicemails. A Baylor spokeswoman who sent Garlands statement said it is not in Murffs scope to address inquiries about university operational matters. The Office for Civil Rights enforces Title IX, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex and is intended to help victims of sexual assault stay in school. OCR investigations The office investigates higher education institutions receiving federal funding if it receives a relevant complaint. Investigations may include reviewing documentary evidence submitted by both parties, conducting interviews with the complainant, recipients personnel, and other witnesses, and/or site visits, according to the DOE website. Like Title IX investigations at the campus level, federal investigators need a preponderance of evidence to identify a Title IX violation. Colleges and universities found to be in violation are subject to fines. In 2011, the DOE released a Dear Colleague Letter, a federal guidance document informing colleges and universities of their responsibility to investigate and adjudicate allegations of sexual assault. The OCR began publicly naming institutions under Title IX investigations in May 2014, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education. Fifty-five were on the list at the time. The issue is, I was trying to continue to create compliance with Title IX and I was trying to be hopeful that the university was going to listen, and the more I asked and the more I tried, the more resistance I received, and I was being retaliated against for fighting discrimination, Crawford said in an interview on CBS This Morning earlier this month. She said she thinks Baylor still fails victims of sexual assault. The night before the interview, Baylor spokeswoman Tonya Lewis said Crawford demanded $1 million, plus book and movie rights, from Baylor. Dunn called the statement a desperate attempt to smear Patty and a violation of state law for commenting on a mediation session. Believe, me, theres nothing I would rather tell you than what went on in that mediation, because its in favor of Patty, Dunn said to CBS. But the law says you cant do that. We choose to follow the law, unlike Baylor University. In response, Lewis said Crawford made her demands before mediation, but Lewis would not clarify when or to whom Crawford made those demands. Demands made prior to the mediation and later incorporated by way of a demand in mediation are confidential, a Texas mediation law expert said at the time. The county is fast tracking work to repair roof damage on the McLennan County Courthouse annex after learning the repair is needed for the building to comply with fire code. Commissioners on Tuesday approved hiring The Wallace Group for $1,200 as a consultant on the repair. County leaders recently appointed The Wallace Group to evaluate roofs on county-owned buildings and prioritize repairs. Purchasing Director Ken Bass said theres a leak in the roof that caused a smoke detector in an air duct to short out. Bass said the leaking roof needs repairs before a new duct sensor is installed. Since the estimate for repair is less than would require competitive bids, The Wallace Group will prepare cost estimates, Bass said. Im just trying to get it done as quickly as we can, Bass said. Building Facilities Director Herschel Miller said his department recently had to buy a new fire alarm panel for the annex, largely because a duct sensor went bad and shorted out the panel, according to county documents. The fire laws require that we have an acting duct sensor for the air handler unit. After visiting with my fire alarm vendor we have since installed a fire alarm panel for the annex building. The fire marshal has agreed to let us install the fire panel but has red tagged the duct sensor until we purchase and install a new duct sensor, Miller wrote in county documents. He did ask that we get a new duct sensor installed as soon as we could. He is aware of the roof leak and the proper protocol we have to follow. Please note that the equipment room will be used again very soon for upcoming trials for the DA. Waco Fire Marshal Kevin Vranich said an inspection company can identify, or red tag a fire code problem and notify a fire marshal, who will then ensure the repairs are made in a timely manner. MCC nursing program Also during the meeting Tuesday, the county approved an agreement with McLennan Community College to once again allow nursing students to participate in a clinical training program at the county jail, County Administrator Dustin Chapman said. The return comes after nursing students were pulled from the jail program three weeks before Dr. John A. Wells resigned his $330,000 annual contract in March as medical director at the McLennan County Jail. MCC vocational nursing students reported Wells had sexually harassed them, according to records obtained by the Tribune-Herald and multiple sources close to the situation. Commissioners accepted Wells resignation March 15 and awarded a $330,000 annual contract to Dr. James R. Hodges, of Compleat Physicians, on June 21 as the new medical director. Also during the meeting, commissioners formally accepted a retirement notice from County Engineer Steve Hendrick. Hendrick will retire Dec. 31 after more than 23 years with the county. It has been one of the most challenging and rewarding endeavors of my professional career, and I deeply appreciate the opportunities and the support this and previous courts have provided over the years, he wrote in his notice. Waco police Officer George Neville was indefinitely suspended Tuesday, about two months after he was arrested on a misdemeanor assault charge. Nevilles suspension comes after an internal review by the departments Professional Standards and Conduct Unit, Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton announced Tuesday. Neville, an 11-year commissioned officer with the Waco Police Department, was arrested on a misdemeanor assault charge Aug. 18 after a criminal investigation alleged Neville grabbed Qualon Deshon Weaver, 35, by the throat while he was handcuffed during a traffic stop May 4. Interim Police Chief Frank Gentsch announced Nevilles suspension Tuesday. The internal investigation cleared two other officers involved in Weavers stop and arrest of criminal wrongdoing, but each received a five-day suspension that started Monday, Swanton said in the announcement. Officers Kevin Spicer and Adam Beseda stopped a vehicle driven by Weaver on May 4 near the intersection of J.J. Flewellen Road and Herring Avenue, according to police records. During the stop, officers reported seeing Weaver moving in the car before he pulled over, appearing to conceal something before the stop. Police reported Weaver stopped, then continued driving slowly multiple times before pulling over, according to records. Police found almost 10 grams of marijuana in his vehicle, an affidavit for Weavers arrest states. Neville arrived on scene to assist the other officers. Police reports state Weaver was handcuffed when Neville grabbed Weaver around his neck after the two exchanged words with each other. Weavers attorney, Jason Darling, previously told the Tribune-Herald the other two officers at the scene watched as Neville assaulted Weaver. Weaver was then arrested on charges of evading arrest in a motor vehicle and possession of marijuana. He later filed a complaint against all three officers in June, prompting the departments inquiry that led to Neville and Beseda being placed on administrative leave June 9, before Spicer was placed on administrative leave June 16 as the investigation progressed. Swanton said Beseda and Spicer have been cleared of any criminal wrongdoing, but internal investigations by the Professional Standards and Conduct Unit resulted in the officers five-day suspensions. Neville was arrested on the misdemeanor assault charge in August, but no formal charges had been filed against Neville in municipal court as of Tuesday, according to court records. The charge remains pending. The Tribune-Herald filed a Texas Public Information Act request for video and audio of the May 4 incident. The city is seeking an Attorney Generals opinion on the request, which remains pending. Darling, Weavers attorney, said he plans to file a civil rights lawsuit against Neville. Darling said another man contacted his office after reading a Tribune-Herald story about Weavers arrest and claimed Neville also assaulted him during his arrest later this summer. Darling said he is continuing to investigate the new assault claim to determine whether there is any merit to the claim before filing a civil lawsuit against Neville. Swanton said he is unaware if another formal complaint had been filed against Neville but also said he would not be allowed to comment on an internal affairs investigation. The Tribune-Herald also requested service records for officers Weaver filed complaints against. The department released records only for Neville. The Texas Attorney Generals Public Information Act Handbook states police officers civil service files are public documents subject to disclosure. Previous suspension Neville was suspended for one day May 4, 2015, after firing four shots at a vehicle fleeing from a December 2014 traffic stop, according to his personnel records. The driver was wanted and had been stopped and removed from the vehicle, then jumped back in and started to flee the scene, according to arbitration documents. Nevilles partner at the time tried to pull the suspect out of the vehicle, but the suspect kept driving, carrying Nevilles partner hanging from the car. Neville fired at the fleeing vehicle after his partner had let go, which officials determined was not necessary to prevent immediate harm, according to arbitration documents. The Professional Standards and Conduct Unit initially recommend an eight-day suspension. His suspension was reduced to three days due to what was perceived as Nevilles remorsefulness, arbitration documents state. Through additional arbitration, Neville was formally suspended for one day. Neville received a meritorious conduct award in 2012 for an investigation into a burglary of a vehicle and reckless driving case in May 2012, according to his personnel records. Donald Trump has had a very tough three weeks on the campaign trail, from a bad first debate to the Access Hollywood video to the recent flood of allegations that he groped and made unwanted sexual advances toward several women. And yet Trump trails Hillary Clinton by just four points in the new Washington Post-ABC News poll a number that is pretty par for the course for the 2016 election. But the Post-ABC poll also makes this clear about what Trump is up to these days: Hes doing almost everything wrong, and hes doing nothing to grow his support and actually put himself in a position to win. To wit: 57 percent of likely voters say Trump's response to the Access Hollywood video of him making lewd and sexually aggressive comments about women was insincere. Just 40 percent say it was sincere. 52 percent say his comments on tape arent the brand of locker room talk that he and his supporters have routinely claimed. Just 40 percent say they are. Related to that, 68 percent say they believe Trump has made unwanted sexual advances toward women, while just 14 percent say he has not. So, clearly, people think his actual behavior at least somewhat matched the words he claims were bluster. 57 percent say its inappropriate for Trump to say that Hillary Clinton would be in jail if he were president for her use of a private email server as secretary of state. Just 41 percent say its appropriate. 62 percent say Clintons criticisms of the women who accused her husband of sexual misdeeds is not a legitimate election issue, despite Trumps increasing focus on it. Just 35 percent say it is a legitimate thing for Trump to focus on. Similarly, setting aside his wifes role in it, 67 percent say Bill Clintons treatment of women isnt a legitimate issue in the 2016 election. Just 31 percent say it is. Trump has spent the better part of the past week arguing that his comments on tape were just locker room talk, attempting to cast doubt on the accusations made against him by an increasing number of women and pressing the case that the Clintons misdeeds are worse than the ones hes alleged to have committed. The problem is that a majority of voters are buying none of it. So why hasnt he lost much ground at least in this poll? (Other polls last week showed him losing much more and down double digits.) Part of it is rank partisanship. Those who appear unconcerned are largely GOP-leaning voters already supporting Trump. And thats probably why he remains at 43 percent in a four-way matchup with Hillary Clinton, Libertarian Gary Johnson and the Green Partys Jill Stein. But that brings us back to the problem that has plagued Trump since the GOP primary: his inability to grow his support among the general electorate. Trump is doing basically nothing in response to his problems these past few weeks that is being met with broad support. He has long run, and continues to run, a campaign that is very much focused on the Republican Party base, and that base doesnt seem to have deserted him at this point. But that base alone is also insufficient to win an election in the United States. Trump remains in this race almost completely despite himself and with an assist from Clintons own popularity problems. Those are problems, we would note, that are largely due to things she did before this campaign in contrast to Trump. Hell probably see the head-to-head number from this poll showing him down only four points and think hes doing just fine and could still win. If so, he will be missing the point entirely. Aaron Blake covers national politics and writes regularly for The Posts The Fix blog. Anyone who knows the Constitution and the history of our country knows our greatness lies not only in the handing over of power by elected leaders in the wake of elections but the importance of election losers formally and graciously accepting the results, reassuring supporters and pledging to work within the system to make mandates work within reason. To do otherwise is to consign our republic to anarchy, chaos and gridlock. By the same token, this also means election losers, under our political system, are free to work toward victory yet another day, in yet another election. So the political process continues, all of it reinforced by We the People. Thats not good enough for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, who has already threatened to abandon our allies in Europe, cede major trade advantages in the Pacific to China, jail his political rival and, most damning of all, abridge the First Amendment to muzzle his enemies. Now hes going about our great land insisting that if he doesnt win the presidential election on Nov. 8, then the election was rigged. For certain gullible and slavish disciples, this canard may seem logical, but what hes saying is theres no way he can legitimately lose. Like so many conspiracy theories Trump has spun over the years, including his tortuous argument for President Obamas foreign birth, facts backing him are fanciful or elusive. While we have by now become accustomed to Trumps lies, egotism and demagogy, his latest campaign salvo suggesting that the 2016 election is rigged still astonishes. No wonder level-headed Republicans such as U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan vigorously refute this claim. After all, if the election is rigged, does this mean the elections of Republican House members such as Congressman Bill Flores are also questionable? Anyone who knows election law and history knows that, in adopting the U.S. Constitution, the states retained certain restrictions regarding the holding of elections. Thats why, for instance, various states have different voter ID laws. The courts have found some constitutional, others not, but the courts dont dispute that each state can set reasonable election restrictions and protocols. Early voting is another example. Besides involvement of state officials, any conspiracy would be dependent on election administrators and officials at the county and even neighborhood levels. Yes, last springs local primary election was botched enough to raise questions about which Republican candidate won a county commissioners race, but no one suggested Elections Administrator Kathy Van Wolfe, election judges and poll workers conspired to help one candidate over another. Election judges and poll volunteers weve met over the years strike us as intensely honest. They patriotically check their political loyalties at the door and endeavor to ensure every citizen understands the voting equipment and is able to cast his or her ballot without impediment or intimidation. So when Trump claims the election is rigged, hes talking about our neighbors, friends, co-workers and relatives. As Republican election lawyer Chris Ashby noted this week, these everyday yet remarkable folks check voters in, confirm their IDs in states where IDs are required and keep detailed records about the election. A conspiracy of the scope Trump bellows about would require not only widespread collusion but technological capabilities that exist only in Mission Impossible movies. Trumps talk is quite obviously intended to incite and provoke. Republicans who fail to decisively counter such rhetoric and reassure voters are as guilty as he is of arousing mob fervor. Our fear is such talk will make a mockery of peaceful, democratic elections and possibly get someone hurt before Election 2016 is done. Om Swami's threat to Lopamudra Raut regarding his secret has not gone down well with anyone in the house. By India Today Web Desk: One of the most loved reality shows to have hit the Indian television--Bigg Boss--has returned to the small screen with a brand new season. And things have already taken a wild and dramatic turn on the show. Day 2 in Bigg Boss Season 10 witnessed an ugly war of words that took place between 'aam aadmi' contestant Om Swami and celeb contestant Lopamudra Raut. Also read:Is Lopamudra Raut the strongest contestant on Bigg Boss 10 right now? advertisement Things grew tense when it was announced in the show that as a part of a new task called Raaz, all the celebrity contestants would have to guess the one secret of all the 'aam aadmi' contestants that they had shared with Bigg Boss just before entering the house. The Jack-in-the-box who will give us a surprise tonight is none other than,#OmSwami! Heres how Baba infuriated both#LopamudraRaut and #AkankshaSharma! A video posted by Big Boss Season 10 (@big.boss.10) on Oct 18, 2016 at 3:36am PDT It was later revealed in the show that beauty queen Lopamudra was already in the know of Om Swami's 'raaz.' Om Swami looked a little upset after the announcement regarding this new task, and was later seen threatening Lopamudra. He asked Lopamudra to keep her mouth shut regarding his secret, and even told her, "Main bol raha hoon accha nahi hoga?Main aapko threat kar raha hoon." Later Lopamudra spoke to Bigg Boss about the incident, and Bigg Boss warned Om Swami about his behavior. Om Swami was also seen apologizing after the warning, albeit half-heartedly. So, now the big question remains--what is Om Swami's secret that he so desperately wants to hide? --- ENDS --- GREENWOOD Greenwood residents will be able to welcome in 2017 with a bang thanks to village board members. The board voted 4-1 to allow Wild Willys to sell firework for the New Years Eve holiday. Board member Harry Swenson voted against approving the permit at the boards Oct. 12 meeting. We hear enough of them July Fourth, he said. They dont need to pop any that night. Yoders Furniture owner Roger Dennis was at the meeting urging the board to sign off on the TIF agreement. I really wanted it done by today, he said, but I was missing a few invoices to hand in. One was for Biggerstaff Plumbing, which he had collected by meeting time. The other two invoices he needed were from the village and for the street lights. Dennis questioned the board why he was paying for one lawyer and then a second lawyer who had been hired to look over the first lawyers papers. You hire an attorney to review another attorney, he said. Doesnt make sense. Board member Michelle Criswell questioned board chairman David Moll on how he came up with the figure on what Dennis owed the village. You are generating this where, at your home, when we have a village office, she asked Moll. I feel its more of a board decision and should be done at the clerks office. I just have a major problem with you doing billing from your home. Moll said he felt it was unreasonable when it came to questioning him on his doing work from his house. Especially when the clerk gets it within a day or two, he said. I really feel that you are being unreasonable. The board did vote to decrease Dennis bill by several thousand dollars and signed off on the TIF agreement. Criswell also questioned Molls decision to do an employee review before their probation time was up. This is something that should have waited until that time period is up then the two of us who are supposed to do reviews do it, she told the board. Moll said he went ahead and did it as he enjoyed working with the two men and they were doing a great job. They walked off the job once before. We dont want to see it happen again, Moll said. Larry Meyer agreed that the handbook stated that the two appointed officials should be the ones to do the review and with that asked to table the agenda item. Criswell then questioned Moll on why he was receiving calls from LoopNet when the board had voted that all calls and e-mails be directed to the clerk. The board voted at its last meeting to hire LoopNet to list Greenwood property for sale. The land would run through Molls brother who lives in California and has a LoopNet account. Since being listed, one individual showed interest in the land with Moll getting the call. My question is why did you get the call when we agreed everything should be ran through the clerk, Criswell said. Moll raised his concerns. I really feel like you are taking me out of talking to anyone, he told Criswell adding that he would sign a conflict of interest letter. I cant talk to my brother? The board voted 3-2 to drop their agreement with LoopNet. You lost a hell of a good deal, Moll said after the vote. Village Attorney Bill Morris spoke to the board about his lack of getting responses from Greenwood Fire Chief Mark Sobota The chief wanted to establish a point system for fireman to earn when attending meeting and answering calls, Morris said. After investigating Sobotas request, the lawyer discovered that there was a state statue in place and all the fire department had to do was approve it and add to their handbook. So I send him the information, and have heard nothing, Morris said. He said there were many other e-mails send to Sobata which were never answered. I really think the communication between the fire department and the village board has broken down and really suggest you meet and include the rural fire board, Morris said. He also said that the fire department needed to work on their retention issues as well as social media concerns. Moll said that what he was hearing was different than from what the board has heard before. You hear one thing at one meeting and then another thing at another meeting, Moll said. It makes us question the truth. Criswell said that since Sobota was not present at the meeting, she would refrain from commenting and felt it was something that they needed to work on. The board also discussed the community center and the next phase of remodeling the building. Michelle and I are on the finance committee so we will take a look at TIF and come back to you to discuss the transition of what can be done and for how much, Meyer said. ASHLAND Over the summer, Barb Washburn wrapped up what has to be one of the busiest years of her life, putting almost 30,000 miles on her car as she traveled around the state as the department president for the Nebraska American Legion Auxiliary. Washburn was elected in June 2015, relinquishing her duties a year later. During her 12 months in office, she visited all 13 districts that make up the American Legion Auxiliary in the state. In those 13 districts, there are 320 units, and Washburn estimates she visited more then 180 of them as president. Additionally, she attended county conventions, membership dinners and visited veterans homes and medical centers, all to reinforce the auxiliarys mission. Thats what its all about, getting out there and supporting veterans, Washburn said. Washburn joined the American Legion Auxiliary when her mother signed her up as a teenager growing up in Cook. I actually had no idea, she said. Her parents, Merle and Marjorie Reinsche, were very active in the American Legion in Cook. Her mother continued to go to Auxiliary meetings there until she was 95 years old. If there was a meeting, she was at it, Washburn said. Later, she married Doug Washburn of Ashland, who was state commander of the Sons of the American Legion when they met, and he helped her learn more about the organization, she said. When she joined the Auxiliary 40 years ago, Washburn had no idea she would rise to state president. It wasnt something I aspired to, she said. I just kind of fell into it. When she was elected, Washburns theme was Always Remember and she used it to highlight the significance the military and their families play in our country. The biggest thing is remembering our mission is to be here to support our veterans, she said. Looking back on her year as president, Washburn said visiting the veterans ranks among her highlights. Seeing the smiles on their faces and their appreciation that someone out there is saying thank you for your service, she said. During her year in office, Washburn also pledged to focus on increasing membership in the auxiliary. There are 21,000 auxiliary members in Nebraska, which has dipped by about a third since Washburn joined the organization 40 years ago. All volunteer organizations are finding it challenging to keep and retain members, she said. Washburns work paid off, netting 1,000 new members in the state over the past year. Unfortunately, that number was offset by the 1,500 or so who left the organization, including many who passed away. The organization as a whole is aging, and they are looking to reach women between the ages of 30 and 50 to remain viable. Weve got to do something because if we dont, were going to be extinct in our lifetime possibly, she said. Another project Washburn tackled during her tenure as president was raising money for the Auxiliary Emergency Fund. Nebraska was one of the top states in terms of fundraising, bringing in over $15,000, Washburn said, through activities like quilt raffles, filling bottles with coins, passing the hat at events and paying to wear crazy hats. You name it, the ladies were creative, she added. The state auxiliary organization also raised nearly $4,000 for high school scholarships. So we can award more scholarships to seniors, she said. For her accomplishments, Washburn earned national awards. But she said the credit does not belong only to her, but to the many women who worked with her to reach their goals. It wasnt about me, she said. It was about what we could do together as a team. Even though her duties as president are over, there is no rest for Washburn. As past president, she will attend functions at the veterans homes and medical centers in the state. Her new duties also include being the junior activities chairwoman for the Northwest Division, which includes seven states, and working in the national Auxiliary organization. I now represent Nebraska on a national level as our executive committee-woman, she added. Even before she was president Washburn regularly visited veterans, and she plans to continue those visits. Its something I so enjoy, she said. Along with visiting veterans and working on the state, district and national level, Washburn will continue to promote the American Legion and the Auxiliary. The big thing for me is to increase awareness of what our organization is about, she said. And ultimately, her reason for being an Auxiliary member is to provide support for the veterans. If were not here, whose going to take care of our vets? she asked. Although Washburn moved to Ashland after marriage, she retains her membership in the Auxiliary in Cook, and her daughter, Amanda, is also a member there. Amanda is carrying on her mothers legacy of leadership in the Auxiliary. She is active in the state organization and served as the National Junior Auxiliary President in 2012-13. She will be a member of the Girls Nation Committee next year. Girls Nation is the national equivalent of the Girls State citizenship program. Amanda is a student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and works for the American Legion office in Lincoln. Washburn said her daughter has discovered the same passion for advocating for veterans that she has. Once you get it in your heart, it stays, Washburn said. Be it standing up for herself, taking a stand for others or being fearless; Lopamudra Raut has what it takes to be a Bigg Boss winner. By Parmita Uniyal: Only two days have passed and Bigg Boss has already turned into a war zone, thanks to aam aadmi contestants clearly misusing their status of maaliks, and using it to humiliate celeb 'sevaks' by making unreasonable demands. Be it Priyanka Jagga's 'rude tone', Manoj Punjabi's dictatorial ways or Swamiji's 'dadagiri', celebrities are having a tough time inside the Bigg Boss house ever since the task has been introduced. advertisement Though celebs like Bani Judge, Karan Mehra and Gaurav Chopra are dealing with the humiliation in their own way, it is one contestant who stands out from the rest--beauty queen Lopamudra Raut. Fearless, forthright, polite and friendly, she is making just the right moves, as apparent from the first two episodes. Also read: THIS lady is Prince Narula's favourite Bigg Boss 10 contestant Lopa did not shy away from opening up to strangers like Om Swami and Manveer Gurjar, but at the same time, gave it back to them when they crossed the line. When Swami threatened her and asked her not to reveal his secret to the celeb contestants, Lopamudra said: "you are a religious guru but don't talk or act like one. She supported Karan Mehra when Manoj Punjabi criticized the quality of food cooked by the actor, saying "agar aap vaahiyat shabd use kar rahe ho food ke liye, to uski intensity kisi ko bhi buri lagegi." Also when contestant Manveer Gurjar said that it was good that his mother and bhabhis never allowed him to enter kitchen, and that cooking was only a woman's job because otherwise they would watch television, Lopa gave the perfect reply to him without getting into a heated argument. She said that she really respected a man who cooks for his wife and it is the best way to win a woman's heart. Also read: Exclusive: I want to make friends for life in the Bigg Boss house, says Lopamudra Raut In the last season, speaking their minds and taking a stand have worked in favour of contestants like Rochelle Rao, Priya Malik and Mandana Karimi, who made it to the Top 5. If Lopamudra continues to showcase her fearless side, while maintaining her cool, she might go really far. Bigg Boss 10 airs Mon-Fri at 10:30pm and Sat-Sun at 9pm --- ENDS --- According to sources, the accident occurred at around 8.30 pm when the driver attempted to save a stray dog that came in front of the car. Five member of a family killed after a bus rammed into a car in Ludhiana By India Today Web Desk: Five members of a family were killed in a road accident on Tuesday evening when a car collided with a bus in Dehlon near Ludhiana. According to sources, the accident took place at around 8.30 pm when the driver attempted to save a stray dog that came in front of the car. Consequently, the driver lost control of the car and rammed a Pepsu Road Transport Corporation(PRTC) bus coming from the opposite direction. advertisement ALSO READ: DU girl dies after drunk Uber driver rams into a truck in Noida The locals, who rushed to the spot, confirmed that all members of the family died on the spot. The deceased have been identified as Parveen Gupta, his wife Jyoti, daughters Riya and Shipra and son Krishan, all residents of Surinder Nagar locality. According to Inspector Amandeep Singh Brar, SHO of police station Dehlon, a case has been registered against the bus driver Jagjeet Singh and the conductor, who fled from the spot. Investigations to track down the conductor is on. Post-mortem of dead bodies is scheduled for today. With inputs from agencies. ALSO READ: Divyanka Tripathi narrowly escapes accident, thanks the "invisible power" that saved her Maruti Suzuki Raid de Himalaya called off after fatal accident --- ENDS --- The two drunk men abducted the police officer and later dumped her after they realised she was a cop. By Hemender Sharma: A lady police sub-inspector was kidnapped last night in Morena, Madhya Pradesh by two drunk men and their female accomplice. Morena District Superintendent of Police, Vineet Khanna told India Today "SI Ruby Tomar was on patrol duty near Morena Control Room when she saw two men in a drunken state attempting to snatch money from an autorickshaw driver. Tomar crossed the road but before she could do anything, the men pushed her into the car and sped away from the spot." advertisement After driving for about 15 km, the two accused identified as Vivek Jadaun and Dinesh Bhadoria realised that they had kidnapped a policewoman. "This, however, did not stop them from snatching her mobile phone before they dumped her at an isolated spot," police said. Also read: RSS, police face-off in MP: Video of Sangh pracharak leaked, shows no sign of torture CONTROL ROOM ALERTED A colleague of Tomar, meanwhile had already alerted the control room about her kidnapping and police patrols tried to cordon off the roads. Realising that they had been surrounded from all sides, the accused indulged in rash driving and in the process their car turned turtle. The two accused were finally arrested after a Bollywood style chase that lasted for almost an hour. Police have registered a kidnapping and robbery case against the two. According to the police, Jadaun is a resident of Salabhgarg while Bhadoria is a resident of Gormi in district Bhind. The two accused are studying in Gwalior and were moving from one town to another in the Gwalior Chambal division along with their female accomplice for the past four days, police said. Also read: RSS versus police in MP: Families of ASP, SHO seek protection Madhya Pradesh Police is having a tough time these days as the state government has come down heavily on the force in the past few days. Nine policemen were suspended and an attempt to murder case was registered against them for allegedly thrashing an RSS worker Suresh Yadav. --- ENDS --- Waterford Fine Gael Senator John Cummins has described the progress which has been made on the purchase of the former Waterford Crystal site for... Valentines Day is a time to reflect and appreciate the relationships in our lives. However, it can also be a time to reflect on... THERE was a great response to this years Spring Clean initiative in Waterford, as over 50 groups from the county registered to get down and... ... but you will need to show proof of jab get into bars STUDENTS heading to college in September will not have to be vaccinated... Seven jobs at a Waterford charity look set to be lost after it was announced that it is to be wound down. The U-Casadh... MakeMyTrip and Ibibo are all set to become one mega entity in the travel business space By India Today Web Desk: The modern Indian traveller does a major chunk of his bookings through some highly convenient travel portals that are there. And now, two of the biggest travel portals in this country have decided to become one. MakeMyTrip is in the process of acquiring the Ibibo Group. When merged, the two will become one mega entity which will operate as MakeMyTrip, and will reportedly control one-fifth of the airline booking market, along with significant market shares in the bus, hotel, and ride-sharing businesses as well. advertisement Also read: 5 ways to make sure you are booking the right hotel According to a report by the Mint, MakeMyTrip is going to buy the Ibibo Group at an amount USD 720 million. According to media reports, the group CEO and executive chairman of MakeMyTrip, Deep Kalra, has said that all the major portals, including MakeMyTrip, Goibibo, and redBus will operate as individual entities as they presently are, and will keep serving travellers in exactly the same way they do right now. Also read: Mobiles are used for most of the travel bookings: study Kalra has also said there is enough scope for forming new synergies as well. The Times of India has quoted him saying, "MakeMyTrip is strong in the air-ticketing and branded 5-4-3 star hotel-booking space, while Goibibo is strong in the budget accommodation space. One of the strategies that could play out is: A lot of bus travellers that redBus has would prefer accommodation offered by our recently launched brand Rightstay that includes villas, cottages, bungalows and apartments. You will see a lot of such interesting synergies unfolding going forward". --- ENDS --- The team at Waterford Walls has hardly been able to contain its excitement this week as it brings another exciting artwork to the city.... RENTS in Waterford are now spiralling out of control, with costs 16.2% higher than they were in the same period last year and... The 24th of July is a special day for Samaritans. 24/7 is a day we use each year to highlight that we are available... CHANGES to the junction between New Street and Barrack Street have backfired, becoming yet another source of traffic chaos in the heart of the... Waterford is set for a summer like no other on several fronts after two years of Covid-19 restrictions. With the countys hurlers triumphing in the... When you buy online, you have the right to the same protections under consumer law as buying in a shop. Online shopping is at an... Richmond are poised to finally secure Dion Prestia from Gold Coast as the trade period draws to a close. A deal that would send contracted Carlton star Bryce Gibbs home to Adelaide also appears close to being reached. Dion Prestia is close to joining Richmond. Credit:Getty Images While Gold Coast and Hawthorn were likely to head into mediation over Jaeger O'Meara, the Suns and Richmond were close to closing a deal in which the Tigers would concede pick 6 for the former top 10 draft pick. Under the deal, Richmond would give the Suns their first pick, as well a future second-round pick. Gambling giants Tabcorp Holdings and Tatts Group have unveiled the terms of a merger to create an $11 billion wagering powerhouse they say will be strong enough to compete with international bookmakers. The two companies announced on Wednesday morning they had struck a deal in which Tabcorp will buy out Tatts at a premium of about 20 per cent. Tabcorp wants to buy Tatts in part to fend off a growing challenge from overseas online rivals like William Hill and Paddy Power Betfair. Credit:Erin Jonasson The companies emerged from trading halts on Wednesday and the prospect of a merger sent Tatts shares up 15.46 per cent to $4.145 and Tabcorp was also up 2 per cent to $4.99 in mid-afternoon trading. "Bringing together our businesses will create a strong and diversified business that is well placed to invest, innovate and compete, both in Australia and globally," Tabcorp chairman Paula Dwyer said. "The potential for a disruptive adjustment in China remains pronounced, given the ongoing increase in debt," it said. The sheer pace of lending growth makes it likely many loans are going to marginal borrowers or unprofitable projects. China's growth is slowing and that will make it harder for highly leveraged firms to service their debts, especially if loans have funded unviable projects. To make matters worse much of the rapid growth has been from China's less regulated "shadow banking" sector. China's financial system "has become increasingly large, opaque and interconnected," the Reserve warned. The IMF's regular assessment of the Chinese economy, released in August, called on authorities to "tackle" the debt problem urgently. Luckily, Chinese authorities have the capacity to deliver more economic stimulus if needed. But the difficult remedies required to return China to a more sustainable rate of credit growth are likely to "displace" workers and take a toll on growth. Any artificial measures used to try and postpone the inevitable adjustment are likely to make it even more disruptive. And any policy missteps along the way could deepen the slowdown. The IMF says there's "a tangible risk of permanently lower medium-term growth". Of course, a sharp slowdown in Chinese growth would hit our economy harder than most and put many jobs at risk. Australia has the highest proportion of exports going to China of any advanced economy. Last financial year it accounted for more than 30 per cent of Australia's merchandise exports, up from about 10 per cent a decade earlier. It's also our largest market for services exports having jumped from around 3 per cent of the total to 15 per cent in just 15 years. China is Australia's second largest source of tourists and they spend far more than the average overseas visitor. China is also a key market for Australia's international education industry. What's surprising is that the potential fall-out from China's debt binge doesn't get much more attention here. The Reserve Bank's warnings about China last week didn't dominate the headlines. They were eclipsed by another financial risk highlighted in the report how a glut of inner-city apartments could leave highly leveraged investors and property developers exposed should prices slide. In the first of three "headland" speeches in late August the Treasurer, Scott Morrison, also canvassed the economic threat posed by rising corporate debt and slowing economic growth in China. "Interesting times may lay ahead, and we must prepare," he said. It is rare for an Australian treasurer to talk about the risks that come with Australia's extensive economic ties with China, not just the opportunities. But the warning was again overshadowed, that time by Morrison's remarks about "the taxed and the taxed nots" how more Australians are likely to go through life never paying more tax than they receive in government payments than in the past. The amount of quality news and financial analysis about Asia in the Australian media has improved over the past decade or so. But analysis of the Chinese economy is still routinely eclipsed by financial news from Europe and North America. We still pay disproportionate attention to financial events in America and Britain even though those places have become less important to us economically. The blanket coverage of Brexit is a case in point there's no doubt the aftermath of China's credit boom poses a much bigger economic threat to Australia than Britain's withdrawal from the European Union, but the balance of media coverage here doesn't reflect that. Despite our growing economic integration with the Asia, deep curiosity about the region remains strangely limited. It's high time that changed. The Debt Recovery Tribunal has directed Airbus to deposit with it Rs 192.51 crore towards pre-delivery payment made by banks for purchase of planes by Kingfisher Airlines controlled by Vijay Mallya. By PTI: The Debt Recovery Tribunal has directed European aircraft manufacturer Airbus to deposit with it Rs 192.51 crore towards pre-delivery payment made by a consortium of banks for the purchase of planes by the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines controlled by Vijay Mallya. Passing orders on an amended plea filed by the consortium led by the Oriental Bank of Commerce for the recovery of the payment, DRT Presiding Officer K Srinivasan directed Airbus to deposit Rs 192.51 crore from any source within eight weeks. advertisement BANKS MADE PRE-DELIVERY PAYMENT The Oriental Bank of Commerce, Corporation Bank and United Bank of India submitted that they had made a pre-delivery payment of Rs 192.51 crore to Airbus on behalf of Kingfisher Airlines after both parties had signed a purchase agreement in 2005. But the planes were not delivered. Also read: Liquor baron Vijay Mallya can visit India on emergency travel document: ED Since Airbus had failed to repay the pre-delivery payment, the consortium made GoAir and Indigo as parties in the case by filing applications under garnishee proceedings to recover the money. It had sought a direction to the budget carriers to deposit the money to be paid by them to Airbus with it, under garnishee proceedings. WHAT IS GARNISHMENT? A garnishment is a means of getting a monetary judgement against a defendant by ordering a third party (the garnishee) to pay the money, otherwise owed to the defendant, directly to the plaintiff. However, during the hearing of the prayer, the budget carriers had opposed it, saying it would affect the interest of their business and economy. Also read: Vijay Mallya's Kingfisher Villa in Goa to be auctioned for Rs 85 crore Airbus too had objected to the proceedings saying the company was needlessly being dragged into the matter as it was neither a borrower nor a defaulter and questioned the DRT's jurisdiction. Countering this, the bank's counsel Mohammad Ibrahim had contended that the tribunal had jurisdictional power to adjudicate the matter since the contract was signed in India between banks, Kingfisher Airlines and Airbus, and the aircraft were to be delivered in India and the money was paid in India. AMEND PLEA IN GARNISHEE PROCEEDINGS: DRT TO BANKS The DRT, on September 27, had ordered the bankers to amend its plea in the garnishee proceedings to seek a direction to the Airbus to deposit money received in the future from any deal and air carrier from India strikes with it, instead of seeking the money from budget air carriers. advertisement Kingfisher Airlines owes over Rs 9,000 crore to SBI-led consortium of 17 banks. Mallya, who left the country on March 2 and is now in the UK, has been declared a proclaimed offender by a special PMLA court in Mumbai on a plea by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with its money-laundering probe against him in the alleged bank loan default case. Also read: Get Vijay Mallya deported: ED writes to foreign ministry --- ENDS --- Senate powerbroker Nick Xenophon has confirmed he will not support three major planks of the Turnbull government's budget, but has left the door open for negotiation on key industrial relations bills. Two welfare savings measures will be blocked outright: a plan to make young jobseekers wait four weeks before receiving unemployment benefits, and a cut to the age pension for people who spend more than six weeks overseas. "There are other priorities the government should focus on": South Australian senator Nick Xenophon has cut a "middle way" on corporate tax cuts. Credit:Pat Scala The Nick Xenophon Team will also use its numbers in the Senate to limit the government's proposed business tax cuts, a centrepiece of the 2016 budget, to businesses with annual turnover of less than $10 million. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Treasurer Scott Morrison want to bring the corporate tax rate down to 25 per cent over 10 years, in an escalating manner that would eventually affect all businesses regardless of size. On the night of September 10, between the hours of about 8 and 11, six women, each of them walking in midtown Manhattan, were approached by a group of young men who sought to light them on fire. Although the attacks were mercifully unsuccessful no one was injured one woman standing at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and East 54th Street had her skirt set aflame, while another, walking past a Valentino store, police reported, felt something warm on her left arm, only to realise that her blouse was on fire. . Credit:Stocksy Six days later, a 14-year old boy was taken into custody, and charged with attempted assault and harassment. Given that everyone targeted for conflagration was female, police have considered these hate crimes. That four of the encounters occurred on a stretch of Fifth Avenue just outside Trump Tower may bear no actual relationship to our current political misfortunes, but their symbolic freight is hard to overlook. Tech founder Luke Anear never went out seeking venture capital investment. In fact the creator of SafetyCulture, a workplace safety checklist app, didn't know what the phrase "VC" meant until recently. Scott Farquhar, left, of Atlassian assisted Luke Anear, Safety Culture, in its venture capital foray. But apparently without chasing it, Anear and his company secured a $30 million venture capital raise from US investors Index Ventures. The two were connected by Paul Kwan of Morgan Stanley's Silicon Valley arm. "We were just focused on proving our business model and moving from individual people downloading the app to organisational wide deployments that were building a real revenue business. Then all of a sudden we were given this opportunity," he said. Badana, Iraq: The farming village of Badana, east of Mosul, was turned into a bunker during more than two years of Islamic State rule. The proof is a network of tunnels and cramped living quarters that betrays an extremist group increasingly forced to operate underground by a punishing air campaign and mounting territorial losses. Wrested from IS control on the first day of the offensive to retake Iraq's second-largest city, Badana offers a glimpse of the battle ahead. Above ground, walls were shredded by air strikes and artillery, homes were stained black with soot and the remaining buildings had been looted. Below ground, bags of fresh vegetables lay on the floor of a cooking area and a bowl of eggs sat beside a crude stove, suggesting the fighters maintained supply lines until days before their defeat. The Home Ministry ordered a high-level probe into the case, including on the immigration officials who let meat exporter Moin Qureshi to travel to Dubai. By Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu: Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has decided to act against officers in Bureau of Immigration who allowed meat exporter Moin Qureshi to travel to Dubai last week despite a pending look-out circular against him after PMO sought a report from the Home Ministry on how Delhi-based Qureshi, who is under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), was allowed to leave India. advertisement The Home Ministry ordered a high-level probe into the case, including on the immigration officials who let him travel. The immigration department has been asked to submit its report within 72 hours. A senior officer said, that MHA has taken the matter seriously asking even the IB to look into the matter. READ| All you need to know about Moin Qureshi: Emperor of meat export and a headache for ED Earlier in September, the ED had issued circular requesting immigration officials to detain Qureshi and inform the agency if he attempted to travel abroad. On October 14, immigration officials on duty intercepted Qureshi for questioning and subsequently the ED was also informed. According to a source, the lawyer accompanying Qureshi flashed papers regarding IT which led to confusion. However, it is alleged that even before the ED team could rrive at the airport, Qureshi was allowed to board the flight after he produced court documents granting him permission to go abroad. READ| Moin Qureshi case: Action likely against officers who allowed meat exporter to fly abroad The ED had earlier been probing this case under forex violation laws after the income tax department first shared documents indicating hawala and alleged contravention of forex laws by the businessman and his business entities based in India. It had alleged that Qureshi has sent "huge amount of funds" through the hawala route to Dubai, London and few other overseas destinations in Europe. ALSO READ: Meat exporter Moin Qureshi shows papers against ED's restraint order, allowed to fly to Dubai from Delhi airport --- ENDS --- Michelle Obama stuns in a custom made rose gold Atelier Versace dress at the final dinner as the First Lady. By India Today Web Desk: With elegance and grace at their safe disposal, The Obamas sure know who score a perfect score when it comes to the style department! While the President is known for his sartorial style, First Lady Michelle Obama's gowns have been great hits in the past--her latest one being no different. Michelle Obama's floor-length rose gold Atelier Versace gown managed to stun all at the final state dinner where the Obamas greeted Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife Agnese Landini. advertisement The First Lady's gown had a shimmery detailed bodice, an asymmetrical neckline, and a sleek waist, which was made perfect with her straight and flowing hair. US President Barack Obama and US first lady Michelle Obama greet Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife Agnese Landini at the White House. (Picture Courtesy: Reuters) So let your jaws drop. FLOTUS, known for her incredible fashion choices, has opted for the most glamorous look for the 14th and last state dinner. In the past, she has adorned clothes from numerous designers, from rising talent Brandon Maxwell to Carolina Herrera and Vera Wang to Alexander McQueen. Also read: Five times Michelle Obama made us fall in love with her Michelle Obama's gowns have not just been stunning but also meaningful. Mrs Obama reportedly, opts for a designer from the guest country in order to honour them. Like this time, she chose a sparkling gown from the Italian designer, Versace. Her final high-end fashion look as the First Lady will be remebered for years to come! --- ENDS --- While scrapping the dismissal of the officer for "stealing the affection of a brother officer's wife", the Armed Forces Tribunal has also advised the Indian Air Force against giving harsh punishment to male officers for having affairs with their colleagues' spouses. By Ajit Kumar Dubey: With women joining the armed forces in large numbers, it is unreasonable to expect that the two sexes would not mingle while aspects such as marriage breakups, consensual relationships with others and infidelity should not be viewed so seriously as to lead to dismissal of an officer. This landmark observation has been made by none other than a military court while giving relief to an ace fighter pilot removed from service for having an "illicit" affair with a senior female officer who committed suicide. advertisement While scrapping the dismissal of the officer for "stealing the affection of a brother officer's wife", the Armed Forces Tribunal has also advised the Indian Air Force against giving harsh punishment to male officers for having affairs with their colleagues' spouses. AFFAIR SMACKS OF PATRIARCHY The court has also hit out at the strict military offence of having affair with fellow officer's spouse, saying it "smacks of patriarchy and punctilious mindset" and held only men responsible for such affairs. The court said the fact that the offence did not hold women responsible "who may be as educated, as mature, even older and senior than the male is reflective of a pre-disposed and biased mindset that also assumes that the wife of a brother officer is the property or chattel of the male and not an independent person in her own right who has the freedom to choose to live her life on her own terms." IAF officers refused to comment on the issue. The Indian Air Force commissioned its first female fighter pilots this year, paving the way for more women to be given combat roles as one of the world's biggest armed forces takes steps towards greater gender parity. The military began recruiting women to non-medical positions in 1992. WHAT HAPPENED "The application of Flt Lt Ishan Sharan is allowed in part," the tribunal said in its verdict. "He is to be considered as released from service from the date of his dismissal that is 28 June 2013 with whatever financial benefits, if any, that he may be entitled to." Sharan, an ace Su-30MKI pilot posted at Jodhpur, was dismissed from service in June 2013 after a female Squadron Leader committed suicide. The officer had an "adulterous relationship" with the woman as per the Air Force inquiry. The young pilot and the husband of the deceased were posted in the same Su-30MKI fighter squadron in Jodhpur while she was posted in another nearby radar unit. As per the allegations, the Flight Lieutenant (equivalent to a Captain in the Army) had an affair with the female officer since their posting in Bareilly and it had continued even in Jodhpur after their relocation. advertisement The problems in the affair started when the female officer's husband read their Facebook chat history suggesting an intimate relationship between the two and also when he threatened to divorce his wife. The young male officer, meanwhile, went on to marry another woman, which allegedly pushed the female officer into depression. She was found hanging from the ceiling in her room on November 28, 2012, following which the IAF ordered a court of inquiry into the matter. The probe under a Group Captain (Colonel) rank officer found Sharan guilty of "Behaving in a manner unbecoming of an officer by luring the Squadron Leader who was wife of another officer of the same rank into a relationship hereby stealing her love and affection." Also Read: All you need to know: From sex scandal to causing death of labourer, troubles have hit AAP hard and how WHAT KIND OF ACTION Despite the IAF inquiry accepting that in view of the increased interaction between male and female officers for major part of the day the "likelihood of developing attraction is high", it recommended strong action against the officer while asking for a sensitisation campaign among all its personnel against falling into such relationships. The Air Force also put the onus of the affair on the male officer alone, saying "it may be possible that the relationship was mutual and complimentary, implying that the lady is also an active and willing partner. In such cases, the onus is upon the airwarrior to withdraw and desist from having such relationship." As per the allegations, he had entered into an "inappropriate, illicit and amorous relationship" with the female officer. Appealing against his dismissal from service, Sharan accepted before the Air Force chief that his involvement with the female officer was "a mere error of judgment and not any wrongful intention on my part." advertisement The officer who had joined the IAF in 2007 was the topper of his batch as he was awarded the prestigious "Sword of Honour" by the Chief of Air Staff for his stellar performance in training. "The only mistake of mine is that I should have ended my interaction with her abruptly. But I chose to stand by her in her times of distress which at that time I felt was the right thing to do," he told the Air Force. Taking a lenient view of the case, Kolkata Tribunal's Lt Gen Gautam Moorthy said in his verdict that "while not condoning extra marital relationships, we must, at the same time, reflect upon the changing mores of our society." --- ENDS --- advertisement By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 19 (PTI) New & Renewable Energy Ministry will seek Cabinet approval to a proposal to reclassifying large hydro power plants as renewable projects, a move which can help India achieve clean power capacity of 230 GW by 2022. "I have a study carried out by Power Secretary and his team which demonstrates that except 4-5 countries almost universally in the world, hydro power (large project) is considered renewable. We are almost on the verge of finalising that report, which should shortly be taking up to the Cabinet (for approval)," Power, Coal, Mines and New & Renewable Energy Minister Piyush Goyal told reporters here. Removing the distinction between small project (up to 25 MW) and large hydro project can help India projecting that its installed renewable energy capacity would be 230 GW by 2022. advertisement Goyal further said, "I do believe that hydro power of all sizes and shapes should be considered part of renewable energy." Elaborating further on the move he said, "I am not trying to cut corners and now say 175 GW (renewable energy target by 2022) will include large hydro and therefore scale down my ambition. When I add large hydro to renewable, I would add that much capacity to renewable energy. I think we will go to 230 GW after adding large hydro to renewable energy." Of the 306 GW installed power generation capacity, 43 GW comes from large hydro projects (above 25 MW) and 44.23 GW from other renewable power generation capacities. India has set an ambitious target of adding 175 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2022 which includes 100 GW of solar, 60 GW from wind, 10 GW from bio-power and 5 GW from small hydro-power (up to 25 MW capacity each). Besides better projection of Indias renewable energy capacities, the move would help the hydro power sector as it would be able to access incentives being provided to renewable energy projects by the government. Earlier in March, Planning Minister Rao Inderjit Singh had told the Lok Sabha that the planned hydro power generation capacity addition of 4,371 mw out of total target of 10,897 mw in the 12th Plan will not be completed. "Based on the current status of works, out of 12th Plan hydro capacity addition target of 10,897 mw, capacity aggregating 4,371 mw is slipping, and 930 mw capacity is critical to commissioning during the 12th Plan," he had said. (MORE) PTI KKS MR --- ENDS --- The following companies are subsidiares of Dover: APM Grundstucksverwaltungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, Accelerated Production Systems, Acme Cryo Intermediate Inc., Acme Cryogenics, Acme Cryogenics Inc., Acme Elevator, Advansor A/S, Advansor Dover International (Poland) sp. z o.o., Advansor Germany GmbH, Alfred Fueling Systems Holdco Ltd., Alfred Fueling Systems Inc., Alfred Fueling Systems Intermediate Holdco Ltd., All-Flo Pump Company, Anman LLC, Anthony Equity Holdings Inc., Anthony Holdings Inc., Anthony Inc., Anthony International, Anthony International Foreign Sales Corp., Anthony International Holding Company, Anthony Mexico Holdings LLC, Anthony North Holdco Inc., Anthony Specialty Glass LLC, Anthony TemperBent GP LLC, Audax ECII Blocker Inc., Auto Glanz Solutions LLC, AvaLAN Wireless Systems Incorporated, BELVAC CR spol s r.o., BSC Filters Limited, Belanger, Belanger Inc., Belvac Middle East FZE, Belvac Production Machinery Inc., Blackmer, BlitzRotary GmbH, Blue Bite LLC, Blue Bite LLC, Butler Engineering and Marketing S.P.A., CDS Visual, CDS Visual Inc., CEP Liquidation LLC, CP Formation LLC, CPC Europe Inc., CPI Products Inc., Caldera, Canada Organization & Development LLC, Chief Automotive Technologies (Shanghai) Trading Company Ltd., Chippewa Square Captive Insurance Company, Colder Products Company, Colder Products Company GmbH, Colder Products Company LTD, Cook Compression LLC, Cook Compression Limited, Cook-MFS Inc., Cryogenic Experts LLC, DD1 Inc., DDI Properties Inc., DE-STA-CO Benelux B.V., DE-STA-CO FRANCE, DE-STA-CO Shanghai Co. Ltd., DESTACO UK Limited, DFH Corporation, DFS Netherlands B.V., Datamax International Corp, De Sta Co (Asia) Company Limited, De-Sta-Co Cylinders Inc., DeStaCo Europe GmbH, Delaware Capital Formation Inc., Delaware Capital Holdings Inc., Dositec Sistemas SL, Dosmatic U.S.A. Inc., Dover (China) Investment Co. Ltd., Dover (Schweiz) Holding GmbH, Dover (Shanghai) Industrial Co. Ltd., Dover (Shenzhen) Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Dover (Suzhou) Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Dover Asia Trading Private Ltd., Dover Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Dover Business Services EMEA Limited, Dover Business Services Europe S.R.L., Dover Business Services LLC, Dover Business Services Philippines Corporation, Dover CLP Formation Limited Partnership, Dover Canada Holdings ULC, Dover Canada Operations ULC, Dover Corporation Regional Headquarters, Dover DEI Services Inc., Dover Denmark Holdings ApS, Dover EMEA FZCO, Dover Energy UK Ltd, Dover Engineered Products Segment Inc., Dover Europe Inc., Dover Europe Sarl, Dover Fluids UK Ltd, Dover France Holdings, Dover France Participations, Dover France Technologies, Dover Fueling Solutions Segment Inc., Dover Fueling Solutions UK Limited, Dover Germany GmbH, Dover Global Holdings LLC, Dover Holdings de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Dover Imaging & Identification Segment Inc., Dover India Pvt. Ltd., Dover Intercompany Services UK Limited, Dover International B.V., Dover International Operations Inc., Dover International Ventures Inc., Dover International ithalat ihracat ve Pazarlama Limited Sirketi, Dover Italy Holdings S.r.l., Dover Luxembourg Finance Sarl, Dover Luxembourg Participations Sarl, Dover Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Dover Luxembourg Services Sarl, Dover Operations South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Dover Overseas Ventures Inc., Dover Pumps & Process Solutions Segment Inc., Dover Refrigeration & Food Equipment Segment Inc., Dover Refrigeration & Food Equipment UK Ltd, Dover Resources International de Mexico S. de R.L. C.V., Dover Solutions Colombia SAS, Dover Southeast Asia (Thailand) Ltd., Dover Spain Holdings S.L., Dover Switzerland Participations GmbH, Dover UK Pensions Limited, Dover WSCR Holding LLC, Dover WSCR LLC, Dover do Brasil Ltda., Dow-Key Microwave Corporation, Dresser Wayne Data Technology (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Dresser Wayne Fuel Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ECI - IGT Holdings LLC, ECI Holding Company LLC, ECI RegO S. de R.L. de C.V, ECI RegO Servicios S. de R.L. de C.V., ECII (Mexico) LLC, EOA Systems Inc., Ebs-Ray Holdings Pty Ltd, Ebs-Ray Industries Pty Ltd, Ebs-Ray Pumps Pty Ltd, Em-Tec, Engineered Controls International LLC, Espy, Ettlinger, Ettlinger Kunststoffmaschinen GmbH, Fairbanks Environmental Limited, Fibrelite Composites Limited, Fibresec Holdings Limited, Fibresec Limited, Finder, GAL LLC, GIIER LLC, Gala Industries, Guangdong Tokheim LIYUAN Oil Industry Technology Limited Company, Highland Park Insurance Company, Hill PHOENIX Inc., Hill PHOENIX WIC LLC, Hill Phoenix Costa Rica Sociedad De Responsabilidad Limitada, Hill Phoenix El Salvador Limitada de Capital Variable, Hill Phoenix Guatemala Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix Honduras Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix Nicaragua Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Hiltap Fittings Ltd., Hydro Systems Company, Hydro Systems Europe Ltd., Industrial Motion Control LLC, Innovative Control Systems, Innovative Control Systems Inc., Inpro/Seal LLC, JK Group, JK Group S.P.A., JK Group USA Inc., K S Boca Inc., K&L Microwave DR Inc., K&L Microwave Inc., KPS (Beijing) Petroleum Equipment Trading Co Ltd., KPS Fueling Solutions Sdn. Bhd., KPS Hong Kong Holding Limited, KPS UK Limited, KS Formation Inc., KS Liquidation Inc., KSLP Liquidation L.P., Kiian Digital (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Knappco LLC, Knowles Electronics, LIQAL, LIQAL B.V., Liquip, Liquip, Liquip International Pty Limited, MAAG, MARKEM FZ SA, MARKEM-IMAJE Corporation, MIP Holdings Inc., MS Printing Solutions, MS Printing Solutions S.R.L., Maag, Maag Automatik Plastics Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Maag Gala Inc., Maag Germany GmbH, Maag Italy S.R.L., Maag Pump Systems, Maag Pump Systems (US) Inc., Maag Pump Systems AG, Maag Reduction Inc., Maag Service (Malaysia) Sdn. Bdn., Maag Service (Taiwan) Ltd., Maag Systems (Thailand) Limited, Macro Technologies LLC, Malema, Marathon Equipment Company (Delaware), Markem Imaje Center of Competencies Spain S.L.U., Markem-Imaje, Markem-Imaje (China) Co. Limited, Markem-Imaje - Unipessoal Lda, Markem-Imaje A/S, Markem-Imaje AB, Markem-Imaje AG, Markem-Imaje AS, Markem-Imaje B.V., Markem-Imaje CSAT GmbH, Markem-Imaje Co. Ltd., Markem-Imaje GmbH, Markem-Imaje Holding, Markem-Imaje Identificacao de Produtos Ltda., Markem-Imaje Inc., Markem-Imaje India Private Limited, Markem-Imaje Industries, Markem-Imaje Industries Limited, Markem-Imaje KK, Markem-Imaje LLC, Markem-Imaje Limited, Markem-Imaje Ltd., Markem-Imaje N.V., Markem-Imaje Oy, Markem-Imaje Philippines Corporation, Markem-Imaje Pty. Ltd., Markem-Imaje S.A., Markem-Imaje S.A. de C.V., Markem-Imaje S.r.l., Markem-Imaje SAS, Markem-Imaje Sdn. Bhd., Markem-Imaje Singapore Pte. Ltd., Markem-Imaje Spain S.A., Markpoint Holding AB, Midland Manufacturing LLC, Midwest Cryogenics Inc., Mouvex, Northeast Services Inc., Northern Lights (Nevada) Inc., Northern Lights Funding LP, Northern Lights Investments LLC, Nova Controls Inc., OK International, OK International Holdings Inc., OK International Inc., OK International Ltd., OPW Engineered Systems LLC, OPW Fluid Transfer Group Europe B.V., OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions (Jiang Su) Co. Ltd., OPW Fluids Group Inc., OPW Fuel Management Systems Inc., OPW Fueling Components (SuZhou) Co. Ltd., OPW Fueling Components LLC, OPW Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., OPW Slovakia s.r.o., OPW Sweden AB, Officine Meccaniche Sirio S.R.L., PDQ Manufacturing, PDQ Manufacturing Inc., PISCES by OPW Inc., PSD Codax Holdings Limited, PSD Codax Limited, PSG (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PSG (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., PSG California LLC, PSG Germany GmbH, Petro Vend Sp. z o.o., Pike Machine Products Inc., Pole/Zero Acquisition Inc., Precision Brasil Equipamentos E Servicos Para Postos De Combustiveis Ltda., Precision Service - Servicos De Manutencao E Instalacao De Postos De Abastecimento De Combustivel Ltda., Production Control Services, Pump Management Services Co. LLC, Quantex Arc Limited, Quantex Patents Limited, RAV France, Ravaglioli S.P.A., Reduction Engineering GmbH, RegO (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., RegO Holding GmbH, RegO Products, RegO Valve (Shanghai) Company Ltd., Rego GmbH, Revod Corporation, Revod Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Revod Sweden AB, Robohand Inc., Rosario, Rosario Handel B.V., Rotary Lift Consolidated (Haimen) Co. Ltd., SE Liquidation LLC, SWEP France, SWEP Germany GmbH, SWEP Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., SWEP North America Inc., SWEP Slovakia s.r.o., SWEP Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Seabiscuit Motorsports Inc., Shanghai RegO Flow Technology Company Ltd., Shine Bloom - ECI A Blocker Corp., Shine Bloom - ECI Blocker Corp., Shine Bloom - ECI S Blocker Corp., Simmons Sirvey Corporation, So. Cal. Soft-Pak, So. Cal. Soft-Pak Incorporated, Soft-Pak, Solaris Laser, Solaris Laser S.A., Somero Enterprises, Sound Solutions, Sound Solutions, Space S.R.L., Spirit, Start Italiana S.R.L., Superior Holding LLC, Superior Products LLC, Swep Energy Oy, Swep International A.B., Swep Japan K.K., Sys-Tech Solutions, Sys-Tech Solutions Inc., Systech, TQC Quantium Quality S.A. de C.V., TTSI III Inc., TWG Canada Consolidated Inc., TXHI LLC, Tartan Textile Services Inc., The Espy Corporation, The Heil Co., Tokheim, Tokheim Belgium, Tokheim China Company Limited, Tokheim GmbH, Tokheim Group, Tokheim Hengshan Technologies (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Tokheim Holding B.V., Tokheim India Private Limited, Tokheim Sofitam Applications, Triton Systems, Tulsa Winch Inc., UPCO Inc., US Synthetic, Unattended Payment Solutions LLC, Unified Brands, Val TemperBent Glass L.P., Vectron Frequency Devices (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Vehicle Service Group LLC, Vehicle Service Group UK Limited, Vos Food Store Equipment Ltd., WSCR Corp., Warn Automotive LLC, Warn Industries, Waukesha Bearings, Waukesha Bearings Corporation, Waukesha Bearings Limited, Waukesha Bearings Russia LLC, Wayne Fueling Systems, Wayne Fueling Systems (Rus) Limited Liability Company, Wayne Fueling Systems Australia Pty Ltd, Wayne Fueling Systems Canada ULC, Wayne Fueling Systems Italia S.R.L., Wayne Fueling Systems LLC, Wayne Fueling Systems Ltd., Wayne Fueling Systems Sweden AB, Wayne Fueling Systems UK Holdco Ltd., Wayne Industria e Comercio Ltda., WellMark, WellMark, and em-tec GmbH. Read More PNM Resources, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides electricity and electric services in the United States. It operates through Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) and Texas-New Mexico Power Company (TNMP) segments. The PNM segment engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. The segment generates electricity using coal, natural gas and oil, nuclear fuel, solar, wind, and geothermal energy sources. As of December 31, 2021, this segment had owned or leased facilities with a total net generation capacity of 2,168 megawatts; and owned 3,426 miles of electric transmission lines, 5,751 miles of distribution overhead lines, 5,765 miles of underground distribution lines, and 250 substations. The segment also owns and leases communication, office and other equipment, office space, vehicles, and real estate. The TNMP segment provides regulated transmission and distribution services. As of December 31, 2021, the segment owned 983 miles of overhead electric transmission lines, 7,297 miles of overhead distribution lines, 1,408 miles of underground distribution lines, and 113 substations. The segment also owns and leases vehicles, service facilities, and office locations throughout its service territory. The company serves approximately 806,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers and end-users of electricity in New Mexico and Texas. PNM Resources, Inc. was incorporated in 1882 and is headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The following companies are subsidiares of Tyson Foods: APF Legacy Subs LLC, Advance Food Company LLC, AdvancePierre Foods, AdvancePierre Foods Holdings Inc., AdvancePierre Foods Inc., Aidells Sausage Company Inc., Allied Specialty Foods Inc., American Proteins Inc, Artisan Bread Co. LLC, Australian Food Corporation Pty Limited, Australian Food Corporation Trust, BRF, Barber Foods LLC, Bosco's Pizza Co., Bryan Foods Inc., C.S. Grain LLC, C.V. Holdings Inc., CBFA Management Corp., Central Industries Inc., Chefs Pantry LLC, Clovervale Farms LLC, Cobb (Hubei) Breeding Co. Ltd., Cobb (Shanghai) Enterprise Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Cobb Ana Damizlik Tavukculuk Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Cobb Columbia S.A.S., Cobb Europe B.V., Cobb Europe Limited, Cobb Peru (Andina) S.A.C., Cobb-Heritage LLC, Cobb-Vantress Brasil Ltda, Cobb-Vantress Inc., Cobb-Vantress New Zealand Limited, Cobb-Vantress Philippines Inc., Coominya AFC Pty Limited, Coominya AFC Trust, DFG Foods Inc., DFG Foods L.L.C., Don Julio, Egbert LLC, Equity Group - Georgia Division LLC, Equity Group - Kentucky Division LLC, Equity Group Eufaula Division LLC, Equity Meat Corp., Flavor Corp., Flavor Holdings Inc., Foodbrands America Inc., Foodbrands Supply Chain Services Inc., Gallo Salame Inc., Global Employment Services Inc., Grow-Out Credit LLC, Grow-Out Holdings LLC, Haimen Tyson Poultry Development Co. Ltd, Hudson Foods Company, Hudson Midwest Foods Inc., Hybro Genetics Brasil Ltda, IBP Caribbean Inc., IBP Foodservice L.L.C., IBP Inc., International Affiliates & Investment LLC, Jiangsu Tyson Foods Co. Ltd, Keydutch Finance B.V., Keydutch Holdings I LLC, Keydutch Holdings II LLC, Keydutch Investments B.V., Keystone CLJV Holdings Limited, Keystone County House Road LLC, Keystone Foods, Keystone Foods (AP) Limited, Keystone Foods Holdco LLC, Keystone Foods Intermediate LLC, Keystone Foods LLC, Keystone Foods Pty Limited, Keystone Management Inc., Keystone Trading (Shanghai) Company Limited, LD Foods LLC, M & M Express LLC, M&M Restaurant Supply (MI/OH) LLC, MFG (USA) Holdings Inc., Mac Food Services (Malaysia) SDN. BHD., Madison Foods Inc., McKey Food Services (Hong Kong) Limited, McKey Food Services (Shandong) Limited, McKey Food Services (Thailand) Limited, McKey Food Services Limited, McKey Luxembourg Holdings APMEA S.a.r.l., McKey Luxembourg Holdings S.a.r.l., McKey Luxembourg S.a.r.l., McKey VI Holdings Limited, Myung Seung Food Company Ltd., National Comp Care Inc., New Canada Holdings Inc., Oaklawn Capital Corporation, Oaklawn IT Solution Private Limited, Original Philly Holdings Inc., PBX inc., Pierre Holdco Inc., River Valley Ingredients LLC, Rizhao Tyson Foods Co. Ltd, Rizhao Tyson Poultry Co. Ltd, Rural Energy Systems Inc., Sara Lee - Kiwi Holdings LLC, Sara Lee Diversified LLC, Sara Lee Foods LLC, Sara Lee Household & Body Care Malawi Ltd., Sara Lee International LLC, Sara Lee International TM Holdings LLC, Sara Lee Mexicana Holdings Investment L.L.C., Sara Lee TM Holdings LLC, Sara Lee Trademark Holdings Australasia LLC, Saramar L.L.C., Shandong Tyson-Da Long Food Company Limited, Smart Chicken, Southern Family Foods L.L.C., Southwest Products LLC, TF 20 B.V., TF 5201 B.V., TFA Leasing LLC, TFA Opportunity Zone Fund LLC, TFI of California Inc., Tecumseh Poultry LLC, Texas Transfer Inc., The Bruss Company, The Hillshire Brands Company, The IBP Foods Co., The Pork Group Inc., TyNet Corporation, Tyson (Shanghai) Enterprise Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Tyson Americas Holding Sarl, Tyson Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Tyson Breeders Inc., Tyson Chicken Inc., Tyson China Holding 2 Limited, Tyson China Holding 3 Limited, Tyson China Holding Limited, Tyson Deli Inc., Tyson Europe Holding Company, Tyson Farms Inc., Tyson Farms QOZB LLC, Tyson Foods Brasil Investimentos Ltda., Tyson Foods Canada Inc., Tyson Foods Europe (Netherlands) B.V., Tyson Foods Europe GmbH, Tyson Foods France S.A.R.L., Tyson Foods Germany GmbH, Tyson Foods Group Limited, Tyson Foods Holland B.V., Tyson Foods Huadong Development Co. Ltd, Tyson Foods Iberia Alimentos S.L.U., Tyson Foods Italia S.p.A., Tyson Foods Korea, Tyson Foods Netherlands B.V., Tyson Foods Products Limited, Tyson Foods Scotland Europe Limited, Tyson Foods Scotland Sales (Europe) Limited, Tyson Foods UK Limited, Tyson Foods Wrexham Limited, Tyson Foods oosterwolde B.V., Tyson Fresh Meats Inc., Tyson Fresh Meats Sales and Distribution LLC, Tyson Global Holding Sarl, Tyson Hog Markets Inc., Tyson India Holdings Ltd., Tyson International APAC Ltd., Tyson International Company Ltd., Tyson International Holding Company, Tyson International Holding Sarl, Tyson International Service Center Inc., Tyson International Service Center Inc. Asia, Tyson International Service Center Inc. Europe, Tyson Mexican Original Inc., Tyson Mexico Trading Company S. de R.L. de CV., Tyson New Ventures LLC, Tyson Opportunity Zone Fund LLC, Tyson Pet Products Inc., Tyson Poultry Inc., Tyson Prepared Foods Inc., Tyson Processing Services Inc., Tyson Refrigerated Processed Meats Inc., Tyson Sales and Distribution Inc., Tyson Service Center Corp., Tyson Shared Services Inc., Tyson Storm Lake Holdings LLC, Tyson Warehousing Services LLC, Tyson of Wisconsin LLC, Uninex SA, Universal Meats (UK) Limited, WBA Analytical Laboratories Inc., Wilton Foods Inc., Xamol Consultores e Servicos, and Zemco Industries Inc.. Read More In an acerbic op-ed, Global Times launched a blitzkrieg of sort against India, saying New Delhi can only "bark" and do nothing about the growing trade deficit between two countries. By Indo-Asian News Service: The call for boycott of Chinese goods on Indian social media is "rabble rousing" as Indian products cannot compete with those of China, the state-owned media said on Wednesday. In an acerbic op-ed, Global Times launched a blitzkrieg of sort against India, saying New Delhi can only "bark" and do nothing about the growing trade deficit between two countries. advertisement Indians have a called for a boycott of Chinese products after they were angered by China delaying India's effort to declare Pakistan based militants as international terrorists. MAKE IN INDIA IMPRACTICAL It described Prime Minster Narendra Modi's pet project "Make in India" as "impractical". The daily warned Chinese companies not to invest in India as it would be "suicidal" to put money in a country where corruption is high and the workforce is not hard working. "There has been a lot of talk recently in the Indian media as well as on social media about boycotting Chinese products. It's just rabble rousing," it said. CANNOT COMPETE WITH CHINESE "Indian manufacturing cannot compete at all with Chinese products, for various reasons." The daily said that India was to yet build roads and highways and had chronic shortage of power and water supply. "Worst of all, corruption is highly prevalent from top to bottom in every single government department." US JEALOUS OF CHINA It slammed India for courting the US. "The US is no one's friend. The Americans are just indulging India in order to contain China, as the US is jealous of China's development and global power. LABOUR CLASS LAZY "India has enough money but the majority of it is concentrated with politicians, bureaucrats and a few crony capitalists. Indian elites don't want to spend funds available in the country, which in reality is the taxpayers' money but is utilized by the Indian establishment for its own personal consumption. "Because of this, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has started impractical schemes like 'Make in India'. The reason is that the Indian establishment wants foreign companies to invest in the country. "It would be completely suicidal for Chinese companies to put their money in India by starting manufacturing projects there. The labour class in India is not very hard working or efficient," it argued. The daily said that instead of opening shops in India, Chinese companies should set up their manufacturing units in China. The world's third-largest smartphone maker, Huawei, opened its manufacturing unit in India last month. advertisement ONLY BARK, NO BITE "In any case, Indian businessmen flock to China in large numbers to buy products from China and sell them in India. This model suits China, so why disturb it by going and wasting money setting up manufacturing facilities in India? "Let the Indian authorities bark about the growing trade deficit with China. The fact of the matter is they cannot do anything about it." Also Read: Army commander visits field formations along Indo-China border --- ENDS --- Faculty in NSUs Hospitality Management and Tourism program hosted a Smarty Party to recognize students who earned scholarships from the American Hotel and Lodging Education Foundation, the Louisiana Restaurant Association Education Foundation and the NSU culinary arts program. On the front row from left are McKenna Opbroek, Shelby Noustens, Katarina Haymon, Taylor Jennings, Rachel Taylor, Ariel Adkins, Brianna Ashley and Terrian Marchand. On the back row are Hospitality Management and Tourism faculty Valerie Salter, Landon Amberg, Connie Jones and Dr. Lynn Woods. (Source: Northwestern State University) Two persons, who were apparently practicing for a film shooting, were nabbed by the Mumbai crime branch for flying a drone. By Saurabh Vaktania: Even as the drone alert continues in Mumbai, the crime branch has arrested two people from the film line for flying a drone in Charkop area. Interestingly, after the surgical strikes, there has been a complete ban on drone and other light aircraft in Mumbai. The two persons, who are arrested, were practicing to fly drone for an upcoming shooting. advertisement The two have been identified as Rahul Jaiswal, 24, and Rana Subhash Singh, 25; while the owner of the drone is Vidhichand Jaiswal. The cops arrested Rahul and Rana under section 336 and 287 of IPC. The police also charged the two under the Bombay police act. Also Read | Mumbai: Police issue fresh circular for possibility of drone attacks HOW THE CRIME BRANCH NABBED THE TWO The crime branch has now handed over the case to Charkop police for further investigations. According crime branch sources, the two were flying drone without permission in the area for the last several days. An alert citizen tweeted to the Mumbai police commissioner about a drone being flown in their area. The Commissioner immediately ordered investigation. A crime branch team was sent to the area on Tuesday night and the team was stationed there the whole night. Today morning, the cops saw two drones flying in the sky. They immediately laid a trap and nabbed both the people. The two, in their statement, said that they were unaware of the drone ban in Mumbai. It is to be noted that after the surgical strikes, the Mumbai police made a complete ban on drone flying in the city. Even paragliding is banned. Also Read: Mumbai next on terror hit list? Police suspect drones may be used for attack INVESTIGATION CONTINUES IN DRONE SPOTTED AT MUMBAI AIRPORT The Mumbai police suspect that the terrorists may target civilian areas to take revenge for the surgical strikes, and Mumbai has always been on terrorists' radar. Meanwhile, the drone which was spotted at the Mumbai airport on Tuesday is still a mystery and cops are investigating the matter. Police sources said that the police is likely to take the statement of the pilot who spotted the drone on Thursday. Also Read: Mumbai on alert after IndiGo pilot spots suspicious drone --- ENDS --- Advertisement By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 19, 2016 | PADUCAH, KY By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 19, 2016 | 04:43 PM | PADUCAH, KY The McCracken County Sheriffs Department is warning the public about a new scam called CEO Fraud, or Insider Spoofing. The scam reportedly involves a cyber attacker who obtains as much information as possible about the targeted company. The scam targets anyone with a senior role in a company who has the authority to make payments. Perpetrators typically obtain the person's name, email address and their schedule, and often wait until the victim goes out of town to impersonate them. The Sheriff's Office says this information can often be found on a companys website, where they list their employees, their roles and responsibilities, and contact information. Scammers also use social media sites to monitor movements, or call the organization directly to obtain information. The attacker then contacts the finance officer, claiming to be the boss, and requests they initiate a money transfer to the attackers bank account. Sometimes the attacker will spoof the bosss email, which means they modify the email, so the From: field contains the bosss genuine email address. At times, the attackers will have the boss email them, so they can duplicate the look of his/her email. Deputies are advising any employee who gets an email asking them to transfer funds to verbally verify the transfer. By Paul Schaumburg, Graves County Schools Oct. 18, 2016 | 08:51 PM | MAYFIELD, KY The Kentucky Court of Appeals on Sept. 21 issued an order denying the Graves County Board of Educations request for a hearing, en banc (which means the case was heard by all the judges of the court).The court ruled, After considering the motion and the response thereto, the Court hereby orders that the motion for en banc reconsideration be denied. The Court further orders that (the) Boards motion to allow the Kentucky Association of Counties to file an amicus (impartial party) brief, the Boards motion to amend its motion for reconsideration, and the City of Mayfields motion to strike portions of the motion for reconsideration be and hereby are denied as moot. This decision means the matter will be submitted to the Supreme Court of Kentucky for discretionary review. The case is a matter of first impression and is a core proceeding that has the potential to affect all cities and counties in the Commonwealth of Kentucky as well as Boards of Education. The Board has expressed and defended its right to vote on the proposed annexation of property. To do anything but defend against the annexation would subject employees of the Graves County Board of Education to taxation without representation. Wherefore, the Graves County Board of Education will litigate this matter to conclusion in the interest of the Board and the employees of the District, all according to C. Ed Massey, the attorney representing the Graves County Board of Education. We are pleased with the Kentucky Court of Appeals ruling, said Graves County Schools Superintendent Kim Dublin. Clearly, the courts action indicates this case involves a basic American principle of the founding fathers concerning taxation without representation. The court of appeals believes the case could affect similar situations now and in the future throughout the state and, therefore, has referred the case to the Kentucky Supreme Court. We believe our position will be upheld there. Of course, the Graves County Board of Education and superintendent will follow that opportunity to defend its employees and this important principle. Email To : Multiple e-mail addresses must be separated with a comma character(maximum 200 characters) Email To is required. Your Full Name: (optional) Your Email Address: Your Email Address is required. By PTI: Bhubaneswar, Oct 19 (PTI) Promising all central support to Odisha in tackling Japanese Encephalitis, Union Health Minister J P Nadda today asked the state government to play a pro-active role and strictly follow the protocol while dealing with the disease which has so far claimed 57 lives. "One wonders why such incidents are happening time and again. The state government needs to be pro-active. It should act and react in time ... we are there to support on all issues," Nadda told reporters while winding up his one-day visit here. advertisement Stating that issues relating to Japanese Encephalitis and malaria were discussed at length with officials, the Union Minister said the state government must ensure that the protocols must be followed and in time. Many initiatives have been taken in dealing with Japanese Encephalitis, but all measures must be taken in time in order to get positive results, he said, adding the Centre is ready to provide technical and other support. Noting that there was a need for over one crore medicated mosquito nets to be distributed in the state, Nadda said 40 lakh nets have already been made available and the rest would be provided shortly. Vaccination for Japanese Encephalitis would be undertaken in four districts of the state in December. Meanwhile, with the death of another child, the toll in Japanese Encephalitis outbreak today mounted to 57 in around seven weeks in Odishas tribal-dominated Malkangiri district. A five-year-old boy from Mathili block died while undergoing treatment at the intensive care unit of the district headquarters hospital here, taking the toll to 57, a senior official said. Unconfirmed reports, however, put the toll at 60 due to the vector-borne disease which has affected around 100 villages spread over six out of seven blocks in the backward district. PTI AAM SKN CR IKA --- ENDS --- By PTI: Bhubaneswar, Oct 19 (PTI) Promising all central support to Odisha in tackling Japanese Encephalitis, Union Health Minister J P Nadda today asked the state government to play a pro-active role and strictly follow the protocol while dealing with the disease which has so far claimed 57 lives. "One wonders why such incidents are happening time and again. The state government needs to be pro-active. It should act and react in time ... we are there to support on all issues," Nadda told reporters while winding up his one-day visit here. advertisement Stating that issues relating to Japanese Encephalitis and malaria were discussed at length with officials, the Union Minister said the state government must ensure that the protocols must be followed and in time. Many initiatives have been taken in dealing with Japanese Encephalitis, but all measures must be taken in time in order to get positive results, he said, adding the Centre is ready to provide technical and other support. Noting that there was a need for over one crore medicated mosquito nets to be distributed in the state, Nadda said 40 lakh nets have already been made available and the rest would be provided shortly. Vaccination for Japanese Encephalitis would be undertaken in four districts of the state in December. Meanwhile, with the death of another child, the toll in Japanese Encephalitis outbreak today mounted to 57 in around seven weeks in Odishas tribal-dominated Malkangiri district. A five-year-old boy from Mathili block died while undergoing treatment at the intensive care unit of the district headquarters hospital here, taking the toll to 57, a senior official said. Unconfirmed reports, however, put the toll at 60 due to the vector-borne disease which has affected around 100 villages spread over six out of seven blocks in the backward district. PTI AAM SKN CR IKA PS --- ENDS --- Loading... Caryl Churchill's 1997 double bill is about as willfully and wonderfully slippery as they come. Revived here for its 20th anniversary by the Tobacco Factory and the Orange Tree, the two pieces Heart's Desire and Blue Kettle are brilliantly entertaining and entirely confounding all at once. Heart's Desire is set in the kitchen of Brian and Alice who are waiting for their daughter's return from Australia. As the play starts, it also restarts over and over again, resetting to the beginning half way through a speech or a line. Radically different versions of the same scenario are played out at one point (spoiler alert!) gunmen burst into the kitchen, at another a great bird stalks its way through the door. Pretty much every possibility you could think of happens. Sections are sped up, words are cut, speeches are added. It's a little like Nick Payne's Constellations but with a lot more laughs. In Blue Kettle, Churchill again plays with form to the backdrop of an intriguing story. Here we follow Derek who seems to have tracked down his birth mother, but in actual fact is a serial adopted-mother-finder. He has five on the go. As the play progresses, the script is increasingly filled with the words blue and kettle, until you're left reading between the lines of a conversation that on paper makes absolutely no sense. They are both very clever and gloriously silly plays and it is an absolute treat to watch them staged so well by director David Mercatali. To perform Heart's Desire is to grapple with some really sharp, tricky cues and the actors and lighting and sound designers rise to the challenge beautifully. Blue Kettle is again an impressive achievement in timing and memory for a strong team of actors, who perform the text with the playfulness it asks for. It's never easy to explain a Churchill play and these two are characteristically oblique. But the playwright's invention and experimentation with form and her precision with language are masterful here. Mercatali wisely taps into the humour of the piece, which means that even if you come away feeling as though you had no idea what was going on, you will still have laughed. A lot. Blue Heart runs at the Orange Tree Theatre until 19 November. The actor, who recently got engaged to Rukmini, will also gift her handcrafted jewellery. By India Today Web Desk: Neil Nitin Mukesh, who recently made headlines for his engagement with Mumbai-based Rukmini Sahay last week, will be fasting this Karva Chauth along with his fiancee. ALSO READ: Who is Rukmini Sahay, Neil Nitin Mukesh's fiancee? 10 things you need to know The New York actor said in a statement, "Rukmini is quite traditional in her upbringing and I would like to support her wherever I can." advertisement Reportedly, Neil is inspired by his father, who fasts with his mother on Karva Chauth every year. This year will be special for the family as it is Rukmini's first Karva Chauth, and there will be a traditional ceremony at the actor's south Mumbai residence with all his extended family. Neil will also gift Rukmini a special pair of handcrafted Kundan bangles. Neil and Rukmini, who got engaged on Dussehra, will tie the knot next year. --- ENDS --- The decision to open the slip road from Noida to Barapullah corridor for public will be taken after a meeting with residents of Siddhartha Extension who moved moved the High Court seeking a stay on the construction, but no stay order was given. A meeting with residents of Siddhartha Extension in the presence of PWD minister Satyendra Jain will be held on October 20 at the Delhi secretariat. By Mail Today: The decision to open the slip road from Noida to Barapullah corridor for public will be taken after a meeting with residents of Siddhartha Extension in the presence of Public Works Department (PWD) minister Satyendra Jain on October 20 at the Delhi secretariat. Opening the stretch will provide relief to thousands of motorists from Noida and East Delhi who commute to South Delhi. It would also save commuters the hassle of a long U-turn at Sarai Kale Khan to reach their destination. Also Read: Noida to IGI airport in 30 minutes? AAP proposes stretching Barapullah corridor till Dhaula Kuan advertisement WHY THE DELAY IN THE PROJECT The project was delayed due to protests by residents of Siddhartha Extension followed by a legal dispute. Last year, residents moved the High Court seeking a stay on the construction, but no stay order was given. Residents have raised the issue of traffic congestion and the possibility of accidents if the slip road is opened. "There are two groups of residents who have tabled different demands before the PWD. The department met some demands such as widening the service road and repairing sewage drains in the area. But point of differences would be clarified in the joint meeting," said a senior PWD official. According to the official, the government does not want any trouble once the slip road is opened, and hence wants to resolve all issues with residents beforehand. Also Read: Delhi: Commuters suffer due to delay in Barapullah corridor construction CONSTRUCTION IS COMPLETE Construction of the slip road has already been completed and it is ready to be opened. The date of opening the corridor will be announced after settling the dispute among Siddhartha Extension residents. The PWD has already opened the loop in the reverse direction, i.e. from Jawahar Lal Nehru Stadium to DND flyway. According to PWD, the slip road connecting DND flyway with the Barapullah elevated corridor will save commuters a drive of nearly 3 km. At present, motorists coming from Noida via DND flyway have to go past Sarai Kale Khan, take a U-turn under the flyover near Nizamuddin railway station and drive back to the point of entry to Barapullah. This often becomes a harrowing task as the stretch remains heavily congested at any point of the day. The situation aggravates during the morning and evening peak hours. An estimated 1.5 lakh commuters use this stretch every day. --- ENDS --- Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Cancers of the mouth and throat caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) are rising sharply in Manitoba and across Canada, says a Canadian Cancer Society report. The incidence of HPV mouth and throat cancers nationwide increased 56 per cent in males and 17 per cent in females between 1992 and 2012. Mouth and throat cancers now represent about one-third of all HPV cancers in Canada. Nearly 4,400 Canadians will be diagnosed with an HPV cancer this year, and about 1,200 will die from it. Human papillomavirus is the most common sexually transmitted infection worldwide. CHARLES BUCHANAN / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES The Canadian Cancer Society urges Canadians to get the HPV vaccine a safe and effective way to prevent the cancer-causing infection. Most sexually active men and women become infected with HPV at some point during their lifetime. Most people clear the virus in about two years, but in a small percentage of people who are infected, the virus persists and can later cause cancer. The virus is linked with mouth and throat cancer, as well as cancers of the cervix, vulva, vagina, penis and anus. Mouth and throat cancers now equal cervical cancer as the most common types of cancer from HPV. The cancer society urges Canadians to get the HPV vaccine a safe and effective way to prevent the cancer-causing infection. In Manitoba, the vaccine is available to all Grade 6 students through a publicly funded program. However, only 46 per cent of eligible students in the province receive the required three treatments. By comparison, the vaccination rate in Alberta is 76 per cent. The Canadian Cancer Society cannot explain the low uptake in Manitoba. The vaccine is most effective when administered between the ages of nine and 14. Parents wonder why their child would need this. Its because the vaccine is most effective if they have it before theyre exposed to the virus, said Erin Crawford, the societys director of public issues. There are so few things where we can categorically state that if you do this, you prevent this kind of cancer, Crawford said. There are over 200 types of cancer. We can say stay away from tobacco, stay away from UV rays. Heres one more thing we can categorically state prevents cancer. The cancer society recommends HPV vaccination for females between the ages of nine and 45, and males between the ages if nine and 26. All provinces and territories offer free, school-based HPV vaccinations to girls but only six provinces offer it to boys. This year Manitoba is offering the vaccine to boys ages nine to 17 for the first time. Across the country, cancer rates are edging upwards as the population ages. The vast majority of cancers are diagnosed in people over the age of 50. About 19 people are diagnosed with cancer every day in the province. Manitobans age 50-79 will represent 70 per cent of all new cancer cases and almost 62 per cent of cancer deaths in 2016. Approximately 41 per cent of women and 45 per cent of men in Canada are expected to be diagnosed with cancer during their lifetimes. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 18/10/2016 (2204 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Police are expected to make an announcement on Wednesday about three arrests and the seizure of drugs and guns from the Brandon area as the result of a major drug investigation. Project Derringer was a joint effort between the BPS, Winnipeg Police Service and Manitoba RCMP, and it was the Manitoba Integrated Organized Crime Task Force that made the arrests. Police raided a farm near Griswold on Thursday afternoon and reportedly arrested two men at that scene. Charges have been laid, and based on those it appears a third man was arrested on Friday in Brandon. Tim Smith/The Brandon Sun A farm near Griswold was raided by police on Thursday afternoon. Two men, believed to be a local man and a man from Toronto, were arrested at the farm. Police also raided a home on the 1200 block of First Street on Friday, but its unclear if that raid is connected to the third man or how it is related to the investigation. Both raids involved the BPS Tactical Response Unit. There was also a report that the unit had arrested a man in the 900 block of Eighth Street on Friday. Police have been highly secretive about the months-long investigation. The allegations against two of the accused stretch between Jan. 27 and Oct. 13 of this year. However, its expected police will describe an investigation into the mass transport of drugs from the Toronto region to the Brandon area for distribution. The drugs the men are accused of trafficking are cocaine, marijuana, psilocybin and crystal meth. Anecdotally, Brandons courts have seen a higher presence of cases involving the possession of methamphetamine in recent years. Where the drugs and weapons were found hasnt been specified. The three accused face various weapons offences in connection with the illegal possession of a number of guns. Leslie Gerald Bisson, 36, is charged with 23 counts that include trafficking of cocaine, marijuana, psilocybin and crystal meth. Hes also accused of illegally possessing a tactical semi-automatic rifle, two pump-action shotguns, and three rifles. Justin Tyler Reimer, 28, is accused of illegally having a .22-calibre handgun, and an SKS 726 calibre assault rifle that seems to be a dated Soviet weapon. Reimer is also charged with illegally possessing ammunition for both guns, and a high-capacity magazine. In total, Reimer faces 19 charges that also include possession of cocaine, crystal meth, and marijuana for the purpose of trafficking. Tim Smith/The Brandon Sun Members of the Brandon Police Service Tactical Response Unit walk back to their vehicles during an operation at a residence in the 1200 block of First Street on Friday afternoon. Its alleged he was found in possession of all these drugs and guns on Friday. Also charged is Javed Ali, 29, who faces six charges that relate to the trafficking and possession for trafficking of cocaine and crystal meth. All three men remain in custody. The allegations against them havent been proven and theyre presumed innocent. Its not known yet if the arrests are connected to a series of shootings in the Wheat City recently. The Brandon Sun will have details from the press conference to be held at Manitoba RCMP headquarters in Winnipeg late Wednesday morning. Exhibits will be available for journalists to film and photograph. Deputy Chief Randy Lewis will represent the Brandon Police Service. ihitchen@brandonsun.com Twitter: @IanHitchen Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Manitobas dairy industry will be getting a big shot in the arm after an Ontario-based dairy co-operative and a B.C. firm announced plans to convert a former Winnipeg egg processing plant into a new dairy processing facility. Mississauga-based Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Ltd. and Abbotsford, B.C.-based Vitalus Nutrition Inc. plan to spend an undisclosed sum of money over the next year converting a 33,000-square-foot plant at 70 Irene St. into a modern milk processing facility. The new facility, which should be fully operational early next fall, will produce cream for the Manitoba market, butter for the Canadian market and dry dairy ingredients things like milk protein concentrate for domestic and international markets. JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The plants conversion is expected to take approximately a year. At the tenants request, Vitalus president Philip Vanderpol declined to release the name of the food processing company that had been leasing the building from Vitalus. He said Vitalus has owned the building since the late 1990s, and has leased it to several different egg processing operations over the years. He added the current tenant said it will be consolidating its operations at another processing plant in Manitoba. Industry sources said the most recent tenant was MFI Food Canada, which Ontario-based Burnbrae Farms Ltd. acquired earlier this year from Minnesota-based Michael Foods. Burnbrae has another egg processing plant at 500 Pandora Ave., but a spokesperson for the company could not be reached Tuesday for comment. Vanderpol described the creation of a new dairy processing plant which he said will be one of the largest in the province as a win-win situation. Not only do Vitalus and Gay Lea get to expand their processing operations in Canada Vitalus currently has one other dairy processing facility in Abbotsford, while Gay Lea has eight of them in Ontario but Manitobas milk producers also get to expand their production. I think the benefits of this go much beyond just a new processing plan. They go all the way back to the farm and feed and everything else, he added. He also said the new plant will be creating a substantial number of new skilled-labour jobs, including manufacturing-equipment operator. It should have a significant economic impact for the province, he added. Dairy Farmers of Manitoba chairman David Wiens confirmed the announcement is good news for the provinces approximately 280 dairy producers. Wiens said the demand for dairy products things like butter, cheese and yogurt is growing in Canada, but Manitobas dairy farmers have been unable to take full advantage of that growth because of insufficient milk-processing capacity here. He said Manitoba is producing about six per cent less milk than its allowed under industry regulations because the processors here already have all the milk they can handle. However, the new Vitalus/Gay Lea plant will be able to take all of the extra milk local farmers can produce, he added and then some. This is going to really turn things around for the dairy industry in Manitoba. We certainly have our work cut out for us, but our dairy producers are up to the challenge. Supplied Mississauga-based Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Ltd. and Abbotsford-based Vitalus Nutrition Inc. plan to convert a former Winnipeg egg processing plant at 70 Irene St. into a new dairy processing facility. An artist's rendering of the new plant. Vanderpol confirmed the new plant will be working closely with Manitoba dairy farmers. As they grow their supply, we will grow our processing capacity to match, he said. He said the joint-venture partners are still determining what the processing capacity of the new plant will be once its fully operational, but there will be extra room to expand production if the demand for its products grows. He noted the Winnipeg plant and Vitaluss B.C. plant will be the only two in Canada producing the kind of specialty dry ingredients used to make protein drinks and other nutritional-based products. Gay Lea president and CEO Mike Barrett said the joint venture with Vitalus also gives the farmer-owned co-operative an opportunity to expand its membership beyond Ontario, where it currently has about 1,300 members. He said Manitoba farmers wont have to join the co-operative in order to sell their milk to the new plant. But if they do, theyll not not only become joint owners of all of the co-ops processing plants, theyll also get to share in its profits. He noted the co-operative movement has had a strong following in Manitoba, so this is very exciting for us. murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. LOS ANGELES Speculation continues to swirl around whether Donald Trumps Plan B is to create a Trump-branded TV network to capitalize on his fervent support. On Monday, the Financial Times reported Trumps son-in-law, Jared Kushner, approached Aryeh Bourkoff, a former UBS banker who runs the boutique firm LionTree Advisors in New York, to discuss potential financing for a startup media venture should Trump lose the presidential election. Kushner was not available for comment. Bourkoff, through a spokesperson, declined to comment. Kushners outreach occurred about two months ago, said a person familiar with the conversation, who was not authorized to speak publicly. The New York real estate and publishing tycoon, who is married to Donald Trumps daughter, Ivanka, called and asked Bourkoff whether he could pick his brain about such a venture. The discussion was brief, and did not lead anywhere, this person said, adding LionTree is not interested in working on such a project. Trump would face many hurdles if he decided to launch a TV channel. Still, media executives said they wouldnt rule out such a venture. In some ways, it feels very Trumpian, said one high-level media executive whose company is not working with Trump. Hes going to lose the election, but you know he will find a way to capitalize on it. The Trump TV report sparked considerable debate on social media because Trump long has been a voracious consumer of television and because he rocketed to national fame on the NBC reality show The Apprentice. Hes a proven entertainer, said another TV executive. You cant take your eyes off of him. In addition, during the past week, Trump has seemed intent on preserving his brand as a successful billionaire even if Hillary Clinton defeats him Nov. 8, telling crowds the election is being rigged. However, launching a TV venture would cost at least US$500 million and perhaps as much as US$1 billion, industry experts said. Discovery Communications, for example, spent more than US$500 million to launch OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network more than six years ago. Another longtime TV executive suggested that Trump could start a subscription streaming service, pointing to the example of conservative talk show host Glenn Beck, who launched TheBlaze, which started out strong before sputtering. Creating a Trump TV channel might be a tough sell because pay-TV distributors have been looking to shed channels, not add new ones. Trump likely would turn to a deep-pocketed investor and would most likely buy an existing television channel rather than try to start one from scratch, executives said. Advertisers might be wary though, given the Access Hollywood tape from 2005, in which Trump could be heard bragging his fame enabled him to grope women. One executive said the audience for a Trump TV channel likely would be made up of older white men not a hip millennial crowd making it even less attractive to advertisers. Trump has considerable resources and several prominent advisers steeped in media. In August, Trump turned to Stephen Bannon, chairman of the Breitbart News website, as his campaigns CEO. Bannon was an unlikely choice to lead a presidential campaign but perhaps a smart choice to build a Trump media company. Former Fox News chairman Roger Ailes, who was forced from his job in July amid a sexual harassment scandal, also is said to be advising Trump. However, Ailes is contractually forbidden from working on a competitor to Fox. His exit agreement with 21st Century Fox contained a non-compete clause, a person familiar with the terms said. Some speculate a more likely scenario would be for Trump to partner with Rupert Murdoch and star in a prime-time show on the Fox News Channel or the Fox Business Network. Fox representatives declined to comment. Los Angeles Times Ever dreamt of sleeping under the night sky? Well, you can sleep under the Aurora Borealis when you are at this hotel in Finland. By Samonway Duttagupta: If you love travelling and you are equally fond of the winters, you are most likely a person who loves snow. Now, let us help your imagination go a little further. You are inside a glass top igloo in the middle of a snow-clad landscape. When you lie down, all you can see above is the Northern Lights. Such a surreal view, won't it be? Picture courtesy: Facebook/Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort advertisement Well, there's just one place in this planet where you can actually do this. It's the Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort, a hotel right in the middle of Finnish Lapland, and at a mere stone's throw distance from Urho Kekkonen National Park, the largest national park in Finland. Picture courtesy: Facebook/Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort While words can fall short to describe the beauty surrounding this hotel, the environment is cleaner than most places in the world. While taking a hike in the surroundings, you can even quench your thirst from a stream flowing past because the water is so pure. Picture courtesy: Facebook/Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort Also see: 10 Indian hotel rooms that offer views to remember Staying the nights in this hotel can be magical. Located just north of the Arctic Circle, the igloo rooms of this property offer unobstructed views of the Aurora Borealis. In this place, you can see the Aurora Borealis for as many as 200 days in a year. Picture courtesy: Facebook/Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort Picture courtesy: Facebook/Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort The resort offers accommodation in four different categories: queen suites, log cabins, a traditional house, and the famous glass igloos. Picture courtesy: Facebook/Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort Although the temperatures in these parts can fall up to minus 40 degrees, the glass igloos are made in such a way that you can easily survive those temperatures. The igloos are constructed using special thermal glass that keeps the inside warm and protects itself from frosting over. To know more about this place and book a stay of your dreams, visit www.kakslauttanen.fi --- ENDS --- Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Brandon police hope that the takedown of an alleged drug trafficking ring will quell the gun violence thats shaken Manitobas second-largest city lately. Its a very positive move, Brandon Police Service Deputy Chief Randy Lewis said at a press conference Wednesday at RCMP headquarters in Winnipeg. In less than a month, Brandon has seen four shootings. Last week, Christina Cheater, the federal Crown attorney who handles the drug docket for the Brandon court, sounded the alarm over shots fired and told a judge that the drug trade in that city that was getting out of control. At Wednesdays press conference, police showed how theyve been working to get things under control. JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Three police services from Manitoba displayed seized items from project Derringer. The Manitoba Integrated Organized Crime Task Force made up of RCMP, Brandon and Winnipeg police officers announced that their seven-month-long Project Derringer investigation has led to the arrest of two men from western Manitoba and one from the Toronto area. Leslie Gerald Bisson, 36, of Griswold, Justin Tyler Reimer, 28, of Brandon and Javed Ali, 29, of Georgetown, Ont. face numerous charges. Their arrests follow police search warrants executed from Oct. 12 to 15. At Wednesdays press conference in Winnipeg, police put on display the items seized. There were big bags of cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana with an estimated street value of $250,000 and freezer bags of cold, hard cash totalling $25,000. Photos of five vehicles worth an estimated $250,000 included a 2016 Ford F450 Lariat Crew Cab, a 2016 Ford Expedition and a 2012 Audi Q7 SUV. Nearby, there was a table full of firearms including an assault-style rifle, ammunition and a high-capacity magazine recovered through Project Derringer. Police couldnt say Wednesday if any of the seized guns were used in some of the gun violence Brandon has experienced lately. Those incidents involve a woman who received minor injuries in a shooting on Ninth Street. A week later on 10th Street a man survived being shot in the torso, and two homes had bullets fired at them. The investigation is ongoing and further charges are pending, task force officers said. Its a significant development, said Lewis with the Brandon police. He emphasized that the recent gun violence there was not random. It was targeted at specific residences, Lewis said. Unless youre involved in the drug sub-culture you have little to worry about. carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Winnipeg police have charged five sex-trade clients, and provided assistance to 22 women believed to be involved in the sex trade, as part of a Canada-wide sweep into human trafficking. Winnipeg police joined with 53 other police services in Canada, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the United States, in a campaign to suppress human trafficking. Operation Northern Spotlights is an ongoing investigation into people, mainly young women, participating in the sex trade against their will. Across Canada, police charged 32 people with 78 offences. They moved to safety 16 people working in the sex trade as minors, under the age of 16, or against their will. A vast range of charges were laid and include such charges as exercise control, make child pornography, distribute child pornography, forcible confinement, trafficking in persons, material benefit resulting from trafficking in persons, withhold or destroy documents, living off the avails, assault, utter threats, obstruct police, and failure to comply with court orders and conditions including breaches of recognizance and probation. The initiative is a cooperative effort bringing police services together against offenders who exploit vulnerable people. In Winnipeg, anyone with new information that might assist investigators is asked to contact the Counter Exploitation Unit (CEU) by phone at 204-986-3464 or via email at WPS-CEU@winnipeg.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. The IGA grocery store located near The Pas is shutting down, throwing 47 people out of work. Staff were notified Wednesday the store located on the neighbouring reserve of Opaskwayak Cree Nation in the Otineka Mall would be closing in the next few weeks, according to a spokeswoman for Sobeys, which owns the IGA franchise. These are never easy decisions to make, particularly with the impact they have on employees and customers. Given the current economic situation in the community and the continued underperformance of the store, we came to a mutual conclusion with the franchisee that it was necessary to close the store, said Keri Scobie in an email statement. SUPPLIED Empty shelves at IGA grocery store on Opaskwayak Cree Nation. The grocery store is expected to close in the next few weeks. The 20,500-sq.-ft. store has been on the First Nation since 1975. It is owned by the OCN and operates under a franchise agreement with Sobeys West. This is the latest in a series of economic blows for the northern Manitoba community. In August, The Pas largest employer Tolko Industries announced the paper mill would be shutting down in December. This came on the heels of Omnitrax Canada announcing it was cutting back rail freight service from The Pas to Churchill to one train per week from two. In late August, Aseneskak Casino in OCN announced its intention to move its location within the next two years, putting 147 local jobs at risk. Although a glimmer of hope has been given with the news of a potential buyer for Tolko, The Pas Mayor Jim Scott fears this isnt the end of the bad news. I fear this may be systematic and we havent seen the end of it, Scott said in a phone interview Wednesday. We are getting whacked, the market is changing, it really is. A request for comment to newly elected OCN Chief Christian Sinclair was not returned. With just over 5,000 people in The Pas and about 3,000 people living on-reserve at OCN, Scott worries the market isnt big enough for these 47 employees to find work in a similar field. There are three other grocery stores in The Pas an Extra Foods, a Giant Tiger and a family-owned grocer, The Grub Box. We are only so big and we only have so many businesses, so a tight market just got tighter, Scott said. Meanwhile, over 300 jobs hang in the balance during negotiations between Tolko and its potential buyer American Industrial Acquisition Corp. Premier Brian Pallister announced last Friday the government had passed a regulation allowing the U.S-based company to defer some required pension contributions for three years to help conclude negotiations. However, he was quick to add it was not a done deal. The new regulation would give the purchaser more time to address a shortfall in the employees pension plans believed to be in the neighbourhood of $20 million. Members of Unifor and the Canadian Steelworkers, the two unions that represent Tolko workers, have until Nov. 3 to voice their opposition to the pension deferral. With files from Larry Kusch kristin.annable@freepress.mb.ca Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. In all western democracies theres unprecedented public anger, frustration, disillusionment and mistrust of politicians and governments. Such a climate of public opinion has given rise to populist leaders who claim they are not politicians and that the political systems in which they operate are corrupt and broken. It is rare today to hear someone argue politics is a noble profession and government is a positive presence within the economy and society. The anti-politics and anti-government mood is reflected in the rise of leaders such as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in the United States; Marine Le Pen, leader of the National Front Party in France; and Norbert Hofer, leader of the Freedom Party in Austria. Such populist leaders capture the anger and resentment of many people who feel left behind by economic upheavals. There is a strong anti-immigrant message in their political appeals. It has always been accepted politicians fudge the truth, but now many people believe they lie routinely to gain a position in office and, once there, they serve the interest of the well-heeled and the well-connected, not the average citizen. Disgust with politicians goes along with lack of confidence in government as an institution. After decades of being told government is ineffective and wasteful, many people have come to believe it. ADRIAN WYLD / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES In a November 2014 poll, 50 per cent of Canadians declared they did not trust politicians. Canadians and Manitobans might think these negative sentiments do not describe the reality here. After all, at the national level, in October 2015 we elected the Liberal Party and its young, engaging leader, Justin Trudeau, after the party promised an extensive democratic reform agenda. In Manitoba, in April 2016 the Progressive Conservatives took office committed to making the province the most open, transparent and responsive jurisdiction in the country. Such developments must be grounds for at least conditional optimism some political leaders recognize there is also a democratic malaise in this country that requires attention. Evidence of that malaise is not hard to find. Over four decades, going back to the 1970s, polls revealed trust in politicians and governments declined slowly, with only the occasional, short-lived, small upswing. In a November 2014 poll done for the ethical leadership program at Ryerson University, 50 per cent of Canadians declared they did not trust politicians. Nearly three-quarters of respondents believed politicians regularly break election promises. More than 70 per cent of respondents believed elected representatives quickly lose touch with the people who elect them. More than 50 per cent believed politicians use tax dollars to buy votes. Perhaps most disturbing, one-third of the respondents believed politicians frequently accept bribes and one-fifth declared political corruption had led to them to stop voting. There are many factors, both historic and more contemporary, that have caused this serious trust gap to develop. Historically, since the 1960s, people have become less deferential toward and less trustful of elites of all kinds. After decades of postwar prosperity and the expansion of the welfare state, there were a series of economic downturns, and downsizing of the public sector began, supported by high-octane rhetoric that anything ambitious governments tried ended up in failure. Some problems, such as poverty and climate change, seemed intractable. Political leaders and their parties were guilty of overpromising and failing to be candid about the limits of government action in, for example, limiting the impacts of globalization or keeping society perfectly safe from terrorism. Poor political leadership, broken promises and scandals involving illegal and unethical actions were other factors. Party competition became more negative, personal and excessive, in the view of many citizens. The media has played a part as well. The media industry has become more diverse, competitive, aggressive and instantaneous on a 24/7 basis. Mainstream news outlets, editorialists, opinion columnists, cable news hosts, bloggers and online social media compete for an ever more fragmented audience by magnifying and sensationalizing the undoubted problems that arise in government. The existence of access-to-information and whistleblower protection laws, along with an army of oversight bodies for various purposes, ensure a regular supply of reports from which the parliamentary opposition and the media could draw mainly negative news about the political and governing processes. The public cannot escape some of the blame for the negative political culture that exists today. People are paying less attention to politics and government. Many are ignorant of the basic features of the political system. Less than five per cent of Canadians belong to a political party. There are estimates only 30 per cent follow policy debates closely. People tell pollsters they want authentic leaders who will tell it like it is, but politicians believe telling the truth will guarantee their defeat. The interaction of a less deferential and ill-informed public, the complex problems facing governments, poor leadership, blunders and misdeeds, and increased transparency have all combined, with the support of the media, to foster a culture of anger and frustration. That is the diagnosis; a second article will offer a prescription for how we deal with our democratic discontents. Paul G. Thomas is professor emeritus of political studies at the University of Manitoba. This is part one of a two-part series. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Its a form of political nostalgia, a misplaced and divisive attempt to grip tight to a now-irrelevant but still damaging narrative that hasnt genuinely shaped or informed Canadian politics in 25 years. It may be moribund, but right now is speaking loudly perhaps in death throes in the form of Conservative leadership candidate Brad Trost and, to a lesser extent, Andrew Scheer, as well as in various theme-driven political campaigns across the country. It is anchored in a small and tight package of policies: opposition to abortion, a refusal to accept gay marriage and full LGBTTQ* equality, resistance to euthanasia and an intense regard for what is known, perhaps misleadingly, as the traditional family. Its supporters call it social conservatism; its critics label it as bigotry. The truth is somewhere in the middle. Committed followers, however, are not in the middle and are increasingly based on the fringes of society. With a few exceptions, they are religiously motivated, on the conservative wing of the Roman Catholic Church and the more politicized churches within evangelical Protestantism. RICHARD MARJAN / SASKATOON STAR-PHOENIX FILES Conservative MP Brad Trosts call for a new debate about marriage and reproductive choice is an ode to outdated leadership, writes Michael Coren. Their natural home is, of course, the Conservative Party, but in recent years theyve seen leader after leader abandon them. Stephen Harper was largely indifferent to their opinions and frightened of allowing them any influence; provincial Tory leaders tend to be gay-friendly and refuse to even discuss abortion; and the last Conservative convention earlier this year voted to support equal marriage. So what happens now and where do these people go? Saskatoon MP Brad Trost is their most outspoken leader, proudly embracing opinions even former Canadian Alliance leader Stockwell Day tried to avoid. While calling for a new debate about marriage and reproductive choice, hes also trying to force rival Andrew Scheer to be more vocal about his social conservatism Scheer was, after all, once given the full praise of the hardline and vehemently anti-abortion and anti-gay marriage Campaign Life Coalition. But Scheer is a more polished and gentle politician and also a less clumsy one. Social conservative Jason Kenney may not be gentle, but he is certainly capable and, while running to be leader of the Progressive Conservatives in Alberta, is being extremely careful about discussing any moral or social issue. Unlike Trost, he has a very good chance of winning the leadership and even becoming premier. Trost surely knows that he is merely flying the flag and guaranteeing his status as a hero to the few. And heres the central issue: Social conservatives complain that they are marginalized and not taken seriously, even though they claim to speak for a significant proportion of society. But the truth is that while Canada is more than 40 per cent Catholic and around 11 per cent evangelical, the vast majority of the former and a good chunk of the latter no longer subscribe to their churchs teachings on sexuality, abortion and contraception. Canadian leaders including Brian Mulroney, Jean Chretien, Paul Martin and Pierre Trudeau are all Catholic and it was during their collective years as prime minister that Canada adopted its progressive stance on most of the pertinent issues. More than this, there is a solid argument to be made that social conservative views actually deserve to be pushed to the edges of polite society and not given a hearing within mainstream politics. They seek to limit a womans freedom of choice, prevent gay people from marrying and stop the terminally ill from deciding their own fate. In other words, none of this is about improving the common good or making life better for Canadians, its about imposing a specific theology on a secular society. Its this and not some media conspiracy that has led to the evaporation of respect for social conservatism, and the antics of social conservatives themselves have confirmed that disrespect among most Canadians. Anybody who has seen the extremism of those protesting the new sex-ed curriculum in Ontario, for example, will testify to the nasty mingling of hysteria, prejudice and downright dishonesty among social conservatives. Someone with more socially liberal views will win the Tory leadership, the new generation in this country will hardly even know what social conservatism is and the remains of the movement will retreat ever further into paranoia and outrage. People like Brad Trost are only prolonging the agony, but in so doing, are also opening up old wounds and causing pain to people who assumed justice and equality was largely won. And that is difficult to forgive. Michael Corens latest book is Epiphany: A Christians Change of Heart and Mind over Same-Sex Marriage (Random House). mcoren@sympatico.ca 25 years ago this week (1991) A 10-year-old took a car, owned by Steven L. Coy, 23, of 1025 Second St., without permission Thursday from the Redlin Funeral Home parking lot at 9 a.m. Coy observed the boy driving the vehicle from the parking lot and chased the boy in the Redlin Funeral Home van. Coy caught up with the driver on the 100 block of Seventh Street and took the boy back to the funeral home, where he was picked up by an officer. He was later returned to the custody of his mother. No damage was done to the car. A shopping trip for a new car in Portage Monday afternoon ended in the shooting death of one man and the wounding of a state trooper from Baraboo who was shopping with his wife for an automobile when the alleged assailant drove his truck across Wisconsin Street into the Leahy Motor Sales Inc. lot near where the off-duty officer stood. The gunman, identified as Mark Skarda, fired a shotgun at the officer, wounding him in the left arm. Skarda drove down an alley toward Adams Street, and stopped the vehicle. A shot was heard and the gunman was soon discovered in the alley with a shotgun wound in his chest that claimed his life. The wounded man underwent several hours of surgery at Divine Savior. The Special Building Committee Wednesday reluctantly agreed on a West Square site for a proposed Sauk County Human Resource Center. In a 4-to-2 vote, the committee endorsed the West Square site, which would locate the new building on Broadway, across from the Courthouse Square. The Sauk County Board of Supervisors will consider the recommendation at an Oct. 29 meeting. 50 years ago this week (1966) Fire Chief Harold LaDue of Lake Delton was right on hand Sunday night when a blaze broke out in the kitchen at Ishnala, Mirror Lake. The Lake Delton chief was attending a private party at the popular eating place and by using fire extinguishers from the place as well as from cars parked outside, the fire was well confined when firemen arrived from Lake Delton to finish the job. The fire chief remarks that there had been three weeks in which fires occurred all around Lake Delton without a single call there, however there were four runs made over the weekend, including several emergency runs. James Agema, 19-year-old Baraboo soldier home on leave, suffered a badly fractured shoulder on Saturday about 9:45 a.m. when his motorcycle overturned, throwing him to the ground. The accident occurred in the 600 block of East Street. He was riding a 1966 Yamaha cycle when it was necessary for him to brake for a car ahead, and the cycle skidded on wet leaves and flipped. Agema, of 1318 Elizabeth St. was to be taken to a Madison hospital where it will be necessary to undergo surgery on the shoulder. Two ladies, driving on Highway 136, had a narrow escape when passersby in another car threw a beer bottle into the windshield of their car, breaking it. The Sauk County Sheriffs Department is investigating the incident which occurred as the women were driving east and met the other car. 75 years ago this week (1941) Although official notice has not been received by the army department, present indications are that Camp Devils Lake is to be discontinued, effective Oct. 31. Definite orders must be received from Washington, D.C. by the commanding officer, Capt. M. J. Cain, before this information will be verified. Official notice and instruction, however, were received yesterday from national headquarters by the national park service employees, stationed at the CCC camp, located at Devils Lake State Park. As a safety measure, lamp posts in the vicinity of the six municipal school buildings in the city are being painted to designate to the motorist that he is approaching the school zone. The base paint was being applied this morning on the four-way approach to the schools and when finished, they will be in the patriotic red, white and blue color scheme. Motorists driving on Highway 12 south of Baraboo yesterday were amazed to see hundreds of seagulls in the field at the left after descending the Sauk hill, the ground being literally white with them. The birds are often seen on the Wisconsin River in the vicinity of the Prairie du Sac dam but apparently there was some feed in this field which attracted them away from the river which is some miles away. The same motorists returned past the spot four or five hours later and most of the gulls were still in the field. 100 years ago this week (1916) Houses for rent: 12-room house on Fourth Street, all modern improvements, conveniently located, only $20 per month. Half house (7 rooms) on Broadway, all modern improvements except furnace, close to square, $16. And we also have a good 7-room house for $10 per month, in the west part of the city. For full information regarding this inquire of J. T. Bates & Son, city. On Sunday the little daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. J. Pfannstiehl accidentally swallowed a little gasoline. A physician was summoned at once and carried to the residence in an automobile. The quantity taken was not sufficient to be serious, and the daughter will soon be all right. The home of William Schulze in Dellona has burned to the ground. The nearest neighbor, Charles Maske, discovered the fire eating its way around the chimney at 9 oclock at night, and at once notified the family by telephone. Seven children were sleeping upstairs and were called down, escaping without any difficulty. The kitchen roof went in about the time the members of the family were getting out, and the blaze burned so quickly that but little furniture was saved. The surrounding neighbors were notified by telephone and hurried to the scene, giving valuable aid in saving the other buildings. The insurance amounts to $600. The family has taken refuge in the granary until another house can be constructed. Products from across Wisconsin and some even closer to home will be showcased Thursday as Pierces Marketplace in West Baraboo hosts its sixth annual Made in Wisconsin open house. Celebrity guests such as Bucky Badger, Miss Wisconsin and Alice in Dairyland will help the local grocer celebrate in-state companies whose products grace the shelves. The event will run from 4-7 p.m. Fifty companies productsWisconsin staples such as beer, cheese, sausage and spiritswill be featured. Several Sauk County exhibitors will be featured, including Carr Valley Cheese of La Valle, Wisconsin Dells Brewing Co., Port Huron Brewing of Wisconsin Dells, Wollersheim Winery of Prairie du Sac, Driftless Glen Distillery of Baraboo, Four Elements Herbals of North Freedom and Cedar Grove Cheese of Plain. While it doesnt sell tailgate party fare like many of the other companies participating in Thursdays event, Four Elements Herbals products are no less homegrown. Pierces sells nine varieties of the North Freedom vendors herbal tea, three of which can be sampled Thursday. I really like to show the local people who stop at Pierces what products are not only produced but grown in Sauk County, said owner Jane Hawley Stevens. Attention turns to herbal remedies and teas such as Four Elements Minus Sinus in the fall, but Stevens said herbs can build stamina, aid digestion and promote relaxation year-round. Im hoping to educate our local consumers, she said. Driftless Glen will promote other types of beverages some cheeseheads swear by as cure-alls. Abby Smith said five spirits SMores Flavored Rivershine, Sleepover Vodka, Cool Cucumber Sleepover, Five-Year Reserve Brandy and WisconGin will be showcased. Smith noted the distillerys spirits are made using local grain. We try to keep everything local in Wisconsin, she said. Besides local snacks and beverages, statewide celebrities will appear at the open house. Alice in Dairyland Ann OLeary and Miss Wisconsin Courtney Pelot will be on hand, as will University of Wisconsin mascot Bucky Badger from 5-6 p.m. and the Klements Racing Sausages. By PTI: Kolkata, Oct 19 (PTI) Norway has evinced interest to collaborate with West Bengal in the fisheries sector in the near future, a state government official today said. "Norway has expressed an interest in collaborating with the state on technical knowledge in fishery and investment in this sector," state fischery secretary P K Mishra said on the sidelines of an interactive session with Norweigian Ambassador to India Nils Ragnar Kamsvag at ICC. advertisement The ambassador said Norway was keen on investment opportunities in this sector in India. The Scandinavian country is a big exporter of Salmon to various countries, including India. Another area of collaboration could be LNG terminals where Norway has in-depth knowledge. Kolkata Port Trust has shown interest in attracting Norwegian companies in setting up LNG terminals here. Norway is one of the big investors in India with its sovereign wealth fund, which is the biggest in the world with total investment of USD 13-14 billion. PTI BSM MM JM --- ENDS --- In June 2015, Donald Trump announced his candidacy for president of the United States. I wasnt voting for Trump then and now, 16 months later, I still am not voting for Trump. I am voting for the Republican Party. If Republicans lose the White House in the upcoming election, we will lose a lot more than bragging rights on Election Night. We will lose much more. This could very well be the last stand in the war against the ongoing socialist progressive conversion of our country. The next president already gets to pick a Supreme Court justice. With Justices Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Anthony Kennedy turning 84 and 81 years of age next year, two more picks assures Hillary Clinton a liberal leaning court for the next 30 years. When you consider how much things have changed in just the past eight years, imagine what a socialist progressive America will look like in 30. The left of this country has been screaming foul ever since the highest court came down in favor of Citizens United, all while protecting the 1st Amendments guarantee of free speech. In this case, the McCain-Feingold Act was found unconstitutional after the Federal Election Commission ruled the law prohibited the organization from airing a film that was critical of Hillary Clinton during the 2008 primaries. Feingolds law, the guy now known as Russ, prohibited people from essentially expressing their political views. Youll see the political bumper stickers that say, Corporations are not people but, oddly enough, non-profit corporations like CU are made of people who cannot afford to purchase national airtime all by themselves. The left also wants to reintroduce the Fairness Doctrine. This gem of a law ended in the late 1980s, but they miss it. The reason it was killed by the Federal Communications Commission is Congress determined it might be a bad idea to have the government policing our airwaves for political thought while determining whether or not Rush Limbaughs radio show is too popular and unfair to Democrats. Clintons pal Russ was fundraising in Palo Alto, California, last week when he said Clinton could use an executive order to enforce gun control. How do you suppose a liberal court with three of her appointments would side on that? We also have the implosion of Obamacare. Insurance premiums are skyrocketing while insurers are backing out of the system. The author of HillaryCare is most certainly pulling out her signature legislative proposal for a single-payer system. If you think Medicare is awesome, wait until the government takes over the entire healthcare system. I am not condoning Trumps words or actions 10 or 20 years ago, but I am condemning a woman who sold out our government while lining her own pockets. The Democratic standard bearer didnt get millions from foreign princes some 20 years ago she took the money just a few years ago and then handed these guys sweet weapons deals just before vacating her seat to run for even higher power. The Trump tape, in which he is heard saying vulgar things about women in a conversation with a tabloid television reporter 10 years ago, and the allegations that have followed, has to leave you scratching your head. The guy who recorded the tape is a reporter for NBC, yet no one new about this tape 16 months ago? Why not take Trump out of the race with this information last November or even April? Even more incredulous is that the women who now allege Trump acted inappropriately toward them said nothing until after this tape was brought to light. At least Bill Cosbys victims could point to secret settlements and a track record of misconduct. This scandal pales in comparison to when Hillary Clintons husband was getting sexual favors under his desk from an intern while serving in the White House. If that became the new standard for acceptable conduct while serving in office, why are they now condemning filthy language by someone who had no clue he was even going to run for office 10 years ago? What Trump said, and likely did, while serving as a private citizen was grossly inappropriate. However, Clinton sold out the country for financial gain. Its not the next four years that matter, its the next 40; and I dont like either candidate. When I cast a ballot mark next to Trumps name, Ill simply remember I am voting for the Republicans. JUNEAU DNA extracted from chewing tobacco found at a crime scene in 2011 has led to charges against a 24-year-old inmate at the Stanley Correctional Facility. Donny Lafferty faces one count of theft after he allegedly took copper cable from Link Aggregate Quarry, W8876 Spruce Road, town of Trenton. If convicted he faces up to 6 years in prison and $10,000 in fines. Lafferty made his initial appearance in court Thursday via video conferencing from prison. Judge Steven Bauer set a $1,000 signature bond for Lafferty with the condition that he not set foot on the premises at Link Aggregate Quarry. On March 24, 2011, officers were dispatched to Link Aggregate Quarry for a report of theft of electrical copper cable. The owner of the quarry told officers that his brother had come to the quarry and noted that some large electrical cable was wrapped around a power control box and he had noticed that the electrical wire had been cut off of the electrical control panel and stolen from the property. Another piece of coiled up copper wire was taken as well and a small trail camera. He estimated that $8,400 worth of cable was stolen and the trail camera was valued at $400. Chewing tobacco was located hear where the copper wire was stolen which was taken into evidence to be tested for DNA. On April 21, 2014, the Wisconsin Department of Justice division of Law Enforcement Services State Crime Laboratory discovered that the DNA found on the chewing tobacco matched Lafferty. A search warrant was issued for Laffertys DNA sample. On April 5, 2016, officers traveled to the Stanley Correctional Facility where Lafferty was held. Lafferty told officers that prior to his incarceration he had committed a number of drug related crimes. He was convicted of two burglaries but admitted to committing 38 other burglaries or thefts. Lafferty admitted that the chewing tobacco found at the quarry was likely his. He admitted to stealing the wire which he said he sold for $1,000. He told officers he used the money to buy Percocet, a prescription drug that contains oxycodone. He will appear in court again on Oct. 27 at 8:30 a.m. for a preliminary hearing. JUNEAU A 37-year-old Beaver Dam man charged with multiple bank robberies, including the July 1 bank robbery in Beaver Dam and the July 11 bank robbery at the State Bank of Reeseville in Watertown, pleaded not guilty to all charges Wednesday. Adam S. Raney is charged with two counts of armed robbery with a threat of force, bomb scare, terrorist threats, burglary while arming self with a dangerous weapon, theft of movable property valued at over $10,000, four counts of theft of movable property with special fact, four counts of possession of a firearm by a felon, three counts of identity theft and eight counts of unauthorized use of an entitys identifying information or documents, all as a repeater. If found guilty of the charges he faces up to 242 years in prison and a fine of more than $500,000. Raney is currently being held in the Dodge County Jail on a $100,000 cash bond. Raney entered the please before Judge Joseph Sciascia. On the afternoon of July 11, officers were dispatched to the State Bank of Reeseville in Watertown, for a report of a bank alarm. Employees said the suspect, identified as Raney, had left a bomb in a bag at the bank. Tellers told officers that they had been watching Raney as he had been frequently attempting to cash forged checks. The employees said that Raney brandished a handgun, pointed it at a teller and demanded all the money in the drawer. He then put down the bag, telling the employees that a motion activated bomb was inside. The teller said Raney escaped with $3,000. The bomb squad blew up the bag and the contents were taken into evidence. July 1, an armed robbery was committed at Bank Mutual in Beaver Dam. According to bank employees the suspect brandished a weapon and demanded money from the drawer. The suspect allegedly received $1,700 in the robbery. Raney was taken into custody July 12 by Milwaukee police. He allegeldy admitted to committing both bank robberies. During his interview with officers, Raney also allegedly admitted to stealing and cashing fraudulent checks from his boss. He estimated he stole 10 checks and wrote them to himself in various amounts. THe complaint says that Raney also admitted to burglarizing a home on Highway G in the town of Beaver Dam stealing electronics, prescription medication (including 50 Oxycodone pills and 100 Hyrdocodone pills) and multiple handguns and a rifle. Raney was previously convicted of taking and driving a vehicle without the owners consent in Dodge County in 2013. He was also convicted of burglary in Dodge County in 2011. Sydney Ness was a child who wanted to be anything and everything as a child, from a veterinarian to an astronaut. Like many of her peers, as she reached her teens, the young Sauk City woman was trying to figure out who she was. That all changed for the 2012 Sauk Prairie High School graduate when at 15 she was signed by a modeling agency. Some family friends kept encouraging it and I kept asking, so I think my parents finally decided to take me to a few local agencies just to shut me up, said Ness, whose parents took her to agencies in Madison and Milwaukee. I went to Ford in Chicago. There were so many different people there; men women and children. They said if you dont get called, keep trying. The agency sent everyone home except for Ness. When I heard they wanted to talk to me, I was very surprised. The former high school track team member also was surprised when the company said it wanted to sign her as a junior plus-size model. At the time I was a size 8. They said I could try to drop down to a size 0 or 2 or to wait and see what happens with my body. After talking it over with her parents, Ness decided it wouldnt be healthy for her to drop so much weight, so she decided to sign as a junior plus-size model and go for it. Ness danced all throughout middle and high school and threw shotput and discus in track. I had a lot of support from family and friends, said Ness. I realized from an early age Id never be that small. And Im OK with that. In order to get more work, Ness went to New York City during the summer of 2011 just before starting her senior year. Nothing happened. It was a big waste of money and time, she said. I definitely expected to have more work. I was living in a models apartment with 15 other girls, and it was not the experience I was expecting. She said the industry sometimes can be about being with the right people at the right time. My agency had other, bigger models they were promoting and with me, they werent trying as hard. Ness said she went through a transitional phase, and doubted what she was doing. I learned what happens to be as I get stressed is I lose weight, she said. But it had gotten to the point where she was sickly; had no energy and couldnt even work out. People were trying to help me, she said. But I was in complete denial. I was the skinniest Id ever been but I wasnt healthy. I like to run, but I couldnt even do that. Even at a size 4, Ness was considered too big to model. With the help and guidance of her friends and family, Ness decided to make a change. Ness found Los Angeles-based Natural Model Management, owned by model Katie Wilcox, who encourages models to be their natural, healthy size. To join, Ness had to pick up her life and move again, a prospect that unnerved some of her friends and family. But not Ness. They said you are going to be homesick, she recalled. It was hard for people to wrap their head around. But I just knew it would work out. I knew it in my heart. In the modeling industry, Ness said it takes about three months to get paid. That meant shed have to get a part-time job. I definitely struggled, she said. Ness even applied for a shoe-stocking position at a footwear retail store. She didnt get the job. A few months into her modeling career, that same retailer chose Ness for a campaign. They wouldnt hire me to stock their shoes, she said. But they wanted me on their walls. Since then, Ness has campaigned for several retailers, including Forever 21, DSW and Charlotte Russe. Shes also worked with Beyond Yoga and Ness has a billboard coming out soon in a prime Los Angeles locale for the company. Ill have to take my picture with that one, she said. Ness plans to return to New York in the future as well as spending some time in London. For the next sixth months her plans include getting representation and to get established with a regular client base. Her favorite thing to shoot? Swimwear, she said. Because growing up I never felt like I should be wearing a bikini like my friends were. I always had this very skewed perception of myself. But now, Ness said, that the curvier, embrace your body movement is happening, I want to be that person for other girls so they have someone to look up to. The impact of European settlers and the former Badger Army Ammunition Plant on the Sauk Prairie will be the focus of a lecture Thursday at UW-Baraboo/Sauk County. Charlie Luthin will give the presentation as part of the universitys Fall 2016 Distinguished Lecture Series, which invites prominent speakers from various professions to address students and residents on a wide range of issues. UW Colleges Director of Continuing Education Jessica Laeseke said the university invited the executive director of the Sauk Prairie Conservation Alliance to speak because his topic is current and important locally. Luthins presentation is timely because its all occurring now, she said. Theyre doing this conservation, theyre trying to go through the restoration and theyre telling people what they can do to help. Luthins presentation will begin with a brief overview of the geological history of the area, including why it was attractive to European farmers, and how the federal government built what at the time in 1942 was the worlds largest ammunition plant. Ill be doing a bit of a historic, retrospective talk, looking at where we came from geologically and ecologically, and where we are today, Luthin said. Then Ill talk about the current situation between land owners, what their plans are and where there are still concerns. The former Badger Army Ammunition Plant lands have been divided up between the Ho-Chunk Nation, USDA Dairy Forage Research Center and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. DNR lands have since become the Sauk Prairie Recreation area. Luthin intends to use his position with the Sauk Prairie Conservation Alliance to work with the various property owners and ensure the area is preserved for future generations. Luthin said the different groups are working to essentially heal the land because over-farming in the 19th and 20th centuries, along with the construction and waste produced in the production of ammunition changed the prairies original ecosystem. Not only are we healing it to a place where it was before the Army came, we are healing it to a place that predates 1840, when the first European settlers came to the Sauk Prairie, he said. Luthin hopes his lecture will inspire citizens to continue the effort to preserve the Sauk Prairie recreation area. We all could be part of creating the largest historic prairie in the state of Wisconsin, he said. Thats very significant from an ecological perspective. The lecture will take place in room 001 of the universitys Aural Umhoefer Classroom Building at 12:30 p.m. and is free to both students and the public. Register for more free articles. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! Already a Subscriber? Already a Subscriber? Sign in Terms of Service Privacy Policy Voters were fed up with the political establishment and looking for a change. They wanted an outsider, someone whose name they hadnt heard a million times before, someone not entrenched in the Washington bureaucracy. Their call was answered by a wealthy businessman whose frustration with the government matched their own, who had never before held elected office, who wasnt part of the problem. The year was 2010 and an Oshkosh plastics manufacturer named Ron Johnson delivered an unexpected blow to a name synonymous with Wisconsin politics, defeating Russ Feingold by five points and replacing him in the U.S. Senate. Six years later, many of the same attitudes and frustrations have contributed to the rise of Donald Trump within the Republican Party. The billionaire businessman is in an ugly battle with a name synonymous with American politics: Democratic former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Back in the Badger State, Johnson and Feingold will meet on the ballot again as the Democrat angles to become the third former senator since 1956 to return to the seat he once held. For an incumbent, Johnson has struggled, not once taking the lead in the states most reliable public polling. But hes also managed to tighten up the scorecard in the final weeks, while the presidential contest has proven the 2016 electoral climate is nothing if not unpredictable. Hes a Republican Ron Johnson pulled his silver minivan into the driveway of Steve and Sally Millers dairy farm on a gray Friday morning in late September. He stepped out, clad in jeans and a striped dress shirt, and warmly greeted the extended family assembled in front of the Millers home. After a few moments of chatting about the history of the farm, Johnson retrieved a bright-red Wisconsin pullover from the van. It was one of the first finger-numbingly brisk days of autumn and the sky couldnt seem to make up its mind whether to rain, settling instead on a constant mist. Tucked among the rolling hills of La Crosse County, the Millers farm grows a cash crop of corn and soybeans and is home to 60 dairy cows. A friend active in the county Republican party had asked Steve and Sally a few days before if theyd be interested in hosting the senator, and they obliged. Hes a Republican, Sally said with a grin when asked what she liked about the senator. And most of all, hes going to go to bat for the farmers. Steve gave a small smile when asked what Johnson has done that he supported. Well, he said, pausing to laugh. To be honest with you, I really dont know a lot about Sen. Johnson All Ive ever heard is good things about him. One person was saying hes accomplished more in his term in office than what Mr. Feingold ever did, you know, in all the time that he was there. Steve Miller is not unlike other Wisconsinites in his knowledge of Johnsons career. On average over the last three months, 28 percent of voters told the Marquette University Law School poll they didnt know enough about the senator to have an opinion about him despite his incumbency and role as chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security compared to 21 percent for Feingold. The most recent poll, released last week, showed Johnson shrinking that number to 20 percent. Still, Johnsons perspective lines up with what the Millers said theyre looking for in a senator. Regulations, particularly governing the agriculture industry, have grown out of control, they said. Theyre looking for someone who will rein them in. Steve Miller is also concerned about trade and cracking down on illegal immigration. If we can keep some of the immigrants out of here and try and put some of our local people to work, I think at the end of the day a lot of these people will feel a lot better about themselves, too, he said. Theyd like to see markets opened up so they can start exporting more of their products, the Millers said. Theyre feeling the squeeze from large-scale dairy operations, which they said affect their bottom line but also have a more negative impact on the environment than small operations like theirs. Its tough, Sally said. Because right now the prices are so low and our investments are so high that its been a tough year. Steve said he doesnt believe in asking for government subsidies, but that doesnt mean lawmakers dont play a role in enacting policies that will help the industry. Politics plays a much larger role in agriculture now than it did years ago, he said. And in turn, agriculture plays its own role in politics. Johnson accepted endorsements that day from the Wisconsin Farm Bureau, Dairy Business Association, Wisconsin Cattlemens Association and Wisconsin Pork Association. The primary driving forces behind their endorsements were trade agreements, environmental regulations and immigration: pro-Trans-Pacific Partnership, anti-Waters of the U.S. Rule and generally encouraging some sort of guest worker program. A.V. Roth of the Wisconsin Pork Association said the Obama administrations Waters of the U.S. Rule could affect farmers right to best utilize their land. Johnson said Feingold paved the way to what he considers government overreach with his Clean Water Restoration Act for Waters of the U.S., which seeks to define which bodies of water fall under the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers and are covered by the Clean Water Rule. On immigration, Johnson said, the number one component of my border security bill would be a functioning guest worker program, so farmers actually have a legal system to get the workers to milk the cows, to pick the vegetables, to clean our hotels. Thats something we have to do. Thats extremely important. Cody Heller of the Dairy Business Association praised Johnson for that stance. He said dairy farmers lose sleep over concerns about illegal labor. Hes focusing on getting a plan that actually works for us thats legal, thats within the realm of the law, that keeps our country safe, Heller said. While most people at the event said they want to see the senator come out in support of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Johnson still declined to take a clear position on the deal, instead stating repeatedly that he is for free and fair trade and adding that he would be happy to have a President Trump negotiate a better deal. He reiterated as he has throughout his campaign that he is giving thoughtful consideration to the agreement, while Feingold gave a knee-jerk reaction in opposing it. The more doors we can open, the more trade barriers we can take down to get our products out, the happier agriculture is, said Joe Bragger of the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation. Bragger said its Johnsons stance on trade, the Waters of the U.S. rule and delisting wolves as an endangered species that have earned him the Farm Bureaus support. Johnson has gone out of his way to acknowledge the concerns of the agriculture industry, Bragger said. And Feingold? It seems like we all start (small) and then drift away, and then we forget, Bragger said. Ive got to remind myself as Farm Bureau director, Im so glad that every day I go back home and farm. Every day Im still involved at the county level in Farm Bureau, because that means I still have my feet in it. You get pulled away long enough, youve lost reality and I think (Johnson) is not that far removed that hes still not one of us. I think thats important. Johnsons campaign has sought to paint Feingold as a career politician a Washington insider who cares more about returning to the seat than serving constituents who has abandoned the principles that once defined him. My background over the 34 years when he was a career politician, most of that 34 years I was involved in the private sector building a good Wisconsin manufacturing company, producing Wisconsin jobs, and then in the very short period of time that Ive been your United States senator, Ive used that same kind of outsider perspective and trust me, its a completely different perspective, Johnson said. Im the only manufacturer in the United States Senate. On the campaign trail, Johnson has taken to urging supporters and journalists to ask Feingold what he accomplished during his tenure in public office. Asked about his own legislative accomplishments, Johnson touted the Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015, an effort to protect government agencies from hackers, and a bill that made it easier to hire military veterans as Customs and Border Protection officers. Ive actually gotten real results. Again, hes got the one high-profile failure, campaign finance reform. Ive got dozens I guess low-profile dozens of low-profile successes, Johnson said. The real deal I like career politicians, said Mary Ellen Schmelzer, of Wausau, as she and her husband Bill waited for Feingold to arrive for an event with senior citizens at Yawkey Park in downtown Wausau. Thats a heck of a job. Hey, you know what? Bill interjected. Ive got a career doctor. Come on, Mary Ellen continued, lets not put down people because they make a career of service. The supporters who would soon stand behind Feingold for a news conference on seniors issues spoke of him in near reverence. The Schmelzers said theyve always voted for him, calling him the real deal. The career politician label is a positive one, said Bob Coleman, of Weston. The alternative, he said, is a manufacturer moonlighting as a senator. A few minutes later, a dark blue minivan pulled up next to the park. From the back emerged Feingold and his wife, Christine Ferdinand, whom he later pointed out to the crowd as a recent retiree. The sun shone through the turning leaves of the trees that served as a green-and-gold backdrop for the news conference on a warm but crisp early October afternoon. Feingold, grinning and waving while sporting a plaid shirt with gray slacks and a navy sport coat, joined the line of supporters backing his stances on Social Security, Medicare and prescription drug prices. Feingold has made seniors issues an area of focus in his campaign, along with student loan debt, trade, paid family leave and wage equality. He frequently portrays Johnson as out-of-touch and beholden to corporate interests over the needs of Wisconsinites. The former senator looked on with a smile as Jon Bowser Bauman, of the band Sha Na Na, hammed for the small group and the two TV cameras, flexing and making faces before he praised the former senator for his positions on issues that affect seniors. Bauman, a co-founder of the political action committee Senior Votes Count, was there along with Max Richtman of the National Committee to Protect Social Security and Medicare to endorse Feingold. Bauman said the race could be the second-most important one in the country in 2016, calling Feingold one of the greatest champions on senior issues Congress has ever seen. Johnson, he said, has been particularly dreadful in that area. Feingold said he believes Social Security should be preserved and protected as a public program, while Johnson has indicated a willingness to consider privatizing it. He also voiced his support for maintaining Medicare as a public program, and said Congress should pass a law to allow the United States to negotiate lower drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry. For Coleman, the most important issues when considering a candidate to support have always been jobs and integrity in government. Both of which are woefully in trouble right at the moment, especially when you consider the nincompoop whos running for president, he said before pausing to ask forgiveness for calling Trump a nincompoop. I have others but, having spent three years in the Navy, I have acquired a picturesque vocabulary. And I could use a good many of those expressions on the Republican Party at this moment, he said. Coleman likened Feingold to William Proxmire, who represented Wisconsin in the Senate from 1957 to 1989. The main concern for both Proxmire and Feingold, Coleman said, was the people of Wisconsin and the United States. Both Proxmire and Feingold had reputations as liberal Democrats who occassionally bucked the party line. Our current Senate is dominated by people whose concern is themselves. There are more than 70 millionaires in the United States Senate, Coleman said. How can a majority of millionaires really care about a World War II veteran on a pension? They dont have any idea what it would be like. Now, I was a teacher for 48 years. And I had a real concern about government, even though I was an English teacher. I have six kids and 17 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren, and I am concerned about the shape of the world for them. Johnsons net worth is estimated at a minimum of $13.4 million, while Feingolds is estimated between $328,000 and $795,000. Coleman was especially critical of Johnsons opposition to holding hearings to consider President Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, accusing him of not doing his job as a senator. Mary Ellen Schmelzer credited Feingolds votes against the Patriot Act and the Iraq War as the main reasons for her longtime support. I think hes honest, and I think he wants to get all kinds of graft out of politics, and thats important to me. I want our democracy to be healthy, she said. Her husband, Bill, lauded Feingolds support for constitutional principles of liberty and justice for all, emphasis on all. They are put off by Johnsons approach to corporate regulations, which they said is too lax. I like Hillary (Clinton)s thing of were all in this together, Mary Ellen said. Coleman, when asked about specific accomplishments from Feingolds time in the Senate, said six years ago is a long time to remember at his age. But he indicated his support was more about an attitude and approach to the job than a specific policy item. He just simply cared about us in Wisconsin, he said. You could talk to him. Feingold quickly dismissed Johnsons suggestions that he has nothing to show from his years as a senator aside from the now-gutted McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform legislation. The Middleton Democrat said Johnson would know about his accomplishments if he had traveled throughout the state and listened to people. If hed gotten around the state and gotten to western Wisconsin, hed find out that the Kickapoo Valley Reserve, which was a very difficult issue for some 30 years, was resolved in a tremendously positive way. Its a beautiful natural reserve at this point because of my efforts as well as others, Feingold said. You go up to northern Wisconsin, where he rarely goes, up to the top of the state, we now have a beautiful national lakeshore, the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. We made sure that was permanent. Feingold continued: he authored the bill that created Wisconsins nationally recognized Alzheimers program while in the State Senate, worked with Democratic former Sen. Herb Kohl to protect the states SeniorCare prescription program and was the first lawmaker to initiate national legislation on racial profiling although it was never passed. And his greatest accomplishment, he said, was playing a critical role along with other lawmakers in erasing the national deficit when Bill Clinton was president. And by the way, I could go on for a long time, but the point here is thats just a political trick, Feingold said. Sen. Johnson is using this because hes a politician whos in trouble. Hes saying this in order to try to prevent people from being able to actually think about the future, which is what counts. Feingold said Johnson never rolls up his sleeves and accomplishes things on a bipartisan basis. So I dont throw around this silly language about other people not accomplishing anything, but if he had even bothered to listen to the people of Wisconsin, hed know very well that weve done much together, and were going to do a lot more together, he said. The same set of alternatives For political observers watching the race, round two isnt all that different from the first time Johnson and Feingold faced off. Its very close, like it was for most of the time six years ago, said Mike Wagner, University of Wisconsin-Madison associate professor of political science and journalism. UW-Madison political science professor Barry Burden agreed that 2016 looks an awful lot like 2010. The candidates have starkly different positions on the big issues of the day, especially the Affordable Care Act, but also taxes, trade, and the environment, Burden said. Johnson continues to criticize Feingold as a career politician and Feingold continues to criticize Johnson's personal finances. Voters this year are essentially facing the same set of alternatives they were presented with six years ago. But there are some major differences in the external factors and political landscape affecting the the race. Johnsons 2010 victory came in a midterm election with a Democratic president in office, on the heels of the Great Recession. Obama is on his way out now, leaving a slowly improving economy behind. Johnsons re-election effort stands in the shadow of a volatile presidential election that has defied conventional wisdom with every zig and zag. In other states with a competitive Senate race, Republicans have been running ahead of Trump. Wisconsin has been an outlier most of this year because Johnson's standing has been parallel to Trump's, Burden said. However, in recent days there's been some daylight between the two Republicans. This separation is probably due to Johnsons new ad campaigns that have helped to better define him and Feingold, but it also reflects general distaste with Trump's recent comments and actions that have set him apart from everyone else in politics. Johnsons campaign has sought to tie Feingold to Clinton throughout the race in an effort to capitalize on her relative unpopularity and her second-place finish in the states Democratic presidential primary, painting them both as members of the political elite. Much of Johnsons campaign advertising this fall has attempted to unveil his softer side, highlighting his involvement with a faith-based employment program and his work to help a family adopt a child from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Meanwhile, Johnson stands apart from most other vulnerable Republican senators with his continued support for Trump in the wake of a string of allegations of sexual misconduct stemming from a 2005 recording of the candidate bragging about sexually predatory behavior. Im just a little manufacturer from Oshkosh, Wisconsin, just a citizen legislator. So Im not a political pundit, Johnson said in September, before the sexual assault allegations surfaced. I think certainly the history of this election is, nobody can predict. We are in uncharted water right now. So, Ive got my own race to run, Ive got my own record. Prior to ever becoming involved in elected office, and in a very short period of time, a record of real results here. For Republican leaders in Wisconsin trying to motivate voters without discussing Trump, the Senate race has given them a contest on which to focus their efforts. Its one of those where every vote is going to count, Gov. Scott Walker told the conservative crowd at the 1st Congressional District Republican Party of Wisconsin Fall Fest earlier this month. Trump, who was bumped from the event after the 2005 recording surfaced, wasnt mentioned as Walker told the party faithful there couldnt be a more important race than Ron Johnsons race for Senate. Both candidates appear to go out of their way to avoid referring to themselves as senator, instead eagerly pinning the title to their opponent. Wagner said thats a little peculiar, but its clear both candidates are reading the anti-elitism in the Wisconsin electorate. Feingold acknowledged the similarities in the anti-government sentiments in both the 2010 and 2016 elections, but said that concern is rooted in middle-income and working families who arent getting a fair deal. Every six years, if you pay attention to whats happening in the world, you never get exactly the same feelings. The difference this time is that six years ago, everybody was kind of in a bad situation because of the economic collapse that was not caused by Barack Obama, but more by (President George W.) Bush and his policies, Feingold said. But now we have this discrepancy, where people at the top are doing really well. Sen. Johnsons buddies that he always votes with are doing great Whats happening though is that people who work hard every day arent getting a fair deal. Their wages are stagnant, they see their jobs being shipped overseas, and people have figured out whats going on, which is some people are really doing well, and Sen. Johnson helps them every time. The rest of us arent doing so great. That needs to change. While the presidential contest has shifted more heavily in Clintons favor among Wisconsin voters, Johnson has chipped away at Feingolds lead, now a two-point advantage among likely voters. Part of that could be linked to Republican voters who, while unenthusiastic about or opposed to Trump, have decided they will still show up on Election Day to support Republican candidates down the ticket, Wagner said. Johnson has also run effective advertising, he said. But at the same time, Feingold has had some success reintroducing himself as approachable Russ who is in touch with the concerns of regular Wisconsinites, Burden said. Johnson is most effective when he portrays himself as a common sense business man, he said. Feingold gets the upper hand when highlighting Johnsons unpopular positions such as the minimum wage and climate change. At this point, any small factor debates, get-out-the-vote efforts or campaign ads could be the one to propel a candidate to victory, Wagner said. Burden said the outcome will likely boil down to two factors: how closely the Senate race is linked to the presidential campaign and which candidate voters believe is more in touch with everyday Wisconsinites. Its a close race, so most things that they can do arent likely to matter much, Wagner said. But in a close race, anything could be the difference. Information is taken from the records of the Portage Police Department and does not represent a comprehensive list of police activity. Each individual named in this report is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Between 6:38 a.m. Oct. 12 and 7:19 a.m. Oct. 19 police responded to 247 calls Adams Street: Police on Oct. 12, at 7:27 a.m. stopped Heather Ullas, 34, of Portage, who was cited for operating a vehicle after suspension of a license as a third offense and driving without a license. East Cook Street: Police on Oct. 12, at 7:52 a.m. responded to a report of a student missing from Wayne Bartels Middle School. The 12-year-olds mother was cited for truancy. East Edgewater Street: Police on Oct. 12, at 6:38 p.m. responded to a report of potential drug activity involving juveniles. Following a search of the location and the suspects backpacks, the 16-year-old male and 16-year-old female were each referred to Columbia County Health and Human Services for possession of drug paraphernalia and cited for underage possession of tobacco. The male was taken to Portage County Secure Detention by the Columbia County Sheriffs Office. East Cook Street and Adams Street: Police on Oct. 12 at 11:48 p.m. stopped a vehicle whereupon the driver, 23-year-old Tyler Duby of Plymouth, and passenger, 24-year-old Aaron Haase of Beaver Dam, were each arrested and cited for possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. Duby was also cited for operating a vehicle while license suspended as a first offense, driving a vehicle with suspended registration, and driving without insurance. West Wisconsin Street: Police on Oct. 13 at 9:52 p.m. responded to a possible medical emergency where Alicia Gazapian, 33, of Portage, was arrested and charged with possession of heroin and violation of probation. Wal-Mart: Police on Oct. 13 at 4:11 a.m. responded to a reported theft, where Cheyanne Smith, 18, of Oxford, was cited for shoplifting after allegedly scanning $343.14 of merchandise as clearance items totaling $72.33. Wal-Mart: Police on Saturday at 2:28 a.m. responded to a reported theft where Patricia Quartuccio, 33, of Portage, had allegedly taken $833.68 of merchandise and was issued a misdemeanor citation for retail theft and possession of a prescription drug without a prescription. West Carroll Street: Police on Friday at 8:42 p.m. stopped Matthew Eisenbraun, 32, of Lodi, who following a field sobriety test, was arrested and issued a citation for operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated as a second offense and operating a vehicle after revocation of a license as a first offense. Brooks Street and Thompson Street: Police on Sunday at 12:09 a.m. stopped Adam Chaussee, 21, of Sun Prairie, who was cited for driving a motor vehicle after suspension of registration and driving without a license as a second offense. East Wisconsin Street and Wauona Trail: Police on Sunday at 2:45 a.m. stopped Allan Fraker, 23, of Pardeeville, who following a preliminary breath test registered 0.075. Fraker was arrested and cited for misdemeanor bail jumping for violating a no-drink order. Klemp Street: Police on Monday at 7:01 a.m. responded to a 911 hang-up that was determined to be the result of children playing with a phone. Bruce Wright, 53, of Portage, was arrested for being in violation of an order by Cook County, Illinois, to have no contact with children. West Mullett Street: Police on Monday at 4:08 p.m. responded to a walk-in complaint, resulting in Anthony Slate, 20, of Portage, being arrested and cited for possession of drug paraphernalia, two counts of bail jumping and violation of probation. A 19-year-old man of Markesan was arrested and cited for domestic disorderly conduct. East Conant Street: Police on Tuesday at 3:11 a.m. responded to a report of windows being broken where Abigail Rott, 37, of Portage, was arrested and cited for disorderly conduct, misdemeanor bail jumping, theft, criminal destruction to property and discharge of bodily fluids at a law enforcement office. Anrea Vanti was cited for disorderly conduct. New Pinery Road: Police on Tuesday at 8:02 a.m. stopped Zachary Salerno, 27, of Portage, who was cited for operating a vehicle after suspension of a license as a seventh offense and driving without proof of insurance. Adams Street: Police on Tuesday at 7:19 a.m. stopped Marco Haney, 31, of Portage, who was cited for operating a vehicle after suspension of a license as a seventh offense and driving a non-registered vehicle. The Cauvery water issue, local body election, appointment of special officers for governing local bodies and upcoming by poll in three constituencies are the likely to be subjects of discussion in the meeting. By Akshaya Nath: Tamil Nadu Finance minister O Panneerselvam will be chairing a Cabinet meeting at the Secretariat on Wednesday for the first time since Acting Governor Ch. Vidyasagar Rao allotted all portfolios held by Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa to him. Chennai: Tamil Nadu Finance Minister O Panneerselvam reaches Tamil Nadu Secretariat, to chair Cabinet meeting, today pic.twitter.com/6wBB9geCfY&; ANI (@ANI_news) October 19, 2016 advertisement The Cauvery water issue, local body election, appointment of special officers for governing local bodies and upcoming by poll in three constituencies are the likely to be subjects of discussion in the meeting. Last week CH Vidyasagar Rao allotted all portfolios held by Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, who has been hospitalised since September 22, to finance minister O. Panneerselvam. It was also decided that he will preside over cabinet meetings in the absence of Jayalalithaa. ALSO READ: Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa's portfolios allocated to Panneerselvam While announcing the transfer of portfolio Governor Vidyasagar Rao said that it was done under the oral advice of CM Jayalalithaa. In two previous occasions too Panneerselvam has substituted for Jayalalithaa but this time things are different because the opposition in the state have been raising doubts about the transfer of portfolio. It has been more than 26 days since the hospitalisation of CM Jayalalithaa and the mystery behind her medical condition has only caused rumours to spread like wildfire in the states. ALSO READ: As Jayalalithaa remains in hospital, storm brews in Tamil Nadu's political cup --- ENDS --- When it comes to the 42nd District Wisconsin State Assembly race, all roads lead to transportation. The deteriorating condition of Wisconsins roads, and where to find the money to fix them, have emerged as principal issues in a race thats a rematch from 2014, with four-term incumbent Keith Ripp, R-Lodi, vying for re-election against George Ferriter, the Democrat who unsuccessfully opposed him in 2014. District 42 occupies most of Columbia County, and parts of Dane, Dodge, Fond du Lac, Green Lake and Marquette counties. Both candidates express agreement that many federal, state, county, town and municipal roads in District 42, and throughout Wisconsin, are in serious need of repair or rebuilding. Statewide, Ripp has found himself as the focus of much of the frustration about road conditions. For his last two terms, he has been chairman of the Assemblys Transportation Committee. Some people think that, because I chair transportation, I write the checks and approve the projects. I dont, Ripp said Monday at a Legislative candidates forum in Portage, sponsored by the Adams-Columbia Electric Cooperative. Both Ripp and Ferriter also were present at the Sept. 29 Columbia County public meeting, called Turnout for Transportation, which attracted about 60 people to the countys Highway Department headquarters in Wyocena. Ferriter said, at the Adams-Columbia forum, that he would take two approaches to improving road conditions: tap all funds that are currently available to take on as many projects as possible, and identify other potential revenue sources to pay for road repairs. Every idea including higher gas taxes, higher vehicle registration fees, tolls and other forms of user fees should be on the table, Ferriter said. Everybody is on the same page as acknowledging that we have a huge problem, he said. Where the conversation diverges is, how do we fix that? Ripp said consensus among lawmakers is vital to identifying any solution for road conditions or sources of money to fix roads. He noted that the most recent Legislative session included a large number of newly-elected lawmakers, and he said it takes a while to get them all up to speed on the issue, let alone in agreement about a solution. However, Ripp said, his recent letter to Gov. Scott Walker about the need for more state funding for road repairs may have been one factor that prompted Walker to increase his proposed 2017-19 spending for transportation a number that will be considered even more, as lawmakers work on the next biennial budget. Creating policy isnt easy, Ripp said. No one size fits any of the solutions. Ripp noted, however, that the condition of Wisconsins roads is a key factor in another vital state issue attracting and keeping good jobs, especially in rural areas. In addition to good roads, he said, Wisconsin also needs access to the information superhighway, through better availability of high-speed Internet service so that all areas of the state are served. Ferriter observed that Columbia County is profoundly rural, and there are whole areas that either have no broadband service available at all, or whose options for service are prohibitively expensive. Ferriter vowed he would work to ensure broadband access to every part of District 42 and to every part of Wisconsin. In addition to roads and broadband, Ripp said, his priorities for the coming session include further work with the Wisconsin Rural Initiative a group of lawmakers focused on a compendium of rural issues, including education, technology, workforce development and health care. On education, Ripp said theres something wrong with school funding when public school districts have to hold referendums, year after year, to cover basic operational costs. Ferriter said his legislative priorities include protection of the states water supply and care for veterans (he served eight years active duty with the U.S. Air Force and 18 year in the Reserve and National Guard). And, he said, he would like to address Wisconsins methods and practices of redrawing Legislative districts every 10 years, because he said the current redistricting process is unfair. It stifles debate. It stifles discussion. It impedes the free exchange of ideas that are absolutely essential to our government, he said. The 42nd District, which has existed in its present form starting with the 2012 election, is considered a Republican district. But, although Ferriter lost to Ripp in 2014, the election returns in Columbia County showed that he carried most of the villages and all of the cities in the parts of Columbia County that are in the 42nd District. (The city of Portage is in the 81st Assembly District.) Ripp, however, dominated in most of Columbia Countys towns, and he scored lopsided victories in the villages of Randolph and Friesland. When author Chad Lewis makes a return visit at 1 p.m. Oct. 23 to the Reedsburg Public Library Community Room, audience members may want to remember to leave their lights on at home. Lewis, the author of more than 20 books, is an expert on unusual, mysterious and paranormal phenomenon. After earning a masters degree in applied psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Stout, Lewis turned his attention to researching the unexplained. For the next 20 years he would investigate such varied phenomena as UFOs in Area 51, the Loch Ness Monster of Scotland, vampires in Transylvania, the Wendigo of Canada, werewolves in Wisconsin, and haunted locations around the Midwest. He works as a paranormal investigator for Unexplained Research, LLC, which is also the publisher of several of his books. These titles fall into a number of categories including road guides to haunted locations, road guides to mysterious creatures, guides to gangster hot spots, and books highlighting hidden headlines. At this visit, he will feature the most haunted sites throughout the state of Wisconsin. Some of the locations he will showcase may also be found in The Wisconsin Road Guide to Haunted Locations, co-authored by Terry Fisk. The book is a directory listing haunted places in the state by region, county and municipality. Locations include cemeteries, mansions, roads and even innocuous buildings housing YMCAs and Subway restaurants. Unusual phenomena in the Reedsburg area include paranormal activity at the Wisconsin Dells Dungeon of Horrors, the Showboat Saloon and also the legend of the mysterious Highway 12 hitchhiker. Dont miss Lewis fascinating look at unusual and supernatural happenings in Wisconsin. The author will be available after the program to answer questions and sign books. Samples of the authors books are on display at the library, and available for checkout. This author visit is funded, in part, by a grant from the Sauk County UW Extension, Arts & Culture Committee, the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information, call 768-7323. This presidential campaign has become like Dantes Inferno. Each week, we descend into a lower, deeper ring of hell. Almost every day, another woman comes forward about Donald Trumps unwanted sexual advances. To dismiss his earlier in the week comments as locker room talk, or to somehow accept them as the brazen ranting of an alpha male belittles the dignity of women and shows an arrogance that makes him unfit to be president. One dictionary defines an alpha male as a man tending to assume a dominant rolein social or professional situationsmost alpha males need to control women in their lives. To address, see, and accept women in the way Trump has bragged about is a disgrace to the integrity of women as human beings, and to the overall respect of society at large. It also dismisses with an air of contempt the horror women face. Using statistics from the Department of Justice and from the Center for Disease Control, possibly as many as 1.3 million women are raped every year. Of that number, 54 percent go unreported. Fifteen percent of those rapes are assaults on girls 12 or younger. Ninety-seven percent of all men accused of rape never go to jail. Yet, only about 5 percent of all reported rape cases have been shown that the woman lied about the assault. Comparing these numbers with statis-tics from the National Cancer Institute, a woman is twice as likely to be raped as to develop breast cancer. Society has managed to shame women and disgrace her as the victim. As recently as 2011, a rape case was dismissed in Connecticut because the women could not prove that she had resisted her assailant, since she had not shown any evidence of kicking, scratching, or biting during the attack. The woman attacked was mentally challenged. A couple of years ago, a doctor in Brazil was excommunicated for performing a life-saving abortion on an 11-year-old, incest, rape victim. The perpetrator was let go. During the 2012 election cycle, Senatorial candidate Todd Akin stated during a debate that, if it is a legitimate rape, a womans body has a way of shutting that down. The CDC writes that the chances of that happening in the real world are zero percent. Sexual assault, it must be emphasized, is not a crime of some sexual perversion. It is an act of control, of power, of a deficient male ego needing to overpower a woman and take her in the most egregious way possible. While there are many good websites available, the University of West Virginias is absolutely chilling. It writes that, Rape and sexual assault are all about control and domination. It further states that using the way a woman dresses as an excuse for sexual assault simply transfers blame from the perpetrator to the victim. In a real case, a womans lace bra was introduced as evidence by the defense. A judge in Georgia actually wrote that, women are sex objects whether they like it or not. Another judge gave a teen probation for committing rape because are we supposed to take an impressionable 15- or 16-year-old and punish them severely because they reacted normally to it. It being the way the woman was dressed. Another judge wrote that women need to stop teasing men. All of this is not some ancient history. These are all examples within the last 10 years. Women still struggle for their rightful place in the workplace and in society. For Trump and his supporters to absolve him, to grant him some type of perverse amnesty for his comments and his actions in the past, belies the audacity of a man to treat others with such contempt. Those actions do not dissolve; they do not go away. They are what he isan egocentric male who believes he can control and dominate any and each encounter, whether it is with a woman, a business partner, his business dealings, or on the campaign trail. Bill Clintons actions are horrible as well. But to shame the wife for the husband, stoops to a new level of abomination against women. Not only is he not running for president in this cycle, he was punished for his behavior by being impeached and had his law license revoked for five years. Trumps conspiracy comments about the media being unfair to him are no more intellectually saner than the statements of the judges written about earlier. This is a man already finding excuses for his own failures and his inabilities to face his own shortcomings. Eleanor Roosevelt once wrote that you should never write a letter when you are angry. That could also apply to a column. Oops, too late. Barack Obama urged Donald Trump to stop whining after he had claimed that upcoming election was rigged. By Indo-Asian News Service: US President Barack Obama urged Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to "stop whining" and rejected his claims of the presidential elections being rigged, media reports said. "I have never seen any presidential candidate trying to discredit the elections and the election process before votes have even taken place. It's unprecedented," CNBC news quoted Obama as saying at a White House press conference yesterday. advertisement "I'd invite Mr. Trump to stop whining, and go try to make his case to get votes," he added. Also read: US elections: Republican Party office firebombed, Trump blames animals representing Hillary and Democrats Trump clashed with Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and his own party on whether the upcoming election was rigged. "The election is absolutely being rigged by the dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary - but also at many polling places - SAD," Trump tweeted on October 16. CLINTON LEADING Poll numbers in favour of Trump drastically fell after the first presidential debate on September 26. This was followed by the release of a 2005 tape on October 8, in which Trump bragged about sexually aggressive behaviour toward women. After this, several women have accused the Republican candidate of sexual misconduct. Also read: Indian Redditer says Modi just like Trump, urges Americans to vote for Republican Currently, Clinton leads Trump by 12 percentage points, according to a poll conducted by The Monmouth University. Trump and Clinton will face off in the third and final presidential debate at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, on October 20. --- ENDS --- Conversing across a century with thinker, author and politician Sol T Plaatje This year marks the centenary of the publication of Plaatjes seminal book, Native Life in South Africa. Sol T. Plaatje is a fairly familiar name in South Africa. Born Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje on 9 October 1876, he is often remembered as one of the founding members, and first general secretary, of the South African Native National Congress in 1912 which became the African National Congress in 1923. In recognition of his admirable service and talents as a pioneering politician, intellectual, journalist, linguist, writer and translator, Plaatje has been memorialised by, among other honours, having a museum, university and a municipality named after him. This year marks the centenary of the publication of Plaatjes seminal book, Native Life in South Africa. Native Life, together with his novel Mhudi which was published in 1930, and reputed to be the first novel written in English published by a black South African, constitutes the cornerstones of Plaatjes remarkable oeuvre. A new edited volume, Sol Plaatjes Native Life in South Africa: Past and Present edited by Janet Remmington, Brian Willan and Bhekizizwe Peterson and published by Wits University Press - reflects the significance of Native Life and its continuing resonances. At the time of its publication Native Life was widely read and even discussed in the South African House of Assembly. It disappeared out of the public eye only to reappear from the 1960s as historians started to chart the history of black South Africans. A little book In 1913 the Natives Land Act of 1913 was passed. The South African History Online described the act as the most catastrophic provision for Africans being the prohibition from buying or hiring land in 93% of South Africa. The passing of the Act was a key catalyst that sparked Plaatje to write Native Life. At the time, Plaatje quaintly described it as a little book. It was conceived as part of his arsenal to petition the British government and public to protect the rights of black South Africans following the Act of Union of 1910. The unification of four former British colonies Cape Colony, Natal Colony, Transvaal Colony and Orange River Colony led to the formation of the Union of South Africa. This new South African state legislated a wide range of discriminatory policies that turned the country into a white oligarchy that was structured in racial dominance and exploitation. The book that resulted far exceeded its authors modest aims. Instead it raised a range of complex issues that continue to bedevil South African society. Revisiting Native Life a 100 years later one is struck by the daunting task of how to position and engage with foundational texts and figures. One has to ensure that they retain their complexities and even contradictions. Those are qualities that can be productive in thinking-through both past and present experiences and challenges. There are two possible forms of reception. There is the celebration of heritage and human treasures that, paradoxically, often flatten out the very attributes that made the person or text noteworthy. Alternatively, there is the tendency to dismiss members of the early black intelligentsia as black Victorians. They supposedly assimilated Western culture in the hope of achieving social respectability. Take Paper and Ink! The profound social changes that were brought about by conquest compelled black intellectuals to respond in numerous and creative ways to the ordeals that they faced. Instead of trying to draw a distinct line between tradition and modernity, orality and writing, Plaatje and his colleagues realised that such categories and practices were not mutually exclusive. These categories and practices needed to be recalibrated and used simultaneously in response to the new circumstances. Plaatjes literary endeavours were in line with IWW Citashes incendiary call in his poem, Zimkile! Mfo wohlanga / Gone are your cattle, countryman! to: Take Paper and Ink/ Thats your armour. As he acknowledged in the preface to Mhudi, since the writing of history is partisan Plaatje felt it incumbent that black writers should offer their own interpretations. Native Life is, in the first instance, such an account. Yet it also extends way beyond the imperative to bear witness to the dislocation and alienation unleashed by the Land Act. In order to get readers to fully grasp the turmoil Plaatje elaborates the beliefs, cultures and social lives of Africans before the Act. In the process he also provides an extensive and compelling archive of African ways of being and knowledge systems. A similar compulsion is behind his collection and publication in 1916 of Sechuana Proverbs with Literal Translations and Their European Equivalents. Bear Ye One Anothers Burden The recuperation of the distinctiveness of African life and culture was complicated by Plaatjes equally insistent affirmation of the ties and needs that bind humanity. He draws attention to what he regards as common human desires such as food, clothing, shelter and love - that all people share irrespective of race, class or gender. Cover of Wits University Press, Sol Plaatjes Native Life in South Africa: Past and Present. Plaatje evokes what he calls mutual suffering and advises that bear ye one anothers burden. Remarkably, before the two world wars and genocides that shook the 20th century, Plaatje argued that we bear an ethical responsibility to ensure the well-being of all people. We are also called upon to intervene and stop injustice and atrocities wherever they manifest themselves across the world. This challenge is directed at all the citizens of the British Empire but it is also aimed at black and white South Africans. Plaatjes compassion is particularly attentive to the hardships that are encountered by vulnerable groups. He is left distraught after witnessing a displaced family, the Kgobadis, burying their infant in an unmarked grave. At the funeral of his own son, he contrasts its pomp and ceremony with the fugitive nature that marked the Kgobadi burial. He is appalled by the incarceration in the Orange Free State of black women who staged one of the earliest marches against the pass laws in July 1913. Two chapters in Native Life eulogise the social roles performed by women and they indicate his support of the rights of women and especially the need for them to participate in public life. All these responses are consistent with Plaatjes believe in equality irrespective of race or colour ones sex or class. The Art of the Human Condition The links and empathies between people across race, class, gender and experience that Plaatje proposes is also apparent in his equally receptive attitude and appropriation of art from all over the world. Native Life makes extensive use of quotations from major global texts ranging from the Bible to Shakespeare. The citations are not simply a sign of Plaatjes erudition, they are pointedly used to strengthen Plaatjes own argument. The human bonds that Plaatje evokes are, of course, fundamental to the human condition that art is preoccupied with. If great art is informed by but also transcends the time and locality of its emergence, this then requires a more sophisticated appreciation of the value of even canonical works. For instance, in addition to the need to centre African and other marginalised thinkers, knowledge systems and art across the educational and cultural landscapes, should the project of decolonisation in South Africa erase the Western canon or counter the ways in which it has been used in support of the colonial project? Are African works not susceptible to similar conservative and exclusionary uses? Such as when they are deployed in ways that validate traditional authority, patriarchy, ethnicity, class privileges, homophobia and xenophobia? Plaatje also encouraged independent thought. He felt that a critical disposition coupled with empirical evidence and public accountability was indispensable, not only in relation to contesting colonial ideology but also with regards to views and actions in the black community as well. After learning that his mentor, the journalist and educator John T Jabavu, was in support of the Land Act, Plaatje describes, in chapter 13, his unsuccessful mission to convince Jabavu to alter his position. After his failure, Plaatje cautioned against the dangers of being held ransom by the powerful and wealthy in society. He declared that: God forbid that we should ever find that our mind had become the property of someone other than ourselves. Plaatjes high estimation of intellectual work, critical thinking and access to information is in stark contrast to the current disparagement of clever blacks, transparency, access to information and the media. It is as a result of the deep appreciation of the complexities and entanglements that underpin social change and the imperatives to create a more just and humane world that Plaatje, and his contemporaries, preferred to pursue a multi-pronged, nuanced and compassionate understanding and representation of life. Bhekizizwe Peterson, Professor of African Literature, University of the Witwatersrand. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Wits researchers find techniques to improve carbon superlattices for quantum electronic devices In a paradigm shift from conventional electronic devices, exploiting the quantum properties of superlattices holds the promise of developing new technologies. Researchers at the Nanoscale Transport Physics Laboratory from the School of Physics at the University of the Witwatersrand have found a technique to improve carbon superlattices for quantum electronic device applications. Superlattices are made up of alternating layers of very thin semiconductors, just a few nanometers thick. These layers are so thin that the physics of these devices is governed by quantum mechanics, where electrons behave like waves. In a paradigm shift from conventional electronic devices, exploiting the quantum properties of superlattices holds the promise of developing new technologies. The group, headed by Professor Somnath Bhattacharyya has been working for the past 10 years on developing carbon-based nano-electronic devices. Carbon is the future in the electronics field and it soon will be challenging many other semiconductors, including silicon, says Bhattacharyya. The physics of carbon superlattices is more complex than that of crystalline superlattices (such as gallium arsenide) since the material is amorphous and carbon atoms tend to form chains and networks. The Wits group, in association with researchers at the University of Surrey in the UK, has developed a detailed theoretical approach to understand the experimental data obtained from carbon devices. The paper has been published in Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group) on 19 October. This work provides an understanding of the fundamental quantum properties of carbon superlattices, which we can now use to design quantum devices for specific applications, says lead author, Wits PhD student, Ross McIntosh. Our work provides strong impetus for future studies of the high-frequency electronic and optoelectronic properties of carbon superlattices. Through their work, the group reported one of the first theoretical models that can explain the fundamental electronic transport properties in disordered carbon superlattices. Bhattacharyya started looking at the use of carbon for semiconductor applications almost 10 years ago, before he joined Wits University, when he and co-authors from the University of Surrey developed and demonstrated negative differential resistance and excellent high-frequency properties of a quantum device made up of amorphous carbon layers. This work was published in Nature Materials in 2006. McIntosh undertook the opportunity at honours level to measure the electrical properties of carbon superlattice devices. Now, as a PhD student and having worked extensively with theoretician Dr. Mikhail V. Katkov, he has extended the theoretical framework and developed a technique to calculate the transport properties of these devices. Bhattacharyya believes this work will have immense importance in developing Carbon-based high-frequency devices. It will open not only fundamental studies in Carbon materials, but it will also have industrial applications in the electronic and optoelectronic device sector, he says. Superlattices are currently used as state of the art high-frequency oscillators and amplifiers and are beginning to find use in optoelectronics as detectors and emitters in the terahertz regime. While the high frequency electrical and optoelectronic properties of conventional semiconductors are limited by the dopants used to modify their electronic properties, the properties of superlattices can be tuned over a much wider range to create devices which operate in regimes where conventional devices cannot. Superlattice electronic devices can operate at higher frequencies and optoelectronic devices can operate at lower frequencies than their conventional counterparts. The lack of terahertz emitters and detectors has resulted in a gap in that region of the electromagnetic spectrum (known as the terahertz gap), which is a significant limitation, as many biological molecules are active in this regime. This also limits terahertz radio astronomy. Amorphous Carbon devices are extremely strong, can operate at high voltages and can be developed in most laboratories in the world, without sophisticated nanofabrication facilities. New Carbon-based devices could find application in biology, space technology, science infrastructure such as the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) telescope in South Africa, and new microwave detectors. What was lacking earlier was an understanding of device modelling. If we have a model, we can improve the device quality, and that is what we now have, says Bhattacharyya. About the Wits Nanoscale Transport Physics Laboratory The Wits Nanoscale Transport Physics Laboratory (NSTPL) was established in 2009 under the leadership of Bhattacharyya when Professor Joao Rodrigues was the Head of the School of Physics at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. The department is known as a leading Physics school in the African continent, having one of the largest academic staff complements on a single campus. Since the opening of the laboratory, the NSTPL has gone from strength to strength in establishing a facility that houses world-class fabrication and measurement equipment, an initiative strongly supported by research entities such as the NRF, CSIR, Wits Research Office and DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Strong Materials. The NSTPL is well equipped with various sophisticated synthesis facilities, as well as a cryogenic micro-manipulated probe station to conduct sensitive quantum transport measurements at temperatures near absolute zero. The NSTPL also houses a fully operational electron beam lithography scanning electron microscope, used to fabricate nanoscale devices based on these carbon materials. Some noteworthy current projects include the fabrication of spintronic devices using supramolecular Gd-functionalized carbon nanotubes, the fabrication of graphene field effect transistors and most recently the study of the unconventional superconductivity observed in boron-doped diamond. The NSTPL group has also published a number of papers on theoretical investigations, led by Dr Mikhail Katkov and Dr Dmitry Churochkin, on the role of disorder on the quantum transport in carbon systems. These various topics form part of the broader direction the group has taken, that being, investigating the physics of carbon materials in the hopes of finding application in quantum information systems as well as detector devices valuable for space exploration. Chairmen of PEMRA, Absar Alam, confirmed to India Today about the decision that was taken in the 120th meeting of the authority held today in Islamabad. 120th meeting of the authority held at PEMRA headquarters today. Meeting was chaired by Absar Alam, Chairman.(Twitter@reportpemra) By India Today Web Desk: Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) today approved a complete ban on airing of Indian content in Pakistan from October 21, said a statement released by the regulatory authority. Chairmen of PEMRA, Absar Alam, confirmed to India Today about the decision that was taken in the 120th meeting of the authority held today in Islamabad. advertisement The federal government had earlier suggested banning airing of Indian content in a tit-for-tat move after Pakistani content was completely banned by India. The ban will come into effect at 3 pm on October 21, and violators will be prosecuted under law, said the statement. --- ENDS --- The following companies are subsidiares of AON: 6824625 Canada Ltd., 7193599 Canada Inc., A.B. 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Agencia Asesora Productora de Seguros, Aon Risk Services Holdings (Chile ) Ltda., Aon Risk Services Inc. of Florida, Aon Risk Services Inc. of Hawaii, Aon Risk Services Inc. of Maryland, Aon Risk Services Inc. of Washington D.C., Aon Risk Services Northeast Inc., Aon Risk Services South Inc., Aon Risk Services Southwest Inc., Aon Risk Services Venezuela Corretaje de Seguros C.A., Aon Risk Solutions (Cayman) Ltd., Aon Risk Solutions Agente de Seguros y de Fianzas SA de CV, Aon Risk Solutions of Puerto Rico Inc., Aon Riskminder A/S, Aon Romania Broker de Asigurare - Reasigurare SRL, Aon Rus Insurance Brokers LLC, Aon Rus LLC, Aon S.p.A. Insurance & Reinsurance Brokers, Aon Saver Limited, Aon Securities (Hong Kong) Limited, Aon Securities Investment Management Inc., Aon Securities LLC, Aon Securities Limited, Aon Service Corporation, Aon Services (Guernsey) Ltd, Aon Services (Malta) Ltd, Aon Services Group Inc., Aon Services Hong Kong Limited, Aon Services Pty Ltd., Aon Sigorta ve Reasurans Brokerligi ve A.S., Aon Soluciones S.A., Aon Soluciones S.A.C., Aon Southern Europe UK Limited, Aon Sp. z o.o., Aon Special Risk Resources Inc., Aon Superannuation (PNG) Limited, Aon Superannuation Pty Limited, Aon TC Holdings Inc., Aon Taiwan Ltd., Aon Treasury Ireland Limited, Aon Trust Company LLC, Aon Trust Corporation Limited, Aon Trust Services B.V., Aon UK Group Limited, Aon UK Holdings Intermediaries Limited, Aon UK Limited, Aon UK Trustees Limited, Aon US & International Holdings Limited, Aon US Holdings 2 Inc., Aon US Holdings Inc., Aon Ukraine LLC, Aon Underwriting Agencies (HK) Limited, Aon Underwriting Managers (Bermuda) Ltd., Aon Underwriting Managers Inc., Aon Versicherungsberatungs GmbH, Aon Versicherungsmakler Deutschland GmbH, Aon Vietnam Limited, Aon Ward Financial Corporation, Aon-COFCO Insurance Brokers Co. Ltd., Aon/Albert G. Ruben Insurance Services Inc., Asevasa Argentina S.A., Asevasa Caricam S.A., Asevasa Chile Peritaciones e Ingenieria de Riesgos S.A., Asevasa Mexico S.A. de C.V., Asevasa Panama S.A., Asian Reinsurance Underwriters Limited, Asscom Insurance Brokers S.r.l., Association of Rural and Small Town Americans, Associacao Instituto Aon, Assurance Licensing Services Inc., B E P International Corp., B.V. Assurantiekantoor Langeveldt-Schroder, BMS Insurance Agency L.L.C., Bacon & Woodrow Partnerships (Ireland) Limited, Bacon & Woodrow Partnerships Limited, Bain Hogg Group Limited (in liquidation), Baltolink UADBB, Bankassure Insurance Services Limited, Bayfair Insurance Centre Limited, Beaubien Finance Ireland Limited, Beaubien Finance Limited, Beaubien UK Finance Limited, Becketts (Trustees) Limited, Becketts Limited, Beech Hill Pension Trustees Ltd, Bekouw Mendes C.V., Benefit Marketing Solutions L.L.C., Benfield Advisory Inc., Benfield Corredores de Reaseguro Ltda., Benfield Finance (London) LLC, Benfield Group, Benfield Investment Holdings Limited, Benfield Juniperus Holdings Limited, Benfield do Brasil Participacoes Ltda. (dormant), Benton Finance Ireland Limited, Benton Finance Limited, Blanch Americas Inc., Bowes & Company Inc. of New York, CEREP III Secondary Manager LLC, CFSSG Real Estate Partners I LLC, CFSSG Real Estate Partners II LLC, CIF-H GP LLC, Cammack Health LLC, Cananwill Corporation, Cananwill Inc., Cardea Health Solutions Limited, Casablanca Intermediation Company Sarl, Celinvest Amsterdam B.V., Chapka Assurances SAS, Citadel Insurance Managers Inc., CoCubes, CoSec 2000 Limited, Coalition for Benefits Equality and Choice, Cocubes Technologies Private Limited, Coles Hewitt Partnership, Contingency Insurance Brokers Limited, Contractsure Limited, CoverWallet, Coverall S.r.l. Insurance and Reinsurance Underwriting Agency, Credit Insurance Brokers (Reynolds) Limited, Crion N.V., Custom Benefit Programs Inc., Cut-e, Cut-e (UK) Limited, Cut-e Assessment (Hong Kong) Limited, Cut-e Assessment Solutions Europe Limited, Cut-e Australia Pty Limited, Cut-e Consult DMCC, Cut-e Danmark A/S, Cut-e Finland Oy, Cut-e GmbH, Cut-e Ireland Limited, Cut-e Nordic AS, Cut-e Norge AS, Cytelligence, Delany Bacon & Woodrow Partnership, Dempsey Partners, Denney O'Hara (Life & Pensions) Limited, Doveland Services Limited, E. W. Blanch Holdings Limited, E. W. Blanch Investments Limited, E.W. Blanch Capital Risk Solutions Inc., E.W. Blanch International Inc., EW Blanch Limited, Elysium Digital IP Products LLC, Elysium Digital L.L.C., Ennis Knupp Secondary Market Services LLC, Essar Insurance Services Limited, Exploitatiemaatschappij Beukenlaan 68-72 B.V., Farmaseg - Solucoes Assistencia e Servicos Empresariais Ltda., Farmsure Limited [In strike-off], Finaccord Limited, Financial & Professional Risk Solutions Inc., Futurity Group Inc., GTCR/AAM Blocker Corp., Ge.f.it. S.r.l., Gefass S.r.l., Glenrand M I B (Mocambique) Corretores de Seguros Limitada, Global Safe Insurance Brokers S.r.l., Globe Events Management, Gotham Digital Science LLC, Gotham Digital Science Ltd., Grant Liddell Financial Advisor Services Pty Ltd, Grant Park Capital LLC, Groupe-Conseil Aon Inc., Grupo Innovac Sociedad de Correduria de Seguros SA, HIA Insurance Services Pty Ltd., Hall Rhodes Holdings Limited, Hall Rhodes Limited, Hamburger Gesellschaft zur Forderung des Versicherungswesens mbH, Harbourview West Lake Co-Invest (GP) LP, Health Index Advisors LLC, Healthy Paws Pet Insurance, Henderson Corporate Insurance Brokers Limited, Henderson Insurance Brokers Limited, Henderson Insurance Partnership Limited [In strike-off], Henderson Risk Management Limited, Hewitt Amalco 3 ULC, Hewitt Amalco 4 ULC, Hewitt Amalco 5 ULC, Hewitt Associates (a partnership), Hewitt Associates Administradora e Corretora de Seguros Ltda., Hewitt Associates Corp., Hewitt Associates Outsourcing Limited, Hewitt Associates Pty Ltd, Hewitt Associates S.C., Hewitt Associates SAS, Hewitt Associates Servicos de Recursos Humanos Ltda., Hewitt Beneficios Agente de Seguros y de Fianzas S.A. de C.V., Hewitt Holdings Canada Company, Hewitt Insurance Brokerage LLC, Hewitt Insurance Inc., Hewitt International Holdings LLC, Hewitt Management Ltd., Hewitt Risk Management Services Limited, Hewitt Western Management Amalco Inc., Hogg Group Limited, Hogg Robinson North America Inc., Huntington T. Block Insurance Agency Inc., I. Beck Insurance Agency (1994) Ltd., IAO Actuarial Consulting Services Canada Inc., INPOINT INC., IRM/GRC Holding Inc., Impact Forecasting L.L.C., Inspiring Benefits, Inspiring Benefits Portugal Unipessoal Lda, Insuractive Limited [In strike-off], Insurance Broker Aon Kazakhstan LLP, International Risk Management (Americas) Inc., International Risk Management Group Ltd, International Space Brokers Europe Limited, International Space Brokers France, International Space Brokers Inc., International Space Brokers Limited, Inversiones Benfield Chile Ltda., J H Minet Puerto Rico Inc., J. Allan Brown Consultants Inc., JDPT Manager LLC, Jenner Fenton Slade Limited, John Reynolds & Company (Credit Insurance) Limited, John Reynolds & Company (Insurances) Limited, John Reynolds & Company (Life & Pensions) Limited, Johnson Rooney Welch Inc., K & K Insurance Brokers Inc. Canada, K & K Insurance Group Inc., K & K Insurance Group of Florida Inc., K2 Technologies Inc., KVT GP LLC, Kloud S.a.r.l., Krumlin Hall Limited, Lake Erie Real Estate General Partner Limited, Lake Tahoe GP LLC, Lake Tahoe II GP LLC, Lake Tahoe III GP LLC, Lake Tahoe IV GP LLC, Lenzi Paolo Broker di Assicurazioni S.r.l., Lincolnshire Insurance Company PCC Limited, Linx Underwriting Solutions Inc., Lombard Trustee Company Limited, M.A. Shakeel Management Ltd. Amalco, MacDonagh Boland Crotty MacRedmond Ltd, Marinaro Dundas S.A., Marinaro Dundas SA, Mark Kelly Insurance and Financial Services PTY LTD, McLagan (Aon) Limited, McLagan Partners Asia Inc., McLagan Partners Inc., Membership Leasing Trust, Minet Consultancy Services Ltd, Minet Group, Minet Holdings Inc., Minet Inc., Minet Re North America Inc., Modern Survey Inc., Muirfield Underwriters Ltd., NBS Nominees Limited, National Insurance Office Ltd., Nauman Insurance Brokers Limited, Nexus Insurance Brokers Limited, One Underwriting Agency GmbH, One Underwriting B.V., One Underwriting Health B.V., One Underwriting Pty Ltd, Optica Agency A/S, Optimum Risk Solutions Limited, Ovatio Courtage SAS, P.G. Bradley & Co Limited, PGOF Manager 1 LLC, PRORUCK Ruckversicherungs Aktiengesellschaft, PT Aon Benfield Indonesia, PT Aon Hewitt Indonesia, PT Aon Indonesia, PWZ AG, Paragon Strategic Solutions Inc., PathWise Solutions LLC, Penn Square Manager 1 LLC, Penn Square Manager II LLC, Portus Consulting, Portus Consulting, Portus Consulting (Leamington) Limited, Portus Online LLP, Praesidium S.p.A. - Soluzioni Assicurative per il Management, Premier Auto Finance Inc., Private Client Trustees Ltd., Private Equity Partnership Structures I LLC, Probabilitas N.V./SA, Protective Marketing Enterprises Inc., Randolph Finance Unlimited Company, Rasini Vigano Limited, Redwoods Dental Underwriters Inc., Richard Kiddle (Insurance Brokers) Limited, Risk Laboratories LLC, Riskikonsultatsioonide OU, Ronnie Elementary Insurance Agency Ltd, SA Special Situations General Partner LLC, SG IFFOXX Assekuranzmaklergesellschaft mbH, SLE Worldwide Limited, SN Re S.A., Salud Riesgos y Recursos Humanos Consultores Ltda. (former Aon Corporte Advisors Ltda.), SchneiderGolling IFFOXX Assekuranzmakler AG, SchneiderGolling Industrie Assekuranzmaklergesellschaft mbH, Scritch Inc., Shanghai Kayi Information Technology Co. Ltd, Sheppard Netherlands B.V., Specialty Benefits Inc., Sports Insure Limited [In strike-off], Strategic Manager-III LLC, Stroz Friedberg (Asia) Limited, Stroz Friedberg Inc., Stroz Friedberg LLC, Stroz Friedberg Limited, Stroz Friedberg Risk Management Limited, Superannuation Management Nominees Limited, Suresport Limited [In strike-off], Swire Blanch MSTC II SA, Swire Blanch MSTC SA, TTG BRPTP GP LLC, TTG Cayuga Bavaria Intermediate 2 S.a.r.l, TTG Core Plus Investments LLC, TTG German Investments I LLC, TTG Investments II LLC, TTG Irish Investments I LLC, TTG Manager LLC, Tecsefin S.A. en liquidacion, The Aon Ireland Mastertrustee Limited, The Aon MasterTrustee Limited, The John Reynolds Company Limited, The Key West Saxon Group LLC, The Townsend Group Inc, The Townsend Group LLC, Townsend Alpha Manager I LLC, Townsend Alpha Manager II LLC, Townsend Alpha Manager III LLC, Townsend Group Asia Limited, Townsend Group Europe Ltd., Townsend HWL GP Ltd., Townsend Holdings LLC, Townsend Lake Constance GP Limited, Townsend REF GP LLC, Townsend Re Global GP Limited, Townsend SO Manager I LLC, Tyche, UAB One Underwriting, UADBB Aon Baltic, UK Credit Insurance Specialists Limited, UNIT Versicherungsmakler GmbH, US Underwriting Solutions S.r.l., USLP Underwriting Solutions LP, Underwriters Marine Services Inc., Unidelta AG, Unirobe Meeus Groep, UnitedPensions Deutschland AG, Univers Workplace Solutions, VERO Management AG, Ventiv Technology, WT Government Services LLC, WT Technologies LLC, Wannet Speciale Verzekeringen B.V., Wannet Sports Insurance GmbH, Ward Financial Group Inc., Welfare S.r.l, West Lake General Partner LLC, West Lake II GP LLC, Wexford Underwriting Managers Inc., White Rock Insurance (Americas) Ltd., White Rock Insurance (Europe) PCC Limited, White Rock Insurance (Gibraltar) PCC Ltd., White Rock Insurance (Guernsey) ICC Limited, White Rock Insurance (Netherlands) PCC Limited, White Rock Insurance (SAC) Ltd., White Rock Insurance Company PCC Ltd., White Rock Insurance PCC (Isle of Man) Limited, White Rock Services (Bermuda) Ltd., White Rock USA Ltd., Willis Towers Watson, Worldwide Integrated Services Company, Wrapid Specialty Inc., Zalba-Caldu Correduria de Seguros SA, and cut-e USA Inc.. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Accenture: 2nd Road, ?What If!, ?What If! China Holdings Limited, ?What If! Holdings Limited, ?What If! Limited, ACN Consulting Co Ltd, AD.Dialeto (Digital Agency acquired by Accenture), AFD.TECH, AGS Business and Technology Services Limited, AIG Shared Services Business Processing Inc, ASM Research Inc., ASM Research LLC, ATAN, Accenture (Botswana) (Proprietary) Limited, Accenture (China) Co. Ltd., Accenture (Shenzhen) Technology Co. Ltd., Accenture (South Africa) Pty Ltd, Accenture (UK) Limited, Accenture 2 Business Process Services S.A., Accenture 2 LLC, Accenture A/S, Accenture AB, Accenture AG, Accenture AS, Accenture Africa Pty Ltd, Accenture Agencia Interativa Ltda, Accenture Australia Holding B.V., Accenture Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, Accenture Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture B.V., Accenture BPM Operations Support Services S.A., Accenture BPM S.C.R.L., Accenture BPS Services S.p. z o.o., Accenture Branch Holdings B.V., Accenture Bulgaria EOOD, Accenture Business Services for Utilities Inc, Accenture Business Services of British Columbia Limited Partnership, Accenture Business and Technology Services LLC, Accenture C.A., Accenture Canada Holdings Inc, Accenture Capital Designated Activity Company, Accenture Capital Inc, Accenture Central Europe B.V., Accenture Chile Asesorias y Servicios Ltda, Accenture Cloud Services GmbH, Accenture Cloud Software Solutions Limited, Accenture Cloud Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions LLC, Accenture Cloud Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Co Ltd, Accenture Co. Ltd, Accenture Communications Infrastructure Solutions Ltd, Accenture Company Ltd, Accenture Consulting Pty Ltd, Accenture Consulting Services Ltd Tanzania, Accenture Consultores de Gestao S.A., Accenture Consultoria de Industria e Consumo Ltda, Accenture Consultoria de Recursos Naturais Ltda, Accenture Credit Services LLC, Accenture Customer Services Distribution SASU, Accenture Customer Services Ltd, Accenture Danismanlik Limited Sirketi, Accenture Defined Benefit Pension Plan Trustees Limited, Accenture Defined Contribution Pension Plan Trustees Limited, Accenture Delivery Poland S.p. z o.o., Accenture Dienstleistungen GmbH, Accenture Digital Holdings GmbH, Accenture East Africa Limited, Accenture Ecuador S.A., Accenture Egypt LLC, Accenture Enterprise Development (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Accenture Federal Services LLC, Accenture Finance II Limited, Accenture Finance Limited, Accenture Finance and Accounting BPO Services S.p.A., Accenture Finance and Accounting Services S.r.l., Accenture Financial Advanced Solution & Technology S.r.l., Accenture Flex LLC, Accenture GP LLC, Accenture Global Capital Designated Activity Company, Accenture Global Engagements Limited, Accenture Global Holdings Limited, Accenture Global Services Limited, Accenture Global Solutions Limited, Accenture GmbH, Accenture HR Services S.p.A., Accenture Healthcare Processing Inc, Accenture Holding Brasil Ltda, Accenture Holding GmbH & Co. KG, Accenture Holdings (Iberia) S.L., Accenture Holdings B.V., Accenture Holdings France SASU, Accenture Hungary Holdings Kft, Accenture Inc, Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions Kft, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions SA, Accenture Insurance Services B.V., Accenture Insurance Services LLC, Accenture International B.V., Accenture International LLC, Accenture International Limited, Accenture Japan Ltd, Accenture Korea B.V., Accenture LLC, Accenture LLP, Accenture Lanka (Private) Ltd, Accenture Limited, Accenture Lithuania UAB, Accenture Ltd, Accenture Ltda, Accenture Maghreb S.a.r.l., Accenture Managed Services SRL, Accenture Management GmbH, Accenture Marketing Services LLC, Accenture Marketing Services Limited, Accenture Middle East B.V., Accenture Minority I B.V., Accenture Mozambique Limitada, Accenture Mzansi Pty Ltd, Accenture NV/SA, Accenture NZ Limited, Accenture Nova Scotia Unlimited Liability Co., Accenture OOO, Accenture Operations GmbH, Accenture Operations S.p. z o.o., Accenture Operations Services Private Limited, Accenture Operations Services Sdn Bhd, Accenture Outsourcing S.r.l., Accenture Outsourcing Services S.A., Accenture Oy, Accenture Panama Inc, Accenture Participations B.V., Accenture Participations II Limited, Accenture Peru SRL, Accenture Post Trade Processing SASU, Accenture Post-Trade Processing Limited, Accenture Process (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Pte Ltd, Accenture Puerto Rico LLC, Accenture Qiyun Technology (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd, Accenture S.C., Accenture S.L., Accenture S.R.L., Accenture S.p. z o.o., Accenture S.p.A., Accenture SASU, Accenture SG Services Pte Ltd, Accenture SRL, Accenture Saudi Arabia Limited, Accenture Sdn Bhd, Accenture Service Center SRL, Accenture Services (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Services AB, Accenture Services AG, Accenture Services AS, Accenture Services GmbH, Accenture Services Morocco SA, Accenture Services Oy, Accenture Services Pty Ltd, Accenture Services S.p. z o.o., Accenture Services SRL, Accenture Services and Technology S.r.l., Accenture Services s.r.o., Accenture Single Member S.A. Organization Information Technology & Business Development, Accenture Solutions Co. Ltd, Accenture Solutions Private Limited, Accenture Solutions Pte Ltd, Accenture Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Solutions S.p. z o.o, Accenture Solutions Sdn Bhd, Accenture State Healthcare Services LLC, Accenture Sub II Inc, Accenture Sub III Inc, Accenture Sub LLC, Accenture Systems Integration Limited, Accenture Sarl, Accenture Tanacsado Kolatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Accenture Technology Solutions (Dalian) Co. Ltd., Accenture Technology Solutions (HK) Co. Ltd., Accenture Technology Solutions (Thailand) Co. Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions - Solucoes Informaticas Integradas S.A., Accenture Technology Solutions GmbH, Accenture Technology Solutions Oy, Accenture Technology Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions S.A. de C.V., Accenture Technology Solutions S.r.l., Accenture Technology Solutions SASU, Accenture Technology Solutions SRL, Accenture Technology Solutions Sdn Bhd, Accenture Technology Solutions Slovakia s.r.o., Accenture Technology Ventures B.V., Accenture Technology Ventures SPRL, Accenture Tecnologia Consultoria y Outsourcing S.A., Accenture Uruguay SRL, Accenture Vietnam Co. Limited, Accenture Zambia Limited, Accenture do Brasil Ltda, Accenture plc, Accenture s.r.o., Acceria, Acquity Group, Adaptly LLC, Adaptly UK Limited, AddVal Technology, Adqptly, Advantium Inc., Advoco, Agilex Technologies Inc., Alfa Consulting, Allen International, AlphaBeta Advisors, Altevie Technologies S.r.l., Altima, Altima (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Altima Asia Ltd, Altitude, Altitude LLC, Altius Consulting Limited, Altius Data Solutions Private Limited, Analytics 8 LP, Analytics 8 Pty Ltd, Analytics8, Aorui Advertising (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Apis, Apis Group Pty Ltd, Appaloosa Technology SASU, AppsPro, AppsPro, Arca, Arca Ingenieros y Consultoria S.L., Arca Telecom S.L., Ariba - BPO, Arismore, Artio People (Payroll) Pty Ltd, Artio People Pty Ltd, Aspiro Solutions (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Automation Partners Pty Ltd, Avanade (Guangzhou) Computer Technology Development Co. Ltd., Avanade Asia Pte Ltd, Avanade Australia Pty Ltd, Avanade Belgium SPRL, Avanade Canada Inc, Avanade Consulting Poland S.p. z o.o., Avanade Denmark A/S, Avanade Deutschland GmbH, Avanade Europe Holdings Limited, Avanade Europe Services Limited, Avanade Finland Oy, Avanade France SASU, Avanade Holdings LLC, Avanade Hong Kong Ltd, Avanade Inc, Avanade International Corporation, Avanade Ireland Limited, Avanade Italy S.r.l., Avanade Japan KK, Avanade Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avanade Middle East Limited, Avanade Netherlands B.V., Avanade Norway AS, Avanade Poland S.p. z o.o., Avanade Schweiz GmbH, Avanade South Africa Pty Ltd, Avanade Spain S.L., Avanade Sweden AB, Avanade UK Limited, Avanade do Brasil Ltda , Avanade Osterreich GmbH, Avenai, Avieco, Axia Ltd., BABCN LLC, BCS Consulting, BCT Solutions, BCT Solutions Pty Ltd, BENEXT, BPO Servicos Administrativos Ltda, BRIDGE Energy Group, BRIDGEi2i, Beacon Consulting Group Inc., Beijing Genesis Interactive Technology Co. Ltd., Beijing Zhidao Future Consulting Co. Ltd, Benext, Berico Technologies LLC, Bionic, Bionic Solution LLC, Blue Horseshoe, Boomerang Pharmaceutical Communications, Bow & Arrow, Bow & Arrow Limited, Brand Learning, Brand Learning Group Limited, Brightstep AB, Byte Prophecy, Byte Prophecy Private Limited, CAS, CRMWaypoint, CS Technology (Australia) Pty Ltd, CS Technology (UK) Limited, CS Technology Group LLC, CS Technology LLC, CadenceQuest Inc., Callisto Integration Europe B.V., Callisto Integration Europe Limited, Callisto Integration LLC, Callisto Integration Ltd, Capgemini - North American health practice, Capital Consultancy Services Inc, Certus Solutions Consulting Services Limited, Certus Solutions Ltd, ChangeTrack Research Pty Ltd., Chaotic Moon Studios, Chengdu Mensa Advertising Co. Ltd., Cimation, Cirrus Connect Australia Pty Ltd, Cirrus Connect Limited, Cirruseo, Clarity Insights, ClearEdge Partners, Clearhead, Clearhead Group LLC, ClientHouse GmbH, Cloud Sherpas, Cloud Sherpas (GA) LLC, Cloud Sherpas Japan G.K., Cloud Sherpas New Zealand Limited, Cloudeasier SAS, Cloudpoint Limited, Cloudsherpas Inc, Cloudworks, Cloudworks Consulting Services Inc, Cloudworks Technology LLC, Computer Research and Telecommunications LLC, Concrete Desenvolvimento de Sistemas Ltda, Concrete Solutions, Concrete Solutions Ltda, Context Information Security, Context Information Security LLC, Context Information Security Limited, CoreCompete LLC, CoreCompete Limited, CoreCompete Private Limited, Corliant Inc., Creative Drive LLC, Creative Drive US LLC, CreativeDrive, CreativeDrive Digital Content Services (Shenzhen) Co Ltd., CreativeDrive EMEA Limited, CreativeDrive Singapore Pte Ltd, CreativeDrive UK Group Limited, Cutting Edge Solutions Limited, Cygni AB, Cygni Norrsken AB, Cygni Stockholm AB, Cygni Syd AB, Cygni Vast AB, Cygni Ost AB, Cygni Ostersund AB, DAZ Systems Inc, DAZ Systems LLC, DAZSI Systems (India) Pvt. Limited, DI Futures Corporation, Data Essential SARL, Davies Consulting, DayNine Consulting, DayNine Consulting (New Zealand) Limited, DayNine Consulting LLC, Declarative Holdings LLC, Decora Marketplace LLC, Decorado Marketplace Ltda-EPP, Defense Point Security, Deja vu Security, Design Strategy and Research de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Designaffairs LLC, Digiplug S.A.S., Digital Results Group LLC, Double Digit Limitada, Double Digit Pty SA, Droga5, Droga5 LLC, Droga5 Studios LLC, Droga5 UK Limited, Duck Creek Technologies, ESR Labs, ESR Labs AG, EdenOne Solutions Limited, Edenhouse ERP Holdings Limited, Edenhouse Solutions Limited, Enaxis Consulting, Enaxis Consulting LP, End to End Analytics LLC, End-to-End Analytics, Endorphin Medici (M) Sdn Bhd, Energuia Web S.A., Energy Management Brokers Limited, EnergyQuote JHA, Enimbos, Enimbos Global Services S.L., Enkitec, Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions LLC, Enterprise System Partners, Enterprise System Partners B.V., Enterprise System Partners Bilisim Danismanlik Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Enterprise System Partners Global Corporation, Enterprise System Partners Limited, Enthusian Pty Ltd, Entropia, Entropia (M) Sdn Bhd, Entropia Holdings Pte Ltd, Entropia Intercraft Sdn Bhd, Epylon, Ergo, Espedia S.r.l., Ethica Consulting Group, Ethica Consulting S.p.A., Evopro Group, Exactside Limited, Experity, Exton Consulting, Exton Consulting Spain Strategy&Management S.L., Exton Germany GmbH, Exton International SAS, Exton Italia S.r.l., Exton SAS, FGM LLC, Fairway Technologies Inc, Farah BidCo Limited, Farah MidCo Limited, Farah Topco Limited, Filmproduction ApS, First Annapolis Consulting Inc., First Annapolis Consulting LLC, Fjord, Focus Group Europe, Formicary, Founders Intelligence, Fruendo S.r.l., FusionX, Future State Consulting LLC, FutureMove (Beijing) Automotive Technology Co. Ltd., FutureMove Automotive, FutureMove Automotive Co. Ltd., GRA Supply Chain Pty Ltd, Gagel Group S de R.L. de C.V., Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda, Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda., Genfour, George Group Consulting L.P., Gestalt LLC, Gevity, Gren utvikling AS, H.B. Maynard and Co. Inc., HRC Retail Advisory, Hagberg Consulting Group, Hahntel Ltda, Halo Partners LLC, Hamilton Holding Company S.A, Hangzhou Aiyunzhe Technology Co. Ltd., Happen, Happen GP Limited, Happen Limited, Headspring, Hjaltelin Stahl, Hjaltelin Stahl A/S, Hjaltelin Stahl K/S, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting Malaysia Sdn Bhd, IBB Consulting, ICM.S S.r.l., IMJ Corp, IMJ Corporation, INSITUM, IQSP Consulting LLC, IT One Company Limited, ITBS Servicios Bancarios de Tecnologia de la Informacion SL, Icon Integration, Icon Integration (NZ) Limited, Icon Integration Pty Ltd, Imagine Broadband (USA) Limited, Imagine Broadband USA LLC, Imaginea Inc, Imaginea Technologies LLC, Industrie IT (Hong Kong) Ltd, Industrie IT (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Industrie IT Group Pty Ltd, Industrie IT Pty Ltd, Industrie&Co, Infinity Works Consulting Limited, Infinity Works Holdings Limited, Infinity Works Management Limited, Infinity Works Midco Limited, Informatica de Euskadi S.L., Innotec International EAD, Innotec International S.p. z.o.o., Innotec Marketing GmbH, Innotec Marketing International Ireland Limited, Innotec- Marketing Spain S.L, Insitum Consultoria Argentina SRL, Insitum Consultoria S.A. de C.V., International Biometric Group LLC, International Biometric Group UK Limited, Intrepid, Intrepid Futureworks Sdn Bhd, Intrigo Systems Inc, Intrigo Systems India Pvt. Limited, Intrigo Systems LLC, Inventor Technology Ltd, InvestTech, Investtech Systems Consulting LLC, ItSafer Continuity Services S.L., JKD Consulting LLC, Javelin Group, K Comms Group Limited, KSC Studio LLC, Kaper Communications Limited, Karma Communications Debtco Limited, Karma Communications Group Limited, Karma Communications Holdings Limited, Karmarama, Karmarama Comms Limited, Karmarama Limited, King James Group, Knowledge Rules Inc., Knowledgent, Knowledgent Group LLC, Kogentix, Kogentix LLC, Kogentix Limited, Kogentix Singapore Pte Ltd, Kogentix Technologies Private Limited, Kolle Rebbe, Kolle Rebbe GmbH, Kream Comms Limited, Kunstmaan, Kurt Salmon, Kurt Salmon Canada LTD, Kurt Salmon US LLC, LEXTA, LINKBYNET, LINKBYNET Indian Ocean (L.I.O) Ltd, LabAnswer, Lexta GmbH, Lexta UK Limited, Lien par le reseau Inc, Lien par le reseau infrastructures Inc, Lin Bo (Shanghai) Network Technology Co. Ltd., Link By Net SAS, Link By Net SRL, Link By Net Vietnam Company Limited, Linkbynet East Asia Ltd, Linkbynet Singapore Pte Ltd., Loud & Clear Creative Pty Ltd, Lumenup S.A., MAXIM Systems Inc., MCG US Holdings LLC, Mackevision CG Technology and Service (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Mackevision Japan Co. Ltd., Mackevision Korea Ltd, Mackevision LLC, Mackevision Medien Design, Mackevision Medien Design GmbH, Mackevision Singapore Pte Ltd, Mackevision UK Limited, Maglan, Maglan Information Defense Technologies Research Ltd, Maihiro, Matter, Maud Corp Pty Ltd, Maxamine International, Measuretek LLC, Media Audits Ltd., Media Hive, Mediasenz Pty Ltd., Meredith Specialty LLC, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing LLC, Meridian Informed Purchasing Ltd., Mindtribe, Mistral Wind Operations Servicos Empresariais Unipessoal Lda., MobGen, Mortgage Cadence LLC, Mortgage Cadence an Accenture Company, Most Champion Ltd, Mudano, Mudano Limited, Myrtle Consulting Group LLC, N3, N3 (Dalian) Business Consulting Co. Ltd., N3 Brazil Consultoria em Marketing Ltda, N3 Germany GmbH, N3 LLC, N3 North America LLC, N3 Results Australia Pty Ltd, N3 Results Ireland Limited, N3 Results Japan G.K., N3 Results Limited, N3 Results Malaysia Sdn Bhd, N3 Results Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., N3 Results S.A.S., N3 Results Singapore Pte Ltd, N3 Results Unipessoal Lda, NYTEC, Nanjing Demeng Advertising Co. Ltd., Nashco Consulting, NaviSys Inc., Nell'Armonia Israel Ltd, Nell'Armonia SAS, Nell'Participation SAS, NellArmonia, Neo Metrics Analytics S.L., Neo Metrics Chile S.A., New Content, New Content Editora e Produtora Ltda, New Energy Group, News Imaging LLC, NewsPage, NewsPage (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, NewsPage Pte Ltd, Northstream, Novetta Holdings LLC, Novetta LLC, Novetta Solutions LLC, Novetta Topco LLC, OCTO Technology, OPS Rules Management Consultants, Octagon Research Solutions Inc., Octo Technology Pty Ltd, Octo Technology SA, Odgaard ApS, Olikka, Olikka Pty Ltd, Olympus Systems Corporation, Openmind, Openmind S.r..l., Openminded, Openminded SAS, Operaciones Accenture S.A. de C.V., OpusLine, Orbium, Orbium AG, Orbium Consulting Limited, Orbium Inc., Orbium Ltd, Orbium Pte Ltd, Orbium Pty Ltd, Origin Digital, PCO Innovation, PLM Systems S.r.l, PRION GmbH, PT Accenture, PT Asta Catur Indra, PT Kogentix Teknologi Indonesia, PacificLink Group, Paja Finanssipalvelut Oy, Parker Fitzgerald Inc, Parker Fitzgerald International Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Limited, Parker Fitzgerald PTY Ltd, Parker Fitzgerald Services Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Solutions Limited, Pecaso Ltd., Pegasus Production A/S, Pegasus Production K/S, Phase One Consulting Group, Pillar Technology, Pollux, Pollux Automation Mexico S.A. de C.V., Pollux Canada Inc, Pollux S.A.S., Pollux USA LLC, Pragsis Bidoop, Pragsis Bidoop UK Limited, Pramati Technologies Europe Limited, Pramati Technologies Private Limited, Presence of IT Workforce Management North America LLC, PrimeQ, PrimeQ Australia Pty Ltd, PrimeQ Ltd, PrimeQ NZ Pty Limited, Procurian Inc., Prof. Homburg GmbH, Proquire LLC, PureApps Ltd., Qi Jie Beijing Information Technologies Co. Ltd., RBCP Fund 1-A Vapor Blocker LLC, RBCP Platform Vapor Blocker I LLC, REPL Consulting LLC, REPL Consulting Limited, REPL Digital Limited, REPL Group K.K., REPL Group Pty Ltd, REPL Group Worldwide Limited, REPL Pte Ltd, REPL Software Limited, REPL Technology Limited, Radiant Services LLC, Random Walk Computing Inc., Reactive Media Pty Ltd., Real Protect, Realworld OO Systems Ltd., Redcore, Redcore (New Zealand) Limited, Redcore Group Holdings Pty Ltd, Redcore Pty Ltd, Revolutionary Security, RiskControl, Root LLC, Rothco, Rothco Limited, S3 TV Technology Ltd., SALT Solutions GmbH, SEC Servizi, SOPIA Corp., Sagacious Consultants, Salt Solutions, Sandbox Studio LLC, Sapling Bidco Limited, Sapling Midco Limited, Sapling Topco Limited, Schlumberger Business Consulting, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace (UK) Limited, Seabury Consulting, Seabury Corporate Advisors LLC, Seabury Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Search Technologies BPO Inc, Search Technologies International LLC, Search Technologies LLC, Search Technologies Limited, Securiview SAS, Sentelis, Sentor Managed Secuirty Services AB, Servicios Tecnicos de Programacion Accenture S.C., Seven Seas Business Ventures LLC, Shackleton, Shackleton Chile S.A., Shackleton S.L.U., Shanghai Baiyue Advertising Co. Ltd., Shun Zhe Technology Development Co. Ltd., SigInt Technologies LLC, Silveo, Silveo Consulting India Private Limited, Simian Pty Ltd, SinnerSchrader, SinnerSchrader AG, SinnerSchrader Content GmbH, SinnerSchrader Deutschland GmbH, SinnerSchrader Praha s.r.o., Sirvart S.A., Sistemes Consulting S.L., Skylink SAS, Soltians Limited, Solutions IQ LLC, SolutionsIQ, SolutionsIQ India Consulting Services Private Limited, Somers Ventures Ireland Limited, Somers Ventures LLC, Spacelink SAS, Storm Digital, Structure Consulting Group LLC, Sutter Mills, Synership LLC, Systor AG, T.A. Cook, TXF LLC, Tambourine, TargetST8, Tech - Avanade Portugal Unipessoal Lda, Tecnilogica Ecosistemas S.A., Tecnilogica, The Brand Learning Partners Limited, The Callisto Integration Corporation, The Monkeys, The Monkeys Pty Ltd, The Myrtle Group, Total Logistics, Tquila, Trivadis, Trivadis AG, Trivadis Austria GmbH, Trivadis Denmark AS, Trivadis Germany GmbH, Trivadis Holding AG, Trivadis Partner AG, Trivadis Services AG, Trivadis Services SRL, Troop Studios Pty Ltd, VanBerlo, Vector Acquisition Company LLC, Vector Topco LLC, Verax Solutions, Vertical Retail Consulting (Shanghai) Ltd, Vertical Retail Consulting Ltd, Vivere Brasil Servicos e Solucoes SA, Vivere Brasil Solucoes De Credito Ltda., Wabion GmbH, WaveStrike LLC, White Cliffs Consulting LLC, Wire Stone, Wire Stone LLC, Wise Partners SAS, Wolox, Wolox Colombia S.A.S, Wolox LLC, Wolox Mexico S.R.L de C.V., Wolox S.A., Wolox SpA, Workforce Insight, Workforce Insight LLC, Yesler, Yesler LLC, Yesler Limited, Yesler Singapore Pte Ltd, Zag, Zag Australia Pty Ltd, Zag Limited, Zag USA LLC, Zebra Worldwide Australia Pty Ltd, Zebra Worldwide Group Limited, Zebra Worldwide Media Pty Ltd, Zenta, Zenta Global Philippines Inc, Zenta Mortgage Services LLC, Zenta Recoveries Inc, Zenta US Holdings Inc, Zestgroup, Zielpuls, Zielpuls (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zielpuls GmbH, avVenta, designaffairs, designaffairs Business Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., designaffairs GmbH, designaffairs group China Co. Ltd., dgroup, i4C Analytics, iDefense, solid-serVision.com GmbH, and umlaut. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of MetLife: 10700 WILSHIRE LLC, 1201 TAB MANAGER LLC, 1350 EYE STREET MANAGER LLC, 1350 EYE STREET OWNER LLC, 150 NORTH RIVERSIDE PE MEMBER LLC, 1925 WJC OWNER LLC, 23RD STREET INVESTMENTS INC., 500 GRANT STREET ASSOCIATES LIMITED PARTNERSHIP, 500 GRANT STREET GP LLC, 6104 HOLLYWOOD LLC, AFP GENESIS ADMINISTRADORA DE FONDOS Y FIDECOMISOS S.A., AGENVITA S.R.L., ALICO HELLAS SINGLE MEMBER LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY, ALICO OPERATIONS LLC, American Life Insurance Company, BEST MARKET S.A., BLOCK VISION HOLDINGS CORPORATION, BLOCK VISION OF TEXAS INC., BORDERLAND INVESTMENTS LIMITED, BOULEVARD RESIDENTIAL LLC, BUFORD LOGISTICS CENTER LLC, CC HOLDCO MANAGER LLC, CHESTNUT FLATS WIND LLC, CLOSED JOINT-STOCK COMPANY MASTER-D, COMPANIA INVERSORA METLIFE S.A., CORPORATE REAL ESTATE HOLDINGS LLC, COVA LIFE MANAGEMENT COMPANY, DAVIS VISION INC., DAVISVISION IPA INC., DELAWARE AMERICAN LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, EURO CL INVESTMENTS LLC, EXCELENCIA OPERATIVA Y TECNOLOGICA S.A de C.V., FORTISSIMO CO. LTD, FUNDACION METLIFE MEXICO A.C., GLOBAL PROPERTIES INC., General American Life Insurance Company, Grand Bank N.A., HASKELL EAST VILLAGE LLC, HOUSING FUND MANAGER LLC, INTERNATIONAL TECHNICAL AND ADVISORY SERVICES LIMITED, INVERSIONES METLIFE HOLDCO DOS LIMITADA, INVERSIONES METLIFE HOLDCO TRES LIMITADA, LHC HOLDINGS LLC, LHCW HOLDINGS LLC, LHCW HOTEL HOLDING 2002 LLC, LHCW HOTEL HOLDING LLC, LHCW HOTEL OPERATING COMPANY 2002 LLC, LUMENLAB MALAYSIA SDN. BHD., Logan Circle Partners, MARKETPLACE RESIDENCES LLC, MC PORTFOLIO JV MEMBER LLC, MCJV LLC, MCPP OWNERS LLC, MCRE BLOCK 40 LP, MEC HEALTH CARE INC., MET 1065 HOTEL LLC, MET CANADA SOLAR ULC, METLIFE 1007 STEWART LLC, METLIFE 1201 TAB MEMBER LLC, METLIFE 425 MKT MANAGER LLC, METLIFE 425 MKT MEMBER LLC, METLIFE 555 12TH MEMBER LLC, METLIFE 8280 MEMBER LLC, METLIFE ACOMA OWNER LLC, METLIFE ADMINISTRADORA DE FUNDOS MULTIPATROCINADOS LTDA., METLIFE ALTERNATIVES GP LLC, METLIFE ASHTON AUSTIN OWNER LLC, METLIFE ASIA HOLDING COMPANY PTE. LTD., METLIFE ASIA LIMITED, METLIFE ASIA SERVICES SDN. BHD, METLIFE ASSET MANAGEMENT CORP., METLIFE ASSIGNMENT COMPANY INC., METLIFE BORO STATION MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CAMINO RAMON MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CAMPUS AT SGV MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CAPITAL CREDIT L.P., METLIFE CAPITAL LIMITED PARTNERSHIP, METLIFE CAPITAL TRUST IV, METLIFE CB W/A LLC, METLIFE CC MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CHILE ADMINISTRADORA DE MUTUOS HIPOTECARIOS S.A., METLIFE CHILE INVERSIONES LIMITADA, METLIFE CHILE SEGUROS DE VIDA S.A., METLIFE CHILE SEGUROS GENERALES S.A., METLIFE CHINO MEMBER LLC, METLIFE COLOMBIA SEGUROS de VIDA S.A., METLIFE COMMERCIAL MORTGAGE INCOME FUND GP LLC, METLIFE CONSQUARE MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CONSUMER SERVICES INC., METLIFE CORE PROPERTY FUND GP LLC, METLIFE CREDIT CORP., METLIFE DIGITAL VENTURES INC., METLIFE ENHANCED CORE PROPERTY FUND GP LLC, METLIFE EU HOLDING COMPANY LIMITED, METLIFE EUROPE INSURANCE d.a.c., METLIFE EUROPE SERVICES LIMITED, METLIFE EUROPE d.a.c., METLIFE EUROPEAN HOLDINGS LLC., METLIFE FINANCIAL SERVICES CO. LTD, METLIFE FM HOTEL MEMBER LLC, METLIFE FUNDING INC., METLIFE GENERAL INSURANCE LIMITED, METLIFE GLOBAL BENEFITS LTD., METLIFE GLOBAL HOLDING COMPANY I GMBH, METLIFE GLOBAL HOLDING COMPANY II GMBH, METLIFE GLOBAL HOLDINGS CORPORATION S.A. De C.V., METLIFE GLOBAL INC., METLIFE GLOBAL OPERATIONS SUPPORT CENTER PRIVATE LIMITED, METLIFE GROUP INC., METLIFE HCMJV 1 GP LLC, METLIFE HCMJV 1 LP LLC, METLIFE HEALTH PLANS INC., METLIFE HOLDINGS INC., METLIFE HOME LOANS LLC, METLIFE INNOVATION CENTRE LIMITED, METLIFE INNOVATION CENTRE PTE. LTD., METLIFE INSURANCE AND INVESTMENT TRUST, METLIFE INSURANCE BROKERAGE INC., METLIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF KOREA LTD., METLIFE INSURANCE K.K., METLIFE INSURANCE LIMITED, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL HF PARTNERS LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LLC, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL LIMITED LLC, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND I LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND II LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND III LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND IV LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND V LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND VI LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND VII LP, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT EUROPE LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT HOLDINGS LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT HOLDINGS LLC, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LLC, METLIFE INVESTMENTS ASIA LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENTS LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENTS PTY LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENTS SECURITIES LLC, METLIFE INVESTORS DISTRIBUTION COMPANY, METLIFE INVESTORS GROUP LLC, METLIFE IRELAND TREASURY D.A.C., METLIFE JAPAN US EQUITY FUND GP LLC, METLIFE JAPAN US EQUITY FUND LP, METLIFE JAPAN US EQUITY OWNERS BLOCKER LLC, METLIFE JAPAN US EQUITY OWNERS LLC, METLIFE LATIN AMERICA ASESORIAS E INVERSIONES LIMITADA, METLIFE LEGAL PLANS INC., METLIFE LEGAL PLANS OF FLORIDA INC., METLIFE LHH MEMBER LLC, METLIFE LIFE INSURANCE S.A., METLIFE LOAN ASSET MANAGEMENT LLC, METLIFE LONG SHORT CREDIT FUND LP, METLIFE LONG SHORT CREDIT MASTER FUND LP, METLIFE LONG SHORT CREDIT PARALLEL FUND LP, METLIFE MAS S.A. DE C.V., METLIFE MEXICO HOLDINGS S. DE R.L. DE C.V., METLIFE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., METLIFE MEXICO SERVICIOS S.A. DE C.V., METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT FUND II LP, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT GP II LLC, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT GP LLC, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT II RATED FUND LP, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT PARALLEL FUND LP, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT PARALLEL GP LLC, METLIFE MMPD II SPECIAL LLC, METLIFE MULTI-FAMILY PARTNERS III LLC, METLIFE OBS MEMBER LLC, METLIFE OFC MEMBER LLC, METLIFE ONTARIO STREET MEMBR LLC, METLIFE PARK TOWER MEMBER LLC, METLIFE PENSION TRUSTEES LIMITED, METLIFE PENSIONES MEXICO S.A., METLIFE PET INSURANCE SOLUTIONS LLC, METLIFE PLANOS ODONTOLOGICOS LTDA., METLIFE POWSZECHNE TOWARTZYSTWO EMERYTALNE S.A., METLIFE PRIVATE EQUITY HOLDINGS LLC, METLIFE PROPERTIES VENTURES LLC, METLIFE RC SF MEMBER LLC, METLIFE REAL ESTATE LENDING LLC, METLIFE REINSURANCE COMPANY OF BERMUDA LTD., METLIFE REINSURANCE COMPANY OF CHARLESTON, METLIFE REINSURANCE COMPANY OF VERMONT, METLIFE RETIREMENT SERVICES LLC, METLIFE SECURITIZATION DEPOSITOR LLC, METLIFE SEGUROS S.A., METLIFE SENIOR DIRECT LENDING FINCO LLC, METLIFE SENIOR DIRECT LENDING FUND LP, METLIFE SENIOR DIRECT LENDING GP LLC, METLIFE SENIOR DIRECT LENDING HOLDINGS LP, METLIFE SERVICES AND SOLUTIONS LLC, METLIFE SERVICES CYPRUS LTD., METLIFE SERVICES EAST PRIVATE LIMITED, METLIFE SERVICES EEIG, METLIFE SERVICES EOOD, METLIFE SERVICES SOCIEDAD LIMITADA, METLIFE SERVICES SP Z.O.O, METLIFE SERVICIOS S.A., METLIFE SINGLE FAMILY RENTAL FUND GP LLC, METLIFE SINGLE FAMILY RENTAL FUND LP, METLIFE SOLUTIONS PTE. LTD., METLIFE SOLUTIONS S.A.S., METLIFE SP HOLDINGS LLC, METLIFE STRATEGIC HOTEL DEBT FUND GP LLC, METLIFE SYNDICATED BANK LOAN LUX GP S.A.R.L., METLIFE THR INVESTOR LLC, METLIFE TOWARZYSTWO FUNDUSZY INWESTYCYJNYCH S.A., METLIFE TOWARZYSTWO UBEZPIECZEN NA ZYCIE I REASEKURACJI S.A., METLIFE TOWER RESOURCES GROUP INC., METLIFE TREAT TOWERS MEMBER LLC, METLIFE WORLDWIDE HOLDINGS LLC, METROPOLITAN GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY, METROPOLITAN GLOBAL MANAGEMENT LLC, METROPOLITAN LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, METROPOLITAN LIFE SEGUROS E PREVIDENCIA PRIVADA S.A., METROPOLITAN LIFE SOCIETATE de ADMINISTRARE a UNUI FOND de PENSII ADMINISTRAT PRIVAT S.A., METROPOLITAN TOWER LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, METROPOLITAN TOWER REALTY COMPANY INC., MEX DF PROPERTIES LLC, MFA FINANCING VEHICLE CTR1 LLC, MIDTOWN HEIGHTS LLC, MIM CAMPUS AT SGV MANAGER LLC, MIM CLAL GENERAL PARTNER LLC, MIM CM SYNDICATOR LLC, MIM EMD GP LLC, MIM I LLC, MIM LS GP LLC, MIM METWEST INTERNATIONAL MANAGER LLC, MIM ML-AI VENTURE 5 MANAGER LLC, MIM OMD MANAGER LLC, MIM PROPERTY MANAGEMENT LLC, MIM PROPERTY MANAGEMENT OF GEORGIA 1 LLC, MIM SPOKANE INDUSTRIAL MANAGER LLC, MIM THIRD ARMY INDUSTRIAL MANAGER LLC, MISSOURI REINSURANCE INC., ML 300 THIRD MEMBER LLC, ML ARMATURE MEMBER LLC, ML BELLEVUE MANAGER LLC, ML BELLEVUE MEMBER LLC, ML CAPACITACION COMERCIAL S.A. DE C.V., ML CERRITOS TC MEMBER LLC, ML CLAL MEMBER LLC, ML CORNER 63 MEMBER LLC, ML DOLPHIN GP LLC, ML DOLPHIN MEZZ LLC, ML HUDSON MEMBER LLC, ML MATSON MILLS MEMBER LLC, ML MILILANI MEMBER LLC, ML OMD MEMBER LLC, ML ONE BEDMINSTER LLC, ML PORT CHESTER SC MEMBER LLC, ML SENTINEL SQUARE MEMBER LLC, ML SLOANS LAKE MEMEBR LLC, ML SOUTHLANDS MEMBER LLC, ML SOUTHMORE LLC, ML SPOKANE INDUSTRIAL MEMBER LLC, ML SWAN GP LLC, ML SWAN MEZZ LLC, ML TERRACES LLC, ML THIRD ARMY INDUSTRIAL MEMBER LLC, ML VENTURE 1 MANAGER S. DE R. L. DE C.V., ML VENTURE 1 SERVICER LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 1 LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 2 LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 3 LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 4 LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 5 LLC, ML-URS PORT CHESTER SC MANAGER LLC, MLIA MANAGER I LLC, MLIA PARK TOWER MANAGER LLC, MLIA SBAF COLONY MANAGER LLC, MLIA SBAF MANAGER LLC, MLIC ASSET HOLDINGS II LLC, MLIC ASSET HOLDINGS LLC, MLIC CB HOLDINGS LLC, MLJ US FEEDER LLC, MM GLOBAL OPERATIONS SUPPORT CENTER S.A. DE C.V., MMP CEDAR STREET OWNER LLC, MMP CEDAR STREET REIT LLC, MMP HOLDINGS III LLC, MMP OLIVIAN OWNER LLC, MMP OLIVIAN REIT LLC, MMP OWNERS III LLC, MMP OWNERS LLC, MMP SOUTH PARK OWNER LLC, MMP SOUTH PARK REIT LLC, MNQM TRUST 2020, MREF 425 MKT LLC, MSHDF HOLDCO I LLC, MSV IRVINE PROPERTY LLC, MTL LEASING LLC, MTU HOTEL OWNER LLC, NATILOPORTEM HOLDINGS LLC, NEWBURY INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED, OCONEE GOLF COMPANY LLC, OCONEE HOTEL COMPANY LLC, OCONEE LAND COMPANY LLC, OCONEE LAND DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LLC, OCONEE MARINA COMPANY LLC, OMI MLIC INVESTMENTS LIMITED, PACIFIC LOGISTICS INDUSTRIAL NORTH LLC, PACIFIC LOGISTICS INDUSTRIAL SOUTH LLC, PARK TOWER JV MEMBER LLC, PARK TOWER REIT INC., PJSC METLIFE, PLAZA DRIVE PROPERTIES LLC, PREFCO FOURTEEN LLC, PREFCO XIV HOLDINGS LLC, PROVIDA INTERNACIONAL S.A., SAFEGUARD HEALTH ENTERPRISES INC., SAFEGUARD HEALTH PLANS INC., SAFEHEALTH LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, SOUTHCREEK INDUSTRIAL HOLDINGS LLC, ST. JAMES FLEET INVESTMENTS TWO LIMITED, SUPERIOR PROCUREMENT INC., SUPERIOR VISION BENEFIT MANAGEMENT INC., SUPERIOR VISION HOLDINGS INC., SUPERIOR VISION INSURANCE INC., SUPERIOR VISION INSURANCE PLAN OF WISCONSIN INC., SUPERIOR VISION OF NEW JERSEY INC., SUPERIOR VISION SERVICES INC., Safeguard Health Enterprises, Security First Group Inc., THE BUILDING AT 575 FIFTH AVENUE MEZZANINE LLC, THE BUILDING AT 575 FIFTH RETAIL HOLDING LLC, THE BUILDING AT 575 FIFTH RETAIL OWNER, THE DIRECT CALL CENTRE PTY LIMITED, TRANSMOUNTAIN LAND & LIVESTOCK COMPANY, UVC INDEPENDENT PRACTICE ASSOCIATION INC., VERSANT HEALTH CONSOLIDATIONS CORP., VERSANT HEALTH HOLDCO INC., VERSANT HEALTH INC., VERSANT HEALTH LAB LLC, VIRIDIAN MIRACLE MILE LLC, VISION 21 MANAGED EYE CARE OF TAMPA BAY INC., VISION 21 PHYSICIAN PRACTICE MANAGEMENT COMPANY, VISION TWENTY-ONE MANAGED EYE CARE IPA INC., Versant Health, WDV ACQUISITION CORP., WFP 1000 HOLDING COMPANY GP LLC, WHITE OAK ROYALTY COMPANY, WHITE TRACT II LLC, and Willing. Read More Oxford Industries, Inc., an apparel company, designs, sources, markets, and distributes products of lifestyle and other brands worldwide. The company offers men's and women's sportswear and related products under the Tommy Bahama brand; women's and girl's dresses and sportswear, scarves, bags, jewelry, and belts, as well as footwear and children's apparel and swimwear under the Lilly Pulitzer brand; and men's shirts, pants, shorts, outerwear, ties, swimwear, footwear, and accessories, as well as women and youth products under the Southern Tide brand. It also designs, sources, markets, and distributes premium childrenswear, including bonnets, hats, apparel, swimwear, and accessories through thebeaufortbonnetcompany.com and wholesale specialty retailers; men's apparel, which include pants, shorts, and tops through duckhead.com and wholesale specialty retailers. In addition, the company licenses Tommy Bahama brand for various products, such as indoor and outdoor furniture, beach chairs, bedding and bath linens, fabrics, leather goods and gifts, headwear, hosiery, sleepwear, shampoo, toiletries, fragrances, cigar accessories, distilled spirits, and other products; Lilly Pulitzer for stationery and gift products, home furnishing products, and eyewear; and Southern Tide trademark for bed and bath product. Oxford Industries, Inc. offers products through its retail stores, department stores, specialty stores, multi-branded e-commerce retailers, off-price retailers, and other retailers, as well as e-commerce sites. As of January 29, 2022, it operated 186 brand-specific full-price retail stores; 21 Tommy Bahama food and beverage locations; and 35 Tommy Bahama outlet stores. Oxford Industries, Inc. was founded in 1942 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Tamil Nadu Finance Minister O Panneerselvam today chaired a meeting of the state cabinet with photo of Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on desk. O Panneerselvam chaired a meeting of the state cabinet today with photo of Jayalalithaa on desk. Photo: PTI By PTI: With a picture of Jayalalithaa placed on his desk, Tamil Nadu Finance Minister O Panneerselvam today presided over a meeting of the state cabinet for the first time after the Governor re-allocated the portfolios of the ailing Chief Minister to him. Although the government did not release details of the agenda of the meeting, the Cabinet is understood to have deliberated on the ongoing Cauvery water sharing dispute with Karnataka, besides other subjects. advertisement The government, however, released photographs of the meeting, where Panneerselvam was seen seated with the picture of Jayalalithaa placed on his desk. Also Read| Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa's portfolios allocated to Panneerselvam Also Read| Chennai: With entire state curious about Amma's health, Apollo Hospital overflowing with visitors FIRST MEETING PRESIDED BY PANNEERSELVAM, AHEAD OF MONSOONS IN STATE The meeting also comes ahead of the scheduled onset of north-east monsoon later this month. The rains in December last year had wreaked havoc, flooding Chennai and nearby districts. Last week, Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao had allotted the portfolios including Home held by Jayalalithaa to Panneerselvam, till the time she returned to resume official duties. The nearly hour-long meeting was held in the backdrop of the ongoing Cauvery water sharing row with Karnataka and demands by Opposition parties for an all-party meet on the issue. Farmers bodies and political parties had staged a two-day state-wide rail blockade ending Tuesday, urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Management Board. The Raj Bhavan had last week in a release, said Paneerselvam, who holds the Administrative Reforms portfolio, in addition to Finance, "will also preside over cabinet meetings." Also Read| The Amma of all questions Also Read| Prayer for Jayalalithaa: Man sleeps on thorns for 24 hours, offering himself to goddess Pechiyamman LAST CABINET MEETING WAS HELD BY JAYALALITHAA IN JULY The last Cabinet meeting held by Jayalalithaa was in July to discuss the state budget The 68-year-old Jayalalithaa was admitted to the Apollo hospital on September 22 after she complained of fever and dehydration. A specialist from London besides three-member team of doctors from AIIMS, Delhi, had also examined Jayalalithaa, who is being treated for infection with respiratory support. Also Read: Chennai: Troubled by Jayalalithaa's health, man sets himself on fire Ammallo state of mind: Satirical video nails Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa's health controversy DMK leader Karunanidhi raises questions over allocation of Jayalalithaa's portfolios to O.Panneerselvam --- ENDS --- The following companies are subsidiares of Novartis: 1 A Pharma GmbH, Abadia Retuerta S.A, Admune Therapeutics, Advanced Accelerator Applications, Advanced Accelerator Applications, Advanced Accelerator Applications International SA, Advanced Accelerator Applications S.A., Advanced Accelerator Applications S.r.l., Advanced Accelerator Applications USA Inc., Aeropharm GmbH, Alcon, Alcon Couvreur NV, Amblyotech, Amblyotech Inc., Arctos Medical, Arctos Medical AG, Australia Pty Ltd, Beijing Novartis Pharma Co. Ltd., BioMedical Research Co. Ltd., CELLforCURE, Cadent Therapeutics, Cadent Therapeutics Cambridge, Cellerys, Cellerys AG, CellforCure, Chiron Corporation, Ciba-Geigy Japan Limited, Co. Ltd, CoStim Pharmaceuticals, CoStim Pharmaceuticals Inc., Coalesce Product Development Limited, Corthera, Development Co. Ltd., EBEWE Pharma Ges.m.b.H Nfg. KG, Encore Vision, Endocyte, Endocyte Inc., Eon Labs Inc., Farmanova Saglik Hizmetleri Ltd, Fougera Pharmaceuticals, Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc, Gyroscope Therapeutics, HEXAL AG, Hexal, IDB Holland BV, Iberica S.L.U., Ilaclari Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S, JSC Sandoz, Japat AG, Kedalion Therapeutics Inc., Lek Pharmaceuticals d.d., Lek S.A., Manufacturing Pte Ltd , Navigate BioPharma Services Inc, Neutec Pharma Limited, Novartis (Hellas) S.A.C.I., Novartis (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Novartis (Taiwan) Co. Ltd, Novartis (Thailand) Limited, Novartis Argentina S.A., Novartis Australia Pty Ltd, Novartis Austria GmbH, Novartis Biociencias S.A., Novartis Biosciences Peru S.A., Novartis Bioventures AG, Novartis Business Services GmbH, Novartis Capital Corporation, Novartis Chile S.A., Novartis Corporation, Novartis Corporation Sdn. Bhd., Novartis Deutschland GmbH, Novartis Ecuador S.A., Novartis Farma S.p.A., Novartis Farma Produtos Farmaceuticos S.A., Novartis Farmaceutica S.A, Novartis Farmaceutica S.A. de C.V., Novartis Finance Corporation, Novartis Finance S.A., Novartis Finance Services Ltd, Novartis Finland Oy Espoo, Novartis Gene Therapies, Novartis Gene Therapies EU Limited, Novartis Gene Therapies Inc., Novartis Grimsby Limited, Novartis Groupe France S.A., Novartis Healthcare A/S, Novartis Healthcare Philippines Inc., Novartis Healthcare Private Limited, Novartis Holding AG, Novartis Hungary Healthcare Limited Liability Company, Novartis India Limited, Novartis Inflammasome Research, Novartis Integrated Services Limited, Novartis International AG, Novartis International Pharmaceutical Investment AG, Novartis Investment Ltd, Novartis Investments S.a r.l., Novartis Ireland Limited, Novartis Israel Ltd, Novartis Korea Ltd., Novartis Middle East FZE, Novartis Netherlands B.V., Novartis Neva LLC, Novartis New Zealand Ltd, Novartis Norge AS, Novartis Ophthalmics AG, Novartis Optogenetics Research Inc., Novartis Overseas Investments AG, Novartis Pharma (Logistics) Inc., Novartis Pharma (Pakistan) Limited, Novartis Pharma AG, Novartis Pharma B.V. , Novartis Pharma GmbH, Novartis Pharma GmbH, Novartis Pharma K.K., Novartis Pharma LLC, Novartis Pharma Maroc SA, Novartis Pharma NV, Novartis Pharma Produktions GmbH, Novartis Pharma S.A.E., Novartis Pharma S.A.S., Novartis Pharma Schweiz AG, Novartis Pharma Schweizerhalle AG, Novartis Pharma Services AG, Novartis Pharma Services Romania S.R.L., Novartis Pharma Stein AG, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc., Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Limited, Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Limited, Novartis Poland Sp. z o.o., Novartis Portugal S.G.P.S. Lda., Novartis Ringaskiddy Limited, Novartis Saglik Gida ve Tarim Urunleri Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S, Novartis Saudi Ltd., Novartis Securities Investment Ltd, Novartis Services Inc., Novartis Slovakia s.r.o., Novartis South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Novartis Sverige AB, Novartis UK Limited, Novartis US Foundation, Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Inc, Novartis Vietnam Company Limited, Novartis de Colombia S.A., Novartis de Venezuela S.A., Novartis s.r.o., Oriel Therapeutics Inc., PT. Novartis Indonesia, Protez Pharmaceuticals, Pte Ltd, Research Inc, Salutas Pharma GmbH, Sandoz A/S, Sandoz AG, Sandoz B.V., Sandoz Canada Inc., Sandoz Egypt Pharma S.A.E., Sandoz Farmaceutica S.A., Sandoz Farmaceutica Lda., Sandoz GmbH, Sandoz Hungary Limited Liability Company, Sandoz Ilac Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S., Sandoz Inc, Sandoz Industrial Products S.A, Sandoz International GmbH, Sandoz K.K., Sandoz Limited, Sandoz Manufacturing Inc., Sandoz NV, Sandoz Pharma K.K, Sandoz Pharmaceuticals AG, Sandoz Pharmaceuticals d.d., Sandoz Philippines Corporation, Sandoz Polska Sp. z o.o. , Sandoz Private Limited, Sandoz Pty Ltd, Sandoz S.A. de C.V, Sandoz S.A.S., Sandoz S.R.L., Sandoz S.p.A., Sandoz South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Sandoz Ukraine LLC, Sandoz d.o.o. farmaceutska industrija, Sandoz do Brasil Industria Farmaceutica Ltda, Sandoz s.r.o., Selexys Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Shanghai Novartis Trading Ltd., Societe par actions SANDOZ, Spinifex Pharmaceuticals, The Medicines Company, The Medicines Company, Triangle International Reinsurance Limited, Trinity River Insurance Co Ltd, Vedere Bio, Vedere Bio ll, Xiidra, Ziarco, and Ziarco Group Limited. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Xerox: A B S Digital Limited, Acorn Business Machines (Holmfirth) Limited, Alloy Acquisitions Corp. LLC, Altodigital Networks, Altodigital Networks Limited, American Photocopy Equipment Company of Pittsburgh LLC, Amici, Arena Group, Arena Group Holdings Limited, Arena Group Limited, Arizona Office Technologies Inc., B 2 Business Systems Limited, Back2Business Limited, Bessemer Insurance Limited, Bessemer Trust Limited, Boise Office Equipment Inc., Bright Ceramic Technologies Inc., Bunch CareSolutions, Business Systems (North Wales) Limited, CPAS Systems, CREDITEX - Aluguer de Equipamentos S.A., CTX Business Solutions Inc., Capitol Office Solutions LLC, CareAR Holdings LLC, CareAR Inc., Carolina Office Systems Inc., Carr Business Systems Inc., Chicago Office Technology Group Inc., ComDoc Inc., Competitive Computing, Concept Group, Concept Group Limited, Connecticut Business Systems LLC, Consilience Software, Continua Limited, Continua Sanctum Limited, Conway Technology Group LLC, Copyrite Business Solutions (Holdings) Limited, Copyrite Business Solutions Limited, Copytrend Limited, Criterion IT Limited, Customer Value Group, Dahill Office Technology Corporation, Digitex, Digitex Canada Inc., Docucentric Holdings Limited, Document Systems, Document Systems, Eastern Managed Print Network LLC, Elan Marketing Inc., Electronic Systems Inc., Fovia (Innovation) Limited, G-Five Inc., GDP Technologies Inc., Global Imaging Systems, Global PR Corporation, Groupe CT, Gyricon LLC, Healthy Communities Institute, Heritage Business Systems Inc., ITEC Group, Image Technology Specialists Inc., ImageQuest Inc., Imagetek Office Systems, Impika, Impika SAS, Inland Business Machines Inc., Institute for Research on Learning, Integrity One Technologies Inc., Intrepid Learning, Invoco Group, Irish Business Systems, LRI LLC, LaserNetworks, LaserNetworks Inc., Lateral Data, Learn Something, Lewan & Associates Inc., Limited Liability Company Xerox (C.I.S.), M & S Reprographics Limited, MRC Smart Technology Solutions Inc., MT Business Holdings Inc., MT Business Technologies Inc., MWB Copy Products Inc., Mail A Doc Limited, Merizon Group Incorporated, Michigan Office Solutions Inc., Minnesota Office Technology Group Inc., Mitral Systems Limited, Mr. Copy Inc., Nemo (AKS) Limited, NewField IT, NewField Information Technology LLC, NewField Information Technology Limited, Northeast Office Systems LLC, Osprey Business Systems Limited, PARC China Holdings Inc., Pacific Services and Development Corporation, Palo Alto Research Center Incorporated, Platinum Digital Print Solutions Limited, Powerland, Precision Copier Service Inc., Quality Business Systems Inc., Quilver Business Services Limited, R. 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ULC, Xerox Capital (Europe) Limited, Xerox Capital LLC, Xerox Computer Services Limited, Xerox Comercio e Industria Ltda, Xerox Corporation, Xerox DNHC LLC, Xerox Dienstleistungsgesellschaft GmbH, Xerox Distributor Operations Limited, Xerox Egypt S.A.E., Xerox Equipment Limited, Xerox Equipment UK Limited, Xerox Espana S.A.U., Xerox Exports Limited, Xerox Finance AG, Xerox Finance Leasing S.A.E., Xerox Finance Limited, Xerox Financial Services B.V., Xerox Financial Services Belux NV, Xerox Financial Services Canada Ltd., Xerox Financial Services Danmark A/S, Xerox Financial Services Finland Oy, Xerox Financial Services LLC, Xerox Financial Services Norway AS, Xerox Financial Services SAS, Xerox Financial Services Sverige AB, Xerox Foreign Holdings LLC, Xerox Foreign Sales Corporation, Xerox GmbH, Xerox Health Care LLC, Xerox Hellas AEE, Xerox Holding Deutschland GmbH, Xerox Holdings (Ireland) Limited, Xerox Holdings Inc., Xerox Hungary Trading Limited, Xerox IBS Limited, Xerox IBS NI Limited, Xerox India Limited, Xerox International Joint Marketing Inc., Xerox Investments Europe B.V., Xerox Israel Ltd., Xerox Italia Rental Services Srl, Xerox Kazakhstan Limited Liability Partnership, Xerox Latinamerican Holdings Inc., Xerox Leasing Deutschland GmbH, Xerox Leasing GmbH, Xerox Limited, Xerox Luxembourg SA, Xerox Mailing Systems Limited, Xerox Manufacturing (Nederland) B.V., Xerox Maroc S.A., Xerox Mexicana S.A. de C.V., Xerox Middle East Investments (Bermuda) Limited, Xerox N.V., Xerox Overseas Holdings Limited, Xerox Overseas Inc., Xerox Oy, Xerox Pensions Limited, Xerox Polska Sp. z o. o, Xerox Portugal Equipamentos de Escritorio Limitada, Xerox Products Limited, Xerox Products UK Limited, Xerox Professional Services Limited, Xerox Realty Corporation, Xerox Renting S.A.U., Xerox Reprographische Services GmbH, Xerox S.A.S., Xerox S.p.A., Xerox Secured Borrowing 2020-1 LLC, Xerox Servicios Compartidos Guatemala y Compani Limitada, Xerox Servicos e Participacoes Ltda, Xerox Shared Services Romania SRL, Xerox Sverige AB, Xerox Technology Services India LLP, Xerox Technology Services SAS, Xerox Telebusiness GmbH, Xerox Trading Enterprises Limited, Xerox Trinidad Limited, Xerox UK Holdings Limited, Xerox XHB Limited, Xerox XIB Limited, Xerox Xf Holdings (Ireland) DAC, Xerox de Chile S.A., Xerox del Ecuador S.A., Xerox del Peru S.A., Zeno Office Solutions, Zeno Office Solutions Inc., Zoom Imaging Solutions Inc., and inVentiv Patient Access Solutions. Read More Koninklijke Philips N.V. operates as a health technology company in North America and internationally. It operates through Diagnosis & Treatment Businesses, Connected Care Businesses, and Personal Health Businesses segments. The company provides diagnostic imaging solutions, includes magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography (CT) systems, X-ray systems, and detector-based spectral CT solutions, as well as molecular and hybrid imaging solutions for nuclear medicine; integrated interventional systems; echography solutions focused on diagnosis, treatment planning and guidance for cardiology, general imaging, obstetrics/gynecology, and point-of-care applications; proprietary software to enable diagnostics and intervention; and enterprise diagnostic informatics products and services. It also offers acute patient management solutions; emergency care solutions; sleep and respiratory care solutions; and electronic medical record and care management solutions. In addition, the company provides power toothbrushes, brush heads, and interdental cleaning and teeth whitening products; infant feeding and digital parental solutions; and male grooming and beauty products and solutions. It has a strategic collaboration with Ibex Medical Analytics Ltd. to jointly promote the digital pathology and AI solutions to hospitals, health networks, and pathology laboratories worldwide, as well as a strategic partnership agreement with NICO.LAB. The company was formerly known as Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. and changed its name to Koninklijke Philips N.V. in May 2013. Koninklijke Philips N.V. was founded in 1891 and is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Panneerselvam has handled cabinet meetings back in 2014 and February of 2015 when Jayalalithaa was imprisoned in disproportionate assets case and seemed to know the drill. By Pramod Madhav: Tamil Nadu finance minister O Panneerselvam today chaired a cabinet meeting while the state was facing extreme distraught as Karnataka has not released Cauvery water. This was the first cabinet since Acting Governor Ch. Vidyasagar Rao allotted all portfolios held by Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa to Panneerselvam. Panneerselvam has handled cabinet meetings back in 2014 and February of 2015 when Jayalalithaa was imprisoned in disproportionate assets case and seemed to know the drill. advertisement Tamil Nadu farmers are in an distress state, as the water released for Samba (long cultivation) was delayed by 2 months and now the water storage in Mettur dam can only feed the lands for not more than 13 days whereas the crops need adequate water for another 4 months. CAUVERY WATER ISSUE Though the Supreme Court has pronounced verdict repeatedly in favor of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka government is not ready to abide to them. Infact, the initial Supreme Court order stated that Karnataka should release 15,000 cusecs of water to TamilNadu from Cauvery river. After repeated appeals by Karnataka it was cut down to 2,000 cusecs, but Siddaramaiah still refused to release water claiming that Cauvery dams hold water only for drinking purpose enough only for Karnataka. Panneer Selvam took charge of the government at the time when Technical High Committee team constituted by Supreme Court visited the Cauvery water tributaries and basin to assess the situation. But the technical committee team's findings were inconclusive as it only mentions that both the states are facing extreme shortage of water and does not give any conclusion on what should be done during such a period. Opposition parties have joined hands and are protesting against Center, a 48-hour rail rock was staged disrupting normal life in Tamil Nadu. They also opposed the report filed by the fact finding team. MK Stalin alleged that the report did not include farmers death details from Tamil Nadu. MDMK leader Vaiko agreed with other party leaders opinion that 'Cauvery Water Management Board' is the only way to solve this issue. Even after repeated pleas from the opposition, AIADMK government has not budged into calling an all party meeting. Panneer Selvam's cabinet meeting had discussed on these issues and also sources claim that Jayalalithaa, who is currently under treatment at Apollo hospital, had already given instructions as to what should be done. ALSO READ: Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa's portfolios allocated to Panneerselvam Panneerselvam chairs Tamil Nadu cabinet meet, Cauvery issue likely to be discussed --- ENDS --- The sterile neutrino is running out of places to hide if it even exists, that is Far detector: The end of the line for the MINOS neutrino apparatus is in Soudan, Minnesota, more than 500 miles from the beam source outside Chicago. Photo courtesy of Fermilab Photo - of - Hide Caption William & Mary physicist Mike Kordosky is a skeptic on the sterile-neutrino question, but he says he would be happy to be proven wrong. He was instrumental in the design of an experiment that was intended to prove the existence of sterile neutrinos, theoretical subatomic particles that are believed to be responsible for actions of other kinds of neutrinos. Recently released results of the experiment actually, a pair of experiments conducted a world apart have vindicated Kordoskys skepticism. For now. A press release from the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory announced a recent search for the sterile neutrino has come up empty. Kordosky said that null result from the collaboration between his MINOS experiment at Fermilab and the Daya Bay experiment in China doesnt slam the door on the sterile neutrino concept, but it does make the particles existence a lot less likely. Neutrinos have bizarre properties. They exist in three (at least) types, or flavors. They change, or oscillate, from one flavor to another in mid-flight. And they almost never interact with matter, a property that makes neutrinos devilishly hard to study. The sterile neutrino if it indeed exists is an oddball even among neutrinos. The three known neutrino flavors, tau muon and electron, interact with matter only rarely. The sterile neutrino never interacts with matter directly, only indirectly, through gravity. The sterile neutrino was offered as a potential answer to a puzzle that arose 20 years ago. Scientists at Los Alamos National Lab found evidence of a new, unexpected, neutrino oscillation at their LSND experiment beginning in the 1990s. The sterile neutrino was posited as an explanation, and the search was on to find that particle. Duck hunters stake out likely lakes and rivers; particle hunters look for their prey within likely levels of energy. Kordosky says the sterile neutrino search focused on the energy region around 1 electronvolt squared. This was a region where a couple of other experiments had seen anomalous results. Its a region that we cant completely rule out but now were close, he said. I never thought those anomalous results looked like sterile oscillations, he added. The MINOS detector is used for normal neutrino oscillation experiments. Kordosky explained that MINOS sends a beam of muon neutrinos through a pair of detectors, one near the beam source in Chicago and the second some 450 miles away in Minnesota. To search for the sterile neutrino, Kordosky and his colleagues had to figure out a way to use MINOS detector for something it really wasnt designed to do. A standard MINOS experiment would count the number of oscillated neutrinos between the near and far detectors, with the assumption that no oscillations have occurred before the beam reaches the near detector, he said. Heres the problem: For this sterile neutrino search, the initial assumption that oscillations havent occurred isnt valid, Kordosky explained. So you have to find a way to use the far detector to constrain the near detector. You look for sterile oscillations as a modulation on top of the standard oscillations. The method that we used was to take the ratio between the two detectors. That cancels out a lot of uncertainties. Kordosky is an associate professor in the Department of Physics, one of a number of William & Mary scientists in that are participating in neutrino investigations. In fact, William & Mary has a number of physicists on both sides of the MINOS-Daya Bay collaboration. In addition to Kordosky, the William & Mary MINOS authors on the sterile neutrino paper are Jeffrey Nelson, professor of physics; Patricia Vahle, associate professor of physics; Alena Devan Ph.D 15; and Alexander Radovic, a postdoctoral research associates. William & Mary scientists on the Daya Bay side were Robert McKeown, Governor's Distinguished CEBAF Professor of Physics; and Wei Wang, research scientist. In fact, Kordosky says some of the initial conversations that led to the MINOS-Daya Bay collaborations occurred at William & Mary. His office is adjacent to the office used by Wei Wang and Kordosky said the two of them would discuss how Daya Bay and MINOS could collaborate. In contrast with MINOS, which uses a neutrino beam generated at Fermilab, the Daya Bay experiment looks at electron antineutrinos coming from a nuclear power plant in China. Daya Bay measured for the first time one of the parameters governing neutrino oscillations, a result garnering the 2016 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics, an honor which included Robert McKeown, who is deputy director for science at Jefferson Lab in addition to his faculty position at William & Mary. A sterile neutrino would affect the rate at which electron antineutrinos disappear, but the Daya Bay scientists have seen no evidence for this. Neither the MINOS nor Daya Bay disappearance results alone can be compared to the LSND appearance measurements, En-Chuan Huang in the Fermilab press release. Huang, of Los Alamos Laboratory and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, is one of the scientists working on the Daya Bay experiment. Looking at multiple types of neutrinos together gives us a much stronger handle on sterile neutrinos. The Fermilab release says the joint null result has significantly shrunk the hiding space for a light sterile neutrino, while noting that scientists will continue to look for the sterile neutrino. Kordosky says hes happy to participate in the continuing hunt for the sterile neutrino, even if he is a skeptic, believing the LSND anomalies have another explanation. It could be poorly understood neutrino reactions, he said. It could be one of these things that happen in science: an anomalous result that gets excluded by other experiments. Even though a skeptic, he says he would be happy to see evidence of a sterile neutrino. It would be new physics, he said, a revision of the Standard Model. Its what were all working toward. Buzz is that the actress will be seen in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's next. By India Today Web Desk: Priyanka Chopra, who has been receiving rave reviews for the second season of Quantico, is planning to announce her next Bollywood project this December. ALSO READ: Priyanka Chopra's intense lovemaking scene in Quantico Season 2 goes viral According to a report in DNA, the actress, who will be the first Bollywood celebrity to appear on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, is in talks with Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra for his next, Fanney Khan. advertisement Fanney Khan is a remake of the 2000 Belgian hit Everybody's Famous and will be directed by Atul Manjrekar. The comedy film will have Anil Kapoor in the lead role. Priyanka is said to have expressed her keenness to do the film, but hasn't signed on the dotted line yet. If the reports are true, Priyanka will team up with Anil Kapoor for the second time, after Dil Dhadakne Do. She was last seen in Bajirao Mastani (2015). --- ENDS --- China News on Women Sorry, the page you requested was not found. If you're having trouble locating a destination on Womenofchina.cn, try visiting the Womenofchina Home page By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 19 (PTI) The Ram temple issue is not a poll plank but a matter of faith and should not be connected to upcoming UP elections, BJP leaders said today, a day after party leader Vinay Katiyars remarks that only "lollipops" were being offered in the name of the temple raised eyebrows. BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy went to the extent of assuring Katiyar that the Ram temple at Ayodhya will come up in 2017 and the museum, land for which is being taken now, will only come up later by 2019. "Ram mandir will be constructed. As per our tradition, the temple is not constructed alone and such museums will also come up around it. Only land for the museum is being taken and it will come up later only by 2019. The Ram temple will come up before and that is why Katiyar should be rest assured," Swamy said. advertisement He also claimed that the attempt is that Ram Mandir should come up by 2017 as it is a promise made by BJP in the 2014 manifesto. "It is not statement of faith. We have to keep our promise even if delayed," he said. Union Ministers M Venkaiah Naidu and Uma Bharti said that Ram temple is not a political issue but a matter of faith for them. "Ram Mandir is not a political issue, it is a matter of faith...First you ask whether Ram Mandir is not on the agenda, then you will make headlines that Ram Mandir is not an issue and BJP has abandoned it. If we dont say, you say BJP has abandoned the Ram mandir. "If reaction is given then you say whether Ram Mandir is the only issue. Ram Mandir is a matter of faith. We need to move forward on the issue on the basis of discussion or on the basis of courts order. Some people are trying to divert attention," Naidu said. Bharti said that there is talk that BJP is raising the Ram Mandir issue as there are polls in Uttar Pradesh but it not so. "Ram issue is not a poll issue. It is about faith. It is a question of life and death. We are ready to even give our life for Ram Temple," she said, adding that the issue in UP polls is corruption and lawlessness. RSS sympathiser Rakesh Sinha said there is no relation between Ram temple and the museum, which is to beautify Ayodhya. "Ram temple issue is that of faith and dignity and there should be no controversy over Ayodhyas beautification and Ram temple," he said. Naidu also blamed the media and said Ram Temple talk is a their creation and BJP will fight elections on the issue of development and good governance. advertisement He said people raise issues and then ask for the opinion of the leaders and then start commenting. The Minister asked what was wrong in having the Museum of Ramayana. The Union Minister also questioned whether people hail Ravana on Dussehra, supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for saying "Jai Shri Ram" during his address on the day in Lucknow. PTI SKC MP RT --- ENDS --- Five French units to undergo steam generator checks 19 October 2016 Share The French nuclear safety authority has requested five of EDF's nuclear power units are taken offline for additional inspections on their steam generators within the next three months. The steel in parts of those components has been found to contain high concentrations of carbon. The upper and bottom heads of the reactor pressure vessel for the EPR under construction at Flamanville 3 were manufactured at Areva's Le Creusot facility in September 2006 and January 2007, respectively. A high carbon content in those parts prompted Areva to review the company's quality management process in 2015 for some 400 heavy steel components made at the Creusot Forge plant since 1965. Steam generator channel head (Image: ASN) The French regulator, the Autorite de Surete Nucleaire (ASN), subsequently requested Areva and EDF conduct an analysis to identify any other components in operating nuclear power reactors that could be affected by a similar anomaly to that of the Flamanville EPR vessel. The regulator also asked EDF to justify the mechanical resistance of the steam generator bottom heads that had been manufactured by Areva's Creusot Forge facility or by Japan Casting and Forging Corporation (JCFC). In June, the ASN said it had identified 18 French nuclear power reactors operated by EDF - of both 900 MWe and 1450 MWe capacity - whose steam generators could contain high carbon concentrations. Of these, 12 are equipped with channel heads manufactured by JCFC "liable to contain a particularly high carbon concentration". ASN said EDF has provided it with data aimed at demonstrating the operating safety of the 12 reactors concerned. However, the regulator called for additional inspections to be carried out to verify whether each of the channel heads concerned conforms with the data submitted by EDF. These inspections, it noted, have already been conducted or are in progress during scheduled outages at seven of the 12 reactors. ASN now requires inspections at the remaining five units - Civaux unit 1, Fessenheim unit 1, Gravelines unit 4, and Tricastin units 2 and 4 - are carried out within the next three months. It says the inspections, which can only be conducted when the reactors are offline, must be performed "without waiting for the scheduled refuelling outage of these reactors". Steam generators are heat exchangers between the water circulating in the reactor's primary coolant circuit - at a temperature of about 350C and a pressure of 155 bar - and the water in the secondary circuit that supplies steam to the turbines. Their domed lower head is part of the primary circuit and therefore has an important safety role in ensuring cooling water is always available. There are three steam generators in 900 MWe pressurized water reactors, while 1450 MWe reactors feature four. Researched and written by World Nuclear News Related topics Construction of Ukraine's used fuel storage facility to start in March 19 October 2016 Share The "active phase" of construction work on a central used fuel storage facility (CSFSF) at the site of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is expected to start in March 2017, Oleksandr Rybchuk, general director of Atomprojectengineering said. Holtec's Singh and EnergoAtom's Nedashkovsky (Image: EnergoAtom) The CSFSF will be a dry storage facility in which the used fuel will be stored in double-walled stainless steel canisters. These are themselves loaded within protective concrete modular systems designed to provide physical protection, radiation shielding and passive heat removal. Atomprojectengineering is a subsidiary of Ukraine's state-run nuclear power plant operator EnergoAtom, and Rybchuk's comments were included in an Energoatom statement yesterday that gave an update on cooperation with US company Holtec International to build the CSFSF. He said the Ukrainian regulator had recently received the safety evaluation report on the CSFSF and is expected to give its response "within a month". In the meantime, EnergoAtom is preparing to receive Holtec equipment for the management of used nuclear fuel at Ukrainian nuclear power plants. Loading the first batch of used nuclear fuel into Holtec's HI-STORM container system for transport to the CSFSF will take place at the end of 2018, he added. Rybchuk spoke at a meeting between the presidents of EnergoAtom and Holtec, Yury Nedashkovsky and Chris Singh, held on 17 October to coincide with EnergoAtom's 20th anniversary. Addressing Singh, Nedashkovsky said: "We are very pleased that our strategic partners are with us on the day marking EnergoAtom's twentieth year. I note that, for the anniversary, Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers has given us a welcome gift by providing land for construction of the CSFSF and railway access." Singh noted that Holtec's cooperation with EnergoAtom spanned 13 years. "In all this time I have not stopped being surprised by the quality of training and level of skill of Ukrainian nuclear specialists." During the meeting, Rybchuk and Holtec International vice president Riaz Awan signed an additional agreement to the existing contract for Holtec's supply of equipment for the CSFSF. The equipment will be used for handling used nuclear fuel at Ukrainian nuclear power units. Ukraine currently spends $200 million each year on its arrangement with Russia to transport and reprocess used nuclear fuel. EnergoAtom and Holtec signed a contract for construction of the CSFSF in 2004, but the project was repeatedly stalled owing to changes to the political situation in Ukraine. Work on the project resumed in 2014. In March, the Cabinet of Ministers announced its intention to approve by the end of this year project-design documentation for construction of the CSFSF at the site of the Chernobyl exclusion zone. On 12 October, it allocated plots of land with a total area of 45.2 hectares for the proposed facility. Holtec signed the contract it won in a tender to build the CSFSF in 2005. Ukraine's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, in 2012 adopted a law on the siting, design and construction of the facility to store used fuel from Ukraine's Russian-built VVER nuclear power reactors. In January, EnergoAtom and Holtec signed an amendment to the contract to build the CSFSF at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and supply used nuclear fuel dry cask storage systems. The CSFSF will receive used nuclear fuel from nine of the country's 15 reactors - seven VVER-1000s and two VVER-440s - located at Rivne, South Ukraine and Khmelnitsky. The Zaporozhe nuclear power plant operates its own on-site used fuel storage facility that was commissioned in 2001. The amendment means that EnergoAtom is responsible for the civil design and construction of the facility, while Holtec is responsible for the design and supply of used nuclear fuel dry storage, transport and related equipment. The equipment will be delivered by the end of 2020, with the "key developmental stage" set as 2015-2017. During this period, the design and construction of the storage facility will be completed, Holtec's equipment and technology will be installed and the CSFSF will be commissioned. Holtec will supply 94 used nuclear fuel storage systems for the facility. In October last year, EnergoAtom announced that the technology for the production of dry storage casks for used nuclear fuel will be transferred by Holtec International to Ukraine's Turboatom under a memorandum of understanding signed by the two companies and EnergoAtom. The agreement acknowledges the transfer of technologies for the manufacture of Holtec's HI-STORM used fuel storage casks to Turboatom. The projected cost of Turboatom's services to Holtec could reach $200 million over the next ten years, including some $60 million for equipment for the CSFSF, EnergoAtom said. Holtec delivered the first batch of the casks to the Chernobyl site the following month. Researched and written by World Nuclear News Related topics No matter what side of the ideological fence youre on 2016 has turned out to be an exciting year in American politics. With Republican and Democratic nominees busily battling it out with lots of mud slinging, partisan rhetoric, and attack ads political activity has shifted into high gear. Come November US citizens will have the opportunity to have their voices heard when they exercise their right to vote in the 2016 Presidential Election. Will history be made by the election of the first female president or will billionaire nominee Donald Trump connect with disenfranchised voters tired of the status quo? All bets are off but one things for certain; American voters are in for a bumpy ride. Although its been said time and timer again it cant be stressed enough that in order to affect change citizens across the country must get out and vote. With this in mind, according to recent statistics heres the top ten states with the highest voter turn out. 1. Minnesota The citizens of Minnesota are considered to be particularly politically active so it should come as no surprise that the state boosts a 74.5% voter turnout rate. Perhaps one reason for the consistently large turnout at the ballot box is this Midwestern states same-day voter registration law. Because of this option residents who havent yet registered can do so on election day at their local polling station. Over the years Minnesota has produced a number of prominent politicians including Frank Kellogg (a Republican who was elected to the Senate in 1916), Hubert Humphrey (the 38th Vice President of the US under Lyndon Johnson), and Walter Mondale (who served as the 42nd Vice President under Jimmy Carter). 2. Wisconsin With a 73% voter turnout rate Wisconsin, also known as the Badger State, plays a significant role in national elections because of its status as a so-called swing state. Historically this Midwestern state played a vital role in the creating the Republican Party but times are changing and in recent years voters in Americas Dairyland have tended to be more receptive to Democratic candidates. In previous national elections Al Gore, John Kerry, and Barack Obama have all taken Wisconsin. The state is also the birthplace of Republican Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. 3. Maine The New England state of Maine averages a turnout of approximately 70.8% of its eligible voters exercising their democratic right to vote. This small and mostly rural state lies at the northern most portion of the continental US and borders the Canadian provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick. With less than 20,000 residents Augusta ranks as one of the least populated state capitals in America. The Pine Tree state also holds the distinction of being one of the least densely populated states in New England as well as being one of its least racially diverse with the majority of citizens classified as Caucasian. 4. New Hampshire This northeastern state, nicknamed the Granite State, is yet another important swing state. With 69.8% of its eligible voters exercising their democratic right to vote its no wonder that the motto of New Hampshire is Live free or die. In terms of its political influence at least, this relatively small state proves that size doesnt matter. Because of its historical heritage as one of the original thirteen colonies the state is rich in cultural significance. The roots of American patriotism run deep here and politics play a pivotal part in how citizens express their love of freedom, democracy, and the U.S.A. Notable residents of New Hampshire include revolutionary hero John Stark, Apollo 14 astronaut Alan Shepherd, and Franklin Pierce (the 14th President). 5. Iowa In the Midwestern state of Iowa an average of 69.6% of eligible voters cast their ballots. The Hawkeye State is perceived as being a competitive political battleground. In the past the state had been considered a red (or Republican) stronghold but times are changing and recent elections have illustrated a more competitive voting pattern. Controversial right wing Republican Michelle Bachmann, who ran for her partys Presidential nomination in 2012, is a native of Waterloo, Iowa. Clearly Bachmann, who is a loyal supporter of The Tea Party Movement, is an example of the far right ideology supported by sizable faction of Iowas conservative population. 6. Oregon Located in the northwestern portion of the continental US Oregon boasts a 69.1% voter participation rate. Nicknamed the Beaver State Oregon entered the union in 1859. In recent times the political affiliation of local voters has been divided between conservatives who are dominant in the east and more liberal leanings voters residing along the west coast. In the last several elections Oregon has supported Democratic candidates including Barack Obama in 2012. 7. North Dakota Also known as the Roughrider State and The Flickertail State, North Dakota has a voter turn out rate of 68.3%. With agriculture continuing to play a major role in the states economy the most important crops grown in the area include flax seed, wheat, sugar beets?, and various types of beans. Native American culture and religion both serve as major social and cultural influences in this Midwestern state. Notable North Dakotans include former Secretary of State Warren Christopher and ex-astronauts Richard Hieb and James F. Buchli. 8. Massachusetts This northeastern state has one of the highest voter turnout rate in the entire country with 68.1% of eligible voters performing their civic duty. The Bay State is another important jurisdiction due to its rich cultural history and important role in the birth of America as a free and sovereign nation. Although small in size the state is the third in terms of being the most densely populated. The Old Colony State is largely liberal which explains why, in 2004, it was the very first state to allow same-sex marriage. Outspoken Democrat and left wing politician Elizabeth Warren currently represent Massachusetts in the Senate. 9. Mississippi According to a 2014 Gallup Poll the southern state of Mississippi has earned the status as the most religious state in the entire US. With the nickname The Magnolia State Mississippi has an average voter turn out rate of 67.2%. In terms of historical significance Mississippi played an important role in the Civil War which seems to be in keeping with the states reputation as the site of ongoing racial tensions involving African Americans and white citizens. As a conservative Republican state a large portion of Mississippi residents reject same-sex marriage but support the death penalty. 10. Louisiana The Bayou State of Louisiana is well known for many things including its annual Mardi Gras celebration, the lively French Quarter, jazz music, Cajun and Creole cultures, and the massive damages it suffered during hurricanes such as Katrina. Louisiana has a voter turnout rate of 66.7% and although historically the states residents have supported the Democratic party the state has recently experienced a rise in support for Republican candidates. Each and every state in the union has a unique historical and cultural identity. Residents in some regions may be more (or less) politically aware and/or active than other citizens in another part of the country. If Al Gores 2000 election loss proved anything its that the results from just one state can literally make or break a campaign. With that in mind here are the states with the lowest voter turnout rates in the nation. 10. Georgia The state of Georgia is located in the southeastern portion of the continental US and is home to a population of over ten million residents. In regards to US political history, its interesting to note that the so-called Peach State was established in 1732 and was the last of the original thirteen colonies. Georgia was also one of the original Confederate states and the final one to rejoin the union in 1870. Despite its rich cultural past recent stats confirm that only 59.3% of eligible citizens turn out to vote election time. Democrat Jimmy Carter, the 39th President of the US, was a native of Georgia. 9. New York It seems surprising that New York, the hub for a great deal of the nations economy and home to a very large and diverse population, ranks among the bottom in terms of voter turn out with only 59.2% of eligible voters casting ballots. Not only is New York state home to the largest city in the US (just short of 8.5 million) but Wall Street is the epicenter of Americas economy. After the September 11th attack, NYC also became a powerful symbol of the nations war against terror. The Empire State boosts a culturally rich population base which is largely centralized in its urban centers. According to statistics from 2013 besides English New Yorkers speak a variety of languages including Spanish, Chinese, Russian, and Yiddish. 8. Arizona Arizona has an average voter turn out rate of 58.4%. Like its neighbor, New Mexico, illegal immigration is a major issue in the Grand Canyon State. Arizona also has the third largest Native American population in the country and is home to twenty Indian reservations. In recent years The Copper State has been a red (or Republican) stronghold. In 2008 Arizona Republican senator John McCain unsuccessfully ran for President losing to Barack Obama. The state also made news for its conservative policies such as the passing of Prop 102 which denies same-sex marriage rights by defining the institution as a union between a man and a woman. In 2010 Arizona also passed controversial legislation involving rigorous crackdowns on illegal immigrants. 7. Oklahoma Only 58.3% of eligible voters living in Oklahoma show up to the polls on voting day. Nicknamed The Sooner State-Oklahoma is known for being the homeland for a number of Native American tribes. Indeed, California is the only state with a greater number of Native American residents. The state is largely agricultural with its economy based on producing products such as cotton, wheat, and beef. As with several other states at the lower end of the voter turn out spectrum Oklahoma is part of Americas so-called Bible Belt. According to recent figures, 53% of its population identify as Evangelical Protestants which is approximately two times the national average.Because of this, its safe to assume that religious affiliation has a major influence on this politically conservative state. 6. Nevada The state of Nevada is known by most people as being the location of Sin City aka Las Vegas, home to glitz, glamor, high rollers, and some of the biggest casinos in the world. Despite a population of nearly three million the Silver State only manages a 57.7% turnout rate during election time. With its share of libertarian laws concerning marriage, gambling, and prostitution Nevada as a state has regularly flip-flopped in terms of political allegiances. In 1992 and 1996 Democrat Bill Clinton took the state while in 2000 and 2004 George W. Bush was the clear winner in Nevada. Then during the 2008 and 2012 national campaigns, Democrat Barack Obama took Nevada. Because of its correct prediction of the overall Presidential winner the desert state has earned the title of a trendsetting bellwether state. 5. Texas Texas is the largest state in area in the country but latest on the low end of voter turn out with only 55.3% participating in the election process. With a population of approximately 27 million The Lone Star State certainly doesnt lack for eligible voters but getting them out to vote is clearly another matter. Those Texans who do cast ballots tend to support the Republican Party. In 2004 Texas was won by George W. Bush, in 20008 John McCain took the state, and in 2012 voters chose Mitt Romney as their pick for president. 4. Tennessee With a voter turnout rate of 54.6%, the Volunteer State is among the states with the lowest overall voter participation. Historically Tennessee played a large part in the Civil War as a vital member of the souths Confederate Army. In modern times Tennessee is better known for its agricultural products as well as its significance in pop culture for its crucial role in the development of both country and blues music. In terms of national politics, Tennessee is primarily a Republican state with support for Democratic candidates coming primarily from urban areas such as the cities of Nashville and Memphis as well as among members of the African-American community. 3. Arkansas With a rate of 54.3%, Arkansas ranks as the third lowest voter turnout in America. This southern state is the birthplace of the 42nd President Bill Clinton who also served as its Governor from 1979 to 1981 and again from 1983 to 1992. Arkansas relies largely on agriculture, natural resources as well as manufacturing and service industries in order to fuel its economy. Conservative forces in the state may, in large part, be driven by its status as part of the Bible Belt which is made up of various Protestant denominations. In keeping with its right wing reputation it should be noted that Arkansas is a right to work state which is also known for its rejection of same-sex marriage as well as its stance against abortion. 2. West Virginia On average only 52.9% of voters show up to the polls on election day. West Virginia is well known for its natural resources (particularly coal mining and logging) as well as the beauty of the Appalachian Mountain range. Its interesting to note that the state holds a unique place in American political history due to the fact that during the Civil War it was the only state to secede from the Confederacy (in this case Virginia). In recent years economic and social markers have predicted that the state may be facing a troublesome future. According to statistics from the 2012 US Census Bureau West Virginias population has consistently been in decline with the death rate among its citizens surpassing its birth rate. The median age for local residents is 41 and the cultural make up is far from diverse with Caucasians making up almost 94% of its total population. 1. Hawaii Coming in with the worst voter turnout rate in the entire US is the island state of Hawaii with 50% of its residents successfully managing to cast a ballot.The Aloha State is located in the Pacific Ocean about 2,100 miles away from the mainland. Its the only state which has an official second language (Hawaiian). Perhaps the physical distance which separates the state from the rest of the US is reflective of a deeper political detachment from federal politics. Citizens living on this series of tropical islands come from various cultural backgrounds including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Polynesian. Since becoming a state in 1959 Hawaii has consistently voted Democrat and is the birthplace of the 44th and current President Barack Obama. Plane landing on runway (illustration) By: Chan Yuan A man of the United Kingdom, was arrested after being seen defecating in front of passengers on a runway in Italy, according to police. The incident unfolded after 68-year-old David Sharp of Salford, flew to Lecce, Italy, with Ryanair. After the plane touched down at the Brindisi Airport, the man became agitated. As the 50 passengers made their way from the plane to the terminal, the suspect pulled down his pants and defecated on the runway. The other passengers watched in horror as the man did his business in front of everyone. He was arrested on a charge of acts contrary to public decency. He was found guilty, and given a fine of 3,000 euros ($3,300). Unnur Bra Konradsdottir with her baby By: Chan Yuan (Scroll down for video) A parliament member in Iceland, is making headlines over her decision to breastfeed her baby in front of her colleagues. Unnur Bra Konradsdottir, who is an MP and belongs to the centre-right Independence Party, brought her baby with her to work. Konradsdottir said that she sponsored a bill on immigration, which was being debated in parliament. A representative asked a question about the proposal that she had put forward and she had to respond. However, Konradsdottir had one issue. She was breastfeeding her six-week-old daughter at the time that she was asked to address the parliament. Konradsdottir said that she could have yanked her baby away from her breasts and hand her over to a colleague, but that would have caused her baby to be fussy and to cry. Instead, she decided to continue to breastfeed her baby as she stood up to speak in parliament in front of television cameras. The mother-of-three spoke for about one minute in the debate on immigration while breastfeeding her baby and nobody seemed be care. The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill, 2016 was passed by Rajya Sabha on March 10 and by Lok Sabha on March 15 this year. According to a notification issued in April this year, the rules for the real estate sector were to be notified by October 31 this year or within six months of the Act coming into force. By Mail Today Bureau: The Central government is set to notify the rules of the Real Estate Act for five Union Territories to move ahead with implementation of the legislation that aims to regulate the housing sector and to protect the interests of consumers, who have been getting a raw deal from builders. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA) will bring out rules applicable to five UTs -Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu and Lakshadweep - without legislature. advertisement The Ministry of Urban Development will come out with such rules for the National Capital Region of Delhi while other states and UTs will come out with their own rules. The states could also adopt the rules notified by the HUPA, officials said. The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill, 2016 was passed by Rajya Sabha on March 10 and by Lok Sabha on March 15 this year. According to a notification issued in April this year, the rules for the real estate sector were to be notified by October 31 this year or within six months of the Act coming into force. As per provisions of the Act, Real Estate Regulatory Authorities (RERA) and Real Estate Appellate Tribunals have to be set up by the end of April, 2017 and the entire Act is to come into effect the day after. The Act, which is a major reform measure to regulate the vast real estate sector, requires registration of all projects with state level Real Estate Regulatory Authorities to ensure protection of the interests of both buyers and builders. The Real Estate Act provides for imprisonment of up to three years in case of promoters of projects and up to one year in case of real estate agents or monetary penalties or both in case of any violation of norms. Also Read Builders have developed an attitude to make commitments to buyers, not fulfill them: Supreme Court DDA sets 3 years target to give Delhi its first smart city --- ENDS --- Supporters Urged to Join March Against Proposals to Reduce Wrexhams Fire Service This article is old - Published: Wednesday, Oct 19th, 2016 A march against controversial proposals to cut the number of fire engines in Wrexham is to take place through the town centre next month. The march, which is the second to have taken place in recent weeks comes as a result of proposals from the North Wales Fire and Rescue Authority to reduce the number of full-time appliances to one. Wrexham currently has two full time appliances, however if proposals to cut the service went ahead it is estimated 24 firefighter jobs would also be lost. The event on Saturday 5 November will see campaigners march from Island Green to Queens Square to generate support and raise awareness of the proposed reduction in services. It is hoped that there will be the biggest possible demonstration for this important public service, Last month a team of campaigners took to the streets to march to Wrexham new Ambulance and Fire Service Resource Centre on Croesnewydd Road. The protest coincided with the official launch of the new 15m facility, with two Welsh Government Cabinet Secretaries in attendance at the opening ceremony. The campaign to save the engine, one of two whole-time appliances in the town, has been led by local Plaid Cymru councillor Marc Jones. He said: Support for the campaign is growing as people become more aware of the threat to one of our two whole-time fire engines. The online and paper petitions have been well supported and we will continue to knock doors in the area to raise awareness. On Saturday, 29th October, well be out again under the arch opposite the Horse and Jockey collecting names and explaining the situation to people. Weve also decided to hold a march around the town on the 5th of November, which is bonfire night, to remind people of how vital it is that we keep this engine and the 24 firefighters jobs that are also under threat. Were asking people from the area to come out on November 5th to show their support and make it a lively and noisy protest. The consultation on this decision ends in December and a decision will be made by the North Wales Fire and Rescue Authority. I would urge everyone who shares our concerns to take part in the consultation and to ensure that we save this important service. The proposed reduction of appliances in Wrexham came following a meeting in June between members of the North Wales Fire Authority who had concluded that it was no longer possible to freeze the authoritys budget. As a result of the meeting, the Authoritys Improvement Plan Working Group began to develop a medium term budget strategy which consists of using its reserves, increasing contributions from councils, and service cuts. Several further options to make savings for the authority were also considered, including the closure of the control room and closing nine rural stations. However the loss of one appliance in Wrexham was described at the time as the least damaging option. The proposals has sparked concern from residents across the County Borough, with fears over the impact such a loss could have on the area. Concerns have also been raised previously by the Fire Brigade Union (FBU). A number of Community Councils, including Caia Park, Acton and Gwersyllt have passed a motion against cutting the service The March to Save Wrexhams Fire Engine will begin at 11am on Island Green on Saturday 5 November. You can sign the petition opposing the proposed reduction in Wrexhams fire services here. You can also take part in the North Wales Fire and Rescue Service Authoritys consultation here. Responses to the public consultation must be submitted by December 12. Wrexham Council Facing Budget Reduction As Provisional Funding is Announced This article is old - Published: Wednesday, Oct 19th, 2016 Provisional budgets for local authorities across Wales shows that Wrexham has received a 0.5% reduction in its budget for the next financial year. Secretary for Finance and Local Government Mark Drakeford AM today announced a total of 4.107 billion of funding for local authorities in 2017-18. Local government will see an increase in its funding for 2017-18 of 3.8 million compared to 2016-17. This is the first increase in the settlement for local government since 2013-14. Announcing the provisional settlement, Mark Drakeford said: The aim of this provisional settlement is to give local authorities the stability to manage the difficult decisions that lie ahead. We know that councils are delivering their services against a backdrop of austerity and this settlement provides a platform from which to plan for harder choices which will lie ahead. The changes we are implementing this year are based on the advice of an expert group comprised of local authorities and independent specialists. The package also includes additional funding to implement a minus 0.5% funding floor which limits the impact on councils that would have seen the biggest reductions in their core funding. He added: This is a stable settlement in challenging times and will allow local government to set sustainable budgets despite constraints on public finances. However while some authorities across Wales have seen a provisional increase in their budget Wrexham has received a 0.5% reduction. Leader of Wrexham Council Mark Pritchard says the reduction means the authority will need to make around 5m of cuts. Cllr Pritchard said: I am disappointed that the Welsh Government has not prioritised more resources on essential Local Government services. Wrexham has the 19th lowest change to its funding and also comes 19th in its funding per head of population. Such a low level of revenue funding is unreasonable and clearly the funding formula requires a radical overhaul. In addition, an opportunity has been missed to provide the Council with increased general capital funding. The Council will continue to work hard to reduce the impact of these savings on the people of Wrexham County Borough and will continue to prioritise the most vulnerable. He added: I will be responding to this Welsh Government provisional settlement during the formal consultation period which ends on 30 November 2016. Speaking after this afternoons announcement, Wrexham AM Lesley Griffiths said: Whilst Wrexham Council has received a slight cut in funding, I believe many would accept the Welsh Government is aiming to provide stability in uncertain times. The situation is far from ideal but continued cuts from the Conservative UK Government, coupled with the Brexit strategy and impact remaining unclear, unfortunately mean difficult decisions for both the Welsh Government and local authorities to undertake. It is also worth highlighting what local authorities are facing in England. Over the border, councils are tackling central government cuts of almost 7% from 2016 to 2020, which is in addition to the overall 30% reduction between 2010 and 2015. She added: With various competing pressures and in spite of the challenging times, overall this remains one of the best outcomes local government has received. As the funding formula for calculating the settlements is agreed by Welsh Local Government Association representatives not the Welsh Government reasonable councillors will accept the figures are challenging but fair. From a local point of view, it will enable Wrexham Council to focus on delivering improved public services for Wrexham residents. The Welsh Government has always done its best to mitigate against UK Government cuts and it will continue to do its utmost to protect the people of Wales from Tory austerity. Don't harm your body when you finally get to eat tonight. Go easy, go slow and eat these foods first... By India Today Web Desk: Some say a day-long fast once in a while is actually good for the body. Others say that one doesn't need unreasonable fasts to stay healthy. Whatever whoever's reasons to fast on Karva Chauth might be, it is essential to treat your body right through it. Yesterday, we told you how to survive the day without falling sick: 5 hacks to not get a day-long headache from starvation on Karva Chauth advertisement Today, we're telling you how not to send your body into overdrive when breaking the fast. First, you need to know what actually happens to the body on staying hungry for long hours: the enzymes normally produced by the digestive system are not being produced by your body because it's not been fed for so many hours. So, introducing food slowly to the stomach allows the body time to re-establish this enzyme production. Depending on how many hours you've been starving, the protective mucus lining of your stomach also gets temporarily diminished, making the stomach walls more vulnerable to irritation. So, as a measure of common sense, it's advisable to not feed the tummy harsh foods that irritate the stomach lining, like coffee or spicy food or even dairy (in extremely sensitive cases), according to allaboutfasting.com. Instead, you need to feed your body the simplest and easiest-to-digest foods, which is why fruit juices and raw fruits are recommended. But first, before you do anything, drink water, please! And make sure to not gulp the whole glass down in one go. We know the temptation is a bit difficult to resist, but have it slowly, sip by sip. Give a couple of minutes' break and between, and sip again. Give your body time to accept water and food again. Here are the foods you need to eat tonight if you've been fasting, in the given order: 1. Fruit juices and raw fruits: The first foods that you consume upon breaking a fast are critical to nourish the body, and should not expend much energy to digest and assimilate in the body. Watermelon, grapes and apples are fruits that you can easily digest and assimilate, according to livestrong.com. 2. Yogurt, unsweetened: Yoghurt or the homemade dahi has always been good for the gut. That holds true even when you've been starving yourself for hours. 3. Cooked/raw vegetables and vegetable soups: Organic vegetable juices and vegetables are ideal after a fast. Organic vegetables are free of pesticides, herbicides, hormones, antibiotics and other harmful chemicals, according to Better Nutrition. advertisement 4. Well-cooked grains, beans and pulses: Pulses and grains are the most difficult for the body to break down. Naturally then, they should be consumed only when the stomach's lining has enough cushion. --- ENDS --- The Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS), which is linked to the Christian Democratic Union, in collaboration with the Association of Christian Democratic Students (RCDS), has invited Professor Jorg Baberowski to speak at Bremen University this Thursday. The right-wing historian is to speak on the topic Understanding Violence. There is strong opposition to the event amongst students at the university. The general student committee (Asta), the highest body of the student government system, called on its web site last Thursday for the university administration to deny use of a university facility to the professor. Baberowski, a controversial teacher at Humboldt University in Berlin, has in the recent period repeatedly justified violent clashes against refugees and attacks on their accommodations, employs a nationalist vocabulary, and advances far-right positions in the political debate on issues of migration policy, the Asta statement declares. We protest against giving a man who confronts people with utter hatred the opportunity to appear on a campus that purports to promote openness and is financed by all of us. The student representatives illustrate the professors right-wing agitation by citing several passages and sources and come to the conclusion that Baberowski is no better than the far-right AfD (Alternative for Germany). His newspaper interviews, they state, read like a simplistic succession of well-known right-wing populist mantras, such as the incitement of the socially disadvantaged against each other, the premise that democratic popular opinion is tantamount to dictatorship, and praise for neighbouring states with more restrictive asylum and immigration laws. The statement goes on to note that Baberowski legitimises and downplays the Pegida slogan We are the people and related attacks on refugee housing centres. He dreams of Germany as a homogeneous national body, whose social glue, in his eyes, faces an existential threat from the other, the illegal immigrant, the Asta statement continues. The Asta writes that Baberowskis research on violence, about which he will speak on Thursday, can best be described as dubious. It abandons any attempt to identify the origins of violence, negates the possibility of preventing violence, and declares an even more violent intervention by the state as the sovereign power capable of combating violence. The statement closes with the words: We are outraged that the downplaying of right-wing violence is given any space at all and have called on the rectorate to withdraw the granting of a room. Otherwise, it will fall to us to ensure that extreme right-wing ideologues cannot propagate their teachings at this university. Let us protest peacefully, colourfully and loudly against agitation and inhumanity. The universitys press office told the World Socialist Web Site on Monday that while the rectorate welcomed the statement by the Asta, it saw no reason to ban the meeting, since it was assumed that neither the KAS nor the RCDS were attacking the basic tenets of freedom and democracy. However, we expect the event organisers to be open to argumentative debate and that the Asta can confront the speaker with its substantial criticisms, stated press office head Eberhard Scholz. Argumentative discourse is the most important thing for us. Baberowski evidently was not prepared to accept these conditions. The RCDS announced on its web site that the event had been moved from the university campus to the Konrad Adenauer Foundation building at Domshof 22. The event organisers can play by their own rules there and exclude critical students. Such a move comes as no surprise, given that the Berlin professor is well known for throwing critics out of his meetings and suppressing unwanted positions. When members of the university group of the International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE) at Humboldt University criticised Baberowskis right-wing positions in leaflets and at meetings, he described the students as crackpots and demanded that they be banned from the university and face criminal charges. It is beyond question that the Asta in Bremen cited and interpreted Baberowski correctly. Almost three years ago, the IYSSE drew attention to his right-wing extremist positions. In February 2014, the professor solidarised himself with Nazi apologist Ernst Nolte in the news magazine Der Spiegel, declaring, Hitler was no psychopath, he was not vicious. The IYSSE also called attention to the fact that Baberowski had described the Nazi war of annihilation in the East as a response to a violent space created by the Soviet Union. In this way, the professor was attempting to rewrite history and relativise the crimes of German imperialism so as to prepare for new wars, the IYSSE stated. His falsification of history is directly connected to calls for more military interventions. Since last summer, as the Bremen Asta makes clear, Baberowski has systematically agitated against refugees and downplayed violence against them. Almost weekly in interviews and talk shows, he calls for a stronger state and new wars. The close ties between the professor and right-wing circles was demonstrated by the speed with which representatives of the far right sprang to his defence after the students in Bremen published their criticisms. Nicolaus Fest, a member of the Islamophobic AfD party, accused the students of spreading untruths about Baberowski, without providing any evidence. The national conservative web site Tichys Einblick spoke of thought police from Antifa and co. By contrast, opposition to the promotion of xenophobia and the ideological preparations for war from right-wing professors is mounting among students. Last year, the student parliaments at Humboldt University and the Free University of Berlin passed resolutions by overwhelming majorities supporting criticisms of Baberowski and calling upon students to express themselves politically, challenge authority and combat tendencies to downplay Germanys inhuman history in teaching content at a university. Earlier this year, students at Leipzig University protested against the xenophobic, right-wing professor Thomas Rauscher. There have also been protests in Dresden and Rostock against right-wing and militarist positions put forward by professors. The protests demonstrate that students are not prepared to tolerate the transformation of the universities into right-wing and militarist think tanks. Veteran screenwriter Salim Khan has refuted allegations of Bollywood being divided over the release of Karan Johar's Ae Dil Hai Mushkil which stars Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. By India Today Web Desk: Veteran screenwriter and father of Salman Khan, Salim Khan took to Twitter on October 19 to share his opinions on the ongoing controversy surrounding Karan Johar's Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. ALSO READ: Karan was forced to give statement, says Shyam Benegal on KJo's taped statement about ADHM ALSO READ: It pains me to be labeled an anti-national, says Karan Johar advertisement Brushing off allegations that Bollywood is divided over the issue of working with/banning Pakistani artists, Salim Khan tweeted, "Film industry is THE one place where there is no place for discrimination on the basis of Language (sic) religion caste & creed." Film industry divided ?? No way Film industry is THE one place where there is no place for discrimination on the basis of Language religion Salim Khan (@luvsalimkhan) October 19, 2016 caste & creed. What works is talent & capability. This is true from the time of Dada Saheb Phalke till date. It is true that there are some Salim Khan (@luvsalimkhan) October 19, 2016 While Anurag Kashyap, Shyam Benegal, Mahesh Bhatt, Mukesh Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor have spoken in favour of working with Pakistani artists and that the outrage against Ae Dil Hai Mushkil has no grounds, several Bollywood personalities like Ajay Devgn, Randeep Hooda and Nana Patekar are in favour of the ban on Pakistani artists by IMPPA (Indian Motion Pictures' Producers Association). Salim Khan also took a dig at perhaps, Ajay Devgn's Shivaay, while he tweeted, "It is true that there are some amongst us who (sic) have aligned themselves to political parties for personal gain." caste & creed. What works is talent & capability. This is true from the time of Dada Saheb Phalke till date. It is true that there are some Salim Khan (@luvsalimkhan) October 19, 2016 amongst us who have aligned themselves to political parties for personal gain.And Yes we are a happy lot. If our films work we are happy and Salim Khan (@luvsalimkhan) October 19, 2016 if a rivals film flops we are happy too. And we live happily ever after. THE END Salim Khan (@luvsalimkhan) October 19, 2016 Ajay Devgn, who is know to be quiet, has been unusually vocal on the issue of banning Pakistani artists of late. Some have attributed this to the fact that his film Shivaay is releasing on the same day (October 28) as Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, which, by the way, is getting flak for having Pak actor Fawad Khan as a part of it. It should be noted that Ajay Devgn campaigned for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2015 in Bihar ahead of the state elections there. --- ENDS --- advertisement Guantanamo Bay detainee Mohamedou Ould Slahi, 45, has been released after fourteen years of being unlawfully detained at the camp. Slahi has never been charged with a crime by the US. He was repatriated to his native Mauritania on Monday, three months after a government panel approved his release in late July. Slahi is the author of Guantanamo Diary, a first-hand account of the torture inflicted on him by US intelligence agencies and their foreign accomplices. Slahi wrote his memoir in 2005, three years into his detention. The book was published last year with heavy redactions imposed by the US government; the uncensored manuscript remains classified. Guantanamo Diary has become an international bestseller, with translations published in over 25 countries. Slahi was tortured under the special interrogation plan that was personally approved by then-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Slahis torture included violent beatings, sleep deprivation, sexual assault, mock executions and threats against his familys safety, especially against that of his mother, whom he was close to. Slahis mother died on March 27, 2013, unable to see her son for over a decade. We are thrilled that our clients nightmare is finally ending, said Nancy Hollander, one of Slahis pro bono attorneys. After all these years, he wants nothing more than to be with his family and rebuild his life. Were so grateful to everyone who helped make this day a reality. Sixty other detainees remain in the camp, 31 of whom have not been charged with a crime and have not been cleared for release. Of the 779 people who have been detained at Guantanamo Bay, at least 675 detainees have been released without ever being charged with a crime, according to Human Rights Watch. Nine people have died. Slahi attended university in Germany on a scholarship in 1988. In 1991, he traveled to Afghanistan to fight with al-Qaeda, one of many Islamic fundamentalist militias backed by the US in its proxy wars against the Soviet Union. After 1992, Slahi left Afghanistan and had no further involvement with al-Qaeda. He returned to Germany, then began working in Canada as an electrical engineer. In 2001, Slahi voluntarily reported to a Mauritanian police station for questioning. Slahi was then extraordinarily rendered by the UShe was abducted and transferred to a number of CIA black sites, where he was interrogated and tortured. Slahi was transferred to the Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba in August 2002. In 2010, US federal district judge James Robertson ruled Slahis detention unlawful and ordered his immediate release. The Obama administration successfully appealed the decision and it was vacated by the DC Circuit Court of Appeals. Slahis habeas corpus case is still pending. The Obama administration has consistently approved Pentagon spending bills to keep the Guantanamo Bay detention camp running. The last detainee released before Slahi was Omar Khadr, a 15-year-old child soldier who spent thirteen years under illegal detention, with ten of those years in the Cuban torture camp. Khadr was released on bail last May, and is now 30 years old. The cutting off of Internet access for Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, is one more ugly episode in a US presidential election campaign that has plumbed the depths of political degradation. Effectively imprisoned in the Ecuadorian embassy in London for over four years, Assange now is faced with a further limitation on his contact with the outside world. On Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry of Ecuador confirmed WikiLeaks charge that Ecuador itself had ordered the severing of Assanges Internet connection under pressure from the US government. In a statement, the ministry said that WikiLeaks had published a wealth of documents impacting on the US election campaign, adding that the government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states and does not interfere in external electoral processes. On that grounds, the statement claimed, the Ecuadorian government decided to restrict access to the communications network at its London embassy. This statement from the bourgeois government of Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa is a study in hypocrisy and cowardice. By abetting the US governments suppression of WikiLeaks, Quito has intervened in the US elections on the side of the ruling establishment and against the rights of the American people. If Correa expects that his professed sensitivity toward the principle of non-intervention will be reciprocated, he should recall the fate of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, who was toppled in a coup orchestrated by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2009. WikiLeaks cited reports that Secretary of State John Kerry had demanded that the government of Ecuador carry out the action on the sidelines of the negotiations surrounding the abortive Colombian peace accord last month in Bogota. The US government intervened to prevent any further exposures that could damage the campaign of Clinton, who has emerged as the clear favorite of the US military and intelligence complex as well as the Wall Street banks. Whether the State Department was the only entity placing pressure on Ecuador on behalf of the Clinton campaign, or whether Wall Street also intervened directly, is unclear. The timing of the Internet cutoff, in the immediate aftermath of the release of Clintons Goldman Sachs speeches, may be more than coincidental. In the spring of 2014, the government of Ecuador agreed to transfer more than half of its gold reserves to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. for three years, in an attempt to raise cash to cover a growing deficit brought on by the collapse in oil prices. It reportedly sent 466,000 ounces of gold to Goldman Sachs, worth about $580 million at the time, in return for high security financial instruments and an anticipated profit on its investment. It is hardly a stretch of the imagination to believe that such a relationship would give Goldman Sachs considerable leverage in relation to the Ecuadorian government. In any case, it is evident that the US ruling establishment is growing increasingly desperate to stanch the flow of previously secret emails and documents that are exposing the real character not only of Clinton, but of capitalist politics as a whole. While WikiLeaks has released over 17,000 emails from the account of Clinton campaign manager and top establishment Democrat John Podesta, it is believed that there are more than 33,000 still to come. The transcripts of Clintons speeches to Goldman Sachs and other top banks and employers groups, for which she was paid on average $200,000 per appearance, are the most incriminating. They expose the workings of the oligarchy that rules America and the thinking and actions of a politician prepared to do anything to advance the interests of this ruling stratum, while simultaneously accruing ever greater riches and power for herself. While on the campaign trail, Clinton has postured as a progressive, determined to hold Wall Streets feet to the fire. But in her speeches to Goldman Sachs, she made clear her unconditional defense of the banks and financial houses. Under conditions of popular outrage against the bankers and their role in dragging millions into crisis in the financial meltdown of 2008, Clinton gave speeches praising the Wall Street financiers and insisting that they were best equipped to regulate themselves. She apologized to them for supporting the toothless Dodd-Frank financial regulatory law, saying that it had to be enacted for political reasons. In front of her Wall Street audiences, Clinton made clear she had no inhibitions about ordering mass slaughter abroad. While telling her public audiences that she supports a no-fly zone in Syria as a humanitarian measure to save lives, she confidentially acknowledged to her Goldman Sachs audience that such an action is going to kill a lot of Syrians and become an American and NATO involvement where you take a lot of civilians. In the same speech she declared her willingness to bomb Iran. The emails have laid bare the nexus of corrupt connections between the State Department, the Clinton Foundation, her various campaigns and her network of financial and corporate donors, which together constitute a quasi-criminal influence-peddling enterprise that could best be described as Clinton, Inc. The revelations contained in the WikiLeaks material have been ignored or downplayed by the corporate media, which instead has focused unrelentingly on the charges of sexual misconduct leveled against Clintons Republican rival, Donald Trump. The Clinton camp itself has sought to deflect any questions regarding what the candidate said in her speeches or the corrupt operations of her campaign by claiming, with no evidence whatsoever, that the material released by WikiLeaks had been hacked by the Russian government and therefore cannot be trusted. This line of argumentation serves not only to divert attention from the WikiLeaks material, but also to further the Clinton campaigns neo-McCarthyite claims of Kremlin intervention on behalf of Trump and advance a propaganda campaign aimed at preparing popular opinion for a direct military confrontation with Russia. There is an air of desperation in the attempt to quash the WikiLeaks material. CNN news anchor Chris Cuomo, an open supporter of Clinton, went so far as to lie to his audience, claiming it was illegal for them to access the emails and insisting they could obtain any information on them only through the filter of the corporate media. Well before the release of documents related to the Democratic Party, the determination of ruling circles to suppress WikiLeaks had found repeated and violent expression. State Department officials have come forward with a report that in 2010, in the midst of WikiLeaks mass release of State Department cables exposing US imperialist operations around the world, Clinton, then secretary of state, asked subordinates, Cant we just drone this guy? She recently said she could not remember the remark, but if she made it, it was a joke. During the same period, however, Clinton supporter and longtime Democratic campaign operative Bob Beckel declared in a television interview in relation to Assange: A dead man cant leak stuff. This guys a traitor, hes treasonous, and he has broken every law of the United States theres only one way to do it: illegally shoot the son of a bitch. To this point, the American ruling class has limited itself to judicial frame-ups and character assassination, counting on the help of its servants within both the media and the pseudo-left, large sections of which have either joined the witch-hunt against Assange or downplayed his victimization. The principal vehicle for this campaign of persecution had been fabricated allegations of sexual misconduct pursued by Swedish authorities acting in league with the US and British governments. Earlier this year, the UNs Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issued findings that Assange had been deprived of his liberty in an arbitrary manner, meaning the body had reached the conclusion that the Swedish case constituted a politically motivated frame-up. In the midst of the current attempt to silence Assange, an even more bizarre and filthy frame-up has been concocted, attempting to smear the WikiLeaks founder with charges of taking Russian money as well as pedophilia. At the center of these allegations is a little known online dating service, Toddandclare.com, which first attempted to lure Assange into a supposed deal to film an ad for the site, for which he supposedly would be paid $1 million, to be provided by the Russian government. When WikiLeaks rejected this preposterous provocation, the same site claimed that Assange had been charged with inappropriate contact through the site with an eight-year-old Canadian child visiting the Bahamas. This accusation was then invoked in an attempt to pressure the UN to drop its demand for an end to the persecution of Assange. Even a cursory investigation makes clear that these allegations constitute a grotesque fabrication. Bahamian police have stated that there are no charges or any case whatsoever against Assange. The dating service has no business address, working phone number or corporate presence anywhere in the US, having all the earmarks of a dummy company created by US intelligence for the purpose of hounding Assange. The use of such tactics is a measure of how terrified the US ruling class has become in the face of growing mass hostility to both major political parties and their two abhorrent candidates. Their fear is that the relentless exposure of the inner workings of a government of the rich, by the rich and for the rich is robbing the existing political setup of what little legitimacy it had left within the population, and creating the conditions for a political radicalization within the working class and social upheavals, whoever is elected on November 8. A United Nations organisation this month expressed grave concern about the living conditions inside the Australian detention centre in the small Pacific island state of Nauru. The Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) conducted a review of the treatment of refugee children in Nauru, focusing on the Australian-controlled Regional Processing Centre (RPC), a prison indefinitely housing 306 men, 55 women and 49 children who sought to reach Australia by boat to seek asylum. In a 17-page report, the committee said the conditions in the RPC, combined with the uncertainty of indefinite detention is generating and exacerbating mental health issues, leading to feelings of hopelessness and often suicidal ideation. Citing evidence from the Moss report, an Australian government-funded review published last year, the committee said children living in the camp face inhuman and degrading treatment, including physical, psychological and sexual abuse. The committee said there were also reports of intimidation, sexual assault, abuse and threats of violence against families living in refugee settlements outside the RPC. The CRCs report noted that many of the children experienced trauma prior to their arrival in Nauru and the subsequent impact of prolonged periods of living in detention-like conditions resulted in cases of attempted suicide, self-immolation, acts of self-harm and depression. Also highlighted was the lack of health care services at the centre. This exacerbated the suffering of those imprisoned, as many have developed chronic conditions as a result of living in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions. The report added that the main medical provider in the RPC has no paediatrician and there is limited access to clean and safe drinking water. The CRC was also concerned at reports indicating that some international organisations have been subjected to intimidation, citing the attempted media blackout on the camp via an increase in visa fees for journalists from $US200 to $8,000 in 2014. The report urged the Nauruan government to immediately transfer all asylum-seeker children and their families out of the RPC and to find permanent resettlement options for refugees, in particular, for children and their families and ensure they are given lawful stay and reasonable access to employment. Thus, while the report detailed the torturous conditions, it directed its recommendations at impoverished Nauru, when the chief responsibility for these prison camps rests with successive Australian governments. Nauru is a tiny nation of around 10,000 people, blighted by a long history of British and Australian colonial oppression, producing poverty and economic backwardness. After heavy phosphate mining exhausted the islands resources, eliminating the countrys only export revenue, unemployment levels skyrocketed to 90 percent in 2000. In 2001, under its so-called Pacific Solution, the Howard Liberal-National government took advantage of this impoverishment to strike a deal with Nauru to build a detention centre in the middle of the island. Nauru became so reliant on the associated income that when the centre was temporarily shut down in 2007, the country lost 20 percent of its income overnight. About 100 Nauruans lost their jobs. About 1,000 other people, or 10 percent of the population, reportedly had depended on their wages. Since the Greens-backed Gillard Labor government reopened the camp in 2012, Australia has used Nauru as a permanent holding camp for asylum seekers, refusing to allow any to settle in Australia. Prime Minister Julia Gillard declared that the detainees must have no advantage over the millions of refugees languishing in camps in the Middle East and Africa, which effectively meant indefinite detention. The cruelty inflicted on refugee children, described in the CRC report, was pioneered by the Keating Labor government in 1992, which introduced mandatory detention of asylum seekers, including children. Australia became the first Western country to implement such a regime. The UN report follows a series of recent revelations and condemnations of the inhumane conditions in Australias detention facilities on Nauru and Papua New Guineas Manus Island. In August this year more than 2,000 incident reports were leaked, detailing serious levels of abuse and trauma in the Nauru camp. Dubbed the Nauru Files, over half the incident reports involved children. The current Liberal-National government has not commented on the UN committees findings. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Immigration Minister Peter Dutton spent the end of last month in the United States promoting Australias refugee policy as the best in the world. Dutton reiterated that the refugee arrangement between Australia and Nauru would continue for decades. According to Fairfax Media, citing well-placed sources, the Turnbull government is continuing to look for another destitute country in which to dump the refugees. Last year, the Murdoch press reported that this search included the impoverished Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan. The author also recommends: Australian government claims refugee policy best in the world [26 September 2016] Bus, subway and trolley operators, cashiers and mechanics voted unanimously last Sunday to shut down Philadelphias transit system if a new labor agreement is not reached before the old contract expires at midnight on October 31. According to Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 234, in a second vote workers rejected any extension of the contract that would compel them to work without a new agreement. The primary issues in dispute involve pensions, health care, and working conditions. If a walkout by 5,700 transit workers took place it would begin November 1 and would shut down Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) in Philadelphia, the nations fifth largest rapid-transit system. The city transportation system has nearly 300 stations, 196 routes, 2,300 vehicles (buses, trolleys, and vans) and more than 450 miles of track. If the dispute is not settled within a week of a walkout, it could disrupt voting on Election Day on November 8. SEPTAs Regional Rail service in areas outside Philadelphia would not be affected. A spokeswoman for SEPTA, Carla Showell-Lee, has said, the parties continue to bargain to reach a new agreementwe hope the union does not exercise its right to strike. She also said a strike vote is not unusual and the vote does not mean a strike will actually occur. After strikes in 2005 and 2009, a two-year pact signed by the TWU prevented a strike in 2014. The TWU, which is aligned with Democratic mayors that run many of Americas big cities, has worked hard to suppress opposition from Philadelphia transit workers, who have a long, militant tradition. If a strike does take place, it would be the tenth in SEPTAS 50-year history, the most of any transit agency in the country. The transit agency has issued no immediate contingency travel plan if the walkout takes place. Negotiations for a new contract officially began on July 13, but union officials say they have actually been negotiating for a couple of years. TWU Local 234 President Willie Brown complained, weve been stonewalled by SEPTA management and their team of outside lawyers. In terms of a walkout, Brown said, thats the only tool we have available to us. We dont have binding arbitration. While binding arbitration is a blatant attack on the democratic rights of workers, which always favors the most powerful financial interests that hold the debt of municipalities and transit systems, it has also provided a cover for the union bureaucracy, which claims that it has no choice but to accept the concessions imposed by an arbitrator. As a result of New York State legislation, TWU Local 100 in New York City is prohibited from striking and both workers and the union can face financially penalties for defying the law. Local 100 has accepted binding arbitration and the stripping of workers right to strike. In Philadelphia, Local president Brown has complained that while top management gets rich retirement benefits, they are demanding cuts from the workers. The union also says they are seeking to increase the cap from $50,000 to $70,000 on which pensions are calculated. The union also claims to be seeking higher wages. According to union sources, the transit agency wants to impose inferior health benefits that would reduce sick leave and limit coverage. There are also fatigue and safety issues. It has been noted that the operators suffer from a lack of rest-time, or what in the industry is called layover time, in between scheduled runs or trips. This creates fatigue especially for the newer employees who due to a lack of seniority have more varied and difficult schedules. This is clearly just as much a safety issue for the riders, since proper rest is necessary for the worker to operate the vehicle at optimal safety. Columnists have already started, as they have in the past, to pit the transit workers against the riding public. However, there is an important difference this year, as is shown by the increased militancy of workers against the corporate concession demands. In Pennsylvania alone, musicians at the Philadelphia Orchestra ended a walkout on October 2, a strike by fellow musicians at the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra has just led to the cancellation of concerts for the next month, and 5,000 faculty and staff members at 15 state-run universities in Pennsylvania State have threatened to walk out today. The growth of strikeswhich also include a walkout by Toledo, Ohio glass workers and Jim Beam whiskey workers in Kentuckyunderscores the fact that workers do not believe the election of either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump will do anything to stop the relentless attack on their living standards, which accelerated under the Obama administration. The so-called economic recovery has produced a boom on Wall Street and in corporate profits, but workers continue to see their wages stagnate or fall, even as the employers, backed by Obamas misnamed Affordable Care Act, shift the cost of health care onto their backs. The Transport Workers Union, with 116,000 members, has used its resources to boost the election fortunes of Hillary Clinton, who along with her husband, former US President Bill Clinton, has made millions in speaking fees for doing the bidding of Wall Street. A struggle by Philadelphia transit workers, however, will thrust them into a political confrontation with the Democratic Party. Without the slightest public discussion or debate, US-backed forces have begun the bloody siege of Mosul, Iraqs second largest city. While the Obama administration denounces Syria and Russia for war crimes in Aleppo, the US is preparing a far greater crime against the 1.5 million people, including 600,000 children, who remain trapped in Mosul. Regardless of who wins the presidential electionsHillary Clinton or Donald Trumpthe American ruling class is determined to exert its domination over the energy-rich Middle East and the world, even if it means war with Russia and China. In this video, the Socialist Equality Partys US presidential candidate, Jerry White, calls on workers and youth to attend the November 5 conference in Detroit Socialism vs. Capitalism and War. While Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump repeats his warnings of systematic vote fraud in every campaign stop, one of the most significant efforts to rig the November 8 election has been authorized by his running mate for vice president, Indiana Governor Mike Pence. Indiana state police raided the offices of the Indiana Voter Registration Project on October 4, one week before the deadline for submitting registration forms, and seized computers, cellphones and an estimated 45,000 completed voter registration applications. According to Craig Varoga, president of Patriot Majority USA, a Democratic Party-aligned group, most of those whose applications were seized are African-American, and they may not be able to vote November 8 because they lack the necessary paperwork. Mike Pence has a well-oiled political machine that is using the Indiana State Police to suppress African American votes and violate the Constitutional rights of tens of thousands of Hoosiers, said Varoga in a statement, calling it voter suppression at its worst. A spokesman for the Indiana State Police issued an unusually harsh statement attacking the voter registration campaign, declaring, Every allegation by Patriot Majority USA against the Indiana State Police is completely false. In fact, it is clear from evidence documented to date that we have uncovered intentional acts of fraud by representatives of Patriot Majority USA. However, the spokesman, Captain David Bursten, admitted only 10 applications had been deemed questionable out of the 28,000 that were seized. Most of these involved incorrect ZIP codes and other peripheral information. There was no evidence that applications had been forged or otherwise altered. After this admission provoked a wave of public criticism, Bursten issued a new accounting, claiming, there are more than 300 copies of voter application forms that fall within the categories of being fraudulent or forged. Even if true, this would amount to barely 1 percent of the total number of applications seized. And these would involve the registration of nonexistent peoplelikely the result of Patriot Majority paying people to collect registration applicationswithout anyone actually voting improperly. In-person vote fraud is so rare that one study found only 31 cases out of more than 1 billion votes cast. The myth of massive in-person vote fraud has been a staple of Republican Party propaganda for more than a decade, used to justify antidemocratic laws that restrict early voting and other efforts to increase turnout by making voting easier for minority workers and the poor. Indiana has been a pioneer in the adoption of strict voter ID laws requiring a photo ID as a condition of registering and voting. The Indiana law was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2008 on a narrow 5-4 vote, against a challenge by civil rights and civil liberties groups who pointed to the openly avowed intention of sponsors of such legislation to reduce minority turnout and aid Republican candidates. According to press reports, the state police investigation began in late August, after county election officials in suburban Hendricks County claimed that some applications that were turned in for processing were missing information or otherwise inaccurate. The investigate expanded to Marion County, the states largest, home to Indianapolis and to the states largest African-American community. Officials said that the investigation into possible vote fraud was initially expanded to seven other counties, including Lake County, which includes Gary, and Allen County, which includes Ft. Wayne, and is now being conducted in 56 of the states 92 counties. Governor Pence, whom Trump selected as his running mate in July, issued a statement after the state police investigation became public, urging supporters to monitor the polls on November 8. If you are concerned about voter integrity and you havent signed up to be a poll watcher, to volunteer at a polling place to be a part of the integrity of that process, then you need to do it, he said. Patriot Majority USA claimed that the state police deliberately intimidated voter registration workers during the raid October 4, prohibiting them from videotaping the raid, handcuffing one African-American worker and denying him the right to call his attorney. The Indiana Voter Registration Project issued a statement saying that it has reviewed tens of thousands of applications and identified a small handful that may have had incomplete or inaccurate information and, in those instances, we immediately informed the Registrar and asked them to double check those forms for accuracy. Both groups are run by longtime Democratic Party operatives, and are funded by Senate Majority PAC, a campaign fund-raising group established by associates of Senator Harry Reid, the current Democratic leader in the Senate. Indiana has a closely contested Senate seat, after incumbent Republican Dan Coats announced his retirement. Meanwhile Trump has repeated his unsupported allegations of widespread vote fraud at the polls, attacking Republican Party officials who have denied that such claims have any basis. Since the Republican Party controls state government in Ohio, North Carolina, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin and other battleground states, Trumps charges amount to suggesting that Republicans are seeking to steal the election from him. One factor increasing the desperation in the Trump campaign is the rising Democratic turnout among early voters in Florida, North Carolina and other states, after court decisions overturned efforts by the Republican-controlled state governments to reduce such access to the polls. In the past few weeks, Socialist Equality Party campaigners have covered many miles of ground leafleting door-to-door through neighborhoods in Huntington, West Virginia. Over the weekend, residents of the Highlawn neighborhood spoke with Naomi Spencer, the SEP candidate for House District 16, about the US elections, poor social conditions, and the need for an independent political movement of the working class. Highlawn is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the city, situated above the Ohio River to the east of Marshall University and surrounded by factories. Many residents are students, working families, and retirees from the steel mills, railroads and other industries. Like many industrial towns, Huntingtons working class neighborhoods are grappling with so-called brownfield sites, shuttered factories, and vacant housing stock. With deindustrialization have come population loss, declining tax revenue, school closures, and a rise in problems like drug addiction and petty crime. Residents in Highlawn were eager to speak, in particular, about the lack of economic prospects in West Virginia and in the industrial economy more broadly, as well as the need for infrastructure repairs and rehabilitative programs for heroin users. Campaigners discussed the SEPs call for a defense of the social rights of the working class, an emergency public works program, and the relationship of social problems with war, inequality, and a breakdown in democratic forms of rule. Bobby Templeton, 70, is retired from the US Postal Service. After working as a mail carrier, he served as the longtime postmaster of the nearby city of Wayne. Campaigners stopped to talk to him as he sat reading on his porch. He said he was reluctantly considering voting for Hillary Clinton. Naomi Spencer explained that the SEP was urging the working class to write in Jerry White for president, and for District 16 voters to cast a ballot for her. Were running on a platform against war, inequality and attacks on democratic rights. We think the working class needs to express its own, independent interests, for peace, equality and democracy. Thats just what we need. Isnt it strange in 2016, that socialism makes the most sense? Bobby said. Youve got my vote, he added, shaking Spencers hand. He said he would write in Jerry White for president, appreciative that he did not have to vote lesser evil. Trumps an unadulterated idiot, he stated, while Clinton was an adulterated one. Molly told us how her credit had been ruined after a lifetime of frugality, because she had been hospitalized and diagnosed with lung cancer. I worked my whole life and built a good credit score. I was diagnosed with cancer just before turning 65, and I burned right through my savings. I got a $36,000 bill for four days in the hospital. Spencer explained the concept of health care and a dignified retirement as social rights. Under socialism, industries like pharmaceuticals and hospitals will be run as public utilities, not for profit, she said, and there will not even be a need for insurance as a business entity. Its arbitrary the way they price medical procedures, Molly commented. Obamacare is just a way to give more money to insurance companies and hospitals. It doesnt deal with the cost at all, and it limits what kind of treatment you can receive. Hospitals gouge you and you have no say in what they can charge for. She told campaigners that she received an itemized bill for her last hospitalization and it included a staggering $980 fee for the application of a bandage after a blood draw. In addition to the strain of battling cancer, Molly is now responsible for raising a four-year-old granddaughter whose parents decided to go a different direction in lifea veiled reference to the shattering impact of the drug epidemic. She wished the SEP campaigners good luck, saying that the working poor needed us. John, a former steel worker and Vietnam veteran, agreed that the working class needed its own party. He was incensed by Trumps dismissal of post-traumatic stress disorder, referencing the fact that 20 veterans commit suicide every day in America, but that he also disliked the direction of American foreign policy and did not care for Clinton. After hearing Clinton refer to the middle class, John said he looked up the term and found the definition to be those earning upwards of $200,000 or more a year. If that is middle class, he asked, then what am I, earning a fraction of that? Spencer said, The truth is were all part of that basket of deplorables or basement dwellers to Clintons social layer. John strongly agreed, responding, Trump is a businessman, but Clinton is a bankers dream. Spencer replied, And neither represent you. John also said he was disgusted by the national chauvinism on display in the election. Were a nation of immigrants, he said, telling campaigners he was proudly the descendant of Lebanese immigrants. Iraqis, Syrians, these immigrants are just coming here to have a better life, he said. They want to make a better life for themselves and their children, and we should let them. Marsha Chapman Wagers is a retired resident who is very active in the community. She spoke with campaigners about the closed Enslow Middle School near her house, the need for increased rehabilitative services for drug addicted people, the arbitrary rise in electricity bills, and the need for a jobs program to rebuild infrastructure and put people to work. Although Marsha is a lifelong Democrat, she said she felt a third party was long overdue. Marsha explained that the Highlawn community was pushing to save a portion of the historic Enslow Middle School, which has been slated for demolition. The gymnasium is larger than the facilities in other schools and had been renovated before the building was closed. Residents said that the vacant property has attracted crime and squatting. Bailey, Marshas 19-year-old neighbor, also spoke with the SEP about the hard conditions facing youth. He was doing yard work in the neighborhood. Were supposed to be the smartest generation yet, but its rough for people right now, Bailey said. We want to work but there arent a lot of options. Spencer pointed out that young people were routinely portrayed as entitled by the media and the political establishment for wanting jobs that paid living wages and a way out from crushing debt. At the same time, the ruling class was smearing retirees and older workers as being entitled for wanting the pensions and social security they had worked all their lives to earn. Marsha and Bailey both agreed that while generations were pitted against one another and blamed as the source of the poor economy, all ages of the working class needed to unite and recognize the common source of their problems. At the heart of the Samajwadi Party conflict is the war of supremacy between Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav and his uncle Minister Shivpal Yadav about who has a greater say in party matters. Samajwadi Pari-war may appear to have ended temporarily, but all is not well between Shivpal, Akhilesh. By Javed M. Ansari : The infighting within the Samajwadi Party shows no signs of abating, at least for now. At the heart of the conflict is the battle for supremacy within the party between Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and his uncle and Irrigation Minister Shivpal Yadav. The stand-off between the two has also led to a divide within the family with SP Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav siding with Shivpal and his cousin and national General Secretary of the party Professor Ram Gopal Yadav throwing his weight behind the beleagured chief minister. advertisement SHIVPAL'S ATTEMPT TO UNDERMINE AKHILESH'S AUTHORITY The current stand-off emanates from Shivpal Yadav's attempt to undercut the authority of the chief minister and his supporters by denying him a say in the distribution of tickets for the assembly election scheduled for early next year, and the SP chief's initial reluctance to name Akhilesh as the party's presumptive CM candidate. After several protests, the SP Chief changed his mind and backed his son for the post. Also read: Mulayam Singh Yadav engaged in drama to save Akhilesh's skin: Mayawati Trouble in the party has been brewing ever since Mulayam Singh Yadav summarily removed Akhilesh Yadav as the state party chief and replaced him with Shivpal Yadav. Since taking over the post, Shivpal has been systematically trying to undermine the authority of the CM, his supporters and Ramgopal Yadav. One of his first acts as state party chief was sacking Ram Gopal Yadav's nephew and party MLC Arvind Pratap Yadav, and a former village head in Etawah Akhilesh Kumar Yadav for their alleged involvement in land-grabbing and other such activities. Some time ago, Shivpal Yadav announced the first list of the party's canidates for the assembly elections without even consulting either the chief minister or Ram Gopal yadav. The SP chief further omplicated matters by his reluctance to categorically back Akhilesh Yadav as the party's CM candidate. RAM GOPAL YADAV SIDES WITH CM The Akhilesh Yadav camp fears that all this is a part of a systematic attempt to undermine him and deny him a say in the party. Professor Ram Gopal Yadav, who has sided with the CM, wrote off an angry letter to his cousin and party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, urging him to intervene and get Shivpal to take back the expulsion of his supporters and to ensure that the CM had a decisive say in ticket distribution." It's preposterous to even suggest that somebody other than the CM will decide who gets the party ticket " a party MP said on the condition of anonymity. Also read: Has Mulayam lost confidence in Akhilesh as UP CM? A two-hour meeting between the SP chief and Ram Gopal Yadav evidently failed to resolve the stand-off. Mulayam reportedly gave no assurances on either the question of cancelling the decision to sack Arvind Yadav and Akhilesh Kumar Yadav or on the all-important question of restoring the CM's right to decide on ticket distribution. advertisement JAN SAMPARK YATRA As of now, an uneasy calm prevails in the SP camp. The chief minister is all set to embark on his Jan Sampark Yatra from the 3rd of November in a bid to rally support for the party and also to demonstrate his support among party cadres. Any attempt to derail or stop him from going ahead with the Yatra could lead to the next flashpoint in the party. Ominously for the party, leaders aligned in his favour have begun to sound out party MPs and MLAs to come out in support of the chief minister. Mulayam Singh Yadav has so far managed to pull back the party from the brink everytime it threatened to implode. The way things stand at the moment, the possibility of a split in the party he helped create cannot be ruled out unless he moves swiftly to take care of the concerns of the CM and his supporters. Also read: Son still rising: UP CM Akhilesh leads popularity vote over father Mulayam by huge margin --- ENDS --- advertisement GADSDEN COUNTY, FL (WTXL) - Gadsden deputies said they arrested a woman after they found her 17-year-old son, who investigators said weighed only 45 pounds when he was declared dead in mother's home. The Gadsden County Sheriff's Office said that 50-year-old Sabrina Robinson was arrested on Tuesday for aggravated child neglect and manslaughter for the death of her 17-year-old son. Deputies said they went to Robinson's home in Havana on Monday. At the home on Salem Lane before officers arrived, paramedics on the scene had already pronounced her son dead. They said that the child was 45 pounds at the time of his death. Further investigation revealed that the body was already beginning to break down. A early autopsy showed that the boy had suffered from severe malnutrition and injuries that matched up with their suspicions of severe neglect. Robinson was transported to the Gadsden County Jail. PERRY, Fla. (WTXL) - The city of Perry is kicking off a popular festival that celebrates the region's main industry. The 61st annual Florida Forest Festival will begin at 6 p.m. with a carnival at the Perry-Foley airport. The Taylor County Chamber of Commerce said that the festival brings more than 20,000 visitors to Perry, doubling the city's population. The chamber said that forestry has been critically important to the county. Dawn Taylor, the executive director of the Taylor County Chamber of Commerce said, "Well, forestry in general is the largest employer of this region, so it is very important. Without it, Perry would probably be very small. But the forest festival started back in 1962 to help with the prevention of forest fires, and that's what started the forest festival." The festival will run through to Saturday. TALLAHASSEE, FL (The News Service of Florida) - With Democrat Patrick Murphy making gains among independent voters, Republican incumbent Marco Rubio's lead in Florida's closely watched U.S. Senate race has narrowed to two points, according to a poll released Tuesday. Rubio leads by a margin of 49 percent to 47 percent in the Quinnipiac University poll, which was conducted before the candidates battled in a televised debate Monday night. The two-point difference is within the poll's margin of error. Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll, pointed to Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's "slipping" poll numbers in analyzing tight U.S. Senate races involving Rubio and other GOP candidates, such as U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa. "For the most part, these Republican Senate candidates, including Marco Rubio in Florida and Pat Toomey in Pennsylvania, will need to run ahead of the party's presidential ticket in order to get re-elected," Brown said in comments released with the poll results. Murphy has repeatedly tried to tie Rubio to Trump, who has been engulfed in controversy because of vulgar comments about women and allegations that he kissed and groped women against their will. During the debate Monday night at the University of Central Florida, Murphy challenged Rubio's continued endorsement of Trump. "This isn't just a binary choice, and there are people that have the courage to stand up and do what is best," Murphy said. "You do have to look your children in the eye, in 10 to 15 years from now, and explain this position." Rubio, who has criticized Trump, replied that his children are why he has maintained his support for Trump against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. "She will redefine the Supreme Court in a way that will redefine the Constitution of the United States for the better part of a quarter-century," Rubio said. A Quinnipiac poll released Oct. 5 showed Rubio leading by four percentage points, while a September poll gave him a seven-point lead. At least part of the narrowing of the race has stemmed from Murphy picking up support from independent voters --- the new poll gave him a slight edge, 47 percent to 46 percent, among independents after he trailed with those voters in the earlier polls. The outcome of the Rubio-Murphy race could help determine which party controls the U.S. Senate after the Nov. 8 elections. Brown said Rubio's ability to receive support from 33 percent of non-white voters has helped buoy his campaign. "Sen. Marco Rubio's upper hand in a too-close-to-call race is at least partially due to his scoring better than most GOP candidates among non-white voters," Brown said. "His third of the minority vote is largely due to his Cuban heritage. If he wins, that will be a lesson for the GOP going forward." The Connecticut-based Quinnipiac, which frequently conducts polls in Florida and other swing states, surveyed 660 likely Florida voters from Oct. 10 to Sunday. The poll has a margin of error of 3.8 percentage points. TAYLOR COUNTY, FL (WTXL) - Hurricane Hermine hit the Big Bend more than six weeks ago. But businesses in Taylor County are still reeling from the damage. The county was granted partial assistance from FEMA and the Small Business Administration (SBA). The Taylor County Chamber of Commerce said businesses are scrambling to get back in shape, even if that means getting help on their own. The chamber said a few businesses have resorted to working with their own insurance companies. Taylor County did not receive individual assistance from FEMA or physical injury disaster loans from the SBA. Chamber Director Dawn Taylor said local businesses needed to act fast to keep from losing revenue with every passing day. "It's very frustrating and disconcerting, just because they've all been struggling," said Taylor, "You know, the economy hasn't been the best the last few years as it is. So, on top of that, this has just been a big hit for them, and they're struggling. They really are." Taylor County Emergency Management is still urging residents to apply for federal assistance. The county is eligible for what's called Economic Injury Disaster loans from the SBA. Mohit Sehgal and Sanaya Irani look oh-so-cute in this new picture. Don't believe us? Here is proof By India Today Web Desk: One of the most loved couples of television world, Sanaya Irani and Mohit Sehgal, are having a blast these days. Be it going for a fun, sporty date, or just chilling in a pool; the two are setting brand new couple goals for everyone. Stunning Sanaya recently posted a super-cute picture of herself with her actor-husband Mohit Sehgal on her personal Instagram account. She had captioned the picture as, "Babies day out." advertisement Also read:Sanaya Irani and Barun Sobti's day out together was a lot of fun; see pic Both Mohit and Sanaya are holding each other in a tight embrace in the middle of a huge swimming pool in the said picture. Babies day out ?????????? A photo posted by Sanaya (@sanayairani) on Oct 18, 2016 at 9:46am PDT Now, isn't that the most adorable thing ever? The two talented actors had met on the sets of the show, Miley Jab Hum Tum and had started dating after some time. After being in a relationship for six years, the good-looking stars decided to take the ultimate plunge--marriage. Yes, Sanaya tied the knot with beau Mohit earlier this year. Looks like their love has only grown stronger post their beautiful wedding. --- ENDS --- By PTI: Boston, Oct 19 (PTI) Researchers claim to have developed the worlds smartest and safest baby bed, which mimics the rhythmic sensations a baby enjoys in the mothers womb to put them to sleep and gives exhausted parents much needed rest. The crib called SNOO starts shaking slowly to help a child go to sleep, and with three built-in microphones it can detect when a baby is crying, and starts playing the sound. advertisement Harvey Karp, pediatrician and child development specialist, developed SNOO in collaboration with Swiss industrial designer, Yves Behar, and engineers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US. SNOOs smart technology responds to crying with increased shushing and rocking, choosing the level that works best for that particular baby, at that particular moment. Within days, babies become better sleepers, giving tired parents much needed rest. SNOO also helps infants develop healthier sleep habits and helps parents learn to read their babys cues, recognising when crying is a sign of hunger and they need a bit soothing. It comforts fussing from fatigue - often in under a minute - but not the cries of hunger or discomfort, researchers said. SNOO comes with a game-changing swaddle that securely attaches to the sleeper and prevents rolling over, making SNOO very safe. "Todays new parents have no experience caring for babies and most have less family support than any generation in history," said Karp. "My greatest hope is that SNOO will give babies healthier sleep and give parents the confidence and rest they need and deserve. SNOO is the first of a series of science-based, smart products," said Karp. SNOO has a responsive, robotic system that knows when babies are upset and automatically reacts to soothe them. The bed is incorporated with an easy, five-second swaddle that is hip-safe and can not unravel and get around a babys face. A unique drive-train and high performance custom motor can quietly rock for millions of cycles - enough to soothe a baby for over 14 hours per day. SNOO comes with a specially engineered noise that changes volume and pitch according to a babys needs: soft, rumbly sounds to promote sleep; louder, high-pitched sounds to soothe upsets. The crib can be connected to a mobile app that allows parents to control SNOO from a distance and to choose when to wean the all-night rocking for an easier transition to the bed. A breathable mesh allows full visibility of the baby from all angles. advertisement "SNOO unlocks the potential that robotic technology has in our lives ? packaged inside a beautiful, ultra-safe, comfortable sleeper," added Behar, also a founder and Principal Designer at fuseproject. PTI NKS SAR SAR --- ENDS --- You are the owner of this article. Robert Rubio, store sales manager for Habitat for Humanity Restore, right, visits with Vance Kegley, a volunteer for the organization for more than 15 years, after receiving the Employee of the Year award during at the Golden Hammer Awards presentation at Habitat for Humanity Restore in Yakima, Wash. on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016. (SHAWN GUST/Yakima Herald-Republic) Submit An Obituary Funeral homes often submit obituaries as a service to the families they are assisting. However, we will be happy to accept obituaries from family members pending proper verification of the death. Go to form By PTI: Bhubaneswar, Oct 18 (PTI) The authorities of the Siksha O Anusandhan University, which runs the Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, today announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the victims familes before suspending four of its staff members. "The authorities will pay an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the next of the kins of the deceased persons and bear all medical expenses of the injured," SOU vice-chancellor Amit Banerjee told reporters here. advertisement Rejecting allegation that the high casualty was due to wrong evacuation process, Banerjee said: "We have followed the best of the evacuation protocol. Had we not followed the casualty would have been more." Banerjee claimed that the fire safety parameters were checked properly only three weeks ago and there was no lacuna on the part of the hospital authorities in the maintenance of the electrical equipment. Expressing deep concern over the incident, the vice- chancellor said that the staff had to take extra precautions while shifting the patients under the support of ventilators. "There were nine to ten people under the ventilator support," he said adding that most of the people died due to asphyxia. Assuring full cooperation to the two government probes, one headed by the Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC), Central Division and another by DMET (director of medical education and training), Banerjee said the authorities have placed four of its staff under suspension. The suspended officers include one fire officer, two engineers and one hospital manager, Banerjee said rejecting allegation that there was any irregularity in the management of the hospital. "We have suspended four officials as part of hospitals bid to maintain transparency. Tomorrow no one should accuse that evidence was tampered with," Banerjee said. He said that the SOA announced a seven-day mourning. The classes will remain suspended for one day today, he said. PTI AAM MD AMS PS --- ENDS --- A military committee headed by Maj. Gen. Yossi Bachar charged with reviewing Operation Protective Edge has published some of its conclusions. Among other points, it has found that the IDF was not adequately prepared based on the amount of Hamas casualties relative to the amount of firepower used against them. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The Bachar Committee examined the issue of tunnels for months, questioning dozens of officers and commanders who took part in the operation. The details of the committee's conclusions were released Tuesday on Army Radio. Hamas militants in a tunnel (Photo: Reuters) The committee determined that ground forces were unprepared to handle tunnels while maneuvering attacks. In fact, only a series of improvisations and changes made on the ground weeks before the war allowed for damage to be caused during fighting. Additionally, the committee found that it took more than a month to successfully strike and halt the tunnels' progress, out of a total of 50 days of fighting. The committee's conclusions indicated that the threat of tunnels was known to forces, but that their method of neutralization during the war along with the amount of tunnels were unknown to commanders prior to the start of hostilities. The committee further found that methods of tunnel destruction were not conducted according to operational doctrine. In fact, a standardized plan did not exist and as such, battalion and company commanders had no precedent to build upon. An organized order of battle against tunnels was only available for special forces units such as Sayeret Matkal, who regularly patrolled along the border and neutralized tunnels before the war. The committee also found that Hamas succeeded in effectively commanding its forces throughout the course of the war despite hundreds of daily, accurate IDF attacks. A Hamas tunnel (Photo: Reuters) The subcommittee in charge of deciding whether to make it public currently has a five-member majority made up of coalition members, with MK Meirav Ben-Ari (Kulanu) probably turning out to be the deciding vote on whether to make the report public. Several of the committee's conclusions were published alongside a report by the State Comptroller on tunnels and the IDF's preparedness. It should also be noted that the Knesset State Control Committee has the authority to prevent the release of the report to the public, even after the approval of Israeli Military Censor. The conclusions of the Bachar-led committee contradict the heroic narrative the IDF attempts to promote. Those within the State Control Committee expressed apprehension over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu possibly exerting his political power over the subcommittee to prevent the report from going public. f the committee would be stopped from going public with its conclusions, the decision could be overturned by petitioning the Israeli High Court of Justice. Education Minister and Bayit Yehudi Leader Naftali Bennett praised the report, calling it "a testament to transparency." He added,"The political echelon should act like the army. This is exactly how you should investigate, and I'm proud of the IDF for being able to examine itself." UNITED NATIONS - The UN peacekeeping chief is heading to the disputed Western Sahara later this week to visit UN troops for the first time since Morocco expelled more than 70 UN civilian staffers in March to protest comments by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Herve Ladsous said Tuesday he will visit Layoune, the largest city in Western Sahara, as well as camps for Sahrawi refugees in neighboring Tindouf, Algeria, and the Moroccan capital, Rabat. He will be the highest-ranking UN official to visit the region since early March when Ban used the word "occupation" in talking about Morocco's involvement in Western Sahara. That led to demonstrations against Ban in Morocco and the government's decision to expel UN civilian workers. Ladsous made the announcement after briefing the UN Security Council. Donald Trump's campaign is bringing President Barack Obama's half-brother to the third and final presidential debate on Wednesday. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The campaign confirmed that Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother Malik will be in the audience during the final showdown between Trump and rival Hillary Clinton. Malik told the New York Post that he's "excited to be at the debate," adding "Trump can make America great again." President Obama with his half-brother Malik Trump, meanwhile, told the paper that Malik, "gets it far better than his brother." Malik Obama first made headline in July when he announced he will vote for Trump in the upcoming presidential elections in November because he likes the Republican nominee and he is unhappy with his brother's leadership. Malik, who is in his 50s, told Reuters by phone from Obama's ancestral home of Kogelo in western Kenya in July that he supports Trump's policies, especially his focus on security. "He appeals to me and also I think that he is down to earth and he speaks from the heart and he is not trying to be politically correct. He's just straight-forward," he said. Malik, a US citizen, has lived in Washington since 1985 where he worked with various firms before becoming an independent financial consultant. Trump's stance against Muslims coming in to the United States was understandable even to Muslims like himself, Malik said. "I'm a Muslim, of course, but you can't have people going around just shooting people and killing people just in the name of Islam," he said. Donald Trump at a campaign rally in North Carolina (Photo: AFP) He criticized President Obama's record in the White House saying he had not done much for the American people and his extended family despite the high expectations that accompanied his election in 2008, both in the United States and Kenya. The two men appear to have drifted apart but were previously close. Malik has visited the president in the Oval office and was also best man at Barack's wedding. Obama's election created much excitement in Kenya especially in Kogelo village where their father was born before going to study at the University of Hawaii. Obama visited Nairobi, in the first ever trip by a sitting US president to the East African nation last July, and promised to visit more often when he leaves office. Malik defended his right to criticize his brother, citing freedom of expression. "To each his own. I speak my mind and I'm not going to be put in a box just because my brother is the President of the United States," Malik said. The candidates have been using their debate guests as a tool to try to get inside their rivals' heads. Clinton is bringing frequent Trump critic and billionaire Mark Cuban and Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO Meg Whitman. Trump invited to the most recent debate three of the women who accused former President Bill Clinton of sexually harassing or assaulting them years ago. Dr. Omar Jaara of An-Najah University appeared on Palestinian television four years ago and said that Moses had led the Muslims out of Egypt and that the subsequent Israeli conquest of the land was the first case of a Palestinian liberation through an armed struggle. He attributed the battle between David and Goliath to the Palestinians as well. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter For a moment, it seemed like a satire program, but it was completely serious. This is our logic, and this is our culture, Jaara explained in the interview, which was recorded by Palestinian Media Watch. The leading Palestinian principle is: Well make every effort to harm Israel, but wont make any effort to improve our situation (Archive photo: AP) Four years have passed and the historian is celebrating. The Palestinian narrative has scored another victory, this time at UNESCO . Allegedly, this not just a victory but an overwhelming victory: Although Brazil and Mexico expressed reservations over the resolution on Tuesday, there was no new vote, and the decision remained unchanged. The Palestinians even managed to convince Christian countries, as Israeli diplomat George Deek tweeted, to adopt a resolution which means that Jesus was a liar. There is no big surprise here. After all, we are living in the era of narratives, which is the post-factual era. It possible that in a year or two, UNESCO or another international organization will adopt a resolution confirming Jaaras narrative about the Exodus from Egypt. But its not a victory. Its actually a defeat. If we wish to know why the Palestinians remain in their grim situation, this self-deception is one of the reasons, and the international support they receive only worsens it. Its not just happening in international bodies with a majority of dark states. The Palestinians are enchanting, or terrorizing, the academia in the free world, to the point that most of its members have become loyal servants of the Palestinian liesorry, the narrative. They are slowly succeeding in turning the Palestinian Nakba into a pivotal, unique event, an ultimate crime, although tens of millions of people have experienced worse cases of expulsion and uprooting. They receive almost absolute support in most leading newspapers in the free world. Nevertheless, they believe the Jews control the academia and the global media. Its not that the Palestinian propaganda is sinking into an abyss of self-deception and illusions on its own. The problem is that this propaganda has become the leading motif not just in institutions with a dark majority, that it has been adoptedor is being encouraged by an absolute majority of human rights organizations in the West. They are always on the Palestinian side, and this support is mainly racism. Because they think the Palestinians can get away with it. The addiction to lies does not change reality and does not solve any problem. On the contrary, it pushes away the chance for reconciliation or peace. It perpetuates Palestinian suffering. It should be mentioned that in Lebanon, for example, there are hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who can only dream about the standard of living of the Palestinians in the West Bank. For decades, they have been suffering from deep discrimination enforced by law, but no one cares about them. No one is fighting for their rights. There has not been a single UN discussion about them. The leading Palestinian principle is: Well make every effort to harm Israel, but we wont make any effort to improve our situation. In practice, they are not really harming Israel; they are harming themselves. After all, the UNESCO resolution does not really help the Palestinians; it just makes them feel that they have scored some virtual, empty victory. All this should not lead to the conclusion that Israel can rest on its laurels. Far from it. The fact that the Palestinians are engaged in self-deception does not call for another freeze or another outpost or another acre. Because we also have people who see it as a victory, and that is self-deception as well. The Palestinians are in over their heads. We should look at what is happening to them so that it wont happen to us too. Jerusalem District Judge Hagit Mak-Kalmanovitch has been the object of threats and criticism recently for her decision to approve the delayed imprisonment of Masbah Abu Sabih, the terrorist who carried out a shooting attack on Jerusalem's Ammunition Hill earlier this month, killing two. On Tuesday, she rejected the application of a defendant accused of joining ISIS to recuse herself on the basis of the public criticism being likely to increase the severity of her position. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The judge addressed the media storm surrounding her in her decision. "Life experience has taught that public discussions via the media are generally short-lived. Things that were yesterday at the top of the world will become in a few days last year's snow," stated the judge, using a Hebrew idiom. Hagit Mak-Kalmanovitch (Photo: Courts website) She also noted that until the trial against the six defendants begin, the storm will continue. Currently, a court case has been brought against six youths from Shuafat and Anata accused of joining ISIS and planning terrorist attacks. One of those defendants applied to have Mak-Kalmanovitch recuse herself. The applicant read in part, "There's a real concern of bias following the unjustified criticism that has been voiced, and there's a concern that Your Honor's position will tend towards severity. As long as the fear exists that the court will be influenced, even subconsciously, by the media, to create a favorable impression of the court, especially when it comes to serious criminal offenses" Mak-Kalmanovitch rejected the application and explained, "Yes, the presiding judge brings with him the baggage that has acquired throughout his life. There is no adult person who is a tabula rasa. Man is but a landscape of his homeland, what his ear and eye have absorbed, views and ideas on various subjects discussed in public, including subjects discussed in the court, are part of that same homeland landscape, but there is a huge gap between exposing the judge to ideas and viewpoints and a real fear of bias when he is sitting in judgment." She continued that the public criticism "which counsel for the respondent has defined as unjustifieddoes not create a fear of bias and does not justify recusal." The security surrounding the judge has been increased following the public criticism. There are people in Israel who have been feeling butterflies in their stomach for a long time now in light of the fact that Egypt, which is experiencing a deep economic crisis , has been purchasing the worlds most expensive weapons systems at quantities that rich Saudi Arabia would take pride in. Only recently, the Egyptian navy received a second Mistral-class helicopter carriera particularly expensive French system which was originally built for the Russian navy. The Egyptians purchased two. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Israeli officials asked Egypt Little Red Riding Hood-style questions: Grandma, why do you need two helicopter carriers? The Egyptians explained that one would protect the exclusive economic zone in the Mediterranean Sea, and the other would maintain Egypts interests in the Red Sea. The assault helicopters on the carriers were purchased by the Egyptians in Russia at full price. The Egyptian navy also purchased four new submarines from Germany and is currently negotiating the purchase of two additional advanced submarines. Egyptian army strikes in Sinai. The Israeli top echelon is increasingly troubled by the recent arms purchases The Russians are also selling Egypt S-400 antiaircraft systems. The Egyptians are buying entire squadrons of SA-17 and SA-22 anti-aircraft missiles. Grandma, Israeli officials ask, why do you need such expensive anti-aircraft systems? Whose fighter jets do you wish to shoot down? The Islamic States planes? Sudans? Does Libya have planes which are threatening you? Israel is wondering where Egypt gets the money from and how these purchases are made possible despite the economic crisis. Another key issue with which Israel has been concerned for years is that the Egyptian army has been conducting major exercises, including one which will soon be held with Russian military forces. The main enemy in these exercises, it is safe to assume, was, and remains, Israel. The helicopter carriers purchased by the Egyptians are called Gamal Abdel Nasser and Anwar El Sadat, names which reflect the different spirit brought by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is wagging a finger at the Muslim Brotherhood. That is also the reason why Israel has chosen to keep the question marks rather than insist on exclamation points. The two countries view the relations between them as a first-rate strategic asset. Egypt deeply appreciates the indirect Israeli aid in the war on ISIS in Sinai . But since the battle in Sinai began, Israel has essentially freed itself from the appendix of the peninsulas demilitarization in the peace agreement. The Egyptian army has been deployed in Sinai with more than 20 regiments, from commando forces to armed forces. For all intents and purposes, Egypt has established two military airports in Sinai. The Egyptian navy has also docked in El-Arish. The Little Red Riding Hood questions about the long teeth grandma is growing have been increasingly troubling the Israeli upper echelon over the past year. The Egyptian economy reached a low point this year due to incomplete economic reforms, failed investments of billions in the expansion of the Suez Canal, a critical blow to tourism, a serious drought, and incorrect usage of the water system which is leading to a drop in the level of the Nile River. Furthermore, the Saudis and the Gulf states are failing to transfer money that was promised to Egypt in the form of joint foundations, loans and grants, and the International Monetary Fund is setting difficult terms for Egyptsuch as a demand to cut bureaucracy, which could raise the unemployment rate to destructive levelsthat are delaying the transfer of a $12 billion grant. In order to escape the day-to-day distress, al-Sisi has handed over entire civil monopolies to the army, allowing it to keep subsidizing basic commodities. The Egyptian army is manufacturing diapers, medicines, cement, flour and more, and is basically managing not only Egyptian security policy but also the national economy. As long as the Egyptian army is growing stronger in order to turn Egypt into a leading force in the Sunni world and to secure al-Sisis regime, Israel is trembling and keeping quiet. But all that could disappear in a minute. According to certain estimates, Egypt could get caught in a social and governmental chaos in as early as 2018. If that happens, all the military strength it is building, including the deployment in Sinai, could take on a differentperhaps hostilemeaning. Someone should start thinking about that in our diligent cabinet. The step, which comes after the October 14 attack on an SSB convoy, will ensure that even if one driver is shot at, the convoy movement is not affected. By Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu: Less than a week after a Sashastra Seema Bal(SSB) jawan was killed and eight others injured in a militant attack in the Zakura area of Srinagar, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh chaired a review meeting of the force today. During the meeting, the SSB informed the minister of a change in its standard operating procedure (SOP) in the wake of increased terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir. The SSB has decided to deploy two trained drivers for every convoy. In a scenario where one driver is shot at, the other can take control of the vehicle. This will ensure that the movement of the convoy, at any moment, is not affected and casualties are avoided. advertisement ALSO READ: SSB jawan killed, 8 others injured in terrorist attack on patrolling party on outskirts of Srinagar MILITANTS HAD ATTACKED CONVOY On October 14, the militants had attacked an SSB convoy which killed 24-year-old jawan Ghanshyam Gujjar. That day, a total of five convoys were carrying 138 jawans to their camp. ALSO WATCH: ALSO READ: Terrorists may target farmers in border areas, warn intelligence agencies The SSB has also asked for more bullet-proof vehicles for its force. Its current fleet is a mix of bullet-proof and non bullet-proof vehicles. With the winter approaching, the force has also requested the Border Security Force for sleeping bags for the jawans till it makes an arrangement on its own. While five battalions of the SSB are deployed in the Valley, in the past few months 34 more companies have been moved to the region. ALSO READ: US to train two Indian officers in investigating terror attacks INCREASE VIGIL ALONG INDO-NEPAL BORDER Director General (DG), SSB, Archana Ramasundaram, briefed Rajnath Singh about the overall functioning of the force, which is mostly deployed along the India-Nepal border. With an increased focus on sealing India's border with Pakistan and Bangladesh, the SSB is looking at increasing the vigil along the India-Nepal border which can be used by terrorists or drug peddlers to infiltrate into the country. ALSO READ: Kashmir: Terrorists snatch 5 service rifles from TV tower guards in Anantnag ALSO READ: Increasing risk to Pak nukes from army not terrorists: Menon --- ENDS --- Russia's military says a US-led coalition airstrike on a Syrian village in the province of Aleppo has killed six civilians. The center says Russian military surveillance means spotted two Belgian F-16 fighter jets over the area at the time of the strike. It noted that Russian and Syrian warplanes were not flying over the area on Tuesday. Russia's Tass news agency reported from Brussels that the Belgian defense minister denied Belgian aircraft had struck the area. A Shi'ite paramilitary force said it would support the Iraqi army's offensive on Mosul, ISIS's last major stronghold in Iraq, raising the risk of sectarian strife in the mainly Sunni region. The Popular Mobilization Force (PMF), a coalition of mostly Iranian-trained militias, said late on Tuesday it would back Iraqi government forces advancing toward Tal Afar, about 55 kilometres (34 miles) west of Mosul. Taking Tal Afar would effectively cut off the escape route for militants wanting to head into neighbouring Syria and would please the Iran-backed army of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. In the past, the Iran Army has accused the US-led anti-ISIS coalition of planning to allow the jihadists such a safe passage. China said on Wednesday that Japan had acted irresponsibly by withholding its 2016 funding for the UN heritage body UNESCO in a dispute over how the 1937 Nanjing Massacre is remembered. UNESCO had decided last year to include documents about the massacre in its "Memory of the World" program. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the massacre was a serious crime and a historical fact recognized by the international community, and that UNESCO was right to include it in the listing. Ties between China and Japan, the world's second- and third-largest economies, have been plagued with a territorial dispute over a group of tiny East China Sea islets and the legacy of Japan's wartime aggression. The State Comptroller issued a report on Tuesday, which included substantial criticism of several political parties. The report issued fines on several accounts, including political party members and leaders' participation in false bookkeeping, receiving illicit contributions and submitting fictitious travel expenses during the last elections and Knesset session. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Right-wing nationalist party Bayit Yehudi was fined the highest, with NIS 1 million for its conduct over the last three years in the Knesset, and an additional NIS 850,000 for its conduct during the last elections season. State Comptroller Yosef Shapira stressed that "Bayit Yehudi did not include the full extent of its expenses in its accounts, including only improper expenses." State Comptroller Yosef Shapira (Photo: Gil Yohanan) Likud was also fined NIS 850,000 for its conduct during the last elections. Both parties' fines were due to the "National Union Rally" conducted two days prior to the elections. During the rally, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Bayit Yehudi Leader Naftali Bennett both gave speeches, with Bennett also taking the stage to strum a guitar and sing "Jerusalem of Gold." The comptroller found that both parties "took an active part in the rally, to the point of having it at least somewhat represent them, thus accepting it as illicit contributions." The state comptroller did not, however, find that the "Israel Wants a Change" rally did not count as illicit contributions to the Zionist Union and Meretz, since the politicians belonging to these factions did not speak at the rally. Rather, "they only passively participated, which does not constitute accepting the minor facilities at the rally as a contribution." Bayit Yehudi Leader Naftali Bennett (Photo: Hillel Meir/TPS) The Joint Listwhich includes the Arab parties Balad and Ra'am-Tal, in addition to the Arab-Jewish party Hadashwas also fined NIS 1.23 million. Most of the sum was due to concerns surrounding Balad's spending, which are currently are under police investigation. Shapira found that the party submitted a fictitious expense report on Election Day for 800 km, which he called "unlikely." Additional parties that were fined by the state comptroller were Yisrael Beytenu (fined NIS 195,000) Eli Yishai-led Yachad party (fined NIS 18,000) and Ale Yarok, which promotes the legalization of marijuana (fined NIS 10,000). The report also found that all the factions apart from Ale Yarok finished the elections with a deficit. Yair Lapid's Yesh Atid led the pack with a NIS 16 million deficit, ultra-Orthodox Mizrahi party Shas found itself NIS 11 million in the red, Likud was found to be NIS 10 million in debt, Yisrael Beytenu and Yachad are each indebted to the tune of NIS 8 million, Bayit Yehudi NIS 4 million, Meretz with NIS 3 million and the Zionist Union with NIS 2 million. While he did not fine the factions that ended up in debt, he did caution them to "act with restraint when using government funding given to them and to use it in accordance to the law and its purpose." Bayit Yehudi responded to the comptroller's report, saying, "We're going to thoroughly study the report and draw our conclusions." Likud's legal council Avi Halevi, also responded to the report. "Likud accepts the comptroller's comments and will fully implement them." Halevi also emphasized that the Likud was found to have run its campaign in an appropriate fashion during the last elections. Yesh Atid reacted to the report, saying, "We're very happy that the state comptroller described our conduct during the 2015 elections in a positive light. Yesh Atid has always held itself to the highest standards of governance and proper management." The state comptroller also looked into non-party organizations that were involved in the last elections. The most noted one was V15, which had actively campaigned to replace Netanyahu as prime minister. The V15 headquarters during the 2015 elections (Photo: Motti Kimchi) Though he did not mention V15 by name, Shapira found that such organizations did not act against the law. "None of the evidence brought before me showed a close relationship between non-party bodies and any of the factions, which would imply that this or that body acted as an extension of a certain faction," he wrote. "Political activity or commercial messages calling to replace the government do not constitute propaganda, nor does calling others to vote for different groups, to the effect that constitutes receiving a donation from a non-party body, particularly an illicit donation," added Shapira in his report. Finally, the report examined "whether political content published by certain newspapers constitutes illicit political faction donations. Shapira stated that this is a complex matter that raises such questions as the newsworthiness of an item compared to content labeled as propaganda, the level of connection a certain publication has to a certain party and what would constitute marking an entire publication as an illicit contribution to a certain faction. Shapira admitted that he lacked the necessary tools to determine these dilemmas and recommended that the legislative bodythe Knessetdiscuss the matter at length. Shapira specifically elaborated on the possibility of the government ordering the shut down of a news publication or party funding as unprecedented steps that that require the Knesset's attention. "This subject is so complex, both legally, publicly and practically speaking, that is should be reviewed by the legislator, with particular attention given to core values, in an effort to create the appropriate balance." WASHINGTON The United States expects ISIS to use crude chemical weapons as it tries to repel an Iraqi-led offensive on the city of Mosul, US officials say, although adding that the group's technical ability to develop such weapons is highly limited. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter US forces have begun to regularly collect shell fragments to test for possible chemical agents, given ISIS's use of mustard agent in the months before Monday's launch of the Mosul offensive, one official said. In a previously undisclosed incident, US forces confirmed the presence of a sulfur mustard agent on ISIS munitions fragments on October 5, a second official said. ISIS had targeted local forces, not US or coalition troops. Mosul region (Photo: AFP) US officials do not believe ISIS has been successful so far at developing chemical weapons with particularly lethal effects, meaning that conventional weapons are still the most dangerous threat for advancing Iraqi and Kurdish forcesand any foreign advisers who get close enough. Suburb of Mosul (Photo: AP) Sulfur mustard agents can cause blistering on exposed skin and lungs. At low doses, however, that would not be deadly. Roughly 5,000 US forces are in Iraq. More than 100 of them are embedded with Iraqi and Kurdish Peshmerga forces involved with the Mosul offensive, advising commanders and helping them ensure coalition air power hits the right targets, officials said. Still, those forces are not at the front lines, they added. Human shields The fall of Mosul would signal the defeat of the ultra-hardline Sunni jihadists in Iraq but could also lead to land grabs and sectarian bloodletting between groups that fought one another after the 2003 overthrow of Saddam Hussein. Fighting in Mosul X US President Barack Obama estimated on Thursday that perhaps 1 million civilians were still in Mosul, creating a challenge for Iraq and its Western backers trying to expel the group through force. "If we aren't successful in helping ordinary people as they're fleeing from ISIL, then that makes us vulnerable to seeing ISIL return," Obama told reporters in Washington. The International Organization for Migrations Iraq chief, Thomas Weiss, said on Tuesday he expected ISIS militants to use Mosul residents as human shields and lent his voice to concerns about the dangers of chemical agents. ISIS tunnel outside of Mosul (Photo: AP) The IOM had not managed to procure many gas masks yet, despite those risks, Weiss said from Baghdad. "We also fear, and there has been some evidence that ISIL might be using chemical weapons. Children, the elderly, disabled, will be particularly vulnerable, Weiss said. Attacking Iraqi forces are still 20 to 50 km from the city itself, and US officials believe that ISIS is most likely to use chemical weapons later in the campaign, in what could be a difficult, protracted battle. The leader of ISIS was reported to be among thousands of hardline militants still in the city, suggesting the group would go to great lengths to repel the coalition. American officials believe some of ISIS's best fighters are in Mosul. A 32-year-old Turkish citizen who was detained for questioning on September 29 on suspicion of security-related offenses was deported back to Turkey from Israel on Wednesday. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Orhan Buyruk, a Muslim, worked for a tourism company and allegedly came to Israel for religious reasons and to pray in Jerusalem. Both before and during his visit, he expressed hostile intentions, principally on social media. The Shin Bet thus decided to detain him for investigation. Orhan Buyruk Protest in Istanbul Wednesday (Photo: AFP) Buyruk with Raed Salah As his actions did not go beyond declarations, it was decided that he would not be indicted, and his deportation from Israel was considered sufficient sanction. The Israeli authorities transferred Buyruk to the Turkish Embassy, which sent him home. On his Facebook timeline, he wrote, "I was released after 21 days, and I'm boarding the 10:35 plane. I thank everybody for the support and the prayers." BEIRUT- Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri intends to endorse Michel Aoun for the vacant presidency, senior political sources said, and the Hezbollah ally could be elected head of state later this month. Long an opponent of the Iran-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah, Hariri would become prime minister again under the plan that could reshape Lebanese politics. It has drawn opposition in his party and a final decision has not yet been taken, allies said. The presidency, which is reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country's sectarian power-sharing arrangements, has been vacant for 2 1/2 years due to political conflicts. Aoun, a veteran politician in his 80s, has long coveted the post. GENEVA- A UN humanitarian aid official says a 72-hour pause in fighting between Yemen's warring sides is a welcome first step, but is urging longer-term access. OCHA's Jamie McGoldrick says Yemen's economy has all but collapsed, damage to a key port has hindered deliveries of food, goods and aid, only about half of hospitals are even partially operating and a cholera outbreak that began three weeks ago could spread. With a 72-hour truce to take effect before midnight Wednesday, McGoldrick told reporters in Geneva by phone that OCHA will focus on reaching previously inaccessible "pockets" of the frontline city of Taiz during the truce. An Israeli traveler in his 50s named Ariel Shreibman was killed on Tuesday in the North Indian state of Uttarakhand. The man reportedly died after falling into the Ganges River. His wife and a fellow hiker managed to call for help and report the incident only a day later. The man's body has been found and is in the custody of local police. Israel's Foreign Affairs Ministry is aiding the family during this time. Five residents of the flashpoint Palestinian village of Ni'lin were arrested for shooting at IDF forces on Yom Kippur, October 11, 2016, it was cleared for publication Wednesday. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter They assailants were arrested in a joint operation conducted by the Shin Bet and the Israel Police just hours after carring out the attack, which concluded with no injuries to IDF forces. IDF returns fire against terrorists shooting at them on Yom Kippur (: ") X In a press release issued by the Shin Bet, the arrested individuals were identified as: Barkat Huajah, 39; Hazme Nefa, 20; Khalil Othman, 23; and Mohammad Huajah, 24. Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit Another 16 year old, whose identity was not revealed due to his age, was also involved in the attack. IDF troops working in conjunction with the Shin Bet (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) According to the investigation of the gunmen, it emerged that they acquired their weapon from an arms dealer in the West Bank before carrying out what was intended to be a lethal shooting attack against IDF soldiers. The weapons used in the attack were confiscated during the arrest, along with the car the five suspects used during its execution. By Shivendra Srivastava: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a notice to government of Odisha, over the fire incident, at the SUM Hospital in Bhubaneswar. At least, 22 persons were reported dead and many injured on October 17 when a major fire broke out in the SUM Hospital and Medical College in Bhubaneswar. More than 40 patients in critical condition were admitted to different hospitals. advertisement Reportedly, the hospital in question was warned in 2013 for not abiding by the safety measures required but the hospital authorities ignored it. In Odisha, out of 568 hospitals, only three have clearance from the department of fire safety. RIGHT TO LIFE The NHRC has observed that the callous attitude and lapses of the authorities, if any, amount to violation of right to life of the patients. It has expressed shock how the state authorities allowed such a large number of hospitals to function without proper fire safety clearance. Also read: Bhubaneswar hospital fire: CM forms probe panel, Centre promises all help Accordingly, the commission has issued a notice to the government of Odisha, through its chief secretary, calling for a report in the matter within six weeks including the relief and rehabilitation granted to the kin of the deceased and the injured. He has also been asked to inform about the steps/ precautions taken or proposed to be taken by the state government to prevent recurrence of such mishaps. Reportedly, the fire started in the operation theatre of the dialysis ward and spread to the ICU and nearby wards. The state government has ordered a probe and has also declared free treatment to all the injured persons. HEALTH MINISTER TAKES STOCK Union Health Minister JP Nadda visited the SUM Hospital today to take stock of the situation. The minister said the fire incident could have happened because of the safety issues. He added that the faith of people needed to be reposed and the state government should take punitive action in the case. Also read: Odisha fire tragedy: 4 hospital officials arrested, Chief Minister Patnaik orders probe Meanwhile, a protest was held outside the hospital over the fire incident. The protesters demanded Rs 15 lakh compensation and jobs for the victims. --- ENDS --- An Israeli hiker was killed while walking along a cliff next to the Ganges River in northern India on Tuesday. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Ariel Freeman, 50, from Moshav Nir Tzvi, was hiking with his wife and fellow trekkers when the tragedy struck. Those accompanying Freeman were only able to report the incident on Wednesday after they reached an area with cell phone service. Ariel Freeman His body was recovered at the scene, and has been taken to the police station in the town of Uttarkashi. The Israeli Foreign Ministry is assisting the family. The local police reported that this is the second time in two weeks that a foreigner had fallen victim to the treacherous mountainous area while hiking. According to police, a group of five hikers began their journey on Monday and attempted to reach the source of the Ganges Riveran 18 kilometer hike. The group continued on their path into Tuesday after sleeping on the trail. Scene of the tragedy "The accident occurred while he was walking and slipped and fell into a fissure," the incident report said. The travelers were planning to hike to the Gangotri Glacier situated over 4,400 meters above sea level, and use the area as a base from which to hike to Mt. Shivling, amongst other mountains. Ariel Freeman . Many people have died attempting to climb the mountains in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, located on the border with Nepal, falling prey to either falls or altitude sickness. Two Polish mountain climbers died in the area a week ago, and a third is still missing. CAIRO - Egypt's highest court on Wednesday quashed death sentences imposed on 14 Islamists over an attack on a police station in protest at the military's overthrow in 2013 of then-President Mohamed Mursi, the state news agency MENA said. It was the court's latest reversal of many of the hundreds of death sentences imposed on Islamists after the ouster of Mursi, a Muslim Brotherhood member, a crackdown strongly criticised by Western government and human rights groups. In Wednesday's decision, the Court of Cassation accepted appeals from the defendants filed last year against a lower criminal court ruling, and ordered them retried. The court also threw out one 10-year prison term in the same case. NAIROBI- Somali security agents have detained a journalist working for pan-Arab television network Al Jazeera together with his cameraman and their driver and fixer, the Qatari channel said on Wednesday. The detentions come less than a week after the offices of a Somali newspaper were raided and its editor held for three days. Security forces and officials frequently detain or threaten journalists whose coverage has offended them. The Islamist militant group al Shabaab also frequently targets reporters. PARIS- France appeared on Wednesday to accept that it would need to keep thousands of troops in Africa's Sahel region for an indefinite period given the ongoing instability and preponderance of Islamist militants. The region, a politically fragile area whose remote desert spaces spanning from Mauritania in the west to Sudan in the east host a medley of jihadist groups, is seen as vulnerable to further attacks after strikes on soft targets in Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast earlier this year. That has been brought further to light after a spike in violence in northern Mali, where France intervened three years ago to drive out al Qaeda-linked militants who hijacked a rebellion in 2012 by ethnic Tuaregs and attempted to take control of the central government in Bamako. Speaking to lawmakers, Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault sought to reassure regional allies that Paris would not abandon them despite pressure on its military that has seen it increase operations in the Middle East, but also on home soil after a series of Islamist attacks. PRAGUE - Czech police have detained a Russian man wanted in connection with hacking attacks on targets in the United States, police said, without giving further details on what the man is wanted for. The arrest was carried out in cooperation with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation and Czech courts would decide on whether he will be extradited to the United States, police said late on Tuesday. A US official told Reuters the man was sought in an "older" hacking case and not for recent political hacks in the United States. The US government this month formally accused Russia for the first time of a campaign of cyber attacks against Democratic Party organisations ahead of the Nov. 8 presidential election. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said a hacking scandal would not be in Russia's interests. The Norwegian military has released pictures taken by surveillance aircraft of a fleet of Russian warships sailing in international waters off the coast of Norway and reported to be heading to Syria. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Photos of the vessels, which include the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov and the Pyotr Velikiy battle cruiser, were taken near Andoya island, in northern Norway on Monday. A spokesman for the Norwegian military intelligence service said the country's armed forces frequently releases such footage, while newspaper VG quoted General Morten Haga Lunde, head of the service, as saying the eight ships involved "will probably play a role in the deciding battle for Aleppo". Russia aircraft carrier Admiral Kuzentsov as photographed by the Norwegian military (Photo: EPA) Battle cruiser Pyotr Velikiy as photographed by the Norwegian military (Photo: Reuters) Russia's TASS state news agency said in July, citing a source, that the Admiral Kuznetsov would take part in the Russian operation in Syria from October to January. The warship would carry 15 Su-33 and MIG-29K jet fighters and over 10 Ka-52K, Ka-27 and Ka-31 helicopters, it said. Russia, which has backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with an air campaign against the rebels fighting him, including in Aleppo, told the Norwegian armed forces the warships were on their way to the Mediterranean Sea, Norwegian media reported. Russia has a naval base in Arkhangelsk, east of Norway's far north. Russian flotilla allegedly heading to Syria as photographed by the Norwegian military (Photo: Reuters) US asks Norway to station troops Meanwhile, The United States wants to send a 300-strong rotational force of US Marines to Norway, a NATO member that shares a border with Russia in the Arctic. Norwegian Defense Ministry spokesman Lars Gjemble said Wednesday that "a limited rotational US Marine Corps presence in Norway is a possible option currently being considered. Maj. Gen. Niel E. Nelson, the Commander of US Marine Corps Forces in Europe and Africa, confirmed the plans in a statement, adding "it would be premature to discuss possible implementation of such an initiative" before the political process is completed. Norwegian soldiers (Photo: AFP) The rotational force would be based in Vaernes in central Norway. Maj. Richard K. Ulsh, a Germany-based Marine Corps spokesman, said it would be the first time US Marines are stationed in Norway. "It enhances our ability to operate alongside the Norwegian Armed Forces during training events and exercises," he said. The United States started rotating troops through Eastern Europe after Moscow's intervention in Ukraine 2014. Some NATO allies neighboring Russia, including the Baltic countries, have asked for a permanent presence of US troops. JUBA- The monitor of South Sudan's peace deal is reporting "near-daily violations" of the cease-fire and says fighting could "trigger an uncontrolled escalation of violence." Festus Mogae said Wednesday that both sides have perpetrated "egregious violations of human rights" including gang rape and killing of civilians. UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous this week told the UN Security Council behind closed doors that South Sudan's government is delaying "as much as possible" the deployment of an additional 4,000 peacekeepers. Ladsous also called for an arms embargo, saying "the economy is bankrupt, yet money is spent on arms" and calling it unacceptable. MINSK- Minsk has emerged as the main contender to host the 2019 edition of the troubled European Games. In comments reported by state news agency Belta, Belarusian National Olympic Committee vice president Maxim Ryzhenkov said "our European partners are very interested in the second European Games taking place in Belarus." The comments came ahead of a meeting of the European Olympic Committees in Minsk this week. The former Soviet republic of Belarus, which has been ruled by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko for more than two decades, could be a controversial choice as host nation because of its record on human rights. Tens of thousands of people gathered at the Western Wall throughout the day Wednesday in what appeared to be defiant display of rejection against UNESCOs Tuesday adoption of a resolution which Israel says denies the deep historic Jewish connection to holy sites in Jerusalem. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The deluge of attendants packed the holy site to its parameters as worshippers sought to participate in the traditional annual blessings given by the high priests during Chol Hamoedthe interim period between Sukkot and Simchat Torah. Priestly blessing at the Kotel on Chol Hamoed X Jews gather for the priestly blessings at the Kotel (Photo: Police Spokesperson's Unit) The celebratory prayer services, which was attended by Israels chief rabbis, took place in particularly enthusiastic fashion as participants demonstrated their disregard for the UNESCO resolution which failed to acknowledge a Jewish connection to the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem by exclusively using the its Islamic appellation. Old City and the holy sites (Photo: Police Spokesperson's Unit) Israel's Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau told Ynet that, contrary to the implicit conclusions of the resolution about Israel's non-existent ties with the holy sites in the Old City, the flocking of thousands of Jews to the Western Wall was illustrative of the reality of the firmly entrenched Jewish roots and its undeniable presence. Photo: Eli Mendelbaum UNESCO can decide what it wants, but the reality is that the nation of Israel comes and votes with its feet and is here. We all look forward to the priestly blessings which conclude with the words, peace in your name (and we hope it) will come about swiftly for the entire world, Rabbi Lau said. Witnessing the gigantic turnout, Western Wall and Holy Sites Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz could also hardly resist expressing his contempt for UNESCOs decision. Sukkot is a festival of solidarity and there is no greater happiness than the solidarity of Israel, he declared. We see this wonderful solidarity today, which transcends (political) camps and ethnicity, all across the Western Wall plaza and this is our answer to UNESCO. Anyone who doubts our connection with the Kotel or the Temple Mount should see the thousands who have gathered here today. This is the answer to the delusional decision. Thousands of women demonstrated for peace outside the Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem on Wednesday evening at an event entitled the "March of Hope." Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The women called on both the Israeli and Palestinian leaderships to take steps to reach a diplomatic agreement. Hadassah Froman, the widow of Rabbi Menachem Froman, and her daughter-in-law Michal Froman, who was wounded in a stabbing attack in 2015, attended the rally. Hadassah Froman and her daughter-in-law (Photo: Amit Shabi) "There is a lot of energy which will lead us on a new pathmaybe even to change. I hope that it will be possible to see the connections and to see what can be done to create a solution," Froman said. Michal attended the rally with her baby daughter. "I believe that the peace we want will happen, and that it will come after we see what is possible and what is definitely not possible. Even the right-wing will work with us towards peace," she said. Sign reads: Rightist, Centrists, and Leftists want a politcal agreement (Photo: Amit Shabi) "Life will be possible for us here only if we stop being victims of terror, of the occupation. We all need to rise up and begin to work very hard for the sake of our lives here," she continued She went on to say that "death only goes in one direction. To choose life is to choose to understand how complicated life is here, and while it is of utmost importance to defend life, it is also important to fully understand the hardships, and to find a way to lend a helping hand. Life here, in this land, will be possible only if we stop blaming each other, only if we stop being victims." The women have marched in different places throughout Israel with people from every sector of Israeli society. Thousands of women marching to Qasr al-Yahud on the border between Isral and Jordan (Photo: Women Wage Peace) They held a multi-faith prayer service at Qasr al-Yahud on the Israel-Jordan border in which 1,000 Palestinian women participated, along with hundreds of Jordanian women on the other side of the border. Head of the Peace Authorities in the Middle East Huda abu al-Arkub from Hebron called for a political agreement between the two sides. At the Jerusalem rally, she said "you have a partner. I'm standing here with Women Wage Peace to say loudly and strongly on behalf of the women of the region: enough! No more war, no more bloodshed, and no more discrimination. No more separation barriers between us!" "The time has come for mutual recognition of our rights to live as free people in the Holy Land. The time has come for our hope to bring us closer to a safer future, so that the next generation of Jews and Palestinians will be able to use their full potential as free people," she continued. "I am here today to tell you that there is indeed a partner for peace. So let us be done with this myth." Participants included, among others, Nobel laureate Leymah Gbowee who helped work for an end to the civil war in her native Liberia, head of the Eshkol Regional Council Gadi Yarkoni and former mayor of the Israeli-Arab city of Sakhnin Mazen Ghanim. The world's largest Sukkah was erected at the end of the rally, wrapped in a quilt with thousands of patches expressing hope for a better future. Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee was rushed to a city nursing home where doctors said he had sustained an orbital injury in a facial bone below the eye. The Chief Minister has ordered a Criminal Investigation Department probe on whether there was any foul play. By Indo-Asian News Service: Trinamool Congress MP and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee was seriously injured on Tuesday when his car met with an accident on the Durgapur Expressway in Hooghly district, police said. Abhishek was rushed to a city nursing home where doctors said he had sustained an orbital injury in a facial bone below the eye. The Chief Minister has ordered a Criminal Investigation Department probe on whether there was any foul play. advertisement Former minister Manas Bhunia, who was part of the convoy but in another vehicle, was safe. CAR UPTURNED AND HIT A DIVIDER Abhishek's car hit the crane of a van towing a snag-hit milk van at Ratanpur, about six km from Singur, when the TMC leader was returning to Kolkata after attending a party programme in Baharampur in Murshidabad district, police said. Trinamool leader Becharam Manna said Avishek's car upturned and hit a divider after the accident. "He is stable, but obviously there is cause for worry because in such cases there may be complications at a later stage," said attending doctor Subir Mondal. "There is no head injury. All his vital parameters are OK. We have done bone and brain scans. But nothing was found. We have to go for repeat tests," Mondal told the media. A 14-member medical team comprising internal medicine and eye specialists, surgeons, neurosurgeon, neurologist and maxilo-facial surgeon has been formed for his treatment. The doctor said no major fracture was diagnosed but he needed to be kept under medical observation. Mamata Banerjee, known for her fondness forAbhishek, rushed to the nursing home. "She was talking to the doctors, and also his nephew," said a nursing home official, Senior Trinamool leaders also reached the health facility to ask after the TMC leader, who represents Diamond Harbour constituency in the 16th Lok Sabha. ALSO READ: Congress faces crisis of survival in Bengal as 2 more MLAs join Trinamool FIR against Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee for making 'gouge out eyes' remark --- ENDS --- MAPUTO- The Mozambique government and opposition party Renamo have resumed despite the Oct. 9 killing of a senior Renamo official by unidentified gunmen, the state news agency AIM said on Wednesday. The death of Jeremias Pondeca, a member of the Joint Commission set up to find ways to overcome a standoff between the government and Renamo over a range of issues, cast a cloud over the negotiations. AIM said the talks, which were originally supposed to have resumed on Monday, did so on Tuesday after a minute's silence for Pondeca. The commission has so far reached no definitive agreement on any of the matters on its agenda, including Renamo's demands for six provincial governors and the inclusion of its militia in the army and police. LAGOS- Emirates airline and Kenya Airways are halting flights to Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, where airlines have been cutting back because of difficulties as the country is entrenched in recession. The airlines will continue flights to Lagos, Nigeria's commercial capital. This comes after United Airline and Iberia pulled out of Nigeria in August, when the government owed international airlines $600 million in sales blocked by a chronic foreign currency shortage caused by slumped oil prices. In September, two Nigerian airlines suspended operations. Emirates said Wednesday the airline is suspending flights from Abuja to Dubai on Oct. 30. Kenya Airways is stopping Abuja-Nairobi flights Nov. 15. NEW YORK- The New York Times has named Arthur Gregg "A.G." Sulzberger as deputy publisher, setting him up to take over for his father, publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. If made publisher, the 36-year-old Sulzberger would be the latest in a long line of family overseers. A.G. Sulzberger's great-great-grandfather took over The Times in 1896, and the family controls the influential paper through a special class of shares. The change comes as the newspaper industry is struggling to adapt to readers' migration online, which has caused print ad revenue to crater. The New York Times has tried to counter that decline by focusing on growing its digital-only subscriptions. The younger Sulzberger, who joined The Times in 2009 after working for Rhode Island and Oregon newspapers, has worked on the editorial side of the paper as a reporter and editor and has also led a team that studied how to tackle the digital transformation. CAIRO- Egypt's government has formed a cabinet-level committee that will determine how much profit can be made from the sale of essential goods, but will not set prices, Prime Minister Sherif Ismail said on Wednesday. Egyptians have complained of shortages and rising prices of basic food items in the past few months, due in part to a shortage of hard currency in the country. The committee will "devise the proper mechanisms" for setting profit margins for sales of basic goods and products both local and imported, the government said in a decree signed by the prime minister and seen by Reuters. It did not specify what the mechanisms would be. The government did not identify which goods would be covered although rice, sugar and wheat are among goods considered essential in Egypt. The US expressed its support for Israeli far-left wing organization B'tselem once again during a special session at the UN Security Council on Wednesday as the council discussed the situation in the Middle East. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Deputy US Ambassador to the UN David Pressman said that he thanks the NGOs which "shared their expertise in changes to zoning laws in Israel and the West Bank." He called on all governments to "promote an atmosphere whereby all voices can be heard." Israeli Ambassador Danny Dannon speaking at the UN X Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Dannon ealier called on the UN to stop funding the organization. In 2016 three UN agencies provided funding for Btselem. This is no coincidence. It is part of a cynical cycle in which the UN funds Btselem and similar organizations who have a particular political agenda. They are then invited to provide so-called expert testimony. This is a direct interference in our democratic process by anti-Israel elements here at the UN. Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Dannon (Photo: UN Photo) This isn't the first time that the US has expressed its support of B'tselem. In an interview with Yedioth Ahronoth Vasquez said that the US is grateful to NGOs such as Btselem and the Peace Now organizationanother left-leaning organization which aims to raise international public awareness about the construction of Israeli settlementswhich was also invited to the session. I wont respond to everything that was said, said Vasquez when asked to clarify the states position on the matter. In general, we believe that a free civil society free of inhibitions is a central component of democracy. The UN Security Council held a special session at the behest of the Palestinians on the subject of the Israeli settlements. Israeli left-wing NGO B'tselem was invited by the Security Council to speak at the council condemning Israel over settlement activities. UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov opened up the session by discussing the latest terror attacks in Israel. B'tselem Head Hagi Elad "If the Palestinians want to establish a state and put an end to the occupation, they must understand that it won't be done through violence, only through negotiations," he said. Mladenov also touched on the subject of Amona saying "Israel is continuing to plan settlements, including giving advanced approval for housing units deep inside the Occupied West Bank. These housing units will separate the northern and southern West Bank, and provide a barrier for the establishment of a future Palestinian state." UNITED NATIONS- The Palestinians urged the UN Security Council on Wednesday to adopt a resolution with serious measures to compel Israel to halt all settlement activities and threatening "consequences" if it continues to violate international law. Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian UN ambassador, told the council Wednesday that an Israeli cessation of all settlement activities and an end to its nearly 50-year occupation of Palestinian territory "are imperative for realizing a just, lasting, comprehensive Palestinian-Israeli peace." Mansour has been sounding out the 15 council members on a new settlements resolution and he is expected to report to the Arab Ministerial Committee which is expected to meet in Cairo before the end of the month to decide on next steps. Israel's Ambassador Danny Danon made no mention of settlements and instead excoriated the UN for its anti-Israel bias. Actor-turned-writer Twinkle Khanna has some interesting things to say about Karva Chauth. By India Today Web Desk: What's the point of fasting on Karva Chauth? Oh no, we are not asking you that, Twinkle Khanna is. And she has a point for it too. The witty Mrs Funnybones author shared her thoughts on Karva Chauth with the world later last night. Looks like she thinks there no point fasting for men after all, since most people these days are already heading for their second marriages by the time they hit 40. advertisement Again, we aren't saying so. She is. These days by 40 u could be on the way to your 2nd marriage so what's the point of fasting-don't need the men to last that long anymore:) Twinkle Khanna (@mrsfunnybones) October 19, 2016 Also read: Why I don't want women to stop Karva Chauth That's not all. Twinkle had a few more reasons as to why people should buy into the scheme of fasting to lengthen their spouse's lives: That is a possibility-so I checked longevity records-100 countries where men without anyone fasting for them live longer than Indian men:) https://t.co/rBspyZDzni Twinkle Khanna (@mrsfunnybones) October 19, 2016 --- ENDS --- This has been a long time in the making, but in our continuing pursuit to bring only the best of firearms, 2nd Amendment and defence related news to our readers, we are very excited to announce the next step in our evolution as a company. As of 2020, Minuteman Review is now the proud owner and operator of Your Defence News, a website with a long history of breaking huge news stories and investigative journalism. We hope you are equally as excited as us. This means that now the teams of Minuteman can combine with the firepower of Your Defence News to stay at the absolute forefront for our readers. Keep an eye. Big things are coming soon. We couldn't be more excited. In the meanwhile, here are some of our most popular posts and categories to keep you busy. Happy shootin' my friends! Buying Guides: Firearms Firearm Accessories Ammunition Gun Safes Scopes & Optics Hunting Air Rifles Best AR-15 Best AR 15 Scope Best Hunting Rifle Best Gun Safe Best AK 47 Best AR 10 Best Glock Triggers Best Glock Best Home Defense Shotgun The RBA has previously warned that the massive number of inner city apartments approaching completion could send some of their developers broke and leave banks nursing big losses. The bank isolated the inner city market, with only a total of 38,000 apartments due for completion in the next three years. However, according to CoreLogic data released last May, the estimated number of apartments due for completion in the whole Brisbane-Melbourne-Sydney market was over 200,000 in the next two years. This is five times higher than the RBAs inner city estimate. While its true that the inner city is a tougher area, particularly in Melbourne and Brisbane, you must look at the total city apartment exposure to understand the magnitude of the problem, wrote Robert Gottliebsen in his business column in The Australian. The Reserve Bank further estimated a total bank exposure of between $30 billion and $50 billion to the three-city inner city mortgage market, which is around 2% to 5% of the banks total exposure. But since these only apply to the inner city market, it is clear that mortgage exposure is substantially greater than the said figures. The inner cities are just about one-fifth of the total market. We are looking at a possible exposure of between $55 billion and $60 billion, or the vast bulk of the banks residential development lending, wrote Gottliebsen. If one major developer goes to the wall, then we will see a disaster and bank losses will be large. According to the August 2016 housing finance data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, mortgage borrowing from owner-occupier comprised of $1.8 billion for dwellings construction, $1 billion for purchase of new dwellings, $6.4 billion for refinancing of established dwellings, and $10.2 billion for purchase of established dwellings. Though refinancing and purchase of established dwellings have trended lower over recent months, CoreLogic head of research Cameron Kusher believes that refinance activity will increase over the coming months. As for the $11.9 billion in investor mortgage lending, it was split between $0.9 billion in construction lending and $11.1 billion for established housing. Although investment demand is lifting, it is not expected to lift to the substantial levels recorded earlier in the current housing cycle, said Kusher. The fading demand from owner-occupiers reflects that many have already upgraded or downgraded in the current cycle. Video footage of the incident showed Supriyo standing on the footboard of a vehicle and a stone landing on his chest. By PTI: Union Minister Babul Supriyo was on Wednesday attacked with bricks allegedly by Trinamool Congress activists here when he was on way to a police station to stage a protest against the arrest of some BJP workers. "I was going to the police station to secure release of some of my partymen. I was hit with bricks and windowpanes of my car were damaged by TMC workers," Supriyo, Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, alleged. advertisement "They also showed black flags. I don't know why the police allowed the mob to come near my car," he said. Video footage of the incident showed Supriyo standing on the footboard of a vehicle and a stone landing on his chest. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) sources said the Union minister received injuries in the attack. L N Meena, police commissioner of Durgapur-Asansol, said BJP supporters had planned to 'gherao' the house of TMC leader and minister Malay Ghatak situated in the Asansol Uttar Police Station area when the trouble began. According to sources, BJP workers were prevented from moving towards the residence of Ghatak which prompted them to proceed towards the Asansol Dakshin Police Station. A clash ensued between the supporters of the BJP and the TMC when the saffron party workers were proceeding for the protest. In all 57 persons have been arrested in connection with the incident, Meena said. Affirming that that they have the right to stage protests, Supriyo claimed BJP workers were beaten up by the TMC men. State BJP president Dilip Ghosh said his party had yesterday protested against cow smuggling in the area when they were beaten up by TMC workers. Some BJP workers were also allegedly picked up by the police whose release Supriyo wanted to secure. Local TMC leader Shivdasan said the BJP workers should have lodged protest with the administration instead of deciding to hold an agitation in front of the minister's house. --- ENDS --- VILLANOVA, Pa. Three Villanova University professors have received grants from the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program to support their research and teaching. Adriano Duque and Irene Kan from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and Tuan Samahon from the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law were each awarded 2016-17 Fulbright U.S. Scholar grants by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES), marking the second consecutive year that three Villanova faculty members received the honor. Each year the Core Fulbright Scholar Program offers more than 500 teaching, research or combination teaching/research awards in over 125 countries. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic and professional achievement as well as a record of service and demonstrated leadership in their respective fields. At Villanova, we pride ourselves on having faculty who are true teacher-scholarsdedicated to excellence in both teaching and research, said Patrick G. Maggitti, PhD, Provost of Villanova University. The consistent success of Villanova faculty in this prestigious, national program speaks volumes about the strength of our academic programs and our longstanding commitment to exceptional teaching and scholarship. Duque, an associate professor in the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures has been awarded a research grant to study Muslim-Christian relations in Morocco. He will spend January through August 2017 at Abdelmalek Essaadi University-Tetouan, conducting research for his project titled: Celebrating John the Baptist: Shared Saint Veneration Among Muslims and Christians in Morocco. Kan, a professor of Psychology, was selected for a Fulbright Scholar Award at the University of Toronto, Ontario (Fall 2016) and a Fulbright Visiting Research Chair award at the University of Lethbridge, Alberta (Spring 2017). While in Toronto, she will be collaborating with scientists at the University of Toronto and the Rotman Research Institute, examining the cognitive architecture and neural bases of human memory. At the University of Lethbridge, Kan will work with researchers at the Department of Neuroscience and the Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, investigating the neural underpinnings of cognitive control and memory monitoring processes. Samahon, a professor and scholar in the areas of constitutional law and federal courts, will serve as a Fulbright scholar with the law faculty at the University of Zagreb in Croatia. He teaches and writes about separation of powers and governmental accountability at the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law. While in Croatia, Samahon will teach a seminar in spring 2017 on comparative approaches to public administrative law, with an emphasis on transparency. Last year, Susan Mackey-Kallis (Communication) and Paul Steege (History) from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and Kim Cahill from the Villanova School of Business were named Fulbright Scholars. For more on the Fulbright Scholars program, click here. The Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES), the scholar division of the Institute of International Education (IIE), is well known for its expertise and extensive experience in conducting international exchange programs for scholars and university administrators. For nearly seventy years, CIES (www.cies.org) has administered the Fulbright Scholar Program, the United States flagship academic exchange effort, on behalf of the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA). About Villanova University: Since 1842, Villanova Universitys Augustinian Catholic intellectual tradition has been the cornerstone of an academic community in which students learn to think critically, act compassionately and succeed while serving others. There are more than 10,000 undergraduate, graduate and law students in the University's six collegesthe College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the Villanova School of Business, the College of Engineering, the College of Nursing, the College of Professional Studies and the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law. Ranked among the nations top universities, Villanova supports its students intellectual growth and prepares them to become ethical leaders who create positive change everywhere life takes them. For more, visit www.villanova.edu. Ahead of the crucial Uttar Pradesh elections, Rajnath Singh and several other union ministers met IAS probationers in the state. By Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu: Months ahead of crucial Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and 11 top union ministers, mostly belonging to poll bound state met 35 IAS officers from UP Cadre, leaving the opposition fuming. The opposition was quick to accuse the BJP of attempting to influence bureaucracy before the polls. Congress leader Satyavrat Chaturvedi told India Today, "The central government has only elections in sight. I have never heard of such a meeting before. It is unhealthy practice. The Election Commission of India should take note." advertisement AIMIM Chief Asauddin Owaisi tweeted "Hope eci will take note,", referring to the Election Commission of India. While Anupriya Patel, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare said "Uttar Pradesh is one of the biggest state. It is important that Centre takes initiative like this. The opposition tries to see politics in everything. It need not be seen through the prism of politics alone." Also read: SP on verge of split? Akhilesh to start UP campaign with Rath Yatra, likely to miss party's silver jubilee celebration CENTRE TO MEET MORE CADRES When asked as to why only UP cadre officers were chosen, not the overall cadre, She defended the government saying " We will be meeting other cadres as well, but in time." Besides Patel, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, Minister of State for Agriculture Sanjeev Balyan, Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi, MoS Food Processing Industries Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti and MoS Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi were present in the interaction. According to a high level source present in the meeting, Rajnath Singh reportedly gave a 'pep talk'. Addressing the probationers of 2014 batch, Singh said, "Most valuable thing you have is your reputation. Don't think if you go to place A from place B, people in place A won't know what you did in place B. Your reputation will travel faster." implying reputation of an officer precedes him/her. Also read: Will BJP's reliance on Modi backfire in UP elections? SHOW SENSITIVITY TO ARMED FORCES Defence Minister Shri Manohar Parrikar said the IAS Officer being the steward of administration in the district, should always show concern to the interests of poor people. He asked them to show sensitivity to issues of the Armed Forces personnel and Ex-Servicemen. But Opposition leaders questioned the timing of the interaction as several young IAS officers serve as returning officers during elections. Also Read: BJP sounds poll bugle in Uttar Pradesh without chief ministerial face, PM Modi to lead rallies The meeting took place in north block. IAS officer cadre controlling authority is Department of Personnel, which also functions from north block was however not part of this meeting. --- ENDS --- San Francisco, Four teenage students have been shot in the shared parking lot of two San Francisco high schools, and one of the students is in critical condition, authorities said. The shooting occurred as students were moving out of school for the day from the June Jordan School for Equity and City Arts and Technology High School, which share a campus, San Francisco Police Officer Carlos Manfredi said yesterday. Three of the victims ran inside the school, and police initially ordered students to stay in place until police searched each room and determined it was not an active shooter situation. A fourth victim hurt in the shooting went to a hospital, Manfredi said. "One female victim has life-threatening injuries to her upper torso," he said. Four male suspects wearing dark hoodies and jeans were seen running away from the area, Manfredi said. The shooters seemed to have targeted the female student, said Karwin Sui, a spokeswoman for the San Francisco Unified School District. The United States has welcomed the Indian government's decision to lift restrictions from some NGOs, saying the move will strengthen civil society in the country. By PTI: The United States has welcomed the Indian government's recent decision to lift restrictions from some NGOs, saying the move will strengthen civil society in the country. "We certainly would welcome and do welcome any actions by governments that support and strengthen civil society. I'd refer you to the Government of India with respect to any specific actions that have been taken regarding the NGOs in India," State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner said yesterday. advertisement WANT A HEALTHY CIVIL SOCIETY IN INDIA: US "But we want to see a strong and healthy civil society throughout the world. And that certainly extends to India, which is a strong democracy," he said. Also read: Obama's successor should meet Modi within first 100 days: US think tank "We believe that a strong and vibrant civil society only strengthens that democracy," he added. Toner said the US supports the very good work of many of these NGOs that they play in strengthening civil society. But it is a for the Government of India to work with them with regard to taxes and other regulations that te NGOs need to comply with on ground. US SUPPORTS NGOs "We are very clear not just with respect to India, but with many countries around the world, about our support for NGOs and the important role that they play in any democratic society. Also read: Centre going easy? After cancelling license of 10,000 NGOs last year, only 1 banned this year "And in so far as we push for a more welcoming environment for these NGOs to work in, thats just the way we work," the deputy spokesman said. --- ENDS --- Buenos Aires: The brutal killing of a 16-year-old girl who was allegedly raped and impaled on a spike by drug dealers has sparked outrage in Argentina, where protesters plan a "women`s strike" Wednesday. Lucia Perez, a high school student in the resort city of Mar del Plata, died on October 8 after being brought to the hospital by two men who said she had overdosed on drugs. But after doctors noticed signs of violent sexual penetration, investigators pieced together a different story. Prosecutors say the two men drugged, raped and impaled her through the anus, causing pain so excruciating that she went into cardiac arrest and died. The lead prosecutor, Maria Isabel Sanchez, could barely hide her disgust. "I know it`s not very professional to say it, but I`m a mother and a woman, and I`ve seen a thousand things in my career, but nothing equal to this litany of abhorrent acts," she said. The killing is just the latest incident of horrific gender violence in Argentina, which has seen more than a year of mass marches to protest brutality against women. Last year in June, protests broke out nationwide over a trio of gruesome killings: a kindergarten teacher whose estranged husband slit her throat in front of her class; a 14-year-old girl whose boyfriend allegedly beat her to death because she got pregnant; and a woman whose ex-boyfriend stabbed her to death in broad daylight at a Buenos Aires cafe. In the latest protest, 50 activist groups have called on women across the country to go on "strike" at 1:00 pm (1400 GMT), taking to the streets dressed in black. One organizer, Sabrina Cartabia, said the goal was to protest not only Perez`s killing, but a culture that values women less than men. That is visible in statistics such as the unemployment rate, she said: 9.3 percent nationally, but 12 percent for women. "In a context of social insecurity, with children to care for and no access to economic autonomy, it`s much more difficult to overcome domestic violence," said Cartabia, a lawyer for an advocacy group called the Women`s Network.Perez met her alleged killers a day before her death, when she and a friend approached them to buy a marijuana joint, prosecutors say. The men -- Matias Farias, 23, and Juan Pablo Offidiani, 41 -- were known for selling drugs near her school and had prior convictions. Investigators say they forced Perez to consume a large amount of cocaine to incapacitate her, then had a violent orgy with her. "Her nose was purple from all the cocaine they made her take," said her father, Guillermo. "We can`t understand such barbarity. It`s impossible to understand," said her mother, Marta Montero. Together, the couple led a protest Saturday in Mar del Plata that drew 1,000 people demanding the judge deny bail for the alleged killers.Despite the protest -- and a long string of others in recent months -- at least four other women in Argentina have been killed by their husbands or exes since Perez`s death. Nationally, domestic violence kills one woman every 36 hours on average. Argentina is one of 16 Latin American countries that have written the crime of "femicide" into their penal codes, setting down harsher punishments for the killing of a woman by a man when gender plays a part in the crime. But the authorities are not doing enough, argued Cartabia, who says Argentine society needs a wake-up call on women`s vulnerable place within it. A decade ago, the activist said, women who suffered domestic abuse took six years to report it on average. "Today, that average has gone down -- by one year," she said. Quito: Ecuador said on Tuesday it had cut the internet access of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is holed up at its London embassy, due to leaks by the anti-secrecy website that could impact the US election. "The government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states. It does not interfere in external electoral processes, nor does it favor any particular candidate," the Ecuadoran Foreign Ministry said in a statement. In consequence, the ministry said, it decided to "temporarily restrict" communications at the embassy. WikiLeaks has published a damaging trove of hacked e-mails from US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton`s campaign in recent weeks. On Monday, it accused Ecuador of cutting off Assange`s Internet communications at the behest of US Secretary of State John Kerry. The United States denied the allegation. "Reports that Secretary Kerry had conversations with Ecuadorian officials about this are simply untrue. Period," State Department spokesman John Kirby said Tuesday. Ecuador also implicitly denied the claim in its statement. "Ecuador`s foreign policy responds to sovereign decisions alone and does not yield to pressure from other states," it said. Ecuador reaffirmed its decision to grant Assange asylum, and said the restriction on communications at its embassy did not hinder WikiLeaks itself. "This temporary restriction does not prevent the WikiLeaks organization from carrying out its journalistic activities," it said. Assange fled to Ecuador`s London embassy in June 2012. The 45-year-old Australian is fighting extradition to Sweden to face a rape accusation. He denies the allegation and says he fears Sweden wants to hand him over to the United States to face trial for the leaking of hundreds of thousands of classified US military and diplomatic documents in 2010. Washington: Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump's ugly and acrimonious battle for the White House is barreling toward the end, with the candidates taking the debate stage tonight for one final primetime showdown. For Trump, the debate is perhaps his last opportunity to turn around a race that appears to be slipping away from him. His predatory comments about women and a flood of sexual assault accusations have deepened his unpopularity with women and limited his pathways to victory. His supporters remain intensely loyal, but there are few signs he's attracting the new backers he desperately needs. Clinton takes the stage facing challenges of her own. While the electoral map currently leans in her favour, the Democrat is facing a new round of questions about her authenticity and trustworthiness, concerns that have trailed her throughout the campaign. The hacking of her top campaign adviser's emails revealed a candidate that is averse to apologizing, can strike a different tone in private than in public, and makes some decisions only after painstaking political deliberations. The last in a trio of presidential debates, tonight's contest in Las Vegas comes just under three weeks from Election Day and with early voting already underway in several key battleground states. Trump has leaned on an increasingly brazen strategy in the campaign's closing weeks, including peddling charges that the election will be rigged, despite no evidence of widespread voter fraud in US presidential contests. He's also charged that Clinton attacked and intimidated women involved with her husband's affairs, bringing three women who accused former President Bill Clinton of unwanted sexual contact and even rape to sit in the audience for the second debate. The former president has never been charged with crimes related to the encounters, though he did settle a sexual harassment lawsuit. Trump is bringing President Barack Obama's half-brother, Malik Obama, as his debate guest. Clinton is bringing billionaire and frequent Trump critic Mark Cuban and Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO Meg Whitman, one of the former secretary of state's highest-profile Republican backers. Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon said the Democratic nominee "will be ready for whatever scorched-earth tactics (Trump) tries" in tonight's debate. Republicans desperately hope Trump can close the campaign by focusing on Clinton's weaknesses, a strategy some privately concede may not be enough at this point for him to win, but could help Republican Senate candidates salvage their races. The businessman has shown flashes of renewed focus in recent days, including highlighting a senior State Department official's request that the FBI help reduce the classification of an email from Clinton's private server. It was to be part of a bargain that would have allowed the FBI to deploy more agents in foreign countries, though it was not immediately clear whether the State Department official or someone at the FBI first raised that prospect. Washington: Ivanka Trump finally broke silence on on the 2005 tape in which Donald trump made sexually aggressive remarks about women, and said that the comments were "clearly inappropriate and offensive." "My father's comments were clearly inappropriate and offensive and I'm glad that he acknowledged this fact with an immediate apology to my family and the American people," CNN quoted Trump's eldest daughter as saying in a statement. She added that her "greatest comfort" is that she knows her father while "most of the people who write about him don't". This gives her the ability to "shrug off" reports she knows are wrong. Ivanka also said that media often refers to her as Trump's 'surrogate wife' which was a "deeply offensive" thing to say. Her statement comes the same day as Melania Trump, who defended her husband and called those accusations "lies" and that Trump was "egged on" into "boy talk". She also said she never heard her husband use that kind of language before. The tape in which Trump bragged about sexually aggressive behaviour toward women was published by The Washington Post and NBC on October 8. Several women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct since then. New York: A closed Catholic church in the US state of Pennsylvania has been sold to a Muslim cultural group for nearly two million dollars to clear debts, a media report said today. The Immaculate Conception BVM Church, situated in Bristol township in Bucks county, was sold for USD 1,775,000 on Friday to the United American Muslim Society (UAMS) of Brooklyn, LevittownNow.Com reported. The money from the sale will go to pay down a debt of USD 704,997 for Immaculate Conception and USD 258,042 for Queen of the Universe, Catholic community. The remaining funds will go to parish savings, Archdiocese of Philadelphia spokesman Ken Gavin was quoted as saying by the report. The church, which closed on January 1, was merged with the Queen of the Universe Parish in 2014. The announcement of the sale was made during weekend masses was "positively received by parishioners", Gavin said. United American Muslim Society is the parent corporation for the Turkish-American Muslim Cultural Association on Levittown Parkway where they are based since 1991. "They are widely known as people of faith, family, prayer and education in the moral life for their children and the families of Bristol Township," Gavin added. Erbil, Iraq: Islamic State has 5,000 to 6,000 fighters defending the city of Mosul against an offensive by Iraqi forces, the head of Iraq`s special forces Lieutenant General Talib Shaghati said on Wednesday. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Monday announced the start of an offensive on the northern city, the last major stronghold of the militants in Iraq, with the backing of a U.S. led coalition. "Intelligence information indicates that there are 5,000 to 6,000 Daesh fighters," Shaghati told a news conference near Erbil, the capital of the Kurdish region east of Mosul, using an Arabic acronym of Islamic State. Riyadh: Saudi Arabia on Wednesday executed a member of the royal family for murder, in a rare case involving one of the thousands of members of the House of Saud. Prince Turki bin Saud al-Kabir was put to death in the capital Riyadh for shooting dead Adel al-Mahemid, a Saudi, during a brawl, the interior ministry said in a statement. Kabir was the 134th local or foreigner put to death this year, according to an AFP tally of ministry statements. The Arab News reported in November 2014 that a court in Riyadh sentenced an unnamed prince to death for killing his friend. He lost his life and another person was injured in anSa exchange of gunfire following a dispute at a camp on the edge of Riyadh in December 2012, the newspaper said. Desert camps are popular gathering places for Saudis. When the killer realised that his victim was a friend and colleague, he informed the police, the Arab News said. The sentence reflected the kingdom's "fair justice system," Arab News quoted the victim's uncle Abdul Rahman al-Falaj as saying. Most people put to death in Saudi Arabia are beheaded with a sword. Saudi Arabia has a strict Islamic legal code under which murder, drug trafficking, armed robbery, rape and apostasy are all punishable by death. Amnesty International says the kingdom carried out at least 158 death sentences in 2015, making it the third most prolific executioner after Iran and Pakistan. Amnesty's figures do not include secretive China. Murder and drug trafficking cases account for the majority of Saudi executions, although 47 people were put to death for "terrorism" on a single day in January. Rights experts have raised concerns about the fairness of trials in the kingdom but the government says the death penalty is a deterrent. New Delhi/Guwahati: Fed up with the "betrayal" by the BJP, major Bodo groups in Assam are determined to go ahead with a 12-hour railway blockade on October 24 to revive the demand for a separate Bodoland state and "expose" the party that rules in the state and Centre. The strike is being spearheaded by the National Democratic Front of Bodo (Progressive), in collaboration with the All Bodo Students' Union (ABSU) and People's Joint Action Committee for Bodoland Movement. The Bodo groups say their faith in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to resolve the Bodoland issue was "misplaced" and they only got "false assurances" from the party -- during the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and the 2016 state elections. The Bodos - Assam's biggest tribal community -- claim the BJP is not even ready to discuss the issue of Bodoland any more. Bodo leaders claim they were rebuffed by BJP leaders whenever they tried to approach them in the past one year. "Before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Rajnath Singh (then BJP president) had assured us that the Bodo issue would be resolved if the Bodos support the BJP. The party fed us with false promises. The thousands of cadre of Bodo militant groups, who gave up arms thinking they would get to realise the dream of Bodoland under the BJP, are now getting increasingly frustrated," Promod Bodo, president ABSU, told IANS. "We have been betrayed, discriminated against, exploited and deprived by the BJP at the Centre, and at the regional level we have been suppressed and oppressed by the Assam government, though our party is part of the ruling coalition. The BJP is playing a game of political hegemony in the state. But we will do everything to achieve Bodoland," he said. Bodo said his community is struggling to preserve its culture and identity. The demand for Bodoland started in 1967. The struggle became an armed conflict after the formation of the Bodo Security Force, a militant group later rechristened NDFB. Currently, two factions of the NDFB -- NDFB (P) led by Gobinda Basumatary and NDFB led by Ranjan Daimary -- are in peace talks with the Centre, while NDFB (S) led by Songibijit I.K. is against holding talks with the Indian government under the Constitutional framework. The Songibijit faction was responsible for the recent killing of 14 civilians in an attack in Assam's Kokrajhar district, that also left 20 injured. The Bodo groups remained silent during the last couple of years waiting for the BJP to act on its assurance. The Bodo groups have decided to resort to a railway blockade on October 24, and are promising more severe measures of protest to make the government heed their demand. Asked if the Bodo community was divided over the Bodoland issue, Promod Bodo denied any differences. He said the Bodo community was united and even the NDFB (S) was ready to join the negotiations if the government had a "proper policy" to resolve the Bodoland issue. Gobinda Basumatary, General Secretary of NDFB (Progressive), told IANS: "We have been betrayed and exploited by the BJP. When the elections came in 2014, the BJP sought our support and assured us a small state within India. We supported the BJP and they came to power. But, in the last two years no talks on the statehood issue were held." Basumatary, the first NDFB militant to give up arms and join the peace process, said during his three meetings with Home Minister Rajnath Singh and more than seven meetings with his deputy Kiren Rijiju over the past two years, there was no response to their demand for a separate state. Another key NDFB leader, Ranjan Daimary, who has joined the peace process, has declined to join the revival plan for Bodoland. He feels that actively participating in the statehood agitation now would hamper the peace process. "After declaration of the ceasefire on August 1, 2011, we entered into formal ceasefire on November 23, 2013, and since then we have been holding talks with the government. We support the movement for Bodoland led by ABSU, but right now we are not involved directly as we are engaged in political dialogue," Daimary told IANS. Chennai: Tamil Nadu's Finance Minister and Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's close confidant O Panneerselvam on Wednesday chaired a meeting of the state cabinet in the absence of the AIADMK chief who is currently under treatment at the Apollo Hospital here. Panneerselvam, who has been given additional charge of Jayalalithaa's eight departments, will hold cabinet meetings while she is in hospital in the days to come. The state cabinet's key agenda today was a discussion on the state's Cauvery waters row with neighbour Karnataka amid calls from the opposition for a meeting of all political parties on the issue. Chennai: Tamil Nadu Finance Minister O Panneerselvam reaches Tamil Nadu Secretariat, to chair Cabinet meeting, today pic.twitter.com/6wBB9geCfY ANI (@ANI_news) October 19, 2016 Meanwhile, there was no update on the Chief Minister's health for the eighth consecutive day. Ever since Jayalalithaa was admitted to Apollo Hospital on September 22, the hospital has been issuing a medical bulletin about her condition at intervals. The last time it issued a health bulletin was on October 10 in which it said that Jayalalithaa is being constantly monitored by intensivists and other consultants. On October 8, the hospital said, "The respiratory support is closely watched and adjusted. Lungs decongestion treatment is being continued. All other comprehensive measures, including nutrition, supportive therapy and passive physiotherapy, are under way." Meanwhile, the AIADMK supporters continued to hold special prayers outside Apollo Hospital for the speedy recovery of Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa. Chennai: Supporters offer prayers outside Apollo Hospital for the speedy recovery of Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa pic.twitter.com/sSFjyk4vWV ANI (@ANI_news) October 19, 2016 The 68-year-old Jayalalithaa was admitted to the hospital for fever and dehydration. The doctors later said she needed a longer stay at the hospital as she was suffering from infection and put her on respiratory support. However, several rumours about her health flew thick and fast during the initial days of her hospitalisation. Following that, Apollo Hospitals started issuing the medical bulletins at regular intervals. The state police started cracking down on the rumour mongers. With PTI inputs By PTI: From K J M Varma Beijing, Oct 19 (PTI) On a high-profile visit here after his spat with the US, the Philippines mercurial President Rodrigo Duterte maintained a low-key stay here today ahead of his key meeting with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping tomorrow to discus the SCS dispute and ways to forge close ties. China rolled out a red carpet for Duterte when he arrived here last night, with Foreign Minister Wang Yi himself present at the airport to receive him saying that the visit is "historic" and that no "individual" or "foreign force" could stand in the way of rebuilding the friendship between China and the Philippines. advertisement "Our arms are open and ready for friendship and cooperation," Wang said. Beijing made no effort to conceal joy over Dutertes break with the US as Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying took a dig at Washington at a media briefing today, saying while people from China and the Philippines are happy about the visit "some people are anxious, upset and have mixed feelings about this". Ahead of Xi-Duterte meeting tomorrow, Chinese officials have been speculating that as both China-Philippines cannot resolve the South China Sea dispute, the only way out is that it should remain a free passage especially for fishermen from both sides provided Manila does not press for implementing an international tribunals ruling that struck down Chinas expansive claims over the area. This was discussed when former president of the Philippines Fidel Ramos visited Hong Kong earlier and held talks with Chinese officials. It is no cake walk for Duterte either, as the arbitration closely backed by the US and Japan was held over the petition filed by the Philippines. Any concession from him on the vexed dispute will have a big fallout at home. For Beijing, his visit was seen as coup of sorts and a turning point over its South China Sea troubles since the tribunals ruling seriously dented its claims. Besides the Philippines, Chinas claims over the South China Sea were contested by Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. On the second day of his landmark visit here, Duterte - who caused ripples all over the world by abusing US President Barack Obama for criticism of his violent crackdown against drug smugglers - kept a low profile meeting Filipino expatriates in the evening. An official with the Philippine delegation said Duterte had cancelled most of his events except for a dinner with Filipino expats. In his interviews with the Chinese official media ahead of his visit, Duterte has reiterated his opposition to foreign interference in the South China Sea, warning that such unwelcome overtures would pose a great threat to regional stability. (MORE) PTI KJV SAI AKJ SAI --- ENDS --- advertisement Raipur: Chhattisgarh Congress on Tuesday suspended its rebel MLA RK Rai for "anti-party" activities. Notably, Rai is considered to be a supporter of Chhattisgarh Janata Congress Party chief Ajit Jogi. Welcoming the decision, Rai said Congress suspended him for speaking against party vice president Rahul Gandhi. "I was told the action has been taken against me for making comments against Rahul Gandhi (in the past). I can't call a donkey a horse. If the party feels my observation is wrong then either it is blind or (is) acting like a blind person," a defiant Rai said in a statement. "I am not at all sad with the move because I am a true and vocal tribal representative. I am free now," said the legislator, adding the decision has once again exposed the "anti-tribal" face of Congress. The decision to suspend the MLA from Gunderdehi was taken by Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee (CPCC) at a meeting of its Coordination Committee here. Chhattisgarh Congress had issued a show cause notice to Rai last week for "anti-party" activities and publicly making statements against the party. The police officer-turned-politician is said to be a staunch supporter of Jogi, who floated his own party after quitting Congress in June this year. Jogi had brought Rai into politics and helped him in getting a ticket from Gunderdehi seat in the 2013 Assembly polls. (With PTI inputs) New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday accused the central government of harassing the Delhi government for doing "good work". After Gulab Singh, in charge of the Aam Aadmi Party`s (AAP) affairs in Gujarat, got bail on Wednesday, Kejriwal asked the central government as to what purpose did his arrest serve. "Gulab gets bail today (Wednesday). FIR against Imran (Environment Minister) quashed by Delhi High Court yesterday (Tuesday). What purpose is served?" the AAP convenor tweeted. "Centre (is) harassing us because Delhi government (is) doing good work," Kejriwal wrote. Gulab Singh, also an AAP legislator in Delhi, was arrested by the Delhi Police on October 16 in Surat -- ahead of Kejriwal`s rally -- on a non-bailable warrant. The warrant was issued in connection with an extortion case after he failed to turn up for interrogation. New Delhi: At least 12 students were today summoned by JNU administration to appear before the proctorial committee in connection with a case involving a missing student amid protests that the Vice Chancellor acted in an "insensitive" manner on the issue. A student of School of Biotechnology, Najeeb Ahmed, allegedly went missing on Saturday following a brawl on the campus the night before. An FIR for kidnapping and wrongfully confining a person was lodged at Vasant Kunj North police station yesterday after the police received a complaint from the student's guardians. "The JNU administration had summoned 12 students to depose before the proctorial committee whose names have been associated with the incidence of violence at Mahi-Mandvi hostel on October 14. "The committee has also asked anyone who wants to depose to come forward and help in the investigation. Condemning the students for blocking the administrative block, JNU teachers also urged the administration to put more pressure on the police to find Ahmed and appealed for him to return without fear of victimisation," a statement said. M Jagadesh Kumar, vice chancellor, JNU and other top officials briefed the media for the first time since the disappearance on October 15 noon and said that all necessary measures have been taken to trace the boy and is also in touch with the family. "But we are really concerned about his safety and is constantly in touch with the police providing them whatever information required. We also appeal to Najeeb if his is reading this to return to the university. We assure him of all help," said Kumar. Accepting the fact that so far no leads have been made on the episode of Ahmed's disappearance from the campus, Kumar added, "nobody knows what has happened to him so far". "The family had filed a missing complaint and when we approached the police we were already told that an FIR has been lodged by the family," said Chintamani Mahapatra, Rector of JNU. The campus remained tense with large number of students gathering at the administrative block in the afternoon to protest. After sloganeering and demonstration the students blocked the gates of the building. After intervention from the security the locks were opened, but in the evening as most of the staff left, the students again continued with the blockade. "The blockade is due to the insensitive way of handling the matter of Najeeb Ahmed -- the violence against him by ABVP which led to him missing from the campus for over five days now and the JNU administration trying to shield the culprits while refusing to lodge an FIR," said Mohit Pandey, president, JNUSU. The situation remained tense with the left-backed JNUSU and ABVP levelling allegations and counter-allegations. ABVP alleged that there is inconsistency in the statements of the JNUSU president Mohit Pandey and the roommate of Ahmad. Panaji: The political 'charge sheet' released by Congress against the BJP-led government in Goa has elicited mixed reactions with the ruling party rubbishing the charges, while the newly formed outfit Goa Forward terming the main Opposition's move as better late than never. "Better late than never that the grand old party (Congress) is trying to behave like the Opposition, which in the last five years it has never appeared to be," Goa Forward spokesman Durgadas Kamat said on the 'charge sheet' released on Monday. "However, some prominent and conspicuous issues that have been overlooked in the charge sheet will lead to obvious suspicions of a joint venture between both the prominent national parties (BJP-Congress) in the state," Kamat said. He said Congress missed to mention the land scam in the guise of promoting Special Economic Zone (SEZ) which was a prominent issue that should have been taken by the state government. Congress' 'charge sheet' nailed the Laxmikant Parsekar government on 25 different counts accusing it of frequent 'U-turns',? broken promises, brazen scams and bad governance. It had also charged BJP of stopping mining activity, paving way for large-scale destruction of coconut trees through amendment to Trees Act, making Goa a 'sin-city' through drugs and prostitution besides criticizing it on other fronts. The ruling party has, however, rubbished the charge sheet claiming that it is not for the Opposition party but people of Goa to evaluate performance of the government in last five years. "People gave BJP a mandate in 2012. BJP was chosen while Congress was shown the door by voters. Now it is for the voters to evaluate our performance," BJP Goa spokesman Kiran Kandolkar said. He ridiculed the 'charge sheet' and said, "people will give hundred per cent marks to the BJP led government for its performance which was people-centric and development oriented." Kandolkar said BJP has fulfilled 90 per cent of the promises it made in the election manifesto that was released during 2012 polls. "People will once again vote for the party," he claimed. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said India was committed to the development of Myanmar as the two countries signed new agreements to enhance bilateral ties during State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi's New Delhi visit. "We have agreed to enhance our engagement in several areas" including in agriculture, renewable energy, and power sector, Modi said in a joint address to the media with Suu Kyi. Underlining that New Delhi had a robust development cooperation programme with Myanmar, Modi told the leader of the National League for Democracy that "India stands shoulder to shoulder with you". "As you lead Myanmar to become a modern and prosperous nation, India and its friendship will stand with you in full support and solidarity." Modi also highlighted India`s security cooperation with the neighbour that has just emerged from years of a military dictatorship with democracy still in its nascent stage. Suu Kyi, a worldwide democracy icon, led the nation`s struggle against the military junta. New Delhi: The Indian Navy and the Defence Ministry on Tuesday maintained silence on induction of its first nuclear submarine Arihant in the force, even as sources indicated the vessel has been inducted. Former Navy Chief Admiral Arun Prakash (retd), however, told IANS that such silence was "customary" as the project is 'top secret' and even the Navy is not aware of the submarine's movements and locations, which are decided by orders from the highest level. The submarine, the lead ship of India's Arihant-class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, has been designed based on the Russian Akula-1 class submarines. Neither Defence Ministry officials, nor the Indian Navy confirmed or denied the media reports on induction of the vessel. Asked about the submarine at a function here, Controller of Warship Production & Acquisition in Indian Navy Vice Admiral G.S. Pabby refused to answer the question. The Vice Admiral, however, said that an interaction will soon be held to answer all questions on the submarine. "There will soon be an opportunity to talk about it," Pabby said. Asked about the induction, officials refused to comment on or off record. However, they indicated that the boat is now part of the Indian Naval fleet, but did not divulge the exact date of induction. Asked about the possible reasons for the secrecy, former Navy chief Admiral Arun Prakash (retired) said the secrecy around the induction of the vessel, being a nuclear submarine, was "customary". "Arihant is an achievement technology wise, but otherwise it is a top secret," Admiral Prakash told IANS. "Its mission is to be a nuclear deterrent. Everything to do with the submarine will be a secret. Its movement, position and location will not even be known to the Navy," he said. "It is not a normal ship; though we would like to show it off, we cannot," he added. The 60,000-tonne submarine was also not included in the International Fleet Review (IFR) hosted by the Indian Navy earlier this year. INS Arihant is India's first indigenous nuclear submarine, and the lead ship of the Arihant-class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, which was launched in 2009. While it was initially expected to go on sea trials by 2012, it did so only in December 2014. The miniaturised nuclear reactor of Arihant, built with Russian help, went critical in August 2013. The submarine completes India's nuclear triad giving it the capability to respond to nuclear strikes from sea, land and air-based systems. The project was under Advanced Technology Vessel programme under the supervision of the Prime Minister's Office and involving agencies and establishments such as the DRDO, the Department of Atomic Energy, the Submarine Design Group of the Directorate of Naval Design, besides companies such as L&T. Its 100-member crew has been trained by Russian specialists, Indian scientists at Bhabha Atomic Research Centre have received significant expertise in reducing the size of the reactor to help it fit into the 10 m diameter hull of the nuclear submarine. India currently operates Russian-origin nuclear-powered submarine INS Chakra, which it leased for 10 years from Russia in 2012. Nuclear submarines have capability to stay out in the sea for longer, and don't need to surface for a long duration. New Delhi: India and China on Wednesday carried out a joint Army exercise in eastern Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir. During the day-long exercise on Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR) a fictitious situation of an earthquake striking an Indian Border village was painted. Thereafter joint teams carried out rescue operations, evacuation and rendering of medical assistance. The Indian team for the exercise was led by Brigadier RS Raman and that of the Chinese was led by Sr Col Fan Jun. This was done as a sequel to the first Joint Exercise held on February 6 in the area of Border Personnel Meeting Hut at Chushul Garrison of Eastern Ladakh, along with Chinese troops of Moldo Garrison. Sources said that in February, the exercise was held in the Chinese side and this time in the Indian side along the line of Actual Control, as per PTI. The exercise was a great success and has not only refined the drills to provide succour to the border population in case of natural calamity but has also increased the level of trust and cooperation between the two border guarding forces along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh, the Army said in a statement here. The joint exercise, compliments the Hand in Hand series of the India-China joint exercises and the effort of both the nations to enhance cooperation and maintain peace and tranquillity along the border areas of India and China, it said. Following are some of the pictures (Courtesy - ANI): (With Agency inputs) Jammu: National Panthers Party chief Harsh Dev Singh criticized the meeting of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leader Agha Syed Hassan Al-Moosvi and Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit on Tuesday and alleged that Islamabad has used Hurriyat to vitiate the peace in Kashmir. "Hurriyat leaders have been allowed an easy access to Pakistan High Commission and they have been meeting the high commissioner earlier also and once again Agha Syed Hassan Al-Moosvi has called on the High Commission of Pakistan. They have discussed Kashmir as well this only shows that how is trying to persuade Hurriyat and other separatist to continue their struggle and crusade against India. That amply reveals their mindset and they are interested in vitiating peace and continue to do so," he said. "There have been several occasions where Hurriyat leaders have been meeting Pakistani high commissioner and Indian government has failed to act against Hurriyat for political reasons because BJP is a partner in PDP government in Kashmir which has a soft corner for the separatists and other Hurriyat leaders," he added. "We believe that government of India needs to assert and it should disallow such meetings because they tend to promote violence in Kashmir and they are being tutored by Pakistan and Islamabad is operating through this Hurriyat and other separatists," Singh told ANI here.Harsh Dev Singh urged the Union government to monitor these meetings sternly. On Tuesday, All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leader Agha Syed Hassan Al-Moosvi met Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit and discussed the situation in Jammu and Kashmir. The meeting comes in the backdrop of continued unrest in the Valley which has been witnessing violent protests since July 8 after the killing of Hizbul terrorist Burhan Wani, who has been hailed by Pakistan government as a "martyr". "The APHC leader Syed Al-Moosvi met Basit at the High Commission here and discussed the situation in the state," Pakistan High Commission sources said. However, they did not divulge any further details of the meeting.Syed Al-Moosvi along with other party leaders had strongly condemned the restrictions and use of force by security personnel. Mosul: After Mosul, will Pakistan become the new base of dreaded terror outfit ISIS? According to a Zee Media report, Pakistan may give shelter to ISIS. But the condition is that ISIS terrorists should help Pakistani Army in carrying out terror attacks on Indian soil. Moreover, according to a report in a foreign newspaper, 300 officers of Pakistan Army are giving training to ISIS terrorists in West Asia. Also, over 2000 retired personnel of Pakistan Army are training ISIS terrorists in Doha, Amman and Ankara. WATCH this detailed report:- Moreover, most of the lone-wolf attacks by ISIS had some Pakistani connection. Earlier, US President Barack Obama had expressed confidence that Iraqi forces and their US-led allies would be able to drive out ISIS from its self-declared capital Mosul as tens of thousands of fighters advanced in an unprecedented offensive to liberate the city. A 94,000-member coalition of Iraqi security forces, Kurdish Peshmerga allies and thousands of irregulars from various minorities are involved in the operation to free Mosul from more than two years of ISIS rule. Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday accused the RSS of deliberately trying to create unrest in Kannur district, which has been marred by political violence in the recent months. He, however, agreed to the Congress-led opposition`s repeated demand in the assembly for a dialogue to ensure peace in the district. Ever since the Vijayan government assumed office in May, seven political murders have taken place in Kannur -- of four activists of the Bharatiya Janata Party and three of the Communist Party of India-Marxist. Senior Congress legislator K.C. Joseph, who represents Irikkur assembly seat in the district, sought to move an adjournment motion to discuss the Kannur violence. "It`s rather strange that whenever the CPI-M rules the state, peace disappears in Kannur district. It`s a matter of deep concern that the violence is unleashed by a party that rules the state and by a party that rules the country," he said. The Congress leader said the Chief Ministers in the past have always taken the lead to hold peace meetings whenever violence broke out. "Now, even after seven murders, the present Chief Minister is silent," Joseph said. In response, Vijayan said Thiruvanthapuram district led in terms of political murders while Kannur was at sixth place. "In Kannur, the RSS is trying to create unrest on purpose. RSS people arrested for crimes in Kannur hail from outside," the Chief Minister said. Former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy requested Vijayan not to let matters drift and urged him to immediately bring all parties to the table to sort out the problem. "The need of the hour is that there should be an overall change from within... that one should not act with vengeance. Now that Chandy and others have asked for peace talks, I am ready," the Chief Minister said. Vijayan said local leaders in Kannur should first sit down for talks and later state-level leaders of political parties can meet in Kannur or the state capital. "I will fix the time and let you know," he added. IAS officer, who was suspended for facilitating a licence under FCRA to Zakir Naik, has been reinstated by the Ministry of Home Affairs. By Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu: Over a month after IAS officer G K Dwivedi was suspended for issuing licence to Zakir Naik's NGO Islamic Research Foundation ( IRF), the senior officer was reinstated by Ministry of Home Affairs. The decision that Naik's NGO could receive foreign grant was renewed by a Home Ministry's division headed by him, leaving the a fuming home ministry red faced. advertisement Dwivedi, along with three of his junior officers in Home Ministry, were suspended on September 1 for allegedly facilitating renewal of the license given under Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) to Naik's IRF. A departmental inquiry was also instituted by the Home Ministry into the issue. Also read : Embarrassed MHA suspends 4 officials over renewal of Zakir Naik's NGO licence Those suspended included two deputy secretaries and one section officer, official sources said. Their fate still hangs in balance. SENIOR OFFICIALS VOUCHED FOR DWIVEDI Today's move comes after representatives of IAS officers' association and senior bureaucrats working in the Home Ministry had vouched for his "integrity and hard work". Earlier in an unprecedented move, 15 Joint Secretaries in Home Ministry met Rajnath Singh to support the suspended officer demanding revocation of his suspension. Also read: Joint secretaries request Rajnath Singh to pardon IAS officer suspended for renewing Zakir Naik's IRF's license The central IAS officers' association had last month also asked the Centre to revoke the suspension of Dwivedi, saying it has led to 'demoralisation' in the rank and file of the officers working in the central secretariat. Dwivedi will however not be reinstated to his earlier position of Joint Secretary in Foreigners Division, a post he held before he was suspended. Also read: Book Zakir Naik under anti-terror law: Solicitor General advises Home Ministry --- ENDS --- Bareilly: A local Samajwadi Party leader and three others have been booked for allegedly looting a roadside restaurant here, police said on wednesday. The owner of 'Netaji Dhaba' at the National Highway by pass, Anil Patel, has alleged that Sandesh Kannaujia, vice-president of the district unit of the Samajwadi Party, and his three associates ate at the restaurant on Monday night and got involved in a brawl with his worker at the time of payment, police said. Patel has alleged that besides getting involved in verbal fight, Kannaujia and his associates also looted cash kept at the cash counter. They also broke chairs and threatened before leaving, police said. A FIR under various sections has been filed against Kannaujia and others and investigations are going on in the case, Superintendent of Police Sameer Saurabh said. Meanwhile, Kannaujia said that the FIR has been filed by his political adversaries and he didn't visit the restaurant that day. Kannaujia said the worker who has accused him of loot has been involved in petty thefts in the past and he (Kannaujia) had opposed his actions about a year ago. Muzaffarnagar: Senior Samajwadi Party leader and UP Cabinet Minister has launched an all-out attack against BJP and levelled some serious allegations against the saffron party. Azam Khan on Monday alleged that BJP can repeat Gujarat and Muzaffarnagar incidents for political gain in the upcoming UP Assembly polls. Talking to reporters here last evening, he also alleged that BJP is trying to polarise voters on the Ram temple issue and create tension in the state. He said the Ram temple case is pending in the Apex court and he has full faith in the judiciary. While they are ready to accept the court's verdict, some people were trying to raise the issue again, he added. Khan, who is in-charge of Muzaffarnagar, attended a meeting on district plan here. A budget of Rs 278 crore has been passed?for 2016-2017 for the plan. He also distributed e-rickshaws to the poor. Washington: The United States has welcomed the Indian government's recent decision to lift the restrictions from some NGOs, saying the move will strengthen civil society in the country. "We certainly would welcome and do welcome any actions by government that support and strengthen civil society. I'd refer you to the Government of India with respect to any specific actions that have been taken regarding the NGOs in India," State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner said yesterday. "But we want to see a strong, healthy civil society throughout the world. And that certainly extends to India, which is a strong democracy," he said. "We believe that a strong and vibrant civil society only strengthens that democracy," he added. Toner said the US supports the very good work of many of these NGOs that they play in strengthening civil society. But it is a for the Government of India to work with them with regard to taxes and other regulations that the NGOs need to comply with on ground. "We are very clear not just with respect to India, but with many countries around the world, about our support for NGOs and the important role that they play in any democratic society." "And in so far as we push for a more welcoming environment for these NGOs to work in, that's just the way we work," the deputy spokesman said. Jammu: Pakistani troops on Wednesday violated ceasefire in Rajouri-Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir, shelling Indian positions with mortar bombs and using automatic arms. "There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Bhimber Gali (BG) Sector from 1630 hours today," PRO Defence said. The Pakistani troops used small arms, automatic weapons and 82 mm mortars bombs to target Indian positions, he said. Indian troops responded appropriately and befittingly, the PRO said, adding there were no casualties till last reports came in. This was the 30th ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir since the Indian army carried out surgical strikes in PoK to destroy terror launching pads. Yesterday, the Pakistani troops fired 82 mm mortar bombs, used small and automatic weapons in firing on Indian forward posts in Laam Battalion area in Naushera from 2030 hours to 0130 hours. Indian troops retaliated and gave befitting reply, he said, adding no one was injured in the ceasefire violation. On October 16, Pakistani troops violated ceasefire twice along LoC in Naushera and Rajouri sectors in which one jawan was martyred. Srinagar: Separatists called protest shutdown paralysed life for 103rd consecutive day in Kashmir Valley, however, authorities on Wednesday did not impose any curfew or restrictions anywhere. "No curfew or restrictions have been imposed anywhere today (Wednesday)," a senior police official said here. "Adequate deployment of security forces have been made to maintain law and order across the valley." Main markets, public transport and other businesses remain closed in the valley for 103rd consecutive day. The unprecedented 103-day-long closure of educational institutions has hit hard the students who have not been able to attend classes in schools, colleges and universities in the last more than three months. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and her cabinet colleague and Education Minister Naeem Akhtar have said that exams for class 10th and 12th will be held in November. The Chief Minister, however, said the state board of school education has been asked to work out "relaxation" for students while setting question papers. She has asked the board to ensure the examinees are asked to reply questions pertaining only to that part of the syllabus which has been taught in the schools till the end of June this year. Students have been protesting against holding of exams in November and want them to be postponed till March next year. There is a growing feeling in the valley that both the government as well as the separatists must stop doing politics in the name of education and all efforts should be made to secure the future of the valley`s children. At least 91 people, majority of them youths, have been killed and over 12,000 injured in the ongoing unrest in Kashmir since July 9, a day after the killing of top militant Burhan Wani in a clash with security forces. Gandhinagar: Gali Janardhan Reddy, once a powerful politician in Karnataka and mining baron, is in news again for spending a fortune on preparations for his daughter's wedding next month. Interestingly, the invite for Reddy's daughter Bramhani's November wedding, which comes in a box, is awesome. The invite looks like an ordinary gem box, but when it is opened a little LCD screen comes alive with song and a text announces "Bramhani Weds Rajeev Reddy". In the video, the Reddys appear to be singing "Atithi Devobhava." The one-minute long video, shot in a Bollywood-like setting, introduces the bride and groom dressed in matching outfits the girl is shown wearing a lehenga and the groom in white stallions. The video ends with a close-up of the family and then the date and venue are announced. Reddy, once an influential figure in Karnataka politics, was behind bars for three years in connection with illegal mining. He was released on bail last year. His daughter's wedding is widely expected to be a star-studded event. Take a look at the amazing wedding invite. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday reserved its judgement on maintainability on the appeal of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala against Tribunal's order of 2007 on Cauvery water row. "Judgement reserved. Interim order of October 18 to continue till further orders," a bench of Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar said. The bench asked the parties to file their written submissions by October 24 and said it would pass the order thereafter. The Centre, through Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, had raised a preliminary objection claiming that the CWDT award amounted to a final decree in the dispute and the apex court had no jurisdiction to hear appeals against the award of the tribunal. Continuing its argument, Karnataka today said that appeals filed by the state against the award of the tribunal was maintainable. Noted jurist and senior advocate Fali S Nariman, appearing for Karnataka, said the Supreme Court had the jurisdiction to adjudicate the appeals filed by the state against the award of tribunal. The court also reprimanded the Karnataka government for releasing water to Tamil Nadu on a daily basis until further orders. The tribunal, in a unanimous decision passed on February 5, 2007, had determined the total availability of water in the Cauvery basin, at 740 tmcft at the Lower Coleroon Anicut site, including 14 tmcft for environmental protection and seepage into the sea. The final award made an annual allocation of 419 tmcft to Tamil Nadu in the entire Cauvery basin, 270 tmcft to Karnataka, 30 tmcft to Kerala and 7 tmcft to Puducherry. On the other hand, Karnataka government today said that it would stick to the Supreme Court direction to the state to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu. "We will stick to the Supreme Court order. I want to say no more than that," Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister T B Jayachandra told reporters on the sidelines of a media briefing on Cabinet meeting. Siddaramaiah, who had been expressing his inability to share more water with Tamil Nadu since long, yesterday had told media that there's no water left in state reservoir. Also read: No water in Karnataka's reservoirs, says Siddaramaiah ahead of SC hearing on Cauvery dispute The Chief Minister made these remarks shortly after the Supreme Court had ordered Karnataka government to release 2,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu until further orders. Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday charged the RSS and BJP with "deliberately" creating tension in Kannur district and said the government proposes to hold peace talks to end the blood shed. "The government was taking all initiatives and police was acting impartially," he said, while replying to a notice seeking adjournment motion on the frequent clashes between CPI(M)-BJP in Kannur. The notice was moved by former minister, KC Joseph of the Congress. Vijayan alleged that the RSS and BJP were "deliberately" creating tension in Kannur. On the opposition demand for convening an all party meeting to establish peace in the area, Vijayan said, the government was not averse to it. "But, first let us convene a district level meeting in Kannur for peace and later, if necessary, a state level meeting can be held," he said. Joseph said the district has witnessed seven political murders after the LDF came to power four months ago, and blamed both CPI(M) and BJP for the violence. Both the parties were "two sides of the same coin," he said, urged them to shed the "attitude of an eye for an eye." A UDF delegation had called on the Chief Minister yesterday and appealed to him to convene an all-party meeting to work out a strategy to end political violence in Kannur, where two CPI(M) and BJP workers were killed earlier this month. Thane: An acid-laden container truck overturned on the busy Ghodbunder road here this morning and the leaking acid's fumes spread in the area, prompting authorities to evacuate a school in the vicinity. The speeding truck carrying several drums of hydrochloric acid toppled near the Gaimukh octroi post at around 8 AM, Thane Municipal Corporation's Regional Disaster Management Cell chief Santosh Kadam said. As a result, the acid from the drums started leaking. Since the acid fumes engulfed the entire area, a school and octroi post close to the mishap spot were closed and children and staff sent home, he said. The truck driver sustained injuries in the mishap and was rushed to hospital. The firemen and disaster management cell personnel rushed to the site, Kadam said, adding work was on to remove the truck from the road. Meanwhile, another container truck also overturned in the same area. However, its driver and cleaner fled from the spot. Mumbai: A day after the pilot of a private airline reported seeing a drone near the city airport, three persons were on Wednesday arrested for flying the drone. Rahul Rajkumar Jaiswal (24), Rana Subhash Singh (25) and Vidhichand Jaiswal (45) were arrested by Crime Branch unit-11, police said. The pilot of IndiGo Airlines flight from Dehradun had told authorities on Tuesday that he spotted a drone some 100 metres below the aircraft, while landing at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport at around 7.30 pm. During investigation, it was revealed a drone camera was being used as part of preparations for a film shoot in Charkop area of Western suburbs. The actual film shoot was scheduled later, they said. The pilot's information had led to a security alert. Police seized the drone camera and an iPad from the accused. Rahul and Rana were handling the camera, while Vidhichand runs a business of renting out drones, police said. The trio, booked under IPC Sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 287 (negligent conduct with respect to machinery) and 336 (act endangering life or personal safety of others), was handed over to Charkop Police after registration of an FIR. Further investigation is on, police added. Use of drones in Mumbai's skies has been banned. Bhubaneswar: With the demand for the arrest of the owner of the Sum Hospital gaining momentum, where 21 people died in a major fire, the Commissioner of Police, Bhubaneswar-Cuttack on Wednesday issued a 'Look Out Circular' against two senior members of Sikshya O Anusandhan Charitable Trust which runs the hospital. Commisioner of Police YB Khurania told reporters that the Look Out Circular (LOC) was issued against Manoj Nayak and Saswati Das, both trustees of the Sikshya O Anusandhan Charitable Trust. The police also informed the local airport authorities about the LOC against the two persons. The police also apprised the Union Home Ministry of the action, he said. The two cannot leave the city without prior permission of the police and they need to cooperate with the investigation, Khurania said. The police issued the LOC hours after Union Health Minister J P Nadda asked the state government not to allow the persons responsible for the hospital fire "go scot free". The Union Minister also said it was the responsibility of the state government to bring back people's trust on the health system by taking action against the persons responsible for the incident. Local people earlier in the day staged a demonstration in front of Sum Hospital demanding arrest of its "owner". Nayak is the chairman of the Sikshya O Anusandhan Charitable Trust under which the Sikshya O Anusandhan University has been established. The Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital is affiliated to the Sikshya O Anusandhan University. Bhubaneshwar: The SUM Hospital here, where a devastating blaze on Monday claimed 21 lives, was running without fire safety clearance, Union Health Minister JP Nadda said on Wednesday, even as the police issued a 'Lookout Circular' against two members of the trust that runs the facility. The Minister, who visited various hospitals to inquire about the condition of those injured, said the Centre would soon issue a fresh advisory to all states to avoid repeat of such incidents. "The hospital did not have fire safety measures in place. In spite of that, the hospital was running. It is a serious matter," Nadda told reporters, terming the tragedy as "very serious, worrisome and shocking". Under pressure for arresting the owner of the hospital, the the Commissioner of Police, Bhubaneswar-Cuttack issued a 'Lookout Circular' against two senior members of Sikshya O Anusandhan Charitable Trust which runs the hospital. Commisioner of Police Y B Khurania told reporters that the Circular (LOC) was issued against Manoj Nayak and Saswati Das who cannot leave the city without prior police permission as they needed to cooperate with the probe. The Union Home Ministry has been informed about the circular. Airport authorities have been asked not to let them leave the city in case they make an attempt. Meanwhile, in a startling claim, the National Human Rights Commission said only three of Odisha's 568 hospitals have fire safety clearance and issued a notice to the state government over the hospital tragedy, the worst of its kind in the state. "In Odisha, out of 568 hospitals, only three have clearance of the department of fire safety," the NHRC said in a statement today and issued a notice to the Odisha Chief Secretary, seeking a report in the matter within six weeks, including on the relief and rehabilitation efforts for the next of kin of the deceased and the injured. "We have to see that such incidents do not repeat. I will ask the officials to make more stringent provisions. I will personally see which issues need to be revisited. A fresh advisory will be given to all the states so that such incidents do not take place anywhere," Nadda told reporters before winding up his one-day visit to the state. Though fire safety is a matter related to Home department, Health department also has a responsibility to ensure safety of patients in hospitals, he said. Nadda held discussion with health officials and assured support to the state government for providing treatment to those injured in the fire. "I am not here for a blame game. Our priority is (providing) proper treatment to those injured in the fire at the medical facility two days ago," he said. Nadda visited the injured undergoing treatment at AIIMS, Capital Hospital, AMRI Hospital and KIMS and enquired about their condition. Bhubaneswar: Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Wednesday inspected the SUM hospital where a massive fire mishap had claimed the lives of at least 20 people on Monday and assured full help to kith and kin of the victims and those injured in the tragic incident. Prima facie I found some safety issues which need to be addressed, people's faith need to be reposed, JP Nadda said. We see some protocol breach in the incident. Inquiry report will come soon. State govt should take punitive action, Nadda added. The health minister made these remarks shortly after arriving here to take stock of the situation arising out of Sum hospital fire tragedy that happened on Monday evening. Prima facie I find some safety issues which need to be addressed, people's faith need to be reposed: JP Nadda #SumHospitalFireMishap pic.twitter.com/fdmLmLHnel ANI (@ANI_news) October 19, 2016 Meanwhile, the NHRC today issued a notice to the government of Odisha over fire in connection with the tragedy. However, massive protests erupted in the state capital with the protesters demanding the arrest of SUM hospital authorities and adequate compensation. The fire tragedy at SUM hospital in Bhubaneswar killed at least 20 persons while several injured. According to reports, the minister also held a review meeting with the central and state government health officials on the latest situation immediately after arriving here from New Delhi at 10 am. Must Read: Bhubaneswar fire tragedy: Sum Hospital superintendent, three others arrested Nadda will also visit AIIMS, Bhubaneswar to supervise the treatment of injured persons in the fire tragedy before leaving Delhi in the afternoon, said a release. Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had directed Nadda to monitor the situation and provide all support to the state government for treatment of injured patients. Meanwhile, the superintendent of Sum Hospital and three others were arrested by Khandagiri police for the incident yesterday. Must Read: Sum Hospital superintendent, three others arrested Those arrested are Superintendent of Sum Hospital, Pushpraj Samantsinghar, Electrical Maintenance Engineer Amulya Sahu, Fire Safety Officer Santosh Das and Junior Electrical Engineer Malay Sahu, said Commissioner of Police YB Khurania. Khurania said the officials were arrested on the basis of the preliminary inquiry report of the fire officer and the FIR filed by the Fire Services department at the Khandagiri police station where a case in this regard has been registered today. The four were booked under Sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 285 (negligent conduct with respect to fire and combustible materials) and 34 (common intent) of the IPC, Khurania said. Also, the Director General of Fire Service, Binay Behera submitted a report to the state government on the fire that ravaged parts of the private hospital last night in which 20 people died and many were injured. Behera in his report has mentioned that fire safety norms as per the 2013 guidelines were not followed by the hospital authorities, an official said, as per PTI. A senior police official said more arrests in the case cannot be ruled out at this stage. Most of the deaths in the four-storey hospital took place due to suffocation and asphyxiation, a senior official said, adding that majority of the patients at the ICU were on ventilator support. The authorities of the Siksha 'O' Anusandhan University (SOU), which runs the Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the victims' families. SOU vice-chancellor Amit Banerjee told reporters that ICU and dialysis unit of the hospital have been sealed to ensure a proper investigation. The blaze was suspected to have been triggered by an electric short circuit in the dialysis ward on the first floor which spread to the nearby ICU. The fire rapidly spread to other areas on the same floor of the hospital building. Chennai: An AIADMK leader C Ponnaiyan said on Wednesday that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa was making good progress. He added that there was absolutely no cause for any concern. Ponnaiyan was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times, Amma has begun talking to people. She spoke to Dr Richard Beale from England and thanked him for taking good care of her. The AIADMK leader added that he was in regular touch with Dr Beale. She has had a lung infection and because of that she had breathing trouble as well. That is why she was being given respiratory support, which is a normal medical procedure. She has responded very well to the treatment, he said. Ponnaian was further quoted as saying by the media house, The hospital is very annoyed with criticism that its health bulletins were contradictory and short on facts. These allegations were made by opposition DMK." The last bulletin on Jayalalithaas health condition was issued on October 10 by the hospital. Puratchi Thalaivi Amma is being constantly monitored by expert panel -Apollo Hospital. pic.twitter.com/9vUKEULo6s AIADMK (@AIADMKOfficial) October 10, 2016 68-year-old Jayalalithaa was admitted to the Apollo hospital on September 22 after she complained of fever and dehydration. Panneerselvam holds first Cabinet meeting after Jayalalithaa's illness Meanwhile, for the first time after the Tamil Nadu Governor re-allocated the portfolios of Jayalalithaa, state Finance Minister O Panneerselvam today presided over a meeting of the state cabinet to discuss, among other matters, the vexed Cauvery issue. Although the government did not release details of the agenda of the meeting, the Cabinet is understood to have deliberated on the ongoing Cauvery water sharing dispute with Karnataka, besides other subjects, as per PTI. The meeting also comes ahead of the scheduled onset of north-east monsoon later this month. The rains in December last year had wreaked havoc, flooding Chennai and nearby districts. Last week, Tamil Nadu Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao had allotted the portfolios including Home held by Jayalalithaa to Panneerselvam, till the time she returned to resume official duties. Portfolios looked after by Honourable Amma have been allocated to Finance Minister O. Panneerselvam on the advice of Puratchi Thalaivi Amma. AIADMK (@AIADMKOfficial) October 11, 2016 Puratchi Thalaivi Amma will continue to be the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. AIADMK (@AIADMKOfficial) October 11, 2016 The government released photographs of today's Cabinet meeting, where Panneerselvam was seen seated with a picture of Jayalalithaa placed on his desk. The nearly hour-long meeting was held in the backdrop of the ongoing Cauvery water sharing row with Karnataka and demands by Opposition parties for an all-party meeting on the issue. Farmers' bodies and political parties had staged a two-day state-wide rail blockade ending Tuesday, urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Management Board. The Raj Bhavan had last week in a release, said Paneerselvam, who holds the Administrative Reforms portfolio, in addition to Finance, "will also preside over cabinet meetings." The last Cabinet meeting held by Jayalalithaa was in July this year to discuss the state budget. (With Agency inputs) Lucknow: The Yadav split is again out in the open. The rift between Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav on Wednesday reached new heights. In a major development, Akhilesh Yadav today shot a letter to his father and party chief Mulayam saying, he has decided to go ahead with 'Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra' from November 03, 2016, which was earlier scheduled to begin from October 03, 2016. Interestingly, the letter has been also addressed to UP Cabinet Minister Shivpal Singh Yadav and Ram Gopal Yadav. Giving justification to go ahead with the 'yatra', the Chief Minister said, political parties have started their political campaign for the 2017 UP Assembly elections, but SP which had decided to launch its campaign from October 03, had to delay it due to some reasons. Thus, in order to form the next government in the crucial state, I have decided to launch the programme on November 03. However, it's not clear, whether Akhilesh would boycott the silver jubilee celebrations of Samajwadi Party on November 5 in the state capital. The development comes at a time when efforts are reportedly underway for a patch-up between Mulayam-Shivpal and Akhilesh Yadav. Earlier in the day, Akhilesh, Shivpal Yadav, and Mulayam held a closed-door meeting at party supremo's 5 Vikramaditya Marg residence to discuss poll strategy. According to party sources, Akhilesh is adamant on his demands of revoking the expulsion of youth leaders, some of whom are MLCs, and having his say in the ticket distribution. He had last month hit back over his removal from the party post by stripping Shivpal of his key ministerial portfolios but had to retreat as Mulayam stepped in. The infighting continues unabated with Mulayam siding with Shivpal and his cousin Ram Gopal throwing his weight behind the the Chief Minister. The distribution of tickets and whether Akhilesh should be projected as CM candidate remain a bone of contention. Political observers feel that the ongoing power struggle in the ruling party will hamper the Yadav family in the 2017 UP polls. Meanwhile, a section of youth leaders of the Samajwadi Party on Tuesday virtually revolted against party chief, saying they would boycott the silver jubilee celebrations of the party on November 5. This group of youth leaders is considered close to Chief Minister. The youth leaders also alleged that senior leaders, like council member Sunil Singh Yadav, Anand Bhadouria, Arvind Pratap Singh Yadav, Sanjay Lathar, Brijesh Yadav, Mohd Abad and Gaurav Dubey, were expelled from the party on fake complaints. These leaders were expelled by state party chief Shivpal Singh Yadav last month for allegedly raising slogans and protesting outside the house of Mulayam Singh Yadav. Yadav himself had chided these young leaders, calling them "worthless" and "good for nothing". Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday launched a programme for distributing new ration cards bearing his photograph and name, which the rival parties dubbed as a "cheap political gimmick" in view of the Assembly polls due next year. He, however, sought to downplay the issue, saying it was important for people to know who was working for them. "Under the National Food Security Act, 3.15 crore ration cards have been printed. The Act was implemented in the state on March 1. Under it, those having 'Antyoday' cards will be given 35 kg food grains, while 'Grasthi' card holders will get 5 kg food grains per month," he said at the programme at his official residence. "People may question why there is a photograph of the Chief Minister on the bag of ration or on the ration card. If we are helping the poor, there should be some publicity of it. It is important for people to know who is working for them," he said. BJP and Congress denounced the Samajwadi Party government's move to put the Chief Minister's photograph on the new ration cards. "The CM should not have put his photo on the ration cards. It has been done in view of the Assembly polls," Congress state unit Vice President Satyadev Tripathi said. BJP said it was a Central government scheme. "Putting the Chief Minister's photo on ration cards is objectionable. It's a cheap publicity gimmick for political gains," party spokesman Harish Chandra Srivasta said. Haridwar: Controversial 'godwoman' Radhe Maa has landed in soup again. This time the Mumbai-based godwoman has courted a controversy for offering prayers at the famous Har-ki-Pauri ghat in Haridwar wearing shoes. A video of the godwoman, dressed in her traditional red saree, wearing heavy make-up and holding a trident in one hand, has now come to fore in which she can be seen offering prayers wearing shoes. The video shows Radhe Maa, who is surrounded by her followers, offering prayers amid chanting of mantras and bhajans. The self-proclaimed godwoman has been in news for many wrong reasons in past too. Radhe Maa was recently accused in a dowry harassment case and questioned by the Mumbai Police. In more trouble for the self-proclaimed spiritual leader, an advocate in Bhopal had lodged a complaint against her for hurting religious sentiments. The Mumbai-based 50-year-old become a social media rage after a video clip emerged of her dancing to a Bollywood tune and still images showed her lounging on a sofa in a red miniskirt and knee-high boots. Watch the video here. New Delhi: In what may give the opposition parties fresh ammunition to target the saffron party in the run up to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy on Wednesday stirred a controversy with his remark that his party would unite the Hindu community by resolving the Ram Temple issue and divide the minorities in order to emerge victorious in the politically crucial state. "Development is necessary to win election in the nation but it is not everything. To win the elections, it is important to focus on our priority. The conspiracy played against us in the past was to divide the Hindus and unite the minorities. But this time we will do just the opposite, we will unite the Hindus and will divide the minorities as much as possible," Swamy told ANI. Highlighting the pro-development initiatives of former prime ministers Rajiv Gandhi and PV Narasimha Rao besides Congress veteran Morarji Desai, Swamy said that they failed to win the elections for their party despite all efforts. Swamy said it is important to focus on three issues to win the elections that is corruption, development and the Ram Temple issue.The BJP leader further said it is impossible that the Ram Temple issue does not attract eyeballs at a time when election is scheduled to take place in Uttar Pradesh. Early today, Swamy said the Ram Temple issue is part of the BJP`s 2014 manifesto, adding it is the party`s obligation to the people to deliver on this promise. "The Ram issue is a part of our manifesto in 2014, how can we run away from it? We have to deliver," Swamy told ANI. Yesterday, the Congress accused the BJP for selling the name of Lord Ram to siphon off a victory in Uttar Pradesh. "The Congress has nothing to do with the BJP constructing a museum there (Ayodhya), or the Samajwadi Party organising things for the Ramayana mela. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is selling the name of Ram in the wake of coming UP polls," said Congress leader DP Singh. Rajya Sabha MP Vinay Katiyar, on the other hand, asked the BJP-led Central government to intensify its efforts to construct Ram temple in Ayodhya instead of giving `lollipop` (Ram museum) to please the people, who are demanding the construction of the temple. "It`s a big mistake; effort should be made to construct the Ram Mandir (temple); this "lolipapi" (handing over Ramayana Museum as lollipop to please the people who are demanding the construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya) won`t work. People ask when will be the Ram Temple constructed? This (Ramayana Museum) is a lollipop, it doesn`t have much importance, and thus, they should make positive effort. I would have said this had I been there. It`s good that I did not go there," Katiyar told ANI. Kano: Boko Haram has burnt down a village neighbouring the northeast Nigerian town of Chibok where the group kidnapped over 200 schoolgirls two years ago, local residents said Wednesday. A group of Boko Haram gunmen invaded Goptari, 10 kilometres from Chibok, late Tuesday and set it on fire after looting food supplies and livestock. The attack underscores the continued threat of Boko Haram in Nigeria`s volatile northeast, where the military is still battling for control despite making gains against the insurgents over the past year. "They attacked the village around 8:00 pm (1900GMT), firing heavy guns which made people flee into the bush," Samson Bulus from nearby Kautikeri village told AFP. "The Boko Haram raiders looted homes and shops, taking along food supplies and livestock before burning the entire village," he said. Luka Damina, another Kautikeri resident said troops in Chibok engaged the attackers in gun battle but were subdued by the insurgents. "The Boko Haram fighters overpowered the soldiers and seized a van with a machine gun mounted on the deck from the soldiers," he said. Witnesses, including a local chief, said a soldier was wounded during the shootout. The attack came two days after a raid on nearby Kallali village where the Islamists looted and burnt homes, a local chief told AFP. Boko Haram has waged a seven-year insurgency against the Nigerian state that has claimed at least 20,000 lives and spilled across the country`s borders. Aided by troops from neighbouring countries, the Nigerian military has recaptured swathes of territory from the Islamists since early 2015. But Boko Haram has carried out sporadic attacks on remote villages in the restive region. Last month eight people were killed outside a church in a village 30 kilometres east of Chibok. In August, 10 people were killed in another attack on nearby Kubrivu village. Washington: Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton appears to be headed for a landslide victory, media reports, political experts and analysts said on Wednesday, ahead of the third and final debate in Las Vegas. "I think she's trending over 400," Republican strategist Steve Schmidt told MSNBC. To become the president, 69-year-old Clinton needs 270 electoral college votes. Getting more than 400 out of 538 is being seen as landslide. Schmidt, a top strategist for the Republican party, said that Democrats are also headed to take control of the Senate and are close to taking over the House of Representatives. "If the elections were held today, I think Republicans are down 25 seats, as of today, with the trend line going in the wrong direction. The panic is beginning," Schmidt said, reflecting the ground realities in the country. In the RealClearPolitics average of polls Clinton is leading by 7.2 percentage points, a gap which has rarely been bridged by any candidate in the past. As per RealClearPolitcs analysis Clinton is already assured of 256 electoral college votes as against Trump?s 176. She needs 14 votes from 112 toss up electoral college votes. The New York Times today said Clinton has 92 per cent chances of winning the election. The lead that Clinton has gained over the past two weeks is evident in various State and local polls. In Florida's Miami-Dade County, which is the largest county of the State, Clinton is leading Trump by 30 percentage points. In his home State of New York, Trump is trailing Clinton by 24 points. And in a Republican stronghold of Arizona, Trump is trailing Clinton by five points. A Bloomberg poll released today said Clinton is leading Trump by nine points nationally. Trump alleged that these polls are rigged. "I do not believe the polls anymore," he said and claimed that media is not showing the polls in which he is doing well. "You can't believe anything you see. I don't even believe the polls. I see these polls, and they're not terrible. They're sort of good. Actually, if the people come out and vote -- they are very nervous. I have a feeling this is another Brexit. This is going to be interesting. They don't want to show you the good," he told supporters in Colorado. "If they take five polls of the same group, they will always show the bad one. But the bad ones fine, it's fine. You've got to get out and vote. I'll tell you what, we are going to have one of the greatest victories in political history if we get out and vote," he said. "When Hillary develops the energy to go to events - she's got very small crowd. If she came up here, as an example, if she came here, she would have, let's say, maybe the little group on the right- hand, but it wouldn't be them," Trump said. Hong Kong: Hong Kong`s legislature again descended into chaos Wednesday as pro-Beijing politicians blocked the swearing in of two new lawmakers who want a split from China, in an increasingly divided parliament. It comes as fears grow in the semi-autonomous city that Beijing is tightening its grip, fuelling an independence movement in Hong Kong. Wednesday saw rival lawmakers clash in a heated shouting match after the pro-Beijing camp walked out of the swearing-in session. The walkout led to the meeting being cancelled, preventing pro-independence lawmakers Yau Wai-ching and Baggio Leung from taking the oath that would allow them to take up their seats. In the ensuing confrontations one veteran pro-democracy legislator threw slices of luncheon meat at his opponents while another was surrounded by security after turning China and Hong Kong flags displayed on pro-Beijing lawmakers` desks upside-down. Meanwhile, pro-Beijing lawmakers chanted "Apologise!", demanding Yau and Leung say sorry for their failure to take the oath properly at last week`s swearing-in ceremony. The pair had their oaths rejected last Wednesday after they draped themselves in "Hong Kong is not China" flags. The oath states Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China. Both refused to pronounce China properly, and Yau was heard to replace the words "the People`s Republic of China" with "the People`s refucking of Zeena". They were given permission to retake their oaths Wednesday, but the session was abandoned after the pro-Beijing walkout left an insufficient number of legislators in the chamber. "If they want people to respect their oaths, they have to express regret over their behaviour last week and to apologise to all Chinese around the world," pro-Beijing lawmaker Priscilla Leung told reporters.Hundreds of pro-Beijing supporters waved Chinese flags and stamped on pictures of the two outspoken lawmakers outside the legislative council building. The pair said they wanted to complete their oaths, but would not apologise for last week`s behaviour. "We are empowered by the people to enter the Legco," Baggio Leung said. The former British colony was handed back to China in 1997 under an agreement protecting its freedoms for 50 years, but there are concerns those liberties are being eroded. Leung and Yau are part of a new wave of lawmakers advocating independence and self-determination who won seats in the Legislative Council (Legco) -- Hong Kong`s lawmaking body -- in citywide polls last month. Five legislators, including the pair, had their oaths rejected at last week`s swearing in. Of those five, one pro-Beijing lawmaker and one pro-democracy lawmaker, whose oaths were declared invalid the first time round, were allowed to retake them Wednesday morning. The Beijing camp then walked out, forcing the session to be abandoned before Yau, Leung and pro-democracy teacher Lau Siu-lai, who read her oath at a snail`s pace last week, took the stand. The chaotic scenes came after a late-night court bid Tuesday by city leader Leung Chun-ying and justice secretary Rimsky Yuen to block Yau and Baggio Leung from taking up their seats.That went directly against a decision by the pro-Beijing president of Legco, who had already given the green light for them to have a second chance at the oath. The court refused to grant an injunction against Wednesday`s oath-taking, but gave permission for a judicial review into whether the pair should be disqualified, putting their future as lawmakers into question. In a separate case Wednesday, former pro-democracy lawmaker Raymond Wong was convicted of throwing a glass at city leader Leung Chun-ying inside the Legco in 2014. Wong, 64, was convicted of common assault and will be sentenced on Tuesday, local media reported. Iran said on Wednesday it would accept no US "interference" after Washington demanded the release of a dual national and his 80-year-old father given 10-year sentences for espionage. The State Department demanded the immediate release of Siamak and Baqher Namazi, both Iranian-American dual nationals after their sentences were announced on Tuesday. But, foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi told Iranian media: "The government and the Iranian people give no importance to the statements and interference of American officials and their efforts to divide the ranks of the Iranian people. "The American threats only add to the wall of mistrust Iranians have regarding the United States." Washington expressed concern over the health of the elder Namazi, a former UN Children`s Fund employee who also served as the governor of an Iranian province before the Islamic revolution of 1979. Both were jailed for 10 years for "espionage and collaboration with the American government", Tehran prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dolat-Abadi announced on Tuesday. Three other Iranian-American dual nationals -- Farhad Abd-Saleh, Kamran Ghaderi and Alireza Omidvar -- were also sentenced to 10 years on the same charges, along with a US resident from Lebanon, Nezar Zaka. Siamak Namazi, a well-connected business consultant who has supported Iranian reformists and sought to promote ties between Iran and the United States, was arrested as he arrived in Tehran a year ago. His father was detained in February when he came to Iran to seek his son`s release. Conservatives in Iran have criticised attempts by the moderate government of President Hassan Rouhani to improve ties with the West following a nuclear deal with world powers last year. Washington: The US Defense Department on Wednesday said the coordination between Iraqi government and Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the battle to free Mosul city of Iraq from the Islamic State (IS) is very good. Some 18,000 soldiers from Iraq`s central army and 10,000 troops from the country`s Kurdistan region were converging on the IS stronghold city of Mosul, where it is believed that around 5,000 jihadist fighters remain, Efe news quoted Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis as saying. "The level of coordination and cooperation we have seen between the Kurds and the (Iraqi security forces) has been very good," Davis said, adding "they`re working together very well, collaborating just the way we would want them to". Davis dismissed the possibility that 100 to 200 US soldiers deployed in the area to provide intelligence and guidance would enter the offensive. "To be clear, the thousands of combat forces that are going to liberate Mosul are Iraqis," he said, adding that the US military role was restricted to providing precision airstrikes against IS. The spokesman reiterated US President Barack Obama`s comments earlier that he was sure that Mosul would be liberated, although he could not specify when. Several towns on the surrounding Mosul plains have been liberated by the advancing Iraqi forces. Thick plumes of black smoke from burning tires and oil wells, lit by IS members to obscure their movements, were occasionally hampering air support. There have also been reports of suicide bombers for the advancing Iraqi soldiers as well as incidents of civilians being dressed up in army attire and then executed on camera for propaganda purposes. Moscow: The Kremlin said Wednesday it does not expect any breakthrough in resolving the conflict in Ukraine at international talks set to start in Berlin. "We do not expect any breakthroughs," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters hours before President Vladimir Putin was scheduled to meet the leaders of France, Germany and Ukraine to discuss the unrest in the ex-Soviet nation. "Ideally the best result would be Ukraine`s obligation to fulfil the Minsk (peace) agreements in the way that was determined in the document signed by the heads of state concerned. But ideal objectives do not always correspond to reality." Russia, which annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, is backing a pro-Moscow insurgency in eastern Ukraine that has claimed nearly 10,000 lives since it erupted over two years ago. Moscow has denied accusations that it has sent troops and weaponry across its border to fuel the conflict that has destroyed much of Ukraine`s eastern industrial heartland. Wednesday`s talks will see Putin travel to Berlin for the first time since the conflict broke out and come on the eve of a European Union summit in Brussels on relations with Russia, including sanctions over Ukraine, which come up for renewal at the end of the year. On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said he did not have "very high expectations" for the talks. All sides agreed to a peace deal brokered by Germany and France in February 2015, but while the so-called Minsk accords reduced the intensity of fighting, they have failed to stop it. The conflicts in Ukraine and Syria have seen Moscow`s relations with the West plunge to their post-Cold War nadir. Brussels: Russian warships off the coast of Norway are carrying fighter bombers that will likely reinforce a final assault on the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo in two weeks, a senior NATO diplomat said on Wednesday citing Western intelligence. "They are deploying all of the Northern fleet and much of the Baltic fleet in the largest surface deployment since the end of the Cold War," the diplomat said on condition of anonymity. "This is not a friendly port call. In two weeks, we will see a crescendo of air attacks on Aleppo as part of Russia`s strategy to declare victory there," the diplomat said. Myanmar`s Union Election Commission on Wednesday announced to hold by-election of the parliament on April 1 next year. The by-election will be held to fill 18 vacant seats; nine in the House of Representatives (Lower House), three in the House of Nationalities (Upper House) and six in state parliaments. According to the Union Election Commission, the date for issuing forms to overseas voters to cast vote in advance is set between November 15 and December 15 and date for submission of names of candidates is between November 28 and December 7, Xinhua news agency reported. Campaign period will be from January 30 to March 30 next year. Election result or names of winning parliamentarians-elect will be announced within the next four days following the by-election on April 1 next year. The vacant constituencies were produced when the country`s general election was held on November 8 last year, there were some constituencies which failed to hold the polling. Other parliamentary seats were left empty after parliament members were appointed as government cabinet ministers. PESHAWAR: Police arrested two men suspected of distributing pamphlets for Islamic State (IS) following a raid in the northwestern city of Peshawar, officials said on Wednesday, amid lingering fears that the Middle East militant group was making inroads in Pakistan. Last month, the military said that it had stemmed Islamic State`s attempts to expand in the country, having arrested more than 300 people suspected of plotting attacks against government, diplomatic and civilian targets. Following Tuesday`s raid, however, police in the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province said militants were operating in parts of Peshawar, including some from Islamic State. "Some of areas in the provincial capital including Tehskal, Palosai, Charsadda Road and Regi are known for activities of militant groups such as Islamic state," police official Ishtiaq Ahmed told Reuters. Another police official, speaking on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to the media, said two other suspects managed to escape during the raid.There are fears that some of Pakistan`s home-grown Sunni militants could be drawn to Islamic State, as already seen in neighbouring Afghanistan. Pakistan has long suffered from sectarian violence, with Sunni militants targeting the country`s minority Shi`ites, as well as non-Muslim religious minorities. In August, the official Islamic State news service claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing at a hospital in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta that killed 74 people. The attack, however, was also claimed by a breakaway faction of the Pakistani Taliban, Jamaat-ur-Ahrar, which at one time had declared support for Islamic State`s Middle East leadership, but later switched back to the Taliban. Aleppo: A pause in Russian and Syrian strikes on Aleppo was holding for a second day Wednesday, ahead of a brief unilateral ceasefire aimed at allowing civilians and rebels to quit the devastated city. Moscow announced it would extend an eight-hour truce planned for Thursday to 11 hours and said Syrian and Russian warplanes were giving Aleppo a wide berth. At a meeting in Berlin, French President Francois Hollande said he would work with Germany to persuade Russia to adopt a long-lasting truce around Syria`s second city. Despite the Russian initiative, EU leaders at a summit on Thursday are expected to condemn Moscow over attacks on civilians in Aleppo, according to a draft statement obtained by AFP. Russia`s ceasefire plan has stirred scepticism in the West and the United Nations said it would be insufficient to allow humanitarian aid to reach encircled Aleppo inhabitants. Moscow is backing President Bashar al-Assad`s regime in its war with a wide range of rebel groups, including with air strikes in the divided northern city. Under growing international pressure over the devastation and civilian deaths, Moscow announced early Tuesday that Russian and Syrian warplanes would stop bombing rebel-held parts of the city to pave the way for a "humanitarian pause". That window, starting at 0500 GMT on Thursday, was initially meant to last eight hours and is expected to see all fighting stop to allow civilians and rebels to exit opposition-held districts via six corridors. Senior Russian military official Sergei Rudskoi said Wednesday the ceasefire had been extended "by three hours until 7:00 pm (1600 GMT)". He also said Russian and Syrian planes were keeping 10 kilometres (six miles) from Aleppo. An estimated 250,000 people live in Aleppo`s eastern districts and have been under near-continuous government siege since July.AFP`s correspondent in east Aleppo said although clashes between rebels and pro-government forces involving heavy artillery continued in several neighbourhoods, the pause in air strikes was holding. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitoring group, said pro-regime fighters were pressing their ground assault in the Old City as they vied to shift the front line. Russian and Syrian bombardment had been providing air cover for a government offensive that started on September 22 aimed at seizing the city`s east, held by rebels since 2012. According to Moscow, once the pause begins six corridors out of the city would open for civilians with another two -- via the Castello Road in the north and Souk al-Hal in the city centre -- designated for rebels. The UN dashed hopes however that a prospective Aleppo truce could allow humanitarian aid to reach civilians. "Before we can do something really meaningful... we need assurances from all parties" over a lasting ceasefire, a spokesman for the UN`s humanitarian agency said in Geneva. Rebel groups have indicated they will not abandon their posts and, with Aleppo encircled by pro-government forces, many civilians fear falling into the hands of the regime. But Russia has said the pause is an opportunity for mainstream rebels to disassociate themselves from jihadists in Aleppo. Near Damascus, more than 600 rebels and their families were evacuated Wednesday from Moadamiyat al-Sham, a besieged rebel town, according to a local official. It was the latest in a string of evacuation accords allowing armed rebels to flee encircled areas, which Damascus has championed as a way to restore stability. Syria analyst Thomas Pierret, of the University of Edinburgh, said the halt in Russian air strikes was about Moscow "managing international pressure"."Russia is periodically trying to mitigate tensions with the West on Aleppo through such initiatives. This is the continuation of war by diplomatic means," he said. In Brussels on Thursday, EU leaders are expected to "strongly condemn the attacks by the Syrian regime and its allies, notably Russia, on civilians in Aleppo", according to a draft obtained by AFP. The draft calls on them "to bring the atrocities to an end and to take urgent steps to ensure unhindered humanitarian access to Aleppo and other parts of the country". Five years of diplomatic initiatives to put an end to Syria`s conflict have failed, but over the past week world powers have made new efforts to reach a lasting truce. Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Berlin later Wednesday to discuss the ceasefire plans. "France will do everything it can to exert pressure, especially on supporters of the (Syrian) regime, such as the Russians, so that the ceasefire can be extended," Hollande said. A US-led coalition is bombing jihadists in Syria including the Islamic State group and Russia accused member Belgium of killing six civilians in air strikes in the Aleppo region on Tuesday. Belgium denied the claim and said it had summoned the Russian ambassador in protest. Talks were also due Wednesday in Geneva between Russian, US, Saudi, Qatari and Turkish officials on the efforts to distance Syrian opposition fighters from jihadists. Paris: Russia inaugurated its most visible landmark in France on Wednesday, brushing off a diplomatic snub by Francois Hollande`s government as bilateral tensions simmered over the war in Syria. The opening of the giant white stone and glass Orthodox Cathedral and cultural centre by the River Seine topped with large gilded domes and in sight of the Eiffel Tower was to have served as a set-piece foreign event for Russian President Vladimir Putin. But Putin did not attend after Hollande demanded talks on Syria that German Chancellor Angela Merkel ended up hosting later in the day in Berlin. The European Union has condemned Russia`s air campaign in Syria but Germany said decisions on fresh sanctions against Russia would not be taken at a summit this week. Putin sent Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky to Paris, who was joined at the opening ceremony by ambassador to France Alexander Orlov. No member of Hollande`s government attended. "There have been highs and lows in relations between France and Russia," Orlov told Reuters TV, noting Napoleon`s failed Russia campaign in the 19th century as well as French being the language of choice for Russian aristocrats for two centuries. "I am very optimistic about the future because there is great proximity between France and Russia... Russians love coming to Paris, they feel very at ease here. " The Holy Trinity Cathedral is Russia`s biggest and most visible landmark in the French capital since Tsar Alexander III offered Paris a bridge named after him in the late 19th Century. The complex, which cost Russia tens of millions of euros to build on top of the estimated 70 million euros ($77 million) it spent on acquiring the plot, has diplomatic status as it hosts the embassy`s cultural centre. Asked about complaints from Parisians that the complex was too big, Orlov said Russia could have built it much larger. Russia warned the US-led coalition Wednesday against driving jihadists from Iraq to Syria, in the offensive to recapture Mosul from the Islamic State jihadist group. "It is necessary not to drive terrorists from one country to the other but to destroy them on the spot," the chief of Russia`s General Staff Valery Gerasimov said in a statement. He said Russia was focusing on "possible attempts by fighters to break out of Mosul" and "freely leave the city in the direction of Syria". "We hope that our partners in the international coalition realise what freely roaming large IS gangs in the Middle East can lead to." The long-awaited offensive against Iraq`s second city began Monday with air and ground support from a US-led coalition. Iraqi forces on Wednesday prepared to retake Qaraqosh, the country`s largest Christian town located about 15 kilometres (10 miles) southeast of Mosul, a key milestone in their progress toward the jihadists` main hub. Officials have said the retaking of Mosul -- in Iraq`s largest military operation in years -- could take weeks or months and warned that the hundreds of thousands of civilians still in the city could be used as human shields. Gerasimov said that Russian military satellites, reconnaissance aircraft and drones were surveilling the Iraqi city. "Despite all the ballyhoo on Western television, it must be understood that the operation as such has not yet begun," Gerasimov said. Earlier on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with the leaders of Turkey and Iraq to discuss the battle, wishing the Iraqi army success in its operations. The Kremlin strongman at the weekend called on the US-led coalition to avoid civilian casualties in the battle to recapture the city. Meanwhile Russian airpower has been backing up an offensive by regime forces on rebel-held eastern Aleppo that has sparked accusations of potential war crimes from the West. Moscow announced on Tuesday that the Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo to pave the way for an eight-hour truce on Thursday. Ankara: Turkish police shot dead a suspected Islamic State militant overnight who was believed to be planning a suicide bomb attack in the capital Ankara, the city`s governor said on Wednesday. It was the latest in a series of counter-terrorist police operations coinciding with a Turkey-backed rebel operation in Syria to drive the jihadists away from its southern border. Turkish security forces have meanwhile stepped up action against Kurdish militants, killing 14 Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters in eastern Turkey in recent days, the interior minister said. Police tracked the Islamic State suspect to the ninth floor of a building on Ankara`s outskirts, where he was killed in a gunfight around 3 a.m. after opening fire in response to a call to surrender, the state-run Anadolu Agency said. "The terrorist is judged to have been planning to carry out a suicide bomb attack and carried out reconnaissance around the old parliament building and Anitkabir," Governor Ercan Topaca wrote on Twitter, referring to the mausoleum of modern Turkey`s founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The suspect may have been targeting ceremonies to be held there on the Oct. 29 anniversary of the Turkish Republic`s foundation or on Nov. 10 to commemorate Ataturk`s death, Anadolu cited Topaca as saying. Police found explosive materials including sticks of dynamite and ammonium nitrate at the scene, the governor said. The suspect was registered as resident of the southeastern city of Diyarbakir and was born in 1992, Anadolu said. After receiving intelligence that militants were planning attacks in the capital, Topaca`s office on Monday banned public meetings and marches until the end of November. The ban was enforced in line with emergency rule imposed after an attempted coup in July. Islamic State and Kurdish militants have carried out attacks in the capital. This month two suspected PKK members, believed to be planning a car bomb attack, blew themselves up in a standoff with police in Ankara. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told reporters in Ankara that operations targeting militants would continue in the days ahead and said 13 PKK fighters were killed this week in the eastern province of Tunceli and one further north in Erzincan. In the Lice district of Diyarbakir province, PKK militants staged a rocket attack on a minibus carrying members of the state-sponsored village guard militia who fight against the PKK, killing two guards and wounding two others, security sources said. Separately, the sources said 20 people were detained overnight in simultaneous raids across the city of Diyarbakir designed to avert Islamic State bomb attacks. In the Mediterranean coastal province of Mersin, the governor has banned street celebrations such as weddings for reasons of public security, his office said in a statement on its website. It called for tighter security at transport hubs. Ankara: Turkish police shot dead a suspected Islamic State militant who was believed to be planning a suicide bomb attack in the capital Ankara, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on Wednesday. A counter-terror squad had tracked the suspect to the ninth floor of a building on the outskirts of Ankara, where he was killed in a gunfight at around 3 am after opening fire in response to a police call to surrender. Police found explosive materials at the scene and Governor Ercan Topaca told reporters there were suspicions that the suspect planned to target public ceremonies in the capital, Anadolu reported. It said the man was registered in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir and was born in 1992. Having received intelligence that militants were planning attacks in the capital, the Ankara governor`s office on Monday banned public meetings and marches until the end of November. The ban, enforced under emergency rule imposed after an attempted coup in July, came as Turkey pursued a near two-month-old military operation in Syria in support of rebels to drive Islamic State (IS) from its southern border. IS and Kurdish militants have carried out attacks in the capital. This month two suspected Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) members, believed to be planning a car bomb attack, blew themselves up in a standoff with police in Ankara Saudi Arabia plans to raise up to $17.5 billion from its first international bond issue, as analysts expect strong buyer interest Saudi Arabia plans to raise up to $17.5 billion from its first international bond issue, a source involved in the operation said Wednesday as analysts expect strong buyer interest. "The terms have been launched, the operation has been launched," the source told AFP. Saudi has divided the total into three tranches with maturities of five, ten and thirty years, respectively, tailor-made for the American market. However, investor interest in the issue extends well beyond the United States, the source said. The Saudi issue will be bigger than many analysts had expected. It will be the largest ever from an emerging-market nation, Bloomberg News said, putting overall demand at close to four times the amount on offer. Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, projected a budget deficit of $87 billion this year after a fall in oil revenues, which still account for most of its income. To cover the shortfall, Saudi Arabia is re-orienting its economy by imposing unprecedented subsidy cuts and slowing government projects. In September it cut cabinet ministers' salaries, among other measures. The kingdom last week began meetings with potential investors ahead of the bond issue. According to the sources cited by Bloomberg News, the kingdom is pricing the five-year bonds to yield about 140 basis points over US Treasuries. Christopher Dembik, global head of macroeconomic research at France's Saxo Bank, told AFP the kingdom's offer "is going to arouse strong interest on the part of investors", and could be four or five times oversubscribed. He said investors are desperately looking for yield, and the Saudi offer "will be certainly slightly above that of its neighbours because of its less favourable sovereign debt rating and a recent global trend towards higher sovereign rates," he said. Saudi Arabia has already issued domestic bonds but that has led to a tightening of bank liquidity, according to Patrick Dennis, lead Middle East economist at Oxford Economics in London. Story continues - Helping to fund deficit - "So that's the main reason why they're now borrowing overseas," he told AFP. Saudi banks' loan-to-deposit ratio rose for the fifth consecutive month in August, reaching 90.8 percent, because of faster growth in credit relative to deposits, Riyadh's Jadwa Investment said in a report this month. Borrowing abroad also reduces the drain on the kingdom's foreign reserves, Dennis said. Official data show those reserves declined to $562 billion in August from $732 billion at the end of 2014. The reserves remain very large but their rapid drawdown shows a need for diversified funding, Dennis said. London-based Capital Economics said in a briefing paper that Saudi reserves are now "unlikely to fall much beyond their current level in the coming years" because the bond issue will finance around a third of next year's budget deficit and almost all of the current account shortfall. In April the kingdom released its wide-ranging Vision 2030 for diversifying the economy. At its heart is a plan to float less than five percent of state oil company Saudi Aramco on the stock market. The proceeds would help form what will become the world's biggest state investment fund, with around $2 trillion in assets. With prospects good for the current international bond issue, Dembik foresees Saudi Arabia borrowing $15 billion to $20 billion annually in the market to help finance its economic transformation plan. Vogue today endorsed Hillary Rodham Clinton as the first ever female president of the United States of America, and ran this gorgeous portrait of our future POTUS by photographer Annie Leibovitz for Vogue, in December 1993. For all the chaos and unpredictability and the sometimes appalling spectacle of this election season, the question of which candidate actually deserves to be president has never been a difficult one. Vogue has no history of political endorsements. Editors in chief have made their opinions known from time to time, but the magazine has never spoken in an election with a single voice. Given the profound stakes of this one, and the history that stands to be made, we feel that should change. Vogue endorses Hillary Clinton for president of the United States. HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA--(Marketwired - Oct. 18, 2016) - Editors Note: There are three photos associated with this press release. Erdene Resource Development Corp. (ERD.TO) ("Erdene" or "Company") is pleased to announce the second set of results from on-going drilling at its 100%-owned, high-grade Bayan Khundii gold project ("Bayan Khundii") in southwest Mongolia. Today's results confirm a significant new discovery under shallow cover, 170 metres north of the Striker Zone. In addition, drilling continues to support continuity of the high-grade mineralization within the Striker Zone. Results are pending for 12 holes. Highlights (see attached map and cross sections for reference) New zone discovered under shallow cover, 170 metres north of Striker Zone (hole BKD-60) Includes 30 metres of 3.0 g/t gold near the top of the hole Consistent gold mineralization beginning at 20 metres, averaging 123 metres of 1.3 g/t gold High-grade intervals with visible gold, up to 19 g/t gold over one metre Confirms significant gold mineralization continues north of the Striker Zone under younger cover Striker Zone continuity strengthened with 90 metres of 2.5 g/t gold to bottom of hole at 126 metre depth in hole BKD-57, includes 31 metres of 6.8 g/t gold Western extension of Striker Zone confirmed under cover with 31 metres of 1.0 g/t gold and 5 metres of 2.2 g/t gold in holes BKD-59 and BKD-53, respectively New zone intersected in southwest Striker Zone in hole BKD-55 with 24 metres of 1.3 g/t gold Q3-Q4 2016 Drill Program Results Drilling Summary The Q3-Q4 drilling program includes 28 holes drilled since September 5, 2016, totaling 3,518 metres. A total of 73 holes have been completed, totaling 8,097 metres, since the initial holes were drilled in October 2015. Today's release includes results for holes BKD-53 to BKD-61 and follows the first batch of results (see October 4, 2016 press release here) for holes BKD-46 to BKD-52. Results are pending for holes BKD-62 to BKD-73 which have been completed within, north, and east of the Striker Zone, and within the Northeast Zone, approximately 1 kilometre northeast of the Striker Zone. Story continues New Wide Zone of Mineralization Identified Under Shallow Cover in Hole BKD-60 Step-out drilling was completed 170 metres north of the Striker Zone where hole BKD-60 has returned a very wide intersection of gold mineralization. Starting immediately below the 20 metres of younger Cretaceous cover, BKD-60 averaged 1.3 g/t gold over 123 metres and included 30 metres of 3.0 g/t gold near the top of the hole. Visible gold was observed in multiple locations, particularly between 29 and 59 metres, but continued locally to a depth of 117 metres. This hole confirms that significant gold mineralization continues beyond the Striker Zone under the younger Cretaceous units that lie between the main exposed area of mineralization in southwest Bayan Khundii (includes Striker Zone) and the Northeast Zone, located 750 metres to the northeast, demonstrating the strong potential for expansion of the mineralized zones. Table 1 - Bayan Khundii drill results for Drill Hole BKD-60 Drill Hole From (m) To (m) Interval (m)* Gold (g/t) BKD-60 20 143 123 1.32 Incl. 24 92 68 1.96 Incl. 29 59 30 2.98 Incl. 58 59 1 19.0 Incl. 91 92 1 16.6 Incl. 137 141 4 2.18 * Reported intervals are not true width. At this time there is insufficient data with respect to the shape of the mineralized system to calculate true orientations in space. They represent drill intersection widths from holes drilled at a 45 to 90 degree angle. The Bayan Khundii mineralization is interpreted to be moderately dipping (approximately 40 to 50 degrees). Striker Zone Continuity Strengthened with Hole BKD-57 Striker Zone drilling continues to establish continuity of the high-grade gold mineralization. Drilling intersected intensely altered volcanic tuffs with variable quartz-adularia and stockwork veining, with visible gold identified in hole BKD-57, as well as within holes BKD-63 and BKD-70, for which results are pending. Hole BKD-57, located in the western portion of Striker Zone, has returned one of the most intensely mineralized areas within the Striker Zone with 90 metres of 2.5 g/t gold, including a very high grade zone of 26 g/t gold over 7 metres. Additionally, hole BKD-55, located along the southwest portion of the Striker Zone, intersected a new, near-surface zone returning 24 metres of 1.3 g/t gold. Immediately north of the Striker Zone, hole BKD-65 (results pending) returned moderate quartz adularia, chalcedonic quartz and stockwork veins and locally visible gold within altered volcanic tuff. This hole tested a new zone previously uncovered in trench BKT-13 (2 metres of 8.6 g/t gold). In three areas (southwest portion of Striker Zone, east of Striker Zone, and at depth in the Northeast Zone) intrusive rocks have been intersected at varying depths, both post and pre mineralization. Based on the magnetic signature associated with the post-mineralization syenite in the vicinity of the Striker and Gold Hill Zones, these intrusions seem to be of limited extent and are considered to be small syenite plugs. Table 2 - Bayan Khundii drill results for Drill Holes BKD-54 to 58 and BKD-61 Drill Hole From (m) To (m) Interval (m)* Gold (g/t) BKD-54 41 92 51 0.16 BKD-55 10 34 24 1.26 Incl. 21 24 3 4.40 BKD-56 24 44 20 0.87 and 53 89 36 0.60 Incl. 53 58 5 1.70 BKD-57 0 2 2 1.00 and 36 126** 90 2.51 Incl. 62 93 31 6.80 Incl. 66 73 7 26.0 Incl. 90 93 3 4.98 BKD-58 4 6 2 0.35 and 22 24 2 0.46 BKD-61 11 18 7 1.10 and 66 82 16 0.59 * Reported intervals are not true width. At this time there is insufficient data with respect to the shape of the mineralized system to calculate true orientations in space. They represent drill intersection widths from holes drilled at a 45 to 90 degree angle. The Bayan Khundii mineralization is interpreted to be moderately dipping (approximately 40 to 50 degrees). ** End of hole Gold Mineralization Intersected Under Cover to the West Approximately 100 metres west of the Striker Zone, two holes, BKD-53 and BKD-59, tested for gold mineralization under younger Cretaceous cover to a vertical depth of 200 metres and 250 metres, respectively. Results indicate a continuity of, and locally an increase of intensity in, gold mineralization; including 5 metres of 2.2 g/t gold in BKD-53 and 2 metres of 7.4 g/t gold at depth in BKD-59. The mineralized lithology includes silicified volcanic tuffs with stockwork and quartz, plus/minus adularia veining including some with colloform and crustiform textures, indicative of an epithermal system and typical for Bayan Khundii. These results further demonstrate the potential for the discovery of additional gold mineralization under cover to the west. Table 3 - Bayan Khundii drill results for Drill Holes BKD-53 and BKD-59 Drill Hole From (m) To (m) Interval (m)* Gold (g/t) BKD-53 72 105 33 0.59 Incl. 99 104 5 2.19 BKD-59 121 152 31 0.95 Incl. 133 143 10 1.71 and 174 181 7 0.82 and 202 230 28 0.74 Incl. 216 218 2 7.41 * Reported intervals are not true width. At this time there is insufficient data with respect to the shape of the mineralized system to calculate true orientations in space. They represent drill intersection widths from holes drilled at a 45 to 90 degree angle. The Bayan Khundii mineralization is interpreted to be moderately dipping (approximately 40 to 50 degrees). Northeast Zone In the Northeast Zone, approximately 1 kilometre northeast of the Striker Zone two holes have been completed, BKD-62 and BKD-72 (results pending). Under 45 metres of cover on the northern portion of the Northeast Zone, BKD-62 intersected altered and sulfide mineralized volcanic tuffs and syenite porphyry units with locally intense zones of quartz veining with pyrite-sulfide mineralization and increasing quartz veining deeper in the hole, and terminated at 175 metres. Hole BKD-72 was drilled approximately 150 metres southwest of BKD-62 to a depth of 150 metres. This hole was collared in altered lapilli tuff and intersected multiple zones of quartz veining, locally quartz-adularia and chalcedonic quartz veins, as well as disseminated and quartz vein hosted sulfides. Drilling Plans The drill program will recommence on October 21, 2016 and will continue through mid-December. Drill targeting will be based on results of current drilling and the results from the independent technical evaluation studies completed in Q3 2016. The remaining, expanded program is expected to consist of a further 5,500 metres of drilling including an additional 2,000 metres at Bayan Khundii; 3,000 metres of resource expansion and scout drilling along the 5.6 kilometre long mineralized trend at the Company's Altan Nar Gold-Polymetallic Project, located 19 kilometres northwest of Bayan Khundii; and a 500 metre initial drill program to test newly identified targets at the Company's Altan Arrow gold prospect, located 3.5 kilometres north of Bayan Khundii. Background on Bayan Khundii, Altan Nar and Altan Arrow Gold Projects Bayan Khundii Gold Project In Q2 2015, Erdene conducted an initial exploration program on the southern portion of the Company's 100%-owned Khundii license in southwest Mongolia. This reconnaissance work led to the discovery of the Bayan Khundii, low sulphidation epithermal gold prospect. Gold mineralization at Bayan Khundii has been identified over a 1.7 kilometre trend, with detailed exploration only taking place over a 500 metre by 350 metre zone in the southwest portion of the prospect area, where the Company's Q4 2015 and Q2 2016 drill programs have focused. Visible gold was observed in multiple drill holes, and results include several high-grade intersections within a series of parallel structures exposed at surface. Results include up to 35 metres of 5.9 g/t gold in hole BKD-10 from surface to the bottom of the hole (including 12 metres of 16.2 g/t gold), and 63 metres of 5.3 g/t gold in hole BKD-17 starting at 50 metres. Drill results and program details are included in Erdene's press releases (click here). In Q1 2016, the Company concluded preliminary metallurgical test work at Bayan Khundii, indicating that gravity concentration and cyanidation of the gravity tails yield very good overall gold recoveries for both high-grade and low-grade composites: 99% gold recovery from the high-grade composite (24.9 g/t gold), and 92% gold recovery from the low-grade composite (0.7 g/t gold). The license has a 2% net smelter returns royalty ("NSR Royalty") in favour of Sandstorm Gold Ltd. with a buy-back option to reduce the NSR Royalty to 1%. Altan Nar Gold-Polymetallic Project Discovered in 2011, the Company's Altan Nar gold-polymetallic project (19 kilometres northwest of Bayan Khundii) hosts a total of 18 mineralized gold-silver-lead-zinc target areas within a 5.6 kilometre by 1.5 kilometre mineralized corridor. Two of the early discoveries, Discovery Zone ("DZ") and Union North ("UN"), are the most advanced targets, hosting wide zones of high-grade, near-surface mineralization over variable widths (up to 53 metres apparent width) averaging in excess of 1 g/t gold, including intervals up to 19 metres averaging 5.8 g/t gold (7.8 g/t gold equivalent*). The DZ and UN targets were the focus of an initial National Instrument 43-101 resource estimate released by the Company in Q1 2015. Altan Nar remains at an early stage of exploration with only shallow, detailed drilling of DZ and UN with the remaining 16 targets either undrilled or scout-drilled, and are considered by the Company to have good potential for hosting additional resources. The license has a 2% NSR Royalty in favour of Sandstorm Gold Ltd. with a buy-back option to reduce the NSR Royalty to 1%. *Gold equivalent has been used to express the combined value of gold, silver, lead and zinc at Altan Nar as a percentage of gold, and is provided for illustrative purposes only. No allowances have been made for recovery losses that may occur should mining eventually result. Calculations use metal prices of US $1200/ounce gold, $18/ounce silver, and $0.90/pound for lead and zinc. Altan Arrow Gold Project The Altan Arrow gold project ("Altan Arrow") is situated on the Bayan Khundii license, 3.5 km north of the Bayan Khundii project and 15 km southeast of Altan Nar. Previous exploration by Erdene in the Altan Arrow prospect area confirmed the presence of high-grade gold within epithermal quartz veins and the potential for broader mineralized zones. Erdene geologists identified an approximate 1 square-kilometre area of anomalous gold-silver mineralization in quartz veins that returned up to 57 g/t gold in hand samples and 1 m of 31.4 g/t gold and 6 m of 4.5 g/t gold in trenching. The license has a 2% net smelter returns royalty ("NSR Royalty") in favour of Sandstorm Gold Ltd. with a buy-back option to reduce the NSR Royalty to 1%. Qualified Person and Sample Protocol Michael MacDonald, P.Geo. (Nova Scotia), Director of Exploration for Erdene, is the Qualified Person as that term is defined in National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release. All samples have been assayed at SGS Laboratory in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. In addition to internal checks by SGS Laboratory, the Company incorporates a QA/QC sample protocol utilizing prepared standards and blanks. Erdene's sampling protocol for drill core consisted of collection of samples over 1 metre or 2 metre intervals (depending on the lithology and style of mineralization) over the entire length of the drill hole, excluding minor post-mineral lithologies and un-mineralized granitoids. Sample intervals were based on meterage, not geological controls or mineralization. All drill core was cut in half with a diamond saw, with half of the core placed in sample bags and the remaining half securely retained in core boxes at the Company's Bayan Khundii exploration camp. All samples were organized into batches of 20 samples including a commercially prepared standard and blank. Sample batches were periodically shipped directly to SGS in Ulaanbaatar via Erdene's logistical contractor, Monrud Co. Ltd. About Erdene Erdene Resource Development Corp. is a Canada-based resource company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of base and precious metals in underexplored and highly prospective Mongolia. In addition to Bayan Khundii and Altan Nar, the Company has two other exploration licenses and a mining license in southwest Mongolia. Other deposits and prospects within these licenses include: Khuvyn Khar - an early-stage, copper-silver porphyry project with multiple drill targets and significant copper intersections; Nomin Tal - a narrow, high grade copper-gold discovery; Zuun Mod - a large molybdenum-copper porphyry deposit; and Altan Arrow - an early-stage, high-grade, gold-silver project. In addition to the above properties, the Company has an Alliance with Teck Resources Limited on regional copper-gold exploration in the prospective Trans Altay region of southwest Mongolia. For further information on the Company, please visit www.erdene.com. Erdene has 121,155,992 issued and outstanding common shares and a fully diluted position of 134,432,906 common shares. Forward-Looking Statements Certain information regarding Erdene contained herein may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements may include estimates, plans, expectations, opinions, forecasts, projections, guidance or other statements that are not statements of fact. Although Erdene believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Erdene cautions that actual performance will be affected by a number of factors, most of which are beyond its control, and that future events and results may vary substantially from what Erdene currently foresees. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploitation and exploration results, continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions. The forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The information contained herein is stated as of the current date and is subject to change after that date. The Company does not assume the obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. NO REGULATORY AUTHORITY HAS APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED THE CONTENTS OF THIS RELEASE To view the photos associated with this press release, please visit the following links: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/Fig1-PlanMapofBayanKhundiiGoldProject.jpg http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/Fig2-CrossSection1-StrikerZoneHeadingNE.jpg http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/Fig3-CrossSection2-StrikerZoneHeadingNW.jpg A Delta flight crew couldnt believe Ashley Denmark was a physician. (Photo: Courtesy of Ashley Denmark) Dr. Ashley Denmark, D.O., who hails from South Carolina, was on a flight from Seattle to Hawaii. The trip, to attend a good friends wedding, was intended as a bit of a rest and relaxation period for the busy doctor, wife, and mother of two. As soon as she heard there was a traveler in need of medical assistance, though, Denmark got up and made her presence known. Thats when everything went awry. Denmark shared her story on her website: As I settled in to watch a movie and read a book, about 1 hour into our flight over the intercom, a flight attendant requested a doctor or nurse to report to front of cabin to assist a passenger. When duty calls it calls even if you are 30,000 feet in air And she continued on social media:The flight attendant didnt believe I was a doctor and told me to have a seat while 2 nurses provided medical care to the passenger. It was merely a few days ago when Tamika Cross, MD, another young, black physician described a very similar situation happening on a different Delta flight. In Crosss situation, the passenger was unresponsive, a seemingly life-threatening situation in which every second counted. What exactly is it that inspires seemingly normal people to prevent qualified individuals from offering their professional assistance? In life-or-death situations, do we really have time to be prejudiced? A report by the Washington Post, points to the phenomenon of implicit bias as the culprit. Overt bias certainly exists, but there is also a growing body of scientific literature thats revealing an even more uncomfortable truth, according to the article. Deep-seated unconscious biases help steer our thinking and behavior even when we dont realize it. One can only hope that by sharing their stories, women like Cross and Denmark can begin to receive the respect that others particularly older, white men enjoy without needing to jump through hoops to prove themselves. Denmark reiterated this hope, telling Yahoo Beauty that she hopes her story raises awareness to the fact that the face of medicine is changing. Doctors can be young, female, or come from different ethnic backgrounds, she says. My hope is that Delta takes into account my unfortunate experience and prevents a similar occurrence from happening again. Despite this experience, I have remained focused and will continue to do so, striving to be the best physician, mother, and wife I can be. And to those last words, were happy to give her more than the benefit of the doubt. Lets keep in touch! Follow Yahoo Beauty on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. Teaching with Technology 3D Scanners and Printers, Virtual Reality Gear Top Faculty Wish Lists Our 2016 Teaching with Technology survey asked higher education faculty about their most-wanted hardware and software for the classroom and their top technology complaints. Laptops and desktops may be the most common form of instructional tech in the classroom, but most faculty are dreaming about more cutting-edge gear. According to Campus Technology's 2016 Teaching with Technology survey, the top hardware on instructors' wish lists: user-engaging 3D and virtual reality gear, big displays and tech-enabled student furnishings. The survey polled faculty members across the country about their use of technology for teaching and learning, their wish lists and gripes, their view of what the future holds and more. On the software front, animation software leads the faculty wish list, referenced by 17 percent of respondents; followed by adaptive learning (13 percent); games and e-portfolios (each with 12 percent); 3D modeling (11 percent); and collaboration/whiteboard software (10 percent). Everything else received single-digit mention. While the majority of faculty believe technology has a positive impact on education, they have plenty of gripes about it too. Here are the top complaints uncovered by our survey: Tech without the training. As one tech-loving Kansas faculty member explained, "It's absolutely useless and counter-productive to teaching unless it's deployed strategically, used wisely and properly supported." The ease and speed with which students can cheat and plagiarize. "Students do not consider 'finding an answer' on the internet unacceptable," grumbled one faculty member in Kentucky. "They do not see any difference between 'finding an answer' and researching a topic." Technology in search of a purpose. "Significant negatives have been caused by having technology shoved at faculty as solutions for which there are no problems," moaned a fine arts instructor in Maryland. "The notion that technology can replace face-to-face [and] allow classes to be larger or remote is pervasive, and has denigrated the quality of education." Continuous upgrades. As an engineering professor in Minnesota lamented, "[Just] when I learn how to use it, they change it and I have to start all over." The cost of tech at the expense of other aspects of education. "Technology will suck financial resources, thus faculty will continue to be underpaid and community college education will continue its steady demise," griped a liberal arts instructor and online coordinator at a New Mexico community college. The full results of the Teaching with Technology Survey appear in the August/September digital issue of Campus Technology. Highlights from the survey will also be posted on this site over the coming months. You can check back for ongoing coverage in our Research section. Who Responded There are a lot of people who play a part or have a vested interest in the use of technology in colleges and universities. But for the sake of this survey, CT wanted to find out what faculty thought about the topic, so we targeted our questions to that role within the institution. Everybody else who responded to the survey was eliminated from the results we're sharing with you here. We were left with 524 qualified participants who held faculty roles. Of those, 69 percent work in public institutions, 23 percent in private not-for-profit colleges and another 8 percent work in private for-profit schools. Seven in 10 institutions (71 percent) run four-year programs; the other 29 percent run two-year programs. Our typical respondent has spent an average of 21 years in the field. Nearly half of the respondents (49 percent) have 21 years or more of experience working in higher education; the next largest group (33 percent) has between 11 and 20 years. The respondents come from a gamut of school and college types. The top three most represented are education (19 percent), business (14 percent) and liberal arts (10 percent). Every other discipline has single-digit representation. The average size of the institution's student body in our survey is 13,886. However, nearly six in 10 respondents work in colleges or universities with fewer than 10,000 students. Respondents come from almost every state in the union, with particularly high representation from California, Florida, Texas, New York and Ohio, in that order. (We apologize to our Canadian respondents who felt unloved; next year we'll be sure to include your provinces as well.) WEDNESDAY, Oct. 19, 2016 (HealthDay News) -- Oregon had a significant and lasting increase in emergency department visits after Medicaid coverage was expanded, a new study shows. "For policymakers thinking about expansions, our results suggest that a typical Medicaid program will increase health care use across settings -- including the ED [emergency department] -- for at least two years, and that it won't lead people to go to the doctor instead of the ED," said study co-author Katherine Baicker. She's a professor of health economics at Harvard University's School of Public Health, in Boston. Emergency department visits increased 40 percent after Oregon expanded Medicaid coverage in 2008, and the increase persisted for at least two years, Baicker and her colleagues said in a joint Harvard-Massachusetts Institute of Technology news release. There was no evidence that newly insured Medicaid patients were more likely to substitute doctor's office visits for trips to the emergency department. Rather, investigators found they were more likely to use both types of care. The researchers also found that Medicaid coverage significantly improved people's financial security and reduced depression rates, but appeared to have no impact on physical health or employment. The study appears in the Oct. 20 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. "Our finding that Medicaid increased ED visits generated a lot of debate about whether this might just be a temporary spike; now we know that the increase in ED visits persisted for at least the first two years of Medicaid coverage," said study co-leader Amy Finkelstein, a professor of economics at MIT. More information The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has more on Medicaid. Irvine, Calif. -- Children who have been in the U.S. foster care system are at a significantly higher risk of mental and physical health problems - ranging from learning disabilities, developmental delays and depression to behavioral issues, asthma and obesity - than children who haven't been in foster care, according to a University of California, Irvine sociologist. "No previous research has considered how the mental and physical well-being of children who have spent time in foster care compares to that of children in the general population," said study co-author Kristin Turney, UCI associate professor of sociology. "This work makes an important contribution to the research community by showing for the first time that foster care children are in considerably worse health than other children. Our findings also present serious implications for pediatricians by suggesting that foster care placement is a risk factor for health problems in childhood." Published online Oct. 17 (Eastern time) ahead of print in Pediatrics, the large-scale study is the first to offer health comparisons based on a nationally representative sample of U.S. children. Turney and co-author Christopher Wildeman, associate professor of policy analysis & management at Cornell University, analyzed data from the 2011-2012 National Survey of Children's Health. Of the more than 900,000 kids included in the survey, 1.3 percent were identified as having been in foster care. They were compared to children who hadn't spent time in foster care, those who had been adopted from foster care and those living in a variety of family arrangements, including single-mother and economically disadvantaged households. Using logistic regression models, researchers found that kids who'd been in foster care were: Seven times as likely to experience depression Six times as likely to exhibit behavioral problems Five times as likely to feel anxiety Three times as likely to have attention deficit disorder, hearing impairments and vision issues Twice as likely to suffer from learning disabilities, developmental delays, asthma, obesity and speech problems "This is typically a difficult-to-reach population, so having access to descriptive statistics on their living arrangements, physical well-being and behavior provided an excellent opportunity to help identify the health challenges they face," Turney said. "This study expands our understanding of the mental and physical health of these highly vulnerable children, but we must take a closer look if we are to understand how foster care really affects child well-being." ### The study is available online at http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/recent. About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is the youngest member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. The campus has produced three Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 30,000 students and offers 192 degree programs. It's located in one of the world's safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County's second-largest employer, contributing $5 billion annually to the local economy. For more on UCI, visit http://www.uci.edu. Media access: Radio programs/stations may, for a fee, use an on-campus ISDN line to interview UCI faculty and experts, subject to availability and university approval. For more UCI news, visit news.uci.edu. Additional resources for journalists may be found at communications.uci.edu/for-journalists. Contact: Pat Harriman 949-824-9055 pharrima@uci.edu Heather Ashbach 949-824-1577 hashbach@uci.edu Yemeni children fill empty jerrycans with water from a donated source amid ongoing widespread disruption of water supplies in an impoverished coastal village on the outskirts of the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah, on October 18, 2016 (AFP Photo/-) Aden (AFP) - The Saudi-led coalition accused Yemeni rebels of repeatedly breaching a ceasefire on Thursday, the first day of a truce under global pressure to end a war which has killed thousands. At least 11 people were killed in sporadic clashes between rebels and pro-government forces, despite all sides insisting they will pause the fighting. The truce, for an initial period of three days, took effect just before midnight on Wednesday to allow sorely needed aid deliveries in Yemen where the conflict has also left millions homeless and hungry. The Saudi-led Arab coalition intervened in March 2015 to support the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi after Huthi rebels overran much of the impoverished country on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula. Five previous truce attempts failed but cautious optimism preceded the current pause after intensified international pressure following an escalation of combat. But Major General Ahmed Assiri, the coalition spokesman, told AFP, "there is no ceasefire at all" because of repeated rebel breaches. "This is the same situation as the previous time when we called for a ceasefire," Assiri said. And Saudi Arabia's foreign minister told reporters in Washington that rebels were stepping up their attacks. "As of this morning Washington time there had been more than 150 violations by the Huthi-Saleh side," Adel al-Jubeir said, referring to the rebels and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh. Saudi Arabia and Washington accuse Iran of arming the Shiite Huthi insurgents, but Tehran denies the charges. The coalition and Hadi both vowed to abide by the ceasefire despite alleged violations by the rebels. Pro-government forces declared "respect for the truce" but reserved the right to respond to infractions. The rebels said they would respect the ceasefire as long as "the enemy" abides by it, but urged their fighters to be ready to retaliate against "all aggression". Story continues - Thousands have died - The coalition says it will continue an air and maritime embargo, to prevent weapons shipments to the rebels, and maintains airborne reconnaissance. At dawn, coalition aircraft flew twice over the rebel-held capital Sanaa without conducting raids, according to residents, who said they have had enough of failed ceasefires. "They're mocking us with a three-day truce," said Ali al-Doush, a 32-year-old civil servant who has not been paid for three months. "We want an end to the war." Nearly 6,900 people have been killed, more than half of them civilians, while another three million are displaced and millions more need food aid. The deaths Thursday included three civilians killed in a coalition air raid on Saada province, a historic Huthi stronghold, rebel-controlled media said. Assiri denied that any air strikes took place over Yemen, although coalition warplanes carried out surveillance. He said a Patriot missile shot down a missile fired by rebels in Marib, east of the capital Sanaa. A man and his daughter were wounded in a cross-border attack from Yemen in the kingdom's Jazan region, Saudi civil defence authorities said. Assiri said coalition artillery and aircraft retaliated. - '43 rebel violations' - "We will respond to each violation. We will be reactive," he said. "It's so easy. If they stop, we will not fire a bullet." Official Saudi media said there were more than 43 rebel violations along the border. Military sources and residents said there had also been fighting around the besieged third city Taez, and pro-Hadi positions came under fire in Sarwah, east of Sanaa. The last ceasefire attempt began in April and collapsed as UN-brokered peace talks broke down in August. Fighting then escalated, until an October 8 coalition air strike which the UN said killed more than 140 people and wounded at least 525 at a funeral in Sanaa. On Thursday a panel of UN experts concluded the strike was in violation of international humanitarian law, accusing the coalition of failing to take "effective and adequate precautionary measures to minimise civilian casualties". In the wake of the incident the United States announced an "immediate review" of its intelligence and refuelling assistance to the coalition, whose investigative team said the funeral was "wrongly targeted". The US Navy also for the first time struck rebels directly earlier this month, hitting radar sites which Washington said were involved in missile launches against a US warship and other vessels. The ceasefire does not apply to jihadists who have exploited the conflict to gain ground in the south. Suspected Al-Qaeda militants on Thursday killed four soldiers at a checkpoint in the southern province of Abyan, a security official said. One attacker was killed and another wounded. Mauritania's President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz who came to power in 2008 boasts that he has turned his nation into a regional haven of peace thanks to his reorganisation of the military and security forces (AFP Photo/Lintao Zhang) Nouakchott (AFP) - Mauritania denied Thursday that a suspected jihadist cell uncovered by the authorities had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group (IS), after its members appeared in court accused of targeting a recent Arab League summit. Government spokesman Mohamed Lemine Ould Cheikh said the group were "amateurs" and denied a formal link with IS central command during a news conference. "This group was made up of 10 amateurs who were planning activities in support of a terrorist group," Ould Cheikh said, insisting there was no IS cell in Mauritania. However a judicial source, speaking to AFP on Wednesday when the group appeared before a prosecuting magistrate, painted a different picture of what it said were 10 men "apprehended just before the Arab (League) summit which took place on July 24." They had intended to "terrify" Arab leaders by raising the IS black flag and scrawling graffiti on buildings to assert the presence of the group in the Mauritanian capital. In addition "a Salafist was pulled out of prison in Nouakchott to help with the enquiry", the source said, while "the other 10 had links to this Salafist", using the word for an adherent of an ultra-conservative brand of Islam. Local press said the gang's leader was a former faith healer turned extremist and IS supporter. All remained in custody on Thursday. Mauritania jailed three men for between five and 10 years for links with IS in June 2015, with the court shown a video in which all three pledged allegiance. In August of that year a young Salafist leader was arrested and accused of spreading IS propaganda. Kidnappings and attacks by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) were frequent when Mauritania's President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz came to power in 2008. But he boasts that he has turned his nation into a regional haven of peace thanks to his reorganisation of the military and security forces. The mainly Muslim republic, sandwiched between the west coast of Africa and the Sahara desert, is seen by Western leaders as a bulwark against militant Islamist groups. The spotlight has been thrown on the growing threat of Islamist extremism across Africa's vast Sahel region since a French-led military intervention drove Al-Qaeda-linked groups out of the towns of neighbouring Mali's desert north in 2013. Danish English As part of the execution of the 2018 Strategy, TDC Group adjusted its Danish organisation during September 2016 towards a more customer-centric organisation with further end-to-end process responsibility in the business lines. For the financial reporting it means that more costs are allocated to the reporting segments Consumer, Business and Wholesale, whereas correspondingly fewer costs are allocated to Other operations in Denmark. TDC will report in accordance with the adjusted organisation with effect from the Interim Financial Report for January-September 2016. Comparative figures in the income statements for the business lines are restated accordingly. A restated Fact Sheet with comparative figures for Q1 2014 to Q2 2016 is therefore now available on TDCs website and attached to this release. The restatement does not give rise to any changes to TDCs guidance for 2016, which was announced on 21 June 2016. Camposol Holding Ltd. will hold a conference call announcing the third quarter 2016 results on Wednesday October 26th,2016. The telephone conference will be held at 10:00 a.m. (Lima) as described below. Jorge Ramirez, CEO, and Maria Cristina Couturier, CFO, will host the conference call presentation and a Q&A session at 10:00 a.m. (Lima). To participate in the conference call, please use the following numbers: London, UK Local +44 (0) 20 3427 1911 New York, US Local +1 212 444 0896 Oslo, Norway, Local +47 2316 2729 Chile National Free Phone 123 0020 9330 Colombia National Free Phone 01 800 915 7426 Participants will be asked for their name and conference ID. The Camposol conference ID is: 1917957 Audio access for the meeting is available by dialing the above mentioned numbers. To access the presentation webcast in connection with the conference call, please use: http://edge.media-server.com/m/p/t5u4ww9o Participants are advised to log on to the service and check their configuration well ahead of the telephone conference commencement. Please use the following link (that is also available from the registration page of your webcasts): http://edge.media-server.com/m/player/help/systemcheck.php?lan=en If you are unable to participate in the call, a playback of the conference is available until November 26th, 2016 by dialing: Replay - London, UK Local +44 (0) 20 3427 0598 Replay - US Local +1 347 366 9565 Replay - Oslo, Norway Local +47 2100 0498 Followed by replay access number: 1917957 For further information, please contact: Jossue Yesquen Lihim, Head of IR jyesquen@camposol.com.pe Phone: +511 621 0800 - Ext: 7171 About CAMPOSOL CAMPOSOL is the leading agro industrial company in Peru, the first producer of avocados and soon the first producer of blueberries in the world. It is involved in the harvest, processing and marketing of high quality agricultural products such as avocados, blueberries, grapes, mangoes, tangerines and shrimp; which are exported to Europe, the United States of America and Asia. CAMPOSOL is a vertically integrated company located in Peru, offering fresh and frozen products. It is the third largest private employer of the country, with more than 13 thousand workers in high season, and is committed to support sustainable development through social responsibility policies and projects aimed to increase the shared-value for all of its stakeholders. CAMPOSOL was the first Peruvian agro industrial company to present annual audited sustainability reports. CAMPOSOL has achieved the following international certifications: BSCI, Global Gap, IFS, HACCP and BRC among others. Company Applauds Employee Dedication and Perseverance in North Carolina SMITHFIELD, Va., Oct. 19, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, all Smithfield Foods processing facilities and farms in North Carolina have returned to normal operations, and while floodwaters reached lagoons on three Smithfield contract farms following the historic flooding caused by Hurricane Matthew, there continues to be no report of lagoon breaches or failures on the companys company-owned or contract farms as a result of this flooding. The storm brought flood levels unseen in nearly 500 years, unmatched transportation challenges including a 10-day closure of both Interstate 95 and Interstate 40, and widespread devastation to communities across the eastern half of the state. We are deeply grateful to our more than 10,000 employees across North Carolina who have been affected by this disaster but have remained committed to our operations, customers and consumers. Weve provided warm meals, transportation, and activated our Employee Assistance Program to assist employees. Smithfields EAP provides support to employees and their families during challenging times and includes services such as counseling sessions, legal consultations, family and caregiver assistance as well as other resources. The effects of this storm were severe, and I could not be more proud of our North Carolina employees and their response in the face of adversity, said Kenneth M. Sullivan, Smithfields president and chief executive officer . I am thankful to be a part of the Smithfield family, and proud that we are able to provide support to the entire area as they begin to pick up the pieces. Through our Helping Hungry Homes hunger-relief initiative, we have provided more than 75,000 pounds of protein to local food banks and will continue to provide additional protein to other affected areas in the coming weeks. Beyond food donations, we have also pledged to provide $25,000 to the American Red Cross in North Carolina to further support our employees and communities during this challenging time and throughout the recovery. About Smithfield Foods Smithfield Foods is a $14 billion global food company and the world's largest pork processor and hog producer. In the United States, the company is also the leader in numerous packaged meats categories with popular brands including Smithfield, Eckrich, Nathan's Famous, Farmland, Armour, John Morrell, Cook's, Kretschmar, Gwaltney, Curly's, Margherita, Carando, Healthy Ones, Krakus, Morliny and Berlinki. Smithfield Foods is committed to providing good food in a responsible way and maintains robust animal care, community involvement, employee safety, environmental and food safety and quality programs. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com. As of August 26th, 2021 Yahoo India will no longer be publishing content. Your Yahoo Account Mail and Search experiences will not be affected in any way and will operate as usual. We thank you for your support and readership. For more information on Yahoo India, please visit the FAQ Mr. Zarrab, 33, stands accused of facilitating millions of dollars in transactions on behalf of Iran and other sanctioned entities through the use of false documentation and front companies, as well as conspiracy to commit money laundering and bank fraud. Attorneys for Zarrab called for dismissal of the indictment, saying that the governments case was unprecedented and a prosecutorial overreach of the first order. Richard M. Berman of Federal District Court rejected the defense arguments, ruling that the indictment clearly set forth the required elements for the charges. The dismissal of an indictment is an extraordinary remedy reserved only for extremely limited circumstances implicating fundamental rights, he wrote. The case is watched closely in Turkey, where in 2013, Zarrab, who has pleaded not guilty to his current charges, was detained by the authorities during a corruption investigation of businessmen with close links to Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who then prime minister and now the countrys president. According to Turkish news reports, Mr. Erdogan raised Zarrabs case with Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. during talks at the United Nations. Mr. Erdogan said there were malicious intentions in the prosecution of Zarrab. Zarrabs lawyers, in seeking dismissal, argued that the United States sanctions laws are limited to U.S. persons and exports from the U.S. The prosecutors efforts to extend those laws in Zarrabs case,is not only unjustified and a due process violation, it is a dangerous extension of U.S. law that should not be allowed. The office of the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara, asked the judge to deny the defense motion. What arguably is unprecedented about this case is the scope, complexity and reach of the defendants own unlawful scheme, and his level of access to both Iranian and Turkish government officials and to banks to arrange and facilitate that scheme. Neither Benjamin Brafman, a lawyer for Zarrab, nor Mr. Bhararas office commented on the judges ruling. Zarrab is being detained without bail, and is scheduled for trial on Jan. 23. Disclosure: Some links on this page are monetized by the Skimlinks, Amazon, Rakuten Advertising, and eBay, affiliate programs. All prices are subject to change, and this article only reflects the prices available at time of publication. Theres been a lot of talk this week about the Google Pixel smartphones and how they stack up to the latest premium phones from Apple, Samsung, and others. But you know how you can really stand out at any show-me-your-smartphone party? By using a Windows phone. While Microsofts mobile phone platform has a tiny market share, the companys latest flagship phones are still pretty powerful little devices especially since they can also act as (sort of) desktop computers when you connect a keyboard, mouse, and monitor through an optional Display Dock. Microsoft currently charges $499 for its top-of-the-line Lumia 950 XL. But right now eBay seller never-msrp is offering the phone for $386. Thats less than the price youd pay for the smaller, less well-specced Lumia 950 at the Microsoft Store. Here are some of the days best deals. Smartphones Laptops and tablets Other You can find more bargains in our daily deals section. Shabaab Claims Killing 50 Somali Forces in Afgoye Suicide Bombing and Raid, Executing Accused Spies for Britain, Kenya NSC 2016 Day 2 Keynotes Focus on Motivation Charlie Morecraft and Scott Geller urged their audience to actively care for co-workers and take safety responsibility personally. The afternoon keynote's speakers warned that workplace violence can happen anywhere, so be prepared. ANAHEIM, Calif. Both keynote presentations on Oct. 18 at the 2016 National Safety Congress & Expo focused on strongly motivating the listeners. Charlie Morecraft of Phoenix Safety Management and Scott Geller of Safety Performance Solutions and Virginia Tech shared the stage for the morning keynote, with Morecraft recounting the severe burn injuries he suffered on the job at a New Jersey refinery and the agonizing recovery, countless operations, and severe cost to his family and himself the accident ultimately caused all because Morecraft chose that day, as he had many times before, to take shortcuts rather than follow a more cumbersome but safer procedure and wear all of the proper PPE. "You can't afford an accident like this. Your family can't affort an accident like this. What caused this accident was my attitude toward safety," said Morecraft, who has co-presented keynote speeches with Geller at NSC annual conferences since 2006. The afternoon keynote concerned workplace violence and featured four speakers. They included Carol Cambridge, CEO of Violence Free; Carri Casteel, MPH, PhD, president of the Society for Advancement of Violence and Injury Research; Kumani Armstrong, special counsel to the director of California's Department of Industrial Relations, the parent agency of Cal/OSHA; and Kevin Foust, police chief and director of security at Virginia Tech. Casteel and National Safety Council CEO Deborah A.P. Hersman discussed violence statistics, including that violence is the third-leading cause of U.S. occupational fatalities, following motor vehicle crashes and falls, and it is the second-leading cause of occupational fatalities for women in the United States. Armstrong said the rate of being victimized by violence at work is five times greater in health care and social assistance than in other industries. Cal/OSHA has nearly completed a rulemaking on preventing workplace violence at hospitals, and the rule will be voted on Oct. 20 in Oakland by the state's Occupational Safety & Health Standards Board, Armstrong said. If adopted at that meeting, the rule will go to the Office of Administrative Law for ultimate implementation, and then Cal/OSHA will turn its attention to a violence prevention rule for general industry, he said. News Microsoft and AWS Expand Their Clouds, Scrap over Public Sector Microsoft and Amazon Web Services (AWS) this week took turns touting their respective clouds' footprints and public sector credentials, often at each other's expense. Both companies were sponsors of the IACP Conference in San Diego, Calif., which is hosted by the International Association of Chiefs of Police and provides a showcase for solutions aimed at law enforcement and public sector organizations. The event was the backdrop for a series of announcements from the two companies seemingly geared at one-upping each other. First, AWS on Monday announced the opening of a new region in Columbus, Ohio, its fifth in the United States and the third it's launched this year after Seoul and Mumbai. The new Ohio region has three availability zones, bringing AWS' cloud infrastructure roster to 38 availability zones and 14 regions. It also has plans to open four more regions in France, the United Kingdom, Canada and China. AWS evangelist Jeff Barr provides an exhaustive list of services supported in Ohio region in this blog post. AWS touted the Ohio region as a boon for the area's public sector and education customers. "Customers and area citizens alike will benefit from new technology opportunities in state and local government organizations, and within the growing startup and developer community in Ohio. AWS looks forward to working closely with area businesses and public sector organizations to grow a cloud ecosystem," the company said in an announcement. "AWS will also work with area students and teachers to help build the next generation of cloud computing workers." Microsoft in turn detailed plans to offer four additional cloud regions specifically for government entities. Two new regions for the Department of Defense (DoD) -- one in the central U.S. and the other in the East Coast -- will launch by the end of 2016, according to a blog post Tuesday by Jason Zander, corporate vice president of Microsoft Azure. Two more Azure Government regions are slated to open in 2017 -- one in Arizona and one in Texas. These four government-specific regions are in addition to four other general-purpose Azure regions that Microsoft is planning in France and Korea. All told, Microsoft has 30 live cloud regions worldwide compared to AWS' 14 -- a discrepancy that Microsoft likes to bring up -- and two live dedicated U.S. government regions (in Virginia and Iowa) compared to AWS' one (in the West Coast). "[O]ur bi-coastal, government-only datacenters offer data replication in multiple locations within the country for business continuity," Zander wrote. "By comparison, the other major cloud provider only offers one government cloud region in the Pacific Northwest." However, it should be noted that comparing the two companies' region counts is complicated by their varying definitions of the term "region." Microsoft uses the word to describe a single location that contains one or more datacenters. Microsoft says it has over 100 cloud datacenters, but not how many are located in each region. Meanwhile, AWS uses "region" to describe a single location that contains one or more availability zones, which in turn contain one or more datacenters. The argument could be made that AWS' "availability zone" is more comparable to Microsoft's "region." AWS' Barr pointed out the distinction in his blog, citing "some industry-wide confusion about the difference between Regions and Availability Zones of late." AWS lists its regions here and Microsoft its Azure regions here. Microsoft and AWS have also been taking turns comparing their respective clouds' public sector credentials. For example, according to AWS earlier this month, its cloud is in use by about 7,000 educational, 22,000 nonprofit and 2,300 government institutions. Microsoft's Zander countered Tuesday that its Azure Government Cloud is used by about 6 million people across 7,000 organizations in different levels of government. AWS also announced that it now complies with the Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) standard in six states, the latest being Washington. Zander on Tuesday said that Microsoft meets that standard in 23 states. A consumer confidence index compiled by MasterCard has revealed a plunging drop in the first half of 2016. The latest result of 33.6 is the lowest since 2009 and represents a 10.8% fall on the previous six months. It seems fears over quality of life, income and job security have left Singaporeans pessimistic about the future of the economy and the labour market. But what exactly has caused this downturn in mood and how does the city state expect to revive confidence levels in the jobs market in the second half of the year? Ongoing pressure over job security Source: Thinkstock/Getty Images Source: Thinkstock/Getty Images One reason Singaporeans might attribute to their confidence slump is a shift in balance when it comes to permanent employment. In the financial industry, a recent report revealed a high demand for interim managers. The report, from recruitment firm Robert Half, cited business continuity, leadership enhancement and changes in management as incentives to hire an interim manager. While this may be efficient and cost-effective for business heads, this type of flexible resourcing is a worry when it comes to job stability and the long-term prospects of those looking for more permanent employment. Whats more, those who have a permanent job may find it to be not so permanent after all, as even the biggest firms show signs of downsizing or relocating due to wider economic concern. Barclays announced in early September that it would be cutting around 100 jobs from its IT department in Singapore. The cuts follow the closure of Barclays cash equities operations across Asia as it seeks to reduce headcount globally. Elsewhere in Singapores job market, sentiment among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) has also fallen. The most recent report from the SBF-DP SME Index, the measure of business confidence that looks ahead over a six-month period, revealed muted opinion and pessimism with regard to profit outlook. The CEO of The Singapore Business Federation, Ho Meng Kit, even went as far as urging SMEs to look overseas for prosperity, or face a long period of low growth or even declining profitability. Story continues Fresh support for employees Source: Thinkstock/Getty Images Source: Thinkstock/Getty Images It is clearly a worrying time for the business sector in Singapore and by extension, the job market. But there is some positive news emerging from the doom and gloom, beginning with the announcement that next year Singapores Ministry of Manpower is to establish an employment claims tribunal to hear salary-related disputes. The tribunal aims to take over from the labour courts, where the majority of salary-related claims are currently heard, and will aim to provide resolution for employees covered under the Employment Act who earn up to S$4,500 per month. Although the new tribunal is not set to start operating until April 2017, the promise of a new dispute resolution service will be uplifting for many citizens whose fears over job security and salary issues may be denting their confidence. Elsewhere, career development programmes are starting to emerge perhaps an attempt to curb job market woes spurred by low birth rates of the past few decades and the impending retirement of the baby boomer age. In the hotel sector, two schemes have been launched by the Ministry of Manpower. One focuses on helping workers obtain specific skills to further their careers, while the other is known as the Professional Conversion Programme (PCP) and aims to help executives transition more smoothly between multiple industries. The PCP is already available in 12 industries, such as manufacturing, infocomm, healthcare, early education and social services. There are also calls for a little perspective. While there has admittedly been an increase in redundancies, Singapores unemployment rate of three per cent is still comparatively low. The rate, which grew 0.3% on the previous quarter, has been exacerbated by the slowing economy and cautious hiring as a result of global uncertainty. While the rise of unemployment sparked concern when it emerged in the second quarter, economists have urged that it is too soon to say the labour market is slacking particularly considering that the news of a fall comes after four quarters of near continuous labour market growth. The drop in confidence suggests consumers will remain cautious something visible in the decline in attendance at this years Singapore Grand Prix. There is also further risk that this weakness may spill over into domestic activity, causing more accentuated and consecutive tumult for the labour market. Growth forecasts have already been lowered for the year, with estimations now at around 1.8%. That represents the slowest pace since 2009. This is why all eyes will be on both the public and private sectors of Singapore for the rest of the year to see how the pessimism plaguing the nation is curbed, to try to encourage a rosier conclusion to the year. (By Sarah Thorp) WASHINGTON, D.C. On the heels of this week's failed missile attacks on a US Navy vessel, the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies published the following timeline illustrating the interceptions of ballistic missiles in Yemen. Since the March 2015 launch of the Saudi-led Gulf Cooperation Council's military Operation Decisive Storm, which was developed to bolster the Yemeni government under President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, missile attacks launched from Houthi-held territory have accelerated. yemen missile war Although the majority of the missile launches were intercepted, the graphics showcases how the war in Yemen has the chance to spill over beyond its borders. This fact was particularly driven home when a Houthi missile attack caused extensive damage to a former US Navy ship that was being operated by the United Arab Emirates at the start of the month off the coast of Yemen in the Red Sea. The Houthis were also believed to be responsible for two attacks over the course of four days against the US-operated USS Mason, which was patrolling in the Bab al-Mandab Strait between Yemen and Eritrea. These attacks led to a US counter strike against Houthi radar platforms. The Houthis are an Iranian-backed militant group that rose up against the internationally recognized Yemeni government in 2014, ultimately driving the president into exile in Saudi Arabia in March 2015. This precipitated a bloody and ongoing free-for-all in Yemen that pits the Houthis and their supporters against Gulf-supported forces loyal to the Yemeni government in exile, ISIS, and al Qaeda. According to the BBC, more than 6,800 people have been killed in the conflict since 2015, and 80% of the population is in need of humanitarian assistance. NOW WATCH: The US struck radar sites in Yemen after rebels tried to attack a Navy ship with missiles More From Business Insider If you buy something through our links, we may earn money from our affiliate partners. Learn more. If youre looking for a new all-in-one printer for your home office, you just got a few new options. Brother (TYO:6448) just introduced a new line of all-in-one devices that are designed specifically for small businesses as part of its INKvestment line of printers. Brother Introduces New Business Smart Printers There are two new models available this month, including the Business Smart Plus MFC-J5830DW and Business Smart Pro MFC-J6535DW. And the company is also releasing the XL versions of those devices, which can support businesses with larger printing volumes, in November. Both devices come with mobile connectivity features, including the ability to print from smartphones and other mobile devices using WiFi and the ability to work with services like AirPrint and Google Cloud Print. Users can also scan documents to popular services like Google Drive and Dropbox, or use free Brother cloud apps to fine tune documents. Mobile and cloud features are becoming increasingly important to small businesses. But the main draw of these new devices, according to Brother, is the ability for businesses to save time and money when it comes to printing. Phil Lubell, Senior Director, Product Marketing, Brother International Corporation said in a company statement, The top-of-mind concerns of small businesses when it comes to printers are the cost of ink, cartridge yields and the durability of their printer. This expanded line of Brother INKvestment all-in-ones was developed specifically for small businesses. With its high-quality printing, rich feature package, durable build, and low-cost ink cartridges, customers can spend less time worrying about buying ink and more time growing their businesses. According to Brother, the cost of printing on these new devices is less than a penny per page for black and less than a nickel per page in color. They also come with the ability to connect to Amazon Dash Replenishment, so you can get new ink automatically instead of needing to make a separate trip. In addition to the new releases this month, Brother is also releasing two supplementary models in December. The MFC-J5930DW and MFC-J6935DW devices offer similar benefits, but with additional paper trays and automatic two-sided copying and scanning features. Qualify for discounts, special offers and more with a Business Prime account from Amazon. You can create a FREE account to get started today. Samsung (KRX:005930) tested the batteries for the exploding Galaxy Note 7 in a self-owned lab. It is the only manufacturer of smartphones allowed to test their phone batteries in-house, according to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). The rest of phone makers must analyze their phone batteries at one of the 28 labs certified by the Cellular Telephone Industries Association (CTIA), a trade group representing the wireless communication industry. Phone batteries must go through an experimentation and assessment process in order to comply with standards established by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Samsung officially stopped production of its newest device, the Galaxy Note 7, last week due to reports of the phones exploding, igniting and melting. This came roughly a month after it decided to recall and halt shipments of the product. Is The Atypical In-House Battery Testing by Samsung to Blame? The battery is the source of these potentially dangerous malfunctions. A representative for Samsung said that no problems were detected while at the internal testing labs, according to the WSJ. We are working with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to investigate the recently reported cases involving the Galaxy Note7, Samsung said in an official statement last week. Because consumers safety remains our top priority, Samsung will ask all carrier and retail partners globally to stop sales and exchanges of the Galaxy Note 7 while the investigation is taking place. But there have been reports of other Samsung products breaking down and becoming harmful. Marie Terrios Samsung S6 Active mobile phone was crackling and sizzling in her front left pocket and burned severe gashes into her thigh and shin, according to an exclusive story for The Daily Caller News Foundation (TheDCNF). Terrio went to the hospital and was treated for second and third degree burns that resulted from the combusting cellular device. My leg looked black and the pain was unbelievable, Terrio told TheDCNF. A California man is suing Samsung for intense burns allegedly caused by his Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. Batteries are the identified cause in the majority of examples of overheating or exploding mobile devices. Samsung testing its own batteries seems like it could potentially be a conflict of interest, in which a manufacturer may be more likely to green-light a battery for reasons of profit motive. John Copeland, a former employee of Motorola who now works at a battery test lab in Atlanta, said that cellphone developers would use their own labs because it would help maintain secrecy over the products and the features. Manufacturers are very concerned about their proprietary information leaking out, Copeland told the WSJ. Copeland believes that the audits were thorough enough to ensure an absence of conflicts of interest. Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org. Republished by permission. Original here. National Science Competition Ohio 13-Year-Old Wins $25K in 2016 Young Scientist Challenge Maanasa Mendu, left, won the Young Scientist Challenge Tuesday. Her 3M mentor, Margaux Mitera, is on her right. A 13-year-old ninth grader from Mason, OH has won the 2016 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge in St. Paul, MN. Maanasa Mendu won $25,000 and the title of Americas Top Young Scientist immediately following a live competition Tuesday at the 3M Innovation Center in St. Paul. Nine other finalists from across the country competed in the scientist challenge, which paired the students with 3M scientists to develop practical inventions. Mendu, a student at William Mason High School in the Mason City School District, created Harvest, a bio-inspired energy device that uses solar and wind power to create energy. This innovation was inspired by a visit to India where she discovered many people lacking basic life necessities, such as clean water and lighting. Through her invention, Mendu hopes to provide a globally applicable, cost-effective energy source. Mendus approach reflected the competitions goal of applying science to everyday life, creating a solution that may improve lives and strengthen communities around the globe. Over the past three months, Mendu and the nine other finalists had the opportunity to work with a 3M scientist to develop their personal inventions as part of a summer mentorship program. Mendu was paired with Margaux Mitera, a 3M senior product development engineer whose research has helped 3M develop new Post-it Note products. During the final competition hosted by Discovery Education Vice President Lance Rougeux, the finalists presented their completed inventions to a respected panel of scientists and leaders from both Discovery Education and 3M, including honorary guest judge Trace Dominguez, whos producer, writer and host of Discoverys DNews program. Each year, the Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge reminds us of the inspiring ingenuity that results when we empower our youngest generation to apply science, critical thinking and creativity to solve real world problems, Bill Goodwyn, president and CEO of Discovery Education, said in a statement. The remaining nine finalists also received prizes from Discovery Education and 3M. Second through fourth place winners each received $1,000 and a trip to a taping of a show on Discoverys family of networks. These winners are: Rohan Wagh of Portland, OR, a ninth grader at Sunset High School, who received second place for his invention that utilizes the natural metabolism of bacteria to create energy; Kaien Yang of Chantilly, VA, an eighth grader at Nysmith School for the Gifted, who received third place for his innovation that uses pumpkin seed oil to create both a biodiesel and bioplastic that reduces emissions and pollution from plastic; Amelia Day of Summer, WA, a ninth grader at Sumner High School, who received fourth place for her invention that uses sensory feedback to help rebuild neural connections inside the brain during rehabilitation. The fifth through 10th place winners each received $1,000 and a $500 Excitations gift card. These finalists, in alphabetical order, are: Meghna Behari of Swickley, PA, an eighth grader at Marshall Middle School; Mrinali Kesavadas of Mahomet, IL, a ninth grader at Mahomet-Seymour High School; Rohit Mital of Rochester Hills, MI, a ninth grader at Adams High School; Sara Makboul of Acworth, GA, a ninth grader at Kennesaw Mountain High School; Sofia Tomov of Knoxville, TN, an eighth grader who is homeschooled; Will Paschal of Madison, GA, a ninth grader at Morgan County High School. Since its inception in 2008, the Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge has awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars in prizes, paired students with world-renowned scientists to give them real world insights and offered science resources to millions of students, teachers and families across the country, according to a news release. Winners have gone on to be featured in Forbes magazines annual 30 Under 30 list, meet the president of the United States, speak before Congress and demonstrate their inventions on national TV shows such as ABC World News Tonight, The Ellen DeGeneres Show and Fox & Friends. For more information about the competition and the finalists, visit YoungScientistChallenge.com. Research Race, Gender Gaps Persist in Computer Science Education With increasing support from public and private investors, including well-known companies like Google and Facebook, more K12 schools are offering computer science (CS) classes across the country (up 25 percent since last year). Many students have the opportunity to learn CS now, but research shows that structural and social barriers still persist that keep minority students from learning CS skills. Google for Education, in partnership with Gallup, released several reports today on the status of CS education in the United States. The latest Google-Gallup study titled Diversity Gaps in Computer Science points to a race and gender gap in K12 CS education. According to the report, Black and Hispanic students face discrepancies in access and exposure to CS classes and to computer use at home and at school, despite their parents being more likely to want them to learn CS compared to White parents (92 percent versus 84 percent respectively). Black students are also less likely than White students to have CS class at their school (47 percent and 58 percent respectively). Other key information includes: Girls are less likely than boys to be aware of CS learning outside of school, and less likely to be encouraged by teachers or parents to learn CS skills; and It is rare for students to see computer scientists that resemble them in the media, especially for female and Hispanic students. The report looks at various social barrier that can hinder participation for underrepresented groups in CS, including CS stereotypes in the media; lack of encouragement to learn CS; and misconceptions from parents and teachers that students may not be interested in CS education. For another report, Trends in the State of Computer Science in U.S. K12 Schools, Google and Gallup surveyed more than 1,600 students, 1,600 parents, 1,000 teachers, 9,800 principals and 2,300 superintendents. Among the highlights are: More schools have CS classes this year, with 40 percent of principals reporting they offer CS classes at their schools; More than nine in 10 parents believe that opportunities to learn CS are a good use of school resources; Relatively few (three out of 10) parents and teachers have expressed their support for CS education to school administrators; and Positive perceptions of CS education and careers persist among all groups. The set of reports also includes older reports like K12 Computer Science Education: U.S. State Reports, which summarizes the status of CS education for the 11 states surveyed in 2015. Images of Computer Science: Perceptions Among Students, Parents and Educators in the U.S. examines perceptions about CS as well as opportunities for students to become more involved. Another report titled Searching for Computer Science: Access and Barriers in U.S. K12 Education argues that exposure to technology is vital to building student confidence for CS. Lastly, Women Who Choose Computer Science What Really Matters, published in 2014, looks at four factors that influence young women to pursue CS careers (which includes social encouragement, self perception, academic exposure and career perception). To access any of the reports for free, visit the Google for Education site. Virtual Reality Stanford VR Project Shows Students Oceans of the Future A new, free virtual reality program allows users to explore just what happens as climate change kills off coral reefs. The Stanford Ocean Acidification Experience is a free science education tool that takes students to the bottom of the sea and then fast-forwards their experience to the end of this century, when, as scientists predict, many coral reefs are expected to corrode through ocean acidification. By putting the experience in VR, the collaborators say they are hoping to change people's behavior in the real world. The project came out of Stanford's Virtual Human Interaction Lab, which created a related 360-degree video project that also examines the problem of global warming and its impact on the ocean's life forms. But it's the VR version that allows the viewer to deep-sea dive and collect samples off of the ocean floor. The simulation places the viewer into heavy traffic, where he or she can follow carbon dioxide molecules as they float from car tailpipes to the sea, where they're absorbed. Then the viewer steps into the waves and moves around coral as it loses its vitality and displays the effects of increasingly acidic water on marine life. A narrator explains what's happening as the story unfolds and encourages the viewer to undertake specific actions, such as a species count. "You're not watching something, you're doing it," said Jeremy Bailenson, founding director of the lab and a communications professor. "You learn by doing. These are magic, teachable moments." The lab created the software in partnership with marine biologists Fiorenza Micheli from Stanford and Kristy Kroeker, formerly at Stanford and now at the University of California, Santa Cruz, as well as Roy Pea, a professor at Stanford's Graduate School of Education. The development process took two years to recreate a virtual replica of an actual rocky reef around the Italian island of Ischia, where underground volcanic vents have been spewing carbon dioxide at the reef. The data collected from that site has allowed researchers to measure the impact on marine life and to extrapolate what effect people's increasing fossil fuel use will have in decades to come. A related video, "The Crystal Reef," filmed in 360 degrees and developed as part of a master's degree project by a lab member, premiered during the Tribeca Film Festival earlier this year. There, people could watch the film on VR headgear. "We had a line of dozens of people for 11 hours a day, six days straight," said Bailenson, in a Stanford article about the project. The VR project has also gone to Washington, where lawmakers and staffers tried it out during a Capitol Hill event organized by non-profit Ocean Conservancy. Among them was Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island. "This simulation shows in rich detail the damage carbon pollution inflicts on our oceans," said Whitehouse after his viewing. "I appreciate the Stanford Ocean Acidification Experience for calling attention to the peril our oceans face and what we must do to protect them." SINCE THE RAPTURE OCCURS BEFORE THE FUTURE 7 YR TREATY IS SIGNED, I WONT BE AROUND TO HAVE THE ACTUAL TREATY SIGNING. BUT UNTIL THEN THIS SITE IS DEDICATED TO THE BEGININGS OF THE ISRAELI / ARAB PEACE PROCESS. AND AS CLOSE TO THE 7 YEAR SIGNING THAT WE GET BEFORE THE RAPTURE OF THE SAVED TO HEAVEN. UNTIL WE MEET JESUS IN THE CLOUDS BODILY, AND COME TO EARTH 7 YRS LATER. ST. LOUIS (AP) Water from a rare, record-setting winter flood was receding in the St. Louis area Friday, allowing some major roadways to reopen and offering hope for flood-weary residents that the worst of this sudden catastrophe was behind them. For others, the worst is still to come, with expected crests in coming days in southern Missouri, southern Illinois, then onto Arkansas, Tennessee and other southern states. The biggest problem was the Meramec River, a smaller tributary of the Mississippi. Some points along the river topped the 1993 record by 4 feet, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of homes and businesses in southwest St. Louis suburbs like Pacific, Eureka, Valley Park and Arnold. Several hundred homes took in water, and residents are just beginning to assess the damage. Keith Roeder leaves his trailer in the Starling Mobile Home Park with his clothing as the Meramec River continues to rise in Arnold, Mo., on Thursday. Roeder, who was told to leave last night, said, "I never ever thought it would get this bad." (Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch) People use a canoe to navigate a flooded street in Arnold, Mo., on Thursday. Surging Midwestern rivers forced hundreds of evacuations, threatened dozens of levees and brought transportation by car, boat or train to a virtual standstill Thursday in the St. Louis area. (Jeff Roberson/The Associated Press) Steven Schuck checks on his trailer as he takes a tour of the Starling Mobile Home Park where he lives in Arnold, Mo., on Thursday. The park, which fronts the Meramec River, was evacuated late Wednesday. (Robert Cohen/St. Louis Post-Dispatch) Taylorville Fire Department Dive and Rescue Team members, from left, Jeff Stoner, Mike Mann and Nick Hackney search for two missing Christian County men, last seen Monday, while riding on a boat on the Sangamon River running through South Fork Township, Ill., on Thursday. (David Spencer/The State Journal-Register) Gracie Ijames, 9, of Imperial, warms her hand on in a bonfire in Kimmswick, Mo., on Thursday. (Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch) People use a canoe to navigate a flooded street in Arnold, Mo., on Thursday. (Jeff Roberson/The Associated Press) Houses are surrounded by water in Arnold, Mo., on Thursday. (Jeff Roberson/The Associated Press) Floodwater reaches the rooftop of a house in Valley Park, Mo., on Thursday. (Jeff Roberson/The Associated Press) Floodwater from the Meramec River surround the bridge deck of I-44 and Highway 141 in southwest St. Louis County on Wednesday in Missouri. (J.B. Forbes/St. Louis Post-Dispatch) People hang out by the recently built-up levees holding rising Mississippi River waters at bay in Kimmswick, Mo., on Thursday. Floodwater was starting to recede at some hard-hit Midwestern communities Thursday, but hundreds of homes were damaged, hundreds more remained evacuated, and getting through St. Louis by car, boat or train was next to impossible. (Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch) Firemen spray water towards water seepage under the city's makeshift flood levee in downtown Alton, Ill., on Wednesday. (John Badman/The Telegraph) Students from Eureka High School form a line to dump floodwater from the basement of William and Gretchen Bedo in Eureka, Mo., on Wednesday. (Huy Mach/St. Louis Post-Dispatch) Floodwater from the Meramec River surround the bridge deck of I-44 and Highway 141 in southwest St. Louis County on Wednesday. (J.B. Forbes/St. Louis Post-Dispatch) Volunteers build a five-block-long emergency levee in an effort to save more than 150 houses and several businesses from the rising Sangamon River in Petersburg, Ill., on Wednesday. (Rich Saal/The State Journal-Register) David Fritch, associate manager of the Casey's in Petersburg, Ill., climbs over a sand berm built to hold off approaching water from the Sangamon River on Wednesday. Fritch and store manager Clayton A. Roberts closed and locked up the store, like many of the other businesses near the river. Volunteers were building a five-block-long emergency levee in an effort to save more than 150 houses and several businesses from damage. (Rich Saal/The State Journal-Register) a house is surrounded by floodwater in Eureka, Mo., on Wednesday. A rare winter flood threatened nearly two dozen federal levees in Missouri and Illinois on Wednesday as rivers rose, prompting evacuations in several places. (Jeff Roberson/The Associated Press) Paul Dusablon, left, and Richard Kotva row from the Circle K at Springdale Park after helping the owner move electronics off the floor inside the convenience store, in Fenton, Mo., on Wednesday. (Robert Cohen/St. Louis Post-Dispatch) Prev 1 of 17 Next With water finally going down, the Missouri Department of Transportation was able to reopen northbound lanes of Interstate 55 south of St. Louis on Thursday, about a day after they were closed, and southbound lanes opened Friday morning. MoDOT spokeswoman Shaunda White said 76,000 vehicles pass through that area on a typical day, so that's going to be a significant relief. Water also shrank from Interstate 44, where a 24-mile stretch southwest of St. Louis has been closed for two days. White said crews still needed to clear debris and ensure the roadway was safe before reopening it, though that also could happen Friday. The devastating flood, fueled by more than 10 inches of rain over a three-day period that began last weekend, is blamed for 20 deaths. Four others are still missing two teenagers in Illinois and two men in southwest Missouri. Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner was slated to visit flood-damaged areas on Friday, planning stops at Alton, Grafton and four other communities. Rauner has declared 12 counties disaster areas. In Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, south of St. Louis, the Mississippi was still rising but there was good news: The crest forecast for late Friday or early Saturday, once expected to be a record, was now expected to fall about 2 feet short of the 1993 mark. Many downtown merchants had cleared out, just to be on the safe side, in case the levee gave way. We are breathing a bit easier, said Sandra Cabot, director of tourism for the historic French settlement that dates to the 18th century. We are very confident in our levee. We've never been tested at this level before. Other southern Missouri and Illinois towns were getting ready for the high-water mark. A record-tying crest was expected by the weekend in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, but a floodwall offers protection and is not considered endangered. Cairo, Illinois, where the Ohio and Mississippi rivers meet, seemed safe, despite a near-record crest prediction. It appeared the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would not need to blast a hole in the Birds Point waterway in southeast Missouri, as it did in 2011 to relieve pressure from the flood protection at nearby Cairo, Illinois. The Corps said the intentional breach would be considered if the Ohio River reached 60 feet at Cairo, but the weather service projects it will top out at 57.5 feet on Sunday. In Eureka, Missouri, firefighters and their boats have been in high demand, accounting for roughly 100 rescues of people in their homes, businesses or vehicles since Tuesday, said Scott Barthelmass, a Eureka Fire Protection District spokesman. Nine levees five on the Mississippi River, three on the Missouri and one on Illinois' Kaskaskia River were topped by water this week, but those earthen barriers protect farmland and otherwise unpopulated areas. Associated Press writer Heather Hollingsworth in Kansas City, Missouri, contributed to this report. 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. A resurgence of summer that pushed New Mexico temperatures into record territory in recent days will back off for a bit this week before turning up the heat again on Saturday and Sunday. Wednesday is the first day we will get pretty close to average, maybe two to three degrees either side of average, said Todd Shoemake, a meteorologist with the Albuquerque office of the National Weather Service. Thursday will be a couple of degrees cooler than Wednesday. On Friday, the temperatures start to rebound. The warming trend continues on Saturday and Sunday up to temperatures about 10 degrees above normal. The average high temperature in the Albuquerque area this time of year is 70 degrees, give or take a degree. On Sunday, the official high temperature recorded at the Albuquerque International Sunport was 83 degrees, one degree shy of Albuquerques record high for that date, set in 1909. Other cities around the state set record highs for Sundays date. Tucumcari got up to 95, breaking the previous record of 90, set in 1979. Roswell warmed up to 93, edging out the old record of 92, set in 2011. And Clayton topped out at 91, besting the previous mark of 89, notched in 1991. Las Vegas (82), Santa Fe (81) and Los Alamos (76) also set records Sunday. Albuquerques cool but brief interlude starts Wednesday, when the high is expected to be 70 degrees. Thursdays high is forecast to be 68 and Fridays 73. Lows this week will range from 48 tonight down to 42 on Thursday night. It will be dry as well as warm. There is no precipitation in the forecast. GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. Donald Trump says the media is more crooked than Hillary Clinton, his Democratic presidential rival. Trump spoke in Grand Junction Tuesday. He and his running mate, Mike Pence, have complained that the election is going to be rigged. They say the news media is colluding with Clinton by reporting that multiple women accuse him of sexually assaulting them. Trump also insists there will be fraud at the polls on Election Day. He said he doesnt believe polls showing hes trailing Clinton in Colorado. Trump said everywhere he goes, he draws crowds of thousands of people. Elections veterans caution that large crowds at rallies dont equate to winning a general election. Trump appeared earlier Tuesday in Colorado Springs. Pence is scheduled to campaign in Durango on Wednesday. RICHMOND, Texas An 88-year-old man has been treated and released from a Houston-area hospital after he was bitten by an alligator near his home. Authorities say the man was cutting weeds near a pond behind his home when he was bitten on Tuesday. He was later treated for hand and arm injuries. Investigators say the man had previously fed the alligators in the pond near Richmond, located southwest of Houston. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department game wardens are investigating the incident. According to state law, it is a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $500 to feed an alligator. PHOENIX A federal appeals panel that rejected a Democratic effort to block a new Arizona law barring groups from collecting early ballots from voters now has expedited a full hearing on the request. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has scheduled arguments for Wednesday. Last week, a panel summarily rejected an emergency injunction request. But late Friday, the three judges on the panel decided to expedite a full hearing on the Democrats request. The previous schedule called for hearings well after the Nov. 8 general election. A different three-judge panel is set to hear the case. The new law signed by Republican Gov. Doug Ducey earlier this year means people who collect mail-in ballots in most cases face a felony charge. Democratic groups argue the law disproportionately affects minority voters. Ducey called it a common-sense law to protect election integrity. U.S. District Court Judge Douglas L. Rayes last month shot down Democratic groups request for an injunction to keep the law from being enforced. In his opinion, Rayes said lawyers representing state and national Democratic groups failed to show that the law would disparately impact minority voters. He said it simply regulates an administrative aspect of the electoral process. Democrats appealed, urging the 9th Circuit to overturn Rayes and issue an injunction blocking the law. Spencer Scharff, voter protection director for the Arizona Democratic Party, said the decision to expedite the hearing is a good sign. We are optimistic that the 9th Circuit will rule in our favor and find that we are likely to succeed on the merits and issue an injunction, Scharff said. That would prevent the state of Arizona from enforcing H.B. 2023, a measure that criminalizes the act of helping a neighbor vote. The Democratic groups sued Secretary of State Michele Reagan, but the state Republican Party intervened and asked to be a party to the lawsuit. Tim Sifert, spokesman for the state GOP, declined to comment on the ongoing litigation. But after Rayes ruled last month, state party chair Robert Graham hailed the ruling. Ballot harvesting is a practice used by the Democrats and their leftist allies in Arizona that was rife with opportunity for manipulation and outright fraud, Graham said in a statement. Both parties have used ballot collection to boost turnout during elections by going door-to-door and asking voters if they have completed their mail-in ballot. If they have not, they urge them to do so and offer to return it to elections offices. Democrats have used the method aggressively in minority communities and argue their success prompted the new GOP-sponsored law. The lawsuit filed by the Democratic National Committee, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, state Democratic Party and numerous voters alleged the law violated the federal Voting Rights Act. In their injunction request, they argued there has been a lengthy history of discrimination at the polls in Arizona and that the law was orchestrated to suppress voter turnout among Democratic voters. Democrats are also appealing another ruling by Rayes that rejected their request to order election officials to count ballots cast by voters in the wrong precinct. They say the practice disparately affect minority voters. But Rayes said the state has a valid reason not to count such votes because different races are on ballots in different precincts and Democrats havent shown that minorities were affected more than white voters. The race for Republican Rep. Barbara Comstocks seat in northern Virginia is tightening in the final three weeks of the campaign, with several independent political analysts moving the race to toss-up status. Experts consider the district among the most competitive in the nation despite lackluster fundraising numbers from Democratic challenger LuAnn Bennett and evidence that GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump might not be the burden on down-ballot candidates that some had expected. Comstock and Bennett were scheduled to face off Wednesday morning for the final debate off the campaign and their first joint public event since a 2005 video of Trump bragging about groping women was released. Trump dismissed his lewd comments as locker room talk, but Comstock called the video disgusting, vile and disqualifying and urged him to drop out of the race. Until then, she had not endorsed or repudiated the GOP standard-bearer. Like her colleagues in moderate Republican districts across the country, Comstock has to worry that voters turned off by Trump will stay home on Election Day and cost her her seat. The district includes all of Loudoun, Clarke and Frederick counties as well as Manassas and Manassas Park and parts of Fairfax and Prince William counties. In recent years, the district has seen an influx of professionals many of them women and minorities who polls show are cool to Trumps candidacy. Comstock, 57, is finishing her first term in Congress. Bennett, 63, is a real estate executive and longtime Democratic donor making her first bid for public office. The Cook Political Report this week will move the race to the competitive Republican toss-up category, according to David Wasserman, its House editor. The Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report already considers it a toss-up district, tilting toward the Republican. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton holds an 11-point lead over Trump in Virginia and a 21-point lead with women, according to a new SurveyMonkey poll of 15 battleground states conducted with The Washington Post. Recognizing the national climate, Comstock has tried not only to separate herself from Trump but also to portray herself as an ally for Democratic members of the Virginia delegation to the GOP-controlled chamber. The congresswoman has maintained a lead in fundraising throughout the campaign and had about $2 million cash on hand going into the final weeks, compared with Bennetts $90,000 balance, finance reports show. The Bennett campaigns lackluster fundraising report is not surprising because she has few ties to the District and shows that this is a DCCC-based cookie cutter campaign very dependent on outside money, Comstock campaign manager Susan Falconer said in a statement, referring to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Overall, Bennett has raised $1.9 million, including a personal loan to her campaign of $70,000, while Comstock has raised about $4.4 million, including almost $2 million from party committees, PACs and other accounts, reports show. Bennett said she will have the money to compete in the final weeks. We are confident that we will have the resources necessary to continue to deliver that message these final few weeks, Bennett spokesman Robert Howard said. Dig beneath the surface of Barbara Comstocks campaign and youll see its propped up by outside money from special interest groups, not Northern Virginia voters. Both candidates have benefited from spending by outside groups, which have poured more than $3.7 million into the race, according to data compiled by the Virginia Public Access Project. That total includes $1.5 million from groups that oppose Comstock, including the DCCC and House Majority PAC, and $2.1 million from groups that oppose Bennett, including the Congressional Leadership Fund and the National Republican Congressional Committee. Emilys List, which backs Democratic women who support abortion rights and has endorsed Bennett, recently poured an additional $230,000 into ads already airing in the district. They feature black-and-white images of mostly women and a message saying Comstock is too right wing for Northern Virginia because she wants to wants to overturn Roe v. Wade and opposes same-sex marriage. In addition, Bennetts campaign got a boost from Emilys List President Stephanie Schriock, who rallied volunteers on her behalf last weekend, as well as three state Democrats Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring, who hosted a fundraiser for her at a winery. Actress Marlo Thomas and Lynda Bird Johnson-Robb, the daughter of President Lyndon Baines Johnson and a resident of the district, visited phone banks for Bennett. Wednesdays debate will be hosted by the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce in Fairfax County. virginia-comstock-repeat WESTCLIFFE, Colo. A wildfire in southern Colorado has destroyed five homes, and hundreds of people remain under evacuation orders, authorities said Tuesday. The fire has scorched more than 25 square miles, the Pueblo County Sheriffs Department said. The fire started when high winds blew a metal outbuilding into a power line, the sheriffs department said. Another 281 homes were threatened, and 13 outbuildings have been destroyed, authorities said. Firefighters were trying to build containment lines along the north side of the fire Tuesday to prevent it from spreading, but the blaze was still uncontained Tuesday night, authorities said. Two Army National Guard Black Hawk helicopters began dropping water on the fire from large fabric buckets Tuesday afternoon after Gov. John Hickenlooper ordered the Guard to help civilian firefighters. The Guards top commander, Maj. Gen. H. Michael Edwards, said the helicopters would fly firefighting missions as long as they were needed. The wildfire was burning east of the small town of Westcliffe near the Rocky Mountain foothills. Custer County Sheriff Shannon Byerly extended his sympathies to people who lost property. Its a tough situation, and hopefully we can stop additional losses, he said. A stretch of dry, warm weather has raised the fire danger in much of Colorado, especially on windy days. Residents of 175 homes were ordered to evacuate Monday, and people who live in 70 other homes were warned to be ready to leave in case the fire spreads toward them. Those on standby include the residents of the town of Beulah, which was evacuated earlier this month because of another wildfire. That fire is believed to have been started by an excavator operator working in a ditch, possibly by creating a spark. Steven Michael Quezada was there. As was Rhea Seehorn and Patrick Fabian. Lets not forget about Jonathan Banks, who said he flew in from New York to make the event. Oh, and even Aaron Paul called in to leave a message for New Mexico fans. It was a Breaking Bad-esque reunion of sorts (and a few from Better Call Saul) on Tuesday night at the KiMo Theater. A sold-out crowd was on hand to listen to the conversation between Emmy Award winner Bryan Cranston and Emmy nominee Bob Odenkirk. Cranston was on the ninth stop of a 14-city tour for his book, A Life in Parts. The event was part of the series A Word With Writers, which benefits Albuquerque public libraries. The series has raised about $10,000 for the library foundation. The event was presented by Bookworks. A Life in Parts follows Cranstons life beginning at the age of 7 in a United Way commercial, where he was cast by his father. The memoir maps his zigzag journey from abandoned son to beloved star by recalling many odd parts hes played in real life paperboy, farmhand, security guard, dating consultant, murder suspect, dock loader, lover, husband, father. Cranston told the story of not having his parents while growing up. My father left the family when I was 10, he says. By the time I was 12, he was completely out of our lives. I didnt reconnect with him until I was 22. For over an hour, Cranston and Odenkirk talked about making it in the film industry. The conversation opened up to the audience towards the end. When asked what is his favorite activity to do Albuquerque, Cranston and Odenkirk were joined by Jonathan Banks. Cranston said, I did it today when I flew in and I saw my family. The crew that I worked with and his show (Better Call Saul) and hung out for like three hours. (I) didnt really want to leave and it was emotional and passing those snakes and seeing everybody, by and large you have pretty much the entire crew on your show. It was emotional. The other thing I have to do is get decent New Mexican food. And Im a Christmas guy, a little bit of each. [October 18, 2016] Enabling the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT): Waterfall Security Announces the Launch of the Unidirectional CloudConnect ROSH HAAYIN, Israel, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Waterfall Security Solutions, a global leader in cybersecurity technologies for critical infrastructure and industrial control systems, today announced the launch of its Unidirectional CloudConnect,an innovative solution based on Waterfall's patented Unidirectional Gateway technology. It is designed to meet the challenges of both cybersecurity and interoperability, thereby enabling the widespread adoption of the IIoT. A recent survey conducted by IOT Nexus revealed that more than 80% of the current roadblocks to the IIoT adoption relate to cybersecurity and interoperability concerns. "The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is clearly a hot topic today. Owners and operators recognize the potential benefits of more operational information and advanced, data-driven asset management strategies," said Sid Snitkin, VP and GM of the Enterprise Advisory Service at ARC Advisory Group. "Cloud-based analysis and data sharing enable many of these IIoT benefits, but cybersecurity concerns are inhibiting more rapid IIoT adoption. We applaud efforts like Waterfall's Unidirectional CloudConnect to overcome these concerns and protect industrial sites from the cloud." "Waterfall's Unidirectional CloudConnect is an essential enabler for the Industrial Internet of Things. CloudConnect secures industrial sites from cyberattacks from the cloud and the Internet, while delivering seamless interoperability of the industrial systems with cloud applications," said Lior Frenkel, CEO and Co-founder at Waterfall Security Solutions. "As a secure gateway to the cloud, combining Waterfall's renowned cybersecurity with innovative protocol interoperability and unificatin, CloudConnect enables industrial sites to reap the efficiencies of the IIoT." Use cases for the Unidirectional CloudConnect include: Direct connection to Internet cloud services by industrial sites leveraging the efficiencies of predictive maintenance, big data analytics, and other business-transforming benefits. Connection to the cloud via IIoT vendors offering big data analytics and operational efficiencies to industrial sites. Unidirectional CloudConnect uses Unidirectional Gateways to gather data from industrial sources such as historians, industrial systems and devices. It seamlessly recodes gathered information into cloud-friendly unified formats, including relational databases, publish/subscribe protocols, and XML/SOAP web services. CloudConnect then transmits the cloud-friendly data to Internet-based industrial cloud providers. "We are already experiencing interest from both industrial customers and vendors, due to our success in providing stronger-than-firewall cybersecurity," remarked Frenkel. "From airports with sensors gathering data, to big data analytics vendors working with oil & gas companies, our Unidirectional CloudConnect has received a warm welcome by the industrial community." Unidirectional Gateways were pioneered by Waterfall Security and deployed worldwide since 2007. Waterfall's Unidirectional Security Gateway product family is an evolutionary alternative to firewalls, providing protection for the safety and reliability of industrial systems that firewalls simply cannot match. Industrial sites around the world deploy Waterfall products to provide industrial systems with safe and reliable IT/OT integration, vendor and cloud services, and remote monitoring. The products are recognized to reduce the cost and complexity of compliance with NERC CIP, NRC, NIST, CFATS, ANSSI, ISA, and other standards, regulations and best practices, worldwide. Waterfall Security Solutions is exhibiting at IOT World Congress as part of the Industrial Internet Consortium (IIC) pavilion. Click here to schedule a meeting. About Waterfall Security Solutions Waterfall Security Solutions is the global leader in industrial cybersecurity solutions employing hardware-enforced unidirectional communications technology. Focused on protecting industrial control systems and critical infrastructure from cyberattacks originating from external networks, Waterfall products represent an evolutionary alternative to firewalls. The company's growing list of customers include national infrastructures and control systems in power plants, nuclear plants, on/off-shore platforms, refineries, manufacturing plants, utility companies plus many more. Deployed throughout North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, Waterfall products support the widest range of leading industrial remote monitoring platforms, applications, databases and protocols. For more information, visit http://www.waterfall-security.com. For inquiries: Susan Becker +972.508710777 [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160119/323489LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/enabling-the-industrial-internet-of-things-iiot-waterfall-security-announces-the-launch-of-the-unidirectional-cloudconnect-300346659.html SOURCE Waterfall Security Solutions Ltd [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] The federal government is again squandering our tax dollars and burdening our future generation with more debt. President Obama is wrong in his assumption that American tax dollars should pay to bring refugees into this country. American citizens did not create this refugee situation. The Obama administration has increased our national debt to over $19.5 trillion and now they are in the process of moving our nation into deeper debt. If the president, his cronies or special interests desire these refugees to come to this country, then they need to use their own personal pocketbook. Obama has said that through fiscal year 2017 the United States will accept 110,000 refugees. While I do not want to deny anyone a safe place to live and prosper, I am reasonably certain that the burdens and care of these refugees will not be well received by the person that has to pay for it or loses their job because of it. I have expressed my concern to one of my U.S. senators that allowing refugees with certain ethnic culture, possible subversive religious tendencies, and allegiance to a country that does not like Americans, probably would not be in the best interest of the United States. This senator replied with a well thought out letter, which gave assurances that American citizens should not be concerned about their safety and the possible infiltration of ISIS terrorists, and that the federal government has implemented many new screening precautions. Thats great, but honestly, these assurances mean little after witnessing the last six years of mismanagement and deception this country has endured from the Obama administration and the senators and congressmen that choose to support his and their political party agendas, regardless of any opposing view or concerns from their constituents. The federal government has already spent or promised $4 billion to help other countries with their refugee problems and I estimate that the cost to bring these refugees to this county is $38 billion annually. American citizens did not create this situation and I do not think it is right to burden our children with more debt to pay for misappropriated tax dollars. What started out as a petty power struggle over an unruly suicidal patient in her tiny kitchen could have huge ramifications on the publics right to know about a persons criminal record. It does indeed appear that then-paramedic Christine Stump got a raw deal when she was arrested the next day on a charge of battery on a police officer (she grabbed Albuquerque officer Regina Sanchezs arm and pulled it away from the patient during the 2008 incident). But on balance, erasing that arrest from history would be a bad deal for New Mexicans because of the precedent it would set. Because the public needs the ability to fully examine a political candidates past, to do thorough criminal background checks on prospective employees, and for victims to have their personal experiences with the criminal justice system on the record. They do not need a state-sanctioned revision or erasure of history. But that is exactly what they would get if the New Mexico Supreme Court grants Stumps request to expunge the incident from any database or background search in the name of clearing her name. The far-reaching consequences would mean: n The public might never know if a political or job candidate (think teacher, day care worker, home health care aide) had arrests for various crimes that didnt result in convictions. They might never know about the Albuquerque health care provider who faced a string of sexual misconduct allegations including exposing himself at an amusement park and to workers at a fast-food drive-up window, and improperly touching two female patients so serious he was fired from the practice with which he was affiliated, with the state medical board requiring him to have a chaperon present when seeing female, under-age patients. And they would deal with the fatal fallout of more cases like Washington Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis. Investigators deleted the fact that he used a gun in a previous arrest in his application for a Navy security clearance. He got his clearance and went on to mow down 12 people who had simply gone to work Sept. 16, 2013. In fact, should justices grant Stump an expungement and disappear her arrest, there will also be no record that when Stump wanted the patients handcuffs off and for the officer to back off and stop agitating the patient, Sanchez allegedly pushed the suicidal womans hand, face and arm into the gurney. So in this case, it would also erase the record of questionable conduct, at best, by an Albuquerque police officer. There would be no record that the city quickly pulled the case out of court and into mediation, where all involved agreed to dismiss it. Or that there might be a behavioral pattern when this incident is combined with the fact Sanchez was found to have violated federal policy by using a police database for personal reasons, then lying about it. Greg Williams, an attorney for the Foundation for Open Government (which has opposed all legislative attempts to expand the states expungement law) has filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the Supreme Court case and argues, Stump made some serious allegations about supposed wrongdoing by an APD officer, and its not appropriate for public records that have allegations about law enforcement to be deleted as if they never existed in the first place. Second Judicial District Judge Clay Campbell ruled on Stumps request last year, concluding that judges lack the authority to expunge records. Hes right. Thats for the legislative and executive branches to decide, and on that front, legislators have tried to pass an expungement law at least 11 times since 2005, and the four times they succeeded in trying to rewrite make that erase history, governors vetoed it. Then-Gov. Bill Richardson wrote of the important public interest to arrest records, giving the example an employer who hires a driver should be able to compile a full, clear picture of a prospective employees driving record, including whether that person has a history of DWI or other vehicular crimes. Gov. Susana Martinez, a career prosecutor, pointed out that crimes including sexual assault and domestic violence are hard to get convictions on because the assailant pressures the victim. And if those two governors have found a common ground, its worth taking note. Anyone who follows criminal cases knows innocence is not the only reason cases dont move forward, that misdemeanor convictions can be pleaded down from felony charges, and that people can petition for pardon or clemency to clear their names. Along those lines, Stump would do better to target the agencies that hold a record of the incident for not following Campbells request to attach his ruling so future employers get the whole picture of what went down. A Journal records search of Stump with Albuquerque Police Department, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center and Metropolitan Court records showed that not one included attachments per Campbells order, and none of the three could explain why. The public deserves a full picture from its public records, as does Stump and anyone who comes in contact with the legal system. But the high court should find that erasing that picture and leaving the public in the dark and at risk isnt an option. This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers. Albuquerque parents, teachers, business leaders and elected officials gathered Tuesday to offer their two cents on education. New Mexicos Public Education Department organized the community meeting to get input on the federal Every Student Succeeds Act, a successor to No Child Left Behind that gives states more policy control. State Education Secretary Hanna Skandera is holding forums in six cities, from Farmington to Las Cruces, and will review the feedback before she completes an ESSA plan for the U.S. Department of Education. Nonpartisan policy organization New Mexico First collaborated with PED to organize and facilitate the series of meetings. Im excited to have the opportunity to travel around our state, hear community voices and share some of our resources and successes, Skandera said. On Tuesday, participants were divided into small groups in a conference room at Central New Mexico Community Colleges Workforce Training Center. Each person had a chance to share opinions on teacher evaluations, school grades, academic requirements, standardized testing and other areas. The discussions were wide ranging, touching on the poor economy, low teacher pay, ethnic diversity and poverty. A number of attendees worried that educators are teaching to the test because their evaluations are tied to assessments such as the controversial Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers. Jeff Tuttle, a third-grade teacher at Monte Vista Elementary School, said he was happy to hear from people with varied backgrounds and approaches to education. Its always nice to have the opportunity to come together at many different levels, he said. I think as a country, we have forgotten how to engage with political controversy in a productive way, and people are used to talking around each other. Tuttle suggested that PED hold statewide community meetings every year. Albuquerque Public Schools board member Peggy Muller-Aragon also thought the conversation was valuable. She attended with fellow APS board members Lorenzo Garcia, Barbara Petersen and Analee Maestas. This shows that the governor and secretary of education want to listen to everybody, and a lot of times, thats not what we hear, Muller-Aragon said. They really do care what teachers think and parents think and administrators think. Albuquerque was the fourth city on the ESSA tour, which kicked off in Gallup on Oct. 12, then stopped in Farmington and Santa Fe. Next, Skandera will travel south to Roswell and Las Cruces. New Mexico First will review all the community input and compile a report later this year. PED officials hope to submit their ESSA plan by March. Albuquerque Public Schools offers specialized education in a variety of areas from science to dual language and fine arts. Families can learn more about the options during the districts annual School Choice Fair from 4-7 p.m. Thursday at the Albuquerque Convention Center. Representatives from traditional APS schools, as well as magnets and charters, will be on hand to provide information. Free parking is available in the convention center parking lot off Martin Luther King Jr. Deborah Elder, APS executive director of innovation, expects a strong turnout. Interest in school choice has grown steadily over the years, and currently, 13,000 APS students attend schools outside their neighborhood boundaries. I think more and more our community is recognizing that the choices that we have in our society also extend to education, Elder said. The desire to have different options to look at is valued, and I think APS is responding by implementing new programs and strengthening programs we have had for some time. The district hopes to create new specialized magnet schools in the coming years and will seek community input during the fair. Attendees can fill out an exit survey to describe the types of programs they would like. APS begins taking transfer requests for the 2017-18 school year on Jan. 1. SANTA FE An Edgewood womans complaint that it took too long to get law enforcement documents related to the fatal shooting of her husband by State Police in 2015 has received a favorable ruling from a district judge. But defendants gave notice last week they are appealing that decision to a higher court. The dispute involves the case of Ethan Noll, 34, who was shot and killed by State Police after he pointed a rifle at officers following an hours-long standoff in Edgewood on April 4, 2015. Officers from the Edgewood Police Department and the Santa Fe County Sheriffs Office were also present. Nolls widow, Erin Noll, filed a civil complaint in Santa Fe District Court in November 2015 to compel a judge to enforce the state Inspection of Public Records Act (IPRA) on the town of Edgewood, the Department of Public Safety and the sheriffs office after the agencies refused to release records on the shooting that Erin Noll requested just days after her husbands death. The sheriffs office was later dropped from the suit. A Santa Fe District Court judge ruled DPS and Edgewood violated the act when they delayed releasing the public records. Erin Noll received them in May 2016, after Santa Fe District Attorney Jennifer Padgett cleared the officers of any wrongdoing in the shooting. DPS and Edgewood also were ordered to pay for the womans costs and attorney fees. Both DPS and Edgewood filed a notice of appeal of the ruling last week and plan to take the case to the New Mexico Court of Appeals, according to court documents. A law enforcement exception to IPRA applies to records that reveal confidential sources, methods, information or individuals accused but not charged with a crime. District Judge Francis Mathew wrote, At no time hereto did DPS, the Town of Edgewood or the District Attorney attempt to review the requested documents to determine if any of the requested documents did not contain confidential information. Mathew added, The decision by each of the Defendants to deny the IPRA requests of the Plaintiff without seeking in camera review of the information requested to determine if it came within the law enforcement exception violated IPRA and entitles the Plaintiff to recover her costs and attorney fees in this matter. He ruled that DPS must pay $11,804 and Edgewood must pay $9,524 to Erin Noll for attorney fees, and the two defendants must split an additional cost of $890. Mathew noted that DPS and Edgewood delayed releasing the records because former Santa Fe District Attorney Angela Spence Pacheco asked they not be released until she took the case to an investigative grand jury. In a letter to DPS and Edgewood, Pacheco wrote that making the records public would prejudice the grand jurys review of the incident. Pacheco retired at the beginning of the year, and Padgett, her appointed replacement, did not take the case to a grand jury and instead used an internal review to clear the officers. Thick smoke from a blaze set to reduce wildfire risks blinded motorists Wednesday on the main highway across northern Arizona near the Grand Canyon, causing numerous accidents as haze clouded the freeway for hours and reduced visibility to 20 feet, officials said. The fire to burn dry brush and trees was set Tuesday in the Kaibab National Forest that surrounds Flagstaff, and officials knew that a wind shift overnight would send smoke toward Interstate 40. But they were surprised that it did not dissipate as predicted, said Brady Smith, a U.S. Forest Service spokesman. Multiple collisions with minor injuries to motorists and passengers were blamed on smoky haze that settled over the highway for about five hours. Authorities closed I-40 for hours to prevent more accidents. Police had not immediately determined whether the poor visibility was the cause of a fatal accident after a vehicle was sandwiched between two tractor-trailers before dawn, Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman Bart Graves said. Controlled burns are frequent events in Arizona this time of year as forest managers work to thin brush and trees that can present major wildfire risks in summer months. Smoke from the fires can cause a nuisance for residents and tourists who flock to the Flagstaff area this time of year to look at fall foliage only to encounter a haze overhead. Grand Canyon officials warned this week that controlled burns on at the canyons North Rim could produce smoke visible throughout the national landmark. And burns to the south in the Prescott area earlier this month prompted complaints from residents about poor air quality. Kaibab National Forest officials had announced Tuesday that the burning operation would produce visible smoke along the highway, and Smith said electronic signs cautioned drivers about the potential hazard. The planned fire was set west of Flagstaff and forest officials thought there would be enough air movement overnight Tuesday into Wednesday to dissipate the smoke. But the area at this time of year experiences temperature inversions allowing smoke to be trapped close to the ground and hover over the highway, said Cory Mottice, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Flagstaff. It almost always gets trapped after dark, he said. Its just a question of where the wind blows it. Forest officials thought weather conditions would vent smoke near the freeway more than it did in low-lying areas, Smith said. I believed they used good judgment based on the conditions and the information that they had, he said. Traffic was diverted before dawn until about 9 a.m. on I-40 between Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon gateway town of Williams to an alternate route that added about one hour of travel time for motorists. The highway was reopened when the smoke dissipated. BOULDER, Colo. The mystery surrounding a human foot found in a snow boot at Eldora Mountain Resort this summer has been partially solved. The foot and other remains found nearby were identified Wednesday as those of an 83-year-old Denver man, Ervin Mettler, who had apparently been camping in the area. Boulder County coroner Emma Hall is investigating how he died, although foul play isnt suspected by sheriffs investigators. The foot in a size 13 boot was found June 1 after the snow melted by a ski resort worker. In July, a trail runner found more remains about three-quarters of a mile from the resorts lake near a lake where it appears Mettler had been camping. Mettlers identification card was also found, and his identity was confirmed with dental records, Hall told the Daily Camera (http://bit.ly/2esy7O0). DNA evidence was also used to link the two sets of remains, she said. Its not clear exactly when Mettler died, but his remains are believed to have been there for several months. Mettlers landlord tried to report him missing in February in Denver, but a report wasnt filed because the person wasnt family, Sheriffs Cmdr. Mike Wagner said Thursday. Investigators found that Mettler was an outdoor enthusiast who liked to camp even in the winter so its possible he could have been camping at that time, Wagner said. ___ Information from: Daily Camera, http://www.dailycamera.com/ A Carlsbad woman allegedly attempted to smuggle $19,600 worth of contraband into Lea County Correctional Facility. Erika Espinosa, 31, of Carlsbad allegedly had 25.6 grams of methamphetamine, 12.4 grams of heroin and 60 suboxone strips on her person when questioned at the prison. According to a news release from the Lea County Drug Task Force, Espinosa hid the drugs in a blue balloon on her person. Deputy Commander Sean Roach said the task force is not releasing the name of the person Espinosa was allegedly visiting in the prison. Espinosa was charged with bringing contraband into a place of imprisonment, trafficking a controlled substance to wit heroin, trafficking a controlled substance to wit methamphetamine and distribution of a controlled substance. 2016 the Carlsbad Current-Argus (Carlsbad, N.M.) Visit the Carlsbad Current-Argus (Carlsbad, N.M.) at www.currentargus.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. The final U.S. presidential candidates debate is traditionally about foreign policy, but given the heated controversies of the past few weeks, international affairs are unlikely to be the primary focus on Wednesday night. Nevertheless, its worth considering some of the issues that may pop up. On matters of foreign policy, the gulf in experience between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, a former secretary of state, is pronounced. Trump marched through the Republican primaries with a host of discordant, sometimes contradictory, largely substance-free policy prescriptions that played to a populist crowd. It measures up oddly against the more considered positions of Clinton. Her critics harp on her alleged misuse of classified emails and, more broadly, frame her candidacy as that of a doyenne of the establishment: To some conservatives, shes too weak and conciliatory, like the current president; to others, shes a neoconservative hawk in liberal clothing. During the debate, a range of hot-button foreign policy issues may get trotted out. Heres the context youll need to parse through the bluster. Syrian refugees are a threat to the United States A controversial tweet by Donald Trump Jr. may not have been an official Trump campaign talking point, but it echoed the logic that underlies the Republican nominee and the defeated GOP candidates consistent opposition to refugees. Trumps son tweeted an image of a bowl of Skittles, and asked whether you would eat from it if you knew a few Skittles were poisoned. This was meant to be an analogy about the threat posed by Syrian refugees coming to the United States. Beyond the fact that its offensive and weird to liken desperate human beings to pieces of candy something that even Skittles parent company pointed out Trump Jr.s argument is also a scare tactic. The risk of an American being killed by a refugee in a terrorist attack is 1 in 3.64 billion, as others noted last week. The United States is not prone to the same influx of migrants that arrived over the past year-and-a-half in Europe, where indeed some people linked to the Syrian refugee exodus have participated in terrorist attacks. The existing measures in place to screen refugees applying for asylum in the United States are among the most stringent in the world. A prospective applicant and their families go through months, even years, of checks conducted by a number of federal agencies and aided by international organizations. And then theres the question of Syrian refugees themselves. The United States, a country where leaders across the political spectrum trumpet an American exceptionalism thats anchored in a unique history of immigration and diversity, is taking in far fewer Syrian refugees than a number of other Western nations. The burden on Syrias neighbors particularly Jordan and Lebanon is straining those nations to breaking point. And a whole generation of young Syrians is growing up in squalor. In Jordan, more than half of all Syrian refugees are children, according to the United Nations. In Lebanon, a quarter of a million Syrian kids are not going to school. The global number of refugees in the world is the highest ever recorded. Its possible to simply take Iraqs oil This is a demand voiced over the past year by Trump, who while decrying the Iraq war and a subsequent intervention in Libya, seems convinced it makes sense to plunder a foreign nations oil wealth. The Washington Posts Steve Mufson discussed this idea with a group of Middle East experts in Washington, who derided what is an illegal, impossible and beyond goofy idea that would entail if nothing else a renewed American military presence in Iraq to guard over resource extraction and against likely infuriated Iraqis. Matthew Reed, vice president of a consulting firm focused on oil and politics in the Middle East, offered a withering assessment of the proposal: Theres no reason to believe the Iraqis would allow this. No country would. Instead, the government would call on foreign courts to intervene; the population would protest and violence would be unavoidable. Seeing as Iraqs oil infrastructure is a sprawling network, vulnerable and almost entirely aboveground, it cant possibly be protected on the cheap or exploited without local consent. Consider also the moral costs of taking this oil: to do so then would have proven conspiracy theorists right about American intentions and destroyed what little credibility the U.S. had; to deny Baghdad vital revenues would have only increased public suffering, making the country even riper for insurgents like ISIS. and can you simply bomb the Islamic State to smithereens Furthermore, Trump has promised a tough military solution to defeat the Islamic State, one which involves subtle strategies, such as bombing the s out of the militant group, targeting the families of suspected terrorists, and maybe just leaving it all to the Russians to handle. He has declined to lay out a coherent strategy for the destruction of the Islamic State, even while constantly signaling his unique ability to do so. What most experts agree and reporting on the ground clearly indicates is that military action is only one component of defeating the jihadist organization. It rose up, after all, amid political dysfunction and chaos in Iraq and Syria, and profited from the ill will of restive Sunni populations chafing under the rule of regimes dominated by other sects. Destroying the Islamic State has to also involve efforts to work toward larger solutions in the region: deescalating the ruinous civil war in Syria and paving a way for a political reconciliation, as improbable as it seems right now. And then pushing for more stable, reliable governance in Iraq. There are no easy options to achieving any of this. But any future American president will have to make an earnest effort to getting to grips with these conundrums. The Kurds are the answer This is a common refrain from U.S. politicians searching for allies in the battlefields of the Middle East. Kurdish militias have fought the Islamic State, taken territory from the autocratic regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad and even boast of being secular and pro-womens rights. Whats not to love? The travails of the Middle Easts largest, stateless ethnic group are complex, mired in factional infighting, as well as the larger politics of key regional powers. Turkey, where one-fifth of the population is Kurdish, is deeply opposed to the West arming and enabling Syrian Kurdish factions on the other side of its border as it fights a Kurdish insurgency at home. If you want to champion the Kurds, you have to also be willing to consider the new geopolitical challenges that an emboldened Kurdish nationalism may pose for the region. Russia is the great enemy Sure, Russian President Vladimir Putin is a domineering autocrat and the Kremlin has undermined American interests in a host of geopolitical hotspots. But the specter of Moscow has loomed disproportionately large over the American political conversation. Listen to Clinton and her allies, and you get a picture of global menace, a country that wages stealthy cyber wars and props up dictatorships. Listen to Trump, and you get Putin as a parable of strength, a foil to the supposed fecklessness of President Obama. Neither assessment is particularly insightful. Russia can still be a useful partner with the U.S. on a number of fronts, not least in brokering the landmark nuclear deal with Iran and, perhaps eventually, instigating some kind of endgame for the ghastly Syrian civil war. And Putin, its nationalist ruler, is desperate to distract from his countrys domestic woes, which include a severe economic slump. In the last two years alone, 14 million Russians fell out of the middle class as wages failed to rise alongside a surging cost of living. And Trump thinks the United States is the nation in decline. The world is more dangerous than it has ever been The election campaign is suffused with the rhetoric of doom and gloom, particularly stoked by Trump and other Republicans who grandstand over rising terror threats in the West and the collapse of law and order in inner cities. The truth, though, is that despite the hideous violence of the past year, the world is not less safe than it has been in the past. Psychologist Steven Pinker, who has researched the waning of violence in human history, offered this note of optimism in a recent NPR interview. The impression that some kinds of violence have gone up over the last five years has some truth to it, he said. Because of the Syrian civil war, the rate of death in warfare has drifted upward a little bit in the last five years. There has been a small increase in homicide in the United States in the last three years. But both of those figures are at a fraction of what they were in the 60s, 70s and 80s. These are the decades that are celebrated, presumably, by those proclaiming Trumps motto of Make America Great Again. Tharoor writes about foreign affairs for The Washington Post. He previously was a senior editor at TIME, based first in Hong Kong and later in New York. debate-global KABUL Two Americans were killed and another three were injured in a rare attack on foreign troops in the Afghan capital Wednesday, U.S. and Afghan officials said. A gunman fired on international advisers at an ammunition depot near Camp Morehead, a training site for Afghan commandos, about six miles south of Kabul. The attack, which took place near the entrance of the base, killed one U.S. service member and injured another. One U.S. civilian was also killed, and two more were wounded in the assault, a statement from the NATO-led coalition said. The gunman, which the Afghan Defense Ministry said was wearing an Afghan army uniform, was killed after international troops responded with gunfire. The injured Americans remained in stable condition, NATO said. It happened near an arms depot. The attacker opened fire on his [coalition] friends, Defense Ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri said. A U.S. defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the situation was still developing, said the Americans were at the depot as part of the NATO training mission for Afghan security forces. The United States supplies the NATO mission with about 6,800 troops to advise and assist Afghan troops, which are battling a fierce Taliban insurgency in key areas across the country. An additional 3,000 U.S. troops are dedicated Operation Freedom Sentinel, a separate counterterrorism mission focused on al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. The U.S. official said it was not clear Wednesday whether the assailant was in fact a member of the Afghan National Army. But Wednesdays shooting appeared to be what is known as an insider or green-on-blue attack, where Afghan allies turn on their U.S. and foreign mentors. At least 150 coalition troops have been killed in such attacks since 2008, according to data compiled by the Long War Journal, which is published by the D.C.-based Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. The assaults which have been attributed both to Taliban infiltration and cultural differences between Afghan and foreign troops surged in number from 2011 to 2013. But the attacks became more infrequent as the bulk of U.S. and NATO troops withdrew from the country. U.S. forces have suffered only two combat casualties in Afghanistan this year, both of which occurred in the volatile Helmand province in the countrys south. At Camp Morehead, elite Afghan commando units learn ambush tactics, how to call in airstrikes, and train for short missions. But the commandos, which number about 11,000, are increasingly stretched thin. As Afghan forces struggle to beat back Taliban militants in places like Lashkar Gah and Kunduz, which was briefly taken by insurgents again this month, casualties and desertions have depleted their ranks. Anytime we lose a member of our team, it is deeply painful, Gen. John W. Nicholson, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, said Wednesday in a statement. There were no further details on the two Americans who were killed. More than 2,350 U.S. troops have died supporting military operations in Afghanistan since 2001. Gibbons-Neff reported from Washington. Sayed Salahuddin in Kabul contributed to this report. afghan-1stld-writethru [October 19, 2016] Philippine Government Selects Unisys to Design and Operate Modernized Civil Registry System to Better Serve Citizens BLUE BELL, Pa., Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Unisys Corporation (NYSE: UIS) today announced it has been awarded a contract by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) to design and operate phase 2 of its Civil Registry System modernization project. Under the 12-year contract, Unisys will deliver digital government services to modernize the Civil Registry System and manage the end-to-end process to originate, authenticate, secure and issue civil registry documents such as birth certificates to citizens. Unisys will lead a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) to design, develop, operate and maintain the modernized system. "The PSA's Civil Registry System is the central repository for authenticated official documents such as birth, marriage and death certificates. Citizens need quick and easy access to these trusted documents as they are the foundation for many other items such as visas and passports. Unisys has been appointed to further improve the service we provide our citizens," said Dr. Lisa Grace S. Bersales, National Statistician and Civil Registrar General, Philippine Statistics Authority. The transformation program includes modernizing the network infrastructure and application system based on Unisys InfoImage imaging software using Unisys digital government expertise. The PPP will also provide a nine-story building to house a brand new customer service facility and data center, centralizing the back office infrastructure. Unisys will also roll-out 40 additional Civil Registry System outlets, doubling the current number of outlets where citizens apply for documents, as well as introduce elf-service kiosks and mobile outlets to increase the reach and accessibility in remote locations. The modernization activity is expected to be deployed over a two-year period. "The Philippine government is demonstrating global leadership in applying digital government technology to better serve citizens with this project," said Mark Forman, global public sector leader, Unisys. "The Civil Registry System touches every family in the Philippines, and Unisys is committed to bringing best practices and technology to their benefit in this modernization." As a PPP arrangement, Unisys will bear the upfront cost of the development and build and will share with the PSA the fees collected from citizens for the provision of the service. The new contract builds on Unisys' previous success improving the services provided via the Civil Registry System. In 1999 Unisys was engaged to digitize the largely manual Civil Registry System, resulting in document requests being fulfilled in as little as 30 minutes in metro Manila and within two hours outside the capital, tripling the monthly transaction volume from 292,000 to more than 1 million. Unisys employs local Filipino staff to man the outlets and all data is kept within the Philippines. "Unisys is delighted to continue working with the Philippine Statistics Authority," said Tony Windever, vice president, Unisys Asia Pacific. "The Philippines has a growing population spread across more than 7,000 islands, and the majority do not have access to the Internet. Phase 2 of the modernization program is designed to improve the reach and convenience of services to citizens. In addition to doubling the number of Civil Registry System outlets, Unisys will use technology to further increase the accessibility of services to citizens via the introduction of self-service kiosks and mobile outlets that can travel to multiple locations." Unisys has a strong history and experience working with public sector organizations. More than 300 government agencies worldwide rely on Unisys solutions. About Unisys Unisys is a global information technology company that works with many of the world's largest companies and government organizations to solve their most pressing IT and business challenges. Unisys specializes in providing integrated, leading-edge solutions to clients in the government, financial services and commercial markets. With more than 20,000 employees serving clients around the world, Unisys offerings include cloud and infrastructure services, application services, security solutions, and high-end server technology. For more information, visit www.unisys.com. Follow Unisys on Twitter and LinkedIn. RELEASE NO.: 1019/9460 Unisys and other Unisys products and services mentioned herein, as well as their respective logos, are trademarks or registered trademarks of Unisys Corporation. Any other brand or product referenced herein is acknowledged to be a trademark or registered trademark of its respective holder. UIS-C To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/philippine-government-selects-unisys-to-design-and-operate-modernized-civil-registry-system-to-better-serve-citizens-300347002.html SOURCE Unisys Corporation [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] The 28-year-old accused of terrorizing New York and New Jersey with a series of bombings has been moved out of the hospital and into a New Jersey state prison, a spokesman for the New Jersey Department of Corrections said Wednesday. Ahmad Rahimi, a U.S. citizen who was born in Afghanistan, was moved into the prison early Tuesday evening, said Matt Schuman, the corrections department spokesman. Rahimi is facing both state and federal charges in connection with what authorities said was a terror spree motivated by a range of radical Islamic influences. He is suspected of a bombing that injured dozens in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan and of placing several other devices in New York and New Jersey that did not hurt anyone. Rahimi had been recovering in the hospital from gunshot wounds he suffered in a confrontation with police, and he made his first appearance in court in Elizabeth, N.J., last week via a video feed. He is charged there with attempted murder and weapons counts stemming from his firefight with police. In federal court, where he has not yet appeared, his charges include using weapons of mass destruction and bombing a public place. Schuman said Rahimi would normally have been sent to the Union County Jail but was taken instead to a state prison under a rule in the New Jersey code that allows suspects who have not yet faced a trial to be housed in the state prison system for safety and security purposes. The Union County Jail has faced well-publicized troubles over the years. In 2007, two inmates escaped and left a note mocking a corrections officer, who was later found dead of an apparent suicide. Two other inmates were able to leave their cells and freely roam through a detention area in 2011, according to the Newark Star Ledger. An official familiar with the case said the facility to which Rahimi was moved is the New Jersey State Prison in Trenton. newyork-bombing The polls, both in their top-line numbers and underlying data, look bleak for Donald Trump. The latest Fox News poll, for example, shows only 80 percent of Republicans support him evidence of the remarkable success of the #NeverTrump movement. Moreover: Overall, 61 percent of voters say Hillary Clinton has the temperament to serve effectively as president. Sixty-one percent think Trump doesnt. By a 7-point margin, voters say Clinton has the judgment to serve (53-46 percent). Its the reverse for Trump, as by a 23-point margin they believe he lacks the judgment (37-60 percent). That goes a long way toward explaining why Clinton is preferred over Trump by more voters when it comes to making decisions about using nuclear weapons (+25 points), handling an international crisis (+19), and handling foreign policy (+18). . . Trumps personal ratings are worse than Clintons. She has a net negative rating of 4 points (47 percent favorable vs. 51 percent unfavorable). Trump is under water by 19 points (40 percent favorable vs. 59 percent unfavorable). Again, the party faithful arent all with Trump: 22 percent of Republicans have a negative opinion of him. Thats more than twice the number of Democrats who view Clinton unfavorably (9 percent). While Trump dominates media coverage and has shaken the country and the GOP to their core, Trump actually is not politically persuasive. (In the most recent Fox News poll, for example, 74 percent of Americans favor a path to citizenship; only 18 percent want to deport as many as possible.) Trumps unfavorable ratings remain sky-high. In all likelihood, he is going to lose decisively. So why should we be concerned if he doesnt concede or continues to whip his followers into a fury? It seems that the worry about the aftermath of the election reflects a flawed assessment of his importance once he suffers a humiliating loss. If Hillary Clinton gets 300-plus electoral votes she isnt going to wait for Trump to telephone to declare victory nor will the networks delay calling the race. (This election may stand out as one of the medias earliest presidential-election calls.) Trump can go on ranting that the race was fixed or that the media did him in, but its not clear that anyone but his hard-core followers will care and even some of those may wash their hands of him once he loses. The election is likely to be bad news for the current GOP, but rather good news for the health of our democracy. Consider all the positives if Trump is beaten soundly: The vast majority of Democrats and Republicans will have reaffirmed the security of our elections, debunking paranoia about widespread fraud. Voters will have repudiated decisively a candidate revealed to be a racist, misogynist, narcissist and bully. Voters will also have rejected a message claiming that the United States is a Third World hellhole that doesnt win anymore. In other words, a large majority of the electorate will have signaled that they think the United States is great already. The election will have reaffirmed that facts do matter and that presidents are expected to know things. Millions of Republicans will have put country above party to vote for Hillary Clinton, Gary Johnson or Evan McMullin. Sure, Trump will likely still have millions of followers, but then so do the talk-radio cranks. He will still have his Twitter account and may even try to incite his followers. The amount of attention he receives, however, will be vastly reduced. He will have no more power than he does now to determine public policy or influence those outside his narrow stratum of Kool-Aid drinkers. Trump will be just another loud-mouthed hater on the right. Could Trump take millions of voters out of the GOP? I suppose so, but it is not clear how invested in the GOP these voters were to begin with. In any case, if Trumps shock troops leave the GOP, the Trumpkins would have to find others to vote for or would have to check out of politics entirely. In either case, center-right activists and candidates should be happy to reorient their appeal, making themselves accessible and their message attractive to the vast majority of Americans rather than tolerable only to a narrow fringe. The alt-right folks can go back to their cesspool. In sum, this is not likely to be a heads-he-wins/tails-we-lose election. Unless an extraordinary series of events takes place, Trump will lose and the country will be better off. To paraphrase Ronald Reagans comment about the Cold War, we should be able to say in less than three weeks, We (e.g. the United States, decency, tolerance, democracy) win, he loses. Rubin writes the Right Turn blog for The Post, offering reported opinion from a conservative perspective. trump-rubin-comment WASHINGTON Once the Obama administration is over, Johnny Wright, the man responsible for first lady Michelle Obamas ever-shifting hair looks, from those bangs to a glam side-sweep, will have a little more free time on his flatiron wielding hands. So whats his plan? At the Tuesday night state dinner for the Italian prime minister at which Wright was an actual guest instead of just helping the first lady with her pre-dinner primp as usual he told reporters that he is planning a move to New York. Which will probably please at least one of his Big Apple-based clients: NBC anchor Tamron Hall, who has mock-complained that she is forever in line behind Wrights First Client for appointments. Wright hails from Chicago, where he first styled the tresses of the wife of the then-senator from Illinois, and moved to Washington at the beginning of the administration. In addition to Obama, he developed a loyal client list at Immortal Beloved salon. His next chapter will include something in beauty and fashion, he said, unsurprising since his stint with FLOTUS has boosted him from unknown to the rarefied list of sought-after-by-celebs stylists. Probably something with Sirius radio, probably, he said, though he said he could not reveal too much about the still-under-wraps plans. reliable-source Forget the press, read the internet, Donald Trump told supporters at a Tuesday afternoon rally. On the very same internet the day before, a joke tweet from Weird Twitter about ripping up Trump ballots was a major conservative media story, presented as actual evidence of voter fraud. It wasnt. Sure, the internet has always been full of fake news, hoaxes and outrage trolling. But as we creep even closer to Election Day, internet misinformation is clearly growing more powerful. And thats why were temporarily bringing back What was fake on the internet, a debunking roundup of the hoaxes, memes and other fakery circulating online, just for the election. We asked Snopes managing editor Brooke Binkowski to characterize the effect of the 2016 election on Internet misinformation. Her answer began, Oh, my God. It is ridiculous, Binkowski said, in all the possible connotations of that word. Its interesting and engaging in a way, but its also really depressing. Elections have a tendency to bring out the worst of the internet misinformation cycle, but there are a couple things, Binkowski said, that make 2016 special. First, she said, people just want to be mad about something. And thats having an effect on how they scrutinize information. Theyre willing to believe without any proof that some random statement from a random person is true, she said, as long as it confirms their pre-existing worldview. Second, there are more people at this point getting their news from, say, Facebook, particularly older users who might not be as experienced at examining information online. Or, as Binkowski characterized it, there were fewer racist uncles on the internet in 2012. Last, everyones hungry for more news, and the journalists responsible for meeting that appetite do not always have the support they need to sort through it. Thats when they might stumble into a hoax, or disinformation hole, and unwittingly end up amplifying it. Hire more fact-checkers! Binkowski argued. Heres a roundup of the misinformation and fakery on the internet over the past several days: 1. This random person is not a Postal Service worker ripping up absentee ballots that vote for Trump. @Randygdub is a person on Weird Twitter, an often-misunderstood place where jokes exist only for themselves. When they made a joke about ripping up absentee ballots that vote for Trump a bunch of people thought the tweet was for real and became furious about it. People fail to get Weird Twitter all the time, but the thing that makes this particular case remarkable is how far up the chain it was misunderstood. After Jim Hoft, who blogs at Gateway Pundit, wrote a very serious blog post about it again, with no evidence that @randygdub, whose bio says the user lives in California, was even a postal worker based in Columbus, Ohio the story ended up on the Drudge Report. And then, Rush Limbaugh talked about it on his show on Monday, at length. For what its worth, the USPS ended up investigating this Twitter joke and said in a tweeted statement that it does not believe these tweets were made by a postal employee. And although lol no. 2. #Repealthe19th did not trend because a ton of Trump supporters want to ban women from voting. #Repealthe19th was a real Twitter trend last week. And its a real hashtag with the stated purpose of calling for the repeal of the right of women to vote in the United States. But the fact that it trended on Twitter was not as many assumed and a few news articles implied because of a massive wave of Trump supporters calling for an election thats just for men. Instead, according to our own analysis of a scraped sample of #Repealthe19th tweets near the peak of the hashtags popularity, it was because a ton of people on Twitter were furious about the hashtag existing at all. #Repealthe19th snuck into the news cycle after FiveThirtyEights Nate Silver tweeted maps showing the predicted election results if just men or just women voted. If just men voted, the maps suggested, Trump would win. If just women voted, Hillary Clinton would win, in a landslide. The tweets attracted a small cluster of #Repealthe19th replies an apparent mix of genuine and troll from Trump supporters, over the next 24 hours Then, a day after Silvers original tweets, the Los Angeles Times wrote about the hashtag in a short article, attributing it to angry Trump supporters. Less than an hour later, the hashtag began to trend. 3. Obama did not demand a monument to himself. President Barack Obama did not say: Being the first black president and all, dont you think I deserve a monument. I mean, theres plenty of monuments dedicated to racist white people, as a recent Observatorial article shared around Conservative Facebook claims. As Snopes noted, the article actually refers back to two credible articles examining how Obamas presidency might be honored someday, although it didnt really get the facts right in translation. Also, its worth noting that the article is basically a new variation on a very old and fake rumor claiming that Obamas face will end up on Mount Rushmore in the near future. 4. The Dalai Lama did not say that Trump is worse than Hitler. The website ReligiousMind.com claimed recently that the Dalai Lamas recent visit to Switzerland included some scathing remarks about Donald Trump. Dalai Lama become the first religious figure to compare Trump to Hitler, the blog post claimed, quoting the religious leader as saying, I see another Hitler in the making, and that if the United States elects Trump, it will be the end of great Amarican (sic) civilization. No other record of the Dalai Lama saying anything even close to this exists from his recent trip, but the fake article made the rounds on Facebook recently. The Dalai Lama has been asked multiple times for his opinion on Trump, and his responses are usually pretty reserved. He recently made fun of Trumps hair, though. 5. The Clinton Foundation didnt give thousands of dollars to the Sharia Law Center The leak that claimed to financially link a Clinton Foundation voter suppression initiative to Glenn Beck, the Black Panthers and a group called the Sharia Law Center was obviously not a real invoice. But it still fooled a bunch of people, as the Daily Beast recently reported. The person behind it, identified as Chris from Massachusetts, has created a whole bunch of hoaxes this election season with the intention of baiting Trump supporters. One of those was a very fake memo in which the Clinton campaign complained to Public Policy Polling that their election polling was unacceptable, because we arent paying you $760,000 per month to show a FIVE POINT LEAD. Donald Trump Jr. even tweeted out the fake leak as real before eventually deleting the tweet. internet-fake The substantial body of writing perhaps half of it by David Wondrich about the early history of the cocktail helped lay the foundation for its rebirth. In the dozen or so years since that revival began, bartenders have plowed through the literature and old recipe books, revamped old drinks and put them back on menus, and reveled in the return of once-vanished ingredients. At the same time they were rediscovering, they were inventing, stepping from the solid bedrock of Manhattans and martinis to create new drinks. Until now, no book has explored that more-recent history, the bartender-driven Revolution of the Bibulous that has occurred in the bars all around us. If youve wondered what happened to your drink in the past decade, how you went from drinking crappy commercial sour mix leaded with vodka to some delicious and expensive concoction traced with European liqueurs and chilled with perfectly clear artisanal ice, youll enjoy some time with Robert O. Simonsons latest book, A Proper Drink: The Untold Story of How a Band of Bartenders Saved the Civilized Drinking World. Im not one for envying other writers; were all being ground up by the same publishing mill unless were Stephen King, which, last time I checked, only one of us is. But Ill admit: Sometimes Im jealous of Simonson. Partly because he can pull off a dapper fedora, but mainly because he lives in Brooklyn and therefore has regular access to many of the bars that formed the epicenter of the cocktail earthquake. Dont get me wrong: Theres plenty for a cocktail geek here in the District; we have our own core of heavy hitters. But Washington doesnt offer the density of the East Village, where you cant swing a subway rat without hitting a cocktail den. Simonsons book ranges the globe in its reporting, but New York is the perfect vantage point from which to cover the scene. Its somewhat ironic that a man who has spent the past decade seeking out and writing about elegant depressants stumbled onto the topic while on the hunt for stimulants. In 2006, Simonson was a theater writer trying to break into wine writing, and he had gone out to report on a combination coffee pop-up/theater experience in Soho (of course) when the PR rep for the event mentioned a little cocktail festival she was putting on in New Orleans and suggested he come down. Simonson, excited to check out a city hed never been to, took her up on the idea. That PR rep was Ann Rogers, now Ann Tuennerman; 10 years on, her conference, Tales of the Cocktail, can hardly be described as little. I can only imagine encountering New Orleans for the first time through Tales, a swelter of Louisiana heat and drinking that while highly educational can feel like the citys bon temps have roulezed you, along with your overtaxed brain, sweat glands and liver, right into the Mississippi. Simonson was so smitten that he tumbled down the rabbit hole and has been sending up boozy dispatches from Wonderland ever since, most notably in the New York Times. When I talked to Simonson about how he got started, I got deja vu as he described an early meeting to test gin and tonics with Wondrich, mixologist Julie Reiner and bartender-writer St. John Frizell, all well-established figures in the cocktail scene by then. They were such big deals. I was terrified of them, he says. (How the student becomes the master, grasshopper: That nervousness over meeting people who have vast expertise in a subject youre just getting into more deeply? Exactly how I felt when I first met Simonson.) Simonson is such a fixture in the cocktail writing world that it was startling to be reminded that he hasnt always been doing it. Thus I read with another weird whiff of deja vu or whatever you call it when an experience is so well described that it causes an intense sense memory of your own about his first encounter with a Sazerac: The edges of my vision blurred and my focus trained on the glass in front of me. I was simultaneously tasting three things I never had before: rye whiskey, spicy and bright; Herbsaint, as herbal as the name hinted; and Peychauds bitters, which well, what the hell were they anyway, and what did they do? A broader version of that question drives A Proper Drink: What is the cocktail renaissance, anyway, and what has it done to the way we drink today? Simonson captures the re-ascendance of bartending as a career and clarifies how drinks crossed various ponds, who took them there, how the word spread. He talked to hundreds of sources bartenders and distillers and brand ambassadors and importers from around the world to clarify who kicked it off, who influenced whom, how did particular drinks travel from one market to the next, what are the new classics? He leaves no coaster unturned. At times, I was cast back to studies of various literary movements the Romantics, the Beat poets whose work was driven forward by conversations and rebuttals and examinations of one anothers output. Your patience for the books deep dive may depend in part on how inclined you are to see the cocktail as a work of, if not art, then at least popular culture; to believe that exploring its influences and origins is a worthwhile task. But if you just want recipes, the books got those, too, both rediscovered oldies and those modern classics (such as the Paper Plane) that cropped up during the past decade or so. My favorite is the Laphraoig Project, which appears in a section of should-be classics. Its a Last Word-esque concoction, butched up with Scotch, one of those mystifying why does this work? type of drinks whose contents seem as if theyll be at war and yet somehow form an amazing sip. The sips, though, are only part of what has made the cocktail renaissance what it is, and when I asked Simonson for some of his likes and dislikes about the scene, he homed in on the social element, the thing people have enjoyed since the beginning of time about bars: having that third place, this place of conviviality where if youve had a bad day you can have a better one. And he notes his pleasure in the way bars allow you to develop a relationship with the person making your drink, which is not something you can usually enjoy at a restaurant with the chef. In that vein, he notes that the rise of celebrity bartenders, globetrotting competitors whose bars have become so famous that theyre rarely in them anymore, may be the worst thing that has ever happened to bartending. This may sound ungenerous, because for so long bartenders didnt have much of a career . . . but now I think careerism is in overdrive. When the career of being a bartender removes you from the bar, Im not sure how good a thing that is. . . . Its supposed to be about hospitality, and wheres the hospitality if youre not even there? If I had a bar, he says one of those daydreams that, from my experience, every booze writer entertains from time to time I think Id be the kind of bar owner who was always at my bar. We may never see what a Robert Simonson joint would look like, but if it replicated this books smarts, attention to detail and appreciation for people, Id probably be there a lot, too. Maybe even if he opens it in Brooklyn. Allan is a Hyattsville, Md., writer and editor. Follow her on Twitter: @Carrie_the_Red. spirits The brutal gang-rape and killing of a teenage girl in Argentina has shaken its citizens and sparked renewed protests against gender violence in the country. Protesters called for a nationwide womens strike Wednesday after horrific details emerged about the death of 16-year-old Lucia Perez. Police said Perez was picked up by her killers on Oct. 8 outside her high school in Mar del Plata, a coastal city about 250 miles south of Buenos Aires, according to El Pais. She was held her against her will at the home of one of the men, where she was reportedly given large amounts of cocaine and marijuana, then repeatedly gang-raped and penetrated with a wooden pole, the newspaper reported. The assault caused Perez so much pain that she went into cardiac arrest, BBC News reported. Two men brought Perezs body to a local medical center, claiming she had overdosed on drugs, BBC reported. They had washed Perezs body and changed her clothes beforehand, according to the Independent, but doctors noticed signs of violent sexual penetration upon closer inspection of the girls injuries. I know its not very professional to say it, but Im a mother and a woman, lead prosecutor Maria Isabel Sanchez said last week, according to the Independent. And Ive seen a thousand things in my career, but nothing equal to this litany of abhorrent acts. The authorities named three suspects in the case, according to El Pais: Matias Farias, Juan Pablo Offidani and Alejandro Alberto Masiel. Sanchez said police found several used condoms and sex toys at Fariass home, where the rapes allegedly occurred, the paper reported. The gruesome case prompted calls for Argentine women to wear black on Miercoles Negro, or Black Wednesday, and to go on strike for an hour, regardless of their occupations. In your office, school, hospital, law court, newsroom, shop, factory, or wherever you are working, stop for an hour to demand no more machista violence,' the march organizers wrote, according to BBC News. Machista violence refers to violence spurred by male chauvinistic behavior. Since her death, Perezs grieving family members have joined in marches calling for an end to domestic violence and other horrific treatment of women. We cant understand such barbarity, Lucias mother, Marta, told BBC News. Its impossible to understand. The way they killed her was inhuman, Lucias father, Guillermo, told the station. In an emotional statement published by La Poderosa, Lucias brother, Matias, remembered his sister as one who loved art, rock music and animals. Authorities initially refused his request to identify Lucias body, until her brother insisted, he said. Though the three suspects were in custody, Matias Perez wrote that it was not enough. He urged people to protest in the streets against such violence, because it could happen to anyone. Only in this way will we prevent thousands more Lucias being killed, Matias Perez wrote. And then we can close [Lucias] eyes and see her rest in peace. On Wednesday, the hashtag #NiUnaMenos Spanish for not one less and the name of a movement to protest femicide was trending on Twitter in Argentina. Several politicians and other high-profile figures joined in support. For Florencia Aguirre de Coyhaique. For Lucia Perez of Mar del Plata, Michelle Bachelet, the president of Chile, tweeted in Spanish. For all women, I say with strength: Not One Less. Florencia Aguirre was a 9-year-old girl whose body was found in her stepfathers woodshed in southern Chile earlier this month, officials said. Last year, the Ni Una Menos campaign also mobilized thousands to protest violence against women in mass demonstrations across Argentina, as well as in Uruguay and Chile. The demonstrations in June of 2015 were sparked by outrage over similarly shocking cases. In May of that year, a man allegedly beat his pregnant 14-year-old girlfriend to death, then buried her body in his courtyard, USA Today reported. A month earlier, the husband of a kindergarten teacher who had requested a divorce reportedly barged into her classroom and slit the teachers throat in front of her students, according to AFP. According to Ni Una Menos, one woman is killed every 30 hours in Argentina just for being a woman. Argentinas Supreme Court recorded 286 murders of women as a result of gender violence in 2015, according to the Guardian. Of the victims, 18 percent were under 20 years old; 43 percent were between the ages of 21 and 40. Violence against women is not limited to Latin America but a global problem, according to the United Nations, which cites physical violence inflicted by an intimate partner as the most common form of violence women around the world experience. According to World Bank data, rape and domestic violence pose a greater risk to women between the ages of 15 and 44 than cancer, car accidents, war and malaria, the U.N. stated. Violence against women is not confined to a specific culture, region or country, or to particular groups of women within a society, the U.N. stated. The roots of violence against women lie in persistent discrimination against women. argentina As the operation to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul gets underway, American troops are poised to expand their hands-on support to local forces battling the Islamic State. In a sign of the importance of the long-awaited offensive, military leaders are authorized to place U.S. forces advisers with Iraqi army battalions for the first time as they push toward militant lines, exposing U.S. forces to greater risks. Military officials say the troops will remain back from the thick of combat, and will limit their support to coordinating air and artillery fire, providing intelligence and helping plan troop movements. The U.S. role will not, they insist, look like the years following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, when U.S. troops who operated nominally in support of local forces often did the bulk of the fighting themselves. This time, U.S. advisers are not meant to be the front-line troops, Capt. Jeff Davis, a military spokesman, told reporters Tuesday. Several days into the operation, Pentagon officials have provided only general information about where U.S. troops will be located and how exactly they will take part in the hoped-for advance. While American troops have been widely seen alongside local forces in forward positions east of Mosul, Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook on Monday said only that some forces were positioned on the outskirts of the city. He said it was not yet clear whether U.S. forces would be permitted to enter the city proper. Officials reluctance to provide greater detail reflects a desire to protect U.S. advisers, attached to local units in small groups of about a dozen. It is also part of an effort to keep the U.S. role in the background, as Iraqi leaders have ruled out a combat role for foreign forces and local military commanders seek to claim victory after past defeats. But questions about the extent of U.S. activities in the unfolding ground operation also serve to highlight the elasticity of the American advisory role, which has been employed in a host of counterterrorism conflicts since 2001, such as joint planning at heavily guarded headquarters and combat situations where U.S. troops fight alongside or even ahead of local forces. David Maxwell, a former U.S. Army Special Forces colonel now at Georgetown University, said military advisers must grapple with the tension between nurturing local forces who are often beset by deep, systemic problems and accomplishing the overall mission. One of the challenges we saw in Iraq and Afghanistan was that there was so much pressure to accomplish the mission, that often U.S. partnered forces would take the lead, he said. Sometimes, haziness about the U.S. advisory role is rooted in confusion about the terms military officials use to describe these activities, including advise, assist and accompany, said William Wechsler, who until last year served as deputy assistant defense secretary for Special Operations and counterterrorism. For the average person, advising sounds like something that is done from pretty far away, from time to time, with pretty limited responsibility, he said. To the military, advising is something that youre doing on a day-to-day basis, shoulder to shoulder with your partners, and their success becomes your success. Another element is that while operational rules are established in Washington, decisions that shape the reality of what U.S. troops do are made by personnel in the field. This could come into play in the Mosul operation when advisers, who in most cases are authorized to accompany local troops only up to where they can protect themselves, make decisions about where that point stands. While policy limits must be established up front, there has to be some degree of flexibility allowed to those in the field, said Wechsler, who is now a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress. At the end of the day its a call for the people at the tactical level to determine what the last terrain feature might be. Advisers must also respond to changing battlefield threats that alter the advisory role, sometimes with deadly results. Last year, a Delta Force soldier became the first combat casualty in the renewed U.S. campaign in Iraq while providing support to an Iraqi rescue operation. When the Kurdish fighters came under unexpected fire, U.S. forces tried to come to their aid, and the U.S. soldier was killed. Unlike some past operations, U.S. advisers in Mosul, who now number a couple hundred, are expected to remain in a secondary role. Thats partly because of Iraqi wishes but also a strong U.S. desire to avoid casualties. It may also reflect confidence that Iraqi troops, with the help of U.S. advisers and air power, can get the job done. The Washington Posts Loveday Morris and Kareem Fahim in Iraq contributed to this report. Thomas Gibbons-Neff contributed from Washington. iraq-policy A Democratic congressional candidate in central Virginia pulled down her Facebook page this week after receiving what she said where thousands of negative messages, some obscene and threatening, from Donald Trump supporters. Jane Dittmar is running against state Sen. Tom Garrett, a Republican from Buckingham, for an open seat currently held by retiring Republican Rep. Robert Hurt in the 5th district, which spans a large section of the state from the northern Virginia exurbs, through the Shenandoah Valley and down to the North Carolina border. Trump has strong support in rural, conservative swaths of the district but analysts say Dittmar could pull off an upset if voters in liberal strongholds, such as Charlottesville, turn out to vote for Democrat Hillary Clinton. Dittmars campaign received most of the online comments and voice mails amid two campaign flaps that reflect the national political climate. In the first case, an armed Trump supporter legally protested outside her office last week, unnerving volunteers who called the police. Thenreports surfaced by conservative bloggers about a 1999 car accident in which Dittmar was initially charged with driving under the influence but she ultimately pleaded guilty to reckless driving. We sort of feel under attack on all sides by the Republicans at this point, Dittmar said. She accused Garrett of quietly spreading sleazy Republican charges as a diversion from a poor campaign finance report, which shows she has outraised him outraised him 2 to 1. Im disappointed in Tom, she said. Garrett denied having anything to do with the stories and accused Dittmar of trying to hide an apparent DUI arrest in which minors were involved. Fortunately, voters of the Fifth District have the opportunity to make the determination as to which candidate uses better judgment, Garrett spokesman Andrew Griffin said. On Oct. 13, Daniel Parks, a Trump supporter, parked his pick up truck outside Dittmars Fluvanna County campaign office. Alone inside the office, 71-year-old volunteer Susan Wolff said she watched him open the tailgate and set up Trump signs. At first, she said, she locked the office door, but then went outside to talk to him. The exchange was pleasant, Wolff said, until she began to walk away and he said something about Trumps promise to build a wall on the U.S. border with Mexico. Im very sensitive about this because my parents were Holocaust survivors and they fled Nazi Germany, she said. I said to him, Thank goodness there was no wall when my parents came here or I wouldnt be here.' Volunteers floated in and out of the office throughout the day and at one point Parks tucked his shirt behind his holster to reveal he was carrying a weapon, Wolff said. She eventually called 911, and around the same time learned that the county sheriff was already keeping watch in the parking lot as a precaution. The protest, first reported by a local CBS affiliate, ended peacefully after about 12 hours when the office closed for the evening. Attempts to reach Parks were unsuccessful. The real trouble began after Dittmar posted Facebook and Twitter messages encouraging volunteers to call the police if they felt uncomfortable with the armed protest. Comments began to appear using profanity and obscene terms to criticize Dittmar, according to screenshots of the comments taken by the campaign. She is dumb as a box of rocks they will take her head off it they dont rape her first, read one message posted on Garretts page. Another commenter said: Jane you are a retarded and should disembowel yourself with a spoon. The posts flourished until Monday night when Dittmar instructed her staff to take down the page; it was reactivated Tuesday morning with nearly 5,000 messages. Around the same time, several conservative blogs posted stories about the 1999 car accident. Dittmar said she was driving with her then-3-year old son on a dark country road when she swerved, causing her bumper to glance into the side of a berm. The airbag activated and she suffered two black eyes, a broken nose and a split lip. Dittmar said she waited for the police but got a ride home before they arrived so she left identification on the front seat to avoid giving the impression she had abandoned the car. She later learned she was charged with driving under the influence and not restraining a child. Dittmar said the charges were dropped in exchange for a guilty plea to reckless driving. She said her son was in a car seat and she had not been drinking. You can get charged with a lot of things when youre not at your vehicle when it gets towed away, and I understand that, she said. Albemarle County Police Lt. Todd Hopwood declined a request for the police report. Wolff, the campaign volunteer, said Dittmar believes national attention to the armed protest outside her campaign office might help her bid. If I win the election it could be because of this, she said, according to Wolff. Everyone knows my name now. virginia-garrett HOUSTON A Houston-area couple pleaded guilty on Wednesday to charges related to forcing a Nigerian woman to care for their five children and home without pay for two years, having her work nearly 20 hours a day. Chudy Nsobundu, 57, and his 49-year-old wife, Sandra Nsobundu, recruited the woman in Nigeria with the promise of a $100 monthly wage, prosecutors said. Instead, authorities say they abused the woman physically and verbally while she worked at their home in the Houston suburb of Katy, denying her compensation or outside contact from September 2013 to October 2015. Chudy Nsobundu pleaded guilty to visa fraud while his wife pleaded guilty to unlawful conduct with respect to documents in furtherance of forced labor, said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Attorneys for the couple didnt immediately return calls seeking comment on Wednesday. The Nsobundus, who are naturalized U.S. citizens originally from Nigeria, will be sentenced on Jan. 4. They remain free on bond. Sandra Nsobundu faces up to five years in prison, while her husband faces up to 10 years imprisonment. According to court documents, the nanny would work every day from 5:30 a.m. to 1 a.m., couldnt take breaks and had to eat leftovers and not fresh food, including being forced to only drink milk left in bowls in which the children had eaten cereal. She also couldnt take hot showers. Authorities said the Nsobundus prevented the nanny from leaving their employment by keeping her passport and by threatening her with physical and mental abuse. The nanny reached out for help and was rescued following a tip to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center. Prosecutors are seeking restitution in the amount of $129,108 to pay for back wages owed to the nanny, whose name has not been released by authorities. For years, world leaders have been arguing over the best way to protect the chilly Southern Ocean at the bottom of the world from threats like pollution and overfishing. Now, they may finally be one step closer to an agreement. This week, members of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) have convened in Hobart, Australia, for an annual meeting, where they will discuss the conservation and management of the Southern Ocean. And one of their priorities will be to continue negotiations on proposed marine protected areas, or MPAs, that have proved challenging. Establishing the MPAs is crucial to the protection of, and continued research on, the Antarctic ecosystem, conservationists have argued. But some countries are concerned that the protected area could damage their fishing operations in the Southern Ocean, and for the past few years, negotiations have fallen flat. The Southern Ocean, which surrounds the continent of Antarctica, may sound like a lifeless, frozen wasteland. But its actually a teeming ecosystem, home to everything from microscopic algae and tiny shrimplike krill to penguins, seals and whales. In fact, its an important commercial fishing interest to some countries, particularly when it comes to krill and toothfish. Managing the fishing industry was a major reason CCAMLR was established in the first place, in 1980. Its responsibilities as an international body, now composed of 24 nations plus the European Union, include protecting the common resources in the Southern Ocean by setting catch limits for commercial fisheries and designating areas and times of the year when fishing cannot occur. In 2009, the commission established its first MPA around the South Orkney Islands, just northeast of the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. However, some scientists have been critical about the compromises that were involved in reaching an agreement. A paper published last week in Science journal noted that the final MPA excluded some ecologically important zones to avoid conflict with commercial krill fisheries operated by several CCAMLR States. Since then, other countries have proposed additional MPAs in the Ross Sea, the East Antarctic and, most recently, the Weddell Sea. For an MPA to be established under CCAMLR rules, all member states must agree on the proposal, said Evan Bloom, director of the U.S. State Departments Office of Oceans and Polar Affairs and head of the U.S. delegation to CCAMLR. The Ross Sea and East Antarctic proposals have been under negotiation for five years, but none of the MPAs have been approved. If the proposals were to pass in their current forms, nearly 10 percent of the total Southern Ocean would be protected. The MPAs would include no-take zones, where fishing would not be permitted, as well as special research areas, where fishing for scientific purposes would be allowed. These MPAs are critical for protecting the health of the Antarctic ecosystem, and maybe even fisheries in other parts of the world, conservationists have argued. Krill are a staple food for penguins, whales, seals, seabirds and other Antarctic animals, but some studies have suggested that they may be in decline in certain parts of the Southern Ocean. This may be thanks to overfishing, as well as effects of the warming climate. The Southern Ocean is also an important contributor to the health of other marine ecosystems around the world, noted Andrea Kavanagh, director of the global penguin conservation campaign for the Pew Charitable Trusts. Its the site of a critical ocean process known as upwelling, in which nutrient-rich water bubbles up from the bottom of the sea and joins currents that carry it to other parts of the planet. Theres also scientific value in preserving what may be some of the last pristine marine ecosystems left on Earth, she added. Theres potential that these reserves could end up offering answers on how to help ecosystems adapt what are the things that we need to manage to help ecosystems adapt to a changing climate, she said. But some countries are worried about the limits these protected areas may place on their fisheries, and these concerns have stalled negotiations for the past few years. Last weeks Science paper noted that certain concessions have been made on both the Ross Sea and East Antarctic proposals, including reductions in the size of the areas that would be protected. Historically CCAMLR has been this institution where they require science to make decisions, said Cassandra Brooks , the papers lead author and a PhD candidate at Stanford Universitys School of Earth, Energy and Environmental Sciences. In other words, without sufficient data to suggest that fishing is safe in a given area, it would not be permitted. But recently, Brooks said, some member states have called for a reverse in the burden of proof required, suggesting that until theres enough data to know that theres enough of a threat, we shouldnt have a marine protected area, she said. Until now, Russia has been among the most vocal opponents of the proposed MPAs. According to Bloom, its the only nation left that is not on board with the Ross Sea proposal. But that could change this year. At this meeting, Russia has been more amenable to talking with us, he said. And so we are in the process of seeing whether we can bring them on board with the goal of hopefully establishing what would be the worlds largest marine protected area by the end of this session of CCAMLR. While its unclear what caused the change of heart, Bloom noted that Secretary of State John Kerry who has used his diplomatic role to draw historic new levels of attention to the oceans has been communicating with the Russian government about the issue ahead of this years CCAMLR meeting, and theres been a real high-level push to get Russia to sort of come to the table on this. The improved negotiations may also be part of a renewed Russian interest in polar conservation. Earlier this year, President Vladimir Putin declared that 2017 will be the Year of Ecology, and over the summer the government expanded the Russian Arctic National Park. That, to us, sent a great signal that theyre concerned about [the] poles, Kavanagh said. Bloom cautioned that the Ross Sea proposal is the only one that is likely to move forward this year, if any of the MPAs are approved at all. And even if that happens, some scientists are concerned about the concessions that might be necessary to move the proposal forward. A few CCAMLR member states have proposed setting a time limit on the MPAs, so that they would need to be renewed in 20 or 30 years, Brooks noted. This is an outcome that many conservationists hope to avoid, worrying that such a compromise might set a precedent for future international high-seas MPA negotiations. The hope is we get [an MPA] thats in place long enough to be effective and long enough to meet its objective, which I would say would be a minimum of 50 years, Brooks said. But attendees of this years meeting agree that, in general, the climate is more optimistic than it has been in years. Its taken us six years to get to a place where people are feeling this positive, Kavanagh said. southern-ocean [October 19, 2016] LandWorks Upgrades Web AutoMapper Online Mapping Service Now Includes USLandGrid HOUSTON, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- LandWorks Inc., a developer of innovative land management solutions, has improved its Web AutoMapper online service that translates land legal descriptions into GIS-ready map polygons. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/430080 The updated Web AutoMapper features a new interface that is easier to use, including a job detail web page that lets you review and edit your polygons before you buy. Clients can now have their property polygons mapped against USLandGrid's national land base, with the option of buying land grid townships containing the mapped property. "These changes make the Web AutoMapper even easier and more cost effective to use," said LandWorks President Jerry Bramwell. "Anyone with a need to create land maps can do so in just a few minutes at minimal cost." For about 20 percent of the cost of manual mapping, Web AutoMapper has simplified land records mapping in the oil & gas, renewable energy, mining, banking, utility, pipeline, state/local government, telecommunications, transportation, water and real estate sectors. The cost to map a legal parcel description with Web AutoMapper is $2 per polygon with the USLandGrid offered at just $7 per PLSS Township. "The USLandGrid data provides the tie between a legal description and the geography of that parcel of land," said USLandGrid Vice President of Sales Anthony Ford. "Producing polygons this way allows you to get your land positions on a map for critical analysis using the GS." "LandWorks selected USLandGrid for inclusion in Web AutoMapper because it is the best basemap available for any industry or profession to use in mapping property legal descriptions," said Bramwell. "An important benefit of the USLandGrid is that its data layers are continuously updated as more accurate survey data becomes available." LandWorks first introduced Web AutoMapper in 2013 as an inexpensive, fast and easy method of processing many types of standard property descriptions and converting them into digital map polygons. Legal descriptions that would take days or weeks to map manually can be processed in minutes with this online software-as-a-service application. A customer simply logs onto Web AutoMapper at www.LandWorks.com/automapper and creates an account. The user then submits an Excel spreadsheet containing one or hundreds of legal descriptions in Jeffersonian Township/Range or Texas Survey/Abstract formats. Within seconds, Web AutoMapper provides an onscreen report detailing which polygons can be generated, which cannot, and shows an overview of the mapped polygons aligned to the USLandGrid. If the customer decides to proceed, a credit card is provided. For customers who don't already own the Grid, they have the option of buying it by the township along with their mapped polygons. Web AutoMapper generates a zip file of the purchased polygons and USLandGrid townships either in Esri shapefile or file geodatabase format in NAD 83 or 27 for direct download into Esri ArcGIS software as well as other popular mapping systems, such as IHS Petra, IHS Kingdom and LMKR GeoGraphix. As a Cloud-based application, Web AutoMapper brings the full power of the standalone LandWorks AutoMapper software to every level of digital map user via the Internet. Introduced in 2002, the onsite AutoMapper package is purchased by an organization and sits behind their firewall as a production-grade GIS mapping tool. The software is used extensively by organizations that must manage large tracts of land and keep property records up to date, such as local governments, energy companies and natural resource management entities. About LandWorks, Inc. (www.landworks.com) LandWorks, an Esri Gold Business Partner, provides software and services utilizing Esri GIS technology. Since 1995, the company's primary focus has been providing software products and services for managing any type of land right in any industry including oil and gas, mining, pipelines, telecommunications, electric/gas utilities, wind energy, transportation and water. With offices in Houston and Denver, LandWorks also offers fast, accurate mapping and data entry of land rights agreements, and has one of the largest GIS land mapping service staffs in the U.S. This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/landworks-upgrades-web-automapper-online-mapping-service--now-includes-uslandgrid-300347484.html SOURCE LandWorks Inc. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] They keep your vitamins fresh, your indigestion tablets fizzy and your beef jerky from turning weird colors. They also protect your favorite coffee and chocolate products and can ensure your drum set doesnt get ruined during shipping. The next time you notice one of those desiccant packets or little plastic canisters in your prescription bottle or your box of shoes, send a silent thank you to a nondescript factory in Belen. Clariant, a global company based in Switzerland, employs 300 in Belen an operation that runs five days a week around the clock south of the city to make a variety of products that suck up destructive moisture. The factory turns out products ranging from the small silica envelopes to large packs filled with clay material that are draped over large products shipped in cargo containers. The goal is the same: to prevent moisture from reducing the effectiveness or destroying the shelf life of any number of products. Desiccants and packaging components manufactured by Clariant in Belen are an essential part of delivering safe and effective products all the way to the end patient or consumer, product manager Mark Florez said. The Clariant plant is among the manufacturers in New Mexico that exported $3.6 billion in goods and services last year, according to the New Mexico Manufacturing Extension Partnership. The partnership recently celebrated Manufacturing Day to highlight industries located in New Mexico. We have a long history in Valencia County, and we are very proud to be contributing to the community and economy of New Mexico, Florez said, referring to the operations start in 1983. The 200,000-square-foot Clariant facility is housed in two buildings, where employees do everything from sewing the little bags that contain silica to processing a weekly 300 tons of clay, some of it coming from a mine in eastern Arizona. While moisture can be destructive, so can oxygen. Some of Clariants products work to protect items such as beef jerky, which can turn colors and lose flavor when exposed to too much oxygen, and probiotics, which are live cultures that degrade from both dampness and an excess of oxygen. The smaller bags and plastic canisters are probably most familiar to consumers, because they are in all kinds of pharmaceutical and nutraceutical products, such as over-the-counter and prescription drugs, herbal supplements, vitamins and beauty products. Belen employees produce about a billion of the miniature canisters a year, Florez said. Little known fact: Although the items are imprinted with a do not eat warning, thats not because they will poison you. Its simply so consumers know its not just another vitamin or drug tablet in the bottle, said Ryan Grauer, a sales manager based in Colton, Calif. SACRAMENTO, Calif. Californias attorney general is conducting a criminal investigation into whether employees at San Francisco-based Wells Fargo bank stole customers identities in the sales practices scandal that rocked the bank and cost its CEO his job, documents released Wednesday show. A search warrant and supporting affidavit released by the state Department of Justice show that agents sought evidence related to allegations that bank employees created up to 2 million bank and credit card accounts without customers approval in order to meet sales goals. The warrant, first reported by the Los Angeles Times, was served Oct. 5. Copies obtained by The Associated Press under a public records request show Attorney General Kamala Harris office sought the names of customers who had accounts opened without their permission, the names of employees who opened the accounts and their managers, and fees associated with the improperly opened accounts. We cant comment on an ongoing investigation, Kristin Ford, a spokeswoman for the attorney general, said in an email. Wells Fargo spokesman Mark Folk said in an email that the bank is cooperating in providing the requested information. Justice Department Special Agent Supervisor James Hirt said in a 14-page affidavit seeking the search warrant that there is probable cause to believe that employees of Wells Fargo Bank unlawfully accessed the banks computer system to obtain the PII (personal identifying information) of customers. Employees then used the illegally obtained information to commit false impersonation and identity theft by opening unauthorized accounts, credit cards and various other products that resulted in the accumulation of fees and charges for Wells Fargo, Hirt said. One Los Angeles customer was surprised to learn last year that a Wells Fargo employee had opened a $10,000 line of credit linked to his accounts without his authorization, according to the affidavit. Another was shocked when she and her husband began receiving notices from the bank on payments they allegedly owed on three life insurance policies they had never purchased. Bank employees repeatedly opened and closed her bank accounts, causing her to bounce checks and pay bank fees. A third found her money transferred from her checking account to a savings account without her permission. The 74-year-old woman also reported receiving multiple bank credit-debit cards and being signed up for online banking without permission. The bank previously said it has fired about 5,300 employees for improperly engaging in fraudulent account sales. This is a huge case of fraud, said Beth Givens, executive director the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, a nonprofit San Diego-based consumer advocacy organization. At its face value, these individuals identities have certainly been stolen. I think one of the effects this case could have, particularly on Wells Fargo, is a loss of trust in this institution, but that could spread out to the banking industry in general, she said. I would be concerned about the reputation of the entire industry. Graciela Aponte-Diaz, director of California Policy for the Center for Responsible Lending, said the attorney generals investigation is needed. Californians deserve to know in full detail the extent of damage these activities have caused and what their long term affects will be. We hope the attorney generals investigation yields results for unanswered questions that Californians have, she said in a statement. Hirts affidavit says employees benefited from the practice by getting bonuses based on their productivity. Fees from the improper accounts topped $3 million. Harris, a Democrat who is running for U.S. Senate in next months election, joins state, and federal regulators in California and other states in attempting to punish the banking giant. California State Treasurer John Chiang said last month he would end doing business with the bank, a decision since echoed by officials Illinois, Ohio, and several cities. Hirts sworn statement cites information first developed by the Los Angeles City Attorneys Office, which announced a $185 million settlement with the bank in September. Congress also weighed in before CEO John Stumpf announced his retirement a week ago. We can help you make sense of the agribusiness industry, extending from chemicals and fertilizers used as inputs into agriculture, to the commodities, food and by-products that are an output to farming, with policy and regulation applied at every step of the value chain. Tech and government investment specialist Veritas Capital has made another deal in the wake of its weighty $10.65bn Fund VIII close from earlier this month with the buyout of analytics provider Verisk's energy business. Published On Oct 19, 2016 06:29 PM By Raunak The Internet is flooded with a picture that allegedly features the next-generation Wrangler and Jeeps flagship model, which is reportedly called the Grand Wagoneer. It is rumoured to have been clicked by an attendee at a recent Jeep dealers meet. We know that the picture is a little hazy, but this is our best look at the new models from the American automaker yet. If you pay attention to the vehicles in the picture, all the latest models of the American brand the Renegade, 2018 Wrangler, Cherokee, Grand Cherokee and the 2019 Grand Wagoneer are there, but it sadly doesnt feature the new India-bound Jeep Compass. However, what is relevant to us here are the 2018 Jeep Wrangler (second from left) and the 2019 Grand Wagoneer (towards the extreme right). Reports suggesting the revival of the Jeep Grand Wagoneer have been doing the rounds of late. Though the automaker hasnt said anything concrete about this flagship model, it is highly likely that it will be christened the Grand Wagoneer. With similar design cues a sleek, seven-slat grille and headlamps and wrap-around tail lamps it looks like a Grand Cherokee on steroids, but the new SUV is the more mature looking of the two. Interestingly, the Grand Wagoneer will feature discrete seven-dot LED daytime running lights and its tail lamps also mimic the same pattern. It is likely to come in two variants, namely, the Wagoneer and the Grand Wagoneer, and is likely to come in 2018 as a 2019-year model. As expected, the 2018 Wrangler is unmistakably a Wrangler. Jeep will never deviate from the Wranglers basic boxy design cues, perhaps because that is what people love about it. What we can tell from the picture is that the next-gen model will feature larger fenders with LED daytime running lights, a typical seven-slat grille and circular headlamps (which appears to be an all-LED unit), and the rear gets Renegade inspired X-pattern LED tail lamps. It will reportedly also be based on a new lightweight platform and will even offer a hybrid powertrain. The new Wrangler is likely to make its debut at the 2017 Detroit Motor Show. Also Read: Jeep Wrangler Pickup Spied! Source Read More on : Wrangler Unlimited Published On Oct 19, 2016 04:34 PM By Alshaar for Honda New Accord Ahead of the launch of its latest eco-friendly product, the Accord Hybrid, Honda has critiqued the support given to promote such vehicles in India. The Japanese carmaker also called for a clear distinction between fully hybrid and mild hybrid technologies for equitable distribution of resources. Honda Cars India president and CEO Yoichiro Ueno told PTI that the subsidies offered to hybrid vehicles under the FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles) India scheme are not sufficient in their current form. "There are different levels of hybrid technologies -- some are mild systems while some full hybrid systems. I think it is necessary to differentiate, otherwise the cost difference is there," he said. As pointed out by Ueno, both mild and fully hybrid models get similar kind of benefits under the FAME India scheme that was launched last year. Besides, imported CBU models do not come under the ambit of the scheme, making them all the more expensive to own. Both these factors have played against the Jap carmaker whose Honda Accord has a higher level of hybrid technology than the likes of the Maruti Suzuki Ciaz and the Mahindra Scorpio Intelli-Hybrid, and is also is a CBU import. The Honda India boss also added that initial government support is necessary for hybrid vehicles to succeed in a country. "If I see other countries, hybrid technologies initially needed some government support. In most of the countries government initially supported with some reduced taxes or incentive to the customer," he said. Modified On Oct 19, 2016 02:15 PM By Arun for Isuzu D-MAX V-Cross 2015-2019 A few units were reportedly facing 'vibration issues', that were fixed by a remap Japanese automaker Isuzu has issued a statement regarding the recall of the D-Max V-Cross. When contacted, we were told that a vibration/jerking issue was reported by a few customers, which was fixed by a software update of the ECU. We had received feedback from some D-MAX V-Cross customers who were experiencing engine vibrations at some RPM levels. This was checked internally and the issue has been resolved by remapping the ECU. The process is simple and takes approximately 30 minutes and has resulted in much better performance of the engine. The same has been extended to other customers who have not reported the issue, said a spokesperson. The 2.5-litre 136PS motor is known for its reliability and it is good to see Isuzu proactively fixing any problems in the vehicle. A few customer testimonies were shared with us as well, which showed a generally positive experience. Messages from the customers also reflected that the issue had been resolved with the remap. Isuzu is offering the remap to other customers as well. In case you own one, it would be wise to contact service personnel to get the update done. Also, it is safe to assume that units of the pickup that are still in the making will come with the update from the factory itself. The V-Cross is an extremely niche product with a limited audience, and such steps will only strengthen Isuzu's after-sales credibility. We think the V-Cross is a nice blend of utility and lifestyle, and has managed to breathe some life into a nascent segment in the country. We've driven it already; you can check out the review here. Read More on : D-Max V-Cross Government Advisory Group Recommends Massive Increase to Canadian Immigration Numbers Over Next Five Years CIC News Aa Accessibility Font Style Serif Sans Font Size A A Advisors also call for tech and IT occupations to be exempt from LMIA process An external advisory group to the government of Canada is set to call for a substantial increase in overall immigration numbers to the country. The Advisory Council on Economic Growth, which advises federal Minister Bill Morneau, will call for a 50 percent increase in immigration to 450,000 people annually over five years. In addition, the advisory group will recommend that skilled workers and entrepreneurs have easier entry to Canada. The external advisors consider immigration as part of an effort to stimulate the economy over the short and long terms. The 14-member group includes institutional investors, business executives, venture capitalists, and academics. Its recommendations are scheduled to be delivered to the government on Thursday, October 20. If the government implements the advisory groups recommendations, it would continue what it has already begun since it took office nearly 12 months ago. Just last month, it was revealed that immigration numbers for the past year were the highest in modern history, with a total of 320,932 new immigrants having landed in the country as permanent residents over the period July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016. That is one-third higher than the previous year, when 240,844 immigrants came to Canada, representing the fastest growth in nearly three decades. In addition, federal immigration Minister John McCallum has made it clear that he wishes to substantially increase the number of new immigrants to Canada in order to fill labour shortages and react to demographic challenges resulting from aging populations. The Liberal Party of Canada, which is currently in government, is generally viewed as supportive of immigration, diversity, and multiculturalism. Since taking office, the government has overseen the arrival of large numbers of skilled workers, entrepreneurs, and refugees. Over the coming few weeks, it is expected that the government will reveal its immigration plan for 2017 and beyond. The government is also expected to make improvements to certain immigration programs and reduce processing times across the board. The latter objective is one that has already begun in earnest, yielding positive results. In the 12-month period from July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016, processing times for all permanent residence programs together decreased by an enormous 42 percent. Tech and IT industries want smoother process The advisory group notes that many stakeholders in the tech and IT sector are frustrated with the current immigration setup, resulting in hiring delays, or even missing out on key staff altogether. The current immigration process is overwhelming even Kafkaesque, says Tobi Lutke, CEO of software firm Shopify, Inc., based out of Ottawa. The people we need to bring to Canada are not building widgets that Canadians otherwise would. The people we are recruiting . . . are the teachers that help us to scale [up]. If we want to build the best companies in the world here, we need to allow the best people in the world to move here. As a result of the sentiments shared by Lutke and other business leaders, the advisory group is calling for certain tech and IT occupations to be exempt from the requirement for businesses to obtain a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) before the hiring of foreign nationals may take place. The LMIA process ensures that Canadian citizens and permanent residents have the opportunity to apply for open positions before foreign nationals may be hired. Taking growth seriously After a year in office and with continued popular support when it comes to immigration, the government now has a tremendous opportunity to grow the country and its economy for the betterment of all. That includes Canadians and newcomers alike, says Attorney David Cohen. The government advisory groups recommendations should and I believe will be taken seriously. Provincial governments are consistently lobbying the government for larger allocations for the Provincial Nominee Programs due to labour demand and demographic realities. Canada has a shrinking workforce as a percentage of its overall population, and this trend cannot continue. Fortunately, we appear to have a government that sees the bigger picture. In particular, the recommendation to remove LMIA requirements for IT positions will help businesses to develop their products and get them to market quicker. This would be of benefit to all. The recommendations should also come as a delight to potential immigrants to Canada from around the world. Moving to a new country is a life-changing, serious prospect. It becomes easier when you know that your destination wants you to come. In a world where an increasing number of countries and regions are looking inward, Canada is something of an anomaly in that it is reaching out. In the global scheme of things, Canada represents a positive future. To find out if you are eligible for immigration to Canada, please fill out a free online assessment today. 2016 CICnews All Rights Reserved 09:00 - 11:30, Tuesday 8 November, CIWEM, London Join our exclusive briefing this November as we discuss & debate the role of society lotteries; our panel will address the regulation surrounding lottery fundraising, best practice & how to maximise earning potential and the future of lottery fundraising programmes. This event is designed to provide space for charities to debate with other charities. As a result, there are no corporate spaces available and we will withdraw places booked by non-charity delegates. We will issue a refund minus an administration fee of 15%. If you are interested in sponsoring a future FFT please contact Yvette on 020 7819 1202 or via [email protected]. Charities still lag behind the private sector on digital maturity, but they are improving, according to the latest UK Business Digital Index. The benchmarking survey, produced by Lloyds Bank, found that the sector has made progress in most areas. Charities overall score rose from 36 out of 100 in 2015 to 42 out of 100 in 2016. Small businesses scored 45 in 2015 and 54 this year. The report found that 51 per cent of charities have basic digital skills, compared to 62 per cent of small businesses. The percentage of charities accepting online donations rose from 24 per cent in 2015 to 53 per cent this year. According to the report, charities are 28 per cent more likely to report an increase in income than less digital charities. More charities are also investing in digitals skills than last year, though the vast majority, 78 per cent, have no budget for digital skills. Martha Lane Fox, executive chair of Doteveryone, said in the introduction to the report: This year, the charity sector has made some major improvements in its digital skills. However 49 per cent of charities still lack all five Basic Digital Skills. A strong digital economy is not enough. We also need a strong civil society, to tackle the challenges we face today. Lloyds surveyed 2,000 small businesses and charities about their digital activities. It also carried out in-depth interviews. Governance & Leadership magazine recently looked at the issues facing charities and trustees when it comes to embracing digital, subscribers can read it here. Civil Society Media's annual Charity Technology Conference takes place next month with sessions addressing building and embedding digital skills in charities. Find out more here. A Commons committee debate yesterday on the new bill proposing changes to the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme ended with the government refusing to extend it to SMS, online and cheque donations, despite efforts by opposition MPs to persuade it to do so. Among the changes that had been suggested to the Small Charitable Donations and Childcare Payments Bill by various Labour and SNP MPs included widening the scheme to include donations by text, cheque or the internet; removing the requirement for charities to have to match donations by a ratio of 10:1 to their gift aid claims; and ensuring that local scout, girl guide and cadet branches are able to claim individually under the scheme, rather than being considered as part of a single national charity. The bill already extends the scheme from solely cash donations to contactless payments including Oyster cards - but Labour MP Rebecca Long Bailey argued that text donations ought also to be included and SNP MP Kirsty Blackman made a case for including cheques. But Jane Ellison MP, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, said the scheme was never intended to cover methods of donations for which well-established and well-used processes for claiming gift aid already exist. Gift aid matching requirement In response to submissions to remove the matching requirement, Ellison said that the bill already removes the requirement for charities to have been registered with HMRC for two years before they can make claims under the scheme, and the requirement to have a specified history of gift aid claims. This leaves the matching requirement as the only link between the Small Donations Scheme and the wider gift aid scheme, she said, and this link is important to deter fraudulent claims. Ellison also declined to launch a review of the gift aid scheme as a whole within the next six months, as requested by Long Bailey. Connected charities and community buildings The new bill proposes changes to the community buildings section of the scheme, which Ellison claimed would make the rules much more flexible and generous, especially for very small local charities. The government anticipates that the vast majority of connected charities will be better off claiming under the community buildings rules, because connected charities are to be provided with an 8,000 allowance for each building, rather than a single 8,000 allowance to be shared between the group. The vast majority of connected charities will automatically receive the most beneficial allowance, Ellison said. Long Bailey said the opposition was happy to support these changes, but she requested the bill be amended to make clear that local scout groups, girl guide groups, and Army, Navy and Air Force cadet groups are not considered to be connected, so that they can claim individually under the scheme. However Ellison refused to support this proposed amendment, claiming that scrapping the connected charities rules would incentivise large charities to splinter into groups of smaller charities to increase their entitlement to small donations allowances. But Labour MP Anna Turley refused to let the point drop: This is a really important provision that deserves greater explanation from the government, she said. It should seek to include organisations, such as Age UK or Mind, which have much more devolved structures. For example, on the back of the loss of the steelworks in Redcar and Cleveland, the number of referrals to Redcar and Cleveland Mind went up by 93 per cent. That charity relies almost entirely on its own local fundraising. That is an exact example of where the charity ought to be able to have a lot more freedom to raise money and keep its gift aid donations locally, rather than having to be part of a national structure. I implore the minister to take this away and explore it much more widely. Ellison responded that she was fairly certain that the charity cited by Turley would benefit from the bill, because it probably does not fundraise in its own premises. If it fundraises in the local area through quizzes or events or whatever it will now be entitled to claim against its community building for any activity in the local area, she said. Rebecca Long Bailey then referred the minister to a comment from CFG that scouts and such groups often cannot claim under the community buildings rules because buildings have to be open to the public some or all of the time, and scout huts and barracks are usually closed to the public. Charity Finance Group has made a suggestion that HMRC could develop regulations and criteria to define local groups for the purposes of the Act. Would the minister give serious consideration to that proposal?, Long Bailey asked. I am happy to reflect on the points made, Ellison concluded. Lets talk about reality the credit union movement is an older movement, and in some cases older founders are still engaged and involved in their institution. The first credit union society was formed in Germany in 1849, and it was in the early 1900s that North America saw this model replicated locally. Our movement was founded during a time where technology was non-existent, when towns still had important local buildings as gathering places, and communication was much slower. Our brick-and-mortar institutions have served us well over the years. At our small credit union, so many of our members tell us their first or best experience with a financial institution was at a credit union. The legacy we have built as an industry is strong and proud. It is also amazing how many members will go out of their way to use our services, even when we arent the most convenient providers. In the early-2000s, a company called ING Direct launched in the US. Its model was simple deposit accounts were online, with a few cafes throughout the country. It offered a slightly higher rate in exchange for lack of access to brick-and-mortar. It felt a bit revolutionary at the time, and I recall it even feeling a bit scary to send money to my account with them. ING Direct US was acquired by CapitalOne and is now the 8th largest U.S Bank by deposit accounts. The idea caught on maybe bricks-and-mortar arent always the most important feature of a deposit account. But why are we talking about banks? Because the financial industry is still changing and evolving. Mobile apps, remote deposit capture, Virtual Tellers and Fintech are not going to go away. Brick-and-mortar is still relevant, but many leaders in the industry know that we need to engage millennials over the long term to stay sustainable. Millennials are the most connected generation, many having grown up always using technology. Our college students today cant imagine not having a cell phone to communicate with friends. Millennials are more engaged, and more connected to social causes than prior generations. Credit unions, with our community orientation, can capitalize on this fact that the current generation entering the workforce wants to be socially responsible. This is our next generation of member, as well as what our next generation of manager, then later what our industry leaders and CEOs will look like. Diversity in staffing is important, and having multiple generations in the same workplace is a huge advantage to any organization. Older, experienced employees have expertise and skills that are invaluable to the stability of a credit union while younger employees can bring a fresh perspective and draw attention to rapidly changing industry trends. Therefore, its important to have an engaged organization where sharing and learning happens and employees can learn from the best of what each generation has to offer. Make Sure Employees are Engaging Cross-Departmentally: Organizational silos prevent learning. They also prevent understanding of the challenges that your teammates are facing. Do the best you can to have departments (even if you are very small) engage other departments in the process of product launches, collections, member-onboarding, and general operations. Ideas come from communicating across perspectives. Allow Staff to Cross-Train in Areas Outside their Roles: While it is important for isolation of duties for dual-control purposes, people often find they have strengths in areas of interest. If your credit union is larger, consider establishing a mentor program between veteran employees and new employees. Younger employees may be interested in figuring out what their long term career interests are and enjoy the opportunity to learn about opportunities to growth within the organization or industry. Provide Opportunities for Autonomous Decision Making within Boundaries: All credit unions are guided by policy and compliance requirements, and we all must be responsive to regulatory changes. However, whenever and wherever possible, give creative control to staff. Give some flexibility in decisions about member service, and have a platform for employee feedback. Give newer employees to the industry to stretch and make mistakes within appropriate boundaries. Creating an organization committed to growth requires a willingness to change. In smaller organizations, it is often observed that a role becomes defined by the strengths and skills of the individual managing the responsibility. A job description can evolve based on what one individual can bring to the table. The industry is changing. We must preserve the important legacy that our founders have left us, but we must also recognize where we need to change in order to remain relevant. New voices and new faces provide the opportunity to think differently, and we can develop a strong onboarding program for our younger employees. A lawsuit in North Dakota federal district court could provide an early test of the reach of a federal appeals court decision that confronted what the judges called the massive, unchecked power of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In June, the CFPB sued payment processor Intercept Corp., alleging the company and two of its executives allowed clients to make unauthorized and illegal withdrawals from consumers accounts. The CFPBs complaint in U.S. District Court for North Dakota alleged Intercept ignored red flagssuch as warnings from banks and complaints from consumersand knew or consciously avoided knowing that many of the transactions initiated by those companies were fraudulent or illegal. Lawyers for Intercept seized on a Washington federal appeals court ruling last week that struck down as unconstitutional the structure of the CFPB. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that too much power was vested in the CFPBs director, Richard Cordray, whom Judge Brett Kavanaugh described as the single most powerful official in the entire U.S. government, other than the president. Water striders' ability to walk and jump on the surfaces of ponds and lakes has long amazed curious observers -- and inspired robot designers who want to mimic the bugs' talent. Now, scientists have measured for the first time key parameters that allow them to walk on water -- by studying their leg shadows. The findings, reported in the ACS journal Langmuir, could contribute to designs for water-skimming robots. More than 2,000 years ago, Greek scientist Archimedes explained flotation, stating that the upward, floating force on an object in water equals the weight (or downward force) of the water displaced. The principle has informed the building of ships, submarines and other aquatic vehicles. But for tiny water striders, water isn't displaced. It is expelled by the insect's hairy legs. The updated Archimedes principle predicts that the weight of the expelled water should equal the floating force. But confirming this prediction experimentally is a challenge. Because water striders are so light, they are almost impossible to weigh using conventional techniques. So Yu Tian and colleagues used an unconventional method -- analyzing the shadows cast by the insects' legs. The researchers placed a white sheet of paper at the bottom of a lab aquarium housing water striders and installed a light source above the water. The insects' stick-straight legs cast shadows that were rounded, representing the curvature of the water and the expelled water volume from which the floating force and weight can be calculated, the researchers say. Also, from these measurements, the striders' slightest shifts in weight and body angle could be detected for the first time. ### The authors acknowledge funding from the National Natural Science Foundation of China. The abstract that accompanies this study is available here. Watch the water striders in this Headline Science video. The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With nearly 157,000 members, ACS is the world's largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio. To automatically receive news releases from the American Chemical Society, contact newsroom@acs.org. Follow us: Twitter Facebook Australian scientists have worked with researchers in Germany to create the most detailed map of the Milky Way, using the world's largest radio telescopes. The HI4PI project, which is a combination of an Australian survey and a German survey, provides the most sensitive and detailed view of all of the hydrogen gas in and around the Milky Way and will help solve the mysteries of our galaxy. Team leader for the Australian survey, Professor Naomi McClure-Griffiths from The Australian National University (ANU), said the study revealed for the first time the fine details of structures between stars in the Milky Way. "Very small gas clouds appear to have helped form stars in the Milky Way over billions of years," she said. Professor McClure-Griffiths said her research group at ANU was using the data map to answer the big questions about the Milky Way and neighbouring galaxies. "How does the Milky Way get the new gas it requires to continue forming stars? And where are all of the small dwarf galaxies that must surround our Milky Way? The next steps will be exciting," she said. Professor McClure-Griffiths said her research group would use the map to hone their work with the Square Kilometre Array and the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder, which will provide even more detailed maps of the Milky Way. The HI4PI project used the largest fully steerable radio telescopes in the southern and northern hemispheres, Australia's 64m CSIRO Parkes dish and the 100m Max-Planck telescope in Effelsberg, Germany. The project improves the previous neutral hydrogen study, the Leiden-Argentine-Bonn (LAB) survey, by a factor of two in sensitivity and a factor of four in angular resolution. The HI4PI project involved ANU and the University of Western Australia in Australia, and the University of Bonn and Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Germany. The research article, titled 'HI4PI: A full-sky Hi survey based on EBHIS and GASS', is published in Astronomy and Astrophysics. ### Watch a video animation that shows all of the hydrogen gas in the Milky Way and neighbouring galaxies: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2mgpsTFuV8&feature=youtu.be BETHESDA, MD - Early results from the BabySeq Project, a Boston-based study exploring the impact of whole-exome sequencing (WES) on newborn infants and their families, suggest some utility in genetically sequencing these infants and offer new insights into parental attitudes toward the procedure and results. Findings were presented at the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) 2016 Annual Meeting in Vancouver, B.C. Led by Robert C. Green, MD, MPH, of Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and the Broad Institute; and Alan H. Beggs, PhD, of the Manton Center for Orphan Disease Research at Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School; the project has recruited more than 100 families to date. Infants are enrolled from the neonatal intensive care units at Boston Children's Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital as well as the well-baby nursery at Brigham and Women's Hospital. Half of each group is randomized to receive WES - genetic sequencing of all protein-coding genes, with analysis of about 1,800 genes implicated in childhood health - and follow-up counseling. Data are collected from participating families at enrollment, when receiving their sequencing results, three months after sequencing, and ten months after sequencing. "This is the first randomized trial to sequence healthy infants with interpretation and return of the information," Dr. Green said. "We faced enormous early challenges in creating processes for informed consent, accurate sequencing and interpretation, choosing which genes to report, clearly reporting results to families and their providers, and measuring potential benefits and harms." "Having created these processes, we are now collecting data from medical record reviews and parental surveys, in order to measure medical benefits, harms, and costs, as well as parents' understanding of genetic sequencing, their attitudes and anxieties about it, and any actions they may have taken based on the results," said Shawn Fayer, MSc, MS, Project Manager of the BabySeq Project. So far, the researchers have identified potentially harmful variants in two healthy infants who were sequenced - variants that would not have been detected otherwise - suggesting some value in sequencing infants with no family history of genetic disease. It is not yet known how this knowledge will affect the families' medical actions or the infants' eventual health outcomes. In some cases, challenges during the recruitment process led to unexpected insights. Before enrolling, parents had the opportunity to meet with a genetic counselor to discuss the study. Those who declined to participate after learning about the study expressed concerns about receiving unfavorable or uncertain results, insurance discrimination, and confidentiality and privacy. These findings reflect current societal attitudes about genetic testing, which are likely to affect its clinical implementation. In the coming months, the researchers hope to enroll several hundred additional infants and families. In addition to measuring parental attitudes about sequencing newborns, they plan to assess the usefulness of WES information over time, including how it is used in later medical decisionmaking. "This is the first rigorously designed study to examine the often-cited vision that humans will benefit from having genomic information from the very first days of life," said Dr. Green. "While it will take many years of follow-up to determine the ultimate benefits and harms, we are already learning a tremendous amount about creating the process for returning genomic information in newborns, parental hopes and concerns, and the kinds of results that are emerging." ### The BabySeq Project is funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Development and the National Human Genome Research Institute, both part of the National Institutes of Health. Presentation: Dr. Green will present his research on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, from 9:45-10:00 a.m., in Room 109 of the Vancouver Convention Centre. Press Availability: Dr. Green will be available to discuss this research with interested media on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, from 11:00-11:45 a.m. in the ASHG 2016 Press Office (Room 111). Reference: Green RC et al. (2016 Oct 19). Abstract: The BabySeq Project: Preliminary findings from a randomized trial of exome sequencing in newborns. Presented at the American Society of Human Genetics 2016 Annual Meeting. Vancouver, B.C., Canada. BETHESDA, MD - Adding non-invasive prenatal genetic screening (NIPS) for fetal chromosomal abnormalities to the current prenatal testing strategy in Quebec would be more cost-effective than current approaches based on blood tests and amniocentesis, according to research presented at the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) 2016 Annual Meeting in Vancouver, B.C. Healthy human body cells contain 23 pairs of chromosomes, for a total of 46. However, errors during the cell replication process can cause the chromosomes to distribute unevenly, a condition known as aneuploidy. Led by Francois Rousseau, MD, MSc, Professor of Medicine at the Universite Laval in Quebec City, Quebec, a diverse group of scientists, physicians, health economists, and laboratory physicians used a complex computer simulation to compare the cost-effectiveness of 13 protocols for prenatal testing for fetal aneuploidies such as Down syndrome: Six that are commonly used in countries around the world; six that add NIPS, a blood test of cell-free DNA in the mother's blood, to those common procedures; and one that uses NIPS only. Current protocols generally start with a blood test, followed by amniocentesis if the blood test indicates high risk of aneuploidy. NIPS is less invasive than amniocentesis and thus less risky for pregnant women and fetuses, but unlike amniocentesis, it is not a definitive diagnostic test, Dr. Rousseau explained. "In addition to being safer, we wanted to find out whether the introduction of NIPS as a first- or second-tier test would be more cost-effective than current options in the context of the health system in Quebec," he said. To answer this question, Dr. Rousseau and colleagues developed a computer simulation for each of the 13 protocols they studied. Based on real data from the Ministry of Health on 113,000 pregnancies in Quebec in 2014, they created decision trees of the steps that would have been taken in those pregnancies if each protocol was followed, accounting for real-world factors such as families that opt out of the screening program and loss to follow-up. They then assigned a cost to each procedure followed and computed the total cost to the healthcare system for each protocol. This was divided by the number of Down syndrome cases detected to calculate the cost per case detected. For the protocols with NIPS, the researchers also calculated the incremental cost per case detected - the extra cost per case detected that would not have been detected without NIPS. Each simulation was run 1000 times to evaluate the consistency of the results. This was followed by sensitivity analyses, in which the researchers tried changing variables such as participation rates and costs of NIPS to measure whether the relative cost-effectiveness of protocols changed as a result. "Using these measures, we found that a Serum Integrated option, followed by NIPS for women at high risk, was the most cost-effective," Dr. Rousseau said. This approach entails a blood test at 10 weeks into gestation, followed by a second blood test at 12-14 weeks. For blood test results indicating high risk (about 1 in 300), NIPS is performed within a week, and when NIPS confirms there is a risk, amniocentesis is performed and a diagnosis is made as appropriate. This approach would reduce the number of amniocentesis procedures performed by about 90 percent. A Serum Integrated option without the intermediate step of NIPS, the approach currently used in Quebec, was second-most cost-effective. In contrast, the universal NIPS option was least cost-effective. The sensitivity analyses showed that these results held even if the cost of NIPS was halved. In addition to accounting for a range of possibilities in Quebec, the sensitivity analysis data may help other health jurisdictions extrapolate the findings to their own areas, Dr. Rousseau noted. Costs of procedures and participation rates can vary geographically, and prenatal screening decisionmakers can use the scenarios closest to their own context to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of various protocols with and without NIPS. "Ours was the first study to compare the cost-effectiveness of NIPS approaches in the Quebec context, and the simulations were a great way to evaluate so many options head to head," Dr. Rousseau said. They accounted for many real-world challenges in the program, which were validated by two independent groups of experts. "The next steps would be to perform a budget impact analysis and to do a pilot test or clinical trial of the one or two most promising options to see how these results play out in the health care system," he said. ### This work is part of PEGASUS, a larger project examining the effectiveness of different NIPS approaches as compared to existing practice; the health economics of NIPS; the ethical, legal, and social issues related to this technology; as well as implementation challenges. PEGASUS is funded by Genome Canada, the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Genome Quebec, Genome BC, Genome Alberta, and other partners. Presentation: Dr. Rousseau will present his research on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, from 10:15-10:30 a.m., in Room 109 of the Vancouver Convention Centre, West Building. Press Availability: Dr. Rousseau will be available to discuss this research with interested media on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, from 2:00-2:45 p.m. in the ASHG 2016 Press Office (Room 111). References: Rousseau F et al. (2016 Oct 19). Abstract: Noninvasive prenatal screening for common aneuploidies in a Canadian province: A cost effectiveness analysis. Presented at the American Society of Human Genetics 2016 Annual Meeting. Vancouver, B.C., Canada. BETHESDA, MD - Infection with Zika virus disrupts fetal brain development by interfering with the proliferation of human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs), a type of cell that drives neurodevelopment and proliferates into brain and nervous system cells, according to research presented at the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) 2016 Annual Meeting in Vancouver, B.C. Understanding Zika's mechanisms will illuminate how viral infection leads to birth defects such as microcephaly, a condition marked by an abnormally small head and brain size, and could inform the development of therapies and vaccines, the study authors said. "We set out to study why Zika causes microcephaly and related viruses like dengue virus don't," said Feiran Zhang, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher at Emory University and presenting author on the research. Dr. Zhang and his colleagues at Emory, Johns Hopkins, and Florida State University focused on the effects of the virus in hNPCs, which are highly susceptible to Zika infection. The hNPCs used in this study were derived from healthy skin cells, Dr. Zhang said. Zika virus was first discovered in Uganda in 1947. Since then, two distinct lineages of the virus have been identified, one African in origin and the other Asian. To compare the effects of each virus on gene expression in these cells, the researchers examined all the messenger RNAs (mRNAs) produced by four groups of hNPCs: cells infected with an Asian strain of Zika virus, cells infected with an African strain of Zika virus, cells infected with a reference strain of dengue virus, and a control group. They found that compared to dengue infection, Zika infection more strongly affects expression of genes involved in DNA replication and repair, processes that are important in brain development. Interestingly, they found that infection with the Asian strain of Zika virus triggered a stronger innate immune system response than the African strain, including increased expression of the gene TP53. In addition, treatment with p53 inhibitors more strongly inhibited the Asian strain's pathogenicity - its ability to cause harm - than that of the African strain. "These results suggest that compared to the African strain, the Asian strain's mechanism for causing disease is more dependent on p53," Dr. Zhang explained. He noted that the strain of Zika currently circulating in the Western hemisphere is more similar to the Asian strain than the African one. In addition to studying mRNA, the researchers also analyzed small RNAs in each group of hNPCs. Both mRNA and small RNAs play important roles in regulating gene expression, Dr. Zhang explained. The researchers observed changes in human small RNAs produced in hNPCs upon Zika infection, as well as in small RNAs directly generated from Zika virus. Working in laboratory mice, they injected the most abundant of these small RNAs into the mouse brain to assess the impact of each on brain development, including whether they caused microcephaly. They have identified specific small RNAs from Zika virus that could impact brain development and lead to microcephaly, at least in mice. "Our results suggest that Zika virus might function as a 'Trojan horse' by 'hijacking' the human cell's machinery," Dr. Zhang said. "Once it infects a human cell, the virus could interact with human enzymes to produce these small RNAs, which could in turn alter brain development and lead to microcephaly." The researchers are now studying which human mRNAs could be regulated by these small RNAs. They hope their findings will inform the development of preventive and therapeutic approaches. "It's likely that the mechanisms we found are just some of the many ways in which Zika virus acts," Dr. Zhang said. "We want to identify some important pathways in Zika pathogenesis, which we hope will inspire the experts in treatment and vaccine research," he added. ### Presentation: Dr. Zhang will present his research on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, from 10:15-10:30 a.m., in Room 302 of the Vancouver Convention Centre, West Building. Press Availability: Dr. Zhang and Principal Investigator Peng Jin, PhD, will be available to discuss this research with interested media on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, from 1:00-1:45 p.m. in the ASHG 2016 Press Office (Room 111). Reference: Zhang F et al. (2016 Oct 19). Abstract: Molecular signatures associated with Zika virus exposure in human cortical neural progenitors. Presented at the American Society of Human Genetics 2016 Annual Meeting. Vancouver, B.C., Canada. In 360 BC, Plato wrote, "Whatever comes into existence, always comes as a whole." In 2016, scientists are using the same philosophy to develop a new automation model for robotic systems. "No phenomenon exists entirely alone. Each is a part of other phenomena," wrote Hua Chen, an associate professor at Hohai University, Chanzhou Campus, with YangQuan Chen, a professor at the School of Engineering, University of California, Merced. In a paper published in IEEE/CAA Journal of Automatica Sinica (JAS), Chen and Chen proposed a new model for designing control systems used in automation. Traditionally, a control system typically consists of a machine directing or responding to another machine's behavior. Each piece is precisely defined as a cause and effect. The proposed model disregards such definitions. The authors write of the Ouroboros, an ancient symbol of a snake eating its own tail, as a representative example of their method. It's near impossible to decipher how the snake came to bite itself, nor to clearly define where the head ends and the tail begins. The circle supports itself as a whole system. "Different from the traditional control standpoint, the principle of self-support idea treats the control inputs as an essential part of the control system dynamics itself," Hua Chen said. "In other words, in a closed-loop setting, control input signals and [the] system's behaviors are interlaced, serving mutually a cause and effect pair -- thus, a 'one-snake' picture." By thinking of the whole instead of separate parts, it's possible to create a better system capable of goals with variable parameters, such as an autonomous vehicle tracking an unknown target. "Our suggested [generalized fractional-order principle of self-support] control strategy is an important method when considering the system with long term memory, [as] our methods can be less model dependent or even model-free, yet with desirable robustness characteristics," said Hua Chen. The mathematics supporting the proposed method rely on the inclusive attributes of fractional order calculus, in which single equation may be used to describe several potential outcomes over a significant length of time. The results of such mathematics then inform the next step, so any miscalculations can be corrected on the fly within the system. "Just as [with the snake circle]," Hua Chen said, "if we consider the control input as [part of] its inner dynamics -- [meaning] the controller is not the reason of moving -- it also can be looked [at] as the results of the tracking error feedback." ### Fulltext of the paper is available: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7589490 http://www.ieee-jas.org/EN/article/downloadArticleFile.do?attachType=PDF&id=174 IEEE/CAA Journal of Automatica Sinica (JAS) is a joint publication of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc (IEEE) and the Chinese Association of Automation. JAS publishes papers on original theoretical and experimental research and development in all areas of automation. The coverage of JAS includes but is not limited to: Automatic control/Artificial intelligence and intelligent control/Systems theory and engineering/Pattern recognition and intelligent systems/Automation engineering and applications/Information processing and information systems/Network based automation/Robotics/Computer-aided technologies for automation systems/Sensing and measurement/Navigation, guidance, and control. To learn more about JAS, please visit: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/RecentIssue.jsp?punumber=6570654 http://www.ieee-jas.org A fallen tree, a lightning strike -- whatever the reason, it doesn't take much to disrupt the electrical grid. An outage could last just a few minutes, but restoring electricity to millions of people typically takes hours, days, or even weeks. The outdated system, developed a century ago, is long due for an overhaul. Enter the energy internet. It's based on the idea that electricity could be distributed similarly to the actual internet. The energy internet hasn't yet reached reality, but scientists at Northeastern University in Shenyang, China, have proposed a way to help actualize the theory. "[The energy internet] brings new challenges to the study of some basic problems in power systems, one of which is... energy management," wrote Huaguang Zhang, the director of the Electrical Automation Institute at Northeastern University. Zhang and his team published their proposal in IEEE/CAA Journal of Automatica Sinica (JAS). "Unlike conventional power systems, the upcoming energy internet emphasizes comprehensive utilization of energy in the whole power system by coordinating multi-microgrids." A main power grid could partner with decentralized generators, ranging from fuel to wind turbines and solar power, to delegate energy to multiple microgrids within each designated network. "Each microgrid can either inject spare power (if working in low loads) into or absorb lacking power (if working in high loads) from other microgrids or the main grid," wrote Zhang. In their paper, Zhang and his team determined how to best optimize this power exchange between the main grid and the multiple microgrids using computer science algorithms. The algorithms are consensus based, meaning the decentralized generators within the system agree that one of them will represent their ideal state. This leader communicates with the main grid and collects the power costs of each generator to set the price of electricity within the network. The next algorithm allows for each generator to precisely calculate their local needs compared to the global supply and demand by collecting information from their networked microgrids. Based on this information, they can request more energy, or sell surplus energy to the main grid to be sent to a different generator. The researchers simulated their proposed management method between seven separate systems under different time constraints and energy loads. Every time, the algorithms proved effective. "The proposed approach is implemented in a distributed fashion, which only requires local communication among neighbors," wrote Zhang. "Thus, it is more cost-effective, reliable, and robust compared to the centralized approaches." ### Fulltext of the paper is available: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7589482&tag=1 http://www.ieee-jas.org/EN/article/downloadArticleFile.do?attachType=PDF&id=166 IEEE/CAA Journal of Automatica Sinica (JAS) is a joint publication of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc (IEEE) and the Chinese Association of Automation. JAS publishes papers on original theoretical and experimental research and development in all areas of automation. The coverage of JAS includes but is not limited to: Automatic control/Artificial intelligence and intelligent control/Systems theory and engineering/Pattern recognition and intelligent systems/Automation engineering and applications/Information processing and information systems/Network based automation/Robotics/Computer-aided technologies for automation systems/Sensing and measurement/Navigation, guidance, and control. To learn more about JAS, please visit: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/RecentIssue.jsp?punumber=6570654 http://www.ieee-jas.org The work has now demonstrated it is feasible to replace the solvent with an ionic liquid of low vapor pressure, which does not perturb the sample characteristics. This allows the molecules to be excited with a laser pulse and to record the behaviour of the excited energy states. It provides insight into the physical and chemical processes of novel liquid energy materials that might be employed in organic solar cells or catalysts, for instance. Numerous processes take place in solution not only in nature, but in engineering applications as well. One example is organic solar cells made of dissolved dye molecules; another is a new class of catalyst materials consisting of nanoparticles in solution. Time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) is well suited to reveal the processes triggered by light in these systems of materials. A precisely tuned excitation pulse from a laser, called the pump pulse, promotes electrons in the sample to an excited state, whereas application of a precisely timed and short probe pulse allows to measure the binding energy of the excited electrons. This permits reconstruction of how the excited electrons fall back to their ground state, and conclusions to be drawn about the physical, chemical, and biological processes that can take place in these materials. However, pump-probe laser experiments detecting photoelectrons are only feasible under ultra-high vacuum. The method is well-established for solid-state matter, but not for liquid samples. Liquids immediately evaporate in vacuum. Up to now, they could only be studied with costly techniques and with the use of equipment like the liquid micro jet. Ionic liquids never evaporate Now a group headed by Prof. Emad Aziz has shown for the first time that there is a simple alternative for conducting time-resolved PES experiments on dissolved samples. They replace the solvent with what is called an ionic liquid. This is made up of organic molecules networked to one another through ionic forces (i.e. like a salt), which compose a liquid at room temperature. Ionic liquids do not evaporate even under ultra-high vacuum. Red dye tested The team was successful in dissolving a prototype red dye (1) for organic solar cells in an ionic liquid (2) and studying it with photoelectron spectroscopy. This involved exciting the dye with a laser pulse. During the first picosecond (10-12s) afterwards, the probe pulses sampled the binding energy of the excited electrons 150 times. The graph produced from the data shows the intermediate energy states at which the excited electrons emit their energy. Since light-induced processes for this dye have already been studied in depth, the physicists were able to compare their experimental data with existing results. Perfect results with this new method "The alternative solvent has no influence on the ultrafast processes. All processes that take place during the first picosecond correspond perfectly to results of measurements in conventional solvents as well as to simulations", explains Mario Borgwardt, who carried out the experiments as part of his doctoral dissertation. An important result: it is the fast processes that lead to losses in a solar cell, for example. Summing up, Emad Aziz has no doubt that "ionic liquids are a good alternative to conventional solvents for analysing molecules in solution using time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy. Outlook: exploring light reactive catalysts Now the team intends to investigate nanoparticles in ionic liquids using PES, in particular nanodiamonds made of carbon. In DIACAT, a large cooperative project at HZB involving many partnering organisations, scientists are testing the suitability of nanodiamonds as light-sensitive catalysts for producing solar fuels. The new methodology has come at just the right time. ### Publication: "Ultrafast excited states dynamics of [Ru(bpy)3]2+ dissolved in ionic liquids", Mario Borgwardt, Martin Wilke, Igor Yu. Kiyan and Emad F. Aziz, Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics der Royal Academy of Chemistry (2016) DOI: 10.1039/C6CP05655E Note: The experiments took place in the Joint Ultrafast Dynamics Laboratory in Solution and at Interfaces (JULiq) operated jointly by HZB and the Free University of Berlin. A new large laser laboratory will be built at the Wannsee Campus, likewise headed by Aziz. (1): Transition metal complex of ruthenium trisbipyridine [Ru(bpy)3]2+ (2): 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate [EMIM][TfO] Scientists have created a detailed map of the Milky Way using two of the world's largest fully steerable radio telescopes in Germany and Australia. The research looked at neutral atomic hydrogen--the most abundant element in space and the main component of stars and galaxies--across the whole sky in a survey known as HI4PI. The project required more than a million individual observations and about ten billion individual data points. University of Bonn astronomer Dr Juergen Kerp said although neutral hydrogen is fairly easy to detect with modern radio telescopes, mapping the whole sky is a significant achievement. "Radio 'noise' caused by mobile phones and broadcast stations pollute the faint emissions coming from stars and galaxies in the Universe," he said. "So sophisticated computer algorithms have to be developed to clean each individual data point of this unwanted human interference. "Next to the thousands of observing hours an even larger amount of time has been spent creating the final scientific data product released today." The HI4PI survey used CSIRO's Parkes Observatory and the Effelsberg 100m Radio Telescope operated by the Max-Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy. It improves the previous neutral hydrogen study, the Leiden-Argentine-Bonn (LAB) survey, by a factor of two in sensitivity and a factor of four in angular resolution. Professor Lister Staveley-Smith, from the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research, said the study reveals fine details of structures between stars in the Milky Way for the first time. "These structures had been smeared out by the coarse sampling of the sky in the LAB survey," he said. "Pilot studies of the HI4PI data show a wealth of filamentary structures never seen before. "Tiny clouds become visible that appear to have fuelled star formation in the Milky Way for billions of years. "These objects are too dim and too small to be detected even in the other galaxies closest to us." Dr Benjamin Winkel, from the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, said having a clearer picture of the hydrogen in the Milky Way would also help astronomers to explore galaxies even at cosmological distances. "Like the clouds at the sky, all observations we receive from the distant Universe have to pass through hydrogen in our own Milky Way," he said. "The HI4PI data allows us to correct accurately for all these hydrogen clouds and clean the window we are watching through." The research has been published today in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics. HI4PI data will be freely available to scientists around the world through the Strasbourg astronomical data centre. ### More Information: The name 'HI4PI' is drawn from the fact that this study measures radio wavelength radiation emitted from neutral atomic hydrogen atoms (HI) across the entire sky. Observing in all directions for an 'all-sky' survey in this way creates a sphere of data, and because the solid angle (a two-dimensional analogue of an angle) of a sphere is equal to 4 'steradians' (or square radians), we chose the name HI4PI for this work. The International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) is a joint venture between Curtin University and The University of Western Australia with support and funding from the State Government of Western Australia. The Argelander Institut fuer Astronomy (AIfA) is an academic, research and educational institute and a part of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Bonn, Germany. The institute conducts cutting-edge research over a broad range of theoretical and observational topics from stars to cosmology. The Max-Planck-Institut fuer Radioastronomie main area of research is radio astronomy but the activities of the institute encompass the whole area of astronomical observations throughout the electromagnetic spectrum. Publication Details: 'HI4PI: A full-sky Hi survey based on EBHIS and GASS', published in the Astronomy and Astrophysics Journal October 20th, 2016. Available from http://www.icrar.org/HI4PI Multimedia: Images and video available from http://www.icrar.org/HI4PI (password: 'atomic'--removed when embargo lifts). Contacts: Prof. Lister Staveley-Smith (UWA, ICRAR, CAASTRO) Ph: +61 425 212 592 E: Lister.Staveley-Smith@icrar.org Dr Juergen Kerp (Argelander Institute for Astronomy, University of Bonn, Germany) Ph: +49 228 73 3667 E: jkerp@astro.uni-bonn.de Dr. Benjamin Winkel (Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy) Ph: +49 2257 301-167 E: bwinkel@mpifr.de Pete Wheeler (Media Contact, ICRAR) Ph: +61 423 982 018 E: pete.wheeler@icrar.org UCLA scientists have made a major advance in understanding the biology of schizophrenia. Using a recently developed technology for analyzing DNA, the scientists found dozens of genes and two major biological pathways that are likely involved in the development of the disorder but had not been uncovered in previous genetic studies of schizophrenia. The work provides important new information about how schizophrenia originates and points the way to more detailed studies -- and possibly better treatments in the future. Schizophrenia is a chronic, disabling mental illness whose symptoms can include hallucinations, delusions and cognitive problems. The illness afflicts about 1 percent of the human population -- more than 50 million people worldwide. Because the causes of schizophrenia are poorly understood, current medications can help diminish the symptoms but do not cure the disorder. The study, which is published online in the journal Nature, is likely to have an impact beyond schizophrenia research because it demonstrates a general and potentially powerful new strategy for illuminating the mechanisms of human disease. "This work provides a road map for understanding how common genetic variation associated with a complex disease affects specific genes and pathways," said principal investigator Dr. Daniel Geschwind, the Gordon and Virginia MacDonald Distinguished Chair in Human Genetics and professor of neurology and psychiatry at UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Schizophrenia has long been known to be highly genetic; it often runs in families. A large genome-wide association study of people with schizophrenia, published in 2014, linked the disorder to small DNA variations at more than 100 distinct locations on the human genome. However, most of those locations lie outside of actual genes, so their roles in schizophrenia have been unclear. Genome-wide study analyses of other major diseases have come up with similarly puzzling results. In some cases, the non-gene locations identified in these studies have turned out to be what are known as "regulatory regions," which serve to enhance or repress the activity of genes lying near them on the genome. But many of these disease-linked locations have no obvious gene target nearby on the genome. One possibility is that these mysterious disease-linked locations are also regulatory regions that target genes lying relatively far away on the genome. They could do this if they are brought physically close to those "distant" genes by the complex twisting and looping that DNA undergoes when packaged into a chromosome, just as two opposite ends of a rope can end up close together when the rope is coiled. To investigate that possibility, Geschwind and his team used a relatively new, high-resolution version of a technology called "chromosome conformation capture," which chemically marks and then maps the locations where loops of chromosomal DNA come into contact. Because each cell type in the body can have subtly different 3-D chromosome structures, the researchers applied the technique to immature human brain cells from the cortex -- the large region across the top of the brain that handles higher cognitive tasks. Schizophrenia is believed to be a disorder of abnormal cortical development. The mapping revealed that most of the more than 100 schizophrenia-linked sites from the 2014 study contact known genes during brain development. Many of these are genes that already have been linked to schizophrenia in previous studies. Others had been suspected of involvement, for example because their level of activity in schizophrenics is known to be abnormal in the cortex. The genes newly linked to schizophrenia in the study include several for brain cell receptors that are activated by the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, implying that variations in the functions of these receptors can help bring about schizophrenia. "There's a lot of clinical and pharmacologic data suggesting that changes in acetylcholine signaling in the brain can worsen schizophrenia symptoms, but until now there's been no genetic evidence that it can help cause the disorder," Geschwind said. The analysis also pointed for the first time to several genes that are involved in the early-life burst of brain cell production that gives rise to the cerebral cortex of humans. In all, the researchers identified several hundred genes that may be abnormally regulated in schizophrenia but had not been linked to the disorder before. In further experiments and analyses of two dozen of those genes, they found additional evidence of abnormal regulation in schizophrenia. As further studies clarify the roles of these genes in schizophrenia, scientists will get a more complete picture of how the disorder develops and persists, and should then be able to develop more effective treatments. "In the near term we're using the findings from this study to help us understand schizophrenia better, but we're also planning to apply this same strategy to identify key genes in the development of autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders," Geschwind said. In principle, the 3-D chromosome mapping technology can be used to make sense of gene association data for any disease involving genetic risk. This same approach also can be used to discover relationships between genes and their regulatory regions in ordinary biological processes. ### The first author of the study was postdoctoral fellow Hyejung Won. Other co-authors were Luis de la Torre-Ubieta, Jason Stein, Neelroop Parikshak, Jerry Huang, Carli Opland, Michael Gandal, Farhad Hormozdiari, Daning Lu, Changhoon Lee, Eleazar Eskin and Jason Ernst, all of UCLA at the time of the study; and Irina Voineagu and Gavin Sutton, of the University of New South Wales. The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, Glenn/AFAR Postdoctoral Fellowship Program and the National Research Foundation of Korea. ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Michael J. Yaszemski, M.D., Ph.D., Mayo Clinic orthopedic surgeon and researcher, has been elected to the National Academy of Medicine. Selection is one of the highest honors in medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service. Dr. Yaszemski is one of two Mayo Clinic physicians to be elected this year. Andrea Cheville, M.D., physical medicine and rehabilitation researcher and director of the Cancer Rehabilitation Program at Mayo Clinic also was selected. "To have colleagues from distinct practice areas recognized in the same year is an incredible honor for them individually and for Mayo Clinic as a whole," says John Noseworthy, M.D., president and CEO, Mayo Clinic. "Such recognition underscores the commitment of our physician-scientists in advancing research to address unmet patient needs, educating the next generation of physicians and scientists, and providing unparalleled care for patients and their families." Dr. Yaszemski has a spine surgery practice at Mayo Clinic and routinely cares for patients who have skeletal defects that require reconstruction. His clinical practice includes spinal surgery and oncologic surgery of the spine, sacrum and pelvis. "Dr. Yaszemski is known as a strong clinical collaborator and he has built a differentiated surgical practice at Mayo Clinic. His team approach to complex spine surgery often includes colleagues in neurosurgery and is exemplary in the singular focus on the needs of the patient," says Mark W. Pagnano, M.D., chair, Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Mayo Clinic. "Dr. Yaszemski's surgical contributions and research advances continue to make a difference, not just for patients at Mayo Clinic but for patients nationwide and patients worldwide. His surgical skills are well-recognized amongst the nation's spine surgeons." Dr. Yaszemski is the director of the Tissue Engineering and Biomaterials Laboratory. His research is in the development of biodegradable scaffold polymers to support bone regeneration and spinal cord regeneration using tissue engineering strategies. He is a deputy director within Mayo Clinic's Center for Regenerative Medicine. His research focus areas include: Biodegradable polymers Bone tissue engineering Spinal cord regeneration Nerve tissue engineering Sarcoma cell and molecular biology Dr. Yaszemski's long-term research goal is to change the way that many common debilitating, life-threatening musculoskeletal conditions are treated. The use of biodegradable polymers in bone tissue engineering will be significant to patients with spine instability or spinal cord injuries. "Dr. Yaszemski's achievements reflect his commitment to provide healing for patients with extremely complex conditions," Dr. Noseworthy says. "His service and dedication to patients, and moreover our country is extraordinary." He is a retired U.S. Air Force brigadier general and served in Afghanistan and Iraq. He earned his medical degree at Georgetown University School of Medicine and completed orthopedic surgery residency at Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. He performed fellowship training in spine surgery and orthopedic oncology at Harvard Medical School while on active duty as an Air Force Institute of Technology student. He completed a doctorate degree in chemical engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and received bachelor's and master's degrees in chemical engineering from Lehigh University. He is a member of the Lehigh University Board of Trustees. Dr. Yaszemski has received numerous awards during his career. In 2013, he received the William W. Tipton, Jr. M.D. Leadership Award, the highest award given annually by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. He was named the John and Posy Krehbiel Endowed Professor of Orthopedic Surgery and Biomedical Engineering, honoring Bernard F. Morrey, M.D., emeritus chair of the Department of Orthopedics at Mayo Clinic. He organized and served as the first chair of the musculoskeletal tissue engineering study section at the National Institutes of Health and served as a member of the Advisory Council of the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering. He begins a four-year term of service on the Advisory Council of the National Institute of Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases in January 2017. He is deputy editor of the Journal of Biomedical Materials Research-Part A. He chaired the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Devices Advisory panel and is a member of the FDA Science Board. Dr. Yaszemski is a member of Mayo Clinic's M.D./Ph.D. Committee. He has mentored more than 200 Ph.D. and M.D.-Ph.D. students, spine surgery and musculoskeletal oncology clinical fellows, medical students, undergraduate students, international visiting predoctoral students, visiting scientists and postdoctoral research fellows. He is a member of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery's Education Committee. Other physician-researchers who have been elected to the academy while at Mayo Clinic include: Clifford Jack, M.D. (2013), Richard Ehman, M.D. (2010), Denis Cortese, M.D. (2005), Andrew Engel, M.D. (2003), and the late Thoralf M. Sundt, M.D. (1991). The National Academy of Medicine has about 1,800 active members. ### About Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to clinical practice, education and research, providing expert, whole-person care to everyone who needs healing. For more information, visit http://mayoclinic.org/about-mayo-clinic or http://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org CORVALLIS, Ore. - Populations of coral reef fish in shallower, more vulnerable habitats likely owe at least some of their sustainability to the prodigious reproductive abilities of large, old counterparts that dwell at greater depths, a recent study suggests. Researchers found that fish in the mesophotic zone - 30 to 150 meters underwater, the depth limit for reefs that depend on photosynthesis - are present in lower densities than at other depths, but consisted of larger, older fish with better than average reproductive capabilities. That mesophotic population, research suggests, is heavy on what are known as BOFFFFs: big, old, fat, fecund, female fish. Results of the study were recently published at nature.com. Primary funding for the research came from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research. Su Sponaugle, a professor of integrative biology at Oregon State University's Hatfield Marine Science Center, teamed up with two other researchers, lead author Esther D. Goldstein and Evan K. D'Alessandro, both of the University of Miami, to study the demographics of bicolor damselfish populations across three reef depths off the Florida coast. The team studied bicolor damselfish at shallow (less than 10 meters); deep shelf (20 to 30 meters); and mesophotic reef locations, looking at population density and individuals' structure, growth, size and reproductive output. The damselfish is a small, short-lived plankton feeder that's closely associated with reef habitat. At mesophotic depths, however, the fish can live more than a dozen years. The researchers sought to assess the potential of mesophotic reefs to support robust fish populations. Because of their greater depth, those reefs are less susceptible to both human-caused and natural habitat disturbances such as temperature increases. The scientists found that as water depth increased, the bicolor damsel fish population density decreased and age distributions shifted toward older, and larger, individuals. Among those individuals are the BOFFFFs that produce lots of large eggs that likely hatch high-condition larvae. The larval stage for the bicolor damselfish lasts 30 days, during which time the larvae are carried by water currents to eventually settle to a reef. At whatever depth they settle to, within 24 hours, larvae will metamorphosize into juveniles and then remain in close proximity to the reef for the duration of their lives. "They're very site attached," Sponaugle said. "Once they settle somewhere, that's where they live, grow and reproduce - that is, until they're eaten." Across all depths, the fish are genetically similar, meaning it's probable that shallow water and mesophotic reefs exchange young. "Mesophotic reefs are sort of a warehouse for future fish in the shallower reefs," Goldstein said. "The fish are older and larger on average, and they invest a lot into reproduction, which is good. "So even though there are not as many of them on these deep reefs, their offspring hatch from larger eggs and likely experience higher survivorship, so it would seem they have the capacity to contribute more than their fair share to the shallow-water environments." ### Humans living in South Africa in the Middle Stone Age may have used advanced heating techniques to produce silcrete blades, according to a study published October 19, 2016 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Anne Delagnes from the CNRS (PACEA - University of Bordeaux, France) and colleagues. Middle Stone Age humans in South Africa developed intentional heat treatment of silcrete rock over 70,000 years ago to facilitate the flaking process by modifying the rock properties - the first evidence of a transformative technology. However, the exact role of this important development in the Middle Stone Age technological repertoire was not previously clear. Delagnes and colleagues addressed this issue by using a novel non-destructive approach to analyze the heating technique used in the production of silcrete artifacts at Klipdrift Shelter, a recently discovered Middle Stone Age site located on the southern Cape of South Africa, including unheated and heat-treated comparable silcrete samples from 31 locations around the site. The authors noted intentional and extensive heat treatment of over 90% of the silcrete, highlighting the important role this played in silcrete blade production. The heating step appeared to occur early during the blade production process, at an early reduction stage where stone was flaked away to shape the silcrete core. The hardening, toughening effect of the heating step would therefore have impacted all subsequent stages of silcrete tool production and use. The authors suggest that silcrete heat treatment at the Klipdrift Shelter may provide the first direct evidence of the intentional and extensive use of fire applied to a whole lithic chain of production. Along with other fire-based activities, intentional heat treatment was a major asset for Middle Stone Age humans in southern Africa, and has no known contemporaneous equivalent elsewhere. ### In your coverage please use this URL to provide access to the freely available paper: http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0163874 Citation: Delagnes A, Schmidt P, Douze K, Wurz S, Bellot-Gurlet L, Conard NJ, et al. (2016) Early Evidence for the Extensive Heat Treatment of Silcrete in the Howiesons Poort at Klipdrift Shelter (Layer PBD, 65 ka), South Africa. PLoS ONE 11(10): e0163874. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0163874 Funding: We acknowledge support by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft and Open Access Publishing Fund of University of Tubingen. The research of PS was funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) through the research project Heat Treatment in the South African MSA (Grant Nr: CO 226/25-1, MI 1748/2-1, NI 299/25-1). Financial support was provided to CSH for the excavation of the KDS site and subsequent analysis by a National Research Foundation/Department of Science and Technology funded Chair at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa and by the University of Bergen, Norway. AD and KD have benefited from the financial and logistical support of the Evolutionary Studies Institute (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg) during their stay in Cape Town. Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. Grauer's gorilla, which is confined to the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, is now Critically Endangered, according to a study published October 19, 2016 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Andrew Plumptre from Wildlife Conservation Society, USA, and colleagues. This is the first analysis of the Grauer's gorilla population since civil war broke out in the region in 1996. Since the war, armed miners have hunted bushmeat including gorillas, but the presence of militia has complicated assessments of the gorilla population. Plumptre and colleagues assessed local community and ranger-collected data that included encounter rates at gorilla nests at 10 sites as well as spatial occupancy across the species' range. Before the war, the population was estimated at 16,900 individuals. The researchers now estimate that there are only 3,800 Grauer's gorillas left in the wild, a 77% decline in a single generation. While this species was previously classified as Endangered, the gorillas are now listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species based on this new population estimate. The new analysis also suggests that the gorilla's range is about 19,700 km2, and identified three key areas that are the most critical for the remaining population of this great ape. The researchers believe that Grauer's gorilla could be lost from many parts of its range within five years, and call for greater conservation efforts. Approaches include halting mining in protected areas as well as motivating the military to protect wildlife in this biodiversity rich region. "While we knew that Grauer's gorilla was in trouble nobody had realised how much they had declined", stated Andrew Plumptre of the Wildlife Conservation Society who led the study. "The results in this paper provide the evidence to list this ape, which is the world's largest primate, as Critically endangered on the IUCN Red List of threatened species". ### In your coverage please use this URL to provide access to the freely available paper: http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0162697 Citation: Plumptre AJ, Nixon S, Kujirakwinja DK, Vieilledent G, Critchlow R, Williamson EA, et al. (2016) Catastrophic Decline of World's Largest Primate: 80% Loss of Grauer's Gorilla (Gorilla beringei graueri) Population Justifies Critically Endangered Status. PLoS ONE 11(10): e0162697. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0162697 Funding: Support for this analysis was primarily provided by the generous support of the Arcus Foundation through the Jane Goodall Institute (Arcus 1202-03). The surveys referred to in the report were funded by other donors, notably Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, Frankfurt Zoological Society, KfW, Rainforest Trust, UNESCO, USAID/CARPE, US Fish and Wildlife Service and World Bank. We are also grateful to Wildlife Conservation Society for supporting Andrew Plumptre and Deo Kujirakwinja to compile and analyse the data; CIRAD, who supported Ghislain Vieilledent to help with the R-analyses, Chester Zoo, who supported Stuart Nixon's time during the writing of this report, and the University of York, who supported Rob Critchlow. Competing Interests: The analysis presented in this paper was funded by the ARCUS Foundation using data collected by Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Fauna and Flora International and Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature and funded by a variety of donors listed in the financial disclosure section. Two of these funders, KfW and World Bank are a commercial source of funds but this does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials." (as detailed online in our guide for authors http://www.PLOSone.org/static/editorial.action#competing) as the IP and data sharing rights are owned by WCS. Australia may not immediately spring to mind as your archetypal Noah's ark, but the list of native creatures that make their homes on the vast continent reads like an encyclopaedia of species from Gondwanaland, ranging from monotremes to marsupials. Of the five surviving monotremes, platypuses and short-beaked echidnas are the only two that make their homes in Australia and although little is known about the life styles of either one, Christine Cooper, from Curtin University, Australia, and Phil Withers, from the nearby University of Western Australia, are beginning to uncover details about the echidna's physiology. So when Cooper and Withers invited Christofer Clemente, from the University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia, to hop on the back of their echidna fieldwork to learn more about the animals' day-to-day antics, Clemente jumped at the offer. The team publish their discovery that individual echidnas are responsible for aerating 200m3 of soil each year, making them a keystone species in the ecological health of the continent, in Journal of Experimental Biology at http://jeb.biologists.org. 'I had these little accelerometers that I had got from the University of Queensland', says Clemente, who admits that when Cooper and Withers suggested teaming up he was having a frustrating time attaching them to the backs of lizards that promptly vanished into the bush. Would the echidnas prove more cooperative? Within a few weeks, he found himself driving with Cooper and Withers to the Dryandra Woodland to track the spikey monotremes, and this time his patience was rewarded. Despite searing daytime temperatures of 45C and the echidnas hunkering down for lengthy periods in caves, the team was able to retrieve the trackers successfully. 'And when I went back and looked at the data, it was fantastic', laughs Clemente. The only drawback was the tracker's short (24 h) battery life, so Clemente collaborated with University of Queensland engineers Surya Singh and Philip Terrill to redesign them. 'The [new] sensors were very small, about the size of a postage stamp', says Clemente, recalling how Craig Freakley individually hand-soldered each component onto the new chips using a microscope and minute soldering iron. Returning with the redesigned trackers to Dryandra 18 months later in the spring with Cooper, Withers and Freakley, Clemente filmed the echidnas so that they could correlate the accelerometer traces with specific echidna behaviours to get a handle on the private lives of the elusive animals. Recalling that the temperature difference between the summer and spring was about 25C, Clemente says, 'I was interested in how echidna activity changes with these differences and we found that there is a huge effect'. During spring, the animals waddled around at a stately 0.3m/s for much of the day. However, when the temperatures rocketed, the animals dramatically reduced their activity to a couple of hours in the morning and, instead of walking, they sprinted everywhere at their top speed of around 0.6m/s; 'They certainly try to avoid really hot temperatures', says Clemente. During the first field trip, he had also noticed a large number of digging scars in the ground where the animals had been prospecting for their favourite snacks - juicy termites. Wondering how much of an impact the animals' excavations might have on the environment, Clemente was impressed to see that they invested as much as 10% of each day in digging. And when he calculated how much soil an individual could shift in a year, it was an impressive 200m3; 'so if you have 12 echidnas, they are moving the volume of an Olympic-sized swimming pool of dirt a year, which is quite a lot', laughs Clemente. And he suspects that the echidna's monumental earthworks could have profound implications for Australia's environmental health. Explaining that the echidna is one of the few native burrowing species surviving in Australia and that burrowing animals are essential for aerating soil and mixing in organic material, Clemente says, 'They are probably one of the last really big bioturbators [soil mixers] left in Australia, which means that they are really important for the environment'. ### IF REPORTING THIS STORY, PLEASE MENTION JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY AS THE SOURCE AND, IF REPORTING ONLINE, PLEASE CARRY A LINK TO: http://jeb.biologists.org/content/219/20/3271.abstract REFERENCE: Clemente, C. J., Cooper, C. E., Withers, P. C., Freakley, C., Singh S. and Terrill, P. (2016). The private life of echidnas: using accelerometry and GPS to examine field biomechanics and assess the ecological impact of a widespread, semi-fossorial monotreme. J. Exp. Biol. 219, 3271-3283. DOI: 10.1242/jeb.143867 This article is posted on this site to give advance access to other authorised media who may wish to report on this story. Full attribution is required, and if reporting online a link to jeb.biologists.com is also required. The story posted here is COPYRIGHTED. Therefore advance permission is required before any and every reproduction of each article in full. PLEASE CONTACT permissions@biologists.com THIS ARTICLE IS EMBARGOED UNTIL WEDNESDAY, 19 October 2016, 18:00 HRS EDT (23:00 HRS BST) The nuclei of atoms of heavy elements do not necessarily take a spherical shape: they may be variously extended or flattened along one, two or even three axes. An international team of physicists, led by scientists from the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Krakow (IFJ PAN) and the Heavy Ion Laboratory at the University of Warsaw (HIL), has recently presented the results of experiments showing that complex superdeformed nuclei occur in much lighter elements as well. The majority of heavy atomic nuclei do not look at all like a perfect sphere, but are subtly flattened or extended. The prestigious journal Physical Review Letters has published results of experiments evidencing that highly explicit and complicated deformations, thus far observed solely in heavy nuclei, do appear in lighter elements such as calcium. The research was conducted by scientists of the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IFJ PAN) in Krakow and the Heavy Ion Laboratory, University of Warsaw (HIL) along with broad international cooperation. "Regarding that, we've known for several years that the nuclei can be slightly deformed even in light elements. Our experiments, however, have shown that in the case of calcium 42Ca they come to a particularly clear and complex deformation, called a triaxial superdeformation. Similar effects have been observed, but only in heavy elements, built from approximately 130-170 protons and neutrons," explains Prof. Adam Maj (IFJ PAN), who along with Prof. Faical Azaiez from the French Institut de Physique Nucleaire d'Orsay was one of the originators of the search. Atomic nuclei contain from one proton to more than 200 protons and neutrons. Glued together by strong forces, which overcome powerful electrostatic repulsion between positively charged protons, the nuclei are structures shaped by very complex quantum phenomena. The dynamics of the processes occurring here is so fast that observing the atomic nucleus over a sufficiently long period of time (in the microworld, still only fractions of a second), we see the nucleus only as a statistically averaged shape. In some cases, it is simply that of a sphere. Since the 1950s, however, researchers have observed nuclei which are elongated, sometimes significantly, such as an ellipsoid with one axis twice the length of the 2 others - such a case is known as nuclear superdeformation (relatively common nuclei are also found stretched at an axis ratio of 3:2). At this distortion it is possible to become more refined, as large deviations from the spherical shape occur not only along one, but even along three axes. The distorted nuclei, known as super-deformed triaxial, have so far been observed only in heavy elements. Atomic nuclei have a size of several femtometers, or one quadrillionth of a meter. Direct observation of such small objects is, of course, impossible. Information about their structure relies more on indirect methods, by analyzing the gamma radiation emitted by the nucleus passing from states of higher energies to states of lower energies. Depending on the structure of the nuclei and the method of their excitation, the nature of the resulting excited state may differ: the nucleus can vibrate in various ways as a whole, but can also, for instance, be activated to spin. The Polish physicists are especially interested the latter, spinning, states. Currently, Coulomb excitation is the most reliable method to observe deformed nuclei, a process in which nuclei are excited as a result of collisions occurring exclusively through electromagnetic interactions. As a result, the theoretical description of the phenomenon can avoid accounting for the extremely complex strong interactions, and in practice the use of well-known tools of classical electrodynamics is sufficient. Experiments on superdeformed light nuclei were based on very careful observation and detailed analysis of the gamma radiation emitted by the nucleus of calcium 42Ca, caused to spin as a result of a collision with a target constructed of lead 208Pb or gold 197Au (each 42Ca nucleus was striking the target nucleus with the kinetic energy of 170 MeV, or million electron volts). The measurements were carried out at the Italian INFN Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro (LNL), and they were used in the AGATA gamma radiation detector. This detector, the most advanced of the gamma-ray Germanium detectors currently in use, is the product of international cooperation and is characterized by an extremely high power of resolution. The experiment concerning superdeformation of the nuclei of calcium was the first one using this sophisticated device. "While processing the data provided by AGATA, we used many methods and tools, such as the well-known GOSIA program for analysis of Columb excitation, which has been under development for several years at the Heavy Ion Laboratory in Warsaw. It turns out that the excited 42Ca nuclei are superdeformed and at the same time triaxial, which is confirmed by calculations using advanced theories of the structure of the atomic nucleus," says Dr. Katarzyna Hadynska-Klek (HIL), who led the analysis of the data. Exciting 42Ca nuclei to the superdeformed triaxial state requires relatively low levels of energy (approx. 2 MeV), and because the superdeformed energy state is very near the basic spherical state, we can talk about a certain state of coexistence between the two states. "A full analysis of the data collected in Legnaro took us three years. Along the way we had to conduct another, complementary experiment at the Warsaw cyclotron. Its results exclude one of the alternative variants of interpretation of the AGATA detector," says Dr. Pawel Napiorkowski, the project leader at HIL. The discovery of triaxial superdeformation in 42Ca will help physicists to better understand the phenomena in atomic nuclei. Modern theoretical tools do not allow for accurate modeling of nuclei with an atomic number far exceeding 40, which has limited the development of research into superdeformation. Meanwhile, in the case of calcium many theoretical obstacles disappear. It is also likely that the measurements and analysis will be used in the future to search for other superdeformed states at low excitation energy, including a longer life-span than the typical quadrillionths of a second. Finding such states would allow scientists to turn our attention to the formation of what is known as inversion, a scenario in which the majority of nuclei are attained not in the ground state, but in the excited state. This would be a significant step towards building a nuclear laser capable of emitting coherent nuclear gamma radiation. ### Cooperation between the centres of Krakow and Warsaw is done within the consortium of the National Cyclotron Laboratory. Scientists from many countries have played an important role in the research, in particular Dr. Jose Javier Valiente Dobon (INFN LNL, Italy) and Dr. Magda Zielinska (HIL, Poland; CEA, France). In Poland, research was funded by grants from the National Center for Science and the European Union. The Henryk Niewodniczanski Institute of Nuclear Physics (IFJ PAN) is currently the largest research institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences. The broad range of studies and activities of IFJ PAN includes basic and applied research, ranging from particle physics and astrophysics, through hadron physics, high-, medium-, and low-energy nuclear physics, condensed matter physics (including materials engineering), to various applications of methods of nuclear physics in interdisciplinary research, covering medical physics, dosimetry, radiation and environmental biology, environmental protection, and other related disciplines. The average yearly yield of the IFJ PAN encompasses more than 450 scientific papers in the Journal Citation Reports published by the Thomson Reuters. The part of the Institute is the Cyclotron Centre Bronowice (CCB) which is an infrastructure, unique in Central Europe, to serve as a clinical and research centre in the area of medical and nuclear physics. IFJ PAN is a member of the Marian Smoluchowski Krakow Research Consortium: "Matter-Energy-Future" which possesses the status of a Leading National Research Centre (KNOW) in physics for the years 2012-2017. The Institute is of A+ Category (leading level in Poland) in the field of sciences and engineering. CONTACTS: Prof. Adam Maj The Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences tel. 48-606-291860, 48-12-6628141 email: adam.maj@ifj.edu.pl Dr. Pawel Napiorkowski Heavy Ion Laboratory, University of Warsaw tel. 48-604-226689 email: pjn@slcj.uw.edu.pl SCIENTIFIC PAPERS: "Superdeformed and Triaxial States in 42Ca"; K. Hadynska-Klek, P. J. Napiorkowski, M. Zielinska, J. Srebrny, A. Maj, F. Azaiez et al.; Physical Review Letters 117, 062501 (2016); DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.117.062501 LINKS: http://www.ifj.edu.pl/ The website of the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences. http://press.ifj.edu.pl/en/ Press releases of the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences. IMAGES: IFJ161019b_fot01s.jpg HR: http://press.ifj.edu.pl/news/2016/10/19/IFJ161019b_fot01.jpg IFJ161019b_fot02s.jpg HR: http://press.ifj.edu.pl/news/2016/10/19/IFJ161019b_fot02.jpg Atomic nuclei do not in any case look like a perfect sphere (top). With a larger number of protons and neutrons the nuclei can be flattened or extended along one, two or three axes. The latter case (bottom right) is known as superdeformed triaxial. (Source: IFJ PAN) Infants who were born less than two years after a mother's bariatric surgery had higher risks for prematurity, neonatal intensive care unit admission, and small for gestational age status compared with longer intervals between bariatric surgery and childbirth, according to a study published online by JAMA Surgery. Because bariatric operations can result in nutritional deficiencies in the mother, there has been some concern that surgery may adversely influence fetal development and infant outcomes, such as neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admissions and congenital malformations, which are likely to be affected by maternal metabolic and nutritional derangements. Although some preliminary studies have investigated these outcomes, conclusions are conflicting and limited by small sample sizes. In addition, a "safe" interval between bariatric surgery and childbirth remains undefined. Brodie Parent, M.D., of the University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, and colleagues examined the association of bariatric surgery with subsequent perinatal outcomes and the operation-to-birth (OTB) interval with perinatal risks. Data were collected from birth certificates and maternally linked hospital discharge data from Washington State. Participants were mothers who had bariatric surgery prior to childbirth (postoperative mothers [POMs]) and their infants (n = 1,859) and a population-based random sample of mothers without operations (nonoperative mothers [NOMs]) and their infants matched by delivery year (n = 8,437). A total of 10,296 individuals were included in the analyses. In the overall study group, the median age was 29 years. Compared with infants from NOMS, infants from POMs had a higher risk for prematurity (14 percent vs 8.6 percent), NICU admission (15 percent vs 11 percent), small for gestational age (SGA) status (13 percent vs 8.9 percent), and low Apgar score (a combined measure of neonatal activity and vital signs, determined by the obstetrician 5 minutes after birth) (18 percent vs 15 percent). Compared with infants from mothers with greater than a 4-year OTB interval, infants from mothers with less than a 2-year interval had higher risks for prematurity (12 percent vs 17 percent), NICU admission (12 percent vs 18 percent), and SGA status (9 percent vs 13 percent). "This study underscores the higher risk status of this population and may indicate that a recently postoperative mother with underlying nutritional, metabolic, and physiological changes is at an elevated risk for perinatal complications. These findings could help inform health care professionals and postoperative women of childbearing age about the optimal timing between bariatric surgery and conception," the authors write. "Undoubtedly, bariatric operations result in many health benefits for morbidly obese women of childbearing age and reduce obesity-related obstetrical complications. Findings from this study should not deter bariatric surgeons from offering such therapy to this population. Although we found evidence for some increased perinatal complications among POMs, our results indicate that these risks attenuate over time and approach the baseline population risk within 2 to 3 years. In other words, after 2 to 3 years, mothers appear to reap the benefits of a weight loss operation without increasing fetal risk." ### (JAMA Surgery. Published online October 19, 2016.doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2016.3621. This study is available pre-embargo at the For The Media website.) Editor's Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, financial disclosures, funding and support, etc. WASHINGTON -- As data demands continue to grow, scientists predict that it's only a matter of time before today's telecommunication networks reach capacity unless new technologies are developed for transporting data. A new technique could help avert this bandwidth crunch by allowing light-based optical networks to carry more than one hundred times more data than is possible with current technologies. Laser light comes in many different shapes, or spatial modes. However, today's optical networks use just one spatial mode to carry information, limiting the amount of data that can be transmitted at one time. Researchers led by Andrew Forbes, a professor at the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa, developed a technique known as spatial multiplexing that reshapes a laser beam into many spatial modes that can each carry information. In a paper presented at the OSA Laser Congress in Boston, the researchers demonstrate optical communication with more than 100 spatial modes by combining their new spatial multiplexing approach with wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), which uses different wavelengths of light to carry information. "We created 35 spatial modes encoded in three different wavelengths, producing 105 total modes," said Carmelo Rosales-Guzman, research fellow and first author of the paper. "Our new method might serve as the basis for future communication technologies." The researchers demonstrated that their technique can transmit data with 98 percent efficiency in a laboratory free-space optical network, which uses light to transmit information over the air. The scientists say the approach should also work in optical fibers, the basis for fiber-optic communications. Increasing bandwidth with more light modes The new technique makes use of light with an orbital angular momentum, which gives it a twisted, or helical, shape. Different spatial modes can be created by varying the number of twists, known as the azimuthal degrees of freedom. While other scientists have been exploring the use of azimuthal degrees of freedom for increasing bandwidth, recent research showed that even though, in theory, the set of modes with orbital angular momentum is infinite, in practice there aren't enough modes available to make significant improvements. Forbes' team solved this problem by using the azimuthal degrees of freedom plus another variable known as a radial degree of freedom. Each azimuthal degree of freedom can have, in theory, an infinite amount of radial degrees of freedom, but there are practical limitations that restrict this number. Because all the modes are orthogonal to each other, the signals don't get mixed up as they travel and can be separated upon arrival at their destination. The researchers say that this is the first time two spatial degrees of freedom have been used to optically encode information. Key to this new approach is an optical device known as a spatial light modulator. The researchers used one spatial light modulator to shape the laser light into the various modes and another to reverse the process on the receiving end. "One of the advantages of our approach is that we only need a single detector to demultiplex all the spatial modes to recover all the information," said Rosales-Guzman. "This is faster than other approaches for increasing bandwidth that need multiple detectors." Sending pictures pixel by pixel To test the new technique, the researchers used it to encode a grayscale and color image. Each image was sent across a communication link pixel by pixel and then each pixel was recovered to reconstruct the image. For the grayscale image, each gray level was linked to a separate spatial mode, allowing transmission of 105 gray levels. "In this demonstration, sending a 10,000-pixel image took 5 to 7 minutes," said Rosales-Guzman. "However we could increase that speed by sending two or four pixels at the same time or by using many more wavelengths." Real-world free-space optical networks -- which can transfer information between buildings, for example -- come with many challenges that aren't present in the lab. As a next step, the researchers are partnering with experts in free-space communication to adapt their technique for practical applications. "We are working with a company in South Africa that already makes a device that has the ability to use different spatial modes for free space communication," said Rosales-Guzman. "We are interested in trying to increase the bandwidth of their device to four times what it is capable of now." ### About the Presentation Angela Dudley, an honorary academic at the University of Witwatersrand and a visiting scholar in Andrew Forbes' lab, will present "Free-space communication with over 100 spatial modes" during the Free Space Optical Communications I session of the Application of Lasers for Sensing & Free Space Communication Conference on Thursday, Nov. 3 from 9:15 to 9:30 a.m. in Room 1 of The Westin Boston Waterfront. MEDIA REGISTRATION: Media/analyst registration for OSA Laser Congress 2016 can be arranged by emailing mediarelations@osa.org. Please visit the event website at OSA Laser Congress for additional information, including travel arrangement details. About OSA Laser Congress The OSA Laser Congress will be held 30 October - 03 November at the Westin Boston Waterfront in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. The Congress features the latest advances in solid state laser development and related technologies for free space laser communication, laser-based sensing, and numerous industrial applications. It provides attendees with a comprehensive view of the latest technological advances as well as applications of laser technologies for industrial products and markets. In 2016, the Congress offers three collocated meetings: Advanced Solid State Lasers Conference (ASSL), Application of Lasers for Sensing & Free Space Communication (LS&C) and Laser Applications Conference (LAC) along with the Executive Forum. About The Optical Society Founded in 1916, The Optical Society (OSA) is the leading professional organization for scientists, engineers, students and entrepreneurs who fuel discoveries, shape real-life applications and accelerate achievements in the science of light. Through world-renowned publications, meetings and membership initiatives, OSA provides quality research, inspired interactions and dedicated resources for its extensive global network of optics and photonics experts. For more information, visit osa.org/100. Tohoku University's Tetsuo Endoh, Tokyo Electron Limited's Gishi Chung and Keysight Technologies Inc.'s Masaki Yamamoto have been awarded Japan's Prime Minister's Award for Contribution to Industry-Academia-Government Collaboration. The award recognizes outstanding achievements or pioneering efforts in industry-academia-government collaboration, especially by leaders in businesses, academia and public research institutions. The collaboration brought expertise from scientists at Tohoku University and partnered them with major global companies Tokyo Electron and Keysight Technologies to research and develop innovative integrated electronics systems. Together, the group has developed high tech equipment for manufacturing and evaluating STT-MRAM (1). "We are delighted that our research with consortium members has been successful," says Professor Endoh, Director of the Center for Innovative Integrated Electronic Systems (CIES) at Tohoku University. "The CIES' global consortium is unique, with a system that makes it easier for academic, industry and government organizations to collaborate. These partnerships are essential for advancing the research and application of integrated spintronic devices worldwide." For his part in the joint effort, Endoh has helped establish an R&D hub for advanced integrated circuits -- CIES' global consortium -- at Tohoku University. As a financially independent and self-sustainable operation, the CIES consortium provides a successful example for R&D management in universities. The consortium allows two-part contracts with contributing companies: the first part consisting of basic rules for all members, while the second part takes into account individual requests, allowing flexibility within a united framework. Intellectual Property of core technologies is also managed at CIES so that they can provide free licenses for all participants. Currently the consortium has more than 30 members. Endoh has pioneered 3D NAND memory (2) research, and contributed to its mass production. The large capacity storage technology is widely used in USB drives, SD cards and SSDs. World class manufacturers of semiconductor production equipment, Tokyo Electron Limited, led by Senior Vice President Gishi Chung, was acknowledged for its part in developing equipment for manufacturing STT-MRAM. Similarly, Keysight Technologies spearheaded by the vice president and general manager of Keysight's Hachioji Semiconductor Test Division, Masaki Yamamoto, has developed equipment to evaluate STT-RAM. Both companies have launched sales of the equipment, a move which forecasts STT-RAM as the future of high performance non-volatile memory. This will make manufacturing the technology possible on a global scale. The Cabinet Office of the Japanese Government has played a central role in identifying and honoring successful cases of academic-industry-government collaboration since 2003. (1) STT-MRAM (Spin Transfer Torque - Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory): A memory device that uses magnetoresistance--a material's tendency to change its electrical resistance when a magnetic field is applied externally. The device is capable of high-speed random access, and consumes very little power as it retains the data even when the power is off. Because of these features, STT-MRAM is gaining traction as the next-generation technology for such applications as embedded memory, main memory and logic. (2) 3D NAND Memory: Semiconductor storage memory staked memory cells with vertical MOSFET. It's expected to be an important next-generation memory technology due to its high density - replacing existing planer-type NAND memory. Major semiconductor chip manufacturers in Japan and overseas have already begun sample shipments. ### About the Center for Innovative Integrated Electronic Systems at Tohoku University The Center for Innovative Integrated Electronic Systems (CIES) was established as the first research base of the Science Park at Tohoku University's Aobayama campus in October 2012. The Center was created to research innovative integrated electronic systems with energy-saving technologies, drawing on the research knowledge base at Tohoku University and its vast experience in academic-industrial collaborations. CIES was the first research center at a Japanese university to have a 300mm wafer process line and characterization tools that are compatible with industrial R&D labs. CIES operates out of cutting-edge facilities as a base for innovations between Tohoku University and multinational corporations. CIES has official government support, and is included in Sendai City's special zone for the promotion of private investments -- a business model for supporting local enterprises. BUFFALO, N.Y. - Numerous studies have found that heavy alcohol use -- by the victim and/or perpetrator -- is a factor in more than half of sexual assaults on college campuses. Now, research from the University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions has found the abuse of prescription drugs by college students also can play a role in negative sexual events such as sexual assault and regretted sex. RIA Senior Research Scientist Kathleen Parks, PhD, studied the effects of nonmedical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD) by college students, including opioid analgesics (such as Oxycodone), anxiolytics/sedatives (such as Xanax, Valium or Ambien) and stimulants (such as Adderall or Ritalin). NMUPD is defined as the use of a medication without a legal prescription. The research found that among the 1,755 students studied, more than 500 reported NMUPD, and of those, a significant number experienced negative sexual events. More than 14 percent of the students who abused prescription drugs experienced regretted sex, and among the female students, 7.1 percent reported being victims of sexual assault. Significantly, the only prescription drugs associated with regretted sex and sexual assault were anxiolytics/sedatives. "The responsibility for rape or any sexual assault always falls squarely with the perpetrator," Parks says. "This study shows NMUPD, particularly anxiolytics/sedatives, can have similar effects as alcohol, including slowed decision-making and physical coordination, which can decrease the ability to recognize danger or fend off a potential perpetrator." PHOTO: http://bit.ly/2eSaRMt. The study did not find that nonmedical use of opioid analgesics or stimulants was associated with negative sexual events. "NMUPD is an increasing public health concern, particularly among emerging and young adults," Parks said. "Given the results of this study, parents and college administrators should be concerned about the relationship we found between nonmedical use of anxiolytics/sedatives and negative sexual events, and find ways to educate students about the potential dangers." ### The study is available online and will appear in a special issue of the journal Addictive Behaviors in December. Its co-authors are Michael Frone, PhD, senior research scientist at RIA, Mark Muraven, PhD, Department of Psychology, University at Albany, and Carol Boyd, PhD, RN, FAAN, University of Michigan School of Nursing. RIA is a research center of the University at Buffalo and a national leader in the study of alcohol and substance abuse issues. RIA's research programs, most of which have multiple-year funding, are supported by federal, state and private foundation grants. Located on UB's Downtown Campus, RIA is a member of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus and a key contributor to UB's reputation for research excellence. To learn more, visit buffalo.edu/ria. New research suggests that nurses need more help dealing with disrespectful behaviour from colleagues if patient care is to be maintained. The study, led by Dr Roberta Fida from the University of East Anglia (UEA), argues that in order to retain high quality nurses it is important to understand what factors might protect them from the negative effects of workplace mistreatment. It comes at a time when many countries are facing nursing shortages which are expected to worsen as the workforce and population ages. The ability to cope with the high levels of stress that nurses face in the workplace is important to their health and wellbeing. Incivility - defined as rude and discourteous comments and actions, and a general lack of concern for others - can come from colleagues, managers or patients. It remains a widespread issue and has previously been linked to nurse burnout - in terms of emotional exhaustion and cynicism - and, in turn, to poor mental health and staff leaving their jobs. This new study, conducted with Dr Heather Laschinger from the University of Western Ontario in Canada, investigated whether individuals' beliefs about their ability to deal with workplace-specific stressful events can protect nurses from these negative effects. It is part of a wider research project on nursing work environments led by Dr Laschinger. Published in the journal Health Care Management Review, the results show that self-efficacy - the belief in one's capabilities to achieve a goal or an outcome - does have a protective role. The more nurses believed in their capability to cope with stressful interpersonal situations at work the less they perceived incivility from co-workers and supervisors. Nurses with higher levels of self-efficacy also experienced less emotional exhaustion and cynicism a year after they were first surveyed and reported fewer mental health issues. However, self-efficacy was not significantly related to later intentions to leave the job. Dr Fida, a lecturer in organisational behaviour at UEA's Norwich Business School, said: "These results are encouraging because self-efficacy is something that can be supported and promoted by proactive hospital management. Every effort must be made to ensure that incivility is not tolerated and to create working conditions that prevent subsequent burnout to ensure both employee and organisational health. "Developing strategies to strengthen nurses' ability to deal with negative behaviour from different sources is also critical to ensuring high-quality patient care, while training and retaining highly qualified nurses is vital for addressing the supply and demand imbalance facing the profession." The study involved 596 registered nurses in Canada who were surveyed at the start and again a year later. They were assessed on their levels of self-efficacy, their perception and experience of workplace incivility and burnout (emotional exhaustion and cynicism), their mental health and intention to leave their job. Physician and co-worker incivility significantly affected nurses' emotional exhaustion and cynicism a year later, while supervisor incivility did not have a significant effect on either. Nurses who reported greater emotional exhaustion and cynicism at the start of the study reported poorer mental health a year later. Although cynicism was significantly related to job intentions, emotional exhaustion was not. Dr Fida said: "Nurses' confidence in their ability to handle incivility from team members is a crucial factor in maintaining a unified work group necessary for high-quality patient care. Confidence in their ability to deal with incivility from supervisors is also important in this respect. If managers are dismissive of concerns or ideas from frontline co-workers, patient care is threatened." The researchers recommend providing nurses with opportunities to build their coping strategies for managing job demands and difficult personal interactions. For example, providing exposure to effective role models, such as colleagues and supervisors who are able to deal with these stressful situations and in this way show nurses a way of managing the possible difficulties experienced when interacting with their colleagues. Providing meaningful verbal encouragement from managers and co-workers is also recommended. ### 'The Protective Role of Self-Efficacy against Workplace Incivility and Burnout in Nursing: A Time-lagged Study', Roberta Fida, Heather Laschinger and Michael Leiter, is published in Health Care Management Review. COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Say you're a hotel manager trying to decide whether to build a pool: Will the additional reservations you bring in from that amenity offset the cost of construction and maintenance? Or say you offer free bottled water to all guests. If you stopped doing so, would you save money in the long run? Researchers at the University of Maryland and Georgetown and Cornell Universities offer some answers to these questions. Their work focuses on amenities -- free "extras" -- offered by hotels, but could be applied to extras offered by other kinds of businesses, too. "Our study shows that such amenities can be quite profitable, but that this varies from brand to brand," says Roland Rust, Distinguished University Professor and David Bruce Smith Chair in Marketing at UMD's Robert H. Smith School of Business. "Return on Service Amenities," is forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing Research and co-authored by Rust, Michel Wedel, a Distinguished University Professor and the PepsiCo Chair in Consumer Science at the Smith School; Rebecca Hamilton at Georgetown's McDonough School of Business; and Chekitan S. Dev at Cornell's School of Hotel Administration. Most previous work on amenities examined how they affected initial consumer choice, but this study went further by incorporating profits from return visits into the calculations. It focused on bottled water, Wi-Fi, and fitness centers -- amenities with very different costs and different (if overlapping) audiences. In all three cases, the freely offered goods paid for themselves for many hotel brands -- the bottled water and Wi-Fi within a year, the fitness center over the long term. (For one hotel, however, even the gym paid for itself, and then some, within a year.) But the methodology offers a way to identify amenities that are pointless expenditures, too. And it's simple enough to run in a spreadsheet. The study drew on a survey of 5,090 business and leisure travelers who were presented with choices between hotels with different features; they varied on price, convenience, loyalty programs, and the presence or absence of the three amenities. The researchers also partnered with a global hotel company -- one that oversees several brands -- to survey people before and after they completed their stay: 782 people answered questions about whether they expected to use certain amenities and, after the fact, whether they had done so. That allowed researchers to link actual usage with return visits. The surveys included customers at six hotel brands, ranging from "upscale" to "luxury," in different parts of the country. Those data, in turn, were linked to information about revenue generated by the stays of those same consumers. Of the three amenities, free Wi-Fi had the largest effect on initial consumer choice. Across the six brands, it boosted the chance a hotel would be selected anywhere from 2 percent to 17 percent. There was only a slight effect on repeat visits, however. Overall, ROI was positive for five of the six brands, even in the first year. In contrast, free bottled water had a weak effect on initial choice, but for three of six brands the effect on return visits was high. As a result, the ROI, within a year, for free bottled water was also positive for five of the six brands. The story was very different for fitness centers, which are much more expensive to provide, with installation costs of at least $125,000. As a result, the ROI was negative for the first year for five of the six brands. The sixth had a strong payback, even in one year. While plenty of consumers value gyms, it was the high up-front investment that meant it took longer for them to pay for themselves. The authors buttressed their survey results with data from the field: They looked at 517 hotel properties, comparing those that introduced the bottled water during a given period to those that did not. The study found that adding bottled water increased revenue by 2.2 percent. "Using our methodology," Rust and his co-authors write," a service provider can evaluate the profitability of offering a particular service amenity based on its effects on both initial choice and repeat purchases to consider its return on investment," the authors write. ### The research was supported by grants from the Center for Excellence in Service, at the University of Maryland's Smith School. Rust is Executive Director of the center. A digital, full copy of "Return on Service Amenities" is available to reporters by contacting Greg Muraski at gmuraski@rhsmith.umd.edu or 301-892-0973. ANN ARBOR, Mich. - The University of Michigan was recently awarded funding from the National Institutes of Health to establish an institutional career development program for advanced training in emergency critical care research. The program, named the U-M K12 Career Development Program in Emergency Critical Care Research, is one of four training sites in the country and seeks to prepare early career clinician scientists for leadership roles and independent research careers in emergency care research. Among the four programs supported by the NIH, the U-M program has a unique focus on clinical research in critical illness and injury. The training will recruit four junior faculty scholars with diverse backgrounds and a passion for emergency critical care research and pair each scholar with a multidisciplinary mentoring team. The mentoring team will help the scholar create a three-year customized individual career development plan and then work with them to achieve milestones focused on academic courses, professional development training, expert consultations and research. Scholars will receive: A broad knowledge and training in modern clinical and translational science Coursework to address gaps in scientific training Instructive and experiential training in intellectual/philosophical approaches to modern investigation and technology development Improved scientific and grant writing skills Enhanced research mentoring and leadership skills The scholars will be able to choose from mentoring teams led by experienced and highly published senior clinician-scientists in emergency medicine, pulmonary and critical care, neurology, general and trauma surgery, cardiovascular disease, biomedical engineering, and biostatistics. "This program will allow these junior faculty scholars to learn the most effective ways to perform clinical research in emergency critical care," says Robert Neumar, M.D., Ph.D., co-leader of the program and chair of emergency medicine at U-M. "Scholars will be guided by mentors with active NIH funding with the goal they personally transition to individual funding by the end of the third year of the program." Neumar will co-lead the new program with David Pinsky, M.D., chief of cardiovascular medicine and director of the U-M Frankel Cardiovascular Center, demonstrating the support of faculty from across U-M. "Dr. Pinsky and I are enthusiastic about this new program and the possible bench to bedside advances that could arise from it," Neumar says. "We are constantly seeking new ways to improve outcomes for patients and we hope this program will encourage the next generation of clinician-scientists to become actively involved in cutting-edge research happening at this institution." The program will be housed in the Michigan Center for Integrative Research in Critical Care, which is administratively anchored within the U-M Department of Emergency Medicine. MCIRCC encourages collaborative and interdisciplinary research on acute illnesses and injuries. The scholars will become affiliates of MCIRCC, the Cardiovascular Center Clinical Research Group and other relevant multidisciplinary research centers at U-M. "These research centers will further demonstrate to the scholars the importance of cross-cutting collaboration," Pinsky says. "The scholars will get a taste of the breadth of emergency and critical care research happening here at U-M and how it can potentially transform the future of patient care." ### Disclosure: This program is supported by the National Heart, Lung, And Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health under award number K12HL133304. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. The African clawed frog's ancestor inherited one set of chromosomes each from two different species and doubled its whole genome some 18 million years ago, according to an international research consortium led by Japanese and American scientists who sequenced the entire genome of the Xenopus laevis for the first time. Scientists hope that the finding will help our understanding of vertebrate evolution, as the vertebrate genome doubled twice 500 million years ago. X. laevis is unusual in that it is a tetraploid species that has four sets of chromosomes, while many organisms, including humans, are diploid and have two sets of chromosomes. How and when this came about has been a topic of debate for some time. One hypothesis is that the tetraploid X. laevis inherited one half of its genetic material from each parent when two diploid ancestral species mated, and the genome of this diploid offspring then doubled, giving rise to a tetraploid organism with twice the number of chromosomes as its ancestors. "X. laevis is an essential organism for biological and biomedical research, but the sheer size and complexity of its genome made it difficult for scientists to sequence the genome in its entirety," says Associate Professor Masanori Taira, leader of the Japanese research team at the University of Tokyo. He continues, "We thought that sequencing the entire genome would not only be valuable for biological and biomedical research but also provide clues as to the origins of tetraploidy." The researchers sequenced the entire genome of the J (Japan) strain of the frog inbred in Japan, in which the genetic codes inherited from the mother and father, respectively, are identical. The US team led by Dan Rokhsar and Richard Harland at the University of California, Berkeley, used the shotgun method to sequence short fragments of DNA and piece them together like a puzzle. The Japanese team sequenced very long fragments of DNA and determined the location of the long DNA on the chromosomes. This extra step helped to distinguish the separate genome sequences inherited from each ancestral species. "I thought that analyzing the 'transposable elements' (segments of DNA that move around the genome) that become fixed or inactive over time, might be one way of tracing the two ancestral genomes, present as subgenomes in X. laevis," says Taira. He suggested this idea to his co-authors, Dr. Akira Hikosaka at Hiroshima University and Dr. Yoshinobu Uno at Nagoya University. They tested Taira's idea and discovered that indeed two sets of chromosomes originated from different diploid ancestors. Curiously, the scientists also found that the subgenomes evolved separately in the nucleus, giving rise to shorter S and longer L types, the first evidence of animal subgenome evolution. The L type chromosomes preserved most of the ancestral genetic information, while the S type showed greater gene loss, deletion and rearrangement. "Scientists believe that two rounds of whole genome duplication 500 million years ago contributed to the emergence of the first vertebrate species and an explosion of diversity in this group. We think our discovery will improve our understanding of this important event in our evolutionary history," says Taira. ### Research contact Associate Professor Masanori Taira Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033 JAPAN Tel: +81-3-5841-4434 E-mail: m_taira@bs.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp Press officer contact Project Specialist Kanako Takeda Public Relations Office, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033 JAPAN Tel: +81-3-5841-0654 Email: kouhou@adm.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp Journal article Adam M. Session, Yoshinobu Uno, Taejoon Kwon, et al., "Genome evolution in the allotetraploid frog Xenopus laevis," Nature, 2016. URL: https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature19840 DOI: 10.1038/nature19840 Collaborating institutions (Japanese team, 30 out of 74 researchers from the following institutions were involved) National Institute of Genetics Nagoya University Hiroshima University National Institute for Basic Biology National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology Hokkaido University Nagahama Institute of Bio-Science and Technology Yamagata University National Center for Child Health and Development Tokyo Institute of Technology Tokushima University Rikkyo University University of Maryland College Park Kitasato University University of Virginia Niigata University Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Links Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo Funding U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development through grants HD065705, HD080708, P41 HD064556, GM086321 DSR, RMH AMS, JBL.TM, SM and P41 HD064556 to Xenbase; Japan Society for the Promotion of Science KAKENHI Grant Numbers, 221S0002 (A.T., Y.K., A.F.), 24590232 (S.T.), 25440180 (A.H.), 15K14521 (M.K.), 15K07082 (H.Ogino), 22570137 (T.T), 25460245 (A.S.), 23370059 (Y.I.), 23113004 (Y.M.), 25251026 (M.T.), and 22127007 (N.U.). Additional support was provided by the UNIST Research Fund Grant Number 1.150094.01, 1.150043.01 and 1.160060.01 (T.K), U.S. National Human Genome Research Institute (J.S.), the Hiroshima University Phoenix Leader Education Program (S.T.), National BioResource Project of MEXT Japan (A.S.), the US National Institute of Health Office of the Director and US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (M.F.F., Y.O.), the US National Institute of General Medical Science (I.Q., S.H., J.B.W.), the US National Science Foundation (NSF), Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas(CPRIT) and Welch(F1515) (E.M.M.), the US NIHGM and NHLBI (J.B.W.), and the Okinawa Institute for Science and Technology Graduate University (O.S). Work conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute is supported by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC02-05CH11231 DSR AMS, JAC, UH, SS, JC, JJ, JG, JS; J.K. was supported by an NSF graduate research fellowship, and A.M.S. was supported by a NHGRI Training Grant. Grant R01HD069344 to GJCV. About the University of Tokyo The University of Tokyo is Japan's leading university and one of the world's top research universities. The vast research output of some 6,000 researchers is published in the world's top journals across the arts and sciences. Our vibrant student body of around 15,000 undergraduate and 15,000 graduate students includes over 2,000 international students. Find out more at http://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/ or follow us on Twitter at @UTokyo_News_en. A team of researchers at The University of Texas at Arlington will test concepts it developed during the last year to use geothermal energy to make Texas bridges and overpasses safer during winter weather. Xinbao Yu, an assistant professor of civil engineering, is the lead investigator on a two-year, $743,000 award from the Texas Department of Transportation. The funding is phase II of a TxDOT Innovation Project that began with a $193,000 phase I award in 2015 and will use lab-scale models to test the findings from the first phase. Anand Puppala, a professor in the Civil Engineering Department and associate dean of research in the College of Engineering, is co-principal investigator on the project. Postdoctoral fellow Aravind Pedarla and two of Puppala's doctoral students will contribute as well. The team is working on this research through UTA's Organized Research Center of Excellence on Sustainable and Resilient Civil Infrastructure, which explores and develops research solutions for better design and construction of sustainable and resilient civil infrastructure in a complex, natural, and man-made hazardous environment. During the first phase of the project, Yu and Puppala's review of existing research found that most places that use geothermal energy to warm bridge decks install the heating elements internally during construction because it is easier to implement the technology then. TxDOT, however, identified existing bridges as its area of greatest need, so the researchers will focus on creating new technology that will allow them to add geothermal heating to the undersides of bridges and overpasses instead. In new bridges, the process works by pumping groundwater through a circulation pipe to bring thermal energy from the ground to the surface. One end of the circulation pipe is embedded into the bridge deck, which warms to the point where ice and snow melt instead of sticking to the surface. Installing a similar system on external surfaces on the underside of existing bridges adds challenges, because the heat-transfer efficiency must be much better so that the heat goes to the bridge deck, not to the air. "We are looking for an alternative for deicing solution or sand. Those are costly, troublesome to use, and hard on roads and vehicles. We will look at the long-term cost benefits of using geothermal energy to melt icy roads, as well as the initial costs and environmental impact, and I am confident that our proposals will be preferable to current standards," Yu said. The new award will allow the team to build scale models in a lab and test them under various environmental conditions, then apply their findings to near-full-scale deck panels and test those under near field conditions outdoors. The research is just one example of how UTA contributes to sustainable urban communities, a theme of the university's Strategic Plan 2020: Bold Solutions | Global Impact, said Engineering Dean Peter Crouch. "Our national infrastructure is a continuing concern, and the research that Dr. Yu and Dr. Puppala have undertaken shows great promise for extending the life of our roads and lessening the environmental impact of making those roads safe during winter conditions," Crouch said. According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, Texas has more than 52,000 bridges, by far the most in the United States. ### About The University of Texas at Arlington The University of Texas at Arlington is a Carnegie Research-1 "highest research activity" institution of about 55,000 students in campus-based and online degree programs and is the second-largest institution in The University of Texas System. U.S. News & World Report ranks UTA fifth in the nation for undergraduate diversity. The University is a Hispanic-Serving Institution and is ranked as the top four-year college in Texas for veterans on Military Times' 2016 Best for Vets list. Visit http://www.uta.edu to learn more, and find UTA rankings and recognition at http://www.uta.edu/uta/about/rankings.php. For more on the Strategic Plan, see Strategic Plan 2020: Bold Solutions | Global Impact. Network of Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS) sites is an integrated national platform for population data collection and analysis Scientists from the Wits School of Public Health, the Africa Health Research Institute (AHRI) in Kwa-Zulu Natal and the University of Limpopo have established a network of surveillance sites to study health and demographics in rural communities and thereby understand the impact of poverty, inequality and unemployment. This network of Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS) sites is an integrated national platform for population data collection and analysis. It is one of 13 projects that make up the South African Research Infrastructure Roadmap (SARIR) funded by Department of Science and Technology and the European Union. Research infrastructures (RIs) are large scale facilities, resources and related services that the scientific community uses to conduct research. Dr Mark Collinson, Senior Researcher in the MRC/Wits University Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Research Unit (Agincourt), and HDSS champion, says: "Establishing this research infrastructure is an important step towards understanding how poverty, inequality and unemployment impact South Africans' lives and how to design better interventions to remedy the situation for an improved future." The surveillance sites will enable real-time longitudinal studies of South Africa's fast-changing poorer communities and national datasets on health, education, employment and socio-economic well-being. This evidence-based data will inform cost evaluations and policy towards improving health and well-being interventions for the poor. Furthermore, the surveillance sites will serve as interdisciplinary research platforms for local and international collaboration. This will increase capacity for conducting research in the social sciences crucially needed in South Africa. The project will begin by integrating and standardising three existing surveillance sites in South Africa: MRC/Wits Agincourt HDSS in Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga, established in 1992 (current population 115,000); University of Limpopo Dikgale HDSS in Dikgale, Limpopo, established in 1996 (current population 35,000); and AHRI's Population Intervention Platform in uMkhanyakude, KwaZulu-Natal, established in 2000 (population 100,000). Another network of surveillance site nodes will be added to include Gauteng (urban), eThekwini (urban), Eastern Cape (rural) and Western Cape (urban). This expanded platform, representing over 1% of the national population (55,6 million) will enable unprecedented understanding of emerging populations as well as of the bi-directional migration flows that link poor, rural communities with urban centres. Dr Kobus Herbst, AHRI Deputy Director and HDSS champion says: "From our perspective, ill health is a cause [of people returning to rural homes]. If one can study the dynamic between rural and urban populations and better understand the impact of ill health and lack of access to services, and its relationship to inequality and poverty, we will be better able to measure the impact of government policies and intervene to address these issues." ### Scientists have linked mutations in a single gene to autism in people who have a rare tumor syndrome typically diagnosed in childhood. The findings, in patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), may lead to a better understanding of the genetic roots of autism in the wider population. The findings are published Oct. 19 in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. Studying 531 patients at six clinical centers in the United States, Belgium, the United Kingdom and Australia, the researchers found that mutations in the NF1 gene that cause the disease also contributed to autistic behaviors in almost half of the patients. "NF1 is caused by mutations in a single gene -- NF1," said first author Stephanie M. Morris, MD, an instructor in neurology. "Our research indicates that this single gene also is associated with autism spectrum disorders in these same patients. That may make it possible to look downstream from the gene to find common pathways that contribute to autism in the wider population." NF1, the disorder caused by NF1 mutations, usually appears during childhood. Symptoms can vary in severity, but they include cafe au lait spots, which are flat, brown spots on the skin. Other symptoms include tiny nodules on the iris of the eye, nerve tumors, bone deformities such as a curved spine or a bowed lower leg, and optic gliomas, tumors of the optic nerve. Kids with NF1 also can have learning disabilities. "In the 25-plus years that I've taken care of kids with NF1, we've only recently started to recognize that these children also often have symptoms of autism," said senior investigator David H. Gutmann, MD, PhD, the Donald O. Schnuck Family Professor of Neurology and director of the Washington University NF Center. "In the past, we didn't really understand the association between NF1 and autism, but now we have new insights into the problem, which will allow us to design better treatments for children with NF1 and autism." The findings also could help scientists who study the genetics of autism understand how mutations in a single gene can contribute to symptoms of autism, such as problems with social and language skills and repetitive behaviors. About 100,000 people in the United States have NF1. It is equally common in both sexes and in all ethnic groups. Autism, meanwhile, affects 1 percent to 2 percent of all children in the United States and is four to five times more common in boys than in girls. "What's unique about our findings is that it's likely mutations in the NF1 gene are driving most of the symptoms of autism in children with NF1," said the study's other senior investigator, John N. Constantino, the Blanche F. Ittleson Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics and director of the William Greenleaf Eliot Division of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. "Here, we have a single-gene disorder that affects a fairly large number of people and is causing autism in a significant number of those who are affected. This work could provide us with an opportunity to study a single gene and figure out what it is doing to cause autistic syndromes." Constantino said most autism spectrum disorders are influenced by multiple genes but that isolating this one gene can aid efforts to learn how other, unrelated genes may interact along that same pathway to contribute to autism in people who don't have NF1. Learning how those various genes come together to cause symptoms eventually could lead to better treatments. But already the findings are benefiting children and families treated at the Washington University NF Center. "We've been able to screen children at our center, identify autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit disorder and problems with executive cognitive function," Morris said. "And when we identify these deficits in kids, we can tell their parents, inform their schools and enable these children to get the resources and support they need -- specifically academic and social support - to improve their quality of life." ### Morris, SM, Acosta MR, Garg S, Green J, Huson S, Legius E, North KN, Payne JM, Plasschaert E, Frazier TW, Weiss LA, Zhang Y, Gutmann DH, Constantino JN, and the International NF1-ASD Consortium Team (INTACT). NF1 gene mutations engender the full spectrum of autism. JAMA Psychiatry. Oct. 19, 2016. This work was supported by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), grant number U54 HD087011. Additional funds came from Schnuck Markets, Inc., the Neurological Sciences Academic Development Award at Washington University School of Medicine, the NIH New Innovator Award 1DP2OD007449, and the Opening the Future grant of KU Leuven. Washington University School of Medicine's 2,100 employed and volunteer faculty physicians also are the medical staff of Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's hospitals. The School of Medicine is one of the leading medical research, teaching and patient-care institutions in the nation, currently ranked sixth in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Through its affiliations with Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's hospitals, the School of Medicine is linked to BJC HealthCare. Joachim Hagopian states in this article: "This tit for tat game Empires playing now is serious risky business. Repercussions may have a boomerang effect manifesting as either a false flag or real cyber security breaches that could wreak havoc with US military and economic infrastructure. One morning we may wake up and not be able to withdraw cash from our local ATM or even pump gas. Or if asymmetrical warfare escalates to EMP attack, we may find ourselves without electricity for months, which within the first year is estimated to result in the death of 90% of the American population." War between US and Russia Could Be Sooner than Later. The Danger of a Nuclear War by Joachim Hagopian, 10/18/16 atPertinent parts as follows:"Right now the US mainstream media is obsessing over Donalds alleged womanizing and female groping soap opera as the Clintons/MSMs pruriently entertaining smokescreen, neatly designed to cover up Hillary/Bills serial raping and her criminal lead role as enabler/strong armed intimidator of past victims.""Meanwhile, barely noticed in a virtual media blackout in the West are at least a half dozen high alert, significant international developments this last weekend that all strongly indicate the extreme danger of a nuclear war breaking out at any time against Russia and its Eastern alliance. Again, do not pay attention to the US deceivers behind their Oz-like curtain and their frenzied pushing of Western propaganda machine levers as sleight of hand distraction to willfully withhold the fact that many unreported major world events are simultaneously occurring now that foretell the start of World War III potentially just days away.""The current threat level to every human life on this planet even surpasses the October Cuban Missile Crisis of 54 years ago as the earth today is in more peril by manmade destruction than any previous time in human history. Yet the neocon madness of Obama, Hillary and their MSM minions do not want Americans to know this dire truth that the US is rapidly moving to very likely execute a series of false flags that could ignite a global war between US-NATO and the Eastern powers: Russia, China and Iran.""And based on alarming rapid fire events, it could even begin prior to the scheduled November 8th presidential election just three weeks away. Make no mistake that perfect storm of destabilizing developments triggering WWIII, the global economy crash and possible martial law timed with the US presidential election that many independent journalists like myself have been writing about for months is unfolding right this very moment.""Here are just a few of these disturbing breaking news events and anomalies that are currently unfolding over this last weekend that are conspicuously missing in action from all MSM headlines:"FAA issues no fly zone over parts of Montana"Per the FAA on Saturday a no fly zone went into effect for most of the day from 3PM to midnight over selected parts of the state of Montana.""The FAA claimed that US military rockets were being launched in connection with space operations yet the only missiles in Montana are nuclear armed warhead missiles. According to NewsPrepper.com, the missile silos in Montana are armed with Multiple Independent Re-entry Vehicles (MIRVs) and each MIRV contains a 100 kiloton nuclear warhead. Within a half hour after launch, each single rocket is capable of destroying eight cities anywhere on earth.""The real question is what was the government actually up to on Saturday with nuclear missiles in Montana?"Buildup of US military planes and ships on Diego Garcia Island"Last Friday in this remote US military outpost on Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean (see image below), a US military private contractor who cycles through every nine days working on the island for ongoing maintenance of military hardware reported an enormous, unprecedented buildup of US Air Force bombers - both B-1s and B-2s. Some were painted flat black. On a related note, this past week the US Air Force was caught dressing up its warplanes disguised as Russian aircraft that would likely be used in false flag operations to blame Russia for aggression it didnt commit. The civilian contractor on Diego Garcia stated that far more activity was witnessed than any time prior in the 9 years hes been on the job there. He reports that under the tightest security the government has blocked off access roads and that so many warplanes have been assembled on the island that aircraft are now being parked on blocked off roads.""A count of over a dozen refueling tankers were sighted and flights were taking off on the average of every 15 minutes. He also observes the tent city that sprang up includes temporary barracks and hangars for both US Air Force and Navy personnel. His ex-Air Force coworker speculated that the ultra-tight security and sudden influx of so much activity is characteristic of top secret nuclear weapons movement. Speaking of which, the eyewitness also noticed that 6-8 US Navy vessels were offshore and the island docks were busily unloading countless pallets of bombs. Obviously sneaky Obama is up to something very big against his targeted cold war enemies potentially including nuclear powered Russia and China."DEFCON Level 3 warning"Even the Sunday edition of the British rag the Daily Star ran the headline US nuclear attack warning upgraded to level 3 as Russian threat goes beyond Cold War. Though midway through the article the Star quietly backtracks from its sensational headline claiming the US government has not officially released any public notice that the US is currently on DEFCON level 3, it references its breaking news headline based on the conspiracy theory website defconwarningsystem.com.""The five-level alert system ranges from level 5 at no threat at all to level 1 which is all-out nuclear war within the hour. "CIA coordinating cyberattacks on Russia"No doubt also high on Obamas meeting agenda last Friday is the covert cyber operation against Russia. As part of US retaliation for Putin allegedly hacking into DNC and Clinton emails while trying to change the election outcome in favor of Trump, all unsubstantiated deep state lies, MSM presstitute NBC News just reported that the CIA is coordinating the launching of cyberattacks against Russia.""This tit for tat game Empires playing now is serious risky business. Repercussions may have a boomerang effect manifesting as either a false flag or real cyber security breaches that could wreak havoc with US military and economic infrastructure. One morning we may wake up and not be able to withdraw cash from our local ATM or even pump gas. Or if asymmetrical warfare escalates to EMP attack, we may find ourselves without electricity for months, which within the first year is estimated to result in the death of 90% of the American population."US at war now in Yemen and signs of escalating violence and conflict at other global hotspots"This weeks aggression in Yemen by US Navy destroyers firing cruise missiles on Yemen soil can easily be construed as yet another clear, premeditated act of war against both Yemen as well as its fellow Shiite ally Iran.""Again without confirming any evidence of truth behind its claim, a highly deceitful US insists that Houthi rebels fired a missile twice during this past week at a Navy destroyer. Hence five missiles were launched by the destroyers at alleged Houthi radar stations.""Its no accident or random event that the Ukraine conflict is also heating up now. This week a helicopter with NATO military instructors onboard was shot down by Donetsk freedom fighters. With freshly supplied new heavy weapons and even American snipers, the US puppet government in Kiev launched another offensive into the Donetsk Peoples Republic with heavy mortar shelling. The US is stepping up its hostilities globally on all hotspot fronts in its apparent launch of this centurys world war.""As yet another further sign of the Wests plan to wage global war against Eastern powers, a Sunday FARS News Agency article is reporting that based on recent WikiLeaks released emails sent to Hillary, Israel has entertained designs in its warming of relations with the House of Saud to use a Saudi airbase from which Israeli air force jets can be deployed for purposes of attacking Iran. The article also mentioned in a related matter that The New York Times in 2010 disclosed that Saudi Arabia was prepared to give its air force stand down orders so that Israeli warplanes could safely pass through Saudi airspace to enable Israel to attack Irans nuclear and military facilities."Russias preparedness for nuclear warIn response to the cold war approaching the boiling point in recent weeks, and in total contrast to America, Russia has been busy preparing its citizens for potential nuclear war. Moscow ordered all Russian citizens, diplomats and students traveling, working or studying abroad to immediately return home. Members of Russias diplomatic corps were threatened with reprimands and career demotions should they refuse to comply with the Kremlin directive. Additionally 40 million Russian citizens, thats near one-third of the nations total population, just completed an unprecedented massive nuclear war defense drill. Also unlike the US, Moscow has built underground facilities for housing its 12 million residents under the capital city for safe refuge. Again unlike America, Russia is taking the extreme threat of nuclear war with the West very seriously. Even MSM fixture ABC News ran a story how Russians have been preparing for a nuclear winter outcome. In stark contrast, outside of Putin bashing and the election sideshow, neither Washington nor its propaganda whores in the press have alerted Americans that they are currently in grave danger. In fact its been an MSM news blackout while Russian media has told its citizens that nuclear war is imminent. Meanwhile as another sign that Putin means business, in response to NATOs nuclear missiles activated in Romania and Poland, Putin has ordered at the ready his nuclear capable missiles in Kaliningrad, the Russian enclave between NATO members Poland and Lithuania.____________________________You still have time to register for the 2 peace parties, Peace & Freedom and the Green Party, this week, before October 24, 2016. You can register online at: https://covr.sos.ca.gov/?language=en-US or you can go to your County Registrar at http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/voting-resources/county-elections-offices/ . If you go to the County Registrar, after registering to vote, sign up immediately to be a permanent vote by mail voter, ask for your ballot and immediately vote since you can vote in California within 29 days of election day.For more information, see Candidate Statements at http://voterguide.sos.ca.gov/en/candidates/president-candidate-statements.htm and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sntk8sDDtN4 (Gloria LaRiva interviewed by Abby Martin) Its worth the price and the hassle. PlayStation VR is worth it, because its the closest gaming has ever come to magic. It wont transform your gaming habits just yet, but it will forever transform your expectations of what gaming is capable of. Sony pulled it off. They reverse engineered the PS4 to accommodate a virtual reality (VR) headset and, despite a lengthy and cable-laden setup process, the result is amazing. Its by far the most accessible and user-friendly of the high-end VR headsets. Crucially, it also the most comfortable. This is the first VR headset that you could wear for hours it is very light, adjustable and the breathability for your eyes and face is impressive. Theres still a long way to go before VR becomes truly comfortable, but PSVR does banish discomfort, at least, which is a big step forward. That comfort is hugely important, because you dont want anything to prevent the magic and it is like magic. Despite using VR many times now, it still astonishes this writer to be placed in a digital world that feels real in a visual and physical sense. In London Heist, one of Sonys launch games, you are placed at the centre of a Guy Ritchie-style gangster story, complete with shootouts and kidnappings. You reload your gun by picking up the clip with one hand and shoving it into the gun hilt, held in your other hand. But guns are boring and well-trodden the real magic came in a dingy London pub at the start, when you realise you can pick up the cigar in front of you with one hand and light it with the other. You dont have to do that, but you can. There you are, all gangster-like, lighting up a Cuban while your dodgy partner explains the plan. The sense of being there, thanks to your in-game hands and the immersive quality of VR, is simply astonishing. In Job Simulator, where you can attempt to master a number of cartoon-world professions like being a chef or a mechanic, the physicality really comes into play. As the mechanic, for example, you must open the car bonnet, pull out different engine parts and replace them, pour fluids into the fluid shaft, take out headlights and clean them for the first time ever in gaming, you are truly performing actions in a 3D world. Motion controls, like the Wii, touched on this feeling, but nothing compares to actually being there, turning your body and head to search for parts, reaching low to grab a can of oil, flipping some bacon on a pan as the chef. The actual game aspect, where you try to keep costs low by doing things quickly, isnt great but this unrivalled physical tangibility is a fresh kind of fun for gaming. Unless you are two years old, when was the last time you were allowed to throw food around a kitchen without consequences? Ketchup, everywhere! Well be reviewing PSVR games in more detail in coming weeks, like the transformative Rez Infinite and thrilling Eve Valkyrie (which will make Star Wars and Battlestar fans very happy), but its important to state now that PSVR isnt perfect. Motion sickness is almost unavoidable and, after two minutes of playing Driveclub VR, in which your car travels at top speeds, this writer had to stop playing and felt ill for an hour afterwards. This recurred with a number of games to a lesser degree, but only the ones that include lots of movement. In addition, the field of vision on PSVR is excellent but limited you will always see the circular black edges of the headset in the corner of your vision while playing, especially when wearing glasses. Finally, to achieve the best experience, you should purchase motion controllers along with the headset and PlayStation camera, all of which raises the price. Still, if you love games and the worlds that they inhabit, its hard to put a price on this experience. PSVR wont replace Fifa or GTAV and its not suitable for Call of Duty or Skyrim just yet, but for the first time ever we really get to inhabit those worlds. Until now, weve looked at them through a window, from afar, but VR lets us step through that window and into those worlds. Its like Alice through the looking glass. Its like Neo in the Matrix. Its like magic. TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Oct. 19, 2016) - NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE US OR THROUGH US NEWSWIRE SERVICES Neo Lithium Corp. ("Neo Lithium" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:NLC) has received final engineering reports from Novigi Ltd. (Santiago, Chile) and Celimin (Center for Advanced Research on Lithium and Industrial Minerals of Antofagasta University), both reputable organizations at arm's length to the Company, on the process required to produce lithium from the 3Q Project's brine. A representative 0.5 tonne sample of the Northern Target was collected this January and sent for process studies. "We are very pleased with these positive process results, which are equivalent to metallurgical studies in base metal mining. In simple terms, these results indicate that the 3Q Project brine can be concentrated to a very high level simply by solar evaporation without the need to add high cost additives, which are required to be added by almost all other lithium brine projects that are in production" stated Waldo Perez, Chief Executive Officer. The results of these studies show that Northern Target lithium brine can be concentrated by simple solar evaporation, with no costly additives required, to up to 2.6% lithium in approximately eight months. The results also show that with minimal cleaning using lime and sodium sulfate, the brine can be further concentrated up to 4.6% lithium. Further evaporation to approximately 7% lithium is feasible but further studies are on-going to define the evaporation time to achieve that concentration. The results of the studies show that recovery of the ponds should be approximately 25 tonnes of lithium carbonate per hectare of pond constructed, comparable to other projects in the region. The results of the studies also demonstrate that the brine could produce potash as a by-product during the evaporation process although volumes and quality will require further studies. "These process studies demonstrate that Neo Lithium's 3Q Project brine has unique chemical properties that lend themselves to lithium carbonate production using standard, low cost solar evaporation technology. These results strengthen our view that the extraordinary nature of our 3Q Project," stated Constantine Karayannopoulos, Chairman. With these results in hand the Company has already designed a pilot pond series that will be constructed on site covering an area of approximately 1 ha to test these study results at the project. Construction is expected to start in the next 30 days. About Neo Lithium Corp. Neo Lithium Corp. is quickly becoming the most prominent new name in lithium brine exploration by virtue of its quality team and Project. Already well capitalized, Neo Lithium is rapidly advancing its newly discovered 3Q Project - a unique high-grade lithium brine reservoir and salar complex in the Lithium Triangle. The 3Q Project is located in the Province of Catamarca, the largest lithium producer in Argentina. The Project covers approximately 35,000 ha and the salar complex within this area is approximately 160 km2. Recent exploration results indicate a high grade lithium target in the northern portion of the salar complex extending for approximately 14x3 km with the combined lowest magnesium and sulphate impurities in the industry. Low impurities are a key factor in traditional low cost evaporation techniques for final lithium production. Hot springs on the property with elevated lithium content are part of the recharge system of the salar complex. The technical team that recently discovered this unique salar complex is one of the most experienced in the modern era in lithium salars, having discovered and led the technical work, including resource definition and full feasibility study that established the Cauchari lithium salar as the third largest lithium brine resource in the world. Additional information regarding Neo Lithium Corp. is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com under the Company's profile. Waldo Perez, Ph.D, P.Geo., the CEO and President of Neo Lithium Corp. is the Qualified Person who approved the scientific and technical disclosure in the news release. Claudio Suarez-Authievre, Ph.D, Chartered Chemist (ACPO) has verified the data disclosed, including sampling, analytical, and test data underlying the information contained in this release. The studies include experiments on the brine at bench scale and simulated evaporation routes using thermodynamic databases. The data will require further field test to verify the process on site. This study is applicable only to the surface brine found in the Northern Target of the 3Q Project. If the brine changes composition at depth further studies will be required to verify its process. Weather data was taken from near-by weather station (50 km). On site weather station data will be required to validate these results. 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. The TSX Venture Exchange Inc. has in no way approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release. Forward Looking Statements - Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements. Such statements include but are not limited to, statements as to the achievable concentrations of lithium from the 3Q's Project's brine, that test results are indicative of future results, the sufficiency and suitability of available land for pond construction, the suitability of brine from the 3Q Project for lithium carbonate production and the process therefor, and the future construction of pilot ponds and the timing therefor. Generally, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "is expected", "scheduled", "estimates" "intends", "anticipates", "believes", or variations of such words and phrases, or statements that certain actions, events or results "can", "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" or "will", occur or be achieved, or the negative connotations thereof. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of the Company, which could cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from the future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Although the Company believes its expectations are based upon reasonable assumptions and has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended and undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 19, 2016) - RT Minerals Corp. (TSXV: RTM) (the "Company") announces completion of its core drilling program at Ballard Lake. The Company completed three NQ core holes that totaled 435m. The first two holes intersected mineralization and alteration similar to gold-bearing structures mapped on surface. The Ballard Shear Zone gold target includes an alteration halo with coarse pyrite and quartz tourmaline veins in mafic schist, pillow basalt and gabbro host rocks. Several alkaline ultramafic dikes cut the Ballard Shear zone in core and on surface, and will undergo petrology for classification. The third core hole intersected Ballard Lake Stock and failed to intersect significant alteration or mineralization. The Company collected 153 samples of split core that were submitted to Swastika Laboratories Ltd. for Gold fire assay and 30-element ICP analysis. Swastika Laboratories Ltd. is accredited by Canadian Association for Laboratory Accreditation Inc. (CALA) and meets the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025:2005 for Gold by Fire Assay. The Company is pleased to appoint Mr. Kevin Kivi, P.Geo. as Qualified Person ("QP") for the Ballard Lake Project. Mr. Kivi has 33 years of mineral exploration experience in search of diamonds, base and precious metals worldwide. He worked on Rio Tinto's Canadian diamond team at Lac de Gras from 1993 until the Diavik discovery, and then built and managed the company's diamond laboratory in Thunder Bay. Kevin became a consultant in 2004 exploring for diamonds, base and precious metals for major, junior, and private companies. Mr. Kivi is President of KIVI Geoscience Inc. and Orebot Inc. Mr. Kevin Kivi, P.Geo. reviewed Ballard Lake drill core, QA/QC sampling and Chain of Custody protocols and approves the technical content of this press release. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Antoniazzi President and Chief Executive Officer RT Minerals Corp. Telephone: 604-681-3170 Fax: 604-681-3552 Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as the term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy of accuracy of this news release. Forward-looking Statements Certain statements in this press release relating to the Company's exploration activities, project expenditures and business plans are approximate and are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of securities legislation. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements. These forward looking statements represent management's best judgment based on current facts and assumptions that management considers reasonable, including that operating and capital plans will not be disrupted by issues such as adverse market conditions, mechanical failure, unavailability of parts, labor disturbances, interruption in transportation or utilities, or adverse weather conditions, that there are no material unanticipated variations in budgeted costs, that contractors will complete projects according to schedule, and that actual mineralization on properties may not achieve any category of resource(s). The Company makes no representation that reasonable business people in possession of the same information would reach the same conclusions. Forward looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. In particular, fluctuations in the price of gold, equity markets or in currency markets could prevent the Company from achieving its targets. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. There is no guarantee that drill results reported in this news release or future releases will lead to the identification of a deposit that can be mined economically, and further work is required to identify resources and reserves. We seek safe harbour. VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA and JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA--(Marketwired - Oct. 19, 2016) - Platinum Group Metals Ltd. (TSX:PTM)(NYSE MKT:PLG) ("Platinum Group" or the "Company") announces positive results from an Independent Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") on the Waterberg PGM Project completed by international and South African engineering firm WorleyParsons RSA (Pty) Ltd. trading as Advisian. Platinum Group holds a 58.62% effective interest in the Waterberg Project with the Japan, Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation ("JOGMEC") holding a 28.35% interest. Empowerment partner Mnombo Wethu Consultants (Pty) Ltd. ("Mnombo") holds the balance of the joint venture. JOGMEC funding is in place to advance the project through completion of a Feasibility Study ("FS"). Platinum Group Metals plans to continue drilling the deposit and to advance the project to completion of a FS and a construction decision. The Company also plans to file a mining right application, with Joint Venture approval, based substantially on the results of the PFS. Highlights of the PFS include: Validation of the 2014 Waterberg Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") results for a large scale, shallow, decline accessible, mechanized platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold ("4E") mine. Annual steady state production rate of 744,000 4E ounces in concentrate. A 3.5 year construction period. On site life-of-mine average cash cost of US$248 per 4E ounce including by-product credits and exclusive of smelter discounts. After-tax Net Present Value ("NPV") of US$320 million, at an 8% discount rate, using three-year trailing average metal prices. After-tax NPV of US$507 million, at an 8% discount rate, using investment bank consensus average metal prices. Estimated capital to full production of approximately US$1.06 billion including US$67 million in contingencies. Peak project funding estimated at US$914 million. After-tax Internal Rate of Return ("IRR") of 13.5% using three-year trailing average price deck. After-tax IRR of 16.3% at investment bank consensus average metal prices. Probable reserves of 12.3 million 4E ounces. Indicated resources updated to 24.9 million 4E ounces (2.5 g/t 4E cut-off) and deposit remains open on strike to the north and below a 1,250 meter arbitrary depth cut-off. R. Michael Jones, CEO and co-founder of Platinum Group said, "The completion of the PFS significantly increases the Company's attributable 4E reserves and is an important milestone for the project and the Company. The PFS has a similar approach, similar peak funding in US dollar terms with increased production, compared to the PEA. Waterberg is designed to be a low cost, multi-decline, fully mechanized, mining complex along an initial 13 km deposit strike length with two 300,000 tonne per month mills built in close sequence. At 744,000 ounces annual steady state production and a modelled 18 year mine life, Waterberg is very large and offers excellent exposure to the essential metals of platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold. Amazingly, the deposit is still open. The PFS covers only the first 218 million tonnes in Indicated resources to date. With the full support of our joint venture partners JOGMEC and Mnombo, we look forward to advancing Waterberg during the remainder of 2016 and 2017 with more drilling, a FS on the initial complex, and the submission of a mining right application. From an original US$20 million commitment by JOGMEC in 2015, approximately US$8 million of further project funding remains to be spent. We are very appreciative of JOGMEC's continued commitment and support. We look forward to growing and advancing Waterberg so that we may fully understand this new part of the Bushveld complex that we and our joint venture partners have discovered. We will work hard to maximize the value of the resource for all stakeholders including shareholders, employees, the Government of South Africa and the local communities." This press release has been prepared by the qualified persons named herein. This press release is qualified in its entirety by reference to the PFS, which is expected to be filed shortly on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and the SEC's EDGAR site at www.sec.gov. Investors should refer to the PFS for further information. SCALE AND PGM INDUSTRY POSITION As a result of the shallow depth, good grades and a fully mechanized mining approach, the Waterberg Project has the opportunity to be a safe mine within the lowest quartile of the industry cost curve. The project resources consist of 60% palladium and the PFS estimates that Waterberg will produce 472,000 ounces of palladium annually; more palladium than the Stillwater Mine produced in 2015, or about 6% of the world's palladium production in 2015. Producing approximately 744,000 4E ounces per year, Waterberg would be one of the largest platinum group metals mine complexes in South Africa based on 2015 production numbers. It is estimated that Waterberg will create approximately 3,361 new primary highly trained jobs with transferable skills. The increased safety, improved working conditions, low costs and decline access for rapid development all provide attractive features compared to traditional platinum and palladium mines in South Africa. The project is in an area prioritized for economic development. Relations with the small rural community in the area have been business like and positive. Total Ounces Produced - Life of Mine KEY RESULTS Resource Update Additional drilling since the April 2016 Resource Report has updated the resources as follows: T-Zone 2.5 g/t Cut-off Resource Category Cut-off Tonnage Grade Metal 4E Pt Pd Au Rh 4E Cu Ni 4E g/t Mt g/t g/t g/t g/t g/t % % Kg Moz Indicated 2.5 31.540 1.13 1.90 0.81 0.04 3.88 0.16 0.08 122,375 3.934 Inferred 2.5 19.917 1.10 1.86 0.80 0.03 3.79 0.16 0.08 75,485 2.427 F-Zone 2.5 g/t Cut-off Resource Category Cut-off Tonnage Grade Metal 4E Pt Pd Au Rh 4E Cu Ni 4E g/t Mt g/t g/t g/t g/t g/t % % Kg Moz Indicated 2.5 186.725 1.05 2.23 0.17 0.04 3.49 0.07 0.16 651,670 20.952 Inferred 2.5 77.295 1.01 2.16 0.17 0.03 3.37 0.04 0.12 260,484 8.375 The Total Mineral Resource is summarized below: Waterberg Total 2.5 g/t Cut-off Resource Category Cut-off Tonnage Grade Metal 4E Pt Pd Au Rh 4E Cu Ni 4E g/t Mt g/t g/t g/t g/t g/t % % Kg Moz Indicated 2.5 218.265 1.06 2.18 0.26 0.04 3.55 0.08 0.15 774,045 24.886 Inferred 2.5 97.212 1.03 2.10 0.30 0.03 3.46 0.06 0.11 335,969 10.802 4E = Platinum Group Elements (Pt+Pd+Rh+Au). The cut-offs for mineral resources have been established by a qualified person after a review of potential operating costs and other factors. The mineral resources stated above are shown on a 100% basis, that is, for the Waterberg Project as a whole entity. Conversion Factor used - kg to oz = 32.15076. Numbers may not add due to rounding. Resources do not have demonstrated economic viability. A 5% and 7% geological loss has been applied to the Indicated and Inferred categories respectively. Effective Date Oct 17, 2016. Metal prices used in the reserve estimate are as follows based on a 3-year trailing average (as at July 31/2016) in accordance with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") guidance for the assessment of resources; US$1,212/oz Pt, US$710/oz Pd, US$1229/oz Au, US$984/oz Rh, US$6.10/lb Ni, US$2.56/lb Cu, US$/ZAR15. Total aggregate mineral resources at Waterberg on a 100% project basis have increased slightly since those reported in April 2016. Inferred category resources have decreased to an estimated 10.8 million 4E ounces from 11.71 million ounces 4E Inferred in April, 2016. Indicated category resources have increased to an estimated 24.9 million 4E ounces, from 23.9 million 4E ounces Indicated in April 2016: The mineral resources are classified in accordance with the SAMREC standards. There are certain differences with the "CIM Standards on Mineral Resources and Reserves"; however, in this case the QP believes the differences are not material and the standards may be considered the same. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability and Inferred resources have a high degree of uncertainty. The mineral resources are provided on a 100% project basis and Inferred and Indicated categories are separate and the estimates have an effective date of 17 October 2016. A cut-off grade of 2.5 g/t 4E for both the T and the F-Zones is applied to the selected base case mineral resources. Cut off for the T and the F-Zones considered costs, smelter discounts, concentrator recoveries from previous engineering work completed on the property by the Company. The resource model was cut-off at an arbitrary depth of 1,250 meters, although intercepts of the deposit do occur below this depth. Mineral resources were completed by Mr. CJ Muller of CJM Consulting. Mineral resources were estimated using kriging methods for geological domains created in Datamine from 303 original holes and 483 deflections. A process of geological modelling and creation of grade shells using indicating kriging was completed in the estimation process. The estimation of mineral resources has taken into account environmental, permitting and legal, title, and taxation, socio-economic, marketing and political factors. The mineral resources may be materially affected by metals prices, exchange rates, labor costs, electricity supply issues or many other factors detailed in the Company's Annual Information Form. The data that formed the basis of the estimate are the drill holes drilled by Platinum Group, which consist of geological logs, the drill hole collars surveys, the downhole surveys and the assay data. The area where each layer was present was delineated after examination of the intersections in the various drill holes. There is no guarantee that all or any part of the mineral resource not included in the current reserves will be upgraded and converted to a mineral reserve. Reserves Reserves are stated on a 100% Project Basis. Reserves are a subset of the Indicated resources and the mine plan was developed from the October 2016 resource model above and includes mine modifying factors such as geological losses, dilution, development overbreak, mine design factors, in stope losses and the extraction ratio from the mining methods applied to the T and F-Zones. The independent Qualified Person for the Statement of Reserves is Mr. RL Goosen (WorleyParsons RSA (Pty) Ltd Trading as Advisian). The table below shows the prill splits, which are calculated using the individual metal grades reported as a percentage of the total 4E grade. There are no Inferred mineral resources included in the reserves. Prill Splits Prill Split Grade Zone Pt Pd Au Rh Cu Ni % % % % % % T-Zone 29 49 21 1 0.16 0.08 F-Zone 30 64 5 1 0.07 0.16 Probable Mineral Reserve at 2.5 g/t 4E Cut-off- Tonnage and Grades Waterberg Probable Mineral Reserve - Tonnage and Grades Zone Mt Cut-off grade (g/t) Pt (g/t) Pd (g/t) Au (g/t) Rh (g/t) 4E (g/t) Cu (%) Ni (%) T-Zone 16.5 2.5 1.14 1.93 0.83 0.04 3.94 0.16 0.08 F-Zone 86.2 2.5 1.11 2.36 0.18 0.04 3.69 0.07 0.16 Total 102.7 2.5 1.11 2.29 0.29 0.04 3.73 0.08 0.15 Probable Mineral Reserve at 2.5 g/t 4E Cut-off- Contained Metal Waterberg Probable Mineral Reserve - Contained Metal Zone Mt Pt (Moz) Pd (Moz) Au (Moz) Rh (Moz) 4E (Moz) 4E content (kg) Cu (Mlb) Ni (Mlb) T-Zone 16.5 0.61 1.03 0.44 0.02 2.09 65,097 58.21 29.10 F-Zone 86.2 3.07 6.54 0.51 0.10 10.22 318,007 132.97 303.94 Total 102.7 3.67 7.57 0.95 0.12 12.32 383,103 191.18 333.04 Reasonable prospects of economic extraction were determined with the following assumptions: Metal prices used in the reserve estimate are as follows based on a 3-year trailing average (as at July 31/2016) in accordance with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") guidance for the assessment of resources and reserves; US$1,212/oz Pt, US$710/oz Pd, US$1229/oz Au, US$984/oz Rh, US$6.10/lb Ni, US$2.56/lb Cu, US$/ZAR15. Smelter payability of 85% was estimated for 4E and 73% for Cu and 68% for Ni. The effective date is October 17, 2016. A 2.5 g/t Cut-off was used and checked against a pay-limit calculation. Independent Qualified Person for the Statement of Reserves is Mr. RL Goosen (WorleyParsons RSA (Pty) Ltd Trading as Advisian). The mineral reserves may be materially affected by changes in metals prices, exchange rates, labor costs, electricity supply issues or many other factors. See Risk Factors in 43-101 report on www.sedar.com and the Company's Annual Information Form. The reserves are estimated under SAMREC with no material difference to the CIM 2014 definitions in this case. The estimation of mineral reserves has taken into account environmental, permitting and legal, title, taxation, socio-economic, marketing and political factors. Based on the cut-off grade and a maximum depth cut-off of 1,250 meters the Probable reserve will support an 18 year mine life. PROJECT PFS RESULTS The PFS results validate the PEA with similar capital costs in USD, increased production profile (from 655,000 3E ounces/yr PEA to 744,000/yr 4E ounces PFS) and an increase in sustaining capital. Optimization of the mine plan and working on reducing underground sustaining development capital will be part of the upcoming Feasibility Study. PROJECT MODEL TIMELINE The project time line includes a construction decision following the completion of a FS and first production 3 years later. Under the PFS model, first production is estimated as mid-2021, if the FS is completed at the end of 2017 and a mining right and other permits are granted as planned. Final reef tonnes are scheduled to be mined in 2038. CAPITAL COSTS Capital costs to full production and peak funding of the project are estimated in Rand 2016 terms. Peak Funding is estimated at US$914 million. The costs are estimated in USD at 15R/1USD with a flat exchange rate. Escalation of costs in Rand terms are estimated to be mostly offset over time by future Rand devaluation. TOTAL CAPITAL Facility Code Facility Description To Full Production ZAR (M) Sustaining Capital ZAR (M) To Full Production USD (M) Sustaining Capital USD (M) 2000 Underground Mining 6,092 9,766 406 651 3000 Concentrator 2,850 159 190 11 4000 Shared Services & Infrastructure 1,063 43 71 03 5000 Regional Infrastructure 2,566 0 171 0 6000 Site Support Services 691 67 46 04 7000 Project Delivery Management 1,399 147 93 10 8000 Other Capitalised Costs 246 83 16 06 9000 Contingency 999 1,202 67 80 Total Capital 15,906 11,468 1,060 765 The estimates for the scope of work, within the given battery limits, and subject to the qualifications, assumptions and exclusions contained in the PFS, are considered to be within the accuracy range required for a PFS of +25%. Monte Carlo simulation was used to provide a 12% contingency that was used in the estimates. Waterberg 2016 PFS Results Details Item Units Total Mined and Processed Mtpa 7.20 Platinum g/t 1.11 Palladium g/t 2.29 Gold g/t 0.29 Rhodium g/t 0.04 4E g/t 3.73 Copper % 0.08 Nickel % 0.15 Recoveries Platinum % 82.5% Palladium % 83.2% Gold % 75.3% Rhodium % 59.4% 4E % 82.1% Copper % 87.9% Nickel % 48.8% Produced in Concentrate Concentrate ktpa 285 Platinum g/t 24.2 Palladium g/t 51.5 Gold g/t 4.9 Rhodium g/t 0.6 4E g/t 81 Copper % 1.9 Nickel % 1.8 Recovered Metal in Concentrate Platinum kozpa 222 Palladium kozpa 472 Gold kozpa 45 Rhodium kozpa 6 4E kozpa 744 Copper Mlbpa 11 Nickel Mlbpa 12 KEY ASSUMPTIONS Economic Assumptions Parameter Unit 3 Year Trailing Average Investment Bank Consensus Price Platinum Palladium Gold Rhodium T and F Combined Basket (4E) Nickel Copper USD/oz USD/oz USD/oz USD/oz USD/oz USD/lb USD/lb 1,212 710 1,229 984 899 6.10 2.56 1,213 800 1,300 1,000 960 7.50 2.90 Base Metals Refining Charge Copper Refining Charge Nickel Refinery Charge % Gross Sales Pay % Gross Sales Pay % Gross Sales Pay 85% 73% 68% FINANCIAL RESULTS Average Life of Mine ("LOM") Operating Cost Rates and Totals per Area in ZAR and USD Average LOM (ZAR/t) Total LOM (ZAR M) Average LOM (USD/t) Total LOM (USD M) Mining R 271.90 R 27,915 $ 18.13 $ 1,861 Engineering & Infrastructure R 107.49 R 11,036 $ 7.17 $ 736 General & Admin R 40.71 R 4,180 $ 2.71 $ 279 Process R 154.52 R 15,864 $ 10.30 $ 1,058 Total OPEX Cost R 574.62 R 58,994 $ 38.31 $ 3,933 4E Cash Costs before and after Credits and Costs Item US$/oz 4E in Concentrate Life-of-Mine Average 5-Year Average 2022 - 2026 10-Year Average 2022 - 2031 Mine Site Cash Cost 389 390 374 Nickel Credits Copper Credits 98 42 97 40 98 40 Total Mine Cash Costs After Credits 248 253 236 Realisation cost (smelter "cost", transport) 232 224 231 Total Cash Costs After Credits 481 477 467 Financial Results Three Year Trailing Average Price Deck 15R/1USD Flat Item Discount Rate ZAR Millions (Before Tax) ZAR Millions (After Tax) USD Millions (Before Tax) USD Millions (After Tax) Net Present Value Undiscounted 4.0% 6.0% 8.0% 10.0% 12.0% 14.0% 36,096 18,213 12,666 8,565 5,519 3,249 1,555 25,042 11,883 7,808 4,805 2,584 939 -278 2,406 1,214 844 571 368 217 104 1,669 792 520 320 172 62 -19 Internal Rate of Return Project Payback Period (Years) from 2017 16.6% 10 13.5% 10 16.6% 10 13.5% 10 Investment Bank Consensus Price Deck Item Discount Rate Before Tax (ZAR M) After Tax (ZAR M) Before Tax (USD M) After Tax (USD M) Net Present Value Undiscounted 4.0% 6.0% 8.0% 10.0% 12.0% 14.0% 45,781 24,180 17,426 12,402 8,641 5,812 3,676 31,946 16,184 11,263 7,610 4,884 2,842 1,311 3,052 1,612 1,162 827 576 387 245 2,130 1,079 750 507 325 189 87 Internal Rate of Return Project Payback Period (Years) from 2017 19.8% 9 16.3% 9 19.8% 9 16.3% 9 Sensitivity Analysis - Post Tax Three Year Trailing Average Price Deck 15R/1USD Flat Parameter Change in Parameter Change in Parameter Change in Parameter Change in Parameter Change in Parameter Metal Prices IRR (post-tax) NPV (8% Discount) (R000) NPV (8% Discount) ($000) -20% 5% -2,467 -164 -10% 10% 1,211 67 0% 13.5% 4,805 320 10% 17% 8,344 556 20% 20% 11,854 790 Head Grade IRR (post-tax) NPV (8% Discount) (R000) NPV (8% Discount) ($000) -20% 6% -1,513 -101 -10% 10% 1,562 104 0% 13.5% 4,805 320 10% 16% 7,562 504 20% 19% 10,505 700 Capex IRR (post-tax) NPV (8% Discount) (R000) NPV (8% Discount) ($000) -20% 17% 8,161 544 -10% 15% 6,484 432 0% 13.5% 4,805 320 10% 12% 3,109 207 20% 10% 1,395 93 Opex IRR (post-tax) NPV (8% Discount) (R000) NPV (8% Discount) ($000) -20% 18% 7,435 496 -10% 16% 6,121 408 0% 13.5% 4,805 320 10% 12% 3,246 216 20% 10% 2,124 142 CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGY The immediate next steps for the Waterberg Project are the development of a mining right application and working towards a FS. The PFS specifies that the project will utilize an EPCM contractor and a mining contractor for the development of the mine, overseen by an experienced in-house Platinum Group owners' team. Initial development is planned with contractors with a later takeover for mining by an owners' team. Equipment operators will be trained at an existing MQA certified training center developed and owned by Platinum Group. PLANNED MINING METHODS The mining blocks of the Waterberg deposits occur at depths from 140 meters to 1,250 meters along 8,000 meters of strike length of reserves. The deposit is known from drill intercepts to continue below 1,250 meters and to extend for over 13,000 meters of strike length. Access to the mining complex is planned by three decline ramp clusters. Decline ramps have advantages over vertical shafts in terms of capital cost, and importantly, time. Declines to the depths of the top of the Waterberg deposit can be developed over 24-36 months whereas vertical shafts, shaft infrastructure and equipping can take six to seven years. Mining will be completed by safe, efficient fully mechanized methods and the dip and thickness of the zones are driving the mining method selection. A fleet of approximately 400 trackless machines including drill rigs, loaders, dump trucks and other trackless machines will be used for mining and development. A minimum mining width has been set at three meters so that all mining can be fully mechanized, safe and efficient. Mining Method Vertical Mining Height Dip of the Reef Key Advantages Blind Longitudinal Retreat 3 - 15m 35 On reef development. Good grade, extraction. Sub-level Open Stoping - Longitudinal 3 - 15m >35 On reef development. Good extraction. Bulk and low cost. Sub-level Open Stoping - Transverse >15m >35 Bulk method. High efficiency, large tonnage, good extraction, ultra-low cost. Portal and Underground Layouts (October 17, 2016) The mine utilizes a large supply of new mechanized trackless mobile equipment for mining and feed ore onto large conveyors from underground to the processing plant. The mine will rely on both the T and the F reef from more than one portal to make the tonnage profile steady state of 600,000 tonnes per month. METALLURGICAL RECOVERY AND PROCESSING The flotation test work indicated that the Waterberg ores are amenable to treatment by conventional flotation without the need for re-grinding. A standard flotation concentrator can be used to produce a saleable concentrate, at a 4E grade of no less than 80 g/t, with no deleterious products. A 4E recovery rate in excess of 80% is expected at the proposed mill feed grades. Metallurgical test work on the Waterberg ores by SGS, Mintek and DRA has focused on recovery of 4E platinum group elements and copper-nickel sulphides with the objective of producing a high grade concentrate attractive for smelting in South Africa. The processing plant is designed in two 300,000 tonne/month Mill-Float in two cycles "MF-2" standard platinum industry modules for ramp-up and operational flexibility. A JOGMEC reagent circuit with some opportunity for increased recovery has also been tested. The plant modules are designed to accept T reef, F reef or a blended combination. The ore types can be co-mingled without negatively affecting recoveries. INFRASTRUCTURE The main infrastructure requirements for the Waterberg Project are access roads, tailings storage, water management, power supply and process plant to service and treat the targeted mine production. The Waterberg Project is situated in a remote area and will require approximately 32 km of existing unpaved roads to be surfaced. BULK WATER SUPPLY A combination of sewage effluent together with groundwater is considered the most viable solution to meet the proposed mining schedule. Several available options were considered including a pipeline to be developed for several users to the south, including for other proposed and active mines. This option was not chosen as it is considered to have greater risk due to the large number of parties involved. Sufficient water sources for the project were identified and early discussions for the preferred arrangements were positive. BULK POWER SUPPLY The updated electricity supply plan compiled by Eskom provides for the establishment of two 77 km long 132kV overhead lines from the Eskom Burotho 400/132kV main transmission substation. The development of the abovementioned infrastructure will be done in conjunction with Eskom on a self-build basis and this work is already in an advanced stage including the application for permits for the proposed power line. METALS MARKETS AND OFFTAKE The Waterberg Project will produce a flotation concentrate from the processing plant which is assumed to be sold or toll treated into the local South African market. Production of up to 285,000 tonnes of concentrate per annum will be available at peak production. The concentrate will contain approximately 80 g/t 4E's plus copper at between 1% and 9.2% and nickel at between 1.1% and 5% copper. The concentrate does not contain any penalty elements such as chrome and is rich in sulphur, thus making it a desirable concentrate to blend with other high chrome concentrates. No formal marketing studies have been conducted for this study nor have the local smelter and refinery operators been formally contacted to understand the appetite in the local industry to treat the concentrate to be produced from the project. Informal indications from smelters are that the concentrate is attractive. Based on the large volume of concentrate and the significantly lower operating cost of the metal without the smelter discount, the consideration of production of an onsite smelter matte or combination with other Northern Limb material for further critical mass is recommended. The company will consider this recommendation with its partners JOGMEC and Mnombo. LABOUR, SOCIAL AND PERMITTING The Waterberg Project will create safe long term jobs with transferable mechanized equipment operations skills for a large part of the work force. The increased safety and ability to create good paying well trained jobs is an attractive community benefit. The social license to operate has been a focus of the company with ongoing positive meetings and interactions. The next stage of the project will involve the development of a Social and Labour Plan as part of the mining right application. The project involves normal measures for the protection of the environment similar to other platinum mining operations. 2016 AND 2017 PROGRAMS FUNDED During 2015, JOGMEC committed to fund US$20 million of project work at Waterberg. Approximately US$8 million of that commitment remains to be completed and will fund 100% of the costs for the balance of 2016 and into 2017. QUALIFIED PERSONS The following Qualified Persons have completed work in preparation of the PFS and are responsible for the contents: Independent Engineering Qualified Person: Mr. Robert L Goosen (B.Eng. (Mining Engineering)) Pr. Eng. (ECSA) Advisian/WorleyParsons Group Mr. Robert L Goosen (B.Eng. (Mining Engineering)) Pr. Eng. (ECSA) Advisian/WorleyParsons Group Independent Geological Qualified Person: Mr. Charles J Muller (B.Sc. (Hons) Geology) Pr. Sci. Nat. CJM Consulting (Pty) Ltd Mr. Charles J Muller (B.Sc. (Hons) Geology) Pr. Sci. Nat. CJM Consulting (Pty) Ltd Independent Engineering Qualified Person: Mr. Gordon I. Cunningham B. Eng. (Chemical), Pr. Eng. (ECSA), Professional association to FSAIMM Turnberry Projects (Pty) Ltd. This press release has been reviewed and approved by R. Michael Jones, P.Eng., a non-independent Qualified Person and the CEO of the Company. He has verified the technical information for disclosure in this press release by reviewing the work of the QPs on a test basis, visiting the site and meeting with the project QPs through the development of the PFS. DATA VERIFICATION, QUALITY ASSURANCE AND CONTROL Scientific and Technical Information in this Press Release related to mineral resources has been reviewed and approved by Charles J Muller, (BScHons) Pr Sci Nat (Reg. No 400201/04), an independent consulting geologist and resource estimator of CJM Consulting, an independent qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 -Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"). He has verified the data by reviewing the detailed assay and geological information and metallurgical work on the Waterberg deposit. He is satisfied that the data is appropriate for the resource estimate by reviewing the core, assay certificates and quality control information as well as reviewing the procedures on sampling, chain of custody and data base records of the Platinum Group exploration team. Base metals and other major elements were determined by multi acid digestion with Inductively Coupled Plasma ("ICP") finish and PGEs were determined by conventional fire assay and ICP finish. Setpoint Laboratories is an experienced ISO 17025 SANAS accredited laboratory in assaying and have utilized a standard quality control system including the use of standards. Bureau Veritas South Africa and Genalysis of Australia with similar standards and approaches have been used for assays and umpire checks. Platinum Group utilized a well-documented system of inserting blanks and standards into the assay stream and has a strict chain of custody and independent lab re-check system for quality control. Details are available in the NI 43 101 reports on the project at www.sedar.com and www.platinumgroupmetals.net. The independent QPs for the PFS (CJ Muller, GI Cunningham and RL Goosen) have visited the Waterberg property for personal inspection during 2016. Mr. RL Goosen last visited the site on 13 October 2016, Mr. GI Cunningham on 13 October 2016 and Mr. CJ Muller on 29 March 2016. They all have undertaken due diligence with respect to the PTM data. Other than as specified below they jointly take responsibility for the report. Charles J Muller - Geology and Mineral Resource Estimation Robert L Goosen - Reserve Estimation, Mining and Infrastructure Gordon I Cunningham - Metallurgy, Metals Markets, Offtake, Capital cost and financial model The QPs have verified the data sufficiently for the reporting of resources, reserves and this Pre-Feasibility Study. The QPs have reviewed and approved their relevant section of this press release. OPPORTUNITIES The company plans to work towards optimization of the mine plan, development plan and waste development plan for ventilation with the objective of reducing sustaining capital in the FS stage. Further drilling will be completed with the objective to upgrade some of the resources and the deposit remains open. A longer mine life will also be targeted in the high grade T reef areas. High grade thickness areas in the F reef will also receive targeted drilling with the objective of increasing definition for the FS mine plan. Further metallurgical work will be completed in the FS including the potential for increased recoveries using the JOGMEC circuit. The Waterberg concentrate is attractive for smelting and is of large strategic scale importance to the industry. RISKS The project at a PFS stage has all of the normal mining projects risks including but not limited to, estimation risk for the resources and reserves, recovery risks, capital cost and operating cost estimation risks, permitting and community and surface rights access risk. Government regulation stability and amendments of the fiscal regime is an additional risk. Waterberg is a large green-fields project and final off-take of the proposed metal is yet to be negotiated for a large volume of concentrate. ABOUT PLATINUM GROUP METALS LTD. Platinum Group, based in Johannesburg, South Africa and Vancouver, Canada, has a successful track record with more than 20 years of experience in exploration, mine discovery, mine construction and mine operations. Formed in 2002, Platinum Group holds significant mineral rights in the Bushveld Igneous Complex of South Africa, which is host to over 70% of the world's primary platinum production. The Company is currently focused on ramping up the Maseve Mine, its first near-surface platinum mine, to commercial production. Platinum Group has expanded its exploration and development efforts on the North Limb of the Bushveld Complex on the Waterberg Project. Waterberg represents a new bulk type of platinum, palladium and gold deposit. On behalf of the Board of Platinum Group Metals Ltd. "R. Michael Jones" President and CEO Disclosure The Toronto Stock Exchange and the NYSE MKT LLC have not reviewed and do not accept responsibility for the accuracy or adequacy of this news release, which has been prepared by management. This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws and forward-looking statements within the meaning of U.S. securities laws (collectively "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, plans, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. All statements that are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, without limitation, the projections and assumptions relating to future events that are contained in the PFS, including, without limitation NPV, IRR, costs, potential production of the Waterberg Project and other operational and economic projections with respect to the Waterberg Project; future activities at Waterberg and the funding of such activities; trends in metal prices; potential future market conditions; the Company's overall capital requirements and future capital raising activities, plans and estimates regarding exploration, studies, development, construction and production on the Company's properties, other economic projections and the Company's outlook. Statements of mineral resources and mineral reserves also constitute forward-looking statements to the extent they represent estimates of mineralization that will be encountered on a property and/or estimates regarding future costs, revenues and other matters. Although the Company believes the forward-looking statements in this press release are reasonable, it can give no assurance that the expectations and assumptions in such statements will prove to be correct. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements by the Company are not guarantees of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including; the Company's capital requirements may exceed its current expectations; the uncertainty of cost, operational and economic projections; the ability of the Company to negotiate and complete future funding transactions; variations in market conditions; the nature, quality and quantity of any mineral deposits that may be located; metal prices; other prices and costs; currency exchange rates; the Company's ability to obtain any necessary permits, consents or authorizations required for its activities; the Company's ability to produce minerals from its properties successfully or profitably, to continue its projected growth, or to be fully able to implement its business strategies; and other risk factors described in the Company's shelf prospectus and registration statement, Form 40-F annual report, annual information form and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and Canadian securities regulators, which may be viewed at www.sec.gov and www.sedar.com, respectively. This press release also includes a reference to mineral resources and mineral reserves. The estimation of resources and reserves is inherently uncertain and involves judgement. Mineral resources that are not reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Judgements associated with geology, tonnage grades in place and that can be mined may prove to be unreliable and inaccurate. Fluctuations in metals prices, exchange rates, labour costs and government regulations among other things may materially affect resources and reserves. The company does not yet have a right to mine the reported resources and reserves and there can be no assurance that the company will convert its prospecting permits to a mining right. Cautionary Note to U.S. and other Investors Estimates of mineralization and other technical information included or referenced in this press release have been prepared in accordance with NI 43-101. The definitions of proven and probable reserves used in NI 43-101 differ from the definitions in SEC Industry Guide 7. Under SEC Industry Guide 7 standards, a "final" or "bankable" feasibility study is required to report reserves, the three-year historical average price is used in any reserve or cash flow analysis to designate reserves and the primary environmental analysis or report must be filed with the appropriate governmental authority. As a result, the reserves reported by the Company in accordance with NI 43-101 may not qualify as "reserves" under SEC standards. In addition, the terms "mineral resource", "measured mineral resource", "indicated mineral resource" and "inferred mineral resource" are defined in and required to be disclosed by NI 43-101; however, these terms are not defined terms under SEC Industry Guide 7 and normally are not permitted to be used in reports and registration statements filed with the SEC. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of the mineral deposits in these categories will ever be converted into reserves. "inferred mineral resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence, and great uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian securities laws, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, except in rare cases. Additionally, disclosure of "contained ounces" in a resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian securities laws; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute "reserves" by SEC standards as in place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measurements. Accordingly, information contained or referenced in this press release containing descriptions of the Company's mineral deposits may not be comparable to similar information made public by U.S. companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. VANCOUVER, Oct. 19, 2016 - Orex Minerals Inc. (TSX-V: REX OTCQX: ORMNF) ("Orex"), is pleased to announce that the Phase-III diamond drilling program on the Sandra Escobar Project in Durango, Mexico, has been completed up to hole SA-16-062. Results for holes SA-16-054 to SA-16-060, drilled in the Main and Cerro Chato Zones in the southeastern region of the project, are presented in the table below. Drilling for Phase-IV is due to start in early November. The Sandra Escobar Project is being advanced by Orex under an option agreement with Canasil Resources Inc. (TSX.V: CLZ) ("Canasil"). Highlight for this batch of holes is SA-16-057 in the Main Zone, which yielded 41.00 metres core length (33.58 m true thickness) grading 108 g/t silver, starting 45 metres below surface. This includes 11.00 metres core length (9.01 m true thickness) grading 237 g/t silver. Holes SA-16-054 and 055 are reconnaissance holes on the eastern side of the Cerro Chato Zone, which confirms that the favourable horizon in this area is silver mineralized. Holes SA-16-057 to 060 are from the southern side of the Main Zone. Additional activities on the Sandra Escobar exploration program include an Aeromagnetic and Radiometric Survey being flown by Geotech Ltd. and an initial Resource Estimate being prepared by Mining Plus, due for completion around the end of October. Metallurgical work is also being conducted, under the direction of Blue Coast Metallurgy. Initial testing shows that the native silver and silver halides are amenable to cyanidation, whereas the argentiferous manganese oxides will require a reductive leach process stage. These manganese oxides have responded well for the liberation of silver in reductive leaching during the preliminary testing phases. The metallurgical program is currently underway. Orex's President, Gary Cope says, "This is an active time for the exploration of the Sandra Escobar Project. We are encouraged by the early stage metallurgical tests and look forward to the initial resource estimate. A new phase of diamond drilling is being scheduled for November-December." Sandra Escobar Project 2015-2016 Diamond Drilling Program Holes 54 to 60 Hole From (m) To (m) Core Length (m) True Thick. (m) Ag (g/t) CERRO CHATO ZONE SA-16-054 5.00 21.00 16.00 12.26 36 Includes 9.00 13.00 4.00 3.06 48 Includes 10.00 11.00 1.00 0.77 65 (Lower Interval 1) 89.00 98.00 9.00 6.89 46 Includes 92.00 97.00 5.00 3.83 53 Includes 93.00 94.00 1.00 0.77 75 (Lower Interval 2) 128.00 131.00 3.00 2.30 31 SA-16-055 7.00 17.00 10.00 7.66 32 Includes 10.00 13.00 3.00 2.30 52 Includes 10.00 11.00 1.00 0.77 63 MAIN ZONE SA-16-056 Hole Abandoned Short of Target Depth SA-16-057 62.00 103.00 41.00 33.58 108 Includes 69.00 92.00 23.00 18.84 152 Includes 69.00 80.00 11.00 9.01 237 Includes 71.00 74.00 3.00 2.46 394 SA-16-058 101.00 115.00 14.00 11.47 28 Includes 106.00 113.00 7.00 5.73 39 Includes 108.00 112.00 4.00 3.28 50 Includes 110.00 111.00 1.00 0.82 62 (Lower Interval) 151.50 162.00 10.50 8.60 18 Includes 157.50 159.00 1.50 1.23 24 SA-16-059 52.50 55.00 2.50 2.05 24 Includes 52.50 54.00 1.50 1.23 30 (Lower Interval) 72.00 85.00 13.00 10.65 16 Includes 77.00 81.00 4.00 3.28 22 Includes 77.00 78.00 1.00 0.82 29 SA-16-060 72.00 112.00 40.00 32.76 55 Includes 78.00 101.00 23.00 18.84 69 Includes 79.00 83.00 4.00 3.29 122 Includes 80.00 81.00 1.00 0.82 185 Kluane Drilling Ltd. provides the drilling services utilizing an environmentally low-impact KD-1000 man-portable diamond drill rig. Silver mineralization is hosted in a rhyolite volcanic dome. An altered and highly permeable crystal lithic tuff unit contains disseminations of silver bearing minerals and broadly spaced stockwork veinlets. The current working model has a porphyritic rhyolite unit as an impermeable cap, which may have focused mineralizing fluids into the host permeable volcaniclastic unit. True thicknesses are estimated based on structural and stratigraphic interpretations. A map showing the locations of the drill holes is available on the Orex website. Orex maintains a QA/QC sampling protocol for the diamond drilling program, including the insertion of commercial analytical standards and blank samples. Analytical testing is performed by Bureau Veritas. Silver values are determined by fire assay with a gravimetric finish. Multi-element analyses are also determined using a 4-acid digestion and ICP-MS (Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry). Sandra Escobar Silver-Gold Project, Durango, Mexico Sandra Escobar is situated north of the town of Tepehuanes, Durango, in the heart of the "Mexican Silver Trend", midway between the mining districts of Tovar and Guanacevi and is 75 km west of Silver Standard's La Pitarrilla. This prolific trend hosts some of the world's largest silver camps and deposits, including Fresnillo, Guanajuato, La Pitarrilla, La Preciosa, Real de Angeles and Zacatecas. The project consists of 6,976 hectares of mineral concessions and covers multiple mineralized epithermal quartz veins and breccia structures. These veins form a high level silver-gold-base metals system, hosted in andesitic and rhyolitic rocks, centered on a large rhyolite dome complex in the north and silver systems in smaller rhyolite dome complexes to the southeast. Intense alteration zones and fluid flooding in permeable formations indicates the presence of bulk tonnage targets. Excellent infrastructure exists in the Sandra Escobar area, including paved road access, electrical power, water and manpower from nearby communities. Dale Brittliffe, P.Geo., and Ben Whiting, P.Geo., are Qualified Persons, as defined in NI 43-101, and take responsibility for the technical disclosure contained within this news release. ABOUT OREX MINERALS INC. Orex is a Canadian-based junior exploration company comprised of highly qualified mining professionals. Orex has several current projects: the Coneto Gold-Silver Project in Durango, Mexico, a joint venture with Fresnillo PLC, the Jumping Josephine Gold-Silver Project in British Columbia, Canada, plus this newest Sandra Escobar Silver Project in Durango, Mexico, with Canasil Resources Inc. TORONTO, Oct. 19, 2016 - Kerr Mines Inc. ("Kerr" or the "Company") (TSX:KER) is pleased to announce it has begun dewatering and rehabilitation activities at its flagship Copperstone Mine located in Arizona. The rehabilitation activities are consistent with Kerr's strategy to re-start production at Copperstone. "We are firmly focused on restarting operations at Copperstone," said Chris Hopkins, Interim CEO of Kerr Mines. "Completing the de-watering activities will represent a major catalyst in our efforts to unlock Copperstone's potential value. The Company has also begun developing an exploration and underground development program." The Copperstone Mine produced nearly 500,000 ounces of gold through open pit mining. Existing infrastructure which remains from this time, or which has been subsequently installed by the Company's predecessor and wholly owned subsidiary, American Bonanza Gold Corp., is considerable and serves to reduce the current capital requirements for the mine. Existing infrastructure includes a power line and substation, and three water wells, all sufficient for the proposed operations at Copperstone. Additional infrastructure on site includes offices, maintenance shops and a laboratory building (permitted tailings facility, processing facility and mill). TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Oct. 18, 2016) - Euro Sun Mining Inc., (TSX:ESM) ("Euro Sun" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has obtained a new prospecting permit from Romania's National Agency for Mineral Resources for the Stanija area, located approximately 3 kilometres east of its Rovina Valley Mining Licence, in west-central Romania. The Stanija property covers 42 square kilometres in the highly prolific Golden Quadrilateral mining district in the South Apuseni mountains. The permit is valid for three years and exploration work will begin immediately. Extensive exploration activities were conducted in the Stanija area after the modern mining law became effective, in 1998; initially from 2000 to 2004 by European Goldfields, and again by Euro Sun's subsidiary, SAMAX Romania SRL, in 2007. Based on results from this historical work, Euro Sun has already identified several exploration targets within the two target areas. Stanija Western Target Previous exploration work has intersected porphyry-style gold-copper mineralization in surface trenches, underground works, outcrop rock chip sampling, and RC and DDH drilling. Three areas within this western target will be subject to detailed geological mapping and rock chip sampling this quarter. Stanija Eastern Target Samax Romania SRL, European Goldfields and the Romanian State mining company had conducted extensive exploration within this target area which indicates porphyry-style mineralization at depth and mineralized epithermal vein-style mineralization at near surface. Euro Sun will conduct discrete soil geochemistry on these target areas with detailed surface mapping, rock chip sampling, and additional geophysics. G. Scott Moore, President and CEO of Euro Sun Mining stated, "The granting of this new prospecting permit by the Romanian Government clearly demonstrates that the country is supportive to new mining projects. We have been in continuous dialogue with the government since taking over management in May of 2016 and feel we are well aligned with respect to the ratification of our mining licence, as well as our commitment to developing a sustainable long-life mining asset in Romania. In addition, the prospectivity of the Stanija area is enhanced by its proximity to our Rovina Valley Project for which a feasibility study is planned in 2017." Figure 1 - Stanija Prospecting Permit Location is available at the following link : http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1072978_fig1.pdf Recent Corporate Developments In September 2016, Euro Sun successfully re-launched the Rovina Valley Project with a new brand identity and website. The Company graduated to the Toronto Stock Exchange on September 12, 2016 under its new ticker symbol, ESM. In parallel with the TSX listing, the Company implemented a share consolidation, resulting in approximately 50 million shares outstanding. About Euro Sun Mining Inc. Euro Sun is a Toronto Stock Exchange listed mining company focused on the exploration and development of its 100%-owned Rovina Valley gold and copper project located in west-central Romania, which hosts the second largest gold deposit in Europe. Caution regarding forward-looking information: This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, without limitation, statements regarding the election of directors. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including risks inherent in the mining industry and risks described in the public disclosure of the Company which is available under the profile of the Company on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the Company's website at www.eurosunmining.com. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. The TSX does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. TOLEDO -- A Mattoon man has pleaded not guilty to a charge of first degree murder regarding the July 20 shooting death of a Mattoon man at a residence in Greenup. Lamont Mimms, 23, plead not guilty regarding the murder of Eric M. Lavaly, 22, during his preliminary hearing on Monday in Cumberland County circuit court. Mimms also pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted first degree murder, armed robbery, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon in connection with the July 20 incident. Cumberland County State's Attorney Jonathon Braden said Illinois State Police Special Agent Scott Rhodes testified, during the preliminary hearing, about the investigation into the shooting. Braden said Rhodes reported that the incident took place at Trenten Adamson's home at 610 W. Cumberland St. in Greenup. He said the agent testified that Mimms, Adamson and Lavaly were at this residence when Kyle Covault of Casey arrived there, allegedly to sell an unspecified amount of cannabis. The state's attorney said Rhodes reported that a fight allegedly started shortly after Covault's arrival and gunshots were allegedly fired between him and Mimms. Braden said the agent testified that shots fired by Mimms mortally wounded Lavaly and wounded Covault. Braden said Mimms, who is in the custody at the Coles County jail on an unrelated charge, is scheduled to have a status hearing on the first degree murder and others charges in Cumberland County on Monday. Mimms' appointed attorney, Ed Deters, confirmed that Mimms plead not guilty to the Cumberland County charges, but declined further comment. Braden said Adamson, 27, and Laurinda McWhorter, 24, of Charleston have been arrested on charges of allegedly conspiring with Mimms and Lavaly to commit armed robbery against Covault. He said Adamson and McWhorter are in the custody of the Cumberland County jail. Braden said Covault, 22, has been charged with being in possession of a cannabis with intent to deliver and unlawful use of a weapon regarding the July 20 incident. United Nations (United States) (AFP) - UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous will travel to Western Sahara this week as the United Nations works to ease tensions with Morocco over its mission in the disputed territory. Ladsous told reporters on Tuesday that he will hold talks in Rabat, visit the headquarters of the UN mission MINURSO in Laayoune and cross into Algeria to visit the refugee camps in Tindouf. The visit will be the first by a senior UN official since Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon made a controversial trip in March, angering Morocco over his use of the term "occupation" to describe the status of Western Sahara. Ladsous described his visit to MINURSO as a "morale-boosting" exercise for the mission after Morocco cut dozens of staff in angry retaliation over Ban's use of the term. The UN Security Council adopted a resolution in April demanding that MINURSO return to "full functionality" but not all 75 staffers are expected to go back. A review of the staffing is under way and some of the mission's work could be handled by the UN regional hub, a senior UN official said. The United Nations announced in August that UN envoy Christopher Ross was prepared to travel to the region for talks on ending the decades-old conflict over Western Sahara. That trip is "still under discussion," said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric, adding: "To say that Western Sahara is a complex and complicated issue would be an understatement." Ban is due to return to Morocco in November to attend the COP22 conference on climate change in Marrakesh. The council met behind closed doors on Tuesday to discuss the situation in Western Sahara, but there was no concrete outcome to the discussion. MINURSO was established in 1991 after a ceasefire ended a war that broke out when Morocco sent troops to the former Spanish territory in 1975 and fought Sahrawi rebels of the Polisario Front. The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, declared by the Polisario in 1976, is a full member of the African Union. Morocco maintains that Western Sahara is an integral part of the kingdom despite UN resolutions that task MINURSO with organizing a referendum on self-determination. The aggrieved flagbearer of the All People's Congress (APC) Hassan Ayariga has described Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as a comedian. Nana Addo is a comedian, the disqualified pizza maker, whose aspiration to occupy the seat of government the Flagstaff House was cut short by the Electoral Commission spewed. Speaking on Starr Chat Wednesday, Mr. Ayariga jabbed the New Patriotic Party flagbearer, saying he is not fit to be at the presidency. If I were him I will retire. Anybody at the age of 72 would have retired, the former leader of the People's National Convention (PNC) during the 2012 elections told host Bola Ray . He, however, noted he is on good terms with the former foreign affairs minister and they have always had a hale and hearty chat anytime they meet. Ayariga described his disqualification by the Electoral Commission as painful. I'm not a happy man when it comes to things that I do right and somebody will disqualify us. According to him, the EC has woefully erred in disqualifying him as his party is the most vibrant political party in the country. He said the APC has 240 constituency offices across the country with 30 branded pickups, 10 regional offices, and a national office and that the APC is the only party that satisfies the constitutional requirements of the EC. -starrfmonline The ruling NDC has reacted to the hooting at President John Mahama by some NPP supporters at Kokompe in Accra, saying the party will not descend to the level of the opposition party. Hundreds of traders and residents in the NPP stronghold on Tuesday shocked the President by waving the change sign when he stormed the area to campaign. The bewildered President had no choice than to wave at the charged crowd from the roof of his SUV vehicle as the traders continuously rolled their hands to signal change; a slogan of the opposition New Patriotic Party. A video of the incident has gone viral. Reacting to the development, the campaign coordinator of the NDC Kofi Adams said the crowd was motivated by the teachings of their flagbearer Nana Akufo-Addo. Look, if that is the way well do our politics then Nana Akufo-Addo cannot go to all places in this country to campaign. Because there are NDC supporters everywhere, when we got to Kokompe there were huge NDC supporters following President Mahama but the indiscipline Nana-Akufo Addo has preached to his supporters led them to misbehave towards the president, Adams said. He added: We were just passing through the area, where the incident happened is a known NPP spot as they had hoisted a big flag of Akufo-Addo, so clearly the people were NPP supporters who wanted to embarrass the President. But just as Michelle Obama said. When they go low, we go high, when they do their all-die be-die stuff, well show them that we are matured and we do clean politics. A Deputy General Secretary of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), Koku Anyidoho is continuing with his relentless attack on Dr Mahamudu Bawumia. In his latest diatribe, he called the NPP Vice Presidential candidate Dr. Mahmudu Bawumia an incompetent liar who does not deserve to be made Vice President of Ghana. Speaking at the Ashanti regional launch of the NDC's campaign Saturday, Mr. Anyidoho said what Dr. Bawumia knows best is spreading lies and falsehood in his attempt to make the NPP look good. Dr. Bawumia, a former Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana appears to be a thorn in the flesh of the governing party. His constant reference to President John Mahama's administration as incompetent has irked leaders of the NDC greatly. He has over the years held a series of lectures on Ghana's economy, repeatedly pointing out that things are going in the wrong direction. Largely opposition elements call him a prophet because he has previously correctly predicted unpalatable economic outcomes which were dismissed by government but which turned out exactly as he projected. In an election year, Dr. Bawumia's comments on the economy not only frustrate but anger the NDC a great deal. He has thus become the target of harsh criticism and even plain insults from his opponents who insist that his analysis are voodoo and grand deception. Recently President John Mahama himself challenged Dr. Bawumia to tell Ghanaians the cost of the redenomination of the local currency undertaken by the Kufuor government in 2007 when he was Deputy Governor of the Central bank. Bawumia responded saying the request proved the President was incompetent since in his view the information was readily available. Speaking at the NDC's Ashanti Regional campaign launch in Kumasi, Mr. Anyidoho said Dr. Bawumia reeked of lies. He claimed the Deputy Governor (who was not known to be NPP at the time) gave a contract to a brother of the NPP's flagbearer, Nana Akufo-Addo and paid him huge sums. He composed a song in Hausa in which he described the respected economist as a foolish man. Story by Ghana I Myjoyonline.com The running mate of the New Patriotic Party says the governing National Democratic Congress cannot claim to love northerners when it misappropriates funds meant to alleviate poverty in the north. Dr Mahamudu Bawumia said a government that runs down the Savanna Accelerated Development Authority a policy initiative meant to arrest the poverty situation in the northern parts of Ghana; "steals" the money meant to execute the policy cannot profess to love people from northern descent. He was reacting to accusations by some officials of the governing National Democratic Congress that the NPP does not respect people from the North. With some 50 days to go for election 2016, the Northern region undoubtedly remains a key battle ground for the front runners in the election. The General Secretary of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketia while addressing party followers in Tempane in the Northern Region said it is only the NDC that does not discriminate against any Ghanaian. He accused the NPP of discriminating against northerners and using Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, a northerner as a 'trojan horse' to cover up their discrimination. But NPP and Dr Bawumia have responded, chronicling a tale of policies that have gone bad or riddled with corruption and misappropriation of funds. The NPP running mate told supporters of the New Patriotic Party in Buipe in the Northern Region that the NDC cannot be trusted because its record in the north is nothing to write home about. "John Mahama is a northerner, but what happened to the SADA money? Who 'chopped' the SADA money? Is it the NPP" he asked a crowd of energetic partisan supporters. "If they loved northerners they wouldn't have chopped the SADA money. They say they love the northerners but they have not paid school feeding grants for two terms for schools in the northern region. Do they love us?" he asked again to which the crowd said No. "They say they love the northerners but who chopped the GYEEDA monies? They say they love the northerners but who has refused to pay teacher trainee allowances. "They say they love northerners but they only love their stomachs," he stated to a rapturous applause by the crowd. Story by Ghana|Myjoyonline.com|Nathan Gadugah Former President Jerry John Rawlings is not happy with elements in the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) who are allegedly baying for his blood. He is surprised that recent attacks on him have been orchestrated by people within the NDC, the party he founded. The ex-President cited the recent petition presented by the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP) leader, Henry Lartey to the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) and the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) asking them to investigate circumstances under which he (Mr Rawlings) reportedly received an amount of $5 million from the late Nigerian Head of State, General Sani Abacha, as gift in 1998. Mr Rawlings says his own people in the NDC are behind the ploy to sully his hard-won reputation. Concern According to him, About three days before his drama [Henry Lartey went to file the petition], I got information that he was going to be financially rewarded for what he did and incidentally he was instigated not by people in the opposition. Mr Rawlings disclosed this when members of the Queen Mothers' Foundation of Ghana paid a courtesy call on him at his office in Accra yesterday. An obviously unhappy Jerry Rawlings wondered, Why are people worried about the level of integrity we've tried to maintain? We say we are Christians; we swear on the Bible, Muslims on the Koran. He, therefore, threw an open challenge to Henry Lartey and anyone who thinks he has done anything untoward to avail themselves so that they go the spiritual way to ascertain the veracity or otherwise of their claims against him. Challenge I'd like to invite people like him [Henry Lartey] that we go traditional as well. That we invite the white man's technology (lie detector) to also come and verify the truthfulness, the integrity of my word. And for him to be simply asked who paid him to do what he did, the former president fumed. That, he said, was because the culture of disrespect which has engulfed the Ghanaian society has compromised its peace and made it vulnerable. When we used to exercise a culture of respect in the past there was a thick layer of peace, which could not be compromised that easily. Today that layer of peace is so thin a little provocation is all it takes to get matters out of hand, he underscored. Mr Rawlings had admitted that, indeed, he received money from the late Nigerian dictator, Sani Abacha, but maintained that it was $2 million and not $5 million as earlier speculated by the media. Mr Rawlings had similarly expressed concern about a publication in the Africawatch magazine alleging that he has Parkinson disease, saying that the publication was engineered by elements in the NDC who want to embarrass him. Mission The queen mothers, who were led by Mamaga Noviode of Sogakope in the Volta Region, had gone there to express concern about the poor quality of political discourse and abusive language used against eminent persons in the run-up to the 2016 presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for December 7. The rest included Nana Akyembaku Mansa from the Central Region, Nana Ama Serwaa from Ashanti, Nana Akua Gyasiwaa from Eastern, Mamaga Maamele from Klikor in the Volta Region and Abesewaa Hemaa, Nana Afia Gyamaa Pinsan. Worry They were particularly concerned about the negative attacks on former President Rawlings, mostly from members of his own party and wondered whether those lending their voices to such contemptuous speech had forgotten the role he played in Ghana's political development. Mamaga Noviode said, We have come here to plead with you to exercise extreme patience and restraint and not allow such attacks to compel you to respond in anger. Charge They have since charged the NDC to publicly reprimand members who show disrespect to the founder of the party to prove that they value the role he played in the establishment of the party. Touching on the issue about peace before, during and after the elections, the former president said the 2016 elections would be a real test of Ghana's resolve and issued a note of caution to all stakeholders to ensure that the process is free and fair in order to guarantee post-election peace. We've been able to exercise the necessary restraint through quite a number of elections. This one is going to be a real test and I can only appeal once again that we make it as free and fair as we possibly can in order to maintain the peace, he emphasized. Mr Rawlings indicated that to guarantee a result that would be acceptable to all nobody should attempt to misbehave or do anything fraudulent. He expressed his gratitude to the traditional rulers for the visit and showing concern and asked them to call for free and fair elections to guarantee the peace. Also present at the meeting were Reverend Professor Richard Lawson, a member of the NDC Council of Elders, as well as Adams Guma, former District Chief Executive (DCE) of Walewale. By Charles Takyi-Boadu 19.10.2016 LISTEN By Ken Sackey/Benjamin Mensah, GNA Accra, Oct 19, GNA - The minority New Patriotic Party (NPP) caucus in parliament on Tuesday accused the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) of being fraudulent and corrupt in fixing the recent cocoa producer price of GH 475 per bag for the 2016/2017 crop year.. The NPP described the price as rather low, adding that instead of admitting to the widespread discontent and offering the long-suffering farmers a price closer to GH 600 per bag of 64 kilogrammes (kg) each, the government had resorted to propaganda. Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, Minority Spokesperson on Cocoa Affairs, addressing a press conference at Parliament House, in Accra, said: 'The low producer price they are paying to cocoa farmers is as a direct result of the fact that the gross proceeds from cocoa exports are riddled with fraud and corruption perpetrated by the NDC government. 'That is the real reason why they are not providing sufficient incentives to farmers by giving them a remunerative price.' He alleged that in the cocoa growing areas of Sefwi, Nzema, Brong-Ahafo, Ashanti, Akuapem, Kwahu and Volta, NDC propagandists were going round with rumours that Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the NPP presidential candidate, had not co-operated with international banks to attract higher cocoa producer price. Rather, President John Dramani Mahama signed the document, Dr Akoto said, adding: "The NDC are attempting to shift the blame for the slave-wage cocoa prices from themselves to the innocent NPP flag bearer. Dr Afriyie Akoto said the claim by the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) that it spent more than $838 million in 2015/2016 importing and distributing fertilisers, pesticides, fungicides and other chemicals for cocoa farmers needed to be verified. Besides, he said, another claim that the $ 150 million was spent on cocoa roads needed to be explained. "It would be important for COCOBOD to provide the names and locations of the farmers and the quantities of fertilisers, pesticides, fungicides and other chemicals supplied to them," he said. Dr Afriyie Akoto attributed the massive leakage of imported chemical inputs to smuggling to neighbouring countries which had denied farmers the much needed inputs and reduced their yields. He also said the leakage had cut the amount available "to pay remunerative prices to cocoa farmers", adding that chemicals, which had been imported and distributed to farmers, had not been tested. The NPP said, in spite of the huge amounts involved in the construction of cocoa roads, the contracts for the construction and maintenance of roads in cocoa producing areas were sole sourced with inflated quotations. GNA A NOTE FROM PENNY: I'm on vacation this week -- probably doing fall yard work (yee haw), so here's a column originally published on July 29, 2010. To be honest, I'm still trying to figure out what all the hullabaloo is about in Arizona regarding illegal immigration. Of course, when I hear or read someone preface something with "to be honest," I always wonder if that means they're not being honest anytime they do NOT start out a comment that way. Personally, I'd say either you're honest or you're not; you shouldn't have to point out that something you say is being said honestly. But I digress. I think the judge who, on Wednesday, put the kibosh on some of the most controversial parts of the new Arizona immigration law probably steered the state clear of a good bit of violence had the measure taken full effect as scheduled today. But I don't get the big uproar to begin with. The laws this country needs to deal with immigration already are in place. Sure, they're imperfect. A law-abiding person who wants to become an American shouldn't have to shovel through years of government red tape in order to do so. And, certainly, not just anyone who hobbles up on our shores -- possibly carrying a shaving cream can full of plutonium or a toothpaste tube with the bubonic plague in it -- should be able to be stamped "American" before their swim trunks dry. But if our hapless government could just get its act together long enough to enforce the laws on the books, Arizona wouldn't have its collective boxers in a wad. We have rules for a reason. I bet your mom told you when you were a kid not to touch a burner on the stove 'cause it was hot. I'll even go so far as to say that it is probably a rule in every household that youngsters don't touch stuff cooking on the stove so they don't get burned. Ah, but you were a little rebel, weren't you? You didn't quite believe Mom's warning that you'd fry a finger against the side of the spaghetti pot if you touched it. So, when she turned her head to call everyone else to the supper table, you reached out that tiny little index finger and touched the hot pan on the stovetop. Well! Mom was right and you jerked that digit away from the heat faster than your fat Uncle Fred reached for the plate of bacon at Sunday morning brunch. Then you braced yourself for Mom's "I-told-you-so" look. See? Good moms are always right. Ignore the rules, and you'll have a singed fingerprint or two. Try driving on the left side of the road on your way to work today (OK, for that one knucklehead out there -- I'm kidding; don't really do it; just imagine it). You can picture the chaos that will cause. And if the cops ignore you -- laughing at the honking and screeching of tires as you go by the doughnut shop, before they bite into a second apple fritter -- the craziness will just get worse ... a society headed toward anarchy because you steered your Pacer to the curb on the left. Rules = reasonable order in the world. Ignoring the rules = a path toward chaos. Let's say you schedule a meeting for 10 a.m. on your busy calendar. Your co-workers roll in at 10:05, 10:15, maybe even 10:25. That's going to make it hard for you to make your 10:30 appointment for a lobotomy. And, if you're late, they might let the orderly with only two fingers stitch you up. Where there are rules, there is a reason. When you schedule something, there are reasons to keep to that timeline ... not the least of which is the domino effect on the rest of your day. And when the government makes a law, there are good reasons (we hope) -- so it should be enforced. I'm not in favor of labeling every illegal immigrant a "criminal" in the sense of equating such folks with murderers, rapists, etc., only because they are in this country without proper papers. But the fact is that it IS illegal to be here without going through the correct channels. At this point, though, we can't just round up every illegal immigrant and ship them back to Timbuktu, either. It seems pretty simple to me: Put in place a process for those here illegally at this current time to become legal; give a deadline, such as the end of the year 2011, for them to at least start steps to become legal. As of Jan. 1, 2012, if you're here illegally, you know what to expect: The US will actually enforce its laws (gasp!). That allows mostly honest, hard-working folks here for a better life to become legit -- and pay taxes, and receive benefits in return, like the rest of us -- instead of remaining illegal. It also lets authorities, at least in theory, weed out The Bad Guys here illegally for nefarious purposes. I suppose some would say that plan is "amnesty." Well, we have three choices: 1., Let things go on as they are; 2., enforce existing laws on everyone, paint them all with the same brush, and overload jails with illegal folks; or 3., compromise with a plan that, yes, will let current illegals "get away" with their law-breaking status. Oh, big deal. I don't mean to throw y'all for a loop, but it's pretty plain and simple: Our government needs to get its act together. Shocked, aren't you? Never thought of that, did you? Folks who want to come to America should be able to do so legally in a timely manner that is both mindful of national security and reasonable to new citizens. It really shouldn't be this difficult. Arizona doesn't need new laws, and neither does any other state. Law enforcement needs the personnel to do what it's charged to do; and if the majority of folks don't like the existing laws, then they should be changed. Adding redundant measures is just more government waste. Maybe moms should run the country. At least then they'd have something clever to say as they warn citizens of the consequences if they don't follow the rules. "Don't come crying to me ...!" Accra, Oct 19, GNA - Mr. Kwame Amoah, the Greater Accra Regional Director of the Electoral Commission, (EC) has said there would be both manual and machine verification of voters for the 2016 Election. 'This means if a person gets disqualified by means of the verification machine, the voter would have the alternate option of manual verification,' he explained. 'Your finger print could get distorted because of a scar or some other similar interruption.' Mr. Amoah was speaking at a Capacity Building Seminar on Media Reportage for the 2016 Presidential and Parliamentary Elections in Accra. 'A person's finger print could easily be distorted for a legitimate reason, and that should not mean a legitimate voter should be disqualified,' he said. Mr. Amoah said the EC had laid down measures to ensure that no qualified voter was wrongfully denied his right to vote. On other aspects of the Election, he said, the EC had also gone the extra mile to ensure that election officials such as the returning and presiding officers had genuine interest in the success of the election and were not political party affiliates. He said besides selecting polling officials by standards that ensured their efficiency, these officials would also be thoroughly trained on all the critical issues that bordered on the success of the Election. Mr. Amoah said whilst party agents served the interest of their respective political parties and their presence at polling centres was legal, they had no right to cause any form of chaos. He advised political party leaders to thoroughly educate their agents on the need to be law abiding on the Election Day. 'Political parties should choose the right agents, who would express their misgivings within the confines of the law, and not stir trouble unnecessarily,' said Mr. Amoah. A collaboration between the Electoral Commission of Ghana and the European Union Project -2016, the two-day seminar was attended by a cross section of journalists from both the state and private media. GNA Accra, Oct. 19, GNA - The 25th Session of the Joint Campaign Planning Course (JCP) has been held at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) in Accra. A press release from the French Embassy in Accra copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) said the course was organised and sponsored by the Government of France, and was attended by 22 participants comprising Army officers and Gendarmerie from the rank of Major to Colonel drawn from West Africa, Central Africa and Madagascar. Speaking at the closing ceremony, Mr FranAois Pujolas, the Ambassador of France to Ghana, said the course 'shows the commitment of France to help build a better and common response at the regional level to all security challenges'. He lauded the joint participation of officers from countries in the sub-region and beyond, and commended the efforts made by the KAIPTC and the Ghana Armed Forces to support and develop the use of French language in a Defence and Security context. The course which was designed in two phases mainly focused on the practical methods of operative planning, a procedure which encompasses preparation for a joint operation at country level, the release stated. The course Director and liaison officer, Lieutenant Colonel Philippe Costes of the French Armed Forces, indicated that the objective of the programme was to encourage the use of a common language in order to facilitate planning between different armies engaged in a regional crisis. The Ambassador later presented certificates to the students in the presence of Air Vice Marshall G.S. Evans, Commandant of KAIPTC. GNA By Laudia Sawer, GNA Old-Ningo (GAR), Oct 19, GNA - Mr Sylvester Tetteh, New Patriotic Party's (NPP) parliamentary candidate for Ningo-Prampram has chided government for failing to resource the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE). Mr Tetteh said it was so sad and disappointing that the NCCE lacked the needed logistics to carry out public education and engagement. He criticized the government on Tuesday when participants at an NCCE durbar at Old-Ningo expressed their disappointment at the lack of frequent public education and engagement by the Commission in the villages. The NCCE is a constitutional institution established by an Act of Parliament and its mandate enshrined in the 1992 Constitution to formulate, implement and oversee programmes intended to inculcate into the citizens of Ghana, awareness of their civic responsibilities and appreciation of their rights as a people. He charged the NCCE to boldly insist on getting the needed resources to work with since their work was enshrined in the constitution. "The work of the NCCE is enshrined in the constitution therefore they must not be afraid of political leaders", he stressed. Mr.Tetteh noted that he had a better understanding of the work and importance of the NCCE when he joined the civic club during his school days adding, the Commission's work should not be undervalued. He therefore urged government to at least provide an official vehicle to the Ningo-Prampram District office of the NCCE to facilitate workers' movement to the scattered villages and towns in the district to educate them on the December 7, general elections. Mr Tetteh also called for the provision of logistics to the Police to enable them fully monitor the elections and enforce peace in the area. He commended the Police for their professional work in the District and charged them to deal fairly with anybody who would foment trouble at the various polling stations irrespective of their party affiliations and positions. The NPP parliamentary candidate however expressed his unhappiness about the naming of Ningo Prampram among the flash points for the elections. He blamed that on the internal wrangling in the National Democratic Congress (NDC) during its parliamentary primaries and advised them to desist from giving the area a bad name. Miss Gifty Agyeiwaa Badu, Ningo-Prampram District NCCE Director, responding to questions from participants, said even though her outfit was logistically constrained, they organized a number of educational programmes for faith based organizations and other identifiable groups. Miss Badu expressed the hope that a request for a pick-up from the District Assembly would be met to enable them intensify their educational programmes and engagements with residents. She however pleaded with Assembly members and unit committee members, as well as the Inter-Party Dialogue Committee members to augment the effort of the NCCE by educating people in their areas. GNA By Patience A. Gbeze, GNA Accra, Oct. 19, GNA - One hundred and forty-seven (147) parliamentary candidates from five political parties and eight independent candidates are contesting the 34 seats in the Greater Accra Region in the 2016 elections. Out of the number, 119 are males and 28 females. Ablekuma West Constituency recorded the highest number of contestants - three males and three females from five political parties and an independent candidate. Six constituencies also recorded the lowest number of three candidates each - Weija Gbawe, Amansaman, Ablekuma North, Dadakotopon, Tema Central and Sege. The Weija Gbawe constituency stands out as gender active constituency as all the three Parliamentary Candidate representing the National Democratic Congress (NDC), New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) are women. Mr George Kwame Amoah, Greater Accra Regional Director of the Electoral Commission (EC), who disclosed this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said Gbawe Weija and Ablekuma West constituencies registered three women each, the highest in terms of women who filed their candidature to contest. The analysis formed part of 'GNA Tracks Election 2016 project', which sought to sensitise the electorate on the various issues raised by political parties, elections management body (EC) and other governance institutions. The project also sought to ensure gender and social inclusion in national politics, provide voice for the youth, vulnerable groups, opinion leaders and the broader spectrum of the society, to achieve a peaceful poll on December 7. It also aimed at creating a platform to dissect the manifestoes of all political parties and provide in-depth analysis of each thematic area to the electorate to enable them to make an informed judgment. Mr Amoa said 10 constituencies namely: Domeabra Obom; Anyaa/Sowutuom; Okaikwei Central; Korley Klottey; Dadekotopon; Ledzokuku; Tema Central; Ashaiman; Adentan and Ada registered a woman each, representing the least. He said no female has filed to contest in 16 constituencies. Those constituencies are Bortianor/Ngleshie Amanfro; Amansaman; Madina; Ayawaso East; Ayawaso North; Ayawaso Central; Ayawaso West; Okaikwei North; Ablekuma South; Odododiodoo, Tema East; Tema West; Kpone Katamanso; Shai- Osudoku; Ningo Prampram, and Sege. Mr Amoa said the NDC and the NPP filed parliamentary candidates in all the 34 constituencies; Convention Peoples' Party (CPP), which filed 30 candidates; Progressive Peoples' Party, 24 candidates; eight independent candidates; the Peoples' National Convention (PNC), six candidates, National Democratic Party and All Peoples' Congress filed four candidates each. He said Great Consolidated Peoples' Party, Democratic Popular Party and United Progressive Party filed a candidate each, while the United Front Party, Independent People's Party and Ghana Freedom Party did not file any candidate in the Region. GNA By Prosper K. Kuorsoh, GNA Wa, Oct. 19, GNA - The Centre for Advancing Rural Opportunity (CARO-Ghana), a youth led women and child centered non-governmental organisation, has called for the establishment of a sanitation fund across all districts in the Upper West Region. Such a fund, the NGO said, would enable hard-to-reach communities which do not have the resources to construct and maintain sanitation facilities such as latrines to access fund to build and maintain such facilities. Mr Salifu Freeman Kanton, the Executive Director of CARO, said this in a statement copied the Ghana News Agency on the occasion of the celebration of the Global Hand Washing Day. He said this is necessary because over the period there have been setbacks to the construction of household latrines in the quest to achieve Open Defecation Free (ODF) status in communities. Mr Kanton also called on the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to renew their commitment and enforce laws on sanitation in the Water and Sanitation Hygiene sub-sector especially in the Upper West Region. "It is sad to notice that 72 per cent of people in the Upper West Region are still involved in Open Defecation (OD) and about seven out of every 10 people do not have an improved sanitation facility in their homes", the CARO Executive Director said. Mr Kanton said since 2008, CARO Ghana had been working assiduously in the WASH sector in the Upper West Region through the training of over 140 stakeholders in the WASH sub-sector on proper Hand Washing with Soap (HWWS) and Household Water Treatment and safe Storage (HWTS) mechanisms in several districts in the region. "We have trained people in more than 500 communities on the construction of local hand washing facilities such as the tippy-tap, magic bottle and veronica buckets", he said. He said the NGO also trained soap retailers, food vendors, chemical sellers, under takers and natural leaders in some communities on HWWS and Hygiene practices. Mr Freeman Kanton said CARO Ghana would continue to advocate and sensitize communities on proper HWWS and the need to maintain a clean environment and ensure proper sanitation conditions in the region. GNA Accra, Oct. 19, GNA - Five organisations have signed letters of Agreement with the Food and Agriculture organisation's(FAO) Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (FLEGT) programme, aimed at supporting private sector in the implementation of the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA). The beneficiary organisations of the grant are the Nature and Development Foundation, Kumasi Wood Cluster Association, Ghana Timber Millers Organisation, Timber Development Division and the Resource Management Support Centre. They are expected to use the funding to undertake projects that support Ghana's VPA implementation. Ghana and the European Union (EU) signed the VPA in November 2009 to address the problem of illegal logging and trade in associated timber products. Speaking at the signing, Mr William Hanna, Ambassador of the EU delegation to Ghana, said the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) that came into force in 2013 had placed an obligation on the European private sector to ensure that their timber supplies are coming from legal sources. He said recent efforts across the EU for greater enforcement of the EUTR was driving demand for FLEGT licenses, which Ghana would soon be in a position to issue to meet all due diligence obligations under the EUTR. Mr Hanna said in anticipation of the supply of FLEGT licensed timber, there was a growing interest in the EU market in better understanding the systems, procedures and processes that result in the issuance of such a license. In this connection, there would be a visit to Ghana from representatives of EU trade associations and their membership to develop the understanding by coming to see for themselves how the system would operate. 'The decision to make this visit to Ghana is an acknowledgement of the progress that has been made here towards licensing,' Mr Hanna said. Dr Abebe Haile Gabriel Gebreyohannes, FAO Deputy Regional Representative for Africa and Country Representative to Ghana, commended government for the efforts and measures to improve the governance of the forest sector. He said the actions were bringing Ghana closer to fulfilling its commitment to implement the VPA and also bringing significant benefits to the population. Mr Gebreyohannes said eight new initiatives had been endorsed for funding in Ghana to support private-sector actions and implementation of the VPA in Ghana but the agreement being signed were for five projects. Three of these projects focus on helping the private sector to better understand and prepare to comply with the VPA requirements while the two other projects are being signed to support increased opportunities and capacity development for small-holders and artisanal millers to encourage legal production to meet the demands of markets. 'This event today demonstrates how FAO is working closely with the governmentto ensure that all of the support we can offer will have the greatest impact on the governance objective they have set for the VPA,' he said. Mr Samuel Afari Dartey, the Chief Executive of the Forestry Commission, said some policy issues that had remained intractable and which created stumbling block for the issuance of FLEGT license are almost resolved. He said the Commission was making sure that identified gaps were adequately addressed, not only for the purpose of issuing out legality licenses to the international market but that these technical and regulatory systems were improved to ensure better forest management and sector governance. 'At the end of the process, we want to be confident in declaring that Ghana's FLEGT licenses are issued from a well thought through and wholly credible legality assurance system,' Mr Dartey added. GNA 19.10.2016 LISTEN By Jerry Azanduna, GNA Bawku (U/E) Oct. 19, GNA - The Inter-Party Dialogue Committees (IPDCs) formed by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) in the Bawku have been charged with the responsibility of ensuring credible, free and fair elections in the area. The Committees were inaugurated on Thursday in three districts in Bawku and these included the Bawku Municipal, Pusiga and the Binduri District Assemblies. The Committees were formed to mediate on issues of concern between political parties and to act as a buffer zone in the constituencies to stem the emergence of conflicts among political parties and monitor any breaches of the rules regarding the electoral process. The IPDCs also have a duty to investigate cases of abuse of the rules and regulations and resolve petty conflicts and misunderstandings affecting the electoral process and would also embark on issuing of joint statements on political issues to defuse tension. The membership of the IPDCs consists of representatives of all registered political parties, civil society organizations, independent governance institutions, religious groups, the media and the security agencies. Mr Roland Azumah, the Bawku Municipal Director of the NCCE, said the IPDCs would be organizing interactive inter-party fora at the district, constituency and zonal levels to initiate and sustain dialogue for stakeholders in the resolution of conflicts. He said the IPDCs would focus on deepening the collaboration among the NCCE, Electoral Commission (EC), Political parties, the Youth, Security Agencies, District Assemblies, Traditional authorities and civil society in the promotion of non-violence. Mr Daniel Baya Laar, NCCE Director in charge of the Binduri District, asked the committees to live up the task mandated them as they were mediators of peace. Mr Kofi Owusu-Asante, the Electoral Commission Officer in charge of the Bawku Municipal, outlined the electoral offences to the committee members and said it was punishable by law if anyone committed any of those offences. Some of the electoral offences include double voting, attempt to vote when one is not a registered voter, to vote in the name of another person and the obstruction and interference with the work of the electoral officials among others. Superintendent of Police, John Kusorbgor, the Bawku Municipal Police Commander, said maintaining peace in the area is a collective effort and urged the people to be law abiding. He called on them to desist from using social media platforms to spread false information that may cause conflicts. GNA By Iddi Yire, GNA Accra, Oct. 19, GNA - The Ghana National Education Campaign Coalition (GNECC) has launched its report on political parties' electoral promises on education. The report dubbed: 'Civil Society Evaluation of Electoral Promises Under Education; Achievements, Challenges and Way Forward', seeks to track the implementation status of promises made in the 2012 National Democratic Congress's (NDC) Education Manifesto to assess the extent to which the manifesto promises have been fulfilled. It also evaluates the 2016 Manifesto promises of the NDC and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in relation to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the African Union's Agenda 2063, and the current educational needs of the country to ascertain the level of compliance. According to the GNECC, of the numerous political parties in Ghana, the NDC and NPP, were selected because, as at the time of conducting the study, they were the only political parties contesting the December 7 Polls, whose manifestoes had been launched. The Convention People's Party (CPP), which is also participating in the Polls, is yet to launch its manifesto on Sunday, October 23. The report's evaluation covers Early Childhood, Basic Education, Secondary, Teacher Development, and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET). Launching the report in Accra, Mr Bright Appiah, the GNECC Chair, said the manifestoes' assessment revealed that while most promises attempted to address various challenges in the education sector, a significant number of them were not linked to education priorities agreed on both national and international levels. He explained that failure to link the promises to international development frameworks like the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063, would have negative implications for the achievement of recommended goals and targets, which served as a guide for which strategic actions needed for the educational sector. He said with regard to the NDC 2012 Manifesto, the Coalition observed that there was a strong commitment by the NDC-led Government to expand access and improve the quality of basic, secondary and TVET. However, he said, some promises in the Manifesto were mostly not measurable and definitive, thereby making it impossible to evaluate. Mr Appiah noted that although Ghana was moving towards decentralised education management, none of the major political parties listed in its manifesto plans towards rolling out the Education Decentralisation Act, when passed into law. The GNECC Chair, on behalf of the Coalition, recommended that future manifestoes be more definitive, specific, measurable, realistic and had time-bound promises as well as a costing plans. He said the promises must take into account the available resources, more so when Ghana already committed more than five per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) into education. He, therefore, called for more emphasis on addressing improvement of learning outcomes and inequalities in the distribution of education facilities and resources. Mr Appiah also tasked political parties to consult civil societies in the development of manifestoes as that would ensure broader policy and strategic options for political parties in developing manifestoes. On the Methodology used in conducting the study, Ms Veronica Dzeagu, the GNECC National Coordinator, said in undertaking the research, the 2012 and 2016 Manifestoes of NDC and NPP and Education Policy documents were analysed. 'The relevant performance reports of government agencies and Ministries, global and regional frameworks for development of education SDGs and AU Agenda 2063 and other related relevant secondary data were also reviewed,' she said. She explained that the criteria used for the analyses included contextual relevance, practicability, measurability and compliance with the SDGs, in particular Goals Four and Five, Goals and Strategic priorities of Agenda 2063, and Ghana's own current education strategies. Ms Dzeagu said the report represented the findings of the assessment and makes recommendations on the priority areas to which attention should be given to develop education delivery as a way forward. The GNECC is a network of civil society organisations, professional groupings, educational/research institutions and other practitioners interested in promoting quality basic education for all. Formed in 1999, the Coalition has steadily grown over the years with a current membership of about 200 organisations. Its philosophy is premised on the fact that education is a fundamental human right and key to breaking the cycle of poverty. GNA By Samira Larbie, GNA Accra, Oct. 19, GNA - The World Health Organisation (WHO) Africa Region has honoured Professor Francis Kwesi Nkrumah for his distinguished and diligent role in Poliomyelitis eradication initiatives in Africa. Poliomyelitis (Polio) is a crippling and potentially deadly infectious viral disease which is caused by a virus transmitted by a person to person through fecal-oral route or by a common vehicle such as contaminated food or water. Prof Nkrumah was given three awards for having served on the Africa Regional Certification Committee (ARCC), honoured by the WHO Ghana office and also as one-time chairman of the Regional Task Force on Immunization (TFI). Dr Rose Leke, the Chairperson Africa Region of Certification Commission, speaking on behalf of the Regional Director at the ceremony, said the WHO country office had also taken the opportunity to honour Prof Julius Mingle, the Chairman of the National Task Force on Containment (NTF) and Dr Fred Wurapa Chairman of National Certification Committee (NCC). Polio eradication began globally after the resolution adopted during the 41st World Health Assembly meeting in May 1988 which called on countries to get rid of the disease by 2005, however, in Ghana the eradication initiatives began in 1996 till date. Prof Nkrumah through his relentless effort together with Dr Wurapa and Dr Mingle had brought the country to its current state alongside other African countries as far as polio eradication was concerned. Prof Nkrumah served as the Director of the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research from 1990 and 1998. Prior to his tenure at Noguchi Memorial, he was Professor and Academic Head of the Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Zimbabwe from 1983 to 1990. He taught medicine in the Department of Child Health, University of Ghana Medical School, beginning in 1969, and became Chairman of the department in 1980. His service as an advisor and expert to scientific and international groups is extensive. Prof Nkrumah serves as Chairman of the Taskforce on Immunization in Africa, WHO/AFRO, as a member of the Global Commission for Certification of Polio Eradication, WHO/Geneva, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, African Malaria Network Trust (AMANET). He also served at Dar el Salaam, as a member of the Governing Board, Medicines for Malaria Venture, (MMV), and Geneva; and as a member of the Strategic Advisory Council, Children's Vaccine Program at PATH, among others Prof Nkrumah's health sector interests are health research and health development, malaria and control of tropical endemic diseases, primary health care and child survival, Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI), and vaccine preventable diseases. Mr Stanley Diamenu, the Immunization Officer, WHO, said Ghana from 1996 till date reported a total of 45 mass polio vaccination campaigns throughout the country with a house-to-house strategy from 1996 to 2015 to accelerate the eradication process. He said through the 45 mass vaccination campaigns, 195,000,000 doses of oral vaccines had been administered to children aged 0-59 months with the support from WHO to facilitate the polio free certification process. Mr Diamenu said polio eradication efforts are satisfactory compared with some countries in the region. 'But with the global polio end game plan to introduce one dose of the inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) into the routine immunization programme is still standing though it has been put on hold briefly due to vaccine stock availability on the global market'. Prof Nkrumah expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service (GHS) for giving them the opportunity to serve and the ARCC for the honour than to them. Prof Nkrumah, who has now retired, said the country must maintain the success attained in the polio eradication campaign. GNA Accra, Oct. 19, GNA - Sixteen Ghanaians have been granted scholarships to pursue Master's Degree programmes in Australia under the Australia Awards Scholarship. A statement issued by the Australian High Commission, and copied to the Ghana News Agency, said the awardees were part of 144 beneficiaries selected from 11 African countries. It said the beneficiaries were scheduled to undergo a two-day workshop in Accra as part of activities to help them gain valuable advice on adapting to the new culture they were going to experience. The beneficiaries would also receive recommendation on excelling in their various courses, developing professional networks and linkages as well as assistance to use their newly acquired skills and knowledge to contribute to the development of Ghana at the completion of their studies. The statement said the Awardees would join a network of more than 290 Alumni who continued to make significant contributions in sectors critical to Ghana's economic development such as agricultural productivity, extractive industry and public policy. The activities would be climaxed with an evening reception hosted by Andrew Barnes, the Head of Mission at the Australian Embassy in Ghana. Members of Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) as well as Alumni and Ghanaian Government officials would be at the reception on Wednesday. Congratulating the beneficiaries, Mr Barnes said: 'The award recipients have demonstrated the leadership potential necessary to advance development in Africa. 'Indeed, we are delighted that through our Australia Awards programme, their talent and expertise will be nurtured and that they will be in a position, on their return home, to make an important contribution to national and regional development.' Australia Awards-Africa is a programme of the Australian Government that provides postgraduate training opportunities for African professionals. It provides equal opportunity to people regardless of gender, ethnicity or disability and encourages applications from women and persons with disability. The application process is open and competitive with the latest round of Australia Awards Scholarships and Short Courses, closing on 15th December, 2016 and 15th January, 2017 respectively. GNA Location: London Job Introduction BBC World Service Group is an international multimedia broadcaster, delivering a wide range of language and regional services on radio, TV, online and via wireless handheld devices. It uses multiple platforms to reach its weekly audience of 320 million globally, including shortwave, AM, FM, satellite, cable channels and digital platforms. BBC Thai on Facebook was launched in July 2014 to bring impartial and balanced news to Thailand where media has been censored following a military coup. To build on its success, a news site at BBCThai.com will be launched so to make our digital news offer more comprehensive and also to further strengthen BBCs position in a market of 67 million people. A team of journalists and producers in London and Bangkok are being recruited to report on the situation in Thailand for our audience of need in Thailand and Southeast Asia. Thai Service also specialises in using Facebook Lives for special reports, and raising debates about Thailand-related topics on Google Hangouts/YouTube and engaging with many forms of social media. This is a really exciting opportunity for a Multimedia Journalist to join BBC Thai. You will be using a range of multimedia tools for reporting in Thai in search of original news source and stories for relevant online and social media outputs. Main Responsibilities Reporting to the key Editors, you will be expected to search for news or interview original sources in Thailand and Southeast Asia to get stories for BBC Thai on a daily basis. Utilising your excellent journalistic skills and experience, you will suggest new angles on existing stories, move the story on and put forward new ideas appropriate to the Service and regions style and content. You will create original and exciting material for a range of multimedia outputs such as text stories, audio bulletins and video reports for both BBC Thai online and Facebook, or other social media platforms. Taking responsibility for studio production of live and pre-recorded programmes, as well as responding to breaking stories whilst on air and resolving technical difficulties is a key part of this role. Nairobi (AFP) - A British journalist arrested in Mogadishu while on a reporting assignment has been released by Somalian security forces, his employer Al-Jazeera said on its website Thursday. Hamza Mohamed was arrested on Tuesday along with a driver, fixer and cameraman. He had been in the country for a week. Somali authorities had earlier informed Al-Jazeera that they had detained the journalist but that he had not been charged with anything. Hamza Mohamed had frequently travelled to the country over the past few years from where he had reported "with accuracy and integrity", Al-Jazeera said in an online report. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) had said Hamza and his colleagues were arrested on their return from a trip outside the capital, during which they were suspected of visiting territory controlled by the radical Islamist group Shabaab to interview senior Shabaab leaders. "Journalists are constantly caught in the crossfire of the war between government forces and Al-Shabaab's armed militants. They are either the victims of deadly reprisals by the militants or they are arrested by the authorities on suspicion of collaborating with Al-Shabaab," said RSF. RSF said the arrest came just days after the detention of Abdi Aden Guled, editor-in-chief of the daily Xog-Ogaal who was arrested on Sunday and freed on Tuesday. Somalia is one of the most dangerous countries for journalists: 45 Somali reporters were killed between 2007 and 2015, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). The main threat is from Al-Qaeda linked Shabaab fighters trying to overthrow the internationally-backed government in Mogadishu, however authorities are also accused of numerous violations. RSF lists Somalia as 167th out of 180 countries in its 2016 press freedom index. Location: Bangkok Job Introduction BBC World Service Group is an international multimedia broadcaster, delivering a wide range of language and regional services on radio, TV, online and via wireless handheld devices. It uses multiple platforms to reach its weekly audience of 320 million globally, including shortwave, AM, FM, satellite, cable channels and digital platforms. BBC Thai on Facebook was launched in July 2014 to bring impartial and balanced news to Thailand where media has been censored following a military coup. Thai Service also specialises in using Facebook Lives for special reports, and raising debates about Thailand-related topics on Google Hangouts and YouTube and engaging with many forms of social media. Main Responsibilities We are recruiting for an experienced Senior Broadcast Journalist to work across the departments output specifically within Social Media. You will take full editorial responsibility of social media newsgathering operation in BBC Thai Service, by curating, generating and editing social media contents on bbcthai.com and all platforms, Facebook, LINE, Google+, Twitter and others , as relevant to Thailand. You will help form strategic editorial development of BBC digital offering in BBC Thai, working closely with BBC World Service Digital team to implement the Digital Roadmap and to contribute to the goal of reaching 500m weekly audiences by 2022. You will report to BBC Thai Editor and East Asian Digital Editor and work with all service editors and desk editors in the region. Your main responsibilities will include leading on the production, curation and distribution of all digital content, videos, and innovative editorial projects to serve Thai audience whilst ensuring BBC Thais social media newsgathering for digital content adheres to the standards of excellence and efficiency required of BBC World Service Group, and complies fully with the BBC's editorial guidelines and objectives You will be responsible for coming up with creative and innovative ways in storytelling and implementing them for BBC Thai especially for social media consumption. 1. Comments must not be racist, misogynistic, homophobic, or otherwise bigoted. 2. Comments must not involve little more than name-calling and insulting remarks. 3. Comments must not be made by "anonymous" or "unknown". 4. Comments must not try to sneak in some free advertising for themselves (like spam). I invite anyone who wishes to comment on this blog to do so. I enjoy the comments, whether you agree with what I have said or not. But some people want to abuse the right to comment, and since this is my blog, I have decided to lay down the following rules. If your comment violates these rules, it will not be published. The contract the Lincoln Atheists signed with Lamar Advertising called for the nonprofits billboard to go up outside of the combination Subway-Phillips 66 at 1648 South St. on Oct. 10. But a day earlier, the group's president, Brian Aden, was at the regular Sunday get-together at Meadowlark Coffee, and there it was. The Good Life without God? the sign reads. Its possible. Visit us at LincolnAtheists.org. According to Lamars statistics, the south-facing junior poster makes an average of 26,218 impressions a week. The text, printed atop an outline of the state of Nebraska, was set to be on display for a month. But then several people threatened to stop doing business at the gas station/store, and the sign's coming down early, according to correspondence between Lamars Lincoln general manager and the Lincoln Atheists. The group was told Tuesday. We are grateful for the work Lamar did for us and with us, but we are disappointed that we dont get an equal platform to share ideas, said Shawn Capler, marketing director of the atheist group. I think a group like ours is necessary because not everyone is religious, but I think everyone needs a community. Wed like to think that we provide community for those without any religious beliefs. The reason the group sought to advertise in the first place was to reach out to other atheists, said Aden. Our goal of course was never to upset any property owners or anything, he said. A day before he learned the billboard would be removed, Aden said reaction to the sign had been cordial, if limited. Surprisingly, we havent had as much feedback regarding our billboard as I expected, he said in an email on Monday. A few people had commented at LincolnAtheists.org that they were happy to see the sign. The groups Facebook page saw an uptick in members as well, Aden and Capler said. Aden said its likely that was driven by the billboard and by an article on a blog called the Friendly Atheist that has been shared this month. He said he'd gotten no negative comments about the sign. To us directly, we still havent gotten anything, Aden said Tuesday. The comments were made without ever bothering to contact us through our website. In some ways, its what I expected, to be honest. Our very existence is offensive to a lot of people. Scott Morton, general manager of Lamar's Lincoln branch, said the company must respect the wishes of landowners upon which the company leases space. At this point, were just going to refund them all of their money, even though they got some display time, he said. Morton said he and the companys staff consider free speech rights when making decisions on which organizations and companies with which they do business. They also balance those considerations with the possibility that the words on the billboards could offend passersby. Ive turned away so many messages over the last 28 years, I cant tell you, he said. In the case of the atheists billboard, the company rejected the first design submission -- a black background with the words Let God on it with the d crossed out, leaving the words Let Go visible. Soon after, the parties agreed on a second choice, the runner-up in a design contest voted on by the group's 24 members. My first choice would be to put it up somewhere else in Lincoln, Aden said. If thats not possible, were not upset at Lamar. Its unfortunate because I dont think theres anything offensive about it. Capler said the group, which incorporated as a 501(c)(3) in March 2015, will continue with its scheduled get-togethers and volunteer work. Members meet for coffee and board games and adopted a two-mile stretch of U.S. 79 near Raymond. This December, the Lincoln group and the Omaha Atheists (who put up a billboard in the summer of 2012), will have displays at the Capitol for the second-straight year. Capler said the paperwork has already been filled out. As for the billboard on private property, he said, his group is willing to let go. We have nothing to gain from that fight, Capler said. Thats beyond the scope of our organization. Were just a humble little nonprofit that wants to help people. Hai Dao, owner of the gas station, said Wednesday morning that he called Lamar on Tuesday because I had customers complain about it a lot. Prior to hearing the complaints from several of his regulars, he said, he hadnt given the ad much thought. I didnt pay attention to the sign, Dao said. I didnt know how long it had been there. In the 10-plus years he has owned, as well as worked at, the corner gas station, Dao said, he had never had shoppers threaten to take their business elsewhere because of a sign on the property. I want to make my customers happy, he said. I have my regulars, they say they love my business, but they dont like to see (the ad) out there. On Wednesday, Dao said one person had come into the store to express disappointment that the sign was removed. He said he has since considered removing the billboards altogether from the parking lot. October 19, 2016 Yosemite Realizes a Management Goal to Establish a Sister Park on Six Continents Yosemite National Park signed three new sister park agreements on Thursday, September 29, 2016 with Cumbres de Monterrey National Park in Mexico, Blue Mountains National Park in Australia, and Wadi Rum Protected Area in Jordan. Park officials joined Yosemite Acting Superintendent Linda Mazzu to sign a formal agreement between each park and Yosemite, which cemented a formal relationship as the National Park Service enters a second century of service. A goal of Yosemite National Park has been to strengthen international relations and to enhance the International Affairs program at Yosemite by establishing a sister park on six continents, excluding Antarctica. This allows Yosemite to share information and resources, learn from fellow Rangers and park managers across the globe, share best practices in park management, exchange technical assistance, and expand opportunities for collaboration in the areas of resource management. We are elated to formally welcome three new international sister parks, stated Mike Gauthier, Yosemite Chief of Staff and International Affairs Program Manager. We are excited to collaborate with our peers and bring Rangers from across the world together as we work to address many challenges facing parks and protected areas worldwide. Yosemite National Park has signed 15 sister park agreements with parks in 9 countries: Blue Mountains National Park - Australia, Torres del Paine National Park - Chile, Huangsham and Jiuzhaigou National Parks - China, Berchtesgaden National Park - Germany, Wadi Rum Protected Area - Jordan, Cumbres de Monterrey - Mexico, Lake Hovsgol and Tengis-Shishged National Parks, Ulaan Taiga, and Horidal Saridog strictly protected areas - Mongolia, Chitwan, Langtang, and Sagarmatha National Parks - Nepal, and Ngorongoro Conservation Area - Tanzania. This significant signing ceremony was the capstone event of Yosemites first International Symposium, titled Partners in Global Conservation. This event brought together over 60 people, including representatives from almost all of Yosemites sister parks, staff from Yosemite National Park, members of the Yosemite Gateway Community, and park partners including Yosemite Conservancy, Yosemite Hospitality, Global Parks, Nature Bridge, and Mongol Ecology Center. It also worked to build a stronger community of practice among rangers and park partners across the world. For a city so rich in history and tradition, its not so surprising Richmond, Virginia remained in the dark ages during the early stages of the craft beer movement. However, one bill quickly changed that. In the summer of 2012, a law passed in Richmond allowing breweries to finally serve customers pints in their tasting room, instead of the measly samples they had become accustomed to. Since then, a flood of breweries has opened their doors in the capital city. Despite the growth, the city is nowhere near a point of saturation. Each brewery has developed their own complementary niche with the styles they offer, fitting together like pieces of a puzzle. Working together, local breweries have formed the Richmond Breweries United, helping to make Richmond a destination for beer enthusiasts everywhere. Fifteen years ago, life-long friends Eric McKay and Patrick Murtaugh met up at Hardywood Park sheep station in Australia. At the end of each day, the two would wind down with a glass of the park owners amber ale. Little did they know that experience would forge their future. Ten years later, the farms owner gave Eric and Patrick permission to carry on the Hardywood name in the states. While they initially wanted to open their location farther south, they fell in love with Richmonds independent restaurant scene, thinking many restaurants would be willing to take a chance on craft beer. To Patrick there was a sense of adventure in the city. He thought it was small enough to make an impact, but big enough to make a name for themselves with the brand. So, they opened Hardywood Park Craft Brewery in Richmond in 2011. Over the last few years Hardywood has been at the forefront of the Richmond beer scene, pushing the boundaries with an array of styles, many of which use locally sourced ingredients. Patrick recalls the time a local came in with a huge piece of ginger he had been growing on his farm nearby. That experience would give birth to one of their most well-known beers, Gingerbread Stout (GBS). Be on the lookout in the next month for an announcement of what Hardywood plans to drop this December. Located a mile from the only location in America where three trains cross at a single point sits a brewery owned by three friends looking to bring their love for the West Coast IPA to their hometown. Even though Triple Crossing has been pumping out a range of styles for locals since opening in 2012, the group likes to focus mainly on their hoppy treats, which are their personal favorites. While you can swing by their tasting room located in downtown Richmond to try some of their brews on-site, keep an eye out for the opening of their Fulton location, which will feature a rotating menu, both crowlers and growlers, and four-packs to take home with you. If hoppy beers arent your thing, Triple Crossing is currently working on starting a barrel program, featuring spontaneously fermented beers aged in wine barrels. A lot has changed since An Bui first opened Richmonds true craft beer bar back in 1995, a Vietnamese restaurant called Mekong. An says you would have been hard pressed to find anything other than Sam Adams back then. Nineteen years later, An opened the Answer Brewpub, connected to the restaurant that started it all with a goal to not only provide his own beers, but also showcase the beer Richmond has to offer. Despite operating on such a small system (5bbl), An has quickly made a name for himself, especially with his hoppy beers, which are offered on-site and in crowlers to take home. However, one thing that makes the Answer Brewpub unique is the Andall, a system similar to the randall. Venture in to the back of the establishment to be greeted not only by a killer tap list, but the Andall menu, what An likes to call The Art of Adjuncts. This menu features 8-10 beers that An runs through his Andall system, which is similar to the Randall developed by Dogfish Head. But unlike the Randall, An runs his beer through a keg and then directly to the line. For those that arent looking to drink big beers, the Andall pumps out sours as well. Perhaps the most well-known name coming out of the Richmond beer scene right now is The Veil Brewing Company. A little over two years ago, co-owner Dustin Durrance was making regular trips up to Vermont to score some of his favorite beers when he was connected with Matt Tarpey, who had worked at The Alchemist, Hill Farmstead, and did an apprenticeship at Cantillon. The two quickly became friends through their shared love of great beer, and one day Dustin mentioned that if Matt was ever interested in opening a brewery in Richmond (Matt and his wife are from Virginia), it would be something he could make happen. Once Matt was on board, Dustin and co-owner Dave Michelow went into brewery mode, and 18 months later, The Veil was open. Located in an industrial area of Richmond, The Veil has made a name for itself through its hoppy beers, extending the reach of the northeast IPA down the coast. Its also home to one of the more eclectic tasting rooms youll see, sporting an industrial chic vibe, covered in concrete and punctuated with chandeliers, taxidermy, and a full glass mirror behind the bar. For those visiting the brewery, The Veil offers several beers on tap for on-site consumption. While growlers are not currently an option, cans are released on Tuesdays, and if youre lucky theyll last a few days. For those of you looking to see how Matts experiences at Hill Farmstead and Cantillon will shape his spontaneous beers, youre going to have to wait a few years. In the meantime though, swing by to enjoy a cold one; we promise you wont be disappointed. Opened in December 2012 by Jay Bayer and chef Adam Hall, Saison has created a location for visitors to not only grab an excellent meal or cocktail, but also, more importantly, a great beer. The 49-seat restaurant and bar located in Historic Jackson Ward offers an award-winning beverage program with 12 rotating draft lines that take seasonality and culinary pairing into consideration. For those looking for something a little more casual, or something to take home, check out the attached market/cafe Saison Market, which is fully stocked with interesting and delicious beer. Everything on the shelves or in the cooler is available to go, but if you want to stay awhile, the market also serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, as well as espresso from their full service espresso bar. The owners of Saison are more than proud to be the neighborhood place to grab an early coffee and a late beer. The Cask Cafe and Market has been serving locals with unique beers from around the country since the fall of 2013. While the Cafe serves wine and a select food menu that features local ingredients, their main focus is and has always been beer. Located just south of Carytown, also known as SoCA to the locals, Cask is the perfect setting for craft beer enthusiasts to grab a pint and hang-out. For those that are looking to grab some beers for the weekend, Cask was also one of the first bars in Richmond to offer visitors the option to take their beers home in growlers. Jason Stein is a New York-based beer nerd. You can find more of his writing on NYC Beer Society. Vogue has endorsed a presidential candidate for the first time in the history of the publication. On Tuesday, the fashion magazine endorsed Hillary Clinton for president. Editor-in-chief Anna Wintour has hosted several high-profile fundraisers for Clinton since she announced her candidacy. Vogue has also profiled Clinton on six separate occasions, including in December of 1998, when she was on the cover. This endorsement comes because of the incredibly high stakes the magazine feels this election brings with it. Vogue has no history of political endorsements, their endorsement says. Editors-in-chief have made their opinions known from time to time, but the magazine has never spoken in an election with a single voice. Given the profound stakes of this one, and the history that stands to be made, we feel that should change. The Trump family has also been featured in Vogue numerous times throughout the publications history. Melania Trump covered the February 2005 issue, which was an exclusive on her marriage to the current Republican presidential nominee. Vogue argues that Clinton, not Trump, is the candidate of hope for Americas future in bitterly divided times. Two words give us hope: Madam President, reads the piece. Women won the vote in 1920. It has taken nearly a century to bring us to the brink of a woman leading our country for the first time. Lets put this election behind us and become the America we want to be: optimistic, forward-looking, and modern. Read Vogues full endorsement here. Louisville postdoc elected to the Board of Directors for the National Postdoctoral Association By: National Postdoctoral Association Andrew Bankston, Ph.D., postdoctoral associate at the University of Louisville Contact Amy N. Wilson Office & Marketing Manager awilson@nationalpostdoc.org Amy N. WilsonOffice & Marketing Manager End -- The National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) has elected four individuals to the Board of Directors for the three-year term of service beginning on January 1, 2017: Andrew Bankston, Ph.D.; Tullia Bruno, Ph.D.; Chantelle Ferland-Beckham, Ph.D.; and Yvette Seger, Ph.D.Andrew N. Bankston, Ph.D., earned his doctorate in biochemistry, cell and developmental biology from Emory University in 2013, where he worked in the lab of Yue Feng, M.D., Ph.D. He is currently a postdoctoral research associate in the lab of Scott Whittemore, Ph.D., at the Kentucky Spinal Cord Injury Research Center at University of Louisville. His research focuses on the role of autophagy in developmental myelination and myelin repair after injury. He served as chair of the NPA Outreach Committee since February 2015. Locally, he is a member of the University of Louisville postdoctoral advisory board, bringing more resources to postdocs and increasing communication between postdocs. He is also a member of the planning committee for a local career seminar series (CRAFT) which hosts speakers to provide information on the wide range of potential career options for postdocs. In addition, he is a volunteer leader and member of event planning committees within the local chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. He utilizes interactions with members of the public within the society to explain the current issues faced by postdocs and their impact on the overall scientific enterprise.The directors were elected from a field of five candidates during the 2016 election, which ran from September 23, 2016 through October 7, 2016. The newly elected directors will join the following members of the Board: Tracy Costello, Ph.D.; Josh Henkin, Ph.D.; Juliet Moncaster, Ph.D.; Barbara Natalizio, Ph.D.; Marina Ramon, Ph.D.; Kate Sleeth, Ph.D.; and Jana Stone, Ph.D. The NPA's executive director, Julie Fabsik-Swarts, M.S., CFRE, CAP, serves as an ex officio member of the Board of Directors.-###-The National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) is a nonprofit, 501(c)3 educational association headquartered in Washington, D.C. Founded in 2003, the NPA seeks to provide a national voice for postdoctoral scholars; to facilitate positive change for postdocs; and thereby to advance the research enterprise in the United States. The NPA serves the postdoctoral community, including more than 3,400 individual members and some 200 institutional members. The NPA provides support to the postdoctoral community through resources, toolkits, professional development and networking opportunities. To learn more about the NPA, visit http://www.nationalpostdoc.org With this acquisition, Okanagan brand pellets will be available this fall to retailers exclusively from American Biomass. By: American Biomass Contact Rachel Cornell 1-800-BIOMASS (800-246-6277) ***@americanbiomass.com Rachel Cornell1-800-BIOMASS (800-246-6277) End -- American Biomass and Viridis Energy Announce Acquisition of Okanagan Wood Pellets by American BiomassBedford, New Hampshire - October 18, 2016 - American Biomass Corporation Inc., a leader in wood pellet distribution, has completed its purchase of Okanagan Wood Pellets from Viridis Energy, Inc. With this acquisition, Okanagan brand pellets will be available this fall to retailers exclusively from American Biomass."We are excited to add the Okanagan Wood Pellet brand for our wholesale customers," said David Nydam, CEO of New Hampshire based American Biomass. "Okanagan is one of the highest quality brands in New England with tremendous brand loyalty from both retailers and consumers. We are proud to be able to provide these super premium pellets to the retailers throughout New England and beyond.""Okanagan Pellets have been extremely popular with our retailers and consumers alike," said Christopher Robertson, CEO of Viridis Energy. "We are very pleased that American Biomass can now build on that history with the successful transition of Okanagan to them."American Biomass will begin offering these high quality softwood pellets to retailers immediately, just in time for the peak demand in wood pellets."Interest in this brand has been extremely strong" added David Nydam. "Retailers are delighted to have this strong brand with its strong consumer following on their shelves this winter."About American Biomass - American Biomass has been a leader in the distribution of quality wood pellets to small and mid-sized retailers throughout the eastern United States for the last ten years. The American Biomass team works closely with its retail clients - handling all delivery logistics, and ensuring wood pellet procurement is a simple, trouble-free experience. Dave Cox, Middleton Idaho DUI Analyst and Consultant, recently concluded multiple DUI Seminars in Virginia, helping DUI attorneys win more DUI cases. Contact Dave Cox ***@yourduipro.com Dave Cox End --Your DUI Pro, recently traveled to Virginia to present his well-received "Winning DUI Cases" Seminar. Dave visited Roanoke, Richmond, and Virginia Beach; Virginia to deliver the seminar to some of Virginia's best DUI attorneys. Dave Cox taught these Attorneys how to win DUI cases using NHTSA Manuals and advanced cross-examination techniques.The attorneys who attended Dave Cox's DUI Seminar, "Winning DUI Cases", had great things to say about their experience. Here are some testimonials from some of Virginia's best DUI attorneys:"Any attorney, experienced or not, who attempts to deffend a DUI, and who has not taken this course, is incompetent!"John Boswell - Crewe, Virginia"Excellent and informative. I feel better prepared to negotiate & try cases."Stephanie Pease - Abingdon, Virginia"This is the finest CLE course I have ever attended. A wealth of extremely useful information presented in an exciting and entertaining manner."Cameron W. Gilbert - Chester, Virginia"Very thorough and informative course."Steven Washington - Portsmouth, Virginia"Excellent - very useful & first rate material. I have used this seminar in the past in my cases successfully."John D. Hooker Jr. - Virginia Beach, VirginiaDave Cox, DUI Analyst and Consultant, has personally trained thousands of attorneys across the United States. Dave is a former police officer and, during his career, he was recognized as one of the top DUI officers in the country. As an officer, Dave Cox was certified as a Drug Recognition Expert, the highest level of training available to DUI enforcement officers. Dave now specializes in training attorneys how to easily and effectively use the officer, the officer's training, and the officer's NHTSA Manuals to win DUI Cases.In the upcoming weeks, Dave Cox will be presenting his DUI Seminar to attorneys in Washington, Idaho, Ohio, Nebraska, Louisiana, and California. Dave will be visiting the following cities:Richland and Spokane; WashingtonLewiston, IdahoDayton, Columbus, and Cincinnati; OhioGrand Island, Lincoln, and Omaha; NebraskaAlexandria, Baton Rouge, and New Orleans; LouisianaStockton, Bakersfield, and Fresno; CaliforniaTo register for upcoming seminars, please visit http://www.YourDUIPro.com/ seminars To learn more about Dave Cox and Your DUI Pro, please visit http://www.YourDUIPro.com Media Contact Dept. of Colorado Auxiliary Secretary/Treasurer ***@alacolorado.com 303-367-5388 Dept. of Colorado Auxiliary Secretary/Treasurer303-367-5388 End -- A Highlands Ranch Rock Canyon High School student, senior Sydney Marchando, has been selected to receive a $20,000 scholarship from the Samsung American Legion Scholarship Program.Sydney was sponsored by Unit 1260 Highlands Ranch to attend the 2016 Girls State Program. Sydney was a citizen of the city of Sunflower and her counselor was Marissa Sotomayor.The ALA Girls State is a premiere Americanism program that girls who have finished their junior year in high are able to attend. It is a one week course of intensive study in civics. They create their own city, county and state governments. They can campaign for political office and develop laws that are debated before the house and senate, just like on Capitol Hill.It was during attendance to at the Colorado Auxiliary Girls State in June 2016 that Sydney applied for the Samsung Scholarship.In 1966 the program was established when the worldwide electronics leader Samsung endowed a scholarship fund of $5 million to show its appreciation for U.S. veterans who came to Korea's aid during its struggle against communist forces during the Korean War. The American Legion administers the Samsung American Legion Scholarship Program, which is funded by the interest and other income from the endowment.Every year, $300,000 in Samsung American Legion Scholarships are awarded to nearly 100 American Legion Boys State and American Legion Auxiliary Girls State participants.Scholarship applications are restricted to high school juniors who attend the current session of either The American Legion Boys State or Auxiliary Girls State program and are a direct descendant - i.e. child, grandchild, great grandchild, etc. - or a legally adopted child of a wartime veteran who served on active duty during at least one of the periods of war officially designated as eligibility dates for American Legion membership.Winners are selected according to academic record, involvement in school and community activities, community service and financial need. Applicants who are direct descendants of Korean War veterans will receive special consideration.Samsung scholarships are for undergraduate study only and may be used for tuition, books, fees, and room and board.- -- -For More Information Contact Rhonda Larkowski, Department of Colorado Auxiliary - Secretary/Treasurer, phone: 303-367-5388 or Email:dept-sec@alacolorado.com Research shows region's companies more likely to suffer from cyber threats ME attacks average out at 85%, versus global average of 79% End -- Businesses in the Middle East are more likely to suffer from cyber attacks when compared to their global counterparts, says latest research. A recent report found the regional average for cyber attacks on businesses stands at 85%, compared to a global average of 79%. In line with the mounting need for cyber security in the Middle East, security intelligence and analytics firm LogRhythm will showcase its award-winning Security Intelligence and Analytics Platform at this year's installment of the GITEX Technology Week."Our primary focus is to spread awareness on the importance of innovative security intelligence and analytics. To stop attacks from resulting in a data breach or any other cyber incident, organisations need a unified view into all threats," explains Mazen Dohaji, regional director for the MENA region at LogRhythm. "Our platform detects emerging threats and neutralises them quickly and efficiently."Businesses operating within the Middle East are growing increasingly aware of the new threat landscape associated with digitisation. To bolster their cyber security capabilities and elevate the protection level of their critical information infrastructures, many are looking to step up their cyber security activities."Cyber security is an end-to-end challenge and it needs an end-to-end response. Companies in the Middle East need solutions well aligned with their businesses. Given the rapid growth of the digital ecosystem and connectivity, cyber security solutions need to be efficient, scalable and sophisticated,"adds Dohaji.LogRhythm's Security Intelligence and Analytics Platform uniquely unifies next-generation SIEM, log management, network and endpoint monitoring and forensics, and advanced security analytics. The security intelligence company will be showcasing at Exclusive Networks Middle East (Hall 1, D1-20), StarLink (Hall 1, D1-1) and Dubai Silicon Oasis (Zabeel Hall, Z-B20). PowerPlug Ltd, provider of PC Power Management solutions, is now a member of ISEA, an organization dedicated to supporting the growth of a local innovative Smart Energy industry and the adoption of Smart Energy solutions in Israel. PowerPlug Joins Israeli Smart Energy Association Contact Nimrod Yedaya, VP Customer Services ***@powerplugltd.com +1-646-7517797 Nimrod Yedaya, VP Customer Services+1-646-7517797 End -- PowerPlug Ltd, provider of PC Power Management solutions, announced today that it has joined the Israeli Smart Energy Association. ISEA strives to bring together innovators from the Smart Energy sector, creating a growing community that will work together to accelerate the adoption of Smart Energy solutions and the growth of the Smart Energy industry in the local sector.The Israeli Smart Energy Association is a non-profit organization that serves as a national platform, bringing together local and global Smart Energy players and stakeholders. ISEA's goal is to share knowledge, drive initiatives, and build partnerships through seminars, conferences & events, and by nurturing a strong networking community. "We are happy to join the growing list of ISEA members," said Eyal Yechieli, PowerPlug CEO, "we've found a strong local community in ISEA and we look forward to taking part in both their local and global Smart Energy initiatives and opportunities."In recent years ISEA has taken part in global energy events and conferences in Poland, India, Italy, Bulgaria, the United States, and more, and has offered members access to a growing global ecosystem, including cooperation opportunities with The Chinese-American Innovation Center for Energy and Transportation, UK Energy Innovation Centre, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, and others. In addition, ISEA has lead the creation of the first comprehensive database of Israeli companies in the Energy industry.The Israeli Smart Energy Association is a national association representing government, private entities and NGOs who share a common goal and interest in building and developing smart energy solutions in Israel, focusing on economic growth through a sustainable future. Founding members include The Israel Electric Corporation, IBM, Siemens, and Partner Communications. Visit http://www.isea.org.il to learn more.PowerPlug Ltd, founded in 2009, is a leading provider of PC Power Management solutions for medium to large organizations. The company's mission is to reduce the environmental and financial impact of PC power consumption, cutting organizational costs and carbon emissions without any interferences to IT operations or end-user productivity. PowerPlug's software solutions lead to savings of up to 60% in PC power costs and to a significant reduction of an organization's carbon footprint.The company's leading product, PowerPlug Pro, has already been implemented by organizations with as little as 200 PCs and as many as 40,000 PCs, including medical centers, financial institutions, IT companies, universities, government agencies and more. PowerPlug Pro also includes the patented Wakeup Portal, enabling network administrators and end-users to easily turn on PCs remotely from any power state, including shutdown. Visit http://www.powerplugltd.com to learn more about PC Power Management solutions and green energy savings for businesses. Travelers now have a new option in the eco-adventures market thanks to the Eco Alternative Tours company. By: Eco Alternative Tours Contact Daniela Ramirez ***@ecoalternativetours.com Daniela Ramirez End -- Travelers now have a new option in the eco-adventures market thanks to the Eco Alternative Tours company. The company features unique and intriguing tour options in Copper Canyon, Mexico. Travelers can choose to take part in guided hikes, day trips, and stay tours and treks, all of which immerses them into the culture.Eco-Alternative Tours was started by Chunel and Daniela, who wanted to show what life is actually like in this rather mysterious region of Mexico. The tours take a look at the indigenous people found in the Sierra who are called the Raramuri. Participants on the tours will learn about the Raramuri's beliefs, culture, and language.The Raramuri people celebrate all the simple things in life and take a nature-based approach. They believe in living in a way that doesn't affect nature negatively. The idea behind these tours is that travelers experience something that they can then take back to their everyday life. It's about taking travelers deeper and really immersing them in the culture of the region.Daniela and Chunel are more than just the owners of the company they also have a strong interest and knowledge of the Copper Canyon region. They each spent time teaching workshops and art to Raramuri children who had moved to the city. The idea was to teach these children so that the skills of the Raramuri people wouldn't be lost.Chunel himself is Raramuri, which sheds all kinds of light on the tours he leads. Daniela is an anthropologist who has studied in the region. Because the tour groups they lead are small, it is a relaxed and inclusive environment where travelers are encouraged to ask questions and really delve into the culture. Some options can even be customized to fit the travelers' requests/interests.In order to give back to the Raramuri people and the Tarahumara culture, a portion of the tour sales are given back to the Raramuri.Eco Alternative Tours is currently in the running to win a rather prestigious award - the UIAA Mountain Protection Award. This internationally recognized award is given to a company or project that supports "sustainable tourist practices" within mountain regions.To learn more about the various stay tours, day tours, hiking, and the Tarahumara culture, be sure to visit Eco Alternative Tours ( http://www.ecoalternativetours.com/ ) website, or contact them at USA: 805 824-4413 or MEXICO: +52 (635) 116-6534. NioCorp Developments Ltd., the mining company that wants to extract rare metals from a site near Elk Creek, is making plans to build a pipeline that will drain its underground mine of naturally occurring saltwater and pump it into the Missouri River. The plans have set off alarm bells for environmental groups and people who depend on the river for their livelihoods, like Scott Mansker, who organizes the worlds longest non-stop river race on the river from Kansas City to St. Charles, Missouri. While no permit applications have been filed, NioCorp is getting its ducks in a row, meeting with state and federal regulatory agencies, as well as county elected officials. Were taking a careful and measured approach here, making sure we talk to everyone before we start submitting applications, said Scott Honan, Niocorps mining engineer. NioCorp wants to mine niobium, titanium and scandium. Once it's up and running, the operation would produce a pre-tax cash flow of $438 million a year. NioCorp is working on a feasibility study and confident it will have the money to get it done. The study will be shown to lenders and investors in hopes of raising the nearly $1 billion to build and operate a mine and processing facility about 70 miles southeast of Lincoln. NioCorp officials previously said the company hoped to begin construction by the end of this year, but spokesman Jim Sims said Monday mid-2017 is looking more likely. NioCorp will need to continuously drain underground water from the surrounding bedrock to keep the mine from flooding. The water is naturally brackish and locked beneath 500 feet of impermeable limestone, according to NioCorp. The water has a salt content of about 18,000 milligrams per liter, which is about half of seawaters average of 35,000 mpl. Once mixed with the Missouri River, the water will be diluted, reaching fresh-water quality within less than 5,000 feet of where it discharges into the river, NioCorp says. Mansker, who gets his drinking water from the Missouri and depends on its recreational quality for the annual paddle race, said the water would add to the many pollutants flowing into the river. On the surface, it doesnt sound like a lot of water," he said. "But its just one more pipe, one more burden on this drinking water resource we all share. Its a death by 1,000 cuts. They are a for-profit company. Theyre looking for the cheapest way to get rid of this wastewater, and the cheapest way is to dump it in the Missouri River and never hear about it again. NioCorp estimates it will increase the average chloride content of the Missouri by approximately 5 parts per million from 25 to 30 milligrams per liter, well below the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys acute limit for chloride in freshwater systems, which is 860 milligrams per liter, and EPAs chronic limit for chloride in freshwater systems, which is 230 milligrams per liter, the company said. Plans call for the pipeline to run east from the mine site along the Johnson/Pawnee County line, then make a short jog north into Nemaha County, ending at the Missouri River Oxbow just downstream of the Little Nemaha River confluence. Mansker said he also worries the water could become contaminated with water used in the process of extracting metals from rock. NioCorp spokesman Jim Sims said that wont happen. Plans call for keeping the bedrock water and processed water streams separate. Most water for processing will be recycled, but all excess will be treated and discharged in accordance with all applicable federal and state standards, he said. How exactly it would be disposed of is not yet known because officials are still in the planning process. Jane Kleeb, founder of watchdog group Bold Nebraska, said Nebraskans will be watching and urged NioCorp to be open with its plans. "Any time a corporation wants to dump polluted water into our rivers, citizens must see in writing the plan to ensure our drinking water is not at risk and what the process is to see the test results," she said. "The NioCorp project is known for their initial community outreach so we hope transparency and accountability continues. NioCorp hopes to build the 30-mile pipeline along existing roads, using as many existing rights of way as possible to minimize the amount of leases it must get from private landowners. The company would have to cross some private land. The 24-inch diameter pipeline would move 9,500 gallons per minute. County board members have said theyre open to the idea of using rights of way but want to see more details. The mine proposal has been popular in Southeast Nebraska, with many locals investing in the startup. Nemaha County Commissioner Marvin Bohling said the mine would boost the area economy, and the pipeline would provide tax dollars for local governments. By that, you should be supporting it, he said. Well probably go to some public input or farmer input before making a final decision (on right of way), but I dont see any big major problems with it as of now. Blockchain powered Ecocoin won the first H4ckEnergy hackathon in Groningen, Netherlands by building an IBM Hyperledger energy grid for consumers buy and sell energy. By: Stichting Hackitarians Media Contact Stichting Hackitarians ***@hackitarians.com +31639583979 Stichting Hackitarians+31639583979 End -- After a full weekend and 48 intense hours of collaboration, excitement and solution-finding, the best idea according to a jury of industry experts was a project called EcoCoin at Hackenergy 2016.The hackathon was sponsored by ENGIE Nederland, Energy Academy Europe, the City and Province of Groningen - and backed by Groningen's IBM Client Innovation Center (CIC)."It was a great event, bringing the energy transition where it belongs: with people who want to work on our future, and a great way to connect knowledge, innovation and business. We look forward to welcoming new energy business ventures and to hosting a following edition!" stated Maurits Alberda, Manager Entrepreneurship & Innovation at Energy Academy Europe.Brendon Geils (USA), Simon Appel (Germany) and Hodge Hodgson (Germany) - the three hackers from the winning team, built a Blockchain-fueled peer-to-peer (P2P) energy trading system on the open source Hyperledger Blockchain managed by the Linux Foundation of which IBM is a significant partner.Similar to other projects that have been worked on for over a year, such as the Transactive Grid being built by LO3 Energy and ConsenSys in the USA, EcoCoin was constructed in 25 hours as the team spent the first day brainstorming and formulating the idea."The first night we spent the entire night brainstorming then by 11am the next day we conceived the idea," said Brendon Geils, one of the hackers. "At that point we had 25 hours left to hack - and we did it in the next 25 hours.""The use cases are various," stated Hodge Hodgson, "One is that we can bring individual producers and consumers of energy, whether that be solar or be that from combined heat and power or whatever source together and the other one is that we can whitelabel the tool for intermediaries like the utilities in order to have their foot in the door and keep customer retention."It was unsure at press time if the team would take the 5000 euro cash prize or alternatively opt to enter the startup accelerator programme called Energy Venture Lab/Startup Fast Track, backed by energy multinational ENGIE, Groningen University/VentureLab North, Hanze UAS and the Province of Groningen.But they do plan to attend Ultrahack 2016 in Helsinki in November - an international hackathon league with winners from more than a dozen other hackathons in Europe competing for a share of over one million euro in investment funds. This was arranged by Hacked in Groningen Hackathon League in partnership with Futuretournaments Oy in Finland and the Ecocoin team will receive a 1000 euro grant for travel, accommodation as well as tickets to attend the Slush festival after Ultrahack - one of the largest tech events in the Nordics.Richard Kastelein, from Stichting Hackitarians who organised the event said that Ecocoin's project was amazing and deserved to win as they really had a working prototype at the end of the event."There is a lot of fresh innovation being done in the area around peer to peer energy trading, Blockchain, AI and Iot," stated Kastelein. "And these digital nomads really grabbed onto the concept, ran with it and nailed it."Hackers from Germany, Spain, USA, UK and the Netherlands attended the event, held in Groningen, an Hanseatic student city in the Northern Netherlands and there were nine presentations in total at the end of the event.Best Design was won by Hack the Truck, Best Technology was won by Joris and Best Commercial Concept was won by UU-IoT with their James Project - and all received 400 euro in cash prizes for their work.H4ckenergy 2016 brought together the challenges faced by the world in the transition of energy with the people who have the passion and ability to solve them. Participants gathered for 48 hours to engage in a energy-related problem solving pressure cooker and workshop.The event was held at the Energy Barn on the Hanzehogeschool campus at the Energy Transition Centre (EnTranCe) and sponsored by ENGIE Nederland, Energy Academy Europe, Gemeente Groningen and the Province of Groningen, H4ckenergy was fueled by IBM and organised by Stichting Hackitarians (foundation)and part of the Hacked in Groningen hackathon league.See event website at http://www.h4ckenergy.comVideo https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=R_PijZJAe4s Press Contact: Richard Kastelein, Stichting Hackitarians, weare@hackitarians.com Castellum AB (publ) has sold 21 properties in Malmo and 7 properties in Lund. Sale price totalled 92.11m (SEK 893m), after transaction costs and deferred assessed taxes of 4.54m (SEK 44m), which is in line with the latest valuation. The properties are to be vacated by December 1st, 2016. The r... [] Clothing retailer Kenvelo opens this month a 156 sqm outlet store within Fashion House Outlet Centre Bucharest. The lease transaction reaffirms the maturing evolution of the Romanian retail market, with Kenvelo being the 11th new brand that joins the scheme since the beginning of the year. The new lease agreement [] Marriott Internationals new agreement with Chandris Hotels will mark the return of the Marriott Hotel brand to the vibrant city of Athens, following an absence of more than two years. Once the hotel completes its 13.65 million ($15 million) transformation, the Athens Marriott Hotel will debut in 2018 with 366 [] Purpose-built for customers in developing countries like India, Thailand, Indonesia, South Africa, Philippines, etc, Honda Brio was first launched back in 2011. After a long wait, Honda has finally decided to give the small hatchback a mid-life facelift, before a new generation Brio is launched by 2019/20. The facelift variant gets much-needed changes on the outside and the inside, giving the Brio a better chance to compete with rivals like Maruti Swift, Hyundai Grand i10, etc. We were in Delhi recently to test drive the new Honda Brio and here is our brief review. Exteriors In the front, new Honda Brio gets the same updates as seen on the facelifted Amaze sedan which was launched in India earlier this year. This is in the form of a new bumper, which gives the car a much sportier look than before. You also get headlight cluster with blackened border, new front grille finished in hi-gloss black with a thin chrome lip, and foglights. The side view more or less remains the same, except for the addition of new alloys, and of ORVM with turn indicators. At the rear, new Brio gets a revised tail-lamp design and an edgy tailgate spoiler. Overall, the car looks much more attractive than before. It also seems to have a larger road presence, thanks to the bulkier bumpers. Interiors Much has changed on the inside of the new Honda Brio facelift. For starters, the entire dashboard has been replaced by a more classy and premium unit which is finished in all black with faux carbon fiber as well as brushed aluminium inserts. The center dash which houses the controls to air-condition unit, as well as to the music system, is finished in piano black. The instrument panel is now a singly unit which houses three dials, unlike the three seperate pods like in the older Brio. Thanks to a larger instrument console, it is easier for the driver to access vital data while driving. Seats, Space & Comfort Dimensions of the new Brio facelift remains same as before, so does the seating and storage compartments. Front seats offer good thigh and back support. Driver seat is height adjustable. Rear seats could offer decent legroom, but could have offered more thigh and back support. Rear seats get short integrated headrests, which are not comfortable for taller passengers. Air condition takes time to cool the cabin. Speaking about storage spaces, there is enough space in door pockets, glove box, and near the gear lever to store bottles / glasses / cups and other items. Boot space is at 175 liters, which is enough to fit in two small suitcases along with some duffle bags. Engine, Transmission & Mileage New Honda Brio comes with the same engine option as before. This is in the form of a 1.2 liter iVTEC four cylinder mill which generates max power of 88 PS @ 6600 rpm and peak torque of 109 Nm @ 4500 rpm. Transmission options on offer are 5 speed manual as well as a 5 speed AT. Brio Manual delivers a claimed fuel efficiency of 18.5 kmpl, while the Brio AT delivers 16.5 kmpl. During our test drive, we managed to achieve fuel efficiency of 12 kmpl and 10 kmpl respectively. Features & Safety Electric Power Steering Digital AC Control with Max Cool Function Central Locking Keyless Entry Tilt Steering Power windows Power Foldable Door Mirrors with Turn Indicator Light Full Size Steel Wheel Spare Tyre Electrically Adjustable Door Mirrors Rear Parcel Shelf Engine Immobilizer Dual SRS Front Airbags ABS with EBD Front Seat Belt Pretensioner with Load Limiter Day/Night Inside Rear View Mirror Driving Dynamics With mechanics of the car remaining same as before, there is not much difference as to how the new Brio drives as compared to the old one. The peppy 1.2-liter petrol engine feels at home in the 2500-3500 rpm range. As usual, red-lining this machine is way too much fun than any other car on offer in the segment. Steering wheel is very light and delivers decent response. The car fares well while driving in the city as well on the highways. Cruising at triple digit speeds is done without a sweat. The car maintains its composure at high speeds very well. What gives a bad ride experience is potholes and bumps, which unsettle the Brio very easily. The light-weight Brios suspension thuds once too often. Other than that, the suspension works wonderfully. Be it uneven highways, or taking on those fast corners. Brio manages all very well. Verdict Since the time Honda first launched Brio, many new cars have been launched in the segment. Some offer more equipment, some offer more space, while some offer a lower price tag. In spite of this, Honda Brio has managed to survive in the industry for more reasons than one. In bigger cities, when you are stuck in traffic jams, or looking for those small parking spaces, Brio works wonderfully for you. And thanks to the Honda badge, society does not look down upon you if you arrive in a Brio. In addition to this, Brios design is open to some fantastic mod-jobs, which will make the car look even cooler. Just have a look at the Brio RS which is on sale in Indonesia. What we expect to be improved is rear passenger comfort, and an option to buy Brio diesel. With Amaze and Mobilio based on the Brio platform, it should not be much of a trouble to offer diesel engine on the Brio. But somehow Honda has no plans to launch a Brio diesel, at least for now. RushLane Rating [wp-review id=210244] The existence of microbial life on Mars remains highly controversial, but recent evidence of water, complex organic molecules, and methane in the Martian environment, combined with findings from the 1976 Viking mission, have led to the conclusion that existing life on Mars is a possibility that must be considered, as presented in an article in Astrobiology. In "The Case for Extant Life on Mars and Its Possible Detection by the Viking Labeled Release Experiment," coauthors Gilbert V. Levin, Arizona State University, Tempe, and Patricia Ann Straat, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD (retired), clearly outline the evidence to support the "biological hypothesis," which argues that the results of the 1976 Viking Labeled Release experiment were positive for extant microbial life on the surface of Mars. Further, Drs. Levin and Straat evaluate the "non-biological hypotheses" to explain the Viking results, which many scientists support, but the authors conclude that the experimental evidence supports a biological explanation and the likelihood that microorganisms were able to evolve and adapt to be able to survive in the harsh conditions of the Martian environment. "Even if one is not convinced that the Viking LR results give strong evidence for life on Mars, this paper clearly shows that the possibility must be considered," says Chris McKay, PhD, Senior Editor of Astrobiology and an astrobiologist with NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA. "We cannot rule out the biological explanation. This has implications for plans for sample return from Mars and for future human missions." Information could be the key to winning the race against antibiotic resistance. If we lose, a UK-funded analysis predicts a frightening future where drug resistant bacterial infections kill more people worldwide than cancer. The lack of progress in creating "new drugs for bad bugs" (a term coined by the European Commission's Innovative Medicines Initiative) is due, in part, to a lack of information -- especially in one particular area known as translocation. Translocation is the action an antibiotic must take to penetrate the outer membrane of a bacterial cell in order to reach -- and destroy -- its target. In Escherichia coli (E. coli), for example, the OmpF channel (porin) provides a translocation pathway for small molecules, water, and ions inward and outward through the outer membrane. So, which compounds are able to penetrate the outer membranes of bacteria, and which ones cannot? That, according to Wonpil Im, is the mystery. Solving such a mystery by amassing the necessary information is especially important when it comes to the "Big Bads" of bacterial infections known as Gram-negative pathogens like "superbugs." These are the bacterial species that are resistant to multiple drugs and are increasingly resistant to most available antibiotics. The infections that result can be lethal. A few examples: some strains of the Gram-negative pathogen E. coli can cause serious food poisoning and certain strains of the Gram-negative bacteria called Vibrio cholera cause cholera, an infectious -- and often fatal -- disease of the small intestine. Im, professor of biological sciences and bioengineering and Presidential Endowed Chair in Health -- Science and Engineering at Lehigh University (Bethlehem, PA), is an expert in molecular simulation systems, which are very useful in the quest to solve such mysteries and provide the crucial missing information. His CHARMM-GUI, a web-based graphical user interface designed to model complex biomolecular systems, aids in simulation design to produce models that usually require considerable experience and time (even several weeks) in just a few minutes or hours. Now, through modeling and simulation, Im and his team have revealed the bilayer properties of 21 distinct Lipid A types from 12 Gram-negative bacterial species. Im and his colleagues from the University of Kansas, University of Maryland and Stockholm University investigate the differences and similarities of the membrane properties such as the area per lipid, the hydrophobic thickness, and acyl chain order. In addition, different neutralizing ion types (Ca2+, K+, and Na+) were considered, to examine the ion's influence on the membrane properties including lipid diffusion coefficients, ion residence times, and compressibility modulus that are experimentally comparable. Their results have been published today in an article in Biophysical Journal titled: "Bilayer Properties of Lipid A from Various Gram-negative Bacteria." Lipid A is one of three regions that make up lipopolysaccharides (LPS), an integral component of the outer leaflet of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria where they function as a shield and barrier to environmental threats to the bacterium. It is the LPS that make the outer membrane more impermeable to antibiotics. So, understanding and then manipulating LPS membrane stability could be an effective way to develop new Gram-negative antibiotics. Lipid A is the anchoring region of LPS -- and is responsible for the toxic effects of Toxic Shock Syndrome and sepsis. "The more information we can provide about the properties of the outer membrane of these so-called 'bad bugs,' the quicker researchers can determine which compounds might penetrate and effectively target a specific protein -- even turn it off," said Im. From the study: ." ..the resulting characteristics of different Lipid A obtained in this study form a basis toward the modeling and simulation of the outer membranes (with and without outer membrane proteins) of various Gram-negative bacteria. In particular, all Lipid A models in this study are available through LPS Modeler in CHARMM-GUI, so that these models can be used to further our understanding of the structure, dynamics, and function of various bacterial outer membranes." "My dream," he adds "is that one day pharmaceutical companies could come to my lab with 100 compounds with the potential to kill a given Gram-negative bacteria and ask: which ones should we try? And we could tell them." To advance this notion, Im has assembled a workshop titled "Workshop to Take Aim at Bacteria" to take place at Lehigh University on November 18, 2016. The workshop is designed to bring experts in research and policy (including a leader in the Innovative Medicines Initiative) to help speed antibiotic drug development. Paleontologists from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the National Park Service found the first dinosaur bones in Denali National Park during an expedition in July. They also discovered several new dinosaur trackways, which are fossilized impressions left by ancient animals walking through mud that eventually became rock. Pat Druckenmiller, curator of Earth sciences at the University of Alaska Museum of the North, is leading a collaborative project with Denali National Park over the next several years to explore additional areas and make new discoveries. "This marks the beginning of a multi-year project to locate, document and study dinosaur fossils in Denali National Park," Druckenmiller said. "This is a world-class site for tracks of dinosaurs and other animals that lived in Alaska during the Cretaceous Period. Now that we have found bones, we have another way to understand the dinosaurs that lived here 70 million years ago." The research team found four different fragments, including one ossified tendon. The largest is a few inches long. They are clearly parts of bigger bones from a large animal. This rules out other animals with a backbone known from this geological period, including mammals, birds and even flying reptiles. Because they are parts of much bigger bones, Druckenmiller expects more complete remains may be found in the park. "Finding these bones opens a new chapter in the story of Denali dinosaurs," he said. "That story is still being written as we find new sites, new kinds of dinosaurs and evidence of their behavior." Before 2005, there was no known dinosaur record in Denali. That year, UAF students discovered the first track in the Cantwell Formation near Igloo Creek. Since then paleontologists have catalogued thousands of tracks. Still, this is the first time scientists have found identifiable bones left by animals that populated the area during the Late Cretaceous Period. advertisement Park geologist Denny Capps said Denali National Park was created to protect the present intact ecosystem 99 years ago. "We now know that it protects an ancient ecosystem, as well," Capps said. "Visitors could discover a fresh bear track next to a 70-million-year-old dinosaur track or potentially even a bone. Thankfully, these resources are protected within the Denali wilderness for all to enjoy." Heather MacFarlane, a UA Museum of the North research assistant, discovered the first bone. She and other researchers recognized the fragments as bones rather than sedimentary material based on the surface and internal structure. These fossils closely resemble other plant-eating dinosaur bones found in Alaska. Paleontologist Cassi Knight, physical science technician for Denali National Park, was with MacFarlane when the discovery was made. "It is significant because it answers a question that has been standing for the past 11 years; 'Are there dinosaur bones preserved in the Cantwell Formation?'" Knight said. "We have a great record of dinosaurs inhabiting this area, and now we finally know that their bones are preserved, too." Gregory Erickson, a Florida State University researcher who specializes in the use of bone and tooth histology to interpret the paleobiology of dinosaurs, was also part of the discovery team. He is preparing thin sections of some of the fossils. Scientists can examine these delicate slices under high-powered microscopes to determine the type of animal that left the bones behind. Annual growth lines and other patterns can also reveal the animal's age. Based on the shape and structure of the fossilized tendon discovered by the team, Erickson and Druckenmiller determined that it is from a large ornithopod dinosaur, probably a hadrosaur. These duck-billed, herbivorous dinosaurs were probably the most abundant large animals in Alaska. They were also the primary track-makers in the park during this time period. Another larger fragment is composed of spongy bone originating from the end of a large animal's limb. This microstructure shows the bone didn't come from a crocodile or other slow-growing, cold-blooded animal. It is clearly from a medium-sized to large dinosaur, they said. Druckenmiller and Erickson previously published documentation suggesting that during this time period, a distinct, polar fauna existed in what is now Alaska. Then, a polar forest covered the Arctic because the climate was much warmer. The dinosaurs had to contend with months of winter darkness and cooler temperatures than environments typically associated with dinosaurs. Mount Maunganuis Woods the Creative Agency have won bronze in the inaugural Public Good category at the 2016 Best Design Awards. The creative agency received receiving special attention for its collaboration with Priority One on the Young Innovator Awards programme. Woods was recognised for its design of an interactive dart stand display which aimed to get children engaged and stimulated by innovation in the simplest, most cost-effective way. The stand was visited by more than 2,500 Tauranga children in five days resulting in a record number of entries to the Young Innovator Awards, now in its seventh year. Woods was also a finalist in the Environmental Graphics category at Australasias premier design awards, cementing their place as the Bay of Plenty and regional New Zealands most awarded independent brand agency. Creative director Reuben Woods is pleased with the award. Obviously were pretty stoked about it. For us it confirms our position as the leading regional agency in New Zealand, and our philosophy of being world-class in the Bay of Plenty. Reuben says the idea was simple but effective, cutting to the heart of the message, which is what their agency is about. Were quite proud of educating the youth of the region about innovation with such a simple idea. Its a nice alignment working with other innovative businesses in the Bay, when we see ourselves in that light too. The Designers Institute of New Zealand 2016 Best Design Awards were held at Auckland Viaduct Events Centre on October 14. On a sunny, warm day last week, a couple of chickens stepped into a grassy yard and basked in the sun. The feces that stained their feathers had been washed away. Their little feet touched the ground like it was the first time feeling grass beneath them. Rebecca Moore Then they curled up under Rebecca Moore, one of several people who saved them from a brutal fate. And they purred. This browser does not support the video tag. Rebecca Moore "Chickens do purr," Moore tells The Dodo. "And these little ones are adjusting to being loved and cared about." No, this isn't chicken heaven. It's a small cottage in Woodstock, New York, where Moore is taking care of a couple of chickens named Buckles and Pancakes after a network of animal lovers managed to slip them away from a street-side slaughter. Dodo Shows Pittie Nation The Sweetest Pittie Was Living Under A Jeep Rebecca Moore Life couldn't have taken a more unexpected turn for these two chickens, who only days earlier were earmarked for slaughter in the kapparot ceremony - a traditional Jewish rite that involves swinging a chicken over one's head to absolve people of their sins, before slaughtering the bird. Rebecca Moore Every year, there are a few chickens who are too sick to even be sacrificed. They're typically abandoned on the sidelines. Rebecca Moore Buckles' toe had been torn off, likely during transit when crates of birds are stacked high. She couldn't stand on her own, leaving her little more than a heap of toppled feathers. And Pancakes was hardly in much better shape. Animal lovers often stand at the sidelines at kapparot ceremonies, hoping they might be able to save even one chicken. Moore managed to take both Buckles and Pancakes to her home in Woodstock. Because of the way these chickens, called broilers, are stacked, their droppings fall on each other, deeply staining their feathers. Rebecca Moore And Buckles, who was missing a toe, had to find a new way to stay on his feet. Moore recommissioned an old walker, transforming it into a chicken sling. Rebecca Moore Buckles took to it instantly. Rebecca Moore Then there's the matter of caring for chickens who were bred, and genetically manipulated to be nothing more than a meal. "They become so big and heavy that they literally can eat themselves to death," Moore says. "It's not like other chickens who you can leave food out for them to graze on. They have to be fed very specific portions. They can very quickly grow to be too heavy to support their own weight and they have zero immune system." Rebecca Moore Little by little, these chickens gained strength. The only thing they didn't seem to need was faith. Despite what they had been through, Buckles and Pancakes embraced the people who saved them. "These animals have been through such horrible stuff but within moments, they trust you and go to you for trust and support. They are incredibly forgiving," Moore says. At night, the chickens sleep inside, under a neon rooster sign. Rebecca Moore And then there came that first, brilliant day in the grass. Rebecca Moore "They were still injured but it was a sunny warm day, and I wanted to grab it," Moore says. "I took them outside and they only knew me for all of two days, and now when I sit outside, the little one just collapses with her head on my leg." Rebecca Moore If there's a lesson in saving just a couple of chickens, it's that Buckles and Pancakes offer a shining example of how even the most downtrodden souls can blossom under the sheltering sky of compassion. "They can actually live pretty good lives and be happy, free and loved," Moore says. Rebecca Moore

Amber Cooper

Isaac Cooper was never a big fan of goats. He always thought they were kind of dirty ... and dare he say, kind of dumb. Then in 2014, everything changed. Amber Cooper Cooper and his wife, Amber, made plans to move to a rural property outside of Seattle, Washington. The owner used to have goats there, and the property was set up with a pasture and goat shed. The owner invited them to attend an open house at Puget Sound Goat Rescue, a nonprofit organization that rescues and cares for unwanted goats in Washington state. "We weren't intending to do anything more than see the goats at the rescue," Cooper told The Dodo. "But while we were there, one young goat got my attention and pretty much forced himself into my lap." Amber Cooper Something about the goat wriggled his way into Cooper's heart ... Dodo Shows Comeback Kids Family Stops At Nothing To Help Their Great Dane Run Amber Cooper ... and by the end of the day, Cooper knew he wasn't going home without him. Amber Cooper "What we always look for is to have an animal pick us, so when he got into my lap, it was like him saying, 'I want to come home with you,'" said Cooper. "So that's what sealed the deal for me." Amber Cooper This first goat, whom Cooper named Oliver, was soon followed by Otis, Charlie and Lily. More recently, the couple adopted two baby goats, Winston and Patrick. Amber Cooper Every goat (with the exception of Lily) was rescued from a local goat dairy farm, where female goats are forced to get pregnant to produce milk. When they produce female babies, these babies are raised to be dairy producers themselves. But the male babies are considered "waste products," and they're usually sent to slaughter. Puget Sound Goat Rescue works to rescue as many goats as they can, and rehome them in Washington. Amber Cooper Lily, on the other hand, was rescued directly from the kill pen in a slaughterhouse. Cooper thinks she must have come from a dairy farm herself, but the farmers probably thought she wouldn't produce well. When Cooper and his wife took Oliver home, the cuddle tradition continued. In fact, all of the goats loved cuddles. "I put a lawn chair outside their barn so we could sit with them in the evenings to brush them before I filled up their hay feeder and gave them fresh water," Cooper said. "Right off the bat, Oliver and Otis would jump up onto my lap, and that started the tradition of holding them each night." Amber Cooper The goats have grown over the last two years. According to Cooper, Otis now weighs 150 pounds. This doesn't stop Cooper from picking Otis up for cuddles. Amber Cooper When the goats don't want to be picked up, Cooper will go into the barn and snuggle with them in the hay. Amber Cooper For a man who didn't think much of goats, Cooper has come a long way. In fact, he said that he and his wife think of the goats as their children. "Yes, we think of them as our children, and we treat them like they are," he said. "We've had people tell us if they die, they want to come back as one of our pets." Amber Cooper Besides cuddling his goat kids, Cooper loves to build things for them - the goats already have a balance beam and teeter-totter, and he's planning to build a tower. He also loves watching the goats figure things out, which led Cooper to realize that goats are much smarter than he ever thought. Amber Cooper "Most normal people wouldn't go out and hold their goats every night," said Cooper. "But years ago, when we didn't have kids, we decided to be the crazy aunt and uncle in the family, and we're living the part." The goats seem quite happy with this arrangement. Amber Cooper The first day of school can be scary, especially when you don't know any of your classmates. And for a baby orangutan named Gatot, his first day was no exception. Heribertus / International Animal Rescue According to one Indonesian man, he was searching for firewood in the forest recently near Jelai Hulu, Ketapang in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, when he heard an animal crying. He followed the cries and stumbled upon Gatot, who was just a teeny, red-furred baby. It's unclear if the man's story is true. Heribertus / International Animal Rescue It's unheard of for mother orangutans to abandon their babies - mothers will stay with their young until they're 7 or 8 years old - so it was pretty clear that Gatot had been orphaned. While no one knows exactly what happened to Gatot, it's likely that villagers killed his mother while cutting down their rainforest habitat for palm oil plantations. Dodo Shows Cat Crazy Fluffy Cat Wants To Sit On His Dad At All Times Heribertus / International Animal Rescue The man took Gatot home with him, treating him like a human baby and feeding him milk from a bottle. While this might seem "sweet," keeping orangutans as pets is illegal - and harmful to the animal; they can develop psychological disorders and suffer from malnutrition, along with other issues. Heribertus / International Animal Rescue Borean orangutans have also recently been listed as critically endangered, with habitat loss and hunting being two of the biggest contributing factors driving the species to extinction. Anytime an orangutan is taken out of its habitat, there's a detrimental effect to the entire species. Luckily for Gatot, authorities found out about the man keeping him as a pet, and alerted International Animal Rescue (IAR) to come rescue the baby. Heribertus / International Animal Rescue According to IAR's Facebook page, Gatot is the smallest and youngest orangutan currently in the group's care. After giving him medical treatment, the IAR team knew the best thing for Gatot was for him to socialize with other orangutans, and to learn the climbing and foraging skills that would help him go back to the wild someday. On his first day of school, IAR vet nurse Fitri carried Gatot up a ladder to meet his classmates. But Gatot was scared and frightened - he cried and clung to Kandi, another orphaned orangutan. Heribertus / International Animal Rescue Kandi let Gatot hold onto him for a while ... Heribertus / International Animal Rescue ... but Kandi wasn't too sure about Gatot. After all, Gatot was making a lot of noise. Heribertus / International Animal Rescue Then Gatot grabbed onto Jamila, a slightly older female orangutan. Unlike Kandi, she seemed quite happy to hug Gatot and help him through his first-day jitters. Heribertus / International Animal Rescue With the help of his new friends, Gatot should do well in school, and he'll learn everything he needs to know about being a wild orangutan. Heribertus / International Animal Rescue "The first day at any school is tough and it is heartbreaking to see little Gatot seeking comfort from the other orangutans around him," Alan Knight, CEO of IAR, said in a statement. "However it is among his own kind that he will learn the behaviors and the skills he will need to prepare him for life back in the wild. I've no doubt that he will soon adapt to his new environment and start to grow in confidence." Heribertus / International Animal Rescue To help IAR give Gatot and other orphaned orangutans round-the-clock care, you can donate here. You can also sign this pledge not to consume any products containing palm oil, which have a devastating effect on Indonesian wildlife.

@kamathesurfingpig

It all began when Kama the pig accidentally fell into the pool. Kai Holt - Kama's dad - was hanging out in the backyard with his three kids at the time. Kama loves to play "chase master," a game that involves running as fast as he can around the pool, trying to catch Holt's son. When Kama took a corner too quickly, he fell into the water. @kamathesurfingpig "He started swimming like a little motorized boat," Holt told The Dodo. "And I thought - whoa, that pig can swim. We didn't know that he could swim that well." @kamathesurfingpig After that, Kama couldn't get enough of the water. He started regularly jumping into the pool and playing with the pool toys, and even leapt into the hot tub. And when Holt went to surf at the local beach in Waimanalo, Hawaii, Kama followed him into the water ... Dodo Shows Odd Couples Dog Is So Gentle And Patient With Her Foster Kittens @kamathesurfingpig ... and started to surf. @kamathesurfingpig "We took a paddleboard out one day - one of those soft top ones," Holt said. "And Kama hopped on. Everything happened so quick." @kamathesurfingpig @kamathesurfingpig Kama was a natural - soon he was hanging 10 like he'd been doing it everyday. When Kama fell off the board, Holt initially worried. But Kama shot up through the waves and hopped back on Holt's board. @kamathesurfingpig @kamathesurfingpig "He's like Michael Phelps," Holt said. "Michael Phelps of the pig world. We used to race him to see if we could beat him, but we could never beat him. Not even the lifeguard could beat him." Life wasn't always so cruisey for Kama. When he was just a couple weeks old, Kama was all alone in the world - no mom and no home. Holt was camping with his friends on Bellows Beach in Waimanalo when Kama wandered up to him. @kamathesurfingpig "He just came into our campsite," Holt said. "We thought the mom must be around, but we didn't find her. Usually when babies are alone like that, that means something happened to the mom." @kamathesurfingpig Holt doesn't know what happened to Kama's mom, but he thinks hunters killed her. There's a large pig population Waimanalo, and Hawaii officials are trying to eradicate pigs because they believe they're responsible for a lot of the deforestation and erosion in the area. In fact, Holt says that the state pays hunters to eradicate them. @kamathesurfingpig Holt looked after Kama for the rest of his camping trip. When it was time to go home, Kama came too. "He's like a kid," Holt said. "I couldn't leave him alone." Holt has three human kids, but Kama quickly became his fourth child. He bottle-fed Kama until he was strong enough to lap milk from a bowl. And Holt took Kama everywhere he went - and he means everywhere - the hardware store, restaurants, the bar, and of course, the beach. @kamathesurfingpig Now Kama surfs with Holt almost everyday. Holt says that Kama especially loves 3- or 4-foot waves. "He surfs Hawaiian style," Holt said. @kamathesurfingpig @kamathesurfingpig While it's possible that Kama may have found his passion for water on his own, he probably has Holt to thank for introducing him to surfing. @kamathesurfingpig Kama has influenced Holt's life too. Holt became a vegetarian, and now he runs a little sanctuary for rescued animals. Besides Kama, Holt takes care of six sheep, five pigs, four chickens, four dogs, two ducks, a turkey, a goose, a peacock, a rabbit and a cat. @kamathesurfingpig The shy, nocturnal, tree-dwelling animals were about to be sold as pets over the internet , according to International Animal Rescue (IAR), an organization that runs a slow loris rescue center, where these animals will recover from their plight. The animals are "traumatized," IAR says. Captured slow lorises are typically packed in tight boxes during smuggling. "The modus operandi of these criminals begins with the hunters who capture the animals from the wild," Diki Budiman, assistant director of the special crime unit in Polda, West Java, says in a press release. "The lorises are then sold online, via Facebook and other social networks." Social media is being used more and more by animal traffickers, according to IAR. "The police got to these lorises just in time," IAR writes. "Now, our team are working flat out to stabilize the lorises' condition. It will be touch and go during the next few days as to how many of them survive."

Therese Vu

Therese Vu and her husband, Duc Tran, were loving parents to two inseparable dogs for 16 years. When one passed away from kidney failure, the other passed away from the same thing - just one month later. "I literally believe that the second one passed away from a broken heart," Vu told The Dodo. "I can't even put into words how saddened I was to lose them both, and I honestly didn't know if I could open my heart and home up to another dog again." But that all changed when Vu and her husband met Kanga and Roo. Therese Vu Kanga and Roo are a brother and sister pair who were both born with only two legs, and are products of overbreeding and inbreeding. Their breeder tried to care for them for about a year, but was overwhelmed by their special needs, according to the Georgia-based rescue group Angels Among Us. Finally, she decided to surrender the Chihuahua pair to the rescue. Kanga and Roo were in foster care for several months and attended countless adoption events. During that time, not a single person applied to adopt them - until Vu saw a post about the pair online. Dodo Shows Faith = Restored Woman Tries Every Day For A Month To Rescue This Dog Therese Vu "As soon as I saw Kanga and Roo, I just KNEW that they were meant to be ours," Vu said. Vu and her husband did research on caring for dogs with special needs, and by the time they met the pups, they were more than ready to be their forever parents. "Within the first few seconds of interacting with them, they captured our hearts, took over our home, and completely changed our world," Vu said. "We adopted them on June 25, 2013, and couldn't image life without them." Therese Vu Kanga and Roo adjusted to their new home with ease. Their parents even covered the floors of their home with blankets and mats to make it easier for the duo to scoot around. The now 5-year-old dogs grew up only having two legs each, and grew used to finding creative ways to get around. They're both super fast at scooting or hopping, and seem to prefer that to using the wheelchairs their parents had specially made for them. Therese Vu "Everywhere that they walk indoors is padded/soft," Vu said. "In addition to that, we wanted to find a solution for when we took them outdoors." Therese Vu Coincidentally, the couple has a good friend who works with human prosthetics, and helped create sweaters for Kanga and Roo out of the same material amputee patients wear before putting on a prosthetic limb. The sweaters help prevent the dogs' bellies from getting irritated or infected from scooting along the floor, and as a plus, also make them look super cute. Therese Vu "We were so thrilled with how much this has helped them that we began offering the sweaters to dog owners around the world with fellow two-legged dogs," Vu said. "We send the sweaters completely free of charge, and have shipped them all over the U.S. and even the world." Therese Vu Kanga and Roo are the sweetest, most loving dogs, and seem to have absolutely no idea that they're any different at all - especially since they're both missing two legs. They have no trouble getting around, and spend absolutely every second hanging out together. Therese Vu These dogs have truly changed their parents lives, and of course, the lives of absolutely everyone they meet. "It is upsetting whenever people see differently-abled dogs and think they should just be put down," Vu said. "I would challenge anyone who feels that way to spend two minutes with Kanga and Roo. That's all it would take for them to realize just how happy, energetic, lovable and ABLE that they truly are." WASHINGTON, D.C.A political weather map of America would show Wall Street under a cloud, and Silicon Valley bathed in sunshine. Over the Obama administrations eight years, the technology industry has embedded itself in Washington. The president hung out with Facebook Inc.s Mark Zuckerberg and hired the governments first chief tech officer. At least at the lower levels of officialdom, the revolving door with companies such as Google is spinning ever faster as it once did with Wall Street.` Politicians have played down their connections to finance since the taxpayer bailout of 2008. No such stigma attaches to tech, for now. But as the Valley steps up its lobbying efforts, with a wish-list that ranges from immigration to rules for driverless cars, some critics warn that similar traps lie in wait: its not easy for the government to police an industry from which it poaches talent and solicits help with writing laws. If youre trying to influence government policy on behalf of a corporate sector, its not better that you do it for the tech industry than for Goldman, said Jeff Hauser from the Center for Economic Policy and Research in Washington. Hauser heads the Revolving Door Project, which scrutinizes political appointees. Even amid mounting concern over inequality, he says wealthy tech executives and their companies are still considered cool. In other words: it may be hard to persuade people these days that whats good for Goldman Sachs is good for America but it might just work for Google. The five biggest U.S. tech companies are now the five biggest companies, period at least as measured by market value. And theyre flexing that financial muscle. The tech firms spent $49 million (U.S.) on Washington lobbyists last year, while the five largest banks shelled out $19.7 million, data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics shows. On the personnel front, the Campaign for Accountability, a non-profit group, studied the to-and-fro between government and Google, a unit of Alphabet Inc. It found that 183 people who worked under President Barack Obama through last year were hired by Google, while 58 headed the other way. Google is in Washington to help policy-makers understand our business and the work we do to keep the Internet open and fuel economic growth, the Mountain View, Calif.-based company said by e-mail in response to questions. Facebooks goals in the capital include protecting customers, explaining how our service works, and maintaining an open Internet and a culture of innovation, it said in an e-mail. There have been other high-profile moves out of Washington: former Attorney General Eric Holder this year took a job at Airbnb Inc., and David Plouffe, Obamas one-time campaign manager, started at Uber Technologies Inc. in 2014. Persistent rumours have linked Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg with the post of Treasury secretary in a Hillary Clinton administration. Sandberg, a former chief of staff at the Treasury under Larry Summers, told a conference this month that she plans to stay at Facebook. Apple Inc.s chief executive officer Tim Cook and Microsoft Corp.s founder Bill Gates were on a list of Clintons potential vice-presidential nominees, according to an e-mail allegedly from her campaign chair that was released by WikiLeaks. The administrations view is that tech people are welcome in Washington because they can help make things work better and help is certainly needed. Penny Pritzker, the commerce secretary, says the government is shifting toward using technology the way business has been doing for years. It has set up a coding boot-camp for employees, while data scientists work across federal agencies to mine the archives and help improve transportation projects. We view data as currency, Pritzker said in an interview. She travels to Silicon Valley at least once a quarter and has an advisory council of 21 tech experts. Megan Smith, the former Google manager who took a job as Obamas chief technology officer in 2014, says the long-term goal is to make government services as smooth a user experience as that offered by, say, Amazon or Dropbox. Collaboration with tech companies predates Obamas creation of a special post to oversee it. Zillow Group Inc., the real-estate website, helped the Treasury after the housing-market collapse, according to Stan Humphries, its chief analytics officer. I was struck by how little data the government had in areas such as price indexes or foreclosures, Humphries said. The Seattle-based firm filled the gap, offering its micro-data to Federal Reserve researchers and even, on occasion, to Neel Kashkari, then an assistant secretary at the Treasury department and now in charge of the Minneapolis Fed. They were soon sucking up every bit of data that we had available, said Humphries. In Washington, favours typically come at a price though. Tech giants, which are in the habit of buying up smaller companies and also trying to tie customers to their own platforms, keep a close watch on antitrust policy. In 2013, Google like Microsoft before it was threatened with a potentially costly legal battle. Federal Trade Commission staff said the company unlawfully maintained its monopoly over Internet searches, though the 20-month probe was eventually closed. Competition policy, thats the thing theyre most scared of, said Barry Lynn, a senior fellow at the New America Foundation, a Washington think-tank. If a Microsoft-style case was brought against any of these companies, it could totally change their business prospects. It could result in radical changes to the scale and structure of their corporations. Cases have been opened in Europe against Google and Amazon, Facebook and Microsoft, said Lynn. Hes a Republican, showing that concern about the growing power of the tech giants isnt confined to the political left. Not that the left doesnt share it. Clinton has talked about tougher antitrust laws aimed at ending the abuse of economic power by corporations. Shes also taken aim at their shifting of profits overseas to avoid taxes. Hauser, who worked at the Justice Departments antitrust division before joining the Revolving Door Project, said tech firms are at the leading edge of tax avoidance because of the ways theyve perfected moving their intellectual property overseas. He said Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lews support for Apple, after the iPhone-maker was ordered to pay back-taxes in Europe, is an unprecedented stance for a Democratic administration. Clintons Republican rival Donald Trump proposed a tax cut for companies that repatriate profits, though it didnt win him many converts in the tech industry. Then theres the labour market. Trump has taken aim at Apple among other companies that have shifted jobs overseas. Were going to get Apple to start building their damn computers and things in this country, he said in January. But the iPhone-maker announced this month its setting up a second R&D centre in China. Big tech simply doesnt hire on the same scale as its heavy-industry predecessors. And technology is reshaping the workforce in other ways too, with Silicon Valley favourites such as Uber and Taskrabbit Inc. at the forefront. Theyre central to the growth of a gig economy thats spurred calls for rules on health-care and employment insurance to be updated. Tech companies also typically back immigration rights for skilled labour that have become politically toxic, and they support trade accords that both presidential candidates oppose. Theyve clashed with the government over the balance between internet privacy and national security, notably when Apple boss Cook refused to help unlock an iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernardino shooters. Beyond the shopping-list of specifics, says Lynn, the industry has one overarching desire: light-touch regulation. They want to be left alone, he said. They want to be allowed to do what they want to do. And to keep Washington at arms length, it helps to get close to it first. SHARE: BRUSSELSFederal Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland met Wednesday with the head of Wallonia in an effort to save a trade deal with the European Union that could collapse if the small Belgium region does not support it by Friday. A spokeswoman for Freeland says she met with Wallonia President Paul Magnette, who earlier Wednesday said his region could not sign on to the deal by Friday, which has been set as a deadline to get the last of the 28 EU nations on board. Anne-Louise Chauvette says the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, also known as CETA, is a priority for the federal government and it is working hard with its European partners so that it can be approved and implemented next year. Belgium can only back the deal if its regions, including Wallonia, approve it. Without unanimity among EU nations, the deal will collapse. Magnette told TV network RTBF that despite progress over the past few days it is insufficient. And you cannot say now: you have 3 days to accept. His statement further clouds the fate of the so-called Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). Wallonia a francophone southern region in Belgium has expressed concerns the deal could erode labour, environmental and consumer regulations. Canadian European trade envoy Pierre Pettigrew told the Montreal Board of Trade on Tuesday that he remains hopeful the agreement will be approved later this week, despite snags that have stalled a critical vote on the deal. Pettigrew who was dispatched to meet with Magnette last week said Canada has done everything it could to address any concerns within the EU, and now the ball is in its court. We have worked very hard in the last few months to bring reassurances that we in Canada share those same progressive views, Pettigrew said. EU nations were scheduled to vote on the deal Tuesday, but that was delayed after Magnette raised objections, saying he needs a few more days. Pettigrew said the vote could happen as early as Thursday, when EU leaders kick off a two-day summit. Former prime minister Brian Mulroney, who is no stranger to trade deals given his role as one of the architects of NAFTA, appeared unfazed by the dispute. Every once in a while you run into a hiccup in these things, said Mulroney, who also spoke before the Montreal Board of Trade. This is a hiccup, but I dont think its going to derail such an important negotiation. International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland said Canada has made significant changes to the deal and remains cautiously optimistic that it will receive European approval. I am both hopeful and I also hope that Europe and Europeans can come together to make this decision, which is the right one for Canada and for Europe, she said in Ottawa. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is scheduled to fly to Brussels next week to sign the agreement should it be unanimously approved by the EU. With files from The Associated Press More on thestar.com: Belgian region may scuttle EU trade deal: Walkom SHARE: A top executive with the company that owns the National Enquirer has joined the board of Postmedia Network Inc. as part of a restructuring move to reduce the debt load of Canadas largest newspaper publisher. Chatham Asset Management, a New Jersey-based hedge fund that now has an equity stake in Postmedia, asked American Media Inc. executive David Pecker to join Postmedias board. Chatham is a common investor in Postmedia and American Media, said Pecker, whose AMI publications include Mens Fitness, Ok!, Globe and the National Enquirer. Chatham has been one of the few hedge funds or private equity groups that has been very, very successful in their investment in print, said Pecker, who has served as AMI chairman, president and CEO for 17 years. In a restructuring deal that closed on Oct. 5, Chatham converted its second-lien debt notes into equity in Postmedia. A principal with Chatham Asset Management declined to comment. Pecker said there was commonality between Chathams investment in Postmedia and its other investments in companies such as Lee Enterprises, McClatchy newspapers and American Media Inc. Like other publications, Pecker said American Media was struggling as it faced double-digit declines in advertising revenues. I had a very, very leveraged balance sheet where I was just on the brink myself, four times, he said. Pecker credited Chatham, which held American Medias debt, for turning $125 million (U.S.) in debt into equity, but also restructuring the balance sheet. They gave me enough air cover where I could invest in digital; before, I could not get my former private equity partners to invest in digital, Pecker said. And over the last four years, I was able to grow my digital revenue from $10 to $50 million, and that helped me to offset my further decline in print revenue. Pecker said his specific experience is one of the reasons Chatham asked him to join Postmedias board. As part of the change, some Postmedia board members have left and two other members were added: Mary Junck, executive chairman of Lee Enterprises, and human resources and administration executive Daniel Rotstein. Postmedia CEO Paul Godfrey said in an interview that American Media and Pecker have no role in the day-to-day operations of Postmedia. Godfrey said the addition of the U.S. executives is helpful to Postmedia. It keeps us informed of all the things that are taking place in the United States, in many markets. We are delighted to have them, he said, adding that the voting structure means the company remains in Canadian hands. He noted the board additions mean the company is complying with rules that restrict representation of non-Canadians to 25 per cent. Postmedia had been weighed down by debt, but shareholders and debt holders approved the media conglomerates proposal to restructure its $648-million debt last month. Under the deal, Postmedias debt has been reduced by about $307 million, with its annual interest expense cut by about $50 million. Pecker said he has been impressed with Postmedia including its ad operations and programmatic business, headed up by Andrew MacLeod, who has just been named Postmedias chief operating officer. Pecker hinted that he might consider having Postmedias ad operations business to handle work for his group down the road. Right now, I have an outside service bureau that does my ad operations, which Im paying them for, he said. I was thinking of switching over and using his group, adding he would pay Postmedia for those services. He added that the additional liquidity and capital funding from Chatham should help Postmedia to grow its digital business and hopefully offset the continuing declines in print revenues. Chatham Asset Management issued a separate news release on Oct. 6, saying its funds have acquired 61.16 million variable voting shares of Postmedia Network Canada, which represents about 65 per cent of variable voting shares, or 32 per cent of the voting rights attached to all outstanding voting shares of Postmedia. Read more about: SHARE: A Toronto group pushing for the regulation of short-term, Airbnb-style rentals is welcoming a city staff proposal to evaluate the impacts of the rentals and consider what kind of restrictions should be imposed on the booming business. Fairbnb, which is led by the hotel workers union, says the report is an important step in ensuring there are rules governing short-term rentals. But it doesnt go far enough in looking at how online rental platforms such as Airbnb can be held to account when that doesnt happen. Platform accountability is really where its at if we want to develop regulations that work, said Fairbnb spokesman Thorben Wieditz. The city report, before executive committee Wednesday, recommends public and stakeholder consultations be held early next year to look at how to protect the interests of neighbourhoods and property owners and the citys stock of housing. Its a good first step according to Ward 27 Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam, who wishes it had come sooner as it will be at least another year before staff put specific regulation proposals before council. Toronto has received more than 45 complaints to Municipal Licensing and Standards since 2014 related to short-term rentals, and there are 25 active investigations, says the city report. Two operators have been charged with zoning bylaw violations. As well as the property damage, neighbourhood disruptions and criminal activity that some short-term rentals attract, the business is undercutting Torontos stock of licensed hotels by putting 10,000 additional accommodations into the city, said Wong-Tam. The city is losing 2,000 hotel rooms. Some are being converted to condos. But Wong-Tam said, We would be dishonest if we did not say that short-term accommodation is not having an impact on our hotel services and the business operations side of hotels. While it needs to mitigate the negative effects of short-term rentals, the staff report says it must also ensure residents can be allowed to occasionally rent their homes and that Toronto can promote tourism. Although Toronto is behind some cities in considering licensing and restrictions for Airbnb-style rentals, it gives the city an opportunity to learn from other jurisdictions, said Fairbnbs Wieditz. We can already assess what has been done elsewhere, what has worked and what has not worked, he said. The city report looks at six North American centres that have regulated short-term rentals, including Vancouver, Seattle, Philadelphia, New York City, San Francisco and Portland. All of them restrict the number of days a property can rent and four require licenses or permits. Fairbnb plans to fly in the mayor of Santa Monica and one of their councillors, plus a New York assemblywoman, to speak directly to the executive committee chaired by Mayor John Tory. The mayor, who was out of town Wednesday, has not said what kind of regulation, if any, he supports. But a spokeswoman said Tory understands the importance of the issue. "The sharing economy and companies like Airbnb have great economic potential for our city, and great benefits for its residents. But the potential impacts of these new technologies, particularly on neighbourhoods, must be carefully considered," said an email from Keerthana Kamalavasan. Fairbnb's Wieditz says, We can learn a lot from Santa Monica." Since June, the Pacific coast town of 90,000 residents (it grows to 500,000 visitors on weekends and holidays) has banned the rental of an entire home for less than 30 days. Hosts that share their homes with renters for short periods are required to apply for a city license. They must also pay a 14-per-cent transient occupancy tax, to be collected by the online rental platform, to help Santa Monica enforce the rules. But Airbnb is suing the city, saying its ordinance places an undue burden on property owners wishing to rent their places, according to a Los Angeles Times report. In New York City, short-term rentals must pay an occupancy tax of 5.9 per cent, plus a room fee of 50 cents to $2 (U.S.) In Toronto, hotels and motels pay commercial property taxes, but that doesn't apply to bed-and-breakfasts or short-term rentals. Airbnb had 12,260 Toronto listings on Sept. 1, says the city report. Another 2,000 were listed on Flipkey, VRBO, HomeAway and Roomorama. Airbnb officials have repeatedly stated that it welcomes regulation. Airbnb is pleased to see the city of Toronto is moving toward an inclusive consultation process on home sharing. We are reviewing the citys report in detail. We look forward to participating in the process and to continuing to share data and information about our community with city staff, Mayor John Tory and all of Toronto city council, said an emailed statement from Airbnbs Alex Dagg on Wednesday. At a Toronto Star editorial board meeting last week, another Airbnb spokesperson noted that different cities have different rules and regulations, including some that are very restrictive or require homeowners to register in person at city hall. Some cities have permitted rentals for a primary home, but created more scrutiny when it comes to multiple rentals. With files from Vanessa Lu SHARE: More than 80 years after the Dionne quintuplets were whisked away from their family and transformed into human tourist attractions that drew millions, the home where they were born could be on the move. The house has served as a museum in North Bay for the past 30 years, but recently closed because tourist numbers have dwindled. Appraisals of the property show it could be worth more than $975,000. The city is looking to potentially use the land for other purposes, sparking a rallying cry among those who view the house as an important symbol in Canadian history. It was where five young girls became worldwide sensations when they became the first quintuplets known to have survived infancy. The original building in which they were born in Corbeil, Ont., was moved in the 1960s and again, in 1985, to nearby North Bay, where it remained. Until last year, the citys chamber of commerce operated the Dionne Quints Museum in the home as a not-for-profit, where visitors could learn about the sisters upbringing. In 2015, the City of North Bay declared surplus the land where the structure sits, and it went out for sale through a request for proposal process. The decision has left some residents worried about the uncertain future of the building. We have to save this museum, said Carlo Tarini, a family friend and spokesperson for the last two surviving Dionne quints. Theyre obviously upset, this is the house where they were born and I think its an important part of Canadian history. . . . Its a story of miracle birth but also of terrible abuse. Born in 1934, the babies were soon made Wards of the King under the Dionne Quintuplets Guardianship Act. The government moved them across the road from their birthplace to a tourist theme park that became known as Quintland. The quintuplets were exposed to the public three times each day in an exhibit enclosed by one-way viewing windows, as well as a playground that doubled as a public observation area. Quintland brought in about $500 million during the near-decade it operated. This story still resonates today because its a story about child exploitation, Tarini said. Although it was never labelled a freak show, it was certainly strange to take away children from their parents in order for them to be viewed three times a day by the tourists. With 2017 approaching and Canada about to celebrate its 150th anniversary, he said, were about to throw away a very important memory. During the 1930s, their birth and their survival was one of the only good stories during the Depression years, Tarini said. When people went to the movies, the news reel would cover their growing years. It was pictured as sort of a fairy-tale life, but in fact they were treated much more like Cinderellas than princesses. Jaclyn Bucik, a spokesperson for North Bay, said the city is looking to relocate the home, which it owns, although she couldnt yet say where. Following the closing of the museum last year, a transition committee began exploring options for its relocation. Bucik said there are no plans to tear down the building, despite some rumours to the contrary. The Dionne story is an important part of not only the fabric of our community. . . . Its an important part of our history as Canadians, she said. Tarini said hed ideally like the home to stay in North Bay, but the next best option would be the Museum of History in Gatineau, Que. He said hes emailed the museum to gauge its interest. North Bay resident Jeff Fournier said the home plays a large role in the cultural heritage of the area. Fournier recently launched an online petition to preserve the homestead and keep it in North Bay. There definitely is a lack of direction as to whats going to happen to it and nobody has come out and made any official statements about what will happen to it, he said. Theres a huge concern that the home could be moved out of the city or that it could possibly be dismantled. Patti Carr, executive director of the North Bay chamber of commerce and a member of the transition committee, said theres no need for concern. I think everybodys going to be satisfied, she said. Its going to be well-kept. Carr said the chamber decided to close the museum last year because of how few visitors it had recently received. About 2,000 people came to see it in 2015 compared with 15,000 three decades ago. I dont know of any other chamber around the world that runs a museum, Carr said. Its not a money-making operation at any stretch. But Fournier said its important to keep the story of the Dionne quintuplets alive. By maintaining the Dionne homestead as a museum, it will help to ensure that the whole story is kept in the forefront of peoples minds, Fournier said. I think if we lose this history, these types of mistakes that occurred in the past to the five quints could reoccur in the future. We dont want that. SHARE: Provincial and territorial health ministers are imploring Ottawa not to diminish its role as a funding partner in health care any further. Ontario Health Minister Eric Hoskins, who co-chaired a meeting of his counterparts from across the country, said funding from Ottawa will be inadequate if the federal government proceeds with plans to cut the annual increase in health transfers next year. (It) will result in a declining partnership, he told a news conference Tuesday at the King Edward Hotel in Toronto. What we are asking as provinces and territories is that the federal government . . . not withdraw further, that we want them to sustain the level of partnership that traditionally has been there, he said. Canadians have seen that partnership very seriously erode since medicare was created about a half century ago when the federal government footed half the bill, Hoskins said. Today, Ottawa is only paying 20 per cent of the tab, a share that will decrease further if Ottawa next year cuts the annual escalator in the Canada Health Transfer to 3 per cent from 6 per cent. Federal Health Minister Jane Philpott, who also served as co-chair, tried to steer the conversation away from money and toward system improvement, innovation and accountability. She repeatedly pointed out that Canada spends more on health care than many other developed countries that have superior health systems. She expressed disappointment that planned system improvements that Ottawa funded in the 2004 health accord did not materialize. Philpott indicated that she wants new funds to be targeted to such areas as mental health and system innovation. She also reiterated an earlier commitment to provide $3 billion for home care, including palliative care. I have made it clear to them that we would love, for instance, to invest in innovation. I want to know how they want to use those investments in innovation. I have told them that I am very interested in mental health care, she said. Hoskins said his provincial and federal counterparts are on board with that but that they need a boost in the annual increase in health funding as well just to maintain the status quo. You can transform and we have to transform, but you have to do that in a way which respects and understands that you need to sustain the existing system, he said. Hoskins cited a Conference Board of Canada report that found that a spending increase of 4.4 per cent is needed just to keep the lights on, just to keep the existing services working because of pressures from a growing and aging population. Quebec Health Minister Gaetan Barrette said Ottawas current plans for health spending will amount to $60 billion less over the next decade for the provinces and territories. It says to Canadians, We will not provide up to the level of $60 billion. Thats whats at stake, he said. The 2004 health accord which includes annual funding hikes of 6 per cent expires next spring. The former Conservative government decided unilaterally that annual health spending will increase at a lower rate of 3 per cent after that. The provincial and territorial ministers are hoping Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will reconsider that when the first ministers meet later this year. Hoskins said a 50 per cent cut in the annual funding increase will translate to $1 billion less for the provinces and territories next year. Ontario alone stands to lose $400 million. Philpott apologized about confusion over comments she made earlier on accountability for funds. Some provincial and territorial ministers expressed anger over an insinuation that health transfers were not being spent on health. Philpott said that was not what she meant. I apologize if people misunderstood, she said. There is certainly no intention to make accusations. Philpott said the Canada Health Transfer, which stands at $36 billion, will increase by about $19 billion over the next five years. Its really important for Canadians to know that we are going to continue to contribute to the Canada Heath Transfer, the federal minister said. Philpott said that over the last five years, $9 of every new $10 spent on health in Canada came from the Canada Health Transfer. We are contributing he largest part to spending. In addition to the Canada Health Transfer, extra funds will be provided for targeted priorities with strings attached to ensure transformation goals are met, she said. This is Canadians money . . . . We want to find a way that we can work together so that as we agree to make new investments, that we have already got a sense of plan, Philpott said. In elaborating on why Ottawa should fund new, more efficient ways of providing health care while at the same time provide sufficient funding for the current health system, Hoskins offered the example of dialysis for kidney failure. The ministers discussed how it would make more sense to monitor blood pressure to prevent kidney failure and thereby lessen the need for dialysis, he noted. Thats great and we are all working toward that end, but you still have to provide dialysis today because that individual who needs it will be dead in three weeks without it, Hoskins said SHARE: OTTAWAWhen Pearl Achneepineskum stands on the stage to sing with Gord Downie during his solo concert in remembrance of her brother, Chanie Wenjack, she will be faced with a million emotions. But nervousness will not be one of them. Im ready, said Achneepineskum backstage at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa after an emotional smudge ceremony was held with members of her family, Downies family and Algonquin residential school survivors from the Ottawa area. Achneepineskum is not a professional musician. She has never played at a concert of this size, but she is ready to tell the world about her brother. Twelve-year-old Chanie Wenjack froze to death on railroad tracks outside Kenora, northern Ontario, 50 years ago this Oct. 22. Downie, Canadas beloved music icon and frontman for the Tragically Hip, is gripped by Chanies story and the fact that many Canadians were unaware of the countrys residential school history. Downie is remembering Chanie through his Secret Path initiative, a multimedia release of a graphic novel, album and animated film adaptation, aimed at teaching Canadians about Chanies story and the legacy of residential schools. Downie will play two sold out Secret Path shows, the first one here in Ottawa and the second this Friday in Toronto. Downie invited all of Wenjacks extended family to come to the concerts. More than one dozen family members flew in from Thunder Bay and points north. In Ottawa, he met the Wenjack family on Monday evening, greeting them as they arrived, and, then they all had supper. Chanies older sisters, Pearl and Daisy, are residential school survivors. For nearly 130 years, 150,000 First Nations kids were sent away from their parents and communities to attend 140 government funded, church run residential schools. Nearly 4,000 children never made it home. Downie was introduced to the story of Chanie by his brother Mike, after he passed on to him a 1967 Macleans magazine article written by Ian Adams. He was so moved by the story of the 12-year-old boy who ran away from Cecilia Jeffrey Indian Residential School, outside of Kenora, and tried to walk nearly 600 km home to Ogoki Post, Marten Falls First Nation, that he began to write poetry and songs about Chanie. Downie recorded the music to, Secret Path, in 2013. When he finished his Man Machine Poem Tour with the Hip on August 20, Downie, who has terminal brain cancer, challenged Canadians to look to the North and to do something. Downie has since devoted his time to teaching Canadians about Chanie and our residential school history. Alvin Fiddler, grand chief of Nishnawbe Aski Nation 49 First Nations in northern Ontario including Marten Falls flew to Ottawa to be part of the concert and to support the Wenjack family. This is going to be a very emotional and difficult night, with a lot of mixed emotions knowing the 50th anniversary of his passing is coming soon. But what Gord is doing with the Secret Path is a very healing ceremony, not just for the Wenjack family but for everyone who lost loved ones during the residential experience, Fiddler said. SHARE: On a recent visit to a provincial jail in Thunder Bay, Renu Mandhane, Ontarios chief human rights commissioner, asked a correctional officer if there was anything she should see. The officer gave her the name of an inmate who had been in continuous segregation or solitary confinement for more than four years, awaiting trial. For Mandhane, his situation put a stark face to new provincial jail statistics, made public Tuesday by the Ontario Human Rights Commission, that show alarming and systemic overuse of segregation, the commission said in a news release. In jails between October and December 2015, 4,178 individual inmates spent at least a day in segregation, according to an analysis by the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services. Of those, 1,594 inmates, or 38.2 per cent, had a mental health alert on file, a proportion the commission believes underestimates mental health issues and disabilities. Nearly a quarter of segregation placements exceeded two weeks. In the three months, the inmate with the longest continuous time in segregation in one setting had been there 939 days. Any transfer to another setting resets the clock. As part of a provincial review of solitary confinement, the rights commission asked the ministry for segregation data. The ministry produced a report on a three-month period of its choosing, accompanied by a briefing and a host of caveats around the revealing analysis. The analysis is part of submissions by the human rights commission that draw attention to what it calls systemic reliance and overuse of segregation. The submission also flags United Nations standards that find segregation longer than 15 days can be tantamount to torture or other cruel inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The commission is calling on the government to collect and release segregation data annually and, based on what is known, take immediate steps to address how its use of segregation is violating prisoners rights. It is renewing a call to eliminate segregation. The provincial review comes after a 2013 human rights settlement with the ministry. The new statistics, the commission said, raise concerns the ministry is not complying with its obligations in the settlement. The commission released the jail data a day after the Ontario government announced it would cut by half the number of consecutive days inmates can spend in segregation for purely disciplinary reasons, to 15 from 30. However, the vast majority of inmates placed in segregation are put there for non-disciplinary reasons, including protection of an inmate, medical reasons and alleged misconduct. According to the data released to the commission, only 4.3 per cent of inmate placements in segregation over the three months were disciplinary, and because of misconduct of a serious nature. About 68 per cent were deemed administrative. The government also announced Monday it would hire an independent third party to help overhaul how segregation is used. In the case of the Thunder Bay inmate, he has spent around 100 times longer in solitary than the UNs limit, said Mandhane. She didnt identify him, but his name is Adam Capay, according to Toronto criminal defence lawyer Tony Bryant. Bryant told the Star he has been asked by Capay to represent him on a first-degree murder charge, and that Capay is currently lawyerless. Bryant said hes seeking more information about the jail situation. Capay was charged in 2012 in connection with an altercation in a different jail, the Thunder Bay Correctional Centre, that left another inmate dead, according to news reports. In an interview Tuesday, Mandhane said she asked for and received a tour of the Thunder Bay Jail on Oct. 7 and was approached by a correctional officer. The officer was concerned about a particular inmate in solitary, said Mandhane. During her tour, she said she was shown the segregation unit but his name wasnt on the list of inmates there. Eventually she asked her guides, who included the jail superintendent and an assistant deputy minister, if she could see him. After getting his consent, Mandhane described being led down a flight of stairs to a windowless range that had a number of cells, including one at the end of the range with Plexiglas lining the outside of the cell. Thats where she spoke with the inmate, who said the lights were on 24 hours a day. Through a small hole in the glass, she spoke to the inmate she described as a young indigenous man. It is unclear on what charges he was imprisoned, but he told her he has been in continuous solitary confinement, awaiting trial, for more than four years, first at a jail in Kenora, then in the Thunder Bay jails. He told me that he had difficulty speaking as well as he used to because of the lack of human contact, said Mandhane, and that because of the artificial light, he couldnt tell day from night. He also talked about self-harming incidents and showed related scars. Hed been restrained at least once and said he was visited by a psychiatrist about twice a month, but that the sessions were minutes long and that he felt the purpose of the visits were to assess his suitability for continued segregation, and werent therapeutic in nature, said Mandhane. Corrections officials did not explain to Mandhane why he was initially placed in segregation or the reason for his continued segregation but confirmed he had been in for more than four years, she said. Mandhane said the ministry later indicated there are issues with him being in the general population. I dont dispute that, she said. But I think there was also clear evidence of mental health issues. Its not clear to me that he was really receiving any treatment. Rules require the jails to report to the ministry the reasons for continued segregation of an inmate. Where mental health is an issue, the ministry must consider alternatives. The Star sought comment from the ministry. There was no immediate response Tuesday. Segregation statistics for Oct.-Dec. 2015: 4,178 or 19.2 per cent of inmates spent at least a day in segregation across Ontario Of the 4,178: 1,889 served multiple terms in segregation 3,674 (87.9%) were male 454 (10.9%) were female (1.2% unknown) 38.2% had a mental health alert 56.9% identified as white 13.3% identified as black 13.1% identified as aboriginal 16.2 days: Average time spent in segregation SHARE: OTTAWACanadians have no doubt learned a lot about Justin Trudeau in the year since he was elected prime minister. Here are five examples: 1. He plays his cards close to his chest: Before and during the election campaign, Trudeau would let you know where he stood on issues. Marijuana? Legalize it. Deficits? Down with it. Raise taxes on the top earners? Of course. But since coming to office, he has kept particular views to himself. On the specifics of building pipelines and electoral reform, for example, Trudeau doesnt say what projects or voting system he backs. When asked about pipelines, Trudeau talks about the economy and environment going hand in hand, the need for social license and to work with aboriginal communities. Hes a waffler in the grand Liberal tradition, says Nelson Wiseman, director of the Canadian Studies Program at the University of Toronto. Trudeau likely has about two years at the most to push one or two major issues before he heads into re-election mode. He has spent the past year watching his polling numbers stay high and building political capital. What will he spend it on? 2. Hes a different leader than his father: The opposition likes to razz Trudeau about taking too many selfies and not focusing on the issues of the day. No one believes Trudeau isnt authentic when he poses for pictures or shakes hands with domestic and international crowds, even though his staff works hard to make sure he can get a picture with anyone who wants one. Trudeau is more social than many anticipated, Wiseman says, including letting people connect with him through his family. Trudeaus public image is opposite in many ways to that of his father, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, who Wiseman describes as aloof and calculating: You cant imagine the younger Trudeau say, Just watch me. The current prime minister conveys a sense of passion for the country that seems sincere, says Max Cameron, director of Centre for the Study of Democratic Institutions at the University of British Columbia: Thats gold. 3. His campaign performance in 2015 was no accident: Penny Collenette, a former official in the Prime Ministers Office during Jean Chretiens tenure, says its almost as if Trudeau is still in campaign mode a year after the election. He clearly gets his energy from people and frankly, it will probably serve him well in this mandate, Collenette says. Perhaps his true governing style will not become apparent until budget decisions have to be made. Cameron agrees, saying Canadians are likely to learn more about Trudeaus specific positions on issues during the second year of his mandate. 4. Hes no micromanager: Andrew Potter, director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada and the former editor-in-chief of the Ottawa Citizen newspaper, says some in politics like to wallow in the fine details (See: Stephen Harper), while others govern from 30,000 feet. Trudeau seems oddly disengaged to me, says Potter. Some decisions have caught people pleasantly by surprise, such as having gender parity in cabinet. But thats not what has people confused. Trudeau seems keen on being a global political leader and basking in the international spotlight something Canadians like because we tend to have an inferiority complex on the global stage, Wiseman says. The issue is what Trudeau does when he returns home. Its not clear to me what hes actually doing ... on a day-to-day job of governing, says Potter. 5. Sunny ways notwithstanding, he can still play the villain: At its core, governing is about making tough choices and trade-offs, says Cameron: Getting aboriginal buy-in for pipeline projects and needing to get oil to tidewater, for example. Trudeau has shown an ability to wear a black hat when the situation demands it, such as his unilateral plan for a price on carbon, or taking a hard line on health care funding. In both cases, Trudeau took a position sure to be unpopular with the premiers, despite having vowed to work with them, Cameron says. Indeed, hes adopted more conservative policies on health care funding and greenhouse gas emission targets, says Potter evidence that Trudeau understands sunny ways might be a great strategy to get elected, but a terrible strategy to govern. SHARE: OTTAWAIt was a year ago today that Canadians headed to the polls in a federal election that elevated the third-place Liberals and Justin Trudeau into power with a comfortable 15-seat majority in the House of Commons. And, the political honeymoon for the Liberals appears little diminished a year later, with a variety of opinion polls placing support for the party consistently in the mid-40s to low 50s and the prime ministers personal approval ratings even higher. Trudeau celebrated his first year in office on Wednesday with a string of media interviews in which he talked up the work his government has done in the last 12 months. Im going to let critics and journalists and Canadians make evaluations of how Im doing, he said in an interview with Breakfast Television Toronto. Im focused on what needs to be done, and thats a question of growing the economy in ways that helps the middle class. Trudeau said his government has done a lot of big things that are making a real difference in peoples lives, but added that theres a lot more to do. The Liberals first year in office has seen a variety of measures, including an influx of Syrian refugees, environmental pledges, upper income tax hikes, health care promises and indigenous commitments. But now that the Liberals have put a hold on health care transfer increases, maintained the old Conservative carbon cutting targets, fought First Nations in court and approved a major liquefied natural gas plant in B.C., there is some grumbling across the land. Still, the change in tone and style from the former Conservative government has yet to lose its novelty. Canadians had a very clear choice a year ago today and they picked the one party committed to investing in their communities, Trudeau said. They know that ten years of cuts from Stephen Harper wasnt growing the economy. We need to do it the right way and thats exactly what were doing. The Liberals still have plenty of hard tasks ahead. They include creating a new infrastructure investment bank, a recreational marijuana market, plotting a path to emissions targets, hashing out home care and pharmacare promises and revamping the electoral system. Katherine Fierlbeck, a political science professor at Dalhousie University in Halifax, notes that Trudeaus sunny ways mantra stands in stark contrast to the venomous presidential election spectacle fast approaching its climax south of the border. I suspect the Trudeau Jr. glow has lived as long it has precisely because of whats going on in the States right now, said Fierlbeck. More on thestar.com: Liberals should be bold in tackling challenges of second year: Editorial SHARE: In a development that casts further doubt on Bombardiers role as vehicle supplier for Ontario light rail projects, Metrolinx is seeking out other potential manufacturers for its Mississauga-Brampton line. On Tuesday, Infrastructure Ontario and Metrolinx, the provincial transit agency for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, issued a request for qualifications an early stage of the procurement process for the planned Hurontario LRT, a 20-km, 22-stop line that will run from the Port Credit GO station to Steeles Ave. in Brampton. In addition to designing, building, operating and maintaining the $1.4-billion line,the document also asks the successful bidder to supply a fleet of 44 light rail vehicles (LRVs). The inclusion of vehicles as part of the procurement means that Metrolinx will not operate Hurontario with vehicles from the order it placed with Bombardier in 2010. That $770-million purchase of up to 182 LRVs has been hit with delays. The Hurontario news also comes one month after it was revealed that the province told consortia bidding on Torontos Finch LRT that they could include vehicle suppliers as part of their submissions as well. Metrolinx had previously said it would use trains from the Bombardier purchase on the Finch line. In an email, a spokesperson for the Quebec-based manufacturer signalled that the company planned to follow through with the entire original order. Bombardier signed a contract in 2010 to supply 182 light rail vehicles . . . We refer you to Metrolinx regarding where they plan to use them, said Marc-Andre Lefebvre. Metrolinx spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins wouldnt respond directly when asked whether the delays to the agencys original LRV order had prompted the province to seek out other potential suppliers for the Hurontario line. There are several benefits for including the vehicles in project procurement, Aikins said, including transferring the risk of vehicle delays or quality issues to the consortium and ensuring close integration of the trains with the rail infrastructure. Metrolinx placed the original LRV order with Bombardier six years ago to supply vehicles for Toronto-area LRT lines. However, the purchase was large enough that some of the vehicles could have been used on other provincially funded projects as well, including Hurontario. Bombardier, has yet to deliver the first Eglinton Crosstown test vehicle, which was originally scheduled to arrive in 2014. In July, Metrolinx served Bombardier with a notice of default, alleging it was in breach of contract. Of the initial order, 76 vehicles are slated to run on the Eglinton Crosstown and 14 are headed for Waterloos ION line. The remaining 92 have yet to be allocated, according to Aikins. Aikins said she couldnt comment on whether Metrolinx would commit to buying all 182 vehicles from Bombardier. She also wouldnt say whether Metrolinx would seek out other potential vehicle suppliers for the Hamilton LRT. The province expects to issue a request for qualifications for that project next year. Bombardiers struggle to build rail vehicles on time is affecting transit projects across the province. The TTC is suing the company for $50 million for repeated delays to its order for 204 streetcars. Construction of the Hurontario LRT is scheduled to begin in 2018, and is expected to be complete by 2022. Read more about: SHARE: As Chris Hughes lay in the dark two-by-two-metre cell, with no electricity, a small hole in the wall for a window and just a hole in the ground for a toilet, he wondered if his wife Grace and three young children knew he was still alive. Nobody knew I was there, he said. I had disappeared. I thought, my family must think Im dead. On Sept. 30, a few days before the Canadian man found himself in a Cuban detention centre, Hughes had flown a drone above the Plaza de la Revolucion in Havana. A photographer with a media business in Toronto, Hughes said he had been travelling through the Americas, previously going to Panama and Colombia. He had brought a drone with him, which he used to shoot photos and videos. He said he did not have any issues using it the drone in other countries, and no problems bringing it in through Cuban customs on Sept. 28. But two days later, the drone proved to be a significant problem. Hughes said he and a Cuban friend and tour guide were questioned by police about the drone at the Plaza de la Revolucion, a historic square home to the Cuban administration. The pair was taken to a police station, where Hughes said they were interrogated for around 12 hours. He said he was brought to his rental apartment to pick up his clothes, and then brought to a detention centre, where he would remain for nearly two weeks but never charged. Global Affairs confirmed that consular officials at Canadas embassy in Havana provided services to a detained Canadian citizen. To protect the privacy of the individual concerned, further details on this case cannot be released, Global Affairs spokesperson Austin Jean said in an email. The Star reached out to the Policia Nacional Revolucionaria office near the plaza, but was referred to a Havana-based immigration office. A receptionist at that number told the Star police was not to give any information by phone. Another official advised the Star to submit requests through the Canadian Embassy in Cuba. Hughes said he was held at what appeared to be an immigration detention centre and was again interviewed by Cuban authorities. Based on the questions, he believes Cuban authorities thought he was a spy. After Hughes wife hadnt heard from him in three days, she decided to alert the Canadian embassy. She said they were able to locate him after making contact with the family of his Cuban companion. She then paid for Orlando Ismael a friend and project manager of Hughes business to fly from Canada to Cuba to try to find answers. Ismael, who arrived in Havana on Oct. 6, said he went to the police station at the plaza and was told about a detention centre for foreigners. He said officials at the detention centre confirmed Hughes was there and that he was arrested for flying a drone in the square. Although he briefly saw Hughes, Ismael was not able to speak with him at length. Hughes said that the fifth or sixth day of his detention I didnt know exactly how long Id been there he was able to meet with a woman from the Canadian embassy. But it wasnt all good news; he said she told him the government had to let the investigation play out. The investigator had told me that if Im found guilty on any level, or if they find out Im working with the American government, that Ill spend the rest of my life in jail, Hughes said. Then, on Oct. 11, Hughes said he was brought into a room, asked to review the contents of his bag and informed that the following morning he would be taking an 8 a.m. flight back to Toronto. The next day, he was at Pearson International Airport, being embraced by two of his children and his wife. This whole thing felt like something out of a movie, his wife said. Although it was harrowing, Hughes said he understands why he was detained, and doesnt begrudge Cuban authorities. He plans to return one day he said authorities told him he is welcome to come back. If youre under your mothers roof, you play by your mothers rules, he said. My issue with the whole thing is that I had no clue whether I was going to be there for 13 days or 13 years. I just didnt know what was going to happen. SHARE: Rain was splattering across the sidewalks in a tidy neighborhood along Cheney Ridge Road off 84th Street as Jim Gordon made his way door to door. Gordon knocked, introduced himself, asked residents to consider voting for him next month. Some people recognized him; some did not. This is a neighborhood of older Lincolnites -- she's 84, nonpartisan; he's 96 and she's 87, both Republicans, Gordon was advised by an aide armed with election canvassing data as he approached each door. Pumpkins rested near a number of the doors; an eclectic combination of witches and American flags spilled across one doorstep; the knock on one door was greeted only by a barking dog. At the end, Gordon's bid for a seat in the Legislature garnered no rejections and no commitments, but a lot of promises to read his campaign brochure and consider him. Gordon is matched against Suzanne Geist in a contest to succeed term-limited Sen. Kathy Campbell in the 25th District, a legislative district with a rich heritage of independent and consequential senators, including Jerry Warner, Ron Raikes and Campbell. That's a line that stretches back a half-century. Geist led Gordon in a five-candidate contest in the May primary election when voters cut the field to two nominees. Property tax relief and controlled government spending head the list of priorities on Gordon's handout brochure. But there is more. "My heart is with the children of our community and our state," Gordon said as he sat at his dining room table before heading out into the light rain. And that is the message delivered in a campaign mailer addressed to parents and grandparents who live in the district. Gordon, who has been president of the national Make-A-Wish Foundation of America, said he believes "every child is special." People he visits with on their doorsteps -- an estimated 7,500 stops so far -- want to talk most often about taxes, especially property taxes on their homes, along with the death penalty, he said. Gordon said he'd like to eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits and he'd look to collection of state sales taxes on purchases made online and by catalog, not only as a means of leveling the playing field for local retailers but as a potential revenue source. However, Gordon recognizes that Congress may need to act on that issue first. Tapping into other revenue sources could help relieve the taxes paid by homeowners, he said. On the death penalty, Gordon said he is content to "abide by the decision of the voters" when they choose in November whether to overrule legislative repeal of capital punishment or ratify the Legislature's decision. As for his own personal view, Gordon said, "I sat down with myself to consider it" and determined that "the worst of the worst, who are not going to be rehabilitated and may put at risk the lives of other inmates or the people in charge of their keeping," probably need to face the possibility of a death sentence. On his list of legislative priorities are early childhood and K-12 education, roads and other infrastructure improvements, affordable higher education, job creation and income tax reduction. Like Campbell, he supports expansion of health care coverage to low-income working Nebraskans by accessing hundreds of millions of dollars of federal Medicaid dollars available to Nebraska under the Affordable Care Act. "If people don't have insurance, they don't get preventive care," Gordon said, and the end result is high-cost, emergency room treatment that is reflected in insurance rates paid by all Nebraskans. Gordon is a registered Democrat but says he would be an independent, nonpartisan senator in the spirit of the nonpartisan Legislature just as Campbell, a registered Republican, has been. Campbell has endorsed Gordon's candidacy, and so have two of his primary election opponents who are Republicans, he said. Gordon has some personal connections to the Legislature -- his wife, Karen Kilgarin, is a former state senator; his mother, Sally, was an assistant sergeant-at-arms before she retired at the age of 102. In a district that is predominantly registered Republican, Gordon's walk might be uphill. And it is made with a cane in hand. Gordon, 70, a Lincoln attorney, participated in 32 combat assaults during the Vietnam War before he was seriously wounded and hospitalized for 17 months. "I came home with a shattered leg and a cane for life -- but I did come home," he says in his campaign brochures. "That was a gift that shaped me." "Life is unfair sometimes," Gordon said, "but let's see if we can do something about it." The 25th District is composed of parts of east Lincoln, Waverly, Walton and northern Lancaster County. Gordon reported $139,025 in total campaign receipts and $17,703 in cash on hand as of Oct. 4, according to documents filed with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission. Its the $85 question that has trundled into provincial court and transfixed the passions of a Toronto law student for almost two years did he or did he not stop at an Etobicoke stop sign on the night of Nov. 12, 2014? Tanvir Islam, 34, is adamant that he broke no laws and claims hes fighting the traffic ticket on principle and integrity, refusing to plead guilty to a lesser offence or accept a lower fine. At the same time, Islam contends that his drawn-out case is an ugly example of a court system thats wasting time and money pushing back against his assertion of innocence on an $85 traffic ticket. Theyre in control of what matters (cases) they want to litigate, Islam told the Star this week. Its a gong show gone wild. To hear Islam recount this story is to hear of a man claiming to take on an outrageous and obstinate court process. He claims hes been told by the ticketing officer and Crown prosecutors that a dashboard camera from a police cruiser shows him committing the $85 offence stopping his car improperly at a stop sign. But despite multiple requests for the Crown to disclose the video, which Isam says have been made orally in court and in writing, no video has been produced. I am extremely confident that this video will exonerate me, Islam said. Dennis Morris, a Toronto defence lawyer who once represented former Mayor Rob Ford, said he knows Islam and has given him some advice on the case. A lot of times these things go on and on and on, he said. You can imagine hes spent countless hours on this. The ticket saga began just days after the alleged traffic offence, in November 2014. Islam said he applied in writing to appeal the ticket in court and also filled out a form requesting disclosure of the dashcam video. He didnt hear anything for about a year, he said. The matter resurfaced when he went to renew his drivers licence and was told he had an outstanding conviction and fine, he said. Shocked, Islam said he filled out a one-page application to get the matter reopened, which he said was approved by a Justice of the Peace, who set a trial date for Feb. 4, 2016. Islam said he asked for the disclosure of the video that day and was told by the Crown lawyer who spoke with the ticketing officer, who Islam said was in court for every hearing up until that point that they would produce it for him. The matter was adjourned until May, he said. In the meantime, after speaking with lawyers that he knows, Islam said he went to the Crown office at the courthouse, to see if they would toss out the ticket. They wouldnt, but said he could plead guilty to a lesser offence, and Islam said he refused. Im not going to plead guilty for something I didnt do, he said. The case proceeded. In May, Islam said he filed a Charter application to have the case thrown out because of unreasonable delay an argument which has gained prominence after a Supreme Court ruling in July capped provincial court cases with an 18-month limit, barring convincing justification for the delay. Islam said the case was again adjourned because he was arguing that he was told he could see the dashcam video, and now the Crown wouldnt give it to him. Islam said the justice of the peace wanted transcripts from the previous hearing, but there were none. The case was put over again, he said. On Monday, there was another hearing, to discuss the unreasonable delay application and another that Islam said he filed: abuse of process for the lack of video disclosure. But another issue came up, he said. Islam used a website, GetFreeFax.com, that emailed his affidavit and court files to the Crown fax machine. The issue, as Islam explained it, was whether this is a legitimate way to submit documents to the court. The judge adjourned the case again to deliberate on this, and the next date is scheduled for late January 2017, Islam said. Its completely ridiculous. Toronto Police Service spokesperson Mark Pugash declined to comment on the case Wednesday. There are a number of key uncertainties that remain about this, not least whether Mr. Islam filed his documents correctly, he said. In an email, City of Toronto spokesperson John Gosgnach said about 55 per cent of traffic tickets given out in the city are contested. Of those, about one third are resolved without a trial, usually through an early resolution meeting with a prosecutor, where the ticket is amended or withdrawn, Gosgnach said. A prosecutor is not concerned about having a ticket paid, but rather in addressing conduct which is in breach of the regulations for the road which have been put in place by the legislature for the orderly flow of traffic and the safety of the public, he wrote, on behalf of the citys legal services department. Where there are reasonable and probable grounds to believe an offence has been committed a prosecutor has an obligation to put the case before the court. Islam, meanwhile, claims the government is wasting money and that the video should prove his innocence. But why not just pay the 85 bucks and get it over with? Out of integrity, out of principle, but most importantly to hold the state accountable for their assertions, he said. This would amount to a potential wrongful conviction. He said hell be in court again Jan. 26. SHARE: QUITO, ECUADOREcuadors government acknowledged on Tuesday that it had temporarily restricted WikiLeaks founder Julian Assanges internet access at its embassy in London after the whistle-blowing site published documents from Hillary Clintons presidential campaign. A foreign ministry statement said that while it stands by its decision in 2012 to grant Assange asylum, it doesnt interfere in foreign elections. Leftist President Rafael Correas government said it was acting on its own and not ceding to foreign pressures. The ministry didnt specify the extent of the restrictions on Assanges access to the internet, saying only that the limitations wouldnt affect WikiLeaks ability to carry out its journalistic activities. The announcement confirmed WikiLeaks claim that Ecuador was behind the cut-off but disputed its assertion that the decision was made because of U.S. pressure. On Monday, the group tweeted: We can confirm Ecuador cut off Assanges internet access Saturday, 5 p.m. GMT, shortly after publication of Clintons Goldman Sachs (speeches). In followup messages posted Tuesday, the group claimed U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had personally intervened to ask Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing documents about Clinton. Citing multiple U.S. sources, WikiLeaks said the request was made on the sidelines of negotiations which took place last month in Colombia. The State Department denied the allegation. While our concerns about WikiLeaks are long-standing, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down WikiLeaks is false, U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said in an email. Speaking to reporters later, deputy spokesman Mark Toner said Kerry never even raised the issue or met with Correa during his visit to Colombia. There just was no meeting, he said. They didnt discuss any of this stuff. Assange has been holed up at the modest embassy suite at No. 3 Hans Crescent for more than four years after skipping bail to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex crimes allegations, a position which until now hasnt prevented him from continuing to play a pivotal role in exposing state secrets and backroom trade deals. WikiLeaks said unspecified contingency plans were in place and the site and its Twitter feed appeared to be working as usual. On Tuesday it released another tranche of emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, suggesting that the groups ability to publish has yet to be compromised. The disclosure was the 11th installation in a series of leaks that have captured the workings of Clintons inner circle and included excerpts of her well-compensated speeches to investment bank Goldman Sachs. Those leaks themselves are part of a wider cascade that have embarrassed the Democratic Party and which the American intelligence community has recently described as an attempt by the Russian government to interfere in the U.S. election. Staff at WikiLeaks and the embassy either declined to comment or didnt return messages. Assange fled to the Ecuadorean Embassy on June 19, 2012, after a drawn-out and ultimately unsuccessful legal battle against being sent to Sweden, where he remains wanted over an allegation of rape. Ecuador granted him asylum, but British authorities have made clear they would arrest him if he tried to leave. Londons Metropolitan Police used to maintain a visible presence outside the building, although officers were nowhere in sight when an Associated Press journalist visited on Tuesday. Assange has carved out a life at Hans Crescent, dining on delivered food, welcoming famous well-wishers and even occasionally addressing the media from the embassys balcony. But evidence mutual suspicion with his hosts surfaced after BuzzFeed News drew on leaked documents to detail tensions between Assange and Ecuadorean embassy staff. If Assange is being cut off from the internet for diplomatic reasons, it might jibe with Correas politics. The leftist politician recently told the Moscow-backed RT broadcaster that hed prefer Clinton over Trump. For the United States, Id like the winner to be Hillary, whom I also know personally and appreciate very much, Correa said. Marc Becker, a professor of Latin American history at Truman State University in Missouri, said that while Clinton had successfully pulled Correa into her orbit during her tenure as secretary of state, he doubted Ecuador had merely bowed to U.S. pressure. He ventured that Correas government opposes the idea of interfering in another countrys affairs and doesnt appreciate their guests using their resources to that end. Assange isnt likely to submit to the internet ban quietly. Over the weekend WikiLeaks released three lines of code it described as precommitments, labelling them John Kerry, Ecuador, and FCO an apparent reference to Britains Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Precommitments are cryptographic functions that can be used to verify the integrity of material released subsequently. Thomas White, a U.K.-based security researcher and transparency activist, saw the posts as a warning to the named parties that WikiLeaks had ammunition in reserve if Ecuadorean authorities do not continue to offer him political asylum. Read more about: SHARE: MEXICO CITYThe jogger trots down a narrow sidewalk, apparently oblivious to the slim man in black trailing a few yards behind. Early morning traffic passes as usual. Nothing seems amiss. As the jogger crosses a street, his pursuer accelerates and raises his right hand to the joggers head. The jogger collapses, coils into a fetal position, then rolls onto his back with arms and legs extended. Blood seeping from his head flows into the street. A gun comes into view as the assailant turns and sprints away, startling a pedestrian and a cyclist. The video, captured by a security camera Monday in the upscale Mexico City exurb of Metepec and leaked to the media, has caused a sensation here. The victim was Vicente Antonio Bermudez Zacarias, a 37-year-old federal judge based in the state of Mexico, just outside Mexico City. Transported to the hospital, he was pronounced dead of a single gunshot to the head. Even in a country that has become synonymous with violence, the shooting of a federal judge in daylight is a stunning occurrence. The assault drew broad condemnation and official vows to find whoever was responsible. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said he had ordered the attorney general to investigate the very lamentable act. Authorities have offered no motive. The video would seem to suggest a professional hit by someone familiar with the judges routines. It was not clear whether Bermudez had received threats before his slaying. His extensive caseload included some of Mexicos highest-profile criminal cases. He was involved in legal rulings regarding the 43 college students who disappeared in the state of Guerrero two years ago and are presumed to have been killed. They were last seen in the custody of local police. This month, the judge blocked a request from Gildardo Lopez, suspected of being a hit man for a Guerrero-based drug gang to be transferred from the high-security Altiplano prison outside Mexico City. Among the suspects Bermudez has jailed are an operative of the ultraviolent Zetas gang and a boss in the so-called Jalisco New Generation cartel, a leading drug-trafficking organization. His judicial district issued an order last year stalling the extradition of Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, Mexicos most notorious trafficker, to the United States, where he faces charges of murder and other crimes. Mexican officials say they expect the extradition to occur by February. One of Guzmans lawyers, Jose Refugio Rodriguez, denounced as yellow journalism any effort to link his client to the judges assassination. I have heard that he was ... very honest, impeccable, and that he was widely respected, he told the Televisa network. There is no basis to see Joaquin Guzman behind this act. Whoever the killer, the assassination has quickly become a testament to what many Mexicans view as a culture of impunity. The judiciary lives under a constant siege of criminal interests that look to twist institutional rulings through the classic method of filling the judge with money or lead, columnist Julio Hernandez Lopez wrote in the newspaper La Jornada. To a large extent, the mechanisms of judicial decision-making have been compromised by this mafioso threat that in no way has been confronted and exterminated. The day before the judge was killed, the Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico warned publicly that the country was in flames because of unchecked violence, with proliferating numbers of kidnappings, extortion threats and assaults on streets and in buses and trains. In certain zones of the country, violence is escalating and appears uncontainable, the church declared in its weekly newsletter From the Faith. At times the country feels at war with itself. Five Mexican soldiers were killed last month in an ambush on a military convoy in northern Mexico, suspected of being orchestrated by sons of Guzman. The church itself has suffered, with more than a dozen priests killed across the country in the last four years, including two last month in the state of Veracruz. In that case, police announced the arrest of a suspect this week. Veracruz has been an epicentre of violence, including the killings of journalists and others who were critical of the long-ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party. Disgust over the killings contributed to the partys defeat in June in the election for governor there. On Tuesday, the Mexican media reported that an arrest warrant for organized crime and illegal enrichment had been issued against Javier Duarte, who stepped down from the governorship last week with six weeks remaining in his term amid widespread allegations that he was corrupt and implicated in violence. Human rights groups say that during Duartes six years in office hundreds of people disappeared and were killed in Veracruz, where rival cartels battle it out for access to lucrative drug- and people-smuggling routes to the United States. Many victims remain missing. In a recent case, four university students went missing Sept. 29 and their mutilated corpses were found several days later. As is often the case, it remains unclear why they were targeted. SHARE: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, behind in the polls, has started claiming that the election will be stolen from him because it is rigged. When Trump talks about the election being stolen from him, he seems to be referring to a range of issues, from voter fraud to the media being allied against him. He also said this week that he expects more than a million deceased individuals to vote against him. These claims have the potential to resonate with many Americans who already question the integrity of this countrys elections. A September Washington Post-ABC News poll found that 46 per cent of registered voters believe that electoral fraud happens at least somewhat often. But stealing an election in this country isnt easy. In fact, experts say its nearly impossible given how voting works. And documented instances of voter fraud are actually very rare. Wendy Weiser, director of the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, said the rate of fraud is smaller than the rate of Americans being struck by lightning. Below, we explain why rigging an election is so unlikely. What would rigging an election actually entail? Rigging an election would demand a widespread, nationwide effort with the two major parties colluding at every level. This is why election law experts say it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to rig an election. In this country, voting is an open, multi-step process with scores of witnesses from both parties each step of the way. Chris Ashby, campaign finance and election lawyer at Virginia-based Ashby Law, points out that American elections are held in open, public rooms, such as school gyms and community centres. There are no back rooms, secret doors or hidden hallways, Ashby wrote recently. The ballots, voting machines and election materials are locked and sealed when they arrive in the voting place, and when they are removed after the election is over, they are locked and sealed again. In most states, there are poll observers in each county who have been chosen and trained by both the Republican and Democratic parties to watch for problems or efforts to disenfranchise voters during the voting process. The poll observers are allowed to watch the poll workers and other election officials, who have also undergone training to run the polling places and help conduct the election. Voters use equipment that is publicly tested and observed by party representatives and representatives of the campaigns, Ashby said. After its tested, voting equipment is locked and sealed. Stealing an election requires the cooperation of the Republicans and Democrats who are the polling place election officials, along with the poll watchers from each party who are watching the election officials conduct the election, Ashby said. It would also need, he points out, the cooperation of the another group of Republicans and Democrats after the election who are watching the counting of ballots. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who is running for re-election, said during a debate this week that Trump should stop saying the election is being rigged. We have 67 counties in this state, each of which conduct their own elections. I promise you there is not a 67-county conspiracy to rig this election, he said. The FBI released a statement Tuesday saying that agents work with federal, state and local officials to ensure a fair election process. How do I know that the votes are being counted fairly? Every jurisdiction has multiple overlapping systems in place to ensure fair vote counts, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law. After voting is over in each polling place, representatives for the political parties and the candidates literally watch the election officials count the votes. They also later participate in what is called a public canvass where the election results are gone over again to make sure they are right. The outcome of the election is not official until the canvass is finished, sometimes several weeks after Election Day. The purpose of the canvass is to account for every ballot cast and ensure that every valid vote cast is included in the election totals, according to the bipartisan federal Election Assistance Commission. This involves accounting for every absentee ballot, every early voting ballot, every ballot cast on Election Day, every provisional ballot, every changed ballot and every overseas and military ballot. Richard Hasen, an election-law expert at the University of California at Irvine and the author of The Voting Wars: From Florida 2000 to the Next Election Meltdown, said that counting votes at county offices and other places is a transparent act with Republicans, Democrats and good government groups watching the counting. When voting anomalies occur, generally because of human error, they are quickly caught and publicized on Twitter, and then corrected, Hasen wrote this week in an article in Slate. Are there actually a lot of dead people voting? No. Weiser says she often hears the claim that there are hordes of dead people voting but that this has been debunked repeatedly. There have been a handful of cases where votes have been cast in the name of dead people, and those have typically been minuscule in scale (like someone voting in the name of his or her recently deceased spouse) or involved ballot-box stuffing by unscrupulous election insiders, Weiser said in an email. She added: There has been no incident in over a century in which people were able to impact an election by mobilizing fraudsters to impersonate dead people at the polls. Deceased voters, just like people who move, do linger on the voter rolls, as the Pew Center on the States has documented, Weiser said. But to address that problem, she said that voter registration systems need to be modernized. How hard is it to vote more than once in a presidential election? Extremely hard, according to election experts. Hasen said there is zero evidence this kind of fraud has occurred regularly and that you would to have vote multiple times on a massive scale to influence the election. Hasen said that the only recent instance he knows involving multiple voting concerned a supporter of Republican Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and other Wisconsin Republicans. This man registered and voted about a dozen times in a few elections in multiple jurisdictions, Hasen said. He was caught and literally pleaded insanity, because such a plan is literally insane. Is there any evidence of widespread voter fraud with people impersonating others? In one of the most comprehensive studies on voter fraud, Loyola Law School professor Justin Levitt, who is now the deputy assistant attorney general in the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division, found only 31 incidents of voter impersonation out of more than a billion ballots cast between 2000 and 2014. Usually, only a tiny portion of the claimed illegality is substantiated and most of the remainder is either nothing more than speculation or has been conclusively debunked, Levitt wrote. The Government Accountability Office concluded in a report to Congress that the Justice Department had found no apparent cases of in-person voter impersonation ... anywhere in the United States, from 2004 through July 3, 2014. Read more about: SHARE: WASHINGTONOn Monday, Oct. 17, two days after setting a new record by making 25 false claims in a day, Donald Trump did a rally in Green Bay, Wisc., and three interviews. He made 22 more false claimsadding a bunch of new ones about voter fraud to his usual litany. 1. Falsely said, of African-Americans, They like me better than they like her. (Clinton was up 86 per cent to 9 per cent with black voters in a typical recent poll.) 2. Falsely said, of voter fraud, Philadelphia is one thats mentioned. I think Romney got no votes and McCain got no votes. I mean, like no votes. (Both Mitt Romney and John McCain got votes in Philadelphia. Romney got zero votes in just 3 per cent of the citys districts, a fact the Republican chief in the city says is not suspicious given the overwhelming Democratic advantage in black neighbourhoods there and given that Barack Obama was running.) 3. Falsely said, Hillary even got the questions and answers in advance of a major debate. (Hacked emails suggest Clintons campaign was sent one question in advance for a Democratic town hall on CNN, not a major debate, not questions plural, and not answers.) 4. Falsely said, If you look at the polls and the polling places in various cities, theyre also rigged in the cities, lets not kid ourselves. (There is no evidence of election-rigging in American cities.) 5. Falsely said, There is tremendous voter fraud. (There is not. One expert found 31 cases between 2000 and 2014.) 6. Falsely said, This is a rigged election, folks. (It is not.) 7. Falsely said, By open borders, she means totally unlimited immigration. (Clinton supports limits on immigration.) 8. Falsely said, Hillarys plan includes open borders with the Middle East. (It doesnt.) 9. Falsely said, Your taxes will go way down under a Trump administration. (This claim would only be true if addressed to very rich people. Independent experts say the overwhelming majority of Trumps cuts will go to the rich. Half are for the top 1 per cent, according to the Tax Policy Center, and some middle-class families will pay even more than they do now. Most families below the top 20 per cent of earners are expected to reap income gains of less than 1 per cent.) 10. Falsely said, Crooked Hillary wants to raise your taxes big league. (This would only be true if addressed to very rich people. The Tax Policy Center says most residents below the top 1 per cent will receive minor tax cuts under Clintons plan, while the top 1 per cent will be hit with an average increase of $118,000.) 11. Falsely said, of the New START nuclear arms-reduction deal with Russia, They didnt even ask us for anything. They asked us not to reduce anything. (Jeffrey Lewis, scholar at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, says it is wrong to say Russia didnt ask for reductions. We each wanted the other to make different kinds of reductions, he says. We wanted to reduce the number of warheads and they wanted to reduce the number of delivery vehicles...The final thing was a compromise.) 12. Falsely said, apparently of sexual assault accuser Summer Zervos, The one young lady has five family members saying what she said is absolute nonsense. (One of her cousins has come forward to suggest she is not credible, not five relatives.) 13. Falsely said, ICE, last week. ICE endorsed us. ICE. (Trump was not endorsed by ICE, the government agency Immigration and Customs Enforcement, but by a union of its employees. The endorsement did not happen last week but three weeks ago.) 14. Falsely said, The Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, allowed thousands of criminal aliens to be released because their home countries wouldnt take them back. (A 2001 Supreme Court decision requires these people to be released after six months if their home countries wont take them. While some critics say the U.S. should take a harder line on the matter to pressure these reluctant countries, it was not Clintons decision to release them or not.) 15. Falsely said, When you look at illegal immigrants voting all over the country...We have voters all over the country where they are not even citizens of the country and they are voting. (There is no evidence of this actually occurring in any widespread way all over the country. Trump was basing the statement on estimates of non-citizens voting from a disputed study.) 16. Falsely said, What was just found out is that the Department of Justice, the State Department and the FBI colluded, got together to make Hillary Clinton look less guilty and a lot better than she looks. (The documents show a request from a State Department official to the FBI to decide that one of her emails was unclassified rather than classified, and mention of a proposal for a quid pro quo. But there is no evidence that any such deal was actually made, or that there was collusion.) 17. Falsely said polls have us up by four in Ohio and doing really well everywherewe are ahead in the polls. (Only the Ohio part is accurate.) 18. Falsely said, She cant get 500 people into a room. Its crazy. (Clinton drew more than 15,000 people to a rally last week in Ohio.) 19. Falsely said, of companies leaving the country, Ford is leaving. (Ford is shifting small-car production out of the U.S., but it is not even cutting jobs at the affected plants, which will produce different vehicles. It is certainly not leaving.) 20. Falsely said, You have the disappearance of 13 iPhones, many of them whacked with a hammershe whacked them, a lot of them, with a hammer. (Clintons mobile devices were BlackBerrys, not iPhones. Two of them were allegedly hit with a hammer by an aide, not Clinton herself.) 21. Falsely said Clinton will double your health-care costs. (There is no evidence of this.) 22. Falsely said of illegal immigrants, In many cases theyre being treated better than our great veterans. (Every news outlet that has examined this claim has pronounced it ridiculous.) Read more about: SHARE: HONG KONGChaotic scenes erupted at Hong Kongs legislature Wednesday as pro-Beijing lawmakers prevented a pair of newly elected representatives advocating independence for the Chinese region from getting a second chance at taking their oaths. Sixtus Leung and Yau Wai-ching of the radical Youngspiration party, who last week tweaked their pledges in an act of defiance against China, were among five lawmakers set to redo their swearing-in so they can take office. They were part of a new wave of activist candidates elected last month amid a rising tide of anti-China sentiment in semi-autonomous Hong Kong. However, the Beijing loyalists staged a walkout before their turn, forcing the meetings adjournment to next week because the 70-seat chamber lacked the 35-member quorum needed. Speaking to reporters outside the chamber, they blasted Leung and Yau for being disrespectful and insulting China and demanded they apologize, before getting into a yelling match with veteran pro-democracy activist lawmaker Long Hair Leung Kwok-hung. Leung threw slices of luncheon meat at them, a reference to their criticisms when the pro-democracy camp used similar delaying tactics. We havent had any sense of remorse from them, so we just have to do what I believe to be a very unfortunate choice, to walk out from the scene, to disallow the swearing ceremony to go on, said pro-Beijing lawmaker Paul Tse. Yau said the loyalists should be the ones to apologize because they are the ones who are betraying Hong Kongers. At the legislatures opening session a week ago, the duo and two other pro-democracy lawmakers modified their oaths, which call for pledging allegiance to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China. Leung, 30, and Yau, 25, who took the English version of the oath, had vowed to defend the Hong Kong nation and mispronounced China as Shina, an archaic Japanese term for the country thats seen as derogatory. Leung crossed his fingers while taking the oath while Yau combined republic with a curse word. They were getting a second chance after the top court rejected an unprecedented legal challenge by Hong Kongs Beijing-backed top leader and justice chief, who had filed a last-minute injunction on Tuesday evening to stop them from being allowed the do-over. A third lawmaker, sociology lecturer Lau Siu-lai, was also prevented from retaking her oath. But two others finished before the walkout, including a pro-Beijing representative who forgot one word the first time. Read more about: SHARE: YOLA, NIGERIANigerias Boko Haram Islamic extremists have overrun a remote military camp in the northeast, leaving 13 soldiers wounded and an unknown number missing, the army said Wednesday. Mondays attack comes a week after one faction of Boko Haram released 21 of more than 200 schoolgirls kidnapped from northeastern Chibok town, and as Nigerias government is negotiating for the release of another 83 of the girls abducted two-and-a-half years ago. The attack on Gashigar, on the border with Niger, is the third reported attack on the military after months of a lull during which the Islamic extremists hit soft civilian targets. Army spokesman Col. Sani Kukasheka Usman called the attack a temporary setback committed by remnants of Boko Haram that forced the soldiers to retreat. An operation is in progress to find the missing troopers and clear the Boko Haram terrorists at the general area, his statement said. It is believed the attack is by a splinter from Boko Haram that calls itself the West Africa Province of Daesh. The group, also known as ISIS or ISIL, named a new caliph of its only franchise in sub-Saharan Africa in August, provoking a struggle with Boko Harams longtime leader Abubakar Shekau. A battle of words on social media indicated the dispute is over Shekaus indiscriminate killing of Muslims. The group loyal to Shekau negotiated with the Swiss government and International Committee of the Red Cross acting as intermediaries for Nigerias government last Thursdays release of 21 Chibok girls, the first such negotiated settlement. President Muhammadu Buhari, who flew to Germany the day the girls were set free, is scheduled to meet with them and their families later Wednesday, according to a social media message posted by the official account of Nigerias presidency. Boko Harams 7-year-old Islamic uprising has killed more than 20,000 people, forced some 2.6 million from their homes and left tens of thousands facing famine-like conditions, according to aid agencies and the UN. Read more about: SHARE: RIO DE JANEIROThe powerful former speaker of Brazils lower house who spearheaded the ouster of President Dilma Rousseff was arrested Wednesday as part of a sprawling graft probe involving state oil giant Petrobras. Federal deputy Eduardo Cunha, who until recently was a key ally of new President Michel Temer, is accused of corruption, money laundering and tax evasion related to an oilfield purchase that Petrobras made in 2011 in the West African nation of Benin, among a series of other charges. Prosecutors said in a statement that they requested Cunhas detention on the grounds that he represented a threat to the integrity of the investigation and was a flight risk. They also asked for bank accounts he holds totalling more than $60 million (U.S.) to be frozen. Cunha was arrested in the capital, Brasilia, and was taken to the southern city of Curitiba, where Judge Sergio Moro is presiding over many of the Petrobras cases. In a statement, the former lawmaker said the arrest was absurd. The ex-speaker faces multiple ongoing investigations and has been accused of accepting millions of dollars in bribes for himself and other politicians. Cunha denies all the allegations and has said he is the target of a witch hunt for being an adversary of Rousseffs Workers Party. Cunha launched impeachment proceedings against Rousseff in December when he was speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, accusing her of violating budget rules. That led to a Senate vote to remove her from office in August. By that time, corruption allegations already had forced Cunha to resign as speaker. Last month he was stripped of his congressional seat along with the legal protections against prosecution that come with elected office in Brazil. Cunha then began publicly criticizing Temer, his erstwhile ally, and Cabinet officials. He announced he would write a tell-all book about the impeachment with the first excerpts to be published in November. Analysts have said that if Cunha co-operates with prosecutors, he could potentially bring down others in the Petrobras case and create more headaches for the government. Maria Herminia Tavares de Almeida, a political science professor at the University of Sao Paulo, said Cunhas arrest shows that the Petrobras probe, which has already snared some of Brazils richest and powerful figures, still threatens others. Cunha was an obvious target, de Almeida told The Associated Press. Many feared that the investigations on Petrobras would be about to end or that they would focus only on the Workers Party, but today shows that there is a bigger picture. Following the arrest, Temers office said the president had cut short a trip to Japan and was expected to be back in Brasilia on Friday. Congress was expected to have a busy schedule this week, but deputy speaker Waldir Maranhao, an ally of Cunha, suspended Wednesdays session after the news broke. Swiss officials have confirmed bank accounts there in Cunhas name, with media reports putting their value in December at 2.4 million Swiss francs ($2.5 million U.S.). I hope the Swiss gives us that money back, said doorman Francisco Aldo, a resident of central Rio. Cunha is a big fish, but all that I hope is that he snitches on all the others that made him so big. Corruption in Brazil is far from over. Read more about: SHARE: WASHINGTONRepublican presidential candidate Donald Trump did two Colorado rallies and an interview with radio host Mike Gallagher on Tuesday, Oct. 18. He made 19 false claims. 1. Falsely said, You go to Philadelphia, where Romney got zero votes, where McCain got zero votes. (Both Mitt Romney and John McCain got tens of thousands of votes in Philadelphia. Romney got zero votes in just 3 per cent of the citys districts.) 2. Falsely said, of voter fraud, Take a look at Chicago Take a look at some of these cities where you see things happening that are horrendous. (There is no evidence of a voter fraud problem in Chicago. A spokesman for the citys elections board told the Chicago Tribune, In the last 10 years weve had 10 referrals of suspicious activity to the states attorneys office and at the same time weve had nine million ballots cast.) 3. Falsely said, They even want to try and rig the election at the polling booths, where so many cities are corrupt and voter fraud is all too common. (Nobody is trying to rig the election. There is no evidence cities are corrupt in their elections. Voter fraud is not common.) 4. Falsely said, By open borders she means totally unlimited immigration. Come on in, folks. (Clinton does not support unlimited immigration.) 5. Falsely said, Hillarys plan includes an open border with the Middle East. (It does not.) 6. Falsely said, Now they say were tied in Colorado, and They say were tied. I dont think were tied. Another one says were two up, one says were four up. (Trump is down by an average of eight points in Colorado. While he was tied in one Gravis poll in early October, the Gravis poll in mid-October shows him down five points.) 7. Falsely said, And then you wonder why the murder rates the highest in 45 years. (The murder rate is among the lowest of the last 45 years. While it rose more than 10 per cent between 2014 and 2015 the biggest spike in 45 years it was still near historic lows at 4.9 per 100,000 people in 2015. In 1970, it was 7.9 per 100,000 people.) 8. Falsely said, As secretary of state, Hillary Clinton allowed thousands of criminal aliens to be released because their home countries refused to take them Who would do this? Who would do this? You know who would do this? A weak and pathetic politician. (A 2001 Supreme Court decision requires these people to be released after six months if their home countries wont take them back. While some critics say the U.S. should do more to pressure these reluctant countries to change their policies, it was not Clintons decision to release them or not.) 9. Falsely said of sexual assault allegations, Many of them have now already been debunked. (None have been debunked. Trump and his allies have offered rebuttals and counterclaims, but no allegation has been definitively disproven.) 10. Falsely said of John McCain, I hear hes doing badly since he unendorsed (Trump). (There is no evidence of this. A poll released Wednesday, taken after McCains unendorsement, showed him up 10 points.) 11. Falsely said, Look at our jobs report from last week, it was a disaster. Our jobs report last week was catastrophic. (While Trump is entitled to his opinion on the report, which was released the week before last, it is objectively wrong to go so far as to say it was catastrophic. The economy added 156,000 jobs. While this was short of analysts estimates of 172,000, analysts called it such things as solid and within the broad range of expectations; while some media outlets called it disappointing, only Trump is calling it a catastrophe.) 12. Falsely said, Were the highest-taxed nation in the world. (The U.S. does not even have the highest corporate marginal rate in the world; it is third. Taking all kinds of taxes into account, the U.S. is below average for the industrialized world.) 13. Falsely said, the disappearance of 13 iPhones, some by hammers. (Clinton used BlackBerrys as secretary of state, not iPhones.) 14. Falsely said, Hillary thinks most of the country is either deplorable, irredeemable, un-American, racist, or basement-dwellers in the case of the Bernie Sanders people. She said they were basement-dwellers. (There is no indication Clinton believes this about most of the country. She used deplorables and irredeemable to refer specifically to half of Trump supporters, then expressed regret for using the word half. She used un-American to refer specifically to Republican obstructionists in Congress. She never disparaged Sanders supporters as basement-dwellers, but sympathetically said some have been forced to live in their parents basements because they cannot find good jobs.) 15. Falsely said, Your taxes will go way, way down under a Trump administration. (This claim would only be true if addressed to very rich people. Independent experts say the overwhelming majority of Trumps cuts will go to the rich. Half are for the top 1 per cent, according to the Tax Policy Center, and some middle-class families will pay even more than they do now. Most families below the top 20 per cent of earners are expected to reap income gains of less than 1 per cent.) 16. Falsely said of illegal immigrants, They get taken care of better than our great vets. (Every news outlet that has examined this claim has pronounced it ridiculous.) 17. Falsely said Clintons immigration plan includes expanding catch and release on the border. (Writes the New York Times: The practice of catch and release releasing illegal border crossers back into Mexico without charging them with any violation was ended in 2006, under the Bush administration.) 18. Falsely said, The polls just came out in all of the swing states, Im either leading or within one or two points. (Trump is trailing in almost every swing state, in many by more than two points.) 19. Falsely said of sexual assault accuser Summer Zervos, The other person who was on the Apprentice, members of her family came out and said she spoke most highly of Donald Trump her family actually came out and said how unfair it was. (It is false to say members of her family said this, or that her family said this; a statement was issued by one cousin.) Other false things: Donald Trump said 22 false things on Monday, Oct. 17 New record: Donald Trump said 25 false things on Saturday Donald Trump made 33 false claims at second debate Read more about: SHARE: To loyal fans of Chris Christie, his interview Monday with NBC must come as a relief: the New Jersey governor took a small chance to throw his one-time foe Donald Trump under the bus. Its the candidates campaign. Its not my campaign, Christie said of the latest wave of scandal to hit Trump, whom he is supporting for president. Im proud of everything Ive said and thats all I can control. The rest of it I cant control. These lukewarm comments arent the only sign Christie is distancing himself from the GOP presidential nominees campaign. A rare presence on the trail (unlike fellow Trump surrogate Rudy Giuliani), the governor reportedly did not appear alongside Trump at an event in New Jersey on Saturday night. And when asked recently about Trumps 2005 comments to Billy Bush, Christie called them completely indefensible. (To NBC, he said he took Trump at his word that womens allegations of sexual harassment are false, but quickly pivoted to another topic.) The irony is that Christies work within the Trump operation running his presidential transition continues apace in spite of his apparent desire to disassociate himself from Trump. Thats partly thanks to ex-Christie chief of staff Rich Bagger, a powerful force who is all-but-unknown outside New Jersey politics. A pharmaceutical executive on leave to direct Trumps transition, Bagger is at the centre of a group of increasingly beleaguered aides trying to plan a sober transition for one of the least predictable presidential candidates in recent memory. Members of Trumps transition continue to work toward specific goals and to attend regular meetings, including those convened by the Partnership for Public Service, even as new controversies dog the campaign. This is because transition officials see it as their duty to prepare for the possibility of a new government, regardless of whether that government ever comes to pass. (A slew of forecasts are currently predicting Trump will lose to Hillary Clinton, but yes, the transition is still working.) Bagger, who participated in Christies transition as governor, is said to embrace this view. Hes setting the tone, telling people to keep their heads down, said one ally. Bagger hails from Westfield, N.J., where he served on the town council and was elected mayor at 29. A lifelong Republican, he told the Princeton Alumni Weekly in 1980 he was verbally abused on campus for posting notices about GOP activities. Upon leaving Westfield, Bagger journeyed through New Jersey state politics, including five terms in the Assembly and a partial term in the Senate. His legislative career is seen as the root of the wonkish tendencies Bagger applies to transition planning. As Christies top aide, Bagger developed policy ideas that were turned into bills by Jeff Chiesa, Christies chief counsel. Together, Bagger, Chiesa and deputy chief counsel Kevin ODowd formed what was dubbed the triumvirate, wielding immense power over state leaders. Baggers other work is in the pharmaceutical sector. He occupied senior roles at Pfizer for more than 16 years prior to joining the Christie administration, including during the 11 or so he served in the state legislature. After leaving the governors office, he joined the Celgene Corp., an international bio-pharmaceutical firm whose executive chairman this summer supported Trump as a delegate at the Republican convention. Baggers career exemplifies some of the revolving-door practices that ethics watchdogs have criticized, a pattern that might elicit criticism should Trump win the election. His name has also come up in a handful of reports related to the so-called Bridgegate scandal that has raised questions about Christies political future. Appointed by Christie to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in 2012, Bagger was listed in at least one press account as a possible government witness in the legal battle over the lane-closing incident. Key prosecution witness David Wildstein also said he met with Christies inner circle, including Bagger, in 2010 to decide which Port Authority employees hired under Democratic governors could remain in their jobs. At a volatile time on the Trump campaign, sources close to the transition say Bagger continues with his calm but exacting approach. He is one of those guys who prides himself in (sic) the issues where everyone elses eyes glaze over, former Westfield Mayor Tom Jardim told Patch.com in 2009. He is also said to be quite intolerant of leaks. Read more about: SHARE: Suzanne Geist does not skip the house with a yard sign proclaiming support for her opponent when she walks through a quiet neighborhood on a late afternoon as the first red and gold leaves of autumn are fluttering to the ground. "I see the sign, but I would appreciate your support," she tells the man who answers the doorbell with a smile, handing him her campaign calling card. You never know how open a voter may be -- and there are many politically divided households. Lots of people are not at home this late afternoon, but Geist pauses on those doorsteps to write handwritten notes on her campaign handouts: "I'm sorry I missed you. Please vote." A pumpkin-head ghost is on duty in one yard in this affluent neighborhood south and east of 84th and A, and the people who are at home take time to visit briefly. Geist stands at the doorstep and tells them this is her first candidacy for elective office, and she is determined to listen to them. In turn, they tell her they'll consider voting for her next month. No one voices a firm yes or no. Since she entered the 25th District legislative race, Geist says, she has knocked on 13,000 doors. She has journeyed through many neighborhoods three times, block by block. "I'm going to work my butt off," she said with a laugh as she sat down for an interview at Scooters before embarking on this day's door-to-door journey. Geist, a registered Republican, is running as "a conservative voice," committed to low taxes, control of government spending, creation of a business-friendly environment and support for pro-life policies. Her campaign calling card will tell you she supports the death penalty and opposes expanding Obamacare in Nebraska. The Legislature has rejected annual efforts to access hundreds of millions of federal Medicaid dollars that are available to Nebraska to help expand health care coverage to the working poor. Party identification "just gives people a reference where you're coming from," Geist said. The 25th District is heavily Republican in terms of voter registration figures and has traditionally elected independent Republicans to the Legislature, including Sen. Kathy Campbell, who will be term-limited out of office at the end of the year. Although Geist is pleased to have the endorsement of Gov. Pete Ricketts, she said, "I don't feel that I have to align with him on everything (and) I don't think he would support me if I was not independent. "I don't know him that well," Geist said, "but I think we share the same business mindset." With a growing shortfall in anticipated state revenue, Geist said she may be inclined to focus more on "reducing the growth of government during the coming legislative session" rather than supporting state tax cuts at this time. "I don't promise tax cuts," she said. "And I don't hear about sales or income taxes" during visits on doorsteps, Geist said. "It's easy to say I'm going to cut your property taxes, but those are local taxes" that are determined by the level of local government and public school spending, she said. Ricketts and the Legislature stepped forward during the last two legislative sessions with increases in property tax credits that impacted the state budget. If elected in November, Geist said, she would go to the Legislature prepared to listen and learn. And keep her word. "I will say yes or no, and I will do yes or no. I would stand by my word and I would not bargain that away. What you see is what you get." "It's important to build relationships," Geist said. "I want to be a good strategic partner. "I would not have a big agenda the first session; then I'm all in," she said. "The most successful legislators understand they're not going to get their way all the time." Geist said. "There is give and take. "I understand it takes more than just my ideas. I just want to be a part of that effort. And I know I haven't heard all the ideas yet." If elected, Geist said, she plans to try to schedule regular neighborhood coffee gatherings during the legislative session in order to "protect myself from being insulated from constituents." "I want to continue to listen," she said. "Whether people agree or disagree, it's important that they can feel they are heard." Geist, 54, operates a small business selling clothing out of her home, a business she describes as "a one-woman show." "I've always been a political observer," she said, "but I never had the intention of becoming a politician. It was not on my radar or on my bucket list." But, she said, she decided to jump in out of concern for the future of her children and grandchildren. "I'd like to help make Nebraska the best place to begin in business and to start up businesses," Geist said. The level of taxation and government regulation has erected barriers that need to be eased or overcome, she said. Geist reported $48,237 in total campaign receipts and $10,005 in cash on hand as of Oct. 4, according to documents filed with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission. In 2015, Texas veterinarian Kristen Lindsey posted a photo to Facebook in which she posed with a cat that had been killed with a bow and arrow. My first bow kill lol, the photos caption read, according to the San Antonio Express-News. The only good feral tomcat is one with an arrow through its (sic) head! Vet of the year award . . . gladly accepted. The post enraged cat lovers and animal-rights activists, who called for Lindseys license to be revoked. In the aftermath of the picture, Lindsey was reportedly fired from her job at a veterinary clinic in Brenham, about 144 kilometres from Austin. On Tuesday, months after the initial Facebook posting, the Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners ruled that Lindsey wont be allowed to practice for a year. Loris Jones, a spokeswoman for the state board, said the one-year period will be followed by four years of probation. While Lindsey is on probation, Jones said, she must work with a supervising veterinarian, who must be approved by the state board and will submit reports. Lindsey must also obtain additional education in animal welfare, Jones said. The Associated Press reports that Lindseys attorney had argued that his client thought the cat was feral, and that her actions werent out of the ordinary in the area where she lived. From the Associated Press: Her lawyer, Brian Bishop, told the board she believed the cat was feral and that it isnt unusual for people near her rural home west of Houston to dispose of feral animals. She shouldnt have posted an image to Facebook in April 2015, Bishop said, but she didnt act with criminal recklessness. This case would never have gone forward but for the fact that we live in a social-media age, Bishop said. Bishop said in an email Tuesday evening that he and his client were disappointed by the boards decision and planned to appeal. We are also disappointed that the Board has, for all intents and purposes, chosen to take sides in the culture war between the animal rescues zealots who have campaigned to destroy Dr. Lindsey and her family versus rural property owners who have the right to protect their property and their own animals from feral animals who are destroying their property and threatening their own animals, he said in an email to The Washington Post. Lindsey, Bishop wrote, did what she did to protect her property and her own cat from an animal that was trespassing on her property, damaging her property, and endangering her domestic cat and her horse. It should be very troubling to regular people that the State of Texas is spending precious tax dollars on the prosecution of someone who was simply protecting her property from a free-roaming feral animal, and that this Board doesnt have the integrity that the District Attorney in Austin County had to stand up to an irrational but loud lynch mob of zealots, he wrote. According to AP, the cat belonged to a neighbour of Lindseys and was named Tiger. A grand jury in 2015 declined to indict the vet, news outlets reported at the time. Read more about: SHARE: In August, you may recall, statues of a naked Donald Trump, sporting an oversized belly, among other things, appeared in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle and Cleveland. They were placed there by an anarchist collective called INDECLINE. As The Posts Peter Holley wrote of the Trump statues: Hoping to strip away the Teflon Dons legendary confidence to reveal the fleshy mortal beneath the expensive suits and long ties, members of the anarchist collective INDECLINE decided they would showcase the aspirant president in the most humiliating way they could imagine: without his clothes. Even earlier in the cycle, a satirical painting portraying a naked Donald Trump became so popular on the Internet that its artist, Illma Gore, placed it on her website for free download. On Tuesday, a caricature in the form of a statue of an almost naked Hillary Clinton was placed just outside the Bowling Green subway station at around 6 a.m., which caused an uproar. The life-size representation displayed her bare breasts with the head of a Wall Street banker resting his head on one. His lips were puckered, as if he was preparing to nurse from Clinton. One arm wrapped around her large belly, grasping it. Clintons face was twisted into a grotesque smile and, in addition, the statue depicted her with cloven hoofs beneath the knee. The statue wasnt up for three hours, the New York Daily News reported, before a furious bystander named Nancy (she refused to give her last name) knocked it to the ground and yelled, This is obscene. To put something up like this in front of my workplace ... I shouldnt have to see this, she later said. In a video captured by the newspaper, this woman continuously stomped on the statue and at one point sat on it, as its reported creator, 27-year-old Anthony Scioli, attempted to place it upright. Finally, police officers arrived at around 8:30 a.m. and forced Scioli to remove the statue. No one was arrested. Inevitably, some are arguing that the two statues, Trump and Clinton, are not equivalent. As Carin Kuoni, a professor of contemporary art and political engagement at The New School, told the Associated Press, the Clinton statue can be easily viewed as offensive rather than satirical. The history of how the female body appears has clearly been so negatively coded and inscribed that it makes for a completely different intervention when you see the sculpture of a naked woman than when you see a naked man, she said. Others saw a double-standard at work. It is absolutely unfair and ridiculous, Michael Bauer, 23, a business student at Baruch, told the New York Post, referring to Nancys protest of the statue. I bet that lady laughed when she saw the Trump thing online and yet got super-pissed at this. Like, where is your logic? As for the alleged artist, Scioli, he told the Daily Beast he would not confirm or deny being this particular artist of interest. I will however say how much I appreciate the exposure this piece is garnering. It is a firm personal belief that satire brings us closer to the root of the truth of issues and I find it rather unfortunate that in these divisive times, rather than spur a healthy, more lighthearted debate, it only seems to have led to more strife. Its important to note, though, that one of the women in Trumps life, his wife, Melania, was also pulled into this shaming-via-nudity tactic thats been used in this election when the New York Post published a fully nude photograph of her on the front page with the all-caps headline reading, The Ogle Office. Inside its pages were more explicit photographs of the woman who might become the nations first lady. Read more about: SHARE: Chris Wallace was a steady presence on debate night during the Republican presidential primary, helping to moderate three events broadcast on Fox News Channel. His style in those debates offers some clues about what to expect in the last general-election showdown Wednesday night in Las Vegas, when he will run the point alone. Here are five things to know about Wallace ahead of the final clash between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Wallace is the first-ever general-election debate moderator from Fox News Breaking into the moderator ranks isnt easy. For a while, it seemed like the Commission on Presidential Debates always picked Jim Lehrer or Bob Schieffer. But Lehrer and Schieffer are retired, and Fox News now 20 years old now has the first general-election debate moderator in its history. After complaining about NBCs Lester Holt and CNNs Anderson Cooper before each of the last two debates, Trump has not griped about the selection of Wallace. From the left, however, some Clinton allies are unhappy that the inclusion of any journalist from Fox News. Media Matters founder David Brock wrote a letter to the debate commission in September, requesting Wallaces removal. The commission rejected Brocks request immediately. Moderators always attract scrutiny. In this election, most of the objections have come from Trumps side, but that could change in the final debate. Related:Trump, Clinton face off in final debate as chaotic campaign nears end Surprise! Wallace is a registered Democrat Put down the pitchforks, Democrats. Wallace is actually on your team. Well, kind of. Wallace explained to The Washington Post in 2006 that his party affiliation is purely pragmatic and based on his desire to participate in local elections. The reason Im a registered Democrat is that in Washington, D.C., there is really only one party, he said. If you want a say in whos going to be the next mayor or councilman, you have to vote in the Democratic primary. However I vote personally, he added, I think Im professional enough that it doesnt have anything to do with the way I cover the news. In the past six months, Wallace has interviewed Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama Democrats often steer clear of Fox News, and that has certainly been true of Obama and Clinton. But each has been willing to sit down with Wallace on Fox News Sunday recently. The questions in both interviews were tough. Wallace grilled Clinton on some of the subjects that conservatives believe she skates, including gun control, her response to the 2012 terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya, and her use of a private email server as secretary of state. The Commission on Presidential Debates did not elaborate on the reasons behind its moderator selections, but its a good bet that the Obama and Clinton interviews helped Wallaces case. They showed he is seen by Democrats as fair and by Republicans as willing to ask questions conservatives care about. Wallace set a bear trap for Donald Trump in a primary debate Wallace arrived at a Republican primary debate in March armed with full-screen graphics created to debunk some of Trumps false claims. He later said that he had tried to anticipate some of the things Trump would say. Do I take a certain pleasure when I open the gate and he decides to walk down the path and Ive got the bear trap at the end of the path? Wallace said. Yeah. Sure. While Trump has not complained about the debate commissions selection of Wallace, the two do have a history of debate-night run-ins. But Wallace says he wont play truth squad this time Dont expect a repeat of the Chris Wallace slide show on Wednesday. I dont think its a good idea to get the moderator into essentially serving as the Encyclopedia Britannica, debate commission executive director Janet Brown told CNN last month. The commission clearly wants general-election moderators to avoid confrontations with the candidates, and Lehrer and Schieffer have both said their advice is to leave most of the fact-checking duties to the nominees. Wallace appears to be on board with a more hands-off approach. I do not believe it is my job to be a truth squad, he told Fox News colleague Howard Kurtz in September. More recently, Wallace left the door open to some fact-checking when he spoke to Brit Hume but reiterated that his goal will be to let the candidates go at it. Im not saying that if they dont that I wont, Wallace said of calling out false statements. But what would certainly be my preference is that they ... keep checking on each other. Read more about: SHARE: Malik Obama is exactly the kind of man Donald Trump says hed like to keep out of the United States. Hes a Muslim. He comes from Kenya, a country that has been racked by unrest in recent years and has been the target of terrorists from Somalia, who have fashioned themselves as Islamists. He currently has between three and 12 wives he wont say exactly how many and, clearly, doesnt adhere to traditional American family values, however you might define them. But Malik Obama is a naturalized U.S. citizen, and hes the half-brother of the current U.S. president. Most importantly, however, he is an ardent supporter of Donald Trump. At the Trump campaigns request, Malik Obama will be in the audience of Wednesday nights presidential debate in Las Vegas, allowing Trump and his faithful to collectively thumb their nose at President Barack Obama and his favoured successor, Hillary Clinton. It wasnt always this way. Malik Obama was his half-brothers best man when Barack Obama married Michelle. Barack Obama performed the same role at one of Maliks weddings. When GQ profiled Malik in 2013, Malik Obama claimed that he and his half-brother shared a knack for leadership because it is all in the genes. Somewhere between 2013 and this year, though, Malik soured on Barack. Part of the reason for that may be that he feels spurned by his successful and popular half-brother. My brother didnt help me at all, Malik told the New York Post, referring to a foundation he started in their shared fathers name. He wanted me to shut it down when I set it up. He hasnt supported me at all. Inspired by Barack, Malik once tried to run for the position of governor in Siaya, the district of Kenya along the northern shores of Lake Victoria that his father hailed from. He got one per cent of the vote. In the United States, Malik has worked mostly as an accountant for organizations in and around the Washington, D.C., area, including the American Red Cross, Lockheed Martin and Fannie Mae. He is registered to vote in Maryland. Hell be casting his ballot for Trump. His reasoning seems to have as much to do with his growing antagonism for his half-brother as it does with Trumps persona and ideology. When he endorsed Trump in July, he said he found the Republican candidate to be honest, and he believed in his campaign slogan: Make America Great Again. He says he thinks the women whove accused Trump of sexual assault are lying, and questions why they didnt come forward sooner. He also opposes the expansion of LGBT rights, which his half-brother has championed, and was disappointed that the U.S. killed Moammar Gadhafi, whom he considered one of his best friends. At heart, however, he and Trump share something deeper: They are habitually opportunistic about limelight. Malik Obama has relished the media coverage, and his invitation to Wednesday nights presidential debate has only gained him more of it. Trump, meanwhile, is using invitations to the debates for their shock value. To the last one, he invited four women who accused Hillary Clintons husband of sexual impropriety as a way of distracting from similar allegations against himself, if not to cast aspersions on Hillary Clinton for Bill Clintons actions. Trump also played up how Clinton had treated her husbands accusers harshly, while purporting to stand for womens rights. Malik is likely the only member of the extended Obama family who supports Trump. Obama is wildly popular in Kenya. Said Obama, Malik and Baracks uncle, told The Washington Post that America needs someone who is going to bring people and cultures together, and that is not what Donald Trump stands for. The American president is nonplussed about the headlines his half-brother has been grabbing. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the president hasnt spent a lot of time considering Trumps invitation to his half-brother. Earnest said the two dont have much of a relationship. The president has said that they talk about once a year, at most, these days. One can only imagine how the next conversation will go. Read more about: SHARE: Lets be clear: Justice Malcolm Rowe is likely to be a fine Supreme Court of Canada justice, if not one of the finest on that bench. His small-town roots, training and experience as an international lawyer, and activist tendencies all make him exceptionally suited to the task. That he rose to the top of the Prime Ministers new appointments process is telling, as are his thoughtful and erudite answers to the Independent Advisory Boards questionnaire. But lets also be clear: the appointment of Justice Rowe is a missed opportunity to make our Supreme Court more diverse and inclusive and, in doing so, more reflective of a modern Canada. Though the Prime Minister has made diversity in federal judicial appointments a priority, including charging the Independent Advisory Board to expressly consider diversity, there is no denying that Justice Rowe (despite being Newfoundlands first Supreme Court judge) is not the diversity candidate many had in mind. There are some critics of the Prime Ministers call for a more diverse judiciary who assert that appointing an aboriginal or visible minority to the Supreme Court is identity politics. That simply isnt the case no matter how much pride aboriginals or Canadas diverse communities may have felt with the appointment of one of their own as a judge, its unlikely many from those communities would cast their ballot in the next election simply because of the appointment. The issues facing Canadas First Nations, new immigrants and racialized communities are just too nuanced to be solved with a single appointment. In fact, the demand by some politicians that Justice Thomas Cromwells replacement be an Atlantic Canadian (and the corresponding litigation to try to constitutionalize the issue) is the kind of identity politics we should avoid: it plays to Canadas regional and historical insecurities and ignores the modern reality of Canada, which is far more urban and diverse then when our regional conventions were first established. So, can this missed opportunity be salvaged? Yes, if the prime minister takes four steps. First, he should make clear that Justice Rowe was appointed because he was the best Canadian for the job, not the best Atlantic Canadian. In doing so, he would affirm that his next appointment in September 2018 does not have to be from British Columbia (since Chief Justice Beverly McLachlin, who will retire then, notionally holds that seat on the Court), leaving open the possibility of appointing an aboriginal or minority judge from outside B.C. In particular, the current convention does not allow for the appointment of a Northern Canadian, even though the courts in the territories are some of the most diverse in Canada. Second, the prime minister should publish demographic statistics of the applicants for this appointment. How many women applied? Self-identified minorities? Aboriginals? Non-Atlantic Canadians? How many judges? How many lawyers? The problem with promising diverse appointments is that the talent pool at the senior levels of the bar or on the trial and appeal benches may simply not be there. Demographic statistics allow the government and the legal profession to consider where more work must be done to create a pool of good, diverse candidates. Third, the prime minister should revisit (though not necessarily reconsider) the functional bilingualism requirement. Potential applicants have two years to immerse themselves in French-language training. But the government should test whether the bilingualism requirement had a disproportionate impact on aboriginal and immigrant communities, where French-language education may not have been a priority for their parents. Finally, the prime minister should disproportionally fill the 60 other judicial vacancies with qualified women, aboriginal and minority judges. A more diverse Supreme Court is, in many ways, symbolic. The real work of the justice system happens in our trial courts that may be the only interaction many Canadians have with a judge. After every hearing, the Courts justices gather over lunch to discuss their views on the appeal. The appointment of Bertha Wilson in 1982 surely changed the discussion around that table about many issues, including perhaps most importantly abortion, gender rights and spousal abuse. The appointment of an aboriginal or minority judge will have the same impact, providing a much needed perspective on novel issues facing an increasingly diverse Canada and in an age of truth and reconciliation. Our justice system is the finest the world has ever known. But, sometimes, not only must justice be done, it must also be seen to be done. Ranjan Agarwal is president of the South Asian Bar Association of Toronto and a partner at Bennett Jones LLP. SHARE: A year ago Wednesday the Trudeau Liberals scored a remarkable victory, far bigger than almost anyone had predicted when the election campaign began 11 long weeks earlier. A lot of factors went into that triumph not least the sunny ways personality of the party leader himself. But at the top of the list was surely the boldness of the Liberals approach, their willingness to break with economic orthodoxy and capture the mood of the moment. As the Liberals prepare to start their second year in office, they should keep that basic truth firmly in mind. Its easy for any government to let the day-to-day exercise of power grind it down, to make it defensive or overly cautious. But the Liberals got to the enviable position they now enjoy by taking calculated risks and not shying away from bold action when necessary. The same spirit should guide them if they want a successful Year 2. The government has had many successes in its first year; it has earned its continuing long honeymoon with voters. But lately there have been worrisome signs of dithering in important areas, with endless consultation on every imaginable issue replacing action. With that in mind, heres an agenda wed like to see as the Trudeau government enters its second year: First, make sure the ethical hiccups of the first year are not repeated. The mini-scandals over spending by the health minister and top aides to the prime minister were relatively small potatoes. But that kind of thing must not happen again or public perception of the Liberals is bound to change, and not in a good way. Make sure everyone in government gets that message, loud and clear. Reassert federal leadership in health care. Theres a crying need for more money in areas such as homecare, as health costs rise and the population ages. The government has promised to put an extra $3 billion over four years into services designed to keep people healthy and in their own homes as long as possible. But already the provinces are starting to complain that Ottawa wants to impose too many conditions. Health Minister Jane Philpott should hang tough. Simply handing over cash wont buy change. The federal government should insist on national standards in this area. Get pharmacare on the national agenda. This is a big one, but the lack of a program to cover prescription drug costs for many people is a gaping hole in our health care system. The Liberals have been disturbingly silent on this issue, but its time for them to speak up. Federal leadership is badly needed to start a serious discussion. Fix Bill C-51, the fatally flawed anti-terror bill. The Liberals promised to scrap the most objectionable parts of the law, but after a full year theyve taken no action. Instead, they announced a public consultation last month on security issues. Its fine to consult, but this looks too much like a stalling tactic. The government should lose no time in doing away with the provisions of C-51 that clearly violate the Constitution. Match rhetoric with action in fixing relations with indigenous people. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau put reconciliation at the centre of his agenda, but the government has conspicuously failed to act in several areas. It has fallen short in funding child welfare on First Nations reserves, for example, and continues to fight class action lawsuits filed by victims of the infamous Sixties Scoop. The government should break decisively with old policies and fulfill its promise of true reconciliation. And it needs to show concrete results in improving water, housing and education on reserves. Make sure the second phase of the governments vaunted infrastructure spending plan lives up to its advance billing. This is the part of the plan thats supposed to focus on improving long-term productivity and trade access. This is an unimpeachable goal, but it risks bogging down in vague business-speak and being held hostage to regional rivalries. Done right, it could be one of the most important things the Liberals accomplish. But that will take the kind of discipline thats rare from any government. Dont shy away from setting robust immigration targets. Some polls suggest theres a public backlash against immigration, but the truth is Canada needs more newcomers to sustain growth in the future as our own birthrate sags. One recent study finds we will need to raise annual immigration targets over 400,000 just to maintain the labour force and keep growth rates up. When the government announces its target for 2017, it should listen to the experts, not the rumbles in the background. Do away with whats left of the Harper governments tough on crime agenda. The courts have chipped away at the Conservatives misguided crackdown on the nations non-existent crime wave. They have struck down such measures as mandatory minimum sentences for certain crimes, which undercut the power of judges to tailor punishments to fit the circumstances of each offender. The government has been largely content to stand by while the courts act, but that isnt good enough. It should revise laws that are needlessly punitive or discriminatory, such as the mandatory victim surcharge that unfairly penalizes the poorest offenders. Show how Canada can meet its commitments on climate change. The government demonstrated admirable leadership this month when it announced it will impose a minimum national price on carbon starting in 2018, even though some provinces loudly objected. That may be the easy part, however. Soon Ottawa must decide on whether to allow expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline from Alberta to Vancouver. Its probably the most defensible major pipeline project around, but if it goes along the government will have to explain how approving it can be compatible with reducing Canadas carbon footprint over time. That wont be an easy sell. A French statesman once famously observed that gouverner, cest choisir to govern is to choose. The Liberals made a bold choice a little over a year ago not to accept the Harper orthodoxy of small government, and voters rewarded them with a solid majority. If they stick to that path during their second year they have a good chance of keeping voters on their side. But if they lose their nerve, all bets are off. SHARE: European shares traded lower across the board Wednesday, with major indices slipping modestly as regional corporate earnings disappointed and investors booked profits after Tuesday's solid session. The broadest measures of European shares, the Stoxx 600 index, fell by around 0.15% in early dealing, although there didn't appear to be a definitive direction for trading as the session advances. Britain's FTSE 100 slipped just below its Tuesday close of 7,000, while benchmarks in Germany (down 0.24%) and France (down 0.19%) opened with losses. One of the early big share movers of the session came from Paris and the CAC 40, where Carrefour (CRRFY) , Europe's biggest retailer and a global rival to Walmart (WMT) , rose 1.25% after solid third-quarter earnings and like-for-like sales growth of 3.2%. The group said third-quarter revenue came in at 27.781 billion ($30.51 billion). Other early movers include Accor, the French hotelier, after it said its U.K. business would benefit from the weaker pound. Shares in Europe's biggest hotel company rose 4.5% in early trading despite reporting weaker-than-expected third-quarter earnings that were heavily influenced by the recent spate of terrorist incidents in its home French market. In Britain, the mid-cap heavy FTSE 250 was held down by a massive decline in shares of Laird, a maker of smartphone components and a supplier to Appleundefined , which is an Action Alerts PLUS holding. Shares in the group fell 46% in London trading, its biggest one-day decline on record, after it issued a gloomy full-year profit projection that could be linked to the scrapping of Samsung's (SSNLF) Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. Frankfurt-listed shares of Intel (INTC) fell 5% in early trading Wednesday, hitting 32.62, after the chipmaker provided a lower-than-expected 2016 fourth-quarter revenue outlook after Tuesday's U.S. market close. The company sees fourth-quarter revenue of $15.7 billion, plus or minus $500 million. Analysts are looking for $16.1 billion. For the third quarter, Intel posted adjusted earnings of 80 cents per share, beating analysts' expectations of 73 cents per share. Revenue came in at $15.78 billion, higher than Wall Street's projected $15.58 billion in revenue. Outside of equities, Nymex Light Sweet Crude oil held on to gains built in the Tuesday session and was quoted at $50.75 a barrel as trading began to move into European hours. In currency markets, the pound extended Tuesday's sharp rally, rising to 1.23 against the U.S. dollar after trader softer in the Asia session. The euro, which traded within touching distance of a six-month low against the greenback overnight, rebounded to 1.0994 ahead of the European Central Bank's next policy meeting Thursday in Frankfurt. Stocks in Asia rose for the second consecutive session Wednesday as investor momentum from the strong U.S. corporate earnings season carried gains that were extended with in-line economic growth figures from China. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 notched its third straight day of gains with a modest 0.21% rise into the close of trading, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong pared earlier advances in the session and looks on course to end the day down around 0.38%. Saudi Arabia needs a sharper-than-expected increase in crude prices to balance its budget, according to a report published Wednesday by the International Monetary Fund, as the Kingdom attempts to cure its self-described "addiction" to oil. OPEC's biggest producer requires oil at $79.70 a barrel to fund government spending and offset slower economic growth, according to the IMF's latest regional outlook report. The Fund had previously forecast a break-even oil price of $66.70 for 2016. Benchmark Brent crude prices have averaged around $43.70 so far this year. The figures help explain why Saudi Arabia is pushing for an OPEC agreement to cut oil output and boost prices. It could also give pause to investors lining up to buy the country's first-ever international bond sale. Saudi Arabia hopes to raise as much as $17.5 billion in a three-part bond sale that will include five-, 10- and 30-year debt. Pricing the debut deal will test confidence in Saudi Arabia's fragile economy, which is attempting to reduce its dependence - described earlier this year by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as an "addiction" - to crude oil exports. The IMF said Saudi Arabia's non-oil economy is likely to grow just 0.3% this year, down from an earlier prediction of 1.6%, after cuts in government spending also curbed private sector spending. Saudi's Overall GDP growth, including oil, is expected to be about 1.2%, its lowest level since 2009. The Kingdom will post a deficit of about 13% of GDP this year, falling to 9.5% next year, according to the IMF. Saudi Arabia has emerged as the driving force behind a tentative agreement to cut OPEC oil output by at least 100,000 barrels a day to between 32.5 million and 33 million barrels a day. OPEC members are due to ratify that agreement at a meeting at the end of November. Saudi Arabia has committed itself to the cut despite the absence from the agreement of its regional rival Iran. Iran, which is OPEC's No.3 producer, maintains it should be allowed to increase production to recoup market share lost as a result of sanctions. Earlier this week, it said it planned to increase output by about 200,000 barrels per day in the short term. Iran's apparent ease with lower oil prices is reflected in its lower break-even oil price, which is likely $55.30 this year, according to the IMF report. Iran benefits from a more diverse economy than Saudi Arabia leaving it less dependent on oil revenues. Neither the Saudi or Iranian governments are likely to balance their budgets this year as average oil prices are expected to be in the mid-$40 range. West Texas Intermediate traded Wednesday at $51.02, up 1.45%, while Brent crude was at $52.41, up 1.4%. Abbott Laboratories' (ABT) Miles White indicated on a Wednesday morning conference call that he is unfazed by Muddy Waters' attack on St. Jude (STJ) , and that the two merger partners' $25 billion deal remains on track to close by year's end. Discussion around Abbott's other acquisition in the works, of Alere (ALR) , was minimal, but the CEO did opine on China challenges and rebuffed speculation that the health care company has any intention of selling its diabetes business. St. Jude has responded well and thoroughly to the short seller's assertions that its pacemakers and other heart failure devices are susceptible to hacking, White told investors following the release of its third-quarter earnings. "They've been in great communication with us," White said. "I don't see this impacting the close of the deal or the business long term." White also indicated that while he'd like to give his thoughts on Muddy Waters -- which on Wednesday issued yet another attack on St. Jude, unveiling a website with videos aimed to debunk its products alongside a series of tweets -- he'd said he'd refrain. "I will keep my thoughts to myself," the CEO said. Yesterday Abbott and St. Jude disclosed a $1.2 billion divestiture aimed at addressing antitrust concerns over their merger, which they agreed on April 28 to pursue. The companies are selling parts of their vascular closure and electrophysiology businesses to Japan's Terumo. White was also only slightly less mum when it came to Abbott's other pending and perhaps even more controversial acquisition -- the $7.9 billion cash and debt deal for Alere currently working through litigation. A pre-trial hearing in the Alere case is scheduled for Jan. 27, but Delaware Vice Chancellor Sam Glasscock III has been pressing Abbott and Alere to reach a settlement. In light of ongoing controversy about the rationale for Alere, White said little about the deal except that it remains a long-term strategic fit. On other matters of speculation, White reiterated that Abbott's diabetes business remains a strategic and core unit for the company. "If it's on your radar for some strategic move, take it off your screen," the CEO told investors. "The opportunity there is nothing but great moving forward." White said that Abbott has rebuffed a number of inbound calls over the last five years from parties interested in acquiring the unit. Outside of merger talk, White discussed the challenges facing the nutritional market in China, including the recent spate of food and product safety scares and the rapid and overwhelming transition to e-commerce. While the company is actively working to mitigate the market challenges for what represents only about 3% of Abbott's total sales, its diversity and size mean that it is is well-suited to absorb shock when it happens in one part of the company, he noted. Even so, inventories have piled up and competitors of Abbott have oversupplied the market, White said, in light of the speed of the channel shift to e-commerce from modern trade alongside other market dynamics, including new safety laws that will take affect next year. "The long-term attractiveness of the market is definitely still there, but it's kid of in an odd transition period that I don't think was anticipated," White noted. "I know we've got a slower position in China, but it's not going to knock us back," White said, pointing to the better-than-anticipated performance of its U.S. nutritional business. Abbott Park, Ill.-based Abbott on Thursday reported adjusted earnings of 59 cents per share, topping analysts' forecast by a penny. Shares of Abbott retreated about 2.2% to $40.28 a piece by late morning Wednesday. NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Some Wells Fargo (WFC) employees targeted Latino immigrants in the recently disclosed accounts scandal, sources told Bloomberg News' Laura Keller, Jeff Green and Kartikay Mehrotra in a report published earlier today. Keller joined BloombergTV's "Bloomberg Markets: America" on Wednesday afternoon to explain the findings in more detail. Employees at Wells Fargo opened millions of fake accounts for existing customers because they were desperate to meet sales goals at the bank, sources told Keller. Latino immigrants turned out to be "the perfect victim" for those fake accounts. "They found that it was easier to create a bogus account for somebody that didn't need a social security number," she explained. Instead, the immigrants used consular ID cards. Latino immigrants couldn't speak out against the illegal practices because of the language barrier. "Employees knew that by targeting these particular customers, they would not get caught as easliy as with some other customers," she explained. This news comes as the federal government and banks like Wells Fargo have been making a push to get the Latino community into the traditional banking sector, BloombergTV's David Gura noted. "It's really ironic to have a bank that set out to help that customer in the end re-victimizing them," Keller said in response. Shares of Wells Fargo were higher in late afternoon trading on Wednesday. (Wells Fargo is held in Jim Cramer's charitable trust Action Alerts PLUS. See all of his holding with a free trialhere.) Separately, TheStreet Ratings objectively rated this stock according to its "risk-adjusted" total return prospect over a 12-month investment horizon. Not based on the news in any given day, the rating may differ from Jim Cramer's view or that of this articles's author. TheStreet Ratings team rates Wells Fargo as a Buy with a ratings score of B. This is driven by a few notable strengths, which the team believes should have a greater impact than any weaknesses, and should give investors a better performance opportunity than most stocks the team covers. You can view the full analysis from the report here: WFC WFC data by YCharts Register for more free articles. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Obituaries Newsletter Sign up to get the most recent local obituaries delivered to your inbox. Sign up! Already a Subscriber? Already a Subscriber? Sign in Terms of Service Privacy Policy NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Starbucks (SBUX) plans to double its stores in China in the next five years, the company announced on Tuesday. Starbucks has gone from 400 stores in China in 2011 to over 2,300 today and plans to hit 5,000 by 2021. "Starbucks and myself remain very bullish on the Chinese economy and specifically the buying power of the Chinese consumer," Starbuck's CEO Howard Schultz said on CNBC's "Closing Bell" on Wednesday afternoon. The coffee company has already been in China 17 years and has had time to build an "iconic" and "respected" brand in the country, he noted. The CEO has a positive outlook on store openings in China for a number of reasons. First, the Starbucks locations that were opened this year are the best performing stores of the past 10 years, Schultz claimed. Second, the company is building a roastery in Shanghai, which is a much larger city than Seattle, where Starbucks is based. Third, the middle class spending in China should support these stores as the government predicts they might have 15 years of GDP growth over 5% "You look at those numbers and there's a very very significant opportunity," he said. "We believe very strongly that these are the early days for Starbucks in China," Schultz concluded. (Starbucks is held in Jim Cramer's charitable trust Action Alerts PLUS. See all of his holding with a freetrial.) Separately, TheStreet Ratings objectively rated this stock according to its "risk-adjusted" total return prospect over a 12-month investment horizon. Not based on the news in any given day, the rating may differ from Jim Cramer's view or that of this articles's author. TheStreet Ratings team rates Starbucks as a Buy with a ratings score of B. This is driven by a few notable strengths, which the team believes should have a greater impact than any weaknesses, and should give investors a better performance opportunity than most stocks the team covers. You can view the full analysis from the report here: SBUX SBUX data by YCharts I dont want to alarm students who think taking calculus in high school is the key to a brilliant future. But leaders in math education are warning that, in many schools, that course is a mess, causing bright students to forsake, rather than embrace, their dream of a career in math and science. This is not true for students who take Advanced Placement calculus and score at least a 3 on the 5-point exam, but they make up only a third of the 600,000 students who take high school calculus each year. The rest are in trouble, because colleges dont know what to do with them. Ordinary high schools across the country admire the stellar ones, many of them in the Washington area, that have top-notch AP calculus courses. They want STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) jobs for their students, too. There is now an expectation that every secondary school should offer AP calculus or its equivalent, with the result that the demand for calculus teachers is outstripping the supply of those who are fully qualified, said David M. Bressoud of Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., a former president of the Mathematical Association of America. Within our schools, there is tremendous pressure to fill these classes. Too many students are being accelerated, short-changing their preparation in and knowledge of algebra, geometry, trigonometry and other pre-calculus topics. Too many students experience a secondary-school calculus course that drills on the techniques and procedure that will enable them to successfully answer standard problems but are never challenged to encounter and understand the conceptual foundations of calculus, he said. Bressoud was chairman of the College Boards AP Calculus Development Committee from 2002 to 2005 and has just been appointed to its Mathematical Science Academic Advisory Committee. He was one of many mathematicians who encouraged the release of a joint statement in March by the Mathematical Association and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics saying high schools should focus less on calculus and more on establishing the mathematical foundation that will enable students to pursue whatever course of study interests them when they get to college. Instead, students who took high school calculus often find they have to retake college calculus, or even pre-calculus. Many flee to the humanities. I have enjoyed exchanging e-mails with Bressoud on this issue. He doesnt mind my scolding him, and his higher education colleagues, for creating the problem and then telling the high schools to go fix it. College professors love to toss thunderbolts from their ivy heights on how pitifully high schools are preparing students. They dont seem to recognize that it is the colleges, particularly their course designers and admissions departments, that have the power to change this but so far havent gotten around to it. High schools offer whatever courses colleges say their students need to have to be admitted. One is calculus. Selective university admissions officers love to see it on transcripts. An applicant who isnt taking calculus often has to explain why, particularly if he or she is interested in a STEM career. Bressoud knows that. He suggests several ways colleges could help clean up the mess. We need tools for assessing student readiness for calculus, he said, just as the AP calculus exams signal which students are ready for the next level of college math. High schools could use an alternative to calculus that would nurture the conceptual understanding vital to college-level math, he said. But first colleges must bless such a course so that the students who take it can count on being admitted even if they shun calculus. Grass-fed cattle roam on a farm in Kentucky. The animals super-lean meat calls for special treatment during cooking. (Luke Sharett/Bloomberg) In which I answer a leftover question from last weeks Free Range chat: My family owns a small herd of grass-fed cattle, and we love having our own source of excellent-quality beef. I love roasts but have had little success in producing a tender, juicy, flavorful roast with our lean meat. I need suggestions. [More Chat Leftovers: how to smoke tofu; which measuring cup to use ] Grass-fed beef is tricky. Because its so lean, it requires special handling. It cooks faster than grain-fed beef and can go from done to overdone in a flash. So, begin by following a few basic rules for roasting: Always start with the meat at room temperature. Leave it out for an hour or two before cooking. If youre following a recipe meant for regular beef, reduce the oven temp by 50 degrees and plan on cutting the roasting time by about a third. Insert a meat thermometer and check it frequently. A remote-read model is best, so you dont have to keep opening the oven door. Aim for rare or, at the very most, medium-rare. If you go beyond that, the result could be dry, tough and dull. Let the roasted meat rest for 10 minutes before slicing it. Those are general guidelines, but now let me suggest something specific. In The Grassfed Gourmet Cookbook, author Shannon Hayes has a recipe that she confidently describes elsewhere as no-fail and thats frequently hailed by home cooks as the gold standard. Its called Super-Slow-Roasted Beef and involves roasting at your ovens lowest temperature, which for most of us is 170 degrees. No matter how lean your roast may be, this technique ensures a beautiful cut of beef that is juicy, pink in the center, and absolutely delicious, Hayes writes in the headnote. And the best part is that overcooking the beef is just about impossible. For those of us who dont own the book, Cool Springs Ranch in Canada has thoughtfully included the recipe on its website. And if you want to know more about how Hayes arrived at her roasting epiphany, she explains here on her website. Slow-roasting, by the way, also works great on grain-fed meat, as you already know if youve tried the recipe for Slow-Roasted Beef in our Recipe Finder. Have culinary questions of your own? Then tune in for todays chat, which (as always) starts at noon and lasts for one glorious hour. This weeks special guests: Cooks Illustrated founder Christopher Kimball, who spoke with Becky Krystal this week about his just-launched Milk Street Magazine, and Bring It! columnist Cathy Barrow, who writes this week about homemade crackers. Other topics ripe for discussion: Richmonds booming restaurant scene, as explored this week by Tom Sietsema; and its equally booming craft-brewery scene, sampled by Fritz Hahn. Be there! A periodic look at my recent communication with readers. L ike a number of restaurants, Kapnos Kouzina in Bethesda has a policy of not seating customers until the entire party is present. But what happens when one of the guests is a 92-year-old parking his car, another is his 89-year-old wife with a pacemaker, and the dining room isnt at full tilt? Nancy Segal, the couples daughter, was understandably upset when she learned her mother wasnt allowed to sit down ahead of her father. They kept telling her she could sit at the bar and its Friday happy hour, Segal, a member of the dinner party, wrote me. What happened to common sense and common courtesy? Its the same thought I had when I contacted the modern Greek restaurant for a response. General manager Timothy Galvin replied via email that Segals mother arrived 45 minutes ahead of the reservation and seemed perfectly happy to be offered a chair in the entry. When her husband came in, he immediately began berating our 20-year-old hostess, which prompted the staff to break its policy and seat the early birds, a move that involved some shuffling of parties, says Galvin. Subsequently, Segal and her companion showed up on time for a dinner that they all seemed to enjoy, the manager recalls. Partly because of the perceived slight, gratis champagne was sent to the table. Even so, Segal, who complained on her way out, says Kapnos Kouzina lost four customers and my respect. While I wasnt there to referee, my takeaway is this: Rules should be bent on occasion, particularly when theres an available table and a customer in need. Something fishy At what he describes only as a nice restaurant, Andy LaVigne and two other diners rated their entrees spot-on delicious. LaVignes wife, on the other hand, took one bite of her grilled dorade and pronounced it fishy. I tried it, and agreed with her, emailed the Arlington reader. She did not want to make a scene and didnt want another entree at that point. Whats the best way for someone to deal with a situation like that? For an answer, I reached out to Fabio Trabocchi, the owner of one of the finest seafood restaurants around, Fiola Mare in Georgetown. Like the professional he is, the chef said: We love when guests tell us when something is wrong. Its our responsibility to recover. Had the situation occurred in one of his restaurants, he says his staff would have sprung into action by preparing either a fresh version or an entree of the customers choice. Meanwhile, a small portion of pasta or soup would be whisked to the table so the diner could eat along with the other guests. The best time to complain about something, Trabocchi reminds us, is when the guest is still in the restaurant. Afterward is often too late to make proper amends. Speaking up shouldnt be viewed as disruptive, by the way. Raising a problem can be done subtly, without drawing much attention to oneself. Phrases Ive used in the past include This isnt what I expected and The chef might want to taste this. Both beat leaving a restaurant disappointed or hungry or both. Last dance (for a while) Theyve checked off Komi, Minibar, Obelisk and the Source , and cant do seafood or spicy at the moment. Also, they wont be drinking much. Where, in other words, should expectant parents go for a splurge meal before their baby arrives? Thats the question posed by District reader Jason Kleinman, who wants to keep the tab under $150. Kinship, the intime creation of chef Eric Ziebold, home to an exquisite roast chicken for two for $56, certainly fills the bill, as does Masseria . The romantic Italian retreat is watched over by Nicholas Stefanelli, who turns out exquisite pastas and squab cooked beneath a brick, all of which can be ordered a la carte (between $28 and $38). Yet another choice table awaits at the Dabney, a source of Mid-Atlantic fare and a handsome hearth, where the signature small plates top out at $20. A rocky situation On a visit to a family-run restaurant in Washington state, Barb Keeler of Kilmarnock, Va., got more than she bargained for in a bowl of chowder: a pearl-sized rock that nearly broke my tooth. She handed the pebble to her waiter, who informed the chef, who in turn told Keeler, I cant scrub every clam then walked away. What is the etiquette in this situation? asks Keeler. I felt like I should apologize! On the contrary, the chef missed an opportunity to smooth things out with profuse apologies (at a minimum) and the offer of a replacement or anything else the diner wanted preferably sans foreign objects. Restaurants are in the business of making people happy, after all. Other than the rock, how was your meal, Mrs. Keeler? It was marvelous, the easygoing reader shared on the phone. A night to remember A couples plan to celebrate their 30th anniversary with a Sunday night reservation at Equinox in Washington came to a literal halt recently when they encountered Secret Service and District police near the restaurant. Apparently there was a suspicious package and car, and nobody was allowed to enter the block, emailed Marguerite Tom-Wigfield. The Silver Spring resident and her husband, Allan, waited an hour before calling to cancel their reservation. A hostess encouraged them to return, as the situation had been cleared up, and so they did, only to find a room packed with diners who had been turned away from other restaurants. We sat in the bar, had a drink, but decided we were ready to call it a night. Chef-owner Todd Gray came over to apologize. He encouraged us to return and to contact him directly when we made our reservations so that he could do something to make up for the evening, wrote the Silver Spring reader. But that wasnt all. He was concerned that we would have no place to go for dinner since it was getting late on a Sunday night, so Gray rushed back to the kitchen to whip up two complete dinners within five minutes. The couple were so thrilled, they messaged me from the road. We are driving home not feeling disappointed, emailed Tom-Wigfield, but rather elated with tremendous gratitude and appreciation for the chefs kindness. A photo of their care package, alongside a bottle of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, followed. Confirming the details of the night, Gray said, Our goal is to exceed peoples expectations. Next week: a review of Haikan, a new ramen shop in Shaw. 1 of 17 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad A familys river retreat offers laid-back style and vintage finds View Photos A little 1948 house in the Northern Neck gets a new lease on life with the relaxed style of Richmond designer and artist Dana Gibson. Caption A little 1948 house in the Northern Neck gets a new lease on life with the relaxed style of Richmond designer and artist Dana Gibson. Designer and artist Dana Gibsons weekend river house on Virginias Northern Neck is a 1948 cottage built of World War II Navy surplus materials, including Jeep crates. John McDonnell/The Washington Post Wait 1 second to continue. Swirling snowflakes and snow-covered marshes greeted Dana Gibson the first time she and her family drove to the 1948 cottage that would become their Rappahannock River weekend place. It reminded me of that scene in Doctor Zhivago when they come upon the abandoned country house frozen in time and push the door open, Gibson says. It was January 2014. Gibson, husband Mark Longenderfer and their two sons pushed open the front door the real estate agent said would be unlocked. Inside, the one-story house was a time capsule of vintage cottage living: whitewashed walls, heart-of-pine floors, board-and-batten walls. It was said to have been built of World War II Navy surplus materials, including Jeep crates. The house had not been lived in for several years; some old wicker with faded chintz cushions, iron beds and a few wobbly tables had been left behind. An old-fashioned but airy kitchen offered views of the water. We all liked it right away, says Longenderfer, 53, a general contractor. It was an easy, casual, come-in-and-throw-your-stuff-down kind of place. [Pinterest-fueled fantasies help turn a small cabin into a great escape] Dana Gibson and Mark Longenderfers weekend cottage on the Rappahannock River. (John McDonnell/The Washington Post) They bought the 1,100-square-foot house, less than two hours away from their Richmond home, as a family retreat. Now Gibson, Longenderfer and sons Jack, 18, and DeWolf, 16, come to their Northern Neck house in all seasons. In the fall, that means enjoying the sound of geese flying overhead as they take Paco, their beagle, for a walk. We enjoy the simple things here: good food, a breeze, a sunset, says Gibson, 52, who designs home accessories, fabrics and wallpapers. While some people would have knocked the place down and started over, keeping whats old is important to me. I wanted to keep this place authentic. Our decor is rustic and casual, with a bit of glamping style. That means baggy white slipcovers, rush carpeting and painted chests mixed with a few fancy curtains and glitzy chandeliers. Fishing poles are mounted to the rafters of the enclosed porch, where the family sometimes has dinner by the light of a silver candelabra. The house has a breezy, open plan. There are three small bedrooms and a side sleeping porch. Theres a nice living-dining room, and the front porch, which has a stunning water view, has several ceiling fans and cozy spaces to relax. [Photos: The most impressive vacation homes The Post visited recently] Gibson seems to have inherited a talent for art and design. Her mother is a painter. Her great-grandfather was Charles Dana Gibson, a 19th-century illustrator and artist and creator of the elegant Gibson Girl, modeled after his wife, Irene Langhorne Gibson. Nancy Lancaster, Dana Gibsons great-aunt and an owner of the London decorating firm Colefax and Fowler, was one of the most celebrated design figures of the past century, known for her classic English country house style of floral chintz fabrics, old portraits and painted furniture. Gibson was always attracted to art and design and began her business in the 1990s with a line of hand-sculpted porcelains that were sold at shops such as Neiman Marcus and Henri Bendel. She eventually expanded to other home accessories such as trays, lamps and tole wastebaskets, often in bold patterns and colors. Today she designs fabrics and wallcoverings for Stroheim, furniture for Miles Talbott, and napkins and notecards for Caspari. Gibson left the vintage kitchen pretty much as is, adding some open shelving and a green table plus a retro-looking Smeg refrigerator. (John McDonnell/The Washington Post) In furnishing her rural cottage, Gibson must have channeled Lancaster, who was known for making country houses livable. Although there is a casualness about it all, with thrift shop paintings leaning against the wall and boho throws from World Market tossed about, there are also touches of glamour. She kept the whitewashed walls and chose upholstery and curtains in neutral shades of brown, gray and green. The couple didnt do much to the structure of the house. Longenderfer and his crew insulated the living room ceiling and raised the kitchen ceiling. They took out the claw-foot tub from one of the bathrooms and replaced it with a tiled shower. They left the country kitchen pretty much as is, adding a retro Smeg fridge, open shelving and an old green table. The master bedroom, furnished with painted furniture and vintage finds, is casual and relaxed. The wallcovering was designed by Gibson. (John McDonnell/The Washington Post) The bedrooms are furnished simply, with comfortable beds, homey quilts, botanical prints and old mirrors. One bedroom has a chunky, white four-poster bed Gibson found on Craigslist for $125. In another, a decoupage lamp she received as a gift was topped by a custom shade sewn from a cowhide she picked up at a flea market. Curtains are made of one of her floral fabrics, and shes papered a few walls in her wallcoverings. [How to upcycle furniture for a one-of-a-kind look] Shes known for jewel tones in her work, and youll see them around in small doses. There are piles of iridescent silk pillows on the daybed in the sleeping porch. The dining chairs, which came with the house, have seat covers upholstered in five vivid colors, an idea she picked up from a room by French fashion designer Christian Lacroix. Gibsons seat covers are felt, a fabric she says does well with wet bathing suits. The family enjoys being by the river. DeWolf and his father go striper fishing, and dinner might be fish tacos from their catch of the day. Other local seafood is as fresh as can be, thanks to a neighborhood waterman and an oyster farm down the lane. They might enjoy a casual dinner by the river bank, at a table and a bunch of chairs Gibson pulled from various rooms, lit by a line of bulbs strung between trees. Gibsons sons are always telling her not to doll up the place too much; they like it just as it is. We do things here as a family we dont seem to have time to do at home, Gibson says. We watch the sun go down from the deck. When its raining, we play board games. Its a total escape. @JuraKoncius on Twitter instagram.com/jurakoncius The Schiaparelli lander, seen in an illustration, is part of a mission to analyze the atmosphere on Mars. The European Space Agency lost communication with it during its descent to the Red Planet. ( European Space Agency via Reuters ) This story has been updated. Scientists at the European Space Agency downplayed the likely loss of its Mars lander, saying Thursday that a wealth of data sent back by the experimental probe would help them prepare for a future mission to the Red Planet. The Schiaparelli lander was designed mainly to test technology for a European robotic mission to Mars in 2020 and avoid the fate of Europes Beagle 2 probe, which failed to deploy after landing in 2003. Data received from Schiaparelli show that it entered the atmosphere as planned Wednesday and used its parachute to successfully slow down in the harsh Martian atmosphere, but its signal was lost shortly before the expected touchdown. Experts said the probe may have descended too fast or too slowly and hoped that about 600 megabytes of data sent back to Earth would provide answers. The data are equivalent to about 400,000 pages of information for scientists to sift through. The experimental test has yielded a huge amount of data and clearly were going to have to analyze this in the days and weeks to come, but it gives us a lot of confidence for the future, said David Parker, ESAs director of human spaceflight and robotic exploration. We need to understand what happened in the last few seconds before the planned landing and that is likely to take some time, he said. Getting a spacecraft onto the surface of Mars is notoriously difficult, and the planet is littered with the remains of failed attempts. Only NASA has repeatedly succeeded in landing several robotic vehicles on the planet, including the Opportunity and Curiosity rovers. The apparent failure to achieve what rocket scientists call a soft landing marred an otherwise successful start to the ExoMars mission, a joint venture between ESA and Russian space agency Roscosmos. ESA chief Jan Woerner noted that Schiaparellis mother ship was put into orbit around Mars as planned. The Trace Gas Orbiter will analyze the atmosphere to help determine whether there is life on Mars. ESAs member states are expected to decide in the coming months whether to pay the estimated $330 million needed for the second part of the ExoMars mission in 2020. Scientists havent given up all hope that Schiaparelli might yet phone home. Don McCoy, the manager of the ExoMars project, said attempts will be made to reset the probes transceiver but noted that its batteries are only expected to last for a few days. Parker said his team was undaunted by the fate of Schiaparelli. Mars exploration is hard, and thats one of the reasons we do it, he said. Sabrina Regan, 10, of Potomac Falls, Virginia, made a Steampunk Hovercraft. Her legs are tucked underneath with fake legs and shoes in front. Her friends asked how she made the costume float. Steampunk Hovercraft Sabrina Regan, 10, of Potomac Falls, Virginia, made a Steampunk Hovercraft. Her legs are tucked underneath with fake legs and shoes in front. Her friends asked how she made the costume float. Family photo Has Halloween sneaked up on you this year? Its less than two weeks away, and perhaps you havent started thinking of a costume. Dont fear. We always find a group of creative kids to share their ideas on how to make something scary, funny or clever. The winners of this years KidsPost Halloween Costume Contest found inspiration from everyday objects (goggles) and things they love (The Nightmare Before Christmas). The trick was turning that inspiration into something wearable. They succeeded, often with materials you can find around the house or at a local craft store. We expect this bunch will be seasoned do-it-yourselfers by the time they reach adulthood. Kids featured in the printed KidsPost will receive a Halloween-themed prize package and four tickets to see Disneys Beauty and the Beast at Imagination Stage in Bethesda. Our thanks to all those who entered. Happy trick-or-treating! Matryoshka Doll Sasha Karpova , 10, Great Falls, Virginia Inspiration: My costume is a matryoshka, or Russian nesting doll, Sasha said. Im half-Russian and lived half my life in Moscow, where kids dont really celebrate Halloween. Supplies: About one yard of one-inch-thick foam; yellow felt to wrap around the foam; elastic band for waist; frog closures to keep the foam in a circle, red felt for skirt; black rickrack; blue, pink and green felt for flowers; hot-glue gun; red hoodie; red print scarf. Time it took: 24 hours. Grown-up help: Mom copied the design from a matryoshka doll the family had and did the sewing. Sasha cut out the felt flowers and attached them with a glue gun. blood Evelyn Hays , 10, Bethesda, Maryland Inspiration: I made it because I want to be a hematologist when I grow up, Evelyn said. (A hematologist is a doctor who treats blood diseases.) Supplies: Red bodysuit; red rope; red mini flying discs for red blood cells; stuffed animals for platelet, red blood cell and white blood cell. Time it took: Less than an hour after tracking down the supplies, which took a while. Grown-up help: Mom ordered the stuff that Evelyn needed. Evelyn taped on the flying discs and pinned on the stuffed animals. Then Mom helped wrap the ropes around her. Hot-air balloon Beatrix Regan , 12, Potomac Falls, Virginia Inspiration: I decided to make it because I knew it would be really fun to make, and because Ive always wanted to ride in one, Beatrix said. My dads sky-diving goggles gave me the idea. Supplies: Cardboard box, balloon, balloon harness, string, brown paint, brown paper bags, stuffing to fill bags, craft foam for hat, fleece for hat, boots, khakis, turtleneck, jacket, scarf and goggles. Time it took: About two weekends. The longest part was waiting for the giant balloon to arrive from an online order. Grown-up help: Mom helped create the hat, helped attach the balloon harness to the base and screwed on the harness. Beatrix wove the basket, put together the outfit and made everything else. oogie boogie Kyle Catanzaro , 12, Silver Spring, Maryland Inspiration: My costume is Oogie Boogie from The Nightmare Before Christmas, Kyle said. I made it because I think he is cool and somewhat scary. Supplies: Burlap, black yarn, cloth for the inside of the mouth, wire for the eyebrows. Time it took: Three to four weeks. Grown-up help: Mom taught Kyle how to sew, but he did the actual sewing. Steampunk Hovercraft Sabrina Regan , 10, Potomac Falls, Virginia Inspiration: I think steampunk stuff is neat-looking and thought a hovercraft would be really cool, Sabrina said. When I showed it to my friends, they asked how I made it float. (Steampunk is science fiction that often features steam-powered machines.) Supplies: Large cardboard box, water bottles, egg cartons, foam packages, pool noodles, leggings, boots, skirt. Time it took: Over three weekends, a little bit at a time so paint could dry. Grown-up help: Dad helped build the hovercraft and the harness that holds it up. Sabrina spray-painted everything, and the two took turns using a hot-glue gun to stick the pieces together. Mom made the hat. The Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department has issued food enforcement warnings to: Braeda Runza, 4901 O St. Staff must wash hands prior to donning gloves, corrected. Broccoli soup at unsafe temp for unknown time, soup discarded, corrected. Ladle, squeeze bottles, deli slicer, ice scoop and holder all had residues. Sonic Drive-In, 8445 Holdrege St. One employee with expired food handler permit; transferred employee does not yet have food handler permit. Chili at unsafe temp in hot hold unit and no temp entry in temperature log, chili removed, corrected. Residues on can open blade, cleaned during inspection, corrected. Bottle containing a chemical substance unlabeled, contents dumped, corrected. Falafel King Express, 114 S. 14th St. Employee without food handler permit. Employee using phone outside and returning to kitchen without washing hands; employee donned gloves without washing hands. Raw meat stored above leafy greens in reach in cooler, food relocated, corrected. Soiled dishes loaded in sanitizing compartment of warewashing sink. Shwarma meat on spit/cooker at incorrect temp for unspecified amount of time. Install air gap in sanitizer compartment of three compartment sink or separate sink for food prep only, repeat. President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama welcome Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and Agnese Landini to the White House for a state dinner. (The Washington Post) For the final state dinner hosted by President Obama, this one in honor of Italys prime minister, first lady Michelle Obama wore a custom rose-gold chain-mail gown from Atelier Versace. It was a slinky gown with an asymmetrical neckline that slithered like liquid metal down her torso and around her hips. It was pure Hollywood glamour. The gown hailed from the most rarefied corner of the Versace brand the collection that is shown on the runway as part of the Paris haute couture season, the treasure trove that stars wear down the red carpet on their way to collect their Oscars. Designer Donatella Versace is also a fan of the Obamas, having once used President Obama as a source of inspiration for a menswear collection. I am humbled and honored to have the opportunity to dress the First Lady, Versace said in a statement. Thank you Michelle for all of the things you have done for America and the rest of the world, for the women in the United States and the rest of the world. [ Donatella Versace, Finding Inspiration in American Politics ] The choice, of course, pays homage to Italy, one of the world capitals of fashion. The country is known for its exquisite tailoring, luxurious fabrics and its ability to transform a sexy frock into a form of high art. This is also a moment when Italian fashion is ascendant, thanks to the powerful influence of Gucci, with its gender-blurring sensibility, the continuing impact of Prada with its intellectual eccentricity and a crop of younger brands that are beginning to gain traction on the international stage. And Obama has always been an internationalist when it comes to fashion, wearing the work of a diverse group of designers and brands Azzedine Alaia, Duro Olowu, Jean Paul Gaultier, Preen that come from all over the world. Yet she has traditionally chosen to highlight American designers on major occasions. The last time she wore a gown by a non-American designer for a state dinner was in 2011, when the White House welcomed Chinas then-president Hu Jintao. Obama chose a dress from Alexander McQueen, which had been created by British designer Sarah Burton. It was a vivid red dress with a stunning abstract print, but it also left many American designers feeling snubbed. The late Oscar de la Renta was particularly vocal in his disappointment, calling it a lost opportunity to turn the spotlight on American talent. 1 of 25 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad See photos from the Obamas final state dinner View Photos President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama host their final state dinner this one is in honor of Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and wife Agnese Landini. It features a menu by celebrity chef Mario Batali and performance by Gwen Stefani. Caption President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama host their final state dinner this one is in honor of Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and wife Agnese Landini. It features a menu by celebrity chef Mario Batali and performance by Gwen Stefani. President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama pose for a photo as they greet Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife, Agnese Landini, on the North Portico for a state dinner at the White House. Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP Wait 1 second to continue. One can argue that fashion is a global business, of course. And what better way for Obama to welcome Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife Agnese Lindini than by showcasing her admiration for their countrys creativity and style. By using fashion to break down borders. By giving a nod to the bella figura. Still, its disappointing that an American designer was absent from this historic moment. From this finale. They have been so instrumental in helping Obama shape her public identity, her brand. Surely, they would have liked to see her through to the end. For eight years, all the attention at state dinners has been on the women on the first lady mostly, and occasionally on the wife of the visiting dignitary. In a welcome break from trade agreements, security concerns and environmental policy, all eyes turn to the women to see what they are wearing. It is old-fashioned and cliched, but of course, it makes sense because, frankly, there typically isnt all that much to consider when it comes to the men. 1 of 21 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad Michelle Obamas state dinner style View Photos When it comes to foreign diplomacy, the first lady dresses for the spotlight. Caption When it comes to foreign diplomacy, the first lady dresses for the spotlight. Oct. 18, 2016 Michelle and Barack Obama pose for pictures with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife, Agnese Landini, during a state dinner at the White House. Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Wait 1 second to continue. But this time, the prime minister made a statement. He wore a tuxedo by Italian designer Giorgio Armani. For all of the splendid Italian craftsmen whose names have been embedded in the global popular culture, the impact has been greater on mens fashion than on womens. And if there is a singular Italian designer whose name resonates beyond the frock trade and far beyond Italy itself, its Armani, who also attended Tuesday evenings dinner as a guest of the prime minister. That Armani was part of the Italian delegation speaks to the importance of fashion as an industry and the prominence of Armani himself. He rose to fame on his menswear, for the way in which he deflated, loosened and sexed-up the business suit. He did all of that without detracting from the suits message of power and authority. He made menswear glamorous, thanks to his works starring role in the 1980 film American Gigolo. Armani also brought his discerning eye to the red carpet, helping to redefine our understanding of what it means to dazzle not with high slits and revealing decolletage, but tastefully. But history will remember what his Italian style did for men. There are also, thanks to Obama, numerous American designers whose work is recorded in the history books. Tuesday night, however, belonged to Versace and to Italy. James OKeefe says hes an investigative journalist, making uncompromising videos that uncover hidden truths. And indeed some of OKeefes projects have produced memorable results: This week, two Democratic operatives tied to Hillary Clintons campaign lost their jobs after OKeefes organization, Project Veritas Action, posted secretly recorded videos of one of them apparently bragging about disrupting Donald Trumps rallies and speculating about how to conduct voter-fraud schemes. The videos gained widespread media attention and seemed to buttress Trumps claims that the election is rigged against him. OKeefe even titled the videos Rigging the Election. But as with many of OKeefes projects, the videos have raised questions among journalists. Most prominent: Do his ends justify his means? The techniques employed by OKeefe and his associates, they say, fall far outside journalistic norms. Mainstream news organizations discourage the methods that he regularly employs to expose questionable practices, usually by liberals or Democrats. Among the more problematic is Project Veritass associates use of aliases and false identities to gain access to the people it stings. The organization acknowledges that its people posed as political donors to trick the two Democratic operatives into speaking with them for the rigging videos. Although variations on such tactics have been employed by news organizations on rare occasions a Mother Jones reporter exposed prison abuses this year by taking a job as a guard, although he used his real name in applying for the position such deceptions are generally discouraged as a violation of trust between source and reporter. OKeefe, a 32-year-old Rutgers University graduate, has also used outright illegal means to pursue his quarry. While investigating Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) in 2010, OKeefe and three associates posed as telephone workers to enter her office in New Orleans. They were arrested, and OKeefe eventually pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor criminal charge of entering a federal office under false pretenses. He received three years probation. An even bigger issue, however, has been the way in which OKeefe has edited some of his videos. In 2009, he and an associate posed as a pimp and prostitute to infiltrate ACORN, a community social-services agency. The resulting video showed ACORN members offering the pair advice on how to set up a brothel. It also showed outtakes of OKeefe and his partner dressed in the flamboyant attire of street hustlers, suggesting they had appeared that way when they spoke to the officials. In fact, the footage of the pair in costume was spliced into the video after the ACORN meetings, a fact the video didnt mention. Congress subsequently defunded ACORN, leading to its demise. OKeefe was later sued by one of his subjects, who claimed his privacy had been invaded by the surreptitious filming; OKeefe settled the matter for $100,000, admitting no guilt. OKeefes 2011 sting of NPR executives was fraught with discrepancies between what one of the executives said and how his comments were framed in the video. Then-NPR executive Ron Schiller was quoted in the video as saying that tea party activists were seriously racist people. But the raw footage of the encounter showed that Schiller was quoting two Republicans who viewed the activists that way, not that he held such views. Veritas spokesman Steve Gordon said the organization has matured over the past few years and now imposes stricter editing controls to ensure that the context of any clip is clear to viewers. The group also instructs its operatives not to lie to federal officials, or to engage in forgery, or to carry fake identification cards, he said. (OKeefe was unavailable for comment Wednesday.) But Gordon justified using false identities in the course of a project. An interview subject would not say the things he said if you were overt about being a reporter, he said. What a politician says on the podium or in a press release is not what he would say in a smoke-filled room to someone he thinks is an ally. I personally have no qualms misrepresenting my identity if it leads to a much greater truth that the public needs to know. Journalists say the best investigative reporting is done without deception and through the hard work of building cooperative sources and gathering data. There could be circumstances warranting OKeefe-like tactics, they said, but these are rare. If you lie to get a story, youre asking your audience to believe you, and thats a hard sell, said Mark Horvit, executive director of Investigative Reporters and Editors, a journalists organization. Even if your story is accurate and justified and all the editing is honest, its hard to justify when you lied to get an interview in first place. The story can be awesome, but you risk eroding the trust of your audience if you cut corners to get it. Andrew Seaman, the chair of the Society of Professional Journalists ethics committee, calls OKeefe an advocate who uses some of the more controversial items in journalisms toolbox. The SPJs ethics code doesnt forbid undercover reporting, he notes. But it stresses that the methods OKeefe regularly uses should be a last resort in pursuit of information that is vital to the public. Seaman notes that although mainstream news organizations sometimes cross ethical boundaries, OKeefe regularly does so. James OKeefe is not an ethical journalist if we look at his actions in the context of the SPJs ethics code, he said. He obviously has an agenda, goes directly to surreptitious reporting methods and has a history of distorting facts or context. Nicholas Sparks has written 20 novels in 20 years and sold more than 100 million copies in 50 languages. (Astrid Riecken/For The Washington Post) A puddle, thats what Tyler Malik has been reduced to, a veritable puddle. He reaches and touches me to the core, she says mid-sob, face raw, as Nicholas Sparks that would be He signs books, hundreds of them, at a Union Square bookstore. Malik rose well before dawn and drove three hours from her Great Barrington, Mass., home to be rendered a wreck. Your stories mean more to me than I could ever explain in words, she tells the author, clutching two copies of Two by Two, his latest tear de force. Fans purchased more than 98,000 hardcover copies of the new novel in the opening week, further proof of Sparkss indomitable appeal. His total sales number more than 100 million in 50 languages. This fall marks a significant milestone in Sparkslandia: 20 years and as many books since the onetime North Carolina pharmaceutical rep sold his first novel. The Notebook crowned the bestseller list for more than a year. The movie, stuck for years in what the author calls development heck, finally appeared in 2004 and made Ryan Gosling a star (and a meme), and it transformed Sparks into the undisputed king of tear-soaked literature. I write in this strange little subgenre of whats called a love story, says Sparks, 50, sitting in his agents office, his face blanketed in foundation for the camera and a cavalcade of smartphone snaps. People read them because they move the reader through the whole range of human emotion. A former champion runner, Sparks has the powerful physique of a man who works out religiously. He tends to answer questions with an intense earnestness that borders on confession, oh, gosh punctuating many of his sentences. More than two decades ago, Sparks was a salesman with a dream: He wanted to produce a book like Erich Segals Love Story, Robert James Wallers The Bridges of Madison County or Nicholas Evanss The Horse Whisperer, then crushing the bestseller list. If the love story doesnt go, the Notre Dame graduate thought, maybe my next book would be a horror story or a thriller. There would be no thrillers. Instead, Sparks accomplished what almost no one else in his strange little subgenre, which tends to consist of one-hit wonders, has: He became a brand. [The Best of Me and the evil genius of the Nicholas Sparks empire] Eleven books became movies about ordinary people in love who happened to be portrayed by extraordinarily gorgeous actors, grossing $885 million at the global box office. Says Sparks, I think these movies lend themselves to people wanting to be cast in them because the actors themselves get to act and go through the entire range of human emotion. Every book hit the New York Times bestseller list, often spiking to the top. So, to celebrate his 20th anniversary in publishing, Sparks wrote a divorce story. Sparks signs copies of his newest book, "Two by Two" at Barnes & Noble in Manhattan in early October. The novel sold nearly 100,000 copies in the first week of sales. (Astrid Riecken/For The Washington Post) Two by Two, with a first printing of almost 1 million, refers to the adman hero, Russ, and his young daughter, whom he is left to raise alone after his wife leaves. Russ, Sparks says, is empathetic and at times a little bit clueless. Indeed. When his wife begins labor, Russ jumps in the shower so he can look fresh for the birth photos, something Sparks admits he did when his wife, Cathy, went into labor with the first of their five children, now ages 15 to 25. Two by Two features a salad bar of turmoil illness, death, despair, adultery but divorce dominates the narrative. (Fear not, the book also contains a love story.) Divorce, alas, is something Sparks now knows. After 25 years of marriage, the laureate of love and Cathy, who long served as his muse, divorced last October, no reason given. For our childrens sake, we regard this as a private matter, Sparks said when the couple separated in January 2015. Fans lamented on Twitter: Theres no hope for any of us. The vast majority of the book was written after my divorce, Sparks says. But, he adds, I wanted to make sure the story felt authentic, the dissolution felt authentic, the pain felt authentic, the achingly slow healing felt authentic. Anyone whos been through anything like this knows the healing is slow. He hopes, however, that his audience wont confuse his experience with the novel, especially the wife, Vivian, who will win no popularity contests. Vivian is not Cathy, he says. We remain friends. Our story is different. As a gift to readers, author Nicholas Sparks commissioned an original song for his book "Two by Two" by musician JD Eicher. The soundtrack includes the original song, and three of Eichers previous songs. Eicher accompanied Sparks on part of his book tour literally, singing while fans waited in line to have books signed. (Courtesy of JD Eicher) As a gift to his readers, Sparks commissioned an original song for the book by musician JD Eicher, whose previous big break was having a tune selected for an Olive Garden commercial. Hes averaging 1,000 free daily downloads. Eicher accompanied Sparks on his book tour literally, singing while fans waited in line to have books signed and witnessed a proposal at an appearance last week in suburban Denver, a regular Sparks phenomenon. Fans have also requested that Sparks write down favorite quotes so that they can get tattoos in his handwriting. [Sparkss love affair with romance] Two decades after his first tour, Sparks still appears thrilled to meet his fans, 90 percent of whom, he estimates, are women. His longest appearance, he recalls, lasted 17 hours: I think I signed 6,000 books. Theres no formula to his stories. Each time I think the well will be dry and Ill run out of ideas, he says. One of the goals is to make each of these novels feel unique. To do that, I vary as much as I conceivably can per novel. Ill vary the theme. Ill vary the ending: happy, bittersweet, tragic. Ill vary the voice: first person, third person or some are combinations, like third person limited omniscient. Ill vary the period, Ill vary the length. Importantly, Ill vary the age of the characters. But he knows what keeps readers happy. They know there will be a love story, and it will be set in North Carolina, he says. Those are the only two constants. JD Eicher performs the soundtrack for "Two by Two" as Sparks signs copies of the book. (Astrid Riecken/For The Washington Post) Rachel McAdams as Allie and Ryan Gosling as Noah in the movie of "The Notebook," Sparkss first bestseller. (Melissa Moseley/New Line Productions via AP) Theresa Park, a Harvard-trained lawyer, was a neophyte agent who had never sold a novel when she pulled The Notebook from a stack of unsolicited manuscripts in June 1995. The writing was so rough, but two-thirds through I got really choked up, and Im the least romantic person on the planet, she says. She recalls thinking, If this is doing this to me, whats it going to do to the rest of the women of the world? I felt that there was not a person on the planet who is not going to shed a tear. Jamie Raab, editor of all 20 books and president of Hachettes Grand Central Publishing, had the same reaction. I cried, and I almost never cry. She offered $500,000 to preempt an auction. Thats not enough, Park responded. I was thinking of a lot of money, like Horse Whisperer money. Ten minutes later, Raab called back and proposed $1 million. The three have worked together ever since. We never call them romances, Raab says. I think romance is formulaic. His books are not. Sparks, concerned that he might be a one-novel wonder, kept the salesman job for another 15 months after selling The Notebook. He became a very rich writer but chose to stay in New Bern, N.C., a central coastal town of 30,000. Its a very quiet life, he says. Quiet, but hardly simple. Sparks lives in a 24,000-square-foot house, a villa built from kisses, with a screening room, a bowling alley and a napping room, in addition to his writing room, where he plays television shows (House, Big Bang Theory) in the background while he writes. (Although Craven County was battered by Hurricane Matthew, Sparkss home was undamaged.) And he writes fast, usually six months start to finish. He bought a Bentley. On his wrist is a Patek Philippe watch that costs a serious five figures. He has more. A devout Catholic, Sparks founded the Epiphany School of Global Studies with Cathy a decade ago, a private institution anchored in the Judeo-Christian commandment to Love God and Your Neighbor as Yourself, according to the schools website. His influence is everywhere. His face appears on the website homepage. This summer I had this deadline for Two by Two and Im writing policies for the student handbook, he says. I think Ive donated close to $15 million over the years. Why launch a school? While the public school in New Bern is very good for many students, it doesnt work for other students for whatever reason, he says. I just thought that having a choice would be a good thing for the town in which I live. In 2014, former headmaster Saul Hillel Benjamin filed a federal lawsuit against Sparks and Epiphany, charging racial and religious discrimination and bias against gay individuals. Sparks declined to comment. The lawsuit is ongoing, he says. Of course, I have thoughts, but I dont think its wise to say anything. Fans wait for Sparks at the book-signing. The author estimates that 90 percent of his readers are women. (Astrid Riecken/For The Washington Post) Twenty years in, the Nicholas Sparks brand is going full force. The Notebook has been sold to the CW as a television series. Sparkss agent says she is within striking distance of signing a Broadway deal for The Notebook as well. Potentially, it could be the soggiest musical ever the rainstorm kiss onstage, verklempt fans producing squalls when Noah sings to Allie, It wasnt over! It still isnt over! After three Sparks movies were released in 18 months, his team decided to hold back the movie rights on Two by Two. Says Park, It was too much of a glut. Were going to take a little break and give everyone a breather. A Sparks glut? As Eicher sang and played guitar, and the team unrolled his latest book to weeping fans like Malik, Sparks felt the weight of his readers expectations. He had scanned the packed house, the line snaking through the bookstore, and declared that the signing would last a little over an hour. Almost two hours, about 500 books and so many tears later, Sparks was done and heading to Pittsburgh to sell more. He professed fatigue but looked rejuvenated while obsessing about the next book, No. 21, with the team. Anne Arundel County The following incidents were reported by the Anne Arundel County police. For information, call 410-222-8050. ARNOLD AREA THEFTS/BREAK-INS Arnold, Oct. 10 to Oct. 13. During the week, an estimated four burglaries occurred at homes in the area. An Arnold man, 19, was charged with numerous crimes including burglary, theft and trespassing. BROOKLYN AREA ROBBERIES Wasena Ave., 5400 block, 1 a.m. Oct. 12. An armed male stole cash from a man in his driveway and fled on foot. CROWNSVILLE AREA THEFTS/BREAK-INS Generals Hwy., 1200 block, 8:50 a.m. Oct. 5. Equipment was stolen from an auto center. Veterans Hwy., 8600 block, 10:01 p.m. Oct. 6. Property was stolen from a gas station. Landmark Rd., Oct. 10. A Glen Burnie man, 41, was found in possession of stolen property from the above burglaries. He was issued multiple arrest warrants; the investigation is continuing. GLEN BURNIE AREA HOME INVASION Summer Wind Way, 400 block, 11:51 p.m. Oct. 10. Two armed males pushed their way into an occupied apartment, stole cash and property, and fled. ROBBERIES Shelly Rd. and Whitemore Ct., 12:07 a.m. Oct. 12. Two males stole cash from a man, assaulted him and fled in a vehicle. HANOVER AREA ROBBERIES Ridge Rd., 7800 block, 10:36 p.m. Oct. 7. Two armed males stole cash from a service center and fled in a vehicle. LAUREL AREA HOME INVASION Cecilton South, 300 block, 12:53 p.m. Oct. 4. Several people entered a home, threatened occupants and fled. A Temple Hills man, 19, was arrested and is a suspect in burglaries in other jurisdictions. LINTHICUM HEIGHTS AREA ROBBERIES Hammonds Ferry Rd., 700 block, 5:36 a.m. Oct. 13. A male with a knife stole cash from a man at an ATM and fled in a van or SUV. ODENTON AREA THEFTS/BREAK-INS Piney Orchard, Oct. 12. In the past several weeks, property was stolen from vehicles in the area. Two Odenton men, 21 and 23, were charged with offenses related to the thefts from vehicles. PASADENA AREA ROBBERIES Fort Smallwood Rd., 8800 block, 1:23 a.m. Oct. 14. A male with a shirt over his head entered a convenience store and demanded cash, but a clerk refused. The male attempted to open the cash register, but failed and left the store. Mountain Rd., 2800 block, 3:27 a.m. Oct. 13. An armed male stole cash from a convenience store and fled. SEVERN AREA ASSAULTS Blue Jay Ct., 1800 block, 4:54 p.m. Oct. 8. Two males approached a male and fired a handgun, striking the male twice, and fled in a vehicle. The male was listed in critical but stable condition. Deer Run Ct., 8300 block, 11 p.m. Oct. 10. Five males assaulted a male pedestrian. During the assault, one of the males shot the pedestrian in the arm, and they all fled. ROBBERIES Donaldson Ave., 3 a.m. Oct. 12. An armed male robbed a convenience store and fled. Annapolis These were among incidents reported by the Annapolis Police Department. For information, call 410-268-9000. ROBBERIES Taylor Ave., 600 block, 10:30 p.m. Oct. 8. Two armed, masked men stole cash from employees at a business and fled. THEFTS/BREAK-INS Beech St., 1000 block, Oct. 5 to Oct. 6. Cash and vehicle keys were stolen from a vehicle. Colonial Ave., Sept. 23 to 9:30 a.m. Oct. 7. Cash was stolen from a vehicle. Hunt Meadow Dr., 1600 block, Oct. 5 to Oct. 11. Someone forced open a rear door at a home; nothing was reported stolen. Landings Ct., 9 p.m. Oct. 6 to 7 a.m. Oct. 7. A gift card was stolen from a vehicle. Linden Ave., 6 p.m. Oct. 5 to 8:30 a.m. Oct. 6. Jewelry was stolen from a vehicle. Madison St., 1100 block, 6:20-7:30 p.m. Oct. 10. A video game controller and games were stolen from an apartment. West St., 4 p.m. Oct. 4 to 4 p.m. Oct. 6. A drone was stolen from a vehicle. Howard County These were among incidents reported by the Howard County Police Department. For information, call 410-313-2236. COLUMBIA AREA ASSAULTS Red Branch Rd., 9100 block, 5:45 a.m. Oct. 9. Someone broke into a business and attempted to assault an acquaintance. THEFTS/BREAK-INS Clocktower Lane, 9700 block, Oct. 8. Two female youths asked a resident to use a phone inside a home. Once inside, the females stole keys to a vehicle and fled in that vehicle. Two Columbia girls, 15 and 16, were charged with vehicle theft. Departed Sunset Lane, 6300 block, 6:20-9:07 p.m. Oct. 10. Jewelry was stolen from a home. Eden Brook Dr., 7200 block, 3:01 a.m. Oct. 9. Someone entered a vacant apartment through an unlocked slide door and damaged the interior. Golden Bell Way, 6100 block, noon, Oct. 11. A laundry room window was damaged in an attempt to gain entry to a home. Stevens Forest Rd., 5700 block, 4:27 p.m. Oct. 9. A television, watch and keys were stolen from an apartment. The keys were used to steal a vehicle from a parking lot. MOTOR VEHICLE THEFTS Basket Ring Rd., 9600 block, 10:23 a.m. Oct. 6. A rental vehicle was stolen. Clocktower Lane, 9700 block, 12:55 p.m. Oct. 6. A 2000 Hyundai was stolen. Dobbin Center Way, 6400 block, Oct. 7 to Oct. 8. A 2002 black International tow truck was stolen. Eden Brook Dr., 7200 block, 9:41 a.m. Oct. 7. A 1994 green Toyota Camry was stolen. A Columbia man, 18, was charged with unlawful taking of a motor vehicle, theft, rogue and vagabond and malicious destruction of property. ELKRIDGE AREA THEFTS/BREAK-INS Darby Downs, 7200 block, Oct. 10 to 8 a.m. Oct. 11. A television was stolen from an open garage. MOTOR VEHICLE THEFTS Mayfield Ave., 7600 block, 7:42 a.m. Oct. 6. A 2006 orange Honda was stolen. Paragon Cir., 7800 block, Oct. 9 to Oct. 10. A yellow Yamaha motorcycle was stolen. Washington Blvd., 6600 block, Oct. 7 to Oct. 8. A 2000 blue Ford Expedition was stolen. ELLICOTT CITY AREA ROBBERIES Baltimore National Pike, 9000 block, 3:05 a.m. Oct. 13. A male with a knife stole cash from a gas station and fled. Joyful Way, 4800 block, 9:53 p.m. Oct. 8. A delivery driver returned to his vehicle to find a male in the vehicle. The male implied he had a weapon, stole cash and fled. Rogers Ave., 3000 block, Oct. 2. A man with his face partially covered stole cash from a business and fled. An Ellicott City man, 21, was charged with robbery and theft. THEFTS/BREAK-INS Beechwood Rd., 4700 block, 2:15 p.m. Oct. 6. Two males entered a home and claimed there was a water main break nearby. When the homeowner was being distracted, she saw more males leaving her home. She left the home and called 911. Hannon Ct., 2400 block, 5:46 p.m. Oct. 11. A rear window at a home was broken, but nothing was reported stolen. Mount Hebron Dr., 2200 block, 2:34-4:05 p.m. Oct. 11. Jewelry and a computer were stolen from a home. Tuscany Rd., 10300 block, 5:25 p.m. Oct. 6. A male youth was seen entering a home through a bedroom window. An Ellicott city male, 13, was charged with burglary. LAUREL AREA ROBBERIES Washington Blvd., 9600 block, 1:37 a.m. Oct. 9. A male with his face partially covered assaulted an employee at a business, stole cash and fled. THEFTS/BREAK-INS Hammonds Branch Way, 8200-8300 blocks and Spring Branch Ct., 8200 block, 2-4:45 a.m. Oct. 7. Wallets, knives and power tools were stolen from vehicles. Shears Ct., 8400 block, 3:23 p.m. Oct. 10. Cash, poker chips and a handgun were stolen from a home. MARRIOTTSVILLE AREA HOME INVASION Henryton Rd., 1500 block, 1:43 p.m. Oct. 5. Two males kicked in the front door at a home, but fled before police arrived. Nothing was reported stolen. A Roosevelt High School student walks through a hallway in June 2015 in Washington, D.C. City school officials touted successes in the school system this week. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post) John Davis wants to permanently become chancellor of D.C. Public Schools, saying that he has applied to keep the job he now has on an interim basis. I want to see the great things that we are doing continue, and I want to see them continue in a great way, Davis told The Washington Post. Davis, who took over as interim chancellor on Oct. 1 after Kaya Henderson stepped down, has been with the school system for nine years, most recently as the chief of schools. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) said she hopes to name the next chancellor by the end of October. [Outgoing D.C. schools leader wants to move out of public eye] Davis wants to build on the plans Henderson put in place: He said he wants to continue to grow enrollment, improve graduation rates and boost student achievement by offering more engaging opportunities, such as study abroad and internship programs. Earlier this week, President Barack Obama visited D.C.s Benjamin Banneker High School to highlight the countrys rising graduation rates, and the president praised D.C. schools for posting larger graduation rate gains than any U.S. state. We have great momentum occurring, Davis said. I want to keep it going, and I am humbled and excited about it. [Obama touts education record at D.C.s Banneker High School] Davis began his career in education as a middle school math teacher in Baltimore City schools. His three children attend D.C. public schools, so he said he gets a close-up view of the work the school system is doing on a daily basis. Davis spoke of his children and his leadership briefly at his first State of the Schools address Tuesday night. Davis, school principals, staff and students highlighted several of the school systems programs aimed at making school more engaging and relevant. Elizabeth Baird-Thompson, a third-grade literacy specialist at H.D. Cooke Elementary, outlined how third-grade students are learning about the election process. Their unit, called people, law and democracy, will culminate with the creation of a get-out-the-vote campaign. Two students spoke about traveling abroad for free this summer via a new program aimed at giving hundreds of students of all socioeconomic backgrounds the experience of visiting another country. [This school district wants all of its student to see the world for free] Before I went on this trip, I had never gotten on a plane, said Randy Sams, a Ballou High School student who traveled to Brazil. This trip gave me a broader mindset, and made me appreciate the little things, like to enjoy your food and savor the taste. And appreciate public transportation. Although the event focused solely on the systems new initiatives and positive trends, the city schools have been working to address wide achievement gaps and disparity in graduation rates between white and black students. Just a quarter of the student population is meeting academic standards on standardized tests linked to the Common Core academic standards. [A top-performing D.C. school just saw a dramatic drop in its English test scores] Davis said if he stays on as the chancellor, he will focus on empowering those around him to spur more growth and improvement. As one large team, we have to do an incredible amount of work, Davis said. We have to show an incredible amount of love and compassion, and at the same time give students a rigorous education that challenges them. The scope of civics education should expand beyond explaining how government works to include teaching students about the importance of becoming active participants and problem-solvers on a wide range of issues, U.S. Education Secretary John B. King Jr., Jr. said in a speech Wednesday at the National Press Club. Pointing to minority figures who took stances based on their civic beliefs from Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman to Martin Luther King and Colin Kaepernick King argued that schools have a special responsibility to prepare students for their role in a democracy. He said that purpose was one of the original goals for American public education, something that has become more important as the country becomes more diverse. He called on schools and colleges to be bold and creative in educating for citizenship, and to make preparing students for civic duties just as much a priority as preparing them to succeed in college and in their careers. [Many Americans know nothing about their government. Heres a bold way schools can fix that.] King said data show that the vast majority of U.S. students have a dismal basic understanding of how government functions and that such ignorance continues into adulthood. Just a third of Americans know that Joe Biden is the vice president or can name even a single justice on the Supreme Court, King said. The secretarys remarks arrive in the waning days of a presidential election campaign that has been marked by voter dissatisfaction with both candidates, lagging enthusiasm for the political process among young voters, charges of voter fraud and what Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump alleges is a rigged process. [Teachers struggle with a presidential campaign full of vitriol, adult themes] King began his address by reemphasizing the importance of the ballot box. Voting is the cornerstone of freedom, he said. The right to vote undergirds all our other rights. To not vote is to turn your back on your neighbors and your community and your country. But voting alone is not enough, he said. Teachers should prepare students to become more involved in communities, to volunteer and to think beyond our own needs and wants. He urged educators to help students develop as writers and speakers who could engage leaders and fellow citizens. While pushing for a deeper understanding of the Constitution and of how government operates at every level, King emphasized that the process and approach should not be partisan. Civic education and engagement is not a Democratic Party or a Republican Party issue, he said. Solutions to problems can and should be rooted in different philosophies of government. We have to make sure classrooms welcome and celebrate these different perspectives. King specifically addressed the role schools should play in developing citizens who will work to end violations of civil rights at the hands of police and courts, something he said is essential to changing police training to include bias identification and how to defuse tense situations. Educated citizens who take part in society, King said, will push to curtail racial profiling and end discriminatory practices by prosecutors and courts that have a dire impact on poor people. King said it is important for students to be truly familiar with documents that have shaped Americas history, including the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution; Sojourner Truths Aint I a Woman speech and Dr. Kings Letter from a Birmingham Jail. The Common Core State Standards which the Obama administration has supported encourage teachers to immerse students in the study and analysis of original documents. But its not enough to be able to quote from the documents, King said. Students need to know why they remain relevant. They need to be able to put themselves into others shoes, and to appreciate the different perspectives that have shaped our nations history, he said. We should teach students that slavery is not just a scar on our national character erased by the Civil War. We should teach them to acknowledge and wrestle with the ways that ugly legacy continues to shape our country and helps explain the treatment of people of color in America today. King urged schools to make civics a part of every class, not to treat it as an add-on. Students, he said, should be given opportunities to do democracy. By getting involved in real issues, students learn that it is not enough to just shout about their disappointments and criticize the ideas of others, he said. They have to offer solutions. They have to work together to advocate for those solutions. They have to push to make sure the solutions are implemented. And they have to understand that change takes time. Virtually all uniformed officers with the Baltimore County police will be equipped with body cameras by September 2017 under a new plan. (Damian Dovarganes/AP) Baltimore County will equip all uniformed officers with body cameras within a year and review how officers respond to individuals with mental-health and drug-abuse issues, officials said Wednesday. The reforms were announced 11 weeks after the death of Korryn Gaines, a 23-year-old woman who was shot by police in her apartment as she wielded a shotgun during a standoff that she live-streamed on social media. Baltimore County Police Chief James Johnson, County Executive Kevin B. Kamenetz (D) and county Health Officer Gregory Wm. Branch also said the department is implementing stricter requirements for investigating sexual assaults and is creating a task force to consider options for training police to de-escalate situations. Kamenetz declined to discuss specifics of the Gaines case, citing a wrongful-death lawsuit filed by her family. But he said the review of police policies and procedures for dealing with individuals who have behavioral-health issues will lead to recommendations that will help us avoid these kinds of tragic incidents in the future. [The standoff that led to the death of Korryn Gaines] Korryn Gaines (From video) The nonprofit Council of State Governments Justice Center will lead the review, working with police and county health officials. The body-camera order means virtually all of Baltimore Countys more than 1,400 uniformed police will wear the devices by September 2017, accelerating an earlier deadline of December 2018. Since beginning its body-camera program in July, the department has outfitted 128 officers with cameras. The officers involved in the Gaines incident, which drew national attention through social media, were not wearing body cameras. Police were attempting to serve warrants on both Gaines and her boyfriend, Kareem Kiean Courtney, 39. Gaines had been charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest in a March traffic stop; Courtney was charged with second-degree assault in a domestic incident involving Gaines. Prosecutors declined to press criminal charges against the officer who fatally shot Gaines, saying that police fired only after Gaines raised the shotgun and that she returned fire. Her 5-year-old son, who was nearby, was wounded in the exchange. Jim Bell, an attorney for the Gaines family, said the family is encouraged by the departments reform efforts but feels the proposals dont go far enough. These changes dont address treating individuals like human beings, he said. They had a low level of respect for the lives of African Americans and African American children. [Charlotte, officer did not activate camera until after Keith Scott was shot] The police union in Baltimore County said officers there have largely embraced body cameras and were consulted about the program before it was implemented. Theyre okay with it at this point, said Cole Weston, president of the Baltimore County Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 4. The District, which began equipping all of its officers with body cameras last year, now requires officers to confirm with dispatchers that the cameras are switched on before they respond to a call or interact with civilians. Weston said rank-and-file county officers also welcome additional training on de-escalating confrontations and working with mentally unstable individuals. We dont push back on that, he said. If its well thought out and presented in an academic setting that can be helpful to officers in the field, we have no issues with that. Marylands legislature made broad changes this year in how law-enforcement agencies hire, train and discipline police. The bill was based on recommendations from a work group that the General Assembly created after the death of Freddie Gray from injuries suffered while in Baltimore police custody, an incident that led to protests and riots in the city. Del. Shelly L. Hettleman (D-Baltimore County), who attended the announcement Wednesday, praised local officials for taking the additional measures. Im happy to see the county executive stepping up here . . . bringing some outside folks in and shedding some transparency on the police-accountability side as well as the sexual-assault and rape cases, Hettleman said. Law-enforcement officials nationwide have been grappling with tension and mistrust between police and minority groups in the wake of numerous high-profile civilian deaths, protests and ambush killings in the summer of officers in Dallas and Baton Rouge. This week, the president of the nations largest police management organization formally apologized on behalf of the group for historical mistreatment of communities of color. Terrence M. Cunningham, the police chief in Wellesley, Mass., issued the statement at the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference in San Diego. About 23,000 law-enforcement officials in the United States are members of the organization. Baltimore Countys Johnson, who attended the conference, said Wednesday that there is ample evidence to indicate that there were past injustices, adding that reforms have been taking place in public safety nationwide for years. Lynh Bui contributed to this report. Farmers markets, pumpkin festivals, Halloween festivities, and more this week in the Montgomery County community calendar from The Washington Post. (Lisa M. Bolton/The Washington Post) Thursday, Oct. 20 Fulks Corner farmers market Fresh produce, ready-made food, goat meat, breads and more. 12:30-6 p.m. through Nov. 17. Thursdays, 12:30-6 p.m. through Nov. 17, Fulks Corner Farmers Market, Fulks Corner Avenue at Route 355, Gaithersburg. 301-590-2830. gaithersburgmd.gov. Free. Smartphone 101 Learn the basics of using a smartphone, taking pictures, managing email, tracking your fitness steps and more. Take your smartphone. 1-2 p.m. Holiday Park Multiservice Senior Center, 3950 Ferrara Dr., Wheaton. 240-777-4999. Free. An Evening with Edgar Allen Poe Arts Barn and Montgomery Playhouse present six short Poe plays recommended for age 12 and older. 1 and 8 p.m., Arts Barn, 311 Kent Square Rd., Gaithersburg. 301-258-6394. gaithersburgmd.gov. $20, age 14 and younger $12. Widowed Persons support group For anyone that has lost a spouse in the past two years. A meeting of the Widowed Persons Service. Thursdays at 2-3:30 p.m. Holiday Park Multiservice Senior Center, 3950 Ferrara Dr., Wheaton. 301-949-7398. Free; registration required. Fall Colors A multimedia exhibit from the Latino Art League of Greater Washington. Monday-Thursday at 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday at 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Through Oct. 29. Friendship Heights Village Center, Friendship Gallery, 4433 S. Park Ave., Chevy Chase. 301-656-2797. friendshipheightsmd.gov. Free. Autumn Glory A juried exhibition on display in both the Arts Barn and Kentlands Mansion galleries celebrates the fall season with a wide range of mediums and styles, from representational to abstract. Through Oct. 31 at the Arts Barn and Nov, 11 at Kentlands Mansion. Arts Barn, Gallery, 311 Kent Square Rd., Gaithersburg. 301-258-6394. gaithersburgmd.gov. Free. Tiny Dancer Ruth Marie Carl displays her black-and-white photographs of dancers in fairy tale settings. Through Nov. 13. Glen Echo Park, Park View Gallery, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. 301-634-2222. glenechopark.org. Free. Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rescue Squad fundraiser The 76th annual door-to-door fundraising campaign canvasses Bethesda, Chevy Chase, Upper Northwest Washington, Glen Echo and parts of Cabin John, North Bethesda and Potomac. Through October. Residents can expect uniformed volunteers and emergency vehicles in neighborhoods 4:30-9 p.m. weekdays and 11 a.m.-9 p.m. weekends. The annual drive helps fund the organizations $2 million annual operating budget. 301-652-0077. development@bccrs.org. bccrs.org. Election workers needed for 2016 presidential election The Board of Elections seeks volunteers age 17 and older to serve as election workers at polling places during the presidential general election on Nov. 8 in Rockville, Potomac, Bethesda, Cabin John, Chevy Chase, Darnestown and Boyds. Bilingual volunteers are needed throughout the county. Volunteers will be trained and compensated. To apply online or for more information, visit the website. Montgomery County Board of Elections, 18753-210 N. Frederick Ave., Gaithersburg. 240-777-VOTE. 777vote.org. Foto Friday The Glen Echo Park Partnership presents an exhibition by f11, a womens photography collective by a group of nine women. Artists reception Sunday, at 2-4 p.m. Through Nov. 13. Glen Echo Park, Popcorn Gallery, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. 301-634-2222. glenechopark.org/exhibitions. Admission to the gallery is free. Friday, Oct. 21 Museum After Hours: Snallygaster Author Patrick Boyton will discuss his book, Snallygaster: The Lost Legend of Frederick County, about the mythical creature of South Mountain that snatches children and chickens. Opening reception features tastings of brewed craft beer from Laytonsvilles Waredaca Brewing Company. Part of the Museum After Hours programs. 6:30-8 p.m. Gaithersburg Community Museum, 9 S. Summit Ave., Gaithersburg. gaithersburgmd.gov. 301-258-6160. $10. Collision/Collusion: A Personal Underground New paintings by Michael Sastre depict smuggling operations on Florida airstrips. An accompanying installation includes airplane parts and swamp stuff. Through Nov. 20. VisArts at Rockville, Kaplan Gallery, 155 Gibbs St., Rockville. 301-315-8200. visartsatrockville.org. Free. Lions Club Winter Coat Drive The Lions Club and Takoma Park Police Department have launched a winter coat drive to Benefit Shepherds Table clothing closet and Sligo Adventist Church. Used winter coats, gloves, mittens and hats are needed to help provide warmth to persons who have little means of protecting themselves from the upcoming winter weather. Drop-off boxes will be available 10 a.m.-6 p.m. weekdays at two locations. Through Nov. 30. Takoma Park Municipal Building, First-floor lobby, 7500 Maple Ave., and Old Takoma Ace Hardware, 7001 Carroll Ave. 202-438-1686. 301-891-7142. Gaithersburg Meals on Wheels volunteers needed Meals on Wheels has an urgent need for drivers to deliver hot lunches and cold suppers in the Gaithersburg area during late morning and early afternoon. Delivery takes about one hour, with eight to 12 clients on each route. Once a week or every other week. Training is provided. Asbury Methodist Village, Kindley Center, 333 Russell Ave., Gaithersburg. 301-216-4200. 301-869-0190. lisamkoenig1@gmail.com. Saturday, Oct. 22 Cars N Coffee Bethesda For car enthusiasts, a weekly meetup to discuss and show off your cars. First coffee free. Saturdays at 8-10 a.m. Corner Bakery Cafe Bethesda, 10327 Westlake Dr., Bethesda. 301-217-0049. Free. Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous A free 12-step recovery program for anyone suffering from food obsession, overeating or bulimia. 8:30-10 a.m. Hughes United Methodist Church, 10700 Georgia Ave., Wheaton. 781-932-6300. foodaddicts.org. Free. Main Street farmers and artists market Farmers, artists, acoustic performers, craftspeople, prepared foods and more. 9 a.m.-2 p.m. year round. Saturdays at 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Farmers Market at the Kentlands, 301 Main St. (Kentlands Main Street Pavilion), Gaithersburg. 301-258-6350. gaithersburgmd.gov. Free. Butlers Orchard Pumpkin Festival Hayrides, face painting, pumpkin cannon, straw maze, apple slingshot, giant slides, pick-your-own pumpkins and more. Food available for purchase. Saturdays and Sundays at 10 a.m.-5 p.m. through Oct. 30. Butlers Orchard, 22222 Davis Mill Rd., Germantown. 301-972-3299. butlersorchard.com. $12; age 1 and younger, free. Fall festivities at Sharps farm Hayrides to pick pumpkins, a five-acre corn maze and mini-maze, scarecrow making, face painting, a country store, farm animals, straw bales, apples and cider, baked goods, and pumpkin painting. Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Through Nov. 6. Sharps at Waterford Farm, 4003 Jennings Chapel Rd., Brookeville. 410-489-2572. sharpfarm.com. Free, fee for some activities. From the Big Apple to the Capital The photography exhibition showcases three photographers feelings toward New York City and Washington. Presented by Glen Echo Park Partnership and Friends of the Yellow Barn. Saturdays-Sundays at noon-6 p.m. through Nov. 13. Glen Echo Park, Stone Tower Gallery, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. 301-634-2222. glenechopark.org/exhibitions. Admission to the gallery is free. Tour of National Park Seminary The guided walking tour of the historic former school for women, now a residential community, begins across from 2755 Cassedy Street in front of the old gymnasium. 1 p.m. National Park Seminary Historic District, 2755 Cassedy St., Silver Spring. 301-589-1715. saveourseminary.org. $5, age 12 and younger, free. Sunday, Oct. 23 Full Body Stretch Class This 45-minute excercise class will target specific muscles in your body to help relieve stress and stiffness. Class meets weekly and is performed on the floor and standing. Sundays 10:15-11 a.m. White Oak Community Recreation Center, Senior Center, 1700 April Lane, White Oak. 240-777-6940. Free. Discovery Day: Rock collecting Learn about local rocks and minerals and how they are used in everyday objects. Maryland fossils, fluorescent rocks and minerals will also be discussed. Sponsored by the Gaithersburg Community Museum, the Gem, Mineral and Lapidary Society of Montgomery County and the U.S. Geological Survey. 1-4 p.m. Gaithersburg Community Museum, 9 S. Summit Ave., Gaithersburg. 301-258-6160. gaithersburgmd.gov. Free. Monday, Oct. 24 Community Policing discussion Montgomery County Police Cmdr. Marcus Jones will discuss safety issues and concerns. 6-8 p.m. White Oak Community Recreation Center, 1700 April Lane, White Oak. 240-777-6940. Free. Caregivers Support Group Judith Bernstein of GPS Senior Care Partners facilitates a monthly meeting for anyone caring for parents or partners with serious illness or dementia. Mondays 6:30-8 p.m. through Nov. 14, Friendship Heights Village Center, 4433 S. Park Ave., Chevy Chase. 301-656-2797. friendshipheightsmd.gov. Free; registration requested. Tuesday, Oct. 25 Caregiver Support Group via Telephone A free support group for spouses and adult children. Call in advance to obtain access number for the conference call. Visit the website for complete list of caregiver support groups. Tuesdays at 6-7:30 p.m. 301-754-7152. HolyCrossHealth.org/caregiversupport. Free, registration required. An Evening with Victoria Browning Wyeth Victoria Browning Wyeth, photographer and granddaughter of renowned visual artist Andrew Wyeth, will discuss her work, memories of her family and conversations with her grandfather. Reception will follow. Glen Echo Park, Yellow Barn Studio and Gallery, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. 301-634-5379. yellowbarnstudio.com. $40, members $30. Registration required. Wednesday, Oct. 26 Shady Grove Farmers Market Located on the campus of Johns Hopkins University. Rain or shine weekly 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Shady Grove Farmers Market, 9601 Broschart Rd., Rockville. 301-792-9448. www.shadygrovemarket.org. Intergenerational Halloween Party Costumes encouraged. Grandparents and grandkids, come dressed for the party, games, treats and more. 5-6:30 p.m. Holiday Park Multiservice Senior Center, 3950 Ferrara Dr., Wheaton. 240-777-4999. Free. Kensington Poetry Readings Joseph Baldi Acosta and Donald Berger read from and discuss their poetry. Open readings will follow. 7 p.m. Kensington Row Bookshop, 3786 Howard Ave., Kensington. 301-949-9416. kensingtonrowbookshop.com. Free. Square dance lessons and dancing Dancers of all experience levels are welcome. Casual dress. 7:30-9:45 p.m. North Chevy Chase Christian Church, 8814 Kensington Pkwy., Chevy Chase. 301-598-2574. $7. Autumn Glow The five-day indoor fine art and craft show and sale features original paintings, drawings, photography, prints, sculpture, pottery, fiber art, woodcarving, jewelry and other fine crafts by members of the Art League of Germantown. Figure drawing demonstration with a costumed model on Oct. 26 at 4-7 p.m. Visit the website for full event schedule. Through Oct. 30, BlackRock Center for the Arts, 12901 Town Commons Dr., Germantown. 301-528-2260. alog.org. Free. Thursday, Oct. 27 Political discussion: Jonathan Weisman The New York Timess deputy Washington editor will speak on the 2016 presidential campaigns and election. 7:30 p.m. Friendship Heights Village Center, 4433 S. Park Ave., Chevy Chase. 301-656-2797. friendshipheightsmd.gov. Free; registration is requested. Compiled by Lisa M. Bolton Email: mocoliving@washpost.com Fax: 301-279-5665 Mail: Community Calendar, Montgomery Local Living, The Washington Post, 51 Monroe St., Suite 500, Rockville, Md. 20850 Details: Announcements are accepted from public and nonprofit organizations only and must be received at least 14 days before the Thursday publication date. Include dates, times, exact address, prices and a publishable contact phone number. Jamshid Amouzegar, who held several prominent ministerial positions, including prime minister, in pre-revolutionary Iran and who was kidnapped in the 1970s by the terrorist Carlos the Jackal, died Sept. 27 at a hospice facility in Rockville, Md. He was 93. The cause was sepsis, said a brother, Kuros Amouzegar. Dr. Amouzegar was trained as an engineer in the United States and began his career in Iran in the early 1950s on water resource development. He went on to hold several positions in the Iranian government, including undersecretary in the ministry of health; secretary of labor; secretary of agriculture, and secretary of health. From 1965 to 1974, he was secretary of finance and represented Iran in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Dr. Amouzegar later served as Irans secretary of the interior before becoming prime minister from August 1977 to September 1978. He left Iran in December 1978, two months before the Iranian revolution, led by religious hard-liners. At an OPEC meeting in Vienna in December 1975, Dr. Amouzegar was among dozens of people taken hostage by a terrorist group led by Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, a Venezuelan militant known as Carlos the Jackal. As he took the OPEC ministers prisoner, he introduced himself by saying, I am the famous Carlos. You will have heard of me. Jamshid Amouzegar in 1975. (STR/AP) Three people were killed during the initial siege. Dr. Amouzegar was one of several hostages flown to Algeria, where he and a Saudi Arabian oil minister were threatened with summary execution. The Algerian president, Houari Boumedienne, said any killings would result in a full-scale attack on the airplane on which Carlos held the hostages. After 72 hours, a settlement was reached, leading to the release of Dr. Amouzegar and the remaining hostages. Carlos went free and was not captured until 1994. Jamshid Amouzegar was born June 25, 1923, in Tehran. His father was an Iranian supreme court justice and scholar who wrote 20 books, including a dictionary of the Persian language. Dr. Amouzegar studied at Tehran University before leaving Iran in 1944 to study civil engineering in the United States. He received a bachelors degree in 1946 from Cornell University, a masters degree from the University of Washington in 1948 and a doctorate from Cornell in 1950. He did not return to Iran after leaving the country in 1978. He lived in Chevy Chase, Md., and later in Rockville and was an independent consultant to the governments of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait for many years. His wife of 54 years, the former Ulrike Schultz, died in 2005. Survivors include three brothers, Jahangir Amuzegar, a former Iranian minister of commerce and finance and board member of the International Monetary Fund, of Bethesda, Md., Hushang Amouzegar of Holt, England, and Kuros Amouzegar of Washington. Dr. Amouzegar described the kidnapping by Carlos the Jackal in an interview that was published in The Washington Post in 2000. On Dec. 21, 1975, I was presiding over the OPEC conference in Vienna when a door flew open. Dont move, this is . . . Gunshots drowned out the voice. I ducked for cover. When the shooting stopped, I looked at the bullet holes in the wall behind me. Had I been two inches taller, I would be dead. Later, my wife needed medical treatment in the United States. I accompanied her. While we were here, the shah was overthrown. Other former prime ministers were killed. The upshot? I believe in fate. An earlier version of this story incorrectly implied that Dr. Amouzegar had a role in the 1973 Arab oil embargo of the United States. Iran did not participate in the embargo. Theres little doubt that expansion and improvements to Southeast Community College facilities would benefit students and employers throughout SCCs 15-county area. But the $369 million bond issue is too ambitious and would push property taxes up at a time when farmers in the region are coping with low prices for grain. The plan would exacerbate a fundamental flaw with Nebraskas tax structure, which relies too heavily on property taxes. The goal of reducing property taxes ranks No. 2 on the editorial boards agenda for this year. The proposal would add about $39 to the annual tax payment for a home valued at $100,000. It would add a tax increase of about $1.52 an acre to farm land, according to Craig Head vice president of issue management for the Farm Bureau. An average-sized farm would pay about $38,000 in new taxes over the 30-year life of the bond, according to Terry Keebler, a member of the Farm Bureaus board of directors. A coalition, including the Farm Bureau, Nebraska Cattlemen, Nebraska Soybean Association and the Lincoln Independent Business Association, was formed to oppose the bond issue. Credit the SCC board, however, for trying to come up with a solution to a chronic problem in southeast Nebraska -- a shortage of skilled workers which is a drag on economic growth. SCC has waiting lists of student who want to get into popular programs like welding and nursing. The need to provide training for those workers was emphasized by the business and labor leaders who support the bond issue. Its a dog-eat-dog world just trying to find qualified applicants to fill positions so we can continue to grow, said Matthew Wegener, founder of ISoft Data Systems and co-founder of Turbine Flats. The bond issue proposed by the SCC board is a first for community colleges in the state. Since the system was created in 1971, no district has asked voters to approve a bond issue. It calls for $127 worth of improvements to SCCs Beatrice campus and $88 million at the campus in Milford. The remainder would be spent in Lincoln, and could include construction of a $120 million campus near the Telegraph District at 21st and Capitol Parkway. Unfortunately the board has no alternative for paying for the bond issue other than relying on property taxes. The Legislature should explore whether it could provide other options to pay for bond issues to expand community colleges in the state, which offer an affordable education for students. Perhaps the SCC board could do more to creatively fund its growth by seeking private donations or partnering more with the private sector. However, given the current over-reliance on property taxes in Nebraskas tax structure, the sizable property tax hike required by the SCC bond issue cannot be justified. Prince William County These were among incidents reported by Prince William County police for this edition of Local Living. For information, call 703-792-5123. BRISTOW AREA THEFT/BREAK-IN Bristow Rd., 10800 block, 8:30 a.m. Oct. 10 to 6:30 a.m. Oct. 11. Firearms and cash were stolen from a residence entered through an unlocked upper-story window. DUMFRIES AREA ROBBERIES Jefferson Davis Hwy., 17000 block, 3:23 p.m. Oct. 6. A gunman robbed a bank of cash. Jefferson Davis Hwy., 17400 block, 9 p.m. Oct. 9. A woman arranged through social media to meet three people at a hotel room to make a narcotics transaction. The woman went to the room, then left. She returned with three men who forcibly entered the room and robbed the occupants of marijuana, a cellphone, a wallet and a bag. A woman, 24, a Lorton man, 31, and a Dumfries man, 28, were arrested. THEFT/BREAK-IN Avenel Lane, 17600 block, 11:15 to 11:30 a.m. Oct. 7. A toolbox was stolen from a residence entered through an open garage door. HAYMARKET AREA THEFT/BREAK-IN Ridge Rd., 1800 block, 8 p.m. Oct. 9 to 11:30 a.m. Oct. 10. An attempt was made to enter a community center by damaging a rear door. MANASSAS AREA ASSAULT Montrose Way, 10500 block, 10:27 a.m. Oct. 9. During an argument, a man hit a female acquaintance. A Manassas man, 41, was arrested. WEAPON Bull Run Rd. and June St., 10:29 p.m. Oct. 7. Several gunshots were heard. No one was reported injured. ROBBERIES Parkland St., 8600 block, 3 a.m. Oct. 1. Three gunmen who arranged a drug transaction through social media robbed a male juvenile of cash. Sudley Rd., 8300 block, 5:11 p.m. Oct. 10. During a fight, a man assaulted another man and robbed him of cash. A Woodbridge man, 27, was arrested. THEFTS/BREAK-INS Bethlehem Rd., 700 block, 7:36 p.m. Oct. 9. Three men attempted to enter a business through an unlocked rear door. They fled empty-handed when an alarm sounded. Festival Lane, 10300 block, 8 p.m. Oct. 10 to 9 a.m. Oct. 11. Cash was stolen from two businesses entered through unlocked rear doors. Margate Ct., 7500 block, 10:30 a.m. Oct. 7 to 10 a.m. Oct. 10. A video-game system and jewelry were stolen from a residence entered by damaging a door. TRIANGLE AREA ASSAULT Kilmer Lane, 18200 block, 10:29 p.m. Oct. 6. During an argument, a woman attempted to stab a male acquaintance with a knife. A Triangle woman, 25, was arrested. THEFTS/BREAK-INS Joplin Rd., 18400 block, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 7. Firearms and jewelry were stolen from a residence entered by damaging a rear door. Lost Pond Ct., 3200 block, 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 8. A computer tablet was stolen from a residence entered through an open garage door. WOODBRIDGE AREA HOMICIDE Bayside Ave., 1400 block, 5:56 p.m. Oct. 8. Responding to reports of gunshots, police officers found in front of an apartment building a man suffering from gunshot wounds. Jose Moises Garcia Flores, 40, of Woodbridge was pronounced dead at the scene. ASSAULT Valley Stream Dr., 15200 block, 5:30 a.m. Oct. 8. During an argument, a man repeatedly hit a female acquaintance with an electrical cord and prevented her from leaving the residence. A Woodbridge man, 27, was arrested. WEAPON Yardarm Pl., 12500 block, 4 a.m. Oct. 4. Several gunshots were heard. Holes were found in a front window and an interior wall of a residence. ROBBERIES Cranmer Mews, 3400 block, 12:57 a.m. Oct. 8. A man pushed a male juvenile off a hoverboard and fled with the device. When the juvenile attempted to chase him, the man pulled out a knife. Forest Lane, 1400 block, midnight Oct. 11. Two masked men entered a residence, assaulted a male resident and demanded money and drugs. The two fled with cash, marijuana and other items. Hylton Ave. and Knowles St., 3 a.m. Oct. 6. Three men exited a vehicle and assaulted a male pedestrian who attempted to flee. They robbed him of cash and a jacket. THEFTS/BREAK-INS Alison St., 13300 block, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Oct. 9. Cash and a video-game system were stolen from a residence entered by damaging a basement door. Cavalier Dr., 12500 block, 5:30 p.m. Oct. 4 to 8 p.m. Oct. 6. A residence was entered through a damaged window, and several interior walls were damaged. Nothing was reported stolen. Critton Cir., 11800 block, 8:30 a.m. to 2:20 p.m. Oct. 4. An attempt was made to enter a residence by damaging a front door. Enterprise Lane, 14900 block, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Oct. 7. A tablet and jewelry were stolen from a residence entered by damaging a basement window. Hill Meade Lane, 11500 block, 2 p.m. Oct. 9 to 4 p.m. Oct. 10. Lawn equipment was stolen from the yard of a residence. The residence was entered by damaging a rear basement window. Several cabinets were searched. Nothing else was reported stolen. Winding Loop, 14700 block, 11:59 a.m. Oct. 11. A video-game system, games and other equipment were stolen from a residence entered by damaging a rear door. Woodmark Dr., 2800 block, 5 to 10 p.m. Oct. 4. A laptop computer was stolen from a residence entered through an unlocked window. Manassas These were among incidents reported by Manassas police for this edition of Local Living. For information, call 703-257-8000. THEFTS/BREAK-INS Bennett Dr., 9200 block, Sept. 24 to Oct. 8. A safe was stolen from a residence. Cedar Ridge Dr., 10200 block, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 7. A political sign was stolen from the yard of a residence. Manassas Park No report was received from Manassas Park police for this edition of Local Living. For information, call 703-361-1136. Daryl Thompson, 27, of Suitland, Md., has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder while armed in connection with fatal shootings that happened this summer in Northwest D.C. (Courtesy of D.C. Police ) UPDATE: District prosecutors said on Thursday that the office did not pursue charges against Thompson in connection with the death of Roberts. They said the investigation continues. D.C. police say they have arrested a suspect in connection with two fatal shootings this summer in Northwest and Southeast Washington. Daryl Thompson, 27, of Suitland, Md., was charged with two counts of first-degree murder while armed. Police said he was arrested in Michigan and extradited to the District, where he was formally charged Tuesday. Interim D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham said at a news conference that with the arrest, We take a repeat violent offender off the streets. Police said Thompson was charged in the July 30 shooting of Edward Roberts Jr., 29, in the 3500 block of 14th Street NW in Columbia Heights. He died at an area hospital. [Video identifies persons of interest in fatal shooting in Columbia Heights] Newsham also said that Thomspon was charged in the Aug. 29 fatal shooting of Tyler Jerel McEachern, 23, who was attacked about 2 a.m. in the 3100 block of Buena Vista Terrace SE. He also died at an area hospital. [Police seek suspect in shooting on Buena Vista Terrace] Police also said that Thompson was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon in connection with a nonfatal shooting shortly before Roberts was killed on 14th Street. That shooting occurred in the 5300 block of Georgia Avenue NW. Police did not discuss possible motives in the cases or say if the two homicides are related. Newsham praised residents for helping police after surveillance video was made public. I cant tell you how many people came forward with tips in those cases, the interim chief said. D.C. police have arrested one of two men who authorities allege robbed a popular all-night diner near the Tenleytown Metro station early Monday, with one urging his armed accomplice to just shoot customers and staff. Willie Quinones, 26, of Southeast, was charged with armed robbery. Police said officers arrested him Monday, the same day as the hold-up of Osman & Joes Steak n Egg Kitchen. Police announced the arrest Tuesday night. A second man was being sought. The robbery occurred about 3 a.m. Monday in the 4700 block of Wisconsin Avenue NW. The men fled with money from a cash register and a purse. A police report says one of the men slapped a customer who tried to reach for a cell phone. [All-night diner robbed at gunpoint] The restaurants manager, Justin Anderson, said Monday that the men got in through a back door while deliveries were being made and workers were conducting inventory. He and the police said the gunmen demanded that workers open the safe, but none there that morning had the combination. When the robbers learned they couldnt get into the safe, a police report says one told the gunman: Shoot them then, just shoot them. Anderson said that after a similar armed robbery in September, in which attackers got access to the safe and escaped with up with $4,000, the store changed its policy and refuses to accept cash at night. Anderson said the cash register was nearly empty on Monday, and that the men got no more than $200. No arrests have been made from the earlier robbery, which occurred Sept. 27. In that case, police said one of the robbers fired a gun when a customer refused to comply. No one was struck. Metro Transit Police are being criticized for excessive use of force after a video posted Tuesday showed an officer pushing and tripping a high school student, knocking her to the ground, after she refused to throw away a bag of potato chips and a lollipop. The three-minute video, posted by a member of the Districts Black Lives Matter chapter, shows the 18-year-old in handcuffs, surrounded by three police officers, just outside the fare gates at Columbia Heights station. [Watch the YouTube video of the teen arrested by Metro Transit Police] All right, sit down, one officer says. Sit down. The handcuffed teen refuses, crying, No! The officer then hooks his arm behind her elbow and kicks backward against her calf, knocking her to the ground as people watching and filming the altercation gasp. The teen props herself up against the wall, and the officer pushes on her shoulder and forces her back down. Sit down! he yells. Stop touching me! she yells back. The teen is not identified in a transit police arrest report, but officials say she is 18 years old. She was arrested for unlawful entry, and police took her to a D.C. police station. The report said she was not injured during the arrest. Metro spokesman Richard L. Jordan said police decided not to pursue charges. He declined to comment on whether officers handled the incident appropriately or whether excessive force was used. The person who posted the footage on YouTube said in the video description that the girl is 17, not 18, and a student at Bell Multicultural High School. The description also said that an officer slammed her against the car when she was transported to the police station. On Twitter, the Black Lives Matter chapter criticized the arrest, saying the footage shows transit police violently interacting with Black bodies as usual. [Metro Board to Transit Police chief on officer accused of trying to help ISIS: What happened here?] According to the arrest report, the incident happened just after 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. Police said the teenager was on the paid side of the fare gates, holding a bag of potato chips, and an officer told her to put the food away. Metro bans customers from eating or drinking on trains and in stations. The police report said the teenager responded with a defiant No! Police then told her twice that she would need to leave the station if she didnt put her food way. When she refused, the arrest report said, the officer reached for her wrist and placed handcuffs on her. The video begins after that. After the teenager is knocked to the ground, she refuses to tell police her age or give them her student identification. One officer then opens her backpack and begins searching inside. You didnt have to put it that tight, she says, apparently talking about the handcuffs. She then demands to know why officers are searching her bag and asks a friend to remove it. The yellow bag of potato chips sits in the foreground of the shot until an officer slides it away with his foot. A crowd is gathered around the fare gates, with more than one person appearing to made a video recording of the arrest. The officer who knocked the teenager to the floor starts to shoo away the growing crowds, instructing bystanders to get on a train or leave the station. Thanks for riding Metro, he says. You guys have a good day. [Crime on Metro has riders fearful, police officers frustrated] In the video, a bystander explains to others in the crowd that the teenager had been holding a bag of chips and a lollipop. Oh, goodness. Because she had a lollipop? That is outrageous, says one woman watching the officers search the students backpack. That is ridiculous. Some of the bystanders began speaking directly to the officers. You could have told her to put it away, or [taken] the lollipop . . . that is crazy, one says. An officer turns to the crowd, arguing back. Well, we asked her for the lollipop, we asked her for the food, and she refused and told me she wasnt going to do it, the officer says. Thats why shes under arrest. Its a little girl! says the bystander. Little girls can break the law! Little girls can get arrested like everybody else! the officer responds. And she goes to juvenile detention and her mom comes and picks her up. Thats how it works! Its not the first time Metro Transit Police have come under fire for their handling of snack scofflaws. In 2004, a 45-year-old employee of the Environmental Protection Agency was arrested at Metro Center for chewing on the last bite of a PayDay candy bar as she passed through the fare gates. She was released several hours later after paying a $10 fine. [Mouthful Gets Metro Passenger Handcuffs and Jail] And in 2000, a 12-year-old girl made international headlines when she was arrested for eating a french fry at the Tenleytown-AU station. If she had been an adult, police would have issued her a citation and fine, but because they cannot fine minors, they charged her with a criminal offense and took her into custody. Her case was ultimately brought before the U.S. Court of Appeals. The incident led Metro to change its policy, mandating that minors caught snacking on trains or in stations receive three written warnings before they can be charged. [Girl Whose French-Fry Arrest Led to Metro Policy Change Sets Sights on College, Career] Correction: This story was changed to reflect that prosecutors decided not to pursue charges. It originally said charges were dropped. Travelers may soon be able to get refunds for delayed baggage, more accurate information about on-time performance of the airlines they fly and more transparency when booking tickets with online travel services, under executive actions announced by the Obama administration Wednesday. Airline passengers deserve to have access to clear and complete information about the airlines they choose to fly and to expect fair and reasonable treatment when they fly, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in making the announcement. The actions were taking today and in the coming months will expand aviation consumer protections we have previously enacted. These actions will enable passengers to make well-informed decisions when arranging travel, ensure that airlines treat consumers fairly, and give consumers a voice in how airlines are regulated, Foxx said. Foxx said Wednesdays announcement builds on efforts to promote competition and protect consumers at a time when mergers mean they have fewer choices when it comes to flying. But Nicholas E. Calio, president and chief executive of Airlines for America, an industry trade group, said the public should be cautious about new efforts to re-regulate the industry. It would be difficult to find an industry that is more transparent than the airline industry; customers always know exactly what they are paying for before they buy, Calio said. Further, the fact that a record number of people are flying underscores that customers are benefiting every day from affordable fares and the ability to choose among carriers, amenities and service options that best meet their needs. Dictating to the airline industry distribution and commercial practices would only benefit those third parties who distribute tickets, not the flying public. Foxx said the administration already requires airlines to refund bag fees when luggage is lost, but he said officials soon hope to add a requirement that airlines refund fees when luggage is substantially delayed. Officials offered no details on how substantially would be defined, and there is no specific timeline for when the rule would go into effect. Congress included a similar provision for lost or mishandled luggage in its funding extension for the Federal Aviation Administration approved this summer. The provision says passengers would be eligible for refunds if bags are delivered 12 to 18 hours after the scheduled arrival of a domestic flight or 15 to 30 hours after an international flight. It will be left to officials at the Department of Transportation to make a final determination. Under the administrations rules, airlines must also change the way they report the number of bags that are mishandled or lost. Instead of tallying the number of lost baggage reports and comparing those numbers with the overall number of travelers, they now will have to compare the number of mishandled bags with the total number of checked bags. Those changes will likely go into effect in January 2018. [7 ways that Congress must-pass aviation legislation affects you] The rules also include new protections for travelers who purchase tickets from online booking services. Foxx said that consumers may not be aware that some listings may be biased in favor of certain airlines. Online sites would have to be neutral or disclose any bias in their offerings. That requirement could go into effect by the end of the year. Airlines also will have to revamp the way they report on-time performance by including flights operated by smaller regional carriers that are part of their networks. And, for the first time, airlines will be required to report the number of wheelchairs they mishandle an effort, Foxx said, to give customers with disabilities a measure of airline performance. This rule change also would go into effect in 2018. Foxx noted that more than 700 million passengers are expected to travel on 9 million flights in the United States this year. He said the administration's actions will spur competition. Airline passengers deserve to be treated fairly and with respect when they book travel, when they are in the air and once they land, said Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), a member of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. These new actions build on our previous efforts and will help ensure that consumers have access to more information so they can make informed decisions when choosing a flight and expand consumer protections, including requiring passenger refunds for delayed baggage. We need to continue working to make flying easier and more transparent for the public. The administrations actions come on the heels of an effort by Congress to improve the flying experience for consumers. Several traveler-friendly provisions were included as part of an agreement approved by the House and Senate this summer that extended funding for the Federal Aviation Administration through September 2017. [Newly passed air travel legislation is a big win for consumers] In addition to the provision on lost and mishandled baggage, the legislation also included several provisions designed to expedite the security screening process, which came under scrutiny this spring after travelers reported hourslong waits at airports in Atlanta and Chicago. The legislation also requires airlines to seat families with children together without charging them an additional fee. A Democratic congressional candidate in central Virginia temporarily shut down her Facebook page this week after receiving what she said were thousands of negative messages, some obscene and threatening, from Donald Trump supporters. Jane Dittmar is running against state Sen. Tom Garrett (R-Buckingham) for an open seat currently held by retiring Rep. Robert Hurt (R) in the 5th District, which spans a large section of the state from the northern Virginia exurbs through the Shenandoah Valley and down to the North Carolina border. Trump has strong support in rural, conservative swaths of the district, but analysts say Dittmar could pull off an upset if turnout is heavy in liberal strongholds such as Charlottesville. Dittmars campaign received most of the online comments and voice mails after two incidents. In the first case, an armed Trump supporter legally protested outside her office last week, unnerving volunteers, who called the police. Then reports by conservative bloggers surfaced about a 1999 car accident in which Dittmar was initially charged with driving under the influence but she ultimately pleaded guilty to reckless driving. We sort of feel under attack on all sides by the Republicans at this point, Dittmar said. She accused Garrett of quietly spreading sleazy Republican charges as a diversion from a poor campaign finance report, which shows she has outraised him outraised him 2 to 1. Garrett denied having anything to do with the stories and accused Dittmar on Tuesday of trying to hide an apparent DUI arrest in which minors were involved. But he showed up Wednesday at a news conference Dittmar held in Charlottesville to join her in a call for more civility. Garrett said he had faced sharp criticism from Trump loyalists after he condemned lewd comments made by the GOP standard-bearer in a 2005 video published by The Washington Post. Garrett, who still plans to vote for Trump, could benefit from the GOP candidate because parts of the district are Trump strongholds. On Oct. 13, Trump supporter Daniel Parks parked his pickup truck outside Dittmars Fluvanna County campaign office, opened the tailgate and set up Trump signs. Alone at the time inside the office, 71-year-old volunteer Susan Wolff first locked the door. Then she went outside to talk to him. The exchange was pleasant, Wolff said, until she began to walk away and he mentioned Trumps promise to build a wall along the southern U.S. border. Im very sensitive about this because my parents were Holocaust survivors and they fled Nazi Germany, she said. I said to him, Thank goodness there was no wall when my parents came here or I wouldnt be here. At one point during the day, Parks tucked his shirt behind his holster to reveal he was carrying a weapon, Wolff said. She eventually called 911 and learned that the county sheriff was already keeping watch in the parking lot as a precaution. The protest, first reported by a local CBS affiliate, ended peacefully after about 12 hours when the office closed and volunteers left for the evening. Attempts to reach Parks were unsuccessful. But the real trouble began after Dittmar posted Facebook and Twitter messages encouraging volunteers to call the police if they felt unsettled by the armed protest. Comments began to appear on Dittmars and Garretts pages using obscene language to criticize Dittmar, according to screen shots of the comments taken by her campaign. She is dumb as a box of rocks they will take her head off it they dont rape her first, read one message. Another said: Jane you are a retarded and should disembowel yourself with a spoon. By Monday night, Dittmar instructed her staff to take down the page; it was reactivated Tuesday morning with nearly 5,000 messages. About the same time, several conservative blogs posted stories about the 1999 car accident. Dittmar said she was driving with her then-3-year-old son on a dark country road when she swerved, causing her bumper to glance into the side of a berm. The air bag activated and she suffered two black eyes, a broken nose and a split lip. Dittmar said she waited for the police but got a ride home before they arrived, so she left identification on the front seat to avoid giving the impression she had abandoned the car. She later learned she was charged with driving under the influence and not restraining a child. Dittmar said the charges were dropped in exchange for a guilty plea to reckless driving. She said her son was in a car seat and she had not been drinking. Albemarle County Police Lt. Todd Hopwood declined a request for the police report. Wolff, the campaign volunteer, said Dittmar told her national attention on the armed protest might help her congressional bid. If I win the election it could be because of this, she said, according to Wolff. Everyone knows my name now. LuAnn Bennett (D), left, and Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-Va.) greet each other after their first debate in the race for Virginias 10th Congressional District in Lansdowne, Va., on Oct. 6. (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post) In the final debate of a tightening contest for a Northern Virginia congressional seat Wednesday, Democratic challenger LuAnn Bennett departed from her practice of tying Republican Rep. Barbara Comstock to Donald Trump. Instead, she worked to paint the incumbent as an extreme partisan in a do-little Congress and mentioned the Republican presidential nominee just once when asked about him. Comstock touted her local connections and said she has been an ally to congressional Democrats representing the region in the GOP-controlled House while calling Bennett out of touch with the districts priorities. Trump has lost support in the state, according to recent polls, and has been a lightning rod in the race for the 10th Congressional District. Independent political analysts have responded by moving the contest from lean Republican to toss-up and tilting toward the Republican in recognition. The 10th District includes all of Loudoun, Clarke and Frederick counties as well as Manassas and Manassas Park and parts of Fairfax and Prince William counties. Questions at the debate, hosted by the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce, focused predominantly on transportation, which both candidates agreed is a barrier to economic development in the congested region. Comstock noted she sits on a committee that negotiated a compromise five-year transportation bill passed by Congress that will help fund infrastructure improvements. Theres only one person on this stage who will be in the majority, she said. We dont need another minority member of Congress. Bennett responded, First of all, thats a big assumption at this point. She added that Congress has not passed an appropriations bill in many years and avoids votes on tough issues. If that happened in your business or my business, we would be out of business, said Bennett, a 63-year-old real estate developer and longtime Democratic donor who is making her first bid for public office. Turning to the Affordable Care Act, Comstock said lawmakers pleaded with President Obama to get bipartisan buy-in on the landmark legislation. Obamacare was totally partisan, said Comstock, 57, a onetime GOP staffer who is finishing her first term in Congress. Not a single Republican voted for Obamacare. What we need is to have bipartisan solutions. At the end of the hour-long debate, candidates were asked what priority they would promote if a president of the opposite party invited them to dinner. Comstock said in a theoretical meeting with a President Hillary Clinton, she would advocate for a continuation of Vice President Bidens cancer moonshot to advance a cure. Bennett said she would talk up ways to boost investment in the Northern Virginia economy if Trump becomes president, and not some stupid wall and pretend someone else is going to pay for it. Comstock steered clear of Trump. Ive made my statement known and my views, she told reporters. For much of the campaign, Comstock, who supported Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) in the state GOP primary, avoided saying whether she would vote for Trump. But after a 2005 video surfaced this month in which he bragged about groping women, Comstock became one of the first Republicans in the country to denounce his behavior. She urged him to drop out of the race and said she could not vote for him or Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee. With the move, Comstock risked alienating Trump supporters but may have endeared herself to independent voters in the bellwether of Loudoun County, where polls indicated many voters are turned off by the partys standard-bearer. In a debate in Loudoun County two weeks ago, Bennett worked Trump into answers to many questions. But at the Fairfax County debate Wednesday, she mostly focused on Comstocks record, such as her opposition to a tax-laden transportation funding bill and Medicaid expansion through the Affordable Care Act in the General Assembly. Asked after the debate about the shift, Bennett said she was not changing strategy. She said Trump and Comstock have similar views on abortion, equal pay, climate change and immigration. This is an agenda she will take to Congress, she said. If you dont like Donald Trumps agenda, you shouldnt like Barbara Comstocks either. Mark J. Rozell, dean of the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University, said House races are mostly about local issues and personalities, and Bennett is diversifying her case for unseating the incumbent. The Trump factor is there, theres no denying it, and LuAnn Bennett doesnt need to say it anymore, quite frankly, said Rozell, who attended the debate. Trumps campaign is in a downward spiral, it seems, and shes already getting that benefit. I found it interesting that on the same day the Journal Star editorial board praised Rep. Jeff Fortenberry and Sen. Deb Fischer for rejecting Donald Trump as a viable candidate for the presidency ("Campaign plunges to new lows," Oct. 11) because of the release of a 2005 tape showing Trump as his repugnant self there was an article on the same page written by one of the media's staunchest conservatives. George Will ("Trumps vile candidacy is chemotherapy for GOP," Oct. 11) had this to say: "Again, the tape revealed nothing about this arrested-development adolescent that today's righteously recoiling Republicans either did not already know or had no excuse for not knowing." Will is referring to you, Rep. Fortenberry, and to you, Sen. Fischer. There is no excuse you can muster! Alhough why would you since we now know you still plan on voting for this arrested-development adolescent ("Fortenberry, Fischer say theyll vote for Trump despite disgust," Oct. 12). Quite the principles you've set for yourself. Party before country always. Nebraska deserves better. Adam E. Dunn, Lincoln Obama administration officials are predicting that the number of Americans with private health insurance through the Affordable Care Act will increase by about 1 million in 2017, an upbeat final forecast for the presidents signature domestic achievement before he leaves office. Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell said Wednesday that an estimated 11.4 million people, on average, will have health plans from the laws insurance exchanges during the coming year. The forecast is more optimistic than those of some outside analysts, who predict that enrollment growth will slow or even backslide. The conflicting expectations arise from disagreements about the effect of upheaval in some exchanges as they approach their fourth year, with insurers defecting in parts of the country and the remaining ones sharply raising prices. Administration officials are playing down the impact. Burwell used the annual enrollment prediction as a kind of paean to what she heralded as the biggest step forward in a generation the administrations work to usher in insurance that is better, more affordable and more broadly available. She acknowledged that future ACA proponents will need Congress as a partner to accomplish any substantial changes in the law, including a public insurance option to foster more market competition in places with few insurers. The secretary contended that the laws marketplace is sustainable in terms of its size. In remarks at HHS headquarters, she said that it is strong and will continue to be strong because it is offering a product that people want and need. Officials said they expect 13.8 million people to choose or be re-enrolled automatically in ACA health plans during the upcoming enrollment period, which runs from Nov. 1 through Jan. 31. They predict that about 9.2 million will be current marketplace customers an estimate that signifies a drop-off from the 10 million people whom HHS expects to have ACA coverage at the end of December. The rest of the total will be people who have stayed uninsured, plus people who have individual policies outside the marketplaces. The administrations forecast comes three weeks before the presidential election, and the ACA has been a stark dividing line between the main candidates policy views. Branding it terrible, Republican Donald Trump has pledged to completely repeal the six-year-old law; like many others of his party, he points out what he says are myriad signs that it is failing. Democrat Hillary Clinton is an avowed supporter, though she wants to expand federal assistance to make health plans more affordable and to allow a public option a position President Obama now embraces. [In North Carolina, ACA defections leave little choice for many consumers] Against that partisan backdrop, the attractiveness of the insurance exchanges carries outsize significance this fall, even though they reach only a small fraction of Americans with private coverage: those who cannot get affordable health benefits from a job. Despite the Republicans persistent attempts to discredit and dismantle it, the ACA has survived two Supreme Court challenges and the disastrous 2013 debut of HealthCare.gov, when computer defects hindered many consumers attempts to get coverage through the new federal health exchange. Along the way, the law has helped to bring about a large decrease in the ranks of the uninsured. The upcoming sign-up period represents a significant pivot point for the ACA. The biggest threat now facing its federal marketplace and similar ones run by the District, Maryland and 15 other states is a matter of who has signed up: too many Americans with illnesses that consume a lot of medical care, and too few young adults and other healthy people to help balance out insurers costs. That dynamic lies behind the withdrawal of major insurers, including United HealthCare and Aetna Health, from some marketplaces, leaving nearly 20 percent of the people who now have ACA coverage with only a single insurer available for next year. [Uninsurance rate drops to the lowest level since before the Great Recession] Goldman Sachs analysts predicted last month that, with insurers leaving and prices changing, the number of Americans in ACA plans is likely to drop by roughly 20 percent next year. And last week, Standard & Poors predicted between an 8 percent decrease and a 4 percent increase. Based on the HHS figures announced on Wednesday that 10.5 million Americans had marketplace coverage in place as of mid-2016 the low end of S&Ps projected range would translate into average enrollment next year of less than 10 million. Both outside assessments suggest that HHS is underestimating how many Americans, with incomes too high for insurance subsidies, will drop marketplace coverage because of spiking prices. Congressional budget analysts also provide forecasts. Their most recent estimate of ACA enrollment is 15 million people in 2017. In Wednesdays predictions, HHS did not include the central figure of past forecasts: how many people it expects to have ACA health plans by the end of the coming year. Instead, it anticipated average enrollment during 2017. Kathryn Martin, acting assistant secretary for planning and evaluation, insisted that we are not moving the goal post. We are using what we believe is a more meaningful metric. The law requires most Americans to have health coverage. The penalty for remaining uninsured now stands at $695 per adult or 2.5 percent of income, whichever is higher. KANSAS Man gets 15 months in failed terrorist plot A Kansas man was sentenced Tuesday to 15 months in prison for helping a would-be jihadists unsuccessful plan to plant what they thought was a bomb at Fort Riley Army base. Alexander Blair, 29, also was sentenced to two years of supervised probation. He was accused of loaning $100 to John T. Booker Jr., 21, to store what they thought was an explosive device. Prosecutors said Booker intended to detonate it outside the northeast Kansas base in support of the Islamic State group. The device was a fake bomb built by FBI informants. Blair pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge in May, and U.S. District Judge Daniel Crabtree said from the bench that he regretted that federal anti-terrorism laws required him to treat Blair as if the Topeka resident had multiple previous criminal convictions despite Blairs previously spotless record. The judge also said he concluded that an unusual genetic personality condition made Blair susceptible to manipulation by Booker. Prosecutors had pushed for the maximum five-year prison sentence, but Crabtree said it would be too harsh for Blairs relatively small role in the conspiracy. The judge also rejected the defenses request for five years probation. Booker, who is also from Topeka, pleaded guilty in February to two felonies under an agreement calling for him to serve 30 years in prison, but he has not been sentenced. He was arrested in April 2015 outside Fort Riley, about 60 miles west of Topeka, as he was trying to arm what he thought was a 1,000-pound explosive device. Associated Press NEW YORK Video from ISIS fighter attempts to clear man A New York City college student killed fighting for the Islamic State group in Syria made a video trying to clear the name of an Arizona man who was charged with helping him join, prosecutors said. The 24-year-old students November death was revealed in papers filed Monday and Tuesday in Manhattan federal court. The student was identified in court papers as Samy El-Goarany. The Arizona man, Ahmed Mohammed el Gammal, was arrested last year and has pleaded not guilty. His attorneys said the video is unreliable and overly prejudicial and should be precluded from a trial scheduled for December. Prosecutors say El-Goarany left his parents home in Middletown, N.Y., in January 2015, telling them he was returning to his Manhattan college. Instead, the government said, he flew to Turkey and then Syria. Prosecutors said an unidentified person contacted a relative in November to say El-Goarany was killed fighting in Syria. The person provided photographs of a handwritten note in which the student said: If youre reading this then know that Ive been killed in battle, prosecutors said. The government also said it had found a YouTube video in which El-Goarany, clad in military fatigues, said on Sept. 8, 2015 two weeks after el Gammals arrest that he was in the Islamic State. Associated Press Man sentenced for grabbing womans hijab during flight: A North Carolina man who acknowledged grabbing and pulling off a Muslim womans hijab on a flight from Chicago to Albuquerque has been sentenced to a year of probation that includes two months of home confinement. Federal prosecutors say Gill Parker Payne, 37, of Gastonia, N.C., also was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine. During a Southwest Airlines flight on Dec. 11, Payne grabbed and removed Khawla Abdel-Haqs hijab, a religious headscarf, midflight. He was seated several rows behind her and did not know her. Vets license suspended for killing cat with bow and arrow: The Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners on Tuesday suspended the license of a veterinarian who used a bow and arrow to kill a cat that had wandered onto her property near Houston and boasted of the kill online. Kristen Lindsey cannot practice for a year and her suspension will be followed by four years probation and other requirements. Her lawyer said she believed the cat was feral. The cat, named Tiger, was owned by Lindseys neighbor. From news services SYRIA Assads wife says she rejected offers to flee The wife of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said in a television interview broadcast Tuesday that she had declined offers to leave her country earlier in the five-year-long war in return for safety and financial security for her and her children. Asma Assad, 41, was speaking to Russia 24, an official Moscow-based channel. It was her first interview with international media since the conflict broke out in 2011. She said the foolish offers were aimed at undermining confidence in her husband. I was offered the opportunity to leave Syria or rather to run from Syria, Assad said in the 33-minute interview conducted in English. It doesnt take a genius to know what these people were really after. It was never about my well-being or my children. It was a deliberate attempt to shatter peoples confidence in their president. She did not specify who the offers were from. Assad said everyone in Syria is at risk because of the war. But she added, I refuse to live in fear. She also said help from Damascuss friends, such as Russia, had been invaluable to alleviate peoples suffering. Associated Press YEMEN U.N. announces deal on 72-hour cease-fire The warring parties in Yemen have agreed to a 72-hour cease-fire that will take effect shortly before midnight Wednesday, the U.N. special envoy to Yemen said. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said he hopes the temporary truce can lead to a permanent and lasting end to the conflict. Ahmed said he received assurances from all parties to the conflict that hostilities would cease at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday for an initial period of 72 hours. The warring factions agreed to the conditions of a temporary April cease-fire plan, he said. That agreement requires them to allow free and unhindered access for humanitarian supplies and personnel to all parts of Yemen, he said. The war in Yemen began in 2014 when Shiite rebels seized the capital, Sanaa. In March 2015, Saudi Arabia and its allies launched an air campaign against the rebels. The Saudi coalition and the United States back the internationally recognized government of Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi. Associated Press UNITED NATIONS Cultural agency adopts Jerusalem resolution UNESCOs executive board on Tuesday approved a resolution that Israel says denies the deep historical Jewish connection to holy sites in Jerusalem. The resolution is not expected to have any concrete effect on Jerusalem itself, but it aggravated diplomatic tensions around the city and within the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. It is the latest of several UNESCO measures that Israelis see as evidence of ingrained anti-Israel bias within the United Nations. UNESCO voted in 2011 to admit Palestine as its newest member. The resolution, titled Occupied Palestine, lays out rules for the preservation of holy sites in Jerusalem and uses only the Islamic name for a hilltop compound sacred to both Jews and Muslims. The site includes the Western Wall, a remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where Jews can pray. Jews refer to the hilltop compound as the Temple Mount. Muslims refer to it as al-Haram al-Sharif, or the Noble Sanctuary. It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest in Islam. Israel had suspended its cooperation with UNESCO over the resolution last week, though it isnt clear what that would entail. Associated Press Burundis president signs bill on ICC withdrawal: Burundis president has signed legislation to make his country the first to withdraw from the International Criminal Court, which had said it would investigate recent political violence there. No country has withdrawn from the ICC, which prosecutes cases of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. The legislation had won overwhelming support from Burundian lawmakers last week. Observers say a pullout from the ICC takes effect a year after the day the U.N. secretary general is formally notified. 7 dead as Somali troops fight al-Shabab: Somali police said at least seven people are dead after hours of clashes as Somali and African Union troops pushed back al-Shabab extremists from a town near Mogadishu. The attacks in Afgoye started when a suicide bomber detonated a vehicle near a Somali police station and African Union base. Gunmen then attacked military bases. Police said two al-Shabab fighters and five Somali soldiers were killed. Two suspects were detained. From news services Tristan Schulz is held by his mother, Mindy. Tristan was killed at 5 months old when he and his mother were struck by a Jeep in Loudoun County. (Aliyah Dastour/Alimond Studios) A 5-MONTH-OLD boy, Tristan Schulz, was killed not long ago when the driver of an SUV plowed into his stroller as his mother was pushing it across a marked crosswalk in Loudoun County. At the time, according to what a witness told police, the SUVs driver was holding up his cellphone, which may have distracted him. If so, Tristans tragic death fits a disturbing pattern of distracted driving that has contributed to the biggest surge in traffic deaths in a half-century. The District, Maryland and at least 13 other states have enacted laws banning drivers from using handheld phones. But lawmakers in Virginia, where Tristan was killed, have rejected the idea more than once, ignoring extensive research showing that the use of handheld phones by motorists is dangerous. All but a small handful of states, plus the District, now prohibit texting while driving, and at least 37 states, plus the District, ban all cellphone use for teenagers and other novice drivers. In addition, school bus drivers are forbidden to use cellphones in about 20 states. Nonetheless, Americans like to be left to do as they please in their cars, so legislative resistance to regulating cellphone use has endured even as data have clarified the risks. In most states, drivers may still legally use handheld cellphones for purposes other than texting and emailing. Cellphone use leads to slower braking reaction time, drifting from lanes and increased tailgating, according to a World Health Organization survey in 2011. The ongoing tolerance of cellphone use by drivers helped traffic deaths spike more than 10 percent in the first half of this year compared with the same period last year. And the United States 35,000 traffic deaths in 2015 represented the biggest increase since 1966. A 2013 study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute indicated that while the specific act of talking on a cellphone may not directly increase the risk of accident, the associated activities reaching for a phone, checking contacts, dialing and so forth make crashes three times more likely. That study and similar ones were available last winter to Richmond legislators, who nonetheless killed a bill to ban the use of handheld cellphones in the General Assemblys Transportation Committee. Like most other states, Virginia has had a no-texting-while-driving law on the books since 2013. The trouble is that enforcement is all but impossible: Some drivers may say they were simply dialing their phones, which is legal in the state. Thats why it makes more sense to enact a flat ban on drivers using handheld phones perhaps exempting only the use of a GPS device which is more easily monitored and enforced by police. Public education on the risks of cellphone use behind the wheel is valuable, but should be hammered home with legislation bearing stiff fines, possible loss of license and other sanctions. Those are common-sense moves to improve public safety and save lives. In a month, our country will make a monumental political decision: Will it be Mr. Donald Trump or Ms. Hillary Clinton? As a voting American citizen, I take this decision very seriously. I am a registered Republican. I am a conservative. I am Christian. I am an NRA life member. I am a woman who wants to empower other women. I am an aspiring nurse who has made a lifestyle choice to protect, advocate and care for those in need. Which political candidate will protect this country and, in turn, protect me and my family? Which candidate will protect my constitutional rights as an American citizen? Who will uphold the values and beliefs that once shaped the United States? This election isnt about which side of the aisle you sit on. It's not about which bathroom the candidates use. It's not about who offends you the least, and it's not even about who has the most political experience. It's about protecting our freedom as American citizens! I urge everyone who will be making a stop at their local polling place to do one thing first: Educate yourself! Read newspapers, magazine articles, blogs and the Constitution! Listen to news programs and radio talk shows. Seek out all sides: liberal, conservative and everything in between. Remember, there are always three sides to every story: their side, your side and the truth! Do your research, check the facts and then vote for the candidate who will best protect your fundamental constitutional rights. Kate Phelps, Lincoln Making predictions three weeks before the U.S. election is risky, but the likeliest bet right now is that the center will hold in American politics and Hillary Clinton will be elected president. Thats important for lots of reasons, the biggest of which is that it could begin to stabilize a very unsettled world. Nate Silver, a leading polling guru, projected Monday night that, based on major surveys, the chances of a Clinton victory had increased to 88 percent, up 5 points in a week and 33 points from her low ebb in September before the first debate. Silver estimates that Clinton has a roughly 7-point lead in the polls, about the same margin in the RealClearPolitics average. Anything could happen in three weeks, of course, but these numbers should dampen, at least slightly, what has been a feverish global mood. Traveling on three continents over the past two months, I have heard widespread anxiety about the state of the world. To many analysts, Vladimir Putins Russia has seemed on the march while the United States and its allies are in retreat. The danger of U.S.-Russian conflict was described by Rolf Mowatt-Larssen, a former senior CIA officer, in a recent article. As a life-long observer of Russia, I have never been as concerned as I am now on the state of Russian-American relations, he wrote. A dangerous zero sum game pattern has emerged as US and Russia make moves and countermoves that mimic practice during the Cold War. Aggressive Russian actions in Ukraine, Syria and cyberspace have led some analysts to review Cold War texts such as Herman Kahns classic On Escalation, which describes a psychology of escalation dominance where adversaries take action in the expectation that they will prevail. Some experts argue that Russia is tempted by the perception that the United States has lost its superiority in conventional weapons and its will to use them. But theres more stability in the current U.S.-Russian confrontations than some might think. First, diplomatic conversation between the two countries is nearly continuous. Its easy to make fun of Secretary of State John F. Kerrys tireless (and seemingly fruitless) negotiations with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov. But these meetings reduce the possibility of accidental conflict. So does the almost daily contact between the U.S. and Russian militaries to deconflict potential confrontations over Syria. Meanwhile, the Pentagon is working on new high-tech weapons that should eventually restore U.S. overmatch. Russias seemingly dominant position in these conflicts is also more fragile than it looks. Thats because of the growing weakness of an economy suffering from sanctions and low oil prices. Russia, by most measures, is moving in reverse: The International Monetary Fund projects a decline in its GDP this year of 0.8 percent. Monthly wages fell by 9.5 percent in the year that ended in August. Russias rainy day cash reserve has declined by nearly two-thirds since 2014. Military muscle masks Russian economic decline. According to Reuters columnist William E. Pomeranz, the governments share of GDP has nearly doubled over the past decade to about 70 percent, heading back toward Soviet levels. This has brought gross corruption and inefficiency. Even in its showcase energy sector, Russia lacks the technology to develop difficult offshore or Arctic reserves. U.S. campaign rhetoric sometimes makes it seem like the world is falling apart. But the next president will inherit a stronger American economy and structure of global alliances than the sound bites suggest. European allies, for example, are stressed by migration and populist anger. But so far, the fragile center seems to be holding there, too, and it would probably be reinforced by a Clinton victory. In Asia, the next administration will build on enhanced economic and military ties with two close partners, South Korea and Japan, which over the past year (with careful nudging from Washington) have become better friends with each other, too. Paradoxically, perhaps, the biggest threat to the future remains the traditional Cold War problem of nuclear weapons. North Korea is recklessly seeking to become a nuclear state. Irans program has been contained, but for how long? And Russian leaders, recognizing their severe lag behind U.S. conventional forces (despite the showy operations in Syria), still seem to see their strategic depth in terms of nuclear weapons. The U.S. election, on current evidence, will probably yield a modest consolidation for global order after a period of stress. The good news is that the bad news seems less likely than a few weeks ago. But as Nov. 8 approaches, the world is holding its breath. Read more from David Ignatiuss archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook. Thomas Hicks, a Democrat, is chairman of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Matthew Masterson, a Republican, is vice chairman, and Christy McCormick, a Republican, is a member of the commission. Recent reports regarding the ability of foreign hackers to change the outcome of the U.S. presidential election are overstated. Foreign hackers will not pick our next president Americans will. To be sure, malicious actors may be looking at the U.S. election system as a possible target. While headlines on this conversation may be new, election officials have been working to secure our voting systems for years. As threats emerge and evolve, those of us who work in elections are responding, adapting and constantly improving. Recently, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson commended this work and expressed confidence in the election process, saying: It is diverse, subject to local control, and has many checks and balances built in. At the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), we use research, voting system testing information, and reports from state and local officials about the performance of their systems to improve our certification of voting systems. We work with state and local officials across the country to identify and share best practices regarding cybersecurity, including information on testing systems, auditing the results and creating contingency plans. Election officials use this information to better prepare and secure their systems. Since the widespread purchase of electronic voting systems following the 2000 election, officials have worked to adapt their laws, policies and procedures to mitigate threats as they arise. State and local election officials surround their systems with layers of security. The first security layer is the decentralized nature of our elections. Remember, states and localities run elections. Across the nation, more than 9,000 election jurisdictions have been diligently preparing for presidential voting. There is not one unified system or even 50 systems for a malicious actor to attack; rather, thousands of distinct systems would have to be targeted. FBI Director James B. Comey recently cited the clunky decentralized nature of elections as a positive for securing the process. The next security layer is that the voting systems used across the country are tested at the federal level by the EAC. No EAC-certified voting system is connected to the Internet. State and local officials then test the systems against additional requirements. Local officials publicly test each voting machine before each election to ensure the system is ready. After those local tests are completed, election officials physically secure, seal and lock systems for use in the election. Additionally, poll workers protect the systems. Anyone who has ever worked the polls knows how protective these workers are of the election process. Finally, laws and policies for post-election audits are in place in a majority of states, and many of these audits are conducted publicly. Continuity-of-operations plans ensure that the election can continue in cases of natural disaster, local emergencies or a cyber-related issue. As a last resort, emergency provisional ballots can be used to ensure that every eligible voter is given the opportunity to vote, even if all other systems are not operating. If voters have questions or concerns, there are three steps they can take. First, they should talk to their local election officials. These officials want voters to have confidence and to participate in the process. Second, they can sign up to be poll workers. There is no better way to learn about the process and have ones questions answered. Third, they can take advantage of all the ways to get involved. Check your voter registration information to make sure it is up to date. Attend a pre-election test of voting systems. Watch post-election audits of the votes. And, of course, vote. Election officials work diligently to better secure the voting process. Because of their efforts, the process is more secure than it has ever been. Voters should head to the polls on Nov. 8 with full confidence that they, not some foreign hacker, will choose the next president of the United States. PRESIDENT OBAMAS foreign-policy legacy will include significant, if temporary, curbs on Irans nuclear program but not the broader detente with the Islamic republic that he hoped for. More and bitter evidence of that came Tuesday, when Tehran announced that two American citizens and a permanent U.S. resident had been sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges of cooperating with the hostile U.S. government. Siamak Namazi, 45, a businessman born in Iran, was an advocate of better relations and more trade between the two countries which is probably the reason he was arrested while visiting the country a year ago. His 80-year-old father, Baquer, a former UNICEF official, was cruelly imprisoned after he traveled to Tehran in February. His family pointed out that the fathers prison term amounts to a death sentence, given his relatively poor health, for the crime of seeking to help his equally innocent son. The Namazis are not the only dual nationals suffering persecution in Tehran. Nizar Zakka, a Lebanese citizen, permanent U.S. resident and State Department contractor, was detained in September 2015 while attending a conference. Reza Robin Shahini, 46, of San Diego was arrested in July. All were reportedly seized by the intelligence service of the Revolutionary Guard, the same force that subjected Post correspondent Jason Rezaian to 18 months of imprisonment before his release in a prisoner swap in January. The government of Hassan Rouhani, which negotiated the nuclear deal with the Obama administration, is often portrayed as opposed to this de facto hostage-taking. If so, the government appears powerless to prevent it. Instead, officials complain about the relatively slow return of Western investment and trade following the lifting of United Nations sanctions, even as some of those who promote the opening are unjustly imprisoned. Iranian foreign policy, too, remains unchanged. The regime has dispatched thousands of fighters to Syria to prop up the regime of Bashar al-Assad and is using Shiite militias to extend its influence across Iraq. It is encouraging Russias new bid for influence in the Middle East while doing its best to drive out the United States. In that context, the long sentences handed to the Namazis are grim but unsurprising. The Revolutionary Guard wishes to head off Western investments that might infringe on its own business interests; and it may hope that its prisoners can eventually be exchanged for lucre. Though it was officially part of a separate claims settlement, the Obama administrations delivery of $400 million in cash to the Iranian regime at the time of the release of Mr. Rezaian and other prisoners may have whetted the appetites of Tehrans jailers. The administration, which duly pronounced itself deeply concerned by the prison sentences, may face the choice of striking another distasteful deal or leaving office with a notable blemish on its Iran legacy. In the meantime, promoters of Iranian-American understanding such as the younger Mr. Namazi would be well advised not to set foot in Tehran. ON FRIDAY, President Obama unveiled a Presidential Decision Directive trumpeting further overtures to the Cuban government designed to make the thaw he announced on Dec. 17, 2014, irreversible. That would imply regardless of results which so far have been paltry, at least in terms of freedom and prosperity for Cubas long-suffering people. Indeed, Cubans are worse off now than how they imagined their future when normalization began, opposition journalist Yoani Sanchez noted recently. The Castro regime has arrested almost as many peaceful opponents so far this year (8,505) as it did in all of 2015 (8,616), according to the nongovernmental Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation. The ranks of the repressed include dissident lawyer Julio Alfredo Ferrer Tamayo, who was thrown in prison Sept. 23. His law firm was also ransacked and documents were taken. Havanas municipal government has just banned new licenses for private restaurants and instructed existing ones that it will start enforcing onerous taxes and regulations more tightly. It was, Reuters reported, a new sign that Cubas Communist-run government is hesitant to further open up to private business in a country where it still controls most economic activity, following similar retrenchment in agriculture and transportation last year. The economy is stagnating due to the Castro regimes perennial mismanagement and cutbacks in aid from Cubas chaotic patron, Venezuela. In July, Cubas economy minister warned that fuel consumption would have to be cut by nearly a third in the rest of the year, along with restrictions in state investments and imports. Cubas cash crunch helps explain why sales of U.S. goods (those permitted under long-standing humanitarian exceptions to the embargo) are running well below what they were before the thaw. Some 89,000 Cubans have fled to the United States since the policy began. Havanas response to Mr. Obamas latest olive branch was to demand more concessions. Mr. Obamas directive does not hide the purpose of promoting changes in the political, economic and social order, top diplomat Josefina Vidal asserted. Shortly thereafter, Ms. Vidal led a large nationally televised rally at Havana University to protest the genocidal embargo, part of a broad anti-U.S. propaganda campaign timed to coincide with Mr. Obamas announcement. An optimistic view of these developments would be that the administrations strategy is working: Frightened by the prospect of freer business activity, and ideologically challenged in the absence of a Yanqui enemy, Cubas leaders must clamp down on the former and invent the latter and round up the usual dissident suspects. That may be true; but recent events also show the tension between the presidents twin goals of doing business with the Cuban government as a legitimate equal and relieving the misery of the Cuban people, which is caused by their government. Even on the ideological defensive, the Cuban regime retains the capacity to resist change and to punish citizens who seek to bring it about. We have never opposed a thaw in relations, only Mr. Obamas decision contrary to his earlier promise to exclude from the process all those Cubans who have been bravely fighting for increased freedom. Now Mr. Obama is giving the regime a green light: No amount of repression can derail his policy. That is a strange and unfortunate message. TWICE IN the past 16 years, voters in Montgomery County have rejected term limits for local elected officials. They should again by saying no on next months ballot to Question B, which would set three-term limits for the county executive and members of the County Council. Montgomery, Marylands most populous jurisdiction, has an unusually engaged, motivated electorate, perfectly willing to show incumbents the door, as it has with at-large members of the council three times in the past 14 years. Thats an effective means of exercising term limits surgically; no improvement would result from Question Bs meat-cleaver approach. Its presence on the Nov. 8 ballot arises from the exertions of Robin Ficker, an anti-tax activist who was also responsible for putting similar measures before the voters in 2000 and 2004. Mr. Ficker is irate that the county raised property taxes this year, the first significant increase for homeowners in seven years, driven both by the need to maintain a top-flight school system and to plug a revenue gap stemming from a Supreme Court ruling that Maryland has unconstitutionally double-taxed income earned outside the state. The best argument for term limits is that they prompt an infusion of new blood into tired governing bodies and, possibly, more diverse pools of candidates. In practice, Montgomery has a council that, whatever its faults, is reasonably diverse if top-heavy with veterans: Of the councils nine members, five would be barred from seeking reelection in 2018 if voters approved Question B, which would impose a limit for three four-year terms. (The limit would also apply to County Executive Isiah Leggett (D), but he is likely to retire in any event.) There are several problems with term limits, beyond the fact that they are unnecessary in places such as Montgomery. One is that fresh eyes are also dewy, and local governance is complicated. It can take a couple of years for members to gain the expertise they need to become effective. A vacuum of experience in a council stocked with relative novices is a recipe for shifting power to unelected staffers and, more worryingly, special interests with deep pockets in Montgomerys case, developers and public-employee unions. Recent history suggests that the longer members hold office, the less sway special interests have. Prince Georges County, the only Washington-area locality with term limits, offers a useful counter-example. With a two-term maximum, the council is constantly starting anew. And while the councils current lineup is a decided improvement on some in the recent past, it lacks the expertise found in Montgomery. The right way to set term limits is to throw bad officials out of office. Montgomery voters are up to that task; they should reject Question B. Debbie Mukamal is executive director of the Stanford Criminal Justice Center at Stanford Law School. David Sklansky is a professor at Stanford Law School and a faculty co-director of the Stanford Criminal Justice Center. The relentless drumbeat of black men shot dead by police continues, leaving community after community anguished, angry and seeking justice. The protests this month over the killings of Carnell Snell Jr. in Los Angeles and Alfred Olango in El Cajon, Calif., underscore once again the desperate need to assure all Americans that the criminal-justice system values their lives and is committed to ridding itself of racial bias. Providing that assurance will require reforms not just in policing but in prosecution as well. It is especially imperative to rethink the way that fatal shootings by police officers are investigated and prosecuted. Police officers who kill civilians rarely face criminal charges. About 1,000 civilians are killed by police each year, but since 2005 only 77 officers have been charged with manslaughter or murder in connection with those deaths. And criminal investigations in these cases usually drag on for months or years before the community and the victims family members know whether charges will be filed. Most police shootings are not crimes, even if they reflect bad policies and deficient training. But some are, in fact, crimes. The delay, and the lack of transparency, in resolving these cases can take a serious toll on the legitimacy and credibility of the criminal-justice system. And when, as usually happens, no criminal charges are filed, questions are often raised about whether the local prosecutors, who work hand in hand with police, were biased. A new report from the Stanford Criminal Justice Center recommends ways to improve the criminal investigation and prosecution of police shootings. The recommendations aim to balance three goals: protecting the independence of prosecutorial decisions, providing accountability for those decisions and ensuring that the prosecutors and investigators working on these cases have the requisite expertise. These goals are often in tension. Making prosecutors more accountable, for example, can undermine their ability to exercise independent judgment. Officials outside the criminal-justice system often will have fewer conflicts of interest but typically will lack the skills and experience necessary to handle a complicated criminal case. Taking these difficult trade-offs into account, our report recommends changes both in the investigation and in the prosecution of fatal police shootings. First, except when absolutely necessary, a criminal investigation should not be led by the agency employing the officer involved in the incident. Such probes which involve securing the crime scene, collecting and testing physical evidence and interviewing witnesses often are conducted by the very agency employing the officer under investigation, giving rise to insuperable and unnecessary conflicts of interest. It is difficult to investigate ones own colleagues. Even when complete objectivity is possible, the appearance of bias undermines the public trust in police and public perceptions of fairness. That is why the Justice Department and President Obamas Task Force on 21st Century Policing both have warned that self-policing by a law-enforcement agency should be avoided. Rather than the employing agency, state-level officials or a neighboring law-enforcement agency unconnected to the shooting should lead the investigation. In Wisconsin, a new state law requires that at least two independent investigators conduct the investigation of any officer-involved death. This approach, while only a few years old, seems to be working and enjoys support of both law enforcement and community advocates. Second, steps should be taken to address the real or apparent conflicts of interest faced by the local district attorney in deciding whether to file criminal charges. County prosecutors work closely with local law-enforcement agencies: Police bring them their cases, carry out investigations and serve as witnesses at trial. When those same prosecutors decide whether to charge a police shooting as a criminal homicide, it can be difficult for the community to have confidence that the decision is made impartially especially when, as usually happens, the decision is not to file charges. One possible solution to real or perceived conflict of interest is to appoint an independent prosecutor, but that can undermine both the competence and the political accountability of the charging decision. A better solution would be to task another countys district attorney, or the states attorney general, with overseeing the investigation and making at least an initial determination whether charges are warranted. That determination could be reported publicly, in the form of a recommendation to the local district attorney, who could make the final decision whether to prosecute. The sharing of responsibilities would address the conflict of interest but allow the district attorney, democratically chosen by the voters of the county, to make the ultimate decision. The problem of police shootings will not be solved solely, or even mainly, by criminal prosecutions. More efforts are needed to reduce the number of police shootings through improved tactics and training. But when police shootings do occur, it is critical to ensure that the criminal investigations and charging decisions are handled in ways that not only are fair but also are perceived to be fair, both by police officers and by the community. The GOP presidential nominee is out on the trail ahead of the general election in November. The GOP presidential nominee is out on the trail ahead of the general election in November. Donald Trump goes into his third and final presidential debate on the defensive, with Hillary Clinton threatening to poach a string of once loyally Republican states from a man who says he hates losers. Trump is in danger of being one of his partys biggest losers and, as President Obama pointed out on Tuesday, a whiny one at that. The states on Clintons new target list include Arizona and, of all places, Texas. In Nevada, the polling is mixed, though Clinton seems to have gained ground. A Monmouth University poll released Tuesday put Clinton ahead of Trump here by seven points. Trump was up by two points last month. But a new Post-Survey Monkey survey, which showed her in a commanding position nationally, had her still down here by four. All these states have something important in common: They include large numbers of Latino voters, who are clearly mobilizing to defeat Trump. He is also suffering from profound weaknesses among African Americans, college-educated voters of all backgrounds and the young. The newest Washington Post-ABC News poll shows Democratic presidential Hillary Clinton with a 4-percentage-point lead over Republican nominee Donald Trump among likely voters. Respondents were also asked about Donald Trump's lewd comments about women, and how locked-in their votes are. (Peter Stevenson/The Washington Post) Much has been written about whether Clinton will be able to bring enough young voters to the polls on Nov. 8 and also not lose too many of them to third-party candidates. But notice this: Nobody is saying that she will hemorrhage younger Americans to Trump, because she wont. For millennials, the choice is Clinton, third party or the couch, said John Della Volpe, who has long overseen Harvard Universitys Institute of Politics polling of young people. Yes, the couch, meaning abstention, is a far bigger threat to Clinton among younger voters than the Republican nominee. [Trump supporters are talking about civil war. Could a loss provide the spark?] There is a lot of speculation about lower turnout overall I am not convinced by this, given the stakes in the election but there is not much doubt about the engagement of Latinos, as Aaron Zitner reported this week in the Wall Street Journal. And a Journal-NBC News-Telemundo survey, which had a larger-than-usual sample of Latinos to get a better fix on their preferences, found Clinton leading Trump among them 67 percent to 17 percent. Trump is thus on track to run behind Mitt Romneys already-anemic 27 percent tally among Latinos against President Obama in 2012. Romneys Hispanic showing was, in turn, worse than John McCains in 2008 and much worse than George W. Bushs in 2004 and 2000. Now it would be one thing if no one had anticipated what a Trump-like candidate would do to the partys chances, or if the GOP had been united around a go-for-broke strategy among white voters. But some of the most intelligent analysis of why Trumpism would be a disaster for Republicans came from inside the GOP itself. The March 2013 report for the partys Growth & Opportunity Project (widely known as the autopsy of Romneys 2012 defeat) deserves revisiting at this moment. It was unflinching in offering words that unless Trump has a miraculous recovery by Election Day will merely have to be cut and pasted into a post-2016 autopsy. The nations demographic changes add to the urgency of recognizing how precarious our position has become, its authors wrote. If we want ethnic minority voters to support Republicans, we have to engage them and show our sincerity. They went on: If Hispanic Americans perceive that a GOP nominee or candidate does not want them in the United States . . . they will not pay attention to our next sentence. It does not matter what we say about education, jobs or the economy; if Hispanics think we do not want them here, they will close their ears to our policies. [Trumpism must be crushed. Here is one way to do it.] As for young voters, the report noted the party did not have to share their views on every issue, but we do need to make sure young people do not see the Party as totally intolerant of alternative points of view. . . . If our party is not welcoming and inclusive, young people and increasingly other voters will continue to tune us out. In the long history of advice-giving, its hard to think of a case where good counsel was so resolutely rejected. And whats important is that large chunks of the Republican Partys primary electorate did the rejecting. All the reports in the world wont change the party if its own members are determined to stay a doomed course. This is why some Republicans may be hoping privately that Clintons effort to expand the Democrats map actually succeeds. It may take a true partywide catastrophe for the GOP rank and file to come to terms with the United States that exists, not the one they wish they could call back into being. Read more from E.J. Dionnes archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook. IN AN editorial Tuesday, we described how Donald Trump is attacking both halves of a fundamental and long-standing equation of American democracy: that the loser recognizes the winner and that the winner lets the loser remain in the political arena. By claiming his loss could happen only as a result of cheating, and threatening to jail Hillary Clinton if he wins, Mr. Trump is rejecting a pillar of our republic. But that is not the only pillar under assault: Mr. Trumps blanket indifference to truth is similarly an attack on democracy. All politicians fudge the truth at times. But their misrepresentations usually have at least some connection to reality. Without basic acceptance that facts and evidence matter, authentic debate becomes impossible, as does governance. Put simply, both sides must agree that two plus two equals four before they can argue about budget numbers. Mr. Trump would not concur if he concluded it was in his interest for two plus two to equal five. He invents alternate realities and encourages his supporters to inhabit them. For example: Thousands of New Jersey Muslims celebrated the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Or: Many people saw bombs all over the San Bernardino shooters apartment and neglected to report them. Both claims are false; Mr. Trump nevertheless repeats them and uses them to justify unjustifiable policy, such as banning Muslim immigration. His war on reality has escalated as his poll numbers have declined. After the recent firebombing of a North Carolina GOP building, he immediately and with no evidence accused Clinton allies of being responsible. If it emerges that the culprits had no connection to Ms. Clinton, he will no doubt invent one. His fables about illegal immigrants pouring across the border to cast illegal votes are equally reprehensible. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trumps surrogates on Oct. 16 accused the media of ignoring the release of hacked emails from Hillary Clintons campaign by WikiLeaks. (Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post) Over the weekend, Gov. Mike Pence (R-Ind.), Mr. Trumps running mate, tried to return the candidate to the territory of dishonest but tenuously connected to reality: Mr. Trumps insistence that the election is being rigged against him refers to biased media coverage, Mr. Pence maintained. Mr. Trump responded by doubling down on the ridiculous assertion that large-scale voter fraud is occurring. On Wednesday, Mr. Trump and Ms. Clinton are scheduled to debate for the last time. We hope there will be discussion of real issues. But Mr. Trumps falsehood-per-minute tally in his last encounter with Ms. Clinton, from the size of the trade deficit to his position on the Iraq War, was astonishing. Given Mr. Trumps indifference to the truth, we are skeptical that the final meeting can be much of a debate either, in any conventional sense. As with his threat to imprison his opponent if he defeats her, Mr. Trumps total dismissal of reality and wanton embrace of conspiracy theories should be disqualifying. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump called supporters in Grand Junction, Colo., to watch the polls in St. Louis, Philadelphia and Chicago, as he continued to allege that voter fraud is rampant in communities across the country. (Victoria Walker/The Washington Post) Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump called supporters in Grand Junction, Colo., to watch the polls in St. Louis, Philadelphia and Chicago, as he continued to allege that voter fraud is rampant in communities across the country. (Victoria Walker/The Washington Post) We are three weeks from the election, and very close to the edge. Retiree Gerald Miller, a volunteer at Donald Trumps rally here, is confident his man will win on Nov. 8 unless theres foul play. Miller, wearing an NRA pin and a tea party cap over his long hair, shares Trumps concern that the election may be rigged by the Clinton campaign. It is enough to skew the election. They can swing it either way, he said, particularly because Hillary Clinton may have the FBI working for her in committing the fraud. So what happens if Clinton is declared the winner? Donald Trump is going to holler fraud if he doesnt win, figured Miller, who is white and says he has PTSD from racial violence he suffered in the military. I think were on the verge of a civil war, a racial war. This could be the spark that sets it off. Republican presidential nominee Donald J Trump held a campaign rally in Colorado Springs , Tuesday. There supporters said they were on the look out for voter fraud in the upcoming election including votes being cast using the identities of deceased people. (Zoeann Murphy/The Washington Post) I fear Miller may be right. Objectively, Trump is in big trouble; master handicapper Stuart Rothenberg wrote for The Post online on Tuesday that Trumps path to electoral-college victory is nonexistent and said he could win fewer than 200 electoral votes. But I spent a couple of hours before the rally in this indoor show ring talking to many Trump supporters and found them in states of denial and fury. I didnt find one who expects Trump to lose. To varying degrees, most agreed with Trump that the election process is rigged. And some predicted ominous things if Trump loses if not violence, a mass rejection of the legitimacy of the democratic process. [Trump is rigging the election: No matter who wins, America loses] Ann Macomber, a Christian, retired teacher and Trump volunteer handing out fliers saying Hillary Clinton is coming for your guns, told me the voting system in Colorado has been infiltrated: dead people voting, voters with bogus addresses, precincts that report more votes than registered voters. Its happening. Its sad, Macomber said. If we lose this election, we cant trust anything in America anymore. Were not sovereign. Some observers dismiss Trumps talk of a stolen and rigged election as just more rantings of a narcissist who cant accept that he is almost certain to lose. But the talk of election fraud is more nefarious than that and clearly an effort to destabilize the post-election environment. In early August, Trump consigliere Roger Stone declared that there is widespread voter fraud and argued that if theres voter fraud, this election will be illegitimate . . . we will have a constitutional crisis, widespread civil disobedience, and the government will no longer be the government. In an interview with the conservative outlet Breitbart, Stone said Trump has gotta put them on notice that their inauguration will be a rhetorical . . . bloodbath. 1 of 60 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad What Donald Trump is doing on the campaign trail View Photos The GOP presidential nominee is out on the trail ahead of the general election in November. Caption The GOP presidential nominee is pressing his case ahead of Election Day. Nov. 7, 2016 Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at SNHU Arena in Manchester, N.H. Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post Wait 1 second to continue. Now the head of Breitbart News is the head of the Trump campaign, and Trump, who had quieted the fraud talk when he was improving in the polls, is raising it more than ever. Voter fraud is all too common, Trump told a few thousand people Tuesday afternoon in Colorado Springs, but if you mention it, he said, they say bad things about you, they call you a racist. He scolded Republican leaders for saying everything is peachy with the election process and warned that this could be the year America truly lost its independence. Warned Trump: Its going to be a one-party system. This is your final shot. He particularly scolded the press, which created a rigged system and poisoned the minds of so many of our voters. But he also found corruption in voter surveys (I dont believe the polls anymore) and in his opponent (many times worse than Watergate). We wont let them stop maybe the greatest movement in the history of our country! Trump said, prompting chants of USA!, some foul language shouted at the press corps and, after the rally, a mass chant of Shame on you! directed at the press risers. [Elizabeth Warren: Trump didnt invent the rigged election myth. Republicans did.] The candidates reckless closing message that nothing is on the level not Democrats, not the press, not the polls, not Republican leaders, not even the integrity of the voting process has left many of his supporters prepared to declare the election results illegitimate. I know the Democrats cheat. Ive seen it, Jay Hendricks, wearing a Hillary Clinton Killed My Friends T-shirt, told me at the rally. I dont trust the Democratic side, agreed David Gibson, predicting lawsuits if Clinton wins. Joseph Salmons, wearing a Les Deplorables T-shirt and pin, told me the election wont end anything. The movements starting. Even if he doesnt win, its gonna tip, he said. But tip into what? I sincerely hope people dont lose their minds, Salmons said. If they manage to keep their cool, it will be despite the best efforts of Trump. Twitter: @Milbank Read more from Dana Milbanks archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook. GOP vice presidential nominee Mike Pence inspects a charred chair outside the Orange County Republican Party headquarters in Hillsborough, N.C., on Oct. 18, after it was firebombed. (Ben Mckeown/Associated Press) The supplies inside their firebombed office had burned to ashes and now smelled like exhaust, but the volunteers at the heart of the Orange County Republican Party vowed to keep working. They pulled out the flagpole, topped with a soot-covered brass eagle, and unfurled a blackened red, white and blue flag. They planted melted Trump-Pence lawn signs on a small patch of grass, set out folding tables and took to their phones to resume encouraging people to vote. Instead, the phones kept ringing with callers who wanted to encourage the volunteers. Trump-Pence signs? Blake Halsey, 21, a political science major at Methodist University, told one caller. Were running out. People keep coming by to pick them up. In the aftermath of the firebombing that ripped through the local GOP headquarters in this central North Carolina town, locals of all political persuasions have been flocking to the scene at a strip mall, intent on making a point: that even as a nasty presidential campaign rages nationally between two widely disliked candidates, Americans cannot let violence and hatred spill into their communities. They want to ensure that the bombing was an exception not a new normal. Hillsborough, N.C., police are investigating "arson and graffiti" that destroyed the local GOP headquarters in Orange County overnight on Saturday, Oct. 15. The local chairman streamed a video amid the damage on Oct. 16, which includes charred campaign signs, melted office supplies and graffiti calling them "Nazi Republicans." (Facebook/North Carolina GOP via Storyful) This is a county of good people, Bill Knight, 77, said to a friend. Have you ever heard of a firebombing in Hillsborough? No, the friend said. The past week has brought quite a change for the Republican faithful in this heavily Democratic county, which is home to the states liberal bastion of Chapel Hill and the University of North Carolinas flagship campus. One day, these volunteers were watching the presidential debates with catered barbecue. Now they had become a part of the political spectacle: Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, the Republican vice presidential nominee, made a surprise visit Tuesday and declared the firebombing an act of political terrorism. The crime was discovered Sunday morning after an unknown vandal or vandals threw an object filled with flammable liquid through an office window overnight. Nearby, someone spray-painted a 6-foot-high message that read: Nazi Republicans, leave town or else. It was accompanied with a swastika. Nobody was in the office at the time. The news of the incident trickled out at first. According to Gov. Pat McCrory (R), local authorities initially handled the event as a simple act of vandalism. The partys county chairman, Daniel Ashley, 63, just happened to be finishing up a sausage, bacon and country ham breakfast at Cracker Barrel with his wife and planned to stop at the office to pick up bottled water. Driving up the hill to the strip mall, he saw the police tape. As he got closer, he saw that someone had thrown the object through a sign that read Freedom Speaks. Ashley said he was scared that his small grocery store might be bombed next. He was resolved that his party, somehow, would go back to business. Were not going away, said Ashley, his hands and his nose covered in soot from rummaging through the offices remains. This is my community, this is my home. The terrorists want us to go, but once you run back home, theres nowhere else you can run to. Police have no suspects, and they have not discovered a motive. Ashley said that the person who did this obviously does not like Republicans. He said that he hoped that it might have been a neighborhood kid who took a joke too far, but that he could not ignore the possibility of something more nefarious: Was this the type of voter intimidation against Republicans that GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump had warned might happen? Was this a symptom of the bitter campaign? Would the candidates use a tragedy for political purposes? Within hours, both candidates were weighing in. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton tweeted that the attack was horrific and unacceptable. Very grateful that everyone is safe. Trump came out aggressively, tweeting: Animals representing Hillary Clinton and Dems in North Carolina just firebombed our office in Orange County because we are winning. Knight, who said he will vote for Trump, had enough of this language. Asinine, he called it. She called people deplorable, and now hes calling them animals? What makes him any better than her? No wonder we are in so much trouble. One of the nominees is a scoundrel and the other is a damn outright crook. Knight said he would have hoped that Trump, in such uneasy time, wouldnt have been so impetuous. The North Carolina GOP was more conciliatory when it tweeted, Thank you for your thoughts & prayers, Sec. @HillaryClinton. A Democrat living in Boston set up a Web page to help the Orange County Republicans fund their rebuilding. The goal was $10,000. Within hours, $15,000 was raised. The countys chapter of the Democratic Party called to offer well-wishes. The Rev. William Barber, the head of the state chapter of the NAACP and a Clinton supporter, immediately condemned the firebombing. We detest and denounce any violence and we know violence because theres no other civil rights organization thats had more violence perpetrated on it, Barber said. We have people still alive [whose] houses were bombed, here in North Carolina, cars were bombed, and people have faced death threats. . . . We wouldnt want anyone to experience that, Democrat or Republican. The political climate in North Carolina has been tense. McCrory and Sen. Richard Burr (R) are facing difficult reelection bids, while polls show a tight race between Clinton and Trump in what is considered a must-win state for the GOP nominee. Meanwhile, the eastern part of the state has endured devastating flooding caused by Hurricane Matthew, Charlotte is recovering from protests following the police shooting of a black man, and a court recently ruled that the states GOP-backed voter ID law unfairly targeted black voters. A day after the presidential candidates tweeted about the firebombing, the swastika and the threat were covered up. Inside, the office was a mess. Wires popped out of the cushion where Ashley sometimes napped, and the carpets were blanketed in ash and glass. Sample ballots disintegrated to dust and soot coated I Voted stickers. A charred image of Ronald Reagan as a cowboy still hung on the wall. Other Republican chapters were bringing trunks filled with signs to replace the ones that were lost. Locals were gobbling them up. A 78-year-old registered Democrat told the volunteers, I hope this lights a fire under you. A registered independent named John Rucker, 30, came by to help in any way possible. Your heart has to go out to these people; this is a historic event in our home. I think the media has been making us feel more divided then we are, but were not, Rucker said. Stephen Scott, 49, came with his 5-year-old daughter to pick up more signs. Ill take one of the melted ones, he said. I support Trump, and we have to show who we are. As voters picked up lawn signs, state GOP vice chairwoman Michelle Nix remarked: Enough is enough. Our silent majority is not silent anymore. Before the bombing, state GOP leaders had hoped to pick up votes in Orange County. Although Democrats outnumber Republicans 3 to 1 here, the number of independents has grown by 21 percent since 2012, records show. GOP officials hoped some of them were former Democrats who liked Trump, state GOP Chairman Robin Hayes said. The local party tried to seize the opportunity by being more active about finding volunteers, making phone calls, knocking on doors and registering voters. About a week ago, Ashley recalled, the group set up a tent near downtown Hillsborough. There was some interest, but a man walked to the table and called them Nazis. Another person cursed at them because the group supported Trump. I think youre a bunch of racists, Ashley recalled the man saying. I dont really care what you think, he replied. Ashley shrugged off those expressions as signs of a vibrant democracy. The wonderful thing about the American system, he said, is that you can take disagreements to the ballot box. But now people were worried about more aggressive times. According to Hillsborough Mayor Tom Stevens, there have been a few isolated instances of crimes that seemed politically motivated. In April, for example, someone burned rainbow flags, a common gay rights symbol, that had been placed beside a church. Now, in the wake of the bombing, some locals say they fear that the conversation has shifted away from how to tolerate different political views to how to cope with the scourge of electoral ugliness. As Shawna Johnson, 22, and her husband, Tony, walked out of Jays Chicken Shack, she said she worried about what Trumps impulsive attitude might portend for the presidency. I think both sides have been provocative; Trump says mean things and Clinton has these negative commercials that really hit you in the heart, said Tony Johnson, 25. Then a headquarters gets bombed. It really drives the point home that these campaigns might be subliminally fueling people to hate each other. As the sun set on the bombed-out party headquarters, this was how they treated one another: A man who had been traveling through Virginia with TRUMP-PENCE splayed across his RV doors sped into the parking lot to donate large signs. Two people sat down and discussed how they didnt understand why it was so hard to ask a person to show identification at a voting precinct if they have to do the same to buy a box of Sudafed. A man wearing a Hillary for Prison T-shirt came to help move a heavy bookshelf. The next day, Pence had shown up, and there were rumors that Sen. Tim Kaine, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, may do so, too. And Ashley, the chairman, was inside looking for help. Can someone help me pull out this carpet? he said. We have work to do! I read in your paper that Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts still plans on voting for Donald Trump despite the mountain of crass things Trump does and says ("Ricketts sticking with Trump," Oct. 11). Also, Mr. Ricketts is actively supporting some candidates for the Nebraska Legislature, giving them money and endorsing one against another. I wonder if this support will help or hurt Ricketts' preferred candidate? After all, this governor has lost one corporation's headquarters to another state and will probably lose another. He has used $300,000 of his own money in an ill-guided attempt to bring the death penalty back to Nebraska ("Ricketts further funds death penalty effort," Oct. 15). How good is Mr. Rickett's judgment? Maybe those legislative candidates he supports don't really want his endorsement? At the end of Sen. Marco Rubios 40-minute talk to Jewish voters here, a young member of the Boca Raton Synagogue asked the awkward question. Could Rubio comment on the trajectory of the GOP after November? No, I have no idea whats going to happen, Rubio said. Look, Ive been wrong in my projections so far. Everybody got the joke. Had the presidential primaries gone another way had Rubio not spent the run-up to Super Tuesday joking about Donald Trumps hand size and flop sweat, he might be the Republican nominee for president. Hed be up 10 points against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, sighed Anthony Di Perna, a reluctant Trump voter. Instead, Rubio is running for the Senate again and trying to protect a lead as Trump brings rubble down around him. In Rubios telling, in speeches and in Mondays first televised debate, the election is a choice between two deeply flawed candidates, and the worst thing a voter could do would be to register his disgust down ballot by voting for Democrats. U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Fla.) celebrates in Palm Beach Gardens in August after winning the Democratic primary to challenge Sen. Marco Rubio for his Senate seat.. (Richard Graulich/AP) Rubio has maintained a single-digit advantage over Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Fla.), a moderate Treasure Coast Democrat who was recruited by the national party after Rubios original pledge to leave the Senate. Democrats hopes dimmed after Rubio decided to run for reelection to the Senate after all. But now, they are asking if Trumps toxicity and Rubios delicate dance with the candidate at the top of the ticket can put Florida back into play. Rubio has endorsed Trump, but he has avoided appearances with him and media inquiries. At Mondays debate, Rubio offered himself as a senator who shared the sour feelings of the swing voter never mind his endorsement of Trump. Onstage, Rubio goaded Murphy for overstating his CPA credentials. On social media, Rubios team worked to turn Murphys attempt at focusing on the Trump endorsement Lets talk about Donald Trump again into a desperate gaffe. By Tuesday morning, that team was declaring victory. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee canceled its ad buy. Rubios presidential bid had ended in a humiliating, home-state loss to Donald Trump. But voters knew him. They did not know Murphy. The same strategists who had drafted Murphy into an open race had perhaps found the limits of the anti-Trump backlash. We have a senator whos putting his own political ambition ahead of whats best for Florida, Murphy said in an interview. Most leaders in the party have not only disavowed Trump, but unendorsed him. Sixteen senators have had the courage to unendorse him. Not Marco Rubio. He doubled down. Recruited, touted and funded by the DSCC, Murphy spent the weeks before the Trump implosion explaining why that group and a related super PAC had already started to scrap $6 million of $10 million in planned ad buys. He had $4 million left to spend, just $600,000 less than the incumbent. Rubios line that both candidates were flawed skipped over Clintons higher favorable ratings still underwater, but not as toxic in Florida as Trump. And Democrats, who a month earlier had despaired about beating Rubio, began the week looking for an opening a path to the Senate laid by angry Trump voters leaving the rest of their ballots blank. At a debate against Democratic rival Patrick Murphy, Oct. 17, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) explained why he believes U.S. elections aren't "rigged," contrary to what GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump says. (WFTV) Not everyone has declared the race over. Last week, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) flew into Orlando to join Murphy and local candidates for Congress at a news conference commemorating four months since the Pulse nightclub shootings. I spent the morning on the phone calling my donors and national donors, telling them to put money into Florida, Chris Murphy said. I think Trump is the kiss of death for down-ballot candidates no matter what you do. If you dont pull your support, youre going to get asked questions about why youre sticking with this monster. Rubios campaign, which has outraised and outspent Patrick Murphy, is trying to play confident without exposing the candidate to risk. In the week after The Washington Post obtained a tape of Trump bragging about an unwanted advance on a married woman, Rubio held no events that were announced to the news media. The senator reaffirmed his support for Trump in a statement; in public, he focused more on quick visits to areas damaged by Hurricane Matthew. Meanwhile, Trump was barnstorming Florida with some of the most brazen speeches of his campaign. At one rally in Pensacola, he absolved Rubio of his primary attacks. We like Marco, Trump said quickly. But as he worked his way down the state, Trump accused House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) of undermining him, seemingly mocked the looks of a People magazine writer who had accused him of pinning her against a wall and kissing her, and hinted that an international conspiracy was trying to rig the election against him. Trumps Thursday rally took place just 30 minutes from the Boca Raton event, and a few attendees could be heard debating whether they could speed down there in time to catch the nominee. Meanwhile, at the rallies themselves, by far the biggest happenings in Republican politics, enthusiasm for Rubio is hard to find even among voters who intend to support him. I had to dig very deep, admitted James Tomlinson, 59, an Army retiree who attended Trumps rally in Lakeland. Oh, I did a lot of soul searching on that one. A lot. And I was going back and forth: Vote for him. Dont vote for him. Vote for him. Dont. But I did. But I tell you, if he pulls another stunt like he did, hell never get my vote again. The stunt, Tomlinson explained, was Rubios role in the failed immigration reform debate something ignored completely in the Senate race. At Trumps rally in Panama City Beach, Marla Clark, a 52-year old assistant at a law firm, said she had wrestled with whether to vote for a senator who had not impressed her and had lost her vote in the primary. I mean, I have to, because my vote counts, she said. But I need to sit down and really figure it out, because Florida was not impressed with Marco Rubio. A big problem for Murphy one that the ads were supposed to solve is name recognition. In the polls where he runs strongest, up to 30 percent of voters still have no opinion of Murphy. On Thursday, after the Rubio and Trump events in Boca, The Washington Post accompanied Democratic volunteers as they registered people to vote at nearby Florida Atlantic University, where the only voters who knew Murphys name were college Democrats. More often, asked about the Senate race, voters talked about it as a static and confusing choice unrelated to the Trump-Clinton race. Paul Nagib, 19, said he was backing Trump because of what hed read about the Democratic nominee in the book Clinton Cash. He had no opinion of the Senate race. I really have to read up on it, he admitted. I havent paid attention, said Zach Goosens, 24, who admitted he was likely to not vote at all because the candidates were being forced to pick from were so disagreeable. In the race that Democrats expected, this might not have been an issue. Murphy was recruited when the Republican nominee looked to be one out of a half-dozen obscure GOP officials, from a Pinellas County congressman to the states lieutenant governor. Speaking about the race, several Republican strategists suggested that Murphy would be winning if he were a generic D facing off against a Trump-flummoxed generic Republican. Since winning his swing district in 2012, Murphy had prepared for such a race. In Boca Raton, Rubio told voters that he was the only candidate who has been critical of the nominees of both parties. But Murphy had alienated some progressives a problem that fizzled when his primary opponent Alan Grayson imploded by talking up structural changes to Social Security and Medicare. Hed been one of very few Democrats to vote to create the Select Committee on Benghazi. Asked about that vote this week, Murphy said it was to his credit, and he swung at Rubio for not condemning Trumps call for a special prosecutor against Clinton. I have one of the most independent voting records in the country, Murphy said. Thats my pledge to everybody Im going to continue doing whats best for Florida. But those accusations and threats to imprison your political opponent sound a lot like what Nicolas Maduro says in Venezuela, a lot like what Fidel Castro says in Cuba. Ive had numerous phone calls with people from around the state, asking me, Wait a minute, hasnt Marco Rubio made a career on being against Castro and what happened in Cuba? Rubios campaign, which has had little to say to reporters recently, has not engaged with this. The Rubio who is showing up is looking past November and hoping voters will do the same. Weve always had a discourse in this country thats been heated when it comes to politics, Rubio said in Boca Raton. But we didnt hate each other. Its unbelievable: People literally hate each other. Jenna Johnson and Philip Rucker contributed to this report. Less than three weeks before Election Day, the 2016 campaign is suddenly focused on an unusual, emotional and highly politicized topic for a presidential race: sexual assault. Donald Trump and his surrogates have denied allegations that the candidate sexually assaulted nine women, casting doubts on their credibility, asserting their allegations are lies and, in Trumps case, mocking their looks. At the same time, Trump and his allies have bolstered the stories of women who have accused Bill Clinton of sexual improprieties, castigating the media for not believing them. Much of the debate has been shaped by cultural shifts in recent years that have dissipated the stigma of sexual assault and shifted public sympathy toward survivors, said Scott Berkowitz, president of the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN). Its certainly become a much bigger part of the election than we ever anticipated, Berkowitz said. Its a positive that the countrys talking about this issue and acknowledging it and that were not pretending it doesnt exist, but certainly its disheartening at the same time. The debate has been particularly painful for many victims of sexual assault, who must endure nonstop coverage of allegations of groping and kissing without consent along with backlash against the women who made the claims about Trump. Many also fear that brushing off allegations of sexual assault, as Trump and his backers have done, minimizes that it is a pervasive problem that affects millions of women and men. In this video from 2005, Donald Trump prepares for an appearance on "Days of Our Lives" with actress Arianne Zucker. He is accompanied to the set by "Access Hollywood" host Billy Bush. The Post has edited this video for length. (Obtained by The Washington Post) [What happens when you ask women for their stories of assault? Thousands of replies.] Personally, its been really challenging to have our country talking about an issue that touches me so deeply and personally, said Nikki Fortunato Bas, who attended a rally of sexual assault survivors at Trump Tower in New York on Tuesday. The events of the past few weeks have been a breaking point, she said, that led her to publicly say she had been assaulted. She is not alone. In the wake of a 2005 tape in which Trump boasted that he could force himself on women because he was a star, author Kelly Oxford asked women to tweet stories of the first time they were assaulted and more than 8 million people responded within 24 hours. Since the tape was first reported by The Washington Post on Oct. 7, RAINN said the number of people calling its hotline jumped by 35 percent. Ebony Tucker, director of advocacy with the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence, said that such reactions are positive but that the debate has also come with negatives. A lot of the remarks that weve heard and a lot of the remarks that people have said brought to light a lot of the . . . archaic thinking people have around sexual assault, she said during a Facebook Live event this week hosted by The Post. Helen Brumley, a sexual assault survivor who appeared with Tucker, said Trump is basically giving America a crash course on victim-blaming 101. In recent decades, politicians on both sides of the aisle have led fights to curb sexual assault and help victims. Sens. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) and Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) have worked to help end a backlog of untested DNA from rape kits. The White House has fought sexual assault on college campuses, and administration officials, including Obama, will not travel to campuses that do not do a good enough job handling assault cases. Earlier this month, Obama signed a bill guaranteeing sexual assault victims certain rights under the law, including that they will not be charged for a sexual assault evidence kit. Survivors and advocates share what its like to have sexual assault at the forefront of the presidential contest and a late night TV punchline, and discuss the benefits of sharing their stories. (TWP) [Enabler or family defender? How Hillary Clinton responded to her husbands accusers] Amidst the partisan bickering and gridlock in Congress, this law demonstrates that citizens can still effect positive change and that bipartisan progress is still possible, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) said in a statement. But in the 2016 presidential election, the issue has become sharply divided along partisan lines, including claims by some Trump allies that the behavior described by Trumps accusers groping and forced kissing might not be considered assault. Trump has also come under sharp criticism for suggesting last week that the women were not to be believed in part because they were not attractive enough for him to assault. In defending those remarks, Trump special counsel Michael Cohen said on CNN on Tuesday, I think what Mr. Trump is really trying to say is that theyre not somebody that he would be attracted to and therefore the whole thing is nonsense. The resistance against the accusers is particularly awkward for the Trump campaign, which simultaneously argues that women who accused Bill Clinton of wrongdoing years ago should be believed. Before the second presidential debate, Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway retweeted an earlier message from Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton: Every survivor of sexual assault deserves to be heard, believed, and supported, adding: Every being the operative word here. The Trump campaign did not respond to requests for comment this week on the issue. Clinton has said that Trump insulted and demeaned women, along with other groups. She has pointed to others who have rebutted Trumps remarks, including first lady Michelle Obama and professional athletes who struck back against Trumps assertion that the comments on the tape were locker room talk. At a rally in Ohio earlier this month, Clinton called Trump an equal-opportunity insulter and said his comments do not represent America. That line of attack was expected to continue at Wednesday nights debate. Hillary Clinton has directly confronted Donald Trump on the debate stage over his alarming and unacceptable comments, and she looks forward to having the opportunity to do so again, Clinton spokesman Jesse Ferguson said. Ashley OConnor, a Republican strategist, said Trump has a core group of supporters who will stick with him no matter what. Hes clearly not backing down, attacking anybody who gets in his way, attacking women who are coming forward accusing him. Its just incredible, she said, noting that it is a tactic likely to turn off the swing voters and moderate women he desperately needs. Part of winning a general election is winning that support, and I dont see how that strategy does that. [Surrogates explaining away Trumps sexual behavior only seem to make things worse] OConnor said that Trump is in essence saying, You need to believe the people who have come forward and accused Bill Clinton. You need to believe that Hillary Clinton was attacking these women. But dont believe the women who have come forward against me. Katelyn Beaty, editor at large at Christianity Today, said that sexual assault has not been understood as an issue in the evangelical world and that churches have been slow to know what to do with the stories of women who are abused. Some of Trumps evangelical supporters have claimed that Clinton was complicit in her husbands behavior as a way to defend Trump. To me, that kind of response shows that evangelicals are coming at this from a political, ideological perspective rather than a matter of right and wrong or justice, she said. Beaty, for one, said she thinks that putting sexual assault into the political arena might not be a bad thing. I think, on one level, it should be politicized because questions of character and treatment of women should be aspects of what we look at in a presidential candidate, she said. A decision last week by a federal appellate court is casting new light on practices in the real estate field that buyers and sellers often know little about: creative, under-the-table payoff schemes among realty brokers, mortgage lenders and title companies that can stifle market competition and raise settlement costs to consumers by hundreds or even thousands of dollars. The court case involved a $109 million fine levied against mortgage lender PHH by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for allegedly violating the federal real estate anti-kickback statute through its mortgage insurance operations. PHH disputed the charges and filed suit, challenging not only the CFPBs interpretation of the anti-kickback law but also the bureaus constitutionality. The constitutional challenge focused on the unusual structure of the bureau, which is headed by a single director who can be terminated only for cause. The court agreed with PHH on the statutory-interpretation issue, vacated the fine and ruled that henceforth the CFPB director would be like other executive branch agency heads: removable by the president at will. Created by Congress in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, the bureau has substantial oversight powers. During its short life, the CFPB has levied fines or provided financial relief to consumers totaling what it estimates to be in excess of $11 billion from banks and other entities accused of illegal activities. Although the PHH case did not directly involve the types of fees-for-referrals practices that are widespread in the real estate industry, the ruling has called into question the legitimacy of the bureaus regulatory interpretations on marketing services agreements and certain affiliated business relationships. In a typical marketing services agreement, a title company or lender agrees to pay a real estate broker or an individual agent fees for promotional assistance say, by prominently displaying a title companys brochures or actively making recommendations to home buyers about the benefits of using its services. The money involved can be significant thousands of dollars a month in some cases. One title agency head who refuses to participate in such arrangements, Todd Ewing of Federal Title & Escrow, told me that the going rate for marketing services that was quoted to him by a brokerage firm in the Washington, D.C., area was $15,000 per month. In exchange, the brokerage firm would steer new buyers to Ewings title firm. Mark Greene, a loan originator for HomeBridge Financial Services in New Jersey, says that some large realty brokerage firms essentially put it out for bid: They ask lenders who would like to receive referrals from their agents, What do you offer us? It goes to the highest bidder, he told me in an interview. Late last year, the CFPB issued a stern warning about marketing services agreements: Large numbers of them may violate the anti-kickback law, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, known as RESPA. Based on the bureaus investigative efforts, it said, it appears that many [marketing services agreements] are designed to evade RESPAs prohibitions against kickbacks and unearned fees. As a result of the bureaus statement, some major lenders said that they were terminating whatever marketing services arrangements they had to avoid the risk of being hit with penalties by the CFPB. But now, in the wake of the PHH decision that calls into question the CFPBs interpretations of RESPA, there are concerns in the industry that some companies no longer will feel constrained and may return to old referral-scheme practices or invent new ones. One legal expert on RESPA, Marx Sterbcow of New Orleans, told me, My fear is that were going to see [companies] think, Okay, now there are no more rules, which might lead to a resurgence of illegal payoff schemes. That, in turn, could destabilize markets harming lenders and title companies that refuse to make referral payments and expose consumers to needlessly higher settlement charges. What can you do to avoid settlement cost rip-offs? Sterbcow recommends you ask this question of any realty agent who seems to be nudging you toward a specific title agency or lender: Does your broker or do you have any type of business relationship with this company? Ask for any written disclosure about the relationship, which may be tucked away with other boilerplate documents you received, and easy to miss. Most important of all: Always shop the market aggressively for your mortgage, title and settlement services. Compare quotes. When service providers arent paying for what may amount to referrals, they often can offer you better prices. Ken Harneys email address is kenharney@earthlink.net. Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi was in New Delhi on Oct. 18 as part of a three-day state visit. (Poulomi Basu/For The Washington Post) Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi said this week that it will take time to address her countrys ongoing humanitarian crisis and deflected charges that she has not done enough to speak out on behalf of Burmas persecuted Rohingya Muslim community. Suu Kyi spoke to The Washington Post as her administration marks six months in office, and as fresh violence threatens to derail the countrys peace process. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate and dedicated critic of the former military government came to power at a time when she must deal with a worsening humanitarian crisis that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people. The crisis deepened this month when assailants thought to be part of the Rohingya community attacked three police posts in the western part of the country, killing nine police officers. Scores of people were killed and villages torched in a military crackdown that followed. Suu Kyi said Tuesday that video of the alleged attackers shows clearly that their intentions were to wage jihad and that they had exhorted their brothers from the Muslim world to join them. We are of course determined to contain the situation and to make sure that we restore peace and harmony as soon as possible, Suu Kyi said. We are not going to allow either the security or stability or the integrity of our country to be threatened. Suu Kyis government came to power in March after the countrys first election following decades of military rule. She said continuing the peace process with ethnic militias fighting in the countrys north and east was her top priority. But her civilian government must find ways to work with the still-powerful military and take steps to rejuvenate an economy that faltered during decades of brutal military rule. Burma, also known as Myanmar, remains one of the poorest countries in Asia. In August, Suu Kyi appointed former U.N. secretary general Kofi Annan to look into the situation with the Rohingya. More than 1 million Rohingya Muslims live in Burma, but they are considered stateless and have long been denied basic rights. More than 120,000 are still living in fetid camps in Rakhine state after violent clashes with their Buddhist neighbors in 2012. They have little access to health care and 30,000 of their children do not have proper schools, according to a U.N. report in June. The report cited a pattern of gross human rights violations against the Rohingya, acts that it said could rise to the level of crimes against humanity in a court of law. The government restarted a process of citizenship verification for the Rohingya in June, but many of the Rohingya refused to participate, Suu Kyi said. Human rights activists say they were suspicious that some kind of new card would mean a further erosion of their rights. Things take time, she said. The situation in the Rakhine is a legacy of many, many decades of problems. It is not something that happened overnight. Were not going to be able to resolve it overnight. It goes back even to the last century. Suu Kyi told the U.N. investigator that the government would avoid using the term Rohingya, which many Burmese consider incendiary. Many Burmese call the Rohingya Bengali, a reference to the fact that some migrated from Bangladesh years earlier. This is inflammatory, Suu Kyi said. We simply say Muslims of Rakhine state. Because this is just a factual description which nobody should object to. But of course, everybody objects because they want their old emotive terms to be used. Suu Kyi brushed aside the frequent criticism that, as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, she has not done enough to speak out about the Rohingyas plight. She did not go near the camps on a campaign swing through the state last fall and spoke of the conflict only in the vaguest terms. Well, I have spoken about it, but people dont like the way I talk about it because I dont take sides, she said. Nobody takes any account of that because that is not what they want to hear. They want me to make, you know, incendiary remarks, which I am not going to do. Ive made it very clear that our work is not to condemn but to achieve reconciliation. Richard Horsey, a longtime Burma analyst and adviser to the International Crisis Group, said that Suu Kyi had made strides in addressing the issue after her government took over, including the appointment of Annan. But the spate of violence may change that, he said. These recent attacks have completely changed the landscape here and whats possible to do right now, Horsey said. It has a huge potential to make the situation much, much worse and much harder to fix. Suu Kyi, whose official title is state counselor, spoke at Burmas embassy while on a trip to India this week. The country is familiar terrain for her, as she spent part of her high school and college years living in New Delhi while her mother was ambassador here. Suu Kyi, now 71, spent decades campaigning against the military dictatorship in her country, including a total of more than 15 years under house arrest. For her efforts, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. She was freed in 2010 shortly before the military generals began economic reforms that were supported by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the Obama administration. Despite the resounding victory of her National League for Democracy in last Novembers elections, Burmas generals retain a tight grip on power, reserving 25 percent of the seats in the countrys parliament, which gives them veto power over any constitutional amendment. The military also appoints the key ministers in home affairs, border affairs and defense. Tacitly neither will challenge the other much, Horsey said. Shes not challenging the military on security issues and not pushing for changes in the constitution, and theyre not showing signs of actively undermining her civilian government. When Suu Kyi visited Washington and met with President Obama last month, he announced that he would remove remaining economic sanctions on the country. They include a longtime ban on imports of gems from the countrys jade and ruby mines and a list of individuals and companies barred from doing business with U.S. entities. This final move should spur foreign investment from the United States, which remains a fraction of the estimated $9 billion in foreign investment in the country this year, experts said. Weve depended on sanctions long enough, Suu Kyi said. Sanctions were put into place at a time we most needed a little leverage. I think its time that we moved on to a different phase. Read more Jade from Burmas rapacious mines was long banned by Washington. Until now. Obama, using his executive authority, lifts trade sanctions on Burma In Burmas north, thousands protest continuing low-grade war Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world SOUTH SIOUX CITY -- A South Sioux City man born with a rare form of dwarfism will be a special guest of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton at Wednesday night's presidential debate in Las Vegas, the Clinton campaign said Tuesday. Ryan Moore, 29, also is featured in a new Clinton campaign video in which he shares the story of his more than 20-year friendship with the former first lady. At age 7, the South Sioux Cityan and his family met Clinton at a 1994 congressional hearing where she advocated for a national health care reform plan backed by then-President Bill Clinton. She has kept in touch with Moore since then. As an infant, he had several medical issues and surgeries. Companies didn't want to hire his father because they would be required to pay for Moore's health care. The Moore family was one of seven families chosen to testify at the 1994 congressional hearing in Washington. I dont know what it was about our family that she spotted right away, and came over to my parents, he says in the video. Clinton then held Ryan while addressing those in attendance. Moore was later mentioned in two of Clinton's books, including her 1996 book "It Takes a Village." In the Clinton campaign video released Tuesday, titled "Ryan," Moore tells how Clinton kept the photo of her holding him at the 1994 event inside the White House and then gave it to him when he visited her prior to a major surgery. "She looks at me the way I always wanted to be looked at by everyone," Moore says in the video. Moore, an instructional technology leader with the South Sioux City school district, spoke on behalf of Hillary Clinton during the Democratic National Convention this summer in Philadelphia. In that primetime address, he shared his personal story and how Clinton had supported him over the years. Wednesday's debate in Las Vegas, the third and final debate between Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump, will begin at 8 p.m. and will be broadcast live on TV and streamed online. Then-Lt. Gen. John W. Nicholson Jr. during his confirmation hearing in January 2016 before becoming commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Anytime we lose a member of our team, it is deeply painful, he said Wednesday. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images) Two Americans were killed and another three were injured in a rare attack on foreign troops in the Afghan capital Wednesday, U.S. and Afghan officials said. A gunman fired on international advisers at an ammunition depot near Camp Morehead, a training site for Afghan commandos, about six miles south of Kabul. The attack, which took place near the entrance of the base, killed one U.S. service member and injured another. One U.S. civilian was also killed, and two more were wounded in the assault, a statement from the NATO-led coalition said. The gunman, who according to the Afghan Defense Ministry was wearing an Afghan army uniform, was killed after international troops responded with gunfire. The injured Americans remained in stable condition, NATO said. It happened near an arms depot. The attacker opened fire on his [coalition] friends, Defense Ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri said. Elite Afghan commandos crouch during a lesson at Camp Morehead in Afghanistan in February. (Tim Craig/The Washington Post) A U.S. defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the situation was still developing, said the Americans were at the depot as part of the NATO training mission for Afghan security forces. The United States supplies the NATO mission with about 6,800 troops to advise and assist Afghan soldiers who are battling a fierce Taliban insurgency in key areas across the country. An additional 3,000 U.S. troops are dedicated to Operation Freedom Sentinel, a separate counterterrorism mission focused on al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. The U.S. official said it was not clear Wednesday whether the assailant was in fact a member of the Afghan National Army. But Wednesdays shooting appeared to be what is known as an insider or green-on-blue attack, where Afghan allies turn on their U.S. and foreign mentors. At least 150 coalition troops have been killed in such attacks since 2008, according to data compiled by the Long War Journal, which is published by the D.C.-based Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. The assaults which have been attributed both to Taliban infiltration and cultural differences between Afghan and foreign troops surged from 2011 to 2013. But the attacks became more infrequent as the bulk of U.S. and NATO troops withdrew from the country. U.S. forces have suffered only two combat casualties in Afghanistan this year, both of which occurred in the volatile Helmand province in the countrys south. At Camp Morehead, elite Afghan commando units learn ambush tactics and how to call in airstrikes, and they train for short missions. But the commandos, which number about 11,000, are increasingly stretched thin. As Afghan forces struggle to beat back Taliban militants in places like Lashkar Gah and Kunduz, which was briefly taken by insurgents again this month, casualties and desertions have depleted their ranks. Any time we lose a member of our team, it is deeply painful, Gen. John W. Nicholson, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, said Wednesday in a statement. There were no further details on the two Americans who were killed. More than 2,350 U.S. troops have died supporting military operations in Afghanistan since 2001. Read more: Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world Gibbons-Neff reported from Washington. Sayed Salahuddin in Kabul contributed to this report. Brazilian police Wednesday arrested Eduardo Cunha, the architect of former president Dilma Rousseff's impeachment until engulfed in corruption charges. (Evaristo Sa/AFP/Getty Images) The powerful former speaker of Brazils lower house who spearheaded the ouster of President Dilma Rousseff was arrested Wednesday as part of a sprawling graft probe involving the state oil giant Petrobras. Federal Deputy Eduardo Cunha, who until recently was a key ally of new President Michel Temer, is accused of corruption, money laundering and tax evasion related to an oil field purchase that Petrobras made in 2011 in the West African nation of Benin, among other charges. Prosecutors said they requested Cunhas detention on the grounds that he represented a threat to the integrity of the investigation and was a flight risk. They also asked for bank accounts he holds totaling more than $60 million to be frozen. The ex-speaker faces multiple investigations and has been accused of accepting millions of dollars in bribes for himself and other politicians. Cunha denies all the allegations and has said he is the target of a witch hunt for being an adversary of Rousseffs Workers Party. Cunha launched impeachment proceedings against Rousseff in December when he was speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, accusing her of violating budget rules. That led to an Senate vote in August to remove her from office. By that time, corruption allegations already had forced Cunha to resign. Last month he was stripped of his congressional seat, along with the legal protections against prosecution that come with elected office in Brazil. Cunha then began publicly criticizing Temer, his erstwhile ally, and cabinet officials. He announced that he would write a tell-all book about the impeachment, with the first excerpts to be published in November. Analysts have said that if Cunha cooperates with prosecutors, he could bring down others in the Petrobras case and create more headaches for the government. Maria Herminia Tavares de Almeida, a political science professor at the University of Sao Paulo, said Cunhas arrest shows that the Petrobras probe, which has ensnared some of Brazils richest and powerful figures, still threatens others. After the arrest, Temers office said the president had cut short a trip to Japan and was expected to be back in Brasilia on Friday. Swiss officials have confirmed bank accounts there in Cunhas name, with news reports estimating their value in December at 2.4 million Swiss francs, or about $2.5 million. Demonstrators, including Israeli and Palestinian activists, protest in support of peace near the West Bank city of Jericho on Oct. 19. (Mohamad Torokman/Reuters) Two weeks ago, a small group of Israeli women set off on a protest march to Jerusalem from northern Israel to demand that the Israeli government restart a peace process with the Palestinians. On Wednesday, after reaching the Palestinian city of Jericho in the West Bank, the core group of 20 women were joined by more than 3,000 others, including about 1,000 Palestinian women. Although most of the Palestinians could not proceed beyond the barrier that separates the West Bank from Israel, the Israeli women headed for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus formal residence, where they held an emotional rally. The group, which calls itself Women Wage Peace, is made up of women from across the political spectrum and the religious divide. At the rally, many held banners reading, Right, Center and Left are all calling for an agreement, Women Wage Peace. We are not an organization; we are a movement. We have defined goals, and when we reach those goals we will disband, said Marie-Lyne Smadja, a co-founder of the group. From history we have seen that when women are involved in resolving conflicts, there was much more success. Demonstrators near Jericho on Oct. 19. (Mohamad Torokman/Reuters) Organizers of the group points to U.N. Resolution 1325, which urges all actors to increase the participation of women and incorporate gender perspectives in all United Nations peace and security efforts. They say that it worked in Northern Ireland and in Liberia. [Most Palestinians still blame Britain for the Israeli occupation, poll finds] The movement was founded two years ago after the Gaza war, when many Israeli mothers had to send their sons to fight. Vardit Kaplan, who serves as the movements spokeswoman, said that more than 10,000 women have registered with the group. And, she said, they have been building connections with Palestinian women, some of whom joined the march to Jerusalem. I came because I want to see a peace agreement with the Palestinians, said Tanya Harkavi, who is from the city of Kfar Saba, near Tel Aviv. Harkavi, a mother and a grandmother, said that women are better positioned to solve disputes because of their roles within the family and that it was time they become involved in the dispute with the Palestinians, too. Two years ago, my son was in the army; he fought in the Gaza war. I decided then that I did not want to launder army uniforms anymore. I want peace, said Miki Rom, who also lives near Tel Aviv. Activists with Women Wage Peace take part in a march at the Qasr al-Yahud baptismal site near Jericho on Oct. 19. (Abbas Momani/AFP/Getty Images) People demonstrate in support of peace near Jericho on Oct. 19. (Mohamad Torokman/Reuters) One of the rallys key speakers was Michal Froman, a religious Jew from the Israeli settlement of Tekoa. She was stabbed this past January at a clothing store by a Palestinian teenager from a nearby village. Froman, the daughter-in-law of the well-known peace activist Rabbi Menachem Froman, was three months pregnant at the time. It was important for me to speak here because I want people to know that the settlements are not preventing peace. I think the opposite: that peace will come from the settlements, said Froman, who brought her 4-month-old daughter to the rally. [Graphic: A new kind of terrorism in Israel] Olfat Haider, an Arab Israeli from Haifa, was among the group that walked from the north of Israel to Jerusalem. She said she believes that Jews and Arabs can live together, and must live together. Its time to hear some womens voices. Women can talk to each other, they dont fight with their egos, she said. Each speaker at the rally received rapturous applause. But for many in Israel, such gatherings come with a degree of hopelessness, not only because the momentum for peace has all but disappeared, but also because many do not believe that there is a negotiating partner on the other side. Since peace efforts by U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry failed more than two years ago, there has been little attempt by either side to return to talks. Among the speakers was Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee, who helped bring an end to the Second Liberian Civil War in 2003. After two days in Israel, walking with Jewish and Palestinian women, she said she believed that there were partners for peace on both sides and that finding a solution was possible. I say to my sisters in Israel, that this is your time to stand up and say no to war and yes to peace, said Gbowee, the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. When you stand firm for what you believe, the men with guns are afraid of you. Calls for peace are painted on a border wall that separates Israel and the northern Gaza Strip in the community of Nativ HaAshara on Oct. 18. (Jim Hollander/European Pressphoto Agency) Read more: New attacks against Israelis show Palestinians have lost hope, some say A Palestinian teen killed an Israeli mom. Now their families struggle with why. Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world BURT COUNTY -- Two days after a rural Burt County man was killed by leaking anhydrous ammonia, pipeline officials will meet with area residents at 2 p.m. Wednesday. Magellan Midstream Partners of Tulsa, Oklahoma, will meet with people who were evacuated from their homes Monday night at City Hall in Decatur. Wednesday morning, Magellan officials said more than 50 company and pipeline contract representatives, federal regulators and state and local emergency responders are on site. They are working to repair a leak and said air quality readings continue to improve. "It is our goal to completely isolate the failed portion of the pipeline today, which will allow the reopening of local roadways," Magellan spokesman Tom Byers said in a news release Wednesday morning. "A decision to allow local residents to return to their homes will be made later today." *** George Kahlandt drives by the pipeline north of Tekamah every day on his way to help his nephew with the cattle. He didn't think much about it until late Monday night, when a set of flashing lights came up his drive. His wife, Sandra, saw the lights coming and opened the door. It was a couple Decatur volunteer firefighters. The 8-inch pipeline, owned by Magellan Midstream Partners of Tulsa, Oklahoma, had ruptured and leaked anhydrous ammonia. There was a poisonous cloud of gas in the area and they needed to leave. One man, 59-year-old Phillip Hennig, died and 23 homes within a two-mile radius had to be evacuated, and area roads were closed, including U.S. 75 going both directions between Nebraska 32 in Tekamah to Nebraska 51 in Decatur. Anhydrous is widely used as fertilizer and is transported as a liquid but turns into a gas when released. Area residents called authorities at 9:20 p.m. Monday to say they smelled anhydrous at 3310 County Road P, about 8 miles north of Tekamah and just west of U.S. 75. Being farmers, they knew (smelling) anhydrous was not a good thing," said Burt County Emergency Manager Terry Schroeder. "They started calling 911. Hennig left his home to investigate the smell. When he didn't return, his son, a recent high school graduate, went to look for him, said a relative, Joan Saxton. Nebraska State Patrols HAZMAT team, working with Tekamah Fire and Rescue, reached the site and removed Hennig's body just before 2:30 a.m. Tuesday, according to Burt County Sheriff Robert Pickell. Hennig's son was evaluated at an area hospital and released, Saxton said. No other injuries have been reported. Magellan Midstream Partners reported 294,000 gallons of liquid anhydrous spilled, said company spokesman Bruce Heine. The company, which is working with state and federal regulators, is investigating the cause of the leak. Magellan, which had 25 employees and 21 contractors in Nebraska working on the situation, set up an emergency headquarters at the Decatur fire house. The company expected to have the pipeline fixed by Wednesday. Meanwhile, those evacuated either stayed with family or at a hotel paid for by Magellan. Completion of the repairs will eliminate the emissions coming from the site, allowing people to return to their homes and roadways to be reopened, Heine said. Schroeder said there are concerns shifting winds could carry the anhydrous cloud. Some people have been allowed to return to their homes briefly to get medications or to care for animals. They were accompanied by officials who monitored the air to ensure their safety. Larry and Christine Bucy stopped home to check on their chickens. The couple didn't evacuate their home until about 6 a.m. Tuesday when they woke up and saw a text from a neighbor suggesting they leave the area. Emergency responders came to their door the night before, but they slept through it. "We're such sound sleepers, we didn't hear them knocking," Christine Bucy said. The couple and several of their neighbors spent Tuesday night at a hotel just across the Missouri River in Onawa, Iowa, paid for by Magellan. Magellan shut off pipeline valves on either side of the leak and spent Tuesday emptying it of the remaining anhydrous, Heine said. The company had detected a loss of pressure in the system at about 9 the night before. Neighbors and friends described Hennig as a good man who was involved in the community, his church and 4-H. "It's a loss to the whole area," said Matt Connealy, a Burt County supervisor and former state senator. "This shows us we have to be very careful and figure out why this happened, so it never happens again." Heine offered condolences for Hennig's family and community. "There are no words I can give you that overcome the loss of a life. a gentleman lost his life last night that was near or in the cloud of vapor that was created from a release on our pipeline system," Heine said. "All the men and women who are here today have a heavy heart. Last night was a sad event for us. Today is a sad day and we're grieving with the family." The Magellan pipeline provides fertilizer in several Midwestern states. It starts near Borger, Texas, and travels through Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa, with a branch that extends into Minnesota. The majority of the pipeline, including the rupture, is underground, although it does come above ground near where the leak happened. Anhydrous evaporates into a pungent gas with suffocating fumes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It causes rapid dehydration and severe burns when it combines with water in the body. Symptoms include burning eyes, nose and throat from breathing even small amounts. Higher exposure causes coughing or choking and death from a swollen throat or chemical burns to the lungs. This Predator MQ-1B crashed while trying to return to Camp Lemonnier, the U.S. military base in Djibouti, on May 17, 2011. It landed in a vacant lot near a residential area of Djibouti city, about 2.7 miles short of the runway. These photographs, taken by Air Force investigators, were released as part of an unclassified Accident Investigation Board report into the crash. May 17, 2011 This Predator MQ-1B crashed while trying to return to Camp Lemonnier, the U.S. military base in Djibouti, on May 17, 2011. It landed in a vacant lot near a residential area of Djibouti city, about 2.7 miles short of the runway. These photographs, taken by Air Force investigators, were released as part of an unclassified Accident Investigation Board report into the crash. U.S. Air Force As Predator drone missions have escalated from Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, so have the number of accidents. Since January 2011, five Predators have crashed while trying to return to the base. Drone strikes by the CIA and the U.S. military have become a critical component of the administrations counterterrorism strategy. Drone strikes by the CIA and the U.S. military have become a critical component of the administrations counterterrorism strategy. This is the third of three articles. Around the clock, about 16 times a day, drones take off or land at a U.S. military base here, the combat hub for the Obama administrations counterterrorism wars in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East. Some of the unmanned aircraft are bound for Somalia, the collapsed state whose border lies just 10 miles to the southeast. Most of the armed drones, however, veer north across the Gulf of Aden to Yemen, another unstable country where they are being used in an increasingly deadly war with an al-Qaeda franchise that has targeted the United States. Camp Lemonnier, a sun-baked Third World outpost established by the French Foreign Legion, began as a temporary staging ground for U.S. Marines looking for a foothold in the region a decade ago. Over the past two years, the U.S. military has clandestinely transformed it into the busiest Predator drone base outside the Afghan war zone, a model for fighting a new generation of terrorist groups. The Obama administration has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal the legal and operational details of its targeted-killing program. Behind closed doors, painstaking debates precede each decision to place an individual in the cross hairs of the United States perpetual war against al-Qaeda and its allies. Increasingly, the orders to find, track or kill those people are delivered to Camp Lemonnier. Virtually the entire 500-acre camp is dedicated to counterterrorism, making it the only installation of its kind in the Pentagons global network of bases. Secrecy blankets most of the camps activities. The U.S. military rejected requests from The Washington Post to tour Lemonnier last month. Officials cited operational security concerns, although they have permitted journalists to visit in the past. After a Post reporter showed up in Djibouti uninvited, the camps highest-ranking commander consented to an interview on the condition that it take place away from the base, at Djibouti's lone luxury hotel. The commander, Army Maj. Gen. Ralph O. Baker, answered some general queries but declined to comment on drone operations or missions related to Somalia or Yemen. Despite the secrecy, thousands of pages of military records obtained by The Post including construction blueprints, drone accident reports and internal planning memos open a revealing window into Camp Lemonnier. None of the documents is classified and many were acquired via public-records requests. Taken together, the previously undisclosed documents show how the Djibouti-based drone wars sharply escalated early last year after eight Predators arrived at Lemonnier. The records also chronicle the Pentagons ambitious plan to further intensify drone operations here in the coming months. The documents point to the central role played by the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), which President Obama has repeatedly relied on to execute the nations most sensitive counterterrorism missions. About 300 Special Operations personnel plan raids and coordinate drone flights from inside a high-security compound at Lemonnier that is dotted with satellite dishes and ringed by concertina wire. Most of the commandos work incognito, concealing their names even from conventional troops on the base. Other counterterrorism work at Lemonnier is more overt. All told, about 3,200 U.S. troops, civilians and contractors are assigned to the camp, where they train foreign militaries, gather intelligence and dole out humanitarian aid across East Africa as part of a campaign to prevent extremists from taking root. In Washington, the Obama administration has taken a series of steps to sustain the drone campaign for another decade, developing an elaborate new targeting database, called the disposition matrix, and a classified playbook to spell out how decisions on targeted killing are made. Djibouti is the clearest example of how the United States is laying the groundwork to carry out these operations overseas. For the past decade, the Pentagon has labeled Lemonnier an expeditionary, or temporary, camp. But it is now hardening into the U.S. militarys first permanent drone war base. Centerpiece base In August, the Defense Department delivered a master plan to Congress detailing how the camp will be used over the next quarter-century. About $1.4 billion in construction projects are on the drawing board, including a huge new compound that could house up to 1,100 Special Operations forces, more than triple the current number. Drones will continue to be in the forefront. In response to written questions from The Post, the U.S. military confirmed publicly for the first time the presence of remotely piloted aircraft military parlance for drones at Camp Lemonnier and said they support a wide variety of regional security missions. Intelligence collected from drone and other surveillance missions is used to develop a full picture of the activities of violent extremist organizations and other activities of interest, Africa Command, the arm of the U.S. military that oversees the camp, said in a statement. However, operational security considerations prevent us from commenting on specific missions. For nearly a decade, the United States flew drones from Lemonnier only rarely, starting with a 2002 strike in Yemen that killed a suspected ringleader of the attack on the USS Cole. That swiftly changed in 2010, however, after al-Qaedas network in Yemen attempted to bomb two U.S.-bound airliners and jihadists in Somalia separately consolidated their hold on that country. Late that year, records show, the Pentagon dispatched eight unmanned MQ-1B Predator aircraft to Djibouti and turned Lemonnier into a full-time drone base. The impact was apparent months later: JSOC drones from Djibouti and CIA Predators from a secret base on the Arabian Peninsula converged over Yemen and killed Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S.-born cleric and prominent al-Qaeda member. Today, Camp Lemonnier is the centerpiece of an expanding constellation of half a dozen U.S. drone and surveillance bases in Africa, created to combat a new generation of terrorist groups across the continent, from Mali to Libya to the Central African Republic. The U.S. military also flies drones from small civilian airports in Ethiopia and the Seychelles, but those operations pale in comparison to what is unfolding in Djibouti. Lemonnier also has become a hub for conventional aircraft. In October 2011, the military boosted the airpower at the base by deploying a squadron of F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets, which can fly faster and carry more munitions than Predators. In its written responses, Africa Command confirmed the warplanes presence but declined to answer questions about their mission. Two former U.S. defense officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the F-15s are flying combat sorties over Yemen, an undeclared development in the growing war against al-Qaeda forces there. The drones and other military aircraft have crowded the skies over the Horn of Africa so much that the risk of an aviation disaster has soared. Since January 2011, Air Force records show, five Predators armed with Hellfire missiles crashed after taking off from Lemonnier, including one drone that plummeted to the ground in a residential area of Djibouti City. No injuries were reported but four of the drones were destroyed. Predator drones in particular are more prone to mishaps than manned aircraft, Air Force statistics show. But the accidents rarely draw public attention because there are no pilots or passengers. As the pace of drone operations has intensified in Djibouti, Air Force mechanics have reported mysterious incidents in which the airborne robots went haywire. In March 2011, a Predator parked at the camp started its engine without any human direction, even though the ignition had been turned off and the fuel lines closed. Technicians concluded that a software bug had infected the brains of the drone, but never pinpointed the problem. After that whole starting-itself incident, we were fairly wary of the aircraft and watched it pretty closely, an unnamed Air Force squadron commander testified to an investigative board, according to a transcript. Right now, I still think the software is not good. Prime location Djibouti is an impoverished former French colony with fewer than 1 million people, scarce natural resources and miserably hot weather. But as far as the U.S. military is concerned, the country's strategic value is unparalleled. Sandwiched between East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, Camp Lemonnier enables U.S. aircraft to reach hot spots such as Yemen or Somalia in minutes. Djiboutis port also offers easy access to the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. This is not an outpost in the middle of nowhere that is of marginal interest, said Amanda J. Dory, the Pentagons deputy assistant secretary for Africa. This is a very important location in terms of U.S. interests, in terms of freedom of navigation, when it comes to power projection. The U.S. military pays $38 million a year to lease Camp Lemonnier from the Djiboutian government. The base rolls across flat, sandy terrain on the edge of Djibouti City, a somnolent capital with eerily empty streets. During the day, many people stay indoors to avoid the heat and to chew khat, a mildly intoxicating plant that is popular in the region. Hemmed in by the sea and residential areas, Camp Lemonniers primary shortcoming is that it has no space to expand. It is forced to share a single runway with Djiboutis only international airport, as well as an adjoining French military base and the tiny Djiboutian armed forces. Passengers arriving on commercial flights there are about eight per day can occasionally spy a Predator drone preparing for a mission. In between flights, the unmanned aircraft park under portable, fabric-covered hangars to shield them from the wind and curious eyes. Behind the perimeter fence, construction crews are rebuilding the base to better accommodate the influx of drones. Glimpses of the secret operations can be found in an assortment of little-noticed Pentagon memoranda submitted to Congress. Last month, for example, the Defense Department awarded a $62 million contract to build an airport taxiway extension to handle increased drone traffic at Lemonnier, an ammunition storage site and a combat-loading area for bombs and missiles. In an Aug. 20 letter to Congress explaining the emergency contract, Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter said that 16 drones and four fighter jets take off or land at the Djibouti airfield each day, on average. Those operations are expected to increase, he added, without giving details. In a separate letter to Congress, Carter said Camp Lemonnier is running out of space to park its drones, which he referred to as remotely piloted aircraft (RPA), and other planes. The recent addition of fighters and RPAs has exacerbated the situation, causing mission delays, he said. Carters letters revealed that the drones and fighter aircraft at the base support three classified military operations, code-named Copper Dune, Jupiter Garret and Octave Shield. Copper Dune is the name of the militarys counterterrorism operations in Yemen. Africa Command said it could not provide information about Jupiter Garret and Octave Shield, citing secrecy restrictions. The code names are unclassified. The military often assigns similar names to related missions. Octave Fusion was the code name for a Navy SEAL-led operation in Somalia that rescued an American and a Danish hostage on Jan. 24. Spilled secrets Another window into the Djibouti drone operations can be found in U.S. Air Force safety records. Whenever a military aircraft is involved in a mishap, the Air Force appoints an Accident Investigation Board to determine the cause. Although the reports focus on technical questions, supplementary documents make it possible to re-create a narrative of what happened in the hours leading up to a crash. Air Force officers investigating the crash of a Predator on May 17, 2011, found that things started to go awry at Camp Lemonnier late that night when a man known as Frog emerged from the Special Operations compound. The camps main power supply had failed and the phone lines were down. So Frog walked over to the flight line to deliver some important news to the Predator ground crew on duty, according to the investigators files, which were obtained by The Post as part of a public-records request. Frog was the alias chosen by a major assigned to the Joint Special Operations Command. At Lemonnier, he belonged to a special collection of Navy SEALs, Delta Force soldiers, Air Force commandos and Marines known simply as the task force. JSOC commandos spend their days and nights inside their compound as they plot raids against terrorist camps and pirate hideouts. Everybody on the base is aware of what they do, but the topic is taboo. I cant acknowledge the task force, said Baker, the Army general and highest-ranking commander at Lemonnier. Frog coordinated Predator hunts. He did not reveal his real name to anyone without a need to know, not even the ground-crew supervisors and operators and mechanics who cared for the Predators. The only contact came when Frog or his friends occasionally called from their compound to say it was time to ready a drone for takeoff or to prepare for a landing. Information about each Predator mission was kept so tightly compartmentalized that the ground crews were ignorant of the drones targets and destinations. All they knew was that most of their Predators eventually came back, usually 20 or 22 hours later, earlier if something went awry. On this particular night, Frog informed the crew that his Predator was returning unexpectedly, 17 hours into the flight, because of a slow oil leak. It was not an emergency. But as the drone descended toward Djibouti City it entered a low-hanging cloud that obscured its camera sensor. Making matters worse, the GPS malfunctioned and gave incorrect altitude readings. The crew operating the drone was flying blind. It guided the Predator on a dangerously low glidepath, Air Force investigators concluded, and crashed the remote-controlled plane 2.7 miles short of the runway. The site was in a residential area and fire trucks rushed to the scene. The drone had crashed in a vacant lot and its single Hellfire missile had not detonated. The Predator splintered apart and was a total loss. With a $3 million price tag, it had cost less than one-tenth the price of an F-15 Strike Eagle. But in terms of spilling secrets, the damage was severe. Word spread quickly about the mysterious insect-shaped plane that had dropped from the sky. Hundreds of Djiboutians gathered and gawked at the wreckage for hours until the U.S. military arrived to retrieve the pieces. One secret that survived, however, was Frogs identity. The official Air Force panel assigned to investigate the Predator accident couldnt determine his real name, much less track him down for questioning. Who is Frog? one investigator demanded weeks later while interrogating a ground crew member, according to a transcript. Im sorry, I was just getting more explanation as to who Frog is that a person? Or is that like a position? The crew member explained that Frog was a liaison officer from the task force. Hes a Pred guy, he shrugged. I actually dont know his last name. The accident triggered alarms at the upper echelons of the Air Force because it was the fourth drone in four months from Camp Lemonnier to crash. Ten days earlier, on May 7, 2011, a drone carrying a Hellfire missile had an electrical malfunction shortly after it entered Yemeni airspace, according to an Air Force investigative report. The Predator turned back toward Djibouti. About one mile offshore, it rolled uncontrollably to the right, then back to the left before flipping belly up and hurtling into the sea. Ive never seen a Predator do that before in my life, except in videos of other crashes, a sensor operator from the ground crew told investigators, according to a transcript. Im just glad we landed it in the ocean and not someplace else. Flying every sortie The remote-control drones in Djibouti are flown, via satellite link, by pilots 8,000 miles away in the United States, sitting at consoles in air-conditioned quarters at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada and Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico. At Camp Lemonnier, conditions are much less pleasant for the Air Force ground crews that launch, recover and fix the drones. In late 2010, after military cargo planes transported the fleet of eight Predators to Djibouti, airmen from the 60th Air Force Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron unpacked the drones from their crates and assembled them. Soon after, without warning, a microburst storm with 80-mph winds struck the camp. The 87-member squadron scrambled to secure the Predators and other exposed aircraft. They managed to save more than half of the high-value, Remotely Piloted Aircraft assets from destruction, and most importantly, prevented injury and any loss of life, according to a brief account published in Combat Edge, an Air Force safety magazine. Even normal weather conditions could be brutal, with summertime temperatures reaching 120 degrees on top of 80 percent humidity. Our war reserve air conditioners literally short-circuited in the vain attempt to cool the tents in which we worked, recalled Lt. Col. Thomas McCurley, the squadron commander. Our small group of security forces personnel guarded the compound, flight line and other allied assets at posts exposed to the elements with no air conditioning at all. McCurleys rare public account of the squadrons activities came in June, when the Air Force awarded him a Bronze Star. At the ceremony, he avoided any explicit mention of the Predators or Camp Lemonnier. But his narrative matched what is known about the squadrons deployment to Djibouti. Our greatest accomplishment was that we flew every single sortie the Air Force asked us to fly, despite the challenges we encountered, he said. We were an integral part in taking down some very important targets, which means a lot to me. He did not mention it, but the unit had gotten into the spirit of its mission by designing a uniform patch emblazoned with a skull, crossbones and a suitable nickname: East Africa Air Pirates. The Air Force denied a request from The Post to interview McCurley. Increased traffic The frequency of U.S. military flights from Djibouti has soared, overwhelming air-traffic controllers and making the skies more dangerous. The number of takeoffs and landings each month has more than doubled, reaching a peak of 1,666 in July compared with a monthly average of 768 two years ago, according to air-traffic statistics disclosed in Defense Department contracting documents. Drones now account for about 30 percent of daily U.S. military flight operations at Lemonnier, according to a Post analysis. The increased activity has meant more mishaps. Last year, drones were involved in a string of near mid-air collisions with NATO planes off the Horn of Africa, according to a brief safety alert published in Combat Edge magazine. Drones also pose an aviation risk next door in Somalia. Over the past year, remote-controlled aircraft have plunged into a refugee camp, flown perilously close to a fuel dump and almost collided with a large passenger plane over Mogadishu, the capital, according to a United Nations report. Manned planes are crashing, too. An Air Force U-28A surveillance plane crashed five miles from Camp Lemonnier while returning from a secret mission on Feb. 18, killing the four-person crew. An Air Force investigation attributed the accident to unrecognized spatial disorientation on the part of the crew, which ignored sensor warnings that it was flying too close to the ground. Baker, the two-star commander at Lemonnier, played down the crashes and near-misses. He said safety had improved since he arrived in Djibouti in May. Weve dramatically reduced any incidents of concern, certainly since Ive been here, he said. Last month, the Defense Department awarded a $7 million contract to retrain beleaguered air-traffic controllers at Ambouli International Airport and improve their English skills. The Djiboutian controllers handle all civilian and U.S. military aircraft. But they are undermanned and over tasked due to the recent rapid increase in U.S. military flights, according to the contract. It also states that the controllers and the airport are not in compliance with international aviation standards. Resolving those deficiencies may not be sufficient. Records show the U.S. military is also scrambling for an alternative place for its planes to land in an emergency. Last month, it awarded a contract to install portable lighting at the only backup site available: a tiny, makeshift airstrip in the Djiboutian desert, several miles from Lemonnier. Over a seven-day period this month, five Australian workers were killed in a series of shocking incidents in construction and transport. Initial reports suggest that these fatalities were avoidable. On October 6, Ashley Morris, 35, and Humberto Leite, 55 were crushed between two 9-tonne concrete slabs while working in a construction pit on a $37 million stable development at Brisbanes Eagle Farm Racecourse. The men, both fathers, were already dead when Queensland Ambulance Service personnel arrived on site. A construction trade union spokesman told the media that the slabs may have been poorly braced by a sub-contractor, but he declined to name the firm involved. He said three of four slabs had been placed in the hole when one fell to the ground. The union revealed that two workers had walked off over safety concerns before the incident. One worker reportedly said someones going to die here. The primary contractor, Brisbane-based Criscon, has refused so far to comment on the deaths. Unsafe conditions in the construction industry were further laid bare on October 10. Marianka Heumann, 27, died when she fell 60 metres down a ventilation shaft from the 15th floor of the 38-storey Finbar and Hanssen luxury apartment construction project in East Perth, Western Australia. The young German woman was on a working holiday and had been employed on the site as an unskilled labourer for only three months. Heumann was applying silicone to ceilings. She finished the job set for the day but returned when she noticed a small area she missed. She had reportedly already removed the safety harness she was wearing during her shift. Hanssen Construction managing director Gerry Hanssen told the media that each new worker gets a safety induction before they start, on the site. However, one of Heumanns co-workers told reporters that while the German woman was a careful worker, many times we worked without protection. Moreover, the industry safety watchdog WorkSafe reported it had received five complaints about safety on the project since construction commenced in late 2105, and issued two improvement notices to the companyone for edge protection and another for excessive debris on the site. In 2008, Hanssen Construction was fined $174,000 by the Federal Magistrates Court in Perth over its treatment of overseas workers in relation to pay and conditions, and was found guilty of 21 breaches of the Workplace Relations Act. Heumanns death reignited questions about inadequacies in training and induction of inexperienced backpackers and young workers in one of the countrys most dangerous industries. Anyone can easily obtain a White Card qualification to work on a building site, just by paying a small fee and completing a short online course. Previously, applicants were required to attend one-day courses. In the transport sector, two truck drivers, Chris Blake, 46, and Peter Cardilini, 50, were killed on October 6 in the Sydney suburb of Erskine Park. A prime mover owned by the A.K. Group and driven by Blake swerved onto the wrong side of the road, colliding with a loaded Austral Brick truck that had just pulled out of the companys yard. Both vehicles instantly exploded on impact. Police investigating the crash said they found evidence of poor fatigue management by the A.K. Group after searching the companys premises and reviewing driver logs. Eight defect notices were issued for two trucks on the site, including for mechanical and brake issues as well as oil and fuel leaks. Several other trucks were taken to a Roads and Maritime Service facility for closer inspection. More workers die in the transport, postal and warehousing sector each year than in any other industry. Safe Work figures show that 48 of 184 workplace deaths in Australia last year were in this sector. Only agriculture, forestry and fishing, with 46 deaths, had a comparable toll. With increasingly cut-throat competition for contracts, transport companies seek to slash costs by cutting back on vehicle maintenance and placing pressure on drivers to meet shorter delivery deadlines, leading to fatigue, speeding and the overloading of trucks. Such conditions are becoming the norm. In a 2015 survey of more than 1,000 trucking businesses by statutory authority Safe Work Australia, 20 percent admitted they broke safety rules to complete work on time. One in five agreed they consider minor incidents a normal part of daily work. So far this year, there have been 132 industrial-related fatalities in Australia. Of these, 42 were in the transport, postal and warehousing sector and 21 in the construction industry. The deaths, many of which are preventable, stand as a damning indictment of the capitalist system and all its political servants, who put profits above the lives of ordinary working people. Successive governments, Liberal-National and Labor, have backed corporate restructuring and deregulated safety, including cutting spending on regulation and sharply reducing the number of safety inspectors. In the wake of every industrial death, the trade unions ritualistically feign concern for safety. Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) national secretary Dave Noonan said the union would provide grief and trauma counselling for the construction victims co-workers. This is a high-risk industry. We lose too many lives in these types of accidents, he said. However, the unions are wholly complicit in the undermining of conditions. For decades, they have worked to contain opposition by workers to the relentless elimination of jobs, the removal of safety practices, the imposition of longer shifts and around-the-clock working, all in the name of making employers competitive. The ongoing workplace deaths are the deadly consequence of this process. The offensive by the US-led coalition to retake Mosul continued Tuesday, as leading participants acknowledged the fighting could take months, and aid organizations issued dire warnings of the impact on the more than 1 million civilians living in Iraqs second largest city. Since ground operations were launched at dawn on Monday by the Iraqi army, Kurdish Peshmerga fighters under the control of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) and various ethnic-based irregular militias, advancing troops have captured 20 villages from Islamic State (also known as ISIS). Peshmerga forces captured part of the road connecting Irbil, the KRG capital, to Mosul Tuesday. The US-led military operation is preparing the ground for a war crime of enormous proportions. An assault is to be waged on a city with an estimated population of 1.3 million, including 600,000 children, by some 30,000 ground force, backed up by aircraft from the US and other imperialist powers, among them France, Britain, Germany and Canada. For those lucky enough to survive the initial onslaught, virtually no plans have been made to deal with the 1 million expected to be turned into refugees, let alone how Mosul and its ethnically diverse surroundings will be governed following its recapture from ISIS. US President Barack Obama made his first public comments on the Mosul offensive yesterday, acknowledging at a joint press conference with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi that Mosul will be a difficult fight and there will be advances and setbacks. Ignoring the destruction wrought by previous anti-ISIS operations, such as the sieges of Ramadi and Fallujah, which left both cities largely in ruins, he remarked blandly on the impact on civilians, Executing will be difficult and no doubt there will be instances where we see some heartbreaking circumstances. Its hard when you leave your home. The wall-to-wall coverage in the Western media about ISISs use of civilians as human shields conceals the fact that the humanitarian catastrophe developing in Mosul is of the imperialist powers own making. The US-led invasion of 2003 and Washingtons subsequent fomenting of ethnic divisions between Shia and Sunni cost the lives of hundreds of thousands and created the conditions in which ISIS could flourish and claim to be liberating Sunni areas of western Iraq. The US and its coalition allies are now dropping leaflets on Mosul urging civilians to flee under conditions where the Iraqi government is said to be suspecting any male aged 14 or over leaving the city as a potential ISIS supporter. Beyond Iraq, the US-led intervention in Syria and the Saudi-led military operations Washington has backed in Yemen have deepened regional conflicts and plunged the Middle East into a bloodbath that threatens to draw in the major powers in a wider war. These conflicts are being exacerbated by the Mosul offensive. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Syrian army sources charged the US-led coalition with planning to enable thousands of ISIS fighters based in Mosul to flee across the border into Syria. Noting that the west of the city remained unguarded, Lavrov warned that Russia would be forced to adopt political and military measures if this eventuality came to pass. As far as I know, the city is not fully encircled, Lavrov said. I hope its because they simply couldnt do it, not because they wouldnt do it. But this corridor poses a risk that Islamic State fighters could flee from Mosul and go to Syria. While other sources have reported that Shia militias kept out of the offensive due to the fear of sectarian reprisals have been deployed to the west of Mosul to cut off the escape route, it can by no means be excluded that the US has reached such an arrangement. Washington worked closely with Islamist extremists in 2011 to topple the Gaddafi regime in Libya, and many of these elements were later transported to Syria with the help of the CIA before going on to form ISIS. Moreover, the Obama administration has shown its readiness to collaborate with Jihadi forces in the five-year civil war to oust the Assad regime in Damascus. As well as potentially inflaming the war in Syria, the retaking of Mosul threatens to deepen already bitter ethnic, regional and religious divisions within Iraq itself. Many of the ethnically based militias that have been armed and trained by Western powers engaged in bloody sectarian fighting in the wake of the 2003 US invasion and are pursuing antagonistic interests that could well result in the ethnic partition of Iraq, which would have devastating consequences for the already desperate population. Even commentators in the bourgeois media have been compelled to note that the retaking of Mosul will resolve none of the problems that have led to Iraqs essential partition into Kurdish, Shia and Sunni enclaves and could in fact prepare a new wave of bloodletting. David Gardner writing in the Financial Times observed that Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadis hope that Iraqis would unite around the capture of Mosul was optimistic. He described the various militias involved in the offensive as being at each others throats and warned that the battle for control of the region, which is rich in energy reserves and is home to an ethnically diverse population including Sunnis, Shia, Kurds and Christians, could be explosive. The Peshmerga fighters, who have previously been accused of atrocities against Sunni villagers, are to be kept outside of Mosul in a bid to avoid ethnic violence, but the KRG is determined to use their involvement in the offensive to strengthen its position with the central government in Baghdad. This was the message contained in an interview published Tuesday by al-Jazeera with KRG Foreign Minister Falah Mustafa Bakir. We have a stake in Mosul, he stated when asked about the role of the KRG after its recapture. Mosul is important and has a direct impact on Irbil and Dohuk, and the KRG as a whole, in terms of security, the economy, a social impact. Therefore, we need to be there. He also left no doubt that the KRG would give little quarter to civilians fleeing the fighting because everyone would be suspected of carrying ISIS sympathies. Having talked about IDPs [internally displaced persons] coming in, we have a security concern, Bakir told al-Jazeera. Those who have lived under ISIL come with baggage. Some have been recruited, therefore we have to be able to distinguish between real and genuine IDPs and those who come in disguised as IDPs. Sharp divisions also exist between Baghdad and Ankara. The Turkish government has deployed roughly 700 troops to the northeast of Mosul and also trained a local Turkmen militia to support it. The Shia-dominated Iraqi government has denounced Ankaras presence, and a demonstration of several thousand supporters of Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr was held in front of the Turkish embassy in Baghdad yesterday. Some of the Shia militias, which are heavily backed by Iran, have vowed to fight a Turkish intervention. Turkey has refused to back down, insisting that it has a right to participate in the Mosul operations and subsequent talks over its final status. In so doing, it is aiming to restrict the activities of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq and extend Ankaras influence in Sunni areas. Noting Turkeys 350-kilometer border with Iraq, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday, We will not be responsible for the negative consequences that will emerge from any operation that doesnt include Turkey. We will be involved both in the operation and at the [negotiating] table afterward. It is not possible for us to stay excluded. Primary responsibility for the disastrous state of affairs in Iraq lies with American imperialism, which laid waste to the country in its reckless pursuit of regional and global hegemony. But the involvement of all of the major imperialist powers in the region will only exacerbate the sectarian conflicts and increase inter-imperialist rivalries. Alongside approximately 5,000 US special forces involved in the onslaught on Mosul, troops from Australia, Britain, Canada, France, Germany and Italy are also deployed to Iraq. French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, who has been at the forefront in charging Russia with war crimes over its involvement in Aleppo over the past month, announced a planned meeting jointly hosted with the Iraqi government October 20 to discuss plans for Mosuls future. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte arrived in China yesterday for a four-day state visit seeking a massive boost to his countrys economy from Chinese aid, loans and investment. In the lead-up to the trip, he bluntly told the media that he was intent on reconfiguring foreign policy away from the United States and towards China and Russia. Beijing is certainly laying out the red carpet for Duterte. He will meet with top Chinese leaders including President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang and National Peoples Congress chairman Zhang Dejiang, as well as representatives of the Bank of China. The Philippine president is travelling with an entourage of more than 400 business leaders, including some of the countrys wealthiest tycoons. The Philippine Star cited trade secretary Ramon Lopez as saying that the visit to China will deliver up to $3 billion in loans and grants. Duterte, a fascistic populist, will be seeking billions of dollars in Chinese investment in infrastructure projects, including rail. He declared in a speech last week that he had a good feeling that China really wants to help us in a big way and promised hospitals and schools. The visit marks an abrupt shift. The previous Philippine President Benigno Aquino functioned as the point man in South East Asia for the Obama administrations pivot to Asia, aggressively pressing Philippine territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea. With US assistance, he mounted a legal case in the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague to challenge Chinas maritime claims. Relations with China deteriorated markedly as Aquino strengthened military ties with Washington including the signing and implementation of a new basing arrangementthe Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which has already opened up five Philippine military bases to US forces. Since coming to office in June, Duterte has called US military ties into question, ended joint US-Philippine naval patrols in the South China Sea, called for the removal of US troops from Mindanao and initiated a review of EDCA. He has also delivered several tirades against Washington over its growing criticism of his murderous anti-drug war that has claimed more than 3,600 victims in extra-judicial killings by police and vigilantes. Most recently Duterte told President Obama to go to hell in response to critical US remarks. Duterte has signalled that he is open to closer military ties as well as economic relations with China and Russia. He told Hong Kong-based Phoenix Television on Monday that he would consider military drills with China or Russia. I have given enough time for the Americans to play with Filipino soldiers, he said, reiterating that recent joint exercises with the US would be the last. The Philippine president also said that he would seek to buy military equipment from China during his visit, though not in large amounts. He said that he wanted small, fast-attack boats to fight terrorism. In an interview with Chinas state-owned Xinhua news agency, Duterte set the stage for beginning negotiations with Beijing over the South China Sea disputes. There is no sense in going to war, he said. There is no sense fighting over a body of water. It is better to talk than war. We want to talk about friendship, we want to talk about cooperation and most of all, we want to talk about business. Resolving the longstanding territorial disputes will not be straightforward, however. Beijing is acutely sensitive to any mention of the ruling by The Hague court in July which overwhelmingly favoured Manilaand thus Washington. Any reference to the legal decision will undoubtedly take place behind closed doors. One of the key issues is the status of the Scarborough Shoal which China has effectively controlled since 2012 after the Philippine navy attempted to eject Chinese fishing boats from the area. Both countries claim sovereignty. Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio warned last week that conceding the Philippines rights in disputed waters would be grounds for the presidents impeachment. In a bid to fend off domestic critics, Duterte declared this week that he would not sell-out to China. I will not bargain anywhere, we will continue to insist that is ours, he insisted. Dutertes tilt towards Beijing has provoked growing fears in Washington that he is undermining both the US diplomatic offensive and military build-up against China across the region. The Obama administration had clearly been hoping to ratchet up the pressure on China after The Hague decision and is relying on Philippine bases to intensify its military operations in the South China Sea. More broadly, the US is concerned that any move by its long-time ally and former colony into the camp of China would encourage other strategic partners and allies to follow suit. Andrew Shearer, an adviser at the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), told the New York Times this week: If China succeeds in peeling the Philippines away from the United States, it would be a major win in Beijings long-term campaign to weaken US alliances in the region. It will feed fears that the right mix of intimidation and inducements could influence other partners to distance themselves from Washington. Bonnie Glaser, another CSIS adviser, pointed out that a downgrading of the alliance with the Philippines could damage the US if it was no longer able to fly its military surveillance planes out of Philippine bases. However, in remarks to the Guardian, she pointedly added: I just dont think the people in the Philippines are going to support an end to this alliance or a weakening of our cooperation. The comment, which undoubtedly reflects the closed-door discussions in US military and intelligence circles, is a thinly-veiled threat. Glaser is not referring to the Philippine people in general, but to sections of the military, the state apparatus and corporate elite with close ties to Washington, which are quite capable of engineering Dutertes removalthrough one means or anotherif he seriously endangers American interests. Theres a bit of a nanny state in the city of Hong Kong. The government is quick to issue advice and admonitions about all matter of hazards high ocean waves, food waste, incense burning during the annual grave-sweeping festival. One night in late 2014, amid a standoff during the massive democracy protest that rocked the city, a police official squawked through a bullhorn: do not swear. The response was a lusty spasm of curses. Still, many residents were surprised when government officials posted a note online on Oct. 11, the day before the new session of the citys Legislative Council, saying lawmakers of the officially (but not always truly) autonomous government were required by constitution to swear allegiance to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China. China exercises sovereignty over Hong Kong, but agreed to let the former British colony function under a separate system until at least 2047. The notice warned that a lawmaker who failed to state the oath as written, or who altered the wording to make it inconsistent with the written ordinance, shall vacate office or be disqualified from entering. To government opponents, the warning must have sounded like an invitation. The territorys government, which maintains cozy ties with Beijing, has scrambled to deal with a new breed of political opposition. Weeks before the legislative elections in September, the elections bureau asked every candidate hoping to appear on the ballot to pledge that the territory was an inalienable part of China, an unprecedented requirement that launched an uproar. The city barred several pro-independence candidates from running; two have filed court appeals. If their petitions succeed, a court would likely overturn the election results in those districts, requiring new balloting there. The men and woman struck from the ballot urged residents to stand up to Beijing, a message that swayed many voters. On election day, Sept. 4, one-fifth of a record 2.2 million people who cast ballots chose candidates who either advocated independence or wanted voters to choose the territorys future government, a right they currently lack. A growing number of city residents say Beijing has whittled down their constitutional rights, despite assurances made in 1997 when Britain handed its former colony to Beijing, that a one-country, two-systems arrangement would preserve Hong Kongs rights for 50 years. By law, and before they can start their jobs, all 70 Hong Kong lawmakers must repeat a phrase swearing loyalty to the Peoples Republic. Yet several new members had run on platforms pledging to wrench Hong Kongs independence from China, or to fight for a referendum to let city residents choose such a path. How could they pledge fealty to a government they hoped to divorce? On Oct. 12, some chose to recite their own vows. Eddie Chu, a land rights activist, gave the required pledge, but added: Democracy and self-determination. Autocracy will die! Secretary-General Kenneth Chen, who administered the oaths, allowed him to take his seat. But Chen scolded newcomer Yau Wai-ching from deviating from the official text, as the 25-year-old member of upstart political party Youngspiration unfurled a large blue banner that declared Hong Kong is not China. I will uphold the Basic Law of the Hong Kong special administrative region of the Peoples Refucking of Shina, she read, hurrying through the lines twice more, as if she expected to be pulled off the floor. (The term Shina is considered derogatory, and was used by Japanese during the occupation, although some scholars have noted earlier uses.) Youngspiration founder Sixtus Leung, known as Baggio, wrapped himself in the anti-China banner and, fingers crossed, changed his pronunciation of China. Later, he told reporters that his accent was to blame. Secretary-general Chen barred both Yau and Leung from taking their seats, and voting for the bodys new president. That prompted the chambers youngest member, newly elected democracy advocate Nathan Law, to argue that his colleagues should not be censored. Absolute and autocratic powers will not live forever, the 23-year-old said in a nod to Mahatma Gandhi. There should be democratic self-determination and there will be continuous struggle. Excluding two of the bodys most radical members both who favor Hong Kongs independence from their new roles has riled residents and democracy advocates. Their words offended many, and some readers commented online that the young politicians should just pledge as required, then get on with the hard work of governing. Lawyers are debating whether oaths are valid if someone mispronounces certain words or amends the statement, says Wilson Leung, convener of the Progressive Lawyers Group, which includes 90 pro-democracy lawyers. The dicier question is how the government will work with officials who believe Hong Kong is not part of China. The day before the ceremony, the Beijing government issued a warning in two Hong Kong newspapers friendly to Beijing, Wen Wei Po and Ta Kung Pao. If the disbarred lawmakers appealed in court, and judges could not determine if the oaths met the citys constitutional standard, Chinas legislature, the National Peoples Congress, will weigh in. Yau and Sixtus Leung will get another chance on Wednesday to affirm their loyalty to Beijing. Newly elected Legco president Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen said that if the two Youngspiration party members refused to follow their lines, he would consult with the chambers lawyer. The law mentioned removal, but I dont want to take this step, he said. After days of censure by city residents, Leung indicated the two would consider compromising but insisted they had done nothing wrong. Days earlier, Leung said hed make no promises about concerning his pledge. We will see, he said, what else we have in our arsenal. Whatever happens, its clear that the bodys newest, most cantankerous members will carry on their battle with the mainland, in ways both large and small. ANTHONY WALLACE/GETTY IMAGES By Venus Wu HONG KONG (Reuters) - The Hong Kong government failed in an unprecedented legal attempt on Tuesday to halt the swearing-in of two newly elected lawmakers seeking to push for independence for the autonomous region. High Court Judge Thomas Au rejected its last-ditch request for an injunction against a decision allowing the two lawmakers to re-take their oath of office at Hong Kong's Legislative Council on Wednesday. Au did approve the government's request for a judicial review of the case, which will take place early next month. By that time, they could already be serving in the legislature. Yau Wai-ching, 25, and Baggio Leung, 30, were initially barred by legislative authorities last week after pledging their allegiance to the "Hong Kong nation" and displaying a "Hong Kong is not China" banner when they first attempted to take office. The pair's oath-taking was an early test of their determination to push independence issues into mainstream Hong Kong politics. It also showed the depth of the pro-Beijing establishment's anger at the challenge they represent. Chinas representative office in the city issued a statement last Friday expressing "great indignation and strong condemnation" over their statements last Wednesday. Pressure has mounted since then from pro-Beijing groups and politicians, who said they were outraged by the derogatory terms for China and swear words they said were used. The pair denied using such language. The topic of independence was once regarded as taboo in the former British colony, now governed under the "one country, two systems" principle since its return to Chinese rule in 1997. But some young people have started demanding greater autonomy, ranging from self-determination to independence, after months of pro-democracy protests in 2014 failed to secure any concessions from Beijing. Government lawyers were specifically challenging a decision by the legislature's new president Andrew Leung to allow the pair to re-take their oaths this week. The government's writ stated Leung had no power to re-administer the oaths to the pair as, given their actions, they were disqualified from taking office under the law. "Leung and Yau have manifested an intent ... that they did not intend to make the Legislative Council oath or be bound by it," the writ states. The oath requires legislators to swear allegiance to the "Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China." Andrew Leung said earlier on Tuesday that he was opposed to the government's move and had instructed the legislature's lawyers on the matter. In refusing the injunction, Judge Au said barring the newly elected lawmakers would "result in the confusion of the public" and harm the "sanctity and solemnity" of the legislature. Yau said afterwards that the government was destroying the vital separation of powers between it and lawmakers while Leung said: "Hong Kong can't afford to lose this case". Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying said last Friday that the pair's statements "seriously affected the relationship between Hong Kong and mainland people." The rise of independence debates has sparked concern among some senior government officials and judges that Beijing might pressure Hong Kong to pass tough new laws to explicitly outlaw any such discussions, or invoke rarely used powers to tweak Hong Kong's mini-constitution known as the Basic Law. The document codifies Chinese sovereignty, but also guarantees extensive freedoms for Hong Kong people, with a separate legal system and autonomy for its government. (Reporting by Venus Wu; Writing by Greg Torode; Editing by Tom Heneghan) Mexicos festivities for the annual Dead of the Dead holiday (Dia de Muertos in Spanish) will kick off in less than two weeks, which means now is the perfect time for some travel tips. If you havent made any plans, consider this a guide for a last-minute getaway or for a Day of the Dead 2017 trip planned well in advance. Click here for the 7 Best Destinations in Mexico for Day of the Dead 7 Best Destinations in Mexico for Day of the Dead (Slideshow) But first, a little background. Each year, the Day of the Dead is celebrated from Oct. 31 to Nov. 2 across Mexico. Traditionally, on the first day (All Hallows Eve), altars are prepared for the angelitos (spirits of dead children) to return for a visit with the living. The next day, Nov. 1, is All Saints Day, which is for the adult spirits. And Nov. 2 is All Souls Day, when families go to cemeteries to decorate the graves and tombs of their deceased relatives. Symbols and tokens of the holiday include the widespread use of marigolds, colorful sugar skulls, cardboard skeletons, tissue paper decorations, incense, fruits, nuts, and other traditional foods and decorations. The exact offerings at each tomb vary based on the personality of the deceased, as loved ones will often bring their favorite foods and drinks, poems, photos, toys, and other memorabilia. Its also important to sweep or otherwise clean up the graves during this time. Despite the somewhat morbid themes, all the traditions are not somber. In fact, in most places, enormous parties and celebrations are thrown, involving musical and theatrical performances, parades, dances, and other activities. The exact rituals, however, can vary from town to town and city to city, and this article will break it down for seven different locations around Mexico. */ 7 Best Destinations in Mexico for Day of the Dead The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants is bringing its awards ceremony to Melbourne, Australia, next year following a successful celebration in New York City earlier this year. The event will be hosted at the historic Royal Exhibition Building on April 5, 2017. The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants is partnering with Tourism Australia for the festivities, according to a release. 25 Best Restaurants in Australia 2015 Slideshow After 14 years hosting the awards event in London, we decided to take The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants on a global tour, kicking off in New York in June 2016, said William Drew, group editor of The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants. Now we could not be more thrilled to be moving to Melbourne, one of the great food cities of the world, in 2017. Come April next year, Australia will undoubtedly be the place to be for those passionate about great food and inspired restaurants. In partnership with Tourism Australia, we will also take the opportunity to highlight the countrys unique produce, brilliant wines and dynamic dining scene. The Melbourne Food and Wine Festival, one of Australias most internationally-acclaimed gourmet celebrations, has aligned its dates (March 31April 9) with that of The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants 2017 (April 17). The festival will include a MasterClass series celebrating the awards. FREMONT An Arlington woman has pleaded no contest to a charge related to the death of a patient who was burned after falling asleep near a fireplace. Anne T. Pavlik, 23, entered a no contest plea to a misdemeanor charge in the death of 82-year-old Bernard Batten at a Fremont memory care center. Investigators determined Batten awoke early on Feb. 12 and eventually sat in a chair. Pavlik, who was the only staffer on duty, didn't notice he then pulled his chair near a burning fireplace and fell asleep. She later found Batten was badly burned. He died the next day at a hospital. An autopsy shows he died of natural causes and burns. Pavlik will be sentenced Nov. 29 and faces up to a year in prison. The Daily Beast STRINGER/ReutersVideo footage shows pedestrians attempting to sway an Indian suspension bridge in the moments before it catastrophically collapsed, leaving at least 141 people dead as of Monday.Rescuers expect the death toll to continue to rise after the bridge fell apart in the western state of Gujarat on Sunday. The majority of those killed were women, children, or elderly people, a local official told the BBC. Almost 180 people were successfully rescued, however, in an overnight operation inv (Corrects paragraph 9 to say fertilizer companies will pay higher Alberta emitter tax, not a new carbon tax) By Rod Nickel and Alastair Sharp WINNIPEG/TORONTO, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Canada's plan to price carbon emissions may weaken the farm sector in one of the biggest grain-shipping countries, raising farmers' costs and discouraging investment in fertilizer production, industry groups say. Ottawa this month promised a price on carbon emissions by 2018, and will let provinces choose a tax or cap and trade system. Carbon pollution will cost C$10 a tonne in 2018, rising gradually to C$50 in 2022. At C$50, it would raise fertilizer prices C$2 per acre for farmers, and some experts peg the total farm cost at C$6 an acre, according to CIBC bank. "Everyone is paying attention to this, especially in a downtime for the economy," said Robin Speer, executive director of Western Canadian Wheat Growers, which has gathered 2,500 petition signatures opposing the price. Reduced soil tilling and more fuel-efficient machinery have made farming more environmentally friendly, and crops absorb carbon from the air and leave it underground, Speer said. Agriculture accounted for 10 percent of Canada's 2014 total greenhouse gas emissions, according to Canada's environment department. Nitrogen fertilizer producers, among major polluters in western provinces, are leery of a carbon price. Higher costs will discourage expansion and shift production elsewhere, said Garth Whyte, chief executive of industry group Fertilizer Canada. Provinces should instead credit fertilizer makers for reductions in nitrous oxide, a production byproduct, he said. Agrium Inc and CF Industries will not be subject to Alberta's new carbon tax of C$20 per tonne when it takes effect next year, but the separate emitter tax that fertilizer companies pay will rise to C$30 per tonne of carbon from C$20 per tonne, according to Fertilizer Canada. It will be replaced in 2018 by another regulation that charges a carbon price. Story continues Fertilizer producers can justifiably argue they need provisions to stay competitive, and farmers should also receive support, said Keith Brooks, programs director at Environmental Defence. "You want the price to influence everyone's behavior but we don't want it to mean farmers can't make a living," he said. At a committee meeting on Tuesday, Liberal government legislators rejected an opposition motion to study how the carbon price will affect the farm sector, Conservative legislator David Anderson said. Ottawa's carbon price does not directly impose costs on pollution from farm vehicles or their fuel, and the government lets provinces choose how to use carbon revenue, said Caitlin Workman, spokeswoman for Environment Minister Catherine McKenna. Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall on Tuesday pitched an alternative approach to carbon pricing, focusing instead on clean energy technology and renewable power. British Columbia gives farmers an exemption from its carbon tax on farm fuel purchases. Alberta plans to do the same. Ontario's emissions cap does not cover agriculture. (Editing by Peter Cooney and Matthew Lewis) Two Missouri moms claim that they found worms in their Similac formula during the same two-week span. Taylor Seyler, of Kansas City, is a breastfeeding mom who has been using Similac for supplementation when she is not with her 2-month-old son Keighan. On one particular September day, however, she says she found something shocking in her babys bottle after Keighans great-grandmother had already fed the child two ounces of the milk while Seyler was away. Read: Critics Blast 6-Month-Old Water Skier: 'That's a Pretty Sick Way to Exploit Your Baby' A week earlier, Seyler claimed she had read a Facebook post about another woman who found worms in her milk, so as soon as she noticed something undissolved in the bottle, she dumped it out to check. When I noticed it, I figured it was the same exact thing, Seyler told InsideEdition. Me and my grandma started to pour out and filter it out so we could filter the maggots. There [were] five or six on the paper. Seyler said she was mad that it happened to her because when she saw the post she said she thought it was a rare occurrence. She later posted her own findings on the social network. The company who produces Similac, Abbott Laboratories, released a statement about the incident claiming they reviewed the photos taken by Seyler and determined what was in Keighans formula was Indian meal moth larva, and that they entered the package after it left their facility. Indian meal moths do qualify as worms and are typically found in kitchen pantries, flour, cereal. We take all concerns about product quality an safety seriously. Parents can be confident that Similac infant formulas are safe. Our products pass rigorous safety and quality checks, including numerous steps to check for foreign objects and ensure proper packaging, the statement read. Megan Mallory, however, a mom from Gower, told InsideEdition.com that later that week she saw Seylers Facebook post about the worms and was on the lookout. Story continues She was making a bottle for her 4-month-old daughter Myla when she noticed certain particles in her formula werent dissolving. Upon inspection, she said they looked similar to the photos she had seen. She contacted Abbott, who told InsideEdition.com that what she found were not worms. Weve spoken with this mom and looked into her complaint. Our lab analysis of the photos found what appear to be small clumps that are consistent with product clumps, Michelle Schott, a spokeswoman for Abbott, told InsideEdition.com. They refunded Mallorys money, but she doesn't agree with the company's findings. I know what clumps looks like. And how to solve the problem. That was not dissolving at all, she said. She claimed she even took one out to try and make it dissolve with her hand, but it did not. Im more freaked out and I was like I cant let my daughter be eating this. She could get sick and I dont want that, Mallory. Doctors say that a childs stomach will usually dissolve the bugs before it can do any harm, but its more about the principle for these moms. Read: Parents Wed at Baby's Hospital Bed Before Living Apart For Life-Saving Treatment I will never feel comfortable or safe feeding him this crap again, said Seyler. In 2010, Abbott Laboratories recalled up to 5 million containers of its powdered Similac infant formula after finding evidence that it was contaminated by beetles. Watch: Mom Charged With Homicide After Her Baby Girl Was Found Dead From Salt Poisoning Related Articles: On Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016, Yahoo News and Finance Anchor Bianna Golodryga talks with Yahoo News Chief Washington Correspondent Olivier Knox. The two preview tonights final presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, examining what each candidate needs to do with their performance to solidify their base and appeal to voters beyond their core supporters. Yahoo News Now Special Edition: 2016 The Choice Every weekday until the election, well be coming to you live from the Yahoo Studios in New York City, bringing the latest information and analysis of the days most compelling storylines in the race for the White House. With more than $1 trillion assets under management, Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) prides itself in having more than 2,000 professionals across 33 offices worldwide, since its inception in 1869. GSAM offers financial services including investment and advisory solutions along with expert risk management to institutional and individual investors throughout the globe. With its global multi-product platform, this renowned financial management company offers its clients innovative investment solutions that working with a large firm calls for. Below we share with you three top-rated Goldman Sachs mutual funds. Each has earned a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and is expected to outperform its peers in the future. Investors can click here to see the complete list of Goldman Sachs mutual funds, their Zacks Rank and past performance. Goldman Sachs Large Cap Value Insights A GCVAX invests in securities of companies having market capitalization within the range of the Russell 1000 Index. GCVAX invests in securities of domestic and foreign firms that are traded in the US. GCVAX may also invest in fixed income producing securities. Goldman Sachs Large Cap Value Insights A returned 7.8% over the past three years. GCVAX has an expense ratio of 0.96% as compared to the category average of 1.15%. Goldman Sachs Bond C GSFCX seeks total return consisting of capital appreciation and income. GSFCX invests the majority of its assets in bonds and other fixed income securities such as those issued by the U.S. government, corporate debt securities, fixed rate mortgage loans, asset-backed securities and high yield non-investment grade securities. Goldman Sachs Bond C returned almost 3% over the past three years. Jonathan Beinner is one of the asset managers of GSFCX since 2006. Goldman Sachs Large Cap Growth Insights A GLCGX invests a large portion of its assets in a broadly diversified portfolio of equity investments in large-cap U.S. issuers and non-U.S. issuers traded domestically. GLCGX seeks long-term growth of capital. Goldman Sachs Large Cap Growth Insights A returned 11.4% over the past three years. Story continues GLCGX has an expense ratio of 0.96% as compared to the category average of 1.29%. To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all Goldman Sachs mutual funds, investors can click here to see the complete list of funds. Want key mutual fund info delivered straight to your inbox? Zacks free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing mutual funds, each week. Get it free >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Get Your Free (GSFCX): Fund Analysis Report Get Your Free (GCVAX): Fund Analysis Report Get Your Free (GLCGX): Fund Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Many investors like to look for momentum in stocks, but this can be very tough to define. There is great debate regarding which metrics are the best to focus on in this regard, and which are not really quality indicators of future performance. Fortunately, with our new style score system we have identified the key statistics to pay close attention to and thus which stocks might be the best for momentum investors in the near term. This method discovered several great candidates for momentum-oriented investors, but today lets focus in on Hallador Energy Company HNRG as this stock is looking especially impressive right now. And while there are numerous ways in which this company could be a great choice, we have highlighted three of the most vital reasons for HNRGs status as a solid momentum stock below: Short Term Price Change for Hallador Energy A great place to look for finding momentum stocks is by inspecting short term price activity. This can help to reflect the current interest in a stock and if buyers or sellers have the upper hand right now. It is especially useful to compare it to the industry as this can help investors pinpoint the top companies in a particular area. With a one week price change of 2.2% compared to an industry average of -1%, HNRG is certainly well-positioned in this regard. The stock is also looking quite well from a longer time frame too, as the four week price change compares favorably with the industry at large as well. Longer Term Price Change for Hallador Energy While any stock can see a spike in price, it takes a real winner to consistently outperform the market. That is why looking at longer term price metricssuch as performance over the past three months or year-- and comparing these to an industry at large can be very useful. And in the case of HNRG, the results are quite impressive. The company has beaten out the industry at large over the past 12 weeks by a margin of 60.1% to 4% while it has also outperformed when looking at the past year, putting up a gain of 5.8%. Clearly, HNRG is riding a bit of a hot streak and is worth a closer look by investors. Story continues HALLADOR ENERGY Price HALLADOR ENERGY Price | HALLADOR ENERGY Quote HNRG Earnings Estimate Revisions Moving in the Right Direction While the great momentum factors outlined in the preceding paragraphs might be enough for some investors, we should also take into account broad earnings estimate revision trends. A nice path here can really help to show us a promising stock, and we have actually been seeing that with HNRG as of late too. Over the past two months, 1 earnings estimate has gone higher compared to none lower for the full year, while we are also seeing that 1 estimate has move upwards with no downward revision for the next year time frame too. These revisions havde helped to boost the consensus estimate as two months ago HNRG was expected to post earnings of 59 cents /share for the full year, though today it looks to have EPS of 60 cents for the full year now, representing a solid increase which is something that should definitely be welcomed news to would-be investors. Bottom Line Given these factors, investors shouldnt be surprised to note that we have HNRG as a security with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and a Momentum Score of A. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. So if you are looking for a fresh pick that has potential to move in the right direction, definitely keep HNRG on your short list as this looks be a stock that is very well-positioned to soar in the near term. Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Tale of the Tape, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report HALLADOR ENERGY (HNRG): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research The alcohol market in the U.S. has expanded significantly over the past few years on the back of strong demand. Moreover, improvement in the U.S. economy, especially solid growth witnessed in the labor market, played a vital role in boosting the outlook for the alcohol industry for the upcoming months. The industry is also poised to benefit from the upcoming holiday season. In this encouraging backdrop, selecting potential stocks from the domain may prove to be a profitable investment option. Alcohol Industry in Good Spirits Though data from Euromonitor showed that global alcohol consumption declined last year, it increased in the U.S., which is the second biggest consumer of alcohol. The report cited that alcohol consumption in North America grew at a pace of 2.5% in 2015. It indicates the growing popularity of three major segments within the domain beer, spirits and wine. Though beer has the largest market share among the three, spirits continued to see gradual increases in market share. Spirits' market share increased to 35.4% in 2015 from 35.2% in 2014. While volume at the spirits segment grew 2.3% year on year, revenues increased 4.1% year over year. Within the spirit segment, whiskey has seen robust growth over the past few years. This is especially true as high-end premium and super-premium bourbon and Tennessee whiskey brands saw revenues surge 50% and 155%, respectively, between 2010 and 2015 in the U.S. alone, as per the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. The Irish Whiskey and Single Malt Scotch industries are also growing at a rapid pace. These segments registered year-over-year growth rates of 19.9% and 13.5%, respectively. Factors Boosting the Alcohol Sector Among others, the spirits and wine market is significantly benefiting from favorable demographic trends. The baby-boomer generation remains at peak spirits and wine consuming ages both in Europe and the US. Younger generations are also consuming more spirits. Separately, the surging popularity of high-end and super-premium spirits is also helping the sector to register healthy growth over the past few years. It is speculated that favorable consumer confidence levels and encouraging labor market conditions have aided the sector over the past few months. Story continues Recently released initial claims data showed that the number of jobless claims now stands at more than a 40-year low level, indicating improving labor market conditions. Moreover, consumer confidence touched its nine-year high level of 104.1 last month. Retail sales rebounded in September, increasing by 0.6% last month after declining slightly in August. Meanwhile, the data showed that sales at beer, wine & liquor stores witnessed year-over-year growth rate of 3.3% in August. Favorable Outlook A Morgan Stanley study showed that most of the alcohol distributors in the U.S. are optimistic about the industrys progress in the coming six months. The survey showed that 53% of the distributors, who were interviewed during the survey, looked confident about the outlook for the industry over the next six months. This was significantly higher than 40% registered in April. Among the top brands, over 90% distributors predicted that Jameson, Remy Martin and Woodford Reserve are poised to witness healthy growth in the coming six months. The study cited low oil prices, uptick in consumer confidence and encouraging labor market conditions as the main reasons behind this favorable outlook. The report highlighted: "The majority of respondents are optimistic about the outlook for their businessThis should provide a solid base for the U.S. beer and spirits markets to continue to grow strongly in the second half of the year." Moreover, the upcoming holiday season is also expected to give a boost to the alcohol industry. 4 Alcohol Stocks to Buy Banking on this encouraging environment, investing in financially strong stocks from the alcohol industry might be a prudent option. Hence, we have selected four alcohol stocks that carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) as stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or #2 are poised to be good investment options. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Constellation Brands Inc. STZ is one of the largest multi-category suppliers of beverage alcohol in the U.S. The company expects earnings growth rate of 18.3% in the current year, compared with the industry average of 5.1%.Its earnings estimate for the current year improved 1.4% over the last 30 days. Constellation Brands has an expected revenues growth rate of 12%forthe current year. Craft Brew Alliance, Inc. BREW is engaged in the business of brewing, marketing and selling of craft beers in the U.S. The company has an expected earnings growth rate of more than 100% for the current year. Its earnings estimate for the current year surged 23.8% over the last 60 days.The company has an expected revenues growth rate of 5.9% for the current year. Molson Coors Brewing Company TAP is one of the worlds largest global brewers with a broad portfolio of over 40 brands. Its earnings estimate for the current year improved 2.4% over the last 30 days.The company has an expected revenues growth rate of 46.8% for the current year. Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV BUD is the leading global brewer and one of the world's top five consumer products companies. Its earnings estimate for the current year improved 3.8% over the last 30 days.The company has an expected revenues growth rate of 4.1% for the current year. Zacks' Best Investment Ideas for Long-Term Profit Today you can gain access to long-term trades with double and triple-digit profit potential rarely available to the public. Starting now, you can look inside our stocks under $10, home run and value stock portfolios, plus more. Want a peek at this private information? Click here >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report MOLSON COORS-B (TAP): Free Stock Analysis Report ANHEUSER-BU ADR (BUD): Free Stock Analysis Report CONSTELLATN BRD (STZ): Free Stock Analysis Report CRAFT BREW ALLN (BREW): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump face off in the third and final presidential debate on Wednesday and that is either a good or bad thing. It could be a good thing because itll be one more chance to actually see whether they come out on the issues, which is, after all, the reason that there are debates in the first place. The Commission on Presidential Debates has announced that the topics of their final face off will be debt and entitlements, immigration, the economy, the Supreme Court, foreign hot spots, and fitness to be president. It could be a bad thing because, if the first two debates are any guide, its unlikely that viewers will come away thinking this has been some great, informational exercise in democracy. Rather, the debates so far have been so full of outlandish moments that are a goldmine for Saturday Night Live and late-night satire. Just the presence of fitness to be president among the topics all but invites acrimonious exchanges between Clinton and Trump. Last time the pressing drama was whether Trump would bring up Bill Clintons past (he did); this time, hes already suggested that shes been taking performance-enhancing drugs. Will he challenge her to take a drug test on the spot? Heres what to look out for at the debate, which begins at 9 p.m. ET on Wednesday and airs live from the University of Nevada Las Vegas. Chris Wallace. For the first time, a Fox News personality will be moderating a general election presidential debate. Undoubtedly, progressives will keep a close eye on what questions he asks and the extent to which he fact checks. If people say, it was a great debate and I dont remember you being there, I will have done my job, said Wallace told Fox News this week. But despite efforts by the progressive group Media Matters for America to get the commission to reconsider him, Wallace actually has a history of aggressive followup questions to Trump and Clinton. Expect plenty of outcry from either side if Wallace is a mere shrinking violet. Story continues Rigged Election. Trumps claim that the election is rigged against him, and that there is a media collusion with Hillary Clinton to hand the election her way, has triggered alarm that were he to lose, he would not concede, or that there will be disruption on Election Day. President Obama on Tuesday mocked Trumps attacks on the voting process, while plenty of journalists have pointed out just how difficult it would be to organize a conspiracy to game the results, and how relatively few cases there have been recently of voter fraud. If Wallace doesnt ask the question, Clinton probably will, in keeping with her strategy to question Trumps temperament. But this also will be a national platform for Trump to spread that message, as he has at his campaign rallies, as he pursues an increasingly us-against-them strategy, even if it means characterizing non-partisan government institutions as being part of the corrupt elite establishment. The Emails. At the first debate, Clinton gave a succinct apology over her handling of State Department emails. At the second, she went into a bit more detail over what she knew about classification. Its likely that it will come up again, what with the FBIs latest release of interview notes from their investigation into her use of a private server. What has triggered alarms is the use of the phrase quid pro quo in the notes to describe a State Department officials request to the FBI to declassify one of the emails on her server. Trump has cited the document as proof that her campaign was in collusion with the State Department and the FBI to avoid prosecution although there is no evidence of that. The FBI and the State Department deny that some kind of exchange was ever even offered. The Clinton campaign has characterized it as a relatively common dispute between two government bureaucracies over classification. Still, the onus will be on Clinton to explain that in a simple way as well as to respond to almost certain Trump attacks based on the steady stream of WikiLeaks releases from hacked emails from her campaign. Climate change. The past few days have seen a flurry of groups lobbying for their questions to be asked in the debate, and a topic that so far hasnt been broached is any query about climate change. Given the priority it has been with the current administration, itd be a glaring oversight, particularly since there are wide gulfs between the Clinton and Trump positions. One group, the Open Debate Coalition, pressed the moderators of the second debate, Anderson Cooper and Martha Raddatz, to draw from a list of debate questions that were submitted and voted on by the public. Although Raddatz asked one of their questions, about a WikiLeaks release, they did not ask their top question, Would you support requiring criminal background checks for all gun sales? Undaunted, two of the coalition members, Adam Green and Grover Norquist, visited Wallace last week to urge him to ask the top queries. The Audience. At the second debate, Trump not only invited four of Bill Clintons accusers to sit in the audience, but he also held a pre-debate press conference with the women 90 minutes before it was to begin. Several news outlets reported on Tuesday that Trump would be bringing Obamas half brother Malik, a Trump supporter, to the third debate. The announcement came just hours after Obama said at a press conference that Trump should stop whining. I have never seen in my lifetime or in modern political history, any presidential candidate trying to discredit the elections and the election process before votes have even taken place, Obama said. Itll be another stunt, and perhaps part of Trumps legacy whether he wins or loses new attention to who participants invite to the debate, whether to throw off their opponent or to make a point during the event itself. As for the rest of the audience viewers the question is whether this debate will approach the hefty numbers of the first two. There was a big drop off in ratings from the first debate to the second: 84 million viewers to 67 million, according to Nielsen averages. In 2012, the audience for the debates between Obama and Mitt Romney gradually dropped off, from first to third. But that was a relatively tame race compared to this one, and a significant fall off in ratings could signal just how much Americans are turned off by the hyper negative campaign. This may be the last debate between Clinton and Trump, but it wont be their final meeting before the election. On Thursday, they are both scheduled to attend the Al Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York an event that has in the past been an opportunity for presidential candidates to engage in some friendly quips about the other. Well see how that comes off this time around. Related stories Julian Assange Has Internet Cut Off After Clinton Email Leak People Magazine: 6 Others Corroborate Writer's Story of Trump's Attack Helen Mirren Dismisses Donald Trump: 'Enormous Body, Small Head' Damascus (AFP) - Around 620 rebels and their families began evacuating a besieged town southwest of the Syrian capital on Wednesday under a deal with the government, a local official told AFP. "The buses of rebels have begun moving," said Hassan Ghandour, a member of the local committee overseeing the deal in Moadamiyat al-Sham. He said the buses held rebels as well as their family members and would head to Idlib province, northwest of Damascus. Moadamiyet al-Sham has been under a devastating government siege since early 2013. Syria's government has championed such local deals -- which typically see rebels evacuated in exchange for an end to their encirclement -- as a way to bring stability to the war-ravaged country. Another member of the local reconciliation committee who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity said the evacuees -- rebels and civilians -- numbered 2,100 people. Any remaining rebels would hand themselves in to Syrian authorities "to have their status regularised," the member said. "Then, the Syrian army will enter the town and state institutions will return to it. Infrastructure like water and electricity networks will be repaired beginning on Sunday," the member added. More than 300,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011. Michelle Obama is going out with a bang sartorially speaking, that is. During the final state dinner hosted by the Obama White House, for Italy, the first lady dazzled in a fireworks of a dress. Custom-made for her by Atelier Versace, the rose gold gown is made entirely of chain mail and features an off-the-shoulder strap as well as bodice ruching and flattering draping. The Versace gown isnt the only amazing gown FLOTUS has worn at state dinners. Throughout the nearly eight years she has been in the White House, the Obamas have hosted 13 events for foreign dignitaries, with the first lady making a fashion statement at every single one. Abbott Laboratories ABT is an Illinois-based company focused on bringing a diverse line of healthcare products to the market. Abbott Labs reports its diversified business in four segments namely Established Pharmaceuticals Division (EPD), Medical Devices, Diagnostics and Nutrition. The company has reshaped its portfolio through strategic acquisitions/divestitures in recent times. It has also been taking strategic steps to expand its footprint in the growing geographies and investing in R&D, which has resulted in numerous new product launches across its businesses. In Feb 2015, Abbott completed the sale of its branded generics pharmaceuticals business in developed markets. Realignment of the EPD division through acquisitions in Latin America and Russia, along with business divestitures in developed markets, has positioned the company well for the coming quarters. However, unfavorable movement in foreign currency rates is affecting the top line adversely. Abbott Labs has an impressive track record as the company beat estimates in the last four trailing quarters with an average positive earnings surprise of 3.11%. ABBOTT LABS Price and EPS Surprise ABBOTT LABS Price and EPS Surprise | ABBOTT LABS Quote Currently, Abbott Labs has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell), but that could definitely change following the companys earnings report which was just released. We have highlighted some of the key stats from this just-revealed announcement below: Earnings: Our consensus called for EPS of 58 cents per share, while the company reported EPS of 59 cents (from continuing operations excluding one-time items). Revenue: Abbott Labs posted revenues of $5.3 billion, in line with our expectations. Key Stats: The recent launches of FreeStyle Libre and MitraClip have boosted the performance. Foreign currency exchange rate movements negatively impacted sales by 1.1%. The company expects 2016 earnings per share in the range of $2.19 per share to $2.21 per share (excluding specified items). Check back later for our full write up on this Abbott Labs earnings report later! Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand.Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report ABBOTT LABS (ABT): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. EXCLUSIVE: The 2016 financial thriller feature Equity is headed to the small screen as a drama series, which has landed at ABC with a script commitment plus penalty. The adaptation hails from The Strain executive producer Regina Corrado and film and TV producer Amy Pascal. Sony TVs TriStar Television is the studio. Written by Corrado, Equity is set in the cutthroat world of investment banking. It centers on Naomi Bishop played in the movie by Anna Gunn a Wall Street banker who is navigating a world where big money and high-power reign, and women have yet to break the glass ceiling. With an aggressive prosecutor on her heels, and a strained relationship with an ambitious junior executive, Naomi is forced to reexamine the male dominated world in which she lives. Corrado executive produces with Pascal Pictures Amy Pascal and Rachel OConnor and the movies producers Alysia Reiner and Sarah Megan Thomas. Equity stood out when it premiered at this years Sundance Film Festival. Written, directed and produced by an all-female team, Equity featured main players who were all women while being set in a world heavily dominated by men, Wall Street. The auspices behind the TV series adaptation also are all female. The film, directed by Meera Menon and written by Amy Fox, was acquired by Sony Pictures Classics shortly before its Sundance premiere and was released this past summer to solid reviews. (watch a trailer below) The series adaptation was developed with Corrado at TriStar TV, which has female-centered shows as one of its focus areas. (TriStars first series since the labels revival is Amazons upcoming drama Good Girls Revolt, about young women working for a news program in the 1960s who fight against sexual discrimination.) It was TriStar TV head Suzanne Patmore-Gibbs who brought the project to Sony-based Pascal Pictures. Corrado is coming off a tw0-year stint as executive producer on FXs The Strain, working alongside executive producer/showrunner Carlton Cuse who also recruited her as a writer-producer on his A&E drama series The Returned. Corrado, whose resume is dominated by testosterone-heavy series, started her career on David Milchs Deadwood and John Fran Cincinnati and also worked on FXs Sons of Anarchy for four seasons. She is repped by WME and Zero Gravity Management. Story continues Also at ABC, Pascal Pictures and Sony TV have multi-generational soap American Heritage, from writer Taylor Hamra, which too has a script commitment plus penalty.. Reiner and Thomas of Broad Street Pictures are reped by CAA, which also handled the sale of the movie to Sony Pictures Classic. Related stories ABC Nabs Legal Drama From Shondaland & 'Scandal' Writer With Big Commitment ABC Developing Family Comedy From Eva Longoria & 'Telenovela' Creators ABC To Stack All Episodes Of This Season's New Series Milan (AFP) - Cameroon forward Vincent Aboubakar hit a brace as Ricardo Quaresma-inspired Besiktas ended Napoli's dreams of making Champions League history with a 3-2 win at the San Paolo on Wednesday. Napoli welcomed the Turkish champions knowing a third consecutive win in Group B, along with a draw between Dinamo Kiev and Benfica, would secure their entry to the last 16 with three games to spare and set a new competition record. But despite a promising start, Maurizio Sarri's men were wasteful in front of goal and paid the price for a glaring Jorginho blunder that saw 24-year-old Aboubakar give the visitors a 2-1 lead by the 38th minute. Napoli clawed their way back when Manolo Gabbiadini, demoted to the bench after 3-1 defeat to Roma last weekend, struck the leveller on 69 minutes after Lorenzo Insigne had missed from the spot shortly after the restart. But Napoli failed to capitalise on further chances and paid the ultimate price when Aboubakar headed Quaresma's delivery past Pepe Reina four minutes from the end. Besiktas' first group win since 2009 kept them in second place to sit just one point behind Napoli, whose next game in the competition is an away trip to the Vodafone Arena in Istanbul next month. Coach Senol Gunes said: "It wasn't east paying against the top team in the group. They have such a strong attack, so we made a few tweaks and worked really hard on our defensive game. "Napoli played well but we did well to score first and then we played on the counter-attack. It's a great win, I'm very happy." Napoli will have to wait longer than anticipated before booking their place in the knockout phase, and Belgian forward Dries Mertens, drafted in as a replacement for injured Poland striker Arkaduisz Milik, was among the most disppointed. "It's horrible to lose like this. We left everything out there, but we were unlucky," he told Premium Sport, "Physically and mentally we were fine... but they had three chances to score and put them away. Missing Milik wasn't the problem. We had plenty of chances." Story continues Mertens was handed a rare start in the striker's role and although he was their biggest culprit he soon vindicated Sarri's decision to leave Gabbiadini on the bench with a series of early chances, notably firing just over from 12 yards. But Besiktas breached the Napoli net after just 12 minutes when Adriano powered through to fire Quaresma's superbly-weighted ball past Pepe Reina. Mertens went on to miss three times in succession to pull the hosts level, notably glancing a header wide from Lorenzo Insigne's smart delivery on 29 minutes. Th Belgian finally made good a minute later when he powered past his marker to meet Callejon's perfectly-weighted delivery from the right to sidefoot past Fabri from close range. But eight minutes later Aboubakar pounced on an incredibly poor passback by Jorginho to beat Reina for a 38th minute lead. Wasteful in open play, Napoli were also off target in dead ball situations. When Fabri fouled Mertens in the area the referee pointed to the spot, but the Besiktas 'keeper recovered to stop Insigne's tame effort four minutes after the restart. Gabbiadini replaced Insigne on 65 minutes and four minutes later coolly stepped up to show his club-mate how it is done, beating Fabri from the spot after Caner Erkin had fouled Mertens. Napoli could have wrapped up a great comeback win but Gabbiadini was ruled offside after beating Fabri at the second attempt and Mertens fired a sizzling shot wide of the far post after outfoxing his marker. The hosts paid the price in the 86th minute when Aboubakar rose at the far post to meet Quaresma's delivery to beat Reina for the second time. PHILADELPHIA, PA / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / Wearing a seatbelt is required by law and is just good common sense. If you're involved in a car accident the chances are very good that the seat belt may prevent injuries or reduce their severity. If you choose not to use one, are involved in an accident and injured, different states handle the issue differently when it comes to lawsuits so you'll need advice on what to do from Philadelphia car accident lawyer Rand Spear. Pennsylvania and New Jersey take different approaches but in neither state does a failure to wear a seat belt prevent someone injured in a motor vehicle accident from filing a legal claim for compensation for injuries, but it may effect the outcome of the claim. In Pennsylvania, by state statute, whether or not a person in an accident used a seat belt is not relevant and has no impact on the case. Evidence of a person's failure to use a seat belt can't be used as evidence in a civil case. It's more complicated in New Jersey, says car accident attorney Spear. There is no New Jersey statute spelling out how the situation should be handled so that's been left up to the state's courts to decide. New Jersey is a comparative negligence state so even if a person is partially responsible for an accident and/or injuries, that doesn't prevent him or her from obtaining damages (money awarded as compensation for injuries and their effects). The fact a person wasn't using a seat belt can't be used as evidence when a judge or jury decides liability (or who is to blame for the accident) but it may be used as evidence when damages are calculated. Depending on the circumstances and the evidence produced at trial damages may be reduced. That's why it's so important to have a car accident lawyer on your side. The defendant has the burden of producing evidence the plaintiff was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. The defendant must next show which injuries were caused by the accident and which ones were caused or worsened by the fact a seat belt wasn't used. It would be up to the defendant to show first collision injuries, which are injuries that would have happened whether or not the injured party used a seat belt. Story continues Second collision injuries, or add-on or enhanced injuries, which are those that the use of a seat belt may have prevented or reduced. If there is sufficient evidence to allow a judge or jury to divide a victim's injuries and damages by isolating the second collision or seat belt damages, they would have to decide the value of those damages. This could be a complex challenge and an accident injury attorney may utilize accident reconstruction experts laying out how the accident occurred, what forces impacted the plaintiff's vehicle, where and how strongly, as well as how the plaintiff struck the interior of the vehicle, and medical experts testifying on which injuries resulted from the initial collision and which ones would've been prevented or lessened if a seat belt was used. If you or a loved one have been involved in an accident, weren't using seat belts and were injured in an accident you should still seek legal advice about how to protect your legal rights. If the accident happened in Pennsylvania, seat belt use is not an issue. If it occurred in New Jersey damages may be reduced but if the other party is found liable you might still be awarded damages. If you or a family member were injured in a motor vehicle accident in Pennsylvania or New Jersey, contact Philadelphia car accident lawyer Rand Spear today at 888-373-4LAW or through his website for a free consultation. You can discuss what happened, how the law may apply and your best options for obtaining compensation for your injuries. source: http://randspear.com/2016/10/17/accident-no-seat-belts-need-speak-car-accident-lawyer/ SOURCE: Rand Spear via Submit Press Release 123 The ACLU of Michigan has sued Flint Community Schools, the Genesee Intermediate School District and the Michigan Department of Education over what it claims is inadequate service for students in the wake of the Flint water crisis. After 30,000 children were exposed to lead in Flint, the ACLU of Michigan says schools have violated the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act by not providing adequate screenings and referrals for children with learning disabilities. Lead exposure can lead to such disabilities, as well as developmental delays and behavioral problems, CNN reports. The lawsuit notes 11 families with children who suffer from learning disabilities but were not evaluated for special education. It also claims such children often face suspension or expulsion instead of treatment. The governors office, Genesee Intermediate School District and Flint Community Schools all said they do not comment on pending litigation, although both school districts superintendents said they were committed to helping students and families. The governors office pointed out that increased funding had allowed the districts to hire more school nurses and open an early childhood program. The Michigan Department of Education declined to comment. [CNN] BERLIN, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Activist investor Petrus Advisers on Wednesday criticised a 25 euro per share offer for German roof tile maker Braas Monier from U.S. rival Standard Industries as too low in an open letter to Standard Industries owner 40 North. * "40 North's offer is a mistake," London-based Petrus writes in a letter to 40 North, published on its website. * Standard Industries' offer for Braas Monier values it at about 1.9 billion euros ($2.1 billion) including debt. The German company has rejected the offer as too low. * The Petrus letter says that "25 euros per share substantially undervalues Braas Monier even before taking into account the synergies 40 North wants to reap". * Petrus holds a little less than 3 percent of Braas Monier, a source close to the matter said. It would have to declare its stake only when it passes the 3 percent threshhold. * Petrus said it will not tender its shares at 25 euros and sees a price of between 28.50 euros and 31 euros as acceptable. (Reporting by Alexander Huebner; Writing by Victoria Bryan; Editing by David Goodman) GRAND ISLAND The Hall County Board of Supervisors has approved a nearly $75,000 settlement with a former county corrections department employee who accused jail managers of sexual harassment and unfair treatment of female employees. A lawsuit filed on behalf of Sgt. Debb Rea in May said her civil rights were violated by former Corrections Director Fred Ruiz and Assistant Director Jimmy Vann. The suit says female employees were subjected to harsher discipline, referred to in an offensive manner, directed to engage in conduct for the director's sexual enjoyment and denied promotions to qualified female employees while promoting unqualified male employees. Ruiz and Vann were fired by the County Board in August 2015 after Rea sent a letter to commissioners outlining her concerns and the county hired an attorney to investigate the jail. The letter was submitted after she was "constructively discharged" in 2015 after working at the jail for 30 years. The lawsuit asked for her to be reinstated, along with back pay and additional compensation for emotional and punitive damages. A county response to the lawsuit said Rea was offered her job back soon after Ruiz and Vann were fired, but she declined the offer. She later asked for a jury trial but was denied because she was not entitled to one based on her claims, according to the county. Hall County Attorney Jack Zitterkopf said the settlement includes a nonadmission clause, meaning Ruiz and Vann don't admit any wrongdoing. "Basically this agreement resolves all claims among those four parties up to the date that the agreement becomes effective," he said. In an effort to further streamline its global insurance operations, American International Group Inc. AIG has entered into strategic agreements with Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited. This leading global property and casualty insurer and reinsurer will take on American Internationals local commercial and consumer insurance operations in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay, Venezuela and Turkey. American International will also sell to Fairfax renewal rights for the portfolio of local business written by its Central and Eastern European (CEE) operations in Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia. Fairfax will also take over AIGs CEE operating assets and employees. This agreement will make Fairfax the main strategic multinational network partner serving AIGs global clients in these countries. Fairfax will however leverage on American Internationals expertise, claims handling, and reinsurance capabilities. The total cash consideration for the deal is nearly $240 million. AMER INTL GRP Price AMER INTL GRP Price | AMER INTL GRP Quote American International will not be directly involved in this deal but will provide world-class capabilities and outstanding service to its global clients in its key countries via Fairfax. This agreement is yet another effort made by American International to simplify its business structure by shedding assets. Last month, sources reported that Ascot Underwriting Holdings Ltd., the Lloyds of London insurer tied to American International Group Inc. will be bought by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. The deal, valued at $1.1 billion, would fetch American International $240 million for its 20% share in business and ownership of a related unit in the deal. The company has undertaken several divestures in a bid to make the company leaner. American International, which was a victim of the financial crisis in 2008, and was rescued by the government has generated funds more than $90 billion in funds by selling assets and businesses since then. Story continues The companys restructuring initiatives gathered steam in recent months after its CEO, Peter Hancock came under attack by the investor Carl Icahn last year November, via a letter in which he created pressure on the former to slim down the massive company by dividing it into three parts property and casualty, life and mortgage insurance. According to Icahn, these three businesses were so diverse that they together provided little or no synergistic effect. Also, the companys mammoth size acted as a hindrance in its own path to progress as evident by its underperformance from the past several years. Though the company has taken numerous divestures since 2008, it could not generate the anticipated returns. The company has therefore taken a series of steps since Nov 2015, after Peter Hancock was threatened to be replaced from his job. In the beginning of 2016, the company announced that it will return $25 billion to its shareholders over two years. In view of this, in August, the company announced that it will sell its mortgage insurance unit United Guaranty Corporation to Arch Capital Group Ltd. ACGL for $3.4 billion. Also, last month, the company completed the sale of its Taiwan unit. In May, the company also completed the sale of Advisor Group to investment funds affiliated with Lightyear Capital LLC. Other steps taken recently to drive up returns from the company include the announcement of a new share buyback plan to authorize the repurchase of additional shares with an aggregate purchase price of up to $3.0 billion. Prior to this, in Feb 2016, it authorized an additional $5 billion in share repurchases. The company also raised its quarterly dividend by 14%. Moreover, the company formed a new Executive Leadership Team structure comprising 10 heads all veterans in their respective fields to work toward attaining the strategic priorities of the company. Several jobs were slashed, including those at senior positions in the company in order save cost. Currently, AIG carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-placed stocks from the same sector are MGIC Investment Corp. MTG and Prudential Financial Inc. PRU. Prudential is expected to report third-quarter earnings on Nov 2. It has an Earnings ESP of +0.40% and carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here . MGIC Investment with a Zacks Rank # 2 reported third-quarter earnings of 25 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 17 cents. Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report AMER INTL GRP (AIG): Free Stock Analysis Report MGIC INVSTMT CP (MTG): Free Stock Analysis Report PRUDENTIAL FINL (PRU): Free Stock Analysis Report ARCH CAP GP LTD (ACGL): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Airbnb On Wednesday, Airbnb released a new set of rules to guide homesharing in New York City. But with the bill that could cap Airbnb's business in the city sitting on Governor Cuomo's desk, Airbnb's move could be too little, too late. Airbnb, the homesharing platform worth around $30 billion, says its new rules go further to regulate homesharing in New York than its rules in any other city, and it touts them as "comprehensive reform" that brings housing regulations into the 21st century. Airbnb's global head of public policy Chris Lehane even goes so far as to compare what Airbnb is doing to the rise of the automobile, which outpaced existing laws. But now that the Airbnb bill has been called to Cuomo's desk and the governor has until Oct. 29 to veto it, sign it, or do nothing which would effectively sign it into law Airbnb's new rules might be a "Hail Mary" pass to save itself at the 11th hour. The law The proposed law in question arrived on Cuomo's desk on Tuesday, meaning that the governor now has 10 days to make his decision. The bill passed in both houses of the New York State Legislature in June. AP395425175864 The bill is a follow-on to a 2010 law that bans rentals of less than 30 days in a multi-unit building if the tenant is not present, which was aimed at cracking down on illegal hotels. The 2016 bill bans the advertising of such rentals, meaning that hosts could not list a full apartment for rent on Airbnb for less than 30-day increments. Hosts caught listing their unit would be fined up to $7,500 more than most hosts in New York make in a year. The reaction Airbnb claims that the law is harmful to the middle class and would impose harsh penalties on its hosts, 96% of whom are hosts with one listing who rent their space 41 nights a year on average, Airbnb says. "Its baffling to us in this time period of economic inequality that folks would be looking to impose fines as high as $7,500 on a middle class person looking to use the home that they live in to help make ends meet," Lehane said during a call with reporters on Wednesday. "Those who want to be on the right side of history really need to understand whats at stake here." Story continues But proponents of the new law have argued the opposite, saying that Airbnb is responsible not only for gentrifying neighborhoods, but for contributing to the city's lack of affordable housing. Advocates for the bill say that commercial operators are listing vacant apartments for short-term rentals on the app, rather than making them available to tenants for long-term leases. In June, a report titled "Short Changing New York City" was released, which stated that rental rates are rising most quickly in neighborhoods where Airbnb is popular, and that Airbnb is responsible for gentrifying predominantly minority neighborhoods. The study was commissioned by advocates for affordable housing. At the time, Airbnb pushed against that report, saying it had taken down 2,233 listings within the last year that appearded to come from hosts listing multiple homes that "could impact long term housing availability." The report states that Airbnb removed 1,585 listings in Manhattan, 464 in Brooklyn and 126 in Queens. The new rules Airbnb is introducing five new rules in its proposal, which the company titled "Sharing for a Stronger New York": One host, one home Starting Nov. 1, Airbnb is rolling out new technology that will prevent hosts from listing more than one home in the city. Simple, mandatory registration Airbnb plans to create an online registration system for its hosts similar to its system in Chicago. Airbnb says the mandatory registration process in San Francisco is "an onerous, paperbased registration system" and the New York system would be quick and straightforward. Making home sharing work for all Landlords will be able to use part of the revenue from an Airbnb rental for building maintenance. Good neighbor rules Airbnb will implement a "three strikes" rule that would bar hosts from renting their property if they violate city or state laws Pay tourist taxes to support affordable housing Hosts in New York would pay all local and state lodging taxes, which Airbnb estimates would generate $90 million per year in New York State. Airbnb already collects taxes in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. The rules are aimed at making it tougher for commercial operators to list their available apartments on the site and to ensure that those listing their homes are regular, middle class people "just trying to make ends-meet." So why is Airbnb publishing these rules now, when they could have done so earlier on, perhaps avoiding this government scuffle? "Any number of the policies that are represented here on this document are policies that weve been talking about for some time in New York," Lehane said. "We put them all on this one piece of paper here so folks can see them and package them together. These are all things that we can substantively solve for." Chris Lehane But the bill's sponsor, Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal, told Bloomberg that the new rules are a last-minute attempt to negotiate a better deal. "Airbnbs entire business model is predicated on breaking the law," she said. "At the 11th hour theyre desperate to change the narrative, and we do not negotiate in newspapers, in the press, and especially with the lawbreakers." What's next Airbnb has threatened to sue the state if the bill is signed into law, writing in a formal letter to Cuomo in September that it "would have no choice but to immediately file suit against the State of New York and ask a court to declare the statute invalid and unenforceable as well as to award any damages and fees as appropriate." Josh Meltzer, head of public policy in New York, said Wednesday that Airbnb will keep working on the problem, whether the bill is passed or not. "Regardless of the outcome, our work on this issue continues," Meltzer said. "We look at this bill as not really addressing the problem here, which is making sure that regular New Yorkers who are sharing their home occasionally to make some extra money to make ends meet are protected while we target enforcement at the commercial operators who are really running illegal hotels and taking housing off the market." It's unclear how much Airbnb stands to lose if the bill passes, but New York is Airbnb's second-biggest market. As of June 1, there were 41,373 total active listings in New York's five boroughs and 22,253 of those were entire homes, which are not legal, according to the 2010 law. If those homes can no longer be listed on the app if the bill passes, Airbnb could stand to lose half their listings in New York. Since the company makes as much as 15% off each listing between 6% and 12% from guests and 3% from hosts this could be a significant financial blow to the company. But for now, Lehane seems unconcerned about the hit Airbnb might take in 10 days. The company is successfully regulating its hosts in cities around the globe, he said, and is confident that lawmakers and advocacy groups in New York will accept Airbnb's new rules, too. "At the end of the day, if Havana, Cuba, can figure this out, it seems to me that New York City ought to be able to figure this out," Lehane said. NOW WATCH: A popular 'Westworld' fan theory tries to explain the identity of the 'Man in Black' More From Business Insider By Dan Levine SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Airbnb promoted a series of policy proposals on Wednesday that the home rental company said would address concerns raised by officials in New York and San Francisco over how the company operates. Lawmakers in both cities have accused Airbnb of exacerbating an affordable housing crisis by encouraging property owners to remove long-term rentals from the market. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is currently considering a bill that would fine hosts $7,500 for listing units on the site that run afoul of local rental limits. He has until Oct. 29 to approve the law or veto it. San Francisco passed an ordinance earlier this year that would fine Airbnb and similar services $1,000 each time they process a booking from an unregistered host. Airbnb asked a San Francisco federal judge to strike down that law, and a ruling could come at any time. In a statement released on Wednesday, Airbnb touted a company policy that allows hosts to register only one home on the platform. The platform will automatically prevent hosts in New York and San Francisco from listing multiple units starting Nov. 1. "This will help to ensure that home sharing does not remove permanent housing from the rental market," the company said. Additionally, Airbnb proposed establishing a "three strikes" policy that would bar a host from the platform if they repeatedly violate local regulations. Airbnb also said it has worked with several cities and states around the United States to collect lodging taxes, and proposed that online platforms be authorized to collect and remit taxes from guests on their hosts' behalf. (Reporting by Dan Levine; Editing by Bill Trott) Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f252951%2f916a6c953c294b5f9f0139649495e549 On Wednesday night, the United States (and the world) will be subjected to one final presidential debate, the 26th debate overall of a long, exhausting, trying election cycle. SEE ALSO: 11 things to watch instead of the final presidential debate And, no, that's not a typo. There have been 26 debates in this election cycle and it was almost even longer thanks to a few primary debate cancelations. All told, there were 12 GOP primary debates, 10 Democratic primary debates, three presidential debates and 1 vice-presidential debate spread across 440 days. And there are still 20 days to go until Election Day. Here at Mashable, we've covered the election in a variety of ways but as the grueling process comes to an end, it's a good time for reflection. And with there being as many debates as there are letters in the alphabet, using words (the best words!) to describe this election cycle is the surest way to get our feelings across. A is Alt-Right The long toiling members of the alt-right have found in Trump a man they can embrace for his anti-immigration stance and his willingness to indulge in conspiracy theories (like the ones about Hillary Clinton's health). Will they continue to have a voice going forward? Sure, the internet indulges racist conspiracy theorists but a movement that embraces a cartoon frog probably doesn't have much of a chance for long term success. B is for Billy Bush Who in a million years would have thought that Billy Bush would be the member of the Bush family that would derail Trump's presidential campaign? With Trump already reeling from a poor performance in the first debate with Hillary Clinton, the tape of the vulgar 2005 conversation between Bush and Trump was another blow to an already teetering campaign. Story continues C is for Cinco de Mayo Never forget the most famous taco bowl ever consumed on top of a photo of an ex-wife. Happy #CincoDeMayo! The best taco bowls are made in Trump Tower Grill. I love Hispanics! https://t.co/ufoTeQd8yA pic.twitter.com/k01Mc6CuDI Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 5, 2016 D is for Deplorables Even though Trump's behavior means Hillary Clinton should probably be way ahead in the polls, she's occasionally gotten in her own way, like when she insulted Trump supporters by calling them "deplorable." The insult has been embraced by Trump's Twitter troll force and thrown right back at her millions and millions of times. E is for Emails The ongoing controversy with Hillary Clinton and her email services has been a major storyline, particularly for Trump. While Bernie Sanders didn't give a damn, Trump has made it one of the pillars of his attacks on Clinton, even saying that if he were president, Clinton would be in jail because of it. F is for Ferns As in Between Two Ferns, the popular Zach Galifinakis web series. It's hard to top President Barack Obama's previous appearance on the show but Hillary Clinton's Sept. 2016 appearance, in the midst of her campaign, was pretty darn good. Between Two Ferns With Zach Galifianakis: Hillary Clinton from Funny Or Die G is for Giuliani One of Trump's most notable surrogates has been former New Yorker mayor Rudy Giuliani. Whether it's forgetting 9/11, forgetting Hillary Clinton was in New York after 9/11, getting owned in TV interviews, or giving an animated convention speech, he's been a noteworthy sideshow to the Trump circus. H is for hands There's nothing wrong with those tiny hands. Trump wants you to know his hands are plenty big and he definitely does not have any problems with anything small. Everything is yuge. Donald Trump knows what you mean when you say he has small hands and he says there's no problem. Nope. #GOPDebate pic.twitter.com/7eJzbRDcvJ Mashable News (@MashableNews) March 4, 2016 I is for ISIS Battling ISIS has been at the core of Trump's platform, though his history on the terrorist organization is, at times, lacking. Not only did he insist Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton co-founded ISIS but he also tried to ding Hillary Clinton for fighting ISIS "[her] whole adult life." ISIS was founded in the early 2000s after the invasion of Iraq. J is for Jeb! If Donald Trump is your drunk uncle and Bernie Sanders is your college professor, then Jeb Bush is your awkward dad who pretends to be mad at you about breaking curfew but, deep down, just doesn't have the energy to give a damn, really. K is for Ken Bone Ken Bone, the red-sweatered undecided voter who captured America's attention during the second presidential debate, learned real quick it's a short fall from "America's sweetheart" to "unsavory fellow." pick up the phone baby you know im ken bone baby pic.twitter.com/eS0o0NVakG Hoodie Allen (@HoodieAllen) October 10, 2016 L is for 'Locker Room Talk' In the fallout from the release of that 2005 tape between Trump and Billy Bush, the Trump campaign has attempted to downplay the incident, insisting it was just "locker room talk" but many people who spend their careers in locker rooms beg to differ. Try again, Donald. M is for Melania While Melania Trump, wife to Donald, has raised eyebrows lately with her fashion choices and stance on online bullying, it will be hard to top the insanity that ensued following the revelation that her GOP convention speech featured passages that seemed cribbed from a speech by First Lady Michelle Obama. N is for the New York Times When the New York Times published the story of two women who accused Donald Trump of sexual misconduct, Trump fired back, threatening to sue the legendary newspaper. But the newspaper wasn't just going to take Trump's shots. Oh, no. They, instead, turned to the newspaper's attorneys for a legendary clap-back at a man who has made a thing out of frivolous lawsuits. The response of the New York Times to Trump's lawyers' demand for a retraction and their threats of a libel suit, is magnificent. @nytimes pic.twitter.com/VbgmFfFxwe Alex Andreou (@sturdyAlex) October 13, 2016 O is for Obama After years of being the vocal leader of the so-called "birther" movement, who insist President Obama wasn't born in the United States, Donald Trump finally reversed course, but not without getting a few things wrong along the way. An 'extremely credible source' has called my office and told me that @BarackObama's birth certificate is a fraud. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 6, 2012 P is for Pussy Trump is no stranger to the inappropriate use of this word. While most voters will forever remember the aforementioned 2005 tape and Trump's vulgar statement about women, there was also the incident in February 2016 when Trump, still fighting off challenges from other GOP candidates, repeated the word used by a rally-goer to insult opponent Ted Cruz. Truly a new course in crass rhetoric. Q is for (Avenue) Q The cast of Avenue Q probably got pretty close to how most of us feel about Election 2016 with the little ditty called "Donald Trump makes me wanna smoke crack." R is for Robot Rubio Oh Rubio. Poor, poor Rubio. You tried so hard but then you short-circuited under those hot debate lights. 2020 is your year. Really. S is for Skittles One of the sideshows of this election cycle has been the children of Donald Trump (shout out to Tiffany!). Most notably, Donald Trump Jr. made waves when he shared a meme that compared refugees to Skittles. It wasn't only statistically incorrect, but it was made up of plagiarized claims and photos. Additionally, Skittles was not amused, marking one of the rare cases in which a candy has denounced the words of a presidential campaign. T is for Trump In case you forgot the man who was the GOP nominee, Trump's appearances at the convention that coronated him left little doubt. U is for (Trump) University There was a university named after Trump and it turned into a mess and then a legal mess that's still lingering and Trump doesn't think much of the judge who's been presiding over the whole mess. V is for Vladimir Trump has no connection to Russia or its president Vladimir Putin, whom Trump is quite a fan of, at all. Nope. None. Zero. Zilch. Do you think Putin will be going to The Miss Universe Pageant in November in Moscow - if so, will he become my new best friend? Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 19, 2013 W is for Wall The alpha and omega of the Trump 2016 campaign: the wall that he wants to build between the United States and Mexico. Nobody wants to pay for it, surprisingly, not even Mexico who, Trump insisted, would pay for it. That said, Trump's plan for the "impenetrable... beautiful" wall sounds just a dragon-filled moat short of a ten-year-old's dream. X is for Xenophobia What's a better way to really get a campaign going then by singling out entire races and religions? As if calling Mexican immigrants rapists weren't enough, Trump announced a plan to ban Muslims from entering the United States. He's walked the proposed ban back since its debut but it came up again in the second presidential debate. The internet then battled back against the xenophobia spreading throughout the campaign with humor. I'd like to report a creeper who stalked a woman on the debate stage tonight. #MuslimsReportStuff Fasiha Khan (@fasihalim) October 10, 2016 Y is for YUUUUUGE When will the Oxford English Dictionary add it? Z is for the Zodiac Killer How much more absurd can you get than the meme accusing Ted Cruz of being the Zodiac Killer that got so big that wife Heidi Cruz had to actually deny it in public? Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte doesnt normally do hats. That said, he has cap firmly in hand during his first official visit to China, where the 71-year-old is engaging in a none-too-subtle attempt to cadge economic concessions from the Asian superpower. The only hope of the Philippines economically, Ill be frank with you, is China, Duterte told the Chinese state broadcaster CCTV in an interview released Wednesday, while describing his visit as the defining moment of my presidency and claiming that a fourth of our population are Chinese descendants. Duterte was elected by a landslide in May polls upon promises to purge the Philippines of crime and corruption within six months. Three months in and more than 3,600 suspected addicts and dealers have been killed, victims of an extrajudicial bloodbath meant to rid the country of drugs. The wave of violence has chilled relations with historic ally Washington, with Duterte unleashing a torrent of expletives at U.S. President Barack Obama as well as senior figures in the U.N. and E.U. in response to criticism of his human-rights record. This is the start of the souring of our relations with America, Duterte told CCTV. China, by contrast, has expressed support for Dutertes war on drugs, seeing an opportunity to mend relations with the nation that had, under former President Benigno S. Aquino III, stood up to Chinas expansive territorial claims in the South China Sea, where both nations squabble over ownership of rocks and reefs. Duterte, however, clearly sees economic benefits in softening his nations stance on the disputed islets, flying to Beijing with a phalanx of 250 Philippine business figures. Though his erratic behavior has previously caused the Philippine market to slump, the bourse rallied slightly on Wednesday as news of the Beijing charm offense reached investors. I would say that China deserves the kind of respect that China now enjoys, Duterte told Chinese state news wire Xinhua in an earlier interview. Story continues Whether China will be so easily swayed remains to be seen. He is insightful, down to earth, he could really serve his people, posted one user of Chinas Twitter-like microblog Weibo. Others werent so convinced: We cant rely on him, because he will follow anyone who gives him money, he is good at making use of the relationship between China and America, he bargains everywhere. Duterte, for his part, is pulling out all the stops, telling CCTV, Maybe because Im Chinese, and I believe in sincerity. (His grandfather reportedly hailed from China.) He is certainly sincere about wanting Chinese cash, even beseeching Chinese President Xi Jinping via CCTV to help build a Philippine railroad, saying: If you can find it in your heart to give it to us. With reporting by Yang Siqi / Beijing OMAHA Six rounds of layoffs will reduce the workforce at the Omaha Public Power District's Fort Calhoun nuclear plant to as few as 300 employees. There are currently 570 employees on site. The layoffs will occur over the next 20 months as part of the decommissioning of the plant, which will permanently cease power operations Oct. 24. The first round of cuts is scheduled around Nov. 1, and the next round is set for the first quarter of 2017. The first group of layoffs will be about 60 employees. After the layoffs, the plant will enter Safstor, which is a longer-term decommissioning method where facilities have closed up but not cleaned up until a later time. Mary Fisher, senior director of decommissioning for Fort Calhoun, told regulators Tuesday that employees are aware that layoffs beyond 2017's first quarter could happen sooner or later than called for in the preliminary plan. Fisher said OPPD's policy for the affected employees involves placing them into a career transition workshop, where employees can attend job fairs, receive resume help and gain access to recruiters. Fred Lyon, employee of NRC's Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, said the workshop can help maintain morale at a plant getting ready for permanent shutdown. "If I were a member of the Fort Calhoun staff, I wouldn't want to learn driving into the station while listening to the radio that my job was being eliminated," Lyon said. The decommissioning process includes disassembly and decontamination of equipment, which can take decades. For Good Girls Revolt creator Dana Calvo, it was never a question of whether the story of a band of magazine research girls suing for equal employment opportunities in the 1960s would be relevant. But Calvo couldnt have anticipated some of the developments that would make her series a vital part of a national conversation, like the Republican presidential nominee being accused of sexual misconduct by an increasing number of women. Twenty-seven months ago, it was more like, Amy Schumer was just busting out of the comedy scene and everyone was making noise about hiring more women directors, Calvo told Variety at the Good Girls Revolt premiere event on Tuesday evening in New York City at the Joseph Urban Theater at Hearst Tower. But this toxic campaign tenor has, in a way, provided this relief map for the stories were trying to tell now. Star Anna Camp had a similar reaction. Its definitely super weird, she told Variety. We didnt know Donald Trump was going to make this more relevant and thats not a good thing. Good Girls Revolt is Amazons latest original series, from TriStar TV and Amazon Studios. Its based on the real-life tale of the women of Newsweek in the late 1960s. At Newsweek, researchers put together reporting files for their reporters, who then wrote the stories. Reporters were exclusively men, until a group of female researchers, spurred on by civil rights activist and lawyer Eleanor Holmes Norton, demanded the same opportunities as their male counterparts. They sued Newsweek and won. The kind of discrimination faced by the women of Newsweek in 1969 is still around, Camp continued. Im always reading great scripts where there are, like, seven awesome parts for boys, and two parts for girls, and both of them are half-naked, she said. But perhaps worse still, Camp said, was realizing we now live in a society where the man who could become the leader of the free world feels comfortable spewing some of the lewdest things Ive ever heard anyone say. Story continues Camp co-stars with Erin Darke, Genevieve Angelson, Hunter Parrish, Chris Diamantopoulos, and a host of others. But its not only actors names that might sound familiar to viewers, as some of the characters are plucked straight from real life Grace Gummer plays Nora Ephron and Joy Bryant plays Eleanor Holmes Norton. Reflecting the monochromatic news magazine environment of the late 60s, Bryant is the only member of the main cast whos a person of color. Bryant told Variety shes used to that. I mean Ive always been one of the few, she said. But thats part of this story: The fact that these white women who are privileged and middle class had no idea that they were part of this fight. And it took a sister to let them know that. If it feels at times like were not so far removed from those days of de rigueur sexual harassment and unequal employment, though, Calvo has some words of comfort: I think its growing pains, she said. Whenever you expose things, its painful, but lets shine some sunlight on this. It just takes a regular person standing up for themselves and living with integrity. All 10 episodes of the first season of Good Girls Revolt will debut on Amazon Prime Video on Oct. 28. Related stories Garth Brooks Inks Exclusive Streaming Deal With Amazon Music 'Bosch' Renewed for Season 4 by Amazon Mipcom: Netflix, Amazon Now Rank Among TV's Giants, IHS Markit Says (EXCLUSIVE) After exploring the OJ Simpson trial and its intense media coverage and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, the third season of Ryan Murphy's anthology will focus on the famous Italian fashion designer's murder in 1997, US TV network FX has announced. Although its second season is yet to be filmed, "American Crime Story" has already been renewed for a third season. What's even more unusual in the world of TV, is that the theme of the true crime anthology's third 10-episode stint has already been unveiled: the murder of Gianni Versace. The founder of the Italian fashion house, Versace, was found dead July 15, 1997, in front of his Miami villa, with two bullet wounds to the head. Gianni Versace was the last of the five victims murdered by serial killer Andrew Cunanan. The police were never able to establish his true motives, however, as the killer took his own life eight days after the event. The Versace/Cunanan affair will be filmed in Los Angeles and Miami in spring 2017, at the same time as the anthology's second season, focusing on the damage caused by hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in August 2005. The second season is due to air in 2017, one year ahead of season three, due to land on FX in 2018. Ryan Murphy is currently in the process of casting this third season. The series creator, who's also set to direct the first episode, is searching for actors to play Gianni Versace and his sister Donatella, who has a major role in the upcoming dramatization. British novelist Tom Rob Smith ("Child 44") will pen the script, with the help of Vanity Fair journalist Maureen Orth's book "Vulgar Favors." "American Crime Story" launched on FX in February this year, and proved a TV hit with its first season tackling the trial of OJ Simpson and the surrounding media frenzy. Cuba Gooding Jr, John Travolta, David Schwimmer and Courtney B. Vance starred in the 10-episode debut season, which scooped nine Emmy Awards in September, including "Outstanding Limited Series." Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f252087%2ftrumpthumbdebate What surprises will Donald Trump have in store for us during tonight's debate? Only time will tell, but in true Trump fashion the Republican candidate is bringing yet another surprising and somewhat confusing debate guest, Barack Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother, Malik. SEE ALSO: Trump invites Obama's half-brother on stage, but nobody knows why Trump made waves during the second debate after he was accompanied by three women who had accused former president Bill Clinton of inappropriate sexual behavior Paula Jones, Kathleen Willey and Juanita Broaddrick along with Kathy Shelton, whose alleged rapist was defended by Clinton in the past. Many find Trump's debate guests puzzling, considering the fact that his opponent is in fact Hillary Clinton, and not her husband Bill or President Barack Obama. Also perplexing is that Trump's selection of debate guests has the sole purpose of causing provocation. In the past, these guest spots have been used for family members and prominent supporters. Following the latest news, Americans are joining in. In the latest game of political trivia, Twitter users are deciding who Trump should throw into the mix on Wednesday night. Some people are suggesting Trump invite his brother from another mother, Russian President Vladimir Putin. His favorite person in the world - Putin in the front row glaring at Clinton #TrumpDebateGuests Steven Nelson (@stevennelson899) October 19, 2016 He should just bring Putin & be done w/ it. He can run to the audience when Hilary's speaking & give Putin a neck massage #TrumpDebateGuests Helena Baptiste (@sumbodysbabygrl) October 19, 2016 #TrumpDebateGuests His close friend and ally Vladimir Putin Lori Pope Luther (@LoriPLuther) October 19, 2016 Others feel he should extend an invite to Julian Assange to help bring more attention to Clinton's email scandal. Julian Assange carrying a box with Hillary's missing 33,000 emails & destroyed Blackberry pieces #TrumpDebateGuests Alex Jordan (@alexmjordan) October 19, 2016 And in keeping with Trump's trend, many people are simply suggesting additional figures who play no major role in this election. Cop who wrote Hillary a j-walking ticket in 64'...#TrumpDebateGuests SomeAssNamedCarl (@RealCarlHardt) October 19, 2016 The Hawaiian doctor who remembers President Obama's mom wasn't there when he was born. #TrumpDebateGuests Nicole (@NicoleMT16) October 19, 2016 #trumpdebateguests Chelsea's best friend from kindergarten's mom's ex-boyfriend Arthur Goldman (@AdolfDorf) October 19, 2016 That person who insisted peas in guacamole was a good thing. #TrumpDebateGuests MHarvey (@mharvey816) October 19, 2016 Charles Manson via Skype. #TrumpDebateGuests Glenn Mann (@yourdamnnews) October 18, 2016 A Nickelback cover band #TrumpDebateGuests Crutnacker (@Crutnacker) October 19, 2016 In addition to Malik Obama, reports indicate Trump will also be bringing Patricia Smith, the woman who accused Clinton of "murdering" her son, Benghazi victim Sean Smith, to the debate. Whatever happens, it's bound to be an interesting night. Two Americans were killed and three wounded in an attack by an Afghan soldier at a military base near Kabul on Wednesday, in what appears to be the first such attack since April 2015, when an Afghan soldier killed an American soldier and wounded two more at the governors compound in Jalalabad, Nangarhar. If the shooting is confirmed to be an attack by an Afghan soldier on coalition personnel also known as green-on-blue attack, after the color coding assigned different forces it would recall a particularly dark period in the 15-year U.S. and NATO effort there where such attacks were commonplace. It would also spark fears that a situation military advisors had thought was a relic of years past may return. The attack took place at an ammunition supply point next to an Afghan base in Kabul after U.S. forces arrived for an inspection, Brig. Gen. Charles Cleveland told Foreign Policy on Wednesday. The incident is under investigation, but we think one gunman (who was killed) was involved in the attack, Cleveland said in an email. Among the dead were one U.S. service member and one civilian, while another service member and two other U.S. civilians were wounded but are currently stable, according to a statement from the U.S. military command in Kabul. Gen. John Nicholson, commander of the 7,000 U.S. and 5,000 NATO troops in the country, said that despite the attack, the coalition will continue to pursue our Train, Advise, and Assist mission to help our partners create a better Afghanistan. The Long War Journal has kept an ongoing tally of green-on-blue attacks, which peaked in 2012 when 44 attacks were responsible for the deaths of 61 members of the U.S.-led coalition. The motives for the attacks have varied widely, from assaults carried out by Taliban sympathizers, to soldiers with relatively simple grievances over issues like pay, leave, or disciplinary actions. Other deadly attacks on American and NATO forces have been over perceived failures of American forces to punish Afghan officers guilty of child rape and abuse. Story continues In one case in particular, three unarmed Marines were killed by an underage boy at an outpost in Helmand province in 2012 after an Afghan police officer who had a history of pedophilia was allowed back on the base by U.S. forces. In August 2014, an attack by an Afghan soldier at a training base in Kabul killed Maj. Gen. Harold Greene, the highest-ranked American officer killed in combat since 1970 in the Vietnam War. Photo Credit: WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP/Getty Images By Sudarshan Varadhan (Reuters) - American Express Co raised its 2016 adjusted earnings forecast and reported better-than-expected third-quarter revenue on Wednesday, sending its shares up 5.8 percent in extended trading. The credit card issuer, which has historically catered to upscale consumers, said it plans to increase spending on digital marketing, a strategy that helped it add 1.7 million new card members in the United States this quarter and expand globally. The company raised its full-year adjusted earnings forecast to $5.90-$6.00 per share from $5.40-$5.70 and reaffirmed its 2017 forecast, driven by faster than expected progress on its cost cutting initiatives. Analysts on average had expected the company to earn $5.50 per share in 2016, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. AmEx, which cut total costs by about 3 percent this quarter, wants to save $1 billion by the end of 2017. The year-to-date progress gives us greater confidence to substantially increase our investment spending during the remainder of the year and, at the same time, raise our 2016 earnings guidance," Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Chenault said in a statement. AmEx said it would renew emphasis on its Platinum cards, typically used by wealthy consumers, and on programs meant for customers outside its traditional base. The company has "successfully" shifted towards non co-brand card members who produce good returns although they have a slightly higher write-off rate, Chief Financial officer Jeffrey Campbell said on a conference call with analysts. The company ended a lucrative co-branded contract with Costco Wholesale Corp earlier this year. The portfolio accounted for about 8 percent of the spending on its cards in 2015. Total revenue, net of interest expense, fell 5 percent to $7.77 billion in the three months ended Sept. 30, beating the average estimate for only the third time in the last two years.. Revenue, net of interest expense, rose 5 percent when Costco-related gains were excluded from the third quarter of 2015. Net income attributable to common shareholders fell about 10 percent to $1.11 billion in the third quarter. On a per share basis, AmEx earned $1.20, beating analysts' average estimate of 97 cents per share on revenue of $7.71 billion. AmEx shares, which have fallen 13.6 percent this year, were trading at $64.71 in extended trading on Wednesday. (Reporting By Sudarshan Varadhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Don Sebastian and Grant McCool) steve case AOL founder and current venture capitalist Steve Case has words for Silicon Valley: you won't be the only game in town for much longer. "Last year 75% of VC went into 3 states, California, New York, and Massachusetts, and that's not going to be the case 10 years from now," Case told Business Insider in an interview at Vanity Fair's New Establishment Summit, where he is speaking. The reason: it's no longer enough for a young tech company to specialize in software alone. To thrive, tech startups need to partner with a wide range of companies with specific expertise in the areas they want to conquer, he believes. "This next wave of entrepreneurship, what I call the third wave, is going to require more partnerships," Case said. "The Facebook-Snapchat-Twitter wave is basically about the software and virally spreading it. But if you're trying to impact health care, education, food, energy, transportation, smart cities, driverless cars, they're all going to require partnerships." Those partnerships are more likely to happen in cities with companies that already compete in these industries. As cities to watch, Case pointed out: Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska, and St. Louis, Missouri, for farming and agriculture tech . "St Louis is particularly interesting because Monsanto is there, it's now in the process of doing a big merger, I'll bet you there'll be dozens of people, maybe hundreds of people, who leave and do some startup thing, and St Louis will be a hive of activity around ag tech." Albuquerque for water technology. "They have some national labs there, Sandia and Los Alamos, so some of the technology transfer [will be] coming out of those labs." New Orleans for educational tech. "They restarted their school system post-Katrina it's all charter schools, so much more open to innovation. It's attracted a lot of young people, Teach for America people in particular. Some stayed and are now opening up companies that are focused on improving learning in K-12." Pittsburgh for self-driving cars, thanks to Uber. "Uber started in San Francisco, but they're kind of betting their future on Pittsburgh. Partly because of Carnegie Mellon, partly because Pittsburgh is the steel capital making stuff, that's part of their legacy and culture and history." Story continues He also pointed to the example of Florida-based virtual reality startup Magic Leap, which has raised more than $1 billion in venture capital, as an example of how big tech companies no longer need to be started in traditional tech hubs like Silicon Valley. "The conventional wisdom was you could never build an engineering-centric company in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, you had to do it in Silicon Valley, or maybe you could do it in Boston. They've proven that wrong," he said. "Talent is ready to move, capital is ready to flow, we just need more of these tentpole breakout stories that will help accelerate." NOW WATCH: Solve one of these 5 problems to become a billionaire More From Business Insider By Dan Freed Oct 19 (Reuters) - In the latest apparent spoof on a U.S. securities regulator's online filing system, a Chicago-area artist with a fondness for inspirational quotes claimed to have acquired about $88 billion worth of Bank of America Corp shares on Wednesday. The filing did not appear to influence the stock price of the second-largest U.S. bank, which joins companies including Avon Products Inc, Integrated Device Technology Inc and Berkshire Hathaway Inc to have had fake filings attached to their ticker symbols on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's Edgar system. While the SEC did not respond to a request for comment and Bank of America declined to comment, securities experts said there was no doubt the filing was a hoax. In it, a company called YNOFACE Holdings Inc purportedly run by Antonio Lee said it had acquired 798.4 million Bank of America shares in an exchange on Aug. 15, and purchased another 4.2 billion common shares and 100 million preferred shares on Sept. 22. The common shares alone would represent nearly half the bank's total market cap. Bank of America's largest shareholder, The Vanguard Group, has roughly 610 million shares, a stake of less than 6 percent. In an earlier filing, YNOFACE said it had implausibly raised over $1 trillion for an art fund. A quick Google search for Lee found several promotional sites describing him as a "world renowned artist, and YouTube celebrity specializing in acrylic painting." A YouTube account characterizes YNOFACE as a company that "acquires, markets, and holds original art as a capital appreciation investment based off the fundamental metrics." Lee's Twitter posts showcase colorful paintings of a beach, elephants in love and a naked person with a bird's head, along with quotes like, "When an artist follows their intuition & dreams, society can only benefit." Its avatar is a painting of a man with a big red question mark over his face. Reuters' attempts to reach Lee were unsuccessful. Story continues While Bank of America appeared unscathed by the apparent scam, past phony filings have had real world consequences. Last year, Avon shares soared 20 percent on a filing about a fake takeover bid. The alleged fraudster was arrested earlier this year. The SEC's vulnerability to phony filings has attracted the attention of Iowa Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, who wrote to the regulator last year to express his concern. The YNOFACE filing is so bizarre it is more likely a prank than a scam intended to generate profits, according to Jay Ritter, a finance professor at the University of Florida. "Serious scamsters aren't so amateurish," he said. (Reporting by Dan Freed in New York; Editing by Lauren Tara LaCapra and Andrew Hay) EXCLUSIVE: Kris Thykiers Archery Pictures, Iain Softleys Forthcoming Films and Michael Mahers Start Motion Pictures are joining forces to develop Icarus, a feature film about legendary British-American astronaut Mike Foale. K-Pax and The Outcast filmmaker Softley is set to direct the project, which follows the story of Foale and his real-life space adventure in the 1990s during which he overcame a series of crises aboard the Mir space station to become one of NASAs most highly-respected astronauts to date. Story is based on the book Way Station to the Stars, written by Foales father Colin, and first-hand personal accounts of events. Forthcoming and Archery have acquired film rights to the book and exclusive rights to Foales story. Thykier, Maher and Softley will develop and produce. Softley will work with Hunky Dory and Lady Grey writer Laurence Coriat on the current draft of the script, which was adapted from the book and Foales personal recollections by Hilary Thompson. As well as being a close friend, Ive been a great admirer of Iain Softley for my whole working life and Im thrilled to have the opportunity to work with him on Icarus, said Thykier. The story is inspiring, touching and particularly resonant for an audience today. Michael Maher has proven his taste and acumen in his latest feature Passengers, with Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt, and I feel honoured to be working alongside of him. Softley said: I have been fascinated with Foales extraordinary story for many years and feel privileged to be working in such close collaboration with him on it. Its combination of the heroism of a space survival adventure with a deeply moving story of love and tragic loss will make for compelling cinema. Im delighted to be working with such experienced and talented producers as Kris and Michael and screenwriters Hilary and Lawrence. Maher added: Mike Foales story is remarkable. Im thrilled to be working with Kris and Iain to bring it to the screen. Story continues Archery is currently in post on John Maddens Miss Sloane, starring Jessica Chastain, which EuropaCorp is releasing in the U.S. on December 9. Its also producing Sky Atlantic Cote dAzur crime series Riviera, written by Neil Jordan, and Peter Kosminskys new four-part drama. Mahers Start Motion Pictures is currently producing Morten Tyldums Passengers for Sony Pictures and is also producing and financing Sean Durkins Janis, starring Michelle Williams. Meanwhile, Forthcoming Films, founded by Softley and producer Sarah Curtis, is currently in development on Daisy Ridley and Naomi Watts starrer Ophelia. Related stories Archery Pictures Sets Sail With 'Four Mums In A Boat' UK Producer Liza Marshall To Exit Archery Pictures 'Miss Sloane' Trailer: Jessica Chastain Takes On The Gun Lobby In Political Thriller Buenos Aires (AFP) - Dressed in black, thousands of Argentines took to the streets Wednesday to protest the brutal rape and murder of a 16-year-old girl, the latest case of violence against women to shock the country. The protesters -- mostly women, but also some men -- marched in memory of Lucia Perez, a high school student who died on October 8 after drug dealers allegedly raped her and impaled her on a spike. "If you touch one of us, we all react," said signs carried by many of the protesters, who staged an hour-long strike starting at 1:00 pm (1400 GMT). It was the latest in more than a year of mass marches to protest violence against women in Argentina, where according to government figures domestic violence kills one woman every 36 hours. Perez's killing was just the latest horrific episode. Last year in June, protests broke out nationwide over a trio of gruesome killings: a kindergarten teacher whose estranged husband slit her throat in front of her class; a 14-year-old girl whose boyfriend allegedly beat her to death because she got pregnant; and a woman whose ex-boyfriend stabbed her to death in broad daylight at a Buenos Aires cafe. "The case of Lucia Perez acted as a trigger to demand justice for all women who suffer sexist violence," said one protester in downtown Buenos Aires, Gabriela Spinelli. Organizers said the goal was to condemn not only Perez's killing, but a culture that values women less than men -- which they said can be seen in statistics such as the unemployment and poverty rates. Brutal rapes are the product of a society where boys are not raised to respect women, said demonstrator Karina Munoz. "A rapist isn't a monster. He's not sick. He's a healthy child of this system, which produces men who don't respect it when women say no," she told AFP. Despite a rain storm that likely dented turnout in Buenos Aires, demonstrators managed to block off several avenues in the capital, as supporters applauded from office buildings. In Spain, hundreds of women protested in solidarity in Madrid and Barcelona. Demonstrations were also held in various cities across Latin America, including Lima and Mexico City. (Reuters) - An Arkansas man suspected of robbing a bank and arranging ahead of time to purchase a used motorcycle for a getaway ended up behind bars after he was arrested by the person who managed the sale, a police officer in uniform, police said on Wednesday. Hunter Chafin, 19, was arrested on Friday on suspicion of stealing $3,350 in cash from a bank in Eureka Springs. After the robbery, he took a taxi about 40 miles (65 km) to Bentonville, where he had arranged before the robbery to buy the motorcycle from a young man, police said As Chafin arrived at the home, so did local police Corporal Steve Vera, who was in uniform and helping his son, who owned the Honda motorcycle, make the sale, police said. Police said Chafin paid for the taxi with $150 in cash taken from the robbery and bought the bike for $2,900 in cash. He had negotiated the price down from $3,200 originally sought by the seller. A few minutes after the sale was complete, Vera received a call that Chafin was a suspect in a bank robbery, and arrested him about 4 miles (6.5 km) from his house, Bentonville Police spokesman Gene Page said. "It was a series of bold steps that really did not pan out for the suspect," Page said. There was no lawyer listed for Chafin in online arrest records. No one was injured in the robbery and police said the remaining $200 he had left in cash from robbery was recovered on the suspect as well as a note used in the robbery. (Reporting by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Frances Kerry) gladiator Black Monday was 29 years ago on Wednesday. When people refer to the events of that October day, they're quick to cite the shocking 508-point plunge or the fact that the three-digit number translated to a 22.6% drop. But those numbers alone don't quite convey the fear that investors and traders felt at the time. In his latest note, veteran trader Art Cashin, the director of floor operations for UBS Financial Services at the New York Stock Exchange, shared what he remembered about the mood on the floor as Black Monday went from bad to worse. He details the frenzy among traders and even recalls a broker soberly alluding to the mythical gladiator's salute, immortalized by Roman historian Suetonius. Via Cashin: "At the time, I was running the floor for PaineWebber. Monday morning I got up well before dawn and saw that Hong Kong was down about 10% and other markets were looking equally weak before their openings. I headed for the NYSE to check on our systems and staffing. I reached out asking the team to get in early. Once I had checked out the systems and verified staffing, I went with a partner up to the Luncheon Club for a quick coffee. With markets around the globe all down about 10%, I didnt know if wed get to a coffee or anything else after we opened. We sat about two tables away from a table where NYSE Chairman John Phelan sat with several directors and some staff. Every ten minutes or so, someone would rush up to Phelan and slip him a note or whisper in his ear. It was evident that things were deteriorating. As I headed for the floor, I went past Phelan's table, put my right arm across my chest and said 'Nos Morituri Te Salutamus Esse'. It was the gladiator's salute to the Emperor 'We, who are about to die, salute you'. Phelan nodded without a smile. [...] Shortly after the opening, as it became clear that this would be a very special and very dangerous day, several NYSE directors met in Chairman Phelan's office. They checked around the street to gauge any new trends in the selling pressure. They were also on the phone with the White House via former Senator Howard Baker, who was White House Chief of Staff. Story continues Meanwhile, back on the floor, the situation felt more unreal. Orders flowed in faster and faster and the tape ran later and later. (The tape was linear and the human eye can only recognize a certain number of symbols per second, 900 I think. To run faster than that would make the tape an unreadable blur. Traders can trade faster than the maximum reading speed so the tape ran late.) One broker said it was like a bizarre dream sequence nothing seemed real." "It was an incredible time and the financial system was within hours (and a few phone calls) of an absolute collapse," he added. "It was a time I'll never forget." Still, remarkably, the stock market didn't die and gross-domestic-product growth never went negative that year. NOW WATCH: Wall Street's unbelievable secret history More From Business Insider From Cosmopolitan Ashton Sachs, 22, was ordered on Friday to spend the rest of his life in jail after he last month pleaded guilty to the murder of his parents and attempted murder of two of his siblings, CBS News reports. When Sachs was originally charged with Andra and Brad Sachss highly publicized deaths in 2014, he maintained his innocence for years; his recent plea change marked another shocking twist in an already-shocking case. Andra and Brad Sachs were real estate and technology moguls who lived in a multi-million-dollar San Juan Capistrano, California, home with their three other children Landon, 8, Lana, 9, and Alexis, 17. Ashton, who was 19 at the time, and his older brother Myles, now 23, were both living in Washington to attend college and manage one of their parents properties there. Originally, both Myles and Sachs provided alibis - and a list of angry former business partners who mightve had motive to commit the crime - for the night of February 9, 2014, but soon after the murders, authorities found a military-style assault rifle in the trunk of Sachss car, leading them to name Sachs as the main suspect in the case. They eventually determined hed driven 18 hours through the night to his parents home, snuck into the house wearing a beanie and gloves at 2 a.m., and shot them each at least 10 times in the face and body. Some of the shots were taken at point-blank range, the OC Register reports. After shooting his parents, Sachs moved on to his siblings. He did not shoot at Lana, who was on a different floor, but he shot at Alexis, who remained unharmed because he missed. He shot Landon in the spine - the boy is now permanently paralyzed. Sachs was back at his home in Washington by the time he and Myles got the noon call that their parents had been killed. Photo credit: CBS Days later, Sachs spoke beautifully at the funeral, according to CBS, saying I really do believe that both their energy is alive and they will continue to guide me throughout life. As a kid I just always thought I have pretty awesome parents, I dont know how or why to sum up how they were perfect parents other than that everything they did was always for their children. When he was arrested, he countered all the things hed said during the eulogy, telling investigators he was angry at his parents for not taking a previous suicide attempt of his seriously and because he believed he was their least favorite child. At that time, he was still maintaining his innocence. Story continues Its unclear what happened last month that prompted Sachs to change his mind, but he called an unexpected hearing in which he changed his plea to guilty to his charges of special-circumstances murder and attempted murder. When asked by the judge if he understood the rights he was giving up and that he would never be released from prison, Sachs responded: Yes, I do. Photo credit: CBS According to the OC Register, pleading guilty to special-circumstances murder mandates life in prison without the possibility of parole. Sachs was sentenced to four lifetimes in jail (two of which are without the possibility of parole) and an additional 100 years for the use of his firearm. He has since shown little emotion (prosecutors alleged in court he is a sociopath) or offered any more explanation as to why he committed the crimes. 48 Hours reports none of Sachss siblings attended the sentencing, but his aunt on his fathers side Lisa McGowan did and she spoke to the courtroom and addressed Sachs directly: I am told by friends and family to forgive you Heres my choice: I cant forgive you. Follow Tess on Twitter. You Might Also Like DECATUR -- Steve Chace has worn the same T-shirt and jeans for days, ever since a cloud of noxious anhydrous ammonia chased him from his home north of Tekamah late Monday night. The overwhelming smell of ammonia woke him that evening just after 9 p.m. He looked out the window and in the moonlight saw a white plume of gas billowing 30 to 40 feet into the air. The misty fog was heavier than air, hugging the ground, rolling downhill and pouring through trees west of his home. It was pungent, overpowering. One breath of it, and you cant breathe anymore, he said. Chace, who works as for an environmental engineering firm that responds to chemical spills, knew exactly what it was. The anhydrous ammonia pipeline a couple hundred feet from his home had ruptured. And he knew both he and his neighbors needed to get away. He made a series of rapid phone calls to 911, to the pipeline owner Magellan Midstream Partners, and then to people whose homes were in the path of the cloud. The break in the 8-inch pipeline spilled 294,000 gallons of liquid anhydrous ammonia, a commonly used fertilizer, which turns into toxic gas when released, reported Magellan Midstream Partners, headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma. One man, 59-year-old Phillip Hennig, lost his life when he drove into the plume. Local emergency responders evacuated about 40 people living in the 23 homes within a two-mile distance of the spill. On Wednesday, U.S. 75 between Decatur and Tekamah remained closed in both directions for the ongoing work to repair the pipeline. At the Decatur City Hall on Wednesday, Magellan spokesman Bruce Heine told a gathering of evacuees that the timeline for getting them home was being pushed back to Thursday evening. What were trying to do is the right thing to get you home safely and returned to your normal lives as quickly as possible, Heine told the crowd. The worst thing we could do is to let you go home and have to re-evacuate you again. The air quality in the area and at each home will be tested before people are allowed to return, he said. *** Friends of the farmer who died said they believe he may have been trying to help his neighbors when he drove into the anhydrous ammonia cloud. He heard a noise or he smelled it, and he went to see if he could help. That was Phil, said Mary Kahlandt, who lives down the road and was one of those evacuated. Its who he was. Chace, the man who saw the cloud and left his own house to seek safe ground, saw the lights of Philip Hennigs pickup as it drove into the cloud, then heard a crash as it hit a ditch. It took rescue workers hours to reach Hennig because of the danger posed by the fumes. Nebraska State Patrols HAZMAT team, working with Tekamah Fire and Rescue, finally reached his body about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday. Philip Hennig had three younger siblings, said his brother Alan Hennig, who also lives near the leak and had to evacuate. Since he was the oldest, a guy always looked up to him, he said. We all grew up on the farm, and he continued farming. Alan Hennig said it would have been in character for his brother to be looking to help. Philip Hennig was a family man, a regular at church and active with his children in 4-H. He liked to collect motorcycles and recently helped his 18-year-old son, Thomas, restore an antique Farmall tractor, Alan Hennig said. His wife, Sandra, works at a farm supply store in Tekamah, and they have four children. Funeral services are pending through Pelan Funeral Services in Tekamah. *** Magellan first noticed a drop of pressure in the pipeline system just after 9 p.m. Monday. The company worked to shut off valves on either side of the break and then further isolated it by blocking a portion of the pipeline with machinery. On Wednesday, crews were purging the remaining anhydrous ammonia, allowing it to bleed out of the section by pumping it full of air, said Cody Annis, Magellans area supervisor. Once that is done, the broken pipe, which is buried 5 feet deep, will be dug up and replaced, Annis said. The broken section will be evaluated by experts to determine why it ruptured. The Magellan pipeline starts near Borger, Texas, and runs through Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota. The 1,100-mile section that runs through Nebraska was built in the late 1960s. Its one of two anhydrous pipelines in the United States, said Heine, the Magellan spokesman. Independent experts are monitoring the air quality in the area and at the site of the leak. Interstate pipelines are regulated by federal officials. U.S. Department of Transportations Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were on site Wednesday. A spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board said a preliminary report would be released once investigators have had a chance to evaluate the situation but declined to say how long that would take. Completion of a full report could take a year or longer. The evacuated area is rural farmland. Some people were allowed to go back briefly Tuesday and Wednesday, escorted by safety experts with air monitors, to care for animals or grab medications. Kim Fleischman returned to his farm just after noon Wednesday to feed his cows and dogs. Where the anhydrous cloud touched grass, he said, it turned black. I looked up and 30-foot evergreens were brown. Alfalfa that used to be green was yellow, he said. No animal deaths have been reported, although Kathy Fleischman wondered about the long-term effect on cattle and wildlife. We sell that beef to people for meat. Would you want to buy it, she said. I feel like Im living through an apocalypse. Magellan has pledged to pay all costs incurred by evacuees, emergency responders and local governments due to the pipeline rupture. Several community members on Wednesday at the Decatur City Hall questioned the safety of the pipeline and past leaks. They asked when the company had last evaluated it for safety. Answers were not readily available. Chace and several others of those evacuated said theyre impatient to get home but understand Magellans decision to be cautious. Many of those evacuated are staying with friends and family, although Magellan also is paying for several families to stay at a motel across the Missouri River in Onawa, Iowa. I understand the delays. I dont have a problem with that. Ive been wearing the same clothes for three days. Id like to get home, but its going to be another day, Chace said. A student who graduates with $30,000 in debt could take years to pay it off, or may not pay it off at all, falling into default. According to the Institute for College Access & Success, that is the average amount for students who graduated in 2015. For some students, the problem was much worse: Nationally, about seven in 10 (68%) college seniors who graduated from public and private nonprofit colleges in 2015 had student loan debt, a similar share as in 2014. These borrowers owed an average of $30,100, up four percent from the 2014 average of $28,950. At the college level, average debt at graduation ranged from $3,000 to $53,000. ALSO READ: Cities Where You Don't Want to Get Sick Debt fell into two categories, with one usually better for graduates: Carrying nonfederal loans can significantly affect borrowers ability to repay what they owe because such loans typically have higher costs than federal loans and provide little, if any, relief for struggling borrowers. Debt figures reported by colleges suggest that almost one-fifth (19%) of 2015 graduates debt is comprised of nonfederal education loans, similar to recent years. And debt levels varied substantially by state. In New Hampshire, the figure was $36,101. In Pennsylvania it was $34,498 and in Connecticut, $34,773. At the other end of the debt amount list, Utah was at $18,873, New Mexico at $20,893 and California at $22,191. According to the Department of Education, default rates are very high, according to its Federal Student Aid division: Secretary King announced that the FY 2013 national cohort default rate is 11.3 percent. MarketWatch came up with slightly different numbers, but still alarming: The total outstanding student loan debt in the U.S. is $1.2 trillion, thats the second-highest level of consumer debt behind only mortgages. Most of that is loans held by the federal government. About 40 million Americans hold student loans and about 70% of bachelors degree recipients graduate with debt. The class of 2015 graduated with $35,051 in student debt on average, according to Edvisors, a financial aid website, the most in history. One in four student loan borrowers are either in delinquency or default on their student loans, according the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Story continues While $30,000 may not seem like a huge sum, it is to the one has to repay it. Related Articles PARIS/SAO PAULO, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Irish aircraft leasing company Avolon is suing Brazilian airline Avianca Brasil and its parent company for an alleged default on a lease for an Airbus jetliner, leaving more than $4 million in unpaid rent, U.S. court documents show. Avolon is also suing both the airline and its parent, Synergy Aerospace Corp, for breach of contract over the two-year-old lease for an A330 jet and is seeking $5 million in damages, according to a complaint seen by Reuters. Dublin-based Avolon declined to comment. A spokesman for Avianca Brasil said the company was not aware of any court case and would not comment on confidential contracts. Synergy Aerospace did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The lawsuit comes as the airline considers options for a possible international partner to help it to weather Brazil's worst recession in decades. Avolon is owned by China's HNA Group, which has expressed interest in acquiring both Avianca Brasil and Panama-based sister airline Avianca Holdings, Reuters reported in June. Both of the airlines are controlled by Bolivian-born entrepreneur German Efromovich's Synergy Group. Delta Air Lines and United Continental Holdings are also seen as potential suitors. Avianca Brasil's chief executive, Frederico Pedreira, said last month that there were no clear signs of Brazilian air travel demand rebounding by the end of this year. The lawsuit was filed on Avolon's behalf by a bank trustee in the southern district of New York on Oct. 14, the same day as Avianca Brasil celebrated taking delivery of its first Airbus A320neo jet. According to court documents, Avolon says it leased the larger and longer-range A330 jet to the airline in June 2014 for $849,000 a month in rent, plus other costs, under a 10-year contract. "Over time, the lessee fell behind on its payment obligations under the lease," Avolon's complaint alleged, adding that as of Oct 11, the airline owed $4.6 million plus interest. (Reporting by Tim Hepher and Brad Haynes; Editing by David Goodman) Azealia Banks is calling on her fans to "make Azealia great again" following an alleged clash with actor Russell Crowe at a party in his Los Angeles home over the weekend. "These past few days have been rough," the Harlem rapper wrote in a private Instagram post on Wednesday (Oct. 19). "I want to thank the kuntbrigade so much for being there for me. Although this situation was beyond my control, I promise you all that This is the LAST time I will be in the news for anything negative." She continued in the lengthy caption, "Somewhere along the way I got sucked into this neverending war with the media that I quite honestly don't have the energy, patience or care to keep fighting. I GIVE UP! And I give in. I love you all tremendously. If you would all please join me in spreading the hashtag #makeazealiagreatagain On all of your AB related posts and comments." She also teased that she would be dropping a "So Ghetto" freestyle today. NEW AZEALIA BANKS SONG: WILL BE RELEASED LATER TODAY!!!!! STAY TUNED pic.twitter.com/LmX61wyF3i - K A M I (@nakkkami) October 19, 2016 In other Banks-related news, TMZ reports that the "212" hitmaker has allegedly called off her deal with Wu-Tang Clan's RZA, who invited her to Crowe's party. Last week, she revealed that she had landed a record deal with the rapper/producer/musician. Her rep says that a press release containing her statement will be sent out later today. Bilboard has also reached out to RZA's rep for comment. Usually, when people talk about Donald Trump reaching new lows these days, theyre referring to his personal conduct, but as the presidential race nears its November 8 climax, Trump is finding new kinds of depths to plumb -- namely, his miserable poll numbers. That Democrat Hillary Clinton is winning the election is no longer really in doubt. She leads by an average 7.1 points in the Real Clear Politics polling average, and leads in every reputable individual national poll except for one, conducted by the Los Angeles Times, which has been consistently out of step with the rest of the industry all year. At the state level, she is ahead, often substantially, in most of the states traditionally considered battlegrounds and is gaining on Trump in some places, like Georgia, that were never expected to be competitive in the first place. Related: Debate Night: Get Ready for Donald Trumps Last Political Reality Show But for Trump, the humiliation goes deeper than just the top line numbers in the national polls. In the past weeks, his offenses against common decency and common sense have piled up: the sexual assault scandal, his intemperate Twitter attacks on fellow Republicans (and random beauty queens), his insistence that a vast global conspiracy exists to deny him the presidency. And as they have, traditionally loyal Republican voting blocks have been renouncing Trump in droves. A Bloomberg poll out today tells a story familiar in much of the recent national polling. Unsurprisingly, Clinton leads Trump by 17 points among women in general, but she is also leading the GOP nominee among a more reliably Republican subset of the female vote: white women prefer Clinton 46 percent to 45 percent. Until recently, Trump has been able to count on majority support from men, but now even that is in question, with Bloomberg showing Clinton with a 46-44 lead. Related: From Obama on Down, Democrats Are Just Trolling Trump Now Trump has, for most of his campaign, at least been able to count on the votes of non-college-educated whites. But the Bloomberg poll finds that even they are now abandoning him. What had been an 8 point cushion for Trump is now a two point Clinton advantage. Story continues The most shocking shift of the campaign, though, has been how college-educated white voters have repudiated Trump. Whites with college degrees have supported the Republican presidential nominee for president in every election for the past 60 years, usually by double-digit margins. Trump, however, has so alienated that demographic slice of the voting public that Clinton is now the one with a double digit lead -- 13 points, according to Bloomberg. Trumps across-the-board decline is even more impressive when you consider that his opponent remains one of the most unpopular major party presidential candidates in U.S. history. Clinton, according to Real Clear Politics, has an average favorable rating of just 43.1 percent, while her unfavorables are at 52.5 percent. That 9.4 percent hole would be a massive liability if Clinton were not running against Trump, whose numbers are much worse. Related: John Kasich: If the Republican Party Doesn't Evolve, It's Going to Die Trump is viewed favorably, at this point in the race, by little more than one-third of the electorate: 34.8 percent. A much higher percentage, 61.1 view him unfavorably, for a stunning 26.3 percent gap, unheard of in presidential politics. The big question at this point in the race would seem to be whether Trumps plunge will continue. There is plainly a hard core of support at some level, mainly the voters who gave him a plurality of the votes in the Republican presidential primary. But with the revelation that Trumps strategy for the final debate tonight involves bringing guests like President Obamas estranged half-brother into the venue, we may find out just where Trumps basement is. Top Reads from The Fiscal Times: After stepping outside the J. E. Cauthen & Son store advertising arms, art and collectibles in Fredericksburg, Texas (population 11,000), where historical rifles were priced from $10,000 to $100,000, I made another mental note about what an unusual town this is. Located an hour and a half north of San Antonio, Fredericksburg retains the character of an authentic 1800s-era Texas Hill Country settlement. Yet, sprinkled throughout are an unending number of surprising discoveries such as the world-class National Museum of the Pacific War, and the Texas White House and ranch of former President Lyndon B. Johnson. Add in a plethora of one-of-a-kind mom-and-pop boutique food, art and antique shops, a wildflower seed farm, a celebrated German heritage in the middle of Texas, a predominant golden limestone architecture, and the result is evident. This is a destination worthy of a multi- day visit, and that is even before you learn about the 30 vineyards and tasting rooms nestled in the surrounding hillsides. At the National Museum of the Pacific War (U.S. Admiral Chester William Nimitz, the commander in chief, United States Pacific Fleet in World War II, is a hometown hero), the epic conflict is chronicled through a myriad of galleries. Interactive displays are interspersed with authentic Japanese and American aircraft, a Japanese two-man submarine and one of the five original casings made to hold the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end the war. There is so much to see, tickets are good for two days. About 18 miles outside of town, the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historic Park is where the 36th president spent almost one-fourth of his time in office, making 72 trips there totaling 490 days. For me, it is like refueling a car, he remarked. A self-driving tour includes a visit to the home that became known as the Texas White House, and the bedroom where he died. Johnson is buried on the ranch in the family cemetery, not far from where he was born on the property. Texas Herefords descended from the original presidential herd still roam the pastures of what is still a working ranch, and each displays the LBJ brand on its horns. At the end of a mile-long landing strip, the small jet that brought LBJ to the ranch, nicknamed Air Force , can be visited. Shopping in Fredericksburg is as varied as in a large city. More than 20 art galleries and 150 unique shops line Main Street (which is five lanes wide so a team of eight oxen could be turned in the 1800s). At Quintessential Chocolates, visitors can stand next to the production line and wait for tastes while employees finish a batch of liquid-center chocolates, which will contain one of over 150 beverages such as Kentucky Bourbon. The products of Fischer and Wieser Specialty Foods are sold throughout the United States, but the firm still maintains a one-room hometown store in Fredericksburg where its now-famous Raspberry Chipotle sauce was introduced. May through July, local teenagers sell peaches from a stand in front of the shop, freshly picked from the 40-acre orchard behind the store. Outside town, the 217 acres of flower fields at Wildseed Farm add intense colors to the landscape from spring through the first frost. Owner John Thomas wont let visitors leave with just any seed packet unless included varieties are matched for the climate where they will be planted. While there are several franchise hotels (a strict sign ordinance makes them difficult to spot), many accommodations are one-room guesthouses that trace their origin to immigrants arriving from Germany in the mid-1800s. Settling on ranchland outside of town, they built Sunday houses in Fredericksburg to use on weekends. Copying the Sunday house tradition, more than 800 one-room guesthouses operated by more than 500 different owners cater to tourists. We also have 12 bed and breakfasts and 1,100 hotel rooms, says Ernie Loeffler, president of the Fredericksburg Convention and Visitor Bureau. A strong German culture remains in Fredericksburg, which was named after Prince Frederick of Prussia. The phrase Willkommen is frequently encountered on doors, and friendly residents or store employees are eager to tell visitors about their own German roots. In fact, the town is home to Texas German, a dialect spoken by first-generation settlers who refused to learn English. The best place to get a panoramic view of Hill Country is a short but strenuous half-hour climb 420 feet to the top of Enchanted Rock outside of town. The pink granite dome appears as though it was a mammoth moon rising from the horizon. Hearty climbers are treated to a well-earned, 360-degree view of one small hillside after another and are the origin of the hill country moniker. Plans are underway for a large resort spa, and 20 more wineries are seeking permits from the state, Loeffler says. Visitors should head to Fredericksburg soon, before the small-town charm changes and while the big-city attractions and unique shops are still uncrowded. VILNIUS (Reuters) - Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia intend to triple annual spending on arms and military equipment to $670 million by 2018 from 2014 due to fears of Russia following its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region, an IHS Markit report said on Thursday. By 2020, it said, the combined overall defense budgets of the three Baltic republics will reach an estimated $2.1 billion, more than double that when the countries entered NATO in 2004 and the fastest such growth in any region worldwide. "We have seen political confrontation between Russia and the West in the past 2-1/2 years escalate to military assertiveness and we do not see this ending anytime soon," said Alex Kokcharov, principal analyst in the country risk division of IHS Markit, a prominent research and analysis firm. "This confrontation will likely include elements of military intimidation, making immediate Russian neighbors concerned." Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were annexed by the Soviet Union in 1940 after the outbreak of World War Two, but regained independence when the Communist colossus disintegrated in 1991, and are now members of both NATO and the European Union. The IHS Markit report, which gave no sources, said Latvia and Lithuania would account for the biggest increase in military spending through 2018. After Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, Latvia and Lithuania agreed to raise military spending to reach NATO's informal target of 2 percent of GDP by 2018, something that Estonia has already achieved. The three Baltic republics each host detachments of about 150 U.S. soldiers, who were deployed immediately after Russia annexed Crimea. The Americans are augmented by occasional rotations of troops from other NATO allies. Deployments will grow to about 1,000 soldiers per country next year. Lithuania protested at Russia's transfer of nuclear-capable missiles to its western Baltic outpost of Kaliningrad this month, calling it an aggressive move against the whole of Europe. The Kaliningrad enclave is sandwiched between Lithuania and Poland, both NATO and EU members. (Reporting by Andrius Sytas; Editing by Simon Johnson and Mark Heinrich) President Barack Obama's time in the White House may be coming to an end, but his legacy will forever be remembered -- including his always classy style! POTUS hosted his 14th and final state dinner, honoring Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, on Tuesday, with his wife, first lady Michelle Obama, by his side. As always, all eyes were on the adorable couple, who snapped a series of sweet photos. WATCH: Michelle Obama Stuns in Sparkles at Final State Dinner -- See the Pics! Dressed in a metallic rose gold Atelier Versace dress, Michelle truly shined as she held the commander in chief's hand during their grand entrance. Barack looked dapper himself, clad in a black tuxedo and bow tie. Getty Images It's clear that nearly eight years after taking office, Barack is still madly in love with the first lady, perhaps even more adorable than ever before. Getty Images WATCH: Blake Shelton Goes Formal to Sweetly Support Gwen Stefani at White House State Dinner Back in November 2009, the Obamas hosted their first state dinner, greeting then-Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and his wife, Gursharan Kaur. For that get-together, FLOTUS donned a strapless gown by Indian-American designer Naeem Khan, proving her classy, elegant fashion would only get better with time. Her husband wore a similar suit to the one he sported on Tuesday, accessorizing with the same sweet smile. Getty Images And who could get forget the stunning, red silk Alexander McQueen gown Michelle wowed in during a state dinner honoring Chinese President Hu Jintao in January 2011? Getty Images RELATED: Jerry Seinfeld, Frank Ocean and Other Celebs Turn Out for the Obamas' Last State Dinner Or this delightful, Vera Wang off-the-shoulder dress she rocked in September 2015, which received a well-deserved thumbs-up from her adoring husband? Getty Images Following Tuesday's state dinner, which featured a performance by Gwen Stefani and her boyfriend of a year, Blake Shelton, fans took to Twitter to gush over the Obamas, many who exclaimed they are "already missing" their presence in the White House. Story continues WATCH: Michelle Obama Gives Emotional Speech About Raising Her Daughters in the White House I'm legit going to shed a tear when the @POTUS Barack Obama and @FLOTUS Michelle Obama leave The White House. Vince B. Aries (@Vince_Aries) October 19, 2016 Give me a man that looks at me the way Barack Obama looks at Michelle. Claire (@earthtoclaaaire) October 19, 2016 Ima really miss Michelle & Barack Obama!!! It'll never be a family in the white house like them T (@ThereGoTeee) October 19, 2016 @BarackObama You are magician. You have done a really good job, with having your hands tied ! We will miss you and Michelle Nancy Stapor (@wnstapor) October 19, 2016 Any First Lady after Michelle Obama is a downgrade pic.twitter.com/by9UYtrazL Danni (@dopexteen1) October 18, 2016 Michelle and Barack Obama are real life goals (@AmerikkkaTheG) October 19, 2016 Michelle & Barack Obama are seriously so beautiful I want to cry. LeAnne (@ThisIsLeAnne) October 19, 2016 Last month, Barack and Michelle appeared on Essence magazine's October issue, and in the accompanying feature, the powerful couple got candid about their time in office. "I can unequivocally say that America is better off now than we were when we came into office," Barack exclaimed. "By almost every economic measure, we're better off. But having said that, we still have a lot of work to do." Related Articles By Andrei Makhovsky MINSK (Reuters) - Sergei Galtsev, a Soviet army captain at the time, lost his right arm in an explosion on a military firing range when his son, Oleg, was four years old. Almost three decades later the 53-year-old Belarussian became the first tester of a prosthetic arm designed and made by his own son in the basement of his apartment building. "We wanted to create a simple and affordable prosthesis," said Oleg, a 32-year-old software engineer. Two years ago he teamed up with engineer Sergei Arefyev to develop an artificial arm. The video of its final tests hit almost a million views on YouTube, with the partners making all the designs and software available on the internet for free. "We did not patent it as it made more sense to spend money on development," Oleg said. "It's like Lego, designed for people who are not at ease with electronics: just put the parts together. If I managed it, then others can do it, too." In a country better known for its Soviet-era collectivized farming and run by President Alexander Lukashenko since 1994, the software industry is thriving. Belarus's 54 universities turn out 4,000 software engineers every year. The prosthetic arm was created in a small workshop in the basement of a residential building in Minsk. Some parts were created using a 3D-printer, some were bought on the internet. Galtsev and Arefyev say their design is 10 times cheaper than $15,000 mechanical prostheses from big manufacturers, although it lacks sensor controls. Sergei Galtsev says his world was turned upside down by the accident which befell him when he was 26. It ended his military career and he took his wife and two children back to the home town of Chechersk in what is now Belarus. His new arm has brought new possibilities within reach. "It is a very good thing, and it can help so many people," he said after testing the device at his house in the country. "I sawed wood, mowed the lawn, did some other work around house". (Editing by Alexei Kalmykov/Richard Balmforth) - A Los Angeles jury dismissed a civil lawsuit brought against Derrick Rose by a woman who claimed she had been gang-raped by the New York Knicks star. Jurors in the federal court deliberated for less than four hours before returning with their verdict and rejecting allegations from the woman, who sought $21 million in damages. The woman had filed her case after claiming that Rose and two friends, Ryan Allen and Randall Hampton, had raped her repeatedly at her apartment after drugging her in 2013. Rose had denied any accusation of wrongdoing, claiming that the sex which took place was consensual. AFP "Medications & the Elderly" will be the topic for this month's caregivers meeting presented by the Caregiver Education Group and Saint Paul United Methodist Church. It will be held at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday (Oct. 25) in Room 155 at Saint Paul UMC, 1144 M St. The program will be given by Ally Dering-Anderson, Clinical Assistant Professor for the University of Nebraska College of Pharmacy. Dr. Ally, from KFORs Problems & Solutions Show, will present information on questions often asked by older patients. She will provide information on talking with health care providers and answer questions. Brussels (AFP) - The head of the Belgian region of Wallonia on Wednesday said he still refused to sign off on a EU-Canada trade accord and asked that a visit by Canadian premier Justin Trudeau be delayed. Paul Magnette, the head of government of Wallonia, spoke a day after he received an ultimatum of Friday to allow Belgium's federal government to endorse the huge trade deal, known as CETA. "We cannot sign by Friday. That is not reasonable," a combative Magnette told RTBF radio after EU ministers asked that he reverse course in time for a discussion on trade by European leaders set for Friday. "I think that it is reasonable to delay indefinitely the meeting (with Trudeau set for October 27) because it's better to avoid what would seem like a confrontation," Magnette added. "It's not because the Canadians are our friends that we must accept everything," said Magnette. But in a sign that a breakthrough might be in the making, a spokesman for Magnette said Canadian Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland met the regional leader in the Walloon capital of Namur on Wednesday. - 'Unravelling' - Magnette later met with EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem and Belgium's pro-CETA Foreign Minister Didier Reynders in Brussels. Magnette warned the commission, which handles EU trade talks, that his demands could only be met by reopening negotiations with Canada that were formally concluded two years ago. "The treaty is already unravelling," Magnette said, citing concessions agreed with Germany, which was allowed on Tuesday to kill the deal if the German constitutional court should later decide against it. Later an EU Commission spokesperson called the talks "constructive". The issue will be discussed later by European leaders, the EU's executive arm said expressing the hope that "a solution is reached soon so that CETA can be signed during the EU-Canada Summit on 27 October". Story continues While Magnette cited progress in his talks with the EU, he said differences remained too wide on a contested investor protection system that has become a hot-button issue for the anti-CETA movement. A senior EU diplomat told AFP that the signature with Trudeau would need to be confirmed by Monday. "Wallonia's deadline is Monday morning, otherwise Trudeau will not come," the source said. The EU fears that the delay of CETA would be fatal to the deal and send a bad signal to the world that it is difficult to reach trade accords with Europe. "I still believe that we can find a way forward and we can get it through," said European Commission vice president Jyrki Katainen at a news briefing. Magnette has drawn big support from opponents to CETA, including Greenpeace and Foodwatch, that see the Canada deal as a Trojan horse for a far more ambitious trade accord between the EU and US, known as TTIP. Both deals threaten environmental and consumer protection and offer big benefits to multinationals, the groups say. By Philip Blenkinsop and David Ljunggren BRUSSELS/OTTAWA (Reuters) - The premier of the Belgian region that is the main impediment to a planned EU-Canada free trade agreement on Wednesday advised postponing a summit next week to sign the deal and taking a few more months to fix outstanding issues. Walloon's Paul Magnette spoke as pressure mounted on him to drop opposition to the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which would be the bloc's first trade accord with a Group of Seven country. Canadian Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland flew to Belgium on Wednesday for last-minute talks with Magnette and other European leaders. A spokesperson for Magnette confirmed he held separate meetings with Freeland and EU trade commissioner Cecelia Malmstrom on Wednesday. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and EU leaders are due to formally sign the agreement on Oct. 27. Almost all 28 EU governments now back the deal. EU leaders meet this Thursday and Friday, but Magnette said he would not be pressured into accepting the deal this week. Belgium's center-right coalition government is in favor of the pact, but the country's governmental structure means it cannot sign without backing from all five sub-federal administrations representing its regions and linguistic communities. "I think it would be reasonable to postpone the summit to an unspecified date," Magnette told Belgian radio station La Premiere. Magnette said discussions with Canadian officials had yielded some useful guarantees but not removed all concerns. "There are lots of problems. ... This treaty affects the lives of 500 million Europeans and 35 million Canadians for years and years," he said. "There's no urgency. We can take a few weeks, a few months to analyze the problems and overcome them." Failure to strike a deal with such a like-minded country would call into question the EU's ability to forge other agreements. CETA's supporters say it will increase bilateral trade by 20 percent. "We are working hard with our European partners so CETA can be signed this fall and implemented next year," said Freeland's spokesman Alex Lawrence. "If Europe is incapable of signing a progressive trade deal with a country like Canada, this will send a very clear and unfortunate signal," he added. Wallonia's key concern is over a planned investment court that would allow foreign companies to challenge countries over decisions affecting their investments. Critics say the system gives multinationals the chance to dictate public policy. Magnette said he had received assurances that governments would not have to compensate companies if they brought in new regulations, such as tightening environmental standards. But he remained concerned about the system of arbitration courts, and questioned a special safeguard allowing Canada to restrict agricultural imports if necessary, a right Europe would not have. Bulgaria is also dragging its heels. The government in Sofia said on Wednesday it would not support the deal until it received guarantees all its citizens could travel to Canada without visas. In Ottawa, an official working for Immigration Minister John McCallum said Canada was working with Bulgaria on visa-free entry but added no decision had been made. (Additional reporting by Alastair Macdonald in Brussels; Editing by John Stonestreet and Leslie Adler) Brussels (AFP) - Belgium summoned the Russian ambassador to Brussels on Wednesday in a spat over Moscow's claim that Belgian jets killed six civilians near Syria's Aleppo. The diplomatic summons was issued after Russia said two Belgian F-16s from the US-led coalition had been identified in the region where the deadly air strike took place Tuesday. The Russian envoy will be called to appear at the Belgian foreign ministry on Thursday, ministry spokesman Didier Vanderhasselt told AFP, as Brussels issued a fresh denial of involvement in the incident. "No Belgian Air Force aircraft have been operating over the Aleppo province over the last few days. These accusations are therefore totally groundless and unsubstantiated," Foreign Minister Didier Reynders and Defence Minister Steven Vandeput said in a joint statement. "Belgium deeply regrets that no prior consultation has taken place with a view to establishing the facts, before accusations were made in public." Russia's defence ministry said two of Belgium's F-16s fighting Islamic State jihadists in Syria had been identified in the area where the deadly strike took place. "Six people were killed and four people injured to various degrees as a result of bombing that destroyed two homes" in the village of Hassajik in the Aleppo region, it said in a statement. - 'Errors' in targeting - Belgian defence ministry spokeswoman Laurence Mortier earlier denied the country's air force was active in the area at the time. But responding to the Belgian summons, Russian defence minister spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Moscow was confident of its information. "Russia has effective air defence capabilities, allowing it to carry out 24-hour monitoring of air activity practically over the whole territory of Syria and beyond its limits," he said. "We would like to remind you that for the countries of the international coalition that Belgium is part of, such errors in designating targets are not at all something impossible and unfortunately are happening regularly," he added. Story continues Moscow had announced on Tuesday that the Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo to pave the way for an eight-hour truce on Thursday. Russia said Wednesday it was extending the eight-hour truce in Aleppo to 11 hours to allow civilians and rebels to leave the city's rebel-held east. Moscow also said its planes and Syria regime jets were keeping 10 kiloetres (6.2 miles) away from Aleppo. The government offensive against rebel-held eastern Aleppo -- which has destroyed hospitals and other civilian infrastructure -- has plunged Syria into some of the worst violence of the five-year war that has claimed over 300,000 lives. The West has accused Russia of potential war crimes over its bombing campaign in Aleppo in support of the regime offensive. The US State Department voiced scepticism regarding Moscow's planned truce while welcoming a halt in the bombardments. President Vladimir Putin is set to face Western pressure over the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine at international talks in Berlin on Wednesday as Russia comes under increasing criticism over its support for Damascus. WITNEY, England (Reuters) - Larry Sanders, elder brother of former U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Bernie, was pressing the flesh in his own campaign on Tuesday as he took to the streets ahead of an election this week in rural Oxfordshire, central England. Sanders, 81, is standing as a candidate for the left-leaning Green Party in Witney, an affluent seat left vacant by the resignation of former Prime Minister David Cameron after June's EU membership referendum. The vote on Thursday will be the first electoral test of his successor Theresa Mays Conservative government. Brooklyn-born Larry Sanders, an academic who has lived in Britain since 1969, is the Greens' national spokesman on health affairs and has been the leader of the county council's Green group for the past eight years. He faces a daunting task - the Greens have only one seat in Britain's 650-seat parliament and Cameron won over 60 percent of the vote in Witney at the last general election in 2015. But he admits the Sanders name helps. "It opens the doors," he told Reuters. "People think this guy exists, we know about him, he has some place in the world. Green Party candidates don't always get that advantage." The genteel campaigning in one of Britain's wealthiest countryside areas is very different from that his brother, a U.S. Senator from Vermont, experienced. "The Bernie experience is mass politics, meetings with 25, 30,000 people, all of whom know his policies because he had a year and a half to explain them," he said. "Here it's a few weeks and it's very much retail politics, person by person." But the issues, he feels, are not so different. Many people, he said, are fed up with not having a decent place to live or a decent health service. "People are angry about that," he added. Sanders spent 12 weeks on the U.S. campaign trail with Bernie, and says his younger brother connected with millions of Americans. Bernie Sanders finally endorsed former rival Hillary Clinton for president after a hard-fought campaign that surprised many with his success. Larry says he will also reluctantly vote for Clinton on Nov. 8 to keep out her Republican rival Donald Trump. (Reporting by Stuart McDill; writing by Stephen Addison; Editing by Richard Balmforth) By James Regan SYDNEY (Reuters) - BHP Billiton (BHP.AX) (BLT.L), the world's biggest diversified miner, said on Wednesday it was finally detecting indications of a commodity market turnaround, giving its most upbeat assessment in about five years. A recovery would be a particular boon for the global miner which has kept production humming through a multi-year collapse in commodities markets, although it cautioned that raw material supply was still outpacing demand despite stronger steel consumption in China. "We have seen early signs of markets rebalancing," Chief Executive Andrew Mackenzie said in releasing BHP's September quarter production report and guidance update. "Fundamentals suggest both oil and gas markets will improve over the next 12 to 18 months. Iron ore and metallurgical coal prices have been stronger than expected, although we continue to expect supply to grow more quickly than demand in the near term," he said. BHP beat analysts' estimates for iron ore and petroleum production and just missed projections for output of metallurgical coal - three commodities leading the resurgence. "This is probably the most positive assessment by BHP in five years," James Wilson, an analyst for Argonaut Securities, said. Most forecasters earlier in the year were calling for Chinese steel production and consumption to contract as its economy recoils, prolonging the pain for mining companies like BHP. Morgan Stanley estimates that China's implied apparent steel consumption in September rose 12.5 percent from a year ago and 2.8 percent from the previous month. That is good news for mining companies looking to China to turn around otherwise sluggish demand. China's iron ore imports climbed to 93 million tonnes in September, the second highest on record. Spot iron ore last stood at $58 a tonne, the highest in over a month. Metallurgical coal prices have more than doubled since January to around $230 a tonne, while nickel (CMNI3) has gained 16 percent. Story continues BHP said it was on track to meet its fiscal 2017 production guidance for iron ore of 265 million to 275 million tonnes versus 257 million last year after posting a modest 1 percent decline in output to 67 million tonnes in the September quarter. Guidance for copper production was under review following a power disruption this month at the Olympic Dam mine, but otherwise BHP stuck with earlier estimates for its other businesses. Fellow Australian miners Rio Tinto (RIO.AX) (RIO.L) and Fortescue Metals Group (FMG.AX) are scheduled to release operations data and updated guidance on Thursday and are also expected to deliver more upbeat business outlooks. (Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Richard Pullin) Facing up to 10 years behind bars and millions of dollars in fines on three felony charges of second-degree aggravated indecent assault, much-accused Bill Cosby and his attorneys are now brazenly trying to get public opinion on his side as his 2017 trial date in Pennsylvania looms. The Commonwealth admits that it wants to try [Cosby] for 40- and 50-year-old accusations, many of which were raised for the first time in press releases and on talk shows, and that have never made their way to any courtroom or police station in this country, said the actors lawyers yesterday. The statement came in reaction to a scathing response from Montgomery County D.A.s office on the latest attempt by Cosby to dismiss the only criminal case in the country against him. If our justice system is allowed to be distorted and abandoned for Mr. Cosby, none of us are safe, Cosbys lawyers said. This comes as a series of potentially pivotal hearings starting November 1 could determine whether the expected June 2017 trial of the 79-year-old Cosby goes forward. Part of those pre-trial motions will likely determine whether some of the more than 50 other women who have gone public saying the actor assaulted or drugged them over the decades will be allowed to take the stand. The hearings also will evaluate whether jurors can hear a deposition by The Cosby Show star from a decade ago in which he admitted having drugs for the purpose of having sex with women. seal He is an individual who has used his fame and fortune for decades to conceal his crimes and hide his true nature, said D.A. Kevin Steeles office earlier in a 26-page rejection of the dismissal motion (read it here). Late last year, the newly elected Steele charged Cosby with the 2004 rape of then-Temple University employee Andrea Constand just before the statute of limitations expired in the Granite State. Cosby is now out on $1 million bail. He is not entitled to a dismissal now that the law has caught up to him, the D.A.s response adds, noting the revelations of Cosbys use of drugs on women in that 2006 deposition in the Constand civil case that was made public last year. Dismissing the other sides contention that Cosbys right to due process was violated by the decade-plus delay in arresting him, the response also notes the reopening of the Constand matter as a criminal issue a previous D.A. had declined to prosecute in 2005 was partially based on more accounts by women that defendant had sexually assaulted them like he did the victim in this case. Story continues Then the Montgomery County D.A.s office really takes off the white gloves, so to speak, and goes for what it calls Cosbys unclean hands. Defendant blames his current legal situation on everyone from a federal judge and the Commonwealth to Gloria Allred and the media, the October 18 filing says, slamming Cosby with some of the bluntest language yet in a case that has seen many a harsh phrase from both sides. But he overlooks one person himself. He has unclean hands. He has persistently attempted, since as early as 2005, to conceal the deposition testimony that triggered the renewed investigation. His attempt to repackage the years he successfully kept the deposition hidden into a pre-arrest delay claim is as bold as it is fundamentally flawed. The law does not, and should not now, permit such gamesmanship. A reader need look no further than the first few sentences of the Commonwealths brief to see its true agenda, Cosbys team replied yesterday with loaded language of its own. Civil rights, human rights, and constitutional rights are abandoned. Whether the strategy from Cosbys recently newly retained lawyer Angela Agrusa of LA and New York firm Liner Llp gets anywhere with Judge Steven ONeill will be revealed next month. However, it sure looks like a long shot, with the Norristown, PA-based judge rejecting every other move by Team Cosby to shut the case down as have higher courts in the state. Meanwhile, numerous civil cases of defamation and more are pending against Cosby nationwide, despite the actors efforts to halt them to concentrate on the criminal case. Related stories Bill Cosby Again Tries To Get Pennsylvania Criminal Case Thrown Out Emmys 2016: The Categories You Did Not See Bill Cosby 2004 Rape Trial Could Start In June 2017; His Attorneys Respond - Update TAMPA, FL / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / Morphogenesis, Inc., a biotechnology company headquartered in Tampa, FL, announces its plans to raise up to $20 million from the sale of its common stock to accredited investors. The company is not only embracing new securities industry rules, it is launching what it hopes to be a uniquely efficient capital raising process made possible by the confluence of social and technological changes. "We couldn't be more excited about this offering!" says Dr. Patricia Lawman, CEO of Morphogenesis. "Rather than pages of hardcopy, we have created an interactive digital offering that allows for easy access to pertinent information with informative videos and animations throughout." Morphogenesis, a privately-held biotechnology company specializing in cell and gene therapies, has developed multi-indication immunotherapies which educates the patient's own immune system to attack tumor cells throughout the body without damaging normal cells or tissues. "We decided that since Morphogenesis is a high tech company in all aspects of its business, why not take advantage of the multi-communication channels digital marketing provides to create a free-flowing, non-linear, cross platform investor experience," says Dr. Lawman. "Our intent is to leverage our experience, knowledge and relationships in the evolving digital environment so that we can focus less time on capital raising and more time ensuring that our innovative technologies are made available to millions of cancer victims worldwide." Morphogenesis' wholly-owned subsidiary, Veterinary Oncology Services, Inc., (www.veterinaryoncologyservices.com) provides IFx-VET (www.ifx-vet.com), a personalized form of ImmuneFx, to veterinarians across the U.S. for dogs, cats and horses with many different types of cancers. The immunotherapy will soon be in trials for human patients with indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma and melanoma, with future plans for pancreatic and breast cancer trials. The funds being raised through this offering will be used for these human trials and for the launch of its direct injectable cancer vaccine, IFx-VETDirect, into the veterinary market. The digital offering can be found on the homepage of Morphogenesis (www.morphogenesis-inc.com) under "Invest in Morphogenesis" or you can email a request to invest@morphogenesis-inc.com for more information. This release is not intended to be an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities. Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk, and requires high risk tolerance, low liquidity concerns, and long-term commitments, such that investors should be able to bear the loss of their investment. SOURCE: Morphogenesis, Inc. The Blacklist: Redemption, NBCs upcoming spinoff series from The Blacklist, has tapped former Castle showrunner David Amann as executive producer/showrunner. The planted spinoff episode of the mothership series, which introduced the new characters, was written by The Blacklist creator/executive producer Jon Bokenkamp and exec producer/showrunner John Eisendrath. Amann will handle day-to-day showrunner duties on Redemption, serving as executive producer alongside Bokenkamp, Eisendrath, John Fox and John Davis. On Redemption, which has an eight-episode order, undercover operative Tom Keen (Ryan Eggold) joins forces with Susan Scottie Hargrave (Famke Janssen), the brilliant and cunning chief of Grey Matters, a covert mercenary organization that solves problems governments dont dare touch. As they team up to employ their unique skills and resources in a dangerous world of deadly criminals, Tom begins his own covert mission to find out more about his shadowy past. The cast also includes Edi Gathegi and Tawny Cypress. Amann, whose hire on Redemption was first reported by TVLine, previously served as executive producer/showrunner on the seventh season of ABCs Castle. Related stories 'Chicago Fire': [Spoiler] Exits Regular Cast 'Saturday Night Live' Draws 7M Viewers For Third Episode With Host Emily Blunt & Donald Trump Parodies - Update Gwen Stefani Rejoins 'The Voice' As Coach For Season 12, Miley Cyrus Will Be Back In Season 13 BURLINGTON A rural Burlington man is scheduled for a preliminary court hearing in November after reportedly stealing more than $500 worth of Red Bull on July 27. Richard J. Spiller, 35, of the W300 block of Potter Road in the Town of Spring Prairie, reportedly stole a shopping cart filled with Red Bull from the Burlington Walmart, 1901 Milwaukee Ave., according to a criminal complaint. Spiller reportedly was pushing a shopping cart in the store when he came across another cart filled with Red Bull that was waiting to be placed on the shelves. He then allegedly left his original cart, took the cart filled with Red Bull and left the store without paying for it. Employees noticed Spiller because, according to the complaint, they believed he was connected to previous thefts at the store, including one the day prior to the Red Bull incident. In total, Spiller is accused of stealing $530.37 worth of Red Bull, according to the complaint. A warrant for his arrest was issued Aug. 1, court records inidcate. Spiller faces a felony charge for retail theft. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at 8:30 a.m. Nov. 3 at the Racine County Law Enforcement Center, 717 Wisconsin Ave. Spiller remained in custody as of Wednesday night at the Racine County Jail, online records showed. From Popular Mechanics Now that the naming competition is over, Boaty McBoatface is ready to do some actual science. The British long-range autonomous submersible vehicle, famously named as the result of an internet poll gone viral, will traverse 1,500 miles across the Arctic ocean. While nuclear submarines can make that journey, the trek is unheard of for a battery-operated vehicle like Boaty. The online poll that caught the internet's eye wasn't for the submarine, but for a boat (hence Boaty's name). But after the British Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) saw the results, they decided to split the difference. They instead named the actual scientific vessel after famed documentarian David Attenborough, and the small yellow submersible received the honorific, crowd-sourced Boaty title. The submersible, which can go down to depths of almost four miles, will be diving to the bottom of the Southern Ocean in order to understand how currents work at their lowest levels. It will then move on to the North Sea where it will explore how and why carbon dioxide is buried offshore. When it finally gets to the Arctic, Boaty will blaze a trail for self-steering vehicles, attempting to pilot itself through an ecosystem buried below ice-all without GPS. "One of the things we're going to do is teach Boaty to read a map," Prof Russell Wynn, from the National Oceanography Centre, tells the BBC. "You give it a map of the seabed in its brain and then as it travels it uses sonar to collect data that it can compare with the stored map. This should tell it where it is. It's a neat concept but it's never been tested over thousands of kilometers before." Story continues Boaty McBoatface could soon make history...again. Source: BBC You Might Also Like Bobby Shmurda was officially sentenced to seven years in prison in Manhattan Supreme Court this morning (Oct. 19). The sentence comes five weeks after accepting a deal to plead guilty to 4th-degree conspiracy to criminally possess a weapon and 2nd-degree criminal weapons possession, which concurrently carry a seven-year sentence. Shmurda, born Ackquille Pollard, appeared alone at the court hearing this morning, separate from his co-defendants Chad "Rowdy Rebel" Marshall and Nicholas McCoy. With his sentencing today and time served, Shmurda could be released around this time in 2021. As part of accepting the plea deal, he waived his right to appeal. "I was forced to take this sentence, I did not want to take this sentence," Shmurda told the court. "I was forced by my attorney to take this plea." On Sept. 9, days before jury selection for his trial was scheduled to begin and almost two years since the arrest, Shmurda accepted the prosecution's "global plea deal," which reduced his, Rowdy's and McCoy's maximum possible sentences from 15 years. A further five years of post-release supervision is also part of the deal. But in court today, Shmurda appeared upset, at one point saying, "They lied to me" as Judge Abraham Clott denied a request for adjournment. The rapper's lawyer, Alex Spiro, had asked for a delay on official sentencing, citing that Shmurda had not been interviewed prior to sentencing because on the scheduled date the jail was on lockdown, and also citing comments made to the media recently of which he had only recently become aware. After the hearing, the 22-year-old's mother, Leslie Pollard, said she was disappointed, but not surprised, by the judge's actions. "You don't have any rights in that courtroom," she said. "It's heartbreaking. It's disappointing." Shmurda and Spiro have long condemned the case against the rising rapper, who was held on $2 million bond that prevented his record label, Epic Records, from being able to bail him out. Speaking with Complex after accepting the plea deal, which came as a surprise after so many delays and hearings, Shmurda again pointed the finger at the court system. Story continues "If we made bail, I would've beat the case," he said. "We look guilty in these orange jump suits. If you put Al Sharpton in a orange jumpsuit and accuse him of having a gun, he's going to be found guilty. They just look at our skin color, and look at where we're from. I didn't get caught with anything on me and the cops lied, saying they seen me with a gun in my hand. I explained the whole situation to Epic and they were behind me all the way. We had big-money lawyers and they still couldn't do nothing because of the judge, who looked at us like black thugs." He also explained why he accepted the deal at all. "I did it for Rowdy. They offered me five [years] and offered Rowdy 12," the "Hot Boy" MC said, explaining the terms of the prosecution's global plea deal, which was contingent on all three (Rowdy, Shmurda and McCoy) accepting the same offer. "They said the only way they'll give him seven is if I took seven, too. So, you know, I had to take one for the dawgs." Addressing those complaints made in the media, Spiro said they were fair and in line with his long-held concerns about the case's location being moved from Brooklyn to Manhattan; about what he saw as an excessively high bail; and that Shmurda, as part of a wider conspiracy arrest, had been over-charged. Many of the original charges against Shmurda were dismissed as part of the plea deal. "My client is clearly frustrated," Spiro told the court, and said about the comments in the media, "I can't fault him for those. I understand why my client is frustrated." Ms. Pollard said afterwards that she had not been told about the plea offer beforehand, and was in Miami when she found out that her son had taken a deal. "It was a whole setup," she said, noting that her son had wanted to go to trial. "The judge doesn't know my son. He doesn't care." Spiro declined to comment following the hearing. The court appearance officially brings to an end the long-running legal battle that has enveloped the young Brooklyn rapper since his Dec. 17, 2014 arrest at Manhattan's Quad Studios alongside a dozen others. Shmurda, Rowdy Rebel and others said to be in a gang called GS9 were hit with a wide-ranging indictment that included weapons, drugs and assault charges, which rose to murder and attempted murder for several defendants. What Grant, Sherman, Sheridan, and the hard men who served under them knew by early 1864 was that their armies were going to have to break the popular will of the Confederate people, not only in the present, but also for the future, or the North was not going to win the war. Ironically, Jefferson Davis in his carping memoirs understood this reality. At the commencement of the year 1862 it was the purpose of the United States Government to assail us in every manner and at every point. . . . The usual methods of civilized warfare consist in the destruction of an enemys military power and the capture of his capital. These, however, formed only a small portion of the purposes of our enemy. . . . Thus, while the Executive was preparing immense armies . . . with which to invade our territory and destroy our citizens, the willing aid of an impatient, enraged Congress was invoked to usurp new powers, to legislate the subversion of our social institutions [i.e., slavery], and to give the form of legality to the plunder of a frenzied soldiery. In that sense, the Civil War was the harbinger of war in the twentieth century. Without the destruction of the deep feeling of national identity for which the enemy was waging war, there would be no peace. It was, therefore, a war against the Souths white population as well as its armies, a course that the great wars of the twentieth century followed. Thus, the war represented not some peculiar American approach to conflict that emphasized sledgehammer blows, but the political reality that only war waged against the very idea of a Confederate nation would break the nationalistic fervor the French Revolution and its successors had called forth. In the American Civil War, moreover, the French Revolution and the Industrial Revolution came together in a fashion that allowed for the mobilization of great armies in both the North and the Confederacy and the maintenance and projection of Northern military forces over continental distances. Excerpted from A Savage War: A Military History of the Civil War by Williamson Murray & Wayne Wei-siang Hsieh 2016 by Princeton University Press. Reprinted by permission. Photo credit: Amazon.com Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f252180%2fhillaryclinton College newspapers normally like to show off their successful alumni except if that alumnus is Donald Trump. This week, Hillary Clinton picked up two notable endorsements, one from her alma mater, and one from Donald Trump's. It's no surprise that ultra-liberal liberal arts school Wellesley used their paper, The Wellesley News, to endorse Clinton. But it just added salt to Trump's wound that The Daily Pennsylvanian, the newspaper from The University of Pennsylvania, endorsed his opponent. SEE ALSO: 11 things to watch instead of the final presidential debate The two schools published their endorsements in a joint statement: "This well-received protest speaks to the Penn communitys general consensus that Trump fails to represent the current Penn student body and its values," the paper wrote. "Penn students reflect a diverse, eclectic mix of interests and beliefs, but above all they seek to respect and understand these differences. Detaching ourselves from the candidate who shares our alma mater is both necessary and natural." Over 3,800 Penn students recently signed a petition stating that, "You [Trump] don't represent us." Additionally, on Oct. 11, a University of Pennsylvania student group called "We Are Watching," staged a feminist art protest to promote voter registration and separate themselves from the Trump campaign. In a July 11 speech in Phoenix, Arizona, Trump flaunted his degree from the Wharton school of business. Story continues "I went to the Wharton School of Finance Im, like, a really smart person," Trump said. Trump has struggled to win endorsements this election cycle, even from such traditionally conservative outlets newspapers like The Arizona Republic, The Houston Chronicle, The Dallas Morning News and The San Diego Tribune. Don't they want a really smart person? BONUS: One woman's journey to becoming a state representative An 11-year-old New Jersey boy walked into his house and came face-to-face with an intruder, police said. Allan Shneyderman had just come home from school when he walked inside and put down his backpack, home surveillance video shows. Read: No Gouda Deed: Teen Steals Shipment of Cheese Worth $160,000, Cops Say He goes into a room off camera, then is seen walking back and out the front door. But minutes before he arrived, a man is seen walking through the house and looking around. I hear a noise someone shuffling through a paper or something, or hes trying to look through drawers, the boy told WCBS-TV on Monday. Then when I look around the corner theres this man with a hoodie, black shirt, black jeans, and yellowish shoes standing there just looking at me, he said. My heart immediately started pounding, he said. When he saw me, he took off. The boy ran to his neighbor, who called police. Gail DeGraaf asked if Allan was OK. He said, No. theres a stranger in my house, she told the station. The Wayne Police Department asked for the publics help in locating the burglary suspect, posting an image of him from the home video. Read: Old-And Busted! Trio of Elderly Family Members Honored for Taking Down Home Burglar Thomas Coughlin, 23, was later arrested in his Pompton Lakes home, police said. He was charged with theft and burglary and held in lieu of $50,000 bail. I was so happy I caught him before he stole anything, the sixth-grader said, though the intruder did make off with the boys cell phone, he said. He also was happy that his grandmother, who had just stepped outside, was not in the house when the man entered through a sliding glass door. I mean I wish that he would just be a normal person and not decide to steal things, and be civilized, the child said. Watch: Alleged Burglar Caught Stealing From Family Who Evacuated for Hurricane Matthew Related Articles: Brasilia (AFP) - Brazilian police on Wednesday arrested Eduardo Cunha, the driving force behind former president Dilma Rousseff's impeachment, in a new escalation of a corruption probe shaking Latin America's biggest country. "We can confirm that (Cunha) was detained in Brasilia," a police spokesman told AFP. Cunha was later flown under close guard to Curitiba, where the probe into a sprawling embezzlement and bribery ring at flagship state oil company Petrobras is based. Cunha, nicknamed Brazil's Frank Underwood after the scheming main character in the dark US political television series "House of Cards," has been accused of taking some $40 million in Petrobras-related bribes, laundering money and hiding funds in secret Swiss bank accounts. Cunha, 58, denies all the charges. "This is an absurd decision, without motive," he said in a Facebook post. In addition to his detention, the authorities ordered the seizure of eight cars, including two Porsche Cayennes, along with other assets amounting to nearly $70 million. Top anti-corruption judge Sergio Moro said the detention was necessary because of risks to "public order, as well as a concrete possibility of flight given his access to hidden resources abroad, as well as double nationality," the justice department said. Part of Brazil's growing conservative evangelical movement, Cunha has long been a consummate wheeler-dealer and became the architect of Rousseff's removal from office in August on charges that she broke government budget laws. Rousseff, from the leftist Workers' Party, was replaced by Michel Temer, from Cunha's own center-right PMDB party. But Cunha's triumph was short-lived as the corruption allegations caught up with him. He was stripped of his congressional seat in September, losing his parliamentary legal privileges. - Lula next? - Cunha's downfall signals that the Petrobras corruption probe headed by Moro is far from over. Story continues Dozens of politicians -- from the Workers' Party but also numerous figures on the right -- as well as business executives have already been charged or convicted in the embezzlement and bribery scheme. Rousseff's presidential predecessor, the leftist icon Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, faces three corruption-related court cases, and speculation is rife that he may also be placed in pre-trial detention. "Now it will be Lula's turn. He's next," said Alberto Almeida from the Analysis Institute in Sao Paulo. There is also speculation that Cunha could turn on old allies and strike a plea bargain with prosecutors, fueling a new wave of corruption cases. He has already said he is writing a book. Analysts say that Temer's government will be nervous about fallout. "The political consequences will depend on how long he remains in detention," Almeida said. "He has a lot of information on Dilma's government, on the house of deputies, different parties." Temer, who has seen several of his ministerial choices targeted in the Petrobras inquiry -- dubbed Operation Car Wash -- rejects suggestions that he is seeking to curb the probe. Even behind bars, Cunha is likely to continue fascinating and scaring the political elite. A master at maintaining influence even as his legal troubles piled up, Cunha used multiple stalling tactics to impede his eventual ouster from Congress. The process dragged on for almost a year, the longest in Brazilian history. The authorities cited that proven skill as one of the reasons for ordering his detention. "Although the loss of his mandate probably represents some loss of power," Moro wrote, "this was not totally exhausted, since the total extent of the ex-deputy's criminal activities and of his circle of influence are still unknown." ZURICH, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Switzerland has given Brazil access to the bank accounts of Brazilian politicians and executives at Petrobras that could shed light on allegations of corruption at the state oil group, the Swiss Office of the Attorney General (OAG) said. Switzerland's highest court, the Swiss Federal Court, rejected a last appeal by some of those involved after a lower court had allowed the transfer of documents. A Brazilian investigation into Petrobras has uncovered systemic corruption at multiple companies and at the highest levels of government. Allegations of bribes and political kickbacks in the case have triggered protests across Brazil. Last year the OAG widened the Swiss part of the investigation to include Latin America's largest engineering company, Odebrecht SA, and its subsidiaries. The latest release of documents comes "in the context of the Petrobras-Odebrecht case", an OAG spokesman said on Wednesday. Swiss prosecutors have said they have received reports of about 340 suspicious banking relations in the case, opened about 60 inquiries and frozen roughly $800 million since 2014. Swiss authorities have requested documents relating to more than 1,000 accounts from more than 40 banks. The owners of the Swiss accounts are "senior executives of Petrobras and of its suppliers, financial intermediaries, Brazilian politicians and directly or indirectly Brazilian or other foreign companies", the OAG has said. (Reporting by Michael Shields; Editing by Louise Ireland) RACINE A Racine County jury on Tuesday found a Pennsylvania man guilty of felony forgery and theft in a scam in which he and two other men reportedly tried to sell people fake, dyed money. Samba Soumare, 26, and Malcom T. Nimley, 21, and a third man, all of Pennsylvania, were arrested by Racine Police on April 29 after officers reportedly found them trying to execute a black money scam at a furniture store in the 1600 block of Washington Avenue. In a black money scam also known as a black-dollar scam or a wash-wash scam con artists try to convince victims that piles of banknote-sized paper are actually currency notes that have been dyed to avoid detection by authorities. Victims are then persuaded to pay fees and purchase chemicals to remove the dye, with the promise of a share in the proceeds. Police who arrested the three suspects in April allegedly found evidence of the scam inside the store and in a vehicle in which the suspects arrived. According to online court records, jurors found Soumare guilty on Tuesday of both of the counts he faced in connection with the crime: forgery-uttering and theft-false representation, $5,000-$10,000. A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on Jan. 20. Nimleys case is slated to go to trial in November. There were no records found regarding formal charges for the third suspect. Nairobi (AFP) - Somalian security forces have arrested a British journalist working for Al-Jazeera, the Qatari news channel said Wednesday. Hamza Mohamed was arrested in Mogadishu on Tuesday along with a driver, fixer and cameraman. He had been in the country for a week on a reporting assignment. Al-Jazeera said it had been in touch with Hamza Mohamed since his detention and was "hoping ... that he will be released without further delay". Somali authorities had informed Al-Jazeera that they had detained the journalist but that he had not yet been charged with anything. Hamza Mohamed had frequently travelled to the country over the past few years from where he had reported "with accuracy and integrity", Al-Jazeera said in an online report. Reporters Without Borders (RSF), meanwhile, said Hamza and his colleagues were arrested on their return from a trip outside the capital, during which they were suspected of visiting territory controlled by the radical Islamist group Shabaab to interview senior Shabaab leaders. "We call on the Somali authorities to immediately free Al-Jazeera correspondent Hamza Mohamed and the two cameramen, who have been held by the intelligence services since yesterday (Tuesday)," RSF said. "Journalists are constantly caught in the crossfire of the war between government forces and Al-Shabaab's armed militants. They are either the victims of deadly reprisals by the militants or they are arrested by the authorities on suspicion of collaborating with Al-Shabaab." The men's detention by the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) was also confirmed to Radio Dalsan by Abdifatah Halane, a spokesman for the government of Banadir, the region that includes the capital, RSF said, adding that their equipment was also seized. A British foreign ministry spokeswoman told AFP: "We are looking into reports that a British national has been detained in Somalia and we are ready to provide consular assistance if needed." Shabaab fighters are trying to overthrow the internationally-backed government in Mogadishu. In December 2015, at least 20 people were killed and 120 wounded in an eruption of violence between rival militia groups from Puntland and Galmudug that forced more than 90,000 people to flee. LONDON (Reuters) - British banks are calling for the government to phase out an extra tax on profits at a time of significant upheaval following Britain's vote to leave the European Union and its potential hit to London's financial dominance. In January the government imposed an extra 8 percent tax on bank profits above 25 million pounds ($30.8 million) to run concurrently with an additional levy on their balance sheets. "Banks are firmly committed to paying our fair share but we are now at a tipping point that threatens UK jobs and growth," Anthony Browne, chief executive of the BBA, the UK's largest bank lobby group, will tell a conference on Thursday. "It is essential that the UK remains a competitive place to do business for international banks," he added in remarks released ahead of his speech. Bankers have warned they will have to start moving operations out of London as early as next year if Britain loses access to the European Union single market. [nL8N1CI0N9] Britain could safeguard London as a top banking centre by scrapping the levy on bank's balance sheets and surcharge on profits, or drastically reducing both if this was not politically possible, think-tank Open Europe said in a report earlier this week. ($1 = 0.8130 pounds) (Reporting by Andrew MacAskill; Editing by Keith Weir) Getty images bruce springsteen donald trum is going to lose Bruce Springsteen thinks Donald Trump is "toxic" though he predicts he won't actually make it to the Oval Office. "He's going to lose," the New Jersey rocker told UK's Channel 4 News of Trump's presidential run. "And he knows that. He knows he's going to lose. And he's such a flagrant, toxic narcissist that he wants to take down the entire democratic system with him if he goes." "He simply has no sense of decency, no sense of responsibility about him," Springsteen continued. Springsteen is referring to Trump's claims that the election is "rigged," a message he has doubled down on since his vulgar comments about women in an "Access Hollywood" tape recently surfaced. "[Trump] does have a lot of people's ears," Springsteen said. "I don't think he's going to go quietly, gently into the good night. I think he's going to make as big a mess as he can. And I don't know what that's going to mean, but we'll find out shortly." Springsteen echoed similar concerns in a September interview with Rolling Stone, in which he called Trump a "moron." "Well, you know, the republic is under siege by a moron, basically," he told the magazine then. "The whole thing is tragic. Without overstating it, it's a tragedy for our democracy." Watch the clip from Springsteen's interview with Channel 4 News below: Hes such a flagrant, toxic narcissist. That's Bruce Springsteen's view of @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/jHNrLZIXQr Channel 4 News (@Channel4News) October 18, 2016 NOW WATCH: 6 witnesses are corroborating a womans claim that Trump sexually assaulted her More From Business Insider By Paul Sandle LONDON (Reuters) - BT (BT.L) said there was a "strong case" for the group to invest more in fibre-optic broadband networks, but the numbers would not add up if it was forced to spin off its Openreach network division. Chief Executive Gavin Patterson also warned that splitting up the British telecoms company - an option that the government says remains on the table - would require a long, difficult and costly separation of the group's pension liabilities. Patterson said investment in Openreach, which is used by rivals such as Sky (SKYB.L) and TalkTalk (TALK.L) as well as BT's retail customers, had increased 30 percent in the last two years, providing a service that balanced speed, price and coverage. "The case for more investment is quite strong," he said at the Broadband World Forum. "There is going to be no shortage of opportunities to invest, the challenge for us as a company is to make sure the investment cycles are reasonable and we are able to make a return from them." He said the case for further investment stacked up if Openreach was held within the wider group. "If you are only looking at the wholesale side, the Openreach side, then some of these investments are going to be challenging business cases to make," he said. He also said BT's pension scheme, already under increasing pressure from falling bond yields, would be further endangered by a "value destructive" split. Britain's telecoms regulator Ofcom is approaching the end of a long-running review of the market that has been dominated by the question of whether Openreach should remain part of BT. Sky, TalkTalk and Vodafone (VOD.L) say an independent Openreach would deliver better networks and service, while BT argues the opposite. Matt Hancock, the minister for the digital economy, said splitting up BT remained "on the table". "My goal is clear: I am focussed that we get (fast fibre-based) connectivity," he said earlier at the event. "The route to that connectivity, both in terms of market structure, in terms of technology, in terms of the details along the way are of course very complex. "(But) I think you can see from what I've said today and the measures we are putting through, our absolute determination to get that and we are not going to let anybody get in our way." (Editing by James Davey and Louise Heavens) NAIROBI (Reuters) - President Pierre Nkurunziza signed a decree on Tuesday for Burundi to quit the International Criminal Court, after parliament voted overwhelmingly last week to remove the country from the court's jurisdiction. The move is unprecedented in a continent whose leaders often complain that the court disproportionately targets Africans. On Oct. 12, only two lawmakers voted in favour of staying under the jurisdiction of the Dutch-based ICC, while 94 voted against and 14 abstained. In April, the ICC opened a preliminary investigation into Burundi, focusing on killings, imprisonment, torture, rape and other sexual violence, as well as enforced disappearances. Burundi's government was infuriated last month by a U.N. report that named officials accused of orchestrating the torture and killing political opponents. Since then, Bujumbura has banned three U.N. investigators from its territory and condemned a U.N. decision to set up a commission of inquiry to probe the violence, which began last year after Nkurunziza decided to seek a third term in office. Opponents said his candidacy violated the constitution and a peace agreement that ended a civil war in 2005. The opposition mostly boycotted the polls and Nkurunziza won a third term. The ICC said in April that political violence had killed about 450 people and forced hundreds of thousands to flee. Earlier on Tuesday, the head of its governing body, Sidiki Kaba, said he was concerned that would undermine "efforts towards the objective of universality" and called on Burundi to "engage in a dialogue. Since it was set up under the 1998 Rome Statute, the court based in The Hague has focused on prosecuting such politically-motivated crimes as genocide and crimes against humanity. Most of its investigations and indictments have been of Africans, stirring criticism from many governments on the continent. Nine out of 10 situations under investigation by ICC prosecutors are African. All five verdicts have dealt with African suspects from Congo, Central Arican Republic and Mali. The decree signed by Nkurunziza, published in the presidency's website, said the decision would "come into immediate effect". (Reporting by Aaron Maasho, Editing by Angus MacSwan) Older homes offer a host of opportunities for customization, blended with character and history, which is why many people love them. But the flip side is that the older they are, the more likely they are to come bundled with unpleasant surprisesincluding some you might not even have heard of. Fixing them is sure to be expensive, but knowing what to expect can help you prepare your budget. Heres what to look for in an old home, depending on when it was built. 1900s A home that is more than 100 years old might seem like a sweet deal, especially if youre fond of classic architecture and This Old House, and dont mind a healthy dose of down-and-dirty DIY. But buyer beware: These gorgeous antiques can make The Money Pit seem like a documentary of your life. It is somewhat inevitable that many of these older homes will have some type of settling, so you will see floors that look like they are leaning slightly, says Kevin Lawton, a Realtor in Bordentown, NJ. Often, tilting is nothing more than a cosmetic annoyancebut it could indicate expensive-to-fix foundation issues. Unrenovated homes might also have knob-and-tube wiring, the early electrical systems that were common until the 1930s. Ceramic knobs and tubes run through the floor joists or wall studs, carrying electricity throughout the home. However, the rubber insulation can degrade and create a fire hazard. And without GFCI outlets (ground-fault circuit interrupters, which trip the circuit if there is a surge in current), the system isnt grounded. Fixing it is pricey, so get readyand start working on getting estimates from some good electricians. knob and tube wiring Laura Scudder/Wikipedia CC 1920s Balloon framing was invented as an inexpensive alternative to traditional timber framing, and was used frequently from the late 19th century through the 1920s and early 30s. Instead of complicated joinery to keep post and beams well-connected, balloon framing utilizes really, really long boards. And nails. Story continues Sketchy as it all sounds (balloon was originally a derogatory term indicating that the frame might just blow off in the wind), the structure itself is relatively sound. But the framing can be a tremendous fire risk. Unless the gaps between the planks are filled or well-insulated, basement or crawl-space fires can rocket upstairs. Balloon framing Wikipedia CC 1930s Homes built in the 1930s and earlierand the occasional 40s hometypically used clay sewer lines. Tree roots can invade every type of sewer line, but the clay kind are particularly vulnerable because terra-cotta, the material they are made of, is brittle and liable to break. And because plumbers typically cobbled together shorter pipes to form the line, they might separate over time, causing leakage and soil contamination. Philadelphia, PA, interior designer Larina Kase had a 40s house with clay pipes, and encountered this problem. Roots grew into it, and we had a sewage flood, she says. Newer homes use PVC pipes, which is what we replaced it with. Clay isnt your only potential sewer problem: Your water main and sewage line may be installed too close together to meet modern standards. Most municipalities require at least 10 feet of separation. While no one will make you dig up your existing lines, the regulation can greatly increase the cost of a replacement if either line breaks. During repairs, many cities will require moving the line to meet code. 1950s Clay lines arent the only troublesome sewage system. Cast-iron sewer lines, popular from the mid-20th century to the 80s, can corrode or crack, with a replacement cost in the many thousands. Buyers might also find ungrounded outlets, especially if the home hasnt been sold since its construction. Expect an expensive update to ground your system and mitigate your fire risk. At the very least, GFCI outlets will need to be installed. 1960s Feeling a little chilly in your Mid-Century bungalow? Check inside the walls. 1960s homes were not built with an emphasis on insulation, says Kershan Bulsara, a manager with Roofmaster in Ontario. Energy prices were much lower, so preventing heat loss was not a huge concern for builders or homeowners. Luckily, unlike replacing a sewer system, improving insulation is an easy DIY. Rent an insulation blower from your favorite hardware storeexpect to spend about $50 per dayand your home will be toasty long before wintertime. 1970s Expect to find fewer outlets per room and fewer circuitswhich means all your electronics could trip a fuse. And if you find single-strand aluminum wiringcommon during the copper shortage of the late 60s and early 70sbe prepared to replace the system. Faulty connections overheat the wiring, creating (surprise!) a fire hazard. Of course, you cant ignore the No. 1 problem of homes built in the 1970s: the decor. Shag carpeting? Avocado walls? Fake wall paneling? Ugh. Fortunately, you dont need a home inspector to suss those out. 1980s By the 80s, builders had figured out how to build a mostly modern home. But there is one quirk to look out for: PB (polybutylene) piping. Prone to rapid degradation and subsequent bursting, these gray-colored water pipes cost homeowners millions of dollars in water damage. Most PB has long been replaced, but if youre unlucky enough to score a home that still has the faulty piping, budget for a replacement. Even if you dont care, your homeowners insurance company may decline to cover you until a change is made. Count yourself lucky if your old home isnt rife with problemsbut not too lucky. One of the joys of home ownership is knowing that something will always go wrong. But even when it inevitably does, dont panic. Everything is fixable. The post Busted: Common Problems in Older HomesBroken Down by Decade appeared first on Real Estate News and Advice - realtor.com. (Updates with more details about the criminal investigation, background on scandal) By Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - The California Attorney General's Office has launched a criminal investigation into Wells Fargo over allegations it opened millions of unauthorized customer accounts and credit cards, according to a seizure warrant seen by Reuters. Attorney General Kamala Harris authorized a seizure warrant against the bank that seeks customer records and other documents, saying there is probable cause to believe the bank committed felonies. The probe marks the latest setback for the bank in a growing scandal that led to the abrupt retirement of its chief executive officer, monetary penalties, compensation clawbacks, lost business and damage to its reputation. Wells Fargo spokesman Mark Folk did not immediately provide a comment in response to requests from Reuters, but was quoted in the Los Angeles Times as saying the bank is "cooperating in providing the requested information." A spokeswoman for the California Department of Justice said she could not comment on the probe. The bank's downward spiral kicked into high gear last month. The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and other regulators ordered the United States' third-largest bank by assets to pay $190 million in fines and restitution to settle civil charges that its branch staff created as many as 2 million accounts without customers' knowledge in order to meet internal sales targets. The CFPB said that high pressure sales tactics and financial incentives fueled the fraud, which was largely carried out by low-level branch employees. About 5,300 of those employees were fired. Shortly after the civil settlement was made public, CEO John Stumpf was called to testify before Congress. Observers have widely criticized his performance, with many saying he appeared ill-prepared to deal with tough questioning by lawmakers including Massachusetts Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who called for his resignation and accused him of him "gutless" leadership. Story continues Last week, Stumpf resigned and was replaced by Chief Operating Officer Tim Sloan. This is at least the second criminal probe to be opened into Wells Fargo since last month. In September a source told Reuters that federal prosecutors are also looking into the matter. An affidavit filed by Special Agent Supervisor James Hirt with the California Department of Justice reveals that interviews with possible victims of the fraud have already started. One victim, identified only as "Ms. B," told the investigator that she had declined a request by a Wells Fargo teller in late 2011 or 2012 to open new accounts. But sometime in late 2013 or early 2014, she started to receive notices that she and her husband "allegedly owned on three life insurance policies held by the bank," the affidavit says. She also told the investigator that Wells Fargo often claimed that her accounts had to be closed and reopened because of "problems" that it could never fully explain. The constant changes, she added, sometimes caused her to incur fees because her checks would bounce. Another alleged victim, identified as "Ms. C," told the investigator she noticed the bank was transferring money from her checking account to her savings account in amounts that grew over time, from $50 to $150. The bank claimed the transfers were done as overdraft protection, but it refused to provide her bank statements when she asked to see them. The seizure warrants by the state are seeking a variety of documents from Wells Fargo, including a list of all unauthorized California customer accounts created between May 2011 and July 2015. It also seeks information about fees, charges and other costs that were incurred and the identity of all Wells Fargo employees that may have opened the accounts. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Chris Reese and Alan Crosby) By Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The California Attorney General's Office has launched a criminal investigation into Wells Fargo over allegations it opened millions of unauthorized customer accounts and credit cards, according to a seizure warrant seen by Reuters. Attorney General Kamala Harris authorized a seizure warrant against the bank that seeks customer records and other documents, saying there is probable cause to believe the bank committed felonies. The probe marks the latest setback for the bank in a growing scandal that led to the abrupt retirement of its chief executive officer, monetary penalties, compensation clawbacks, lost business and damage to its reputation. Wells Fargo spokesman Mark Folk did not immediately provide a comment in response to requests from Reuters, but was quoted in the Los Angeles Times as saying the bank is "cooperating in providing the requested information." A spokeswoman for the California Department of Justice said she could not comment on the probe. The bank's downward spiral kicked into high gear last month. The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and other regulators ordered the United States' third-largest bank by assets to pay $190 million in fines and restitution to settle civil charges that its branch staff created as many as 2 million accounts without customers' knowledge in order to meet internal sales targets. The CFPB said that high pressure sales tactics and financial incentives fueled the fraud, which was largely carried out by low-level branch employees. About 5,300 of those employees were fired. Shortly after the civil settlement was made public, CEO John Stumpf was called to testify before Congress. Observers have widely criticized his performance, with many saying he appeared ill-prepared to deal with tough questioning by lawmakers including Massachusetts Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who called for his resignation and accused him of him "gutless" leadership. Story continues Last week, Stumpf resigned and was replaced by Chief Operating Officer Tim Sloan. This is at least the second criminal probe to be opened into Wells Fargo since last month. In September a source told Reuters that federal prosecutors are also looking into the matter. An affidavit filed by Special Agent Supervisor James Hirt with the California Department of Justice reveals that interviews with possible victims of the fraud have already started. One victim, identified only as "Ms. B," told the investigator that she had declined a request by a Wells Fargo teller in late 2011 or 2012 to open new accounts. But sometime in late 2013 or early 2014, she started to receive notices that she and her husband "allegedly owned on three life insurance policies held by the bank," the affidavit says. She also told the investigator that Wells Fargo often claimed that her accounts had to be closed and reopened because of "problems" that it could never fully explain. The constant changes, she added, sometimes caused her to incur fees because her checks would bounce. Another alleged victim, identified as "Ms. C," told the investigator she noticed the bank was transferring money from her checking account to her savings account in amounts that grew over time, from $50 to $150. The bank claimed the transfers were done as overdraft protection, but it refused to provide her bank statements when she asked to see them. The seizure warrants by the state are seeking a variety of documents from Wells Fargo, including a list of all unauthorized California customer accounts created between May 2011 and July 2015. It also seeks information about fees, charges and other costs that were incurred and the identity of all Wells Fargo employees that may have opened the accounts. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Chris Reese and Alan Crosby) By Rory Carroll (Reuters) - A California man convicted of attempting to help a friend travel to the Middle East to fight on behalf of Islamic State was sentenced to 30 years in prison on Monday, federal prosecutors said. Muhanad Badawi, 25, was found guilty of providing "material support" to the militant group in the form of his recruit, Nader Elhuzayel, who was found guilty of conspiring and attempting to join a terrorist organization. In September, Elhuzayel was also sentenced to 30 years in prison. "The lengthy sentence imposed today results from the defendants acceptance of ISIL's murderous ideology and his participation in a scheme designed to betray the United States," United States Attorney Eileen Decker said on Wednesday. In arguing for the 30-year sentence plus a lifetime of supervised release, U.S. prosecutors said Badawi was "a radicalizer, recruiter, and facilitator" for Islamic State who aspired to die a martyr fighting for ISIS. Prosecutors argued that Badawi deserved the same sentence as Elhuzayel. "Their crimes are equally serious, their prospects for rehabilitation are equally bleak, and the need to protect the public from their future crimes and crimes by others like them is the same," they wrote in a memorandum to the U.S. district court in Santa Ana, California earlier this month. Badawi's defense attorney, Kate Corrigan of Corrigan, Welbourn, Stokke, had pushed for a 15-year sentence, arguing that unlike Elhuzayel, her client did not have a ticket in his hand to leave the country and join ISIS. She said she plans to appeal the conviction and the sentence. "The real message from today's hearing is that anyone who thinks they want to support ISIS or even dabble in its rhetoric better be ready to serve a lot of time in prison," Corrigan said. Badawi was apprehended on May 21, 2015, the same day Elhuzayel was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport while attempting to travel to Tel Aviv, Israel, before heading to Istanbul, Turkey. Story continues Badawi, who emigrated to the U.S. from Sudan in 2006, gave Elhuzayel access to a debit card linked to his Pell grant funds to purchase his one-way plane ticket, in violation of federal financial aid rules. The two men made their travel arrangements four days after a May 4 attack by two gunmen on a heavily guarded Texas exhibit of caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad. Both of the gunmen were killed by a police officer during the attack. (Reporting by Rory Carroll; Editing by Steve Orlofsky and David Gregorio) JANESVILLE After a steady drumbeat of challenges from his opponent, House Speaker Paul Ryans re-election campaign said Ryan may debate Democrat Ryan Solen. Solen, a Mount Pleasant resident and Iraq War veteran, has pushed for a debate since winning the Democratic primary on Aug. 9. On Tuesday, Solens chief of staff showed up at Ryans campaign office in Janesville to hand-deliver a request for an Oct. 29 debate, according to a Solen campaign news release. In response, Ryan campaign spokesman Zack Roday said in an email that we will consider the request and attempt to rearrange previously scheduled events. While the nine-term Ryan has mostly cruised to re-election every two years and is widely expected to do so again this year, he has historically debated his Democratic opponents. One notable exception was in 2012, when Ryan was campaigning across the country as the Republican vice presidential nominee. In his position as speaker, Ryan has campaigned nationally again this year, promoting Republican candidates as he tries to maintain the solid GOP majority in the House. The Solen campaign said it has reserved space at Blackhawk Technical College in Janesville for a debate from 2 to 4 p.m. Oct. 29 moderated by Janesville radio host Mike Daly from WBEL-AM. If Ryan declines, Solen says he will still hold an event and answer questions. Ryan, R-Wis., and Solen are on the Nov. 8 election ballot. The 1st Congressional District encompasses all of Racine and Kenosha counties, almost all of Walworth County and portions of Rock, Waukesha and Milwaukee counties. By Allison Lampert MONTREAL (Reuters) - Quebec is moving ahead with a law to ban face-coverings in the public sector in a move criticized as marginalizing Muslim women and potentially inflaming anti-immigrant tensions in the mainly French-speaking Canadian province. The proposed law prohibits anyone giving or receiving government services, such as a provincial government-issued health card, from wearing face-covering garments. As an example, it would prevent a woman from donning the face-concealing burqa while trying to get a Quebec driver's license, and prohibit a civil servant from covering her face. The Quebec government is holding hearings, which started on Tuesday and run to Nov. 9 before a vote on the legislation, which is likely to pass due to the centrist Liberal party's majority in the legislature. Quebec says the law is aimed at ensuring the religious neutrality of the state. Critics say a law is not required and only affects a small number of Muslim women who wear burqas or niqabs. "It's an unnecessary exercise," said Amira Elghawaby, a spokeswoman for the National Council of Canadian Muslims, adding it could "isolate and victimize women who wear the face veil. A Quebec school board commissioner said the measure was unnecessary, comparing it to "giving medicine to a patient who isn't sick." Like France, Quebec has struggled at times to reconcile its secular identity with a rising Muslim population, many of them North African emigrants. The face-covering, or niqab, became a big issue in last year's national Canadian elections, especially in Quebec, where the vast majority of the population supported a ban on them at citizenship ceremonies. France in 2004 passed a hotly contested ban on veils, crosses and other religious symbols in schools, which appeared to be a model for Quebecs "Charter of Values" that the previous provincial government tried to introduce in 2013. Quebec's justice minister has said the law is not an attack on Muslim women and "respects individual choices." "Our approach in this file would be balanced and respectful of greater principles such as gender equality and the recognition of rights and fundamental freedoms," said Justice Minister Stephanie Vallee. The latest legislation, Bill 62, is a watered-down version of that charter, and opposition lawmakers say it does not go far enough. Parti Quebecois legislator Agnes Maltais said Bill 62 fails to include services provided by municipalities, a key point of contact between civil servants and the public. Maltais said the law should be amended to prevent all state workers in positions of authority such as judges and prison guards from wearing religious symbols. (Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe) On October 19, 1810, Green Clay, cousin of former Senator Henry Clay, and Sally Lewis welcomed their son, Cassius Marcellus Clay, into the world. Little did they know how colorful a character their son would become. Clayfeatured on the National Constitution Centers American National Tree, part of its main exhibitwas born in Kentucky and resided there for most of his life. Although his family had owned slaves, Clay became an abolitionist early in his life after hearing a speech by William Lloyd Garrison while at Yale in 1832. He eventually founded the abolitionist newspaper True American. In 1835, he was elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives, and was reelected three more times, despite his abolitionist beliefs. He was one of the first members of the Republican Party, eventually currying favor with President Lincoln. While in the Kentucky House, Clay was not the most popular man. On two occasions, he was nearly killed for being an abolitionist. The first attempt occurred during a political debate. The story goes that political enforcer Sam Brown was hired to take Clay out; he walked on stage and promptly shot Clay in the chest. But Clay did not go down, and instead struck Brown multiple times with his Bowie knife, ultimately cutting off Browns nose and ear. The second attempt was an ambush by the Turner brothers, whose father was a proslavery politician. They surrounded Clay and proceeded to beat and stab him to near death. But Clay, never one to go down without swinging, once again used his Bowie knife to injure his attackers, and eventually ran down the eldest brother, Clay Turner, and stabbed him to death, according to The Worst Case Scenario Almanac: Politics. Despite his reputation for being a bruiser, Clay was also a skilled politician, although his most notable accomplishments happened abroad. He was appointed by Lincoln to be United States Ambassador to Russia. His tenure ran through the Civil War, and was critical in ensuring Russian support for the North during the war. The agreement was made as a preventive measure to discourage Britain and France from supporting the South, as the Russians deployed parts of their Navy in the harbors of New York and San Francisco in a show of support. He was also crucial in the talks that ultimately allowed the U.S. to buy Alaska from the Russians, which was ultimately completed shortly after the war, according to Cassius Marcellus Clay: A Firebrand of Freedom. Story continues After his ambassadorship ended, Clay still sought to make his voice heard. He supported the Cuban Independence Movement against Spain, forming the Cuban Charitable Aid Society. Politically, Clay switched parties due to disagreements over certain policy issues, such as President Grants decision to interfere in Haiti and the Radical Republicans plans for Reconstruction. He instead joined the Liberal Republicans and later became a Democrat. But ultimately, Clay returned to the party of which he was one of the first members. Clay died in 1903 due to natural causesironic, considering all the attempts on his life. Clays legacy still lives on at his estate, White Hall, which can be found in Richmond, Kentucky. Also, his name has been passed down for generations. One of his former slaves, Herman Heaton Clay, named his son Cassius Clay in honor of the abolitionist. That Cassius Clay then named his son Cassius Clay Jr., who would ultimately become the heavyweight champion of the world before changing his name to Muhammad Ali. Chris Calabrese is an intern at the National Constitution Center. He is also a recent graduate of St. Josephs University. Recent Historical Stories on Constitution Daily Remembering another important Lincoln in American history Remembering William Sewards Alaska folly Video: The clash between the President and Congress, 1776 To ISIS Miami (AFP) - A critically endangered gorilla species in the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo has lost more than three-quarters of its population and risks disappearing in the next five years, experts warned Wednesday. Just 3,800 Grauer's gorillas (Gorilla beringei graueri) are left in the wild, according to the study in the journal PLOS ONE, describing the world's largest primates' "catastrophic decline." Prior to the civil war which broke out in 1996 in the former Zaire, there were nearly 17,000 of these gorillas. "While we knew that Grauer's gorilla was in trouble nobody had realized how much they had declined," said lead researcher Andrew Plumptre of the Wildlife Conservation Society. The unrest that erupted in the region 20 years ago has made it hard to count the gorillas, which have been increasingly hunted for bushmeat by armed miners. These great apes were among two subspecies of Eastern gorillas that were listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List in September. The other subspecies, known as Gorilla beringei, has dwindled to 5,000. Researchers fear that the Grauer's gorilla could be lost from many parts of its range within five years, unless more is done to save them. Some strategies could include halting mining in protected areas and encouraging the military to protect wildlife, researchers said. Philippe von Borries Justin Stefano Refinery29 CEO founders In the past few months, many hot digital media companies have set their sights on a particular target: getting their brands onto traditional TV. Refinery29, the powerhouse millennial women's publisher reportedly valued at $500 million, is no exception. "We've been aggressive about being on every platform first, and the next one is TV," Refinery29 Co-CEO Philippe von Borries said on The Wall Street Journal's Media Mix podcast. "There's no question." While this might seem like moving backwards, the reasoning is pretty simple for digital media companies like Vice, Vox, Refinery29, and so on. TV still has huge audiences, big-time ad money, and is "probably one of the most efficient businesses that exist in media today," according to von Borries. But to get onto TV, you have to have a lot of money to invest in quality programming, and connections in the TV industry. That's why it's vital to have a "strategic partner" (or two) investing millions, who has the incentive to boost your business. Vox and BuzzFeed have each gotten $100+ million from NBC, Vice has $400 million from Disney, Thrillist's new holding company secured $100 million from Discovery just last week, and Refinery29 snagged $45 million from Turner this summer. Everyone has a dance partner and it helps. Last week, Thrillist CEO Ben Lerer told Business Insider that one day after the announcement of his new holding company, which tied together four media brands with a $100 million investment from Discovery, he'd already gotten six notes from TV execs asking about creating something together. He's being taken more seriously as a partner for TV. Von Borries broke down the relationship between the traditional media company backer and the digital upstart into two categories, from Refinery29's perspective. "Content creation." For Refinery29 and Turner, this means two things. The first is Refinery29 helping to create "digital extensions" of some of Turners core franchises (he mentions the SAG awards). But the second is getting Refinery29's intellectual property into the world of TV, and developing vehicles like documentaries and scripted shows. "Ad sales." Von Borries said there's a mutually beneficial relationship of bringing more advertisers into the fold. Turner has an exceptional portfolio of global brands, he said, but "not a huge representation in women." That's something Refinery29 can help with. Story continues NOW WATCH: Here's why the most popular map of the world is totally misleading More From Business Insider A group of scientists has just claimed to have discovered two unknown voids or cavities within the Great Pyramid of Giza, the largest pyramid ever constructed in Egypt. Such cavities can be signs of hidden burials or rooms and as such, media outlets across the world immediately ran headlines touting this "discovery." One outlet even went so far as to proclaim that "secret rooms" had been found in the Great Pyramid. However, Live Science has learned that the results are more ambiguous. Scientists who are charged with overseeing the team's work, including Zahi Hawass, Egypt's antiquities minister, said they are not convinced that sizable voids or cavities have been discovered. [See Images of the Great Pyramid and the 'Voids'] Built by the Pharaoh Khufu over 4,500 years ago, the Great Pyramid is the largest such structure in Egypt, and one of three pyramids built at Giza. It rose 481 feet (146 meters) tall when it was first built, although the loss of stone due to weathering and quarrying of the pyramid means that the structure rises only about 455 feet (138 m) today. Ancient writers called the pyramid a "wonder of the world." It was the tallest building in the world until the Lincoln Cathedral was completed in England in the 14th century. Unknown voids? On Saturday (Oct. 15), the Scan Pyramids Project issued a press release saying that two previously unknown voids or cavities had been discovered in the Great Pyramid of Giza. The project consists of a group of scientists from different universities, institutes and companies who are scanning Egypt's pyramids using various technologies. null Simulation by K. Morishima (Nagoya University) and Benoit Marini for ScanPyramids, results by K. Morishima (Nagoya University) for ScanPyramids According to the statement, one void is located on the north face of the pyramid behind an area where four building blocks with "chevron" designs (an inverted v-shaped pattern) are visible. The chevrons would not have been visible in ancient times, as the designs would have been covered with casing stones that were stripped off the pyramid centuries ago. In addition, another void was discovered on the northeast corner of the pyramid about 344 feet (105 m) above the ground. Story continues To find the voids, scientists used muography, a technique that measures the density of muons, or subatomic particles that are the primary component of cosmic rays raining down on Earth. [In Photos: Inside Egypt's Great Pyramids] "Muon particles permanently reach the Earth with a speed close to the speed of light and a flux around 10,000 per m per minute. They originate from the interactions of cosmic rays created in the universe with the atoms of the upper atmosphere," said the Scan Pyramids project team in its press release. The researchers added that these particles can "go through hundreds of meters of stone before being absorbed." Muons can easily cross areas where there are voids or cavities, but the particles are sometimes absorbed or deflected when they hit denser material, the team said. By measuring changes in muon particles as they go deeper into the pyramid the team can search for hidden areas. "The challenge of such measurements consists in building extremely precise detectors and in accumulating enough data over several days or months to increase the contrast," the team said in the statement. Caution urged However, a team of scientists appointed by the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities to oversee the work of the Scan Pyramids Project team said it is not convinced that sizable voids or cavities have been discovered. This oversight team is led by former antiquities minister Zahi Hawass and includes several Egyptologists with decades of experience. Mark Lehner, who has been conducting work at Giza for about 30 years, is one of the team members. That group issued its own press release, through the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities, saying that more work needs to be done. The researchers recommended extending the Scan Pyramids project by another year so that more data can be gathered. They used the term "anomalies" in the press release rather than calling the findings "voids" or "cavities." Hawass told Live Science that the results obtained by the Scan Pyramid team may be the result of different-size stones used in the Great Pyramid and may not indicate the presence of sizable voids. "The core [of the pyramid] has big and small stones, and this can show hollows everywhere," he said. The oversight team "asked for more work to know the size and the function" of the anomalies, Hawass said. Hard lessons learned Egypts antiquities ministry decided to have a group of experienced Egyptologists oversee scanning work after a debacle that occurred at Tutankhamun's tomb. In an incident that started last year, an Egyptologist named Nicholas Reeves claimed to have found evidence that the tomb of Queen Nefertiti was hidden behind a secret doorway in King Tut's tomb. An initial scan suggested that such a tomb may exist, creating a media stir, though provoking skeptical reactions from scientists not involved with Reeves' work. More-detailed scans carried out earlier this year revealed that there was no such Nefertiti tomb. Before the negative results from the second series of scans came back, officials in the Egyptian antiquities ministry, as well as the tourism ministry, had publicly stated that they believed a hidden chamber, possibly containing Nefertiti's tomb, likely existed. After the negative results, and critical views of the first scan from outside scientists, the antiquities ministry had to backpedal from that position. Original article on Live Science. Editor's Recommendations Last night President Obama and the First Lady welcomed a list of stars to the White House for their final state dinner. Among the roster of big name attendees were Chance The Rapper and Frank Ocean. It can be stressful trying to decide who to bring as a plus-one to an event this meaningful, but both artists seemed to have the same idea on who the best choice would bea parent. Chance The Rapper's father Ken Bennett once worked alongside President Obama in Chicago, so it only seems right that Chance would bring his dad as his date. Similar to the Grammys, and other big events, Frank Ocean brought his favorite datehis mother, Katonya Breaux. Each of the attendees looked great, and excited to be invited to the special event. Frank's mother tweeted her excitement over hugging the First Lady, while Chance can be heard in a short interview with ABC News explaining that he hoped to be able to continue his on-going dance battle with the President. During the same interview, Frank joked about his fashion statement by choosing to wear a classic pair of Vans with his suit. I am so blessed to have a son that includes me in his once in a lifetime events!!! I just hugged our First Lady!!!! #statedinner pic.twitter.com/Q0qTVsk2nK katonya breaux (@katonya) October 19, 2016 Stars descend on the White House for final state dinner hosted by the Obamas. https://t.co/UQ3SpOotag pic.twitter.com/nUG5omrXsp ABC News (@ABC) October 19, 2016 Getty A photo posted by COMPLEX (@complex) on Oct 18, 2016 at 8:41pm PDT Getty A photo posted by COMPLEX (@complex) on Oct 18, 2016 at 8:40pm PDT Continue Reading On PigeonsandPlanes More from PigeonsandPlanes President Barack Obama is hosting is final State Dinner Tuesday (Oct. 18) night and from the looks of it, he's going out with bang. Among the guests attending the event honoring Italy, music fans will relish in the fact that Chance the Rapper and Frank Ocean both got invites. Chance is on his way to becoming a regular at the White House after visiting earlier this year with other rappers and musicians to discuss discuss criminal justice reform. He's also a notable favorite of the Obama family and will be back Dec. 1 as well, perform at this year's annual National Christmas Tree Lightning. Chance's date for the event is his father, Ken Bennett, who served as a deputy assistant to Obama when he was a senator in Illinois. The Chicago emcee posted a photo of the two of them, thanking his dad for raising him right. Thanks Dad for raising me right. Look at us all fancy for the White House. I ain't even wearing a hat tonight #BlackBoyJoy pic.twitter.com/cCnHJL9EFP - Lil Chano From 79th (@chancetherapper) October 18, 2016 Meanwhile, Ocean showed up with checkered slip-on Vans with his mother Katonya Breaux along as a date. Breaux tweeted that she feels so "blessed to have a son that includes me in his once in a lifetime events," touting that she had just hugged the First Lady. frank ocean is at the white house in checkered vans -- -- -- -- -- -- pic.twitter.com/gwXfButXBK - Genius (@Genius) October 19, 2016 Other celebrity guests for the night include James Taylor, Gwen Stefani, Blake Shelton and Jerry Seinfeld. Stefani will be performing at the event as well. this is what the truth feels like@gwenstefani @blakeshelton G+B ------ pic.twitter.com/iVUvRX7tT3- Gwen Stefani Source (@GxStefaniSource) October 19, 2016 Playtest, one of six new episodes from Season 3 of Black Mirror. (Photo: Netflix) Launched in its native England in 2011, Black Mirror made its official American debut three years later when the streaming giant Netflix added it to its rotation. Unofficially, though, the Charlie Brooker-created anthology series had already slipped through the side door of our pop-culture consciousness, with the words Black Mirror along with bootleg DVDs and torrents being eagerly passed around among connoisseurs of cult TV. Displaying the influences of such seminal sci-fi auteurs as Ray Bradbury and Rod Serling, Brookers near-future parables about the perils of technology found an eager stateside fanbase entranced by the idea of, say, the British prime minister being forced to engage in carnal relations with a pig or a world where reality shows are the economys primary industry. Related: Black Mirror: The Evolution in Season 3 The mixture of out-there fancifulness and scary plausibility that lies at the heart of so many Black Mirror episodes led Brooker to be regarded as a kind of high-tech soothsayer on these shores. Speaking with Yahoo TV at the Toronto Film Festival in September, Brooker and his producing partner, Annabel Jones, laughed off that exalted reputation. Im not trying to moralize or give solutions, says Brooker, whose extensive list of British TV credits include the zombie miniseries Dead Set and Charlie Bookers Screenwipe and Newswipe, which cover topical culture and news stories in a tone thats similar to The Daily Show. In the U.S., viewers think Im anti-technology, whereas in the U.K. Im known for doing comedy. Or Im just known as a prick! Black Mirror masterminds Annabel Jones and Charlie Brooker. (Photo: Jeff Spicer/Getty Images) Jones says that she and Brooker were as surprised as anyone when word of Black Mirror spread beyond the U.K.s borders. We thought the stories were all too U.K.-centric, she remembers. But very quickly it got picked up in other countries, in Europe and Asia. Around the same time that they snagged Mad Mens Jon Hamm to star in the 2014 Christmas episode, Black Mirror was made legally available in the U.S. via Netflix. There was a real spike when it went up on Netflix, Brooker says. People had been watching it via contraband for a while, so the Netflix release was the tipping point where the ones who had seen it could tell other people, You should go watch it. Jon even told us that before he shot the Christmas special, hed tell people that he was going to be working on Black Mirror, and theyd ask him, Whats that? But by the time the episode was done, everyone knew about it. Thats why, when Black Mirror returns for its third season on Oct. 21, it will be a full-fledged Netflix series. Asked if working in the streaming realm affords creative freedoms that he didnt previously enjoy on terrestrial television, Brooker half-jokingly responds: Well, we had the prime minister f*** a pig on Channel 4 in the U.K. Once youve done that, that bar is pretty high! In other words, dont expect the Netflix-produced episodes to significantly depart from the tone and content of its British predecessors. Netflix basically let me do what I wanted. Theyre very supportive and have opinions, but never said, You must do this or that. In watching four of Season 3s six episodes two of which had their world premiere in Toronto whats most notable about this third year is the wide variety of tones and genres that Brooker is riffing on. Take the nostalgia-tinged romance San Junipero, which pulsates with the emotional yearning of an old-fashioned Hollywood love story. Or Nosedive, a social-media-themed screwball comedy in the tradition of Bringing Up Baby and Planes, Trains & Automobiles. Meanwhile, Men Against Fire provides timely commentary on police-state tactics, wrapped in zombie movie clothing, and Shut Up and Dance is predicated on the very real, very modern fear that our online histories will be stolen and used against us. I was very conscious of trying to broaden the scope a little, Brooker says. I didnt want to be the show where every single time, the audience knows which way its going. So across this season, weve approached each episode like were doing different genre movies. That approach resulted in an episode that Brooker sounds particularly proud of: Hated in the Nation, which he describes as a detective story about online rage and anger. Boasting a feature-length 90-minute runtime, Hated is as meticulously plotted as a vintage Philip Marlowe mystery, but unfolds in quasi-future London rather than 40s-era Los Angeles. We tend to focus on the popcorn ideas behind each story, so when theres social commentary, thats kind of a plus, Brooker says. In Hated, we end up commenting on quite a wide variety of things, like the environment. Because all of these stories are self-contained one-offs, we can build these worlds relatively easily. It only needs to last one episode, and then you knock it all down. Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Mackenzie Davis in San Junipero. (Photo: Netflix) Even before the premiere of Season 3, Netflix made the decision to stay in the Black Mirror business. When we spoke with Brooker and Jones in September, they were already deep in writing the next batch of episodes. Many of my ideas start out as comic, and then get darker as the script goes along, Brooker reveals. And other times, Ill have the final image in mind, and rewind from there. Thats just how it is with Black Mirror! Black Mirror premieres Oct. 21 on Netflix. RACINE Festival Park is on its way to getting a new stage and a new name. The Racine City Council, with zero debate and a couple of favorable comments, on Tuesday night approved accepting a $100,000 donation from Racine Founders Rotary Club and Foundation for the construction of a permanent outdoor stage at the Racine Civic Centre and to change the name of Festival Park to Paul P. Harris Rotary Park. Building the stage will cost about $150,000, so the city will augment the donation with $50,000 and funds are to be allocated in the 2017 city budget. Tuesdays consent was the final step in a series of approvals required to accept the money and make the name change, which honors Rotary International founder and Racine native Paul Percy Harris. The citys Board of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services on Oct. 13 approved accepting the donation and the renaming proposal. The City Council on Oct. 4 voted to accept the donation contingent on the park board decision and after considerable discussion. Much of the conversation centered on Sixth District Alderman Sandy Weidners suggestion to refer the issue to the councils Committee of the Whole. Weidner said additional time would allow the council to learn more about the financial implications of the stages construction and to gather public input on the name change. At Tuesday nights meeting, Weidner was not present. Only 8th District Alderman Q.A. Shakoor II and 1st District Alderman Jeff Coe spoke on the donation and that was to mostly thank the Rotary Club. This is an outstanding contribution, Shakoor said. He also called the donation refreshing, wonderful, and a step in the right direction for Festival Park. Coe said a permanent stage probably will attract more events to the site, and that renaming the park after Harris was a great way to honor Harris. Centennial targeted Harris, who founded Rotary Club International in 1905, was born in Racine in 1868. He moved to Vermont when he was 3. He eventually ended up in Chicago, where he worked an attorney. He died in 1947. Rotary International is a service organization with about 1.2 million members worldwide. Among its many initiatives has been an aggressive campaign to eradicate polio across the globe. Mayor John Dickert announced the $100,000 donation in his State of the City address in April. In September, Rotary Club leaders said they wanted to make the donation to celebrate Racine Rotarys 100th anniversary in 2017 and commemorate the long-lasting impact the club has made in the city. xi WASHINGTON, D.C. As the world, led by the US and its Asian allies, has tried to confront and defuse North Korea's nuclear ambitions, the Hermit Kingdom's closest ally and the region's most powerful nation has ignored and thwarted international efforts. "China has been part of the problem rather than part of the solution to the North Korean nuclear problem," Bruce Klingner, senior research fellow of Northeast Asia at the Heritage Foundation, told Business Insider. "They have acted like North Korea's lawyer at the UN Security Council by obstructing more robust international sanctions, denying evidence of North Korean provocations, watering down stronger UN resolutions, and insisting on loopholes," Klingner added. "China is the reason sanctions against North Korea haven't had much of an effect," Rebeccah Heinrichs, a fellow at the Hudson Institute specializing in nuclear deterrence and missile defense, told Business Insider. While Pyongyang has been slammed with heavy sanctions, Klingner explains that the US can use "secondary sanctions to wean Chinese banks and businesses away from economically engaging with North Korea." "US legal authorities and the centrality of the US dollar to the international financial system gives Washington tremendous leverage. The vast majority of all international financial transactions, including North Korea's, are denominated in dollars and thus must pass through a US Treasury Department-regulated bank in the United States," Klingner told Business Insider. Meanwhile, the Hermit Kingdom's brazen missile tests continue. north korea nuclear test earthquake So far this year, Pyongyang has conducted eight Musudan missile tests. The Musudun is speculated to have a range of approximately 1,500 to 2,400 miles, making it capable of targeting military installations in South Korea, Japan, and Guam, according to estimates from the Missile Defense Project. Story continues All Musudan launches except the sixth one on June 22 were considered to be failures. However, despite a string of unsuccessful tests, experts argue that several of Pyongyang's missile programs are closer than ever for deployment. 'They will get it right sooner or later, so we'd better be ready' kim j y'all On October 14, at approximately 10:33 p.m. CDT, the US military detected a unsuccessful North Korean missile test near the northwestern city of Kusong. While the launch of the presumed Musudun intermediate-range ballistic missile failed immediately, "it signals their continued resolve to get this right," Thomas Karako, director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Business Insider. "They will get it right sooner or later, so we'd better be ready," Karako added. Similarly, Heinrichs told Business Insider that North Korean "technology is steadily improving despite intermittent failed tests." "The main take-away here is not that they are still having problems, the main take-away is that they are absolutely committed to achieving a credible nuclear missile force," Rebeccah Heinrichs, a fellow at the Hudson Institute specializing in nuclear deterrence and missile defense, told Business Insider. What's more, China is opposed to the bilateral decision between the US and South Korea to deploy America's most advanced missile defense system to the Korean Peninsula. Mad about THAAD In order to counter North Korean threats and further defend the region, the US agreed to equip South Korea with a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery, America's most advanced and highly mobile missile defense system. And while negotiations to deploy THAAD to the region have been ongoing since South Korean President Park Geun-hye's October 2015 visit to the White House, North Korea's fourth nuclear bomb test on January 6 and long-range rocket launch on February 7 proved to be catalysts for the deployment. Read more about THAAD: We spent a day with the world's most advanced missile defense system that has China spooked China argues that since Washington agreed to equip Seoul with the unique missile-defense system, the North's missile tests have expanded and are poised to increase. thaad range "They've [China] aided and abetted North Korea for long enough that they have no one to blame but themselves for the missile defenses and other deployments to come," Karako told Business Insider. And while THAAD's deployment has China peeved, Heinrichs adds that a layered ballistic missile defense system between the US, South Korea, and Japan will "provide a deterrent verse North Korea and will be help absorb an initial missile attack, should deterrence fail." "Patriot is already deployed to South Korea and it handles the smaller, short-range missiles. THAAD, once deployed, would complement Patriot by providing an upper tier defense," Heinrichs said. As of now, a THAAD battery is slated to be operational in South Korea by the end of 2017; however, Daniel Russel, assistant secretary of state for East Asia, said the system would be deployed "as soon as possible," Reuters reports. NOW WATCH: Meet THAAD: Americas answer to North Korean threats More From Business Insider Beijing (AFP) - Chinese growth stabilised in the third quarter, data showed Wednesday, as ample credit and hot property markets propped up the world's second-largest economy. But while the forecast-beating reading was in line with state targets, it came as experts warned that authorities have relied too much on easy credit, which has in turn increased financial risks. The economy grew 6.7 percent in July-September, officials said, just above the 6.6 percent predicted in an AFP poll. "The general performance was better than expected," National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) spokesman Sheng Laiyun told reporters. "The national economy grew steadily." The government has targeted 6.5-7.0 percent growth for the year, following 6.9 percent last year -- the slowest rate in a quarter of a century. "It was so in-line with expectations that I could have written this yesterday, to be honest," Michael Every with Rabobank in Hong Kong told AFP. "It's amazing what a housing bubble and crazy debt increases can achieve." Also Wednesday, data showed a pick-up in retail spending, which has become an increasingly important component as Beijing looks to recalibrate the country's growth driver from investment and exports to consumer demand. But Beijing's attempts to retool the economy have proved painful, with authorities resorting to stimulus measures as they try to avoid a hard landing. Sheng acknowledged that the economy was in "a critical period of transformation and upgrading, with old drivers of growth to be replaced by new ones". With "a number of unstable and uncertain domestic and external factors", he added, "the foundation of continued economic growth is not solid enough." Some analysts have questioned the accuracy of Chinese data, arguing they are subject to political manipulation. "As always, the GDP figures will be met with some scepticism," said Julian Evans-Pritchard of Capital Economics, who thinks expansion is slower than official reports. Story continues Though the figures suggest economic activity is broadly holding up, he said, the recent recovery was "on borrowed time" as Beijing tried to rein in runaway lending and housing prices. - Loans surge - The booming property market and loose lending supported the latest GDP figures, Claire Huang of Societe Generale told AFP, adding that new house-buying regulations and necessary credit tightening meant "the downturn will become even more obvious" in the fourth quarter and next year. Data released Tuesday showed new loans by Chinese banks in September surged nearly 30 percent over the previous month, deepening concern about risky credit expansion. Earlier this month the International Monetary Fund warned that Chinas dependence on debt was growing at a dangerous pace and risked a "disruptive adjustment" in the financial system. That came after the Bank for International Settlements -- dubbed the central bank of central banks -- warned China's banking sector could be facing an imminent debt crisis, fuelling fresh fears of a blowout that could hit the global financial system. China's industrial output growth eased to 6.1 percent on-year in September, down from 6.3 percent in August, government data also showed Wednesday, as sluggish global demand weighed on the world's biggest trader in goods. A slowdown in the supply chain of electronic goods dragged on production, ANZ analysts said, noting a particular slide in making mobile phones. But retail sales, a key measure of consumer spending, rose 10.7 percent on-year last month, representing a slight acceleration from August. Fixed-asset investment, a gauge of infrastructure spending, rose 8.2 percent in the first nine months of the year. The figures showed that crude steel production rose 3.9 percent on-year in September, despite repeated pledges to cut overcapacity and excess production in the industry, which is dominated by bloated state-owned enterprises. NBS spokesman Sheng said that rising prices for coal and steel had given loss-making firms a lifeline, noting that "those companies that need to be closed down have resumed their production, because they are making profit again". Looking ahead, Beijing will shift its focus from GDP to tackling excess capacity and massive corporate debt, ANZ analysts said in a note. Investors took the figures in their stride with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index fractionally higher by the noon break Wednesday. * Sept spending growth slows from August pace * Deficit for Jan-Sept more than doubles y/y to 1.46 trln yuan * Jan-Sept fiscal deficit at 2.7 pct of GDP -Reuters calculation (Adds comments, details, fiscal deficit information) BEIJING, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Government spending in China rose 11.3 percent in September from a year earlier while revenue rose 4.9 percent, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday. In August, spending was 10.3 percent above a year earlier, and revenue increased 1.7 percent. Data released on Wednesday for last month and the first three quarters signal how China has relied on government spending to stabilise growth this year, which is pushing up the country's fiscal deficit. The deficit over the first nine months was 1.46 trillion yuan ($216.8 billion), up from 625.1 billion yuan in the year-earlier period, according to Reuters calculations. Based on calculations using spending data released on Wednesday, deficit spending over the first nine months was equivalent to 2.7 percent of gross domestic product, within China's target for a 3 percent fiscal deficit. Also on Wednesday, China reported that its economy expanded at a steady 6.7 percent in the third quarter, fueled by stronger government spending, record bank lending and a red-hot property market that are adding to its growing pile of debt. A strong second-hand housing market boosted property transfer tax receipts by 27.2 percent in January-September, compared to a 23.9 percent gain in the first half of the year, the Ministry of Finance said. TAXES ON REAL ESTATE Corporate taxes from real estate companies increased by 25.4 percent in the first nine months from a year earlier, an increase from the 17.3 percent rise in the first half. Government spending in the first nine months was up 12.5 percent from a year earlier, while revenue rose 5.9 percent, with the growth rates of both slowing from the first half. Increased state spending this year has deepened concern about the size of China's fiscal deficit. Story continues "Rapidly growing state-directed investment was financed by a highly expansionary fiscal deficit, 4.4 percent of GDP in the most recent four quarters' data and the largest deficit, relative to the size of China's economy, since comparable data began in 1995," PNC senior international economist Bill Adams wrote in a note. Liu Shangxi, head of the Chinese Academy of Fiscal Sciences under the Ministry of Finance, told Reuters that based on a broader definition of fiscal spending, the ratio is already 5-6 percent. Beijing-based brokerage China International Capital Corporation said in a note following the data that China may raise the fiscal deficit for next year. ($1 = 6.7350 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Beijing monitoring desk and Elias Glenn; additional reporting by Shen Yan; Editing by Richard Borsuk) BEIJING (Reuters) - Government spending in China rose 11.3 percent in September from a year earlier while revenue rose 4.9 percent, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday. In August, spending was 10.3 percent above a year earlier, and revenue increased 1.7 percent. Data released on Wednesday for last month and the first three quarters signal how China has relied on government spending to stabilise growth this year, which is pushing up the country's fiscal deficit. The deficit over the first nine months was 1.46 trillion yuan (176.14 billion), up from 625.1 billion yuan in the year-earlier period, according to Reuters calculations. Based on calculations using spending data released on Wednesday, deficit spending over the first nine months was equivalent to 2.7 percent of gross domestic product, within China's target for a 3 percent fiscal deficit. Also on Wednesday, China reported that its economy expanded at a steady 6.7 percent in the third quarter, fuelled by stronger government spending, record bank lending and a red-hot property market that are adding to its growing pile of debt. A strong second-hand housing market boosted property transfer tax receipts by 27.2 percent in January-September, compared to a 23.9 percent gain in the first half of the year, the Ministry of Finance said. TAXES ON REAL ESTATE Corporate taxes from real estate companies increased by 25.4 percent in the first nine months from a year earlier, an increase from the 17.3 percent rise in the first half. Government spending in the first nine months was up 12.5 percent from a year earlier, while revenue rose 5.9 percent, with the growth rates of both slowing from the first half. Increased state spending this year has deepened concern about the size of China's fiscal deficit. "Rapidly growing state-directed investment was financed by a highly expansionary fiscal deficit, 4.4 percent of GDP in the most recent four quarters' data and the largest deficit, relative to the size of China's economy, since comparable data began in 1995," PNC senior international economist Bill Adams wrote in a note. Story continues Liu Shangxi, head of the Chinese Academy of Fiscal Sciences under the Ministry of Finance, told Reuters that based on a broader definition of fiscal spending, the ratio is already 5-6 percent. Beijing-based brokerage China International Capital Corporation said in a note following the data that China may raise the fiscal deficit for next year. (Reporting by Beijing monitoring desk and Elias Glenn; additional reporting by Shen Yan; Editing by Richard Borsuk) By Tom Miles and David Lawder GENEVA/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China won the bulk of a World Trade Organization complaint against certain U.S. methods of determining anti-dumping duties on Chinese products in a WTO dispute panel ruling released on Wednesday. China brought the complaint in December 2013, one of a string of disputes challenging Washington's way of assessing "dumping," or exporting at unfairly cheap prices. Specifically, the panel found fault with the U.S. practices of determining dumping margins in certain cases of "targeted dumping," in which foreign firms cut prices on goods aimed at specific U.S. regions, customer groups or time periods. Dumping is normally found when a foreign producer's U.S. prices are lower than its home market prices for the same or similar goods, or when the imports are sold at prices below production costs. The panel ruled against the U.S. Commerce Department's practise of "zeroing" in cases involving targeted dumping. In zeroing, the department typically assigns a value of zero any time a producer's export price is above that producer's normal home market price, partly to account for freight and customs charges. In practice, the zeroing methodology tends to increase the level of U.S. anti-dumping duties on foreign producers. Some points of China's argument were rejected by the WTO panel, including a claim that the Commerce Department systematically punishes Chinese state enterprise by assigning them high anti-dumping rates. Either side can appeal the ruling within 60 days. China's Ministry of Commerce welcomed the ruling saying that the WTO panel had "upheld China's principal claims" on the unlawfulness of targeted dumping and the separate rate applied in certain U.S. anti-dumping measures. The dispute related to several industries including machinery and electronics, light industry, metals and minerals, with an annual export value of up to $8.4 billion, it said. "The United States is disappointed by these findings," a spokesman for the U.S. Trade Representative's office said in a statement. "We will carefully review the report and consider next steps. Nothing in the report will undermine the commitment of the United States to impose antidumping duties to address injurious dumping," the USTR spokesman added. (Reporting by Tom Miles in Geneva and David Lawder in Washington; editing by Dominic Evans and Alan Crosby) Beijing (AFP) - Two Chinese astronauts entered the country's new orbiting space laboratory for the first time on Wednesday, state media reported, as Beijing works towards having its own space station. Mission commander Jing Haipeng was first to float into the Tiangong-2 ("Heavenly Palace") lab, the official Xinhua news agency said, followed by Chen Dong. The pair "extended greetings to all the people of the nation", it said. Their Shenzhou-11 ("Divine Vessel") mission is scheduled to see them stay on board for 30 days -- the longest stay thus far by Chinese astronauts -- carrying out experiments before returning to Earth. The Tiangong-2 lab, which was launched in September, is in orbit 393 kilometres (244 miles) above Earth, Xinhua said previously, and has two cabins -- an hermetically sealed experiment chamber that doubles as the living quarters, and a resources store. China is pouring billions into its military-run space programme and working to catch up to the US and Europe, with hopes to have a crewed outpost by 2022. After Monday's launch from the Gobi desert, Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a message of congratulations, urging the mission to work to contribute "to the building of China into a space power". Beijing sees the programme as symbolising the country's progress and as a marker of its rising global stature, but so far China has largely replicated activities that the US and Soviet Union pioneered decades ago. Racine floral shop hosting Petal it Forward event RACINE Staff from the Racine floral shop Petals by Felicia will be hitting the streets of Racine on Wednesday, Oct. 19, handing out 200 stems of flowers to busy commuters to help brighten up their day, as part of the Petal it Forward campaign. This effort is in partnership with the Society of American Florists of which Petals by Felicia is a member. Petal It Forward is in response to the release of new data by SAF showing the positive emotional benefits of flowers. Felicia Cooper and the Petal It Forward Team will be located at the intersections of 14th and Racine streets and within the curve at 14th Street and Washington Avenue starting at 7 a.m., and will stay while supplies last. After receiving their flowers, recipients are asked to spread the happiness by gifting their second flower and sharing their experience on social media by tagging Petals Facebook business page at www.facebook.com/1stloveliveflowers and using #petalitforward and #petalsbyfelicia. Officers save woman using Narcan CALEDONIA Two Caledonia Police Department officers revived a woman who was found unresponsive from an apparent opioid overdose in a bathroom Monday morning. Officers responded to the 6000 block of Nature Drive at about 10:01 a.m., where they found a woman who had slow respirations and was turning gray, according to a Caledonia Police Department press release. The officers administered two doses of Narcan and began lifesaving measures until Caledonia Fire and Rescue crews arrived on scene, the release said. The woman was taken to Ascension All Saints Hospital and admitted, according to the release. Corrections officer reportedly attacked by inmate RACINE A Racine County Jail corrections officer was sent to the hospital Monday night after reportedly being attacked by an inmate. Deonte E. Anderson, 17, of the 4100 block of Marquette Drive, reportedly attacked the officer in the intake area of the jail at about 10:45 p.m., according to a Racine County Sheriffs Office press release. Additional staff members responded and were able to detain the inmate. The altercation caused the officer to be sent to Ascension All Saints Hospital for treatment of injuries, the release said. Anderson is currently being held on charges for armed robbery with a dangerous weapon and possession of a firearm. In July, Anderson reportedly attempted to sell a gun to someone on the street and then turned the gun on the victim and robbed him, according to a criminal complaint. The Racine County Sheriffs Office is recommending Anderson be charged for battery to a corrections officer. Caledonia highway workers to get raise CALEDONIA Village highway workers will get a .68 percent raise in 2017. The Village Board this week approved a pay agreement with the 15 highway workers represented by the Labor Association of Wisconsin Inc. Local 704. Under state laws governing public employee unions, the pay increase is limited to the states Consumer Price Index. In other budget news, the village will collect fewer tax dollars for the 2017 budget than first expected. In September, Village Administrator Tom Christensen said he expected the tax levy to increase $150,000 to $13,644,824. But an increase in state transportation aid will allow the village to reduce the projected levy to $13,594,824, making the levy increase .74 percent from 2016s $13,494,824. The total village mill rate is expected to rise to $6.898 per $1,000 assessed value from $6.847 per $1,000. With the new rate, village taxes on a house assessed at $250,000 would rise $12.75 from $1,711.75 to $1,724.50. Man arrested after reportedly given stolen car for free STURTEVANT A Chicago man faces felony and misdemeanor charges after he was allegedly found in possession of a stolen car Sept. 17. Kevion A. Minor, 18, of the 400 block of East 90th Street, was pulled over at about 8:49 p.m. in the 10700 block of Highway 11 after failing to dim his high beams on Renaissance Boulevard, according to a criminal complaint. A Sturtevant police officer asked Minor, the driver, to turn off the high beams. Instead, Minor allegedly turned off all of the cars lights. During the investigation, police learned that the vehicle had been stolen from Waukegan, Illinois. Minor allegedly told police that he believed that the car was stolen because he was given it earlier in the evening by an individual only known by the name Wax. According to the complaint, Minor told the officer, No one is just going to give you a car. Minor faces a felony charge for operating a motor vehicle without the owners consent and a misdemeanor charge for receiving stolen property. He is scheduled for an adjourned initial appearance at 1:30 p.m. Oct. 25 at the Racine County Law Enforcement Center, 717 Wisconsin Ave. Candidates for district attorney slated for radio show RACINE Racine County Deputy District Attorney Tricia Hanson and Kenosha County Assistant District Attorney Tom Binger, both candidates for Racine County District Attorney, will be guests on the Cabranes Legal Hour at 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21, on WRJN 1400AM. The candidates will answer questions posed to them by their opponent as well as WRJN listeners who can call into the show and ask questions. For more information, call Cabranes Law Offices at 262-638-0529. Kansasville man faces 5th OWI charge DOVER A Kansasville man is facing his fifth operating while intoxicated offense following an arrest on Monday. Johnny R. Bryson, 48, of the 3500 block of South Beaumont Avenue, was pulled over Monday evening in the area of Highway 20 and Highway 45 North after his vehicles registration was found to be suspended for emission-related reasons, according to a criminal complaint. A Racine County sheriffs deputy noticed Brysons eyes were bloodshot and asked if Bryson had been drinking. Bryson reportedly said he had one drink at a Beaumont Avenue tavern. After completing standard sobriety tests, Bryson blew a .156 on a Breathalyzer test, according to the complaint. Bryson faces a felony charge for his fifth operating while intoxicated offense. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Oct. 26 at the Racine County Law Enforcement Center, 717 Wisconsin Ave. Bryson remained in custody as of Tuesday night at the Racine County Jail, online records showed. Prescription drug take back program is Saturday LYONS The Walworth County Sheriffs Office and Wisconsin Department of Justice have coordinated a Prescription Drug Take Back initiative to take place Saturday. The event is set from 10 a.m. to noon at the Walworth County Sheriffs Office, 1440 Highway NN, Elkhorn, and the Town of Lyons sheriff substation, 6339 Hospital Road. Unused or expired controlled, noncontrolled prescription and over-the-counter medications, ointments, patches, non-aerosol sprays, creams, vials and pet medications discarded from private households will be collected. Liquids, creams and sprays in their original packaging and evenly distributed within the boxes of collected solid prescription medications will also be accepted. Participants may dispose of solid medications by removing it from its container and disposing of it directly into a disposal box or clear sealable plastic bag. Plastic pill containers will not be accepted. Blister packages will be accepted without the medications removed. Illegal drugs, needles/sharps, inhalers, aerosol cans, bio-hazardous materials, personal care products, household hazardous waste and mercury thermometers will not be accepted. Journal Times staff SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China's Shenzhou 11 manned spacecraft has successfully docked with China's Tiangong 2 space lab, and two astronauts have entered the lab, China's official news agency Xinhua said Wednesday. China is the third country after the United States and Russia to complete space rendezvous and docking procedures, Xinhua said. According to the mission schedule, the astronauts will remain in the space station for 30 days and spend a total of 33 days in space, making the mission the longest in space so far for China. In a manned space mission in 2013, three Chinese astronauts spent 15 days in orbit and docked with a space laboratory, the Tiangong 1. Advancing China's space programme is a priority for Beijing, with President Xi Jinping calling for the country to establish itself as a space power. China insists its space programme is for peaceful purposes. Shenzhou 11, whose name translates as "Divine Vessel", will also carry three experiments designed by Hong Kong middle school students and selected in a science competition, including one that will take silk worms into space. The U.S. Defense Department has highlighted China's increasing space capabilities, saying it was pursuing activities aimed at preventing other nations using space-based assets in a crisis. China has been working to develop its space program for military, commercial and scientific purposes, but is still playing catch-up to established space powers the United States and Russia. (Reporting By Nathaniel Taplin; Editing by Richard Pullin) Washington (AFP) - Back in early 2014, a media leak revealed Robby Mook was being considered to run a possible presidential campaign by Hillary Clinton. In fact, the 36-year-old was already on the job -- almost three years before the vote. "You are right about a long term press strategy. Need a different voice responding to this stuff," Mook wrote to Cheryl Mills, Clinton's longtime aide, in February 2014. Mook's message was among the thousands of gmail messages hacked from the account of John Podesta, Clinton's campaign chairman, and released in recent days by WikiLeaks. The Clinton campaign say the hack was carried out by Russian cyber spies bent on tilting the race in favor of the Republican candidate. But the emails offer a fascinating window into the development of a presidential campaign that has been years in the making, with a tiny group of insiders working in secret to prepare Clinton's bid to become the first woman president of the United States. The emails show that the candidate and her closest collaborators were determined not to repeat the errors of Clinton's unsuccessful presidential bid in 2008, when she lost to a charismatic newcomer, Barack Obama. The former secretary of state let speculation build about her possible run for the White House, coyly deflecting questions about her future plans by saying she was enjoying time with her granddaughter. Nevertheless, the press was already alert to signs of a Clinton candidacy. Mook's message about press strategy was prompted by a news story that examined growing differences between Clinton's camp and Obama's inner circle. By March 22, 2014, Mook was starting to work on a campaign strategy, the emails show. He urged Clinton not to run for the presidency, as she had in 2008, as a woman seeking to make history, warning that would be a "mistake." Instead, Mook argued, Clinton should run as a champion of the middle class -- a line she would embrace about a year later. Story continues At the time, Clinton was busy shuttling from paid speaking engagement to paid speaking engagement, and readying a promotional tour for her memoir as secretary of state -- nothing that would suggest any direct political agenda. But in April 2014, Mook already was thinking about how Clinton's campaign should be set up and where. "I anticipate that about two dozen staff will need to be in place and working six to eight weeks prior to an official campaign announcement," he wrote. But he said they should not act before November 4, 2014 midterm elections. In May 2014, Hillary Clinton was summoning her closest advisers. Even they were unaware that Mook was hard at work behind the scenes. "The only person in this group that knows about you besides me is John," Mills wrote Mook, presumably referring to Podesta. - Influencing the media - In late 2014, as Clinton campaigned for fellow Democrats in congressional elections, her speechwriter Dan Schwerin worked up a 20-page document on possible "narratives" for her campaign strategy. "The goal is for you to begin crystalizing the ideas and motivations that are most important and compelling to you, which will then provide direction for policy development, midterms messaging, and further research," he wrote. One suggestion was: "I'm running for president to restore America's fundamental bargain with the middle class and get government working for everyone again, not just a wealthy few." Another was "I'm running for President to renew the American Dream." And "That's why we need a fighter in the White House." Then the pace of hiring picked up. "Madame Secretary, Congratulations -- you have a very enthusiastic Communications Director and Deputy Communications Director," Mook messaged Clinton in January 2015, referring to Jennifer Palmieri and Kristina Schake. The press strategy also had begun to take shape. "We are all in agreement that the time is right to place a story with a friendly journalist in the coming days that positions us a little more transparently while achieving the above goals," wrote Nick Merrill, formerly at State, in a memo. Focus groups were set up in New Hampshire in January 2015 to start fleshing out the campaign messages, but Clinton's pollsters found a problem after one messaging test. "For an audience of core supporters, the enthusiasm is somewhat muted and we don't appear to be generating the excitement or a sense of a fresh, new candidacy we had hoped for," wrote pollster Joel Benenson. A week before the campaign launch, daily calls were being held to coordinate strategy. Emails piled up in Podesta's mailbox as the April 12, 2015 launch date loomed. Just one day before, Podesta and others spoke on condition of anonymity to at least one influential journalist. Then, on the big day, Clinton sent this message on Twitter: "I'm running for president. Everyday Americans need a champion, and I want to be that champion. H" The "H" was intended to mean that the tweet was from her personally. But it was pre-written, and pre-approved at the highest level, at least a week before. CHICAGO, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle contracts slipped on Wednesday, due to profit-taking after three straight winning sessions and caution ahead of cash prices by Friday, said traders. * At 09:28 a.m. CDT (1428 GMT) October was down 0.025 cent per pound to 97.725 cents, and December was down 0.250 cent to 98.975 cents. * Packers have not responded with bids after sellers in the U.S. southern Plains priced slaughter-ready, or cash, cattle at $100 to $102 per cwt, said feedlot sources. Last week, cash cattle brought $97 to $98. * So far cash cattle at smaller sale barns in the Plains moved at $96 to $100 per cwt, said industry sources. * Some market participants will get a hint regarding this week's cash price direction from Wednesday morning's sale of nearly 14,000 head of cattle at the Fed Cattle Exchange. * The U.S. Department of Agriculture will issue the monthly Cattle-On-Feed report on Friday at 2 p.m. CDT (1900 GMT). FEEDER CATTLE - October was 0.525 cent per pound lower at 121.500 cents, on profit-taking and weaker back-month live cattle futures. LEAN HOGS - December was up 0.150 cent per pound to 41.275 cents, and February was up 0.125 cent to 48.575 cents. * Bargain buying and short-covering after three consecutive sessions of market losses lifted CME lean hogs, traders said. * They said futures' discounts to the exchange's hog index for Oct. 17 at 52.36 cents provided additional support. * Tuesdays' lower cash and wholesale pork prices capped market advances, said traders and analysts. * The return of East Coast packing plants to full operations after being closed due to Hurricane Matthew come at a time of already abundant supplies, an analyst said. * From Monday to Tuesday, packers processed 881,000 hogs - 101,000 more than the same period a week ago, according to USDA estimates. * Midwest hog merchants predict a Saturday kill around 280,000 head, depending on the availability of animals on the East Coast. USDA estimated last Saturday's slaughter at 309,000 head. Story continues * Iowa/Minnesota hog weights for the week ended Oct. 15 averaged 281.4 pounds, up 0.2 pound from the prior week and down 0.8 pound from a year ago, based on Wednesday's USDA data. * Cooler fall temperatures and new-crop corn are conducive for hog weight gain, an analyst said. (Reporting by Theopolis Waters in Chicago) WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S.-led coalition will not support Shi'ite militia who might seek to participate in the campaign to retake Mosul from Islamic State and it is up to Baghdad to decide their role, a top U.S. general told Pentagon reporters on Wednesday. Late on Tuesday, a Shi'ite paramilitary force said it would support the Iraqi army's offensive west of Mosul, Islamic State's last major stronghold in Iraq, raising the risk of sectarian strife in the mainly Sunni region. The announcement came despite warnings from human rights groups that involvement of the Popular Mobilization Force (PMF), a coalition of mostly Iranian-trained militias, could ignite sectarian violence. "As far as the Shi'ite PMF, the coalition only supports those elements that are under the direct command and control of the Iraqi security forces -- and the Shi'ite PMF are not," said Major General Gary Volesky, the commander of U.S.-led coalition ground forces in the fight against Islamic State militants. "So we don't support them." The PMF said it would back Iraqi government forces advancing toward Tal Afar, about 55 km (34 miles) west of Mosul. Volesky declined to comment on Tal Afar "because today (we're) focused on Mosul." "As far as what the Shi'ite PMF's role is, again, that is up to the government of Iraq and we (advise) them on our recommendations," Volesky said. "But at the end of the day, that is the government of Iraq's decision." (Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart; Editing by Lisa Shumaker) Libreville (AFP) - Ivory Coast will start their defence of the Africa Cup of Nations against Togo in January, according to the draw made Wednesday. Ivory Coast, who beat Ghana on penalties in the 2015 final, are in Group C against Togo, Morocco and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Hosts Gabon, who saw political turmoil after a disputed election in August, will stage the opening match in Libreville on January 14 against Guinea-Bissau, who make their first appearance in the 16-nation tournament. Cameroon and Burkina Faso are also in Group A. The other group favourites, Algeria and Ghana, start against Zimbabwe and Uganda respectively. Algeria have the toughest first round in Group B where they also take on Tunisia and Senegal for one of the two qualifying places for the quarter-finals. Ghana are the team to beat in Group D. Apart from Uganda, they will take on Egypt, making their return to the contest after missing three finals, and Mali. The final is in Libreville on February 5. The draw produced three groups containing three of the top 10 ranked football nations in Africa, according to FIFA. Algeria (2), Senegal (3) and Tunisia (4) are in one mini-league, Ivory Coast (1), DR Congo (6) and Morocco (10) in another and Ghana (5), Egypt (7) and Mali (9) in a third. A lot of teams will get to know each other extremely well, too, as Ivory Coast and Morocco also share a 2018 World Cup qualifying group, as do Ghana, Egypt and Uganda. Ivory Coast were not impressive in qualifying, drawing three of four matches against Sierra Leone and Sudan, and Morocco are probably a team they wanted to dodge. The Moroccans are coached by Herve Renard, the charismatic Frenchman who masterminded the Ivorians' triumph in Equatorial Guinea last year. He then left for a brief, unsuccessful spell in the French Ligue 1 before being hired by Morocco, and they became the first qualifiers for the 2017 tournament. Renard has won the Cup of Nations twice, taking no-hopers Zambia to the title in Gabon four years ago. Story continues "If I had to name teams I wanted to avoid before the draw, I would have said some of the teams in our group," admitted Renard. "To face Ivory Coast is difficult, especially as we have had the chance to know their players, it's practically the same squad. "But we have to be competitive. The match against Claude Le Roy (coach of Togo) will be something that again will be difficult for me. "But over 90 minutes I have to forget everything this man did for me and do everything in order to beat him." Veteran Le Roy has won the Cup of Nations once, with Cameroon in 1988, and Gabon will mark his ninth appearance at the Cup of Nations finals. He has failed to reach the knockout stage only once. Being grouped with Ghana offers Egypt yet another chance to avenge one of their most humiliating results, a 6-1 thrashing by the Black Stars in a 2014 World Cup qualifier. No team will be more excited about going to Gabon in January than Uganda -- the last time they qualified was in 1978 when the notorious Idi Amin ruled the east African state. Uganda coach Milutin 'Micho' Sredojevic said: This is a tough and competitive group, but I believe in the players and the team. "We have a realistic chance to get good results and reach the knockout stage." Although Gabon are the second lowest ranked team among the 16 contenders, they look set to make the last eight, probably with four-time champions Cameroon. The hosts rely heavily on 2015 African Footballer of the Year Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, a prolific goalscorer with German giants Borussia Dortmund. During the draw ceremony, Gabonese officials emphasised that the country was ready to host a tournament they co-staged with neighbours Equatorial Guinea in 2012. A disputed presidential election victory by incumbent Ali Bongo two months ago triggered riots with opposition parties claiming vote fraud. New prime minister Emmanuel Issoze-Ngondet said: "We will not back away from the tournament. We are ready and will organise an exceptional tournament." CALEDONIA Upon further review, the state plans to build a roundabout on Highway 38 at 5 Mile Road despite not having the official support of the Village Board. In July, the Caledonia Village Board voted 5-2 against a Wisconsin Department of Transportation proposal to construct a roundabout to make the intersection safer. But earlier this month, DOT officials told village administrators that the project will move forward anyway. The Department appreciates the consideration of the Public Works Committee and the Village Board, but with the severe crash history at the intersection we feel obligated to proceed, DOT engineer Stacey Pierce wrote in a letter to the village. Wisconsin 38 is an important corridor in the state roadway system and will remain so in the foreseeable future. In July, Pierce presented the proposed roundabout to the board, showing the DOTs past efforts to make the highway safer, and providing accident statistics for different segments of the road. In 2013, the DOT installed additional stop signs at the intersection, along with bright orange markers on top of them. Since then, there have been 11 crashes at the crossroads. Using a formula that measures crashes per 100 million vehicle miles, the stretch of Highway 38 between 5 and 6 Mile Roads had a crash rate of 477 between 2010 and 2014, compared to the state average rate of 74. The segment between 4 and 5 Mile Roads had a crash rate of 223. A four-way stop and traffic signals were discarded as viable options, Pierce said, leaving a roundabout as the best alternative. Roundabouts force drivers to go slower, leading to fewer severe crashes, and turning potential fatal and severe injury crashes into vehicle-damage-only incidents, Pierce said. But in the end, most Village Board members were unmoved. Several said the area had too many roundabouts already, residents dont like them, and they slow traffic down. Village Trustees David Prott and Kathleen Trentadue voted to support the project, while Village President Bob Bradley and Trustees Jim Dobbs, Kevin Wanggaard, Ed Willing and Lee Wishau voted against it. Well, its their road, Bradley said Tuesday. I think there are other things that I would like see get done first, like Highway 32 and parts of Douglas Avenue. I know there have been accidents there (at 5 Mile) so they are doing what they need to. I dont want to lose anyone there either. No village dollars The project is estimated to cost between $2.3 and $2.5 million, with 90 percent of the money coming from federal sources and the rest from the state. The village wont pay anything, Village Administrator Tom Christensen said Tuesday. The DOT came to us about this project, Christensen said. The board declined to support it, but the DOT still believes that is a dangerous intersection. The project is slated to start in 2020 or 2021, officials said. Its still down the road, Bradley said. The DOT will invite village officials to meet in the coming months to outline the project and plan public information sessions on the design, Pierce wrote. By Nate Raymond NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Colombian drug trafficker who the U.S. government says was the ringleader of an extensive network that shipped thousands of kilograms of cocaine to the United States was sentenced on Wednesday to 20 years in prison. Maximiliano Bonilla-Orozco, also known as "Valenciano," was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sandra Townes in Brooklyn, nearly five years after he was captured in Venezuela, prosecutors said. A lawyer Bonilla-Orozco did not immediately respond to a request for comment. According to U.S. authorities, Bonilla-Orozco, 44, led an extensive narcotics exportation and transportation organization that distributed thousands of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia through Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico to the United States. He received the cocaine from various sources in Colombia, including the rebel group Ejercito de Liberacion Nacional, and dealt frequently with the Zetas drug cartel in Mexico, authorities say. According to the U.S. State Department, Bonilla-Orozco was linked to the transportation of more than $25 million in drug-related proceeds from the United States to Mexico. He was indicted in 2008, and secretly pleaded guilty that year while agreeing to cooperate with U.S. authorities, according to court records. But in 2009, Townes issued a bench warrant for Bonilla-Orozco after prosecutors revealed that his cooperation had not been fruitful and that his U.S. lawyer had lost contact with the Colombian. The U.S. State Department listed Bonilla-Orozco among its most-wanted drug traffickers in Colombia and the government offered a $5 million reward for information leading to his arrest. He was captured in Venezuela in November 2011. (The story corrects sentence to 20 years in prison, not 27 years, in headline and paragraph 1) (Reporting by Nate Raymond in New York; Editing by Alan Crosby) BOGOTA (Reuters) - Representatives from Colombia's right-wing opposition could meet with leaders of the FARC rebels to discuss potential changes to a peace accord signed by the guerrillas and the government, opposition leader Alvaro Uribe said on Tuesday. Hardliner Uribe, an ex-president, current senator and leader of the right-wing Democratic Center party, had previously said his group would not meet with the rebels, who signed a peace deal with the government last month to end 52 years of war. Colombians rejected the accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, in a surprise plebiscite result this month. Uribe spearheaded the "No" campaign. "We think that at this time, in the interest of a national deal, spokespeople from "No" could at some point speak with the FARC," Uribe told journalists. President Juan Manuel Santos, who has staked his legacy on a successful deal, has been meeting with opponents in a bid to salvage the accord. In a televised speech on Tuesday Santos, who won a Nobel Prize for his peace efforts, said talks were advancing and he would continue to hear opposition proposals until Thursday before discussing them with the FARC. The Colombian conflict has killed more than 220,000 people and displaced millions. (Reporting by Luis Jaime Acosta; Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb; Editing by Sandra Maler) By Aaron Ross KINSHASA (Reuters) - The usually bustling streets of Democratic Republic of Congo capital Kinshasa were nearly empty on Wednesday amid a general strike called by the opposition to press President Joseph Kabila to step down in December. Kabila's two-term mandate expires in December, but the country's ruling coalition and other smaller parties agreed last week to postpone November elections until April 2018, citing logistical problems registering millions of voters. Congo's top court also approved a delay on Monday. The country's main opposition bloc says Kabila is using the delay to cling onto power. His allies say he will respect the constitution. Last month dozens died in two days of protests in Kinshasa against the election delays, prompting strong criticism of police aggression from rights groups. Activity in the city of more than 10 million people was nearly paralysed on Wednesday, despite calls by the government to avoid the strike. One of Kinshasa's main roads, Boulevard Lumumba, normally thick with morning traffic, was empty on Wednesday and a deep quiet replaced the usual sound of car horns. Almost no stores were open and most public transport was not running, forcing the few who headed to work to walk. Police in riot gear patrolled the streets, but there was little to do. "We want Kabila to leave power on December 19. We are going to march until he resigns," said Moise Miya, a 26-year-old delivery man for a store in north Kinshasa who was not working on Wednesday. Wednesday's strike appeared to be a success for the Congo opposition, and showed growing support. A similar strike called in August was only partially successful. "The opposition has won today, they have scored points," said Emile Ngandu, a motorcycle driver at the city's central bus station where buses normally packed with people sat idle. Ngandu normally makes about $12 by 9:30 a.m., but this morning had made just $2. "If I don't work, I am not going to eat," he said. In the eastern city of Goma, over 1,000 people marched on the office of the governor of North Kivu, chanting against the agreement to postpone the election and lighting fires in the street, witnesses told Reuters. Police fired tear gas to disperse them, they said. (Reporting by Aaron Ross and Kenny Katombe; Writing by Edward McAllister and Matt Bigg; Editing by Dominic Evans) Lyle Denniston, Constitution Dailys Supreme Court correspondent, looks at how the Supreme Court may be confronted with a more challenging situation if its current vacancy continues through the term that runs through late next June. THE STATEMENTS AT ISSUE: I promise you that we will be united against any Supreme Court nominee that Hillary Clinton, if she were president, would put up. This is why we need the majority [in the Senate], so we can make sure there is not three places on the United States Supreme Court that will change this country for decades. Excerpt from remarks by Republican Senator John McCain, of Arizona, on Monday in an interview on the Philadelphia radio show on station WPHT-AM, the Dom Giordano Program. Later Monday, Rachael Dean, a spokeswoman for the senator, told reporters that he will, of course, thoroughly examine the record of any Supreme Court nominee put before the Senate and vote for or against any individual based on their qualifications. This isnt exactly a surprise, but it is an existential threat to the Supreme Court itself and, ultimately, to the rule of law. If Republicans rig the Supreme Court in this way, so that only Republicans get to name Justices, then what possible reason does a Democratic governor or a Democratic president have to obey the courts decisions?This is a dangerous future. Excerpt from an online commentary on Senator McCains remarks, titled The cat is out of the bag, by Ian Milhiser, senior fellow at the liberal advocacy group, the Center for American Progress. WE CHECKED THE CONSTITUTION, AND The Constitution creates one Supreme Court, and current federal law specifies that it can do its work if it has no fewer than six Justices. There is no way it can reach down to a lower court and borrow a judge to help it obtain a quorum to decide a given case for which six Justices are not available. Lacking a quorum for a case, it actually has to simply stand aside and let stand the lower court decision that is at issue, according to a federal law. Story continues From those limitations, it is obvious that the court cannot take any action to fill up its bench when there is a vacancy as at present, with the death in February of Justice Antonin Scalia and the refusal of Senate Republican leaders to consider the nominee to replace him, Circuit Judge Merrick B. Garland. With only eight Justices, the court has found itself dividing 4-to-4 in a few cases, including some important ones, and it has acted more cautiously on taking on major new controversies that may lead to an even split. A 4-to-4 split has the effect, just as when the court lacks a quorum of six, of simply making final the decision of the lower court that is before it. There is no binding precedent in that situation, so the development of law gets stymied. The court operated through more than three months of its last term with only eight members, and it has gone through the first month of its new term with that number. There is, at present, no sign that it will be joined by a ninth Justice any time before the early months of 2017, at the earliest. The court may be now be confronted with a more challenging situation if that vacancy continues through the term that runs through late next June, and beyond, perhaps for the entire first term of the new president. That could follow from the suggestion on Monday by Republican Senator John McCain that a GOP-led Senate would refuse to confirm any Supreme Court nominee, if Democrat Hillary Clinton were to become president. That idea represents an escalation of the current Republican senatorial position on the present vacancy. Previously, GOP leaders had said that Scalia should be replaced by the president to be chosen on November 8. Of course, if the McCain scenario were to play out, the court would not shut down. The present Justices would continue serving as long as they are able to do so, but would be required to do even more adjusting than they have so far to reach compromises in the most difficult and important cases, and they almost certainly would turn aside even more such cases rather than risk a string of 4-to-4 splits. But assume that the older members of the court were unable to continue, or that they began departing voluntarily or otherwise one by one. The court might find itself fairly soon risking the loss of its quorum. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the eldest, is 83 years old. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy will be 80 in July. And Justice Stephen G. Breyer will be 78 in August. Senator McCain on Monday referred to three potential vacancies (including the seat of the late Justice Scalia), but if the oldest of the sitting Justices left the court, the bench would be down to five members. That circumstance, should it develop, almost certainly would produce a constitutional crisis. The Constitution does anticipate that there would be a court at the top of the federal judicial hierarchy, and it thus assumes that it is necessary to have a final arbiter of the law. The court itself, of course, has operated on that assumption since 1803, when it declared it to be the courts duty to say what the law is. Short of constitutional amendments, the court has the last word on the Constitutions meaning. Congress could react to such a crisis by reducing to five the number to make a quorum, and that would be a solution, of sorts. If the Republicans were holding fast to an agreement to block any Clinton nominee to be Justice, they would have a court (assuming the departure of Ginsburg, Kennedy and Breyer) dominated by three conservatives (Chief Justice John G. Robert, Jr., and Justices Samuel A. Alito, Jr., and Clarence Thomas), with liberal Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor in isolated dissent, at least on major cases. Leaving aside the argument (made by commentator Ian Milhiser, quoted above) that the Republican maneuver to save seats on the court for a future GOP president would so discredit the court that its decisions might not be obeyed by Democratic officials, the crisis of confidence for the general public would very likely be profound. The court would have been quite thoroughly and intentionally politicized, and its image would be that of a Republican-rigged tribunal, with the specific aim of generating rulings acceptable to the GOP policy agenda. Partisan polarization would then, definitely, have spread all across the national government. Was that the vision of James Madison and Alexander Hamilton? Just 1% of Russians approve of U.S. President Barack Obamas administration -- the worst U.S. approval rating of countries in the world and the lowest approval of U.S. leadership in any country in the past decade. Unlike Russia, many countries have a positive view of the United States, according to the most recent Gallup poll. In fact, compared to other world powers, including Russia, the United States is generally perceived more favorably. However, the populations of some countries seem to truly hate America. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed Rating World Leaders: 2016 What People Worldwide Think of the U.S., China, Russia, the EU and Germany, a report based on polls conducted by polling and analytics firm Gallup. In Russia, 89% of the population disapproves of U.S. leadership. A number of former Soviet states, as well as several Middle Eastern nations, also have very high U.S. disapproval ratings. Iran rounds out the list, with 51% of residents reporting a negative view of U.S. leadership. In all, there are 15 countries where a majority of the population disapproves of the Obama administration. ALSO READ: The Richest Town in Every State In an interview with 24/7 Wall St. Ambassador Stuart Holliday, president and CEO of the Meridian International Center said these ratings reflect legitimate opinions that people have whether theyve been shaped by culture, history, or the news. Although U.S.-Russia relations have improved considerably since the Cold War, they began to deteriorate after President Vladimir Putin took power. Holliday explained that Putin has been largely responsible for positioning the United States as opposing Russia and stoking the negative sentiment. In the case of United States and Russia, the perception of each countrys population of one another seems to mirror U.S.-Russia relations. However, this seems to be the exception. In other countries, the populations seem to maintain unfavorable views towards U.S. leadership despite normal to strong ties between the two governments. Story continues A majority of the 15 nations are formal allies of the United States. Four of the 15 -- Afghanistan, Iraq, Egypt, and Pakistan -- are among the top recipients of U.S. foreign assistance. As Holliday explained, governments typically form relationships around policy positions. The views of the people, by contrast, might be formed on where they might want to migrate to, to live, whether they admire the education system or the economic system. Not only are a population's' views often quite different from that of a government, but because of the varied possible interpretations of the survey question and because of the differing amounts of information available in each country, disapproval ratings can have different meanings in each country. Nowhere is this variance more apparent than in the United States itself, where 61% of residents disapprove of U.S. leadership, worse than a few of the countries who hate America the most. To identify the countries that hate America the most, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed Rating World Leaders: 2016 What People Worldwide Think of the U.S., China, Russia, the EU and Germany, a report published in October 2016 through a partnership between nonprofit global leadership organization The Meridian International Center and polling company Gallup. Gallup conducted face-to-face and telephone interviews with approximately 1,000 adults, 15 years and older, in 133 countries in 2015. Survey participants were asked whether they approve or disapprove of U.S., Chinese, Russian, EU, and German leadership. Each country on this list was ranked on the percentage of residents who disapprove of U.S. leadership. GDP per capita (PPP) and unemployment rates in each country are for 2015 and came from the International Monetary Fund. Life expectancy at birth came from the World Bank. These are the countries that hate America. 15. Iran > Disapproval rating: 51.0% > GDP per capita: $5,443 > Unemployment rate: 12.8% > Life expectancy: 75.4 years Iran is one of only 15 countries where a majority of residents disapprove of the Obama administration. Despite the large disapproval rating, the perception of U.S. leadership among Iranians has improved considerably since 2011. Specifically, Irans approval of the United States rose significantly in 2015 compared to 2014 after the nuclear deal with world powers was reached. Though intended to cripple Irans ability to develop nuclear weapons, the deal also promised the lifting of nuclear-related economic sanctions. Sanctions were officially lifted at the beginning of this year after Iran complied with its part of the deal. ALSO READ: States With the Highest Voter Turnout 14. Tunisia > Disapproval rating: 53.0% > GDP per capita: $3,873 > Unemployment rate: 13.3% > Life expectancy: 74.1 years Major political protests in Tunisia starting in 2010 led to President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali going into exile in 2011 and unprecedented peaceful democratic elections in 2014. This was the first free and open democratic election since Tunisia gained independence in 1956. Since the 2010 protests, the United States has provided the country with more than $80 million in funding for democratic initiatives. While American support of the new administration has fostered good relations with the Tunisian government, the sentiment does not appear to be shared by all. More than half of Tunisia residents disapprove of U.S. leadership, and in 2012 outrage over a film lampooning the Prophet Mohammed led to an attack on the U.S. embassy in Tunisia. The countrys government officially condemned the attack. 13. Kyrgyzstan > Disapproval rating: 54.0% > GDP per capita: $1,103 > Unemployment rate: 8.1% > Life expectancy: 70.4 years Kyrgyzstan is one of several former Soviet Union member states with among the highest U.S. disapproval ratings. Because of Russias extremely poor perception of the United States, countries sympathetic with Russia often reflect similar sentiments. Kyrgyzstans approval of Russian leadership, at 85%, is third highest worldwide. Manas airport in Bishkek operated as a U.S. air base for over 12 years in Kyrgyzstan. During the Afghanistan War, the base was used by almost all U.S. military personnel entering the region. The Kyrgyzstan government did not renew its contract with the U.S. military and closed the base in 2014. President Almazbek Atambayev claimed the base had a destabilizing effect on the region, and some have pointed to the bases closure as a sign of the countrys strengthening ties with Russia. 12. Serbia > Disapproval rating: 56.0% > GDP per capita: $13,699 > Unemployment rate: 18.5% > Life expectancy: 75.5 years Less than two decades after a war with the United States, 56% of Serbians disapprove of U.S. leadership. The Kosovo War began in 1998 as conflict between Serbian forces in the region and the largely Albanian Kosovo Liberation Army erupted. At the time, Kosovo was a contested region constituting 15% of Serbia and the counterinsurgency measures used against the Albanian minority community were severe. With escalating violence, the United States and NATO forces got involved. Then President Bill Clinton authorized troop deployments to Yugoslavia in 1998, and the U.S. took part in a NATO-led bombing campaign of the region that resulted in the deaths of at least 200 Serbian civilians. When the United States recognized Kosovos declaration of independence in 2008, widespread protests broke out and the U.S. embassy in Serbia was attacked. While only 16% of Serbians approve of U.S. leadership, 85% of the Kosovo population does, the highest of any country. ALSO READ: States Where Poverty Is Worse Than You Think 11. Iraq > Disapproval rating: 57.0% > GDP per capita: $15,186 > Unemployment rate: N/A > Life expectancy: 69.4 years One reason for the anti-American sentiment throughout the Middle East and around the world is the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. Today, 57% of Iraqi citizens disapprove of U.S. leadership, a larger share than in all but 10 other countries. Iraq, however, is no different than most nations -- American approval rating has increased worldwide with the inauguration of Obama in 2009. Similarly, Iraqis' current approval rating, although low, is an improvement from eight years ago, when 76% of Iraqi citizens disapproved of the United States under then President George W. Bush. Still, U.S. leadership approval has waned in Iraq over the last year. Public opinion may have been sullied by the rise of Daesh, which some experts believe was facilitated by the U.S. withdrawal from the region. 10. Syria > Disapproval rating: 59.0% > GDP per capita: N/A > Unemployment rate: N/A > Life expectancy: 70.1 years A few of the countries with the highest U.S. disapproval ratings are new to this list, but not Syria. Syrian perception of the United States has been persistently poor for years. Even so, recent events have not improved approval of U.S. leadership in the Middle Eastern nation. Some Syrians likely disapprove of the U.S. support -- or insufficient support or lack of involvement in the country's civil war and the ongoing refugee crisis. With extremist groups such as Daesh operating in the region, many Syrians also likely have first-hand experience of U.S. military operations against the group. For example, the United States and several Arab nations launched airstrikes in September 2014 in Aleppo, Raqqa, and other areas in the region. Based on reports from the Pentagon, the numerous U.S. airstrikes targeting Daesh in recent years have resulted in hundreds of civilian casualties. According to nonprofit transparency project Airwars, over 1,000 civilians have been killed in U.S. attacks in the region. 9. Austria > Disapproval rating: 60.0% > GDP per capita: $46,986 > Unemployment rate: 5.7% > Life expectancy: 81.3 years While 37% of Austrians disapproved of U.S. leadership in 2011, today 60% of surveyed Austrians disapprove of the Obama administration. The change in sentiment among Austrian citizens may be due to the shift in the countrys domestic politics. In the first round of the most recent presidential election, Austria elected what would be the first far-right head-of-government in Europe since the end of World War II. Obama has spoken publicly against Austria and Europes rightward shift. In a speech delivered the day after Austrias election, Obama warned against the creeping emergence of the kind of politics that the European project was founded to reject, calling it a "mentality that tries to blame our problems on the other." The cultural shift in Austria may be one reason for the growing disapproval of U.S. leadership. ALSO READ: Most Educated City in Each State 8. Egypt > Disapproval rating: 62.0% > GDP per capita: $11,803 > Unemployment rate: 12.9% > Life expectancy: 71.1 years Many of the countries that dislike the United States receive substantial U.S. assistance, which only reveals the often stark differences between the relationships of foreign governments and the sentiments of a countrys population. The U.S. has provided approximately $1.3 billion in military aid to Egypt each year since 1987. In 2011, demonstrations in Tahrir Square started a string of popular uprisings known as the Arab Spring. After Egypts first democratically elected president, Mohamed Morsi, was toppled in 2013, the U.S. withdrew aid. The current leader, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, has been accused of implementing a police state. In a move that has been interpreted as condoning the new regime, military aid to Egypt was restored this April. Approval of U.S. leadership among Egyptians dropped sharply in 2015. The country was one of only seven where approval fell by 10 percentage points or more from 2014. 7. Belarus > Disapproval rating: 67.0% > GDP per capita: $17,715 > Unemployment rate: 1.5% > Life expectancy: 73.0 years In 1994 President Clinton became the first U.S. president to visit Belarus, but relationships have deteriorated since. In 2004, Congress passed the Belarus Democracy Act, authorizing funding for political opposition parties and organizations that promote democracy and human rights in the country. Due to concerns over human rights violations and the undermining of democracy, the United States imposed sanctions against Belarus in 2006 and extended them earlier this year. Ideological differences between the two countries have defined political US-Belarus relations, and may also be reflected by the Belarus population. The most recent survey found that 67% of Belarusians disapprove of U.S. leadership, among the worst U.S. ratings of any country. 6. Yemen > Disapproval rating: 69.0% > GDP per capita: $2,676 > Unemployment rate: N/A > Life expectancy: 63.8 years Thousands have been killed in Yemens civil war, which began in 2015. Thus far, airstrikes against rebels by the Saudi-led multinational coalition, which supports Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansour, have caused the majority of deaths. Saudi Arabia has long been a close ally of the United States, which has provided billions of dollars in military equipment to the country. The use of weapons originating from the United States in Yemen has very likely fueled the high U.S. disapproval. The U.S. military took direct and unprecedented action this October, when Navy destroyer USS Nitze, after an attack on the USS Mason, responded by bombing Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen. 5. Kazakhstan > Disapproval rating: 70.0% > GDP per capita: $25,912 > Unemployment rate: 5.0% > Life expectancy: 71.6 years Since the United States recognized Kazakhstans independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 -- the first country to do so -- the two governments have been close allies. As in a number of other former Soviet states, however, Kazakhstanis do not feel as close to the United States as their government does and report one of the worst U.S. disapproval ratings in the world. For many Kazakh residents, sympathizing with Russia and approving of U.S. leadership may be mutually exclusive. ALSO READ: 25 Cities Where Health Insurance Coverage Is Soaring Most countries with strong dislike for the United States are struggling economically or with violent conflict -- regardless of whether or not the U.S. is directly involved. Kazakhstan is no exception. The country, which is heavily dependent on its oil industry, has been slammed by falling oil prices in recent years, which hit the economy hard enough to cause social unrest. 4. Pakistan > Disapproval rating: 71.0% > GDP per capita: $4,906 > Unemployment rate: 5.9% > Life expectancy: 66.2 years Pakistan, a nuclear-armed, long-time U.S. ally, reports nearly the worst U.S. disapproval rating in the world. The Pakistani government relies on U.S. military aid to fight the Taliban in the northwest, another insurgency in the west along its border with Iran, and also to maintain its heavily armed eastern border with India. Despite the close ties, however, the U.S. has relied recently on drone strikes to target terrorists in the area, which according to some is at the expense of U.S.-Pakistan relations. Civilian casualties, which based on Pentagon reports are not uncommon during airstrikes, have been reported in Pakistan. 3. Lebanon > Disapproval rating: 72.0% > GDP per capita: $18,277 > Unemployment rate: N/A > Life expectancy: 79.4 years Nearly three in four Lebanese citizens disapprove of U.S. leadership, among the largest share of any country. Lebanons disapproval of the United States is likely grounded in Americas support for Israel, Lebanon's neighbor and enemy to the south. Violent conflicts between the two countries have been relatively common for roughly four decades. The U.S. has been accused of holding a double standard in its foreign policy towards its two allies Lebanon and Israel. In 2006, for example, while the United States provided humanitarian aid to Lebanon, Israel attacked the country with American-made bombs. That year, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice refused to broker a ceasefire that might have ended the 34-day war between the two countries. For many Lebanese, U.S. support of Israel is likely difficult to reconcile with the Lebanese-U.S. alliance. 2. Palestinian territories > Disapproval rating: 79.0% > GDP per capita: N/A > Unemployment rate: N/A > Life expectancy: 72.9 years Nearly four in five residents of the Palestinian territories -- the West Bank and Gaza Strip -- disapprove of U.S. leadership, the highest proportion of any country other than Russia. Hatred of America within the Palestinian territories is likely the result of the close military alliance between the U.S. and Israel. Since 1967, when Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza Strip in the Six-Day War, Israel has maintained control of these territories. Israel is the largest recipient of U.S. military aid in the world. While the United States provides humanitarian aid to the region, Israel receives an estimated $3.1 billion of American military assistance annually. Many in the region do not approve of U.S. foreign policy such as the United States not recognizing the West Bank and Gaza as comprising the State of Palestine. ALSO READ: The Worst Cities for Black Americans 1. Russia > Disapproval rating: 89.0% > GDP per capita: $25,965 > Unemployment rate: 5.6% > Life expectancy: 70.4 years No country disapproves more strongly of U.S. leadership than Russia, where 89% of people have a negative perception of the Obama administration. The 1% U.S. approval rating is also at its lowest point in decades, corroborating claims by some that U.S.-Russia relations are the worst since the Cold War. Based on the next round of surveys conducted so far this year, the approval rating may have improved slightly to 2%, still the lowest. Anti-American sentiments have long been common in Russia. Recent upticks are likely due largely to Russias annexation of Crimea in 2014, a move that the United States did not recognize or approve. In 2011, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was responsible for protests in Moscow contesting his rule. Most recently, in another sign of hostilities between the two superpowers, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden publicly threatened Russia with cyber attacks. Related Articles By Se Young Lee SEOUL (Reuters) - The next few weeks are traditionally a tense time at Samsung Electronics Co as executives wait to see if their work over the year is rewarded with promotion at the South Korean firm's annual performance review. This year, that tension has been ramped up several notches as the year-end ritual comes on the heels of the debacle over Samsung's flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. The world's top smartphone maker this month pulled the plug on the near-$900 device after phones overheated and caught fire. With some replacement phones suffering the same problem, Samsung has forecast a $5.4 billion (4.38 billion pounds) hit to its operating profits. Some analysts predict the smartphone business may post a first quarterly loss for July-September. "Everyone's afraid to be heard even breathing," said one Samsung employee. "There will be punitive measures; someone will have to take responsibility for this." None of the Samsung employees Reuters talked to for this article wanted to be named as they were not authorised to speak to the media. Samsung's annual personnel decisions - a common practice in South Korea around December - is a secret more closely guarded than even details of its new products. Executives are told about any changes only at the last minute. Samsung insiders say there is more nervousness this year than normal, and talk internally of sweeping changes, with a cull both in the executive suite and on the ground level. "There's a lot of talk there could be major turnover in the executive ranks on the hardware side," said an insider at the mobile division. "There's also a lot of concern among the working-level employees about a major restructuring." Samsung told Reuters it was not considering any management changes or restructuring in response to the Note 7 crisis. FRUSTRATION The sense of frustration among Samsung staff has been heightened by the company's inability to find the cause of the fires in replacement Note 7s that began shipping last month with what Samsung said were safe batteries, insiders said. Story continues "We are working around the clock to analyse the causes of the reported cases," Samsung said in a statement to Reuters, adding it is premature to speculate on what went wrong. In an internal Oct. 11 email apologising to staff, mobile chief Koh Dong-jin - who has been in the job for less than a year - wrote of the "big wound" the scrapping of the Note 7 would be for executives and employees. Samsung confirmed Koh wrote to staff, but did not comment on what he said. Some Samsung workers said there were already rumours circulating internally about which executives might be ousted. Some investors and analysts have said top executives including Koh may be held responsible at the year-end review. Others said they felt ashamed when people they know ditched the Note 7 for a rival product or when they heard news announcements about the phones being banned from aeroplanes. Koh and other Samsung executives have been active on internal messaging boards, discussing with employees how to deal with the Note 7 crisis, insiders said. About 70 percent of Samsung's more than 325,000 employees work outside South Korea. It is not clear how overseas jobs or those at subsidiaries might be affected by the Note 7 storm; Samsung said it has no plans to cut jobs this year in Vietnam, a major smartphone manufacturing base. TAKING IT SLOW Internally, the mobile business was criticised by some for changing product specifications without delaying launch schedules, putting staff and suppliers under pressure to deliver fast. "Some people who work in other business divisions feel something like this was bound to happen," said a Samsung employee at the consumer electronics division, noting mounting pressure on the mobile business to overcome slowing growth amid strong competition from rivals including Apple Inc and Huawei Technologies Co Ltd. A person familiar with the development of the next Galaxy S smartphone, expected to launch early next year, said the process has now slowed as Samsung is anxious to avoid any repeat of the Note 7 problems in its future premium handsets. "Depending on the cause (of the Note 7 problem), certain configurations may need to be altered," the person said. "So the specifics for the (next) phone have not been finalised." Samsung is not likely to bring forward the launch of the next Galaxy S smartphone to make up for lost Note 7 sales, the person added. Samsung told Reuters it will take "any and all necessary steps" to ensure product safety, but did not comment on whether the Note 7 fallout was affecting the next Galaxy S phone's development. (Reporting by Se Young Lee, with additional reporting by Cynthia Kim and Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Ian Geoghegan) By Igor Ilic ZAGREB (Reuters) - The Croatian parliament approved on Wednesday a new government led by the conservative HDZ party leader Andrej Plenkovic whose main task will be to boost growth and sort out fragile public finances in one of the weakest European Union economies. The new government was formed by the HDZ and its junior center-right reformist partner Most ("Bridge") after several weeks of negotiations following a Sept. 11 snap election. The government got support of 91 out of 151 parliamentary deputies. "We will be the government that knows how to bring about changes," Plenkovic told the parliamentary deputies while presenting his cabinet. He said that spurring growth and improving the business climate would be his government's priorities. "We will ease conditions for doing business and implement tax reform to make the taxation system simpler and ease burden for citizens and businesses," Plenkovic said. In the past many investors have largely shunned Croatia due to red tape, high taxes, frequently changing regulations and a slow judiciary. Plenkovic said that the 2017 budget, which is expected in November, will clearly reflect efforts to reduce the fiscal gap and public debt which now stands at around 85 percent of gross domestic product. Tentatively, the government wants to reduce the gap to two percent next year from some 2.5 percent expected this year. Among the main challenges for the new government will be disputes with Hungary's MOL over decision-making in jointly owned Croatian energy group INA, with public sector trade unions over wage hike promise, and with local banks over the forced conversion of Swiss franc loans into euros. Disputes over the promise of higher wages, dating back to 2009, and CHF loans, whose conversion cost was entirely imposed on the banks, could potentially inflict costs worth billions of kuna and undermine fiscal consolidation plans. Analysts widely believe that without measures to significantly improve the business climate, the country is unlikely to surpass the 2.5 percent growth figure in the coming years. HDZ won most parliamentary seats in the snap election following a collapse of the previous HDZ-Most government in June, after just five months in power, due to a row over a conflict of interest case involving a former HDZ leader.. Analysts believe the new government, led by the new HDZ leader, has a good chance of completing the four-year term. (Reporting by Igor Ilic; Editing by Angus MacSwan) * Czech police detain Russian man wanted for hacking * U.S. official: case is not connected to recent political hacks * Russia says wants its citizen to be sent home (Adds comment from LinkedIn, which says arrest tied to 2012 hack at social network) PRAGUE, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Czech police have detained a Russian man wanted in connection with criminal hacking attacks on targets in the United States in an arrest carried out in cooperation with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. LinkedIn Corp said on Wednesday that the arrest was related to a 2012 breach at the social networking company that it previously said may have compromised credentials of 100 million users, prompting it to launch a massive password reset operation. "Following the 2012 breach of LinkedIn member information, we have remained actively involved with the FBI's case to pursue those responsible," LinkedIn said in the statement. "We are thankful for the hard work and dedication of the FBI in its efforts to locate and capture the parties believed to be responsible for this criminal activity," the company said. Czech police said that a court would decide whether to extradite the suspect to the United States. The Russian news agency TASS indicated that Russia would fight any extradition attempt. "We insist that the detainee is handed over to Russia," it quoted Andrei Kolmakov, a spokesman for the Russian embassy in Prague, as saying. Reuters could not reach Kolmakov for comment. Czech and U.S. authorities declined to confirm that the man was a suspect in the LinkedIn breach or say what charges were being filed against him. Video footage released by police showed a man being arrested without resistance in a restaurant of a central Prague hotel. He had dark hair, and wore a hooded sweatshirt with camouflage pattern, blue jeans and sneakers. A Czech police spokesman said that Yevgeniy N., a Russian born in 1987, had been arrested on Oct. 5 in response to a request through Interpol. Story continues Police said the man was briefly hospitalised after collapsing and then put in custody. Two U.S. officials said the man was not linked to recent political hacks in the United States. The U.S. government this month accused Russia of a campaign of cyber attacks against Democratic Party organisations ahead of the Nov. 8 presidential election. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said a hacking scandal would not be in Russia's interests. (Reporting by Jason Hovet, Robert Muller, Jan Lopatka, Mark Hosenball, Dustin Volz and Jim Finkle; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt, Richard Balmforth and Bernard Orr) PRAGUE (Reuters) - Czech ministers and senior parliamentarians held a private meeting with exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Tuesday, risking upsetting China just as Prague is trying to boost ties with Beijing. By contrast, the country's four highest-ranking officials kept their distance from the meeting and issued a rare joint statement stressing that the Czech Republic accepted Tibet as part of China and wanted to maintain good bilateral relations. The Dalai Lama met Deputy Prime Minister Pavel Belobradek, Culture Minister Daniel Herman and the deputy speakers of both houses of parliament during a visit to an annual conference launched by the late Vaclav Havel, the country's first president. Havel had close personal links with the now 80-year-old monk and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. The ministers and deputy speaker of the lower house of parliament are Christian Democrats, junior partner in the ruling center-left coalition, and the upper house speaker is allied with them. The meetings were labeled as private. In their joint statement released by the office of President Milos Zeman, the four highest-ranking Czech officials said: "Personal activities of some Czech politicians do not express a change of the official policy of the Czech Republic and we would regard as unfortunate if anybody saw it as such." Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the Dalai Lama was there to engage in "anti-China separatist activities", that they were extremely dissatisfied with the meeting and opposed any foreign officials meeting him. However, Hua added she noted the government statement. "We hope the Czech side can always meet China halfway, and take actual steps to maintain the present good momentum in developing Sino-Czech relations," she told a daily news briefing in Beijing. China frequently scolds countries for giving any recognition to the Dalai Lama, whom it accuses of promoting independence for the Himalayan region. He says he simply seeks genuine autonomy for Tibet. China's Foreign Ministry said on Monday it would retaliate after Slovak President Andrej Kiska met the Dalai Lama. [L4N1CN2Z4] The Czech government has been keen to boost ties with China. China was grateful for Zeman's attendance as the only western leader at a military parade in Beijing in 2015 marking the end of World War Two. Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Prague in March to forge a "strategic partnership" with the Czech Republic. (Reporting by Jan Lopatka and Robert Muller; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in Beijing; Editing by Tom Heneghan and Nick Macfie) (Facebook/Author Kevin L. Brown) This is my beautiful, smart, joyful 11 year old biracial son Kaden, writes Kevin Brown in a Facebook post featuring a picture of a young boy holding up a sign saying I AM NOT A Mutt!!! The post comes after Kaden was asked by a teacher at his school in Center Line, Mich. if he was a mutt when she noticed his curly hair. Not understanding the question, my son said he didnt know what that was. At that time another student and the white teacher told him when your mixed with other races (ethnicities). Outraged by the comment, Brown took to social media calling for the teacher to be fired. This teacher made my son feel dirty, calling him a mutt, a dog with no identity who doesnt belong. I AM OUTRAGED!!! This racist behavior should not be allowed in our schools, our children should never be faced with this BS, especially in the classroom from people that we (parents) entrust our childrens protection. This left my son, my heart and joy feeling like he meant nothing, that he was less than nothinghe even went home and asked his mother why cant I be all white, he wants to disown his African American heritage for his mothers German, Italian, Irish heritage. In the post, Brown not only includes the full account of what happened but also the name of the teacher, school, address and telephone number. He asks that others take pictures with signs saying they are not mutts and join him in this protest. I am tired of the hate, tired of the affliction and pissed off that my innocent child has become just another victim to racism in this county. Andrew S. McKinnon, assistant superintendent for human resources at the school told Fox2 News that the matter was being investigated but would not disclose any details. Daisy Ridleys new haircut is so sharp it could cut glass Daisy Ridley, the actress who made her film debut as Rey in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, attended the October 18th premiere for Sonys The Eagle Huntress, a Sundance documentary on which Ridley was an executive producer. The actress showed up wearing a beautifully simple LBD (little black dress), and rocked a new sleek haircut that is so sharp, were in desperate need of a bandaid. Anyone have one they could spare? Before the cut, Ridleys hair was dark and sultry, falling just below the shoulders in tousled waves. Here she is in April accepting the 2016 Breakthrough Performance MTV Movie Award for her role as Rey: Ridley at MTV Movie Awards Our theory is that the star had to keep her hair long enough to fit into her iconic Rey triple bun do while filming The Force Awakens and the upcoming, Star Wars: Episode VIII. But now that the Episode VII is in post-production, Ridley is ready to cut loose and try out a new look. Hey, theres always hair extensions, right? Ridleys retro-esque look (especially paired with that red lip) is paying off big time. Look at how glamorous she is! In the words of Beyonce, shes a grown woman. Daisy Ridley The lightened brunette hair color makes Ridleys green eyes pop, and the cut just below the chin highlights her face shape perfectly. Plus that wavy bang makes Ridley look like she stepped out of a scene in Mad Men. As for The Eagle Huntress, it is a documentary about a 13-year-old Mongolian girl who strives to become the first female Eagle Hunter in male-dominated Mongolia. Ridley was eager to join co-executive producer, Morgan Spurlock, after seeing a rough cut of the film. She is passionate about inspiring female empowerment and awareness by way of the main character, Aisholpans, true story. the eagle huntress Ridley herself is successfully preaching female empowerment via her new look. She looks professional and powerful in her black dress and with her straight lob (long bob). The new title of executive producer fits her well and were eager to see what other projects Ridley will become involved in. The post Daisy Ridleys new haircut is so sharp it could cut glass appeared first on HelloGiggles. By Laila Bassam and Tom Perry BEIRUT/AMMAN (Reuters) - The Syrian army and its allies see a risk that Islamic State will regroup in eastern Syria as it is forced from the Iraqi city of Mosul in a U.S.-backed operation, posing new risks for President Bashar al-Assad. Both the Syrian army and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah have warned of what they have called a U.S. plan to open a path of retreat for Islamic State from Iraq into Syria. A Pentagon spokesman called the claim "ludicrous". The Iraqi government launched the campaign to drive the jihadist group from its last stronghold in Iraq this week. Iraqi government and Kurdish forces on Tuesday announced progress in the first 24 hours of the offensive, backed by air and ground support from the U.S.-led coalition. A senior official in the alliance fighting in support of Assad told Reuters the arrival of large numbers of extra IS fighters in Syria from Iraq would present new dangers to Syrian government-held pockets of territory in Deir al-Zor, to the ancient city of Palmyra, and to other areas further west. IS would also be able to reinforce the Syrian city of Raqqa, its main other urban center after Mosul. "There is a danger that Iraq will witness a victory and Syria a crisis - a victory in Iraq will be a the expense of a new crisis in Syria," said the official, a non-Syrian, speaking on condition of anonymity. Though it has lost ground in Syria, Islamic State still controls parts of the country's east, including nearly all of Deir al-Zor province, which borders Iraq, and links the Iraqi and Syrian halves of its self-declared "caliphate". FRANCE SEES LIKELY RETREAT TO RAQQA The jihadist group is being fought in Syria separately by the U.S.-backed coalition and the Russian-backed Syrian army and its allies, which are also battling other armed groups in western Syria including rebel forces in eastern Aleppo. Islamic State has lost swathes of territory in Syria to U.S.-backed Syrian forces including the Kurdish YPG over the last year, and more recently to Turkey-backed Syrian Arab 'Free Syrian Army' rebel groups near the Turkish border. The Syrian government and their allies, while focusing much of their firepower on rebels battling to topple Assad, have also fought IS, driving it from Palmyra earlier this year. The Syrian government has also fought to maintain a precarious foothold in Deir al-Zor city, besieged by IS. In a statement on Tuesday, the Syrian army command in Damascus said Washington and Riyadh had drawn up a plan whereby roads would be secured to allow the militants to create "new battleground realities" in eastern Syria. Both Saudi Arabia and the United States support rebels fighting Assad. "Any attempt to cross the border is an attack on the sovereignty of Syria... and would be dealt with all forces available," the army statement said. The Pentagon spokesman, Major Adrian Rankine-Galloway, said the assertion was not correct. "These claims are ludicrous," he said. The assault on Mosul has been in preparation since July, and at stake for U.S. President Barack Obama is his hoped-for legacy of seizing back as much territory as he can from the jihadists before he leaves office in January. French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said that with militants likely to retreat to their Syrian bastion Raqqa, it was vital to seriously consider how to also retake that city. "We can't let Islamic State reconstitute itself or strengthen to create an even more dangerous hub. We have to prepare ourselves," he said. (Reporting by Tom Perry and Laila Bassam in Beirut, by Suleiman Al-Khalidi in Amman, Idrees Ali in Washington, and John Irish in Paris; Writing by Tom Perry; editing by Dominic Evans and John Stonestreet) Two Wisconsin Indian tribes, including a small northern band, are raising concerns about another tribes expansion of a once-limited gambling hall into a larger casino and hotel east of Wausau. Leaders of the Stockbridge-Munsee Community say the Ho-Chunk Wittenberg expansion could have implications for the states other ancillary casino sites which, as detailed in the states tribal gambling compacts, are limited in how much space can include gambling. There are seven existing facilities, which historically have been attached to truck stops and feature anywhere from 80 to about 500 slot machines. The compacts allow for at least five additional ancillary facilities. The state also has 17 full-scale tribal casinos, plus Ho-Chunk Madison, which offers limited gaming. At issue is the expansion of Ho-Chunk Wittenberg to include a hotel, restaurant and table games, which historically werent allowed at ancillary casinos. That changed in 2003 with amendments to the state compacts, according to state officials. The Ho-Chunk Nation broke ground last month on a $33 million expansion of the Wittenberg facility that will increase the number of slot machines from 506 to 778, add an area with high-limit gaming and 10 table games, and construct an 86-room hotel and 84-seat restaurant and bar. The Stockbridge-Munsee and Menominee tribes asked the state Department of Administration to block the expansion, saying it violated the terms of the Ho-Chunks tribal compact with the state, but last month Department of Administration Secretary Scott Neitzel responded saying the expansion complies with the compact as amended in 2003. Neitzel noted while an earlier compact limited the number of games offered at ancillary facilities, the 2003 agreement only requires that 50 percent of the site be used for non-gambling purposes. (Neitzels interpretation) would allow a facility larger than nearly all of Wisconsins full gaming facilities, Stockbridge- Munsee tribal president Shannon Holsey wrote in a letter to Gov. Scott Walker. If this was the case, the (2003 compact amendment) simply authorized nine major gaming facilities and renders the definition of ancillary facility meaningless. This was plainly not the intent of the language. Ho-Chunk nation spokesman Collin Price said the tribes and states interpretation of the compact allows for expanded gambling at its other ancillary sites, but the tribe does not currently have plans to expand those locations. This has nothing to do with any other tribe or any other tribes compact, Price said. In addition to Wittenberg, Ho-Chunk is currently expanding its Wisconsin Dells and Black River Falls full-scale casinos. The tribe has also been in court in recent years successfully arguing that it can offer electronic poker tables at its Dane County location. Gambling expansion became a major issue two years ago when the Menominee sought permission to build an off-reservation casino in Kenosha. It was opposed by the Potawatomi tribe, which operates a casino in nearby Milwaukee. Walker blocked that expansion, but because the Wittenberg site is on tribal land, he doesnt have the same authority. The St. Croix Chippewa broke ground last month on an expansion of their ancillary gaming facility in Webster, according to the Washburn County Register. The expansion includes 250 slot machines 100 more than currently located at the Little Turtle Hertel Express a 50-seat restaurant, 16-stall RV park and an 850-seat outdoor amphitheater. Part of the Stockbridge- Munsees concern is competitive. The tribes only casino, North Star Mohican Casino Resort with 1,200 slot machines and 22 table games, is about 20 miles east of Ho-Chunk Wittenberg, which is closer to Wausau. Price said the expansion will create 30 full-time jobs in the area, but Holsey said the facility could reduce business and jobs at the Stockbridge-Munsee casino. State Sen. Rob Cowles, R-Green Bay, who represents the area, said he is concerned about the effect the Ho-Chunks expansion could have on smaller tribes, but he said there may not be anything the state can do, which means it could end up being litigated in court. The larger tribes have to be more sensitive to what I would call the less economically advantaged poorer tribes, Cowles said. Weve got a flock of smaller tribes that are struggling. If the larger tribes dont show some concern about that, its not fair. The larger tribes have to be more sensitive to what I would call the less economically advantaged poorer tribes. Weve got a flock of smaller tribes that are struggling. If the larger tribes dont show some concern about that, its not fair. STATE SEN. ROB COWLES Witches of East End alum Daniel DiTomasso is having a busy fall, lining up recurring roles on three series, NBCs new time-travel drama Timeless, TNTs Major Crimes and Amazons Good Girls Revolt. Timeless, from Eric Shipke and Shawn Ryan, is about a mysterious criminal who steals a secret state-of-the-art time machine, intent on destroying America as we know it by changing the past. DiTomasso will play Noah, the man Lucy (Abigail Spencer) has never before seen in her life but apparently plans to marry. In Major Crimes, DiTomasso plays Wes, an undercover cop entrenched in a white supremacist group for seven years, who will help the Major Crimes Team bring the Z Brotherhood down. The procedural revolves around a special unit of Los Angeles Police Department detectives responsible for investigating high-profile crimes. Written and executive produced by Dana Calvo, Amazons new drama series Good Girls Revolt is set in 1969 at the beginning of the womens rights movement when a group of young women at the hottest magazine in the world ask to be treated fairly, setting off a convulsive chain of events. DiTomasso will play Chad Harrington, Janes (Anna Camp) WASP-y boarding school-educated boyfriend. DiTomasso was initially cast in ABCs drama Conviction, but exited last June when the character was taken in a different direction after the pilot had been picked up to series. Repped by The Kohner AGency and Authentic Talent & Literary Management, DiTomasso is known for his role as Killian Gardiner on Witches of East End which ran for two seasons. Related stories 'Jane The Virgin' Returns On Par, 'The Odd Couple' Lower In Different Circumstances As 'Timeless' Ticks Up & 'Conviction' Slips 'Timeless' Sells To UK's Channel 4; 'The Young Pope' Heads To Japan - Mipcom 'Supergirl' Solid In CW Ratings Debut, 'Timeless' Slips In Week 2, '2 Broke Girls' Steady In Return, 'Scorpion' Hits Low Copenhagen (AFP) - Denmark's anti-immigration Danish People's Party (DPP) was reeling Wednesday from a string of EU expenses scandals, including a trip to Brussels when European institutions were closed. Morten Messerschmidt, a European lawmaker and one of the country's most ardent eurosceptics, was kicked off the populist party's top leadership late Tuesday after the DPP agreed to pay back 500,000 kroner (67,000 euros, $74,000) of EU funds. "It's sloppiness at a very high level," party leader Kristian Thulesen Dahl told public broadcaster DR. The money had been used to cover expenses for two EU conferences that appeared to be indistinguishable from the party's regular summer meetings, as well as an educational trip to Brussels for campaign workers during a public holiday when EU institutions were closed. Cash had also been spent on media training and an advertising campaign. Messerschmidt told broadcaster TV 2 News that he "completely rejects that there has been a deliberate attempt to cheat." The expenses scandal is a sharp blow to the outspoken politician, who helped the eurosceptic DPP become Denmark's largest party in the European Parliament election of 2014. The liberal Politiken daily responded by publishing a list of DPP expense quotes, accusing the EU of wasting taxpayers' money. "If Europeans knew the full extent of the shameless waste of money, I am convinced that there would be a revolution," Messerschmidt wrote in 2012. The European parliament had previously asked the DPP to pay back 2.9 million kroner that it spent on political campaigning. The party repaid 1.6 million kroner in June, saying it did not administer the rest of the money. Messerschmidt previously sat on the board of the Movement for a Europe of Liberties and Democracy, a now defunct conservative European alliance. Last year, the DPP paid back 120,700 kroner to Brussels after using the money to tour Danish harbours on a sailing ship a few months before local elections in 2013. By Steve Holland and Amanda Becker LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton go head to head on Wednesday night in a third and final debate as Trump tries to reverse momentum in an election that polls show is tilting away from him. Trump has been damaged recently by several accusations of groping women - which he denies - and concerns about his claims that the election will be rigged against him. The debate at the University of Las Vegas Nevada gives the New York businessman perhaps his best remaining chance to sway the dwindling number of Americans who are still undecided about which way to vote in the Nov. 8 election. Tens of millions of voters are expected to tune in. "This one is important if Trump is going to have any chance to get back into this race," said Republican strategist Charlie Black. "He's going to have to talk about issues effectively and not get down in the mud, and he needs to talk about jobs." Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway acknowledged that her candidate goes into the debate, which starts at 9 p.m. EDT (0100 GMT Thursday), as the underdog. "It's a comeback and he's done it before several times in this campaign," Conway said on Fox News, adding a jibe at Clinton: "Hillary Clinton just has not been able to put him away. What is her problem already?" For Clinton, who leads national polls and in most of the battleground states where the election will likely be decided, the 90-minute debate is a chance to make a closing argument on why she is best suited to succeed President Barack Obama. "I can't imagine what Donald Trump could do positively or a mistake Hillary Clinton could make to change the trajectory of this race," Democratic strategist Steve Elmendorf said. CHARACTER ISSUES Both candidates are likely to attack each other's character, as they have during a long and often nasty campaign. Trump's White House bid has been marked by personal squabbles and controversial comments about immigration and minorities. Most recently, he has urged supporters to patrol polling places in inner cities to prevent voter fraud, and tried to fight off several allegations that he groped women. Clinton has struggled to get past concerns about transparency raised over her handling of emails while she was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. "She needs to be able to answer the email question," Democratic strategist Bud Jackson said. "She hasn't quite hit that nail on the head yet. She should do better this time. And she should expect the unexpected." But Trump's troubles have loomed the largest after a video from 2005 was released showing him bragging about groping women. That has weighed down the real estate magnate's political run going into the final weeks. This has prompted him to lash out at what he calls a political and media system rigged against him, an apparent bid to discredit the process before the election takes place. Obama said Tuesday that Trump needs to "stop whining" and make his case to voters. Trump's daughter Ivanka, who has advised the candidate, said she thought her father would "do the right thing" and accept the Nov. 8 result, no matter what it is. When asked if she thought the election was rigged, she said at a Fortune "Most Powerful Women Summit" that the media had been "vicious" about Trump. Republicans who have watched Trump repeatedly shoot himself in the foot said the debate was a chance to appear presidential. "Trump needs to make a real closing argument and stop the personal attacks and come across like a commander-in-chief," Republican strategist Scott Reed said. The debate, moderated by Fox News' Chris Wallace, is to include discussions of debt and entitlements, immigration, the economy, the Supreme Court, foreign hot spots and fitness to be president. Both candidates have invited guests who could be seen as provocative. Trump asked Obama's estranged half-brother Malik, who supports the Republican, as well as Pat Smith, the mother of one of the four Americans killed in the 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, who blames Clinton for her son's death. Clinton's guests include Mark Cuban, the billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks basketball team and a frequent Trump antagonist. Cuban wrote on Twitter that he could not wait to give "a big hug to my bestie" Trump in Las Vegas. "I know you miss me!" he added. (Additional reporting by Emily Stephenson in Las Vegas, Patricia Zengerle in Washington and Lisa Richwine in Laguna Niguel, Calif., Editing by Leslie Adler and Alistair Bell) Bold, cardinal-red blazers, gold button details, three-piece suits and plum-colored panel dresses are what you get when you ask Zac Posen to design your the uniforms for your frontline airline employees. Delta Air Lines unveiled the new uniforms which will be worn by more than 60,000 customer service agents, flight attendants, ramp agents and technicians as of 2018. For the collection, Posen worked directly with Delta employees to design uniforms that addressed particular job needs and requirements. "We wanted Delta employees to look glamorous on the job without sacrificing functionality and style," said Posen in a statement. "I worked alongside employees to understand how they interact with the clothes they wear and developed a look that empowers and excites, because we want Delta's global workforce to exude the confidence and thoughtfulness that reflects the airline's brand." Posen also used innovative fabrics and textile technology to develop uniforms that fit employees' fast-paced, active working environments. The collection will first be wear-tested by a small team of 1,000 employees in December for any adjustments. As of 2018, flight attendants will sashay down the aisle wearing plum-colored V-neck dresses, peplum sweaters, wrap dresses, ottoman skirt suits and swing jackets. Posen also dreamed up a fancy three-piece suit in graphite grey and cardinal red for men. The last time the airline overhauled their staff uniforms was in 2006, in a collaboration with Richard Tyler. Other airline collaborations with high fashion designers include Vivienne Westwood for Virgin Atlantic; Christian Lacroix for Air France; Giorgio Armani for Alitalia; and Gianfranco Ferre for Korean Air. PHILADELPHIA, PA / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / MaassMedia, a digital analytics agency specializing in enterprise solutions, announced the addition of Phil Kemelor as Vice President of Client Services. Kemelor's hire comes at a key time for MaassMedia, as the firm expands its service offerings in digital and customer analytics across web, mobile, video, and social media. Phil Kemelor, Vice President of Client Services "More clients need unique solutions to measure their business insights, and the demand for expertise in the industry has never been higher," says Aaron Maass, CEO at MaassMedia. "Phil brings extraordinary expertise in marketing, digital analytics and consulting to MaassMedia. His insight and industry knowledge will further our ability to help clients use data to make better business decisions." Chris Meares, Vice President of Analytics, says: "MaassMedia prides itself on having the best talent available in the digital analytics space. Phil's inspiration and leadership will ensure our continued growth." Kemelor has over 20 years of experience in the digital analytics industry. His accomplishments include leading enterprise-wide deployment and analytics insights at Bell Atlantic and co-founding the professional services practice at NetGenesis, one of the first web analytics software firms. As one of the earliest proponents for the use of analytics to guide digital strategy and tactics, Kemelor authored The Executive's Guide to Web Site Measurement and Testing, and was the lead analyst for the CMSWatch Web Analytics Report. Most recently, Kemelor led strategic client digital transformation programs at Semphonic and Ernst and Young (EY). At Semphonic, a boutique digital analytics practice, he focused on building out the government and strategy practices that contributed to the firm's acquisition by Ernst and Young (EY) in 2013. At EY, he led engagements that focused on integrating organizational digital analytics into enterprise business operations and processes. Story continues "I am tremendously excited about joining MaassMedia. I'm looking forward to collaborating with our clients to develop analytics strategies and programs that enable them to strengthen engagement with their customers and better manage digital marketing costs," says Kemelor. "MaassMedia is already known as a trusted and authoritative source for digital analytics consulting. I'm keen to partner with my colleagues on creating new and innovative services and products that provide even greater value to our clients." HBL About MaassMedia: MaassMedia is a boutique digital analytics agency that helps some of the world's largest companies acquire and retain customers through the collection and analysis of data. MaassMedia's goal is to help every organization build a data-driven environment where they can take action on collected data and continually strive to improve their digital presence and customer engagement. MaassMedia is a privately held company based in Philadelphia, PA. Media Contact: Alisa Gross 215-545-1515 agross@maassmedia.com www.maassmedia.com SOURCE: MaassMedia By Shihar Aneez COLOMBO (Reuters) - Fewer than half of Maldives lawmakers voted on Wednesday in favor of leaving the Commonwealth, highlighting deep divisions over last week's decision by President Abdulla Yameen to sever ties with the group of mostly former British colonies. The vote coincided with confirmation of a formal split in Yameen's ruling party, a move that could bolster the opposition coalition, one of whose members called on the international community to help restore political stability to the island. Best known as a haven for wealthy tourists, the Indian Ocean archipelago has been mired in political unrest since Mohamed Nasheed, its first democratically elected leader, was ousted in disputed circumstances in 2012. Yameen's government said last week the Maldives would on quit the Commonwealth, weeks after the organization warned it could be suspended because of lack of progress in promoting the rule of law and democracy. Wednesday's parliamentary vote endorsed that exit, but it was approved by only 39 lawmakers in the 85-member house while 19 voted against, including six from Yameen's own party. The remaining lawmakers were absent, the parliament official website showed. On Monday, Yameen's ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) split formally into two factions, one run by the president and the other by his half brother Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who ruled the country for three decades through 2008. The country's Election Commission on Wednesday indicated that it recognized Yameen's faction as the legitimate PPM, news website Maldives Independent reported. Yameen's administration has arrested most of the opponents likely to challenge him in 2018 elections. The opposition coalition, Maldives United Opposition (MUO), says the administration is trying to cover up corruption including money laundering, accusations the government has denied. Nasheed, in exile in Britain after being allowed out of jail to travel for medical treatment, formed the MUO in June with the aim of toppling Yameen. On Wednesday the group launched a campaign to lobby international support for political reform. "There is no hopes domestically. We have exhausted all the options. We need more pressure from the international community to press the government for democracy," Abdulla Riyaz, a MUO lawmaker, told reporters in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo. Riyaz was a member of a delegation meeting Colombo-based diplomats the group hopes can help launch a campaign against Yameen. (Reporting by Shihar Aneez; editing by John Stonestreet) Malik Obama Donald Trump is continuing the trend of hosting controversial guests at presidential debates by inviting President Barack Obama's estranged half-brother Malik to Wednesday night's event, the New York Post reported. Malik, who is a Trump supporter, will join the GOP nominee as a guest in Las Vegas on Wednesday at the third and final debate. "I look very much forward to meeting and being with Malik," Trump said. "He gets it far better than his brother." Obama's half-brother, who was born in Kenya but now lives in Washington, DC, is an outspoken critic of the president. He has also blamed Hillary Clinton for bungling conflicts in the Middle East during her tenure as secretary of state. In the New York Post interview, Malik dismissed the allegations of several women accusing Trump of sexual misconduct. "I don't believe them," Malik said. "Why didn't they come forward before?" In a July interview with Reuters, Malik announced he would be voting for Trump in the presidential election. Trump has a history of inviting guests from his opponents past to the presidential debates. At the first presidential debate in September, Trump threatened to invite Gennifer Flowers a woman with whom former President Bill Clinton admitted to having an affair. Trump upped the ante again at the second debate by holding a press conference with several women who accused Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct decades before. NOW WATCH: Obama's estranged half-brother blames Clinton for the death of his 'best friend' Muammar Gaddafi More From Business Insider Trump Melania The longer Donald Trump is the center of American discourse, the more we sound like Russians. Our news sounds more Russian, the way we think about our government is more Russian, and what we accept as fact starts to slip away. Trump is fomenting conspiracy theories and delegitimizing the media and the government. Russia watchers know well that that's a Kremlin tactic. The way the Russian government maintains control of information is not by forcing a story down its people's throats but by spreading a million stories everywhere so no one believes anything. The Kremlin maintains control by destroying trust in institutions until there's nothing left to have faith in. So when Melania Trump says that the discovery of her husband's disgusting comments about women to Billy Bush a decade ago were part of a left-wing conspiracy, we're becoming more Russian. When Trump says that Hillary Clinton is part of an international conspiracy of bankers, we're becoming more Russian. When Trump embraces conspiracy theories championed by the permanently paranoid radio host Alex Jones, we're becoming more Russian. And that means trust in our system is eroding. When 'nothing is true, everything is permitted' "The Kremlin exploits the idea of freedom of information to inject disinformation into society. The effect is not to persuade (as in classic public diplomacy) or earn credibility but to sow confusion via conspiracy theories and proliferate falsehoods." That's from a 2014 report by American journalist Michael Weiss and Russian journalist Peter Pomerantzev. Pomerantzev is now a senior fellow at the Legatum Institute, London, where he runs a project on 21st-century propaganda and how to counter it. He has also testified before both houses of Congress about the dangers of Russian misinformation and its entrance into the US. Story continues "In order to woo viewers the Kremlin has utterly blurred the lines between fact and fiction. Kremlin current affairs programs are filled with spectacular scare-stories about Russian children crucified by Ukrainian militias or US conspiracies to ethnically cleanse East Ukraine. In a context where no one believes any media, all that matters is that the news is sensationalist and cinematic," Pomerantsev told the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee in November 2015. For years I've spent time in and out of Columbia University's School of Journalism as a student and as an adjunct professor. While there, I've worked with professor Ann Cooper, a former NPR bureau chief in Moscow and Russian speaker, to delve into Russian propaganda, specifically Russia Today, RT. RT is a Kremlin-backed news channel available all around the world in English, Spanish, Arabic, and German. It launched in 2005 and exists to advance the agenda of the Russian government and expand its influence across the globe. I've interviewed current and former RT employees and watched hours and hours of the channel. So have my students. And in that time we learned a very simple lesson. In Russia, it's not about one truth. It's about spreading a million untruths until the truth is impossible to find. It's about spreading paranoia until trust is dead. Boris Nemtsov is dead, long live Boris Nemtsov boris Nemtsov protests putin Let's take one incident as an example. In the winter of 2015, opposition activist Boris Nemstov was gunned down in front of the Kremlin before he was to lead an anti-Putin demonstration. Once that happened, the spin machines went to work. We watched it all unfold from campus in New York City in English on RT. From my student at the time, Pola Lem: RTs headlines about the shooting death of opposition figure Boris Nemtsov portray Russian investigators at work pursuing a broad range of theories about who is behind the contract-style killing. Nemtsovs death may have been a sort of sacral sacrifice by those who dont hesitate to use any methods to reach their political goals, said one investigation official, according to RT. Other theories under investigation: Nemtsov was murdered for something he said about the Charlie Hebdo attacks in France (RT does not explain). Or, for his outspoken criticism of Russian involvement in the Ukrainian conflict. Or, business interests may have targeted him for his anti-corruption work. Or it might have been some sort of personal vendetta. There was more. Some said Nemstov was murdered by the CIA. Other said it was MI5. Rigged, Russia style This is not unlike the many ways Trump and his cohorts insist he is being conspired against. It's not unlike his insistence that the media rigging the election, that he will be denied a win because of widespread voting fraud, and that members of his own party are conspiring to defeat him. This strategy isn't about getting people to believe one specific theory of the world. It's about spreading so much disinformation that nobody trusts anyone, and people yearn for a strongman who "tells it like it is" to protect them in a world that makes them paranoid. This is a threat that will only go away when Trump loses legitimacy with those who support him. NOW WATCH: Nobel prize-winning economist Stiglitz rates Yellens performance as Fed chair More From Business Insider Donald Trump During the Republican presidential primary campaign, Florida Senator Marco Rubio repeatedly described Republican nominee Donald Trump as a "con artist." As Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton prepare to face off in the third and final presidential debate on October 19, it's worth asking just how accurate Rubio's assessment was. (Interestingly, Rubio told the Miami Herald editorial board in August that despite his endorsement of Trump, he stands by "everything" he said in the primary campaign, "con man" assessment included.) Could Trump really be a con man? Con artists are motivated both by a desire to be the center of attention and the power that comes with that ability to manipulate others, psychologist Maria Konnikova, author of "The Confidence Game: Why We Fall for It ... Every Time," explained to me earlier this year. "[They're] addicted to that sense of power, that rush of being able to pull one over on people and get away with it," Konnikova explained. Along the way, they'll deceive people in order to get that attention and power. As for deception, Pulitzer-prize winning fact-checking organization Politifact awarded Trump's statements the 2015 "Lie of the Year" award. Of 298 Trump statements assessed at time of publication, Politifact rated only 4% as "true" and 11% as "mostly true;" 19% of Trump statements earned a "mostly false," 35% a "false," and 17% a "pants on fire." (Of 272 Clinton statements assessed, 24% earned a "true," 27% a "mostly true," 15% a "mostly false," 10% a "false," and 3% a "pants on fire.") But being a con artist isn't just about deception it's about intent. After all, many politic ans deceive people. They're not all practitioners of the confidence game; many truly believe what they are saying or believe it's worth it to stretch the truth to accomplish their political goals. Story continues "If Trump were a con artist, he would be interested in politics only as a means to some other end," Konnikova writes in The New Yorker. "He wouldn't believe in his political opinions; instead, he would see those opinions as convenient tools for gaining what he actually desires." Power and being at the center of attention would fit as a con artist's goal. "Trump, as a con artist, would give up on politics the moment it stopped serving his purposes, moving on to the next thing that gave him the same level of attention and adulation," Konnikova wrote. If Trump doesn't win this election, we can see whether he's a true political believer, focused on his goals, or whether he moves on to some new role that's a departure from his stated goals but still keeps him at the center of attention. Konnikova also explained to me that con artists are experts at telling their audience what they want to hear. Here again, Trump may fit the bill, though we can't know for sure. "Trump's promises are often deliberately vague. He meets demands for specifics with another tool from the con artist's arsenal: emotion," she writes in The New Yorker. "Appeal to [people] on the emotional level and you no longer need coherent arguments." Still, it's impossible to know whether or not Trump is definitively a con artist without getting inside his head, Konnikova told Business Insider's video team. If Trump "really knows exactly what he's doing and he's playing the media, that he doesn't believe a lot of what he says ... then it's certainly a con technique," she continued. Of course, we don't know for sure what's going on in Trump's head. Some may think that he truly believes everything he says and that he holds deep political convictions that he hopes to achieve with his campaign; others may think he's willing to say anything in order to stay at the center of attention. The appeals to emotion instead of fact and the seeming desire to be at the center of attention (while psychologists are unwilling to diagnose anyone from afar, many have no problem calling Trump a narcissist) certainly fit the bill of a con artist. But without knowledge of his intent, we can't say for sure whether it's a con or not. NOW WATCH: Trump and Rubio are trying to one-up each other with these incredible insults More From Business Insider From Cosmopolitan Photo credit: Getty + Twitter/@AshleyRParker I noticed it happening during the first presidential debate. Maybe 45 minutes in, Donald Trumps proclivity to interrupt and speak over Hillary Clinton started making me feel dizzy. I heard a low buzzing sound in my brain, became suddenly overwhelmed, and felt like I needed to go for a walk. The day after the debate, a friend told me that she felt so disturbed watching it that she had to take small breaks to stay calm. Another friend said she hasnt been able to watch the debates at all and stays off Twitter during them. The same sentiment was echoed by women in news stories that pointed out that theres a terrifying familiarity in watching a man (Trump) raise his voice to speak over a woman (Clinton). The overwhelming feeling came back during the second debate, when I watched Trump stumble through a pseudo-apology/explanation of an audio tape in which he describes committing sexual assault to another man. Women on Twitter pointed out that theres familiarity in this, too. "Watching this as a woman is so emotionally difficult because weve all been belittled like this by a male moron and had to take it," tweeted writer Claire Fallon, and then added, "It brings back every calculated humiliation in front of your coworkers, your friends, your boyfriends buddies. Im actually shaking." watching this as a woman is so emotionally difficult because we've all been belittled like this by a male moron and had to take it #debate - Claire Fallon (@ClaireEFallon) October 10, 2016 The dizziness and brain-buzzing I feel watching Trump are symptoms I recognize as symptoms of an anxiety attack. In him, I see - a lot of people see - the same mannerisms abusers use to maintain power and control over their victims. Trump does this every time he raises his voice over another person, or tells a person theyre interpreting factual events incorrectly, or says yet another woman is lying about the things she said he did to her. For the many women whove survived emotional or physical abuse, watching Trump is like watching an endless loop of their own abusers come to life on a national stage. And even for women who havent experienced abuse, watching Trump can feel like theyre experiencing abusive behavior themselves. Story continues Cate Desjardins, a therapist who works with people recovering from trauma, told Cosmopolitan.com that she and other therapists are dealing with an unprecedented amount of anxiety tied to this election cycle and shes hearing from people in both her clinical and personal life that watching Trump triggers feelings of trauma and panic in them. "In the broadest definition, a trigger is something that arouses very similar, if not the same, feelings that an original trauma does," Desjardins said. "Even though youre safe on your couch in your living room, something about what is being said, how its being said, and just the general vibe, is evoking these same kind of basic feelings that a person experiences during the original traumatic events." At his least threatening, Trump evokes the sort of low-level traumas - or microaggressions - women face pretty much every day. In the way he raises his voice to speak over Clinton, women see the same kind of behavior theyve encountered their entire lives, any time a man speaks over them in class, in a meeting, or at home. Its so upsetting because its so familiar, and in the case of a 90-minute debate between two presidential candidates, so concentrated. "Thoughts & prayers to every woman watching the & getting painful flashbacks to dudes talking over them at work, school, home, etc.," tweeted writer Britt Julious. Thoughts & prayers to every woman watching the #debates & getting painful flashbacks to dudes talking over them at work, school, home, etc. - Britt Julious (@britticisms) September 27, 2016 Shortly after the second presidential debate, Daily Beast reporter Olivia Messer drew a connection between Trump and men who catcall and harass women in public. "Like most women, Im also constantly subjected to a string of subtle, sexist assaults by street harassers, by men on the subway, by whomever," Messer wrote. "In his words, I hear the same words Ive heard on the street and by men whove grabbed me on the subway. I never thought Id have to worry about a president virtually cat-calling half of the country-and now that I have, it is inescapable, and it is impossible to ignore." But beyond his interrupting and misogynistic descriptions of women, the tactics that Trump uses in his campaign are the same ones commonly displayed by abusers, Desjardins said. "What Im noticing about Trump is that the way he interacts with people in general, and particularly with Hillary Clinton, is very evocative of men who are abusing and mistreating women," Desjardins said. "Theres a lot of gaslighting, a lot of flat-out denial of reality - these are things that are, unfortunately, very familiar to people who have experienced abuse and harassment." Desjardins referenced an example of how Trump does this from the second debate - when Anderson Cooper pressed Trump to acknowledge that the acts described in the tape were sexual assault. "No, I didnt say that at all," Trump responded. "I dont think you understood what was said - this was locker room talk." He then quickly moved on to something he considers to be the real problem - the fact that we live in a world where "you have ISIS chopping off heads." Trump used two common gaslighting techniques, as outlined by the National Domestic Violence Hotline, in that response. The first, when he said, "I dont think you understood what was said," is countering - Trump asserted that Cooper, and thus everyone else who was upset by the audio tape, was interpreting the whole thing incorrectly. The second, when Trump brings up ISIS, is trivializing, a method abusers use to make their victims feel invalid and unimportant. "Thats very much an abusers tactic," Desjardins said. "Like, lets talk about the real problem, the problem is not my behavior, its all these other things." Even watching Trump can be anxiety-inducing. As many people pointed out on Twitter, the way he loomed behind Clinton in that debate felt ominous. Vox referred to the behavior as probably unintentional, yet still "constant and unnerving." Desjardins, however, sees it as "an intimidation tactic" an abuser might use to control his victim. "He was sort of stalking Hillary around the stage at the second debate," Desjardins said. Trump standing directly behind Hillary, in light of his comments bragging about sexual assault, is a bad, ominous pose for him. - Ashley Parker (@AshleyRParker) October 10, 2016 What makes this harder to cope with is the fact that, despite polls and predictions, theres a real possibility Trump could be elected. One of the biggest struggles survivors of abuse, assault, and harassment face is the struggle to gain a feeling of control over their own bodies, minds, and lives. "Theres this common experience among survivors that shows up in ways of feeling powerless... and like your life is subject to the whims of somebody else," Desjardins explained, "Seeing this person amassing power, and abusing it in such a large-scale way, it stirs up a lot very difficult emotions for people." To give those emotions a visual, its like throwing your own abuser into a cup of water, like those toy grow monsters you played with as a kid, and watching him grow bigger and bigger every day, without any actual idea of just how big he might become. Desjardins stressed the importance of understanding that any feelings of dread or panic are valid. "This is a real thing," she said. "If you are in therapy, this would be a very important thing to bring up with your therapist." She added that other resources - like the crisis text line - are also available for people who feel distressed and need immediate help. Things have gotten so stressful that the American Psychological Association recently issued guidelines for dealing with election anxiety. Desjardins said you can also try to distance yourself as much as you can from the constant supply of Trump news if you feel like staying totally up-to-date is dealing a blow to your mental health. Theres also power to be regained by speaking up if Trump inexplicably makes your own brain buzz. Theres power in pointing out that he is using abusive tactics to campaign for this presidency. Desjardins also has a recommendation for anyone who feels powerless, or like they need to help. "This is something you can do to send a clear message, to support survivors of sexual assault and abuse," she said. "Vote against Trump." Follow Hannah on Twitter. You Might Also Like deepdrumpf Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are about to face off in the final presidential debate, but one more candidate still wants to enter the race. Crude, nonsensical, and nonhuman, his name is DeepDrumpf. He's a Twitter bot programmed to mimic the real Trump. MIT researcher Bradley Hayes created DeepDrumpf in March as both a coding experiment and joke, though it has taken on a life of its own. DeepDrumpf uses an artificial intelligence algorithm based on hours of the candidate's debate speech transcripts, Hayes previously told Business Insider. Every few hours, the bot tweets gems like "I'm what ISIS doesn't need" and "I was screaming jobs and extremists, not policy." The more it tweets, the smarter it gets, because Hayes also incorporated deep learning into its algorithm, meaning it continually learns from itself. I'd like to beat that @HillaryClinton. She is a horror. I told my supporter Putin to say that all the time. He has been amazing. DeepDrumpf (@DeepDrumpf) April 6, 2016 The next phase of the project, which recently went live, is a fundraising site masquerading as DeepDrumpf's presidential campaign. Near the top, the site reads "Make S.T.E.M. Great Again" and points towards a GoFundMe page. The real goal is actually to crowdfund money for GirlsWhoCode, a nonprofit devoted to closing the gender gap in STEM fields (Only 18% of computer science graduates are women). So far, the GoFundMe has crowdfunded about $700. The fundraising campaign launched a few days after audio of Trump making lewd comments about women in 2005 leaked. Hopefully, DeepDrumpf will raise a lot of money for an organization that empowers the next generation of women in an industry that traditionally leaves them out. NOW WATCH: The 7 best TV shows on Netflix you've probably never heard of More From Business Insider A top former Justice Department privacy officer on Wednesday called it extremely unlikely that a senior U.S. diplomat would normally discuss the nuances of classification levels of one of Hillary Clintons emails about Benghazi with the deputy assistant director of the FBIs international operations bureau. Patrick Kennedy, the State Departments under secretary of management, was accused this week of entertaining a quid pro quo with the FBI in May 2015 regarding the classification of an email about the 2012 attack on a diplomatic compound in northern Libya. In exchange for the FBI keeping the email unclassified, the State Department would agree to host more FBI agents in Iraq, FBI documents suggested. Ultimately, the FBI did not accept Kennedys proposal and maintained that the email should be classified. That classification decision was significant because the FBI had not yet launched its high-profile criminal investigation into the mishandling of classified information by Clinton and her aides. Had no classified information been found on Clintons homebrew server, there would have likely been no criminal investigation of the Democratic presidential nominee. Both the FBI and the State Department have denied any quid pro quo. But the Justice Departments former information and privacy director, Dan Metcalfe, on Wednesday said it was extremely unlikely that the Kennedy would seek advice on this particular classification issue from now-retired FBI agent Brian McCauley, who at the time was the bureaus deputy assistant director for international operations. Instead, Metcalfe suggested, Kennedy likely called knowing the FBI wanted more agents in Iraq, but had been stymied in the past. Far more likely is that it was attempted exploitation of the fact that Mr. McCauley had been unable to get his phone calls returned on his request for Mr. Kennedys approval of additional FBI personnel in Iraq, Metcalfe told Foreign Policy. Story continues Kennedy has denied the two issues were linked in any way. There was no quid pro quo, nor was there any bargaining, he said Tuesday. He said he merely wanted to better understand a proposal the FBI made to upgrade the classification of one of Clintons emails before it was publicly released. McCauley told the Washington Post and Politico he had sought for weeks to get State Department approval to send two FBI employees to Baghdad. In May 2015, Kennedy finally called back. Other former Justice officials and FOIA experts also questioned why Kennedy would reach out to McCauley, of all people, to better understand the bureaus views on the specific classification decision. There is no way that Mr. Kennedy contacted the Deputy Assistant Director of International Operations to understand a proposed FBI classification decision, which would be made by an entirely different component of the FBI, said Kel McClanahan, the executive director of National Security Counselors, an organization that specializes in litigation and FOIA requests to acquire government documents related to national security. The only reason Mr. Kennedy, who would be very familiar with this office and its area of expertise, would contact Mr. McCauley, would be to discuss international operations, in this case, the placement of FBI agents in Baghdad. Bradley Moss, a Washington lawyer specializing in national security and disclosure law, added that the explanation just doesnt make sense. McCauley would not be the logical person for Kennedy to approach on the classification matter at all, unless he erroneously thought McCauley (as an international operations guy) would have some understanding of FBIs classification justification for an email implicating Benghazi, he told FP in an email. State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner disputed that theory and said McCauley did have relevant expertise on classification issues related to the Clinton email. Because the subject matter of the email in question was related to arrests abroad, it made total sense for Under Secretary Kennedy to reach out to the Deputy Assistant Director for International Operations who would have had the subject matter expertise as to whether this email needed to be classified, said Toner. But in McCauleys account about the conversation, reported Tuesday in Politico, Kennedy was not seeking the agents guidance on a classification issue. Rather, he wanted McCauley to influence his colleagues that were in a position to make the classification decision. I had no idea what the task was, what [Kennedy] was seeking, McCauley said. I didnt even know what he was asking for. McCauley said that it was only when he followed up with a colleague who worked in the bureaus records division that he learned that the classification involved Benghazi. Other transparency advocates give Kennedy the benefit of the doubt. Its not unusual to have informal interagency contact to address FOIA issues, and it appears thats what happened here, said Norm Eisen, a former Obama administration official and cofounder of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a government watchdog group. Others said that Kennedys actions dont point to a specific fire, but say theres an awful lot of smoke. If Pat Kennedy had a long-existing professional relationship with Brian McCauley there might be nothing unusual or suspicious about reaching out to him on a classification issue, said Anne Weismann, who worked on government information litigation at the Justice Department from 1995 to 2002. I am troubled by the reporting suggesting Kennedy reached out to multiple FBI officials on reclassifying an email, she added. It would be unusual if Kennedy was shopping the email around the Bureau and his request to have it declassified. Republicans have seized on the quid pro quo claims in recent days with GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump demanding Kennedy be fired. On Monday, the Republican chairmen of the House Oversight and Intelligence committees also called on Kennedy to resign. Those who receive classified intelligence should not barter in it that is reckless behavior with our nations secrets, the chairmen said in a statement. While Republicans have accused Kennedy of trying to protect Clinton, Kennedy himself also stood to gain by avoiding an investigation into her private email server. As the under secretary of management, Kennedy oversees both records management and the IT department at the State Department. He previously faced criticism from Congress for not standing in Clintons way when she decided to use a private email server during her time in office, an arrangement that risked exposing classified secrets to foreign adversaries and concealing her correspondence from legitimate public disclosure requests. Though interagency contacts are frequent for records issues, Kennedys broad portfolio would generally preclude him from getting involved in mundane questions of security classification, experts said. If it was simply a FOIA issue, there is no reason for Mr. Kennedy to get involved at all unless he is attempting to cut a deal, said McClanahan. Yes, the FOIA office is under his authority, but so is HR, Diplomatic Security, IT, and numerous other offices. Do you really expect him to personally contact someone at the FBI to inquire about a particular interagency detail or database issue? This story has been updated. For the 2nd Consecutive Year Dallas Based Personal Injury Firm, Eberstein & Witherite, LLP has been Named as a Top 100 Workplace in Dallas/Fort Worth Companies were Chosen Based on Categories that Included, Diversity, Perks, Ethics, and Family Friendliness FORT WORTH, TX / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / The Dallas Morning News has named the law firm Eberstein & Witherite, LLP one of the winners of the Top 100 Places To Work. This is the second consecutive year that the firm has received this honor. More than 2,000 companies applied this year, and 307 were surveyed to determine the final 100. The competition was stiff, and less than half of the companies appearing in this year's list were repeat winners from last year. The process began in March 2016, when employees were allowed to nominate their company online. "I'm so proud that we were chosen as one of the best places to work," stated Amy Witherite, founding partner of the law firm. "We think of our team as a family, and for them to believe so much in what we do, and to draw satisfaction and pride about the services we can provide our clients is just a tremendous honor. I was amazed when we appeared on the list for the first time last year, and to repeat this year means that we are continuing to do things the right way, and that our staff recognizes our commitment to our clients." Employees of participating companies were contacted via email and asked to measure how true 22 short statements were about their organizations, such as: "My job makes me feel like I am part of something meaningful." They were also asked to rate their companies based on categories such as diversity, perks, ethics, and family friendliness. Employees of the 100 companies that made the list will attend a luncheon on November 17, where the top three companies in each category will be announced. The Dallas Morning News will publish the winners on November 20, 2016. ABOUT Dallas-based law firm of Eberstein & Witherite, LLP, is experienced in helping injured Texans and their families obtain compensation for damages sustained as a result of negligent individuals and large corporations. Our partners, attorneys, and legal team are committed to providing the highest quality of legal representation in the area to ensure we deliver one thing: results. At Eberstein & Witherite, LLP we excel in providing personalized service to our clients in business litigation suits, personal injury cases, and bad faith insurance claims. Story continues Media Contact Lucy Tiseo Eberstein & Witherite, LLP Phone: 800-779-6665 Email: lucy.tiseo@ewlawyers.com Connect with Eberstein & Witherite on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ Source: http://www.dallastexaspersonalinjurylawyers.com/news/eberstein-witherite-selected-top-100-workplace-2016 SOURCE: Eberstein & Witherite, LLP via Submit Press Release 123 By Alexandra Valencia QUITO (Reuters) - Ecuador's government acknowledged on Tuesday it had partly restricted internet access for Julian Assange, the founder of anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks who has lived in the South American country's London embassy since mid-2012. WikiLeaks said Assange lost connectivity on Sunday, sparking speculation Ecuador might have been pressured by the United States due to the group's publication of hacked material linked to U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. In a statement, Ecuador's leftist government said WikiLeaks' decision to publish documents impacting the U.S. election campaign was entirely its own responsibility, and the South American country did not cede to pressure from other nations. "In that respect, Ecuador, exercising its sovereign right, has temporarily restricted access to part of its communications systems in its UK Embassy," it added in a statement. "The Ecuador government respects the principle of non-intervention in other countries' affairs, it does not meddle in election processes underway, nor does it support any candidate specially." Earlier on Tuesday, the U.S. State Department said it had no role in restricting Assange's internet access. "While our concerns about WikiLeaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary (John) Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down WikiLeaks is false," State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. Assange was granted asylum by Ecuador after a British court ordered him extradited to Sweden to face questioning in a sexual molestation case involving two female supporters. WikiLeaks said it activated "contingency plans" after Assange's cut-off, and Ecuador said that its action did not stop the group continuing "journalistic activities." Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa has long backed Assange's right to free speech and has also supported Clinton publicly. "For the good of the United States and the world ... I would like Hillary to win," he told broadcaster Russia Today last month. (Additional reporting by Eric Beech in Washington; Writing by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by Sandra Maler) WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has had his internet access temporarily cut off at Ecuadors London embassy after the whistleblowing site was feared to be interfering with the U.S. presidential election. The Ecuadorian government confirmed the news on Tuesday after WikiLeaks published a series of hacked emails from Hillary Clintons campaign chairman John Podesta, which contains transcripts of speeches made by the Democratic Party nominee at Goldman Sachs events. Assange has been living at the Ecuadorean embassy in the UK capital since 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden where he faces charges for sexual assault. In a statement, Ecuadors government said that while it stands by its decision to grant political Asylum to Assange, it does respect other nations sovereignty. In recent weeks, WikiLeaks has published a wealth of documents impacting on the U.S. election campaign, the Foreign Relations Ministry said. This decision was taken exclusively by that organisation. The Government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states. It does not interfere in external electoral processes, nor does it favour any particular candidate. Accordingly, Ecuador has exercised its sovereign right to temporarily restrict access to some of its private communications network within its Embassy in the United Kingdom. This temporary restriction does not prevent the WikiLeaks organisation from carrying out its journalistic activities. Ecuadors Foreign Affairs department tweeted the news on Tuesday: Official Communique | Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states https://t.co/4F7R5Iktsd pic.twitter.com/5FtbLViMEo Foreign Affairs Ec (@MFAEcuador) October 18, 2016 Related stories Story continues How To Watch The Third Presidential Debate Donald Trump Invites Obama's Kenyan-Born Half Brother To Final Debate Stephen Colbert Asks Obama If He Will Vote For High-Fiber Bar Or Tangerine That Can't Be Trusted Around Women CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's highest court on Wednesday quashed death sentences imposed on 14 Islamists over an attack on a police station in protest at the military's overthrow in 2013 of then-President Mohamed Mursi, the state news agency MENA said. It was the court's latest reversal of many of the hundreds of death sentences imposed on Islamists after the ouster of Mursi, a Muslim Brotherhood member, a crackdown strongly criticized by Western government and human rights groups. In Wednesday's decision, the Court of Cassation accepted appeals from the defendants filed last year against a lower criminal court ruling, and ordered them retried. The court also threw out one 10-year prison term in the same case. Eight more defendants in the case were sentenced to death in absentia. The court did not quash those sentences but Egyptian law affords automatic retrials to convictions in absentia that are subsequently reversed. The 23 defendants face charges of murder in the killing of a security official at the police station and the attempted murder of others in July 2013, as well as assault, rioting, sabotage, and illegal possession of firearms and knives. The Court of Cassation gave no legal reasons for its reversals of the death sentences but is expected to do so in written form in a few days time. In February the court ordered the retrial of 149 people on death row, out of a total 183, in a similar case where the defendants were accused of an assault on the same police station in August 2013 that left 14 policemen dead. The attacks came after security forces dispersed two pro-Mursi protest camps in Cairo, killing hundreds of people in the process. Mursi was toppled after mass protests against his rule. (Writing by Ahmed Aboulenein; editing by Mark Heinrich) Nairobi (AFP) - A Belgian tourist was trampled to death by an elephant near Kenya's famed Maasai Mara wildlife reserve, police said Wednesday, the second such incident in a month. "He was badly injured by the rogue elephant and succumbed to injuries at the Talek Health Centre," a police officer in the area said on condition of anonymity. The death of the Belgian man on Monday in circumstances that remain unclear comes a month after an Italian man was trampled in the Tsavo National Park, southeast Kenya, while trying to take a photograph of an elephant. Kenyan daily The Standard reported that in a separate incident on Tuesday, a Kenyan secondary school student was killed by an elephant on the way to school. The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) warned in a statement Wednesday that a fierce drought gripping the country was pushing wildlife further from their traditional habitats in search of food and water, increasingly bringing them into contact with humans. "From the cases recorded by KWS, it is evident that there has been an increase in reported incidents of conflicts compared to past years; the notable ones being attacks on people, property destruction, livestock predation and crop raiding," said the statement. KWS warned that such interactions were likely to increase and urged caution in high-risk areas. Eli Lilly and Company LLY is set to report third-quarter 2016 results on Oct 25, before the market opens. Last quarter, the company posted a positive earnings surprise of 1.18%. The companys performance has been pretty strong so far with earnings surpassing expectations in three of the last four quarters, the average positive surprise being 4.31%. LILLY ELI & CO Price and EPS Surprise LILLY ELI & CO Price and EPS Surprise | LILLY ELI & CO Quote Lets see how things are shaping up for this announcement. Factors to Consider New products like Trulicity and Cyramza as well as strong performance by the companys older products like Trajenta, Cialis, Forteo, Humalog Strattera and Erbitux drove significant top-line growth in the second quarter of 2016. The animal health business and the diabetes franchise did reasonably well in the quarter. We expect the trend to continue in the third quarter as well. Revenues from other new products like Taltz, Jardiance, Portrazza and Basaglar should also contribute. However, sales of Alimta, Cymbalta and Zyprexa are likely to decline further. Lower demand in the U.S. due to competitive pressure from immuno-oncology agents has mainly hurt Alimta sales. Meanwhile, loss of exclusivity is affecting sales of Cymbalta and Zyprexa. Further, we expect marketing, selling and administrative as well as R&D expenses to continue to increase, which will again exert pressure on margins. Earnings Whispers Our proven model does not conclusively show that Lilly is likely to beat earnings this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. That is not the case here, as you will see below. Zacks ESP: The Earnings ESP for the company is 0.00% as both the Most Accurate estimate as well as the Zacks Consensus Estimate stand at 96 cents. Zacks Rank: Lillys Zacks Rank #3 increases the predictive power of ESP. However, we need to have a positive ESP to be confident about a positive earnings surprise. Story continues Meanwhile, we caution against Sell-rated stocks (Zacks Rank #4 or 5) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions. Stocks to Consider Some stocks in the large-cap healthcare sector that have a positive Earnings ESP and a favorable Zacks Rank include: Amgen Inc. AMGN, with an Earnings ESP of +1.79% and a Zacks Rank #3. The company will be reporting results on Oct 27. Bristol-Myers Squibb Company BMY slated to report on Oct 27 has an Earnings ESP of +4.69% and a Zacks Rank #3. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Novartis AG NVS, with an Earnings ESP of +0.84% and a Zacks Rank #3. The company is scheduled to release results on Oct 25. Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report BRISTOL-MYERS (BMY): Free Stock Analysis Report LILLY ELI & CO (LLY): Free Stock Analysis Report NOVARTIS AG-ADR (NVS): Free Stock Analysis Report AMGEN INC (AMGN): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research New York (AFP) - Rap superstar Eminem re-emerged Wednesday with a loaded lyrical attack on Donald Trump, in a nearly eight-minute song in which he also identifies with the Black Lives Matter cause. The top-selling rapper of all time, Eminem has been relatively quiet in the past several years but wrote on Facebook that he was working on a new album. Eminem uploaded on YouTube the new song, entitled "Campaign Speech," in which he offers his take on America in 2016 in a freestyle rap largely without a musical backdrop. The notoriously foul-mouthed rapper stays true to his provocative style but says that tycoon turned Republican presidential candidate Trump poses the real threat. "Consider me a dangerous man / But you should be afraid of this dang candidate," Eminem raps. "You say Trump don't kiss ass like a puppet 'cause he runs his campaign with his own cash for the funding. "And that's what you wanted -- A fucking loose cannon who's blunt with his hand on the button, who doesn't have to answer to no one," he raps, concluding: "Great idea!" The 44-year-old rapper, whose last full-fledged album came out in late 2013, has rarely been overtly political in the past although he has made known his left-leaning sympathies in interviews. - Avenging deaths of African Americans - In "Campaign Speech," Eminem makes no claim to moral high ground, graphically explaining the sexual fantasies on which he would embark if he were president instead of Trump, who has faced multiple allegations of assaulting women. But Eminem, by the far the most prominent white artist in hip-hop, also raps at length about violent incidents that have galvanized the Black Lives Matter movement. Eminem imagines himself taking revenge on George Zimmerman, the volunteer neighborhood watchman in Florida who in 2012 shot dead African American teenager Trayvon Martin as he walked home with iced tea and candy. Story continues The rapper envisions Zimmerman back in court and dressed in drag "with a bullseye on his back." "His whole chest and torso are left on the doorsteps of Trayvon's dad as a present for him," Eminem raps. Eminem also takes on New York police officer Daniel Pantaleo, who put his arm around the neck of cigarette vendor Eric Garner, who died after shouting, "I can't breathe." "I'm giving Daniel Pantaleo a refresher course on excessive force and pressure points," Eminem raps. - Riot grrrl act all out for Clinton - In another political track Wednesday, Le Tigre -- a band of Kathleen Hanna, a leader of the riot grrrl movement of feminist rock -- released its first song in more than a decade. An unabashed endorsement of Hillary Clinton, Le Tigre's song "I'm With Her" -- the title refers to one of the Democrat's campaign slogans -- hails her stance on abortion rights and gun regulations. "She's ready with a plan / And she's always got to work twice as hard as every man," the song goes. "Bye, bye, bye bye -- Trump has got to go!" Clinton, who would be the first woman president, separately announced that she would enlist several top stars including Katy Perry and Jennifer Lopez at events in the run-up to the November 8 election. Trump has faced heated opposition from the music world. Rock legend Bruce Springsteen this week ripped into Trump's allegations that the election is rigged. Trump knows he is going to lose but "he's such a flagrant, toxic narcissist that he wants to take down the entire democratic system with him," Springsteen told the BBC's Channel 4. Trump, however, has found support in the 74-year-old Las Vegas entertainer Wayne Newton, who has said he will join the candidate at his debate with Clinton on Wednesday in Sin City. It never hurts to bring an Oscar winner as your date! Emma Stone attended a special screening of her critically acclaimed film, La La Land, in NYC on Tuesday, and her bestie, Jennifer Lawrence, tagged along for good measure. The two A-list actresses posed together both at the screening and at the after party held at the Rainbow Room. WATCH: Emma Stone Stuns in 'Vogue' With a Pixie Cut, Talks Ex Andrew Garfield: He's Still 'Someone I Love Very Much' Lawrence, 26, rocked a black LaPerla crop top with wide-leg Ralph Lauren pants, while Stone, 27, wore a blush dress by The Row. REX USA Mutual friend Dakota Johnson also attended, posing with Stone for pictures. After the event, Lawrence was spotted slipping into a taxi cab with two pals, trying to avoid photographers. Back in February, Lawrence opened up to Glamour magazine about her friendship with Stone. "I love Emma. She cracks me up; she's so 'theater.' She's so adorable," the Hunger Games star said of her friend. And Stone isn't the only big name that Lawrence is chums with. REX USA MORE: Emma Stone Reveals Her Amazing Britney Spears Impression -- Watch! "Adele and I met, like, a year or so ago," Lawrence told the magazine. "Adele and I are a bit harsher; Emma's never had a bad thought about anybody in her life. It's so weird; I don't like new people. But these two womenand Amy[Schumer]they're really lovely. And they're so normal. I feel like I'm hanging out with my friendsmy friends that don't give a f**k about what I do." To see Stone's stunning recent Vogue shoot, watch the video below! Related Articles The nations water issues are not just limited to places like Flint, Michigan. Erin Brockovich joins The Doctors to help inform us about a water crisis affecting 218 million Americans! The environmental crusader and consumer advocate explains that two thirds of the country is using water that the Environmental Working Group found to contain dangerous levels of hexavalent chromium, also called chromium 6. The chemical, which is often used by industries like aerospace and power companies, is an anti-rust corrosion inhibitor and can seep into the water supply. It is known to cause cancer. Watch: Drinking Water Dangers Its our water supply. We shouldnt have poisons in our water at any level period, she says. In an effort to help eliminate the chemical she recommends using a water filter system that has an ionic exchange or an activated granulated carbon feature. Erin is calling for a complete ban on hexavalent chromium, which has already been done in every European country. She also implores the audience to take control of your water and to stay informed. Watch: Which is Worse: Pool vs Ocean Water Know whats in your water, dont be afraid to ask questions, get involved, be aware, she says. We are in a national water crisis, you just dont know it. To find out more about this issue visit the Environmental Working Group website, or Erins website where you can personally email her with your questions and concerns. BERLIN (Reuters) - The European Commission believes it is unlikely that negotiations with the United States over a free trade deal will be completed under the current U.S. administration, a Commission source told Reuters on the condition of anonymity on Wednesday. It wants to preserve the interim status reached in negotiations between the European Union and the U.S. on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), the source added. This would allow the Commission to continue negotiating with the next U.S. administration after President Barack Obama's term expires in January. The source said there has been some progress on some issues, which the Commission wants to preserve, instead of starting from scratch with a new U.S. administration. The U.S ambassador to Germany, John B. Emerson, told a German broadcaster on Tuesday that the two sides were close to bridging differences on many sticking points and that Obama would make a final push for a deal after the U.S. election on Nov. 8. (This version of the story clarifies the lede to show the reference was to negotiations with current White House) (Reporting by Andreas Rinke; Writing by Joseph Nasr; Editing by Caroline Copley) Brussels (AFP) - EU leaders plan to "strongly condemn" Russia at their summit on Thursday for its alleged attacks on civilians in Syria's Aleppo, urge an end to fighting and call for a revived political process. A draft of their planned statement obtained by AFP omits the threat of sanctions, despite such calls from the United States and Britain, but it sharpens the tone against Russia. "The European Council strongly condemns the attacks by the Syrian regime and its allies, notably Russia, on civilians in Aleppo," according to the draft. It asks them to urgently allow "unhindered humanitarian access to Aleppo" and to other parts of Syria while calling "for an immediate cessation of hostilities and for resumption of a credible political process under UN auspices." The draft warns that "those responsible for breaches of international humanitarian law and human rights law must be held accountable." In it the 28 leaders also ask EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and the European Commission, the EU executive, to continue pursuing medical evacuations in cooperation with the United Nations. It also asks her to push for a political transition in Syria by working with the region's main players which were not named. The statement ratcheted up the tone against Russia after EU foreign ministers for the first time strongly condemned Russia by name Monday for the bombardment of Aleppo and warned that the strikes may amount to war crimes. EU President Donald Tusk, who will host the summit, warned of the need to maintain European unity over Russia amid weakening support for sanctions imposed on Moscow over its involvement in Ukraine. The leaders are due to hold a discussion on their Russia strategy over dinner at the summit. "Our main asset in dealing with Russia remains our unity. To date, regardless of our differences, we have always remained united and we must continue to do so," Tusk told a press conference. Story continues "This will also be crucial when it comes to Russia's role in Syria," he added. On top of sanctions pressure from Washington and London, European Parliament leaders Manfred Weber, Guy Verhofstadt and Rebecca Harms sent Tusk a letter urging him to push for coercive "measures." They asked for a summit decision on "a set of enforcement tools to be activated should Russia continue violating UN Security Council resolutions and continue bombing civilians," according to a copy of the letter obtained by AFP. Caribou Coffee The company that owns Krispy Kreme, Caribou Coffee, and Peet's Coffee and Tea, is developing a new type of coffee chain. JAB Holdings, the Luxembourg-based investment arm of the wealthy Reimann family that has accumulated a growing number of coffee-related companies in recent years, is developing a chain called Coffee & Bagels. The co-branded chain will sell coffee from Caribou Coffee and bagels from Einstein Bros., Bloomberg reports. Coffee & Bagels has plans to open more than 50 locations, primarily in or near Minnesota, where Caribou is based. The first Coffee & Bagels location opened in 2015, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. JAB acquired Caribou in 2013 for $340 million. Soon after, the chain closed 80 locations, and rebranded 88 others as Peet's coffee shops. Today, the chain has 273 locations, primarily in Minnesota where the brand remains a regional favorite. #bakedgoodness #cariboucoffee A photo posted by Lexy Redenbaugh (@lexyredenbaugh) on Oct 16, 2016 at 9:36pm PDT on Oct 16, 2016 at 9:36pm PDT Einstein Bros., meanwhile, was originally founded by Boston Market's then-financier Boston Chicken, Inc. JAB bought the bagel chain's parent company Einstein Noah for $370 million in 2014. At the time, the chain was operating more than 850 stores nationwide. Start right bro #caribou #einsteinbagels #nutella #strawberry #nuts #bagel A photo posted by H.OLANDA (@h.olanda1221) on Oct 7, 2016 at 7:46pm PDT on Oct 7, 2016 at 7:46pm PDT JAB's new Coffee & Bagels shops will attempt to combine the best of both brands: the coffee credentials of Caribou with the freshly baked goods of Einstein. The menu is a combination of the slightly scaled down menus of both chains, with Caribou's signature drinks like the Turtle Mocha and Einstein's bagel-centric all-day-breakfast menu. "Very Einstein, very [C]aribou. Comparable to Starbucks, but way better food with the Einstein hook up," reads one Yelp review of a Colorado Springs location. "Not exceptional espresso, but a clean environment, and a good place to meet up." Story continues Argo Tea Some locations are additionally serving Argo tea, a brand that JAB licenses, but does not own. On its own, Coffee & Bagels isn't that interesting as a small chain with less than 50 locations. However, as a concept, it reveals JAB's future aspirations to combine multimillion-dollar chains in a way that could create a challenge for rivals like Starbucks. Starbucks has long struggled with its food business, looking outside the company for assistance. In 2012, Starbucks acquired the bakery La Boulange for $100 million. While Starbucks has grown its food business in the double-digits ever year since the acquisition, La Boulange shuttered in 2015. Starbucks still uses the bakery's recipes. More recently, in July, Starbucks announced a partnership with Princi, an artisan Italian bakery and restaurant, with plans to use the bakerys recipes in its new upscale Reserve and Roastery locations. Starbucks' reliance on outside brands to grow its food business reveals a gap in the coffee industry that could create an opportunity for JAB. Indeed, the Coffee & Bagels co-branding is just one of many combinations that JAB could create with its portfolio of brands. doughnuts krispy kreme Most recently, JAB acquired Krispy Kreme for roughly $1.35 billion in May. Before the acquisition, Krispy Kreme was working hard to boost beverage sales by trying out a new store concept and improving its offerings. JAB has the opportunity to bring better-known coffee brands to Krispy Kreme, or bring Krispy Kreme doughnuts to chains that have struggled with their sweets selection. Who are you sharing your cup of Peet's with this weekend? PhotoCred: @brookemiccio #CoffeeFirst A photo posted by Peet's Coffee (@peetscoffee) on Oct 8, 2016 at 8:15am PDT on Oct 8, 2016 at 8:15am PDT One such brand could be Peet's, which JAB acquired back in 2012 for about $1 billion. Peet's, which opened its first location in 1966, in Berkeley, California, represented the company's first major investment into the American coffee business. Under JAB's control, Peet's has been on a buying spree. In 2015, the brand announced it was purchasing stakes in two trendy, small coffee chains: Chicago-based Intelligentsia Coffee and Portland-based Stumptown Coffee. stumptown coffee JAB has also acquired companies with the potential to help with coffee brewing and production. In 2015, the holdings company acquired Keurig Green Mountain, which makes the Keurig coffee brewers and single-brew K-cups, in a deal that valued the company at $13.9 billion. Similarly, JAB owns coffee manufacturers, like the Norwegian brand Friele, that focus on producing coffee to be sold commercially. These are assets that could be sold in any number of JAB-owned chains, as well as on grocery store shelves. friele coffee All-in-all, JAB has more than $50 billion in assets. It's hard to compare the brand directly to Starbucks, a business built on just one chain that made $19.2 billion in net revenue in 2015. However, with JAB's aggressive coffee-centric acquisition strategy, it's clear that the holding company wants to take control of a larger piece of the global coffee business. Coffee & Bagels reveals a new strategy for JAB to do just that. Prior to the opening of the first location last year, JAB has kept its brands mostly separate. Now, with a wealth of coffee brands both coffee makers and chains JAB has the opportunity to create new brands that are larger than the sum of their parts. NOW WATCH: Coffee addiction isnt real according to an addiction specialist More From Business Insider Trace Gas Orbiter and Schiaparelli For the first time in 13 years, the European Space Agency has put a spacecraft in orbit around Mars and has sent a piggyback lander to an unknown fate on the Red Planets surface. Flight controllers at ESAs operations center in Darmstadt, Germany, cheered the news that the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter was back in contact after rounding Mars today. The last time an ESA orbiter arrived at the Red Planet was back in 2003, with Mars Express. We have two satellites around Mars, flight director Michel Denis declared. Denis and the rest of his team were still waiting to hear from the Schiaparelli lander, which was launched along with the orbiter in March, and was released on Sunday for its descent. ESA expected to hear confirmation that the 7-foot-wide, saucer-shaped craft had touched down via a radio telescope in India, but signals from the probe faded away toward the end of its descent. Telemetry relayed later via Mars Express was inconclusive, ESA reported in a series of tweets: .@ESA_EDM recording from #MarsExpress is inconclusive not clear yet what the status of the lander is #ExoMars ESA Operations (@esaoperations) October 19, 2016 Experts will work through the night to assess the @ESA_EDM situation next news will be tomorrow morning at 10:00 CEST #ExoMars ESA Operations (@esaoperations) October 19, 2016 The mission team hasnt given up on Schiaparelli, but the circumstances were similar to those surrounding the Beagle 2 lander, which was sent down to the surface by Mars Express on Christmas Day, 2003. That probe also went out of contact just as it was landing. Story continues No sign of Beagle 2 was detected until last year, when NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured images of the dead spacecraft. The Schiaparelli mission, named after the Italian astronomer who first reported seeing canali or channels on the Martian surface in the 19th century, is primarily aimed at testing the technologies for entry, descent and landing on Mars. Getting those technologies right will be essential for the landing of ESAs ExoMars rover in 2021. Schiaparelli also has a suite of scientific sensors to measure electric fields on the Martian surface as well as dust concentrations and wind speeds. ESAs Trace Gas Orbiter is designed to analyze the Red Planets atmosphere for traces of methane and other potential signatures of life, and in 2021 it will serve as a communications relay for the ExoMars rover. The lander and the orbiter, as well as the yet-to-be-launched rover and its Russian-built descent module are all part of a $1.5 billion European-Russian ExoMars program thats proceeding in parallel with NASAs Mars exploration program. NASA plans to launch its own rover to Mars in 2020. More from GeekWire: Paris (AFP) - Eurotunnel, which manages the rail link under the Channel, said Wednesday that passenger numbers on the Eurostar dropped by 10 percent during the third quarter in which France was hit by a major attack. The number of passengers on the high speed rail link fell to 2.6 million during the July to September period. On July 14, a 31-year-old Tunisian extremist rammed a 19-tonne truck through a crowd of more than 30,000 Bastille Day revellers on the seafront Promenade des Anglais in the southern city of Nice, killing 86 and injuring more than 400. "Eurostar... is evidently slightly down from what I would call the psychological consequences of the terrible attacks" in France, chief executive Jacques Gounon said at a news conference. The Nice attack was another blow to the French tourism industry, which was already reeling from two major jihadist attacks on Paris in 2015. The number of tourists visiting France has dropped seven percent since January, officials said in August. Eurotunnel said Eurostar passenger numbers were down by 5 percent in the first nine months of the year. The drop in the number of Eurostar trains in the third quarter caused an 11.7-percent drop in toll fees for Eurotunnel to 74.1 million euros ($81.5 million). However, the quarter wasn't without its bright side. The number of cars travelling on shuttle trains under the Channel hit a new record in July at 317,424. Eurotunnel said its overall sales in the third quarter were 320.3 million euros, which is a 4.1-percent drop from the 334.4 million euros it took in during the same period last year. The company said sales were up by 4 percent during the third quarter on a constant comparison. However the slide in the value of the pound to 7.5-year lows against the euro following the surprise vote by Britain to leave the European Union has been playing havoc with many companies. In July, Eurotunnel lowered its target for its operating profit from 560 million to 535 million euros. Story continues The company on Wednesday stressed its positive outlook however, noting that Britain's economy was still forecast to grow despite Brexit and the slide in the value of the pound was having a significant positive impact on the service of its debt. "These encouraging signs, combined with new records broken this quarter for the group put into perspective the change in public opinion following the vote in favour of Brexit: our business has never been stronger," Gounon said in a statement. Over the first nine months of the year, sales were down 3 percent to 902.1 million euros. Eurostar has yet to release its third-quarter results. By Orhan Coskun and Nick Tattersall ANKARA/ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Smarting over exclusion from an Iraqi-led offensive against Islamic State in Mosul and Kurdish militia gains in Syria, President Tayyip Erdogan warned on Wednesday Turkey "will not wait until the blade is against our bone" but could act alone in rooting out enemies. In a speech at his palace, Erdogan conjured up an image of Turkey constrained by foreign powers who "aim to make us forget our Ottoman and Selcuk history", when Turkey's forefathers held territory stretching across central Asia and the Middle East. "From now on we will not wait for problems to come knocking on our door, we will not wait until the blade is against our bone and skin, we will not wait for terrorist organizations to come and attack us," he told hundreds of "muhtars", local administrators generally loyal to the government. "Whoever supports the divisive terrorist organization, we will dig up their roots," he said, referring to Kurdish PKK militants who have waged a three-decade insurgency against Turkey and have bases in northern Iraq and affiliates in Syria. "Let them go wherever until we find and destroy them. I am saying this very clearly: they will not have a single place to find peace abroad." Erdogan has struck an increasingly belligerent tone in his speeches in recent days, frustrated that NATO member Turkey has not been more involved in the U.S.-backed assault on Mosul, and angered by Washington's support for Kurdish militia fighters battling Islamic State in Syria. He is riding a wave of patriotism since a coup attempt failed to oust him in July, his message of a strong Turkey playing well with his fervent supporters. Ankara has been locked in a row with Iraq over the presence of Turkish troops at the Bashiqa camp near Mosul, as well as over who should take part in the offensive in the largely Sunni Muslim city, once part of the Ottoman empire and still seen by Turkey as firmly within its sphere of influence. Erdogan has warned of sectarian bloodshed if the Iraqi army relies on Shi'ite militia fighters. He said agreement had been reached with the U.S. military on Turkish jets joining the Mosul operation, although Washington has said it is up to the Iraqi government on who takes part. "They thought they could keep us out of Mosul by bothering us with the PKK and Daesh (Islamic State) ... They think they can shape our future with the hands of terrorist organizations," he said. "We know that the terrorists' weapons will blow up in their hands soon." "YOU ARE FOREIGNERS HERE" Turkey has felt increasingly powerless to control events across its borders as the U.S.-led coalition focuses on fighting Islamic State in Syria rather than on removing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the root cause of the war in Ankara's view. It has been particularly angered by U.S. support for Kurdish militia fighters in Syria. Washington views the Kurdish YPG as useful allies in the fight against the jihadists, but Turkey sees them as a hostile force and an extension of the PKK. "We know this business in this region. You are foreigners here. You do not know," Erdogan said, to loud applause, in a speech on Tuesday to mark the opening of the academic year. While criticizing the West, the Turkish leader has restored ties with Moscow in recent weeks, vowing to seek common ground on Syria after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, despite Moscow's backing of Assad. Erdogan said he discussed with Putin by phone an agreement on Tuesday night on removing from Aleppo the group formally known as the Nusra Front, and now called Jabhat Fatah al Sham. He gave no details. Erdogan has made repeated references in his speeches this week to the term "Misak-i Milli" or National Pact, referring to decisions made by the Ottoman parliament in 1920 setting out the borders of the Ottoman Empire. He often laments the concessions made by Turkish leaders after World War One, with the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne that brought modern Turkey into being in 1923. Pro-government media this week published maps depicting Ottoman borders encompassing an area including Mosul. He warned of efforts to "restructure the region" and said Turkey would not sit by. "I'm warning the terrorist organizations, the sectarian fanatic Baghdad government, and the Assad government that kills its own people: you are on the wrong path. The fire you are trying to start will burn you more than us," Erdogan said. "We are not obliged to abide by the role anyone has set for us in that sense. We have started carrying out our own plan." (Additional reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu in Ankara and Daren Butler in Istanbul; Writing by Nick Tattersall; editing by Ralph Boulton) Beirut (AFP) - Lebanon's powerful ex-premier Saad Hariri is expected to endorse Hezbollah ally Michel Aoun for president, a post that has been vacant for almost 30 months, a senior politician said Wednesday. Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014 when the mandate of Michel Sleiman expired, amid deep rivalries among Christian and Muslim politicians exacerbated by the conflict in Syria. Since then parliament, which has twice extended its mandate, has met on 45 occasions to elect a president but deep rivalries and disagreements saw most deputies boycot the sessions. The assembly is due to convene next week for the 46th time amid high expectations that a president will be elected and that the job will go to Aoun, a Maronite Christian and former army commander. "Since Hariri has decided to endorse him, and save any last minute change, Michel Aoun will be elected by parliament on October 30," said the senior politician, who declined to be named. Hariri, a former Sunni Muslim prime minister whose party belongs to a Western and Saudi-backed political bloc, had fiercely opposed Aoun's candidacy. Aoun is allied with the Shiite movement Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and has dispatched fighters to neighbouring Syria to bolster the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. On Wednesday Al-Akhbar newspaper, which is close to Hezbollah, said that Hariri had informed his political bloc and his allies of his decision to endorse Aoun. "All that's left is to officially announce it," added Al-Akhbar. Aged 81, the ex-general Aoun is a controversial figure. He served as head of the armed forces and briefly as prime minister during Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war and was then a staunch opponent of Syrian military presence in Lebanon. But he shocked many by brokering an alliance with Hezbollah in 2006, a year after his return home from exile in France and after Syria pulled its troops from Lebanon. According to a source close to Hariri, the ex-prime minister struck a deal with Aoun to endorse him in exchange for his return as premier. Lebanon's president is elected by parliament, and the post is always reserved for a Maronite Christian under a power-sharing agreement. The post of prime minister is reserved for a Sunni Muslim, while the speaker of the parliament is a Shiite Muslim. Former Castle EP David Amann will be calling the shots on The Blacklist: Redemption. TVLine has learned exclusively that Amann has been tapped to handle showrunner duties on the forthcoming NBC spinoff, which stars Blacklist vet Ryan Eggold and How to Get Away With Murders Famke Janssen. RELATEDNathan Fillion on Castles Polarizing Series Finale: It Wasnt the Beautiful Send-Off Youd Hope For Amann joined Castle in its third season as a producer-writer, ascending to the showrunner perch in Season 7 (replacing series creator Andrew W. Marlowe). He left the ABC drama prior to the start of the eighth and final season; he was succeeded by the co-showrunning team of Alexi Hawley and Terence Paul Winter. His pre-Castle producing credits include The X-Files, Crossing Jordan and Without a Trace. On Blacklist: Redemption which starts production in late November ahead of a midseason launch Amann will work alongside the motherships EP team of Jon Bokenkamp, John Eisendrath, John Fox and John Davis. RELATEDCastle Series Finale: EPs Thank Fans for Watching A Love Story for the Ages The offshoot finds Eggolds Tom Keen joining forces with his biological mother Susan Scottie Hargrave (played by Janssen) to work within a dangerous world of deadly criminals; at the same time, Tom will go on a mission to learn as much as he can about his murky past. The cast also includes Blacklists Edi Gathegi and Tawny Cypress. Related stories SNL Promos: Tom Hanks Talks Outer Space, Sips Mimosas With Leslie Jones Chicago Fire Boss Talks [Spoiler]'s Exit Following Jimmy vs. Boden Battle This Is Us Recap: In Over Our Heads By Joseph Ax NEWARK, N.J. (Reuters) - Testimony on Wednesday by Chris Christie's former press secretary added to mounting evidence that the New Jersey governor knew earlier than he has acknowledged that key members of his staff were involved in the "Bridgegate" plot to create traffic gridlock as political payback. Michael Drewniak, testifying in the conspiracy trial of a Christie aide and a Christie political ally, told jurors about a dinner he had on Dec. 4, 2013, with David Wildstein, the alleged mastermind of the lane closures at the busy George Washington Bridge in September of that year. Drewniak testified that Wildstein told him that Christie's deputy chief of staff, Bridget Kelly, and his campaign manager, Bill Stepien, were aware of the lane closures while they were occurring, and so was Christie. The next day, Drewniak said, he met with the Republican governor and his chief of staff, Kevin O'Dowd, and relayed Wildstein's assertions. Christie held a news conference eight days later to insist that no member of his senior staff had been aware of the closures. Christie has said he learned of Kelly's possible involvement in January 2014, when emails discussing the scheme became public. The lane-closure scheme prompted massive gridlock in Fort Lee to punishment the town's Democratic mayor for refusing to endorse Christie's re-election campaign that year, according to prosecutors. Drewniak was the first witness called in federal court in Newark by Kelly, who is on trial alongside former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey executive Bill Baroni for their alleged roles in the conspiracy. Christie, who has denied knowledge of the scheme, has not been charged with any crime. The scandal's fallout, however, damaged his unsuccessful bid for the Republican presidential nomination. Christie is now advising Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. On the witness stand, Drewniak insisted that Wildstein never confirmed any political motivation, instead sticking with what turned out to be a bogus cover story that the closures were part of a traffic study. Story continues Wildstein, who has pleaded guilty and is cooperating with prosecutors, previously testified he told Drewniak about the true nature of the plot. Kelly is expected to testify later this week. (Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Scott Malone and Will Dunham) The medias fascination with former Fox News chief Roger Ailes hasnt dwindled yet. Gabriel Sherman, one of the executives most ardent chroniclers, has joined up with a production company to create a mini-series about Ailes life and recent controversial times. Blumhouse Television and Sherman and his spouse, Jennifer Stahl, have partnered to create a limited scripted series based on Shermans reporting on Roger Ailes in the New York Times bestselling book The Loudest Voice in the Room and New York magazine where Sherman is National Affairs Editor. Tom McCarthy, best known for his association with the critically-acclaimed movie Spotlight, about the travails of the Boston Globe in trying to report on rampant sexual abuse present in the areas diocese, will executive produce the series. Sherman and Stahl will co-executive produce and serve as writers. Blumhouse, serving as the studio, will finance, produce and package the series. Blumhouse Television has a number of interesting credits, including Emmy-award winning series such as The Normal Heart, an adaptation of the Larry Kramer play about the AIDS crisis, and The Jinx, the controversial series about real-estate scion and accused murderer Robert Durst. Sherman has broken many of the biggest stories on Roger Ailes over the past several months, a time span during which the Fox News chief was accused of sexual harassment in a lawsuit filed by former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson (pictured, above). Those accusations resulted in more allegations from current and past female employees at Fox News Channel along with other charges leveled by women from Ailes past. While Ailes has denied all the allegations, they had a serious effect: Fox News Channel is now under new leadership and believed to be recalibrating itself for a new era under the supervision of 21st Century Fox executive chairman Rupert Murdoch and his sons James and Lachlan. Blumhouse did not say whether a TV network had agreed to license the series, nor did it give a time frame for when the series might become available. Story continues The media industry may have more Ailes content available soon. Speaking Wednesday at a conference organized by Vanity Fair, journalist Sarah Ellison said that Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly has added a chapter about Ailes to her forthcoming book, slated to be available next month. Related stories Megyn Kelly-Sean Hannity Dust-Up Is Latest Challenge for Fox News Roger Ailes Picks Up Ultra-Contemporary Palm Beach Getaway Fox News, Andrea Tantaros Disagree Over Whether Settlement Exists (Adds details of corruption allegations, background) By Anthony Boadle and Lisandra Paraguassu BRASILIA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Eduardo Cunha, the former head of Brazil's lower house of Congress who led the impeachment drive against former President Dilma Rousseff, was arrested on Wednesday on corruption charges. Cunha, one-time leader of the Evangelical Christian caucus in the House of Deputies is accused of receiving millions in bribes from a purchase of an oil field in Benin by state-run oil company Petrobras, which led to his arrest on Wednesday. In a separate case before a federal court in Rio de Janeiro, Cunha is also charged with taking $5 million in bribes in relation to contracts for two drillships for Petrobras, which is known formally as Petroleo Brasileiro SA. Leonardo Cavalcanti, a spokesman for the federal police, said Cunha was arrested in the capital Brasilia. He was flown Wednesday afternoon to the southern city of Curitiba, where he will stand trial before anti-corruption judge Sergio Moro. Cunha was expelled from the lower house last month in an overwhelming vote by his peers in the chamber. That stripped him of legal protections that effectively give politicians immunity from all courts except the severely backlogged Supreme Court. Judge Moro, by contrast, is known for acting with speed and Cunha's case could be ruled upon before the end of the year. Brazil's federal prosecutors said in an emailed statement that Moro accepted their request that Cunha be subject to "preventative" arrest. They said there was a risk of Cunha obstructing the investigation and raised "the concrete possibility" he would flee Brazil because of "hidden funds abroad and his dual nationality." That means that the former congressman, who also holds Italian citizenship, can be held for an indefinite period. Cunha has said he is innocent. It was not immediately possible to contact his lawyer, who was with him when he was arrested. Cunha's apprehension is the latest high-profile action in the sprawling investigation into the sprawling graft scheme at Petrobras. Prosecutors say Brazil's biggest construction and engineering firms paid billions in bribes to executives at the oil firm and politicians in return for bloated contracts. Story continues To date, nearly 200 executives and former politicians - including popular former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva - have been charged in the Petrobras probe and 83 have been found guilty. Prosecutors are seeking 38 billion reais ($12 billion) in damages from companies and individuals involved. Cunha is a longtime member of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB) of current President Michel Temer, who served as Rousseff's vice president and took over in May during the impeachment process against her. Cunha in August became the first sitting politician to be charged in the case. Two sources close to Temer told Reuters that the order at the presidential palace is to remain silent on Cunha's arrest, mainly because of concerns that he may turn state's witness and implicate fellow PMDB politicians, whom Cunha lashed out against for not defending him against the recent criminal charges. Cunha is a lightning rod of ire for those who opposed Rousseff's impeachment, carried out on the grounds that she broke budgetary rules. Rousseff and her supporters say she was the victim of a "coup" carried out as an attempt to halt the Petrobras probe - and they pointed to Cunha as the crudest example of that effort. Federal prosecutors in Curitiba, who have led the Petrobras investigation, have said they will not allow any politician to halt their work - and fought back vocally against scattered attempts by lawmakers to impede their efforts. (Reporting by Anthony Boadle and Eduardo Simoes; Writing by Brad Brooks; Editing by Daniel Flynn and Alan Crosby) By Anthony Boadle and Lisandra Paraguassu BRASILIA (Reuters) - Eduardo Cunha, the former head of Brazil's lower house of Congress who led the impeachment drive against former President Dilma Rousseff, was arrested on Wednesday on corruption charges. Cunha, one-time leader of the Evangelical Christian caucus in the House of Deputies is accused of receiving millions in bribes from a purchase of an oil field in Benin by state-run oil company Petrobras, which led to his arrest on Wednesday. In a separate case before a federal court in Rio de Janeiro, Cunha is also charged with taking $5 million in bribes in relation to contracts for two drillships for Petrobras, which is known formally as Petroleo Brasileiro SA. Leonardo Cavalcanti, a spokesman for the federal police, said Cunha was arrested in the capital Brasilia. He was flown Wednesday afternoon to the southern city of Curitiba, where he will stand trial before anti-corruption judge Sergio Moro. Cunha was expelled from the lower house last month in an overwhelming vote by his peers in the chamber. That stripped him of legal protections that effectively give politicians immunity from all courts except the severely backlogged Supreme Court. Judge Moro, by contrast, is known for acting with speed and Cunha's case could be ruled upon before the end of the year. Brazil's federal prosecutors said in an emailed statement that Moro accepted their request that Cunha be subject to "preventative" arrest. They said there was a risk of Cunha obstructing the investigation and raised "the concrete possibility" he would flee Brazil because of "hidden funds abroad and his dual nationality." That means that the former congressman, who also holds Italian citizenship, can be held for an indefinite period. Cunha has said he is innocent. It was not immediately possible to contact his lawyer, who was with him when he was arrested. Cunha's apprehension is the latest high-profile action in the sprawling investigation into the sprawling graft scheme at Petrobras. Prosecutors say Brazil's biggest construction and engineering firms paid billions in bribes to executives at the oil firm and politicians in return for bloated contracts. To date, nearly 200 executives and former politicians - including popular former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva - have been charged in the Petrobras probe and 83 have been found guilty. Prosecutors are seeking 38 billion reais ($12 billion) in damages from companies and individuals involved. Cunha is a longtime member of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB) of current President Michel Temer, who served as Rousseff's vice president and took over in May during the impeachment process against her. Cunha in August became the first sitting politician to be charged in the case. Two sources close to Temer told Reuters that the order at the presidential palace is to remain silent on Cunha's arrest, mainly because of concerns that he may turn state's witness and implicate fellow PMDB politicians, whom Cunha lashed out against for not defending him against the recent criminal charges. Cunha is a lightning rod of ire for those who opposed Rousseff's impeachment, carried out on the grounds that she broke budgetary rules. Rousseff and her supporters say she was the victim of a "coup" carried out as an attempt to halt the Petrobras probe - and they pointed to Cunha as the crudest example of that effort. Federal prosecutors in Curitiba, who have led the Petrobras investigation, have said they will not allow any politician to halt their work - and fought back vocally against scattered attempts by lawmakers to impede their efforts. (Reporting by Anthony Boadle and Eduardo Simoes; Writing by Brad Brooks; Editing by Daniel Flynn and Alan Crosby) Washington (AFP) - A former TV reporter on Wednesday accused ex-president Bill Clinton of three sexual assaults in 1980, when Clinton was governor of Arkansas. Her allegations, in a video clip posted on the pro-Donald Trump website Breitbart.com, appear just hours before the Republican presidential candidate debates his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton, Bill's wife. Leslie Millwee, a former reporter for local Arkansas TV station KLMN-TV, said she interviewed Clinton some 20 times in public when he was governor of the southern US state. Millwee -- then known as Leslie Derrick -- told Breitbart that Clinton visited the TV station and assaulted her in the editing room in all three cases. "I was sitting in a chair," she said about what she described as the first assault. "He came up behind me and started rubbing my shoulders and running his hands down toward my breasts. And I was just stunned. I froze. I asked him to stop. He laughed." On another occasion, she said, Clinton rubbed his genitals against her as she protested. After the third assault, Clinton visited her apartment, she added, saying she refused to let him in. Millwee said she had thought of coming forward when the Monica Lewinsky White House sex scandal broke in 1998, but refrained to protect her young children. "I think there's still no accountability in the media for the behavior of the Clintons, and if it affects the media and affects the election, so be it," she said. "I'm sure I'm not the only woman who went through this kind of things with Bill Clinton." However, the ex-reporter gave a different version of the story in a book published in 2011, mentioning only that Bill Clinton touched her shoulder, according to Breitbart. The Clinton campaign dismissed her accusations. "I wouldn't be surprised if Donald Trump seeks to invoke this report tonight or in the coming days," Hillary Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon said on MSNBC. Story continues "We expect that he'll do anything in the closing days. He said he's practicing a scorched earth approach to the campaign." The new revelations surfaced as Trump faces a string of accusations of sexual misconduct. The bombastic billionaire has blamed the Clinton campaign and the news media for the stories. Trump recruited Breitbart.com CEO Stephen Bannon to be his campaign manager in August. By Benjamin Kang Lim and Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) - China will consider giving Filipino fishermen conditional access to disputed waters in the South China Sea after the presidents of the two countries meet in Beijing this week, two Chinese sources with ties to the leadership said. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte plans to raise the plight of Filipino fishermen when he meets his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, on Thursday, a Philippine official told Reuters. China seized Scarborough Shoal - claimed by Beijing as Huangyan island and by Manila as Panatag - in 2012, denying Philippine fishermen access to its rich fishing grounds. The seizure formed part of a case the Philippines took to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague, which in July rejected China's territorial claims over much of the South China Sea, including its assertion of a 200-mile (320 km) exclusive economic zone around the disputed Spratly Islands. China immediately declared the ruling "null and void" but said it was time to get talks started again between the countries directly involved in the territorial disputes to reach a peaceful resolution. Arriving at his hotel in Beijing, Duterte told reporters he expected to achieve "plenty of happiness for my country" during his trip to China. Asked about the South China Sea dispute, he said: "No, that is not one of the topics on the agenda. It might crop up but it is going to be a soft landing for everyone. No impositions." "EVERYBODY CAN GO" Beijing is now considering making a concession to Duterte, whose rapprochement with China since taking office on June 30 marks an astonishing reversal in recent Philippine foreign policy. "Everybody can go, but there will be conditions," one of the Chinese sources who speaks regularly with senior officials told Reuters, referring to Chinese and Filipino fishermen. Asked what the conditions were, the source said: "The two countries would have to form working groups to iron out details." It was unclear, however, if China would agree to joint coastguard patrols. The sources did not say what, if anything, China might demand from Manila in exchange for the fishing concession. "It will be a return to the Arroyo days," the second Chinese source said, referring to the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (2001-2010), when fishermen from both countries had access to waters near Scarborough Shoal. If all goes according to script, fishery cooperation would be one of more than 10 broad framework agreements the two countries would sign during Duterte's visit, the sources said, without giving further details. The Philippine foreign ministry said it had "no comment at this time". FREE NAVIGATION China has overlapping claims in the South China Sea with Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam. The United States, along with Japan and other powers, want to ensure Beijing doesn't interfere with free navigation in the strategic South China Sea, which connects the Indian and Pacific Oceans and through which flows $5 trillion of trade a year. U.S. Navy ships have conducted "freedom of navigation" operations around artificial islands China has been building in the disputed Spratly Islands, which mostly consist of coral reefs and tidal features in the South China Sea. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi did not answer directly, when Reuters asked on Tuesday whether China would offer any concessions to the Philippines on the South China Sea, including fishing rights around Scarborough Shoal. "China's position on the South China Sea is clear and consistent. There is no change and there will be no change. This position accords with historical facts and international law," Wang said at a news conference with his New Zealand counterpart. "HISTORIC VISIT" Wang, however, was upbeat about Duterte's trip. "This will be a historic visit and a new beginning in China-Philippines relations," the foreign minister said. China's ambassador to Manila, Zhao Jianhua, said last Friday a budding bilateral friendship could boost chances of removing one of their biggest bones of contention in the South China Sea. But on Sunday, Duterte said he would raise the Hague ruling and vowed not to surrender any sovereignty, comments that will not sit comfortably with Beijing. Philippine Supreme Court senior associate justice Antonio Carpio warned that Duterte could be impeached if he gives up the country's sovereignty over the Scarborough Shoal, according to Philippine media. China's objective is to jointly develop resources in the South China Sea with its neighbors, said Lu Xiang, an international relations expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a government think-tank. "Disputes with any neighbor are not conducive for China," he said, when asked what China wanted in exchange for any concession to Duterte. "We need a better external environment," Lu said. Graphic: The Scarborough Shoal - http://tmsnrt.rs/2bW92hC (Additional reporting by Natalie Thomas; Editing by Bill Tarrant) Could there be more between Dr. Andrew DeLuca and Dr. Jo Wilson? Grey's Anatomy hunk Giacomo Gianniotti dished on the docs' deepening new bond! Following last week's episode, the pair sparked talk of a potential hot new Grey's hook-up, which saw DeLuca (Gianniotti) and Jo (Camilla Luddington) lean on each other in the wake of Alex's (Justin Chambers) brutal attack on DeLuca in last season's finale. RELATED:'Grey's Anatomy': Alex's Crisis Nearly Costs Him Everything However, Gianniotti teased that any potential romance between DeLuca and Jo will be slow-burning. "Andrew feels like an outcast at this point," the 27-year-old actor told ET while volunteering at My Friend's Place, a non-profit based in Los Angeles, on Friday. "He's gone through this really hard thing and doesn't have anybody to talk to about it, so in Jo he sees an ally, comrade and someone who not only understands where he's coming from, but was actually there." Gianniotti shared that fans have made their desires clear to him for the two Grey-Sloan docs to couple up. "People keep asking, 'Are they getting together?' and 'Is it a romantic thing?' and it could develop into that, but right now it's a friendship -- two people who are happy to have someone to talk to," he explained. "Alex might beat me up again if I go for his girl! So I would ask Andrew to tread lightly in that direction." RELATED: 'Grey's Anatomy' Season 13 Premiere: Alex Lands in Jail The Italian-born Canadian actor added that DeLuca's storyline this season has been intense so far. DeLuca was hospitalized with horrific facial injuries Jo's former beau, Alex, assaulted him after misreading a situation at her apartment. "We don't get a lot of fighting, so that was a fun part of the [season 12] finale," Gianniotti said of the dramatic fight between DeLuca and Alex. "I had never worked with such extreme prosthetics before, so that was interesting. I was in the make-up chair at 4 a.m. for three hours and the team was incredible. But I was also happy to have it off when it was done." Story continues Ian Bailey Gianniotti is putting his time away from Grey's to good use as a spokesperson for My Friend's Place, a resource center providing programs and services to homeless youth. Based in Hollywood, the organization helps struggling locals in need hot showers and professional attire for job interviews, to singing and fashion design workshops. The actor handed over a check for $15,000 raised by the Grey's cast in a Tough Mudder run earlier this year, and his ongoing efforts will be recognized at a benefit on Wednesday, where he will receive the Champion of the Year honor. RELATED: Sandra Oh Has 'No Plans' to Return to 'Grey's Anatomy' Before handing over the check, the former Reign star served up scrambled eggs with a side of acting advice to hungry locals at a free breakfast event at the center. As for his own breakfast-making skills, the actor is prime husband material, boasting that he knows his way around the kitchen and can whip up a mean Italian feast. While mornings involve a simple croissant and cappuccino, his culinary skills go into full effect at night. "For dinner I would do spaghetti with shrimp, lobster and arrabbiata sauce, which is a spicy Italian tomato sauce," he shared. "I love cooking. I'm very much in touch with my Italian roots, so I'm not hesitant to say that I'm a very good cook!" Grey's Anatomy airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. Related Articles Kate Hudson is all about a little GNO. ET caught up with the 37-year-old actress at the God's Love We Deliver charity event in New York City on Monday, where she couldn't help but gush about her girls. WATCH: EXCLUSIVE: Father-Daughter Duo Kate Hudson & Kurt Russell Dish on Bonding While Filming 'Deepwater Horizon' "It's the importance of girlfriends. Guys don't really talk that much, you know what I mean?" Hudson explained. "They like to hang out, and that's important too. But women, we need to talk it out, and my girlfriends have been one of my strongest foundations of support." The actress got plenty of support on Thursday night, as she got together with Jennifer Garner, Reese Witherspoon, Ali Larter and Halle Berry for a glamorous night out at a Tiffany event in Hollywood. Loved this night out A little after @tiffanyandco party #GreatNight #WorkingWithTiffany A photo posted by Kate Hudson (@katehudson) on Oct 14, 2016 at 1:09am PDT WATCH: Kate Hudson, Ryan Gosling and Paul Rudd Laugh Off Jimmy Kimmel's Latest 'Mean Tweets' "You have to put as much effort into that as you do any other relationship. So it's fun," she said. "It's just really nice." It seems one night out with her gal pals wasn't quite enough for Hudson, who embarked on a Thelma and Louise-inspired road trip with Stella McCartney on Friday. The famous friends headed to Indio, California, where they caught Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones performing at the Desert Trip music festival. Thelma and Louise heading to coachella!! x Stella A photo posted by Stella McCartney (@stellamccartney) on Oct 14, 2016 at 10:14pm PDT WATCH: Kate Hudson Day Drinks Wine in Her Bathtub, Lives Life Better Than All of Us "It was a magical time actually," the Almost Famous star dished. "I think a lot of people who went to that, those shows, there was something really special about it." Story continues "They still sound so f**king great, and you're just like 'Oh my god.' It is just phenomenal," she added. "There is something special about that time, and that era and what they wrote and their rebelliousness." See more of Hudson's epic girls nights in the video below. Related Articles It's officially official -- Scream Queens' fan favorite character Chad Radwell is dead. Fans of Fox's killer comedy were left with a gruesome cliffhanger at the end of last week's episode when Chad's blood-smeared body plummeted through the ceiling of the hospital chapel just moments before he was supposed to say "I do" to one of the loves of his life, Chanel Oberlin. Unfortunately, after watching tonight's tear-jerking hour, "Halloween Blues," all our hopes of Chad somehow surviving his cutthroat conundrum were dashed. Chad did make few brief returns in the episode, in both ghost form and sex-fueled flashbacks, but the man that everyone wanted to get with -- women, men, animals at the zoo, and plants, probably -- is R.I.P. To help you cope with the Radwell withdrawl that you are all obviously, painfully suffering through, ET called up Scream Queens' most recent victim, Glen Powell, to get the exclusive postmortem scoop on Chad's demise and to find out if there's any chance of a triumphant return. MORE: 'Scream Queens' Star Glen Powell Dishes on Chad and Chanel's Romantic Future! From his very first douche-tastic line in the Scream Queens pilot, we quickly fell in love with Chad's egotistical and hilariously inappropriate personality. Now, we're desperately going to miss watching him (and his amazing abs) on our screens each week -- but we're taking comfront in the fact that we're not alone. "Obviously I'm heartbroken that Chad Radwell is dead as well because I had a great time with him, but [such] is the nature of a show where people get murdered all the time," the 27-year-old actor spilled. "At the end of the day, I think what [Scream Queens creator] Ryan [Murphy] is doing with that character death is pretty awesome. I think with the second season you've got to do drastic things and, obviously, when you're killing off major characters you're keeping everyone on their toes. It's a bummer when you're the guy that gets the meat cleaver, but it is what it is." Story continues Although Powell didn't get a significant heads up that Chad was getting killed off, he did start to see clues in the script that the end was near. "For me, I kind of got the sense as Chad started falling more and more in love with Chanel," he recalled. "As soon as Chad turned and he finds a heart, we should have thought that an ax was going to fall -- and lo-and-behold, it happened." Speaking of falling, Powell confessed that he happily allowed his stunt double to take the brunt of Chad's death-sentencing drop from the cherub-covered ceiling. "I usually do most of my own stunts, but when they showed me what that stunt looked like, I was like, 'That doesn't feel glorious or fun at all,'" Powell said with a laugh. "The stunt guy legitimately fell like 20 feet right on that thin mat. I only fell from like four feet or so to match his fall [for the shot], and my neck was even hurting the next day." EXCLUSIVE: Glen Powell Makes His Hilarious (and Naked!) Return to 'Scream Queens' As for the person responsible for Chad's untimely death, Powell admitted that he honestly has no clue about who's hiding behind the Green Meanie's mask. "I'm going to put my money on hmm on Taylor Lautner [as Dr. Cassidy Cascade]," he confessed. "He doesn't look like he could master up a very intricate murder plot, but I think that's exactly why it's going to be him. Just like with Hester when you didn't see it coming [in season one]." For all those fans out there -- like us! -- who would love to see Chad back on our Scream Queens screens again, Powell has something to tell you: "It's like when you break up with anyone. You can say, 'Look, we can still be friends,'" he said. "Maybe you can come visit Chad in heaven. Or Maybe Chad's not totally dead," he mused. "On a Ryan Murphy show, there's ghosts, there's angels, there's twins, who knows?" Hold up -- a Chad Radwell identical twin? Yes please! "Like I said, you just never know," he teased. "The Ryan Murphy universe is a very strange place to occupy and I would never tell anyone who loves Chad Radwell to ever give up complete hope." So how can we make this dream into a reality? "Somebody's just got to get in touch with Ryan for me and tell him I'm sorry for whatever I did," Powell joked. "I still love him and maybe there's a twin in the future." RELATED: Kirstie Alley Spills the Secret to Channeling Her Inner Mean Girl for 'Scream Queens' In Powell's immediate future, fans can watch him in theaters this Christmas alongside Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Kevin Costner in the already-buzzed about film, Hidden Figures, which centers on a team of African-American women providing NASA with important mathematical data needed to launch the program's first successful space missions. Powell will play John Glenn, the first American astronaut to make a complete orbit of the Earth, although, we've got to be honest: We'd really just love to watch a movie starring Chad Radwell and Henson's Cookie Lyon from Empire. Hottest Couple at NASA #SheSendsMeIntoLowSpaceOrbit #BrainsAreBeautiful #TarajiTornado #BirthdayGirl #HiddenFigures @hiddenfiguresmovie @tarajiphenson A photo posted by Glen Powell (@glenpowell) on Sep 12, 2016 at 9:28am PDT "Oh my gosh! Could you imagine if that's what Hidden Figures was about?" Powell laughed after we pitched him our alternate plot. "That would be a very, very differently toned movie than what Hidden Figures is. Yes, [Taraji] and I do have some scenes together in Hidden Figures, but it is not what you would expect." "It's such a heart-wrenching and important story," Powell continued. "It's nice to getting to always work with such extremely talented people. Hopefully I don't keep getting killed off." No matter which roles come next, Powell revealed that Chad Radwell will always have a special place in his heart. "Getting to occupy those very tight slacks and loafers every day, and to see the world through his eyes, it's really one of the most special characters and one of the greatest gifts I've ever been given," Powell concluded. "Fingers crossed for life after death." Related Articles By Julia Edwards WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A White House plan aims to convene teachers and mental health professionals to intervene and help prevent Americans from turning to violent ideologies, work that is currently done mostly by federal law enforcement. The 18-page plan announced on Wednesday and first reported by Reuters, marks the first time in five years that the Obama administration has updated its policy for preventing the spread of violent groups such as Islamic State, which controls parts of Syria and Iraq and recruits fighters worldwide. Authorities blamed radical and violent ideologies as the motives for attacks in Charleston, South Carolina; San Bernardino, California; Orlando, Florida; New York and New Jersey in 2015-16. The policy aims to prevent conversions to all violent ideologies, including the white supremacist beliefs held by a gunman who killed nine black church members inside a historic African-American church in Charleston and the other shootings and bombs were inspired by Islamist militants. Critics said, however, that such efforts largely target Muslims. In approximately 60 to 70 percent of the cases the federal government has prosecuted for terrorism or supporting terrorism, a family member or friend said they noticed the defendant was exhibiting strange behavior before they came to the attention of law enforcement, said Seamus Hughes, deputy director of George Washington University's Program on Extremism. "Parents are stuck in this horrible situation where they have to make a determination of 'Is it better that my son joins ISIS and potentially dies or is it better that he spends 20 years in jail?'" said Hughes, referring to Islamic State. The new White House strategy seeks to create "intervention teams" led by mental health professionals, faith-based groups, educators and others as a resource for people who find themselves in such circumstances. Intervention teams would seek to divert a person away from violence before they commit a violent act and without involving law enforcement agencies. Story continues The Justice Department and Homeland Security Department also aim to enhance their social media campaigns to counter people being drawn to violence. The White House plan drew both praise and criticism Wednesday afternoon from experts on counterterrorism and civil liberties advocates who said the plan is a step in the right direction but does not go far enough to prevent discrimination against Muslims. CODE WORD William McCants, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution policy research group in Washington, said the idea of asking "the community" to get involved with stopping violent ideology implies Muslim communities are aware of who may be violent jihadists and have the responsibility to stop them. "The community is just a code word for the Muslim community, McCants said. "It only reinforces people's fears that 'the community' is the problem." Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has said his counterterrorism strategy would rely on Muslims reporting on other Muslims. Democractic candidate Hillary Clinton has stated on her website that she plans to support law enforcement to build "trustful and strong relationships" with the American-Muslim community. Prosecutors would still have a role in prevention efforts under the new policy, including arranging after-school programs. But those programs would not be allowed to serve a dual purpose for intelligence gathering, which civil liberties advocates have accused current programs of doing. "In practice, what we have seen is programs are targeted unfairly at American-Muslim communities, seeing them through a security lens which alienates and stigmatizes," said Hina Shamsi, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's national security project. In Minneapolis, U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger prosecuted 10 Somali-American men earlier this year for plotting to fight with the Islamic State overseas while simultaneously leading community outreach efforts with the same Somali community. "We determined that efforts to build intervention teams are less likely to succeed if they are driven by the federal government," said Brette Steele, acting deputy director of the U.S. government's Countering Violent Extremism Task Force, suggesting that the teams should instead be community-led. Only when a person is believed to "pose a threat or be immediately capable of committing a crime," should law enforcement actions be taken, the policy states. The policy also calls on the Justice Department to implement rehabilitation strategies that could include using former converts to violence as counselors for those convicted of terrorism. (Reporting by Julia Edwards; Editing by Frances Kerry and Grant McCool) Elon Musk Tesla CEO Elon Musk sure knows how to keep Tesla fans on the edge of their seats. A little over a week ago, Musk said that the company would unveil a product on October 17. The day before the event, he pushed the reveal to Wednesday, October 19, stating that the product still needed a few refinements. As planned, the unveiling will happen on Wednesday evening. Earlier in the day, Musk tweeted that the company would post information about the mysterious product at 5 p.m. Pacific, and that he will host a media Q&A afterward. Tesla announcement goes live at 5pm California time. 30 minutes of media Q&A to follow. Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 19, 2016 Musk had stayed quiet about what was coming, saying only that the event would be "unexpected by most." But on Wednesday afternoon, he gave a big hint of what to expect when he said on Twitter that the the unveiling is related to the Model 3, Tesla's first mass-market car. @elonmusk This is also what I was alluding to by Model 3 part 2 Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 19, 2016 In June at the Code Conference, Musk said the company would host another "big" event for the Model 3 before 2017. He didn't share many details about what the company would reveal at this event, but he did say that Tesla would do "the obvious thing." At the time, some speculated Tesla might reveal the interior of the car at this event, since the company didn't show off what the inside of the production vehicle would look like at the press event in March. There's also been speculation that Musk would debut Autopilot 2.0 in the new Model 3. Autopilot 2.0 is the next generation of Tesla's semiautonomous driving system. With Autopilot 2.0, Tesla is expected to add more sensors to its vehicles to give it more self-driving capabilities. Story continues Musk announced Tesla's Autopilot system in October 2014, but the system became available to users in October 2015. Wednesday's announcement will come four days after the one-year anniversary of Autopilot's launch. Tesla quietly increased the price of its Autopilot system in August from $2,500 to $3,000. A few weeks later, the company rolled out its software update, Version 8.0, to give the car new features and functions. In August, Musk also hinted that Tesla's autonomous tech would be here sooner than expected. "Autonomy is going to come a hell of a lot faster than anyone thinks it will, and I think what we've got under development is going to blow people's minds," he said during the company's second-quarter earnings call. "It blows my mind." NOW WATCH: Mercedes-Maybach rivals Tesla with a new jaw-dropping concept car More From Business Insider Baghdad (AFP) - Iraq's Christian community is one of the oldest in the world and the loss of what was once its largest town, Qaraqosh, to the Islamic State group two years ago was a major blow. News that the town was poised to be recaptured from the jihadists sparked jubilation among Christians who had fled, with many dancing and singing in the city of Arbil. Christians once formed a significant minority of Iraq's mainly Muslim population but mounting sectarian attacks against them since the US-led invasion of 2003 have sent their numbers plummeting. In June 2014, jihadist fighters led by IS seized control of Mosul and ordered the northern city's Christian community to convert to Islam, pay a special tax, leave or face execution. Weeks later, the jihadists swept through Qaraqosh and the rest of the Nineveh Plain east of Mosul, where an estimated 120,000 Christians lived, forcing all of them to leave their homes. More than two years later, Iraqi forces are reconquering those areas as they mount a much-delayed operation to retake Mosul, now the only major urban hub in IS's shrinking "caliphate". Here are some facts about Christians in Iraq: - The Christian population includes Chaldean, Assyrian, Armenian and Syriac communities, but it is a shadow of what it used to be -- once numbering more than a million nationwide, with upwards of 600,000 in Baghdad alone, there are now fewer than 350,000 in the country. - Before 2003, Christians living in Iraq's second city of Mosul numbered 60,000, but that had dropped to a few thousand in 2014. They all left a few days after IS occupied the city. - Of the 120,000 Christians who fled the August 2014 IS offensive in the Nineveh Plain, around 20,000 have left the country and around 50,000 of those who remained in Iraq currently live in the Kurdish regional capital Arbil. - Iraq's Christian communities are among the world's oldest. Some speak a form of Aramaic, a language thought to have been spoken by Jesus Christ. Story continues - The Assyrians are followers of the Church of the East while the Chaldeans use the same rite but are in communion with the Roman Catholic Church. - The Armenians and most Syriacs follow branches of the Oriental Orthodox Church. There is also a Syriac Catholic Church. - Like other Iraqi minorities, Christians have often been the target of attacks by Sunni extremists. Kidnappings, shootings and church bombings have driven thousands abroad or forced to them to flee to other parts of the country. - Iraq is also home to a small community of Mandean Sabeans. They are not considered Christians and practise one of the world's oldest surviving Gnostic religions but they worship John the Baptist as their central prophet. - Now-executed president Saddam Hussein's deputy prime minister Tareq Aziz was from a Chaldean Catholic family and one of Iraq's best known Christians. Aziz, who died while on death row last year, was baptised as Manuel Christo. (Sources: Chaldean patriarchate, Centre for International Governance Innovation, Human Rights Watch, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Fraternite en Irak) faraday future Secretive electric car start-up Faraday Future will unveil its first production car at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, the start-up wrote in an email Wednesday. Faraday Future said the car will be a "premium electric vehicle that combines extreme technology, industry leading range, and holistic design." What kind of range Faraday Future announces will be key at a time where competition in the electric car space is mounting. The consumer-friendly Chevy Bolt will hit dealerships by the end of 2016 and it boasts a competitive 238-mile range. Deliveries for Tesla's Model 3 will commence at the end of 2017, and CEO Elon Musk says the car has a 215-mile range. We first heard Faraday Future was gearing up to reveal its electric car during LeEco's US launch event at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco on Wednesday. LeEco's CEO Jia Yueting, a personal investor in Faraday Future, said the start-up will "perhaps" show the car at CES. LeEco is a strategic partner of Faraday Future. Faraday Future generated a lot of hype for a car reveal ahead of the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show, but people were disappointed to only see a concept car. Meanwhile, LeEco has its own car plans. The company showed its own electric concept car with autonomous capabilities in April. LeEco raised $1.08 billion to develop its electric car in September. The news came about a month after LeEco invested $1.8 billion to build an electric-car plant in eastern China with eventual annual production capacity of 400,000 cars. LeEco was supposed to show the car, the LeSEE Pro, at the event. But Yueting said it got into an accident on the way from Los Angeles to the event in San Francisco. He added the stage had been built with a track specifically to show the car's autonomous abilities at the event. Prior to being flown into Los Angeles, the LeSEE Pro was being filmed for the movie "Transformers 5." Story continues NOW WATCH: Tesla's rival just unveiled its first car and it looks like a futuristic Batmobile More From Business Insider Photo credit: (PRISCILLA WEIDLEIN) From LennyLetter I came to America sixteen years ago, knowing no one and bringing nothing but the hopes of pursuing my passion to become a fashion designer. In my homeland of Nepal, I was constantly told how different I was, a reminder that I did not fit the mold of my all-boys school. America gave me the opportunity to be my truest self - a creator - and the fashion industry gave me the home I needed to see my dreams realized. Fashion is my language of choice. It is how I share my passions, my views. And the fashion industry, which has provided me with nothing but love and support for the past seven and a half years, has enabled me to make people think and to change a few minds by using my platform to be an activist for causes I care about. It has allowed me to make clothes that don't just hang on a hanger, but are also tools for opportunity and empowerment, for the women who make them and the women who wear them. In my short career, the industry has allowed me to advocate for my organization Shikshya Foundation Nepal, which brings complete education to children in my homeland. I am grateful to be able to do what I love. Fashion is my language of choice. Despite the opportunity and potential that I see in this industry, many others look at the fashion industry as being fake and frivolous. For me, it has been anything but; I see it as my mission to introduce new terminology into the language of fashion and reshape the common understanding of the industry and the women we dress. As I reflect on the current situation in our country, a country that runs rampant with the othering of certain groups, I can't help but feel we are missing the point. This is supposed to be a country of acceptance, a country that is proud of being a melting pot of cultures. If I, a boy from Nepal with no industry or family connections, was welcomed into this country and accepted for my unique point of view, then shouldn't we provide the same courtesy to others as well? Shouldn't this feeling of inclusion extend to the women our industry serves? If fashion is a celebration of each of us, then all of us, not just those who fit society's ideal of beauty, should be celebrated. Story continues If fashion is a celebration of each of us, then all of us, not just those who fit society's ideal of beauty, should be celebrated. Last winter, I was at a trunk show in Palm Beach - showing a collection to women in an intimate setting with our retail partners is one of my favorite parts of my job. I remember there was a curvier woman, amid a sea of sample-size ladies, who looked at and touched the samples with such a deep longing and desire for them. I encouraged her to touch them and even try them on, yet she could not bring herself to in fear that they would not fit, and therefore she still felt like an outsider looking in on the other women dressing up. Not long after the trunk show, I sat on a panel that discussed issues around diversity on the runway. Our industry was being lauded for supposedly coming such a long way - our runways are more racially diverse than ever and have begun to habitually feature models who are transgender or gender-fluid. A woman from the audience raised the question of size, or rather the apparent lack of size diversity, pointing to a major hole in our industry. Our panel gave a dismissive "We'll eventually get to you ..." response, then moved on, as though the strides we had already made by being diverse in other ways made it OK to ignore the majority of American women. As someone who was always seen as "different," I am well acquainted with the feeling that my needs were not mainstream enough to be met by society. I know what it feels like to be slighted, and I'm embarrassed that we as an industry have overlooked hundreds of millions of women. As someone who was always seen as "different," I am well acquainted with the feeling that my needs were not mainstream enough to be met by society. Since the beginning, we have made our clothes available from a size 0 to a size 22; however, it is only the zeros through eights that get picked up by the retailers and hang beneath the chandeliers and above the marble floors on Fifth Avenue. Our goal has always been to create a luxury brand with a soul. We are striving toward becoming more sustainable; we pride ourselves on our social responsibility and accomplishments in Nepal; and above all, we want to be inclusive. Soon after my experience at the diversity panel, I had seen a bus bearing Lane Bryant's "I'm No Angel" campaign. I realized that while some people were talking about body diversity as something that "we'd get to soon," others had already figured out how to turn a desire into action. Realizing that it takes more than one to create a conversation and a movement, and understanding that I alone don't have all the answers, I decided to partner with Lane Bryant on two special collections celebrating women of different shapes and sizes, to give them access to luxury without compromise and to bring plus into the mainstream fashion industry and conversation. These women, like all women, deserve to know the feeling of getting dressed with excitement, joy, pride, and poise. It is their narrative to pave, and I wanted to be able to give them a beautiful space, full of options, offering something new, as so many have dictated the few colors or styles they should be wearing. These women, like all women, deserve to know the feeling of getting dressed with excitement, joy, pride, and poise. We are proud to offer a wide range of designs that can take these women from the boardroom to the ballroom, and to a weekend off duty in between. We are showing everything we have in our runway collections - versatile dresses, beautiful chunky knits, billowy skirts, and architectural jumpsuits. Inspired by Paris, the collection boasts wonderful styles in romantic tones of midnight, sky, snow, rouge, garnet, and blackberry, not unlike the palette of our recent fall collection. Because I'm committed to offering clothes for every aspect of a woman's life, I've also launched Prabal Gurung Sport, in collaboration with Bandier, to offer fitness wear from an extra small to a double extra large. I am inspired by and admire woman of all ages, shapes, sizes, and color, so why not design for them? We are at a turning point in our industry, a fork in the road where industry leaders have to make a choice: do we stay on the path we know and continue to design for the same women, or do we instead try a new approach? We have spent countless years understanding, admiring, and appreciating some of the women in our world. It is now time to get to know and respect the rest. Prabal Gurung is an award-winning fashion designer born in Singapore and raised in Kathmandu, Nepal. He launched his eponymous collection in New York in 2009, and his designs have since been worn by First Lady Michelle Obama and the duchess of Cambridge, among others. He will be launching a capsule collection with Lane Bryant in March of 2017. By Jonathan Saul LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has approved Singapore Exchange's (SGXL.SI) 87 million pound takeover of London's Baltic Exchange after shareholders gave the green light for the deal last month, the Baltic said on Wednesday. The acquisition is one of the latest developments in a string of mergers, bidding wars and failed deals among global exchanges. SGX's offer comes as the global shipping industry is struggling with its deepest downturn. The privately owned Baltic Exchange - one of London's oldest commercial institutions - said the FCA gave its regulatory approval on Oct. 13, clearing the way for the final stages of the deal. "In light of the decision by the FCA, the court hearing to sanction the scheme, initially expected to be in late November 2016, has now been scheduled to take place on 7 November," the Baltic said in a statement. SGX added separately on Wednesday that the transaction was expected to be completed by the end of November this year. Founded in 1744 as a forum for chartering vessels, the Baltic Exchange now produces benchmark indexes for global shipping rates and owns a trading platform for the freight derivatives market. SGX, started in 1999, says it sees the potential to develop new freight derivatives centred on active Asian shipping routes and expand the use of freight derivatives with its acquisition of the Baltic. Baltic shareholders unanimously approved the takeover on Sept. 26. After months of talks, SGX offered shareholders 160.41 pounds per share. Shareholders will separately receive 19.30 pounds per share from the Baltic as a final dividend, giving the business a total valuation of about 87 million pounds. SGX on Wednesday reported a 16 percent drop in first-quarter net profit as its revenue from derivatives, equities and fixed income bore the brunt of muted market conditions. (editing by David Clarke and David Evans) (Adds details and share move) Oct 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday granted accelerated approval to Eli Lilly and Co's drug for treating adults with advanced soft tissue sarcoma (STS). Lilly's drug, Lartruvo, is approved for use with FDA-approved chemotherapy doxorubicin in STS patients who cannot be cured with radiation or surgery or who have a type of STS for which chemotherapeutic agent anthracycline is an appropriate treatment. (http://bit.ly/2e6JNrz) Soft tissue sarcoma refers to cancers that develop in muscles, fat, tendons or other soft tissues. The National Cancer Institute estimates that 12,310 new cases of STS and nearly 5,000 related deaths are likely to occur in 2016. The European Medicines Agency last month recommended conditional marketing approval for the drug in combination with doxorubicin in the European Union. Lartruvo has already been granted orphan drug status and breakthrough therapy status by the U.S. health regulator. Indianapolis, Indiana-based Lilly's shares were up marginally in afternoon trading. (Reporting by Akankshita Mukhopadhyay and Dipika Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel) (Adds details from panel meeting) WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - The benefits associated with Allergan Plc's experimental drug to treat frequent nightly urination outweigh the risks for certain patients, an advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration concluded on Wednesday. The panel voted 14-4 to recommend that the drug, SER120, be approved for certain patients with nocturia, defined as waking to urinate two or more times a night. The FDA is not obliged to follow its advisory panel's recommendations, but typically does so. SER120 is a low-dose nasal version of desmopressin, a drug used to treat a variety of conditions, including diabetes insipidus, a rare disorder that causes an imbalance of water in the body. Allergan is seeking approval to market the drug for frequent nightly urination in general. The panel recommended the FDA approve it for a narrower population of patients whose nocturia is specifically caused by an increase in total urine volume, a condition known as nocturnal polyuria. The panel made its recommendation based on a subset of patients in the clinical trial who seemed to fit the narrower criteria though the company's clinical trial was not specifically designed to test that population. Some panelists described the drug's efficacy as modest, and only at the higher dose studied, 1.5 micrograms. They also expressed concern physicians may prescribe it indiscriminately, increasing the risk of side effects, especially in the elderly. Desmopressin carries the risk of hyponatremia, or abnormally low sodium levels in the blood. Allergan acquired exclusive rights to develop and sell the drug in 2010 from privately held Serenity Pharmaceuticals. (Reporting by Toni Clarke in Washington; editing by Leslie Adler, G Crosse) By Jonathan Spicer and Dion Rabouin NEW YORK, Oct 19 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve has rolled out a series of announcements, online forums and meetings with Americans this year in response to outspoken civic groups and many Democrats, including Hillary Clinton, calling for a more transparent and inclusive U.S. central bank. The latest critique came this week when Fed Up, a labor-affiliated coalition pushing for reforms, said it was "disappointing" that Nicole Taylor, a black woman and dean of community engagement and diversity at Stanford University whose term as director at the San Francisco Fed soon expires, would be succeeded on the board by Sanford Michelman, a white man who is co-founder of law firm Michelman & Robinson LLP. "It's definitely a step back in terms of what I'd like to see on our board. We're working actively to build representation of women and minorities," John Williams, president of the San Francisco Fed, said on Wednesday in response to reporters' questions, noting the decision was made by private banks in his district. After years of resisting more overt political efforts to curb its independence, the Fed this year has appeared willing to shine a light on its historically opaque process of choosing district Fed presidents, and also to show it is more sensitive to racial and gender diversity. After the Philadelphia, Dallas and Minneapolis Fed banks last year all chose as presidents men with past ties to Goldman Sachs, the Atlanta Fed hosted a public webcast this month and said it seeks a "diverse set of candidates" for its new chief, raising hopes it would name the first black or Latino Fed president in the central bank's 103-year history. "It's not just because we want to go and say we're diverse," Loretta Mester, Cleveland Fed president, said at a meeting with workers a day after her bank launched online applications for the public to recommend directors and advisers. "It's about getting different view points that are very helpful to us in ... thinking about the economy and understanding the trends." Story continues The regional Fed presidents have rotating votes on policy, except for the head of the New York Fed who has a permanent voting role. Unlike Fed governors who are selected by the White House and approved by the Senate, the presidents are chosen by their district directors, half of whom are themselves picked by private local banks that technically own the Fed banks. Critics say the dizzying structure leaves the Fed beholden to bankers who do not represent the public, and they point out that 11 of 12 district presidents are white while 10 are men. Clinton, the Democrats' presidential nominee, has come out in favor of dropping bankers from district boards. That followed a May letter from 127 lawmakers to Fed Chair Janet Yellen urging more diversity. (Additional reporting by Ann Saphir in San Francisco; Editing by Leslie Adler) NEWARK, N.J., Oct 19 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve has not done enough to make itself as diverse as it should be, San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams said on Wednesday. "If we don't attract and retain diverse employees, we are missing out on a huge and growing part of the labor force," Williams said in remarks prepared for delivery at a conference on diversity in the financial services industry at Rutgers University. "Diverse perspectives often lead to better thinking and better outcomes." Among steps the San Francisco Fed has recently taken, he said, is the creation of a new community advisory council that will begin regular meetings next year. The group will "ensure that we are hearing a wide range of voices and perspectives from throughout our District," he said. He made no remarks on the economic outlook or on monetary policy. (Reporting by Dion Rabouin, writing by Ann Saphir; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama) Chris Wallace once grilled none other than President Ronald Reagan. While serving as a White House correspondent for NBC News in the 1980s, he got the Chief Executive sometimes known as The Gipper riled up by asking a simple question after the U.S. had intercepted an Egyptian airliner. Do you have anything to apologize for? Wallace asked. The Presidents response: Never! Wallace will have to tap that reserve of moxie this evening, when he becomes the first Fox News Channel anchor to moderate a general-election presidential debate. The two candidates, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, are not likely to be any easier to crack than President Reagan. Trump is Trump, and he runs a campaign much more on personality than on issues. He is just different than anyone Ive ever covered, the host of Fox News Sunday told Variety in April. Clinton can also be difficult, and has during this campaign been less-than-eager to engage with journalists in a setting that would allow for deep, expansive revelations. When Wallace greets the two White House hopefuls Wednesday evening, however, he will do so under a great deal of scrutiny and not only because the event is a pivotal stopping point in the battle to win one of the most powerful positions in the world. Wallace will also be putting a foot forward for himself, the media and his employer, which appears to be recalibrating itself after a roiling turn of events this past summer that left its chief architect exiled from the operation. Wallace is aware of the pressure. This is a high wire act, he told Brit Hume on Fox News recently. Certain elements of the media can or will use anything you say or dont say against you, he added, citing the recent experience of Matt Lauer, the popular anchor of NBCs Today, who met with a barrage of criticism while hosting an NBC News forum with the two candidates. Over the course of three past debates two with the presidential candidates and one with the vice-presidential nominees many of the moderators have appeared to scramble in a no-win position. Story continues NBCs Lester Holt allowed Trump and Clinton to spar for much of the first debate and was critiqued for not riding herd on them (he did hold Trump to the fire when the candidate denied expressing support in the past for the U.S. moving military into Iraq). CBS News Elaine Quijano was criticized for taking the opposite tactic, keeping close watch on both participants and urging them to move along after their allotted speaking time had elapsed. The bar has been raised higher by the co-moderators of the last debate. ABC News Martha Raddatz and CNNs Anderson Cooper took a more active stance in working with Trump and Clinton in a second presidential debate held earlier this month. Raddatz quibbled with Trump over details of foreign policy. Both moderators were quick to stop candidates from relying on promotional stump speeches. If someone were to pitch a show called Raddatz & Cooper to some of the TV-news networks, one of them might do well to show interest. Wallace has stirred up sentiment by suggesting he would prefer the candidatesfact-check each other during the debate. Lets say she says something that I think is false., Do I want to get into an argument with her? I would rather have her and Trump fight it out and vice-versa if Trump says something that Clinton believes not to be the case, he recently told Hume on Fox News. You know, you make yourself too big a figure as moderator in the debate, its not a debate anymore. Its like a couple of side by side news conferences, and I dont think that is your point. Wallaces performance will also be analyzed for what it might suggest about the future direction of Fox News Channel. The 21st Century Fox-owned outlet is under new management after the recent ouster of leader Roger Ailes, who had been accused of sexual harassment by multiple female employees and associates. He has denied the allegations. In a recent interview with The Huffington Post, Fox News anchor Shepard Smith indicated Rupert Murdoch, the Fox guiding force who has taken a chairman role at Fox News, is looking to build up the networks news credibility. Murdoch, Smith said, wants to hire reporters to work on beats, just enlarge our news-gathering, Smith said, adding that the executive in a recent conversation didnt mention one thing about our opinion side. That could offer opportunity for hard-news Fox anchors like Smith, Bret Baier, Megyn Kelly and, yes, Wallace, who has cultivated a reputation over the years for being eager to ask the impertinent question. In 2012, while moderating a primary debate, he sparked the ire of former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich who accused the anchor of asking gotcha questions. But politicians and TV-news personnel alike have said Wallace is known for doing his homework and having the tenacity to hang in there when the questions he feels ought to be asked do not get answered. Wallace could have been born to the industry his father was legendary 60 Minutes anchor Mike Wallace and his stepfather was former CBS News President Bill Leonard but he has instead worked his way through it. Wallace moved from a stint at The Boston Globe to jobs at local TV stations, a path that eventually took him to NBC News and even a short tenure leading NBCs venerable Meet the Press. He is the only anchor to have hosted two of TVs long-running Sunday public-affairs programs. On Wednesday evening, his long resume will have to serve him well while he is under a short but very intense spotlight. Related stories Final Debate Live Stream: How to Watch Clinton and Trump's Last Faceoff Julian Assange Has His Internet Cut Off After Clinton Email Leak 5 Things to Watch for at the Final Presidential Debate By Jussi Rosendahl and Tuomas Forsell HELSINKI (Reuters) - Finland is becoming increasingly worried about what it sees as Russian propaganda against it, including Russian questioning about the legality of its 1917 independence. The country shares a 1,340 km (833 mile) border and a difficult and bloody history with Russia, of which it was once a part. Moscow's annexation of Crimea in 2014 and saber-rattling in the Baltic Sea have raised security concerns in the militarily neutral European Union country. Earlier this month, Finland and Estonia both accused Russian fighter jets of violating their airspace. Russia has also started moving nuclear-capable missiles into its Kaliningrad enclave bordering Poland and Lithuania. Sitting in his office in the government palace - built for Russia's Grand Duchy of Finland - Markku Mantila leads a network of officials who monitor attempts to influence the country. He says Finland is facing intensifying media attacks led by Kremlin. "We believe this aggressive influencing from Russia aims at creating distrust between leaders and citizens, and to have us make decisions harmful to ourselves," he said. "It also aims to make citizens suspicious about the European Union, and to warn Finland over not joining NATO." Finland won independence during Russia's revolution of 1917 but nearly lost it fighting the Soviet Union in World War Two. It kept close to the West economically and politically during the Cold War but avoided confrontation with Moscow. Mantila, who is also the head of government communications, says Russian media last month reported on "cold-blooded" Finnish authorities taking custody of children from a Russian family living in Finland "due to their nationality". The Finnish government denied the reports, while declining to comment on an individual case due to the legal procedure. However, the story has been replicated hundreds of times in Russia over the past few weeks. A report by Kremlin-led NTV said "even the locals call Finland a land of ruthless and irrational child terror." PLAQUE HIT WITH AX Mantila, showing on his laptop what he said were false news pictures, skewed authority statements and pro-Kremlin online discussions, said his network has verified around 20 cases of clear information operations against Finland from the past few years, and around 30 "very likely" such operations. "There is a systematic lying campaign going on... It is not a question of bad journalism, I believe it is controlled from the center," he said. Kremlin and Russian foreign ministry officials were not immediately available for a comment. Foreign Minister Timo Soini has also acknowledged the alleged propaganda, saying the government was countering false information with facts. "All states engage in propaganda, authoritarian states even more so," he told Reuters. Some of the incidents have taken aim at Finland's independence and at its historical figures. In June, a university in St Petersburg put up a plaque commemorating Carl Gustaf Mannerheim, Finland's most famous military officer and former president, who had served in the Tsar's army but later led Finnish armed forces in World War Two. The plaque quickly became a target for protesters who have called Mannerheim - regarded in Finland as a symbol of the country's struggle against the Soviet Union - a murderer and ruthless Nazi collaborator. "The plaque's been shot at, hit with an ax and doused in red paint several times," Mantila said, noting that Finland had nothing to do with the plaque project in the first place. Mantila said he believed the whole episode was a follow-up to earlier reports that suggested that Lenin's Bolshevik administration had no right to accept Finland's independence. Finland celebrates its hundred years of independence next year, also the anniversary of the Bolshevik revolution. (Additional reporting by Tatiana Ustinova and Alexander Winning in Moscow; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt) By Tuomas Forsell and Jussi Rosendahl HELSINKI (Reuters) - Finland hopes that security cooperation will be part of the negotiations for Britain's exit from the European Union, Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila said on Wednesday. Militarily non-aligned Finland is worried about increased East-West tensions in the Baltic Sea and supports a more common defense policy in the EU, which is about to lose its biggest-spending military force following Britain's vote to leave the bloc. Britain, which has traditionally favored the NATO alliance over possible duplicate structures in the EU, made clear last month it opposed any efforts to create a single European army or a joint EU military headquarters. However, Brexit minister David Davis said last week one of the 'overarching aims' for the country was to maintain strong security cooperation with the EU. He did not give details. "I think the security aspect could be another element in the (Brexit) agreement. For example, if the (EU's) solidarity clause would cover Britain, that would of course have value in these discussions," Sipila told Reuters in an interview at his official residence by the Baltic Sea. "Then, it would differ from the treaties with Norway and Switzerland," he said, referring to treaties with those non-EU members which deal mainly with economic relations. Sipila said adding the security aspect to the talks was not part of the EU's or Finland's negotiation strategy as yet. EU leaders are due to meet on Thursday in Brussels following British Prime Minister Theresa May's speech earlier this month with pledges to curb immigration. The EU insists that Britain must accept the 'four freedoms' - free movement of people, capital, goods and services - to remain in the single market. "That sets the big picture for the talks," Sipila vowed. (Editing by Tom Heneghan) With Hillary Clintons email scandal continuing to weigh on her campaign, former FBI Assistant Director James Kallstrom weighed in on the allegations of negotiations between the State Department and the FBI for a quid pro quo deal to declassify emails and FBI Director James Comeys handling of the investigation into the email scandal. An FBI agent now claims that the State Departments Undersecretary for Management, Patrick Kennedy, asked him directly to declassify certain Hillary Clinton emails in exchange for FBI posts overseas. This is the same guy, Kennedy, that refused all the security requests for Benghazi, this is that same guy, Kallstrom told the FOX Business Networks Stuart Varney. According to Kallstrom, on the surface the deal looks to be illegal. I dont know enough about the actual deal, but it certainly looks like on paper, you know, something thats actually a federal crime. Kallstrom explained why he felt the investigation into Hilary Clintons email scandal was mishandled by FBI Director James Comey. Hes [James Comey] let down the citizens of this country in my view, hes let down the FBI, hes thrown all the agents under the bus. Kallstrom then gave examples of why the probe into Hilary Clintons emails was out of character compared to how the FBI usually conducts an investigation. There was a point in time when this investigation went into what I would call the sham category. And I could talk for a half an hour on why that is, no grand jury, no subpoenas, no court orders, you know, immunity to the co-conspirators, letting the co-conspirators in on the interview. I mean, these are all crazy things that the FBI never does. Related Articles By Tom Arnold and Chijioke Ohuocha DUBAI/LAGOS (Reuters) - Two international airlines have announced plans to suspend flights to the Nigerian capital Abuja by next month due to falling demand as a currency crisis in Africa's top economy deepens. Emirates Airline on Wednesday became the latest to suspend its four times weekly service between Dubai and Abuja starting Oct. 30, a company spokesman said. The decision to stop flights to and from Abuja was made "after a review of the airline's operations to ensure the best utilisation of its aircraft fleet for its overall business objectives," the Emirates' spokesman said. Domestic and international carriers operating in Nigeria have struggled with the plunge in the local currency that has made their jet fuel bills in dollars ever more expensive and also hurt their profitability as their passengers pay in naira. Nigeria is facing its first recession in 25-years brought on by low oil prices, which has cut government revenue and created chronic dollar shortages. The situation has seen many firms halt operations and lay off workers, compounding the economic crisis. On Friday, Kenya Airways said it will suspend some destinations as part of a route restructuring including flights to Abuja from Nov. 15. A spokesman said this reflected demand. Both Emirates and Kenya Airways will continue to serve Nigeria from the country's most populous city, Lagos. However, United and Iberia both stopped services to Nigeria earlier this year. Limited access to foreign currency has contributed to some businesses pulling back from Nigeria due to difficulties repatriating income. The Emirates announcement comes just a day after its President Tim Clark said the airline could reduce the frequency of flights to Africa or cut them altogether because of persistent financial challenges on a continent that has seen steep currency declines. Emirates, which had already cut its daily flights to Lagos and Abuja to one a day from two, said last month it had started refuelling its daily flight to Abuja in Accra, Ghana. So far this year, Nigeria's naira has plunged in value against the U.S. dollar due to the impact of low oil prices and a central bank move in June to scrap a currency peg that overvalued the naira in the hope of attracting investment. But four months on, the naira keeps falling while investors stay away, leaving the central bank as the main supplier of greenbacks. Many analysts wonder how much further the local currency can fall. To avert a full blown currency crisis, the central bank on Friday held a two-month dollar forward auction to clear a backlog of demand from airlines, manufacturers and other companies. But result of the auction is yet to be announced. (Additional reporting by Duncan Miriri in Nairobi; Editing by Tom Heneghan) PARIS (Reuters) - A decision to push back presidential elections in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to 2018 is not the answer to the crisis there and risks fuelling an escalation in violence, French foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said. The Constitutional Court in Democratic Republic of Congo said on Monday it had approved a petition by the electoral commission to delay a presidential election set for November, allowing President Joseph Kabila to remain in office until April 2018. "There is only way to get out of the crisis and that is that president does not present himself and arranges elections," Ayrault told reporters. "Pushing back the election to 2018, an uncertain date is not the solution. There is a real risk of a clash. There is a danger of violent demonstrations and repression," Ayrault said. Kabila was due to step down in December when his two-term mandate expires, and his opponents say they fear he intends to first prolong his term in office, and then change the constitution to enable himself to run again. The ruling coalition and part of the opposition say the vote should be held in April 2018 and on Monday their agreement was ratified by delegates at cross-party talks in the capital, one party leader said. Most opposition parties have boycotted the talks and called for a general strike on Wednesday to put pressure on Kabila. European Union foreign ministers said on Monday they would prepare economic sanctions against Congo unless it held presidential and parliamentary elections next year. "We are consulting on what needs to be done and this is one option," Ayrault said, adding that the EU was coordinating with the United States on the matter. The U.N. envoy to Congo and head of the 18,000-strong peacekeeping mission, Maman Sidikou, told the Security Council last week there was an "extreme risk" to the stability of the country and that the crisis could spark large-scale violence. A senior U.N. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Tuesday that the peacekeeping mission, known as MONUSCO, planned to move more troops and police to Kinshasa in preparation. "We're going to move in a battalion and an extra FPU (formed police unit), but of course if things really turn bad what will that do in a city of 11 million people?" the official said. (Reporting By John Irish in Paris and Michelle Nichols at the United Nations; Editing by Andrew Callus and Andrew Hay) PARIS (Reuters) - The French government said on Wednesday it would come down hard on anti-police violence after officers staged a second night of protests over recent attacks on police and what they see as insufficient resources. Unions say a surge in criminal gang activity and militant attacks has put extra strains on police. Thousands of police and soldiers have been deployed to guard airports, train stations and other sites in response to Islamist attacks that have killed more than 230 people in France in the past two years. On Tuesday night, dozens of police cars, roof lights flashing, drove in convoy down Paris's Champs Elysees to vent their fear over their own safety. "The government is totally determined that justice is done each time that a police officer is attacked," Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve told reporters after meeting with police unions. Right-wing politicians have seized on the show of discontent to attack President Francois Hollande's Socialist government six months from an election. Hollande's opponents say the number of lawless no-go zones in France have proliferated during his mandate. Hundreds of officers jeered and hurled insults at national police chief Jean-Marc Falcone on Tuesday when he arrived for talks on security in Evry, a town near where a gang petrol-bombed four police officers in a patrol car on Oct. 8. The car was stationed at a crossroads notorious for smash-and-grab robberies on motorists. Police say the gang tried to prevent the officers getting out of the burning vehicle. Two of the four were seriously hurt and one suffered life-threatening burns. Falcone, who ordered an inquiry on Tuesday into what he called unacceptable behavior by police officers, urged calm. "I understand their exasperation, anguish and fear," he told RTL radio. Conservative politicians including former head of state Nicolas Sarkozy, who is seeking a return to the Elysee palace, have criticized Hollande's security record after a spate of militant attacks this summer. Cazeneuve said Hollande had created 6,300 new police jobs and 2,700 more officers would be recruited by next year to replace the thousands axed during Sarkozy's 2007-2012 presidency. (Reporting by Brian Love, Leigh Thomas and Marine Pennetier in Paris and Jean-Francois Rosnoblet in Marseille; Editing by Angus MacSwan) By David Beasley ATLANTA (Reuters) - Georgia on Wednesday plans to execute a man who opened fire on Atlanta police with an AR-15 rifle in 1997, killing one officer and critically wounding another after they had given his intoxicated girlfriend a ride home. Gregory Paul Lawler, 63, is scheduled to be executed by injection at 7 p.m. EDT at a state prison in Jackson. The execution would be the seventh this year in Georgia, matching Texas for the most death sentences carried out in a state in 2016, according to data from the non-profit Death Penalty Information Center. There have been 16 executions in the United States in 2016, compared to 28 last year, the center's data shows. Lawler was sentenced to death in 2000 after being found guilty in the murder of officer John Sowa, 28. A second officer, Patricia Cocciolone, survived the shooting with a shattered pelvis, damaged intestines and permanent brain injury. She testified at Lawler's trial, according to a Georgia Supreme Court summary of the case. The synopsis said Lawler and his girlfriend had been drinking at a bar near their Atlanta apartment the night of the October 1997 shooting. Police were summoned by a witness who thought he saw Lawler hit the woman with a bag as they walked home. Lawler fled when officers arrived. The officers decided to help the girlfriend get home. At the apartment, they were met by Lawler, who fired at the officers 15 times, the case summary said. Both Sowa and Cocciolone still had their pistols strapped into their holsters when backup arrived. Lawler surrendered after a six-hour standoff, according to court records. At his trial, a coworker testified Lawler had talked about having an extreme dislike of police and that if they ever tried to enter his home he would be "ready for them," court records said. Georgia's State Board of Pardons and Paroles denied Lawler's request for clemency on Tuesday. In their petition to the board, his attorneys said Lawler had recently been diagnosed with autism, a disorder that had prevented him from explaining the murder to jurors. "Instead, he could only offer his confused and angry insistence that he had acted within his rights, which provoked his jury further and alarmed even his defense counsel," according to the petition, which sought to have Lawler's sentence commuted to life in prison without parole. (Reporting by David Beasley; Writing by Colleen Jenkins; Editing by Bill Trott) Paris (AFP) - German high-pressure hose manufacturer Kaercher has appealed to candidates in the French presidential campaign to stop using its name in discussions about crime. The name Kaercher entered French political language in 2005 when the then interior minister Nicolas Sarkozy visited a Parisian suburb where an 11-year-old boy had been shot dead. He promised residents a crackdown on crime, saying: "Starting tomorrow, we're going to clean this estate with Kaerchers." The company says that even 11 years later its name has been used "in association with a political, controversial or negative issue" and said it "harms our company, its values and its clients". Sarkozy, who was president from 2007 to 2012, is bidding to win the right-wing nomination to make a bid to regain the presidency. In a letter sent to Alain Juppe, who is leading Sarkozy in the right-wing field, Kaercher said: "For several months, we have noticed that our company's name has been regularly used on the political scene, in relation to subjects which are sensitive to say the least." The letter went on: "We hope you will help bring a stop to this trend by respecting our trademarks and by only using the term Kaercher to refer to our products." Juppe's right-hand man Gilles Boyer posted the letter on Twitter, adding the comment: "I understand your concerns but I think you have sent it to the wrong person." Sarkozy, Juppe and five other candidates will battle it out for the right-wing nomination in a two-round primary next month. Frankfurt (AFP) - Germany on Wednesday paved the way for nuclear power plant operators to pay 23.5 billion euros towards managing atomic waste, in a deal critics say lets firms get off too lightly. Under a draft law approved by the federal cabinet, the four firms -- Vattenfall, EON, RWE and EnBW -- will pay the money into a state fund for temporary and permanent nuclear waste storage by 2022. Chancellor Angela Merkel declared the country would shut down all remaining nuclear plants by that date in the wake of Japan's 2011 Fukushima disaster. Her decision has left ministers and power companies wrangling over shutdown and waste management costs ever since. Beyond the 23.5 billion euros ($26 billion) for waste management, the firms will remain financially and legally responsible for shutting down and dismantling the plants and preparing all remaining nuclear waste for permanent storage. The remainder of a total 40 billion euros of provisions they have set aside to cover the nuclear phase-out is earmarked for those costs. Eight power stations remain in operation in Germany. Meanwhile, Berlin forecasts that investing the waste fund in financial assets will allow it to grow enough to cover the costs of temporary and permanent storage of the fuel remnants. "Financing for shutdown, dismantling and waste management will be guaranteed for the long term without transferring the costs to society or endangering the economic situation of the operators," energy minister Sigmar Gabriel said in a statement. EON, which alone will contribute around 10 billion euros to the fund, also welcomed the deal. But Germany has yet to identify a final site to store the nuclear waste. An expert commission warned in July that even plans to open a facility by 2050 were "ambitious" given the delay in finding an appropriate location. The search for and construction of a permanent storage site could take many decades, with the costs hard to calculate, critics of the deal have warned. Story continues "The companies made high profits for years and shouldn't be released from overall responsibility," energy policy expert Claudia Kemfert of the DIW economic think-tank said. She added that the financially struggling energy companies may be unable to cover the costs of dismantling nuclear plants. "With this pact only a fraction of the true costs will be covered, society will have to bear the rest," she said. Lawmakers in the German parliament still have to approve the law, which must also pass a European Commission check against state aid rules before coming into force. BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany and Russia played down prospects of four-way talks on Wednesday achieving a breakthrough in the stalled Ukraine peace process at the first such meeting in just over a year. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois will also raise their concerns about Russia's role in the Syrian civil war with President Vladimir Putin during his first visit to Germany since 2013. "It was always clear to the chancellor and the German government that if such a (Ukraine) meeting occurred, that there would have to be discussion about Syria," Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters. "We have a catastrophic situation there. Don't expect more from the meeting today than these conditions and an assessment of who is responsible will be clearly named." Merkel told reporters on Tuesday not to expect any miracles from either discussion despite earlier comments in which she had said it only made sense for leaders to meet on Ukraine if some progress could be expected. Seibert defended the decision to host the gathering of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine despite considerably lowered expectations. He said it followed intensive talks by experts about ending Ukraine's conflict, in which more than 9,600 people have been killed since 2014. "It is right to take another run at it; every possibility should be used to achieve some progress," he said. "But first we need a brutally honest assessment of the situation, and that is what will happen this evening." The Kremlin on Wednesday joined Germany and Ukraine in saying it did not expect any diplomatic progress at the talks. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the discussions were meant to assess the current situation and identify obstacles to implementing the Minsk peace deal for Ukraine. A ceasefire agreed in the Belarussian capital Minsk in February 2015 stemmed heavy fighting between Ukrainian troops and Russian-backed rebels, but violence routinely flares along a demarcation line. Moscow and Kiev accuse each other of violating the agreement and blocking implementation of the peace terms. Merkel, Hollande, Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will meet at the German chancellery on Wednesday over a working dinner, joined by the foreign ministers of all four countries and experts. Hollande and Merkel will see Putin separately after the Ukraine discussions are completed and Poroshenko departs. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal in Berlin and Maria Tsvetkova in Moscow; editing by Mark Heinrich) BERLIN (Reuters) - Fresh sanctions against Russia for its actions in Syria remain an option but European Union leaders will not take any decisions on this at a summit this week, a senior German official said on Wednesday. The official said that European Council President Donald Tusk had indicated that no decisions would be taken on Russia at the meeting of EU leaders on Thursday and Friday. "That means it won't take any options off the table. Sanctions are one of the options on the table. We expect they will remain on the table after the summit," the official said. (Writing by Paul Carrel; Editing by Noah Barkin) Gena Weaver was always reluctant to let her 5-year-old daughter spend time with her father, whom she claims treated her badly during their brief time together, but knew he had the courts on his side. So when Adrian Sanchez showed up on October 8 wanting Acelynn Sanchez to stay at his mothers Ogden, Utah, home where he also lived Weaver knew she had no choice but to let her go. "Saturday night, he called, saying he wanted her to go spend the night with him. He said, 'we can go out to eat at Chilis,'" Weaver told Inside Edition.com. Though she too was never excited about staying with her dad, the strong little girl told her mother not to worry. I said, 'are you sure?' I didnt want her to go. Acelynn was like, yea mom, its okay, Ill be home early Sunday, Weaver, 36, said. That morning I got a knock on the door and it was a police officer. She said we just found your 5-year-old daughter. Instead of treating his daughter to a meal out, Sanchez allegedly woke her in the middle of the night and abandoned her on a local college campus in the early hours of Sunday, October 9, officials said. For more than two hours, Acelynn waited in front of the Children School North building of the Ogden Weber Applied Technology College for her father, who never returned, surveillance footage showed. Read: Parents Whose Son Tried to Sell Toy for Food Plead Guilty to Child Endangerment Left with a few blankets and her fathers hoodie, the 5-year-old girl can be seen on the footage from 5:16 a.m. to 7:26 a.m. wandering in the dark, looking for someone and trying the nearby buildings door handle. Eventually, the child can be seen making a bed on the concrete, crawling under a blanket and falling asleep in near-freezing temperatures. She was finally found by a security guard, who spotted the crying child after she had fallen and bloodied her knee, officials said. Story continues When [the security guard] asked her about why she was there, she told him that she and her daddy had been out looking for their dog and he had passed out and she spent the night at the school, the Ogden Weber Applied Technology Colleges security incident report read. She told police the same story, which Weaver said she believes is what Sanchez told his daughter. I think he told her that to make her stay put, Weaver said. He said hes watching her and to not follow him. Weaver said she was told by Sanchezs mother that he had plans to go to a nearby house to do drugs and wanted to bring Acelynn, but that she told him he couldnt go. He wanted to take her to a bad place, a place where he goes and does drugs, Weaver said. So he tore up [his mothers] room. When she woke up that morning, she noticed he and Acelynn were gone. Calls made by InsideEdition.com to Sanchezs mother were not immediately returned. Read: Cop Raises Thousands of Dollars For Family After Finding Son Crying Over His Mom's Cancer Weaver said her daughter told her that Sanchez attempted to break into two separate homes before telling the 5-year-old girl she would have to sleep on a relatives lawn, which Acelynn refused to do. He then brought her to the college campus, Weaver said. Surveillance footage shows a man authorities have identified as Sanchez walking away from the little girl and toward the main exit road before disappearing from the cameras view. I dont know why [he brought her] there... Ive been left with all the questions, and I dont have the answers, she said, crying as she recalled the many questions her daughter has been asking. Why did he do this? I cant believe my dad left me outside. What if it was snowing? Acelynn has returned to school since the incident, but the harrowing incident has stayed with her, Weaver said. Shes very strong and brave, she holds a smile when shes around other people, but when shes home, she breaks down, she said. She doesnt want to be in any room by herself. She has to be by our side. Before, she was sleeping in her own bed in her own room. Now, she sleeps in my bed every night. Charges against Sanchez are pending, a spokesperson with the Ogden Police told InsideEdition.com, saying that investigators are currently searching for him. Sanchez may face child abandonment charges, police said. Im not letter her go there ever again, and I want him to be charged with every single thing possible, Weaver said. I dont want him to get a slap on the hand. She couldve been killed. She had to lie on the cold ground that night. She was left in the dark. No child deserves to be left in the dark. Watch: Woman Abandoned In Phone Booth 20 Years Ago Reunites With Man Who Saved Her Related Articles: Glenn Close, Jonathan Pryce and Christian Slater have been confirmed as the stars of The Wife, which starts principal photography on Oct. 31. Other members of the cast include Annie Starke (Bastards, Albert Nobbs), Max Irons (Woman in Gold, Terminal) and Harry Lloyd (Anthropoid, The Theory of Everything, The Iron Lady). The Wife, with its wise and provocative tone, is a story built around a moment of revelation for Joan Castleman (Close), who is married to one of those men (Pryce) who own the world and who has no idea how to take care of himself or anyone else, according to a statement. He is also one of Americas pre-eminent novelists, about to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature; and the flawlessly gracious Joan, who has spent 40 years ignoring her own literary talents to fan the flames of his career, has finally decided to stop. The Wife charts the course of a famous marriage and what has brought them to this breaking point. It raises intriguing questions about the nature of partnership and the precarious position of an ambitious woman in a mans world, culminating in a surprising and unforgettable conclusion that outs a carefully kept secret. Close commented: I have never played a character like Joan Castleman and am thrilled by the prospect of bringing her to life. I have huge admiration for Jonathan Pryces sublime talent and am honored to be partnering with him in The Wife. The story is arresting and the characters are artists of the highest order complex, passionate, flawed and movingly human. I adore Jane Andersons writing and look forward to being guided by Bjorn Runge. The Wife is produced by Rosalie Swedlin, Meta Louise Foldager, Piers Tempest and Claudia Bluemhuber. London-based Embankment Films has secured multiple pre-sales throughout international territories and brokered the financing for the film, provided by Silver Reel, Creative Scotland, Film Vast, Chimney, the Swedish Film Institute and Svensk Filmindustri. Story continues Embankments Tim Haslam commented: The Wife celebrates a woman who takes back the power that she should rightfully possess in a thought-provoking, witty, dignified and graceful manner; and with a twist ending that you really dont see coming. The Wife is for a cinema audience stimulated by powerful, intimate and award-winning performance at the highest level. Swedish director Bjorn Runge (De Blaue Engel, Daybreak), winner of Berlins Silver Bear, directs from a screenplay by screenwriter Jane Anderson (Olive Kitteridge), adapted from Meg Wolitzers 2003 novel. Swedlin produces for Anonymous Content, Foldager Srensen for Meta Film, Tempest and Jo Bamford for Tempo Productions, and Piodor Gustaffson for Spark Film and Television. Embankment is selling international rights and CAA/WME co-represents the U.S. Related stories Film Review: 'The Great Gilly Hopkins' Filming Begins on Agatha Christie's 'Crooked House' With Glenn Close, Gillian Anderson 'Mr. Robot' Recap: Orange Is the New Elliot Things are looking up. (Flickr / Paxson Woelber) Goldman Sachs thinks corporate Americas nearly two-year-long string of year-over-year revenue declines is near an end. [We argue] that the recent revenue recession in the US corporate sector is likely over, write Goldman strategists Charles Himmelberg and James Weldon. 2016 has already seen a substantial bounce in the %YoY growth of real quarterly revenue. And our assessment of the underlying macro driverspredicted growth rate from a simple regression model, suggests that this rebound is likely to continue. The pair include the following chart, with the diamonds reflecting actual revenue and the blue line showing revenues predicted from their model. Screen Shot 2016-10-19 at 7.44.27 AM Himmelberg and Weldon argue that as the impact felt by US companies from the crash in oil prices and the rise in the value of the US dollar dissipates in addition to continued strong employment growth and stabilizing industrial production data revenue growth will soon return to the corporate sector. The most important macro driver of this revenue recession was oil, Himmelberg and Weldon write. The collapse of oil prices alone accounts for roughly half of the model-predicted 6.7% YoY drop in quarterly revenues as of Q4 last year (the realized drop was 9.1%). The weaker Dollar contributed an additional 1.2% to the drop, and weaker industrial production added another 1.1%. This year, by contrast, the negative contribution from all three factors has diminished significantly, while employment growth has remained stable. The pair note, however, that while a continued deepening of year-over-year revenue declines for US corporate is over, the third quarter should still see revenues down 2.3% over last year. And while Goldmans call doesnt indicate a US corporate sector or broader economy thats about to take off, this adds to the growing theme that things are improving in the US economy. Myles Udland is a writer at Yahoo Finance. Read more from Myles here: A massive government spending package right now is not what US economy needs The one thing Trump and Clinton agree on might be a terrible idea for the economy CBS has signed on to Googles planned internet TV service, Unplugged, according to a Wednesday Wall Street Journal report. The newspaper, citing sources close to the deal, said that agreements with Disney and 21st Century Fox are likely to follow. Unplugged is one of the latest offerings in whats been a proliferation of over-the-top, streaming video services, as bloated and expensive cable packages have led millions of people to cut the cord and seek alternatives. Also Read: Live Streaming Services Are All the Rage - But Are There Too Many? The Journal reported that Google plans to offer Unplugged, which will be a skinny bundle including live TV channels, for a price point between $25 and $40 a month. That would be roughly comparable with other skinny offerings like Sonys PlayStation Vue and Dish Networks Sling TV. Hulu, which is owned by Disney, Fox, Comcast and Time Warner, is also launching a live streaming service in 2017. Google launched YouTube Red last year, a $10-a-month, ad-free subscription service that includes exclusive original content. Many of the shows on YouTube Red feature creators who shot to prominence on the platforms free version, such as Joey Graceffa, who stars in horror series Escape the Night. According to the Journal, a curated selection of YouTube Red channels will be included in Unplugged. When contacted by TheWrap for comment, a Google spokeswoman said, We dont comment on rumor or speculation. Related stories from TheWrap: Live Streaming Services Are All the Rage But Are There Too Many? The Rock, Doug Liman, Dan Harmon Land YouTube Red Orders (Video) AT&T Adds NBCUniversal Channels to DirecTV Now Streaming Bundle chromecast for everyone Google is the latest in a slew of companies that wants to get into live internet TV. According to a new report in the Wall Street Journal, Google has already signed a deal with CBS for the new service called Unplugged and is in talks with Disney and Fox. The service would likely be a so-called skinny bundle of channels that you can stream over the internet at a cheaper cost than basic cable packages. The WSJ report says Google wants to launch the new TV service in 2017 and would cost between $25 and $40 per month. Bloomberg first reported in May that Google was working on the Unplugged TV service as part of YouTube. Unplugged will be separate from YouTube Red, YouTube's subscription service that lets you watch videos without ads. YouTube Red is also developing original content with online stars like PewDiePie, and Hollywood heavyweights like Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. Some of those shows could be available on Unplugged too. There are already a few similar services like Dish's SlingTV and Sony's PlayStation Vue. DirecTV and Hulu also plan to launch their own streaming TV services soon. Most notably, Apple scrapped plans for its TV service after talks with media companies fell through. CBS CEO Leslie Moonves said earlier this year that talks between CBS and Apple were over. A Google spokesperson declined to comment on "rumors or speculation." NOW WATCH: We got our hands on the Home Googles answer to the Amazon Echo More From Business Insider ZURICH (Reuters) - Syria's President Bashar al-Assad told a Swiss TV station that government forces had to rid the city of Aleppo of rebel "terrorists" under its constitutional mandate to protect the civilian population. "That's our mission, according to the constitution, according to the law, that we have to protect people, that we have to get rid of those terrorists from Aleppo. This is where we can protect the civilians," he said in an interview with Swiss broadcaster SRF conducted on Tuesday and posted on SRF's website on Wednesday. "How can you protect them while they are under the control of terrorists? They've been killed by them, and they've been controlled fully by the terrorists. Is it our role to sit aside and watch if that's how we can protect the Syrian people? We need to attack the terrorists, that's self-evident." (Story corrects quote in paragraph 3 to read "role" instead of "goal".) (Reporting by Michael Shields and Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi, editing by Tom Miles) It took nearly a decade, but the foreclosure crisis created by the housing bubble seems to have finally receded. ATTOM Data Solutions, which gathers information on housing trends, reported that default notices, auctions and bank repossessions fell 24% in September, compared to a year ago. Essentially, that means foreclosures are down to their lowest levels since 2005, before the bubble burst. "Foreclosure activity has been on a steady slide downward over the past six years, finally dropping back below pre-crisis levels in September," Daren Blomquist, senior vice president at ATTOM Data Solutions, said, proclaiming the results provide the "nail in the coffin" of the foreclosure crisis. The timing is probably good for Democrats, as the Obama administration's program to help Americans facing foreclosure the Home Affordability Modification Program (HAMP) was criticized for not helping enough at-risk homeowners. In its first five years, HAMP was supposed to help 3 to 4 million homeowners but only about 1 million modifications were completed by then. Meanwhile, an estimated 7 million people lost their homes during the recession. Data crunched by ATTOM at Credit.com's request raises another potential question regarding HAMP and other efforts to help struggling homeowners: did these programs prolong the recession? Bloomquist examined five states where banks had an easier time completing foreclosures we'll call these the "pull-off-the-band-aid" states and five other states called "foreclosure prevention states," where legislation and court proceedings were designed to slow down the foreclosure process. The results are telling. In the five "pull-off-the-band-aid" states, housing prices are up dramatically from 2008 an average of 33%. Those states are Arizona (up 10%), California (34%), Colorado (50%), Georgia (26%) and Michigan (44%). On the other hand, the housing recovery is much slower in the "foreclosure prevention" states. As a group, housing values in those five places are only now besting 2008 levels. They are Florida (up 8%), Illinois (up 1%), Nevada (up 6%), New Jersey (down 11%) and Ohio (up 16%). Story continues Four of those five states are "judicial foreclosure" states, meaning a judge must review each case, which typically slows down the process. Nevada, the exception, passed laws requiring mediation in the foreclosure process, as did several other legislatures in this group. The sluggish recovery in those five states is also apparent from the share of seriously underwater homes. In them, 19% of homeowners owe at least 125% more on their mortgage than their home's value. Among that group, Ohio's property values have risen the most, but 21% of mortgage holders there are still seriously underwater. Standing in contrast, in the "pull-off-the-band-aid" states, the seriously underwater share is 11%. Bloomquist said the data suggests government foreclosure intervention efforts in the housing crisis failed on both sides. "Not only did they not do as much good as promised, they actually did some harm in prolonging the pain," he said. "This harmful effect was multiplied in states with aggressive foreclosure prevention efforts added on to the federal programs. On the other hand, several hard-hit states that did not add many or any additional foreclosure prevention programs on top of the federal government programs have recovered most quickly in terms of foreclosure numbers getting back to pre-recession norms and home prices recovering." The data can't say definitively that slowing down foreclosures during the recession hindered the housing market recovery in those states. But Bloomquist thinks the data is strong enough that it merits consideration by policymakers. "Yes, there are other factors at work helping to lift the real estate markets in places like Colorado and Georgia, and even Arizona and California," Bloomquist said. "However, Michigan does not have the favorable demographic trends in place, and Florida on the other side do have more favorable demographic trends. I think juxtaposing specifically Michigan and Ohio and also Arizona and Nevada provides a pretty clear difference between two sets of similar markets." It's important to note that a foreclosure can significantly damage your credit, but that you can repair it over time. You can keep an eye on the progress you're making in fixing your credit after a foreclosure by viewing two of your free credit scores, updated every 14 days, on Credit.com. More from Credit.com Paris (AFP) - The most famous gun in French literature, the revolver with which the poet Paul Verlaine tried to kill his lover Arthur Rimbaud, is going under the hammer, Christie's said Wednesday. Verlaine bought the 7mm six-shooter in Brussels on the morning of July 10, 1873, determined to put an end to his torrid two-year affair with his teenage lover. The 29-year-old poet had abandoned his young wife and child to be with Rimbaud, who would later become the symbol of rebellious youth. But after an opium- and absinthe-soaked stay in London, which would inspire Rimbaud's "A Season in Hell", Verlaine wanted to go back to his wife. He fled to the Belgian capital to get away from Rimbaud only for the younger man to follow him. It was in a hotel room there at two in the afternoon where, after the lovers had rowed, cried and got drunk -- according to Rimbaud -- that the suicidal Verlaine raised the pistol. "Here's how I will teach you how to leave!" he shouted before firing twice at Rimbaud. One bullet hit him in the wrist while the other bullet struck the wall and then ricocheted into the chimney. But Rimbaud still wouldn't take no for an answer. Having been bandaged up in hospital he again begged the author of "Poemes saturniens" not to leave him. Verlaine -- who was to be dogged by drink and drug addiction all his life -- pulled out the revolver again and threatened him with it in the street. He was arrested by a passing policeman and sentenced to two years in jail with hard labour where -- much to Rimbaud's fury -- he converted to Catholicism. In prison he wrote 32 poems that would later appear in some of his best-known collections, "Sagesse", "Jadis et naguere" and "Invectives". Rimbaud -- who would inspire the 1960s counter culture movement and rock rebels like Jim Morrison -- moved back in with his domineering mother and finished "A Season in Hell". The gun was confiscated and finally fell into the hands of a private owner, Christie's said. They estimate it could make up to 60,000 euros ($65,000) at an auction in Paris on November 30. Kabul (AFP) - A gunman wearing an Afghan military uniform killed one NATO soldier and injured five at a base in the capital Kabul on Wednesday, the defence ministry said. "The shooter was also killed," ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri told AFP, giving no details of the nationalities involved. Ask anyone under the age of 25 who the top models in the fashion industry are right now, and youre likely to hear backA aA shortlist of some of the most followed It Girls onA social media. Of course there are yourA Kendall Jenners and Gigi Hadids, not to mention Bella Hadid who opened almost every runway show she walked in this season, but amongst that elite group of top models is also newcomer Hailey Baldwin. Although shes only landed two coversw and walked in eight runway shows so far, her career is finally starting to really take off. And much like her catwalk strutting contemporaries the model has a thing or two to say about those old guard supermodels who say this generation isnt worthy of the moniker. Although HaileyA admitted back in July that she wasnt a supermodel, clearly shes had a slight change of heart since booking a few more runway shows and editorials. According to Yahoo Style, in her new cover interview with Harpers Bazaar Australia, the model touched on the subject that has been plaguing her and her fellow Instagram famous BFFs the way models from the 90s like Rebecca Romijn and Stephanie Seymour have cast aspersions about the legitimacy of these new girls applyingA the term supermodel to themselves. RELATED PHOTOS:A Justin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin Get Cozy on Tropical New Years Vacation She told the magazine, The older supermodels sometimes donat agree with the fact there is a new generation of models, insisting that, Weare not saying weare supermodels. //players.brightcove.net/416418724/rJSWQ1RE_default/index.min.js Baldwin continued, Iad rather people look at us as business people, and, yes, modeling is our business right now, but weare not trying to take anybodyas spot and weare not trying to discredit the past.a She also added that while shes been repeatedly told throughoutA her careerA that shell never be as successful as Kate Moss, she insists sheas a acompletely different individuala and is more interestedA inA carving out her own career path rather than following in someone elses footsteps. Unless, of course, those footsteps happen to belong to KenGi. What do you think of Haileys response? Do you agree? Sound off below! Geneva (AFP) - Haiti recorded nearly 800 cases of cholera the week after it was ravaged by Hurricane Matthew, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Wednesday, as health officials grapple to contain the disease. There had been previous indications that Matthew triggered a surge in new cases but conclusively testing samples had been difficult in the aftermath of the storm, WHO's representative in Haiti, Jean-Luc Poncelet told reporters in Geneva. With the testing system operational again, health officials have confirmed "the majority of suspected cases," Poncelet said. Citing ministry of health figures, he said 773 cases had been registered between October 9 and 15. The UN has previously announced it was sending a million cholera vaccines to the impoverished Caribbean nation to try to control the epidemic. Since Haiti was devastated by an earthquake in 2010, around 10,000 people have died of cholera. The number of active cases surged to 300,000 in 2011, but had been brought below 30,000 in recent years. Before Hurricane Matthew struck in the first week of October, more than 28,000 cases of cholera had been recorded this year. Have you been eager to see how Halliburton Company HAL the worlds No. 2 oilfield-services company performed in Q3 in comparison with the market expectations? Lets quickly scan through the key facts from this Houston, TX-based companys earnings release this morning: About Halliburton: Halliburton is one of the largest oilfield service providers in the world, offering a variety of equipment, maintenance, and engineering and construction services to the energy, industrial, and government sectors. The company operates under two main segments: Completion and Production, and Drilling and Evaluation. Zacks Rank & Surprise History: Currently, Halliburton has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) but that could change following its third quarter 2016 earnings report which has just released. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Coming to earnings surprise history, the company has an excellent track record: its beaten estimates in each of the last four quarters at an average rate of 36.33%. HALLIBURTON CO Price and EPS Surprise HALLIBURTON CO Price and EPS Surprise | HALLIBURTON CO Quote Estimate Revision Trend: Investors should note that the earnings estimate revisions for Halliburton depicted pessimism prior to the earnings release. The Zacks Consensus Estimate worsened slightly over the last 7 days. We have highlighted some of the key details from the just-released announcement below: A Surprise Profit: Net income per share came in at 1 cent, contrary to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for a loss of 7 cents. Continued and effective cost management led to the outperformance. Revenue Came in Lower than Expected: Halliburton posted revenues of $3,833 million, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3,897.5 million. Moreover, revenues deteriorated 31% on a year-over-year basis. Key Stats: Operating income from the Completion & Production segment was $24 million, falling sharply from the year-ago profit of $163 million. However, the division turned around from previous quarters loss of $32 million. Story continues Halliburtons Drilling & Evaluation unit profit also dropped big time from $401 million in the third quarter of 2015 to $151 million this year. But again, the number was almost flat with the $154 million earned in the Jun quarter. Check back later for our full write up on this Halliburton earnings report later! Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Tale of the Tape, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report HALLIBURTON CO (HAL): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. HPE, in its recent Securities Analyst Meeting, discussed details about the previously announced spinoff of its Enterprise Services (ES) and software business. Moreover, the company provided its fiscal 2017 outlook while reaffirming the fiscal 2016 guidance. The Split In September, the company announced its decision to spin off its software business and merge the same with British software firm, Micro Focus International Plc, in a cash-stock deal worth $8.8 billion. The transaction, which is subject to some regulatory approvals, is anticipated to be tax free for Hewlett Packard Enterprise. Per the agreement, the company will receive $2.5 billion in cash and a 50.1% stake in the merged entity, currently estimated to be valued at $6.3 billion. Earlier in May, Hewlett Packard Enterprise had announced the spin-off its struggling IT services segment Enterprise Services and entered into an agreement to merge the same with Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC). The transaction, which is scheduled to close in Mar 2017, will deliver approximately $8.5 billion to the companys shareholders on an after-tax basis. This includes $4.5 billion in the form of equity in the combined company, $1.5 billion in cash dividend and $2.5 billion of debt assumption. HPEs 2017 Projections The company provided full year 2017 outlook in three parts, taking into account the spin off-merger of its ES and Software business with Computer Sciences and Micro Focus, respectively. Hewlett Packard Enterprise expects combined non-GAAP earnings (including contribution from ES and Software business) for full year 2017 in the range of $2.00 to $2.10 per share. Revenues for the same period are expected to be flat to down 1%. Free cash flow is projected to be roughly $3.6 billion to $3.6 billion for full year 2017. The company provided its non-GAAP earnings guidance (which included partial year contributionsfrom ES and Software business) for full year 2017 in the range of $1.45 to $1.55 per share. Free cash flow is projected to be negative $1.8 billion for full year 2017, mainly due to pension funding payment. The company however anticipates returning $3 billion in fiscal 2017 and anticipates net operating cash balance to be roughly $8 billion. Story continues The company also provided its non-GAAP earnings guidance for full year 2017 on completion of the ESand Software deals (excludingthe contributions from both ES and Software business). Non-GAAP EPS is expected to be in the range of $1.25 to $1.35. Revenues for the same period is expected to grow modestly. Free cash flow is projected to be approximately $2.1 to 2.4 billion for full year 2017. Fiscal 2016 Outlook Reaffirmed Hewlett Packard Enterprise reiterated its fiscal 2016 outlook. The company continues to expects non-GAAP earnings per share to be $1.90$1.95 (mid-point: $1.925). The Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged lower at $1.88. Revenues for the same period are expected to increase in a range of 1% to 2%. The company continues to anticipate returning $3 billion in fiscal 2016 and expects to deliver free cash flow of $1.7 to $1.9 billion in 2016. HEWLETT PKD ENT Price HEWLETT PKD ENT Price | HEWLETT PKD ENT Quote Conclusion We believe Hewlett Packard Enterprise can tap opportunities owing to the improving server market in the long run. Hewlett Packard Enterprises massive restructuring moves will complement its focus on core businesses and enable it to compete with players like Oracle (ORCL), Cisco (CSCO) and NetApp (NTAP) as well as the new entrant, Dell going forward. Furthermore, the company has done considerably well in the enterprise class server and storage markets. The company concentrates its resources on the high-margin software and security markets as well. We believe that the companys traction in the cloud, security and Big Data segments will enhance its growth trajectory, going forward. Also, its strategic divestments and initiatives to return value to shareholders in the form of dividend and share repurchases bode well. However, macroeconomic challenges and tepid IT spending remain near-term concerns. Competition from other players in the space adds to its woes. Currently, Hewlett Packard Enterprise carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report CISCO SYSTEMS (CSCO): Free Stock Analysis Report NETAPP INC (NTAP): Free Stock Analysis Report ORACLE CORP (ORCL): Free Stock Analysis Report HEWLETT PKD ENT (HPE): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research This homes Rocky Horror light show is the most fabulously intricate Halloween decoration youll see this month We all have that one neighbor who really goes to town when it comes to Halloween decorations. But, Im willing to bet that none of their displays hold a candle to Kevin and Amber Judds incredible light show in Riverside, California. The Judds have turned a neighborhood home into a Rocky Horror light show. This is their eighth year putting on an epic electric performance for Halloween and word on the street is that this years is the most impressive yet. The Judds, who have made a full-time career of creating fabulous lights shows with the company Creative Lighting Displays, didnt hold back when creating this years Halloween display. The performance of Time Warp features four singing pumpkins, tombstones, hand-carved pumpkins, and (of course) thousands of lights. Thousands of visitors attend the light show each year and the event has become so popular that the Judds had to move its location after law enforcement and homeowners associations got on their case. This year, itll be held at the home of one of their friends. And, dont worry theyve secured the necessary permits so we can rest assured that the show will go on. For the Judds, the event is about more than just dazzling lights and an opportunity to sing along to Time Warp. As reported by the Huffington Post, Amber Judd told a local news station that, most importantly, the family-friendly affair brings people together. Were really big on the community. We have the opportunity for families to come and have a great time together. Its free, and it brings everyone really together and its a lot of fun. If you happen to live anywhere near Riverside, this is one Halloween event that you wont want to miss. Those of us who arent fortunate enough to attend in person will have to settle for watching the event on YouTube. And, dont kid yourselves youll definitely find yourself belting out Time Warp as though no ones listening. The post This homes Rocky Horror light show is the most fabulously intricate Halloween decoration youll see this month appeared first on HelloGiggles. TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) - Hooded gunmen shot dead two land rights activists in Honduras, the government confirmed on Wednesday, the latest in a string of attacks on rights groups in the Central American country. Jose Angel Flores, 64, was president of the Aguan Unified Farmers Movement (MUCA), a group that opposes agriculture companies that grow African oil palm in a conflict over ownership and use of land. The other activist killed, Silmer George, was part of the same group. The two men died Tuesday evening after hooded men with rifles shot at them as they left a meeting in the city of Tocoa, 240 kilometers (149 miles) north of the capital, Tegucigalpa. Flores and George had received threats before. "Honduras has turned into a 'no-go zone' for anyone daring to campaign for the protection of the environment," Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International, said in a statement. "How many more activists have to be brutally murdered before the authorities take effective action to protect them, or even be willing to talk about this crisis?" Government Security Ministry spokesman Luis Osabas said the killings were being investigated and that, as yet, there was no hypothesis of the motives or suspects. Honduras is the third-largest producer of African oil palm in Latin America, exporting some $300 million worth in 2015. MUCA estimates that more than 150 farmers and some 20 security agents working for agriculture firms have died since 2009 in clashes over land rights in Honduras. The most emblematic case was Berta Caceres, the award-winning Honduran environmental rights activist who was shot and killed at her home in March. (Reporting by Gustavo Palencia; Writing by Enrique Andres Pretel and Christine Murray) Hong Kong's legislature again descended into chaos Wednesday as pro-Beijing politicians blocked the swearing in of two new lawmakers who want a split from China, in an increasingly divided parliament. It comes as fears grow in the semi-autonomous city that Beijing is tightening its grip, fuelling an independence movement in Hong Kong. Wednesday saw rival lawmakers clash in a heated shouting match after the pro-Beijing camp walked out of the swearing-in session. The walkout led to the meeting being cancelled, preventing pro-independence lawmakers Yau Wai-ching and Baggio Leung from taking the oath that would allow them to take up their seats. In the ensuing confrontations one veteran pro-democracy legislator threw slices of luncheon meat at his opponents while another was surrounded by security after turning China and Hong Kong flags displayed on pro-Beijing lawmakers' desks upside-down. Meanwhile, pro-Beijing lawmakers chanted "Apologise!", demanding Yau and Leung say sorry for their failure to take the oath properly at last week's swearing-in ceremony. The pair had their oaths rejected last Wednesday after they draped themselves in "Hong Kong is not China" flags. The oath states Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China. Both refused to pronounce China properly, and Yau was heard to replace the words "the People's Republic of China" with "the People's refucking of Zeena". They were given permission to retake their oaths Wednesday, but the session was abandoned after the pro-Beijing walkout left an insufficient number of legislators in the chamber. "If they want people to respect their oaths, they have to express regret over their behaviour last week and to apologise to all Chinese around the world," pro-Beijing lawmaker Priscilla Leung told reporters. Hundreds of pro-Beijing supporters waved Chinese flags and stamped on pictures of the two outspoken lawmakers outside the legislative council building. Story continues The pair said they wanted to complete their oaths, but would not apologise for last week's behaviour. "We are empowered by the people to enter the Legco," Baggio Leung said. - Court challenge - The former British colony was handed back to China in 1997 under an agreement protecting its freedoms for 50 years, but there are concerns those liberties are being eroded. Leung and Yau are part of a new wave of lawmakers advocating independence and self-determination who won seats in the Legislative Council (Legco) -- Hong Kong's lawmaking body -- in citywide polls last month. Five legislators, including the pair, had their oaths rejected at last week's swearing in. Of those five, one pro-Beijing lawmaker and one pro-democracy lawmaker, whose oaths were declared invalid the first time round, were allowed to retake them Wednesday morning. The Beijing camp then walked out, forcing the session to be abandoned before Yau, Leung and pro-democracy teacher Lau Siu-lai, who read her oath at a snail's pace last week, took the stand. The chaotic scenes came after a late-night court bid Tuesday by city leader Leung Chun-ying and justice secretary Rimsky Yuen to block Yau and Baggio Leung from taking up their seats. That went directly against a decision by the pro-Beijing president of Legco, who had already given the green light for them to have a second chance at the oath. The court refused to grant an injunction against Wednesday's oath-taking, but gave permission for a judicial review into whether the pair should be disqualified, putting their future as lawmakers into question. In a separate case Wednesday, former pro-democracy lawmaker Raymond Wong was convicted of throwing a glass at city leader Leung Chun-ying inside the Legco in 2014. Wong, 64, was convicted of common assault and will be sentenced on Tuesday, local media reported. By Helen Reid LONDON (Reuters) - Iceland would welcome Britain, its biggest trading partner, back into the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), Icelandic Foreign Minister Lilja Alfredsdottir said on Wednesday in London. "The EFTA countries might make an agreement with the UK," she said. "We are chairing the EFTA right now and I put it as a priority to analyse the possibilities that EFTA had on this front." Alfredsdottir emphasised the importance of Iceland's trade ties with Britain. "The UK is our largest trading partner - 11 percent of our exports and imports go to this market," she said at a talk at the London School of Economics when asked about British-Icelandic relations after Britain's vote to leave the European Union. She said an agreement with EFTA was one of three possibilities for Iceland-British relations after Brexit. The other two were a bilateral agreement with Britain, and an agreement with European Economic Area (EEA) countries. Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland make up the EFTA trade organisation and free trade area which is also part of the European single market and the EEA. Britain was a co-founder of EFTA in 1960 and left in 1972 to join what was then the European Economic Community. (Reporting by Helen Reid; Editing by Angus MacSwan) Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have very different economic plansand we can now safely disregard them both. The real question isnt whats in the plans, its what will be possible once the elections finally over on Nov. 8. That depends, of course, on what happens in Congress. Polls and prediction markets now forecast that voters will elect the Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton, president on Election Day. The odds of Democrats winning the Senate from Republicans are 50/50 or a little better, but the odds of Dems taking the House are only around 20%. So Republicans will most likely control at least one chamber of Congress for the next two years, which means split government much as weve had for the last six years. Clintons favored policies are very similar to those of President Obama, who has struggled to get anything meaningful through Congress since 2011, when Republicans took control of both houses of Congress. So Clinton might encounter the same brick wall on Capitol Hill. But a couple of things would be different under a Clinton presidency. First, Clinton is considered a better dealmaker than Obama, and more open to working with Republicans. Second, Republicans may be so chastened by another presidential wipeout that they abandon the obstructionist strategy of recent years and decide its time to show voters theyre able to get something done. If thats the case, a few important pieces of legislation could get through Congress. Heres what to watch for: Corporate tax reform. Clinton has been surprisingly mum on this issue, even though Democrats and Republicans broadly agree that the US corporate tax rate, at 35%, is too high, given that its 10 to 20 percentage points lower in many other advanced nations. That gap is the main reason US multinationals hold nearly $2 trillion in profits overseas, money that could be helping juice the American economy, but isnt. A corporate tax reform deal would lower the tax rate, close loopholes that some companies use to whittle their tax payments, and possibly offer some kind of tax holiday that allows multinationals to bring foreign profits home at a temporarily low rate, such as 15%. The carried-interest provision allowing some investing firms to declare profits as capital gainswhich are subject to a lower tax rate than ordinary incomeseems endangered, since Democrats hate it and Republicans find it hard to defend. A tax reform deal might also include new limits on corporate inversionsthe merger of US firms with foreign companies, for tax-lowering purposesalthough a more efficient corporate tax code would reduce or eliminate the incentive for inversions in the first place. Story continues Economist Mark Zandi of Moodys Analytics argues that Clintons silence on corporate tax reform may actually help it pass, since the issue hasnt been demagogued and politicized in the campaign. But any effort to streamline and simplify personal-income taxes is probably unlikely, since Dems would demand tax hikes on the wealthy that Republicans are dead-set against. A minimum wage hike. The federal minimum wage, now $7.25, hasnt been raised since 2009. Clinton favors a $12 minimum wage, which seems unlikely. But a hike to $9 or so might be plausible, especially if the economy continues to strengthen, limiting the pain businesses would feel if they have to pay it. It also helps that some states and cities already have a minimum wage higher than the federal level, which means they wouldnt be affected by a federal increase. Immigration reform. Congress almost passed a sweeping new set of immigration laws in 2014, but some House Republicans blocked it. If Republicans fare even worse among Hispanic voters in 2016 than they have before, it will be a new siren call to do something productive on immigration. The way forward, in general, is to first come up with new ways to secure the southwest border, then establish a legal path to citizenship for an estimated 11 million undocumented people in the country, and finally, establish new pathways to America for foreigners able to make a demonstrable contribution to the US economy (such as investors, entrepreneurs, or well-educated immigrants). Immigration is an important economic issue because the aging of the US workforce means growth in the supply of labor will diminish. That almost always leads to slower economic growth. The United States also needs new workers to help pay the Social Security and Medicare costs of aging baby boomers, who will bankrupt the system if costs arent curtailed or new revenue sources found. New spending on roads and bridges. Clinton wants to spend $300 billion on infrastructure during the next five years, with the money mostly coming from new taxes on the wealthy. Those new taxes are very unlikely with a GOP House, especially if Speaker Paul Ryan plans on running for president in 2020, as many believe. But there could be some modest increase in infrastructure spending, possibly as part of a corporate tax reform deal. Demise of the sequester. The mandatory spending cuts in most federal programs that went into effect in 2011 were suspended last yearbut only for two years. So the so-called sequester will kick back in in 2017, unless Congress votes otherwise. The sequester is widely viewed as a clumsy and damaging way to cut spending, since it doesnt prioritize whats most and least important. A new and improved budget deal could end the sequester, and in an optimistic scenario, it might also find a few bucks to spend on new infrastructure programs. A stock-market relief rally. A Clinton win would be a continuation of the status quo, which isnt necessarily the best thing for an economy beset with stagnant wage and productivity growth. But it would probably mark a short-term win for equity markets, since the risks of Trumps disruptive policies on trade and immigration would disappear. Forecasting firm Macroeconomic Advisers predicts that a Clinton win would produce a 4% gain in the S&P 500, if only because a huge bout of uncertainty would pass. Then, markets would stop worrying about election outcomes and focus more on all the other problems in the world. That might actually be a relief. Rick Newman is the author of four books, including Rebounders: How Winners Pivot from Setback to Success. Follow him on Twitter: @rickjnewman. By Timothy Mclaughlin CHICAGO (Reuters) - An Illinois judge recommended the denial of an injunction to bar transgender high school students from using the restrooms and locker rooms of their choice, saying the Constitution does not protect students against having to share those areas with transgender classmates. The case, centering on William Fremd High School in Palatine, a northwest suburb of Chicago, is one of many across the country challenging the U.S. Department of Education's policy that transgender students in public schools must be allowed to use the bathrooms and locker rooms of their choosing. "High school students do not have a constitutional right not to share restrooms or locker rooms with transgender students whose sex assigned at birth is different than theirs," U.S. District Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Gilbert wrote on Tuesday. Sharing a locker room or restroom with a transgender student does not create a "severe, pervasive, or objectively offensive hostile environment," because the school has provided alternative facilities to those who do not wish to share these areas with transgender students and installed privacy curtains in locker room changing areas, he added. The plaintiffs, a group of five students and their parents, sued the federal government and local school district in May over the school policy, saying the decision to allow transgender students to use the locker rooms and restrooms of their choice infringed on privacy rights. The group sought an injunction to halt enforcement of the federal government policy in August as the case proceeds. Federal judge Jorge Alonso will now make a decision on the injunction based on Gilbert's recommendation. Ed Yohnka, a spokesman for the American Civil Liberties Union in Illinois, which is representing three unidentified transgender students and their families, welcomed Gilbert's decision on Wednesday. "This is a very good ruling for the federal government, for the school district and for our client," Yohnka said. Story continues The plaintiffs are represented by the Arizona-based Christian group Alliance for Defending Freedom (ADF). "Young students should be not be forced into an intimate setting like a locker room with someone of the opposite sex," the ADF senior counsel Gary McCaleb said in a statement on Tuesday. The ADF did not immediately respond to request for comment. The group has a similar case ongoing in Minnesota. (Reporting by Timothy Mclaughlin) When Will Worthwine started putting money away in a 529 plan, a college savings account with tax advantages, his daughter was a freshman in high school. The Boise, Idaho, dad wanted a pot of money that would be specifically earmarked for college, not to be touched for other purposes. He also wanted a hands-off approach, so he chose portfolios in IDeal, Idaho's 529 plan, largely made up of index funds. "Index funds are the way to go for someone who does not want to track investments daily," he says. [Learn what investment options there are in 529 plans.] Index funds are a basket of securities designed to track a particular market, such as the Standard & Poor's 500 Index, an index of the 500 largest U.S. companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange. There are indices for all types of markets: large and small companies , bonds and international markets, among others. They are a popular choice because of their low cost and broad market exposure, but investors need to consider their own investment philosophy. Most 529 plans offer both passive investment options -- index funds -- and active options, which use managers who actively seek winning stocks and bonds. "It comes down to personal choice," says Vivian Tsai, senior director at TIAA-CREF Tuition Financing, Inc. "When you're paying a higher active management fee, generally you believe in the strength of that money manager and their philosophy over time. You believe the return is going to outweigh that additional cost." Because index funds are not actively managed, they tend to have lower fees than portfolios with managers who pick and choose particular stocks and bonds. Index funds generally will not outperform the market but will ideally mirror it, which has historically gone up over time. [Consider the three safest investments within 529 plans.] "What people like about index funds is they are not generally actively managed, meaning that you're not buying and selling securities on a daily basis," says Tsai. "That means it's cheaper for the investor. There are fewer transaction costs. There are lower costs in general." Story continues Index funds are an option in most 529 plans. Some plans -- such as ScholarShare, California's 529 College Savings Plan, managed by TIAA-CREF -- give investors a choice of a passively managed , age-based portfolio that uses index funds or an actively managed age-based portfolio. Age-based portfolios shift assets from stocks to safer investments as the child nears college. Other plans may not offer that choice but will offer index funds as an option in static portfolios, which do not change over time. The fee difference between index funds and actively managed funds is "meaningful," says Leo Acheson, senior analyst on the manager research team at Morningstar, Inc., a financial research firm. The average fee for a primarily actively managed , age-based track within a direct sold plan is about 80 basis points. That means it will cost investors 80 cents for every $100 they invest. The average fee for a similar plan that uses primarily passive investments instead is about 30 basis points, meaning it will cost investors 30 cents for every $100, he says. "The hope would be that you select a good active manager that is able to outperform the index over the long term," says Acheson. "Usually they come with higher fees, so they have to overcome the fee hurdle." [Read about how to avoid the college savings mistakes that cost parents money.] Within the ScholarShare program, index funds are the more popular choice, Tsai says -- 50 percent of program assets are in the age-based index offering, while 22 percent are in the active age-based offering. That doesn't mean actively managed portfolios are not a good bet ; it just means investors should do their homework. Morningstar, which rates 529 plans, has high expectations for some actively managed plans, Acheson says. "The majority of active managers are not outperforming index funds, but there are plenty of actively managed funds , which we expect to outperform over the long term," he says. Worthwine says he's been happy with the largely index-driven portfolios he chose within his Idaho plan, which is managed by Ascensus College Savings and offers Vanguard index funds. Even after getting a late start and contributing "relative small amounts," he estimates he was able to pay for at least half of his daughter's college education at the University of Idaho. Now that she has graduated , he says there is still money in the 529 to help with a master's degree that she will start later this year. Trying to save for college? Get tips and more in the U.S. News College Savings 101 center. Deborah Ziff is a Chicago area-based freelance education reporter for U.S. News, covering college savings and 529 plans. You can follow her on Twitter. A multi-million-dollar racket that used fake Indian call centres to trick US citizens into paying bogus tax bills may be the tip of the iceberg, with police warning similar scams could be operating across the country. School leavers or college dropouts would be trained to speak with an American accent, posing as US Internal Revenue Service officials and scare people into believing they owed the government cash, detectives said. The scheme, which had been operating for over a year, netted more than 10 million rupees ($150,000) a day, they added. More than 70 people have been arrested after police this month swooped on call centres in western India, from Mumbai to the Gujarat capital of Ahmedabad, but they suspect the network could stretch even further. "We believe that the racket is spread across India, including in the north," Parambir Singh, commissioner of police in the Mumbai suburb of Thane, told AFP. Police from Thane, on the outskirts of India's financial capital, rounded up at least 770 employees of bogus call centres on October 4. Most were let go pending further investigations but 72 were arrested while another suspect was detained this week as police try to close in on the 23-year-old alleged mastermind. It is claimed the accused would berate victims for falsely failing to pay taxes and then threaten them with jail if they did not cough up immediately. The con artists would use an altered caller ID number that made it look like they were ringing from the United States and often quoted IRS badge numbers to make them appear legitimate. The fraudsters would trick the victim into sending money, often through pre-paid debit cards that can be purchased at stores like Walmart, or even by buying Apple iTunes gift cards. In both instances transfers are made by the victim handing over the card's registration number. The iTunes scam has even led Apple to issue a global warning on its website urging people not to give the number to someone they do not know. Story continues The IRS has been warning about identical scams for a few years with reports in US media that such schemes might have been operating out of India. In January, the US Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration said it was aware of more than 5,000 victims who had paid a total of more than $26.5 million in such scams since October 2013. - American accents - "It is one of the biggest fraud cases to surface in recent times in Mumbai," Parag Manere, Thane police deputy commissioner, told AFP, adding that the ringleaders found willing recruits. "Hiring was easy. They just gave out pamphlets about job openings and received applications, mostly from school or college dropouts," said Manere. Commissioner Singh said ringleaders "lured youngsters with good working knowledge of English and trained them how to speak with an American accent". Police believe the recruits were paid 30,000-70,000 rupees a month, plus commission. Some made the initial calls while others were employed to "close" deals. They would work through the night to catch Americans during their day and sometimes left threatening voicemail messages if their targets didn't answer the phone, it is alleged. A victim of a similar-sounding scam told NBC last year the caller had her "so frightened" but felt "embarrassed, guilty and ashamed" when she realised she had been swindled. Singh said Thane police knew of 2,000 people suspected of involvement in the scam, but the force believes there are more, and is working with their counterparts in neighbouring Gujarat state and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation. Police in Ahmedabad raided more than half a dozen call centres following the Thane operation, a senior crime branch official told AFP, while searches were also carried out in the Gujarati cities of Bhuj, Surat and Vadodara. Police are desperate to find alleged mastermind Sagar Thakkar, known as "Shaggy", who is from Ahmedabad but may have fled India, possibly to Dubai. Thakkar had half a dozen people working for him in the US and was preparing to expand operations, according to the Ahmedabad officer. "He was planning to set up five more call centres by December," he said. By Emily Chow KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Indonesia has raised its target for funds collection in 2017 for its biodiesel subsidy programme by nearly 14 percent from this year on the expectation of higher palm oil exports, the head of the programme operator said on Wednesday. "In the last quarter of 2016, production seems to be recovering and next year will be back again in the numbers of 2015. With that come exports... the fund comes from our export levy," Bayu Krisnamurthi, chief executive of the Indonesia Estate Crop Fund, told Reuters during an interview on the sidelines of the Oils and Fats International Congress in Kuala Lumpur. Exports from the world's top palm producer are forecast to rise between 5 to 10 percent in 2017 from this year, he said. Krisnamurthi estimated that the target collection for the subsidy fund next year is 10.7 to 10.8 trillion rupiah ($830 million). The 2016 target is 9.5 trillion rupiah. "We see that the collection of the fund is not as strong as 2015, but is still on target for 2016 and we hope in 2017 we can even gain more," he said. Indonesia started collecting a levy on its palm oil exports last July - $50 per tonne for crude palm oil and $30 for processed palm oil products - and uses part of it to help fund its biodiesel subsidies. The Estate Crop Fund agency is in charge of Indonesia's biodiesel subsidies and oversees how much unblended biodiesel is procured for domestic consumption. Krisnamurthi added that 85 to 87 percent of the subsidy fund has been used to subsidize biodiesel until September this year, and estimates the country's monthly consumption at 200,000 to 250,000 kilolitres (kl). "I think this is going to be consistent," he said, referring to the consumption levels. "This year the (fund's) surplus is not as big (compared with 2015) but we still have the surplus to maintain the continuation of the programme until the first quarter 2017." Indonesia's biodiesel consumption in the first half of 2016 stood at 1.4 million kl, according to the energy ministry. Story continues The Southeast Asian country targeted full year unblended biodiesel consumption of 6.4 million kl in 2016. Indonesia's biodiesel production capacity is pegged at over 10 million kl a year, said Krisnamurthi, with a utilization rate of 30 percent. Unblended biodiesel, or palm methyl ester, is the bio component of biodiesel. Indonesia requires a 20 percent blend of biodiesel into its domestic gasoil supplies. ($1 = 13,010.0000 rupiah) (Editing by Christian Schmollinger) Jakarta (AFP) - Indonesia, one of the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitters, Wednesday ratified a landmark climate rescue pact but environmentalists expressed scepticism about the government's plans to limit global warming. The country's parliament agreed to endorse the Paris Agreement which was reached last December in the French capital, joining scores of other countries which have ratified the deal. It requires all countries to devise plans to achieve the goal of keeping the rise in temperatures within two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. The accord is due to enter into force on November 4, earlier than expected, after the threshold for ratification -- by 55 countries responsible for 55 percent of emissions -- was reached earlier this month. In its plan Indonesia pledged to cut emissions by at least 29 percent by 2030 by stepping up protection of forests and expanding the renewable energy sector. The sprawling archipelago is home to vast tracts of tropical rain forest. But much has been felled in recent years, to be sold as timber and to make way for palm oil and pulp plantations, greatly increasing the country's emissions. Indonesia also says that if it receives international aid such as financing, it will raise its target to a 41-percent cut by 2030. Green groups have criticised the pledge as lacking in detail, such as ways to tackle forest fires that burn out of control in Indonesia every year, cloaking the region in toxic haze. Last year's fires were the worst for years. A study by environmental watchdog the World Resources Institute estimated that at their peak, the blazes led to Indonesia spewing more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere each day than all US economic activity. The institute usually classifies Indonesia as the fifth biggest emitter of greenhouse gases. Hindun Mulaika, who works on climate change with Greenpeace Indonesia, said that the "devil is in the detail" when it came to the official plans. "There are still ongoing projects that are really carbon-intensive," she said, noting the government was in the process of building a series of new coal-fired power plants. Indonesian President Joko Widodo has defended the introduction of chemical castration for paedophiles, saying in an interview published Wednesday there can be "no compromise" when it comes to tackling sex crimes. Widodo introduced a series of tough punishments for child sex offenders in May through an emergency decree, including chemical castration and the death penalty, following an outcry over the fatal gang-rape of a schoolgirl. Parliament last week voted to put the new regulations permanently on the statute book, as had been widely expected. In an interview with the BBC, Widodo defended introducing chemical castration, a decision that has sparked anger from human rights activists and the Indonesian Doctors Association, which has said its members will not perform the treatment. "Our constitution respects human rights, but when it comes to sexual crimes there is no compromise," he said, adding that the government "will hand out the maximum penalty" for such crimes. "In my opinion... chemical castration, if we enforce it consistently, will reduce sex crimes and wipe them out over time," he said. Indonesia is among a small group of places worldwide which use the measure, including Poland and some states in the USA. In 2011 South Korea became the first Asian country to legalise the treatment. Chemical castration involves using drugs to reduce libido and sex drive. Widodo was spurred into action after the murder and gang-rape in April of a 14-year-old girl. She was set upon by a gang of drunken men and boys as she walked home from school on the western island of Sumatra. The leader of the gang was sentenced to death last month after being found guilty of premeditated murder, a crime already punishable by death before the new laws were introduced. Other members of the gang have been jailed. Yes, you can transfer your domain to any registrar or hosting company once you have purchased it. Since domain transfers are a manual process, it can take up to 5 days to transfer the domain. Domains purchased with payment plans are not eligible to transfer until all payments have been made. Please remember that our 30-day money back guarantee is void once a domain has been transferred. For transfer instructions to GoDaddy, please click here. The prevalent uncertainties in the global arena have been impacting the industrial stocks over the last few quarters. Weak commodity prices and low demand in the energy sector are major concerns. Also, weak economic conditions in some developed and developing nations, the U.Ks decision to exit the European Union, and unfavorable foreign currency movements have influenced international trades. Below we briefly discuss Industrial sectors earnings trend so far in the third-quarter 2016. As of Oct 14, roughly 4.3% of Industrial stocks in the S&P 500 Group reported their results, recording 16% increase in earnings and 7.9% growth in revenue. Considering the results of all Industrial stocks in the S&P 500 Group, earnings for the sector are predicted to increase 3.4%, while revenue will decline 0.5%. Whats in Store for 2 Industrial Stocks, ITW, SON for Third-Quarter 2016? Below we discuss briefly the expectations from the upcoming results of two industrial stocks: Illinois Tool Works Inc. ITW: The industrial products and equipment manufacturer is slated to release its results on Oct 19, before the market opens. The company recorded better-than-expected results in the four trailing quarters, with an average positive earnings surprise of 2.63%. ILL TOOL WORKS Price and EPS Surprise ILL TOOL WORKS Price and EPS Surprise | ILL TOOL WORKS Quote Our proven model conclusively shows that Illinois Tool Works will disappoint earnings this quarter as it currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) and a -0.67% Earnings ESP (the percentage difference between the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate). For a possible earnings beat, the company should have the right combination of two key ingredients a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), #2 (Buy) or #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. We caution against stocks with a Zacks Rank #4 or #5 (Sell-rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing a negative estimate revisions momentum. Over the last 60 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Illinois Tool Works has remained stable at $1.49 per share for the quarter. (For more please read: Illinois Tool Works Q3 Earnings: Will it Disappoint?) Sonoco Products Co. SON: The company is slated to release its results on Oct 20, before the market opens. The companys results were better-than-expected in three of four trailing quarters, with an average positive earnings surprise of 3.57%. Story continues SONOCO PRODUCTS Price and EPS Surprise SONOCO PRODUCTS Price and EPS Surprise | SONOCO PRODUCTS Quote Our proven model does not conclusively show that Sonoco Products will beat earnings this quarter because it currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 and a 0.00% Earnings ESP. Over the last 60 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the stock has remained stable at 68 cents per share. Stay tuned! Check back on our full write-up on earnings release of Illinois Tool Works Inc. and Sonoco Products Co. Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report SONOCO PRODUCTS (SON): Free Stock Analysis Report ILL TOOL WORKS (ITW): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research In the early hours of July 11, 1958, a sheriff and two of his deputies burst into the rural Virginia home of a young married couple, Richard and Mildred Loving, and went straight to their bedroom. Shining flashlights in their eyes, the lawmen demanded to know what the Lovings were doing together. "They asked Richard who was that woman he was sleeping with," Mildred said later. "I said, 'I'm his wife,' and the sheriff said, 'Not here you're not.' " The couple was charged with defying the state's Racial Integrity Act of 1924 and thrown into jail, where Richard remained overnight, while Mildred was kept several days longer before being released to her father. Their crime? One was black, the other white, in an era when miscegenation was illegal in 24 states. Soon after, a local judge sentenced Richard, a construction worker, to a year in prison. "Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, Malay and red," he declared, "and He placed them on separate continents, and but for the interference with His arrangement there would be no cause for such marriages." Some strange act of kindness or perversion led him to soften that sentence, and instead of insisting that Richard be jailed, he offered the couple an alternative: They could leave the state as long as they promised not to return - at least as husband and wife - for the next quarter-century. And so the Lovings moved to Washington, D.C., where they had obtained their marriage certificate, and remained there for the next few years, deeply in love but longing to return to the place they called home. Their story - and that of the battle they fought to have their marriage accepted in Virginia, which went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court and resulted in a landmark civil rights ruling - is the basis of Jeff Nichols' new movie, Loving, opening Nov. 4. While the filmmakers are white (they include actor Colin Firth in his first outing as a producer, along with Nancy Buirski, Sarah Green, Ged Doherty, Marc Turtletaub and Peter Saraf), their movie is in many ways colorblind, focusing on universal elements - like love. Story continues Photographed By We Are The Rhoads "What this film does is make what could seem like a political conversation into a very, very personal one," says Firth. "One of the things that really struck me was that law enforcement went into their bedroom - they went into the bedroom. The bedroom to me is so emblematic of intimacy and privacy and the no-go area." The U.S. has changed considerably from the late 1950s, when the Lovings were arrested. A Pew Research Center report noted that 12 percent of all new marriages in 2013 were between spouses from different racial backgrounds. In 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, about 9 million Americans considered themselves multiracial. (Mildred was a mixture of black and Native American.) And yet race remains an issue in America, dominating the election cycle, while Black Lives Matter protesters march in the streets. Hollywood, too, still is reeling from the #OscarsSoWhite campaign, which accused the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of turning a willful blind eye to nonwhite talent with the 2016 Oscar nominations. Factor in the controversy surrounding another current movie about race, Nate Parker's The Birth of a Nation, and the timing for a "very personal" film about interracial marriage couldn't be better. For Joel Edgerton, the Australian actor who plays Richard, the timeliness of these issues was key to his desire to make the movie. "There's an imbalance of behavior, of provisions, of health care, of general attitude," he says. "And the thing that really struck me with Loving was: You can legislate as much as you like, but you can't legislate people's opinions." Photographed By We Are The Rhoads His co-star, Ruth Negga, an actress born in Ethiopia and raised in Ireland (her father is African, her mother Irish), was intensely aware of the relevance of the movie today. "[There was an] anthropological study where they noticed that when [people were being filmed], all the white people very confidently walked down the street and all the black people moved out of the way," she says. "Unless you're walking around with an invisibility cloak, [you can't fail to be aware of racism]. It's only ever going to change when people have conversations and don't dismiss the Black Lives Matter movement as something that's aggressive or unnecessary." Firth first heard of the Lovings in 2009 while shooting the film Main Street in North Carolina. It was there that he met Buirski, a former photo editor at The New York Times who'd moved to Durham. Buirski had been developing a documentary about the Lovings (eventually released as 2011's The Loving Story) and joined Firth to turn the tale into a feature. The son of a British academic, Firth, 56, had spent a year when he was 12 living in Missouri, where his father worked at a local university. He had seen American racism up close during a family road trip from St. Louis to Baton Rouge, La. "The economic difference was shocking, particularly when we were driving through Mississippi," he recalls. "The big white mansions [were] next to shacks that barely looked livable." He toyed with the idea of writing the Loving script himself but got pulled away by other endeavors, including his Oscar-winning role in The King's Speech. Instead, on Martin Scorsese's recommendation, he and Buirski hired Nichols, 37, who describes himself as a "Southern storyteller" and whose credits include 2011's Take Shelter and 2012's Mud. Growing up in Little Rock, Ark., Nichols heard horror stories about segregation from his father. "Where my dad lived, you could look down and see the local jail, and there were many nights he'd hear beatings," he says. "And he said there were instances - and this is if you were lucky - where the sheriff would just take a black person and give him a bus ticket to Detroit and sit there until they left." After obtaining financing (the movie was funded by Turtletaub and Saraf's Big Beach Films), a 41-day shoot got underway in September 2015 in some of the real-life locations where the events unfolded. Whatever nightmare had taken place there in the past, the cast and crew were embraced by the locals. The Lovings no longer are alive - Richard died at age 41 in 1975 when a drunk driver hit his car, and Mildred died in 2008 of pneumonia at age 68. But their daughter, Peggy Loving Fortune, now in her late 50s and one of their three kids, gave her advice and consent. (Their only surviving child, she declined to be interviewed for this story.) "We spent about two weeks driving around Bowling Green and Central Point, where we filmed," says Negga. "We drove to see Peggy. I just wanted to sit in a room and be with her." Adds Edgerton of the shoot: "It was like going through a time vortex. We shot the exterior of the jailhouse, and we were out on these farms with old architecture, and everybody was dressed just so, and the old cars were there. Jeff created a kind of time machine. But it did strike me how 50 years is really not that long ago. Not for this shit to be going down." Focus Features snapped up the movie for $9 million (roughly its budget) at this year's Berlin Film Festival. It will be the first test of the company since it was overhauled this year under chairman Peter Kujawski, president Robert Walak and COO Abhijay Prakash - the NBCUniversal division's third set of leaders in as many years. Given the response Loving received in May at the Cannes Film Festival, it looks as if they've chosen well. The picture and its two stars are considered serious contenders for Oscar nominations. Back in 1958, when the Lovings went into exile, it must have seemed unimaginable that their story ever would become a movie, let alone make history. They were emerging from a time when lynchings and the Ku Klux Klan were a reality. More than 4,000 lynchings took place in the South between 1877 and 1950, according to the Equal Justice Initiative. Between 1880 and 1926, there were more than 90 lynchings in Virginia alone. But the Lovings had lived relatively removed from this in the racially mixed, borderline progressive Caroline County - where they both grew up - until the local sheriff caught up with them. By the mid-1960s, when the couple was in exile in D.C., the civil rights movement was in full steam, and inevitably the Lovings were impacted by it. "In 1963, that is the summer of the great march on Washington, and the next summer is when the Civil Rights Act gets passed, and the next year Selma happened and the Voting Rights Act gets passed," says historian Peter Wallenstein, author of Race, Sex, and the Freedom to Marry: Loving v. Virginia. The passage of the Civil Rights Act inspired Mildred to reach out for help, and she sent a letter to Attorney General Robert Kennedy. "I was crying the blues all the time," she told The New York Times about not being able to return to Virginia, "so [Richard's cousin] said, 'Why don't you write Robert Kennedy?' She said that's what he's there for." A woman whose shy manner and deep reserve hid a steely determination, she never imagined her letter would put her at the forefront of a battle she never wanted to fight. "What happened, we really didn't intend for it to happen," she said in 1992. "What we wanted, we wanted to come home." Ben Rothstein/FOCUS FEATURES In her letter to Kennedy, she noted: "The problem is we are not allowed to visit our families. The judge said if we enter the state within the next 30 years that we will have to spend one year in jail. We know we can't live there, but we would like to go back once in a while to visit our families and friends." To her surprise, Kennedy sent her letter to the American Civil Liberties Union. Soon, the Lovings were contacted by a young lawyer, Bernard S. Cohen. Only a few years out of law school, the 29-year-old had nothing in his background that might make one think he was ready for a major legal battle. "I had done small cases that the ACLU office had asked me to look into, nothing of any consequence that I can recall," the attorney, now 82, says today. "I was a civil practitioner. I didn't even handle any significant criminal work, other than traffic cases." After filing a petition on the Lovings' behalf, Cohen decided to stop by his alma mater, Georgetown Law School, to seek the advice of one of his law school professors. There he encountered another young lawyer, Philip J. Hirschkop, who was sitting in the faculty lounge, chatting with the professor. The two men could not have been more different. While both were Jewish and fiercely committed, one was a relatively easygoing litigator, while the other was a 28-year-old former Green Beret who had just returned from working on civil rights issues in Mississippi and was without a job. It was Hirschkop who argued the grounds on which the case would be taken further. "They had been banished from the state of Virginia as a criminal sentence - and that is illegal," he says. "You can't banish people from one state to another." Soon after meeting Cohen, he began to work with him and even joined the same law firm. Many years later, they would have a falling-out (Hirschkop declines to discuss why), but their bond grew strong, deepened by their commitment to their cause. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images "I knew it would end up in the Supreme Court," says Cohen. "I told as much to Mr. and Mrs. Loving. Mr. Loving couldn't believe it. He wanted me to just go see the judge and tell the judge to please let them come back to Virginia, that they wouldn't make any trouble. It was a naive approach, and Mrs. Loving realized it was not the way things were going to go. She didn't understand what would be involved, but she had a feeling it was significant." They did not realize how untested the lawyers were or how unlikely it was that their case would be accepted by the U.S. Supreme Court. "Neither of us had ever argued a case in the Supreme Court," says Cohen. "Phil was not even qualified, and I had to move his admission to the court, a special privilege since he was not a member of the Supreme Court bar." Their timing was perfect. The Supreme Court was at its most liberal under Chief Justice Earl Warren, and the country had been convulsed by civil rights battles. After the Virginia Supreme Court ruled against them, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to a hearing. On April 10, 1967, Hirschkop and Cohen stood before Warren and eight other justices. "The lawyers laid out an elegant, watertight case for why the state had no constitutional right to prevent people from marrying because of their race," says Wallenstein. Nothing Cohen or Hirschkop said was more powerful than Richard Loving's own words, relayed to the justices: "Tell the court I love my wife, and it is just unfair that I can't live with her in Virginia." On June 12, 1967, the court ruled unanimously in the Lovings' favor. "We have consistently denied the constitutionality of measures which restrict the rights of citizens on account of race," wrote Warren in his landmark opinion. "The 14th Amendment requires that the freedom of choice to marry not be restricted by invidious racial discrimination. Under our Constitution, the freedom to marry, or not marry, a person of another race resides with the individual and cannot be infringed by the State." "It was pretty much the last tree to fall, the last piece of Jim Crow, of the legally segregated world of the South," says Jane Dailey, an associate professor at the University of Chicago Law School and editor of Jumpin' Jim Crow: Southern Politics From Civil War to Civil Rights. "Once that fell, you couldn't prop it up again. Once you got rid of the legal barriers to interracial marriage, you got rid of the legal barriers to interracial children - which would wreck white supremacy. Then you've opened the door to a society that looks a lot more like Caroline County, where nobody knows exactly what they are, and it doesn't really matter." Hirschkop remembers calling the Lovings to break the news. "Bernie's secretary got them on the phone in his office," he says. "[Mildred] was a little more excited than I'd heard her previously. But I don't think [Richard] even got on the phone. We told them we had to have a press conference the next day - the ACLU was insisting on it, and I understand why. They didn't want to go [although they did agree to take part]. They just wanted to be left alone to get on with their lives." After the Lovings returned to Virginia, there would be one or two nasty incidents - a cross was burned on the lawn of Mildred's mother - but soon these faded away. A year before Mildred's death, she spoke of the bond she shared with her husband that had carried them to the top of the American judicial system and changed the law forever. "Not a day goes by that I don't think of Richard and our love," she said, "and how much it meant to me to have that freedom to marry the person precious to me, even if others thought he was the 'wrong kind of person.' " Austin Hargrave This story first appeared in the Nov. 4 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. Qayyarah (Iraq) (AFP) - Jihadist leaders are fleeing Mosul, a top US general in the coalition battling the Islamic State group said Wednesday as Iraqi forces closed in on the northern city. Mosul was where IS supremo Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared his "caliphate" two years ago but is now the group's last major stronghold in Iraq. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who announced the launch of a broad offensive to retake the city on Monday, visited the front line on Wednesday. In the biggest Iraqi military operation in years, forces have retaken dozens of villages, mostly south and east of Mosul, and are planning multiple assaults for Thursday. "We are telling Daesh (IS) that their leaders are abandoning them. We've seen a movement out of Mosul," said Major General Gary Volesky, who heads the anti-IS coalition's land component. He told reporters in a video briefing that the many foreigners among the 3,000 to 4,500 IS fighters would likely end up forming the core of the holdout jihadist force. Volesky noted that the Iraqis would screen anyone leaving Mosul, and attempts by foreign fighters to blend in to an expected exodus of displaced people would be thwarted. "It's difficult for them to blend into the local population based on the number of different types of foreign fighters that there are," he said. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were still trapped in the city with dwindling supplies, many sheltering in basements as air strikes intensified on IS targets. - 'Cut off from world' - "We couldn't sleep last night because of the air strikes. The explosions were huge," said Abu Saif, a 47-year-old resident contacted by AFP. "Many families are starting to run out of some basic food goods, there is no commercial activity in Mosul -- the city is cut off from the world," he said. So far only a trickle of civilians have fled the fighting but aid organisations fear being overwhelmed by what could be Iraq's biggest wave of displacement yet in nearly three years of violence. Story continues "On the third day of operations, reports indicate that military activities remain concentrated in less populated areas, with no large-scale civilian displacement recorded at this stage," UN aid chief Stephen O'Brien said. East of Mosul, forces were poised for an assault on Qaraqosh, which lies about 15 kilometres (10 miles) away and was once Iraq's largest Christian town. News of the move to recapture Qaraqosh sparked jubilation among Christians who had fled the town, with many dancing and singing in the Iraqi Kurdish city of Arbil on Tuesday night. Units from Iraq's elite counter-terrorism service, which has done the heavy lifting in most recent operations against IS, were poised to flush jihadists out of the town, officers said. "We are surrounding Hamdaniya now," Lieutenant General Riyadh Tawfiq, commander of Iraq's ground forces, told AFP at the main staging base of Qayyarah, referring to the district that includes Qaraqosh. "There are some pockets (of resistance), some clashes, they send car bombs -- but it will not help them," he said. Qaraqosh was the largest of many Christian towns and villages seized by the jihadists who swept across the Nineveh plain east of Mosul in August 2014. The mass exodus it sparked displaced a large proportion of Iraq's already dwindling Christian minority, sending most into the neighbouring Kurdish region. Qaraqosh was home to around 50,000 people in 2014 and has at least seven churches, making it a key hub for the more than 300,000 Christians still in Iraq. Kurdish peshmerga forces prepared to attack IS positions on several fronts north of Mosul while federal forces worked their way up the Tigris Valley. The "caliphate" Baghdadi proclaimed in Mosul's Great Mosque in June 2014 once covered more than a third of Iraq and parts of Syria. But it has been shrinking steadily for more than a year and retaking Mosul would be a major setback for IS, all but ending its experiment in statehood. "IS simply has too many enemies with the world arrayed against it," said Aymenn al-Tamimi, a jihadism expert at the Middle East Forum. - No safe exit - Tens of thousands of personnel are involved in the operation to retake Mosul, far outnumbering IS fighters. World leaders and military commanders warned that -- despite signs that early progress in the Mosul offensive was faster than predicted -- the battle could be long and difficult. "Mosul will be a difficult fight. There will be advances and there will be setbacks," Obama said on Tuesday. After clearing towns and villages on the outskirts of Mosul with air support from the US-led coalition, Iraqi forces are expected to besiege the city before entering it. Iraqi forces may allow fleeing IS fighters an exit to the west in a bid to minimise human and material losses. But the chief of Russia's general staff, Valery Gerasimov, argued it was "necessary not to drive terrorists from one country to the other but to destroy them on the spot". Russia, he said, was focusing on "possible attempts by fighters to break out of Mosul" and "freely leave the city in the direction of Syria". Many civilians have been able to flee the wider Mosul region to safer areas, with some desperate enough to seek refuge over the border in war-torn Syria. "Thousands of desperate Iraqis are fleeing to a filthy and overcrowded Syrian refugee camp in an effort to escape the Mosul offensive," Save The Children aid group said. It said about 5,000 of them had reached the Al-Hol camp inside Syria near the Iraqi border in the past 10 days. Iraqi police forces evacuated hundreds of families from Al Bijwaniyah, about 30 miles south of Mosul, on Tuesday, October 18, after liberating the village from the Islamic State. More than 900 civilians have fled Mosul since Monday, when Iraqi forces launched an offensive to retake the IS-stronghold, the UN refugee agency said. The United Nations has warned of an impending humanitarian crisis as Iraq launches a campaign to retake the city of Mosul from Islamic State. The UN Refugee Agency said it had stepped up efforts to assist hundreds of thousands of people displaced from Iraqs second-largest city. Speaking in Baghdad on Monday, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi sought assurances from the Iraqi government that civilian protection would be part of the military strategy for retaking Mosul. The organization has warned that the offensive could force an additional one million people to flee. Some 3.3 million Iraqis have fled their homes in the last two and a half years, according to the UN Refugee Agency. Credit: Facebook/ALMawsleya ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - Islamic State has 5,000 to 6,000 fighters defending the city of Mosul against an offensive by Iraqi forces, the head of Iraq's special forces Lieutenant General Talib Shaghati said on Wednesday. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Monday announced the start of an offensive on the northern city, the last major stronghold of the militants in Iraq, with the backing of a U.S.-led coalition. "Intelligence information indicates that there are 5,000 to 6,000 Daesh fighters," Shaghati told a news conference near Erbil, the capital of the Kurdish region east of Mosul, using an Arabic acronym of Islamic State. (Reporting by Stephen Kalin and Ahmed Rasheed. Writing by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Hugh Lawson) 157 parliamentarians register impeachment motion against Lokman 157 parliamentarians from CPN-UML and CPN (Maoist Centre) have registered an impeachment motion against Lokman Singh Karki, chief of Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) at Legislature-Parliament on Wednesday evening. * Infrastructure group plans to sell 15 pct of motorway unit ASPI * Looks to acquisitions abroad in motorway and airport businesses * Aims to generate 50 percent of core earnings abroad in 2020 (Recasts to add CEO quotes from investor day) By Stephen Jewkes and Francesca Landini MILAN, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Italian infrastructure group Atlantia aims to sell a 15 percent stake in its Autostrade per l'Italia (ASPI) toll road business to help fund its expansion outside its home market, its chief executive said on Wednesday. The group, 30 percent controlled by the Benetton family, is the sole owner of ASPI, which is valued at about 15 billion euros ($16.4 billion) by sector analysts. Atlantia also owns Aeroporti di Roma (ADR), the company that runs Rome airports Fiumicino and Ciampino. The group's advisers, JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse, will gather non-binding offers for ASPI in November. The final offers and a preliminary contract are expected in February, Chief Executive Giovanni Castellucci told a meeting of analysts and investors in London. The infrastructure group wants to boost the share of core earnings from its overseas operations to 50 percent in 2020 from the current 25 percent, the CEO said. Atlantia expects strong demand for the ASPI stake from large pension and sovereign wealth funds keen to invest in Italy, Castellucci said, without naming any potential buyer. "Atlantia is looking to speed up its international expansion by acquiring attractive motorway and airport assets," Castellucci said. ADR, however, would not be put on the block, he said. Last year Atlantia failed to sell a minority stake in the unit. The group said it planned to restructure its activities into four divisions and separate its Italian motorway assets from those abroad to make the units more attractive for investors. Atlantia this year bought a majority stake in France's Nice Cote d'Azur airport and a small stake in SAVE, the operator of Venice airport, and there is more to come. Story continues "We will be picky on core assets: we will look at urban toll roads... and global destination airports," Castellucci said, adding payments systems and toll collection businesses could also attract the group's interest. If Atlantia fails to find the right investment opportunities it will return the money to investors with a buyback. In a statement issued ahead of its investor day, the company said it planned to spend more than 5 billion euros on its Italian motorway network over the next 5 years and 2.5 billion euros on its Rome airport assets. The group also said it expected its revenue to grow to 6.8 billion euros in 2020 from the current 5.5 billion euros, with core earnings in the period growing around 7 percent per year. It also expects to grow dividends by 10 percent per year from this year to 2020. ($1 = 0.9123 euros) (Additional reporting by Agnieszka Flak; Editing by Keith Weir) By Gavin Jones ROME (Reuters) - Center-right leader Silvio Berlusconi, who left Italy's political limelight after heart surgery, has returned to the fray this week trying to defeat Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's planned constitutional reform. In his first television interview since June, the 80-year-old media tycoon told his own Canale 5 channel on Tuesday evening the reform was "dangerous" and had to be blocked to prevent Renzi becoming "the master of Italy and the Italians." On Wednesday, after meeting heads of other center-right parties, he said it "would solve none of Italy's problems" and was being used by Renzi to divert attention from "the economic failures of his government." The reform, which goes to a national referendum on Dec. 4, aims to reduce the role of the Senate and cut the powers of regional governments. Renzi says it will increase government stability and speed up lawmaking. Opponents say it will make Italy less democratic and complicate the legislative process. The great majority of opinion polls over the last month put the "no" camp ahead, but with many voters still undecided, the margin remains narrow. Berlusconi, who had an aortic valve replaced on June 14 after what his doctors said was a life-threatening cardiac disorder, headed four Italian governments between 1994 and 2011. He has lost much of his political clout since being barred from office following a 2013 conviction for tax fraud, but his Forza Italia (Go Italy!) party is still backed by around 12 percent of Italians, according to opinion polls. These votes could be vital in the referendum as polls show Forza Italia supporters are particularly undecided, with as many as 40 percent attracted by Renzi's proposals. Berlusconi negotiated with Renzi in drawing up the reform and originally voted for it in parliament, only to withdraw his backing after Renzi refused to settle on a mutually agreed candidate for national president in 2015. It remains to be seen how strongly Berlusconi will campaign ahead of the referendum. So far, his three television channels have been far from hostile to Renzi, prompting irritation among Berlusconi's allies who suspect he may be more concerned about defending his business interests than sinking the government. U.S. President Barack Obama backed Renzi in the referendum battle on Tuesday, but said the Italian leader should stay in office even if he loses the vote. Renzi used to promise he would stand down if the referendum is rejected, but he has stopped repeating this pledge over the last two months, leaving some doubt about his intentions. (Reporting by Gavin Jones; Editing by Tom Heneghan) From ELLE Ever since the now-famed tape that found presidential candidate Donald Trump bragging about how he could freely assault women leaked two weeks ago, people have wondered how Ivanka Trump would respond. On the trail and in interviews, Ivanka has tried to make a quasi-feminist case for her father, touting his paid leave plan and the role that she's played in his company. But his recent comments-which are only his latest public offenses-have made it that much harder for her to stake such claims. Trump himself has dismissed the tape as "locker room talk" and his wife, Melania, hit the airwaves to defend him this week, insisting that women who have come forward to report Trump's assaultive behavior are lying. Yesterday, Ivanka joined the chorus and issued a one-sentence statement to Fast Company: "My father's comments were clearly inappropriate and offensive, and I'm glad that he acknowledged this fact with an immediate apology to my family and the American people." You Might Also Like BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti called out Ivanka Trump over her response Wednesday morning to father Donald Trump's lewd comments, in which she called the words recorded on the resurfaced tape "jarring." In a tweet not long after Ivanka Trump's public appearance, Peretti wrote, "Surprised Ivanka would be shocked by lewd language. I met her once & she casually said: 'I've never seen a mulatto cock, but I'd like to!'" Surprised Ivanka would be shocked by lewd language. I met her once & she casually said: "I've never seen a mulatto cock, but I'd like to!" https://t.co/WrgCoM0MGK - Jonah Peretti (@peretti) October 19, 2016 Ivanka Trump, who was speaking at Fortune's Most Powerful Women summit, was responding to a question about whether she was offended by the leaked tape of her father boasting about trying to kiss and grab women without their consent. "That's not language consistent with any conversation I've ever had with him, certainly, or any conversation I've overheard," she told the crowd and live-streaming audience. During the 20-minute interview, Ivanka also said that her father would accept the outcome of the 2016 presidential election regardless of whether he wins or loses. Peretti's tweet came a couple of hours later. When asked for comment, a BuzzFeed spokeswoman pointed The Hollywood Reporter to an interview that Peretti gave to BuzzFeed News. In that interview, Peretti said he met Ivanka at Manhattan dive bar Tropical 128 between eight and 10 years ago with a group of about five other people. "She was saying how she first said she had never seen an uncircumcised cock and then she said, 'I've never seen a mulatto cock. There's lots of cocks I've never seen,' or something like that," Peretti told the BuzzFeed reporter. He added: "Of course, it was memorable just because of the use of the lewd language and racist language." Peretti said he decided to share the story on Twitter because "I read the article and it felt like that experience was relevant." Story continues On Wednesday afternoon, only hours ahead of the third and final presidential debate, Ivanka shot down the story in a statement to THR: "I am not sure if this was meant to be a joke, but in case there is any ambiguity, this is a complete and total lie." A spokesman for Donald Trump's campaign, Jason Miller, also responded via email to BuzzFeed. "What a little man and a disgraceful liar to smear Ivanka Trump like this," reads the statement published by BuzzFeed. "It shows just how far the media will go to tear down Mr. Trump's family, and we demand an apology." BuzzFeed, meanwhile, further backed up Peretti's claim, posting a short statement from his wife, Andrea Harder, who confirmed that she had been in attendance at the gathering and did hear Ivanka's comment but had "no comment beyond that." An anonymous source was also cited as confirming that the gathering took place in 2008. Read more: Ivanka Trump Does Not Believe Election Is Rigged, Says Donald Trump Will Accept Outcome Oct. 19, 4:17 p.m. Updated with the Trump campaign's response and BuzzFeed's additional reporting around the gathering. Ivanka Trump tried to put some space between her work as a businesswoman and the campaign of her father, Donald Trump, during an onstage interview on Wednesday morning. "I'm not a surrogate, I'm a daughter," she told the audience at Fortune's Most Powerful Women summit, adding, "I'm not the campaign mastermind." Trump, who serves as executive vp development and acquisitions at her father's company, the Trump Organization, and also has her own fashion line, explained that she hates the word "surrogate" asking, "What does that mean?" She noted that she has refrained from wading into policy, with one exception: helping Donald Trump to craft a child-care policy that would lower the cost of care and guarantee six weeks of paid maternity leave. "It's very core to my personal and professional mission, so I stepped into the fray on that front," she said. Trump, who is married to fellow New York real estate scion Jared Kushner, is the mother of three. She described that when she drops her children off at school there are now photographers waiting to take her photo. "The media has been vicious," she said, noting that some places have interpreted her motherly duties as a way for the campaign to appeal to working women. Trump also reiterated that she considers herself an independent. "I'm not automatically aligned with any party. I've shared my thoughts with my father very candidly," she added. Two days earlier, Trump broke her silence on her father's lewd statements about groping women, calling them "clearly inappropriate and offensive." The statement, part of a Fast Company profile on Donald Trump's oldest daughter, came a little more than a week after a leaked 2005 tape of the Republican presidential candidate boasting with former Access Hollywood host Billy Bush. Her full statement: "My father's comments were clearly inappropriate and offensive and I'm glad that he acknowledged this fact with an immediate apology to my family and the American people." Story continues Her talk on Wednesday began with a question about whether she was offended by her father's comments. "Way to warm up," she joked, before saying, "I think my remarks were clear on this. I did find it to be offensive. He acknowledged it as well." "This tape was over a decade old. I'm sure he didn't remember this conversation," she continued, adding that Donald Trump "was embarrassed that he said those things." She went on to explain that his comments were not consistent with conversations she'd had with him and called them "a bit jarring for me to hear." She said that her father expressed this to her privately and "he was very sincere in his apology." But while Trump says she has an open dialog with her father, she also was quick to note that she is not her father. "He's very much his own man, just as I am very much my own woman," she said. "I have opinions. My opinions are my own." Near the end of her session, she was asked whether Donald Trump will concede if he loses to Hillary Clinton. "My father is in this to win it. I'm not interested in talking about alternative outcomes," she responded, before adding that her father "will always do the right thing." She concluded: "He'll either win or he won't win, and I believe he'll accept the outcome either way." 350,000 families still without aid Despite repeated pledges from Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal to swiftly distribute the first instalment of the private housing aid, more than 350,000 of around 800,000 households are still waiting for the aid. TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Sharp Corp on Wednesday said it expects significant improvement in annual profit due to restructuring and synergies with new owner Foxconn, sending shares in the display maker soaring more than 10 percent. The statement came after the Nikkei business daily reported that Sharp forecasts operating profit of about 40 billion yen ($385 million) for the business year through March. That would compare with the 6.6 billion yen average of 11 analyst estimates in a Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S poll. Meeting the forecast would mark the first operating profit in three years for Sharp, which is rebuilding under Taiwan's Foxconn. The world's biggest contract electronics manufacturer, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd, bought two-thirds of Sharp for 388.8 billion yen in August. Sharp cut about 6,000 jobs to 43,500 in the last financial year through early retirement and an operations overhaul including withdrawal from its money-losing North American TV set business. On Wednesday, Sharp said it expected profit to improve but revenue to fall. Its shares subsequently jumped nearly 11 percent to their highest price in about six months, far outperforming the benchmark Nikkei average share price index. "Sharp stopped the bleeding by cutting fixed costs, but that's only a stopgap measure," said analyst Hideki Yasuda at Ace Research Institute. "It's still unclear how the company can attain its topline growth. It needs to find a new growth driver." The prospects of Sharp's mainstay display panel business - the root cause of its decline - remain dim. The global panel market is on the cusp of improvement as a production cutback resolved a supply glut and new product launches including Apple Inc's latest iPhone temporarily boost demand. But Sharp still has to find ways to compete with Chinese peers rapidly expanding capacity, and with South Korean makers far ahead in next-generation technology. Apple is widely expected to adopt that technology - organic light-emitting diode (OLED) - for future versions of its iPhone, analysts said. Story continues Sharp said it would provide a full-year earnings forecast on Nov. 1, when it announces its second-quarter results. ($1 = 103.8200 yen) (Reporting by Chang-Ran Kim, Taiga Uranaka and Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by Edwina Gibbs and Christopher Cushing) Jennifer Lawrence in La Perla and Ralph Lauren. (Photo: Dave Allocca/Starpix/REX/Shutterstock) Jennifer Lawrence attended a La La Land screening to support Emma Stone in New York City on Tuesday, and she wore a very supportive top to do so. The Hunger Games actress wore wide-leg black pants from Ralph Laurens Fall 2016 ready-to-wear collection. She paired the statement bottoms, featuring a Western-influenced pattern on one leg, with a piece from La Perla. In other words, she wore lingerie as a shirt. Jennifer Lawrence in a La Perla top and Ralph Lauren Fall 2016 RTW pants ata special screening of "La La Land" in NYC yesterday styled by Jill and Jordan @jillandjordan @ralphlauren A photo posted by Check The Tag (@checkthetag) on Oct 18, 2016 at 11:13pm PDT The 26-year-old accessorized the Fabulous Mood Underwired Bodice one-piece which retails for $1,924 with a long chain dreamcatcher necklace layered with a simple gold choker. She styled her honey blonde hair, which was recently platinum for her role in Passengers, wavy with a side part, and had a pucker of shiny nude lipgloss. Lawrence, whos a Dior ambassador, typically only wears the French brand, so it was definitely refreshing to see her try something different and risque. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama celebrated their last White House state dinner in style on Tuesday, with celebrity chef Mario Batali creating the evening's menu and an impressively star-studded guest list. Joining the Obamas and the evening's guests of honor -- Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and wife Agnese Landini -- were a cavalcade of stars, who all dressed to the nines for the exclusive, black tie affair. WATCH: Michelle Obama Stuns in Sparkles at Final State Dinner -- See the Pics! The event featured celebs from the world of music, television and movies, including Emmy winner John Turturro and his wife Katherine Borowitz, as well as Oscar winner Roberto Benigni and wife Nicoletta Braschi. Getty Images Getty Images Comedian Jerry Seinfeld, who welcomed President Obama as a guest on his popular webseries, Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee last year, showed up in a classic tux, alongside his wife, Jessica, who stunned in a shimmering, pewter gown. Getty Images PHOTOS: Go Inside President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama's Final White House State Dinner News anchors George Stephanopoulos and his wife, Alexandra Wentworth, as well as Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd and his wife, Kristian, also turned out for the night's regal festivities. Getty Images Getty Images TV chef and talk show host Rachael Ray looked striking in a beautiful, flower-print gown while her husband, John Cusimano, rocked an awesome black-on-black tuxedo. Getty Images When it came to recording artists, there was no shortage of huge stars who came to celebrate the Obamas' final state dinner, including pop superstar Gwen Stefani, who performed during the dinner, and her country crooner paramour, Blake Shelton. Getty Images WATCH: Gwen Stefani and Her Sons Meet President Barack Obama Ahead of Italy State Dinner Performance Five-time GRAMMY-winner James Taylor was also in attendance, along with his wife of 15 years, Kim. Story continues Getty Images Best-selling Blonde artist Frank Ocean also turned out for the event, alongside his mom, Katonya Breaux. Getty Images However, Ocean wasn't the only rapper to bring their parent as their plus one. Chance the Rapper came with his father, Ken Williams-Bennett, who actually used to work for President Obama when he was a senator, and currently serves as the deputy chief of staff to Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, Obama's former chief of staff. Getty Images WATCH: Barack and Michelle Obama Open Up About Life After the White House Among the night's other big names were fashion designer Giorgio Armani and NASCAR legend Mario Andretti. Getty Images Getty Images Earlier on Tuesday, Stefani brought her three sons -- Kingston, 10, Zuma, 8, and Apollo, 2 -- to meet with the Obamas, as well as Rezni and Landini, at the White House. Check out the video below for more on the No Doubt frontwoman's epic photo-op with the world leaders. Related Articles WASHINGTON, D.C. / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / Effective October 14, 2016, Jiri Maly assumed leadership for Louis Berger's Services operating company as the new president. "Jiri Maly has a proven track record as a leader and a mentor, so I look forward to having him as a member of the executive leadership team," said Jim Stamatis, Louis Berger CEO. "I am confident that his strong leadership skills and his deep knowledge of capital programs will help us drive one of our most profitable operations to double earning growth in alignment with our five-year strategic plan." Maly - who will be based in the company's Washington, D.C. office - brings with him a wealth of experience in capital project financing, development and delivery for multi-billion dollar infrastructure and industrial capital programs and projects around the world. Most recently, Maly was the Managing Director of CIBC's Global Infrastructure Finance team and a member of the CIBC Global Leadership Team. Prior to joining CIBC, Maly was a partner at McKinsey & Company where he was instrumental in founding and developing their Capital Projects and Infrastructure Practice. With nearly 20 years of experience in global, regional and local leadership roles, Maly has proven his commitment to the field of infrastructure and development. Maly has worked in such sectors as power and utility, oil and gas, as well as engineering and construction. During his 16 years at McKinsey & Company, he advised on over 75 capital projects across every stage of development, working on projects throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa. Maly holds two bachelor's degrees from the University of Calgary in Chemical Physics and Applied Mathematics. He also holds a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Chicago. About Louis Berger Louis Berger is a $1 billion global professional services corporation that helps infrastructure and development clients solve their most complex challenges. We are a trusted partner to national, state and local government agencies; multilateral institutions; and commercial industry clients worldwide. By focusing on client needs to deliver quality, safe, financially-successful projects with integrity, we are committed to deliver on our promise to provide Solutions for a better world. Story continues Louis Berger operates on every habitable continent. We have a long-standing presence in more than 50 nations, represented by the multidisciplinary expertise of 6,000 engineers, economists, scientists, managers and planners. Pictured above: Jiri Maly, Louis Berger's Services new operating company president. SOURCE: Louis Berger The Joey Mac Project, starring Joey McIntyre, has set its cast as production gets underway on Pops eight-episode scripted comedy series. Adam Ray (MadTV), Jamie Denbo (Orange Is the New Black), Katie Wee (New Girl), Punam Patel (Kevin from Work), and Jordan Black (Community) join McIntyre as series regulars. The Joey Mac Project stars McIntyre as himself in a hilarious quest to be taken seriously as a legit actor that eventually lands him a gig as a talk show host at a cable network called The Comfy Channel. As Joey starts to navigate the talk show circuit, he is joined by his often misguided manager and team. McIntyres real-life family members will also star in the show as themselves, including his wife Barrett and their three children, Griffin (eight years old), Rhys (six years old) and Kira (five years old). Ray will play Alex, Joeys longtime manager and confidant whose poor impulse control and short-term ideas have led to a successful codependent relationship with Joey, who is always looking for the next job. Denbo is Sam Kandor, a former broadcast network president, who after an epic breakdown has adopted a more balanced lifestyle full of incense, yoga and a new gig at The Comfy Channel. Wee plays Paige Kwan, the perky, ultra-driven VP of Development at The Comfy Channel who often oversteps when it comes to the production of Joeys show. Patel is Soozie, the long-suffering assistant to Sam and overly obsessive fan of New Kids on the Block. Black plays Malcolm, a joyless executive at The Comfy Channel who keeps a tight watch over the show and Sams over-the-top ideas. The Joey Mac Project is produced by T Group Productions and executive produced by Donnie Wahlberg, Jenny McCarthy, Joey McIntyre, Jenny Daly, Paul Greenberg and Tim Gibbons. Ray is repped by APA and Avalon TV. Patel is repped by APA and Principato-Young. Denbo is repped by Pakula/King & Associates. Related stories Lily James Set To Star In 'The Guernsey Literary And Potato Peel Pie Society' Story continues Verizon Says Yahoo Hack Could Have "Material Impact" Affecting Acquisition Stephen Colbert Blasts Donald Trump's Threat To "Wipe His Fat A** With Constitution" At Debate John Kasich John Kasich told Business Insider in a recent interview that if the Republican Party didn't "evolve," he "won't be a part of it." The Ohio governor and one-time 2016 Republican presidential contender made the comments while discussing trade policy and the stance of Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, who has championed a fiercely protectionist trade platform. In fact, the billionaire once likened the landmark Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement to "the rape of our country." "I will tell you that if the Republican Party does not evolve, the Republican Party is going to die," Kasich said. "The Republican Party cannot be antitrade, anti-immigrant, not out there practicing the politics of people, you know, the issues surrounding drug addiction and mental illness and the cost of prescription drugs and healthcare and student debt and all of these things are very personal to people now. "And if the party wants to have an ideological debate, it's never going to win anything in a major way," he continued. "So I do believe that the party needs to evolve, or I won't be a part of it." In September, Kasich visited the White House to discuss TPP, the free-trade agreement between the US and 11 other Pacific Rim nations. He later took questions at a press briefing where he explained why he was supporting the centerpiece of President Barack Obama's "pivot to Asia" in foreign policy. During his interview with Business Insider, Kasich explained that as long as the Obama administration was "deadly serious" about getting TPP passed, "which they tell me they are," Kasich said he'd "help them any way I can." "Whatever it takes," he said. "I think it's very important obviously from an economic point of view because of the need for innovation, for progress, to improve the standard of living of people. But I also think it's a critical issue in geopolitics too. With all those fledgling countries in Asia, who really want to stand with us but they live under the shadow of China and the smaller shadow of Russia. So I just think it's really important both economically and geopolitically." Story continues He said Obama would have to "engage" both Democrats and Republicans in a "very personal way" to get TPP through Congress, which he thinks has a chance to happen during the lame-duck session. "He needs to tell them that this is something that America, the United States of America, needs," he said. "Not Republican. It's not Democrat. It's America." John Kasich Though Kasich said he had never "worshipped at the altar of free trade," he had "always" been in favor of it. Kasich contended, however, that one of the biggest reasons the discussion about free trade has turned so negative is that the US has a "lousy" system for retraining workers who have lost factory jobs. "And, you know I just don't see anybody that's particularly interested in fixing that," he said. "They think it's fixed, but it's not fixed. So, we need a dramatic improvement in the way we train people who get displaced. Furthermore, when there is cheating, the cheating needs to be called. And I see that the administration has become much more aggressive on that front." But the notion that states such as Ohio are dependent on manufacturing jobs returning is one with which he vehemently disagrees. "Manufacturing is still very important to us, but we are much more diversified state," he said. "And furthermore, anybody that says the steel mills are coming back to Youngstown is not telling the truth. They're not coming back. You could have some aspects of advanced manufacturing appear. But if you look even at Pittsburgh, where I grew up, you've now replaced steel jobs with technology jobs, and they pay better." "So, I know that, you know, leaders have to lead," Kasich continued. "I don't read polls to decide what I'm going to do. But for the best interest of the people of our state, having a big mix of technology, healthcare, IT, financial services, and manufacturing is the ticket. To put all of your eggs in one basket is silly. We did that for a long time and I don't think it's very smart." Even though Trump's poll numbers in Ohio are among his best in any swing state, the Ohio governor said he didn't think that protectionist message was popular in the Buckeye State. "When you ask people do they believe that we ought to have trade, I think people understand it's important," he said. "Now I think that they are hung up on, you know, that people cheat and we don't enforce the laws, and I think that's correct. But I don't think people want to just say, 'We're not going to trade with anybody.' I don't accept that. I really don't care. I'm going to be like one of these deniers I don't care what the polls say." Kasich concluded: "I think people intuitively know that trade is good for our country, we just have to get the right trade agreements." NOW WATCH: Watch the brutal Hillary Clinton ad that pits Trump against himself More From Business Insider When it comes to reading, Jojo Moyes is constantly changing her tune. I believe books are like music, the bestselling author exclusively tells Us Weekly. Sometimes you want jazz, sometimes heavy rock or rap. PHOTOS: Celeb Scribes Enter her latest mix: Paris For One and Other Stories, a collection of short essays, out now. This wasnt a conventional writing exercise, in that each of these stories was written for a different purpose: for a literacy charity, for magazines, in a couple of cases to be broadcast on BBC Radio 4, Moyes, 47, says. When I realized they would make a good collection, I decided to revisit them all to polish them and in some cases extend them, now that I wasnt tied to a strict word count. The strangest thing was discovering that in a couple of cases I had forgotten them so comprehensively that I read halfway through each with no idea what was going to happen at the end. Thats often the most fun as a writer. To celebrate the books release, the Me Before You scribe shares her must-reads with Us. National Velvet by Enid Bagnold The 1935 tale of a young equestrian is oddly radical, says Moyes. Its funny, sly and inspirational. The heroine does something astonishing. She is uninterested in how she looks or how others see her, which is a rare thing in todays literature. PHOTOS: Celebrities Riding Horses A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin In Game of Thrones, nobody is entirely good or bad, but everyone is compelling, the Brit says. She especially enjoyed the series second book because of the emphasis on Tyrion Lannister: Hes my favorite character. But dont ask her to compare the cult classic to the HBO series. They are quite different beasts! PHOTOS: Game of Thrones Cast: What They Look Like Off-Screen! Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn After devouring the thriller on vacation, she insisted journalist husband Charles Arthur take a turn. Then I was driven mad when he didnt lift his head from the book to talk to me for the next three days, she jokes. I had to discuss it with somebody! Story continues My Family And Other Animals by Gerald Durrell Moyes calls the 1956 memoir about the authors childhood on a Greek island wickedly funny. In fact, after recently watching the TV adaptation, she decided to revisit the tome: The curiosity and fascination of young Durrell for the animal world is absolutely infectious. That love has stayed with me today. A Manual For Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin The poignant essays are told by a writer who didnt get much recognition in her lifetime, admits Moyes. I picked it up because I saw a number of good reviews, and I was intrigued by the title. I had a brief spell as a cleaning woman. PHOTOS: Stars' Funniest First Jobs I Found You by Lisa Jewell Though her pals suspenseful drama is not out until April, Moyes got her hands on an early copy. Im always anxious about reading books by friends, as it is a nightmare if you dont like them and have to find a way to evade saying so, she admits. But, Ive never read a book by Lisa that I didnt love. In this case, I ended up reading the whole thing in a day which is always a pleasure, and makes you feel as if youve had a little holiday from your own life. Pick up Moyes latest book, Paris For One and Other Stories, on bookshelves now! Related Content: Things are about to get very strange for Jonathan Lipnicki. The actor has nabbed the lead role in indie horror film Circus Kane, which sees a reclusive circus master invite a group of social media stars to his house of haunts. Anyone who can make it out before being scared into submission will earn $250,000 - but the stars soon learn they are not only competing for money, but also fighting their lives. Lipnicki first came into the public eye as the adorable kid in Jerry Maguire (but if you still think of him as a child actor, this will likely change your mind). He'll be joined in Circus Kane by co-stars Mark Christopher Lawrence and Nicole Fox. Circus Kane is being directed by Christopher Douglas-Olen Ray from a script by James Cullen Bressack and Zack Ward, based on a story by Sean Sellars. DeInstitutionalized's Gerald Webb and Christopher Ray are producing along with Bressack. Apex court notice to CIAA chief delivered The curtain has finally fallen on the first act of a high drama involving the Supreme Court (SC) and Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority chief Lokman Singh Karki, with apex court officials managing to serve a summons, after two failed attempts, amid protests and obstructions. Jose Aldo walked out of a meeting with UFC president Dana White and matchmaker Sean Shelby on Wednesday feeling as if a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. No, it wasn't because he had been let out of his contract. It also wasn't because the UFC cut a special deal with him or offered him a fight. It was because Aldo finally got to say what he wanted to say to his bosses without having anyone in the middle mucking the water. It was a good conversation. It went exactly as expected, Aldo told reporters after the meeting. I want to thank Dana. I want to thank Sean Shelby. Aldo had wanted the meeting to explain where his head was, how he was feeling about his career and the direction of the company that he had been a part of for so long. In a recent meeting with reporters in Brazil, Aldo said that he had been contemplating his career ever since losing the UFC featherweight title to Conor McGregor late last year. TRENDING > Ronda Rousey vs. Cris Cyborg Would Be the Biggest PPV in UFC History McGregor knocked him out in 13 seconds, taking the belt that only Aldo had ever held. He had worn the featherweight strap for more than three years in the UFC, and for several years prior to that in the WEC. Yet, he wasn't granted an immediate rematch. Since then, Aldo has been contemplating his motivation to continue fighting. His thoughts spilled into public recently when he asked the UFC to release him from his contract. That, however, wasn't specifically what he went to Las Vegas for on Wednesday. I didn't come here just wanting to cancel my contract or to be released. I came here because I had a lot on my chest, he said. I had a lot of things I wanted to say and I thought saying them in person was the professional approach and the proper approach to take with them. Aldo indicated that he was able to do what he was there for. He got to express himself to White and Shelby without his feelings being misconstrued by the media. That doesn't mean that his feelings of lacking motivation to fight have subsided. Story continues If I had no contracts, if I had nothing binding me, nothing forcing my hand, I don't think I have the motivation to fight right now, he said. I don't think that's something that I'd be doing. Of course, I have a contract. I respect the obligations therein. While there had been reports indicating that he might be considering legal action to try and get out of his UFC contract, Aldo on Wednesday said that wasn't so. There's no reason to do that. I'm not that kind of guy, I'm a man. Though he said he doesn't currently feel like he would be fighting if not contractually obligated, he didn't exactly say he wouldn't fight again either, which sounds light years away from his public standing just a week ago. But as Aldo said, he felt his meeting went well. There has also been a lot of movement from the UFC's new ownership, as they laid off numerous employees on Tuesday and Wednesday, signaling that the status quo wouldn't remain. Perhaps those moves also influenced the way Aldo is thinking about his future with the fight promotion. Today was just a first conversation, we might be headed down a better path, he said. There's a lot of transitions happening in the UFC. They are under new ownership. They're gonna have new ideas and priorities, new methodologies. We'll see what direction they want to take their business in and we'll see what that means for me. Follow MMAWeekly.com on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram A Montana judge is facing a backlash after he sentenced a man who pleaded guilty to repeatedly raping his 12-year-old daughter to just 60 days in jail. District Judge John McKeon is defending the short sentence, noting in an email to the Associated Press that state law permits exceptions to the mandatory minimum 25-year sentence for incest with a child, in cases where psychological evaluations find that treatment would afford a better opportunity for rehabilitation of the offender and for the ultimate protection of the victim and society. But the judges decision has sparked objections, including a petition to impeach McKeon that had more than 20,000 signatures as of Wednesday at noon; if it reaches 25,000, it will be presented to the chief clerk of the Montana House of Representatives. Under the judges sentence, the man, whom TIME is not identifying in order to protect the victim, will have to register as a sex offender, receive treatment and receive approval from his probation officer and treatment providers before having contact with the victim or any other minor, the AP reports. His access to the internet will be limited and he is prohibited from viewing pornography. His sentence is technically a 30-year suspended sentence, which he would have to serve if he failed to meet his probation requirements. The victims mother and grandmother wrote letters asking that the defendant not be given a prison sentence, noting that the mans sons still love him and saying they want him to be part of the childrens lives. A Deputy Valley County Attorney told the AP no one spoke on behalf of the girl at the sentencing hearing on Friday. McKeon is planning to retire next month, but the petition argues he should not receive his retirement money. He did not take care of us, the petition reads. We should not have to take care of him. [AP] Judy Greer has signed on to star in Public Schooled, a coming-of-age comedy from Canadian-based filmmakers Kyle Rideout and Josh Epstein. Epstein and Rideout co-wrote the script, and Rideout will sit in the director's chair when cameras roll in Vancouver starting in November. Epstein is producing. Public Schooled will star Greer as the mother of a socially awkward boy who has been home-schooled his whole life. When the boy falls in love with a popular one-legged girl, he abandons his mother's suffocating love and enrolls in public school, entering a world of sex, drugs and social studies. A North American search for the actor to play the boy is currently underway. "Being a self-diagnosed control freak, I was moved by the character's struggle to let go of the reins," Greer said Wednesday in a statement. "I love the idea that no matter how much we try to shelter our kids, at some point they need to be free to discover themselves by themselves." The Canadian Film Centre is executive producing and co-financing the feature. Telefilm Canada also is a financier. Justine Whyte (Rhymes for Young Ghouls) will exec produce, while Adam Folk (Cold in July) will co-produce. Rideout and Epstein's first feature, Eadweard, was a film-festival favorite, winning awards at fests in Cape Cod, Maui, Nashville and Rhode Island, as well as nabbing a Canadian Screen Award nomination for best adapted screenplay. The movie will be released in the U.S. by Gravitas Ventures. Greer recently wrapped Wilson, Fox Searchlight's adaptation of the Daniel Clowes graphic novel that also stars Woody Harrelson, and also will be seen in next summer's War for the Planet of the Apes. She also is in postproduction on her directorial debut, A Happening of Monumental Proportions, starring Allison Janney, Common and Rob Riggle. Greer is repped by CAA, Principato-Young and Felker Toczek. Ecuador's government acknowledged Tuesday that it cut off WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's internet access at its embassy in London after the whistle-blowing site published a trove of damaging emails from Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. The foreign ministry said that while it stands by its 2012 decision to grant Assange asylum based on legitimate concerns that he faces political persecution, it respects other nations' sovereignty and doesn't interfere with or support any candidate in foreign elections. "The decision to make this information public is the exclusive responsibility of the WikiLeaks organization," the foreign ministry said in a statement. The recognition of the reprimand comes less than 24 hours after WikiLeaks tweeted that Ecuador had cut off Assange's access to the Internet on Saturday after the publication of Clinton's speeches to Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs. In follow-up messages posted Tuesday, the group claimed U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had personally intervened to ask Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing documents about Clinton. Citing "multiple US sources," WikiLeaks said the request was made on the sidelines of a visit by Kerry and Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa last month to Colombia to show their support for a peace deal with leftist rebels. The State Department denied the allegation and Correa's leftist government said it was acting on its own and not ceding to foreign pressures. The foreign ministry didn't specify the extent of the "temporary restrictions" on Assange, saying only that it wouldn't affect WikiLeaks' ability to carry out its journalistic activities. "While our concerns about WikiLeaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down WikiLeaks is " U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said in an email. Speaking to reporters later, deputy spokesman Mark Toner said Kerry never even raised the issue or met with Correa during his visit to Colombia. Story continues "There just was no meeting," he said. "They didn't discuss any of this stuff." Assange has been holed up at the modest embassy suite at No. 3 Hans Crescent for more than four years after skipping bail to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex crimes allegations, a position which - until now - hasn't prevented him from continuing to play a pivotal role in exposing state secrets and backroom trade deals. WikiLeaks said unspecified "contingency plans" were in place and the site and its Twitter feed appeared to be working as usual. On Tuesday it released another tranche of emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, suggesting that the group's ability to publish has yet to be compromised. The disclosure was the 11th installation in a series of leaks that have captured the workings of Clinton's inner circle. Those leaks themselves are part of a wider cascade that have embarrassed the Democratic Party and which the American intelligence community has recently described as an attempt by the Russian government to interfere in the U.S. election. Staff at WikiLeaks and the embassy either declined to comment or didn't return messages. Assange fled to the Ecuadorian Embassy on June 19, 2012, after a drawn-out and ultimately unsuccessful legal battle over being sent to Sweden, where he remains wanted over an allegation of rape. Ecuador granted him asylum, but British authorities have made clear they would arrest him if he tried to leave. London's Metropolitan Police used to maintain a visible presence outside the building, although officers were nowhere in sight when an AP journalist visited Tuesday. Read more: Laura Poitras on Making Julian Assange Doc: "I'm Not Trying to Shape Public Opinion" (Q&A) TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / JZechner Associates is pleased to report that the JZechner Global Hedged Growth Fund was awarded two honours at the 2016 Canadian Hedge Fund Awards Gala, held on October 18, 2016 at the One King West Hotel in Toronto. The fund won first for its 1 Year Return in the Global Macro/Managed Futures/Multi Strategy category. The fund also picked up a third place for its 5 Year Return in the same fund category. About the Annual Canadian Hedge Fund Awards The Annual Canadian Hedge Fund Awards were first held in 2008 and have a two -fold objective: First, to celebrate the talent and accomplishments of Canada's hedge fund industry, and second, to draw attention to Canada's hedge funds by raising the awareness of that expertise in the media and among the wider investment community. For more information about the Canadian Hedge Fund Awards program, go to www.alternativeiq.com. About JZechner Associates J Zechner Associates is an independent firm owned by its employee-partners. The firm actively manage over $2 billion in assets and have been growing since 1993. Dedicated to combining a singular level of personalized service, and an award-winning approach to asset management, the firm's clients are families, institutions, pension funds and even provides its distinct portfolio management for other mutual fund companies. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT MICHAEL LIPPI AT JZECHNER ASSOCIATES: 1.866.259.6482 OR 416.867.1562; MLIPPI@JZECHNER.COM VISIT JZECHNER.COM # # # NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED STATES OR OVER U.S. WIRE SERVICES SOURCE: JZechner Associates Even as her rival Donald Trump is slipping in the polls, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is pulling out the big guns in battleground states in an attempt to sway any undecided voters. The campaign announced a series of events dubbed "Love Trumps Hate" that will feature performances by Katy Perry, Jennifer Lopez and Jon Bon Jovi, among others. In a press release announcing the effort, the campaign said, "The performance series will feature a number of artists performing in battleground states who will energize our supporters and encourage them to turn out to vote on Election Day or to take advantage of early voting options in their states." More performances will be announced in the coming days. The phrase "love trumps hate" was used by Clinton during her primetime address at the Democratic National Convention in July. The announcement explained that the performances will also serve as a recruiting opportunity to find new volunteers for the home stretch of the campaign. "In the final weeks of the campaign, what voters will hear from these performers and all HFA surrogates is that Hillary Clinton has the experience and steadiness to bring people together and get real results," the statement continued. "The choice in this election is clear. We can either come together to tackle the big challenges facing the country or let Donald Trump keep tearing us apart with his divisive rhetoric and dangerous ideas. That's why millions of people are coming together to support Hillary Clinton and send a clear message that 'love trumps hate.'" According to the campaign scheduling site, Bon Jovi is slated to perform in Pittsburgh on Oct. 27 and Tampa on Nov. 5, while Lopez will be in Miami on Oct. 29; no additional event details had been announced at press time. Stars came out for Clinton on Monday night (Oct. 17) in New York at a "Stronger Together" Broadway benefit that features performances from Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, Billy Crystal, Josh Groban, Bette Midler, Neil Patrick Harris, Hugh Jackman, Sara Bareilles, as well as appearances from former president Bill Clinton, Barbra Streisand, Lena Dunham, Chelsea Clinton, Angela Bassett, Joel Grey, Sienna Miller, Sarah Jessica Parker, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, Julia Roberts, Helen Mirren and others. By Huw Jones and William James LONDON (Reuters) - The future of London's financial clearing business is a significant consideration in Britain's negotiations on leaving the European Union, but is probably not a top priority for government, its financial services minister said on Wednesday. London dominates clearing of derivatives denominated in euros, mainly via the London Stock Exchange's LCH.Clearnet business, and attempts by the European Central Bank to shift clearing to the euro zone were thwarted by the bloc's top court. But after Britain voted in June to leave the EU, French President Francois Hollande called for clearing of euro denominated securities to shift to the euro zone. Industry lobby groups in Britain such as TheCityUK have said keeping clearing in London is vitally important and should be one of the government's core aims in negotiations on new trading terms with the bloc. Britain's financial services minister, Simon Kirby, declined to give full backing to such demands at a parliamentary hearing. "It's an element of the negotiations. Is it the most important element? Probably not, but it is a significant consideration," Kirby said when asked whether the finance ministry had analysed the impact of relocating clearing houses away from the capital. "The whole of Europe, UK included, would be worse off if that particular part of financial services that London offers was dismantled and redistributed across Europe," Kirby told a committee in the House of Lords. "There are some people who would have you believe it wouldn't go to Europe at all, and that it would end up in New York, which would be a very bad place for all of us." Kirby echoed Prime Minister Theresa May by saying Britain would seek the best trade deal possible for the country. TREASURY IN CHARGE Bankers lobbying to maintain "passports", or access to the EU's single market after Britain leaves the bloc, worry their traditional champion in government, the finance ministry, is being sidelined. Story continues Lawmakers pressed Kirby several times before he reassured them the treasury was indeed the government department that represents financial services, a sector that paid 66.5 billion pounds in tax in 2014-15. Katharine Braddick, director for financial services at the finance ministry, said she was conducting a sector-by-sector analysis of how different types of trade agreements would hit revenues, employment and tax receipts. The information will be passed on to the cabinet committee that will thrash out Britain's trade talks stance. Financial industry officials say a soft Brexit - or maintaining full access to the EU market - is unlikely, meaning access to the EU will be reduced for some parts of the sector as Paris, Frankfurt, Luxembourg and Dublin seek to attract banks from Britain. Some are concerned the government might sacrifice parts of the industry, such as euro clearing, as part of negotiations. Bank of England Deputy Governor Jon Cunliffe told the committee last week, however, it would be too hard for other European financial centres to replicate the complex "eco-system" of banks, asset managers, clearing houses, accountants and lawyers that make London the world's biggest financial hub. Braddick said it was difficult to quantify the impact of various types of trade deals on this eco-system. "I don't think that's a nut we might be able to crack analytically in this timescale," she said. Braddick said a loss of passports for asset managers may not be as problematic as initially appeared, though passports were important for investment banks. (Reporting by Huw Jones and William James; Editing by Louise Heavens and Mark Potter) NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya's new chief justice said on Wednesday he would fight corruption, cut a backlog of court cases and ensure any election disputes arising from next year's vote were resolved fairly and swiftly. David Maraga, an appeals court judge who was sworn in on Wednesday, takes over in the build-up to the August 2017 elections in a nation where votes are often marred by political strife. The disputed 2007 election was followed by weeks of ethnic bloodshed. The 2013 vote proceeded calmly, despite technical glitches, but opposition leader Raila Odinga challenged the result that handed the presidency to Uhuru Kenyatta, an appeal adjudicated by the former chief justice Willy Mutunga. Mutunga was broadly praised for bringing authority to the post established in the 2010 constitution and dealing with the election challenges, although opponents grumbled when a panel he led threw out their case. "The judiciary is ready to hear and resolve any election disputes that may arise in a fair and timely manner," Maraga said at the swearing-in ceremony, adding that he had experience as chair of the judiciary committee on elections. "I will seek to eliminate corruption from amongst our ranks, reduce the backlog of cases and automate court proceedings," he said, touching on the issue of graft that is seen as one of the main obstacles to investment in Kenya. He also takes on the post of head of the supreme court. The backlog of court cases is also seen as a hindrance to good governance. Kenyatta complained in a meeting about corruption this week that the slow pace of hearings hindered his anti-corruption drive. More than 600 corruption cases are pending in the courts, some of them involving top officials. There have been no convictions of top government officers, which activists say leads to a public perception of official impunity. (Reporting by Humphrey Malalo; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Andrew Heavens) Cardamom farmers store crops awaiting price rise Transactions in the cardamom market have slowed as growers have been holding on to their harvest following a sharp fall in prices due to low overseas demand. Blame it on recent sale of Sydney property. Keppel REIT reportedlower gains in 3Q on sale of a Sydney building. In a statement, Keppel REIT announced that its net property income dipped by 5.4% YoY to $31.6m for the three months to Sept 30 due to the absence of contributions from 77, King Street, which it sold in late January for $160m. Consequently, the firm also posted distribution per unit (DPU) of 1.60 Singapore cents for the quarter, down from 1.70 Singapore cents in the same year-ago period. On a positive note, other properties posted better results which help buoy the company's earnings. Marina Bay Financial Centre, for instance, contributed $24.7m, up 33.2% from a year earlier. Keppel REIT's net asset value per unit stood at S$1.42 as at Sept 30, 2016, lower than S$1.44 as at Dec 31, 2015. More From Singapore Business Review Washington (AFP) - US Secretary of State John Kerry warned Russia on Wednesday that seizing the city of Aleppo will not help end the Syrian civil war and may further radicalize opposition forces. Speaking as officials from the US, Russia and Syria's neighbors met in Geneva to seek ways to restore a ceasefire in the civil war, Kerry said Russia's bombardment of rebel-held areas was a mistake. Moscow argues that it is supporting Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad against Al-Qaeda-linked "terrorists" and blames Washington for failing to separate moderate rebels from the hardliners. But, speaking in Washington after talks with his South Korean counterpart, Kerry said: "Every bomb that's dropped by Russia and the Assad regime is radicalizing more and more people." After the collapse last month of a short-lived US and Russian-brokered truce, the Syrian regime launched a major offensive against the rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo, home to an estimated 250,000 civilians. "If Russia and Assad succeed in taking Aleppo, the fundamental dynamic of this war does not change," Kerry said, warning Russia to recommit to the search for a viable ceasefire deal. "If you don't have a political settlement you can't have peace and so Russia needs to understand this is not making things better, it's making things worse. "And we have put on the table an opportunity for Russia to make a different choice, a simple choice," he continued. If Russia halts its own bombing and orders Assad to halt his offensive, Kerry argued, then international powers can work with moderates on the ground to isolate extremists. Sanaa (AFP) - A new UN-brokered ceasefire is due to take effect at midnight Wednesday in Yemen, where a 19-month conflict fuelled by rivalries between Saudi Arabia and Iran has killed almost 6,900 people. Here are key dates: - Saudi intervention - - March 26, 2015: Saudi Arabia begins Operation Decisive Storm with air strikes on the rebels after forging a coalition of nine countries to shore up the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who has taken refuge in Riyadh after Iran-backed Shiite Huthi revels overran the capital Sanaa and swathes of the country. A few months later coalition special units are deployed in Yemen. - April 17, 2015: UN chief Ban Ki-moon calls for an immediate ceasefire in Yemen, two days after world powers impose an arms embargo on the rebels and demand they relinquish territory seized in a sweeping offensive. - Aden 'liberated' - On July 17, 2015 the government says it has "liberated" the southern province of Aden, its first major victory. Loyalist troops backed by Saudi air strikes struggle to maintain control over southern provinces owing to an influx of fighters from Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group. - Tough counterattacks - In February 2016, Saudi Arabia says that Yemeni government forces have recaptured "more than three-quarters" of the country. Coalition casualties begin to mount, and include 67 soldiers killed in a rebel rocket attack on September 4, 2015. - Fruitless peace talks - Five attempts by the United Nations to clinch a truce in Yemen fail and a diplomatic rupture between Riyadh and Tehran in January 2016 throws up a fresh hurdle. The latest effort for a 72-hour truce due to start from 2059 GMT on Wednesday was announced by UN special envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed. A truce declared in conjunction with the start of peace talks in Kuwait was hardly observed and eventually collapse as the negotiations ended in August with no breakthrough. Since then fighting has intensified, and hours before the start of the new truce heavy clashes rocked Yemen. Story continues - Jihadist threat - Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group have exploited the power vacuum created by the conflict in yemen to expand their presence in the Arabian Peninsula country, particularly in the south and southeast. In mid-August, loyalist forces entered Zinjibar, the capital of the southern Abyan province, as part of an offensive to recapture the province from Al-Qaeda jihadists. The Arab coalition which backs the Yemeni government against the Huthis has turned its sights on the jihadists, and the United States has pressed its drone war against them. - Humanitarian toll - Civilians have paid the highest price in the impoverished country. Almost 6,900 have been killed -- more than half of them civilians -- while another three million are displaced and millions more need food aid. An October 8 coalition air strike killed more than 140 people and wounded at least 525 at a funeral in the Huthi-held capital Sanaa, according to UN estimates. The coalition, after denying any responsibility, admitted that one of its planes "wrongly targeted" the funereal based on "incorrect information". Earlier this month the World Health Organization reported an outbreak of cholera in Yemen and warned that the scarcity of drinkable water has worsened the hygiene situation in the country. Nearly three million people in Yemen are in need of immediate food supplies, while 1.5 million children suffer malnutrition, including 370,000 enduring very severe malnutrition that weakens their immune system, according to UNICEF. Welcome to the Good Squad! KhloA Kardashian launched her Good American denim line in front of hundreds of excited fans at an event hosted by Nordstrom in LAs popular shopping center The Grove. And she certainly dressed the part in a 100 percent Khlo$$$ outfit: Good Leg cropped skinnies from her collection teamed with a lace, lingerie-inspired bodysuit, plus double chokers and a 90s inspired wet hairA look. KhloA addressed the crowd alongside her business partner Emma Grede and mom Kris Jenner who was moderating the panel. I think what was so crucial to Emma and I, is creating a designer denim that was still trendy and cool and edgy that went into a variety of sizes that for some reason, the market feels like they donat need to produce, which is really unfair, she shared of the size-inclusive denim label, ranging from size 0 to 24. She added that she hopes the industry starts to take notice of the Good American sizing model to expand the product available to women. I know itas going to be more competition but we want them to copy us and hopefully expand their line into larger sizes and to real woman sizes and to really embrace this trend. We want it to be a trend forever, she said. And KhloAs passion for an inclusive premium denim line was inspired by her own struggle to find jeans that worked for her body type. I used to be a girl that would walk into a boutique and they didnat have my size of denim and I was really body shamed into being too overweight. I couldnat fit into their denim, she shared. So Iam fighting for all the real girls and all the girls with hips and curves, yes! Priced between $149 $205, Good American features a range of styles from aA slouchy boyfriend to distressed to classic black skinnies and even the perfect white jean. The line is available exclusively at Nordstrom and Nordstrom.com. Story continues Kris, Kylie Jenner and Khloe Kardashian have already joined the Good Squad, proudly wearing the jeans to support KhloA. Kourtney also attended Tuesdays event along with Kim Kardashians personal assistant Steph Shep. Kim is currently taking some much needed time off after her Paris hotel robbery horror earlier this month. And her family members arent the only models. KhloA doesnt only hope to create a revolution in the actual denim market, but also with how her jeans are marketed. She and Grede have created their Good Squad and made them brand ambassadors, including KhloAs BFF Khadijah and Malika Haqq, Jordyn Woods, Gabi Gregg and more fresh faces. The Good Squad is a group of badass women who are individuals. Theyre confident within themselves, KhloA explained. Enough of this cookie cutter crap. There is no one size fits all. I love that our girls are girls of all ethnicities and heights and sizes and blondes, brunettes, whatever you are. I love how confident they are. What do you think of KhloAs line? Are you going to join the Good Squad? Share below! with reporting by Abby Stern Khloe Kardashian thinks everyone should stop blaming social media for Kim Kardashians robbery In the weeks since Kim Kardashian was violently robbed in the middle of the night in Paris, several members of her famous family have come forward to publicly support Kim, giving tidbits on how shes actually doing in the aftermath of the attack. Kim herself, nor her husband Kanye West, have addressed the attack, and its been rumored that Kim is looking to lead a much more low-key public existence going forward. Its definitely understandable that she may not feel comfortable being so open with the general public about her life, but her sister Khloe insists that social media simply isnt to blame for the robbery in the first place. A photo posted by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Sep 29, 2016 at 12:40pm PDT In an interview with the Associated Press, Khloe called the robbery a wake up call for everybody, but insists that Kims display of her wealth on social media is not to blame in the horrific incident. Pulling back on social media I think is a personal choice. No matter what you post or dont post. That shouldnt give someone a reason to feel like they could do anything like that to you. But we definitely are just being more aware and I think just making changes to our lives. "How do you plead, guilty or not guilty?" A photo posted by Khloe (@khloekardashian) on Jul 1, 2016 at 12:55am PDT Of course, Khloe makes a totally valid point posting photos of a diamond ring or expensive clothing simply doesnt give someone license to attack you, and its completely unfair for anyone to argue otherwise. Its that she had it coming mentality that people tend to use in situations like this that just isnt fair. No one deserves to have their privacy and personal safety violated because they are a public figure or wealthy. Its the worst kind of victim blaming imaginable. A photo posted by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Sep 27, 2016 at 3:44pm PDT The Kardashians have certainly had fears about these kinds of attacks in the past, as shown several times on their reality show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Kylie, in particular, was the subject of unwanted attention by an intruder, prompting her sisters to warn her about the dangers of sharing her location on Snapchat. Kendall has also faced a persistent stalker, and Kris was the subject of an iCloud hack, all in recent years. Story continues A photo posted by Khloe (@khloekardashian) on Feb 4, 2016 at 8:07pm PST Unfortunately, its the same openness and candor that the Kardashian/Jenner family have become known for that is what makes them clear targets for unwanted attention and invasion. We are wishing them the best during this difficult time and hoping that they can find a happy balance between living their lives freely and remaining safe and protected. The post Khloe Kardashian thinks everyone should stop blaming social media for Kim Kardashians robbery appeared first on HelloGiggles. Morgan Stanley Chairman and Chief Executive James Gorman speaks during the Institute of International Finance Annual Meeting in Washington October 10, 2014. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts (UNITED STATES - Tags: BUSINESS) - RTR49Q43 Welcome to Finance Insider, Business Insider's summary of the top stories of the past 24 hours. To sign up, scroll to the bottom of this page and click "Get updates in your inbox," or click here. Morgan Stanley wrapped up earnings season for the big five US banks on Wednesday, reporting third-quarter earnings that beat on the top and bottom lines. And it looks like the bank may finally be seeing a turnaround in a hugely significant but recently disastrous business. Elsewhere in bank news, there's been a change at the top of Bank of America Merrill Lynch's investment banking unit, and John Stumpf, Wells Fargo's former CEO, resigned from the boards of Target and Chevron. Both Clinton and Trump want to scrap a tax loophole for private equity here's how it works. And troubled hedge fund Platinum just filed for bankruptcy. In deals news, the $17 billion Walgreens-Rite Aid deal looks like it's in trouble, and a leaked email shows Salesforce once had Adobe on its target acquisition list. Marissa Mayer insisted Yahoo's Verizon deal is still on track while reporting a 14% in Q3 core revenue. The tech company also left out something important when it said users haven't fled since its big hack. Washington is taking a hard look at China's aggressive investment into US entertainment. And it looks as though there's only one thing big drug companies are afraid of. The markets history buffs among you will already know that the Black Monday stock market crash of 1987 took place 29 years ago today. In his latest note, veteran trader Art Cashin, the director of floor operations for UBS Financial Services at the New York Stock Exchange, shared what he remembered about the mood on the floor as Black Monday went from bad to worse. And here's why it's "uninformed" to compare the stock market today to Black Monday in 1987. Story continues In commodities news, oil prices are climbing. Prices for WTI Crude, the US benchmark, are up by 3.1% to a 15-month high of $51.83 per barrel as of 10:54 a.m. ET. There's a lot of corporate news out there. Here's a recap: In other news, here's how to answer the only essay question on the Harvard Business School application. And lastly, here's what your car can say about you. Here are the top Wall Street headlines at midday Why the best-known investment bank in the world now wants to lend you money - Goldman Sachs has officially booked its first consumer loan. Saudi Arabia attracted massive investor demand for its first international bond offering - Saudi Arabia attracted massive investor demand of about $67 billion on Wednesday for its first international bond offer, as the world's top crude exporter allayed concern about the impact of low oil prices on its finances. The world's biggest sovereign wealth fund is about to start taking more risk - Norway's Global Government Pension Fund, the biggest sovereign wealth fund in the world by assets under management, could be about to start taking a lot more risk. ALBERT EDWARDS: Everyone should stop freaking out about a bond market crash - Stop me if you've heard this before: the bond market is in a bubble and set up for a crash. Getting rid of cash could have some pretty weird effects on our bodies - Harvard economist Ken Rogoff has a long list of reasons he's anti-cash. He says many countries should get rid of most paper money in favor of electronic payments. This startup replaces real-estate agents with an app and says it will save homebuyers lots of money - Amit Haller is living the American dream. The 20 best cities in the world, according to Conde Nast Traveler - Conde Nast Traveler just released its annual Readers' Choice Awards. Hundreds of thousands of readers cast their votes for everything from islands to airlines, ensuring that the list is the creme de la creme of travel destinations and experiences. More From Business Insider Seoul (AFP) - Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors stormed into the AFC Champions League final with a 5-3 aggregate victory over FC Seoul despite losing the all-Korean semi-final's second leg 2-1 on Wednesday. After Jeonbuk had dominated the first leg 4-1, Brazilian marksman Adriano gave the home side hope when he slotted a record-equalling 13th goal of the tournament in the first half. But Jeonbuk's Ricardo Lopes doused any hopes of a comeback by equalising on 59 minutes, before Seoul's Ko Kwang-Min grabbed a consolation goal for Seoul in injury time. Jeonbuk, the 2006 champions, now go into a blockbuster two-legged final next month against fellow former winners Al Ain and their feted playmaker Omar Abdulrahman. The K-League leaders also reach their third Asian final despite a domestic scandal. They were deducted nine points and fined after one of their scouts was convicted of bribing referees. "We fought hard and were looking good in the first half," said FC Seoul's coach Hwang Sun-Hong. "The second goal was important and we were pushing for that. "So I am sorry for the fans who came out to support us in good numbers. We had a good campaign and the players did their best... we have learned from this experience and we will come back stronger." FC Seoul's Adriano was in the thick of it during an electric first half in front of a noisy crowd as the hosts pressed for the goals they needed to overturn their first-leg deficit. The Brazilian shot just wide on 16 minutes and headed off-target eight minutes later. Elsewhere, Jeonbuk midfielder Kim Bo-Kyung was bloodied by a flailing elbow before playing on with a bandaged head. It was Adriano who lifted the home side's hopes when he charged on to Kim Chi-Woo's cutback to put Seoul 1-0 up on 38 minutes with his 13th goal, equalling the 2013 record of Guangzhou Evergrande's Muriqui. A shock comeback was on the cards and FC Seoul came close to a second goal from a breakaway seven minutes into the second half, but ex-Arsenal forward Park Chu-Young's shot deflected wide. Story continues And Seoul regretted their miss when Lopes turned Kim Chi-Woo and fired across the face of goal to make it 1-1 on the night and open up a yawning 5-2 aggregate lead. Veteran substitute Lee Dong-Gook twice went close for Jeonbuk before Ko gave home fans something to cheer with a fierce drive two minutes into injury time. It sets up a home-and-away Asian final between two sides of similar pedigree after Al Ain, who ousted Qatar's El Jaish on Tuesday, won the inaugural edition in 2003 and were runners-up two years later. By Lauren Hirsch and Diane Bartz Oct 19 (Reuters) - Supermarket chain Kroger Co is questioning whether to proceed with buying divested stores from Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc as part of its proposed acquisition of Rite Aid Corp, a source familiar with the situation said on Wednesday. Cincinnati, Ohio-based Kroger's hesitation casts uncertainty on the future of the $9.4 billion Walgreens-Rite Aid deal, which need approval from antitrust authorities, who have pushed back against a number of large deals this year. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has told Kroger it would not have the option to close and integrate Rite Aid stores that are near Kroger locations, the source said. Kroger had concerns over the financial feasibility of such a set-up, as Rite Aid and Kroger have some overlap in products they sell, the source said, asking not to be named as the matter is confidential. Kroger and Walgreens representatives declined to comment. Walgreens said in early September it would likely have to divest between 500 and 1000 stores, more than its previous estimate, to win regulatory approval for its planned acquisition. Walgreen operates about 8,100 stores in the United States. Kroger had indicated to Rite Aid it had an interest in buying some of the divested stores, the source said. To be sure, it remains possible that other buyers, such as private equity firms, may step in to buy the stores if Kroger opts not to pursue a deal. It is not clear, however, whether another supermarket operator will step in, said David Balto, an antitrust attorney. "An acquisition (of the divested assets) by a supermarket would be a substantial challenge because it's outside their normal area of expertise," he said. "Pharmacies are the most competitive part of the health care system. Because of that, acquiring pharmacies may not be that attractive [for a grocery operator]" he added. Walgreens said in October it would acquire smaller peer Rite Aid to widen its footprint in the United States and negotiate for lower drug costs. The New York Post first reported on Kroger's concerns. (Reporting by Lauren Hirsch in New York and Diane Bartz in Washington DC; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe) Kuwait City (AFP) - A member of Kuwait's ruling family announced Wednesday his candidacy for next month's parliamentary election, a rare move in the oil-rich Gulf state where royals normally stay away from polls. Sheikh Malek al-Humud Al-Sabah was among 71 hopefuls who filed to stand for election on the first day of registration which saw some opposition members return after a four-year boycott. "The previous assembly let down the Kuwaiti people and I am contesting the polls to defend the rights of the people," said Sheikh Malek. Speaking to reporters in Kuwait City, he said he had given up his special passport "to become an ordinary citizen" and that he does not mind losing other benefits. Under the Kuwaiti constitution, royals are eligible to run for public office. Only a few have registered as candidates in the emirate's 54 years of democracy, but all have dropped out before election day. The last royal to register their candidacy was Sheikh Fahad Salem al-Ali Al-Sabah, who withdrew before the 2006 election. Members of the Al-Sabah family, which has been in power for 250 years, still occupy the main posts in the OPEC member. The emir, crown prince and prime ministers are senior members of the family, and royals always occupy the key posts of foreign, defence and interior minister. The November 26 polls were called after Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah dissolved parliament on Sunday, following a dispute over petrol price hikes. Many candidates have criticised the outgoing parliament for failing to defend the interests of citizens. Political parties are banned under Kuwaiti law but many Islamist, nationalist and liberal groups operate freely as de facto parties. Under Kuwait's unique system of democracy, a senior ruling family member will be mandated to form a government regardless of poll outcome. Many opposition groups have decided to take part after boycotting the previous two elections in protest against changes to the voting system. Only two former opposition lawmakers registered on Wednesday but as independents. CBS frames natl dev statistics strategy draft The Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) has framed the draft of the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics (NSDS) to standardise collection, processing and dissemination of statistics, improve data management, and promote evidence-based decision making in the country. In 2016, we're only eight years removed from 2008 -- barely even a president back -- but it was an entire pop universe ago. The two biggest Billboard Hot 100 hits of the year belonged to Flo Rida and Leona Lewis. Lil Wayne was the unquestioned Greatest Rapper Alive and Drake and Nicki Minaj were only well-known to mixtape enthusiasts. Adele was about as famous as Duffy. Justin Bieber's largesse was still contained to YouTube. And Lady Gaga was a dance-pop oddball signed to Akon's label, who seemed just as plausible as a future one-hit wonder than as a generational superstar. But most importantly, pop in 2008 was simply a smaller place. Event albums were scarce, music videos were dwindling in relevance, award shows were almost uniformly boring. The most recognizable voice in pop music was, ironically, that of T-Pain, whose popularization of Auto-Tune across Top 40 flattened out the vocal playing field to a near-depressing amount. Stars like Beyonce and Rihanna were beginning to push at pop's walls a little bit, but weren't yet at the place of completely breaking the mold. The EDM boom, and accompanying explosion in festival culture, were still a couple years away. Something big really needed to happen. It didn't take long for Lady Gaga to prove that she was the asteroid pop music was begging to have crash through it. Debut single "Just Dance" topped the Hot 100 for three weeks in early 2009, and "Poker Face" made her two-for-two a couple months later. Before long, this sleazy, sexually ambiguous club diva with mainstream pop smarts and underground grit was the biggest thing in Top 40 -- just in time for the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, where her surreal, macabre performance of new single "Paparazzi" provided the WTF? undercard to Kanye West and Taylor Swift's unquestioned main event. And of course, the videos. "Paparazzi" -- a foreign-filmed faux-noir starring True Blood actor Alexander Skarsgard and featuring Gaga performing a dance number on crutches -- proved her most striking visual to date, ante upped later that year with the landing of the "Bad Romance" clip, an extraterrestrial odyssey that proved instantly iconic, in a way videos weren't supposed to be anymore. Best of all was "Telephone," in which Gaga was joined by Beyonce for a ten-minute, high-art-infused, road-tripping hodgepodge of Tarantino, Thelma & Louise and Japanese TV that became the first event video of the 2010s. Gaga celebrated her coronation as the franchise player of 21st-century MTV (and YouTube) by wearing a meat dress to the '10 VMAs, and finally Millennials had a pop star who could hold her own against Madonna and MJ. It all led up to the much-hyped release of 2011's Born This Way. The album, technically Gaga's second full-length, bore the full scope of her artistic ambition over the case of its 14 tracks and 61 minutes, reaching out to the clarion-call disco of its LBGTQ-rallying title track, the Springsteenian synth-pop histrionics of "Edge of Glory," the "Mutt' Lange-helmed stadium power balladry of "You and I," and the Latin-tinged operatics of "Americano." Everything about Born This Way was big -- the songs, the music videos, the cover art, and of course, the promotional appearances, with Gaga capping her trilogy of Big VMA Moments by gracing the '11 MTV awards as Jo Calderone, her male alter-ego with a particular youthful affinity for Britney Spears. Of course, despite an initially rapturous reception -- Born This Way sold over a million copies in its first week, as its title track topped the Hot 100 for six weeks -- the album has since come to be perceived as something like her Be Here Now, a post-superstar album that sees the artist diving too deep into the qualities that initially endeared fans to them, and alienating those unsure if they want to follow that far down. (Never mind that the album still had a handful of classic singles, and that Gaga's crimes of trying too hard and dipping into art-pop pretension were far lesser than those of the Gallagher Bros' egomaniacal epic of shrugging guitar-pop mediocrity.) The public quickly cooled on Gaga, and though she's had hits and chart-topping albums in the years since, her reception has yet to reach the feverishness of those first couple years again. But other pop stars have picked up the slack. Kanye West, the one contemporaneous Top 40 fixture whose big-thinking could've rivaled Gaga's at her peak (and, once upon a time, a near-tourmate of Stefani's) stepped up his game even further after her arrival, blowing his music videos into 35-minute short films and eventually expanding the art form to include live projections and stadium premieres. Former co-star Beyonce also went through a conceptual makeover, eventually reviving interest in both the music video and the LP format with her self-titled surprise visual album. Rihanna released her weirdest album a year after Gaga's breakthrough and was never quite the same after. Even Britney -- who "Telephone" was initially written for -- ended up trying to make her own version of the song's video. Not all of this can be traced back directly to Gaga, of course, but it's hard to overestimate the impact she had in making all this acceptable, even commonplace in the pop realm. She took American mainstream music at one of its least-interesting and most star-power-deprived moments and made it bigger, weirder, more visual and infinitely more personality-driven -- in other words, much more fun. Today, the sense of possibility in pop is as vast as it's ever been, and even if Gaga is no longer the ringleader that all look to for what comes next, she ensured that pop fans would at least come to expect such boundary-pushing out of their best and brightest. They haven't let us down since. SAN ANTONIO, TX / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / Land for sale near San Antonio, Texas can be purchased in the new gated community of Summit Ridge starting October 22, 2016. There are a number of home sites available ranging from two acres to over 20 acres. The home sites are said to have some of the best views surrounding the Texas Hill Country. It is expected that there will be a high demand for the land, so people are encouraged to come as early as possible. Steve Brents, Sales Manager at Summit Ridge says: "The land we have available in Mico, TX is absolutely stunning. It has been divided into a number of plots, ranging from two to over 20 acres in size, so there is something for everybody. By buying this land, you will effectively beat the bank, because you could own it for up to 40% below market value." Those who purchase land will have an opportunity to build on it. Land owners can start building whenever it is convenient for them, and they are also allowed to choose their preferred builder. A number of amenities, including centralized water, electricity, phones, and internet, are already installed, ready to be used. The land in Mico, Texas has a number of interesting highlights. For instance, it is just minutes away from both downtown San Antonio and from the River Walk. Furthermore, it is very easy to commute to work, enabling people to enjoy the peacefulness of the country yet be only a short distance from nearby cities. Finding such premium land for sale in Texas Hill Country is incredibly difficult, so this may be an opportunity of a lifetime. Another benefit of the Hill Country land is that it is in the heart of nature. "Because the land is close to Medina Lake, there are all sorts of plants and animals here to see," adds Brents. "Land owners will have a lot of nature and wildlife to explore." He continued: "I really encourage you to contact us for more information. The open day is on Saturday October 22nd, and I hope to see everyone there." The sale will be complete on a case by case basis and it is important to speak to a financial advisor. Story continues Contact Summit Ridge: Steve Brents - Sales Manager sbrents@southlp.com SOURCE: Summit Ridge From Popular Mechanics China's latest fighter, the Chengdu J-20, is sporting a new camouflage scheme. The new "fifth generation" fighter is wearing new "splinter" camouflage in photos spotted on the Chinese internet in early October. The photos show four aircraft: Two wearing a yellow primer paint coating, one in plain gray, and a fourth in the aforementioned splinter camouflage. According to Combat Aircraft, the planes were photographed over the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group factory in Chengdu, Sichuan province. Chinese internet sources state that two J-20s were sent to Guangdong province in eastern China, possibly to participate in the annual Zhuhai Air Show which is scheduled for November 1-6. The two newly painted J-20s could very well be those planes. The gray, low visibility paint jobs are very reminiscent of those on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Like the USAF roundel or the Japanese Hinomaru on the F-35, the People's Liberation Army Air Force roundel is subdued, appearing plain white as opposed to the typical scarlet and gold roundel on other PLAAF aircraft. First unveiled in January 2011, the J-20 has undergone a rapid design evolution, with numerous changes made to the outside-and presumably the inside-of the aircraft. The fighter is reportedly in low-rate initial production, or just short of full assembly line production. Despite all of the hype, nobody outside of China knows what kind of aircraft the J-20 will eventually be. The aircraft's large airframe and twin engines suggest a high speed, long endurance capability, while the stealthy profile and internal munitions bays suggest a need to penetrate enemy airspace. Another option is for the J-20 to be a long-range, air-superiority fighter that specializes in air-to-air combat beyond visual range. Yet another is as a long-range strike jet, capable of using stealth to penetrate enemy air defenses and then launching missiles and precision-guided bombs at targets on the ground. Story continues The big question is whether the J-20 a match for the American F-22 and F-35 fighters. The answer is almost certainly no. The J-20 was in development for much less time than either American fighter, and costs considerably less. China has much less experience developing fighter planes-particularly fifth generation fighter planes-and has an inferior technology base. There's no math in which the end product is the equal of a fifth generation American fighter. Still, that may not matter. If China can produce half of the plane for half of the cost in half of the time, that beats trying to match the F-22 or F-35-a process that could take decades. China could simply produce more planes-as they say, quantity has a quality all of its own. You Might Also Like China expresses interest in exploring trilateral cooperation China has neither confirmed nor denied that a discussion on trilateral cooperation between China, Nepal and India took place on Saturday in Goa on the sidelines of the Brics Summitan issue that has generated tremendous interests and speculations after photos of a joint meeting between Nepali Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi emerged on Saturday evening. By Tom Perry and Laila Bassam BEIRUT (Reuters) - Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri intends to endorse Michel Aoun for the vacant presidency, senior political sources said, and the Hezbollah ally could be elected head of state later this month. Long an opponent of the Iran-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah, Hariri would become prime minister again under the plan that could reshape Lebanese politics. It has drawn opposition in his party and a final decision has not yet been taken, allies said. The presidency, which is reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country's sectarian power-sharing arrangements, has been vacant for 2 1/2 years due to political conflicts. Aoun, a veteran politician in his 80s, has long coveted the post. It was not immediately clear if Aoun's candidacy would enjoy enough support among other politicians to secure the necessary two-thirds quorum for the vote in the 128-seat parliament. The next scheduled parliamentary session to elect a president is set for Oct. 31. Opponents of Aoun's candidacy include Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, head of the Shi'ite Amal Movement and a close ally of Hezbollah, which itself has yet to comment. Hariri, 46, led the "March 14" alliance against Hezbollah and its allies, after the 2005 assassination of his father Rafik al-Hariri. He remains a fierce critic of Hezbollah, which is fighting in Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad. The proposal, unthinkable until recently, casts new light on the predicament facing Hariri, whose standing as Lebanon's most influential Sunni politician has been shaken by a financial crisis at his Saudi-based construction business. The troubles at Saudi Oger, which has been hit by falling oil prices and cuts in Saudi state spending, have led to a cash crunch in Hariri's Future Movement. Diplomats say Hariri has fallen from favor in Saudi Arabia, which these days cares far more about confronting Iranian influence in the Gulf and Syria than about Lebanon. OPPOSITION FROM WITHIN Two senior politicians told Reuters that Hariri had expressed his intention to nominate Aoun for the presidency as part of the power-sharing deal. A third source, a member of Hariri's Future Movement, confirmed Hariri had expressed this intention, but members of his own parliamentary bloc opposed it. Fouad Siniora, a former prime minister and head of the Future Movement's parliamentary bloc, told the newspaper Daily Star that Hariri had told his MPs on Tuesday that he had decided to support Aoun's candidacy, but added that there was "no final decision yet on this matter". One of the senior sources said Hariri would announce his support for Aoun "within the coming few days". The current government of Prime Minister Tammam Salam has been paralyzed by rivalries exacerbated by regional conflict. Hariri became prime minister for the first time in 2009, but his cabinet was toppled in 2011 when Hezbollah and its allies resigned. Since then, he spent most of his time abroad. Last year, he nominated Hezbollah ally Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency, but Hezbollah stuck by Aoun. Aoun, a former army commander, heads the largest Christian bloc in parliament and has a large following in the divided Christian community. He has been a political ally of Hezbollah since 2006. A significant figure in Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war, Aoun led one of two rival governments during the final years of the conflict. In 1990, the Syrian army forced him into exile. He returned in 2005 after Syrian forces withdrew under international pressure following the Hariri assassination. Aoun's main Christian rival, wartime enemy Samir Geagea, earlier this year also endorsed Aoun's candidacy. (Reporting by Tom Perry and Laila Bassam Editing by Tom Heneghan) Face of regionalism Has the model used so far to achieve the goals of Saarc failed, thereby necessitating a more people-centric model? By Tom Perry and Laila Bassam BEIRUT (Reuters) - Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri intends to endorse Michel Aoun for the vacant presidency, senior political sources said, and the Hezbollah ally could be elected head of state later this month. Long an opponent of the Iran-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah, Hariri would become prime minister again under the plan that could reshape Lebanese politics. It has drawn opposition in his party and a final decision has not yet been taken, allies said. The presidency, which is reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country's sectarian power-sharing arrangements, has been vacant for 2 1/2 years due to political conflicts. Aoun, a veteran politician in his 80s, has long coveted the post. It was not immediately clear if Aoun's candidacy would enjoy enough support among other politicians to secure the necessary two-thirds quorum for the vote in the 128-seat parliament. The next scheduled parliamentary session to elect a president is set for Oct. 31. Opponents of Aoun's candidacy include Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, head of the Shi'ite Amal Movement and a close ally of Hezbollah, which itself has yet to comment. Hariri, 46, led the "March 14" alliance against Hezbollah and its allies, after the 2005 assassination of his father Rafik al-Hariri. He remains a fierce critic of Hezbollah, which is fighting in Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad. The proposal, unthinkable until recently, casts new light on the predicament facing Hariri, whose standing as Lebanon's most influential Sunni politician has been shaken by a financial crisis at his Saudi-based construction business. The troubles at Saudi Oger, which has been hit by falling oil prices and cuts in Saudi state spending, have led to a cash crunch in Hariri's Future Movement. Diplomats say Hariri has fallen from favour in Saudi Arabia, which these days cares far more about confronting Iranian influence in the Gulf and Syria than about Lebanon. OPPOSITION FROM WITHIN Two senior politicians told Reuters that Hariri had expressed his intention to nominate Aoun for the presidency as part of the power-sharing deal. A third source, a member of Hariri's Future Movement, confirmed Hariri had expressed this intention, but members of his own parliamentary bloc opposed it. Fouad Siniora, a former prime minister and head of the Future Movement's parliamentary bloc, told the newspaper Daily Star that Hariri had told his MPs on Tuesday that he had decided to support Aoun's candidacy, but added that there was "no final decision yet on this matter". One of the senior sources said Hariri would announce his support for Aoun "within the coming few days". The current government of Prime Minister Tammam Salam has been paralysed by rivalries exacerbated by regional conflict. Hariri became prime minister for the first time in 2009, but his cabinet was toppled in 2011 when Hezbollah and its allies resigned. Since then, he spent most of his time abroad. Last year, he nominated Hezbollah ally Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency, but Hezbollah stuck by Aoun. Aoun, a former army commander, heads the largest Christian bloc in parliament and has a large following in the divided Christian community. He has been a political ally of Hezbollah since 2006. A significant figure in Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war, Aoun led one of two rival governments during the final years of the conflict. In 1990, the Syrian army forced him into exile. He returned in 2005 after Syrian forces withdrew under international pressure following the Hariri assassination. Aoun's main Christian rival, wartime enemy Samir Geagea, earlier this year also endorsed Aoun's candidacy. (Reporting by Tom Perry and Laila Bassam Editing by Tom Heneghan) From Road & Track I handle a lot of lemon law cases but people often call my office on anything related to automobiles. Which means I end up talking to people about traffic citations. And when I don't hang up soon enough, I find myself in court representing these unfortunate drivers. One thing I have found is that many people do not know when a mere traffic offense becomes something quite serious. I am speaking about the law in Michigan here but this will roughly parallel most other states as well. If the speed limit is 45 MPH, a police officer couldtheoretically pull you over and cite you for going 1 MPH if he or she believed you were going 46 MPH. This does not happen often but I do know someone who was cited for going 2 MPH over the limit. Before you accuse me of pulling your leg on that one, IT WAS ME. I got the ticket in a tiny town in Michigan's Upper Peninsulaa town that apparently raises its operating funds by taxing everyone who drives through the town. The tax is in the form of a ticket for whatever they can write you for. Almost no one lives near there. Who's going to go back and fight a ticket like that when they can just pay it by mail? But once you hit a certain amount over the speed limit, a normal police officer can and will ticket you. Zero to 10 MPH is commonthese are ranges and if you fall in there your ticket will cost you a fine and you will get two points on your license. Too many of those points and you could lose it. And the ticket is not a crime in the true sense; in Michigan and many states, the lesser moving offenses are civil infractions. They cost you but they are not considered criminal. So many people think that the faster you go the more points and the bigger the fines get. Which is true, but there comes a time when the offense changes to a crime and the penalties become stiffer. So, instead of going 10 MPH, let's suppose you find yourself going 50 MPH over. Hey, it happens. Right? Many states have an actual amount "over" where the law enforcement officer can decide to charge you with Reckless Driving instead of simply "50 over," or whatever the magic number might be. I've heard of states where it is 25 over. Michigan defines a Reckless Driver as follows: Story continues A person who operates a vehicle upon a highway or a frozen public lake, stream, or pond or other place open to the general public, including, but not limited to, an area designated for the parking of motor vehicles, in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property Don't get hung up on all the specific places. "I can't do donuts on the frozen stream?!" Notice that it is simply driving the vehicle in a way that is done with a disregard for others. And too much speed will qualify you for that. But, why does that matter? Look what can happen to you if you are convicted of Reckless Driving: The crime is "punishable by imprisonment for not more than 93 days or a fine of not more than $500.00, or both." Yes, you can go to jail AND you can be forced to cough up $500. And, you can get six points on your record. It's also a misdemeanor. As in, a crime. The final indignity? Your license will be suspended by the state for 90 days. That's right: You're walking for three months. The upshot is this. People speed all the time. How much they speed varies from person to person and probably also on where the driving is taking place. But don't just assume that a few miles more per hour will simply add a few dollars or a few more points to your license. Push that pedal too hard and you may wind up in jail with a criminal record when you get out. Steve Lehto is a writer and attorney from Michigan. He specializes in Lemon Law and frequently writes about cars and the law. His most recent books include Preston Tucker and His Battle to Build the Car of Tomorrow, and Dodge Daytona and Plymouth Superbird: Design, Development, Production and Competition. He also has a podcast where he talks about these things. You Might Also Like Aside from preserving the environment, Leonardo DiCaprio has publicly associated himself with no philanthropic cause more than the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Through the star-studded annual Art+Film Gala he's co-chaired since its launch in 2010, DiCaprio, 41, has helped raise more than $18 million for exhibitions, acquisitions and programming. Yet the Oscar winner's efforts appear to have resulted in LACMA benefiting from potentially stolen money thanks to his relationship with Red Granite Pictures - the primary backer of The Wolf of Wall Street - whose principals are key figures in a $3 billion Malaysian embezzlement scandal involving public funds. Red Granite co-founder Riza Aziz is at the center of a Department of Justice asset-seizure investigation that became public in July, after which THR reported the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation was a beneficiary of possibly stolen money. (On Oct. 18, the foundation issued a statement saying it was working with the DOJ to resolve the matter.) Aziz, stepson of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak (implicated in the saga), and his associates were involved in the purchase and auction for LDF's benefit of blue-chip art by Ed Ruscha, Mark Ryden and Roy Lichtenstein. During the same period, Aziz underwrote LACMA's "Haunted Screens: German Cinema in the 1920s" alongside DiCaprio's foundation. Last year, museum director Michael Govan said Aziz had financed what LACMA later would term "a major gift of nine Russian avant-garde film posters" from the same decade, heralding the move as part of a larger plan by Aziz and memorabilia dealer Ralph DeLuca to support the institution. (DeLuca sourced Marlon Brando's On the Waterfront Oscar, valued at about $600,000, which Red Granite gifted DiCaprio in 2012.) Read more: Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation Says It Will Return Any Corrupt Funds Linked to Malaysian Scandal In April, Aziz ponied up $2.1 million more to purchase 880 rare movie posters for LACMA. The museum's prints department head told an art market publication that Aziz has been pivotal in building its graphic design collection. Story continues Aziz, DeLuca and Red Granite's Joey McFarland attended the Art+Film Gala in 2015, but it's unclear whether they will be at this year's Oct. 29 soiree. The Red Granite pair, DeLuca and DiCaprio, whose connection to the scandal has prompted one environmental charity to ask him to step down from his U.N. climate change ambassador role, did not return requests for comment. Nonprofits are not off-limits in asset-seizure cases. In 2014, the Motion Picture & Television Fund received at least $25,000 from purported Red Granite financier Jho Low. A rep says it "would cooperate with any investigation by the DOJ." For its part, LACMA tells THR it "would fully cooperate" with authorities "should we receive any requests to do so." This story first appeared in the Nov. 4 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 18, 2016 / Lifestyle Delivery Systems Inc. (CSE:LDS) (OTC Pink: LDSYF) (XETR:LD6) and its wholly owned subsidiary, Canna Delivery Systems Inc. (CDS), are pleased to announce the signing of a binding Memorandum of Understanding for a Joint Venture to produce CannaStrips with CSPA Group Inc. The proposed Joint Venture would establish operations within an existing building that currently has a manufacturing permit to extract and produce medicinal cannabinoid products in Adelanto, California. Upon completion of a final agreement the Company intends to provide all the necessary equipment and expertise to the Joint Venture for the production of medicinal cannabis products using the CannaStrips technology. Brad Eckenweiler, CEO of LDS states, "We are very optimistic that upon the completion of this joint venture agreement and the resulting permitted facility becoming operational the CannaStrip brand can be produced and distributed in California in a manner acceptable and within the regulatory guidelines of the State of California. The fact that California represents the largest market segment in the cannabis industry worldwide with revenues that exceed $2.9 billion USD is why we have chosen to focus our efforts here first to establish the CannaStrip brand." About CSPA Group Inc. CSPA Group Inc. was established to provide Californian's with medical marijuana recommendations, safe access to high quality marijuana products grown and produced in pesticide free environments using only organic nutrients and processing methods. About Lifestyle Delivery Systems LDS' technology produces infused strips (similar to breath strips) that are not only a safer, healthier option to smoking but also a new way to accurately meter the dosage and assure the purity of the product. From start to finish, the production process tests for quality and composition of all the ingredients used in each and every strip, resulting in a delivery system that is safe, consistent and effective. Story continues On behalf of the board of directors of Lifestyle Delivery Systems Inc. Brad Eckenweiler CEO & Director FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: investor.relations@lifestyledeliverysystem.com 1-866-347-5058 Cautionary Disclaimer Statement: The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this news release. Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the date of this news release. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. The Company cautions that all forward looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to the Company's limited operating history and the need to comply with environmental and governmental regulations. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information. SOURCE: Lifestyle Delivery Systems Inc. The Lincoln Continental holds the keys to the future direction of Fords (NYSE:F) luxury brand. At a time when its sales are outpacing the Germans, Lincoln is rolling out a brand-new flagship sedan to sustain the momentum. The Continental, named after the iconic large sedan that Ford scrapped in 2002, has arrived in U.S. showrooms. The Continental has really important emotional value for luxury-car buyers. Its always stood for the best that Lincoln has to offer, Kumar Galhotra, the president of Lincoln, told FOXBusiness.com. We wanted to design a car that was totally modern, but it had to deliver on that promise and sense of Continental luxury. Lincolns plan to win over customers diverges from other brands focused on high-performance luxury cars. New Lincolns like the Continental will adopt what the brand calls quiet luxury. Lincoln designed its newest vehicle with an array of inviting features, such as soft-closing doors and massaging seats. As drivers approach the Continental, its headlights slowly brighten. (Its almost as if the car is smiling at you, Galhotra remarked.) The car also lays out a welcome matthe Lincoln logo projected onto the ground. The Continental packs a punch under the hood, too. The top engine is a V6 that generates 400 horsepower, and Lincoln engineered the Continental to bring that power to the road smoothly. We have a philosophy of designing the experience first, and then designing the technology necessary to deliver the experience, Galhotra said. And if youre going to design the experience, you have to know your customers very well. Thats where quiet luxury comes from. Theyre looking for some effortlessness in their lives. The Continentals elegant touches reflect a broader effort to reenergize Lincolns image among car shoppers. Executives have sought to reintroduce the brand to luxury buyers and separate Lincoln from its rivals Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Cadillac and others. Lincoln launched a free pickup-and-delivery service in June and opened its first experience center in a high-end shopping center in Newport Beach, California. Another experience center will open in Dallas next year. Story continues The moves seem to be paying off. Lincolns customer loyalty is on the rise, according to researcher IHS Markit. As for sales, Lincoln is one of the fastest-growing brands in the U.S. this year. Lincoln has sold 80,435 vehicles through September, an 8.7% increase over the same period last year. Lincoln began shipping the Continental in September, reporting 775 units sold during the month. Prices start at $44,560. Lincoln is looking for the Continental, and eventually a remade Navigator, to accelerate sales growth in the U.S. and foreign markets. The company has opened dozens of new dealers in China, and the Continental was designed in part to accommodate the many luxury buyers there who have personal drivers. Sales in China nearly tripled to 20,996 vehicles through the first three quarters of 2016. Although consumer demand for passenger cars like sedans is sliding, Lincoln believes the Continental will be a big hit with deep-pocketed shoppers. Galhotra noted that sedans still account for a large segment of the industry41% so far this year. So, while the segment has been shrinking amid growing demand for SUVs, sedans remain a critical category. In fact, Lincolns sales leader through nine months of 2016 is the MKZ mid-size sedan. The MKX midsize crossover, which made its debut last year, is a close second. Related Articles (Reuters) - LinkedIn Corp said that the arrest of a Russian man on hacking charges reported on Wednesday was tied to a previously disclosed 2012 breach at the social networking firm. "We are thankful for the hard work and dedication of the FBI in its efforts to locate and capture the parties believed to be responsible for this criminal activity," LinkedIn said in a statement. Czech police detained a Russian man wanted in connection with hacking attacks on targets in the United States, police said. The arrest was carried out in cooperation with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation and Czech courts would decide on whether he will be extradited to the United States, police said late on Tuesday. A U.S. official told Reuters the man was sought in an "older" hacking case and not for recent political hacks in the United States. The U.S. government this month formally accused Russia for the first time of a campaign of cyber attacks against Democratic Party organisations ahead of the Nov. 8 presidential election. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said a hacking scandal would not be in Russia's interests. (Reporting by Jim Finkle in Boston) (Fixes typo in headline) By Lawrence Delevingne and Tom Hals Oct 19 (Reuters) - Two Platinum Partners hedge funds have sought U.S. Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection as part of an ongoing liquidation effort, according to court documents filed in New York federal court Tuesday. In August, a Cayman Islands court ordered that an outside expert unwind the so-called offshore versions of its flagship hedge fund, Platinum Partners Value Arbitrage, which, along with the firm, is also being investigated by U.S. authorities. That liquidator, RHSW Caribbean, filed the Chapter 15 bankruptcy petition which seeks to protect Platinum's U.S. assets from creditors while an insolvency proceeding is underway in the Cayman Islands. An outside spokesman for Platinum declined to comment. Mark Nordlicht founded Platinum more than a decade ago and generated years of double-digit percentage returns by investing in often controversial businesses, a Reuters special report revealed. New York-based Platinum has been caught up in federal investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Attorney's offices in Manhattan and Brooklyn. In June a longtime associate was arrested on charges of bribing a union official to invest in Platinum, charges he has denied. RHSW notes it is in ongoing contact with the SEC and the Department of Justice and that Platinum is the subject of "allegations of asset overvaluation" of its investments in mostly difficult-to-value fledgling companies. Platinum reported assets of $1.09 billion for its flagship funds as of June 30, according to RHSW. The same filing notes potential liabilities of at least $468.7 million on May 31. The Cayman liquidators have began examining allegations that assets were overvalued and are examining the cause of the funds failure, according to the Chapter 15 filing. One of the liquidators' investigation involved the potential sale of Implant Sciences Corp notes to Platinum insiders, according the bankruptcy filing. The liquidators were also probing an investment by Platinum's master fund into Northstar Offshore Group LLC, according to the Chapter 15 filing. Story continues Creditors of Northstar tried to force Northstar into an involuntary bankruptcy in Texas and the liquidators are trying to arrange financing for the company, according to Tuesday's filing. Northstar had taken over the assets of another Platinum-owned energy company, Black Elk Energy Offshore Operations LLC, just before it went too went bankrupt. Northstar investments account for 22 percent of the two Platinum funds, according to the bankruptcy filing. The liquidators said a Northstar bankruptcy would result in a significant devaluation of Platinum's holdings. (Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware) A Texas veterinarian will not be allowed to practice for a year after a photo of her posing with a dead cat she killed with a bow and arrow emerged last year. Read: Who Killed Pedals? Beloved Bi-Pedal Bear Apparently Lured to His Death With an Apple Kristen Lindsey posted the controversial photo on social media in 2015. She said she thought it was a feral or wild cat but it's believed the feline was actually a family's pet named Tiger. "My first bow kill, lol," she wrote on Facebook in April 2015. "The only good feral tomcat is one with an arrow through its head! Vet of the year award ... Gladly accepted." The message even used a cat emoji in the text. After the post was put up, animal lovers took to the streets to protest. She told Inside Edition: "At the time I made the Facebook post, at the time that it happened, in my mind, I had killed a feral cat. There is a feral cat coming to my property, I had issues with it, I killed that cat." The vet was fired from the animal clinic where she worked. Making matters worse, her lawyer said she received death threats from people angered by the photo. "To think that your face is going to go viral across the world, that is not something you think about and it did and it was terrifying to wake up to know that people in Switzerland want you dead. That is terrifying," she told Inside Edition. She was not criminally charged, but on Tuesday she learned she would lose her vet's license for a year followed by four years of probation. Her lawyer, Brian Bishop, told the Associated Press: This case would never have gone forward but for the fact that we live in a social-media age. Read: Pedals, the Bear That Walks on Its Hind Legs, Killed by Bow and Arrow-Wielding Hunter: Reports Bishop said in an email to the Washington Post that he and Lindsey were disappointed with the Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners decision to have her license pulled for a year. Story continues We are also disappointed that the Board has, for all intents and purposes, chosen to take sides in the culture war between the animal rescues zealots who have campaigned to destroy Dr. Lindsey and her family versus rural property owners who have the right to protect their property and their own animals from feral animals who are destroying their property and threatening their own animals, Bishop told the Washington Post. Watch: Meow Do I Get Down? Cat Rescued After It's Stuck on 12th Floor Ledge of Building Related Articles: London (AFP) - Plans to boost London's airport capacity may not receive full approval for at least another year, it emerged Wednesday, even though the government is expected to announce its preference to expand Heathrow next week. Prime Minister Theresa May told lawmakers that a decision on whether to back a third runway at Britain's busiest airport or instead expand London's Gatwick will be subject to further consultation and a parliamentary vote. A letter to cabinet colleagues setting out the process confirmed this vote would be in the winter of 2017/2018. "This is a subject that has been debated, discussed, speculated on for 40 years. This government will take a decision," May told the House of Commons. "But there is then a formal process that has to be undertaken so that the government will identify its preferred option of site. That will then go to a statutory consultation. "The government will then consider the results of the statutory consultation and bring forward an airports national planning statement on which this House will vote." May's official spokeswoman confirmed Tuesday that a decision by the cabinet's airports subcommittee would be made next week. In an unusual move, ministers will be free to criticise the decision, fuelling speculation that the government will opt for a third runway at Heathrow. Several cabinet ministers, including foreign secretary Boris Johnson, have strongly opposed increasing capacity at Heathrow because of its proximity to a densely populated area. In July 2015, a government-appointed commission recommended building a third runway at Heathrow, in the west of the capital, to ease congestion. It said the runway would cost A17.6 billion (19.5 billion euros, $21.4 billion), but generate up to A147 billion over 60 years and create more than 70,000 jobs by 2050. The report added that a rival bid for a second runway at Gatwick airport south of London was also "plausible." A final decision was delayed pending further investigation into the environmental impact, including noise and pollution. Business communities have long been lobbying the government to expand one of the capital's existing airports, which they say cannot keep up with rising air travel demand. Litterbugs beware: KMC may be on to you The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) fined 15 people for littering during the Dashain holidays. Economists have repeatedly said that trade deals create winners and losers. Yet despite this known dichotomy, America has done little to help the disaffected people across the country whose livelihoods have disappeared. Richard Baumcratz is still puzzling over how that came to be. As an officer in the Glass, Molders, Pottery, Plastics and Allied Workers Union, he represents about 400 workers who for decades made glass containers such as beverage bottles and pickle jars in a factory owned by a company called Owens-Illinois located in Clarion, Pennsylvania. In 2010, the company said it would close the plant as part of a move to consolidate inefficient factories in North America and expand into emerging markets. After the closing, Clarion became one of hundreds of towns across America that lost jobs to cheaper factories overseas. Owens-Illinois wasnt the first factory to shut down there; a mattress factory and a mining-equipment manufacturer nearby had also closed recently. Things looked bleak for the laid-off glass workers. But Baumcratz was determined to help his workers maintain their quality of life. Because the shutdown was partially related to trade deals that led to lower tariffs between the United States and other nations where Owens-Illinois had plants, Baumcratz applied to get his workers qualified for retraining under a program called Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA). Created in 1974, TAA provides retraining, income subsidies, and job-search assistance for people whose jobs have been displaced by trade. Recommended: What Its Like to Work as an Exotic Dancer The government approved his petition, which meant that all workers from the Clarion plant would be eligible for TAA and its sister program, Trade Readjustment Allowances. But in the six years since the plant went out of business, wresting economic hardship on the town of Clarion, few of Baumcratzs workers have actually gotten retrained. About 35 people went back to college, finished college, or completed vocational school for professions such as truck driving. Of the rest of the 400 or so workers, a handfulabout one-thirdretired. A few moved to a plant in another state. The rest have been getting by on odd jobs in the community, Baumcratz told me, where they make about half what they made in the glass plant. Its been a rough transition. We thought we were doing a great thing, and it only helped 35 people, Baumcratz said. Story continues The story of the glass plant in Clarion is not unique. Though TAA is one of the governments most robust retraining and support programs, it has not been very successful in helping those who lose jobs in manufacturing move on to equally lucrative careers. Though TAA has helped people receive training by providing them tuition, counseling, and information about educational opportunities, those impacts had not yet translated into labor market gains during the four-year period following job loss, a study by Social Policy Research Associations and Mathematica Policy Research for the Department of Labor found. The study compared TAA recipients to those receiving traditional unemployment assistance and found that after a few years, TAA recipients had lower earnings than people who had received normal unemployment assistance, and that out of those who received training for certain occupations, only 37 percent were employed in the occupations for which they had trained. Recommended: The Hot New Millennial Housing Trend Is a Repeat of the Middle Ages This is perhaps not surprising to people in the policy community: Retraining, as it exists now in America, doesnt often work.Its not just that TAA isnt working. Its that the entire portfolio of labor-market adjustment policies in the U.S. isnt working, Chad Bown, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, told me. That means few programs that aim to help people after job loss actually do so. Why havent these programs been successful? The biggest reason, according to Kermit Kaleba, the federal policy director of the National Skills Coalition, is that communities such as Clarion that see factories shutting down are often suffering economically. That leaves few other opportunities for people, no matter what skills they can learn. Training doesnt create jobs, training provides opportunities while there are jobs, Kaleba told me. If a factory closes down, that doesnt mean theres a set of corresponding work opportunities. Of course, there may be jobs in other communities. But they present yet another problem: the low likelihood that workers will relocate. That fact that Americans dont just pick up and move from economically depressed areas to booming oneslike they did during the Dust Bowlhas puzzled economists for decades. One study, from the American Economic Journal, has found that low-skilled Mexican-born immigrants move in response to labor demand, yet low-skilled American-born people do not. For every 10-percentage-point decline in employment for Mexican-born low-skilled men, the population of those men dropped 5.7 percent in a community, the study found. A similar decline in local employment led to no measurable decline in the less-skilled native population. Recommended: Donald Trump Is the First Demagogue of the Anthropocene One of the reasons people may not move for better opportunities, according to Bown, is that areas losing lots of jobs see less demand for housing, and home values fall. Workers who may still be paying off mortgages suddenly find they are underwater, meaning they owe more on their homes than their homes are worth. That makes the prospect of moving a financially dubious, or impossible, one. Even those that may be able to afford relocating see little appeal in leaving behind a community where theyve spent their whole life. I talked to a worker named Jerry Nowadzky, who was laid off from an Iowa factory that made printing presses in the 1990s. He and dozens of other factory workers went to a class where they were retrained to repair computers, he told me. But after the yearlong course, there were no jobs, he said. Nowadzky, his certification in hand, went to work stocking shelves in a grocery store at night. He might have been able to find a job had he went to another city or state, he told me, but we were in our 50s, and you cant really pick up and move with all the roots you have. There are other reasons that retraining hasnt worked, too. Sometimes, people dont know what kinds of jobs are in demand, and so are retrained for professions with few prospects. Other times, workers who have been at factories for decades find the idea of going to college intimidating. Someone who hasnt done math or compositional English in 30 years may feel too old to begin at age 50. So they avoid retraining, even if its free. In recent years, conservatives have taken the failures of TAA as a clear sign that the program needs to be scuttled. They ask: Why spend so much money on a program that provides retraining that doesnt work? But this logic is problematic. If trade creates winners and losers in our economyand many people passively win by gaining access to cheaper products from overseasisnt there an obligation to compensate the losers in some way? Giving up on them because retraining hasnt yet proven to be successful seems short-sighted and indeed might be what has led to the discontentment plaguing this election season. Some of the people most affected by tradewhite, working-class older menare those who have eschewed traditional candidates from both parties and supported the anti-trade platforms of Bernie Sanders and Donald J. Trump in the election. Both candidates had pledged to stop trade deals like the Trans Pacific Partnership. In theory, the winners should repay the losers, but we dont in our country, Timothy Smeeding, a professor of public affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, told me a few months ago. There are other solutions out there that havent been tried in depth. For instance, last December, the writer Henry Olsen penned an essay proposing a new Homestead Act that would subsidize people who want to move to areas with more jobs. People stay put, he argued, in part because many benefitslike cash assistanceare tied to where they live. They also stay put because they dont know about opportunities in other places, he wrote. That doesnt make sense, he wrote: Millions of low-to-moderately skilled, native-born, and immigrant Americans live in places where they cant find decent work while a vast new economic frontier unfolds in Southern and Western states such as Texas, Florida, and North Carolina. These wide open spaces are enticing enough to encourage millions of Latin Americans to undertake dangerous and expensive journeys, yet millions of other Americans remain mired in ghettos, depressed steel towns and struggling regions like Appalachia and the Mississippi Delta. Olsens idea could help overcome one of the biggest obstacles in helping those who lose out in trade deals: that theyre stuck in places where there are few opportunities. Rather than do away with TAA, there might be promise in helping people move to where there are opportunities. This could include retraining, mortgage assistance, and counseling. This isnt exactly a new concept in American public policy. In the housing sphere, families are moved out of high-poverty areas where there is high crime and not enough access to jobs to better homes in the suburbs, and are provided with counseling in that transition. Why not expand that program to include inter-state moves for the people who are mired in communities where there are no job opportunities? Of course, helping people move to areas with good jobs could be an expensive proposition. Booming communities like San Francisco are often plagued by high housing costs, the result of people flocking to places where there are jobs. But that could be solved with the right affordable-housing policies. As my colleague Derek Thompson has written, Americans are moving less than they did in the past. This coincides with the rise of an American populace discontent with the opportunities that exist where they are. Perhaps finding a way to help those whove lost out during the age of globalization relies less on factors outside Americas borders and more on policies within them. Read more from The Atlantic: This article was originally published on The Atlantic. MORRISTOWN, NJ AND BUCHAREST, ROMANIA / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / Louis Berger was honored at the International Road Federation (IRF) Asia Regional Congress & Exhibition in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on October 18. Louis Berger served as the project manager for the Timisoara-Lugoj motorway in Romania, which was recognized with the 2016 IRF Global Road Achievement Award for Project Management. "Louis Berger is proud to be recognized by IRF and by our peers for excellence in project management," said Tom Topolski, president of Louis Berger's international operation. "Through the completion of the Timisoara-Lugoj motorway project ahead of schedule, Louis Berger was able to positively contribute to the region's economic growth and provide enhanced mobility for local communities bordering the motorway." Working with the Romanian National Company of Motorways and National Roads, Louis Berger provided project management, design and construction supervision, training and advisory services for construction of Romania's Timisoara -Lugoj motorway. The project was comprised of two sections-Lot 1 and Lot 2. Louis Berger completed the first section eight months ahead of schedule, and the second was completed seven months early, making it the first European Union-funded motorway in Romania to be completed well ahead of schedule. The Timisoara-Lugoj motorway links the Romanian section of the Pan-European Corridor IV, connecting central Europe and Turkey. The objective of the project was to support Romania's economic development and improve trade opportunities within the larger European Union. In addition to the economic advantages from improved commercial transportation, the highway led to reduced travel times and fuel savings, better passenger safety and important environmental safeguards. The motorway also increased traffic capacity in the City of Timisoara and between Timisoara and Lugoj, an area encompassing 12 additional villages. Louis Berger has 25 years of experience in Romania, having completed several hundred contracts for public and private sector clients in the transportation, environment, buildings and facilities, economic and institutional development, energy and mining markets. The Timisoara-Lugoj motorway marks another important milestone in the region. The International Road Federation's Global Road Achievement Awards is a unique competition that recognizes innovative road projects emphasizing the road industry's role in social and economic development. About Louis Berger Louis Berger is a $1 billion global professional services corporation that helps infrastructure and development clients solve their most complex challenges. We are a trusted partner to national, state and local government agencies; multilateral institutions; and commercial industry clients worldwide. By focusing on client needs to deliver quality, safe, financially-successful projects with integrity, we are committed to deliver on our promise to provide Solutions for a better world. Louis Berger operates on every habitable continent. We have a long-standing presence in more than 50 nations, represented by the multidisciplinary expertise of 6,000 engineers, economists, scientists, managers and planners. Caption: The Timisoara-Lugoj motorway links the Romanian section of the Pan-European Corridor IV, connecting central Europe and Turkey. The new road will support Romania's economic development and improve trade opportunities within the larger European Union. SOURCE: Louis Berger Pro-Beijing legislators staged a walkout of Hong Kongs legislature Wednesday morning local time, forcing an adjournment and preventing the swearing-in of two rebel lawmakers who do not accept that the semiautonomous territory is part of China. Hundreds of highly organized loyalist protesters who clutched printed sheets as they were directed off chartered buses by chaperones gathered in the driving rain outside the chamber. They called for newly elected legislators Yau Wai-ching, 25, and Sixtus Baggio Leung, 30, to apologize to Chinese people everywhere and to step down. One group of protesters carried a banner that read Even though there are 1.4 billion Chinese people, there is no space for one national traitor. It is impossible for us to stay in the chamber. We had to leave, pro-China legislator Wong Kwok-kin told media. Starry Lee, head of the Beijing loyalist Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, said the walkout was in response to the wrath of people in Hong Kong and Chinese people worldwide. We need [Yau and Leung] to apologize seriously, otherwise I believe it will be impossible for this wrath to subside. The two pro-independence legislators were the most contentious among five lawmakers whose pledges were rejected during an inauguration session last week because they departed from script. At that session, Leung, the founder of the radical Youngspiration party, pledged allegiance to the Hong Kong nation, draped himself in a blue banner reading Hong Kong is not China, and appeared to pronounce China as Shina a highly derogatory wartime Japanese term for China. His party colleague Yau also pledged allegiance to the Hong Kong nation and appeared to call the Peoples Republic of China the Peoples Ref-cking of Shina. Story continues Edward Yiu, another newly elected legislator whose oath was rejected last week because he departed from the formal pledge (adding his own promise to fight for genuine universal suffrage) was sworn in without incident before the loyalist walkout. The use of the term Shina by Yau and Leung has triggered days of vicious condemnation from pro-China organizations in Hong Kong, with everything from full-page newspaper advertisements to two separate lawsuits flung at them. The territorys Chief Executive, Leung Chun-ying (no relation to Sixtus Leung), also singled out the duo Tuesday when he criticized the fiasco during last weeks swearing-in. Late Tuesday, in a highly unusual intervention, the government filed a request to the territorys High Court, demanding a judicial review of the Legislative Council presidents authority to allow Yau and Leung to retake their oaths, as well as a temporary injunction barring the two from taking office. The court granted the review, which is now slated for November, but rejected the injunction in a verdict handed down after 11 p.m., less than 12 hours from todays legislative session. The ones who need to apologize to Hongkongers are the ones who did not respect Hongkongers. Today, that is the pro-Beijing lawmakers, Yau tells TIME in her office at the legislative building. Its hard to know what I will feel in the future. Today, all I want is to take my oath. With reporting by Nash Jenkins / Hong Kong Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) (AFP) - Pakistan's Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, giving a speech Wednesday in the Emirates, urged Muslims to respect the "true message of Islam" and unite against wars in their countries. The 19-year-old, who was shot in the head by the Taliban in 2012 after she had publicly advocated education for girls, urged the world's Muslims to "come together... and follow the true message of Islam as they join hands in the struggle for peace". "We cannot talk about investing in our future in this region without calling for an end to these bombings and these attacks," she told a conference in the southern Gulf emirate of Sharjah on the future of women in the Middle East. "We must not forget that the majority of those suffering because of these conflicts and wars are Muslims," said Malala, referring to conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Yemen. "I cannot stop thinking of those 500,000 children in Mosul right now under a threat to be used as human shields," she said of the Iraqi city where an offensive has been launched to retake it from the Islamic State jihadist group. She called for empowering the younger generation, especially women, with the education needed "to bring peace and prosperity to their countries". The youngest-ever Nobel recipient stressed the need for men to support women in their attempt to receive "quality education". Malala, who moved to England where she received medical treatment after the shooting, is both admired and hated in her native Pakistan, where some conservatives view her as a Western agent on a mission to shame her country. She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 jointly with India's Kailash Satyarthi, a fellow education activist who made similar calls at the Sharjah conference on Wednesday. By Sarah Young LONDON (Reuters) - Malaysia Airlines is in talks to rent out its A380 superjumbos to religious travel groups for Haj and Umrah pilgrimages, its chief executive said, in a move likely to trim financial losses and dispel some recent gloom over demand for the huge jets. Malaysia Airlines has six of the world's biggest jetliners but says the Airbus jet does not make economic sense for it at a time when it is cost-cutting as part of a restructuring. Past attempts to sell the planes have failed. CEO Peter Bellew said the airline was in talks about a possible "wet lease" deal with a number of religious travel organizations that would hire Malaysia Airlines aircraft and crew to fly people on the Haj and Umrah pilgrimages. The Haj is an Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia and takes place once a year, with more than one million people traveling by air, while the Umrah pilgrimage can be taken at any time of year. Talks between Malaysia Airlines and the potential customers started about 10 weeks ago and Bellew, who took the CEO reins from Christoph Mueller in July, said he is confident of reaching an agreement before the end of December and that the planes would be used for eight months a year. "I believe it will happen," he told Reuters, adding that any deal would more than cover its A380 costs. WEAK DEMAND A deal to re-deploy the A380s would be a welcome development for Airbus, which was forced to announce a cut in production of the aircraft because of weak demand for large four-engined jets as airlines fretted about the global economy. Many airlines say it is less risky and often cheaper to fly smaller two-engined jets that are easier to fill. Though it usually focuses on selling new planes, Airbus is closely involved in trying to kickstart an alternative follow-on market for used A380s because an overhang of unwanted jets would depress resale values and make it even harder to sell new ones. The fate of the Malaysian jets has been a source of market uncertainty for months. Concerns over demand increased when Singapore Airlines announced last month that it would not renew a lease on the first A380 that went into service in 2007. Others, including Air France and Qantas, have already balked at taking some undelivered new A380s, though Dubai's Emirates [EMIRA.UL] remains a big fan of the jet. To ease the transition, Malaysia Airlines is in discussions with Airbus about reconfiguring its A380s, which usually have 544 seats in three classes, to fit 700 people for the pilgrimages. Bellew said Airbus is open to the possibility. Airbus said it was in daily contact with its customers but the details of any discussions would remain confidential. Malaysia Airlines said in February that it had delayed plans to sell some of its A380s, and would now keep all six of them at least until 2018. But the Kuala Lumpur-based carrier has been struggling since the disappearance of flight MH370 and shooting down of flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine, both in 2014. The airline was taken private by state fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd [KHAZA.UL] after the disasters as part of a turnaround plan to shrink its network and cut its costs to try to return it to profitability by 2018. (Additional reporting by Tim Hepher; Editing by David Goodman) KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia on Wednesday detained a ruling party official over an alleged clash with supporters of a democracy group and a threat to spark race riots, as tension mounts ahead of a rally planned for next month to demand that the prime minister resign. The Nov. 19 rally is being planned by democracy group Bersih, which draws most of its support from the ethnic Chinese minority and wants Prime Minister Najib Razak to step down over a financial scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Jamal Yunos, a member of Najib's United Malays National Organisation and the leader of the 'Red Shirts' group of government supporters, will be held on remand for 48 hours as police investigate several cases, the group's legal adviser, Mohamad Imran Tamrin, said. Jamal is being investigated under Malaysia's penal code, its communications and multimedia law and the Sedition Act for allegations of criminal intimidation and threatening to cause a bloody uprising if the anti-Najib rally went ahead, Imran added. Police did not respond to Reuters' request for comment. In a post on Facebook last month, Jamal threatened a repeat of Malaysia's 1969 racial riots at the Bersih rally, but he later denied making the comment. "Such seditious statements were unacceptable," Khalid Abu Bakar, Malaysia's inspector-general of police, said on social network Twitter this month, and vowed that police would take firm action. Ethnicity and religion are sensitive issues in Malaysia, where mostly Muslim ethnic Malays form about 60 percent of the population of 30 million. Ethnic Chinese make up about 25 percent and ethnic Indians about 7 percent. In 1969, Malays and ethnic Chinese clashed in a bloody riot that killed hundreds. Growing altercations between Bersih and the Red Shirts supporters over the past few weeks have seen the latter disrupting Bersih's roadshows. Bersih chairman Maria Chin Abdullah has said she received death threats over the rally. A picture circulated on social media this week depicted an Islamic State-style beheading of Maria and other Bersih leaders. In July, U.S. prosecutors filed civil lawsuits alleging that 1MDB, founded by Najib in 2009 and chaired by him until recently, had been defrauded of more than $3.5 billion. Najib has denied any wrongdoing and said Malaysia would cooperate with all international investigations. (Reporting by A. Ananthalakshmi and Joseph Sipalan; Editing by Clarence Fernandez) MPs accuse govt of bowing down to Karki Lawmakers from various parties, including the Nepali Congress, on Tuesday criticised the government, saying it had bowed down to Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority chief Lokman Singh Karki. Getty Image Senator Marco Rubio fits the prototypical definition of an establishment Republican. He sticks so hard to the conservative stance on issues like abortion that hes willing to upset Floridians by saying Zika-infected women shouldnt be allowed to have abortions. Thats one reason why its notable that hes pulling away from Republican giddiness surrounding WikiLeaks near-daily dumpings of Clinton Campaign Chairman John Podestas emails. These emails dumpings have resulted in much delight from both mainstream Republicans and the Alt-Right (which has been fueled by Donald Trump), but Rubio has issued a warning. Hes reminding his fellow Republicans that this isnt all fun and games, and its time to stop celebrating an attack on their opponents. Rubio tells ABC News that to capitalize politically will bite the GOP when their dirt inevitably surfaces: As our intelligence agencies have said, these leaks are an effort by a foreign government to interfere with our electoral process and I will not indulge it. Further, I want to warn my fellow Republicans who may want to capitalize politically on these leaks: Today it is the Democrats. Tomorrow it could be us. I will not discuss any issue that has become public solely on the basis of Wikileaks. Oh, you know theres some embarrassing emails out there between Republicans (including Paul Ryan and other Congresspeople). Donald Trumps server security is apparently nonexistent, and thats only the beginning. At this point, no one would be surprised by whats probably a bunch of frat-boy exchanges in Trumps emails. But if a full-on GOP email dump occurs, that could be the last straw that irrevocably fractures the party. Most remarkably here, Rubios taking a stand that may not be popular with his party. But hes correct. Republicans voracious devouring of Podesta emails sets a dangerous precedent, not only where Russian ties are concerned but also when it comes to any sort of bipartisan cooperation. (Via ABC News) Mark Cubans current mission involves keeping fellow (supposed) billionaire Donald Trump out of the White House. Just as the Dallas Mavericks owner enjoyed being Trumps grim spectre at the first debate, Dallas Morning News reports that Cuban will attend the final debate as a guest of Hillary Clinton. Ahead of this appearance, Cuban phoned into CNN to speak with Don Lemon on a variety of subjects, including the accumulating sexual assault claims against Trump. At one point, Cuban relays how he knows multiple women who are too afraid to come forward and speak about their assaults. I know one, and it just didnt happen recently. My friend reminded me and it was from 2000 and she you know, I dont expect her to come forward. I wouldnt recommend she come forward. And Cuban wasnt done yet: I know somebody else from two years ago that wont come forward. So, you know, its not anything that caught me by surprise. Lemon pressed Cuban for more details, but the Shark Tank star didnt want to dig too deep into what he didnt personally witness. Cuban maintained that these friends encounters are absolutely factually true. Related Links: Cuban then moved forward to debate strategy, and he believes the smartest thing Hillary Clinton could do would be let Trump punch himself in the face. Well, hes done so for both debates, so Clinton has no reason to let him stop now. The final round goes down in Vegas at 9:00 pm EST. BOSTON (Reuters) - Some 55 percent of likely Massachusetts voters are leaning toward voting to legalize recreational use of marijuana by adults in a ballot initiative next month, more than supported the idea a month ago, according to a poll released on Wednesday. A poll conducted for WBUR, a Boston public radio station, by MassINC Polling Group also found that 40 percent of 502 likely voters polled Oct. 13-16 opposed the measure. That was a wider margin of support than the 50 percent support and 45 percent opposition the poll found last month. The poll, which has a margin of error of 4.4 percentage points, found that 84 percent of likely voters would not be bothered by people using marijuana in their own homes, though 64 percent said they would object to people using it in public. Respondents were evenly split on whether they had ever used marijuana, with 49 percent saying they had and 49 percent saying they had not. The measure would allow adults over 21 to use and possess marijuana and create a tax system that would generate revenue from its sale in the state. If it passes in the Nov. 8 election, marijuana would become legal in December. Massachusetts is one of five U.S. states where voters this year will determine whether to legalize the recreational use of the drug. Other states holding similar referendums are California, Maine, Nevada and Arizona. Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska have already legalized its recreational use. Proponents of the measure argue that the drug is no more dangerous than alcohol and that legalizing its use could allow police to focus on more serious crimes. Opponents contend that it poses significant health risks and legalizing the sale to adults could make it easier for minors to buy marijuana. (Reporting by Scott Malone; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe) Mexico City (AFP) - The Mexican authorities have seized $450 million worth of debt securities at an airport near the capital that were sent from the United States to a Mexican company, an official said. The certificates were sent via a parcel service and found at the Toluca airport marked as "business correspondence," customs agency administrator Ricardo Trevino told local radio. Trevino said officials know which company sent the securities from the United States and which Mexican firm was the intended recipient. He declined to identify them but he told Radio Formula that the Mexican company has a "global presence." A man involved in the operation has also been identified, but Trevino also refused to name him. The certificates, which were in an envelope, "can be cashed at any bank," he said. They were detected in an X-ray machine. The authorities will determine whether the certificates stem from legal activities, in which case the penalty would be a fine for not declaring their value according to international rules, which require any amount over $10,000 to be declared at customs. Trevino, however, said it could also be linked to "tax evasion" and that any crime would be investigated. The certificates were found as part of a global customs operation undertaken between September 19 and October 10 to detect weapons or money shipments. Mexico seized a total of $452 million, including the major haul in one action in Toluca, earning plaudits from the World Customs Organization. Agents often seize cash or drugs at airports in Mexico, mostly linked to drug cartels. Prolific Mexican producer Ozcar Ramirez of Arte Mecanica (AM), whose most recent pic El Peluquero Romantico, helmed by Ivan Avila, competes at Morelia, and Gema Juarez Allen of Argentinas Gema Films, (Oscuro Animal) have teamed up for the first time to co-produce Avilas next pic, Chichimeca. Avilas production shingle 13 Lunas will also co-produce what would be his seventh arthouse feature. Set in the 1500s at the time of the Spanish conquest, Chichimeca is about a near-extinct tribe of hunter-gatherers in Northern Mexico called Tzacatecos or Cabezas Negras. Avila, who hails from this region, has co-penned the screenplay with playwright-TV scribe Luis Mario Moncada, after researching over the past two years, and consulting an anthropologist. The fiction feature will star real tribesmen and shoot in the remote sierra of the region. It will be a logistical challenge, said Ramirez who is targeting a mid-2017 start for principal photography. Drama will be shot chronologically with non-pros, with a budget of nearly $1 million. What attracted me to Chichimeca was the idea of telling a story about a world we have not seen, of which no traces have been left behind, said Juarez Allen. The conquest of America gave us a wealth of cultures, world views and stories which have rarely been told on film, especially in the way Ivan intends to approach it, she added. Competing against 14 other local pics in Morelias official selection, El Peluquero Romantico dwells on a middle-aged man whose mother has passed away and who tries to reconstruct his life after divorce. Ramirez is currently in talks with potential sales agents and distributors. Drama participated in the Primer Corte (First Cut) competition of Buenos Aires-based confab Ventana Sur last year where it won the Premio Le Film Francais, consisting in advertising in the magazine, the Sofia Films post-prod award and a special mention from Argentine TV, involving acquisition of the film. Story continues Arte Mecanica is currently in development on Los Anos Rotos by Gerardo Tort, a $3.5 million feature on the dirty war in Mexico while its also prepping at least two docus: Where Things Remain a debut feature docu of Daniela Silva Solozano, and Robertson St. by Cecilia Mendoza Vazquez, to shoot in New Orleans. AM is also developing comedy Hijo de Familia, to be directed by Hari Sama. We hope to be shooting at least two features next year, said Ramirez. Arte Mecanica is moreover jumping onto the TV bandwagon and expanding its team. Theres a lot of production of television series for OTTs and free-to-air TV in Mexico but series tend to repeat the same themes or plots; Id like to do something different, he said. The shingles push into TV is led by Jacopo Fontana, the companys director of new content, along with executive producer Montserrat Cattaneo, and executive producer Bruna Haddad who joins the team early next year. The historic launch of Mexicos third broadcasting channel Imagen TV on Oct. 17, which has announced plans to include a raft of original content, is heartening news for independent producers in Mexico. I hope they opt for content outside of the norm, said Ramirez. Among the series in development are Ni Rubia, Ni Rica, a millennial-targeted comedy about an aspiring actress in Mexico; thriller El Tercer Ojo about two young scientists who become vigilantes after they develop the skills to see the future and prevent crimes; and Venetia, a 13-episode gothic thriller series, created, penned and to be directed by Fontana. Set in Venice, Venetia revolves around an Inspector Fontana whose investigation into a series of violent murders in Venice leads him to uncover ancient rituals and a secret sect. Related stories Morelia Talent: Julio Fernandez Trains a Spotlight on Rapping Inmates in 'Mexicanos de Bronce' Morelia: Mexican Filmmaker Alejandro Rios Prepares 'Robat,' His Animated Feature Debut Impulso Morelia Showcases Movies by Marcelo Tobar, Everardo Gonzalez, Maya Goded MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico has issued an arrest warrant for an outgoing state governor in the ruling party suspected of involvement in organized crime and money laundering, the attorney general said on Wednesday, amid fears he has gone missing. Javier Duarte, who took a leave of absence this week from the governorship of Veracruz just as his term was ending, has presided over a spike in gang violence and kidnappings in the oil-rich state favored by drug cartels as a trafficking route. Accusations of widespread corruption in his administration had become an embarrassment for President Enrique Pena Nieto. Duarte, who has denied any wrongdoing, has overseen a doubling of state debt, and to many Mexicans he has become a symbol of political corruption and impunity. "The security cabinet is working in a coordinated manner to possibly locate him," Attorney General Arely Gomez said at a news conference in the Pacific resort of Acapulco. "The arrest warrant was issued for the crimes of organized crime and money laundering." Duarte could not immediately be reached for comment. He has not appeared in public since giving an interview on Mexican television last week. Veracruz's interim Governor Flavino Rios told local radio on Tuesday he did not know where Duarte was and said "each person is responsible for his actions" when asked if his predecessor's name had been unfairly besmirched. Duarte's term ends in six weeks when the opposition will take power in Veracruz. Pena Nieto's ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) lost the state during a series of reverses in regional elections in June. The results were widely attributed to voter anger at rampant corruption. Gomez said warrants had also been issued for nine associates of Duarte, and that two were arrested on Tuesday. But the opposition said Duarte risked getting away. "They already had enough information that the attorney general's office was going to ask for an arrest warrant. Why were they not watching him?" Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) lawmaker Jesus Zambrano said in a statement. Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong said there was no record of Duarte leaving the country, and denied there had been a deal to let his fellow Institutional Revolutionary Party member escape. "It is precisely the government of Enrique Pena Nieto that has acted against these governors," he said, noting it had arrested the last PRI governor of Tabasco in 2013 on corruption charges. (Reporting by Anahi Rama and Natalie Schachar; Writing by Frank Jack Daniel; Editing by Richard Chang) Nepal Airlines takes second place in massive turnaround Nepal Airlines moved up to the second spot in international passenger carriage, marking a massive turnaround after years in the wilderness. MGIC Investment Corp. MTG reported third-quarter 2016 operating net income per share of 25 cents, which outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 17 cents by 47%. The bottom line also surged 25% year over year. Net income, including net realized investment gains of 1 cent and loss on debt extinguishment of 12 cents, was 14 cents per share. The quarterly figure came in substantially below $1.78 per share earned in the year-ago quarter. The stock gained about 5.1% in the trading session on Oct 18. We wait to see if the momentum continues going forward. MGIC INVSTMT CP Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise MGIC INVSTMT CP Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | MGIC INVSTMT CP Quote Operational Update MGIC Investment recorded total operating revenue of $268.7 million, almost flat year over year. This was because the increase in investment income and other income was offset by lower-than-expected premiums earned. Also, the top line surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $258 million. New insurance written was $14.2 billion in the reported quarter, up 14.4% from $11.8 billion in third-quarter 2015. As of Sep 30, 2016, the companys primary insurance in force was $180.1 billion, up 4.3% year over year. Persistency, or the percentage of insurance remaining in force from the year before, was 78.3% as of Sep 30, 2016 compared with 80.0% as of Sep 30, 2015. Percentage of delinquent loans, including bulk loans, was 5.2% as of Sep 30, 2016 compared with 6.3% as of Jun 30, 2015. Primary delinquent inventory plunged 20.4% year over year to $51.4 billion. Net underwriting and other expenses totaled $40.4 million, down 16.5% year over year. Losses incurred in the quarter narrowed to $60.9 million from $76.5 million. A $38 million reduction in losses in the third quarter was due to the positive development on the companys primary loss reserve. This apart, the company witnessed a lesser new delinquent notices received and a lower claim rate. MGIC Investment had recorded positive development of around $39 million in the second quarter of 2015. Total losses and expenses decreased 33.6% year over year to $190.1 million. Underwriting and other expenses, net was down 16% year over year, while interest expenses decreased 22% year over year. All these factors contributed to the decline in total loss and expense. Financial Update Book value per share, a measure of net worth, jumped nearly 18.2% year over year to $7.48 as of Sep 30, 2016 from $6.33 as of Sep 30, 2015. As of Sep 30, 2016, MGIC Investment had approximately $4.9 billion in cash and investments, up 2.1% year over year. In the third quarter, the company repurchased $292.4 million 2% convertible senior notes, due 2020. The repurchase was funded through the issue of $425 million of 5.75% 2023 Senior Notes. Performance of Another Insurer Like MGIC Investment, another insurance company too managed to post better-than-expected third-quarter earnings. Progressive Corp.s PGR operating net income of 36 cents beat the Zack Consensus Estimate by 3 cents. Zacks Rank and Other Stocks Currently, MGIC Investment carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked insurers include Prudential Financial Inc. PRU and Radian Group Inc. RDN. Both these companies carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Radian Group, a credit enhancement company which supports homebuyers, mortgage lenders, loan servicers and investors with a suite of private mortgage insurance and related risk-management products and services, is due to report third-quarter results on Oct 27. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is currently pegged at 38 cents. Prudential Financial, a financial products and services including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds, investment management and real estate services, is due to report third-quarter results on Nov 2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is currently pegged at $2.50. Story continues Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report RADIAN GRP INC (RDN): Free Stock Analysis Report MGIC INVSTMT CP (MTG): Free Stock Analysis Report PRUDENTIAL FINL (PRU): Free Stock Analysis Report PROGRESSIVE COR (PGR): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. UPDATE, Friday 4:02 PM: Michael Moore In TrumpLand is now available on iTunes, and the surprise self-distributed documentary has also lined up presentations around the globe. The film will air on October 30 in the UK (Channel 4), Australia (Ten Network), Netherlands (VPRO), New Zealand (TVNZ), Denmark (TV2), Sweden (SVT), Finland (Nelonen), Norway (NRK) and Iceland (365). The film, currently available on iTunes for $4.99, broke the house record at the IFC Center cinema in New York on Wednesday, according to a Moore spokesman, who reported ticket sales of $6,972. The film, dubbed Moores October Surprise, is also playing at the Laemmle Town Center 5 in Encino in Los Angeles, where it has been the top-grossing film since it opened. Moore is expected to make appearances at New York screenings this weekend. PREVIOUS, OCTOBER 18 AM: Pledging to get his October surprise documentary Michael Moore In TrumpLand in front of millions of people over the next three weeks via online distribution, theatrical engagements and even house parties sponsored by MoveOn.org, Michael Moore premiered his film in New York tonight just 12 hours, give or take, after locking in final edits. Describing TrumpLand as a movie I knew the Hillary Clinton campaign would never endorse, the former Bernie Sanders die-hard has directed a film aimed not so much at the undecideds but the unenthusiastics the voters who hate Trump and dont like Clinton all that much more. This is not a movie for cynics, Moore told the packed house at New York Citys IFC Center cinema, and this is not an election for cynics. His audience was welcoming, to say the least, already pumped by a carnival atmosphere outside the theater that included an automated, glowing-eyed, tiny-handed Trump-as-fortune-teller machine dispensing predictions and promises (Scott Baio for Supreme Court because I want to see Charles in Charge!) Story continues The sneak preview Moore announced the free screening on Twitter yesterday gave audiences (including the press) a first look at what is essentially a concert film. Taped at a Wilmington, Ohio theater October 7 and so missing any mention of Trumps Access Hollywood scandal and its fallout TrumpLand is essentially Moore delivering an impassioned and often very funny pro-Hillary one-man-show before a politically mixed audience. Moore and his team had recruited local Ohioans of all leanings (he estimates about half the crowd was for Clinton, with the other half divided between supporters of Trump, Sanders and third parties). The stepping-into-enemy-territory aspect is a key element of the film: TrumpLand depicts moments when Moore can make absolutely no headway with his audience. Early in his show, Moore, in an attempt to find common ground, proposes that at least they can all agree that everyone wants better schools for their children. His suggestion is met by silence. By the end of the film, Moore seems to have clearly won over the audience at least in terms of his performance, as the Ohioans at least laugh at his jokes and murmur recognition. (He told the New York preview crowd that he doubted hed turned any Trump supporters, but hoped hed at least depressed their enthusiasm while amping up that of the fence-sitters and mild Clinton supporters). If parts of the film are heavy-handed TrumpLand includes more than a few shots of teary-eyed audience members moved by Moores mournful, angry shouts on behalf of Americans who have died due to a lack of health insurance Moore knows full well how to work his shlumpy, working-class-from-Flint persona. Forever fidgeting with the ball cap (San Francisco 49ers, naturally) that covers the business half of his unrepentant mullet, Moore approaches his scoffers by giving voice to their views before fully venting his. In one of the more remarkable segments, he lays out Trumps appeal more effectively than OReilly and Hannity combined. Trumps threats against the auto industry abandonment of the American workforce, his anti-corporate, anti-media, anti-Wall Street rants all tap into a the same seething hatreds of a decimated middle-class. Hes a human Molotov cocktail, Moore says of Trump, historys biggest f*ck you ever recorded. Then he pivots. Voting to blow the whole goddamn thing up, he says, will feel good, for a day. He likens the situation to Brexit, and warns that, like regretful British voters, Americans for Trump will soon lament their decisions. But TrumpLand, despite its title, is less about Donald than Hillary, as Moore sets out to explain and dismantle the countrys rampant and entrenched dislike of the former First Lady. He asks his audience to shout out the things they hate about her, and they oblige: Shes not trustworthy, she flip-flops, the Clinton Foundation, Benghazi, Iraq. Moore tackles the complaints one by one I wont spoil his rejoinders here, but his comical swatting away of the Vince Foster murder rumors are as funny as they are tasteless. TrumpLand eventually attempts to make its strongest case not so much against Trump as for Clinton, and to rile up enthusiasm for her. He even includes an actual recorded snippet of her Wellesley College graduation speech, and details the sacrifices she made for Bill, the scorn she endured for attempting health care reform, and the sexism shes battled since the Clintons days in the Arkansas governors mansion. And Moore just might succeed at that as anyone who has seen his earlier docus knows, he can be persuasive as hell but his biggest hurdle, with or without online options and viewing parties, will be getting the skeptics, the unpassionate and the disgusted-with-it-all to watch. Once they do, they might be surprised. TrumpLand will begin exclusive one-week runs in New York at the IFC Center and in Los Angeles at the Laemmle Town Center 5 in Encino on October 19. Moore said he expects to announce online options in the next day or two, as well as additional theatrical runs. The 73-minute film was written, produced and directed by Moore (the theater direction is by Dana Calderwood). A Dog Eat Dog Production, TrumpLand is presented by Dog Eat Dog Films and IMG Films, produced by Carl Deal and edited by Doug Abel. Related stories John Oliver Offers Donald Trump His Emmy Award If Candidate Will Accept Election Results On November 8 Bernie Sanders: Obama Administration "Should Kill" The AT&T-Time Warner Deal: "Higher Prices & Fewer Choices" Dan Rather Probes 'Trump Nation' Week Before Election On Mark Cuban's AXS-TV In the 24 hours since news surfaced about Michael Moore's new documentary Michael Moore in TrumpLand, the guessing game began on who would distribute the election-themed film. It turns out it will be none other than Moore himself. Sources confirm that the firebrand documentarian will handle the film's theatrical release as well as its imminent iTunes launch, though there has been no official announcement from the digital giant. That's a departure from Moore's previous movies, most recently the much-hyped 2015 Toronto International Film Festival title Where to Invade Next, which was distributed theatrically by an unnamed company headed by ex-Radius executives Tom Quinn and Jason Janego and Alamo Drafthouse founder Tim League (that film, which bowed Feb. 12, earned $3.8 million domestically and never opened overseas). Moore's new pic screened for the first time at New York City's IFC Center on Tuesday night for free and will begin its theatrical run on Wednesday at the IFC Center (for one week only) and Los Angeles' Laemmle Town Center 5 in Encino. Moore told the packed audience: "Our goal is to have as many Americans see this over the next five or 10 days." An iTunes release will help TrumpLand reach the widest possible audience in the run-up to the presidential election on Nov. 8. Read more: Michael Moore Talks Surprise 'TrumpLand' Film: "Look for the Good in Hillary Clinton" The 73-minute film features Moore speaking onstage about presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, with the director musing about what would happen under their respective presidencies (Trump's scenario was not flattering). TrumpLand was shot less than two weeks ago, over two consecutive nights at a venue in Wilmington, Ohio, in a county where Trump received four times as many votes as Clinton did in the primary elections. The film is not expected to have the kind of box-office success that some of Moore's previous efforts have enjoyed, such as the election-year pic Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004). There likely won't be many clamoring to see TrumpLand after election day, a prospect that would have made it challenging for any would-be distributor. Instead, TrumpLand will likely do the majority of its business from its iTunes release in the days leading up to the election. Read more: 'Michael Moore in TrumpLand': Film Review Director Michael Moore at the TrumpLand premiere on Tuesday night (Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images) By Ashley Lee, The Hollywood Reporter Michael Moore has unveiled Michael Moore in TrumpLand, a surprise film he screened for the first time at New York Citys IFC Center on Tuesday night for free. The 73-minute film will begin its theatrical run on Wednesday at the IFC Center (for one week only) and Los Angeles Laemmle Town Center 5 in Encino. Were flying by the seat of our pants here, the Oscar-winning filmmaker of Bowling for Columbine, who has been an outspoken opponent of Donald Trump throughout the presidential election, told the premieres audience. Our goal is to have as many Americans see this over the next five or ten days. The live performance film which sees Moore speaking about the two candidates onstage, and supposing what would happen if each were to become the next U.S. president was shot less than two weeks ago, over two consecutive nights at a venue in Wilmington, Ohio, in a county where Trump received four times as many votes as Clinton did in the primary elections. To us, this was TrumpLand, Moore explained, adding that he initially eyed the Ohio town of Licking, but was denied. I wanted to do this not in a safe place, but in a place where wed need a lot of security, which we had. Related: Michael Moore Reveals Surprise Donald Trump Film The film was funded by IMG Films, and its postproduction was completed at Technicolor and locked on Tuesday morning at 7 a.m. and IFC donated their theater for the Tuesday night premiere, co-hosted by MoveOn.org. Since the announcements buzz, a handful of theaters have called to screen over the next two weeks before the election. Well hopefully have an announcement on that over the next 24 to 36 hours. Its all coming together in a very rapid-fire way, he explained, adding that the film will soon be available on VOD as well. Lots of people have been contacting us to see how they can help us. In the film, Moore notes that white men over 35 are obsolete in the 21st century (Guys know it and thats why theyre at the Trump rallies, he says) and that women are not inherently problematic: No women invented a hydrogen or atomic bomb, and no girls have gone into schools to shoot them up. Were actually quite safe from 51 percent of the population, he explains. Whatever youre afraid of does not wear a dress or a pantsuit. Story continues The movie also includes an imagined news segment that covers what would happen if Trump is inaugurated: aerial attacks on Mexican border towns, an official TV news channel operated by Breitbart and Roger Ailes, and the deportation of Rosie ODonnell to American Samoa. Afterward, the filmmaker discusses Clinton with the audience, playing a segment of her impassioned Wellesley commencement speech and supposing that, as Pope Francis did to the Catholic Church, Clinton can stimulate progress that benefits the greater good of the country. The enemy of my enemy is who Im voting for on Nov. 8, he says in the film. At the recorded performance, Moore made Trump people feel more comfortable by seating Mexican and Mexican-looking Americans in a segregated area, which was entirely blocked off by a faux brick wall, and Muslim-looking attendees were in another area and monitored by a drone. Related: Michael Moore in TrumpLand: Film Review Moore, who himself has never before voted for Clinton, explained that he made TrumpLand because Democrats should not strategize for Clintons victory by solely scaring people off Trump, as support for Clinton is not necessarily locked-in. If you support Hillary Clinton and youve been doing this end zone dance and celebrating her early victory, youve been helping to defeat her by doing that, he said while introducing the film. Theres a long tradition of Americans electing people you dont think theyre going to elect. What the country doesnt need is to be told that Trump is a crazy, dangerous psychopath [and] sociopath, all of that. He has written and produced that movie and it appears daily. Its too risky for me. Im gonna do something here and give people positive reasons to vote for her, he said after the screening. Look for the good in Hillary. Im not saying forget the bad, but theres a lot of good there. Of the audience onscreen, he said, I dont think I turned a lot of them to Hillary. One of my personal goals maybe I shouldnt say this out loud was to depress the Trump vote. They may still vote for Trump, but they may not bring ten people with them. The Hillary vote is depressed right now. Our biggest opponent on election day is getting people out [to the polls] who have given up. Still, Moore asserted that this film is a movie that the Hillary campaign would never endorse and targets the undecided voters, especially of the four Brexit states, which are Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, people who are leaning toward Trump who can reluctantly vote [for Hillary], he said. If you dont think the white working class, especially men, arent in this and arent as frightened, their fear is driving them seriously and theyre gonna vote. Nov. 8 [is] winter in Michigan; its a low [voter] turnout day. There could be two feet of snow in Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania. You know who comes [to the polls]? The rabid supporters come out. Im filled with optimism, but Im gonna be busy every single minute between now and when the polls close. Im taking this very seriously, he stressed, adding that headlines like the Billy Bush tapes havent suppressed Trumps support quite enough. If I leave here tonight with people thinking that this was just a nice funny show and that were not in any kind of trouble here because Trump has imploded, the shitshow isnt over. Dont take any joy in this, because it appeals to the darker instinct of a country that has made some mistakes, whether its voting for Reagan or Nixon or Bush or the professional wrestler in Minnesota. He ended the post-screening Q&A with a lighter take: Remember, Kaitlyn [Bristowe] we all thought she was gonna go with Nick [Viall], and she picked Shawn [Booth] on the Bachelorette. Jennifer Hudson lost on American Idol our fellow Americans voted for Fantasia [Barrino]! Im telling you, s happens in America. They thought Jennifer Hudson had it in the bag. Dont let Fantasia win on Nov. 8! Related: Michael Moore Writes Open Letter to Ivanka Trump to Stage Intervention for Her Father Announced Monday night via Twitter, the project is an iteration of Moores one-man play, which he planned to perform at a central Ohio theater and record for nationwide release just weeks before the election. The films official synopsis reads: See the film Ohio Republicans tried to shut down. Oscar-winner Michael Moore dives right into hostile territory with his daring and hilarious one-man show, deep in the heart of TrumpLand in the weeks before the 2016 election. Moore is no stranger to politically-themed projects his career-topping doc Fahrenheit 9/11 took on George W. Bush at a time when he was locked in a heated presidential election with John Kerry. Though Bush won the presidency, the Lionsgate title grossed $222 million worldwide. Michael Moore in Trumpland follows the theatrical release of Where to Invade Next, which was his first movie in six years. Unveiled as a surprise title at the 2015 Toronto Film Festival and released in just over 300 theaters in February, the documentary was distributed by a new, unnamed company headed by ex-Radius executives Tom Quinn and Jason Janego and Alamo Drafthouse founder Tim League. It grossed $3.8 million worldwide. The films world premiere drew opponents of Trumps presidential campaign for photos and publicity opportunities, including a fortune-telling machine. Michelle Obama in Atelier Versace As Rashida Jones wrote in a recent love letter on T, Michelle Obama will have her own legacy, separate from her husbands. And one of those things (including all of her incredible work with young girls and heath) will be her amazing fashion. At her final state dinner hosting Italy, the first lady dazzled in a custom Atelier Versace gown in rose gold made entirely of chain mail. (Photo: Getty Images) Michelle Obama is going out with a bang sartorially speaking, that is. During the final state dinner hosted by the Obama White House for Italy, the first lady dazzled in a firework of a dress. Custom made for her by Atelier Versace, the rose gold gowns made entirely of chain mail and features an off-the-shoulder strap as well as bodice ruching and flattering draping. I am humbled and honored to have had the opportunity to dress the First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, Italian designer Donatella Versace wrote on Instagram. Thank you, Michelle, for all the things you have done for America and for the world, and especially, for empowering and inspiring women everywhere. The Versace gown isnt the only amazing gown FLOTUS has worn to host state dinners in Washington, DC. Throughout the nearly eight years shes been in the White House, the Obamas have hosted 13 events for foreign dignitaries, with the first lady making a fashion statement at every single one. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. Nepal-India JC meet next week The fourth meeting of Nepal, India Joint Commission will take place in the Indian capital New Delhi on October 26 and 27, the top Foreign Ministry official has confirmed. Michelle Obama is heading out with a bang! The first lady gave Beyonce a run for her money on Tuesday, donning a stunning, curve-hugging gown for the state dinner held in honor of Italian prime minister, Matteo Renzi, the first family's last in the White House. WATCH: Michelle Obama Shares Barack Impression, Dishes on Their Sexy 'Essence' Photo Shoot on 'Late Show' Michelle slayed in a gorgeous, rose gold Atelier Versace dress, ruched at the waist, as she made a glorious entrance hand in hand with her husband. Getty Images RELATED: Gwen Stefani and Her Sons Meet President Barack Obama Ahead of Italy State Dinner Performance The mother of two let her gown do all the talking, as she kept her hair simple for the occasion, styling her shoulder-length tresses with sassy, side-swept bangs. Getty Images WATCH: Barack and Michelle Obama Are Total Relationship Goals on Their 24th Wedding Anniversary While FLOTUS was a glittering gold goddess in her stunning chainmail dress, the evening's guests of honor, Renzi and his wife, Agnese Landini were also dressed to the nines. Landini wowed in a black-and-white strapless gown, while her husband wore a dark tuxedo, similar to the one sported by President Obama. Getty Images RELATED: Barack and Michelle Obama Open Up About Life After the White House Though Michelle always stuns in her state dinner ensembles, March's state dinner -- held in honor of Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau -- was all about her daughters, 18-year-old Malia and 15-year-old Sasha. "I realized that they hadn't been to a State Dinner," Michelle later explained to ET about her decision to include her daughters. "I thought, when I look back on this time, when they are talking to their kids and they are like, 'Mom, did you ever go to a State Dinner?' and they say no, I would feel pretty bad about that. So, we thought, 'We're going to invite them to one.' And they got to do the big girl dress-up thing." Story continues See more in the video below. Related Articles Michelle Obama wore a chainmail Versace gown at her last state dinner as FLOTUS and the internet could not deal We dont have to remind you that the first lady is the epitome of #stylegoals, but after seeing Michelle Obama in this rose gold chainmail Versace gown on Tuesday evening at her final state dinner as FLOTUS, we couldnt let another moment pass without highlighting this stellar example of superior slayage. She and President Obama were on hand to host Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife, Agnese Landini. While the president looked extraordinarily dapper in his tux, the world couldnt take its eyes off Michelles dazzling ensemble. The first ladys stunning look was a floor-length, chainmail gown with a draped bodice, ruched waist and a slit. She paired the custom-made Atelier Versace dress with jewelry by Le Vian. Um, dont quote us on this, but were pretty sure this level of flawlessness is illegal because DAYUM: Seriously, our minds just spat out a series of blerps and beeps because we cannot compute how she manages to slay SO HARD: Italian Prime Minister Visits The White House OK, First Lady: Now youre getting out of hand. President Obama is clearly playing it cool, but our hearts cant handle anymore. Unfortunately, we cant stop looking because we havent seen the back of the dress yet. Lets start with this closeup: President And Mrs. Obama Host State Dinner For Italian PM Renzi Now lets move in for the kill: US President Barack Obama hosts Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi for official visit and state dinner *flatlines then wearily comes back to life* Fashionista reports that Donatella Versace created the look specifically for the evenings festivities, saying, I am humbled and honored to have the opportunity to dress the First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama. Thank you Michelle for all of the things you have done for America and for the rest of the world, for the women in the United States and the rest of the world. Indeed, Donatella. We cant forget about all of the first ladys wonderful contributions to society, but she will definitely go down in history as the most flawless FLOTUS of all time. The post Michelle Obama wore a chainmail Versace gown at her last state dinner as FLOTUS and the internet could not deal appeared first on HelloGiggles. Michigan rapper Waldo has been making music for quite some time now, but the release of last months Be Ever Wonderful feels like the beginning of a new chapter for the young artist. In the past, aside from releasing his own solo efforts, the Grand Rapids native has been making music alongside his fellow AGO Music labelmates like Sango, TheSEVENth, and more for years. For Be Ever Wonderful, he keeps the spotlight on him with the continued support of Sango, Kaytranada, and others on production. While Waldo continues to tour around the country to bring his new album to life for his supporters, he shares a brand new video today for the album's fourth track, "Inner Killer." The heavy-hitting single is matched with some fast-paced and eye-catching visuals directed by Uncle Luc. Along with the a new video, Waldo also shared his thoughts on his career's journey with us, and explained the creative process behind his latest album. Watch the "Inner Killer" video above, and get familiar with Waldo below. How was the recording process for Be Ever Wonderful different from your previous releases? The recording process for Be Ever Wonderful was different from my previous releases because it was more organic on my behalf. I was able to take my time, write every record and choose the ones that made the album myself. What's the inspiration behind the title and stories on Be Ever Wonderful? The title Be Ever Wonderful was inspired by the Earth, Wind & Fire record Be Ever Wonderful. I felt the lyrics in that song spoke to me and defined where I was and where I am in my life. The stories I tell are a reflection of what I've been through in the process of creating this projectmentally and physically. You often collaborate with other members of the AGO like Sango, The SEVENth, and Savon. What's it been like being part of this musical family? What are the collaborative creation processes like? Being apart of musical family such as AGO is a blessing. They understand who I am and witness a lot of the content I speak about in these records which allows them to channel my energy when it is time to create. Story continues You've been on tour for the last month, how does the crowd's reception differ in your hometown compared to the other cities you visit? I've always received a lot of support from my hometown but as I travel I notice how much of an impact my music has on people. It's a humbling experience when I see how much people relate to me that I never known and haven't been where I've been. The beats you tend to choose usually are both hard-hitting but soulful, what artists or people in your life would you say helped you acquire this taste? The majority of my musical taste comes from my father. I grew up listening to music he would play around my brother and I like Cameo, Michael Jackson, A Tribe Called Quest, Common, Raphael Saadiq and many more soulful artist . As I got older I started trusting my own ear and listening to more hardcore hip-hop like Notorious B.I.G, 50 Cent, Kanye West and The Clipse. That overall enhanced my taste in music. For listeners who might just be getting introduced to you, where should they start? What do you want them to know about you? For those who are just discovering me and my music I would like them to know that nothing worth having comes overnight. I've been recording music with my AGO brothers for the past 10 years and we still have so far to go. Be Ever Wonderful is my seventh project but my drive makes me feel like its my first. Always put your best foot forward and keep believing. Continue Reading On PigeonsandPlanes More from PigeonsandPlanes Madrid (AFP) - Dozens of migrants rioted at a detention centre in Madrid, police said Wednesday, climbing onto the roof of the building where they spent the night and unfurling a banner reading "freedom". By mid-morning on Wednesday they had voluntarily come down from the top of the centre, police said. The "mutiny" kicked off late Tuesday at the centre in Madrid's southern district of Aluche and continued through the night, a police spokesman told AFP. Some 40 people unfurled the banner and shouted "freedom" from the roof in protest at their detention conditions, an AFP photographer said. "Following negotiations, they accepted to come down, there was no need for force," the police spokesman said. Police said the protesters had broken furniture to make their way to the roof, while Spanish daily El Pais reported that some had obstructed security cameras inside the building. A spokeswoman for city hall said no one had been injured in the riot. Charities and academics have often denounced prison-like conditions in Spain's seven immigration detention centres -- some of which have overcrowded rooms, dirty toilets and few amenities or translation services. The centres are meant for people who have come to Spain without a residence permit and are in the process of being deported. Madrid councillor Javier Barbero, who is in charge of health and safety, described the centres as an "institutional failure". This is not the first time that immigration detention centres have suffered such incidents. Earlier this month, 67 migrants without residence permits managed to flee a detention centre where they were being held near the southeastern city of Murcia. One of the migrants first pretended to be ill, before the others fled as an ambulance arrived. Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence visited the charred interior of a GOP office in North Carolina that was firebombed over the weekend. The Indiana governor denounced the arson attack as cowardly and an act of political terrorism after touring the site in the town of Hillsborough. I wanted to come by to call attention to this cowardly attack on our supporters in North Carolina and to no less extent an attack on the American political system. This was an act of political terrorism, Pence said at a Tuesday afternoon press conference with his wife, Karen, by his side. Hillsborough police said that early Sunday morning a bottle with flammable material a Molotov cocktail was thrown through the front window of the Orange County, N.C., GOP headquarters and graffiti was spray-painted on the side of a neighboring building. I have to tell you how inspired I am to see the way this community has come together and the people have come together to continue to move forward, undeterred, unintimidated by this senseless act of violence, Pence continued. He praised the Trump campaigns supporters in North Carolina and beyond for their resilience and thanked God that there were no injuries or deaths from the attack. Pence also thanked local and state officials for their response efforts. Mike Pence inspects a charred chair outside the Orange County Republican Party Headquarters in Hillsborough, N.C. (Photo: Ben McKeown/AP) I would say to our neighbors and friends and supporters here in North Carolina, you are truly inspiring people across this state and across this nation with your resilience and your courage in the face of this unprovoked attack, he said. Pence speculated that the incident would have received far more media coverage had a Democratic office been the target of the firebombing. He said hes been astonished by the negative coverage of Republican nominee Donald Trump and the sparse coverage of the avalanche of corruption surrounding the real estate developers opponent, Hillary Clinton. This has gotten very little national media attention, he said. And I cant help but feel that had this been the other way around, had it been an attack in this county on the other political partys county headquarters, that the level of national media coverage and the discussion would be significantly different. Story continues Investigators with the FBI and the Hillsborough Police Department have been investigating the scene: canvassing the area, conducting interviews and collecting various videos from the surrounding area. This was a very busy day in Hillsborough, and I am proud of our officers for the way they have managed both the investigation and the visit by Governor Pence today, Hillsborough Police Chief Duane Hampton said in a statement. I am also thankful for the continued assistance we have gotten from the federal government and our partners at the Orange County Sheriffs Office and the support we continue to get from our community. Anyone with relevant information about the North Carolina attack is encouraged to contact Hillsborough investigator Jon Purvis at jon.purvis@hillsboroughnc.org or (919) 732-9381, ext. 37. Another GOP office was damaged this week in an apparent attack. On Monday, the Republican Partys headquarters in Indianas Delaware County said on Facebook that someone threw two landscaping blocks through the window of its office building in Muncie, which was displaying signs for Trump and Indiana Rep. Todd Young. The group estimates that it will cost roughly $1,200 to replace the window. There was no suspect in that. The actual party chairman was in the building at the time. He ran out. Were not currently investigating because we dont have anything to go on, Mike Engle, an investigative sergeant for the Muncie Police Department, told Yahoo News. William Statom, the chairman of the Delaware County GOP, said the groups property has been vandalized during each presidential election cycle since 2007, when it moved to its current location: 2008, 2012 and now 2016. The Delaware County Republican Party in Indiana said that two landscaping blocks were thrown through a window. (Photo: Delaware County Republican Party/Facebook) Im 65 years old. This is an attitude Im not used to. Its still America, and I think when theres ramifications in the form of physical damage to property from unnamed individuals, I think its a pretty pathetic message, Statom told Yahoo News. We can agree to disagree and still respect each others rights. He blamed the hostile political environment on what he considers President Obamas general lack of respect throughout his years in the Oval Office. He also dismissed the suggestion that this years presidential race has contributed to the hostility in a significant way. I dont think you can credit somebody whos not even elected yet, he said. The College Republicans at Ball State University, also in Muncie, Ind., released a statement saying they are outraged and upset by the despicable acts against the office and that the local Republican Party has supported their efforts on campus, across the state and throughout the nation. Weve seen many reports of campaign offices and County Republican Parties being vandalized and even destroyed all over the country during this election cycle, Anthony Cook, the chairman of the Ball State College Republicans, said in a statement. A representative for the Delaware County Republican Party was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Yahoo News. CANNES, France Adi Hasak has no use for Hollywood. Hed like nothing more than to bypass the big studios entirely, working with international distributors to put his projects before the public. Im really getting into this global environment and making my own path, the Israeli-Dutch producer says. The distributors are hungry to get into content creation. Im cutting out the studios. I have no interest in working with them. That might sound rich coming from a man who created and executive-produced NBCs Jennifer Lopez-led drama Shades of Blue and who serves as showrunner on USA Networks recently launched crime drama Eyewitness. But in an interview with Variety ahead of his keynote address Wednesday at Mipcom, Hasak says hes serious about forging an independent path and avoiding the traditional power centers of the television world. I liken [the studios] to these huge aircraft carriers in the ocean, and there I am in my little dinghy. I cant keep up with them, but I can maneuver much sharper than they can, he says. I am the studios worst nightmare. I compete with them. They create IP [intellectual property], I create IP. They need a broadcaster, I need a broadcaster. They have money, I can find money. From now on, Hasak, who is Israeli but was born in the Netherlands, says he intends to secure an international distribution partner first, before approaching a U.S. broadcaster. Hollywood studios tend to demand ownership of all rights, including international, to a show, but Hasak being entrepreneurial by nature wants to retain an ownership stake in his shows. Yet it was a traditional U.S. network, NBC, that gave him his first big break three years ago. Hasak pitched Shades of Blue as a spec script, following which NBC boss Bob Greenblatt ordered it straight to series, with Barry Levinson as director and Lopez as star. Hasak says that if he could do it all over again, he would do it differently. If that happened today, I would go out and shop it in the international market, and stay away from the studios, he says. That way the principals would have an ownership stake in the show. Story continues As for Eyewitness, British distributor DRG introduced Hasak to Norwegian show yevitne, and he pitched the idea of an English-language adaptation to USA Network, which ordered it straight to series. It is being sold internationally by NBCUniversal Intl. Television Distribution. Hasak sees his as an empowerment story. In the new gig economy, anyone can set up in business and compete with the big guys. I found that once I put my hands on the wheel and started steering, stuff started happening. As long as I was waiting for third parties to help me, nothing was getting done, says Hasak, who has no agent. Whether he continues working with U.S. networks or not, he foresees their demise. Its like the Berlin Wall. One day we are going to wake up and [the network system] is going to be gone, he says. Its an antiquated model and it really needs to go. It is ridiculous that a network programs a show and dictates to me when I can watch it. Theyll become streaming entities. Cellphone companies will become increasingly powerful in the content business, and the phone will be the way a lot of people consume content, Hasak predicts. Thats revolutionary, and it is incumbent on us storytellers and providers of content to look at how we provide the consumers with our narratives, he says. Wed better embrace [this new world], or well end up like the record companies in the 90s. Hasaks next TV project will be an American adaptation of Black Widows, a Finnish crime series produced by Moskito Television. The original show, whose format rights are controlled by DRG, centers on three couples, who spend a weekend at a summer villa by the sea. As the husbands head off for a fishing trip, the wives wave goodbye. As the boat accelerates, and as it heads away from the shore it suddenly explodes, DRG explains in its catalog. The three women witness the horrific scene. Within a matter of seconds, their husbands have gone Just as they planned It is time for the women to start anew. But things are never that straightforward. Are they? Hasak will be producing the American version of the show through his production company, Adi TV Prod., and will reveal international partners at a later date. Related stories Mipcom: Telemundo Nabs a Trio of Globo's Telenovelas, Led by 'Rules of the Game' 'America's Got Talent,' 'Project Runway' Among U.S. Shows in Chinese Video Deal Mipcom: BidSlate Unveils Rights Transaction Operation (EXCLUSIVE) Food aid for more than 80,000 people in parts of northwest Myanmar has been suspended because of a military clampdown in the area, the World Food Programme said Wednesday. Troops have poured into the north of Rakhine state near the Bangladesh border since attacks on police posts over a week ago, closing off an area where most people are from Myanmar's persecuted Muslim Rohingya minority. Security forces have killed at least 30 people since the raids, according to state media, while a tally of latest official figures show at least 40 people are being held. Eleven were arrested in the past two days and are now being interrogated, according to a government statement late Wednesday. The WFP normally feeds some 80,000-85,000 people in the locked-down area, but aid deliveries have been disrupted and the military has prevented any supplies getting through. "There is military everywhere and a curfew in place, and so it's impossible to access any of the areas affected," said Arsen Sahakyan, WFP's partnership officer in Myanmar. "The areas affected are also the areas where we normally operate." Activists say a violent crackdown has been unfolding, with troops gunning down Muslim civilians and torching their villages. But the military says it has itself been fending off violent attacks. The government has blamed the border guard attacks on Islamists from a little-known group called "Aqa Mul Mujahidin" and said hundreds of militants are planing more attacks. Details of the killings and the ensuing lockdown by the military have proved difficult to confirm in the remote and tightly controlled area. The violence has raised the spectre of a repeat of sectarian unrest in 2012 that ripped the impoverished state apart, leaving more than 100 dead and driving tens of thousands of Rohingya into squalid displacement camps. - Severe restrictions - The Rohingya are reviled as alleged illegal immigrants by many in Myanmar, where they face severe restrictions on their movements, education and access to food. Story continues Fears the violence will spread to other parts of the state have prompted the WFP to restart aid to some 6,000 displaced people whom they had stopped feeding several months ago. Tensions have simmered between the Buddhist Rakhine community and the Muslim Rohingyas since 2012. The unrest left the state largely divided along ethnic lines. Many Rakhines -- who are also an impoverished and sidelined community in majority-Bamar Myanmar -- deeply resent the international aid given to the Rohingya. In 2014 most aid agencies pulled out of the state after mobs of Buddhist extremists ransacked their offices and warehouses, accusing them of bias in favour of Muslims. That anger was on display outside a monastery in Maungdaw that has become a makeshift refugee camp for Rakhines, where a sign read: "We don't need any support from UN, INGOs -- Maungdaw Rakhine state." "I'm really angry now," said Hla Shwe, a Rakhine villager who was staying inside. "When our Rakhine houses were burned and attacked in 2012, they didn't let the world know," he told AFP, referring to the aid agencies. "We are the ones who have became local IDPs (internally displaced people). We are the ones who don't have citizens' rights. "They should think about the human rights of Rakhine ethnics as well." marijuana cannabis Marijuana legalization in the United States is closer than ever to being a reality: 60% of Americans now support it. That's according to the latest Gallup Poll data, which asked over 1,000 respondents, "Should marijuana use be made legal, or not?" The data shows increases in support for marijuana legalization across the board across age, race, gender, and political demographics. And it's a huge overall increase: from 35% of adults in favor of legalization in 2005, to 60% in 2016. Pew Research conducted a similar poll earlier in 2016, which came to similar results: 57% of Americans over 18 favor outright marijuana legalization. Over half of the US has already legalized some form of marijuana use recreation, medicinal, or both. Colorado and Washington have legalized the use and sale of marijuana for recreational use; both states are regulating the production, sales, and consumption of marijuana along the same lines as alcohol. And on November 8, marijuana legalization is on the ballot in nine states. In five of those states Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts, and Nevada voters are choosing whether or not to legalize marijuana in the same way Colorado and Washington already have. It's looking likely that the initiatives will pass in at least three, if not four, of the five states. Though neither presidential candidate supports legalization, the political lines are clear: Self-identifying Democrats and Independents are around 70% in favor, while Republicans are still against. Just 42% of respondents who identify as Republican are in favor of marijuana legalization. NOW WATCH: 4 tips for people smoking marijuana for the first time More From Business Insider Parliamentary panel urged to re-table BAFI Bill NRB is adamant that there should be no major changes to its draft. Lawmakers are divided over the contentious provisions in the bill Mexican director Alejandro Rios, whose Los Gatos won the best toon short film award at 2016 Guadalajara Film Festival, is preparing Robat, his animated feature debut. The Robat project encompasses a virtual reality animated short, Humans After Death, that will act as the features prequel. The prequel will tell how Humans After Death, a human eternity organization, seeks immortality for people through virtualizing their bodies. Set in the year 2150, the the furistic narrative capture a population surrounded by machines and an army of virtualized people. In the film, the HAD org plans the creation of a Lunar society, teaching humans that true transcendence can only be achieved through death. It is a story that talks about a future where death no longer exists. Our aim is to reflect on that, Rios told Variety. Robat is set up at Oniria, a Mexican venture specialised in immersive technology launched in 2014 by the Rios-co-founded creative studio Muv in partnership with software company Funktionell. Currently at a script development and research stage, Robat has already been presented at three Mexican film events: VR Fest Mx, Animasivo and the International Festival of Guanajuato. Producers are talking to Mexican Film Institute Imcine, looking for possible financing alternatives for the virtual reality short, while, for the feature, they are investigating new models of international co-production, Rios said. Rios Los Gatos plays at this Octobers 14th Morelia International Film Festival edition. At Morelia, the helmer already won its best animated short award in 2011 with Erase una vez. Written by Cesar Perlop and produced by Edith Sieck at Muv, partnering with Imcine, Los Gatos focuses on a street cat that starts a new life with a lonely old man. It adresdes issues such as abuse and dependence. Despite the social and economic situation in Mexico, there are many filmmakers telling big animated film stories, Rios said. Story continues From my perspective, there are two reasons [for that]. The first is the approach to tools like software and cameras that allow to reduce production costs. The second and most important is that somehow the lack of an industry in Mexico has generated independent animation models, mostly fuelled by a sense of collaboration among all the necessary talent willing to unconditionally support projects, despite not receiving good remuneration, he added. Related stories Impulso Morelia Showcases Movies by Marcelo Tobar, Everardo Gonzalez, Maya Goded Pantelion Prepping 'No Manches Frida' Sequel (EXCLUSIVE) Morelia Film Fest To Unveil Demian Bichir's Debut 'Un Cuento de Circo & a Love Song' In a way Julio Fernandez debut feature documentary, Mexicanos de Bronce is a culmination of his past work. He has produced and directed a slew of non-fiction projects for television and cultural institutes that have explored the socio-political and cultural realities of Mexico. It was while researching on prisoners who were about to be released from a penitentiary when he came across some inmates who had turned to rap to express themselves and more importantly, to make their long- term prison sentences bearable. The fact is 50% of inmates return to prison, said Fernandez. Out of the three rapper inmates he profiled over five years, one was released but after a year of struggle against old vices, he was back. They learn to survive in prison but nobody teaches them how to be free, said Fernandez. Fernandezs university studies in photography and journalism have informed his work, but now hed like to delve in something more personal. Im working on my first fiction feature, which will tap into more personal experiences and relationships, he said. Produced by Geminiano Pinedas Cine Canibal, which plans to distribute it theatrically, Mexicanos will air on pubcaster Canal 22, which Fernandez has contributed to extensively, after a run on the international festival circuit. Related stories Mexico's Arte Mecanica and Argentina's Gema Films Team Up to Make Ivan Avila's 'Chichimeca' (EXCLUSIVE) Morelia: Mexican Filmmaker Alejandro Rios Prepares 'Robat,' His Animated Feature Debut Impulso Morelia Showcases Movies by Marcelo Tobar, Everardo Gonzalez, Maya Goded Kigali (AFP) - Moroccan King Mohammed VI on Wednesday began a tour of east Africa to shore up support for a historic bid to rejoin the African Union after more than three decades. The visit, kicking off in Rwanda and set to take in Tanzania and Ethiopia, also aims to forge diplomatic and economic ties with a region largely ignored by the north African country up until now. "We have never had any presence, neither diplomatic nor economic, nor cultural, nor historic, with east Africa," a high-ranking member of the king's delegation told AFP on condition of anonymity. "Aside from west and central Africa we must open up to east Africa and that is what is under way. The context of Morocco's return to the African Union is there too of course, and these are important countries in the AU." In Rwanda, Mohammed met with President Paul Kagame and signed 19 bilateral agreements, mostly in the economic sector. It was not clear exactly when he would leave for Tanzania. Rabat officially requested to rejoin the AU in September, 32 years after quitting the bloc in protest at its decision to accept Western Sahara as a member. Morocco has occupied the sparsely populated Western Sahara area since 1975 in a move that was not recognised by the international community. It maintains that Western Sahara is an integral part of the kingdom even though local Sahrawi people have long campaigned for the right to self-determination. In 1991, the United Nations brokered a ceasefire between Moroccan troops and Sahrawi rebels of the Algerian-backed Polisario Front but a promised referendum to settle the status of the desert territory is yet to materialise. The tour of east Africa "is also a way to get closer to countries which historically had positions which were hostile to Morocco's interests", said the Moroccan source, adding that the region had been considered an ally of Algeria. The Moroccan monarch in July said his nation's decision to return to the AU did not mean it was changing its stance on Western Sahara. Rabat's membership bid must be approved by a vote of the AU Commission in order to be accepted. Photo credit: (PHOTOGRAPH OF MORENA HERRERA BY LAUREN BOHN) From LennyLetter Thirty years ago, Morena Herrera was launching guerrilla attacks against a military-led government in El Salvador. She and her leftist comrades were incensed by an autocratic leadership that had ushered in sweeping inequality and a crackdown on civil liberties. As a commander and top military strategist, Herrera risked everything in a twelve-year war that left an estimated 70,000 dead. Now the 60-year-old titan is fighting another war as the matriarch of the women's movement in El Salvador. She is the founder of the country's first feminist organization and the president of the Citizen's Group for the Decriminalization of Abortion. "I didn't think I'd still be fighting for equality in 2016," the curly-haired titan said with a sigh while lighting a cigarette at her home in Suchitoto, the country's cobblestoned cultural capital. During the war, the town was nearly ravaged, and thousands fled. Women were part of the country's armed insurgency from its inception. Women made up around 30 percent of the members of the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN), a coalition of left-wing groups revolting against the government. Though the movement was hardly a feminist utopia, Herrera says the front gave women a sense of agency they had been denied in a society that saw them only as mothers and wives. Women proved to be successful guerrillas, as they were less likely to arouse suspicion and often went undetected when executing operations. Women were part of the country's armed insurgency from its inception. The civil war ended in 1992 with UN-brokered peace negotiations. An amnesty law was enacted, granting impunity to both sides for war crimes committed. FMLN transformed into a left-wing political party, which came into power in 2009. But many feel that the once-revolutionary group has been slow to tackle the country's vast gender inequities. "Some of us thought that as soon as the war ended, we'd all have rights," Herrera said. "But we soon learned that the struggle continues." Story continues Plagued by inequality and poverty, El Salvador is the most dangerous peacetime country in the world, per capita. The small Central American country has the highest rate of femicide in the world and one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy in Latin America. In 1998, abortion became illegal and criminalized in all cases including rape, incest, and those in which a mother's life is at risk (it had previously been legal if a woman's life was at risk as well as in cases of rape and of fetal abnormality). The country's powerful Catholic Church and pro-life lobby enthusiastically backed the new law and still wield significant influence among a vastly conservative population. On October 11, the FMLN introduced a bill in congress that would bring the abortion law back to its 1998 provisions. But without support from minority parties - many of which are conservative - the bill is unlikely to pass. Herrera has been a perennial target for the country's misogynistic vitriol. Over the years, she has received countless death threats and is vilified almost weekly in local media. "They can try to hurt me all they want," she said while walking to a local women's center that she helped establish, the first of its kind. "Nothing scares me anymore." "Nothing scares me anymore." When 33-year-old Maria Teresa Rivera was released from prison last May, she could barely recognize her twelve-year-old son. El Salvador's draconian abortion laws and the criminalization of those who assist with abortions have created widespread paranoia, if not a witch hunt, in which women who have had miscarriages or other obstetric emergencies are suspected of having abortions. Rivera is one of seventeen women, known as "Las 17," who were sentenced to up to 40 years in jail following reported miscarriages between 1999 and 2011, most on charges of aggravated homicide because their fetuses were ruled as viable. According to Herrera's Citizen's Group, which has petitioned for their pardons, a total of 25 women are now in jail. "In this country, the rich eat the poor," said Rivera, noting that all the women who have been wrongly accused are lower-class Salvadorans. "We are forgotten." When Rivera was released, Herrera was at the courthouse waiting for her. She counts it as one of the happiest moments of her life. But the women didn't celebrate for long. The country's attorney general soon announced his intention to appeal the decision. Herrera and lawyers say there is a high likelihood that Rivera may be sent back to prison. When Rivera was released, Herrera was at the courthouse waiting for her. "I grew up in orphanages," Rivera said, with tears filling her eyes. "I don't want my son to have the same life. But outside Herrera's vibrant network, there's little sympathy for Rivera or others still languishing behind bars. At a recent rally for the country's right-wing party, known as Arena, many harangued Las 17 and called for Rivera's imprisonment, calling her a baby killer and murderer. "It's simple: Life begins at conception," Arena parliamentarian Ricardo Andres Velasquez Parker explained after the rally. Abortion charges currently carry a sentence of 2 to 8 years, but Parker recently introduced a motion to increase the maximum sentence to 50 years, the same sentence that aggravated homicide carries. "When you have an abortion, you are committing aggravated homicide. You should spend up to 50 years in prison. Period." Photo credit: (LEFT TO RIGHT: ROSA ESMERADA GARCIA, TEODORA DEL CARMEN VASQUEZ, MARIA TERESA RIVERA. ALL PHOTOGRAPHS BY LAUREN BOHN) On a recent Friday afternoon, I visited Ilopango, El Salvador's women's prison, where most of the 25 wrongly accused women are serving time. I met 32-year-old Teodora del Carmen Vasquez, one of Rivera's best friends while in prison, who has already served 9 years of her 30-year sentence. She delivered her baby stillbirth at nearly nine months. "We have no rights," Vasquez said as a prison official assigned to accompany journalists held up a voice recorder while closely monitoring the time. Inside the prison's gates, Vasquez is known as "Helen" because when she first entered, she was afraid to use her real name for fear of assault or worse from inmates who had heard about her case and didn't believe that she had miscarried. Prison doesn't guarantee a safe space, with little tolerance among women for those who have had or been accused of having abortions. Luckily, Vasquez didn't experience the harassment she anticipated, and she now tells her story to some, though she has still kept the nickname. "When I get out of here, I want to study law," she said, before retiring to a room shared by 22 women, some of whom sleep on the floor. Her family is so poor that her ten-year-old son can't afford to make the three-hour commute from the countryside to visit her, so she sees him once a year. "I want to fight for us." "I want to fight for us." "Look, I know how it feels to get pregnant and be scared," says Herrera. She is the mother of four daughters, three of whom are from different fathers. During the war, three of her partners were killed successively, leaving her a single mother while on the battlefield. "Women need to have options, and they don't."Herrera says El Salvador's strict abortion laws, coupled with an almost nonexistent national sexual-education curriculum, have fueled one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy in Latin America. Since 2000, Herrera and colleagues have unsuccessfully pushed for a sexual-education program. In 2008, the church blocked a manual for teachers, created by the education ministry, from being used to teach sexual health in schools. "Our hands are tied," says Mirian Gonzalez, a coordinator at the Ministry of Health, acknowledging that current laws and the country's general conservatism often hinder the ministry's attempts to provide education and access to women. "We have to follow the law." At a maternity clinic outside San Salvador, 16-year-old Rosa Esmerada Garcia restlessly tapped her feet while waiting for a medical exam. She's due any day. When the teenager began showing, she dropped out of school. She says her principal beat her. Now, she sells tortillas with her family to make extra money. Last month, her boyfriend, the father of their daughter, abandoned her. In the beginning, Garcia didn't want to keep the baby. But she grew up in a staunchly Catholic family, and abortion was out of the question. She had heard about girls who had used misoprostol, a drug prescribed to treat stomach ulcers, to terminate their pregnancies (in countries where abortion is legal, misoprostol is used in tandem with the drug mifepristone for medical abortions). But at $200, the medication was off limits to her, as it is to many others in a nation where the average monthly wage is $300. "I'm happy now that I'm having a baby," she said as she rubbed her belly, almost as big as her tiny frame. "But I don't want her to have this life." Claudia Emera, a health worker at the clinic, says that 60 percent of the women who come to the center are teenagers, some as young as 13 years old. And of those, 20 percent actually want to be mothers. Herrera believes unwanted pregnancies have led to an uptick in suicides among teenage girls, a trend she hopes to stem with targeted workshops in several municipalities. "They're sad and, in some cases, depressed," says Emera. "They don't feel they're in control of their own lives." "They don't feel they're in control of their own lives." At one end of the center, draped in bamboo shoots and festooned with portraits of Frida Kahlo, a psychologist led a sexual-education workshop for teachers from across the country. Downstairs, domestic- and sexual-violence survivors gathered for a training on how to counsel fellow women who have endured abuse. More than half of all Salvadoran women say they have suffered some form of violence in their lives. Over a quarter of these women were victims of sexual or physical violence.At the women's center, Herrera shuffled between meetings while greeting the scores of women who come on any given day for workshops and camaraderie. "This is a country where women are silenced," said 27-year-old Christina Muria, who has been a counselor at the center for the past three years. "Poverty is high, and everything seems to be against you ... Whenever I think about giving up, I just remember when I was ten and hiding in the closet as my mom was abused. I know I have to keep going." As Herrera walked down the hall, Muria reached out to hug her. "She's the reason we're here," said Muria, smiling shyly. "She first taught us that we can be more than mothers, than wives, than girlfriends." Herrera blushed and shook her head. "We're all just sisters in the fight. I won't be free until we all are free," she said, still uncomfortable being in the spotlight even after years on the front line. "And that might not be for a while." Lauren Bohn is the GroundTruth Project's Middle East correspondent based in Istanbul and the co-founder of Foreign Policy Interrupted. Reporting for this story was supported by the International Women's Media Foundation. Oct 19 (Reuters) - The following financial services industry appointments were announced on Wednesday. To inform us of other job changes, email moves@thomsonreuters.com. BANK OF AMERICA MERRILL LYNCH Diego De Giorgi has become sole head of global investment banking as the previous co-head Karim Assef takes on a chairman role, according to a memo seen by Reuters on Wednesday. The bank also reshuffled its debt capital markets team, appointing Andrew Karp and Brendan Hanley as co-heads of global DCM, according to an internal memo seen by IFR. STANDARD LIFE INVESTMENTS The British asset manager, which is a unit of Standard Life Plc, named Scott Conlon as North American investment specialist. LYXOR GROUP The asset management company appointed Adam Laird as head of Northern Europe ETF Strategy. PRINCIPAL GLOBAL INVESTORS The asset management arm of Principal Financial Group Inc named Suresh Singh as head of funds distribution for Asia. (Compiled by Aravind K in Bengaluru) By Pamela Barbaglia and Anjuli Davies LONDON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Diego De Giorgi has become sole head of global investment banking at Bank of America Merrill Lynch as his previous co-head Karim Assef takes on a chairman role, according to a memo seen by Reuters on Wednesday. Assef and De Giorgi became co-heads of the newly created position of global investment banking at the Wall Street firm in April 2015, with Assef based in New York and De Giorgi in London. De Giorgi, who joined Bank of America Merrill Lynch from Goldman Sachs in 2013 as co-head of the lender's Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) corporate and investment banking, will remain in London, according to the memo. Assef, who has been at the bank for around 20 years, will become chairman of global investment banking, a newly created position to focus on client relationships based in New York. A spokeswoman for Bank of America confirmed the contents of the memo. Bank of America, the second-largest U.S. bank by assets, reported its first profit increase in three quarters on Monday, foiling expectations for another drop, as bond trading surged and expenses fell. Income from investment banking rose 13.3 percent to $1.46 billion, driven by higher debt and equity issuance activity. (Reporting By Anjuli Davies, editing by Kirstin Ridley) MAPUTO (Reuters) - The Mozambique government and opposition party Renamo have resumed talks despite the Oct. 9 killing of a senior Renamo official by unidentified gunmen, the state news agency AIM said on Wednesday. The death of Jeremias Pondeca, a member of the Joint Commission set up to find ways to overcome a standoff between the government and Renamo over a range of issues, cast a cloud over the negotiations. AIM said the talks, which were originally supposed to have resumed on Monday, did so on Tuesday after a minute's silence for Pondeca. The commission has so far reached no definitive agreement on any of the matters on its agenda, including Renamo's demands for six provincial governors and the inclusion of its militia in the army and police. The commission was also set up to prepare the ground for a face-to-face meeting between President Filipe Nyusi and Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama. There has been no progress toward such a meeting yet, with Dhlakama saying he had no interest in seeing Nyusi before signing a final agreement, AIM reported. Renamo and the government were on opposing sides in a civil war from the late 1970s until the early 1990s before a peace accord ended the fighting. But Renamo retains its own militia. In the run-up to elections in October 2014, Renamo partisans clashed sporadically with troops and police. Renamo contended that the election outcome was rigged. (Writing by Ed Stoddard; editing by Mark Heinrich) Trilateral meeting talk gets sceptics The much-hyped trilateral meeting of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Brics-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa, India, has been view sceptically not only in the opposition CPN-UML but the PMs own party CPN (Maoist Centre). Doctors may one day be able to diagnose fibromyalgia by means of a simple MRI scan. A study published in the journal Pain has, for the first time, identified a different brain response to pain and non-pain stimuli in people suffering from this chronic inflammatory disease. Specialists have defined specific clinical procedures currently used to diagnose fibromyalgia, notably by assessing 12 tender points on the body. However, this doesn't explain what's going on at a neurological level in fibromyalgia patients or reflect individual levels of suffering. Fibromyalgia is characterized by chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain, accompanied by symptoms such as fatigue, anxiety, and mood and sleep disorders. It is difficult to diagnose and treat since it shares many symptoms with other common chronic conditions. It affects 2 to 6% of the population. Several research teams are working to develop new tests to diagnose the condition, including genetic tests, ophthalmic tests and medical imaging. The aim is to improve fibromyalgia treatment by developing a more personalized therapeutic approach in response to the disease's highly diverse manifestations. Previous studies have identified hypersensitivity and an altered brain response in people suffering from fibromyalgia. Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder, in the USA, have explored the potential analysis of these brain responses as a means of diagnosis. Scientists studied the brain activity of 37 people with fibromyalgia and 35 control patients using fMRI scans (functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging). They also used "multisensory" machine-learning techniques to identify brain-based fibromyalgia signs and non-painful sensory stimulation. Both groups were exposed to various non-painful visual, auditory and tactile cues as well as painful pressure. During the tests, the scientists identified a series of three sub-markers, or "neurological patterns," correlating with the hypersensitivity to pain that characterizes the condition. Story continues "The novelty of this study is that it provides potential neuroimaging-based tools that can be used with new patients to inform about the degree of certain neural pathology underlying their pain symptoms," said Marina Lopez-Sola, the study's lead author. "The set of tools may be helpful to identify patient subtypes, which may be important for adjusting treatment selection on an individualized basis." According to the study, the tests were 93% accurate. The researchers hope that this new brain imaging technique could one day help evaluate the degree of patients' individual pain symptoms. It could help doctors establish a neurological road map to brain activity to inform diagnosis and treatment for the condition. The study is available here: http://journals.lww.com/pain/Abstract/publishahead/Towards_a_neurophysiological_signature_for.99428.aspx [Photo: D. Lacy Photography] When Absolutely Edible Cakes owner Nikki Jackson made the cake for her own daughter Toddreanas wedding, she knew she had to do something special. She didnt exactly expect her creation a 7-foot-tall glass-crystal chandelier that hung from the ceiling to go viral instantly. I had other industry friends that were like, Ill do the cake and I wont charge you, but I am such a control freak, Jackson told Yahoo Style about her daughters Oct. 8 wedding to Anttwon Thames in Garland, Texas. So I did her cake and all the food for the wedding. I could not let it go. [Photo: D. Lacy Photography] Jackson has some experience with going big and going viral in the business. A life-size cake replica of a bride she made years ago still gets passed around every time sites discuss the craziest, most over-the-top confections ever made. This time around, she teased that her daughters cake would shut Texas down. When the cake lady daughter gets married, what the hell do yall expect? she joked. But it was actually Jacksons sister, event designer Kimberly Evans of Absolutely Elegant Events, who pushed the baker to go even bigger than shed planned. When they visited the maker of the hanging cake stands, Fashion Proposals in Houston, Evans said the planned 24-inch stand was killing my vision. So the sisters designed their biggest hanging construction ever, at 36 inches wide. [Photo: D. Lacy Photography] [Photo: D. Lacy Photography] Jackson said she wasnt pleased with how her sister had made her blow her budget with that move. The other big expense was in using real glass crystals instead of the more common plastic kind. In the end, the cake, which could feed 600 (though the guest list was just over 400), cost about 3,600. I kept rationalizing with, Im not paying for a caterer, I didnt pay for an event planner, so I can splurge in other areas, Jackson said. Thats how I was able to make sense of it all. Story continues Toddreana Thames, who has been working with her mother since she was a girl, didnt have any involvement in the process. Her mother gave her the week before her wedding off, so she didnt see it until she walked into the venue. I saw it from outside; it was just it blew me away, she told Fox 4 News. It blew others away too. I had been telling the photographer, When you see this cake, I will be trending by 5:45, Jackson said. The wedding started at 5:30, so I knew I wouldnt be, but I was saying it as a joke. The photographer came over to me at about 8 and said, Hey, Nikki. Youre trending. I did not expect to wake up the next day and the cake had gone viral. After the wedding, Jackson brought the chandelier stand back to her store, and she has already received requests for similar creations. But she doubts shell have many customers go quite as big as she did for her daughter. Just like the life-size bride, its available, she said. Nobody really wants to spend that much for a cake. All photos courtesy of D. Lacy Weddings. Couple celebrates 50th anniversary in the same clothes they wore to their wedding You can now get married at Disney with the park to yourself New York (AFP) - Opening arguments began Wednesday in the retrial of a man accused of the 1979 abduction and murder of a six-year-old New York boy, a case that still haunts millions of American parents. Six year-old Etan Patz vanished after leaving home to walk alone to his school bus stop. His body was never been found, and the boy was declared officially dead in 2001. Judge Maxwell Wiley in Manhattan Supreme Court opened the retrial of the main suspect, 55 year-old Pedro Hernandez. Hernandez has been in custody since 2012, when he confessed to police that he killed Patz in the basement of a New York grocery store before dumping his body out with the trash. He later retracted his confession and pleaded not guilty at trial. He was neither acquitted nor sentenced when just one juror held out against the other 11 who were convinced of his guilt. Judge Wiley also presided over the first trial, which was declared a mistrial. The defense argued that Hernandez had an IQ of 70, which would put him in the bottom two percent of the population. At the time of Patz's disappearance, Hernandez was 18 years old and worked at a grocery store near the bus stop. Patz's disappearance awakened Americans to the dangers of child abduction and fueled a generation of hyper-vigilant parents terrified of letting their offspring out of their sight. Clever detective work involving research on both ancient DNA and cave paintings from the last ice age has revealed a previously unknown species of hybrid bison, according to a new study. Researchers initially nicknamed the newfound bison the "Higgs Bison," because, just like the once-elusive subatomic particle known as the Higgs Boson, the bison's very existence had never been confirmed, and it took about 15 years to piece together data that proved its existence. But now, thanks to ancient DNA from the creatures' bones, researchers know that the mysterious bison was a hybrid animal that originated more than 120,000 years ago, when the extinct aurochs (the ancestor of modern cattle) and the ice-age steppe bison got together, the researchers said. [See Photos of the Cave Art That Helped Experts Crack the Bison Mystery] Usually, hybrid animals aren't too successful, mainly because the males tend to be sterile, said the study's senior researcher Alan Cooper, director of the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA at the University of Adelaide in Australia. But the newfound hybrid bison did quite well for itself and its descendants, the modern-day European bison (Bison bonasus), which is also known as a wisent. The European bison are still alive today, he said. The Aurochs (Bos primigenius) and bison (Bison priscus) are "genetically quite different," Cooper told Live Science. "[But they] produced something that was successful enough to carve out a niche on the landscape and go on to become, ironically, the biggest species [of other large animals] to survive the extinction at the end of the ice age in Europe." In addition, the discovery of the hybrid shows that the steppe bison, which was once thought to be the only bison in that region during the last ice age, likely competed with the hybrid species for tens of thousands of years, Cooper said. Hybrid mystery To solve the animal's mysterious genetic background, an international team of researchers examined the creature's remains that is, its bones and teeth which were unearthed from caves in Europe, the Ural mountains in Russia and the Caucasus mountains in Eurasia. Story continues Then, the scientists studied ancient DNA from 64 different bison, including the creature's mitochondrial DNA (genetic material passed down through the mother's lineage) and nuclear DNA, or DNA passed down from both parents. "We could see that the nuclear DNA was very obviously like the steppe bison," Cooper said. "The mitochondrial [was] telling us another [ancestor]: cattle." The modern European bison (also called wisent or Bison bonasus) from the Biaowieza Forest in Poland. Rafa Kowalczyk The evidence suggested that the creature was a hybrid, likely started by a female Aurochs and a male steppe bison, he said. Moreover, the hybrid animal's nuclear DNA was about 90 percent steppe bison and 10 percent Aurochs, Cooper said. "That ratio tells you that after the first hybridization event, there was back breeding with steppe bison for a little while, which is why the steppe bison DNA is higher," Cooper said. "That will often happen when you have a hybrid mammal, because the male [hybrid] offspring tend to be sterile." [Real or Fake? 8 Bizarre Hybrid Animals] Cave paintings However, the researchers have yet to find a hybrid skull, meaning they can't truly assess what it looked like and what it ate. One day, one of Cooper's colleagues suggested that he look at the ice-age cave art that covers the walls of caves throughout Europe. That advice changed the trajectory of the entire project. "We contacted some French scientists who work on the cave art and asked them, 'Have you ever noticed anything funny about the bison? Because we have [discovered] a second species," Cooper recalled. "They said, 'Ah, at last! Someone finally believes us. We've been telling our colleagues for years that there are two forms of bison in the cave,' which had been previously explained as artistic or cultural or stylistic differences." One form depicted a bison with either long horns or large forequarters, much like the American bison, which is descended from the steppe bison. In contrast, the other form had shorter horns and small humps, much like the modern European bison, Cooper said. Cave paintings from the Cave of Niaux in southwestern France. Some of the paintings the researchers examined were made 18,000 years ago, and depicted creatures with long horns and large forequarters that likely descended from the steppe bison. In contrast, more recent paintings from about 12,000 to 17,000 years ago show animals with shorter horns and smaller humps, much like the modern European bison. Creative Commons In an unexpected turn, the dates of the drawings, some of them 18,000 years old, matched the ages of the radiocarbon-dated bison bones, the researchers added. "The dated bones revealed that our new species and the steppe bison swapped dominance in Europe several times, in concert with major environmental changes caused by climate change," study lead author Julien Soubrier, a postdoctoral research associate in the genetics and evolution unit at the University of Adelaide, said in a statement. In other words, ancient people drew the hybrid bison when it was thriving during colder, tundra-like periods without warm summers, and they drew the steppe bison when it thrived during different climates (which have yet to be determined), Cooper said. The hybrid bison's descendant, the modern European bison, suddenly appears in the fossil record about 11,700 years ago, just after the steppe bison went extinct. In fact, the modern bison nearly went extinct during World War I, when just 12 individuals survived in the wild. Given that all of today's modern bison are descended from these 12 individuals, they look genetically different from the hybrid bison, even though they're likely the descendants of them, Cooper said. The study was published online today (Oct. 18) in the journal Nature Communications. Original article on Live Science. Editor's Recommendations From Popular Mechanics It's been a banner year for China's spacefaring ambitions. The country launched satellites to test quantum communications and search for dark matter, built the world's largest radio telescope, and launched a new space station into orbit (though its old one is about to come crashing back to Earth). It seems that the country is well on its way to becoming the "space giant" its president envisioned in a speech earlier this year. Getting to this point has been a long time coming. After half a century of watching Russia and the US go from deadly space rivals to reluctant space partners, China saw its emergence as a global superpower written in the stars. Yet the last few decades have seen the Chinese cut out of major multinational orbital projects like the International Space Station. Now, as China's space aspirations have become increasingly sophisticated, established space players such as the European Union and Russia have sought to collaborate with China on future missions. The United States, on the other hand, remains staunchly approached to collaborating with China. Can the two countries ever learn to play nice in microgravity? And what happens if they don't? "As bad as U.S.-Russia relations are in general right now, we continue to work together in space." "Two Bombs, One Satellite" China's space program was born in the aftermath of the United States' invasion of Korea in the 1950s, when Chinese leader Mao Zedong decided the People's Republic must start its own ballistic missile program to keep up with American and Soviet military developments. In 1956, Mao created the Fifth Academy of the National Defense Ministry with the goal of developing ballistic missiles (capable of deploying atomic and hydrogen bombs) and then beginning to place small satellites into orbit-a program Mao fittingly called "two bombs, one satellite." Photo credit: VCG/Getty China cooperated with the USSR on many of its early missile tests, but when Mao denounced Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev as revisionist in 1960, the USSR cut all technological assistance to the People's Republic. As a result, China's space program more or less stalled until after the Cold War, when China allowed its space agencies to begin collaborating with foreign states and capitalists. The results of this cultural pivot speak for themselves: Over the past 16 years, China became the third nation to launch astronauts (known as taikonauts) into orbit, placed two orbiters and a rover on the moon, put a handful of space stations in low-earth orbit, and outlined its plans to go to Mars in the next decade or so. Story continues At a time when space initiatives are mostly international in scope because they're so expensive in time and money, China accomplished this its own. But for the United States, China's emergence as a spacefaring superpower has started to make the final frontier feel a little too crowded for comfort. For the first time since the Reagan years, the narrative of an impending space war has begun to permeate military and political circles. Photo credit: NASA Remember 2007, when China tested an anti-satellite (ASAT) missile by blowing one of its own defunct weather satellites to smithereens? The test was a resounding success-as far as the ASAT weapon was concerned, anyway. The only problem was that the resulting explosion doubled the amount of space debris in orbit. Since then, military folk have been wringing their hands at the possibility of orbital kinetic warfare-satellites intentionally ramming other satellites, or ground-based ASAT weapons taking out satellites in orbit-which could put expensive civilian and military space assets at risk. Moreover, there's also the possibility of a country jamming satellite radio frequencies to render critical space infrastructure useless (which is already happening). Joan Johnson-Freese, a political science professor at the U.S. Naval War College, says that although radio jamming isn't as sexy a topic as exploding satellites, this is the more likely scenario when it comes to the hypothetical U.S.-China space war generals have been predicting for years. The reason is simple: Blowing up stuff in space ruins everything for everyone, including the aggressor. "There Is No Flexibility" The 2007 smash-up reminded the world of the fragility of low-earth orbit. A hostile space environment hurts everybody, and the debris generated by a kinetic space war would render low-earth orbit useless for decades. Even so, the United States hasn't managed to forge a working relationship with China that would make space war much less of a possibility. It's not hard to see why. From the get-go, national space programs have been inextricably linked to military aims. Today's armies could not function without the satellites that provide GPS navigation, communication, and reconnaissance. Governments also are wary of space cooperation because the same rocket can be used to deliver a science experiment to orbit or a nuclear warhead to the other side of the planet. Because of this dual-use nature of space technologies, politicians and military strategists have sought to limit who has access to these systems. "I intend to vigorously enforce the longstanding prohibitions designed to protect America's space program." To wit: Things got really chilly between American and Chinese space operations in 1998, when a congressional commission led by Christopher Cox found that technical information American space companies had given to China for use in commercial satellites wound up in improved Chinese intercontinental ballistic missiles. This effectively led to an embargo on U.S.-Chinese cooperation in space throughout the 2000s, an isolationist program reaffirmed in 2010 when former congressman Frank Wolf sponsored a bill that prohibited any sort of cooperation between NASA or the U.S. Office of Science and Technology and Chinese nationals. "NASA was banned from bilateral relations with China as though that was somehow going to thwart or slow down Chinese plans for space," said Johnson-Freese. "In fact, if anything, it has given them an impetus to work faster and more broadly." To Johnson-Freese, the U.S. missed a big opportunity here. "Working with China, I think we would have had an opportunity to shape their space agenda. But now China has developed a very aggressive, across-the-board space program on their own and we ended up with less control, not more control." Yet working with China is simply a non-starter for some leaders. When Wolf backed the bill prohibiting NASA-China cooperation he compared China to an "evil empire" on the scale of Nazi Germany and said the U.S. would not and should not do business with ethically questionable dictatorships. (Still, one can't ignore the fact that the United States is still paying millions to the ethically questionable government of Vladimir Putin for rides up to the ISS.) Wolf retired in 2015 and relinquished his position as Chairman of the House Appropriations Commerce, Justice, and Science Subcommittee to John Culberson, a Republican from Texas. Like his predecessor, Culberson has vowed to uphold longstanding restrictions on NASA's ability to bilaterally cooperate with China. Photo credit: VCG/Getty "China's space program is owned and controlled entirely by the People's Liberation Army and the Chinese government have proven to be the world's most aggressive in cyber-espionage," Culberson said in a statement last year. "I intend to vigorously enforce the longstanding prohibitions designed to protect America's space program." Asked for clarification on the topic, a spokesperson for Culberson told Popular Mechanics in an email that "[Culberson] is adamant about enforcing and continuing the prohibition and there is no flexibility on this." When pressed on the point that the U.S. still works with Russia, which has a nebulous distinction between its civilian and military space programs and has been accused of anti-U.S. cyber-espionage, the Culberson spokesperson maintained that "historically, working with Russia has benefited the American space program. Rep. Culberson does not see a benefit for NASA to work with China in the current climate because they've proven to be aggressive in stealing American information." It's worth noting that politicians and military officers, not space scientists, make these policies. In 2013, a number of scientists boycotted a large NASA conference after Chinese scientists were excluded from attending. More recently, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden advocated for lifting the moratorium on U.S.-China cooperation in space and has visited Beijing to discuss ways to cooperate on removing space debris from orbit, for instance. Yet when Bolden was asked at this year's International Astronautical Congress what NASA was doing to overturn the moratorium, his answer was a frank "nothing." This was something Bolden said would "change with time," implying that the problem was political and more or less out of NASA's hands. Made in China? As the private space revolution has gained momentum, American companies have led the way. SpaceX and Boeing are working toward sending astronauts into orbit, while companies like Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin are planning to launch a space tourism business that carries the well-to-do into suborbital space. But now China's own new space companies are on the rise, and that's one of the factors increasing the possibility that satellite launches, asteroid mining missions, and other future space industries could be based somewhere other than the U.S. before they head off planet. The cracks area already visible. SpaceX chief Elon Musk recently expressed irritation that American trade regulations on space technology prohibited him from hiring foreign talent to build his rockets. Asteroid mining ventures are opting to split their headquarters between the U.S. and Luxembourg after that country loosened its laws on asteroid mining while America's remain wrapped up in red tape. Once the United States saw the monetary potential in creating an environment conducive to asteroid mining, Congress quickly passed legislation that legally allowed American companies to harvest space rock while it worked out the details of how to regulate the nascent industry. "We need to tone down the battle rhetoric." Don't expect things to open up anytime soon, though. With Bolden waiting on the politicians to make a move, and the politicians deferring to the opinions of military generals, a thawing in U.S.-China space relations in the near future does not seem likely. To Johnson-Freese, a U.S. Naval War College professor who's fully away of the need to be prepared for a space war, it's time for America to switch from an aggressive posture to a cooperative one. "We need to tone down the battle rhetoric," said Johnson-Freese. "As bad as U.S.-Russia relations are in general right now, we continue to work together in space because both countries have a vested interest. Why don't we try to establish that vested interest with China? The time is now right." You Might Also Like (Reuters) - A U.S. Navy serviceman pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to charges alleging he drove his pickup truck while drunk off a ramp leading to San Diego's Coronado Bridge, killing four people and injuring others. Richard Sepolio, 24, is facing six felony counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and other drunk driving-related charges, San Diego County District Attorney's Office spokeswoman Tanya Sierra said in an email. Sepolio entered his plea from his hospital room at the UC San Diego Medical Center, where he is recovering from injuries suffered during the crash, which occurred on Saturday afternoon. Sepolio's attorney, Paul Pfingst, said the crash was caused by another car, that section of the bridge was dangerous, and that his client's blood alcohol level has not been verified. "He was avoiding another car that drove him into the side of the bridge," Pfingst said in a telephone interview. Police said the truck was traveling northbound on Interstate 5 when Sepolio lost control while exiting the freeway and crashed into a guardrail, sending the vehicle plummeting onto a motorcycle rally and festival in a park below. The four victims were in a vendor's booth when the truck plunged off the bridge's ramp and fell 60 feet (18 m) into Chicano Park, according to police and local media. In addition to the four fatalities, nine people, including Sepolio, were injured. A spokeswoman for the hospital declined on Wednesday to disclose any information about Sepolio's current condition. Sepolio, a third-class petty officer, is stationed with a helicopter sea combat squadron at Naval Air Station North Island, Navy Lieutenant Leslie Hubbell said in an email on Wednesday. He enlisted in September 2014 and previously worked as an aviation electronics technician, she said. The air station, one of several large naval installations in the Southern California city, lies across San Diego Bay from the downtown. It is about 4 miles (6.4 km) from the crash site. If convicted on all charges, Sepolio faces 23 years and eight months in prison, Sierra said. (Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Editing by Matthew Lewis) EXCLUSIVE: The Get Down was expected to be an expensive proposition from the get-go and Netflix knew it. The series from Academy Award-winning husband-wife team of Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin, Pulitzer-winning playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis, hip-hop historian Nelson George and iconic rappers MC Nas and Grandmaster Flash was expected to cost around $11 million per episode for 12 episodes, which all-in would have totaled about $120M. However, Deadline has learned that given the way the deal is constructed, Netflix is paying more like $16M per episode inclusive in the total is worldwide rights to the IP, and factored into that are the premiums that Netflix paid to acquire those rights exclusively. Other costs include start-up, visual effects, music rights and production design. Of the $16 million, around $11 million was the final production expenses per episode, $3 million-$4 million over the initial budget following a string of filming shutdowns, staffing changes and script rewrites. When a TV drama is produced for $6M or higher an episode, it is considered expensive. So adding in all the costs on The Get Down, including the worldwide rights and premiums, that brings the total for the 12-episode season closer to the $190M-plus range. They are not completely wrapped yet either. The Get Down is not a runaway hit the way Netflixs pop culture phenom Stranger Things has been. Stranger Things ranks No. 3 on Symphony Advanced Medias chart for viewings among 18- to 49-year-olds; The Get Down is No. 14. However, Netflixs strategy for many of its original series is to target specific, often under-served segments of the audience as a way of expanding its subscriber base. The Get Down is said to be the No. 1 show among African Americans and Hispanics and is building out among the young demographic as well it has caught on with high schoolers. The Get Down is drawing in demos that other Netflix shows normally dont, said one insider. Story continues Internally, Netflix viewer satisfaction surveys for U.S. viewers that Deadline obtained reveal that The Get Down scored well among hip-hop fans and just slightly better with men than women. Overall, it got a 66% excellent or good rating, with concerns about the slow pacing at the onset but viewers saying that it picked up as the show progressed. The other satisfaction surveys on the show are said to be way above the norm in other countries, specifically France, Germany and Latin America. In Netflixs quarterly earnings call Monday, the companys chief content officer Ted Sarandos said that their new season of content (which includes The Get Down) was traveling globally proportionally as they had hoped. In responding to a question during the call about The Get Down and its expense versus viewership, Sarandos said, Yes, its an expensive piece of television. Mostly because its very large scale, cinematic. The reason why Baz Luhrmanns films work around the world is that kind of attractiveness. Were still seeing how its going to unfold for the first season. All the shows land at a different level of noise in the press and probably depending on what circles you run in, whether or not your friends are talking about it. Were very excited about how the show has been performing, particularly in a quarter where we had four shows that turned out to be kind of big event programs for us. The first six episodes of The Get Downs first season were released in August, with the remaining six set to debut in 2017. Netflix had no comment for this report. Related stories Netflix's Big Content Outlays Won't Lead To Price Increases Yet, Execs Tell Analysts Netflix Shares Soar After It Beats Q3 Earnings And Subscriber Expectations 2016 Domestic B.O. On Track For Another Record $11B+ Year, But Netflix CEO Says "Movie Theaters Are Strangling" The Biz Unfulfilled demands may lead to disintegration: Mansoor Calls for addressing the demands of Madhesis, Muslims and Tharus through constitution amendment (5:45 PM UPDATED WITH FOX STATEMENT) A month after Netflix was lambasted in the courts by Fox for allegedly illegally poaching two executives still under contract, the streaming service today struck back with a hard-hitting counter-complaint charging unlawful and anti-competitive business practices by the other side. The argument could be a game-changer for future Hollywood contracts. Through its widespread use of unlawfully restrictive fixed-term employment agreements, Fox is facilitating and enforcing a system that restrains employee mobility, depresses compensation levels, and creates unlawful barriers to entry for Netflix and others competing in the film and television production business, says the filing Wednesday in L.A. Superior Court, pointing the finger at Fox for seemingly breaking labor California law. In mid-September, Netflix prophetically spoke of employee mobility and not viewing fixed-term contracts as enforceable after 20th Century Fox and Fox 21 sued them for intentional interference with contractual relations for snagging Marco Waltenberg and Tara Flynn, even though both were still under contract with Fox. In the flag-planting, jury-trial-seeking complaint filed in L.A Superior Court on September 16, the plaintiffs charged that the ever-expanding Reed Hastings-run Netflix was conducting a brazen campaign to unlawfully target, recruit, and poach valuable Fox executives by illegally inducing them to break their employment contracts with Fox to work at Netflix. Seeking declarations from the courts to basically kneecap Foxs unreasonable use of fixed-term contracts under the provisions of the California Business and Professional Code, as well as legal fees, Netflixs filing today adds that on information and belief, Fox actually bullies individuals into signing employment contracts, thus putting these employees in a take-it-or-leave-it position. This, says Netflixs lawyers in an aggressive and possibly risky tactic, creates a form of involuntary servitude among individuals who would ordinarily be at-will employees. Story continues Fox permits some employees to terminate their fixed-term employment agreements early, while Fox withholds its consent to early contract terminations from others, the cross-complaint also alleges. On information and belief, Fox determines whether to enforce its fixed-term employment agreements based in part on whether the employee is seeking employment with a competitor. Fox21television While other at-will Fox employees have made the move to Netflix in recent months, both Waltenberg, formerly an exec in the Promotions department, and Flynn, VP Creative, were under fixed-term deals with optioned extensions that would have seen them at Fox for at least a few more years. Its noteworthy that the Fox complaint of last month did not name either Waltenberg or Flynn as defendants, instead directing its focus at Netflix. (FOX STATEMENT: Netflix is defiantly flouting the law by soliciting and inducing employees to break their written fixed-term employment agreements, said a 20th Century Fox and Fox 21 spokesman this afternoon. As Netflix expressly acknowledges, California law fully recognizes that fixed-term employment agreements are valid and enforceable. These employment contracts are sought by many employees in the media industry because they guarantee tangible benefits. We look forward to vindicating our rights in Court.) Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLPs Lynne Hermle and Karen Johnson-McKewan are representing Netflix in the matter. Daniel Petrocelli of OMelveny & Myers LLP is representing the Fox parties along with the firms Molly Lens and J. Hardy Ehlers. Related stories 'The Crown' Trailer: Claire Foy Reveals The Personal Toll Of Being Queen Alyssa Milano Joins Season 2 Of 'Wet Hot American Summer' 'Black Mirror': Jodie Foster To Direct Rosemarie DeWitt In Season 4 Episode Netflix is finalizing negotiations with Fox 21 TV Studios for Seven Seconds, a 10-episode drama series that reflects the current racial tensions in America. The project hails from The Killing creator Veena Sud, with Gavin OConnor, helmer of last weekends No. 1 movie The Accountant, attached to direct. In Seven Seconds, written by Sud, tensions run high between African American citizens and Caucasian cops in Jersey City, where a teenage African American boy is critically injured by a cop. Sud executive produces with OConnor, Lawrence Bender, Kevin Brown and Alex Reznik. Negotiations on Seven Seconds 10-episode order have been going on for almost a year now. This would be the first original series from 20th Century Fox Televisions Fox 21 TV Studios for Netflix (the two companies previously teamed up for the Arrested Development revival), so deal-making has been going very slowly as new business templates are being drawn. The two sides had been deep in negotiations on Seven Seconds when 20th TV parent 21st Century Fox last month filed a lawsuit against Netflix, alleging illegal poaching of Fox 21 employees, a claim Netflix has vigorously denied. The ongoing litigation has had no bearing on the Seven Seconds deal, which is expected to close. This marks Suds return to Netflix, which picked up The Killing for a final fourth season after its cancellation by AMC. OConnor previously directed the pilot for FXs acclaimed Cold War drama The Americans. Related stories 'Black Mirror': Jodie Foster To Direct Rosemarie DeWitt In Season 4 Episode 'Gilmore Girls: A Year In The Life' New Photos Featuring Lorelai, Rory & Jess 'She's Gotta Have It': Lyriq Bent Cast As A Male Lead In Spike Lee Netflix Series ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria needs more time to negotiate a railway concession project with U.S. company General Electric, the country's transport minister said on Wednesday. Both sides have confirmed talks on GE being granted a railway concession in Nigeria worth around $2 billion but no details have emerged yet. "GE is proposing a two-year rehabilitation of the rail tracks to be carried out by them and to have a concession period of 25 years within which to recover their investment," Transport Minister Rotimi Amaechi told reporters. "The government has not agreed and that is what our advisers will sit with GE to agree," he said. GE could not be immediately reached for comment. Nigeria has been looking for partners to overhaul its aging passenger and freight railway system, which was mainly built by British colonial rulers before the country's independence in 1960. The government, suffering from a slump in crude exports, wants to boost exports of food and other non-oil products but the country lacks roads or functioning railways. The West African country has already signed two deals worth around $5 billion with China Civil Engineering Construction Corp (CCECC), part of China's state-owned railway construction firm, to modernise and build railways in the north and south of the country, the Nigerian transport ministry said last month. Economic growth in OPEC member Nigeria has been hampered for decades by lack of investment in roads and railways. Africa Finance Corporation and Greenwich Financial Advisors will assist the government in the talks on the railway concession. (Reporting by Felix Onuah; Writing by Ulf Laessing; Editing by Jane Merriman) By Felix Onuah ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday told a group of 21 girls released by Islamist militants last week that he will "redouble" efforts to bring home about 200 still missing after the kidnapping in Chibok in 2014. About 270 girls were seized at their school in northeastern Borno state, where Boko Haram has waged a seven-year insurgency, killing thousands of people and displacing more than 2 million. The kidnapping prompted outrage worldwide and the girls' plight was publicised with Twitter hashtag #bringbackourgirls. "We shall redouble our efforts to bring the rest back home," Buhari said. "Aside from rescuing them, we are assuming the responsibility for their personal, educational and professional goals and ambitions in life. "It is not late for the girls to go back to school and continue the pursuit of their studies," he said. Boko Haram controlled a swathe of land about the size of Belgium at the start of 2015, but Nigeria's army, aided by troops from neighbouring countries, has recaptured most of it. The group still stages suicide bombings in the northeast as well as in Niger and Cameroon. (Reporting by Felix Onuah; Writing by Ulf Laessing; Editing by Louise Ireland) The 2016 election is less than a month away -- the homestretch, you might say. Musicians are speaking up about their viewpoints, which means a flurry of anti-Trumpism, a good deal of Hillary Clinton support and a few stragglers refusing to give up on Donald Trump. Former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic -- who's evolved into quite the political activist -- still thinks "neither of the above" is the way to go. The Washington state resident staunchly supports Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson, so much so that he's appeared on camera for outlets like FOX News and the Portland Press Herald lately to voice his opinions, which also include advocating for a new election process called "ranked-choice voting." Does voting for Johnson's ticket mean throwing away your vote on a spoiler candidate? Novoselic tells FOX News host/former MTV VJ Kennedy that he doesn't believe it does: "I think they're gonna win. My supporting them is not some third-party protest vote." Novoselic's not messing around, either -- he recently donated the maximum contribution possible towards the former New Mexico governor's campaign. Ranked-choice voting would figure to assist someone like Johnson, running outside the Republican and Democrat tickets. The concept -- which has already been implemented in mayoral elections in Maine -- has voters rank candidates in order of personal preference. There are several rounds of this, with the lowest-scoring candidate axed from each one, until a winner is decided. Theoretically, it would diversify voices in Presidential debates and curtail preventative voting (i.e., voting for Clinton simply to keep Trump from winning). American third-party candidates (a field that also includes the Green Party's Jill Stein this year) have not won a single electoral vote in a Presidential election since 1968. Novoselic has been politically active since the early '90s, writing books and columns and rallying around reform through organizations like FairVote. However, he's not likely to run for office any time soon, since he'd rather not leave rural Washington or alienate fans: "I was in Nirvana; I meet people from all walks of life," he told the Portland Press Herald. "They love the music, and I'm not just gonna go out there for politics and dehumanize them for what they believe." He was recently in Maine, lobbying to expand ranked-choice voting there. Below, find the video interview he did there with the Portland Press Herald, followed by his recent talks with Kennedy. Watch the latest video at video.foxbusiness.com By Maki Shiraki and Naomi Tajitsu TOKYO (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co Ltd <7201.T> Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn will chair Mitsubishi Motors Corp <7211.T> after Japan's second-biggest automaker by sales buys control of its smaller peer, two people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Wednesday. Ghosn, nicknamed "le cost killer", will oversee an automaker expecting an operating loss of 28 billion yen ($270.69 million) in the year to March. Behind the loss are provisions to cover any quality-related issues that arise while Mitsubishi recovers from a mileage-cheating scandal that sent its shares spiralling. The two automakers have not decided who will be president of Mitsubishi, said one person with direct knowledge of the matter and another briefed on it. Both declined to be identified ahead of formal announcements. Ghosn, who is also CEO of Nissan alliance partner Renault SA , has asked Mitsubishi Motors Chairman and President Osamu Masuko to remain president when Nissan takes over, said the Nikkei newspaper, which first reported Ghosn's appointment. Mitsubishi's shares rose as much as 10 percent after the report. Spokespeople at Nissan and Mitsubishi declined to comment when contacted by Reuters. LE COST KILLER Ghosn earned his nickname after ordering plant closures when restructuring Renault. He later steered Nissan to profitability. "This is a man who patched up Renault in the 1990s, and he did a lot for Nissan in the 2000s, so I'm sure he looks at Mitsubishi Motors as a new challenge," said CLSA analyst Christopher Richter. "He's a turnaround artist. This is what he does best," said Richter. Ghosn at the helm of Mitsubishi Motors' board would "remove an enormous burden from the Mitsubishi group companies," he said. The appointment "should be good (for Mitsubishi Motors)," said Yasuhito Hirota, Executive Vice President at shareholder Mitsubishi Corp <8058.T>. "He is likely to be better than anybody else," he said, declining to elaborate. SCANDAL Nissan in May said it would buy 34 percent of Mitsubishi Motors for around 237 billion yen after Mitsubishi admitted to falsifying the mileage of four minivehicle models, including two made for Nissan. In August, it was found to have overstated the mileage of eight more models. Mitsubishi Motors blamed poor communication, lax governance and internal pressure. Nissan is set to finalise its purchase by the end of 2016, after which the shareholding of Mitsubishi group companies - trading house Mitsubishi Corp, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd <7011.T> and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd [MTFGTU.UL] - will be diluted to 17 percent from around 34 percent before the deal was announced. Nissan has said it will not sell its stake to a non-group company without Mitsubishi Motors' consent for 10 years. Mitsubishi Motors will decide executive appointments after a December shareholder meeting, the Nikkei reported. (Reporting by Maki Shiraki Naomi Tajitsu; Additional reporting by Chang-Ran Kim, Taiga Uranaka and Osamu Tsukimori; Editing by Stephen Coates and Christopher Cushing) (Corrects Mitsubishi Motors Corp company RIC in 1st paragraph) TOKYO, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co has decided to appoint its CEO, Carlos Ghosn, as chairman of Mitsubishi Motors Corp after Japan's No. 2 automaker takes a 34 percent stake in its smaller rival, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Wednesday. Ghosn is also asking Mitsubishi Motors Chairman and President Osamu Masuko to stay on as president of the company when Nissan takes a controlling stake in the embattled automaker, which is mired in a mileage-cheating scandal. Spokespeople from both companies declined to comment on the report. Shares of Mitsubishi Motors jumped more than 10 percent at one point after the report. Mitsubishi Motors will make a formal decision following a shareholders' meeting in December, the Nikkei said. Nissan is set to close the deal by the end of the year. (Reporting by Naomi Tajitsu, Chang-Ran Kim and Taiga Uranaka; Editing by Stephen Coates) * Nissan to buy control of scandal-hit Mitsubishi * Cost-killer Ghosn turned around Renault, Nissan * Ghosn asked Mitsubishi chief Masuko to stay on -Nikkei (Updates sourcing, adds analyst and shareholder comments, details on Ghosn leadership) By Maki Shiraki and Naomi Tajitsu TOKYO, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co Ltd Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn will chair Mitsubishi Motors Corp after Japan's second-biggest automaker by sales buys control of its smaller peer, two people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Wednesday. Ghosn, nicknamed "le cost killer", will oversee an automaker expecting an operating loss of 28 billion yen ($270.69 million) in the year to March. Behind the loss are provisions to cover any quality-related issues that arise while Mitsubishi recovers from a mileage-cheating scandal that sent its shares spiralling. The two automakers have not decided who will be president of Mitsubishi, said one person with direct knowledge of the matter and another briefed on it. Both declined to be identified ahead of formal announcements. Ghosn, who is also CEO of Nissan alliance partner Renault SA , has asked Mitsubishi Motors Chairman and President Osamu Masuko to remain president when Nissan takes over, said the Nikkei newspaper, which first reported Ghosn's appointment. Mitsubishi's shares rose as much as 10 percent after the report. Spokespeople at Nissan and Mitsubishi declined to comment when contacted by Reuters. LE COST KILLER Ghosn earned his nickname after ordering plant closures when restructuring Renault. He later steered Nissan to profitability. "This is a man who patched up Renault in the 1990s, and he did a lot for Nissan in the 2000s, so I'm sure he looks at Mitsubishi Motors as a new challenge," said CLSA analyst Christopher Richter. "He's a turnaround artist. This is what he does best," said Richter. Ghosn at the helm of Mitsubishi Motors' board would "remove an enormous burden from the Mitsubishi group companies," he said. Story continues The appointment "should be good (for Mitsubishi Motors)," said Yasuhito Hirota, Executive Vice President at shareholder Mitsubishi Corp. "He is likely to be better than anybody else," he said, declining to elaborate. SCANDAL Nissan in May said it would buy 34 percent of Mitsubishi Motors for around 237 billion yen after Mitsubishi admitted to falsifying the mileage of four minivehicle models, including two made for Nissan. In August, it was found to have overstated the mileage of eight more models. Mitsubishi Motors blamed poor communication, lax governance and internal pressure. Nissan is set to finalise its purchase by the end of 2016, after which the shareholding of Mitsubishi group companies - trading house Mitsubishi Corp, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd - will be diluted to 17 percent from around 34 percent before the deal was announced. Nissan has said it will not sell its stake to a non-group company without Mitsubishi Motors' consent for 10 years. Mitsubishi Motors will decide executive appointments after a December shareholder meeting, the Nikkei reported. ($1 = 103.4400 yen) (Reporting by Maki Shiraki Naomi Tajitsu; Additional reporting by Chang-Ran Kim, Taiga Uranaka and Osamu Tsukimori; Editing by Stephen Coates and Christopher Cushing) TOKYO (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co Ltd will appoint its chief executive, Carlos Ghosn, as chairman of Mitsubishi Motors Corp as Japan's second-biggest automaker is set to buy 34 percent of its smaller peer, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Wednesday. Ghosn, who also serves as CEO of Renault SA, Nissan's alliance partner, has asked Mitsubishi Motors Chairman and President Osamu Masuko to remain president when Nissan takes a controlling stake in an automaker recovering from a mileage-cheating scandal, the Nikkei reported. Spokespeople at both companies declined to comment. Shares of Mitsubishi Motors rose as much as 10 percent after the report. Nissan in May said it would buy control of Mitsubishi for around 237 billion yen ($2.3 billion) after Mitsubishi admitted to falsifying the mileage on four minivehicle models, including two produced for Nissan. The admission prompted a sell-off of Mitsubishi Motors shares. In August, Mitsubishi Motors was also found to have overstated the mileage of eight additional models, including the Pajero and Outlander sport utility vehicle. The automaker blamed poor communication, lax governance and internal pressure for its lack of compliance. After Nissan's purchase is finalised, Mitsubishi group companies - trading house Mitsubishi Corp, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ - will see their total shareholding diluted to around 17 percent. Nissan has said it will refrain from selling its stake to a non-group company for 10 years without Mitsubishi Motors' consent. Mitsubishi Motors will make a formal decision on executive appointments after a shareholder meeting in December, the Nikkei reported. Nissan is set to close the deal by the end of the year. ($1 = 103.6800 yen) (Reporting by Naomi Tajitsu, Chang-Ran Kim and Taiga Uranaka; Editing by Stephen Coates and Christopher Cushing) Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn will become chairman of Mitsubishi Motors after Japan's number two automaker announced a major investment in its scandal-hit rival, a report said Wednesday. The reported appointment would make Ghosn the head of three major automakers, including France's Renault which holds a major stake in Nissan. Nissan threw Mitsubishi a lifeline in May when it announced plans to buy a one-third stake in the crisis-hit automaker for about $2.2 billion, as the smaller rival wrestled with a mileage-cheating scandal that hammered sales. Mitsubishi declined to comment on Wednesday's report in Japan's leading Nikkei business daily. Investors cheered news that Ghosn -- widely credited with turning around a nearly bankrupt Nissan and overhauling Renault -- would take the helm. Mitsubishi's Tokyo-listed shares soared more than 10 percent shortly after the Nikkei report. The stock closed at 522 yen ($5), up 7.85 percent, while Nissan rose 0.52 percent to 1,004.5 yen. After markets closed, Mitsubishi warned it was on track to lose 240 billion yen in the fiscal year to March, ballooning from an earlier net loss forecast of 145 billion yen as the scandal eats into its bottom line. The company has admitted it had been falsifying mileage tests for years, manipulating data to make cars seem more efficient than they were. Mitsubishi has asked its current chairman and president Osamu Masuko to stay on as president, the Nikkei said, citing unnamed sources. Ghosn will be officially appointed after a board meeting later this year, it said. Two of the affected vehicle models were being made for Nissan, which was the first to uncover problems with the fuel economy data. Mitsubishi is on the hook to pay more than $1.0 billion to Nissan and other suppliers as well as compensate customers who bought the affected cars. Nicknamed Le Cost Killer, Ghosn is known for overhauling Renault and Nissan starting in the nineties. Ghosn is being given the senior job so he can oversee Mitsubishi's turnaround, the Nikkei said. Story continues "It's easier for him to do things he did at Nissan, such as combining platforms, cutting costs and even closing plants, said Koji Endo, a Tokyo-based auto analyst at SBI Securities. "In order to implement such massive restructuring, you need someone as powerful as Ghosn to get things going." But Hans-Peter Wodniok, a Frankfurt-based analyst with AlphaValue, was less convinced. "I think (Ghosn) has enough work to be done at both Renault and Nissan," he said. "He should also spend all his time in these two companies rather than taking on another job in Japan." - Bloomberg News contributed to this report -- Watchdog fails to walk cantonment probe talk One month after word to look into misappropriation of funds in camps, CIAA divulges no follow-up info By Gabriela Baczynska and Alastair Macdonald BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Encouraged by their success in halting a mass influx of refugees by closing Greek borders and cutting a controversial deal with Turkey, EU leaders are getting tough on African migrants too. A Brussels summit on Thursday will endorse pilot projects to pressure African governments via aid budgets to slow an exodus of people north across the Sahara and Mediterranean. It also wants swift results from an EU campaign to deport large numbers who reach Italy. "By the end of the year, we need to see results," one senior EU diplomat said on Wednesday. Arrivals in Italy so far this year are nearly six percent higher than the same period of 2015. Italy received 154,000 migrants last year and this year's figure will be similar or slightly higher. Italy is sheltering 165,000 asylum seekers, almost three times as many as in 2014. The buildup has accelerated since Italy's northern neighbors clamped down on border controls. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has told EU allies that Rome can cope for now but is worried about the future. EU officials want to put in place tougher measures to identify illegal migrants and fly them back to Africa before next year's migration season, when thousands are expected to take to precarious boats from Libya. "We need to clean this up and have migration compacts with African countries in place before next spring," a senior EU official said. That will depend on persuading African states - initially a group of five - to take back their own citizens. The EU is already bringing African officials to Italy to identify citizens who may try to conceal their identity to avoid being sent home. At their summit, European Union leaders will agree to use money and trade to force African countries to curb emigration, in a shift towards a more hard-nosed joint foreign policy. African leaders may be persuaded to agree with the new policy by the fact that the EU is the continent's biggest aid donor. UNCONTROLLED INFLUX The EU has turned a wary eye on Africa, a young continent where millions live in poverty, after last year's uncontrolled influx of refugees and migrants from the Middle East thrust the bloc into a deep political crisis. It wants fewer to come and it wants to deport more. EU leaders will therefore decide on Thursday that they want to get "measurable results in terms of preventing illegal migration and returning irregular migrants", according to a draft summit statement seen by Reuters. It said they would also agree to "create and apply the necessary leverage, by using all relevant EU policies, instruments and tools, including development and trade". Behind the diplomatic language lies a threat of cutting development aid and restricting trade with those African countries that do not cooperate before the next migration season starts in the spring. Apart from the stick, there is also the carrot, which comes in the form of promises of more aid and preferential trade treatment under what Brussels calls migration "compacts". The new approach - aimed at keeping people away from Europe - was first proposed by Italy, the main disembarkation point for Africa migrants. It is initially aimed at Nigeria, Niger, Senegal, Ethiopia and Mali. "We need to clean this up and have migration compacts with African countries in place before next spring," a senior EU official said. The bloc is determined to send back everyone whose life is not under immediate threat at home. But the new strategy of making aid to third countries conditional on their cooperation on migration is controversial. Aid agency Oxfam has urged EU leaders to abandon their drive to build a "Fortress Europe" and instead help those in need. "The need for development aid and Europe's obligation to alleviate poverty should not be about reducing mobility," said Raphael Shilhav, Oxfam's migration policy adviser in Brussels. "The reasons of displacement should be addressed through understanding the situation on the ground, seeking solutions to the conflicts that are driving displacement of people," he said. POLITICAL PRESSURE But increasingly EU aid projects in Africa are accompanied by more political pressure on migration. In an example of the new approach, German Chancellor Angela Merkel promised assistance to Ethiopia just days after Addis Ababa took in 50 people deported from Europe even though it had been reluctant to do that earlier. In Niger, an EU-funded information point in Agadez, a transit point for migrants crossing the Sahara to board boats for Europe, tries talking people out of continuing on their way by warning about the perils of the journey. "It is very much about sending a message to would-be migrants. The political impetus is about sending this discouraging message," said Elizabeth Collett, director at the Migration Policy Institute, a Brussels think-tank. With Afghanistan, whose people make up the second largest group arriving in Europe after Syrians, the EU has leveraged its political and financial support to get a deal on boosting the number of people returned. The EU also gives aid to Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan for hosting about three million Syrian refugees. With Ankara, Brussels struck a broader deal also encompassing visa liberalization and swifter EU accession talks if Turkey ensures fewer people leave its shores for Greece. Despite much criticism from rights groups, the deal has cut arrivals in Greek islands to a trickle and Brussels sees it as a success. But that model is no help for Italy as Libya does not have a stable government capable of controlling the migration route through the central Mediterranean. That has forced the EU to seek solutions further back along the migration trail, making more aggressive use of its chief foreign policy instruments - money and trade. "There is something inherently distasteful in this new approach for the EU foreign policy because historically they have always been the good guys," Collett said. "It's the first time they are being asked not to just be the good guys anymore." (Additional reporting by Steve Scherer in Rome, Writing by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Giles Elgood) Nordstrom Inc. JWN remains committed to its store expansion strategy as it gears up to launch another Rack store in Texas. This will mark the companys sixth Rack store in the Houston area. It had opened its fifth outlet in the region at Willowbrook Mall in Sep 2014. Additionally, the company has a full-line store operating at the Woodlands Mall since 2014. Coming back to the latest Rack outlet, the Texas store will open at Portofino Shopping Center in Shenandoah. Owned by Kite Realty Group, the mall is conveniently located near the Interstate 45, north of The Woodlands mall and 30 miles away from downtown Houston. Spread over 27,000 square feet, the new Rack store is scheduled to open doors in spring 2018. At the Portofino shopping center, Nordstrom will join a host of leading retailers, restaurants and banks including Sam's Club, DSW Inc. DSW, TJ Maxx, PGA Superstore, The Michaels Companies Inc. MIK, Old Navy from Gap Inc. GPS and Men's Wearhouse. Being the off-price retail segment of the company, Nordstrom Rack offers fashion-savvy customers a wide range of on-trend apparel, footwear and other accessories at discounted prices. These Racks usually keep items from the main Nordstrom stores and its online store, Nordstrom.com. Further, these stores stack products from other major brands sold by the company. Nordstrom currently operates 341 outlets across 40 states. Its portfolio includes 122 full-line stores across the U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada, 2 Jeffrey boutiques, 210 Nordstrom Racks and 1 clearance store. We believe that this off-price retailer, with its solid brand image, amendments to the operating model for cost savings, and continuous store expansion, is well positioned to deliver on its long-term goals. The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. NORDSTROM INC Price NORDSTROM INC Price | NORDSTROM INC Quote Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report GAP INC (GPS): Free Stock Analysis Report NORDSTROM INC (JWN): Free Stock Analysis Report DSW INC CL-A (DSW): Free Stock Analysis Report MICHAELS COS (MIK): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Well, it's as clear as the pomp in his pompadour: Take his demeaning of immigrants and rank misogyny; the ways his campaign has inflamed religious bigotry, energized white nationalists and promoted violence; his seemingly pathological lying - and what has been bugging me increasingly over the months has been Donald Trump's ignorance of, if not utter contempt for, the Constitution. We Americans are a diverse lot. To paraphrase a great poet, we contain multitudes. We live in cities, small towns and rural expanses. We encompass many of the world's ethnicities and religions. What unites us is a commitment to the principles in our Constitution, which we have amended and defended over more than two centuries to extend its promises of freedom, justice and equality to all Americans. Read more: Norman Lear on Trump's "Painful" Military Forum: "Matt Lauer Got Taken for a Ride by This Demagogue" (Guest Column) Of course, we still have disagreements over the meaning and application of our Constitution, and we sort those out in legislatures, courts and at the ballot box. But being able to engage with each other over our disagreements requires a measure of respect for the other guy and for the document itself. Donald Trump has shown neither. - He has proposed targeting, registering and banning people from entering the country based on their religion. - He has threatened to rewrite laws so that he can destroy media outlets that displease him. - He has openly admired Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose "strong" leadership has included the violent suppression of independent media and dissent. - He has encouraged people at his rallies to beat up protesters - and so savagely attacks the media covering his campaign that reporters have had to be protected from his angry mob by Secret Service officers. - He has deemed a federal judge untrustworthy because, even though he was born in the U.S., his ancestors came from Mexico. Story continues - Campaigning against immigrants in a country of immigrants, he says that Congress has the power to do away with the 14th Amendment's guarantee of citizenship to people born in the United States. - He attacks Hillary Clinton for doing her job as a lawyer when assigned by a judge to represent a man charged with rape, and says if he were in charge, Hillary Clinton would be in jail - and her lawyers, too. Read more: Norman Lear: 'The Jeffersons' Was Better, Funnier Than 'The Cosby Show' Bless the comedians who make a joke of The Donald and earn our laughter, but Trump's lack of respect for the Constitution is no joke. Threatening to jail his political opponent is no joke. And potentially inciting post-election violence by insisting he can't lose unless the election is stolen from his followers, is no joke. These are the sounds and behavior of a dictator, folks, not the president of a free society. That is why it's not enough to think about denying Trump 270 votes in the electoral college. It is why we need to defeat him, to beat his ass so soundly that his dangerous message is thoroughly discredited and for all time. Norman Lear is a legendary television and film producer and the founder of People for the American Way. Read more: Norman Lear: Will Republican Leaders Show Decency and Stand Up to Trump? (Guest Column) By Colleen Jenkins WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Reuters) - North Carolina will pay up to $5,000 for tips leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the weekend arson and graffiti attack at a local Republican Party headquarters, the state's governor said on Wednesday. Local, state and federal investigators are searching for suspects after they said a device commonly described as a Molotov cocktail was thrown through a window of the Orange County Republican Party headquarters in Hillsborough on Sunday. The glass bottle containing a flammable liquid ignited inside the strip-mall office, burning furniture and campaign signs before extinguishing. A swastika and the message "Nazi Republicans leave town or else" were spray-painted on a nearby building. "The firebombing of a local political headquarters was clearly an act of intimidation, and I'm going to do everything I can to find the individual or individuals who committed this assault on our democracy," Republican Governor Pat McCrory said in a statement announcing the reward money. Investigators on Tuesday collected video from locations around the party office, according to a statement from Hillsborough, a town of about 6,400 people located 40 miles (65 km) from the state capital of Raleigh. Evidence from the crime scene is being analyzed at the FBI's laboratory in Quantico, Virginia. Mike Pence, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's running mate, called the incident an "attack on the American political system" during a visit to the scene Tuesday afternoon. Pence urged voters to help provide accountability at polling places when Americans turn out for the Nov. 8 election. However, Pence's remarks were well short of allegations by Trump in recent days that the race is being rigged against him at voting locations. Trump has provided no evidence for such assertions. North Carolina's State Board of Elections said in a statement later on Tuesday that officials had taken steps to protect the safety of voters, observers and poll workers during the voting process. Early voting begins in the state on Thursday. (Reporting by Colleen Jenkins; Editing by Frances Kerry) Northern Trust Corporations NTRS third-quarter 2016 earnings per share of $1.08 were in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Also, the reported figure compared favorably with 96 cents in the year-ago quarter. Results benefited from improved revenues. Further, the quarter witnessed a rise in assets under custody as well assets under management. However, escalating operating expenses were the undermining factors. Net income came in at $257.6 million, up 10% from the prior-year quarter. FindTheCompany | Graphiq Top Line Grows; Costs Increase Total revenue of $1.21 billion missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.24 billion. However, the reported figure was up 5% year over year. On a fully taxable equivalent basis, net interest income of $310.1 million was up 13% year over year. This was driven by increased levels of average earning assets. Net interest margin (NIM) was 1.14%, up 6 basis points from the prior-year quarter. The increase mainly reflected higher yields on earning assets. Non-interest income rose 3% from the year-ago quarter to $910.6 million. Rise in trust, investment and other servicing fees were the primary reasons for this increase. Lower foreign exchange trading income and other operating income were on the downside. Non-interest expenses were up 4% year over year to $843 million in the quarter. The rise was mainly due to an elevation in all components of expenses, except outside services costs. Improvement in Assets Under Management and Custody As of Sep 30, 2016, Northern Trusts total assets under custody increased 13% year over year to $6.71 trillion, while total assets under management rose 7% to $945.8 billion. Improving Credit Quality Total allowance for credit losses were $224.9 million, down 12% year over year. Further, non-performing assets fell 12.8% year over year to $181 million as of Sep 30, 2016. Also, net charge-offs were $0.8 million, down significantly from $9.4 million in the prior-year quarter figure. Also, provision credit was $3.0 million in the quarter while it was $10 million in the prior-year quarter. Strong Capital Position Under the Advanced Approach, as of Sep 30, 2016, Tier 1 capital ratio, total capital ratio and Tier 1 leverage ratio were 13.1%, 14.5% and 7.9% respectively, each exceeding the regulatory requirements. During third-quarter 2016, Northern Trust repurchased nearly 1 million shares for $64.9 million at an average price of $68.25 per share. Our Viewpoint Results of Northern Trust display a decent performance considering the quarters challenging backdrop. We remain optimistic by the continued growth in assets under custody, revenues and an improving credit quality. However, increase in expenses might pose a threat to its profitability. Further, the new regulations could put strain on the companys fundamentals. NORTHERN TRUST Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise NORTHERN TRUST Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | NORTHERN TRUST Quote Currently, Northern Trust carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Performance of Other Major Banks Significantly lower provisions and higher fee revenues drove Regions Financial Corporations RF third-quarter 2016 earnings from continuing operations, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Relatively stable net interest income also supported the results. However, these were partially offset by a rise in operating expenses. The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc.s PNC third-quarter 2016 earnings per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Better-than-expected results were aided by increased net interest income as well as non-interest income. However, on the downside, the quarter recorded higher expenses and provisions. Rise in fixed income sales and trading revenue as well as mortgage banking fees drove Bank of America Corporations BAC third-quarter 2016 earnings, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate. However, weakness in equity trading revenues marginally offset these positives. Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report PNC FINL SVC CP (PNC): Free Stock Analysis Report BANK OF AMER CP (BAC): Free Stock Analysis Report NORTHERN TRUST (NTRS): Free Stock Analysis Report REGIONS FINL CP (RF): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. OSLO (Reuters) - The Norwegian military has released pictures taken by surveillance aircraft of a fleet of Russian warships sailing in international waters off the coast of Norway and reported to be heading to Syria. Photos of the vessels, which include the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov and the Pyotr Velikiy battle cruiser, were taken near Andoya island, in northern Norway on Monday. A spokesman for the Norwegian military intelligence service said the country's armed forces frequently releases such footage, while newspaper VG quoted General Morten Haga Lunde, head of the service, as saying the eight ships involved "will probably play a role in the deciding battle for Aleppo". Russia's TASS state news agency said in July, citing a source, that the Admiral Kuznetsov would take part in the Russian operation in Syria from October to January. The warship would carry 15 Su-33 and MIG-29K jet fighters and over 10 Ka-52K, Ka-27 and -31 helicopters, it said. Russia, which has backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with an air campaign against the rebels fighting him, including in Aleppo, told the Norwegian armed forces the warships were on their way to the Mediterranean Sea, Norwegian media reported. Russia has a naval base in Arkhangelsk, east of Norway's far north. (Reporting By Reuters Television Editing by Jeremy Gaunt) Los Angeles (AFP) - Officers with assault rifles, backed by a huge armored grenade launcher, square up to a crowd furiously denouncing the killing of a young black neighbor. It is a scene which could have been taken from archive footage of Mogadishu in 1990s Somalia or countless other battles, but this conflict is closer to home -- the streets of small-town America. The images, captured in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014, open "Do Not Resist" -- a disturbing documentary charting the transformation of police across the US into forces that look like military units. The explosive film is set to fuel an already bitter debate raging in America over heavy-handed law enforcement, following a litany of police killings of black men that have sparked protests from Ferguson and Charlotte to Chicago. Director Craig Atkinson, whose movie is opening across the US having won best documentary feature at the Tribeca Film Festival, says the American law enforcement ethos has changed "from a mentality of peacekeepers to that of an occupying army." Another eye-opening scene shows officers in black fatigues firing volley after volley of automatic rounds at cardboard targets, as if they were preparing for war rather than to "protect and serve." A khaki-clad instructor explains that security forces must prepare for all kinds of attacks, "including the Islamic State." MRAPs, the armored trucks that protect troops from roadside bombs planted along the dusty roads of Iraq and Afghanistan, are now ubiquitous across the US. - Growing backlash - They are provided by the Pentagon through a program of surplus giveaways that has amounted to $5 billion since former president Bill Clinton signed it off in 1996. In another shocking scene, a SWAT team arrives in an MRAP at a tree-lined street in Columbia, South Carolina, to execute a search warrant in a drug case. The officers, whose equipment looks barely distinguishable from that of an infantry division, end up badly damaging a family home in a raid that nets a small amount of loose cannabis. Story continues Atkinson's father, a retired policeman from Detroit, Michigan, spent over a decade in one such SWAT team, the New York-based filmmaker explains. "In his time, his team intervened 29 times in 13 years. Now they are taking part in 200 raids a year," Atkinson tells AFP. Faced with a growing backlash against police killings, particularly in black communities, Terrence Cunningham, the president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), has admitted that law enforcement officers have been "the face of oppression to far too many of our fellow citizens." He told a conference in San Diego on Monday that police needed to apologize for "the actions of the past and the role that our profession has played in society's historical mistreatment of communities of color." - 'Warrior culture' - Campaigners against police militarization accept that SWAT teams and their heavy-duty hardware have a vital role in combatting the rare instances of terrorism in the US. But they point out that, due to prolonged mission creep, this is no longer how these resources are used. Peter Kraska, a criminology professor at the University of Eastern Kentucky, says there are now at least 50,000 SWAT raids a year, up from 3,000 in the 1980s. Most of the activities of these highly specialized units have little to do with the reasons for their inception, such as dealing with hostage situations, terrorist attacks and drug cartels. According to Atkinson, one of the architects of the "warrior culture" is a hugely successful police trainer named Dave Grossman, head of a consulting firm called the Killology Research Group. "We are at war and you are the frontline troops in this war. What do you fight violence with? Superior violence," Grossman hollers at an audience of mesmerized police in one session filmed for the documentary. The retired army lieutenant colonel has lectured throughout the US, according to his website, and Atkinson believes his influence has spread to every American law enforcement agency. "There are 63 million police interactions with citizens each year in the United States, and if we take that kind of mentality during a routine traffic stop, that's how there are people getting killed," he said. Where is Lokman Singh Karki? Two days after a full bench of the Supreme Court decided to review its earlier verdict regarding his appointment as the chief of the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), Lokman Singh Karki flew to Canada on September 19. Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f251745%2fobamadinner Last night, President Obama enjoyed his final state dinner the way all presidents should: With fine wine, star comedians and really earnest jokes. Obama used the occasion to honor Italy, a longtime American ally who "just happens" to have some of the best cuisine on the planet. The president invited celebrity chef Mario Batali to help cater the event, and invited key Italian-Americans in politics including Nancy Pelosi, the house minority leader and Andrew Cuomo, the New York governor. SEE ALSO: Michelle Obama slays final state dinner with this stunning dress Obama reminisced about the past eight years, and imagined what, exactly, his legacy would look like: "The political ups and downs, the successes and the setbacks those things are fleeting, Obama said. What matters in the end is what we build. What matters is what we leave behind the things that will endure long after we are gone." The president's speech further honored Italy, and used the country's architecture and literature as metaphors for the state of American politics: "Tonight, we're reminded that American democracy has been graced by the touch of Italy," Obama said. "We look at the dome of the US Capitol and marvel at the touch of Brumidi. Yet some days our presidential campaigns can seem like Dante's Inferno." On the menu for the evening were Batali-approved dishes including warm butternut squash salad, beef tenderloin layered with bresaola, green apple crostata with thyme caramel, and something literally called "pasta pillow." Guest chef Mario Batali is wearing his signature orange crocs as he cooks at the White House for a state dinner tmrw pic.twitter.com/n8Qvf2ReQz Arlette Saenz (@ArletteSaenz) October 17, 2016 Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi was in attendance, as were Giorgio Armani, Gwen Stefani, and Jerry Seinfeld. Story continues Chef @MarioBatali is here for the final State Dinner. On the menu: dishes like sweet potato agnolotti and beef braciole pinwheel. Mangia! pic.twitter.com/RziKQNkAxj The White House (@WhiteHouse) October 19, 2016 Renzi, who invited Obama to visit Italy and compared the White House tomatoes to ones grown in his home country, congratulated First Lady Michelle Obama on her work on the campaign, couching the nod in a subtle diss. "Michelle, after last week let me be frank your speeches are better than your tomatoes," he said. BONUS: One woman's journey to becoming a state representative Donald Trump is again making headlines for his choice of guest at a presidential debate. Instead of a gambit apparently aimed at throwing his rival off her game, Trump seems to be taking aim at the president himself. Read: Audience Member Kenneth Bone Steals Presidential Debate With Snuggly Red Pullover, 'Toy Story' Likeness Trump's campaign revealed late Tuesday that Barack Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother will be their guest in Las Vegas Wednesday night. What's more, Malik Obama will reportedly be there rooting for the Republican nominee. "Im excited to be at the debate. Trump can make America great again," Malik told The New York Post. Trump, who only recently disavowed his connection to the Birthers who insist Barack Obama was born in Kenya and is unqualified for the presidency told the Post he's excited to be bringing along Malik Obama. "I look very much forward to meeting and being with Malik," Trump said. "He gets it far better than his brother." Prior to the previous debate, Trump held a surprise press conference with several women who've accused President Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct over the years. Clinton has denied the allegations. Trump brought the women to the St. Louis event after reports began to emerge in which women accused the billionaire himself of similar misdeeds. For his part, Malik Obama thinks Trump's accusers are just trying to derail his campaign. "I dont believe them," Malik told the Post. "Why didnt they come forward before?" Read: Billy Bush Suspended from 'Today' Show for Lewd Hot Mic Comments: 'There's No Excuse' Spokesman Brian Fallon tweeted Tuesday what appears to be the Clinton campaign's take on Trump's choice of guest: "It appears @POTUS may have gotten under Donald's skin by telling him to "stop whining." Story continues Hillary Clinton's guests will be Trump's fellow billionaire businessman Mark Cuban and Hewlett-Packard CEO and former Republican California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman. Watch: Trump, Clinton Trade Compliments After 'Ugly' Second Debate: 'She's A Fighter' Related Articles: (Recasts to add details, context, background throughout) By Ana Mano SAO PAULO, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Oi SA's decision to request bankruptcy protection in June helped accelerate the Brazilian government's planned revamp of telecommunications licensing regulations, an official said on Wednesday, a move that may unlock investments and improve the outlook for rivals. For years, carriers unsuccessfully tried to convince the government to allow them to own fixed-line assets when their license ended. Oi's bankruptcy filing, the largest in Brazil's history, added a sense of urgency to fixing the framework, in which assets go back to the state when the license ends, said Igor de Freitas, a board member at industry watchdog Anatel. Current licenses expire in 2025 and carriers are urging President Michel Temer's administration to decide on the matter so they can unlock billions of reais in 4G capacity and digital services expansion. Executives at TIM Participacoes SA and Telefonica Brasil SA have listed regulatory overhaul as a key condition for them to invest more in Latin America's largest telecoms market. According to other government officials, a draft bill should be ready before year-end and then sent to Congress for approval. Outdated rules and their impact on capital spending have reduced the weight of Brazil's telecommunications industry on gross domestic product by 1 percentage point to around 4 percent of GDP this decade. "No doubt, the Oi situation creates a sense of urgency to review the model for the entire industry," Freitas said on the sidelines of an industry event in Sao Paulo. "It's important that we try to end insecurity related to asset ownership." Freitas said the impetus for the proposals came more from the inadequacy of the existing licensing-based model in the context of evolving technologies and competition among players, rather than Oi's problems. At stake is the ability of carriers to raise additional cash by selling assets unrelated to their licenses, which would in turn lure back investment after Brazil's harshest recession in eight decades harmed revenues and spurred disconnections. Story continues Timely changes, which could ease the burden of mandatory investments on carriers, would also relieve the government from carrying out potential seizures or bailouts in the future, officials and executives said at the event, called Futurecom. OI PROBLEMS The byproduct of a government-sponsored merger at the end of last decade, Oi succumbed to a heavy debt burden, onerous government-mandated investments in money-losing activities and years of shareholder disputes. Government officials, industry leaders and analysts have said that, at some point, only three out of Brazil's four carriers will survive. In June, Rio de Janeiro-based Oi filed for bankruptcy to restructure 65.4 billion reais ($21 billion) in liabilities. A series of shareholder disputes and protracted negotiations with creditors have delayed discussions about Oi's recovery plan, which was presented on Sept. 5. Oi has discharged PJT Partners Inc from the role of financial adviser on the debt restructuring plan, and is already looking for a replacement, Oi Chief Executive Marco Schroeder said at the same event. America Movil SAB, the Mexican phone carrier controlled by billionaire Carlos Slim, wants to increase capital spending in Brazil regardless of the regulatory changes, said Jose Felix, the company's head of Brazilian operations. Any changes require further analysis, he said. ($1 = 3.1726 reais) (Reporting by Ana Mano and Alberto Alerigi Jr; Writing by Guillermo Parra-Bernal; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe, David Gregorio and Bernard Orr) By Ethan Lou NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices jumped more than 2 percent on Wednesday, with U.S. crude settling at its highest in 15 months after the government reported a surprisingly large drop in inventories for the sixth week out of seven. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said crude stocks fell 5.2 million barrels in the week ended Oct. 14, versus forecasts for a 2.7-million barrel build. Crude stocks generally rise at this time of year as refineries go into maintenance. Refinery utilization is down to 85 percent from nearly 94 percent in early September. The EIA said U.S. crude imports (USOICI=ECI) slid by 912,000 barrels per day last week to 6.47 million bpd, the lowest since November 2015, crimping inventories. "This lowest import pace in some 16 months is surprising given the fact that OPEC production has recently attained a record level that would imply easy availability," said Jim Ritterbusch of Chicago-based oil markets consultancy Ritterbusch & Associates. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude's front-month contract, November (CLc1), closed up $1.31, or 2.6 percent, at $51.60 a barrel for its highest settlement since July 14. Its session peak of $51.93 was the highest in 15 months. With expiry due on Thursday, the November contract saw lighter trades than December WTI (CLc2), which hit a June high of $52.22. The December contract will be front-month from Friday. London-traded Brent crude (LCOc1) settled up 99 cents, or 1.9 percent, at $52.67. Some market participants were not impressed by the crude inventory drop, citing instead the large gasoline build of 2.5 million barrels for last week versus forecasts for a 1.3 million-barrel drop. "While the headline number was bullish, we wouldn't call it extremely bullish," said Tariq Zahir, crude trader at Tyche Capital Advisors in New York. Oil prices have rallied 15 percent in the three weeks after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries proposed to enforce from November its first output cut since 2008. Story continues Khalid al-Falih, energy minister of Saudi Arabia, which dominates OPEC, told the Oil & Money conference in London "fundamentals are improving and the market is clearly balancing" after prices fell below $30 from 2014 highs above $100. But Rex Tillerson, chief executive of Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), the world's largest listed oil firm, later told the same conference he expected U.S. shale oil output, responsible for much of the glut, to rebound at current prices. In industry news, Enbridge, Canada's largest pipeline company, said it was shedding 5 percent of its workforce, the second layoff of that size since oil prices crashed in 2014. (Additional reporting by Amanda Cooper in LONDON, Henning Gloystein in SINGAPORE and Barani Krishnan in NEW YORK; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli and David Gregorio) The Q3 earnings season has just begun and we are yet to get a clear picture of the overall market conditions as only 34 of the S&P 500 companies have reported quarterly results so far. With 80 S&P 500 companies set to release their earnings this week, we expect a clearer insight into the performance of the various sectors. Though Q3 has started on a strong note for some sectors, the prospects of the energy sector do not seem too bright at the moment. The 34 S&P 500 companies that have released their financial numbers as of Oct 14, 2016 account for 8.9% of the indexs total market capitalization. Notably, total earnings for these companies has risen 1.3% from the year-ago period due to a 2.9% increase in revenues. Also, 79.4% of these companies posted an earnings beat, while 64.7% topped revenue expectations. The energy sector has been a drag on the overall market over the past few quarters and the situation is unlikely to change even in Q3. Per the Earnings Trends report, the general outlook is bearish as the sector is expected to register a massive 71.9% year-over-year decrease in earnings due to an 11% decline in revenues. Excluding the impact of the energy sector, the S&P 500 Index would witness earnings growth of 1.3% on the back of 2.8% increase in revenues. However, the market conditions can be better assessed after energy majors like Schlumberger Ltd. and Southwestern Energy Co. report their Q3 results this week. Here, we have compiled a list of three players from the broader energy space that are expected to report quarterly numbers on Oct 20. Schlumberger Ltd. SLB is set to report Q3 results on Oct 20, after the closing bell. Last quarter, Schlumberger posted a positive earnings surprise of 4.55%. Moreover, the company posted an average positive earnings surprise of 1.98% over the last four quarters. Despite a difficult operating environment owing to oil price weakness, Schlumbergers financial strength and technological leadership have supported its excellent earnings track record. Story continues SCHLUMBERGER LT Price and EPS Surprise SCHLUMBERGER LT Price and EPS Surprise | SCHLUMBERGER LT Quote However, an earnings beat looks uncertain for Schlumberger as the company carries a Zacks Rank #4 and an Earnings ESP of 0.00%. Note that a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), #2 (Buy) or #3 (Hold) to be able to beat estimates. Conversely, we caution against stocks with Zacks Rank #4 and #5 (Sell-rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions. Independent natural gas operator, Southwestern Energy Co. SWN is expected to release Q3 results on Oct 20, after the market closes. The Spring, TX-based upstream player has an impressive earnings surprise history. The company managed to beat estimates in all of the last four quarters with an average beat of 65.38%. In the preceding three-month period, it delivered a positive earnings surprise of 18.18%. SOUTHWESTRN ENE Price and EPS Surprise SOUTHWESTRN ENE Price and EPS Surprise | SOUTHWESTRN ENE Quote Our proven model does not conclusively show that Southwestern is likely to beat earnings this quarter. The company has a Zacks Rank #3 but an Earnings ESP of -28.57%. Finally, we have independent oil and natural gas producer Synergy Resources Corp. SYRG coming out with Q3 numbers on Oct 20. Our model indicates that the Denver, CO-based upstream player with primary operations in the Wattenberg Field is likely to beat on earnings this time around. This is because Synergy Resources is a Zacks Rank #3 stock but has an Earnings ESP of 100.00%. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. SYNERGY RES CP Price and EPS Surprise SYNERGY RES CP Price and EPS Surprise | SYNERGY RES CP Quote Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report SOUTHWESTRN ENE (SWN): Free Stock Analysis Report SCHLUMBERGER LT (SLB): Free Stock Analysis Report SYNERGY RES CP (SYRG): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research By Karolos Grohmann BERLIN, Oct 19 (Reuters) - International Paralympic Committee chief Phil Craven has apologised in a letter to the International Olympic Committee for comments he made about IOC President Thomas Bach during a prank call, a source said on Wednesday. Craven made disparaging comments about Bach and two IOC members this month in a call he thought was with former Olympic track and field champion Edwin Moses. The IPC chief, who is also an IOC member, had said "public opinion across the world is against (Bach)" over the IOC's decision not to ban all Russian athletes from the Rio de Janeiro Olympics due to a doping scandal. The IOC had only suspended the country's track and field team from attending Rio over the fallout of a state-backed doping system in the country. Craven, whose organisation suspended all Russian athletes from competing at the Paralympics in Rio because of the same doping affair, also had said German Chancellor Angela Merkel "couldn't stand" Bach. "The President has personally accepted the apology from Sir Phil about his comments," a source told Reuters, adding that Craven had written a letter to Bach. "As far as Bach is concerned personally the matter is now closed." In the recording of the prank call released by Russian television on Oct. 7 Craven also said he would "slam Bach" if he attempted to "pull a fast one" during an Olympic summit earlier in October to discuss doping. "If Bach tries to pull a fast one, I'm going to slam him... and I hope Craig Reedie (President of the World Anti-Doping Agency) does the same. "If Bach doesn't change his tune, he's going to be in a very difficult situation because public opinion all over the world is against him. And particularly in Germany. Germany can't stand him. Angela Merkel can't stand him." Craven and Bach are due to meet in Tokyo during a World Economic Forum meeting on Thursday. (Editing by Ed Osmond) schiaparelli lander site mars express esa "Somewhere within this frame, there is a new robot on Mars," science journalist Corey Powell quipped on Twitter. The question, however, is whether the spacecraft is intact and struggling to make contact with Earth or just another crater on the desolate red planet. On Wednesday, a joint European-Russian probe called the Schiaparelli lander fell toward the surface of Mars, deployed a parachute, and fired its thrusters. That much we know, according to data the spacecraft beamed back to the European Space Agency (ESA) during its harrowing descent. exomars martian mars descent vehicle robot esa The 8-foot-wide probe was ultimately supposed to plop down in a patch of red dirt at 10:48 a.m. EDT, but Paolo Ferri, the ESA's head of mission operations, said during a live video stream on Wednesday that something "unexpected" happened. "The signal went through the majority of the descent phase, but it stopped at a certain point that we reckon was before the landing," Ferri said. In short: The ESA lost touch with Schiaparelli and hasn't yet been able to establish contact with the probe. "We need more information. That's what's going to happen tonight," Ferri continued, adding that the ESA may have an answer sometime after 8 p.m. EDT, or early Thursday morning in Europe. If Schiaparelli's landing worked, it would be the ESA's first spacecraft to safely reach the surface of the red planet. If no signal is received, however, the probe may have joined a growing graveyard of failed Martian spacecraft. For Russia, Schiaparelli could be the nation's seventh failed Mars landing (though it put two satellites into orbit around Mars while it was still the Soviet Union). ExoMars 2016: Half a success, so far Shortly after the probe was supposed to have phoned home but didn't, the space agency said via Twitter that a missing signal delay wasn't unexpected. Story continues The reason? Schiaparelli's radio signal to its mother ship the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) was very weak, and dusty conditions on Mars may have also interfered. Engineers combed through the recorded data, which was relayed to Earth via the Mars Express orbiter, but found nothing: .@ESA_EDM recording from #MarsExpress is inconclusive - not clear yet what the status of the lander is #ExoMars ESA Operations (@esaoperations) October 19, 2016 Luckily, the ESA's effort wouldn't be a total failure if Schiaparelli didn't make it in one piece. That's because the lander is just one-half of the ExoMars 2016 mission: a precursor to a more ambitious rover mission planned for 2020. It's also more of an engineering proof-of-concept than a science mission. "We should remember this landing was a test," Ferri said. "And as part of the test, you want to learn what happened," he added, no matter the outcome. The other half of ExoMars 2016 is Schiaparelli's mother ship, TGO. The ESA said the orbiter seems to have safely entered into Mars orbit on Wednesday, which means its task of sniffing for methane on Mars a potential sign of microbial life can soon begin. A harrowing descent exomars 2016 schiaparelli descent sequence timeline esa Prior to Schiaparelli, humanity tried 18 times to touch Mars with penetrators, landers, and wheeled rovers. Only eight such missions have ever succeeded. The last time the ESA tried to land a probe on Mars, in 2003, it failed. Its Beagle 2 lander successfully jettisoned from an orbiting spacecraft. Aside a final signal before its descent, however, the robot robot never contacted Earth again. It wasn't until January 2015 more than a decade later that NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter found and photographed the dead rover in a satellite image. An subsequent investigation found that its solar panels had failed to deploy, so it never mustered the energy to phone home. exomars 2016 Schiaparelli separating from Trace Gas Orbiter esa The 8-foot-wide Schiaparelli lander departed from its Martian gas-sniffing mother ship, TGO, the morning of October 16. Its hair-raising descent to the surface of Mars should have taken less than 6 minutes because it initially traveled at 13,000 mph (21,000 kph). To slow down, Schiaparelli first burned through a heat shield, deployed a parachute, and later cut the parachute and heat shield loose. After free-falling for awhile, it fired its thrusters. From here on in the timeline, we don't yet know what happened. "I'm quite confident that [Thursday] morning we will know," Ferri said. Schiaparelli was supposed to slow toward the surface until its sensors detected that it was hovering just a few feet from the ground. At that point the thrusters should have stopped, dropping the probe with a thud onto a honeycomb-like pad that's designed to crumple and absorb the impact. Whether a success or failure, the probe is really a practice run for a future ExoMars 2020 wheeled rover mission. If the probe survived, it should have also taken pictures of its descent and will later attempt to measure Mars' electric field for the first time, among other limited scientific observations. But for now, the situation is not looking good. NOW WATCH: Europe and Russia are about to make history by landing a spacecraft on Mars More From Business Insider LONDON (Reuters) - Wayne Rooney knows it already and Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba have been warned by manager Jose Mourinho that no player is "untouchable" at Manchester United. During Mourinho's trophy-laden first spell at Chelsea from 2004-07 the likes of Frank Lampard, John Terry, Didier Drogba and Claude Makelele became almost undroppable. Times have changed, however, and Mourinho says no one in the United dressing room can assume such status. Speaking ahead of United's home Europa League clash with Turkish side Fenerbahce on Thursday, Mourinho said the only untouchable presence in the United dressing room cost not a single penny. "Untouchable now has to be the team spirit and the commitment and pride, the commitment to the club, respect to the fans, that has to be untouchable not players," Mourinho told reporters on Wednesday. Club skipper Rooney has not started for nearly a month while world record signing Pogba is yet to hit his stride. Ibrahimovic has started all of United's eight Premier League games so far, as have keeper David De Gea, defender Eric Bailly and winger Antonio Valencia. But even they are not automatic picks, said Mourinho. "(At Chelsea) that was 11 years ago. It's a different Premier league, different situation, (Chelsea) were the best team by far, that's a different story," Mourinho said. However, Mourinho was full of praise for Ibrahimovic despite the Swede having scored only once since early September. "It's quite beautiful to meet him five or six years later and find the same ambition, passion and desire to play and to compete," Mourinho said of the man he managed at Inter Milan. "I could not be happier with his influence in the dressing room." Mourinho also praised Rooney's response to being benched saying he was helping create a positive atmosphere in the squad. He would not say whether he would start against Fenerbahce though. "Wayne is working well, he is a good example, so we count on him to start or be on the bench. He will be there tomorrow," Mourinho said. (Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Toby Davis) Islamabad (AFP) - A Pakistani tea merchant with velvet eyes saw his life changed this week when his portrait spread around the Internet, sparking ardent debates on class, objectification, and the place of ethnic Pashtuns in society. Arshad Khan had no idea he had set the Internet alight from Pakistan to India and beyond: he has no phone, and cannot read. "It was a real surprise," the young "chai wala", or tea seller, told AFP. "I was aware that I am handsome but you can't do anything when you are poor," he said, adding that the image has "changed the way I think." In the candid photograph, snapped by a passing photographer and posted on Instagram, Khan prepares Pakistan's ubiquitous milk tea, his blue green eyes looking frankly into the camera. It set social media users swooning, with the 18-year-old's image shared tens of thousands of times since October 14. By Tuesday, the Islamabad market where photographer Javeria Ali took the fateful shot was swarmed by dozens eager to gawk at the young worker. But in a country where women have long fought for rights and rarely express their feelings publicly, that fervour soon morphed into an intense debate on what it meant to reduce a poor man to a beautiful object. "We are more used to seeing this happen to women, it is still creepy whan it happens to a boy," feminist columnist Bina Shah told AFP. "Just because people are bored does not mean you can play with someone's life." For more news videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS. - The ick factor - Columnist Maria Amir concluded that "reverse sexism is still a form of sexism" on the website of Pakistan's biggest-selling English language newspaper, Dawn. But she also echoed many in noting that the true "ick factor" was in social class rather than gender. "The elite getting excited over a hot #ChaiWala reeks of class privilege and the objectification of working class men," tweeted @nidkirm, who described herself as a sociologist based in Lahore. Story continues And in a column in the Express Tribune Farahnaz Zahidi mocked the "surprise" that someone poor could be good-looking. "(T)he upper tier bourgeois of Pakistan have come to believe that even looks and God-gifted attributes are co-dependent on money and affluence?" she wrote. Indeed, in his first appearance on television, viewers laughed at Khan's awkward speech and the Western suit in which he appeared uncomfortable. "No girl would agree to marry him," wrote Twitter user @ItsMahah. Even the colour of Khan's cool gaze provoked discomfort in some like columnist Amir, who wrote "apparently there is no expiry date on our colonial baggage". Light skin and eyes are the attribute of many Pashtuns, tribal inhabitants of northwest Pakistan and southern Afghanistan, romanticised as warriors by the British. Others expressed concern about the risk of exploitation of a young man so little armed for success. A local brand was quick to publish pictures of him, but Khan said he has not signed any modelling contract. The third of 17 children, Khan has never been to school. He said he hoped his newfound fame would allow him to "move forward". Vegetable seller Saeed Ahmed worked in the market alongside Khan. "His eyes were so beautiful that we used to make fun of him and call him 'cat eyes'," he told AFP. "But we never even thought that he would one day become famous like this." Indian newspapers were the first to seize on the "Cinderella story", bringing frivolity to recent tensions between the rival neighbours with tweets calling Khan a "nuclear bomb". "I send a message of peace to my Indian fans," Khan said. Jerusalem (AFP) - A 19-year-old Palestinian woman approached Israeli border police with a knife in a tense area of the West Bank on Wednesday and was shot dead by officers, police said. A police statement said the woman approached officers at the Tapuah junction in the north of the occupied West Bank, ignored orders to stop and pulled the knife. "At this point the officers shot her," police said, adding that she was killed. Police identified her as a resident of Asira Al-Shimaliya, a village north of Nablus, which is located near the Tapuah junction. Also known as Zaatara junction and with Israeli settlements nearby, it has been the site of a number of violent incidents. The Palestinian health ministry said "a woman was killed after being shot by the occupation forces at Zaatara checkpoint." It identified her as Raheeq Shajeyeh Youssef. The incident comes as Jews celebrate the week-long holiday of Sukkot, the third of three successive Jewish holidays that have led to tensions with the Palestinians in the past. Last week, Jews marked Yom Kippur, while Rosh Hashanah, or New Year, was the previous week. A Palestinian gun attack in Jerusalem on October 9 that killed two people raised fears of further violence and Israel has boosted security. Last year's holiday period led to clashes and marked the start of an upsurge in Palestinian gun, knife and car-ramming attacks. Thousands of Jews visit the Western Wall in east Jerusalem's Old City during the holiday period, while a smaller number go to the nearby Al-Aqsa mosque compound. The compound is holy to both Muslims and Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount. The site is central to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with Palestinians fearing Israel may one day seek to assert further control over it. Violence since October 2015 has killed 234 Palestinians, 36 Israelis, two Americans, one Jordanian, an Eritrean and a Sudanese national, according to an AFP count. Story continues Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out attacks, according to Israeli authorities. Others were shot dead during protests or clashes, while some were killed in Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip. Many analysts say Palestinian frustration with the Israeli occupation and settlement-building in the West Bank, comatose peace efforts and their own fractured leadership have fed the unrest. Israel says incitement by Palestinian leaders and media is a leading cause of the violence. The vast majority of the attacks have been carried out by lone-wolf assailants, Israeli authorities say. Many have been young people, including teenagers. By Manoj Kumar NEW DELHI (Reuters) - A council of finance ministers from India's union and state governments on Wednesday failed to finalise the main rate of the goods and services tax and will again meet next month, raising concerns that the new sales tax might miss April's deadline. Union and state finance officials met for two days in New Delhi to resolve their differences over the rates as well as the administration of the tax. They will again meet on Nov. 3-4. While the meetings could not break the deadlock, the contours of the discussions suggested India might end up with a tax structure with multiple rates. Experts say that the best taxes have to be low, flat rates and few exemptions and warn that the proposed GST for India may - due to its relative complexity - deter compliance in a country where many businesses are skilled at minimising their taxes. "Having more rates will complicate the situation," said M.S. Mani, senior director at Deloitte Haskins & Sells LLP, adding uniform rate in states would simplify current tax structure. The new tax is a signature reform of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that is aimed at making India an investor friendly destination. The measure would harmonise a slew of federal and state levies. Supporters say the rollout of the new tax would boost the country's economic growth by as much as 70 basis points. But a compromise-ridden tax threatens to rob any potential gains. At the meeting, some states sought to impose a surcharge of tax on luxury products such as sparkling water and tobacco products to keep lower rates on essential food items, Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Issac told reporters. But the union government did not support the proposal, saying it would have a cascading impact, a senior Finance Ministry official told reporters after the meeting. The ministry has proposed four tax rates, with the highest at 26 percent for about 20-25 percent of taxable items. Other slabs included 12 percent for food and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), and 4 percent for precious metals like gold. Story continues Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, however, remained optimistic that the November meeting would resolve the differences, paving the way for the tax's implementation from April 1. To hit that timeline, union and state lawmakers need to pass key bills in this calendar year, and even then there will be a race against time to set up IT systems and ensure millions of businesses are ready to file returns online. (Reporting by Manoj Kumar; Editing by Alison Williams) In a room packed with stars from both America and Italy, one athlete shined the brightest after she asked President Obama for a selfie. Read: Michelle Obama Stuns in Versace Gown at Final Star-Studded White House State Dinner Italian Paralympian Beatrice Vio was a guest of honor at Obamas final state dinner at the White House Tuesday night, as they hosted Italys Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife, Agnese Landini. The 19-year-old, who lost her legs and arms from severe meningitis in 2008, took home gold at the Rio Paralympics in wheelchair fencing this past summer. To cap her year with a presidential selfie, however, Vio had to defy protocol, but the president didn't seem to mind. "It's not possible?!? I'm sorry, I don't understand these words"... Piccolo sgarro al protocollo per un selfie con @barackobama A photo posted by Beatrice Vio (@bebe_vio) on Oct 19, 2016 at 6:17am PDT She captioned the photo with: "It's not possible?!? I'm sorry, I don't understand these words." The president held the camera as the teen posed for the shot with the leader of the free world. Read: Michelle Obama's Stirring DNC Speech Brings Crowd to Their Feet: 'When They Go Low, We Go High' Prior to the photo, Vio began her day on the White House lawn and watched as Obama introduced Renzi to Washington. #Washington D.C. Questa mattina nei giardini della Casa Bianca abbiamo assistito alla cerimonia di apertura di questo splendido evento di stasera! Ho stretto la mano al Presidente Obama e vi giuro che per la prima volta non sapevo cosa dire e non ho avuto neanche il coraggio di chiedere un selfie... io che rimango senza parole, mai successo! Menomale che stasera lo rivediamo A photo posted by Beatrice Vio (@bebe_vio) on Oct 18, 2016 at 9:02am PDT She wrote on Instagram: I shook hands with President Obama and I swear that I didn't know what to say for the first time and I didn't even dare ask a selfie ... I am speechless, great success! Story continues She added: Luckily tonight I can see, meaning she hoped to ask for a selfie. Little did she know that a few hours later, the president would oblige. She flew to Washington with Oscar winner and Life Is Beautiful star Roberto Benigni along with his wife, Nicoletta Braschi. Arrivata a #Washington (Foto Ambasciata Italiana) A photo posted by Beatrice Vio (@bebe_vio) on Oct 18, 2016 at 12:23am PDT She also showed off her dress and how she packed. Among the 400 guests were many high profile Italians and Italian-Americans such as New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and his girlfriend, Sandra Lee; The Night Of actor John Turturro, Life Is Beautiful star Roberto Benigni, designer Giorgio Armani, race car driver Mario Andretti and celebrity chef Rachael Ray. Musicians Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton, Frank Ocean, Chance the Rapper and comedian Jerry Seinfeld were also in attendance. Watch: Boy, 6, Writes Obama About Syrian Ambulance Boy: 'Can You Please Go Get Him?' Related Articles: We expect Parker-Hannifin Corporation PH to beat expectations when it reports first-quarter fiscal 2017 earnings, before the opening bell on Oct 21. In the last reported quarter, Parker-Hannifin posted a positive earnings surprise of 7.3%. The company has an excellent earnings track record, beating estimates in each of the trailing four quarters. The stock boasts an average positive surprise of approximately 11.1%. We expect the company to continue its upbeat performance in the to-be reported quarter as well. Why a Likely Positive Surprise? Our proven model shows that Parker-Hannifin is likely to beat earnings because it has the right combination of two key ingredients. Zacks ESP: The Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, stands at +0.64%. This is a very meaningful and leading indicator of a likely earnings surprise. Zacks Rank: Parker-Hannifin carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Note that stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 have a significantly higher chance of beating estimates. On the other hand, Sell-rated stocks (#4 and 5) should not be considered going into an earnings announcement. The combination of Parker-Hannifins Zacks Rank #3 and ESP of +0.64% makes us confident of an earnings beat in the upcoming report. PARKER HANNIFIN Price and EPS Surprise PARKER HANNIFIN Price and EPS Surprise | PARKER HANNIFIN Quote Growth Factors this Past Quarter Parker-Hannifins first-quarter fiscal 2017 results are expected to benefit from its Win Strategy. This plan focuses on four key areas including customer engagement, customer experience, profitable growth and financial performance. Parker-Hannifin is well on track to achieve these goals and believes it can deliver a compound annual growth rate in earnings per share of 8% over the next five years. We believe the overarching Win Strategy will be a significant growth driver for operating margins in the soon-to-be reported quarter. Moreover, the company has reaped significant benefits from its global restructuring initiatives undertaken over the past few quarters. These initiatives helped Parker-Hannifin offset weakness in some key regions, thus strengthening the companys position in end-markets. Story continues This apart, Parker-Hannifins extensive distribution network, which sells to the more lucrative maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) markets, is expected to act as one of the main profit churners. Also, robust aerospace business and market traction of some of the recently launched products like Tank Vent filter, stainless steel 221G solenoid valves, Pro Display 10, UX Toolkit and F3 Hydraulic Truck Pump are expected to boost the top line in the fiscal first quarter. Parker-Hannifins recent acquisitions are also expected to aid core business growth. The recently completed buyout of U.K.-based firm, President Engineering Group Limited (PEGL), has provided solid support to its Instrumentation Group business. During the first quarter of fiscal 2017, Parker-Hannifin took over two of Germany-based equipment manufacturer Arnold Jager Holding GmbHs operating units to strengthen its global sealing market hold. We believe such strategic buyouts will prove conducive to growth in the fiscal first quarter and beyond. Other Stocks That Warrant a Look Here are some other companies you may want to consider as our model shows that these also have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter: AO Smith Corp. AOS has an earnings ESP of +2.22% and a Zacks Rank #2. The company is slated to report results on Oct 26. Caterpillar Inc. CAT has an earnings ESP of +2.7% and a Zacks Rank #2. The company is scheduled to release its financial numbers on Oct 25. Casella Waste Systems Inc. CWST scheduled to report results on Nov 3 has an earnings ESP of +90% and a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand.Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report CATERPILLAR INC (CAT): Free Stock Analysis Report SMITH (AO) CORP (AOS): Free Stock Analysis Report PARKER HANNIFIN (PH): Free Stock Analysis Report CASELLA WASTE (CWST): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Beirut (AFP) - A pause in Russian and Syrian strikes on Aleppo held into a second day Wednesday, ahead of a brief ceasefire aimed at allowing civilians and rebels to quit the devastated city. The halt came ahead of talks in Berlin between the Russian, French, and German leaders on Syria's five-year conflict. Moscow is backing President Bashar al-Assad's regime in its war with a wide range of rebel groups, including with air strikes in the divided northern city of Aleppo. Under growing international pressure over the devastation and civilian deaths caused by strikes, Moscow announced early Tuesday that Russian and Syrian warplanes would stop bombing rebel-held parts of the city to pave the way for a "humanitarian pause". That window, starting at 0500 GMT on Thursday and due to last eight hours, is expected to see all fighting stop to allow civilians and rebels to exit opposition-held districts via six corridors. An estimated 250,000 people live in Aleppo's eastern districts and have been under near-continuous government siege since July. Moscow's offer was initially met with scepticism, but the bombing halt held for its first 24 hours. "There have been no air raids from yesterday morning until now," Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said as the pause entered its second day. Russian and Syrian bombardment had been providing air cover for a government offensive that started on September 22 aimed at seizing the city's east, held by rebels since 2012. Despite the bombing pause, troops pressed their ground assault in the Old City on Wednesday as they vied to shift the front line in the heart of Aleppo, according to the Observatory. - 'Still scared' - According to Moscow, once the pause begins six corridors out of the city would open for civilians with another two -- via the Castello Road in the north and Souk al-Hal in the city centre -- designated for rebels. Story continues Rebel groups have indicated they will not abandon their posts and, with Aleppo encircled by pro-government forces, many civilians fear falling into the hands of the regime. But Russia has said the pause is an opportunity for mainstream rebels to disassociate themselves from jihadists in Aleppo. Russia has responded to criticism of its air campaign in Aleppo by repeatedly pointing to the presence of jihadist groups in the city allied with other rebel forces. Some of the rebels are backed by the United States, and Moscow has accused Washington of not doing enough to convince them to end alliances with jihadists. "Each time, the Americans said it was impossible to perform the separation without the establishment of a ceasefire," Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said. "The condition that has been asked for, especially by our American colleagues, is now filled." Ibrahim Abu al-Leith, a spokesman for the White Helmets rescue force in Aleppo, said there were no planes circling above on Wednesday but artillery and rocket fire continued. "It's better than before, but people won't go out unless everything stops. They are still scared because they know that the regime and Russia are not trustworthy," Abu al-Leith told AFP from the city. - 'Broken' promises - Five years of diplomatic initiatives to put an end to Syria's conflict have failed, but over the past week world powers have made new efforts to reach a lasting truce. French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were to meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Berlin later Wednesday to discuss the ceasefire plans. Speaking of the "disastrous" situation in Aleppo, Merkel said she and Hollande would speak to Putin but that "we cannot expect miracles". The United States has expressed scepticism about Moscow's most recent initiative. "We've seen these kinds of commitments and promises before. And we've seen them broken. We're watching this very carefully," State Department spokesman John Kirby told CNN. A US-led coalition is bombing jihadists in Syria including the Islamic State group and Russia accused member Belgium of killing six civilians in air strikes in the Aleppo region on Tuesday. The Belgian defence ministry denied its air force was active in the area at the time. Talks were also due Wednesday in Geneva between Russian, US, Saudi, Qatari and Turkish officials on the efforts to distance Syrian opposition fighters from jihadists, in particular the Fateh al-Sham Front, which changed its name from Al-Nusra Front after renouncing its ties to Al-Qaeda. (Adds comments on austerity policy by ministers) RIYADH, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Delays in state payments to construction firms are due to "technical reasons" and the payments will increase in the coming period, Finance Minister Ibrahim Alassaf said on Saudi-owned television network MBC in a programme broadcast on Wednesday. The construction industry has been hit hard this year by state spending cuts, part of an austerity drive in response to low oil prices, and by months-long delays in the government settling its debts to contractors. Industry executives have said billions of dollars may be involved. Alassaf did not describe the technical problems but said payments to companies were now "stable" and would rise. He did not give specific numbers. The programme was broadcast hours after the Saudi government sold $17.5 billion of bonds, the largest emerging market debt sale ever, in its first international bond sale. The bond offer marked a major change of policy for the government; until last year, it focused on cutting public debt. Alassaf praised the government's economic plans and austerity drive, saying it had impressed U.S. President Barack Obama among others. The bond issue prospectus noted that Saudi Arabia might eventually abandon the peg of its riyal currency to the U.S. dollar, but Alassaf said that was included for legal reasons and the government had no intention of changing the exchange rate. The debt issue did not include Islamic bonds; Alassaf said the government planned to issue sukuk in future as one way to cover its budget deficit, but did not elaborate. Mohammad al-Tuwaijri, deputy minister of economy and planning, told the programme that Saudi Arabia would have faced bankruptcy in three to four years if it had not imposed austerity policies. One particularly painful policy, announced last month, was cuts in allowances for public sector employees. Civil service minister Khalid bin Abdullah al-Araj told the programme that after oil prices recovered, some necessary allowances would be resumed. He did not elaborate. (Reporting by Ali Abdelatti in Cairo and Marwa Rashad in Riyadh; Writing by Andrew Torchia) MONTREAL, QC / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / Peak Positioning Technologies Inc. (PKK.V) ("Peak" or the "Company") today announced that it will hold an investor conference call to discuss its consolidated financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016. Peak recently announced that its wholly-owned Shanghai-based subsidiary, Asia Synergy Technologies ("AST"), had conducted transactions generating revenues in excess of CA$30M for the quarter. By holding the conference call, Peak aims to provide investors with more clarity into those revenues and some guidance for upcoming quarters. Some of the topics expected to be addressed during the call will include how AST accounts for revenues and what profit margins were realised on the transactions. Peak's financial results for the third quarter are due to be filed no later than on November 30, 2016. The Company expects to file its results prior to that date and plans to hold the conference call shortly thereafter. The details of the conference call, including the date on which it will be held and the dial-in information, will be provided in an upcoming news release to announce the filing of Peak's financial statements for the third quarter. About Peak Positioning Technologies Inc.: Peak Positioning Technologies Inc. is an IT portfolio management company whose mission is to assemble, finance and manage a portfolio of high-growth-potential companies and assets in some of the fastest growing tech sectors in China, including Fintech, e-commerce and cloud-computing. Peak provides its shareholders with exceptional growth potential by giving them access to the fastest growing sectors of the world's fastest growing economy. For more information: http://www.peakpositioning.com. Contact information: Cathy Hume CEO CHF Investor Relations Phone: 416-868-1079 ext.: 231 Email: cathy@chfir.com Or Carl Desjardins Managing Partner Paradox Public Relations Inc. Phone: 514-341-0408 Email: carldesjardins@paradox-pr.ca Story continues Or Johnson Joseph President and CEO Peak Positioning Technologies Inc. Phone: 514-340-7775 ext.: 501 Email: investors@peakpositioning.com SOURCE: Peak Positioning Technologies Inc. The Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF) announced a state-wide strike on October 19 as a result of failed wage contract negotiations with Pennsylvanias State System of Higher Education. This video shows students at Millersville University, in Millersville, Pennsylvania, joining sides with the faculty to protest, despite instructions from the university to report to class. Protests took place in state-funded universities across Pennsylvania on October 19, with the majority of student participants joining sides with the faculty. Credit: Instagram/@itsjustcatherine From Popular Mechanics What turned out to be this summer's hottest beer ingredient? Well, hops by the truckload as usual. But after that, came a bit of a surprise-cucumber. But if you've ever had a thirst-quenching glass of cucumber-infused water, you'll likely understand why. As Tyler DuBois, co-founder of The Real Dill pickle company, explains, "cucumber has a mild melon-like flavor and it's very refreshing." Building up over the last two years, hundreds of cucumber-laden beers have been brewed into existence. But until recently, none impressed us enough to dispel these brews as just a passing fad. Then we tried the tart, salty Birth of Cool, and everything changed. Where so many cucumber beers taste like hoppy or bready melon water, this ale carried the essence of biting into a crisp pickle, complete with a briny finish. The beer was the brainchild of DuBois, who'd previously partnered with Great Divide Brewing's Taylor Rees to make IPA-inspired pickles with barley and hops. The two became friends, and when Rees eventually opened his own operation in 2015, Denver's Spangalang Brewing, DuBois suggested he try making a pickle beer for the brewery's first summer. Luckily, it turns out there's a perfect beer style for handling such a briny brew. Called a gose, this centuries-old German wheat beer was practically extinct a decade ago. But the hazy, acidic concoction has experienced recent resurgence thanks to the booming popularity of sour beers. Part of the appeal for brewers is that while some tart ales can take up to three years to mature, the gose needs just two weeks due to a lactic fermentation that takes just two days (or less). Several beer styles use a lactic fermentation, but the gose is set apart by the addition of salt. This gives a gose the same sort of satisfying appeal of another mildly sour and salty drink, the Bloody Mary. "It was a no brainer when Tyler suggested it," says Rees. "The fresh cucumber plays well with the acidity and lacto character, and the tartness and salinity of the style lend it to a pickle character." Story continues Compared to your average ale, there are two big difference in how a pickle beer like the Birth of Cool is brewed. First, to create the lactic acid sourness, Spangalang boils the wort (unfermented liquid with sugars from the barley) for just 10 minutes to sanitize it. Then, instead of boiling another 50 or 80 minutes and adding bittering hops, they cool it to 118 degrees, remove the oxygen by pumping in CO2, and then add a lactobacillus culture - an anaerobic bacteria that produces lactic acid. After 48 hours of letting the bacteria do its work, they fire the kettle back up, add hops, boil, and send the wort to the fermenter with yeast to become beer. [contentlinks align="left" textonly="false" numbered="false" headline="Brew%20Reads" customtitles="Better%20Beer%20from%20Genetically%20Engineered%20Yeast%7CThe%20Science%20of%20Why%20Beer%20Is%20So%20Delicious%7CHow%20to%20Make%20&%20Brew%20Beer" customimages="||" content="article.10911|article.8|gallery.143"] The second unusual steps begins a week later. DuBois and his crew put 120 pound of Kirby cucumbers through their juicer to create a potent juice. They let the liquid sit for five days to let the pulp settle out, and then Rees' team adds it to the nearly-finished beer, along with pickling salt and coriander. The pickling salt, says Rees, also happens to lend itself to beer because the finer grain dissolves more easily. And coriander, like salt, is simply a traditional ingredient in gose beers. That fresh-juiced cucumber, however, is what sets the Birth of Cool apart from its green gourd-infused peers. The liquid joins the beer just a day before it's kegged and served. Unfortunately, if you want to enjoy a glass of the pickle-epitomizing beer, you'll have to visit the tap room in Denver. The young brewery operates on a small scale, producing just 20 kegs per batch. But know that if you make the trek, you'll at least be rewarded with the most refreshing drink in one of America's greatest beer towns. You Might Also Like Yes, thats a real chimpanzee smoking a real cigarette. Zoo officials in Pyongyang told the Associated Press during a visit on Wednesday that she doesnt inhale, but animal rights activists still arent pleased. The 19-year-old female chimpanzee named Azaleaher Korean nickname is Dallaesmokes about a pack each day and can light them herself when tossed a lighter or an already-lit cigarette from a trainer, AP reports. Pictures from the visit, shot by longtime AP photographer Wong Maye-E, garnered attention and prompted a sharp rebuke from advocates against animal abuse. How cruel to willfully addict a chimpanzee to tobacco for human amusement, PETA President Ingrid Newkirk said in a statement released to TIME. Gradually, zoos are learning that spectacles like chimpanzee tea parties, elephant rides and photo ops with tiger cubs are inappropriate and exploitive, with the big question now being, why are we keeping wild animals behind bars at all? Wong, based in Singapore, became the organizations lead photographer in North Korea in 2014. She and Eric Talmadge, the APs Pyongyang bureau chief, try to make monthly visits into the country for about 10 days each. Part of that includes covering mass staged events, but she also hopes to lift the veil and focus on daily life or the quieter moments. Read more: Peek inside North Korea through a new set of eyes Alongside colleagues who were visiting on a business trip, Wong and Talmadge went to the zoo that had reopened over the summer and now welcomes thousands of daily visitors. AP noted that renovations to the zoo, built in 1959, began two years back in an effort by leader Kim Jong Un to construct additional leisure centers around Pyongyang. In an email with TIME, she described how the scene unfolded. The exhibit is simple, with a moat separating people from the enclosure, and a handful of visitors from school children to the elderly were in that area as the keeper shouted instructions at Dallae. Story continues She would perform little tricks like touch her nose, bow and raise her arms to greet visitors. He would also break into a little tune for her and she would circle round as if she was dancing, she added. Then later on, he asked a member of the audience for a cigarette and a lighter. He threw the cigarette into the exhibit and after she went to pick it up, he made her gesture with two hands out as he threw a lighter to her. She then lit her cigarette, and then threw the lighter back towards the keeper who was standing among the visitors still. It seemed to be a routine and part of the entertainment factor. It was part of her song and dance number. Wong said zoo-goers were amused, laughing at the sight in front of them. I did not see anyone mortified, she added. People seemed to be entertained and laughed in delight when she started to puff the cigarette and then light a fresh cigarette with the previous one. Some of them were taking pictures with their cell phones, some took video off their phones too. Many seemed just amazed that a chimpanzee could smoke a cigarette. Phil Chess, who co-founded the legendary label Chess Records with his brother Leonard and helped make Chicago the epicenter of the blues, died Wednesday at his home in Tucson, Arizona. He was 95. Chess' nephew Craig Glicken confirmed his uncle's death to the Chicago Sun-Times, adding that the former record label executive was in good health. Born Fiszel Czyz in Poland in 1921, Chess' family immigrated to Chicago and changed their last name to Chess in 1928. ("We came from Poland in 1928. That was blues all the time," Chess once told Vanity Fair.) After a stint in the army, in 1950, Chess joined his brother Leonard who purchased a stake of Aristocrat Records in the music business. Their label was eventually renamed Chess Records. The Chess brothers' specialty was blues and R&B "race music" as it was called at the time with Chess Records signing legendary artists like Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry, Sonny Boy Williamson, Etta James, John Lee Hooker, Elmore James and Buddy Guy. The Chess brothers often served as producers for their artists' recordings. Following news of Phil Chess' death, Guy told the Sun-Times, "Phil and Leonard Chess were cuttin' the type of music nobody else was paying attention to Muddy, Howlin Wolf, Little Walter, Sonny Boy, Jimmy Rogers, I could go on and on and now you can take a walk down State Street today and see a portrait of Muddy thats 10 stories tall. The Chess Brothers had a lot to do with that. They started Chess Records and made Chicago what it is today, the Blues capital of the world. I'll always be grateful for that." The music that was released through Chess Records Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode" and "Roll Over Beethoven," Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats' Ike Turner-penned "Rocket 88," Muddy Waters' "Mannish Boy" and "Rollin' Stone," Bo Diddley's "Bo Diddley" and "I'm a Man" (released on the Chess brothers' Checker Records), Howlin' Wolf's "Smokestack Lightning" and countless more blues classics became the backbone of what would eventually become rock and roll. Story continues "The Blues had a baby, and they named it rock and roll," Waters once said. In 1963, the Chess brothers purchased WVON, a Chicago radio station dedicated to African-Americans, to get more airplay for their label's songs. Chess Records' catalog also had a crucial impact on the other side of the Atlantic. The Rolling Stones, named after that Waters track, would cover many of the Chess artists' tracks over their career, and named their instrumental "2120 S. Michigan Avenue" after Chess Records' Chicago headquarters; the location has since been registered as a Chicago landmark. In 1970, the Rolling Stones would launch their own label Rolling Stone Records with Leonard Chess' son Marshall at the helm. "I think that the Stones understood a certain sexual energy that was in Chess Records music and amplified that into their own music and turned it into their own music," Marshall Chess told WGBH in 1995. "To me, that was the essence of Chess that I got from the Stones. There was something, there was a certain kind of Chess music that was sexy. 'I'm A Man' you know and those kind of things. And I think the Stones definitely picked up to that and built on it and made it into their own sound and took it beyond it." The story behind the Chess brothers' label inspired the film Cadillac Records, with Adrien Brody playing Leonard Chess in the film. Leonard died in 1969 at the age of 52, just months after Chess Records was sold to General Recorded Tape. In 1972, three years after Leonard Chess' death, the label scored their first Hot 100 Number One single with Chuck Berry's "My Ding-a-Ling." Soon after, Phil Chess retired from the music industry. For their contributions to the genre, the Chess brothers were inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1995. Phil Chess was also the recipient of the Recording Academy's Trustees Award in 2013. Related Content: MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines ordered the evacuation of northern coastal, low-lying and mountainous areas on Wednesday as the strongest typhoon to threaten in three years was due to make landfall later in the day. Typhoon Haima has been labeled a category 5 storm on a scale of 1 to 5 by Tropical Storm Risk and could cause flooding, landslides and storm surges of up to five meters (16.5 ft), the weather bureau said. Some flights and classes have been suspended and the Philippine Coast Guard has banned sea travel and fishing. The weather bureau raised storm warning signals for the northern and eastern parts of main island of Luzon, home to industrial and export centers. "The typhoon is very strong and destructive because of its large diameter," said Rene Paciente, assistant weather services chief at the weather bureau. Haima is the 12th typhoon to hit the Philippines this year. An average of 20 typhoons hit the Southeast Asian nation every year. Super Typhoon Haiyan struck the central Philippines in 2013, killing at least 6,000 people. (Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales; Writing by Karen Lema; Editing by Nick Macfie) LONDON (Reuters) - The government has not yet made a decision about where to allow airport expansion in southeast England but will do so this month, Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday. It is due to decide between plans for a new runway west of London at Heathrow, the busiest airport in both Britain and Europe, or at Gatwick to the south. The decision has been debated for more than 25 years. An announcement on Tuesday that ministers who opposed the decision would be allowed to do so publicly was interpreted by media as a signal that backing would be given to Heathrow expansion, which has several high-profile opponents in government. "No decision has been taken on the site of airport expansion in the southeast," May told parliament. "Government will take a decision this month." (Reporting by Kylie MacLellan and Elizabeth Piper; editing by Stephen Addison) Philippines anti-US protest US embassy Manila A rally by Philippine indigenous people protesting the US presence in the country turned violent early on Wednesday, as police efforts to disperse the crowd ended with a police van ramming and running over some demonstrators. The protest was coming to an end when the police started trying to disperse the people who had gathered, the event's organizers Sandugo, a recently formed alliance of minority groups told the Philippine news site Rappler. During the clashes that followed, protesters threw bottles, paint bombs, and rocks at the police, while authorities fired tear gas and eventually drove a police vehicle toward the mass of people, according to Rappler. The Philippine police characterized the incident differently. "They weren't really run over," Chief Superintendent Oscar Albayalde, the head of the National Capital Region Police Office, told Rappler. Anti-US protest in Manila Philippines riot "The [protesters] were trying to flip over the patrol car. In the process, the driver extricated the patrol car and inadvertently hit some unruly protesters who sustained minor injuries," Albayalde added. "We had to disperse them. They started it. They were trying to enter the embassy," Chief Inspector Arsenio Riparip told AFP. "We had to use tear gas. They overpowered our policemen." Riparip said protesters also broke through a police line protecting the embassy's gates. Television footage appeared to show a police van striking a group of protesters, reversing into them and then driving forward, leaving several people bloodied and at least one man stuck under the van's wheels. "It was the police who attacked the protesters. First they rammed the police vehicle against the people. Then they released tear gas and hit us with truncheons," Amirah Lidasan, one of the leaders of the protest, told AFP. Story continues "We condemn in the strongest possible terms the violent dispersal of the protest here at US Embassy which was led by our fellow Moro and Indigenous Peoples," Jerome Aba, the national spokesman of Suara Bangsamoro, a leftist group representing indigenous peoples in the Philippines, said in a statement. "This protest serves to highlight the imperialist plunder, abuses, and continued domination of the United States in the country," the statement continued. About 20 people were arrested as a result of the clashes, including some people who the police said ran into police lines and threw red paint at the US Embassy. 'Running dogs of the US' The demonstrators had gathered in front of the US Embassy to protest the presence of the US and the military in their ancestral lands, according to Rappler. Anti-US protest US embassy Manila Philippines They were also calling for an end to the US's presence in the country and to back Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's independent foreign policy, according to the Associated Press. Duterte has inveighed heavily against the US, lashing out at his country's longstanding ally for its criticism of his violent drug war, which is thought to have killed 2,300 to 3,600 people and possibly more. He has also raged against the US's legacy of abuse in the Philippines during the colonial period in the first half of the 20th century. Duterte was in China during the protest, where he has traveled with a large delegation of business representatives, hoping to secure billions in Chinese investments and improve ties with Beijing. President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte (L) shakes hands with Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Zhao Jianhua (R), as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (C) looks on, at airport in Beijing, China, October 18, 2016. CNS Photo via REUTERS Duterte has garnered high approval ratings over his first three months as president, in part because of his nationalist stances and tough talk. Paradoxically, the US also maintains high approval ratings among Filipinos, even as Duterte's rhetoric against Washington has resonated with some of his constituents. "There was absolutely no justification (for the violence)," Renato Reyes, the secretary-general of the left-wing activist group Bayan (Nation), told reporters, according to Reuters. "Even as the president avowed an independent foreign policy, Philippine police forces still act as running dogs of the US." NOW WATCH: Philippines president compares himself to Hitler says hed be happy to 'slaughter' 3 million drug addicts More From Business Insider Barack Obama A Wednesday poll from the Consumer Technology Association showed that most registered American voters are in opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the landmark trade agreement being roasted along the campaign trail, while having an overwhelmingly positive view about the benefits of free trade. While 42% of respondents to the poll support the TPP, President Barack Obama's keystone of the "pivot to Asia" in American foreign policy that involves 11 other Pacific Rim nations, 56% believe free trade agreements lead to job creation in the US. That number stands in contrast to some of the rhetoric along the campaign trail, where Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has said the implementation of TPP would lead to the continuing "rape of our country." Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has also expressed her opposition to the agreement during the general election cycle. The research, conducted for CTA by the data-analytics firm 0ptimus, which was provided exclusively to Business Insider, also showed that 72% of voters believe trade agreements help keep consumer prices low, 70% said it strengthens the country's global leadership, and 64% said the agreements ensure other countries will be penalized if they don't adhere to trade rules. It also found that 63% of millennial voters support the TPP, while 63% of black voters and 60% of Latino voters support the agreement as well. "Despite what youd think from listening to the rhetoric of both the major campaigns, most American voters agree that free trade is a job-creating win for our country, our economy and our consumers," said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of CTA. "Secretary Clinton, Senator [Tim] Kaine and Governor [Mike] Pence were all correct in their pre-campaign assessments of TPP this agreement will lower consumer prices, create good jobs and help ensure our countrys place at the forefront of the worlds economic stage." Story continues "Our research reveals a tremendous opportunity for the Clinton and Trump campaigns one theyd be wise to seize upon in the next few weeks," he added. In a recent interview with Business Insider, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a one-time 2016 presidential hopeful who is now campaigning for the passage of the TPP, said he doesn't agree with the premise that most American voters are against free trade agreements. That includes the TPP. "I don't think people want to just say, 'We're not going to trade with anybody,'" he said. "I don't accept that. I really don't care I'm going to be like one of these deniers I don't care what the polls say. People intuitively know that trade is good for our country. We just have to get the right trade agreements." The CTA poll surveyed 1,600 registered voters and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points. NOW WATCH: This animated map shows how religion spread across the world More From Business Insider If you needed to leave a toxic job, relationship or other situation, would you have the money to make that possible? For many Americans, the answer is a resounding and unfortunate no. A 2015 GOBankingRates.com survey of 5,000 Americans found that more than half of those surveyed had less than $1,000 in a savings account. This amount doesn't factor in retirement or other accounts, though other studies show many people aren't putting away enough for retirement either. A 2016 analysis conducted by the Economic Policy Institute based on data from the Federal Reserve Board's Survey of Consumer Finances showed that retirement savings have stagnated over time. [See: 11 Expenses Destroying Your Budget.] New terms for this type of savings account -- for instance, the Get Lost Fund -- have become popular buzzwords among personal finance bloggers in recent months. But it's not an entirely new concept. Three decades ago, when Aaron Crowe, now a freelance writer covering personal finance and a former U.S. News contributor, was graduating from college, a journalism professor advised him and his classmates to build a Get Lost fund (with a more colorful name) in case they needed to leave a bad job or other situation. "He said we'd all probably need to use it someday," Crowe says. "I couldn't add much money at first because of my low income, but I slowly did and used what little I had about three years later when I found another job and wanted to quit," Crowe adds. Crowe used the seed money he'd saved to set himself up in a new apartment in a new city, Fairfield, California, before starting a new job. "The price of housing was higher where I was moving to so I had to pay more for rent, come up with the first month's rent and I think there was a security deposit," he explains. Crowe, who still lives in California, says his fund has morphed into an emergency fund for things such as car repairs or replacing a broken air conditioner. "But if you can afford to have both, then great," he adds. Story continues Financial planners say reframing the emergency fund in more stark terms could help people who are new to personal finance understand the importance of saving. "Emergencies are what happen to everyone else," says David Metzger, a certified financial planner and senior advisor at Plante Moran Financial Advisors in Chicago. "A 'Get Lost Fund' is something we can all relate to. Focusing on building a reserve fund first and reframing the discussion about emergency funds into a metaphorical escape hatch from a less than ideal situation can be incredibly empowering," Metzger says. [See: 8 Big Budgeting Blunders -- and How to Fix Them.] Metzger recommends that clients save up reserve funds equal to three to six months of living expenses. "[This savings] enhances one's bargaining position and provides the means necessary to walk away from a bad deal, a bad relationship or otherwise take risks and pursue opportunities they would not otherwise be in a position to take without one," he adds. Jennifer Harper, founder and director at Bridge Financial Planning in Chattanooga, Tennessee, has seen firsthand what can happen to people, especially women, who don't have sufficient savings. "I once had a friend that was in an uncomfortable harassment scenario at work, but she felt she 'couldn't' leave because she didn't have an emergency fund," Harper says. If that friend had had a decent-sized Get Lost Fund, she could have left that job and covered her living expenses while she looked for a new one instead of remaining in a bad situation indefinitely. For those in abusive relationships, the need for this kind of lifeline is even more important. "Often the abuse takes many forms, including control of finances," Harper says. "The ability to maintain a Get Lost Fund is a very real pathway to independence and freedom from their abuser," she adds. "Unfortunately, that scenario often precludes the ability to maintain one [because the abuser may take control of the other person's finances]." The person who's experiencing abuse may feel financially strapped due to a lack of savings or credit in their own name or because they've been isolated from those who might be able to provide financial or emotional support. [See: How to Live on $13,000 a Year.] Still, for more typical situations, not all experts see a need to reframe the emergency fund or rainy day fund as something more colorful. "In my experience, most people understand the importance and flexibility associated with an emergency fund," says Daniel Frankel, a certified financial planner and founding principal of financial planning firm WealthCollab LLC in Seattle. "Unfortunately, people don't save because it is easier to prioritize today instead of planning for the future," he explains. "It is very unlikely that this will change that behavioral dynamic." However it's framed or named, Frankel agrees with the importance of savings. "We could all do a better job demonstrating that an emergency fund increases your flexibility and autonomy," he says. Susan Johnston Taylor contributes to the money section of USNews.com. Her articles on business and personal finance have also appeared in or on The Boston Globe, Learnvest.com, Entrepreneur.com and FastCompany.com. You can find her on Twitter @UrbanMuseWriter. In case you missed it, President Barack Obama is not running for president. Hes done it twice and won, so the Constitution prohibits it. That hasnt stopped Donald Trump from inviting his half-brother, Malik Obama, who supports the Republican presidential nominee, to Wednesday nights debate in Las Vegas. For those who dont know Malik Obama: hes a Kenyan-born U.S. citizen, and is three years older than his brother; they share a father. In July, Malik Obama announced he was backing Trump. He told the New York Post in an article posted Tuesday evening that he was excited to attend the debate and that Trump can make America great again. The GOP nominee, Malik Obama said, gets it gets it far better than his brother. Trumps invitation is an apparent attempt to rattle Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. Malik Obama has been critical of her tenure as secretary of state, and he cites deceased Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi as a friend. Malik Obama said his last meeting with his presidential half-brother was at the White House in 2015. Hes been critical of the president for not doing more to help their fathers village of Kogelo, Kenya. Malik isnt the only Trump invitee meant to spook Clinton, who is ahead in most polls. Pat Smith, whose son Sean, a U.S. information management officer, died in the 2012 attack on a diplomatic compound in Benghazi when Clinton ran the State Department, will also be in attendance. Smith is a vocal Clinton critic who also spoke on Trumps behalf at the Republican National Convention in July. Trump has pulled this stunt before. Hours before last weeks debate in St. Louis, he hosted a news conference with several women who have accused former President Bill Clinton of sexual assault, accusations the Clinton camp has long denied. Trump did this in the wake of leaked audio of him bragging about sexually assaulting women. In yet another sign that all civility surrounding this election has all but disappeared, the families of the two nominees will not shake hands before the debate. The Clinton campaign asked for the change. Story continues Its not surprising Trump is trying to draw more attention to his guest list than the state of the race. The increasingly desperate and erratic Republican presidential nominee has spent the week ahead of the debate repeatedly railing that the U.S. election is rigged and urging supporters to keep an eye on polling stations, particularly in areas with a sizable minority community, prompting fears of voter intimidation. On Tuesday, President Obama advised him to stop whining about a fixed tally. Even state and national GOP leaders have pushed back, pointing out theres no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the U.S. Seizing rather than shaking off the mantle of the least-liked presidential candidate in the history of polling, Trump has done little to apologize for his bragging about sexual assault and broader pattern of making lewd remarks about women. Instead, hes said his accusers looks prove he didnt attack them. And hes gone after everyone from the media to House Speaker Paul Ryan, the GOPs top elected official, for allegedly conspiring against his candidacy. Clinton has laid low ahead of the debate, with her campaign basking in the glow of a cascade of positive polls. The Clinton campaign has invested more $100 million in battleground states. But on Monday Campaign Manager Robby Mook also announced the campaign is also infusing additional millions to help down-ballot candidates in deep-red states like Arizona, Utah, Texas, and Indiana, where Democrats typically lose in presidential election years. Recent polls show Clinton with a lead in every state Trump needs to win the White House, and even within striking distance in ones that were a given. Swing states Ohio and Florida are toss-ups but so are Arizona and Texas, which between them havent voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since 1996 and 1976, respectively. According to Real Clear Politics polling average, she leads him nationally by 7.2 points. Photo credit: TONY KARUMBA/Getty Images Oct 19 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. The Times - Tesco's fightback has gained further ground, with industry figures showing that Britain's biggest grocer has won market share for the first time in five years. http://bit.ly/2dlVcV3 - The Financial Conduct Authority has been told to say when it will publish its delayed report into the abuse of distressed companies by the Royal Bank of Scotland. http://bit.ly/2dlVuv7 The Guardian - William Hill Plc and its Canadian suitor Amaya Inc have ended talks over a potential 4.6 billion pound (C$7.2 billion) merger following opposition from some of the UK bookmakers' major shareholders. http://bit.ly/2dlVeww - Ryanair Holdings Plc has said its full-year profits will be lower than expected because of the sharp drop in the value of the pound since the Brexit vote in June. http://bit.ly/2dlVTxP The Telegraph - Internet group Yahoo Inc's profits increased at a healthy pace in the third quarter, defying worries over its enormous data leak scandal which hit the firm last month. http://bit.ly/2dlVpIc - The private equity group SVG has succumbed to HarbourVest's advances, after more than a month of rival bids and rows over the price and structure of a deal. http://bit.ly/2ejmRDO Sky News - The German-owned rail freight company DB Cargo said "unprecedented challenges" facing the industry, such as the declines in steel and coal, meant it was repositioning its business and proposing redundancies - around 30 percent of its UK workforce. http://bit.ly/2dlX0gS - Burberry Group Plc had reported a 3 percent fall in group sales in the first three months, having previously warned of a "challenging" market for luxury goods. http://bit.ly/2dlYCYh The Independent - German airline Lufthansa has banned Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 mobile phones from all of its flights with immediate effect. http://ind.pn/2dlWsYA - Burberry Group Plc returned to growth last quarter, helped by a 125 million pound boost from the falling pound, but its shares slumped as much as 9 percent as concerns about growth in key Asian markets spooked investors. http://ind.pn/2dlWDDe (Compiled by Subrat Patnaik in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Cooney) Oct 19 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories in the Financial Times. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. Headlines * BHP Billiton posts 6 pct drop in iron ore, copper output http://on.ft.com/2dMGxhX * Former PM Monti urges Italians to reject Renzi's referendum http://on.ft.com/2dMI1Zr * Tabcorp and Tatts to create A$11.3 bln gaming giant http://on.ft.com/2dMHV4d * John Stumpf resigns from Chevron, Target boards http://on.ft.com/2dMHRBE Overview - BHP Billiton said its iron ore output dropped 6 percent in this quarter. Its Samarco mine in Brazil remains suspended after a spill that killed 19 people. - Former Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said that he would vote against the premier's constitutional reforms in the December referendum. - Australia's biggest bookmakers Tabcorp and Tatts Group said they would merge giving a combined equity value of a$11.3 billion. Existing Tabcorp shareholders will own about 42 per cent of the combined company and Tatts shareholders will own the rest. - John Stumpf resigned as a board director at both Chevron and Target in a latest setback for Stumpf after stepping down as CEO and Chairman of Wells Fargo last week. (Compiled by Sangameswaran S in Bengaluru; Editing by Sandra Maler) Oct 19 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories in the Wall Street Journal. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. - Months before Salesforce.com Inc considered buying Twitter Inc, the company was looking at more than a dozen acquisition targets that didn't include the social media giant, according to an internal presentation for its board members. http://on.wsj.com/2dpv7Qo - Ecuador's decision to pull the plug on Julian Assange's internet connection has highlighted the isolation of WikiLeaks, the organization he founded to expose the inner workings of governments and other powerful institutions. http://on.wsj.com/2efOui6 - U.S. labor unions are plowing money into the 2016 elections at an unprecedented rate, largely in an effort to help elect Hillary Clinton and give Democrats a majority in the Senate. http://on.wsj.com/2ejis31 - Representatives of Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio contacted the Justice Department in July immediately after the government alleged some money embezzled from a Malaysian government fund financed his film "The Wolf of Wall Street," his spokesman said Tuesday. http://on.wsj.com/2ejiPui - Wells Fargo & Co. on Tuesday delayed selling a 10-year bond after S&P Global Ratings revised the outlook on its credit rating to negative from stable, a person familiar with the matter said. http://on.wsj.com/2ejiZlz - The third and final presidential debate Wednesday presents Republican nominee Donald Trump with a last chance to address tens of millions of voters and recast a race in which polls show his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, is pulling away. http://on.wsj.com/2ejkS1N - Private-equity firm Metropoulos & Co, which brought Hostess Brands out of liquidation three years ago, is the first outside investor in Utz Quality Foods Inc which makes several brands of potato chips, pretzels and cheese snacks. http://on.wsj.com/2ejhQue (Compiled by Vishal Sridhar in Bengaluru) Oct 19 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the New York Times business pages. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. - In a leadership transition at the top of the music industry, Sony Music announced on Tuesday that Rob Stringer would take over next year as chief executive, while Doug Morris, the company's chief since 2011, would become chairman. http://nyti.ms/2e0c6q8 - Disruptive Technology Advisers plans to announce on Wednesday that it has hired two veteran financial executives - Greg Kennedy, most recently of UBS, and Robert Williams Jr., a onetime president of Washington Mutual - as senior executives. http://nyti.ms/2dN8y9e - BlackRock Inc, the world's largest publicly traded money manager, reported on Tuesday a slight increase in its earnings for the third quarter, thanks to strong flows into its exchange-traded funds business. The quarter also represented a milestone of sorts for BlackRock's chief executive, Laurence D. Fink, as assets under management, the most important gauge of a money manager's success, passed the $5 trillion mark. http://nyti.ms/2erdu3i - Yahoo Inc said on Tuesday that it had gained a slight amount of traffic since its Sept. 22 disclosure that about 500 million accounts had been hacked. That appears to contradict Verizon's assertion last week that the damage to Yahoo's business from the breach could have been severe enough to set off a provision in the sale agreement that would allow Verizon to reopen the deal. http://nyti.ms/2egsMuh - Preet Bharara, the United States attorney in Manhattan, is expected to select Lisa Zornberg as the new head of his criminal division, according to two people briefed on the plans. Zornberg, currently a white-collar criminal defense lawyer, previously spent more than a decade in the United States attorney's office, where her effective handling of a mob-related case led The Village Voice to call her "a tiny tornado of a prosecutor." http://nyti.ms/2eDEIJl (Compiled by Rama Venkat Raman in Bengaluru) Prince's siblings asked a judge not to name a woman and girl purporting to be his niece and grandniece heirs to the late musician's estate, The Associated Press reports. Brianna and Victoria Nelson were among six possible heirs left after a judge threw out 30 individual claims to Prince's estate in July. Because Prince left no apparent will, Carver Country District Judge Kevin Eide has been sorting out the musician's estate. At the time, Judge Eide ruled that Brianna and Victoria Nelson had presented a plausible enough case to be considered heirs and did not have to undergo genetic testing. Brianna and Victoria, however, have not claimed a genetic connection to Prince, and instead trace their relationship to him through Duane Nelson, Sr., who died in 2011 and was supposedly Prince's half-brother. According to the Nelsons, both Prince and his biological father considered Duane a son and brother. While Prince's siblings are using the lack of a genetic connection as part of their argument, they also said the relationship itself had no merit under Minnesota law. They argued that a parent-child relationship must be validated through genetics, adoption, assisted reproduction or an established presumption of parentage laws. "If an heirship claim could rely on behavior alone as a basis, it would open the floodgates to individuals claiming they were treated 'like a brother' or 'like a son,'" attorneys for Prince's siblings wrote. They added that the Nelsons are asking the court "to casually sweep aside these well-established tenets of Minnesota law and instead seek to base their claim entirely on behavioral and anecdotal evidence." Minnesota law does offer some leeway for defining a parent-child relationship, including someone informally raising a non-biological child as their own. But the law does not offer many specifics, leaving it to the judge to decide whether Brianna and Victoria Nelson are rightful heirs. A hearing on the issue is scheduled for Friday. Story continues Prince died in April of a fatal drug overdose. Investigators are currently looking into whether doctors illegally prescribed the pop star opioids or whether the Fentanyl that killed him came from black market sources. Related Content: By Venus Wu HONG KONG (Reuters) - Dozens of pro-Beijing lawmakers walked out of the Hong Kong legislature on Wednesday to prevent the swearing-in of two pro-independence activists, setting the scene for a new constitutional crisis in the Chinese-controlled city. The topic of independence has long been taboo in the former British colony, now governed under the "one country, two systems" principle since its return to Communist Party-ruled China in 1997. The government failed in an unprecedented legal attempt to halt the swearing-in of the two newly elected legislators, Baggio Leung, 30, and Yau Wai-ching, 25, late on Tuesday evening. But High Court Judge Thomas Au did approve the government's request for a judicial review of the case, which will take place early next month. The pro-China lawmakers on Wednesday marched out of the Legislative Council chamber, leaving Chinese and Hong Kong flags in their place, to deprive it of a quorum. Senior pro-establishment lawmaker Regina Ip said she generally disapproved of walk-outs, but the legislators had no option after the pair refused to apologize for "insulting our motherland". "This is a very exceptional case involving a fundamental principle which involves loyalty to your country and adherence to our oath of upholding the ... law," she said. Yau said it was the pro-establishment camp that needed to apologize as they were "the ones who really betrayed the Hong Kong people". New legislative president Andrew Leung, himself a pro-establishment figure, stood by his defiance of government efforts to ban Yau and Leung. "They are duly elected... and I have a constitutional duty to safeguard their rights to fulfil their duties as Legislative Council members," he said. He said he thought Hong Kong was still far from a constitutional crisis and said he had no regrets about his decision. It is unclear when the swearing-in will now take place. DEROGATORY JAPANESE SLANG Yau and Leung sparked outrage from Hong Kong's pro-Beijing establishment when their first oaths were rejected by legislative officials last week. At the time, they pledged allegiance to the "Hong Kong nation" and displayed a banner declaring that "Hong Kong is not China", using language some legislators portrayed as derogatory Japanese slang. Leung and Yau are part of a new generation of Hong Kong activists determined to force issues of self-determination and independence on to the mainstream political agenda. Street protests calling for full democracy for Hong Kong that blocked key arteries in 2014 presented Communist Party rulers in Beijing with one of their biggest political challenges in decades. Outside the chamber, hundreds of pro-Beijing protesters thronged the grounds of the legislature, some carrying placards of the pair dressed in Japanese army uniforms that denounced them as "traitors" and "dogs". Others chanted that the pair must step down to protect China's "dignity". The judicial review looms as a unprecedented constitutional battle in the free-wheeling global financial hub, testing its rule of law and the separation of powers between the government and legislative branch. Some senior judges and government officials fear privately the issue could force Beijing to invoke rarely used to powers to re-interpret Hong Kong's mini-constitution, or push through new laws. Hong Kong's Secretary of Justice, Rimsky Yuen, said his government launched its challenge without direction from Beijing and it would not seek any interpretation from the National People's Congress. "We have confidence that the issue can be resolved in the Hong Kong system." Regina Ip said it was a "high risk" legal action that the government may not completely win. "The chief executive's action last night was an... extreme measure to deal with what clearly (he) considers an extreme situation." (Reporting Venus Wu and Farah Master, Editing by Greg Torode and Nick Macfie) Moscow (AFP) - Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with the leaders of Turkey and Iraq about battle for Mosul, where Iraqi forces are fighting to oust the Islamic State group, the Kremlin said Wednesday. Putin "wished the Iraqi army and its allies complete success in their objectives," the Kremlin said in a statement on his conversations with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. He also informed the Iraqi leader about the "measures taken by Russia to defuse the situation" in the Syrian city of Aleppo. Moscow announced on Tuesday that Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo ahead of an eight-hour "humanitarian pause" in the battered city on Thursday. Putin is to attend a summit on Syria in Berlin later Wednesday with the leaders of France and Germany. In a separate conversation, Putin also discussed the battle for Mosul with Erdogan, the Kremlin said, but gave no further details. The long-awaited offensive against Iraq's second city began Monday with air and ground support from a US-led coalition. Turkey said Tuesday it will continue to take part in the air operation after Ankara agreed a deal with its coalition partners. Plans for the offensive were marked by tensions between Iraq and Turkey, which insisted on being part of the operation despite objections from Baghdad. GIBBS: You called your fathers comments on the Access Hollywood tape clearly offensive and inappropriate and said that you were glad that he had acknowledged that and apologized, but Im sure you understand that many people were not just offended by the language they were offended by the actions that he was describing. Were you? TRUMP: Way to warm up. Thank you Nancy! Its lovely to be here in California. I think my remarks were clear on this front. I did find it to be offensive, he acknowledged it was as well. This tape was over a decade old, Im sure he didnt remember this conversation but was very embarrassed by it. And he expressed that, not only to me personally, but to the American people. I appreciate that he did that. I think it was very important for him to have done so. GIBBS: What did he say to you father to daughter about that? TRUMP: Well he recognizes that it was crude language. He was embarrassed that he had said those things and he apologized. Thats not language consistent with any conversation that Ive ever had with him certainly or any conversation that Ive overheard so it was a bit jarring for me to hear. He was very sincere in his apology. TRUMP: I have the good fortune of knowing my father so well, not only as a parent and hes been an amazing parent to me. Im now the mother of three children, from five to three to six months. I dont take for granted in any way how hard it is to be a good parent and he was a loving and supportive and tough, at times, parent who challenged me and my siblings to achieve our potential and helped us find purpose in our lives, which is what any parent can do. Ive also known him in the capacity as a leader and as an executive at the Trump organization, where Ive also worked in addition to my own brand for over a decade. Ive seen him inspire tens of thousands of people. He sets a bold vision, an aggressive vision and he helps people realize that goal. TRUMP: There are some people who are managers of people and there are some people who are leaders of people and he is very much a leader of people and Ive seen it my whole life in a business capacity. I know him so well personally and professionally. When things have happened through the course of this campaign that are uncomfortable for us as a family, often times things have been said that are mischaracterizations or interpretations that are false and not consistent with his intent, a statement hell make, we talk about it. So we have a very open dialogue and I think thats one of the things that I respect so much about him, the willingness to listen. Look, hes very much his own man, just like I am very much my own woman. I have opinions, my opinions are my own, I express them to him when I am excited, when I am disappointed and everywhere in between. I am certainly not sheepish about sharing those opinions, but I do so in private. GIBBS: Weve talked a little about your role in this campaign. Youve spent a lot of time building a very successful retail brand whos sort of core theme was about female empowerment and yet that identity for the moment has been overtaken by your role as one of the most visible members of the inner circle of the Republican nominee who just in the last two weeks has body-shamed a Miss Universe contestant and appeared in that tape and suggested that other women who have accused him were too unattractive to have assaulted. Does that put you in an impossible position? TRUMP: Well first of all, Ive built an amazing community of incredible women over the course of many years. This was, my Women Who Work initiative and my brand, was launched far before the presidential cycle commenced and will continue long afterwards and Im incredibly proud of the work that Im doing there and Ive always tried to maintain complete separation between that and the campaign. With that said, you know one of the challenging things is just operating, living ones life with the intensity and the scrutiny of this process, is a very hard thing actually to do. GIBBS: You dont like the word surrogate? You dont like being called a surrogate, whats that about? TRUMP: I hate the word surrogate, because what does that mean? When people talk about Im his confidant at one point they were actually saying, major newspapers were writing that I was a vice presidential candidate, Im saying, No, Im a daughter. TRUMP: I dont express my views on policy, with one exception as it relates to child care and advocating for women, because I never thought Id have this platform but it was incredibly important for me to participate in that conversation and very core to my personal and professional mission over the last decade, so I stepped into the fray on that front. But no, Im not a surrogate, Im a daughter. I stood in front of the RNC and shared that Im an independent which is very consistent with many other millennials and many other people. Im not dogmatically aligned with any party and I share my thoughts with my father very candidly. I do dismiss this idea of a surrogate because I dont think it appreciates the role that Im playing as my fathers daughter and I love him very much and Im very very proud of what hes accomplished and hes been a great dad to me. But Im not the campaign mastermind as people love to portray and speculate and Ive been very honest on that front. GIBBS: That moment at the convention when you talked about not being a Republican and youre standing at the convention, how much TRUMP: I was very nervous very nervous about that actually because I said what kind of response will I get to this? Standing in front of an arena, packed with Republicans and expressing myself candidly as an independent who really votes based on the candidate as opposed to dogmatically based on party affiliation. And the reception was incredibly warm to the ideas that I put forward, to my perspective on the campaign process. I think a lot of people are like me, are socially more liberal and fiscally rather conservative and find themselves somewhere in the middle. I think that resonates with a tremendous number of people and I was really impressed and as part of this look, were not politicians. I wasnt groomed to be any one thing and my father never expected me to sort of fall in line. When I talk about him, I talk about him to groups like this, and when people ask me about politics, I talk about what a great dad he was. I talk about what a great businessman hes been, because thats what I know. You, everyone else can debate policy. Thats what I know. And I know he would be a great leader for this country, and thats why Im not afraid to articulate that. GIBBS: There is, at the moment, a gender gap thats opened up thats bigger than any time since the 1980s. Why do you think that is? TRUMP: Are you talking about wage inequality? GIBBS: Gender gap in which candidates men and women are supporting in this race. TRUMP: Oh, a gender gap in terms of the actual race. Look, I think well have to see. I think well have to see what actually happens when people go to vote, and I do think that therell be a lot of support that isnt currently being recorded in the polls that are being conducted. On a daily basis, I have people pulling me aside and telling me how them and every one of their friends are voting for my father, but they live in very Democratic communities, and they dont feel comfortable articulating that to their friends and neighbors. So I dont know, lets see what happens. But you know I do think therewell see if that ends up panning out with the actual results. And one way or another, well know soon enough come November 8. GIBBS: Youwe were talking about the brand that you have built, and a lot of it has been about how women live their daily lives and what need in their daily lives. I think yesterday the Huffington Post did a poll asking your customers whether your role this year has made them more or less likely to buy your products. The Trump brand has become so embedded in this political conversation. How do you see the future of that brand regardless of what happens? TRUMP: Considering the disclaimer that the Huffington Post puts on the bottom of every piece of content relating to my father, I would hardly consider them a neutral voice on this particular topic. But look, Im very proud of the business that Ive built. Im incredibly proud to play a small role in debunking this caricature of what a working woman looks like, in creating content thats actionable, thats tip-oriented for this young working woman that encourages her to architect a life that she wants to live. Ive been doing it for years; Ill continue to do it. And sure, there will be critics. Thats fine. I mean, look, now, I go to school. I take my kids for drop off, and there are photographers standing outside. They take pictures of me leaving my home to drop my kids off at school, and then I have to see in the papers that Im being wheeled out to appeal to working mothers. And Im saying, what kind of cynical interpretation is that of dropping your kids off at school? TRUMP: Or Ill have other people who are critics who dont like the fact that Ive been engaged in a long-term campaign to support young, professional women. And Im very proud of the community that Ive built. Its totally apolitical. We dont talk about politics. I dont cover the election on my site. Ive made a very conscious decision to stay away from that because, you know, thats reallyit would bring certainly noise and attention, but thats not the long-term goal. Its not supposed to be a political forum, and Im very, very proud of the business Ive built. Were doing hundreds of millions of dollars in retail sales. I have a large digital footprint thats supporting and sharing the stories of these amazing women, and yes, some people will say its in service of the campaign, but that is not consistent with the fact that it existed long before the campaign commenced. So, you know, I have to just shrug things off. Its a very difficult environment in which to operate because, you know, critics have loud voices and make them heard. Also in my role at the Trump Organization, weve built an amazing business. We employ a lot of people who are deeply passionate about showing up at work every day. Were one of the fastest growing luxury hotel companies in the world. Were opening a massive $200 million building on Pennsylvania Avenue in a couple of weeks. It had a soft opening just recently, and when you read the papers, its like my fathers done nothing. Im very proud of the business hes built. Im very proud of how its grown. Hes accomplished many great things, and youll read a story and its one person who worked for him 20 years ago saying he wasnt a very good boss. Well what about the thousands of people who are deeply passionate about showing up every day? So it is, lookI may have been naive going into this. Nothing in life prepares you for a parent running for the president of the United States of America. Nothing. Theres no training. And I would say thats true of probably anyeven a political family, nothing prepares you. But at least then youve like been to the rodeo and maybe participated in a campaign or two. Nothing prepares you for this. But it is very hard to live your life and continue to sort of build and grow your business because there is a sort of cynical overlay. I will say, you mentioned it before, but you know, I made a very purposeful determination at the beginning of this campaign not to talk policy because Im not the candidate. Im not an adviser. Im a daughter. So my opinion is a distraction, and its truthfully, I dont believe, all that relevant. My fathers opinion is what the American people care about because theyre the ones hes voting for. But I did tell you I made an exception as it pertained to the childcare and eldercare policy he put forth, and Im really proud of that. GIBBS: Which represents such a significant departure from Republican orthodoxy up until now. TRUMP: It does, it does. GIBBS: How much pushback did you get when you were trying to build support for that? TRUMP: I thought I would get tremendous, but I went down to D.C. because I knew that there would be some pushback, and I met with some of the top Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill, and the support was incredible. And Im very, very proud, so you know, regardless of what happensand obviously Im very optimistic my father will win in November and then I know that hell be able to move the needle forward on this front. But regardless of what happens, I feel that this campaign and the small role that I played in it will move the needle on some really important issues. Look, you know, some of the statistics that blow my mind is now that childcare is the single largest family expense in more than half of American households, even exceeding the cost of housing. Thats insane. Its unsustainable. The tax code was also written at a time, 65 years ago, when dual-income families were not the norm. This needs to reflect the composition of a modern workforce [CROSSTALK] TRUMP: So you combine that with the fact that now motherhood is the greatest predictor of gender inequalityor the greatest predictor of wage inequality, even surpassing gender. So, you know, theres a structural problem. And familiesits not a womens issue, per se, although women are being disproportionately affected by it, and you see it in terms of wage disparity. Its a family issue, and we really need to support families. We need to be innovative about childcare and put forth solutions that will bring down the cost, and we need to treat it like a cost of doing business, because it is. I cant go into the office if my children arent looked after, especially when theyre younger and not yet in the school system. And I think his plan for doing that is incredible. And for elder care, which is very important. And disproportionately, women are taking care of elderly dependents. So, I think these are really important issues and, truthfully, Im very excited that they were so well received with so many Republican lawmakers. So Im hopeful that this really pushes the needle in a major direction. GIBBS: Given how important this race is and how high the stakes are, its been striking to a lot of people how much of the conversation the last week has been your fathers accusation that its rigged. Do you believe that this election is rigged? TRUMP: I will tell you that the media has been vicious and, look, theres a lot of business people in the room. Weve all had articles written about us by the business press that we say, Hmm, you know, that wasnt exactly fair, or you know the fact-checktheres a few things off. But you know, this has been, this has been a different level. And look, we take it personally. Obviously, there are some things said that are deeply personal, but just on a less emotional example, this week or in the last couple of days, I saw on the front cover of the New York Times a story talking about how the Trump brand was being decimated due to the campaign. Our team had provided statistics as it relates to our hotel company, for example, showing traffic patterns and actual analytics and data. They insisted on using quotes from random people. I have no idea where they called. They chose to use a booking engine that represented a total last year of 16 bookings. But they didnt say that. They said the decrease in bookings, this booking engine, which doesnt typically book at luxury hotelsand across we have, we have so many hotels. We have thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of room nights a year. And they took a company that booked 16 room nights with us and didnt say that, but instead said our bookings went down 38% last year and we told them, we said but this isnt a relevant metric. They only did 16 room nights. Theyre not, its not Expedia. This is not a relevant metric by which to judge our performance. We gave them the facts. All they had from us wasnt the quote where we actually shared the facts of our performance. They had the quote that we think this is a mischaracterization of how our business is doing, and they didnt mention the lack of volume that this provides. So its very, you know, it is demoralizing when youre working very hard, and you have teams who are working tremendously hard, to read these type of things. So I think that the bias is very, very real. And I dont think I would have said this to you even a year ago. I dont. But Ive justIve seen it too many times. Its tremendous. GIBBS: Obviously the Trump brand all along has been very much about winning, and I understand that you hope and expect your father to win. Do you think its important for the country and for democracy for him to concede if he loses, and will he? TRUMP: Well, look, my father is in this to win it, and Im not interested in talking about alternative outcomes, and of course I think my father will always do the right thing. Thats the type of person he is. But when you asked me before, do I think its rigged? I think from a media perspective, its very hard to get an accurate portrayal of who he is as a person or the business hes built, his professional accomplishments. Its borderline impossible. In large parts, weve stopped even trying with a lot of the mainstream publications. Because they just dontI was going crazy around a year ago calling these reporters, trying to get them to at least hear our perspective, and its just a waste of time. You fall down such a rabbit hole with this, and it doesnt yield a result. But to your point, hell either win or he wont win, and I believe hell accept the outcome either way. From Cosmopolitan Photo credit: Warner Bros. Any good horror fan knows their genres: Youve got your torture porn, your J-horror, your creature features, your sci-fi crossovers, and your slasher flicks. But few movies cause as many shockwaves in viewers as the religious ones - like The Exorcist, which had audiences fainting in theaters back in 1973 (and inspired a modern-day TV spin-off last month), or 2012s The Rite, where a grizzled Anthony Hopkins takes a cocky non-believer through a horror show of Roman possession. So what makes these demonic stories so scary? Perhaps its the understanding that, unlike a leather-faced inbred or a taxidermist with mommy issues, Satan really is the biggest baddie you can run up against. Though horror movies have made exorcism seem like the stuff of fiction, there are still people out there who do them for a living. Father Gary Thomas has been performing exorcisms for more than a decade, working out of the Archdiocese of San Jose. His initial exorcism studies at the Vatican inspired The Rite (he was a consultant on the film) and in the years since, hes handled over 60 cases of demonic activity. Cosmopolitan.com spoke with Thomas to get a crash course on how an exorcism really unfolds, and while he hasnt seen any spinning heads or projectile vomit, he would like you to seriously reconsider your habit of dabbling in tarot. How did you come to be an exorcist? That cant be something you planned on. I was always a lifelong Catholic and involved in my parish. After college, I just reached a point in my life where I was drawn to the priesthood, and I served in a variety of capacities in my first 22 years as a priest. After that I asked to take a sabbatical, to go to Rome and study spirituality at the Dominican University. Then, before I went, the bishop appointed me exorcist of the diocese. The first priest he had asked declined, so I spoke up and said, I can do that. How did you know you could do that? I knew nothing. I just felt compelled. The bishop said, Well, theres a course you can take in Rome, which I took, and thats where I met Matt Baglio, who wrote a book about my experiences. The classroom experience was all theoretical and theological. Then I found Father Carmine, and he agreed to tutor me, and I worked under him for 3 1/2 months while I was in Rome, observing exorcisms. When you go out in the field, you have the opportunity to actually see the rite and the reactions of the demons to the prayers. Obviously its altogether different from the classroom. Story continues Im surprised they have a class for this. The church has always performed exorcisms. People in the church will sometimes say, We dont do them anymore, which is absolutely false. In 2004, Pope John Paul II issued a mandate telling every bishop in the world to select a priest and train him to be an exorcist. That was because of growing occult activity, which has reached epidemic proportions. What kind of occult activity? All kinds of what I refer to as paganism. People using Ouija boards (which is a conjuring instrument, not a toy), tarot cards, seeking palm readers, seeking mediums, seeking out a witch, performing seances, getting involved in meditations like Reiki, using yoga as a form of power whereby you conjure up false gods - those and a variety of other smatterings. Its no secret that our society is hungering for spirituality. The problem is where people are seeking it. Its in all the wrong places. For many people, Christianity is no longer relevant, so they make up their own morality, their own way of living. Unfortunately, a lot of people are seeking out what we could call divination - artificial forms of trying to discover God. The Israelites in the Old Testament did this and they experienced great calamity as a result of it. The same thing is happening in our culture today. The culture is becoming increasingly pagan. Theres an organization with chapters all over the United States called the Satanic Temple. They claim they dont believe in Satan (which I dont buy) but in fact adhere to a kind of secularism because they perceive religion to be superstitious and oppressive. Now theyre trying to set up organized clubs within public schools where there are Christian clubs. They organize a Black Mass every year, which I find absolutely appalling - a Black Mass is a desecration of the Eucharist. Its open season on Christians, theres no doubt about that, in my humble opinion. How often do you receive requests for exorcisms? Do you handle them all alone? Yesterday, I got five phone calls. We get several requests a week, and many more than that from outside our diocese, which we try to redirect back locally. And I dont do any of these by myself. I have a team of medical experts - a clinical psychologist, psychiatrist, and a medical doctor. Then I have a prayer team, and the prayer team does all the discernments, the intakes. These people are evaluated. You only end up doing a formal exorcism when everything else has failed. How does intake work? Are there predictors of possession? The first question you ask is, what brought you to an exorcist? What was the tipping point? When did that happen? Have you ever been exposed to the occult? Involved in anything Satanic? What was it like growing up in your home? Have you been under the care of a therapist? Have you ever been a victim of sexual or physical abuse? Emotional abuse? Abuse is the doorway. Thats a soul wound, and demons are always looking for people with broken relationships or no relationships. That doesnt mean if a persons been abused that its an absolute slam dunk. Its when people have been victims of abuse and then get involved in the occult. Its like putting a bulls eye on your back. Some have been carrying these wounds around all their life, and in an attempt to get well, people sometimes turn to these pagan ways. People will persuade them: Go see this shaman, go see this healer. It looks benign, but its not. The vast majority of people who come to me do not get involved in this stuff in order to connect to Satan but youre creating an impression of a desire for a relationship. Thats what a possession is - its a relationship. And its not equal. How can you tell if someones really possessed? There are six classic signs. The first is an aversion to the sacred. For example, a Catholic could have incredible difficulty receiving the [Eucharist], to the point where its burning as shes consuming it. Another sign would be speaking in a language that they have no competency in. Ive had people speaking Korean, in Chinese or Russian or Spanish, who have no understanding of those languages. Another is a person exhibiting inordinate strength. We prayed over a woman on Sunday and we needed to have five people holding her down. Another is the knowledge of hidden things, so the demon would begin eliciting information that the person wouldnt have any access to. Another is foaming at the mouth, and thats actually a good sign, because youre seeing the reaction to the prayer, the casting out. The last thing would be a kind of epileptic reaction involved the distortion of the face - histrionic out-of-control movement in the arms and the legs. Photo credit: De Agostini Picture Library/Getty So, brass tacks - how do you perform an exorcism? Theres a set of prayers that we pray right before the exorcism starts. I call them setting-the-table prayers. They establish Gods authority, protect the team, protect the person thats the subject of the exorcism, and protect the property on which the exorcism is taking place (which is in my parish, in my church, the doors are locked, with a sign that says, Healing Session in Progress, because you dont want someone walking in on this). Then you anoint the doors with blessed oil so the demon cannot leave. We anoint the person with the Sacrament of the Sick and then begin the solemn rite. Its done entirely in Latin, and you begin with the litany of saints, followed by scripture, followed by a few words based on the scriptures, and then you address prayers to God, and address prayers to Satan. In between, you can pray the Hail Mary and the Lords Prayer. If the person is clearly reacting, youll say: In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, what is your name? The demon doesnt want me or any exorcist to know its name, because once its known, the demon begins to lose its power. Sometimes theyll have names that are Biblical, like Asmodeus or Baal, or Beelzebub, other times theyll be called Lust or Anger or Hatred. Theyre going to do everything they can to not tell you, but there are only three questions you usually ask the demon: What is your name? How did you get in? When are you leaving? You dont get into any kind of Well, Im kind of curious ... whats it like to be a demon? How do you know its over? If the manifestations stop, you continue the prayer for a time and its a judgment call. You rely on the person to say whether the demons left - sometimes theyll say yes, sometimes theyre not sure. Weve been doing this now for 10 years, so were getting pretty good at being able to discern when something has left. But you continue the prayers for a while, because sometimes the demon could go and hide. We see exorcisms in movies all the time. What should people know about the process that Hollywood might not show? One thing people get wrong is thinking that Satan does not exist. Satan does exist. Thats why Jesus Christ came, and thats important. Im not trying to evangelize you, but this is why I give interviews. I give interviews because there are charlatans out there who will say, Ill come and cleanse your house, and some of these people are just flat-out fakes. But some of these people, they have gifting - they do. Theyve just chosen to use it for the dark side. Jesus didnt come just to be a nice guy. His death and resurrection defeated Satan. When I end my talks, I usually say, Do not be afraid. Im not saying Im some kind of rough and tough guy. Im not but Im not afraid. I didnt know what to expect when I saw those manifestations in Italy but I was not afraid. Satan is not a metaphor. Satan is real. Hed like you to believe he doesnt exist and thats his greatest deception. People need to buck up and realize that were not the masters of our own destiny. We have to put ourselves at the disposal of God. All you have to do is look whats going on the in world and say, Crap, we can do better than this. But were on a very steep downward path, as a country. I mean look whos running for president. What kind of choice do you possibly have? Anyway, thats not what this is about. Were talking about exorcism. Follow Jon on Twitter. You Might Also Like LA PAZ (Reuters) - An expedition in a boat made only of reeds crafted by indigenous Bolivians is getting ready to cross the Pacific from South America to Australia, in a fresh attempt to prove that ancient mariners were capable of making the journey. Phil Buck, a 51-year-old explorer from the United States, already has led two similar expeditions and will captain the 'Viracocha III' set to depart from northern Chile in February on an expected six-month journey. The final touches are being put to the balsa boat in Bolivian capital La Paz, where it is being constructed by indigenous Aymara who live on Lake Titicaca high in the Andes and have used similar craft for centuries. In a bid to show that it was possible for Aymara or other South Americans to have made the trip in pre-Columbian times, Buck said the international crew will use bamboo water containers and eat quinoa, potatoes and fish from the ocean. Unlike the sailors of the past, though, they will send daily updates to social media. Maritime law stipulates that they will also have to carry modern GPS and navigation systems. Their first stop-off is scheduled to be the remote Polynesian island of Mangareva, after around 60 days at sea. "It's one of the closest places to South America, and it's all downwind sailing, and it's likely the place they would have landed," Buck said on Wednesday. "There's a legend there that an Inca king landed on that island and returned all the way back to South America six months later." After Mangareva, the 18-meter (59 ft) long 'Viracocha III' will head to Tahiti, Fiji, and then Sydney, a journey of some 10,000 nautical miles. Buck's expeditions are inspired by the 1947 trip of Norwegian explorer and writer Thor Heyerdahl, who crossed the Pacific in the 'Kon-Tiki' balsa-reed raft. A 'Kon-Tiki 2' attempt earlier this year foundered after bad weather forced the expedition to call the Chilean navy for rescue. (Reporting by Reuters TV, Writing by Rosalba O'Brien; editing by Diane Craft) Today marks the 234th anniversary of the American victory at Yorktown, which effectively ended the Revolutionary War. But did you know the British Army surrendered to a Lincoln, and not a Washington on that fateful day? lincolnsurrender Lincoln accepts the British surrender Benjamin Lincoln came to the battlefield in Virginia from Massachusetts, where he was an elected official who became a militia leader. He was no relation to the future president, Abraham Lincoln. (Ironically, future Confederate general Robert E. Lees father, Light Horse Harry Lee, was also at the Yorktown surrender.) The combined American and French forces had moved quickly to surround British and German forces led by Lord Cornwallis that had withdrawn to Virginia in September 1781. Over the course of a month, troops led by George Washington, the Marquis de Lafayette and the Comte de Rochambeau cut off Cornwallis group of 7,000 troops from being resupplied by British naval forces aided by a key French naval victory. On October 17, 1781, aides appointed by Cornwallis started surrender negotiations with Washingtons subordinates. One surrender condition seemed harsh and it was related to Lincolns treatment by Cornwalliss superior officer, General Henry Clinton. A little over a year earlier, Clinton had forced Lincoln to surrender his force of about 5,000 troops after British forces laid siege to Charleston, South Carolina. Then Clinton insulted Lincoln by not allowing the Americans to surrender with honor by displaying their colors and playing a song to honor the British. General Lincoln was then exchanged for another prisoner, and by the time of the Yorktown siege he was Washingtons second-in-command on the battlefield. The British agreed to the Washingtons surrender terms, but then Cornwallis refused to meet Washington in public to finalize the surrender. Claiming he was ill, Cornwallis sent the Irish General, Charles OHara, with Cornwalliss sword. The British-German forces were denied the same surrender honors as Lincolns forces had experienced in Charleston. Story continues At the end of the surrender march, General OHara offered the sword to Washington, who turned to Lincoln and instructed Lincoln to receive OHaras sword and supervise the surrender of arms. Lincoln had managed to fight with bravery during the war and he was present at two key surrenders (Yorktown and Charleston), was wounded at Saratoga, and appointed to lead the Continental army in the South. He was also highly respected by Washington and the Continental Congress, and 10 days after the Yorktown surrender Lincoln was appointed as the first Secretary of War. He remained in that position until final peace terms were negotiated with the British in 1783. Lincoln played a key role in another significant event as the leader of the Massachusetts militia. He was asked by the states governor to lead a privately funded force to combat an uprising in western Massachusetts known as Shays Rebellion. In February 1787, Lincoln led a surprise attack on Shays forces that ended the rebellion. The event so shook the young nations leaders that it drove a push for a Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia later that year. Lincoln wasnt a delegate at the Constitutional Convention, but he did attend the state ratification convention in Massachusetts, where he was a strong supporter of the new Constitution. After a brief political career in his home state, Lincoln was appointed to the lucrative position as Collector of Boston, where he remained until shortly before his death in 1810. Among his pallbearers was his good friend and neighbor, John Adams. As a footnote, counties in the states of Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, and Tennessee are called Lincoln in honor of Benjamin Lincoln and not President Lincoln. Historical Stories on Constitution Daily The pardon of Jefferson Davis and the 14th Amendment 50 interesting facts about Abraham Lincolns life Remembering William Sewards Alaska folly Finding a new apartment is often more complicated than renters may anticipate. With credit and background checks, employer verification and conversations with previous landlords, property managers and owners are diligent about ensuring your ability to pay rent throughout your lease. But if you're in the country temporarily on a work or student visa, how can you rent an apartment when you don't have a financial background in the U.S.? If landlords and property managers are unable to perform a standard credit check, they use a set of alternative pieces of information. Particularly in major cities where global business is common, many landlords are accustomed to the process of vetting an international renter and can walk visa holders through the process. "Be prepared to answer questions about finances and employment verification," says Elizabeth Gibson of ezLandlordForms, a service providing legal forms and tenant screening to landlords throughout the U.S. Gibson says ezLandlordForms regularly fields questions from landlords and tenants regarding the vetting process for international renters. All people living in the U.S., regardless of whether they're a citizen, green card holder or here on a visa, are protected under the Fair Housing Act, which prohibits housing discrimination based on national origin, race, color, religion, sex, disability or family status. A landlord is required to treat you like every other prospective renter when considering you for an apartment, and as a result , the vetting process is largely the same, even if the landlord must use other information to verify your ability to pay rent. [Read: What New Fair Housing Act Guidelines Could Mean for You.] Even if you're new to the country, the landlord should still conduct a background check to verify any criminal past or renter history "in case there's more to [the renter's] story -- just like any other applicant," says Mary Gwyn, owner and chief innovator of Apartment Dynamics, a property management firm that also trains companies on property management practices. Story continues To make the renting process as smooth as possible, prepare official documents about your finances and rental history. Here are a few things you should be ready to provide or discuss with a potential landlord. Passport or state-issued identification. Landlords and property managers will want to confirm that you are who you say you are, so a photo ID is necessary. If you're new to the U.S., you likely haven't received a state-issued photo ID or driver's license yet, so the most reliable form of identification is typically your passport. Proof of employment. A landlord will want to know that you have a steady source of income, so you'll need to provide proof from your employer, which could be as simple as a letter from your boss on company stationery. "We ask for pay stubs [and] we ask for any offer letter if you're moving for a new job -- anything like that you can really easily upload onto our online application process," says Chuck Hattemer, co -founder and chief marketing officer of Onerent Inc., a tech-based property management company. Online rental applications like those from Onerent often allow prospective renters to upload additional documents that can help the housing provider decide whether the applicant is a worthy tenant. Bank statement or financial information. Particularly if you haven't lived long enough in the U.S. to establish a credit history -- typically at least six months to a year -- a bank statement and additional financial history such as evidence of regularly paid rent or utility bills will help ensure you have the means to cover the cost of living while you're a tenant. Hattemer says Onerent's goal is to be sure income is steady rather than sporadic: "Is the person getting regular monthly income that's at least 2 1/2 times the monthly rent?" [See: 8 Apartment Amenities You Didn't Know You Needed.] Social Security number, if you have one. If you're authorized to work in the U.S., you'll be expected to apply for a Social Security number, which is often requested by landlords during the rental application process. If you haven't yet applied for your Social Security number or aren't eligible for one, explain this to the landlord, who should be able to move forward with your proof of employment or financial support, such as a student loan, grant or parents who have agreed to pay for your housing. Contact information for previous landlords. In lieu of credit history, Gibson says, "A rental history, if possible, is a really good thing to ask or inquire about." Contact information for previous landlords isn't an uncommon request even with credit history, and it's a way to confirm you'll make regular, on-time rent payments. Have your former landlords' names and contact information available for a prospective property manager. Since your previous landlords are likely located elsewhere in the world, email may be the easiest way for the parties to connect. Proof of financial assistance. If you're an international student studying in the U.S., you may have financial aid in the form of a scholarship, loans or the financial backing of your parents that will cover your housing while you're enrolled in college. Any international student approved for a student loan in the U.S. is required to have a U.S. citizen or permanent resident serve as their cosigner, whether it's a relative, friend or acquaintance willing to vouch for your financial responsibility. If willing, Hattemer says that person may be a good candidate to cosign your lease as well, which may help the landlord feel more secure about accepting your application. [See: The 10 Best Apps for Finding Your Next Apartment.] Your own concerns. Before you hand over any personal information to a landlord or property manager, be sure you trust the individual or organization. Housing scams are not uncommon, and they often prey upon those who may be unsure how the rental market works. "I would really be cautious as they're going out and looking," Gibson says. "They want to be careful with their personal information and not too trusting." Don't provide any personal information without verifying there is an apartment to lease. There are plenty of housing scams on the internet that falsely advertise to renters, so be sure any deal you engage in is legal. Online marketplaces like Craigslist have a reputation for a high volume of scam listings, but some rental listing sites like Apartments.com and Trulia note a listing is "verified" when it's been substantiated by a company employee. And if an individual is advertising a sublease in their apartment, check with the property manager to ensure they allow for sublet tenants, as you don't want to show up on move-in day to find out you can't legally live there. By David Ingram NEW YORK (Reuters) - Some jurors who deadlocked last year in the trial of a man charged with kidnapping and killing six-year-old Etan Patz in New York City in 1979 came back to court on Wednesday to watch the opening of a retrial in the notorious case. Pedro Hernandez, 55, is on trial in a state court for the second time in the death of the boy, who disappeared in lower Manhattan 37 years ago and drew national attention to the plight of missing children. A prosecutor and a Hernandez defense attorney delivered opening arguments to a full courtroom that included a newly selected second jury as well as about half of the 12 jurors from the first trial who were there as spectators. The first trial ended with the judge declaring a mistrial. Jurors deliberated for 18 days without reaching a unanimous verdict, which is required for conviction. Eleven had voted to convict, while one held out for acquittal. Patz vanished as he walked alone for the first time to a school bus stop in the SoHo neighborhood on May 25, 1979. A former worker at a delicatessen near the bus stop, Hernandez confessed to the crimes in 2012, but his attorneys say he is mentally ill and falsely confessed under police coercion. He could face life in prison if convicted. Patz's picture was one of the first to appear on milk cartons, which in the 1980s became a popular means of seeking leads about missing children. His disappearance also helped bring about a national database about such cases. The holdout juror from the first trial, Adam Sirois, 43, said he returned to demonstrate he was still confident that Hernandez is not guilty. "I wish we didn't have to be here," he said. Two other ex-jurors arrived at the courthouse by the side of Stan Patz, Etan's father, who has expressed frustration with last year's mistrial. Despite a massive search, Patz's body was never found. In 2012, investigators received a tip from Hernandez's brother-in-law, who said Hernandez had confessed to a prayer group. Story continues "It's a cautionary tale, a defining moment, a loss of innocence in this city and in every city where it was written about," Assistant District Attorney Joan Illuzzi told a newly selected jury on Wednesday. Defense attorney Harvey Fishbein told jurors they would hear evidence police took advantage of Hernandez's history of mental illness, including hallucinations, as well as evidence about a past suspect in the case, convicted sex offender Jose Ramos. (Editing by David Gregorio and Andrew Hay) Washington (AFP) - Republican candidate Donald Trump has made the insistent claim that the US presidential elections are being "rigged," but experts say massive voter fraud is highly unlikely in a system as decentralized as the United States. "There are a lot of safeguards in place that would preclude that from happening, from federal laws to local and state laws as well," said Jo-Renee Formicola, a political scientist at Seton Hall University. The US election system is far from perfect, as illustrated by the imbroglio over the vote count in Florida during the 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. A conservative-majority Supreme Court finally ruled in favor of Bush, but the sense of a "stolen" election lingered on among some Democrats -- who never fully accepted the Republican president as legitimate. But 16 years later, the chances of mass fraud marring the contest between Trump and his Democrat rival Hillary Clinton are remote, experts say. Even national elections like the one on November 8 are organized not by the federal government but by US states, and they tend to delegate the task to a welter of local authorities. "The fact that every single voting district would be involved in a fraud is virtually impossible because there are so many different kinds of districts," Formicola said. A mosaic of voting systems -- some using electronic voting machines, others paper ballots, and still others both -- add a level of complexity that would tend to thwart any attempt at wholesale voter fraud, the experts say. Besides, Republican election officials oversee the vote in most of the key battlegrounds of the 2016 presidential elections, states like Colorado, Iowa, Michigan and Arizona. "In person voter fraud -- that's when someone shows up and pretends to be someone else -- is incredibly rare, almost never happens and there is no evidence that it happens in numbers that are anywhere close to having an effect, even in a close election," said Cornell Law School professor Zachary Clopton. Story continues - Evidence lacking - Trump's charges of impending voter fraud have escalated as he has sunk below Hillary Clinton, his Democratic rival, in the polls. While providing no evidence to back his claims, the New York billionaire has cast suspicion on voting in urban areas where Clinton enjoys strong backing from black and Hispanic voters. "Mr Trump, for example, has called out Philadelphia as a place where he thinks there might be fraud," said Clopton. "I think there is virtually no evidence of in-person voter fraud at all, but I guess the idea would be that it would happen in a few places." President Barack Obama on Tuesday derided Trump's attacks. "I have never seen in my lifetime or in modern political history any presidential candidate trying to discredit the elections and the election process before votes have even taken place. It's unprecedented," Obama said. "If, whenever things are going badly for you and you lose, you start blaming somebody else? Then you don't have what it takes to be in this job," he said. While the risk of in-person fraud is seen as minimal, there are more serious concerns that hackers could pose a threat on Election Day -- fuelled by recent intrusions attributed to Russian hackers in voter registration databases in Illinois and Arizona. Those incidents have spurred federal authorities to offer local authorities their expertise in protecting their systems against hackers. Pamela Smith, president of Verified Voting, a civic group that advocates for clean elections, says safeguards against fraud are greater now than they were in 2012 and 2014. - Weak link - Still, electronic voting machines could be a weak link. "That's perhaps one area where we might be concerned about leaving these questions to little towns and cities that may not have the technical sophistications of the federal government, but it would then require hacking multiple places if you are trying to build up," said Clopton. Trump may be preparing the ground for a loss to Clinton by predicting that the election is rigged. But experts worry he is undermining public confidence in a basic democratic institution. "I can say it is highly unusual to claim 'rigging' in advance of polls even opening," said Smith. "It would not appear to be based on specific evidence, or perhaps it is better to say we have seen no evidence brought forward in support of such a statement. "It is of grave concern to the extent that it could generate doubt in our democratic system and peaceful transference of power that we exercise every four years," she said. French Girl With Mother (Counterpoint) by Norman Ollestad Agency: Alchemy Ink, Rob Weisbach Creative Management This page-turning thriller is described as Body Heat meets Swimming Pool with an injection of Patricia Highsmith: An artist follows an enigmatic Frenchwoman to her family's isolated estate and is sucked into a web of sexual treachery, betrayal and crime. Ollestad previously received critical acclaim for his 2009 bestseller Crazy For The Storm: A Memoir Of Survival. I'll Take You There (Metabook/Harper) by Wally Lamb Agency: UTA Debuting as an enhanced digital book two days before its Nov. 22 release, this is a timely ode to women. A film scholar is visited by the spirit of pioneering director Lois Weber, who helps him to review key moments of his life and the women behind them. This story first appeared in the Nov. 4 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. Read more: Rights Available! Scott Turow's Latest Novel Up for Grabs Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fstory%2fthumbnail%2f25016%2f48497c920b5d4e7a8e0b72fc3a5de45f It appears that Rihanna may have been out-Rihanna'd and before anyone gets mad, Rihanna said so, not us. California teenager Shania Ruedas Bernal dressed up as RiRi for her high school's "celebrity day," channeling a photo from Rihanna's Anti release event at a Los Angeles art gallery. SEE ALSO: 8 truly easy D.I.Y. Halloween costumes for lazy people She killed it, from the hairstyle and the draped sleeve, to the dark lipstick and the red balloon. She even added a crown emoji for good measure. For #spiritweek we had to dress up as our favorite celebrity, so I dressed up as @rihanna pic.twitter.com/ze98jSpHhx Chania (@shaania___) October 13, 2016 Bernal got dozens of compliments on the photo from her Twitter followers. Before long, Rihanna fan Instagram account @247papstv reposted a side-by-side pic of Bernal and RiRi. Then, it happened. Image: instagram Alarms sounded. Doves were released. The celebratory "Pon de Replay" began to play. Why? Because Rihanna had commented. She loved Bernal's costume, thus making it the best costume imaginable. And Bernal, who was in class when she saw the comment, was thrilled. "I wanted to walk out of the classroom and scream," she told BuzzFeed. "It was honestly the greatest feeling in the world to be complimented by Rihanna herself. May Bernal wear this costume every Halloween and most weekends for the rest of her life. Roger Ailes is getting the Spotlight treatment. The recently ousted Fox News topper will be the subject of a limited series from Oscar-winning Spotlight co-writer/director Tom McCarthy, Blumhouse Television (Emmy-winning The Jinx, The Normal Heart) and journalists Gabriel Sherman and Jennifer Stahl. The series will be based on Shermans reporting on Ailes in the bestselling book The Loudest Voice In The Room and New York magazine where Sherman is National Affairs Editor. The announcement was made today at the Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit. McCarthy will executive produce and shepherd the series, giving it instant cred as he recently spearheaded the Oscar-winning journalism investigation movie Spotlight. Sherman and Stahl will write and co-executive produce. Blumhouse will serve as the studio, financing and producing the series. Husband and wife Sherman and Stahl collaborated on The Loudest Voice In The Room. Sherman then extensively covered the sexual harassment allegations against Ailes this past summer that led to his abrupt departure from Fox News. Sherman drew national attention with his string of exclusive stories on Ailes detailing an alleged long history of sexual abuse and harassment and chronicling the events that led to Ailes dismissal. His coverage was so damning, Ailes hired a label lawyer who requested that New York magazine and Sherman preserve all documents pertaining to Ailes, a not-so-subtle threat of possible legal action. Anthony Hopkins in the Hitchcock Film was a spitting image, Sherman said today when asked who should play Ailes, while also floating John Goodman as a possibility. This is the first source material Blumhouse Television has acquired under co-presidents Jeremy Gold and Marci Wiseman, who recently joined the company to expand it into new business and creative areas alongside Jessica Rhoades, the longtime Head of Programming & Development. It also represents the first scripted series the company will finance as an independent studio. Story continues Blumhouse TVs slate includes the upcoming Sharp Objects on HBO starring Amy Adams and unscripted Hellevator on GSN. McCarthy is repped by Gersh and Andrew Hurwitz. Sherman and Stahl are repped by Gail Ross and Jody Hotchkiss. Related stories Blumhouse To Penthouse: Studio Screams Way To $2 Billion-Plus Box Office Milestone 'Benji' Reboot Sets Cast; Filming Already Underway In New Orleans 'Get Out': Universal Dates Jordan Peele's Blumhouse Chiller & Unleashes Trailer In Mick Jackson's new film, Denial, Rachel Weisz plays historian Deborah Lipstadt, who is forced to prove that the Holocaust existed when outspoken denier David Irving (Timothy Spall) sues her for libel. Based on Lipstadt's book, History on Trial: My Day in Court With a Holocaust Denier, Denial is a true story that takes place 20 years ago in the British legal system, where the burden of proof is on the accused. Her legal team, Richard Rampton (Tom Wilkinson) and Anthony Julius (Andrew Scott), tear apart Irving's accusations over a multiyear court case. Lipstadt says that despite the court ruling against Irving, she believes that Holocaust denial is still prevalent. "Holocaust denial is a form of anti-Semitism. It's also, as in David Irving's case and many others, it's a form of racism," she said. For the filmmakers, the story is particularly relevant today. Jackson said that a year ago, he was having dinner with Lipstadt in Atlanta and the parallels between Irving and the current Republican presidential nominee became particularly strong. They turned to each other and said, "'It's David...Trump, it's Donald Trump.'" The filmmakers saw the character of Irving come to life in Trump, from his constant proclamations of being an outsider, to brushing off racism as humor, to one of his foreign policy advisers, David Schmitz, being accused of Holocaust denial. They saw in recent stories, the same type of lies propagated by Irving to push one's own agenda, including Trump's story of thousands of Muslims in New Jersey celebrating on 9/11 to Bill O'Reilly's responding to Michelle Obama that White House slaves didn't have it so bad. Read more: Toronto: 'Denial' Performances Could Attract Academy's Attention "It was a fact that they would be sent down to Louisiana where slavery was particularly horrendous because of working in the sugarcane fields and other things," said Lipstadt, shocked that the argument even needed to be disproved. Story continues "So it's inconvenient history, inconvenient truth," she continued. "Whether it's climate change, whether it's Brexit, whether it's 9/11, the claim that 9/11 was an inside job by the CIA, or that prior to 9/11, 3,000 Jews got a phone call the night before telling them not to come to work." For the author, Holocaust denial paves the way for any historical event to be denied to push one's own agenda. "If this history can be denied, any inconvenient history can be denied. Now there's a claim made [around Sandy Hook] in the last few months, that it was staged by people in order to get stricter gun control. So if it's inconvenient, it can be denied," said Lipstadt. Read more: 'Denial': Film Review | TIFF 2016 Jackson believes that one of the main issues at stake is how quickly lies can be spread today. "One of the problems is, that with the Internet, if you have a crazy opinion, it's so easy within the space of a half hour, to make contact with 100, 200 people who share that same crazy opinion, and before the Internet you'd never meet them in your lifetime," said Jackson. "You think 100 people, maybe 1,000, maybe a million people, maybe you are a movement. And you know it's based on the Hitler saying, 'The Big Lie.' The more often you repeat it, and the more people who repeat it, the more close to the truth it seems." Lipstadt said the people she wanted to reach with the trial, her book and now with the film are the "yes, but" people. "'Yes I know it's ridiculous to think that 3,000 Jews were called [on 9/11]but maybe. Yes I know it's ridiculous to say that there wasn't a Holocaust, but maybe there weren't gas chambers," she said. "Yes I know it's ridiculous to think that climate change isn't having an impact, but maybe it's really natural. It's the "yes, but" people." Jackson also pointed out the need for more fact-checking at the debates. "We sometimes wish, wistfully, that the character played by Tom Wilkinson in the movie could be in the presidential debates as a moderator," he said, about Rampton, who skillfully brought down Irving by clearly disproving each of his claims through facts. Read more: Rome Film Fest: Trump, Hillary and American Politics to Take Center Stage Jim Sheridan on Tuesday presented his new film The Secret Scripture at the Rome Film Fest following its world premiere last month in Toronto. Based on the book by Sebastian Barry, the movie stars Vanessa Redgrave as a woman imprisoned for more than 40 years at an insane asylum after being charged with killing her newborn son. Rooney Mara plays the young character in flashback. Sheridan explained that he related to the story after dealing with loss in his own family, and he was attracted to the story for its strong female leads. The six-time Academy Award nominated writer/director has had a wide and varied career, but he said that the thing that ties everything together is a motivation to speak out, as well as identifying with the story - two themes captured in his new film on 9/11, which tells the story from the immigration perspective. Speaking on his latest project from Rome, the In America director said, "I just made a little movie now about 9/11 with Salma Hayek, just a kind of movie to show that once, America was all immigrants working together, including Muslims. Whether you could call that an Irish-American movie, or an American movie, it's something I feel I can do, you know, whereas if I'm working for hire I feel that's very hard, you know? "I think the lesson I learned most is to have a great cause, have something important to say, because that will make you keep going," the helmer continued. "It's very tiring making movies, you know, so once you get into the structure of making a Hollywood movie it becomes very different. It's very difficult to make movies about societies that you didn't grow up in," said Sheridan, who, among his many projects, was hired to helm the 50 Cent starrer Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2005). The filmmaker explained that having made features inside and outside of the system, "In the future I want to hold the power a bit closer to myself. You can make a movie by committee, but it's very difficult." Read more: Rome Film Fest: Trump, Hillary and American Politics to Take Center Stage In a spectacularly costly gamble aimed at boosting Russia's strategic position, state-controlled giant Rosneft is investing in India's Essar Oil to muscle into a promising market with outlets throughout Asia. Russian President Vladimir Putin returned from last week's BRICS summit in Goa with one of the largest deals the oil sector has seen in the last two years of falling prices: 98 percent ownership of Essar Oil at a valuation of $12.9 billion. Rosneft -- Russia's biggest oil company led by Putin's close ally Igor Sechin -- will buy 49 percent of Essar Oil, which owns the Vadinar refinery in western India. Vadinar is one of the country's largest refineries and one of the world's most modern, with access to a port navigable by the largest vessels. Essar Oil operates 2,700 petrol stations and was controlled until now by billionaire brothers Shashi and Ravi Ruia. A further 49 percent will be acquired by a group of investors led by Trafigura oil traders, one of Rosneft's partners. "Rosneft is entering one of the most promising and fast-growing world markets," Sechin said, according to a statement. Rosneft said the Vadinar refinery will allow it to process its crude oil produced in Venezuela, which is heavy and more difficult to refine. It could also serve as a base for exporting to the Asia-Pacific region, including Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines and Australia. While the deal represents an unprecedented foreign acquisition from the Indian perspective, for Russia it is "an important strategic victory," said Emily Stromquist, an analyst at Eurasia Group. "It sends a signal to the EU and US that Russia has alternative market opportunities despite sanctions" imposed over Russia's actions in Ukraine, she wrote in a note. "It also provides a much-needed opportunity for export diversification as European demand flattens and Chinese growth becomes more unpredictable." Story continues - Allied nations - With its 1.2 billion inhabitants, India is the world's fourth largest consumer of hydrocarbons, with demand constantly growing. It is increasingly dependent on crude imports, despite authorities taking steps to encourage foreign investment and seeking to diversify its suppliers, currently mainly in the Middle East. Indian companies in turn this year bought almost half of Vankor, one of Rosneft's most promising oil fields in Siberia. "Rosneft has the ambition to develop itself into a global energy group... but the opportunities to develop business abroad are limited, especially in Western countries," said Valery Nesterov, an analyst at Sberbank CIB. "The markets that are promising are in Asia," he said, while Rosneft "acts in the interests of the state and develops cooperation with countries that are friends with Russia." The Russian group has already grown considerably in recent years. It took over the ruins of oil magnate Mikhail Khodorkovsky's group after his jailing and has since increased its acquisitions, notably TNK-BP in 2013 for $55 billion. Due to the weak ruble, it is sitting on large cash reserves that soften the effect of oil prices falling in dollars. It has just proved its influence by pushing the reluctant government to allow it to buy a majority stake in Russia's number six oil company Bashneft, which the state wanted to privatise. Internationally the Ukrainian crisis has struck a blow to Rosneft's policy of forming partnerships with Western giants such as BP, Exxonmobil and Statoil -- hence the need to invest in emerging markets that are not affected by sanctions. Pavel Kushnir, an analyst at Deutsche Bank, did not conceal his scepticism over Essar, saying he could not remember a single "example of an outright successful acquisition or investment that a Russian energy company made abroad." By Astrid Wendlandt PARIS (Reuters) - Russia inaugurated its most visible landmark in France on Wednesday, brushing off a diplomatic snub by Francois Hollande's government as bilateral tensions simmered over the war in Syria. The opening of the giant white stone and glass Orthodox Cathedral and cultural centre by the River Seine topped with large gilded domes and in sight of the Eiffel Tower was to have served as a set-piece foreign event for Russian President Vladimir Putin. But Putin did not attend after Hollande demanded talks on Syria that German Chancellor Angela Merkel ended up hosting later in the day in Berlin. The European Union has condemned Russia's air campaign in Syria but Germany said decisions on fresh sanctions against Russia would not be taken at a summit this week. Putin sent Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky to Paris, who was joined at the opening ceremony by ambassador to France Alexander Orlov. No member of Hollande's government attended. "There have been highs and lows in relations between France and Russia," Orlov told Reuters TV, noting Napoleon's failed Russia campaign in the 19th century as well as French being the language of choice for Russian aristocrats for two centuries. "I am very optimistic about the future because there is great proximity between France and Russia... Russians love coming to Paris, they feel very at ease here. " The Holy Trinity Cathedral is Russia's biggest and most visible landmark in the French capital since Tsar Alexander III offered Paris a bridge named after him in the late 19th Century. The complex, which cost Russia tens of millions of euros to build on top of the estimated 70 million euros ($77 million) it spent on acquiring the plot, has diplomatic status as it hosts the embassy's cultural centre. Asked about complaints from Parisians that the complex was too big, Orlov said Russia could have built it much larger. (This story corrects description in paragraph two) (Reporting by Astrid Wendlandt; editing by John Stonestreet) Paris (AFP) - Russia unveiled a new state-financed Orthodox cathedral complex in a prime position near the Eiffel Tower in Paris on Wednesday without the intended guest of honour, President Vladimir Putin. He cancelled his trip last week after French President Francois Hollande said Russia's bombing of the Syrian city of Aleppo could amount to war crimes. In a statement from Moscow, Putin said the more than 100-million euro ($110 million) complex, built around the cathedral which has five golden domes, was a "visible testament to the cultural and human ties between France and Russia". The theme was taken up by speakers at the low-key event on Wednesday, where Russian Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky overlooked current tensions to say the project was "testament to the solidity of our bilateral relations." The Saint-Trinite cathedral, which will be consecrated by the patriarch of the Russian Orthodox church in December, sits on a prime location by the river Seine and is a striking illustration of Kremlin support for its national church. It has raised eyebrows not only because its five giant cupolas covered with 90,000 sheets of gold leaf rise up in front of the Eiffel Tower when viewed from the surrounding area. The project has also reportedly sparked concerns among France's intelligence agencies because of its proximity to nearby government buildings, including the foreign ministry just a short walk along the Seine. Putin has given it strong political and financial backing, acknowledging it was "very difficult" to realise but thanking France for its "continuous support". The Russian president has developed close bonds with the powerful Russian Orthodox church, whose patriarch Kirill has backed him personally and his policies such as military intervention in Syria. "We thank President Putin in particular. Without his personal commitment, it would never have happened," said bishop Antoine from the town of Bogorodsk, who was representing patriarch Kirill at the ceremony. Story continues - Politics and religion - Only the cultural centre was officially opened on Wednesday, but journalists were allowed inside the cathedral for the first time ahead of its consecration on December 4. The growing Orthodox community in France, swelled by immigration from Russia as well as the Middle East and the Balkans, is not united behind the new cathedral, which will only be fully completed in 2017. Antoine Arjakovsky, an Orthodox historian in Paris, commented on the "strange and problematic ambiguity" of the project, financed by a theoretically secular Russian state. Speaking to AFP, he said it "mixes religion and politics a stone's throw from the Elysee (presidential palace) and the foreign ministry". Paris already has an Orthodox cathedral, the Saint Alexandre Nevsky built by the Russian community in 1861, but it is aligned with a different branch of Orthodoxy based in Istanbul. Until 1931, it was aligned with Moscow but has since refused to return, seeing the Russian church as more socially conservative and politicised. "You could link this project to pastoral needs, but it also likely a desire by Russia to open a cultural and religious showpiece in Paris beyond its embassy," writer and Orthodox priest Christophe Levalois told AFP. As well as opening at a difficult time in Franco-Russian relations, the striking new place of worship was unveiled as France engages in a feverish debate about the role of religion in public life after a string of attacks by Islamic extremists. Last week, Hollande was quoted in a book as saying there was a "problem with Islam" in France because it required holy sites and recognition. "It's not Islam that poses a problem in the sense of its being a religion that is dangerous in itself, but because it wants to assert itself as a religion in the republic," he was quoted as saying in: "Un president ne devrait pas dire ca" ("A president shouldn't say this"). Admiral Kuznetsov Russian aircraft carrier After successfully replacing the US as the best-connected player in the Syrian conflict, Russia's deployment of their sole aircraft carrier and entire Northern Fleet to Syria represents its latest attempt to unseat the US as the premier naval power in the Middle East. A successful deployment of a full-blown aircraft carrier represents the kind of sophisticated military task only a first-rate world power can pull off, and that seems to be exactly what Russia hopes for. Much like their 2015 salvo of cruise missiles fired from the Caspian sea into Syria, the event will likely serve as a commercial for Russian military exports one of the few bright spots in Russia's ailing economy. The deployment will seek to present the best and brightest of Russia's resurgent military. The Kuznetsov, which has suffered from a litany of mechanical failures and often requires tow boats, will stay tight to Syria's shores due to the limited range of the carrier's air wing. The air wing, comprised of only 15 or so Su-33s and MiG-29s and a handful of helicopters, does not even have half of the US Nimitz class carrier's 60 plus planes. Furthermore, the carrier lacks plane launching catapults. Instead, the carrier relies on a ski-jump platform that limits how much fuel and ordnance the Russian jets can carry. Even so, the Russian jets aboard will be some of the latest models in Russia's entire inventory, according to Russian state-run media. The bombs they carry will be guided, a sharp departure from Russia's usual indiscriminate use of "dumb" or unguided munitions which can drift unpredictably when dropped from altitude. Su33 kuznetsov Russian media quotes a military source as saying that with the new X-38 guided bombs, "we reinforce our aviation group and bring in completely new means of destruction to the region." The same report states the bombs are accurate to within a few meters, which isn't ideal, but an improvement. Story continues Indeed, the Kuznetsov's entire flight deck will function as somewhat of a showroom for Russian military goods. China operates a Soviet-designed carrier, as does India. Both of those nations have purchased Russian planes in the past. A solid performance from the jets in Syria would bode well for their prospects as exports, even as India struggles to get its current crop of Russian-made jets up to grade. "Despite its resemblance to the land-based version of the MiG-29, this is a completely different aircraft," Russian media quotes a defence official as saying of the MiG-29K carrier-based variant. MiG 29K aircraft INS Vikramaditya indian navy aircraft carrier "This applies to its stealth technologies, a new system of in-flight refueling, folding wings and mechanisms by which the aircraft has the ability to perform short take-offs and land at low speeds." But the Russian jets practice on land bases that simulate the Kuznetsov, and any US Navy pilot will tell you that landing on a bobbing airstrip sailing along at sea is an entirely different beast. One thing Russia's upcoming carrier deployment does have going for it will be having the world's premier naval and carrier power, the US, at least nominally aligned with them in a recently brokered cease-fire. NOW WATCH: Watch Russian warplanes fly dangerously close by a US Navy ship More From Business Insider Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov addresses a news conference in Damascus June 28, 2014. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki/Files Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Moscow may take "asymmetrical" and "painful" measures if the US makes good on its talk of imposing tougher sanctions on Russia, Radio Free Europe reports. Sanctions, which the European Union vowed to impose on Monday and the US backs, would be tied to Russia's actions in Syria, where numerous and credible reports have tied Moscow to war crimes in its efforts to reinforce Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime during the six-year-long Syrian conflict. Ryabkov made these statements to Russia's State Duma, or the lower house of parliament, which just today unanimously approved Russian President Vladimir Putin's proposal to unilaterally drop out of a nuclear disarmament agreement with the US. It's unclear what "asymmetrical" actions Russia could take to cause "pain" to the US, but the Department of Homeland Security formally accused Russian state actors of hacking the DNC and top staffers of Hillary Clinton to "interfere with the US election process." Additionally, Russia has established dominance on the battlefield in Syria, unilaterally implementing a brief ceasefire on Wednesday and then ending it without input from the international community. Of the brief pause in bombing, Mark Kramer, program director of the Project on Cold War Studies at Harvard's Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies, told Business Insider, "I wish this step could be seen as a humanitarian gesture, but that seems implausible." Instead, Kramer said that the proposal is likely a "cynical step" designed to keep EU foreign ministers from agreeing on new sanctions against Russia in connection with its "merciless bombardment" of Aleppo. NOW WATCH: A Russian orchestra threw a surprise concert in the ancient city of Palmyra More From Business Insider (James Saft is a Reuters columnist. The opinions expressed are his own) By James Saft NEW YORK, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Funds conducting off-exchange trades within their own fund family are likely favoring their "stars" at the expense of the also rans. As usual, unsuspecting investors are left paying the bill. A Bank for International Settlements paper, published in August, shows evidence that this form of "dark market" trading is almost certainly not always being done in a way fair to all investors in a given fund family. For many years, funds within the same corporate family of funds have been allowed to "cross-trade", a process where one fund which wants to sell a security then exchanges it with another which wants to buy, never actually using the open public markets. While 90 percent of these trades pay no commission, and are therefore theoretically better for clients, the practice has a checkered history. Before new regulations were put into place in 2004, cross trades were, on average, being done at significantly less advantageous prices than could be had on public markets. That's improved, but still at issue is the extent to which fund families use cross-trading as a means to favor their best performing or most lucrative funds. "We offer support to the hypothesis that star funds benefited from cross-trading at the expense of junk funds," according to the working paper for the Bank for International Settlements, which acts as a central bank to central banks. ( https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2831690 ) "This strategy had relevant implications for fund ranking, fund selection, and fund manager evaluation. Our results suggest that fund alphas potentially misrepresent the real ability of fund managers to create value for their investors." The study used a sample of trades done in this way by U.S. asset managers between 2004-2010. Fund management companies have a motivation to favor some of their funds over others, either because they charge higher fees or are outperformers which will attract the lion's share of inflows. Story continues "Tying cross-trade level data to fund performance, we find that cross-trading potentially boosted the risk-adjusted performance of star funds by around 1.7 (percentage points) per year on average (causing an equivalent loss for the least important funds). This result casts doubt on the fraction of performance delivered by mutual funds that is really due to skill," according to authors Alexander Eisele of University of Lugano, Tamara Nefedova of Universite Paris-Dauphine and Gianpaolo Parise of the BIS. LIE DOWN WITH AGENTS, WAKE UP WITH ISSUES That 1.7 percentage point per year "reallocation" of returns from one fund to another is quite significant, given that it is itself far higher than the typical equity management fee, and a chunky percentage of an overall annual return in an average year. This is a classic example of the kind of "agency issue" endemic to fund management in which investors hire managers as their agents to act in their best interests and then have only very imperfect means of making sure they are not self-dealing. There are plenty of caveats here, both because the identities of the funds cannot be known with complete certainty and because the effects appear to have diminished after regulatory reform. It is also worth noting that cross-trading went from 6.0 percent of total trading activity before the 2004 reforms to below 1.0 percent today. The study also found that cross-trades varied from market benchmark prices by more in stocks which were illiquid and highly volatile which may be expected. More concerning was that cross-trades were further off public market levels as well when the asset manager had weak governance, larger internal markets, and strong incentives for reallocating. These cross trades were also more likely to be struck at either the highest or lowest price of the day, suggesting that they were sometimes being priced after the fact in order to pad one fund's performance at the expense of another. This report is reminiscent of a May study which found it highly likely that fund managers who run mutual funds and hedge funds at the same time, or side-by-side, were similarly shifting performance towards hedge funds, which pay them better. Mutual funds with at least one side-by-side manager underperform those without any by 9.6 basis points per month, or 1.15 percentage points a year, using a standard measure of outperformance, or alpha, according to the study. ( https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2774273 ) One clear way to help the situation would be to require more granular disclosure of trading allocations of all sorts, the better to allow regulators and investors protect their interests. Until that happens, it may make sense to be wary of fund families, and especially their funds which are underperforming. (James Saft) Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f252808%2f6d935b5fca7a47078f073ec045cddfaa Hurricane Matthew left a trail of devastation across Haiti earlier this month after the Category 4 storm flattened houses, flooded streets and killed hundreds of people. New satellite images from NASA's Earth Observatory and DigitalGlobe show the extent of the hurricane's destruction across Haiti's hard-hit southern coast. Green swaths become barren brown patches, marking the places where extreme winds, landslides, erosion and storm surge stripped trees of their foliage and leveled entire neighborhoods. SEE ALSO: Carolinas still drying out from Hurricane Matthew Matthew made landfall in Haiti on Oct. 4, killing at least 473 people, according to national emergency officials cited by the Associated Press. Les Cayes, Haiti, on Sept. 26 and Oct. 12, 2016. Image: NASA Earth Observatory image by Jesse Allen, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Other death toll estimates are higher: A Reuters tally of numbers from local officials suggests 1,000 people were killed in the nation of 10 million. NASA's Operational Land Imager on Landsat 8 captured images of Haiti before and after the storm in Les Cayes, on Haiti's Tiburon Coast. The seaport town of 86,000 people was among the most densely populated areas slammed by Matthew. Satellite images also show the storm's effects on Nan Fort and to the east near the Cavaillon River. Those areas did not take a direct hit from Matthew but still took in damaging levels of sediment after the storm. Greener images show Haiti's coast on Sept. 26, a week before the storm ripped across the island. The browner images show the same areas on Oct. 12, eight days after Matthew made landfall. Nan Fort, Haiti, on Sept. 26 and Oct. 12, 2016. Image: NASA Earth Observatory image by Jesse Allen, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey The most obvious changes are the loss of vegetation, Alexandra Morel, an ecosystem scientist at the University of Oxford, told NASA. "When I look at these images, I see what seems to be seriously denuded hillsides, which I assume are from crops and fallows being washed away," she told the space agency. Story continues DigitalGlobe, a commercial vendor of satellite and geospatial content, also released a set of before-and-after photos from Haiti showing destroyed buildings, missing rooftops and trees ripped from the ground. The post-Matthew images were captured on DigitalGlobe's WorldView-2 satellite on Oct. 9 and show six Haitian towns along the western side of the island's southern peninsula: Les Anglais, Port-a-Piment, Les Cayes, Chardonnieres, Coteau, and Jeremie. Les Anglais, Haiti, Nov. 13, 2016. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 Les Anglais, Haiti, Oct. 9, 2016. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 Port-a-Piment, Haiti, June 9, 2013. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 Port-a-Piment, Haiti, Oct. 9, 2016. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 Les Cayes, Haiti, Oct. 1, 2016. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 Les Cayes, Haiti, Oct. 9, 2016. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 Chardonnieres, Haiti, Nov. 13, 2013. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 Chardonnieres, Haiti, Oct. 9, 2016. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 Coteau, Haiti, June 9, 2013. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 Coteau, Hait, Oct. 9, 2016. Image: DigitalGlobe 2016 As a crucial battle continues over the control of Mosul, Iraq one of the last Islamic State (ISIS) strongholds in the country militants are taking a play from the "scorched Earth" playbook. Photos released Wednesday by UrtheCast reveal the extent of oil fires and infrastructure damage inflicted by ISIS followers. The satellite imaging company used its Deimos-2 spacecraft to take the image below, though it also operates an ultra-high-definition video camera on a Russian module of the space station. Below is an infrared view of the Mosul District taken by UrtheCast on October 18: A zoomed-in view shows how militants are lighting the large fires inside populated areas and destroying nearby buildings: mosul oil fires close up urthecast This is how UrtheCast described the scence in an emailed press release: "The smoke covers part of the city Qayyarah, about 35 miles south of the city of Mosul, along the West Bank of the Tigris River. Mosul is the last stronghold of the extremist group ISIS in Iraq and it's here in Qayyarah where people flee to from Mosul, and where military forces are staged." For reference, this is where the fires in this image are happening, and where the main city of Mosul is located: mosul oil fires urthecast According to a New York Times dispatch from Mosul by Bryan Denton and Michael R. Gordon, the intention of the oil fires is to provide a screen: "Thick funnels of black smoke began rising from the towns a past tactic used by the Islamic State militants, setting oil barrels aflame to try to screen them from American airstrikes. The strikes came anyway, sending shock waves through the haze." UrtheCast's new photos also show how ISIS militants are destroying infrastructure in the area. The view below shows a bridge that was recently demolished to slow the advance of Kurdish and Iraqi security forces: mosul destroyed bridge urthecast The international coalition that is fighting ISIS hopes to secure villages surrounding Mosul and reach the city's center in weeks. Story continues But soldiers face roadside bombs, networks of secret tunnels, suicide bombers, civilians being used as human shields, and other grave threats. NOW WATCH: The US Army is sending Apache attack helicopters to fight ISIS in Iraq More From Business Insider COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Scientists have found 500 seabed vents bubbling methane into the Pacific Ocean off the United States, roughly doubling the number of known U.S. seeps of the powerful greenhouse gas, a study showed on Wednesday. Methane naturally escapes from the sea floor in many places around the world and can stoke global warming if it reaches the atmosphere. Worldwide, scientists are trying to see if rising ocean temperatures cause more leaks. "It appears that the entire coast off Washington, Oregon and California is a giant methane seep," Robert Ballard, who is famed for finding the wreck of the Titanic and has now discovered the 500 new seeps, said in a statement. "The discoveries double to about 1,000 the number of such vents now known to exist along the continental margins of the USA," the statement said. Nicole Raineault, Director of Science Operations with Ballard's Ocean Exploration Trust, said it was unknown how long the seeps had been active, what triggered them and how much, if any, of the gas reached the atmosphere. Gunnar Myhre, an expert at the Center for International Climate and Environmental Research in Oslo, said research in Arctic waters off Norway's Svalbard archipelago indicated that most seabed methane there dispersed in the water. And when seeps are found "it's most likely that they've been occurring for a long time," he told Reuters. No one has had technology to map seeps until recent decades. About 100 experts will meet on Oct. 20 and 21 for a U.S. National Ocean Exploration Forum in New York, hosted by The Rockefeller University in partnership with Monmouth University. The scientists hope to promote more research into marine science after recent finds of creatures including a purple sea cucumber and a tiny "Mud Monster" in the deep Pacific by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "One million marine species and one million shipwrecks may remain to be discovered," Jesse Ausubel, of the Rockefeller University, said in a statement. (Reporting by Alister Doyle; Editing by Tom Heneghan) Edinburgh (AFP) - Scotland's government published a draft independence referendum bill on Thursday as a fallback plan if it is not able to keep strong ties with the EU and win more powers from London as part of Brexit talks. The bill would give non-British EU citizens living in Scotland, who were not allowed to take part in the EU referendum, the right to vote on independence. Scotland voted by 55 percent to stay part of Britain in 2014, but then voted by 62 percent to remain in the European Union in June, sparking a political crisis after Britain as whole voted to leave. The bill is broadly the same as the original Scottish Independence Referendum Act 2013 which enabled a vote the following year. Its opening paragraph states: "A referendum is to be held in Scotland on a question about the independence of Scotland. The question is --'Should Scotland be an independent country?'." In her foreword to the consultation, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: "The UK governmentas recent statements on its approach to leaving the EU raise serious concerns for the Scottish Government. "We face unacceptable risks to our democratic, economic and social interests and to the right of the Scottish Parliament to have its say," she said. She said her government "remains willing to work with the UK Government to negotiate a future relationship with Europe... which works for the United Kingdom as a whole". But she added: "If it becomes clear that it is only through independence that Scotlandas interests can be protected, then the people of Scotland must have the ability to reconsider that question, and to do so before the UK leaves the EU." Prime Minister Theresa May has said she plans to trigger the formal procedure for leaving the European Union by the end of March, opening up a two-year negotiating window. The prospect of another referendum is already causing concern among North Sea oil investors. Story continues A report by BMI Research, a subsidiary of global credit rating agency Fitch, said: "A second vote on Scotland sovereignty is the main downside risk to our North Sea production forecast, the chances of which will substantially increase if a 'hard Brexit' is realised." It said a second independence campaign would "cast a great shadow of uncertainty over the regulatory framework governing the petroleum sector". "Companies operating in the North Sea could potentially hold off making investments in that time period, waiting instead until Scotland's fate has been determined." By Alastair Macdonald BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The Scottish government believes that contributing to the EU budget might be a price worth paying for keeping Scotland in Europe's single market if the broader British state leaves as part of its Brexit deal. Fiona Hyslop, the external affairs minister, told Reuters during a visit to Brussels on Wednesday to meet EU politicians that the devolved administration in Edinburgh had already calculated that remaining in the single market would mean Scotland being a net contributor to the European Union budget. "We understand that Scotland would be a contributor," she said when asked if Scotland, whose citizens voted to stay in the EU in June, would be willing to pay dues to the EU for market access, even if the United Kingdom is no longer a member. "We understand that, but we also recognise the importance of the value of access to the single market," she added, saying Scotland was exploring many options to retain full access to the EU market if the London government opted to quit. "This isn't just about a transaction as to what Scotland can get from or out of the European Union," Hyslop said. "This is also about what we want to continue to contribute to the European Union," she said. She cited Scotland's natural resources in fishing grounds, oil and gas and renewable energy. She put no figures on a budget contribution. Britain last year contributed a gross 21 billion euros ($23 billion) to the EU budget but received a special UK rebate worth nearly a third of that -- a rebate that other states may be reluctant to give Scotland, which accounts for about 8 percent of the British economy. "HARD BREXIT" British Prime Minister Theresa May has set out preliminary demands following the June referendum to quit the EU that Britain will curb immigration from continental Europe and reject oversight by EU courts, prompting other EU leaders to conclude she wants a "hard Brexit" without single market membership. Non-EU member Norway is in the single market but, as part of its membership obligations, it is a significant contributor to an EU budget largely spent on subsidising European farmers and poorer EU states in the formerly communist east. Hyslop said the Scottish government, run by the secessionist Scottish National Party which wants Scotland to be an independent state within the EU, was still looking at many options for having a say in how the United Kingdom formed a new relationship with the EU and for keeping Scotland close to the bloc. "Its not just about the money and the taxes and the tariffs, its also about the ability of networking of people for our creative industries, for our culture, for the universities," Hyslop said. Many European governments and the EU executive were cool to the SNP's bid for independence in a 2014 referendum; other EU states, notably Spain, are battling their own secessionists. But Hyslop said that after meetings in the European Parliament she had found EU politicians willing to help the europhile Scots. "There is a great deal of sympathy and understanding for Scotlands position," she said. "If we need to have creative thinking, well have creative thinking. "Different options can be agreed...if there is the political will to make them happen and it would be very strange for Europe to turn its back on a part of the European Union that is looking to remain a part of the European Union." (Additional reporting by Marilyn Haigh; Editing by Angus MacSwan) LONDON (Reuters) - Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon publishes a draft bill for a second independence referendum on Thursday as she ramps up the pressure on the British government to make sure Scotland's voice is heard in Brexit talks. Scots voted by a large margin to remain in the European Union in June this year but Britain as a whole voted to leave. Sturgeon, the fervently pro-EU leader of the ruling Scottish National Party (SNP) argues that the prospect of Scotland being taken out of Europe against its will validates a possible re-run of the 2014 independence referendum, in which 55 percent of voters opted to remain in the United Kingdom. Although she has said she regards a second referendum as "highly likely", Thursday's bill is merely for formal consultation and sets no date for another vote. "The consultation beginning today will ensure that a referendum bill, if it is the chosen route, will like the 2014 referendum meet the gold standard of democracy and fairness, Sturgeon said in a statement. "This government was elected on a specific manifesto pledge that the Scottish Parliament should be able to consider an independence referendum if there was a material change in circumstances, such as Scotland being taken out of the European Union against its will," she added. "The country now faces exactly that prospect, including the likelihood of it being a hard Brexit with all the additional damage that will do to Scotland's economy and jobs, which is why this bill is being published for consultation." Sturgeon said earlier this month she wanted a bill in place to give her the possibility of calling another independence referendum before Britain formally leaves the EU - now expected by the end of March 2019. Polls show Scots would probably still reject secession from the 300-year-old union if a vote were held now and any binding second independence referendum would probably have to be agreed by the British government in London, which has said it considers the matter was settled in 2014. (Reporting by Stephen Addison) Math has never been my Will Forte, but Im pretty sure Tuesdays Scream Halloween special had a higher body count than all of Season 2 and the first one was a real doozy. RELATEDScream Renewed for Six-Episode Season 3 The two-hour event wasted no time appeasing its viewers thirst for blood, claiming a trio of casualties in its first 10 minutes, including everyones favorite sexy serial killer Kieran. (So much for those 10 consecutive life terms, eh?) Scream Recap From there, the story shifted to the remaining members of the Lakewood Six, each of whom began the special at a crossroad of sorts: Emma was unsure about her collegiate future, though Im a little surprised to hear she was interested in pre-med at all, given how much blood shes accidentally swallowed over the years; Audrey was taking a stab (so to speak) at a normal relationship with a girl named Gina, whos really into glass unicorns; and Brooke was contemplating a future in New York with or without Stavo. RELATEDScreams Amadeus Serafini Talks Shocking Finale Reveal, That Mysterious Finale Phone Call And what better way for a gang of mass-murder survivors to clear their heads than with a weekend getaway to the site of a Lizzie Borden-esque tragedy, courtesy of Noahs curiously attractive book editor Jeremy? (Oh, Noahs a best-selling author now, by the way. A lot can happen in eight months!) Anyway, Shallow Grove Island was exactly what youd expect it to be: stormy, grove-like and teeming with local hotties the most notable of which being Alex, the poor mans Kieran (lets be real now), who wasted no time crawling down Emmas throat. And killing everyone in his wake. Scream Recap Thats right, folks: Alex (aka the one person who wasnt accused of being the killer) turned out to be the killer, and no antique-store owner, mansion caretaker, island sheriff or book editor (RIP, #HotJeremy!) was safe from his *ahem* sheer madness. Story continues Fortunately, Emmas learned a thing or two about serial killers over the past two seasons though she still struggles with the whole dont date them thing so following an impassioned speech (I dont need a hero! Im Emma Duval!), she knocked Alex Tom off the balcony and made it to safety. Of course, that nice safe feeling probably wont last for long, given the new arrival in town: Brandon James! Leftover thoughts * I loved Ginas casual plug for Ouija: Origin of Evil. Totally seamless, natural and organic. * Lakewood University? Seriously, Emma?! Get. Out. Of. That. TOWN! * Am I the only one who thinks the big Brandon James reveal would have been more powerful if it hadnt been in the trailer? * As for the future of the Scream franchise, all we know is that a six-episode third season is in the works. Whether or not that proves to be the end of the road for the show depends on the ratings is anyones guess. OK, lets hear your thoughts on the Scream Halloween special. Grade it below, then drop a comment with your full review. Related stories Scream Renewed for Season 3 Scream Halloween Special Trailer: Has Brandon James Returned to Lakewood? Teen Wolf @ Comic Con: Watch the First 10 Minutes of the Season 6 Premiere Emma Roberts character was feeling a little blue during this years Chanel-O-Ween festivities but not for any of the reasons you might have expected. VIDEOSThe Late Show: Melania Reacts to Donald Trumps Billybush-Grabbing Controversy It wasnt because of Chads death. Or his entire familys death. Or the fact that Chad left the Radwell fortune to Dean Munsch and the C.U.R.E. Institure. No, it was thanks to a shoddy prescription from Dr. Murder Hand that Chanel spent Tuesdays Scream Queens in full-on Michael Ausiello-approved Smurf mode. In other news, Hester was (finally) given a get-out-of-jail-free card this week as well as a Jason mask and an axe, because why not? in order to help Agent Hemphill catch the Green Meanie at a recreation of the hospitals original Halloween murder party. But like most of Denises brilliant ideas, this one didnt exactly go according to plan. In fact, the hour ended with Denise dead on the hospital floor, following a fatal encounter with the G.M. And while Im sad to see her go, at least we can all take comfort in knowing shes boning Chad Radwell in heaven presumably while role-playing as the guys from Brokeback Mountain. It was Chads favorite, after all. Leftover Thoughts: * Is it just me, or is Dean Munsch beginning every episode with a recap of the events thus far? (Quit trying to put me out of a job, lady!) * Do you really think Chanel No. 2 is being motorboated by Genghis Khan in hell? Id watch that spinoff in a second. * Chanel showering her fans with gifts, Taylor Swift-style, might not have been as timely a reference as it was last year, but it was no less hysterical the second time around. (Im still waiting for my box of diseased whore hearts, by the way.) * Chanel No. 5s confusion over Ivana vs. Ivanka Trump was a hilarious and admittedly understandable mistake. Heck, if Ivanka wasnt Donalds daughter, she would be his wife. Story continues Your thoughts on this weeks episode? Denises death? The general mysteries of unknowable universe? Drop em in a comment below. Related stories The Simpsons Sneak Peek: Itchy and Scratchy Channel Making a Murderer Family Guy Sneak Peek: Peter and Chris Share a Look Behind the Scenes Fox's Rocky Horror Picture Show: Grade Laverne Cox & Co.'s Performances Warning: This recap of the Halloween Blues episode of Scream Queens contains spoilers. Like the line made famous by that one movie the name of which escapes me and spoken by that one guy cant remember his name I just cant quit you, Scream Queens! Part of my struggle is that just when I had decided that maybe this season was phoning it in like a busted Nokia, it had to go and give us one of the best Denise Hemphill episodes yet! But on the other hand? IT KILLED HER OFF. *Breathes frantically into paper bag* You know, I dont know how often I can get my hopes up that a kill on Scream Queens was a fakeout, like Nick Jonass (first) murder last season. For example, despite last weeks hopes to the contrary, Chad Radwell really IS dead! So Is Denise Hemphill also dead? *Falls to floor, rolls around on the parquet tearing up newspapers* OK, I feel better now, and I need to level with you. Im not even mad at Scream Queens right now! Thats because Halloween Blues was a truly hilarious episode overall. Noticeably sharper and weirder than the past three episodes, it managed to reaffirm that this show is completely nuts and unpredictable. And as Chads various fantasy sequences proved this week, dead characters dont necessarily stay away forever. I can live with Scream Queens killing our faves as long as our faves still get to appear in completely ludicrous Brokeback Mountain parodies Which, why does that movie sound familiar right now? Cant remember. Lets talk about Halloween Blues! We began with a truly remarkable opening shot. Um. Kind of having a lot of thoughts about this extreme zoom-out from Chanels vocal chords, but Ill need a few more days to process. Still, exciting to see such borderline perverted body imagery outside of a Cronenberg film! Anyway, Chanel was very sad and upset about Chads murder. So sad and upset that shed donned her Jackie Kennedy costume before Chads body had so much as cooled. Now THAT is love. Story continues But if were talking about true grief, look no further than Denise Hemphills Shakespearean monologue about her fallen love. If Niecy Nash doesnt win several important awards for this stirring, beautiful scene, then the world is a dumb place and it can just go jump into a handbasket and go right to heck! It was a great speech and included a flashback to the time Chad and Denise role-played a scene from the steamy erotic thriller Brokeback Mountain: If you are asking my opinion, which would be a fools errand in any scenario, then I need to tell you that the funniest part of this moment was the short wig Denise Hemphill was wearing under her cowboy hat. I had to pause the show and smile out the window for a minute, it made me that happy. Also I loved that even in mourning Denise Hemphill had an appreciation for the things that matter. Rock hard corpse d***s! (I dont know.) Chanel seemed pretty disappointed that her rich, hot fiance had died on their wedding day, but she was downright TICKED when she discovered that Chad had named Dean Munsch as the sole heir to his familys fortune. (His family had recently all died in a plane crash attempting to stop his wedding to Chanel, which was a poignant twist!) At this point Chanel leapt up and jumped over the desk (in the best use of Bullet Time slo-mo since the Matrix movies) and beat the ever-loving hell out of the lawyer. A truly inspiring moment. Oh, but did you remember what holiday was coming up? CHANEL-O-WEEN! And it arrived not a moment too soon, as Chanel was now feeling especially dark and therefore REALLY wanted to send tons of terrible things to random Instagram followers. Things like pus, maggots, human bile, and, of course, diseased whore hearts! (I loved this girl in the GIF above. Related very much to her.) So yes, this year we were treated to another classic Chanel-O-Ween montage! What began as one of the meanest takedowns of Taylor Swift in TV history is now an annual Scream Queens tradition. We are truly blessed. But distributing grisly organs and riding PowerWheels across suburban lawns wasnt enough to cheer poor Chanel up. So thats why Dr. John Stamos gave her an elixir hed made from colloidal silver and whatever else he had lying around. Unfortunately it had, uh, side effects. I am not going to lie, I felt that Chanels blue skin was actually really lovely! I hope impressionable teens dont go around trying to get blue skin for real, though. That seems like it would be an unhealthy pursuit of beauty! Surgeries and lasers and injecting poison into faces seems fine though. For Halloween, Denise Hemphill had decided to wear Chanels actual wedding dress as a costume, which was surprising in that, as Denise pointed out, her body type was woman whereas Chanels was malnourished Victorian paperboy. Anyway, just as Denise was setting up the STAFF HALLOWEEN PARTY (which was asking for trouble, in my opinion) she had an encounter with the Green Meanie! Luckily Denise fought him off with the use of the gun shed tucked into her garter belt. Phew! At this point Chanel received another piece of bad news: Her OTHER romantic prospect (Dr. John Stamos) occasionally has casual sex with Dean Munsch! I dont understand how all these middle-aged women keep stealing my men! Chanel exclaimed. But honestly, Denise Hemphill and Dean Munsch can both GET IT. No further questions. Because the murders had begun to reach fever pitch, Denise Hemphill texted the state prison system via WhatsApp and managed to get Hester released into her custody. But would you believe it? Within MINUTES Hester had dressed up as Ivanka Trump (complete with a truly frightening mask) and attempted to murder Chanel in the hospital hallways! Something told me Hester was not very rehabilitated from her stay in the psych ward. Because Chanel No. 5 had intended to dress as Ivanka Trump for Halloween, Chanel began pointing fingers. Blue fingers. (Which, again, that is a lovely shade! Relax, teens, its makeup.) There was just something so right about Dr. Taylor Lautner dressing as Ryan Lochte for Halloween. Also, Chamberlain seems to have recovered pretty quickly from his scythe-ing! And I lolled pretty hard when a dot-matrix printer factored into an important reveal. During the staff Halloween party, dozens of costumed patients flooded in, having all fallen sick at the same party and as it turned out, the Green Meanie had spiked the bobbin-for-apples water with ayahuasca! Weird that they all went to the hospital rather than form a drum circle, but then again Im not sure what drugs are or what they even do. While all THAT was going on, Chanel and Denise busted out the Oujia: Origin of Evil Board and attempted to commune with the ghost of Chad Radwell. And even though we heretofore had not considered Denise Hemphill to be a psychic medium on par with Whoopi Goldberg in Ghost, Chad suddenly inhabited her body! While their conversation afforded Chanel A LITTLE BIT of closure, they were interrupted before Chad could reveal the identity of his own killer. Better luck next time! (Also, farewell for now you mega-dreamboat.) THEN CHANEL NO. 5 GOT STABBED. After she accidentally dressed up as Ivana Trump instead of Ivanka, she found herself cornered between Hester (as Ivanka) and whoever the Green Meanie is. And then the Green Meanie stabbed Chanel No. 5 in the back with a machete! Though, due to her writhing and sputtering on the floor, we might be able to assume shell survive this attack. Less uncertain, though, was the fate of Denise Hemphill after the Green Meanie came at her with a pair of fully charged shock paddles! Despite Denises protests that heart disease did not run in her family, the Green Meanie kept shocking her! Until she died! Maybe? She certainly looked dead, and I am not about to get my hopes up AGAIN after Chads death. But on the other hand I would not be mad if Denise survived. In fact, that would solve a lot of my problems both mental and otherwise. Bring back Denise, oh Lord! Denise Hemphill died for our sins also, Im pretty sure! Like the preceding episodes this season, Halloween Blues did not seem to care AT ALL about story logic or coherence. But it made up for it with killer jokes (by killer I mean very funny in this case) and also just straight-up audacity by wounding and/or murdering TWO main characters. Ultimately it wont matter what the setting or mystery is so long as the show remains borderline experimental when it comes to dark comedy. What a strange, wonderful show Scream Queens can be when it wants to! Denise will be missed, but heres to hoping her brazen, hilarious energy will live on. What did YOU think about Halloween Blues? Scream Queens airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on Fox. Watch clips and full episodes of Scream Queens for free on Yahoo View. A second swimmer who participated in the Hong Kong harbour race died after she was pulled out of the water unconscious during the event and taken to intensive care. This follows the death of a man during the Sunday swim, which attracts world-class international competitors and recreational participants, after he was pulled from the water by a rescue boat and rushed to hospital. It also comes after a decision by world aquatics governing body FINA to review the race and other open water events globally following the initial death. A spokesman for the event confirmed the second death to AFP Wednesday, adding that the woman was aged 59 and surnamed Cheung. Organisers said more details would be released later Wednesday, while reports said she passed away at around midnight Monday. Both harbour race victims were taking part in the leisure category, which is for slower swimmers. FINA on Tuesday said it was "very sad" to hear of the first death and that it would conduct a "thorough review". The Hong Kong Amateur Swimming Association and the title sponsor New World Development have expressed their "deepest sorrow" over what they called a tragic accident. The two deaths are the first for the race since it resumed in 2011 after a 30-year break, local media reported. The decades-long hiatus was because of fears over pollution levels in the water. Hong Kong is one of the world's busiest ports, with more than 400,000 vessels arriving and departing annually. impossible foods burger 0410 A thin, blood-red liquid spilled out of the tasting spoon and into my mouth. It tasted of metal and, unsurprisingly, of blood. I felt like I had been sucker punched, or had an unpleasant encounter with the dentist after not flossing for six months. The culprit here is heme, a molecule found in most living things that carry oxygen through the bloodstream. It's also the secret ingredient in the fake meat from Impossible Foods. In 2011, the Redwood City, California, startup set out on a mission to reinvent the veggie burger. While a black bean or mushroom patty probably isn't fooling anyone into thinking it's real meat, the Impossible Burger might. It sizzles on the grill, smells like beef, and even bleeds when you sink your teeth into it. The experience is so authentic, the burger has been served by David Chang of the Momofuku empire and backed by Bill Gates and Google Ventures. In 2015, Impossible Foods declined a bid from Google to acquire the startup for between $200 and $300 million. At a recent press event at the company's headquarters, I had the chance to try the meatless meat and its secret ingredient, heme. impossible foods meatless burger 0125 In nature, heme gives blood its color, turns meat pink, and lends the traditional burger its slightly metallic flavor and delicious aroma when it's exposed to sugars and amino acids. Impossible Foods looked into collecting it from the heme-rich nodules on soybean roots, but discovered it would require ripping up millions of plants to collect enough heme for production. Instead, the company decided to whip up heme in the lab. Scientists took the genetic code in soybeans that makes heme and injected it into yeast, which then becomes a temporary heme factory. On the day of my visit, an Impossible Foods scientist showed me a small glass bowl full of the burgundy liquid. She invited me to try it. Sure, I thought. It's not every day you get to eat "plant blood." Story continues impossible foods burger 0342 My first spoonful would be my last. The heme flooded my mouth and sealed my teeth, so that when I snacked later in the day, the new foods picked up a hint of blood. The after-taste stung like a papercut on the tongue, even though the inside of my mouth looked clean. Raw heme? Not good. But heme in the Impossible Foods burger might just leave the most ardent meat-lovers satisfied. You can find the Impossible Burger at Nishi Momofuku in New York, Jardiniere and Cockscomb in San Francisco, and Crossroads Kitchen in Los Angeles. NOW WATCH: We tried breakfast sandwiches from major fast-food chains and the winner surprised us More From Business Insider Video surveillance caught the moment a man allegedly tried to snatch a Houston moms baby right out of her cart as she shopped at a local supermarket Saturday. Florence Monauer told InsideEdition.com that she was in an H Mart supermarket looking at seasonings when a man approached and started talking to her 15-month-old daughter. Read: Couple Tries to Sell 3-Month-Old Baby for Drug Money, Cops Say The man initially approaches us and he talks to my daughter like people talk to babies, then he leaves so I didnt think anything of it, Monauer said. Monauer said she pushed her cart off to the side and continued to look around one of the shelves when she heard some rustling and turned around to see the same man picking up her child. She was caught on the shopping cart so he couldnt get her out, Monauer said. The child began to loudly cry and Monauer grabbed the baby, she said. He looks at the baby and says 'aww I tried to take you while your mother wasnt looking', Monauer said. It was a very creepy ordeal. Read: Toddler Snatched by Alligator as Parents Watch in Horror at Disney Resort Monauer later called police, who are currently investigating the incident. I feel really angry about it. I felt sick to my stomach about the fact that my daughter couldve disappeared and he could have run off with her. Watch: Parents Pray Baby Lisa Is Still Alive 5 Years After Vanishing From Crib Related Articles: As October flies by, we are faced with a dawning truth: this year, Taylor Swift might not release an album, as has been her biannual autumn tradition in seasons past. To tide her fans over, however, theres always a visit to the official museum exhibit dedicated to the pop superstar, dubbed The Taylor Swift Experience. First created in 2014 and displayed at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, the traveling exhibit will be setting up camp in New York Citys South Street Seaport at the base of Manhattan starting Nov. 18 (and staying through February). With tickets priced at $9 a pop, expect the crowds of tweenage fans to descend en masse to the Swiftie shrine; it was the Grammy Museums most popular exhibit of all time, after all, and Swift herself had a hand in curating the contents of the display. Behold, the glory of Taylor, writ large: I don't know about you but we're feelin' 22 Or 13? #Swifties #TaylorSwiftExperience #DJremix A photo posted by Dacia (@dayshuhhh) on Aug 2, 2015 at 4:32pm PDT Artifacts on display include many of her red carpet and performance outfits (enclosed in glass cases), beloved childhood books, handwritten drafts of song lyrics, and even a Grammy gramophone and that controversial VMA Moon Man that kicked off the Kanye feud. Most recently, the exhibit has been on tour at the State Fair of Texas, where visitors can walk a faux red carpet just like their idol. Everything has Changed #TaylorSwiftExperience #texasstatefair #taylorswift @taylorswift @taylornation A photo posted by Bethany (@swiftkitten13) on Oct 9, 2016 at 1:58pm PDT Using our vacation days wisely. #taylorswiftexperience #statefairoftexas A photo posted by Ann Marie Daniel (@annmariedaniel) on Oct 10, 2016 at 1:39pm PDT When Kanye made Taylor "famous" #taylorswift #texasstatefair #TaylorSwiftExperience A photo posted by Bethany (@swiftkitten13) on Oct 9, 2016 at 1:17pm PDT My only reason for going to the state fair this year #taylorswiftexperience #statefairoftexas2016 @taylorswift A photo posted by Elizabeth McMullin (@elymcmullin) on Oct 5, 2016 at 6:38pm PDT Fans have a lot of feelings about the items on display. Story continues When you miss the Houston show so much and you just die when you see this outfit again @taylornation @taylorswift #taylorswift #1989houston #1989worldtour #whenISeeYouAgain #TaylorSwiftExperience #texasstatefair A photo posted by Bethany (@swiftkitten13) on Oct 9, 2016 at 10:05am PDT And the selfie opportunities are rampant. Prepare yourself, Manhattan. Ugh I just love doing Photoshoots with @taylorswift #taylorswiftexperience A photo posted by Michael Medrano (@itsmichaelmedrano) on Oct 4, 2015 at 9:09pm PDT #taylorswift #taylorswiftexperience A photo posted by rosemarie mazon (@rosietmazon) on Oct 4, 2015 at 4:07pm PDT Belgrade (AFP) - Serbia protested Wednesday against what it said was European Union pressure to impose sanctions against Russia, calling it "absolutely unacceptable." Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said in a statement that "pressures on Serbia to, diplomatically speaking, align its foreign policy with the EU... to impose sanctions against Russia, are absolutely unacceptable." EU's foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini presented on Monday the 28-member block's 2016 common foreign and security policy report that said Brussels "will continue to call on Serbia to progressively align with the EU Common Foreign and Security policy." Although Serbia has opened negotiations to join the EU, it remains Moscow's closest ally in the Balkans and has refused to join Brussels-imposed sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine crisis. "Serbia wants to join EU, but it will never do anything against its national interests... We want good relations with everyone but we should not work against our own" interest, Dacic, also Deputy Prime Minister, said in the statement. He indirectly confirmed local media reports that Serbia was also joining Russia in sending humanitarian aid to Syria, saying "we will send aid to Syria if someone else proposes it to us as well." Cable television network N1 reported earlier Wednesday that Serbia would join countries such are Belorussia, China, India, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan in sending humanitarian aid organised by Russia. Serbian security analyst Zoran Dragisic told N1 that sending humanitarian aid under such circumstances "could be understood as taking Russia's side in Syrian conflict." According to local media, the aid will be sent by Russian planes that would take off from the airport in Serbia's southern town of Nis. Shailene Woodley has pleaded not guilty to criminal trespassing and engaging in a riot, Morton County court officials confirm to ET. A pretrial conference has not been scheduled, and in the plea, the 24-year-old actress has requested for her attorney to appear in her place for all remaining proceedings in the case, according to court documents obtained by ET. The Snowden star was arrested in North Dakota last week while protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline, a $3.8 billion oil pipeline that will span 1,100 miles across the Dakotas and into the Missouri River, after a federal judge rejected the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's request to halt construction. WATCH: Shailene Woodley Breaks Her Silence After Being Arrested While Protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline Following her arrest, Woodley continued to take a stand against the project on Instagram, writing "One day, baby, we'll sing our poetry. The words dripping from our tongues wet with ripened patience. and the lyrics, the sweet fruits born from the seeds our aging hands are now sowing. #alwaysinallways #heartforward #uptous #NoDAPL #protectcleanwater #iamonyourside." Woodley has in the past credited her non-traditional upbringing with broadening her perspective on a number of issues. WATCH: Shailene Woodley Talks 'Super F**ked Up' Family -- 'I Came Home to Things That Weren't Great' "I have a hard time having political conversations in Hollywood," Woodley told Net-A-Porter magazine. "Most people there are so privileged, they don't see the 99 percent of America, because they don't have to. It's hard for people like that to see another perspective." Story continues Watch the video below for more. Related Articles Jul 20, 2015; Pinehurst, NC, USA; Louisville Cardinals player Sheldon Rankins poses for a picture during the ACC football kickoff at Pinehurst Resort. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports The New Orleans Saints drafted Sheldon Rankins 12th-overall in this years draft in hopes of having him fix a woeful defense. In August, Rankins fractured his fibula and has yet to suit up for the team this season. But according to ESPNs Mike Triplett, theres a lot for the team to smile about. Rankins is expected to practice today, though he wont be formally eligible to play until the team visits the San Francisco 49ers in Week 9. As Triplett pointed out, Rankins return is a huge boost to a team thats second last in yards allowed per game (419.4,) and last in scoring (allowing 33.6 per game.) Rankins will form a solid pass-rushing duo with Cameron Jordan if all goes according to plan, as Nick Fairley and James Laurinaitis havent worked out as hoped. The Saints have won their last two games, though they were high-scoring affairs at that. Theres no way you can have Drew Brees score 30 points a game and hope to make the playoffs when the defense is giving up more than that, so Rankins return could not come at a better time. New Orleans is starting to gain a bit of momentum with two-straight wins in which the offense came through in the clutch during the final minutes. With the Atlanta Falcons losing on Sunday, the Saints are 2.5 games out of first in the NFC South. If the Saints can win in Kansas City and San Diego can upset Atlanta, the Saints will be just half a game out of first in the division, meaning theres a long way to go. But for now, the focus is on Rankins coming back. Hopefully, thatll provide them a huge boost. The post Sheldon Rankins reportedly set to return to Saints appeared first on Cover32. By Maher Chmaytelli and Babak Dehghanpisheh BAGHDAD/ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - A Shi'ite paramilitary force said it would support the Iraqi army's offensive on Mosul, Islamic State's last major stronghold in Iraq, raising the risk of sectarian strife in the mainly Sunni region. The Popular Mobilization Force (PMF), a coalition of mostly Iranian-trained militias, said late on Tuesday it would back Iraqi government forces advancing toward Tal Afar, about 55 kilometers (34 miles) west of Mosul. Taking Tal Afar would effectively cut off the escape route for militants wanting to head into neighboring Syria and would please the Iran-backed army of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. It has accused the U.S.-led anti-Islamic State coalition of planning to allow the jihadists such a safe passage. But it could also hamper the escape of civilians from the area of Mosul, which is Iraq's second biggest city and where the militants are reportedly trying to use residents as human shields. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Tuesday that blocking the road to Syria was the responsibility of the coalition that is providing air and ground support to Iraqi and Kurdish troops engaged in the battle. Tal Afar's pre-war population of about 150,0000 to 200,000 was a mix of Sunni and Shi'ite ethnic Turkmens until Shi'ites fled the town after Islamic State's ultra-hardline Sunni militants took over the region in 2014, declaring a 'caliphate' over swathes of Iraq and Syria. "The Iranians and the (PMF) plan to take Tal Afar because of the Shiite significance and use that as a way to angle in to Mosul," said a senior Iraqi official who asked not to be named. "But they also want to use it as a way to angle into the Syria fight." SECTARIAN DIVISIONS Iraqi government forces are mostly fighting on the southern front and were trying on Wednesday to clear the region of Shora, 40 km (25 miles) south of the city, a military statement said. Kurdish Peshmerga fighters were deployed on the eastern and northern frontlines, 20 to 25 km from the city. "The PMF will be backing the security forces on the western front (..) along two axes. The first is Tal Afar and the second is to support the forces going into the center of Mosul," a statement on the PMF website said. The announcement came despite warnings from human rights groups that PMF involvement could ignite sectarian violence. Shi'ites make up a majority in Iraq but Sunnis are predominant in the north and the west of the country. The PMF officially reports to the Shi'ite-led government of Abadi, who announced on Monday the start of the Mosul offensive. It was formed in 2014 to help push back Islamic State's sweeping advance through the northern and western provinces. Abadi has sought to allay fears of sectarian bloodshed, saying that the army and the police will be the only forces allowed to enter the city. Amnesty International on Tuesday published a report saying Shi'ite militias had committed "serious human rights violations, including war crimes" against civilians fleeing Islamic State-held territory. The United Nations said in July it had a list of more than 640 Sunni Muslim men and boys reportedly abducted by a Shiite militia in Falluja, a former militant stronghold west of Baghdad, and about 50 others who were summarily executed or tortured to death. The government and the PMF say a limited number of violations did occur and were investigated, but they deny the abuses were widespread and systematic. Iraqi officials and residents of Mosul say Islamic State is preventing people from leaving the city but civilians are fleeing from outlying districts and villages. The United Nations has warned that some 100,000 people may arrive in Syria from the Mosul area. Save the Children said on Wednesday about 5,000 people, mostly women and children, had arrived at the Al Hol camp in Syria in the last 10 days. "At least a thousand more are now massing at the border waiting to cross," the organization said in a statement. (Reporting by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Gareth Jones) By Josh Smith KABUL (Reuters) - A gunman, reportedly in an Afghan army uniform, shot dead two American advisers and wounded three on Wednesday near a base outside the Afghan capital before being killed himself, officials said. The American deaths included one soldier and one civilian, while one soldier and two civilians were injured and in stable condition, the U.S. military command in Kabul said. "The two individuals were killed during an attack near a coalition base by an unknown assailant, who was later killed," it said in a statement. "They were conducting duties as part of the larger NATO mission to train, advise and assist the Afghan security services." About 13,000 international troops and thousands of civilian contractors remain in Afghanistan to train and assist government forces battling Taliban insurgents who seek to reimpose fundamentalist Islamic rule 15 years after they lost power in a U.S.-led military intervention. The lone gunman opened fire while the Americans were at the gate of an Afghan military ammunition supply depot near Camp Moreshead outside Kabul, said a U.S. official. The shooting took place at about 11 a.m., while the international troops were visiting a base in Kabul, said Dawlat Waziri, an Afghan Defence Ministry spokesman. While the suspected attacker remains unidentified, reports indicate he was wearing an Afghan army uniform, he said. U.S. officials said they were investigating the incident. (Additional reporting by Idrees Ali in Washington; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Mark Heinrich) We originally werent going to draw attention to the Late Show return of Laura Benantis fabulous Melania Trump impression, but Stephen Colbert egged us on. (And therefore, its really all his fault.) VIDEOSFamily Guys Peter Griffin Joins Donald Trump and Billy Bush on Infamous Access Hollywood Bus Benanti returned to CBS late-night talker in the wake of Mrs. Donald Trumps recent interviews, in which she denounced those who accused her husband of sexual violence and said Access Hollywood host Billy Bush encouraged Trump to brag about grabbing women by the py in a 2005 video. Speaking to Colbert via satellite, the could-be First Lady chalked The Donalds banter up to locker room talk. I did not know this, but when American men gather to sport, they always brag about grabbing women by the Billybush, she explained, giving female genitalia an all new nickname. Boys, men, its all the same. No matter how nice they seem, they are all secretly foul-mouthed, Billybush-grabbing pigs. Im talking about your husband, your brother, the Pope, Luke Skywalker. All of them Theyre all animals. If only a women could be president! Once Colbert pointed out that Donalds opponent, Hillary Clinton, is a woman, Melania faked a bad connection and dove off camera. VIDEOSStephen Colbert Helps Obama Punch Up His Resume on Late Show As youll recall, Benantis first visit as Melania came in July, when the Supergirl star mocked the potential First Ladys Republican National Convention speech, which plagiarized remarks given by First Lady Michelle Obama. What did you think of Benantis Melania reprise? Sound off in the comments! Launch Gallery: Second Presidential Debate: Winners and Losers Related stories CBS Orders Apocalyptic Asteroid Thriller Salvation From Fringe EP Bull's Ex Cast With Jane the Virgin Star Man With a Plan Review: Plan to Avoid Matt LeBlanc's Dreadful New Sitcom vf summit Chamath Palihapitiya has a plan to save Twitter: Make it a little bit more like Reddit. Palihapitiya, the principal of venture capital firm Social Capital is one of Silicon Valley's most outspoken investors, and he did not disappoint on stage on Wednesday at Vanity Fair's New Establishment Summit in San Francisco. Vanity Fair's Nick Bilton asked the panelists, who also included Box CEO Aaron Levie and Kleiner Perkins partner Mary Meeker, what they'd do if they were asked today to take over Twitter for Jack Dorsey. Palihapitiya had a three-part plan: Reduce the cost basis , which he said "makes no sense" and limits the company's ability to innovate. Palihapitiya said Twitter spends about one-third as much money as Facebook does on operating the service, even though it has about one-sixth as many users (about 300 million per month to Facebook's approximately 1.7 billion), and limits the length of posts to 140 characters. When Levie suggested it was crazy that Twitter hadn't been able to address its problems with trolling and abuse of users, Palihapitiya said, "The product is technically broken." Figure out the product vision. Palihapitiya said that Twitter shows there's a demand for something between Facebook and Reddit, where some content in the news feed is chosen algorithmically (like Facebook), but you can dive deeper into particular subjects if you want to (like Reddit). He thinks Twitter needs to do a better job enabling the deep-dive part. "It's impossible to engage deeply in the product," he said. "I'd change that." Restore morale. "That is a broken culture now," Palihapitiya said. "People who are there now are probably really sad." He pointed out that Twitter was able to create a product that hundreds of millions of people use every month, and he says there are still good people there. "Liberate them from whatever they're dealing with now." Story continues Meeker said it's easy to talk about turnarounds but hard to execute them, suggesting that it would take at least 100 days for anybody new to come in and fix what ails the company. "Rome wasn't built on 140 characters," Meeker quipped. NOW WATCH: The 7 best TV shows on Netflix you've probably never heard of More From Business Insider Voice Activated Personal Assistants This story was delivered to BI Intelligence "Digital Media Briefing" subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here. The University of Leeds is working on an artificial intelligence project that tracks the audio and visual movements of TV characters in order to digitally breathe new life into them, Quartz reports. While the projects end results are currently far from perfect, the ability to reanimate TV characters and effectively recreate human personalities has far-reaching implications. In particular, the domains of video content creation and, perhaps more importantly, the world of smart-assistant AIs could benefit. Heres how the Leeds teams project for capturing, re-captioning, recreating audio and visuals works: Powered by AI. The Leeds team uses a series of algorithms to isolate and analyze a TV characters voice, body language, and facial expressions. Meanwhile, they apply machine learning to peruse the shows script and dialogue, to learn how characters speak. The algorithms then apply this data to reanimate and vocalize a characters interactions. Starting with Friends. The first so-called "immortal character" that the Leeds team is working on is Joey from the hit comedy sitcom Friends. The algorithm is trained on over 200 episodes of the show, totaling 4,400 hours of video and thousands of pages of script. Moving forward, the research could be applied to any range of video content, from TV shows to film to unscripted reality. A crude proof-of-concept. For now, the short videos generated by the Leeds algorithm are unrefined and rudimentary compared to the original clip. But the team is working on making these artificially-created videos virtually indistinguishable from the original. The end result will gradually become closer-to-form as the algorithm ingests more data and increases in sophistication. There are big implications for this kind of research, particularly around content creation and AI-powered assistants: Story continues Creating new video from archives. The Leeds project resembles a study from Stanford that uses AI to manipulate images of a persons lip movements in real-time. This kind of technology can be used to stage a speech or manufacture some other kind video scene. In the future, we could see a new Friends episode appear every week ad infinitum thanks to the power of the Leeds algorithms. Personalizing virtual assistants. The Stanford study uses algorithms to manipulate a person's facial expressions, but the Leeds project goes a step further in its aim to preserve and reanimate the range of a characters personality. This has direct implications for AI-powered virtual assistants. The Leeds researchers themselves noted that personalities reincarnated through their algorithms could eventually be layered onto iPhones Siri or Amazon Echos Alexa. Over the last few years, theres been much talk about the death of TV. However, television is not dying so much as it's evolving: extending beyond the traditional television screen and broadening to include programming from new sources accessed in new ways. It's strikingly evident that more consumers are shifting their media time away from live TV, while opting for services that allow them to watch what they want, when they want. Indeed, we are seeing a migration toward original digital video such as YouTube Originals, SVOD services such as Netflix, and live streaming on social platforms. However, not all is lost for legacy media companies. Amid this rapidly shifting TV landscape, traditional media companies are making moves across a number of different fronts trying out new distribution channels, creating new types of programming aimed at a mobile-first audience, and partnering with innovate digital media companies. In addition, cable providers have begun offering alternatives for consumers who may no longer be willing to pay for a full TV package. Dylan Mortensen, senior research analyst for BI Intelligence, has compiled a detailed report on the future of TV that looks at how TV viewer, subscriber, and advertising trends are shifting, and where and what audiences are watching as they turn away from traditional TV. Here are some key points from the report: Increased competition from digital services like Netflix and Hulu as well as new hardware to access content are shifting consumers' attention away from live TV programming. Across the board, the numbers for live TV are bad. US adults are watching traditional TV on average 18 minutes fewer per day versus two years ago, a drop of 6%. In keeping with this, cable subscriptions are down, and TV ad revenue is stagnant. People are consuming more media content than ever before, but how they're doing so is changing. Half of US TV households now subscribe to SVOD services, like Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu, and viewing of original digital video content is on the rise. Legacy TV companies are recognizing these shifts and beginning to pivot their business models to keep pace with the changes. They are launching branded apps and sites to move their programming beyond the TV glass, distributing on social platforms to reach massive, young audiences, and forming partnerships with digital media brands to create new content. The TV ad industry is also taking a cue from digital. Programmatic TV ad buying represented just 4% (or $2.5 billion) of US TV ad budgets in 2015 but is expected to grow to 17% ($10 billion) by 2019. Meanwhile, networks are also developing branded TV content, similar to publishers' push into sponsored content. In full, the report: Outlines the shift in consumer viewing habits, specifically the younger generation. Explores the rise of subscription streaming services and the importance of original digital video content. Breaks down ways in which legacy media companies are shifting their content and advertising strategies. And Discusses new technology that will more effectively measure audiences across screens and platforms. Interested in getting the full report? Here are two ways to access it: Subscribe to an All-Access pass to BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report and over 100 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. START A MEMBERSHIP Purchase & download the full report from our research store. BUY THE REPORT More From Business Insider Mosul update. No one thought the road to Mosul would be easy, and Iraqi and Kurdish forces are taking it slow, fighting through villages and roadside bombs as they battle their way to the outskirts of the Islamic State-held city. On Wednesday, after moving from the south and east, the Iraqi troops were ordered to take a 48-hour pause in their advance, according to the Wall Street Journal, in order to consolidate gains and allow follow-on forces to catch up. A Kurdish general predicted that it would take two months to take the city. Elsewhere, Lt Gen Qassim al-Maliki, commander of the Iraqi 9th armored division, told CNN that his forces had cleared 13 villages to the south of the city in the first two days of fighting, while taking out dozens of suicide vehicles and clearing roadside bombs. The forces now are dealing with small pockets of Daesh members hiding in makeshift tunnels, he said, using an alternate name for the Islamic State. Human shields. The expected wave of refugees expected to flow out of Mosul once the fight for the city itself begins has yet to materialize, but Iraqi and Kurdish forces are still well outside the city. Theres evidence that ISIS is already using human shields however. This has been going on for several weeks where weve seen civilians being forcibly detained and their movements being prevented where they cant get out of Mosul, Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters Tuesday. They are being held there against their will. Inside Mosul, reports are emerging that paranoia and brutality are rampant, as ISIS has launched a new campaign of terror and revenge, killing anyone suspected of trying to communicate with the outside world, or flee the city. Whos bombing Mosul? There appears to be some confusion over whether or not Turkey has reached a deal with the U.S.-led coalition to participate in the airstrikes on Mosul. On Tuesday, the Turkish government Tweeted comments by Defense Minister Fikri Isik that, we reached an agreement with coalition forces to include our Air Force into #Mosul operation. Problem is, that message doesnt appear to have reached the coalition. Two U.S. defense officials told SitRep they had not heard of any such deal, and that Turkey had not been added to Tuesdays Air Tasking Order, which assigns targets for airstrikes. Story continues Where are the Shiite militias? Theyre staying out of the fight and holding positions well outside of the city at staging bases near Makhmour, U.S. defense officials have told SitRep. The Iranian-backed fighters and their advisors from the Iranian Qods force are expected to eventually deploy west of Mosul near the town of Tal Afar to establish blocking positions as ISIS fighters attempt to flee west to Syria. Economic cost of losing Mosul. During the height of its power in Iraq in 2015, the Islamic State was able to pull in about $30 million per month from taxation and extortion. But those days are over, Hisham al-Hashimi, an expert on ISIS who advises the Iraqi government, told the AP. The militant group currently rakes in about $4 million per month from taxes in Mosul alone, so losing the city and being pushed out of its last urban stronghold in the country would be a huge economic blow to the organization. Whats next. Well get an update on the fight Wednesday morning at 10:00 a.m. when the American ground commander working with the Iraqis on the Mosul offensive, Maj. Gen. Gary Volesky, briefs reporters at the Pentagon. Livestream here. And head of U.S. central Command, Gen. Joseph Votel, discusses U.S. strategy in the Middle East at 12:00 p.m. at the Center for American Progress. Livestream here. On Thursday, Defense Secretary Ash Carter heads out on a trip to the Middle East and Europe, stopping off in Turkey, United Arab Emirates, France and Belgium. We would be surprised if Baghdad wasnt added to the list, as well. Carter will sit down with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with whom Washington has had an uneasy relationship since the failed military coup in Ankara in July. Good morning and as always, if you have any thoughts, announcements, tips, or national security-related events to share, please pass them along to SitRep HQ. Best way is to send them to: paul.mcleary@foreignpolicy.com or on Twitter: @paulmcleary or @arawnsley China Satellite imagery posted on Chinese social media hints that China may have pressed its Guizhou Soar Dragon drone into production, Defence Blog reports. Imagery of the Chengdu Aircraft Corporations airfield shows two drones that closely resemble the Soar Dragon parked on the apron of the facility. The Soar Dragon bears a resemblance to the Raytheon-built RQ-4 Global Hawk drone used by the U.S. Air Force and Navy. Pictures of the Chengdu Aircraft plant taken in July showed other Soar Dragons under construction Chinas saying it might consider throwing a bone to Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte ahead of his visit to Beijing. The two countries have clashed over rival maritime territorial claims in the South China Sea but anonymous Chinese government source tell Reuters that theyre thinking about letting fishermen from the Philippines use the waters off the disputed Scarborough Shoal without objection. The offer, for the moment, isnt firm and comes with conditions conditions which the sources declined to spell out. Islamic State As the noose tightens around the Islamic States last strongholds in Iraq and Syria, Europe is bracing for the prospect of foreign fighters heading home to flee the collapsing caliphate. Julian King, the European Unions Commissioner for Security, said that hes not worried about a flood tide of returning foreign fighters, but rather the very serious threat that a small number of returnees could pose as the fight to liberate Mosul drags on. Around 2,500 Europeans have traveled abroad to various battlefield, according to King. Iraq Reuters gets the scoop on a previously unreported incident of suspected chemical weapons use by the Islamic State in Iraq a threat anonymous U.S. defense officials tell the wire service they expect to see more of as the campaign to liberate Mosul continues. American troops have reportedly confirmed the presence of mustard agent in munitions fired by the jihadist group. In September, the Defense Department reported a suspected case of chemical weapons use by the Islamic State against American troops in Iraq only to see subsequent laboratory testing discount the presence of sulphur mustard. Afghanistan The Taliban are in the midst of secret (or at least formerly secret) talks in Qatar opposite the Afghan government. Anonymous senior Afghan officials tell Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports that Afghan and Taliban officials have been engaged in talks since September. The meeting represents the first engagement between the two sides since the U.S. military killed Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansoor in a drone strike in Pakistan. Dangerous waters The seas around the Middle East are tense for American ships following a spate of encounters between Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy in the Persian Gulf and off the coast of Yemen, where Houthi militants have been launching missiles at U.S. ships. The American Enterprise Institutes Matthew McInnis offers a few reasons why the region is getting more dangerous. According to McInnis, Iran is keen to emphasize that its still a sworn foe of the U.S., despite the recent nuclear agreement and its been steadily improving its weapons capabilities and those of its proxies. Wifi trouble The Ecuadorian government confirmed in a statement that it has stopped providing Internet access to its most famous houseguest, Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks. The New York Times reports that a statement from Ecuadorian foreign ministry issued on Tuesday explained that officials cut off Assanges Internet access because it did not want to interfere in electoral processes of the United States an apparent reference to WikiLeaks publishing of emails hacked from the Clinton campaigns network. WikiLeaks accused the State Department of pressuring Ecuador to stop the release of the hacked data, but the Department denied the claims in a statement on Tuesday. Photo Credit: Feriq Ferec/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images (Corrects paragraph 2 to add dropped word 'pretax') Oct 19 (Reuters) - Laird Plc, a supplier to smartphone makers including Apple Inc, plummeted in early trading after it warned of lower full-year profit, saying that production growth for mobile devices this year was lagging previous cycles and that it had "poor" visibility on order volumes. Shares in the company nearly halved to 156.10 pence posting its worst single day drop. The electronic component maker's profit warning follows troubles facing Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, which analysts say is a key customer for Laird. Samsung scrapped its flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphone last week less than two months after its launch, after failing to resolve safety concerns with the device. Laird said it expected full-year underlying pretax profit to be about 50 million pounds ($61 million), lower than 73.1 million pounds it earned in the year ended December 2015, adding that it "experienced increased margin pressure due to unprecedented pricing pressures." Laird, which is on Apple's official list of suppliers, had not previously given any guidance for the full year. Apple said in July that it had sold 40.4 million iPhones in the third quarter, down 15 percent from the year-ago quarter, noting a drop in sales for its flagship product for the second straight quarter. Laird said on Wednesday that revenue in the performance materials unit, its biggest business by revenue, fell 5 percent on a constant currency basis in the third quarter ended Sept. 30. In August, Laird lost its top boss to struggling British aerospace and defence company Cobham Plc and appointed CFO Tony Quinlan to take over as chief executive on Sept. 5. ($1 = 0.8149 pounds) (Reporting by Pranav Kiran in Bengaluru; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier and Amrutha Gayathri) London (AFP) - Olympic gymnast Louis Smith missed a victory parade in London for Britain's Rio medallists in London's Trafalgar Square and a subsequent reception at Buckingham Palace to visit mosques after he appeared to mock Islam. Online video footage showed Smith, 27, and fellow gymnast Luke Carson laughing whilst pretending to pray and shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is great). This year's Olympic Games in Rio saw Smith win a silver medal on the pommel horse, with British team-mate Max Whitlock taking gold. Four-time medallist Smith, in a message posted on his Facebook page on Tuesday, said: "I accepted the offer to learn more about the Muslim community and Islam. I honestly can say it was actually a really good day. "I was a little nervous and anxious before visiting because of the events in the last week. But the people and the community were so understanding and inviting." Smith, who is facing disciplinary action by British gymnastics, added: "We discussed my actions and they showed me what they learn and the true meaning behind their religion of peace. The community work they do for various charities is actually crazy and the money raised each year would blow your mind." The Smithsonian just launched a Kickstarter to save Dorothys ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz! The Wizard of Oz just may be the most classic childrens movie of all time (or lets be real, the most classic movie, ever). Every song, character, and costume is iconic. So its no surprise that the Smithsonian just launched a Kickstarter to repair Dorothys ruby slippers. See, back in the day, the MGM prop department didnt know the movie was going to become so immensely successful, so they didnt know that those iconic slippers would actually have to last. The shoes have been on display at the Museum of American History for decades now, and theyre starting to fall apart (hey, they are like 80-years-old). dorothy The museum which according to the Hollywood Reporter is federally funded, can receive donations from the public. This means that a platform like Kickstarter is kind of perfect for super specific needs like this. And their goal is to raise $300,000 to not only prevent further deterioration and fading of the shoes, but to purchase a super special display case that will better preserve them for future generations. If the museum doesnt reach its goal, your donation will be returned. scarecrow So if youre a big movie buff and think art (because film is art, people!) is worth preserving, then consider donating. Future generations of Oz-lovers will surely thank you! Go here to donate! The post The Smithsonian just launched a Kickstarter to save Dorothys ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz! appeared first on HelloGiggles. By Joyce Lee SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korean prosecutors said on Wednesday they have indicted 22 current and former officials of Lotte Group including Chairman Shin Dong-bin, as well as two entire group companies, concluding a corruption probe at the country's fifth-largest conglomerate. The announcement marks the end of an investigation during which billion-dollar deals involving Lotte collapsed. Business at the retail-to-chemicals group is now expected to normalize, though those indicted are likely to undergo months-long trials. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said in a statement it indicted Shin and other members of Lotte's owner-family, as well as present and past executives and employees, plus Lotte Home Shopping and Lotte Engineering & Construction Co Ltd [LTCNS.UL] during the probe which became public in June. Prosecutors said they have charged Shin with embezzlement of about 50.8 billion won ($45.2 million), and breach of trust involving about 124.9 billion won for perceived involvement in irregular payments to family members and unlawful support of group companies. "We will clearly explain the issues that the prosecution deems problematic," a Lotte Group spokesman told Reuters. Shin is the latest chaebol leader - or boss at the family-run business groups that dominate Asia's fourth-largest economy - to be charged for corporate crimes. Past cases involved the heads of Samsung Group, Hyundai Motor Group and SK Group. Last month, the Seoul Central District Court turned down prosecutors' request for an arrest warrant for Shin after he appeared at a court hearing, saying it did not view detention as necessary. Though now indicted, Shin has not been detained and, like all defendants, is presumed innocent unless a court rules otherwise. That means he can continue running Lotte Group and its 103 trillion won ($91.64 billion) worth of assets for the foreseeable future. His group had been preparing a $4.5 billion initial public offering (IPO) of Hotel Lotte Co Ltd [HTLOT.UL], but shelved the plan after prosecutors' investigation became public. Story continues The group may not be able to restart the IPO while trials continue, but it plans to announce measures to improve governance and also seek mergers and acquisitions, a person with knowledge of the group's discussions told Reuters on Wednesday. The person was not authorized to speak with media about plans before official announcements and so declined to be identified. (Reporting by Joyce Lee; Editing by Christopher Cushing) Sri Lankan police Wednesday exhumed the body of a retired army spy whose supposed suicide note claimed responsibility for the 2009 murder of a prominent anti-establishment newspaper editor, a police officer said. The 52-year-old former military intelligence officer was found hanging at his home in central Sri Lanka five days ago and was buried shortly afterwards, the senior police source said. But police now suspect the suicide note found in his pocket at the time of his death may not be genuine and want to determine his link to any criminal activity that could have led to his murder. "There had been lapses in the first autopsy and the body is exhumed to carry out fresh forensic tests," the officer told AFP on condition of anonymity. "We are looking at his fingerprints to see if he had been involved in any criminal activity." Investigators have begun checking his phone records and bank accounts since his retirement nine years ago. Last month authorities reopened the investigation into the January 2009 killing of editor Lasantha Wickrematunga, a fierce critic of the then-strongman president Mahinda Rajapakse. A serving military intelligence officer is already in custody in connection with Wickrematunga's death, which sparked an international outcry and shone a spotlight on violence against the media. Last month authorities also exhumed Wickrematunga's body to conduct a fresh autopsy after fears that forensic evidence may have been tampered with or falsified to mislead the investigation. Wickrematunga was the chief editor of the Sunday Leader newspaper which had accused Rajapakse's then-powerful defence secretary brother Gotabhaya of kickbacks in arms purchases, including an aircraft deal. Last year a former minister in Rajapakse's government accused Gotabhaya of running a death squad and ordering the hit against the editor. The newspaper was highly critical of rights abuses by troops against ethnic minority Tamils during the island's long-running separatist conflict that ended in 2009. Some 17 journalists and media employees were killed in Sri Lanka under Rajapakse's regime. Starbucks Collectors, get your wallets ready. Your favourite coffee brand in the world has launched 2 new series of mugs & tumblers you would love to collect. The good news is, they come in a series of iconic attractions that represent each region in Japan & Korea. The bad news is, youll want to collect the entire collection because owning just one of them is incomplete. Check out the full collection below: Starbucks Japan Geography Series It has been 20 years since Starbucks launched in Japan! To celebrate the joyous occasion, theyve launched special geography series in 13 regions including Osaka, Kobe, Tokyo, Yokohama and others. starbucks japan geography series source Each set of stainless steel tumblers, bottle, mug and city cards represents the unique attractions of each region. In Yokohama, the set features surfers and seagulls, whereas in Okinawa, a lady in kimono playing the Shamisen. With a set of 4 pcs representing each of the 13 region, you will need to collect all 52 pieces to complete the attraction! The challenge though, is that you cant get them all in one Starbucks store. Youll have to visit each region to purchase the regions specific geography series. You can find out the exact location to buy them here. Want to know the easier way out? Check out how were getting travellers to help us buy them from the various regions in Japan! Starbucks Korea City Mugs & Tumblers! Just launched yesterday (18 Oct), the collection launched in Starbucks Korea also has a city theme series featuring major cities like Seoul, Busan, Jeju & Gyeongju. Seouls tower, Busans laid back beaches and Jejus scenic greenery are some of the illustrations found on this series of demi mugs and tumblers. Fortunately, we dont have to travel all over Korea just to collect this series. The city mugs and tumblers can be found at all Starbucks stores regardless of designs! New items #starbucks #starbuckskorea #starbuckstumbler #starbucksmug #jualstarbucks #jualanstarbucks A photo posted by Guide And Open PO From Korea (@seoul_market) on Oct 18, 2016 at 5:32pm PDT Story continues P.S Christmas collection coming soon! Want a fuss-free method to collect them all? Ask a traveller whos in Korea right now to help you buy them! 1) Click on + to copy others requests on this page. Travellers who are going to Japan or Korea will be notified of your request 2) Travellers will offer to help you buy (make sure you check your email/app notification!) 3) You can choose to accept travellers offer if it matches your requirements, or decline 4) Place a secured deposit, it will be held with Airfrov until traveller returns 5) Collect the item at our office, or opt for courier delivery to your place! Photos from Starbucks Japan & Starbucks Korea The post Starbucks Japan Geography Series & Korea City Mugs appeared first on Airfrov Blog. By Lisa Baertlein Oct 19 (Reuters) - Starbucks Corp on Wednesday named its first chief executive officer for China and said it plans to more than double its store count in that country to 5,000 by 2021. The world's biggest coffee chain promoted Belinda Wong to the title of CEO of Starbucks China. Wong, who had been president of that operation, will continue to report to John Culver, group president of Starbucks Global Retail. Among other things, Wong will oversee the opening of Starbucks' first international Roastery and Reserve Tasting Room in Shanghai in 2017. Starbucks opened the first of its sprawling roasteries in Seattle in 2014 to showcase super-premium coffee beans and brewing methods. It was a move by the company to assert itself as a player in an upscale niche being defined by newer cafe chains such as Blue Bottle and Intelligentsia. Starbucks has operated in China for 17 years. The world's fastest-growing major economy has been a key development market for the coffee chain, which now has more than 2,300 cafes in 100-plus cities there. Starbucks also promoted Leo Tsoi to the role of chief operating officer for Starbucks China. He was most recently vice president of store development and design for the division. (Reporting by Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles; Editing by Nick Zieminski) starbucks china Starbucks is seriously ramping up its growth in China. In the last five years, Starbucks has grown from 400 stores to 2,300 stores in China. By 2021, the company plans to have 5,000 locations in the country. According to CEO Howard Schultz, the coffee giant is opening a new store in the China every day. "I am quite convinced that, over time, China will be larger than the US and larger than any market we have in the world," Schultz told Business Insider. The first Starbucks opened in China 17 years ago. For years, the coffee giant has taken a slow and steady approach to expansion likely inspired by international struggles in countries such as Australia, where the coffee giant failed to meet the local needs. In an effort to better identify and meet regional tastes, Starbucks has leaned heavily on local talent while building its business in China. On Wednesday, Starbucks announced the promotion of Belinda Wong from president to the first-ever CEO of Starbucks China. According to Schultz, Wong and the rest of the Starbucks China team have been key to guiding the chain in creating locally relevant stores and products that are designed for the Chinese palate. "We want to apply the same discipline and thoughtfulness and, most importantly, respect for the Chinese customer... and realize that our success in US does not give us the license to succeed anywhere else in the world," says Schultz. "We have to earn it." NOW WATCH: Starbucks is hoping this new fall drink will be their next Pumpkin Spice Latte More From Business Insider On Wednesday, coffee giant Starbucks Corp. SBUX announced that it is ramping up its expansion into China, with the company on track to have a total of 5,000 store locations by 2021. CEO Howard Schultz met with the Shanghai Party Secretary Mr. Han Zheng, and received full support from the government for the expansion and its first international Starbucks Roastery and Reserve Tasting Room. The China Roastery will be similar to the one in Seattle where customers can watch coffee beans get roasted and sip coffee drinks. At this rate, Starbucks will double the amount of stores in China in just five years. The company is looking at the country to fuel future growth; Mr. Schultz has said in the past that China could potentially surpass the U.S. as Starbucks biggest market, where there are roughly 13,000 stores. Starbucks opened its first China location 17 years ago, and its been a long road for the company in the region. In an interview with CNN, Mr. Schultz said that "We had to educate and teach many Chinese about what coffee was -- the coffee ritual, what a latte wasSo in the early years, we did not make money." Now, Chinese consumers are spending much more money on coffee and food in Starbucks stores than Americans, said Mr. Schultz. Like many food and beverage companies do overseas, Starbucks has added unique, regional flavors to its China menus. It serves a Black Forest Latte, which is a mix of coffee, cocoa powder, and cherry juice, as well as traditional Chinese teas and mooncake treats. Starbucks named Belinda Wong as the first CEO of its China division in order to oversee the expansion. Ms. Wong has been with the coffee maker for 16 years, and was previously the president of Starbucks China. Stocks that Aren't in the NewsYet You are invited to download the full, up-to-the-minute list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 "Strong Buys" free of charge. Many of these companies are almost unheard of by the general public and just starting to get noticed by Wall Street. They have been pinpointed by the Zacks system that nearly tripled the market from 1988 through 2015, with a stellar average gain of +26% per year. See these high-potential stocks now >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report STARBUCKS CORP (SBUX): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Reali cofounders Amit Haller and Ami Avrahami Amit Haller is living the American dream. He sold his startup for $42 million in 2006 and became a Bay Area real-estate tycoon. Now he has launched another tech startup taking on the real-estate industry with a new way to buy and sell homes entirely though an app. The new company, Reali, came from the experience he and his business partner, Ami Avrahami, had as real-estate investors. "We bought and sold hundreds of houses and rental properties, and did development from the ground up. We saw many different angles in real estate. I've walked with, and I'm not exaggerating, over 100 different agents," Haller told Business Insider. These days in the Valley's insane real-estate market, every purchase is a frustrating bidding war that relies too much on the real-estate agents, he said. "Why does a simple negotiation become so complicated? Our agent needs to negotiate with the other agent, who needs to negotiate with the seller, and many times it's going nowhere, and you never know where the message broke," he said. He tells the story of his friends who lost out on their dream house because their agent went to a party for a few hours. By the time the agent saw an email from the seller's agent, the seller had already accepted a counteroffer. And there's no way to tell if you are losing a bid for a relative pittance, Haller says. "To find the perfect home takes time, and then to lose it by $10,000 to someone else is very frustrating," he said. "If I could just know it would take another $10,000 to win it that's nothing when Bay Area pricing is $2 million for a home." So Haller and Avrahami built an app for their own use that would put them in control and move the human real-estate agent into a supporting role. They liked it so much that they released it to the public and launched a company. Self-service real estate Reali real estate app Lots of apps let you browse a home online, and Reali matches them. Story continues However, with Reali, you apply to become a qualified buyer through the app, submitting the documents of your prequalified loan. A person reviews those documents and validates them. Once you're qualified, you go shopping. If you see something you like, you schedule a tour. The app can unlock the door, so a real-estate agent doesn't have to accompany you. And "info beacons" placed around the home will alert the app to the home's unique features so you don't miss them. "When I buy a house, I want to be there myself to see it, feel it, sense it. If you have a question, you can click, and someone can answer," Haller said a person is standing by to answer questions about the property. If you like the house, you submit your offer through the app, too. You conduct the bidding through it and are informed of counteroffers. "It's a broker in your pocket," Haller said. On top of that, Reali charges a flat fee of $2,950 to be the buyer's agent, and reimburses the buyer's agent commission, at closing, of 2.5% minus the fee. On a $1.7 million home, that rebate would put around $40,000 cash in your pocket, according to Reali. Reali charges 4% commission on houses it lists as the selling agent. The downside: Reali is currently available only in California, with listings only in the Bay Area. California is the company's first brokerage license. However, the company plans to expand to more cites and states starting in about a year, Haller says. Here's Reali's promo video to give you a better sense of what working with an app instead of a real-estate agent is like: NOW WATCH: The internet cant decide whether this purse is white or blue More From Business Insider Colbert Milania YouTube CBS On Monday, Melania Trump, wife of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, did interviews with CNN and Fox News defending her husband in the wake of the leaked "Access Hollywood" footage in which he made offensive comments about women. And on Tuesday night, "Late Show" host Stephen Colbert was there to put his comedic twist on the interview. Bringing back Broadway star Laura Benanti to impersonate Melania, Colbert did an "interview" via satellite, which led to some hilarious moments. Benanti as Melania said she has forgiven her husband because his remarks were just "locker room talk." I did not know this, but when American men gather to sport, they always brag about grabbing women by the Billy Bush, she said. She went on to say that the focus should be on how the election is rigged by the "left-wing media, international bankers, and Billy Bush." Benanti's Melania also went on to say that all men are "animals." "If only a woman could be president," she said. Watch the complete segment below: NOW WATCH: Here is the best cosplay of the 2016 New York Comic Con More From Business Insider JAKARTA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Operations at Freeport-McMoRan Inc's giant Grasberg open pit copper mine in Indonesia have been halted since Monday for an investigation into a fatal bulldozer incident, an Indonesian newspaper reported on Wednesday. "Until now permission has not been granted for them to resume," the Investor Daily newspaper on Wednesday quoted Coal and Minerals Director General Bambang Gatot as saying the day before. The investigation into the death of one worker and injury of another in the accident was expected to take four days, he said. A spokesman for Freeport's Indonesian unit said one worker had died and another was injured in the incident on Monday, but did not answer phone calls and could not immediately respond to repeated written requests for further comment on the matter. Coal and Minerals Director General Bambang Gatot also did not immediately respond to written requests for comment. (Reporting by Fergus Jensen) Kinshasa (AFP) - Congo's normally bustling capital Kinshasa was shut down Wednesday by a strike to protest plans to extend the president's stay in power beyond the end of his term in December, AFP journalists said. Whilst the strike call was observed in the capital, where most shops were closed, there were few signs of stoppages in the Democratic Republic of Congo's second largest city Lubumbashi. in the south. But central Mbuji-Mayi, which is an opposition bastion, did come to a standstill. The opposition had called for a nationwide protest against a deal signed Tuesday which would keep President Joseph Kabila in power until April 2018 by effectively postponing the presidential vote scheduled for this year. The country's main opposition party, the UDPS, called the deal signed between the authorities and fringe opposition groups a "flagrant violation" of the constitution and said the strike would show Kabila "the yellow card". Braving teeming rain, gaggles of youths in Kinshasa did just that. "Today is just a warning. We are going to step up our actions until we reach our goal of not giving a single minute more to M. Kabila after December 19," said Jean-Marc Kabund, UDPS general secretary. Kabila first took office in 2001, and in 2006 a new constitutional provision limited the presidency to a two-term limit which expires on December 20. In Kinshasa -- a city of 10 million people -- roads were virtually deserted with public transport running empty and no sign of the many privately-run shared taxis that normally ply the city's roads. The only visible commercial activity taking place was women selling bread and petrol stations that were open but unused. The upmarket Gombe district was unusually quiet, and in Kasa-Vubu, a district in the south of the city, the only people on Victories Square were some 50 police officers. - Heavy police presence - Officers were deployed in force at other locations including parliament and at several military bases. Story continues Police reported several incidents of protesters stoning vehicles or burning tyres. But the city remained mostly calm unlike at last month's protests in which 49 civilians and four police were killed during violence, according to the UN. Authorities there had warned early this week that civil servants who failed to show up for work on Wednesday would face consequences. Calls for a strike were also ignored in Bukavu, according to an AFP correspondent there, as well as in northeastern Kisangani and in the country's sole deep water port, Matadi. However in Goma, eastern Congo, the call to down tools was followed to some extent, with most shops remaining closed though traffic appeared normal, according to two AFP journalists. In central Kananga, another big town, activity slowed in the morning while in the western town of Mbandaka people headed for work, albeit wearing yellow as a sign of protest. At Goma on the Rwandan border traffic was about normal but most shops stayed closed while some 200 protesters urged Kabila to understand that "(your) mandate is finished! You must go!" In Lubumbashi, however, Kyungu Kabulo, a money changer, told AFP that, while "we agree with opposition, I have a large family to support," requiring him to carry on working. This week's controversial agreement to allow Kabila to serve into 2018 emerged after the EU threatened sanctions if the country did not hold elections in 2017. It was concluded at "national dialogue" talks aimed at reducing tensions triggered by disquiet that the president wants to remain indefinitely. But the main opposition coalition -- "Rassemblement" (Gathering) -- headed by veteran opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi boycotted the talks, branding them a ploy by Kabila to stay in power beyond the end of his term. About six months ago, the White House announced a campaign -- the Student Debt Challenge -- to raise awareness of the existence of income-driven repayment options. In this week's post, the Student Loan Ranger updates readers on the initiative's impact. There's no argument that college can be expensive -- and the costs continue to rise. Recent statistics show that the majority of the fastest growing occupations in the U.S. require higher education. While policymakers and presidential candidates work on ways to make college more affordable, the current and past administrations have put multiple income-driven repayment plans in place to at least help ease the burden of student debt. [Look at this side-by-side comparison of three income-based repayment plans.] The problem, though, was that many borrowers weren't aware that these options existed. The Student Debt Challenge aims to help borrowers better understand their repayment options, and the plan's goal is to enroll 2 million more federal student loan borrowers into an income-driven plan. The idea behind the initiative is to get employers involved in helping spread the word about these options. For example, Fidelity Investments introduced a program called the Step Ahead Student Loan assistance program, which not only provides tenured employees with a student loan repayment benefit but also educates them on their repayment and, if eligible, forgiveness options. Rite Aid is also working with their 90,000 associates to ensure they are aware of the income-driven plans as well as reminding them of when to enroll and recertify their plans on an annual basis. And the National Housing Resource Center is training 500 housing counselors to work with clients to help them identify repayment plans that might help their overall financial circumstances. [Find out why student loan repayment may be the newest employee benefit.] These are just a few of the more than 40 organizations that have pledged to help spread the word and educate and advise borrowers on their repayment options. The Department of Education has also issued a free toolkit that employers can use to help educate their employees. Story continues So far, the results are encouraging. After just three months, the campaign has increased participation to 23 percent of all borrowers. That's a big jump from the 5 percent total enrollment four and a half years prior. The data also shows that these plans seem to be helping the exact populations it was intended to -- those with higher debts and lower incomes. What does this mean to prospective students and their families who are just starting to look into college financing? Although we always encourage families to minimize student debt to levels they know they will be affordable after graduation, choosing a field -- such as finance and business -- that tends to offer such employer assistance is another factor to consider. And now there is a growing trend of employers, both on their own and with the encouragement of the administration, who are assisting employees with managing their student debt. [Learn about new legislation on student loans that is under review.] While the benefit of student loan repayment isn't necessarily a new phenomenon, more recent college grads are looking for and more employers are now offering student loan repayment benefits in the form of payment reimbursement, help with student loan management or both. These benefits can help extend employee tenure, since young employees tend to switch jobs more often, as well as help relieve the stress of personal debt, which can increase employee productivity and decrease instances of internal fraud. The bottom line is that when it comes to student debt, it takes a village. Employers helping their employees to take on the challenge of student debt is just another logical aspect step in this process. Betsy Mayotte, director of consumer outreach and compliance for American Student Assistance, regularly advises consumers on planning and paying for college. Mayotte, who received a B.S. in business communications from Bentley College, responds to public inquiries via the advice resource "Just Ask" and is frequently quoted in traditional and social media on the topics of student loans and financial aid. From Country Living Owning a home in your 20s sounds like an impossible dream for many, but 24-year-old Maggie Butler pulled it off thanks to some seriously savvy DIY skills. Fresh out of college, Maggie returned home to Richmond, Tasmania, and needed somewhere to live. While she had the option to live with her parents, she wanted her own place, but couldn't afford an apartment just yet. She turned to her local Craigslist (known as Gumtree in Australia) and found a caravan for $2,000. The caravan was practically bare, so Maggie saw an opportunity to get creative. She purchased it, and brought it right outside her parents' home. Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler In just under a year, Maggie transformed the caravan into a full-fledged home, including a cozy bedroom nook, bathroom, shower, kitchenette, and living area. Our favorite part, however, might be her decor, which has an antique, vintage look. Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler The transformation may look nice, but it only cost her $6,000: The caravan was $2,000 and remodeling costs totaled $4,000 . Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler Maggie was able to keep costs impressively low by using recycled materials and remaking furniture pieces-as seen below-she found in the classifieds. In fact, she didn't spend more than $100 on any one thing! Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler Her friends also helped her install the wiring and plumbing, saving her from pricey professional installation. For almost everything else, Maggie did it on her own, relying on YouTube videos for DIY tips. "Doing it all myself was quite an experience, but it was really rewarding. I liked the challenge," she told the DailyMail. See more photos of the beautiful transformation below. Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler Photo credit: Courtesy of Maggie Butler (h/t DailyMail) For more from the Today Show , visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS. You Might Also Like From Harper's BAZAAR The retro MTV logo has found its way onto Marc Jacobs sweatshirts this season. Anya Hindmarch looked to Space Invaders for her Fall 2016 accessories collection. Zara even has a new line of Looney Tunes handbags and patched-up Wonder Woman jeans. It's safe to say our appetite for nostalgia has never been bigger. And now, one of our favorite '80s video game characters, Super Mario, is available as a hair color. Yes, hair color. Meet Super Mario pixel hair, a kind of dye art created by the group Xpresion Creativos out of Madrid, Spain. Photo credit: Saeho Kim Photo credit: Saeho Kim Photo credit: Saeho Kim When the model's hair is in motion or tousled, it just looks like she has multi-colored highlights placed in a peculiar location. But when her hair is laid flat and straight, two Mario figures-in their classic 1981 form-come into view. The masters behind the look, Xpresion Creativos, are a company dedicated purely R&D in hairdressing. They made a splash last year with the launch of their innovative pixelated hair color technique; applied in random blocks and shapes, it results in some crazy-graphic designs (check their Instagram feed for a better idea). But Xpresion Creativos debuted their latest pixel creation, Mario, at a hair conference last week in Tokyo, Japan. The team said it took about a week's worth of work to bring our favorite video game character to life in hair-form, and they did it to "honor video game culture that framed our childhood" (check out the video to see the design in motion, below). They liken the technique to architecture or working with Adobe Photoshop layers-we think it's just totally awesome (to borrow a phrase from the appropriate decade). You Might Also Like Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, expressed disappointment in the US presidential race on Wednesday. The Muslim cleric suggested in a pair of tweets ahead of the final presidential debate Wednesday night between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump that he was disenchanted with the issues being discussed in the run-up to November. One of the 2 main US presidential candidates will lead a country which has power, wealth & highest number of nukes & worlds biggest media! Khamenei.ir (@khamenei_ir) October 19, 2016 The race for the White House has turned increasingly ugly in recent weeks. Clinton has zeroed in on Trump for his treatment of women. In return, Trump has raised Bill Clinton's history with women, trotting out before the media those who have accused him of sexual misconduct. NOW WATCH: Clinton opens up a massive lead against Trump, with lopsided support from a key voting demographic More From Business Insider BEIRUT (Reuters) - The European Union lacks the credibility to speak about Syria's civil war, Damascus said on Wednesday, following a statement by the bloc's foreign ministers on Monday harshly criticizing the government and its ally Russia for their roles in the conflict. The EU foreign ministers vowed on Monday to impose more sanctions on President Bashar al-Assad's government, saying the bombardment of Aleppo by it and Russia "may amount to war crimes" and that it should be referred to the International Criminal Court. "The European Union lacks the lowest degree of credibility when it talks about the humanitarian situation in Syria because it is, through its support of terrorism, an accomplice in the suffering of Syrians," an official source at the foreign ministry was quoted as saying by Syrian state media. Syria's government characterizes as terrorists all the rebel groups seeking to bring down President Bashar al-Assad, some of which are backed by European countries, the United States, Turkey and Gulf Arab states. Syria's five-and-a-half-year civil war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, displaced half the country's pre-war population, dragged in regional and global powers and created space for global jihadist movements to plan attacks abroad. (Reporting By Angus McDowall; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky) MOSCOW (Reuters) - The wife of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad said in an interview her husband's foes had offered her the chance to flee Syria in order to try to shake confidence in him, but that she had not left the country since the war erupted. Speaking in English to Russia's state-backed Rossiya 24 channel, Asma Assad, a London-born former investment banker, did not say who made the offers. But she said the people trying to get her to flee had not been Syrian and that their offers were "stupid." "I've been here since the beginning and I never thought of being anywhere else at all," the 41-year-old mother of three told Rossiya 24 in an interview broadcast on Tuesday. "Yes I was offered the opportunity to leave Syria or rather to run from Syria. These offers included guarantees of safety and protection for my children and even financial security. It doesn't take a genius to know what these people were really after. It was a deliberate attempt to shatter people's confidence in their president." (Reporting by Andrew Osborn and Polina Devitt; Editing by Christian Lowe) Paris (AFP) - Scientists reported Wednesday the first evidence that the immune systems of wild Tasmanian devils can fight back against the contagious face cancer that has pushed the species to the brink of extinction. In a race against the clock, scientists have been looking for a way -- a cure or vaccine -- to save the carnivorous marsupials, which live exclusively on the Australian island state with which they share a name. Strange facial tumours showed up in the mid-1990s, and have since wiped out some 80 percent of the population. The disease -- nearly 100 percent fatal -- spreads through facial biting, a common behaviour among both males and females. Some 20,000 individuals are thought to remain. In the study, a team led by Ruth Pye of the University of Tasmania collected blood samples from 52 closely monitored wild animals from 2008 through 2014. The scientists checked for the presence of cancer cells, and antibodies that might attack them. Thirty-four of the animals either had the disease at the outset or developed it during the monitoring period. The researchers were surprised to find six devils that developed serum antibodies against the cancer cells. Such a response has been induced in captivity through immunisation with killed cancer cells, but had not -- before this -- been observed in the wild. The result "suggests that a proportion of wild devils can produce a protective immune response against naturally acquired devil facial tumour disease," the researchers concluded. A study published in August reported that the famously aggressive animals, the size of a heavy-set small dog, seem to be pulling back from the brink through lightning-fast genetic evolution. A detailed comparison of the genomes of 294 devils -- before and after the cancer emerged 20 years ago -- revealed species-wide adaptations in seven genes in a span of just a handful of generations. This South Carolina elementary school teacher is determined to raise $65,000 to buy every student at her school a bicycle for Christmas, and she's not giving up until she does. Read: Teen Mom Shares Heart-Warming Photo of Her Teacher Holding Her Son: 'Teachers Are Your Second Parents' Katie Blomquist teaches first grade at the Pepperhill Elementary school in North Charleston. Because the school is located in a lower income neighborhood, Blomquist told InsideEdition.com that all of her students receive a free breakfast and lunch courtesy of the district. "Unfortunately it's the area they live in," Blomquist said. "It's a low income area, and it's a rougher area." As a result, Blomquist said she often uses her own money to buy extra things for her students, including rewards for good grades, fun learning games and weekend activities. For one of her students' birthdays, she took him to Walmart to pick out a present. "He kept asking me for a bike, and I thought 'Gosh, I can't afford that,'" Blomquist said. "You assume every kid's grown up with a bike before, but there are literally five bikes that are ridden to school every day." The boy's wish to one day own a bicycle stayed with her. She then realized that every student at her school probably had the same dream of owning a bicycle. "It's freedom," she said. "Just to ride your bike and clear your mind. You peddle so fast, and you get out anxiety and anger and just feel the wind of your face. There's just a sense of freedom with that. I couldn't think of anything else that'll provide that." Read: Mom Donates School Supplies in Honor of Late Son for What Would Be His First Day of Kindergarten She also thought of a kindergarten student who walks 30 minutes to and from school every day, uphill. That's when she set out on her quest to gift every single student at her school a bicycle. Story continues "I wanted it to be the best Christmas gift ever," she said. "A lot of kids don't get Christmas gifts, [so] that'll be a Christmas gift they'll never forget." She reached out to local bike shop, Affordabike, which offered to sell her 650 bikes, one for each student at her school, at a discounted rate. They also told her she would be able to design custom bikes for her students. "We're going to name them 'The Future' and put the slogan, 'Oh, the places you'll go,' on them," she said. But, to purchase the bikes, she would have to come up with $65,000. That's when she decided to start a GoFundMe campaign in order to reach her goal. "I'm not going to give up until every child gets a bike," she said. "If we have to change it from the best Christmas gift ever to the best end of the year gift ever, that's what we'll do. Every kid at this school deserves the bike." Different companies have since come forward with bicycle donations, which she plans to pass on to other Title 1 elementary schools if she reaches her goal. Read: How a Mom's Shopping Cart Design Is Helping Children With Special Needs Across the Country While Blomquist is still working hard to reach her goal through crowdfunding efforts, she was able to win $10,000 for the elementary school that will go toward hiring substitute teachers and other qualified staff to help students with reading and math. Watch: Preschool Teacher Becomes Kidney Donor to Dying Little Girl: 'She Is Our Miracle' Related Articles: The Doctors examine the troubling case of a teenager with autism, mental retardation and attention deficit disorder who was accused of terrorism. In November of 2015, Peyton was arrested by the FBI on terrorism suspicion after he sent bomb-making instructions to who he thought was a member of ISIS. Due to the 18-year-olds challenges, his arrest raised eyebrows and caused many to question if someone who has the mental capabilities of a child can also be a terrorist. Watch: Raising a Child with Autism In a Doctors exclusive, we are joined by Peytons father Tony and his attorney James Gallini. His father explains that problems arose after Peyton was found watching a documentary at school about ISIS and then bought a book about the terrorist organization. He notes that there were never any prior red flags concerning his son and terrorism. The familys attorney says Peyton only communicated with members of the FBI via email and that ISIS and Peyton have never been in contact. According to the lawyer, the FBI questioned him without a lawyer present after he waived his right to one. He notes that Peyton was not even sure what an attorney was before his FBI questioning. The Doctors are also joined by retired FBI Agent Bobby Chacon who says that sometimes terrorists seek out those with mental issues as easy prey. He also notes that the FBI did not prosecute the case, as it was handed down to an Alabama state prosecutor. Watch: Autism: What Everyone Should Know Peyton was found not guilty by reason of mental defect. Since the taping of this episode, Peyton was released from police custody, but he was not released immediately following the ruling. Initially, he was held for further evaluation. The Doctors takeaway from an incident like this is that parents should always be aware of their childrens behavior online in hopes of avoiding a similar situation. Peytons attorney James Gallini released the following statement since the taping of this episode regarding his release: Story continues "Peyton Pruitt was released to his family with minor stipulations by Order of Judge Phillip Seay on October 18, 2016 following receipt of the 2nd mental health evaluation. Dr. Amber Simpler, a Forensic Psychologist for the Department of Mental Healths Taylor Hardin Secure Mental Health Facility, conducted a Risk Assessment following the determination by the court that Peyton was Not Guilty by reason of Mental Defect on September 8th, 2016. The report, which was released to the court on October 17, 2016, did not recommend placement at a secure mental health facility. It was recommended that Peyton could be released to his family with minor stipulations. The minor stipulations include no computer or internet capable technology at home for Peyton, secure WIFI, adult supervision, secure any weapons in a safe so they are inaccessible to Peyton, parental training/counseling, quarterly home visit by law enforcement who will submit report to the court on compliance, and participation in special education program at his local high school until age 21. Judge Seay will retain involvement with the ability to modify the terms, including eliminating oversight completely in the future. Peytons legal team considers this an unexpected and considerable event to have the Judge make the decision for release without the need for a hearing on the matter. This office is committed to continue the fight to bring awareness to the public on the FBIs cyberterrorism tactics which includes manufacturing criminality as we believe happened with Peyton Pruitt." With Thailand reeling over last weeks death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, a member of the ruling junta says it will seek to extradite people living abroad who are suspected of insulting the countrys monarchy. According to Reuters, General Paiboon Koomchaya told reporters in the capital Bangkok that the junta will ask foreign governments to extradite people suspected of violating the countrys draconian lese majeste law, which carries severe penalties. Ostensibly, the law is meant to protect the royal family from defamation but in practice is freely used as a tool to suppress dissent. We will ask for cooperation, friendship and respect from these countries and we hope that they understand that all Thais cannot accept these insults, the general reportedly said, conceding that significant legal and diplomatic challenges could temper the request. Authorities said they will seek to extradite six high-profile suspects living abroad, Reuters reports. The junta says the six have tried to provoke unrest in Thailand. Local media reported earlier this week that an ultra-royalist vigilante group known as the Rubbish Collection Organization put out a call on social media for people to find a suspect who is believed to be hiding in Paris. Thailand entered a year-long period of mourning on Friday following the passing of the countrys monarch. Upon his death at 88, he was the worlds longest reigning monarch, having held the throne for 70 years. Tensions are high. Videos circulating online show a number of people in separate incidents being attacked by royalist mobs, or forced to prostrate themselves in front of images of the revered monarch, either for failing to wear mourning colors or for not mourning appropriately. The junta has urged Thais to report suspected lese majeste violations and has asked Internet service providers to monitor content and block what it sees as inappropriate material. Meanwhile, the New York Times reported Wednesday that Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn could be ready to ascend the throne as early as Friday. Citing Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha, the newspaper said that the date of his ascension is still unclear, but that the Prince could become King seven to 15 days after the date of his fathers death. Previous reports have suggested that the Crown Prince, who has requested time to mourn, would not be succeeding to the throne for a year. A close aide to the late king, 96-year-old Prem Tinsulanonda, assumed the regency last week in his stead. john podesta Several days after The Washington Post published an article last year about how top Hillary Clinton staffers were cutting costs by taking buses between New York and Washington, DC, her campaign chair found himself stuck on a broken-down Megabus in Maryland. In an email sent in July 2015 and published by WikiLeaks, Clinton campaign chair John Podesta complained to an assistant that he may have to rearrange his schedule because he was stuck on the bus. "The $17 bus is broken down and sitting on the side of the road in Maryland. Thanks for sending me on this one," Podesta said in an email. Podesta's assistant, Milia Fisher, apologized, telling him that they would "avoid the bus from here on out." The campaign chair's emails showed Podesta's bus trips between Washington, DC, and New York on Bolt Bus, Vamoose, and Megabus occasionally caused headaches. Less than two weeks before Podesta's bus breakdown, Fisher sent Podesta an email apologizing for different "bus failures," after there was confusion internally about the campaign's bus and train policies. The Washington Post's 2015 piece about the Clinton campaign's cost-cutting noted that top staffers, including Podesta, considered taking the bus to be a good example of necessary frugality and a badge of honor. The Washington powerbrokers dont seem to be riding this bus, Podesta told the Post, who accompanied Podesta on one bus trip. Fisher sent an email to Podesta shortly after the Washington Post article with favorable tweets from reporters about Podesta's willingness to forgo the exponentially more expensive train for the bus, and several days later the campaign sent out a fundraising email off the bus story. The emails were dropped as part of a days-long release by WikiLeaks, which has been highly critical of the former secretary of state. The Clinton campaign has accused Russian hackers of stealing the chair's emails and leaking them to WikiLeaks. Story continues NOW WATCH: David Cay Johnston: 'There's no evidence Donald Trump is a billionaire' More From Business Insider By: Rachel Adler To say that I went through a period in my life where I was severely addicted to hair bleach is a vast understatement. My hair a natural, dirty blonde needed to be stark white at all times. I had a routine appointment with my colorist exactly every four weeks, and I would insist on her taking my strands from Khaleesi white, to pink, to green, to icy blue as long as the white-as-snow base always remained intact. With the help of a curling iron and some skill, no one will be the wiser noticing my bleach-damaged hair. (Photo: Rachel Adler) During one of our many routine toning attempts, an assistant got a little too bleach-happy, and unfortunately my gorgeous pink hair ended up breaking off the next day. For anyone who bleaches, a little routine breakage (as terrifying as that sounds) may occur at the ends of the hair (in the pre-Olaplex days, of course). However, this was basically at the crown of my head in a small section that would stick straight up if I wasnt careful. I was devastated, and I knew it meant that after four years of straight bleach on my strands, I needed to get serious about hair care. So, I upped my weekly coconut oil routine slathering my hair whenever I had an extra minute at home and switched to highlights, which are gentler on the hair. I also got serious about the supplements I was taking. I had tried to take Viviscal or Biotin on and off, but never really stuck with them, as it would take me too long to see results or I would simply forget. Now mostly out of necessity I had to find a hair vitamin that would really do the job. As a beauty editor, I had to go through the mostly embarrassing process of sitting through multiple blowout events soon and explain why I had a little chemical haircut right on the back crown section of my head. If you ever had a waterfall ponytail as a kid, that was exactly what this breakage looked like. One day, when I was talking to celebrity hairstylist Mara Roszak about my woes, she mentioned that her salon, Meche, was selling this brand-new supplement and it was the first one that she was truly obsessed with. It was called Nutrafol, and she told me to look into it because it might really help. Story continues Well, look into it I did. Nutrafol ($88 for a one-month supply of 120 capsules) is a supplement that aims to target the root of hair health, working from within. Sophia Kogan, MD, a dermatologist and the chief medical officer for Nutrafol, explains it like this: Nutrafol contains botanical ingredients with powerful antioxidant properties that not only neutralize free radicals in the body and scalp, but also help your body produce more of its own antioxidant enzymes. Additional ingredients such as curcumin (an extract of turmeric) act as anti-inflammatories to further support a healthy scalp and hair. So taking a supplement like Nutrafol can be a good way to help diminish the damage of mechanical processing like bleach, as well as support healthy hair growth. What makes it different from all the other supplements on the market? I spoke with Ariel Cruz, a trichologist certified by the U.S. Trichology Institute, to find out if there were specific ingredients in Nutrafol that made it stand out from other supplements on the market today. The Synergen Complex, which is composed of clinically tested nutraceutical ingredients, including ashwaganda, curcumin, saw palmetto, and hydrolyzed marine collagen, is what makes Nutrafol unique. The brands approach of targeting the multiple triggers of hair loss is fascinating to me, Cruz said. Expanding on that, the brand actually created this supplement as a multitargeted approach to combat different forms of hair loss, from genetic to stress. Coined the 4-Phase Transformation, the science behind the supplement helps to rebalance (for anti-stress), repair (to restore damaged follicles), revitalize (increasing scalp circulation) and, finally, regrow (growing healthier hair). Colorist Bianca Hillier, who works out of the Andy LeCompte Salon, recommends Nutrafol to her clients who struggle with stress-related hair loss. I color hair in Bahrain, Dubai, and the USA, and I have numerous clients that have been diagnosed with alopecia due to stress and/or other health-related issues. Not only do I notice progress in their hair growth, but my clients recognize the improvements as well, says Hillier. I also recently experienced an embarrassing amount of hair loss, and Nutrafol has helped me to a speedy recovery. My hair has never grown to these lengths or ever looked so full. Nikki Lee, the co-owner of Nine Zero One salon, raved about how much it helps promote hair growth, but also noted that it helps her eliminate stress too. Healthy, highlighted hair after a lot of hair TLC and some dedicated popping of Nutrafol. (Photo: Rachel Adler) While it does take time to see a difference in hair growth, I noticed a dramatic transformation in my hair at about the three-month mark, which is typical for most people taking supplements. Suddenly my hair had this Victorias Secret model fullness to it. I am typically jealous of my sisters virgin, shiny, thick brown hair (I would never tell her this, but its not fair how much hair she has and how limp mine is), but I finally started to feel like my locks could stand on their own in a photo next to hers. Yes, I learned how to hide my sad, little breakage in a half-up knot for months, yet I reached the point where I could style my hair down and not have to worry about strange lengths or weird layers sticking up with a random gust of wind. It was nice not to see straggly strands, embarrassing flakes of breakage, or have to explain my weird chemical layers to every stylist. Because of my regular supplement use, I had never needed a haircut so badly. My hair was growing at a rate that I couldnt believe. It grew back to my pre-bleaching length in just a few short months. And if youve ever put your head near a bottle of bleach, you know that that growth rate is kind of insane. Friends and family even started to take notice. While I was busy explaining that I was breaking my bleach addiction, they would automatically cut me off and rave about how great and healthy my hair looked. This made me feel great for about 10 seconds until I quickly wondered if my bleached hair had looked scraggly and dead for four whole years. To calm those fears, I realized that while I had clearly been making a concerted effort with the supplements, I was also air-drying my hair more and only allowing my stylist to highlight my strands (even though I would ask for the whitest of white highlights she could manage). I had upped my hair care game 100 percent. Im simply happy that my healthy hair is back as long as I can resist the temptation of a K. Stew dye job. As I live and breathe in the beauty industry, dealing with the stress of hair that was literally falling apart was not something that I wanted to hide. Even though my motto for my hair has always been to have fun with it, Ive never shied away from a dye job, a fun cut, or hairstyle. But over the years, Ive learned that in order to keep up with that fun-loving attitude, there needs to be a healthy balance of TLC to keep everything in check. Otherwise you end up with sad, limp strands and a little broken sprout on the top of your head. Have a beauty story youd like to share with us? Email YStyleBeauty@yahoo.com. trump clinton split Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are set to face off tonight in the third and final presidential debate of the 2016 election. In August, The New York Times reported that Clinton's campaign brought in psychology experts to help her prepare for her first debate with Donald Trump which is weird, because that's not really what psychologists do. Here is the relevant part of The Times' article (emphasis mine): "Hillary Clinton's advisers are ... seeking insights about Mr. Trump's deepest insecurities as they devise strategies to needle and undermine him ... at the first presidential debate ... Her team is also getting advice from psychology experts to help create a personality profile of Mr. Trump to gauge how he may respond to attacks and deal with a woman as his sole adversary on the debate stage. They are undertaking a forensic-style analysis of Mr. Trump's performances in the Republican primary debates, cataloging strengths and weaknesses as well as trigger points that caused him to lash out in less-than-presidential ways." There's not a tremendous amount of information here, but it's enough to work from if we want to find research relevant to the work these psychologists (or "psychology experts") are reportedly doing. The strange part is that there isn't much to find. If you have somebody who's narcissistic, you want to threaten their ego. But I guess you and my grandmother probably knew that, right? Psychology has long been interested in the nature and structure of personality. But as for studies of "trigger points," strategies for needling and undermining people, or systems for predicting how a man with a misogynistic past might betray his true feelings in the future there isn't much to be found. David Silber, a professor emeritus of psychology at George Washington University, told Business Insider that while he considers Trump a "narcissist," he's not aware of any particular science that might help Clinton take advantage of any personality disorder the Republican candidate could have. Story continues (The American Psychiatric Association has a rule, known as "the Goldwater rule," that prohibits psychiatrists from offering any diagnoses or opinions about the mental health of public figures whom they have not personally examined. I have not asked any researchers psychologists in this case, not psychiatrists to break it. All three whom I spoke to for this story used the word "narcissist" unprompted.) Another researcher, Scott Lilienfeld, who studies and teaches the psychology of personality at Emory University, told Business Insider he also could not point to any particular advice psychologists could offer Clinton in taking on Trump beyond what he called "the obvious thing." "If you have somebody who's narcissistic, you want to threaten their ego," he said. "But I guess you and my grandmother probably knew that, right? You find out what they're insecure about and you hound them on that. You go for the person's weakness." Brent Roberts, who studies and teaches personality psychology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, broadly agreed though he suggested some clinicians might have enough less-than-empirical clinical experience with narcissists to offer more specific suggestions. Lilienfeld was less optimistic that there might be a cohort out there with the skills to dismantle Trump. "If they did, I would have thought that they'd have been able to stop Donald Trump by now," Lilienfeld said. He said it's worrying to hear that psychologists might be consulting the Clinton campaign. "I say this without knowing what these experts are saying it's possible they're working some magic I'm not aware of," he said. "But I worry a little bit about psychologists overclaiming expertise as though there's some well-established body of psychological science that says, 'Oh, you should really do X as a candidate.' I'm just not aware of any along those lines." If I can talk to you, why wouldn't I be able to talk to a presidential candidate? If politics were within the domain of psychology, he said, there'd have to be controlled trials and peer-reviewed studies before anyone was qualified to offer advice. Those people would have to show that Trump voters or independents presented with a particular kind of message were significantly more likely to vote for Clinton three months later. As for research into how to induce bad behavior on a debate stage? Both Roberts and Lilienfeld offered that it might be difficult to get an institutional ethical review board to approve that kind of work. Lilienfeld also said that he thinks there are dangers to psychologists consulting with politicians. "I think our job as psychologists is to better inform and educate the public, and I think there's a real danger in allowing ourselves to get too entangled in politics," he said. "I think it can tarnish the reputation of psychologists." Roberts was less concerned. "If I can talk to you, why wouldn't I be able to talk to a presidential candidate?" he said. He said there are no specific ethical guidelines to prevent psychologists from offering bad advice, and that psychological consultants do so all the time noting the example of personality questionnaires offered to businesses to help evaluate their employees. That said, he allowed that there are "questions" about the validity of any claims purported to emerge from empirical findings about how Trump might behave. Lilienfeld said he wishes psychologists would just stay out of it. "I would prefer psychologists better help the public to evaluate information, and become better critical thinkers, and learn how to become more resistant to misleading, false persuasion on the part of political candidates. That, I think, would be a much better use of psychologists' time." Clinton's campaign did not return a request for comment. NOW WATCH: 6 witnesses are corroborating a womans claim that Trump sexually assaulted her More From Business Insider By Alastair Macdonald and Jan Strupczewski BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Theresa May's first EU summit was never going to be easy but Thursday's encounter in Brussels may be a thoroughly bleak affair now that fellow leaders feel she has taken a hard line on breaking away from the European Union. The British prime minister caught the other 27 off guard on Oct. 2 when, having campaigned to stay in the bloc, she thrilled her Conservatives' conference in Birmingham with rousing pledges to start Brexit talks by March, curb immigration and reject EU court rulings -- a recipe, EU leaders said, for "hard Brexit". When, over after-dinner coffee on the first of two days of talks, she briefs the summit on her plans, the rest will listen closely for any sign of more flexibility on what she wants in order to retain closer trade ties. But despite talk in London of May still exploring options, EU officials and diplomats do not expect there to be much softening, on either side, this week. "How this is going to end, no one knows," one senior EU official said. "For now, the train is heading towards a wall." And amid fears that wily British diplomacy may set them off against each other to secure a "cherry picking" deal that could further unravel the entire Union, the 27 will present May with the kind of united front not always seen in the EU summit room. "There's a surprising degree of consensus," a second senior EU official said. "No one wants to give the Brits an opening." After the Birmingham speech, EU leaders welcomed an end to uncertainty over when Britain would launch the two-year divorce process. But although May called key players beforehand to alert them to her timetable, none was ready for her list of demands. Aides to German Chancellor Angela Merkel found the party tone "menacingly harsh"; French President Francois Hollande, who like Merkel faces an electoral test next year from eurosceptics inspired by June's Brexit referendum, said Britain had chosen a painful break and must be held to the consequences. DIVISIONS HARDEN Summit chair Donald Tusk spoke to May late on Tuesday and does not expect discussion after she briefs the summit. EU leaders insist there be no "pre-negotiation" before May writes to Brussels with a formal notification of Britain's demands. Some seem more inclined than others, however, to accede to British requests that they help May prepare her letter to ensure that whatever she asks for is not simply rejected out of hand. Some EU diplomats note Brussels' cooperation with May's predecessor David Cameron last year before he sought EU concessions that were mostly granted in the hope he would win the referendum. But the mood appears to have hardened in EU capitals. With Cameron, a third senior EU official said, "we were on the same side", working together to help him keep Britain in the bloc. "Now, it's different," he said, with London and the 27 pursuing divergent goals that may be mutually incompatible. In particular, the 27 are determined to show Britons -- and any others tempted to break up the EU -- that the benefits of a common market, with its favourable tariff terms, are not available to those unwilling to accept full free migration within the EU or the authority of EU judges. To those in London who see that as an opening gambit, EU leaders have responded with sharper rhetoric, ruling out a "soft Brexit" that keeps Britain anchored in the single market. Summit host Tusk took Brexit campaigners to task for joking that Britain can "have its cake and eat it" and dangled the prospect of Britons backing out of Brexit. WHAT DOES BRITAIN WANT? The former Polish premier's willingness to engage in debate with Britain reflects an impression on the continent that the country, and even May's own cabinet, is still in a quandary over what voters want and how to deliver it. The prime minister has said she is still listening to "differing views" on her team. EU officials say that behind closed doors British officials have been trying to keep open options for closer engagement with the EU, raising for example the possibility that London might go on contributing to an EU budget that subsidises eastern Europe. Some have also played down May's Birmingham speech as designed to win support for the unelected leader within her own eurosceptic party, not as a final word to Brussels. "May is talking hard Brexit but other officials are saying 'maybe we can work things out' - so which is it?" the second EU official said. British officials say May and her inner circle have given little indication of what they expect to negotiate. A fourth senior EU official familiar with the issue said: "(The British) civil service have no clue what the political class wants." For EU leaders, expecting at this stage to hear little new from May that she has not said in public, the priority at the summit may be to close up their own ranks ahead before March. "What the EU needs to do," the third EU official said, "Is anticipate what May will ask for and prepare for it, from now." (Additional reporting by Noah Barkin in Berlin, Elizabeth Piper and Kylie MacLellan in London, Elizabeth Pineau and Yves Clarisse in Paris, Crispian Balmer in Rome and Gabriela Baczynska and Francesco Guarascio in Brussels; editing by Ralph Boulton) On Tuesdays This Is Us, the family in the 1970s headed to the pool to relax. However, the family in the present day dove into some awkward situations. Kevin, having landed in New York with plans to become a stage actor, gave nothing less than a cringeworthy audition. Kate found that Tobys ex-wife was very attractive, so she did the logical thing and stalked her all the way to her clothing boutique. While there, Kate accidentally interviewed for a position at the store with his ex. She let on way too much information that shed gathered but somehow got the job. Randall had a heart-to-heart with his biological father, William, that ended with William apologizing for Randalls entire childhood. Almost in midconfession, the two were interrupted by Kevin trying to crash at Randalls house. With William standing with Randalls family, Randall said, This is my biological father. Whom I looked for, and I found, and this is him. Kevin shook his hand and replied, That probably is gonna be a longer conversation, but its good to meet you. This Is Us airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on NBC. Watch clips and full episodes of This Is Us free on Yahoo View. Watch: Westworld recap: Dolores takes control of her story Tell us what you think! Hit us up on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram or leave your comments below. And check out our host, Cynthia LuCiette, on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. Warning: This recap for the The Pool episode of This Is Us contains spoilers. This Is Us used a very effective memory/flashback to effectively and realistically explain where Kevin, Kate, and Randall find themselves in the present. And once again, it made us cry. Jack and Rebecca The boys are fighting over toys, Rebecca has been trying to read Misery for two years, and Jack cant fix the A/C, so he decides on a family day at the community pool. Besides, hes already packed a cooler of soda hes managing to stay on the wagon and Kates Care Bears bikini isnt going to show itself off. Its packed, and Jack is on the hunt for chaises. Rebecca applies sunscreen to the kids, albeit very poorly. (But hey, its the 80s, so I guess the kids are lucky it wasnt baby oil and a reflective screen.) She also doesnt know the answer when Randall inquires if he needs sunscreen. Rebecca tries to get Kate to put a shirt on over her bathing suit. When she walks off after declining, Rebecca is positive someone will make fun of Kate, and Jack assures her that its just baby fat. They are exhausted trying to keep track of all three kids. Yep, its a war. They got the numbers. We were beat before we started, Jack surmises. Kevin begs for his dads undivided attention while hes doing handstands (so not much has changed in 32 years), and suddenly Rebecca notices Randall is missing. As they go off in search of him, Kevin dives down into his own little world. Rebecca finds Randall playing with all the black kids on the opposite side of the pool and gets into a confrontation with one of the moms who says it was fine for him to be down there as she was watching him. Things get a little heated as the other mom tells Rebecca she needs to get a barber who can cut black hair to get rid of the bumps on Randalls neck. She explains that she knows who Rebecca is because they all pay attention when a white lady adopts a black kid and doesnt introduce herself to any of them. Rebecca stands her ground saying that Randall is in trouble because he was not supposed to go away from their spot and throws in, Thats my son and Im his mother. I dont know if you have a problem with that, but I dont care. Story continues Related: Read All of Yahoo TVs This Is Us Recaps Kate keeps trying to play mermaids with the skinny, mean girls, but they hand her a note and you know it cant be good. It isnt. Basically, it reads, We dont want you to play with us anymore. You embarrass us. And they throw in a pig face for good measure. She is crushed, and she stops eating and sulks with a towel around her. Rebecca finds the note, and Jack plans to give those girls a talking to, but Rebecca says he will make things worse. While they are discussing it with their backs to him, Kevin almost drowns. Now his feelings are truly hurt, so he marches over and yells, You are too busy making sure Kate doesnt eat too much and that Randall isnt too adopted, and you never watch me. Oh, wheres Kevin? Hes dead. Jack fixes Kates issues by giving her a magic T-shirt that makes your enemies see you how you want them to. She chooses princess, and he explains that he already sees her that way. Then he tackles Kevin with an apology, explaining that he is doing this, fatherhood, for the first time, so hes likely to mess up again. Rebecca realizes that Randall has requested going to that pool specifically so that he could meet other black people, because as Randall later explains, Bethel Park, Pennsylvania is basically the whitest place on earth. So she does the right thing and seeks out that other mom again to ask if she has a barbers name and if they could set up some playdates. She also asks about the sunscreen and gets a big laugh. Sterling K Brown as Randall, Eris Baker as Tess, Ron Cephas Jones as William, Faithe Herman as Annie, Susan Kelechi Watson as Beth (Credit: Vivian Zink/NBC) Randall The kids have apparently been told off-screen that William is grandpa, and they are so accepting that they ask him to do their hair instead of mom. When they inquire about a scar on his arm, Beth assumes its drug-related, but William tells them that its actually from a protest to integrate schools. When William goes out for a walk, the security guard of Randalls mostly white neighborhood stops him after a loitering complaint from the neighbors and demands to see I.D. When hes in the midst of refusing and calling him out, Randall runs out to smooth things over and the neighbors apologize. Randall decides its time to buy William some new clothes. Their shopping trip quickly turns into Randall feeling like his dad is judging his life. You didnt like me apologizing for you. Would you have liked it if I made a big scene, got up in Tonys face, had the cops roll up and turn the hoses on us? Because history would not have memorialized our stand, Randall says. Because I grew up in a white house, you dont think I live in a black mans world. But, Randall argues, the security guard is still clocking them and that the saleperson will still ask for ID even though she hasnt asked for it from anyone else that day. Plus, a million things I have to let go every day just so I am not pissed off all the time, he says. The family attends a play at the kids fancy public school which has a farm and a goat and it still seems like Randall is feeling antsy about Williams true opinion of his life. One of Randalls girls is playing Snow White, and he looks around noticing people laughing about lines like a maiden so fair. Brown with Ron Cephas Jones as William (Credit: Paul Drinkwater/NBC) After the play, William finds Randall drinking wine alone at home. Ive offended you somehow, William says. You think I am judging you, but I am in no position. Randall comes clean about his confusion as a black kid in a white family, explaining the notebook that the audience saw in the flashback it was a tally of all the black people hed met. He also admits, I couldnt say it out loud because I loved my father, my white father, and my white mother. Randall also says hes proud that hes a strong successful black man whos raising his girls to not see anything wrong with them playing Snow White. It is Williams turn to apologize, because he sees his son hurting and tortured: Ive been here three weeks and I need to say this. I am so deeply sorry. I did wrong by you. You are doing everything right, son. (Not a dry eye in the house.) Related: This Is Us Postmortem: Justin Hartley Talks Kevins New York State of Mind Chrissy Metz as Kate (Credit: Ron Batzdorff/NBC) Kate and Kevin Kate, now jobless, is having lunch with Toby. She catches him hugging a skinny, pretty woman in lace-up heels. After finding out that this glamazon is Tobys ex-wife, Josie, Kate spirals into online stalking and self doubt very fast. She worries that Toby is just fulfilling some sort of fat fetish with her and later complains to Kevin: Everything about her reeks fabulous. Shes been to Argentina. Kevin says that he didnt leave her in LA so she could self-sabotage. Shes his ex. Hes with you now, he assures her. But it does not stop her deep dive into this womans life. Next up, she goes undercover as a shopper at her clothing and accessories store. Unfortunately for Kate, she does not go unnoticed. The ex confuses her as a job applicant and Kate goes through the interview process. The stalking ends up getting her the job because the ex likes someone who does her research. She has to break the news to Toby. The good news is I got a job, she says walking into his apartment. That means there is bad news, he worries. You stalked her like a serial killer. And boy, does he take it badly. Kate tries to explain: It started out as just wanting to see her up close and figure out why one of these things is not like the other. Then the job thing happened, and she thought the ex was great. But, Toby informs her, his ex was terrible to him: She cheated on me, lied to me, and then took half my life savings. I gained 95 pounds one year after. l [considered] suicide when I got drunk alone and disgusted myself. You havent cornered the market on problems. Josie and I werent good together, so were not. Kate admits, I am really sorry my issues are not going away overnight. In the shows usual style, they make up with a well-placed and well-timed moment of levity. You just cant help but root for them. Justin Hartley as Kevin (Credit: Ron Batzdorff/NBC) Kevin is very proud of himself for making the big move to New York. He even calls Randall to get validation before his first big audition, but Randall is preoccupied with his bio dad, so he puts the nieces on the phone and they make things worse by asking Kevin to do the Manny voice and catchphrase. After getting lost because he tried to walk like a New Yorker and mismanaged his subway travel time, he finally arrives late to the audition and makes a fool of himself thanks to nerves. He assumes he knows Ms. Maine because he judged a pageant for Donald Trump once, but shes actually a Tony-nominated actress with a state surname. He compliments her good accent, but its actually real, and he misreads her dramatic pause as screwing up. Shes filled with disgust and basically tells him that he sucks. He leaves in the dumps and calls Kate to talk more. Just when he realizes hes lost again, he runs right into the actress. He swears he doesnt suck that bad usually and adds that she could have also been nicer. At that, she invites him to go get a drink. Unfortunately, its all a ploy to tell him to go home. She lumps him in with all the other movie actors who come to Broadway, never having had a genuine moment in their lives, and warns that just like them, he will realize it is hard and not for him. As his new friend, she tells him he should just go home, because hes in over his head and needs to get some training. Just feels like you are using the word friend wrong, he says, just before her phone rings and she crushes her cocktail glass. Theyve decided to cast him. They think the Manny will sell tickets, she says storming off. Obviously her negative attitude and his nerves are a lethal combination. He calls Kate but cant reach her. Usually you are the one who tells me how great I am and you are not here, he complains. Instead, he heads over to Randalls house for the validation he didnt get earlier and gets another shocker when Randall introduces his bio dad. That is probably going to be a longer conversation, but good to meet you, Kevin says before running off to play with his nieces. Then just to keep the audience surprised, William says, Was that the Manny? I love that show. Im going to go get my autograph book. To end the episode, the story returns to the past for one last shot at the end of the day at the pool. All three kids lay on and next to Jack, whos laying in Rebeccas lap. Suddenly, all is right in the world and it seems like they can cross any bridge together. Is now a bad time to mention having another kid?, he jokes. Rebecca just rolls her eyes and proudly says shes finally gotten to that last page of Misery. Seems symbolic, no? Watch the cast discuss the episode: This Is Us airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on NBC. Watch clips and full episodes of This Is Us on Yahoo View. Jerusalem (AFP) - Thousands of Jews gathered at the Western Wall in Jerusalem for a holiday blessing on Wednesday, a day after UNESCO adopted a resolution that Israel says omits Judaism's connection to the site. Known as the priestly blessing, the ceremony involved Jews from the Cohanim priestly caste gathering to bless crowds marking Sukkot, or the Feast of Tabernacles. Men and women jostled to get close to the gender-segregated wall, with the Western Wall Heritage Foundation estimating tens of thousands participated in the blessings during the morning, while police spoke of thousands. Cohanim draped in traditional white prayer shawls blessed the crowds, which included Jews from around the world as well as tourists. The blessing involves the raising of hands in a form similar to the "Vulcan salute" Leonard Nimoy borrowed from Judaism for his "Star Trek" role as Mr Spock. Mass priestly blessings are held at the Western Wall twice a year, for Sukkot and Passover. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said there was "heightened security" throughout Jerusalem's Old City, but no incidents were reported. The prayers came a day after UNESCO passed a controversial resolution which Israel said omitted the Jewish connection to both the Western Wall and the adjacent Al-Aqsa mosque compound or Temple Mount. The Western Wall is a remnant of a supporting wall of the Second Temple complex, which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. Above it lies the plaza where the temple once stood and which now houses the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, the third holiest site in Islam. It is the holiest site to Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount. The resolution on "occupied Palestine" was endorsed by UNESCOs executive board on Tuesday, after being approved at the committee stage last week. Referring throughout to "the occupying power," it condemns Israel for restricting Muslims' access to the Al-Aqsa compound and criticises damage by security forces to the site and nearby excavations. Story continues Israel is furious that the resolution refers to the site only by its Muslim names Al-Aqsa and Al-Haram al-Sharif or Noble Sanctuary. The site is located in east Jerusalem, annexed by Israel in 1967 in a move never recognised by the international community. Ben Frank, a neurologist from Miami in the United States, had travelled for the religious holidays and to visit two of his children studying in Jewish religious schools in Israel. He said the UNESCO resolution annoyed him but that the religious ceremony was an important moment. "There are always going to be people who hate the Jews," he said. "How can they say we have no connection with this place?" he added, gesturing to the thousands of worshippers around him. Frank said he wanted Jews to return to praying on the Temple Mount. Under a status quo agreement, only Muslims are allowed to pray at the Al-Aqsa/Temple Mount site, while Jews may visit but not pray - instead worshipping at the Western Wall. SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Police and school officials said four people were wounded, one critically, in a shooting that erupted at a San Francisco high school parking lot after school had been let out for the day. One victim, a teenage girl, was critically wounded after the shooting near the June Jordan School for Equity around 3:20 p.m. local time, while two teenage boys suffered non-life-threatening injuries, police said. The San Francisco Unified School District said in a statement that a fourth person was also wounded but could not provide any further information on the victim. The school was placed on lockdown, which has since been lifted. School officials said one of the victims was specifically targeted. The three others were bystanders, the district said. Police said four male suspects were seen fleeing the scene shortly after the shooting. The district said classes will continue as scheduled on Wednesday. Further details were not immediately available, police said, as the investigation was early and ongoing. (Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Editing by Bill Rigby) SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co Ltd scrapped its flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphone on Tuesday, less than two months after its launch, dealing a huge blow to its reputation and outlook after failing to resolve safety concerns. The following is a chronology of major developments related to Samsung's recall of the Note 7s since the launch of the smartphones in August. Oct. 18 - Three Note 7 users in the United States file for a class action lawsuit against Samsung Electronics' U.S. unit. Oct. 14 - Samsung says it expects a operating profit hit of around $3 billion for Q4 2016, Q1 2017 combined due to the Note 7's discontinuation. Oct. 13 - U.S. regulator expands Note 7 recall to 1.9 million devices, including all replacement devices. Oct. 12 - Samsung slashes its third-quarter profit guidance by a third to 5.2 trillion won ($4.63 billion) from an earlier estimate of 7.8 trillion won, reflecting earnings impact from the Note 7 recall and discontinuation. Oct. 11 - Samsung permanently halts sales and production of Note 7 smartphones and asks customers to stop using the phones as it investigates reports of fires in new devices. Oct. 10 - Samsung says it is adjusting Note 7 shipments for inspections, quality control due to more phones catching fire. Oct. 9 - AT&T, T-Mobile say they have halted issuing new Galaxy Note 7 smartphones due to safety concerns. Oct. 6 - A Southwest Airlines plane in the United States evacuated due to smoke from a Note 7 device on board. Oct. 1 - Samsung resumes selling new Note 7s in South Korea. Sep. 29 - Samsung says more than 1 million people globally now using Note 7s with safe battery. Sept. 25- Samsung delays S.Korea re-start of Note 7 sales by 3 days. Sept. 22 - South Korea orders extra battery safety measures for Note 7 phones. Sept. 21- Verizon Communications, Sprint Corp begin taking orders for new Note 7s. Sept. 19 - Samsung says a Note 7 phone a China user claims caught on fire was caused by external heating. Story continues Sept. 19 - Samsung starts Note 7 exchange program in SouthKorea. Sept. 16 - Florida man sues Samsung for burns from Note 7 explosion. Samsung says to resume Note 7 sales in South Korea on Sept. 28. Sept. 15 - U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission formally announces recall of about 1 million Note 7 phones. Sept. 9 - U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission urges Galaxy Note 7 users to stop using their phone. Sept. 8 - U.S. Federal Aviation Administration advises passengers to not turn on or charge Note 7 smartphones aboard aircraft or stow them in plane cargo. Sept. 2 - Samsung announces global recall of 2.5 million Note 7 phones, citing faulty batteries. Sept. 1 - Samsung starts Galaxy Note 7 sales in China. Aug. 31 - Samsung delays shipments of Note 7s to South Korean carriers. Aug. 24 - Report of a Note 7 explosion surfaces in South Korea. Aug. 19 - Samsung starts Galaxy Note 7 sales in 10 markets including United States and South Korea. Aug. 2 - Samsung unveils the Galaxy Note 7 at a New York media event. ($1 = 1,123.4000 won) (Reporting by Se Young Lee and Nataly Pak; Editing by Miyoung Kim and Kenneth Maxwell) SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co Ltd <005930.KS> scrapped its flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphone on Tuesday, less than two months after its launch, dealing a huge blow to its reputation and outlook after failing to resolve safety concerns. The following is a chronology of major developments related to Samsung's recall of the Note 7s since the launch of the smartphones in August. Oct. 18 - Three Note 7 users in the United States file for a class action lawsuit against Samsung Electronics' U.S. unit. Oct. 14 - Samsung says it expects a operating profit hit of around $3 billion for Q4 2016, Q1 2017 combined due to the Note 7's discontinuation. Oct. 13 - U.S. regulator expands Note 7 recall to 1.9 million devices, including all replacement devices. Oct. 12 - Samsung slashes its third-quarter profit guidance by a third to 5.2 trillion won ($4.63 billion) from an earlier estimate of 7.8 trillion won, reflecting earnings impact from the Note 7 recall and discontinuation. Oct. 11 - Samsung permanently halts sales and production of Note 7 smartphones and asks customers to stop using the phones as it investigates reports of fires in new devices. Oct. 10 - Samsung says it is adjusting Note 7 shipments for inspections, quality control due to more phones catching fire. Oct. 9 - AT&T, T-Mobile say they have halted issuing new Galaxy Note 7 smartphones due to safety concerns. Oct. 6 - A Southwest Airlines plane in the United States evacuated due to smoke from a Note 7 device on board. Oct. 1 - Samsung resumes selling new Note 7s in South Korea. Sep. 29 - Samsung says more than 1 million people globally now using Note 7s with safe battery. Sept. 25- Samsung delays S.Korea re-start of Note 7 sales by 3 days. Sept. 22 - South Korea orders extra battery safety measures for Note 7 phones. Sept. 21- Verizon Communications, Sprint Corp begin taking orders for new Note 7s. Sept. 19 - Samsung says a Note 7 phone a China user claims caught on fire was caused by external heating. Sept. 19 - Samsung starts Note 7 exchange programme in SouthKorea. Sept. 16 - Florida man sues Samsung for burns from Note 7 explosion. Samsung says to resume Note 7 sales in South Korea on Sept. 28. Sept. 15 - U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission formally announces recall of about 1 million Note 7 phones. Sept. 9 - U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission urges Galaxy Note 7 users to stop using their phone. Sept. 8 - U.S. Federal Aviation Administration advises passengers to not turn on or charge Note 7 smartphones aboard aircraft or stow them in plane cargo. Sept. 2 - Samsung announces global recall of 2.5 million Note 7 phones, citing faulty batteries. Sept. 1 - Samsung starts Galaxy Note 7 sales in China. Aug. 31 - Samsung delays shipments of Note 7s to South Korean carriers. Aug. 24 - Report of a Note 7 explosion surfaces in South Korea. Aug. 19 - Samsung starts Galaxy Note 7 sales in 10 markets including United States and South Korea. Aug. 2 - Samsung unveils the Galaxy Note 7 at a New York media event. (Reporting by Se Young Lee and Nataly Pak; Editing by Miyoung Kim and Kenneth Maxwell) Brussels (AFP) - Belgium's seven-parliament political system is in the spotlight after the French-speaking region of Wallonia voted to block a huge EU trade deal with Canada despite seven years of negotiation. Here is a summary of the complexities: - FEDERAL BELGIUM - Once a unified monarchy with strong nationwide institutions, Belgium has slowly developed since the 1970s into a federalised entity. This happened under the intense pressure of separatist-minded Flemish, fed up with the perceived dominance of francophones since the creation of modern Belgium in 1830. The new set-up saw the creation of regions and linguistic communities, each with their own parliament and government that have grown increasingly powerful after waves of ambitious constitutional reforms. The regional governments now have executive power over major policies. - POWERFUL REGIONS - French-speaking Wallonia, Dutch-speaking Flanders and the capital city of Brussels make up Belgium's three "regions". Over the years, decision-making over major policy areas -- such as farming, environment, and economic development -- has gradually devolved to these regions. The so-called linguistic communities (Francophone, Flemish-language and Germanophone) control education, culture and public broadcasting. - DEVOLUTION - Each of the regions and communities has an elected parliament and government. This leaves Belgium with a total of seven elected assemblies: the geographic regions of Wallonia, Flanders and Brussels; the three linguistic communities; as well as a parliament and senate at the federal level. - DEAL RATIFICATION - When Belgium signs an international agreement, even one negotiated by the EU like CETA, each of the seven elected bodies needs to approve the deal at certain stages. In general, this ratification can take place after the signature -- and provisional implementation -- of the deal. The process can take years. For CETA, the regional parliaments have been involved for months, but after a long consideration, lawmakers in Wallonia and the French linguistic community voted to reject the deal, on the grounds that it did not provide enough assurances on protecting the environment or farming. Story continues - NON WALLONIA, NON TRUDEAU - The EU needs the approval of the bloc's 28 member states to agree to the signature of the CETA deal. To do that, Belgium needs the green-light of its seven parliaments. On Thursday, Belgium was forced to block the approval for signature at a meeting of EU trade ministers in Luxembourg and the issue now goes to a discussion by EU leaders over breakfast at a summit on Friday. But without the approval of Wallonia and its outspoken head of government Paul Magnette, the leaders too will be blocked and a visit by Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to sign CETA, set for October 27, could be indefinitely delayed . By Madeline Kennedy (Reuters Health) - Many sleep apnea patients may have impaired attention and decision-making ability, even if they are being treated with CPAP, a small study suggests. Researchers found that people using continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) to treat apnea, but who still complained of daytime sleepiness, also had problems with certain thinking skills. "These individuals do not respond to treatment, and eventually will drop CPAP because they do not feel better, said lead study author Ksdy Werli of the Federal University of Sao Paulo in Brazil. We chose to study this issue aiming to understand the real difficulties of these patients, Werli said by email. More than 18 million U.S. adults have sleep apnea, a condition that causes people to wake up repeatedly throughout the night as their airways collapse and they cannot breathe, according to the National Sleep Foundation. One of the most common symptoms of untreated sleep apnea is daytime sleepiness as a result of sleep that is disrupted dozens of times a night and possibly of oxygen deprivation. CPAP is a standard treatment designed to keep airways open to allow a sleeper to breathe normally. Even when CPAP works well, though, some patients continue to experience excessive sleepiness during the day, Werlis team writes in the journal Sleep Medicine. Between 6 percent and 34 percent of patients continue to experience daytime sleepiness after treatment and experts dont know why this occurs, Werli told Reuters Health. To understand what other problems this might cause, the study team collected data on 15 patients, ranging in age from 35 to 60 years old, who had been treated with CPAP but still felt sleepy during the day. The study team also recruited a comparison group of 15 people with sleep apnea using CPAP and reporting no lingering sleepiness. The research team tested participants to assess their brain function, including attention, memory and judgment. They also screened participants for depression symptoms because depression can negatively affect mental functions like memory and motivation. Overall, the people complaining of sleepiness had higher average scores on depression tests. But there was little difference between groups on long-term memory tests. The people experiencing sleepiness had the greatest trouble with so-called executive functions, which can include attention, motivation, problem-solving and planning. In particular, these participants struggled problem-solving skills and with a verbal fluency test that measures strategic thinking and organization of words. They did not display differences from the comparison group in other functions including attention and number memory. Researchers found that having more depression symptoms was linked to poorer performance on verbal fluency tests, but depression didnt explain any of the other results. Werli noted that the brain functions affected by sleepiness like judgment, criticism and planning are important for helping people adapt to their environment and deal with new situations. If you have sleep apnea and were effectively treated but you are still sleepy, "you may be at risk for accidents and lower mental performance," Werli said. This reduced brain function negatively impacts all aspects of daily living, including work, driving performance, social life and relationships, said Renaud Tamisier of Grenoble Alps University in France, who was not involved in the study. Sleepiness is really a symptom people do not want to live with, Tamisier told Reuters Health by email. It is important to identify diseases that affect quality of sleep, but people should also examine their lifestyle to find ways to improve their sleep, Tamisier added. If the treatment of a sleep disorder is not enough, people can try using sleep hygiene techniques like avoiding napping during the day and not consuming caffeine to close to bedtime, Werli said. If a patient has excessive daytime sleepiness and has not yet been diagnosed with a sleep disorder, they should see a doctor to investigate the causes of drowsiness, Werli said. SOURCE: bit.ly/2dRlYXd Sleep Medicine, online October 6, 2016. Donald Trump at the second debate. (Photo: Saul Loeb/Reuters) LAS VEGAS Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has spent the past few days on the campaign trail claiming that the election could be rigged. Despite this conspiratorial talk, in a conversation with Yahoo News on Tuesday, Trumps campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, insisted he would accept the results of the election. Conway also gave some hints of the strategy for Trumps final presidential debate against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, which will be held Wednesday. Conways promise that Trump, who is trailing in the polls, would accept election results came with a caveat. She also noted that asking questions about his response to the results presumes Clinton will win. Absent evidence of widespread fraud or irregularities and a close election, then yes, well accept the results, Conway said. But were actually going to embrace the results, because were going to win the election. The final debate will be a major opportunity for Trump to improve his standing. This month, Trump has dropped in the polls amid fallout from the leak of a 2005 video that showed him bragging about trying to grab and f*** women. After the video was published by the Washington Post on Oct. 7, multiple women came forward and accused Trump of inappropriate conduct and groping. Trump has denied all of the allegations. Conway said Trump would attempt to shift the focus to Clintons record and her status as a former secretary of state, senator and first lady. This election is still in the last three weeks what it has always been, a very stark choice between past and future, between a typical politician and a successful businessman, between Washington outsider who can disrupt the system versus consummate Washington insider who benefits from the system, Conway said. Conway said that, in the debate, Trump would aim to show that he stands with the 75 percent of Americans who say they want to take the country in a new and different direction. To that end, Trump began pushing for congressional term limits on Tuesday. He also invited the mother of one of the victims of the 2012 terrorist attack on the U.S. diplomatic facility in Benghazi, Libya, to attend the debate. Conway suggested this is all part of an effort to prosecute Clintons record, which according to Conway, included failing to provide adequate security for the diplomatic facility in Benghazi. Story continues Television crews set up outside of the presidential debate site at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas on Monday. (Photo: J. David Ake/AP) It just shows a level of incompetence and intransigence that just disqualifies her from being president of the United States. Shes had her chance, and all you have to do is look at her record and decide whether you think her experience is a positive or a negative, Conway said of Clinton, adding, It doesnt matter how much experience it is, it matters what the quality has been. She needs to be held to account for her record as secretary of state, for her record, as U.S. senator, frankly, for her record as first lady because she tried to be very involved in policy. Conway went on to argue that Clinton and her campaign have tried to turn the election into a referendum on Donald Trump including his controversial comments and allegations about his past behavior. She said Trump would use the debate to show people that its been ages since they heard from Hillary Clinton a positive, visionary, aspirational, optimistic, uplifting message or substantive issue position. They are congenitally, physiologically incapable of answering a question about Hillary Clinton without saying Donald Trump five times, Conway said of Clinton and her surrogates. Conway predicted that Clinton would be losing in every state if the campaign conversation were focused on her record rather than Trumps cavalcade of controversies. She went on to note that Clinton has many advantages over Trump, including an army of high profile surrogates, a much larger war chest, and her pioneering status as the potential first female president. Conway also repeated Trumps allegations that the media is biased against him and that emails hacked from Clintons campaign chairman and published by Wikileaks demonstrate this collusion. She just cannot get to 50 percent in any of these swing states and stay there. What is her problem already? Conway asked of Clinton. She has the current president and first lady, far more popular than shell ever be. She has a past president she just happens to be married to, happens to also be her husband, She has unlimited amounts of money, unlimited cover from the mainstream media. Conway suggested that Clintons inability to have an even bigger lead over Trump in spite of these factors shows theres still something stopping the American people from getting on board with Clinton. Though polls show Clinton leading among women, Conway argued her advantage should be stronger. Slideshow: Las Vegas prepares for the final presidential debate >>> I mean, why isnt she at 65 percent of women or 60 percent of women? Why arent women marching in the street saying we must have the first female president? Where are they? Conway asked. Conway further suggested the press has been overly fixated on Trumps myriad controversies. Come on, youre a professional journalist. You know hes more fun to cover, Conway said of Trump. Hes clickbait. Hes good for ratings. Its a thrill a minute with us. Trumps campaign has experienced extensive turmoil and leadership changes. There has been extensive speculation that Conway, a veteran pollster, was frustrated with his freewheeling approach, habit of commenting on hot button issues, and penchant for launching insults against his critics. Conway fueled these rumors on Oct. 14 when she sent a tweet suggesting she was yelling for Trump to stick to policy issues in the back of the audience at an event where he attacked his female accusers. While Conway told Yahoo News she thinks Trump is the best when hes on issues, she suggested that people should have a sense of humor about her tweet. Dont read too much into it, Conway said. Donald Trumps guests at Wednesdays presidential debate in Las Vegas will include President Obamas Kenyan-born half-brother, the mother of a Benghazi victim, Wayne Newton and other surprises, according to the Republican nominees campaign. Pat Smith, the mother of a State Department IT consultant who was killed in the 2012 Benghazi terrorist attack, told Yahoo News earlier this week that she planned to accept Trumps invitation to the debate. I think Im going to be in the front row, Smith said. But Im not sure. Smith spoke in July at the Republican National Convention, where she delivered an emotional speech laying blame for her sons death squarely at the feet of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. I blame Hillary Clinton personally for the death of my son, Smith said then. Personally. Malik Obama, who endorsed Trump in July, will also be a guest of the GOP nominee. I look very much forward to meeting and being with Malik, Trump told the New York Post. He gets it far better than his brother. Trump campaign chief Steve Bannon told CNNs Brian Stelter that Malik is just the appetizer. According to the New York Times, Team Trump is looking at additional guests in an effort to rattle Clinton. Its unclear why Maliks presence would bother Clinton, but he could remind voters of Trumps years of pushing the conspiracy theory that President Obama was not born in the United States. At the second presidential debate in St. Louis, Trump brought three women who accused Clintons husband, former President Bill Clinton, of sexual abuse or harassment. The women, though, were prevented from sitting in the family area by the debate organizers, thwarting Trumps attempt to have them personally confront Bill Clinton. Trump also invited Kathy Shelton, who as a child was the victim in a 1975 case in which Hillary Clinton defended a man who was convicted of fondling Shelton. (The Times reported that Wednesdays debate will apparently be set up to avoid such a stunt if it is repeated.) Story continues The guest-list trolling began before the first debate, when Hillary Clintons campaign invited billionaire Trump critic Mark Cuban to attend. The Dallas Mavericks owner has again been asked by Clinton to Wednesdays showdown. The Clinton campaign has also invited Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman, a former Republican gubernatorial candidate in California, to the debate in Las Vegas. The practice of bringing culturally symbolic people to political events was popularized by President Ronald Reagan, who invited Lenny Skutnik, a Capitol Hill staffer who pulled a plane crash victim out of the Potomac, to his 1982 State of the Union speech. During his address, Reagan praised Skutniks heroism and the tradition of inviting so-called Skutniks to the State of the Union was born. The guests at presidential debates are also chosen for their symbolic value, the Los Angeles Times notes. But in this election year, in which the rules of decorum have fallen by the wayside, the guest list has also become about outright psychological warfare. Donald Trump appears perfectly willing to go down swinging as he plummets in the polls, lashing out at his own partys leadership nearly as vehemently as he has gone after crooked Hillary Clinton. For months his differences with House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) simmered, as Ryans initial Hamlet-like deliberations over whether to fully embrace the bombastic billionaire eventually led to a highly public break last week, in the wake of the release the 2005 Access Hollywood videotape showing Trump boasting about sexually assaulting women. Since then, a bitter and scornful Trump has relentlessly attacked Ryan on Twitter and during campaign appearances, denouncing the 2012 Republican vice presidential nominee as a weak and failed politician who may be trying to bring Trump down in order to run for president himself four years from now. Related: How Bad Does It Look for Trump Now? This Bad Its incredible. Honestly, the leadership of the Republican Party has been very, very its been a very sad situation, Trump said during a recent interview with conservative radio host Mike Gallagher, later adding that theres a whole sinister deal going on. Trump voters on GOP leaders Source: YouGov With GOP party unity in shambles amid worries that Trumps slash-and-burn rhetoric will jeopardize Republican control of the House and Senate, Ryan has largely maintained a public silence on Trump. Privately, he has told members of the House GOP conference that he can no longer support or defend Trump and urged them to concentrate on hanging onto their seats. A new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll released Wednesday just hours before the third and final presidential debate in Las Vegas shows that Trump is having an adverse effect on Ryans standing within his own party. If this keeps up, the Wisconsin Republican could well face a tough challenge from the far right when and if he seeks another term as House Speaker after the Nov. 8 election. Among the more troubling findings for Ryan is that only 35 percent of Republican voters nationally have a favorable view of him, down 10 points since March. Whats more, about three-quarters of GOP voters complain that the GOP leadership hasnt done enough to support Trump. A startling 37 percent say Ryan should be replaced as speaker in January, while 44 percent say he should continue on. Among Trump supporters, 44 percent say they want to see Ryan replaced. Story continues Related: For Clinton, Trumps Campaign Is Better Alive Than Dead By contrast, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, has seen her approval rating improve since March. More than half of the Democrats surveyed said they want her to stay on as Democratic leader next year. This could spell bad news for Ryan, who has spent months drafting and promoting a new House GOP agenda for the coming year that he hopes will signal a new policy direction for his party. He has offered detailed plans for reforming the tax code, overhauling welfare legislation and controlling the long-term debt. But much will depend on whether he can win the support of arch conservatives in the House Freedom Caucus, many of whom are staunch supporters of Trump and dont understand Ryans decision to remain neutral in the closing weeks of the campaign. Ryan succeeded Republican Rep. John Boehner of Ohio as speaker in late October 2015, after Boehner was forced into an early retirement by conservative GOP forces who differed greatly on policy and spending issues. A Trump-inspired revolt against Ryan potentially could cut short his career as the highest elected Republican in the country. Trump this week has lashed out even more at establishment Republican lawmakers by calling for constitutional amendment to limit the number of terms a person could serve in Congress. The time for congressional term limits has finally arrived, Trump said at a rally in Colorado Springs. Not only will it end our government corruption, but we will end the economic stagnation that we are in right now. Related: From Obama on Down, Democrats Are Just Trolling Trump Now According to the new poll, there is even greater Republican opposition and resentment towards Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) than Ryan and McConnell has endorsed Trump, although he hasnt actively campaigned for him. Top Reads from The Fiscal Times: By Ginger Gibson SHERMANS DALE, Penn. (Reuters) - While Donald Trump often rails against a rigged election on Twitter and at rallies nationwide, he goes a few steps further in Pennsylvania, a state crucial to the Republicans fading chances to win the White House. Here, he has made direct appeals since August to recruit voters as poll monitors on Election Day and has pointed specifically at Philadelphia as a city beset by voter fraud. Despite offering little evidence for any of his claims, his rigged election message is resonating with his followers in this traditional battleground state where Democratic rival Hillary Clinton has opened up a wide lead. But his calls for poll watchers on Nov. 8 is drawing a mix of confusion, concern and tepid support. In some cases, Trumps talk of fraud appears to have made some of his own followers more resigned to an election loss, even though independent studies show U.S. voting chicanery is exceptionally rare and certainly never on a national scale. Since Aug. 8, when Trump first urged supporters in the state to watch other polling places and make sure that its 100-percent fine, civil rights groups have expressed fears that some supporters will take the idea too far by forming roaming, vigilante-style crowds intimidating voters. Trump supporter Mark Bowman, 53, says he isnt the type to attend a political rally or put campaign stickers on his car. And he isnt confident the election results will be correct. I hate to say it, but I dont have a lot of faith, Bowman said. Voter fraud is rampant especially in the cities. But, in a comment echoed by nearly two dozen Trump supporters in the states reliably Republican central regions, he said he thinks nothing can be done to stop it and that becoming an amateur poll watcher is a step too far. What authority do I have to confront someone? said the resident of Shermans Dale, a rural community of about 5,000 people. Your average citizen, youre going to end up in a confrontation with someone. Youre going to end up in a bad situation. There are official channels to monitor elections. Pennsylvania has a system that allows campaigns and political parties to designate official poll monitors, who are allowed into the polling places and can register official complaints if they think someone isnt a valid voter. A form on the Trump campaigns website asks voters to help Trump stop crooked Hillary from rigging this election by becoming a volunteer Trump election observer. But in an example of the Trump campaigns near non-existent effort to organize field operations in key swing states, there is little evidence that the recruitment drive is translating into legions of officially sanctioned volunteers. Repeated inquiries from Reuters about efforts to staff polling places went unanswered by his campaign. The rules allow each candidate and the state parties to name monitors. With federal and local candidates both on the November ballot, there could be dozens of watchers in a single precinct. But those familiar with past elections say rarely does that happen. Instead, campaigns tend to focus on only the most fought over swing districts. Steve Reigh, 57, a realtor from Elliottsburg, Pennsylvania, agrees with Trump that the election is likely to be rigged, but says he also resigned to the outcome of the election, win or lose. What are you going to do? he said. REALLY CLOSE VETTING Some Trump supporters are branching out on their own. Jack Posobiec, a navy veteran and special projects director at Citizens for Trump, a grassroots support group, says he hopes to mobilize 3,000 volunteers in several key swing states in the final days of the campaign, including busing supporters from Texas to Ohio. On Oct. 1, Trump told a largely white rally of supporters in Manheim in central Pennsylvania that they should go to neighborhoods other than their own on election day and watch. You've got to get everybody you know and you got to watch your polling booths, because I hear too many stories about Pennsylvania, certain areas," Trump said. "So go and vote and then go and check out areas because a lot of bad things happen and we dont want to lose for that reason. Dale Ho, a voting rights lawyer at the American Civil Liberties Union, said on Twitter that Trumps calls for "poll watchers" were a recipe for intimidation and discrimination." The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment. Married Trump supporters Gina, 75, and Larry Snyder, 77, of Newport agree the election could be rigged but doubt anything can be done about it, including poll-watching. Candace Lowe, 40, of Elliottsburg, Pennsylvania, said she is resigned to a Trump loss because the government can fudge stuff. Turning out en-masse to watch polling centers on election night wont change that, she said. In Mechanicsburg, an overwhelmingly Republican borough of nearly 9,000 people, realtor Steve Johansen helped to set up a Trump field office in a skating rink, but he has no plans to monitor any polling places. I have faith in the system, he said. (Additional reporting David Ingram. Editing by Jason Szep and Ross Colvin) The twist of Pure Genius is in the premise. The new show is an otherwise rote medical drama from CBS, with one surprising difference it takes place in a tech utopia. The medical center of Pure Genius, Bunker Hill, is funded by a billionaire philanthropist who for as-yet unknown motivations offers cutting-edge medical treatment for any kind of disorder, absolutely free. Healthcare expenses being what they are, its hard to imagine that even a billionaires money could fund such an enterprise for long, especially because Bunker Hill appears to be less a hospital than a principality outside San Francisco, an oasis of tranquil forest and sleek architecture. But precisely because medical debt was, in 2014, the number-one cause of personal bankruptcy in America, Bunker Hill is an alluring fantasy. Other shows set in hospitals focus on the collision between social issues and medical care staff shortages, overcrowded wards, mass casualties. In Pure Genius, the starting point is one of magnificent abundance of not just money, but everything that comes with it: skill, focus, attention, and time. Its interesting, but curiously stakes-lowering. Bunker Hills raison detre is that with enough resources, they can fix anything. James Bell (Augustus Prew), the tech mogul who founded the hospital, declares: I didnt build this hospital to deliver bad news. And indeed because of Bunker Hills extensive funds, its willingness to use experimental therapies, and its vast array of equipment, every story in the pilot has some kind of happy ending. Its also an ethical nightmare. Pure Genius is a bubble where marrying startup worldview less red tape, more innovation, encouraged risk-taking to the medical worldview red tape, layers of redundancies, years of training is a problem-free enterprise. Lead Walter Wallace (Dermot Mulroney) comes to Bunker Hill after being fired from his last position for administering experimental chemotherapy to an 8-year-old cancer patient. James, the billionaire, and the other characters in the show laud Walter for this, suggesting that by trying a new therapy, Walter was bucking the oppressive system to do the right thing. But this is somewhat obscured by the fact that the patient died possibly as a result of the new medicine, and possibly because the patient was going to die anyway. Of course, there is always a case to be made against bureaucratic red tape. But there is also a case to be made for our system of rules, especially when lives are at stake. Story continues At any rate, Pure Genius is not that interested in interrogating the world it inhabits, at least by the end of the pilot. The introductory hour settles the show into a warm and fuzzy rhythm of romantically entangled doctors and the power of technological advancement to radically alter life and death as we know it. Its inspiring, as one might expect of a drama from showrunner Jason Katims, who has previously done family- and community-oriented dramas like Friday Night Lights and Parenthood. Echoing the strengths of those earlier shows, the mission-oriented ensemble falls together with surprising ease and even shared humor, and Pure Genius devotes much attention to design and imagination creating devices and patient-care environments that envision a frictionless near-future. But its also kind of blank; without either dramatic stakes or grounded reality, Pure Genius is flat and saccharine, a longer version of the carefully pristine world seen in pharmaceutical commercials. There is a possible story here about how Bunker Hills eventual, inevitable failures challenge the foundations of the institution, which in turn requires the characters to dig into the implications of this premise. But like many procedurals, Pure Genius seems set up to only let in cracks of reality through the revolving array of intriguing patients. The pilot clumsily tries to tell a story about abortion in a situation where a pregnant woman has cancer putting her in a conundrum where either she would die or her baby would. But rather than engage with what a choice like that might mean, the doctors of Pure Genius resolve to solve the problem by saving both. A happy ending, to be sure and a storytelling choice that neatly renders any discussion of abortion moot. Its a lovely idea, to solve thorny political issues with technological advances. But it underscores how simplistic the series feels. Pure Genius is less a show than the ongoing adventures of a fantasy world where the often bloody problems of human existence can be solved with pristine equipment, and happy endings are administered like aspirin. Its appeal is that it isnt anything like the world we live in. That is also its biggest problem. Related stories Google Sets Deal With CBS for Broadcast-Centric Skinny Bundle Service Ridley Scott, David Zucker Developing Legal Drama at CBS (EXCLUSIVE) 'Candy Crush' Game Show Lands Series Order at CBS Kabul (AFP) - Two Americans including a civilian were killed when a gunman opened fire near a NATO base in Kabul Wednesday, the military coalition said, with Afghan officials calling it an "insider attack". No insurgent group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, which highlights growing insecurity in Afghanistan as the Taliban step up their nationwide insurgency. "One US service member and one US civilian died as a result of wounds sustained in Kabul today," NATO said in a statement, adding that three other Americans were wounded in the incident. "The two individuals were killed during an attack near a coalition base by an unknown assailant, who was later killed." An American official said the shootout occurred at a military ammunition supply point near Camp Morehead, a base used for Afghan commando training. Defence ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri earlier indicated it was a so-called insider attack, saying one NATO soldier had been killed and five others were wounded by a gunman wearing military uniform. NATO said the Americans were conducting duties as part of their mission to train, advise and assist Afghan forces when they came under attack, adding that an investigation had been launched into the incident. "Anytime we lose a member of our team, it is deeply painful," said General John Nicholson, the top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan. "Our sympathies go out to the families, loved ones, and the units of those involved in this incident. To those who continue to target coalition forces... (we) will continue to pursue our mission to help our partners create a better Afghanistan." So-called "green-on-blue" attacks -- when Afghan soldiers or police turn their guns on international troops -- have been a major problem during NATO's long years fighting alongside Afghan forces. Gunmen wearing Afghan military uniforms shot dead two Romanian soldiers in the southern province of Kandahar in May. Story continues In a similar attack in August last year, a man wearing an Afghan military uniform shot dead two American soldiers in the southern opium-rich province of Helmand. And in April last year an American soldier was killed in a firefight between US and Afghan troops in eastern Afghanistan. Western officials say most such attacks stem from personal grudges and cultural misunderstandings rather than insurgent plots. The killings have bred fierce mistrust between local and foreign forces even as the rate of such incidents has dropped in recent years. NATO troops have adopted special security measures in recent years to try to counter the threat. Insider attacks have also plagued Afghan troops, depleting morale and causing mistrust within security ranks. In September, two Afghan soldiers with suspected Taliban links killed at least 12 of their comrades as they slept in the volatile northern province of Kunduz. NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City prosecutors indicted two men on Wednesday in connection with an explosion at a home last month that killed the city's highest ranking fire official to die in the line of duty since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Battalion Chief Michael Fahy died after he was hit in the head by debris from the blast at a residence in the borough of the Bronx where he and other firefighters were responding on Sept. 27 to reports of a gas leak. "Chief Fahy responded to a building that turned out to be a time bomb. These defendants allegedly were growing marijuana and kept flammable substances on the premises," Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark said in a statement. "Chief Fahy ordered residents out of the building - including one of the defendants - and saved their lives. He was mortally injured when the force of the explosion blew off the slate roof and it struck him," Clark said. Garivaldi Castillo, 32, and Julio Salcedo, 34, both of New York City, were indicted on charges of first degree assault, second degree assault, and first degree criminal possession of marijuana. The statement said they were arraigned on Wednesday and are due back in court on Nov. 23. If convicted, they could face up to 25 years in prison, Clark's statement said. (Reporting by Daniel Wallis; Editing by Bernard Orr) (Adds background, byline) By Patrick Rucker WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - U.S. bank regulators on Wednesday outlined cyber security standards meant to protect financial markets and consumers from online attacks against the nation's leading financial firms. Leading banks will be expected to use the most sophisticated anti-hacking tools on the market and to be able to recover from any attack within two hours, said officials briefing reporters on the plan. The rules, which will be finalized after industry input, is meant to raise cyber security to a top priority for corporate executives and boards, according to the banking agencies. Banks with assets of $50 billion or more must satisfy the new rules that will be finalized in the months ahead, according to a statement by the Federal Reserve, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. That scope means roughly 40 banks and a variety of non-bank financial companies would have to comply with the final rules. "Covered entities would be required to be capable of operating critical business functions in the face of cyber-attacks," the regulators said in a statement. Cyber security issues have been a priority for Wall Street and regulators as financial leaders like the New York Federal Reserve have been caught in high-profile hack attacks. On Wednesday, officials said the new standards have been contemplated for some time and that regulators are concerned about the vulnerability of the nation's financial systems. One official briefing reporters about the proposal said it was meant to mitigate the risk of any future cyber events. (Reporting by Patrick Rucker; Editing by Susan Heavey, Franklin Paul and Meredith Mazzilli) By Andy Sullivan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Donald Trump supporters who plan to stake out polling sites on Election Day may find their own activities tracked closely by thousands of civil-rights activists who are mounting a nationwide effort to prevent problems at the polls. The Republican presidential candidate, who has repeatedly said that the election is rigged, has urged his backers to monitor voting sites for evidence of fraud, raising concerns that overzealous supporters could intimidate voters in the Nov. 8 election. They will not be the only ones out in force on Election Day. Civil rights groups say they plan to deploy thousands of volunteers on the ground in 27 states to ensure that voters will not be turned away by harassment, long lines or confusing rules. Teams of lawyers will file legal challenges if necessary. While previous elections have been marred by irregularities, Trump's rhetoric might lead to greater problems at the polls this year, activists say. "When Trump says, 'Go and watch certain areas of Philadelphia,' that's either intentionally reckless or it's a thinly veiled call to engage in racial profiling," said Dale Ho, the head of the American Civil Liberties Union's voting rights project. "Whether people will heed it, I don't know." Non-partisan groups have mounted "election protection" programs since the disputed Bush-Gore presidential election of 2000, but they faced a more daunting landscape this year even before Trump began warning of a "rigged election." The Supreme Court in 2013 weakened the U.S. government's ability to monitor voting activity in states with a history of racial discrimination, and dozens of Republican-led states have also passed laws that require voters to present photo identification or that restrict voting in other ways. As early voting gets underway in many states, voting-rights groups are publicizing a national hotline, 866-OUR-VOTE, and establishing lines of communication with the election officials who are tasked with resolving problems. "We haven't encountered a situation yet where we feel there's a need to call the police," said Marcia Johnson-Blanco, a co-director of the voting rights project at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. This year, civil-rights groups are broadening their efforts beyond perpetual battlegrounds like Ohio and Florida to conservative states like Texas, where they plan to field 200 volunteers to monitor polling sites in Houston's Harris County. "We've seen an uptick of folks saying they're going to be out patrolling in a way that we think is trying to be intimidating," said Zenen Jaimes Perez, communications director for the Texas Civil Rights Project. In New York, volunteers with Common Cause are expanding their monitoring programs to Muslim neighbourhoods in New York City and some areas of the rural Hudson Valley. "What Trump's efforts have caused us here in New York to think about are places where there are concentrations of voters who, I hate to say, are easy targets - a magnet for people who are extreme," said Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause New York. Democratic officials have stepped up their efforts as well. In Arizona, a traditionally Republican state that is competitive this year, Democrats plans to deploy a record 200 lawyers to make sure that everybody who is in line when polls close at 7 p.m. will get a chance to cast a ballot, said Spencer Scharff, the state party's voter protection director. But at the end of the day, poll monitors do not have the power to fix problems - they can only point them out to election officials. "States have the most important role. They're the ones who write these laws and they have to enforce these laws," said Danielle Davis, a staff attorney at the Advancement Project, a national civil-rights group. (Reporting by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Leslie Adler) By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The construction of U.S. single-family housing surged in September, though a drop in apartment building pushed overall home building activity to an 18 month low. But Wednesday's report from the U.S. Commerce Department also showed building permits jumping last month, suggesting overall residential construction may rise again in the fourth quarter. In its Beige Book report also published on Wednesday, the Federal Reserve struck an upbeat note on the housing market, saying residential real estate activity expanded in most districts in recent weeks. "Home construction is in decent shape, despite the volatility in the multi-family segment," said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors in Holland, Pennsylvania. "Activity is growing in the key single-family segment and permit requests are strong." Single-family housing starts, which account for the largest share of the residential housing market, jumped 8.1 percent to a 783,000-unit pace last month. That was the highest level since February. Low U.S. unemployment, slowly rising wages, and low mortgage rates are underpinning demand for housing. Single-family starts are also getting a boost from a chronic shortage of existing homes available for sale. Overall groundbreaking activity, however, declined 9.0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 1.05 million units last month, the lowest level since March 2015. It was dragged down by starts for the volatile multi-family segment, which plunged 38.0 percent to a 264,000-unit pace in September. Starts for multi-family buildings with five or more units crumbled to their lowest level since June 2013. But with rents rising at their fastest pace in 10 years amid strong demand, September's drop in groundbreaking activity could be temporary. The Federal Reserve's Beige Book report on business activity nationwide published on Wednesday also noted real estate activity expanded in September and early October. Story continues The U.S. central bank said some evidence suggested optimism about future growth, though shortages of skilled labor remained a constraint on construction activity in some districts. The PHLX index of shares in U.S. house building companies <.HGX> was little changed on the day, underperforming a broadly firmer U.S. stock market. Shares in the nation's largest homebuilder, D.R. Horton Inc , rose 0.95 percent and Lennar Corp gained 0.19 percent. ROBUST PERMIT INCREASES Economists polled by Reuters had forecast overall housing starts rising to a 1.18 million-unit pace in September. Last month's decline left overall housing starts in the third quarter well below their average for the second quarter. That suggests residential construction remained a drag on gross domestic product in the third quarter after subtracting from output in the April-June period. The Atlanta Federal Reserve estimates that GDP increased at a 2.0 percent annual rate in the third quarter after rising at a 1.4 percent pace in the second quarter. Overall home building activity is likely to rebound in the coming months, as permits for future construction surged 6.3 percent in September to their highest level since last November. Single-family permits rose 0.4 percent last month. Permit issuance for multi-family buildings with five or more units soared 17.2 percent to a 10-month high. "Permits are outpacing starts, which indicates that developers and builders are finally planning for more growth ahead. That's great news for both the economy and the consumer," said Jonathan Smoke, chief economist at realtor.com in Washington. "A persistent lack of growth in new construction has given us low vacancies in rentals and very low inventories of homes for sale. That has produced above-average increases in rents and prices, but today's data is a good sign that we could be turning the page on this troubling scenario." Last month, single-family home construction jumped 20 percent in the Northeast. Starts in the South, which accounts for the bulk of home building, vaulted 12.1 percent. Groundbreaking on single-family housing projects shot up 6.3 percent in the Midwest, but fell 2.2 percent in the West. (Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci and Clive McKeef) By Makini Brice PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - The scale of a cholera outbreak in Haiti after Hurricane Matthew may be underreported because remote areas are cut off, a United Nations official in charge of controlling the disease said on Tuesday, adding protests over slow aid made the problem worse. David Nabarro, a special advisor to the U.N. Secretary-General who was previously in charge of the global body's response to the water-borne disease, said he was concerned sick people were not being treated. He called on donor nations to fund the U.N. response to the outbreak, a sensitive topic in Haiti because the disease was accidentally introduced to the Caribbean country by U.N. peacekeepers and has since killed more than 9,000 people. Some roads in southwestern Haiti remain impassable after this month's storm and rising anger about the slow pace and uneven distribution of aid have led desperate people to barricade roads, and, at times, loot humanitarian convoys. "We don't know if there are many people with the problem of cholera in the areas that we cannot access and that is why I ask the people, let us access everywhere," Nabarro told journalists. "We fear that there are people in caves, in other places, without help and they are perhaps sick." A teenager was shot in the chest on Tuesday when Haitian police used firearms against a group trying to loot a truck in Les Cayes, a center for aid distribution in the southwest, regional police chief Luc Pierre said. The incident further spurred anger against the apparent use of live ammunition by police. At the weekend, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon witnessed the looting of a food aid container during a brief visit to Les Cayes. The office of interim President Jocelerme Privert on Tuesday alleged supplies where being appropriated to be handed out in a "political or partisan manner". Haiti's cholera epidemic began in 2010, when Nepalese peacekeepers poured infected sewage in a river shortly after a devastating 7.0-magnitude earthquake. The disease has now flared in some hurricane-affected areas, mostly in the southwest of the country, as floods contaminated drinking water after the Category 4 storm. Nabarro said the U.N. had received just $15 million of $120 million it asked for in an appeal after the hurricane, further straining relief efforts in Haiti. He did not say how much of that funding had been allocated to the cholera response, but said he would encourage donors to step up funding when he returned to New York later on Tuesday. "It is difficult to have a good U.N. response... if we don't have enough money," Nabarro said. The U.N. is soon launching a new plan intended to improve cholera response and water and sanitation infrastructure in Haiti, and to provide material assistance to victims. The World Health Organization said last week it was sending 1 million cholera vaccines to Haiti. (Additional reporting by Joseph Guyler Delva in Les Cayes; Editing by Nick Macfie) A marijuana harvester examines a bud going through a trimming machine in a rural area near Corvallis, Ore. (Photo: Andrew Selsky/AP) The number of Americans who want legal weed keeps rising. A Gallup poll released Wednesday showed that support for making marijuana legal in the United States has reached 60 percent higher than it has ever been since Gallup first started asking this question in 1969, when only 12 percent of Americans supported legalization. According to Gallup, support rose to 28 percent in the 1970s, slipped during the Just Say No campaign of the 1980s, stayed around 25 percent in the 1990s and rose to 31 percent at the turn of the century. A majority of Americans supported legalization for the first time in 2013, after Washington and Colorado legalized the drug for recreational use. During the past decade, support for legalization has increased in most subgroups, but it is still much higher among people between ages 18 and 34 (77 percent), Democrats (67 percent) and independents (70 percent) than people 55 or older (45 percent) and Republicans (42 percent). The plant is already legal, to a varying extent, in four states Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington and the District of Columbia. Frank Newport, editor in chief of Gallup.com, told Yahoo News that its noteworthy that current support for legalization among young people is higher than it has been in the past. Young people under 35 have shifted the most over the last 10 years or more. Thats important, Newport said. Thats where social change usually occurs. Older people tend to be set in their ways, and that seems to be happening here as well. He said his researchers dont always know what drives fluctuating public opinion whether its support for marriage equality or President Obamas approval rating but his team often discusses possible reasons. We often hypothesize that when Americans are aware of the fact that in Colorado and these other states you can actually smoke pot, its easier for them, when we call them up and ask this longstanding trend question, Should it be made legal or not? people say, Well, I guess so, more and more states are doing it. Story continues But, Newport added, this could be a chicken-or-egg dilemma: Are attitudes changing because laws are changing? Or are laws changing because attitudes are changing? The poll comes as voters in five states Massachusetts, Nevada, Arizona, California and Maine have initiatives on the ballot concerning the regulation and taxation of pot for recreational use by adults. As Gallup pointed out, if these ballot measures pass, the portion of Americans living in states with legal marijuana could shoot up from 5 percent to as much as 25 percent. Mason Tvert, the director of communications for the Marijuana Policy Project, a pot policy reform group, said a majority of the U.S. understands that marijuana is far less harmful than alcohol and wants the two substances handled similarly. At the federal level, marijuana remains a schedule I drug, the strictest level of classification reserved for substances with no accepted medical use. Theres a clear trend in the level of support for ending marijuana prohibition, Tvert told Yahoo News. Were seeing support grow among every single age group, whether people are a freshman in college or a senior citizen, more and more of them agree, marijuana should be legal. Its really just a result of people learning more about this substance and the failures of our current prohibition laws. Individual states, he continued, have taken it upon themselves to move forward as the federal government continues to tread water. In the past, he said, amendments proposing limited marijuana reform could reach Congress. But they would fail by a large margin. Now theres very solid support for those types of measures but theyre not even coming up for votes because of the gridlock and the partisanship, Tvert said. Last week, the Pew Research Center released a similar national poll that found 57 percent of Americans said they think cannabis should be legal up from 53 percent last year. Related video: Uh-oh, here they come again, that most annoying of Oscar problems, the Old White Men. While I was worrying about something else on Tuesday, someone recalled that John Lee Hancocks The Founder, starring Michael Keaton, is set for an Academy Awards qualifying run on Dec. 16, prior to its wider release by the Weinstein Company in January. Hancock, the films director, will turn 60 the day before. Keaton, Oscar-nominated for Birdman in 2015, is already 65. For the record, Harvey Weinstein, co-founder of his eponymous company, is 64, just a little younger than I am. The film, which screened for a few prying eyes when Weinstein was considering a release earlier this year, is strong; and Keaton was pretty much born to play its lead character, the McDonalds Corp. kingpin and semi-evil genius Ray Kroc, who died in 1984 at the age of 81. So The Founder will dump still more aging white talent into an Oscar season that is supposed to be a showcase for Hollywoods new-found commitment to diversity. In truth, theres little risk that the Academy Awards, set for Feb. 26, will echo the last two years, when almost exclusively white nominations in the acting and directing categories triggered backlash, and a heavily supported #OscarsSoWhite social media campaign. Even with Nate Parkers The Birth Of A Nation slip-and-fall, the field is now populated with multi-colored talent. Fences, Moonlight, Lion, Silence, Hidden Figures, 13, and I Am Not Your Negro are just some of the films that are likely to put ethnically diverse actors or filmmakers in contention. But those diverse faces will be squared off against at least two dozen OWMslets politely call them Older White Menwho, though ranging between a middle-aged 50 (like Jon Favreau, The Jungle Book) and a grand old 86 (Clint Eastwood, Sully), have not left the stage. Only two hours ago (according to Googlemail), IFC Films and producer Edward R. Pressman, 73, sent an invitation to next weeks Four Seasons luncheon for Jeremy Irons, a possible best supporting actor nominee for his role in The Man Who Knew Infinity. Irons, 68, last won an Oscar in 1991 for his leading role in Reversal Of Fortune; and he isnt quite ready for those geriatric Governors Awards yet. Story continues But to win this year, Irons will have to push past not just the young, British-born son of ethnic Indians from Kenya, Dev Patel (for Lion), and the 42-year-old African-American actor Mahershala Ali (for Moonlight), but a cluster of fellow OWMs. Those are as crusty as Jeff Bridges, in Hell or High Water; as persistent as Warren Beatty, in Rules Dont Apply; as overdue as Liam Neeson, for Silence; or as dead as Alan Rickman, who left behind well-received performance in Eye In The Sky, which was directed by Gavin Hood, 53. Among directors, Eastwood has again staked a claim on what would be his fifth competitive Oscar (not counting a career Thalberg award) with Sully, while putting a silver-mustachioed Tom Hanks in contention for what would be his third acting Oscar, at the age of 60. But Mel Gibson, who turns 61 in January, is back with Hacksaw Ridge; Scorsese will be in the race with his passion-project of a quarter-century, Silence; and Beatty, who has been laboring even longer on his Howard Hughes story, will arrive later this year with Rules Dont Apply. Those OWM directors will all demand attention, as will Oliver Stone for Snowden, Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester By The Sea, Ken Loach for I, Daniel Blake, and Robert Zemeckis for Allied. Among leading actors, Robert De Niro, 73, is suddenly back in the mix with Taylor Hackfords The Comedian, now set for an awards-season release by Sony Pictures Classics. Hell be pushing up against Hanks, Keaton, and maybe even Allieds Brad Pitt and Captain Fantastics Viggo Mortensen, who, at 52 and 57, respectively, used to be movie stars, but are suddenly looking like part of Hollywoods new headachethat glut of annoyingly talented OWMs. Related stories #OscarsSoLate: Clock Ticks Toward Overdue Academy Awards Producer Announcement Oscars: 85 Countries Will Vie For Foreign Language Film Nominations Black Themes And Ivory Hunts: Oscar Documentaries Fall In A Chaos Of Categories This Year LONDON (Reuters) - Britain cancelled a plan to create a secondary market for annuities on Tuesday, dismantling a key part of former Chancellor George Osborne's drive to give pensioners freedom to choose how to invest their pension pots. Last year, Osborne announced pensioners would no longer have to buy an annuity, or an income stream for life, with their pension savings. Instead, they would be able to buy more flexible retirement products or take their savings in cash. The plans involved creating a market into which pensioners could sell their annuities, but consumer groups warned that retirees risked squandering their savings, or falling prey to scams. The finance ministry agreed on Tuesday that making a secondary market for annuities would pose risks to pensioners, and added that it was clear there would not be enough purchasers to create a competitive market. "This is the right decision for the right reasons," said Rob Yuille, head of retirement at the Association of British Insurers. "The industry has consistently supported the freedom and choice reforms, but we agree with the government that the secondary annuity market came with considerable risks for customers, including from unregulated buyers." Tuesday's decision put further distance between the economic policies of the new government under Prime Minister Theresa May, and those of predecessor David Cameron. May's Chancellor Philip Hammond is due to outline his own fiscal plans on Nov. 23. "The pension freedoms were George Osborne's baby. The secondary annuity market concept was enthusiastically supported by the two most recent pensions ministers," said Tom McPhail, head of retirement policy at investment firm Hargreaves Lansdown. "The fact that it has now been dropped could be indicative of a new government which is progressively shedding the legacy policies of the Cameron/Osborne era and is increasingly pursuing its own agenda." (Reporting by Andy Bruce and Carolyn Cohn,; editing by William Schomberg/Mark Heinrich) BERLIN (Reuters) - European Union leaders are interested to hear from British Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday how she sees Britain's future relations with the EU but are not sure she will say anything new on her Brexit thinking, a senior German official said. May is due to speak to EU leaders on Thursday evening at a summit in Brussels. "Personally, I wouldn't be surprised if others have something to say," the German official told reporters. "But that depends on what kind of speech she gives." "We are very interested in how she foresees the future relationship between the EU and the UK from a British viewpoint," he said. (Reporting by Noah Barkin and Paul Carrel) IRVINE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / Khang & Khang LLP (the "Firm") announces a class action lawsuit against Yirendai Ltd. ("Yirendai" or the "Company") (YRD). Investors, who purchased or otherwise acquired shares between May 11, 2016 and August 24, 2016 inclusive (the "Class Period"), are encouraged to contact the Firm in advance of the October 25, 2016 lead plaintiff motion deadline. If you purchased Yirendai shares during the Class Period, please contact Joon M. Khang, Esquire, of Khang & Khang, 18101 Von Karman Avenue, 3rd Floor, Irvine, CA 92612, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or by e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com. There has been no class certification in this case yet. Until certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney. You may choose to take no action and remain a passive class member. The complaint alleges that during the Class Period, Yirendai made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose: that the Company was experiencing increasing fraud related to customer applications for its loan products; that the implementation of new anti-fraud regulations by the Chinese government could have a negative impact on Yirendai's performance; and that as a result of the above, the Company's statements about its business, operations, and prospects were false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis. On August 24, 2016, Bloomberg reported that the Chinese government imposed limits on peer-to-peer lending and also placed a new regulations cap on individual borrowing at 1 million yuan. When this information went public, the Yirendai stock price fell, causing investors harm. If you wish to learn more about this lawsuit, or if you have any questions concerning this notice or your rights, please contact Joon M. Khang, a prominent litigator for almost two decades, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or via e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com. This press release may constitute Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions. Story continues Contacts Joon M. Khang, Esq. Telephone: 949-419-3834 Facsimile: 949-225-4474 joon@khanglaw.com SOURCE: Khang & Khang LLP Washington (AFP) - Just days before the US elections, it is an unwelcome surprise. As they prepare to choose their next president on November 8, millions of Americans are learning that the health care promised them in landmark legislation driven by President Barack Obama will be even more expensive next year, that they must switch to new health insurance carriers -- or both. And in electoral battleground states, where polling suggests Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump are locked in tight races, the pinch consumers are feeling is at least as sharp as elsewhere. In the crucial state of Florida, as in many other states, insurance companies have pulled out, citing financial losses in the newly created marketplaces. As another result, monthly premiums may rise by an average of 19 percent. The story is similar in other swing states. In Ohio, a traditional bellwether for the presidency, Republican officials including Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor have attacked Obamacare, as it is known, claiming that premiums have risen as much as 91 percent since the policy was introduced. States like Arizona and Georgia -- once unthinkable territory for Democrats but where the Clinton camp now believes it can compete with Trump -- reportedly may see eye-popping annual price hikes of 68 percent and 33 percent, respectively. -'Political hullabaloo'- Polling has consistently found the public to be narrowly divided over Obamacare. Health care is the fourth most important issue for voters in the current election cycle, according to the Pew Research Center. "I am going to fix it because I agree with you," Clinton said during a debate with Trump earlier this month. "Premiums have gotten too high." Though his position has evolved over time, Trump most recently called for the Obamacare law to be scrapped in favor of free-market solutions, deregulation and lump-sum federal assistance to states. Analysts say however that the general picture for Obamacare is brighter than such developments may suggest and that the number of people likely to experience painful disruptions is comparatively small. Story continues Sixty percent of Americans receive health care insurance through their employers. Only 16 percent purchase their own individual policies, a subset of whom do so on the exchanges created under Obamacare. "There's a lot of political hullabaloo around a relatively small sliver of the population," said Larry Levitt of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a health policy group. "It's about 11 million people nationally out of a population of about 300 million." Furthermore, of those 11 million, about 9.2 million receive public support to defray the costs of care, with many not liable to see any out-of-pocket increase for insurance at all, according to Levitt. With Trump in open war with his own party and repeatedly buffeted by revelations about his taxes and allegations of sexual misconduct, health care has not emerged as driving issue in the campaign. But in key places where the vote is balanced on a knife's edge, and with health care such a polarizing issue, unhappiness over Obamacare may be influential, according to Levitt. "Over the next few weeks, people will be getting renewal notices from their insurers and some may be finding that their insurer is exiting the market or raising premiums substantially," he said. "Getting a letter in the mail can make it very tangible for someone," said Levitt. "There could be some places where news of plan exits and premium increases could create a talking point." - Critical voter turnout - Unlike other developed nations which offer universal health care coverage, the United States has long received health insurance in a complex hodge-podge of ways, with many covered by commercial plans, others eligible for social programs like Medicaid and Medicare -- and millions of others left uninsured. In Obama's 2010 reforms, the government moved to broaden coverage, requiring individuals to hold health policies and offering subsidies to lower-income consumers to help them pay. The law has faced relentless opposition from Republicans. Its proponents insist it is working: About 20 million people gained health insurance, reducing the share of those uncovered to 9.1 percent, the lowest level ever, and people may no longer be denied coverage merely because they are sick or pregnant. But as insurers have dropped out of the Obamacare marketplaces and premiums have risen, Clinton and Obama have both conceded the difficulties and called for more reforms -- including the so-called "public option" in which state-supported insurers could offer care where for-profit carriers have withdrawn. Julia Clark, a pollster at Ipsos, said health care frustrations could help drive voter turnout in the election, with even unaffected voters motivated by the cost of care. "Turnout could be critical," she said. "I don't think that the rising price issue is something that will be isolated to those directly impacted." Washington (AFP) - Iran may have played a role in recent Huthi missile attacks against US warships in the Red Sea, a top US general said Wednesday. Iranian-backed Huthi rebels are believed to be behind a series of incidents this month that saw surface-to-surface missiles fired at the USS Mason on at least two occasions. In response, US cruise missiles on October 13 struck Huthi radar sites believed to have been used to target the weapons. "I do think Iran is playing a role in some of this. They have a relationship with the Houtis, so I do suspect there is a role in there," General Joseph Votel told a Washington think tank. Votel heads the US military's Central Command, which oversees operations across the Middle East. His statement was the most forward-leaning so far of a US official in describing Iranian involvement in the missile attacks. The Huthi missiles either fell short of their targets or were thwarted by US anti-missile defenses. The Pentagon has described two attacks so far on the Mason or other US warships. Officials are still analyzing a third possible attack on Saturday to see whether additional missiles were fired. We "are trying to ... understand this as much as we can, so we can properly attribute what is happening, and understand how these attacks are taking place," Votel told the Center for American Progress. "And more importantly, how the decisions are being made to launch these attacks, so we can take action against that." The Pentagon has not disclosed the type of missiles the Huthis used, but Votel noted that "some of the technology that we've seen there are things that are associated with" Iran. But "it's not totally exclusive to them. Certainly there are others that have shore-based missiles and may be moving that in there," he added. Yemen's conflict has killed more than 6,800 people, wounded more than 35,000 and displaced at least three million since the coalition launched military operations, according to the United Nations. The United States has supported a Saudi-led coalition that is bombing the Huthis. Washington (AFP) - In one corner stands Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate backed by practically all mainstream US newspapers, women, minorities, greens, Hollywood and many other groups. In the other is her Republican opponent Donald Trump, with a motley crew of supporters and allies -- stated or not, direct or indirect -- ranging from Vladimir Putin and Julian Assange to a smattering of celebrities like Dennis Rodman. Here is a breakdown of the often unconventional and sometimes surprising forces at play, mostly in the Trump camp, ahead of Election Day on November 8. - A campaign like no other - "It is an enormously confusing election," says George Washington University's Gary Nordlinger, who calls Trump and Clinton the two most unpopular presidential candidates in US history. "And they're running against each other. Each person is running against the only other human being they could possibly defeat." Traditional US coalitions are in place for the most part, he says, with gun rights activists pro-Trump, for instance, and environmentalists backing Clinton. But although middle-class whites generally favor Trump, Clinton has syphoned off support among suburban, college-educated Republicans who can't stomach the idea of a Trump presidency. "That might be the one unusual cohort in the coalitions," Nordlinger says. But there are other forces at play. - Putin's Russia - The United States has formally accused Putin's Russia of hacking into the emails of American institutions and public figures with the apparent aim of disrupting the election. That includes a hack of the Democratic National Committee on the eve of the party convention in July that proved a huge embarrassment for Clinton. Some argue the Russian president has reasons to prefer Trump as US leader. The real estate billionaire has suggested he would consider recognizing the Russian annexation of Crimea. He has also questioned US support for NATO, praised Putin while endorsing closer ties with Moscow and generally advocated a foreign policy that would make America more inward-looking with a smaller leadership role in the world. Story continues Putin meanwhile accuses Clinton of having encouraged mass protests in Russia when she was secretary of state in 2011 after Russian elections the opposition said were rigged. "President Putin demands respect and is driven by revenge," Nordlinger says of the rationale for the hacks. - Assange and WikiLeaks - Assange, founder of the pro-transparency organization WikiLeaks, is a fierce Clinton critic. "I have had years of experience in dealing with Hillary Clinton and have read thousands of her cables," he wrote in February. "Hillary lacks judgment and will push the United States into endless, stupid wars which spread terrorism." It was WikiLeaks that published the Democratic National Committee emails that made Clinton look bad -- some of them showed party staff had worked to undermine her primary rival Bernie Sanders -- and forced the resignation of the DNC's chair. WikiLeaks also dumped emails containing the texts of paid speeches Clinton gave to Wall Street bankers. Assange has refused to say whether Russia provided him with the email content. Here, too, revenge is in play, Nordlinger says. Assange, he argues, blames President Barack Obama and Clinton for forcing him to spend the past four years holed up in the Ecuadoran Embassy in London to avoid arrest and extradition to the United States over major WikiLeaks drops of classified US data. - Evangelicals, even after groping remarks- American evangelicals traditionally represent a solid voting bloc for Republicans because of the party's opposition to abortion and support for other conservative values. However, allegations of sexual misconduct against Trump from nearly a dozen women have raised howls of protest in the latest and perhaps worst storm to hit his struggling campaign. Still, many evangelical leaders continue to stand by him. That's because of the religious right's strong links to the Republican Party and emphasis on family values, and because it loathes Clinton above all else, says David Gushee, professor of Christian ethics at Georgia's Mercer University. Trump has yet to disqualify himself among evangelicals, Gushee wrote this week in Religion News Service. "For the Christian right folks," he said, "that point has apparently not been reached yet. Despite everything. And that is the religion news story of this election." Washington (AFP) - The southern US state of Georgia was preparing Wednesday to execute a man convicted of killing a police officer, after the state parole board denied a request for clemency. Gregory Lawler, 63, was set to die by lethal injection at 7 pm (2300 GMT) at a prison in Jackson, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) outside Atlanta, prison authorities said. According to court documents, Lawler during a domestic dispute in 1997 opened fire with an AR-15 rifle on two officers at his home, killing one and seriously wounding the other. On Tuesday, the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles rejected a clemency petition from Lawler's defense team that argued his life should be spared because he was recently diagnosed with autism, which had caused him to believe the officers came to his home to harm him. The pace of executions is declining in the United States, due to a combination of factors including a shortage of the drugs used to carry out in lethal injections. The US Supreme Court could still step in and halt Lawler's execution. If it goes ahead, he would be the seventh inmate put to death by Georgia this year. Washington (AFP) - US officials are scrambling to end a dispute between Ankara and Baghdad that threatens to derail a carefully developed plan to retake Mosul from the Islamic State group. Officials fear a war of words between Turkey and Iraq's central government could jeopardize a fragile pact that would keep rival sectarian and ethnic militias out of the northern Iraqi city's center. "There is a lot of tension and the public rhetoric has gotten a bit out of hand," a senior administration official told AFP. "It's an extremely troubling scenario." Defense Secretary Ash Carter will visit Turkey on Friday to make sure the plan stays on track. The long-awaited battle to retake Iraq's second city began on Monday and will probably take months to complete. "We are trying to make sure that those tensions are not going to create such a chaotic situation that the military success would simply be overshadowed," the official said. A dizzying array of ethnic and sectarian groups are already jockeying for influence "the day after" the Islamic State (IS) group is ousted. The United States has brokered a deal to keep powerful Shiite and Kurdish militias on the outskirts of the majority Sunni Arab city, hoping to avoid more of the sectarian bloodletting that has plagued Iraq since a US-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein. Amnesty International has accused Shiite paramilitaries of carrying out war crimes during the recapture of Tikrit from the IS group, including the torture and execution of thousands of civilians. The Iraqi military will take the lead in Mosul. But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appears to have jettisoned the tacit agreement, saying it was unthinkable for Ankara or its allies to stay on the sidelines. "We will be in the operation and we will be at the table," he said in a televised speech. "Our brothers are there and our relatives are there. It is out of the question that we are not involved." Story continues Turkey is concerned about the influence of anti-Ankara Kurdish militia and Iranian-backed Iraqi Shiite militias known as the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF). Around 700 Turkish troops are already deployed in Bashiqa, in northern Iraq, and Ankara backs a number of Sunni and Turkomen militias active inside the country. Iraq's Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi responded angrily, calling for Turkey to withdraw troops and stop violating Iraqi sovereignty. A senior US administration official warned that, in the worst case, the war of words could provoke clashes between Turkish and Iraqi government forces as well as a factional free-for-all that would see Shiite militias pile into the city. "This is part of what we are telling the Turkish government," the official said. "The more their rhetoric escalates, the more their actions -- if they were to take actions -- the more it's going to give both pretext and justification for the PMF to demand a more active role." "Unilateral actions, in the worst circumstance, could lead to direct clashes between Iraqis and Turks and between the Shia militia and Turks." But keeping the Iraqi military at the tip of the spear will be essential if President Barack Obama's administration is to avoid repeating past failures in Iraq. "Yes, it's a campaign to defeat ISIL militarily, but the president's goal by the end of the administration is to put ISIL on the path to lasting defeat," the senior administration official said, using an alternate acronym for the Islamic State group. "That meant taking steps to ensure that in the aftermath of whatever military liberation of territory or defeat of ISIL that we wouldn't be in a position where the level of destruction, marginalization, alienation, either from a humanitarian point of view or from a governance point of view, that you would just be planting the seeds of the next generation of extremist or terrorist group." More than a decade of war in Iraq has seen one Sunni insurgent group defeated, only to be replaced by another. There are also fears in Washington that the spat with Erdogan could weaken Abadi, who is already in a difficult position at home. The moderate US-backed Shiite leader faces a stiff challenge from hardliners, including former president Nuri al-Maliki, whom the White House has blamed for many of Iraq's sectarian woes. "The more you see this spiral between Turkey and Baghdad, the harder it is going to be for Abadi to resist calls by his Shia base," the US official said. "If Abadi appears too weak in the face of Turkey, then he is going provide too much of an opportunity for some of his rivals to pick up the mantle and be more nationalistic." DailyFX.com - Talking Points: USD/CAD Technical Strategy: CAD strength looking attractive, a lot of resistance ahead BoC cut growth forecasts while removing verbiage on downside inflation risks in MPR USD/CAD Reverses Losses as BOC Reveals Dovish Intentions Quick Fundamental Take: The Canadian Dollar has strengthened by ~300+ pips since the October 7 Unemployment data that surprised with impressive 67.2k jobs added against expectations of 7.5k. The Canadian Dollars advance halted during the Bank of Canadas press conference where Governor Poloz mentioned the discussion of further stimulus, which naturally revealed there is almost no inclination to raise rates shortly. Access Our Free Q4 Dollar Outlook As The US Dollar Faces An Unorthodox Presidential Election Another component that could be helping the Canadian Dollar is the recent 15-month highs in Crude Oil. Governor Poloz noted that the Oil-Sector investment cuts might be bottoming out, and a rising Oil price could help to ensure CapEx is on the rise in the precious energy sector. Lastly, Governor Poloz voiced disappointment in the health of the exports despite the weaker Canadian Dollar, but Global demand (ex-China) continues to be uncertain. Looking For Clear Short-Term USD/CAD Levels Updating In Real-Time? Check Out GSI Technical Focus: 240 Minute USD/CAD Trading View Chart: USD/CAD Technical Analysis: Post-BoC Retracement On Stimulus Talk Chart Created by Tyler Yell, CMT Interested In Learning the Traits of DailyFXs Successful Traders? If So, Click Here The chart above shows the price action and Fibonacci levels that appear to be framing possible breakouts. The main focus I would encourage is to watch a breakdown through key levels of support that could validate further CAD strength. Weve recently broken below the 100-DMA that sits at 1.3015 but now stare at the 38..2-61.8% retracement of the May-October Range. This range encompasses 1.2988-1.2786. A breakdown below this zone would align with the apparent correct chart pattern that looks like a consolidation pattern known as a type of Bear Flag. Should this pattern be in play and validated with further Canadian Dollar strength, we would eventually anticipate a retest and break of the May low of 1.2469. Story continues Having a Hard Time Trading USD/CAD? This May Be Why Given the weak trend higher without a break below significant support at 1.3015, I would continue to encourage watching the upside if USD strength resumes. The chart above shows the kiss of the 38.2% retracement of the January-May range as the current top. Should we eventually turn higher from this ~ (2.25) % drop in USD/CAD and take out 1.3312, we will look for an extension toward the Fibonacci Retracement level higher such as 1.3572. This level would be the 50% retracement of the January-May range or possibly the 1.38272 61.8% retracement if CAD weakness accelerated. Key Levels as of Wednesday, October 19, 2016 USD/CAD Technical Analysis: Post-BoC Retracement On Stimulus Talk T.Y. original source DailyFX provides forex news and technical analysis on the trends that influence the global currency markets. Learn forex trading with a free practice account and trading charts from FXCM. By Andrew Cawthorne CARACAS (Reuters) - Elections for Venezuela's state governorships will be held in 2017 rather than December as expected, the election board said on Tuesday, giving the unpopular socialist government more breathing space before going to the polls. Critics say authorities have delayed the elections - and are also seeking to derail an opposition push for a referendum to recall President Nicolas Maduro - because they are frightened of letting Venezuelans have their say. Maduro, who replaced the popular Hugo Chavez in 2013 after his death, has seen his ratings halve to just over 20 percent amid a deep economic crisis in the OPEC nation. The 23 state governors' four-year terms were to end in early January, with elections anticipated for December. But National Election Board head Tibisay Lucena, who the opposition says is close to the government, said they would instead be held toward mid-2017. Although Lucena did not give reasons, government officials have said exceptional measures are justified because of a U.S.-led "economic war" against them and the oil price crash. "This decision by the election board is part of a dangerous trend by a regime clearly acting outside the constitution," the opposition Democratic Unity coalition said. With Chavez suffering from cancer but having just won re-election himself, the socialists swept to victory in 20 states in the last regional elections in 2012. But opinion polls show they would currently fare badly in any election, and government sources have said they are hoping for an oil price recovery to help them. The opposition has pushed for a referendum this year to remove Maduro and trigger a new presidential election. But even if they collect the 4 million signatures needed to trigger the plebiscite, in a drive later this month, such a vote could only take place next year. Under Venezuela's constitutional rules, that means that should Maduro lose a referendum next year, his vice president would take over rather than there being a new election, dashing the opposition's hopes of ending 17 years of socialism. Later on Tuesday, Maduro warned that various opposition parties were at risk of losing their legal status and needed to renew their registry with the electoral board if they wanted to participate in the 2017 state polls. "If they flout the law ... then the governor elections will come and we will participate (alone) ... It's a real, possible, probable scenario," he said. (Additional reporting by Diego Ore; Editing by Peter Cooney and Stephen Coates) At least 16 people have been killed after a row over an illegal levy on the sale of caterpillars in the Democratic Republic of Congo. According to the BBC, days of violence erupted in the Congos Katanga province, when Batwa people , also known as pygmies, accused the Luba ethnic group of levying an illegal tax and beating up caterpillar vendors. Caterpillars, which are often smoked and eaten with sauce, are a delicacy in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the caterpillar controversy has exposed fresh wounds in a long-standing feud between the Batwa and the Luba. Clashes between the two communities have killed hundreds in the past three years, the BBC says. During the most recent attack, the Batwa reportedly killed several members of the Luba ethnic group, with the Luba then launching a revenge attack that killed at least 13 Batwa. The Batwa have long felt marginalized in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with unequal access to resources or education, turning to violence when they perceive their main source of income as being subjected to an unfair tax. [BBC] From Road & Track Ever since Volkswagen's diesel-emissions cheating was revealed last year, the company has been hard at work developing an acceptable fix for the U.S. market. Federal regulators have rejected all of VW's proposals to fix cheating 2.0- and 3.0-liter diesels, and now, there's a chance they'll never be fixed. According to Bloomberg, VW seeks a final sign-off for its $14.7-billion settlement with U.S. government, but the EPA and California Air Resources Board (CARB) still approved a plan to make affected vehicles emissions-compliant. A San Francisco judge will consider final approval for VW's settlement today, but without a fix in place, VW may be forced to buy back all of the 482,000 2.0-liter TDI-powered vehicles it sold in the U.S With most owners already opting for a buyback, VW is likely prepared for this scenario. What's arguably more worrying for VW is the matter of its cheating 3.0-liter diesels. That V6 engine was only installed in 85,000 U.S.-market VW Touraegs, Audi Q5s, and Porsche Cayennes, but buybacks for those more-expensive cars will quickly add up. VW has proposed a number of fixes for those cars, but all have been rejected by CARB or the EPA. Currently, VW hasn't finalized a settlement with owners affected by those cars. VW set aside $10 billion to buy back cheating 2.0-liter cars, and without an approved fix, it looks like it'll spend that entire amount. If the company needs to do the same with cheating 3.0-liter cars, its costs will continue to grow. You Might Also Like While Hillary Clinton has spent the presidential campaign saying as little as possible about her ties to Wall Street, the executive who some observers say could be her Treasury Secretary has been openly promoting a plan to give financial firms control of hundreds of billions of dollars in retirement savings. The executive is Tony James, president of the Blackstone Group. The investment colossus is most famous in politics for its Republican CEO likening an Obama tax plan to a Nazi invasion. James, though, is a longtime Democrat and one of Clintons top fundraisers. The billionaire sculpted the retirement initiative with a prominent labor economist whose work is supported by another investment mogul who is a big Clinton donor. The proposal has received bipartisan praise from prominent economic thinkers, and James says that Clintons top aides are warming to the idea. It is a plan that proponents say could help millions of Americans but could also enrich another constituency: the hedge fund and private equity industries that Blackstone dominates and that have donated millions to support Clintons presidential bid. The proposal would require workers and employers to put a percentage of payroll into individual retirement accounts to be invested well in pooled plans run by professional investment managers, as James put it. In other words, individual voluntary 401(k)s would be replaced by a single national system, and much of the mandated savings would flow to Wall Street, where companies like Blackstone could earn big fees off the assets. And because of a gap in federal anti-corruption rules, there would be little to prevent the biggest investment contracts from being awarded to the biggest presidential campaign donors. A Washington power player who reportedly turned down a slot in President Barack Obamas cabinet, James first outlined the retirement savings initiative in a speech a year ago to the Center for American Progress (CAP). The liberal think tank was founded by Clintons current campaign chairman, John Podesta, and is run by her former top policy adviser Neera Tanden. James and Blackstone made six-figure donations to CAP that year, and the group gave him a platform to propose a new payroll tax that he said would fund guaranteed retirement benefits. Story continues Rather than funneling the hundreds of billions of dollars of new tax revenue into expanding Social Security benefits, as many Democratic lawmakers have called for, James proposed something different: A decade after George W. Bushs failed attempt to divert Social Security revenue into private retirement accounts, the Blackstone president outlined a plan to create individual retirement accounts, some of whose assets would be managed by private financial firms. Managing the Guaranteed Retirement Accounts in a pooled fashion would let them leverage that scale to pay lower fees, James said. They would also have access to [the] highest quality managers who could adopt long-term investment horizons and invest in less liquid, but higher returning, asset classes that are more appropriate for retirement funding. In the blueprint of the plan, James lamented that 401(k) systems dont invest in longer-term, illiquid alternatives such as hedge funds, private equity and real estate, and said the new program could invest in high-yielding and risk-reducing alternative asset classes. In a CNBC interview, James said he wants the billions of dollars of new retiree savings to be invested like pension plans. He noted that in the average pension plan in America, about 25 percent is invested in stuff we do, in alternatives, in real estate and private equity and commodities and hedge funds. Unlike stock index funds and Treasury bills, those investments generate big fees for financial firms and critics say they do not generate returns that justify the costs. Clintons campaign did not respond to International Business Times questions about James proposal. clinton Photo: Brian Snyder/Reuters Since 2013, Clinton has sent conflicting signals on retirement policy. During the Democratic primary, under pressure from progressive groups, she agreed to support some targeted Social Security increases and promised not to reduce benefits. But in paid speeches to Wall Street firms, according to recently leaked emails, she praised a presidential commission that recommended cuts to the program. Clinton has not publicly endorsed James plan, but her campaigns blank slate on retirement policy provides a clear opportunity for the Blackstone president and his plan, about which he has just co-authored a book, Rescuing Retirement. Proponents view the initiative as an earnest bipartisan effort by a disinterested financial expert who is deeply concerned about Americas looming retirement security crisis. As James partner in shaping the initiative, labor economist Teresa Ghilarducci, put it: Tony is an independent thinker and he really sees a public policy need. Hes a Democrat, hes one of the chief supporters of Hillary Clintons presidency. His company owns a lot of other companies. Tony told me whenever a company gets rid of a pension plan, he knows a middle-class worker cant retire. On the Democratic side, two of President Obamas top economic aides have praised James and Ghilarduccis new book. On the Republican side, George H.W. Bushs former deputy treasury secretary Bill Jasien who now runs a financial advisory firm wrote in the books forward: We may disagree on many political issues, but regardless of ones political alignment, aspects of Teresa and Tonys Retirement Savings Plan provide an important road map to put American workers back on trackTheir plan is built on common sense principles, key to advancing the debate on a bipartisan basis. James himself has brushed off notions that he or his firm has any financial stake in his proposal. Im 66, Im at the end of my career, not the beginning it doesnt make any difference to me, James told IBT during a Washington event in September to promote the book. The whole point of this is to help do something for a big problem. And I know about the area because I manage retirement assets for pension funds. Tony James Photo: Jin Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images Asked earlier this year whether he had a conflict of interest in proposing such a measure, James told Bloomberg News: If this gets enacted, there are going to be thousands and thousands and thousands of asset managers that will benefit I suppose because more savings and more investment benefits all asset managers of every stripe. For Blackstone its frankly small, he said. Its retail and our funds are already oversubscribed. I dont think we are going to get much out of it. Critics see James proposal as an effort by a politically connected private equity mogul to present a Wall Street-enriching scheme as a social good at a moment when his own firm has faced lower profits, and at a generally challenging time for the alternative investments industry. That industry relies on investments from state and local pension systems, which over the last decade have invested billions in alternatives in hopes of reaping above-market returns in exchange for higher fees. Recently, though, regulators, pension trustees, investment experts and academics have questioned whether retiree savings should be invested with firms like Blackstone in the first place. Some pensions are pulling out their money. Other pension systems have been turned into 401(k)-style plans, which are difficult for the alternative investment industry to break into because of federal laws that discourage those plans from buying into riskier, illiquid investments. In the face of these challenges, James proposal could provide a government-mandated flow of money from workers paychecks into the high-fee alternative investment industry. This new plan depends on sweeping government mandates, the appropriation of trillions of dollars from the private sector that is then handed over to zillionaire investment managers who make no guarantees about rates of returns or discounted fees, said South Carolina Treasurer Curtis Loftis, a Republican who serves on his states pension investment council, which contracts with Blackstone. The only guaranteed benefit I see in this plan is one for wealthy money managers and their cronies. Wall Streeters reading this plan will understand, without having specifically been told, that having Hillary Clinton and the federal government use its power to aggregate the existing and future retirement funds of working Americans and entrust it to them is the Holy Grail of finance. Chris Tobe, a Democrat who advises institutional investors and who served on Kentuckys pension board, put it just as bluntly: James plan is a deliberate attempt to get around federal protections for retirees because alternative investments are not generally allowed in the 401(k) world. This is about making Blackstone and other private equity firms even richer than they already are. Clinton has cast herself as skeptical of the shadow banking world that Blackstone operates in, and she has said she wants to close a loophole that lets private equity managers pay a lower tax rate than most other workers. Yet for all of Clintons tough talk against Wall Street, James and others associated with Blackstone have been among her biggest fundraisers, and during a recent cocktail party in Washington D.C. to promote the plan, James said he was optimistic that a Clinton win could make his proposal a reality. What the election would mean for our plan: Yes, weve spent a fair amount of time with a number of Hillarys policy advisors. So far they have been very encouraging about the plan, he told the assembled crowd. I am hopeful shell grab this issue once elected, and run with it. I think the signals are warm on that. Half Of All Households Older Than 55 Have No Retirement Savings In his book and during his television appearances pushing his proposal, James has argued that workers in general are not saving enough for retirement and few dispute his assessment. A General Accountability Office report last year found that in the 48 percent of households of Americans over 55 years old who have some savings in 401(k) or other tax-deferred account, the median household has just $109,000 which would provide an annuity of about $405 per month for a 65-year old. A full 52 percent of such households have no savings at all. That leaves Social Security, which now provides most of the retirement income for about half of households age 65 and older, according to GAO. But Social Security usually does not provide the 85 percent of pre-retirement income needed to maintain retirees living standard; it provides only about 35 percent, according to the National Institute on Retirement Security. Progressive lawmakers and advocacy groups have been pushing to fund more robust Social Security benefits by lifting the cap on the amount of income that is subject to the payroll tax. That initiative has been promoted by Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, and most recently President Obama. Others have trumpeted separate initiatives to expand defined contribution programs. Since 2015, California, Connecticut, Maryland and Oregon have enacted legislation allowing workers who do not already receive retirement benefits to opt into state-run retirement programs. Republican Sen. Marco Rubio echoing a proposal from the Democratic-aligned Center for American Progress has called for letting workers with no retirement coverage buy into the Thrift Savings Plan, a low-fee, defined-contribution system for federal employees. It invests only in assets such as stocks, bonds and Treasury bills that do not generate big fees for Wall Street firms. Blocked Out Of Having The Most Sophisticated Investments Into this simmering policy debate has come Blackstones James and his co-author Teresa Ghilarducci. A labor economist, Ghilarducci is a trustee for the United Auto Workers Medical Benefits Trust, an informal retirement policy adviser to the Clinton campaign and a professor at New Schools Schwartz Center for Economic and Policy Analysis. Ghilarducci has long been a critic of the 401(k) system, arguing that its tax breaks disproportionately benefit wealthier Americans and that its fees are too high. In 2007, she outlined a draft of a guaranteed retirement savings proposal in a paper for the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute. Her plan called for a 5 percent payroll tax partially offset by replacing existing tax breaks for 401(k)s which would fund guaranteed retirement benefits in customizable payout plans. The plan would create a $600-a-year tax credit for savers, and the payroll tax levy (which mimics savings programs in Australia, Britain and New Zealand) would generate $500 billion a year, according to Dean Baker, an economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research. The original proposal directed the revenue into accounts administered by the Social Security Administration and managed by the Thrift Savings Plan. The plan, Ghilarducci said, would together with Social Security provide the average earner with 71 percent of their working income in retirement. In 2010, Ghilarduccis proposal got a boost from the Obama administration, whose Middle Class Task Force endorsed the concept of the savings accounts. Then in 2015, Ghilarducci and New School researchers published a paper proposing a new roadmap to implement the plan. The paper, though, included an important change: Rather than saying retirement savings would be managed by an existing government entity that invests in low-fee vehicles like stocks, bonds and T-bills, the report said funds would be managed by commercial money managers, similar to regular defined benefit pension funds. Though seemingly small, the tweak and the reference to modeling it off traditional pension systems transformed the proposal into a potential jackpot for hedge funds, private equity firms, real estate investment houses and venture capital companies. Ghilarducci told IBT that she made the change because she had evolved to be more aspirational in creating a plan that would invest retirees money in both traditional stocks and bonds and in alternative investments that she asserted can deliver better returns. Soon after the revision, she was asked to lunch by James, whose firm is one of the worlds biggest private equity, hedge fund and real estate investors. InsideGov | Graphiq We talked a lot about the inefficiencies of the system and how unfair it is, she said. If you are in a 401(k), the government protects you against being in a sophisticated investment product because you arent a sophisticated investor. But that means that everybody with a 401(k) or IRA are blocked out of having the most sophisticated investments. And we both thought that is unfair. As an icon of the private equity industry, James is an unlikely champion of retirement security. A recent Harvard University study found that private equity firms have transformed bankruptcy law into an efficient financial engineering tool for insider salesand for dumping pensions with 51 companies abandoning their pension plans at the behest of private equity firms since 2001. Nonetheless, a spokeswoman for Blackstone, Christine Anderson, said that when it comes to the retirement crisis, Tony has been talking about this for years. As the 2016 presidential campaign heated up, James signed onto a new version of Ghilarduccis plan that reduced the new payroll tax to 3 percent, split between employers and employees, and partially offset by a tax credit. They said the government would guarantee the principal of the account, regardless of market conditions. Under the Retirement Savings Plan, everyone in America who works without a pension plan, no matter how little or how much they make, from Uber drivers to CEOs, would have their own Guaranteed Retirement Account, James said in his CAP speech. Retirees savings managed by private financial firms would generate far better returns than 401(k)s, he said. The beauty of investing more effectively is that the higher return itself pays for a large part of the retirement gap and it doesnt cost anyone anything, he said. Some data supports James comparison: Traditional pension systems outperformed 401(k)-style plans by 0.7 percent between 1990 and 2012, according to a recent study published by Boston Colleges Center for Retirement Research. A similar study from retirement consultant Towers Watson found that pension systems consistently outperformed 401(k)s. This Proposal Is About Wall Street Getting More Assets It is healthy to be suspicious of bankers, Ghilarducci told IBT. Tony is an officer of the company and he of course doesnt do anything that hurts the company. The James-Ghilarducci plan in fact offers substantial potential benefits for companies like Blackstone. It would provide Wall Street with a new, government-guaranteed revenue stream, and would also help the industry circumvent legal and market obstacles to reach a wider swath of the retirement savings business. Alternative investment firms have tried to break into the $4 trillion 401(k) market for years, but their products, such as real estate and long-term private equity investments, are less easily transferable to cash, making them a difficult fit for 401(k)s. On top of that, 401(k)s are regulated by federal rules that discourage illiquid, high-risk investments and make 401(k) overseers vulnerable to lawsuits if they move workers money into such investments. A new federal rule could further complicate alternative investment firms efforts to access the retail market because it suggests that there are certain investments that are so costly, complex, or opaque that they cannot be recommended to retirement investors, said Barbara Roper of the Consumer Federation of America. The James-Ghilarducci plan would effectively circumvent many of those obstacles, allowing alternative investment firms to access billions of retail customer dollars that have been out of reach. FindTheCompany | Graphiq For Wall Street, the biggest benefit could be new fee revenue. The plans 3 percent payroll tax would generate roughly $300 billion a year. The average public pension fund has 17 percent of its assets in alternative investments: If the James-Ghilarducci proposal followed that same formula, alternative investment industry firms like Blackstone would get half a trillion dollars of new assets under management over the course of a decade. With the industry-standard management fee between 1 and 2 percent, that represents between $500 million and $1 billion in new management fees each year and that does not include the even more lucrative 20 percent fee the alternative investment industry typically charges on investment gains. The cash infusion for Wall Street would come at a critical moment: In the last few years, investment experts such as Warren Buffett, George Soros and Jack Bogle have suggested that investors should avoid putting money in alternative investments because, they argue, the stock market delivers better returns and incurs far lower fees. A 2015 study from Johns Hopkins Universitys Jeff Hooke found that over the previous five years, low-fee index funds outperformed pension systems that invested in higher-fee alternatives. Hedge funds returns have trailed the S&P 500; venture capital returns have been uneven and a 2013 study showed that the pension funds that paid the highest fees to alternative investment firms had some of the worst performance. In terms of private equity, while that industrys proponents including Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman say their firms outperform the stock market, recent research challenges that claim, and the industry just experienced one of its weakest quarters. At the same time, academic experts and regulators have warned about hidden fees that eat into investors returns. The Securities and Exchange Commission last year sanctioned Blackstone for having failed to fully inform investors about fees in a case involving funds that listed James as one of their key overseers. Some major institutional investors appear to be responding to the warnings. Just this month, officials at the California State Teachers Retirement System one of the largest pensions in the world announced that high fees had convinced them to follow other major pension systems and pull $20 billion out of its investments with private money managers. Ghilarducci told IBT that concerns about fees were valid, but that the new federal program would use its market power to negotiate lower levies. Even if the effort to reduce fees was not successful, she argued, their proposal would still give retirees a better deal than 401(k) plans. If you are in a defined benefit plan that is paying too many fees to Blackstone, you are still better off than if you are in a Fidelity plan for a 401(k), she said. Thats a difficult case to make, though, when some private equity titans including Blackstones own top dealmaker have suggested the industry may not be able to deliver the high returns it promises in exchange for its high fees. All told, economist Eileen Appelbaum told IBT, the James-Ghilarducci plan is built on earnings projections that are fanciful. The plans promise of 6 to 7 percent returns is likely to prove unrealistic, and they fail to discuss the risks inherent in the risky investments that would have to dominate the savings portfolio that could yield such returns, said Appelbaum, who co-authored the book Private Equity at Work and published a study suggesting lower private equity returns are a new normal. This proposal is about Wall Street getting more assets under management because that is where they make their money, she said. Why would we put more retirement savings into private hands when Social Security or the Thrift Savings Plan could do the same at almost no cost? "Pay-to-Play Violations Are The Cornerstone of The Alternative Investment Market Whatever the merits of a particular policy proposal, enactment will be a matter of political muscle and that has been on display during James and Ghilarduccis autumn events to promote Rescuing Retirement, the book version of their proposal. Billionaire former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg spoke at a packed New York event, which was also attended by Andy Stern, the former head of the Service Employees International Union. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and senior Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan attended the pairs Politico-sponsored Washington event. Bloomberg Photo: REUTERS/Darren Ornitz Meanwhile, James and others connected to Blackstone have financially aided Clinton's White House bid. James is listed as a Hillblazer on Clintons campaign website, meaning he has donated and/or raised at least $100,000 for her campaign. The Wall Street Journal reported that James held a $33,400-a-person fundraiser for the Hillary Victory Fund at his Manhattan home in December 2015. Blackstone and James also held a lavish reception at the Democratic National Convention in July 2016, and James held another fundraiser for Clinton at his home last month, raising $1.5 million, according to the Associated Press. Blackstone employees have given a total of more than $107,000 to Clintons campaign, according to data compiled by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics (CRP). David Jones and Richard Sullivan, who until 2015 were listed as Blackstone lobbyists, have been among Clintons largest fundraising bundlers. In all, the private equity and hedge fund industries that could benefit from James retirement proposal have given Clintons campaign more than $2 million, according to CRP. When counting donations to outside super PACs supporting her, the watchdog group says Clintons presidential bid has been supported with $58 million from the securities and investment industry with alternative investment industry moguls among the top donors. James has said he is not aiming to be appointed Treasury Secretary. But along with his fundraising, James and Blackstone have sought to build relationships with key Washington players on retirement policy. For instance, James and Ghilarduccis proposal touts legislation from House Democratic Vice-Chairman Joe Crowley that would direct many employers to open individual retirement accounts for their employees. Crowley's office has promoted the initiative as one that would have the new accounts invest retiree savings in "a limited number of low-fee index fund options." However, the bill includes a provision that would give federal officials latitude to potentially invest the new money in alternative investments. Blackstone donors are collectively the third largest donor to Crowley during his congressional career, and Crowley has raised more than $1.6 million from donors in the securities and investment industry, according to CRP. Outside of Congress, Blackstone has donated between $500,000 and $1 million to the Clinton Foundation, and the Associated Press reported that "eight Blackstone executives also gave between $375,000 and $800,000 to the foundation." James has also built bridges to the Clinton-linked Center for American Progress, beyond his donations and seat on its board. In emails released by Wikileaks, CAP president and CEO Neera Tanden encouraged Clinton campaign chairman Podesta to forge a relationship with Blackstone executive Jon Gray, and Clintons campaign looked to arrange a meeting between James, Gray and former Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner. A separate email shows James arguing to Podesta that his retirement proposal is a better idea than simply expanding Social Security which would offer no profit potential for Wall Street. We do not believe the problem can be solved by making Social Security better funded and/or adding a higher minimum benefits, he wrote. Expanding Social Security doesn't help middle class people very much, he argued, and increasing Social Security would mean adding to FICA taxes. He also said: Social Security is such a fraught issue with people so dug in, we worried that opening it up for fundamental change was not implementable from a pragmatic standpoint. While Ghilarducci said she supports expanding Social Security, doing so would be more politically difficult than enacting a separate program, she argued especially since her initiative gets a boost from its association with an industry power player like James. Tony certainly helps get an audience that the left couldnt get, she said. The political reality is, you have to have resources and coalition building. Another political reality is this: The James-Ghilarducci plan could strengthen the financial industrys political influence over retirement investments. Under their proposal, Retirement portfolios would be created by a board of professionals who would be fiduciaries appointed by the president and Congress, James and Ghilarducci wrote in a New York Times editorial. The fees and investments would be much less prone to corruption because the managers income would not depend on the investments. Alternative investments, though, are notoriously opaque. The contracts between financial firms and pensions are secret, making it difficult to evaluate whether they are being competitively bid or whether they involve undue influence. A recent whistleblower lawsuit in New Mexico accused Blackstone of being part of an influence-peddling scheme, which Blackstone has denied, and USA Today in 2009 tracked how Blackstone officials had made donations to public officials in states that had awarded the company pension management deals. Seeking to tamp down donor influence, the SEC enacted rules in 2010 aiming to prevent campaign contributions from influencing political appointees decisions about which financial firms get to manage retirees savings. But lawyers interviewed by IBT said the SECs rule covers only state and local retirement systems not the federal government. James told IBT he supports the SEC expanding its rule to cover any new investment board created by his proposal. But if the SEC did not take that step, there would be little to prevent financial firms from donating major money to a president, whose appointees could then steer billions of new retiree savings to those same firms. "Pay-to-play violations are a cornerstone of the alternative investment market," said former SEC attorney Edward Siedle. "It's often the only way that money managers can get elected officials to evade their fiduciary duty and invest in low-transparency, high-cost, high-risk investments that consistently trail the S&P 500. Any retirement plan that would allow that to happen at the federal level would be insane." Related Articles 19 Oct - Chinese actor Wang Baoqiang has recently made his first statement online after his court case, thanking the media for their concern about his divorce matters. As reported on NDTV, the actor, who began his divorce case at the Beijing Chaoyang Court on 18 October, apologised for not being able to speak to the media after the trial, so as not to cause commotion outside the court. "It was already dark at the time and the court staff persuaded us not to cause any ruckus outside the place, so there is nothing else to do but leave," he explained. Wang also stated that he couldn't speak to the media since he had another court engagement, one that was filed by his estranged wife Ma Rong against him. The actor added that he is thankful for all members of the media and friends who came to court and promises to be strong for the length of his divorce trial. "The court will be fair and deal with the case with just. We look forward to the final judgment," he said. (Photo source: cn.rfi.fr) From Esquire We are edging ever closer to baby Jeebus giving me just what I want for Christmas this year, at least according to Tiger Beat On The Potomac. "I've made my decision. I'm going to run," Schilling said on Rhode Island radio station WPRO. "But I haven't talked to Shonda, my wife. And ultimately it's going to come down to how her and I feel this would affect our marriage and our kids." First, though, he has to clear up some stuff that might be used for oppo against him, according to ABC News. Schilling spoke Tuesday with WPRO-AM, his first interview about 38 Studios since settling a lawsuit over it and since a criminal investigation resulted in no charges. Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo has said Rhode Island residents were hurt by the bad deal and deserve an apology. Schilling said it's not that he won't apologize, but he wants Raimondo to tell him what he should apologize for. He asked listeners: "What do you want me to apologize for?" Annnnnnnnnd, the first Warren campaign commercial is done. The company moved from Massachusetts to Rhode Island in 2010 in exchange for a $75 million loan guarantee, then went bankrupt less than two years later. Schilling said his company failed because it didn't raise enough money, not because he did anything malicious or illegal, and that he has apologized to his former employees. "I couldn't raise the final tranche of money and get the product to launch and that will never be anyone's fault but mine," he said. No kidding. But Schilling also faulted politicians for giving him a loan guarantee in the first place. "If I was the governor, I would have never even offered this deal," Schilling said. "The government doesn't belong in private business. But I'm on the other side of this. My job and responsibility is to my company and to my employees and I was doing everything I could do, within my legal means, to make that be a success." Story continues Holy god, what a box of rocks. "How stupid do these politicians have to be to hand a boatload of money to a meathead like me?" This is going to take further explanation, I think, if only for the sake of hilarity. And speaking of which, he's already working open mic night at the Wingnut Chuckle Hut. He said he's not scared to debate her, noting that the Red Sox defeated the Cleveland Indians when he was a player. "I've beaten the real ones before so I'm not worried about that," the self-described conservative and Donald Trump supporter said, an apparent reference to Warren's claims of Native American heritage. Actually, you haven't beaten "the real ones," you dope. Mike Hargrove was not a "real one." Sitting Bull was. (Again, if you're not following the man on Twitter, you're missing a real show.) [contentlinks align="center" textonly="false" numbered="false" headline="Related%20Story" customtitles="Curt%20Schilling%20Doubles%20Down%20on%20Underage%20Comments" customimages="" content="article.49624"] I still think he probably will chicken out, especially if someone like Bill Weld jumps in and Curt has to run a primary campaign. And, actually, a Schilling run would be a good test case to see if Trumpism survives Trump, since Curt is just Donald without the nuance. Apparently, the decision now rests with the rest of Clan Schilling. Come on, Shonda. Don't spoil Christmas for me. Click here to respond to this post on the official Esquire Politics Facebook page. You Might Also Like Election ballot arrival Its finally come to this: Ballots for the general election are in the mail, and within days, Washington state voters can register their choice for president. But how do you know the vote wont be rigged, or ruined by Russian hackers? Its prudent to be concerned, but the state official in charge of the election process says its irresponsible to make baseless accusations about the integrity of the voting process. I have full and complete confidence in our system, Washington Secretary of State Kim Wyman, a Republican whos up for re-election this year, said in a blog posting this week. Every eligible ballot will be handled securely and will be tabulated carefully and accurately. Washington politicians and voters had an up-close look at the chinks in the voting system back in 2004, during one of the closest state-level elections in history. Back then, Democrat Christine Gregoire prevailed over Republican Dino Rossi by a mere 129 votes, out of 2.8 million votes cast. During months of legal wrangling, lawyers turned up evidence for more than 1,600 illegal votes including 1,392 ballots from felons who lost their voting rights, 252 provisional ballots that were mishandled, six cases of double voting, and 19 cases where ballots had been cast for recently deceased voters. Despite those problems, the courts ruled that the outcome should stand, because there was no way to determine whether the illegal votes made a difference. Since then, much has changed. For one thing, Washington has gone to a total vote-by-mail system. We dont have polling places where a lot of those ID issues are raised, said David Ammons, a spokesman for the secretary of states office. Also, a statewide database is now in place to block illegal votes, thanks in part to federal funding. The database compares voter registration records with criminal records from courts and the Department of Corrections, data from the Department of Licensing and vital records from county auditors, the Department of Health and the Social Security Administration. Story continues Wyman wants to see one more piece added to the voter ID puzzle: a requirement to provide proof of citizenship in order to get a drivers license. That REAL ID provision is likely to come up for action in the Legislature next year. Washingtons voter rolls are also cross-checked on an anonymized basis through a 21-state consortium known as the Electronic Registration Information Center, or ERIC. Are you registered? Theres a website to help you find that out. And if youre not, you can still sign up by showing up in person at a county election office by Oct. 31. So what happens once you send in your vote? Starting next week, workers at county election offices will be matching up ballots with the signatures they have on file for verification. Were still doing it the human eyeball way, Ammons told GeekWire. Hundreds of temporary workers will be brought in to do the job in King County alone. And the job wont be done on Election Night, Nov. 8. Ammons estimated that 50 to 60 percent of the vote would be reported, with the final results to be reported once all the ballots are received, checked and collated. In this weeks update, Wyman noted that the paper-based system creates an audit trail. Our state registration system remains cybersecure, and our tabulation systems in the counties are air-gapped and not connected to the Internet, she said. Ammons said the state election administration system got an outside review under the terms of a contract with the federal Department of Homeland Security. They found a couple of minor things, essentially to strengthen our firewall, he said. There are a few ways to monitor the vote: You can track your ballots progress through the system by plugging your name and birth date into an online Ballot Tracker thats offered by King County and many other counties. Political parties will have trained observers watching as ballots are processed, and King County will provide live video when processing is under way. If you dont receive your ballot, or if you encounter a problem with the voting process, contact your local election office. And if youre waiting to vote over the Internet, dont hold your breath. Overseas and military service members have limited capability to send in ballots via email, but Ammons doesnt expect voting to go online anytime soon. Were waiting until its hack-proof and secure, he said. More from GeekWire: Maggie Rogers has quickly become a widely-recognized name following a public stamp of approval from Pharrell Williams. Her debut song "Alaska" went viral over the summer, and when Williams first heard it he said, "I'd be very curious to see what your visuals will looks like." Now, the infectious earworm's visual accompaniment has arrived and Rogers does not disappoint. The video finds Rogers emerging from a field, wearing her now signature plain jeans and a hoodie. Midway through, as a cloud of smoke clears, a transformed Rogers appears in all white with pink eye shadow. She and her friends then dance in the woods while bathed in flashing lights and by song's end Rogers retreats back to the field she emerged from. Check out the video for "Alaska" below. The song first surfaced back in March when Williams dropped by The Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts to host a masterclass for music students. Williams' reaction to the track, which was captured on video, went viral in a matter of days and launched Rogers into the spotlight. While there is no official word on an upcoming album or second song, Rogers took to Twitter last week to thank fans for their patience. She posted two photos of a hand-written letter, in which she concluded by saying "I won't let you down." Thank you for being patient with me. Video 10.18 - more soon. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/QXg980mop2 - Maggie Rogers (@maggierogers) October 14, 2016 2/2 pic.twitter.com/VVVpeV2A1v - Maggie Rogers (@maggierogers) October 14, 2016 Police in Kampala has warned drivers on the new tactics used by highway robbers. According to police they have recorded several cases of drivers complaining of people who pretend to be mechanics, but later turn out to be robbers. While addressing media today, the Kampala metropolitan police spokesperson Emilian Kayima said that these thieves tend to stop drivers pretending to warn them of mechanical conditions of their vehicles, but in the process of checking they damage further the vehicles hence overcharging them for repair. He explained that preliminary investigations show that these people come from kiseka market. Just this past week JP Morgan Chase announced a new program committing $75 million over three years to help small businesses, particularly ones owned by minorities, women and veterans. Pretty nice, right? The program includes a $1.9 million grant to the Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO) to support its programs to connect small business owners with alternative funding sources when they are unable to qualify for traditional loans. The bank also extended its collaboration with a nonprofit lender called LiftFund with another $4.6 million grant, which builds on the grants and financial support it has been giving in the past to organizations that support local entrepreneurs. Nice, yes. But the timing raised a few eyebrows. Chases announcement did come suspiciously soon after the news that the CEO of one its biggest competitors, Wells Fargo, had to step down after revealing that the bank had been creating fake accounts and charging fees to unsuspecting customers for years. Are Chases charitable actions related? Are they attempting to take advantage of a rival when theyre down? Stop being so cynical! No, this announcement likely had nothing to do with Wells Fargos problems. Big companies give grants all the time -- and Chase has actually been among the most active. Some examples of others: - Miller Beers ongoing Tap the Future campaign has given away $200,000 each year to an entrepreneur that displays passion and becomes who you want to be in a competition judged by industry and celebrity experts. -Marketing firm Deluxe Corporation received 10,000 nominations and 180,000 votes before choosing the winner of its Small Business Revolution contest last year that awarded $500,000 in marketing services and support. The company plans to continue the program this year too. -Fedex recently awarded $25,000 to a grand prize winner, $15,000 to the runner up and a bunch of $7,500 grants to small businesses who participated in its Opportunity Knocks contest, all for showing a deep passion for their business. Story continues -Comcast Business gave out $20,000 awards to each of six small business owners who demonstrated their great ideas to a panel of judges to win its Innovations 4 Entrepreneurs contest. -In addition to the philanthropy mentioned above, every year Chase also gives out $100,000 each to twenty small businesses who win its Mission Main Street grant program because they demonstrate innovation, diversity, and strength. -Sams Clubs Community Grant Program awards unspecified grants to nonprofits that support small business owners particularly minority and women owned businesses - that can demonstrate opportunity, sustainability and community with education and youth success also being other areas of focus. -Besides Sams Club, Walmart also has a variety of charitable foundations that offer grants to organizations that align with the companys key areas of focus. -Many other large companies have charitable arms that offer money to non-profits and for-profits that are doing good things in the world. Heres a list of 20 of the most generous, according to Fortune.com. At the same time, in my view it would be naive to say that these companies are doing this all out of pure goodwill. One could make an argument that in addition to wanting to do good, they do these kinds of things to get good PR and embellish their own brands. The reality is that a few $100,000 grants to a company the size of JP Morgan Chase is petty cash when you look at their overall financial picture. These programs not only create a lot of goodwill for Corporate America, but they also start a conversation that can be used in their marketing campaigns and promotions. And the small businesses that win these awards give interviews to the media, appear at events and participate in video testimonials so that they can gush about the generous corporate sponsor doing their part to help Americas entrepreneurs. So yes, there are certainly a number of business reasons behind these altruistic grants. But this is not unlike the small business that sponsors a fund-raising event or donates money to a local charity and then gets its logo published in the town newspaper, right? In the end, if its helping a good cause, or providing much needed money to a capital-starved entrepreneur to grow their business and employ more people, isnt that what matters most? So thank you Chase and all the others for helping Main Street, and if that helps you, too good for you. Related Articles Clinton pulls ahead -With just three weeks until Election Day, the latest Fox News poll shows that Hillary Clinton is ahead of Donald Trump by six points. Tonights debate will be an extremely significant factor in determining the outcome of the 2016 election. For the most powerful debate analysis, tune in to FOX Business tonight as Maria Bartiromo kicks off the special coverage at 6 p.m. ET. Lou Dobbs will host a special edition of Lou Dobbs Tonight live from Las Vegas beginning at 7 p.m. ET, where he will talk to Steve Wynn, the CEO of Wynn Resorts. And Cavuto will take you into the debate starting at 8 p.m. ET, followed by his expert post-debate analysis. You do not want to miss it! Obamacare premiums to rise more than expected -State insurance regulators have approved premium increases that are even higher than insurers requested, according to a study by USA Today. Experts point out that this might be an effort to keep insurers on the exchanges, but it certainly wont do much to help attract the young, healthy Americans that the program is woefully lacking. Speaking of rising costs -The Social Security Administration is saying that higher-income workers will see a bump in their payroll taxes to support retirees benefits; that tax is expected to increase by 7.3% to $127,200 next year. This comes after the administration revealed that the cost-of-living increase for seniors in 2017 will be the smallest ever, rising just 0.3%. An Oscar worthy scandal -Actor Leonardo DiCaprio will cooperate with a probe into whether his movie The Wolf of Wall Street was funded by money that was embezzled from a Malaysian government fund. A spokesman for DiCaprio said he is seeking to determine whether he or his foundation had received any donations related to these parties, and if so, to return those gifts or donations as soon as possible. Related Articles The two biggest action heroes in the rebooted Star Wars universe have connected. Daisy Ridley, who became a worldwide star for her fierce portrayal of Rey in The Force Awakens, was in Los Angeles Tuesday promoting the new documentary The Eagle Huntress (which she executive produced and narrates) when Yahoo Movies asked her thoughts about the sagas upcoming spin-off, Rogue One, starring Felicity Jones. Im very excited to see it, Ridley said before volunteering the following, voice rising in excitement. I had a drink with Felicity a few weeks ago, shes super cool! Related: Watch the trailer for The Eagle Huntress Ridley, whose Force Awakens PR tour found her globetrotting everywhere from Seoul to Mexico City, said she met her fellow Brit, appropriately enough, for a cup of tea. And Ridley admitted theres a hint of envy in seeing Jones (who plays the rebel leader Jyn Erso in Rogue One) prepare to embark on her own Star Wars adventure. It was weird, Ive talked so much retrospectively about what was going on [in the lead-up to Force Awakens]. It was so odd to be reliving it. And she gets to go talk about this film that shes part of in all these amazing places. I feel like jealous is the wrong word, but I had such a good time in the run-up to the film, and it was all so exciting. Knowing that shes experiencing that is so great. Plus the films meant to be amazing, so its a fantastic continuation of the Star Wars world. Related: Felicity Jones on How Ripley in Aliens Helped Inspire Jyn Erso in Rogue One Ridley, 24, however, felt no need to dole out advice to the Oscar-nominated Jones (The Theory of Everything), 33. Oh God, I didnt give her tips, she said. Shes like a proper human being. Shes got everything nailed We just talked about our filmmaking experiences. And Ive been a huge fan of hers for a long time. Have you ever met her? Shes so great. So just to chill was really nice. Asked if she sees any similarities between Jyn Erso and Rey, whom fans and media have speculated could be mother and daughter, Ridley said little to support that hypothesis. I dont know. Thatll be interesting when I see [Rogue One]. But I dont watch things and think in that way. So I think Im just gonna watch it and be blown away. Story continues Look for Yahoo Movies full interview with Ridley about The Eagle Huntress and more the week of the films Nov. 2 opening. From Town & Country Whiskey lovers, take note. Jim Murray's Whisky Bible has declared Booker's Rye, the first-ever rye whiskey released by the Booker's Bourbon brand, the "World Whisky of the Year" for 2017. The influential spirits guide ranked 1,241 new whiskies for this year's judging, which calls Booker's Rye "simply a staggering example of a magnificent rye showing exactly what genius in terms of whiskey actually means." The 136.2-proof whiskey is aged for more than 13 years and priced at $300, but no bottle is available for less than $549 on wine-searcher.com as of today. It's the time since 2013 that an American whiskey has taken top honors. That year, Thomas H. Handy Sazerac won the award. A Japanese single malt, Yamazaki Sherry Cask, claimed the top spot in last year's guide. You Might Also Like Concho Resources, Inc. CXO is an oil and natural gas company that could be an interesting play for investors. That is because, not only does the stock have decent short-term momentum, but it is seeing solid activity on the earnings estimate revision front as well. These positive earnings estimate revisions suggest that analysts are becoming more optimistic on CXOs earnings for the coming quarter and year. In fact, consensus estimates have moved sharply higher for both of these time frames over the past four weeks, suggesting that Concho Resources could be a solid choice for investors. Current Quarter Estimates for CXO In the past 30 days, 3 estimates have gone higher for Concho Resources while 1 has gone lower in the same time period. The trend has been pretty favorable too, with estimates increasing from 17 cents a share 30 days ago, to 18 cents per share today, a move of 5.9%. Current Year Estimates for CXO Meanwhile, Concho Resources current year figures are also looking quite promising, with 4 estimates moving higher in the past month, compared to 1 lower. The consensus estimate trend has also seen a boost for this time frame, increasing from 23 cents per share 30 days ago to 27 cents per share today, an increase of 17.4%. CONCHO RESOURCS Price and Consensus CONCHO RESOURCS Price and Consensus | CONCHO RESOURCS Quote Bottom Line The stock has also started to move higher lately, adding 10.4% over the past four weeks, suggesting that investors are starting to take note of this impressive story. So investors may definitely want to consider this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock to profit in the near future. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here . Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Tale of the Tape, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report CONCHO RESOURCS (CXO): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. The Japanese ambassador to South Sudan is calling for urgent deployment of the Regional Protection Force in Juba to provide security. Kiya Mashikos call comes a day after sacked Vice President Dr. Riek Machar vowed to return to his country Machar who fled the country in August told the BBC that his rebel faction could negotiate a peace deal. Speaking to Juba-based Eye radio, Amb Mashiko says some of the projects Japan was supporting are not progressing because of the conflict. These include the construction of one of the main bridges in Juba worth over 40 million dollars. He says the projects may resume if there are assurances on security, which he says could be possible after the deployment of the regional protection force. Julian Assange might be forgiven for feeling paranoid. Shortly after WikiLeaks posted a transcript of a speech delivered by Hillary Clinton to Goldman Sachs, his internet access at the Ecuador Embassy in London, where he has lived since 2012, went down. A few days later, a British bank suspended the bank accounts of RT, the Russian state-backed news outlet that has enthusiastically reported on WikiLeaks recent publications. Assange immediately claimed that shadowy forces were acting against the WikiLeaks founder, and accused the U.S. government in a tweet of leaning on Ecuador to shut down his internet. Washington immediately denied the claim. Denying Assange internet access amounted to something of a slap on the wrist of Ecuadors moody boarder. But it also represents Quitos acknowledgement that a shifting political and economic environment in Ecuador has turned Assange into a serious liability. In a time of high oil prices, protecting Assange represented a convenient way for the anti-American government in Quito to poke at Uncle Sam. But amid collapsing commodity prices and an implosion of the Latin American left, Ecuador is confronted with an unappetizing future: A potential Donald Trump presidency, ushered in by Assange, that may damage Quitos interests. Russia may be rooting for Trump, but Ecuador knows its best interests would be served by a Clinton administration, Michael Shifter, president of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington think tank, said Wednesday. In a statement confirming it had severed Assanges internet, Ecuadors foreign ministry struck a regretful tone. Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states, said a ministry statement issued Tuesday evening. WikiLeaks published a wealth of documents, impacting on the U.S. election campaign. As a result, Ecuadorian diplomats exercised its sovereign right to limit internet access. The new stance represents a stunning evolution for a government whose provocations of Washington have, on occasion, risen to an art form. Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, after all, once said Hugo Chavezs comparison of George W. Bush to Satan was unfair to the devil. Story continues Correa rode Ecuadors oil boom to international prominence as part of a vanguard of 21st century socialism in Latin America. But that movement, buoyed by high oil prices and sustained by a fervent anti-Americanism, is now collapsing. Oil prices have cratered. Chavez is dead; Venezuelas free-falling economy has dragged down Ecuadors exports. And the Cuban revolutionaries who provided the intellectual base for this new brand of socialism have made peace with the United States. Today, Correa presides over an economy gripped by recession. If growth is going to return to Ecuador, it will likely be with the help of its main trading partner, the United States. Ecuador has sent trade missions to the United States recently, Shifter said, and U.S. officials traveling to Quito report a noticeably warmer reception. While its unclear exactly what Washington can do to boost the Ecuadorian economy, Correa isnt confident about what Trump would do for the United States as president. If Correa were a U.S. citizen, he said in an interview earlier this month. hed vote for Hillary Clinton. But Correa also saw a silver lining to a Trump presidency. I sincerely believe that it would be better for Latin America if Trump won, he said in the interview. When did progressive governments come to power in Latin America? During the Bush administration. His primitive policies were rejected so much that it caused reaction in Latin America. Trump would do the same. Experts said a Trump presidency might in fact boost the budgets of Ecuador and its leftist, oil-producing allies a far better payoff than sparking an ideological renaissance. If Trumps policies created global instability, the oil price might rise, which would actually give Ecuador a big boost, said Dan Altman, a professor of economics at New York University. Its unclear the degree to which Ecuador would suffer because of a Trump presidency. But as it stands now, in a far weaker geopolitical position than years past, cutting Assanges internet access may well be what Altman called a costless olive branch to a country the United States that might be able to boost the Ecuadorian economy. Despite losing internet access, Assange has continued his furious pace of publishing. On Wednesday, WikiLeaks released another batch of emails apparently belonging to Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta. And Ecuador has not completely abandoned Assange. In its statement, Ecuadors foreign ministry reiterated its intention to safeguard his life and physical integrity until he reaches a safe place. Next year, Ecuadorians head to the polls to select a new candidate and Correa will not be on the ballot. The governments favored candidate is viewed as a more conciliatory figure than Correa, Shifter said. If the opposition wins in February, relations with the U.S. are bound to improve, he added. In short, Ecuador has accomplished a neat diplomatic trick. It can say it has acted to rein in Assange, while also continuing to shelter him. Perhaps that will build some goodwill with its most important economic partner even as it allows the cypherpunks work to continue. Rosie Hallam/Getty Images Trumpland Dog Eat Dog I talked to Michael Moore earlier this year during the election primaries when it was looking very evident that Hillary Clinton was going to beat Bernie Sanders (whom Moore supported) to become the Democratic Party's presidential nominee. I asked Moore whether he would support her should she take the nomination. He told me Clinton would have to convince him, along with other ardent Sanders proponents, that she deserved the support and that he would then "act accordingly." It seems Moore is doing just that with the surprise film he premiered Tuesday night at New York City's IFC Center, "Michael Moore in TrumpLand." The 75-minute film which he put together on a spit and polish just 11 days ago and locked hours before it played Tuesday night is a taping of a one-man show Moore did in a theater in conservative Wilmington, Ohio. In the show, he pleads his case for why you should vote for Hillary Clinton, even if you hate her. Business Insider saw the movie Wednesday morning, and though it can get aggravating at times, especially if watching Moore do his shtick for over an hour isn't your thing, there are powerful moments. The question now is whether "TrumpLand" will get into the hands of the undecideds for whom it was made. Michael Moore Kevin Winter Getty Moore knows that if you already support Clinton or Trump, nothing about "locker-room talk" or WikiLeaks is likely to change your mind. But he wanted to address the movie to those who are still trying to decide whether they will go for one of the major candidates, vote third party, or refrain from voting altogether and tell that group why Clinton isn't all that bad. "TrumpLand" starts off with Moore's usual routine of bringing satire to politics. He's got a Mexican section in the audience blocked off by a fake wall and a Muslim section being monitored by a drone. It's to keep the Trump supporters in the audience "comfortable," he jokes. Story continues This part of the movie falls flat and is rather boring to watch. But there is a moment, about a half-hour in, when Moore changes tone and begins to read something he said he wrote the morning of the show, in which he makes the case for why Trump supporters are right to vote for him. Jobs are going overseas, Obamacare isn't effective, basically the system sucks. But then Moore compares that to the hypothetical days and weeks after the election, if Trump is elected, and brings up how the UK feels since it voted to leave the European Union. The promises made never happened, and everyone wants a do-over. Moore acknowledges he's never been much of a Clinton supporter and has never voted for her or her husband. And he never comes out to say he's going to vote for her in this election, but he does paint a picture for why Clinton deserves the White House more than Trump. Among the reasons were her dedication to the welfare of children her whole life, her attempt as first lady to bring universal healthcare to the US, and just the flat-out abuse she's had to take over the years (whether as a woman working in a male-dominated world or dealing with her husband's infidelities). To address that, Moore also includes an excerpt from a commencement speech Hillary made at Wellesley College while a student in 1969 in which she speaks on the challenges of being a young woman with the hopes to have all the advantages of a man. "TrumpLand" is far from Trump-bashing. Instead, it's Moore attempting to bring a likability to Clinton that it seems even her own campaign cannot manage to pull off. Moore's efforts would fall on deaf ears if the movie played only in New York. Following the screening on Wednesday, Moore came onstage for a Q&A session and said the movie would also be shown in Los Angeles beginning on Wednesday along with other theaters around the country (the number is apparently still growing), and he hopes to have the movie available for streaming within 24 hours, though there have yet to be specifics on which providers will carry it. Here are links to the dates and times the movie will play at the IFC Center and Laemmle's Town Center 5 in Los Angeles starting Wednesday. NOW WATCH: 'Media rigging the election!': Trump slams SNL for mocking his debate performance More From Business Insider Vanda Pharmaceuticals, Inc. VNDA is a biopharmaceutical company that could be an interesting play for investors. That is because, not only does the stock have decent short-term momentum, but it is seeing solid activity on the earnings estimate revision front as well. These positive earnings estimate revisions suggest that analysts are becoming more optimistic on VNDAs earnings for the coming quarter and year. In fact, consensus estimates have moved sharply higher for both of these time frames over the past four weeks, suggesting that Vanda Pharmaceuticals could be a solid choice for investors. Current Quarter Estimates for VNDA In the past 30 days, 1 estimate has gone higher for Vanda Pharmaceuticals while none have gone lower in the same time period. The trend has been pretty favorable too, with estimates narrowing from a loss of 15 cents a share 30 days ago, to a loss of 10 cents today, a move of 33.3%. Current Year Estimates for VNDA Meanwhile, Vanda Pharmaceuticals current year figures are also looking quite promising, with 1 estimate moving higher in the past month, compared to none lower. The consensus estimate trend has also seen a boost for this time frame, narrowing from a loss of 68 cents per share 30 days ago to a loss of 62 cents per share today, an increase of 8.8%. VANDA PHARMACT Price and Consensus VANDA PHARMACT Price and Consensus | VANDA PHARMACT Quote Bottom Line The stock has also started to move higher lately, adding 5.1% over the past four weeks, suggesting that investors are starting to take note of this impressive story. So investors may definitely want to consider this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock to profit in the near future. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 (Strong Buy) Rank stocks here. Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Tale of the Tape, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report VANDA PHARMACT (VNDA): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. LAS VEGAS, Nev. Hillary Clinton faces off against perhaps the most unpredictable version of Donald Trump for the third and final debate Wednesday night in Las Vegas, amid her opponents increasingly loud cries of an election that is rigged against him as he falls in the polls. Much has changed in the 10 days since the two last debated each other. Last week, Trump tweeted that he was glad the shackles had finally been taken off him, and then repeatedly told his supporters that large scale voter fraud and other alleged but unspecified malfeasance means the U.S. election is rigged against him. Trump also has pushed back on new allegations from several women that he groped them in the past, and suggested at a rally that one of the women was not attractive enough to assault. He also implied that Clinton had taken drugs before the last debate. Meanwhile, more hacked emails from Clinton Campaign Chair John Podestas account have been posted by WikiLeaks. Clintons surrogates say they expect her to attack Trump over his complaints of a rigged election, possibly following the lead of President Barack Obama, who characterized them as the whining of a sore loser in comments on Tuesday. She should absolutely rip him, said former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, who supports Clinton. But Rendell cautioned that Clinton should wait for one of the moderators or Trump himself to bring up the rigging before she goes into it, so that she doesnt take away time from answering questions put to her. She shouldnt bring it up, Rendell said. Clintons communications director Jennifer Palmieri did not answer reporters questions about whether Clinton would directly address Trumps vote-rigging claims on the debate stage. She did, however, characterize Trumps claims as the behavior of a loser, a potential preview of Clintons approach Wednesday. There are two reasons why Donald Trump is talking about rigged elections, Palmieri said. One is hes trying to distract from the bad story line of his verbal and physical assaults on women. And because hes losing and he wants to blame somebody else and thats what losers do. Story continues He knows he is losing and is trying to blame that on the system, Clintons campaign manager Robby Mook told reporters Monday. This is what losers do. Calling Trump a loser may be a calculated way to get under the real estate moguls skin he often uses the insult toward others on Twitter. But it remains to be seen whether Clinton herself will trot it out. Slideshow: Las Vegas prepares for the final presidential debate >>> The former secretary of state has been practicing for days, taking a lighter campaign schedule last week to run through mock debates with her longtime aide Philippe Reines, who plays Trump. The final debate could be one of the nastiest in U.S. history, as the usual outwardly cordial relationship between candidates has entirely broken down. Even the family members of the candidates will not shake hands, as is customary, the New York Times reported. Its unclear whether Trump will again bring up alleged abuses of former President Bill Clinton in the debate. In St. Louis, Trump brought three women who accused the former president of sexually assaulting them in the past for an impromptu press conference before the debate began. When Trump was pressed about newly released comments he made 10 years ago about wanting to grope women, he replied, If you look at Bill Clinton, far worse. This time, if his treatment of women is brought up again, it will be less likely that he can deflect to the former president. Several women have come forward since that debate and said Trump sexually assaulted them. I dont see how he can go there, said Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., a Clinton surrogate. The same thing he accused Hillary of doing, standing by her husband, well, his wife is doing the same thing to him. Rendell and Meeks both mentioned Trumps Sunday tweet that complained about a Saturday Night Live sketch that made fun of his last debate performance. Clinton could use Trumps complaint against the late-night comedy show to paint him as easily baited and unpresidential. Watched Saturday Night Live hit job on me.Time to retire the boring and unfunny show. Alec Baldwin portrayal stinks. Media rigging election! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 16, 2016 Heres a guy whos so thin-skinned that hes saying that Saturday Night Live should be taken off the air, Meeks said. Its unclear how Trump will attack Clinton, but her team says she is ready for questions raised by the hacked Podesta emails. I assume WikiLeaks will come up, Palmieri told reporters. I think the correct context and what the debate should focus on is the extraordinary and unprecedented and very disturbing role that Russia is playing to try to influence our elections. But Rendell said Clinton should thoroughly answer any question raised about the emails before mentioning Russias influence in releasing them. At the last debate, Clinton was asked about her comment in a paid speech that politicians should have both a public and private position on issues. She said the comment was inspired by a movie about Abraham Lincoln, which Trump quickly pounced on. Rendell said that wasnt a great answer, and he hoped Clinton would have a better response this time. I know the campaign is going to want to pivot to the fact that Russia is responsible for this, and she can say that, said Rendall. But only after she answers the questions. Wolverine World Wide Inc. WWW reported mixed financial numbers for third-quarter 2016. The company reported earnings per share of 49 cents, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny and also increased 2.1% year over year. This was the fourth straight quarter of positive earnings surprise for the company. On an adjusted currency basis, the companys earnings per share increased 6% year over year to 51 cents. However, Wolverines reported revenues of $603.7 million plunged 11.1% year over year and also came below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $627 million, after surpassing the same in the preceding three quarters. The sharp decline in revenues was primarily due to dismal performance of the companys Wolverine Outdoor and Lifestyle Group. Following the revenue miss, shares fell 3.5% on Oct 18. On a reported basis, Lifestyle Group revenues were down 13.3% to $219.1 million. Revenues of the Heritage and Boston Groups also declined 1.5% to $86 million and 9% to $202.4 million, respectively. Moreover, revenues from the companys other brands and multi-brand slumped 24.2% and 16.1% to $15.7 million and $80.5 million, respectively. Adjusted gross margin on a constant currency basis came in at 40%, flat year over year. Wolverines adjusted operating margin on a constant currency basis increased 30 basis points to 12.2%. WOLVERINE WORLD Price and EPS Surprise WOLVERINE WORLD Price and EPS Surprise | WOLVERINE WORLD Quote Other Financial Aspects Wolverine ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $530.9 million, long-term debt of $657.7 million and shareholders equity of $1,040.7 million. Inventories during the quarter were down about 7.6% to $457.6 million. The company announced a fresh four-year share buyback program of $300 million, overriding the remaining balance of 2014 authorization. During the quarter, the company repurchased nearly 417,816 shares at an average price of $23.55 per share. Guidance The Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) companys projects 2016 revenues to decrease 8%4.3% in the range of $2.475 billion to $2.575 billion. Management continues to expect adjusted earnings per share for 2016 in the range of $1.30$1.40. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is currently pegged at $1.36 per share, falling within the companys guidance range. Moreover, on a constant currency basis adjusted earnings are estimated to be in the range of $1.48$1.58 per share. The company anticipates inventory levels to decline low teens by the end of 2016 in comparison to 2015. Stocks to Consider Better-ranked stocks worth considering in the retail sector include DSW Inc. DSW, Foot Locker, Inc. FL and L Brands, Inc. LB. All these stocks carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 (Strong Buy) Rank stocks here. DSW has surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the trailing four quarters, with an average earnings surprise of 24%. Shares of Foot Locker have gained more than 16% in the past three months. L Brands has a long-term earnings growth rate of 11.3%. Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report FOOT LOCKER INC (FL): Free Stock Analysis Report DSW INC CL-A (DSW): Free Stock Analysis Report WOLVERINE WORLD (WWW): Free Stock Analysis Report L BRANDS INC (LB): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research A California woman had to force her way into her own mothers home with the help of cops after a lengthy battle to get an alleged squatter out of the residence. Read: Woman Returns From Vacation and Says Found up to 10 'Squatters' Living in Her Home Jan Breslauer's parents lived in the San Diego home, where they raised their family, for 60 years. Then patriarch Alan Breslauer became ill. His wife, Fran, hired a live-in housekeeper to help out with chores around the house. Alan died last January, but the housekeeper, 71-year-old Cheryl Sherell, refused to leave because she claimed that she was a legal tenant. In a shocking twist, it was 90-year-old Fran who says she was forced to leave her own home. The upset daughter said: The law in California is so bad, property law in particular, that it enables the person in possession to do this to the rightful owner of a house. Sherrell is a notorious hoarder who was once featured on the TLC show Hoarders: Buried Alive in 2010. Fran's neighbors were so outraged that they created a Facebook page called, Get Cheryl Sherrell Out Of That House! Jan told Inside Edition: It's incredibly traumatic, we all feel violated, but my mother especially. It took months of legal wrangling for Jan, who is a lawyer, to win back her mother's home. When she returned to the home for the first time earlier this month, she discovered dog excrement and detritus everywhere. She claimed Sherrell made shambles of the place. The bedroom Jan slept in growing up had actually been rented out. I've seen some sloppy residences but this is just beyond the pale, the distraught daughter said. Read: New York Woman Trying to Kick Alleged 'Socialite Squatter' Out of Apartment Fran hasn't seen what's become of her home yet. She's been staying with another one of her daughters. "I am afraid to go and look, I just lost my husband, I don't know if I can stand another loss right now after she has it looking like a junk yard," Fran told Inside Edition. Story continues Jan added: My mother created this house. She designed it. My mother and father cared for it like a third child. Sherrell was arrested Monday on charges of theft, theft against an elder, elder abuse and criminal trespass. She is being held on $10,000 bail and will be arraigned October 25. Watch: Pregnant Golden Retriever Poses in Maternity Photos as She Awaits Her First Litter of Fur Babies Related Articles: Former presidential candidate Eng Elton Joseph Mabirizi has added voice to those condemning the continued reported mistreatment of Dr Col Kizza Besigye by security. This comes two days after Besigye flew out of the country for the US after police blocked him from attending court. Mabirizi who was one of the 8 presidential candidates in the February presidential polls says the continued siege of Col Besigyes home is against the law. Speaking to the daily monitor Mabirizi said this continued harassment of Dr Besigye since the elections is an infringement on his rights as a Ugandan. Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f251344%2fbabyrhinos Baby rhinos were put on this earth for one reason only: to make humans on the internet smile. On October 11th, Ayana, a rhino at Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines, Iowa, gave birth to a rare baby black rhino, weighing in at 80 lbs. The zoo recently released a video of the yet-to-be-named baby rhino, prompting the internet to immediately lose its sh*t. SEE ALSO: 10 'sexy' Halloween costumes that offend the animal kingdom According to the zoo's senior veterinarian, June Olds, the rhino is "very strong, she is very vocal, she is apparently very healthy." Eastern black rhinos are an endangered species, and female black rhinos are even more rare. There are currently less than 1,000 in the wild and in captive populations combined. "Her reproductive potential is quite high and, hopefully, she will contribute greatly to the overall population," Susan Ellis, director of the International Rhino Foundation, told The Des Moines Register. Shortly after the baby's birth, she was standing, walking, and attempting to be fed. "All positive signs of a healthy baby rhino calf," a spokesman for the zoo told ABC News. Since 1972, the population of wild black rhinos has declined 96 percent. Look at her go. BONUS: Watch 'Stranger Things' with hamsters Many women gamers play titles in the Casual category, such as Candy Crush. The hit mobile phone Match 3 app is being adapted for US TV, as CBS and Lionsgate team up with King to convert "Candy Crush Saga." First released in 2012, "Candy Crush Saga" has become a colossal success for Swedish app developer King. Presented with a board of candy-themed tiles, players swap the tiles around until they can match three or more of them in a horizontal or vertical row. But in a twist on the usual Match 3 formula, new types of candies can be generated depending on how those matching tiles line up. Available across iOS, Android, Facebook, King's own website, and select other social networks, at its peak it had over 20 million daily active users -- a record held until the advent of "Pokemon Go" in mid-2016. A combination of novelty, accessibility, intricacy, and an aggressive approach to growth and revenue generation meant King's hit was thought to be making close to $1bn US dollars a year. With two sequels already in the wild -- "Candy Crush Soda Saga" and "Candy Crush Jelly Saga" -- plus a few other variations on the Match 3 formula, "Candy Crush" is now headed for US TV. How does it work? "Teams of two people use their wits and physical agility to compete on enormous, interactive game boards featuring next generation technology to conquer Candy Crush and be crowned the champions," King explained in a prepared statement. That mix of wits, physical agility, and enormous show paraphenalia might ring a bell for those familiar with the "Wipeout," "Fear Factor" and "Kicking & Screaming" shows, and those shows' producer, Matt Kunitz, is working on the "Candy Crush" project for Lionsgate. From smartphone to TV It joins a number of other apps and mobile games in stepping over to TV or, at least, attempting to. "Draw Something" was a sensation when it released on iOS and Android in February 2012, with Facebook integration key to its success. Story continues The Pictionary-style game was picked up by CBS, and though it is yet to materialize on US TV, UK network Channel 4 aired eight weeks' worth of "Draw It!" on weekdays during the first half of 2014, though the show was not renewed for a second season. NBC Universal and UK channel ITV have agreed deals for a game show based on social, trivia-based app "QuizUp," with "QuizUp America" initially announced for the end of 2016. And in August, a "Beat Shazam" announcement was the result of a partnership between music identification app Shazam and Fox TV. As for video game publisher Activision-Blizzard, which bought King in February 2016, recently launched an animated adaptation of its own "Skylanders" franchise on Netflix. Later tonight, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton will square off once again when the third and final presidential debate kicks off at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. If the first two debates are any indication, tonight's event will be long on personal attacks and short on substance. While the debates thus far have straddled the bizarre line of being both entertaining and embarrassing, the end result is that neither debate has presented either candidate with a real opportunity to address important issues in great detail. One such area is the realm of technology. With that said, we figured it was high time to go back and take a look at everything Donald Trump has had to say about issues pertinent to the tech world. DON'T MISS: These custom wallpapers unlock a hidden glitch in the iPhones interface Trump wants to force Apple to build computers in the United States By and large, the vast majority of Apple products are manufactured overseas. As part of his concerted effort to "make America great again," Trump all but said that, if elected, he will do everything in his power to turn Apple's manufacturing process upside down. During a January 2016 speech at Liberty University, Trump said that if he becomes President, he will make sure that Apple "builds their damn computers in this country." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vB6_5Bs-QEk We have such amazing people in this country: smart, sharp, energetic, theyre amazing," Trump said. "I was saying make America great again, and I actually think we can say now, and I really believe this, were gonna get things coming. Were gonna get Apple to start building their damn computers and things in this country, instead of in other countries. That sure makes for a great soundbite, but Trump's remarks here only serve to illustrate his lack of understanding regarding the fundamental economic realities that govern the mass production of consumer electronics. Story continues Trump wanted to boycott Apple after the San Bernardino shooting iphone-hack-pin In the wake of the San Bernardino terrorist shooting that left 14 people dead and many more injured, Apple engaged in a public battle with the FBI over encryption. In short, the FBI wanted Apple engineers to create a custom version of iOS that would have enabled them to bypass the lock screen on Syed Farook's iPhone 5c. Apple vehemently refused, with Tim Cook going so far as to say that the FBI wanted Apple to create the software equivalent of cancer. Speak out on the matter this past March, Trump called on supporters to "boycott Apple" until the company acquiesced to the FBI's demands. To think that Apple wont allow us to get into her cellphone?" fired up Trump asked during an episode of Fox and Friends. "Who do they think they are? No, we have to open it. I agree 100% with the courts. In that case, we should open it up. I think security overall we have to open it up. And we have to use our heads. We have to use common sense. Somebody the other day called me a common-sense conservative. We have to use common sense. Our country has so many problems. https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/700795170023825408 Incidentally, Trump in the days following his proclamation was still tweeting away from his iPhone. Trump was against the U.S. relinquishing control of ICANN Earlier this month, the United States ceded control of ICANN, the organization responsible for overseeing and maintaining the distribution of domain names and IP addresses. In the days preceding the transfer of power to a consortium of international stakeholders, Trump's National Policy Director Stephen Miller explained why the move was worrisome in a note published on Trump's official website. Donald J. Trump is committed to preserving Internet freedom for the American people and citizens all over the world. The U.S. should not turn control of the Internet over to the United Nations and the international community. President Obama intends to do so on his own authority just 10 days from now, on October 1st, unless Congress acts quickly to stop him. The Republicans in Congress are admirably leading a fight to save the Internet this week, and need all the help the American people can give them to be successful. Hillary Clintons Democrats are refusing to protect the American people by not protecting the Internet. The U.S. created, developed and expanded the Internet across the globe. U.S. oversight has kept the Internet free and open without government censorship a fundamental American value rooted in our Constitutions Free Speech clause. Internet freedom is now at risk with the Presidents intent to cede control to international interests, including countries like China and Russia, which have a long track record of trying to impose online censorship. Congress needs to act, or Internet freedom will be lost for good, since there will be no way to make it great again once it is lost. Trump is against Net Neutrality Trump is not a big cheerleader of net neutrality, as evidenced via the tweet below. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/532608358508167168 The Fairness Doctrine was eliminated in 1987 but you can read more about it over here. Suffice it to say, it has nothing to do with net neutrality in the slightest. Trump thinks T-Mobile has horrible service john-legere-t-mobile-sign To be fair, Trump's view of T-Mobile is colored by his heated relationship with T-Mobile CEO John Legere. Still, these tweets are hilarious. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/587043292405202945 https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/666057546466111488 https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/666060858691346434 Trump wants to close up parts of the Internet to battle ISIS In one of Trump's more peculiar statements about technology, the Presidential candidate late last year blamed, in part, the Internet for the rise of ISIS. While ISIS has undoubtedly used the Internet for recruitment and propaganda purposes, Trump's tech solution in this regard reads as follows: Were losing a lot of people because of the Internet. We have to see Bill Gates and a lot of different people who really understand whats happening and maybe, in some ways, closing that Internet up in some ways. Somebody will say, Oh, freedom of speech, freedom of speech. These are foolish people, we have a lot of foolish people. Weve got to maybe do something with the Internet because theyre recruiting by the thousands, theyre leaving our country, and then when they come back, we take them back. Now as for what Trump has in mind when he says that he wants to close off parts of the Internet, well, that's anybody's guess. Driving the point home, here's Trumps remarks on the topic as stated during a 2015 Republican debate. Trump: ISIS is recruiting through the Internet. ISIS is using the Internet better than we are using the Internet, and it was our idea. I want to get our brilliant people from Silicon Valley and other places and figure out a way that ISIS cannot do what they're doing. You talk freedom of speech. I don't want them using our Internet to take our young, impressionable youth. We should be using our most brilliant minds to figure a way that ISIS cannot use the Internet. And then we should be able to penetrate the Internet and find out exactly where ISIS is and everything about ISIS. And we can do that if we use our good people. Q: So, are you open to closing parts of the Internet? Trump: I would certainly be open to closing areas where we are at war with somebody. I don't want to let people that want to kill us \use our Internet. Trump is an advocate of surveillance to combat terror In the interest of thwarting terror attacks, Trump has stated on a few occasions that surveillance is an effective technique law enforcement authorities should rely on. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/458703994479599617 https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/667777348029292544 Trump believes the NSA should be given as much leeway as possible When asked about the NSA during a 2015 interview, Trump said the following: To the extent that the agency can accomplish its mission without violating the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution, it should be given as much leeway as possible. However, American citizens are guaranteed certain protections. There must be a balance between those Constitutional protections and the role of the government in protecting its citizens. Congress should continue to be the arbiter of that balance. Trump views cyber warfare efforts from China as a significant threat From Trump's 2011 book, Time to Get Tough: What China is doing on the cyber warfare front is equally alarming. Cyber spying can isolate network weaknesses and allow the Chinese to steal valuable intelligence. China presents three big threats to the United States in its outrageous currency manipulation, its systematic attempt to destroy our manufacturing base, and its industrial espionage and cyber warfare against America. The Chinese have been running roughshod over us for years. Obama claims we can't do what's in our interests because it might spark a "trade war"--as if we're not in one now. Trump's doesn't have a concrete plan to defend against cyber attacks During the first Presidential debate, Trump opined: As far as the cyber, I agree to parts of what Secretary Clinton said. We should be better than anybody else, and perhaps we're not. I don't think anybody knows it was Russia that broke into the DNC. She's saying Russia, Russia, Russia, but I don't maybe it was. I mean, it could be Russia, but it could also be China. It could also be lots of other people. It also could be somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds, okay? You don't know who broke in to DNC. ... Now, whether that was Russia, whether that was China, whether it was another country, we don't know, because the truth is, under President Obama we've lost control of things that we used to have control over. We came in with the Internet, we came up with the Internet, and I think Secretary Clinton and myself would agree very much, when you look at what [ISIS] is doing with the Internet, they're beating us at our own game. ISIS. So we have to get very, very tough on cyber and cyber warfare. It is it is a huge problem. I have a son. He's 10 years old. He has computers. He is so good with these computers, it's unbelievable. The security aspect of cyber is very, very tough. And maybe it's hardly doable. Trump wants to protect U.S. tech intellectual property Take this for what you will, but Trump said the following last year on innovation and the U.S. position in the tech space. I am a big believer in technology and will be a strong supporter of expanding tech capabilities in the United States. As President, my goal would be to ensure that the intellectual property produced in America remains the property of those who produce it. Letting other countries steal our property will not happen on my watch. Trump is not a fan of Edward Snowden Edward Snowden Last Week Tonight https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/457314934473633792 Trump is a big fan of Twitter During the first Presidential debate, Trump was curiously asked about his tweeting habits. He responded: Tweeting happens to be a modern-day form of communication. I mean, you can like it or not like it. I have, between Facebook and Twitter, I have almost 25 million people. Its a very effective way of communication. So you can put it down, but it is a very effective form of communication. Im not unproud of it, to be honest with you. Trump's position on H-1B visas is unclear, sort of With respect to H-1B visas, a visa which many U.S. companies take advantage of to bring in and hire skilled workers from overseas (often in the tech sector), it's hard to get a read on Trump's position because he's changed his tune on more than a few occassions. In some interviews, Trump has lauded H-1B visas for playing an important role in attracting the best brains in the world to the United States. They come from another country, and theyre immediately sent out. I am all in favor of keeping these talented people here so they can go to work in Silicon Valley. More recently, though, Trump has criticized the program for putting Americans out of work. To wit, the following statement was published on Trump's website a few months ago. The H-1B program is neither high-skilled nor immigration: these are temporary foreign workers, imported from abroad, for the explicit purpose of substituting for American workers at lower pay. I remain totally committed to eliminating rampant, widespread H-1B abuse and ending outrageous practices such as those that occurred at Disney in Florida when Americans were forced to train their foreign replacements. I will end forever the use of the H-1B as a cheap labor program, and institute an absolute requirement to hire American workers first for every visa and immigration program. No exceptions. Trump didn't know how to turn a computer on in 1997 Okay, maybe we're being too harsh here because, truth be told, many people who were Trump's age when the Internet burst onto the scene in the mid-90s weren't exactly computer savvy. Still, we just couldn't pass up excerpt from Trump's 1997 book The Art of the Comeback: Today the computer and technology industries are hot, but that doesn't mean that they won't cool off quickly. It just seems to me that they are overheated, and competition is strong. When I read about all of the different companies producing new computers by the thousands, it seems like a very tough business to me. But then, I don't even know how to turn on a computer. Therefore, I'm not a natural investor in technology. If you are drawn to this sector, at least approach it with an advisor. Trending right now: See the original version of this article on BGR.com By Anthony Boadle BRASILIA (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp , still stung by accusations that it installed "back doors" for the U.S. government to access customers' communications, opened a centre in Brazil on Wednesday where officials will be able to inspect its programming code, in an attempt to allay suspicions in the region that its software programs are vulnerable to spying. Behind reinforced walls and with strict security settings, the world's biggest software company showed off its fourth 'Transparency Center' in Brasilia, where experts from Latin American and Caribbean governments will be able to view the source code of its products. The effort to build trust follows heightened suspicions in the region after former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden leaked documents in 2013 that showed the agency was capturing massive amounts of data from emails handled by major U.S. technology companies, including Microsoft. The leak, in addition to another Snowden disclosure that the United States had been spying on communications including those of former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, prompted Brazil and other governments around the world to reconsider how much they could trust U.S. technology companies not to install back doors at the request of U.S. intelligence agencies. At the new site, visited on Wednesday by officials including the speaker of Brazil's Congress, no electronics will be allowed into the secure viewing room. Microsoft prevents anyone from copying the massive amount of coding on display - as much as 50 million lines for its email and server products. Viewers inspect copies of source code on computers connected only to local servers and cut off from the internet. The copies are later deleted. Viewers can use software tools to examine the code, Microsoft said, but it was not immediately clear whether experts would be able to run deep code analysis necessary to uncover back doors or other bugs. It is by no means certain the effort by Microsoft will diminish concerns about spying, but Brazil's reaction to the generally secretive software company opening up its code was initially positive. "This centre is aimed at showing that there are no traps, it is a good step," a Brazilian government official, who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak about cyber security, told Reuters. The Brasilia facility is Microsoft's fourth transparency centre after the NSA scandal. It set up the first one at its Redmond, Washington headquarters in the United States in 2014, one in Brussels last year and one in Singapore earlier this month. It will soon open another in Beijing. The centres allow for face-to-face discussions between government experts and developers. "Governments can verify for themselves that there are no back doors," said Mark Estberg, senior director of Microsoft's global government security program. (Reporting by Anthony Boadle; Editing by Bill Rigby) There has been a somewhat sad irony in the smartphone market over the past few years. Android device vendors initially had some trouble competing with Apple's iPhone, so one tactic they tried was to focus on specs and perceived power. Apple's iPhone lineup has always appeared to be behind the times on paper, so it was an easy target in this regard; even now, the iPhone doesn't pack an octa-core processor or eye-popping processor clock speeds like many Android phones. Of course, Apple is all about efficiency and savvy smartphone users all know that the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus are the fastest and most powerful smartphones in the world despite appearing somewhat modest on paper. Interestingly, however, that title could be stripped from Apple's new iPhones sooner than anyone expected. DON'T MISS: These custom wallpapers unlock a hidden glitch in the iPhones interface Real-world performance tests and benchmark performance tests are both important pieces of the puzzle that combine to give users an idea of how powerful a smartphone is. And in both cases, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus have no equal. Where real-world performance is concerned, Apple's latest iPhones have no equal. Here's a video of the iPhone 7 embarrassing Samsung's Galaxy Note 7, which is now discontinued but was briefly the most powerful Android phone in the world. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_PK_6F_Bhk Benchmark test results paint a similar picture not even Google's brand new Pixel phones can touch the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. In tests performed using popular benchmark software from AnTuTu, Googles Pixels score a 1580 on the single-core test and around 4100 on the multi-core test, while Apples iPhone 7 handsets score 3430 and 5600 on the same tests. 2016's iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus remained two of the fastest phones on the planet even a full year after they released. In fact, the iPhone 6s is still faster than leading Android flagship phones in real-world speed tests. But the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus might not enjoy the same impressive run, because an Android vendor is claiming that its next-generation smartphone chip is already faster than Apple's latest and greatest devices. Story continues As noted by Android Central, Huawei held a press conference in Shanghai, China to unveil its new Kirin 960 processor. The 16nm chipset uses four latest-generation high-performance ARM Cortex-A73 cores as well as four low-power A53 cores to provide power or energy efficiency depending on the needs of the users at any given time. During the announcement, Huawei ran a demo of a real-world speed test that showed an unreleased Huawei phone powered by the new Kirin chipset opening 13 of the 14 most popular apps in China faster than Apple's iPhone 7. Huawei's tests also showed that while the Apple A10 powered iPhone 7 still manages to better numbers in single-core performance tests, the new Kirin 960 tops Apple in multi-core performance. We won't know anything for certain until Huawei releases a smartphone powered by the Kirin 960, but it certainly appears as though the company has done an impressive job on its new chipset. Trending right now: See the original version of this article on BGR.com Companies like Samsung have large internal public relations departments, and they contract outside firms as well to assist with PR and crisis management. But even as deep as Samsung's bench is when it comes to staff trained to deal with crises, no company can ever be fully prepared for a debacle of this scale. Samsung has taken a lot of heat for its handling of the Galaxy Note 7 ordeal thus far, and much of the criticism has merit. Rather than work properly with the appropriate agencies, Samsung initially tried to take matters into its own hands when it recalled first-run Note 7 phones following a string of reports that devices were exploding. Then it issued dangerous replacement phones because it didn't take the time to fully investigate the cause of the malfunctions. Sadly, those mistakes were only the beginning. MUST READ: Samsung allegedly tried to bribe a man to keep his exploding Note 7 a secret A number of reports have emerged in recent days suggesting that Samsung seemed to be far more concerned with its own welfare than it was with the welfare of its customers. The most damning allegations came from China, where a man accused Samsung of trying to bribe him in order to keep quiet after his Note 7 burst in his hands. Now, a new report contains multiple claims that Samsung was slow to respond to reports of exploding Note 7 phones that caused property damage, and it was far more concerned with recovering faulty phones than it has been with making customers whole again. "It was very startling. No one expects to be woken up at 3am with a noise that sounded like a whole bundle of sparklers being lit all at once," Galaxy Note 7 owner John Barwick told The Guardian. "My first reaction was to get it out of the house. I didnt want my home to catch fire." Barwick says he managed to safely get the phone to his kitchen despite the fact that flames and "chemicals" were shooting out of it, but not before the explosions caused approximately $9,000 worth of damage. The incident took place on September 8th, but Samsung supposedly still hasn't paid for the damages. Story continues The man claims that Samsung has been resistant from the get-go, first taking too long to return his phone calls and then were concerned mainly with recovering the burnt phone when they did contact him. He was ultimately referred to Samsung's insurance company, Samsung Fire & Marine. "They told me they werent going to pay replacement costs of any damaged items," Barwick said in an interview with The Guardian. "We were asking to have our carpet replaced, and to have the goods that were sprayed on replaced. We sent them photos." He continued, "It seemed that Samsungs priority was retrieving that phone. I told them Id be more than happy to allow them to inspect it to ensure the claim was authentic but I wasnt going to give over custody until everything was made good. The items that were damaged were fine prior to their faulty product catching fire and causing this. Were not seeking a great amount of money to get rich off this. We just want to be made whole." Barwick's story is one of three covered in the report. Another comes from Wesley Hartzog, whose house was badly damaged when a Galaxy Note 7 exploded and set fire to the home. The damage was so extensive that the house is now uninhabitable, and Hartzog says Samsung isn't moving quickly enough to help him. The man says a Samsung employee initially said the company would pay to put him in a hotel, but Samsung's insurance company later refused to foot the bill. Samsung later began paying to put him up in a condo, but he has yet to recover all of the costs he initially faced. He also still hasn't begun to repair his home or replaced any of the items damaged in the fire, since Samsung and the fire department are still conducting an investigation. "I just thought they would have been more helpful and considerate about trying to assist me to either get back into my house or trying to expedite the process of the investigation," Hartzog said. Trending right now: See the original version of this article on BGR.com Starting from Oct 18, U.S. telecom giant AT&T Inc. T is offering direct roaming mobile interconnection services to Cuba. AT&Ts customers will now be able to connect through talk, text and data while in Cuba at price rates of $3 per minute on the phone, 50 cents per SMS text, $1.30 per MMS text and $2.05 per MB of data. Notably, in Aug 2016, the company entered into an agreement with Cubas state-run telecommunications company Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba (ETECSA) for roaming services. President Barack Obamas decision to normalize U.S. diplomatic and economic relations with Cuba, which has been considerably tensed since 1961, is starting to show results. Under Obamas administration, new Cuban policy regulations, which have been approved by the Treasury and Commerce departments, aided the U.S. telecommunications industry to gain initial exemptions from the existing embargo to invest in Cuba. In Mar 2015, U.S.-based IDT Corp had formed a joint venture with ETECSA to provide direct international long-distance service. In Sep 2015, Verizon Communications Inc. VZ became the first U.S. telecom operator to offer roaming wireless services in Cuba. This service was offered through the network of Vodafone Group Plc. VOD. However, in Mar 2016, Verizon entered into an agreement with ETECSA to offer direct roaming mobile interconnection services between the two countries. Meanwhile, in Nov 2015, Sprint Corp. S signed the first direct roaming wireless service agreement with ETECSA. Earlier, in Apr 2015, Sprints prepaid service division Boost Mobile had launched an unlimited voice call and text message service plan to improve connectivity between the U.S. and Cuba. Starting at as low as $50 a month, the plan allows Sprints customers in the U.S. to make calls to Cuba without a long-term subscription contract. In May 2016, T-Mobile US Inc. TMUS had also signed an interconnection and roaming wireless service agreement with ETECSA. Notably, T-Mobile US serves the maximum number of customers in the U.S. who are of Cuban descent. Approximately 36.6% of Cuban-born U.S. wireless customers are subscribers of the company. Therefore, it is a logical step for T-Mobile US to establish roaming wireless service in Cuba. Story continues We believe, in the long-term, Cuba may be a boon for the U.S. telecom operators. An opportunity to sell products to 11 million odd customers is a very lucrative and enticing one. Further, with the weakening of communism and the willingness to enter the economic as well as political mainstream, Cuba is poised to become an attractive emerging market in the future. Additionally, Cubas geographical proximity to the U.S. is a major positive for these telecom operators from the cost of operations standpoint. AT&T currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. AT&T INC Price AT&T INC Price | AT&T INC Quote Confidential from Zacks Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report AT&T INC (T): Free Stock Analysis Report SPRINT CORP (S): Free Stock Analysis Report VERIZON COMM (VZ): Free Stock Analysis Report VODAFONE GP PLC (VOD): Free Stock Analysis Report T-MOBILE US INC (TMUS): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. The Human Rights Network for journalists has defended the stance by editors of media houses not to appear before the Parliaments Committee on Rules, Privileges and Discipline. The Committee has insisted that Editors of three media Houses must appear before an ongoing inquiry into coverage of MPs expenses and defend stories they published. The Committee made the ruling after Editors of The Observer, Red Pepper and Uganda Radio Network (URN) for the second time rejected summons to appear before them to shed light on the stories that have been disputed by authorities in Parliament. However Speaking KFM, Robert Ssempala coordinator of the Human Rights Network for Journalists said any inquiries into media reporting must be done a holistic manner instead of intimidating editors about how to perform their journalistic duties to society. He says together with other stakeholders, they are consulting MPs to figure out a way of meeting the speaker of parliament and resolve this issue for the good of all. The Committee Vice Chairperson Ongalo Obote said yesterday they will issue fresh summons for the Editors to appear on Thursday 27th October, before compiling a report to be presented to the House when it resumes business on November 14th for action to be taken against the defiant media Houses. After reading endless studies about how our screen addictions are hurting us, millennial Kate Unsworth founded Vinaya, an organization comprising neuroscientists, psychologists and philosophers who conduct experiments to determine exactly how were being transformed by modern technology. (The company also makes jewelry that allows you to put your smartphone aside, alerting you only in urgent situations. Pretty cool, right?) Last year, Kate took 35 CEOs and entrepreneurs to the Moroccan desert and made them leave their technology behind. Among them were five undercover neuroscientists who observed their behaviors and found that after just a few days, they had better posture, deeper connections, improved memory, better and longer conversations, more efficient sleep and life-changing revelations about their lives. While we cant all unplug so completely on a regular basis, weve compiled some research of our own to help convince you to put down your phone, turn off your computer and just be for some period of time each weekthe mental, physical and social benefits of a digital detox are undeniable. Minister without Portfolio, Al Haji Abdul Naduli has said that only God can decide when president Museveni can go. Hajji Naduli was speaking at the Bushenyi district celebration of Ugandas 54th independence anniversary held at Kizinda play ground in Ishaka town. He told president Musevenis critics he was brought by God as Ugandas liberator and the work he came for still stands incomplete until God decides to take him away. Referring to the president as an energetic man, Naduli has told his critics to leave him alone, saying forcing him out of pwer would be regrettable. Parliament Committee on Natural Resources has announced a temporary ban on sand mining in the Lake Victoria wetlandspending investigations. The ban follows perceived illegal activity where over 10 companies which obtained licenses into fish farming instead diverted into sand mining. Committee Chairperson Alex Byarugaba (NRM-Isingiro South) has told journalists at parliament today that the ban takes immediate implementation in Mpigi Kalungu and Wakiso districts awaiting fresh verification from the National Environment Management Authority. Mr Byarugaba also notes that sand mining in Lwera is blocking the smooth flow of water and thus risking the Kampala-Masaka highway with impending floods. Uganda Peoples Defence Forces legal chief has petitioned the Constitutional Court, challenging former Coordinator of Military Intelligence Gen. David Sejusas release on bail, pending hearing of his case at the army court. On April 1, 2016 Justice Wilson Masalu Musene the head of Criminal Division of the High Court released Sejusa on a non-cash bail of sh10m after presenting two substantial sureties, who were bonded at Sh50m not cash. Through Kodili and Company Advocates, Brig. Ramathan Kyamulesire is seeking a court declaration that the directive of Justice Margret Oguli-Oumo that Gen.Sejusa applied for bail at High Court yet there was no pending criminal charge against him in that court which was inconsistent with and in contravention of articles 129 and 210 of the Constitution. Sejusa was charged with the offences of absence without leave, two offences of participating in political activities, insubordinate behavior, and two counts of conduct prejudicial to good order and discipline expected from an army officer. The company that last year debuted a "gun" that could drop enemy drones is back with a new Navy bandage wrap that promises to prevent limb loss or even death by keeping severely wounded arms and legs clean and protected for up to three days. The Acute Care Cover for the Severely Injured Limb, or ACCSIL, is a bandage wrap designed by Ohio-based research company Battelle and sponsored by the Office of Naval Research. Battelle is also the maker of DroneDefender, a portable counter-unmanned aerial vehicle system now being purchased in small quantities by the military and Department of Homeland Security. According to an ONR release, the company's new bandaging stops drying, deterioration and blood loss that happen naturally when a limb is severely wounded. The two-part ACCSIL wrap, designed to be carried by medics and corpsmen, included an outer cover that conforms to the shape of the wounded arm or leg to inhibit blood loss, keep the limb warm, and block dirt, and and inner "bioactive" layer that uses chemical compounds to treat pain, prevent flesh from dying out, and stop infection, ONR officials said. "Successful development of this system will provide military medics with a solution currently unavailable to them," Kelly Jenkins, director of advanced materials for Battelle's Consumer, Industrial and Medical business unit, said in the release. "Current bandages aren't very good at keeping out bacteria, so a lot of medics improvise by using plastic wrap and lots of tape-which is actually really good at keeping the wound moist but not protecting or preserving tissue. ACCSIL will function much better." Researchers believe the new Navy bandage wrap could also be useful in industrial settings and aboard ships, where sailors and Marines are at greater risk for crush injuries and burns. Officials said in the release that the bandaging could also be used to triage victims in terrorist attacks such as the bombings this year in France and Brussels, Belgium. "ACCSIL will be designed as a 'tactical to practical' tool," Jenkins said. "Not just for warfighters, but also for first responders and law enforcement. Urban warfare and domestic terrorism present a real need for a device like ACCSIL, which can dramatically improve medical treatment during such an event." Officials said they plan to demonstrate the capabilities of the Navy bandage within the next two years. By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS In a quiet but contentious campaign, countries are competing for new openings on the UN's Human Rights Council. Many of the contenders for membership on the Geneva-based body include the political Who's Who of authoritarian regimes who are noteworthy abusers of the very human rights they would be slated to protect. Recalling the adage of the fox guarding the chicken coop, among the states competing for places include, Cuba, Mainland China, Egypt, Russia, Rwanda and Saudi Arabia. These states, if elected, would be tasked to "uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights," in the international arena. As is the custom in such international forums, countries vie for places in regional groupings. In a press conference sponsored by the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) Chief Legal officer Javier El-Hage stated, "This year, five notorious dictatorships are running for re-election at the world's top human rights body. By gaining these highly coveted seats, which they have consistently used to exercise a heckler's veto, they seek to shield themselves from any significant exposure of their horrendous human rights records." Let's take a look at the regions and the contenders and view their suitability through the prism of various human rights monitoring groups such as UN Watch and the Human Rights Foundation. Africa On the African continent, there are four countries running for four seats unopposed. Egypt, Rwanda, South Africa and Tunisia comprise the candidates. In the view of rights monitors both Egypt and Rwanda are listed as "not free" countries with authoritarian regimes which stifle press and political rights. Both are deemed "unqualified" by the rights watchdogs. South Africa and Tunisia while viewed as "flawed democracies" by the Economist and having a "partly free" media, are called "questionable" candidates for the Council. Asian Group Here there are five candidates for four seats. Four of the five are deemed "unqualified" by the rights monitors; China, Iraq, Malaysia, and Saudi Arabia. Both the People's Republic of China and Saudi Arabia represent authoritarian regimes with stifle media freedoms and human rights. Iraq and Malaysia, are labelled "flawed democracies" by the Economist with their press facing a "difficult situation." All four countries are described as "unqualified" for membership. The Asian group illustrates some of the most egregious offenders. Yang Jianli, a survivor of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and a former political prisoner suggested, "electing China to the Human Rights Council is like picking the fox to guard the hen house, while he was still wiping feathers off his mouth from his last meal." Yang urged democracies such as the USA, Canada, and France to gather and "openly cast a No vote" on China's candidacy. "If every democracy says NO, China would have no chance." In the Asian group, only Japan, the fifth candidate, remains a free country. Latin American Group Here there are three countries running for two seats. Brazil, despite being a flawed democracy and Guatemala being a politically hybrid system, remain qualified for the Council. Cuba, already holding the seat, is unqualified to continue to do so. Maria Werlau, Executive Director of the Cuba Archive opined, "The Castro military dictatorship, in power for over 57 years, has from the start systematically committed wide-ranging crimes a against humanity and consistently demonstrated its contempt for human life." Ms. Werlau concedes, "Cuba is a gigantic manufacturer of perceptions with a huge and well-oiled propaganda machinery of worldwide reach." Western Europe and Others Both the United States and Britain are projected to fill two seats in this group. Both the U.S. and the UK are free countries with a free media and are qualified to serve, though outnumbered, on the Human Rights Council. Eastern European Group In this regional category three countries are competing for two seats. Both Croatia and Hungary are listed as "free" by the Freedom House ratings though there are "noticeable problems" in the media arena. HRF states both countries are qualified for membership on the Council. Importantly both Croatia and Hungary are members of the European Union and NATO. The third country competing is Russia. The Putin government's continued regression on political rights and freedoms is well documented; equally Moscow's aggression in neighboring Ukraine, Georgia, as well as threats to the Baltic states sovereignty, puts Russia in the unqualified category for membership. Elections for the new Council seats are held on 28 October. Clearly Western democracies could play political hardball to isolate or derail some of the rights offenders. But will they dare to do so? Kendallville, IN (46755) Today Cloudy with occasional rain...mainly this evening. Low around 50F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%.. Tonight Cloudy with occasional rain...mainly this evening. Low around 50F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. FORT WAYNE Time. Its fast. And it changes. Ask Cindy Fortman. As payroll specialist for Northwest Allen County Schools, Fortman remembers spending nearly a full day, once every two weeks, stuffing pay checks into envelopes for the nearly 600 Northwest Allen County Schools employees. That was 1999. Today, there is no check stuffing. Not to mention, the number of employees is now over 1,000. Weve added four schools since I started, so it takes more time to process (payroll) because the volume is more. But, the back-end, without folding checks, is faster, Fortman said. You just exchange one time consuming thing for another. Before October ends, Fortman will be handing the payroll duties off to someone else. Fortman is in the home stretch of a 28-year career with NACS. She plans to retire on Oct. 28. I have surely enjoyed my time here, Fortman said. It has gone so fast. I am looking forward to doing the things that people look forward to doing in retirement. Fortman and her husband, Jim, celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary in June. Both are 60-years-old and both, soon, will be retired. Jim, a former member of the Huntertown Town Council, is retired from Verizon but still drives a school bus route for NACS. They have a daughter and two grandchildren, the eldest of whom is about to start preschool. Cindy will be her driver. The couple also volunteers at the Fort Wayne Childrens Zoo and are both active at Our Hope Lutheran Church. Weve been married for 40 years and have always looked forward to retiring together. Weve had this big plan. We thought Id retire when I was 60, but I had no idea how fast 60 would get here, Cindy said. Im giving up this full-time job to take on full time things that I want to do, like volunteering and spending time with my grand-kids. Fortman graduated from North Side High School and attended a certified nursing assistant program, where she earned a degree and worked at numerous nursing homes in the area, including Byron Health Center in Huntertown. She worked in the pharmacy lab as a lab technician. She began working at NACS in 1988 as a teachers assistant, shortly after the passing of her and Jims second child. (That job) was something I needed to do; get back in the work force and find something to do, she said. It was a Godsend. In year two, she became the schools technology leader and helped create the schools first computer lab. After 11 years at Huntertown, she split her days at Carroll High School and the NACS Corporate Office for one year, before moving into her current full-time position at the corporate office. In addition to her responsibilities with payroll, her other responsibilities include managing the keyless entry system at all the districts buildings, keeping track of the districts fixed assets data base, pay insurance payments, calculate health insurance, keeps track of administrator vacation days and prepares benefit sheets for the districts employees. In 2015, NACS Business Manager Bill Mallers nominated her for, and she won, the 2015 Indiana Association of School Business Officials (IASBO) Region 3 School Support Professional of the Year Award. There are a lot of good people in the corporation, Fortman said. Every school is their own little family and we are all a part of the bigger Northwest Allen family. I have always felt blessed to be in the Huntertown school family and then going to the technology department to the Central Office, my family has gotten bigger. All of the schools are my family now. The people are special. We work to help each other and that is what you do at Northwest Allen. You work and try to make things better. I try to make things better for the employees and the teachers try and make things better for the children. She credits current NACS Technology Director Adela Dickey for recommending her to then NACS Business Manager Niles Pfafman for the job. Our payroll runs without a hitch, NACS Superintendent Chris Himsel said. She is one of those unsung heroes that people might take for granted, but every other Friday, they are thankful that she is doing her job. A job she will do until next Friday. When time, again, changes. HOLMEN Anton H. Lund, 89, of Holmen died Monday, Oct. 17, 2016, at his home. Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at Holmen Lutheran Church. Burial with military honors will be in Mormon Coulee Memorial Park Cemetery, La Crosse. A visitation will be held from 9 a.m. to time of service Saturday at the church. A complete obituary will follow. Jandt-Fredrickson Funeral Homes and Crematory, Woodruff Chapel, La Crosse, is in charge of arrangements. COLORADO SPRINGS We are three weeks from the election, and very close to the edge. Retiree Gerald Miller, a volunteer at Donald Trump's rally here, is confident his man will win on Nov. 8 unless there's foul play. Miller, wearing an NRA pin and a tea party cap over his long hair, shares Trump's concern that the election may be "rigged" by the Clinton campaign. "It is enough to skew the election. They can swing it either way," he said, particularly because Hillary Clinton may have "the FBI working for her" in committing the fraud. So what happens if Clinton is declared the winner? "Donald Trump is going to holler fraud if he doesn't win," figured Miller, who is white and says he has PTSD from "racial violence" he suffered in the military. "I think we're on the verge of a civil war, a racial war. This could be the spark that sets it off." I fear Miller may be right. Objectively, Trump is in big trouble; master handicapper Stuart Rothenberg wrote for The Washington Post online on Tuesday that Trump's path to Electoral College victory is "nonexistent" and said he could win fewer than 200 electoral votes. But I spent a couple of hours before the rally in this indoor show ring talking to many Trump supporters and found them in states of denial and fury. I didn't find one who expects Trump to lose. To varying degrees, most agreed with Trump that the election process is rigged. And some predicted ominous things if Trump loses if not violence, a mass rejection of the legitimacy of the democratic process. Ann Macomber, a Christian, retired teacher and Trump volunteer handing out fliers saying "Hillary Clinton is coming for your guns," told me the voting system in Colorado has been "infiltrated": dead people voting, voters with bogus addresses, precincts that report more votes than registered voters. "It's happening. It's sad," Macomber said. "If we lose this election, we can't trust anything in America anymore. We're not sovereign." Some observers dismiss Trump's talk of a "stolen" and "rigged" election as just more rantings of a narcissist who can't accept that he is almost certain to lose. But the talk of election fraud is more nefarious than that and clearly an effort to destabilize the post-election environment. In early August, Trump consigliere Roger Stone declared that there is "widespread voter fraud" and argued that "if there's voter fraud, this election will be illegitimate ... we will have a constitutional crisis, widespread civil disobedience, and the government will no longer be the government." In an interview with the conservative outlet Breitbart, Stone said Trump has "gotta put them on notice that their inauguration will be a rhetorical ... bloodbath." Now the head of Breitbart News is the head of the Trump campaign, and Trump, who had quieted the fraud talk when he was improving in the polls, is raising it more than ever. "Voter fraud is all too common," Trump told a few thousand people Tuesday afternoon in Colorado Springs, but if you mention it, he said, "they say bad things about you, they call you a racist." He scolded Republican leaders for saying "everything is peachy" with the election process and warned that this could be the year "America truly lost its independence." Warned Trump: "It's going to be a one-party system. This is your final shot." He particularly scolded the press, which "created a rigged system and poisoned the minds of so many of our voters." But he also found corruption in voter surveys ("I don't believe the polls anymore") and in his opponent ("many times worse than Watergate"). "We won't let them stop maybe the greatest movement in the history of our country!" Trump said, prompting chants of "USA!," some foul language shouted at the press corps and, after the rally, a mass chant of "Shame on you!" directed at the press risers. The candidate's reckless closing message that nothing is on the level not Democrats, not the press, not the polls, not Republican leaders, not even the integrity of the voting process has left many of his supporters prepared to declare the election results illegitimate. Joseph Salmons, wearing a "Les Deplorables" T-shirt and pin, told me the election won't end anything. "The movement's starting. Even if he doesn't win, it's gonna tip," he said. But tip into what? "I sincerely hope people don't lose their minds," Salmons said. If they manage to keep their cool, it will be despite the best efforts of Trump. It turns out that beer, a noted social lubricant, also pairs nicely with social media. Ive been impressed by the thirsty Twitter audience for beer news and information not to mention the copious supply since opening an account at the launch of this column in 2011. (Its @WSJbeerbaron if you dont make it to the fine print at the bottom of these columns.) And on Facebook, local and national groups of beer enthusiasts and industry people have sprung up to share news and commentary on new releases, industry news or other items of interest. Untappd, a social network built around beer ratings or check-ins, takes those pesky non-beer posts out of the equation. The accounts of breweries and retail outlets have a place, too, but for the most part Ive found the user-driven channels to be far more engaging. While each platform has its own feel and audience, what they share is an ability to bring together people, regardless of location, around a topic of shared interest. That capacity to indulge an often intense but still relatively niche passion with people of a like mind is a powerful draw. The bread and butter of beer social media posts is what has come to be known as beer porn. These photos share much with their namesake: They vary widely in quality and artistry, they can disgust or titillate, and often whats going on in the background is just as interesting as the intended subject. Such posts are often littered with hashtags, a way of organizing and rallying the like minds of various social media such as #wibeer or #craftbeer. One popular hashtag, #TopBrewsTues, turns an otherwise droll midweek night of drinking into a kind of index of the nations beer fridge, from the mundane to the rarest and most-sought-after brews. Top Brews Tuesday also was the inspiration for a new, closer to home version: #WIBeerWednesday. Vintage Brewing brewmaster Scott Manning was cruising Twitter during Top Brews Tuesday, Sept. 27 when it struck him that Wisconsin could use its own day in the Twitter spotlight. Manning, whos on the marketing committee of the Wisconsin Brewers Guild, immediately put the word out to others in the states beer industry and a few beer media people. Seizing on some catchy alliteration, Vintages #WIBeerWednesday post the next day launched the hashtag, and by midnight about 60 tweets populated the feed, including missives from Florida and Oregon state. Mannings message to his fellow brewers focused on the value in replicating Top Brews Tuesday. Its an amazing kind of free, unsolicited, word-of-mouth promotion for those beers and breweries mentioned, always positive and almost entirely customer-driven, he wrote. Incredible. Thats the idea for #WiBeerWednesday, but focused on our state, our breweries, Wisconsin craft beer. While its origin isnt quite organic, the hashtag like any can be owned by the audience that wants to own it. Ultimately, Id love to see #WiBeerWednesday gain momentum and become a self-perpetuating phenomenon, Manning said. Like Top Brews Tuesday, it can be a message board and sharing tool for photos and such, between Wisconsin beer lovers, or between breweries and their fans, or distributors and retailers, anybody who wants to use it. Manning said he could see retailers or bars linking Badger State-boosting specials or promotions to it. He noted Vintage debuted its guest brewer showcase on the first #WIBeerWednesday featuring special beers from other local breweries alongside his house brews. Ive found it to be a handy way of exploring the world of Wisconsin beer without leaving the couch or desk, another way of sorting the bottle shops or tap lists cacophony of choices. The highly regional nature of craft beer is one of my favorite things about it, and Top Brews Tuesday intrigues by showcasing beers from all corners of the country, including those well never see here. While a lot of the user-generated #WIBeerWednesday beer porn has depicted limited beers from the likes of Central Waters and New Glarus, a lot of the states smaller brewers like Wisconsin Dells Port Huron and Eau Claires Brewing Projekt have been highlighted as well. Its a way to elevate Wisconsin beer pride to a national audience, and Im not shy about embracing it. My first two #WIBeerWednesdays were celebrated with Potosi Brewings new Shot Tower coffee stout and Oso Brewings Hop Whoopin. The third, well, let me tell you a little more about it. Black Cloud Style: Belgian dark ale Brewed by: Furthermore Beer, which now has a Black River Falls address instead of a Spring Green one. While Furthermore says its spiritual HQ remains there, the company merged about a year ago into Sand Creek Brewing, where nearly all of Furthermores beer had been made under contract since the brand was launched in 2006. What its like: While a black cloud is not an inapt description, lets say more literally that it drinks like a black and tan of 25 percent Belgian quad and 75 percent oatmeal stout. Where, how much: Black Cloud debuted on draft in January at Isthmus Beer and Cheese Festival, and it joined Furthermores year-round bottle lineup in July. Six-packs run $9-$10. The beer: The opaquely black Black Cloud opens with a sweet, gently roasty aroma that bears a touch of distinctly Belgian fruitiness owed to its Belgian yeast. The other key ingredient, Midnight Wheat malt, lightens the body while blackening the beer, without the acerbic bitterness common to many dark malts. That dark malt and the yeasty esters dance around each other in the flavor, with notes of banana and other, less distinct fruit playing off the chocolatey malt with just a touch of brown sugar character. It finishes with a sprightly, slightly acidic zing along with a lingering dark chocolate character and a little hop bitterness. Its full mouthfeel plays as fluffy, not heavy. Thats a lot going on, but it all comes together very nicely. Furthermore prides itself on beers that defy categorization, and the enigmatic Black Cloud does exactly that while retaining a clear identity all its own. Booze factor: Dark Belgians can vary widely in alcohol content; Black Cloud comes in at 7 percent ABV. The buzz: There have been a lot of breweries, big and small, sold or merged into others in the past 18 months or so. That the only deal we know of in Wisconsin came between two small brewers that, furthermore, had a longstanding relationship is heartening to those who cherish the feel-good status quo. Given the pace of acquisitions around the country, the attractiveness of Wisconsin breweries and the age of some of their owner-founders, it seems a safe bet that will change. When that day comes, surely some Wisconsin beer fans will reevaluate their definition of a local brewery. In the meantime, Im happy Furthermore is still Furthermore, and kicking out wild ideas as well executed as Black Cloud. Bottom line: 4 stars (out of five) Ultimately, Id love to see #WiBeerWednesday gain momentum and become a self-perpetuating phenomenon. Like Top Brews Tuesday, it can be a message board and sharing tool for photos and such, between Wisconsin beer lovers, or between breweries and their fans, or distributors and retailers, anybody who wants to use it. Vintage Brewing brewmaster Scott Manning After a series of back-to-back public hearings one at 5:35 p.m. for the annexation of 556 Hickory Lane, another at 5:40 p.m. for the annexation of 1330 Valley Lane, and yet another at 5:45 p.m. for the citys wellhead protection plan the La Crescent City Council still had a full plate of business at its Oct. 10 meeting. But first the public meetings, beginning with 556 Hickory Ln. City attorney Skip Wieser said the property owners of 556 Hickory have petitioned the city to annex it into the citys limit. The attendant ordinance for the annexation was also on the table, and it included a two-year tax reimbursement clause to La Crescent Township. Findings were also included. Ken Helming, of 550 Hickory Ln., wanted to know if the annexation would affect the other residents the street. At this time, the other two houses on that street, theres no intention of the city initiating an annexation, Wieser said. Those residences, he said, are part of the longer-term agreement with the township which also includes the racetrack property, as previously discussed and reported. The council unanimously approved the request for annexation, as well as its ordinance and findings. Only Councilor Brian Krenz was absent from the nights meeting. Similarly, Wieser said, the property owners at 1330 Valley Ln. have petitioned to be annexed into the city, with similar findings and its ordinance. There was no public comment. The council unanimously approved the request for annexation, as well as its ordinance and findings. Two-part wellhead protection plan City engineer Tim Hruska presented the citys wellhead protection plan, which has two key parts. Part 1 is the technical portion that modified the citys groundwater aquifers and delineated the wellhead protection area based on a 10-year time of travel. Part 2 focused on examination of potential sources and risks of contamination within the area. Its kind of an inventory of potential contaminants and the threats to our drinking water, Hruska said. Its a 60-page document, he said, but Hruska highlighted three potential contaminants sources within well No. 3 (the other wells have no potential contaminants). The report includes steps and objectives for each one, he said, and those include identifying, monitoring and data collection, as well as education and outreach programs. Those are focused on the public and landowners. Contaminant source management is also a part of the plan. Resident Cherryl Jostad asked for clarification of some of the acronyms used in the plan, namely IWMZ and DWSMA. Pat Bailey, Minnesota Department of Health, who is the citys wellhead protection planner, was also in attendance. She answered one part of Jostads question. For IWMZ, Bailey said, its a matter of measuring contamination distance and keeping the water source free from any contaminants, which is what the Inner Well Management Zone is referring to. The DWSMA is where were getting our groundwater for the next 10 years, Hruska added. Its known as the Drinking Water Source Management Area. Jostad also asked what the three potential contaminants for well 3 are. Hruska said they were in relationship to a nearby Kwik Trip gas station. Just that its located within that area, he said. A storm water basin, an underground storage tank, and a previous leaking underground storage tank were cited as potential contaminants. Those are all within that wellhead protection area, Hruska said. The council, when it reconvened, unanimously approved the plan, which will now be submitted to the Department of Health for approval. Stoney Point property review A draft of the master park plan for the Stoney Point property, which is on file at city hall, was presented to the council as a basis for open discussion. As city administrator Bill Waller noted, the intent was to possibly develop a conservation easement with the Minnesota Land Trust for the area, but it appears the land does not meet that current programs guidelines. While work with the land trust will continue, the future of the land has been the focus of intense discussion, and even an actual visit to the site previously. I dont think we should build up there, said Councilor Dale Williams, referring to the possibility of using some of the property for residential development. That area can be used for a parking lot, a trail head for some park, (so) people can walk and enjoy that property. With all three of these parks together, what you mentioned earlier over 100 acres of property, now we just need to go in and start developing it, as far as trails, and making it so that people can use it. Williams noted the beauty of the area, suggesting that even a minimal build of two or three homes isnt necessary. We can leave it as it is, he said. Thats my own opinion, if youre looking for a direction. Councilor Bernie Buehler quickly agreed with Williams. We had that gathering up there, Buehler said, and the people in the town pretty much spoke. There were a great deal of people there, and they (want) to preserve it, and I agree with that. We should try to preserve as much as possible. Councilor Ryan Hutchinson also agreed, and he asked about homes along South Seventh Street, which he thought would be more affordable than on the hillside, which he said should be left alone. He said hed be open for a couple of lots on South Seventh. Resident and former councilor Joy Rockwell also spoke in support of leaving the Stoney Point property free of residences and leave as much as possible in its natural state. Her property is adjacent to Stoney Point. I think, overall, it is fabulous, Rockwell said, this very comprehensive park plan to really showcase and preserve an asset to La Crescent. She echoed support for leaving any sort of housing development out of the picture. Warren Schaefer, a La Crescent Township resident and member of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, asked that, whatever happens, water run-off be taken into consideration. My only concern is that whatever rules are in place, Shaefer said, are adequate to cover run-off from any development in that area, be it houses or parking. Original developments in the Stoney Point area, he said, caused a lot of run-off into the churchs parking lot. I dont want to see a repeat of that, he said. An updated set of plans, removing the potential development of two to three residential lots, with other improvement elements adjusted and amended to reflect the wishes of the council and the public already brought forward, will be brought back to a future council meeting, Waller said. Access easement An access easement for 1200 N. First St. came before the board. Wieser said the issue was brought forward in April, but the council put it on hold pending the park plan for the Stoney Point area. Todd and Sandy Graves own the property adjacent to the Stoney Point area, and they have a driveway which extends from a public road. According to the easement agreement, the Graves would be responsible for plowing and maintenance of the driveway, which they are currently, and its a non-exclusive easement, meaning the city continues to have the right to use the road for city purposes. The road also cannot be black-topped, nor can its width or dimensions be changed by the owners. Its a right of travel. Essentially its formalizing whats been going on for the last approximately 13 years, Wieser said. The council unanimously approved the access easement agreement. Planning commission meeting La Crescent Planning Commission chairman Don Smith brought forward two items for action from the Oct. 4 planning commission meeting. The council was asked to adopt the development agreement known as Stoney Point 3, at the end of Apple Blossom Drive. The council approved the agreement unanimously without discussion. Also, a contract with MCA Consultants, focusing on the citys central business district, was unanimously approved by the council. Smith said its an action item coming from the citys comprehensive plan, and it provides for conceptual, site development work for three locations of city hall, which has been much discussed in the chambers. What Smith called the school site, as well as contemplation of South Third Street and its connection to Oak Street are also included. The contract will not exceed $25,000 for a downtown development plan. The plan, Smith said, is needed before any land acquisition could be decided upon. We have to move forward, Williams said. Weve spent a lot of time on a lot of different things already. We need to keep the ball moving. Apple Blossom Acres 3 A development agreement between the city and Appleshore Properties, LLC, for what is known as the Apple Blossom Acres 3 development, was unanimously approved by the council. The agreement calls for, amongst other items, that the developer reimburse the city $7,800 for city engineering fees, as well as $2,000 for the citys legal fees. It also calls for an irrevocable letter of credit in the amount of $235,195, as well as for appropriate insurance policies to be in place before construction begins. Further, building permits wont be issued until grading, curb and gutter, and one lift of asphalt are installed on public streets. Further requirements are on file at city hall. Sanitary sewer petition Waller said the owner of 745 N. Fourth St., which was annexed into the city earlier in the year, has petitioned for sanitary sewer service. There isnt sanitary in the street right-of-way to provide service to the property, he further pointed out. Because of that, Waller recommended charging the citys engineer with preparing a report on how much it will cost, and what it will take, to extend sanitary sewer to the site. As part of that, Waller suggested the report include the balance of North Fourth Street, which also recently came into the city via a separate annexation. The area is currently not served by the citys sewer. Also in the report, he said, the engineer should include at least a couple of alternatives to reconstructing the street, which he said right now does not have curb, gutter or storm sewers, and its width might possibly be in question. Alternatives would include putting back whats there, or improving the street as a whole. The council unanimously approved the entire scope of the engineers work regarding all matters. Debt service resolution According to a memo from city finance director Debbie Shimshak, the debt service on the 2008 capital equipment certificate fund has been paid off. It currently has a balance of $81,827, which needs to be transferred to the bonds paid up service fund, consistent with generally accepted accounting principles. The council unanimously approved the resolution for the transfer. The council also unanimously approved $32,350 $12,000 of which comes from the 2016 budget, and the remaining $20,350 from the 2017 budget for the conversion of computer software systems for the city. The approved quote came from Civic Systems for the proposed conversion. A first-time candidate versus an incumbent who has spent the better part of a quarter-century serving southeast Minnesota at the Capitol is attracting a lot of interest this election season not to mention cash. Thomas Trehus, DFL-Spring Grove, is working to unseat Greg Davids, R-Preston, who has served for 12 terms in House District 28B. Davids has held the seat with little competition for decades, outside of losing it in 2006 to Ken Tschumper, and then winning it back two years later. According financial reports by political committees filed at the end of September with the state, Trehus has pulled in just over $113,000 in support from the DFL-aligned group Alliance For a Better Minnesota. Republican fundraisers have responded in kind, with over $50,000 in anti-Trehus ads, including the Pro-Jobs Majority, an affiliate of the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, which has contributed over $36,000, according to the reports. Davids has always been a prodigious fundraiser; what makes the money in this race different this fall is whats flowing in to Trehus camp as he works to unseat the powerful Republican tax committee chair. The candidates, for their part, say theyre continuing to knock on doors and connect with people in their district. Trehus said he has been surprised by the amount of money dedicated to his campaign, but said it is indicative of the confidence in his ability to win. Its a testament to the hard work of our campaign ... and the peoples frustration, Trehus said. I think its going very well. Trehus said the people he talks to have been become tired of the back-and-forth in the Capitol with few results, which along with the national election climate means many of the constituents in the district feel disconnected from state government. We can be an advocate for them at the state and local level, Trehus said. Davids said dissatisfaction was evident in the conversations he has had, too but said it was directed at the DFLers in state government. Davids laid the failure to pass a tax bill or bonding bill at the feet of the Democrats in the Senate and Gov. Mark Dayton, as well as problems he saw with MNsure, which has caused substantial price hikes for Minnesotans and hadnt been supported by Republicans. Im trying to fix the mess, Davids said. Davids isnt worried about the money coming in against him, and said that previous elections he has seen worse. Were working very hard and its going very well, Davids said. It comes down to where you are on the issues. Davids narrowly lost to Tschumper in 2006, and reclaimed the seat in 2008. He said he is still hoping for a special session to put through both the tax and bonding bills. The $260 million package of tax cuts and credits for Minnesota farmers, college students and parents with childcare costs was allowed to die off, failing to get Daytons signature due to a mistake in wording that would have cost over $1 million in tax revenue. The bonding bill never made it to Dayton after disagreement on the late-night, end-of-session addition in the Senate of funding for light rail derailed discussions and they ran out of time. Republicans didnt agree with the stipulations demanded by Dayton on both the bonding bill he wants to see, and the process for the special session, before he is willing to call lawmakers back, demands that include projects added in transportation, higher education and public safety. Trehus is concentrating on promoting tax relief for small business and farmers, and more support for rural schools. The water isnt the only thing rising in Hokah. At the Hokah City Council meeting last month, although it wasnt an agenda item, nor did any official action come from it, the citys river levee became a definite personal point of contention between councilor Don Bissen and city administrator Rod Blank. The spate arose during the time allotted for councilor comments, and it was Bissen who brought it up. On Friday, the 23rd of September, at about 8 oclock in the morning, Bissen said, coming down and checking the river dike, and the water was right up to the top of it. I went down to maintenance and talked to Chris (Oliver), and he said that he knew it was getting up there, and hed watch it and let me know what happened. Around 10:30 (a.m.) I went back down, and the water was running over the dike. I couldnt find anybody at the maintenance building, so I went up to the clerks office and talked to Eric (Lietzen), asked him to call the maintenance guys, and he got a hold of Chris, and I said, The water is coming across, what are we going to do? And he said, Rod says we cant do anything. Bissen said he informed Leitzen hed order his own rock and work on the dike himself. Bissen said he enlisted help, but then he went back to Leitzens office and asked him to call Oliver to get some sandbags down to the site; he also informed him to call Blank. And Rod said hed come down and talk to me, Bissen said. I waited around about 15 minutes and nobody showed up, so I left to go down and work on the dike. Bissen said he and others hauled rock in from noon to 6 p.m., just keeping up to the water going across the dike. Having it leveled, they quit. The next morning, Bissen said, the bean fields and pastures were not flooded and not much water had breached the dike. So I think what we did worked, he said. He estimated they added six inches of rock to the dike, which he felt is maintenance. The dike hasnt been maintained since it was built, he said. Blank had a little bit of a different story. He said the levee was increased as much as the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources would allow them to back in June. Weve got correspondence with the DNR, Blank said. I didnt bring it with me because I didnt know this was an item tonight. He said he could provide the correspondence, but it reads that the levee could be filled to its initial level, but not past it. He further said that, when Leitzen called him at three minutes to 11 on Sept. 23, he was informed he needed to get to the office. He never said to go find you, Blank said to Bissen. Blank said it took him 12 minutes to get to the city office, as he was at a personnel meeting at the time. Blank said he remained in the office until 1 p.m. without any sign or word from Bissen. I waited around, Bissen countered, and I had to go. The water was coming across the dike. Blank again insisted he arrived, as requested, at the office. So, you know, Blank said, I guess I had probably wished that this wouldnt come to this meeting because, me, us, me, as the city, I cant determine to go down and increase that levee. Because thats illegal for the city to do it. If you, as a private citizen, want to do it, thats up to you. Blank said no one came to stop Bissen, nor did they stop him from taking the citys rock to do it. We just let it alone, Blank said, because its wasnt our deal, it was yours. Blank again reminded Bissen that the city is regulated by the DNR, as far as what it can do to the levee. He again said the levee was re-enforced and taken to the level allowed by the DNR in June. Oliver explained the work that had been done in June, as well as the meeting with officials leading up to the work, which he said Bissen himself attended. He also said the bigger work Bissen is asking for needs council approval. He said it wasnt personal. Were kind of old pros at this, Blank said. Weve been doing this for, like, 40 years. That was the moment tempers flared. From there on, an extended back-and-forth about the work, the area, and the history of the levee commenced. It became clear that issues around its size, sides, and surrounding land have been festering for awhile. As it happened, they all came spilling out at the council meeting. Resident Jim McCabe, known locally as Lump, was in the audience, and he wanted to know if Bissen would be reimbursed for the work that was done, and further, he wanted to know if, as private citizens, they couldnt just do whatever work is needed themselves. Blank said the city isnt the regulatory agency, and the bottom line is they didnt order any of the work that was done on Sept. 23. As for further work, Blank said the city cannot give or deny permission at all. McCabe offered a coda of sorts, although its unclear if he intended it that way. I will tell you this, McCabe said of the DNR and other relevant agencies, dont tell them nothing. In mid-October, La Crosse County hadnt heard from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources about officials concerns about lack of water pollution enforcement more than three months after requesting action through a county board-approved resolution. But the county has heard from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources: La Crosse County is on the receiving end of $20,000 to $30,000 enforcement bill. The county didnt do anything wrong, other than having the misfortune of having two rare species of mussels living on the west side of Hintgen Island. The island, owned by La Crosse County but technically in Minnesotas Houston County, is home to the Harold E. Craig Fleeting Site, a facility that accounts for 23 percent of the barge mooring capacity in the port of La Crosse. A major project to stabilize the western side of the island along Broken Arrow Slough got started this summer. If we dont beef it up on that back side we eventually get a breakthrough and the island gets split in half, said Karl Green, UW Extension natural resource and economic development agent for La Crosse County. As part of the $604,550 project, the contractor hired by the county had to perform an environmental review before proceeding. In August, the Minnesota DNR notified the county that the environmental review had turned up 113 live mussels representing 15 species, two of them designated as threatened by the state of Minnesota: the monkeyface mussel and the fawnsfoot mussel. Two species of special concern also were found: the black sandshell mussel and the round pigtoe mussel. Obviously, were not thrilled about having to remove even marginal mussel habitat, Green said, but the fleeting site is a key part of having a smooth barge operation on the Mississippi River, with room to tie up 15 barges. Green said the Minnesota DNR gave the county two choices: pay to move the mussels or pay a mitigation fee that would cover the cost of introducing the threatened species in a more friendly location. Initial estimates to move the mussels came in at $60,000, Green said, so it made more sense to pay the mitigation fee, which is based on the amount of acreage involved. The Minnesota DNR has not given the county a final bill yet, but it is expected to be between $20,000 and $30,000. At last months La Crosse County Board Executive Committee meeting, La Crosse County Administrator Steve OMalley noted that his proposed budget includes $25,000 for the mitigation fee. While the county has a Harbor Assistance grant from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation that is paying for 80 percent of the fleeting site project, the mitigation fee isnt eligible to be covered by the grant, so the county is on the hook. OMalley got in a dig at Wisconsins DNR after explaining the entry in his budget: Minnesota apparently has a DNR that actually enforces things. Moving closer to the final tax levy in the end of December, the Winona County Board of Commissioners is still exploring options, but hasnt found a hidden pot of gold. In a budget update and discussion by the board following its Tuesday meeting, county administrator Ken Fritz said that while theyve continued to look at several different avenues, the proposed 6 percent increase in the levy and close to $1 million from reserves hasnt changed much. Weve continued to work with the departments to find things to change, reduce, Fritz said. For instance, the there has been a reduction of five full-time employees from 2016 to 2017, and nearly 14 since 2012. But that hasnt offset continued problems with reduced funding from the state for mandated services and increased expenses in certain areas. Fritz said that the number of non-mandated services and expenditures hadnt changed much since 2015, and wouldnt likely become a major area of savings. Theres very, very few items ... not mandated, Fritz said. Other expenses, including technology costs, road maintenance, personnel and capital improvements would not be mandated, but also would be hard to reduce. There arent a lot of places to go and pull out the kind of things that would have a big impact, Fritz said. Fritz also noted that while the county does have some non-mandated functions, some of them are connected to other services and personnel and others bring in more revenue than they do expenses. The budgeting process can be seen in other areas of the groups meeting as well, and money was at the center of decisions regarding several services. The board postponed approval of an agreement with the tech company Databank to implement an electronic parcel splitting process. The current step, which would have cost about $58,000, was for designing and creating the processes. It will be decided at the last meeting in November. The system has been under review by a subgroup of the Land Records Committee for months, but Winona County Recorder Bob Bambenek advocated for not going forward with it at the board meeting, claiming that he hadnt known the price and they should explore more to save the money. A program thats in place and working in another location offers us a proven program, Bambenek said. I think theres more to look at. Fritz disagreed, and said that in addition to potentially effecting the schedule and having been the plan until that meeting, the money to be used was a prepaid item in the budget and wouldnt affect the levy amount. We have that money available, its for projects like this, Fritz said. Despite that the board voted unanimously to postpone for more exploration. They also voted unanimously to approve an agreement between Winona County and the Third Judicial District to continue the drug court in Winona County. Now that the federal grant funding the drug court ended, the funding will be transitioning to the state. Winona County will be giving the money they receive from the state for the next 12 months to the Drug Court Case Management services. County attorney Karin Sonneman said the state would be providing $43,000 for the next year to fund paid positions, and hopefully longer if they continue their efforts to make a more uniform system for drug courts in Minnesota. Theres no effect on the budget, Sonneman said. And theres no expectation either, because were looking to the state for funding. The support for the program was also linked to the long-term budget discussion, which touched on the need to decide what the county will do with the government center building into the future. Commissioner Steve Jacob said the drug court program helped to reduce the population in the jail, which in addition to helping the convicts, additional allowed them to not pay for housing them or a new jail immediately. Were either going to have to support these kind of programs or look at brick-and-mortar jail, Jacob said. Its cost-effective and its the right thing to do. Breanne Nortman was looking out the window of her fathers vehicle one morning on their way to Red Creek Elementary when she noticed that a power pole just didnt look right. She told her dad to stop the vehicle so that he could confirm the sighting. Moments later, Dan Nortman, Breannes father, made a call to Jackson Electric Cooperative notifying them of a leaning power pole. A crew was dispatched to the location. The crew found that the power pole was located in a creek bottom, and the recent heavy rains caused the soil to erode near the pole causing the pole to lean. The line crew anchored the pole to prevent the pole from tumbling to the ground. This phone call may have prevented a possible power outage, and crews were able to correct a possible safety hazard. Breanne knew something wasnt correct with the power pole because she remembered what she learned at one of Jackson Electrics hotline safety presentations. Every year, Jackson Electric works with the Black River Falls FFA Food for America program in which Jackson Electrics linemen conduct an electrical safety demonstration for fourth-grade students. Breanne attended the program last year. Jackson Electric foreman Brian Schultz and safety and compliance officer Ben Bella recently recognized Breanne for her keen observation at a fifth-grade assembly at Red Creek Elementary in Black River Falls. She was presented with a bag of goodies and was named Jackson Electric Cooperatives Honorary Junior Line Worker. For more information on Jackson Electrics safety demonstrations, contact the co-op at (715) 284-5385. Going upstream might not be the best tactic authors of two paddling guides should consider undertaking, but thats what Lynne and Bob Diebel did. The two canoeists paddled up the Wisconsin River to reach their home near Madison. Lynne recorded the story of their journey in Crossing the Driftless, A Canoe Trip Through A Midwestern Landscape. She and her husband presented a travelogue of their adventure at the Friends of the Black Rivers Sept. 14 meeting. Avid paddlers since youth, the couple authored two paddling guide books, canoeing about 3,000 miles on Minnesotas rivers from 2003-06 to collect information for the books. The two books, Paddling Northern Minnesota: 86 Great Trips by Canoe and Kayak and Paddling Southern Minnesota: 85 Great Trips by Canoe and Kayak, were published by Trails Books. Lynne also has authored three other books. Despite all the miles they paddled in Minnesota, the couple still was game to do the nearly 360-river-miles trip from Faribault, Minn., to Stoughton. We talked about doing the paddle for a couple years, Lynne said. We finally decided to do it in 2009. They started in Faribault where Lynnes family has a summer home and then set out on their paddle to Stoughton. The couple packed their 17-foot canoe and headed down the Cannon River, portaging around two dams. They continued to go with the flow when they reached the Mississippi River. Canoeing down the great river, the paddlers passed through five locks and made two portages. Unfortunately, the portage wheels they packed proved to be unreliable and with each portage, they became less dependable. They ended up being discarded in Alma, but the paddlers still had more portages ahead of them. Going through the locks on the Mississippi proved to be less worrisome. When the canoers got to a lock before a barge, they were locked through first and the barge had to wait. The next day was a four-dam day, said Lynne. We were the only boat going through the locks. They (lock operators) were happy to take any boats through; it justifies their existence, and they love to chat. Being able to paddle with the flow of the river, the Diebels were able to make about 40 miles a day. On the seventh day, we turned left and headed up the Wisconsin, Lynne said. However, when they paddled against the current, the Diebels only covered about 20 miles a day. They paddled up the states longest river over the Fourth of July holiday, meeting many enjoying the recreation the waterway offers. Among those encountered were three young men who had cobbled together a raft a la Huck Finn and were doing some fishing from the sofa perched on top of the raft. They put together the raft from stuff they found at a landing, Lynne said. They were the only ones who didnt say (to the Diebels), Youre going the wrong way. Despite all the boaters, tubers and rafters on the Wisconsin, the Diebels found the river quieter than the Mississippi. There were stretches of the river when the couple got out and towed their canoe instead of paddling. Lynne found getting out and walking a welcome change from sitting for long stretches in the canoe. With much of the rivers shoreline lacking development, Bob saw their trip as recreating the type of travel undertaken by Native Americans and voyageurs in pre-settlement times. When natives wanted to travel, there were times when they traveled upstream, Bob said. As the Diebels neared Madison, they took Black Earth Creek toward Madison and traveled by land to connect to the Yahara River through Madisons lakes. The Yahara flows only a block away from the Diebels home. Lynne has presented the story of the couples trip at Canoecopia 2015, the River Alliance of Wisconsin and numerous other groups as well as to the state historical society. The historical society presentation was recorded and broadcast on Wisconsin Public Television. Crossing the Driftless received awards from various literary organizations and travel writers associations. A La Crosse County judge heard arguments last week on whether to uphold state approval of a second high-voltage power line slated to run through the town of Holland. The town petitioned the court for review of the Public Service Commissions approval of the Badger-Coulee line and its routing, which will follow the Highway 53 corridor parallel to the recently-built CapX2020 line, but on separate poles. A joint venture of American Transmission Co. and several regional utility companies, including La Crosse-based Dairyland Power Cooperative, the 180-mile line will run between the Madison suburbs and Holmen, where it will connect to another high-voltage line, CapX2020, that runs across Minnesota and Western Wisconsin. The owners say the lines will make the electric grid more reliable and provide a pipeline between remote locations with strong wind resources with population centers such as Madison and Milwaukee where the energy is needed. The $580 million cost will be passed on to ratepayers in 15 Midwestern states and one Canadian province. The three-member PSC, all appointed by Gov. Scott Walker, approved the project in 2015 with a route that essentially parallels CapX through the town of Holland, often putting massive towers side by side or on opposite sides of the road. The town challenged the ruling, arguing that the PSC did not follow state law when it comes to establishing a need for such projects, that the agencys environmental review was insufficient, and that it was wrong to route the line through the town without using the existing poles. Unlike CapX2020, which the PSC decided was necessary to meet the supply demand of the La Crosse area, Badger-Coulee was not billed as a project to keep the lights on but one that would make the electric grid more resilient and ultimately save ratepayers millions of dollars by opening the door to lower-priced electricity. Those savings depend largely on the future growth of electricity sales, which have been essentially flat over the past decade. We do not believe the legislature authorized the Public Service Commission to make bets with ratepayer money and impose the litany of burdens that come with a transmission line, said Frank Jablonski, attorney for the town. PSC attorney Alex Mahfood argued the agency, with its staff of engineers, economists and environmental experts, should be given broad deference to interpret state law and exercise judgment in whether and where such projects should be built. Attorneys for ATC and several partner utilities spoke in support of the PSC decision, as did an attorney for the city of Onalaska, which argued against siting the line through its borders. Judge Todd Bjerke could affirm the PSCs decision, overturn it on the grounds of need, require the agency to conduct another environmental review or require that the line be strung on the same poles as CapX. Its not clear when he will issue a decision. ATC has started building the eastern end of the line and is doing engineering and design of the rest. Construction of the segments in La Crosse and Trempealeau counties is expected to start sometime next year, and the line is scheduled to be in service by the end of 2018. MADISON, Wis. Lawrence Ehorn, 85, of Madison passed away Thursday, Oct. 13, 2016, at his home. He was born April 13, 1931, in La Crosse, to William and Gertrude (Fleming) Ehorn. He attended Gays Mills High School after which he served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He was stationed in Germany. After his military service he attended Madison Business College. He eventually went to work for the Vita Plus company. Larry Ehorn joined Vita Plus in 1961, and served as production manager, accounting associate and then purchasing manager until his retirement. Larry also held the position of vice president and secretary of Vita Plus during his career. Larry was a member of the management team formed in 1975, that included Lyle Hill, Ed Gustafson, Art Palmer (all now deceased) and Bob Tramburg, that led Vita Plus until 1986, when the employee stock ownership plan was formed and Bob Tramburg assumed his current role of CEO and president in 1987. Larry retired from Vita Plus in 1999. He is survived by his sister, Eunice (Gerold) Brown of Milwaukee;, and four nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; and one brother, William. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, at St. Philips Catholic Church at Rolling Ground, south of Soldiers Grove. Friends may call from 9:30 a.m. until time of services. Father Zachary Beya is officiating and burial will be in the church cemetery. The Sime Funeral Home of Readstown, is serving the family. NODINE, Minn. Two drivers were killed Tuesday afternoon in a crash involving two semis in Winona County along Interstate 90. Both eastbound and westbound lanes of Interstate 90 were closed at the Exit 267 at Nodine in Winona County because of the crash. The Minnesota State Patrol has reported that the drivers, both men, were killed in the crash, but has not yet released additional information. Voters in La Crescent play a key role in deciding how our county government will operate for the next four years. Jack Miller is running against incumbent Judy Storlie for District 1 county commissioner. I dont know either candidate personally, but from observing Storlie, she lacks the leadership required for effective, efficient government thats accountable to taxpayers. Storlie may have good qualities as a person, but that doesnt make her qualified to serve as county commissioner. Her decisions are misguided and not in the best interest of taxpayers. At board meetings, Storlie seems to barely tolerate public comment periods, which are now limited to twice a month after the business meeting has concluded. She claims the public can contact all commissioners via telephone and email. As a commissioner, her duty is to serve citizens by listening and making rational decisions for the benefit of all county taxpayers. One thing Storlie is very good at is spending money, consistently voting in favor of increased tax levies, pay increases for county employees, and expensive equipment and projects, while disregarding more cost-effective options. She seems unable to differentiate wants from needs. Please vote Jack Miller for District 1 county commissioner. He supports an open, responsive, fiscally responsible government for all citizens of Houston County. Cindy Hobelsberger, La Crescent, Minn. The election for the replacement of Buffalo County treasurer, Marilynn Sheahan, is important. Marilynn has been instrumental in helping modernize her department. Issues such as inaccurate property descriptions, difficult survey work and GIS mapping have slowed the the work, though, which Marilynn has helped coordinate. Besides handling her office duties and staff, Marilynn attends department manager meetings, finance committee meetings, land information council meetings and many others locally and statewide. I have had the pleasure of working with Diane Prenot for 25 years. She started as an office assistant and quickly moved to office manager, all while juggling raising a family and finishing her degree. She is a well-respected manager. She now contributes to department manager meetings, finance committee meetings that deal with highway and budget issues, and attends other committee meetings as requested. The county administration office requested to have her help train new employees as they transitioned into working with financial data she has mastered. Trempealeau County and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation even funded her to train their new highway office manager. She not only attends the statewide conference and training for highway financial employees, she has directed and presented many breakout training sessions. Diane Prenot has the skills and attitude to serve as Buffalo County treasurer, and she has proven to be a team player. We are lucky to have such a great candidate. David Brevick, Alma Growing up in a small village in Michigans Upper Peninsula, in a working-class neighborhood populated by mostly iron miners and loggers, and hanging around the local pool hall, we boys soon learned that road trips to northern Wisconsin provided insights into adult life. There were the bordellos in Hurley (Club Carnival, Showboat) and the Green Garage just over the border by Iron Mountain in Spread Eagle. Also, the drinking age was 18 in Wisconsin, and identity checks much less frequent or serious, not that the checks were always robust in the remote Upper Peninsula. And, in all fairness to Wisconsin, there was an establishment in Iron Mountain named Dollys, although I think Dolly predated my late teen years. We did not have GPS in those days. Needless to say, road trips tended to be popular. My young adult life brought me to the Far East, including Vietnam as a U.S. Marine. Ill give you three guesses on what occupied the minds of young male marines 99 percent of the time. The first two do not count. Everyone knows why Bangkok, Yokohama, Taipei, Manila and other favored locations were so popular. This time was followed by a stint as an ordinary seaman on the Great Lakes, prior to finishing my college education. Nothing should surprise this 72-year-old man. But, I must admit, Donald Trumps arrogance and complete disrespect for women surprises even me. I have heard and witnessed a lot of talk about women in my day, but never the utter disregard and disdain Trump shows. The young marines in the Far East, the young men proving their manhood in the far north of Michigan, the seamen on the great lakes, none, despite their often limited education and lack of worldliness, talked as vulgarly and disrespectfully about the women they knew and met. Actually, in most cases, you might be surprised at their behaviors and words. : 9 2013 . 9 . . U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson said Wednesday that the national and state economies could suffer if the U.S. doesnt join a global trade deal with countries that negotiated the Trans-Pacific Partnership. They are among Johnsons strongest comments yet to suggest he favors a trade deal with Trans-Pacific Partnership nations. The issue has divided free-trade Republicans in the 2016 campaign from their standard-bearer, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, who opposes the partnership. The comments from Johnson, R-Oshkosh, came in an interview with the Wisconsin State Journal editorial board. During the interview, Johnson also denied that he and other Republican U.S. senators are shirking their duty by refusing to vote to confirm President Barack Obamas U.S. Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland. He said he would vote against Garlands confirmation if a vote were held. Johnson repeatedly has declined to say if he supports the negotiated terms of the Trans Pacific Partnership, or TPP, which would create new trade ties between the U.S. and 11 other Pacific Rim nations. His election challenger, Russ Feingold, a Middleton Democrat, opposes TPP and has chided Johnson for not taking a position on it. At the same time, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has walked back her past support for TPP to now oppose its current terms. Trump has highlighted his opposition to the deal a cornerstone of his presidential bid. Johnson said Wednesday that its incredibly important that overseas markets remain open to Wisconsin agriculture and manufacturing products. Moments later in the interview, Johnson, in a reference to TPP, said hes more than happy to let the next president negotiate a better deal. TPP represents about 40 percent of the world economy, Johnson said, referring to the combined economies of nations included in the pact. We dont want to be on the outside looking in. Johnson also was pressed in the interview for his opposition to confirming Garland. Obama nominated the D.C. Circuit Court chief judge to fill the vacancy left by the Feb. 13 death of former conservative Justice Antonin Scalia. U.S. Senate Republicans have blocked hearings and a vote on Garlands confirmation, saying the Scalia vacancy instead should be filled by the next president. But Garlands confirmation still could come to a vote if Clinton is elected president and renominates him. At least two Senate Republicans also have said they would confirm Garland if it becomes apparent Clinton will win the election or in the immediate aftermath of a Clinton win, on the grounds that it would keep Clinton from nominating a justice more liberal than Garland. Johnson said Wednesday, as he has previously, that he believes Garlands past judicial rulings show he would be hostile to Second Amendment rights. If there was a vote, Ill be upfront, I would vote against Merrick Garland, Johnson said. Johnson added that nothing requires him or other senators to confirm Obamas choice for the high court. The U.S. Constitution creates a system in which we have two co-equal branches involved in confirmation of judges, he said.The Presidents role is to nominate. The Senates role is advice and consent, Johnson said. Were withholding our consent. We have fulfilled our constitutional role. In Tuesday nights U.S. Senate debate, Feingold said Johnsons refusal to consider Garlands nomination disqualifies him from holding office. Senior Amber Rolfzen had 16 kills and hit .609 to lead the Cornhuskers, who hit.330 for the match. Nebraska also dominated on defense with 48 digs to 38 for UW. Kickapoo Coffee Roasters recently celebrated its 10th anniversary of roasting and selling fair-trade coffee beans sourced through direct relationships with farmer cooperatives in Africa, Ethiopia, and Central and South America. The successful coffee business takes pride in its detailed attention to the highest standards of quality and taste, visiting and working directly with growers, and its mission to provide socially-just fair prices to small-scale farmers globally. The Kickapoo Coffee team has won several awards for their product. These include the Good Food Award Gold Seal received each year since 2012 and the 2010 Micro Roaster of the Year Award from Roast Magazine. Owner Caleb Nicholes opened the business in the Main Street Station building in downtown Viroqua with its first roasted coffee in the fall of 2005. The next year T.J. and Denise Semanchin joined as co-owners. In 2007, the three owners bought the former train depot building on Railroad Avenue and moved their business there. When it outgrew that location three years ago, Kickapoo Coffee moved into 5,300 square feet of custom-designed space on the east side of the Food Enterprise Center at 1201 N. Main St. Now the company employs 14 full- and part-time staff and grosses over $1.6 million in annual coffee sales to customers mainly in the Upper Midwest. Kickapoo Coffees popular roasts are featured at restaurants, cafes, coffeehouses, grocers and also in hospitals and clinics through the Fifth Season Cooperative. Locally, you can find their product at the Viroqua Food Co-op, Village Market, Driftless Cafe, and Westby Bakery and Coffee Shop. Kickapoo Coffee also has a cafe in Milwaukees historic Third Ward, and its product has been selected as the choice bean for a coffee bar at the Fifth Avenue Urban Outfitters in New York City. Once a month, the public can hear about its coffee roasting and taste a variety of its fresh-roasted coffees at no charge. These cupping events are held monthly in its tasting room at the Food Enterprise Center and include a tour of the roastery. Check their website, kickapoocoffee.com, for dates and times. Besides being known for its fine coffee, the Viroqua business is also the only 100 percent on-site, solar-powered roastery in the world. An array of 80 solar panels was installed last year near the business entrance on the east side of the Food Enterprise Center to provide their renewable power. The solar project was recognized for its leadership and innovation at RENEW Wisconsins 5th Annual Energy Policy Summit held last January in Madison. We congratulate Kickapoo Coffee Roasters for being such a fine example of entrepreneurship and for fostering sustainability here in Wisconsin and among its fair-trade coffee cooperatives around the world. Bank award Peoples State Bank has been recognized as a 2016 top-producing lender by Independent Banker, the award-winning magazine of the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA). In her letter to Mark Forsythe, president of Peoples State Bank, Camden Fine, president and CEO of ICBA, said, This recognition distinguishes Peoples State Bank as one of the top 75 community banks nationwide. You have an impressive record of success in granting agricultural loans and supporting your communitys agricultural enterprises. Congratulations to Peoples State Bank! The bank has branches in Viroqua, Soldiers Grove, Prairie du Chien, and 16 other locations in southwest Wisconsin and northeast Iowa. Bethel Home in Viroqua has new residents that have come to roost in the facilitys enclosed courtyard a flock of six chickens. The idea came to Kristina Reser-Jaynes of Readstown, after seeing a YouTube clip about a nursing home in Australia that had chickens. Jaynes said the clip showed that the facilitys residents with dementia and Alzheimers were reached by the chickens. In six months there was a reduction in use of medication for depression, Jaynes said. I think (residents) get lonely and are isolated you get them outside its a conversation starter, Lets look at the chickens. People either love or hate chickens; there are a lot of retired farmers who truly love chickens, she continued. Jaynes approached the Bethel Home Board and Bethel Home Foundation with the idea of having chickens at the nursing home. I appreciate the foresight of the board (regarding this project), Jaynes said. We got the OK from City Hall and Daron Jefson was so kind, sorted things out and saw the potential. The coop, complete with a ladder for the fowl, is set up in an enclosed courtyard in front of a window near the facilitys physical therapy area. Jaynes took photos of each chicken, framed them, added nameplates and hung them on the wall, so residents, staff and visitors alike know whos who. Its been pretty positive. John Petersheim of County Line Barns made an adorable, cute coop with a nostalgia feel of red and white; the coop is wheelchair height, Jaynes said. Her brother and two nephews put up the picket fence enclosure. I wanted to invoke the nostalgia and farm feel. The new chicken coop was blessed by Pastor Chuck Miller of Kickapoo and Peace Lutheran churches, June 15. The chickens moved into their new home after the blessing and laid their first eggs around Sept. 10 (there are two nesting boxes in the coop). Jaynes set up a gofundme account and raised $1,000 in four days. Jaynes said she loved the response she got from the gofundme site, because people who didnt know her or her mom, who is a resident of Bethel Home, donated because they liked the project. I have a friend in Norway who donated in honor of my mom, Jaynes said. So its an international project. The whole community has come together. Jaynes said there was quite a bit of chatter between staff and residents over the chickens pending arrival. Some residents are nonverbal, so if a person is uncertain what to do when visiting go see the chickens, she said. Take the time and get them out of their room. You see the staff working very hard. Its (the chicken project) something to brighten the day. Its really neat, Jaynes continued. My mom has Alzheimers and she spends time alone. I wanted to brighten her day and others. Jaynes said future plans may include selling T-shirts to support the maintenance of the project, chicken art and chicken talks. Itll be an ongoing thing. Its so fun to see residents hold them. When residents hold the chickens, there is a puppy pad on their laps to absorb any droppings. Jaynes is in charge of taking care of the chickens. Come winter, they will move south to Jaynes Readstown home. It really has been fun, Jaynes said. Its so fun to see residents holding them. Robin Seidel, director of nursing at Bethel Home, said the reaction of both residents and staff has been positive. She said residents enjoy looking at the chickens through the window near the therapy area and some reminisce about farm life. People ask, You have chickens? Thats unique., Seidel said. Kristina is good about getting residents involved and even staff. Its great for relaxation. Its a real community builder for Bethel Home. Seidel said the chickens have benefited residents in that some react to the chickens, when they may not respond to other things. Either youre a chicken person or not, she said. For some, it brings back good memories. I think it was an awesome idea, Seidel said. Kristina did a great job organizing this. More information about the project and photos can be found on the Facebook page, Bethel Home Helping Hands. Former Wisconsin Sen. Dan Kapanke plans to keep an open mind about transportation and education funding and reach across the aisle for joint solutions if elected to his former seat in the 32nd Senate District. The town of Campbell Republican is attempting to re-take the seat he lost in a 2011 recall election to Sen. Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse. Starting under the leadership of Gov. Jim Doyle, transportation hasnt been a priority, Kapanke said; however, Gov. Scott Walkers transportation plan is a step in the right direction. In September, Walker unveiled a plan to cut funding for state highway programs, provide more money for local roads and existing highways and delay major projects, as well as authorize $500 million in new bonding. The plan does not increase taxes or fees. There are more dollars allocated for rural roads and for bridges in Wisconsin than in previous budgets, and the bonding hes suggesting is the least its been in 10 or 12 years, Kapanke said. In that respect, I think its a positive step forward, because we cant be bonding and we need to take care of our rural roads. However, Kapanke plans to wait for Joint Legislative Audit Bureaus evaluation of the state highway program before coming up with a proposal for Wisconsins roads. When thats done, I think we ought to come together and this shouldnt be a partisan issue with a plan to address the needs and deficiencies that we have, Kapanke said. Do we need more money? I dont know. If there is a deficiency and the audit calls for more money, Kapanke said he wont take anything off the table as far as a higher gas tax or fees go. We need to have everybody at the table. We need to take a look at everything, and we need to put in a long-range sustainable plan for our roads, Kapanke said. I dont know what that looks like at this point. When it comes to a north-south corridor in La Crosse, Kapanke voted against the plan as chairman of the La Crosse Area Planning Commission and says its obvious that the people of La Crosse dont want it. I think until the community demands (a transportation solution), Im really against spending $140 million (on the corridor), Kapanke said. Lets enhance Hwy. 16 if we have to. Weve done work on Lang Drive and Exit 3 is coming up. While Kapanke is a strong supporter of the University of Wisconsin System saying education is where (his) heart is and is concerned by the job loss associated with recent funding cuts, hes not sure whether it would be wise to increase funding by the amount requested by the UW Board of Regents. I cant say were going to spend $42 million until I see what the revenues are, Kapanke said. When it comes to K-12 education, Kapanke is also undecided on whether schools are getting adequate state funding or whether cuts in funding were harming schools. Despite these cuts, in 2015 we had great ACT scores. We were in the top five in graduation rates nationwide, Kapanke said. I commend our teachers for that. I commend our administrators and certainly our students, because theyre learning. However, Kapanke didnt commit to either increasing funding or further cuts. Can we cut, cut, cut every year? That certainly has to be looked at, Kapanke said. Kapanke is also a strong advocate of vouchers and school choice. He strongly opposes legalizing marijuana for recreational use. The Westby-Christiana Fire Department is a winner of Nationwide's 2016 Nominate Your Fire Department Contest held in conjunction with Grain Bin Safety Week. The fire department won a grain bin rescue tube and hands-on rescue training. A local presentation of the tube and training took place Oct. 5 in Westby. For the third straight year, Nationwide is bringing awareness to preventable grain bin entrapments and deaths through Grain Bin Safety Week, said Nationwide Agribusiness President Brad Liggett. Grain bin accidents can tragically impact individuals, families and entire communities. Accident prevention means everyone working together and Grain Bin Safety Week provides a forum for the agricultural community to help keep people safe. Grain Bin Safety Week is an annual observance that occurs the third full week of February to promote grain bin safety on farms and commercial grain handling facilities. A highlight of Grain Bin Safety Week is the contest, which runs from Jan. 1 to May 31, and awards grain rescue tubes and training to first responders across the country. The contest encourages nominations of first responders whose communities would benefit from winning a tube and training. It asks departments to describe how they would share the tube and training information with nearby fire departments. This years contest generated a record 641 nominations and will provide tubes and training to 19 fire departments across 14 states another record. Alice Erickson, a resident at Norseland Nursing Home in Westby, celebrated another milestone on Monday, Oct. 10, when she turned 104 years old. Last year, Erickson said it was Gods will that she lived to be 103 and now this wonderful woman isnt sure if making it to age 104 was still part of Gods plan or just dumb luck. Either way she did enjoy eating the marble cake and ice cream they had at her birthday party. Visiting with Alice is always a treat. She isnt afraid to tell anyone just what she thinks, so be prepared to be told if youve put on a few pounds since the last time you saw her because she wont hold back from letting you know. Alice hasnt minced her words or held back her thoughts on any given subject her entire life and she isnt about to change her ways now. She said she learned young not to hold a grudge, to be happy with herself and never to worry about whether people liked her or not. Erickson was born on Oct. 10, 1912, in Westby to Andrew and Josie Anderson. She had one sibling, a sister, Gladys who also passed away at the age of 82. Alice married Melvin Erickson and together they had two children, Robert and Marilyn. They farmed near Westby, until Melvin died of cancer in 1965. Her son, Robert took over the family farm and still lives there today. On March 4, 1991, she entered the Friendship House where she spent the next 17 years. She transferred to Norseland Nursing Home in 2009, where she has resided ever since. She said the staff treats her very well, the food is good at Norseland and she even enjoys participating in exercise strengthening classes three times a week. Looking back over the past century-plus Erickson has no clue how she has lived to age 100, let alone 104. She survived scarlet fever, beat cancer and lived through a couple of major surgeries. She uses a wheelchair to get around and her taut skin makes her look 30 years younger than her actual age. At Norseland, Erickson loves napping, spending time alone in her room, visiting with her roommate Rainy Hoffman or just scrolling the television channels to find a game show she likes. Last year her favorite game show was Deal or no Deal, but she has switched channels and enjoys Jeopardy the best this year instead. When Erickson was born in 1912, William Howard Taft was the 27th president of the United States and she will be happy when this years presidential election is over in November and all the name calling and backstabbing stops. Erickson has spent plenty of hours watching the political arena unfold as the country prepares to elect its 45th president. She will flat out tell you she isnt a fan of Donald Trump and is convinced, without a doubt, that Hillary Clinton will be elected President of the United States on Nov. 8. Erickson has a perfect track record at predicting the winner in presidential elections and is hoping to keep that record intact on Nov. 8. She knows her days are numbered, but yet she already registered far more than most of us will ever see. Her key to longevity might be her stubborn Norwegian heritage; the three glasses of buttermilk she drinks every day; her carefree attitude; or maybe it is just dumb luck. Regardless of when her time is up, Erickson said she is ready for her next journey and that decision is completely in the hands of God. Her only wish is that the day God calls her home that she passes peacefully and just sleeps her way to Heavens Gate. If that doesnt happen before Oct. 10, 2017, we will all be wishing this amazing women, with a rock solid memory, a very Happy 105th Birthday. MILWAUKEE (AP) Wisconsin has the widest high school graduation rate gap between white and black students in the nation. New federal data show that almost 93 percent of white students in Wisconsin earn diplomas within four years, compared to just 64 percent of black students. State Department of Public Instruction spokesman Tom McCarthy told Wisconsin Public Radio that closing the gap will take community efforts. Not every gap is identical, McCarthy said. Almost all of them are unique to the situations that exist in the area of the state where those kids live. So its getting the people bought into making a change and acknowledging that it exists. McCarthy also said, race needs to be addressed and cannot be ignored by the public and lawmakers moving forward. Patricia Hoben runs three charter schools in Milwaukee. She told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that on-time graduation rates might not be the fairest measure of high schools that serve poor students. The gap data is real and horrendous, but the concern I have when you focus on that is there are all sorts of ways to kick kids along, Hoben said. We know kids are graduating with a 3.0 GPA and a 14 on their ACT exam. If you wait to graduate kids until they can get an 18 or 20 on the ACT, theyre more likely to go to college and into the workplace. State Superintendent Tony Ever said, he will be asking the Legislature to change state law to allow Milwaukee Public Schools to begin the academic term before Labor Day. With an earlier start date he said Superintendent Darienne Driver can push an aggressive plan for credit-recovery programs for high school students. Its time to look at doing some things differently for Milwaukee Public Schools, Evers said. If they can do credit recovery in a robust way, that could raise the graduation rate. Dear reader, we're asking for your help to keep local reporting available for all today during our fall fundraiser. Your financial support keeps stories like this one free to read, instead of hidden behind paywalls. We believe when reliable local reporting is widely available, the entire community benefits. Thank you for investing in your neighborhood. Start your day with LAist Sign up for How To LA, delivered weekday mornings. Subscribe Three Iranian-Americans have settled a lawsuit against Petco, which the plaintiffs claimed had refused to sell them goldfish during the Iranian New Year, reports City News Service. Sam and Samira Mojabi, along with Talin Sardarbegians, sued the San Diego-based pet store company in August 2015. According to Courthouse News Service, the Mojabis had gone to a Camarillo Petco in March 2015 to buy goldfish, which are traditionally featured in celebrations for Nowruz, the Iranian New Year. The Mojabis claimed that the store had refused to sell them goldfish because of a misconception that Persians kill the fish during Nowruz. Sardarbegians said that he was also refused at another Petco store in Van Nuys when he went in on March 2015. The Nowruz usually begins on March 21, or whenever the vernal equinox happens. The Mojabis' attorney said that they had been discriminated against because of their Persian background and religious beliefs. The suit claimed that "Petco asked its patrons if they were of Persian descent and declined to sell them goldfish." The suit added that "Moreover, Petco and its management had specifically sent out memorandum commanding its retail staff to decline the sale of such fish to Persians." The lawsuit sought unspecified damages and civil penalties of $2,500 for each alleged violation. "[We] have a strong commitment to animal welfare and responsible pet ownership and we do not tolerate discrimination of any sort," a spokesperson for Petco told LAist in an email. Colleen O'Brien, vice president of PETA, wrote to us to say that goldfish shouldn't be purchased, period. "Fish have highly specialized needs that most people aren't equipped to meet, so no matter who buys them, they often end up getting flushed down the toilet or dumped, killing the fish and harming the environment," wrote O'Brien. Nowruz, which translates to "new day," celebrates spring and the advent of a new year. When the vernal equinox arrives, families set out a ceremonial table replete with items that signify the re-birth of nature. This table, called a haftseen, is often comprised of apples, garlic, vinegar, hyacinth, sweet pudding, sprouts, and coins that signify prosperity. Goldfish, put in a fishbowl, are also sometimes included in this spread. They are said to represent life. While the goldfish are not meant to be harmed, they are often released back into the wild, according to the BBC. It should also be noted that goldfish are apparently horrible for the environment; they may cause algal blooms by stirring up the river bottom with their feeding habits, and they also eat other fish's eggs on occasion. It seems that, among Iranians, attitudes about the goldfish's place in Nowruz has been shifting. As noted at GreenProphet, a website about sustainability catered to readers of Middle Eastern descent, some in the Iranian blogosphere are calling for a boycott to the practice of buying goldfish for Nowruz. Most notably, during this year's Nowruz, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani Tweeted a photo of himself sitting down with a fishbowl that had an orange in it: Happy #Nowruz to my fellow Iranians, wherever you are in the world, & to all who celebrate this ancient tradition. pic.twitter.com/jYA1sb6HeZ Hassan Rouhani (@HassanRouhani) March 20, 2016 One Twitter user wrote in Farsi, "Rouhani, too, has joined the campaign of leaving out goldfish from the Haft Seen table. Good for you!" This guy, on the other hand, was a little confused: November Tue 01: Paul Skerritt @ The Rabbit Hole, Durham. 7:00pm. Free (to reserve a table phone 0191 386 5556). Tue 01: Jam session @ Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. House trio: Alan Law, Paul Grainger, Abbie Finn. Wed 02: Vieux Carre Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Wed 02: Castillo Nuevo @ Revolucion de Cuba, Newcastle. 6:00pm. Wed 02: Darlington Big Band @ Traveller's Rest, Darlington. 7:00pm. Rehearsal session (open to the public). Wed 02: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 7:00pm. Wed 02: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Thu 03: Vieux Carre Jazzmen @ The Holystone, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Thu 03: Thursday Night Prayer Meeting @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free admission (donations). Thu 03: Paul Skerritt Duo @ Tomahawk Steakhouse, High St., Yarm. 8:00pm. Paul Skerritt & James Harrison residency. Thu 03: Tees Hot Club @ Dormans Club, Middlesbrough. Guests: Kevin Eland (trumpet); Dave Archbold (keys); Adrian Beadnall (bass guitar); Dan Johnson (sax). 9:00pm. Fri 04: Mike Durham's International Classic Jazz Party @ Village Hotel, North Tyneside. 12 noon. SOLD OUT! Fri 04: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Fri 04: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. 5.00. Fri 04: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms, Monkseaton. 1:00pm. Fri 04: Zoe Gilby Trio @ The Vault, Hexham. 7:30pm. Fri 04: Paul Donnelly Quartet @ Saltburn Community Hall. 7:30pm. Fri 04: Twelve Pound Daddies @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free (donations). Blind Pig Blues Club. Sat 05: Mike Durham's International Classic Jazz Party @ Village Hotel, North Tyneside. 12 noon. SOLD OUT! Sat 05: Waves Festival @ Sunderland. All day event, various venues, line-up inc. Ishmael Ensemble & Yaatri. Sat 05: Red Stripe Band @ St Augustines Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. 10.00. Sat 05: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. Tutor: Bradley Johnston - Playing from within. 25.00. Enrol at: www.jazz.coop. Sat 05: Jazz Voice showcase @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Admission: 3.00. Hosted by Chris Robinson. Sat 05: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. Sun 06: Mike Durham's International Classic Jazz Party @ Village Hotel, North Tyneside. 12 noon. SOLD OUT! Sun 06: Vieux Carre Hot 4 @ Spanish City, Whitley Bay. 12 noon. Sun 06: Smokin Spitfires @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 12:45pm. Sun 06: Foundry Jazz Ensemble @ The Exchange, North Shields. 3:00pm. Sun 06: Jo Harrop & Jamie McCredie @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. 10.00. adv. Mon 07: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Mon 07: John Garner & John Pope @ Little Buildings, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Tue 08: Harry Keeble & Andy Champion @ Forum Music Centre, Darlington. 7:30pm. World Politicus: "Supreme Court Justice John Roberts Signs Off On Obamas Removal For Treason His Career Is Over...According to recent reports, Chief Justice John Roberts might have signed off on Interpol to have Obama impeached on the grounds of multiple counts of treason." World Net Daily: "Hillary bus caught illegally dumping poop in street" Marisa Schultz, New York Post: "Hillary Clinton accused of stealing furniture from the State Department" Michael Brown, Town Hall: "Conservative Christians, Be Assured That President Hillary Clinton Will Declare War On You" Cortney O'Brien: "Why Giuliani Doesn't Believe Trump Accuser Who Claims to Have Been Assaulted in First Class" Dan Spencer, Town Hall: "Pence: Clintons Monica Lewinsky Scandal The Most Appalling Behavior of Any President" Tyler O,Neil, PJ Media: "Vanderbilt Professor: Hillary Clinton is Proof 'Satanism is on the Rise'" "I would argue that Satanism itself is on the rise in the country, and I think that that's well documented," Swain declared. She argued that the deceptive tactics associated with Lucifer have infiltrated the country's political discourse, and traced that back to the leftist professor Saul Alinsky...Swain, a black woman who grew up in poverty, dropped out of college to become a single mother, but pulled herself up to become a college professor, went on to attack the "Black Lives Matter" movement." Jim Hoft, Gateway Pundit: "What Media Wont Tell You: How to Vote Trump Is Crushing How to Vote Hillary on Google" "The Elites Have NO IDEA How Angry People Really Are" Jim Hoft, Gateway Pundit: "WIKILEAKS Releases Podesta Emails Part #9 on Sunday Morning More Hillary Lies" David R. Usher, American Thinker: "Donald Trump is leading America's third war of Independence (the first two being in 1776 and the War of 1812)." "Trump's campaign touched the taproot of the Electorate. Most Americans cannot quite put a finger on the reason..." Cliff Kincaid, Renew America: "I don't know how anyone can demean women more than she has demeaned women, or present women as nothing more than pieces of meat. That's the hypocrisy we're dealing with here." But the Clinton campaign is moving forward as the solemn protector of women's rights." Linda Kimball, Renew America: "Progressive leftism: the serpent's blood-soaked ideology of deception, malice, and madness" Newsmax: "Poll: Clinton Heavily Favored to Win Electoral College" Eddie Scarry, Washington Examiner: "Donald Trump has all but disappeared from the TV news sets and press conference stages he once seemed all too eager to dominate earlier in the election, and is making it clear to the thousands of people who attend his rallies that the press is now his enemy." Larry Klayman, World Net Daily: "On the precipice of total Clinton tyranny!" Clarice Feldman, American Thinker: "Man the Vote: Its the Least You Can Do for Your Country...If only men voted, Trump would already have won." Stewart Lawrence, Daily Caller: "Under Siege, Trump Needs To Call On Melania. Now is the time when her special insight and reassurance are most needed." Philip Stuckey, Daily Caller: "Gingrich: Trump Would Win If It Weren't For The Media" Julio Severo, Barb Wire: "IF BRAZILIAN IMMIGRANTS IN THE U.S. ARE ACCUSED OF BEING PIGS, WHY BLAME TRUMP?" Lee Duigon, Barb Wire: "EMAILS SHOW CLINTON CAMPAIGN TRIED TO TAKE OVER CATHOLIC CHURCH" American Reviewer: "George Soros RIGGED Voting Machines in These 16 STATES! Is YOUR STATE On The List??" American Reviewer: "BREAKING: Julian Assange of WIKILEAKS Was Just KILLED OFF Please Pray" "The details surrounding the situation are scarce" "Do you think Hillary Clinton is behind this??" American Reviewer: "OBAMA FORCING HOBBY LOBBY To CLOSE ALL STORES Heres The DISTURBINGLY TYRANNICAL REASON WHY " American Reviewer: "SH0CKING VIDEO SURFACES of BARACK OBAMA From 1995 Revealing WHO HE REALLY IS" Christine Rousselle, Town Hall: "After First Posing Nude, Madonna Now Offering Sexual Favors For Voting For Hillary" Gateway Pundit: "ACTUARIAL REVIEW: Analysis of Recent Polls Shows Trump Win and Possible Landslide" Bruce Walker, American Thinker: "What if There Were a National Conservative Party?" Oh man, let's just start off with this one:Reports by whom? Certainly no one that knows a thing about American law. First of all, of course, "Interpol" cannot have Obama removed for treason; only Congress can do that. Second, Roberts cannot "sign off" on any criminal prosecution. As Chief Justice, it is none of his business unless the person is convicted and their conviction is appealed to the Supreme Court, which cannot in any event ever happen to a sitting President. Third, do you think a Chief Justice would really be stupid enough to announce this effective coup attempt in public? Man, this is a new height in Republican idiocy.Except for maybe this, the worst attempt to gin up a Hillary scandal in the whole election:Yup, that's a real story at World Net Daily, now being picked up by wingnut sites around the country. Just the ticket to bring the whole Hillary campaign down. And if that doesn't work, how about this?God, that's too pathetic to even comment on.Bullshit. Now they know they are losing so bad that they have to drive their supporters into a blind panic to get them to vote for Trump. If Hillary's bus pooping in the street doesn't do the trick.Wrong question, Cortney. The question should be "Why, when Rudy knows damed well that the accusations are true, is he going around in public, lying about them?" -The answer: He is a corrupt bastard without a shred of human decency, who is willing to collaborate with any sort of low life scum if it will keep him on the news shows.How about when George W. Bush started a war of aggression in an innocent country, that resulted in the deaths of a million innocent civilians? I guess that is not as bad as a Democrat getting a blow job.They're really losing it now.I hope you are getting paid damed well to say things like this, lady, because if your religion turns out to be true, you are headed to a bad place after judgment day. And by the way, Vanderbilt University, it is a mark of eternal shame on you that this woman is allowed to teach at your school. This is not free speech, it is a clear sign of mental disability.More evidence of why he's called the Stupidest Man On The Internet. Jim, Hillary's voters already know how to vote, because they have been good citizens for a long time. The assholes that look up "how to vote Trump" probably have to start their day by googling "how to tie your shoes."And let's keep going with Jim, while he is on a roll:We do, however, have a pretty good idea how stupid and crazy they are. And let's just let Jim be the spokesman for this nonsense:Wikileaks...e-mails...Podesta. Is there anyone other than Trump idiots that even pays attention to this any more? Wikileaks is now releasing these e-mails by the thousands, and there is nothing remotely incriminating in any of them. So just keep it up. There's an old Yiddish saying about "Machen Gelt von Dreck." Sorry, guys- this time around it's all dreck and no gelt.Talk about delusions of grandeur.Well, we know the reason: there are millions of really stupid, gullible, hate and greed-filled people out there, who are so utterly clueless that they think that electing a billionaire is the way to protect themselves from the "establishment."How about that for a big lie? Tough to top that.Well, don't hold back, girl. Tell us how you really feel. Anyway, I tried to read more of this article- one of the most turgid, irrational things I have ever seen. Don't try it yourself, unless you are either a professional or have a large supply of valium at hand.I.e. to be elected President. But they can't bring themselves to say that.No, Eddie, what it is making clear is that Trump finally realizes that the more the public sees him, the more they hate him.Ha ha. Larry Klayman. Ha ha.Really? You mean that we could just call the election off, throw the Obamas into the street and put Trump in the White House? That's democracy for you. And by the way, Clarice, if you think your fellow women and yourself shouldn't be allowed to vote, then you shouldn't be allowed to shoot your big fat ugly mouth off about anything political. Get back in the kitchen where you belong, and do the dishes."Special Insight." Into what, I wonder? how to parlay your looks into a marriage with a rich scum?I.e. if all people had to go on were Republican lies and smears.Why not?Boy, you'd have to explain to me why she'd want it before I believe that one.And let's all welcome a new visitor to Wingnut Wrapup:Man, that Soros guy must be some kind of mechanic to have done that all by himself.Why pray if he's already dead? P.S.- he's not. He just had his twitter feed cut off. I know this is the cyber age, but still, cutting off your twitter feed doesn't really kill you. Bet you are surprised to hear that.You betcha they are. So scarce that they don't exist. Not scarce enough, however, to prevent them from asking:Or, as long as we are reporting utterly preposterous claims, how about this one?Well, since he didn't do any such thing, no sense wasting time on their other false claims. So, let's just go out on this one:A black man. That is what the video reveals, clearly and for anyone to see. He's really a black man. Shocking! If only more Americans had known this in 2008, we never would have to have suffered through eight years of job growth, tripling of the Dow, adding 20 million people to the rolls of the insured, avoiding three trillion dollar foreign aggressions, etc.And is there anyone on earth that would believe this one?Sounds more like a Trump tactic to me. Melania, I hope you're rested up. Time to earn your keep.And this news just in:In other news from the same world: Witcher Geralt of Rivia defeats the master vampire Detlaf to restore peace!P.S.- Geralt is voting for Hillary.That's an easy question to answer, because it has been tried. In Germany, in the 1930's and 1940's.And that's all I can take. Believe me, it goes on and on at this point. Wednesday, October 19, 2016 Public hearings concluded today at the International Court of Justice on the request by Equatorial Guinea for the indication of preliminary measures in the case it has brought against France, Immunities and Criminal Proceedings (Equatorial Guinea v. France). The Republic of Equatorial Guinea has asked that France suspend all criminal proceedings against the Vice-President and refrain from launching any new criminal proceedings against him. It also asked that France ensure that the building located at 42 Avenue Foch in Paris be treated as the diplomatic mission in France and that those premises and its contents be protected from intrusion, search, or attachment. It further asked that France refrain from taking any other measures that might aggravate or extend the dispute submitted to the International Court of Justice. For its part, France asked the International Court of Justice to remove the case from its docket or, failing that, to reject all requests from Equatorial Guinea for preliminary measures. The case is now under consideration by the International Court of Justice. (mew) https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/international_law/2016/10/immunities-and-criminal-proceedings-equatorial-guinea-v-france-icj-to-consider-request-for-indicaito.html The United Nations says the war in Afghanistan killed more than 2,500 Afghan civilians in the first nine months of 2016. More than 5,800 others were wounded. The U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) released the findings on Wednesday. The Mission repeated its call for all sides in the Afghan war to prevent harm to civilians. The number of civilian casualties represents a one percent decrease from the same period in 2015. However, deaths and injuries among Afghan children increased. Child casualties in Afghanistan A mission statement said U.N. officials have been deeply concerned about the rising number of child casualties since 2013. It said that the mission documented 639 deaths of Afghan children in the first nine months of 2016. More than 1,800 others were injured. U.N. officials blamed Taliban-led anti-government forces for causing 61 percent of all civilian deaths. The Taliban ruled most of Afghanistan from 1996 until late 2001, when it was ousted from power. The United States and its allies raided the country after the September 11, 2001 al-Qaida terror attacks. They accused the Taliban of providing shelter to al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. Fighting against rebel forces causing most of the civilian casualties The U.N. report noted that fighting between Afghan forces and rebels was the leading cause of civilian casualties this year. Other major causes include suicide and complex rebel attacks, as well as improvised explosive devices (IEDs). The report noted a 72 percent increase in civilian casualties from air raids by pro-government forces this year. It said that international military forces were responsible for one third of those raids. There were more than 11,000 conflict-related civilian casualties in 2015. The Afghan war has since intensified, with Taliban forces expanding their activities to many more provinces this year. In all, U.N. officials estimate that the Afghan war has caused 70,000 civilian casualties. That is said to include over 25,000 deaths since the counting began seven years ago. Displacement of civilians and returning civilians UN officials are also worried about the rising number of Afghan civilians displaced by the conflict. They have warned that more than one million Afghans will be on the move by the end of this year. They say that number includes tens of thousands of Afghan refugees returning mostly from nearby Pakistan. The U.N. estimates that 400,000 Afghans have returned to the country since the start of the year. Im Alice Bryant. Reporter Ayaz Gul in Islamabad wrote this story for VOANews.com. George Grow adapted his story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. _________________________________________________________ Words in This Story casualty n. someone who is injured or killed in a war or an accident improvised adj. of or related to doing something without preparation or by using whatever is available China launched two astronauts into space on Monday. Their launch marks the beginning of Chinas longest human space flight yet. A carrier rocket sent a Shenzhou-11 spacecraft with astronauts Chen Dong and Jing Haipeng into space. The rocket was fired from the Jinquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi desert. Chen is 37 years old. This is his first time in space. But Jing has done this before it is his third space flight. He will turn 50 years old while orbiting the Earth. Their trip is off to a good start. That is what Morris Jones told VOA. Jones is an independent space expert from Australia. So far so good. We saw a live broadcast on Chinese television, and the rocket seemed to perform flawlessly during the flight. We had in-cabin video, we saw the solar panels deploy on the spacecraft, so far it looks like a completely nominal mission. After two days in Earths orbit, the spacecraft was to link up with Chinas space laboratory, called the Tiangong-2. The name means Heavenly Palace 2 in Mandarin Chinese. The lab was placed into orbit last month. The astronauts will spend 30 days on the Tiangong-2. They plan to perform scientific and spacecraft-related experiments and test systems for a future space station. The Tiangong-2 laboratory will not be part of that space station. Morris Jones says China plans to launch a special module around 2018. A module is part of a space vehicle that can work independently. He says that piece will be at the center of a new space station. The main goal of Tiangong-2 is to practice the techniques and the technologies that theyll be using to build and operate that final space station. The Chinese space station will be built mostly by machine. Jones said that China will send up a module of the space station, and it will connect with another part already in space. This is different from the way the International Space Station was built. But it is similar to the way Russia built an early space station. There will be some jobs that require astronauts. For example, they will deploy some pieces of equipment, like solar panels. There also will be robot arms on the module to help secure the connections. China hopes to have the space station completed by 2022. It is expected to operate for at least 10 years. The Chinese space station will be different from the International Space Station (ISS). Jones says the ISS is very large and very complex. China will have a fairly impressive space station. But it will be a great deal less than the international space station. It will have less than half its volume, and a lot less complexity. But considering the fact that this is Chinas first-ever space station its quite an impressive achievement. China also plans to land a rover vehicle on Mars by 2020. Until now, China had completed a total of five manned space missions And, in 2003, it successfully landed a probe on the moon. Im Anne Ball. Anne Ball wrote this story for Learning English, with information from VOA News and VOAs Victor Beattie. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section and visit us on our Facebook page. ____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story flawless adj. perfect in-cabin adj. relating to the inside of the spaceship nominal adj. according to plan module n. one of a set of parts that can be connected to build something probe n. a device used to send back information from outer space Last year, an American research group asked people in 38 countries for their opinions about free speech. What the researchers discovered may surprise you. They found that people in the United States are the most accepting of free speech, even when the comments are critical of their own religious beliefs. The Pew Research Center completed the opinion survey. Its researchers said the findings are timely. They noted that some college officials are debating whether to set up safe spaces, or trigger warnings, so students can avoid discussions they might finding troubling. A safe place is a place where students can feel at ease discussing concerns without being judged or criticized. A trigger warning is when a teacher warns that a class discussion or reading might be troubling to some students. Protests by Athletes There has been debate in recent weeks about athletes who refuse to stand for the U.S. national anthem to protest racial injustice. Some Americans say athletes should be free to express their concerns about racial injustice. But others say everyone should show respect for the countrys national anthem. The Pew Research Center said its 2015 survey found that 71 percent of Americans said people can say what they want. Sixty-seven percent said that the media can report the news freely. Pew used its findings to create measures of free expression for all 38 nations it surveyed. It said the free expression index in the United States is 5.73. That was the highest among the 38 nations in the study. Pew said the 2nd highest index was Poland, at 5.66, followed by Spain, Mexico, Venezuela and Canada. All these countries have a free expression index of 5.0 or higher, it said. Countries with Low Free Press Scores The lowest free expression indexes were in Senegal, at 2.06; Jordan, 2.52; Pakistan, 2.78; Burkina Faso, 2.94; and Vietnam, 2.96. In the United States, Pew found that 40 percent of Millennials believe the government should protect minority groups against offensive statements. They said the government should take action to stop people from making statements that the minorities consider offensive. For the study, Pew defined Millennials as people born after 1980. The percentages of people who say the government should stop offensive statements is lower for older Americans, the group said. In July, a Pew report found 59 percent of Americans agree that too many people are easily offended these days over the language that others use. It found a lower percentage, 39 percent, agree that people need to be more careful about the language they use to avoid offending people with different backgrounds. A group called the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education opposes moves to limit free speech on college campuses. Nico Perrino speaks for the foundation. American citizens have a long tradition of meeting speech they find offensive with more speech, not censorship, he said. But Perrino is troubled by efforts to limit free speech at some colleges. This is a concerning development, he said. Over the years, he noted, students have been among the strongest supporters of free speech. Some Subjects Trigger Troubling Responses But there is support for safe spaces and trigger warnings to protect students from material or opinions they might find troubling. A University of Chicago student recently wrote an opinion piece for The New York Times newspaper. The student, Sophie Downes, expressed opposition to the universitys decision to stop trigger warnings and safe spaces. A professor who provides a trigger warning can help students get ready emotionally to deal with difficult subjects, she wrote. Downes said the political debate in the United States lately has become pretty ugly, so its not surprising that students are looking for places to have civil discussions. At some schools, supporters of trigger warnings say that a student who has been physically attacked might suffer emotional harm by a talk that includes violent language. This year, the University of Chicago wrote a letter to its new students, saying it will not cancel speakers who might express opinions that some students might find troubling. The letter said the university wants students to speak, write, listen, challenge and learn without fear of censorship." Im Bruce Alpert. Alpert reported this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section and share your views on our Facebook Page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in this Story trigger -- n. something that causes something else to happen -- for example, a subject that requires a professor to warn students that some might find the discussion troubling comfortable -- adj. not causing any unpleasant or troubling feelings athlete -- n. a person who is trained in or good at sports, games, or exercises that require physical skill and strength national anthem -- n. a song that praises a particular country and that is officially accepted as the country's song survey -- n. an activity in which many people are asked a question or a series of questions in order to gather information about what most people do or think about something index -- n. a number that shows how something is changing or performing ugly - adj. unpleasant to hear challenge -- v. to say or show that (something) may not be true, correct, or legal The city of Houston, Texas, has the largest community of Vietnamese in the United States outside of California. Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States. Between 150,000 and 300,000 Vietnamese live in Houston. It is difficult to know an exact number because many Vietnamese do not complete census forms in the United States. They do not trust government officials in the U.S. because they learned not to trust government officials in Vietnam. The Vietnamese population in Houston and other Texas cities is growing. That is because many Vietnamese who have family members in the United States are able to get visas designed to reunify families. These newly-arrived Vietnamese bring strong connections to the language and culture of their country to the Houston Vietnamese community. Many of them listen to Radio Saigon-Houston. Vu Thanh Thuy talks with listeners who call to discuss their families, politics and events in Vietnam. She owns the station with her husband. They were both journalists in Vietnam. She then became a reporter for a newspaper in San Diego, California. Many Vietnamese in the United States listen to her. Some Vietnamese stations in other parts of the United States broadcast her program. And some people in Vietnam listen to it on the internet. This morning our station did an interview with a priest in Vietnam who was leading a group of 18,000 protester(s) in the Central Vietnam against the pollution. Vu Thanh Thuy says people who listen to the station are very interested in what is happening in Vietnam. She says they are worried about Chinese claims to Vietnamese territory. She says the station broadcasts programs on many issues. There's a show to answer any kind of question. You come up with a question and ask me I will tell you when to listen and, you know, at what time, what day to listen. The radio station is in a part of Houston where many Vietnamese live and work. Even the street signs are in Vietnamese. Near the station are a large Vietnamese Buddhist pagoda and a Vietnamese Catholic church. The shopping center where the station has its studios has many Vietnamese restaurants, tea shops, bakeries and health food stores. Many people who work and shop in the area speak only Vietnamese. For some who have recently arrived from Vietnam, as well as for some who have been here many years, the area is a place where they can be comfortable. Vu Thanh Thuy says the station helps people who grew up in Vietnam adjust to their new life in the United States. Im Christopher Jones-Cruise. VOA Correspondent Greg Flakus reported this story from Houston. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted his report for Learning English. Kelly Jean Kelly was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story outside adj. an area around or near something (such as a building) census n. the official process of counting the number of people in a country, city or town and collecting information about them form n. a document with blank spaces for filling in information visa n. an official mark or stamp on a passport that allows someone to enter or leave a country usually for a particular reason reunify v. to make (something, such as a divided country or family) whole again; to unify (something) again interview n. a meeting between a reporter and another person in order to get information for a news story priest n. a person who has the authority to lead or perform ceremonies in some religions and especially in some Christian religions come up with expression create; design; manufacture comfortable adj. feeling relaxed and happy; not worried or troubled adjust v. to change in order to work or do better in a new situation The third and last U.S. presidential debate takes place Wednesday. The earlier debates were marked by political nastiness that many historians say is at its worst level in years. Some teachers, however, are working to make debates less angry. They are teaching their students about civil discourse. VOA recently visited an 8th grade civics class at Bluestone Middle School in Skipwith, a small town in southern Virginia near the border with North Carolina. In the class, students are learning to disagree without being disagreeable. So, this might be a little bit of a heavy discussion this morning. Stephanie Leichtys class is going to debate a divisive issue, the result of mass shootings at schools: Whether or not you honestly think that teachers should be armed. The issue divides politicians, friends, families and neighbors. Rather than talk about it calmly and with an open mind, Americans often decide issues based on their political beliefs. They might agree with the opinions of a political leader before examining the issue thoroughly. Education experts say solving the problem could start in school civics classes. Paula McAvoy is the program director of the Center for Ethics and Education at the University of WisconsinMadison. In 2015, she and Diana Hess published a book called The Political Classroom. Their goal was to help teachers give students tools to debate the difficult issues they will face as adults. She spoke to VOA on Skype. With the help of the teacher they can learn that disagreement is normal -- that we can still be friends even if we disagree with each other politically. McAvoy believes American society is polarized even beyond politics. She says many Americans have gathered into communities where almost everyone holds the same opinion about issues. She says this means we are less likely to even encounter people who disagree with us. And then when we do, often our instinct at the dinner party with your friends is to just avoid (talking about) politics if we know were going to disagree with each other. She says that is bad for democracy. But she believes solving the problem could start in civics class. Many teachers worry that if they discuss politics in class, students will soon begin to shout at each other. But McAvoy says teachers can and should control the classroom with a respectful but firm tone. Leichty agrees with McAvoy. She believes this is the most important class (the students) have. We talk about the real world here. She chooses a difficult subject and gives her students news reports and other information about it from both sides. She then splits the class into groups. One, two for. One, two, three against. Then, they debate. Use this research to back it up. Be knowledgeable. Have a why. They cant call the police department that fast -- like, Boop, Ill be there. That's not gonna happen. But can they deal with it if they do kill somebody? Can they deal with it mentally? Each side is given the same amount of time to make its points. Before the students on the other side can answer, they must first tell what they heard. Leichty says disagreement is acceptable. Are you gonna scream at them? No. No. Are you going to say mean and hurtful things, like That was stupid. Or That was dumb -- I never said that. No. How should you respond? Whats a really nice way to respond to somebody? I didnt say that. That is not exactly what I said. The students really seem to enjoy the debate. McAvoy says her research shows that when students discuss, and theyre reading and comparing a lot of material and hearing from each other, they actually end up learning more than they do from traditional teaching methods. But she does not believe better civics classes alone will save American politics. She says she is not idealistic enough to think that if people can just discuss with each other, then the entire political system is going to change. The adults in the system need to work on their behavior. She believes the classes will help students become better citizens. She says they learn that they should pay attention, and that its fun to talk about this with other people and hear what they have to say. After the debate, Leichty lets the students talk about their true feelings, not just the ones they were assigned to defend. Sometimes, the students argue. Leichty says that is important because there are two sides to every issue. Leichty says she hopes the students learn to listen and to be respectful. She says they need to remember that the person across from them is another human being, with maybe some different thoughts and opinions, and just respecting that person is the most important thing they can do in that moment. She says she sees a lot of kidsrealize...that they have to learn to listen to other people. She says they are the politicians and voters of the future. She dreams of seeing her students run for office. I want to be voting for my kids one day, she says. Im Christopher Jones-Cruise. VOA Correspondent Steve Baragona reported this story from Skipwith, Virginia. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted the report for Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story nastiness n. a state of being unpleasant or unkind civil discourse n. the act of politely using words to exchange thoughts and ideas civics n. the study of the rights and duties of citizens and of how government works open mind n. willing to consider different ideas or opinions polarized adj. separated into opposing groups instinct n. a way of behaving, thinking or feeling that is not learned; a natural desire or tendency that makes you want to act in a particular way tone n. a quality, feeling or attitude expressed by the words that someone uses in speaking or writing idealistic adj. the attitude of a person who believes that it is possible to live according to very high standards of behavior and honesty formulate v. to create, invent or produce (something) by careful thought and effort President Barack Obama says the percentage of Americans completing high school rose to its highest level ever last year. The president said the completion rate for the 2014-2015 school year was 83.2 percent the highest percentage on record. The numbers are based on information gathered from schools across the United States. Obama announced the increase Monday during a visit to a high school in Washington, D.C. He said that a goal of his presidency has been to improve the chances of all young Americans finishing high school and continuing their education in college. The higher rate shows weve made real progress, he said. Nationwide, the high school graduation rate has risen about four percentage points since the 2010-2011 school year. That was the first year when all states followed a consistent, four-year measure of high school completion. U.S. officials say the higher graduation rates were reported across all racial and ethnic groups. The largest increase came from black students. Their graduation rate rose 7.6 percentage points over the four-year period. For Hispanic Americans, the graduation rate rose 6.8 percent. The rate for Native American and Alaska Native students jumped 6.6 percent. There were also increases for students from poor families, as well as those with disabilities and English learners. The rate for white students was up 3.6 percent, while Asian and Pacific Islanders experienced an increase of 3.2 percent. Overall, Asian Americans had a 90.2 percent graduation rate, while whites were at 87.6 percent. Hispanics had 77.8 percent, African-Americans were at 74.6 percent, and Native Americans had 71.6 percent. Nearly every state reported progress in high school graduation rates since 2010-2011, according to the U.S. data. The District of Columbia had the biggest jump during the 2014-2015 school year -- a seven percentage point increase compared to the year earlier. On Monday, Obama spoke at Washingtons Benjamin Banneker Academic High School. He noted that the school had a perfect graduation record. Of course here at Banneker, you graduate 100 percent. It's been a while since I did math, but 100 percent is good. You can't do better than that. U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. said the improved rate shows meaningful progress. But he said more needs to be done in U.S. schools to prepare students for college and careers. Certainly we share the concern that we have more work to do to make sure every student graduates ready for what's next, he said. Obama told students they need to prepare for careers now more than ever because we live in a global economy. The best jobs are going to go to the people who are the best educated, whether in India or China, or anywhere in the world. The Obama administration credited several government programs with helping to improve high school graduation rates. One brought high-speed internet and high-technology tools to classrooms. Another gave assistance to children from low-income families to get them into preschool. Im Bryan Lynn. Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from the Associated Press and Reuters. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story graduation n. the act of receiving a diploma or degree for completing educational study consistent adj. acting or done the same way over time global adj. relating to the whole world income n. money earned from doing work or investing preschool n. school for children who are usually between the ages of 3-5 As voters cast their ballots in this year's presidential election, there has been talk of voter fraud. Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Office spent Tuesday testing voting equipment Supervisor Craig Latimer said tests are part of assuring public in the voting process Election Day is Nov. 8 With just three weeks until Election Day, Republican candidate Donald Trump has already repeatedly called the system "rigged" and questioned the fairness of the election. Meanwhile in Hillsborough County, workers in the Supervisor of Elections Office have been running tests on their equipment. It's part of the office's attempt at assuring the public that there is nothing rigged about the system. On Tuesday, machines hummed during test counts of election ballots. The office's canvassing board said all the counts were accurate and signed off on the machines. "I don't think people need to be concerned," said Hillsborough Supervisor of Elections Office Supervisor Craig Latimer. Still, there is some concern. Tampa lawyer Dipa Shah also attended the election testson behalf of local Republican Party officials. "My concern is not so much theyre doing their job because theyre processes are very solid," Shah said. "Its what happens here once it goes into the cyber world." Meanwhile, political expert Scott Paine said concerns about cyberhacking and voter fraud are legitimate, though unlikely. "If were talking about a rigged election, really see the election outcome nationally change by some plot, the probabilities are small," Paine said. "Its just too complicated to achieve something like that." Paine added that fraud remains unlikely because every state runs its own election and uses its own technology. And, in Hillsborough County, none of the the servers or voting machines are connected to the internet. "We also have the paper ballot," Latimer said. "That's very important because with a paper ballot we can recreate an election at any time." This week, a federal judge mandated counties check signatures that don't match with those on file. Election workers in Hillsborough began mailing affidavits this week to double-check signatures. Voters in question will be allowed an opportunity to verify their signatures. So far in Hillsborough County, the elections office has received 19 ballots with mismatched signatures. A Polk County inmate who kidnapped an officer and escaped custody Wednesday was apprehended in St. Petersburg, police said. Bartow Police and the Polk County Sheriff's Office searched for the inmate, identified as David L. Ross, 42. Bartow Police said five Department of Corrections prisoners were on a work crew at Mosaic Park just after noon when Ross somehow obtained a knife and overpowered a guard. He took a City of Bartow Utility truck and fled the area, police said. Ross was arrested in St. Petersburg in the area of 4800 54th Avenue North. Schools in the Bartow area were temporarily put on a heightened security alert just before 1 p.m., but it was later lifted. Ross was charged with armed kidnapping, robbery, escape, theft of motor vehicle and assault on a law enforcement officer. Senator Marco Rubio toured a Tampa premium cigar manufacturer Wednesday, as new government regulations threaten to cripple the industry. New FDA regulations will make production more expensive Cuban cigar manufacturers not required to follow FDA regulations Senators Rubio, Bill Nelson working on creating exemptions for new regulations New regulations from the Food and Drug Administration will make it more expensive for smaller cigar companies to operate. Eric Newman, the president of J.C. Newman Cigar Company, says the new rules will mean job cuts. They came out with regulations, such as paying user fees and testing all the cigars we make," said Newman. "It would cost us over $2 million in compliance costs." In addition, the regulations require companies to stop selling products created after 2007 unless the product undergoes costly safety testing. The end result, the worst case scenario is about half the people working here in Tampa will lose their jobs at some point, maybe more, said Rubio, speaking after a tour of the cigar floor at Newman Cigars. In addition, now that restrictions have been lifted on Cuban cigars, American companies say it will be all but impossible to compete, because Cuban companies wont be required to follow FDA regulations. We have basically made our own native industry uncompetitive. Its outrageous, said Rubio. Rubio, along with Democratic Senator Bill Nelson, are working on a bill that will exempt only premium cigar manufacturers from the new regulations. They hope to pass the legislation sometime in December. Photo: Erin Maloney, staff "Though I'm not very familiar with Bollywood, there are a few films that I really like. Monsoon Wedding is one of them," says noted filmmaker Tomasz Wasilewski, who is also on the jury at the Jio Mami 18th Mumbai Film Festival for the India Gold section. "I love this film, in fact I have a DVD of it at my home and I watch it from time to time, Mira Nair has done a fantastic job. I am really excited to come here (India) and watch Hindi films. I don't know a lot about Indian cinema yet, so I am open to the possibilities that cinema in India has to offer." Wasilewski, 36, is one of the youngest talents to has taken the world of international cinema by storm. His 2016 film United States of Love won the Silver Bear for Best Script at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. Just three films old, Wasilewski is becoming synonymous as the voice of the new European cinema with minimalistic cinematographic style and acute psychological portraits. The India Gold section at Mami will have 13 films competing to be named the best in that category. The filmmaker spoke to Firstpost about his films, communism in his home country Poland, and much, much more: Films and style: Wasilewski tells us that the most important thing for him is portraying emotions effectively. "What is most important for me is portraying human beings in the moment of crisis. I always choose to portray the most difficult emotions. This is the most important thing for me, just portraying people, how could they behave, what could happen with their life. I usually choose to tell stories that have characters standing on the edge. I put them on the edge wondering if they are going to jump or they are going to take a step back to save themselves. " What about his more visual style of cinematography that makes minimal use of dialogues? He explains, "Looking at people and just watching how they behave in the smallest gestures is 1000 times more interesting than dialogues. It is so much more interesting to see the body language of people who want to hide something or (are) even destroying something..." "Because in real life, the body doesnt lie, (in) these small intimate moments that the body makes. And it is these kinds of moments that tell me the truth about the characters, about people. To express these emotions better, I try and use master shots (a shot that includes all of the actors in the scene and runs the entire length of the action) and I never cut scenes. This of prime importance to catch the small, intimate moments of my characters life. And I believe that those moments tell me much more about my characters than dialogues." He tells us that he makes it a point to have highly stylised visual elements in his films to complement the mood of his characters. "I think my language of cinema is very realistic and documentative. But yes, the look is highly stylised," Wasilewski says. "Details are very important for my films, and that is why I like to compose my shots. I dont like random things. Everything that you see in my films is something I want you to see. So my set designer Oleg Mutu and I compose each and every shot.The setting, the shot tells another story about my characters, the concrete world they live in." "The set design is built in a way to reflect the emotions of my characters." Tackling taboos: Wasilewski has never shied away from approaching sensitive topics in his films. His second film Floating Skyscrapers is a story about Kuba (Mateusz Banasiuk), a young sportsman, who lives with his mother (Katarzyna Herman) and girlfriend (Marta Nieradkiewicz). His life becomes complicated, when he meets Micha (Bartosz Gelner). The homosexual romance brings out all the heretofore hidden family animosities. Wasilewski tells us he tries to choose a very difficult background for his characters, to make them more complex. "The background is not easy to define. It gives something more to my characters, something more something difficult to deal with. Those emotions are interesting to explore." But he doesn't actually set out to make political or social films, he tells us. "I use politics and social problems in the film's background, and put human emotions in the forefront. This way I can tell a story with a humane viewpoint, and it has a very strong social message too." But is he trying to underline a message of moral significance through his films? For Wasilewski, choosing a universal theme for his films is important, something that will resonate with people outside Poland too. "I do want to send a message out through my films that every human being is important, no matter what sex, no matter what religion, no matter place of origin, preferences. I dont divide. Everyone should be equal all over the world." Communism in Poland: Tomasz Wasilewski's third film United States of Love, which was widely appreciated on the festival circuit, explores the story of four unhappy women just as the Soviet bloc (and communist regime) is crumbling in Poland in 1990. He tells us, "It was very difficult, because till 1989, we were under the influence of the Soviet Union and under a communist regime. The Communist Party controlled everything. There was scarcity of food, we could only buy food with special coupons, there was nothing. Literally nothing. Then when we wanted to rebel, we were put under an intense martial law. It was a terrible time for Poland." Wasilewski wanted to show the world how the pressure of communism affected people through United States of Love. The militant regime provided a turbulent, moody supplement to the unhappy lives of the four women. "As a 9-year-old child, I saw communism collapse in Poland. I saw what my parents' lives were like. So as a grown man, I tried to imagine what their lives were in a militant regime versus the choices they would have in the free, independent Poland. My parents couldnt make the choices I could make as a free person, in a free country. I tried to imagine their choices in the film." Filmmaking aspirations: Wasilewski says he has been in love with cinema for as long as he can remember. "When I was a child, I started out with acting in a few productions; and I gradually discovered that I wanted to create films. I started creating my films from scratch. This was my dream, my passion; everything I did was to be a film director, that's all that ever mattered." The welcome to India: He tells us, "I have never been to India. It was my dream. I am really excited for the film festival." What is he looking forward to at the Mami festival? "I am very curious about the culture, and how culture is portrayed in Indian cinema, and I'm very curious about the sensibility in cinema. How they feel, about the film language they use, I'm very curious about their imagination, their world. It's amazing to go and see films from India, because it's going to be a huge and exciting surprise for me, to go and meet these talented filmmakers," he says, signing off. Veteran actor Om Puri celebrated his birthday on Tuesday by seeking forgiveness and expressing regret for his derogatory statement against Indian soldiers. The actor visited the Etawah house of Nitin Yadav, a BSF soldier who was martyred in the Baramulla attack on 2 October, and paid his condolences to the martyr's family. Apologising to them for his recent comments on Indian martyrs, the actor even performed a shuddhi yajna to seek forgiveness for his words. Puri reportedly broke down before the soldier's photograph and cried for long repeatedly saying 'maafi' (unforgiveness). According to The Hindustan Times, Puri said to the family, My comments are beyond forgiveness. Had I uttered those words in any other country I would have been executed. I seek forgiveness and request you to accept me as a part of your family. The martyr's father Balbir Yadav said that they have accepted his apologies and forgiven him. Quint reports that Om Puri had not informed the media yet 400 people had arrived at the family's house. "I had only informed the martyred jawans family about my visit. They informed the media. By the time I reached the village there were more than 400 people waiting for my arrival. But let me tell you, they had not come to stare at Om Puri the actor. They had come to see what I intended to do in the way of my penance." The actor felt that this was his best birthday and this incident helped him connect with the jawan's family feeling their pain even after leaving their home. While on a live television debate about the ban on Pakistani artistes in Bollywood, the Padma Shri awardee had quite controversially uttered, "Did we force them to join the army? My father was also in the army... We are proud of them (soldiers)... I am asking you: Do you want India and Pakistan to become Israel and Palestine?" He later regretted his words and had said that he would repent in some constructive ways. By visiting the martyr's family Puri stuck to his earlier promise that he would personally apologising to them. New Delhi: Government has sought putting on hold the arbitration initiated by British oil explorer Cairn Energy against a Rs 29,047 crore retrospective tax demand and instead wants a parallel arbitration initiated by Vedanta Resources to be taken up first. The government using retrospective tax legislation had in January 2014 issued a tax notice on Cairn Energy for alleged capital gains it made on a 10-year old internal reorganisation of its India unit. Three months later in April 2014, it imposed a tax demand of Rs 20,495 crore on Cairn India, the UK firm's erstwhile subsidiary for failing to deduct tax on the capital gains. Cairn Energy and Vedanta, which had bought Cairn India from the Scottish firm in 2011, had initiated separate arbitrations against the tax demands. Cairn Energy had initiated the arbitration in March 2015 and the three-member arbitration panel had been constituted. But at a hearing earlier this month, the government contended that the proceedings should be put on hold, sources said. Its counsel argued that the government wants the arbitration initiated by Vedanta to be taken up first. Sources said the counsel also made an application seeking more time to file reply to Cairn Energy's demand for USD 5.6 billion in compensation from the Indian government for raising a retrospective tax demand. As per the schedule drawn up, the reply was to be filed by mid-November. Sources said that in the Vedanta arbitration, the government may contend that tax issues cannot be arbitrated under bilateral investment protection treaty and once it wins a favourable verdict there, it will use the same to quell Cairn Energy's plea as well. A three-member arbitration panel headed by Geneva-based arbitrator Laurent Levy began hearing Cairn Energy's plea against tax demand in May and the company filed its 'Statement of Claim' in late June. The Indian government was to file its 'Statement of Defence' by mid-November and evidential hearing was expected to commence in early 2017, sources said, adding that the plea made by the government will essentially delay the entire process. The British firm challenged the tax assessment by seeking an international arbitration under the UK-India Investment Treaty, which unlike the Dutch treaty provides for resolution of tax issues. UK telecom firm Vodafone has initiated arbitration on a separate retrospective tax under the Dutch treaty. Cairn Energy named former Bulgarian minister Stanimir Alexandrov as its arbitrator in the tax dispute while India appointed Singapore-based lawyer J Christopher Thomas as its arbitrator. The seat of the panel was decided to be in The Hague, the Netherlands. For the other arbitration, Vedanta Resources has named London-based arbitrator James Spigelman to represent its case. The government has named Donald McRae, a member of the UN International Law Commission, to defend itself while Singapore-based senior counsel and chartered arbitrator Michael Hawng will be the chairman of the arbitration panel. The Income Tax Department had in January 2014 slapped a draft tax assessment of Rs 10,247 crore on Cairn Energy on alleged capital gains it made when in 2006, it transfered its India assets to a new subsidiary, Cairn India, and listed the firm. The British firm sold majority stake in Cairn India to Vedanta Resources in 2011, but still holds 9.8 percent stake in the company, which was attached by the Income Tax Department. This year, a final assessment order was slapped on it that included Rs 18,800 crore of interest on top of Rs 10,247 crore principal tax amount. Cairn Energy, on its part, said no capital gains tax was due under the law in force in 2006 when the restructuring was done. The company is claiming full compensation for the USD 1 billion value lost following the tax notice and freezing of its 9.8 percent shares in Cairn India. The I-T department alleges that Cairn Energy made a capital gain of Rs 24,503.50 crore in 2006 when it transferred shares of Indian assets that were held in a subsidiary set up in the tax haven of Jersey to the newly-incorporated Cairn India. It listed Cairn India on the stock exchanges through an IPO thereafter. Through the IPO, it raised Rs 8,616 crore and then in 2011 went on to sell majority stake in Cairn India to mining giant Vedanta Group for USD 8.67 billion. Kolkata: IIM Calcutta Innovation Park has chalked out plans to incubate 100 start-ups by 2020, of which 40 would be funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and DFID. IIM-C director Saibal Chatterjee said that the Innovation Park, which started two years ago, has provided seed capital to six start-ups and is ready to go for a second series of funding. "The park is presently incubating 14 start-ups and IIM-C has also got the mandate to mentor 40 start-ups in the social enterprise sector under the INVENT scheme for a period of three years", he told reporters here today. The INVENT programme is funded jointly by the DST and the Department for International Development (DFID) which is aimed at promoting social enterprise in the low-income states. The verticals in the social enterprise domain are healthcare, education for masses, technological innovation, agriculture, water and sanitation. These start-ups under the INVENT programme would be for-profit enterprises which would receive initial seed funding from DST and DFID. Ashok Banerjee of IIM-C said that the start-ups would get access to the IIM alumni network for mentoring purposes, adding that they would be reaching out to the districts for hunting talent. Fire-sale has a nice ring to it as it evocatively brings out what it is all about-- a company, often a part of an over-ambitious conglomerate that has spread itself too thin, reeling under unmanageable debts and hence over-leveraged is driven to selling its assets to pay off the debtors. It is a course correction exercise for the company and a huge relief for the harried lenders. The deal inked recently on the sidelines, as it were, of the recent Brics conclave in Goa in the presence of the Russian president Putin and prime minister Narender Modi to sell 98 percent of the assets to a consortium led by the Russian oil major Rosneft has already rekindled hopes in the hearts of the beleaguered Indian banks having a huge exposure to the Ruia brothers-promoted Essar group. The group thanks to its tendency to have finger in every pie has piled up a massive debt of over Rs 1,00,000 crore. The sale proceeds of Rs 86,000 crore should come handy in wiping out this gargantuan debt to a large extent. The Essar Oil fire sale might have happened through political connections but the deal is good for the nation even though there are experts who question the wisdom of allowing a foreign company into the strategic oil sector. For Russians, it gives control of a 27 million refinery and some 2,700 petrol pumps and a major buyer for its crude oil. It is a win-win deal. Ruias unctuously and condescendingly say that Essar Oil was nurtured by them for eventual sale. This is pure hogwash. Far from playing the role of venture capitalists, Ruias were driven to resort to fire-sale. Be that as it may. The Essar oil deal come in the wake of a similar deal struck by the Anil Ambani controlled Reliance Communications to sell 51 percent of its tower business to Brookfield for Rs 11,000 crore. The idea was to pare down the groups humungous debts. These two are not the only instances. Controversial entrepreneur Vijay Mallya had to resort to fire sale of his flagship companies United Spirits and United Breweries to the UKs Diageo and to Germanys Heineken, respectively, when his group was reeling under the debt burden thanks to its foray into airline business he had no clue about running. And in July 2016, Jaiprakash group had to sell off its cement business to the Aditya Vikram Birla group that has been pining to be the numero uno of the industry. So far we have been focussing on the buyer and seller. What does fire-sale portend for the NPA-infested Indian banking sector? Plenty. The RBI has been at its wits end trying to find a solution but without much success, with both Corporate Debt Restructuring (CDR) and Strategic Debt Restructuring (SDR) not even scratching the surface of the festering problem. CDR became a byword for repeated reprieves for the defaulters who laughed up their sleeves at the gullibility of the lending banks. And SDR virtually has foundered with there being no takers by and large for the equity of the defaulting companies. Asset sales were what the doctor had ordered. Seizure of assets as permitted by the Securitization Act, 2002 did not produce any dramatic improvement because banks had perforce to nurse the seized assets idly with them being out of their depths in running the undertaking. Setting up of Asset Reconstruction Companies, euphemistically called bad banks, hasnt produced any results either to write home about. Fire-sale in the event has come as manna from the heaven. It took some conscientious promoters to sell their group undertaking despite the fact that they constituted their crown jewels. The banks should proactively look for potential suitors in situations where promoters smugly do not bestir. After having identified the suitors, banks must force the hands of the defaulting promoters. This approach would be much better than SDR under which the banks are supposed to convert their outstandings into equity and sell the equity to potential suitors. SDR fails singularly in making the defaulting promoters feel the heat of the fire erupting out of piled up debts. In fact, it puts the cart before the horse. New Delhi: Online travel firm MakeMyTrip will acquire rival ibibo in an equity deal that will create one of the leading travel groups in India. South Africa's Naspers and China's Tencent Holdings are selling ibibo Group to MakeMyTrip in exchange for an issuance of new shares by MakeMyTrip, the company said in a statement. MakeMyTrip went public on NASDAQ in 2010. Upon closing of the transaction, MakeMyTrip will own 100 percent of ibibo Group. Naspers and Tencent will become the single largest shareholder in MakeMyTrip, owning a 40 percent stake and will contribute proportionate working capital upon closing, it added. Additionally, prior to closing, a $180 million, 5-year convertible notes issued by MakeMyTrip to Ctrip.com International Ltd in January 2016 will also be converted into common equity, resulting in Ctrip having an approximately 10 percent stake in the combined entity, it added. The transaction is expected to close by the end of December 2016 and is subject to approval by MakeMyTrip shareholders and regulatory approvals. Commenting on the development, MakeMyTrip founder Deep Kalra said: "We expect this deal to create an even more scalable business with the expertise to transform the booking experience for Indian travellers. I am delighted to be leading such a strong team in our next chapter of high-growth in this dynamic industry." The combination will bring together a bouquet of consumer travel brands, including MakeMyTrip, goibibo, redBus, Ryde and Rightstay, which together processed 34.1 mm transactions during FY2016. MakeMyTrip said in a statement. "India is a key market for Naspers and this deal reinforces our commitment to the country. ibibo and MakeMyTrip have built leading companies through their innovative use of technology to create exceptional experiences for people traveling throughout India and, increasingly, beyond," Naspers CEO Bob van Dijk said. Following the closing of the proposed transaction, MakeMyTrip founder Deep Kalra will remain Group CEO and Executive Chairman of the company and co-founder Rajesh Magow will continue to remain CEO India of MakeMyTrip, it added. Founder and CEO of ibibo Group, Ashish Kashyap, will join MakeMyTrip's executive team as a co-founder and President of the organisation, MakeMyTrip said. "Deep, Rajesh and I saw a great opportunity to join forces, and I am excited that this merger enables all of us to continue a great journey together as the leading travel group in India," ibibo Group CEO Ashish Kashyap said. New Delhi - An op-ed piece in an English language Chinese newspaper is causing much consternation in India (read here). The piece uses terms like the Indian government's "bark" when referring to our concerns over widening trade deficit between the two countries. Among other things, it also dismisses any attempt by India to match China's manufacturing prowess and terms attempts on Indian social media to boycott Chinese products as mere "rabble rousing". It is true that the current ultra-nationalist sentiment, which has lead Indian social media warriors to call for boycott of all Chinese things is foolish and liable to fail, given India's dependence on imports from China. We import roughly six times more in value than what we export to China, our largest trading partner. But then the op-ed in the Global Times is going to the other extreme and missing the woods for the trees. Even though India is in no position at present to stand up to Chinese hegemony in trade, there is every reason to believe that we can improve exports to that country, if we try. The author of the acerbic piece in the Global Times has been described there as an Indian-born freelance writer living in Baiyin, Gansu Province. Perhaps he needs to take note of what researchers in Chinese territory, Hong Kong, have found through extensive research earlier this year about the potential that various Indian states have to develop as manufacturing hubs. Yes, you heard it right. The research in fact said a number of manufacturing companies which right now operate in China are looking to shift lock, stock and barrel and could choose India over other Asian destinations. For one, the strong Make in India push by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has attracted the attention of Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), which has over the last few months conducted extensive research of advantages India provides for low-cost manufacturing versus other Asian economies such as Vietnam, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and mainland China. And India seems to be a very favourbale destination in almost all parameters. We believe India has a huge potential for this. For one, Indias wages are way below Chinas and many other South East Asian countries. Two, India has a huge buyers market Vietnam has only about 90 million in domestic market size compared to about 1.3 billion people in India. Not many companies in Hong Kong are aware of Indias potential in low value added products manufacturing...we have done the research and shared it with them, Dickson Ho, Principal Economist with HKTDC told Firstpost last month. The Hong Kong-based companies are increasingly eyeing production relocation out of mainland China due to rising production costs. HKTDC Research visited Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka earlier this year. It did not find the National Capital Region (NCR) viable because of rising costs for labour-intensive production. Hos research quotes factory operators in these states to say manufacturers were increasingly relocating labour-intensive operations from the NCR to other states such as Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Gujarat to take advantage of lower production costs. The five states selected have been identified as having the most potential for production relocation and diversification. Labour HKTDC says competitive labour costs that are expected to remain for some time in India could be our biggest advantage in attracting fresh manufacturing. Currently, Indias labour costs are lower than China and almost all of the other countries in Southeast Asia, with the exception of Myanmar. We are a third of the wages in mainland China and roughly half those in Indonesia. Industrial land rates All selected states have developed industrial parks for private investors to set up their production plants. The state governments or private companies provide infrastructure and amenities such as connecting roads, electricity, water supply, sewage treatment facilities and communication networks. This is another feather in Indias cap Transportation Sea freight is an important factor for manufacturers. Mundra in Gujarat is a port-based special economic zone; Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNPT) in Maharashtra is Indias largest port with hinterland covering Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka and most of North India. Visakhapatnam mainly serves northeast India, Chhattisgarh and Orissa. Chennai port is the major logistic hub of South India, supporting the vibrant manufacturing activities in Tamil Nadu. So most of the manufacturing hubs identified by HKTDC are also conveniently connected with major ports. Ease of doing business Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh are identified as the EODB reform leaders, adopting many business-friendly measures to entice both local and foreign investment, while the other three states require further acceleration in reform. Also, all five states have made notable efforts in tax reforms to streamline registration and payment of value added tax (VAT) and central sales tax (CST) through online services. At the national level, the Centre is working to pass the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill to convert India into a unified market and prevent tax-on-tax, notes HKTDC. Tariffs on India made products Another key consideration for factory relocation is the import tariffs levied on manufactured products originating from India and whether this country has entered into any preferential trade deals that lower the import tariffs. India has been an active player in Asia, securing free-trade agreements (FTAs) inside and outside the region, including engaging in an FTA talk with the EU. Taking yarn-related products as an example, import tariff rates for India range from 0 percent to 5 percent. Further, US import tariff rates for Indian yarn-related products range between 0 percent and 2.7 percent. So will there be a wholesale movement of manufacturing from China to India anytime soon? Ho said earlier that large shifts of manufacturing facilities in favour of India may not immediately happen. Apparel, shoes, clothing, textiles and other low-value-added manufacturing activities may look for the shift initially. And this too would perhaps be a trickle instead of being a deluge. But even if a handful of manufacturing units in Hong Kong consider the shift, it would be worthwhile for India. More to the point, it would make op-ed writers - with scant knowledge of the changing Indian landscape and policy environment - eat a humble pie. By Rina Chandran KONGARAGIDDA, India (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Poorly educated and with few resources, Kanasari Veeraswami had no way of proving he was the lawful owner of a small plot of land left to him by his father in the southern Indian state of Telengana.Local government officials had told him the handwritten documents he had were not acceptable. For 10 years, he lived in fear of losing the four acre (1.6 hectare) small-holding and could not access any government subsidies to grow his crops.That was until three youngsters from his own village, trained in a state programme to assist in land matters, came to his aid."This is my land; I have been cultivating it for many years, but the government didn't recognise me as the owner," said Veeraswami, 60."I couldn't even get bank loans, and had to borrow only from the moneylender at very high rates of interest," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation as he pulled out a sheaf of tattered papers from a plastic bag, the ink fading and edges yellowing.Across India, about 56 percent of rural households are landless, according to government data. In the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, that figure is two-thirds.Telengana state, where Veeraswami's village of Kongaragidda is located, was carved out of Andhra Pradesh two years ago. It is estimated at least half its rural households are landless.Even those who own land often do not have the documents to prove it.Their plight is made worse by patchy official data: while land surveys are required to be carried out at least every 30 years, the last survey in the state was in the 1940s, said Sunil Kumar, state director at Landesa, a land-rights advocacy. "A person can only be considered a land owner when he has a title deed with his name, when his name is in the state land records, and he has physical possession of the land," he said."But most people are unaware of their rights, of how to use the law, or they have tried and failed and given up," he said. SEVENTY-FIVE PROBLEMS Landesa has identified 75 potential problems related to land ownership in rural areas. Most households have at least four of them, ranging from errors in the title deed to boundary disputes and encroaching government land.Of the 105 families in Kongaragidda village, most are indigenous people who have long been discriminated against and deprived of land. Only about 10 percent have all the documents for the land they cultivate, Kumar said.Poor farmers like Veeraswami are often harassed by local officials who demand a bribe to correct or issue new documents, he said. Their only other alternative is to go to the court. Matters related to land and property make up about two-thirds of all civil cases in India, according to a study by Bengaluru-based Daksh, a non-profit group that campaigns for better governance. Most litigants are poor men belonging to so-called lower castes, with only basic education, it said. They lack the awareness and the resources to seek legal aid. In Telengana, they are being helped by the state programme that trains college-educated young people from villages as paralegals to provide basic assistance in land matters.In addition, Landesa trains three people as community workers in each village - always including a farmer and a woman - to conduct surveys, verify records, mark boundaries and help with documentation."Initially, they were reluctant to share information - maybe they thought we were going to take away their land," said Usha Ram, a community worker in neighbouring Kannayapally village."Now that they understand the importance of updating records and having their names on the title deeds, they don't want to leave even an inch of land unregistered," she said.DIGITAL RECORDS Telengana and other states are racing to digitise land records as part of the national land records modernisation programme. Scheduled to be completed in 2016 with a budget of 56 billion rupees ($841 million), the project will now conclude in 2021 at a projected cost of 110 billion rupees.The challenge is not just digitising ageing manual records, but ensuring existing records are accurate first, Kumar said. That requires door-to-door surveys and physical verification of boundaries by the community workers.In the Telengana villages where surveys have been completed and records updated, Landesa found that well over half the existing records were inaccurate, Kumar said. "This is why involvement of the community is key: you can ensure that the records are accurate because the community is aware and is involved," he said.Small discrepancies can be fixed in a few days, and most matters can be settled with a village council meeting, avoiding lengthy legal procedures, he said. New handheld GPS devices to map the land will help speed up the process.Government officials have backed the community-led effort, updating records and issuing new titles quickly, Kumar said.After a decade of uncertainty, Veeraswami will finally get a title with his own name on it."It has taken a long time, but now I don't have to worry about losing my land or getting my dues," he said. (Reporting by Rina Chandran @rinachandran, Editing by Ros Russell. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org to see more stories.) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Nita Bhalla NEW DELHI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - The Indian government must immediately release a prominent Kashmiri human rights activist arrested last month on charges of involvement in activities against the public order, a group of United Nations experts urged on Wednesday. Khurram Parvez, 39, coordinator of the Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCSS) has long campaigned against human rights violations committed by state forces in India's volatile Himalayan region of Jammu and Kashmir.In a statement issued by the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), four Special Rapporteurs said Parvez's detention appeared to be an attempt by the government to stop his work. "Mr. Parvez is a well-known and outspoken human rights defender who has had a long-standing and positive engagement with the U.N. human rights mechanisms," said the U.N. experts on arbitrary detention, freedom of peaceful assembly, freedom of expression and enforced disappearances. "His continued detention following his arrest just a few days before his participation in the U.N. Human Rights Council, suggests a deliberate attempt to obstruct his legitimate human rights activism." Government and police officials in Kashmir declined to comment on the statement by the U.N. Special Rapporteurs Michel Forst, Setondji Adjovi, Maina Kiai and David Kaye. The JKCCS has published research into the role of Indian security forces in containing a separatist insurgency in India's Kashmir state that first flared a quarter of a century ago.At least 78 civilians have been killed and thousands wounded in more than two months of clashes between protesters and security forces, sparked by the killing of a leading separatist militant in a joint army and police operation on July 8.The unrest is the worst in the Muslim-majority region for six years, and critics have accused Indian forces of heavy-handedness as they struggle to contain the protests. India and Pakistan have fought two wars over Kashmir since independence in 1947. Both claim the territory in full but rule it in part.Parvez, who is also the chair of the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD), was stopped by authorities at New Delhi airport on Sept. 14 when he was on his way to Geneva to attend the U.N. Human Rights Council. He was detained on Sept 16, released four days later and then detained again the same day. The experts said they were concerned Parvez was still in preventive detention under the highly controversial Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, which allows for people to held for up to two years without judicial intervention.India had so far provided no clear details on the exact nature of the charges against Parvez, and the government's rationale relied "mainly on vague accusations of alleged 'anti-India' activities" to disturb public order, said the statement."In a democratic society, the open criticism of Government is a legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of expression of every person," the experts said."We are seriously concerned that the arrest of Mr. Parvez may represent a direct retaliation for his legitimate activities as a human rights defender and the exercise of his fundamental freedoms, including freedoms of expression and association." (Reporting by Nita Bhalla. Additional reporting by Fayaz Bukhari in Srinagar. Editing by Katie Nguyen. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. New Delhi: Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday condemned the attack on his colleague Babul Supriyo in West Bengal and asked the state government to take immediate action against the guilty. Stressing that political differences would always be there, he called for tolerance among the political parties and respect for each other. WATCH: Stone hurled at Union minister Babul Supriyo in Asansol, West Bengal pic.twitter.com/ecOG9os16t ANI (@ANI_news) October 19, 2016 "I strongly condemn the attack on my colleague Babul Supriyo. The state government has to take immediate action against the people responsible for it. "Political differences will always be there. There has to be tolerance among political parties. We must respect each other," he said on the sidelines of an event here. Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Supriyo was on Wednesday attacked with bricks allegedly by Trinamool Congress activists in Asansol when he was on way to a police station to stage a protest against the arrest of some BJP workers. On the issue of triple talaq, Naidu said many Muslim countries have banned the practice, while it continues in India because of the self-interest of some political parties. "There is no question of forcing anything on anybody... Any religion on anybody. This government does not interfere in religious affairs of anyone at all. When we talk of triple talaq, our aim is justice and equality for women, he said. Hospitals in India are no safe havens; as much as those clean white sheets, sanitised needles and phenol-cleaned floors might fool one into believing they are. The recent fire at the SUM Hospital in Bhubaneswar isnt the only incident that validates this sorry reality. In Delhi, there are hospitals like Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan, GB Pant, BR Sur Homeopathic and Baba Saheb Ambedkar in which there is a pending issue of NOC due to non-compliance by the hospital authorities. We have tried to explain and resolve the matter at all levels, says GC Misra, director, Delhi Fire Services. The problem, he explains further, is that the buildings constructed prior to the passing of the Delhi Fire Prevention and Fire Safety Act, 1986, follow a different set of guidelines. These older structures need to ensure that the gate should be at least six metres wide, there have to fire extinguishers on every floor along with rubber tube hoses, wet-risers for water supply within the building and a standby fire generator for providing power to them, a fire alarm system, compartmentation (fire walls or fire separation) of the building, and a sprinkler system that comes into operation accordingly. In newer buildings, hospitals have to factor in many other conditions, for instance, the width of the staircase now has to be at least two metres. RC Sharma, who has spent four decades in fire departments across the country, says that 90 percent of deaths due to fires occur because of smoke (carbon monoxide) and not out of burns. He points out that once the hospital has acquired its NOC, there are no follow-ups with the fire department in terms of maintenance of equipment like fire alarms and sprinklers. Moreover, doctors and nurses arent repeatedly trained in the evolving evacuation measures. Private hospitals are centrally air-conditioned and, mostly, dont have openable window sections. This can lead to a spread of smoke through the duct. Also, there are oxygen pipelines styled like gas pipelines, which greatly add to the risk during a fire, he explains. The air handling unit, which bears a big fan and is present on every floor, needs to be checked and cleaned regularly. In government hospitals, the problems faced are different. There is a fear that expensive fittings and medicines might be pilfered so some sections, including staircases, are kept locked. There is always less capacity and more patients and hence the corridors are flooded with people and stretchers. As a result, informs Sharma, hospitals construct storage rooms and benches to accommodate. Now, if there are more than three or four patients who are to be ushered out in case of a fire, there is no respite. The third high-risk category is that of the multiple nursing homes across the country that spring open inside commercial buildings. Drager, a German multinational company that engages in fire safety and hospital safety equipment, offers holistic fire-detection solutions. Ajit Keshari, who is its east zone director and is based in Kolkata, says that government hospitals are only allowed to buy the technically-qualified cheapest products, and as a result, a lot of scrap gets bought. After the fire incident at AMRI hospital in Kolkata in 2011, we have not witnessed the trend of procurement of high-tech fire safety equipment, he says. Some of Dragers products that can ease the risk are the Escape Mask that costs between Rs 10-15,000 and should necessarily be supplied to those on higher floors. The other is the self contained breathing apparatus that can be tied to the back and comes attached to a mask, which costs between Rs 70-80,000. Speaking of equipment, even the firemen in India dont always have thermal imagining cameras that allow them to see through the smoke and quickly identify the source of fire. Fire-safety is an excessively decentralised issue and its cost is borne by the municipality. Still, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) feels that there should be greater preparedness towards disaster in highly vulnerable places like hospitals. We do regular drills in the metro, for the railways, in schools and colleges, then why shouldnt hospitals be more responsive? Awareness is important and we are yet to receive a request to carry out a mock drill in a hospital, says Anil Shekhawat, stationed at NDRFs Guwahati base. On asking the president of the Indian Medical Council, Jayshree Mehta, what should be done, she said that it is the state governments and the corporations responsibility to ensure that such incidents dont take place because the hospital is engaged in medical emergencies round the clock. To make matters worse, fire departments across the country are understaffed; in some cases, the strength is just 50 percent and in such cases, the team that reaches the site of fire first doesnt even have a minimum strength of six (one driver, one in-charge and four fire men), informs Sharma. In places like Gurgaon, which is home to five-star private hospitals like Fortis, Medanta and Artemis, fire fighters are hired on contract and hence show up in civil uniform, sometimes even without gum boots and gloves. Thankfully, there are some who take strict precautions in this regard. Bengalurus private hospitals like Columbia Asia and Ramaiah Memorial conduct training programmes and drills for doctors and the nursing staff. In newly constructed ICUs, the wiring is kept separate from the piping and special care is taken of the storage room that carries oxygen tanks and is highly combustible. Naturally, nitrous oxide, solvents and disinfectants add to the burden, says Dr Abhijit Bhograj, endocrinologist at Colombia Asia, Bengaluru. He points out that hospitals that are certified by the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers (NABH) are stricter about fire safety. The long list of NABH guidelines include that there shouldnt be combustible material of any kind stored or used in any building or section thereof used for institutional occupancy, except as necessary to normal occupancy and use of the building; a bare minimum quantities of flammable material such as chloroform, ethyl alcohol, spirit, etc shall be allowed to be stored and handled; the handling of such liquids shall not be permitted by unauthorised persons, and bulk storage of these items, will be governed by relevant rules and safe practices. In such places, one also finds sprinklers with the recommended 68 degree centre head after every three metres. By nature, hospitals are centres of cure and not prevention. In case of fire safety, there isnt even a cure. Bhubaneswar: Assuring all support to the Odisha govenrment for the treatment of patients affected in the Sum Hospital fire, Health Minister J P Nadda on Wednesday said he was not here for any blame game over the incident which claimed 20 lives. "I am not here for blame game. Our priority is proper treatment of patients who have been affected due to the fire at a medical facility two days ago," Nadda told reporters in Bhubaneswar on his arrival at the state capital. Stating that the Centre would take measures to ensure better treatment of the fire-hit patients, Nadda said the state govenrment had constituted panels for conducting inquiry into the mishap. The state government should implement fire safety measures at hospitals, said Nadda who is slated to hold discussions with health officials. The Health Minister and Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, met patients at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, AMRI Hospital and KIMS Hospital. The two ministers will also visit Sum Hospital where a fire had killed 20 people on Monday evening. As many as 106 patients have been shifted from the fire-hit private hospital to different places including Capital Hospital, AIIMS, AMRI Hospital, Kalinga Hospital, KIIMS and Hitech Hospital in Bhubaneswar, while some were sent to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. Meanwhile, Director General of Fire Service Binay Behera on Tuesday submitted a report to the state government on the fire that ravaged parts of the private hospital. Behera in his report has mentioned that fire safety norms as per the 2013 guidelines were not followed by the hospital authorities, an official said. New Delhi: The National Human Rights Commission on Wednesday issued notice to the Odisha government over the deaths of 20 persons in the 17 October fire that broke out in Bhubaneswar's SUM Hospitals. Taking cognisance of the issue, the commission observed that the SUM Hospitals was warned as early as 2013, for not adhering to safety norms but the hospital authorities ignored. The commission also took note of the fact that out of 568 hospitals in Odisha, only three cleared the fire safety requirements. It also slammed the state government. The commission said: "The callous attitude and lapses of the authorities, if any, amount to violation of right to life of the patients." "It is a matter of shock how the state authorities allowed such a large number of hospitals to function without proper fire safety clearance," said the NHRC. It issued a notice to the Odisha government through its Chief Secretary, and asked for a report on the incident within six weeks. The report should include the relief and rehabilitation granted to the next of kin of the deceased and the injured. The commission asked the state to include in the report the steps and precautions being taken or proposed to be taken by it that could prevent recurrence of such tragedy. Twenty persons were killed, and 106 others were injured, in the Monday fire in the ICU of the Dialysis Ward of the SUM Hospitals, that has 750 beds and 25 intensive care units. The fire reportedly started in the Operation Theatre of the dialysis ward and spread to the ICU and nearby units. The state government has ordered a probe, while the Director of Medical Education and Training (DMET) had declared free treatment to all injured. Four hospital officials have so far been arrested in the case, and the owner's arrest is likely soon. Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Wednesday visited the SUM Hospitals and met the injured. He called for strong action against those responsible for the tragedy. New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday accused the Centre of "harassing" Aam Aadmi Party and his government for doing good work. "Gulab gets bail today. FIR agnst Imran quashed by Del HC yesterday. What purpose is srved? Centre harassing us bcoz Del govt doing gud work (sic)," Kejriwal tweeted after a court granted bail to AAP MLA and incharge of Gujarat affairs Gulab Singh Yadav, arrested in extortion case. AAP leader Ashish Khetan said the Delhi High Court has also quashed an FIR against Delhi Minister Imran Hussain in an extortion case. Khetan said of the 14 AAP MLAs arrested, only one case is such that there was a trial against legislator Akhilesh Pati Tripathi in which he was acquitted. "The rest of the cases MLAs were given bail. "During the emergency, there is a un-declared emergency in Delhi. For every small reason, an AAP MLA is arrested and this has become a motive of the Delhi Police. The Anti-Corruption Bureau, which reports to Ministry of Home Affairs. Now CBI is unleashed upon us. There is no parallel of harassment of any government like this," Khetan added. New Delhi: Congress on Wednesday alleged that the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh is in the thick of a "scam of monumental proportions" in the resettlement and rehabilitation of the oustees of the Sardar Sarovar project on the Narmada. Party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told reporters that the Judicial Commission headed by Justice S S Jha has "indicted" the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government in the matter. Congress has already been targeting the government over the multi-crore Vyapam scam and demanding the resignation of the chief minister. "The Chouhan government seems to have become a Vyapak Ghotala-all Pervasive Scamster-Government, even as the Prime Minister continues to patronise him (Chouhan) and his corruption," Singhvi alleged. He said the scandal has put question mark on the future of thousands of families affected by the Sardar Sarovar Dam. The Commission, after a seven-year investigation, has "exposed the rampant forgery of documents" that allowed compensation to be paid to impostors, he said, claiming the scam is of "monumental proportions". The Jha Commission was appointed by the Supreme Court, he said. The compensation was meant for those who will be displaced when the dam's height is raised. The commission has also brought to the fore that the state government did not cooperate with its inquiry and made every attempt to prevent the damning report from being made public before it was finally tabled in the state's Vidhan Sabha at the end of July, Singhvi said. Targeting the Prime Minister, he said Narendra Modi never misses any opportunity to politically encash the Sardar Sarovar Dam but could not prevent the massive corruption in this 'Narmada Dam Scam'. "Congress demands that the Jha Commission report be made public and appropriate action under the Supreme Court guidelines taken so that the culprits of this massive Narmada Scam can be brought to book", Singhvi said. "The Prime Minister talks about 'Swachh Bharat'. It is high time that Narendra Modi first provides us a 'Swachh Sarkar', which is devoid of corruption", he remarked. New Delhi: Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar on Tuesday said whether cross-LoC surgical strikes were undertaken by the army in the past only the military will know as no "message" about such assaults were conveyed. "What FS said is that the key issue is that we went public after conducting the surgical strikes which conveyed a politico-military message. Whether any previous crossings had been done only the army would know. But it is irrelevant anyway because there was no message," sources in the government said. The clarification about what transpired at a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on External Affairs, which was briefed on the strikes by Jaishankar, came after some opposition MPs quoted him having said the army had carried out "target specific, limited-calibre, counter-terrorist operations" across the LoC in the past too but this was for the first time the government had gone public about it. An earlier report by PTI said, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar gave this information to the Parliamentary Committee on Exernal Affairs when he was specifically asked by MPs whether surgical strikes have been done in the past. His comments assume significance in the context of claims by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar's claims last week rejecting Congress's claims that surgical strikes were undertaken during the UPA government too. Manohar Parrikar had said that it was the first time that surgical strikes had taken place in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack and what was undertaken previously were operations locally executed by commanders without involving the government. Meanwhile Congress has not stopped quoting the Foreign Secretary's earlier remarks, in an attempt to still try and milk the situation. 2/2 Hope FS Jaishankar won't get axed like Sujatha Singh for speaking the truth qua valour of Armed Forces & exposing BJP's deception. Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) October 19, 2016 New Delhi: The army had carried out "target specific, limited-calibre, counter-terrorist operations" across the LoC in the past too but this is for the first time the government has gone public about it, a Parliamentary panel was told on Tuesday, in remarks that appear to contradict the Defence Minister's claim. Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar gave this information to the Parliamentary Committee on Exernal Affairs when he was specifically asked by MPs whether surgical strikes have been done in the past. "Professionally done, target-specific, limited calibre counter-terrorist operations" have been carried out across the LoC in the past too, but this is for the first time that the government has made it public," according to sources present in the meeting. The top diplomat's comments assume significance in the context of claims by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar's claims last week rejecting Congress's claims that surgical strikes were undertaken during the UPA government too. He had asserted that it was the first time that surgical strikes had taken place in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack and what was undertaken previously were operations locally executed by commanders without involving the government. Jaishankar also told the Committee that while India has been engaging with Pakistan post the 29 September surgical strikes, but no "calendar" has so far been prepared regarding future engagement and its level with Islamabad, members said on condition of anonymity. He said soon after the operations had ended, the Director General Military Operations of the Pakistan Army was informed about the strikes. During the two-and-a-half-hour meeting, Vice Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen Bipin Rawat also gave details of the strikes targeting terrorist launch pads across the LoC. Government representatives told the panel that the strikes have fulfilled the purpose as of now and there will always be a nagging doubt in the Pakistani establishment whether India will carry out similar operations in the future. A Congress member wanted to know whether similar operations could be carried out in the future. The government representatives said the strikes were carried out after a "lot has been suffered". When asked about the casualty they could inflict on the terrorists, the officials said the army had crossed the LoC to carry out strikes and not to collect evidence. On China recently extending the technical hold on India's efforts for a UN ban on chief of Jaish-e-Mohammad terror group and Pathankot attack mastermind Masood Azhar, the Foreign Secretary said New Delhi is working on the issue. When a member of the Committee raised the issue of India's failure to get JeM chief named in the Brics Goa declaration when terror outfits like Islamic State figured in the document, Jaishankar gave the same answer that the establishment was working on it. Jaishankar sought to skirt the issue of UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan stating that it did not witness any action at LoC during the surgical strikes. He said since panel chairman Shashi Tharoor had been associated with the body, he would not like to say anything. During the meeting, there was a brief exchange of words between a BJP and Left party member when the former raised the issue of security of MPs after the strikes. Some members said the topic of the meeting was national security and not individual security. Special Secretary Internal Security M K Singhla informed the panel about the types of security being extended to the VIPs. Defence Secretary G Mohan Kumar and DG BSF K K Sharma were also present at the meeting besides the Foreign Secretary and the Vice Chief of Army Staff. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, who is a member of the Committee, attended the meet but did not ask questions, a member said. Srinagar: Militant outfit Hizbul Mujahideen has asked migrant Kashmiri Pandits, who were forced to flee the Valley in early 1990 after the eruption of militancy, to return to their homes, assuring protection to them, and also said it was planning to raise a group of Sikh youths. "We request Kashmiri Pandits to return to their homes. We take responsibility of their safety," Zakir Rashid Bhat alias 'Musa', the self-styled commander of the militant outfit, said in a brief video message released on Tuesday. Thousands of Kashmiri Pandits were forced to flee the Valley after they were targeted by militant groups during the outbreak of militancy and have been living in Jammu and other parts of the country. "They should look at those Pandits who never left Kashmir. Who has harassed or killed them?" asked slain militant Burhan Wani's 'successor'. Dressed in military camouflage and fiddling with a grenade in the video, Bhat, who dropped out of engineering course from a Punjab college and joined Hizbul Mujahideen some years back, also gave a bizarre argument that Pandits were forced out of the Valley under a planned strategy to target Muslims. He claimed that the government was planning to take action in the Valley in an operation similar to 'Operation Blue Star' in Punjab. Bhat revealed in the 1.38-long minute video that the militant was planning to raise an exclusive group of Sikh youths in the outfit. "Our Sikh brothers are requesting us to join Hizbul Mujahideen...We are with them on every front and God willing, we will try and make an exclusive group for Sikhs in the outfit," he said. About the latest trend of weapon snatching in the Valley, especially in south Kashmir districts, he said, "Many youths have taken to Jihad, snatched the weapons and joined our ranks." Two green banners with religious slogans and as many weapons on both sides behind him could also be seen in the video which was shot at an unknown location. South Kashmir witnessed a spurt in weapon snatching incidents over the past three months of unrest which was triggered by the killing of Wani in an encounter with security forces on 8 July. The unrest has so far claimed 84 lives and injured thousands of others. Beijing: India has "outmanoeuvred" Pakistan by effectively branding it as a "regional pariah" during Goa Brics-Bimstec summit where the country presented itself as a "bright spot", strengthening its case for the NSG membership and a permanent seat in UNSC, state-run Chinese media said on Wednesday. "Given the uneasy background of Indo-Pak tension, which escalated last month, India's inclusion of Bimstec (The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) bore even thicker geo-strategic connotations," an article in the state-run Global Times said. "As India invited all countries in the region except Pakistan, it in effect consigned Pakistan to be a regional pariah," the article titled 'India uses Brics to outmanoeuvre Pakistan', said. Referring to India's decision not to attend the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) summit to be held in Islamabad after the Uri attack, it said, "The collapse of the Saarc summit presented India a rare opportunity to get rid of any constraints Islamabad may have over the regional group, as the same group would soon gather in Goa in the absence of Pakistan". Bimstec also made a major difference for India at the Goa summit, it said. "A major difference between the Goa summit and the previous ones was that New Delhi put the (Bimstec) in tandem with the Brics meeting," it said By bringing regional countries - Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan - together with the major emerging economies of the Brics, the daily said, India breathed legitimacy and substance into an otherwise "hallow and moribund acronym organisation". "While the rest of the Brics members would never openly endorse either side in the Indo-Pak tension, India in a way secured its stance vis-a-vis Pakistan by taking advantages of its agenda-setting powers for the summits," it said. "While the prospect of Bimstec as a more effective alternative to Saarc remains ambiguous, a subcontinent grouping without Pakistan balancing and checking a dominant India may well raise suspicions and fear for smaller countries," it said. The summit also helped India to push for its membership in the NSG, which was blocked by China, as well as for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council (UNSC), it said. "The Brics summit brings India an ideal mechanism to articulate and push for its reformist demands together with like-minded countries. This common front became particularly valuable for New Delhi, especially as its arduous bids for Nuclear Suppliers Group's (NSG) membership as well as for a permanent seat on an enlarged United Nation Security Council have both met frustration," it said. The daily said that India successfully projected itself as the fastest growing economy compared to other members of the Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa). "During the summit, India presented itself as a bright spot in a bloc whose other members have been buffeted by economic headwinds to varying degrees. With a GDP growth rate of 7.5 percent in 2015 against a rather gloomy global backdrop, India has replaced China as the world's fastest-growing large economy," the article said. "Only three years ago, India was still labeled as one of the 'RIBS', whose feeble and volatile growth contrasted sharply to China's robust performance. Nowadays, the Russian and Brazilian economies have deteriorated into recession, South Africa struggles to avoid the same fate, and China's decades-long economic boom has geared down," it said. "But India finds confidence in talking about economic matters. After all, the setbacks undergone by its fellow countries made India's recent economic achievements shine even brighter in comparison," it said. "Although India's domestic reforms have only made limited inroads in key areas such as land acquisition and labour regulation, an aspirant (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi equipped with newly-gained confidence on India's growth prospects has clearly made the country more proactive," it said. For India, the daily said, this Brics summit has been a wonderful platform to coordinate efforts in reforming current global economic and finance governance. "This effect becomes more visible as the operationalisation of the New Development Bank (NDB) and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) have put pressures on the current international finance system, giving India tangible leverage in demanding relevant reforms," it said. For example, the Goa Declaration urges advanced European economies to cede two chairs on the Executive Board of the IMF, to which India may have an "upper hand to claim thanks to its huge potential and robust growth recently," it said. Dehradun: An Mi-17 helicopter of Indian Air Force carrying officers and men of the 12 Grenadiers on Wednesday crash-landed while on a practice drill near Mana village in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district. All on board are safe with some of them receiving only minor injuries in the incident which took place at 9:25 am at Ghastoli helipad between Badrinath and Mana Pass, police sources said. The Mi-17 with officers and men of 12 Grenadiers was practising inter valley movement at Ghastoli helipad between Badrinath and Mana Pass when the incident took place, the sources said. Prima facie it appears the helicopter crashlanded after developing some technical snag, the sources said. IAF is looking into the matter. Pakistani media and Pakistani bloggers have warned their government and security agencies that Pakistan is on the verge of global isolation. A prominent Pakistani daily in its editorial has blamed Prime Minister Narendra Modi behind this move, saying he is sparing no effort in highlighting cross-border terror attacks by Pakistan at every international forum including indirectly calling Pakistan mothership of terror during the recent Brics meet. The editorial says, "Modi's statement shows just how committed New Delhi is when it comes to isolating Pakistan globally. From cancelling SAARC summit to boycotting Pakistani artists, the Modi regime is hell-bent on weakening Pakistan at every international forum. When and if isolated, the impact would be drastic, and Pakistan would never want that." Not that the Pakistani government is not worried, as was disclosed by participants of the Heart Security Dialogue held in Afghanistan held recently, who had travelled to Pakistan earlier. The angst of the civil society in Pakistan is obvious as the above mentioned daily mentioned that the Pakistani government and security agencies "should at least have the decency to admit that Pakistan still isn't 100 per cent sure which non-state actor is good or bad", adding just days earlier, even a ruling party lawmaker demanded action against non-state actors who happen to be the very ones that New Delhi has alleged Islamabad is using for cross-border terrorist attacks. The paper also mentioned the episode of Dawn reporter Cyril Almeida. With reference to Saarc, the summit that was scheduled in Islamabad is postponed by Pakistan and not cancelled and to blame PM Modi for the same is wrong as Saarc members are sovereign nations who take their own decisions. For example, Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh recently stated a media interview, It is over the situation in Pakistan that we decided to pull out (from the Saarc summit in Islamabad). Terror from Pakistan has gone everywhere, which is why many of us felt frustrated by Pakistan. India pulled because of the Uri attack, but for Bangladesh the reason is totally different. One of the other main reason of my government for Saarc pullout was hurt felt over Pakistans strident criticism of the war crimes process in Bangladesh in which dozen Jamaat-e-Islami leaders, accused of brutalities during the liberation war in 1971, have been hanged or indicted. As to Pakistani film actors returning to Pakistan, it was of their own volition because they refused to sympathise with victims of Uri attack and condemn propagators of the dastardly attack and the Indian Motion Pictures Association (IMPA) who previously had held a condolence meet to sympathise with the victims of Army School, Abbotabad. IMPA indicted these Pakistani artist for making distinction between good and bad terrorists. But the most significant issue is that the term non-state actor with reference to cross-border terrorism by Pakistan must be dropped being misnomer. There are no non-state actors in Pakistan undertaking cross-border terrorist acts. On the contrary, they are all state-supported; not only armed, funded, trained but also are operating mixed with disguised regulars from Pakistani Mujahid battalions and ISI operatives. The leaders of these so called non-state actors have been provided state protection, rabid mullahs like Hafiz Saeed and Azhar Masood are de-facto foreign policy spokespersons, terrorist organisations have been dovetailed with army establishments and intelligence reports indicate that terrorist along the LoC with India have been put in uniform of Pakistani Rangers post the surgical strikes by India. While Indian media has been covering news reports about terror attacks in Afghanistan, it is imperative that Pakistans proxy war in Afghanistan be highlighted much more prominently, Afghanistan being our strategic partner. Report by UN Assistance Mission Afghanistan (Unama) released in July 2016 shows that 5,166 people were killed or maimed in Afghanistan between January to June 2016 and total civilian casualties as per conservative estimates between January 2009 and 30 June 2016 were 64,000 including 23000 killed and 41,000 injured. The UNAMA report goes on to say that majority of these casualties have been caused by the Taliban and groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Haqqani Network, Hezb-e-Islami, Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Islamic Jihad Union, Islamic State etc. Look at the horrendous horrific human tragedy in Afghanistan mainly because of Pakistans export of terrorism. It may be recalled that Musharraf, former President of Pakistan has been boasting, Osama-bin-Laden, Ayman-al-Zawahiri, Haqqanis are our heroes .. We trained the LeT against India. Now LeT is also being used for proxy war against Afghanistan. Earlier we had Sartaj Aziz, Advisor on Foreign Affairs (then also NSA) to Pakistan Prime Minister telling to BBC in an interview, Pakistan should not engage in a war with those (insurgents / militants) whose target is not Pakistan. US intelligence had admitted in February 2016 that Both Taliban (Afghan and Pakistan) have largely coalesced. The link is the Haqqanis that are based in Pakistan past three decades plus and Sirajuddin Haqqani, chief of Haqqani network and protege of ISI is deputy leader of Afghan Taliban. US intelligence also reveals that Khorasan branch of IS formed is amalgamation of primarily disaffected and rebranded former Afghan Taliban and Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) members. Apparently, they were cobbled together in Peshawar region and have been pushed west into Afghanistan. Also, Voice of America recently reported Afghanistan officially telling Pakistan that Hafiz Saeed, former LeT chief is directing IS operations in Afghanistan. It would be for the betterment of Pakistan if the Pakistani army returns to barracks and let true democracy flourish. So the so called Islamic State (IS) in Afghanistan is obviously mixed with LeT and other Pakistani proxies like JeM etc. The human toll in Afghanistan is mounting at incredible pace. Recently, 33 Muslim worshippers were killed and 82 injured in two separate terror attacks in Kabul and Balkh in Afghanistan. Intelligence now confirms that the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and Sipah-e-Sahaba, both Pakistan based, are also attacking Afghanistan. There should be little doubt that Pakistans military is doing all this with its stated aim of achieving strategic depth in Afghanistan and influence Central Asia. Former Pakistani army chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani had admitted that Pakistan does not wish to hold the cherished strategic depth but wants to control it. In doing so, Pakistan is repeatedly targeting Hazaras in Afghanistan, aiming to create an ethnic divide. There is also danger that the IS in Iraq-Syria under major attack will be welcomed by Pakistan with open arms and used for cross-border attacks. Pakistan is using JeM to attack both India and Afghanistan but China still continues to put its so-called technical hold at the UN to stop Azhar Masood being branded terrorist; technical hold being an euphuism for abetting Pakistani terrorism. This, despite China being only country that is drilling oil commercially in Afghanistan since 2012 and making huge profits in copper mines extraction. Not only are India and Afghanistan strategic partners, they are both being subjected to Pakistans proxy war. The Pakistani military may have acquired the hide of the rhinoceros but public opinion in Pakistan is important and latters concerns have begun to reflect in their media. It should therefore be incumbent on media of both countries, particularly of India, to prominently highlight Pakistans proxy war both on India and Afghanistan. A media blitz is warranted to expose the nefarious wrong doings and stranglehold of the Pakistani military on their own country leading them down the vortex of terror. While the youth in Pakistan are being systematically radicalised, they actually need to be exposed to what how and why the Pakistani military lost East Pakistan and 93,000 military personnel surrendered as prisoners of war. It would be for the betterment of Pakistan if the Pakistani army returns to barracks and let true democracy flourish. The author is veteran Lt General of the Indian Army Jammu: Spurt in the incidents of gun-snatching by militants in Kashmir has triggered concern in the security establishment, prompting the army to say on Wedneday that it is working with police to tackle the new strategy of the ultras. Over the last three months, 67 weapons, including AK-47, INSAS, Carbine, SLR, .303 rifles, have been looted and snatched from police personnel in 12 such incidents. "It is a new strategy and plan of the militants with twin objective of making new recruits prove their loyalty and commitment towards gun culture and also to create public perception about demoralisation in the police forces," a senior police officer said. The officer, however, dismissed the theory that the snatching is done to arm militants, arguing that the weapons like INSAS, Carbines, SLR rifles are not of much use to the militants unlike the AK rifles. "Rifle snatching incidents witnessed recently in the valley, particularly in south Kashmir, is a cause of concern, said Srinagar-based Army Commander Lt Gen Satish Dua at a function on Wednesday. "There are some small pickets of the police where they are not able to take care of the situation if the militants come in. It is being addressed jointly with the police, he added. Among the steps that are being taken by the forces is to increase the number of men at pickets, including those guarding minority community members in south Kashmir. Hizbul Mujahideen commander Zakir Rashid Bhat, who was close to slain militant commander Burhan Wani, in a recent video message has said that several youth have snatched weapons from security forces and have joined the Hizb ranks. "Anyone who wants to join us, he should snatch a weapon and join us. We welcome them all wholeheartedly, said Zakir, a former engineering student of Chandigarh, in the video. Police feels his video message will further incite and encourage youth to snatch and loot weapons from police and other forces in Kashmir in days to come. Former Army officer Brig (retd) Anil Gupta said the security agencies have to stop this, otherwise the number of the armed militants in Kashmir will increase. "It is concern. Weapon-snatching is being done because militants cannot now smuggle in weapons from across the LoC due to high degree of security. So they go for snatching and looting of weapons," he said. Brig Gupta, who has served at 16 Crops headquarters and various other formations in J&K, said, "although police has taken some measures to use digital chips-based GRP tracking system, my suggestion is to put in place Radio Frequency Identification Disc (RFID). "The RFID should be embedded on the weapon and a code given to weapon handler. The weapon can fire only when both the codes match, otherwise it is of no use," he said. The snatching incidents started soon after Burhan's killing, when people attacked police station Damhal Hanjipora in South Kashmir's Kulgam district on July 11 and potential militants looted 39 rifles including 21 INSAS rifles, 12 SLRs, One LMG and 2 AK rifles. On 16 October night, militants decamped with five rifles from policemen guarding a broadcast tower in Davlach village in Dooru-Shahabad area of this South Kashmir district. The militants managed their entry into a room at Lower Power Transmitter Station of public service broadcaster Doordarshan in Davlash village where weapons were kept and escaped with the weapons, including 3 SLRs, one INSAS and a Carbine without any resistance. Earlier on 8 October, militants snatched two service rifles from a minority police post in Tumlihal-Lassipora in Pulwama district. A day prior to that, weapons were snatch from policemen guarding a minority picket in Jamnagri village of Shopian. In the fire fight, one cop was killed, two others including a Kashmiri Pandit were injured. On 3 October, militants ran away with five automatic rifles from a minority post in Kulgam district. On 28 September, they decamped with service rifle of guards of former NC MLA in Shopian. Prior to that, militants, on the night of 18 September, decamped with four service rifles from security guards of ruling Peoples Democratic Party district president, Advocate Javed Sheikh. Four rifles were also snatched from policemen guarding the house of a former National Conference leader in Begam village in Pombia area of Kulgam district on the evening of 8 September. On 5 September, a Communist leaders house in Kulgam was attacked and a rifle snatched from the police personnel on duty. On 31 August, militants sneaked into protesters who attacked PDP leader and Rajya Sabha member Nazir Ahmad Laways house in Chawalgam village of Kulgam district and ran away with four rifles. In a bid to snatch rifles, militants attacked a Police Picket guarding minority families at Sirnoo village of Pulwama. Mumbai: Building pressure on the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena coalition in Maharashtra on reservation for the Maratha community, the state Congress on Tuesday said it will table no-confidence and breach of privilege motions against Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Narayan Rane said the motions will be brought up during the winter session of the assembly in Nagpur in December. "He is misleading. The state government failed to file an affidavit in the Bombay High Court on the issue," Rane told the media here. "The Chief Minister is telling lies and cheating the Maratha community. We demand his resignation," Rane added. He said on 13 October, during a hearing of a public interest litigation on the issue, the state government's counsel had sought additional time till after Diwali vacations for collecting more information and filing its affidavit. "However, a short while later, Fadnavis told media persons that the government had not sought more time. This is lying and misleading the Maratha community. The state failed to file its affidavit since 14 November, 2014. This government is not serious about giving reservations to Marathas," the Congress leader said. However, the Bharatiya Janata Party rejected Rane's demands outright and blamed the erstwhile Congress-Nationalist Congress Party combine for messing up the Maratha reservation issue. "The CM has not spoken any lies. As chairman of the Maratha Reservation Committee, I personally briefed him about the outcome in the High Court," said Education Minister Vinod Tawde. He said it would been appropriate if Rane had studied the matter properly before making the allegations. Tawde reiterated the government's commitment to providing reservation to the Maratha community. The development came against the backdrop of the series of ongoing silent processions of the Marathas across Maharashtra for the past one month or so, demanding reservation in jobs and education, besides other issues. Myanmar Foreign Minister and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi is on a four-day visit to India. After attending the Brics-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa, the de facto leader of Myanmar met President Pranab Mukherjee and held talks with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday. She met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday. MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup called Suu Kyi "an old friend of the East" and tweeted that the Prime Minister and Myanmar State Counsellor are deliberating on the details of a developmental partnership. An old friend from the East, a partner in our common progress. PM receives Myanmar State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at Hyderabad House pic.twitter.com/YnwDQkBki2 Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) October 19, 2016 Deliberating the details of a developmental partner'p. PM @narendramodi & State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi lead delegation level talks pic.twitter.com/q2luDhCgQe Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) October 19, 2016 Modi in the press conference welcomed Suu Kyi to her "second home" and said that her clear vision, mature leadership and struggle has inspired people across the world. PM: begins Press Statement, tells Daw Aung San Suu Kyi: You are no stranger to the people of India. Welcome back, to your second home! pic.twitter.com/WnIZKtY85Q Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) October 19, 2016 In his brief address, Modi announced India's cooperation programme and India will support its neighbour as Suu Kyi leads her country to become a "modern and prosperous nation". He said that the two countries have agreed on security coordination in border areas and sensitivity to each other's strategic interests. PM @narendramodi details India's robust cooperation programme with Myanmar pic.twitter.com/iY1Q1YtKgb Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) October 19, 2016 PM: We have agreed that close secur'y coorn't in border areas & sensitivity to each others strategic interests, will serve mutual interests pic.twitter.com/sC8JyunifI Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) October 19, 2016 Suu Kyi called India "the greatest democracy in the world" in her press briefing and said that Myanmar is a young democracy, "The time has come for us to say that, yes we can do this". The time has come for us to say that, yes we can do this: Aung San Suu Kyi (State Counsellor Of Myanmar) pic.twitter.com/4WAVv5igf5 ANI (@ANI_news) October 19, 2016 This is her maiden visit to India after the National League for Democracy came to power in March. Suu Kyi told a television channel on Tuesday that though terrorism in any form is unacceptable, there is a need to lay down the principles of surgical strikes as it is also a violent form of attack. "I don't think we should lay down our principles saying that all surgical strikes are acceptable. We have to look at these instances case by case, otherwise we will be on a slippery slope of deciding that all strikes are acceptable," she said according to PTI. Myanmar itself has been struggling to tackle the crisis over Rohingya Muslim situation. The longstanding discrimination by majority Buddhists against Muslim Rohingya in Rakhine exploded into violence in 2012. More than 1,00,000 people, mostly Rohingyas, are still in displacement camps. Buddhist nationalists have sought to brand the group as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, while the movement of Rohingya living in camps are severely restricted. Suu Kyi has been criticised by some human rights activists for not speaking out forcefully in support of the Rohingya. On 12 October, 12 people died in the north of Myanmar's Rakhine state in clashes between armed men and troops. It's hardly a surprise that Suu Kyi held a discussion with Swaraj on India's role in supporting Myanmar's agenda of national reconciliation. MEA sources told PTI that the two leaders also discussed socio-economic development and strengthening democracy. "The Myanmar state counsellor outlined her priorities in the areas of agriculture, training, capacity building, job creation, infrastructure and health care and sought India's assistance in these areas. Swaraj in turn offered all possible assistance from India," the official source said. Wecome Daw Aung San Suu Kyi pic.twitter.com/SQ7dnYFkwq Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) October 18, 2016 At the Brics-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa, Suu Kyi said that the Bimstec region was confronted with numerous security threats, including terrorism, climate change, natural and man-made disasters. She called for collective stepping up of pressure on human trafficking, which she said was "modern day slavery and "one of the most pervasive human rights violations". "We need to step up to intensity in the global efforts to combat global trafficking in a collective and a concerted manner," she said. Brahma Chellaney wrote for The Times of India that Suu Kyi's first major state visit was to Beijing in an attempt to smooth bilateral ties with China. He writes that Myanmar is an important ally to India and should have a proactive policy of implementing projects and promoting trade between the two countries "to help reduce the salience of Chinese influence". According to The Irrawaddy, "Burma will re-engage India under a new government that is obviously struggling to rebalance its strategic relations with powerful China." While Suu Kyi's India visit will redefine bilateral ties between the countries, Myanmar has to do the balancing act to keep Beijing and New Delhi happy, as Rajiv Bhatia writes for Hindustan Times, "She (Suu Kyi) may have a delicate role to play, especially now when India-China relations are under marked stress." With inputs from agencies Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir government has not submitted any formal proposal for the withdrawal of the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Acts (Afspa) from the state, according to an RTI reply. "There is no formal proposal from the state government of Jammu and Kashmir for revocation of Afspa," Ministry of Home Affairs said in reply to an RTI query. Human rights activist MM Shuja had filed an RTI to the Union Home Ministry seeking information about the state government's demand for revocation of Afspa from the state. The home ministry also said that the revocation of the Afspa has been reviewed from time to time. "It has been decided that time is not appropriate for withdrawal of Afspa from Jammu and Kashmir. "Revocation of Afspa has been on the agenda of both ruling PDP and opposition National Conference, which ruled the state in coalition with Congress from 2008 to 2014," it said. PDP has been in power in the state since 2014 after forming a coalition government with the BJP. The RTI reply said the issue of revocation of Afspa from Jammu and Kashmir has been raised by various sections of the society and individuals in Kashmir valley from time to time. "Omar Abdullah (then chief minister of J&K) also raised this issue in meeting with then Union Home Minister (P Chidambaram) on 14 November, 2011 and during Conference of Chief Ministers on Internal Security on 5 June, 2013," it added. In July, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti had said that in order to improve the situation in the state Afspa should be revoked from some areas, beginning with 25 to 50 police stations, as an experiment. In reply to an earlier RTI query in June, the Home Ministry had said that no written request regarding revocation of the Afspa has been received from the government of Jammu and Kashmir state in the last two years. "The situation is reviewed in the Ministry from time to time. However, no formal meeting (has been) held regarding revocation of Afspa in J&K during last two years," the ministry had said in response to the earlier RTI application. Bhubaneswar: Four officials, including the Superintendent, of a private hospital were arrested and four employees suspended on Tuesday, a day after a massive blaze there claimed 20 lives and left many injured. Meanwhile, over 100 patients, mostly from the ravaged ICU and dialysis units were shifted elsewhere for treatment. While 20 deaths were officially confirmed, authorities of different hospitals where the injured were shifted last night put the toll at 22 after the devastating fire broke out in the Sum Hospital. The arrests were made shortly after Odisha government filed two FIRs alleging negligence in conduct and safety against Sum Hospital. Two separate FIRs were lodged by Joint Director of the Directorate of Medical Education and Training (DMET) Umakanta Satpathy and Fire Officer (Central Circle) B B Das with Khandagiri police station. Those arrested were Superintendent of Sum Hospital, Pushpraj Samantsinghar, Electrical Maintenance Engineer Amulya Sahu, Fire Safety Officer Santosh Das and Junior Electrical Engineer Malay Sahu, Commissioner of Police Y B Khurania said. Khurania said the four officials were arrested on the basis of preliminary inquiry report of the fire officer and the FIR filed by Fire Services department at Khandagiri police station where a case in this regard has been registered. The four were booked under Sections 304 (culpahbel homicide not amounting to murder), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 285 (negligent conduct with respect to fire and combustible materials) and 34 (common intent) of the IPC, the police Commissioner said. Meanwhile, Director General of Fire Service, Binay Behera submitted a report to the state government on the fire that ravaged parts of the private hospital last night in which 20 people died and many were injured. Behera in his report has mentioned that the fire safety norms as per the 2013 guidelines were not followed by the hospital authorities, an official said. A senior police official said more arrests in the case cannot be ruled out. Health and Family Welfare Minister Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak said the Joint Director of DMET also lodged FIR against the hospital for alleged violation of provisions under Odisha Clinic and Establishment Act, 1992. DMET Prof P C Mohapatra, who has been leading an inquiry team, this afternoon visited the hospital and spoke to different people, including the staff. He said the guilty would definitely be punished. "DMET had earlier issued guidelines to hospitals and clinical establishments across the state asking them to put in place fire safety measures. Licenses of those found flouting these guidelines will be cancelled," he said. The authorities of Siksha 'O' Anusandhan (SOA) University, which runs the Institute of Medical Sciences and Sum Hospital, suspended four staff members and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the victims' familes. Those suspended were one fire officer, two engineers and one hospital manager, SOU vice-chancellor Amit Banerjee told reporters, rejecting allegations that there was any irregularity in the management of the hospital. "We have suspended four officials as part of the hospital's bid to maintain transparency. Tomorrow no one should accuse that evidence was tampered with." As many as 106 patients, who were shifted from Sum Hospital following the blaze last night, are now undergoing treatment at different hospitals in the city, Health Secretary Arti Ahuja said, amid reports that some of them are in critical condition. Most of them were from the ICU and the dialysis unit, an official said. Ahuja said the ICU and dialysis unit of the hospital have been sealed to ensure a proper investigation. The blaze was suspected to have been triggered by an electric short circuit in the dialysis ward on the first floor which spread to the nearby ICU. Governor S C Jamir and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik visited some of the hospitals, including AIIMS and AMRI Hospital here, to inquire about the condition of the patients undergoing treatment there. The state government has already ordered a high-level probe by the Director, Medical Education and Training, into the incident. In addition, a probe by the Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC) has also been ordered, an official said. Health Secretary Ahuja, who visited the hospitals this morning, said that 14 and 5 bodies were received at the Capital Hospital and AMRI Hospital respectively, while a spokesman of AIIMS-Bhubaneswar said that one death was reported at their facility. Most of the deaths in the four-storey hospital took place due to suffocation and asphyxiation, a senior official said, adding that the majority of those who died were at the ICU of Sum Hospital and were on ventilator support. Some patients have also been shifted to the SCB Medical College and Hospital at Cuttack for treatment. Health Minister Nayak said the priority was to provide proper treatment to the patients from the fire-hit hospital who have been shifted. Meanwhile, opposition parties, including Congress and BJP held the state government and Sum Hospital authorities responsible for the fire tragedy. Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) President Prasad Harichandan said the state government has not learnt anything from the AMRI hospital (Kolkata) fire accident of 2011 in which 89 people were killed. "Besides the hospital authorities, I will say both Chief minister and Health minister are responsible for the tragedy. The state government must declare Rs 25 lakh compensation and a job to kin of each of the deceased," Harichandan said. Harichandan alleged that the mishap was caused due to total negligence by the state government. "A judicial probe must be ordered into the incident and the culprits be booked," he said. CPI National Secretary D Raja, who visited several health institutions, where patients evacuated from Sum Hospital were undergoing treatment, said, "A neutral probe is required to find out the lapses in the fire safety management in the hospital. An amount of Rs 5 lakh ex-gratia is not adequate. Our party has demanded that the amount be increased to Rs 20 lakh." Supporters and activists of CPI(M) also staged a demonstration here demanding resignation of Nayak as the health minister. BJP leader and Union Minister Jual Oram also blamed the state government and the hospital authorities for the tragedy. A BJP delegation led by its senior leader Bijay Mohapatra visited the Sum Hospital fire site and other hospitals, where evacuated patients were being treated. BJP state vice-president Pruthiwraj Harichandan said Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik was accountable for the non-performance of the health department. He also hit out at the state Health minister. "The health minister should perform or step down," he said. Jammu: The Pakistan Army on Wednesday resorted to heavy cross-border firing at Indian posts on the Line of Control (LoC) in the frontier Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, defence sources said. The sources said Indian positions were targeted in Tarkundi area on the LoC, the de facto border that divides Jammu and Kashmir between the two countries. "The Pakistan Army used 82 mm mortar shells and small arms to target our positions. Our troops effectively retaliated the Pakistan shelling and firing using same calibre weapons," a defence spokesperson said. The shelling from both sides was on till late in the evening. There were no reports of any loss of lives from either side. It was the latest in a series of violations of the 2013 ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian Army alleged that Pakistan violated the bilateral truce in the same area of the LoC on Tuesday. It is not often that the Congress makes a lot of sense these days, but it is difficult to find fault with its description of Manohar Parrikar as a "national embarrassment". The defence minister's recent spate of garrulousness sits at odds with the discretion and gravitas that his portfolio demands. The senior BJP leader must remember that before a party functionary or mukhya shikshak of RSS, he is India's defence minister. His actions and words must be commensurate with that post. Unfortunately, over the last few days since the Indian Army's Special Forces carried out a covert operation to eliminate a few terrorists on Pakistan soil, Parrikar has carried out surgical strikes on our senses. Not a day passes without his inane comments flooding the media. Parrikar might be an exceedingly honest man and a hardworking minister in the Narendra Modi Cabinet but that hardly gives him the license to try and raise political capital out of a military offensive. The BJP has been accusing rival political parties of trying to politicise the surgical strikes but truth to tell, nobody has made the onerous attempt more than Parrikar himself did. Some of his statements, like the one he delivered on Monday, challenge the boundaries of ridiculousness. Speaking at an event in Ahmedabad, the defence minister said: "The prime minister hails from Mahatma Gandhi's home state and defence minister comes from Goa which never had a 'martial race'. And then take this surgical strike. This was a different kind of combination. Maybe the RSS teaching was at the core." According to the Ministry of Defence website, Government of India, "the responsibility for national defence rests with the Cabinet. This is discharged through the Ministry of Defence, which provides the policy framework and wherewithal to the armed forces to discharge their responsibilities in the context of the defence of the country." Which part of his responsibility was Parrikar carrying out by ostensibly trying to credit RSS for a military offensive? His comments demean the role of armed forces as rightly pointed out by Opposition parties and the self-aggrandisement on display is inaccurate and conceited. But Parrikar's verbosity doesn't stop at boasting about his sartorial brilliance, comparing the Indian army to Hanuman or stretching the limits of ridiculousness. Some of his other statements as defence minister are damaging to India's security interests and run the risk of upsetting the flimsy equilibrium vis-a-vis Pakistan post surgical strikes. Just a few days after the strike was conducted in the intervening hours of 28 and 29 September and Pakistan's hot denial of the operation, Parrikar said, "Pakistans condition after the surgical strikes is like that of an anaesthetised patient after a surgery who doesnt know that the surgery has already been performed on him. Even two days after the surgical strikes, Pakistan has no idea what has happened If Pakistan continues with such conspiracies, we will give them a befitting reply again." This type of dialoguebaazi is well-suited for Bollywood potboilers, but thoroughly misplaced when it comes from a defence minister. As one of the key ministers in the Modi Cabinet, Parrikar should have respected the reticence in DGMO's statement following the strikes which was aimed at ensuring de-escalation of tension with a nuclear-armed adversary following the strike. The operation carried a loud enough message, there was no need for the defence minister to rub salt in Pakistan's wounds and risk forcing a retaliation from Rawalpindi. It requires major suspension of disbelief to reckon that Parrikar was unaware of the delicacy of the situation. His blatant disregard from realpolitik needs, therefore, give merit to Congress' statement that he is unfit for his role. New Delhi: Justice Markandey Katju, summoned by the Supreme Court to explain his criticism of the Soumya case verdict, has said he was ready to do so but wanted the apex court to consider whether Article 124(7) of the Constitution barred him from appearing before it. The Supreme Court had two days ago summoned Katju to appear in person before it to point out the "fundamental flaws", as claimed by him in the sensational Soumya rape case. In a Facebook post, the former apex court judge said "I would be delighted to appear and discuss the matter in open court, but would only like the judges to consider whether, being a former Supreme Court judge, I am debarred from appearing by Article 124(7) of the Constitution. If the judges hold that it does not debar me, I would be happy to appear and place my views." Article 124 deals with the establishment and constitution of the Supreme Court and its clause 7 says "No person who has held office as a Judge of the Supreme Court shall plead or act in any court or before any authority within the territory of India". In his latest post, Katju also said he was preparing his detailed response which would also be uploaded on his Facebook page. "I have yet to receive the notice from the Supreme Court in the Soumya case, though I have been informally informed about it by the advocate on record of the Kerala Govt.," the former judge added. A Thrissur trial court had awarded Govindachamy the death sentence for raping 23-year-old Soumya on 1 February, 2011, after pushing her out of a running train in Kerala. The death sentence was confirmed by the high court. The apex court had commuted to life the death penalty awarded to the convict. In an earlier Facebook post, Katju had criticised the apex court saying it had grievously erred by not holding the convict guilty of murder and its judgement needed to be reviewed. "It is regrettable that the Court has not read section 300 carefully. The judgment needs to be reviewed in an open court hearing," Katju had said in his post. An apex court bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and UU Lalit had on 17 October said, "We issue notice to Justice Markandey Katju, former judge of this Court and request him to appear in Court in person and participate in the proceedings on 11 November...as to whether the judgment and order dated 15 September passed by this Bench...suffers from any fundamental flaw so as to require exercise of the review jurisdiction." Asansol: Union Minister Babul Supriyo was on Wednesday attacked with bricks allegedly by Trinamool Congress activists when he was on way to a police station to stage a protest against the arrest of some BJP workers. "I was going to the police station to secure release of some of my partymen. I was hit with bricks and windowpanes of my car were damaged by TMC workers," Supriyo, Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, alleged. "They also showed black flags. I don't know why the police allowed the mob to come near my car," he said. Video footage of the incident showed Supriyo standing on the footboard of a vehicle and a stone landing on his chest. BJP sources said the Union minister received injuries in the attack. LN Meena, police commissioner of Durgapur-Asansol, said BJP supporters had planned to 'gherao' the house of TMC leader and minister Malay Ghatak situated in the Asansol Uttar Police Station area when the trouble began. According to sources, BJP workers were prevented from moving towards the residence of Ghatak which prompted them to proceed towards the Asansol Dakshin Police Station. A clash ensued between the supporters of the BJP and the TMC when the saffron party workers were proceeding for the protest. In all, 57 persons have been arrested in connection with the incident, Meena said. Affirming that that they have the right to stage protests, Supriyo claimed BJP workers were beaten up by the TMC men. State BJP president Dilip Ghosh said his party had on Tuesday protested against cow smuggling in the area when they were beaten up by TMC workers. Some BJP workers were also allegedly picked up by the police whose release Supriyo wanted to secure. Local TMC leader Shivdasan said the BJP workers should have lodged protest with the administration instead of deciding to hold an agitation in front of the minister's house. When I was young, a feminist friend taught me why "Kanyadaan" was the epitome of patriarchy. This friend was slated to get married at that time and was against a Hindu-style lavish wedding. She was pushing for a court marriage. Her principles dictated that she should not bow down to patriarchal rules, or have herself be treated as a property which gets transferred from one home to the other. However, she gave in and decided to indulge her family in a lavish wedding. Recently the topic of Karva Chauth was raised in her in-laws' house. She decided to take a stand. She won't hold a fast. Her stand wasn't received well by the family. They insisted that she hold the fast and assert her dedication to the family and her husband. My friend gave in again. She decided that maybe if she pleased the family, it would ease her life. But, at what point should women decide to put themselves first? My mother too holds a fast on Karva Chauth. She is so conditioned to the process that she doesn't protest at all. But did she and the millions of women like her at any point of time find it weird to hold a fast for the longevity of another person's life? Did it cross their mind that if the man is an alcoholic or a chain-smoker, no amount of fasting on their part will give him an elongated life? In modern medicine, is there place for such superstitious beliefs? Or, are these mere tools to reign in free will? Patriarchal mindsets are rarely questioned, and rituals and their settings get standardised for young girls. Films like Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam have made these rituals sound cool. The notion is quite romantic. A woman wants to spend a lifetime with her paramour, and she is willing to sacrifice food for a day to make it happen. But packaging this ultra-sexist ritual into a modern-day romance is hardly going to make this festival seem any cooler. It just points out how the society is hell-bent on breaking the notion of individuality for a young girl. History: How it came to be Older generations of women in a family often feel obliged to teach the younger generation the etiquette associated with married life. They walk them through the ordeals of this pious day dress up, show up, sing and dance, appear homely, perform temple rituals, break fast when the moon shows up, and then worship the husband. Sometimes the husband eases the process by slipping in a few sweet treats to appease the woman. But is that enough? Was this what our forefathers had in mind when they gave inception to this festival? The apparent history of this "auspicious" day is associated with the tale of queen Veervati and her penance to keep her husband alive. The legend goes that Veervati held innumerable fasts as a married woman while living at her parents' home. She would begin fasting at sunrise and end it at moonrise. Her seven brothers couldn't bear her condition. So, one day they tricked her into breaking the fast earlier. The moment she ate, word arrived that her husband was dead. Heartbroken, Veervati turned towards God to seek solace. Goddess Parvati appeared before her and suggested her to repeat the "Karva Chauth" with full devotion. This would bring her dead husband back to life. She held the fast. He came back to life. There are many such tales strewn across pages of Indian scriptures and the import for most of them is the same: Man dying, woman rescues the man with penance and fasting, man lives. Karva Chauth in 21st century The 21st century woman or "superwoman" as many have touted her is different from her ancestors. She manages the home and the office. She holds a position in the outside world which gives her a daily paycheque, and she gears into the role of a wife, mother, and daughter when she reaches home. She is no longer a dependent. She pays her dues and yearns to be treated as an equal in society. So, in such a role, if an age-old patriarchal tradition rears its head out, isn't it justified to fight back? Various Indian families boast that they "allow" their daughters and daughters-in-law to work, but traditional expectations remain. While celebrating days like this one, women are made to wake up at 4 am, eat a small meal, stay hungry and thirsty throughout the day, then wait till 12 am to get a meal, and worship their husbands. This automatically puts the husband on a pedestal, rendering the "request for equality" quite useless. Indian culture is filled with these reminders of a woman's position (at a step below the man's position). Jivitpatrika where mothers fast through the day and night for the well-being of their children; Rakshabandhan where a woman ties a thread on the brother's arm for protection; Kanyadaan where a woman is treated as property and transferred from one house to other, are all rituals where women and their bodies are sacrificed for the global good. The problem is systemic, and is not a one-off. The system urges the woman to provide for the family, feed them, fast for them, and rear children, leaving no room for argument. The wheel which feminist groups are trying to turn in a positive direction, is constantly blocked by societal pressures which stem from the idea that woman and man are not equal. The will of a woman is quite strong, but it is constantly put to test by irrational demands. I for one don't intend to fast, nor do I intend to be treated as a property. I am sure I belong to a silent majority who feels the same way. Ahead of assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has decided to plunge headlong into the battle for the throne of country's most populous state. In a letter addressed to his father and Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh, Akhilesh wrote, in his official capacity as the chief minister, that he will be going ahead with the 'vikas rath yatra' as planned. Akhilesh, in his letter to the party chief, points out that the SP 'vikas rath yatra' was initially planned for 3 October, which got delayed due to "certain reasons." Therefore, he stated that without any further delay, he will proceed with the election campaign. Akhilesh merely sought to inform Mulayam of his programme and stated that the detailed schedule of his campaign will be shared with the district heads from time to time. The chief minister also lamented the time lost in starting the campaign as he pointed out that all major political parties have already launched their campaigns. The letter, however, according to CNN-News18, is reflective of the ongoing strife between the Yadav clan due to two reasons: One, the letter is written in his official capacity as the chief minister and not as a party worker, which indicates he is trying to assert his position, and two, Akhilesh has merely sought to "inform" his father which according to the news channel is not in line with the Samajwadi Party's traditions where Mulayam's nod is usually sought before taking decisions. Akhilesh's letter is also giving rise to speculations that the UP chief minister may excuse himself from attending the grand silver jubilee celebration of the party due to be held on 5 November, just two days after the CM starts his rath yatra. Akhilesh Letter by Firstpost on Scribd Meanwhile, BJP spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao said that there is a deep rift in the family. The Samajwadi Party, however, tried to downplayed the development. Party spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia told CNN News-18 that he doesn't see anything mentioned that may indicate that Akhilesh may not attend the silver jubilee celebration and dubbed the report a mere presumption of news channels. When questioned about the tonality of the letter that appears to be informative in nature rather than a request, Bhatia said that he thought the letter was quite respectful in his opinion. "Media's job is difficult today as they are trying to read too much in a letter that merely seeks to inform the national president of a decision of the chief minister," Bhatia quipped in. It is instructive to note here that the Samajwadi Party had announced that Akhilesh Yadav will be its Chief Ministerial face only two days ago. Last week, Mulayam Singh had said that legislators would decide the next chief minister after the elections due early next year. This had triggered speculation that Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had lost the goodwill and support of his father and party chief. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Sulatapur (Uttar Pradesh) MP Varun Gandhi on Tuesday said that people of the country are fed up with "old political ways", and the youth now believes more in work than promises. "I'm an optimist and believe in doing things which can help people. They (people) are fed up with the old political ways. Today's youth believe in results rather than mere rhetorics," he said, addressing a gathering in Sultanpur after distributing houses built with MP-LAD (Member of Parliament Local Area Development) funds for the poor, Muslims and backward castes. According to an article in the Deccan Chronicle, Varun Gandhi, has donated about 100 homes with his salary and other donations, in a mostly private venture. Considering BJP's decision to not nominate a chief ministerial candidate in UP, youth icon Varun Gandhi is gaining veritable popularity in the state. Yet he distinguishes his work as distinct from politics, saying, "My work has nothing to do with politics, any political party or any government. It's purely a citizen revolution." These homes have allegedly been built on land belonging to local businessmen, rich farmers, and others. And he intends to provide for 2,000 houses by next year. In a report by The Economic Times, Gandhi said that he intends to have this project carried forward by a team of digital experts who would together put up a website and app to make the donation process simpler and connect small villages to the rest of the world. He categorically insisted that he wanted the housing initiative to be non-election related, disapproving of the sloganeering by a few workers and stating that he "believed in the legacy of goodwill" such as the work done by his father Sanjay Gandhi and his mother Maneka Gandhi. In a Times of India report, he called it the beginning of a new social movement. "The focus is on seeking smaller donations so that it turns into a mass movement, and is not confined to a select few," the report said. He also suggested "specialist constituencies" demarcating seats on the basis of specific occupations such as weavers, carpet-makers and so on, saying that he is hopeful about the future. According to Ambikanand Sahay of Firstpost, as many as 3,540 families have been rendered debt-free, that would have otherwise died of starvation. He himself contributed Rs 1.4 crore a culmination of seven-and-a-half years' salary and collected another Rs 16.2 crore. He first conducted extensive research into the issue, giving money first to those families affected by the suicide of the sole earning member, and then to those families "on the brink of survival". His team initiative reached out to the local elite, providing them the necessary data, making a model analysing farmer suicide. "I will continue my resolve of providing houses to the poor and focus on the entire state," he assured. Terming UP as his "karambhoomi", he said he will also concentrate on weavers' problems soon and solve their issues. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh's name may be doing rounds as the chief ministerial candidate in Uttar Pradesh, but it is Gandhi who has emerged as the BJP "poster boy" in Allahabad with hundreds of his hoardings dotting the city where the party is holding its two-day National Executive conclave. The party has almost painted the city saffron with its posters and hoardings on either side of the roads from railway station and airport to KP School ground, where the BJP conclave is being held. Alongside Gandhi's hoardings and posters of varying sizes in the city are those of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah, but it is Gandhi's face that is the most prominent. After noticing the posters on Sunday, Shah asked for a report on the issue from party cadres, and it was found out that two local party workers, who supported Gandhi, were involved in the act of putting hundreds of hoardings and posters in the city. With inputs from agencies Raipur: Chhattisgarh Congress on Wednesday suspended its rebel MLA RK Rai for "anti-party" activities but that did not deter him from making "derogatory" remarks against Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi. The decision to suspend Rai, considered a supporter of Chhattisgarh Janata Congress Party chief Ajit Jogi, was taken by Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee (CPCC) at a meeting of its Coordination Committee. "With the unanimous decision of the members of Coordination Committee, Rai has been suspended from the party," AICC General Secretary in-charge of Chhattisgarh BK Hariprasad told reporters after the meeting. The panel also recommended to the party's central disciplinary committee that the MLA from Gunderdehi be dismissed from Congress, he added. Hariprasad asserted Congress will fight the 2018 Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh under the leadership of the party's state chief Bhupesh Baghel and legislature party leader TS Singhdeo. Meanwhile, Rai welcomed the decision and said the action was taken against him for speaking against Rahul. "I was told the action has been taken against me for making comments against Rahul Gandhi (in the past). I can't call a donkey a horse. If the party feels my observation is wrong then either it is blind or (is) acting like a blind person," a defiant Rai said in a statement. "I am not at all sad with the move because I am a true and vocal tribal representative. I am free now," said the legislator, adding the decision has once again exposed the "anti-tribal" face of Congress. Chhattisgarh Congress had issued a show cause notice to Rai last week for "anti-party" activities and publicly making statements against the party. The police officer-turned-politician is said to be a staunch supporter of Jogi, who floated his own party after quitting Congress in June this year. Jogi had brought Rai into politics and helped him in getting a ticket from Gunderdehi seat in the 2013 Assembly polls. Thiruvananthapuram: Targeting BJP-RSS for the violence in politically volatile Kannur district in Kerala, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Wednesday that the saffron party and its outfits were "deliberately" causing breach of peace in the northern district. However, Vijayan made it clear that the government had an open mind on holding an all party peace meeting in Kannur and later, if necessary, at the state level as demanded by the Congress led UDF Opposition. "An all party meeting will be called in Kannur. But first let us convene a district level meeting or peace and later, if necessary, a state level meeting can be held", he said. Vijayan made the statement while replying to a notice for an adjournment motion on the situation in Kannur, which witnessed a series of political clashes between CPI(M), heading the ruling front, and BJP after the LDF government came to power four months ago. The lone BJP member, O Rajagopal, welcomed government's "sentiments" and said it should be made a reality. BJP wanted peace to prevail in the area. The frequent clashes in the district had dented the state's image outside, he said. However, it was the responsibility of the CPI(M) and the Chief Minister to bring peace in the region and they should take "sincere" efforts in this regard, he said, adding, it was a fact that violence increases in the region whenever the LDF comes to power, Rajagopal said. "It is also a fact that there is no party which has not become a victim of the CPI(M)'s violence of politics in the state", he said. Asserting that the government had taken all necessary steps to check violence, Vijayan, who holds the Home portfolio, said law and order situation in the district was "under control". He also sought the cooperation and support of all parties to bring peace in the area. "Unfortunately, the attitude of RSS has created this situation in Kannur and BJP and saffron outfits were deliberately creating trouble", Vijayan added. "RSS is making bombs and arms for fomenting tension in the area. Even people have been brought from outside the district for creating violence", he charged. Rejecting the opposition charge that seven political murders had taken place in Kannur since his government came to power, Vijayan said only "five were political murders". The Chief Minister, who hails from Kannur, also dismissed the charge that the district had become a "land of violence" and said it was only a "propaganda". The government was taking all initiatives to bring peace and police was acting "impartially", he said. Regional level peace meeting were also were being held. But, unfortunately, BJP and RSS have not cooperated so far, he said. A special Control room has been opened at two places in the district - Kuthuparambu and Thalassery, considered to be sensitive. Bomb and dog squads were also in the area conducting searches. Vijayan also exhorted that people of all political parties should change their mindset and shed the attitude of enmity and violence and instead work for peace and development. Seeking leave for the motion, K C Joseph (Cong), who also hails from Kannur, said the district had witnessed seven political murders after the LDF came to power and blamed both CPI(M) and BJP for the violence. Stating that both the parties were "two sides of the same coin", he requested them to shed the attitude of "an eye for an eye". Hitting out at the BJP and CPI-M, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala said leaders of these parties were "encouraging violence" through their statements. However, he welcomed the political process announced by the Chief Minister, but staged a walkout along with other UDF members in protest against the ineffective attitude of police in checking violence. Former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy wanted Vijayan to announce the date for the proposed all party meet and said "whole state looks forward to have peace in the area". A UDF delegation had met Vijayan yesterday and appealed to him to convene an all-party meeting to work out a strategy to end political violence in Kannur, where CPI(M) and BJP workers were killed earlier this month. As the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Election comes closer, the cracks in Samajwadi Party seems to be getting wider. Earlier on Wednesday afternoon, as reported on Firstpost, UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav announced his poll plans for the upcoming election in a letter addressed to the party members and chief Mulayam Singh Yadav. But it seems that senior Yadav is not happy with the steps Akhilesh has taken and is reportedly planning a hard-hitting reply to his son, CNN-News18 reported on Wednesday. Akhilesh pointed announced his plans to begin the poll campaign with Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra, starting from 3 November. Interestingly, Mulayam Singh Yadav was about to announce the official poll campaign at the party's 25th anniversary on 21 October, and this letter seems to have taken the thunder away from the poll campaign. Quoting party sources, CNN-News18 said that the Mulayam camp is worried about the letter, and is preparing a reply. The TV news channel also said that according to party sources, the feud in the party has reached a point of no return, and senior Yadav will decide on Akhilesh's fate in the party. Commenting on Akhilesh Yadav' letter, Samajwadi Party's Gaurav Bhatia told CNN-News18 that while Akhilesh Yadav has been instrumental in the party's rise, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Shivpal Yadav cannot be discounted. #BREAKING Mulayam camp worried post the letter, is preparing for his reply: SP Srcs to @maryashakil pic.twitter.com/2GhzEgvL05 News18 (@CNNnews18) October 19, 2016 The family feud in the Samajwadi Party started way back in September, when Shivapal Yadav expelled some of Akhilesh's close asssociates. And over the time, the party has reversed several of the decisions taken by Akhilesh including his decision to not merge Qaumi Ekta Dal into Samajwadi Party. The Tamil Nadu Police has reportedly arrested eighth person for spreading rumour about Jayalalithaa's health, this time around a 28-year-old youth who runs a small shop in his village near Tuticorin, for a Facebook post on the ailing chief minister. According to a report published in Indian Express, the youth named, Sagayam, was arrested from his home by a police team on Wednesday morning. "They came and told his mother that they need to question him in connection with an inquiry on his passport. Soon he was taken in the police vehicle. Few minutes later, the team was at home again to return his valuable possessions including a gold ornament and told the relatives that he is being taken to Chennai for further questioning for spreading rumours about Jayalalithaas health, the report said, quoting a relative of the accused. The report adds that while "polices sources confirmed that Sagayam did commit a crime by using Facebook to spread wrong information about Jayalalithaas health. What exactly he shared in social media remains unclear". The arrest was also reported by NDTV. Man in Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin arrested for @facebook post on Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, alleges his family NDTV (@ndtv) October 19, 2016 According to The Week, around "55 cases have been registered by the police in Tamil Nadu against people who have been spreading rumours or even talking about Jayalalithaas health in public platforms". And while the police has cracked down hard on those spreading rumours, the absence of official updates on Jayalalithaa's health over the last 10 days had given rise to several new rumours around Jayalalithaa's health. The arrests have been covered in several international portals as well, including in The Guardian and BBC. India police arrest two amid 'violence and rumours' about health of Indian politician Jayalalithaa https://t.co/LyqjyNjxYT Guardian World (@guardianworld) October 12, 2016 However, DMK treasurer M K Stalin has reportedly alleged that the ruling party, AIADMK, has been using rumours as an excuse to harass DMK cadres. According to PTI, the police had on 16 October registered case against 20 people, including DMK councillor, Naaneethakrishnan, in Pollachi, for allegedly spreading rumours on the health of Jayalalithaa who is undergoing treatment at Apollo Hospital in Chennai since 22 September. On 15 October, the police had arrested a 24-year-old man, Antony Jesuraj, from Tuticorin district, for allegedly posting rumours on the social media. According to The Week, on 13 October, the "Coimbatore police picked up two bank employees a clerk and a jewellery appraiser, R Suresh and L Ramesh, based on a complaint filed by AIADMK functionary called Punitha Devi who overheard their mocking remarks about Jayalalithaas health". Now with Sagayam's arrest, the number of persons taken into custody in the state in this regard has gone up to eight. It looks like there is going to be a battle of icons versus counter-icons in poll bound Uttar Pradesh. As the euphoria surrounding the festival of Dussehra ebbs away and the election fever catches up in North India, it seems that the historic Ram versus Ravana battle is going to be sidelined. This time around, the God-incarnate king of Ayodhya, Lord Ram, will be pitted against Dalit icons like EV Ramasamy Periyar, Jyotiba Phule or BR Ambedkar. There is a strong possibility that the Samajwadi Party (SP) would play along with BJP's brand of 'soft Hindutva' politics. The reason behind such a move is not that difficult to perceive. The SP would not hesitate to rediscover socialist ideologue Ram Manhohar Lohias love for Lord Ram as a ready made antidote to BJPs move of constructing a Ram museum. The BSP supremo Mayawati, on the other hand, cannot tread the same path. Adept at discovering powerful Dalit icons all across the state in the past two decades, she cannot let BJPs narrative go unchallenged. If you have any doubt, scratch your memory and recall the events that took place post 2 June, 1995, that saw the coalition of the BSP-BJP alliance install Mayawati as the chief minister for the first time. A group of BJP leaders acted as saviours for Mayawati, who was literally under siege for hours on end, surrounded by goons unleashed by Mulayam Singh Yadavs SP. The bonhomie between BJP-BSP was all too evident as Mayawati tied rakhis (ties of a sisterly bond) to two BJP leaders Murli Manohar Joshi and Lalji Tandon. But that dramatic move was the end of it. In less than a month, she unravelled her agenda and began to name parks and museums after social reformers known for their iconoclastic deposition. Though the Babri mosque had been demolished, the Ayodhya issue and Lord Ram were still at their prime in the Hindutva agenda. Back then, Mayawatis tactical shift caught the Hindutva leaders practically off guard. For instance, in UPs collective consciousness, Periyar was an unknown entity. Within a month of taking over as chief minister with the help of BJPs support Mayawati stirred the hornets nest by declaring the launch of a Periyar memorial and study centre. The objective behind the move was to conduct comprehensive research on the preachings of Periyar, whose powerful exposition countering Ramayanas narrative had led to the emergence of the Dravidian movement in Tamil Nadu. A saffron clad social reformer known for his radical views against godliness and the greatness of Ram, Periyars name evoked strong protests from the Hindutva fold. But Mayawati remained unfazed. Over the past two years, she established Periyar and Maharashtrian social reformer Phule as counter-icons to Hindu gods. Phule consistently challenged the Brahmanical vision of the Hindu religion and outrightly rejected the dogmas and rituals associated with it, much to the chagrin of the Chitpavan Brahmins of Maharashtra. Of late, Periyar and Phule have acquired iconic statuses in the Dalits consciousness for breaking the exploitative clutches of the upper castes, particularly the Brahmins. These leaders weaved an effective narrative and discovered new idioms that ran counter to the preachings of established religious Hindu texts, like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. At first glance, the BJP seems to be caught up in a time warp. The partys decision to cash in on Ram, by declaring to build a museum in his name, is a puerile political act on many counts. Perhaps BJPs poll strategists have greater faith in the naivety of people than in relying on their own politics. Since 1993, the issue of Ram and Ayodhya has only brought diminishing returns for the party. Then why did the BJP rely on an issue which is rendered electorally futile? It seems that BJP has lost the plot in the countrys most populous state. The manner in which BJP president Amit Shah has been roping in those with criminal antecedents within the Hindutva fold across the state has turned the party as much of a pro-criminal unit as any other regional outfits in the state. At the same time, some of the most discredited leaders from other parties are getting attracted towards the BJP. Curiously enough, a group of BJP strategists see this trend as a sign of the partys accretion of strength. In reality, though, BJP has already lost the battle of perception in a state where peoples yearning for change is quite discernible. In the present political scenario, the BJP seems to be emulating its adversaries in the worst possible manner. As the elections draw nearer, the party seems to be drifting aimlessly and desperately, using all tricks to gain some ground. The plan to build a museum for Lord Ram is one such stratagem crafted to exploit the emotional aspect of the Hindu electorate. By all accounts, it is a strategy too clever by half whose hollowness will be exposed sooner rather than later. It would be beyond the BJPs capacity to turn the museum for Lord Ram into a movement for the liberation of an idol of Ram Lala, held captive in the sixteenth century Babri Mosque at Ayodhya. Similarly, Mayawati and her BSP would pose a challenge which is far more formidable than adversaries like VP Singh and Mulayam Singh Yadav. Even surveys for UP, conducted and commissioned by the BJP for internal consumption, have cautioned the party leadership against directly taking on Mayawati, as it would drift the extremely backward classes (EBCs) away from the Hindutva fold. Needless to say then, that if Lord Ram is pitted against Periyar, Phule or Ambedkar, Mayawati would emerge as the clear winner. But self-delusion is an affliction that rarely gets cured. The BJPs inability to recognise its own limitations will prove to be its nemesis in the upcoming UP elections. New Delhi: Noted Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen on Wednesday slammed those who are boycotting Pakistani artistes, saying terrorists should be banned not artistes, and cautioned that such actions were similar to Hitler's idea of 'blood purity'. In a series of tweets, Taslima, who is living in exile in India after facing death threats from fundamentalists in Bangladesh, said, "Ban terrorists. Don't ban artists. Artistes belong to the places where art is honoured. Ban terrorists. Don't ban artists. Artists belong to the places where art is honoured. taslima nasreen (@taslimanasreen) October 19, 2016 Today u ban Pakistani artists.Tomorrow u ban B'deshi writers.U will live with urselves. 'Pure Indian' blood.Hitler's idea of 'blood purity' taslima nasreen (@taslimanasreen) October 19, 2016 "Today you ban Pakistani artists. Tomorrow you ban Bangladeshi writers. You will live with yourselves. 'Pure Indian' blood. Hitler's idea of 'blood purity'." Hitler, who led Germany during World War II, propagated the idea of a "pure Aryan race" supremacy under Nazism, leading to the killings of millions of Jews and ban on mixed marriages. Taslima's came a day after filmmaker Karan Johar said he will not "engage with talent" from Pakistan in future and made a fervent appeal against stalling his upcoming film 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' that features Fawad Khan. In the aftermath of the Uri terror attack last month in which 19 Indian jawans were killed, the MNS issued an ultimatum to Pakistani artistes to leave India. They also threatened to stop the screening of films featuring artistes from Pakistan. Subsequently, Indian Motion Pictures Producers Association passed a motion to ban the artistes from the neighbouring country. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India recently decided not to screen the films with Pakistani actors in four states -- Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. On Tuesday, Taslima had also tweeted on the issue of triple talaq saying, "No religious law is good. Better to have a strict separation between religion and state. Uniform civil code based on equality and justice urgently necessary." Islamabad: A tea-seller named Arshad Khan, who broke the internet thanks to his intense blue eyes, has now bagged a modelling deal with a fashion portal here. Retail site fitin.pk has signed on Arshad as a model for an undisclosed amount and his first shoot is already out, reported Dawn. Arshad, 18, hails from Kohat and has been making chai at Itwar Bazaar (Sunday Bazaar) in Islamabad for three months now. He has never been to school. He became an internet sensation after a local photographer posted his picture on social media and the story was picked up by several media organisations. The youngster is very happy about his newfound fame. He says that he'll definitely model and act in films if he gets the chance. Arshad's maternal uncle agreed and said that if he gets any film or modelling offers, he will fully support him and stand by his side. Las Vegas: Seeking to put the Democrats on the back foot, Donald Trump has roped-in President Barack Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother to be his guest at the third and final presidential debate here, US media reported on Tuesday. Hillary Clinton will be joined at the prime-time debate by two well-known billionaires who are backing her campaign, in what may be an attempt to rattle Trump, the controversial Republican nominee by subtly questioning his own net worth. Meg Whitman, the Hewlett-Packard CEO and former Republican California gubernatorial candidate, and Mark Cuban, the outspoken billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, will both be Clinton's guests at Wednesday's third and final presidential debate, CNN reported. Meanwhile, Trump is countering with Malik, President Obama's half-brother and a ghost from Clinton's past: Patricia Smith, the mother of Benghazi victim Sean Smith, who has accused the former secretary of state of "murdering" her son. The New York Post first reported Trump's invitation to Obama's half-brother. The Post also reported that Malik Obama called now-deceased Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi one of his best friends a potential source of awkwardness for Smith. Malik Obama, who was born in Kenya and is an American citizen, voiced his support for Trump in July, saying he hoped to meet the Republican nominee. Trump's feelings are mutual. "I look very much forward to meeting and being with Malik," Trump said today. "He gets it far better than his brother." Malik Obama shares the same father with the president but has a different mother. He told the Post that he blames Clinton, who was secretary of state at the time Gadaffi was toppled and killed, for making the situation worse in Libya. Clinton invited both Cuban and Whitman, campaign spokeswoman Jennifer Palmieri said, and the duo agreed to attend. Whitman, a longtime Republican, endorsed Clinton earlier Whitman, a longtime Republican, endorsed Clinton earlier this year, saying in a statement that she would vote for and donate to Clinton. Since then, Whitman has headlined events for Clinton and contributed a considerable amount of money to her campaign. Cuban sat in the front row at Clinton's first debate against Trump, a move that was intended to shake the Republican nominee because the Dallas Mavericks owner has been so outspoken against the businessman. Trump lashed out at Cuban for attending the debate with Clinton, calling him "dopey." At the second presidential debate, Trump appeared with three women who have in the past accused former President Bill Clinton of inappropriate sexual behavior as part of an effort to rattle Hillary Clinton. Trump invited Kathleen Willey, Juanita Broaddrick, Paula Jones and another woman, Kathy Shelton, whose alleged rapist was defended by Clinton as a young lawyer. Quito, Ecuador: Ecuador said Tuesday it had cut the internet access of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is holed up at its London embassy, due to leaks by the anti-secrecy website that could impact the US election. WikiLeaks has in recent weeks published a damaging trove of hacked emails from Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, which accuses it of trying to sway the election in favor of Republican Donald Trump. "The government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states. It does not interfere in external electoral processes, nor does it favor any particular candidate," the Ecuadoran foreign ministry said in a statement. In consequence, the ministry said, it decided to "temporarily restrict" communications at the embassy. US officials have formally blamed state-sponsored Russian hackers for the hacking of internal emails from the Democratic Party and other institutions. On Monday WikiLeaks accused Ecuador of cutting off Assange's internet communications at the behest of US Secretary of State John Kerry, citing "multiple US sources." The United States denied the allegation. "While our concerns about WikiLeaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down WikiLeaks is false," State Department spokesman John Kirby said Tuesday. "Reports that Secretary Kerry had conversations with Ecuadorian officials about this are simply untrue. Period." Ecuador also implicitly denied the claim in its statement. "Ecuador's foreign policy responds to sovereign decisions alone and does not yield to pressure from other states," it said. Ecuador reaffirmed its decision to grant Assange asylum, and said the restriction on communications at its embassy did not hinder WikiLeaks itself. "This temporary restriction does not prevent the WikiLeaks organization from carrying out its journalistic activities," it said. International intrigue Assange fled to Ecuador's London embassy in June 2012. The 45-year-old Australian is fighting extradition to Sweden to face a rape accusation. He denies the allegation and says he fears Sweden wants to hand him over to the United States to face trial for the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified US military and diplomatic documents in 2010. WikiLeaks, which surged into the international spotlight with that hoard of damaging leaks, has returned to the headlines this month thanks to the hacking of Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta's email account. Clinton's campaign has blamed the Russian government for hacking the data, a view shared by the US government. Washington last week accused Moscow of trying to "interfere" in the 2016 White House race by directing the cyber attacks, vowing to respond at an undisclosed time and place. The Kremlin has dismissed the charges. In the latest batch of leaked documents, WikiLeaks published three private, paid speeches Clinton made to Wall Street investment giant Goldman Sachs after standing down as secretary of state and before launching her White House bid. Clinton's campaign team has not contested the authenticity of the documents. New York: Indian-American hotelier Vikram Chatwal has been charged with criminal mischief for allegedly trying to light two dogs on fire, an allegation his lawyer has denied. Chatwal, 44 turned himself in to the police on Wednesday early morning at 7. He has been charged with criminal mischief, torture and injure animal, reckless endangerment and arson, a New York Police Department official told PTI. According to a report in local news website patch.com, the charges stem from an 7 October incident in which Chatwal allegedly got into an argument with a woman walking the dogs outside Chatwals home. Chatwal allegedly pulled out a lighter and aerosol can and used them to burn the two dogs, the report said. It cited the police to say that the dogs suffered minor burns in the incident. Chatwal, pleaded not guilty to the charges during his appearance in a Manhattan court on Tuesday. Chatwal's bail was set at $50,000 and the next hearing in the case is set for 8 December. His attorney Arthur Aidala told PTI that Chatwal denies all the charges and "proclaims his innocence". He said he is a non-violent person who would never injure an animal or human being. "His personality and disposition in his 44 years is not of somebody who would injure another animal or another human being," Aidala said. He informed the judge that Chatwal's "personality and disposition is that of a calm, peaceful and non-violent person" as Chatwal himself owns many dogs and even takes care of a horse. "He is known as being an animal lover. We vehemently disagrees with the set of facts that the prosecutor put forth in court," Aidala said. Aidala said he also informed the judge that the dogs in this case were not hurt and were not even taken to the veterinarian until days after the alleged incident occurred. He said even the case the prosecutor puts forth says that some of the hair on the dogs' back was burnt but none of the dogs were burned and neither did they suffer. It was among Chatwals' priority to make sure that the dogs in question were unharmed and were well-treated and cared for, Aidala said. "The big takeaway from this is that the dogs were never hurt, that was very important to Vikram and his whole family to make sure no one is accusing him of actually hurting the dogs. Even the prosecutor said the dogs were never hurt. "What flies in the face of the charges is that Chatwal is just not the kind of person who is going to attack anybody, let alone the dogs walking down the street," he said. Aidala said he would meet with the prosecutors in the coming months and explain to them what really happened. "We will try to work out some sort of disposition regarding case," he added. By Sebastien Malo NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Soon after Iraqi lawyer Khaleel Aldakhi and his wife heard the chilling news that Islamic State militants were enslaving Yazidi women and children in Iraq, they began plotting a rescue mission from their home in the northern city of Dohuk.During a 2014 visit to refugee camps in Iraq's Kurdistan region to get more information about the Yazidi women and girls who had disappeared, Aldakhi met a couple whose 17-year-old daughter was held captive by the Islamist group.They offered Aldakhi their phone so he could talk to the young woman, who had managed to keep in touch with her family."She was saying that she wanted to commit suicide," said Aldakhi, 39, who was speaking through an interpreter in New York. "I told her, 'I'm going to help you'."Days later Aldakhi and a quickly assembled network of collaborators had freed the girl, Maha, and smuggled her out of the Iraqi city of Mosul where she was being held captive.Two years on, Aldakhi and his wife Ameena Saeed Hasan have turned what they thought would be a one-time rescue mission into a full-time underground operation, which they say has saved some 170 girls from Islamic State.Their work has won them an award from U.S.-based activist group Human Rights First, which was due to host a gala dinner later on Wednesday in recognition of their courage."After we rescued one and two girls ... the families heard we helped [kidnapped] girls so they came to us and gave us the locations of their daughters," said Hasan, 36, a former member Iraq's of parliament who once represented Sinjar district, where the couple used to live. SLEEPLESS NIGHTS Islamic State killed, captured or enslaved thousands of Yazidis when it overran the town of Sinjar in northern Iraq in August 2014.The United States, the European Parliament and the Council of Europe have described the group's actions against the Yazidis, a religious sect whose beliefs combine elements of several ancient Middle Eastern religions, as genocide.The United Nations estimates that more than 3,000 Yazidi women and girls are still being held captive, some as sex slaves. As parents of a young daughter, Aldakhi and Hasan said they could not tolerate others families' suffering."It's affected me most as a woman and as a mother," said Hasan, who carries around a mobile phone whose cover displays a picture of their 7-year-old daughter in a bright red dress.About one in every 100 abducted girls and women is in contact with the couple's secret network of dozens of underground collaborators deep inside Islamic State-occupied territory, Aldakhi estimates.Since their first rescue, they have received thousands of calls from enslaved women and desperate families, they said. Each rescue operation involves precise planning, accomplices and drivers willing to put their lives on the line as well as safe houses to hide the girls who sometimes are in touch using a smuggled cell phone.Logistics for each rescue can cost between $3,000 to $10,000, money that mostly comes from the Iraqi Kurdish authorities, Aldakhi said.The constant life or death operations take an emotional toll, said Aldakhi."It's very difficult to hear someone say they need to be rescued and (you) say you're not able to help, especially when they are women," he said. "At the beginning I couldn't handle it, I couldn't sleep at night."The couple do not rule out an attempt on their lives even though they now live in the relative safety of the Iraqi town of Dohuk. Despite the dangers, Aldakhi said he could not give up the work. "I won't stop this work until this work stops," he said. (Reporting by Sebastien Malo, Editing by Katie Nguyen.; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, property rights and climate change. Visit news.trust.org) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Washington: Islamic State jihadists are trapping Mosul's civilians to use as human shields, the Pentagon said Tuesday as President Barack Obama warned of "significant" potential displacement as the offensive for the Iraqi city progresses. Authorities and aid agencies are bracing for a massive flow of civilians fleeing the northern Iraqi city as the fight to seize the last remaining IS stronghold in the country progresses. The battle, which began Monday, has so far focused on the villages surrounding Iraq's second-largest city, most of which are traditionally Kurdish. Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis said IS had for weeks kept Mosul's estimated population of 1.5 million from escaping, with the start of the offensive offering them no respite. "We know they are being used as human shields, absolutely," Davis said. "They are being held there against their will. We have not seen any change in the last day of people leaving or fleeing." Although there has been no mass exodus of civilians so far, Obama warned of "significant" displacement in the coming weeks, saying the United Nations and other aid groups were ready to respond. "We have put together plans and infrastructure for dealing with a potential humanitarian crisis that are as extensive as the military plans," Obama told reporters. United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric said an estimated 200,000 people are expected to be displaced in the first weeks of the offensive, growing to as many as one million under a worst-case scenario. For now at least, Iraqi authorities and the US-led coalition want civilians to stay put, fearing they will be executed if they are caught leaving. A US B-52 superbomber dropped thousands of leaflets giving advice to the people of Mosul, explaining how to minimize risks to life and property during the battle. Masked by smoke The fighting so far has been fairly light, mainly focused on villages east of Mosul that Kurdish peshmerga fighters are reclaiming from IS. Davis said jihadists were deploying suicide-car attackers and had been attempting to thwart air raids and intelligence drones by igniting giant pits of oil and tires to create thick smoke to hide their movements and positions. "We've seen very good progress," he said. "It's going to be a while. There's a lot of movement they have to do to get in (to Mosul) but it's very much under way." A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the smoke clouds hadn't had any tactical effect. Estimates vary for the number of IS fighters inside Mosul, where they have had two years to dig in, build tunnels and booby trap countless roads and buildings. Davis said a high-end maximum number of jihadists in the city and surrounding areas was a little more than 5,000. Officials fear the jihadists may attempt to use rudimentary chemical agents, as they have previously, particularly in the battle's later stages. Military planners also acknowledge it may take weeks for Iraqi security forces to arrive in Mosul proper, as the roads into the city are expected to be very heavily mined. Approximately 10,000 Kurds are moving in on the city, with another 20,000 Iraqi security forces and police following behind. The plan is for the Kurds not to enter Mosul itself, as it is a Sunni-majority city. The US-led coalition has trained tens of thousands of Iraqi fighters and is providing continual air and artillery cover. About 100 US advisory troops are on the ground near Mosul but are staying away from the front lines, Davis said. Khazer, Iraq: A senior Iraqi general on Wednesday called on Iraqis fighting for the Islamic State group in Mosul to surrender as a wide-scale operation to retake the militant-held city entered its third day. Lieutenant General Talib Shaghati told reporters at a military base on Tuesday that up to 6,000 IS fighters are inside the city. He did not say how many of them are foreigners. IS captured Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, in a lightning advance in the summer of 2014. The extremist group has suffered a string of defeats over the past year, and Mosul is its last major urban bastion in Iraq. So far, the militants have put up fierce resistance in villages surrounding the city, where most of the fighting has been concentrated. IS has sent trucks loaded with explosives careening toward the front lines and fired mortars to slow the Iraqi forces' advance. An Iraqi officer from the 9th Division told The Associated Press that his troops were now around 1 kilometer (half mile) away from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul. Over the past day, IS sent 12 car bombs, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, he said, adding that Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds. The officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters, did not provide specific figures. The operation to retake Mosul is the largest launched by the Iraqi army since the 2003 US-led invasion. Some 25,000 troops, including Sunni tribal fighters, Kurdish forces known as the peshmerga and state-sanctioned Shiite militias known as the Popular Mobilization Units are approaching the city from different directions. The participation of the Shiite militias in the operation to retake the mainly Sunni Mosul has raised concerns that the campaign could inflame sectarian tensions. Rights groups have accused the Shiite militias of abuses in past campaigns against IS-held areas. In a bid to alleviate those concerns, Shiite militia leaders on Tuesday announced that they will only focus on capturing the mostly Shiite town of Tal Afar to the west of Mosul, and not enter the city itself. "The only troops who will enter Mosul are the army and police, not the Popular Mobilization Units or the peshmerga," said Hadi al-Amiri, the leader of the Badr Brigade, one of the largest Shiite militias. "This has been agreed upon," he said at a press conference in the Shiite holy city of Najaf. Amnesty International said in a report released Tuesday that Iraqi government and paramilitary forces detained, tortured or killed hundreds of Sunni Arab civilians fleeing IS-held areas during the operation to retake the Sunni city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, earlier this year. The Iraqi government has denied any systematic violations by security forces or the militias, and says individuals have been held accountable for occasional abuses. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) describes itself as the "second largest inter-governmental organisation after the United Nations" with a membership of 57 states across four continents. It claims to be the "collective voice of the Muslim world" which works to protect their interests "in the spirit of promoting international peace and harmony". Founded in 1969 after a summit that took place in Rabat, Morocco, the organisation is composed of three main bodies: The Islamic Summit, the Council of Foreign Ministers and the General Secretariat. The 43rd session of the OIC is currently underway in Uzbekistan and has, among many topics, discussed the issue of the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar and the India-Pakistan water war at the meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers, which precedes the actual session. OIC Specia Envoy to #Myanmar briefs the contact group meeting on Myanmar on the humanitarian crisis of the #Rohingya pic.twitter.com/0T8EVCfxqc OIC (@OIC_OCI) October 18, 2016 On Tuesday, Special Assistant to Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Tariq Fatemi said that India wants to use water as a weapon against it by "flagrantly violating" its international treaty obligations, apart from condemning India's human rights violations in Kashmir. Fatemi also called for the international community's attention towards India's "belligerent and aggressive designs". Pakistan had earlier warned the unilateral revocation of the Indus Waters Treaty by India will be considered as an 'act of war'. Fatemi, who is leading Pakistans delegation to the 43rd session of the OIC Foreign Ministers' meeting, called upon the international community to reject India's claim that Kashmir is an integral part of India. It has to be noted that India is not part of the OIC: As the story goes, King Faisal of Saudi Arabia and King Hussein of Jordan jointly told Pakistan's then President Yahya Khan that it made sense for India to be part of the global Islamic group, since the country had a sizable Muslim population. However, Khan boycotted Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Morocco's decision and banned India, a decision that stands till now, according to a report in The Times of India. It also adds that India was also part of the goof up by letting ambassador Gurbachan Singh lead the talks and "not an Indian Muslim leader". It's a surprising omission India has close to 11 percent of the total Muslim population of the world. But there's no surprise as to who is continuously opposing India' membership to the OIC Pakistan. In 2000, Tehran was in favour of India joining the OIC, even as there needs to be a consensus in that matter. The Hindu reported that Pakistan was likely to object India's entry, giving it a free rein to promote "anti-India resolutions", especially on Kashmir. During Saudi Arabia King Abdullah's visit to India in 2006 (he was the chief guest on Republic Day), he was eager to see India play an active role in OIC, which Pakistan immediately disapproved. Lately, India has been reaching out to countries in West Asia to convince them of the country's campaign against terror, reported The Hindu, while also reaching out to many OIC member countries. An OIC contact group on Jammu and Kashmir that held a meet in New York in September this year, noted Turkey and Azerbaijan's support to Pakistan, which called for a "cessation of violence" in Kashmir. On Monday, the Jeddah chapter of the Kashmir Committee, expressed solidarity with Kashmiris in the wake of the ongoing unrest that they describe were being carried out by Indian forces. A report in the Saudi Gazette noted: The committee condemned continuing atrocious human rights violations in the Indian Occupied Kashmir, which include the use of brutal force to physically target innocent civilians including women and children, denial of the right to peaceful protest and assembly, protracted and strict curfews and unlawful detention of human rights activists and civilians. Another reason as to why India does not yet have its membership status is because of the provision in Article 3(e) of the Conditions for Accession to Observer Status at OIC, reported Dawn. That a state applying for observer status should not be in conflict with any of the member states and the J&K dispute with Pakistan makes it difficult. China, a key ally of Pakistan, had requested for observer status back in 2012. Pakistan backs China in this endeavour (apart from supporting it in the Non-Aligned Movement), reported Livemint, and had earlier shielded China against the latter's remarks on Beijing's crackdown on Uighur Muslims in the Xinjiang province In the April summit of the OIC in Istanbul, Islamabad widely broadcasted the fact Islamic world leaders had asked India to put into effect pending UN Security Council resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir, while expressing concern at violation of human rights by Indian security forces and backed the Kashmiri struggle for "self-determination", reported The Indian Express. KP Nayar, writing for The Telegraph, reported that the OIC's 'contact group' mobilised Masood Khan (the so-called president of 'Azad Kashmir') to look at the possibility "of a resolution in the general assembly's third committee, which deals with humanitarian issues, on the situation in Kashmir". He further writes that Islamabad imposed Khan as the president in the parts of Kashmir that Pakistan occupies with the intention of "internationalising the Kashmir dispute with India". With inputs from PTI Islamabad: Amid Indo-Pak tension, Pakistan's media regulatory authority on Wednesday decided to enforce a complete ban on Indian TV and radio contents from Friday and warned that the licences of those found guilty of violating the ban will be suspended. Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) decided to ban airing of Indian content from 21 October at the request of the federal government, it said. "The ban will come into effect at 3pm on 21 October, and radio and television stations which violate the ban will have their licences suspended without a prior show cause notice," Pemra said in a statement. The ban extends to all Indian content on cable and radio being aired in Pakistan. The authority also decided to cancel one-sided rights given to Indian media by the government of former military dictator Pervez Musharraf in 2006. PEMRA has already decided to get tough with Indian contents after complaints that most of the local channels were using more than five per cent foreign contents as allowed by it. The regulator on 31 August said that strict action would be taken against the channels airing foreign content more than the prescribed limit and traders selling illegal DTH sets. The decision was implemented from 16 October as Pemra launched the crackdown on those channels using foreign contents illegally. Earlier in October, Pemra granted its chairman Absar Alam final authority to revoke or suspend licences of companies illegally using Indian content. Tensions have ran high between India and Pakistan since the terror attack on an Indian army base in Uri on 18 September. Later, India said it carried out "surgical strikes" across LoC and destroyed terrorist launchpads on 28 September. Pakistan has denied any surgical strikes took place but said two of their soldiers were killed in cross-border firing by Indian Army. Moscow: The Russian military says a US-led coalition airstrike on a Syrian village in the province of Aleppo has killed six civilians. The military's Reconciliation Center in Syria said Tuesday's strike on the village of Hassajek also wounded four people and destroyed two houses. Russian military surveillance spotted two Belgian F-16 fighter jets over the area at the time of the strike, the center said late Tuesday. It said Russian and Syrian warplanes weren't flying over the area that day. Russia's Tass news agency reported from Brussels that the Belgian defense minister denied Belgian aircraft had struck the area. Russia said Russian and Syrian warplanes halted their airstrikes on the besieged city of Aleppo, in preparation for a temporary pause in the military push that Moscow has announced for Thursday. Russian officials said the "humanitarian pause" should allow civilians and militants safe passage out of the city. The Russian offer comes after a proposal by the UN Syria envoy, Staffan de Mistura, to allow al-Qaida-linked militants to leave Aleppo in exchange for a truce and a local administration for the eastern districts. Rebels there, along with many residents, have rejected the offer. Russia's announcement did not include any promises of an extended cease-fire or a local administration in and around Aleppo. The move follows the collapse of a US-Russian-brokered cease-fire that lasted less than a week and collapsed amid renewed fighting in Aleppo. Moscow has blamed Washington for the failure to deliver on its pledge to encourage Syria's Western-backed rebels to sever ties with al-Qaeda militants. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the proposed break should make that happen. "There is not a single reason not to complete the separation," she said at a briefing. "In the nearest time we must witness moderate opposition severing ties with terrorists." Baikonur: Two Russian cosmonauts and a Nasa astronaut soared into orbit in a Soyuz spacecraft Wednesday at the start of a two-day journey to the International Space Station. Nasa's Shane Kimbrough and Andrei Borisenko and Sergei Ryzhikov of Roscosmos blasted off at 0805 GMT from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan after their launch had been delayed by nearly one month because of technical issues. The trio's mission is expected to last just over four months with docking at the orbital laboratory taking place on Friday. They will join Roscosmos' Anatoly Ivanishin, Nasa's Kate Rubins, and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), whose return to Earth is set for 30 October. Roscomos said in a statement that the launch had been "successful" and that the three astronauts are scheduled to arrive at the space centre at 9.59 GMT on Friday. The 49-year-old Kimbrough, who logged less than 16 days in space during a single mission aboard the US space shuttle Endeavour, will command the Expedition 50 aboard the orbital laboratory. "All systems go!! 24 hours and counting until Soyuz MC-02 Expedition 49/50 launch!" Kimbrough, a father-of-three who served as a helicopter pilot in the 1990-1991 Gulf War, wrote on Twitter Tuesday. ALL SYSTEMS GO!! 24 hours and counting until Soyuz MC-02 Expedition 49/50 launch! https://t.co/LUmX7IQ4jS Shane Kimbrough (@astro_kimbrough) October 18, 2016 Roscosmos flight engineer Borisenko spent 164 days in space for his first mission aboard the ISS in 2011, while Ryzhikov is entering the cosmos for the first time. By Stephanie Nebehay | GENEVA GENEVA Senior U.S. and Russian officials held talks on Wednesday aimed at agreeing on how to separate al Qaeda-linked militants from rebel fighters in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo so as to pave the way for a ceasefire.Michael Ratney, the U.S. special envoy for Syria, led Washington's delegation while Moscow sent military experts whose names were not released. It was not clear if the talks would continue on Thursday.The Russians and Americans were joined by officials from regional powers such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, but not Syria's ally Iran which was not invited, a Western diplomat said. "The idea is to engage the Russians in a discussion on the issue," the Western diplomat said before the meeting.The Geneva talks follow a meeting between the United States and its allies on Tuesday that sought to coordinate efforts toward a new ceasefire after Russia, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's more powerful ally, unexpectedly announced it had halted air strikes on rebel-held areas of Aleppo. Russia favours a U.N. proposal to evacuate jihadists belonging to the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham militant group, formerly known as al-Nusra, from the besieged zone of eastern Aleppo in return for a ceasefire.Important countries, like Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar, which have influence over the mainstream rebel groups, are in a position to suggest to those groups to tell the al-Nusra fighters that it is time to go to Idlib and therefore take away any alleged justification, or alibi, for the heavy bombing of urban areas of eastern Aleppo, the U.N. special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, told Swedish daily Svenska Dagbladet. Idlib is a largely rebel-held area of northwestern Syria.Russia has said a planned eight-hour ceasefire on Thursday will be extended if other rebels clearly distance themselves from Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, but it will not prolong the pause unilaterally.The Russians have no interest in getting to a point where they have to participate in the destruction of a city in order to fight a small group of fighters listed as terrorists by the U.N. and be remembered in history for that," de Mistura said. The last ceasefire fell apart in September, since when Russian and Syrian forces have undertaken a massive bombing campaign against eastern Aleppo in which hospitals have been destroyed and hundreds of civilians killed.Assad argues that his forces have a constitutional duty to protect the civilian population and rid the city of "terrorists".The task of separating "moderate" rebels from Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, designated as a terrorist group by the U.N., is complicated because they have long fought side-by-side and there is little agreement on the number of their combatants in Aleppo.The United Nations says there are up to 900 Jabhat Fateh al-Sham fighters out of 8,000 rebels in eastern Aleppo in total, but diplomatic sources have told Reuters there are far fewer, probably a maximum of 200. "They are calling the shots in Aleppo," one aid official told Reuters. (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; editing by Tom Miles and Mark Heinrich) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Baltimore: If Batman had a warship, it would be the USS Zumwalt. That's how Admiral Harry Harris, commander of the US Pacific Command, described the Navy's largest and most sophisticated new destroyer, which comes with a price tag of at least $4.4 billion. "As long as our president and you the American people have an insatiable appetite for security... I have an insatiable appetite for the stuff to underwrite that security," Harris said at the ship's commissioning ceremony on Saturday. Ray Mabus, secretary of the Navy, called the Zumwalt "a quantum leap" for Navy ships. "It's the first of a kind that's leading the way for new classes of ships, new capabilities that are in ships, new systems that we can use and it just expands the things we can do and the ways we do it," Mabus said after the ceremony. Here are some other details about the guided missile destroyer: Stealth The 610-foot-long warship is sleek, with an angular shape to minimize its radar signature. It looks like a much smaller vessel on radar. Quieter than other ships, the Zumwalt is hard to detect, track and attack. A composite deckhouse hides radar and other sensors. Its powerful new gun system can unload 600 rocket-powered projectiles on targets more than 70 miles away. Power Weighing nearly 15,000 tons, the ship's advanced technology and capabilities allow it a range of defensive and offensive missions to project power, wherever it is needed. Captain James Kirk, commanding officer of the Zumwalt, says it generates 78 megawatts of power, "enough power to power a medium- to small-sized city." With a motto of Pax Proctor Vim (Peace Through Power), it's unique capability to generate power could be used in ways perhaps not even envisioned yet, such as in the testing and use of laser and directed-energy weapon systems. Missiles The Zumwalt will be able to launch Tomahawk cruise missiles, Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles, standard surface-to-air missiles and anti-submarine rockets from 80 missile tubes. Ride The Zumwalt also features an unconventional wave-piercing hull that makes its ride "very smooth," said Lieutenant Commander Nate Chase. "You had no fear of having an open cup of coffee and getting jerked around, like some of these other ships." Crew With 147 officers and sailors, the Zumwalt's crew is the smallest of any destroyer built since the 1930s, thanks to extensive automation. All sailors are cross-trained, and there's more sharing of tasks on the Zumwalt. Sailors have staterooms, instead of bunk rooms with dozens of people in them. "So, when they wake up, they wake up to only one or two alarm clocks, not four, not 50," Kirk says. Reformer The ship is named after the late Admiral Elmo "Bud" Zumwalt, who earned the Bronze Star in World War II and commanded small boats that patrolled the Mekong Delta in the Vietnam War. He became the youngest chief of naval operations and earned a reputation as a reformer, who fought racism and sexism. "He changed our Navy in massive ways, some to make the fleet a more potent fighting force but most importantly he reformed the institution of the Navy to be more just and fair to all its sailors, making sure that all sailors regardless of race, creed, color, faith, had an opportunity to serve in whatever capacity that their heart and their passion desired to," Kirk said. The bridge On the bridge, there are 180-degree windows and chairs for the ship's captain and executive officer to command the vessel and plenty of video monitors. Star Trek? Kirk rolls with questions about his sharing the first and last name of the fictional captain of the Starship Enterprise, telling reporters to "live long and prosper." But he says his parents named him after his grandfather, not Captain James T Kirk of "Star Trek." "I have interrogated them about this a great deal more over the last couple of years than before and they tell me, no, it was all about my grandfather," Kirk says. Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with the leaders of Turkey and Iraq about battle for Mosul, where Iraqi forces are fighting to oust the Islamic State group, the Kremlin said on Wednesday. Putin "wished the Iraqi army and its allies complete success in their objectives," the Kremlin said in a statement on his conversations with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. He also informed the Iraqi leader about the "measures taken by Russia to defuse the situation" in the Syrian city of Aleppo. Moscow announced on Tuesday that Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo ahead of an eight-hour "humanitarian pause" in the battered city on Thursday. Putin is to attend a summit on Syria in Berlin later Wednesday with the leaders of France and Germany. In a separate conversation, Putin also discussed the battle for Mosul with Erdogan, the Kremlin said, but gave no further details. The long-awaited offensive against Iraq's second city began Monday with air and ground support from a US-led coalition. Turkey said Tuesday it will continue to take part in the air operation after Ankara agreed a deal with its coalition partners. Plans for the offensive were marked by tensions between Iraq and Turkey, which insisted on being part of the operation despite objections from Baghdad. A Maratha Kranti Silent Morcha (protest) took place at Times Square, New York on 16 October, 2016. The New York-based Maratha Community population took to the streets to show their support for their community in Maharashtra, India. Eight girls during the morcha gave a memorandum to New York Senator Chuck Schumer and the Indian representative from UN, Syed Akbaruddin. The delegation met the Consulate General of India in New York, Riva Ganguly Das, and send an email to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Maratha community members from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut participated in the silent march. This was the second of such march to take place outside India. The earlier one took place in Italy. For the next course of action, the community plans to march in California, Florida, Colorado, Wisconsin and Washington. In Maharashtra, the Maratah Morcha rallies have been organised in more than 27 districts where more than 3 crore community members have participated. The odds of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump coasting to the White House are dimming as he charges into Wednesday's final debate at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas all set to pillory his Democrat rival Hillary Clinton over an attempted email cover up. The US elections have sunk to a circus, but the scandals dogging both the candidates have damaged Trump's poll numbers far more than Clinton. Wednesday's debate moderated by Chris Wallace of Fox News is Trump's last opportunity to change the pro-Clinton momentum in the final three weeks of the race. Recent polls show voters fleeing Trump after he bragged about how his celebrity allowed him to grab women by the genitals. To make matters infinitely worse, eight women have come forward to say he sexually assaulted them. "Trump has willfully not done anything to try to appeal to people beyond his narrow voter base and they are still standing by him despite the allegations," said political analyst Cindy Radburn Chastin. "Trump has a chance in the final debate to do something dramatic, drop his scorched-earth tactics, perhaps even apologize to women sincerely to change the contour of the presidential race. He has to appeal to a larger audience. All his tactics so far have focused too narrowly on energizing his core base. That is not driving up his poll numbers," said Chastin. Quite clearly, Trump is under pressure to change his election game. Since their first debate in late September, Clinton's poll numbers have gradually shot up. According to Real Clear Politics, Clinton is seven points ahead, her biggest lead since the beginning of August. "Past polling data shows that three weeks out from the election, polls usually dont move more than 3.4 points toward either candidate," David Byler, an elections analyst for Real Clear Politics wrote in a piece titled "Trump misses benchmarks, is running out of time." Three ways Donald Trump could win Daryl Jones, director of research at Hedgeye Risk Management, suggests there are three "unlikely ways" in which Trump could win: the polls could be wrong; Wikileaks could drop a "bomb" that takes down Clinton, or there could be an "October surprise." "If its not Wikileaks, then the conspiracy theorists would have you believe that it will likely be a revelation about Hillary Clintons health or her husband that will provide a surprise in the next few weeks and a boost for Trump in the polls. In reality, the Clintons, whether you love them or hate them, have been in the public eye for more than three decades and its unlikely there is any sort of October surprise in store," writes Jones in "Fortune" magazine. Trump supporters are drawing comfort from the fact that pollsters got the 1980 US presidential elections famously wrong. The polls had put President Jimmy Carter ahead of his Republican rival Ronald Reagan by 4 to 5 points on October 1. Gallup then had Carter widening his lead by nine points by October 26, but Reagan went onto trounce Carter and win a landslide victory. However, a moot point for Republicans clinging to the hope of victory is that women have swung every election since Ronald Reagan. Sadly for the Republicans, this key demographic considers Trump truly toxic. "Turns out, even when youre famous like Trump, there are some things women wont tolerate from you," Time magazine quipped in an article cheekily headlined Why Donald Trump Has Already Lost. Based on 15 battleground state surveys, Clinton is likely to coast to the White House. "Clinton holds a decisive advantage over Trump in the competition for votes in the electoral college, leading in enough states to put her comfortably over the 270 majority needed to win the presidential election in November," according to a new Survey Monkey poll of 15 battleground states conducted with The Washington Post. However, Trump remains in contention in the three battleground states of Nevada, North Carolina and Ohio, according to new CNN/ORC polls. He will try and stay in the saddle by baring his fangs on Wednesday at Clinton and using the WikiLeaks dump to accuse the State Department of trying to cover up during Clinton's email probe. By Julia Edwards | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON A White House plan aims to convene teachers and mental health professionals to intervene and help prevent Americans from turning to violent ideologies, work that is currently done mostly by federal law enforcement.The 18-page plan announced on Wednesday and first reported by Reuters, marks the first time in five years that the Obama administration has updated its policy for preventing the spread of violent groups such as Islamic State, which controls parts of Syria and Iraq and recruits fighters worldwide. Authorities blamed radical and violent ideologies as the motives for attacks in Charleston, South Carolina; San Bernardino, California; Orlando, Florida; New York and New Jersey in 2015-16.The policy aims to prevent conversions to all violent ideologies, including the white supremacist beliefs held by a gunman who killed nine black church members inside a historic African-American church in Charleston and the other shootings and bombs were inspired by Islamist militants. Critics said, however, that such efforts largely target Muslims. In approximately 60 to 70 percent of the cases the federal government has prosecuted for terrorism or supporting terrorism, a family member or friend said they noticed the defendant was exhibiting strange behaviour before they came to the attention of law enforcement, said Seamus Hughes, deputy director of George Washington University's Program on Extremism. "Parents are stuck in this horrible situation where they have to make a determination of 'Is it better that my son joins ISIS and potentially dies or is it better that he spends 20 years in jail?'" said Hughes, referring to Islamic State.The new White House strategy seeks to create "intervention teams" led by mental health professionals, faith-based groups, educators and others as a resource for people who find themselves in such circumstances. Intervention teams would seek to divert a person away from violence before they commit a violent act and without involving law enforcement agencies. The Justice Department and Homeland Security Department also aim to enhance their social media campaigns to counter people being drawn to violence.The White House plan drew both praise and criticism Wednesday afternoon from experts on counterterrorism and civil liberties advocates who said the plan is a step in the right direction but does not go far enough to prevent discrimination against Muslims. CODE WORD William McCants, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution policy research group in Washington, said the idea of asking "the community" to get involved with stopping violent ideology implies Muslim communities are aware of who may be violent jihadists and have the responsibility to stop them. "The community is just a code word for the Muslim community, McCants said. "It only reinforces people's fears that 'the community' is the problem."Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has said his counterterrorism strategy would rely on Muslims reporting on other Muslims. Democractic candidate Hillary Clinton has stated on her website that she plans to support law enforcement to build "trustful and strong relationships" with the American-Muslim community.Prosecutors would still have a role in prevention efforts under the new policy, including arranging after-school programs. But those programs would not be allowed to serve a dual purpose for intelligence gathering, which civil liberties advocates have accused current programs of doing. "In practice, what we have seen is programs are targeted unfairly at American-Muslim communities, seeing them through a security lens which alienates and stigmatizes," said Hina Shamsi, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's national security project. In Minneapolis, U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger prosecuted 10 Somali-American men earlier this year for plotting to fight with the Islamic State overseas while simultaneously leading community outreach efforts with the same Somali community. "We determined that efforts to build intervention teams are less likely to succeed if they are driven by the federal government," said Brette Steele, acting deputy director of the U.S. government's Countering Violent Extremism Task Force, suggesting that the teams should instead be community-led.Only when a person is believed to "pose a threat or be immediately capable of committing a crime," should law enforcement actions be taken, the policy states. The policy also calls on the Justice Department to implement rehabilitation strategies that could include using former converts to violence as counselors for those convicted of terrorism. (Reporting by Julia Edwards; Editing by Frances Kerry and Grant McCool) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. At the Filoxenia Conference Centre in Nicosia key hospitality and tech decision makers are gathered today for the Digi.travel Cyprus Conference & Expo 2016. Organized for the first time with the collaboration of the Association of Cyprus Travel Agent s ACTA, the summit puts leading technology providers alongside travel and hospitality professionals in the region. Director of E-Commerce & Distribution for Plateno Group in Europe, Tomasz Janczak Photo by Travel Media Applications (traveldailynews.com) This Cyprus meet-up not only affords attendees networking and information uptake opportunities, it also provides industry executives outside the venue a rare look into today's most pressing hospitality and tourism initiatives. One example of this aspect comes to us in the form of a Cyprus Tourism Organisation (CTO) stated goal of attracting Chinese tourists to the island. The Chairman of the organization, Angelos Loizou told reporters this week of plans to rapidly boost efforts to attract Chinese visitors, and the CTO's recent delegation to China. At Digi.travel Cyprus, an interesting convergence of noted hotel business experts, newsworthy technology-business entities, and local level industry players bear mentioning here. Earlier today I spoke with the Director of E-Commerce & Distribution for Plateno Group in Europe, Tomasz Janczak (image above), about his work creating a China-connective called Plateno Connect. Janczak, who is in Nicosia to address the crowd at Digi.travel Cyprus, had this to offer about Plateno Connect's value proposition: "Plateno was always focused on brand, marketing and distribution. Our expertise was always hospitality, that's why we see a great opportunity in collaboration with Cyprus' hoteliers in promoting this beautiful destination on the Chinese market. As the Cyprus Tourism Organization suggests, there are plans to bring 400,000 Chinese travelers to Cyprus, and our Plateno Connect platform is one definitive tool for achieving this goal." Source: Travel Media Applications (traveldailynews.com) At the crux of this "proposition" is Plateno's 80 million-plus strong loyalty community, of Chinese travelers largely dependent on the network the Chinese company leverages for them. The short version here is, PAI Hotels, Plateno Connect, and all of Plateno Groups brands and tools arrived at Digi.travel Cyprus today. Taking this aspect one step further, enter a company also represented in Cyprus, that assists hoteliers in delivering personalized service. Revinate is essentially a guest intelligence service that helps convert and retain guests. We caught up with Revinate's Marketing Manager EMEA, Thomas Landen (speaking above), just after his presentation to the crowd at Digi.travel Cyprus. We asked him about satisfying every guest experience to increase the bottom line. Landen told us: "Define the key moments in the guest journey, both online and offline, and make sure you communicate with your guest in a personal and relevant matter." So, right there in Nicosia the key facets of a new marketing paradigm come together. Digi.travel Cyprus reveals ideas and strategies this author first discussed on Tnooz in 2011 with Patrick Landman of Xotels, and concepts later refined by hotel marketing legend Martin Soler, and my old friend, digital business celebrity Brian Solis hashed out in Paris in 2015. In short, the upcoming Digi.travel conferences will provide even more stunning convergence. Next month independent hotel legend, Thomas Magnuson joins this author, Pamil Visions Travel PR founder (my partner) Mihaela Lica, and Hospitality Net's founder, Henri Roelings in Athens for the next iteration. I was fortunate to catch Magnuson this afternoon, and got this take from him: "Independent hotel owners everywhere can win the loyalty of the next world's biggest market movement, the emerging Chinese middle class travel explosion westward. While satisfying this segment may seem hard, we really just need to make logical changes to welcome Chinese travellers, by offering; free Wi-Fi, slippers, a tea kettle, translated materials, Chinese food, Mandarin speaking staff, and smoking rooms." Along with other special guests, Digi.travel will hammer out in gold, many of the real strategies the industry has long awaited. Many of the needed services and tools are right in front of us, as Magnuson suggests. His "old school" approach to new age marketing is something I've covered before too. Beyond the self promotion there, news some of the world's most fabulous destinations are tuned in is a big positive for not just me, but for hard pressed hoteliers looking for hard answers. Phil Butler GET OUR APP Our Spectrum News app is the most convenient way to get the stories that matter to you. Download it here. The Legislative Assembly (AL) voted in yesterdays session on a proposal delivered on Monday by lawmaker Ng Kuok Cheong that aimed to force the government to initiate a political reform for eventual universal suffrage in the election of the Chief Executive (CE). The proposal received backlash at the plenary meeting. Several lawmakers slammed Ngs initiative and in some cases, accused him of trying to make the AL and its legislators hostages of his private interests. Ng claimed otherwise, arguing that debate on a real political reform in Macau was urgent. We have, as soon as possible, to prepare to change our political system to one based on universal suffrage, he argued, justifying such a measure by the changes occurring in the regions demographics. In Ngs opinion, Macau cannot continue to fail to make progress and be conservative [on this matter]. Chief among the proposals many critics was Kwan Tsui Hang, who was visibly upset and said the topic under debate was not a simple matter of yes or no. Claiming that universal suffrage will not solve societys problems, Kwan asked rhetorically: Will be possible that a legislator with so many years of experience doesnt know what this represents? Also slamming the proposal in a heated intervention was Tsui Wai Kwan, who said that Ng has always claimed that a democratic system with votes to elect the lawmakers and the Chief Executive will help to fight corruption, but we have many examples of countries and territories where the government is elected by universal suffrage and its members are still involved in corruption. I see no urgent need to change the system, he added. Others justified the rejection of such a proposal on the grounds of the procedures it sought to implement. Chan Iek Lap described the proposal as an abuse to the AL regiments and remarked that such a norm does not serve the purpose of expressing a personal political opinion and will. Other lawmakers like Song Pek Kei recalled that Ng had presented a similar proposal to the AL in 2014, which at that time was already considered an abuse of power. I dont know what the lawmaker really wants with all this. Is it that he is trying to promote any real change or does he just want to forcibly lead other lawmakers to express their personal position on the topic? Song asked, adding that it was not up to Ng alone to define the right time for political reform. However, Song admitted that the government had not made any real progress on the subject and voiced her hopes that the government could create a platform so everybody can express his or her opinion. Supporting the proposal were Au Kam San, Pereira Coutinho and Leong Veng Chai. The biggest support came from Au, who said that the proposal has relevance, recalling the CEs promise in 2014 to ensure development of the political system. There have been no such developments to date. We know that this voting does not promote any effect but it can send a message to the CE on that way [to develop the political system], Au said, adding that there is a certain urgency to move into elections. Pereira Coutinho also supported the motion, but chose his words carefully. We hear people saying that they want more lawmakers directly elected but we continue with the same number. The College that elects the CE is only 400 people and its totally controlled, he said. Coutinho acknowledged that this time Ng was successful in his attempt to shake the pillars, adding also that the lack of participation of the youngsters is due to a marginalization of young people [who] can only resort to protests and demonstrations [to be heard]. calls for alternative lrt solution Kou Ho In, Cheang Chi Keong and Chui Sai Cheong backed the idea expressed by Kou Ho In in his spoken enquiry during the period before the agenda at the AL yesterday. The group calls for an alternative solution to the implementation of the Light Rail Transit system (LRT) in the peninsula regarding the problems encountered during the works in Taipa section. The legislators say that others solutions are to consider since the traffic congestion and other construction related problems currently seen in Taipa would create a very serious situation if repeated in the Macau side. As an alternative they propose the government to simply connect the Taipa section to the Barra main station and the construction instead of a monorail system around the city following the shoreline. Such a system together with a readjustment of the roads network could relief the traffic pressure and even add a touristic element to them. AL denied more supervision over public works The bill that will establish the new Budget Framework Law (LEO) was discussed and approved yesterday during the plenary meeting of the Legislative Assembly (AL). Although the bill passed with only three votes against, the session heated up after the presentation by the Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong and his team at the plenary for the second consecutive day. Several lawmakers made comments, with Ng Kuok Cheong the most prominent among them. Ng reiterated that Leons predecessor, Francis Tam, had presented a similar proposal a few years before. In his opinion, the bill does not offer many advances and is still unsatisfactory to what concerns public constructions. Ng and other lawmakers reaffirmed their wish for major public construction works to fall under the scrutiny of the AL. The lawmaker proposed that public construction works budgeted above MOP40 million or MOP50 million should be open to public discussion [through a debate at the AL]. He remarked that this opinion had also been expressed by former secretary Tam, but that it had been not considered in the analysis of the current bill. If this mechanism is not included, it will be a major omission, Ng said. Chui Sai Cheong was one of those who expressed support for the bill, highlighting that the new law presents several aspects that contribute in certain ways to the transparency [of public accounts]. Nevertheless, the lawmaker remarked that to learn about its [the law] functionality, we need to know the administrative regulations that will complement it. He expressed the hope that such regulations can be presented to the standing committee specializing in the relevant area. Cheong also commented on the need of the Finance Bureau (DSF) to undertake a significant effort in order to clearly explain the new system to all departments. The new law establishes two new government reports regarding public accounts: a mid-term report to be presented in the beginning of August and a quarterly report on the execution of the PIDDA. Some lawmakers, such as Ma Chi Seng, questioned what the AL could do in the event that any irregularities are found in the mid-term reports, but received no answer. On the governments side, Lionel Leong explained that according to the Basic Law, individual projects will not be presented to the AL. He said that big projects from the government are already included in the general budget submitted for AL approval, so that lawmakers can question and request information on these projects ahead of time. RM Australias government has become increasingly secretive through a range of new laws, including a gag on officials speaking out about conditions at an Australia-run immigration camp in Nauru, a United Nations human rights investigator said yesterday. Michel Forst, the U.N.s Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders, recommended that Australia review its secrecy laws, including the stifling Border Force Act, to remove provisions that contravene human rights principles. The Attorney-Generals Department said Forst did not present a balanced view, but that the government would consider his recommendations. Australian doctors have initiated a court challenge to the Border Force Act, which they argue gags them from speaking publicly about child abuse and other threats to asylum seekers and refugees held in the Pacific atoll nation of Nauru. The law was introduced last year as part of a widely criticized policy of sending all asylum seekers who attempt to reach Australia by boat to Nauru or to the South Pacific nation of Papua New Guinea. The Australian military-run Operation Sovereign Borders, which rankles Indonesia and human rights advocates because it involves turning back boats and rejecting refugee applications at sea, is shrouded in secrecy. The Border Force Act makes it a criminal offense punishable by two years in prison for a broadly defined entrusted person, such as a Nauru doctor, to disclose protected information. Journalists are also at risk of prosecution for abetting such an unlawful disclosure. Journalists are all but barred by Naurus government from visiting the 1,159 asylum seekers and refugees who live among 10,000 local residents on the tiny island. Amnesty International earlier this week released a report on Nauru, which it described as an open-air prison where conditions endured by asylum seekers and refugees amounted to torture. yesterday, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull rejected the London-based human rights groups description of deliberate and systematic torture on Nauru as absolutely false. Forst, the U.N. human rights investigator, said he had been assured by government officials during his two-week visit to Australia that no one had yet been charged under the Border Protection Act. Rod McGuirk, Canberra, AP Swiss prosecutors have begun a preliminary investigation into Teodorin Obiang Nguema, the son of the president of Equatorial Guinea, who is set to go on trial in neighboring France for alleged misspending of public funds. Switzerlands 24 Heures newspaper reported yesterday that Swiss judicial authorities had requested support from France regarding Obiang. Obiang is accused of acquiring real estate, luxury cars, art and other goods in France with public funds from the oil-rich African country. He is set to go on trial there for money laundering and other charges. Some 60 Sands China Care Ambassadors visited the Orbis Flying Eye Hospital Sunday and Monday at the Macau International Airport. Sands China said in a statement that it is one of the sponsors of Orbis Third Generation Flying Eye Hospital Tour in the region. The sponsorship covers accommodation, meals, and Hong Kong-Macau ferry transportation for Orbis crew during their tour of the city. Sands China has also donated MOP 50,000 in cash to Orbis efforts for the Macau launch event. The Sands China Care Ambassador program gives Sands China staff an opportunity to serve the local community. With over 1,500 volunteers coming together from across its properties, the Sands China Care Ambassadors have contributed more than 9,500 hours of community service in over 100 activities since the program was founded in August 2009. Portofino restaurant presents regional menu The Venetian Macaos Portofino restaurant is offering a regional menu featuring the cuisine of Abruzzo, one of Italys best-kept secrets and a little-known treasure trove of Italian gastronomy, in the Abruzzo in Tavola promotion from now until November 21, 2016. The promotions special menu has been crafted by Portofinos Senior Chef and Abruzzo native, Domenico Cicchetti. According to a press release by Sands China, dishes are seasoned with chili pepper, saffron, olive oil, wine, garlic and rosemary, all directly imported from Italy. One distinctive dish is chitarra, or guitar pasta, the name of which comes from its unique pasta cutter, a wooden box with strings used to cut sheets of egg dough into strips. Chitarra is found only in Abruzzo. Cicchetti had one of these authentic pasta cutters brought over specifically for the promotion. Portofino is open daily from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Industrial revolutions have made mass production possible and have brought digital capabilities to people around the globe. Yet such revolutions also mean that the masses are likely to face both great risks and opportunities. In a business luncheon hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce on Monday at Wynn Macau, the Fourth Industrial Revolution book was discussed, highlighting that emerging technology trends are shaping the digital market. In todays world, generations have the capability to connect with more people through digital networks, which has dramatically improved the efficiency of organizations. One of the speakers, Rob Scott, a top executive at the consultancy company Presence of IT, expressed his concern that some organizations may be unable to adapt to these fast-paced changes and may fail to regulate new technologies in order to capture their benefits. Citing the book, Scott said that the world is facing a range of new technologies that combine the physical, digital and biological worlds, which could make an impact on all economies and industries. He remarked that the evidence of dramatic change is obvious and it is happening at an exponential speed, and thus these changes are coinciding with the emergence of a new workforce that is diverse, demanding and mobile. The way we manage, lead, collaborate and organize ourselves is undergoing radical change, said Scott. Succeeding in todays digital world is a challenge that can not be solved simply by consuming more and more technology, or, as some fear, replacing humans with technology. In terms of the global digital economy, growth is driven by the Digital Native generation, who are demanding a world fashioned to its needs and expectations about how work should be organized. According to him, the younger generations are demanding technology to work in a particular way, such as Facebook and Weibo, to enable them to do a better job, and give them the power to achieve great outcomes. However some organizations are unwilling to adapt to the use of these new technologies, and may fail to regulate such technologies properly. Scott explained to the Times that if organizations do not take part in these radical, cultural and leadership changes, organizations will be left behind. If you dont move into this new direction of transforming organization into a digital space, youre going to be left behind. People want to work for organizations that are thinking ahead, that are using technologies, he explained. The consultant said that one of the biggest challenges in the HR industry in Macau is keeping its employees in the industry as the market continues to expand. Contingent workforce is a big thing in this region. How are you going to better manage contingent workforces to make sure they are the right person at the right cost? Scott questioned. Managing director of TalentGroup Asia, Alan Chan, told the Times that the pace of utilizing technology in the regions human resources departments has been very slow. We should encourage the use of technology in the HR space whereby all these systems can tightly integrate with each other to bring a seamless HR corporation space into the hospitality world, he explained. He also hinted that numerous companies in the past years have been focusing on meeting the quantity requirements on employees rather than focusing on the quality of the talent. Russian and Syrian warplanes yesterday halted their airstrikes on Syrias besieged city of Aleppo in preparation for a temporary pause in the military push that Moscow has announced for later in the week, the Russian defense minister said. According to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the halt in the strikes should help pave way for militants to leave the eastern rebel-held parts of the contested city. Both Russian and Syrian air raids on Aleppo were suspended on 10 a.m. Tuesday, Shoigu said. He described the suspension as a precursor for the opening of humanitarian corridors. Moscow announced a humanitarian pause tomorrow to allow civilians and militants safe passage out of the city. At that time, Russian and Syrian militaries will desist from any offensive actions. Syrian rebels, including al-Qaida militants, as well as the wounded and the sick will be allowed to leave to the neighboring rebel-held province of Idlib. The early halting of airstrikes is necessary to declare a humanitarian pause, Shoigu said in a televised statement. It will guarantee a safe exit of civilians through six corridors and prepare for the evacuation of the ill and the wounded from the eastern part of Aleppo. Russian President Vladimir Putins spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the halt in the airstrikes was a goodwill gesture to pave the way for Thursdays pause. The Russian military is offering yet another chance, and we hope that our partners will allow us all to take advantage of that, Peskov said. Aleppo, Syrias largest city and once its commercial hub, has been subjected to the most intense aerial bombardment since the start of the Mideast countrys conflict in 2011. In recent months, the Syrian army has pressed its offensive into the rebel-held eastern part of the city. Air raids have killed hundreds and caused international outrage. A Russia-U.S.-brokered cease-fire collapsed last month as the Syrian army launched an offensive on eastern Aleppo under the cover of Russian warplanes. Mohammed Abu Rajab, an Aleppo resident, said airstrikes on the eastern neighborhoods stopped early Tuesday, just after the city had been subjected to another intense round of air raids. There were airstrikes throughout the night, Abu Rajab, who works at a local hospital, said over the telephone. In Moscow, Shoigu added that Russia is asking the countries wielding influence with the (Syrian) rebels to persuade their leaders to end fighting and leave the city. He said the Syrian troops will pull back to distances allowing unimpeded exit for those carrying weapons via two corridors, including the main artery of Castello Road. The Russian initiative also should boost talks between military experts from several nations that are set to open in Geneva on Wednesday, he added. Their work will be aimed first of all at separating the moderate opposition from the terrorists and its withdrawal from the eastern part of Aleppo, he said. Moscow has urged Washington to encourage Syrias Western-backed rebels to sever ties with al-Qaida militants. During a meeting over the weekend co-chaired by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar said they would work to separate moderate opposition groups in Aleppo from Syrias former al-Qaida affiliate once known as the Nusra Front. Russian and Syrian officials have since embraced a proposal made earlier this month by the U.N. Syria envoy, Staffan de Mistura, to allow al-Qaida-linked militants to leave Aleppo in exchange for a truce and a local administration for the eastern districts. Rebels there, along with many residents, have rejected the offer. Russias announcement did not include any promises of an extended cease-fire or local administration in and around Aleppo. U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner, speaking to reporters in Washington yesterday, said the Russian-Syrian pause planned was a bit too little, too late. Peskov, Putins spokesman, would not say if the strikes would resume after the pause, saying that depends on whether the rebels can be persuaded to cut ties with militants. Vladimir Isachenkov & Bassem Mroue, Moscow, AP Germany: Fight against is wont increase security threat Germanys interior minister says efforts to combat the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria wont increase the risk of attacks at home. Thomas de Maiziere says authorities expect IS fighters from Europe to try to return as the group faces military setbacks, but that authorities are working to minimize security threats. He told reporters in Berlin yesterday that he didnt see any additional threat to Germany from the fight against IS (in the region), noting that the threat is already high and its right that we should combat IS militarily. Speaking after meeting the European Unions security commissioner, de Maiziere said that members states were working to combine databases holding fingerprint, visa and border crossing information, adding that this was legally difficult, technically complicated and of utmost urgency. A self-driving car with two engineers on board was switching lanes in Singapore when it hit a truck yesterday, authorities said. No one was hurt. The vehicle was operated by autonomous vehicle software startup nuTonomy, which made headlines last month when it offered free rides in its self-driving taxis in a Singapore district. The Land Transport Authority said the car was involved in a minor incident on a public road designated for testing. The test vehicle was changing lane when it collided with a lorry at a low speed. There were no injuries, it said in a Facebook post. The transport regulator said it is working with police to investigate. NuTonomy, a spinoff from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology which has offices in Massachusetts and Singapore, said in a statement that it is cooperating with the authorities and conducting an investigation of its own. The companys six cars modified Renault Zoe and Mitsubishi i-MiEV electrics have a safety driver in front who is prepared to take the wheel if necessary and a researcher in back who watches the cars computers. Its self-driving vehicles were tested in a 6.5-square kilometer business and residential district of Singapore called one north. The official test area has since been doubled by the government, nuTonomy CEO Karl Iagnemma said. Last month, nuTonomy began allowing the Singapore public to take trips in its self-driving vehicles for free. The companys previously invitation-only trial was launched in August, beating ride-hailing service Uber, which began offering autonomous car rides in Pittsburgh weeks later. NuTonomy was formed in 2013 by Iagnemma and Emilio Frazzoli, MIT researchers who studied robotics and autonomous vehicles for the Defense Department. The company expects its fleet of self-driving cars to grow to a dozen by the end of the year. It plans to make its Singapore taxi fleet fully self-driving by 2018. Annabelle Liang, Singapore, AP UNESCOs executive board yesterday approved a resolution that Israel says denies the deep historic Jewish connection to holy sites in Jerusalem and that has angered Israels government and many Jews around the world. The board adopted the measure by consensus in its morning session at Paris-based UNESCO. A draft form of the resolution had already been approved by a commission last week. The resolution is not expected to have direct impact on Jerusalem itself, but it deepened tensions within UNESCO, which is also facing a diplomatic dispute between Japan and China that threatens funding. The resolution, titled Occupied Palestine, is the latest of several measures at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization over decades that Israelis see as evidence of ingrained anti-Israel bias within the United Nations, where Israel and its allies are far outnumbered by Arab countries and their supporters. Israels concern has mounted since UNESCO states admitted Palestine as a member in 2011. Israel last week suspended its ties with UNESCO over the draft resolution, which uses only the Islamic name for a hilltop compound sacred to both Jews and Muslims. The site includes the Western Wall, a remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where Jews can pray. Jews refer to the hilltop compound in Jerusalems Old City as the Temple Mount. Muslims refer to it as al-Haram al-Sharif, Arabic for the Noble Sanctuary, and it includes the Al-Aqsa mosque and the golden Dome of the Rock. It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest in Islam, after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. Israel had already suspended its funding to UNESCO when Palestinian membership was approved, along with the United States, which used to provide 22 percent of the agencys budget. We wont negotiate and we wont take part in these ugly games, the Israeli ambassador to UNESCO, Carmel Shama-Hacohen, told The Associated Press after the ratification. There is no place for these games in UNESCO. This noble organization was established to preserve history, not to rewrite it. The longstanding dispute is also linked to Israels refusal to grant visas to UNESCO experts to go in the country and assess the level of preservation of the holy sites in Jerusalem. Elias Sanbar, Palestinian ambassador to UNESCO, told the AP this refusal to allow a UNESCO mission was a very big problem.AP This weeks visit to China by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte points toward a restoration of trust between the sides following recent tensions over their South China Sea territorial dispute, Chinas official news agency said yesterday. The visit by the recently elected Duterte, who was due to arrive in Beijing later in the day, will be a step toward ending years of estrangement between the countries, Xinhua News Agency said. Should he demonstrate his good faith, the trip will present a long overdue opportunity for the two nations, which enjoy longstanding friendship, to heal the wounds of the past few years and steer their relationship back to the right course, Xinhua said in a commentary. Dutertes visit will help define how far he wants to shift allegiance from the United States to an Asian superpower locked in a territorial standoff with his small, impoverished country, and the Philippines 65-year alliance with the U.S. a key pillar of President Barack Obamas rebalance to Asia could hang in the balance. The Xinhua editorial signals how China hopes to use the visit to regain lost ground in a Southeast Asian nation that won a major arbitration lawsuit against Beijings massive territorial claims in the South China Sea just three months ago. China refused to take part in the litigation or accept the ruling, which said Chinas historical claim to virtually the entire strategic waterbody wasnt supported by international law. The verdict issued by a law-abusing tribunal has no place in the negotiations at all, Xinhua said. Duterte is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other officials tomorrow. The Philippine draft of a proposed joint statement touches on the restoration of permits for Filipino agricultural exports, Chinas support for Dutertes campaign against illegal drugs, boosting tourism and enhancing Coast Guard cooperation to avoid misunderstandings at sea. Details are still being worked out, officials say, and it remains unclear whether the thorny issue of the South China Sea territorial disputes will be reflected in the statement. China was to offer assistance in personnel training and donation of equipment to aid in the fight against illegal drugs, according to the Philippine draft seen by The Associated Press. Dutertes deadly battle against drug dealers and abusers has been a defining issue of his political career, prompting him to lash out at Obama and other foreign critics and further propelling him toward rapprochement with an uncritical Beijing. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi says no foreign force can stand in the way of progress in the long-neglected relationship between China and the Philippines. Speaking in Beijing yesterday, Wang praised Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for working to improve ties and for returning to the track of dialogue and cooperation. Wang said: This reflects the wish of the Philippine people, and is in line with the Philippines national interest. No foreign force can stand in the way of such process. While Wang gave no details, he was likely referencing the United States as a foreign force that could upset the rapprochement between Manila and Beijing, given the 65-year-old mutual defense treaty between the U.S. and the Philippines. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has told the official news agency that China is his countrys only hope for development. Previously, Duterte said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency that his visit to China points toward a restoration of trust between the sides following recent tensions over territorial disputes in the South China Sea. He said China is a potent source of capital for much-needed infrastructure development and that the Philippines should leverage its 2 million-strong ethnic Chinese minority as a bridge to encourage Chinese investment. Duterte said in the interview that his own grandfather was Chinese, and that Its only China (that) can help us. He said that unlike the U.S. and other Western nations, China has offered its support for his 3-month-old government without criticism. A new poll shows that most Filipinos strongly trust the United States but have opposite feelings toward China. The independent poll was released yesterday as Duterte starts a visit to Beijing to bolster ties. The Social Weather Stations survey showed 76 percent of adult Filipinos have much trust in the U.S., while 13 percent are undecided. The rest have little trust for a very good net trust rating of plus 66. China, on the other hand, is regarded with little trust by 55 percent of Filipinos, while 19 percent are undecided. Only 22 percent have much trust on the Asian economic powerhouse, the poll results showed. The poll outcome came despite Dutertes praises for China and his efforts to rebuild relations between Beijing and Manila that have been strained by long-seething territorial conflicts in the South China Sea. The SWS Sept. 24-27 survey polled 1,200 adult Filipinos and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent. AP If successful, the venture could completely shift the way commuters travel. Cincinnati to Chicago, for example, could be travelled in a half-hour all while passengers relax in a capsule that levitates through the tube at more than 700 mph. This has been a tremendous marriage of innovation, academics and research, said UC Interim Provost Peter Landgren. Hyperloop is a global conversation, and Elon Musk needs to be hearing what's going on in Cincinnati. UC Board of Trustees Chairman Rob Richardson, Eng '02, JD '05, also offered words of encouragement to the team. "When we talk about innovation and what that means, it is not about making money," said Richardson, who received his first degree in electrical engineering. "It is really about that spirit and that passion that anything is possible, and you can rebel against the status quo. "That spirit you have today will be challenged. People will tell you that your idea can't be done or that you are not the one that can do this. The beginning of being an innovator is being comfortable being dismissed. People often assume that because it hasn't been done, it can't be done. But nothing was possible until it was." Richardson has also been the key driver behind Next Lives Here, an innovation summit at UC on Oct. 20 that will also include the Hyperloop UC innovators. DECLO The Cassia County School District has agreed to let students who arent full-time students take part in school activities, settling a lawsuit with a former student. The settlement says the district has agreed to change its policies to let students who are taking online classes, college credit classes or seminary and other religious classes take part on an equal basis with traditional full-time students in activities, including school government, according to a news release from the American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho. The ACLU was suing the district in federal court on behalf of Sierra Norman, who said she wasnt allowed to run for student body president in September 2014 because she was taking some of her classes online through the Idaho Digital Learning Academy. Norman has since graduated from Declo High School and is going to college. Normans complaint alleged that her being female and non-Mormon played a role in the decision to not let her run. Norman said in previous Times-News interviews that when she complained about the discrimination, a teacher said someone should Ray Rice her. Ray Rice, a professional football player was accused of punching his girlfriend unconscious. Norman said she was shunned by school staff and ridiculed by students during her senior year at the school. Im so happy that we are finally seeing a positive change in the Cassia County School District and that no future student is going to have to go through what I did, Norman said in a statement. I cannot thank the ACLU enough for all their help and support through this case. The Normans filed a civil rights complaint in October 2014. The ACLU tried mediation with the district at first but filed a discrimination suit this spring after the mediation didnt end in any agreement. Without brave students like Sierra Norman standing up for their rights, these kinds of exclusionary policies would go unchecked, said Leo Morales, executive director of the ACLU of Idaho. We hope this decision and policy change will prompt other students to come forward if they feel their rights as students are being infringed on. BURLEY A sentencing hearing was delayed Tuesday for a Burley man who has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for killing his wife. Cassia County District Deputy Court Clerk Tara Gunderson said a motion for the delay was filed by Laras attorney. The sentencing hearing is reset for 4:30 p.m. Nov. 15 in Cassia County District Court. Gunderson said the request said Laras defense attorney needed more time to prepare for the hearing. Lara, 34, was originally charged in January 2012 with first-degree murder in the strangulation death of his wife, Joann Lara, 25, whose body was discovered at the couples home. Lara was found incompetent to assist in his defense at trial in August 2012 and was taken into state custody. He was brought back to Cassia County in October 2013 for a hearing where officials testified that they thought Lara was manipulating tests. The judge deemed him competent to stand trial at that point. Under a plea agreement Lara pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in July. Under the agreement the state will recommend a sentence of 18 years in prison to life. Register for more free articles. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Sign up! Already a Subscriber? Already a Subscriber? Sign in Terms of Service Privacy Policy TWIN FALLS A woman rescued early Monday from the Snake River Canyon when rescuers hoisted her to safety was wanted on a $5,000 warrant and arrested after her rescue. Mary Ellen Huber, 39, of Twin Falls was scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday in Twin Falls County Magistrate Court on a misdemeanor count of resisting or obstructing arrest. The charge stemmed from a July incident in which Huber was riding in a car with a Twin Falls man wanted by police, court documents said. When a deputy tried to pull over the car, the pair fled at high speed, abandoned the car and escaped on foot. The man wanted in that chase, 37-year-old Daniel Curtis Bounds, was arrested in August, but Huber was wanted since Aug. 15 when a judge signed a warrant for her arrest. Rescue turns into arrest Huber was hiking with 42-year-old Kenneth Walls on Sunday night near Pillar Falls when the pair got lost in the dark and rain and called 911, according to a statement Monday from the Twin Falls County Sheriffs Office. Emergency personnel found the hikers several hundred feet down in the canyon, and while Walls was able to hike out with the rescue workers, Huber was not. She was hoisted out on a stretcher by paramedics, firefighters and search and rescue volunteers after a rescuer rappelled to her location. She was lifted from the canyon about 3 a.m. and taken to St. Lukes Magic Valley Medical Center for treatment. But court records show that as soon as she was cleared from the hospital about 5:30 a.m., she was arrested on the $5,000 warrant issued Aug. 15. Huber, according to a sworn affidavit in her case, was riding in a car with Bounds on July 20 when they fled from a sheriffs deputy in Twin Falls city limits, drove through a field on Borah Street West, crashed into a wooden fence on Heyburn Avenue West and escaped on foot. Authorities at the time sought the publics help to find Bounds, who they believed could be in possession of multiple weapons, including a hand grenade. In Bounds car, police discovered a Mossberg 715T .22-caliber automatic rifle and a Ruger 10-22 .22-caliber rifle with a 50-round drum magazine. Bounds, who was also involved in a short chase with Buhl police in April, was arrested about two weeks after the Twin Falls chase and charged with felony counts of eluding police and possession of methamphetamine. He has since pleaded guilty to those charges and agreed to a three year probation sentence. Hes set to be sentenced Monday. Huber is set for a pretrial conference on her misdemeanor charge Dec. 13. TWIN FALLS There was nothing extraordinary about the red 2014 Nissan Altima that on April 23 crossed from Oregon into Idaho on Interstate 84. Fellow travelers would have passed the midsize sedan and its two occupants a Washington mother and her 12-year-old son without even the slightest suspicion of the drivers motives. But inside the trunk of the Altima, bearing Washington license plate AWY8607, was 10 pounds of high-grade methamphetamine bound for the Magic Valley. It was just the latest large-scale delivery the mother planned to make in south-central Idaho. Based on an investigation that soon followed, it was determined the woman had delivered, at a minimum, more than 30 pounds of methamphetamine to the Magic Valley, selling it to local dealers who paid her between $4,500 and $5,000 per pound for the drug. This week, that investigation and the court cases that followed culminated in a federal prison sentence of 17 years for the mother Brenda Trinidad Jaime-Sainz, 34, of Yakima, Wash. who police say is a native of Sinaloa, Mexico, with ties to a Mexican drug cartel. Also sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court in Boise was one of Jaime-Sainzs loyal Magic Valley buyers, 32-year-old Buhl resident Mauro Morales-Jimenez, who was sentenced to 13 years in federal prison. An investigation showed Morales-Jimenez, who operated out of a Wendell storage shed, had purchased at least 20 pounds of methamphetamine from Jaime-Sainz previously, and was set to buy another six pounds April 23. But by the time Jaime-Sainz reached the storage shed that evening, law enforcement had long since stopped the Altima, seized the drugs, interviewed Jaime-Sainz and convinced her to help them in a sting operation to capture Morales-Jimenez. Jaime-Sainz and Morales-Jimenez were charged with crimes in Twin Falls and Gooding counties in the days that followed, but those charges were dismissed once a federal grand jury handed down a five-count indictment. In August, Jaime-Sainz pleaded guilty to three methamphetamine trafficking charges and Morales-Jimenez pleaded guilty to two similar charges. Jaime-Sainz, whos likely to be placed in a federal prison in California, will be placed on supervised release for three years once shes released sometime around 2033. Thats if she stays in the country, though her residency status in the U.S. was not made clear in court filings. Morales-Jimenez, a non-U.S. citizen who was deported at least once before in 2012, will likely be deported when his prison term ends in 2029. The sting and the stash house By the time Jaime-Sainz and her son crossed into Idaho in the red Altima on April 23, she was being tracked by a team of law enforcement agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the DEA, Idaho State Police, Twin Falls Police and the sheriffs offices in Gooding and Blaine counties. Agents had obtained a warrant April 8 to track her cellphone, and then on April 18, the day after shed sold two pounds of methamphetamine to a confidential informant and undercover officer, police in Twin Falls attached a GPS tracking device to her car. The first place she went after the GPS was on her car was the Wendell storage shed, where authorities later learned Morales-Jimenez paid her $52,000 of a $90,000 debt he owed her for previous drug sales. Jaime-Sainz then made the seven-hour drive to Yakima, Wash., where she stopped by a drug stash house before heading home. On April 22, after the confidential informant and undercover officer in Twin Falls requested four more pounds of methamphetamine, agents tracked Jaime-Sainz back to the stash house, where she picked up the drugs officers found during her arrest. DEA agents later raided the stash house, seizing more than two pounds of heroin, cocaine, a pound of methamphetamine and drug scales, court documents said. They also found body armor, an AK-47 style rifle, a .38-caliber revolver, a .357-caliber revolver and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. Meanwhile, after law enforcement arrested Jaime-Sainz and put her son in child protective services, they convinced her to help them bring down her loyal customer. They asked her to follow through with the sale to Morales-Jimenez, only now she would be accompanied by an undercover Blaine County Sheriffs detective. At the Wendell storage shed, Jaime-Sainz handed over six pounds of methamphetamine to Morales-Jimenez. As soon as he handed over the cash, officers swooped in and raided the shed, where they found $16,500, a drug ledger, a Glock .40-caliber pistol, a Marlin .22-caliber rifle and a 12-gauge shotgun with the serial number removed. That arrest was the beginning of the end for the drug trafficking duo, who were soon facing the federal indictment that led to plea deals in August and Mondays federal prison sentences. GOODING A wanted couple led police on a pursuit Tuesday that ended with their arrests after deputies flattened their tires with spike strips, the sheriff said. The chase began about 2:45 p.m. when a Gooding Police officer recognized a woman sitting in the passenger seat of a gold 2004 Chevrolet Suburban, Gooding County Sheriff Shaun Gough said. The officer tried to stop the Suburban, but the driver sped away, leading police south on Idaho 46. Deputies stationed in Wendell headed north towards the chase and set out spike strips on the highway that stopped the Suburban at about mile post 102, Gough said. Gabriel Gomez Luna, 22, of Jerome was the driver and had a felony warrant in Gooding County for forgery and out of Jerome for a felony probation violation, Gough said. The passenger, 26-year-old Gooding resident Dayna Rhea Canales, was wanted for violating her probation on a driving under the influence conviction earlier this year. They were both arrested without incident, Gough said. Luna will face an additional charge of felony eluding for Tuesdays chase. TWIN FALLS Stay the course or change? At a candidates forum Tuesday night, the Republicans running for re-election in legislative districts 24 and 25 talked about what they have done over the years in Boise and asked voters to send them back, while the Democrats challenging them advocated for different policies, higher education spending and Medicaid expansion. I represent a common sense conservative position on most issues, said Rep. Stephen Hartgen, R-Twin Falls, who is facing Democratic challenger Catherine Talkington. Its time for a change, said Scott McClure, who is running against Sen. Jim Patrick, R-Twin Falls. The Republican Party thinks they own the Magic Valley and they act accordingly. The Times-News sponsored the forum, which included all the candidates in competitive races in the two districts. The McClure/Patrick Senate race is the only competitive race in District 25, which includes all of Jerome County and much of rural Twin Falls County. The Republican incumbents in District 24, which basically covers the city of Twin Falls, are facing a full slate of Democratic challengers as well as Hartgen/Talkington, Dale Varney is running against Rep. Lance Clow, and Deborah Silver is running against Sen. Lee Heider. Audience members submitted the questions, and Times-News Editor Matt Christensen moderated. The Democratic candidates brought up education throughout the debate, saying the state isnt spending enough on it and that changing this would also improve Idahos economic competitiveness. Silver talked about knocking doors during the campaign and talking to parents whose kids are in overcrowded classrooms that dont have enough school supplies. I know education, and that is one reason why I am running, said Talkington, who is a retired teacher. Lawmakers have raised education spending by about 15 percent over the past two sessions after cutting it during the recession. Patrick said education spending has been going up faster than state revenues and that they would continue to increase it. Heider said the career ladder bill passed in 2015 to raise teachers pay over the course of five years is working and that schools arent suffering due to a lack of money. I think were doing a tremendous job, Heider said. And the kids are happy, and the teachers are happy now that weve raised the salaries. Public lands were another area of contention. Silver worried turning more land over to state management would lead lands to be managed for profit, like state endowment lands, and possible loss of public access. This is an important part of our heritage, and I dont want it to change, she said. The Republicans argued for more state management, saying Idaho would do a better job than the federal government, but said they are not pushing for a transfer of title to the state. There has not been a single Republican since Ive been in the Senate that said we want to get the public lands and sell them to whoever, Heider said. Hartgen called the idea that the state would seek to gain title to public lands and sell them off a canard pushed by radical environmental groups that want to push recreational uses of public lands and close off others. As for Medicaid expansion, Varney accused the Legislature of putting opposition to Obama over the needs of the estimated 78,000 people in the Medicaid gap who dont qualify now either for Medicaid or for coverage on the states exchange. This is a win-win if some people could put the politics aside, Silver said. Heider said he supports helping poor people who are uninsured, but that Medicaid is unsustainable, pointing to the $20 trillion federal debt and the problems some other states have had since the passage of the Affordable Care Act. I dont believe in socialized medicine, Patrick said. I dont think Obamacare works very well. There are alternatives. One question that came up for the House candidates, but not Senate candidates, was marijuana legalization, which Varney said he supports. He told the story of his daughters mother, who had cancer. He said legalizing marijuana and repealing the right to work law would be the two things he would do if he had a magic wand, that could improve Idaho. Talkington said she would support medical marijuana but would oppose recreational marijuana without further study. Clow and Hartgen said they would be open to allowing cannabis oil for medical use but would oppose any legalization of marijuana. Clow said he doesnt think marijuana has any medicinal value and his answer drew some gasps from the audience when he said he believes most medical legalization proponents want it because they favor recreational use. The debate was mostly civil between the candidates, except for a few testy exchanges between Hartgen and Talkington. When answering a question about civility, Talkington said Hartgen has not been civil toward her in the campaign. Youre not living up to your words, she said. Hartgen said he has just been pointing out her views, circling back to the topic in his closing statement, which he started by praising her teaching career but ended by criticizing her. She does want to raise your taxes, he said. She does want to close off access and basically allow the federal government to close off your land. The audience too, which judging by when it clapped leaned Democratic, was mostly civil, except at one point when the House candidates were saying who they support for president. Hartgen started to say Donald Trump would help bring a return to some traditional conservative values, leading the audience to laugh and jeer and Christensen to shush them. Hartgen finished by saying he supports Trump because of the Supreme Court justices he would appoint and because he likes some of Trumps economic and foreign policy views. Varney, who works as a UPS driver and has been active in organized labor, said the Republicans have consistently, consistently not had labors back. Im voting for Hillary Clinton because Im a Democrat, he said. And because Bernie Sanders lost. TWIN FALLS The candidates for county commissioner in Twin Falls District 3 will meet for a candidates forum Thursday evening. The candidates are Republican Jack Johnson, Democrat Jill Skeem and independent Tony Bohrn. The incumbent is George Urie, who Johnson beat in the Republican primary. The forum will be at 6:30 p.m. at the Magic Valley Arts Council, 195 River Vista Place, Twin Falls. It will be moderated by Times-News Editor Matt Christensen. Audience members can submit questions. The district covers a piece of the city of Twin Falls, and the Kimberly, Hansen and Murtaugh areas, and candidates are required to live in the district. However, county commissioners elections are at-large everyone in the county votes on them. Don Hall, a Republican, is running unopposed for the District 2 seat, having beaten incumbent Leon Mills in the GOP primary. BURLEY Watco Companies LLC, which purchased the old Keystone RV manufacturing facility west of Burley, announced it will establish a short line rail service that will take agricultural and other products to market across the country. The new facility will reduce turnaround time for shipping and loading rail cars. Watco Companies is based in Kansas. Think of it as Idahos agricultural gateway to U.S. markets, Winston Inouye, strategy and customer development manager for Watco Companies said in a phone interview on Wednesday. Inouye said the project has three components the trans-loading facility, the warehouse facility that will be available for other businesses to use and the development potential of the property that can house other businesses related to rail. Inouye said the short line rail will help local businesses ship product more efficiently and facilitate the growth of other companies in the area, adding jobs. We have already had inquiries from companies asking how we can increase their efficiency, Inouye said. The facility has 156,400 square feet of manufacturing and office space and sits on 121 acres. There are three climate controlled potato storage buildings that were constructed by Max Herbold Company prior to the former owners occupancy. Owen Zidar, senior vice president of strategy and customer development for Watco Companies, said Wednesday the facility was nearly ready-made for this business, and the company will start testing in early November and ramp up operations quarterly in 2017. I think this is going to turn into a key piece of infrastructure in the community, said Doug Manning, Burley economic development director. It will open the doors to other industries. Manning said the short line rail will open doors to the eastern U.S. commodity markets through more efficient and cost effective shipping. Were certainly excited about it for sure, Manning said. Short line shipping of commodities could increase by five times in the region through the use of the climate-controlled facilities and faster rail loading facilities, according to company estimates issued in a press release from Idahos US Sen. Mike Crapos office. Crapo toured the facility on Tuesday along with city, state and company officials. The shipping and storage facilities will include operations in Pocatello and the company expects to expand into the Idaho Falls area in the coming months. Short line railroads are proven to be extremely efficient at moving Idaho goods to customers worldwide and the vision Watco demonstrates with this endeavor will make it an example for many other rail operations, Crapo said in the release. Watco and its rail partners employ more than 150 Idahoans. We know that number will increase with the added shipments and storage sure to be realized under Project Perishable. Watco chose southern Idaho as the starting point for Project Perishable in part because of the thriving potato market and the states reputation for quality potatoes. Crapo introduced and helped pass federal tax incentive legislation that is credited in part for the rail project. Crapo is working with Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat from Oregon, and others to make the tax code change permanent. TWIN FALLS An 89-year-old Twin Falls woman was being flown to Boise with life-threatening injuries after she was hit by a U.S. Postal Service vehicle Wednesday morning in the Meander Point Subdivision. The USPS mail carrier, whose name has not been released, was backing up at a low speed about 11 a.m. when the vehicle hit Lila Chidichimo, Twin Falls County Sheriffs Office spokeswoman Lori Stewart said. Chidichimo was taken by ambulance to St. Lukes Magic Valley Medical Center in Twin Falls, Stewart said, then by air ambulance to St. Alphonsus Medical Center in Boise. The mail carrier just didnt see Chidichimo, Stewart said, but stopped the vehicle after hitting her and called 911. The following editorial appears in Tuesdays Washington Post: What has allowed the United States to last for so long as a democracy, when so many other countries have failed? There are many factors, but none is more fundamental than this: When we hold elections, the losing party acknowledges the legitimacy of the winner, and the winner allows the loser to survive to fight another day. Now, for the first time in modern history, a major-party candidate rejects both sides of that equation. If he loses, Donald Trump says, it will be due to cheating that makes the result illegitimate. If he wins, he will imprison his defeated opponent. Many Americans may not have given much thought to what a breathtaking departure this represents, because until now we have had the luxury of never having to think about such things. We have been able to take for granted the quadrennial peaceful transition of power. We watch from a distance when political parties in one foreign country or another take up arms after losing an election. We look, as at something that could never happen here, when a foreign leader sends an opponent to jail or into exile. This can happen in Zimbabwe, we think, or Russia, or Cambodia, but not here. Not in the United States. The Republican nominee is saying that he will make it happen here. He tells Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee, that if he were president, youd be in jail. He nods approvingly and chimes in when his crowds chant, Lock her up. He warns that a vast if fuzzily defined conspiracy of global bankers, media companies and election officials is gearing up to steal the election. The election is rigged, he says. Its rigged like you have never seen before. Theyre rigging the system. We have endorsed Clinton for president, contending that she is well qualified, well prepared and likely to do a good job. But to voters who disagree who have never voted for a Democrat, say, or who question our assessment of her qualifications we would argue that Trumps challenge to the very core of our democracy nonetheless provides strong reason to vote for her. You may disagree with Clinton about Obamacare, Russia policy or Planned Parenthood. She may, as president, take actions that deeply upset you. But you can be certain that if Republicans take issue with her, she will not order them jailed. With Trump, if the candidate himself is to be believed, there is no such certainty. A voters first obligation should be to preserve the republic which has been, for so long, the envy of the world. One of the values Idahoans hold dear is their independence and this includes independence from government intrusion in their day-to-day lives. On Nov. 8, you will be asked to vote on a measure that will help protect you from excessive or burdensome rules and regulations. House Joint Resolution 5 is on the ballot this year a measure that ensures the Idaho Legislatures ability to continue reviewing every new state rule before it goes into effect. This is an important and necessary process. Each January, our state agencies are required to bring their new regulations to the Legislature for approval. Because agencies sometimes dont understand the real-life impact of their regulations, we ask everyday citizens you and your neighbors to tell us how the new rules affect them. For example, if a new rule is written that requires additional training for your barber or your plumber, he or she can come and tell us whether the rule is practical and helpful, or whether it is simply one more unnecessary governmental regulation of the profession. If the rule is judged to be too burdensome, it is rejected. Our nation was founded on a system of government with three co-equal branches of government, each with its own role to play. The balance of power among these three branches helps guarantee that no single person or group can gain excessive power. Idahos government is no different. Voting yes on HJR 5 encourages cooperation within our branches of state government and holds both elected officials and unelected state agency employees accountable to Idaho citizens. It makes sure that the balance of power will not be upset. It guarantees our ability to review administrative rules. Most importantly, it will ensure that your voices are heard before any new state regulations can be approved. Independence is an Idaho value, one that is worth protecting. HJR 5 has strong support from a wide variety of Idaho citizens, including the Idaho Farm Bureau, the Idaho Chamber of Commerce Alliance, the Idaho Water Users Association, the Idaho Realtors Association, and the Food Producers of Idaho. Small-business owners, farmers, ranchers and families are supporting this important initiative. I urge you to join them and vote yes on HJR 5. Tunisias ruling party is still dealing with internal crises with other resignations and membership suspensions in the air. Four of the partys MPs have reportedly tendered their resignation while sixteen others have requested the suspension of their membership. The angry MPs protest against the non-adoption of the competence criterion in assigning responsibilities within the Bureau of the Parliament, and the composition of committees. During the third inaugural session of the Parliament held this week, responsibilities were assigned to the bureau and to committees members. The departure of the lawmakers from the Nidaa Tounes party would reinforce the voice of Ennahda in the parliament. However, Chairman Sofiene Toubel of Nidaa Tounes parliamentary group denied the scope of the crisis stating that only one MP made a request for resignation while two others reconsidered their decision to resign and no other request has been received by the parliaments registry in this regard. Toubel also explained that the rules of the Parliament contain no mention of group membership freeze and the request of the sixteen members of the party cannot be considered because according to the rules, a lawmaker either belongs to a group or resigns. Tunisias political climate is still fragile and the newly formed coalition government that was formed after a national dialogue between political parties, civil and trade union groups is expected to help the country surmount its turbulent transition period that has been going on for more than five years. The country has been under a state of emergency since November 2015 after a terrorist attack and President Beji Caid Essebsi has decided to further extend it till 19 January 2017 following consultations with the Speaker of the Parliament and the Prime Minister. Chairwoman of the Paris COP21 Tuesday expressed satisfaction about the underway preparations for the UN conference on climate change COP22 to be held in in Marrakech. Speaking from the world event host city, at the opening of a ministerial meeting in the build-up to the summit (November 7-18), Segolene Royal argued that all the requirements were met for the conference to be a success. The Marrakech Pre-COP meeting to last for two days congregated more than 70 countries represented by their ministers of environment, ambassadors, Special Envoys or Representatives. It aims at finalizing preparations for the COP22 agenda including organizing the early entry into force of the Paris Agreement (November 4) and the holding of the first meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA1) during COP22 in Marrakech. Segolene Royal, also officiating as French environment minister, hailed the commitment of Moroccan authorities to make the event a success. She said during her tenure as COP21 President, she was driven by three main concerns: climate urgency, climate justice and climate efficiency. The French official hailed initiatives by all powers and the commitment of the US and China, the two major powers that initiated the momentum of the ratification of the Paris Agreement. She also urged countries still dragging foot to ratify the document ahead of the COP22 kick-off. French President Francois Hollande has repeatedly threw his full support behind Morocco while expressing his trust in Moroccos capacity to host the global event. He also urged a massive mobilization for the Marrakech event that he said he would surely attend. The new African tour started Tuesday by King Mohammed VI in East Africa opens a new era in the relations of cooperation between Morocco and the countries of this region. This fresh royal tour, the first of its kind, which includes Rwanda, Tanzania and Ethiopia, will strengthen the strategic cooperation Morocco is building with brethren African countries within the frame of South-South cooperation, based on multidimensional & win-win partnership. The new African trip will also enable the North African Kingdom to enhance cooperation ties with English speaking African countries after having successfully launched several model development projects in Western Africa and serving the interests of local African people. These projects seek to develop African agriculture, fisheries, vocational training, health, water, solar energy, electricityThey focus on vital sectors (training, agriculture, water, energy) to African people to ensure food security and speed up socioeconomic development, using homegrown know-how, adapted to the African needs and respecting Africans traditions. The royal visit to Rwanda comes after the visit paid to Morocco last June by the President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, at the invitation of King Mohammed VI. This visit gave new momentum to Moroccos political, economic and social relations with this country as the Sovereign is personally committed to developing cooperation with African countries. Both King Mohammed VI and President Kagame share the same vision and are both resolved to boost partnership in various sectors such as agriculture, transportation, training, trade, investment Rabat and Kigali are determined to build a strong relationship thanks to the political will and clear-sightedness of the two countries Heads of State who look forward to shifting up the gear of development in the continent. Rwandan Presidnet Paul Kagame said that King Mohammed VIs visit to Rwanda is reflective of excellent ties between the two friendly African countries, describing this first visit by the Moroccan Sovereign as being of great importance. We are very happy to receive His Majesty the King on this visit that shows the ever-growing relations between our two countries, said Kagame, adding that this visit will usher a new era in bilateral cooperation in several fields. Many analysts are convinced the new African tour undertaken by the Moroccan Monarch in the three East African countries will give a new impetus to Moroccos relations with these African states, so distant and yet so close. Morocco and Africa share the same destiny and the North African Kingdom is certainly a reliable partner for progress, peace, stability and sustained development. It seems that the South-South partnership, the dream cherished by so many sub-Saharan African leaders, is becoming a reality thanks to the genuine initiatives, solidarity and tireless efforts deployed by King Mohammed VI for Africas sake. Empowered by its unique development model and its unwavering support to Africa, Morocco ushers in new cooperation ties with new partners, looking upbeat to the future. Chicken will be the best-positioned protein due to its low price position in times of pressure on consumer spending power but rises in production costs and the long-term impact of COVID-19 threaten to disrupt the sector, according to Rabobank. Burundi president, Pierre Nkurunziza, has officially signed a law on Tuesday withdrawing his country from the International Criminal Court (ICC). By signing the document, Burundi becomes the first country in the world to pull out of the Rome Statute. The document was co-signed by Aimee Laurentine Kanyana, the Minister of Justice, the presidency said in a statement published on its twitter handle. The move comes after the Burundian parliament last week through a landslide vote assented to the decision by the government to leave the ICC. The International Criminal Court has expressed concerns on Tuesday evening over the decision by Burundi to withdraw from the court. According to the ICCs statement, the withdrawal from the Statute by a State Party would represent a setback in the fight against impunity and the efforts towards the objective of universality of the Statute. The ICC president called upon the Burundian authorities to engage in dialogue with the ICC over any concerns they had with the courts operation. I remind that all States Parties have the opportunity to share their concerns before the Assembly of States Parties in accordance with the Statute and invite the Burundian authorities to engage in a dialogue, the ICC president said. The ICC had announced that it will investigate the April 2015 violence that resulted in the death of at least 450 people with thousands fleeing the country. Credit: University at Buffalo Numerous studies have found that heavy alcohol useby the victim and/or perpetratoris a factor in more than half of sexual assaults on college campuses. Now, research from the University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions has found the abuse of prescription drugs by college students also can play a role in negative sexual events such as sexual assault and regretted sex. RIA Senior Research Scientist Kathleen Parks, PhD, studied the effects of nonmedical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD) by college students, including opioid analgesics (such as Oxycodone), anxiolytics/sedatives (such as Xanax, Valium or Ambien) and stimulants (such as Adderall or Ritalin). NMUPD is defined as the use of a medication without a legal prescription. The research found that among the 1,755 students studied, more than 500 reported NMUPD, and of those, a significant number experienced negative sexual events. More than 14 percent of the students who abused prescription drugs experienced regretted sex, and among the female students, 7.1 percent reported being victims of sexual assault. Significantly, the only prescription drugs associated with regretted sex and sexual assault were anxiolytics/sedatives. "The responsibility for rape or any sexual assault always falls squarely with the perpetrator," Parks says. "This study shows NMUPD, particularly anxiolytics/sedatives, can have similar effects as alcohol, including slowed decision-making and physical coordination, which can decrease the ability to recognize danger or fend off a potential perpetrator. The study did not find that nonmedical use of opioid analgesics or stimulants was associated with negative sexual events. "NMUPD is an increasing public health concern, particularly among emerging and young adults," Parks said. "Given the results of this study, parents and college administrators should be concerned about the relationship we found between nonmedical use of anxiolytics/sedatives and negative sexual events, and find ways to educate students about the potential dangers." Explore further Study of Chinese teens examines nonmedical use of Rx and suicidal behaviors Today, world leading digestive health experts are presenting a pioneering new programme that could have a significant impact on the quality of life of young adults living with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Experts believe that the programme could help combat the poor and, in some cases, life-threatening care offered to young IBD patients across Europe. IBD can be an extremely debilitating condition and one of the key issues concerning clinicians is the transition from paediatric to adult care. This is fraught with difficulty and, with the incidence of paediatric IBD currently rising, many young people enter adult care with extreme and complex forms of the disease which is often mismanaged. The lack of support and effective management during the transition can have severe consequences for both the individual and the healthcare system. The Berliner TransitionsProgramm (BTP), established in Germany, has reported its first successes in the safe and effective transition of childhood IBD patients into adult care. The programme lasts two years for each child and involves close collaboration between paediatricians and adult care colleagues. Professor Britta Siegmund, a member of the BTP Task Force discussed the encouraging findings at UEG Week 2016. "Following the success of results in other disease areas, IBD was incorporated into the programme two years ago. Transitioning programmes are initiated in the paediatric setting and involve a gradual process aimed at building the young person's understanding of their condition to help prepare them and their families for a move into adult care. So far, our experience demonstrates that the young people who have taken part have arrived into adult care very positively." One in four cases of IBD are diagnosed during childhood and over 50% of sufferers believe that IBD negatively effects their education. "With the change of care occurring at such a crucial age for our patients, it highlights the importance of a smooth and supportive transition to enable young adults to lead normal lives and prevent the disease from impacting their education and lifestyle" says Professor Siegmund. As well as IBD, the BTP also includes other long-term paediatric conditions, such as juvenile diabetes, epilepsy, arthritis, kidney disease and asthma. When a patient is included in the programme, a case manager is assigned who takes care of all the practical issues, maintains contact with the patient throughout the process and ensures that they are comfortable throughout the programme. Where needed, the patient can see both their paediatrician and their new treatment team during the transition. Providing all the materials, structure and support required to transition children safely, Professor Siegmund hopes that the success of the programme will provide a framework that can be incorporated across the rest of Europe. She explains, "The BTP can serve as a role model that can be adapted to the health service of each country. One of the critical success factors for the programme is to ensure that children are transitioned into the care of specialists who really understand adolescents and are willing to invest the time in them. All physicians who agree to take part in the programme fulfil this requirement and are committed to the success of the project." Explore further Children's digestive health across Europe in crisis Provided by United European Gastroenterology Early results from the BabySeq Project, a Boston-based study exploring the impact of whole-exome sequencing (WES) on newborn infants and their families, suggest some utility in genetically sequencing these infants and offer new insights into parental attitudes toward the procedure and results. Findings were presented at the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) 2016 Annual Meeting in Vancouver, B.C. Led by Robert C. Green, MD, MPH, of Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and the Broad Institute; and Alan H. Beggs, PhD, of the Manton Center for Orphan Disease Research at Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School; the project has recruited more than 100 families to date. Infants are enrolled from the neonatal intensive care units at Boston Children's Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital as well as the well-baby nursery at Brigham and Women's Hospital. Half of each group is randomized to receive WES - genetic sequencing of all protein-coding genes, with analysis of about 1,800 genes implicated in childhood health - and follow-up counseling. Data are collected from participating families at enrollment, when receiving their sequencing results, three months after sequencing, and ten months after sequencing. "This is the first randomized trial to sequence healthy infants with interpretation and return of the information," Dr. Green said. "We faced enormous early challenges in creating processes for informed consent, accurate sequencing and interpretation, choosing which genes to report, clearly reporting results to families and their providers, and measuring potential benefits and harms." "Having created these processes, we are now collecting data from medical record reviews and parental surveys, in order to measure medical benefits, harms, and costs, as well as parents' understanding of genetic sequencing, their attitudes and anxieties about it, and any actions they may have taken based on the results," said Shawn Fayer, MSc, MS, Project Manager of the BabySeq Project. So far, the researchers have identified potentially harmful variants in two healthy infants who were sequenced - variants that would not have been detected otherwise - suggesting some value in sequencing infants with no family history of genetic disease. It is not yet known how this knowledge will affect the families' medical actions or the infants' eventual health outcomes. In some cases, challenges during the recruitment process led to unexpected insights. Before enrolling, parents had the opportunity to meet with a genetic counselor to discuss the study. Those who declined to participate after learning about the study expressed concerns about receiving unfavorable or uncertain results, insurance discrimination, and confidentiality and privacy. These findings reflect current societal attitudes about genetic testing, which are likely to affect its clinical implementation. In the coming months, the researchers hope to enroll several hundred additional infants and families. In addition to measuring parental attitudes about sequencing newborns, they plan to assess the usefulness of WES information over time, including how it is used in later medical decisionmaking. "This is the first rigorously designed study to examine the often-cited vision that humans will benefit from having genomic information from the very first days of life," said Dr. Green. "While it will take many years of follow-up to determine the ultimate benefits and harms, we are already learning a tremendous amount about creating the process for returning genomic information in newborns, parental hopes and concerns, and the kinds of results that are emerging." Explore further Next-generation gene sequencing helps diagnose rare diseases in newborns More information: Presentation: Dr. Green will present his research on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, from 9:45-10:00 a.m., in Room 109 of the Vancouver Convention Centre. For women studying and working in Eurocentric institutions, wearing natural hair can be a symbol of resistance. Credit: Shutterstock Across the African diaspora, stigmatising kinky and curly hair was a central way that European colonisers and slave-owners subjugated black people. In many places, like Brazil and the US, hair texture later became a key marker of racial classification and social status. In apartheid South Africa, the "pencil test" was used to determine proximity to whiteness, along with access to political, social and economic privileges. It involved inserting a pencil into the hair and testing whether it would hold or fall out. Persistent, disdainful ideas about natural, black hair are the legacy of this history. National independence and civil rights protections have brought citizenship rights to many black people. And yet hair texture continues to determine access to employment, romantic relationships, educational institutions and freedom of movement. Over the last decade, black women around the world have grown a movement centred on validating, celebrating and caring for their hair in its natural kinky-curly state. Natural hair expositions, pageants, salons and bloggers can now be found in cities across the globe in Sao Paulo, Johannesburg, Madrid, Atlanta, Paris, Amsterdam and Havana. There's even a holiday International Natural Hair Meetup Day that attempts to coordinate these geographically separated natural hair communities. Over the last two years I've travelled around the US, Spain, the Netherlands, France and South Africa unpacking why the natural hair movement has become a political rallying point across the African diaspora. And establishing who participates in it. Awareness, social media and environmentalism Natural hair has been transformed from an unpopular and outdated style option to a full blown lifestyle movement. This can be explained by the convergence of three factors: a heightened concern about the ethical implications of hair straightening, the rise of social media and environmentalism. In 2008, Chris Rock's documentary Good Hair revived a global conversation about the politics of black hair. The film explored the physical, emotional and financial toll that straightening hair takes on black women's lives as they try to fulfil Eurocentric beauty ideals. The documentary harshly criticised wearing weaves and using chemical relaxers. But it left viewers without clear pathways for change. This gap was filled by the rise of visually rich, interactive social media platforms. YouTube (released 2005), Tumblr (2009) and Instagram (2010) enabled black women to create communities and exchange information about styling natural hair, creating products at home and fostering self-acceptance. Popular music has also played a part in drawing attention to the significance of hair for identity and self-esteem. At the same time, green movement conversations piqued concerns about sustainability and chemical toxicity in food and cosmetics. The word "natural" came to describe the integrity of ingredients in products in addition to texture. Some "naturalpreneurs" have created entire careers importing raw shea butter, virgin coconut oil, and other organic concoctions to sell to health-conscious black women. In the process of marketing their products, they have also been involved in marketing natural hair politics. Credit: University of Southern California Individual resistance and collective struggle In racially diverse places like Brazil, Canada, the US, South Africa and Western Europe, natural hair has inspired responses ranging from fetishisation to confusion and disgust. These reactions highlight the fallacies of post-racial "colourblind" thinking. This post-racial thinking asserts that race no longer explains social and economic obstacles faced by people of colour. In doing so, it denies the powerful ways that institutionalised racism and cultural racism continue to maintain white privilege. For example, many older South African women described feeling pressure to straighten their hair in the post-apartheid "rainbow nation". They did this to assimilate into newly accessible elite institutions. But today's natural hair trend mirrors a rejection of post-racial thinking. There is a growing demand to combat enduring racial inequality through race-conscious strategies. In societies that are dealing with the legacies of settler colonialism, slavery and apartheid, black women are usually underrepresented in boardrooms and elite classrooms. In these contexts, wearing natural hair allows upwardly-mobile black women to assert their identity despite white supremacist norms. For these women, natural hair politics often takes the form of individual resistance. Women attend monthly or annual meet-ups, and follow black women's online media. But in places with large enough populations of black women in formerly white spaces, natural hair politics can form the basis of a collective anti-racist politics. The protests that broke out in 2016 at South Africa's Pretoria Girls High are evidence of this. The class question It is significant to note that working-class and poor women tend to be underrepresented in the natural hair movement. Its green ethos is difficult for poor and working-class women to buy into. Poor black neighbourhoods are less likely to have grocery stores, let alone speciality health food stores that stock organic products. Women in poverty and women in developing nations are also less likely to enjoy reliable internet access. This limits their ability to interact with the blogs, vlogs, and think-pieces integral to natural hair culture. Likewise, natural hair spaces tend to organise themselves around buying, selling and reviewing natural hair products. Many of these are expensive and inaccessible outside of the US. In these contexts, the symbolism around natural hair is different. Sporting natural hair is more likely to be interpreted as an inability to afford chemical relaxers rather than as a personal or political choice. Black Hair Matters The exclusivity of the movement does not diminish the transformative impact that "going natural" has had on the lives of thousands of black women across the African diaspora. It is an issue of aesthetics and representation. But it is also more than that. I've met women around the world who link their breastfeeding advocacy, midwifery, yoga practice, veganism, reiki work and improved fitness habits back to their choice to embrace natural hair. For some women, natural hair communities simply disseminate more culturally affirming images and pleasurable options for styling black hair. For others, "going natural" is one way to mobilise against the lived experience of white supremacy. For many more, the natural hair movement has provided black women with a set of ideas that allow them to live more fully, freely and joyfully in their own bodies. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Scientists, led by a team at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, have linked mutations in a single gene to autism in people with neurofibromatosis type 1. The findings may lead to a better understanding of the genetic roots of autism in the wider population. Credit: Michael Worful Scientists have linked mutations in a single gene to autism in people who have a rare tumor syndrome typically diagnosed in childhood. The findings, in patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), may lead to a better understanding of the genetic roots of autism in the wider population. The findings are published Oct. 19 in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. Studying 531 patients at six clinical centers in the United States, Belgium, the United Kingdom and Australia, the researchers found that mutations in the NF1 gene that cause the disease also contributed to autistic behaviors in almost half of the patients. "NF1 is caused by mutations in a single geneNF1," said first author Stephanie M. Morris, MD, an instructor in neurology. "Our research indicates that this single gene also is associated with autism spectrum disorders in these same patients. That may make it possible to look downstream from the gene to find common pathways that contribute to autism in the wider population." NF1, the disorder caused by NF1 mutations, usually appears during childhood. Symptoms can vary in severity, but they include cafe au lait spots, which are flat, brown spots on the skin. Other symptoms include tiny nodules on the iris of the eye, nerve tumors, bone deformities such as a curved spine or a bowed lower leg, and optic gliomas, tumors of the optic nerve. Kids with NF1 also can have learning disabilities. Credit: Washington University BioMed Radio "In the 25-plus years that I've taken care of kids with NF1, we've only recently started to recognize that these children also often have symptoms of autism," said senior investigator David H. Gutmann, MD, PhD, the Donald O. Schnuck Family Professor of Neurology and director of the Washington University NF Center. "In the past, we didn't really understand the association between NF1 and autism, but now we have new insights into the problem, which will allow us to design better treatments for children with NF1 and autism." The findings also could help scientists who study the genetics of autism understand how mutations in a single gene can contribute to symptoms of autism, such as problems with social and language skills and repetitive behaviors. About 100,000 people in the United States have NF1. It is equally common in both sexes and in all ethnic groups. Autism, meanwhile, affects 1 percent to 2 percent of all children in the United States and is four to five times more common in boys than in girls. "What's unique about our findings is that it's likely mutations in the NF1 gene are driving most of the symptoms of autism in children with NF1," said the study's other senior investigator, John N. Constantino, the Blanche F. Ittleson Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics and director of the William Greenleaf Eliot Division of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. "Here, we have a single-gene disorder that affects a fairly large number of people and is causing autism in a significant number of those who are affected. This work could provide us with an opportunity to study a single gene and figure out what it is doing to cause autistic syndromes." Constantino said most autism spectrum disorders are influenced by multiple genes but that isolating this one gene can aid efforts to learn how other, unrelated genes may interact along that same pathway to contribute to autism in people who don't have NF1. Learning how those various genes come together to cause symptoms eventually could lead to better treatments. But already the findings are benefiting children and families treated at the Washington University NF Center. "We've been able to screen children at our center, identify autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit disorder and problems with executive cognitive function," Morris said. "And when we identify these deficits in kids, we can tell their parents, inform their schools and enable these children to get the resources and support they needspecifically academic and social support - to improve their quality of life." Explore further Mouse model of autism offers insights to human patients, potential drug targets More information: Morris, SM, Acosta MR, Garg S, Green J, Huson S, Legius E, North KN, Payne JM, Plasschaert E, Frazier TW, Weiss LA, Zhang Y, Gutmann DH, Constantino JN, and the International NF1-ASD Consortium Team (INTACT). NF1 gene mutations engender the full spectrum of autism. JAMA Psychiatry. Oct. 19, 2016. Journal information: JAMA Psychiatry Morris, SM, Acosta MR, Garg S, Green J, Huson S, Legius E, North KN, Payne JM, Plasschaert E, Frazier TW, Weiss LA, Zhang Y, Gutmann DH, Constantino JN, and the International NF1-ASD Consortium Team (INTACT). NF1 gene mutations engender the full spectrum of autism.. Oct. 19, 2016. Mine worker in Tkibuli found dead from apparent suffocation Workers in one of the mines in Tkibuli in western Georgia found a co-worker dead on Friday, seemingly from gas poisoning.The accident happened in the Mindeli mine. Workers found the body in the morning as they arrived at work.It appears that 51-year-old Temur Kakauridze suffocated due to carbon dioxide poisoning, the head of the miners and metallurgy workers trade unionTamaz Dolaberidze said. The dead worker had injuries on his nose and forehead and appears to have fallen down.One of the other workers in the Mindeli mine claims that there was a build-up of methane and carbon dioxide at the sixth district of the mine.It is important now to find out if the management knew about the accumulation [of poisonous gas] and if it is allowed to go down in the mine alone in this situation, Dolaberidze wrote on his Facebook page.The Trade Union sent its condolences to the family of the victim.Kakauridze was employed at the Mindeli mine three months ago.An investigation has been opened for violation of security measures during mountainous or other works resulting death, under article 240 of the Criminal Code.Workers in Georgias mines have demonstrated and gone on strike against dangerous conditions, poor safety measures and regular fatal accidents.Reacting to this latest accident, Georgias ombudsman Ucha Nanuashvili called for the reintroduction of a labor inspectorate, which was disbanded by President Saakashvili in 2006.He also called for Georgia to ratify ILO conventions 81, 129 and 155, as well as article 3 of the European Social Charter, about health and safety in the workplace. Live news available for the Georgian population of Azerbaijani and Armenian origin By Messenger Staff From now on, live newson Georgias Public Broadcaster (GPB) at 6 and 8 pm is available for Georgias ethnic Azerbaijani and Armenian population, who previously had no such service.The initiators of the innovation stressed it was a unique approach in the whole region and in the post-Soviet space.The project has been implemented through the financial support of the United States (US) Embassy to Georgia and was carried out by GPB and Georgias Regional Broadcasting Association.The project allowed Moambe to give a chance to viewers - during certain hours - to make a choice between Georgian, Azerbaijani and Armenian languages.There will be sound tracks for Moambe at 6 pm and 8 pm and viewers can press a button and select the language they wish to listen in.This will be a chance for ethnic minorities to receive information in real time and not afterwards through various sources. The process will also increase the GPB accessibility to all viewers, US Ambassador to Georgia Ian Kelly said after the presentation of the project.Director General of GPB, Giorgi Baratashvili, said it was a very ambitious project, requiring significant efforts to be carried out.He said that GPB wanted to add the Abkhazian and Russian languages to the list in the future.The head of Georgias Broadcasting Association, Natia Kuprashvili, said the project would fill the information gap between ethnic minorities and the rest of the Georgian population, and would avoid the controversies caused by the lack of or wrong information.The latest census conducted in Georgia in 2014 read 3,713, 804 people live in Georgia. Out of this number, the Azerbaijanii origin population was 233,000 - more than other ethnic minorities living in Georgia - and 168,000 of Armenian origin.Georgias ethnic minorities should have the opportunity to listen to the news in their mother tongue and be aware of the situation in the country. Meanwhile Georgia should increase its efforts to teach properly Georgian language to every Georgian citizen so that to achieve their full integration into societyInforming the population means giving them a chance to make independent decisions.Herewith, such projects should also be encouraged that will enable ethnic minorities living in Georgia to study the Georgian language, as this is also crucial for their full integration in all the processes. The extra week of voter registration across Florida that Gov. Rick Scott initially opposed has already produced nearly 37,000 new voters and the increase will keep growing in the coming days as Florida sets an all-time record in the total number of voters. Secretary of State Ken Detzner reported late Tuesday that 36,823 voter registration forms were verified and are active in the state voter database and that another 26,773 applicants are being verified, for a potential bounty of nearly 64,000 additional voters, with an undetermined additional number of voter forms being mailed that haven't yet arrived at county elections offices. To put that number in perspective, Scott won re-election as governor two years ago by 64,145 votes. Detzner said every voter registration application must be verified using voters' Social Security numbers and Florida driver license numbers to confirm voters' IDs. Once that is done, the information is sent to the county supervisor of elections, who adds the voter to the rolls. "The Department will devote more than 65 staff members to assist in this process up until election day," Detzner said in a release. "Of this number, 19 staff members are trained and approved by the state to enter and handle sensitive voter information." Scott last week rejected calls by Democrats to extend the voter registration deadline past Oct. 11 because of Hurricane Matthew, so Democrats sued the state and requested an extra week. U.S. District Judge Mark Walker in Tallahassee approved the extension, first for one day and then for six more days, and attorneys for Scott and Detzner officially took no position in court on the extension. Scott, quoting from Walker's decision, later said he lacked the legal authority to extend the registration period. The voter sign-up period ended at 5 p.m. Tuesday, but any forms mailed that were postmarked by Tuesday are also considered valid. The state did not provide a breakdown of new voters by party. That information won't be available until sometime next week at the earliest, Detzner's office said. The state's largest county, Miami-Dade, has been a hotbed of new voter registration activity. The Miami Herald's Alex Harris reported boxes and trays full of new forms were left at the offices of Supervisor of Elections Christina White on Tuesday afternoon. The Miami-Dade voter roll grew by more than 38,000 voters to 1,307,458, during the two months between Aug. 1 and Sept. 30, far more than any other county in Florida, according to the state Division of Elections web site. Miami-Dade is a strongly Democratic county and the majority of its voters are Hispanic, a key voting bloc in the upcoming elections for president between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton and for U.S. Senate between Sen. Marco Rubio of West Miami and Rep. Patrick Murphy. In Miami, some people knew about the deadline extension and were taking advantage of it. Kaan Canusgurlu, a 20-year-old man who was born in Boston but spent all but the last two months in Turkey, registered with no party affiliation and said he knew about the extension. "It's obvious everyone should vote for Hillary," he said. "The other guy looks like the guys who govern Turkey, and they are not good at governing." Oscar Arnero, 61, of North Miami, registered for the first time after hearing it was his last day to do so, and plans to vote for Trump. "I like everything he says, and I want something to change," Arnero said. --With reporting by Alex Harris of The Miami Herald The head of the think tank that provided research for a utility-backed solar amendment on the November ballot, said his policy director misspoke when he characterized the effort as a strategy to deceive voters into thinking the plan was a pro-solar amendment. Robert McClure, executive director of the Tallahassee-based James Madison Institute, responded to to a report in the Miami Herald and Tampa Bay Times on Tuesday that the policy director of JMI, Sal Nuzzo, admitted at a conference this month that the industry attempted to deceive voters into supporting restrictions on the expansion of solar by shrouding Amendment 1 as a pro-solar amendment. At an event with an unfamiliar, national audience, Mr. Nuzzo generalized his commentary and misspoke in reference to JMI partnering with Consumers for Smart Solar in any capacity, McClure said in a statement. McClure said his organization never received funding from the political committee formed by the states largest utilities to oppose a solar-industry backed initiative and promote a rival amendment of their own. He said that no one funds individual studies. People support our mission generally and we decide internally what topics were going to weigh in on. JMI has never worked with or received funding from Consumers for Smart Solar, McClure said in a statement. We have released policy positions on both solar amendments and have publicly spoken on the pros and cons of each. McClure would not comment on whether or not the utility industry or its supporters provided financing for JMI before it embarked on the research that is now being promoted by the political committee financed by the utility industry, but he denied there was a link. Nuzzo spoke to the State Energy/Environment Leadership Summit in Nashville on Oct. 2, and called Amendment 1, the proposal backed by the industry, an incredibly savvy maneuver that would completely negate anything they [pro-solar interests] would try to do either legislatively or constitutionally down the road. The hourlong audio recording of the event was supplied to the Herald/Times by the left-leaning Center for Media and Democracy and the Energy and Policy Institute. In it, Nuzzo claimed that it was the political committee that approached the think tank. So Consumers for Smart Solar came to JMI and said you guys are the adults in the room, youre the ones that have access to the research, to the scholars, to the SPN, to a lot of the national organizations, we need some help because not only are they going to get the 700,000signatures to get it on the ballot, its actually polling in the 70 percent range, he said. Nuzzo then told the group that the utility-backed amendment was motivated in part by the popularity of the solar industrys proposal and their ability to win the support of free-market advocates and local businesses interested in putting rooftop solar on their property. Story here. @ByKristenMClark Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Patrick Murphy will be in Tallahassee at the end of the month for a fundraiser hosted by some prominent names in Florida's capital city 10 days before Election Day. The host committee for the Oct. 30 afternoon event includes Florida Democratic Party chairwoman Allison Tant, Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum and attorney Ben Crump (who gained national attention while representing Trayvon Martin's family in the 2012 case against George Zimmerman, the Neighborhood Watch volunteer who shot and killed the black teenager). The event is scheduled to be held at Crump's law office, Parks & Crump. Crump's law partner Daryl Parks is also on the host committee, although his name is misspelled on the invitation. Donations to attend range from $25 for guests to $500 for hosts, according to an email invitation Murphy's campaign sent out Wednesday afternoon. View the invitation here. Photo credit: John Raoux / AP David Rivera's troubled political comeback was delivered another blow Wednesday as the local chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police issued a statement saying it "emphatically and unequivocally withdraws our endorsement of David Rivera." Rivera's campaign, and the political committee supporting him, has been running daily robo calls repeating unsubstantiated accusations against his Democratic opponent Robert Asencio. They have repeated the claims in at least six different mailers that have flooded the mail boxes of voters in the House District 118 race. The allegations accuse Asencio, a retired police sergeant in the Miami-Dade Public Schools Police Department, of being a "child abuser" even though the school district has said those claims are false. "David Rivera is running a false and defamatory campaign against career public servant and distinguished police officer Robert Asencio,'' said Javier Ortiz, district director of the Fraternal Order of Police, District 6, in a statement issued late Tuesday. "The Fraternal Order of Police does not support David Riveras smear tactics and obscene insinuations about Roberts character and career accomplishments. Unlike Robert who was cleared of any wrongdoing while protecting the community, Mr. Rivera was just found guilty and fined a over $57,000 by the State of Florida. "Floridians have the right to vote based on facts, not on politically promoted smear campaigns." Asencio served in the Miami-Dade police for 26 years and retired last year as sergeant. He has received the endorsement of the Dade County Police Benevolent Association, the International Union of Police Associations, Teamsters Local 769 and other unions. More here. @ByKristenMClark While national Democratic groups are all-but abandoning Patrick Murphy to fend for himself in Florida's U.S. Senate race, the party's figurehead isn't. President Barack Obama cut another ad for the two-term Jupiter congressman -- this one in Spanish. In the new 30-second spot, Obama said Murphy "will fight for immigration reform, better education, and higher wages." "Go out and vote for Patrick. Your vote is very important," he added. Of the eight general election ads Murphy's campaign has released to date, this is the first one that doesn't also simultaneously attack, or even mention, his opponent: Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio. Murphy's campaign said the ad will air in Tampa, Orlando, and Miami as part of an existing million-dollar ad buy. This is the latest example of Murphy's aggressive and noticeable efforts to improve his appeal among Hispanic voters since late September. Rubio, a Cuban-American who's fluent in Spanish, has polled stronger among that demographic, aside from leading Murphy in every poll for months. (Recent overall polls have shown the two candidates closer, which has narrowed Rubio's average advantage to 4.2 percentage points, according to Real Clear Politics.) Obama -- and Vice President Joe Biden -- endorsed Murphy in the spring. Obama did both radio and TV ads for Murphy over the summer when he was still in a contested primary against Democratic U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson. Image credit: Patrick Murphy campaign / YouTube via @learyreports In a new TV ad playing in battleground states (presumably Florida, though the campaign doesn't say) Donald Trump is portrayed as a change agent. --ALEX LEARY, Tampa Bay Times Michael-in-Norfolk disclaims any and all responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, completeness, legality, reliability, operability, or availability of information or material displayed on this site and does not claim credit for any images or articles featured on this site, unless otherwise noted. All visual content is copyrighted to it's respectful owners. Information on this site may contain errors or inaccuracies, and Michael-in-Norfolk does not make warranty as to the correctness or reliability of the site's content. If you own rights to any of the images or articles, and do not wish them to appear on this site, please contact Michael-in-Norfolk via e-mail and they will be promptly removed. Michael-in-Norfolk contains links to other Internet sites. These links are provided solely as a convenience and are not endorsements of any products or services in such sites, and no information or content in such site has been endorsed or approved by this blog. Montana Attorney General Tim Fox will issue a legal opinion about Missoula's new gun purchase background check ordinance after receiving a request to review the law from Austin Knudsen, speaker of the Montana House of Representatives. Knudsen, R-Culbertson, announced Sept. 26, the night the Missoula City Council passed the measure, that he would seek an opinion from Fox. The Montana Department of Justice received the official request on Oct. 10, and Fox informed Knudsen on Tuesday he would issue an opinion, according to department spokesman John Barnes. The new ordinance, which takes effect in late October, mandates a background check for gun sales between private parties in city limits, with a limited number of exceptions. Now that he has accepted Knudsens request, Fox has three months to issue his legal opinion, which carries the force of law unless overruled by a state district court or the Montana Supreme Court. In a memorandum asking Fox to weigh in on the matter, Knudsen said the new ordinance violates several sections of the Montana and U.S. constitutions as well as state law MCA 45-8-351, which says local government cannot "prohibit, register, tax, license, or regulate the purchase, sale or other transfer" of "any weapon." Missoula City Attorney Jim Nugent has said the ordinance falls under an exception to that law. One subsection allows local governments to prevent and suppress ... the possession of firearms by convicted felons, adjudicated mental incompetents, illegal aliens and minors. In his memorandum, Knudsen said the ordinance didnt apply, saying it is too broad to fit under this narrow subsection. The Missoula ordinance does not just apply to convicted felons, adjudicated mental incompetents, illegal aliens, and minors, he wrote. In the end, the Missoula ordinance will do nothing more than make otherwise law-abiding citizens criminals for violating this ordinance. Fox sent a letter to Knudsen saying he will investigate whether the state law allows a local government to pass regulations requiring background checks. In October 2015, when the City Council was deliberating on the then-proposed ordinance, Fox issued a one-sentence statement that he believed the proposal likely violated state law, but did not issue a formal opinion. Since the measure passed the City Council, Gov. Steve Bullock who was attorney general before being elected governor and his Republican opponent Greg Gianforte have also said they think the ordinance violates state law. A 47-year-old Missoula man facing more than a dozen charges for allegedly drugging and raping girls as young as 12 pleaded not guilty Tuesday in Missoula County District Court. Erik Lee Nugent entered the denials during his arraignment hearing before Judge Karen Townsend. He was arrested Sept. 14, and charged with 13 felonies, including sexual intercourse without consent, sexual abuse of children, and endangering the welfare of a child, as well as misdemeanor assault. Nugent remains at the Missoula County jail on $150,000 bail. On Tuesday, his public defense attorney Chris Daly asked for a court appearance next week to discuss his potential release. Townsend said Nugent was not recommended for pretrial supervision, but Daly said he would like to talk with his client about some of the issues, and try to address them with the court. According to a court affidavit, coworkers reported Nugent to the police after he allegedly made sexual comments about children. In an interview with a First Step Resource Center forensic examiner, a 17-year-old girl said Nugent got her high on drugs, cut and choked her, and sexually abused her. The girl said she had used methamphetamine and alcohol with Nugent, and that he claimed similar activity with other girls. Another man who contacted police said Nugent would bring teenage girls into the woods and have sex with them. A 14-year-old girl told a detective she met Nugent when she was 13 and he got her hooked on meth, and a 15-year-old said Nugent provided her with acid, mushrooms, Ritalin, ecstasy, marijuana and meth and sexually abused her, according to court documents. In December 2015, detectives interviewed several girls who were 12 and 13 who said that in July, a man picked them up at the skate park and took them somewhere else, where they took white pills and smoked marijuana. One of the girls said he sexually abused her, and tried to kiss her and the other girls. She identified Nugent in a police photo lineup. Of the almost 10,000 boxes in the Missoula County Records Center, manager Keith Belcher knows exactly where the most interesting ones are. This is my favorite box in the whole place, he said, sifting through a double-high stack of white cardboard crates, distinguished from the other thousands only by a code stuck to the bottom left corner. This one, he said after a few tries. I knew Id find it. That box contained coroners inquests from suspicious deaths in Missoula County from 1870-1902. He pulled out a few thin brown envelopes with dark cursive on the front. *** One, dated 1890, contained interviews by then-Justice of the Peace and coroner Charles Shepherd, about the murder of three unknown men by Native Americans near Demersville, on the North Shore of Flathead Lake. Another was an inquest into the death of Sheriff Moses M. Drouillard in 1878. Drouillard, who was elected two years earlier, died from a gunshot wound to the head. The 20 or so pages of transcripts of witness interviews and the jurys decision were handwritten on thick, lined paper, with a familiar red rule on the left side. Proceedings of coroner inquest held upon the body of M.M. Drouillard at Missoula M. on Dec. 17 '78," the first page began in sloping cursive. Frank Woody, then county clerk and recorder, later Missoulas first mayor, was the first to be interviewed. He was at his office in the courthouse at around noon or 1 p.m., he couldnt quite remember, on Sunday, Dec. 14. After he was there about 20 minutes, Mary Angeline Drouillard, Moses wife, burst in to tell him Moses had shot himself. He had taken her Derringer from her and had shot himself in the head and had fallen in the door, Woodys testimony read. Mary said shed dragged Moses inside, explaining why his body wasnt in the doorway where she said it had fallen. Woody then found the deceased lying on a buffalo robe on the floor with his head on a pillow and with his feet toward the door. Hearing breathing and checking Moses pulse on his wrist, Woody found Moses was still alive. He ran to the nearby saloon for help. He asked someone to fetch a doctor, and several others followed him back to the jail. Each testimony ended with several questions. One of Woodys read: Has the deceased been acting strangely for the year past? Answer: " his memory was impaired and seemed to be rather stupid, but in other respects harmless. A man who came from the saloon, Henry McFarland, said Mrs. Drouillard told him for the last four weeks she had been abused and that morning she and her child had been beaten and abused. The doctor was interviewed as well, describing his examination in great detail, mainly the several attempts it took to remove the bullet. Mary Angeline Drouillard was the last interview before the jury deliberated on their verdict. Her account said she and Moses got into a fight that morning over him not having any clean clothes. Hed been drinking Saturday night, she said, and spent the night in the courthouse. Sunday morning he was intoxicated and crazy, or nearly so, Mary said. Moses called her names, swore at her and hit her on the shoulders, she said, and threatened to shoot himself rather than being with me any longer. I told him that he would not dare to do it, that he was a coward. Then Moses left the room, went outside with the Derringer, and Mary heard a single shot. Now believing that Moses M. Drouillard came to his death from a pistol wound, the jurys decision stated, inflicted by the hands of Mary A. Drouillard with felonious intent. By Dec. 20, according to the New North-West, Deer Lodges newspaper, Mary was under arrest for Moses murder and was jailed in the same prison she used to live in. During the year before her trial, Mary said a jail employee had encouraged her to shoot Moses and another friend had cocked the gun and handed it to her, also helping to drag the body inside the jail, according to an article by Ellen Baumler, Montana Historical Society interpretive historian, titled, Justice as an Afterthought: Women and the Montana Prison System. In the same article, Baumler argues that Mary, having just had a child when the murder occurred, wouldn't have been able to drag Moses' body inside by herself. By December of the next year, the New North-West reported Mary was sentenced for fifteen years for murder in second degree. Mary was the second woman ever to be admitted to the Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge, after a Hispanic prostitute was found guilty of manslaughter in 1878, according to Ellen Baumlers article. *** The lobby of the records center, which is open to the public, holds shelves of old volumes, gold lettering gilding their spines, commissioners notes dating to 1865 and deed and land trust volumes at least as old. Behind their offices, Belcher opened the door to the back room, containing row upon row of gray metal shelves, stacked five, six, seven or eight high with white, labeled boxes. A few shelves of the red, gold-lettered tomes, containing sheriffs notes and marriage licenses, interspersed the white boxes. If you want to find cool stuff, this is it, he said. We actually still have records that are territorial records in hard copy. Those are kept in off-white acid free boxes and envelopes, while some microfilm and their digital server are in a climate-controlled room. Around three years ago, Belcher said his office did a complete inventory of their records. We were very surprised, he said. We missed maybe two boxes that werent out here. The University of Montana issued an alert via text and email to its students at 9:50 p.m. Tuesday informing them of an alleged sexual assault that took place in a residence hall on campus. The email says the school is aware of a non-stranger sexual assault, but does not say when the incident took place. The school is asking students living in the residence halls to be alert for non-resident visitors. UM said it would release more information as it is available. Charter Communications' internet service was out in parts of Missoula and the Bitterroot on Tuesday, causing headaches for local residents, businesses and government agencies. Users took to social media to air their frustrations with the company throughout the day Tuesday, saying their service had been out since the early morning. A representative from Charter's customer support call center said only that the company was aware of a widespread outage in the Missoula area and that staff were working on the issue, but did not have an estimate on when the outage would be repaired. The woman, who didn't give her name, said she couldn't provide the number of customers affected. Around 6 p.m. Bret Picciolo, northwestern director of regional communications at Charter, issued a statement. "We are aware of a service disruption that is impacting customers in the Missoula area and are working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible," he wrote, saying he apologized for not being able to offer further details. Service was restored shortly before 8:30 p.m., Picciolo said. Some Missoula stores, such as The Iron Horse Bar and Grill and Noon's convenience stores, posted on Facebook that the outage was preventing them from accepting credit or debit cards for purchases. Rebecca Connors, Missoula County elections administrator, said her office had been having intermittent issues throughout the day that prevented people from registering to vote. Connors said those issues stemmed from an inability to access the Secretary of States voter system. We need the voter database to be able to update voter info, Connors said. Missoula County District Court also experienced technical issues Tuesday, with Judge Karen Townsend telling attorneys they were having difficulty accessing electronic court records. Posts on Down Detector and Outage Report, websites that scan messages from Twitter to try to track outages of web services, included tweets from people in Lolo and Stevensville complaining that their Charter internet was not functioning. "Charter is down in all of Missoula. I think it's the world trying to tell us to get outside. Or just drink all day. You choose," one user wrote. It looks as though a local preservation group will get its day in court in an effort to halt the partial demolition of the historic Missoula Mercantile. For the time being, a judge has ruled in favor of Preserve Historic Missoula (PHM), saying their lawyer is allowed to fix a "procedural defect" and file new paperwork that gives the group standing to have their petition heard. The judge also denied a motion to dismiss the case. That motion was filed by lawyers representing the Missoula City Council, a developer who is proposing to build a $35 million hotel and the Merc's current owner. Missoula County District Court judge Robert "Dusty" Deschamps issued the order after hearing from all sides Tuesday morning. Last month, PHM filed a petition asking the court to halt the deconstruction of the Merc, saying the City Council's decision to authorize a partial demolition permit was made arbitrarily and capriciously. PHM then filed an amended petition. Attorneys for the City Council, the developer and the owner had argued that Preserve Historic Missoula's amended petition failed to establish or plead that any plaintiff is an "aggrieved party" or that any of the plaintiffs have or will suffer an adverse impact to any legal right they may possess, among other things. They argued that because the law dictates the above condition must be pleaded in order for the court to make a ruling, the judge should toss out the case. Deschamps agreed that PHM's attorney, Michael Doggett, had failed to use the proper specific legal language in both the original petition and an amended petition, even after opposing lawyers had pointed out the omission. However, Deschamps was hesitant to dismiss PHM's petition simply because of what he termed a "procedural defect." "If (PHM) properly pleads it, they could make a case that they would have standing," Deschamps said. "Whether they could actually prove damage and so forth is another question. I don't know if they can prove it, but I would rather get it resolved on the merits rather than what I've characterized as procedural defects." Alan McCormick, an attorney for the developer, argued that the rules of civil procedure dictate that PHM's attorney was not entitled to what McCormick called a "third opportunity" to fix the petition. "How many chances do you give a party to fix defects?" he asked Deschamps. McCormick noted that the developer, the owner and the city have spent thousands of dollars working on the case. "We have a compendium of errors here," McCormick said. Deschamps hinted that one part of the argument made by PHM's attorney, Michael Doggett, struck him as especially persuasive. Doggett had claimed that if the court dismissed PHM's petition outright, it would set a bad precedent that citizens could not challenge land use decisions made by city officials. Deschamps was intrigued by that point, and told the story of how he is remodeling a Victorian house near Philipsburg. "If someone came in and started deconstructing all these historic buildings in Philipsburg, I'd feel like I'm being injured," Deschamps said. "What about this lack of recourse for citizens if they think the City Council just goofed, other than vote the rascals out in the next election?" Natasha Prinzing Jones, an attorney at Boone Karlberg in Missoula who represents the building's current owner, argued that judicial power is limited in this case and that the plaintiffs have only claimed an "abstract" harm would occur to them. She also hinted that Doggett may have not included any specific allegation of damage to a person because he knows he can't prove that. Deschamps also told Doggett he'd better file a second amended complaint and fix the defect. "Why didn't you say, 'We are going to be damaged ... we've got this historic property and you're tearing (the Merc) down and I'm going to be damaged'... Why didn't you say that?" Deschamps asked Doggett. Doggett then asked to be able to file a second amended petition, and asked the judge to "take it out on him" rather than his clients. Doggett then filed his second amended complaint late Tuesday. One of the arguments made by Nancy and David Tyrell, two of the plaintiffs Doggett represents, is that they have invested in a housing complex downtown and they will be harmed by the loss of a cultural icon such as the Merc because it will diminish the downtown's historic character. "David and Nancy Tyrell, as representatives of all individuals who have restored and redeveloped a number of structures in or close to downtown Missoula, and who have significant business interests in downtown Missoula, represent property owners who feel that demolition of the Missoula Mercantile would pose great problems to downtown Missoula, the historic culture of downtown Missoula, and to property owners and other developers with properties in downtown Missoula," Doggett wrote in his latest court filing. In the end, Deschamps cited the Rules of Civil Procedure to back up his decision to allow Doggett to file a second amended complaint and deny the motion to dismiss. As the November elections approach, Republican legislators have been trying to convince the public that the states budget, and its economy, are in a shambles, and that its all Gov. Steve Bullocks fault. But as legislators who voted alongside our Republican colleagues in support of the budget during the last legislative session, we think Montanans deserve the truth rather than election-year rhetoric. The truth is that we are working with a budget that was put together by a Republican-controlled legislature. As with any budget, expenditures had to match estimated revenues, and it was a Republican senator, Fred Thomas, who presided over the committee that estimated what revenues would be. In this process there was always the possibility that we would get the revenue numbers wrong, and recognizing that, Bullock insisted that we keep a healthy balance in the bank to meet any unforeseen shortfalls. As it happens, we did get the revenue number wrong, we did have to dip into that rainy day reserve, and we are all fortunate that the governor had the foresight to insist that it be there to dip into. Otherwise we would have been forced to roll back needed spending on schools, roads, health care and other vital services. The fact that our reserves are dwindling is not a sign of fiscal mismanagement, but of fiscal prudence. We were prepared for a rainy day. It is particularly ironic that Republican legislators go after the governor for fiscal mismanagement when, if they had gotten their way, the situation today would be a lot worse. Throughout the session Republicans sent tax cut measures to the governor that would truly have busted the budget. They also proposed spending cash reserves on infrastructure. The governor resisted these measures forcefully, and in the end, that turned out to be exactly the right thing to do. Voters should be very wary of politicians like Greg Gianforte who promise to be fiscally responsible in one breath, and to slash taxes for the wealthy in the next. Our Republican colleagues also argue that our current budget challenges are the result of declining production in oil and gas, coal and other natural resource industries, and again, try to pin that decline on Bullock. But the governor of Montana has no control over the forces that are shaping and shaking the natural resource and energy markets. Try as we might, we cannot raise the price of oil or keep cheap natural gas from displacing coal. Faced with the boom and bust cycle in natural resource markets, the smart thing to do is to keep some cash on hand to make up for flagging revenue, and to foster a diversified and adaptable economy. Thats what Bullock has been doing. There are more Montanans working now than ever. Unemployment rates are below, and wages are rising faster than, national averages. And unlike other states that are less diverse and more dependent on natural resources, weve been able to weather the inevitable ups and downs in the energy industry. Despite what Republican legislators might say in an attempt to distract us from the truth and elect Greg Gianforte, Montanas economic and fiscal state is strong and resilient. Under Governor Bullocks leadership, we are well prepared for what comes our way. The website PolitiFact jumped all over Rudy Giuliani earlier this year when he said, "Hillary Clinton is for open borders." It spent about 700 words sifting through the evidence, and ended up rating the former New York City mayor's claim "false." Now we know that PolitiFact blew its call because it lacked access to the most important datum Hillary Clinton's real view. For that, it would have had to be present at one of her paid speeches at a major financial institution, in this case the Brazilian bank Banco Itau. In May 2013, Clinton told her audience at the bank, "My dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders." Ding, ding, ding there's the magic phrase, in Hillary's own words. The excerpt from Hillary's speech comes courtesy of the massive WikiLeaks dump of pilfered emails probably by Russian hackers from the account of Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta. The hack is, to say the least, not the way to achieve sunshine in our politics or government, but it is illuminating insofar as it illustrates how progressives think and talk in private i.e., about how you'd expect. The frank advocacy of open borders is now so radioactive that even the open-borders editorial page of The Wall Street Journal will no longer associate itself with it (once upon a time, the paper routinely called for an open-borders amendment to the U.S. Constitution). Talk of open borders has consequentially retreated behind closed doors. In public, everyone so inclined favors "comprehensive immigration reform," which always includes higher levels of legal immigration and fig-leaf enforcement measures, as a step toward the unmentionable and almost certainly unachievable goal. A faux cosmopolitanism is a thread running through the WikiLeaks emails. If you think Clinton aides root for terrorist acts not to be committed by Muslims, lest political and policy complications ensue, you're right. Hillary aide Karen Finney sent John Podesta an email in December 2015 about the San Bernardino shooting. She wrote "damn," and forwarded a tweet from MSNBC journalist Chris Hayes relating that one of the shooters was named Syed Farook. Podesta lamented that it wasn't instead a journalist named Syed Farook reporting on a shooting by Chris Hayes, who has a much more convenient, Irish surname. If you think Clinton aides sneer at conservative Catholics and consider them retrograde, you're right. John Halpin of the left-wing think tank Center for American Progress, formerly headed by Podesta, wrote his boss and Jennifer Palmieri in 2011 that conservatives are attracted to Catholicism for its "systematic thought and severely backwards gender relations." Palmieri, now a spokeswoman for the Clinton campaign, chimed in that those on the right embrace Catholicism as "the most socially acceptable politically conservative religion." A certain highhandedness and bad faith pervades the entire Clinton campaign. Hillary Clinton was perfectly comfortable with the globe-trotting financiers throwing six-figure speaking fees at her, but then had to turn around and shovel boob bait for Bubba at her party's inflamed left-wing activists, who hate those very financiers and their views on trade, among many other things. The Clinton campaign's predicament was captured in microcosm by spokesman Brian Fallon. In September 2015, he worried about an op-ed attacking the Keystone Pipeline that, he notes, had already been extensively edited and re-edited. As secretary of state, Clinton had, reasonably enough, indicated she'd likely support the pipeline, and now she was coming out against it. Will her newly aggressive opposition, Fallon wondered, "be greeted cynically and perhaps as part of some manufactured attempt to project sincerity?" Yeah, probably like much of what she says and does. Such was Clinton's manifest weakness in March 2016 that a friendly liberal columnist sent a worried email to John Podesta. "Right now," the columnist warned, "I am petrified that Hillary is almost totally dependent on Republicans nominating Trump." Sounds right. It always pays to be lucky, rather than good or sincere. I believe in the power of strong female leadership. I'm a pro-military, pro-equal pay, pro-Second Amendment, pro-immigration and pro-business Hispanic woman voting for Donald Trump. Hillary Clinton is not a strong leader. Blindly voting for Clinton because she happens to be a woman does not prove feminist bonafides. For me, it would go against everything my husband and I have stood for: love of family, strength of our local community and defense of our country. I have seen my husband get dragged through the mud and called every name in the book by cowards on Twitter and in the opinion pages. I've been criticized myself by the left because they cannot comprehend or respect a woman choosing to vote for Donald Trump. Because I choose to reject the decades of lies and corruption of Hillary Clinton and her husband's sordid past, I've been called uneducated (I have a law degree by the way), a puppet (I actually urged Ryan to support Trump), a disgrace to women and so many more things that are not fit to print. The intolerance of the modern Democratic Party is a far cry from the Democratic Party I used to support as an independent voter. Let me tell you why I do support Trump. I'm a wife, daughter, mom and grandma, and I love our country. Like our daughter and granddaughters, I care about what is going on around the world. When Ryan was deployed commanding troops in war, it was my job to keep morale up at home. Navy SEALs are more than colleagues, they are brothers. We are family. When Ty Woods and Glen Doherty died in Benghazi it shook our family. When Hillary Clinton lied about it, it was a slap in the face. When she criticized families for calling her out in it, it was un-American. As a military wife and mom, I will never support somebody who does not support the military. Everyone knows my husband was a Navy SEAL for 23 years. I also have a daughter who is a Navy diver and my son-in-law is an active-duty SEAL. My youngest son is considering military service as well. Hillary Clinton will continue the dangerous foreign policy she and President Obama started and she will continue to put out troops in harm's way with no plan. This will open us up to more casualties abroad and more terrorist attacks at home. I'm a small-business woman. I am also the mom of two college students who are about to face an economy that, under Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, doesn't have jobs for them. Nearly 13 percent - that's the unemployment rate for millennials. Taxes, regulations and economic conditions are important. I believe Trump's business acumen will help build a stronger economy and he will surround himself with incredibly smart and successful individuals rather than career bureaucrats. We all know Trump has said some regrettable things. He's since apologized. I got over it. With everything that is going on in the world - Iran and North Korea flexing nuclear muscle, terrorist attacks in America, high unemployment with millennials - I think this election is about more than locker room talk. Good justices must have more than legal expertise alone. They must have a willingness to hear both sides, and to listen with patience and open-mindedness. They must be able to set aside their personal beliefs to treat all who come to their court with absolute equity. Three of the four candidates for Montana Supreme Court have demonstrated that they have all of these qualities, and done so for many years. One has yet to prove herself. Montana voters will see the names Mike McGrath and Jim Shea on their ballots, both running to retain their current seats and both running unopposed. Apart from their previous experience, their recent record on the court speaks for itself, and voters can consider it an easy choice to vote to retain McGrath as chief justice and Shea as justice No. 6. However, Patricia O. Cotter is retiring as justice No. 3, leaving that seat open for either district judge Dirk Sandefur or professor Kristen Gustafson Juras. Voters should choose Sandefur for this important post, both for his broad understanding of the law and for his impeccable record of impartiality. Sandefur has been elected three times as a district judge in Cascade County, serving the 8th Judicial District Court in Great Falls since 2002. He is a University of Montana Law School graduate who once worked as a police officer in Havre, then as a contract public defender and a deputy county attorney before becoming a district judge 14 years ago. He leaves behind him a lengthy and respectable record of thorough legal understanding across a broad array of legal areas as well as a reputation for even-handedness. Juras, whose deep understanding of the law and of certain legal areas in particular is evident, does not have a comparable record for voters to scrutinize. While judicial experience may not be a necessary quality for every successful Supreme Court justice, in her case, it is. Kristen Juras is an award-winning law professor and attorney whose peers and students clearly think very highly of her. She has experience working for international law firms on contract, immigration and trade matters, and in private practice has delved into agriculture, commercial, estate and property law, among others. She continues to teach in these areas at the UM Law School. There is no doubt Juras has ample legal knowledge and court experience. However, her judgment is suspect, and that is a critical concern for a judicial candidate. Over the years Juras has joined groups and made statements that might rightly cause voters to question her commitment to impartiality, from her controversial opposition to a sex advice column in a student newspaper several years ago to a more recent email in which Juras, who describes herself as a Christian and a patriot, highlights her hope that she will get to help decide religious freedom cases in particular. "What I covet is prayer. Please pray that during my campaign I would always act in a way that honors God, for His favor, for opportunities, for wisdom in my campaign strategies," Juras wrote in her email to a colleague. Unfortunately, she left one important group off this list: Montanans. A Montana Supreme Court justice is elected to a term of eight years. During that time, that justice will be one of seven members of the highest court in the state, ruling on hundreds of appeals concerning civil, criminal, water court and workers compensation cases. Juras makes a strong argument that her special expertise and experience would complement that of the other justices, and we agree with her. Wed love to see Juras run for a seat on the bench of a lower court and begin building a record that will assure voters, and this editorial board, of her impartiality and her commitment to public service. In the meantime, voters should elect Dirk Sandefur as Montana Supreme Court justice. I favor Elsie Arntzen in the race for superintendent of public instruction. When it comes to the right of participation, Arntzen is the most trusted person in Montana. If someone calls the Office of Public Instruction with a question, she wants someone to give them an answer. I asked Arntzen to sponsor a bill on a veterans issue. When the language was being drafted, she brought in 17 people with opposing views. She was a Republican senator but had a Democrat carry the bill in the House. The legislation passed unanimously. Arntzen opposes over-regulation and supports the Montana School Choice Program. A poll of the legislature resulted in the majority indicating that an administrative rule did not follow the intent of the legislature in adopting the Montana School Choice Program. A letter from the Montana attorney general seems to agree with the poll. A Flathead County judge issued an injunction to temporarily halt the implementation of the administrative rule. The Montana School Choice Program is a $150 tax credit to attend private schools. If Elsie Arntzen is elected, someone will answer your question if you call the Office of Public Instruction. James Wangerin, Deer Lodge Larry Jent, candidate for Montana attorney general, has a very impressive resume. Unfortunately, that resume does not reflect his abilities to perform the basic tasks of his chosen profession. In my view he is neither a competent attorney nor legislator. Some years ago, I helped pass the first mortgage broker licensing act. The purpose of that bill was to increase the professionalism within the lending industry, and provide consumer protection for the public. After the Montana law was passed, the federal government sent an unfunded mandate to all states requiring similar consumer protection for the public (Montanas law contained those consumer protections). Regrettably, the unfunded federal mandate contained many restrictions which, in fact, would hurt the public and businesses. If passed, as drafted by the federal government, it would have made any person who owner-financed land or a single-family home a criminal for not having a lender's license to owner-finance their own property. The fed mandate was defeated in committee. Larry Jent sponsored that federal mandate and when I contacted him about it, he had virtually no knowledge about what was in the bill. I do not believe he ever read it. If he did read it, he does not comprehend what he reads. The citizens of Montana do not need an attorney general who either cannot understand what he reads or sponsors bills without reading them. I urge you to vote for anybody on the ballot other than Larry Jent. Brian Gorman, Bozeman The Republican nominee for president, Donald Trump, is morally unfit for any position of public trust or influence. A videotape has exposed Trump as a sexual predator. He bragged about groping and assaulting women over many years, even women he knew to be married, just because he had power over them and could get away with it. His words are too vulgar to repeat. Trump and his surrogates excuse his vile conduct by saying its just locker room talk, or its just what men do. Mike Pence, Republican nominee for vice president, says he is an Evangelical Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order. Not true; because Pence still supports Trump for president. Paul Ryan, Republican Speaker of the House, claims he is a devout Catholic. Not true, because he is not withdrawing his endorsement of Trump for president. Only Congressman Jason Chaffetz of Utah has had the courage to withdraw his support of Trump and denounce Trump on moral grounds. Other Republicans have withdrawn their endorsements on the grounds Trump is not good for the Republican Party. Unacceptable! Montanas Congressman Ryan Zinke supports Trump, revealing Zinke as just another "party and power over country and morality" politician. A dangerous egomaniacal sexual predator is too small a concept to describe Trump. Decent men should be offended that they are so depicted. Every woman should be outraged. All of us should act to protect our children from such disgusting behaviors. Trump has insulted Pope Francis, Gold Star families, immigrants, specified religions, a Supreme Court justice, racial minorities, handicapped persons, a tortured American prisoner of war, a 4-Star Marine Corps general, etc. Hillary Clinton may not be some peoples preference, but a vote for her is the only thing standing between Trump and the Oval Office. This is reality. Claire L. Kelly, Stevensville The war in Syria has created a huge migrant crisis. What is the appropriate level of migration from Syria that the United States should allow, and how would you guarantee that those coming into our country from a region struggling with terrorism do not mean us harm? The United States has confronted these questions throughout its history: How open should its borders be to those fleeing oppression and violence? Mr. Trump dramatically proposed barring all Muslims, and later amended his idea to propose extreme vetting for anyone from countries like Syria or Libya, where extremism is rampant. Mrs. Clinton has accused her rival of xenophobia. She has said the United States should expand the number of Syrians allowed entry. The future flows of migrants from Syria and other hot spots will probably be determined by the outcome of the presidential contest. MICHAEL D. SHEAR The Economy The economy has grown slowly in recent years, and one reason is a prolonged slump in productivity growth. What steps would your administration take to encourage innovation and investment? Modern prosperity was created by a huge increase in worker productivity. As the output of the average worker increases, so does the standard of living. But in recent years, that engine has been sputtering. Since the deep recession of 2008, labor productivity in the United States has increased by just 1 percent a year less than half the annual pace since 1947. At the current pace, our standard of living will double once every 70 years, instead of doubling once every 30 years. The government can improve productivity by encouraging the creation and diffusion of new technologies through changes in taxation and regulation. It can also play a more direct role, by improving the quality of public education or by making its own investments. Federal research and development funding fell to 0.78 percent of gross domestic product last year, down from 1 percent in 2009. Around seven million men ages 25 to 54 are neither working nor looking for work. How would you help prime-age men who are sitting on the sidelines of the American economy? The unemployment rate stood at 5 percent in September, a healthy number that concealed a host of deeper problems. One of the most perplexing: the rise of nonworking men. About 15 percent of prime-age men do not have jobs, up from about 5 percent in the 1960s. Most of them are not looking for work, so they are not counted in the unemployment rate. But they are a drag on the economy: They do not produce, but they continue to consume. Copyright 2022 HT Digital Streams Ltd All Right Reserved The Mount News Center Featuring the extraordinary people, stories and news of Mount St. Mary's University, America's oldest independent Catholic university. Members of the media looking for information about setting up interviews, finding faculty experts or gaining access to campus for stories should contact Executive Director of Communications Donna Klinger at 301-447-5657 or d.j.klinger@msmary.edu. Have a question, comment to share or want to find a photo from this week's big event? Check out the Mount on our social media channels! The candidates for Butte-Silver Bow chief executive rate altering the Berkeley Pits cleanup as a number one priority. Incumbent Matt Vincent and his opponent, Commissioner Dave Palmer, made the statements at Tuesdays candidates forum at Montana Tech, hosted by The Montana Standard. They gave similar answers to nearly every question on Butte's Superfund cleanup that Montana Standard editor David McCumber lobbied at the forum. But there were slight differences. While the two agreed that the Berkeley Pit -- and its future -- should be a priority for the next chief executive, the candidates came close to disagreeing over the future of the county's vehicle and maintenance shops. The shops stirred controversy this summer when local activists accused the county and the state of ignoring public input over the shops future location. The state needs to relocate the shops in order to excavate Parrot tailings waste buried behind the Civic Center. The county and state have put the issue on hold for now. Vincent did not express a personal preference for the shops future location. Palmer said he wants to see the shops moved to the Mike Mansfield Advanced Technology Center, also known as MSE Technology Applications, south of Butte. Palmer said the county's asphalt plant, located within Slag Wall Canyon on South Montana Street, needs to be moved as well. For that reason, he sees the MSE site as the ideal location because it could house both light industrial and heavy industrial use. The asphalt plant is categorized as heavy industrial. Vincent said the asphalt plant will likely be moved, though he didn't say where. He said Silver Bow Creek will likely be moved out of Slag Wall Canyon. Vincent criticized Palmer for not attending EPA's public meeting Monday at the Mining City Center. Palmer is the one commissioner who, like Vincent, participates in the confidential negotiations EPA and the state hold with the responsible parties for the Butte Hill cleanup site. EPA held the meeting Monday to discuss its evaluation of the cleanup and get community input. Vincent expressed concern over how old the Horseshoe Bend Water Treatment Plant will be when it begins treating Berkeley Pit water. Berkeley Pit water is expected to require pumping and treating in 2023. Responsible parties Montana Resources and Atlantic Richfield Company built the plant in 2003. It treats metals-contaminated water flowing on the mine's property called Horseshoe Bend. Palmer called the Berkeley Pit "a detriment to our business world in Butte." Palmer and Vincent agreed that the message to EPA should be that EPA staff involved in Butte cleanup need to live in Butte and that the cleanup work needs to be completed sooner rather than later. The cleanup has been going on in Butte since 1983 with no clear end in sight. Current EPA Butte Hill project manager Nikia Greene lives in Helena. Both Vincent and Palmer said they support The Standards lawsuit, filed last month, to seek opening up the confidential negotiations over Buttes cleanup. Palmer added that it might be a question for the court to decide. Vincent said he welcomes the sunshine. Matt Vincent took an opening shot at Dave Palmer during a Tuesday night debate in their race for Butte-Silver Bow chief executive, saying his opponent lacks experience with top-level leadership. Vincent, who had previously publicly commended his opponent for running a cordial race, said Palmer had been a longtime public servant and deserved thanks for his willingness to serve. Palmer has been a county commissioner for 20 years not all consecutively and served three years on the school board, among other things. But Vincents compliment ended there as he took the first of a few jabs during the hour-long debate at Montana Tech, sponsored by The Montana Standard. I would like to draw the comparison between the four years I have demonstrated working to get things done versus 20 years of (Palmer) being at the table but not necessarily having a lot to show for it, he said. Unlike one previous debate and much of another, when the two seemed to agree on more things than not, they differed on several issues Tuesday night. One included aspects of the $1 tourism fee that patrons pay per each nights stay at a Butte motel or hotel. Both candidates say their stands have been misconstrued or only partially told, but Palmer reiterated support for raising that tax to $2 per night, saying it would bring in an additional $200,000 in revenue. He said previously it could be used to attract more visitors through Buttes festivals and other means, but offered a different use Tuesday night. That extra $200,000 could be used for infrastructure improvements for new businesses coming to town, he said. Vincent said the money cannot be used for infrastructure and someone running for chief executive should know that. He also said more than $100 million in infrastructure improvements or planned ones had been made during his first term at minimal increased cost to local taxpayers. Maria Pochervina, executive secretary to the Tourism Business Improvement District board that decides how to spend money from the nightly hotel fee, noted in a recent council meeting that the revenue cannot be used for bricks and mortar or infrastructure. But the TBID board recently agreed to steer $75,000 from that tax toward the planned pool complex and the county accepted the donation as part of $1.5 million raised in public and private funds to pay for construction of amenities such as a lazy river and slides. Voters approved a $7.2 million bond to pay for most of the work. At a recent council meeting, Commissioner Dan Foley asked how that $75,000 was not going toward bricks and mortar when it seemed clear it was. Pochervina said the board considers it more of a sponsorship, but the issue of that moneys use may not be settled yet. Palmer reiterated his support for trying to reach out to owners of the Butte Plaza Mall to gauge their interest in revitalizing it and area businesses. The mall is owned by a family trust in California. I dont think anybody in this administration has reached out to the owners, Palmer said. A story in Tuesdays edition of The Montana Standard quoted longtime mall manager Alana Ferko as saying nobody from Vincents administration had called her about trying to reach the owners. Vincent says the Standard story was unfair and did not give the full story. He said he has tried calling major mall representatives at least three times with no success and had reached out to Ferko as recently as this past summer to see if they were interested in becoming a partner in engaging in high-level, evidence-based efforts to find more mall tenants. They said, Thanks but no thanks, Vincent said. Both commended creation of a Butte Economic Development Coordinating Council to get partners such as the Butte Local Development Corp., Butte-Silver Bow Chamber of Commerce and some major employers working together. Vincent said the group has launched a coordinated marketing campaign and that and other recent efforts have turned around our towns image. He also said 50 new businesses have come to Butte during his first four-year term. Palmer said he thinks Butte needs a marketing director to enhance the collaborative efforts. But, he said, It is working better than it has in the past and the (economic) council just shows what you can do when you work together. The election is Nov. 8 but the county is accepting absentee ballots from voters now. Montana Tech Chancellor Don Blackketter is a finalist for the president of Utah State University in Logan, according to the Utah Board of Regents. If Blackketter lands the job, he would oversee an institution of 28,000 students compared to 2,779 at Tech at the fall enrollment count. The announcement was made Wednesday. The 25-member search committee could make a hiring decision as early as Wednesday, Oct. 26, regents spokesman Spencer Jenkins told The Standard. Blackketter said in a press release that Montana Tech is a special institution and he is honored to be chancellor. This fall, I was approached about an opportunity at Utah State University, added Blackketter. Vicki and I feel that it would take a special and rare opportunity for us to seriously consider a change. "The presidential position at Utah State University is an opportunity we are exploring. We remain committed to the great community of Butte and are extremely fortunate to work with the exceptional Montana Tech faculty, staff, students, and alumni. Blackketter has been Tech chancellor since 2011. Previously, he was dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Idaho, Moscow, from 2008 to 2011. After a nationwide search and a review of nearly 40 applicants, the Utah State University presidential search committee recommends three other finalists: Noelle Cockett is Utah State University vice president and provost. Previously, she was Utah State extension/agriculture vice president, dean of the college of agriculture and Utah Agriculture Experiment Station director. Keith Miller was a faculty member at the New President Academy of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. He also worked for Penson/AASCU Associates, a higher education consulting firm. He has a masters in public administration and a doctorate in education from the University of Arizona. Mark Rudin is vice president for Research and Economic Development at Boise State University. Previously, he held leadership positions at the University of NevadaLas Vegas in Research Services and in Research and Graduate Studies. Rudin has a masters in health physics and a doctorate in medicinal chemistry from Purdue University. The 25-member presidential search committee spent several months soliciting input in public meetings and in-person interviews. The committee is comprised of regents, USU board trustees, alumni, faculty and students, said Jenkins. The four finalists visit the USU campus on Oct. 25 the day before a possible selection. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that USU's next president will succeed Stan Albrecht, who announced his retirement in February after 11 years in the job. During Albrecht's tenure, the Logan-based research university absorbed the College of Eastern Utah renamed USU Eastern and developed a partnership with NASA through the school's Space Dynamics Lab. More recently, USU has been criticized for its handling of a series of sexual assault allegations involving students. Last week, campus administrators announced the creation of several working groups aimed at preventing sexual violence, reports the Tribune. USU is the state's fourth-largest school, with 28,118 students throughout its network of campuses and online programs, according to the most recent enrollment data from the Utah System of Higher Education. Before Tech, Blackketter was at the University of Idaho from 1989-2011 as an assistant, associate and mechanical engineering professor. He held positions as department chairman, research center director and College of Engineering dean, too. Blackketter received bachelors (1985), masters (1986) and doctoral degrees (1989) in mechanical engineering from the University of Wyoming. The long-standing biography on the Tech website calls him an active researcher and the author of 63 journal and conference publications. In 2003, Blackketter spent time in Quito, Ecuador, as a Fulbright Scholar. He is a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the American Society of Engineering Educators. He is a registered professional engineer in Idaho and Montana. He and wife Vicki have three grown children. Son Riley, wife Meghan and daughter Tenle, live in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; daughter Britni, husband Jonathon, daughter Stella and son Jessie live in Brooklyn, New York; and son Shadd, wife Heather and daughters Madelynn and Olivia live in Surrey, British Columbia. Editor's note: This story was corrected on Oct. 19, 2016, to reflect that Northwestern Energy and the Department of Revenue began negotiating a tax bill of $144 million for a corresponding $2.6 billion certified taxable value, according to revenue officials. The Departments initial central assessment was $163 million, but the figure and its corresponding taxable value were never certified. --- NorthWestern Energy knocked about $220 million off its 2016 taxable value in negotiations with the Department of Revenue sending a ripple effect through local budgets around the state. The agreement, which was reached Friday, affects county and municipal governments and school districts, among others where officials have already locked in their local mills and now have to account for a smaller tax base. In Butte alone, the hit is around $400,000 in all tax districts and $200,000 on the Urban Revitalization Agency, because NWE headquarters is located in its district, said Chief Executive Matt Vincent. Vincent said details on the impact will be discussed at Wednesday's regular commission meeting which starts at 7:30 p.m. in the courthouse. NorthWestern Energy, Montana's largest taxpayer, gets its property taxes reassessed each year. From 2015 to 2016, its taxable value increased from about $2.2 billion to $2.6 billion, according to the state's original valuation. The settlement is at about $2.4 billion. Negotiations avoided a formal tax protest, which could have had a bigger effect on local budgets. Northwestern Energy and the Department of Revenue began negotiating a tax bill of $144 million for a corresponding $2.6 billion certified taxable value, according to revenue officials. The Departments initial central assessment was $163 million, but the figure and its corresponding taxable value were never certified. The two sides ended up settling on a tax bill of $134 million for a corresponding $2.4 billion certified taxable value. Northwestern's 2015 tax bill was about $122 million. It's unclear what the effect will be on local tax jurisdictions across the state; some areas have more NorthWestern infrastructure as a larger proportion of the tax base, which would result in a larger financial impact. With Butte-Silver Bow Countys $400,000 hit, the county will rely on reserves to balance it out and will make sure it doesnt affect our bonds, Vincent said Tuesday afternoon. Exact figures were unavailable Tuesday from the Butte public school district. However, business director Dennis Clague said the district is in the midst of firming the numbers with the county and the Montana Office of Public Instruction. He will have more information after a noon Thursday meeting where trustees will discuss the districts options and whether or not to recertify the new taxable values and reset mills and tax levies based on the new taxable values, said Clague. Due to the smaller tax base, Billings Public Schools had to fill a roughly $300,000 hole between its elementary and high school budgets, according to district chief financial officer Mike Arnold at Monday's school board meeting. "We've got the reserves in place to make up those tax revenues," Arnold said. "It's not a big hit. It will be some." The Department of Revenue is taking the unusual step of letting tax jurisdictions recertify their taxable values and therefore adjust mills in the budgets. I think they are scrambling with how to deal with the situation, department director Mike Kadas said. If a local group does increase its mills, that would fall back on local taxpayers as a tax increase. Butte-Silver County will be looking to recertify its taxable values, Chief Executive Vincent said. The Montana Office of Public Instruction is advising affected school districts to request a recertification, which doesn't require school board authorization, according to guidance sent to districts Monday. The Great Falls School District is requesting a recertification, according to director of business operations Brian Patrick. The district is facing a budget hole of about $474,000 in a combined high school and elementary budget of about $70 million. "We're pulling money out of reserves to make ends meet," Patrick said, but the district wants to keep reserves high, which helps secure a good credit rating. The department's main goal was to avoid a tax protest, Kadas said. If they had protested, then the amount of revenue that would have been affected would be considerably more than what was affected based on the settlement, he said. If taxes are protested, the amount of the tax bill is held in escrow. Local government entities can tap those funds. But if the final tax bill comes in lower than the original tax bill and a government entity spent money based on the original bill, that entity suddenly could face a shortfall. "Consequently, most local jurisdictions don't use the money. They don't want to take that risk," Department of Revenue spokeswoman Mary Ann Dunwell said. Butch Larcombe, spokesman for NorthWestern Energy, said the tax negotiations weren't about any larger concerns about company finances. The tax negotiations are "acting to a large degree in the interest of our customers, Larcombe said. Gov. Steve Bullock has earned another term. While his challenger, Republican Greg Gianforte, is personable, intelligent and successful, we do not believe he has made a compelling case to unseat the Democratic incumbent. Bullocks priorities, including early childhood education, infrastructure, protecting public lands and economic development, are hard to argue with. So is a solid first-term record. The governors business plan for the state, the Main Street Montana project, has been widely hailed. While there has been much talk about national ratings, Bullock has indeed operated prudently. His insistence on a $300 million rainy day fund looks prescient now as much of that fund has gone to make up revenue shortfalls caused by economic trends out of his control. And he has also placed emphasis on working toward equal pay for equal work in the state; frozen college tuition; and increased dual-enrollment opportunity for high-school students. It is not at all clear to us that Gianfortes proven business acumen would translate to more efficiency in government or more growth for the state. We are particularly concerned with his desire to put someone with industry experience at the helm of the Department of Environmental Quality. The DEQ faces huge challenges statewide and certainly in Butte, and now is not the time to take the foot off the accelerator. Here in Butte, everything from economic development to better lives for our children depend on a good cleanup. The DEQ has played a vital role in holding EPA and ARCO accountable when cleanup decisions have been wildly inadequate. Bullock deserves Buttes support for committing the state to clean up the Parrot tailings when years of talks and backroom dealing had failed to protect the headwaters of the Columbia River. And putting the fox in charge of the henhouse at this point would spell disaster. We are worried by Gianfortes opposition to a non-discrimination ordinance in his hometown of Bozeman. In the wake of that, he has not directly answered questions about whether he would sign a so-called religious freedom bill of the type that has allowed discrimination against gays in other states with disastrous financial consequences. We are also deeply uncomfortable with the demagoguery around his position on unvetted Syrian refugees a phrase that is in itself an inaccurate scare tactic, as refugees are very thoroughly vetted. The fact is that a governor can do precisely nothing to affect U.S. refugee policy including whether or not refugees are resettled within the state so what we have seen is not a policy discussion but rather irresponsible fearmongering. In his rush to demonize Bullock, Gianforte has criticized him for vetoing a gun measure allowing anybody to carry concealed without a permit that the Montana Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association strongly opposes. Whose side is Gianforte on? That of the police, or gun extremists? In fact, Gov. Bullock is a hunter; his outdoor credentials are every bit as strong as Gianfortes. Mind you, we have concerns about several things Bullock has done and not done in his first term. For someone who is as vocal about protecting and nurturing the states children as Bullock is, the problems within Child & Family Services division of the Department of Public Health and Human Services are an embarrassment. The workers in the field protecting children are doing the very best they can but the department is seriously understaffed. Admittedly, the budget is inadequate. But if resources cant be found for this priority, we feel it is a case of power not used being power wasted. Then there is the issue of the three-lieutenant-governor term. We do not blame Gov. Bullock for John Walshs plagiarism. Who could have known? But we feel the administration handled the Angela McLean debacle poorly from the start. The McLean case is just one example of the times in which the governors office has struggled with transparency. We trust that point has been driven home in his first term. Still, we do not delude ourselves that a Gianforte administration would value transparency any more than Bullock has. The challenger has shown little patience with the press which may play to certain voters, but does not augur well for openness. Despite a worrisome but unavoidable downturn in revenues due to the Bakken bust cycle, unemployment is lower than the national average, real estate is climbing, tourism and agriculture are both strong, and overall Montana is in pretty good shape. Greg Gianforte has spent millions of his own money trying to convince Montana voters otherwise. But this state has never taken kindly to attempts to purchase elections. The Montana Standard believes that Steve Bullock deserves your vote once more for governor. This letter is prompted by our concern over recent dark money attacks on a current candidate for the Montana Supreme Court. The anonymous and inflammatory communications have a significant potential impact on the integrity and independence of the Montana Judiciary. There are three Supreme Court seats on the ballot this year, but only one of the races is contested. In that race, thousands of dollars recently have been spent on television and radio advertising and on mailers in an attempt to portray candidate Dirk Sandefur, a sitting district judge from Cascade County, as "soft" on sex offenders. The attacks single out one or two cases from the thousands of cases over which Judge Sandefur has presided in the course of 16 years of judicial service. The attacks also ignore the fact that the sentences imposed in the isolated cases were consistent with the recommendations of the State's prosecuting attorneys. The attacks are inconsistent with Judge Sandefur's reputation in the legal community for fairness and integrity. A fair and impartial judiciary must be free from the whims of special interests. The dark money attacks on Judge Sandefur do not identify the source of their funding or the agenda of their contributors. Thus, voters are at the risk of being misled as they seek reliable information about both candidates for the contested Supreme Court seat, Judge Sandefur and Attorney Kristen Juras. We encourage candidate Juras to disavow the hostile and suspect claims contained in the dark money attacks on her opponent. We encourage the public to cast informed ballots, rather than rely on the misleading sniper attacks recently made in the media. This letter should not be considered an endorsement of either candidate seeking election to this important Supreme Court seat. We leave that decision to an informed electorate, as it should be. As Montanans begin to cast early votes in state and national races, a statewide poll commissioned by Lee Newspapers provides a snapshot of voter preferences. The Mason-Dixon poll, conducted last week, shows that many of the states voters still remain undecided in some races, particularly the contests for a seat on the Montana Supreme Court and to become state auditor. The poll also showed voter sentiment against two statewide ballot initiatives. A series of stories analyzing the results started on Saturday and will run through Sunday. Below is a summary of the top-line results: Initiative 182 on medical marijuana This ballot measure would allow wide use of medical marijuana, undoing many restrictions passed by the Republican controlled Legislature. At the time of the poll, 51 percent of voters said they opposed the initiative while 44 percent said they supported it. Five percent of those polled said they were undecided. Initiative 177 on trapping The majority of voters polled said they oppose a measure that would ban trapping on public lands. While 13 percent remain undecided, 63 percent said they would vote against I-177 and 24 percent said they would support it. Out-of-state funding, primarily against the measure, has drawn scrutiny. President Donald Trump leads in the presidential race with 46 percent of Montanans polled saying theyd vote for the Republican. Thats compared to 36 percent support for Democrat Hillary Clinton and 11 percent support for Libertarian Gary Johnson. But other figures show that Trump is under-performing compared to other recent Republican presidential candidates and that many of the people who say they will vote for him nonetheless have an unfavorable view of the candidate. U.S. House It appears likely that Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke, Montanas sole congressman in the U.S. House, will hold unto his seat. Of those polled, 53 percent said they would vote for Zinke compared to the 40 percent who reported support for Democrat Denise Juneau, who currently serves as the state Superintendent of Public Instruction. Both campaigns have raised record amounts in the contest that some national political pundits had marked as a race to watch as Democrats fight to gain control of the U.S. House. Governor Democrat Gov. Steve Bullock holds a tenuous two-point lead a figure within the margin of error over his Republican challenger Greg Gianforte, a Bozeman high-tech businessman. Analysts have said the record amount of spending on mail and television advertising appears to be playing a large role in voter opinions of the candidates and the health of the state overall. Montana Supreme Court Nearly 40 percent of voters polled said they are undecided about their choices in the Montana Supreme Court race between longtime Cascade County District Judge Dirk Sandefur and Great Falls attorney Kristen Juras. Those who have made a decision split nearly evenly between the candidates in a race thats too close to call. Analysts said it is not unusual for so many voters to be undecided even when the contest appears set to break fundraising records set two years ago, largely because of spending by outside groups. To learn more: Many voters still undecided in Montana Supreme Court race Superintendent of Public Instruction A Republican might be elected as Superintendent of Public Instruction for the first time since 1988 if poll results hold. Republican Elsie Arntzen of Billings received support from 42 percent of those polled compared to 38 percent for Democrat Melissa Romano of Helena. With 20 percent of voters still undecided, the race could still swing either direction. State Auditor In the contest to become State Auditor, Sen. Matt Rosendale, R-Glendive, has a 10-point lead over Democrat Jesse Laslovich, a former state legislator from Anaconda who currently serves as chief legal counsel for the auditors office. Similar to other down-ballot races, many voters remain undecided 24 percent so the race remains in play. MUSCATINE, Iowa High school seniors have many decisions approaching as they near the end of their high school careers, and an event at Muscatine Community College (MCC) Tuesday worked to help make the transition to "The Next Big Thing" more manageable. "The Next Big Thing" is a transition event hosted by Eastern Iowa Community Colleges (EICC), and this year's event was the second at MCC in Muscatine and fifth of the overall this year. "What it is meant to do is give high school students the opportunity to talk with different people about what comes next after high school. It is different for all of us," said Tishly Herrington, the assistant director of admissions and youth outreach for EICC. Around 135 students from area high schools attended the event, and were given the opportunity to attend various sessions on topics from tattoos, piercings, and background checks, to a panel of people who discussed private and public colleges, military, and career options. "It's just meant to make them think, to give them a little bit of the pieces needed so they can start putting together what they want to do afterward," Herrington said. A new session was added this year called Colegio 101: Si Se Puede, to help students of various cultures as they move on to higher education, or into the workforce. "Just ways to bridge that gap, to help them know where some resources are to reach out to, that sort of thing," she said. In one session, two representatives from SafePath from Family Resources discussed domestic violence and sexual assault. Marcie Phillis, an outreach advocate for SafePath, discussed sexual assault and consent, and said one in five college-age women and one in 16 college-age men experience sexual assault while in college, but only 10 percent report it. "So it's a really sad state of affairs and I kind of wanted to put it on their radar screens so they could attend to it as they're moving on to young adulthood," Phillis said. The 24-hour crisis line is 866-921-3354, which Phillis said they gave to students so they can have access to the free, confidential services they provide. Dustin DeWeerdt, supervisor for Domestic Abuse Comprehensive Services for SafePath, talked about relationships, especially because many students will be away from home for the first time if they attend college or a university. "I think it gives us the opportunity to pass on our knowledge to this population since most of them are going to move on to universities. Just being able to give them little snippets of what it's like to be in relationships and being on campus will help," DeWeerdt said. Students at MCC also discussed various topics with high school students. In one session, several sophomores at MCC talked about skill building, networking, and social skills. "We really just talked about good things to become involved with at school in general. Obviously our experience here is with MCC, but I think that we also want it to be beyond the scope of just MCC," said Micah Colbert. Lucas Stauffer, Mitchell Harksen, and Tracy Graves, also panel members, said they did not have the opportunity to learn about the benefits of joining groups on campus at colleges, and hoped they could help high school students be prepared to find a home on their college campus. "It definitely makes you feel more comfortable coming onto campus, that it's more like a community, and the friendships you're coming into rather than just going to school and leaving," Stauffer said. Eric Patino, a senior at Muscatine High School, said one of the sessions he attended helped him have some questions answered one-on-one, in a more personal setting then he might otherwise have found. "It was helpful with ways of finding what you want to do in life. Pretty much talking about what you can do to try to figure out what you want to do based off of things you enjoy," Patino said. Youve got to be kidding! Republican Iowa Governor Terry Branstad and his shadow Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds came to Muscatine to beg people (apparently with a straight face) to vote for Donald Trump. (Muscatine Journal, 10/13/16) It hasnt even been a week since Trumps admission of his disgusting sexual assault, and it seems everyday we hear more video and audio of his perverse behavior. So far none of the Republican elected officials have unendorsed Trump. They were all on the Trump bandwagon at Senator Ernsts fundraiser a few weeks ago, even though he has been insulting people for a year-and-a-half or more. So far Trump has insulted 274 people or groups of people. You can look it up! Look for, The 274 People, Places, and Things Donald Trump Has Insulted on Twitter: A Complete List, Jasmine Lee and Kevin Quealy, 10/13/16 New York Times. Donald Trump has got nothing- he knows nothing and has no plan. He doesnt know the tax system- his preparer does all that. Trump is just another billionaire who got started in life with money handed down from his daddy. Depending on what source you look at, he has bankrupted four or six businesses. He has been divorced twice. He lost almost a billion dollars in one year. He has (possibly) not paid federal income taxes for eighteen years. We dont know for sure because, unlike everyone else, he wont release his tax returns. That some real family values! And isnt it hypocritical for Senator Joni Ernst to not unendorse Trump? One of her priorities is preventing sexual assaults in the military- do not civilian sexual assaults matter? What about Terry Privatize Medicaid Branstad? He has to know that Trump has no clue on policy positions. Or is he going along because his son is Trumps Iowa campaign manager? The saddest chapter might be the former Independent- like Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley. He continues to damage the country and the U.S. judicial system by not allowing a vote on Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland. He is essentially condoning sexual assault for political purposes. Like Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds said from the Journal article, Enough is enough! One may wonder if someone who has been convicted of drunk driving twice should be throwing stones at anyone. Republicans are fond of conveying a message of doom and gloom this campaign season. For some reason they dont mention George W. Bush, or how the stock market has rebounded from 7,000 points in 2007 to get to 18,000 plus today, or how the Cheney/Bush invasion of Iraq created such turmoil in the Middle East. Its always Benghazi, Benghazi, Benghazi, or emails, emails, emails. Well, guess what? The Bush administration destroyed between five and twenty-two million emails on their watch. Check out, Bush White House Email Controversy on Wikipedia, or Flashback: When Millions of Lost Bush White House Emails (From Private Accounts) Triggered a Media Shrug, Media Matters, Eric Boehlert, 3/10/15. Lets see the U.S. House Republicans hold hearings on that! Lets review the Benghazis from George W. Bushs time in office. June, 2002 Karachi, Pakistan, consulate 12 dead March, 2006 Karachi, Pakistan, consulate 4 dead September, 2006 Damascus, Syria, embassy 4 dead July, 2008 Istanbul, Turkey, consulate 6 dead September, 2008 Sana, Yemen, embassy 19 dead Where is the outrage and investigations on these incidents from the U.S. House Republicans? The Clinton/Kaine ticket have put forward ideas that will address America's problems based on science, intelligence, and proven policies. Not on insults. Thank you for your time. Don Paulson Letts, Iowa By the time the debate gets under way, more than 1.6 million Americans already will have voted. For those viewers, the debate could serve to validate their choices or give them buyer's remorse. Important stuff you won't get from the liberal media! We do the surfing so you can be informed AND have a life! Les blattes ou cafards (Blatta orientalis) sont des insectes qui appartiennent a la famille des Blattoptera. Ils se caracterisent par leur forme allongee, leurs ailes [] A WikiLeaks document has revealed that the Hillary Clinton campaign considered former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates and Apple CEO Tim Cook as Hillary Clintons running mates. Clinton ultimately selected Virginia Senator Tim Kaine as her vice presidential running mate for the 2016 presidential elections. The WikiLeaks email from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta in March provided a list of 39 vice presidential candidates, organised in in rough food groups. Some of the prominent names, apart from Gates and Cook, include Elizabeth Warren, Michael Bloomberg, Bernie Sanders, and Melinda Gates. Now read: Guess how rich Bill Gates is South Africas university students can now access their online curriculum without incurring data costs, MTN has announced. MTN will zero-rate access to university online content, following similar announcements by Cell C and Telkom today. To date, students from the University of Cape Town and University of Pretoria will benefit from this initiative, said MTN. MTN is appealing to other institutions of higher learning to tap into this initiative by providing their URL addresses. MTN did not provide details on how the zero-rated service will work. Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba has officially launched the departments contact centre at the departments head office in Pretoria. The contact centre replaces the departments call centre, while offering a multi-platform channel to provide clients with various options to interact with the department. These platforms include email and unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) services to better respond to queries in universally acceptable standards. Members of the public can reach the contact centre on 0800 60 11 90. Minister Gigaba said the erstwhile call centre could not deal with or address queries from members of the public, hence they launched the contact centre. With the contact centre, an operator is able to track the enquiry and be able to tell the client what is happening or at what stage the enquiry is, he said. The centre is manned by operators, who have received in-house training to handle enquiries. On average, each operator receives about 120 calls per day. Operators are able to deal with any enquiries relating to applications for IDs, birth certificates and other services offered by the department. The contact centre got off the ground on 1 April this year. Its weekday operating hours are 7:30am to 17:00pm. On Saturdays, it operates from 8:00am to 12:00pm. So far, the department has recruited 112 operators to man the centre. The number is set to reach 120. As the department, we will continue to look at what can be improved to provide effective services to the public. We are quite happy with how the centre is operating and as a department, we will continue to improve the centre, Minister Gigaba said. The launch of the contact centre is part of improving service delivery by the department. Earlier this year, the department launched eHomeAffairs, which allows members of the public to apply for their documents from the comfort of their homes to reduce long queues in front offices. The department signed a memorandum of understanding with the countrys major banks ABSA, First National Bank, Nedbank and Standard Bank to roll out eHomeAffairs at banks. To date, the department has rolled out the online system to 11 bank branches. Facebook now allows its users to officially endorse Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton for president of the United States. As reported by Business Insider, endorsing a candidate lets your friends and family know why they should vote for your chosen leader. Similar to how politicians, newspapers, and organisations endorse candidates for elected office, this feature allows anyone on Facebook to do the same, said Facebook. Users can visit Trump or Clintons official pages and click on the Endorsements tab to make their voice heard. Now read: Trump opposes plan to surrender American Internet control MyBroadbands latest survey results show that Axxess and Afrihost are the most-respected telecoms companies among South African techies. The survey was completed by 2,625 South African broadband users, who rated the various telecoms companies based on their perception of these companies. People who completed the survey were IT professionals and other tech-savvy individuals, with a strong knowledge of South Africas broadband market. The results showed that Axxess, Afrihost, and Webafrica were the top companies, while iBurst, Neotel, and MTN ranked the lowest. The chart below shows the average score of each of the telecoms companies (where 1 = pathetic and 10 = excellent). More on telecoms We need to prepare for 5G today: Expert BitTorrent throttling allowed under new net neutrality rules Politics killing broadband in South Africa Oops... This is embarrassing... We're Sorry, the page you're looking for may have been moved. Let's help you find the page you were looking for... First, try using the search form below. 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The summit was expected also to touch on Syria and Russia's role in the conflict there. Prospects of significant progress on either front look poor. "We certainly can't expect miracles" on Ukraine or Syria, Merkel said ahead of the meeting , but that she wanted to exhaust every possibility of progress. Merkel and Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia, Francois Hollande of France and Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine have met sporadically to discuss eastern Ukraine. This is the first time the four have met in more than a year. The 2015 Minsk agreement brokered by France and Germany has helped end large-scale battles between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russia separatists, but clashes have continued and efforts to reach a political settlement have stalled. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Wednesday that one focus of the talks would be to increase the number of areas where opposing forces are physically separated to strengthen the cease-fire and prevent a flare-up of hostilities. The decision to hold the meeting in Berlin follows a flurry of telephone diplomacy over the past week. Merkel told reporters Tuesday that the talks would be about "establishing where things stand" and stressed that Germany wouldn't refrain from blunt talk including on Syria. Merkel and Hollande have been sharply critical of Russia's support for Assad's forces, with Merkel suggesting Tuesday that Moscow was partly responsible for atrocities, citing "Syrian and Russian airstrikes on helpless people, hospitals and doctors." Merkel said the possibility of imposing sanctions against Russia for its actions in Syria remained on the table. Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the Kremlin wasn't expecting a breakthrough on Ukraine. "The goal of the meeting is to see where we stand and identify the obstacles to fulfilling the Minsk agreements," Peskov said. "Russia has shown a constructive flexibility, but it can't be the only one doing so." Peskov stressed that the Minsk agreements envision action by Ukraine and the rebels, not Russia. He didn't offer any evaluation of chances of progress on Syria, which Putin, Merkel and Hollande will discuss without Poroshenko. Several groups were planning to stage protests outside the chancellery, where the meeting will be held. MADISON, Wis. Two Wisconsin girls accused of trying to kill their classmate as a sacrifice to horror character Slender Man want separate trials. Lawyers for Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser filed motions last week with Waukesha County Circuit Judge Michael Bohren arguing a joint trial could confuse jurors. Both girls have made statements to investigators implicating the other. The girls have both pleaded not guilty by reason of mental disease to attempted homicide charges in adult court. They're due to appear in court for a status conference on Nov. 11. Prosecutors say Weier and Geyser lured Payton Leutner into the woods at a park in Waukesha in May 2014 and stabbed her 19 times. Leutner barely survived. All three girls were 12 years old at the time. Trudy Oldham celebrated her 100th birthday in the best possible way: in high spirits, surrounded by friends, with cake, a glass of wine, and hardly a gray hair on her head. Its quite a number, and Im quite glad I reached it, said Oldham, who hit the century mark on Oct. 5. Its great to have this wonderful gathering of friends. Oldham lived at Woodbridge Village in St. Helena from 2006 until this February, when she had to move to a care home in Calistoga after breaking a hip. She uses a wheelchair to avoid another injury, but other than that, shes in good health. She was especially pleased to return to Woodbridge Village on Oct. 12 for a birthday party organized by her friends and former neighbors. They cheered when, presented with a cake that said Great To Be 100, she blew out the candles on her first try. Friends marveled at Oldhams full head of brown hair and quick wit, noting that shes still mentally sharp and enthusiastic about life. Born in the Imperial Valley and raised in San Francisco, Oldham moved to Woodbridge Village in 2006. Her daughter, Marlene Gallwitz, said her mothers passions are reading and playing tile rummy, which she still enjoys. Oldham has three children, five grandchildren, four great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild who is less than 1 year old. The state of Napa Valley Colleges accreditation the seal of approval that ensures that employers and universities accept students degrees has become the subject of debate in the election race for a trustee seat. Now, the head of the review agency for West Coast colleges has weighed in, saying the two-year school in Napa is on a solid footing, despite an evaluation asking NVC leaders to make improvements to its long-term planning and the tracking of student performance. I dont want there to be false anxiety or false information, said Barbara Beno, president of the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. Its not a big deal; if they had difficulties such that they had a risk of losing accreditation, they would have been put on sanction or probation. The accrediting commission, a division of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, evaluates two-year institutions in California and Hawaii to decide their fitness for continued certification, which colleges require to be eligible for federal funding and for their students to receive federal financial aid. Benos statement of support follows a candidates forum Sept. 27 in Napa during which Jennifer Baker, who is challenging Dan Digardi for his seat on the NVC board of trustees, expressed worry that the college did not receive an immediate seven-year renewal of its certification and that any uncertainty about the schools status could call its degrees into question. But Digardi sought to dismiss such concerns. If you want to make a mountain out of a molehill, this is an example, replied Digardi, whose 1st District seat covers south Napa. Napa Valley College is doing just fine with accreditation. Last week, Baker accepted Benos explanation about NVCs solid standing with the commission, although she continued to urge school trustees and officers to be more transparent and responsive to students and faculty. Its obviously good news. No one wants to feel the college is in danger, said Baker, a former director of the St. Helena Public Library who is one of two challengers for Digardis seat. After sending a team to visit NVC last October, the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges extended its endorsement of the school by 18 months while requiring it to follow three recommendations by the governing body and follow up with the agency by March 15, 2017. If the commission accepts the colleges response, the school would have its good standing renewed for a full seven-year term. According to a commission letter to NVC in February, the three types of improvement sought by accreditors are: - Better identifying student outcomes for courses, programs and degrees, and regularly assessing student progress - Regularly and consistently evaluating the performance of all types of employees - Linking NVCs long-term campus, educational, facility and staffing plans with its financial plan to better match the availability of funding. For a junior college to be given three points of improvement is a fairly typical outcome and not a sign of impending discipline, according to Beno. There are more than 80 standards, so for a college to need work to meet one or more of them is not unusual at all, she said Tuesday. If it was 20, wed say thats probably a cause for concern. Two-year colleges can be recertified directly for the full seven years if the commissions review turns up no significant issues, but accreditors still would check with school directors annually, according to Beno. A college judged to be substandard would face up to four levels of discipline, starting with a sanction, moving on to probation and later receiving a show-cause order to explain why it should keep its accreditation, said Beno. The most severe punishment is the withdrawal of accreditation, which would cut off a school from federal assistance and possibly force its closure. The last California two-year school to be so punished was Compton Community College near Los Angeles, which was decertified in 2006 after allegations of mismanagement and corruption, according to media reports. The Compton campus was absorbed by neighboring El Camino College of Torrance to keep its classes running. In 2014, the accrediting commission moved to strip its approval from City College of San Francisco, citing financial and administrative troubles, according to reports. But a court order allowed that school to stay open, and the commission in 2015 allowed CCSF to stay on restoration status, requiring it to meet all standards by next year. Though Napa Valley College appears not to be in such dire straits, Baker, the board candidate, urged the school to keep a close watch on its finances and expansion plans, pointing to the its use of reserve funds to balance its budget in the last two years. I still have concerns about making certain that the schools finances are on track, that we make sure reserve funds are built back and that long-term sustainability is of the utmost importance, she said. Digardi, the NVC trustee, was satisfied to put the matter to rest. I got a little upset over the mischaracterization of the (commissions) visit, (and) Im glad that my position has been confirmed, he said Thursday. Napa Junction Elementary School has been selected to spearhead the Napa Valley Unified School Districts plan to make all of its schools more secure by keeping intruders off campuses. Two wrought iron gates were installed last week at Napa Junction, marking the beginning of a pilot project by the school district. NVUSD plans to add gates and fencing, as well as cameras and alarms, to nearly all elementary, middle school and high school campuses over the next few years, fulfilling a promise by NVUSD during its campaign for Measure H, the $269 million school bond approved in June. For the most part we live in a pretty safe community, said Don Evans, the school districts construction chief. But there are those times that things are happening that we would rather have a controlled environment. The cities of Napa and American Canyon have been fortunate in recent years, having not experienced the horrors of a school shooting. The district would like to keep it this way by closing off campuses with fences and locked gates during school hours, forcing all visitors to go through the administration building to gain entry. This secure situation is now in effect at Napa Junction. Before last week, anyone could walk past the school office and enter the school grounds without impediment. Now, beginning with the morning bell at 8:10 a.m., the new metal gates are closed and locked on the outside. They remain that way until the end of school at 1:30 p.m. for kindergarten and 2:30 p.m. for the other grades. The gates can be opened from the inside by anyone, staff or student, in the event of an emergency. Principal Donna Drago was delighted that her school was chosen first by NVUSD for the project. I love the gate, said Drago. Ive wanted this for a long time, a closed campus. Weve got a lot of programs going on here, she added. You have so many adults on campus, and its impossible to know who everybody is. But by funneling all visitors through the front office, Drago and her staff will know whos who. It just gives us that extra layer of protection, she said. You dont want people walking on campus nowadays, not in the wake of Sandy Hook and other school shootings. It is a very different time, said Drago, who noted that her teachers and students practice lock-down drills three to four times a year, up from what used to be just once annually. Theyre as important as the fire drill, she said. Evans said the district selected Napa Junction for the pilot project because there had been some concern expressed at that location about security. The campus sits in a cul-de-sac at the end of Napa Junction Road. The semi-industrial area includes a storage facility on one side of the school and a Little League complex on another. It is an isolated school, not a lot of residences around it, said Evans. We thought we could help the situation by piloting this wrought iron gate at Napa Junction. NVUSD is also being mindful about the appearance of gates and fences. Officials say they dont want to recreate the penitentiary environment found at public schools in big cities. Were going to be careful where we put new infrastructure, said Evans. I want people to feel comfortable when they walk up. When you go into Oakland or Berkeley [schools], its like a prison, with some campuses sporting 10-foot fences topped by barbed wire. Thats why the district chose wrought iron over chain link, Evans said, believing the former has a softer feel. Its nice looking, said Drago about the new gates. Its minimalist but does the job. Evans said early use of the Napa Junction gates has revealed the need for some adjustments. The metal doors can bang against the metal frames, producing unwanted noise while school is in session. Workers will be adding rubber stripping to minimize this problem. The wrought iron gates may also be fitted with springs to make them easier to open, said Evans. Napa Junction does not need perimeter fencing to secure the remainder of the campus from the outside. But the district plans to install interior fencing so the community can access some of the grounds after school or on weekends without exposing the facilities to the risk of vandalism. We want our neighbors to be able to get into the play area [at schools] but not into the heart of the school, said Evans. What youre going to find is were going to be putting secondary fences, say at Napa Junction, so people cant get into the school itself. Napa Junction isnt the only American Canyon school to play an important role in the development of NVUSDs new campus security policy. Canyon Oaks Elementary School was held up as a model by Evans during the Measure H campaign, saying the districts newest elementary school had exactly the kind of perimeter fencing and gating all schools should have. Thats a great school, Evans said about Canyon Oaks, built in 2004. You can go inside it, and it doesnt look like youre enclosed, but you truly are. The school features black wrought iron fencing and gates that prevent visitors from entering the campus during school hours. The administration building is the only way in during such times. Canyon Oaks secure perimeter has also resulted in little or no vandalism, according to Evans. You cant get in there, be hidden and do bad things there, he said. Drago has used Canyon Oaks as a model as well. Once she knew she was getting her own gates, she contacted her colleague, Principal Kay Vang, to learn what protocol Canyon Oaks was using for its security infrastructure. She liked Vangs protocol so much that she copied it for Napa Junction. Once the district is satisfied with the additions at Napa Junction, it will move on to other elementary schools. West Park, Pueblo Vista and Napa Valley Language Academy may be the first ones in Napa to become closed campuses, according to Evans. He said he hopes to have all elementary campuses fitted with new gates, and, where necessary, fences by the end of next summer. After that Evans will turn his attention to the middle schools and high schools. The addition of fencing and gates will not impact Vintage, Napa and American Canyon high schools open campus policies during lunchtime, according to Evans. He said campus supervisors could ensure the gates remain open during the noontime break. Napa County has its first permanent facility for rehabilitating injured wild birds thanks to Shafer Vineyards, which donated 5 acres of land near the Napa River to The Wildlife Rescue Center of Napa County (WRCNC). On the secluded, heavily wooded site just off Silverado Trail, dubbed Shafer Sanctuary, WRCNC has erected a rehabilitation facility that will allow ravens and crows, along with hawks, owls, and other large wild birds, to recover from injury and be reintroduced into the wild. The land from the Shafer family and the pre-release aviary we now call it the Raviary has been a huge addition to our operation, said WRCNC Vice President John Comisky. We have long needed a space where large birds can build their flight strength before being released, and the pristine surroundings facilitate their settling into the wild while being protected in this final phase of their care. Shafer Vineyards President Doug Shafer said the vineyard was pleased the rescue center was able to use the land. We feel a real connection to this, said Shafer. Since the 1980s, here at Shafer, weve been practicing sustainable farming, part of which includes partnering with Red-Shouldered Hawks, American Kestrels, and Barn Owls to control the gopher population in our vineyards. Beginning in the late 1980s, the winery erected hawk hunting perches and owl nesting boxes to attract birds of prey to their vineyards. These raptors act as a natural means of controlling gopher populations in the vineyards. The Wildlife Rescue Center of Napa County is a nonprofit organization that has been in operation for 25 years. It is the only organization permitted by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to rescue, rehabilitate, and release wildlife in Napa County. The organization helps Napa wildlife ranging from songbirds to birds of prey, and mammals, from squirrels to foxes. When they are orphaned, we raise them. When they are injured, we work to heal them all with the goal of returning them back to their wild lives, said Comisky. WRCNC uses mobile units on land lent to it by Napa County and operates out of satellite sites at the homes of species-specific rehabilitation experts. The Silverado Veterinary Hospital has partnered with WRCNC for several years to take wildlife in before it is transferred to appropriate care sites. The rescue center helped nearly 1,200 birds and animals in 2015, Comisky said, adding that WRCNC is on track to reach a similar number this year. For more information about The Wildlife Rescue Center of Napa County, visit NapaWildlifeRescue.org. CALISTOGA Smoking in city parks and their adjacent parking lots will no longer be allowed in Calistoga, following the adoption of an ordinance Tuesday by the City Council. The ordinance, considered a health and safety matter, essentially means that Calistoga will have smoke-free parks, said City Manager Dylan Feik. There was some discussion of whether to prohibit smoking in parking lots or areas near public parks, with the council agreeing to ban smoking in those lots adjacent to any city park or facility. If you do not ban smoking in the parking lots, you are still creating the hazard for the people who are either loading or unloading from cars as they enter or exit the park, said Councilmember Jim Barnes. It would be my preference to ban smoking in all its forms. It appears that Proposition 64, the legalization of marijuana measure on the November ballot, does allow for the prohibition of marijuana use in public places and would not preclude the city from banning marijuana or any kind of smoking in parks in the future should the proposition pass, Feik said. So down the road, if the city builds additional parks or additional meeting spaces we could still ban the use of tobacco or marijuana in public places, he said. Proposition 64 is a statewide ballot proposal to allow the adult recreational use of marijuana. Cities would still be allowed to regulate public use of the substance. The city of Napa adopted a smoking ban in parks in 2009. The Napa County Tobacco Education Program introduced the proposed ordinance to the City Council on Sept. 20. In a 2015 presentation, the Tobacco Education Program reported the results of a Smoke Free Parks Public Opinion Survey, which found that 96.7 percent of respondents said that tobacco litter in public parks is harmful to the environment, 94.3 percent of respondents said that tobacco use in public parks is harmful to your health or the health of your family, and 86.5 percent of respondents would support a policy to make Calistogas public parks smoke free, according to a city report. Signs will be posted in the public areas stating that smoking is not allowed. Donald Trump is on a new kick, suggesting that the establishment's efforts to see him defeated in November (not inaccurate) extend to controlling a national vote-rigging infrastructure that will ensure a Hillary Clinton victory (inaccurate). The idea is both paranoid and dumb, and lacks any evidence much more robust than the evidence you might provide a kid for the existence of Santa. On Monday night in Wisconsin, Trump's teleprompter offered him some new metrics in his efforts to instill doubt in the entire process. "People that have died 10 years ago are still voting," Trump said at a rally in Green Bay. "Illegal immigrants are voting. I mean, where are the street smarts of some of these politicians?" Someone yelled out, "They don't have any," and Trump agreed with a chuckle. He continued, "So many cities are corrupt and voter fraud is very, very common. The following information comes straight from Pew Research: Approximately 24 million people, one of every eight voter registrations in the United States are no longer valid or significantly inaccurate. One in eight! More than 1.8 million deceased individuals right now are listed as voters. Oh, that's wonderful. Well, if they're gonna vote for me, we'll think about it. But I have a feeling they're not gonna vote for me. Of the 1.8 million, 1.8 million is voting for someone else." Pew did say that - kind of. But not quite. As part of a 2012 push to upgrade America's voter registration system, Pew prepared a report that looked at gaps in how the registration system tallies voters. "Voter registration lists are used to assign precincts, send sample ballots, provide polling place information, identify and verify voters at polling places, and determine how resources, such as paper ballots and voting machines, are deployed on Election Day," the report reads. But the systems "are plagued with errors" that, among other things, waste money. As an example of how the system fails to accurately reflect the electorate, Pew noted that 12.7 million records that year appeared to be out of date. Some 12 million had bad address information. (The 24 million figure is where those two sets overlap.) How does that happen? People move. People get married. Sometimes they update their voter records; sometimes they don't. If you've ever moved from one state to another, did you inform the state where you used to live that you no longer needed your voter registration there? Probably not. Did you also vote in both states? Again, I sort of doubt it. This isn't a grand scheme to throw national elections. It's the dust we leave behind in our lives. Another change that sometimes occurs: People die. Pew did indeed note that 1.8 million voter registrations were for people who had passed away. Their families, it seems, didn't go through whatever process was required to get them taken off the rolls, perhaps because they had other things to worry about. States and counties have processes for culling old, out-of-date records from the voter rolls, but that process takes time (and is itself controversial, given the risk of booting eligible voters from the process). The critical question here is the one Trump skips over in service to his rhetoric: Are those 24 million bad registrations, or those 1.8 million registrations for dead people, being used in a systematic way to conduct voter fraud? And the answer, very simply, is no. There are instances in which votes have been cast on behalf of people who have died, certainly. There are probably instances in which people have voted in two states in the same election, too. The broader question is whether these ballots represent any significant part of those cast, much less whether this is part of an organized system to rig the vote. And there's simply no evidence that this is the case. A presidential election involves millions and millions of votes. Even if 1.8 million votes had been cast for dead people - for which there is literally no evidence, and certainly no indicator that it will happen in 2016 - that wouldn't have made a difference in the margins of eight of the past 10 presidential elections. There's no excuse for someone whose parent died filling out their absentee ballot and sending it in, of course, any more than there is any excuse for committing insurance fraud by burning down your own house. But very, very few people burn down their own houses for the insurance money, and most of those who do are caught. The insurance industry survives just fine as a result, and the default assumption is not that your house fire was your own doing. There are checks and balances, just as there are in the voting process. The system works. But that isn't even what Trump's saying. He's saying, broadly, that there is a conspiracy to throw the election to Clinton, a conspiracy that, apparently, involves casting votes on behalf of dead people. It is quite literally a conspiracy theory, and one that falls apart if anyone offers even the slightest scrutiny. How does it work? Hundreds of people are enlisted to have voter registrations in multiple states and then cross back and forth to vote? One person has all of these registrations in various places and casts hundreds of ballots? And The Illuminati knows in advance where those hundreds of votes can make the most difference? Sure. Here's a throwback for you. In 2004, Trump appeared in another video with Billy Bush. On Election Day that year, Bush tagged along as Trump tried to vote in New York City. But Trump couldn't vote because his registration information was incorrect. He went to three polling places - in one of those cities that he says is rife with fraud - and ultimately had to cast a provisional ballot. The system made it harder for him to vote, not easier. So why does Trump insist that fraud is a problem, despite the lack of evidence that it happens with any regularity? Why does he insist the election is rigged against him? Because he's losing, and he's making excuses. Maybe he believes what he's saying; maybe he doesn't. But he's saying it now because the election is looming, early voting is going on and he trails badly. Trump's problem isn't dead people voting. It's that, politically speaking, his campaign is a dead man walking. Philip Bump writes about politics for The Fix. He is based in New York City. Tate Taylor's "The Girl on the Train" may be technically set in the Westchester suburb of Ardsley-on-Hudson, but its cocktail of commuter trains, marital infidelity and alcoholism make its proper setting Cheever Country. The unhappy, martini-stained lives of New York suburbanites have long been a rich vein for writers like John Cheever, Richard Yates and Paula Fox. "The Girl on the Train" is the trashier, paperback version. Its old-school title may suggest Hitchcock or maybe Fincher (who himself is remaking Hitchcock's "Strangers on a Train"). But Taylor's film, disappointingly, is nowhere near the league of either. Instead, it's closer to the kind of early '90s psychological thriller where bad things happen in slow motion and deadly instruments are drawn from kitchen drawers. It's adapted from Paula Hawkins' popular London-set novel, the success of which was predicated on comparisons to Gillian Flynn's "Gone Girl," a trio of unreliable narrators, all women, and the way it cleverly untwisted female cliches of domestic life: the bitter divorcee (Rachel, played by Emily Blunt), the sexy 'other woman' (Megan, Haley Bennett) and the unwitting wife (Anna, Rebecca Ferguson). They are each introduced in their own chapter, but our central figure is Blunt's boozy, devastated Rachel, the so-dubbed "girl" who by all appearances is suspiciously like a woman. She spends her days riding the Metro North into and out of New York, cursing the suburban "baby factory" while mini liquor bottles fall off her lap. From the tracks, she obsessively gazes at a house where she spies who she believes is the perfect, impossibly handsome couple (Bennett, Luke Evans). "I just know they know love," she says. From the train she sees hints of an affair or possibly a crime, and begins involving herself like a drunk Jimmy Stewart, on the rails instead of confined to a wheelchair. But the tale adds another layer an incredulous one to her voyeurism. As it happens, Rachel used to live a few houses down, where her ex-husband (Justin Theroux) now lives with his current wife (Ferguson) and baby. A real coinkidink. The mystery kicks in when Megan goes missing another girl, gone. Her character is set up as a kind of slinky femme fatale, who (despite her million-dollar home) is working as a nanny for you guessed it Anna down the street. In scenes with her therapist (a woefully miscast Edgar Ramirez), she sounds like she's plotting a getaway. "I just can't be a wife anymore," she says. Through a boozy fog, the blackout-plagued Rachel believes she knows something about the case. She, herself, is a suspect because of her frequent creeping around her old home and continuous phone calls to her ex. On the night in question, Rachel wakes up mysteriously bloody. (Allison Janney makes a fine cameo as a police detective.) Blunt can't quite pull off the famously difficult task of believably playing drunk; her slurred words and blotchy face are overdone. But it's her steely presence that gives "The Girl on the Train" the veneer of a film better than it is. Ferguson, too, is a class above. But Taylor ("The Help") isn't able to believably blend the overlapping perspectives and "The Girl on the Train" comes across as a flat, predictable puzzle whose characters flip from one extreme to another. Dangerous fantasies of marital bliss are at the heart of "The Girl on the Train." There's something worthy beneath the pulpy, preposterous plot that wants to give redemption to some old female stereotypes. But Taylor's film merely shifts awkwardly from one trop to another, like an uncertain passenger changing trains. "The Girl on the Train," a Universal Pictures release, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America for "violence, sexual content, language and nudity." Running time: 105 minutes. Two stars out of four. ___ Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP In a democracy, the "people" are the supreme arbiters, and their wisdom speaks through the electoral process. Such is the assumption on which the modern world has been built since God and monarchs began to fade from the scene. Lately, however, the wisdom of the people has felt a bit off-key. In one country after another, from the Philippines to the U.S., Hungary to India, the people have chosen to boost demagogues, not to mention serial gropers. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's faith in extrajudicial murder may have actually helped boost his approval ratings to nearly 90 percent. The brazen homophobia, Islamophobia and anti-Semitism of Poland's ruling Law and Justice Party hasn't dented its popularity in the slightest. In recent weeks, xenophobic sentiments have been amplified in Britain, the world's oldest democracy, by a government borrowing from the playbook of the far-right U.K. Independence Party. It's not surprising that most mainstream journalists neither anticipated nor can satisfactorily explain the startlingly worldwide rise in demagoguery -- a kind of extreme democracy that threatens to derail economic globalization and radicalize political life. Their worldview was shaped by the dominant ideology of the post-Cold War era: progress through technocratic capitalism and liberal-democratic trustees. As the Financial Times columnist Wolfgang Munchau wrote last month, "many pundits, myself included, had their formative years from the 1980s onwards." The Soviet empire had imploded, discrediting not only communism but also a broad range of social-democratic ideals. In the 1990s, major politicians of the center-left (Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Gerhard Schroder) as well as the conservative right took to advocating greater deregulation and privatization. Their consensus found a responsive echo in the media. "The Populist Explosion: How the Great Recession Transformed American and European Politics," a short book by John B. Judis, shows why journalists who have a sense of history, and its irony, need not be bewildered by the astonishing revolt against globalized elites in our time. Judis's ambit is broad: It includes Podemos in Spain, Syriza in Greece and the People's Party in Denmark as well as Trumpism in America. But he defines his subject precisely. Populists, for instance, should not be confused with authoritarians and despots; they embrace the "democratic competition for power" instead of subverting it. Furthermore, populism "is not an ideology" but a political and moral rhetoric that pits ordinary people (noble victims) against elites (treacherously self-serving). Such a definition allows Judis to trace a genealogy of populism, from the American People's Party of 1892 (which brought the term into circulation) to Marine Le Pen's National Front of 2016. It allows him to make careful distinctions between left and right versions of populism, to distinguish between Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump. "Leftwing populists," he writes, "champion the people against an elite or an establishment. Theirs is a vertical politics of the bottom and middle arrayed against the top." On the other hand, "rightwing populists champion the people against an elite that they accuse of coddling a third group, which can consist, for instance, of immigrants, Islamists, or African-American militants." Populists of both kinds tend to enjoy limited success, and often fail to cross the electoral threshold. For one thing, their definition of the people is too vague: Trump's, for instance, includes both Ivy League students burdened with debt and blue-collar workers suffering from extensive de-industrialization. Such a people, united by anger and disaffection, can be easy to mobilize but hard to consolidate, especially when populists find themselves making hard political choices. The populists don't help their own cause by making demands that seem impossible in the present conditions, such as Sanders's "Medicare for all." They are better at devising catchy slogans: "one percent versus the 99 percent." Still, the impracticality of their schemes for taking back control doesn't lessen the massive influence of populists. They are the symptoms of a crisis, an unmistakable sign that the old consensus has broken down and needs to be replaced with something politically more acceptable. As Judis writes, "their demands may be co-opted by the major parties or they may be thoroughly rejected. But the populists roil the waters." In the U.S., he points out, populists from the 1890s to the segregationist George Wallace in the 1960s, "have had an outsized impact." Certainly, Sanders and Trump have already forced Hillary Clinton out of many of her previously held positions on free trade. The UKIP leader Nigel Farage claimed accurately last week, as the British government stoked anti-foreigner passions, that his party has "changed the center of gravity of British politics." However, the wisdom of the people, manifested lately by demagogues, has to reckon with the wisdom, often more arbitrary, of global markets. The pound is sliding amid fears of a "hard Brexit," and Scottish nationalists threaten secession from the U.K. The very attempt by populists to take back control is making the future uncontrollable. Pankaj Mishra is a Bloomberg View columnist. It is time to decide whom to pick for Napa City Council here are 10 reasons why that answer is Doris Gentry : 1 Doris has lived in Napa for 27 years, working, going, serving and doing. 2 Doris has been chairing huge Napa events for over a decade. Events that Doris champions include the anti-sex trafficking conferences, the Chocolate & Wine for foster kids and the Napa 4th of July Parade. Doris tirelessly raises money for causes like anti-sex trafficking, foster kids and more. 3 Doris is smart. That might surprise you, but Doris can think of a way over, under or around complications like nobody you ever met. She gets stuff done. Doris moves things forward, and for that reason alone, you can pick Gentry and be proud of your vote. 4 You chose Doris in 2012 a whopping 9,112 of you picked Doris Gentry before. 5 Doris does not talk, she walks the walk. She is a doer not a chatter box of empty words. 6 Doris worked for a five county government agency helping fund infrastructure projects for cities collaborating with city, county, regional, state, federal and private firms for investment dollars using government loans, grants and private money. Doris has funded fixing roads before, this is not a new problem that cities have, it is an ignored problem Doris will address this issue. 7 Doris loves all manners of people, she is open, welcoming and accepting. She is a foster mom. There have been over 100 teen boys living in her home: Jewish; Muslim; Native American Indian; Hispanic; Asian; Japanese; South African; vegetarian; Catholic; atheist and everything between. Doris never asks about race, religion or political beliefs, when called and asked for a bed for a boy, Doris says, yes absolutely get that boy over here. Get that boy in my home that is Doris Gentry 8 Doris has lived from homelessness to poverty to success. She knows and understands the needs of those living in poverty life did not come easy for Doris Gentry. She is will willing to help others get out of impoverished situations. She did it and is willing to help others do the same thing. Housing for workers, veterans and homeless is not a new problem for cities it is an unfunded problem that Doris knows about and is willing to face. Lets get these people homes and stop talking and start doing, Doris has said in interview. 9 Doris is a listener, she believes she can learn for any other person and she respects all persons for their life and beliefs. But in the end, and the bottom line is this Do you want roads? Pick Doris. Do you want to fix housing problems? Pick Doris. Do you want less talk and more do? Pick Doris. 10 And the biggest reason to pick Doris Gentry nobody owns Doris. She is an independent thinker. The typical big lobby groups shunned Doris as their candidate. These groups did not pick her in 2012 but 9,112 of you did. She is my pick. She is my one vote. She is my answer to the issues of Napa. Pick the best, and forget the rest: Doris Gentry for Napa City Council. Peter Moale Napa It is with great pleasure that I recommend Debbie Alter-Starr to serve as a trustee for Napa Valley College. I have worked with Debbie since 2002 when she enrolled her son in the school where I served as principal. Little did I realize this would be the beginning of a long partnership with one of the most passionate, innovative and creative leaders in our community. Since 2002, Debbie and I have collaborated on multiple projects, and I have observed Debbies leadership abilities and her talents working with peers, families, community members, consultants, goals and influencing change within the community. Debbie is a hard-working, socially active citizen and dedicated professional. In her position as founding director of Somos Napa, Debbie implemented programs in a way that guaranteed success collaborating with almost 100 community organizations to promote their needs. Her dedication to the Latino community goes beyond words into action that creates opportunities for traditionally underrepresented groups to partner with all constituencies in Napa. Debbies background as a licensed clinical social worker who deeply understands mental health and social-emotional needs coupled with her ability to communicate in Spanish connects her to various groups in Napa in ways most people cannot. Debbie builds cohesion among colleagues to provide greater support for at risk populations while not compromising opportunities for accelerated students. Debbie deeply understands the strategies and importance of differentiated support and truly models one of our core beliefs - that every student is the most important. Debbie enthusiastically takes on opportunities to lead and has demonstrated time and again her ability to serve responsibly in a decision-making role as a member of the Napa Valley Education Foundation, Gifted and Talented Education Parent Advisory Committee and Parent Advisory Committee for the school district. With a strong foundation in K-12 education, it is a natural next step for Debbie to serve Napa next at the college level. Debbies strengths are many and include her absolute passion for equity among community groups and youth, devotion to students and colleagues, organizational skills, a highly professional work ethic, commitment to creating safe environments for problem-solving and a welcoming personality. Debbie understands collaboration and does not hesitate to get involved and take the lead. Debbie has always been professional and caring in her interactions and understands how education transforms lives for Napas youth. I recommend her without reservation to serve on the Napa Valley College Board of Trustees. She is conscientious, bright, hard-working and bilingual! I am confident she will be as dedicated and hard-working in the role of trustee as she has been in every other commitment toward which she has dedicated her energies and expertise. Elena C. Toscano Editor's Note: This items has been modified from its original form to indicate the fact that the author's endorsement was personal and was unrelated to her official position. It does not reflect the position of the Napa Valley Unified School District. Two women who say they have a passion for education are running to represent St. Helena on the Napa Valley College Board of Trustees. Debbie Alter-Starr and Rosaura Segura are competing for the District 6 seat, which is being vacated by JoAnn Busenbark. The district includes the area surrounding Highway 29 from north Napa to St. Helena, including Yountville, Oakville and Rutherford. Segura Segura, an immigration consultant and grapegrower who lives in St. Helena, said she wants to see something good and very productive happen at the colleges Upvalley campus in St. Helena. The beautiful culinary program is a good opportunity to explore, she said. A lot of the students have gone on to do great things. The valley is all about wine, food and hospitality, so theres a lot to be gained there. The college is well-positioned to improve its wine and food programs in collaboration with the local wine industry, she said. The college also needs to explore housing on land it owns northwest of the main campus in Napa, Segura said. Housing could serve students, professors and the community, she said. Sure, its a long-term project, but in the valley everything is a long-term project, she said. The races for other seats, as well as the colleges failed bond measure in 2014, have generated discussion about the boards transparency in governance. Segura said she doesnt see any major problems, since information is easily available on the colleges website and from individual trustees, who operate under a shared governance model. Its my perception that they all have an open-door policy, she said. The opportunitys always there. If the college has been named the number one community college in California for two consecutive years, theres something being done right. As for the bond measure itself, the college needs to look at why it failed, decide how exactly the funds would be used, and explore who we need to get behind us. Segura added that happy professors and teachers are the key to a successful educational institution, and need to have a voice in the colleges decision-making process. Segura described herself as bilingual and bicultural, and has advocated for farmworker housing. She said she has deep roots in the community and enjoys collaborating with people. This is Seguras second attempt to win a District 6 seat. In 2012 she ran unsuccessfully against Busenbark, the outgoing incumbent, who is now endorsing Segura. I believe in education, so I decided to give it another try, Segura said. Alter-Starr Alter-Starr is a licensed clinical social worker who lives in Yountville. She has served as a district-level volunteer in the Napa Valley Unified School District, where shes served on various committees. Shes also worked with the Napa Valley Education Foundation and the St. Helena Cooperative Nursery School. She said she likes the colleges shared governance model, in which students serve on committees and are given input into how the college is run. She wants to make sure that model is being run as effectively as possible, especially for students who dont have any leadership experience. Like Segura, Alter-Starr said she wants to make better use of the Upvalley campus. She said shes talked to St. Helena Unified School Trustee Jeannie Kerr about increasing dual enrollment programs for St. Helena High School students. When you give students college class experience, they come into college more prepared, she said. Alter-Starr said she also wants to explore whether the college should be offering more vocational education programs. After the failed bond measure in 2014, a study found that voters wanted to see more transparency from the colleges leadership. Alter-Starr said that after studying the situation, she believes that might be more perception than reality, and pointed to steps the college has taken including increasing its financial reserves. However, the college could always improve its communication. Alter-Starr said she believes in best practices, which includes transparency and communication. If theres a perception that the college isnt strong in those areas, Id like to see that addressed, she said. Her career as a social worker has given her strong communication skills, she added. Alter-Starr pointed to her experience with Napa Valley Unified, which has taught her how educational administration works, and her relationships with the Napa Valley Unified and St. Helena school districts. Having that experience and those relationships are very helpful for a trustee, she said. Alter-Starr said she has a passion for serving the Latino community. She speaks Spanish, although not fluently, founded Somos Napa, a bilingual parents network, and co-founded the Napa Valley Latino Heritage Committee, which organized Dia de los Muertos celebrations. Todays complex security challenges make it ever more important to hear the voices of men and women directly affected by conflict and insecurity. NATO is breaking new ground in institutionalising sustained dialogue with representatives of civil society who work on conflict prevention and resolution, security and womens empowerment, from grassroots activism to national and international policy. Convened by Marriet Schuurman the NATO Secretary Generals Special Representative for Women, Peace and Security the Civil Society Advisory Panel on Women, Peace and Security met for the first time on 18 October 2016, in Brussels. Womens rights organisations, human rights advocates, community leaders, academics and peace organisations have a deep understanding of the challenges faced in seeking to build inclusive security and sustainable peace. NATO already has come to appreciate the value of engaging with civil society in areas where it leads operations, particularly in Kosovo and Afghanistan. NATO now wishes to harness such insights and to benefit from civil society contributions more broadly and more systematically as it strengthens its implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 and related Resolutions on Women, Peace and Security. As Marriet Schuurman stated, If peace is to be sustainable, we must be inclusive. The Panel views its role as the voice of the people that NATO should protect and answer to the needs of boys, girls, women and men in conflict-affected countries. It brings together 28 individuals and institutions from countries and areas experiencing conflict, including Afghanistan and Ukraine, as well as countries engaged in supporting peacebuilding. They bring a wide range and depth of expertise in peace negotiations, community security, training, research, and development and monitoring of National Action Plans on Women, Peace and Security. The Panel met with NATO staff for an initial discussion on NATOs policy and action plan for the implementation of UNSCR 1325 and related Resolutions on Women, Peace and Security across NATOs core tasks. It agreed its work methods for advising NATO on the implementation and revision of this policy and action plan and planned a series of activities. The Civil Society Advisory Panel will meet each year and engage on an ongoing basis with the Special Representative for Women, Peace and Security and NATO staff. The results of the Panels work will be shared and discussed across NATOs staff and command structure to help inform work in a number of areas where gender perspectives are integrated and barriers to women's equal participation removed. IMF forecasts $1 trillion unforeseen profit for oil exporter Lavrov and Cavusoglu discuss recent developments in Caucasus Seoul and Warsaw sign key agreements on nuclear energy development in Poland Statement by leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan on results of meeting in Sochi Saudi Arabia and UAE defend OPEC decision Putin: Russia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan agree on joint statement U.S. wants EU to impose export restrictions against China Thunberg calls UN conference place for lies and fraud Putin, Pashinyan and Aliyev hold trilateral talks Russian businessman Artem Aslanyan commits suicide in Moscow Head of the Ministry of Finance: Sweden's economic outlook is gloomy and we're heading for a tough winter Norway to raise level of army combat readiness in response to Ukraine war Putin and Aliyev talks in Sochi are over Moldova expels Russian embassy employee after incident with falling rocket parts Estonia to expand by 30 times protected zone on border with Russia Serzh Sargsyan receives Garo Paylan Inflation hits new record in 19 eurozone countries Shoigu and Akar discuss Russia's decision to suspend participation in grain deal Head of Armenian Armed Forces General Staff: Azerbaijan refuses to allow evacuation of Armenian soldiers' bodies Inflation in Poland breaks the record of 25 years ago Head of General Staff of Armenian Armed Forces explains why Azerbaijanis 'trapped' were not captured Chief of General Staff of Armenian Armed Forces confirms loss of positions as result of Azerbaijani aggression Central Bank: Inflation in Armenia reaches 9.9% Edvard Asryan: The operational situation in the eastern and southeastern directions is relatively stable Iran arrests 6 suspects in attack on Shiraz mausoleum Aliyev: Baku put forward five main principles to normalize relations with Yerevan Putin: The goal of the trilateral talks is the implementation of all agreements of 2020 and 2021 Talks between presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan start in Sochi Six people detained in Belarus for hanging Ukrainian flag NBC News: Biden lost his temper on the phone with Zelenskyy European Parliament lawmakers arriving in Armenia on fact-finding mission Cavusoglu: Europe weakening runs counter to Ankara's economic interests Non-resident organizations providing online services in Armenia declare 1bn drams of VAT in 3 quarters October oil production in Russia falls Storm warning issued in Sochi due to tornadoes Putin and Pashinyan hold 1-hour talks in Sochi Pashinyan to visit Tehran on November 1 Over AMD 76 billion will be assigned to Armenian police in 2023 Provincial governor of Armenias Tavush, France envoy discuss future cooperation (PHOTOS) South Korea and the U.S. begin large-scale air force exercise Dollar, euro continue falling in Armenia Pashinyan says issue of Armenian captives is unresolved, despite discussions with Putin Iranian parliament chair to visit Azerbaijan Pashinyan: Communications passing through Armenia should be under Yerevan's full control Pashinyan: Russia's clear position on moving Azerbaijani soldiers to their initial positions is important World wheat prices up Putin urges to ensure peace in Karabakh and unblock transport infrastructure Pashinyan calls Russia's approaches to establishing Armenia-Azerbaijan relations acceptable State budget spending on Armenia emergency ministry needs to increase considerably in 2023 Pashinyan says he wants to discuss regional security issues with Putin Putin hopes for progress in Karabakh settlement during summit Putin: We have to end the Karabakh conflict 80% of Kyiv remains without water supply after morning strikes, mayor claims China accuses US of violating trade rules Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan meets Russian President Vladimir Putin Peskov: We will inform if documents are agreed as result of Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan leaders meeting Kremlin says Russia continues contacts with Turkey and UN on 'grain deal' Masis Abrahamyan, head of ANC - Netherlands office, files lawsuit against Armenian National Security Service Bloomberg names world's richest families Central Bank: About 86% of banks' profits in Armenia come from currency sale/purchase, exchange fees Head of Central Bank of Armenia: Economic growth in 2023 will be lower than 7% forecasted by government Armenia civil servants salaries to increase but bonuses to reduce Armenia finance minister: Salaries to increase almost twice as much more than bonuses have become salaries Finance ministry: Armenia inflation would have been higher if national currency had not increased in value Alen Simonyan to Erin Elizabeth McKee: Armenia is interested in deeper engagement by US Central Bank of Armenia: U.S. financial authorities complicate U.S. dollar turnover worldwide Kyiv: 12 vessels with grain leave Ukrainian ports France is working on a land route for grain export from Ukraine Amount of Armenia financial assistance to Karabakh to not change in 2023 International Rescue Committee: Blockade of Ukrainian grain may lead to disaster Erdogan: Turkey will continue to solve the food issue despite Russia's hesitation Armenia's budget deficit in 2023 will be 3.1% of GDP PACE MPs initiate resolution on political prisoners cases increase in Azerbaijan EU studying issue of recognizing Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as terrorist organization Finance minister: Armenia tax revenues projected to be about 3.7% of GDP in 2023 Armenia opposition MP: No final document will be signed in Russias Sochi Opposition MP: When Armenia PM says he is in Russian proposals favor, has no value unless he says he rejects US option Employee of Karabakh permanent representation in Armenia is charged with high treason Kyiv mayor claims damage to energy facility that supplies power to 350,000 apartments Blinken has phone talks with China's FM Artsakh strategic issues discussed at We Are Our Mountains agency first meeting Death toll in Indian bridge collapse rises to 141 Armenia 2023 state budget draft: Capital expenditure to increase significantly Armenia national debt against GDP is planned to be reduced Iranian Foreign Ministry: Presence of foreign forces doesn't contribute to peace in Caucasus Alen Simonyan, Garo Paylan discuss prospects for reopening of Armenia-Turkey border Aliyev arrives in Sochi Iran detains second suicide bomber in Shiraz mausoleum Iranian and Azerbaijani FMs discuss situation in region 2023 expenses of Armenian defense sector will make AMD 506bln, a growth of 35% Armenias Pashinyan arrives in Russias Sochi (PHOTOS) UN agrees with Turkey and Ukraine on transportation of Ukrainian grain Armenia parliament standing committees kick off joint session, debating on 2023 state budget draft Lula da Silva wins Brazil presidential election Oil prices go down Gold prices show weak growth Armenia renowned stage director, ex-MP Vahe Shahverdyan dead at 77 Turkey plans to open 100 oil, natural gas wells on land in 2023 Copper falls in price USAID delegation arriving in Armenia Angolan citizen Bob Joao Dongala, who had illegally crossed the Turkey-Armenia border, has been sentenced to one year in prison. Armavir District Court of First Instance of Armenia reached the aforesaid verdict. At the court hearing, Dongala plead guilty, and asked the court for a speedy trial. During the trial it became clear that he was a refugee in France, he had previously lived in Paris, then he had come to Turkey, and, subsequently, he had crossed the border and entered Armenia. But it is not clear why he had come to Armenia. According to the indictment, on June 14 at around 9pm, Bob Joao Dongala illegally crossed into the Armenian state border on foot, nearby Yervandashat village in Armavir Province, from Turkey. On June 15 at 1:30am, however, he was apprehended by the Russian Federation Federal Security Service border officers stationed in Armenia. Criminal charges were brought against Dongala. He was placed under arrest. During initial questioning, the border trespasser had explained that he is a citizen of Angola, born in 1982, and he wanted to reach Angola via Armenia. EU must cancel the visas for Turkish citizens and stop insisting on the changes of the anti-terrorist legislation, otherwise Ankara will withdraw from its obligations on the readmission agreement. Turkish Minister of European Union Affairs, Omer Celik, said the aforementioned in an interview with Reuters. In his words, considering the situation, the pressure on Ankara means hindering the liberalization of the visa regime, in connection with which we suppose that they (EU) will not keep their promise. In this case we can suspend the readmission agreement and terminate it if necessary, Celik said. He also noted that Turkey has not yet named the deadline for this, but if visas are not cancelled by the end of the year, this will mean that the deal on that issue died a natural death. There will be nothing left to discuss, he noted. YEREVAN. The results of the council of elders elections in Gyumri and Vanadzor towns are still discussed in various formats within the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), according to Zhoghovurd newspaper. The RPA has serious problems in the upcoming NA [i.e. National Assembly] elections. The authorities lists received about 15 thousand votes, each, in Gyumri and Vanadzor. This is the case when in 2012, RPA mayoral candidate Samvel Darbinyan had received 21,300 votes in Vanadzor, and [recently reelected Mayor] Samvel Balasanyan, who enjoys the support of the ruling party, had received 27,500 votes in Gyumri. It was possible to achieve results in both towns with the use of power levers. To add, in Gyumri, many of those who voted for the Balasanyan Alliance, and even of the representatives of their headquarters, do not wish to hear the name of the RPA, and they were avoiding speaking on behalf of the RPA. So, in the NA elections, the RPA cannot have big expectations in Gyumri and Vanadzor, wrote Zhoghovurd. STEPANAKERT. The adversary violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between the Karabakh and Azerbaijani opposing forces more than 35 times, from late Tuesday night to early Wednesday morning. During this time the Azerbaijani armed forces fired around 6,100 shots toward the Armenian position-holders, and by way of various caliber weapons, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR/Artsakh) Defense Army informed Armenian News-NEWS.am. In addition, the adversary fired 1,160 shots from large-caliber machine guns, in a southerly direction of the line of contact. But the NKR Defense Army vanguard units took actions in response, in order to quell this aggressive activity by the Azerbaijani armed forces, and continued confidently carrying out their military watch. STEPANAKERT. In accordance with the arrangement reached with the authorities of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR/Artsakh), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Mission will conduct a planned monitoring of the Line of Contact between the armed forces of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan. The monitoring will be held on Thursday, in the direction of the Hadrut region, near the settlement of Ashaghi Abdurahmanli. From the positions of the NKR Defense Army, the monitoring will be conducted by Jiri Aberle (Czech Republic), Field Assistant of the Personal Representative to the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office (CiO); Peter Svedberg (Sweden), staff member of the Office of the Personal Representative to the OSCE CiO; and Major Christian Hirsch (Austria), representative of the OSCE High-Level Planning Group. The NKR authorities have expressed their readiness to assist in conducting the monitoring and to ensure the safety of the OSCE Mission members. YEREVAN. The Minister of Agriculture of Armenia, Ignati Arakelyan, on Wednesday received Lebanese Ambassador Jean Makaron. First, the ambassador congratulated Arakelyan for being appointed Minister of Agriculture, and wished him productive work, the Ministry of Agriculture informed Armenian News-NEWS.am. I am aware that close relations are formed between Armenia and Lebanon in the agriculture sector, noted the minister. The embassy of Lebanon is taking initiatives aimed at the development of the agriculture sector of our country. I would like to stress that we stand ready to collaborate with the Lebanese side. Ambassador Makaron, for his part, briefly presented the Lebanese businessmens investments in the agriculture sector of Armenia. He also informed that Lebanese businessmen are very interested in investing in Armenias agriculture. YEREVAN. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrovs statement with respect to Turkeys possible role in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process was perceived unilaterally. Political scientist and former deputy foreign minister of Armenia, Ambassador Arman Navasardyan, expressed such a view at a press conference on Wednesday. Stressing that Turkeys engagement in the negotiation process is impermissible, Navasardyan recalled that this country cannot become involved also from the perspective of international law, as Armenia will never agree to this. Especially since Turkey doesnt even hide [the fact] that its [respective] approach stems from the interests of Azerbaijan, added the Armenian diplomat. In his view, the insinuation of this statement is that Turkeys activity can be encouraged, but without considering the interests of Azerbaijan, and this causes the resentment by Azerbaijani President Aliyev. There are huge concealed disagreements between Azerbaijan and Turkey, added Navasardyan. This [situation] needs to be made use of. And speaking about the Lavrov statements part that refers to Turkeys unblocking of its border with Armenia, Arman Navasardyan highlighted: Well, of course, we cant endlessly remain enemies with Turkey. And the opening of borders can likewise play an important role. YEREVAN. Another Armenian citizen, who was injured in the crash of the Yerevan-bound bus in Russia, will be transferred from the clinical emergency hospital in Vladikavkaz town to the clinic in Beslan town. This person likewise is in moderate critical condition, the press service of the Ministry of Health of Armenia informed Armenian News-NEWS.am. The fourth injured, who also continues to get medical treatment in Russia, underwent a tomography, and it was found that this person does not suffer from brain injury. Now, it is discussed whether this patient should be transported to Armenia. As reported earlier, a passenger bus, which was heading from Moscow to Armenias capital city of Yerevan, collided with a truck, on October 14 at around 4:30am, on the Vladikavkaz-Beslan bypass in Russia. As a result, five people, including the bus driver, were killed, and 27 others sustained injuries. Three of the casualties are Russian citizens, and the other twoArmenian nationals. The bus passengers that could be transported were brought to Yerevan on board a plane of the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations, on the same day. The dead bus drivers body also was transported to Armenia. All the injured that were transported to Armenia have been discharged from hospital. YEREVAN. A delegation, led by Davit Lokyan, the Minister of Territorial Administration and Development of Armenia, on Wednesday traveled to Strasbourg. In this French town, the Armenian delegation will participate in the 31st Session of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe (CLRAE). In addition, Lokyan will address the plenary session of the Congress, the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Development informed Armenian News-NEWS.am. The event will include a discussion on the informational report by the CLRAE delegation, which had arrived in Armenia on a local government election assessment mission. An exchange of views is also expected with secretary general of the Council of Europe. YEREVAN. The Prime Minister of Armenia, Karen Karapetyan, on Wednesday received United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ambassador Jassim Mohammed Mubarak Al Qasimi. The Prime Minister noted that close ties have been established between Armenia and the Arab world, and they foster successful development of interstate relations, Press Office of the Government of Armenia informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.. As Karen Karapetyan said, the high level of UAE-Armenia political dialogue is an opportunity to upgrade bilateral economic relations to a new qualitative level, for which there is sufficient potential and opportunities. In this context, the head of the Government of Armenia stressed the need to boost the activities of the joint intergovernmental commission. The UAE ambassador, for his part, first, congratulated Karen Karapetyan on his appointment as Prime Minister and wished him success. He also expressed confidence that cooperation will further develop and strengthen between the two governments. The interlocutors concurred in that even though bilateral relations have been developing dynamically in recent years, efforts need to be made to step up trade between Armenia and the UAE. Touching upon the prospects for the development of cooperation in agriculture, food industry, tourism, infrastructure, and in several other domains, the parties also discussed the avenues for the promotion and drawing of investments. Russian Premier Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday discussed with the Chairman of Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Board Tigran Sargsyan the preparations to the Intergovernmental Council of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU). Soon we will hold the EEU Intergovernmental Council; the preparations are underway now. You and the executive body colleagues deal with this. Where do things stand? the Premier inquired. For his part, Sargsyan stressed that the stimulation of integration remains the most pressing issue on the agenda. We are trying to find additional stimuli, which could fulfill the entire potential and help our countries first of all stimulate domestic market products, he said, adding that the relevant proposals have been prepared. Medvedev also noted that the Intergovernmental Council session is always lively, and it is always becomes necessary to discuss the current issues and look for compromises during it. He also suggested Sargsyan to go through all the directions to better prepare and hold such a meeting. Medvedev will take part in the EEU Intergovernmental Council session, which will be held in Minsk on October 27. The premiers of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan will also attend the session. The participants will consider a number of key issues on the integration agenda of the EEU. It is also planned to discuss the new draft Customs Code of the EEU, approve the 2017 draft budget of the Union and sign the Protocol on extending the action of the Agreement on implementing pilot project of marking goods by identification marks in 2015-2016. Apart from this, the course of developing the mechanism of control over transportation of goods within the Unions territory and separate aspects of trade policy, including order of applying anti-dumping measures, as well as issues of EECs international activity will be discussed at the session. Russia hopes the United States and other interested parties will have an impact on the militants leaders of Aleppo and ensure their evacuation from Aleppo, said the head of the Operative Department of the Russian armed forces General Headquarters Sergei Rudskoy, reports the RIA Novosti. "We hope that the United States and other interested parties will impact on the leaders of the armed groups and ensure the evacuation of the wounded and sick, as well as remove civilians and fighters from the city, he said. According to him, the Russian and Syrian air forces do not approach Aleppo closer than 10 km. "Yesterday morning at 10a.m. the Russian and Syrian air strikes in Aleppo have completely stopped. The Russian and Syrian planes do not approach the city closer than 10 km, "said Rudskoye. High-ranking political officials of different countries support the activity of the OSCE Minsk Group, which deals with the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement. Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, said the aforementioned in an exclusive interview with Azernews, day.az reports. In his words, the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs are constantly informed on al the details about the developments around the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and deal with that issue on a daily basis. The Chairmanship of the OSCE is paying constant attention and is informed in detail about developments. The Chairperson-in-Office, Dr Steinmeier, visited the region and the resolution of the conflict was high on the agenda of his trip, Kasprzyk said. According to him, the Karabakh conflict settlement is frequent subject of public debate in many international organizations. Referring to the information obtained from OSCE, Kasprzyk said that from the end of May 2016 the situation along the contact line between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces has been relatively stable, though there were still reports about ceasefire violations and casualties. Every casualty is a tragedy and causes grief and sorrow for the family and friends of the deceased. I share these sorrows, he said. I would like to stress that the monitoring exercises are not investigations, nor are they a peacekeeping measure. They provide a snapshot, an effective and consistent way of accessing information regarding the situation on the ground. With the support of the sides, we will continue our activity, the Ambassador continued. He also added that the expansion of the Office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office would not impact his mandate and the modalities of work of his office. Got ancestors in The Golden State? We've got two new webinars to help you find them! Announcing an additional two classes in our California Research series to bring the total now to six: We're working hard to give our webinar subscribers the educational classes they need to maximize their genealogical research! Both of these new classes are bonus webinars in the webinar library. The webinar previews are always free. California Newspapers and Digitized Books In this webinar we look at the printed word. Newspapers provide us with the details of everyday life that are hard to find anywhere else. Digitized books span the realm of the local history and biography which helps to tell the story of places and people. Where can you find Californian newspapers and digitized books? Many times you can find what you need online through digitization projects, subscription and free websites but for those times you cant find what you need, knowing what is available and where is important. Going to the Courthouse Not all California courthouse records are at the courthouse. And for most courthouses, the researcher must rely on paying for a search which may or may not result in the records they need. Knowing the structure of the California court system and how to access records is important in order to avoid frustration. Well look at what must be requested, what is available online through the courthouse website, what can be searched in person, what is available at various archives, FamilySearch and other websites. Not a member yet? Legacy Family Tree Webinars provides genealogy education where-you-are through live and recorded online webinars and videos. Learn from the best instructors in genealogy including Thomas MacEntee, Judy Russell, J. Mark Lowe, Lisa Louise Cooke, Megan Smolenyak, Tom Jones, and many more. Learn at your convenience. On-demand classes are available 24 hours a day! All you need is a computer or mobile device with an Internet connection. Subscribe today and get access to this BONUS members-only webinar AND all of this: All 410 classes in the library (576 hours of quality genealogy education) 1,810 pages of instructors' handouts Chat logs from the live webinars Additional 5% off anything at FamilyTreeWebinars.com Chance for a bonus subscribers-only door prize during each live webinar Additional members-only webinars It's just $49.95/year or $9.95/month. Look at our lineup of speakers for 2016! All live webinars are free to watch. Print the 2016 webinar brochure here. Devils Kitchen Literary Festival is Oct. 26-28 by Andrea Hahn CARBONDALE, Ill. -- This year marks the 20th anniversary of the creative writing master of fine arts degree at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, and the program faculty and the Department of English plan to mark the milestone with guest appearances from creative writing MFA alumni. The annual Devils Kitchen Literary Festival runs Oct. 26-28, with readings and panels in the John C. Guyon Auditorium in Morris Library and festival author book signing and reception in the first-floor rotunda adjacent to the auditorium. The festival is organized by the undergraduate editorial staff of Grassroots, an annual undergraduate literary and arts journal for SIU students. The students also select the winners of the Devils Kitchen Reading Awards based on books published in the preceding year. Reading Award winners participate in the festival as special guests and receive a cash award. This years Devils Kitchen Reading Award winners are: Jacob Appel, fiction, with his story collection The Magic Laundry; Michelle Herman, non-fiction prose, with her essay collection Like a Song: Essays; and Emily ONeill, poetry, with her debut collection Pelican. Here is the schedule: Oct. 26 8-9 p.m. Reading by 2016 Devils Kitchen Reading Award Winner in Non-fiction Prose Michelle Herman Oct. 27 11-11:50 a.m. Panel featuring Hala Alyan, Jacob Appel, Bruce Bond, Michelle Herman and Emily ONeill 2-3:15 p.m. Poetry readings by Hala Alyan and Bruce Bond 3:15-4:30 p.m. Reception and book signing 4:30-6 p.m. Readings by 2016 Devils Kitchen Reading Award Winners in Poetry and Prose Emily ONeill and Jacob Appel Oct. 28 11-11:50 a.m. Open mic reading of SIU students -- Grassroots sponsored event 2-2:50 p.m. 20th Anniversary of the SIU MFA Program panel featuring alumni Lesley Brower, Sequoia Nagamatsu and Amie Whittemore Here are abbreviated biographies of the authors: Hala Alyan is a Palestinian American poet and clinical psychologist living in Manhattan, N.Y. She is a 2016 winner of the Crab Orchard Series in Poetry Open Competition with her collection Hirja, available from SIU Press. Her other books are Atrium and Four Cities. Her work appears in The Missouri Review, Prairie Schooner, Colorado Review, and other places. Jacob M. Appel is from New York City where he is a physician and attorney as well as a prolific author and bioethicist. Hes written six story collections, two novels and a collection of essays. His stories are on short lists for the O. Henry Award, Best American Short Stories, Best American Mystery Stories, Best American Non-required Reading and the Pushcart Prize. His commentary on law, medicine and ethics appears in major newspapers. He teaches at the Gotham Writers and the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. Bruce Bond is a 2016 Crab Orchard Series in Poetry Open Competition Award winner with his collection Gold Bee. He is the author of 18 books altogether, including Black Anthem and For the Lost Cathedral. He has won many poetry awards, and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Texas Institute for the Arts, as well as several teaching awards. He is poetry co-editor for American Literary Review and co-judge for the annual Rilke Book Award. Michelle Herman won the Devils Kitchen Reading award for non-fiction writing but she is also a novelist. She has written three: Missing, Dog, and Devotion, as well as a novella collection and two other essay collections and A Girls Guide to Life, a book for children. Her work appears in many journals including American Scholar, O, the Oprah Magazine, and The Southern Review. She is part of the master of fine arts in creative writing faculty at Ohio State University. Emily ONeill is the author of three chapbooks before her award-winning debut full collection: Celeris, You Cant Pick Your Genre and Make a Fist & Tongue the Knuckles. She is also the winner of the YesYes Books Pamet River Prize for women and non-binary writers. She teaches writing and tends bar in Boston. SIU to host English teachers from 23 countries by Andrea Hahn CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The Center for English as a Second Language at Southern Illinois University Carbondale will host a group of 25 English teachers from 23 countries later this month for a two-week foray into American culture. The group is part of FHI 360, a nonprofit human development organization serving in more than 70 countries and in every state and U. S. territory. The State Departments Bureau of Educational Affairs sponsors the groups visit. The teachers will be on campus Oct. 28-Nov. 12 as part of the English Access Microscholarship Teacher Workshop and professional development training. The goal is to give the participants first-hand knowledge of the United States, with focus on cultures and values and the ideals of democracy. The teachers will better be able to integrate cultural lessons into English language lessons for their students when they return home. Students in the program are from the following countries: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Brazil, Cambodia, China, Egypt, El Salvador, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Nepal, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Russia, South Africa, Tanzania, Tajikistan, Thailand, Ukraine and Vietnam. The Center for English as a Second Language is part of the Department of Linguistics. It offers an intensive English program for speakers of other languages, typically those who plan to attend universities in the United States or to pursue professional careers. The immersive program has a long history of success. For more information about the workshop or to inquire about interviewing students, contact Emily Harding Hunt at ehunt@siu.edu. Why do science issues seem to divide us along party lines? Lauren Griffin, manager of UFs Journal of Public Interest Communications in the College of Journalism, investigate the differing ways in which liberals and conservatives view science, observing that the split may be more about cultural and personal beliefs than feelings about the science itself. Much has been made about the predictable partisan split between presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump on issues of science and public policy. But what about their supporters? Can Americans really be that far apart in terms of science? That liberals and conservatives have different opinions toward science is taken as a given. Typically, conservatives are painted as anti-science, with some studies suggesting their mistrust of science is increasing. Liberals, on the other hand, are usually assumed to be more receptive to science in general and more supportive of using science to shape policy. Noting that party affiliation is different than political ideology not everyone who identifies as liberal is a Democrat and not everyone who identifies as conservative is a Republican these characterizations certainly seem to be true when we look at major leaders of the political parties. Many Republican politicians have publicly expressed doubts over the scientific consensus on climate change, for instance. At the top of the Republican presidential ticket is Donald Trump, who has called climate change a Chinese hoax and is on the record as supporting any number of other conspiracy theories. Conversely, Hillary Clintons line at the Democratic National Convention I believe in science was met with resounding applause. Assuming that the stated views of outspoken politicians reflect the personal beliefs of voters within their parties is tempting. After all, voters elect politicians, presumably on the basis of having comparable worldviews. But research suggests that the link between partisanship and views on science may not be so cut and dried. Buried in the data is a much more nuanced relationship thats well worth examining. As a sociologist who focuses on ways to communicate science issues to the public, Im interested in how a more clear-eyed view of this connection could be used to help combat anti-science attitudes. Quantifying the science trust gap In 2015, researchers asked 2,000 registered voters how deferential they felt politicians should be to science when creating public policy on a variety of issues. On a 10-point scale, participants ranked whether politicians should follow the advice of scientists (10), consider scientific findings in conjunction with other factors (5) or ignore scientific findings completely (1). Issues included climate change, legalizing drug usage, fetal viability, regulating nuclear power and teaching evolution, among other topics. The participants then responded to questions about their political affiliation and ideological views, religious beliefs and other demographic variables. Most people supported trusting the recommendations of scientists on policy issues, even politically contentious ones. The average score for all participants across all issues was 6.4, and the lowest-scoring issue (letting same-sex couples adopt children) was 4.9. The results suggest, in other words, that even on divisive issues, Americans think that politicians should take scientific recommendations into consideration when making public policy. Breaking down responses based on political leanings did reveal some partisan differences. When it comes to deferring to scientific experts on policy issues, conservatives and independents look a lot alike. Averaged across issues, independents said policymakers should weigh science and other factors more or less evenly (5.84), only slightly more than conservatives did (5.58). Liberals, on the other hand, expressed much higher rates of deference to science across issues, they averaged 7.46. These findings are interesting because we tend to think of independents as the middle-of-the-road in American politics. If conservatives and independents are on the same page, though, it means that liberals are the outliers, so to speak. In other words, rather than most people putting an emphasis on science while conservatives steadfastly ignore it, the truth is that many people want other factors included in policy discussions. Its liberals who are further from the pack on this issue, wanting more emphasis on science than their peers. Its not their politics, its their values Other research has similarly found that science denial can run the political spectrum. For instance, another study examined attitudes about climate change, evolution and stem cell research and found that partisan identification was not necessarily a good predictor of how someone will feel about these controversial issues. In fact, very few participants were found to be skeptical of science across the board. And reactions to these specific issues were more tightly linked with religious attitudes than with political ones. Other scholarship echoes these findings. Indeed, research does suggest that a certain segment of the population places more trust in religion than in science for understanding the world. But even among this group, science and religion are seen as conflicting only on certain topics, including the Big Bang and evolution. One area in which political beliefs do have an impact is the kinds of scientists that liberals and conservatives are likely to trust. A 2013 study of 798 participants found that conservatives put more faith in scientists involved in economic production food scientists, industrial chemists and petroleum geologists, for instance than in scientists involved in areas associated with regulation, such as public health and environmental science. The opposite was true for liberals. Again, this suggests that its not simply a matter of conservatives being skeptical of science in general; theres a much more nuanced relationship between political leanings and trust in scientific expertise. So why does it appear that liberals and conservatives are living in different worlds when it comes to issues of science? Partisanship clearly plays some role in how people view science and their willingness to trust scientific information. And because these disagreements tend to come on high-profile issues like climate change and evolution, about which there is already so much controversy, its easy to get the impression that the liberal and conservative divide on science must run incredibly deep. Comes down to cultural cognition To help explain why people fall in line with their fellow partisans on these high-profile issues, consider the theory of cultural cognition. This social sciences concept suggests its hard for people to accept new information that poses a threat to their values system. Addressing climate change, for instance, is often talked about in terms of government regulation of carbon pollution. For conservatives who oppose government involvement in the economy, this poses a threat to an idea they hold very dear. No one likes to be wrong, of course. Cultural cognition theorists take this a step further and argue that there are social consequences to taking a position about a political issue that runs counter to what your community believes just ask conservative former congressman Bob Inglis, who was defeated by a primary challenger in 2010 after speaking out on climate change. From loss of business to strained interpersonal relationships, being the black sheep is hard. Rather than changing their beliefs about government regulation, then, its cognitively more comfortable for conservatives in conservative social circles to maintain skepticism about climate change. Its less an inherent distrust of science, then, but rather a need to discount the science that supports policies that threaten a deep belief. Everyone is subject to this effect. There are studies that suggest its stronger for conservatives, but liberals, too, come to mistrust scientific information when it challenges their worldviews. For instance, a 2014 study found that liberals will display the same sort of evidence-ignoring behaviors as their conservative counterparts when faced with arguments that go against their beliefs about policies like gun control. (Claims about liberals exhibiting anti-science bias on the issues of vaccination and genetically modified organisms are increasing, though they are challenged by recent studies.) In other words, these divides may not reflect Americans attitudes toward science so much as other cultural and personal beliefs. Get past assumptions to common ground Having a more complete understanding of when and why liberals and conservatives trust science helps avoid oversimplifications. Its an important stopgap using oversimplified assumptions to denigrate those who disagree with us politically. None of this is to suggest that the anti-science viewpoints exhibited by Republican politicians on issues such as climate change should be ignored. Nor is it an argument that since both sides can fall for anti-science rhetoric, it can be waved away. Rather, these findings indicate that, in theory, its possible liberals and conservatives could work together to encourage politicians to base policy recommendations on sound science, at least on some issues. Maybe even more importantly, understanding the social and cultural issues surrounding the acceptance or rejection of science is a first step toward crafting messages that resonate with members of the public who question the science on hot-button issues. Research suggests using the right kind of messenger someone who is trusted within the community can be key to moving the needle. Science communications scholars have been hard at work devising other tactics to help reach people on issues of science. Hopefully theyll trust the growing body of social science evidence to help guide their efforts. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Rashtriya Progressive Kisan Association (RPKA), an umbrella consortium of seven farmers' unions, submitted the petition at the Prie Minister's Office with signatures from about 1,38,000 farmers. Favouring to roll out the GM Mustard in India's arid and semi-arid regions, farmers also criticised the anti-GM lobby, asserting "it's claims are unscientific". "No one is listening to the 80 million farmers who will, among many others, benefit by the GM Mustard. It would profit the mustard growers by directly Rs 1,800 crore," Hari Singh Yadav, a Rajasthan-based farmer who heads RPAK, told IANS. He said of total edible oil imported by India last year, about 60 per cent was mustard oil. "That was supposed to be Indian farmers' share. That oil is too coming from a different version of GM Mustard," Yadav said, adding that due to water scarcity in Rajasthan and other parched regions, the production of mustard has dropped. The GM Mustard would boost the production by about 22-30 per cent. The indigenously developed GM Mustard -- Dhara Mustard Hybrid 11 (DMH 11)-- is currently being reviewed by the Union Environment Ministry's Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC). It was developed at Delhi University's Department of Genetics. It's possible approval is being opposed by several social and environment activists who have cited several reasons ranging from environmental issues to the multi-national companies monopolising the GM seeds and thus taking over Indian agriculture. Experts, including the developers of DMH 11, however, refuted those claims. --IANS kd/ss/vt ( 297 Words) 2016-10-19-18:28:08 (IANS) The 31-year-old star took to his Instagram handle to share the selfie and captioned, "Shoot selfie !!! #Banaras #ghats #halfgirlfriend #checkitout." The 'Ki & Ka' star is seen wearing a light coloured check shirt teamed with a pair of shades as he stands beside the holy river. 'Half Girlfriend', which is based on Chetan Bhagat's novel of the same, is directed by Mohit Suri and also features Shraddha Kapoor. Reportedly, principal photography commenced in June this year and filming locations also include New York, Cape Town, Delhi and Bihar. The film is scheduled for a worldwide release on May 19, 2017.(ANI) "Health Minister J.P. Nadda will visit SUM hospital in Bhubaneswar today (Wednesday) to take stock of the fire tragedy which claimed 19 lives,"a senior Health Ministery official told IANS. Nineteen persons were killed in the Odisha fire in the Intensive Care Unit of the Dialysis Ward of SUM hospital on Monday evening. Another 106 were injured and are undergoing treatment. The Fire Services Department lodged an FIR with the Khandagiri police alleging negligence of the hospital authorities in adhering to fire safety norms. Four SUM Hospital officials were arrested on Tuesday in connection with the incident. --IANS rup-am/in/vm ( 134 Words) 2016-10-19-11:28:12 (IANS) Representatives from Colombia's right-wing opposition could meet with leaders of the FARC rebels to discuss potential changes to a peace accord signed by the guerrillas and the government, opposition leader Alvaro Uribe said.Hardliner Uribe, an ex-president, current senator and leader of the right-wing Democratic Center party, had previously said his group would not meet with the rebels, who signed a peace deal with the government last month to end 52 years of war.Colombians rejected the accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, in a surprise plebiscite result this month. Uribe spearheaded the "No" campaign."We think that at this time, in the interest of a national deal, spokespeople from "No" could at some point speak with the FARC," Uribe told journalists.President Juan Manuel Santos, who has staked his legacy on a successful deal, has been meeting with opponents in a bid to salvage the accord.In a televised speech on Tuesday Santos, who won a Nobel Prize for his peace efforts, said talks were advancing and he would continue to hear opposition proposals until Thursday before discussing them with the FARC.The Colombian conflict has killed more than 220,000 people and displaced millions. REUTERS PS 0727 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-984435.Xml Uttar Pradesh BJP has chalked out an elaborate campaigning programme before the announcement of the assembly election dates, with launching of at least four programmes to connect with the people. The party has decided to hold at least 30 big rallies of senior party leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah, Union ministers Rajnath Singh,Manohar Parikar and several others. There would be a big programme in every 75 districts during a fortnight. The party will already launch four Parivartan Yatras from four corners of the state starting from November 5 besides Yuva Sammelans, Mahila Sammelans and Backward Sammelans would boost the party rank and file to go before the masses, confirmed UP BJP general secretary Vijay Bahadur Pathak here today. The Parivartan yatras will begin from Saharanpur on November 5, from Jhansi on November 6, from Sonebhadra on November 8 and from Ballia from November 9. All these yatras would be flagged off by BJP president Amit Shah in the presence of senior leaders. "These yatras will touch all the 403 assembly constituencies. MPs of that region and legislators will take part in these yatras. Meetings and rallies would be held at all important places where leaders will educate people about the mis-governance of Akhilesh Raj and also explain the good work being done by Mr Modi's government," he said. Meanwhile, BJP will rope in the seven Chief Ministers of the BJP ruled states to campaign in the state during the Parivartan yatra which will end in Lucknow on the eve of the birthday of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on December 24 when Mr Modi will address a mamoth rally.UNI MB PY 1138 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0196-984551.Xml Even as All India Muslim Personal law Board (AIMPLB) is preparing itself for the annual meet to be held in Kolkata next month to elect its new board, the organisation has now decided to launch a campaign to counter the Triple Talaq issue with believing that the misconception rose due to lack of awareness on Islamic law. Under the campaign, Imam across India have been asked to give discourses on the rights of women in Islam every Friday after the namaz. Starting with Lucknow, the Imams of all the mosques in the state capital have been sent letter in this respect. AIMPLB, member and Imam of the Aishbagh Eidgah Maulana Khalid Rasheed Firangi Mahali, told UNI today that the board is of the view that misuse of Islamic laws has been blown out of proportion. "Still, we believe that battling lack of awareness will help in ending whatever little misuse is taking place. Accordingly, Imams across India would be giving discourses on the rights of women in Islam after namaz,"he stated. The Maulana stated that only 0.5 per cent Muslims took divorce. Citing figures from Census 2011, he said, "the total population of Muslims in India is about 17 crore. Of these 0.5 per cent or 3.5 lakh people had taken divorce. Also, of the total divorce cases in Muslims, less than one per cent are of triple talaq. Thus, we are convinced that triple talaq is being exaggerated. Compared to this, 3.7 per cent of total 100 crore Hindus had taken divorce." About the issues to be covered in the discourse by Imams, he said, "Islam is the only religion which practices ladies first. It is for this that the consent of women is taken before the groom in weddings and women have a right in their father's and husband's property. Citing references from Quran and Hasis, the Imams will tell that men and women have equal right for everything in Islam be it right to marriage, separation, inheritance, education, extravagance during weddings." Talking about talaq, he said, Islam provides for four types of talaq. Two of these - talaq and triple talaq - can be used by men while the other two - khula and faskh-e-nikah - can be initiated by women."The plain and simple talaq refers to iteration of talaq once which leads to a month long period of separation. It is followed by a chance to reconcile and if the parties agree, the couple can stay together as normal. But if they don't agree, they second period of separation begins. The couple can still stay together if they sort their issues after the gap. In case they don't, the third talaq takes place," he explained. The Maulana said triple talaq was meant ending the marriage by saying talaq three times. He stated that women can apply for khula or faskh-e-nikah if they feel that their marriage is not working. "No other religion in the world gave this kind of a liberty to women. In fact, the right to end a marriage through divorce among Hindus in the Hindu Code Bill was borrowed from Islam," the Maulana claimed. Meanwhile AIMPLB would held its next general body meeting to elect its new Board in Kolkata from November 18 to 20. Though there is all chance that present president Maulana Sayeed Rave Hassani Nadvi, would be elected unopposed for the fifth time in a row thus equaling with Maulana Abul Hasan Ali Hasni Nadvi(Ali Mian), who was also president of the Board for five times. There are 50 members executive including six women members along with two secretaries and an assistant secretary. AIMPLB was set up on April 7,1973 and every three years,it holds general body meeting to select its new members.UNI MB PY 1155 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0196-984581.Xml The warning of West Tripura district magistrate to news channels of the state to stop airing anti-social activities of left front candidate in Barjala by-poll, has triggered a controversy among political parties over neutrality of the administration to ensure free and fair election. The opposition Trinamool Congress, BJP, Congress and tribal based Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura (INPT) and Indigenous Peoples' Front of Twipra (IPFT) criticised the left front government for mobilising administration to protect their political interest. They also threatened to move Election Commission of India (ECI) against the officers including West Tripura District Magistrate (DM) Dr Milind Ramteke and Sadar Sub-divisional Magistrate (SDM) Dr Samit Roychoudhury has been working directly at the behest of ruling CPI(M). The parties in separate reactions alleged that ruling leftist has lost all morale and became power crazy, which results them to attempt control media in their favour by illegally using administration. The dissident faction of CPI (M) Barjala nominee Jhumu Sarkar yesterday leaked a video footage of last week to local media regarding a fight between two groups in bordering locations of Agartala over immersion of Durga idol where Sarkar was seen in scuffle and beating others. The video also showed he was involved in fight with females and violent after consuming liquor. Immediately, after airing the footage, allegedly CPI (M) asked DM Dr Ramteke to take action against the television channels and disconnect their network unless they stop airing the video. "We got repeated calls from SDM threatening us to stop air the video against CPI-M candidate Sarkar. He referred the verbal instruction of DM and finally said the administration to disconnect the network, which forced us to stop the screening of footage for the time being," said an editor of most popular local channel here. Reacting to the happenings, Trinamool Congress legislator Sudip Roy Barman said SDM Roy Choudhury is Returning Officer of the election and how he dared to call media to stop video against ruling party. "We made it clear to both the officers and the administration if they wanted to get involved in CPI(M) politics and try to favour them in means, we shall resist it by legal method. We don't want interference in functioning of press and media," Mr Roy Barman stated. He further stated since last election, CPI(M) has been nominating criminals, murderers and corrupt cadres in the election. As many as five of such MLAs have been representing CPI(M) in the current assembly who are accused of either criminal activities or charged with corruption. They were become muscle men in the assembly and whenever opposition raised voice against the government they came into wale violently to attack opposition members, Mr Roy Barman alleged. Meanwhile, BJP Vice President Subal Bhowmik condemned the attitude of the left front to kill the democracy and added, "We want to request the administration to be neutral in their discharge; otherwise, law will take it's own course. In most of the cases it appeared that the officers are directly working for the ruling party but now the time is over." The congress president Birajit Sinha stated that in all the elections, CPI(M) used administration for their favour and insert pressure tactics on the media too. However, if this continues Congress would go for mass movement. On the other, CPI (M) state secretary Bijan Dhar denied the allegation of oppositions and alleged that the video was fabricated with concoctacted facts. He smelled opposition behind it and claimed that Jhumu Sarkar is a well-educated gentleman. He went to stop the fight and Mr Sarkar was no way involved in the episode. "The television channels aired the video without any verification that triggered serious tension in the area and party took up the matter with DM to look into the matter as per law. But we cannot dictate administration how they will perform their duties, thereby we don't have any comment on administrative action," Mr Dhar added. However, D M Ramteke and SDM Roy Choudhury refused to comment on their action.UNI BB BM PY 1143 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0214-984554.Xml With the demand of Tripura government, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) moves to explore the possibility to bring filled cooking gas cylinders from any plant of Assam or West Bengal via Bangladesh to manage LPG crisis in Tripura. After holding meeting with IOCL, Civil Supplies Minister Bhanu Lal Saha said here today the consumers of Tripura has been suffering from 75 days backlog of LPG cylinder supply due to inadequate bottling in Silchar and Bishalgarh plants for past few months. "We are getting average 10,000 filled cylinders against the daily requirement of 12,000. As a result, there is a serious backlog in the supply of cylinders that hits the public life seriously. To manage the situation, we request IOCL to bring filled cylinders from West Bengal via waterway to Ashuganj port and carry by road to Tripura," Mr Saha stated. He further suggested instead the filled cylinder from any bottling plants of Assam could be carried to Tripura by road via Dwaiki of Meghalaya as an immediate alternative arrangement. According to minister, IOCL made it clear that bottling capacity augmentation of Silchar and Bishalgarh, which have been catering Tripura for last many years was not possible now and only option left with to bring filled in cylinder from outside to clear the backlog. Besides, IOCL, the state government also requested central government to facilitate the process of bringing cylinder to Tripura via Bangladesh from neighbouring states immediately, otherwise, common peoples' kitchen will suffer, Mr Saha added. He however, pointed out that central government recently made arrangement of bringing petroleum products via Bangladesh through Dwaki of Meghalaya and special ferry by trains to manage the crisis of fuel. Tripura has also carried rice consignment from Andhra Pradesh via Bangladesh waterways a before last monsoon that appeared to be cost effective and sustainable option for the state.UNI BB BM PY 1149 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0214-984558.Xml Foundation Chairperson Sudha Murthy inaugurated the 'InfosysFoundation Animal Enclosure' spread across one acre at the Park tohouse four Zebras secured by BBP from an animal exchange programmefrom the Zoological Centre, Tel Aviv Ramat Gan (safari), Israel. The full-fledged enclosure will provide basic amenities for theanimals like holding house, feeding trough, along with a visitor'spath at the view point. This addition of 'stripes' to the existingvariety of over 1,900 animals of 95 species will augment theattraction quotient of the park, thereby encouraging more visitorsto BBP. Last year, the Foundation supported BBP through the developmentof a Tiger Enclosure, construction of 2 lakh litre capacity watertank, 5 borewells, and a monetary token of appreciation to thecontract employees.UNI MSP CNR CS 1314 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0287-984699.Xml Sukhram Korram (20) was shopping for Naxals in Kondagaon Market this morning when he was arrested. A knife, Naxal literature, banners and posters were seized from his possession. During interrogation, Korram, an active member of Maad Chetna Natya Manch of the outlaws, confessed to his involvement in supplying essentials to ultras from urban areas. Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) SRP Kalluri had recently directed all district Superintendents of Police to intensify patrolling in Haat Bazaars in all urban areas of Bastar to curb the rebels' supply network in towns and cities.UNI SS PS CJ 1630 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0044-985024.Xml Rudresh was hacked to death in the broad daylight by two bikeborne miscreants while he was returning home after attending a RSSfunction on October 16. BJP held demonstrations and protest march at Taluk and Districtheadquarters through out the State demanding immediate arrests ofthe culprits. BJP State President and Lok Sabha member B S Yeddyurappa,addressing the workers, alleged that after Congress coming to powerthe political killings have increased and the government has failedto maintain law and order. He said though three days have passed after the murder, theculprits were yet to be nabbed. "This shows the seriousness of theGovernment in arresting the culpirts." Former Deputy Chief Minister R Ashok, stating that he has doubtin the State Police handling the issue properly, demanded handingover the investigation to National Investigation Agency (NIA). Opposition leader in the Legislative Assembly Jagadish Shettaralleged that 'Jungle Raj' has been dominating in the State afterCongress came to power. Murder and robbery cases are increasingafter Siddaramaiah government came to power.UNI MSP CNR CS 1625 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0285-984994.Xml KPA Director Vipul Kumar made a power-point presentation on therecruitment and training programme and explained about differentsubjects in which the Police recruits are trained. Later, the Bavarian Police gave a video presentation explainingabout their style of functioning. Following this, IGP (Training)Alok Kumar and IGP (State Intelligence) B. Dayananda explained aboutvarious Police subjects including traffic management and others. The Bavarian team which is on a study tour of Karnataka alsointeracted with the trainee Sub-Inspectors housed at the KPA. Theteam, which has special emphasis for Police Stations functioning atHeritage Buildings, visited the Lashkar Police Station. They alsovisited the Child Helpline, Mahila Police Station, Office of theAssistant Commissioner of Police (Devaraja Sub-Division), FingerPrint Unit and Women's Helpline in the City Police limits. The team is also expected to visit the Mysore Palace beforeleaving for Bengaluru this evening. The German cops, who arrived in Mysuru, were received by IGP(Southern Range) B.K. Singh, SP Ravi D. Channannavar and KPADirector Vipul Kumar at the IG Suite in city. It may be recalled that a team of State Police headed by HomeMinister Dr. G. Parameshwar, IG and DG Om Prakash, the then CityPolice Commissioner B. Dayananda and others had visited Germany tolearn about the functioning of Police Department there. Bavarian State Police, Director of Division, Bernhard Egger;Chief Trainer of the Bavarian State Police Gerd Enkling; HannsSeidel Foundation Head of Division Hanns Buhler; Acting Project Head(India) Volker Lennart Plan; Translator Poonam Saxena; KalaburagiPolice Training College Principal Isha Pant; DCP (Law and Order) Dr.H.T. Shekar; other officials were present. UNI BSP CNR CS 1636 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0285-985040.Xml Either Awaje-Punjab or Apna-Punjab Party had lost their voices and moreover Navjot Singh Sidhu and his Wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu had taken political suicidal step and lost their credibility. This was claimed by Union MOS and Punjab BJP Minister Vijay Sampla while talking to media at Phagwara before leaving for New Delhi today afternoon. Replying a question Sampla said the election manifesto of BJP for the coming assembly elections would be released after issuing the notification by Election Commission in the month of December. He said BJP will release its separate election manifesto. He further said that SAD-BJP strong alliance will make hat-trick by winning the elections and forming the government third time. Sampla said SAD-BJP will get comfortable majority by giving befitting defeat to Divided Congress whereas the working and image of the AAP had already been exposed before the people. When asked any replacement of few seats with SAD in the elections, BJP President Sampla did not ruled out the possibility of the replacement of some seats but said he can convey his recommendation to High Command who will have to take decision. He however said BJP will contest on 23 assembly seats. Phagwara MLA Som Prakash and Market Committee Chairman Sarwan Singh Kular were also present.UNI XC JS CJ 1726 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-985066.Xml Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh today promised farmers that he would personally take up the problem of grain procurement with the Union Food Minister." I will go and meet the Union Food Minister and request him to expedite the procurement process," he said in a roadshow on Muktsar Dana Mandi on the third day of the campaign. Mounting pressure on the Badal government over the Rs 31,000 crore food grain scam, Captain Singh warned them that they should be prepared to go to jail for all their misdeeds against the people of Punjab. "You will have to pay for it," he said the Badals from the midst of a large gathering of farmers at the Mandi. "We will not allow them to get away with this open loot," he declared. Alleging a dirty nexus between the ruling Akalis and the procurement agents at the Mandis, Captain Singh accused the latter of deliberately not purchasing the grain in order to push the farmers to a state of desperation, where they would be willing to sell off their paddy even at low rates. The agents and the Akalis then pocket the difference, while the already burdened farmers end up with increased debts, often causing them to take the extreme step of suicide.The farmers alleged that as a result of this nexus, not only was their grain not being lifted on time but they were also not being paid in time. The farmers complained to Captain Singh that they still hadn't received their payment for the last wheat procurement. What was aggravating their woes was the bad quality of fertilizers being provided by the government agencies another example of the dirty nexus that was at play in the mandis these days, the farmers complained. Captain Singh also assured the farmers that once in power, he will take immediate steps to tackle the growing law and order problem in the region. Criminals and mafia have a free run of the region under the patronage of the Akali leaders, said the Punjab Congress chief, adding that all those guilty of plunging the state into chaos and anarchy would be punished for their deeds. Earlier, on way to Muktsar, Captain Singh 's roadshow passed through Gidderbaha constituency in Doda region, where thousands of people, including farmers, turned up to welcome the Congress leader. The road along the entire stretch was lined up with slogan-shouting and `dhol' playing supporters of Captain Amarinder. Leading the show of strength was Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, IYC president and member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly from Gidderbaha, joined by tens of hundreds of enthusiastic Indian Youth Congress (IYC) workers, who extended their full support to the PPCC president in his war against the anti-people policies of the Badal government. Apart from Warring, other party leaders accompanying Captain Singh on his roadshow included AICC secretary Harish Chaudhary, MLAs Sunil Jakhar, Rana Gurmeet Sodhi, along with Gurmeet Khudian, Bhai Kuku and Karan Brar.UNI JS JW RSA 1911 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-985008.Xml The Rawalpindi Police has booked one person under section 377 IPC on the charges of Sodomy with a Feeble Minded Village Youth Ashok Kumar(36) in the village on Monday. Jaswinder Singh brother of the victim told before the police that his "abnormal brother was roaming in the village and the accused took him a tubewell room and did some wrong things with him". The accused ran away and is still at large.In yet another incident in the same district Police has registered a case under section 363A of IPC against village youth Sunny on the charges of abducting a seventh standard minor village girl in Nangal Colony Phagwara. Mohan Kumar father of the victim told before the police in his written complaint lodged in Satnampura Police Station that his minor daughter was missing since October 16 and the accused had bad eye on her. The complainant expressed his suspects that the accused must have abducted his daughter in pretext of marrying her. No arrest has been made till so for. In the third incident in the district one motorcyclist Youth identified as Bahadur Ram of local Amrik Nagari was reportedly attacked wounded and robbed of his valuables including Mobile, Driving License ,Gold Chain and cash of Rs Two Thousands by three unknown armed assailants near Khangurra last night,police said.UNI XC JS CJ 1813 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-985036.Xml Congress Legislature Party chief Charanjit Singh Channi today targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for disappointing Punjab and Punjabis who expected to make at least some major announcement as a step to deal with the deepening socio-economic crisis in the state and the increasing attacks against Dalits. Channi was taking reference from the recent visit of Mr Modi in Ludhiana, where it was evident and crystal clear from the stage that something wrong is there in the relationship of two parties SAD- BJP. Even the Punjabis have now understood that the relations of Mr Badal with Dr Manmohan Singh were more warm and cordial rather than now with Mr Modi, who has not extended a single hearing to the pleas of the SAD BJP leaders of Punjab. "Mr Modi accepted only one request from the Chief Minister Mr Parkash Singh Badal and that was to visit Bathinda to lay the foundation stone of All India Institute for Medical Sciences which is Rs 1000 crore central project and part of the scheme for several other states too. He ignored the plea made by Mr Badal to come to the rescue of the beleaguered industrial and farm sector in the state. Farmers and farm workers continue to commit suicides while industrial units in this once hub of small scale industry have shut down due to government apathy. Of late, atrocities against Dalits have multiplied under mafia raj. Modi preferred to ignore all such issues", he said. Channi reminded the Prime Minister of the promise made by the BJP in its manifesto before the Lok Sabha election to implement the Swaminathan Committee report on fixing minimum support price of the farm produce by that had recommended at least 50 per cent profit over and above the cost of production. Similar promises had been made by the Akali Dal. However, farmers all over the country had been cheated by Mr Modi with the decision to backtrack from that promises. It is the farmers who would now punish the Akali dal and the BJP for this treachery. He said it was during Atal Bihari Vajpayee government that the neighboring states were given special industrial concessions and tax holidays that proved to be ruinous for Punjab as this triggered capital flight from this state. However, the Modi government had refused to rectify that distortion. It seemed the BJP was determined to punish the people in the state. He also asked Mr Badal to tell the people in the state as to why his party still continued to be part of the Modi government despite such step-motherly treatment meted out to Punjab. He recalled that Mr Modi's predecessor Dr Manmohan Singh had never said no to any request made by Mr Badal but the tragedy was that he used to approach him mainly for personal work as was publicly disclosed by the then prime minister at Jalandhar.UNI JS SDR RSA 1816 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-985130.Xml Telangana Industries and Commerce Minister KT Rama Rao said Telangana has consistently been ranked number one in Ease of Doing Business index within India and is the ideal investment destination for medical technology firms. Mr Rao was interacting with industry leaders from Pharma, Medical Technology companies on the sidelines of Medical Technology Conference AdvaMed 2016 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A delegation of Telangana led by the Minister, on the final leg of his business trip to the United States, attended the prestigious international conference to promote the State on the global stage and attract investments, an official statement said here today. Mr Rama Rao spoke at length about Telangana's widely acclaimed industrial policy TSiPASS. Calling the Policy the most progressive and industry-friendly in India for it promises time-bound and single-window clearances, self-certifications, the Minister detailed on the unmatched advantages Telangana offers in the fields of Healthcare, Pharma and Medical Technology devices. He drew the attention of the industry leaders, about a hundred in number, to the measures Telangana Government is taking to further strengthen the USD 50 bn extant life sciences industry in Hyderabad. The Minister mentioned the state-of-the-art Pharma City and Medical Devices Park that the Telangana is setting up near Hyderabad. The Minister quoted major surveys that gave Hyderabad top rankings under various segments also stated that Hyderabad boasts of the best healthcare infrastructure in India and is a favourite destination for medical tourism. On the sidelines of AdvaMed 2016 Conference, the Minister held one-to-one discussions with leaders from Healthcare, Pharma and Medical Devices industries. In the meeting with Mr Gary Pruden, Worldwide Chairman, Medical Devices, Johnson & Johnson he held discussions on topics ranging from manufacturing, intellectual property rights, to regulatory issues. The Minister had a meeting with Mr Omar Ishrak, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for medical technology firm Medtronic on the sidelines of AdvaMed 2016 being held in Minneapolis. Mr Rao elaborated on the various opportunities Telangana offers for collaboration. Mr. Benson Smith, Chairman, President and CEO of Teleflex Inc. met the Minister and the latter invited the medical devices firm to consider investing in Telangana. he also met Mr. Kevin Lobo, President & CEO Stryker Corporation. Earlier, Mr Rama Rao met Mr. Paul Kalil, Vice-President and Dr. Vemuri S. Murthy, India Liaison of American Heart Association in Chicago. The Minister invited them to join the State Government for a collaborative effort to reduce cardiac risks in Telangana. The team said that they will soon visit Hyderabad to formalise the engagement. The Telangana Lounge set up at the AdvaMed 2016 venue drew several visitors from the Pharma, Medical Technology industries. The leadership of these companies sought more information on Telangana and its policies which was provided at the stall.UNI VV CS 1942 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0275-985433.Xml Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Nasim Zaidi on Wednesday said the election panel is ready to hold simultaneous Lok Sabha and state assembly polls if certain conditions are met, including political consensus and more resources. He said two primary issues have to be taken care of in the matter. "First, several constitutional amendments will have to be made; and second, there has to be a consensus among all political parties," Zaidi told IANS on the sidelines of a two-day international conference on voter education organised by the Election Commission of India (EC) here. "If these two things are done, we can hold simultaneous elections. Of course, we would need extra resources, such as more electronic voting machines," he added. Zaidi said the EC has already written to the Law Ministry on the issue, after the ministry sought the poll panel's opinion on the 79th Report of the Department-related Parliamentary Committee on the "Feasibility of Holding Simultaneous Elections to the House of People (Lok Sabha) and State Legislative Assemblies". On the dates of assembly elections due early next year in five states -- Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand -- Zaidi said the poll panel would take a call on that based on the inputs provided by security forces and state machineries. The poll schedule would be made keeping in mind the school examination schedules as well as the weather, he said. "We are assessing the requirement of security forces, and the weather and examination schedules are also being taken into consideration," he said. Although Zaidi laid stress on greater voter participation for a meaningful electoral process, he ruled out the option of compulsory voting. He termed it "impractical" in the Indian context to punish those who are eligible but abstain from voting. "The provision of punishing people for not casting their votes is impractical in India, given the sheer size of the electorate. We have around 85 crore voters, and suppose 30 crore do not turn up for casting their votes, penalising 30 crore people would be a mammoth task," the CEC said. He said that instead, the emphasis should be on voters' education. "Through our voters' education programme, we have been able to achieve close to 94 per cent voting in some states. On the other hand, in Australia, where casting ballot is compulsory, the voter turnout is still short of 100 per cent," Zaidi said. Asked, how can the EC curb promises made by some political parties and candidates, or attempts to polarise the electorate on communal/caste lines, ahead of assembly elections in five states, Zaidi said once the Model Code of Conduct comes into force in these states, the poll panel would exercise all its powers to ensure free and fair elections. "The Election Commission is not helpless in any manner. We have sufficient powers conferred by the Constitution. Once the Model Code of Conduct comes into force, we will exercise all our powers to ensure that voters cast their votes without fear or pressure or inducement," Zaidi said. Earlier, giving the keynote address at the conference, Zaidi said that our motto should be "No voter is left behind". Zaidi also highlighted the success of the Systematic Voters' Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) in 2014 Lok Sabha elections in India. The programme was initiated in 2009 by the EC. Subsequently, SVEEP resulted into highest-ever voter participation (66.4 per cent), achieved in 2014 general elections, and an unprecedented success in reducing the gender gap from 4.4 per cent in (2009) to 1.55 per cent in 2014, he said. --IANS mak/nir/vt ( 604 Words) 2016-10-19-20:58:13 (IANS) Shiromani Akali Dal president and Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal today dared Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee President Captain Amarinder Singh to spell out any five main achievements during his tenure. He also questioned Amarinder's silence over comparing achievements of his tenure with 9 year achievements of SAD-BJP government. Addressing a press conference here at party head office after inducting Punjab Congress General Secretary and former Deputy Mayor of Patiala Kabir Das into party folds, Mr Badal said it was highly surprising that neither former Chief Minister nor any of his associate had ever uttered a single word to highlight the achievements of Congress government from 2002 to 2007. Describing 'Kisan Yatra' of Captain Amarinder Singh nothing but another attempt of 'Maharaja' to enjoy his pet road show drama, Shiromani Akali Dal president said Captain has failed to resolve farmer issues during his cavalcade drama. "Amarinder just travelling from one destination to another with his procession and chooses to reach his heaven before 6 PM to enjoy his luxurious life style", said S. Badal. Replying a media query regarding Amarinder's promise of waiving off farm loans after gaining power, Deputy Chief Minister said it was an open secret that after gaining power in 2002 Captain Amrinder Singh had imposed the decision to charge power bills on farmers and reversed his promises of continuing free power subsidy provided by the previous SAD-BJP government. He said the Punjab government was doing its best in the country by providing interest free loans to farmers besides passing an act to ensure that no bank can charge interest double than the loan provided to the farmer. "If Captain really wants to gain credibility he should suggest to Congress governments' in other states like Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka to waive off farmers' debt in their respective states", added S. Badal. Deputy CM further added that Congress was nothing but a bundle of lies that worked only on the basis of misleading propaganda and Captain Amarinder Singh is no exception to it. He said that in frustration Captain was committing false promises to lure the voters of state. "Captain is telling people that it is his last election which only shows his hunger to gain power for once. How one can believe such a person who has no vision or future plans and was just seeking favour to enjoy power for his last election?" alleged S. Badal. In reply to another query regarding AAP Convener Arvind Kejriwal's proposed visit to state for releasing manifesto for industry, S. Badal appealed the media to ask Delhi CM regarding success rate of his manifesto in Delhi state. He said may it be free wi-fi, close circuit cameras, mohalla clinics, government jobs etc, AAP government has failed to realize even 1 percent of its promises made to the electorates of Delhi. He said that AAP would not succeed to get even 10 seats whereas Congress would gain maximum 20-25 seats in 2017 polls. S. Badal said the SAD-BJP government has implemented its 95 to 97 per cent of promises made with the people. He added that SAD-BJP coalition would contest 2017 polls only on the agenda of development and communal harmony.UNI JS JW RSA 2122 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-985405.Xml No death has so far been reported in Haryana due to vector-borne diseases of Chikungunya, Dengue and Malaria whereas 10 persons had lost their lives during corresponding period last year due to these diseases. Also, Haryana has recorded decline in incidents of Dengue and Malaria as compared to those of the corresponding period last year. In case of Dengue, the State has recorded 1401 cases till yesterday as compared to over 5,200 in corresponding period of last year. In case of Malaria, the State has so far recorded 7,388 cases this year as compared to over 9,300 cases in corresponding period last year. This was revealed in a meeting presided over by Chief Minister Manohar Lal to review the measures taken to control water borne diseases in the State. Directing to launch a mass education programme to control water borne diseases, the Chief Minister stressed the need to introduce a chapter on how to control water borne diseases and sanitation in the syllabus of students of schools. He directed the Departments of Urban Local Bodies and Development and Panchayats to purchase fogging machines to intensify measures to control water borne diseases. He also directed them to continue Indoor Residual Spray in rural areas including houses and commercial establishments. He directed the Urban Local Bodies Department to challan those dealers of tyres of vehicles where stagnated water is found in tyres. It was informed that the Health Department has issued 7,480 notices to defaulters as stagnated water was found in their belongings like water coolers and pots.Health MinisterAnil Vij said that as compared to neighbouring Delhi and Punjab, the situation in Haryana is better and under control. However, efforts would be made to ensure that there is no shortcoming in this drive in future.UNI JS RSA 2305 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-985500.Xml As a part of ongoing year long celebrations of 350th Parkash Utsav of tenth master of Sikhs Sri Guru Gobind Singh ji, the Punjab Government today decided to ply special buses from different parts of the state to ferry devotees to Takht Sri Patna Sahib (Bihar), the birth place of Guru Sahib ji. These buses would run from December 1 till the culmination of mega event at Sri Patna Sahib i e January 7, 2017. A decision to this effect was taken during a high level meeting presided over by the Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal and attended by Deputy Chief Minister Mr. Sukhbir Singh Badal here at latter's official residence this evening. Taking part in the deliberations, the Deputy Chief Minister asked the Chief Secretary to work out the modalities for plying buses from different destinations across the state to facilitate the devotees to have hassle free pilgrimage to Takht Sri Patna Sahib. These buses would halt at different Gurdwaras enroute for accommodation and free community kitchen (langar) at night as per the schedule being chalked out by the SGPC authorities. He also said that these special buses would run in addition to the charted trains already allotted by the Railways from different places across the state to Sri Patna Sahib for the convenience of people, who ardently wished to be a part of this life time rare experience. The Chief Minister also gave approval to organise a grand show at Virasat-e-Khalsa, Sri Anandpur Sahib on November 27 which would be followed by the magnificent laser show at night focused on the life and philosophy of Guru Gobind Singh ji. Mr Badal also constituted a committee comprising Member Parliament Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra, Cabinet Ministers Dr Daljit Singh Cheema and Mr Madan Mohan Mittal to oversee the arrangements for commemoration of this mega event at Sri Anandpur Sahib. Apart from this, another panel consisting of Ex-MP Mr. Tarlochan Singh, VC Punjabi University Patiala Dr Jaspal Singh, SGPC President Jathedar Avtar Singh and DSGMC Jathedar Manjit Singh GK would finalise the content of the script for the laser show and also suggest the names of eminent dignitaries of National as well as International fame to extend invite for these functions. All the religious heads of different faiths and religions would be invited on these functions to disseminate the message of universal brotherhood, peace and harmony. Mr Badal also directed the Chief Secretary to be an overall in-charge for the commemoration of these celebrations. Likewise, another mega event associated with these celebrations would be held at Delhi on the December 11 by the state government in coordination with DSGMC. It was also decided to hold a mega Kirtan Darbar for the first time at India Gate, New Delhi on November 25. Another Kirtan Darbar would be organised at Sri Anandpur Sahib on November 26. The Chief Minister also decided to extend special invitation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be the Chief Guest on both these functions at Sri Anandpur Sahib and New Delhi. It was also decided in the meeting that the bus carrying the relics of Sri Guru Gobind Singh ji would be flagged of from Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib, Sri Anandpur Sahib during mid of December and reach Takht Sri Patna Sahib on January 1, 2017 via Guru Gobind Singh Marg and would also halt at Delhi for a week to enable the Sangat of national capital to have glimpse of Guru ji's relics. To elicit maximum participation of the youth in these celebrations, it was decided to organise motorcycle yatra comprising at least 11 youth from each village of the state to Sri Anandpur Sahib on November 26. This religious voyage would inculcate a marshal spirit coupled with courage and enthusiasm.UNI JS RSA 2209 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-985568.Xml The United Naga Tribes Association of Border Areas (UNTBA), while appreciating the meeting between the Assam and Nagaland Chief Ministers on October 17 to foster better relations between the two states, has however objected to the proposition for amicable settlement on the border issue. A statement issued by UNTBA chairman Hukavi T Yepthumi and general secretary Imsumongba Pongen maintained that if at all the boundary issue between the two states has to be settled amicably as proposed by the Chief Ministers of the two states, it has to be on the basis of the 9 point and 16 point agreements. Elucidating its assertion, it quoted excerpts from the 9-point agreement signed by Akbar Hydari Ali, the then Governor and Gopinath Bordoloi, the then premier of Assam province and the representatives of Naga National Council that, "(i) to bring back into the Naga hills district all the forests transferred to Sibsagar and Nowgong districts in the past; and (ii) to bring under one unified administrative unit as far as possible all Nagas. All the areas so included will be within the scope of the present proposed agreement. No area should be transferred out of Naga hill without the consent of the Naga National Council." Also highlighting passages from the 16 point agreement that, "re-transfer of reserve forests, all the reserved forests and other Naga areas that were transferred out of Naga area will be returned to Nagaland with a clearly defined boundary under the present settlement. Consolidation of contiguous Naga areas. The other Naga tribes inhabiting the areas contiguous to the present Nagaland be allowed to join Nagaland if they so desire." The UNTBA said it was due to the failure of the government of India to fulfill its promises made in the agreements, that the state of Nagaland is without a defined and specified boundary till date as clearly stated by the Surveyor General of India. Due to such lapses on the part of the government of India, the UNTBA alleged that the Assam government is fighting a proxy war against the Naga people in the Supreme Court since 1988 praying for declaring the Inner Line as the boundary of Assam and Nagaland, the statement said. UNI AS AKM RSA 2314 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0213-985331.Xml A three-judge bench of the apex court rejected Attorney General Aushtar Ausaf's argument that the government is facing logistical roadblocks in completing the exercise, reports the Express Tribune. Supreme Court Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, who headed the bench, said in his order that "the AG has tried to impress upon the circumstances which are not in the control of the government, but we are not at all impressed with his contentions." The order directed the federal government to come up with "a specific date" on which it will hold the census when the matter is again taken up in a fortnight. The population census is the biggest peace time logistic exercise, involving the mobilization of about 200,000 manpower including 167,000 enumerators - one for each block - an exercise that will incur an expenditure of Rs14.5 billion. (ANI) A Lufthansa Boeing 747 jumbo jet with 363 people on board made an emergency landing in Gander, Newfoundland, in eastern Canada after being diverted due to smoke in the cockpit, the German airline said.The 345 passengers and 18 crew members on the flight from Frankfurt bound for Orlando, Florida, were uninjured and were able to leave the aircraft without the use of emergency slides, a spokesman for Lufthansa said today.Yesterday Lufthansa has sent a replacement aircraft to fly the passengers to Florida as well as technicians to investigate the incident. REUTERS AKC RAI1414 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0432-984774.Xml Territorial disputes between China and the Philippines may take a lifetime to resolve but should not prevent warming ties, the Philippine foreign secretary said today as President Rodrigo Duterte seeks to mend relations on a visit to China.Duterte arrived in Beijing yesterday with at least 200 top business people to pave the way for what he calls a new commercial alliance, amid deteriorating ties with longtime ally the United States.Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay's remarks in China came as Philippine police used teargas to disperse about 1,000 anti-US protesters outside the US embassy in Manila.Speaking to the Philippine delegation at a Beijing hotel, Yasay said disputes with China over rival claims in the South China Sea could take many years or even a "lifetime" to resolve."But this should not be an impediment or a barrier in fostering our closer ties with each other," Yasay said, referring to China.Yasay reiterated that the thaw with China was "not going to erode our close ties with the rest of our allies and traditional partners"."As we renew our ties with this great nation, it does not mean that we are weakening ties with the rest of the members of the international community. This is at the core of the independent foreign policy that our president has moved and put forward," he said.The effort to engage China, months after a Hague ruling over South China Sea disputes in favour of the Philippines, marks a reversal in Philippine foreign policy since Duterte took office on June 30.China has welcomed the shift in tone that has added to strains between the Philippines and the United States, even as Duterte has vowed not to surrender any sovereignty to Beijing, which views the maritime ruling as null and void.In a series of conflicting statements, Duterte has insulted US President Barack Obama and the US ambassador in Manila for questioning his war on drugs, which has led to the deaths of 2,300 people. He told Obama to "go to hell" and alluded to severing US ties.After weeks of anti-American rhetoric, Duterte said the Philippines would maintain its existing defence treaties and its military alliances.China has expressed support for Duterte's drug war, even as it has sparked concerns in Western capitals about extrajudicial killings.Philippine police made 29 arrests at the rally outside the US embassy, where protesters were calling for the removal of U.S. troops in the southern island of Mindanao. REUTERS SDR NS1555 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-984913.Xml "Another US service member and two US civilians also sustained wounds and are currently stable," it said in a statement. "Anytime we lose a member of our team, it is deeply painful," Xinhua news agency quoted General John W. Nicholson, Commander of US Forces-Afghanistan and NATO-led Resolute Support mission, as saying in the statement. "Our sympathies go out to the families, loved ones, and the units of those involved in this incident," he said. The two individuals were killed during an attack near a coalition base by an unknown assailant, who was later killed. They were conducting duties as part of the larger NATO mission to Train, Advise, and Assist the Afghan security services. Earlier media reports here said a shooter wearing Afghan security forces' uniform attacked the base in Kabul incurring the casualties, citing an Afghan military official. An investigation is being conducted to determine the exact circumstances of the event, the statement noted. --IANS lok/ ( 201 Words) 2016-10-20-01:26:08 (IANS) PARIS, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- French President Francois Hollande will fly to Germany on Oct. 19 to participate in talks to push forward the Minsk peace accord to end conflicts in eastern Ukraine, his office said Tuesday. At the invitation of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Hollande will meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Berlin "to evaluate the implementation of Minsk accord and discuss the following steps of the process to settle the crisis in eastern Ukraine," the French presidency said in a statement. The negotiations will follow the "Normandy" format, which got its name after French and German leaders succeeded to convince Putin and Poroshenko to join negotiations during the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the landing of the Allied forces that made a decisive contribution to the liberation of Europe from fascism. In February 2015, Kiev and Moscow agreed a peace deal including a comprehensive ceasefire, withdrawal of heavy weapons from the frontline of fighting, release of captives, amnesty to detained insurgents and restoration of the Ukrainian government control over the state border. However, continued clashes in the zone have dashed hopes to fully implement the accord brokered by French and German leaders. More than 9,000 people have been killed in conflicts there since 2014. UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) said that the liberation of Iraqi city of Mosul from the Islamic State (IS) terrorists must be followed by genuine dialogue which is conducive to peace and stability in the Middle East country, a UN spokesman told reporters here Tuesday. With the start of the liberation drive, UNAMI called on the Iraqi people to unite in support of their country's armed forces and is urging that every step be taken to avoid civilian casualties, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here. "The UN Mission said the liberation must be followed by genuine dialogue leading to an historic compromise among all components of Iraqi society in order to consolidate victory and ensure sustainable peace for the future," said the spokesman. Reports on the first 36 hours of the military operations in Iraq indicate that military activities on the ground have taken place in less populated areas and are not leading to immediate large scale displacements of affected people, he said. "No significant civilian displacement out of Mosul has been recorded so far." "Serious concerns remain for the protection of civilians as hostilities intensify closer to and in densely populated and urban areas," he said. Movement out of the city so far has been very limited and displacement is anticipated to become more significant in the coming week. An estimated 200,000 people are anticipated to be displaced in the first weeks of the offensive. "In a worst-case scenario, one million people could be displaced," he said. "Humanitarian partners will be doing everything possible to support people that may be displaced in context of the military operation," he said. "Preparations are focusing on identification, assessment and establishment of displacement sites to receive displaced families. Continuous monitoring of civilian displacement is taking place." Iraqi security forces on Tuesday recaptured more villages from the IS militants, as part of a major offensive aimed at liberating the city of Mosul, the last major IS stronghold in Iraq, a security source said. Mosul, some 400 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, has been under IS control since June 2014, when Iraqi government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to take control of parts of Iraq's northern and western regions. Photo taken on Oct. 19, 2016 shows the screen at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center showing astronauts Jing Haipeng (R) and Chen Dong celebrating on the success of the automated docking between Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft and the space lab Tiangong-2. The Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft successfully completed its automated docking with the orbiting Tiangong-2 space lab Wednesday morning, according to Beijing Aerospace Control Center. (Xinhua/Ju Zhenhua) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft successfully completed its automated docking with the orbiting Tiangong-2 space lab at 3:31 a.m. Wednesday Beijing Time, according to Beijing Aerospace Control Center (BACC). Shenzhou-11, which was launched Monday morning from northwest China's Gobi Desert, began to approach Tiangong-2 automatically at 1:11 a.m. Wednesday and made contact with the space lab at 3:24 a.m.. The rendezvous took place in the orbit about 393 kilometers above Earth. The two astronauts aboard Shenzhou-11, Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong, monitored and reported on the docking operation, relaying their findings to the control center. According to the mission schedule, once they enter the space module, the astronauts will stay there for 30 days. Shenzhou-11, China's sixth manned spacecraft, will undertake the longest-ever space mission in the country. The two astronauts will spend a total of 33 days in space. Sun Jun, deputy chief engineer of BACC, told Xinhua that the precision needed for the orbit prediction and automated docking calculation was much higher than previous docking missions. China is the third country, after the United States and Russia, to complete successfully space rendezvous and docking procedures. Tiangong-2 was sent into space on Sept. 15. It is hailed as China's first space lab "in the strict sense" and a key step in building a permanent space station, which the country aims to accomplish by 2020. FRANKFURT, Oct.18 (Xinhua) -- The 68th Frankfurt Book Fair, the world's largest trade fair for books, kicked off with an opening ceremony on Tuesday. Thousands of publishing companies from all over the world have gathered at the annual cultural event for publishing rights negotiation and communication. A new initiative called "Arts+" will become this year's highlight. It will be a forum to exchange creative contents and act as a think tank for innovative business models in culture and creative industry, according to Juergen Boos, director of the book fair. This year's guest of honor is the Netherlands and Belgium's Flanders, and Dutch literature will be specifically introduced and promoted in the coming five days. Flanders is the Dutch-speaking northern region of Belgium. Members of the royal families from the Netherlands and Belgium attended Tuesday's opening ceremony. This year's fair will last till October 23. CHICAGO, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) grains futures eased on Tuesday after a multi-day rally in agricultural markets as farmer selling overwhelmed optimism over export demand or short covering by investors. The most active corn contract for December delivery fell 0.25 cents, or 0.07 percent, to 3.5375 dollars per bushel. December wheat delivery dropped 3.75 cents, or 0.88 percent, to 4.2 dollars per bushel. November soybeans fell 5.75 cents, or 0.59 percent, to 9.725 dollars per bushel. Soybean prices declined after trading to a nearly one-month high earlier in the session, as farmer selling trumped evidence of strong demand for the oilseeds. The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Tuesday said private exporters had booked 706,500 metric tons of soybeans for delivery to China during the 2016/17 crop year, a large sale which supported the market for much of the day. But prices turned lower late in the session as U.S. farmers also were marketing their crops in order to take advantage of higher prices. Domestic growers currently are harvesting what is projected to be a record crop this year, with farmer selling likely to cap rallies in the market, analysts said. At the same time, short covering by investors, which had helped propped up the market in recent days, also tapered off. Although the U.S. corn harvest is running slightly behind normal pace this year, favorable weather this week is expected to enable Midwest growers to make quick progress collecting what likely will be the nation's largest corn harvest ever. Enditem World-renowned pianist Lang Lang hosted a gala concert dinner on Oct 17, 2016 in New York. The gala, in its third year, was organized by the Lang Lang International Music Foundation to raise funds for children's music education. Lang Lang was joined by artists including Michael Feinstein and Lisa Fischer in the gala performance. The event raised a total of 2.049 million U.S. dollars.(Xinhua Photo/Wang Ying) NEW YORK, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Famed Chinese pianist Lang Lang raised over 2 million U.S. dollars for music education during a gala concert dinner in New York on Monday. Founded by Lang, Lang Lang International Music Foundation (LLIMF) hosted the Lang Lang & Friends Gala Concert Diner at Manhattan, New York. "The Friends Gala Concert Dinner is an opportunity for us to come together and support a new generation of musicians and to honor those who have generously supported our efforts," said Lang. The Gala aimed to raise funds to support the foundation's various programs such as Keys of Inspiration, with the goal of educating future pianists. Lang reiterated in the gala that it is important to share music worldwide. The foundation teaches classic music through the Keys of Inspiration program since 2013 in five cities around the global, helping over 2,500 children. The mission of the LLIMF is to educate, inspire and motivate the next generation of music lovers and performers. Lang was named New York City's first ever Cultural Tourism Ambassador by Mayor Bill de Blasio in September, as part of the U.S.-China Tourism Year events that promote travel and tourism between the United States and China. Photo taken on Oct. 19, 2016 shows the screen at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center showing Chinese astronaut Jing Haipeng entering the space lab Tiangong-2. The two astronauts onboard the Shenzhou-11 spacecraft entered the space lab Tiangong-2 Wednesday morning. (Xinhua/Ju Zhenhua) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The two astronauts aboard the Shenzhou-11 spacecraft entered the space lab Tiangong-2 at 6:32 Wednesday morning Beijing Time, according to Beijing Aerospace Control Center (BACC). Commander of the mission Jing Haipeng opened the hatch of Tiangong-2 and floated into the space lab, followed later by Chen Dong. The two astronauts extended greetings to all the people of the nation in the space lab, and checked the status of the space complex formed by Shenzhou-11 and Tiangong-2. Before entering the space lab, the two astronauts entered Shenzhou-11's orbital compartment and removed their intravehicular mobility unit spacesuits to change into blue jumpsuits. They will live in the space lab for 30 days before returning to Earth. Shenzhou-11 was launched on Monday morning from northwest China's Gobi Desert. It approached Tiangong-2 and automatically docked with the space lab at 3:31 a.m. Wednesday. Related: Shenzhou-11 spacecraft docks with Tiangong-2 space lab BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft successfully completed its automated docking with the orbiting Tiangong-2 space lab at 3:31 a.m. Wednesday Beijing Time, according to Beijing Aerospace Control Center (BACC). CANBERRA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- More than 18,000 Australians have been investigated for voting twice or more at the nation's federal election held on July 2, 2016. The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) told a Senate estimates hearing Tuesday night that 18,343 Australians have formally been asked to explain why their names might have been "ticked off" twice, with 59 people asked to explain why it seems they voted three or more times. Australians who are convicted of voting more than once in the election face hefty fines of up to 7,500 U.S dollars, while some could face the prospect of jail for one year. Surprisingly, two Australians were marked off on 11 separate electoral roles and two were marked off five times, while four voters were ticked off four times and 51 Australians apparently voted on three different occasions. AEC Commissioner Tom Rogers told the Senate estimates hearing that New South Wales had the most number of multiple voters with 6,760, while Victoria and Queensland had 4,800 and 2,792 cases respectively. The New South Wale figure almost eclipsed the total from the 2013 election, in which 7,743 cases were referred to federal police. Tellingly, just 65 of those were investigated further, while no convictions came of the investigations. Rogers said a select few voters who had been marked off two or more times at the past two elections had been sent unique warning letters reminding them of their obligations on election days. "We wrote to a select group of people we thought may be at risk of not understanding their obligations under the Electoral Act," he told the Senate estimates hearing. "We've never done that before. That was an attempt to demonstrate the seriousness with which we treat this particular issue." Rogers said the issue of multiple voters at this year's federal election was treated very seriously, considering some crucial swing seats were decided by less than 1,000 votes. TOKYO, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- An aide to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who also serves as an upper house member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party visited the notorious Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Wednesday. Seiichi Eto's visit is the latest following some of Abe's Cabinet ministers and a contingent of more than 80 lawmakers from different parties paying homage at the contentious shrine. Abe himself made a ritual offering to Yasukuni Shrine on Monday to observe the spring autumn festival. Visits and offerings made at the shrine during its festivals by politicians, however, draw the ire of Japan's neighbors as the Yasukuni Shrine stands as a testament to Japan's past militarism and the barbaric acts that the Imperial Japanese Army committed on innocent civilians during their brutal wartime occupation of many parts of Asia. The Yasukuni Shrine honors 14 Class-A convicted war criminals among 2.5 million Japanese war dead from the World War II. China on Monday called on Japan to face up to and reflect upon its past aggressions, after Abe sent a ritual offering to the Yasukuni Shrine. "We firmly opposes the wrong-doings of Japanese politicians," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a daily press briefing, stating that Japan should make a clear break with its militarist past so as to win trust from its Asian neighbors and the international community. VIENNA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- While the incidence of pancreatic cancer is increasing, awareness of the disease remains relatively low, experts said at a conference on gastroenterology in Vienna on Tuesday. According to an Austria Press Agency report, the United European Gastroenterology (UEG) Week conference noted that about 100,000 people in Europe are expected to have pancreatic cancer in the coming year, overtaking the population with breast cancer, which is estimated to stand around 90,000. However, the outlook for pancreatic cancer patients has not improved noticeably. Femme Harinck from the Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands said over 80 percent of cases are only identified when the cancer is in its advanced stage as symptoms often appear late. According to Harinck, the five-year survival rate for this cancer between 2008 and 2012 was only 7 percent, far less than the 70 percent of colon cancer. Nuria Malats from the Spanish National Cancer Research Center holds a similar view. She said the incidence of pancreatic cancer in the United States is expected to increase from 40 per 100,000 people in 2010 to 70 per 100,000 people by 2030. And the mortality rate from the cancer is only second to lung cancer. Both of the two cancers are nowadays among the most difficult to treat. Malats said the exact causes of pancreatic cancer are still not clear, though chronic local inflammations appear to lead to higher risk. Gum inflammations and resulting bacteria also appear to play a role, along with a mix of diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure and smoking. The expert said there are still no adequate screening programs on the cancer, and a family history of the cancer only proves to be an adequate indicator of potential risk in a small number of cases. BRASILIA, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Brazil has launched an educational campaign to halve food waste by 2030, local news agency Agencia Brasil (EBC) reported on Tuesday. With a slogan translated as "No Waste," the campaign was launched on World Food Day on Sunday. It aims to educate people about the negative consequences of food waste on the environment, household finance and food security, via channels including digital media and social networks. Citing figures from the World Resources Institute (WRI), the EBC report says Brazil is among the world's top 10 food wasters with some 41,000 tons of food dumped each year. Mauricio Lopes, CEO of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA), which launched the campaign in partnership with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), told the agency, "avoiding waste at the consumption stage saves money and invaluable natural resources, and helps address food insecurity." According to the FAO, as much as one-third of food produced worldwide gets lost or wasted in production and consumption systems, which is about 1.3 billion tons of food a year. It's a huge loss in a world full of hunger, volatile food prices and social unrest. WELLINGTON, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand Police on Wednesday confirmed they had found the first remains of a young Canadian tourist whose vehicle was swept off a road by a landslide three years ago. Canadian couple Connor Hayes, 25, and Joanna Lam, 24, died in September 2013 when a large slip swept their campervan off a road near Haast Pass, on the west of the South Island. Lam's body was located after an extensive search, but Hayes' body was never found. But in August, a hunter located a human thigh bone at the confluence of the Haast and Burke Rivers and DNA analysis confirmed it came from Hayes, Inspector Mel Aitken said in a statement. On Sunday, another search was carried out on the Haast River and searchers recovered a number of items of interest from the riverbed, but police were yet to confirm whether they belonged to Hayes. Anything, including bones, which was believed to belong to Hayes, would be returned to his family in Canada, said Aitken. CANBERRA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Radical anti-Islam groups are beginning to pose a significant threat to Australia's national security, the country's head of intelligence said overnight. The Australian Security Intelligence Organization's (ASIO) director general, Duncan Lewis said the fast rise of the radical far-right group Reclaim Australia was of particular interest to the nation's top security agencies. Lewis said following the first arrest of one of the group's members under new far-right counter-terror laws earlier this year, ASIO has started to monitor the activity of the anti-Islam group more closely. "(If) there is a possibility of violence, or there is indeed violence being offered, that is of interest to us," Lewis told a Senate committee overnight. Reclaim Australia is a self-described patriot group which has been involved in a number of violent protests about the construction of Mosques in Australia, as well as the rise of Muslim immigration. When asked if the group posed any threat to Australian citizens, Lewis said: "Yes it is, but I wouldn't describe it as going up in any vertical way. It's come off a low base and it's now more present than it was." Meanwhile Lewis added that ASIO was investigating up to 200 people who were actively supporting terror groups such as Islamic State (IS). He said there were about 110 Australians also currently fighting for IS in Iraq and Syria. "The threat of terrorism in Australia is real and present in our community," he said. "It requires vigilance by both the Australian community and abroad, and governments of all levels to continue to combat it." BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- A TV series adaption of "Red Star Over China" written by American journalist Edgar Snow, will be screened in China on Saturday. "Red Star Over China," written in 1937, was one of the most influential books with a western understanding and sympathy for the Communist Party of China (CPC) in the 1930s. The 30-episode TV series will be faithful to the original book, extensively depicting military and political developments in China, especially Chinese bravery in fighting against Japanese invaders. The first western journalist to meet Chairman Mao and other CPC leaders, Edgar Snow recorded the first authorized account of Mao's life, as well as the history of the Long March and the people responsible for the Chinese revolution that made China what it is today. RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Brazilian President Michel Temer played down on Tuesday the corruption charges against several of his cabinet members. The president, who is now on a three-day visit to Japan through Thursday, said that the charges against his ministers are minor, describing them as "simply allegations." He said the government will wait and see whether the cases against his ministers move forward to a stage where it need to take action. "These things need to be consolidated. If they do consolidate, then the government will see what it will do," said Temer. So far, several high-profile names of the Temer administration have been involved into the Federal Police's Carwash Operation, which is investigating corruption conducts in state-run energy giant Petrobras and other government contracts. Temer himself has also been mentioned by some accused of being bribe takers. Just in the past days, two more charges were added during the testimonies of some defendants, who reportedly turned in evidence to the State. Moreira Franco, executive secretary of the Investment Partnerships Program, allegedly took 3 million reals (941,600 U.S. dollars) in bribes in 2014. Sports Minister Eduardo Picciani was accused of money laundering through his family's company engaged in the sale of overpriced cattle. WASHINGTON, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- No charges would be filed against two police officers who fired 56 unanswered rounds and killed an armed father and son in East Baltimore earlier this year, prosecutors said on Tuesday. "We have concluded that there is no legal basis to charge these officers, who appear to have prevented even further violence on the streets of Baltimore," prosecutors wrote in an email to the Baltimore Sun newspaper. The shooting occurred at the end of March when the two policemen, who were on unmarked patrol with another police officer, saw Matthew V. Wood, 43, and Kimani Johnson, 18, drive into the block near a playground and emerge from a vehicle with weapons. The police said they believed the father and son were poised to shoot a group of people across the street, though after the gunfire police determined the dual had not fired any shots. The third officer at the scene didn't fire his weapons. Tawanda Johnson, Kimani's mother, said in a phone interview with the newspaper on Tuesday that she had not been told that prosecutors had declined to charge the officers and felt upset with the decision and an overall lack of information provided about the case. "They wouldn't shoot a stray dog 56 times," she said. "They shot my son as if he meant nothing." An autopsy showed Johnson was shot 12 times, in his body, arms, legs and head. Wood was struck eight times, also in the body, arms, legs and head. The third officer who did not fire, Reginald Jones, told police investigators that the officers had been in the area due to violence and drug complaints when they saw Wood open the driver's side door and emerge with a rifle in his lap. But Kimani's mother argued that the fact that Jones did not fire "says to me his life was not in jeopardy". "Something is fishy. It's been fishy from day one." she lamented. The police report said there were "several" CCTV cameras in the surrounding area but they captured "nothing of evidentiary value." The dead father was found with an assault rifle loaded with 25 rounds, while Johnson had a 9 mm Ruger handgun loaded with seven rounds, according to the police, adding that both of them had gun charges on their record. The two police officers have already returned to full duty, though an internal review of the case is still pending, said the Baltimore Sun report. One of them, Sgt. Joseph Wiczulis, has been involved in two previous fatal shootings since 2010, including an incident in which he shot a man who had shot two officers. In 2013, he also shot and killed a 25-year-old man with a handgun. He was also cleared of criminal wrongdoing in both cases. Despite the increased tensions between police and black communities across the country in recent years, charges against officers remain rare, with prosecutors affirming police actions, said the report. Baltimore City officers so far have shot nine people this year, killing four of them. Six cases remain under review by the Baltimore State's Attorney's Office. Veng Sakhon (R), Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery, shakes hands with Shen Chen (L), chairman of Tian Rui (Cambodia) Agricultural Cooperation Special Economic Zone, during a signing ceremony in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Oct. 19, 2016. Cambodia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Agricultural Development with a Chinese company from east China's Shandong province on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Sovannara) PHNOM PENH, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Agricultural Development with a Chinese company from east China's Shandong province on Wednesday. The deal was inked between Veng Sakhon, Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery, and Shen Chen, chairman of Tian Rui (Cambodia) Agricultural Cooperation Special Economic Zone. Shen said the company has planned to invest about 2 billion U.S. dollars in developing a 300-hectare Special Economic Zone in western Kampong Speu province, in which storage facilities, packaging factories, and processing factories for agricultural products will be built. "Under the MoU, the company will update the ministry about the types of agricultural products that are in high demand in Chinese market, so the ministry can advise farmers to grow those kinds of crops and sell them to our company," he told reporters after the signing ceremony. He said the firm would also cooperate with the ministry to establish an Agricultural Research and Development Center and a Center for Sanitary and Phytosanitary Control. Shen added that the company would try to attract more Chinese enterprises to invest in agricultural processing factories in its special economic zone. Meanwhile, Veng Sakhon said the cooperation between the ministry and the company would contribute to developing Cambodian agriculture under the framework of the China-proposed Belt and Road initiative. "The company will also help boost the exports of Cambodian agricultural products to international markets, particularly Chinese market," he said. European Union(EU) Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom, Chinese Vice Premier Ma Kai, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen (from L to R) pose for photos following the sixth China-EU High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue at European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Oct. 18, 2016. The sixth China-EU High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue was co-chaired by Chinese Vice Premier Ma Kai and European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen. (Xinhua/Ye Pingfan) BRUSSELS, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- China and the European Union (EU) on Tuesday hailed the outcomes of a high-level trade dialogue in Brussels. The sixth China-EU High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue was co-chaired by Chinese Vice Premier Ma Kai and European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen. Ma said the dialogue, since inception nine years ago, has played an important role in promoting bilateral economic and trade cooperation. The sixth dialogue held on Tuesday deepens mutual trust, promotes pragmatic cooperation, and actively implements the agreements reached during the 18th China-EU summit and the G20 Hangzhou Summit, Ma said. Under the theme "strengthening policy coordination, promoting sustainable growth," the sixth dialogue highlighted topics on macro-policy coordination, the Belt and Road Initiative and the China-EU connectivity on development strategy. At the Dialogue, China and the EU reached consensus on cooperation on digital economy, third-party market and intellectual property rights. China and the EU should further coordinate on macro-policies and join hands in developing their economies, Ma said, adding that they should also enhance cooperative work on trade and investment. The Chinese official also proposed the two sides accelerate the connectivity of development strategies, so as to push for economic and trade cooperation in various fields. China and the EU should embrace the New Industrial Revolution for innovation and sustainable growth, Ma noted. Ma pointed out that as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the EU should fully fulfill its obligations under Article 15 of the Protocol on China's accession to the WTO. Article 15 requires WTO members to stop using an alternative calculation method in anti-dumping investigations against China after Dec. 11 this year. Stressing that the EU pays high attention to the trade dialogue with China, Katainen said the bloc is willing to strengthen coordination on macro-policies with Beijing and will make efforts to fulfill the obligations aforementioned. Ma also met with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Tuesday. PHNOM PENH, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Twenty-five Cambodia's nearly-extinct Royal Turtles have settled into their new home at the Angkor Center for Conservation of Biodiversity (ACCB) in northwestern Siem Reap province, a conservationist group said Wednesday. The move created a second captive population after 206 turtles were moved to the Koh Kong Reptile Conservation Center in southwestern Koh Kong province last month, said a joint statement released by Cambodia's Fisheries Administration (FiA), Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and ACCB. The Royal Turtle, also known as Southern River Terrapin (Batagur affinis), is one of the world's most endangered freshwater turtles and is listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List as Critically Endangered. It has been designated as Cambodia's national reptile by a royal decree in 2005. "When managing captive populations of very rare animals, it is international best practice to not keep all individuals in one location. So-called 'assurance colonies' help manage the risks of hazards such as natural disasters, major disease outbreaks or other unforeseen incidents, so if such a catastrophe happens the entire population is not affected," said Ouk Vibol, director of Fisheries Conservation Department at the FiA. Situated near the famous temples of Angkor Wat, ACCB was the first nature conservation and endangered wildlife rescue and breeding center in Cambodia. "Since arriving, the Royal Turtles have adapted very well to the new environment and can be regularly seen at the surface," said Michael Meyerhoff, ACCB project manager. "Due to the young age of the females, breeding is still not likely for the next couple of years." He said ACCB's veterinarian and animal keeping staff would continue to monitor their well-being and follow up on regular health-checks of those turtles. The turtle was believed extinct in Cambodia until 2000 when a small population was re-discovered by FiA and WCS in the Sre Ambel River in Koh Kong province, said the joint statement, adding that the reptile is now facing threats to its very survival due to habitat loss caused by increased sand dredging and illegal clearance of flooded forest. "Protecting natural habitat and wild population is the most urgent priority to save the Royal Turtle from extinction," said Ross Sinclair, director of WCS-Cambodia Program. BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Brunei has seen a drop in the overall tourists to the country by air in the second quarter of 2016, while the number of tourists from China and Japan has increased, according to the latest official statistics. The Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism said in a statement late on Tuesday that air arrivals for the second quarter of 2016 had dropped by six percent, reaching 52,292 arrivals compared to 55,647 arrivals in the same period of the previous year. However, the ministry said the second quarter 2016 has continued to show positive growth from the Far East region. Arrivals through the Brunei International Airport from the Far East rose by 8.9 percent, with most visitors coming from China and Japan. "The increase can be attributed to the ease of visa requirements for the visitors from China and high Japanese currency rate which has influenced travel demand from Japan for the month of April to June 2016," said the ministry. The lower number of air arrivals was due to declining trend in travel demand, high competitiveness from other countries within the region and economic slowdown in main source markets like Australia and New Zealand, Europe and ASEAN, according to the statement. The top four countries for tourist arrivals in the second quarter 2016 were Malaysia due to its easy air accessibility and proximity with 25 percent, followed by China at 18.3 percent, Indonesia at 9.5 percent and the Philippines at 8.7 percent. More than 40 percent of tourists visited Brunei for leisure and holiday. About 18.4 percent of tourists travelled for business, 11.6 percent visited friends and relatives and 11 percent were in transit. Only 2.6 percent of visitors arrived for government purposes and 0.8 percent went to exhibitions. China and Malaysia remain the main contributors for the leisure and holiday market at 57.3 percent with each accounting for 39.1 percent and 18.2 percent, respectively. TAIPEI, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The impact of Typhoon Haima has been downgraded as it moves southward, but heavy rainfall is likely to hit eastern Taiwan on Thursday and Friday, the local meteorological authority said Wednesday. As of Wednesday morning, Haima was 990 kilometers east-southeast of Eluanbi on Taiwan's southernmost tip, moving at 27 kilometers per hour in a west-northwesterly direction, and will arrive at Luzon Island in the Philippines on Wednesday night, according to the island's meteorological bureau. There is a lowered possibility of a sea warning for Typhoon Haima since it is moving southward and will not hit the island directly, the bureau said. However, moisture carried by Haima's peripheral currents could gradually reach the island and bring heavy rainfall to eastern regions and the Hengchun Peninsula in the south. The bureau also warned of offshore waves along the island's coast and asked residents to take precautions accordingly. MOSCOW, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan exchanged views on Syria over the phone Tuesday evening, said the Kremlin. "The Russian side stressed the importance of efficient separation of 'moderate' opposition groups from militants of Jabhat al-Nusra (in Syria) and other terrorist groups affiliated with it," it said. The two presidents also discussed further development of bilateral cooperation in the political, trade-and-economic and other areas, following the top-level Russian-Turkish talks in Istanbul on Oct. 10. The two sides "agreed to continue contacts on bilateral and regional problems at various levels," the Kremlin said. TEHRAN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iran welcomed a 72-hour ceasefire in Yemen and asked all sides to respect the truce, Tasnim news agency reported on Wednesday. In a statement, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi said Yemen is suffering from a very disastrous humanitarian situation; hence all parties engaged in the Yemeni conflict, particularly the Saudi-led coalition, should respect the ceasefire. He also expressed the hope that warring parties would allow the immediate dispatch of humanitarian aid to the oppressed Yemeni civilians and the wounded people, including those injured in a recent bloody airstrike against a funeral hall in the capital of Sanaa. On Monday, the United Nations special envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, announced the three-day ceasefire between the Saudi-led coalition and the Yemen's dominant Shiite Houthi group and its ally of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh's party, The ceasefire will take effect on Wednesday. The 19-month civil war have killed over 10,000 people, mostly civilians, and pushed the country's 26 million people to near famine. NEW DELHI, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Indian police have arrested four people, including a doctor over a deadly hospital fire in India's eastern state of Odisha, officials said Wednesday. On Monday evening a fire inside a hospital in Bhubaneswar city killed 22 and left over 100 injured. "Police have arrested four hospital staff on charges of negligence in conduct and safety. These include hospital medical superintendent, fire safety officer and two electrical division workers," a senior official in Bhubaneswar said. "Government has filed two criminal cases alleging negligence in conduct and safety against the hospital and initiated administrative inquiries into the mishap." The fire began in the intensive care unit of the privately-run hospital and swept all the four floors of the building. Though authorities are investigating the cause of fire, however preliminary reports suggest fire triggered from an electrical short circuit. Police officials said the arrested have been charged with "homicide not amounting to murder" and "negligence". Reports said of the injured who suffered burns in the fire, the condition of some was stated to be critical. Odisha's rights panel -- Odisha Human Rights Commission has taken suo motu cognizance of the fire and issued notices to the government over the issue. Chances of fire in India are usually high as people usually ignore safety standards vis-a-vis fire and store fuel and combustible materials in a haphazard manner. Yemeni children fill empty jerrycans with water from a donated source amid ongoing widespread disruption of water supplies in an impoverished coastal village on the outskirts of the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah, on October 18, 2016. (Xinhua/AFP Photo) TEHRAN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iran welcomed a 72-hour ceasefire in Yemen and asked all sides to respect the truce, Tasnim news agency reported on Wednesday. In a statement, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi said Yemen is suffering from a very disastrous humanitarian situation; hence all parties engaged in the Yemeni conflict, particularly the Saudi-led coalition, should respect the ceasefire. He also expressed the hope that warring parties would allow the immediate dispatch of humanitarian aid to the oppressed Yemeni civilians and the wounded people, including those injured in a recent bloody airstrike against a funeral hall in the capital of Sanaa. On Monday, the United Nations special envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, announced the three-day ceasefire between the Saudi-led coalition and the Yemen's dominant Shiite Houthi group and its ally of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh's party, The ceasefire will take effect on Wednesday. The 19-month civil war have killed over 10,000 people, mostly civilians, and pushed the country's 26 million people to near famine. SYDNEY, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Australia's most loved breakfast cereal "Weet-Bix" will soon be known as "Nutri-Brex" to its China-based consumer by mid-November in hopes of enticing more consumers towards the iconic Aussie brand. A spokesperson for Sanitarium Health & Wellbeing, an Australian-owned health food company who owns the cereal brand told Xinhua on Wednesday that name changed was necessary to help Chinese consumers differentiate between an existing China-based cereal brand that had the same name sounding as "Weet-Bix" in the country. "We want to build a strong and distinctive brand for our Chinese consumers and that can be done by recognising our brand better," the spokesperson said, in reference to the name change. While the size of the Chinese breakfast cereal market is difficult to quantify, Sanitarium said its 2015/16 financial figures for its breakfast cereal sales rose by approximately 50 percent, and conservatively forecasts similar growth in the next financial period. At present, current data by Sanitarium suggests that about 15 percent of Chinese households make a regular breakfast cereal purchase, compared to 90 percent in Australia. However, the trend in China for Western-style breakfast cereals is growing from international brands with a strong focus on health and food safety. This discovery was what lead Sanitarium to recently open an office in Shanghai after exporting the cereal to China for the last eight years. The new re-branding exercises is expected to allow Sanitarium to seize on an opportunity to build a strong, distinctive brand for the largest emerging ready-to-eat cereal market in the world, while complying with a new trademark restrictions that are now coming into place. "Different to the iconic Weet-Bix product in name only, Nutri-Brex is made in the same factories, using the same ingredients and the same traditional recipe that Sanitarium has used for almost 90 years,' Todd Saunders, General Manager, Sanitarium Health & Wellbeing Australia said in a statement on Tuesday. The company said it's the same name it uses for Weet-Bix in the UK, which is its second biggest export market. "Despite the recent success we've enjoyed, it is still relatively early days for Sanitarium in China," Saunders said. In May this year, a marketing exercise undertaken by the company to place the hugely popular Weet-Bix product on a Chinese TV soap, Ode to Joy had paid off exponentially. In the immediate aftermath, sales for the cereal brand in mainland China had soared, exceeding forecast expectations, the company said. "That's why the timing to change brand names while Chinese consumer awareness of Weet-Bix is at its highest actually works," Saunders said. The recent name change of the product represents Sanitarium's biggest push into China to date, will be supported by a digitally-focused marketing campaign which also aims to raise awareness among Chinese consumers of Sanitarium. "Nutri-Brex is expected" to be sold in over 1,500 stores nationwide in China and multiple e-commerce channels from mid-November. Currently online sales, predominantly through Sanitarium's flagship store on Alibaba's TMall platform, represent more than half of all sales of Sanitarium product in China. Chinese Vice Premier Ma Kai (L) meets with Kris Peeters, Belgian deputy prime minister and minister of employment, economy and consumer affairs, in charge of foreign trade, in Brussels, Belgium, Oct. 18, 2016. (Xinhua/Ye Pingfan) BRUSSELS, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- China and Belgium have agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation and elevate their relations to a new high. The pledge was made on Tuesday during visiting Chinese Vice Premier Ma Kai's meeting with Kris Peeters, Belgian deputy prime minister and minister of employment, economy and consumer affairs, in charge of foreign trade. Lauding the smooth development of bilateral ties in recent years, Ma said that the China-Belgium relationship is at its height and the momentum for further cooperation remains strong. The two countries decided to upgrade their relations to an all-round partnership of friendship and cooperation in 2014 Recalling Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Belgium in 2014 and Belgian King Philippe's visit to China in the following year, Ma said high-level interactions between the two nations are getting closer and political mutual trust is increasingly strengthened. "China values its ties with Belgium," Ma said, noting that China is actively preparing for the upcoming visit of Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel, which is expected to inject new impetus into China-Belgium relations. He added that China is willing to join hands with Belgium to deepen political mutual trust and cooperation in various fields, especially investment, finance, high-end industries, regional cooperation as well as small and medium-sized enterprises, in a bid to elevate bilateral ties to a new high. As to the problem of global steel overcapacity, Ma said that the fundamental settlement is to push for a strong, balanced, sustainable and inclusive growth of the world economy, which requires joint efforts from all countries, adding that China has shown strong determination by applying practical and effective measures to address the issue. In terms of Article 15 of the protocol on China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Chinese vice premier stressed that all WTO members should respect the rules and deliver on its obligations. Peeters said Belgium is looking forward to Prime Minister Michel's upcoming visit to China, expressing the hope that the cooperation with China on aerospace, finance, regional development, small and medium-sized enterprises as well as other areas would be further enhanced. Belgium welcomes Chinese enterprises to invest in Belgium and will create a friendly environment for that purpose, he added. Ma is in Brussels to co-chair the sixth China-EU High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue with European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen. Photo taken on Oct. 1, 2016 shows a container terminal in Lianyungang, east China's Jiangsu Province. China's gross domestic product expanded 6.7 percent year on year in the third quarter of 2016, stable from the second quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Wang Chun) By Xinhua writer Zhang Zhongkai BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's economy showed signs of stabilizing as GDP growth remained at 6.7 percent in the third quarter, although the government faces the challenges of balancing debt control and economic growth. Official figures released on Wednesday kept China on track to meet the government's target of 6.5 to 7 percent growth for the year. The economy expanded 6.9 percent in 2015, the slowest pace in a quarter of a century. GROWTH ON TRACK "The general performance was better than expected, and the national economy grew steadily with progress being made and quality improved," said Sheng Laiyuan, spokesperson with the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). As external demand remains soft, the stabilization in China's economy is largely propped up by improving domestic demand, especially in the property and automobile sectors. China's industrial output growth slowed to 6.1 percent year on year in September, down from 6.3 percent in August, as weak global demand weighed on the world's largest trader in goods. Fixed-asset investment rose 8.2 percent in the first nine months of the year, while retail sales grew 10.7 percent year on year last month, marking a slight acceleration from August. Private investment rebounded after a lengthy poor streak while property investment continued to accelerate in September. As evidence that a rebalancing of China's economy from being investment-led to consumption-driven is well underway, consumption contributed to 71 percent of economic growth, up 13.3 percent year on year, while the tertiary sector grew 7.6 percent year on year in added value, the fastest among all sectors. Meanwhile, China's producer price deflation disappeared in September for the first time since early 2012, thanks to China's efforts to cut excess capacity and promote supply-side structural reforms, especially in steel and coal, Sheng said. The NBS said in a statement that the economy was in a critical period of transformation and upgrading, with old drivers of growth to be replaced by new ones, with many uncertain factors in the economy remaining, and that the foundations for sustained growth were not solid. RISKS UNDER CONTROL With GDP growth on track, the government has signaled a shift in policy focus away from stimulus and toward containing financial risks caused by easy credit. China's new lending boomed again in September with loans to households continuing to rapidly increase, official data showed Tuesday. This pointed to a positive sign for property and auto demand but added concerns that consumers were following the same high-leverage path as corporates. To deleverage the economy, the government rolled out a debt-for-equity swap program in early October to bring down the corporate leverage ratio, while over a dozen Chinese cities have introduced measures to cool overheated markets, which led to marked drops in sales. These steps gave rise to concerns whether the government could balance reducing debt with sustaining growth, as less leverage almost always means short-term slower economic activity. The property market restrictions are timely and effective and aim to stem speculative purchases while supporting real demand, with limited impact on the economy, Sheng said. This round of property tightening will unlikely drag down the headline growth as sharply as from 2010 onwards, as housing investment has remained lukewarm in the past few quarters despite soaring property prices, Zhou Hao, Senior EM Economist Asia with Commerzbank, said in a research note. While a drop in housing sales will add downward pressure on the economy, we do not really foresee a risk of sharp investment slowdown, and in the coming quarter China's monetary policy will be less aggressive than estimated, Zhou added. Expansionary fiscal policy is expected to be the major tools for the government to sustain economic growth, according to analyst estimates. There might be continued policy support mainly in the form of infrastructure and public private partnership project approvals, said Tom Rafferty, Asia Economist with the Intelligence Unit with the Economist. Related: China's GDP up 6.7 pct in first 3 quarters China's fixed-asset investment edges up China Jan-Sept retail sales growth accelerates to 10.4 pct China's industrial output expands 6 pct in Jan.-Sept. China's property investment growth further accelerates China's fiscal revenue rises 4.9 pct in September China Focus: China's new loans spike on housing, investment China's ODI surges 53.7 pct in first 9 months Veng Sakhon (R, front), Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery, shakes hands with Shen Chen (L, front), chairman of Tian Rui (Cambodia) Agricultural Cooperation Special Economic Zone, during a signing ceremony in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Sovannara) PHNOM PENH, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Agricultural Development with a Chinese company from east China's Shandong province on Wednesday. The deal was inked between Veng Sakhon, Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery, and Shen Chen, chairman of Tian Rui (Cambodia) Agricultural Cooperation Special Economic Zone. Shen said the company has planned to invest about 2 billion U.S. dollars in developing a 300-hectare Special Economic Zone in western Kampong Speu province, in which storage facilities, packaging factories, and processing factories for agricultural products will be built. "Under the MoU, the company will update the ministry about the types of agricultural products that are in high demand in Chinese market, so the ministry can advise farmers to grow those kinds of crops and sell them to our company," he told reporters after the signing ceremony. He said the firm would also cooperate with the ministry to establish an Agricultural Research and Development Center and a Center for Sanitary and Phytosanitary Control. Shen added that the company would try to attract more Chinese enterprises to invest in agricultural processing factories in its special economic zone. Meanwhile, Veng Sakhon said the cooperation between the ministry and the company would contribute to developing Cambodian agriculture under the framework of the China-proposed Belt and Road initiative. "The company will also help boost the exports of Cambodian agricultural products to international markets, particularly Chinese market," he said. WELLINGTON, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The exports of New Zealand's 200 largest high-tech firms jumped by 13.5 percent to almost 7 billion NZ dollars (5.04 billion U.S. dollars) in the last financial year, Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce said Wednesday. Meanwhile, their combined annual revenues were up 12 percent to 9.4 billion NZ dollars (6.77 billion U.S. dollars, Joyce said in a statement citing the annual Technology Investment Network TIN 100 report released Wednesday. The total number of employees was up 7.9 percent, with nearly 3,000 new jobs created, meaning the top 200 companies now employed almost 40,000 people, said Joyce. Revenue grew across all three main tech sectors -- high-tech manufacturing, ICT and biotech -- and across all twelve secondary sectors. Healthcare was the largest secondary sector with annual revenue of 1.69 billion NZ dollars (1.21 billion U.S. dollars), while the digital media and financial services technology sectors, with a total of 23 companies, each grew by over 20 percent. "It's particularly good to see that research and development across the TIN companies grew by a record 16 percent in the last year to 827 million NZ dollars (595.77 million U.S. dollars)," Joyce said. "This is a real investment in the future of these companies, and will help lift overall the investment levels of New Zealand companies in research and development." Turkish riot police clash with pro-Kurdish activists as they gather to commemorate last year's deadly suicide bombing near the main train station in Ankara on October 10, 2016. (Xinhua/AFP Photo) ANKARA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Turkish police shot dead early Wednesday a suspected Islamic State (IS) militant who was believed to be planning a suicide bomb attack in the capital Ankara, Dogan News Agency reported. A counter-terror squad had tracked the suspect to the ninth floor of a building on the outskirts of Ankara, where he was killed in a gunfight after opening fire in response to a police call to surrender on Wednesday. Police found explosive materials at the scene and Gov. Ercan Topaca told reporters there were suspicions that the suspect planned to target public ceremonies in the capital. It said the man was registered in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir and was born in 1992. Ankara governor's office issued warning on Monday of potentially imminent terrorist attacks by IS as authorities canceled mass protests in the city until Nov. 30. Meanwhile, 25 suspected IS terrorists were detained in counter-terror operation by police in 25 locations in Diyarbakir province at early hours on Wednesday. Among the detained 20 terrorists, there were some planning to carry out bomb attacks, police told Turkish Daily Sabah. Turkey's National Intelligence Agency issued warnings on Tuesday against imminent attacks by the IS group in five Turkish provinces, including Istanbul, Ankara, the southeastern province of Gaziantep, the southern province of Antalya and the western province of Izmir. Huawei Technologies Kenya Chief Executive Officer Dean Yu (R) congratulates Maria Nyaga, a student of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, after being presented with an air ticket during a joint flag off session at the ICT Authority offices in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, Oct. 13, 2016. Nine top students drawn from local universities in Kenya are set to enjoy a two-week fellowship and training programme in advanced Information Technology systems at the Huawei Global Headquarters in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. (Xinhua/Charles Onyango) NAIROBI, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese technology giant Huawei is providing high-end information and communications technology (ICT) training for Kenyan youth. By 2017, Huawei aims to support training of 100 Kenyan youth in high end ICT courses by 2017, says the CEO of Huawei in Kenya, Dean Yu. Yu said provision of high end ICT skills to the youth will boost their career prospects. Nine Kenyan university students departed for China last week to participate in a two-week internship program sponsored by technology giant Huawei. "The two weeks spent in China is an opportunity for these top students to study and gain work experience as well as exposure required to fit in a globalized business environment," he said. The Principal Secretary in the Ministry of ICT, Victor Kyalo, hailed the partnership with Huawei to facilitate skills transfer for the youth. "Provision of ICT skills to the young generation is in line with Kenya's digital transformation agenda. We look forward to a robust partnership with Huawei to bridge skills gap in the ICT sector," Kyalo said. The nine students who will participate in the 2016 Huawei Seeds for the Future Internship program are drawn from leading Kenyan universities. Victor Kyalo (2nd L, back), Principal Secretary at the Ministry of Information, Communication Technology (ICT) and Huawei Technologies Kenya Chief Executive Officer Dean Yu (2nd R, back) pose for a group photo with students displaying their air-tickets during a joint flag off session at the ICT Authority offices in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, Oct. 13, 2016. Nine top students drawn from local universities in Kenya are set to enjoy a two-week fellowship and training programme in advanced Information Technology systems at the Huawei Global Headquarters in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. (Xinhua/Charles Onyango) Kyalo noted that since its launch in 2014, Huawei Seeds for the Future program has provided a platform for Kenyan youth to hone their skills in ICT. "We require a critical pool of highly skilled youth to support implementation of a national ICT master-plan. Their input in the rolling out of broadband infrastructure in rural areas is critical," said Kyalo. The two-week intensive training program for Kenyan students will be conducted at the global headquarters of Huawei in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. After completing the two-week study tour in China, the students will also benefit from a two-month internship at Huawei offices in Kenya. Huawei has partnered with Kenya's ICT authority to implement its flagship Seeds for the Future Program that aims to develop local ICT talent through training, mentorship and technology transfer. Policemen scuffle with activists during a violent dispersal of a protest rally in front of the U.S. Embassy in Manila, the Philippines , Oct. 19, 2016. Thousands of Moro and indigenous people trooped to the U.S. Embassy to support the President Rodrigo Duterte's "independent foreign policy" and call for the abolition of the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), and the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) between the Philippines and the United States . (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali) MANILA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of people took part in a protest rally in front of the U.S. Embassy here in Manila on Wednesday. The protesters denounced the continued foreign domination of the country. Police used tear gas and truncheons to disperse the crowd. Renato Reyes, a protest leader, said the rally turned violent when a police car reportedly rammed into the protesters, leaving several injured. At least 21 protesters were arrested and brought to a police station after the dispersal, according to the protest leader. The Iraqi army and the Kurdish Peshmerga forces launch military operations in Khazar village, 35 kilometers south of Mosul, Iraq, on Oct. 18, 2016. Iraqi security forces on Tuesday recaptured more villages from the Islamic State (IS) militants, as part of a major offensive aimed at liberating the city of Mosul, the last major IS stronghold in Iraq, a security source said. (Xinhua/Jaser Jawad) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi security forces on Monday launched a major offensive aimed at liberating the city of Mosul, the last major stronghold of Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq. Mosul, which is located some 400 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, has been under the group's control since June 2014, when Iraqi government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to take control of parts of Iraq's northern and western regions. The joint forces of the Iraqi army, Peshmerga forces and allied paramilitary Sunni and Shiite Hashd Shaabi units, backed by the international and Iraqi air cover, have successfully recaptured nine villages from IS militants. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced the offensive early Monday, saying that "the time of victory has come, and the moment of the great victory is approaching." The offensive was supported by the United States with more than 100 U.S. troops embedded in Iraqi and Kurdish forces to provide artillery support, intelligence, logistics and other support, according to the U.S. Defense Ministry. "This will be a key milestone in what I committed to doing when IS first emerged, which is we were going to roll them back and we are going to ultimately drive them out of population centers and we will destroy them and defeat them," said the U.S. President Barack Obama. Turkey, which has been locked in a row with Iraq about the presence of its troops at the Bashiqa camp in northern Iraq, joined airstrikes by the U.S.-led coalition during the operation. "Turkey has a 350-kilometer border with Iraq, and therefore cannot be expected to remain impartial to developments right across the border," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. China and Iran also voiced their support for the Iraqi operation. "China supports the Iraqi government's efforts to maintain national stability and fight terrorism. China hopes for national security and stability in Iraq at an early date," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a regular news briefing. "We will stand by the Iraqi government and nation until Iraq's full liberation (from terrorists) and the establishment of stability in the country," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said. While Iraqi forces are moving gradually to encircle Mosul, humanitarian concerns arises as one million people may be forced to flee the terrorist group's last stronghold because of fighting. "I am deeply concerned about the rapidly escalating humanitarian crisis in Mosul, Iraq, and the heightened threat to the health and lives of pregnant women who may be cut off from life-saving emergency obstetric care," Babatunde Osotimehin, the UN under-secretary-general and executive director of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), said in a statement. Among the 200,000 people likely to be displaced during the initial weeks of military operations in Mosul, an estimated 46,000 are women and girls of reproductive age, including about 8,000 who are pregnant or about to give birth, the statement said. To cope with the possible humantarian crisis, Australia announced 7.5-million-U.S.-dollars in humanitarian assistance to Iraq for the operation, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said on Tuesday. The New Zealand government also said it would provide 1 million NZ dollars (718,600 U.S. dollars) to help refuges from embattled Mosul. The United Nations, for its part, said that the liberation of Mosul from IS terrorists must be followed by a dialogue conducive to peace and stability throughout the country. Chinese President Xi Jinping (2nd L), Brazilian President Michel Temer (1st R), Russian President Vladimir Putin (2nd R), Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (C) and South African President Jacob Zuma pose for a group photo before an informal dinner of the eighth BRICS Summit in the western Indian state of Goa, Oct. 15, 2016. (Xinhua/Ding Lin) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The just-concluded BRICS summit has boosted confidence in global economic growth, said close watchers of the bloc, who also hailed China's contribution to the summit's success. Leaders of the BRICS nations -- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa -- met in the western Indian state of Goa on Oct. 15-16 for the group's 8th summit. Roberto Jaguaribe, president of the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency, said BRICS' impact on global governance should be viewed from two aspects. Firstly, BRICS members are all developing countries, and they represent a large number of developing countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America, Jaguaribe noted, stressing that strengthened cooperation among BRICS members will break new ground for South-South cooperation. Secondly, BRICS represents 40 percent of the world's population and 25 percent of global GDP, Jaguaribe said, adding the pledge by BRICS to promote balanced and inclusive growth would bring hope to countries hoping to boost their moribund economies. The bloc has pledged continued contributions to global institutions and growth, especially regarding the New Development Bank (NDB) and the initiation of the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA), which has has beefed up the global financial safety network. Koh Chin Yee, CEO of Longus Research Institute, Singapore, said that the NDB and the BRICS CRA could help BRICS members create a new model of cooperation among developing countries to better help cope with future financial turbulence. Koh also spoke highly of the growth momentum of BRICS, saying the bloc has already become a major force of global economic growth. Meanwhile, experts lauded China's active role in the summit, saying it helped deepen ties within the bloc and provided fresh impetus for cooperation among developing countries. Thanks to China, a key BRICS member, the bloc has transformed into an influential body on the global stage, said Li Zhuohui, an Indonesian political analyst. During the Hangzhou G20 summit in September, China committed itself to implementing innovation-driven development and economic reform, which has been welcomed by countries around the world including BRICS nations, Li added. A Kenyan economic analyst said Beijing's membership in globally influential bodies provides a chance to level the economic playfield in favor of poor countries. "Although China is the biggest economy in the world, it still regards itself and is indeed regarded by many countries as part of the developing countries," said Gerrishon Ikiara, International Economics lecturer at the University of Nairobi. "This explains why the 8th BRICS Summit in Goa stressed the need to create a fair, equitable and just international climate in which improvement in governance is given greater weight," said Ikiara. Ikiara said by using BRICS as a global platform, Beijing could better promote financing programs tailored for developing countries, especially African states, as part of the pledges made under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC). As the world's leading economy, China continues to play a key role in global bodies, including the G20, BRICS, FOCAC and the UN and its affiliates, said Ikiara. KATHMANDU, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Nepal and China on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on bilateral exchange of information on the areas of consumers' right protection. The move is aimed at helping to create competitive market environment and more particularly, accentuate the trade relations between two neighbourly countries, Nepal's Ministry of Supplies said, in a press release. Visiting Chinese Minister of State Administration for Industry and Commerce Zhang Mao and Nepal's Supply Minister Deepak Bohora signed the MoU at a function in Kathmandu. According to Nepal's Supply Ministry, the important areas of cooperation under the MoU, among others, include the mutual exchange of information on newly effected rules and regulations, hold consultation by high officials on the matters of common concerns routinely, information sharing on new practices of trade and commerce and periodic exchange visits by government officials, trade experts and consumers rights activists. According to the Nepalese officials, the MoU has been signed to protect the consumers' rights in the context that the consumers of two countries have been using goods of each other countries amid growing bilateral trade. In the last fiscal year 2015-16 that concluded in mid-July, China-Nepal bilateral trade stood at 1 billion U.S. dollars, according to Nepal's central bank. "Due to exchange of information in the field of consumers' interest protection and contact between the officials on regular basis, the MoU will have a far reaching consequence," said Zhang. Nepal's Supply Minister Bohora said that given the Chinese initiation on the connectivity, particularly through the construction of roads and railway networks along the border, the intensification of trade and investment between the two countries is imminent. "For this, we timely pay our attention in the enforcement of rules and regulations including institutional strengthening to take care of the consumers' interest protection," he said. NANJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Bai Yun, a former senior official in north China's Shanxi Province, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for accepting bribes amounting to 17.81 million yuan (2.64 million U.S. dollars) by a court in Jiangsu Province on Wednesday. Personal assets worth 2 million yuan belonging to Bai, former member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Shanxi Provincial Committee, were confiscated, according to the verdict by the Nantong City Intermediate People's Court. Her ill-gotten gains must be turned over to the state, the court ruled. The court found that Bai, also former head of the United Front Work Department of the provincial committee of the CPC, took advantage of her various positions to seek profits for others in corporate restructuring, contracting projects, and job promotions and transfers between 2004 and 2013. The court issued a lesser punishment as Bai admitted her crimes and voluntarily turned over her illicit gains. Bai was expelled from the CPC in February 2015 after an internal Party investigation found she had accepted bribes. Also on Wednesday, the court sentenced Nie Chunyu, former secretary-general of the provincial committee of the CPC, to 15 years in prison for accepting bribes. Chinese President Xi Jinping visits an exhibition on the high-technology achievements resulting from military and civilian cooperation in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Ju Peng) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping on Wednesday called for greater cooperation between the military and civilian sectors to contribute more to the dream of building strong armed forces. Xi made the remarks when visiting an exhibition on the high-technology achievements resulting from military and civilian cooperation. HAIKOU, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Typhoon Sarika has weakened and made landfall a second time in south China on Wednesday afternoon after it brought gales and downpours to Hainan Province. Sarika has weakened to become a severe tropical storm. It made landfall a second time in Dongxing City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region at 2:10 p.m. Wednesday, with maximum winds of 90 km per hour at its eye. Flights and high-speed trains have returned to normal in Hainan. Flights at Meilan International Airport in Haikou, capital of Hainan, began normal departures and landing on Tuesday evening. The eastern section of the island's loop high-speed rail line resumed operation on Wednesday afternoon. Security checks on the western section are under way. Ferry service across the Qiongzhou Strait between Hainan and Guangdong Province resumed on Wednesday afternoon. Sarika, the 21st typhoon of the year, made landfall in the east of Hainan on Tuesday morning, packing winds of up to 162 km per hour. Half a million people were evacuated in Hainan. The typhoon caused agricultural losses on the island. In Qionghai City, 62 villages were flooded and direct losses in its agricultural and fishery sectors reached 570 million yuan (85 million U.S. dollars). The storm also damaged 15,000 hectares of cropland in Changjiang Li Autonomous County. WINDHOEK, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of students at the University of Namibia main campus in Windhoek who owe the institution money in fees spent Tuesday night camping outside the administration block. The university barred indebted students from taking examinations that were scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday until they pay at least 50 percent or the full amount. This sparked a peaceful demonstration Monday that resulted in the postponement of the examinations, which were supposed to end on Nov. 11. With 12 campuses across the country and more than 19,000 students, the University of Namibia is the largest higher education institution in the country. It is not clear how many students still owe money to the university, though some media reports put the figure at 13, 000 out of the 19, 000 currently enrolled. The university's spokesperson John Haufiku said the students owe the institute 145 million Namibian dollars (10.5 million U.S. dollars). Demonstration also spread to the Hifikepunye Pohamba Campus at Ongwediva, about 700 kilometers north of Windhoek, where students tore examination timetables Tuesday demanding their peers be allowed to attend exams. Tuesday night's vigil came after efforts by the students representative council failed to convince the higher education minister Iita Kandjii-Murangi to allow those who still owe money to take exams. Kandjii-Murangi, who met the students' leaders and the management Tuesday, said those who owe money must just pay. In the past, the university would allow the students to sit for the exams and then withhold the results until the students settle their debts. Haufiku, however, said the university informed the students' council in July that this would not be the case this year. Part of the notice put up by the university management urged students to pay before Oct. 18 when the exams were due to start. The notice further said student fees form an integral part of any university's budget, as governments cannot subsidize tertiary institutions in full. It also said student debt increases pressure on the university to fulfill its services and commitment to staff and students. "The student debt of University of Namibia," the notice said, "has increased significantly during 2016 as a result of the decision to register students without applying the normal payment requirements at registration. As a result of this, the university has significant shortfalls in its 2016 budget." Haufiku said it costs the university 70,000 Namibian dollars to see one student through a year and that the government contributes 53, 000 Namibian dollars. In January, students at both the University of Namibia and Namibia University of Science and Technology demonstrated against registration fees, thereby forcing the institutions to allow them to enroll for free. President Hage Geingob then suggested that Namibia should move away from a study loan system, whereby students have to pay back loans, to a grant system that will enable students to, after graduation, immediately build up wealth portfolios instead of graduating into debt. Kandjii-Murangi, however, said that the government was not phasing out the loan arrangement and that there was nothing like free tertiary education. "It must be known that higher education is partly government's responsibility but it is also of the parents of those who access tertiary education. So both parties should meet each other halfway and assist those who qualify," Kandjii-Murangi said. SEOUL, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- A gunfight broke out on Wednesday evening near a tunnel in South Korea's capital city of Seoul, leaving one policeman injured, Yonhap news agency and local broadcaster YTN reported. The gun battle was triggered at about 6:30 p.m. local time (0930 GMT) as a crime suspect started to fire at policemen who were dispatched to the scene after receiving a report of assault. The gunfight happened in front of a tunnel in northern Seoul. The wanted person owned multiple improvised firearms when arrested at the scene. One policeman was wounded by the suspect's shot and transported to a nearby hospital. The man, estimated to be in his 40s to 50s, fired about 10 shots at the policemen, according to witnesses cited by local media reports. TOKYO, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Two of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's cabinet ministers visited the notorious Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo during its Autumn festival on Wednesday. The two ministers were Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Sanae Takaichi and Katsunobu Kato, minister for promoting dynamic engagement of all citizens. Both cabinet ministers are close allies of Abe, who himself paid a tribute to the shrine by making a ritual offering there on Monday. Earlier Wednesday, an aide to the prime minister, Seiichi Eto, who also serves as an upper house member of Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, also visited the infamous shrine. Wednesday's high profile visits by Takaichi, Kato and Eto, are the latest following some of Abe's cabinet ministers previously making ritual offerings and a contingent of more than 80 lawmakers from different parties paying homage en mass at the shrine on Tuesday. Visits and ritual offerings made at the shrine during its festivals by politicians draw the ire of Japan's neighbors as Yasukuni Shrine stands as a testament to Japan's past militarism and the barbaric acts that the Imperial Japanese Army committed during their brutal wartime occupation of many parts of Asia. China on Monday called on Japan to face up to and reflect upon its past aggressions, after Abe sent the ritual offering to the shrine. The shrine honors 14 Class-A convicted war criminals as well as millions of war dead. "We firmly oppose the wrong-doings of Japanese politicians," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a press briefing, stating that Japan should make a clear break with its militarist past so as to win trust from its Asian neighbors and the international community. NANCHANG, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- A ceramic 3D printing technology was unveiled at the ongoing 2016 Jingdezhen Ceramic Fair. It only takes three hours to produce a ceramic piece through the 3D printing method -- much faster than traditional handcrafting. Zeng Shu, chief engineer at Jingdezhen Innov-Source Industrial High-Tech Co. Ltd., said they spent 15 years developing the 3D printing equipment. "Traditional porcelain clay cannot be used in 3D printing. Therefore, we remixed the clay's components," Zeng said. "The success rate for current 3D printing technology can reach about 70 percent." The technology allows ordinary people without ceramics training to design and produce their own ceramic wares. "Technological development has made ceramics more accessible for young people. More young people will enjoy the craft," said Duan Zhenmin, a ceramics expert from Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province, known as China's ceramics capital. The technology will also help spread traditional ceramic crafts and culture in schools. NANNING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- China is working with Vietnam to crack down on drug traffickers in border areas. Chinese police announced Wednesday that they have detained five suspected drug dealers, including four Vietnamese, as well as 18.2 kg of heroin in their third joint crackdown with Vietnam to fight drugs. The drug trade remains rampant in China's border areas despite enhanced supervision. The problem is especially pervasive in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, which borders Vietnam and has become one of the biggest channels for drug trafficking to and from China -- second only to neighboring Yunnan Province. "A lot of drugs from the Golden Triangle and Golden Crescent areas flow to China via the border areas, while some new synthetic drugs are trafficked from China to Vietnam," said Qiu Yucheng, deputy head of the anti-drug division under Guangxi's regional department of public security. HIDDEN IN EELS It is increasingly difficult to spot and nab drug dealers. Earlier this year, police in Guangxi's Pingxiang City were tipped off about some Vietnamese who were trying to transport drugs to China via seafood. A secret investigation was launched immediately. "After a long-term investigation, we found that a seafood transfer station in Pingxiang often took live seafood from Vietnam," said Luo Shenghui, head of the anti-drug division under Pingxiang's public security bureau. "The station's seafood was frequently transported to neighboring Guangdong Province, which is one of the major areas for heroin sales." On Aug. 29, local police learned that several Vietnamese nationals had carried two buckets of eels -- possibly containing drugs -- into China. One policeman disguised himself as a driver and helped transport the eels from the transfer station to a seafood market in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong. There, police detained two Vietnamese women and a Guangxi woman who were waiting for the eels. In the buckets, they later found 38 chunks of heroin weighing 13.3 kg. WORKING TOGETHER As the drugs and the main suspects in the case were from Vietnam, Guangxi police contacted Vietnamese police via a "border contact mechanism" established in 2012 to investigate the case together. "We managed to contact Vietnamese police very quickly via the mechanism," Luo Shenghui said. On Sept. 1, five Vietnamese police came to Guangxi for the investigation. They later found that the drugs were from several drug dealers in Vietnam, and the suspects were in China to help transfer the drugs. Based on their confessions, the Vietnamese police managed to seize the dealers in Vietnam while confiscating 14 chunks of heroin. Police in Guangxi and Vietnam are currently expanding their anti-drug cooperation. China has stepped up efforts in recent years to control illegal drug trafficking in Yunnan Province, which is on the forefront of the country's fight against illegal drugs. Guangxi, which has many loosely supervised shortcuts linking China and Vietnam, has naturally become a magnet for smugglers. Official statistics reveal that in 2010, 2011 and 2012, Guangxi police nabbed illegal substances weighing 181 kg, 212 kg and 421 kg respectively in the border area. They mainly came from the Middle East and Southeast Asia. "We have not only found drug trafficking, but also gun and human trafficking," Qiu said. Border cities or counties including Dongxing, Pingxiang, Ningming and Daxin face particularly serious drug problems, with substances transported to China via Vietnam. According to Guangxi's border police, the locations usually act as a "transfer stop" for drugs sourced from Southeast Asia's "Golden Triangle" to be sold in China. However, Chinese and Vietnamese police have been able to exchange information and launch joint investigations since the "border contact mechanism" was established. In July this year, the anti-drug department under China's Ministry of Public Security inked a cooperation memorandum with its Vietnamese counterpart to launch its third joint border clamp-down against drugs from September to December. By Oct. 10, the crackdown had resulted in 1,036 suspects caught in 842 cases across 18 provinces, cities and regions in China. Of the suspects, 11 are Vietnamese nationals and two are foreign nationals from other countries. Though the cooperation mechanism has had good results, challenges remain. Qiu Yucheng said that drug traders have taken to hiding drugs in fruit, seafood and other commodities, making investigation difficult. "We will enhance our cooperation to crack down on such crimes," Qiu said. BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's migrants numbered 247 million, or 18 percent of the total population, at the end of 2015, according to an official report released Wednesday. Among migrants -- referring to those who have left their hometowns to live and work elsewhere -- the elderly population has continued to increase, now accounting for 7.2 percent of the total migrant population, said the report by the National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC) of China. Wang Qian, head of the Department of Services and Management for Migrant Population of the NHFPC, said motivations for elderly people to migrate mainly include looking after younger generations, living in more desirable places, and migrating from rural areas to cities for work. Elderly migrants who look after their grandchildren account for 43 percent of the total elderly migrant population, the highest proportion among the age group, according to Wang. According to the report, the migrant population will remain above 200 million through 2020 as a result of rapid urbanization in China. Israeli border policemen stand guard at Damascus Gate in the Old City of Jerusalem on September 22, 2016. Due to a large number of stabbing attacks against Israeli forces, border policemen have started wearing a new large neck protector on their flak jackets. (Xinhua/AFP Photo) JERUSALEM, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Israeli police said Wednesday that security forces shot and killed a Palestinian woman after she allegedly attempted to stab them near a military post in the West Bank. The incident took place at the Tapuach Junction, near a cluster of Jewish settlements in the central West Bank. Police spokeswoman Luba Samri said the suspect was walking toward a force of paramilitary Border Police officers and pulled a knife at them. Samri said the suspect did not heed the calls of the troops to stop and she was then shot. The incident came amidst a year-long violence, which has claimed the lives of at least 230 Palestinians and 34 Israelis since September 2015. Israel says that most of the Palestinians were killed as amidst perpetrating or attempting to carry out stabbing, car-ramming, and shooting attacks. The Palestinians and human rights organizations say that Israel is using excessive force to quell the uprising, and in many cases kill Palestinians who could be stopped without using lethal force or were mistaken to be attackers. Israeli leaders accuse the Palestinian National Authority of "inciting" the unrest, while the Palestinians say it is the result of 49 years of Israeli occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, where they wish to establish their state. by Stefania Fumo ROME, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The outcome of Italy's upcoming referendum on a constitutional reform could bring uncertainties to the future of the third largest eurozone economy amid public discontent, sluggish economic recovery and the advance of populist parties. Italy will hold a national referendum on a constitutional reform on Dec. 4. Under the reform scheme, Italy will drop the so-called "perfect bicameralism" system, which has been in effect in the country since its constitution entered into force in 1948. The reform law, which has already been approved by the parliament, would streamline Italy's notoriously expensive and inefficient political machinery and save 500 million euros (549 million U.S. dollars) a year in operating costs. Senate seats will be reduced to 100 from 315 with limited lawmaking powers. Future senators would be selected among elected members of regional assemblies and mayors, and serve for free. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi initially staked his political future on the outcome of the referendum, saying he was ready to resign if a majority of the people opposed his reform. However, he has since backed down from that stance in hopes of defusing what has become a contentious debate in Italy stoked by leftist dissenters from within his own center-left Democratic Party (PD) and the center-right opposition and, most importantly, the populist, anti-euro Five Star Movement (M5S). On the one hand, the victory of a "No" vote in the referendum day could weaken the prime minister and give the M5S -- currently the second-largest party in Italy after Renzi's PD -- a real chance at winning the next general election. If that happens, the staunchly anti-euro M5S and its raucous leader Beppe Grillo -- he was a comedian before turning to politics in 2009 -- has vowed to call a referendum on a possible Italexit. On the other hand, if "Yes" wins, many fear that tampering with the current bicameral system could give rise to the one-party rule, as happened before World War II. Critics say a watered-down senate could pave the way for an excessive concentration of power in the hands of a few by eliminating key checks and balances. Gustavo Zagrebelsky, a Constitutional Court judge and law professor, said in a recent televised debate with Renzi that the constitutional reform would usher in what he and other opponents call an "authoritarian drift" that would strengthen Italy's "oligarchy" and vested interests. However, Sergio Fabbrini, director for School of Government in LUISS University, said that the reform would modernize Italy. If approved, Renzi's reform would modernize Italy because the current mechanism was thought up in the immediate post-war period and has become obsolete, Fabbrini said. "Today, the real checks and balances come from the European Union -- just think about a key piece of legislation such as the national budget, which must be vetted by the European Commission before it can become law," Fabbrini told Xinhua. The expert also said the post-reform rise to power of the M5S would not necessarily spell doom for the eurozone. "A possible M5S government would produce confusion," he said. "Just look at what's happening in Rome," he said referring to the administration of Mayor Virginia Raggi from the M5S, which has been plagued by a series of missteps and resignations since Raggi's landslide victory in June local elections. "You must not fall prey to doomsday scenarios. Democratic checks and balances -- such as the option of a parliamentary no-confidence vote -- would still be in place," Fabbrini said. Fabbrini said a narrow win or defeat is most likely, adding that the former would likely lead to a diluted version of Renzi's constitutional reform, while a narrow loss would entail sticking with the current electoral system. "It is unlikely that a clear majority will emerge (from the Dec. 4 referendum), and the transition will probably be more gradual than Renzi expects it to be," he said. BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Heavy smog continued across north China on Wednesday, causing the cancellation of flights and road closures. The average density of the fine particulate matter PM2.5 in Beijing's six downtown districts was 279 micrograms per cubic meter at 2 p.m. Wednesday, according to data with the Beijing Environmental Protection Monitoring Center. Many pedestrians in the capital chose to wear masks while outside. Visibility was less than one kilometer in some areas. Poor visibility also caused Beijing's smaller Nanyuan Airport to cancel some flights Wednesday. Beijing authorities advised citizens to reduce outdoor activities and better manage construction projects, which are known for stirring up dust. Hebei, Shandong and Liaoning provinces, as well as Tianjin Municipality, all issued a yellow alert for smog. Most expressways in Hebei were shut due to dense fog on Wednesday, according to traffic police. The PM2.5 reading was 178 micrograms per cubic meter at noon Wednesday in Shenyang, capital of Liaoning, which also issued a yellow alert. The bout of haze is predicted to be dispersed by cold air on Thursday. Beijing aims to keep average PM2.5 levels below 60 micrograms per cubic meters in 2017. Its density of PM2.5 decreased by 12.5 percent year on year to 63 micrograms per cubic meter from January to August. BISHKEK, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The eighth annual BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit concluded on Sunday in Goa, India. China earned top marks for its performance during the summit by analysts in Kyrgyzstan, a country with growing ties to China. They spoke to Xinhua about China's role in the fight against terrorism, the role of the BRICS bloc in the global economy as well as the bloc's prospects. CHINA'S ROLE IN TERRORISM FIGHT Executive Director of Kyrgyzstan's Foreign Investors' Association Iskender Sharsheyev thinks that economic issues must be addressed in order to better tackle terrorism. "Today among the BRICS countries, China has the biggest potential. Its investments in infrastructure projects are better at combatting international terrorism than bombs and missiles," he said. Analyst Igor Shestakov says China's role in fighting terrorism is strategic. "I think the fight against terrorism directly concerns China too, as it shares a border with unpredictable countries such as Afghanistan," he said. Political analyst Denis Berdakov stressed that China's fight against terrorism is different from the West's. "China says that the United Nations has to clearly define the terms of terrorism and then China will be able to take concrete steps to combat it. But at the same time, China offers a series of economic measures to reduce the risks of extremism and terrorism," he said. BRICS' ROLE IN GLOBAL ECONOMY Political scientist Bakyt Baketaev says China can solve problems and conflicts. "We know from the experience that the international institutions with the participation of China are stable. Such organizations as the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization) and the BRICS have been growing and developing each year," he said. "Today, we can clearly see the Chinese ideology of self-restraint, the ancient philosophy of cooperation for the benefit of all participants. I believe that China imposes a positive impact on all spheres of activity of these organizations. Thus, China is now a welcome guest in all international organizations. Where there is China, there is expansion and steady growth," Baketaev added. He thinks that the BRICS bloc plays a role of growing importance to the global economy. "If we calculate the GDP of BRICS member countries, it becomes clear that their weight is decisive in the world economy. "China is now the only country in the world that in the current condition of a global crisis provides stable growth," the analyst added. Shestakov believes that the BRICS countries play a strategic role in the global economy. "The stability of the global economy depends on the stability of these countries, as BRICS includes the countries that have natural resources and strong industrial sectors," he said. According to Baketaev, BRICS can play not only an economic role but also a political one, capable of solving all kinds of pressing international conflicts. Shestakov believes the BRICS countries will grow even faster in the future. "Given that these countries have a large number of resources," he said, "this bloc will continue to grow." PARIS, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- French President Francois Hollande chaired a defense council meeting in which he discussed the truce in northern Syrian city of Aleppo and the military offensive to retake Mosul in Iraq, his office said on Wednesday. The security meeting "focused on the situation in Syria, mainly in Aleppo," the statement said. The Aleppo ceasefire must be followed up to maintain a lasting truce and end the conflict, it added, noting that the challenge will be civilians' access to humanitarian aid. Speaking about the international coalition offensive against Islamic State in its Iraqi bastion of Mosul, Hollande said "France intends to prepare from now for the period which will start after the military operation." Looking to the domestic security situation, the French president focused on judicial follow-up of French citizens who joined insurgents in Syria and Iraq and want to return home. Chinese President Xi Jinping visits an exhibition on the high-technology achievements resulting from military and civilian cooperation in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Ju Peng) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping on Wednesday called for greater cooperation between the military and civilian sectors to contribute more to the dream of building stronger armed forces. Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), made the remarks when visiting an exhibition featuring the fruits of innovative military-civilian cooperation projects. "Military-civilian cooperation, as a national strategy, is crucial to national security and the bigger picture of development," Xi said, adding that it plays into building a prosperous nation and stronger armed forces. Recognizing the achievements of military-civilian cooperation, Xi said institutional reforms and innovation should continue, adding that substantial efforts should be made to promote military-civilian cooperation from both the demand and supply side and in the aspects of management, operation and policy making. Members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee including Li Keqiang, Zhang Dejiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan and Zhang Gaoli also visited the exhibition. The exhibition, at the Academy of Armored Forces Engineering of People's Liberation Army, Beijing, profiled the achievements of military and civilian cooperation since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012. Exhibits include real items, models and videos featuring processes and technology such as the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System, hybrid power stations, cloud data encryption technology, and large-scale 3D printers with independent intellectual property rights, unmanned planes and vessels. MOSCOW, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Russia demanded an explanation Wednesday from the U.S.-led counter-terror coalition for the latest airstrikes allegedly conducted by Belgium that killed six civilians in Syria. The Russian military said Tuesday that two F-16 fighter jets of the Belgian Air Force were detected in an airstrike against the village of Hassajek near Aleppo, which left six Syrian civilians dead and at least four wounded. Russia said there were "no Russian and Syrian air force planes in this region." "We are waiting for an adequate response from the coalition, of course from Belgium," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Wednesday. She added that the failure to condemn the airstrikes from the U.S.-led coalition will be regarded as "nothing less than an attempt to keep militants in Syria." Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, also said on Wednesday that the Kremlin was awaiting the reaction to the strike from Europe and the United States. Moscow announced Tuesday that Russian and Syrian armed forces had stopped attacking the besieged city of Aleppo so as to pave the way for an eight-hour truce on Thursday. Peskov said the strike pause is "a great chance" and "a manifestation of goodwill" Russia gave to the United States for its implementation of the Russian-U.S. deals reached before. But the U.S. State Department said on Monday that the eight-hour pause in attacks by Russian and Syrian forces was "too little, too late." Peng Liyuan (5th R, rear), Chinese President Xi Jinping's wife, holds an audience with a group of German high school students and teachers at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Peng Liyuan, Chinese President Xi Jinping's wife, held an audience with a group of German high school students and teachers Wednesday afternoon at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Beijing. Peng recalled her visit to Burg Grammar School in the German city of Essen, when she accompanied Xi to the country in March, 2014. She encouraged the German students to learn Chinese and soak up its rich culture, so that they, one day, may become envoys of China-Germany friendship. This is the year of China-Germany youth exchange. Peng hoped the initiative will encourage more young people to pursue exchange opportunities and learn from each other. The students said they were very interested in China and Chinese culture, and vowed to contribute to stronger Germany-China friendship. Cuban yougnsters react during a demonstration in Havana University, in Havana, Cuba, on Oct. 17, 2016. (Xinhua/Joaquin Hernandez) By Noemi Galban HAVANA, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- More than 75 percent of Cuba's population have lived in the condition of scarcity and constraint imposed by the U.S.-led trade and economic embargoes, according to official sources. The lives of Cuban youth have been marked by hardship due to a five-decade-old policy that even U.S. President Barack Obama has labeled "obsolete" and "failed." Thousands of Cuban university and high school students demonstrated against the embargo on Monday, as part of a nationwide day of protest, organized by the Federation of University Students (FEU), against a measure that has crippled the country's economy for half a century. In the capital, students converged at the University of Havana, which served as a focal point for the day's events ranging from rallies to online signature drives to condemn the "blockade" as Cubans call it, since the web of sanctions effectively blocks the small Caribbean country from doing business with the outside world. "Today, we young people have gathered to protest a policy that affects everyone across the board, especially youth," student leader and FEU president at Havana University, Raul Palmero, told Xinhua. "The blockade impedes our future prospects, that's why demanding it be lifted has become one of our missions," said Palmero. Ivan Diaz, a first-year medical student, said the impact of the blockade is not a fiction put forward by Cuba's government to mask structural problems or shortcomings. "The blockade is real and palpable. We experience its effects each day in every area of the country's economic, political and social life," said Diaz. If there is a silver lining to be found in the oppressive and long-running embargo, Diaz appears to have found it. "It is also an incentive to use everyone's ingenuity and effort to counter its negative impact, though it is undeniable that it hampers our full development as individuals and as a nation," said Diaz. Tania Corrales, a student of international relations, said the protests served to highlight the "distortion" caused by the blockade. "My entire generation was born under the blockade, and it places limits for each one of us on knowledge, the chances of what you can acquire, access to resources, technologies and information. That's why we are here, to defend the right we all have to aspire and struggle for a better future," said Corrales. Students found a range of creative ways to protest the outdated policy, painting murals with anti-embargo messages and participating in a selfie contest by posting photos of themselves with the day's rallying cry: #YoVotoVsBloqueo, which roughly translates as "I vote against the embargo." The hashtag #YoVotoVsBloqueo was trending on Twitter in Latin America, with more than 11,000 posts. A worker rolls cigars at a factory in Havana, Cuba, Feb. 26, 2015. (Xinhua/Liu Bin) Organizers also set up a website where anyone could vote against the embargo, and by early Tuesday afternoon, the site, www.cubavsbloqueo.cu, had gathered more than 18,000 votes. The timing of the protests aims to raise the pressure on the United States as the United Nations General Assembly readies for its annual vote on a resolution that condemns the embargo and calls for it to be repealed. "This is a way for us to share our points of view, to become interested in what is happening on the issue, and to support our government's effort to influence the voting process at the United Nations on Oct. 26," said Yuris Bravo, a student of communications. However, the top Republican in the U.S. Congress said on Tuesday he intended to keep the trade restrictions in place, dimming hopes for an end to the embargo in the near future. "As the past two years of normalizing relations have only emboldened the regime at the expense of the Cuban people, I fully intend to maintain our embargo on Cuba," U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan said in a statement. Since 1992, a Cuba-sponsored resolution calling on the U.S. to lift the embargo has been voted on annually, and has received the overwhelming support of the international community 24 years in a row. Last year's vote saw Washington and its stalwart ally Israel isolated from the rest of the world, with 191 votes in favor of the resolution and zero abstentions, versus their two votes against. Cuba's youth question why the two countries can override the opinion and vote of the rest of the democratic world. Cuba estimates that more than 50 years of sanctions have cost the country some 125.87 billion U.S. dollars in lost revenue and productivity. BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese authorities on Wednesday enacted a grade-IV emergency response campaign, following the destruction wrecked by Typhoon Sarika across China's southernmost province of Hainan. Sarika made landfall at Hele Town, Wanning City in Hainan on Tuesday. The Ministry of Civil Affairs and the China National Commission for Disaster Reduction despatched teams to assist the rescue and relief work in the worst-hit areas. The grade-IV response, the lowest in China's emergency response system, initiates a 24-hour alert, requires daily damage reports, and the allocation of money and relief materials within 48 hours. As of 2:00 p.m., Wednesday, more than 474,000 residents had been displaced, and over 2,600 houses destroyed. Direct economic losses in the region are estimated to be 2.62 billion yuan (389 million U.S. dollars). Vehicles move slowly in Mexico City, capital of Mexico, on March 15, 2016. (Xinhua/Pedro Mera) QUITO, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Latin America is one of the most urbanized parts of the world, with around 80 percent of people living in and around cities, according to the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF). Speaking at the UN's Habitat III conference in Quito on Tuesday, the CAF's executive president Enrique Garcia explained that the topic of urbanism is crucial "as Latin America has transitioned in the last 25 to 30 years, when it had a more rural composition, to be one of the most urbanized regions of the world." Inaugurating a day of conferences entitled "Inclusive and Productive Cities", Garcia was quoted by local daily El Comercio as saying that the CAF now had a commitment to finding an integral development model, allowing cities to see sustainable and stable economic development. In order for this to happen, Garcia explained that all sectors of society had to be empowered to participate and called for coordination between "central governments, mayors, the private sector and civil society." This combination of two file photos shows views before and after sunset of Guanabara Bay and Botafogo neighborhood with Sugar Loaf mountain in the background in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Feb. 10, 2015. (Xinhua/Xu Zijian) "In many countries, we observe that...there are different policies which...end up persecuting people. The objective...is to find cities which are inclusive and improve people's quality of life," he said. In the last five years, the CAF has directly invested over 7 billion U.S. dollars across 25 cities in Latin America. "These are the resources of CAF, to which must be added, the catalyzing role we have to attract resources from other sources," outlined Garcia. Finally, the executive president stated that an important element of inclusive cities is to foster a gender equality perspective, in order to improve quality of life for all and to ensure equal access to opportunities. ABUJA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Nigerian forces have killed seven oil militants and pirates suspected to be responsible for an unrest in the country's oil-producing region, a military spokesman said Wednesday. The suspects, including five oil militants and two pirates, were shot dead in various military operations carried out since Monday in the oil-producing Cross River State, Thomas Osuji, spokesman for the military Joint Task Force, told Xinhua. He said three other suspects have been held by the government forces. One of the military operations led to the rescue of some kidnapped victims from a boat in the Bakassi district of the state, Osuji added. The Nigerian government had deployed the military Joint Task Force to restore safety in the restive oil-producing region, as more young men there take up arms to sabotage oil production and undermine government's efforts. The troops said they had intensified patrols of the creeks in the Niger Delta and urged the public to support the military by providing timely information. TEHRAN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iran is in talks with Danish business conglomerate, Maersk Group, to extract oil from the world's largest gas field, a part of which is located in Iran and is referred to as South Pars, Press TV reported on Wednesday. Negotiations have been held with Maersk for the development of the second phase of the South Pars oil layer, Deputy Managing Director of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), Gholam-Reza Manuchehri, said here on Wednesday. "Using modern technologies and horizontal drilling in view of the heaviness of the oil at the South Pars layer are the most important development scenarios for this oil field, which is shared with Qatar," Manuchehri said. Reportedly, NIOC plans to drill 300 wells at the South Pars oil layer, which requires Improved Oil Recovery (IOR) and Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technologies to reach crude oil. Manuchehri said that such technologies are in the possession of a few international companies, with the Danish company considered to be a "powerful" candidate for development of the South Pars oil layer. "Negotiations with the Danish company are underway but nothing is final yet," he said. On Tuesday, visiting Deputy Managing Director of Maersk Paul Munk Andersen said that the Danish business conglomerate is ready to engage in Iran's oil industry, according to Iran's semi-official Fars news agency. "We are ready for cooperation with Iranian companies to promote Iranian oil industry upstream sector," Andersen was quoted as saying by Fars. On Wednesday, Manuchehri said Qatar is ahead of Iran in developing its share of oil layer and had already completed drilling of 300 wells which started production in 1991. "Iran would need at least two thirds of this amount of drilling to increase production from the oil layer to 200,000 barrels per day over a period of 20 years," he said. According to Press TV, Maersk Group is cooperating with Qatar in the shared field referred to as North Dome. Manuchehri said the development of the South Pars oil layer is among the Iranian Oil Ministry's priorities, to be offered to foreign companies under Iran's new oil contract model. Iranian companies are working on the first phase of the project and are expected to pump 35,000 barrels of oil a day before the end of the current Iranian calendar year in March 2017. The South Pars/North Dome field is a natural gas condensate field located in the Persian Gulf. It is the world's largest gas field, shared between Iran and Qatar. According to the International Energy Agency, the field holds an estimated 1,800 trillion cubic feet (51 trillion cubic meters) of in-situ natural gas and some 50 billion barrels of natural gas condensate. The nuclear agreement reached between the world powers and Iran in July 2015 and was implemented in January has resulted in the lift of sanctions against Iran's energy sector and has raised hopes here to reengage the latter with the global economy and develop its energy resources. In January, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh said that Maersk is also interested in developing Iran's deepwater hydrocarbon reserves in the Caspian Sea. The Danish company has already been involved in deepwater oil drilling the Caspian Sea for Azerbaijan. Maersk has also experience in building world-class FPSO vessels for floating oil and gas production, storage and offloading oil and gas, which Iran needs at the South Pars oil layer, he said. Martin Beckman, a member from the German Wintershall Co. management board, had previously said that Iran is in dire need of investment and technology for its Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), and that efforts should be directed toward promoting the industry in Iran, said Fars news agency. Meanwhile, PetroChina Company has announced that it is ready to help Iran with EOR within framework of the new model of oil contracts. EOR and IOR are technologies needed for enhanced oil recovery in Iran, it added. Photo shows Hitler's birth home in Braunau am Inn, Austria. (Xinhua/Liu Xiang) VIENNA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Austrian minister who announced the decision on Monday to demolish the home Adolf Hitler was born in appears to have backtracked somewhat, now arguing the goal is merely to strip it of any recognition, Austria Press Agency reported. Speaking before cabinet on Tuesday, Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka said the house in Braunau am Inn in the state of Upper Austria should have its exterior changed such that it is "not recognizable." Whether this can be defined as "demolition" or not is open for discussion, he argued. An expert commission assembled for the purpose of deciding what to do with the building recommended it be used for either governmental administrative or charitable purposes, such as to provide services for disabled persons. It did not recommend the building itself be torn down, but rather undergo a "far-reaching architectural transformation" to remove its recognition value and "symbolic power." Sobotka thanked the commission for its input, and reiterated his stance that the building should not be used by Neo-Nazis as a memorial site or gathering point, or in any way show a connection to the Nazi leader. He said architectural firms would be able to put forth their proposals on redesigning the building, and that the final decision on its new purpose would be made together with the city of Braunau. Visitors view TCL's stand during the 55th IFA consumer electronics fair in Berlin, Germany, on Sept. 4, 2015. (Xinhua/Zhang Fan) BUENOS AIRES, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese electronics giant TCL Corporation plans to invest 100 million U.S. dollars in Argentina over the next 12 months, Argentina's government announced on Tuesday. The announcement followed a meeting between Argentine President Mauricio Macri and the CEO of TCL, Li Dongsheng, at the presidential headquarters and residence in Argentina's capital Buenos Aires. "TCL Corporation, based out of Huizhou, in Guangdong Province, is one of the largest firms in its field, producing mobile phones, televisions and home appliances, among other consumer goods," according to a news item posted on the presidential website. "The goal is to build a joint venture with an Argentine company to expand its presence in the country's electronics market," the government said. Founded in 1981, TCL began as a manufacturer and seller of telephones and related equipment, but its business expanded into other areas in the 1990s. Today, the TCL employs more than 75,000 people in 80 countries. In Argentina, it has been working with local company Radio Victoria Fueguina since 2004. The announcement comes amid increasing cooperation between Buenos Aires and Beijing, whose ties are at the level of a comprehensive strategic partnership. Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei, for example, has made significant headway in Argentina's market. In July, Macri met with the head of Huawei, Sun Yafang, who announced the company's intention to "expand its presence" in Argentina. The following month, Huawei opened a Training Center in Buenos Aires, from which the company offers its services to telecom operators, government agencies, educational institutions and private firms in the country and the region. Located in the city's southern Puerto Madero district, the 1,300-square-meter facility features one of Huawei's signature Customer Solution Innovation & Integration Experience Centers, or CSICs. "The inauguration of the Training Center drew company clients, suppliers and employees, as well as the ministers of Modernization, Andres Ibarra, and Communications, Oscar Aguad; China's ambassador to Argentina, Yang Wanming, and his Argentine counterpart in China, Diego Guelar," financial daily Cronista Comercial reported on the event on Aug. 17. Throughout 2016, China has consolidated its position as Argentina's second-largest trade partner worldwide, with a 13 percent increase in imports from Argentina, thanks to a wider range of goods and a more balanced trade structure. A gas flare on an oil production platform in the Soroush oil fields is seen alongside an Iranian flag in the Persian Gulf, Iran, July 25. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) TEHRAN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iran is in talks with Danish business conglomerate, Maersk Group, to extract oil from the world's largest gas field, a part of which is located in Iran and is referred to as South Pars, Press TV reported on Wednesday. Negotiations have been held with Maersk for the development of the second phase of the South Pars oil layer, Deputy Managing Director of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), Gholam-Reza Manuchehri, said here on Wednesday. "Using modern technologies and horizontal drilling in view of the heaviness of the oil at the South Pars layer are the most important development scenarios for this oil field, which is shared with Qatar," Manuchehri said. Reportedly, NIOC plans to drill 300 wells at the South Pars oil layer, which requires Improved Oil Recovery (IOR) and Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technologies to reach crude oil. Manuchehri said that such technologies are in the possession of a few international companies, with the Danish company considered to be a "powerful" candidate for development of the South Pars oil layer. "Negotiations with the Danish company are underway but nothing is final yet," he said. On Tuesday, visiting Deputy Managing Director of Maersk Paul Munk Andersen said that the Danish business conglomerate is ready to engage in Iran's oil industry, according to Iran's semi-official Fars news agency. "We are ready for cooperation with Iranian companies to promote Iranian oil industry upstream sector," Andersen was quoted as saying by Fars. On Wednesday, Manuchehri said Qatar is ahead of Iran in developing its share of oil layer and had already completed drilling of 300 wells which started production in 1991. "Iran would need at least two thirds of this amount of drilling to increase production from the oil layer to 200,000 barrels per day over a period of 20 years," he said. According to Press TV, Maersk Group is cooperating with Qatar in the shared field referred to as North Dome. Manuchehri said the development of the South Pars oil layer is among the Iranian Oil Ministry's priorities, to be offered to foreign companies under Iran's new oil contract model. Iranian companies are working on the first phase of the project and are expected to pump 35,000 barrels of oil a day before the end of the current Iranian calendar year in March 2017. The South Pars/North Dome field is a natural gas condensate field located in the Persian Gulf. It is the world's largest gas field, shared between Iran and Qatar. According to the International Energy Agency, the field holds an estimated 1,800 trillion cubic feet (51 trillion cubic meters) of in-situ natural gas and some 50 billion barrels of natural gas condensate. The nuclear agreement reached between the world powers and Iran in July 2015 and was implemented in January has resulted in the lift of sanctions against Iran's energy sector and has raised hopes here to reengage the latter with the global economy and develop its energy resources. In January, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh said that Maersk is also interested in developing Iran's deepwater hydrocarbon reserves in the Caspian Sea. The Danish company has already been involved in deepwater oil drilling the Caspian Sea for Azerbaijan. Maersk has also experience in building world-class FPSO vessels for floating oil and gas production, storage and offloading oil and gas, which Iran needs at the South Pars oil layer, he said. Martin Beckman, a member from the German Wintershall Co. management board, had previously said that Iran is in dire need of investment and technology for its Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), and that efforts should be directed toward promoting the industry in Iran, said Fars news agency. Meanwhile, PetroChina Company has announced that it is ready to help Iran with EOR within framework of the new model of oil contracts. EOR and IOR are technologies needed for enhanced oil recovery in Iran, it added. Xinhua News Agency president Cai Mingzhao (R) meets with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's communications secretary Martin Andanar in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Lan Hongguang) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Xinhua News Agency president Cai Mingzhao met with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's communications secretary Martin Andanar on Wednesday. Cai called Duterte's China visit a historic event in the China-Philippines relationship. Duterte and his entourage arrived in Beijing Tuesday evening for his first state visit to China. China is the first country outside ASEAN that the president has visited since taking office in June. "We hope the visit will be a great success," Cai said. Cai said Xinhua was ready to work with the Philippine Presidential Communications Operations Office as well as the country's major news outlets, to disseminate more positive information, which will encourage mutual understanding and friendship between the people of the two nations and be advantageous to the development of ties. Hailing Xinhua as an influential news agency, Andanar extended appreciation for its objective coverage of stories related to the archipelagic state. The press secretary pledged that the Philippine Presidential Communications Operations Office will boost cooperation with Xinhua and encourage Philippine media outlets to increase exchanges with the Chinese news agency to cement friendship between the Chinese and the Filipino people. CHENGDU, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The southwest province of Sichuan signed nine deals with Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan on Wednesday to strengthen cooperation in trade, tourism, education and health. Under the agreements, Sichuan and Kazakhstan will establish a Traditional Chinese Medicine center in Almaty and strengthen exchanges and cooperation in traditional medicine. Chartered flights will begin to ply routes between China and the central Asian countries to facilitate tourism cooperation. The deals were signed at the China-Central Asia Cooperation Forum held in Sichuan's provincial capital Chengdu, which was attended by more than 200 officials, entrepreneurs, researchers and other representatives from China and central Asian countries. "The 'Belt and Road Initiative' has provided a broad platform for cooperation between Sichuan and central Asia," said Sichuan Governor Yin Li at the forum. Senior officials from central Asian countries were upbeat that all sides had much to gain from the opportunities brought about by the initiative. In the first eight months, trade between Sichuan and five central Asian countries hit 71 million U.S. dollars. Four companies from Sichuan have established firms in central Asia, backed by total investment of 50 million dollars. The value of contracted projects of Sichuan firms in central Asia has exceeded 1 billion dollars. Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel, addresses the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly at the UNheadquarters in New York on September 22, 2016. (Xinhua/AFP Photo) RAMALLAH, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- A senior official with Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) slammed on Wednesday Israel's joining to the United Nations Women organization. Hanan Ashrawi, a senior member of the PLO executive committee, said in a press statement that Israel's accession to UN Women "is a denial to Palestinian women suffering and to the persecution they face." She unveiled that an agreement had been recently reached between the Israeli ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, and officials of the UN for women, adding that "the agreement was reached while women are suffering a lot." "The Israeli occupation authorities practice criminal measures against Palestinian women. Women are the victims of the Israeli wars and the Israeli siege and also the victim of the racist and radical Israeli policies," said Ashrawi. She went on saying that the move "contradicts with the principles of the UN charter because Israel is the current occupying power and violates on daily basis the rights of the Palestinian women." The PLO official called on the UN to put an end to the violence that is practiced against women in the Palestinian territories, end discrimination and ensure security and peace for them. WINDHOEK, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Indebted University of Namibia students have been allowed to write examinations on condition that they settle by Dec. 31 or risk having their results nullified. The students who owe the university 145 million Namibian dollars (about 10.5 million U.S. dollars) were informed Monday that they would be barred from writing unless they pay 50 percent of their debts. When efforts by the students representative council to negotiate with the management failed, the students staged a peaceful demonstration. The university then postponed the examinations that had been scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. The students handed over a petition to vice chancellor Lazarus Hangura, who promised them that the council would decide before Thursday. A meeting held Wednesday resolved that the students who owe the university will sit for the examinations but only after signing agreements that they will pay by Dec. 31. Announcing the agreement, the university's pro-vice chancellor for finance and resource mobilization Ellen Namhila confirmed that those who fail to comply will have their results nullified. Namhila also said those who do not sign the agreement will not be allowed to sit for the examinations. Enditem Chinese President Xi Jinping and other senior leaders Li Keqiang, Zhang Dejiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan and Zhang Gaoli watch a gala commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Long March in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping and other senior leaders on Wednesday watched a gala commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Long March. Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Zhang Dejiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan and Zhang Gaoli joined over 3,000 spectators to watch the gala held at the Great Hall of the People. The Long March was a military maneuver carried out by the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army of the Communist Party of China (CPC) from 1934 to 1936. The performances, including singing and dancing, recalled the hardships that the Red Army endured during the period and showcased the CPC members' firm belief in communism, regardless of sacrifice or suffering. It also showcased the CPC's leading role in saving and revitalizing the nation in hard times. From October 1934 to October 1936, the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army soldiers left their bases and marched through raging rivers, snowy mountains and arid grassland to break the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party) siege and continue to fight the Japanese invaders. Some marched for 12,500 kilometers. LAGOS, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Nigerian Senate Wednesday said it will investigate the purported arrest of six judges by the country's secret police. David Umaru, Chairman of Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, told the Chamber in Abuja, Nigeria's capital city, that it was necessary for the committee to invite the judges for clearer insight on the issue. The Department of State Security (DSS) arrested six justices for suspected corruption in a sting operation on Oct. 8. The National Judicial Council (NJC) on Thursday described the arrest as a threat to democracy and to the independence of the judiciary. The NJC insisted that the arrest was an attempt to humiliate, intimidate, denigrate and cow the judiciary. Enditem ANKARA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Two people were wounded in the terror attack in the southern Turkish province of Osmaniye on Wednesday, local Dogan News Agency reported. The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants fired three mortar shells from three different points at two neighborhoods on the foothills of the Amanos Mountains in Osmaniye, Governor Kerem Al said. Ambulances were sent to the scene and the wounded people, including a woman and her 10-year-old son,were brought to the hospital for treatment. An operation was launched in order to apprehend the militants involved in the attack in a forested area in Osmaniye. The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union and Turkey. KHARTOUM, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Sudan on Wednesday expressed solidarity with the Iraqi government and people until completion of liberation of Mosul from the Islamic State group. "The foreign ministry is following with great concern the developments of the situations in sisterly Iraq after the Iraqi government declared beginning of the process of liberation of Mosul from the grip of the terrorist Daesh group," Sudan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement Wednesday. "The ministry would like to express Sudan's solidarity with the government and people of sisterly Iraq until the liberation of Mosul is completed, and hope that the highest degree of keenness would be observed to preserve the lives of civilians so as to form an important step towards restoration of security and stability," it said. The Sudanese government urged the international community to live up to its responsibilities towards provision of support for the displaced people from Mosul and work to return them to their city after the end of the battles. TEHRAN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iran is not concerned about the interfering remarks of U.S officials over the jail sentence of two Iranian-Americans on espionage charges, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi said on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Iran's judiciary announced that four Iranian nationals and two dual nationals were sentenced to 10 years in prison each over charges of espionage and collaboration with the U.S. administration. Following the release of the news, the U.S. State Department said it was "deeply concerned" by reports of the sentencing and demanded the "immediate release" of the two Iranian-Americans by Iran. The Iranian government and people attach no importance to the inquisitive rhetoric and excessive demands of U.S. officials, Qasemi was quoted as saying by Press TV on Wednesday. The U.S. State Department is attempting to lend an international dimension to such domestic issues of Iran which is dealing with spying activities within its borders, he said. Such threats would not only prove unconstructive, but also increase the Iranian nation's distrust of the United States, he added. On Tuesday, Tehran prosecutor Abbas Ja'afari Dolatabadi identified two convicted Iranian-Americans as Siamak Namazi and his 80-year-old father Baquer Namazi. Siamak Namazi was arrested in October 2015 and his father, Baqer Namazi, was detained in February this year. Reportedly, Siamak formerly worked for the Sharjah-based oil and gas company Crescent Petroleum. Baqer is a former Iranian provincial governor and served as a UNICEF representative in Somalia, Kenya, Egypt and other countries. CHENGDU, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- A Communist Party of China (CPC) official has called for continued harmonious and stable work in religious affairs. Sun Chunlan, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the CPC Central Committee United Front Work Department, made the remarks during an inspection tour in the southwestern province of Sichuan from Sunday to Tuesday. Sun asked non-Communist parties and religious officials to implement the CPC Central Committee's policies on united front work and support the multi-party cooperation system under the CPC leadership. Sun visited local community, enterprises and university and learned about the technical innovation of enterprises during her stay in Sichuan. KIGALI, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- A high powered Moroccan delegation composed mainly of high profile business leaders and entrepreneurs will explore potential areas of investment. The team is in Rwanda to establish mutual and strategic business partnerships with the Rwandan private sector and expand Moroccan business ventures to the central African nation. The Moroccan business delegation comes at a time when the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, visits Rwanda to strengthen bilateral ties. King Mohammed VI arrived in Kigali on Tuesday night, which was the first tour of the monarch made to East African nations since his 1999 coronation. He will also visit Tanzania and Ethiopia. The three-day state visit to Rwanda comes within the strategy designed by King Mohammed VI in recent years, which aims to diversify its partnerships, strengthen its ties with the most important players on the African continent. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday during the Moroccan investor's breakfast meeting with members of Rwanda's private sector, Francis Gatare, Chief Executive of Rwanda Development Board said that business personnel from Morocco have expressed interest in investing in several sectors of the Rwandan economy. "Rwanda has huge, abundant and untapped investment opportunities that need to be explored. That is why our government has put considerable attention for sectors like energy, telecommunication, agriculture, real estate, tourism, mining, manufacturing and infrastructure," he said. "Our country needs increased investment to build its economy, lift its citizens out of poverty as well as enable the country reach middle income status," he said. Gatare added that Rwanda has put in place investor-friendly legislation with attracting incentive packages to encourage its growth. According to Mohamed Boussaid, Minister of Economy and Finance, Kingdom of Morocco, members of Moroccan business community have identified several areas of investments in Rwanda. "We are looking forward to increasing our business engagements with Rwanda in various sectors of the economy. Each member of the delegation has his own area of interest," he said. Rwanda has offered investment incentives to investors engaged in prioritized sectors. In addition, the government is currently expanding industrial parks, special economic zones with adequate infrastructure to speed up industrialization in the country. Later in the day, 19 bilateral cooperation agreements in the areas of finance and banking, manufacturing, pharmaceutical tourism, security, as well as housing and real estate, among others, were signed by respective officials from both Rwanda and Morocco in the presence of the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, and Rwanda President Paul Kagame in an event held at the President's Office, Village Urugwiro. Enditem Iran's President Hassan Rouhani attends a meeting during the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) summit at the Foreign Ministry in Bangkok, Thailand, October 10, 2016. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) TEHRAN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iran is not concerned about the interfering remarks of U.S officials over the jail sentence of two Iranian-Americans on espionage charges, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi said on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Iran's judiciary announced that four Iranian nationals and two dual nationals were sentenced to 10 years in prison each over charges of espionage and collaboration with the U.S. administration. Following the release of the news, the U.S. State Department said it was "deeply concerned" by reports of the sentencing and demanded the "immediate release" of the two Iranian-Americans by Iran. The Iranian government and people attach no importance to the inquisitive rhetoric and excessive demands of U.S. officials, Qasemi was quoted as saying by Press TV on Wednesday. The U.S. State Department is attempting to lend an international dimension to such domestic issues of Iran which is dealing with spying activities within its borders, he said. Such threats would not only prove unconstructive, but also increase the Iranian nation's distrust of the United States, he added. On Tuesday, Tehran prosecutor Abbas Ja'afari Dolatabadi identified two convicted Iranian-Americans as Siamak Namazi and his 80-year-old father Baquer Namazi. Siamak Namazi was arrested in October 2015 and his father, Baqer Namazi, was detained in February this year. Reportedly, Siamak formerly worked for the Sharjah-based oil and gas company Crescent Petroleum. Baqer is a former Iranian provincial governor and served as a UNICEF representative in Somalia, Kenya, Egypt and other countries. TAIPEI, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Several worker's groups in Taiwan announced Wednesday that they would organize a rally on Oct. 25 to protest against an amended bill that has, according to them, stripped them of their entitled holidays. On Wednesday morning, 50 workers' representatives could be heard chanting; "no overworking, less working hours," and "rude black-box deal, absurd amendment" in front of the legislative body building, calling for review of the bill by legislative committee and public hearing. The legislative authority passed an amended bill early October that reduced the number of holidays. A worker's group representative, identified only by the surname Chen, said it was irritating that the Democratic Progressive Party has not talked with labor groups since it came to power. No public hearing was held and no review report was released. Taiwanese workers cannot put up with such practice and they will voice their stance via protest, he said. About 2,000 people are expected to take to the street on October 25, which will start from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party's headquarters, then circle the Taipei Railway Station before concluding outside the legislative institution. They want to retain 19 days of holiday instead of the 12 now on offer. MOSCOW, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Russia has decided to extend the humanitarian pause in Syria's Aleppo on Thursday for three hours at the request of international organizations, a senior Russian military officer said here Wednesday. The pause will start from 8 a.m. (0500 GMT) till 7 p.m. (1600 GMT) local time on Thursday, said Sergey Rudskoy, chief of the Russian General Staff's Main Operational Directorate. The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Monday a pause in strikes against rebel-controlled areas in the city of Aleppo to allow a safe exit of civilians and militants from the contested city. Russian warplanes and Syrian forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have been attacking the rebel-controlled districts of Aleppo since the collapse of the ceasefire agreement reached between Moscow and Washington last month. Rudskoy said Russian and Syrian forces have fulfilled their commitments on the humanitarian operation in Aleppo, while urging the United States and other parties involved to influence other armed groups in order to ensure the evacuation of the wounded and sick from Aleppo. HONG KONG, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Patriotic members of the Sixth Legislative Council (LegCo) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) on Wednesday staged a walk-out during a session to block individual members-elect from retaking their oaths. The move came a week after the individual members-elect deliberately used curse words insulting the Chinese nation and the country or added extra phrases into the oath while reading it on Oct. 12 when the sixth LegCo started operation. At Wednesday's LegCo session, all patriotic members left the LegCo chamber after two members-elect finished their oath-retaking. LegCo President Andrew Leung adjourned the session 15 minutes later due to a lack of quorum. It is inappropriate to make new arrangements for the members-elect who have yet to apologize for their comments and behaviors at the Oct. 12 swearing-in to retake the oath, legislator Liao Cheung-kong said. Legislator Tien Puk-sun pointed out that even if the members-elect who deliberately used curse words insulting the Chinese nation and the country apologize, they still should not be allowed to retake the oath, for what they did has exceeded too far the baseline of a LegCo member. Pro-establishment LegCo members staged the walk-out to prevent the individual members-elect from retaking the oath because patriotic members have heard the voice of the Hong Kong people, legislator Leung Mei-fun stressed. A wide spectrum of Hong Kong society, including Hong Kong Island Federation, 18 Hong Kong district councils and Hong Kong Commerce and Industry Associations, have slammed the individual LegCo members-elect through parades and statements. A student from the City University of Hong Kong has initiated a joint signature drive to demand they apologize and retract the insulting comments. So far, more than 400,000 Hong Kong residents have voiced their support of the activity. KIEV, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Ukraine's state-run energy company Naftogaz said Wednesday it has filed a lawsuit against Moscow over the assets lost in Crimea following the peninsula's absorption into Russia. Under the arbitral proceedings, Naftogaz and its six subsidiaries are seeking to get at least 2.6 billion U.S. dollars as compensation from Russia for the lost assets, the Ukrainian energy company said in a statement without specifying which court is considering the case. Naftogaz said that the lawsuit was filed under the Ukraine-Russia intergovernmental investment agreement signed in 1998. The treaty envisages that Kiev and Moscow may sue each other in the International Court of Justice if they fail to settle a dispute through negotiations within six months. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on the Naftogaz claim, saying the issue needs to be addressed by lawyers. The autonomous republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol were absorbed into Russia in March 2014 following a referendum, which was recognized by Moscow but rejected by Kiev. According to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Kiev lost control over 400 Ukrainian enterprises and 18 gas fields located in Crimea following the peninsula's incorporation into Russia. CAIRO, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian Supply Minister Mohamed Ali Moselhi said on Wednesday that the country's strategic reserve of wheat is enough for five months. Speaking to reporters at his office, the minister said the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC), the state's grain buyer, imports the best wheat at low prices through weekly international tenders, adding that Egypt imports about 75 to 95 percent of its wheat needs. The minister also revealed that the Central Bank of Egypt has secured 1.8 billion U.S. dollars for a six-month strategic reserve of staple commodities such as cooking oil, sugar and rice. The Egyptian government will cooperate with the private sectors in the next purchase season to seek a healthier way to store wheat, according to Ali Moselhi. He affirmed that the government will not collect wheat stored in open-air silos. Egypt, the world's largest importer of wheat, lifted in September a ban on importing wheat containing ergot fungus, a common grain fungus, after it had failed to clear any international wheat shipments. The Egyptian government has now aligned itself with the international standard to allow 0.05 percent of ergot fungus in imported wheat. Since February, conflicting decisions made by GASC and the agricultural authorities over the fungus has caused confusion among suppliers, driving some to boycott tenders. Ergot can cause hallucinations when consumed in large amounts. The most widely applied international standard sets a 0.05 percent tolerance level of the fungus. According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization, Egypt is estimated to import 11 million tons of wheat for the 2015-16 marketing year. Refugees build their tent inside the Protection of Civilians site 1 of the United Nations Mission In South Sudan (UNMISS) in Juba, capital of South Sudan, Aug. 13, 2016. The humanitarian situation in South Sudan has witnessed significant deterioration, including areas that were once relatively stable. Since December 2013, over two million people have fled their homes. Some 1.6 million are displaced within South Sudan and more than 900,000 people have fled to neighbouring countries. (Xinhua/Li Baishun) JUBA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Economic crunch has slowed down South Sudan's peace deal, which needs urgent funding to expeditiously move forward, experts have said. The peace agreement signed in August 2015 suffered setback after rebel leader Riek Machar was replaced by his former chief negotiator Taban Deng, leaving the cash-strapped transitional unity government formed mid-April in crisis after the international community kept mum on its promise of availing financial support. And the renewed July clash between rival troops has spread to peaceful areas of Yei, southwest of the capital Juba in Equatoria region after Machar's call for armed rebellion, hence putting the peace implementation in jeopardy. Machar has further dismissed the current political arrangement in Juba as illegitimate, and called for efforts to help resuscitate the peace agreement so that he can be part of it. "So far we are going, according to the peace matrix, and we have told all institutions to implement it. Very soon we are having cantonment areas so that all SPLA-IO move there. The only challenge for us is lack of money," Deputy Minister of Information Paul Akol Kordit told Xinhua in an interview in Juba on Tuesday. Kordit revealed that they require financial assistance from the international community to achieve meaningful progress. "We are making progress. So far we have not had any serious fighting apart from attacks from Machar's forces in Bentiu and Malakal," he disclosed. South Sudan is in the final stage of passing its 2016/17 budget estimated at 300 million U.S. dollars after conflict disrupted oil production it relies upon to finance 98 percent of the budget. However, analysts say despite the peace partners showing some optimism, the agreement faces daunting task ahead to deliver the fruits of peace. Photo taken on Oct. 16, 2016 shows South Sudan's government soldiers at a battle field in Alelo near South Sudan's northern town of Malakal. Fresh clashes between government and opposition forces near the northern town of Malakal have killed at least 56 over the weekend, a military spokesman said late Sunday. (Xinhua/Gale Julius) Political Science lecturer at Juba University Jacob Dut Chol told Xinhua that the peace agreement faces a bumpy road to achieve its objective. "There is a very long road ahead because already we are behind schedule. The agreement should have been implemented before next year, because we shall be going for elections in 2018," he revealed. He added that the cease-fire is not yet being respected by the warring parties, with escalation of recent violence in newly created Northern Liech state and Malakal in northern region. "The international community has not been clear on support to South Sudan and it may hamper implementation of the agreement," Chol observed. The Joint Monitoring Evaluation Commission (JMEC), the body monitoring the peace deal, said in a recent statement that the peace process has hit its first major test and it won't allow it to be derailed. And that it calls upon all parties to return to the negotiating table. Abraham Awolich, political analyst with the Juba-based Sudd Institute, told Xinhua that there is need to now incorporate the peace agreement into the transitional constitution. Photo taken on Aug. 10, 2016 shows the Protection of Civilians site 1 of the United Nations Mission In South Sudan (UNMISS) in Juba, capital of South Sudan. The humanitarian situation in South Sudan has witnessed significant deterioration, including in areas that were once relatively stable. Since December 2013, over two million people have fled their homes. Some 1.6 million are displaced within South Sudan and more than 900,000 people have fled to neighbouring countries. (Xinhua/Li Baishun) "The agreement seems to be moving forward but there are a lot of delays in critical areas like how to manage the post-July violence. The parties spent much time on that but as soon as the budget is passed they should move immediately to implementation," he said. South Sudanese economist Alic Garang told Xinhua that the government is cash constrained due to the fact that global oil prices have remained low and that the security sector reform needs money to carry out workshops and training. "The logical thing is to provide funds first to implement the agreement. Lack of money is big setback, with soldiers not cantoned in their areas and instead loitering around causing insecurity," Garang said. MOSCOW, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- China has managed to keep the expected overall dynamics of economic growth in the first nine months of this year, a Russian economist said Wednesday. In an interview with Xinhua, Alexey Maslov, a professor at the Higher School of Economics, one of Russia's top universities, said China's gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the first nine months "showed the rate in accordance with the planned guidelines." China's GDP expanded 6.7 percent year-on-year between January-September 2016 to nearly 53 trillion yuan (7.87 trillion U.S. dollars), according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China earlier on Wednesday. The latest figure, which is within China's annual growth target range of 6.5 to 7 percent, is less impressive compared with the double-digit growth China's economy achieved in the first decade of the 21st century. Maslov sees the slowdown as the result of the country trying to diversify its growth impetus. China's rapid growth has long come from public investment in fixed assets, while a significant part of the production did not give a direct return to the market, Maslov said. Therefore, although the growth rate figures looked well, the real money turnover was less impressive, he added.@ Over a year ago China set itself the task of developing the consumer market share in the country's GDP and did a good job, which is evidenced by the over-ten-percent retail sales jump in the first nine months this year, the expert said. Maslov said that the achieved results overturned the fears of some foreign observers who held a bearish view about China's economic prospects. Meanwhile, Maslov also said that China's economy should not only be evaluated by its GDP figures. "There are two factors that can guarantee the stability of the Chinese economy -- the increase of investment abroad and the reactivation of the consumer market, both of which have worked well so far," he said. Besides, the fight against corruption is bringing positive results. In the past two years China managed to "break the backbone" of a number of regional financial clans, whose interests were largely inconsistent with the main directions of the country's economic development, he said. Maslov also warned about the growing imbalances in the Chinese economy, with one third of provinces heavily subsidized and rich coastal provinces contributing disproportionately large amounts to the GDP growth. But on the whole Maslov is optimistic about China's economic prospects. China, to its credit, is now groping for the base, which will allow it to contain the slowdown of its economy and make a smooth landing, he said. MADRID, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Immigrants in the Aluche refugee center in Madrid on Wednesday ended an attempted breakout after 12 hours, local media reported. A group of immigrants attempted to escape from a detention centre on Tuesday night, calling for liberty and dignity from its rooftop. After 12 hours, they negotiated with the Spanish National Police and remained in the detention centre voluntarily. "They are all back in their rooms," sources from the center said. A representative from the local government told Spanish television TVE that the centre was working as usual on Wednesday morning. A spokesman for the Spanish National Police, Antonio Nevado, said the immigrants had no weapons and no injuries had been reported. On Aug. 24, 17 immigrants escaped from the Aluche center, after which 10 were arrested and seven were not found. Similar events occurred in other centers in Spain. According to Spanish newspaper El Pais, police unions have complained about the "blurry legal status of Spain's migrant holding centers, which are not technically prisons although in practice they function as such." Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi (R) meets with Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson of the United States in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Ding Lin) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi on Wednesday met Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, welcoming more cooperation between China and the U.S. state. Yang said China and the U.S. should focus on mutually beneficial cooperation and manage their differences to ensure a stable bilateral relationship that moves steadily forward under the new U.S. administration. Yang said he hoped the governor remained committed to enhancing friendly cooperation between Arkansas and China. Hutchinson said he would work to promote cooperation, understanding and friendship between Arkansas and China. China's gross domestic product expanded 6.7 percent year on year in the third quarter of 2016, stable from the second quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Wang Chun) MOSCOW, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- China has managed to keep the expected overall dynamics of economic growth in the first nine months of this year, a Russian economist said Wednesday. In an interview with Xinhua, Alexey Maslov, a professor at the Higher School of Economics, one of Russia's top universities, said China's gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the first nine months "showed the rate in accordance with the planned guidelines." China's GDP expanded 6.7 percent year-on-year between January-September 2016 to nearly 53 trillion yuan (7.87 trillion U.S. dollars), according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China earlier on Wednesday The latest figure, which is within China's annual growth target range of 6.5 to 7 percent, is less impressive compared with the double-digit growth China's economy achieved in the first decade of the 21st century. Maslov sees the slowdown as the result of the country trying to diversify its growth impetus. China's rapid growth has long come from public investment in fixed assets, while a significant part of the production did not give a direct return to the market, Maslov said. Therefore, although the growth rate figures looked well, the real money turnover was less impressive, he added.@ Over a year ago China set itself the task of developing the consumer market share in the country's GDP and did a good job, which is evidenced by the over-ten-percent retail sales jump in the first nine months this year, the expert said. Maslov said that the achieved results overturned the fears of some foreign observers who held a bearish view about China's economic prospects. Meanwhile, Maslov also said that China's economy should not only be evaluated by its GDP figures. "There are two factors that can guarantee the stability of the Chinese economy -- the increase of investment abroad and the reactivation of the consumer market, both of which have worked well so far," he said. Besides, the fight against corruption is bringing positive results. In the past two years China managed to "break the backbone" of a number of regional financial clans, whose interests were largely inconsistent with the main directions of the country's economic development, he said. Maslov also warned about the growing imbalances in the Chinese economy, with one third of provinces heavily subsidized and rich coastal provinces contributing disproportionately large amounts to the GDP growth. But on the whole Maslov is optimistic about China's economic prospects. China, to its credit, is now groping for the base, which will allow it to contain the slowdown of its economy and make a smooth landing, he said. Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang (C) addresses a conference on farmland water conservation infrastructure in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Wang Ye) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Premier Li Keqiang has ordered that work on agriculture-related water projects and major water conservation projects must be intensified. In an instruction issued to a conference, held Wednesday, Li said the construction of farmland water conservation projects will improve agricultural productivity, raise farmers' incomes and help lift them out of poverty. The country should improve water conservation infrastructure during the upcoming winter and spring in preparation for flood control and water safety, Li said. During the process, the government should properly use fiscal funds and attract more private investment, he added. Vice Premier Wang Yang said at the meeting that the country should prioritize water- and disaster-damaged renovation projects and step up the construction of large and medium-sized irrigation and drainage projects. Special emphases will be given to agricultural water-saving facilities and water-saving irrigation processes for farmland, according to Wang, who also stressed the management and protection of water conservation projects. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (R) meets with Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Li Tao) BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Premier Li Keqiang on Wednesday met with Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez in Beijing, calling on both sides to expand trade and investment cooperation. China views Uruguay as a good friend and partner in Latin America, he said, noting that China is willing to strengthen the alignment of the two country's development strategies. China and Uruguay launched a study on bilateral free trade negotiation, which sends a positive signal regarding trade liberalization and economic globalization to the world, said Li. This will also help advance China's economic and trade cooperation with Latin American countries and countries of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur), to achieve multi-win outcomes, said Li. Mercosur, which was founded in 1991, includes Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela. In addition, the premier proposed that cooperation with Uruguay in the areas of infrastructure, agriculture and animal husbandry, and clean energy be enhanced. China is willing to work with Uruguay to enhance high-level contact as well as mutual understanding and support on issues concerning each other's core interests, said Li. He also suggested the two sides maintain communication and coordination on international affairs and increase people-to-people exchanges, to improve ties. Vazquez agreed with Li that further deepening cooperation in economic and trade, investment, finance, science and technology and culture would be advantageous to both sides. Uruguay supports free trade and the integration of regional cooperation,he said, adding that Uruguay is ready to push forward the negotiation and signing of a free trade agreement with China. He welcomed Chinese enterprises to increase investment in Uruguay. He said Uruguay is willing to promote the development of relations between Mercosur countries and China. Earlier Wednesday, top legislator Zhang Dejiang met with Vazquez, pledging to further strengthen cooperation between China's National People's Congress and National Congress of Uruguay. Vazquez said Uruguay is ready to enhance parliamentary links with China. BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- China on Wednesday urged Japan to face up to history after two cabinet ministers visited the notorious Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo during the annual Autumn Festival. The two ministers were Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Sanae Takaichi and Katsunobu Kato, minister for promoting dynamic engagement of all citizens. Both cabinet ministers are close allies of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who himself visited the shrine on Monday. "[The fact] that Japanese Cabinet members visit the Yasukuni Shrine, which not only honors Class-A convicted war criminals but also beautifies war, again, reflects the Japanese government's unhealthy attitude toward its past transgressions," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a daily press briefing. "China is firmly opposed to this," she said. NAIROBI, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's newly-appointed Chief Justice David Maraga has pledged to prioritize the fight against corruption and resolve any election disputes in the 2017 elections. Justice Maraga, who was sworn in office on Wednesday by President Uhuru Kenyatta, pledged to improve service delivery in the justice sector by eliminating corruption within its ranks, reduce the backlog of cases and automate court proceedings. "I will aspire to enhance access to justice for all and improve performance and accountability within the judiciary," said Maraga, who became the 17th chief justice of Kenya. Maraga also assured Kenyans that the judiciary is ready to satisfactorily determine any disputes arising from the electioneering process. He added that the judiciary shall continue investing in cultivating trust and confidence of the citizenry in its arbitral role in electoral disputes. Speaking at the event, Kenyatta said the executive is keen to partner with the judiciary in ensuring Kenyans receive efficient services. Kenyatta noted that in the last five years, Kenyans have witnessed changes in the judiciary but he added that the reforms will be meaningless unless Kenyans get quick and effective judicial services. A Syrian government soldier walks past a ruin in the city of Aleppo in northern Syria, Sept. 12, 2016.(Xinhua Photo) DAMASCUS, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that units of the Syrian army have pulled back to allow the rebels to leave the eastern part of Aleppo city in northern Syria, state news agency SANA reported. In a statement, the ministry said the military forces withdrew from certain areas, giving the rebels two roads to leave Aleppo toward the northwestern city of Idlib, as part of a truce recently declared by Russia, which allows the ultra-radical rebels in Aleppo to leave. It stressed that arrangements for evacuating rebels and civilians from eastern Aleppo were finalized, pointing out that rebels who surrender themselves will be covered under an amnesty from President Bashar al-Assad. The ministry also noted that it is exerting all possible efforts to secure the evacuation of civilians and rebels from eastern Aleppo, and deliver aid to the people who will stay inside that part of the city. The Syrian government and Russia have recently urged the rebels in Aleppo to leave, offering them safe passages. Staffan de Mistura, the UN special envoy to Syria, recently proposed the evacuation of the ultra-radical groups from eastern Aleppo, so that the Russian and the Syrian air forces could halt their airstrikes against that part of the city. JUBA, Oct.19 (Xinhua) -- South Sudanese President Salva Kiir on Wednesday pledged to pursue perpetrators of ethnic violence in the country's Equatoria region which has seen an increase in targeted killings in recent weeks. President Kiir told hundreds of supporters of the ruling Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) party in Juba that he will take direct command of the fight against ethnic violence if the country's security operatives agencies fail to stop the killings. The government said last week that at least 95 lives have been lost in targeted killings along major roads across South Sudan since September. The president accused groups plotting to put his country under foreign intervention of spearheading the violence, adding that the 4,000 strong UN protection approved by the Security Council in August will not solve the country's unrest. He called on all South Sudanese to embrace peace and reconciliation in the young African country which has suffered civil unrest since December 2013. "This is a political incitement and it is done by people who want to urge the international community to bring in the UN intervention force. But even if the intervention forces come here, the people who are calling you will never love it," Kiir said. "To transform this country to a democratic, just and prosperous nation, there is a need to urgently return peace to this country. And today, I commission all of you in the SPLM to go out into our country and preach peace and reconciliation among our people," he added. TV staff rehearse live broadcasting for the Final Presidential Debate at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) in Las Vegas, Nevada, the United States, Oct. 19, 2016. The third and also the final presidential debate between the Democratic and Republican nominees, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, will be held here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu) by Xinhua writer Zhu Lei LAS VEGAS/NEW YORK, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- New revelations about U.S. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's email controversy is to provide new ammunition for her Republican rival Donald Trump in their third and final presidential debate. Adding to voters concern amid Trump's claim that the Nov. 8 election was rigged against him, the line of attack on emails may hurt Clinton in the final stretch of their race to the White House, political analysts said. But it will not help Trump either to regain a footing in women voters and undecided voters as Clinton will sharpen an old weapon in her hand by attacking the New York real estate billionaire over women accusations of his sexual misconduct, they said. RIGGED ELECTION & EMAILS In their 90-minute showdown due on Wednesday night in Las Vegas, Trump is expected "to focus on the election being 'rigged' by the media and the Clinton campaign and economic interests," Robert Shapiro, a professor and former chair of the Department of Political Science at Columbia University, told Xinhua. "He will especially bring up the WikiLeaks emails and other emails that incriminate the Clinton campaign," he said. The email scandal was once again thrust into the presidential campaign on Monday when the FBI published documents containing the allegation of the State Department trying to arrange a "quid pro quo" to reduce the classification of an email from Clinton's private server regarding the deadly 2012 attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya. The emails "will be a line of attack" as the moderator -- Chris Wallace - will also bring this up since he is from Fox News which has been covering this scandal extensively, the professor said. Dave Robertson, professor and chair of Department of Political Science at the University of Missouri, also believed that Trump will criticize Clinton harshly for the latest email disclosure. Trump "will charge that the State Department under her leadership was corrupt because it tried to cover up embarrassing information," he told Xinhua. But both professors believed that the new accusations against Clinton will carry limited killing power as the emails scandal which has been unfolding for over a year has already inflicted wounds on the trustworthiness of the former secretary of state and the first lady. As for Trump's claims of "rigged election," it will "mobilize Trump's base but I do not think it will persuade many undecided voters to vote for him," Prof. Shapiro said. Days into their final face-off, Trump has been voicing doubts that massive fraud is rigging the election against him. "The election is absolutely being rigged by the dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary - but also at many polling places - SAD," Trump wrote on Twitter on Sunday, without providing details. "Many of Trump's voters may accept his claim that the election is rigged, but most other voters will reject it," Prof. Robertson said. "It will not turn the tide in Trump's favor." "A number of Americans, however, are concerned that a few of Trump's supporters would use this claim as an excuse for violence on Election Day and after an election defeat," he added. WOMEN VOTERS & OCTOBER SURPRISE With the Election Day less than three weeks away and early voting already underway in many battleground states, the final debate is one of the candidates' last chances to get in front of millions of viewers and sway their minds. "Clinton will criticize Trump's issue positions that have been outrageous and/or showed his incompetence," Prof. Shapiro said. She will also open fire on Trump over a series of allegations of sexual assault in the wake of the exposure of a lewd 2005 tape in which Trump bragged in obscene languages about forcing himself on women sexually. Despite scandals ranging from allegations of mafia ties to exploitative business dealings, and to racist and sexist comments, Trump, a reality TV star who has never been elected to public office, forced his way through the Republican primaries and ran, for a time, neck and neck with Clinton in national polls. However, the bombshell of the vulgar tape dropped before the second presidential debate roiled his already momentum-stalling campaign and the deeply-divided Republican Party. Despite Trump's insistence the comments were "locker room talk," a number of women have stepped forward to claim that they were assaulted by the Republican nominee, who denied their accusations. The tape scandal built on growing questions about Trump's character since the first debate, including post-debate comments that personally attacked the 1996 Miss Universe winner Alicia Machado, Prof. Robertson said. "The tape seemed to verify the worst fear of people, especially women, that Trump did not understand that his conduct was inappropriate and opened him to charges that he had sexually assaulted women," he added. Prof. Shapiro believed that the scandal with deeper and festering self-inflicted wounds "will be very big in mobilizing women voters, especially better education ones, to support Hillary." "Also in causing at least a small percentage of normally Republican voters to not vote for him -- though they are not likely to vote for Hillary, so that they might vote for a third party candidate or not vote for president; or not vote at all," he predicted. With the polls tipping heavily in favor of Clinton, "Trump no longer has any influence over the outcome of the election. There is no new strategy he can pursue to win the election," Prof. Robertson said. To win the required 270 Electoral College votes to the presidency, Trump needs Clinton to make a fatal mistake or an event or revelation that wrecks her chances of winning, he said. "Every day, an October Surprise is less likely and an October surprise would have to be bigger and bigger to get attention. It is increasingly difficult to think of an event or revelation that would eliminate Clinton's growing lead in the Electoral College," he said. BERLIN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- European Space Agency (ESA) announced at its mission control center in German city of Darmstadt on Wednesday evening that its Mars exploration project ExoMars had arrived at the Red Planet after receiving signals from the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO). However, the ESA could not get the signals from the Schiaparelli lander as it was supposed to land at 4:48 p.m. local time in Germany (1448 GMT), because radio contact was lost before landing. At this moment, it is unclear how Schiaparelli landed or whether it is harmed. "The ground control team at ESA's space operations center are going to work all night to analyze the data on the ExoMars Schiaparelli lander. More at the press conference tomorrow," the ESA said on its Facebook account. ExoMars, a joint endeavor between the ESA and Russia's Roscosmos space agencies, comprises the TGO and the Schiaparelli lander. TGO is on a multi-year mission to understand the methane and other gases in Mars' atmosphere at low levels, and could be evidence for possible biological or geological activity, while Schiaparelli lander will test key technologies in preparation for ESA's ExoMars 2020 rover mission. UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous will travel to Morocco, Western Sahara and an Algerian province called Tindouf on Oct. 21-25 to visit the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), a UN spokesman said here Wednesday. "The visit will be an opportunity for him to speak to the parties to the conflict and encourage their adherence to the terms and the spirit of the ceasefire agreement," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here. "In Laayoune, Mr. Ladsous will assess the situation on the ground and evaluate the progress towards the return of the Mission to full functionality." During the course of the visit, he is also expected to visit Guerguerat, the site of recent increased tensions between Morocco and the Frente Polisario, to evaluate the situation there, and assess the difficult conditions facing UN military observers in the location, he said. Ladsous will then travel to Paris on Oct. 26 to participate in a ministerial conference on peacekeeping in Francophone countries, the spokesman added. This file photo taken on September 27, 2016 shows Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton (R) speaking during the first presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York on September 26, 2016, and Republican nominee Donald Trump (L) speaking during the first presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. (AFP PHOTO / Paul J. Richards) By Matthew Rusling Las Vegas, the United States, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton is leading in the polls, but she needs to deliver a knockout blow to Republic opponent Donald Trump in Wednesday's third and final presidential debate to truly solidify her lead. The event comes not long after the second debate 10 days earlier, which saw Clinton speak eloquently about foreign and domestic policy but fail to deliver a knockout blow to crush her opponent. While the former secretary of state showed an impressive understanding of U.S. foreign policy, she allowed Trump to dominate the conversation during much of the debate, and at times appeared at a loss for a punchy comeback to Trump's many accusations of corruption. The lead-up to the previous debate saw pundits predicting that Trump would crash and burn at that debate, given the release of the tapes in which Trump made lewd sexist remarks. But Clinton was unable to capitalize on this, despite it being there for the taking, and Trump spent much of the debate hurling accusations against her for her alleged corruption. The most obvious way to hit Trump hard in the final debate would be to focus on the slew of accusations that have been piling up over the last week - which Trump strongly denies - that the billionaire is a serial sexual harasser. Indeed, several women have come forward over the past week alleging that Trump groped, fondled and kissed them without their consent. But it remains unknown whether Clinton will hit him on this issue or remain cautious, perhaps waiting for Trump to make a mistake and shoot himself in the foot, as he has so often done with his outlandish remarks and over-the-top comments. "Heading into the third debate, Clinton has the challenge of deciding whether to push hard on Trump-to both fire up her base as well as to present a clear alternative for moderate voters-versus again remaining cautious and letting Trump damage himself," Dan Mahaffee, an analyst with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, told Xinhua, noting that Clinton's strategy during the previous debate was one of caution. "She has to carefully thread the needle between firing up the Democratic base and reaching out to moderates who know they won't vote for Trump, but aren't sure they want to vote for Clinton," Mahaffee said. Clinton's other main challenge will be to appear approachable, as Americans like their leaders to look like they can understand the struggles of ordinary Americans - especially at a time when the economy has not fully recovered from the 2007-2008 economic nose dive. "Her biggest challenge is connecting with people and making them feel she cares about them," Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Darrell West told Xinhua. While Clinton is well-versed in foreign and domestic policy issues, Americans watching the debate are more likely to pay attention to whether she shows empathy toward every day Americans. "It is less what she knows about the issues than how she expresses herself and demonstrates that she shares people's values. She has to be careful that Trump doesn't pigeon-hole her as the candidate of the status quo and himself as the agent of change," West said, referring to Trump's claims that he is able to turn the country around for the better. Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University, told Xinhua that there is a virtue, politically, for Clinton to let Trump be Trump. "The key though is to be present enough to energize the coalition that she will need for victory and keep supporters excited for the post-election period, if she wins," he said. West added that this debate is important but it is likely to be seen by fewer viewers than either of the first two debates. "Most people tend to watch the first debate than the last one so that is the reason the first one often is the most important," he said. After this debate, it will be hard for either candidate to command the size of audience seen in this debate. News coverage of speeches and rallies doesn't get the same readership and viewership as television debates, West noted. UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The UN Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Wednesday voiced concern over the marked rise of child casualties in Afghanistan this year UNAMA said that 639 Afghan children were killed and 1,822 injured in the first nine months of 2016, up 15 percent compared to the same period in 2015, despite the fact that overall conflict-related civilian casualty numbers in Afghanistan fell by one percent in the same period. It called for stepped-up efforts to protect civilians in the country, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here on Wednesday. During the period, nearly 8,397 conflict-related civilian casualties, including more than 2,562 deaths and 5,835 injured, were reported in Afghanistan between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30 this year, according the latest figures released by UNAMA. Emphasizing the need to protect children, UNAMA Human Rights Director Danielle Belle said, "All parties must systematically track, mark and clear unexploded ordinance in order to protect current and future generations of children from harm." The mission also noted a total of 877 women civilian casualties (240 deaths and 637 injured). This number had dropped 12 percent from last year, primarily due to fewer women casualties from suicide and complex attacks, as well as from improvised explosive devices (IEDs). "Ground engagements remained the largest cause of civilian casualties, followed by suicide attacks and improvised explosive devices," the spokesman said. "Increased fighting in densely populated areas makes it imperative for parties to take immediate steps to ensure all feasible precautions are being taken to spare civilians from harm," the special representative of the UN secretary-general for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA, Tadamichi Yamamoto, said Wednesday in a news release issued by the mission. CAIRO, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Arab League (AL) expressed Wednesday hope for the success of the proposed truce in war-torn Yemen that is scheduled to be implemented later at midnight, the pan-Arab body said in a statement. The statement said that AL Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit discussed the details of the truce over the phone Wednesday with the United Nations special envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed. "He listened to the most important dimensions of the truce proposed by the UN envoy and the results of Ahmed's latest communication with Yemeni, regional and international parties involved," the statement added. The AL chief expressed appreciation of the efforts made by the UN envoy to reach the truce, hoping for its success to pave the way for its extension and for returning to negotiations to reach a settlement in Yemen. The UN-proposed three-day truce in Yemen is scheduled to take effect early Thursday. A number of Yemeni provinces have become battlefield for constant clashes between supporters of fleeing President Abd-Rabbo Mansour Hadi and the Shiite Houthi fighters since March 2015. Meanwhile, an Arab military coalition led by Saudi Arabia has been launching deadly airstrikes against Houthi targets, the most recent of which killed at least 140 at a funeral in Yemeni capital Sanaa but the coalition said it was "wrongly targeted." Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (L) and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton participate in the second presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis, the United States, on Oct. 9, 2016. (Xinhua/File Photo/Yin Bogu) by Xinhua writer Zhu Lei LAS VEGAS/NEW YORK, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- New revelations about U.S. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's email controversy is to provide new ammunition for her Republican rival Donald Trump in their third and final presidential debate. Adding to voters concern amid Trump's claim that the Nov. 8 election was rigged against him, the line of attack on emails may hurt Clinton in the final stretch of their race to the White House, political analysts said. But it will not help Trump either to regain a footing in women voters and undecided voters as Clinton will sharpen an old weapon in her hand by attacking the New York real estate billionaire over women accusations of his sexual misconduct, they said. RIGGED ELECTION & EMAILS In their 90-minute showdown due on Wednesday night in Las Vegas, Trump is expected "to focus on the election being 'rigged' by the media and the Clinton campaign and economic interests," Robert Shapiro, a professor and former chair of the Department of Political Science at Columbia University, told Xinhua. "He will especially bring up the WikiLeaks emails and other emails that incriminate the Clinton campaign," he said. The email scandal was once again thrust into the presidential campaign on Monday when the FBI published documents containing the allegation of the State Department trying to arrange a "quid pro quo" to reduce the classification of an email from Clinton's private server regarding the deadly 2012 attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya. The emails "will be a line of attack" as the moderator -- Chris Wallace - will also bring this up since he is from Fox News which has been covering this scandal extensively, the professor said. Dave Robertson, professor and chair of Department of Political Science at the University of Missouri, also believed that Trump will criticize Clinton harshly for the latest email disclosure. Trump "will charge that the State Department under her leadership was corrupt because it tried to cover up embarrassing information," he told Xinhua. But both professors believed that the new accusations against Clinton will carry limited killing power as the emails scandal which has been unfolding for over a year has already inflicted wounds on the trustworthiness of the former secretary of state and the first lady. As for Trump's claims of "rigged election," it will "mobilize Trump's base but I do not think it will persuade many undecided voters to vote for him," Prof. Shapiro said. Days into their final face-off, Trump has been voicing doubts that massive fraud is rigging the election against him. "The election is absolutely being rigged by the dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary - but also at many polling places - SAD," Trump wrote on Twitter on Sunday, without providing details. "Many of Trump's voters may accept his claim that the election is rigged, but most other voters will reject it," Prof. Robertson said. "It will not turn the tide in Trump's favor." "A number of Americans, however, are concerned that a few of Trump's supporters would use this claim as an excuse for violence on Election Day and after an election defeat," he added. WOMEN VOTERS & OCTOBER SURPRISE With the Election Day less than three weeks away and early voting already underway in many battleground states, the final debate is one of the candidates' last chances to get in front of millions of viewers and sway their minds. "Clinton will criticize Trump's issue positions that have been outrageous and/or showed his incompetence," Prof. Shapiro said. She will also open fire on Trump over a series of allegations of sexual assault in the wake of the exposure of a lewd 2005 tape in which Trump bragged in obscene languages about forcing himself on women sexually. Despite scandals ranging from allegations of mafia ties to exploitative business dealings, and to racist and sexist comments, Trump, a reality TV star who has never been elected to public office, forced his way through the Republican primaries and ran, for a time, neck and neck with Clinton in national polls. However, the bombshell of the vulgar tape dropped before the second presidential debate roiled his already momentum-stalling campaign and the deeply-divided Republican Party. Despite Trump's insistence the comments were "locker room talk," a number of women have stepped forward to claim that they were assaulted by the Republican nominee, who denied their accusations. The tape scandal built on growing questions about Trump's character since the first debate, including post-debate comments that personally attacked the 1996 Miss Universe winner Alicia Machado, Prof. Robertson said. "The tape seemed to verify the worst fear of people, especially women, that Trump did not understand that his conduct was inappropriate and opened him to charges that he had sexually assaulted women," he added. Prof. Shapiro believed that the scandal with deeper and festering self-inflicted wounds "will be very big in mobilizing women voters, especially better education ones, to support Hillary." "Also in causing at least a small percentage of normally Republican voters to not vote for him -- though they are not likely to vote for Hillary, so that they might vote for a third party candidate or not vote for president; or not vote at all," he predicted. With the polls tipping heavily in favor of Clinton, "Trump no longer has any influence over the outcome of the election. There is no new strategy he can pursue to win the election," Prof. Robertson said. To win the required 270 Electoral College votes to the presidency, Trump needs Clinton to make a fatal mistake or an event or revelation that wrecks her chances of winning, he said. "Every day, an October Surprise is less likely and an October surprise would have to be bigger and bigger to get attention. It is increasingly difficult to think of an event or revelation that would eliminate Clinton's growing lead in the Electoral College," he said. The Iraqi army and the Kurdish Peshmerga forces launch military operations in Khazar village, 35 kilometers south of Mosul, Iraq, on Oct. 18, 2016. Iraqi security forces on Tuesday recaptured more villages from the Islamic State (IS) militants, as part of a major offensive aimed at liberating the city of Mosul, the last major IS stronghold in Iraq, a security source said. (Xinhua/Jaser Jawad) MOSUL, Iraq, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi security forces on Wednesday continued fighting against the Islamic State (IS) militants in their all-out offensive to free the city of Mosul, while the Kurdish Peshmerga forces repelled an IS attack on the town of Sinjar and killed 47 militants, security sources said. In the third day of the offensive, the troops fought sporadic clashes with IS militants in several areas in northeast and east of Mosul, while the Peshmerga forces shelled IS positions with artillery and mortar rounds near the towns of Bashiqa and Butilla in northeast of Mosul, a security source from the Operations Command of Nineveh Liberation told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. Meanwhile, the Iraqi army continued their clashes with IS militants at the edge of the town of Hamdaniyah, some 40 km southeast of Mosul, after repeated attempts to enter the town after the militants showed stiff resistance, the source said. In south of Mosul, the Iraqi security forces and allied paramilitary Sunni and Shiite Hashd Shaabi units recaptured the villages of al-Bakr, Siewah, Najma, Osmaniyah Rafla and Zawiya while moving north to the IS-held town of Shoura, some 30km south of Mosul, the source added. Separately, the Kurdish Peshmerga forces repelled an attack by dozens of IS militants with three suicide car bombs from three directions on the military positions outside the town of Sinjar, some 100 km west of the IS-held city of Mosul, Brigadier General Luqman al-Khansouri, commander of the town's security forces, told Xinhua. The troops destroyed the three suicide car bombs and killed up to 47 extremist militants after several hours of fierce clashes, Khansouri said, adding that three Peshmerga members sustained serious wounds and were evacuated to the town hospital. Early on Monday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is also the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi forces, announced the start of a major offensive to retake the country's second largest city from the extremist IS group. "Today I declare the launch of the operation of liberating Nineveh province. The time of victory has come, and the moment of the great victory is approaching," Abadi said in a brief address aired on Al Iraqiya. Mosul, some 400 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, has been under IS control since June 2014, when Iraqi government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to take control of parts of Iraq's northern and western regions. Related: Spotlight: Iraq's operation to liberate Mosul receives international support amid humanitarian concerns BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi security forces on Monday launched a major offensive aimed at liberating the city of Mosul, the last major stronghold of Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq. BRASILIA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's left-leaning former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva leads the list of potential candidates to run in the 2018 presidential race, despite his recent legal troubles, according to a poll released on Wednesday. The survey, commissioned by the National Confederation of Transport (CNT) and carried out by pollster MDA, confirms the results of a separate poll published on Tuesday by polling firm Vox Populi. The open-ended MDA poll, which let those queried propose their own possible candidates, as opposed to being given a list of names to select from, found Lula led with 11.4 percent support. The next closest candidates received only around 3 percent support, including Jair Bolsonaro of the conservative Social Christian Party (3.3 percent), Aecio Neves of the centrist Brazilian Social Democracy Party (3.1 percent), and current interim President Michel Temer of the center-right Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (3 percent). Lula, of the Workers' Party (PT), has been accused of corruption in relation to Operation Carwash, a long-running investigation into spawling high-level graft. He has denied the accusations, and claimed they are politically motivated to prevent him from returning to the elections. When presented with a list of potential candidates, 24.8 percent of those queried chose Lula, distantly followed by Neves (15.7 percent). The MDA survey polled 2,002 people in 137 cities from Oct. 13 to 16. Barbados looking at sugar reactivation Sinckler dropped the information during a Barbados Investor Forum last Monday at the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre, St. Anns. The forum was hosted by ANSA Merchant Bank, a subsidiary of the ANSA McAL Group and attended by the Governor of the Barbados Central Bank Dr DeLisle Worrell. Sinckler said the Government of Barbados is reforming the sugar industry and will have to finance it to the tune of BDS$100 million, including BDS$52 million of pure debt. He said the reformation will include the upgrading of two existing sugar factories and the government will partner with the West Indies Sugar Trading Company (WISTCO) to grow and market direct consumption sugar. Sinckler said the government wanted to reverse the current arrangement where the country exports the sugar it produces and imports to meet local demand to an arrangement where it reduces imports of sugar, in the process saving foreign exchange, and produces to the level of current demand at higher prices. In fact, we have imperical statistics to show that Barbadians pay as much as $1.20 more per kilogramme for sugar produced in Barbados than they would for the cheaper sugar coming from outside of Barbados. The Finance Minister said Barbados is aiming to increase production to 25-30,000 tonnes of sugar for domestic consumption and sell the excess as specialised Plantation Reserve sugar, a brand created following the forging of the WISTCO partnership in 2008, to Caricom markets as well as to high value importers in the United States; United Kingdom; the Middle East and even as far away as China. He added that the Barbados government had retained PricewaterhouseCoopers to design a restructuring plan for the operational end of the sugar industry - the Barbados Agricultural Marketing Company (BAMC); the Barbados Agricultural Credit Trust, the overall holding company for the whole venture and the Barbados Sugarcane Corporation,which, he said was the company which is supposed to drive the entire reform process. He said the plan is to bring all these entities into one company, create efficiencies and move it into an accellerated implementation. Barbados Minister of Agriculture has been quoted as saying that the direct consumption concept, has created BD$1.98 million (US$990,000) in added- value to the industry above the world sugar price in 2013. And while there has only been a limited amount of direct consumption sugar available to date, the success of the brand across multiple countries forms the basis for expanding direct consumption sugar production and creating a genuinely profitable industry in the future. Cop: Man tried to run me off road Bharath pleaded guilty. Magistrate Singh-Phillip asked Bharath if he would consider enrolling in an Alcohol Anonymous programme and when the defendant agreed the matter was adjourned to yesterday for further mitigation and sentence. Bharaths attorney Frank Gittens yesterday told Magistrate Singh-Phillip the reason why the defendant did not subject himself to being tested, was because he had been drinking, but he had gone home and slept and he did not think he had alcohol in his breath. The attorney submitted that Bharath wanted to apologise to PC Ramcharan, but the police officer remarked, Im not accepting any apology. PC Ramcharan told the court yesterday that he has filed a report about an incident on October 14, involving the defendant and himself. Ramcharan said he was driving towards his home in Debe, when a red truck drove very close to him from behind. He said he recognised the driver of the truck. Ramcharan said he then drove to the San Fernando Police Station where he reported being almost run off the road. Magistrate Singh-Phillip said she could not consider the alleged incident as a factor in sentencing. She then fined Bharath $2,500 and allowed him a months time to pay. I witnessed murder They then they took the body to a canefield road, but he (the eyewitness) escaped in the darkness of the night and called the police. The shooting death of Andrew Richardson took place in Oropouche, South Trinidad 11 years ago and on trial in the San Fernando High Court for the murder is Adrian Hosein. The State is leading evidence that on October 7, 2005, Hosein, Richardson, Chris Jackman and two other friends James and Francis, were liming. Senior State attorney Shabaana Shah, instructed by Hema Soondarsingh, led evidence from Jackman who testified they had all driven to what he described as a rubbish heap in Oropouche where they retrieved a gun. Hosein, Jackman said: A shot went off. Then I saw Adrian shoot meh step cousin (Richardson) right dey. I saw Adrian put the gun to meh step cousin head and ah heard an explosion. Jackman said he pleaded for Richardson to be taken to hospital. Instead, the States main witness said, they drove to the M2 Ring Road where Hosein dragged the body out of the car. Jackman said that he got out of the car and ran through the canefield, crossed a savannah and eventually came upon a huge drain. He emerged by Dickies Bar, saw a man whom he knew and borrowed his cellphone to contact the police. Jackman said he and officers journeyed back to the canefield and when they arrived, they heard gunshots. I was in the police vehicle. They bring out Adrian from the cane and put him in the back of the van. Defence attorney El Farouk Hosein began his cross-examination of Jackman yesterday. Cleric: They are all innocent A Ministry press release stated that Dominic Pitilal, Wade Charles, Leslie Daisley, Andre Battersby and Asim Luqman, who have been incarcerated in Venezuela since March 19, 2014, would be returning home after being convicted of terrorism charges. Contacted for comment, Abdullah told Newsday they were informed that the men were acquitted of the charges and are returning home as innocent men. I am not going to change my position. I was reliably informed that these five would be returning home innocent of all charges, said Abdullah. It is my information that the five have been cleared of all matters. I understand that (National Security Minister Edmund) Dillon has said otherwise, but I will address that matter further, once the men return home. Abdullah said that he and his organisation are at the moment focused on having the five returned home safely. Newsday was told that officials at the Servicio Bolivariano de Intellgencia National (SE BIN) prison have completed all the paperwork for the release of the men, which will be forwarded to the Venezuelan immigration department for processing. It is hoped the men would be back home and with their families this weekend. Abdullah said he was brought to tears when he received news that the five would be released. This has been a trying experience for everyone involved. We have been through many ups and downs, and we have experienced several challenges. The rights of these five men have been trampled upon. There has been a total disregard for their rights. Even in the trial, there were several inconsistencies. This has been a real struggle, but at last we are almost at the end of this experience. We are just waiting for our boys to come home Abdullah said that he has reached out to Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh, to assist in arranging a quarantine zone for the men so that they can be checked for diseases before they go to their families. Each of these men and their families have to pick up the pieces of their lives after this experience, Abdullah said. Dad of 5 murdered Dead is Mark Worrell, 41, of Martha Street, Lisas Boulevard, Couva. Worrell who sustained gunshot wounds to his neck, chest and legs, died on the spot. According to a police report, at about 12.10 am Worrell was walking along the road near Annabelle Street in Couva, when a vehicle pulled up alongside him. Two masked men pointed guns at Worrell and began shooting. Eyewitness told investigators that Worrell ran in the opposite direction but the men followed and continued shooting before driving off. A District Medical Officer visited the scene and ordered the body removed to the Forensic Science Centre in St James for autopsy. When Newsday visited the familys home yesterday, Worrells wife Karyl Dover, 31, said her husbands death had left the family traumatised. She recalled Worrell had left home shortly after 11 pm to attend the wake of an elderly woman in the community. Dover said later that night she was informed by a villager that her husband was shot. I did not want to believe it, but I went anyway to the scene to see my husbands body covered in blood, she said. Dover said she could not understand why her husband was killed. My husband never interfered with anyone. He worked day and night to take care of his family. He was the sole breadwinner of our family and now they robbed these innocent children of a father. How would I get money to feed five mouths, she cried. Worrell worked as a plumber. It is going to be really hard for me and my children. I do not even have money to buy food and clothing for them. My husband was the one who was working and he provided for us. I dont want my children to go hungry, so I am using this opportunity to ask for help. Please, I am begging as a mother, I really need your help. The children range in age from one to 12 years. Small hotels take charge While some might be concerned about it, the Caribbean chapter of the Inter-American and Caribbean Network of Small Hotels believes that this will enhance the product that it offers and aid in its further growth and development. The vice president (Caribbean) Denise Aleong-Thomas said in an interview with Newsday, With the advent of Sandals, I think that is a great opportunity for sm all hotels to motivate us. To help us to raise our game in terms of standards and quality. The network is set to host its fourth encounter in TT. The first being held in Costa Rica in 2013. The event takes place tomorrow and Friday at the University Inn and Conference Centre, St Augustine Circular Road, St Augustine. Its theme is Sustainability, Marketing and Competitiveness of Small Hotels. The network, she added, represents the small lodging facilities with one to 75 rooms. The organisation represents the small facilities within the 35 countries represented by the Organisation of American States (OAS). Its base is composed of small lodgings from Latin American, South American, Central American, North American and the Caribbean region. Participants attending the two-day event are expected to come from Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Honduras, Ecuador, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Columbia, Panama and Guatemala. With the falling oil prices and TTs drive to broaden its economic base, the tourism sector has been viewed as a viable means by which to do so. It was reported that the region has had major growth in the industry. The Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) said in a 2016 article by www.trbusiness.com that the Caribbean outperformed every other major tourism region in 2015. The February 2016 report said, Management says 2015 was the second consecutive year that the region has outperformed the rest of the world and the sixth consecutive growth year for the Caribbean. Hugh Riley, CTO secretary general said tourism grew around seven percent to 28.7 million visits, much higher than the projected four to five percent and way above the global World Tourism Organization rate of 4.4 percent. The Oxford Business Group (www.oxfordbusinessgroup.com) in a blurb to an interview with Tourism Minister Shamfa Cudjoe, noted, As Trinidad and Tobago continues to feel the impact of lower energy receipts, the tourism sector is emerging as a strategic development priority. Elected in September 2015, the government of [Dr] Keith Rowley is placing a renewed emphasis on economic diversification to help the TT$175.99bn (US$27.1bn) economy weather the downturn in the global energy market. Tourism, along with agriculture and manufacturing, has been identified as strategic in that quest. Despite the recessionary environment, TT saw an upsurge in visitor arrivals which increased by 6.6 percent in 2015 to reach 439,749 visitors highlighting the sectors resilience. The US accounted for 39 per cent of international arrivals, followed by Canada (13%), the UK (9%), Scandinavia (2%), Germany, Austria and Switzerland (2%), India (1%), the Caribbean (18%) and the rest of the world (16%). To accelerate growth a number of efforts are underway to raise the profile of key tourist sites, improve service standards and develop human capital. Aleong-Thomas, also the immediate past president of the Small Tourism Accommodation Owners of Trinidad and Tobago (STAOTT) said, The objective of the network is to collaborate among small hotel owners and operators to share best practices, to share experiences in the area of sustainability and marketing and innovation for small hotels. The thing about it is, small tourist accommodations comprise 80 percent of the room stock within TT. The preference for guests, for example, within the marketplace for tourist accommodation, most people are going for the non-traditional hotel accommodation like the bed and breakfast facility, the self-catering facilities, the boutique hotels, the inns etc. She said in that way the small hotel industry would become competitive not just among themselves but competitive within the entire marketplace. While Aleong-Thomas said, the small hotels were unable to compete with Sandals or any of the other bigger brands, it also provided an opportunity for the small hotels [to] create unique branding. She said smaller hotels give tourists an opportunity to experience the destination, in a more intimate and personalised way. Actually it creates that memorable experience a tourist would like to have when they go to a destination. Small hotels, she added, were snug in the middle of communities and therefore allowed for the further growth of community tourism. Among topics to be discussed at the event are community tourism, sustainable tourism through agriculture, tourism product versus hotel room and marketing through festival tourism. Minister of Tourism, Shamfa Cudjoe, is scheduled to deliver the feature address tomorrow. St Lucias Minister of Tourism, Dominic Fedee, is also expected to attend. It is the aim of the small hotels to sell a unique packaged product, Aleong-Thomas said. So that when someone comes to our property or destination we are not just offering accommodation but everything else that goes with the destination. I see our role as a major role. I see our role as being the driver of diversifying the economy. When we market our properties we are not just marketing the particular property or hotel, but the destination as well. The small hotels, she said, were not afraid of losing business to Sandals. In fact, Aleong-Thomas said, it might work in its advantage since, not all tourists wish to stay at large spaces. She said the small hotels main resource was the human resource. In recessionary times, she added, the small hotel also provided a unique experience at a more affordable rate. Soon, it will be illegal to feed homeless on street Once signed into law by the President, it will prohibit members of the public from giving food to homeless persons anywhere other than the Citys Court Shamrock Centre for Socially Displaced persons on Independence Avenue. According to San Fernando Mayor Kazim Hosein, a fine for breaching the bye-law would be worked out this morning by the relevant parties. Asked for the rationale behind the bye-law, Mayor Hosein said to Newsday in a brief telephone interview that it was in order to keep the city clean by assembling all the homeless in a single area. The Mayor has previously expressed his intentions in the media to rid the Citys streets of homeless persons to protect both them and the public. Trevor Brathwaite, manager of the Court Shamrock Centre expressed to Newsday his gratitude to the Council upon hearing of the decision. I say thank God. Today is our (Court Shamrocks) 17 anniversary so this is welcomed news for us. Thank God. Feeding the displaced on the streets, said Brathwaite, only encourages them to remain on the streets. He said that members of the public wanting to feed the homeless could continue to do so at the Centre. Speaking later in the meeting, the Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr Navi Muradali, announced plans to create of a central database through which all complaints, whether they are sent via email, letter, or on social media, would be funnelled. The database would be accessible by the heads of all relevant departments and allow for the real time feedback to the public as many complained to him of never receiving feedback for their complaints. Muradali announced the plans during his reflection on the Public Health Department Strategic Planning Workshop 2017-2020 held on September 27. Muradali said the workshop was held to rectify two fundamental problems with public health that required long term policy guidelines. According to Muradali, 80 percent of the issues dealt with by the public health administration were internal administrative issues. That is an injustice to the people of San Fernando that we have to address, he said. Further, he said that 70 to 80 percent of the work done by his department concerns complains made by the public which, according to him, meant that they were not proactive enough in their approach to public health which caused inefficiency and wastage of time. Give EBC power to deal with election issues In submissions before Chief Justice Ivor Archie and Justices of Appeal Allan Mendonca and Peter Jamadar, lead counsel for the PNMs victorious candidates in the five electoral districts being challenged in the UNC petitions, Douglas Mendes SC, invited the judges to modify the provision (of law) causing the problems. In response to acknowledgement by the judges that they had some disquiet over giving the EBC the power over the polls, Mendes suggested they stick to the narrow issue of possible extension of voting hours due to inclement weather, as had been the case at the polls last year. The Opposition party has appealed a judges decision to dismiss its five election petitions challenging the result of the general election while the EBC has appealed the judges finding that the commission acted illegally. In her ruling in August, Justice Mira Dean-Armorer rejected the UNCs claim that the election should be invalidated because the EBC allowed an extension of the poll by one hour due to heavy rainfall in Trinidad. While Dean-Armorer agreed with the UNC that the EBC acted illegally, she ruled its error did not materially affect the result of the election which was won by the PNM by a 23-18 margin. The UNC claims the judge erred in speculating over its decision to file petitions for only six marginal constituencies -San Fernando West, Tunapuna, St Joseph, Toco/Sangre Grande and Moruga/Tableland. Mendes said while the EBC was mandated with administering and supervising the conduct of the election in accordance with the law and rules, the question of what happens if something does take place arose, as had been the case on September 7. Questioned by Chief Justice Archie and Justice Jamadar on whether the power should be given to the President, who issues the election writ, or the EBC, Mendes was reluctant to have the power reside with the President as he had no power, other than that which the law gives him. He pointed out that the President has to consult with Cabinet and warned of the likelihood of giving power to one of the political parties contesting the election. Mendes said it made more sense to give the power to adjust the time-tabling of the polls to the body that has supervisory power over an election. He also disagreed with the contention that a single corrupt practice on the part of an election official could invalidate an election. Mendes also submitted even if the appellate court rules that the EBC did not have the power to extend the voting, the extension did not materially affect the outcome of the election. Hearing of the petition appeals continues today Point hospital gets anaesthetist Chattergoon told Newsday, The situation has been satisfactorily and successfully resolved so please let the people of Point Fortin and beyond know that women with obstetric and gynaecological concerns can be looked after properly and adequately at the PFAH where there are qualified specialists in the field, a functional operating theatre, theatre nurses and now a full-time anaesthetist to provide anaesthetic services if necessary. In an article published in Newsday on Monday, Chattergoon questioned the absence of a full time anaesthetist at the institution which he felt was putting the lives of pregnant women and their babies at risk. On Saturday, Chattergoon wrote Chairman of Board of the South Western Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) Dr Alexander Sinanan and his deputy Valerie Rawlins and sent copies to SWRHA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Anil Gosine and others in his attempt to have the matter resolved. The matter was even raised with Member of Parliament of Point Fortin Edmund Dillon. In Parliament on Monday morning during the meeting of the Standing Finance Committee, MP for Fyzabad Dr Lackram Bodoe asked about it and was informed that an anaethetist was finally assigned to the institution. Fire victim appeals for help According to reports, at just after midnight on Monday, Rampersads son Rajiv, 22, alerted her and her husband Michael who were asleep in an upstairs bedroom, about the fire. The inferno also destroyed a car and a boat which were parked in front of the building while a pick-up truck also sustained damage. A neighbours home also sustained some damage in the blaze. In a telephone interview yesterday, a still distraught Rampersad, said she had not received any assistance though the City Corporation had given her forms to receive assistance from the Ministry of Social Development as well as a food card. Everything gone to ashes, Rampersad said, my ID card, bank card, phones, everything. All I want is to build back a little room to start over and some groceries. She said the source of the fire had not yet been identified by the Fire Services. Anyone wishing to offer assistance can call 683-8345. Need political consensus for simultaneous elections: CEC Nasim Zaidi Delhi,National,Immigration/Law/Rights,Politics, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on Wednesday said that the Election Commission was ready to hold simultaneous Lok Sabha and state legislative polls if "certain conditions are met" and more resources are provided. One of the conditions, according to CEC Nasim Zaidi, was that there should be consensus among all political parties on the move. "The Commission can hold simultaneous elections," Zaidi said, adding that there were two things to be noted. "Firstly, several constitutional amendments will have to be made, and secondly there has to be a consensus among all the political parties," Zaidi told IANS on the sidelines of an international conference on voter education, here. "If these two things are done... then we can hold simultaneous elections. Of course, we would need extra resources... more electronic voting machines (EVMS), etc.," he added. He said that the Commission has already written to the Law Ministry about this. Though Zaidi stressed for greater voter participation for a meaningful electoral process, he ruled out the option of compulsory voting. He termed it "impractical" in the Indian context to punish those who were eligible but abstained from voting. "The provision of punishing people for not casting their votes is impractical in India given the sheer size of our electorate," he said. --IANS mak/in/sac 137 Cambodian school kids fall ill after eating contaminated food Cambodia,Crime/Disaster/Accident,Health/Medicine, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Phnom Penh, Oct 19 (IANS) At least 137 school children in Cambodia's Takeo province fell sick after eating tainted food distributed by a local volunteer group, officials said on Wednesday. The children fell ill on Tuesday afternoon, about four hours after they ate fried rice with egg, corn and sausage and drank milk and fresh water, Deputy Police Chief of Tram Kak district told Xinhua news agency. "They all have the same symptoms: vomiting and diarrhoea," he said, adding that they had been rushed to hospitals soon after the incident. The police chief said a sample of the tainted fried rice was sent to the provincial food safety bureau for examination. According to him, the contaminated food was distributed to the school children at Wat Tatai primary school by a group of students from a school in Phnom Penh. The police chief said that he and the group of students visited and made cash donation to the ill-fated children in hospitals on Wednesday afternoon and saw that they were all in stable condition. Checks on food are rare in Cambodia, where safety regulations are lax. Last month, the Ministry of Health urged all citizens to be careful with food hygiene to avoid illness after 37 Buddhist monks fell ill in Kampong Cham province after eating contaminated food. --IANS sm/dg Delhi to send 250 teachers to Singapore for training Delhi,National,Politics,Education, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) The Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi on Wednesday announced that it would send 250 mentor teachers to Singapore for education and skill training. The government said that through this training programme it aimed to improve the quality of education being imparted in government schools here. "Mentor teachers are a group of about 200 teachers, who support and assist peers from five-six schools each," a Delhi government official told IANS, adding that they would be sent on a week-long course to the National Institute of Education in Singapore. The move is part of the government's teachers training initiative. The course will consist of classroom training, school visits, interaction with teachers, and others. "Mentor teachers will reach Singapore in two-to-three batches. Nearly 100 mentor teachers will go this year (2016), while the rest will go next year (2017)," the official added. The first batch is likely to leave for Singapore in November, he said. After returning from Singapore, these mentors will train the teachers of all Delhi government-run-schools to improve the standard of education here. However, this is not the first such initiative by the AAP government. It had sent a group of the principals to the Cambridge University in Britain for training and interaction with the teachers and specialists in July-August to bring significant changes in the school curriculum. In the budget of the current financial year, the Delhi government has allocated Rs 102 crore for international training of principals and teachers. --IANS am/in/dg I'm quite romantic: Shruti Haasan (Lead, correcting paragraph two) Maharashtra,Cinema/Showbiz,Bollywood, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Mumbai, Oct 19 (IANS) Actress Shruti Haasan says though people consider her as a rocker, she feels that she is a "romantic girl". "I'm quite romantic, but it depends, you need inspiration also, if it's a silly fellow, I can't be romantic with them. People look at me and think that I should be taken out for rock concert. I love the song 'I love you' from 'Bodyguard' because there is some innocence and fun to it," Shruti said on Zoom channel's show "Diwali Beats". Talking about actor Emraan Hashmi, with whom she shared screen space in the film "Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji", Shruti said that she was very nervous to work with him. "Emraan is a wonderful co star. Really chilled out and friendly but I was very nervous with him because 'Dil toh Baccha Hai Ji' was like my fourth film and in front of him I was even more nervous," she added. The actress also described her "Gabbar is Back" co-star as an inspiration. "Working with Akshay Kumar was amazing, I was baffled with his approach to life and how disciplined he is. He's truly an inspiration," said the actress, who is the daughter of veteran stars Kamal Haasan and Sarika. --IANS dc/sug/bg Profit booking, foreign fund outflows subdue equity markets (Roundup) Maharashtra,Business/Economy, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS null Mumbai, Oct 19 (IANS) Profit booking, along with outflow of foreign funds and caution ahead of upcoming quarterly results subdued the Indian equity markets on Wednesday. The wider 51-scrip Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) fell by 18.80 points or 0.22 per cent to 8,659.10 points. The barometer 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the BSE, which opened at 28,112.36 points, closed at 27,984.37 points -- down 66.51 points or 0.24 per cent from the previous close at 28,050.88 points. The Sensex touched a high of 28,131.07 points and a low of 27,926.17 points during the intra-day trade. In contrast, the BSE market breadth was tilted in favour of the bulls -- with 1,636 advances and 1,168 declines. On Tuesday, the equity markets made substantial gains on the back of bargain hunting, positive global indices and fresh inflow of foreign funds. The barometer index had gained 520.91 points or 1.89 per cent to 28,050.88 points, while the NSE Nifty edged higher by 157.50 points or 1.85 per cent to 8,677.90 points. Initially on Wednesday, the benchmark indices opened on a higher note due to buying support. In addition, investors' sentiments were buoyed by hopes that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council will come to a quick consensus over the GST rates. However, gains were ceded soon after on the back of profit booking and caution over the upcoming release of more quarterly results. Besides, outflow of foreign funds and global volatility ahead of Thursday's ECB's (European Central Bank) meet dented the equity markets. Nevertheless, higher crude oil prices, appreciation in rupee and value buying at lower levels arrested the fall. The Indian rupee strengthened by five paise to 66.67-68 against a US dollar from its previous close of 66.72-73 to a greenback. "Profit booking after yesterday's steep rise and absence of any furthers cue especially ahead of ECB policy meet tomorrow dragged the key indices lower," Anand James, Chief Market Strategist at Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services, told IANS. "However, value buying at lower levels have mitigated the impact of fall." According to Dhruv Desai, Director and Chief Operating Officer of Tradebulls: "IT, banking and pharma stocks traded with sideways to firm sentiments. Auto stocks witnessed selling pressure and failed to recover from lower levels." "Oil-gas, textile and aviation stocks traded with firm sentiments on buying support." Desai added that sideways trend in "USD/INR" futures' prices supported the recovery in Nifty. In terms of investments, provisional data with the stock exchanges showed that the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold stocks worth Rs 282.77 crore, whereas the DIIs invested Rs 724.64 crore. Sector-wise, S&P BSE automobile index, receded by 120.68 points, the banking index declined by 115.87 points and the FMCG index fell by 93.56 points. The S&P BSE oil and gas index augmented by 90.50 points, the healthcare index edged higher by 82.90 points and the IT index gained by 23.60 points. Major Sensex gainers during Wednesday's trade were: Wipro, up 2.74 per cent at Rs 494.55; Lupin, up 2.04 per cent at Rs 1,512.05; Adani Ports, up 1.74 per cent at Rs 271.35; Gail, up 1.48 per cent at Rs 435.80; and Power Grid, up 0.96 per cent at Rs 178.05. Major Sensex losers were: ITC, down 2.44 per cent at Rs 239.80; ICICI Bank, down 2.00 per cent at Rs 265; Hero MotoCorp, down 1.28 per cent at Rs 3,367; Hindustan Unilever, down 1.00 per cent at Rs 846; and State Bank of India (SBI), down 0.82 per cent at Rs 254.80. --IANS rv/dg null Delhi orders fire safety checks at all hospitals Delhi,National,Politics,Health/Medicine, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) Delhi's Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Wednesday directed fire and public works departments to check the fire safety arrangements in all hospitals in the city and take necessary steps to avert fire accidents. "I have instructed the officials of fire and PWD departments to check fire safety arrangements at all the hospitals to avert any fire incident," Jain told reporters. Jain's instructions came in the wake of the October 17 fire at SUM Hospitals in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, in which 20 persons were killed and over a hundred injured. Jain, who also holds the portfolio of PWD, issued these instructions at a meeting of senior officials of the fire, public works and the health departments. "All Delhi hospitals be, it state government, private or central, should be free from encroachment for clear passage on staircases, roofs, corridors. All open areas in the hospitals should be free from dump encroachment as a preventive measure of fire safety," Jain said. Jain added that a joint committee of fire, PWD and health departments would inspect all the hospitals within seven days for fire safety preparedness and submit a report. "The fire department has been asked to prepare a list of the deficiencies at all the hospitals and send it to me and the Nodal Officer (Principal Secretary PWD) for necessary action," Jain said. He said that compliance with the fire department's No Objection Certificate (NOC) conditions should be done on war footing by all hospitals in Delhi. He instructed that installation of fire safety equipments and required repair works should be completed in all Delhi hospitals within 10 days. Twenty persons were killed, and 106 others were injured, in the October 17 Bhubaneswar fire in the intensive care unit (ICU) of the Dialysis Ward in the SUM Hospitald, which has 750 beds. --IANS am/ask/vt Simultaneous polls subject to certain conditions, consensus: CEC Delhi,National,Politics, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Nasim Zaidi on Wednesday said the election panel was ready to hold simultaneous Lok Sabha and state assembly elections if certain conditions are met, including political consensus and more resources. He said two primary issues have to be taken care of in the matter. "First, several constitutional amendments will have to be made; and second, there has to be a consensus among all political parties," Zaidi told IANS on the sidelines of a two-day international conference on voter education organised by the Election Commission of India here. "If these two things are done, we can hold simultaneous elections. Of course, we would need extra resources, such as more electronic voting machines etc.," he added. He said the Election Commission has already written to the Law Ministry on the issue, after the ministry sought the poll panel's opinion on the 79th Report of the Department-related Parliamentary Committee on the 'Feasibility of Holding Simultaneous Elections to the House of People (Lok Sabha) and State Legislative Assemblies'. Though Zaidi stressed on greater voter participation for a meaningful electoral process, he ruled out the option of compulsory voting. He termed it "impractical" in the Indian context to punish those who are eligible but abstain from voting. "The provision of punishing people for not casting their votes is impractical in India, given the sheer size of the electorate," the CEC said. Asked how can the EC curb promises made by some political parties and candidates, or attempts to polarise the electorate on communal/caste lines, ahead of assembly elections in five states, Zaidi said once the Model Code of Conduct comes into force in these states, the poll panel will exercise all its powers to ensure free and fair elections. "The Election Commission is not helpless in any manner. We have sufficient powers bestowed by the Constitution. Once the Model Code of Conduct comes into force, we will exercise all our powers to ensure that voters cast their votes without fear or pressure or inducement," Zaidi said. --IANS mak/tsb/vt Nepal PM reports on India visit, BRICS Summit Nepal,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Politics,Diplomacy, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Kathmandu, Oct 19 (IANS) Asserting that his recent India visit had helped highlight issues of common interests and prosperity, Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' on Wednesday said the Himalayan nation had a special place in the BRICS grouping. Nepal raised the issue of energy development, regional contact network and expansion of people-to-people contacts, the Prime Minister said in an address to Parliament two days after returning home from attending the BRICS-BIMSTEC Outreach Summit Conference held in Goa, in India, on October 16-17. He informed the House about his meetings with BRICS and BIMSTEC leaders on the sidelines of the Outreach Summit Conference and issues that Nepal raised during the meeting. BRICS is an association of five major emerging national economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is an international grouping involving Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal. Dahal said he took up the issue of increasing people-to-people contacts between Nepal and India, development of energy and expansion of regional connectivity. Observing that Nepal's presence at the BRICS Summit was important, he said his recent India visit had given a fillip to common interests and prosperity of the Himalayan nation. "Efforts have been made to strengthen bilateral relations with India while maintaining high-level diplomatic norms. These relations will be strengthened, keeping uppermost the welfare of Nepal and Nepalis," the Prime Minister said. Likewise, he said, India and China were positive to his proposal concerning trilateral cooperation and partnership. Referring to his meeting with China's President Xi Jinping, which India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi too joined at one stage, Dahal said: "That meeting was a pleasant coincidence and a good opportunity. It also contributed to helping maintain balanced relations with both neighbours." (Anil Giri can be contacted at girianil@gmail.com) --IANS giri/tsb/dg Nigerian baby of 2 months undergoes liver transplant Delhi,National,Health/Medicine, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) A two-month-old baby weighing 2.1-kg has successfully undergone a liver transplant at a city hospital here and is claimed to be the smallest baby yet to undergo the surgical procedure. David, a Nigerian national, was brought to the Medanta Mediclinic Hospital by his parents in the absence of medical advancement in the African region. On the new born's arrival at the hospital, doctors discovered that he was suffering from Neonatal Hemochromatosis (NH) -- a rare metabolic disorder causing excessive iron deposition in the liver, causing it to fail. According to the doctors, while David's birth weight was 3 kg, the disease ravaged him, leading to malnourishment and weight loss. "David was in severe liver and bone marrow failure when he reached us, malnourished and barely alive. He and his parents travelled from Nigeria in the hope that we could save him. While the odds weighed heavily against him, we decided to proceed with the rare, first of its kind transplant," said A.S. Soin, Chief Liver Transplant Surgeon at the Medanta Mediclinic Hospital. Talking about the patient's condition, the doctors stated that the complication over performing the surgery was more because he also had jaundice, bleeding tendency, anaemia and low blood counts. Detailed evaluation not only confirmed liver failure due to NH, but also revealed bone marrow failure due to a condition called hemophagocytic lympho histiocytosis (HLH). However, a team of doctors, which also comprised Neelam Mohan, Chief Liver Transplant Physician, decided to go ahead with the transplant. "We cautiously treated HLH and infection for three days and proceeded with a high-risk transplant which would give him at least a 70 per cent shot at life. The usual success rate of transplants at our centre is 95 per cent. Without a transplant, the baby was unlikely to survive beyond a few days," said Mohan, while speaking to reporters. The doctors also said that the size of the baby was the biggest problem during the surgery. Mohan said: "David's father James, the only suitable donor, was about 43 times as heavy. There were no previous reports of a successful transplant with donor heavier than 25 times the recepient's size. This meant we could use only 5-6 per cent of James' liver for the transplant, whereas usually, about 10-20 per cent of the donor's liver is used for transplanting in children." Doctors said similar rare previous attempts elsewhere had ended in failure in 1-2 weeks. However, as the transplant of David is successful, he is expected to enjoy a normal life ahead though he will need close, long-term monitoring. Vijay Vohra, head of the liver anaesthesia, said: "It was a big challenge to maintain David under anaesthesia over the nine-hour surgery, because of his very small veins and wind pipe, small dosages of medicines needed, and the precision required down to a millilitre in managing fluid and blood product administration." --IANS rup/sm/vt Delhi Zoo to remain shut after bird deaths Delhi,National,Environment/Wildlife, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) Delhi Zoo will remain shut for some more days, an official said on Wednesday, as tests confirmed that bird influenza had indeed killed two of the 10 migratory birds. "We sent the carcasses to a lab in Jalandhar which were forwarded to Bhopal. The presence of bird influenza was confirmed in two samples," a zoo official told IANS on the condition of anonymity. He said the zoo, which was shut on Tuesday, would remain closed for another four to five days while the staff take stool samples of other birds. The zoo was temporarily shut since nine uncaged or migratory birds died on October 14, 15 and 17. The 10th bird died on Wednesday. The dead birds included Painted Stork, Rosy Pelican and common ducks. Officials said these birds migrate from Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan in August and leave in March. An official told IANS that these birds dwell in the ponds of the zoo. Officials do not know where the birds caught bird influenza or bird flu. "The common ducks lived in a separate pond while Pelicans and Storks live in one. There are three such ponds in the zoo," an official said. The carcasses were sent to Northern Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, Jalandhar, which forwarded them to the High Security Animal Disease Laboratory, Bhopal. --IANS kd/ask/mr Fake currency racket busted, 3 held in Hyderabad Andhra Pradesh,National,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Hyderabad, Oct 19 (IANS) With the arrest of three persons, the Hyderabad police on Wednesday claimed to have busted a counterfeit currency racket linked to Pakistan. The police seized counterfeit Indian currency of the face value of Rs 9 lakh in denominations of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500. A two-wheeler and three mobile phones were also seized. The arrested include Mohammed Aqeel Marfani alias Aqeel, who was smuggling the counterfeit Indian currency from Dubai through his maternal uncle Mohd. Yaseen, a native of this Indian city but currently residing in Karachi, Pakistan. According to police, Aqeel (26), a resident of Moghalpura here, was trying to circulate the fake currency in Hyderabad through Ghiyas Mohiuddin (26) and Taufeeq Ahamed (27), also residents of the old city of Hyderabad. Deputy Commissioner of Police B. Limba Reddy said Aqeel, who went to Dubai last year and was working as a carpenter, met his uncle Yaseen, living in Karachi. As Aqeel was in need of money, Yaseen offered him a deal to circulate counterfeit Indian currency of face value Rs 9 lakh in Hyderabad. Aqeel demanded a share of Rs 3 lakh, to which his uncle agreed. On October 3, Aqeel brought the fake currency notes to Hyderabad concealed in a bag, which the airport authorities failed to detect. Aqeel then contacted his friend Ghiyas and through him Taufeeq for circulating the fake currency. On a tip-off, when Aqeel and Ghiyas reached Secunderabad to hand over the notes to Taufeeq, the police arrested them. The police said the possible involvement of other people and links with other places were being investigated. --IANS ms/sm/vt Consensus, more resources needed for simultaneous polls: CEC Delhi,National, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Nasim Zaidi on Wednesday said the election panel is ready to hold simultaneous Lok Sabha and state assembly polls if certain conditions are met, including political consensus and more resources. He said two primary issues have to be taken care of in the matter. "First, several constitutional amendments will have to be made; and second, there has to be a consensus among all political parties," Zaidi told IANS on the sidelines of a two-day international conference on voter education organised by the Election Commission of India (EC) here. "If these two things are done, we can hold simultaneous elections. Of course, we would need extra resources, such as more electronic voting machines," he added. Zaidi said the EC has already written to the Law Ministry on the issue, after the ministry sought the poll panel's opinion on the 79th Report of the Department-related Parliamentary Committee on the "Feasibility of Holding Simultaneous Elections to the House of People (Lok Sabha) and State Legislative Assemblies". On the dates of assembly elections due early next year in five states -- Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand -- Zaidi said the poll panel would take a call on that based on the inputs provided by security forces and state machineries. The poll schedule would be made keeping in mind the school examination schedules as well as the weather, he said. "We are assessing the requirement of security forces, and the weather and examination schedules are also being taken into consideration," he said. Although Zaidi laid stress on greater voter participation for a meaningful electoral process, he ruled out the option of compulsory voting. He termed it "impractical" in the Indian context to punish those who are eligible but abstain from voting. "The provision of punishing people for not casting their votes is impractical in India, given the sheer size of the electorate. We have around 85 crore voters, and suppose 30 crore do not turn up for casting their votes, penalising 30 crore people would be a mammoth task," the CEC said. He said that instead, the emphasis should be on voters' education. "Through our voters' education programme, we have been able to achieve close to 94 per cent voting in some states. On the other hand, in Australia, where casting ballot is compulsory, the voter turnout is still short of 100 per cent," Zaidi said. Asked, how can the EC curb promises made by some political parties and candidates, or attempts to polarise the electorate on communal/caste lines, ahead of assembly elections in five states, Zaidi said once the Model Code of Conduct comes into force in these states, the poll panel would exercise all its powers to ensure free and fair elections. "The Election Commission is not helpless in any manner. We have sufficient powers conferred by the Constitution. Once the Model Code of Conduct comes into force, we will exercise all our powers to ensure that voters cast their votes without fear or pressure or inducement," Zaidi said. Earlier, giving the keynote address at the conference, Zaidi said that our motto should be "No voter is left behind". Zaidi also highlighted the success of the Systematic Voters' Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) in 2014 Lok Sabha elections in India. The programme was initiated in 2009 by the EC. Subsequently, SVEEP resulted into highest-ever voter participation (66.4 per cent), achieved in 2014 general elections, and an unprecedented success in reducing the gender gap from 4.4 per cent in (2009) to 1.55 per cent in 2014, he said. --IANS mak/nir/vt India, Pakistan can learn from poll experiences: Pakistan official Delhi,National,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Politics, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) India and Pakistan can learn from each other's experiences in holding elections in heterogeneous societies and in ensuring greater voter participation, a senior Pakistan Election Commission official said on Wednesday. "The purpose of our meeting here is to share our experience vis-a-vis holding of fair elections and sensitising voters for greater participation," Altaf Ahmad, Director in the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) told IANS. Ahmad was speaking on the sidelines of a two-day international conference on voters' education organised by the Election Commission of India in association with the United Nations Development Programme here. "This is a great learning platform. We can share our knowledge here," he said of the conference, where heads or senior officials of election bodies from 27 countries are participating. Highlighting the efforts made by the ECP, Ahmad said that voter participation has been increasing with each election in Pakistan. "This is thanks to the efforts put in by the ECP that voter participation is increasing. For example, the voter turnout in the 2008 general election was a little more than 40 per cent, compared with more than 50 per cent in 2013," he said. He said this percentage may go up to 70 per cent in the next general election. "I am hoping for this, given the Election Commission's efforts to sensitise voters on their rights," Ahmad said. Asked if greater voter participation will strengthen democracy in Pakistan where military is perceived as more dominant, Ahmad declined comment. "I have been given a mandate, and that mandate is voter education. The role and endeavour of the ECP is to ensure fair elections with more and more participation of voters," he said. Ahmad said the election panel in his country is using informal channels for voters' education such as utility bills, roadside hoardings and SMSes, postal services as well as religious places such as mosques, churches and temples etc. "For a fair and truly participative elections, the entire system must contribute," he said. --IANS mak/tsb/vt Delhi man throws acid on wife, held Delhi,National,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) A 25-year-old man was arrested for throwing acid on his wife in Rohini area, the Delhi Police said on Wednesday. Amanpreet Kaur, 20, had a love marriage with accused Pradeep six months ago. Kaur left her marital house on October 5 and was staying at her parental house in Sector 16 of Rohini, the police said. Pradeep allegedly threw acid on her in a park on Tuesday evening when she refused to return to her marital home. "During the attack, drops of acid fell on Pradeep and her younger sister Varsha too. Both Pradeep and Amanpreet are admitted in a hospital," Deputy Commissioner of Police M.N. Tiwari said. The police later arrested Pradeep while Amanpreet was shifted to the Safdurjung Hospital. "She married Pradeep against her parents' wishes. Pradeep was currently jobless, which led to fights between them," Tiwari said. A case has been registered against Pradeep at the K.N.K. Marg police station. --IANS sp/tsb/vt Sonia wishes speedy recovery to injured Mamata nephew Delhi,National,Politics, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday wished speedy recovery to Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, who was seriously injured in a road accident in West Bengal. Abhishek, nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, sustained serious injuries on Monday when his car hit a towing van at Ratanpur, about six km from Singur on Durgapur Expressway in Hooghly district. "Sonia Gandhi has extended her good wishes for health and fast recovery to Abhishek Banerjee. Her thoughts and prayers are with Abhishek and the Banerjee family in these testing times," said an official statement. Gandhi also expressed her happiness over Banerjee's condition being stable and his responding to the treatment. Banerjee was rushed to a Kolkata nursing home where doctors said he had sustained an orbital injury in a facial bone below the eye. Mamata Banerjee has ordered a Criminal Investigation Department probe to find out if there was some foul play. --IANS and/nir/vt Intel mentors 17 start-ups to innovate products in India Karnataka,National,Technology,Business/Economy, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS "Of the 17 start-ups which utilised our laboratory facilities here, nine have launched products in the market and five have products ready for customer trials, while three are at the design stage," Intel India General Manager Nivruti Rai told reporters here. Intel's Indian subsidiary has set up the Maker Lab at its campus in this tech hub in January to help start-ups accelerate their hardware and systems for innovating products and solutions using its infrastructure, technology, tools and mentorship support. "The start-ups used the lab for projects spanning education, sports, health, agriculture, BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance), and e-governance across IoT (Internet of Things), cloud and client compute," said Rai. The lab also supported seven start-ups incubated by the Science and Technology Department of the Indian government under the Intel's 'Innovate for Digital India' challenge. "We are focused on innovation, systems design and entrepreneurship in India. With 15 years of commitment to research and development, we continue to build a community of innovators across the country," Rai added. As a catalyst, Intel has associated with various programmes to foster innovation and making the government's Digital India vision a reality. "It's heartening to see many products and solutions being developed by the hardware and systems start-ups using our lab as their innovations will help solve consumer and business needs and contribute to Digital India and Make in India vision," said Intel India Director Jitendra Chadda on the occasion. The company is collaborating with the government to encourage entrepreneurial and innovation talent as a not-for-profit initiative and is independent of its own research and development activities in India. --IANS fb/sm/vt Two Africans, Delhi woman held for fleecing job seekers Delhi,National,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) Three persons, including two Africans, have been arrested from Delhi for allegedly cheating people on the pretext of providing jobs in foreign countries, the police said on Wednesday. Boby Brown Francis, a native of Benin and said to be the kingpin of the racket, and Ghana national Abdel K. Cooperis were nabbed on Monday from South Delhi, along with their Indian accomplice Ruchi Batra alias Alisha Ali. "They were arrested following a complaint by Siddhant Ambar, a Haryana resident, that they had duped him of Rs 1.35 lakh on the pretext of getting a job in the US," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Ishwar Singh. According to the complaint, Siddhant, who was looking for a job outside the country, got an email confirming a job in the US. Subsequently, he got a call from one Peter Coal asking for Rs 35,000 for visa formalities and Rs 2,08,500 for a TOFEL certificate. Having paid Rs 1.35 lakh to Ruchi, Siddhant got suspicious and filed a complaint, following which the police first nabbed Ruchi and subsequently the two Africans from a restaurant near Safdarjang Hospital. The police have secured two days' custody of the two Africans and recovered Rs 20,000 from them. --IANS and/nir/vt Russia to lease second nuclear submarine to India: Report Delhi,National,Defence/Security,Diplomacy, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) Russia agreed to lease a second nuclear attack submarine worth $2 billion to India. Other major defence deals also were inked during the summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Goa last week, a report said on Wednesday. A report written by Alexei Nikolsky, a columnist with Russian daily Vedomosti, quoted an unnamed person from Russian defence ministry as saying that an agreement was signed in Goa for "leasing multipurpose nuclear submarine of Project 971 from the Russian Navy". Project 971 is the Russian Akula class submarine, on which India's indigenous nuclear submarine INS Arihant is based. The agreement was not announced by the two sides during the summit, where India and Russia also signed contracts worth around Rs 60,000 crore for S-400 Air Defence Systems, Ka-226T helicopters, and frigates which will be made in India. The Indian Navy and the Defence Ministry have not commented on the report yet. On Tuesday, asked about leasing a second nuclear submarine from Russia, Controller of Warship Production & Acquisition in Indian Navy Vice Admiral G.S. Pabby had refused to comment on its status. The Indian Navy already operates one Akula 2 class nuclear submarine, Nerpa, now called INS Chakra, which was leased by Russia for 10 years. It was commissioned in the navy on April 4, 2012. Meanwhile, indigenous nuclear submarine INS Arihant has been inducted in the navy as well amidst secrecy. Built in the Soviet Union as the Bars Class 971, Akula is the NATO reporting name for the submarines. --IANS ao/rn/vt Myanmar to have investment law protecting foreign firms Delhi,Business/Economy,Diplomacy, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) Myanmar will soon notify a new investment law according the same treatment to foreign companies as is being given to domestic companies, that will make doing business easier in that country also for Indian firms, Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi said on Wednesday. Suu Kyi said this at a meeting here with Indian business leaders, organised jointly by the Confederation of Indian Industry and the External Affairs Ministry, according to a CII release. "With the enactment of the new law, the Myanmar Minister hoped that there would be transparency in contracts, the rule of law would be enforced and corruption would be curbed," the statement said. She said issues such as repatriation of profit and also of capital have also been addressed in the new law, the statement added. Suu Kyi also said Indian investment in Myanmar must be linked to Myanmar's overall development. Suu Kyi is on her the first official visit to New Delhi since her National League for Democracy (NLD) assumed power in Myanmar in March this year. Earlier on Wednesday, India and Myanmar signed three agreements following delegation-level talks headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Suu Kyi. One memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on cooperation in the power sector. A second MoU was signed on banking supervision between the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Bank of Myanmar while a third MoU was inked for designing an academic and professional building programme for the insurance industry of Myanmar. In his address at the business meeting, Ministry of External Affairs Secretary (ER) Amar Sinha said India-Myanmar bilateral trade was well below par and measures needed to be taken to boost trade. He said India was working on completing the various connectivity projects that were underway which would link India's Northeast with Myanmar. India has been a major trading partner of Myanmar and since the signing of the trade agreement between the two countries in 1970, bilateral trade has grown steadily from $328 million in 1997-1998 to $2.052 billion in 2015-2016. The State Bank of India resumed banking operations in Myanmar earlier this month after a gap of 53 years by inaugurating a branch in the country's largest city Yangon on Monday -- becoming the first Indian bank to do so. --IANS bc/rn Somali forces arrest two Al-Jazeera journalists Somalia,Media, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Mogadishu (Somalia), Oct 19 (IANS/AKI) Somali security force have arrested two journalists in capital Mogadishu who work for satellite TV channel Al Jazeera, a local radio station reported on Wednesday. The reporters, named as Hamza Mohammed and his cameraman Nur Mohammed, were detained on Tuesday and are currently in government custody in Mogadishu, Radio Shabelle said. Somali security force officials did not comment on the arrest of the Qatari-based Al Jazeera English Television channel journalists, which were not reported by the TV network. The two journalists were held after they covered a suicide attack staged by the Al-Qaeda aligned Al-Shabab group at a police station in the nearby Somali city of Afgoye on Tuesday, Radio Shabelle said. The Afgoye attack reportedly killed at least 10 people including soldiers and civilians. Hamza Mohammed has in the past travelled to Al-Shabab strongholds and interviewed its senior commanders, including spokesman Sheikh Ali Dheere, Radio Shabelle said. --IANS rn Protesting JNU students confine V-C, senior officials India,Politics,Education, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 20 (IANS) Demanding a conclusive response on the whereabouts of a missing student Najeeb Ahmed, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students on Wednesday staged protests outside the Administrative Block forcing the top brass of the university to stay put in their offices. Apart from Vice-Chancellor M. Jagadesh Kumar, Rectors one and two and Registrar of the university were said to be confined inside the building. All student political parties, except Akhil Bhartiya Vidya Parishad (ABVP), took part in the blockade and vented out their anger at the university officials. The protests started outside the Administrative block at 2 p.m. and grew more intense as the day wore off. "By 3:30 p.m. employees started coming out of the building on some pretext or the other even when we had no such intention to lay a siege there. We are only demanding a proper response from the V-C about what action the university is taking in finding Najeeb," Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students' Association (BAPSA) President Bhupali Magare told IANS. She said students from all political parties, including NSUI, AISA, SFI, DSU protested outside the building and there is no hostage situation. However, an ABVP leader said that the officials were confined inside the building and the protesting students were on the verge of getting violent. "They (protesters) have stooped very low that they are indulging in such cheap politics. They have kept all the entry points blocked of the building since 7 p.m. When the Proctor came to assuage them they got violent and made him run away," Saurabh Sharma of ABVP told IANS. But the JNU Students' Union President Mohit Pandey denounced all claims of keeping officials as hostages and said, "We are only lying outside the building, if anyone wants he can go out over our bodies." A student named Najeeb Ahmed had gone missing on the night of October 14 from the university hostel Mahi-Mandvi after a brawl with a few ABVP students. Since then a police complaint has been filed under IPC Section 365 and a Proctorial inquiry has been initiated by the University. "This is not a small issue, but a part of a bigger conspiracy. No-one would go missing like this leaving even his phone behind. It's been five days now but there's no news of him," Rahul Sonpimple of BAPSA told IANS. On October 18, V-C had also met the parents of Ahmed and had apprised them of all that they were doing to find him. --IANS vn/lok Protesting JNU students confine V-C, senior officials inside campus Delhi,National,Politics,Crime/Disaster/Accident,Education, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 20 (IANS) Demanding a conclusive response on the whereabouts of a missing student Najeeb Ahmed, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students on Wednesday staged protests outside the Administrative Block forcing the top brass of the university to stay put in their offices. Apart from Vice-Chancellor M. Jagadesh Kumar, Rectors one and two and Registrar of the university were said to be confined inside the building. All student political parties, except Akhil Bhartiya Vidya Parishad (ABVP), took part in the blockade and vented out their anger at the university officials. The besieged Vice-Chancellor appealed to the protesting students to let them out of the building and discuss the matter. "We appeal to the students who have physically confined us to stop this and come for discussion. Let us discuss and resolve," Kumar tweeted from inside the building while students remained gathered outside. "Since the students did not let us go home in spite our appeal, we have no other option but be confined to the admin building," Kumar also tweeted. However, students have denied keeping anyone hostage and said that they were just protesting outside the building and anyone is allowed to come and go. The JNU Students' Union President Mohit Pandey denounced all claims of keeping officials as hostages and said, "We are only lying outside the building, if anyone wants he can go out over our bodies." The protests started outside the Administrative Block at 2 p.m. and grew more intense as the day wore off. "By 3:30 p.m. employees started coming out of the building on some pretext or the other even when we had no such intention to lay a siege there. We are only demanding a proper response from the V-C about what action the university is taking in finding Najeeb," Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students' Association (BAPSA) President Bhupali Magare told IANS. She said students from all political parties, including NSUI, AISA, SFI, DSU protested outside the building and there is no hostage situation. However, an ABVP leader said that the officials were confined inside the building and the protesting students were on the verge of getting violent. "They (protesters) have stooped very low that they are indulging in such cheap politics. They have kept all the entry points blocked of the building since 7 p.m. When the Proctor came to assuage them they got violent and made him run away," Saurabh Sharma of ABVP told IANS. A student named Najeeb Ahmed had gone missing on the night of October 14 from the university hostel Mahi-Mandvi after a brawl with a few ABVP students. Since then a police complaint has been filed under IPC Section 365 and a Proctorial inquiry has been initiated by the University. "This is not a small issue, but a part of a bigger conspiracy. No-one would go missing like this leaving even his phone behind. It's been five days now but there's no news of him," Rahul Sonpimple of BAPSA told IANS. On October 18, V-C had also met the parents of Ahmed and had apprised them of all that they were doing to find him. --IANS vn/lok Brazilian President plays down charges against cabinet members Brazil,Politics,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Brasilia, Oct 19 (IANS) Brazilian President Michel Temer has played down the corruption charges against several of his cabinet members. The President said on Tuesday the charges are minor, describing them as "simply allegations." He said the government will wait and see whether the cases against his ministers move forward to a stage where there is a need to take action, Xinhua news agency reported. "These things need to be consolidated. If they do consolidate, then the government will see what it will do," said Temer. So far, several high-profile names of the Temer's administration have been involved into the Federal Police's Carwash Operation, which is investigating corruption conducts in state-run energy giant Petrobras and other government contracts. Temer himself has also been mentioned by some accused of taking bribe. In the past days, two more charges were added during the testimonies of some defendants, who reportedly turned into witness to the State. Moreira Franco, Executive Secretary of the Investment Partnerships Program, allegedly took 3 million reals (941,600 US dollars) in bribes in 2014. Sports Minister Eduardo Picciani was accused of money laundering through his family's company engaged in the sale of overpriced cattle. --IANS ss/vm India can only 'bark' about trade deficit: Chinese media China,Politics,Business/Economy, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Beijing, Oct 19 (IANS) The call for boycott of Chinese goods on Indian social media is "rabble rousing" as Indian products cannot compete with those of China, the state-owned media said on Wednesday. In an acerbic op-ed, Global Times launched a blitzkrieg of sort against India, saying New Delhi can only "bark" and do nothing about the growing trade deficit between two countries. China's continued opposition to India's effort to declare Pakistan-based militants as international terrorists has angered many Indians who have called for a boycott of Chinese products. It described Prime Minster Narendra Modi's pet project "Make in India" as "impractical". The daily warned Chinese companies not to invest in India as it would be "suicidal" to put money in a country where corruption is high and the workforce is not hard working. "There has been a lot of talk recently in the Indian media as well as on social media about boycotting Chinese products. It's just rabble rousing," it said. "Indian manufacturing cannot compete at all with Chinese products, for various reasons." The daily said that India was to yet build roads and highways and had chronic shortage of power and water supply. "Worst of all, corruption is highly prevalent from top to bottom in every single government department." It slammed India for courting the US. "The US is no one's friend. The Americans are just indulging India in order to contain China, as the US is jealous of China's development and global power. "India has enough money but the majority of it is concentrated with politicians, bureaucrats and a few crony capitalists. Indian elites don't want to spend funds available in the country, which in reality is the taxpayers' money but is utilized by the Indian establishment for its own personal consumption. "Because of this, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has started impractical schemes like 'Make in India'. The reason is that the Indian establishment wants foreign companies to invest in the country. "It would be completely suicidal for Chinese companies to put their money in India by starting manufacturing projects there. The labour class in India is not very hard working or efficient," it argued. The daily said that instead of opening shops in India, Chinese companies should set up their manufacturing units in China. The world's third-largest smartphone maker, Huawei, opened its manufacturing unit in India last month. "In any case, Indian businessmen flock to China in large numbers to buy products from China and sell them in India. This model suits China, so why disturb it by going and wasting money setting up manufacturing facilities in India? "Let the Indian authorities bark about the growing trade deficit with China. The fact of the matter is they cannot do anything about it." --IANS gsh/mr Carrey battles lawsuits over girlfriend's suicide United States,Cinema/Showbiz,Hollywood, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS null Los Angeles, Oct 19 (IANS) Actor Jim Carrey is battling two lawsuits accusing him of complicity in his ex-girlfriend Cathriona White's suicide. Carrey has given the court a detailed account of his relationship with White, who died of drug overdose in September 2015, reports mirror.co.uk. He has attacked White's mother Brigid Sweetman and White's estranged husband Mark Burton, who also accused Carrey of supplying her with the pain killers the young woman used to end her life. Carrey's attorneys are seeking to put the litigation on pause until White's mother posts a $372,700 bond, which they contend will be necessary to cover the actor's legal defence. The motion also included a 10-page declaration from Carrey in which he narrated the troubled relationship in deeply personal terms. Carrey said he truly cared for White but like all couples they had their ups and downs. The actor claimed that in order to obtain a Green card, White married Burton, even though she and Carrey were still dating. According to mirror.co.uk, Carrey said that he paid for White's housing and provided her with a stipend but turned down her request for marriage so she could avoid deportation back to Ireland. Earlier, White's mother Brigid Sweetman said the actor should be ashamed of his treatment of her daughter. He is alleged to have illegally provided her prescription drugs involved in her suicide. White's mother also accused him of giving her three sexually transmitted diseases. --IANS sas/nn/mr null UN chief becomes godfather to newborn Galapagos tortoise Ecuador,Environment/Wildlife,Human Interest/Society, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Quito, Oct 19 (IANS) UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday became the godparent of a newborn giant tortoise in the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador, where he is on a tour to encourage environmental protection for the world heritage site. The United Nations Secretary General became the godfather of the giant tortoise named Encantada, the 57th born in the Chelonoidis darwini species from Santiago Island, while he was visiting the Giant Tortoise Breeding Centre of the Galapagos National Park (GNP) in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz Island, Efe news reported. Encantada was hatched in artificial incubators in the Puerto Ayora Galapagos breeding centre as part of a conservation programme carried out by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Environment. The baby tortoise will stay in the breeding centre for the next five years and will then return to its home island of Santiago, the GNP said in a statement. "It is our responsibility to preserve the Galapagos, truly a unique world heritage site for current and future generations," Ban said during a ceremony to recognise him as Encantada's godfather. The GNP's artificial breeding programme for giant tortoises seeks to re-populate the land-dwelling reptiles on several Galapagos islands where their population has fallen or become extinct for various reasons, such as the introduction of an invasive alien species. The 19-island archipelago is located about 1,000 km from the Ecuadorian mainland coast, and was declared a World Heritage Site by the UN Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation in 1978. It is also a melting pot for marine biodiversity. --IANS ask/bg India, Myanmar sign three agreements Delhi,National,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Diplomacy, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi, Oct 19 (IANS) India and Myanmar on Wednesday signed three agreements following delegation-level talks headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the southeast Asian nation's State Counsellor and Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi. "#IndiaMyanmar: Partners in Progress - The two leaders witness exchange of agreements in sectors of power, banking and insurance," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted. One memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on cooperation in the power sector. A second MoU was signed on banking supervision between the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Bank of Myanmar while a third MoU was inked for designing an academic and professional building programme for the insurance industry of Myanmar. Suu Kyi met Modi on the third and concluding day of her state visit to India. On Tuesday, she met President Pranab Mukherjee and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Though Suu Kyi is not the President as Myanmar's constitution bars her from this post, the Nobel peace laureate is effectively the de facto ruler of the country. This is the first official visit of Suu Kyi to New Delhi since her National League for Democracy (NLD) assumed power in Myanmar in March this year. Prior to reaching New Delhi on Monday for the state visit, she attended the BRICS-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa on Sunday. Her visit comes after Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw's visit to India in August this year. --IANS ab/bg Tribunal confines re-allocation of Krishna water to Telangana, AP Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS New Delhi/Hyderabad, Oct 19 (IANS) In a setback to Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-II on Wednesday ruled that there was no need to re-allocate the river water among all four riparian states. The much-awaited verdict has come as a relief to Maharashtra and Karnataka, which were opposing re-allocation among all states. The tribunal said the water should be re-allocated between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, the two successor states of undivided Andhra Pradesh. It asked the Telugu states to submit their objections and arguments, if any, within four weeks. The tribunal adjourned the next hearing till December 14. Telangana Advocate General Ramakrishna Reddy said the tribunal order was not final and was subject to a review by the Supreme Court. He told reporters that they had sought re-allocation of the river water among four states as per Section 89 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014. The tribunal, however, ruled that the dispute was confined to only the Telugu states. Both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana had sought fresh allocation among all four riparian states. On the other hand, Maharashtra and Karnakata had argued that Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 was limited to successor states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and Maharashtra and Karnataka were not parties to it. They wanted the tribunal to re-allocate water to Telugu states from the share of undivided Andhra Pradesh. In 2013, the tribunal had made allocation of water among Maharashtra, Karnataka and undivided Andhra Pradesh. However, Andhra Pradesh had challenged the award on the ground that injustice was done to it. After the formation of Telangana, the state also impleaded in the case. Of 811 Thousand Million Cubic feet (TMC ft) allocation of surplus water, the share of Andhra Pradesh is 512 TMC ft and of Telangana is 299 TMC ft. Telangana, which is building many projects on the river, is seeking another 300 TMC ft while Andhra Pradesh is also pressing for additional allocation. --IANS ms/mr It is official! King Mohammed VI of Morocco flew on Tuesday to Rwanda, first leg of a tour in Eastern Africa that will also take him to Ethiopia and Tanzania. The Kings first tour to the English speaking states east of the continent is part of an African strategy that has so far yielded fruitful results in terms of political and economic cooperation with French Speaking sub-Saharan states. The composition of the delegation accompanying the King gives clues as to the topics that will top the agenda of talks between Morocco and the visited countries. Besides Royal advisors and cabinet key members (Finance, Agriculture, religious affairs, Interior, Foreign Affairs) the Moroccan delegation includes scores of business operators, led by the Chairwoman of the employers association, Meriem Bensaleh, financiers, bankers, industrialists as well as heads of outstanding state-owned institutions such as Mostafa Terrab of the Phosphates Group (OCP.) The royal tour actually marks the beginning of a new era in relations between Morocco and the three eastern African countries and highlights their shared commitment to contribute to the emergence of a new united and strong Africa. Besides, the three eastern African countries are all eager to bolster their cooperation and partnership with Morocco, given the credibility it enjoys worldwide and especially in Africa and given the reputation of Moroccan companies operating already in many African countries, notably in Senegal, Cote dIvoire, Gabon and Niger. The current tour, once again, evidences Africas central place in the Kingdoms foreign policy and the Moroccan Kings forward-looking vision of inter-African cooperation. In so many of his speeches, King Mohammed VI underlined the importance of Africa for his country, diagnosed the scourges hampering the continents take-off and stressed the need to consolidate South-South cooperation as the best means to boost Africas development. Africa has been given top priority in Moroccos foreign policyand Morocco adopts a win-win approach underpinned by solidarity in its relations with Africa, the King said in a speech delivered in August. For Morocco, Africa means more than just being part of a geographical area, or having historical bonds with the continent. Africa also means sincere affection, appreciation, close human and spiritual relations as well as tangible solidarity. Furthermore, Africa is the natural extension of Morocco and the embodiment of the countrys strategic depth, the King had underlined in his speech. He had also shed light on the Kingdoms multi-dimensional relationship with Africa, saying that Morocco contributes, along with other African countries, to the implementation of human development projects and the provision of social services which have a direct bearing on the lives of people in the region. For us, Africa is not about goals and objectives; dealing with Africa involves a commitment towards the African citizen, wherever he or she may be, the monarch said. Therefore, the Kings current tour in the continent comes as another opportunity to foster co-development and establish win-win partnerships and thus materialize Moroccos strategy for Africa that has economic, social, cultural and religious dimensions. Kigali authorities, for example, are aware that they can rely on a trustworthy partner like Morocco to accompany their young nation towards further development and progress. We are prompted by a strong determination to upgrade cooperation with Morocco in various fields, Rwandan Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo was quoted by local New Times daily as saying. The Rwandan official who described the North African country as a depositary of centuries-old civilization, hailed the advanced expertise developed by Morocco in several areas, including finance, real estate, pharmaceuticals and tourism. Ms. Mushikiwabo called the two countries private sectors to play a decisive role in shaping this new Moroccan-Rwandan partnership, noting that discussions to establish a legal framework to this partnership are well advanced. She said she is confident that companies in both countries are aware of the importance of this new chapter in relations between Rabat and Kigali. The Rwandan leading newspaper said in this vein that representatives of some Moroccan companies have already made exploratory visits to Rwanda to prospect for partnership opportunities. The Royal visit to the three eastern African states will wrap up by the signing of several agreements that will give a concrete and tangible aspect of Moroccos commitment towards Africa that is permeated by co-development and solidarity. This also adds an edge to the Kingdoms official request to regain its natural place in Africas institutional family and mirrors Moroccos steadfast engagement in favor of the African citizen. Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous said he would pay a visit to Morocco this week to meet Moroccan officials and visit the headquarters of the UN mission to the Sahara, MINURSO. The announcement of this visit surprised many as the UN Secretary Generals Personal Envoy Christopher Ross saw his visit to Morocco postponed on the backdrop of the holding of general elections earlier this month. Ladsous told the press that he would hold talks with Moroccan officials and visit the MINURSO headquarters in the southern city of Laayoune. He added that he would also fly to Algeria to visit the Polisario-administered Tindouf camps. This represents a first visit by the UN peacekeeping operations chief since the crisis that broke out between Morocco and the MINURSO on grounds of the controversial visit of the UN Secretary General to Tindouf camps where he described Moroccos retrieval of its southern provinces as an occupation, thus violating neutrality and sidelining with the separatist thesis. In addition to Ban Ki-moon verbal blunders, MINURSO has accumulated deviations from its main cease-fire monitoring mission leading Morocco to expel the civilian component of the UN mission from the Sahara. Following negotiations, the Kingdom accepted back 75 civilian MINURSO staffers. Last August, the UN announced that Christopher Ross is ready for a visit to the region in order to relaunch the negotiation process. This trip is still being examined, said the UN spokesperson, Stephan Dujarric. For his part, Ban Ki-moon is expected in Marrakech to attend the Climate summit, COP22, slated for November 7-18. King Mohammed VIs visit to Rwandas capital Kigali is reflective of excellent ties between the two friendly African countries, Rwandan Presidnet Paul Kagame said. His Majesty King Mohammed VIs visit to Rwanda is of great importance as it represents the first visit by the Monarch to our country, the Rwandan head of state told the press. We are very happy to receive His Majesty the King on this visit that shows the ever-growing relations between our two countries, said Kagame, adding that this visit will usher a new era in bilateral cooperation in several fields. King Mohammed VI has arrived on Tuesday night in Kigali, a first leg in an African tour that will also take him to Ethiopia and Tanzania. Last June, the Moroccan monarch received Kagame in Casablanca and awarded him a Royal decoration with the highest state distinction. This Royal tour in eastern Africa is part of a Moroccan endeavor to strengthen ties with African states in line with Moroccos Africa foreign policy that aims at reinforcing relations of solidarity and co-development with the continent. It also adds momentum to Moroccos official request to return to Africas institutional family through building strong bilateral ties with countries in eastern Africa following the example of Moroccos successful diplomacy in French speaking states of the continent. International security experts have sounded the alarm that the foreign fighters enrolled in the Islamic State group in Iraq, including around 2,500 Moroccans, may be planning to return home as Iraqi authorities and international coalition forces are increasing offensives to take over the groups stronghold of Mosul. The terrorist group is also under pressure in Libya; the second safe havens of the terrorist group outside Syria. Iraq forces supported by international forces have moved to retake the groups stronghold of Mosul, while the US has increased its airstrikes on the ISIS militants in Sirte, where Libyan troops on the ground are making progress. The developments stirred fears concerning the relocation of ISIS fighters fleeing the terrorist groups Iraqi and Libyan strongholds. International security experts raised concerns that the return to Morocco of the 2,500 Moroccans believed enrolled in ISIS ranks would put the kingdoms security at risk, local Arabic daily Akhbar Al Yaoum reports this Wednesday. The danger is serious and we must prepare to deal with it, European Union Commissioner for security, British Julian King, told the Moroccan daily, which underlines that this threat is not to be taken lightly. Since the terror attacks in Casablanca in 2003 and the ensuing attack in Marrakech in 2011, Moroccan authorities have improved security in the kingdom and established legal framework that allows authorities to track and try terrorists and jihadist returnees. Commenting on the international pundits concerns, Moroccan security and terrorism expert, Lamssaoui Ajlaoui, told the daily that these Moroccan fighters have no chance of survival as they occupy no commanding positions and will surely be crushed in the heat of the war. Ajlaoui argued that even if they flee Mosul, they cannot return to Morocco but may head towards Syria; the IS group current stronghold. More good news for Hillary. Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images Another day, another bit of rough endorsement news for the Donald Trump campaign. It must not have come as any surprise when the newspaper of Hillary Clintons alma mater Wellesley College, The Wellesley News, threw its endorsement behind Clinton. But, it couldnt have been easy for Trump to read that The Daily Pennsylvanian, the paper from Trumps own University of Pennsylvania, decided to follow suit. Both schools released their endorsements of Clinton in a joint statement on Tuesday. While Trump has often used his time at Wharton to burnish his business acumen I went to the Wharton School of Finance Im, like, a really smart person is in fact a real quote his love for the venerable institution was not always reciprocated. The University of Pennsylvania has long been a venue of anti-Trump demonstration, and when a petition went around saying that Trump does not represent us and expressed disgust that that an affiliation with our school is being used to legitimize prejudice and intolerance it got more than 3,800 signatures and not just from current students but from graduates and family members as well. Even without the Wellesley News, it would have been a big day for Hillary Clinton endorsements. The presidential nominee just recieved what millions so fruitlessly seek: approval from Anna Wintour via an endorsement from Vogue. Finally, Clinton capped everything off with a letter of endorsement as exalted in its language as it was in its signatories. In an open letter, 70 separate Nobel laureates pledged their support for Clinton, not only saying that they prefer her as a president, but without ever even mentioning Trump by name managing to paint a Clinton defeat as a threat to science, democracy, and global freedom. Lest you think Clinton will ever be able to climb out from Obamas shadow, the current president garnered the endorsements of a full 76 Nobel winners in 2012. El Chapo before one of his many escapes. Photo: Xinhua News Agency/Xinhua News Agency/Getty Images Judge Vicente Bermudez Zacarias who was presiding over the case of serial prison-escapee Joaquin El Chapo Guzman was shot in the head on Monday while jogging near his home in Metepec, just outside of Mexico City. He died later that day in the hospital. Zacarias, 37, worked on a series of high-profile cases involving drug kingpins, including Miguel Trevino, a one-time leader of the Zetas Cartel, but had not been assigned any police protection. Appearing on television on Monday, Mexican president Enrique Pena Nieto said only that he had asked his attorney general to investigate the slaying. Guzman, the head of the Sinaloa Cartel, is considered one of the worlds most powerful and dangerous crime lords. He made headlines for leading authorities on multiple nationwide manhunts after escaping from maximum-security prisons twice, once in 2001 and again in 2015. Recently Judge Zacarias had been working on legal challenges filed by Guzmans lawyers in an effort to to stop his extradition to the United States. American officials are confident he will be extradited by 2017. Guzman is currently being held in a maximum-security facility in Ciudad Juarez, just across the border from El Paso, Texas. He wants to play winner take all. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images When Senator John McCain publicly promised that Senate Republicans would extend their blockade of Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominations through Hillary Clintons presidency, the significance of this ominous step was largely obscured by the generally toxic partisan atmosphere of this presidential election cycle, including the fact that Donald Trump is already accusing Democrats of stealing an election that wont happen for three weeks. But McCains statement actually represents a historic moment a departure from norms that could well lead to the death of all but the most token signs of bipartisanship in Washington. Only a very few Supreme Court nominations have been rejected by Congress over the years. While divided partisan control of the presidency and Senate has made SCOTUS confirmations trickier, it has hardly closed the door: A Democratic-c0ntrolled Senate has confirmed 11 nominees for the Court made by Republican presidents. There certainly never has been a time when senators of one party have categorically refused to consider, sight-unseen, SCOTUS nominations by presidents from the other party. McCains promise means the 44 ideological deadlock on the Supreme Court following the death of Antonin Scalia could continue until the Senate and the White House are controlled by the same party. As a practical matter that means, as long as the empty seat remains unfilled, SCOTUS may continue to defer to lower courts on critical issues ranging from executive orders governing immigration and energy policy to state abortion restrictions. It could also leave the law unsettled for extended periods in cases where lower courts are divided. In the past, such circumstances might have led to the appointment of either centrist justices who offended neither side on key issues, or stealth justices with too little in the way of a paper trail or announced positions to arouse opposition. But more recently political partisans have lost any reticence about demanding subscription to litmus tests by potential federal judges much less SCOTUS justices. And now we are to the point where being appointed by the other partys president is enough to label a jurist as a presumed enemy. Indeed, McCains promise is significant even if Republicans lose control of the Senate. Obstructionist Republican senators would almost certainly use the filibuster to block Clintons SCOTUS nominations even if they are in the minority (they will certainly have more than the 41 seats necessary to defeat a cloture motion). That in turn would likely convince Democratic senators to complete the chore of killing the filibuster a project they started in 2013 when they eliminated the obstructionist tactic for confirmation of executive-branch officials and judges for the lower federal courts. Assuming Republicans try to maintain with a standing filibuster threat the 60-vote Senate threshold for passing regular legislation, its probable that a Democratic majority would reimpose Senate rule by a simple majority vote in every circumstance. You see where this is all headed. We are on the brink of a new era in which bipartisanship is functionally dead and divided partisan control of the federal government keeps anything significant from happening. That is significant not for the reasons we so often hear the demise of those wonderful days when the good old boys of both parties got together over drinks and cut deals without regard to party or ideology but because divided government is the rule more often than it is the exception in our system. Indeed, since Ronald Reagan became president, periods of trifecta control of the executive and legislative branches have been limited to the first two years of Bill Clintons presidency, four years in the middle of George W. Bushs presidency (plus a brief period in 2001 before Jim Jeffords switched parties and gave control of the Senate to Democrats), and the first two years of the Obama presidency. Thats why it is a very bad sign for a functioning federal government when a supposedly centrist Republican who used to take pride in co-sponsoring bipartisan legislation on subjects ranging from campaign-finance reform to greenhouse-gas emissions is announcing in advance as a matter of principle that a Democratic president can forget about what used to be a routine political process. Some observers seem to believe divided government is a reflection of deep ambivalence among the American people and/or a desire for checks and balances between the branches. But the truth is, Republicans have a built-in advantage in the Senate thanks to the disproportionate power of small-population states, and whichever party controls the decennial redistricting has an advantage in the House (currently the Republicans). Unless something changes soon, periods of productive domestic-policy-making and fully staffed executive agencies and federal courts will be limited to those relatively rare occasions when one party or the other holds a trifecta and can essentially operate the federal government like a parliamentary system. The only other option is to rely on regularly expanded executive powers, and that is something no one in principle, anyway wants. Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images Twenty days before the ballots are tallied, Hillary Clintons cabal of international bankers, Mexican billionaires, failing newspapers, and victims of sexual assault, appear to already have this election rigged. At this point, Carlos Slim can probably tell the New Black Panther Party to take Election Day off this ones in the bag. Of course, there isnt actually a globalist conspiracy to deny Donald Trump the presidency. But the mogul has spent much of the past two weeks insisting that there is. Which makes sense: At this point, the GOP nominee has a much better chance of persuading his base that they shouldnt blame him for the result on November 8 than he does of persuading the broader electorate to deliver the result he wants. The past 48 hours of polls and reporting offer new testaments to the strength of Clintons advantage and suggest that a landslide big enough to give Democrats control of Capitol Hill is a genuine possibility. Here are eight signs that America is less than three weeks away from electing its first female president. 1. Clinton is outpolling Trump among some of his strongest demographics. Clinton leads Trump by nine points in Bloombergs new national poll. But the best news for the Democratic nominee lies in the surveys cross-tabs: After trailing Trump among men for the entire summer, Clinton now wins them 46 to 44 percent in a two-way race with Trump. Whats more, as recently as September, Bloomberg showed Trump leading Clinton by eight points among those without a college degree now, Clinton leads that demographic by four. And, among whites with college diplomas a longtime Republican constituency Clinton has expanded her advantage to 13 points. 2. Clinton now has a better chance of winning Texas than Trump does of winning Pennsylvania. Clinton chances in Texas: 17% Trump chances in Pennsylvania: 10%https://t.co/5YlHan7Gy4 Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) October 18, 2016 Recent polls from the University of Houston and SurveyMonkey show Trump leading Clinton in the Lone Star State by margins of 3 percent and 2 percent, respectively. By contrast, the most recent polls of Pennsylvania have put Clinton up by between 6 and 9 percent. And Texas isnt the only longtime red state thats starting to take on a purple hue. Recent polls have put Clinton in striking distance in Georgia, Utah, and Alaska, while one poll out Wednesday gives her a five-point lead in Arizona. Clintons surprising competitiveness in red states has led some observers to believe her national lead is even larger than polling averages make it look. Why do I believe HRC is up 10 or so nationally? TX, GA, UT, AZ are basically dead heats, margin of error states. Headed for a blowout folks. John Weaver (@jwgop) October 18, 2016 This may be so. But its worth noting that red states have swung more dramatically toward the Democratic nominee than swing states have. Red states have shifted to Clinton by almost *9* points since 2012. Swing states just 2 points. Blue states haven't shifted at all. Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) October 18, 2016 3. Still, her average national lead puts her in landslide territory. RealClearPolitics has Clinton winning a four-way race by 6.9 percent, while the Huffington Post has that figure at 6.7 percent. Those are impressive margins, especially when one considers 4. This number. . @Nate_Cohn says key number now is "zero," which equals # of times a presidential candidate recovered from Trump's polling deficit to win. Jonathan Swan (@jonathanvswan) October 18, 2016 5. Trumps own argument for why hes still competitive actually refutes itself. On Tuesday, Trump argued that he has an excellent chance of becoming president, because right-wing nationalist movements always win surprise victories in 2016. This is another Brexit, believe me, the GOP nominee said. But if the U.S. election follows the same pattern as Brexit, then Trump will lose because one lesson of Brexit was that public-opinion polling is very reliable. Why do folks continue to argue that most polls in Brexit showed remain winning? During June, Leave led in 17 polls, Remain in 14, 3 ties. (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) October 17, 2016 6. The incensed women of Indiana are coming for Trump. Per Politico: At a drive-through voter registration event at the Vigo County Courthouse the day before, about 150 voters registered. I spoke to one volunteer who worked the event, and she told me that 90 percent of them were women who planned to vote for Clinton. Among them was 73-year-old Bertha Pearman, a Terre Haute resident who had registered to vote for the first time in her life that day. Spurred by Trumps letter-to-Penthouse-like remarks, Pearman had had enough, and planned to vote for Clinton With the things that come out of Trumps mouth, it makes you sick, said Pearman, a former retail clerk and the mother of three children. Its pretty sad that you have to censor the debates from our children. I dont want someone like that running the country. 7. Clinton is starting to cross 50 percent in her most favorable polls. In a two-way race a measure that presumes third-party candidates will perform worse on Election Day than in polls leading up to it, as has been the historic norm Bloomberg shows Clinton reaching 50 percent. A new survey from PRRI puts her at 51 15 points ahead of Trump. 8. Democrats taking the House is now a serious subject of conversation. That PRRI survey also shows Democrats winning the generic congressional ballot by 12 points a margin that would almost certainly make Nancy Pelosi House Speaker. Still, RealClearPoliticss polling average puts the Democratic congressional advantage at a mere 4.2 percent. And with Republican incumbents protected by audaciously gerrymandered districts, every last thing would have to go right for Team Blue to confiscate Paul Ryans gavel. Useful perspective from @Redistrict on 1600: At this point in 2006, 43 R seats in play. Needed only 15- got 31 Today? 33 in play- need 30 Mac McClung Fan Account (@LPDonovan) October 19, 2016 Thus, the most likely consequences of next months elections will be an even more extreme GOP majority in the House, an even more recalcitrant Republican minority in the Senate, and the first female president in the White House. ISIS fighters. Photo: Medyan Dairieh/Corbis A 24-year-old New York City college student died fighting for ISIS last year, federal prosecutors revealed in court papers this week. Samy Mohammed El-Goarany allegedly told his parents he was headed back to school in Manhattan in January 2015, but instead jetted off to Turkey, where he later crossed over the border into Syria. He was reportedly killed in November 2015; an unknown person contacted a family member and presented them with a photo of a handwritten note that read: If youre reading this then know that Ive been killed in battle and am now with our Lord InshaAllah We will win this war one day, this war between Iman (Belief) and kufr (Disbelief) between Good and Evil. The new details came out on Tuesday as federal prosecutors push forward a case against an Arizona man whos been charged with providing material support to ISIS for helping get El-Goarany to Syria to join up with the terrorist group. Ahmed Mohammed el Gammal was arrested in August 2015 and pleaded not guilty to the charges; right now, prosecutors and defense attorneys are arguing over whether evidence that involves the deceased college student can be submitted for el Gammals trial, scheduled for December. The big piece of evidence theyre arguing over is a YouTube video, one that El-Goarany allegedly recorded in September 2015, a month after el Gammal was arrested. According to prosecutors, in that short clip, El-Goarany claims that he came to Syria and joined the Islamic State out of his own will. It was my own choice, and it was out of my own resources, El-Goarany explains. He adds: And nobody helped me along the way to get here including Ahmed Mohammed el Gammal, in America. And Im making this video just to let the authorities know this. This is my statement, and use it however you wish. Prosecutors very much wish to use this against el Gammal, saying it proves El-Goarany went to Syria, and suggests an attempt to cover up an ISIS recruiting network. El Gammals defense attorneys are arguing that the video constitutes hearsay, as El-Goarany is no longer able to explain how no one helped him travel to Syria. Photo: Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images Donald Trump seems to have spent all his best debate guests so inappropriate, theyll throw Hillary off her game last time round. After bringing a group of Bill Clintons accusers to the town hall in St. Louis, the Republican nominee has invited Barack Obamas half-brother Malik to Wednesday nights contest in Las Vegas. Why Hillary Clinton would be fazed by the presence of the estranged blood relation of her former colleague is unclear. By contrast, its easy to see how accepting Malik Obamas endorsement could throw the Trump campaign off-message. Per Mediaite: In 2014, the Israeli press reported on the fact that Malik Obama was photographed wearing a red and white keffiyeh, which typically signifies support for Hamas rather than the more moderate Fatah. Emblazoned on the scarf were the slogans Jerusalem is ours, we are coming, and From the river to the sea. Both are popular chants used by the terrorist group. Malik is also a polygamist who runs a charity that has been accused of fraud. It seems doubtful that Trump wants to direct the medias attention to sexual and philanthropic ethics. So perfect: Like Donald Trump, the polygamous Malik Obama also runs a dodgy charity. https://t.co/4VHbA8ULEn David Frum (@davidfrum) October 19, 2016 Nonetheless, Trump campaign manager Steve Bannon promises that Malik is only an appetizer. Photobombing the city. Photo: Dancers After Dark, Jordan Matter, and Workman Publishing Photographer Jordan Matters 2012 book Dancers Among Us showcased the surreal results of his efforts to capture models professional dancers, circus performers, and other extremely fit people posing in largely metropolitan environments, a burst of human whimsy amid the daily doings of a city. In Dancers After Dark, hes taken things in a more risque direction: Matters models are now nude. I was inspired by the commitment dancers put into their careers, he says. I wanted to find a way to showcase that commitment visually. Hence the kind of photo you see here, which, as with all those in the book, was quickly created on the spot in the middle of the night before authorities could interfere. There was a contingency plan in place, though. A lieutenant gave me a police courtesy card, Matter explains, which means a cop cuts you a break if you show it. He used it only once. *A version of this article appears in the October 17, 2016, issue of New York Magazine. Photo: Jordan Matter 10:22 p.m. Hells Kitchen. Photo: Dancers After Dark, Jordan Matter, and Workman Publishing 12:51 a.m. Greenpoint. Photo: Jordan Matter 2:10 a.m. Hudson River Park Bikeway. Photo: Jordan Matter 1:23 a.m. Grand Central Terminal. Photo: Jordan Matter 11:56 p.m. Central Park. Photo: Jordan Matter 12:04 a.m. Williamsburg. A former news reporter says Bill Clinton sexually assaulted her while he was governor of Arkansas. Photo: Stephanie Keith/Getty Images Leslie Millwee, who was a reporter for local Arkansas TV station KLMN-TV while Bill Clinton was the states governor, told Breitbart News that Clinton sexually assaulted her three times in 1980. Millwee, who reported under the alias Leslie Derrick, reportedly interviewed Clinton about 20 times over the course of her career at KLMN, but she quit her job at the station after the assaults. She told Brietbart that in all three cases, Clinton paid a visit to the KLMN station and assaulted her in the editing room, which a former KLMN editor described as tiny. He followed me into an editing room, Millwee said. I was sitting in a chair. He came up behind me and started rubbing my shoulders and running his hands down toward my breasts. And I was just stunned. I froze. I asked him to stop. He laughed. Millwee said similar assaults occurred two more times, and after the third time, Clinton showed up at her apartment and knocked on her door for about ten minutes. [He was] calling my name. Saying, I know you are home. Please answer the door. I did not answer the door, she said. She told three friends about the alleged assaults in the late 90s, and each corroborated her story for Brietbart. Millwee added that she considered coming forward in 1998 when the Monica Lewinsky scandal broke, but she was afraid of the negative publicity and of losing her job at a conservative pharmaceutical company. The Clinton campaign has yet to respond to Millwees allegations. Photo: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images While it seemed like all was finally calm with Lindsay Lohan she dumped her abusive fiance, she read a quarter of the Koran, she lost part of her finger but its all good heres something new and fun to think about: LiLo is donating German energy drinks to Syrian refugees. Ah, yeah, thats our gal. A source spoke with Page Six about Lohans new commitment to Syrian refugees and how sending Mintanine a German energy drink that is available at Lohans new Greek nightclub called Lohan is better than sending nothing at all. Theres hardly food, water or anything, the source told Page Six, so at this point sending anything is helpful. The drink is a kind of blue caffeine lemonade, so says their website. Gotta love this b. For Octobers installment of the Cut book club, were reading inventive historical fiction, acclaimed short-story collections, and memoirs by inspiring women. Scroll down to see this months picks, and let us know if youve also read any of them in the comments. 1. The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead In Colson Whiteheads gorgeous, harrowing new book about the slave trade, the underground railroad is not a metaphor its a real network of subterranean tunnels and trains that ferry slaves to freedom. The protagonist, a young slave called Cora, flees a Georgia plantation and embarks on a Gullivers Travelsesque voyage through Whiteheads imagined America, where the lines between historical fiction and fantasy blur in surprising and unexpected ways. The Underground Railroad is both a genre-bending imaginative triumph and an unflinchingly honest depiction of the horrors of the darkest chapter in American history. Anna Silman, culture writer 2. Him, Me, Muhammad Ali by Randa Jarra Years ago, I picked up Randa Jarrars first book, A Map of Home, by chance because it was on display in my college library. As the daughter of an Egyptian immigrant, I thought it was a revelation and Jarrars newest book, Him, Me, Muhammad Ali, feels intimately familiar to me in many of the same ways. Jarrars characters are memorable, with experiences and observations that oscillate between deeply moving and riotously funny often on the same page and she expertly incorporates occasional moments of magical realism in this truly excellent short-story collection. Gabriella Paiella, staff writer 3. Lab Girl by Hope Jahren Lab Girl initially interested me because its the memoir of a successful woman in a male-dominated field, but Hope Jahrens story is so much more than that. She writes beautiful passages about how trees grow and die, but also wades through thornier matters, like pursuing lucrative defense research to support her true passion of plant biology, and navigating a relationship with her reserved Norwegian parents. Jahrens writing will give you an appreciation of the scientific process as well as the acorn you stepped on yesterday. Susan Rinkunas, health writer 4. How to Get Run Over by a Truck by Katie McKenna Katie McKenna shares the story of her accident (she was literally run over by a truck) in this imperfect book with humor, love, bravery, and strength. Her story speaks to every personal trauma, big or small, that comes through our lives. And in sharing her path through pain and recovery, McKenna gives us tools to make it through our own challenges. Your heart will explode for Katie and for yourself. Raydene Salinas, photo editor 5. The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson Im not going to lie when I first read the title, I thought it referred to Washington, D.C. But more than a decade after it became a National Book Award finalist, I finally picked up The Devil in the White City only to find out that it was about the 1893 Chicago Worlds Fair. Although I was disappointed at first, I quickly became wrapped up in the parallel stories of Daniel Burnham, the fairs director of works, and the so-called Dr. H. H. Holmes, a serial killer who lured young women to Chicago using the fair as bait. The nonfiction narrative is so well-researched that it feels educational, even as it thrills the reader with morbid details and constant cliffhangers. Claire Landsbaum, staff writer 6. The Lovers: Afghanistans Romeo and Juliet, the True Story of How They Defied Their Families and Escaped an Honor Killing by Rod Nordland The Lovers tells the true story of Zakia and Ali, a young couple from different tribes, who fell in love and decided to get married against her familys wishes. Zakias family vowed to kill her to restore honor to their family, and the pair had to go into hiding to save their lives. Written by the New York Times Kabul bureau chief Rod Nordland, the book is a devastating look at womens rights in Afghanistan, and shines a light on the horror of honor killings. Lisa Ryan, staff writer 7. West With the Night, by Beryl Markham I bought West With the Night at a used bookstore late this summer on vacation when Id run out of reading materials. Ive always meant to read Markhams memoir of her adventures as a pioneering pilot (at a time when few women flew) and outdoorswoman growing up in Kenya. The book is written so beautifully that Ernest Hemingway wrote that he was ashamed of himself as a writer after reading it. Laura June, staff writer 8. Eligible, by Curtis Sittenfeld I love this modern reimagining of Pride and Prejudice. Mr. Darcys a neurosurgeon, sisters Kitty and Lydia are CrossFit-obsessed egomaniacs, and our heroine, Elizabeth Bennett, is a freelance magazine writer. Sittenfeld works her own charming Austen-like prose, but issues like artificial insemination and sex-reassignment surgery provide a topical (and funny!) feminist perspective. Maura Walters, editor 9. A Manual for Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin This short-story collection was all the rage when it was released last year, and while I regret not picking it up then, no time better than the present. Lucia Berlin is an extremely savvy, extremely funny writer who writes about the mundane experiences of the everyday as if they are either magical or horribly tragic. Read the Lydia Davispenned intro to learn about what events in Berlins life made her so equipped to perfectly catalogue the details of human nature. Dayna Evans, staff writer 10. Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur When I first discovered Rupi on Instagram, I didnt realize she had a hardcover book to accompany her short poems and musings on life as a woman. Her work addresses sexual assault and harassment, but also the process of falling in love and friendship. I found myself reflecting on (and overthinking) past experiences. Emily Sundberg, Instagram editor 11. Heights of the Marvelous: A New York Anthology, edited by Todd Colby I love this book of weird, beautiful poems about New York City for quick pockets of reading time on the subway, or just before heading to bed. Catie LHeureux, associate managing editor 12. Today Will Be Different by Maria Semple I loved Maria Semples funny, frantic novel Whered You Go, Bernadette (who didnt?), so I jumped on this as soon as it came out. Like Bernadette, its about a dysfunctional, bougie, highly opinionated Seattle mom and the slapstick havoc that she wreaks on those around her. Semple used to write for Arrested Development, and shes a master at creating comedy out of the neuroses of people with too much time and money on their hands. Izzy Grinspan, senior editor 13. One Hundred Apocalypses and Other Apocalypses by Lucy Corin Right nows the perfect time to pick up the paperback edition of Lucy Corins short-story collection One Hundred Apocalypses and Other Apocalypses, released earlier this month by McSweeneys. My first encounter with Corins work was her gorgeous, violent novel Everyday Psychokillers: A History for Girls; these short stories continue in that vein. A sharp-tongued, hallucinatory writer, Corin will prepare you for whatever it is thats coming or at least distract you from it. Jen Gann, senior copy editor Women protesting violence against women in Buenos Aires in June. Photo: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images Women across Argentina are set to take to the streets on Wednesday to protest violence against women following the rape, torture, and murder of a 16-year-old girl, The Guardian reports. The so-called womens strike also known as Black Wednesday is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of women in Argentina who will drop everything for an hour at 1 p.m UTC. In your office, school, hospital, law court, newsroom, shop, factory, or wherever you are working, stop for an hour to demand no more machista violence, the strikes organizers wrote. The strike was organized after Lucia Perez was drugged, raped, and tortured earlier in October in Mar del Plata, Argentina. Prosecutor Maria Isabel Sanchez said, I know its not very professional to say this, but Im a mother and a woman, and though Ive seen thousands of cases in my career, Ive never seen anything like this. Three people have already been arrested in the case, and Perezs family has been receiving death threats. Crimes against women in Argentina have increased 78 percent since 2008, according to government statistics. The attack against Perez was just one of the latest instances of femicide in the country. Women in Buenos Aires held a similar protest against femicide in June, and tens of thousands of women participated in a similar march in Rosario just days ago. Photo: Blend Images - Hill Street Studi/Getty Images The 2016 presidential election is arguably the most divisive in recent history. On one side is a blustering failed businessman with zero political experience, a predilection for spouting racist and sexist soundbites, and a laundry list of sexual-assault allegations against him. On the other, our potential first woman president, who despite her extensive political experience and always-professional demeanor is viewed by many citizens as untrustworthy and has a history of being a war hawk and getting cozy with Wall Street. Each has their own enthusiastic fanbase, of course, but when Americans go to the polls to vote for either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton on November 8, some will be choosing to go with the lesser of two evils whatever that might mean to them. Because, more than ever before, there is pressure on Americans to actually get to the polls (only 53.6 percent of those of voting age did so in 2012s presidential election) and specifically, theres been a particular pressure on women to vote for Hillary Clinton for the sole purpose of defeating Donald Trump. But for some women, thats not reason enough to vote. The Cut interviewed six women none of whom are politically indifferent or apathetic who are choosing not to vote about why theyre sitting this election out. Anonymous, 30, Teacher, New York If I lived in a swing state, Id vote Clinton in a heartbeat to defeat Trump. Since I dont, I see no reason to vote for Hillary Clinton. I am antiwar; she is a war hawk. I am for universal, free, high-quality child care and humane paid parental leave for all workers that looks similar to plans in Europe. She has said she doesnt believe bringing about Scandinavian-style social-welfare measures is possible in the United States, which I find unimaginative and (contrary to some of the sexist criticism of her) not nearly ambitious enough. As a feminist, my concern is for all women, not just rich women working at tech companies and on Wall Street. Moreover, I do not believe that feminism can trickle down that having more women on corporate boards will make life better for working-class women. If your primary concern is creating gender parity within the upper class, its rational to support Hillary Clinton. If you are a working woman, things arent so clear. She supported and advocated for welfare reform, gutting welfare as we know it, which has had devastating effects on working women, especially black and Latino women. Her positions on child care and parental leave are not nearly ambitious enough to start with and I imagine shell compromise further which is not a good thing! These policies are necessary and long overdue. Her foreign policy has been disastrous for women worldwide, particularly in Libya. She voted for the war in Iraq. Indigenous activist Berta Caceres, who was later murdered, singled Clinton out as someone who enabled and legitimated the coup in Honduras. I cannot and will not support someone with these morals. How can I vote for this woman? Why would I? Ive had pretty open conversations with friends [about not voting]. Im very political, and I believe all people should be politically active. Im just extremely disappointed in the two choices on offer and the fact that were meant to choose between two choices in the first place. America would be better off with a strong third party of working people. Alyssa, 25, Works in Marketing, Pennsylvania Ive only been eligible to vote in one election in the past. I voted for Obama and frankly I wish I could vote for him again. I have been pretty conflicted about not voting, mostly because of the pressure from celebrities and my peers on social media about how important it is that we do our civic duty and place our vote, but I dont think its as cut-and-dry as that. I dont really appreciate the two-party system, or the two candidates in this election specifically, that has been forced upon the nation. I dont like either Clinton or Trump as people or politicians and I dont think its fair to be shamed into having to choose between them, neither of which I want representing me. I understand peoples choice to vote for Hillary Clinton just to go against Donald Trump but it doesnt sit right with me to have to vote for a shit person just so an even shittier person doesnt get in office. If I absolutely had to vote, I would write in Bernie Sanders, but then Id get blasted for wasting my vote. Because of all this, I have not shared with many people that Im not voting and any hints Ive dropped about it have been vilified. To some, it might seem like Im a stereotypical millennial pouting about not getting what I want, but I think not voting speaks to a larger issue of politics in America. Roqayah Chamseddine, 26, Writer, Lebanese-American Based in Sydney I have not voted before, no. Nor have I felt compelled to, especially not for any Democrat or Republican presidential candidate. Ive gone back and forth in terms of whether or not to cast a vote for the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), which is running a campaign for the U.S. presidency under Gloria La Riva, or not to vote whatsoever. While I wholeheartedly support the PSLs platform, I dont consider voting for the party during this election to be imperative. As a woman, a Muslim, leftist, and Arab woman, both candidates pose a threat to my livelihood, and the livelihood of others. Clintons hawkish policies have had material consequences in parts of the world often ignored during U.S. election cycles. The frightening specter of Donald Trump is no reason for me to vote for Hillary Clinton. My primary intention is to promote grassroots organizing, and to find ways in which to get more people involved in local efforts to disrupt the work of reformists whose sole purpose is to kill off the American labor movement by pacifying a tired base with empty gestures and flowery rhetoric. Everything else is noise. Voting, for all the hype its afforded, is the very least we can do. Erica, 24, Works in Retail Management, Tennessee I consider myself a Democrat; I voted for Obama, and if Bernie Sanders had won the Democratic nomination, I would have voted for him as well. I would never vote for someone as inhumane as Donald Trump, but I also couldnt sleep well at night knowing I voted for Hillary Clinton. Donald Trump is a sexist, misogynistic, terrifying man. I cant imagine the decisions he would make as president, especially pertaining to womens bodies. Hillary Clinton, in my eyes, is the lesser of the two evils. I also find myself not trusting a word that she says. Both candidates have contradicted themselves, [saying] whatever makes them sound better in that moment. I cant put my vote and my trust into someone who can be so easily swayed. April Shugars, 43, VP of Operations, South Carolina I am a mother of two girls and a registered Republican but have not always voted for my party. I have brought my children up with the idea that as an American it is our duty to vote in each election; however, this election I cannot bring myself to cast a vote for either candidate. I am a huge supporter of womens rights, a huge supporter of the LGBT community, and pro-choice. It would seem that Hillary would be an easy choice for me, however thats far from the truth. She flip-flops too much on her beliefs; one minute she is against same-sex marriage and then when it seems to be the popular idea she supports it. She is quick to point out Donalds objectification of women but overlooks the documented crimes her own husband committed against women. She continues to lie and manipulate and as a strong women I am not proud that she represents women. Donald Trump just disgusts me. When he first announced his candidacy I, like many others, thought it was a joke. The way he speaks about and to people is disgusting. I am not offended by the words he uses, but by the fact that he can even have that type of mind-set! He makes racist comments but then talks about making this country great. How is that possible when you are using words to separate us, not bring us together? I have vocalized my plan not to vote I have spoken up in social settings and also on Facebook. I have began to really look into third-party options, as it will kill me not to vote, so many people before me men, women, black, white fought so hard for this right and I dont take it lightly. Elizabeth King, 28, Writer, American based in Argentina I voted for Barack Obama in 2008. I did not vote in 2012. This general election I have felt torn at times about not voting. I still plan not to vote, but this is the first time where there have been moments where I kind of stop and think, Oh man, I should do it, I should do it. Im still content with my decision, but it does feel different this time. I feel absolutely zero compulsion to vote for Hillary Clinton because shes a woman and I think its because I dont stand behind a lot of her policies. To me, thats more important. Theres a part of me that, of course, wants to see a woman president, but I overall resent the office so it doesnt really matter to me. I have an analogy: In some sense [not voting] is a protest, but I think of it as vegetarianism. Some people say, Why would you protest the meat industry by not eating meat? Other people are gonna eat meat anyway; youre not gonna take down the big meat industry just because youre a vegetarian. Well, at the end of the day, vegetarians think its the right thing to do, to not eat meat, and thats how I feel about voting. I got ripped a new one for the Salon article on Twitter, to put it indelicately. Usually the reaction is something along the lines of youre very privileged and thats why youre not voting that its the ultimate expression of privilege. I do have many privileges, and I dont think voting is an expression of them. The other big one that is very easy to ignore is youre a bad citizen, or youre not fulfilling your duties and you cant complain if you dont vote. I just think thats reactionary bunk. Interviews have been edited and condensed for clarity. what the fuck is even going on Reply Thread Link Plus moonshine, weed, and crappy music! Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I let out a low continuous scream while reading your reply. OMG I dead. Reply Parent Thread Link Lol are these names jokes?? Reply Parent Thread Expand Link conspired how to destroy Azealia Banks career What career though. Her last semblance of a hit was 212... Reply Parent Thread Link mercedes mcnab looks legit exactly the same as a little girl and adult, it's a bit unsettling lol Reply Parent Thread Link Love this movie and the fact that this scene is so applicable on a daily usage to someone. Reply Parent Thread Link I want to give her a hug. In my life the most problematic people have had something fucked up happen to them and that just manifests into a monster. That doesn't excuse acting belligerent, but finding the root of the issue is the first step in becoming a better person. Reply Parent Thread Link "Banks claims she basically asked the woman to be nice and not ruin the evening, and Crowe responded to this request by whispering a racial slur into her ear and then immediately choking her." Reply Thread Link Lmao Reply Parent Thread Link if they were all eating dinner is she saying russell crowe choked her in front of everyone else? idgi O_o Reply Parent Thread Link why does she have no one who wants to get her help? this is so sad tbh Reply Thread Link i mean this is the likely case bc she seems like a terrible person to be around but even until this happened she still had a few friends/people who seemed to like her (like rza) idk it's just a bit awful to watch Reply Parent Thread Link She's too much of a piece of shit for anyone to want to. Reply Parent Thread Link you really can't help some people. Reply Parent Thread Link I mean, RZA was trying to hook her up but then this happened so I can't really imagine anyone else wants to be around her anymore Reply Parent Thread Link honestly, even if you love that person, even if you try, even if it hurts. some people just don't want the help and there's only so much berating and abuse you can take before you have to leave. Reply Parent Thread Link i've had friends like her and eventually you get sick of it. it's not worth the constant stress, especially when they treat you like crap. Reply Parent Thread Link her erratic behavior didn't start yesterday, I'm sure she had friends who tried in the beginning but it's been years now, they're probably long gone Reply Parent Thread Link i know :( does she have anyone around who can help her like in amanda bynes' or britney's situations? Reply Parent Thread Link She reminds me of a bunch of alco's I've known throughout my life, the mindset is, they are not the problem, everyone else is. Reply Parent Thread Link idk I wouldn't be surprised if all the people who would normally help her have checked out by now/already given her too many chances. RZA was her last lifeline, and she probably really embarrassed him. :/ Reply Parent Thread Link I don't think you can help someone who doesn't want it. Reply Parent Thread Link Idk I always got the sense that she has no support system and people around her who just gas her up. Reply Parent Thread Link "She claims that Crowe's attorney called her and said she would never work in Hollywood again (she's working there now???) if she spoke her mind and her speaking about the incident is her way of standing up for all women in Hollywood." It sounds like she watched a movie where all this happened and started parroting it while forgetting that she doesn't actually, y'know, work in Hollywood. Edited at 2016-10-19 09:48 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link Have you ever threatened to murder a room full of people I regularly threaten people when they shade me on ONTD, so.... Reply Thread Link Allegedly at some point during the evening Banks started joking about some of the guests at the dinner doing horror movies and making fun of their past projects. joking? mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm k Reply Thread Link RZA must be like idon'tknowher.gif at this point. Reply Thread Link "Banks claims she basically asked the woman to be nice and not ruin the evening, since you know she's calm and rational like that" lmfao Reply Thread Link yikes Reply Thread Link Messy situation Reply Thread Link Crowe allegedly told her "Hey, you haven't done anything in your career, so you have no right to tell him about horror." lmfaooo Reply Thread Link I'm shocked he even knew who she was, not just through the RZA association. Reply Parent Thread Link I don't know why anyone would be embarrassed about the horror movies they were in. There are so many A-listers that started their career because of those films. Also, horror movies rule (some more so than others but you know...) Reply Parent Thread Link ikr?! even shitty horror movies are fun Reply Parent Thread Link right? I love shitty horror! Reply Parent Thread Link her dumbass stans will believe her no matter what, and everyone else doesn't care, so i dont even know why shes trying so hard Reply Thread Link i mean if IGGY AZALEA still has stans........ Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Serial killers have stans... I'm sure I've got a Stan somewhere. There's always one for everyone lol Edited at 2016-10-19 10:03 pm (UTC) Reply Parent Thread Link Honestly, I'm surprised that she still does. Reply Parent Thread Link Yes they call themselves 'kunts' i kid you not. Reply Parent Thread Link I tried to watch that interview but honestly she's coming off as a liar Reply Thread Link lmaooooooo. and the thing is, your manager usually pulls you aside after it happens to go, "i'm sorry." Reply Parent Thread Expand Link lol oh my god that's so accurate Reply Parent Thread Link hmmm i thought she was believable and rational enough. that part about ragging on and bruised male egos...i could see her pushing their buttons and him snapping. idk idk. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Many countries outside OPEC are willing to join the negotiations on a crude oil production reduction initiated by the cartel last month. Thats what Saudi Arabias oil minister Khalid al-Falih said today at the Oil & Money conference in London. Without naming any names, Al-Falih said that behind-the-scenes talks are being held with non-OPEC producers who have declared their readiness to not just freeze, but to cut their production to match the organizations attempt at rebalancing the markets. The biggest non-OPEC oil producers in the world besides Russia and the U.S. include Canada, Norway, Mexico, China, India, Brazil, Azerbaijan, and Kazakhstan. Two non-OPEC producer thats already made its oil production intentions clearor murky, rather, with regard to whether they will be freezing or cuttingis Russia and Azerbaijan. President Vladimir Putin said earlier this month at the World Energy Congress in Turkey the country will join efforts to bring oils fundamentals back to balance, but a fair amount of freeze chatter has also been going on in Russia. Saudi Arabia in September made the first decisive step towards this return to balance by announcing it was willing to do more than just freeze its record-breaking output rate. The kingdom vouched to reduce it, on condition that Iran, a fellow OPEC member and a major competitor, would freeze its own production. Related: OPEC To Decide On US Joining Vienna Talks After Presidential Vote Iran at the time rejected the offer, saying it would prefer to first bring its production rate to pre-sanction levels and then discuss a freeze. Oil minister Bijan Zanganeh, however, left the door open for further discussions at the November OPEC meeting, and Saudi Arabia was quick to go through that door, agreeing to let Iran ramp up its production before joining the freeze. Nothing is final as of yet. Both Iran and Iraq missed the World Energy Congress that took place last week in Istanbul, giving rise to worries that they may tank - Saudi Arabias plans to get all OPEC members on board with any freeze/cut agreement. Whats more, the Saudis have time and again demonstrated that international oil markets hang on their words, so until some of these non-OPEC producers confirm they are onboard with a production cut, its just plain speculation. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Oil speculators and a few major investment banks have suddenly turned bullish on crude prices, betting that the rally above $50 per barrel has more room to run. "Global oil inventories (industry and government) increased by 17 million barrels to 5.618 billion barrels in 3Q16. This is the smallest build since 4Q14, confirming that inventory builds are slowing as the market comes back into balance," analysts from Bernstein Energy said according to Reuters. Wood Mackenzie predicts that the oil market will move into balance before 2016 is out. In fact, major investors are starting to come to the same conclusion that the worst for oil prices is over. Hedge funds and other money managers boosted net-long positions to their highest point since the oil bust began more than two years ago. As John Kemp of Reuters notes, hedge funds increased net long positions in WTI contracts by 39 million barrels to 292 million barrels for the week ending on October 11, the most since the summer of 2014. The sudden build up in net long positions consisted mostly of the liquidation of shorts shorts fell 28 percent in the last few weeks which corresponded with a move of oil prices above $50 per barrel. The flip side of that trend is that now with such a buildup in net long positions and a dwindling number of shorts, there is a much greater risk of speculators snapping back in the other direction, having little room left on the upside. In other words, speculators might not be able to bid up oil prices any further, and in fact, could do just the opposite should some bearish news emerge not the least of which could be a collapse of the OPEC talks. Related: Oils Biggest Threat: Demand To Peak Within 15 Years Indeed, several analyst have come out and said that despite the recent rally, the buildup in bullish sentiment exposes the market to downside risk should OPEC falter. If OPECs November 30 meeting in Vienna is a dud, then the markets going to selloff, Dimitry Dayen, senior research analyst at ClearBridge Investments, told The Wall Street Journal. David Hufton, the CEO of PVM Group, agrees. There are lots of very important questions with no answers to date, and only six weeks to go before the next key OPEC meeting, Hufton said from London. If nothing concrete emerges on production control, the market will lose patience, with the risk of an end-year price bloodbath. The IEAs executive director Fatih Birol is also unimpressed with the current state of the oil markets. He says that if oil prices rise because of the OPEC deal, the result could simply be to spur higher production from U.S. shale and other high cost producers, such as China. He sees oil prices at $60 per barrel sparking a rush of new shale output, with a lag of about six months. The price level around $60 would give a strong impetus to the bulk of the current U.S. shale industry. Related: Where Is Uber Going Next? In addition, he says that OPECs tentative deal to cut back on production could cut into global demand even further. Higher prices may also push down the rather weak demand growth now. Currently we are about 1.2 million barrels per dayand this may be weaker, Birol told Bloomberg TV from the Oil & Money Conference in London. OPEC will try to thread a needle bolstering prices just a little bit to keep them above $50 per barrel, but otherwise fighting for market share in order to keep prices from rising above $60 per barrel, at which point it could provoke competitors to come back online. A $50, $60 oil price -- absent a supply accident -- is sufficient to develop the low-cost resources to provide increases that will be necessary over the next three to four years, Andrew Gould, board director at Saudi Aramco, said from the London conference. The comments indicate that Saudi Aramco sees little benefit in letting oil prices rise above $60 per barrel. Kuwaits acting oil minister echoed that sentiment, saying that the range between $50 and $60 per barrel was logical and acceptable. To be sure, OPEC is not exactly sitting in firm control of the oil markets. But they appear intent on keeping oil between $50 and $60 per barrel for an extended period of time. By Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: For the 10th straight year, October is Dining Month on OnMilwaukee, presented by the restaurants of Potawatomi Hotel & Casino. All month, we're stuffed with restaurant reviews, dining guides, delectable features, chef profiles and unique articles on everything food, as well as voting for your "Best of Dining 2016." The seemingly endless wait for the Tosa location of Thai-namite at 8725 W. North Ave. is coming to a close. In fact, according to co-owner Nongluk (Nini) Buranabunyut, the restaurant which offers both sushi and Thai cuisine is planning a special neighborhood soft opening to take place this weekend. The special event will take place Oct. 22 and 23 from 5 to 10 p.m. and will include 20 percent off on food orders. The restaurant will assume regular hours beginning on Tuesday, Oct. 25. The new location, which takes the place of City Market, is clean and modern with blonde wood accents and plenty of natural light from east-facing windows. An open kitchen and sushi bar has been added to the rear quarters of the restaurant, which accommodates 85. Both low and high-top tables, along with seating along the bar and sushi bar, provide a variety of options for singles, couples and larger groups. According to Buranabunyut, the opening menu will be virtually identical to Thai-namite's Brady Street location, but will be augmented moving forward to include additional sushi and appetizer options as well as specials including ramen and other noodle dishes. Brown rice will also be available as an option for health-conscious diners. Additions to the Tosa location's offerings will include a full bar with beer wine and cocktails along with a special $6 children's menu, which features downscaled dishes like fried rice, chicken satay, pad Thai and cashew chicken accompanied by a juice box. Buranabunyut, who bought the building on West North Avenue in November 2015, says the process for opening the Tosa location was drawn out by extensive renovations to the building, including the addition of a new fire alarm system. "We chose to move to Tosa because we really love the neighborhood," she says. "There are so many young professionals and families. And were very excited to offer new options for Thai food and sushi to the area." Beginning Oct. 25, Thai-namite will be open Tuesday through Thursday from 5 to 9:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 5 to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 5 to 9:30 p.m. Both take-out and dine-in will be available, and lunch service (including special bento box options) will launch beginning in mid-November. A grand opening celebration is also in the works. The event, which will take place in late November or early December, will include a variety of food specials. Watch Thai-namite's Facebook page for details. Despite the recent news that the Milwaukee Public Schools district is not subject to the Opportunity Schools Partnership Program in 2016-17, Milwaukee Teachers Education Association President Kim Schroeder said the work is not done, calling on the state to fairly fund public schools. "Were going to continue pushing whats best for our students and our community. We know the battles arent done were not naive to that but right now, were kind of happy," he said, crediting Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) teachers, students and parents for the victory. "Something actually went our way." The controversial legislation, a Republican-led effort to turn failing schools over to charter and private school operators, was met with intense resistance from MPS parents and teachers. Former OSPP Commissioner Demond Means, who pledged to work with MPS, resigned in June after the district rejected a partnership proposal. In the wake of that decision, Republican legislators threatened to sue the district and reduce its funding unless it agreed to comply with the law. But due to preliminary information from district report cards, MPS is no longer in the lowest performance category and therefore not subject to OSPP. The Department of Public Instruction (DPI) sent a letter to that effect to MPS before the Oct. 15 deadline set by OSPP, according to DPI spokesperson Tom McCarthy. He said no districts in the state met the criteria for OSPP. A statement by MPS Superintendent Darienne Driver and MPS board President Mark Sain said, "MPS is headed in the right direction." It cited assessment data from last year that shows student literacy is improving across all grade levels, and the number of students on target for reading proficiency has increased. State Rep. Dale Kooyenga and Sen. Alberta Darling, the legislators who authored the OSPP, did not respond to phone calls and emails requesting comment. Fair funding Milwaukee parents, teachers and elected officials recently called for more public school funding by walking into 117 MPS schools with students as they arrived. Milwaukee-area participants joined more than 2,000 schools in 232 cities across Wisconsin and the nation in the demonstration, which was organized by The Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools. Individuals who attended a walk-in at Neeskara Elementary School, 1601 N. Hawley Rd., said MPS needs more resources to provide children, many of whom live in poverty, with a higher quality of education. They said smaller class sizes, fully staffed libraries, out-of-school learning opportunities, up-to-date technology, sufficient learning materials for students, and art, music and gym classes can only be achieved through increased funding. "We want the same thing for our kids that other parents want for their kids its that simple," said Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. "Its about equity, and making sure that every kid has a fair chance." Public school districts in Wisconsin are funded with a combination of state, federal and local dollars; in most districts, the vast majority of those dollars come from property taxes. Only 31 percent of funding for MPS comes from property taxes. In 2014-15, MPS received a total of $11,821 per student from state funds and property taxes; the Elmbrook (Brookfield) school district, which Kooyenga represents, received $12,447. Milwaukees median household income is more than $17,000 less than the statewide figure of $52,622. MPS receives additional state funding because more than 50 percent of the districts students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Sheena Simmons, a mother of three, said she chose Neeskara because it caters to children with moderate hearing loss, a condition that affects her oldest. Once her daughter was there, it just made sense to send the other two. "What makes one child different than the other? Theyre all children," Simmons said. "Whats the difference? Money makes a difference? I think they need the same education." In 2011, when Republicans gained control of the state legislature, state funding for public schools was cut by more than $430 million. Between 2011 and 2015, state aid to MPS decreased by $258 per student, a difference of more than $20.7 million overall. "The children of this city have been egregiously and purposefully underfunded by GOP legislators in this state," said Amy Mizialko, vice president of MTEA. "Our students' lives matter and we are demanding investment in their lives and in this community." Earlier this year in the Milwaukee area, voters in the Grafton, Mukwonago, Menomonee Falls, Muskego-Norway and Nicolet school districts approved five of eight proposed referenda to fund building improvements and raise district revenue caps which limit how much districts can receive in state aid and property taxes. The total cost of the five referenda exceeds $170 million. In 2015, 62 of 90 similar referenda passed statewide, according to DPI. MPS has not sought a referendum since losing one in 1993. According to Wisconsin law, if a district-proposed referendum fails to pass, that district cannot attempt another one or borrow money for two years. State legislators have proposed further limiting when districts can hold referenda as recently as late last year. According to DPI, students who attend charter schools or get vouchers to attend private schools receive, on average, at least $1,200 more from the state than those who attend traditional public schools in Wisconsin. Public school students have been found to perform better on standardized tests than those who get vouchers to attend private schools. "Our public schools are here to educate all children," Sain said in an interview. "They dont pick and choose which children they want to serve or which families they want to work with." He added, "Equity in funding should be there for public schools." Republican state legislators have said OSPP was necessary because they are concerned about raising performance. But Democratic State Sen. Nikiya Harris-Dodd, who represents much of Milwaukees central city and near west side, called their actions "a concerted effort to dismantle public education in its entirety." Schools and Communities United Co-Chair Ingrid Walker-Henry called the issue of whether or not to provide more funding a "no-brainer," saying, "When were talking about our children, when were talking about our future it really shouldnt be a contentious issue." Schroeder urged GOP legislators to recognize the progress MPS has made and to fix "funding flaws" to provide public school districts with more resources. Fair Funding for Our Future, a funding plan DPI first proposed in 2011, would provide more money for students who are economically disadvantaged and simplify the funding formula. The plan would cost about $570 million more than the state budgeted in 2015; Schroeder said wealthy individuals and corporations should foot the bill. "We talk about being a nation of people who care about each other," Walker-Henry said, "This is our future. This is the future of our city; this is the future of our state. Do you care enough to invest in it?" Solar Energy (Image by Sheila Parks) Details DMCA Dear Governors - are you calling for clean energy now and simultaneously not calling now for closing all nuclear power plants and for keeping fossil fuels in the ground? The Boston Globe, 9/13/16, published an editorial about the need to close Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts now, "It's too risky to wait for Pilgrim plant's shutdown." On 9/19/16, the Governors' Wind and Solar Coalition wrote to President Obama, suggesting "actions that your Administration can take to expand our states' wind and solar energy production." Here are the states currently in the Coalition: Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington. Governor Charlie Baker of Massachusetts is in this Coalition and although continually called on by the people of Massachusetts as well as The Boston Globe to close Pilgrim now, has not responded to these outcries, saying he trusts the Feds - the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York is in this Coalition and he has given huge subsidies - millions - to the nuclear power industry. Governor Jack Dalrymple of North Dakota is in this Coalition and is for the Dakota Access Pipeline. "In response to the protests, North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple defended the project, assuring those concerned by its potential effects on the Standing Rock people and their land that it was 'not in any way unsafe.' "'This is a state-of-the-art pipeline, a very sophisticated project,'" Dalrymple told KFGO in late August. "'It is not in any way unsafe except for a very, very, very minimal risk, which inevitably, is there for any pipeline.'" I cannot understand why Governors Baker, Cuomo and Dalrymple ardently and rightfully support clean, green, renewables such as wind and solar, yet simultaneously cede their moral authority to protect the public health and safety of the people of their states to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the nuclear industry, the fossil fuel industry - including the fracking and pipeline corporations, part of the fossil fuels industry. I am focusing on nuclear power plants below for several reasons: that is what I have most information and knowledge about and what I have focused on for five years; and because all the other dirty and dangerous energies and practices most often get all the attention and nuclear power is either tragically ignored or even worse, tragically liked. I do stand in complete solidarity with all my sisters and brothers fighting to stop all pipelines, all fracking, and to keep all fossil fuels in the ground. I am curious as to whether the governors lack information about all nuclear power plants and that might be what is influencing their positions. Such information includes: "There's a very clear association between increased child leukemias and proximity to NPPs," [nuclear power plants] reported Dr. Ian Fairlie, a U.K.-based Canadian specialist on the hazards of radioactive releases at nuclear power plants.["Childhood Leukemias Near Nuclear Power Stations: new article," 7/25/2014] "Children are 10 to 20 times more vulnerable to the carcinogenic effects of radiation than adults. Little girls are twice as sensitive as little boys and women are more sensitive than men. Fetuses are thousands of times more sensitive," according to Dr. Helen Caldicott, internationally acclaimed pediatrician and founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility. ["The Medical Implications of Fukushima," 9/25/2013] Elsewhere, she calls nuclear power plants "cancer factories." Radiation tragically affected plants, birds and butterflies very strongly in Chernobyl and Fukushima, reported Dr. Timothy Mousseau, long-time Chernobyl researcher and Professor of Biological Sciences at U. of South Carolina. "A review of genetic and ecological studies for a range of other species at both Chernobyl and Fukushima (Mousseau 2014) revealed significant consequences of radiation. Population censuses of birds, butterflies, and cicadas at Fukushima showed major declines attributable to radiation exposure. ["Fukushima's legacy: Biological effects of Fukushima radiation on plants, insects, and animals," 8/14/2014]/ "The link between nuclear power and cancer is real".and revealed in the UK's cancer statistics - if only you look for it. Previous approaches have focused on rare cancers over large, poorly selected populations. But look at common cancers among those most exposed to nuclear radiation, and the statistical evidence is overwhelming.You can argue about the economics of nuclear till you are blue in the face, but they can always move the goalposts, global warming, future security of supply, special new safe thorium reactors and so forth. But killing people with your radioactive discharges: that's it. The End," stated Dr. Chris Busby, Scientific Secretary of the European Committee on Radiation Risk. ["Breast cancer and nuclear power - statistics reveal the link 'they' wanted to hide," 5/18/2015]4. Radioactive waste is the most toxic poison made by humankind. Greenpeace says "Nuclear waste is produced at every stage of the nuclear fuel cycle from uranium mining and enrichment, to reactor operation and the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel. Much of this nuclear waste will remain hazardous for hundreds of thousands of years, leaving a poisonous legacy to future generations." Plutonium 239 remains hazardous for 240,000 years, Uranium 235 for 7.13 billion years. There is no safe space to store radioactive waste and never will be. Is this the legacy you governors want to leave to your and our children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and their children - more than seven generations out and into eternity? Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS) has a petition out "To our next President, and our state governors: Choose clean energy over dirty energy. Say no to another nuclear power bailout, stop fossil fuel and nuclear subsidies, and put our energy dollars to work for the clean energy revolution"".Sign here now for a "carbon-free, nuclear-free energy revolution." Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121 "Bottom-Up is a direct and logical look at how we live our lives, conduct our business, manage our societies, and, most importantly, communicate with each other. Author Rob Kall explains it all in plain English. But don't let the readability of this book fool you into thinking that it's not important. Kall cuts to the heart of the most critical issues in communication today. This book is as important as game theory. And people will take notice." John Kiriakou, former CIA officer and author of The Reluctant Spy and Doing Time Like a Spy From Consortium News U.S.-backed Syrian 'moderate' rebels smile as they prepare to behead a 12-year-old boy (left), whose severed head is held aloft triumphantly in a later part of the video. (Image by [Screenshot from the YouTube video]) Details DMCA Note how differently The New York Times prepares the American public for civilian casualties from the new U.S.-backed Iraqi government assault on the city of Mosul to free it from the Islamic State, compared to the unrelenting condemnation of the Russian-backed Syrian government assault on neighborhoods of east Aleppo held by Al Qaeda. In the case of Mosul, the million-plus residents are not portrayed as likely victims of American airstrikes and Iraqi government ground assaults, though surely many will die during the offensive. Instead, the civilians are said to be eagerly awaiting liberation from the Islamic State terrorists and their head-chopping brutality. "Mosul's residents are hoarding food and furtively scrawling resistance slogans on walls," writes Times' veteran war correspondent Rod Nordland about this week's launch of the U.S.-backed government offensive. "Those forces will fight to enter a city where for weeks the harsh authoritarian rule of the Islamic State ... has sought to crack down on a population eager to either escape or rebel, according to interviews with roughly three dozen people from Mosul. ... "Just getting out of Mosul had become difficult and dangerous: Those who were caught faced million-dinar fines, unless they were former members of the Iraqi Army or police, in which case the punishment was beheading. ... Graffiti and other displays of dissidence against the Islamic State were more common in recent weeks, as were executions when the vandals were caught." The Times article continues: "Mosul residents chafed under social codes banning smoking and calling for splashing acid on body tattoos, summary executions of perceived opponents, whippings of those who missed prayers or trimmed their beards, and destroying 'un-Islamic' historical monuments." So, the message is clear: if the inevitable happens and the U.S.-backed offensive kills a number of Mosul's civilians, including children, The New York Times' readers have been hardened to accept this "collateral damage" as necessary to free the city from blood-thirsty extremists. The fight to crush these crazies is worth it, even if there are significant numbers of civilians killed in the "cross-fire." And we've seen similar mainstream media treatment of other U.S.-organized assaults on urban areas, such as the devastation of the Iraqi city, Fallujah, in 2004 when U.S. Marines routed Iraqi insurgents from the city while leveling or severely damaging most of the city's buildings and killing hundreds of civilians. But those victims were portrayed in the Western press as "human shields," shifting the blame for their deaths onto the Iraqi insurgents. Despite the fact that U.S. forces invaded Iraq in defiance of international law -- and thus all the thousands of civilian deaths across Iraq from the "shock and awe" U.S. firepower should be considered war crimes -- there was virtually no such analysis allowed into the pages of The New York Times or the other mainstream U.S. media. Such talk was forced to the political fringes, as it continues to be today. War-crimes tribunals are only for the other guys. Lust to Kill Children By contrast, the Times routinely portrays the battle for east Aleppo as simply a case of barbaric Russian and Syrian leaders bombing innocent neighborhoods with no regard for the human cost, operating out of an apparent lust to kill children. Rather than focusing on Al Qaeda's harsh rule of east Aleppo, the Times told its readers in late September how to perceive the Russian-Syrian offensive to drive out Al Qaeda and its allies. A Sept. 25 article by Anne Barnard and Somini Sengupta, entitled "Syria and Russia Appear Ready to Scorch Aleppo," began: "Make life intolerable and death likely. Open an escape route, or offer a deal to those who leave or surrender. Let people trickle out. Kill whoever stays. Repeat until a deserted cityscape is yours. It is a strategy that both the Syrian government and its Russian allies have long embraced to subdue Syrian rebels, largely by crushing the civilian populations that support them. "But in the past few days, as hopes for a revived cease-fire have disintegrated at the United Nations, the Syrians and Russians seem to be mobilizing to apply this kill-all-who-resist strategy to the most ambitious target yet: the rebel-held sections of the divided metropolis of Aleppo." Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Five years after the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's overthrow and brutal murder (on October 20, 2011), the situation is now far worse than it was five years ago as rival militias fight for control. Libya has been split between rival parliaments and governments, each backed by a loose array of militias and tribes. Now five years on, Libya is caught between two rival governments, with the western-recognized parliament forced into exile in the eastern city of Tobruk in 2014, following a military uprising from the opponent group known as 'Libyan Dawn', who have since set up parliament in the capital, Tripoli. While accurate figures are hard to ascertain, estimates suggest tens of thousands have died in Libya as a result of the conflict since 2011. Libya's conflict has left 1.9 million people with serious health needs in a country that lacks medical professionals, medicines and vaccines, according to the World Health Organization. CIA-Backed General Khalifa Haftar Seizes Control Of Libyan Oil Fields (The African Globe) In a dramatic development, on September 12, 2016, forces loyal to CIA-backed General Khalifa Haftar took control of two key oil ports. His troops seized Al Sidra and Ras Lanuf terminals on Libya's Mediterranean coast and hoped to seize a third terminal, Al Zueitina, said Brigadier General Ahmed Al Mosmary, a spokesman for General Haftar's forces. General Haftar has refused to endorse a UN-backed national-unity government in Tripoli and remains loyal to the rival administration based in the east of the country. His forces took the Ras Lanuf and Al Sidra terminals, together capable of handling 700,000 barrels of oil per day, from a militia loyal to the Government of National Accord (GNA). The majority of Libya's oil exports went through the three terminals before the militia, known as the Petroleum Facilities Guards, seized them more than two years ago. If the terminals are operational again and oil exports resume, the revenues, together with a continuing political impasse, could provide the eastern region an extra incentive to declare self-rule. Following the capture of the oil ports, the House of Representatives has promoted Haftar from general to field marshal. General Haftar was a military chief under Muammar Gaddafi before turning against him and calling for his overthrow from exile in the United States. In 2011, General Haftar returned to Libya and commanded some of the rebel units that defeated Gaddafi, aided by Nato air power. According to The New Yorker, as military commander of the Salvation Front, he plotted an invasion of Libya--but Gaddafi outflanked him. The C.I.A. had to airlift Haftar and three hundred and fifty of his men to Zaire and, eventually, to the United States. Haftar was given citizenship, and remained in the U.S. for the next twenty years. Leaked tapes expose Western support for renegade Libyan general General Haftar enjoys the support of several Arab nations, including Egypt, the UAE and Jordan, as well as others in the West. General Haftar's air-force commander, Saqr Geroshi, was quoted as saying by the UAE newspaper The National in July that, along with 20 French personnel, small units of British and American Special Forces were also deployed with the Tobruk army at Benghazi's Benina airport. A multinational military operation involving British, French and US forces is coordinating air strikes in support of a renegade general battling militia groups from a base near Benghazi in eastern Libya, according to air-traffic recordings obtained by Middle East Eye reveal. Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). The 2016 Republican presidential primary was rigged. It wasn't rigged by the Republicans, the Democrats, Russians, space aliens, or voters. It was rigged by the owners of television networks who believed that giving one candidate far more coverage than others was good for their ratings. The CEO of CBS Leslie Moonves said of this decision: "It may not be good for America, but it's damn good for CBS." Justifying that choice based on polling gets the chronology backwards, ignores Moonves' actual motivation, and avoids the problem, which is that there ought to be fair coverage for all qualified candidates (and a democratic way to determine who is qualified). The 2016 Democratic presidential primary was rigged. It wasn't rigged by bankers, misogynists, Russians, Republicans, or computer hackers. It was rigged by the Democratic National Committee and its co-conspirators in the media, many of whom have helpfully confessed (in case it wasn't obvious) in emails leaked from the DNC and from John Podesta. The DNC chose Hillary Clinton and worked hard to make sure that she "won." Nobody has produced a hint of evidence as to who leaked the emails that added unnecessary confirmation of this rigging, but they should be thanked for informing us, whoever they are. The FBI investigation of Hillary Clinton's misuse of email was as rigged as the non-prosecution of the CEO of Wells Fargo. The U.S. political system is bought and paid for. Without millions of dollars to funnel to television networks for advertising, any candidate is rigged right out of participating. This rigging of the system is not fixed by someone like Donald Trump pretending for a while that he won't take bribes, that he'll spend only his own money, because most people don't have that kind of money to spend. This rigging is not fixed by making someone like Hillary Clinton take her bribes through her family foundation or requiring that her political action committees remain theoretically separate from the campaign they are collaborating hand-in-glove with, because money buys power. The debates are rigged by a private entity with no official status that calls itself the Commission on Presidential Debates and transforms open debates among multiple candidates into exclusively bipartisan joint appearances with many large and fine points negotiated beforehand. Actual governance of the United States is rigged. Congress plans to attempt to ram through a number of intensely unpopular measures just after the election, including a supplemental spending bill for more wars and including the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The hope is that most people will have tuned out after the election circus, and that most of them will forget what happened 2 or 4 years later. The demonization of Vladimir Putin is rigged. Nobody has seen evidence that he or his government did us the favor of informing us of the DNC's corruption. He proposed a ban on cyber "war" that was rejected by the United States, for goodness sake. There's no evidence that Russia shot down an airplane in Ukraine or invaded Ukraine or seized Crimea or plotted attacks on the United States. The United States pulled out of the ABM treaty, expanded NATO to Russia's border, built missile bases, arranged military "exercises," facilitated a Ukrainian coup, and pushed a string of hostile lies. Russia has shown even more restraint than your typical U.S. voter (who usually sits home and does not vote, especially in primaries). Military spending is rigged. Nobody knows it amounts to over half of U.S. discretionary spending. Nobody knows it's as much in the U.S. as in the rest of the world (allies and otherwise) combined. Nobody pays attention to the bribes from war profiteers, or to the threats held over Congress members to pull weapons jobs out of districts or states. Supporters of both big candidates claim their candidate plans to cut military spending. Both candidates have said the exact opposite. The debates and interviews steer clear of the whole topic. The shapes of the districts are blatantly rigged by gerrymandering. The existence of the Senate, in which Rhode Island and Wyoming each have as much say as California is rigged against the popular will. The electoral college is rigged against the popular will and in favor of concentrating national campaigns in a handful of "swing states." Voter registration is rigged. A handful of states have now made it automatic, as most states have long-since done for military draft registration. In the rest of the country, thousands of young people run around registering voters, imagining they are engaged in "activism." Meanwhile, the right to vote can be denied to anyone by claiming they aren't registered. People's names are stripped from voting rolls through a so-called justice system that brands them as felons, and through the careful rigging of those rolls by corrupt and partisan state governments that intentionally strip out people likely to vote for a particular party. This includes racial profiling. Bob Fitrakis, Harvey Wasserman, Greg Palast and others have reported extensively on these practices. Election day is rigged as well. It's not a holiday. Most people have to work. Poor districts and racial minority districts tend to have fewer machines and longer lines. ID requirements are used to deny people the right to vote. Intimidation and racial profiling by partisan activists serve the same function of rigging the election. The myths and lies about the virtually nonexistent phenomenon of "voter fraud" also serve to rig the election. The election machines are also rigged. That is to say: instead of verifiable paper ballots publicly hand-counted in front of observers from all interested parties in each polling place, we have a faith-based system of voting on black-box machines that can never, even in theory, be checked for accuracy. These machines have been very easily hacked in demonstrations. These machines have visibly flipped votes before the eyes (and cameras) of countless voters. These machines have almost certainly played a key role in flipping the results of numerous elections. Now, the wider the margin of victory, the less likely an electronic flipping. And the fact that machines can easily be used to steal an election does not mean that they always will be. But it was very odd during the late summer of 2016 to watch the U.S. media announce that these machines were totally unreliable -- just what many of us had been saying for years. But the media said this in order to accuse Russia of planning to sabotage the coming U.S. election, or in order to accuse Russia of exactly what these media reports themselves did: plant seeds of doubt in U.S. minds. Those doubts should be there. People should watch for visible problems with machines and with partisan and racist intimidators, and report all such to 1-866-OUR-VOTE, to county clerks, to secretaries of state, and to corporate and independent media. Then we should work for necessary reforms, including a respectful cessation of the U.S. government's routine practice of interfering in elections and overthrowing governments in other people's countries -- a practice that has clearly resulted in the U.S. media projecting such behavior on others. Ultimately, an unrigging of the U.S. system might take the form of amending the U.S. Constitution to slip in words like these: Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). When Wikileaks founder Julian Assange stood up to the global system of elitist domination I immediately jumped on board. I felt, like most of the world's progressives, that this "under dog," the informational new-age Robin Hood, deserved and earned our admiration and support. I for one admired his guts and bravery. And subsequent leaks only helped to expose global governmental corruption on a massive scale and cemented Assange's status as a modern day cult hero. So when he forcibly inserted himself into the 2016 United States presidential election campaign he immediately raised many eyebrows. But many, like me, thought that this was just a passing fancy, a reaction to his self-exiled boredom, and something that would soon end. But Assange continued to draw the ire of many on both the political Right and Left for what they saw as uncalled for and unnecessary meddling in United States politics, and favoring one presidential candidate over the other. Then support and respect for Assange started to slip. And as he burrowed further and further up Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's derriere, effectively shutting out the pristine, cleansing light of day, Assange put a once revered institution into disrepute. He completely shot his once hallowed reputation and it now lies in tatters on the political floor. Now he has abandoned any pretense or attempt at behaving as the folk hero fighting institutional corruption and governmental wrongdoings as he's now completely genuflected to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump. I might have rethought my new and disappointing view of Assange if he was more even-handed with the email leaks. He's consistently dumped thousands of hacked emails from both the DNC and Hillary Clinton's campaign without nary one single two-sentence criticizing of Donald Trump. This is crude subjective political bias at its zenith and nobody with a modicum of common sense can fail to conclude that this entire avalanche of leaks and their timing is all about trying to influence the outcome of the US presidential elections. Julian Assange is now making absolutely no pretense to be a defender of truth. He's removed his mask of independence and fairness to reveal the fact that he's just a presumed Russian patsy and useless political pawn. If Assange had leaked even portions of Donald Trump's tax returns I would still be in his corner. But to consistently and unrelentingly leak emails about ONE presidential candidate is just way too many coincidences for my liking. The founder of the controversial hacking site has been hiding out at the Ecuadorian embassy in London, after he skipped bail to avoid being extradited to Sweden on sex assault charges. That's a very, very small world to inhabit for four years without knowing when the Ecuadorians will get fed up with your crap and kick you out to face an uncertain legal music that includes prosecution and jail time. But even with all the manufactured controversy and political fallout occasioned by the Wikileaks dumping of Hillary Clinton's emails, Assange's (and Putin's) preferred candidate cannot take hold of the gift of political manna and go on offense against Ms. Clinton. The ultra-petulant Republican standard bearer just continues to be the political gift to Hillary Clinton that just can't stop giving. He continues to unrelentingly attack the media calling it biased and corrupt. And even with Assange giving him a real hand up, he continues to dwell in the warped and quixotic realm of his own self-addicted reality. These days, in President Obama's sage words, he's focused on childish whining and complaining that Hillary Clinton is getting more press and that she's the media's favorite. This man-boy or boy-man -- take your pick -- is so thin-skinned that the slightest disagreement to criticism sends him into a towering juvenile tantrum underscored by nasty, insulting and conduct unbecoming of a United States Presidential Candidate and more suited for smoke-filled, beer swigging denizens in Hicksville salons where moonshine runs like water and ignorance is commonplace. But according to MarketWatch (www.marketwatch.com) Donald Trump has gotten the equivalent of nearly $3 billion in free, "earned media," advertising since last May blowing away rivals in both the Democratic and Republican parties. He rails about "rigged polls" forgetting the fact that he's boasted constantly and loudly in his raucous campaign rallies about "the polls" and how they show that "he's winning bigly." As this mercurial presidential election nears the endgame, Donald Trump appears to have now inhabited the world of the constant and on-call, on-demand meltdown. These days he's lurching from one clueless and erratic act, incapable of working with the political Poker hand that Assange and Company has given him. He continues to screech loudly about a "rigged system" -- the very same system that allowed him to win the Republican Party's domination over seventeen opponents that he's so fond of boasting about. So he hunkers down and does the late night Tweeting, attacking Saturday Night Live (SNL), blaming Billy Bush for his sex-crazed lunging for women's private parts, unhinged calls for a drug test for Hilary Clinton before the last debate, and his wife and children appearing on national television just as clueless and spaced out. Finally, a word to Mr. Trump: Continually shouting that the "system is rigged" against you is NOT a winning political campaign strategy. When you pulverized your fellow Republicans in the primary the system worked just great and you relied heavily on polls. You can't prepare for loss by creating the excuse and reasons BEFORE the event. That's basically saying that you believe that Santa Claus is real and then you try and find facts and reasons to support your definitive conclusion. Logic and reason calls for premises to be proven by provable facts and not simply blowing air through a vent in your face. FOOTNOTE: The Republican Party is at a very serious crossroads and it may be way too late to save it from falling flat on its face. Be that as it may, the internal civil war is not something that we can stop -- Republicans will have to do that by themselves. But is noteworthy that Republican bloodletting has been in the works long before Donald Trump decided to run for President of the United States. But I believe that the elders of the party owe it to the American people to save us and the country from Trump's dangerous rhetoric. Trump's unhinged and frenzied claims, now elevated to the level of a national mantra, that the electoral system in America is rigged MUST be disavowed and called out for what it is: an unadulterated absurdity and falsehood. Instead, we've had a deafening silence as the party's top leadership, like Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and others cower in fright at a bloviating coward and political snake oil salesman. Like his unsubstantiated and scurrilous attack on President Obama arguing that he was not born in the United States, Trump continues to peddle one falsehood after anther. In the midst of all this political kerfuffle, these spineless Republican leaders have remained silent or barely lukewarm in their criticisms and response to Trump's obvious falsehoods. They all know that it near impossible to rig an American election. Yet they offer slavish memes about the integrity of the American electoral system and refraining from directly condemning and criticizing the loud-mouthed one. Admittedly, bravery and principle has not been exactly the values of both Ryan and McConnell have displayed during their tenure. But their failure to firmly and forcibly deal with Trump's errant rabblerousing and agitation is another piece of evidence as to why the American people hold the United States Congress in so much loathing and contempt. Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). This op-ed is a sequel to my "The Truth about the 28 Pages And Its Enduring Cover-Up" published on July 22 at http://www.opednews.com/articles/The-Truth-about-the-28-Pag-by-Barry-Kissin-Bush_Cover-ups_Intelligence_Investigations-160722-547.html and my "9/11 and the Saudis -- When Will the Blindness End?" published on Oct. 3 at http://www.opednews.com/articles/9-11-and-the-Saudis--Whe-by-Barry-Kissin-CIA_Complicity_Congress_Conspiracy-161003-864.html. In 2016, Alex Gibney ("We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks," "Taxi to the Dark Side," "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room," "Casino Jack and the United States of Money") released a documentary based on a 2006 New Yorker magazine article by Lawrence Wright that exposes the CIA's deliberate concealment from the FBI of the fact that two important members of al Qaeda were in the U.S. over a period of 18 months leading up to 9-11. According to the official account of 9-11, these two members of al Qaeda ended up on Flight #77 that flew into the Pentagon. The CIA did nothing to stop these two hijackers. http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/07/10/the-agent So as to avoid the obvious, the New Yorker article speculates that this was all about rivalry (personal and institutional) between the CIA and the FBI, and also that the CIA kept the presence of the two hijackers secret so as to pursue turning them into our spies. The FBI has exclusive jurisdiction over terrorism within the U.S. The CIA concealment was not only illegal -- it was treasonous. As for turning them into spies, I suppose we are to believe that after the CIA failed to turn them, it just forgot about them. According to the New Yorker article: "After September 11th, the C.I.A. claimed that it had divulged [Flight #77 hijacker] Mihdhar's identity to the F.B.I. in a timely manner; indeed, both George Tenet, the agency's director, and Cofer Black, the head of its counterterrorism division, testified to Congress that this was the case. Later, the 9/11 Commission concluded that the statements of both were false." The CIA's Inspector General concluded likewise. What does this have to do with the Saudis and 9-11? According to the 28 pages of the 2002 Congressional report on 9-11, suppressed by Bush then Obama for 14 years, and finally released in July after irresistible Congressional pressure, the two hijackers in question were the same two Saudis being supported the entire time they were in the U.S. by agents of Saudi Arabia's military and intelligence as well as by monthly payments from then-Ambassador Bandar bin Sultan ("Bandar Bush") and wife. In State of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration (2006: Simon & Schuster), then National Security correspondent for the New York Times, James Risen, states: "[T]he connections between Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda and the Saudi power elite ... are much stronger and far more troubling than has ever been disclosed, and until they are thoroughly investigated ... the full story of 9-11 will never be known" (page 179). But Risen also is focused on the connections between the Bush administration and the Saudi power elite: "Some CIA sources say that George Tenet set the tone for the CIA's Saudi relationship by relying heavily on developing close relationships with top Saudi officials, including Prince Bandar ... CIA officers ... say that about once a month, Tenet would slip away from CIA headquarters and travel to Bandar's nearby estate in McLean, Virginia, for quiet talks ... [S]ome CIA officers handling Saudi issues complain that Tenet would not tell them what he had discussed with Bandar, making it difficult for agency officials to know the nature of any deals their boss was arranging with the Saudis" (page 188). Evidently, one of their "deals" was to protect and support the two hijackers on Flight #77. From Counterpunch "For any minimally conscious American citizen, it is absolutely evident that Donald Trump is not only facing the mammoth Clinton political machine, but, also the combined forces of the viciously dishonest Mainstream Media." -- Boyd D. Cathey, "The Tape, the Conspiracy, and the Death of the Old Politics", Unz Review "The election is absolutely being rigged by the dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary." --Donald Trump, Twitter When was the last time the media threw 100% of its support behind one party's presidential candidate? What does that say about the media? Do you feel comfortable with the idea that a handful of TV and print-news executives are inserting themselves into the process and choosing our leaders for us? Is that the way democracy is supposed to work? Check out this blurb from The Hill: "The broadcast evening news programs ABC, NBC and CBS covered allegations against Trump by several women who claim he sexually assaulted them for more than 23 minutes on Thursday night. But revelations in the WikiLeaks dump of Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta which included...sympathy for Wall Street, advocation for open borders and blatant examples of media collusion ...got a whole 1 minute and 7 seconds combined." "Ratio of negative coverage of Trump to Clinton: 23:1 "In print on Thursday, it was no better. The New York Times had 11 negative stories on Trump"But zero on Clinton/WikiLeaks. "Ratio: 11:0." (Media and Trump bias; Not even trying to hide it anymore, The Hill) The article in The Hill also refers to a survey by the Washington Post and ABC News that asks participants six questions about allegations of sexual misconduct by Trump, but zero questions about Podesta's incriminating emails. Is that what you call "balance"? I should state out-front, that I don't plan to vote for either candidate, Trump or Clinton, so my claims of "bias" are not grounded in support for one candidate or the other. I am simply ticked-off by the fact that the media honchos have pulled out all the stops and are inserting themselves in the process to produce the outcome they want. That's what you call "rigging" an election. When you turn on Washington Week (Gwen Ifil) on public TV and see an assembled panel of six pundits -- three conservatives and three liberals -- and all six turn out to love Hillary and hate Trump; you can be reasonably certain that the election is rigged, because that's what rigging is. Rather than providing background information about the candidate's position on the issues so voters can make an informed decision, the media uses opinion-makers to heap praise on one candidate while savagely denigrating the other. The obvious goal is to shape public opinion in the way that best suits the interests of the people who own the media and who belong to the establishment of rich and powerful elites who run the country, the 1 percent. In this case, the ruling class unanimously backs Hillary Clinton, that much is obvious. Fortunately, the tide is turning on the mainstream media as people look to other, more reliable sources for their information. It should come as no surprise that people are more distrustful of media than ever before, and that that a great many feel that the media is conducting a brutal class war against ordinary working people. Surely, anyone who has followed economic developments at all in the last seven years, knows that the policies of the Fed have created a yawning chasm between rich and poor that is only getting worse as long as the levers of power stay in the hands of establishment politicians. Hillary Clinton is certainly the worst of these establishment politicos. Aside from being the most widely-reviled candidate the Democrats have ever nominated, she is the embodiment of political corruption and cronyism. How is it, you may ask, that someone like Clinton was able to nab "upwards of $225,000 per speech" from Goldman Sachs if she wasn't influence peddling? Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). From Palestine Chronicle "The United States has the power to decree the death of nations," wrote Stephen Kinzer in the Boston Globe. Kinzer's article was entitled: "The media are misleading the public on Syria." In his piece, the scholar at a Brown University Institute contested that his country's media misinformation on Syria is leading to the kind of ignorance which is enabling the American government to pursue any policy, however imprudent, in the war-torn Arab country. The US government can "decree the death of nations" with "popular support because many Americans -- and many journalists -- are content with the official story," he wrote. Kinzer, in principle makes a strong point. His article, however, was particularly popular among those who see the Syrian government entirely innocent of any culpability in the ongoing war, and that Iran and Russia are at no fault whatsoever; better yet, their intervention in Syria is entirely morally-guided and altruistic. That said, Kinzer's assertion regarding the US government's dangerous meddling in Syria's affairs, renewed Cold War with Russia and ill-defined military mission in that country, is all true. Neither is the US, nor its western and other allies, following rules of war nor adhering to a particularly noble set of principles aimed at ending that most devastating war, which has killed well over 300,000 people, rendered millions displaced and destroyed the country's wealth and infrastructure. So what is the truth on Syria? In the last five and a half years, since a regional uprising turned into an armed rebellion -- turned into civil, regional and international war -- "the truth on Syria," has been segmented into many self-tailored "truths," each promoted by one of the warring party to be the one and only, absolute and uncontested reality. But since there are many parties to the conflict, the versions of the "truth" communicated to us via copious media, are numerous and, most often, unverifiable. The only truth that all parties seem to agree upon is that hundreds of thousands are dead and Syria is shattered. But, of course, each points to the other side for culpability of the ongoing genocide. An oddly refreshing, although disturbing "truth" was articulated by Alon Ben-David in the Israeli Jerusalem Post last year. The title of his article speaks volumes: "May it never end: The uncomfortable truth about the war in Syria." "If Israel's interest in the war in Syria can be summarized in brief, it would be: That it should never end," Ben-David wrote. "No one will say this publicly, but the continuation of the fighting in Syria, as long as there is a recognized authority in Damascus, allows Israel to stay out of the swamp and distance itself from the swarms of mosquitoes that are buzzing in it." Of course, Israel never truly "stayed out of the swamp," but that is for a separate discussion. Aside from the egotistical, unsympathetic language, Israel's "truth," according to the writer, is predicated on two premises: the need for an official authority in Damascus, and that the war must continue, at least, until the fire burns the whole country down, which is, in fact, the case. Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). When Vistara airlines decided to add new aircraft to its fleet recently, it took to social media to hire talent. In a span of 10 days, the airline hired around 40 cabin crew members through job postings on Facebook and LinkedIn. In fact, Vistara posts job openings on its Facebook page regularly and receives voluntary applications, too. "All our hiring is done either through employee referrals or social media channels. We don't advertise in newspapers or go through job consultants," says S. Varadarajan, CHRO of Vistara. Advertising agency SapientNitro launched a campaign called 'Troublemakers' in April to look for extraordinary minds adept at digital innovation. The campaign, comprising short quirky videos and a quiz, was plastered across social media channels. The videos, which humorously depicted the kind of office characters the company was not looking for, recorded almost 506,405 views in total. Out of the 8,777 candidates who took the quiz, the company hired four. Kameshwari Rao, VP, People Strategy, Sapient India, says the company saw the number of applicants double this year, thanks to the campaign. "Social media channels have become watering holes where all the influential, digital savvy people congregate," says Krishna Gopal, Global Head, Leadership Hiring and Talent Management at Tech Mahindra. Gone are the days of sifting through heaps of CVs to find the right talent. A direct message to potential hires on Twitter or LinkedIn saves time and effort. The wide reach of social media is also helpful to contact people in countries where full-fledged commercial job portals are absent, informs Karuna Vempala, Director - Talent Acquisition Group, Cigniti Technologies, which has got over 200 professionals on board in the past three years through social media channels. Hiring through social media facilitates a direct connection between the company and the candidate. And the absence of a recruitment consultant makes it a cost-efficient process. Companies are resorting to social media to hire people with special skill sets. "It is extremely powerful when you want to narrow down your search to a very specific criterion like the college they went to or the professional groups they are a part of," says Gopal. A quick personality check by browsing through candidates' Twitter, Quora, Instagram and Facebook profiles helps companies take more informed decisions. "It helps in ascertaining a person's political inclination, values and ethics, which are very important especially for leadership roles as it would affect the culture of the company," says Purushotam Savlani, SVP and MD of background screening firm First Advantage. When hiring for low-level jobs, social media helps in corroborating candidates' claimed accomplishments - through testimonials and endorsements on LinkedIn, for example - and also give an idea of how their bosses or colleagues perceive them. Vistara's Varadarajan recounts an incident: "We had shortlisted a person on LinkedIn. But on checking his Facebook posts, we found that he had an aggressive personality, and very radical views on politics". He wasn't hired. It's the human word over the digital word for Shailja Dutt, Founder of Stellar Search, an executive search company. She is against "making judgement calls based on partial information of someone's social life online". "One can't use that data to take an informed decision on whether the person would make a good fit to the organisation. If there's a number to call for a reference check, make that call," Dutt advises. DIGITAL DASHBOARD The Social Landscape The fastest growing social networks LISTENING POST Stealth Mode LinkedIn's new feature 'Open Candidates' comes as a relief to job seekers who want to look for other options without alerting their current employers. Using the feature available on LinkedIn's Recruiter product, users can secretly convey their interest to switch to recruiters. The information would be kept away from the candidate's employer, making the process a lot less stressful. "We currently have nearly a million members signalling they're open and expect that number to grow significantly as we expand markets through 2016 and beyond," Eduardo Vivas, head of product for LinkedIn's Talent Solutions, said in a blog post. The feature, for now, is available in the US, Canada, Australia and the UK. The professional networking site has also introduced two other features - LinkedIn Career Pages and Apply Starters. Copyc(h)at After Instagram, Facebook is trying to copy Snapchat's most popular feature 'Stories' on its Messenger app. US-based technology website TechCrunch reported that the social networking giant has launched 'Messenger Day' in Poland. The feature enables users to share stories - videos and pictures in a slideshow - which disappear after 24 hours, just like they do on Snapchat. The feature has only been launched in Poland, where Facebook Messenger is not as popular as Snapchat. "We know that people come to Messenger to share everyday moments with friends and family. In Poland, we are running a small test of new ways for people to share those updates visually. We have nothing more to announce at this time," a Facebook spokesperson told the tech website. Earlier in August, Facebookowned Instagram had introduced a similar feature. Black money is in the news again. This time in the wake of IDS that yielded over Rs 62,000 crore. What generates all this is, of course, corruption, which is rampant in the country. It has been a matter of national concern and political parties have been increasingly making this a major election issue. But it is ironic that elections themselves have become the fountainhead of corruption. The decisive role money plays in polls creates a vicious cycle of corruption. A candidate who spends crores on his election goes on a recovery spree to make his investment pay back by all means, howsoever dubious. It does not take long for the politician-bureaucrat nexus to develop for making money. This unholy alliance between the two most powerful instruments of governance makes corruption unstoppable. The public perception of the corrupt political class is dangerous for democracy. What's the way out? Start at the root - the electoral corruption. There are two aspects to the problem: collection of funds by political parties, and expenditure by parties and candidates during elections. And the two have a symbiotic relationship. The law has provided for a ceiling on candidates' election expenditure for a good reason - making election within reach of the less well-off. But most of them violate it with impunity. Presently, the ceiling for the Lok Sabha elections is Rs 70 lakh and Vidhan Sabha Rs 28 lakh. But it's common knowledge that candidates spend 10 to 100 times! Obviously in black money. Many committees have delved into the problem; some recommending a sort of state funding of elections. No one suggests how state funding will drive out black money used for illegal activities like excessive expenditure, bribing voters, 'paid news', etc. In fact, white money will only supplement black money. When you spend a lot, you have to collect a lot. That leads us to the second issue - transparency of political funding. Over 75 per cent of funds are from undisclosed sources. It may be tainted money from criminals, real estate mafia, drug mafia, corporate houses or contractors, with promises of favours in return. The payback is in the form of contracts, licences, etc. Crony capitalism and corporate houses running governments by proxy is a common public refrain. A report of the CII in 2012 demanded political donations to be kept secret. The reason mentioned was that they would not like competing parties to know what they gave their rivals, and invite harassment. The real reason was that they would not want the quid pro quo exposed! A possible way out is state funding of political parties - not of elections. This can be done easily by the state paying a fixed sum to a party (or candidate) for every vote secured. If a party garners, say, one lakh votes, it can get Rs 50 lakh (@Rs 50 per vote). How will state funding operate? In the 2014 LS polls, 55 crore votes were cast. At Rs 50 a vote, total state funding would have come to Rs 2,750 crore. Since in every five-year cycle, every state will also have a VS election, the figure will double - Rs 5,500 crore. This approximately corresponds to the funds the political parties disclosed collectively in five years through all means, including the dubious ones. With state funding, private fund collection (except primary membership) will be totally banned. Simultaneously, a cap should be put on election expenditure by political parties. This should free our political system of dependence on corporate and tainted funds. Ways and means to raise this money and its distribution can be worked out once the idea finds favour in principle. The budgetary provision of Rs 1,000 crore per annum is peanuts. Even that can be raised by creating a national election fund towards which corporate bodies can contribute. A study of Political Finance Regulations Around the World by the International Institute of Democracy and Electoral Assistance, Stockholm (2012), showed that more than 70 nations (including 80 per cent countries of Europe) have the facility of giving state funds based on votes obtained. If it works well in so many countries, there is no reason why it will not work in India. The writer is a former Chief Election Commissioner of India The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) had its glory days in the 1970s when its Arab members imposed an oil embargo on select nations - including the US - which had chosen to help Israel during its 1973 Yom Kippur war with Egypt and Syria. By the time the embargo ended, the price of oil had quadrupled. For decades thereafter, OPEC, which at the time provided 50 per cent of the world's oil, has been the key player in determining oil pricing. The scenario is so different now - with the price of oil having fallen 60 per cent in the past two years - that OPEC is fighting hard to retain its relevance. Its share of the oil trade by volume has fallen to 30 per cent, even though it is producing a record 33.47 million barrels a day. The US no longer depends on it as much as it did before. Apart from increasingly using domestic shale gas, it has increased its own oil production from around 5 million barrels a day in 2010 to 9.5 million, and is also importing much more oil than before from South American - rather than Arab - countries. OPEC could have held the oil price line by limiting production, but this was stoutly resisted by Saudi Arabia, which feared loss of market share. The fear was not misplaced, considering Iran is back in the international oil market following its historic rapprochement with the US in January this year. Nigeria and Libya, too, have maintained that even if they did not increase production, they would not lower it. The oil price crash has had major consequences. While on the one hand, it has helped large oil importers like India, on the other it is playing havoc with the economies of countries heavily dependent on oil export - Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Libya, Kuwait, Qatar, Iran, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and even non-OPEC Russia. At its last meeting in Algiers on September 27, OPEC members finally agreed on a production cut of a sizeable 700,000 barrels. Despite this, the price of oil has not noticeably firmed up. Brent crude, which cost $44.61 a barrel then, now costs just $5.22 more. OPEC's September production report forecasts an increase in production in 2017. Non-OPEC oil production is also likely to rise indicating that low oil prices will continue. Both OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers are meeting soon in Istanbul to thrash out more details ahead of the next official OPEC meet at its Vienna headquarters on November 30. Discussion about wargaming and military history, primarily WWII in North Africa. Also discussion about AFV's and artillery. From Greg Swank, 12-4-2 You are about to read a list of 45 goals that found their way down the halls of our great Capitol back in 1963. As... The mathematical (and other) thoughts of a (now retired) math teacher, Vistas de pagina en total Precio del Brent To get the BRENT oil price, please enable Javascript. Precio del WTI To get the oil price, please enable Javascript. Precio del Oro To get the gold price, please enable Javascript. Dolar USA Vs Euro Archivo del blog PROHIBIDO OLVIDAR OTAN = Asesinos OTAN = NATO = Muerte Mas temprano que tarde los derrotaremos Hipocresia 3.0 El principe Carlos habla sobre el alto costo de la vida Es un chiste? Las verdades son simples Opinar es un peligro Ejemplo de dignidad El Nuevo Orden Mundial Historica foto para el record Guinness Se pegaron un tiro en el pie Si palabras Ya no enganan a nadie No hacen falta palabras Lo volvio a hacer Capitalismo=embuste Historico Bitcoin La bateria mas grande de Holanda El futuro es solar Nec plus ultra, nec variatur Fisica y culturalmente Jamas nos callaran Sin ellas, no seremos Deja vu Nada que celebrar Hasta cuando? Colombia Hoy Para nunca olvidar 'Parasite' painted on a statue of Queen, Elizabeth in Kent, England Sin palabras La UE le apunta a la paz Cada vez mas solo LULA y su Pueblo Bye Bye Homenaje al genial Quino Fueron ellos Una imagen que resume Tan bajo ha caido que se deja tocar el trasero? Porky y el Nene (archiconocido narcotraficante) Ladrones al poder Asi mira el perrito a su amo Crazy Clamor popular La nueva inquisicion Bolivia Chile Hoy Eso es todo amigos! Piensalo! Pinerachet No More Trump Adios Macri, hasta nunca La Marioneta se desinfla Asi o mas cinico Almugre Mexico en 1794 Mas arrastrado imposible Hasta cuando! La pura verdad Solidaridad con Palestina Serie Capitalismo Espejismos de la clase trabajadora Asi es! Comerciantes o delincuentes No pasaran! Asi es la vida USA HOY 01/01/1959 La avaricia no tiene limites AYUDA HUMANITARIA? Chile Hoy Asi son las cosas Mapa Electoral de Venezuela Patagonia argentina? Un aniversario mas del mayor genocidio de la Humanidad Retrato del franquismo en Espana Visca Catalunya! El Chulo de Madrid Cuando la policia se roba la democracia Una imagen dice mas que mil palabras La purita verdad Asi gobierna la maldita burguesia Mi pobre clase media Como Chavez nadie Comparte La Colmena via twitter Twittear Programa de la MUD Asi o mas clarito Por que Trump no ataco Corea del Norte? Hace 15 anos Por que la OEA no se pronuncio? Una verguenza nacional La luz que nos guia La Union Europea Premio Nobel de la Paz? Feudalismo ayer y hoy Obama, el mentiroso Curiosa coincidencia Un mundo de cerdos No es extrano? La Marioneta Los ricos protestan, los pobres celebran MARICORI Y OBAMA Cuantas muertes este ano? 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Por culpa de Chavez Cerveza Polar Algun dia Colombia volvera a la ideologia de Bolivar Translate LOS REVOLUCIONARIOS NO TOMAN CACA-COLA No se trata solamente de un capricho, sino de una sana actitud en todos los sentidos. Desde la solidaridad con el pueblo colombiano donde la empresa Caca-Cola ha cometido los mas grandes abusos contra sus trabajadores incluyendo el presunto secuestro y asesinato de los dirigentes del sindicato, hasta la proteccion de la salud de nuestros hijos, enviciados por ese jarabe de cola y azucar, que les produce obesidad prematura. Pensemos tambien los revolucionarios, que ese dinero que gastamos en los refrescos es utilizado por esas empresas para financiar el terrorismo en nuestro pais. Es cierto, no se trata solo de la Caca-Cola, sino tambien de la cerveza, de los cigarrillos y todos esos articulos innecesarios y mas que eso, daninos para nuestra salud. Podriamos incluso pensar en un dia de parada para cada uno de ellos. Es cuestion de irnos organizando. Pero para empezar, que tal si dejamos de comprar Caca-Cola y sus similares? Cuando lo extraordinario se vuelve cotidiano... Discurso del Acto de Grado en Barinas en 12 de Febrero del 2005 Queridos Graduandos: Mas que un discurso, quiero dirigirles algunas palabras que escribi anoche, despues de visitar en las clinicas, a los estudiantes heridos, a consecuencia de los enfrentamientos con la policia de hace apenas dos dias. Me ha tocado por razones del destino, ser la persona que les otorgue el titulo que bien merecieron con sus estudios. Y me siento sumamente orgulloso de serlo. Me consta que la Universidad de Los Llanos Occidentales Ezequiel Zamora, a pesar de lo dicho por los enemigos de esta universidad, es una universidad de primera. No tendremos la mejor planta fisica, en los salones hace calor. En el comedor hace calor. Pero no es en lo material que las cosas deben valorarse. El mayor capital es el ser humano. Y en eso, nuestra UNELLEZ, lo digo con conocimiento de causa, esta sobrada. Los llaneros venezolanos son nobles, valientes, de coraje. En la UNELLEZ hacen vida, en este momento, aproximadamente 67000 personas. El 97% de ellas son estudiantes. Jovenes que, como Ustedes hasta el dia de hoy, buscan ese titulo, que constata los anos de dedicacion y de estudio. Los jovenes son el rio de la vida, ustedes graduados deben ser los capitanes de esos barcos que naveguen por el rio de la vida. Nuestra Patria atraviesa momentos muy dificiles porque decidio dejar de ser esa matrona de edad vetusta y complaciente, para ser joven, rebelde y altanera. Nuestra imagen ya no es la de una acaudalada ricachona mayamera. En nuestro rostro brilla ahora la sonrisa del Che Guevara, con su diente delantero torcido, su pelo largo y su boina con la estrella. Entender esto, a mi me ha tomado practicamente toda la vida. Tengo 53 anos, y ya perdi mi oportunidad de derramar sangre joven a causa de un ideal. Ustedes son jovenes, estan en la flor de la vida. No cometan por favor el error de renunciar a su instinto de rebelion. El Che Guevara fue Ministro de a Economia en Cuba. Los billetes y las monedas se adornaban con su rostro. Nada de eso le importo. Primero fue a Angola donde paso un penoso ano de combate. Despues se fue a Bolivia, donde encontro la muerte. El Che era el ultimo que comia, el que cargaba la mochila mas pesada. Siempre se sacrificaba por los demas en un estoicismo que mas parecia fervor religioso que ideologia marxista. Si quieren un modelo de vida. Ahi lo tienen. Dije hace unos momentos que el 97% de la poblacion de la UNELLEZ es estudiante. Se imaginan Ustedes la Universidad que podriamos tener si todos los estudiantes tuvieran la abnegacion, la combatividad del Che? Los momentos que se avecinan van a requerir de una gran unidad del pueblo venezolano. La alternativa de continuar siendo libres o regresar a la pobreza se nos planteara en los proximos dias de forma enmascarada, o quizas peor, desenmascarada, vestida con uniforme de soldado del Imperio. Por nuestra parte podemos esperar lo mejor. La macroeconomia no podria ir mejor, la justicia social ha mejorado notablemente. Las misiones ocupan un papel muy importante en el pago de dicha justicia social. Aqui en Barinas ya hemos cumplido con dos de las misiones, la mision Robinson y la mision Sucre. No hay analfabetismo y no hay exclusion en la educacion superior, en estas tierras de Zamora. Pero ay malhaya! Son precisamente estos exitos los que nos hacen mas antipaticos al Imperio. Para ellos, somos inclusive un mal ejemplo que se esta contagiando al resto del continente y cuidado sino al resto del mundo. Nunca venceremos al Imperio. Estara siempre ahi, acechando. Por lo menos hasta que el mismo no se autodestruya. Porque, sepanlo senores, el neoliberalismo es canibal. Cuando le ataque el hambre, se devorara a si mismo. Ustedes, queridos graduandos, a partir de hoy pasan a conformar la elite profesional que debe sostener este pais en los proximos cuarenta o cincuenta anos. Anos decisivos para el logro de nuestra libertad y del rescate de nuestra Soberania. No se dejen comprar. No se dejen corromper. No se dejen gritar. No se dejen pisar. Que nadie les diga que comer, o que vestirse, o que leer. Sean siempre autenticos, rebeldes, contestatarios. Pero eso si, profundamente patriotas, dignos de ser hijos de Bolivar. Muchas gracias y que Dios los bendiga. Alguna duda? Medio siglo de Holocausto Palestino Oscar Zanartu Nacio en Caracas en 1960. Ha realizado exposiciones individuales en las galerias Minotauro, Clave y San Francisco, y en salas de Coro, estado Falcon, y Puerto Ordaz, estado Bolivar. En Paris su obra ha sido exhibida en el Centro Cultural Tanagra, en la Exposicion Cite Internationale des Arts, en las galerias De Mars y Arver Space, al igual que en la Galeria Municipal Levallois, en Levallois Perret (Francia). En muestras colectivas, su obra se ha expuesto en Belgica, Francia, Estados Unidos y Venezuela; en Caracas intervino en la exposicion "Del genesis a la memoria", 1995, organizada por la Fundacion La Previsora. En 1982 obtuvo el Premio Nacional Critven y en 1990 la Mencion de Honor Jose Antonio Paez, en la Embajada de Venezuela en Paris. En 1991 se le concedio el primer premio de Pintura Itinerante, en Levallois Perret, Francia. OZ1 OZ2 OZ3 OZ4 Homenaje a Jason Galarraga La Victoria de Samotracia Odalisca Mas fotos de la nevada del pasado agosto 2008 La Sierra Nevada de Merida Nuestro precioso Churum Meru Homenaje a Picasso Autoretrato Sabes lo que bebes en una Coca-Cola? La formula de la Pepsi tiene una diferencia basica con la de la Coca-Cola y es intencional, para evitar el proceso judicial. La diferencia es a proposito, pero suficientemente parecida como para atraer a los consumidores de Coca-Cola que prefieren un gusto diferente con menos sal y azucar. Mi profesion? Tuve que aprender quimica, entender todo sobre componentes de gaseosas, conservantes, sales, acidos, cafeina, enlatado, produccion, permisos, aprobaciones y muchas otras cosas. Monte mi propio mini-laboratorio de analisis de productos. Sal en la Coca Cola? A patadas. El Cloruro de Sodio no solo refresca sino da mas sed, como para pedir otra gaseosa. Y no resulta desagradable porque la sal mata literalmente la sensibilidad al dulce... del que por cierto tambien tiene mucho: 39 gramos de azucar. De los 350 gramos de producto liquido, mas del 10% es azucar, o sea que en una lata de Coca-Cola mas de un centimetro y medio es puro azucar en polvo. Aproximadamente tres cucharadas soperas llenas de azucar por lata!!La formula de la Coca Cola es muy sencilla: Concentrado de azucar quemado caramelo- para dar color oscuro y gusto Acido fosforito (para darle el sabor acido) azucar (HFCS-jarabe de maiz de alta fructosa) Extracto de hojas de la planta de Coca (Africa e India) y otros pocos aromatizantes naturales de otras plantas Mucha Cafeina Conservante que puede ser Benzoato de Sodio o Potasio Dioxido de Carbono en cantidad para sentir freir la lengua cuando se bebe Sal para dar la sensacion de refrigeracion El uso del acido fosforito y no del acido citrico como en todas las demas gaseosas, es para dar la sensacion de dientes y boca limpia al beber. El acido fosforito literalmente frie todo y dana el esmalte de los dientes, cosa que el acido citrico lo hace en menor grado.Trate de comprar acido fosforito para ver las mil recomendaciones de seguridad que te dan para su manipulacion (quema el cristalino del ojo, quema la piel, etc...). Esta prohibido usar el acido fosforito en cualquier otra gaseosa; solo la Coca Cola tiene permiso. Porque claro, sin el acido fosforico, la Coca Cola sabria a jabon.El extracto de coca y otras hojas casi no cambia en nada el sabor. Es mas bien un efecto cosmetico. El extracto forma parte de la Coca-Cola porque legalmente tiene que ser asi. Pero sin el, no se nota ninguna diferencia en el gusto, que esta dado basicamente por las cantidades diferentes de azucar, azucar quemada, sales, acidos y conservantes.Sabor a que...? ja, ja, ja. Aqui en Bartow, sur de Orlando, hay una empresa quimica que produce aromatizantes y esencias para zumos. Envian diariamente camionadas de sales concentradas y esencias para las fabricas de helados, gaseosas, jugos, enlatados y comida colorida y aromatizada.Cuando visite por primera vez la fabrica, pedi ver el deposito de concentrados de frutas, que deberia ser inmenso, especialmente los de naranja, pina, fresa y tantos otros. El encargado me miro, se rio y me llevo a visitar los depositos inmensos... pero de colorantes y componentes quimicos. Las gaseosa de naranja no contiene naranja. En los zumos dizque de fresa, hasta los puntitos que quedan en suspension estan hechos de goma (una liga quimica que envuelve un semi-polimero). Pina, es un popurri de acidos y goma. La esencia para helado de aguacate usa peroxido de hidrogeno (agua oxigenada) para dar la sensacion espumosa tipica del aguacate. Bebidas Light? Quieres saber la cantidad de basura que tiene un refresco 'light'? Yo ni siquiera los uso para destapar mi lavaplatos pues temo que danen los tubos de PVC. Los productos endulzantes 'ligth' tienen una vida media muy corta. Por ejemplo el Despues de toda mi experiencia con la produccion de bebidas embasadas, puedo afirmar sin dudar un segundo: la mejor bebida es el agua, como tambien los jugos exprimidos de naranja o limon. Nada mas, cero azucar y cero sal. Publicado por loretahur En realidad, la formula secreta de la Coca-Cola se puede detallar en 18 segundos en cualquier espectrometro optico, y basicamente la conocen hasta los perros. Lo que ocurre es que no se puede fabricar igual, a no ser que uno disponga de unos cuantos millones de dolares para ganarle la demanda que te metera la Coca-Cola ante la justicia (ellos no perderian).La formula de la Pepsi tiene una diferencia basica con la de la Coca-Cola y es intencional, para evitar el proceso judicial. La diferencia es a proposito, pero suficientemente parecida como para atraer a los consumidores de Coca-Cola que prefieren un gusto diferente con menos sal y azucar.Tuve que aprender quimica, entender todo sobre componentes de gaseosas, conservantes, sales, acidos, cafeina, enlatado, produccion, permisos, aprobaciones y muchas otras cosas. Monte mi propio mini-laboratorio de analisis de productos.A patadas. El Cloruro de Sodio no solo refresca sino da mas sed, como para pedir otra gaseosa. Y no resulta desagradable porque la sal mata literalmente la sensibilidad al dulce... del que por cierto tambien tiene mucho: 39 gramos de azucar.De los 350 gramos de producto liquido, mas del 10% es azucar, o sea que en una lata de Coca-Cola mas de un centimetro y medio es puro azucar en polvo. Aproximadamente tres cucharadas soperas llenas de azucar por lata!!La formula de la Coca Cola es muy sencilla:Concentrado de azucar quemado caramelo- para dar color oscuro y gustoAcido fosforito (para darle el sabor acido)azucar (HFCS-jarabe de maiz de alta fructosa)Extracto de hojas de la planta de Coca (Africa e India) y otros pocos aromatizantes naturales de otras plantasMucha CafeinaConservante que puede ser Benzoato de Sodio o PotasioDioxido de Carbono en cantidad para sentir freir la lengua cuando se bebeSal para dar la sensacion de refrigeracionEl uso del acido fosforito y no del acido citrico como en todas las demas gaseosas, es para dar la sensacion de dientes y boca limpia al beber. El acido fosforito literalmente frie todo y dana el esmalte de los dientes, cosa que el acido citrico lo hace en menor grado.Trate de comprar acido fosforito para ver las mil recomendaciones de seguridad que te dan para su manipulacion (quema el cristalino del ojo, quema la piel, etc...). Esta prohibido usar el acido fosforito en cualquier otra gaseosa; solo la Coca Cola tiene permiso. Porque claro, sin el acido fosforico, la Coca Cola sabria a jabon.El extracto de coca y otras hojas casi no cambia en nada el sabor. Es mas bien un efecto cosmetico. El extracto forma parte de la Coca-Cola porque legalmente tiene que ser asi. Pero sin el, no se nota ninguna diferencia en el gusto, que esta dado basicamente por las cantidades diferentes de azucar, azucar quemada, sales, acidos y conservantes.Sabor a que...? ja, ja, ja.Aqui en Bartow, sur de Orlando, hay una empresa quimica que produce aromatizantes y esencias para zumos. Envian diariamente camionadas de sales concentradas y esencias para las fabricas de helados, gaseosas, jugos, enlatados y comida colorida y aromatizada.Cuando visite por primera vez la fabrica, pedi ver el deposito de concentrados de frutas, que deberia ser inmenso, especialmente los de naranja, pina, fresa y tantos otros. El encargado me miro, se rio y me llevo a visitar los depositos inmensos... pero de colorantes y componentes quimicos.Las gaseosa de naranja no contiene naranja.En los zumos dizque de fresa, hasta los puntitos que quedan en suspension estan hechos de goma (una liga quimica que envuelve un semi-polimero).Pina, es un popurri de acidos y goma.La esencia para helado de aguacate usa peroxido de hidrogeno (agua oxigenada) para dar la sensacion espumosa tipica del aguacate.Quieres saber la cantidad de basura que tiene un refresco 'light'? Yo ni siquiera los uso para destapar mi lavaplatos pues temo que danen los tubos de PVC. Los productos endulzantes 'ligth' tienen una vida media muy corta. Por ejemplo el aspartamo , despues de tres semanas mojado, pasa a tener gusto de trapo viejo sucio.Para evitar eso, se agregan una infinidad de otros productos quimicos, uno para alargar la vida del aspartamo, otro para neutralizar el color, otro para mantener el tercer quimico en suspension porque sino el fondo de la gaseosa quedaria oscuro, otro para evitar la cristalizacion del aspartamo, otro para realzar el sabor, dar mas intensidad al acido citrico o fosforito que perderia su sabor por el efecto de los cuatro productos quimicos iniciales... y asi sucesivamente.Un consejo final !!Despues de toda mi experiencia con la produccion de bebidas embasadas, puedo afirmar sin dudar un segundo: la mejor bebida es el agua, como tambien los jugos exprimidos de naranja o limon. Nada mas, cero azucar y cero sal.Publicado por loretahur MARGARINA o MANTEQUILLA La margarina fue producida originalmente para engordar a los pavos; cuandolo que hizo en realidad fue matarlos.Las personas que habian puesto el dinero para la investigacion quisieronrecobrarlo asi que empezaron a pensar en una forma de hacerlo.Tenian una sustancia blanca, que no tenia ningun atractivo como comestible,asi que le anadieron el color amarillo, para venderselo a lagente en lugar de la mantequilla.Que tal esa?... Ahora han sacado algunos nuevos sabores para vender mas alos incautos como usted y yo.CONOCE USTED la diferencia entre la margarina y la mantequilla?Siga leyendo hasta el final... porque se pone bastante interesante!Comparacion entre mantequilla y margarina: 1.- Ambas tienen la misma cantidad de calorias. 2.- La mantequilla es ligeramente mas alta en grasas saturadas: 8 gramos,comparada con los 5 gramos que tiene la margarina. 3.- Comer margarina en vez de mantequilla puede aumentar en 53% el riesgo deenfermedades coronarias en las mujeres, de acuerdo con un estudiomedico reciente de la Universidad de Harvard. 4.- Comer mantequilla aumenta la absorcion de gran cantidad de nutrientesque se encuentran en otros alimentos. 5.- La mantequilla provee beneficios nutricionales propios mientras lamargarina tiene solo los que le hayan sido anadidos al fabricarla. 6.- La mantequilla sabe mucho mejor que la margarina y mejora el sabor deotros alimentos.7.- La mantequilla ha existido durante siglos mientras que la margarinatiene menos de 100 anos. Ahora... sobre la margarina: 1.- Es muy alta en acidos grasos trans. (Si, esos que recien ahora loscientificos descubrieron que son malisimos y los gobiernoscomenzaron a prohibirlos) . 2.- Triple riesgo de enfermedades coronarias. 3.- Aumenta el colesterol total y el LDL (el colesterol malo) y disminuye elHDL (el colesterol bueno). 4.- Aumenta en cinco veces el riesgo de cancer. 5.- Disminuye la calidad de la leche materna. 6.- Disminuye la reaccion inmunologica del organismo. 7.- Disminuye la reaccion a la insulina. Y he aqui el factor mas inquietante (AQUI ESTA LA PARTE MAS INTERESANTE! ):A la margarina le falta UNA MOLECULA para ser PLASTICO...!!Solo este hecho es suficiente para evitar el uso de la margarina de porvida, y de cualquier otra cosa que sea hidrogenada (esto significaque se le anade hidrogeno, lo cual cambia la estructura molecular de lassubstancias).Usted puede ensayar lo siguiente:Compre un poco de margarina y dejela en el garaje o en un sitio sombreado.Dentro de unos dias notara dos cosas: * No habra moscas; ni siquiera esos molestos bichos se le acercaran (esto yale debe decir a usted algo). * No se pudre ni huele mal o diferente porque no tiene valor nutritivo; nadacrece en ella. Ni siquiera los diminutos microorganismos puedencrecer en ella.Por que? Porque es casi plastico!! No a la guerra, Si a la Paz Misterios de la ciencia... Los costos de la guerra medicos y capitalismo... Capitalismo... medicos (2) Quien educa a nuestros hijos? Los Medios... Sin Palabras... Chistes feministas - Cual es el problema, Eva? - Se que me has creado, que me has dado este hermoso jardin, todos estos maravillosos animales y esa serpiente con la que me muero de risa... pero no soy del todo feliz... - Como es eso, Eva? - replico Dios desde las alturas. - Me encuentro sola, y ademas estoy harta de comer manzanas... - Bueno Eva, en tal caso, tengo una solucion... creare un hombre para ti. - Que es un hombre? - Un hombre sera una criatura imperfecta, con muchas artimanas. Mentira, hara trampas, sera engreido... vamos, que te va a dar problemas... Pero, va a ser mas fuerte y rapido que tu y le gustara cazar y matar cosas... Tendra un aspecto simple, pero como te estas quejando, le creare de tal forma que satisfaga tus... eh... necesidades fisicas... Y tampoco sera muy listo, y destacara en cosas infantiles como pegarse o dar patadas a un balon... Necesitara tu consejo siempre para actuar cuerdamente. - Suena bien - dijo Eva, mientras levantaba la ceja ironicamente. - Cual es el truco?. - Pues... que lo tendras con una condicion. - Cual? - Como te decia, sera chulo, arrogante y muy narcisista... asi que le tendras que hacer creer que le hice a el primero... recuerda... es nuestro secreto... de mujer a mujer. Por que a los hombres no les puede dar la enfermedad de las vacas locas? Porque todos son unos cerdos Un dia, en el Paraiso, Eva llamo a Dios: Tengo un problema.- Cual es el problema, Eva?- Se que me has creado, que me has dado este hermoso jardin, todos estos maravillosos animales y esa serpiente con la que me muero de risa... pero no soy del todo feliz... - Como es eso, Eva? - replico Dios desde las alturas.- Me encuentro sola, y ademas estoy harta de comer manzanas...- Bueno Eva, en tal caso, tengo una solucion... creare un hombre para ti.- Que es un hombre?- Un hombre sera una criatura imperfecta, con muchas artimanas. Mentira, hara trampas, sera engreido... vamos, que te va a dar problemas... Pero, va a ser mas fuerte y rapido que tu y le gustara cazar y matar cosas... Tendra un aspecto simple, pero como te estas quejando, le creare de tal forma que satisfaga tus... eh... necesidades fisicas... Y tampoco sera muy listo, y destacara en cosas infantiles como pegarse o dar patadas a un balon... Necesitara tu consejo siempre para actuar cuerdamente.- Suena bien - dijo Eva, mientras levantaba la ceja ironicamente.- Cual es el truco?.- Pues... que lo tendras con una condicion.- Cual?- Como te decia, sera chulo, arrogante y muy narcisista... asi que le tendras que hacer creer que le hice a el primero... recuerda... es nuestro secreto... de mujer a mujer.Por que a los hombres no les puede dar la enfermedad de las vacas locas? Porque todos son unos cerdos Ellas... Ellas (2)... Tres venganzas femeninas VENGANZA NUMERO 1 Hoy mi hija cumple 21 anos y estoy muy contento porque es el ultimo pago de pension alimenticia que le doy, asi que llame a mi hijita para que viniera a mi casa y cuando llego le dije: -Hijita, quiero que lleves este cheque a casa de tu mama y que le digas que: Este es el ultimo maldito cheque que va recibir de mi en todo lo que le queda de su puta vida!!! Quiero que me digas la expresion que pone en su rostro. Asi que mi hija fue a entregar el cheque. Yo estaba ansioso por saber lo que la bruja tenia que decir y que cara pondria. Cuando mi hijita entro, le pregunte inmediatamente: -Que fue lo que te dijo tu madre? -Me dijo que justamente estaba esperando este dia para decirte que no eres mi papa! VENGANZA NUMERO 2 Un hombre que siempre molestaba a su mujer, paso un dia por la casa de unos amigos para que lo acompanaran al aeropuerto a dejar a su esposa que viajaba a Paris. A la salida de inmigracion, frente a todo el mundo, el le desea buen viaje y en tono burlon le grita: - Amor, no te olvides de traerme una hermosa francesita Ja ja ja!! Ella bajo la cabeza y se embarco muy molesta. La mujer paso quince dias en Francia. El marido otra vez pidio a sus amigos que lo acompanasen al aeropuerto a recibirla. Al verla llegar, lo primero que le grita a toda voz es: - Y amor me trajiste mi francesita?? - Hice todo lo posible, - contesta ella - ahora solo tenemos que rezar para que nazca nina. VENGANZA NUMERO 3 El marido, en su lecho de muerte, llama a su mujer. Con voz ronca y ya debil, le dice: - Muy bien, llego mi hora, pero antes quiero hacerte una confesion. - No, no, tranquilo, tu no debes hacer ningun esfuerzo. - Pero, mujer, es preciso - insiste el marido - Es preciso morir en paz. Te quiero confesar algo. - Esta bien, esta bien. Habla! - He tenido relaciones con tu hermana, tu mama y tu mejor amiga. - Lo se, lo se Por eso te envenene, hijo de puta!!! machismo y cibernetica Chiste machista La NASA ha enviado al espacio una mision experimental tripulada por dos monos y una mujer.Apenas abandona la atmosfera, se establece comunicacion con Houston. -Atencion, simio 1, verifique sistemas hidraulicos, controle adecuada presion de los propulsores de arranque. A 60.000 pies disminuya un 25% la velocidad. El simio hace la sena de OK. -Atencion, simio 2, nivele al cruzar la estratosfera y active sistemas anticongelantes. No olvide monitorear sistemas de comunicacion e indicadores de presion. Comprendido?. El simio hace la sena de OK. -Atencion, Houston llamando a mujer: no se olvide. -Mujer: Si, si, ya se! -interrumpe enojada- que no me olvide darles de comer a estos monos de mierda y que no se me vaya a ocurrir tocar nada!. .Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti. Un abogado mantiene un romance con su secretaria.Al poco tiempo, esta queda embarazada y el abogado, que no quiere que su esposa se entere, le da a la secretaria una buena suma de dinero y le pide que se vaya a parir a Italia.Esta pregunta: Y como voy a hacerte saber cuando nazca el bebe ? El abogado responde: Para que mi mujer no se entere, tan solo enviame una postal y escribe por detras: Spaghetti. Y no te preocupes mas, que yo me encargare de todos los gastos. Pasan los meses y una manana la esposa del abogado lo llama al bufete, algo exaltada: Querido, acabo de recibir el correo y hay una postal muy extrana viene desde Italia. La verdad, no entiendo que significa.El abogado, tratando de ocultar sus nervios, contesta:Espera a que llegue a casa, a ver si yo entiendoCuando el hombre llega a casa y lee la postal, cae al suelo fulminado por un infarto.Llega una ambulancia y se lo lleva. Ya en el hospital, el jefe de cardiologia se queda consolando a la esposa y le pregunta cual ha sido el evento que precipito tan masivo ataque cardiaco. Entonces la esposa saca la postal y se la muestra diciendole: No me explico, doctor; el solamente leyo esta postal. Vea usted mismo lo que trae escrito.Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti."Tres con salchicha y albondigas y dos con almejas Gol !!!! Chistes de Borrachos Entra un borracho a su casa todo manchado con lapiz labial por todos lados hecho un desastre, y la mujer le pregunta:-Hombre que te paso?Y el borracho le responde:-No me vas a creer, me pelee con un payaso! Este es un borracho que entra en un bar y le dice al camarero:-Me da cinco copas de whisky?Al rato:-Me da cuatro?Al rato:-Me da tres copas?Despues:-Me da dos copas?Luego le dice:-Me da una copa?Y le dice al camarero:-Ves? Cuanto menos bebo, mas borracho estoy! Credit: Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) Experts estimate less than 30 orange-bellied parrots remain in the wild. Researchers from Charles Sturt University have partnered with scientists from the Australian Synchrotron to reconstruct the outer shell of a beak and feather disease (BFD) virus cell (inset), which is threatening four species of endangered Australian parrots. Australian researchers have unravelled the molecular makeup of a virus threatening some of the world's most endangered species, paving the way for the potential development of a vaccine to save dwindling populations of the Australian birds. The research, led by Charles Sturt University (CSU) scientists and published in the prestigious international journal Nature Communications, revealed the structure of the smallest self-replicating virus behind the beak and feather disease (BFD). The virus causes a debilitating disease affecting four rare species of native parrot, including the Western ground and orange-bellied parrots (pictured, above), of which less than 50 remain in the wild. CSU Professor in Biochemistry Jade Forwood said, 'We now have a unique way of thinking about the virus and how it self-assembles. We know at the atomic level, the structure of the virus and how it fits together.' CSU Professor in Veterinary Pathobiology Shane Raidal said, 'The finding is significant because, by confirming how the viral structure forms, we can begin to develop a vaccine to interrupt these processes.' The BFD virus programs only two proteins to drive its replication and spread: one to assist the reproduction of the viral DNA, and one to construct the outer shell of the virus. This shell is built from 60 individual capsid proteins that self-assemble and fit together in a highly specific and ordered arrangement around the viral DNA. The outcomes of this research provide the atomic coordinates of approximately 200,000 atoms which make up the virus, and insights into how the viral DNA can bind to the shell, ensuring the protection and delivery of the viral DNA. The Micro Crystallography (MX2) beamline at the Australian Synchrotron created intricate diffraction patterns as light bounced off microscopic crystals of the viral capsid proteins. This allowed the researchers to identify the locations of the individual atoms and broader structure of the viral shells in stunning 3-D detail. The research team, involving scientists from CSU, Monash University, the Australian Synchrotron, and Spain's National Microbiology Centre and the Autonomous University of Madrid, have been working on the project since 2009. Along with the loss of habitat and feral predators, the BFD virus is one of the main threats to the affected parrots, which also include the Norfolk Parakeet (Norfolk Island) and the Swift Parrot (eastern and southern states). Infected birds face starvation and death as their feathers moult and their beaks soften. Professor Raidal said, 'The disease has caused significant problems, in particular, for the orange-bellied parrot since 2006 when it reappeared in the captive recovery program. 'The Parrot is a small and vulnerable migratory bird which breeds only on Tasmania's south-west coast, flying north to spend the winter in coastal Victoria and South Australia, so we look forward to building on this work to find new approaches to restoring their numbers in the wild.' Mr Barry Baker, Chair of the national Orange-Bellied Parrot Recovery Team said it is important new and innovative fields of science work across conservation projects to protect Australia's at-risk fauna. 'BFDV is an awful disease, especially in small, short-lived species like orange-bellied parrots young birds with the virus stand little chance of survival in the wild, and affected captive birds are often compromised, as the virus can affect the bird's ability to fight off other health issues. 'Although recent orange-bellied parrot recovery efforts have proven effective, in 2014 the wild population suffered from a spillover of BFDV (from another wild species) and we believe there are currently less than 30 birds out there another outbreak of the disease in the wild would be a disaster, so the ability to vaccinate would be a leap forward in parrot conservation, also benefitting captive populations and our ability to release to the wild.' More information: Subir Sarker et al. Structural insights into the assembly and regulation of distinct viral capsid complexes, Nature Communications (2016). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms13014 Journal information: Nature Communications Small scale fishing. Credit: FRDC Locally caught fish with chips is a delicious highlight for many coastal holiday makers. Now new research shows just how much the local catch means economically and socially for coastal communities. Findings of a two-year University of Technology Sydney research study, Valuing Coastal Fisheries, reveal that both social and economic factors must be considered when measuring the value professional fishing delivers to communities. The NSW professional fishing industry contributes more than $436 million in revenue annually to the State and generates about 3,290 full-time jobs in fishing operations, service industries, sales and marketing. This is a significant increase over previous estimates of the value of the industry from the first point of sale and indicates the industry's regional economic value. The study's quantitative and qualitative research results may assist in guiding ongoing discussions in many regions regarding management of marine parks and coastal resources for professional and recreational fishing. UTS researcher Associate Professor Kate Barclay said it was the first study conducted in multiple fishing communities to understand the diverse ways fishing industries contribute to local communities. The researchers traversed the NSW coast speaking with fishers, families, the public, council staff, tourism organisations, seafood retailers, wholesalers and restaurant owners. Hundreds more participated in questionnaires. "The findings show professional fishing is an essential part of the fabric of communities," Associate Professor Barclay said. "It supports and is in turn supported by an intertwining range of community life and work-related activities. "It generates vital income and jobs in rural towns. It is also very much interdependent with other businesses including gear suppliers, mechanics, fuel providers, freight and helps support tourism and hospitality with sought-after fresh locally caught seafood." Findings of the research, federally-funded by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation include: The general public in NSW believes it is important that seafood continues to be produced in NSW (94 per cent agree), and the desire to support local economies is their main reason for purchasing locally produced seafood (96 per cent); 89 per cent of NSW residents expect to eat fresh local seafood when holidaying on the coast, 76 per cent say it is an important part of their coastal visit experience; 60 per cent of professional fishers have helped out with search and rescue operations in estuaries and coastal waters; 96% believe buying local seafood is better for their local community; Fishing both professional and recreational are part of many towns heritage; 78% of recreational fishers across the state prefer local bait. Kate Barclay (L) with Michelle Voyer. Credit: University of Technology, Sydney "All tiers of government will benefit from the research that can assist decision making that is reflective of local community needs as well as identifying new opportunities," Associate Professor Barclay said "Tourists and local recreational fishers, eager for a great catch value the local knowledge professional fishers can share on the best places to cast a line. They also like buying the local catch in support of local businesses. "Professional fishing is an important economic and culturally sustaining activity in many coastal Indigenous communities as well. It enables greater income, independence and pride among operators. "Indigenous fishing industry operators and workers contribute a great deal to their communities, sharing culturally important seafood and handing down knowledge, including about the health of fish stocks. "Australia is a world leader in maintaining healthy marine resources; but right now we are limited in predicting how a serious decline in professional fishing would affect the economic and social fabric of many coastal communities." Co-researcher, Dr Michelle Voyer said the NSW study could be replicated in communities that maintain professional fishing fleets in other Australian states, providing invaluable information. "Much scientific research on biological factors in fishing has been conducted to date, but amazingly almost none until now has been done to understand how professional fishing sustains the social and economic lives of so many regional Australians," Dr Voyer said. "Conducting the research involved much coal-face collaboration and input from local businesses and the wider community. It served as a catalyst for communities to take stock of a key area of their lives that they may not have otherwise fully considered. "We know conditions vary from community to community, but we believe coastal communities engaged in professional fishing in all states could gain much by capturing local knowledge and accumulated intergenerational wisdom to help best plan for their futures." More information: Full research report and regional fact sheets here: www.uts.edu.au/valuing-coastal-fisheries Geographical distribution of the detectors of the Galician Night Sky Brightness Monitoring Network, located at 14 MeteoGalicia weather stations. Credit: Robert Simmon/NASA (Phys.org)A physicist in Spain has found that artificial light systems can make the skies above cities more than 20 times as bright as natural areas. Salvador Bara, with Universidade de Santiago de Compostela has written a paper detailing sky measurements made with a sensor network set up around the northwest portion of the Iberian Peninsula highlighting just how much brighter parts of the world have become at night and has uploaded it to the open access site Royal Society Open Science. The problem of light pollution is still so new that scientists still do not know the extent of the problems it may be causing, either for us humans or plants and animals. Eager to learn more about the amount of light pollution emitted around parts of his home country, Bara and associates put up 14 light detectors in automated weather stations around parts of the peninsula covering urban, rural and suburban areas. The detectors took readings once every minute, which were published automatically to a publicly available website. Bara defined two metrics using the data from the sensorssignificant magnitude (for clear nights) and moonlight modulation factor (to account for the amount of light reflected from the moon back to Earth). In analyzing the data, Bara found that the night sky in urban areas was typically 14 to 23 times brighter than in a natural environment. He also found light levels seven to eight times brighter in periurban areas (those on the outskirts of urban areas) and 1.6 to 2.5 times brighter in transition regions (between urban and suburban areas and rural areas) and 0.8 to 1.6 times brighter in rural or mountainous areas. He noted that the presence of clouds had a strong impact on the amount of light in the sky reaching amplification factors as high as 25. He also notes that the night sky brightness typically attributed to moonlight was easily visible in rural and transition areas, but was barely noticeable in urban areas. He also points out that much of the artificial light that is generated encroaches on areas not meant to be lit, which represents not only waste, but possible problems for plants and animals attempting to exist at a distance. More information: Salvador Bara. Anthropogenic disruption of the night sky darkness in urban and rural areas, Royal Society Open Science (2016). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.160541 Abstract The growing emissions of artificial light to the atmosphere are producing, among other effects, a significant increase of the night sky brightness (NSB) above its expected natural values. A permanent sensor network has been deployed in Galicia (northwest of Iberian peninsula) to monitor the anthropogenic disruption of the night sky darkness in a countrywide area. The network is composed of 14 detectors integrated in automated weather stations of MeteoGalicia, the Galician public meteorological agency. Zenithal NSB readings are taken every minute and the results are openly available in real time for researchers, interested stakeholders and the public at large through a dedicated website. The measurements allow one to assess the extent of the loss of the natural night in urban, periurban, transition and dark rural sites, as well as its daily and monthly time courses. Two metrics are introduced here to characterize the disruption of the night darkness across the year: the significant magnitude (m1/3) and the moonlight modulation factor (). The significant magnitude shows that in clear and moonless nights the zenithal night sky in the analysed urban settings is typically 1423 times brighter than expected from a nominal natural dark sky. This factor lies in the range 78 in periurban sites, 1.62.5 in transition regions and 0.81.6 in rural and mountain dark sky places. The presence of clouds in urban areas strongly enhances the amount of scattered light, easily reaching amplification factors in excess of 25, in comparison with the light scattered in the same places under clear sky conditions. The periodic NSB modulation due to the Moon, still clearly visible in transition and rural places, is barely notable at periurban locations and is practically lost at urban sites. Journal information: Royal Society Open Science 2016 Phys.org Credit: Lowe Borjeson Following the devastating droughts in the 70s and 80s in the Sahel region south of the Sahara desert, vegetation has now recovered. What surprise the researchers is that although it is now raining more and has become greener, it is particularly the more drought resistant species that thrive instead of the tree and shrub vegetation that has long been characteristic of the area. This is shown in a study from Stockholm University published in the journal Land Use Policy. The conclusion is that not only rain but also agriculture and human utilization of trees, bushes and land affect the plants recovering. The expected pattern is that a drier climate favours drought resistant species, and that a wetter climate makes it possible for species that require more rainfall to thrive. A new study, however, shows the opposite effect; that a shift to more drought tolerant species is occurring, even though it's raining more. This shows that the recent regreening of the Sahel region can not only be explained by the fact that it rains more, which until now has been the dominant explanation. "What we see is the beginning of a fairly dramatic change in the traditional agroforestry landscape in the area. Although it is not yet possible to say exactly what the consequences are for local livelihood and conservation, these are important issues that we will continue to work with. By, for example, examining what people in the area use different trees and shrubs for and look at how the landscape changes, we can better understand how land use, social change, climate and ecosystems interact, even in ways that can be unexpected", says Lowe Borjeson, Associate Professor at the Department of Human Geography, Stockholm University. Credit: Hanna Sinare The study suggests that an understanding of how human use of the landscape interact with climate and ecosystem processes is important for organizations that want to develop strategies for climate change adaptation, biodiversity conservation and local development in one of the world's poorest regions. Facts about the Sahel region The Sahel is a semi-arid belt of land in Africa south of the Sahara and north of the wetter areas to the south. The Sahel extends east from the Atlantic Ocean through northern Senegal, southern Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, southern Niger, northeastern Nigeria, Chad and the Sudan. Most of the Sahel region consists of savannah. The recurrent droughts in the 1970s and 1980s had disastrous consequences for agriculture, livestock and the environment in the area, with widespread famine as a result. The drought in the region also gave rise to a global discussion and concern for desertification as an emerging environmental problem. In recent years, research has shown that the area since the 1980s, has instead become greener aw the vegetation has recovered. More information: Hendrik Hanke et al. Drought tolerant species dominate as rainfall and tree cover returns in the West African Sahel, Land Use Policy (2016). DOI: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2016.08.023 These silicon nanowires were obtained with the help of new eco-friendly method developed by Russian scientists. Toxic hydrofluoric acid is replaced by harmless ammonium fluoride. Credit: Kirill Gonchar Physicists from the Lomonosov Moscow State University have worked out a new and more eco-friendly method of obtaining silicon nanowires that replaces hydrofluoric acid (HF) with ammonium fluoride (NH 4 F). Silicon nanowires are streamlined, parallel nanostructures that resemble wires. Nanowire diameter varies from 50 to 200 nm, and the distance between structures is from 100 to 500 nm. Nanowire length, depending on etching time, can be from 100 nm up to tens of microns. Silicon nanowires have applications in micro- and optoelectronics, photonics, PV, and sensorics, and biomedicinesilicon nanostructures are biodegradable materials, which means that they break down inside an organism after a period of time. Additionally, in limited concentrations, nanostructures are nontoxic. However, hydrofluoric acid (HF), which is used in a conventional method to produce silicon nanowires, is extremely toxic. Now, silicon nanowires can be made via the chemical etching of a silicon wafer, in a process by which metal nanoparticles (for instance, silver nanoparticles) activate etching. Kirill Gonchar, a junior researcher at the Lomonosov Moscow State University, describes the process: "We've used a two-step method of etching. At the first stage, silver nanoparticles were deposited on the surface of a silicon wafer. This deposition didn't produce a level layer, but rather different island regions. At the second stage, the silicon wafer was etched in the places covered with silver. Because of this, the exposed silicon turned into nanowires as silver nanoparticles fell into the silicone sheet. And the longer the etching process, the longer the nanowires at the output. At the end, the silver was removed with the help of nitric acid." Researchers from the Lomonosov Moscow State University have replaced dangerous and toxic hydrofluoric acid with ammonium fluoride at all stages of chemical etching. Moreover, they have studied optical properties of silicon nanowires produced via this method and compared them with nanowires produced conventionally with hydrofluoric acid. Kirill Gonchar explains how the idea to use ammonium fluoride in nanowires synthesis emerged: "The idea of ammonium fluoride application wasn't new, it was borrowed from experimental methods of obtaining porous silicon that took place 20 years ago. Ammonium fluoride was also used then, instead of hydrofluoric acid. There were similar projects where nanowires were produced in ammonium fluoride, but there was no replacement at all etching stages. We've studied optical properties of the nanowires we got and proved that they don't differ much from nanowires obtained by the conventional method." Silicon nanowires, produced by metal-assisted etching, could be used for the creation of new photonic devices and silicon-based sensors. Kirill Gonchar says that nanowires are promising as sensory elements of optical sensors for different substances. This happens due to the increase of the Raman effect signal intensity, which is a "finger print" of a substance; it is also due to sensitivity to the presence of different gases, for instance, oxygen. Moreover, structures containing silicon nanowires could be used in antireflection coatings for solar cells. While ordinary silicon reflects about 30 percent of light in the visible range, silicon nanowires reflect about 2 percent. More information: Kirill A. Gonchar et al, Optical Properties of Silicon Nanowires Fabricated by Environment-Friendly Chemistry, Nanoscale Research Letters (2016). DOI: 10.1186/s11671-016-1568-5 Journal information: Nanoscale Research Letters The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter and its entry, descent and landing demonstrator module, Schiaparelli, approaching Mars. The separation is scheduled to occur on 16 October 2016, about seven months after launch. Schiaparelli is set to enter the martian atmosphere on 19 October, while TGO will enter orbit around Mars. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab Europe hopes to land a tiny craft on Mars Wednesday, a key step in its joint ExoMars project with Russia to search for life on the Red Planet. A factfile on the mission: What's in a name? ExoMars gets its name from "exobiology"the science of analysing the odds and likely nature of life on other planets. Schiaparelli, the ExoMars test lander, was named after a late 19th-century Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli, who had observed straight lines, which he called "canali", on Mars through a telescope. Many imagined these were vast networks of irrigation canals built by intelligent creaturesa notion that influenced H.G. Wells to write the early sci-fi classic, "The War of the Worlds," about Martians attacking Earth. Better telescopes in the 20th century killed off that legend. In numbers The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) spacecraft, which will analyse the Martian atmosphere, measures 3.5 metres by two metres by two metres (11.5 feet by 6.5 feet by 6.5 feet). It has solar wings spanning 17.5 metres, tip to tip. With the Schiaparelli lander on board, it travelled 496 million kilometres (308 million miles) to get to Mars. On Sunday, the TGO released Schiaparelli from a distance of one million km from the Red Planet's surface. The lander, 1.6m wide, will test entry and landing gear for a subsequent six-wheeled rover to be launched in 2020. Why? Scientists believe Mars once hosted liquid watera key ingredient for life as we know it. While the Martian surface is too dry, cold and radiation-blasted to sustain life today, this may have been a different story three and a half billion years ago when the Red Planet's climate was warmer and wetter. Science has long abandoned the hunt for little green men, though. Life, if any exists, is likely undergroundaway from harmful ultraviolet and cosmic raysand in the form of single-celled microbes. Primitive or not, it would be the first time humans ever observe life on a planet other than Earth. The mission will also seek to learn more about geological processes on Mars, and about the sand storms that change the face of the planet with their seasonal violence. How? TGO will taste Martian gases, looking specifically for methane. Methane is important because it may be a clue to lifeon Earth it is mostly produced by biological processes. Previous missions had already picked up traces of methane in Mars' atmosphere, but the TGO has much more sophisticated tools with which scientists hope to tell whether the gas is biological or geological in origin. Methane can, theoretically, also be created by underground volcanoes. The rover will drill into Mars to look for evidence of buried, extinct life, or even live microbial activity. Who? While diplomatic ties between Europe and Russia may be under strain, they collaborate closely on ExoMarsa shared project of Roscosmos and the European Space Agency (ESA). Europe has budgeted 1.3 billion euros ($1.4 billion) for the mission. America's NASA, which was due to contribute $1.4 billion, pulled out due to budget cuts in 2012, causing Europe to turn to Russia. Moscow agreed to provide launcher rockets in exchange for science instruments onboard the craft. The lander, Schiaparelli, is European, and the rover will be too. The platform housing the rover and its science lab will be Russian. SOURCE: European Space Agency (ESA), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) 2016 AFP The "Assemblyman Dan Stec" Facebook page is a free personal Facebook page Stec uses to promote both his legislative and campaign activities, said Nick Wilock, a Stec campaign spokesman. Stec, R-Queensbury, pays any expense to boost posts from his personal funds, not campaign funds, Wilock said. Robin Barkenhagen, the Green Party challenger to Stec, contacted The Post-Star Wednesday morning regarding Stec posting an Business Council of New York endorsement on the page. Barkenhagen questioned if any public funding was used for the page or to boost posts. Wilock said Assembly members are allowed to have an official Assembly Facebook page, but campaign posts must be kept separate. Stec finds it easier to have a dual purpose personal page, he said. No public funds can be used to boost Facebook posts, he said. Stec and Barkenhagen, a retail shop owner and musician from Glens Falls, are running in the 114th Assembly District. The Democratic Party did not field a candidate. Kathleen Moore reporter - Health care, Moreau, Queensbury, South Glens Falls Follow Kathleen Moore Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today I just wrote a story begging people to donate coats to the needy children of Washington County. But it got me thinking isnt there a better way? Every year, some 200-plus children receive a free coat through the program. But, as I well know now that I have a child, the coats last much longer than one season. The problem is that kids grow too fast to wear the coat again the next winter. So why not tell every family that they must return the coats each summer? Then Aroxy Cleaners can clean them, as it has volunteered to do for all donations, and the coat can be used again. Of course, after a few years the coat wont be usable. And some kids will accidentally rip their coat, or put it on a radiator and melt it. That happens. So a sensible rule would be that to get another coat, the family must return the childrens previous coats, regardless of condition. They just need to get credit for making the return. If families have trouble driving all that way, they could call EOC, which runs the program, and set up a meeting place. EOC could pick up all the Whitehall coats in one fell swoop by sending one employee around one evening, for example. To make things easier, EOC could even write the phone number on the tag of each coat, but maybe thats going too far. I wouldnt want the children to be identified as poor. Right now, EOC runs out of childrens coats before the end of the four-hour event each year. So clearly the community cannot support the amount of need. That suggests that if they could recycle some coats, it would help fill that gap. A cynical coworker of mine said this idea will never be considered by the powers that be because we dont want to require anything of poor people nowadays. But I dont think its unreasonable to ask people to return the coat or the remnants of the coat so that more people can be helped. QUEENSBURY A convicted sex offender who a judge called a career criminal was sentenced Wednesday to up to life in state prison for sexually abusing a teenage girl. Shannon C. Dickinson was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison after Warren County Judge John Hall determined his 27-year criminal history justified a finding that he is a persistent felon. Dickinson, 43, of Fort Ann, was convicted during a trial in April of felony counts of sexual abuse and luring of a child and misdemeanor endangering the welfare of a child for a sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl he knew. Dickinson had nothing to say in court as Hall prepared to sentence him, but the judge did hear a victims impact statement from the girl who a drunken Dickinson sexually assaulted in a Queensbury motel room 15 months ago. In a statement read by Warren County crime victims specialist Manon Affinito, the teen wrote that Dickinson ruined her self esteem and caused her to lose the ability to trust. But she said she was glad she came forward so Dickinson could not abuse anyone else. Maybe that other person wouldnt have told and he would have gotten away with it to do it to somebody else, the statement read. The girls statement was read after Hall granted a request by Warren County Assistant District Attorney Emilee Davenport to find Dickinson was a persistent felon who needed lifetime supervision if he is paroled from prison. The wheelchair-bound paraplegic has three prior felony convictions and was on federal parole at the time of his July 2015 arrest in the sexual assault case. Davenport said his convictions ran the gamut, his record showing prior offenses against children and monetary crimes, but all of them involving people he victimized. His prior felonies included grand larceny, theft of public money and criminal mischief. There were only three years out of the past 25 when he did not have contact with the criminal justice system, and Davenport said he amassed hundreds of victims during his lifetime. He is simply incapable of leading a law-abiding life, she said. We have to protect society. In addition to the felonies, he has a criminal history that includes 16 arrests and nine misdemeanor convictions, including one case in which he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for offering two 14-year-old girls $200 for sex acts and threatening one if she did not cooperate. In arguing against a persistent felon finding, defense lawyer Joseph Brennan pointed out to Hall that Dickinson had no prior violent felonies, that he was acquitted of the weightiest charges at trial and that he shouldnt be punished for exercising his right to a trial when the plea offer before trial included an 18-year prison term. Hall, though, found that Dickinsons history warranted persistent felon treatment, a statute that is rarely invoked. He appears to be a career criminal, Hall said. A defendant convicted of a third felony, when having served two prior prison sentences, is eligible for sentencing as a persistent felon. As a persistent felon, Dickinson faced a minimum of 15 to life and a maximum of 25 to life. He will have to serve 15 years before becoming eligible for parole, but could spend the rest of his life in prison and would be on parole the rest of his life if released. Brennan said later Wednesday that it had not been determined whether an appeal would be filed. Appeals, though, are generally standard when a person is convicted of a felony at trial. Former state Supreme Court Justice Thomas Mercure received the Warren County Bar Associations prestigious Charles Evans Hughes Award on Saturday for his decades of contributions to the practice of law. Mercure is one of only three lawyers to receive the award, which is the Bar Associations top honor. The late Richard Bartlett received it in 2002 and Lawrence Corbett received it in 2004. Former state Supreme Court Justice David Krogmann was master of ceremonies during a presentation Saturday at The Hyde Collection. Legal luminaries from around the state attended, including Corbett and a partner in the New York City law firm that Hughes helped found decades ago. Krogmann said the Bar Association decided that Mercures long and distinguished career, which included stints as Washington County District Attorney, county judge, Supreme Court justice, Appellate Division justice and Court of Appeals nominee, warranted the award. Mercure retired in 2014, and took a part-time position with Albany law firm Carter Conboy. The Hudson Falls resident is the recipient of numerous professional recognitions and honors, including the Unified Court Systems Lifetime Achievement Award and the Capital District Trial Lawyers Association Edward S. Conway Judicial Excellence Award. EASTON A 45-year-old Argyle man died Tuesday morning during an industrial accident at Fort Miller Fab3 Corp.s facility in Easton. The Washington County Sheriffs Office and U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration were investigating the death at the Wilbur Avenue plant, which is a subsidiary of Fort Miller Group and fabricates metal products for industrial uses. Easton-Greenwich EMS was sent to the plant at 8:54 a.m. Washington County Sheriffs Office identified the man as Daniel J. Ingram. An autopsy found the cause of death to be blunt force trauma to the chest and abdomen. The investigation is continuing. Sheriff's Senior Investigator Tony LeClaire said the man was hit by a large, several-thousand-pound piece of metal equipment similar to a large cabinet that fell on top of him as it was being worked on. Something happened and it shifted and fell on top of him, LeClaire said. Seven employees there were able to lift it off him. The man was taken to Saratoga Hospital, where he was pronounced dead later Tuesday. The Sheriffs Office was notified of the fatality by the Saratoga County Coroners Office Tuesday afternoon and an investigation was ongoing, LeClaire said. Sheriffs officers were conducting additional interviews Wednesday to try to determine how the accident happened, he said. Sheriff Jeff Murphy said more details will be released as they become available. A call to the group was not returned Wednesday, a woman who fielded a phone call saying that she did not anticipate there would be any comment by the corporation. A call to OSHAs office in Albany was referred to agency spokesman James Lally, who confirmed that an investigation was ongoing but said OSHA had no comment on the matter as of Wednesday. Fort Miller Group opened the Fab3 Corp plant in Greenwich in 2013 to move operations from a plant in Saratoga Springs. The plant makes dump truck bodies, salt-and-sand spreaders and leaf loaders, according to its website. Two local labor leaders endorsed Democratic congressional candidate Mike Derrick on Wednesday. We look for leadership to promote strong unions, apprenticeship programs, local jobs for local people and, the most important thing, safe job sites, said Nelson Charron, marketing representative for United Association of Plumbing and Pipefitting Local 773. Kevin Potter, field representative for Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers Local 2, also endorsed Derrick. Both said they were endorsing Derrick as individuals, not formally on behalf of their respective unions. This district was built by organized labor, Derrick said. Organized labor is part of of our fabric. I am really pleased to hear Mike Derrick in this campaign to hear his voice resounding with fairness and justice to workers, said Rep. Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam, who joined Derrick at the press conference at the Local 773 training center in Queensbury. Both unions national organizations have contributed to Derricks campaign. United Association has contributed $10,000 and Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers has contributed $5,000. Derrick, a retired Army colonel from Peru, in Clinton County, is running in the 21st Congressional District against U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Willsboro, and Green Party candidate Matt Funiciello, a bread company owner and political activist from Hudson Falls. Local campaigning The Warren County Green Party announced that Robin Laverne Wilson, the Green Party challenger to U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., will speak at the partys monthly potluck dinner at 6 p.m. Sunday at Rock Hill Bakehouse Cafe on Exchange Street in Glens Falls. The dinner is open to the public free of charge. Bring a dish to pass. McHugh praises Stefanik Former U.S. Secretary of the Army John McHugh, a former congressman, on Oct. 13 issued a statement regarding his support for re-election of U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Willsboro. Having appeared before Congresswoman Stefaniks Armed Services Committee in my role as secretary of the Army, I was continuously impressed with her command of the issues and dedication to the men and women of the United States military, said McHugh, a Republican who previously represented the Watertown and Plattsburgh areas in Congress.Her tireless advocacy for Fort Drum, farmers and a better economy for our region convinced me to financially support her re-election for Congress.Stefanik is running for re-election in the 21st Congressional District against Democrat Mike Derrick, a retired Army colonel from Peru, in Clinton County, and Green Party candidate Matt Funiciello, a bread company owner and political activist from Hudson Falls. Barkenhagen endorsed State Assemblyman Phil Steck, D-Loudonville, on Tuesday endorsed Green Party candidate Robin Barkenhagen, who is challenging Assemblyman Dan Stec, R-Queensbury, in the 114th Assembly District. The Green Party is making an important contribution to American political life, Steck, the Democrat, said in a press release. Steck said the Green Party is raising awareness of global warming. The fossil fuel economy has failed to move the economy of the North Country forward, Steck said. The Green economy can. Thats why I endorse Robin Barkenhagen for Assembly. Barkenhagen is a retail shop owner and musician from Glens Falls. Celebrating 1916 This is the latest is a series of posts about the 1916 presidential election between Democratic incumbent Woodrow Wilson and Republican challenger Charles Evans Hughes, a Glens Falls native.The Associated Press set two groundbreaking precedents in 1916, according to a history summary on AP.org. It was the first time the Associated Press transmitted play-by-play reports to member newspapers from the World Series played that year between the Brooklyn Nationals and Boston Red Sox. And it was the first year the Associated Press collaborated with member newspapers to compile national precinct-by-precinct and county-by-county presidential election results. The Associated Press declared Wilson winner of the close election two days after Election Day. According to the Daily Graphic Newspaper a letter they cited says the procedure the GES used in interdicting Joseph Connel were flawed. The letter which was dated October 17, 2016 and signed by the Board Chairman Rev. Fr. John Manso Hamilton was addressed to the Director General of the GES, According to the letter an emergency meeting was held with the Headmaster and the accountant where they realised the process that led to Connels interdiction was flawed. It says flaws were detected in the following; Procedure for the interdiction Date and time of investigation Date of the interdiction letter Breach of Natural Justice The Regional Director of Education not attending the emergency meeting on the subject but rather choosing to solely nominate someone to represent the Board of Governors in an investigative committee. the letter concluded. READ ALSO:Teacher trainee allowance still scrapped The headmaster of St. Augustine College in the Central Region has been interdicted for charging unapproved fees, a deputy education minister, Alex Kyeremeh has confirmed. Minister of the Interior, Prosper Bani was going to assess and beef up the level of security in Tamale and its environs ahead of the 2016 General Elections. I was terrified: Ive always, admittedly, wrongly stereotyped Tamale as being chaotic - associating it with conflict rooted in land and chieftaincy issues. The chronic news of negativity that always streamed from there helped grow this perception. But how wrong I would be proved to be! I was anxious, too. I had no idea what to expect to see, or what itd feel like, and this suspense weighed on my thought process in the days of anticipation. And oh, the knowledge that we would be going via air got me so excited: it was going to be a first for me, and so you can imagine! At about 5.30 am on Monday 10th October, I was already at the Kotoka International Airport, all sharp and punctual, waiting for the rest of the entourage to come in. I was asked by the protocol officer to start with the check-in since they were still on their way. I stood in a queue of about 10 people and waited patiently for my turn. When all was done, we were directed to another room where I sat together with about 30 more people waiting to board the flight. It was going to go down, finally. The time had come! I was on board. After the usual prompts and instructions, it was time for the flight to take off. As I mentioned earlier, it was my debut air experience so the adrenaline level was just out the roof. Thoughts were just flitting about in my head. I kept quizzing myself many times: Could what people had told me earlier about airplanes be true? Would I feel dizzy? Would I throw up? Would I scream? Being up in the skies felt wonderful at the beginning till I began to panic when the plane started making sudden movements, going through what felt like potholes in the clouds! Yeah, very funny - I know: turbulence! But of course, I didnt know that then, and you werent in my shoes too; in fact, Im sure youd have done worse. We finally and by Gods grace landed in Tamale around 7.30am and the first thing that caught my attention was a female nurse (judging by her uniform) in her early 30s who had a little girl in front of her and rode a motor bike. I watched in awe at its rarity, but little did I know there were more of such sights in Tamale! Women on motorbikes, owning the ride like nobodys business. In about five minutes, I counted about 30 of such bosswomen and the confidence with which they rode with was just inspiring. I remember wishing I could get out of the car and just stand by the road to observe it all. You hardly see a woman riding a motorbike in Accra. This is very normal here, the driver who had picked us up from the airport explained to me. At about 12pm, we started work. The entourage was set, consisting of the Minister of Interior, the Inspector General of Police, Director of Prisons, P.R.O of the Ministry, Protocol officer and five reporters from Accra - including myself. The first point of call on our itinerary was at the residence of the Northern Region Minister, Abdallah Abubakar. This was naturally the first step since we were in his Region and had to pay a courtesy call. He has a spacious office on the third floor of a storey building, part of two apartments, with the first housing his two secretaries, one of whom directed us to the second, which is his main office. We were received pleasantly. During the meeting, the Interior Minister gave his reasons for traveling the North and in response Abdallah Abubakar told him, for now, there are no serious issues as the police and other security heads are putting all measures needed in place as part of preparations for the election. He assured of a prevalence of peace before, during and after the election in the Northern region, which as you can imagine came as good, calming news for everyone on the entourage. This was especially reassuring because we had earlier felt a sense of collective terror upon being told of 81 flashpoints in the North, which is the highest ever recorded in all of Ghanas 10 regions. Flashpoints are areas prone to electoral violence. From there we headed straight to the office of the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) regional secretariat. The Interior Minister asked how they are faring and in response learnt that disasters which are common in the region are rains, conflicts, droughts, river and road accidents. They talked of working closely with their collaborators, who are members of the Northern Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, to play a role in supporting and managing disasters in the region. They however raised the issue of internet connectivity, citing it as a major challenge in the execution of their duties, handicapping their ability to send in important reports and reducing them to the outmoded dependence on paper. The police were the next to be visited. We were received by the Regional Commander, DCOP Ken Yeboah, who reiterated his commitment to safeguarding peace in the region, elections or not. He also spoke of how calm the region had been recently, and how the Military have helped the police out greatly to address this because it looks like the people are not afraid of the police but rather the rains and the military. In response the IGP assured them of helping the region with more policemen if need be. On day two of the tour we started our visit at the Tamale prisons. The minister first inspected the parade then we moved to the office of the commander who narrated the happenings and how many inmates were inside the yard. After the briefing, we went into the main yard where the minister started with some inspections of their kitchen, remand cells and we were received at a durbar organized by the inmates, where a musician, in his 50s limped to his post, watched on by the 460 other inmates in the yard of the prison. In the heat of the North, the man used music to directly appeal on behalf of his fellow prisoners who have served more than 30 years. And his appeal came moments after one of the convicts was carried on the shoulder of another into the yard, to take part in the durbar. The musician welcomed the Minister and other security heads to the durbar and through a melodious tune asked for mercy for his colleagues. He was cheered on by his fellow prisoners as the Minister with his entourage sat down quietly to listen to the lyrics sang in the style of ace reggae musician Shasha Marley. "We know we have wronged society that is why we are serving in prison, he sung. The appeal didn't just end with the Minister but was extended to president John Dramani Mahama and his government to come to their aide. "Please tell John Dramani Mahama to temper mercy with justice, please tell government that we won't steal, rape, murder, defile again. The yard was silent as the Minister's entourage quietly listened to the lyrics as four old men between the ages of 70 to 80, suspected to be the target of the music, sat on the front row right in front of the dignitaries. In response the minister assured them that the government is not interested in keeping anybody there and also urged them to be prayerful, law abiding and to exhibit good conduct in order to benefit from government's' periodic amnesty when the time is due. We left the prisons in a very sad mood, honestly, that is not a place you should even wish for your enemies, it was such an emotional moment. One thing which really shocked me was a young woman who had delivered there whilst serving a jail term of one year, what a beautiful baby girl, you couldn't help but feel extremely sorry for both mother and baby. At this point, I had tears filled up in my eyes. I know I'm a journalist but this I saw, I'm sure you will cry as well. The catholic bishops conference had began that day so the entourage proceeded there. Present were the Electoral Commission chairperson, Charlotte Osei, IGP, Minister of Interior and some Bishops. The meeting was held behind close doors but after that the media was briefed on some happenings which the major discussion was about the EC and the disqualification of some political parties. The Catholic Bishops lauded it and entreated people to respect that decision. On Wednesday, 12th October 2016, it was time for me to say goodbye to Tamale. I was leaving the good food, the serene atmosphere, the precedence we were given and the comfortable bed I laid on at my stay in the hotel. The entertaining episode is titled "Clash Of The Muendas." Tee is under a lot of pressure and stress from work. He is a ticking bomb, irked about Dede's recent laziness in the home. He finally explodes and Dede sees a side of him she has never seen. Tee gets home from work and finds the house untidy. He also discovers that Dede didn't take his suit to the dry cleaner. As if these are not enough to upset him, a busy Dede says there's no dinner for him as she has been busy with work all day. An angry and frustrated Tee gets into an argument with Dede. He yells and says some hurtful things to her. Following the heated argument, Tee decides to visit his mum in Ibadan, while Dede invites her father over to the house. ALSO READ: undefined Dede's father advices her not to take her marriage with Tee for granted. He also apologises on behalf of him and encourages his daughter to forgive him. Tee's mum advises him to love and care for his wife. "Remember you are her husband, lover , friend and companion, not her master," she says to him. Dede gets a cufflink for Tee with an apology note on the box. Tee gets back home from his trip and apologises to her. He also surprises her with a gift. ALSO: undefined"This is It" follows the first year journey of the young clueless newlyweds Dede and Tomide, how they adjust living together, dealing with friends and a little drama. Starring Kenyan actor Nick Mutuma (Tomide) and Nigerian actress, Dede (Chiagoziem Nwakanma), the first season focuses on the first six months of their marriage. ALSO READ: undefinedThe romantic comedy also stars Stan Nze, Bimbo Ademoye, Bukola Oladipupo, Teni Aladese and Chisom Ofor, with Olumide Oworu, Joyce Maina, Linda Osifo, Ben Touitou, Kunle Coker, Tosan ugbeye, Asaah Samuel among others. The Minerals Commission has handed them a quit order for them to stop gold mining in the main operating area within the concession of Anglogold Ashanti (AGA). But the demonstrators say they are not ready to move out of that area to a new place. Many of them in their anger vandalised the offices of some political parties including that of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) amidst chants of no galamsey, no votes. They subsequently moved to Tutuka in Obuasi where they vandalised the NDC office, then to NPP office near the Len Clay Stadium, Graphic Online reports. The demonstrators are said to have destroyed windows, TV decoders, billboards, plastic chairs and other properties. AGA has over the years had issues with the galamsey operators who are said to have been encroaching on the concession of the company. The miners, per the quit order, were to vacate the concession immediately or be forced out. Plans have been made in collaboration with the Movement Committee to relocate them. He made this known in an interview with Ovation Magazine. The interviewer asked him who he saw as his heroes. The statue of Gandhi was erected on June 14 this year at the recreational quadrangle of the University of Ghana; it was donated by India's president Pranab Mukherjee when he visited the campus. READ ALSO: Media in Ghana Since then there has been agitation from some lecturers, students, alumni and Ghanaians over the statue being on campus. They say Gandhi was racist towards Africans, and in a petition listed the examples of his racism through his writing. The online petition called for removal of the statue from the campus. Even though the University had promised to consider the demand of the petitioners, some unknown individuals suspected to be behind the Gandhi must fall campaign defaced the statue by removing the signature glasses of the statue. This was after several anomalies were identified with the bill. A new one has been laid but the process would have to restart before the House can consider the content of the Bill. George Loh, the Vice Chairperson on Parliament's Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, said he is hopeful that the new bill, with less amendments will get parliaments attention. Parliament began the consideration of the Bill which has been before the House since 2013. The Right to Information Coalition has often expressed disappointment in government for failing to ensure the passage of the Bill. READ ALSO: Right to Information Bill According to the Coalition, President Mahama has not demonstrated a strong commitment to the passage of the RTI Bill, despite his partys promises in their 2008 and 2012 manifestos. But President Mahama while speaking at UNESCOs International Programme for Development of Communication talks in France said the passage of the RTI Bill has suffered some setbacks because of lack of consensus. READ ALSO: RTI Passage The outspoken businessman, whose party was one of 12 parties disqualified from contesting the 2016 General Elections by the EC last week, was speaking on JOY FM's Super morning show. "If I have to tell you the truth, I don't trust the EC chair. She is not straight in doing their things," the 45-year old businessman said. "She thinks she is hard but she is setting a bad precedent." The EC last week said that the APC failed to get the required 432 registered voters to endorse the candidature of the 45-year-old, resulting in his disqualification, a claim he bitterly describes as a "big lie". Last week, fresh in the wake of the EC's announcement of qualified and disqualified candidates, Ayariga launched a scathing verbal attack on Charlotte Osei, something he later apologized for. He is however adamant that his frustration was justified. "She attacked my identity so I also attacked her integrity," he explained. Ayariga went on to rubbish claims that his controversial and often humorous comments have resulted in voter's not taking him serious as a possible President of Ghana. He was bullish about his competence and seriousness, saying he has made many strides to prove so: the opening 10 regional offices and 143 constituency offices, the procurement of 30 APC-branded pick-ups among other moves, all in one year. President Mahama said this at Jasikan in the Volta Region during his campaign tour of the Region. He said the region will be called Oti Region. "It is possible to create a new region out of the Volta Region," President Mahama told people at a rally in one of the areas that have been calling for the creation of the region. President Mahama asked the people in the areas that demanding the new region to vote massively for the NDC since he can only do this in his second term of office. He also argued that the creation must go through the Constitutional process, which he would begin only if he is retained. Chiefs in the eight District of the Northern Volta have since the era of former President Rawlings demanded the creation of a new region but to no avail. These areas are Krachi-West, Krachi-East, Krachi-Nchumuru, Nkwanta-North, Nkwanta-South, Kadjebi-Akan, Jasikan and Biakoye. Recently, the Paramount Chief of the Krachi Traditional Area, Nana Mprah Besemuna declared his support for the NDC manifesto to create five new regions and appealed to the President to consider Oti region as one of the new regions. At the climax of the Yam Festival in Krachi recently the Paramount Chief of the Krachi Traditional Area, Nana Mprah Besemuna reiterated their demand. "We the people of northern Volta started agitating for the creation of an Oti region out of the Volta region as early as the J.J Rawlings NDC administration. We renewed our demand again in the President Kufuor administration. He said the chiefs and electorates of the area have therefore pledged their support to the NDC because they stated they would create five more administrative regions in the country. According to Nana Akufo-Addo, he wonders why the President should make claims that all is well in Ghana, in the midst of rising cost of living and high unemployment levels. The President claims all is moving on smoothly in Ghana, the reason why he is seeking a renewal of his mandate in office. President Mahama, clearly, does not feel your pain and suffering. He is impervious to the hardships Ghanaians are going through on a daily basis, in their efforts to make ends meet. I doubt he is living in Ghana with us, because if he was, he wouldnt be making such comments. He urged Ghanaians not to lose hope as the NPP is coming into office to improve the living conditions of Ghanaians. We have an opportunity this year to rid our nation of the suffering and hardship the Ghanaian is going through under the leadership of President Mahama. When we vote in a competent government in December, I assure you that Ghana will be put on the path of progress and prosperity once again. That is the task before us in Ghana in this years election, he said. He added that the 1-District-1-Factory and 1-Village-1-Dam policies, the diversification of the countrys agriculture, the effective implementation of the Free SHS policy, the setting up of an Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP), among others are some of the policies that will improve the lives of Ghanaians. The tour of Ashanti, which will be his second tour of the region, will see Nana Akufo-Addo visiting a total of 11 constituencies, beginning from the Atwima Kwanwoma and Asawase constituencies. He will also visit constituencies like Bosome Freho, Oforikrom, Mampong, Adansi Asokwa, Kwadaso, amongst others. Nana Addo will move to the Volta Region after the completion of his 4-day tour of the Ashanti Region. The NPP presidential candidate, throughout his tour of the country, has consistently indicated that the policy initiatives he is offering to the people of Ghana ahead of this years elections are not promises, but solutions meant to address the myriad of problems confronting the Ghanaian people. According to Nana Akufo-Addo, Ghana, a country blessed with an abundance of human and natural resources, has been offered poor leadership over the last 8 years by President Mahama, the reason why there is an abundance of hardship and suffering in every part of the country. Confirming the development to pulse.com.gh the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Northern Regional Police Command ASP Ebenezer Tetteh said they invited him to hear his side of the story. He explained that they cannot take any further action without hearing from Bugri Naabu. READ ALSO: EIU predicts win for NPP Bugri Naabu at the campaign launch of the NPP in Savelugu Constituency said the party will use heavily built men in monitoring the upcoming elections. Meanwhile, the Ghana Police Service had earlier cautioned political parties who would use vigilante groups to be prepared to contend with the Counter Terrorist Unit of the Service. The EC, last week Monday, announced the disqualification of 12 aspirants for failing to meet the criteria for filing as president. The presidential nominees disqualified included flag bearer of the All Peoples Congress (APC), Hassan Ayariga; Dr Edward Mahama of the Peoples National Convention (PNC); Dr Agyenim Boateng of the United Front Party (UFP); and Kofi Akpaloo of the Independent Peoples Party (IPP); Kwabena Adjei of the Reformed Patriotic Democrats (RPD). The others were: Dr Henry Herbert Lartey of the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP); Mr Richard Nixon Tetteh (United Development Systems Party); Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings of the National Democratic Party (NDP); Thomas Ward-Brew of the Democratic Peoples Party (DPP); Alfred Kwame Asiedu Walker, an independent candidate, and Akua Donkor of the Ghana Freedom Party (GFP). Mr Akwasi Addae Odike of the United Progressive Partys nomination is on hold pending a court case. Many, including the PPP, NDP, and GCPP have filed suits against the EC for disqualifying them. Archbishop Palmer-Buckle believes that the law must be allowed to work as far as the back and forth between the EC and the disqualified nominees is concerned. Nigeria is placed ahead of South Africa and Egypt which are second and third respectively. In August, Nigeria was reported to have lost its position as Africas biggest economy to South Africa, following the recalculation of the countrys Gross Domestic Product (GDP). But the IMFs World Economic Outlook for October, puts Nigerias GDP at 415.08 billion Dollars, from 493.83 billion Dollars in 2015, while South Africas GDP was put at 280.36 billion Dollars, from 314.73 billion Dollars in 2015. According to the report, Egypts 2016 data is not available, but its 2015 size remained at 330.159 Dollars while that of Algeria, one of the largest economies on the continent, is put at 168.318 billion Dollars. The United States, China and Japan maintain their spots as the largest economies in the world, ahead of Germany, United Kingdom and France. According to a review in September, the current economic recession will outlast 2016, with a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contraction of 1.7 per cent. The IMF had predicted that Nigerias economy would grow away from a recession in 2017. The country last witnessed a recession, for less than a year, in 1991, and experienced a prolonged one that started in 1982 and lasted until 1984. Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected! Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected! Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected! According to a statement posted on the Facebook wall of the command, the arrest of the trio of Stanley Mgbiri, Blessing Mkpowu and Micheal Hope, by operatives of its Anti-Kidnapping Unit, came after they went to a bank to withdraw a ransom paid in by relatives of a victim. The statement reads in part: "Acting on a tip-off, the operatives were able to arrest Stanley Mgbiri, Mkpowu Blessing and Micheal Hope. The trio are responsible for the kidnap of a 9-year-old girl,, at Igbo Etche. They were arrested when they threatened to kidnap one They asked him to pay the sum of N3 million into a certain bank account. They s they did to a certain staff of NNPC, from whom they collected a ransom of N12m, and yet killed." Guardian reports that Anyalebechi, the General Overseer of Christ Glory International Gospel Center, Ikorodu, was arraigned before Justice Mohammed Idris on a two-count charge bordering on conspiracy to defraud and obtaining under false pretense. It was gathered that the accused had earlier been arraigned before Justice Babs Kuewumi of the same court on September 5, 2016, on the same charges when the court was on vacation and had to be re-arraigned to allow the charge to be reread to the accused for his plea to be properly taken. At the resumed hearing of the case, the prosecutor for SFU, CSP Effiong Asuquo, told the court that Anyalebechi had, between April 2014 and March 2015, allegedly conspired with some other persons now at large, to obtain the said sum from one Nestor Nwankwo of Zicozeen Nigeria Limited, under false pretence of buying a used ship, and sell same in parts or scraps on behalf of the company. The offenses according to the police are contrary to sections 8(a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences, Act, 2006, and punishable under section 1(1)(a)(3) of the same Act. When the charges were read to the GO, he pleaded not guilty and his counsel, George Ibekwe, informed the court about his clients earlier bail application. Ibekwe also informed the court that the affidavit in support of the bail application was deposed to by the wife to the accused person, Ada Chris Anyalebechi, and urged the court to grant the bail application. Granting the request's defendant, Justice Idris granted bail to Anyalebechi in the sum of N10 million with two sureties in the like sum. This happened at Falgore Forest in Doguwa Local Government Area where twelve kidnapped persons were rescued. Rabiu Yusuf, the state Commissioner of Police confirmed the arrest in a statement released to the press on Wednesday, October 19, 2016. He said, A fierce gun duel for almost one hour ensued at the first and second gates before the main camp was penetrated. Those arrested during the operation include, Bello Bello Shano, Debo Ibrahim, Lawal Shuaibu, Adamu Abubakar and Nura Salisu of Dariya Shere village. Others include, Zubairu Muaazu of Daurawa village, Umar Bello of Kekenta village all in Doguwa Local Government Area,Ibrahim Bashir S/Kaura Village, Adamu Gainaku,Abdulrasak Isyaku of Gidan Iya, Ruga-Ruga village from Tunduwada Local Government Area and Maharazu Yahaya. While some escaped into the thick forest with bullet wounds, during the mop-up operation, one Bello Salleh and Mohammed Sani all of Rafin Kura village in Dogowua LGA, were kidnapped on the very date were rescued." ALSO READ: Kidnappers arrested in Port Harcourt while withdrawing ransom from bank The police commissioner also listed the names of the victims rescued from the keep of the kidnappers, stating that they went through a post-traumatic counseling and medical care. Ten other victims who were taken hostage at the forest including women were also rescued , they are: all of Doguwa Local Government Area. Others are of Karasa village, , and . I wish to further inform you that all the victims underwent post-trauma counseling and medical examination, today, (Wednesday), they will be formally handed over to their respective families. They were nabbed at the early hours of Monday, October 17, 2016 at CMS bus stop in Lagos. Paraded before newsmen, the suspects, Jelili Abodunrin, 32, Tunde Alaba, 29, Taofeek Oyedele, 28, Saheed Ismail, 27, Sunday Obasanmi, 27, and Deji Afolorunso, 26, revealed that they have been residing under the bridge for a period of four years. According to the Daily Post News, they specialize in vandalizing and stealing light-up cable wires, street lamps and light poles recently installed by the Lagos State Government. SP Dolapo Badmos, the Police Public Relations Officer, confirmed that the suspects were arrested during a patrol by RRS agents. They were caught in the act of pulling down street lamps, cables and poles. Alex is a very loving man but he is also and though he has not hit me before, I still feel unsafe anytime he flares into a temper. I was just closing from work when his younger brother called me to come to their house, saying that Alex was fighting their sister. Worried about what could have happened, I got into my car and sped to their house and luckily, there was light traffic. When I got into their compound, I saw a crowd of neighbours and some of his friends. When I managed to get into the house, I saw his mother and sister with bruised and bloodied faces. Alex was nowhere to be found but his brother told me his friends had taken him to his room. I went to the room and on opening the door, I saw him seated on the bed, still fuming in anger. I asked him what the matter was but he told me to get out of his room or he would do to me what he did to 'those witches'. I was shocked at his words and asked his friends what happened but no one answered me, so I went to meet the mother and sister and they told me that my fiance beat them up just because they prepared his meal late when he came back from work. As I was trying to console them, Alex barged into the sitting room and gave his sister a kick to the ribs and when his mother rose to stop him, he pushed her real hard she fell to the floor. He was screaming that he would kill them before they killed him, calling them all sorts of names. I tried to hold him but he brushed me aside and told me to leave or he would beat me too. I was aghast at his behaviour and even when I got home, I still baffled at what Alex did. Though he has begged and pleaded with me to forgive him, I still find it difficult to come to terms with what he did. My friends say it is better I call off the relationship so I would not regret if we eventually get married. What do you think? Chika." Prof. Pai Obanya, a resource person at an advocacy meeting, tagged Scaling up on mass communication training institutions, mainstreaming child rights report curriculum in Nigeria, gave the advice in Ibadan. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the advocacy meeting was organised by Lagos State Ministry of Information and Strategy in collaboration with UNICEF. Obanya, a Professor Emeritus and the developer of Universal Basic Education (UBE), faulted government posture on the implementation of the Child Rights Act, describing it as mere cosmetics. He attributed non-compliance on policies bordering on child rights to poor child-sensitive budgeting of government at all levels. It doesnt pay to just say you have a policy on something without specifically putting resources aside for it. It relates to taking into account what the declaration says about right to life, protection, health nutrition and self-actualisation. Nigeria has a problem of, first of all, not ratifying enough and when it ratifies, it doesnt really sensitise the populace to know what it is all about. And on the part of government, we have not fully implemented the international agreement we entered into on the childs right, he said. Obanla lamented that a child who had not got a chance of equal access to quality education was not likely to have equal access to quality living in later life. He said that Nigeria and many other African nations, except those in Southern Africa, South Africa itself, Mozambique, Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland, placed premium on childs right. According to the UNICEF Communication Officer, Mrs Blessing Ejiofor, the one-day event was designed to get more teachers and media practitioners involved in the promotion and protection of the childs rights. Ejiofor said that as a matter of profession, the inclusion of the child rights reportage into Mass Communication training institutions and mainstreaming it in their curriculum will help end abuse and violence against children. Mr Geoffrey Njoku, the UNICEF Communication Specialist, who spoke on the history of child rights reporting in Nigeria, noted that the training would lead to more communication training institutions teaching child rights reporting. Students that benefited from rights reporting training will be well equipped and promoting child rights as practising professionals. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the bill, which was passed into law, was aimed at allowing residents to have financial protection, physical access to quality and affordable healthcare services. The Chairman, House Committee on Health, Mr Silas Okunlola, while submitting the committee report, stated that the committee considered inputs and contributions of relevant stakeholders. Okunlola (APC-Iwajowa State Constituency) said that the law shall ensure equitable distribution of healthcare costs across different income groups and ensure high standard of healthcare services. He said the law stated every Health Maintenance Organisation, Insurance Company or Organisation to market, operate or administer health insurance scheme in the state must be registered and approved by the agency. The Speaker of the House, Mr Michael Adeyemo, said that the assembly had at its plenary on March 17 mandated the committee to scrutinise the bill and report back to it. Adeyemo commended the committee for doing a thorough job before the House unanimously passed the bill into law. Army spokesman, Colonel Sani Usman said in a statement on Tuesday, October 18 that the terrorists overpowered the soldiers, killing 13 of them. He said some soldiers are still missing following the attack which occurred on Monday, October 17. "In the process, 13 soldiers sustained injuries while some are still missing in action," Usman said. According to him, the attack has necessitated troops to temporarily withdraw from Ganshigar, a border area with Niger Republic. ALSO READ: Troops kill 16 terrorists in counter-attack, weapons recovered He added that soldiers injured in the attack have been evacuated and are being treated, as efforts have been intensified to find the missing soldiers. However, Boko Haram had on Monday claimed responsibility for the attack, claiming it killed 20 soldiers. The group, using the name Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), said in a statement that it "stormed a joint position of the armies of Nigeria and Niger" in the town of Ghashghar. During Tuesday's plenary, the upper chamber noted that a large number of people asides the schoolgirls are still being held hostage by the terror group. Speaking on the matter, Senate Leader, Ali Ndume, said at least 1,000 persons are still in Boko Haram captivity. He said: "The 219 girls are not the only girls that were abducted. Their (exact) number is not known but there are more than 1,000 of them, I can bet on that. Some of them have gone unnoticed; some of them are missing; some of them, only God knows where they are and in what condition they have found themselves. "I want to thank you on behalf of Chibok people and to beg you to continue to stand by them because these girls and the people of Borno and the North-East, generally, need Nigerians more than ever before." Supporting Ndume's motion, Senator Abiodun Olujimi from Ekiti-South, calls on all stakeholders to focus on securing the release of all abductees. She said: "Like the Senate Leader said, there are so many other girls who have gone unnoticed and are still there in Sambisa and elsewhere. We believe that they should not be left to their fates. And it is not only the Chibok girls that are most important but all Nigerians that have been captured by the Boko Haram. "The time has come for the government to also come out and tell us about what is going on and how far we have gone with Boko Haram. Every day we hear we have conquered and the next day there is a bomb blast; there is daily escalation. We need to know where we are. Nigerians need information." Olujimi further noted that "we need to know that those girls are not going back into captivity because they are going back to Chibok. If Chibok is still not safe, it is something we also need to think about." She praised the armed forces, Red Cross, and the Swiss government for their role in negotiating the release of the girls. ALSO READ: Over 100 girls want to stay with Boko Haram Community Leader Olujimi, however, urged men to support women in achieving their goals and aspirations, but not only in the kitchen and the "other room," as stated by President Muhammadu Buhari. In response to his wife's recent criticism of his government, the President had said the First Lady only belongs to his "kitchen, the sitting room and the other room." The Senator said: "We pray that as we stand, as girls, not only in the kitchen but in the Senate and every important place, the men will support us to achieve our goals and be able to aspire to be whatever we want to be in Nigeria." However, another Senator, Binta Garba from Adamawa-North, proudly owned her place in the kitchen. The Presidency has given two aircraft to the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) leaving nine remaining in the fleet. However, according to Ozekhome nine aircraft are still too many to be maintained by the country in light of the current economic crisis. Of the 11 aircraft in the presidential fleet, the President just gave two to the Nigerian Air force; there are still nine more. Let them sell about six more; we dont need nine presidential jets, he told Punch during an event in Osun State. The British Prime Minister flies Virgin Atlantic whenever he is travelling; President Obama flies Airforce 1; we have not heard of Airforce 2. They should sell six more and plough the money into the economy, which in the doldrums," he added. ALSO READ:How FG spent N5bn on presidential fleet in 15 months He made this known on Tuesday in Abuja at the opening of a four-day conference on the Role of the Legislature in the Fight Against Corruption in Nigeria. Dogara, who was represented by the Chairman, House Committee on Financial Crimes, Rep. Kayode Oladele, said that the difference between the present government and its predecessors was the political will to fight corruption. According to him, it is not because of what we are saying but what we are doing. And, as the saying goes, he who comes to equity must come with clean hands. It must be noted that the fight against corruption is not being waged by only one arm. The National Assembly, therefore, has decided to key into the anti-corruption drive of the present administration. Also speaking, Head of Cooperation of the European Union in Nigeria, Mr Kurt Cornelius, said that corruption constituted one of the most important challenges that confronted developing nations like Nigeria. According to him, EU is working hard in collaboration with various arms of government to help Nigeria in achieving its drive to eradicate it. Similarly, Mr Dennis Guaer, French Ambassador to Nigeria, gave a suggestive application of the French strategy in eliminating political and financial corruption. He said that while it was not easy for an ambassador to comment on such a touchy subject as corruption, nobody was immune to its adverse effects. Guaer said: It is also of note that Nigeria with its enormous oil revenue over the years has not been able to build viable infrastructure due to corruption by people in government. It should be seen as a symptom of a greater illness in a society. So the launch of Change Begins with Me initiative should be seen as a veritable vehicle for fighting corruption. A situation where people are celebrated without their sources of income being scrutinised breeds tendencies for corrupt behaviour in the society. The society must send a clear message by building strong institutions that work to discourage crime and its tendencies. He gave an insight into how France was able to tackle political corruption by taking charge of funding of political parties and creating a ceiling for electioneering spending. In France, after many abuses, parliament introduced certain legislations. Parties are now funded by the state. Individual candidates are no longer allowed to source funds for campaign independent of their parties and no one candidate can spend beyond the equivalent of N2.5 million to campaign, Guaer added. The Acting Chairman of the commission, Mr Ibrahim Magu, made the request at the national anti-corruption conference organised by the Presidential Advisory Committee against Corruption (PACAC) and the National Assembly in Abuja. The conference which began Tuesday will end Wednesday. Magu said the review will be in line with international best practices. In some jurisdictions like the UK, proceeds of crime are further used to strengthen the agency, he said. In EFCC, we have been struggling for years to build our headquarters and when I think of the billions of naira we recover, I can see what would have happened if we are allowed to apply a percentage of this recovery into our operations. The EFCC boss also advocated the amendment of the countrys anti-graft laws to place the burden of proof on the accused in corruption cases. One the issues that concerns us in the EFCC is that of non-conviction based recovery. It is of great concern to us that the burden is on us to prove in court that this is a proceed of crime. But in other climes the accused has to prove that the property he has, actually represents the fruit of his labour. There is the need for the Act to make a provision for an application of the proceeds of crime into recapitalising the anti graft agencies. Magu was represented at the event by Mr David Tukura, the Deputy Director of Planning, Policy and Statistics of the commission. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, who opened the conference, called for more support from Nigerians for the Buhari administrations efforts at recovering stolen funds from looters of the nations treasury. Osinbajo lamented the state of corruption in Nigeria. ALSO READ: EFCC links 17 bank accounts to Fani-Kayode, wife He said the country stands the risk of remaining underdeveloped if nothing is done to stem the tide of corruption. The President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, said the anti-corruption war being waged by the government should not be a tool for political witch-hunt. In order to succeed this time, we cannot afford to make the fight against corruption a simple matter. We cannot afford to make it a chase in the dark. It must be rooted in effective strategy and demonstrative plan. Saraki emphasised the need for the anti-corruption campaign to be a collective responsibility of Nigerians to rid the country of impunity and hardship. The elder statesmen, under the aegis of the Southern Nigeria Peoples Assembly, made their position known in a communique they issued at the end of their two-day meeting on the state of the nation in Umuahia on Tuesday. The group demanded that the anti-corruption fight should be total and not selective, while discouraging the use of plea bargain to settle corruption charges. A former Minister in the First Republic, Chief Uwazulike Amechi, who was the Chairman of the session of the expanded Council of Elders and Management Committee of the group, read the 10-point communique. Amechi urged President Muhammadu Buhari to begin the implementation of the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference without further delay. He also charged the Federal Government to use negotiations rather than force in dealing with the Niger Delta agitators and the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra in order to restore peace in the area. He urged the president to order the immediate release of the leader of the Independent People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, and other prisoners of conscience in obedience to the orders of the court. The group kicked against the bill on grazing reserves in the country, and urged the National Assembly to reject its passage. Amechi condemned the activities of suspected herdsmen, especially the wanton destruction of lives and property in different parts of the country, and called on security agencies to deal decisively with the menace. He also urged the southern state governors to follow the Ekiti model in dealing with the menace, without rancour. The chairman of the session called on the president to take urgent steps to redress the lopsidedness in the distribution of projects and Federal Governments appointments to ensure equity, justice and fairness. He opposed the Federal Governments proposal to sale the national assets and advocated more pragmatic economic policies to tackle the current economic recession in the country. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN ) reports that the communique was signed by Amechi along with Chief Edwin Clark and Bishop Emmanuel Gbonigi (represented by Sen. Fermi Okurounmu), as co-chairmen of the session and leaders of the South South and South West delegations to the meeting, respectively. This followed a motion moved by the Deputy Speaker, Mr Yusuf Gagdi, on Wednesday during plenary, under matter of urgent public importance. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 7th Assembly in the state had passed a law banning the operation of commercial motorcyclists within the Jos-Bukuru area. NAN also reports that the use of motorcycles for transportation was banned so to reduce crime within Jos and environs. Gagdi, however, said that the law was being flouted as the commercial motorcycle operators had been operating in the metropolis without let or hindrance. The law banning the operations of Okada riders in the Jos metropolis has been relegated to the background. The security agencies saddled with the task of enforcing the law to the fullest have not lived up to expectation. And because this borders on the lives of our people, we as their representatives must speak out. Petty crimes are on the increase and a lot of things are not going right, he said. On his part, member representing Jos East constituency, Mr Joshua Madaki, called for the establishment of a Civilian Task Force to handle the total eradication of commercial motorcycle operation in Jos. According to him, this would create employment opportunities and also generate revenue for government. Security agencies have compromised in enforcing this law, and government should, therefore, establish a civilian task force to handle this. It has worked in other states, it will also work here. Jobs will be created and revenue will be generated for the state, he said The operation, which was conducted by the Nigerian Navy Ship Pathfinder in Port Harcourt saw the security personnel impounding the illegally refined diesel loaded in two vessels and one wooden badge. Cdr. Raphael Ekuma, the NNS Pathfinder Base Operation Officer, paraded the four suspects before newsmen in Onne, Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers. The two vesselsMV Omiete VI and MV Wood Pecker and a wooden barge had suspected stolen diesel worth N36.68 million. Ekuma said the arrest was part of ongoing clampdown on oil theft, piracy and pipeline vandalism in Rivers and its environs. In continuation of our clampdown on oil thieves and illegal oil bunkers, troops of NNS Pathfinder impounded two vessels MV Omiete VI, MV Wooden Pecker and a wooden barge with combined 253,000 litres of stolen diesel. On Oct. 14, we received information on activities of illegal bunkering activities at Wogono in Okirika LGA and immediately deployed our gunboats to the area. Upon arrival, our gunboats discovered that MV Omiete was already loaded with 100,000 litres of diesel and another wooden barge alongside it had 120,000 litres in it. Three suspects were arrested in connection with the vessel and barge in the course of the operation, he said. Ekuma added that on Monday, troops on patrol seized a vessel, MV Wood Pecker, at Abonema wharf laden with 33,000 litres of illegally refined product believed to be diesel. He said that crew members on board the vessel on sighting naval patrol team jumped inside the sea and escaped arrest. But luck ran out of one of them who is currently in our custody and undergoing interrogation he said. Ekuma said the four suspects would be handed over to relevant government agencies for further investigation and prosecution. Also speaking, Commodore Obi Egbuchulam, the Commander of NNS Pathfinder, said the Naval headquarters gave directives to end illegal bunkering in the shortest possible time. He said the clampdown was in line with the directive and assured that the fight would be won. Tambuwal initiated the Right to Education Bill 2016 to protect the right to education for children between six and 18 years in the state - the first if its kind in Nigeria. "Sokoto will be the first state in Nigeria to provide right to education, thereby bringing it in comformity with status of fundamental objective and directive principle of state policy under chapter 2 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999," Sokoto state Commissioner of Justice Commissioner, Suleiman Usman, told news men. ALSO READ: Tambuwal approves financial autonomy to Judiciary According to a report by TheCable, the Senate Committee led by Senator David Umaru will investigate the purported arrest of the six judges by the Department of State Security. Umaru said: By virtue of the 1999 Constitution as amended and Order 96, Rule 37 of our Rules, the powers of this committee to oversight the Judiciary and its powers include judicial matters and judges. I am bringing this to the attention of the Senate so that we can take the permission to enable us conduct proper oversight on this matter and invite the justices. This is to enable us to interact with them in order to conduct proper oversight as we are enjoined by the provision of our rules and the 1999 Constitution, he said. The Senate President, Bukola Saraki informed the committee that it was already empowered by the rules of the Senate to carry out its duties. ALSO READ: Saraki condemns DSS unlawful method of arresting Justices He said: You do not need to come to us; you have your powers under the oversight and you should be able use the powers and do whatever you deem necessary. So, do your job in line with your powers. According to a report by Vanguard Newspaper, the late Saro-Wiwa Jr who served as a former adviser to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, died after a brief illness on Tuesday, October 18, 2016. Born in 1968, the late Saro-Wiwa was an international journalist and an author. Ex-President of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People, Ledum Mitee, reportedly said he is still in shock. Somebody just called me to tell me that he is dead, but I am still in shock and have not been able to confirm it, he said. Also, the Media Adviser to MOSOP, Mr. Bari-ara Kpalap, expressed shock over the news of Saro-Wiwa Jrs death. NAFDACs Ports Head in Enugu State, Mr John Okwori, said this at a news conference on Wednesday in Enugu on the seizure of fake labels of dry gin and other alcoholic drinks at the airport. Okwori said that the seized consignments included: fake sex enhancing devices; virginal capsules, blood giving sets, tonnes of fake labels of popular alcoholic and wine drinks, among others.He said that some of the fake and counterfeited consignments were impounded by officials of the agency with the combined efforts of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS). Okwori, a Deputy Director in NAFDAC, said that the bulk of the fake and counterfeit consignments originated from China and India. We tracked 11 large cartoons of fake Chelsea Dry gin labels which could be used to package gin worth N64.76 million. The agency got large number of fake labels of Amarula drinks also. Other consignments as well come into the country without approval from NAFDAC. They are fake and injurious to peoples health. Most of the owners of the seized consignments had abandoned their injurious goods, he said. Okwori, however, said that the agencys investigation was still ongoing on the consignments, adding that through investigation, the agency was able to track imported fake virginal capsules from Dubai. One Mr Ugochukwu Uguegbulu, the importer of the fake virginal capsules, was arrested last week and we had transferred him to our enforcement directorate in Lagos for further regulatory action, he said. The deputy director warned travellers and importers to abide by the agencys import and export guidelines. We are on strict directive that the relatively young Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, should not be allowed to be turned into a smuggling channel. Obanikoro admitted to the anti-graft agency that he handed over N2.3bn to Fayose in the run-up to the Ekiti Governorship election. The money, investigators have since established, was meant to aid the PDP in rigging the election in Fayoses favour. Fayose and Obanikoro were caught on tape barking rigging instructions into the ears of an Army Officer, just days before the elections. Fayose would go on to win that election by a landslide, sending the incumbenta genially sophisticated Kayode Fayemipacking. According to a Punch account of the development, Obanikoro told his interrogators that the money was transferred to Fayose on the orders of former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki, (retd.). Dasuki is still being held by the Nigerian authorities for alleged diversion of $2.1bn meant for the procurement of arms. EFCC sources have told Pulse how Obanikoro narrated that the money was transferred to Fayose in two tranches. One tranche of N1.3bn was flown to Akure airport in two chartered flights. Diamond Bank would later deliver the money to Fayose in Ekiti, in bullion vans. Abiodun Agbele, an associate of Fayose, took delivery of the money on the Governors behalf, according to Obanikoro. Investigators have also established that Sylva Mcnamara, a company run by Obanikoros sons, was used as front to launder N4.745bn. The money came from Dasukis now famous $2.1bn, investigators say. Dasuki was quite the Father Christmas around this period, it appears. This story further underscores the mindless looting that went on under former President Goodluck Jonathan. Fayose has a thing for releasing press statements every other hour. Hes however not uttered a word in anger since this story broke, some 12 hours ago. This is hoping he breaks his silence soon. Law enforcement sources have told Pulse in the past that Fayose has to thank the immunity clause in the constitution for why hes still walking the streets of Ekiti a free man. Well pick him up as soon as he hands over and Im sure he knows that, one EFCC operative told Pulse recently. For Obanikoro however, may the singing never stop. Nigerians deserve to know how they were looted dry. Saraki disclosed this at the opening of the National conference on the role of the Legislature in the Fight against Corruption, in Abuja on Tuesday. He said that if the fight against corruption must be won, then institutions charged with checkmating corruption must be strengthened to perform better. He said that institutions must act with integrity to sustain success against corruption and to prove to Nigerians that the anticorruption fight was treated seriously by the government. If we must make significant inroad against corruption, we must strive to protect our accountability institutions from the virus of political interference no matter how well meaning they may be They must be enabled to operate in an atmosphere of political neutrality, efficiency and fairness as envisaged under the constitution. This, in my view means that while these institutions work in collaborative form, there must be minimal intrusion in the operation decisions and working of our apex institutions like the EFCC, the ICPC and the Police Force History has shown that it is not enough to simply round people up forcefully and throw them in jail under the guise of a successful anti-corruption fight, he said. He, therefore, said that more should be done to prevent corruption to reduce the need to fight it after acts of corruption had been perpetrated. Perception is key in this fight. The anti-corruption drive cannot be undertaken as a media glitz. This is why governments across all levels must work to strengthen the capacity of our agencies to make informed decisions and be inclined towards good knowledge of the law, rigor and transparency in all their doing The more open and transparent the process, the less opportunity there will be for abuse of office, he said. He also said that a lot more could be achieved with greater civil engagements, adding that citizens must be carried along to sustain the fight He said that the fight should also get to the local levels with individuals denouncing corrupt individuals and those who normalise dishonesty, bribery and exploitation. This is why I urge sensitisation of our community leadership and the wider local communities to join the fight through the denouncement of corrupt individuals and those who normalise dishonesty, bribery and exploitation We should denounce those who live far and above their commensurate earnings. This must be incentivised by government paying workers a living wage." He said while the fight against corruption cannot be fought and won on the basis of prosecution of offenders alone, a greater effectiveness could be achieved by applying preventive measures across the public spectrum He called for adequate education, ethical reforms and use of technological support systems for better auditing and public procurement systems that help cover loopholes for corruption. He advocated use of electronic tenders to reduce the risk of corruption and increase the effectiveness of public procurements. Saraki also proposed an eight-point plan of action to achieve success in the ongoing anti-corruption crusade of the present administration. According to him, what must be done to succeed in the fight against corruption include ensuring transparency in government processes and procurements. He also advocated reduction in bureaucratic bottlenecks, education and technology adaptation, adoption and enforcement of sensible rules and reduction of discretions. Saraki gave support to the impartial application of sanctions while calling for capacity building and effective monitoring and oversight. We must ask ourselves, what did other nations who recorded success in the battle against corruption around the world do to achieve results? What do we need to do differently to achieve a better and different result? The fight against corruption must remain driven by an articulated and well delivered strategy. One that is robust, multifaceted and driven by leadership across all aspects of our political and social systems. It cannot be the fight of one man; rather the vigilance of every one of us in our various spheres of influence. Let me share some of my personal experiences with you to shed light on some of the strategies that I have utilised in the past. In the 7th Assembly, I remember personally leading the charge to expose the corrupt fuel subsidy arrangement that was in place. This led to the indictment of several individuals and companies who were exploiting the weak institutional structures in the design of the scheme to the detriment of millions of Nigerians, he said. He said that the motion that revealed the fuel subsidy corruption saved Nigeria N500 billion. ALSO READ: undefined Desmond took to his Instagram page to share a photo of the actor in the hospital with the caption below; When God blesses u, remember others, Prince James Uche Nollywood actor has been in hospital struggling to live for over one year now (kidney failure), my fellow artists, great people & friends pls support him, he needs dialysis, medical care & food to survive. Prince James Uche, WEMA bank PLC 0232151677 or Zenith bank plc 1001063788. ALSO READ: undefined In 2015, following the death of Nollywood actor, Muna Obiekwe, reports of Prince James Uche's state of health surfaced online. While the reports had stated that the actor was facing possible eviction, Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) claimed to have paid off his hospital bills and house rent. Pulse Nigeria had reached out to the actor, who undefined, and pleaded with Nigerians to help him. In a report by TheCable, Frank said the national chairman, isn't fit to unify the ruling party nor support the anti-corruption fight led by President Muhammadu Buhari. In his words: As far as I am concerned, he is not in control. Hes being controlled by some forces, he said. Speaking further, he said: But we cannot continue to have a national chairman that is being controlled by people. We need a national chairman that can pull us together. We need a national chairman that can unify this party. ALSO READ:APC youths call Chairman a liar The party, as at today, is not united; there is an internal crisis disturbing us. I dont think as a party we are in a better state to truly support the president in the fight against corruption, Frank said. Obanikoro, who was the minister of state for defence under the Goodluck Jonathan regime, revealed that he gave $5,377,000 in cash to Fayose for the June 2014 elections in Ekiti. However, in response, Fayose said that Obanikoro was brought back to the country by President Muhammadu Buhari in order to implicate him by all means. Fayose made the comments via a statement released by his media aide, Lere Olayinka. The statement reads: This project Fayose must be implicated at all cost will definitely not put food on the tables of Nigerians and for all I care, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and its collaborators can keep running from pillar to post while I keep delivering good governance to Ekiti and its people. We have gone pass this stage of media trial, EFCC should rather keep its gun powder dry, when we get to the bridge, we will cross it. They said more than this in the 2006 poultry scam blackmail, despite that, I am the governor today. Those who arranged the dramatic and compromised return of Senator Obanikoro to Nigeria obviously did so in continuation of their project Fayose must be implicated at all cost but I am not bothered because my election was legitimately funded. However, if this is why they are intimidating judges and the judiciary, it wont work as far as my own matter is concerned as no one can play God. As far as I am concerned, I am busy here in Ekiti attending to the welfare and well-being of my people. I wont be distracted. Since we are now in the era in which financial assistance from Nigerians to fund elections is being criminalized, the international community, especially those funding EFCC must insist that the commission probes the funding of APC elections before further funds are released to the commission. ALSO READ: I flew Obanikoro with huge bags of money to Akure - Pilot The allegation was made by Justice Okoro, one of the judges who was recently arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) on charges of fraud. Justice Okoros claim is an afterthought and diversionary. For a man of his standing and knowledge of the law, he should have known the legal implications of such a visit if it took place at all, Umana said via a statement released on Tuesday, October 18. He should have reported to the appropriate authorities immediately. This he didnt do. I did not visit the Judge. His story is a fiction. He should address himself to the facts of the case which is between him and the state and leave Umana out of it, he added. Okoro also accused Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi of attempted bribery. My Lord, I strongly believe that this my travail is not unconnected with the verbal report I made to you on 1st February, 2016 about the visit to my official residence by HE, Rotimi Amaechi, former Governor of Rivers State and now Minister of Transportation, Okoro said in his October 17 letter to the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) and Chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC), Justice Mahmud Mohammed. In that report, I told you My Lord, that Mr. Amaechi said that the President of Nigeria and the All Progressives Congress mandated him to inform me that they must win their election appeals in respect of Rivers State, Akwa Ibom State and Abia State at all costs. For Akwa Ibom State, he alleged that he sponsored Mr. Umana Umana, candidate of All Progressives Congress for that election and that if he lost Akwa Ibom appeal, he would have lost a fortune. Mr. Amaechi also said that he had already visited you and that you had agreed to make me a member of the panel that would hear the appeals. He further told me that Mr. Umana would be paying me millions of naira monthly if I co-operated with them. My response, as I told you on that date was that it does not lie within my power to grant his request and that I would do all within my power not to be in the panel for Akwa Ibom State. My Lord graciously left me out of the panel for Akwa Ibom State, he added. ALSO READ: Is Rotimi Amaechi fantastically corrupt - UK Mail According to Leadership newspaper, PDP governors have withdrawn from the reconciliation process leading to the cancellation of the inauguration of the party's reconciliation committee. The inauguration was scheduled to hold on Tuesday, October 18, at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja by 4:00pm. If inaugurated, the committee would have indicated a major move towards ending the crisis that has undermined the political might of the party and threatens its existence. The aggrieved factions - embattled national chairman Senator Ali Modu Sheriff's group and the Senator Ahmed Makarfi-led Caretaker Committee, had met last month and expressed commitment to end their feud. Both factions subsequently agreed to setup a reconciliation committee of 28 members, comprising 14 persons from both camps to straighten the peace process. But the proposed peace deal, as it appears, may be off the table. ALSO READ: Fresh reconciliation begins as Makarfi, Sheriff meet It was gathered that the Governors' withdrawal from the process was due to Sheriff's insistence on Jimoh Ibrahim as candidate in the Ondo governorship election as against Eyitayo Jegede, who emerged under the platform of Makarfis leadership. The Governors are also angry that Sheriff inaugurated a parallel party executive for Delta State, despite the existence of a substantive party executive in the state, report said. A party source was quoted as saying; "This was not our agreement. Look at what is happening in Delta State PDP, inaugurating parallel executive and look at what is happening in Ondo, the man is coming out with a different candidate for the state governorship election." PDP in a statement on Tuesday in Abuja, signed by its Head of Publicity Division, Chinwe Nnorom, for the National Publicity Secretary, described Saro-Wiwa Jr. as a rare gem. Ken Saro-Wiwa Jr., the son of late Ken Saro-Wiwa, was an author and a journalist, who passed on after a brief illness at the age of 47. Ken Saro-Wiwa Jr. is a rare gem that will be missed by all who knew him. His short life journey no doubt, recorded successes on many fronts, especially his contribution in journalism and literary work will not be forgotten in a hurry. The party recalled that Saro-Wiwa Jr. was a renowned writer, television producer, environmental activist, and winner of the right livelihood award and the Goldman Environmental Prize. ALSO READ: Late Ogoni activist's son dies at 48 He was appointed by the former Nigerian President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo in 2006 as his Special Assistant on Peace, Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation. And it doesn't matter if you arrive work on Thursday morning, feeling like you'll need a mattress and some snooze. Trust us, you'll still be fine. Here are the four reasons why you should tune in for the final showdown in Las Vegas: 1. This is Donald Trump's last opportunity to impress Forget all you've heard or watched in the last couple of days at FOX, Donald J. Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, lost the last two debates. In the second, Hillary Clinton's strategy was to allow the "grab 'em by the pussy" tape do the damage. Even without the heights she hit at the first debate, Clinton's smile and composure were still enough to defeat Trump at the second. Clinton is leading Trump by double digits in some polls. If he loses this debate (like he certainly will), The Donald will never recover. He'll come with the kitchen sink tonight because he wants to get one debate win under his belt before November's election. You don't want to be told what the unhinged candidate comes up with tonight. 2. Undecided voters are still a thing For Americans, debates are important because undecided voters are still up for grabs by a serious candidate. One good debate performance and you are back in the reckoning. For Clinton and Trump, appealing to undecided voters will be playing at the back of their minds when they get on stage tonight. Expect the feuding duo to go for the other's jugular and attempt to land deadly punches early on. No time to waste time. 3. It's still a dead heat in Swing States Swing voters in Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire etc, are still evenly split between Trump and Hillary, at least by most polling data. It's a dead heat between Trump and Clinton in some of these States. The candidates want to edge ahead in polling in these States after the debate. Welcome to hell tonight! 4. Trump is suffering To hear Donald Trump speak these days is akin to listening to a Nigerian politician speak. The polls will be rigged in Clinton's favour, Trump says. The press is against him, Trump says. According to the , "Trump has had possibly the most dismal October of any presidential nominee in recent history and the month is just more than half over. "Facing accusations of sexual harassment and criticism for vulgar and demeaning comments toward women, Mr. Trump limps into Wednesdays debate, the final one against Hillary Clinton, with polls showing him losing in nearly every state he must win". Now, that's a pretty bad place to be at. Trump's campaign has exploded and he's tried unsuccessfully to put up a brave face. He said the "deliberate efforts" by agents of the Buhari-administration to stagnate development in his state will fail, adding that the ruling party, All Progressives Congress (APC) will fall into the trap set for the PDP. He stated this on Tuesday, October 18 while receiving the leadership of Non-Indigenes Without Borders led by Mr Emeka Onowu at the Government House in Port Harcourt, Rivers state capital. "We have a sad situation where everything is being done at the federal level to kill the PDP. However, in the end, it is their own political party that will die," Wike said. He condemned the alleged repeated plots of the APC to rig the forthcoming rerun legislative elections in the state, affirming that they will be stopped from stealing the mandate of the people of Rivers State. He said: "They are repeatedly shifting the date of the rerun elections so that they can have a convenient time to rig. Nobody should be scared of their plan to use the DSS and police to rig the rerun elections. "The policeman that is carrying a gun; how many people can he kill? In Turkey where they resisted the Army, are they not human beings? Nobody will circumvent the mandate of the Rivers people." According to him, the Rivers people are not surprised as they are aware that being an opposition state, they will battle for survival from federal powers. This is to minimise conflicts and ensure long-term development of the region. He spoke in Washington, USA, at a three-day symposium organized for Governors of Northern Nigeria by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP). Tambuwal said, giving education the necessary attention will ensure easy mobilization of the populace for societal good. Most of the problems associated with our region today could easily have been tackled if the vast majority of our kids were educated. Without an educated and enlightened society, most of our problems will not be solved, the Governor, said. This is contained in a statement issued in Sokoto on Wednesday by the Governors spokesman, Malam Imam Imam. Tambuwal was quoted as saying that the conflicts in the North had now made it imperative to begin massive efforts at the reorientation of youths in the region. He said, There should be sustained engagement of the youths on the need to have peace, harmony and respect for divergent views in the society. We may disagree with each other on various issues, but that does not give anyone the license to become violent and cause harm to other people. Closely related to that is inclusiveness. All leaders from grassroots level to the top must carry along all people in their areas of authority. Favouring one group over another breeds unnecessary tension. When a leader opens his doors, thats when people understand his policies and thats when they will make input into how they are governed. Adeleke (APC-Iseyin/Itesiwaju State Constituency) told newsmen in Ibadan on Tuesday that the non-availability of libraries in schools and homes contribute to the poor performance of students in external examinations. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Adeleke is the Chairman of the assemblys committee on Education. He enjoined schools and administrators to reach out to their alumni associations for donation of new approved books for their libraries. Adeleke also called on students to cultivate the attitude of reading. He urged parents to create shelves at home for their wards to be able to access books for reading during their study times Adeleke said that this would go a long way in changing students attitude to education while improving their overall academic performance. Show me a brilliant student and I will show you a good library. We discovered that many books distributed by state and local governments are being kept in Principals and Heads of Schools offices instead of creating libraries. This trend must change and pupils allowed access to the books and other research facilities. Schools Alumni should be contacted to donate new and used books while our students should be encouraged to go to the library. Precise Financial Systems (PFS), a Nigerian financial software company, has demoed a solution that lets bank users deposit cheques from their phones at the ongoing GITEX Conference in Dubai, UAE. Speaking on the new solution which is called the iTeller Mobile Cheque Truncation, Yele Okeremi, CEO of PFS, said the solution will help users to deposit cheques from the comfort of their smart mobile phones." The iTeller Mobile app lets users capture images of their cheques and MICR details via the camera on their mobile phones and send to their banks for clearing. For his part, the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Dr. Isa Ali Pantami, who was present at the launch, expressed delight that the iTeller Mobile app was developed in Nigeria by a Nigerian company. We at NITDA will continue to provide support and assistance for Nigerian ICT firms to develop innovative solutions to make life better for Nigerians, said Pantami. The perpetrators were Boko Haram, a terrorist group that has carried out everything from mass executions to bombings in Nigeria since their resurgence in 2011. In the days that followed, a movement that started as a hashtag began with the sole aim of making sure the girls were rescued, the #BringBackOurGirls Campaign. What began as a bunch of tweets quickly went viral globally, with people all over lending their voices. From Michelle Obama in the White House to Actors at the Cannes, to school children everywhere, and even in Nigeria, placards were raised. A few weeks later, save for the BringBackOurGirls Movement who convened daily and still convene till this day, making their demands known to the government, every placard had dropped, either from hopelessness, or just fatigue. One woman never dropped hers, and since she lifted her placard in solidarity on the 12th of November, 2014, she has never dropped it till this day, reminding us that somewhere in the North East, over 200 girls were being held against their will. Her name is Bukky Shonibare. Every morning, in the midst of all the daily banter on the Internet, she is somewhere, writing very boldly on a large piece of cardboard paper. She writes how many days the Chibok Girls have been gone for. She lifts it to her chest, and stands for a picture, no matter what place she is in the world at the time or her state of mind. As the months and years have flown by, we've seen her in different forms, standing in front of different walls. We've seen the cardboards rumpled and be replaced by new ones. But the one thing she does every day is to show up. We spoke to her about her struggle, the girls' struggle, and the Bring Back Our Girls Movement of which she belongs. We spoke to her after the 21 Chibok girls were freed, asking what she thinks about how the government is handling the case. For her, it's a little dicey. First, she thinks the kids must be protected due to possible stigmatisation in the future, because let's face it, these kids are minors. She said: "We're all in a joyous mood, and I must admit that I have also shared some of the photos. I see some of these pictures and the joy on their faces. It still doesn't take away what should be the standard. These are people that should be protected from the public eye." But it's not that simple. She went on: "When you look at the whole narrative around the Chibok Girls, our peculiarity requires that we don't hide their faces. People are still doubting the truth of the whole Chibok Girls story, despite the fact that they're bringing them back." Something worthy of mention is the process involved. "We need to create a proper process of verification of identities of returnees. I'm careful about using the word returnees because I don't want to limit it to just the Chibok girls, knowing that there are other abductees too who also need to be accorded the same attention. Some have even stayed longer than the Chibok girls." We asked her about the moment she decided to carry the placard. The Bring Back Our Girls advocacy began on the 30th of April, but it was the October 17 ceasefire with some representatives of the terrorists that really did it for her. That day, they were at the Unity Fountain with international journalists in attendance, waiting to cover the ceasefire. Then they heard the deflating news; Shekau had just released a video saying he was never involved in any ceasefire process. This was the point where many people said, "this government is not worth it". "I felt people had stopped talking about Bring Back Our Girls. So I carried the placard with the sole aim of making sure people never forget. I later found out Charles Alasholuyi was carrying a placard at the time." The goal is to make sure that while we enjoy the comfort of our homes, we must remember that there are people being raped, being used as war shields, or strapped with bombs. All against their will. She didn't plan to carry it for this long. According to her, she first carried it on the 12th of November, exactly 50 days till the end of the year. But she didn't. "It would have felt like a betrayal," she said. But she also believes the Chibok Girls are an entry point to something bigger, like how they also helped keep the other abductees in our minds and appreciate the efforts of the soldiers. ALSO READ:We answer the question on why the Chibok Girls are quite special Keeping up a routine is hard. We asked her how she's managed to pull it off for over 700 days. "It's not just about the placard," she said; "Every time I hold it, there are emotions coming with it. Every day I remember all over again, that I am free, that someone else is being held and I'm free. The sobriety comes every day. There were times I just felt like dropping it. Someone on Twitter said, "is it a placard that will bring back our girls?" There are times it gets to me because you know, I'm human. There were times it felt senseless, but then I remembered why I started. I started because I wanted people to never forget, and it helped me keep going. Everywhere I am, I travel with my placard. I must tell you, it hasn't been easy." When we asked her to tell us her most memorable moment, it was powerful. She's in a hospital, and there's a syringe in her vein helping to fight the typhoid fever trying to bring her down. It's that type of day you don't want people seeing your face. So she manages to get on her feet, lifts her placard and hides her hands behind it. No one needs to know about her typhoid, but everyone needs to remember the girls still. That day, someone on Twitter asks, "why can't you get a better phone to take good pictures?" "A lot of the time, people see stuff and criticise," she said, "but they don't know the backstories". One thing we observed is that, when she drops the placard every day, she fills her hands with many other things she seems to be juggling pretty well. We talked about her work with IDPs; the Adopt-A-Camp project. Because the devastation is larger than the Chibok girls, this project aims to provide everything a child needs, from food and clothing to education. She believes the war against Boko Haram will eventually be won with books, pens and empowered minds, and she's at the frontlines of this war. There's also the Girl Child Africa. With this, she wants to help girls in marginalised societies all over Africa. On what the future looks like, Bukky doesn't know everything it holds for her, but she's taking today to get ready. It's why she got her first degree in Business Administration in 2015, started her Masters immediately in Peace and Security. That's not all. She's currently on another degree in Law with a special passion for Humanitarian Law. The business mogul turned politician has been getting a lot of bashing recently especially since his public debate with another aspirant, Hilary Clinton. Trump was captured in a footage as he kissed little girls at a rally, but one of them was very quick to get away from him, making things appear very weird. The incident occurred in Geary County located in Kansas, United States of America. County Sheriff, Tony Wolf described the incident in an interview with Hays Post. He said, A Greyhound bus had made a stop in Kansas City and there was an alleged rape that occurred on the bus, however they had no idea where this rape took place. According to reports, the suspect was arrested by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation in Missouri and was turned over to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) until charges were filed. However, there was no indication from Czech police that the arrest in Prague was linked to the US claims. "Czech police have successfully collaborated with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The aim of the operation was a Russian citizen suspected of hacking attacks on targets in the United States," police spokesman David Schon said in a statement posted on the force's website. The arrest took place in a hotel in Prague city centre, the statement said, without identifying the man by name or indicating when the arrest took place. The suspect collapsed in police custody, was given first aid and then hospitalised, it added. Czech judicial authorities must now rule on his extradition to the United States, the statement said. The Kremlin on Saturday slammed Washington for its "unprecedented" threats after US Vice President Joe Biden told NBC that Putin would receive a "message" over the alleged hacking. Biden said Washington would respond to the alleged attacks "at the time of our choosing and under the circumstances that have the greatest impact." NBC later reported that the CIA was preparing a retaliatory cyber attack "designed to harass and 'embarrass' the Kremlin leadership." The Kremlin was propelled to the heart of American politics in July after Hillary Clinton's campaign blamed Russia for an embarrassing leak of emails from the Democratic National Committee. Russia has been accused of favouring Republican candidate Donald Trump -- who has praised Putin and called for better ties with Moscow -- over the more hawkish Clinton. The ministers -- internal affairs chief Sanae Takaichi and Katsunobu Kato, in charge of women's empowerment -- are close to conservative Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who did not visit the Yasukuni shrine during this year's four-day autumn festival. He has not gone to the site in central Tokyo since late 2013 in an apparent attempt to ease diplomatic tensions. China on Wednesday lashed out at the cabinet ministers' visit, saying the shrine "whitewashes" Japan's past militarism and "reveals its wrong attitude towards history". "China firmly opposes that," foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular Beijing press briefing. "We urge Japan to own up to and reflect upon its history of aggression, make a clean break with militarism and use concrete actions to win back trust from its Asian neighbours and the international community." On Tuesday a group of about 85 legislators arrived at the leafy site for an annual pilgrimage, earning rebukes from Beijing and Seoul. Yasukuni honours millions of Japanese war dead, but also senior military and political figures convicted of war crimes after World War II. The indigenous Shinto religious shrine has for decades been a flashpoint for criticism by countries that suffered from Japan's colonialism and aggression in the first half of the 20th century, including China and Korea. Abe and other nationalists say Yasukuni is a place to remember fallen soldiers. They compare it to Arlington National Cemetery in the United States. His visit in 2013 to mark his first year in power sparked fury in Beijing and Seoul and earned a diplomatic rebuke from close ally the United States which said it was "disappointed". The certificates were sent via a parcel service and found at the Toluca airport marked as "business correspondence," customs agency administrator Ricardo Trevino told local radio. Trevino said officials know which company sent the securities from the United States and which Mexican firm was the intended recipient. He declined to identify them but he told Radio Formula that the Mexican company has a "global presence." A man involved in the operation has also been identified, but Trevino also refused to name him. The certificates, which were in an envelope, "can be cashed at any bank," he said. They were detected in an X-ray machine. The authorities will determine whether the certificates stem from legal activities, in which case the penalty would be a fine for not declaring their value according to international rules, which require any amount over $10,000 to be declared at customs. Trevino, however, said it could also be linked to "tax evasion" and that any crime would be investigated. The certificates were found as part of a global customs operation undertaken between September 19 and October 10 to detect weapons or money shipments. Mexico seized a total of $452 million, including the major haul in one action in Toluca, earning plaudits from the World Customs Organization. Militants from the al Shabaab group, which has been carrying out a series of deadly attacks in the country, drove a bomb-laden car into a police station, while others engaged security forces in a gun fight. "Eleven people died, including police and civil servants," Abdinasir Moalim, the district commissioner for Afgoye, told Reuters on Wednesday. Six attackers were also killed, he said. Afgoye is about 30 km (20 miles) southwest of the capital Mogadishu. The minister told the parliament that the draft budget amounts to about 400 million dollars. Less than half of the budget will be earmarked for education, the health sector and other services, he said. South Sudans health and educational sectors have been devastated by a military conflict that erupted between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar in December 2013. The country, which gained independence from Sudan in 2011, was already one of the least developed in Africa. The formation of a unity government in April was due to end the warfare, but fighting erupted again in July, sending Machar into exile. An important oil producer, South Sudan has spent 60 per cent of its oil revenues on military expenses during the conflict, Dhieu said. Edmund Yakani, from the student-driven organization, Community for Empowerment and Progress said that South Sudans military spending is the highest in the region. Some 5,000 people queued outside Donetsk's opera theatre to pay last respects to the 33-year-old Russian, known as "Motorola", who died Sunday when a homemade device exploded in his apartment block. A Russian army veteran from the Komi region, Pavlov joined the fighting that broke out in east Ukraine in April 2014 as a volunteer, rising to prominence after appearing on Russian television broadcasts. He boasted in a 2015 interview of shooting 15 Ukrainian prisoners of war, prompting Kiev's defence ministry to say he was lucky to die in a bombing rather than serving an "inevitable" life sentence. Some mourners carried flowers and black-and-orange St. George's ribbons that symbolise World War II victory and have been adopted by the Kremlin-backed insurgents, an AFP correspondent reported from the scene. The grandiose memorial ceremony was also shown live on Russian state television. More than 100 armed men in camouflage guarded the Opera House as the open coffin stood in the foyer covered with the flag of the Sparta battalion that Pavlov led. The leader of self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) Alexander Zakharchenko arrived with his bodyguards to stand by the coffin. "A great public figure, a real warrior, a man who remained undefeated in an open battle is now gone", said 63-year-old Alexander Kurenkov, a rebel fighter standing in the guard of honour. "He was killed in a terrorist attack," he added. Natalia, a 32-year-old doctor carrying a bunch of red carnations, praised Pavlov as "a hero of DPR, a hero of Russia." Several people told AFP that state employees including teachers and doctors were "strongly recommended" to be present at the ceremony. "Lessons were cut for all the teachers to come here. Students were also freed from classes", said Viktor, a 42-year-old history teacher. Fighting in east Ukraine -- which has claimed nearly 10,000 lives -- has dragged on despite a peace plan brokered by Germany and France, which has run aground amid acrimony between Russia and Ukraine. Alexander Blair, 29, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy for helping his friend, John Booker Jr., store equipment to make a bomb to kill American service members, prosecutors said. Blair admitted that he and Booker plotted to detonate a vehicle bomb at Fort Riley military base near Manhattan, Kansas. Prosecutors said that after Blair was arrested and was asked about the plan to kill service members, Blair said: "That's what they signed (up) for." Blair's attorney Chris Joseph said his client has a genetic condition, Williams syndrome, that made him easily manipulated and unable to appreciate the gravity of his conduct. A defense expert testified that he functioned at the level of an 11-year old. Joseph said he appreciated that the judge in the case saw the government's demand for five years in prison as overreaching. He said no decision has been made yet on whether to appeal. Blair's co-defendant Booker, 22, made statements on Facebook and to FBI agents that he wanted to join Islamic State and kill people and was willing to die in the process, according to prosecutors. He was arrested on April 10 in a sting operation in which he went to Fort Riley with two undercover FBI agents to detonate what he did not know was an inert bomb, prosecutors said. Booker pleaded guilty to one count each of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to destroy government property with an explosive, according to court documents. He is awaiting sentencing, but has agreed to spend 30 years in prison in the plea deal. Lula, who faces three corruption-related court cases that could sink his hopes of returning to power in 2018 presidential elections, wrote in Folha de Sao Paulo that he was the victim of "political persecution." "I can't keep silent in the face of the abuses committed by agents of the state," he wrote. Prosecutors, he said, intend "to destroy the basis of democracy in Brazil." Lula's declarations came amid persistent rumors of his possible pre-trial detention, although officials have said nothing to indicate that this is imminent. Lula, 70, was a hugely popular president for two terms before handing over to his protege Dilma Rousseff in 2014. However his reputation has been badly damaged by the revelation of a vast corruption scheme that flourished during his time in office at the state flagship company Petrobras. Rouseff was ejected from office in an impeachment trial on separate charges this year and Lula's leftist Workers' Party was hammered in municipal elections earlier in October. The move is unprecedented in a continent whose leaders often complain that the court disproportionately targets Africans. On Oct. 12, only two lawmakers voted in favour of staying under the jurisdiction of the Dutch-based ICC, while 94 voted against and 14 abstained. In April, the ICC opened a preliminary investigation into Burundi, focusing on killings, imprisonment, torture, rape and other sexual violence, as well as enforced disappearances. Burundi's government was infuriated last month by a U.N. report that named officials accused of orchestrating the torture and killing political opponents. Since then, Bujumbura has banned three U.N. investigators from its territory and condemned a U.N. decision to set up a commission of inquiry to probe the violence, which began last year after Nkurunziza decided to seek a third term in office. Opponents said his candidacy violated the constitution and a peace agreement that ended a civil war in 2005. The opposition mostly boycotted the polls and Nkurunziza won a third term. The ICC said in April that political violence had killed about 450 people and forced hundreds of thousands to flee. Earlier on Tuesday, the head of its governing body, Sidiki Kaba, said he was concerned that would undermine "efforts towards the objective of universality" and called on Burundi to "engage in a dialogue. Since it was set up under the 1998 Rome Statute, the court based in The Hague has focused on prosecuting such politically-motivated crimes as genocide and crimes against humanity. Most of its investigations and indictments have been of Africans, stirring criticism from many governments on the continent. Nine out of 10 situations under investigation by ICC prosecutors are African. All five verdicts have dealt with African suspects from Congo, Central Arican Republic and Mali. Turning the ship before it hits the iceberg The mainline air carriers voiced concerns Tuesday about how the Quad-City International Airport is dividing the annual fee they pay for shared common areas among the airport's carriers. Speaking on behalf of Delta, United and American airlines, Blaine Peters, Delta Air Lines' regional director of corporate real estate, told the Rock Island County Metropolitan Airport Authority that, they are concerned that "excess funds required of the mainlines." Peters, who was the lone speaker during a public hearing on a proposed rates and charges ordinance, said the legacy carriers want "a level playing field." Without naming Allegiant, the airport's fourth airline, he indicated that the mainline airlines question whether the competition "is getting an advantage." Angela Burch, the airport's finance director, said the issue has been raised as the airport has negotiated for the past year with all four carriers on a new Airline Use and Lease Agreement. "We have four airlines, all of which are important to the viability and customer satisfaction of this airport," she said in an interview after the meeting. "But one operates off a very different business model than the other three legacy carriers. So we feel we have selected a rates and charges model that is a compromise to accommodate both airline models." The new ordinance was approved unanimously, without any discussion, by the airport authority at its regular meeting Tuesday. According to Burch, the new model uses a formula that calculates the airlines' fees based on the same set of factors, including operations and enplanements. Peters said the airlines have no issue with the landing fees or lease payment for their exclusive areas. But the airlines split costs for common areas, including the terminal, concourse and baggage area. Allegiant, which operates a less frequent flight schedule, is the first carrier to sign a new lease, Burch said. The lease also was approved by the airport authority Tuesday. Peters, a Quad-City native, acknowledged that the issue is "not just a Moline concern. We have the same concerns at many airports." In fact, Burch said the airline industry has raised the issue over equitable fares with the Federal Aviation Administration. "In response, the FAA has indicated that fees be fair, reasonable, not unjustly discriminatory and equitably apportioned," she said. The new policy was in response to that ruling, she added. According to Burch, the airport's management is continuing to work on lease agreements with the other carriers. In other business, the authority approved a new lease with Schneider Resources Inc. of Des Moines, to lease 14 parking spaces at the airport's air cargo building to park Schneider Trucking trailers. The firm will pay $17,000 a year in rent. Editors note: Community Bulletin represents meetings or events that reoccur weekly or monthly. To make changes call 563-262-0534. Thursday Organizations Heartland Harmony, a Muscatine mens barbershop chorus, 7 p.m., Church of Christ, 3603 Mulberry Ave. Seeking members, visitors welcome. For information, call 563-299-2939. Jessica Faye's Closet, 908 Ninth St., Monday-Friday; 10 a.m.-2 p.m., free clothing. For more information call 563-263-0800. Jubilee Community Center, 2-6 p.m., 413 E. Second St., a safe gathering place for all ages. For more information call 563-263-7790. Muscatine Melon Patchers Quilt Guild, 7 p.m., Mulford Evangelical Free Church, 2400 Hershey Ave. Guests welcome. Pearl City Outreach, 513 Mulberry Ave., 9-10 a.m., free breakfast; 10 a.m.-2 p.m., food basket; 4:30-5:30 p.m., free supper. Salvation Army food pantry, 1000 Oregon St., hours 9-11:45 a.m. and 1-4 p.m., For an appointment, call 563-263-8272. SCORE, free counseling for small business, 1:30-3:30 p.m., Chamber of Commerce Office, 319 E. Second St. Call 263-8895 for appointments. Sycamore Center, 7 p.m., 106 E. Sixth St., Muscatine Tower Apartments. Support groups Alcoholics Anonymous, noon, open, discussion, non-smoking, 704 S. Houser St. Alcoholic Anonymous, Gaunt Prospector Group, 5:40 p.m. 704 S. Houser St. Alcoholic Anonymous, 7 p.m., Calvary Church, Space 3. Fresh Start Divorce Recovery, 7 p.m., Vineyard Church, 224 E. Third St. Grief Support Group, non-denominational, 6:30 to 7:30pm, Sweetland United Methodist Church, South of Highway 61 on Sweetland Road. For more information please call Pastor Don Timmermann at 563-506-3958. Overeaters Anonymous, 6:45 p.m., Musser Public Library, 304 Iowa Ave. Weight Watchers, 5:30 p.m. Shepherd of the Cross Church, 3300 N. IA Highway 38, Muscatine. Library activities Musser Public Library, O Baby Lapsit, ages birth to 3 years, 10:30 a.m.; Medicare Info Meeting, call 563-320-6651 for info, 2 p.m.; Sparkplugs, ages 4 to 8 years, 6 p.m.; Overeaters Anonymous, 6:45 p.m.; Recreation Muscatine Community Y, family swim, small pool: 5-7:30am, 12-1pm, 2-4pm, 7:30-8:45pm; rec swim, large pool:1-4pm, 7:30-8:45pm; open gym: 5-11:45am, 1:30-2pm; participant child care: 8:45-11:30am, 5-8:30pm; free activities in Teen Center for middle school students: 4-7pm; Teen Leaders, free for middle school students: 4-5pm; Moments for Moms 6:30-8pm. MASON CITY, Iowa U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, said Wednesday the presidential election is not "rigged," as GOP nominee Donald Trump has asserted. But there are irregularities that need fixing, he said. "Rigged is not the right word," King said. "There is no nationwide network set up to cheat. But there are cells of election fraud that are well documented." King spoke to a high school leadership class at the Mason City Chamber of Commerce office and then spoke with the news media afterward. He said he didn't believe what some pundits are saying that the presidential election is essentially over, "but I certainly feel the mood of the people who think it is. "What are they basing it on? The polls?" he asked. "I will say this Trump has to have a good debate (Wednesday night)." He talked about how Trump was "baited" by Hillary Clinton in the first debate when she mentioned his comments about a former Miss Universe's weight gain. "He took the bait, hook, line and sinker," he said. King said he has had many situations in his career in which he thought he was being baited. "But you never know," he said, laughing, "I might be baiting them, too." King said "the will and spine" of Congress will be tested, regardless of who wins the presidential election on Nov. 8. "There will be two clear paths. If Hillary wins, the Republicans will be playing defense. If Trump wins, we will be busy, busy, busy, repealing Obamacare, strengthening the military and all sorts of things," he said. King has been in Congress 14 years and is opposed by Democrat Kim Weaver in the November election. He said getting things done in Washington has changed dramatically since Bill Clinton was president, and politics is the cause. "When he took office, he said he wanted a Cabinet that looked like America. He appointed blacks, Hispanics, women who represented a lot of different backgrounds, regardless of qualifications," King said. "And Obama has raised that to an art form. "If it was up to me, I wouldn't care if they were all green as long as they were qualified." NORTHWOOD, Iowa Despite a number of vulgar statements by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst said she would continue to support his campaign. As an outspoken advocate of military sexual assault victims, Ernst said Trump's comments from a 2005 "Access Hollywood" appearance reported by the Washington Post earlier this month would not cause her to withdraw her endorsement. The tape appears to show Trump stating her could use the power of his celebrity influence to commit sexual assault against women. Ernst said she believed an allegation would need to be filed in criminal court. "Well, I am going to tell you that I am not going to defend Donald Trump on those issues," she said. "I am not going to defend him and I'm not going to condone it. "I do believe the Republican Party is where I stand," Ernst said. "I would never encourage someone to go against their ideals and values in a party platform and support ideals they don't believe in, so that's why I am sticking with the Republican ticket." A Real Clear Politics poll averaging results from the Des Moines Register, Quinnipiac and and Loras between Sept. 13 and Oct. 6 show Donald Trump leading Hillary Clinton in Iowa 45 percent to 41.7 percent. Ernst was speaking following a town hall-style assembly to hundreds of Northwood-Kensett high school students who asked questions ranging from her thoughts on standardized testing, the benefits and drawbacks of being a woman in an election year, responsibilities of high school students in a democracy, views on gun control, and abortion. "They are engaged and they are paying attention," she said, "and that is important that we understand that they watch everything that we do." The event was part of her own 99-county tour in the state. The key for Trump at tonight's presidential debate will be to focus more on policy, she said. "I have yet to hear either candidate fully spell out where they stand on jobs and the economy, immigration," she said. "You know, tell us to our faces through the debate channel where you stand on these issues. Because, we need to be making up our minds and we haven't heard a lot of that so far." WEST DES MOINES A new billboard in Des Moines and comments from a Republican colleague have rekindled the debate, but U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley remains adamant that the U.S. Senate should not hold hearings on a U.S. Supreme Court nominee until next year after a new president and Congress are sworn in. Grassley, the Iowa Republican who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee through which Supreme Court nominations must pass, has joined GOP Senate leadership in blocking President Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominee, saying the vacancy created in February by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia should not be filled during an election year. For that, Grassley has drawn criticism and political pressure from Democrats and liberal advocacy groups. One such group, Progress Iowa, unveiled a new billboard advertisement Tuesday near downtown Des Moines that highlights the issue. And on Monday, U.S. Sen. John McCain said in a radio interview that Senate Republicans will be united against any Supreme Court nominee presented by Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, should she win on Nov. 8. McCains office later said that the senator will examine any Supreme Court nominee and vote for or against the individual and that his comment was meant to reflect his belief that Clinton has a clear record of supporting liberal judicial nominees. Theyre basically saying that were going to process nominees, but whether we vote for them or not is a completely different thing, Grassley told reporters Tuesday after holding a public event at UnityPoint Health-Methodist West Hospital here. I think based on the letter I signed on Feb. 23 to my colleagues, that we ought to let the people have a voice and a new president make a decision, it means that we will advise hopefully before they name somebody. Grassley is running for re-election to the U.S. Senate. His Democratic challenger is former Iowa ag secretary and lieutenant governor Patty Judge. Grassley said he hopes the next president, whether it is Clinton or Republican candidate Donald Trump, nominates a dispassionate judge unlike current justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor who, Grassley said, vote as a bloc all the time in an ideological way and arent always dispassionate. Grassley said he approves of a list of potential nominees presented by Trump, saying the judges have been vetted by a lot of organizations that believe the Supreme Court ought to interpret law and not make law. The new Progress Iowa billboard, which is part of a $20,000 advertising campaign, according to the organizations executive director, features a photo of Grassley and text that reads, Obstruction is not an Iowa value and points observers to the website chuckobstructs.com. Dan Towers said Tuesday at a Progress Iowa news conference to unveil the billboard ad that as a U.S. Army veteran he took the same oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution as do U.S. senators and implored Grassley to honor that oath by holding a hearing on Obamas Supreme Court nominee. Ive voted for Sen. Grassley in the past. Ive admired Sen. Grassleys integrity, the fact that he always represented Iowans with a voice of principle and integrity, Towers, of West Des Moines, said. Im asking Sen. Grassley and the senators to not only do your job in holding hearings but to uphold your sworn duty to uphold the Constitution of the United States. CEDAR RAPIDS -- The Iowa Water and Land Legacy coalition announced Tuesday that Cedar Rapids Mayor Ron Corbett and more than a dozen other elected officials and business leaders have joined the effort to secure a sales tax increase to fund the natural resources trust fund. We cant put all the burden on farmers to clean up the states waters. We need the public financial piece to bring along farmers, landowners and other members of the private sector, Corbett said. Iowa voters in 2010 approved by a 63-37 margin a constitutional amendment to create the dedicated trust fund. It has remained empty, awaiting enactment of a 3/8-cent sales tax increase. Momentum for the sales tax increase has mounted as public awareness of the states nutrient-polluted water has grown. The trust fund spending formula would allocate 71.4 percent of the proceeds, estimated at $180 million a year, to programs that could be applied to best practices outlined in the states nutrient-reduction strategy. After six years of no action, its time to fill the fund and address water quality before judges or Washington, D.C., politicians impose a solution, Corbett said. Corbett is one of seven mayors to join the coalition along with Frank Cownie of Des Moines, Jon Kruse of Storm Lake, Bob Scott of Sioux City, Jim Erb of Charles City, John Lundell of Coralville and Ed Malloy of Fairfield. Kruse, who spoke along with Corbett at a Tuesday news conference, said efforts to improve the quality of the water in Storm Lake have boosted the citys economy. We need the 3/8-cent now. This is the time. We have a great chance to get it over the goal line, said Mark Doll, chief executive officer of Doll Distributing and co-chairman of the coalition. At a Sept. 12 news conference, the coalition listed 23 organizations as members. The addition Tuesday of the seven mayors and nine business and community leaders expands the coalition to nearly 40 members. The new business and community leaders include John Ruan III, CF Industries, Blank Park Zoo, Environmental Law and Policy Center, Pete Brownell of firearms dealer Brownells, Iowa Insurance Hall of Fame member Bill Van Orsdel, Richard Stanley and Joni Axel, both of Muscatine, and Steve Shriver of Brewtopia, the 2014 Corridor Business Entrepreneur of the Year. Scott County Republicans chose a LeClaire police officer to be their nominee to run in a special election in December to fill Iowas 45th state Senate district. Mike Gonzales, who lives in west Davenport, won by a narrow margin over Denise Hollonbeck, the former president of the Davenport School Board, at a special convention held Tuesday night at the partys headquarters. Scott County Party chair Judy Davidson announced the result after a meeting that lasted about 30 minutes. She would not disclose the vote totals but said it was close. Democrats will choose their nominee at a special convention on Nov. 10. State Reps. Jim Lykam and Cindy Winckler, both of Davenport, have said they will seek the nomination. The 45th District seat came open with the death last month of Sen. Joe Seng, who had been battling brain cancer since 2014. Members of the respective parties central committees from precincts within the 45th District are eligible to vote for a nominee. Nineteen of the 40 eligible Republican members attended Tuesday night. Gonzales and Hollonbeck were the only people competing for the GOP nomination. Another person was said to be interested, but she did not put her name into nomination. Gonzales, a sergeant and 17-year veteran of the LeClaire department, told members of the party central committee that he backs small government, local control for schools and Donald Trump for president. He also said he thinks he can lure voters outside the Republican Party to his column. We have to get the crossover vote if we are going to win this, he said. The 45th District, which includes much of west Davenport along with other parts of western Scott County, leans Democratic. There are twice as many registered Democrats in the district as Republicans, and Seng held the seat for more than a decade. Hollonbeck, in her remarks to the central committee members, cited her experience on the school board, which she said went from conflict to cohesiveness on her watch. She also said she would focus on lowering taxes where possible and education. In answer to a question, she said she favors education vouchers, which she said would challenge the public school system. Gonzales said he also favors vouchers. Gov. Terry Branstad has set Dec. 27 as the date of the special election to fill the 45th District seat. Democrats hold a narrow advantage over Republicans in the state Senate, and depending on what happens in the Nov. 8 general election, the 45th District race could be important to the balance of power in Des Moines. Royal Neighbors of America President and CEO Cynthia Tidwell has been elected to the board of directors of the American Council of Life Insurers. Prior to joining Royal Neighbors in 2005, Tidwell served as president of personal insurance for Firemans Fund Insurance Co., a part of the Allianz Group. She was the first woman to lead one of the companys profit and loss centers. She began her executive career at Xerox Financial Services insurance subsidiaries where she successfully revamped their departments and divisions. She is a member of the ACLI Forum 500 board of governors, the American Fraternal Alliance and the International Womens Leadership Association. She recently completed a seven-year term on the Quad-City Chamber board of directors and was a member of its finance committee. She is a recipient of the American Business Awards prestigious Stevie Award as Turnaround Executive of the Year. She has been named a Professional Woman of the Year in Insurance by the National Association of Professional Women and was the recipient of the Athena Business Womens Award for excellence in her profession and for the significant philanthropic difference she makes in her community. Tidwell also was recognized as the 2012 Small Business Leader by the Athena Chamber of Commerce. Meantime, back at Guantanamo... Chances are you haven't thought of that American gulag -- or, for that matter, of "extraordinary renditions," CIA black sites and torture -- for a long time. Not everyone has the luxury of forgetting. In the last few days, some compelling reportage has reminded us of that. In The Miami Herald, we met 48-year-old Mustafa al Hawsawi, a Gitmo detainee who was scheduled for rectal surgery to repair damage done when, his lawyer says, he was sodomized by his captors 10 years ago. As reporter Carol Rosenberg explains, this "sodomy" was, in fact, a "quasi-medical" process of "rectal rehydration" and "rectal re-feeding," i.e., providing nourishment through a tube in the rectum. The lawyer says this was a means of punishment. It left Hawsawi with what's called a rectal prolapse. He has to manually push tissue back up into his anus every time he defecates. He has bled from the injury for 10 years. Hawsawi, you should know, faces the death penalty for his alleged part in the Sept. 11 attacks that took nearly 3,000 lives. And maybe you will find that sufficient to insulate you from feeling, well ... anything at his plight. One wonders what you would make, then, of two New York Times reports documenting how torture, both at Gitmo and at CIA black sites around the world, destroyed the mental health of numerous detainees, many of whom turned out to be innocent of terrorism. Reporters James Risen, Matt Apuzzo and Sheri Fink introduce us to men who were slammed into walls and had foreign objects shoved into their rectums, who were beaten, kept awake, housed in never-ending darkness or light, forced into stress positions, subjected to nonstop music at ear-splitting levels, injected with drugs, menaced by dogs, locked in boxes the size of coffins and laid out shackled and nude on tarps as gallons of ice cold water were poured down on them to simulate drowning. One prisoner described being used as a human mop, dragged through his own urine. Now, former prisoner Suleiman Abdullah Salim struggles with depression and PTSD. He was released five years after he fell into U.S. custody when it was determined he posed no threat. Majid Mokhtar Sasy al-Maghrebi will fly into a rage at the sound of music from a passing car. It takes him back to the prison where music was used to torture him. Hussein al-Marfadi has a permanent headache. Lutfi bin Ali has a recurrent nightmare of suffocating at the bottom of a well. Younous Chekkouri hates to go outside because people in the crowd turn into guards from Gitmo. For at least one prisoner, what made all this worse is that it was America doing it to him. America, the world champion of human rights. America, the nation of laws. "It is very, very scary when you are tortured by someone who doesn't believe in torture," said Ahmed Errachidi. "You lose faith in everything." He was released without charges after five years. Civilization is a word we use for the rules we impose upon ourselves to protect against our most brutish instincts. And America is fond of thinking itself the most civilized of nations, especially as compared with those countries that breathe terror like air. When the history of this epoch is written, it will tell how our civilization, our righteousness, came under assault by an army of ragtag barbarians one sparkling September morning. It will tell how we swore to defend all that made us what we were. But these reports remind us how readily we gave it all away. Tony McCombie doesn't like to admit that she's Gov. Bruce Rauner's candidate in House District 71. But, it's for that reason that Illinois voters should choose the Republican Savanna mayor over incumbent Democrat Rep. Mike Smiddy on Nov. 8. There's a proxy war raging in District 71 between Rauner and Speaker Michael Madigan. And, in that fight, we'll side with Rauner almost every time. Both McCombie and Rep. Smiddy proclaim their independence from the state's two quarreling power-brokers. Their cries of autonomy are, at best, disingenuous. McCombie's $1 million campaign is almost single-handedly bankrolled by the millionaire governor. Unions and Madigan's state Democratic Party are funding Smiddy's re-election bid. And, over the years, the few instances where Smiddy broke with Madigan were clearly out of election-cycle political necessity. More often than not, Smiddy has done as told by his paymasters, the very same special interests who've bankrupted the state. Take, for instance, Smiddy's non-vote vote this past year on Madigan's ridiculous go-nowhere budget proposal that was $8 billion out of whack. Smiddy could have stood for reason and fiscal responsibility. He could have put his foot down and protested deficit spending that's resulted in the nation's worst credit rating. Instead, he took the offend-no-one approach, voting "present," and offering a bogus justification for his fecklessness. Conflict of interest, he claimed, because the bill contained back pay for his previous job with Illinois Department of Corrections. The excuse is nonsense. If true, then lawmakers couldn't vote on much of anything. They vote on their pay and per-diems every budget cycle. At least, they do when they bother voting on a budget at all. Smiddy this year chose the campaign-backing American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees over voters when attempting to rob Rauner of his mandated position to negotiate with the unions. Smiddy has made it clear whose side he's on and it isn't the taxpayers of Illinois. McCombie and Smiddy both support redistricting reform. McCombie correctly calls for adjustments to future retirement benefits that, decades into the future, could finally put Illinois on solid financial footing. She rightly pushes back against some of Rauner's most draconian, anti-union measures, while realizing that it's those interests that long ago bought the political class and ran Illinois into the ground. Neither Smiddy nor McCombie are fantastic candidates. But McCombie offers an upside that simply hasn't materialized during Smiddy's tenure. Again, the hotly contested race for Illinois 71 is really about choosing between Rauner and Madigan. Neither candidate likes to admit it, but the piles of cash flowing in from Chicago and Springfield tell the real story. And it's a tale of an incumbent who's proven himself incapable of standing for reform. He's lacked the audacity to challenge those who fund his campaign and bankrupt Illinois. Smiddy was bought and paid for years ago. The same will probably be said for McCombie in two years. But, at the very least, she's owned by the people demanding reform. I appreciated Washington Post columnist Michael Gersons Oct. 7 column in the Quad-City Times, discussing the book, When Breath Becomes Air by Dr. Paul Kalanithi. This book is very inspirational and thought provoking. Death often seems to be a taboo subject in our society. Whether a young person facing life cut short by sudden illness or those of us in old age, we need to think about what choices are available to us at the end of life. Do we want to have every medicine and machine available to try to keep us going? Anyone who has strong feelings about what is wanted or not wanted needs to have these wishes expressed in a living will and a power of attorney for health care. These options should be discussed with the doctor and families to be sure that these choices are followed. My personal choice is not to be put on feeding tubes or resuscitated. If I am suffering greatly and close to death, I would also like to have the choice of death with dignity as described in House File 65 introduced in the Iowa Legislature last year, this is similar to the Oregon Law. Eloise Pfeiff Bettendorf Did you know that Illinois is in the fiscal black? Im glad to see that Illinois has finally gotten its fiscal house in order. So much so, that the Secretary of States Office (SOS) is once again mailing out courtesy notices to remind people to register their vehicles. According to the SOS, the practice was stopped due to the budget impasse as a way to save money. Last time I checked, Illinois is still without a budget, so why cant the state still save the money instead of spending it? Because there is always more where that came from; us. The SOS spends $450,000 per month on postage to remind people to renew their vehicle registration. Thats $ 5.4 million per year. This is real money, folks. For a state in such dire straits financial, do we really need to be spending this amount of money to remind people to renew their vehicle license? No. The professional politicians who created the fiscal mess are constantly telling us that our taxes need to be raised to fund the state government. Heres a novel idea: Stop squandering what we give you. The political-class reminds me of a child who spends his allowance on candy, then begs for more money when he needs something vital. This November, send a message to the professional politicians in Washington and Springfield: Youve been wasting our taxes for too long. Since we the taxpayers have to live within our means, so do you, the elite professional politicians. Gary L.Snyder Rock Island SPRINGFIELD A bipartisan pair of Illinois state senators are introducing legislation that would ban directors of state agencies and other high-level gubernatorial appointees from using their official authority or influence to sway elections. Announcing the proposal Wednesday at Statehouse news conference, Sens. Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill, and Sam McCann, R-Plainview, touted it as an important expansion of the states ethics laws. Manar said the measure will close a gaping hole in existing law and is similar to restrictions at the federal level and in other states. Im of the opinion that agency directors should not spend their time campaigning, he said. They should spend their time managing the agencies that they have been entrusted to run and to manage when the Senate confirmed their appointments. The proposal wouldnt place new restrictions officials financial contributions to campaigns. The announcement comes during a tough election season, one in which Wayne Rosenthal, director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, has appeared in a radio ad for state Rep. Avery Bourne, R-Raymond. Bourne is running against Democrat Mike Mathis of Gillespie for Rosenthals former House seat, to which she was appointed when Gov. Bruce Rauner tapped Rosenthal to lead the state agency. In the ad, Rosenthal calls Mathis, a former circuit court clerk and Democratic Party chairman in Macoupin County, a career politician who will do or say anything to get elected. He doesnt identify himself by his current state position. The Department of Natural Resources declined to comment. In a written statement, Bourne noted Rosenthals service in the Illinois Air National Guard and the General Assembly. Its clear that Wayne is passionate about central Illinois and I share his commitment to defending our values at the Capitol, she said. Im honored to have his endorsement and hope to continue his record of service to the people of central Illinois. McCann said he and Manar began discussing the idea during the spring primary season when constituents contacted them both about Department of Agriculture Director Raymond Poe appearing in ads for McCanns opponent. The lawmakers said the issue isnt about any one election or party, noting that Manar testified on Rosenthals behalf at his Senate confirmation hearing and McCann testified on Poes behalf. This is good government, McCann said. This is what we should do regardless of whos in control. Rauner spokeswoman Catherine Kelly wrote in an email that the governor welcomes any discussion to reform our political process, like constitutional amendments on fair (legislative district) maps and term limits. Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, R-Lemont, issued a statement saying that the proposal may be too narrow. If we are to consider legislation to ensure accountability to the taxpayers, we should consider the same restrictions be placed on taxpayer-paid appointees to boards and commissions, term limits and redistricting reform, Radogno said in a prepared statement. Manar and McCanns proposal is modeled on the federal Hatch Act, a 1939 law that limits the political activities of federal employees. Similar laws exist in 43 other states. Jack Arterburn, Nebraska Extension Beef Educator, will discuss Winter Managment of the Cow Herd. In addition, Rob Eirich, Nebraska Director of BQA will be presenting information on the new Veterinary Feed Directive. This meeting will update producers on the VFD regulation and help prepare them for the VFD Regulations beginning January 2017. NEWELL | As an illustration of the lengths the federal government must now go to manage all the wild horses under its care, it doesnt get much more telling than this: In South Dakota, a Powerball jackpot winner is now getting paid to let the governments horses roam his land. On Tuesday, officials of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management showed off the roughly 50 square miles of grassland where a herd of 917 newly transferred wild horses will graze for years to come. The land is about 25 miles east of Newell, or about 75 miles northeast of Rapid City. The property is owned by Neal Wanless of South Dakota, who bought it with the proceeds of a $232 million Powerball jackpot he won in 2009 (he opted for a lump-sum payment and took home $89 million after taxes.) Wanless, who is preternaturally averse to media attention, did not attend the tour that was staged for the media Tuesday. His ranch manager, Adam Karrels, attended in his stead. He likes his privacy, Karrels said. Wanless privacy is further protected by his private arrangement with Spur Livestock LLC, which has a registered address in Midland and is owned by South Dakota ranchers Jim Reeves and Lyle Anderson. The government pays Spur Livestock a varying rate of around $2 per head, per day, to ensure that the horses are fed, watered and kept relatively wild and free-roaming. Spur Livestock, in turn, has a private deal with Wanless to keep the horses on his land. Spur Livestock has another contract for 400 BLM wild horses kept on land near Eagle Butte. During the past fiscal year, the company was paid a total of about $1 million by the federal government, according to the government website USAspending.gov. The pastures managed by Spur Livestock are known as off-range pastures, because they are home to excess horses culled from the free-roaming herds on vast BLM ranges in places such as Nevada, Wyoming and Oregon. The BLM has about 67,000 horses on wild ranges, which BLM officials say is 40,000 more than the ranges can support. Some of the excess horses are adopted, but those that are not adopted must be kept somewhere. Increasingly, those horses are being sent to off-range pastures. There are now 32,000 wild horses in 28 off-range pastures like the two operated by Spur Livestock, and the BLM is adding five more off-range pastures this year. Another 12,000 excess BLM horses are waiting in holding corrals, bringing the total number of off-range horses under the BLMs care to nearly 45,000. During the 2015 fiscal year, the federal government paid the owners and operators of all those off-range corrals and pastures $49 million. The BLM has little choice but to keep all of its horses alive and well, because of the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act approved by Congress in 1971. The law grew out of concern about the widespread roundup and slaughter of wild horses in the American West. It now prevents the killing of wild horses on BLM land and some other federal lands in all but a few limited circumstances, such as when horses need to be euthanized because of their old age, lameness or sickness. Some wild horses on non-BLM federal lands are not protected by the 1971 law, and when those horses grow to unsustainable numbers, they're often adopted or rescued by private sanctuaries. That's how the International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros near Lantry accumulated many of its 810 horses, which were impounded recently by county authorities after allegations surfaced of starving horses on the society's ranch. BLM officials on Tuesday's tour stressed that there is no connection whatsoever between the private Lantry sanctuary and the BLM wild-horse program. The BLM is trying to stem the growth of its wild herds with ongoing research into population-control methods, including a fertility control vaccine. Meanwhile, the agency has few options but to keep culling wild horses from the ranges and expanding the off-range pasture program. In September, when a BLM advisory board voted to recommend selling or euthanizing some of the off-range horses, it sparked a public outcry and led the BLM to issue assurances that it would not act on the recommendation. The Wanless land is one of the newest off-range pastures. The wild horses that occupy it were formerly kept on a large ranch near Fort Pierre until the ranch was sold and Spur Livestock lost its lease. Reeves and Anderson needed a new home for the herd and connected with Wanless, who issued a statement through the South Dakota Lottery after his 2009 Powerball win that said, in part, I just want to go home and ranch and ride horse and check cows. There are still some cattle on the Wanless ranch near Newell, but 33,000 of the ranchs 42,000 acres are now available to the wild horses. They will be moved around to various parts of the ranch throughout the year to avoid overgrazing, and theyll drink from dams and from a system of pipes and tanks that Wanless installed to bring water from the Belle Fourche River. Other than that, the horses will basically live free until death. The average age of the horses on the Wanless land is 15 to 17 years, and some are as old as 34. As older horses die, more horses will be brought in, up to a maximum of 1,022 horses at any given time. All of the horses are geldings, having been castrated upon their removal from the wild ranges. Some other off-range pastures contain only mares, and none have studs. Not everyone has welcomed the horses. A neighboring landowner to the Wanless ranch, Sharon Herron, has appealed the BLM environmental assessment that allowed the herd to be transferred. That appeal will be heard by the federal governments Interior Board of Land Appeals and could result in anything from a rejection to an order to remove the horses. The BLM has tried to address one of Herrons concerns by installing double-fencing along her border with the Wanless ranch, thereby providing extra insurance against wild horses roaming onto Herrons land. But she has expressed numerous other concerns, including the cost of the wild-horse program to taxpayers. She thinks policies should change to allow some wild horses to be sent to slaughter. The underlying problem is that the USA does not have a slaughter plant to properly dispose of live horses and to market horse byproducts, Herron has written. One affected party that seems greatly pleased with the move to the Wanless ranch is the horses themselves. As reporters looked on Thursday, the animals spread across Wanless sweeping, scenic grassy and treeless plains, some of them becoming barely visible specks after crossing only a fraction of their new home. About 40 miles to the southwest loomed the unmistakable form of Bear Butte, and behind it stretched nearly the entirety of the Black Hills, with mountaintops such as Crow Peak, Terry Peak and Black Elk Peak clearly visible. Debbie Collins, an Oklahoma-based national marketing and outreach specialist for the BLMs Wild Horse and Burro Program, marveled at the landscape. Its not such a bad place to hang out, she said, if youre not on the range. PIERRE | The governor will ask the Legislature next year to grant tax breaks to landowners who maintain grassy buffer strips along waterways to reduce agricultural runoff, a state government tax official said Monday. Gov. Dennis Daugaard, a Republican, had vetoed the same concept at the end of the 2016 session. The original measure came from Sen. Jim Peterson, D-Revillo. His supporters in the House of Representatives couldnt muster the two-thirds majority needed to override the March veto. Petersons legislation called for tax breaks on buffer strips up to 50 feet wide. Daugaards legislation would offer tax breaks on wider strips up to 120 feet. The announcement of Daugaard's formal intent came during a meeting Monday of the Legislatures task force on agricultural land assessment implementation and oversight. Peterson is chairman for the task force this year and is retiring from the Legislature for a second time. Peterson wanted less dirt, chemicals and manure flowing from farm fields and livestock pastures into the Big Sioux River and other waterways throughout South Dakota. He praised Daugaard on Monday for taking up the cause. I think the governors version is a better version than the one I wrote, Peterson told the task force. Michael Houdyshell, director for the state division of property taxes and special taxes, said the program could be applied to as many as 343,000 acres of land. He said it would have an estimated statewide impact of possibly $1.2 million on local tax revenues. Its relatively small in the grand scheme of things, Houdyshell said. The governors intent is to offer the bill as part of his legislative package rather than route it through the task force, according to Houdyshell. We think the bill is in a really good spot, he said. We think it is a better product. Peterson spoke with appreciation for the administrations willingness to preview the bill for the task force, whose members include legislators, county assessors and agricultural producers. I think it was really great you brought this to this committee, Peterson told Houdyshell, adding there is now time to vet the legislation. The 2017 session opens in three months. Rancher Lyle Perman, a task force member from Lowry, suggested the tax effect wouldnt be as great as what had been estimated. Perman said he likes the legislation because it keeps discussion of grassland in the forefront but he doesnt foresee landowners planting new buffer strips in Walworth County. I dont think the incentive is great enough, he said. He said nobody was going to build a fence and keep cattle out just for a tax savings of two dollars per acre. Its because they have a conservation ethic, Perman said. Other task force members reflected the diversity of South Dakotas agriculture in their opinions about the incentive. Sen. Gary Cammack, R-Union Center, is a rancher and ranch supply store owner. He said the bill would have almost no effect for the majority of agriculture producers in western South Dakota. Another task force member, Kirk Chaffee, who is Meade Countys director of equalization, said even the additional 70 feet of width offered in the Daugaard version wouldnt be sufficiently attractive in western counties. This is a classic example: The juice is not worth the squeeze, Chaffee said. Perman agreed with Cammack that management choices would affect whether pastures could qualify. Perman suggested finding a way for ranchers short on rain to generate credit toward another year. You have to allow some flexibility for management, Perman said. The task force agreed to introduce a separate piece of legislation in 2017 that would further refine the definition of agricultural land for tax purposes. That measure also came from Houdyshell and the Daugaard administration. Legislation known as Senate Bill 3 that won approval in the 2016 legislative session established a two-part test for land to be taxed at the agricultural rate. The land needed to have been used for agricultural production during at least three of the past five years and needed to have generated income of at least $2,500 annually from agricultural use. The new proposal would allow either requirement to be met rather than both. We just think this is cleaner, Houdyshell said. The proposal also would eliminate the minimum requirement of 20 acres so long as the principal use was agricultural. PIERRE | About 850 requests for South Dakota hunting and fishing licenses have been blocked so far under a new program that penalizes people who don't pay up on debts owed to the state. State administration official Jeff Holden told a state committee on Tuesday that the state's new debt collection center recently sent a list of 7,712 debtors to the state Game, Fish & Parks Department. He said the subsequent search by GF&P blocked 850 licenses. The list was also sent to the state Department of Revenue for sanctions on motor vehicle registrations. But Holden said revenue officials are facing a challenge with registrations bearing multiple names. The Department of Public Safety plans to start blocking driver licenses Nov. 15, according to Holden. Gov. Dennis Daugaard won the Legislatures approval in 2015 to establish the so-called Obligation Recovery Center and hire a company to run it for state government. The center has drawn some concerns because the names of debtors who havent worked out a payment plan are turned over to state agencies for sanctions that include denial of driver licenses, vehicle registrations, hunting and fishing licenses and state campsite permits. The Board of Regents, which oversees state universities, recently expressed a desire to not use the collection center and thereby not have to prevent students who owe money from getting a driver's license or other state permits. The regents didnt want any current or former students to lose licenses over university debts. Monte Kramer, vice president for finance and administration in the regents central office, had worked out a memorandum of understanding reflecting that position. The memorandum was made with the state Bureau of Administration that oversees the center. But the regents declined to approve the memorandum earlier this month because it appeared to contradict the sanctions language in state law. The Legislatures Government Operations and Audit Committee brought in Kramer and Jeff Holden to answer questions Tuesday. Kramer said he would take options to the regents at their December meeting. The 2015 law lets state agencies decide whether to refer their uncollected debts to the center. However, the governor has told all agencies and departments under his direct control to use the center. The law is permissive for the regents, the state courts system and constitutional elected offices. Kramer told the legislators Tuesday that university officials were happy they didnt have to use the center. He said the regents hadnt intended to use the center because the campuses were doing a good job. Sen. Deb Peters, R-Hartford, didnt like the regents attempt at protecting students from the debt-sanction list. Well guess what, theyre taxpayers too, Peters said. Kramer said the universities might refer only debts of $250 or more. He said nothing has been written off in two years. The universities have their own forms of sanctions. We dont give someone a diploma if they owe us debt, Kramer said. He added that debtors arent allowed to enroll for a new semester either. That hold stays on their record forever, Kramer said. Thats how weve managed to get our debt at less than a percent. The universities used private debt-collection agencies in some instances for debts of $100 or more. Kramer said universities werent allowed by the regents to seek write-offs from the state Board of Finance unless the debt was at least two years old and had gone through two collection agencies. He said existing debt that is being pursued by collection agencies will need to be pulled back and turned over to the state center. The debt dating back to 2011 and beyond is about $2.5 million while the debt since then is about $18 million, Kramer told the legislators. He said much of the debt likely belongs to students who dropped out or didnt get the financial aid they expected. There are many reasons we dont want to make this entire population unhappy, Kramer said. Some of the universities were writing off debt and others werent, Kramer acknowledged. I would say we have not been consistent, Kramer said. We leave that up to the institutions to decide. The Board of Finance that set aside the write-offs Tuesday for Northern State University and Secretary of State's Office plans to discuss its policy regarding the state center at its November meeting. The debts for those agencies hadnt been processed yet through state collection center. Jason Dilges, state commissioner of finance and management, serves on the Board of Finance and has been deeply involved in establishing the center. Dilges suggested bringing a process to the board next month so that any debt that comes to the board must have previously gone through the center. For today well put this off until we can have that discussion, said Tony Venhuizen, the governors chief of staff. He is chairman for the Board of Finance. Northern State wanted a write-off for $119,497.97 of uncollectible amounts. The Secretary of State Office sought a write-off for $21,500 of uncollectible amounts that had reached the statute of limitation expiration. South Dakota's senior senator is calling for aid for the ranchers affected by a widespread weekend wildfire east of Rapid City. Dubbed the Cottonwood Fire, it erupted about 1 p.m. Sunday about 11 miles east of Wall and spread quickly, pushed by high winds, unseasonably warm temperatures and low humidity. Rapid City Fire Department spokesman Lt. Jim Bussell said in a news release the fire was considered completely contained by 8 p.m. Tuesday. While responders had the blaze mostly contained Monday, crews spent much of Tuesday mopping up and completing damage estimates for structures and livestock lost in the fire. Officials initially estimated the wildfire scorched about 31,000 acres, or about 48 square miles. On Tuesday, updated GPS mapping lifted that acreage total to 41,360 acres. "There fire did not experience any growth in the past 36 hours," Bussell said in the update. "This number simply represents more accurate mapping of the fire perimeter." Livestock killed in the fire, as reported to the Jackson County Sheriff's Office, remained at 137 head Tuesday night. Several ranchers have reported injured animals that will need to be evaluated by veterinarians. Valuable grasslands for grazing also were lost. The extent of the damage led U.S. Sen. John Thune to write U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Tuesday to ask for disaster assistance for ranchers affected by the fire, many of whom he said are still recovering from the devastation of Winter Storm Atlas three years ago. Thune, a Republican, also asked for coordination between the Farm Service Agency and the state Department of Agriculture to help ranchers in the area get access to remaining hay that has been donated through the Conservation Reserve Program's mid-contract management. Once again, the producers in this area urgently need timely assistance from USDA due to the devastating feed and livestock losses caused by the Cottonwood Fire, and I strongly urge you to take whatever action necessary to provide assistance to these producers through FSA disaster assistance programs, including the Livestock Forage Program, the Livestock Indemnity Program, the Emergency Conservation Program, and the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honey Bees, and Farm-raised Fish Program, Thune wrote. The Pennington County Type 3 Incident Management Team turned management of the incident over to local resources on Monday evening. The fire is now under the management of the Wall, Interior, Philip and Kadoka fire departments, the Jackson County Sheriff's Office, and Buffalo Gap National Grassland, according to Bussell. Bussell said because of the continued high winds, a handful of fire crews remained on the scene overnight Monday to monitor the fire and watch for flare-ups. He praised the first responders, and thanked the joint efforts of multiple agencies in battling the blaze. Nearly 300 firefighters from 10 counties, most of them volunteers, responded to the fire. "In many cases, firefighters responding to the initial fire fronts put themselves at risk of great personal harm," he wrote. "These actions undoubtedly stopped the Cottonwood Fire from becoming an even larger and more devastating disaster." Bussell said crews assessing damage from the fire have determined that no primary residential homes were lost in the fire. Investigators have pinpointed the location where the fire started and have determined it to be human-caused, ruling out lightning or other natural causes. Bussell said the specific cause of the fire remained under investigation Tuesday. Echoing Thune's sentiments, Bussell ended his update with a note to the people in Pennington and Jackson counties affected by the wildfire. "Members of this team are friends and neighbors to the residents of Eastern Pennington and Jackson Counties. Although our part of managing the incident is over, you will remain in our collective thoughts as your communities work to recover from the Cottonwood Fire," he wrote. "If history has taught us anything though, it is that the tough and determined spirit of the Western South Dakota rancher is a force of nature to be reckoned with unto itself. God bless." Bitterroot National Forest officials want to harvest about 45 acres of fire-killed trees near three trailheads in the Roaring Lion drainage southwest of Hamilton. The trees were burned in the 8,700-acre Roaring Lion fire this summer. People interested in offering comments have until Nov. 1 to get those submitted. Darby District Ranger Eric Winthers said the hope is to have the harvest completed this winter so the trails can be reopened next spring or early summer. The logging would occur near the Roaring Lion, Sawtooth and Ward Mountain trailheads. The proposed salvage sale would make the trailheads safer by removing trees prone to falling over, cut down on the long-term buildup of fuels in the wildland urban interfaces and provide raw materials for the wood products industry, according to a Bitterroot Forest press release. Plans call for removing the trees using ground-based logging methods this winter. Whole trees will be skidded to a landing and the slash piled and burned. No new roads will be required. About 12 acres of the project are inside the Selway-Bitterroot Inventoried Roadless Area. That acreage was part of a larger fuels reduction proposal called the Westside Collaborative Vegetation Management Project. The Roaring Lion fire burned through a portion of the project area, including several hundred acres that would have been hand thinned. The fire accomplished the goal of reducing the fuels in those units, Winthers said. The area being considered for the salvage sale was the only Westside project unit that burned where commercial logging had been proposed. We had 10 to 15 percent mortality in some of the other commercial units, but that wasnt enough to necessitate dropping those units out of the project, Winthers said. Since the fire burned through areas classified as roadless or on very steep hillsides, Winthers said there wasnt an opportunity to do additional salvage logging. The three trailheads will remain closed until the logging is completed. Winthers said the bridge over Sawtooth Creek was damaged by the fire and will be rebuilt by the Selway-Pintler Wilderness Backcountry Horsemen. Comments on the salvage sale should be submitted to Winthers by one of the following methods: mail P.O. Box 388, Darby, Montana 59829; fax 406-821-4264, or email comments-northern-bitterroot-darby@fs.fed.us. Comments should include: 1) name, address, phone number, and organization represented, if any; 2) title of project on which the comments are being submitted; and 3) substantive comments including specific facts and supporting information for the District Ranger to consider. Please put Comments on Roaring Lion Fire Salvage Project in the subject line for which you are submitting comments. Names and contact information (including addresses and email addresses) submitted with comments will become part of the public record and may be released under the Freedom of Information Act. Bitterroot Forest officials hope to move forward with the remainder of the Westside fuels reduction project as soon as possible. A landowner filed a lawsuit in July against the project due to concerns about a proposed new road and bridge near the familys property. We are entering into negotiations with the litigant, Winthers said. We are hoping to make some make progress. I think well know fairly soon. Were hoping to get that larger project done or started this winter. Anyone interested in helping work toward solutions to the challenges facing the Bitterroot Valley will want to set some time aside Thursday, Oct. 20, to attend the Bitterroot Community Symposium hosted by the Bitterroot College. Participants in the symposium will talk about challenges people face in the Bitterroot Valley and how nonprofits, local government and community members can work together to address those challenges. Dave Schultz with the Bitterroot Nonprofit Partnership said the idea came to him after seeing people come together at the colleges symposium on water. Shultzs goal is to help nonprofit organizations build capacity. The nonprofit community is always on my mind, he said. I had the idea of having the symposium for the improved performance of the valleys nonprofits. I think people may discount the essential services that make our community better. This will elevate the visibility of that and help people connect with a more intentional connection. There are 200 to 300 nonprofits in the Bitterroot Valley. A volunteer with the Bitterroot Nonprofit Partnership is updating the contact list that they received from the state. Its a very fluid list, Schultz said. We get the list and call each one of them and find out if they are active and who is their contact person. Schultz said he hopes this symposium will improve communication between nonprofit groups. Well talk about how to serve the community together. Thats why we organized the symposium, Schultz said. It is tough to find the time to network and come up with creative ideas but we should be working together. This is a way to identify and define more complex issues in the community and figure out the best way to work together on a common agenda. Schultz said hearing the symposium speakers and participating in the process would be a valuable time investment. I recommend everyone to come, he said. There will be fun activities and ways to think of collective needs and find out what everyone is thinking. Roch Turner, Bitterroot College Director of Workforce Programs and Development, will start the day and lead a community understanding exercise in the afternoon. Susan Hay Patrick, CEO of United Way of Missoula County, will give the kickoff address and Deb Halliday, senior policy advisor for the Office of Public Instruction, will give the keynote address. Halliday and Laurie Bishop will give a workshop in the afternoon on what made Graduation Matters Montana successful. Nonprofits, volunteers and community members will brainstorm solutions during a networking luncheon and there will be breakout sessions on grant writing, public communication, community conversations, national service, civic engagement in the classroom and the successful collaborative solutions of Graduation Matters Montana. Bitterroot Community Symposium co-organizer Kate Johnson said the event is the start of a conversation. This symposium brings people together to talk about the challenges that our community faces and how we can work together in a way that gets things done, Johnson said. Maybe well find something a bunch of us are working on in our own separate ways and maybe well find ways we combine and work on it together. Johnson said collective impact is the idea of many people coming together working together to solve critical issues. Well examine the Graduation Matters Montana model and how that was the idea of collective impact, she said. We all see critical issues in the valley but it takes a lot of different people doing their thing with a common goal to make a difference. Johnson said she selected Thursday for the symposium date as Montana educators have the day free of classes to attend the Montana Educators Association Conference in Helena for professional development and to obtain renewal units. We invited all the teachers of the valley and we are offering renewal units so teachers can remain in the Bitterroot Valley and participate, Johnson said. Also, teachers may want the information on how their students can have more civic involvement or know more about volunteerism. Turner said the symposium would benefit the community. People living in Ravalli County who are invested in the well-being of their community will find this event very engaging, he said. There will be broad scale discussions on how we define community and address critical issues faced by residents of the Bitterroot Valley. Additionally, there will be more pointed training on how we can utilize the collective impact model to collaboratively work more efficiently. Johnson said that over 50 participants have registered for the Bitterroot Community Symposium. Nonprofits will be hosting tables at the networking lunch including RSVP, Bitterroot Collective Impact, Valley Veterans Service Center, Bitterroot Celtic Society, Bitter Root Water Forum, Human Resource Council and Youth Dynamics. For more information, and to register, go on line to umt.edu/bitterroot-college. The Bitterroot Community Symposium will be at the Bitterroot College 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Bitterroot College, 103 S 9th St, Hamilton, 406-375-0100 or email bc@umontana.edu. HAMILTON - Captain John L. Hickman, USMC (ret.), died on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2016, at the Remington in Hamilton. He was born at Logansport, Indiana, July 3, 1939, and graduated from Logansport High School in 1957. John attended the University of Indiana from 1957 to 1958. In January 1959 John saw the light and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps for four years; upon separation he continued his good judgment and enrolled at the University of Montana. While at the University he was a Sigma Nu fraternity member and graduated with a B.A. in history. He was commissioned in 1966 and went on active duty. John had three tours in Vietnam, one at sea and two ashore. Among his awards are a bronze star with a combat V and two purple hearts. His first purple heart was the result of a mine that detonated under his tracked vehicle and he was knocked unconscious for seven days. This head injury contributed to his death almost 50 years later; he was knocked unconscious on two occasions about five years ago and his decline was rapid. 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The meeting of the high level bilateral mechanism is scheduled for October 26-27 at New Delhi on Wednesday. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), the meeting is going to be held to review and assess past agreements and commitments reached between the two countries. The meeting is held in the mean time when there is a widespread criticism that India has not fulfilled its past commitments. Foreign Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat will head to Delhi on October 25 leading a Nepali delegation while Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will also lead the Indian delegation during the meeting. The officials of the Ministry of foreign affairs and the officials of the concerned ministers are incorporated in the delegation. It is expected that the foreign minister level meeting is going is going to be held following a Foreign Secretary -level meeting, which was held earlier. The long being stalled joint commission meeting was fixed during the recent state visit of Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal to India. During the meeting, both the sides had agreed to hold the Joint Commission Meeting at the earliest. Kathmandu, Nepal: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal is going to address the legislative parliament today. It is said that Prime Minister will inform about the recent Goa of India trip and the bilateral and trilateral meetings with various leaders including China and India. The tripartite meeting held between the Prime Ministr Dahal, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is dragged into controversies. Minister for Urban Development and the leader of Nepali delegation, Arjun Narasingha KC, addressing the Third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) in Quito on Tuesday. (RSS KATHMANDU, Oct 19: Minister for Urban Development and the leader of Nepali delegation, Arjun Narasingha KC, addressed the Third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) in Quito, on October 18. In his address, the Minister highlighted the commitment of the Government of Nepal to creating inclusive and sustainable cities through the implementation of Nepals Habitat III National Report which was published under the theme of Inclusive Cities: Resilient Communities in synergy with the New Urban Agenda and 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development, especially the SDG 11. He expressed his confidence that the effective implementation of the Report, which was prepared through a wide consultation with relevant stakeholders, will help realize the objectives of the New Urban Agenda and ultimately contribute to sustainable development of Nepal, the Permanent Mission of Nepal to the United Nations, New York, stated in a press release. Referring to the devastating earthquakes that struck Nepal in 2015 and Ecuador earlier this year, the Minister underscored the need to pay attention to disaster resilience which needed to be considered right from planning phase incorporating the principle of build-back-better. He also added that this idea builds into the ambitious reconstruction plan of Nepal. Minister KC highlighted that the new Constitution of Nepal guarantees basic rights of housing, adding that there was progress in establishing a new urban governance structure at local, provincial and federal level. Minister concluded by laying focus on scaling up investments in sustainable and resilient settlements and on the importance of implementing the New Urban Agenda in full coherence and perfect synergy with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. He also participated Urban Dignity: Equal Access to Sanitation and Hygiene in Public Spaces, a side-event organized by Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) in Quito in the afternoon same day. Speaking in the event, the Minister said that the new Constitution of Nepal guarantees water and sanitation, clean and healthy environment and housing as basic rights of all Nepali people. Minister attended the Opening Ceremony of the Habitat III held at the Casa de la Cultura Ecuatoriana in Quito on October 17. Speaking in the Ceremony, Mr. Rafael Correa, President of Ecuador who chaired the Ceremony as President of the Conference; Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General; Peter Thomson, President of the General Assembly; and Dr. Joan Clos, Secretary-General of the Conference each highlighted the importance of the Conference to reinvigorate the global commitment to sustainable urbanization, and also shared their belief that the New Urban Agenda would deliver its promise of inclusive and sustainable human settlements. The Ceremony was attended by many Heads of State/Governments, Vice-Presidents, Ministers, and representatives of member states; heads and representatives of various United Nations organs; representatives of the civil society, private sector, business community and other city actors. The four-day Habitat III began here on October 17 and will conclude on 20 October 2016 by adopting the New Urban Agenda the text of which was finalized through intense intergovernmental negotiations, and its Quito Implementation Plan. The New Urban Agenda envisions sustainable, inclusive and resilient societies through the implementation of the Agenda in synergy and coherence with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Minister KC arrived in Quito in the evening of 16 October to lead the Nepali delegation to the Third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III). RSS An error occurred while processing your request. The page you are looking for on this website is unavailable, has moved, or does not exist. Please visit collinsaerospace.com to find the product or service you are looking for. 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It looks like the fringe has been active again, this time in Vrindavan. A small gang of people from the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal and other groups disrupted a gathering of atheists on Friday, beating up attendees and causing general mayhem. This in itself has become so commonplace that it is no longer news. However, what should alarm us all is the way the police a which is under the aseculara state government of Akhilesh Yadav a joined the disruptors. Instead of protecting the participants of the atheism conference by dispersing the small saffron gang, the police joined them and forced the eventas organiser to cancel the meeting. Unsatisfied with that, the police also insisted on the participantsa immediate departure from Vrindavan itself. Swami Balendu, who lives in Vrindavan and has an ashram there, had invited his friends and like minded people for a conference on atheism. The Seva Bindu Ashram, the venue for this conference, is his private property. Even though he was well within his rights to invite people to his private place, he had taken the step of informing the Mathura administration and taking permission from them. Balendu works with the poor, especially children, and runs a small dhaba called Ammaji to support these children and their families. The meet was supposed to start on October 14. Balendu announced his plans at a press conference in Delhi a few days ago and was then asked by journalists to hold a press meet in Vrindavan. A day before the scheduled conference, Balendu held a small briefing for the media. He did not say anything which could be termed explosive or insulting to religious sentiments. The usual stuff a Balendu said that religion was imagined by humans and therefore fictional. The next morning, on the day the conference was supposed to begin, local newspapers reported it in their own colourful way. This reportage served as the pretext for the goons who sought to justify their attack, and also for the police to intervene as they could claim the conference had created tensions in the town and caused a law and order problem. Later, it turned out that the local press meet was in fact a trap. The press people had been asked by the VHP and Bajrang Dal men to call Swami Balendu to hold this press interaction. They wanted some proof for their complaint and the local media obliged. The required aproofa was created by reporting aoutrageousa aanti-religiousa comments made by the swami. Institutional collusion The police took swift action. They brought a bulldozer and dismantled a covering over a drain which separated the ashram from the road, calling it an encroachment. Taking it down meant that it became difficult for people to cross the open drain to reach the ashram. Food inspectors arrived and started collecting samples from the dhaba. The administration threatened to close down the dhaba, saying they suspected that adulterated and unhygienic food was being served there. aI have never heard such filthy abuses in my lifea , Sarvesh, a photo journalist who was in Vrindavan to cover the event said. When she saw the crowd of tricolour-wielding men, all clad in dhotis and kurtas, raising threatening slogans, she took out her camera and started shooting. They pounced on her, showering her with abuses, tore her clothing and beat her up. aI got beaten up today Apoorva Bhaia , she told me with a nervous laugh as I listened helplessly. aThe police were standing close by as mute spectators. You should have seen those goons, Apoorva Bhai. They beat us and fled.a aThey were very few in number. It should not have been difficult for the police to disperse them. But the reverse happened. The police asked us not to create a law and order problem and cancel our meet.a Ashutosh Kumar, a literary critic and my colleague at Delhi University who was also present for the incident, added. Himanshu Kumar , who had to leave Dantewada after his ashram was bulldozed by the Raman Singh government, had gone to Vrindavan with his family, including his two daughters and also witnessed these events. He reported, aI saw jeeps with BJP posters. Saffron clad goons, with lathis in their hands, were leading a small mob, with placards demanding [the] arrest of the atheists. We were stopped from reaching the meeting venue. Women participants were being chased and abused.a Kumar tried to argue with the police and the city magistrate, telling them that they could not disallow a private meeting and it was their duty to protect the attendees from the disrupters. However, the police and the administration were unrelenting. Balendu was forced to announce the cancellation of the meet. Participants told the police that they were free to arrest them but refused to vacate the ashram as per the policeas demands. As of 9 PM on Friday, the participants were still inside the ashram, singing, performing and chanting. aWhy hold an atheist meet in a Hindu religious place like Vrindavan? Do you have the nerve to do something like this in the Nizamuddin Dargah? Go to Mecca and Medina and do it there if you have the guts. You were served righta , was a comment posted on social media regarding the issue. We would cite Charvaka, even Buddha to enlighten the attackers and the police that atheism is very much a part of Indian tradition. We could also quote Bhagat Singhas text, aWhy I am an Atheist?a. But that is not the point. It is not that this violence is a result of some hurt arising out of ignorance, nothing of that kind. This need to curb such meetings is about dominating all spaces a political, social and cultural. Public and private. According to them, nothing remains private anymore, they can barge into your class room, your galleries, your conferences. They do not like the existence of any other voice. No central command but a clear pattern Let us not be mistaken. There is no central command here issuing orders for such action. But everywhere, be it the Central University of Haryana where the university is under attack from locals instigated by the ABVP (the BJPas student organisation) or Indore, where the IPTA national conference was disrupted, or Udaipur, where a film festival was forcibly shifted to a different venue, or Vrindavan where the administration of a state government run by a aseculara party took it upon itself to shut down an atheist conference, the attackers belong to the same family, we know it as the Sangh parivar. The BJP is definitely behind it. This becomes clear when we read about BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayavargeya justifying the disruption of the IPTA meeting by calling leftists anti-nationals. One would wonder why the left, which is politically insignificant, is the Sangh parivaras first target. It is worth noting that to justify its attacks, the parivar first describes its target as aleft;. Thus a writer like Nayantara Sahgal or Ashok Vajpeyi, and all atheists, become leftist. Should we then take solace in this frivolity? Should we say that the arrogance of the left is to blame for this? It would be very foolish of us if we did that. Because the definition of the left has changed now. Everybody who is targeted by the Sangh parivar members is labelled leftist now. It has become as simple an exercise as it is ridiculous. Even more worrying is the way the police and administration are brazenly aligning themselves with the Sanghas ideology. The state apparatus now acts as an extension of the Sangh. Under the new afirst time Hindu governmenta, it feels confident in its actions, uninhibited by secular constitutional constraints. We must sit up and smell the new scent in the air. It is not a pleasant one. [See related material here: http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/vrindavan-s-nastik-sammelan-called-off-amid-protests-by-saints/story-Jt88wrtuhmmyKvqr8XvBzK.html ] open democracy - 19 October 2016 Growing confidence among resurgent Sikh fundamentalist networks in the UK was evident in recent protests against inter-faith marriage. A desire to control Sikh womenas relationship choices is a key focal point for their mobilisation. Masked men disrupt an inter-faith marriage at Leamington and Warwick gurdwara, UK. Photo: Independent. All rights reserved. On Sunday 11th September 2016, as world attention focused on the 15th anniversary of Islamist attacks on the Twin Towers, local press attention momentarily shifted to the arrest of 55 members of Sikh Youth UK at the Leamington and Warwick gurdwara (place of worship for Sikhs). The group claimed that this was a apeaceful protesta against the scheduled Anand Karaj (Sikh wedding ceremony) between a Sikh bride and non-Sikh groom. They also claimed that they are not opposed to interfaith marriage per se a stating that Sikh and non-Sikh couples can have a civil marriage and also receive a gurdwara blessing a but that the Rehat Maryada, a code of conduct developed in the 1930s, reserves the Anand Karaj for Sikhs exclusively. This prohibition was re-iterated in an August 2015 agreement reached by 300 Sikh organisations. There are problems with these claims. The protest was clearly intended to intimidate. Protestors turned up with heads and faces covered and some were carrying kirpans. Although they claimed that kirpans are ceremonial daggers and that these had been misrepresented by the media as abladesa and aweaponsa, religious references were used to obfuscate the blindingly obvious. Itas true that kirpans are usually only carried by a small minority of baptised Sikhs but there is also a history in the UK of kirpans, and Sikh martial arts weapons, being used during violent in-fighting within gurdwaras and especially by Sikh fundamentalist factions. Moreover, this particular incident followed other aggressive interventions at gurdwaras in Southall, Birmingham, Coventry and Swindon. As with these other episodes, the protestors filmed the incident and circulated the film footage in a move to publicly shame families already pushing against deeply conservative proscriptions. The film footage shows protestors referring to interfaith marriage (not just the Anand Karaj) as amessed upa, stating that aLeamington is finished when weave got elders saying itas alright to marry white people, black peoplea. Jagraj Singh has been one of the main spokespeople defending the protests. One need look no further than the youtube videos of Basics of Sikhi to see him opposing interfaith relationships. In one such clip, he states arelationships or dating are not part of Sikhi, marriage is part of Sikhia. Relationships outside the conjugal union are presented as uncontrolled lust and marriage is clearly seen as something that only takes place between two Sikhs. The Rehat is highly gendered and presents a problem for minority Sikhs who do not subscribe to the Khalsa version of the religion. The section on marriage states aa Sikhas daughter must be married to a Sikha and tells Sikh women to treat their (Sikh) husbands with adeferential solicitudea. Fortunately, more liberal Sikhs have spoken out about the hypocrisy of protestors who selectively focus on one section of a man made code of conduct that has itself been amended three times while turning a blind eye to serious issues like familial sexual abuse. Herpreet Kaur Grewal noted that the focus is always on Sikh girls marrying out while there is relative silence and inaction on caste discrimination and female foeticide. Throughout the 1980s and the 1990s, the prohibition on mixed relationships manifested itself in regular reprisals between Sikh and Muslim gangs for targeting atheira women. The question is, why has this resurfaced now? Why has a rule invented in the 1930s gained renewed significance in the last few years? The Leamington incident has given rise to some intense theological debates but one needs to focus, instead, on the political context of these events to comprehend their dynamics. Resurgent Sikh fundamentalist forces in the UK In the past decade, but particularly since the 2012 I Pledge Orange campaign for a stay of execution of Balwant Singh Rajoana (one of four Sikh fundamentalist activists responsible for the suicide bomb that in 1995 killed the Chief Minister of Punjab and 17 other people) there has been an exponential rise in the numbers and confidence of Sikh fundamentalist forces in the UK. This growing momentum is particularly visible at the annual commemoration in London of Operation Bluestar, the name given to the Indian Prime Minister, Indira Gandhias assault on the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar in June 1984. Importantly, a number of Sikh fundamentalist activists had fled to the US, Canada and Europe in anticipation of Indira Gandhias crackdown on Sikh militancy. Two organisations behind the annual June 1984 commemoration events a Dal Khalsa and Sikh Federation UK a are the main Sikh fundamentalist organisations in England. The Dal Khalsa is a right wing political party that emerged as a cover for Jarnail Singh Bhindranwaleas electoral ambitions so that he could present himself as an orthodox protector of the religion. The group have been implicated in the murder of members of minority sects and its primary objective is to establish a Sikh theocratic state otherwise known as Khalistan. Sikhs rally in Trafalgar Square, 2011, to mark the attack on the Golden Temple in Amritsar in 1984. Photo: BBC The Sikh Federation UK are a large Sikh political party (conventions numbering 10,000 delegates) but itas leadership are almost entirely former members of the organisation International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF). ISYF was established by Bhindranwaleas nephew Jasbir Singh Rode and others living in Walsall in order to mobilise international support for secession from India. ISYF was banned in Britain in 2001 under anti-terror laws because its members had been responsible for assassinations, bombings and kidnappings. Along with the Babbar Khalsa International, they were implicated in the 1985 bombing of the Air India flight 182 from London to Montreal which killed 329 people and also the attempted bombing of the Air India flight 301. But key members of the ISYF founded the Sikh Federation UK. The ISYF and the Sikh Federation UK have the same objectives but through their seemingly areasonablea and aciviliseda lobbying tactics, Sikh Federation have successfully garnered support among key politicians leading to their success in lifting the UKas ban on ISYF. The annual commemoration in London of Operation Bluestar has become a space where many of the nodes in the constellation of Sikh fundamentalist networks in the UK become highly visible. Sikh organisations that otherwise pass as moderate welfare providers or civil rights groups reveal their ideological leanings at these events. Moreover, the organisers are actively involved in reconstructing collective memory as the terror instilled by Bhindranwale and his men is overlooked or forgotten and Sikh fundamentalist claims are sanitised. Every major political party now sends an MP to address the rally in Trafalgar Square. These demonstrations have grown from a hundred or so fairly marginal student groups, to tens of thousands of participants of varied ages from around the country. The demand for Khalistan and the pressure to live by the rules of a very narrow version of Sikhism have been intensely invigorated. Sikh fundamentalism now has many foot soldiers who have become a major thorn in the side of gurdwara committees up and down the country, organising talks at gurdwaras and bussing people in to impose their world view. Policing Sikh mores: women in the firing line Within the last couple of years, Sikh fundamentalists discovered the political mileage of public policy attention to child sexual exploitation. Following a series of headline cases in which networks of predominantly Pakistani men were convicted of sexually exploiting white British girls, Sikh fundamentalists claimed that girls from their communities had also been targeted by Muslim men. In September 2013, the BBCas Inside Out documentary series publicly applauded the aservicesa of Mohan Singh of the Sikh Awareness Society (SAS). Twitter activity after the Inside Out documentary was very telling a while outraged Sikh women said they would never trust Mohan Singh and his men to assist them with any difficulties, Sikh men felt vindicated by a programme that validated their own communal anxieties. In the last three or four years, Mohan Singh has become something of a celebrity and a regular speaker at gurdwaras and Sikh student societies up and down the country, whipping up anxieties about womenas relationships and the activities of young people. At one of his talks at a gurdwara in east London, which I attended with a friend, there was deafening silence as he told a packed audience a men, women, young people and small children - that their daughters and sisters were being raped by Muslim men. A series of pictures of Asian men convicted of sexual offences against children were referred to as a along list of Muslim perpetratorsa. These images ran seamlessly into paintings of Moghul warriors beheading and suffocating Sikh leaders during the 1500s in order to make the argument that Muslims represent an historical threat to the aSikh nationa or aQauma. Flagging a crisis among Skihs, Mohan Singh admonished the liberalism of Sikh parents with respect to alcohol consumption and allowing their children to choose their own partners. No mention was made of the fact that violence and abuse is still far more likely to take place within the home, nor were there words of condemnation for familial sexual abuse perpetrated by Sikhs themselves. It is no coincidence that inter-faith marriages have become a growing concern during the same period. Nor that the Birmingham based Sikh Awareness Society has grown in popularity, as has the Wolverhampton based Sikh Federation UK. Young men from the Midlands are bussed into areas around the country to stop inter faith marriages from taking place. Indeed Sikh Youth UK, the group claiming responsibility for the incident on 11th September, is also speaking at gurdwaras and Sikh student societies. Their topic of choice is, unsurprisingly, sexual exploitation and proscriptions on drug and alcohol consumption. Mohan Singh called for Sikhs to establish a national network to aprotecta their women and children a Sikh Youth UK are just one of a number of groups that appear to have heeded that call. In 2014, Mohan Sighas growing popularity and his tour of the UKas gurdwaras translated into a new section of a draft Sikh Manifesto- entitled aaction against perpetrators of grooming and forced conversionsa- by the Sikh Federation UK, Sikh Council and Sikh Network. The document was used to lobby MPs in the run up to the 2015 General Election to meet specific aSikh demandsa. The document reveals skills among Sikh fundamentalists for working through the spaces of governance and power. The Manifesto was endorsed by all the main political parties, an irony indeed for the Sikh Labour councillors in Leamington Spa who are currently under attack by the same Sikh fundamentalist forces. Both the Dal Khalsa and Sikh Federation UK were quick to defend the Sikh Youth UKas protest at Leamington and Warwick gurdwara. While the Dal Khalsa picketed the police station where 55 protestors were held, the Sikh Federation were quick to go on the media offensive. They issued a press release and gained sympathetic press coverage from the tabloids. While claiming to represent athe Sikh communitya, SFUK defended athe justifiable objectiona of Sikhs to interfaith marriage, they applied pressure on the police to apologise for their aover reactiona, and demanded a amore sensitivea response to future protests. Moreover, by stating they would raise media coverage of this issue at a government meeting on hate crime they sought to equate opposition to fundamentalist mobilisations and conservative codes of conduct with hate crime! The press release claims that avirtually all gurdwarasa have been implementing an agreement reached in August 2015 but they fail to mention that this agreement was meant to be voluntary but is, in fact, being imposed through force; this so called aagreementa came about after an assault on an inter faith marriage in Southall in August 2015 and after pressure on that gurdwara to heed the most right wing Sikh voices. Surrounded by the rising tide of fundamentalism, Leamington and Warwick gurdwara committeeas defiance on inter-faith marriage must be applauded and supported. It is a much needed breath of fresh air. About the author Sukhwant Dhaliwal is a Research Fellow and PGR Co-ordinator at the Institute of Applied Social Research, University of Bedfordshire. With Nira Yuval Davis, she is co-editor of Women Against Fundamentalism: Stories of Dissent and Solidarity (Lawrence & Wishart). SNc Channels: Search About Salem-News.com Oct-19-2016 13:25 TweetFollow @OregonNews Oregon Marijuana Business Conference Returns to Ashland in November The after-party is headlined by hip-hop legend Del the Funky Homosapien and an appearance by icon Tommy Chong. An exclusive interview with Salem-News.com's Bonnie King and Tommy Chong will follow the conference. Photo: OMBC (ASHLAND, Ore.) - Mark your calendars because the Oregon Marijuana Business Conference (OMBC) is bringing its trademark blend of business, activism and culture to beautiful Ashland for another information-filled conference on November 19th at the Ashland Hills Hotel & Suites. In addition to the latest information on both medical and recreational laws and regulations, attendees will have great opportunities to network with others in the cannabis community. The timing couldnt be much better for the Oregon cannabis industry to gather in Ashland for the OMBC. New statewide packaging, labeling and testing regulations began on October 1st. Many medical marijuana growers are now required to report monthly to the Oregon Health Authority. Also, the November 8th elections will determine whether various cities and counties across Oregon will enact bans on marijuana businesses. Other cities and counties have imposed their own regulations and fees, adding to the states regulatory hurdles and the federal guidelines that impact the entire cannabis industry. Additionally, more big changes to the recreational and medical marijuana systems are to be expected after the next legislative session. Its a very exciting and complicated time for the Oregon cannabis industry, said Alex Rogers, executive producer of the Oregon Marijuana Business Conference. Nearly 1,500 people have applied for recreational business licenses with the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, hoping to flourish in a market that has already created thousands of jobs and generated millions of dollars for the state. "At the same time, we still have many great growers, processors and dispensaries providing medicine to more than 60,000 sick and disabled patients. The OMBC, while recognizing that cannabis is a major business in Oregon, will always maintain a focus on small farmers and mom-and-pop businesses that have been the foundation of the Oregon cannabis community." The OMBC will be bringing together industry lawyers and entrepreneurs that have navigated Oregon's bureaucratic hurdles to provide an update on the local, state and federal regulations affecting the cannabis community. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask their burning questions, getting answers from attorneys and those that have first-hand experience in the industry. OMBC attendees will be treated to keynote speaker Ed Rosenthal, known as the Guru of Ganja for his extensive knowledge of cultivating the cannabis plant. Rob Patridge, Chair of the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, will also be at the OMBC, discussing OLCC regulations and will take hard-hitting questions from attendees. If you are involved in the recreational or medical marijuana programs, or thinking of joining, then the OMBC is the conference that you must attend. The networking opportunities include an exclusive after-party headlined by hip-hop legend Del the Funky Homosapien and an appearance by icon Tommy Chong. Considering the many changes to our marijuana laws and the emerging opportunities in the Oregon cannabis industry, tickets are going fast. Get your tickets before early bird pricing ends on November 2nd. Sign up for email updates about the conference by signing up on the contact form on the OMBC website. Information about the conference, including speakers, topics and exhibitors are available at the OMBC website. For more information visit http://www.oregonmbc.com or call 541-864-0090. You can also follow the OMBC on Facebook and Twitter. _________________________________________ Prohibition | Marijuana | Medicine | Business | Most Commented on Articles for October 18, 2016 | Articles for October 19, 2016 | Articles for October 20, 2016 You have permission to edit this collection. Edit Close The costliest wildfire in US history, by the numbers Following its presentation as part of the First Look program in Locarno, writer director Maciej Pieprzyca's true life serial killer film Jestem morderca (I'm A Killer) releases on Polish screens November 4th and the trailer for the film looks very good, indeed. Based on an actual case from the early 1970s the film follows a young detective placed in charge of a unit tracking a serial killer targeting young woman. This particular approach to telling a killer story has been around more or less since the very first one of these films but it's all about the execution, really, and the quality here looks very good. Take a look at the trailer below! Having its official Japanese premiere in the Special Invitation section of this year's Kyoto International Film and Art Festival last week was Joel Ramagans Tomodachi (which literally translates as "friend"), an affecting and compelling cross-cultural love story set against the backdrop of World War II. The film, a long-awaited Japanese/Philippine coproduction, tells the true story of a Japanese man named Toshiro (played by talented actor/producer/director Jackie Wu), who spent a significant amount of his life in Cavite, a port city in the north of the Philippines, working extremely hard to make a living and to establish a strong bond with the local community. An open-minded citizen of the world (he also spent some time in Hawaii) and a passionate Tagalog learner, hes eventually found success both in business and in private life his mobile grocery store was at a peak of popularity, while his relationship with a pretty girl named Rosalinda (played by the fast-rising Filipina star Bela Padilla) was at its most intense and romantic stage. However, the sudden outbreak of the war and the Japanese occupation of the Philippines between 1942 and 1945 not only turned most of the residents against Toshiro, but also forced the man to close shop and join the Imperial Army as a soldier. Struggling with an abrupt and unexpected transition, he came back to the city to see Rosalinda and rekindle their love, but a tragic turn of events changed their lives forever. A modest but definitely worthwhile exercise in low-budget filmmaking, Tomodachi overcomes its production limitations to tell a heartbreaking and very personal story about a period in history of the Philippines that undoubtedly deserves more international attention. While the film isnt in any way heavy and theres only one short gunfight scene, the themes of war and politics permeate the storyline, though certainly not in an obtrusive manner. Nevertheless, the heart of the film lies in its ability to depict an intercultural relationship, or any other for that matter, in a very universal and timeless manner. Anyone whos ever been in one will probably be able to relate. Jackie Wu gives a modulated and engaging turn as a man torn between inner feelings and a sense of duty, making his character seem strangely likeable even when hes wearing an army uniform and shouting loudly at his subordinates, but its Bela Padillas heartfelt and sensitive performance that helps the movie resonate on a more sophisticated and emotional level. Time shifts between the present and the past are smoothly emphasized by a stark contrast in colors and the overall change of mood. The low-key cinematography and actors work in unison to evoke a sense of sorrow and uncertainty appropriate for the times Tomodachi is set in. While in the music department the film leaves quite a lot to be desired, the recurring gentle sound of a wind chime sort of compensates for that shortcoming. During a post-screening interview at KIFF, Wu mentioned that the main motivation behind making Tomodachi was to depict pure love (between two people). Yet, when the final credits start to roll, it remains rather disputable whether its the beautiful romance or the infectious grief, which the main character clearly carries with him when he returns to Cavite for the first time in 50 years, that has a more emotional impact on the viewer. While some people might find the introductory modern-day element particularly heartwarming and redemptive, its also possible to perceive it at as a metaphor for Toshiros inability to come to terms with his turbulent past. Even though his longtime friends, who for perfectly understandable reasons treated him as an enemy at the onset of war, try to make him feel at home once again and convince him of his innocence, the air around them seems constantly thick with awkward tension. The sensation might not be intentional, but it sort of ambiguates the nature of the protagonists actions. Its quite obvious that the flashbacks form the main narrative here, but in the end its the scenes that take place in 1995 that seem more revealing and meaningful. Mohawk, Ted Geoghegan's anticipated follow up to his haunted house flick We Are Still Here is still in post and the first still from the production was released today. It is of Justin Rain's character Calvin Two Rivers preparing to lay the hurt on some unsuspecting British soldier. After one of her tribe sets an American camp ablaze, a young Mohawk warrior finds herself pursued by a battalion of military renegades bent on revenge. Fleeing deep into the woods they call home, Oak and Calvin, along with their British companion Joshua, must now fight back against the bloodthirsty Colonel Holt and his soldiers - using everything the labyrinthine forest can offer. Geoghegan is one of those good people that you meet in the indie film industry. He works hard promoting other people's movies and is one of the meekest people I have ever met. He deserves every success that is coming to him and if there are any issues with Mohawk we should blame his co-writer mentioned below, instead. Yeah. That will work. Mohawk stars Kaniehtiio Horn (Hemlock Grove), Jonathan Huber (WWE Superstar Luke Harper), Eamon Farren (Twin Peaks 2017), Justin Rain (The Twilight Saga: Eclipse), and Noah Segan (Star Wars: Episode VIII). The film was written by Geoghegan and another incredibly super human being Grady Hendrix based on Grady's original screenplay. You can click on the image below for a larger version, big enough to make you desktop background as you wait for this to hit the festival circuit and more. Denamrk's Ole Bornedal is a long time favorite in these parts, a maverick of worts who was crafting dark genre films in his homeland long before the whole Nordic Noir movement made it somehow okay to be a Dane who loved genre films. After a stint away from features and into TV land - where he helmed the most expensive Danish TV production ever - Bornedal is back in the film world now with dark crime comedy Small Town Killers with Ulrich Thomsen and Nicolas Bro in the lead. Ib and Edward are tired of their lifeless marriages and dream of living the good life using the stash of money they have earned moonlighting for years. After a huge fight with their wives the two men get drunk and hire a Russian contract killer to do a hit on their spouses. But they have badly underestimated their wives, and this becomes the start of an absurd journey where Ib and Edward to their own horror end at the top of a kill list. With the film now edging closer to a local release a first clip has arrived online and while there are no subtitles - making things difficult for non-Danish speakers - the tenor of it comes through loud and clear and this looks like very fun stuff. Check it out below. At the upcoming AFM (November 2 - 9, in Santa Monica), "Vengeance" will go to the highest bidder. The question is how will a You Tube star fare in Primetime? Writer/Director Michael Matteo Rossi, fresh off the success of the recently completed Sable, is now set to take on the small screen with his original series Vengeance. The show is a dark thriller set in the world of drug lords and mobsters and a superheroic lead character. The series stars YouTube sensation Tyrone Magnus (aka The Reactor), who is excited at the prospect of propelling his online fame to a serious television drama. His YouTube channel is dedicated to keep viewers smiling, laughing, learning, healthy and entertained. One show is REACTIONS, where he records extreme reactions to movie trailers and other media. His site grew so much over the course of a year, that Tyrone was interviewed by NBC News about his unique critiques. Here is a look at the show's official trailer: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=m0l-Pe2TMas The series also stars Brianna Mazzola (Sable) and Phillip Musumeci (Winners). The production staff includes Tracey E. Bregman, Executive Producer, Nick Antonyan, Producer, Thomas Hale, Co-Producer, Anthony Cally and Seth Metoyer, Associate Producers. Vengeance revolves around Derrick Chambers, a blue-collar worker barely making ends meet to provide for his family - a special needs daughter, a son needing braces and his devoted wife trying to keep it all together. In a desperate move, he becomes a runner for a lethal crime organization dealing in human trafficking. When a job goes wrong, due to Derricks crisis of conscience, his bosses avenge his betrayal by killing his son, severely beating his wife and kidnapping his daughter. In trying to rescue his daughter, he is captured by the mob bosses, beaten, tortured, and left for dead. They bury his body in a hole filled with toxic waste that not only revives Derrick, but endows him with super powers. Now his mission is clear: Revenge! Born and raised in Los Angeles, Rossi has been involved in writing, producing and directing film projects since he was in college. His first short film Our Lost Translation, screened at the LA Shorts Fest while he was only 19 years old.. After graduating from San Diego State with a degree in film, he followed up with his second film The Last Wish which he directed, produced, and wrote. The film screened at a number of festivals and picked up several awards including the Sierra Nevada Award at the 2012 Mountain Film Awards. In 2013, Michael directed, produced, and wrote the feature Misogynist, which was awarded best narrative feature at the Los Angeles Underground Film Festival. Executive producer Tracey E. Bregman is an award-winning daytime drama actress (The Young & The Restless, The Bold & the Beautiful) and the star of Rossis film Misogynist. She brings a womans sensibilities to the predominantly masculine cast and crew. In this testosterone driven show, it is always important to show all sides, says Bregman with a smile. As someone who has been involved with dramatic storytelling for years, I bring a different perspective. It is just as important to show the emotional inner workings that drive our protagonist. But our show will be a roller coaster, physically and mentally! It took a leap of faith on Rossis part to cast Tyrone Magnus without knowing if he could even act. Rossi recalls Tyrone and I began talking because I had watched his videos on YouTube and loved his energy and charisma, so I decided to reach out to him. After talking for awhile, we realized that we had the same aspirations and goals and I invited him to visit me in LA and we instantly became good friends. It was during the summer when they began discussing the idea of working together on a project and it formed very organically. Realizing Tyrone has such a great loyal fan base, Rossi wrote a simple trailer for Magnus that was so good, they decided to really do it right and film it. That momentum has since turned into a full pilot they are pitching to various networks including Netflix, AMC, HBO, and others. We are shooting for the stars with this show, says Rossi. We feel that any of the major players would be proud to add "Vengeance" to their family of series. It does seem that the show has all the hallmarks of a hit series. There are fantastical elements to the story, but its rooted in grit and dark, character-driven themes, says Rossi. I see this series as a blend of the 1980s RoboCop and The Punisher series, with a bit of Deadpool thrown in as well. Not a bad recipe for success. # # # https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=m0l-Pe2TMas Seguin, TX (78155) Today Partly cloudy this evening followed by some light rain after midnight. Thunder possible. Low around 60F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%.. Tonight Partly cloudy this evening followed by some light rain after midnight. Thunder possible. Low around 60F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. "Children are Different: The Abolition of Mandatory Minimum Sentencing in Florida" | Main | Terrific Marshall Project review of notable (but lower-profile) criminal justice initiatives going to voters in various states As reported in this local article from Oregon, headlined "Brown to maintain death penalty moratorium," the chief executive in the Beaver State is promising not to execute those laws calling for excutions of condemned murderers. Here are the details: The governor plans to continue a state moratorium on capital punishment that would extend through her upcoming term if elected, a spokesman said Monday morning. "Gov. Kate Brown has made clear her personal opposition to the death penalty and her support of the current moratorium on Oregon executions," spokesman Bryan Hockaday told The Oregonian/OregonLive. Former Gov. John Kitzaber announced the moratorium two weeks before the scheduled 2011 execution of Gary Haugen, who then sought to speed his execution after waiving all appeals. After Brown took over the state's top office in February 2015, she said she would continue the stoppage of public executions until further study. "Gov. Brown directed her General Counsel to conduct a review of the policy and practical implications of Oregon's capital punishment law," Hockaday said. "Though no executions are imminent, Gov. Brown will continue the death penalty moratorium, because after thoroughly researching the issues, serious concerns remain about the constitutionality and workability of Oregon's capital punishment law." Hockaday declined to immediately release, pending a records request, any study or records related to how the governor made her decision. Reasons for her decision include the "uncertainty of Oregon's ability to acquire the necessary execution drugs required by statute," Hockaday said by email. "Looking nationally, America is on the verge of a sea change both by legislation and, more profoundly, through court decisions. The past few years have already seen a major shift in the landscape on capital punishment law, and Gov. Brown expects more changes are on the horizon." Oregon voters approved the death penalty in 1984, and the state and U.S. Supreme Courts have repeatedly upheld its legality. Oregon's death row has 34 prisoners, all of whom stay in their cells 23 hours a day. In the past five decades, the state executed two men -- both in the 1990s. Those men had essentially volunteered for the death penalty after waiving their rights to appeal before their deaths. Clatsop County District Attorney Josh Marquis, an outspoken supporter of the death penalty in Oregon, a month ago met with Brown counsel Ben Souede about the issue. After hearing the news Monday, Marquis said he was seething. "If she really believes the death penalty is so wrong, then she should have the guts to commute all those sentences," Marquis said. If she were to take that extraordinary step, Marquis said about six or seven prisoners on death row could be released to the public within a year because they would qualify for an immediate parole hearing. He said those prisoners were sentenced after voters approved the death penalty and before the state adopted life sentences without parole in the early 1990s. No executions may be imminent, Marquis argued, but at least three cases are pending in Oregon where defendants face aggravated murder charges, which bring a death penalty sentencing option if convicted. Brown's announcement could make it easier for defense attorneys to persuade jurors not to impose the death penalty, he said. A girl and three boys were injured, the girl critically, by gunfire this afternoon in the parking lot of June Jordan School for Equity, a small high school of just 250 students in the Excelsior. At a news conference, Officer Carlos Manfredi told KTVU and others that the shooting appears to have been "a targeted incident," which SFPD reiterated on Twitter. Police suspect that one of the students who was shot was the intended target. The Chronicle reports that four male suspects were seen running down Brazil Avenue away from the school after the crime. KTVU adds they were wearing dark hoodies and jeans. SFPD received a 3:20 p.m. call from the school for an ambulance. Initially, they were led to suspect an active shooter, and @SFPD tweeted that a suspect was being sought. A lock down and shelter in place were ordered, and soon it was clear there were more victims. Appears to be a targeted incident not-active shooter. 3 students w/ injuries. #SFPD working w/ @sfusd. SFPD has increased patrol in the area San Francisco Police (@SFPD) October 19, 2016 But what seemed to be just three injured students was actually four. According to @SFPD. Hours after the shooting, another student walked into SF General with non-life threatening injuries from a gunshot wound. June Jordan will resume tomorrow with counselors on hand. Oasis co-owner Heklina announced Tuesday that her SoMa club would be hosting a Hillary Clinton fundraiser hosted by none other than Cher on Sunday. And this is no typical drag scene benefit for SF either: Tickets start at $125 and go up to $5,000, and the cheapest one are already sold out. A few $250 tickets seem to remain, available here. Of course, there's no promise that Cher is performing, and she likely won't be, but her stand-in, the very talented Rupaul's Drag Race All-Stars winner Chad Michaels, reportedly will be, along with other performers still TBA. Says Heklina, the intent is to rally the gay community to help Clinton win the election, and "We will come together for a really cool evening with Cher and others." Cher has been something of an ambassador to the gay community for Clinton, not that she needs one, and she also hosted a campaign event for Clinton in Provincetown in August. At the time, as the Associated Press reported, Cher attacked fellow Twitter enthusiast Trump by comparing him to actress Patty McCormack in The Bad Seed. "He's so Patty McCormack," she said, "consummate liar, doesn't care who she hurts, insane." Also, she said, "He doesn't mean we want to make America great again. He means we want to make America straight and white." A sort of sliver of Burning Man's Black Rock City in the heart of the far more hospitable Hayes Valley, Patricia's Green has hosted multiple iterations of art inspired by and related to the yearly desert festival. Last summer, for example, artist David Best was commissioned by Burning Man and the San Francisco Arts Commission to bring back his Hayes Valley Temple, an intricate shelter made of recycled wood which first appeared on Patricia's Green in 2005. The most recent temple stood until this summer, and since its departure, Patricia's Green has felt a bit empty. Good news, then: The park may receive a new dose of playa magic, as the Examiner writes that SF Rec and Parks is considering a proposal to install two of the popular Burning Man geometric sculptures created by local artists known as HYBYCOZO. According to the proposal, the sculptures include "unique laser cut patterned panels and LED lights that can change colors. One is 1,000 pounds, the other is 700 pounds. HYBYCOZO is "the result of geometric exploration and wonder," and it's the creation of former Google and Youtube employee Yelena Filipchuk and industrial designer Serge Beaulieu. "While it seemed that most people around them in the Bay Area were moving toward more digital pursuits, Yelena and Serge felt compelled to switch gears from their tech jobs to make real world objects," they write nobly and bravely to their website. According to a Vice article from last year, the name HYBYCOZO is a contraction of the cumbersome "Hyperspace Bypass Construction Zone." The first of their installations debuted at Burning Man in 2014 and has also appeared at Treasure Island Music Festival. If approved by Rec and Parks this week, the proposal would move forward to the Arts Commission for their final seal of approval on November 7. Oddly, the Ex reports that the switch to light up the sculptures could be flipped as soon as November 8. They would stand for a year. Next time we get Burning Man art in Hayes Valley, can we get that man that burns at the end of the festival? Have heard much about this. Related: Nine Awesome Pieces Of Burning Man Art To Look For On The Playa Burning Man Temple Takes Shape Again, Gets Its 37-Foot Spire Today In Hayes Valley Peter Thiel has always ranked high on the Silicon Valley eccentric scale, as most already know. The PayPal co-founder and Facebook board member's support for building floating libertarian cities and interest in the blood of the young alone mark him as outside the mainstream in an industry known for its odd characters. And in a land where success is the highest virtue, the extremely successful Thiel has always been tolerated and frequently revered. That, however, appears to be changing as his stubborn advocacy for the Trump campaign has led to calls among the Valley elite to sever ties with Thiel and, in a new development, the companies in which he plays a public role. As co-founder of Project Include, an organization that seeks to promote diversity in tech, former Reddit CEO Ellen Pao yesterday penned an op-ed announcing the group's decision to cut ties with famed startup incubator Y Combinator. YC has drawn criticism in recent days for its decision to keep Thiel on as a part-time investor, despite his vocal and financial support of a candidate who has bragged about assaulting women and been accused of such assault by scores of them. "While all of us believe in the ideas of free speech and open platforms, we draw a line here," writes Pao. "We agree that people shouldnt be fired for their political views, but this isnt a disagreement on tax policy, this is advocating hatred and violence." "YC has cited many reasons for leaving Thiel in his current role, some of which we can understand," she continues. "But Thiels actions are in direct conflict with our values at Project Include. Because of his continued connection to YC, we are compelled to break off our relationship with YC." The head of Y Combinator, Sam Altman, who was recently featured in a New Yorker profile for his zany view of the world, was quick to respond writing that Trump "represents an unprecedented threat to America" before concluding that support for Trump shouldn't be disqualifying in a business partner. "[Trump] represents a real threat to the safety of women, minorities, and immigrants, and I believe this reason alone more than disqualifies him to be president," explained Altman. "Trump shows little respect for the Constitution, the Republic, or for human decency, and I fear for national security if he becomes our president." However, continuing to financially benefit from a public advocate and financial backer of such a threat seems to be AOK in Altman's book. "Some have said that YC should terminate its relationship with Peter over this," he noted. "But as repugnant as Trump is to many of us, we are not going to fire someone over his or her support of a political candidate." The condemnation of Altman's stance has been quick. Women applying to YCombinator, take a good look at their principled stand against a partner who supports a sexual predator Pinboard (@Pinboard) October 16, 2016 Tech leaders: when you make excuses for Peter Thiel for supporting Trump, we hear you. Women and ppl of color are taking notes. Catherine Bracy (@cbracy) October 16, 2016 Trump *is* a fascist. He has never called himself this, because fascists rarely announce themselves. We learn who they are by deed/word. EricaJoy (@EricaJoy) October 17, 2016 None of it, however, appears to have changed Altman's mind. I liked the choice I made, he told Motherboad of his decision to keep Thiel on. It would seem that the rest of Silicon Valley, however, disagrees. In related news out Palo Alto, the New York Times' Roger Cohen penned an op-ed about how slippery the slope into a dictatorship could be when a man like Trump can garner so much widespread support from politicians and voters and be so unapologetically racist, not to mention vindictive. He cites a recent incident in Menlo Park where El Salvadorean-born domestic worker Veronica Zuleta was confronted at the upscale Draegers Market, where a lovely man turned to her and said, "You should go to Safeway. This store is for white people." Guess who that asshole is voting for? Related: Peter Thiel Decides To Throw Away $1.25 Million On Trump Campaign Update: TechCrunch writes that Greg Gopman has been fired by Twitter. Anddd Im fired. Thanks TechCrunch, he reportedly wrote to his Facebook page, adding that [TechCrunch] wrote a smash piece on me last night and comms didnt want to deal with it." The Twitter troll types are apparently taking over the asylum as Variety reports the company has hired Greg Gopman, the former CEO of AngelHack, a man who was once essentially run out of town for his homeless-hating screed. From his 2013 rant: The difference is in other cosmopolitan cities, the lower part of society keep to themselves. They sell small trinkets, beg coyly, stay quiet, and generally stay out of your way. They realize it's a privilege to be in the civilized part of town and view themselves as guests. And that's okay.... In downtown SF the degenerates gather like hyenas, spit, urinate, taunt you, sell drugs, get rowdy, they act like they own the center of the city. Like it's their place of leisure... In actuality it's the business district for one of the wealthiest cities in the USA. It a disgrace. Gopman was widely chastised for his insensitive comments and wisely took a time-out period, fleeing San Francisco. Later, he returned to announce that he had a self-aggrandizing plan to help the homeless people whom he had so wronged. In his efforts, Gopman apparently lied to the press, feigning to have had a full meeting with Mayor Lee about homelessness when really he seems to have cornered Lee at a public event long enough for a selfie. City homelessness official Sam Dodge once said in an email to San Francisco magazine that "[Gopman] is the bane of my existence. Not really, but I think he is a phony. He is relatively harmless, but I don't really want any more connections between him and the City." Leading one to question just how committed Gopman really was to the cause of helping homeless people, he soon informed the world that "The people in charge of helping the homeless really dont care, and so he was "doing a little Eat, Pray, Love trip in Asia right now" last September. Gopman, it should be recalled, was sued in 2014 by his AngelHack co-founder for allegedly using his former company's bank accounts to pay his rent, credit card bills, and even to fund his" 'elaborate vacations' in Thailand and Colombia." This year, Gopman resurfaced, having rebranded himself as a virtual reality guru, and also it would seem, as a redeemed man. That was according to a rehab article on the website Backchannel who wrote of aa redemption saga that hewed closely to the story of ill-advised tweeter Justine Sacco and the narrative of public Internet shaming. "For San Francisco, Gopmans rant was the delicious schadenfreude that the city was thirsting for: the unwitting techie who wandered into this class opera, shooting off his mouth to reveal a slimy, elitist core," Backchannel wrote. With lipstick applied, Gopman was apparently good enough for Twitter. He's already working there as VR Program Manager, which he's now indicated on his Twitter profile @StartupGreg The position may suit him quite well, but really, how many chances can a white man get!? Previously: Startup CEO Trashes SF's Homeless 'Degenerates' Monday was an anniversary of a Bay Area disaster marking 27 years since the Loma Prieta earthquake and today marks a tragic and scary day as well which began three years and two days after the quake. The Oakland Hills firestorm, which began with a small three-acre fire on October 19, 1991 that firefighters thought they fully extinguished that day, grew via some unextinguished embers into a raging inferno on October 20, which was a warm Sunday with some strong Diablo winds whipping over the ridge. News footage above shows some of the harrowing first moments as people ran to evacuate from the quickly moving firestorm, some of them without shoes, some having to abandon their cars when traffic coming down the hills became too congested. Ultimately 25 people would be dead and 1,300 homes destroyed. By some accounts, the fire exploded across the hillside and consumed multiple homes in just 15 minutes, overwhelming the firefighting effort which would also be stymied by inadequate and twisty roads (which are still there) and water mains that broke a problem that also afflicted the firefight following the Great Earthquake of 1906 in San Francisco. Also widely blamed for the severity of the blaze were dry, drought conditions and a preponderance of eucalyptus and Monterey pine trees (many are still there!) that went up like matchsticks, with the eucalyptus and its oily leaves sending embers flying downhill onto even more homes. As ABC 7 notes, "pictures don't do it justice," and fire officials have warned that conditions like those that existed in 1991 exist again following the last several years of drought, not to mention the all but complete reconstruction of homes on the same hillsides that burned. The East Bay Times describes it saying, "Driven by the winds, swirling pockets of fire engulfed 790 homes in one hour. Overwhelmed communications systems meant residents were often on their own as they scrambled to find a way to get out amid thick, choking smoke and flying embers." Also they note that among the 25 dead were "Oakland fire Battalion Chief James Riley and Oakland police Officer John Grubensky, who were assisting people trying to evacuate on foot, perished in the early hours of the fire." The documentary video below, by the National Fire Protection Agency, relates the history of fire in the East Bay hills, noting that similarly scary and destructive infernos occurred on the same hillsides in both 1923 and 1970. Following the firestorm of 1991, a reported 30 percent of homeowners surveyed said they were not rebuilding as of 1992, however much of the property that burned 25 years ago has been rebuilt anew, and it's unclear if firefighters would be any better prepared to battle a blaze in this dense urban forest than they were then. Here is more footage shot by an Oaklander on Stonewall Road, capturing the blaze at noon, he says, one hour into it, across Claremont Canyon. Around the 4:50 mark you hear the videographer and a friend talking about the 1970 fire and whether this is of the same magnitude, and he misremembers it at first as 1976. Below is footage shot from the Embarcadero that day (it says October 19 but they mean October 20), showing smoke billowing over the Bay. Later in the video is footage that appears to be taken from Twin Peaks. And finally, 14 minutes of footage from the very terrible 1993 TV movie, Firestorm: 72 Hours In Oakland, starring Jill Clayburgh (RIP) and LeVar Burton. Related: On This Day In 1989 The Loma Prieta Earthquake Struck And ABC 7's Cheryl Jennings Was Live On The Air As Airbnb and the city of San Francisco spar in court the company sued the city over a law requiring it to verify the hosts on its platform are legal or else face fines for listing them Airbnb is making a few changes of its own accord. The Chronicle reports that the homegrown short-term rental company will ban multiple property listings by the same host, a sensible move since it's only legal to Airbnb your own home/primary residence. "In cities that identify as having housing challenges, we want to find solutions, Airbnb head of global public policy Chris Lehane told the Chronicle. Our underlying objective is to get to the policy goal identified by San Francisco of making sure [such illegal] commercial activity is not taking place on our platforms. A similar move was made in New York, and the company hasn't indicated if it will take such actions in other cities. Exceptions may be requested for hosts that may rent two rooms in one home, etc. The change will take effect on November 1, and Curbed writes that "ostensibly we should see at least 1,450 or so fewer San Francisco Airbnb listings" due to the change. Political campaign director of the San Francisco Tenants Union Jennifer Fieber seems to suggest that Airbnb's self-policing policies are ineffectual. "There are still 9,000 listings in the city that arent registered, she told the Chronicle. We want those peoples names to be turned over to the city, and Airbnb has that information. The change, though it could be seen as an internal crackdown, might more likely be a rudimentary concession in an ongoing negotiation with San Francisco, part of a reaction to the Board of Supervisors' proposal reported by the Chronicle last week to consider limiting Airbnb rentals to 60-days per year, down from the current 90 and even further down from the 75-day limit of the failed Proposition F. Airbnb's continued stance that it's just a hands-off platform for listings is an important one for legal reasons, pretty much the company's whole line of argument so far in the case against being fined by San Francisco. Therefor the company's decision to remove illegal listings of multiple properties by the same host is also kind of vexed. While it shows a company willing to cooperate with the city, it also reveals the control Airbnb really can exert over its listings. If Airbnb can remove illegal listings like these, for example, why can't it remove listings after they've been rented for 90 days? What is Airbnb responsible for? The Chronicle seems to have asked Lehane something like that: Thats part of a larger question of an effective registration system, he told the paper, turning the conversation around. We could have an effective system, including a number that shows up on the site in a straightforward way, if the city was willing to work with us to figure that out. Sounds like the art of the deal. Related: Judge Grills Airbnb At Hearing Over SF Host Registration Law For all the foodie adventurousness of San Franciscans, one local man took his daring a bit too far when he consumed a burger smothered with a ghost pepper puree and ended up almost paying for it with his life. The ghost pepper is considered one of the hottest peppers on the planet. It ranks 1,000,000 units on the Scoville scale, a means of registering a pepper's spiciness, and puts the lowly jalapeno at just 5,000 units to shame. The unfortunate incident is believed to be the first near-death experience related to such a pepper, and was therefore covered in the Journal of Emergency Medicine. "A 47-year-old man presented to the Emergency Department (ED) with severe abdominal and chest pain subsequent to violent retching and vomiting after eating ghost peppers as part of a contest," the article's abstract reads. "Spontaneous esophageal rupture, Boerhaave syndrome, is a rare condition encountered by emergency physicians, with a high mortality rate. This case serves as an important reminder of a potentially life- threatening surgical emergency initially interpreted as discomfort after a large spicy meal." The Chronicle echoes the Journal and reports the man was participating in some sort of "daredevil eating contest" when he chomped down on the spiciest of meals. Local restaurant Dr. Teeth has been known to serve ghost pepper-topped burgers in the past, but it is unclear exactly where this particular contest took place and the journal article does not say. You think youre gonna die, David Winsberg, a local farmer who specializes in peppers, told CBS 5 of the ghost pepper's effects. Your throat starts to close up so I think part of the endorphin rush is when you realize, Whew! Im alive still! I survived! The man reportedly chugged numerous glasses of water after eating the pepper, and began to vomit shortly thereafter. A hole was torn in his esophagus, and his lung collapsed. A breathing tube had to be inserted, and he was hospitalized for 23 days. He left the hospital with the tube still inserted. We can only assume he'll be avoiding spicy food for some time going forward. Weirdly, super-spicy burgers remain a thing nationwide, with Zagat publishing this list of the 10 spiciest burgers in the country (they mention one at SF's burger bar that is merely studded with habaneros and jalapenos), and this story of a "Hellfire burger" topped with ghost pepper puree in Iowa, which requires a waiver to eat it. Related: The 13 Best Stoner Foods In San Francisco The wrong man is accused of a crime he didnt commit and is hurled into the machinery of the justice system. The evidence against him mounts. Its a classic theme given contemporary urgency in the 2016 HBO series The Night Of, released this week on Blu-ray and DVD. As Hollywood shrivels, preoccupied with superhero sequels and zombies, flatulent comedies and hollow melodramas, television has risen as a forum for meaningful storytelling, fully alive characters and inventive moviemaking. The Night Of is similar in caliber to Breaking Bad and Fargo, albeit maintaining a more serious tone than either. It concerns a young Pakistani-American, Naz Khan (Riz Ahmed), a math major living in Queens with his protective parents. Borrowing his fathers taxi, he sneaks off to a party in Manhattan, gets lost and winds up with a mysterious and at first unwanted passenger, an attractive young woman who occupies the backseat of the cab and demands to be taken to the beach a river would be fine. He cant take his eyes off the rear view mirror as he drives through the neon-tinged darkness. Eventually they arrive at her home, an elegant brownstone in a good neighborhood decorated in full bohemian style with candles, a skull and ironic taxidermy on the wall. The long foreplay that follows involves things Naz had seldom if ever experienced. She entices him with glass after glass of alcohol, a whiff of cocaine from her hand and dangerous erotic knife play. When he awakens hours later, he finds her dead, brutally slashed with that same knife. He runs away, only to fall into police hands for a traffic violation. Suspense rises as calls come in on the squad car radio about a break-in at a nearby brownstone. Soon enough the police find the body. Ahmed heads an excellent cast as the frightened boy who makes just about every mistake possible. As a Pakistani Muslim, he is subjected to ethnic-religious slurs and misunderstandings. John Turturro co-stars as John Stone, an accident-chasing attorney who takes Ahmeds case. A cynic who once must have been a crusader for justice, he tells Naz: I dont want to be stuck with the truth I need to be flexible. Searching for the truth is Detective Sergeant Box (Bill Camp), a well-read opera-loving detective who will remind British television lovers of a better-tempered Inspector Morse. Box thinks he has his man yet isnt entirely certain. Based on the BBC series Criminal Justice, The Night Of was created by Steve Zaillian, the screenwriter for Schindlers List, and Richard Price, the man behind The Wire. Zaillian directs, telling the story with an efficiency and with visual composition lacking in most contemporary Hollywood and indie movies. UW-Milwaukees This is Washington Park. This is Milwaukee., which ran for one weekend only, is the result of several years work and the collaborative efforts of students from different departments. The process began in 2014 when Arijit Sens architecture class, Buildings-Landscapes-Cultures (BLC), launched a field school, giving students the summer project of measuring the physical dimensions of homes in Milwaukees Washington Park neighborhood and recording residents oral histories. Theater students under Alvaro Saar Rios then devised a script using transcript from the many recorded interviews and the reflections of the students originally involved. Once you tell the story of a place its hard to erase, notes one of the performers and this sentiment certainly rings true, especially in light of the recent negative attention the area has received in the news. This show did much to offer an alternative, presenting the neighborhood in all its diversity, mundanity and dynamic history. Production elements at Kenilworth Five-O-Eight were spare: a simple black box setup with the student performers all wearing the BLC T-shirt of the original interviewers and adding simple costume pieces to indicate changes of character. Song-and-dance numbers were incorporated with greater and lesser success; a strong opening piece featured a chant of all the major streets in Washington Park overlaid with the names of the areas many community organizations. Engaging narrative elements included the students reflections and experiences working in a part of the city that some viewed as dangerous or stigmatized. . Never heavy handedly, these passages suggested that Were often taught to fear something instead of learn about it and that taking the plunge into unfamiliar waters is a very worthy use of ones time. Stay on top of the news of the day Subscribe to our free, daily e-newsletter to get Milwaukee's latest local news, restaurants, music, arts and entertainment and events delivered right to your inbox every weekday, plus a bonus Week in Review email on Saturdays. SIGN UP The strongest moments were the dramatizations of the residents themselves. Noah Gober was memorable as a patron of Washington Park Senior Center, Lois Luglio, who good naturedly discussed her decades in the area and laughed when asked if she was afraid to live in an unsafe part of town, saying No! My husband and I lived in Peru for 10 years where there was guerilla warfare. On a similar note, Laotian immigrant Yee Yang (sensitively portrayed by Olivia Mauseth) describes the country he left to come to Milwaukee: You either escape or you die. After this interview, the students aptly reflect that safe means different things to different people. Todd Snethen as long-time resident Timothy Richardson was likewise striking for his calm portrayal of a life utterly transformed. In his interview, Richardson shared that he started life in Washington Park as a thief but gradually turned his life around and now works in the area as a victims assistant counselor, providing support to those in deepest grief, including family members of Jeffrey Dahmers victims. The result of many hands and many hours, This is Washington Park. This is Milwaukee. was a complex, sometimes unwieldy reflection with its heart absolutely in the right place. It is works like this that can best transform our citys perception of itself by reminding us that all of our neighborhoods are vital. One of the reasons I occasionally shock people by referring to right-wing talk show host Charlie Sykes as my friend is that he was a friend to me at a low point in my life. Getting fired is depressing, especially from a great job youre known for doing very well. When The Milwaukee Journal and Milwaukee Sentinel merged in 1995, my employer of 27 years publicly fired me, along with many other top journalists. Because I was a high-profile liberal columnist, the ulterior motive in my case, besides economics, was to send a message the new paper would no longer be the liberal Milwaukee Journal. The newspaper was intentionally moving to the right. One of the first to call was Charlie Sykes. Wed worked together at the Journal before he left to become editor of an underachieving Milwaukee Magazine, which he built into a first-rate magazine doing quality journalism. Then he received the same jolt I had. Charlie was abruptly fired for his journalistic integrity. He wanted to publish a story critical of the Medical College of Wisconsin despite his publishers social and business connections to the institution. When he called, Charlie was on his third media identity early in his talk radio career. He got the station to hire me to do a weekly left-right, point-counterpoint segment with him on his show and occasionally fill in elsewhere. Our on-air dueling was always friendly and entertaining. We both enjoyed it until Journal corporate pulled the plug. Talking off the air, I was aware Charlie still retained a healthy journalists skepticism about his strange new world. Charlie said he would sometimes share stages with ideological extremists who really were a little bit crazy. We also recorded a televised left-right segment together for the original prototype of the long-running Milwaukee Public Television show InterChange. Charlie dropped out before the debut because he considered another conservative on that prototype show embarrassingly dim-witted. It turned out neither of them appeared on the show. Friends of the Shepherd Help support Milwaukee's locally owned free weekly newspaper. LEARN MORE My wife, Kit, also was a friend of Charlies. She was executive director of the Benedict Center, a nonprofit running an alternative-to-incarceration program providing education and drug treatment for women arrested primarily on drug or prostitution charges. Charlie emceed her agencys annual awards luncheon recognizing women recovering from addictions to complete degrees, gain employment and reclaim their lives. Those women were more accustomed to being denigrated by right-wing radio hosts than being honored by them. But, but, but . . . From Outsider to Insider I cant express appreciation for positive qualities some may not realize Charlie ever had without also saying how disturbing it was to watch him shed his rational outsiders perspective to become a tool for an increasingly vicious and extreme Republican Party. After whipping up well-deserved public anger over a county pension scandal to drive County Executive Tom Ament from office, Charlie himself became a political force behind the election of Scott Walker as county executive and ultimately governor. The supreme irony, of course, was that Walker raised the level of corruption in both county and state government, leading to years of criminal investigations, convictions and dishonest political manipulations to block prosecutions. Donald Trump didnt invent racist appeals to Republicans either. Charlie played an ugly, racist rap song popularized on white supremacist websites featuring a young black woman bragging that poverty was a constant party for black women living high on an imaginary flood of big bucks from taxpayers for having sex and pushing out babies. Charlie also provided the original platform for Milwaukee Countys African American Sheriff David Clarke to develop a national following among white extremists for attacking other black politicians and Black Lives Matter. Clarke is now calling for mobs to take up pitchforks and torches to defend Trumps crumbling candidacy. More irony there. Thanks to Trumps openly toxic bigotryand probably because he considered Trump another embarrassing dimwitCharlie got national attention as an early Never Trump Republican. Now Charlie has surprised many people by announcing hell end his radio talk show in December. I dont know any more about the reasons than anyone else. I tried a number that used to reach Charlie directly and got a recording that it wasnt accepting calls at this time. I wouldnt really expect him to say anything specific about what comes next until announcing it publicly. There were previous rumors Charlie made a serious bid for the opening to head the vast, right-wing Bradley Foundation that went to former state Republican Party Chairman Rick Graber. The departure coincides with Charlies upcoming book tentatively titled How the Right Lost Its Mind. It could herald yet another media career for Charlie as a tell-all insider critic of the political destruction of the extreme right. Since Ive ripped hypocritical Republicans who continue to endorse an ignorant, hateful bigot they know is unfit for office, Im hoping Charlies new identity is his return as a decent, respectable human being. THEATRE: The Drowning Girls Renaissance Theaterworks @ Broadway Theatre Center, Oct. 21-Nov. 13 Canadian author Beth Graham met fellow writers Daniela Vlaskalic and Charlie Tomlinson while attending the University of Alberta. It was a fortuitous meeting; the three collaborated on The Drowning Girls in 1999, which premiered at the Edmonton Fringe Festival. This reflection upon betrothal and love and all the many misconceptions we have about such things is enhanced by a somewhat chilling milieu. This is a spooky Halloween show, perfect for anyone who hates haunted houses or wants a break from the plethora of political plays this October, says Renaissance Theaterworks Kat Tow. Similarly, the Chicago Reader has described The Drowning Girls as lyrical, disturbing and tantalizingly indecipherable, and the Chicago Tribune contributed that its a morbidly funny and sometimes wistful trip through the minds of women who paid the ultimate price for trusting the wrong man. Mallory Metoxen directs Renaissance Theaterworks production, which features actresses Marcee Doherty-Elst, Susie Duecker and Elyse Edelman. Audiences on Nov. 4 and 6 will be treated to a bonus item: Christine Kallmans one-woman short play Duck, starring Flora Coker, directed by Marie Kohler and presented as part of Renaissance Theaterworks ongoing Br!NK New Play Series. (John Jahn) Murder on the Nile, Aquila Theatre @ South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center, Oct. 20 Aquila Theatre heads to South Milwaukee for their touring production of Agatha Christies Murder on the Nile with a twist. The murder mystery and colorful characters of the original production are present, but Aquila Theatre presents it as a radio drama at the BBC Home Service studios in London during World War II. An air raid during the production prevents the full cast from assembling, so hijinks are sure to ensue (Jack Fennimore) Stay on top of the news of the day Subscribe to our free, daily e-newsletter to get Milwaukee's latest local news, restaurants, music, arts and entertainment and events delivered right to your inbox every weekday, plus a bonus Week in Review email on Saturdays. SIGN UP Honk! Jr. Milwaukee Youth Theatre @ Lincoln Center of the Arts, Oct. 20-21 Being thought of as different or, worse, ugly, is never comfortingleast of all in those already awkward teen years. Hence, a fantastic fable like The Ugly Ducking by the great Danish poet and author Hans Christian Andersen is perfect for young people to learn about tolerance and not judging books by their covers. Milwaukee Youth Theatre is presenting a modern-day adaptation of the tale with book and lyrics by Anthony Drewe, music by George Stiles and direction by Dan Tellez and Eric Regala retelling whose lessons for all ages is vive la difference! (John Jahn) Kitchen Witches @ Racine Theatre Guild, Oct. 21-Nov. 6 Kitchen Witches title might give you the wrong impression. This is not a Halloween-themed play about chilling chili or haunted haute cuisine. Rather, its a comedic play by Canadian playwright Caroline Smith that pits two all-too-human witches against each otherrival TV cooking show hostesses Isobel and Dolly. They are legendary rivals with an equally epic loathing for each other; this somewhat complicates the fact that they now find themselves together on the same show! RTGs production stars Donna Daniels (Isobel Lomax), Cathy Marschall (Dolly Biddle) and Peter Jones as Stephen, Dollys discomfited TV producer-son. (John Jahn) Where the Streetcar Bends the Corner, Down by the Zoo! Boulevard Theatre @ Plymouth Church, Oct. 22-Oct. 30 The title of this production is not that of a single work but, rather, a double-bill. Where the Streetcar Bends the Corner is a song-and-sketch-filled tour of 1955 Milwaukee; The Zoo is a one-act comic opera. Streetcar, devised by Boulevards Mark Bucher and Milwaukee actor David Flores, is a comedic nostalgia piece about our citys, shall we say, unique qualities. The Zoo was composed by Arthur Sullivan (of Gilbert and Sullivan fame) and given a libretto by B.C. Stephenson. Flores transported the comic operas settingoriginally a 19th-century British zooto 1950s Milwaukee. This is a collaborative production between Boulevard Theatre and the Plymouth Chorale. (John Jahn) The Book of Mormon @ The Marcus Center for the Performing Arts, Oct. 25-30 The nine-time Tony Award-winning Best Musical, The Book of Mormon, is playing at the Marcus Center this fall. This religious satire by South Park creators Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone, is sure to have you laughing out loud. The musical follows Elder Price and Elder Cunningham, two Mormon missionaries who attempt to convert the citizens of a Ugandan village. Not everything goes according to plan, though, as they realize that this village has much bigger problems to deal with than their Mormon mission. Eddie Ryan wrote Stuck, his debut EP as Boxcutter, under the same conditions that have inspired so many emo releases: when he was in a bad place. Ryan had just parted from the band hed played in since he was in high school under circumstances that, though he prefers not to get into them, left him feeling blindsided and betrayed, so he started writing his own songs to channel his frustration. Ill take all your kicking like the hacky sack I am, he sings over a resentfully crunchy riff on Because It Is My Name. Four out of the five songs I wrote on the EP are just me venting, the Grafton native explains. That mood suits the musicpop-punk has long given a platform to bitterness and self-loathingthough Ryan is quick to point out his mindset was circumstantial, and that hes not usually a particularly bitter person. He demonstrates that on the EPs most hopeful track, Thank You, a message of appreciation to his supportive girlfriend. Theres a sixth song on the EP, as well: a cover of Failures Stuck on You. To the extent that most people know about that song, its probably from Paramores 2008 cover of it. Thats how Ryan first discovered Failure, too, which speaks volumes about his musical upbringing. He came of age during the commercial heyday of emo and pop-punk, when bands like Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco were fixtures of malls and alternative rock stations alike. Its often been pointed out that Blink-182 is a dividing line between generations, separating punk fans into the camp that was too old to get into them and a camp of reverential younger fans. Ryan came up in the generation after the first Blink-182 generation; he only discovered that group during their second pass, following their 2009 reunion. Friends of the Shepherd Help support Milwaukee's locally owned free weekly newspaper. LEARN MORE My musical education really started with American Idiotthat was the first album I got when I was 9 years old, Ryan says. Thats some album to get when youre a child. Green Day were my gateway to punk rock and politics. From there he branched out to take in a number of punk and emo acts, among them Taking Back Sunday, Jimmy Eat World and Brand New, all of which informed, to varying degrees, the music on Stuck. Right now Boxcutter is technically a solo projectRyan wrote all the songs and played all of the instruments on the EPbut, he says, thats not the long-term vision for the group. Theres a full band in the works, he says. Im not making any huge announcements yet, but the goal is to start playing shows so we can promote this thing and start up a full band again. Otherwise Id just be doing these songs by myself with an acoustic guitar, and that was never the intention. Boxcutters Stuck EP comes out Friday, Oct. 21. Timo Gallery (207 E. Buffalo St., Lobby) in the Third Wards Marshall Building isnt a stereotypical white-walled box hung with art. For one thing, the scent of paint is in the air. Timo Gallery is both the retail space and the workplace for artist-owner Timothy Meyerring. The gallery is separated from the studio where he paints by a moveable wall on casters. Meyerring sat down on the studio couch to discuss art and Milwaukee for Off the Cuff. You came into art through the medical profession? I worked at St. Marys in the burn unit. It was intense. I realized when I was 24 that there was no way I could do this in my later years. I went back to school and ended up in the design program at Arizona State. Why Arizona State? One of my instructors at UW-Milwaukee suggested that I show my work and they accepted me. Arizona State has one of the top five programs in graphic design in the country. I worked the night shift at Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix and went to school during the day. But you returned to Milwaukee I had gone through some life changes. My parents were getting older, my sisters were having kids here. Everyone was still here. I thought Id come back. Any regrets? None. Im thrilled to be back home. I love this city. Is it a good city for artists? I think its good. Milwaukee likes quality art and they support it. The arts community here is very dynamic and that helps. When I came home in 2004 I was impressed by how progressive the city had become. Stay on top of the news of the day Subscribe to our free, daily e-newsletter to get Milwaukee's latest local news, restaurants, music, arts and entertainment and events delivered right to your inbox every weekday, plus a bonus Week in Review email on Saturdays. SIGN UP How long were you gone? Thirteen years. I loved how the arts community had become so vibrant. There was a lot new development, new businesses in the Third Ward. How would you describe your art? I would describe myself as an abstract expressionist. I do a wide range of work and taught myself how to paintI never had a painting class. After moving back I did a few pieces for an Eisner Museum benefit and had a 2 a.m. epiphany while painting poppies with a palette knifeI told myself that this is what I want to do as my lifes work. I quit working in the advertising field and devoted myself to painting. I started with florals, abstract landscapes, pure abstraction. I taught myself the different mediaoil, acrylic, encaustic, watercolor, charcoal, ink, gilding with silver and gold leaf. And youve had commercial successes? A year and a half after teaching myself to paint, I had eight pieces in every Crate & Barrel in the U.S. My work is in Pier One Imports. I get a lot of commission work. My paintings have been up in Milwaukee restaurantsWater Buffalo, Swig, Lucky Ginger, Ardent, Thief Wine. The Timo Gallery will be open for Gallery Night? I always exhibit what Ive been working on at Gallery Night. I try to put on the best show that I can. Looking to make sales on Gallery Night is the wrong direction. I like to throw a party. Gallery Night is a great way to bring in people to see whats available in Milwaukee. Fall Gallery Night and Day takes place Oct. 21-22. For more information, visit historicthirdward.org. To learn more about Meyerring, visit timogallery.com. Since his election to Congress 18 years ago, in a southeastern Wisconsin district that seems to have been drawn in his favor, Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan has typically received token Democratic opposition on Election Day. In the past few election cycles, though, Democrats have offered increasingly serious challenges to Ryan as hes built a national profile and spent more time out of the district. This November, Ryans re-election bid is a bit more complicated as he faces challenges from his fellow Republicans as well as Democrats. As speaker of the House and Republican Party leader, hes trying even at this late date to build party unity by showing support for the Republican presidential nomineeDonald Trump. At the same time, though, Ryan is trying to distance himself from the increasingly toxic top of the ticket without outright pulling his endorsement. Then, too, Ryan is facing a Democrat who is serious about winning on Nov. 8Ryan Solen. Computer specialist Ryan Solen is an Iraq war Army veteran who lives in Mount Pleasant with his wife and four children. Solen decided to challenge Ryan last year, before he became House speaker, because he is upset by partisan gridlock in Congress. I just want to see our government functioning again, Solen told the Shepherd. I think theres a lot to be said for cooperating with each other. There is plenty of room for bipartisan discussion and bipartisan work to be done. Solen is so interested in reaching out to Republicans that he even attended the annual GOP Fall Fest in Walworth County on Saturday, Oct. 8, to hear what those on the other side of the aisle have to say. Fall Fest made international headlines this year after House Speaker Ryan disinvited Trump following the previous days release of a 2005 Access Hollywood clip in which Trump bragged about sexually assaulting women. Additional incriminating and abhorrent footage has since come to light, as well as more women accusing Trump of sexually predatory and sexist behavior. While Ryan hasnt joined the Republicans pulling their endorsements of Trump, the Janesville Congressman apparently didnt want to be seen in public at Fall Fest with a sexual predator whose polls numbers were plunging. Ryan, all but signaling Trumps defeat in November, has since told his fellow GOP-ers that they should focus on saving Congress from a Democratic sweep. Unlike Trump, Democratic candidate Ryan Solen attended Fall Fest, although he anticipated some hostility. Instead, he said, the Republicans he talked to were wonderful. He said the key to productive conversations is not just to explain what he wants to do, but the reasons why as well. Friends of the Shepherd Help support Milwaukee's locally owned free weekly newspaper. LEARN MORE It seemed really odd to them that I would be interested in their opinions, being a Democrat, Solen said. They were intrigued by that. That opened some conversations and got us talking about some things. To me that is the biggest indicator of support. People really do want to work with the other side. Its not like its been hyped up to be, that everyone is against each other. Investing in the District Like his Republican counterpart, Solen wants to cut out wasteful spending in Washington. But unlike the House speaker, Solen wants to reinvest the savings in our future by building up our infrastructure, aiming for universal health care, and making education more affordable, and, perhaps for the first two years of higher education, free of charge. I see these things as investments, Solen said. Its not just spending, contrary to what some people will tell you. He said that instead of focusing on jobs already shipped overseas to take advantage of cheap labor, hed work to keep companies in the U.S.and Wisconsinby protecting them from bad trade deals and respecting unions. Hes also like to raise the minimum wage, since the current low wage traps people in a cycle of poverty. When youre in that cycle you need just one thing going in your favor to break that cycle so that you can pull yourself up, Solen said. Solen, who served in a behavioral health unit in Iraq, said hes wary of getting involved in future wars, since the cost of war impacts generations of vets and their families. Taking care of soldiers after an armed conflict is still part of the war, the cost of war, Solen said. Thats why I see that its so important that we dont just jump into an armed conflict at the drop of a hat. He said hes getting support from Republicans who arent happy with Ryans leadership and his strained relationship with Trump. The problem that I see is that hes not making a decision and hes hoping that it will go away, Solen said. It wont go away. People are upset and they are going to focus on it until he makes a decision one way or another. To learn more about Ryan Solen, go to solenforcongress.com. With the theme Rise Up, Be Visible, an estimated 1,300 Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin supporters and feminist icon Gloria Steinem celebrated the state chapters 80th anniversary and the national organizations centennial. We want you to be visible. We want to be visible, Milwaukee philanthropist Lynde Uihlein told the audience. And we hope that all the men and women who have benefited from the reproductive rights that Planned Parenthood has espoused will be visible with us. Planned Parenthood, founded in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1916 by Margaret Sanger, launched in Wisconsin with one maternal health center in Milwaukee in 1935. The Wisconsin chapter has since grown to 21 health care centers that provide reproductive care, cancer and STD screenings, birth control, sex education, pregnancy testing and safe and legal abortion services. One in five women have used Planned Parenthood services for their health care. It hasnt been a smooth path. Although our culture is becoming more sex positive and new, effective and easy forms of birth control are available, in recent years social conservatives have tried to reduce womens reproductive freedom and attack Planned Parenthood. Nationally, the Guttmacher Institute found that 27% of all abortion restrictions enacted by states since Roe v. Wade made abortion legal nationwide in 1973 occurred in the five years spanning 2010-2015. The researchers chalk it up to the 2010 wave election that swept conservative abortion opponents into power in state capitols around the country. Like many of his fellow Republican lawmakers, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker defunded the organization, created additional barriers for abortions and has promoted religious pregnancy crisis centers that attempt to deter women from getting abortions. Since Walkers taken office, six Planned Parenthood clinics in Wisconsin have closed. On the campaign trail, Walker bragged about being 100% pro-life, meaning that he wants to totally outlaw abortion, including those for survivors of rape, including incest, as well as to save the health or life of the pregnant woman. And at one point earlier this year, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said that there has to be some form of punishment for women who have an abortion. Hes since softened his position but is still anti-abortion. But the anti-abortion Republicans may have overplayed their hand. Earlier this year, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional a Texas law that required abortion providers to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals and refused to hear an appeal of a similar Wisconsin law, signed by Walker, mandating those admitting privileges. Walkers crackdown on abortion providers isnt being enforced in Wisconsin. And pro-choice Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is beating Trump in national and state polls. Friends of the Shepherd Help support Milwaukee's locally owned free weekly newspaper. LEARN MORE Via video, Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards noted the attacks on the organization by conservative politicians and applauded the Wisconsin staff and supporters for continuing to provide high-quality health care despite many obstacles. Our mission and motto is Care, no matter what, Richards said. And that means not just that every person has a right to reproductive health care, but that every person has equal access to care. To get there, we have to change the culture around reproductive health so that no one is ashamed of being themselves and building the life they want. Steinem: The Government Doesnt Get to Decide At the anniversary luncheon, Gloria Steinem encouraged the audience to continue to advocate for womens reproductive freedom as a fundamental human right. I think if we were just to look almost mathematically what is affecting the largest number of people, first it would be the achievement of reproductive freedom as a fundamental human right, like freedom of speech or freedom of assembly, Steinem said. She said shes working toward the affirmation of what she calls bodily integrity, or the right of all individuals, regardless of gender, to make decisions about their bodies. Its all about bodily integrity, its all about the fact that we, whether we are female or male, have the right to decide what goes on inside our own bodies, Steinem said. The government doesnt get to decide. Nobody else gets to decide. Milwaukee-based artist Niki Johnson was presented with the 2017 Voices Award in recognition of her sex- and politics-charged artwork, including her Eggs Benedict, a portrait of Emeritus Pope Benedict created out of condoms. [Correction: Johnson won the award for her "Hills and Valleys, her newest artwork, not for her previous work.] At the Planned Parenthood celebration, Johnson unveiled her newest piece, Hills and Valleys, an image of a womans torso made out of signs from shut-down Planned Parenthood centers and mirrors from Hobby Lobby, the arts and crafts store that successfully argued in front of the Supreme Court that it shouldnt have to provide birth control coverage for its employees. Johnson used the mirrors to create an image of a vajazzled U.S. Capitol. Reproductive rights are an American tradition, Johnson said. Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin used the anniversaries to rally supporters ahead of the November election. Over the weekend, volunteers knocked on 3,228 doors statewide to talk to voters about their endorsed candidates, including Clinton and Democratic Senate candidate Russ Feingold. This website is intended for U.S. visitors only. Fads come and fads go. But in the 1990s, one thing happened that perhaps changed the way we cook and eat in America forever. Other things of importance happened in that decade: The World Wide Web came into being. More than 500,000 Rwandans were slaughtered in a three-month genocide. Timothy McVeigh bombed a federal building in Oklahoma City. And in the world of food, the Food Network at the time called the TV Food Network signed onto the air on April 19, 1993. Within a couple of years, everything was different. Ordinary people suddenly knew how to make a chiffonade. Home cooks were adding crispy fried leaves of basil or sage to their soups. And everyone was chopping onions the professional way. For a year or two, some people said Bam! every time they added garlic to a dish. Garlic was key. A large part of the country was wary of the pungent bulb until they saw Emeril Lagasse adding it to pretty much everything he cooked. Lagasses persistence made garlic an acceptable ingredient for the culinarily timid, and soon they began trying other spices as well. A whole world of cooking and eating opened up to a large portion of the population. With Americans becoming more savvy about the ways of professionals, restaurants sought new ideas. One restaurant trend that came (and fortunately left) in the 90s was the idea of presenting food in a stack. The fancier places, and those that aspired to be fancier, took to creating a single tower of food on a plate. It looked impressive, until you tried to eat it. With the first forkful, the whole thing inevitably tumbled over like a game of Jenga a game that, perhaps not coincidentally, became a huge hit in the 90s. Less aspirational restaurants brought out the salads of the decade, chicken Caesar salad and Asian chicken salad with mandarin orange segments. Other food trends included sun-dried tomatoes and pesto, which sometimes appeared in the same dish. Many a panini also a big trend of the era was served with chicken, pesto and sun-dried tomatoes. For me, two dishes most represent the food of the Nineties, and both of them are desserts: creme brulee and molten chocolate cake. Before chefs began breaking out and making cremes brulee in every flavor they could imagine (lavender, red wine, chocolate-chipotle), creme brulee was simple and elegant. A silken vanilla-cream custard lay just under a thin, delicate crust of burnt sugar its faint bitterness providing a counterpoint to the rich custard. A great creme brulee hinges on two factors. The first is cooking the custard gently, placing it in a water bath as it bakes to keep it from getting too hot. The second is going easy on the sugar before caramelizing it; you want the crust on top to be delicately brittle. Molten Chocolate Cake was invented by Jean-Georges Vongerichten when he accidentally took a chocolate sponge cake out of the oven too soon. When he cut into it, the unbaked and delicious center flowed out. The impressive dessert was practically unavoidable in the 90s under a host of names (Vongerichten himself calls it Warm, Soft Chocolate Cake), and it is every bit as stunning now as it was 20 years ago. It is surprisingly easy to make. It only requires a handful of ingredients. Each individual mini-cake is one serving, and you only have to cook it for 12 minutes, which is how it was created in the first place. And the taste is instantly satisfying. For a 1990s appetizer, I stayed with Vongerichten and his recipe for garlic soup. Garlic soup is pretty much a perfect example of 90s cooking: The taste is clean and simple; the recipe unfussy. Yet it is an elegant dish, as befits a post-Food Network world, and it makes unusual use of a common ingredient. The ingredient in this case is garlic. Simply heating the garlic slowly in olive oil removes its distinctive bite. What is left is a warm and mild flavor that gently permeates the soup without becoming assertive. An addition of egg at the end, like egg drop soup, turns the soup creamy and gives it a luxuriant texture. For an entree, I turned to one of my favorite recipes from the first chefs I ever saw on the Food Network. Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken, collectively (and a little too cutely) called the Too Hot Tamales, were my introduction to a cable channel with nothing but cooking shows. I was instantly entranced, partly because the food they cooked looked so stunning. I made their Marinated Skirt Steak because it is so fabulous and also because skirt steak kind of came into its own in the 90s when fajitas became an accepted part of American cuisine. Actually, the store was out of skirt steak, so I bought flank steak instead its a different cut of meat, but it cooks the same way and has essentially the same flavor. I have also had excellent results with top round marinated for just two hours. Its the marinade that makes this dish so outstanding. Olive oil, red wine vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, dry mustard, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco turn into an unbeatable combination with beef. I spread the horseradish mustard, which is also part of the recipe, on bread to make a succulent, full-bodied sandwich. Its enough to make you want to put on a flannel shirt and listen to grunge music. SIOUX CITY | Boarding a ship to serve in the Korean War at age 20, Eugene Stokes was glad he had the work ethic of a Nebraska farm kid. Serving in the military meant a structured life, as the U.S. sought to defend people in the south part of Korea from a push of communism from the north. "It gives you responsibility too. I'll put it this way -- the service, my opinion, if you go in there, it will either make you or break you. If you go in as a hell-raiser, you are either gonna get straightened out or go to hell faster," Stokes said. Tackling tasks with vigor is something Stokes still does today. He is likely one of the few Korean War veterans still employed today. At 85, Stokes, who lives in Sioux City, is a truck driver for Oban Construction in South Sioux City. "I ain't got no idea when I'm gonna retire. That's one of the ways I've stayed active. I'm always doing something...When I say I'm 85, no one believes me," he said. Stokes was raised in Webster County, Nebraska, where he attended a one-room school before graduating from Red Cloud High School in 1951. Two of his older brothers served in World War II, with Ivan in Germany and Vernon in the Pacific Theatre, as he got to see "the flag go up in Iwo Jima." Stokes, who came in the middle of nine kids in his family, worked in a gas station filling cars until enlisting in the Navy in September 1951. He did so because he wanted to serve in the Navy and not have his military branch decided for him. "I wanted to beat the draft because I didn't want to go in the Army," Stokes said, adding that he knew from his brothers' experiences that in the Navy, "You always had a hot meal and a dry rack to sleep on." After completing boot camp in San Diego, Stokes shipped out with more than 1,000 others on the U.S.S. St. Paul. Over four years into 1955, he would serve eight months in Korea, then eight months back in Long Beach, California, rotating back and forth three times, for 24 months in Korea in totality. He worked in Ships Service, which meant he was on a team of people who provided all the needs of daily living. He started in the laundry, then worked in a soda fountain and tailor shop. Stokes noted a ship is like a town on water, having also a barber and cobbler shops. "It is like a city. You've got to have all these (pieces)," Stokes said. "I can't say I hated it. I enjoyed it. We had a good crew. We had a crew of 1,500. Most of the people in there enlisted. We had to get our four years in...You learn to get along with your fellow man. You've only got so much space." The U.S.S. St. Paul patrolled near Wonsan Harbor in Korea. Though it never anchored, the ship provided ground support to troops and had guns that could pound coastal targets from 25 miles away and also picked up downed American pilots. "The North Koreans couldn't figure out where the big shells were coming from. We were up and down the East and West Coast. We would run the peninsula. We would go up one side and down the other. A lot of time we would go up close to the Manchurian border and destroy railroads, ship yards, whatever they tried to put up. If it looked like it would slow down the war, we would destroy it," Stokes said. He said there were war deaths on the U.S.S. St. Paul. "We lost 30 guys. A turret blew up, it misfired," Stokes said. "I helped get them out of the turret. I wasn't scared, but it was a moment that...Burnt flesh, that smell, I'll tell you, it stays with you." Once out of Korea, he moved back to Red Cloud to farm until 1959. Stokes next went to trade school to learn carpentry, worked on custom combining and built homes in Lincoln, Nebraska. He moved to Sioux City in 1966, when he operated a garbage collection route for the city of Sioux City. He's worked for Oban Construction since 2008. Stokes and wife LaRue have three children, nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Stokes enjoyed his time in the Navy, so he attends the reunions of those who served on the U.S.S. St. Paul every two years. The most recent reunion was in August. His war experiences are more than six decades removed, but he still gets emotional with certain prompts, including a familiar tune from funerals. "Hearing 'Taps' brings it all back," Stokes said. SIOUX CITY | When Steve Burns enters a room, heads will usually turn. His formidable height sets him apart and so does his graying beard. Yet it's the stovepipe hat that transforms the former Sioux Cityan into a lookalike for the 16th President of the United States. "You can't be Abraham Lincoln without the hat," Burns said. "That completes the look." Currently a Russell, Kansas resident, Burns has been an Abraham Lincoln reenactor for several years. "There was always a resemblance but it became more apparent after I grew my beard out," the former truck driver and construction worker explained. "My wife trimmed it into different shapes until we found one that looked historically accurate." Appearing at schools, libraries and historical ceremonies around the country, Burns will be giving a presentation at a fundraiser for Doug's Donors, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and improving life through education and awareness of organ donation. Doug's Donors' "Laughter is the Best Medicine" program will begin with a social hour at 4:30 p.m. Thursday at the Country Celebrations Event Center, 5606 Hamilton Blvd. A 5:30 p.m. dinner will be followed by a live and silent auction, comedy and, yes, Burns' interpretation of Lincoln. "Steve's my cousin and I thought it would be fun to have him here so close to the Presidential election," Doug's Donors founder Doug Lehman explained. "All I know is that Steve and I can't go anywhere and not mobbed." "That's fun," he continued, "but it will help us to spread the message of organ donation." Lehman knows what he's talking about. After losing a kidney in a hunting accident when he was 15, Lehman was later diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes that destroyed his other kidney. "We tried multiple forms of dialysis that didn't work," he recalled. "My doctor told me I had 10 days to live." On a Friday night in February 2012, two young people were killed in a car crash in Omaha. Lehman received a kidney transplant from one of the victim the next day at the University of Nebraska Medical Center after being on the waiting list for three and a half months. "I had a vision to do something to help people," Lehman said. That's when he founded Doug's Donors, which offers support to patients needing a transplant, helping them get onto transplant lists, taking them to medical appointment in Sioux Falls and Omaha while providing information in becoming a living donor. Burns said he was happy to help out in his cousin's cause. Plus he thought a Lincoln-like maturity was needed during a raucous Presidential year. "No, I don't think Abraham Lincoln would understand politics today," Burns said. "Lincoln knew the importance of working in a bipartisan manner plus he felt it was the duty of the President to pull the country together at times of trouble." "Those ideals seem so far removed nowadays," he admitted. Still, Burns remains hopeful that the mere appearance of Lincoln will put people in a more patriotic frame of mind. "We need to work together as a country," he said. SIOUX CITY | Amy Jayn Bomgaars, beautiful red-haired daughter of Jane and Roger Bomgaars, arrived home to be with her personal savior our Lord Jesus the Christ on Saturday morning, Oct. 8, 2016, in West Palm Beach, Fla., at Good Samaritan Hospital. Services will be 10 a.m. Friday at Grace United Methodist Church in Morningside. Private graveside services will be 3 p.m. Saturday in Memorial Park Cemetery. Visitation will be 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel, 3220 Stone Park Blvd., in Sioux City. Amy Jayn was born on March 8, 1982, at St Luke's Hospital in Sioux City. She attended St Paul's Lutheran School, Hoover Middle and West High School, graduating with honors. She was very active in concert band and jazz and served as drum major in marching band. Amy played flute, french horn and piano. She participated in choir including small groups and madrigal. Subsequently, she attended Stephens College in Columbia, Mo., graduating cum laude with degrees in theater arts and elementary education. Amy moved from Dakota Dunes to coastal Florida, living in Delray Beach and West Palm Beach. Recently her health was challenged by Scleroderma and complications of pneumonia. Hurricane evacuations and forced hospital closures led to Amy succumbing to endocarditis. Amy Jayn cared deeply about disadvantaged animals, which led to her looking after nine needy dogs over the years. Amy loved to be with children and during high school taught children's classes at Lamb Theater. On June 27, 2014, Amy Jayn married Joseph Fleet in a lovely outdoor ceremony in Seven Springs, Pa., and enjoyed a wonderful honeymoon in Spain. Amy's husband, Joe, had worked in the wealth management profession with Merrill Lynch. They were in the process of establishing their own private financial assistance firm when Amy's health took a turn for the worse. Amy Jayn and her husband, Joe, attended Christ Fellowship Church and spent every evening reading the Bible together. She had a strong faith and we're confident she is in God's loving care. Amy Jayn is survived by her husband, Joe; her parents, Jane and Roger; her brother, Aaron and his wife, Amy Gwen; nephews, Charlie and Jack, whom she adored, of Dakota Dunes; and many aunts, uncles and cousins. Memorial donations may be directed to the Siouxland Humane Society, 1015 Tri View Ave., Sioux City, IA 51103 or St Paul's Lutheran School, 614 Jennings St., Sioux City, IA 51101. SIOUX CITY | Over 50 people had a discussion with a panel loaded with leaders in the minority and law enforcement communities at the Unity in the Community event Tuesday. The event dubbed "Handling the Hurt" at the Sioux City Public Museum gave an opportunity for local citizens and community leaders to ask questions and understand what steps are being taken to improve community relations in Siouxland. "I was very impressed with the turnout -- it's a great opportunity to keep the dialogue up and have a discussion," said Sioux City Police Chief Doug Young, one of the panelists. "The word of the night was 'engage,' and it's great just to see so many people here and having that discussion." Along with Young, the panel included Woodbury County attorney Patrick Jennings; Tim Duax, U.S. Attorney's Office; Perla Alarcon-Flory, a private business owner; Ike Rayford, Masonic Lodge; Sandi Mitchell, Western Iowa Tech Community College; and Frank LaMere, Four Directions Community Center. Citizens asked questions on topics such as the definition of probable cause, how police are trained to deal with mental disabilities and citizens who do not speak English, and why there is a disparity among members of minority groups when it comes to committing crimes. Also, they asked how to act when addressing police officers, what criteria must be met for a police officer to shoot someone, and how to file a citizen's complaint. "I thought the questions were fair," Young said. "I know there's a lot more that the police department needs to do out in the community and the discussion we are having here will do it. We love the outreach. I'm looking forward to getting people out there and having these discussions with the community, especially with the minority groups." Woodbury County Sheriff Dave Drew was also impressed with the number of people who came out. "The one thing I thought is impressive was the turnout," Drew said. "When the police department or the sheriff's office would hold a meeting to try to discuss things (with the community,) a lot of times law enforcement would outnumber the crowd. So I know the chief, and all the members of the police department, are excited to see this. But more than anything, we are more excited that Unity in the Community is here." Unity in the Community also held a peaceful march in July outside the police department while police and community relations were heightened after deadly citizen and law enforcement interactions. "I felt it was very important to bring everyone together and ask the questions, addressing concerns and to give the information," said Monique Scarlett, community activist and the event's organizer. "So when we leave here, we are better people with a better understanding, more respect for one another and to continue working together." SIOUX CITY | Woodbury County Rural Economic Development Department Director David Gleiser said Tuesday he is hearing positive impressions on the county's plan to give a partial property tax exemption to people who add equipment or buildings to livestock facilities. However, Gleiser said he is not able to estimate the number of units that will be built by people seeking to take the property tax exemption, which would be received for five years. "Industrial expansions and the construction of new facilities are really dependent on market conditions within the respective industries. However, I do hope it encourages growth within these industries when opportunities arise," Geliser told the Journal. "It is simply a tool that we have the ability to use, in order to provide our industrial and ag sector communities with a tax benefit and help them out when they're making capital investments in our county." The Woodbury County Board of Supervisors had first discussed the possibility of the property tax exemptions in April, then began work toward putting the program in place on Oct. 4. The supervisors on Tuesday passed the first reading of the property tax exemption ordinance. They will hold a second reading on Nov. 1 and move to adopt the ordinance in a later meeting. Iowa Code 427-B provides a partial tax exemption for the new construction of varying pieces such as improvements to cattle facilities, which is something other Iowa counties and cities have offered. The proposed exemption would be 75 percent of new property taxes in the first year. The exemption amount would drop by 15 percent in each of the subsequent four years, running from 60 percent in the second year to 15 percent in the fifth and final year. The proposed ordinance will apply to new building construction. Gleiser said it is expensive to build facilities for livestock, citing one report of costs at $1,000 per head of cattle in construction expenses. If approved by the supervisors, people could apply for the tax exemptions through the county assessor office. Woodbury County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeremy Taylor said once the ordinance is adopted, he wants Gleiser to give updates on how many people were spurred to make improvements and receive the exemption. "I don't know if this will, per se, open the floodgates," Gleiser said. "Remember, it's a rigged system. It's a rigged election," said Donald Trump in New Hampshire on Saturday. The stunned recoil in this city suggests this bunker buster went right down the chimney. As the French put it, "Il n'y a que la verite qui blesse." It is only the truth that hurts. In what sense is the system rigged? Consider Big Media -- the elite columnists and commentators, the dominant national press, and the national and cable networks, save FOX. Not in this writer's lifetime has there been such blanket hatred and hostility of a presidential candidate of a major party. "So what?" They reply. "We have a free press!" But in this election, Big Media have burst out of the closet as an adjunct of the regime and the attack arm of the Clinton campaign, aiming to bring Trump down. Half a century ago, Theodore White wrote of the power and bias of the "adversary press" that sought to bring down Richard Nixon. "The power of the press in America," wrote Teddy, "is a primordial one. It sets the agenda of public discussion; and this sweeping power is unrestrained by any law. It determines what people will talk about and think about -- an authority that in other nations is reserved for tyrants, priests, parties and mandarins." On ABC's "This Week," Newt Gingrich volunteered on Sunday that, "without the unending one-sided assault of the news media, Trump would be beating Hillary by 15 points." On this one, Newt is right. With all due respect, as adversaries, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi are not terribly formidable. Big Media is the power that sustains the forces of globalism against those of Americanism. Is the system rigged? Ask yourself. For half a century, the U.S. Supreme Court has systematically de-Christianized and paganized American society and declared abortion and homosexual marriage constitutional rights. Where did these unelected jurists get the right to impose their views and values upon us, and remake America in their own secularist image? Was that really the Court's role in the Constitution? How did we wind up with an all-powerful judicial tyranny in a nation the Founding Fathers created as a democratic republic? There are more than 11 million illegal immigrants here, with millions more coming. Yet the government consistently refuses to enforce the immigration laws of the United States. Why should those Americans whose ancestors created, fought, bled and died to preserve America not believe they and their children are being dispossessed of a country that was their patrimony -- and without their consent? When did the country vote to convert the America we grew up in into the Third World country our descendants will inherit in 2042? In the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a congressional majority voted to end discrimination against black folks. When did we vote to institute pervasive discrimination against white folks, especially white males, with affirmative action, quotas and racial set-asides? Even in blue states like California, affirmative action is routinely rejected in statewide ballots. Yet it remains regime policy, embedded in the bureaucracy. In 2015, in the Democratic primaries, the big enthusiastic crowds were all for 75-year-old Socialist senator Bernie Sanders. We now know, thanks to leaked emails, that not only the superdelegates and the Obama White House but a collaborationist press and the DNC were colluding to deny Sanders any chance at the nomination. The fix was in. Ask Sanders if he thinks the system is rigged. If there is an issue upon which Americans agree, it is that they want secure borders and an end to trade policies that have shipped abroad the jobs, and arrested the wages, of working Americans. Yet in a private speech that netted her $225,000 from Brazilian bankers, Hillary Clinton confided that she dreams of a "common market, with open trade and open borders" from Nome, Alaska, to Patagonia. That would mean the end of the USA as a unique, sovereign and independent nation. But the American press, whose survival depends upon the big ad dollars of transnational corporations, is more interested in old tapes of the Donald on The Howard Stern Show. At present, it appears that in 2017, we may get a government headed by Hillary Clinton, and an opposition headed by Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell. Is that what the people were hoping for, working for, voting for in the primaries of 2016? Or is this what they were voting against? Big money and the media power of the establishment elites and the transnationals may well prevail. And if they do, Middle America -- those who cling to their bibles, bigotries and guns in Barack Obama's depiction, those "deplorables" who are "racist, sexist, xenophobic, homophobic," who are "not America" and are "irredeemable" in Hillary Clinton's depiction -- will have to accept the new regime. But that does not mean they must love it, like it or respect it. Because, in the last analysis, yes, Virginia, the system is rigged. Young people today have been given many wonderful opportunities to learn and succeed in hopes that they will one day be able to play active and positive roles in their community. Because Ardel Bengtson understands the value of hard work for a better future, I am supporting her for Nebraska Legislature. Ardel will not only advocate for an improved education system, but for better paying jobs. As a college student, I am concerned about finding a job after graduation. Ardels experience as an educator and her love for our community reassures me that she will advocate on behalf of people like me who want to provide for their families and ensure their children will have the same opportunities they did. As a recipient of the Golden Apple Award, an award given by the Chamber of Commerce for excellence in teaching, Ardel is more than just talk. She is a proven and passionate pillar of our community who will fight to make sure our schools receive the funding necessary to effectively educate the leaders of tomorrow. Please join me in supporting Ardel Bengtson for Legislature this November. - Nathan Neary, Wayne, Neb. The gravity of the existential threat we face from Islamic Jihad is truly of epic proportions. It is essentially a battle pitting free-civilized man against a totalitarian barbarian. What is at stake is the struggle for our very soul - namely who we are and what we represent. The lives that were sacrificed for individual rights and freedoms that we've come to cherish are being chiseled away from right under our noses by the stealth jihadists. And many of us are in denial and totally clueless. The left's appeasement and pandering to evil is nothing new. What makes their utopian delusions so infuriating and unpardonable is that it is not only they who will have to pay the consequences, and deservedly, so, they are thwarting and undermining our best efforts at resistance and are thus dragging us down in the process as well. By Peter Lancz,, the head of the Raoul Wallenberg World Campaign Against Racism. Here's the latest in lesbian, bisexual and transgender news! Alabama Church Elects Lesbian Pastor (SFGN) The Rev. Jennifer Sanders is the newly elected pastor of Beloved Community Church, an affiliate of the United Church of Christ, in Avondale Alabama in Birmingham. Im a woman, a lesbian, a member of a progressive faith tradition, Sanders told AL.com. Beloved Church was founded in 2000, and had 120 members, AL.com reports. "Beloved was founded as an interracial church, open and affirming justice for the LGBTQ community, for people with disabilities, from different faith backgrounds," she said. "There's a genuine commitment to diversity and appreciation and engagement." Regarding gay rights activism Sanders said, Its part of who I am, but its not the whole of what we do, Sanders said. My commitment to racial justice, to people with disabilities, my commitment to economic justice and environmental justice, are part of that, just as much a part of my commitment to rights for LGBTQ people. Sanders has a bachelors degree in history and political science from Rice University, and a masters degree in occupational therapy from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She has more than 15 years experience as an occupational therapist at homes and hospitals in the area, according to AL.com. She is working on a master of divinity degree from Chicago Theological Seminary. Greys Anatomys Sara Ramirez come out as Bi (SFGN) During an appearance at the True Color Funds 40 to None Summit, actress Sara Ramirez spoke on some of the issues facing LGBT youth, and identified herself as queer and bisexual, the Huffington Post reports (http://huff.to/2dONNeA). The True Colors Fund is a New York based advocacy group for homeless LGBT Youth, co-founded by Cyndi Lauper. So many of our youth experiencing homelessness are youth whose lives touch on many intersections whether they be gender identity, gender expression, race, class, sexual orientation, religion, citizenship status, Ramirez said. Because of the intersections that exist in my own life: woman, multi-racial woman, woman of color, queer, bisexual, Mexican-Irish American, immigrant, and raised by families heavily rooted in Catholicism on both my Mexican and Irish sides, I am deeply invested in projects that allow our youths voices to be heard. Ramirez has appeared in Spanish PSAs for GLAAD. Her Greys Anatomy character, Dr. Callie Torres married fellow Dr. Arizona Robbins, played by Jessica Capshaw, in 2011. It made sense for me at this time as it was one piece of a larger context I was communicating, she told HuffPost about her speech. Our most marginalized youth touch on many intersections, and in describing the concept of inter sectionalities, I decided to describe the ones that exist in my own life. US Supreme Court Delays Hearing Transgender School Board Case (SFGN) The U.S. Supreme Court is still deciding whether or not it will hear the case of transgender Virginia high school student Gavin Grimm vs. the Gloucester County School Board, the Daily Press reports. The school board filed a petition in August asking the Supreme court to decide whether refusing Grimm access to the boys restroom is a violation of federal law. Grimm, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, sued the school board last year over a policy that requires students to use the restroom of their physical sex, or private unisex restrooms. The ACLU argues the school policy violates Title IX a federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in schools, requiring the school board to provide equal restrooms for male and female students separated on the basis of sex. The school argues that gender identity is not a protected status. "The term 'gender identity' is nowhere in Title IX," the school divisions petition reads. "If 'sex' signifies, not biology, but rather one's 'internal' sense of maleness or femaleness, the whole concept of permissible sex-separation collapses." A federal judge ruled in June that Grimm could use the boys facilities at Gloucester High School, but the school board requested a block on the order until the case could be appealed in high court. If the case is rejected, the federal order will be back in place, meaning Grimm will be allowed to use the restroom while the case is heard in federal court. Check out news from around the world! Three Law Clerks of Alabama Suspended, Chief Justice Fired (AP) The attorney of suspended Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore says three of his clients law clerks have been fired. Attorney Mat Staver tells Al.com in a statement Sunday that acting Chief Justice Lyn Stuart fired Moores head law clerk and two other law clerks. Stuart sent a letter asking Moore to remove his items and return his keys by Oct. 18. A judicial panel suspended Moore for the remainder of his term after finding he urged state probate judges to defy the federal courts on gay marriage. Staver calls the firings and order to remove personal effects outrageous. Moore is appealing the suspension. By the end of his term in 2019, hell be beyond the age limit of 70 for judges. Politics - Log Cabin Republicans Endorse Second Round of Candidates (SFGN) The Log Cabin Republicans Board of Directors has endorsed all incumbent Republican candidates for U.S. House of Representatives. These endorsed candidates have been steadfast allies of LGBT freedom in the House of Representatives, Log Cabin Republicans President Gregory T. Angelo stated. All of these common-sense conservatives have not only spoken out in support of equality, but also cast votes in this 114th Congress that confirm their commitment to the cause. LCR PAC salutes these GOP leaders, and pledges to back up our words with actions that show our commitment to them. The endorsed candidates are: Congressman Mike Coffman (R-CO) Congressman Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) Congressman Charlie Dent (R-PA) Congressman Robert Dold (R-IL) Congressman John Katko (R-NY) Congressman Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ) Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) Local - World Aids Museum Presents Holding the Man Oct. 21 (SFGN) The World AIDS Museum(WAM), 1201 NE 26th Street, Suite 111 in Wilton Manors continues its monthly film series on Friday, Oct. 21 The WAM film series portrays different aspects of the HIV/AIDS story, and takes place the third Friday of each month at 7 p.m. Refreshments are served. Upcoming dates and films are: Oct. 21, Holding the Man (2015) This 2015 Australian romantic drama follows the relationship of high school sweethearts Tim and John over 15 years of joys and sorrows. Nov. 18, The Velocity of Gary (1998) Vincent DOnofrio plays Valention, a former porn star, in love with his girlfriend Mary Carmen (Selma Hayek) and boyfriend Gary (Thomas Jane). Things take a turn when Valentino is rushed to the hospital after collapsing on a city street and is diagnosed with HIV. Dec. 16, A Year Without Love (2005) In this Argentinian drama, a writer dying of AIDS searches for a cure and human interaction in the hospitals and sex clubs of Buenos Aires. For more information on visit www.worldaidsmuseum.org/programs/cultural-series/ National - 3 Law Clerks of Alabama Suspended Chief Justice Fired (AP) The attorney of suspended Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore says three of his client's law clerks have been fired. Attorney Mat Staver tells Al.com in a statement Sunday that acting Chief Justice Lyn Stuart fired Moore's head law clerk and two other law clerks. Stuart sent a letter asking Moore to remove his items and return his keys by Oct. 18. A judicial panel suspended Moore for the remainder of his term after finding he urged state probate judges to defy the federal courts on gay marriage. Staver calls the firings and order to remove personal effects "outrageous." Moore is appealing the suspension. By the end of his term in 2019, he'll be beyond the age limit of 70 for judges. Some state legislatures have passed photo identification laws to combat alleged voter fraud. These laws could affect transgender voting rights. Many transgender people have great difficulty in updating their Identification (ID) documents. Jen Laws, an Independent Policy Analyst and Consultant, disputes the alleged voter fraud. According to Laws, in 2012 and 2008, prosecutors found two cases of voter fraud. He described it as a ridiculously small percentage. Many other people also fail to see any evidence of this alleged voter fraud. They classify these laws as forms of voter suppression. In 2011, the National Transgender Discrimination Survey (NTDS) surveyed transgender people throughout the U.S. According to the NTDS, 41 percent of post-transition transgender people lacked an updated drivers license. This lack increased among racial minorities. It increased to 58 percent among Black and 63 percent among Native American transgender people. Among FTM without surgery, 75 percent lacked an updated drivers license. About 64 percent of FTM had not tried to update it. Another 11 percent had their requests for updates denied. As drivers licenses form the most common election ID, transgender people may face trouble at the polls. Among all transgender people, surgery made a real difference in how many updated their drivers licenses. Those with surgery appeared to have a much easier time updating their drivers licenses than those without surgery. Florida Issues In Florida, transgender people use a court order to update their ID. Atticus Rank, Director of Transgender Services at Sunserve, reported many people seek that court order. In eleven months, Rank has assisted 87 transgender clients to obtain it. After the court order, the client has to update their ID with each ID-issuing agency. This requires taking time off from work. Most transgender people tend to have low-income jobs. In addition, an updated ID costs money. Jen Laws continued, What matters most to you is basic survival. Are you going to be able to pay your electric bill in the middle of the month? Are you going to have to take a day off from work to align your identification, or to vote? It's hard to feel invested in a system that discourages people from voting. In Florida, voters have to present a proper ID at their polling place before voting. This forms the first barrier, the lack of proper ID. The poll worker compares the ID with the voter and the voter registration name. When the poll worker determines that all three match, the voter can proceed to vote. This introduces the second barrier, the potential bias of poll workers. People can dye their hair, grow facial hair, change hairstyles, or lose their hair. People do not always perfectly match their IDs. As long as poll workers can recognize the person from their photo ID, poll workers should allow them to vote. Jen Laws brings two pieces of ID when he goes to the polls in Broward. He said, Normally, I have facial hair but I shave. I speak more softly. I do my best to blend in because voting matters to me. The National Election Protection Coalition has set up a national hotline (1-866-687-8683) for people having trouble at the polls. This hotline will document incidents and provide advice to voters with problems voting. At present, no valid documentation exists as to the number of people prevented from voting. Anyone, transgender or not, with barriers to voting at the polls should call this hotline. People barred from voting should request a provisional ballot from poll workers. If someone casts a provisional ballot, they have to obtain the follow-up procedures and deadlines. A provisional ballot will not count, unless the voter completes the follow-up procedures and meets the deadlines. Early voting provides more time to resolve challenges to the right to vote. Jen Laws praised Brenda Snipes, the Supervisor of Elections in Broward. Snipes impressed him with the speed with which she addressed issues in the Presidential Primary. National Issues According to Arli Christian of the National Center for Transgender Equality, 13 states make updating a drivers license very difficult. These states require proofs of surgery, court orders, or amended birth certificates. Four other states have unclear, unknown, or unwritten policies. Jen Laws has heard of cases of transgender voter suppression in Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Texas. Other states may have had incidents but no reports reached him about those incidents. Matthew Pagnotti, Civic Engagement Coordinator for AIDS Alabama, works building electoral support for HIV issues in Alabama. He reported that Alabama has adopted voter suppressive laws, including a strict photo ID law. Pagnotti had heard reports that transgender voter suppression had occurred, prior to these laws. Poll workers unlawfully turned away transgender people based on the poll workers prejudices. These new laws reinforce those prejudices. In Alabama as with many other states, Pagnotti continued, You end up with this kind of trap, a catch-22. Transgender people have great difficulty updating their legal documents to reflect their felt gender identity. Even when they have managed to align their gender identify with the identification documents, poll workers challenge their gender expression as inconsistent with their documentation. Pagnotti continued, Theyre literally being disenfranchised and their voices are being silenced. Pagnotti continued, When you have policies like this, it causes confusion for many folks, especially folks who aren't regular voters. When they hear that now, there's going to be an ID required, [they think] the ID is going to reflect my sex at birth, and not my gender identity. I'm going to face discrimination. Those thoughts just deter people from wanting to even go through that process. He noted voter suppressions special effect on those that it targets in multiple ways, trans, and queer people of color. Besides photo ID requirements, voter suppression takes other forms. Some states deny the right to vote to convicted felons upon their release. Advocates label this as felony disenfranchisement. Three states, including Florida, take away the right to vote of anyone convicted of any felony. This occurs upon their release from prison. Given the large number of people that Florida imprisons, felony disenfranchisement may have the greatest impact on Florida elections. Another seven states only deny the right to vote of people convicted of certain felonies. The other 40 states restore full voting rights to felons upon their release. Voter suppression affects LGBT people, especially transgender people of color. It dilutes the electoral impact of LGBT people, further marginalizing all LGBT people. Voter suppression is an LGBT issue. For information on transgender voting rights, please visit www.transequality.org/issues/voting-rights . For the one-page checklist, Voting While Trans, please visit www.transequality.org/sites/default/files/docs/voting%20while%20trans.pdf . If prevented from voting, call the National Election Protection Hotline at 1-866-687-8683. You may also visit them online at www.866ourvote.org .People mainly speaking Spanish should call 1-888-839-8682. For information about elections in Broward County, please visit www.browardsoe.org/ . To check current registration status in Broward, please visit www.browardsoe.org/Voter-Information/Voter-Lookup-Free-Access-System . To view acceptable voter ID requirements in Broward, please visit, www.browardsoe.org/Voter-Information/Voter-ID-Requirements. Follow Sean McShee on Twitter @SeanMcShee You are a whiner, a crybaby and a spoiled brat. Soon, you will be a loser, too. So sue me for calling you a dishonest, double-dealing, draft-dodging demagogue. I dare you, big shot. Your money, like your mouth, doesn't scare me. In my 40 years as a lawyer and journalist, I have met murderers and madmen, con artists and crooks, demons and dragons. Lots of them spew fire. You? Simply hot ash. So come at me, big shot. I will take you on. Like you, I am a New York kid, who like most of our friends, played in a sandbox in concrete schoolyards. But we grew out of it. We became adults, not acrimonious, arrogant, assholes. We came to understand that the Statue of Liberty meant we were growing up in the most cosmopolitan diverse community in the world. We built a city not to restrict anyone, but welcome everyone. How did you ever fit in? We don't mimic and mock disabled persons whose lives are strong enough to overcome physical challenges. We celebrate soldiers whose capture deprived them of the very freedoms they were fighting for. We disagree polemically with politicians without calling them childish names and belittling them personally. We admire women and their beauty, without groping them, disgracing them, and sexually assaulting them. We welcome diverse religions, multiple cultures, and the unique but healthy cultural differences of our communities. We don't build walls to keep people out, but bridges to bring people in. If a mother losing her American son in combat is not enough to gain your respect or get an apology from you, what is your own self-worth? Shameless and embarrassing you are! We oppose the policies of our political adversaries, without denigrating their beliefs or their ideals. You attack them because they don't applaud your own. We want bold leaders in America, you clown- not feared dictators. So come at me, Mr. Trump, because you have been hoisted on your own petard. It is your own words that make you toxic and criminal. You are the one who electronically recorded your own confession, revealing to the world that you walked into dressing rooms of beauty pageants to stare at naked girls; that you bragged you used to do that all the time. And as for boasting you can grab a woman's pussy freely, what a damn pity that none of them ever kicked you back hard, right in the nuts. You started off low enough, Donald. All you have done is gone from the gutter to the sewer, where rats live. You should feel right at home. When United States senators become 'Little Marco' and 'Lying Ted', or 'Crooked Hillary,' do you know what you become? A predatory animal. A flawed candidate. A rotten person. You opened the door, Trump, and it's about time more journalists like me slammed it in your face. It's a shame more reporters have not stood up to you sooner, as you have ironically been crucifying the very media that built you up. Now they- we- are tearing you down. Tough break, buddy. What's good for the goose is good for the gander. When you suggest a federal judge from Indiana can't decide a case because of his Mexican heritage, you become a slanderer. Yeah, let's 'open up' those libel laws so you can become its first target. When you knowingly lie for years that our president is not an American with your spurious 'birther' claim, you reveal your racist self, articulating a bogus claim to delegitimize the first African American president in the nation's history. By the way, can you really produce a degree from Wharton, or is it one of those worthless ones from Trump University? And you call yourself an author, when all your books are ghost written, by authors who call you a House of Frauds? I am surprised they don't all end at Chapter 11, because not many Americans could lose a billion dollars in a year running a casino. I guess the 'House' wins as long as you are not the owner. So come after me, big-shot. Today, faced with an unceremonious and brutal defeat in the presidential election, you are doing the same to Hillary Clinton, baselessly and speciously claiming that the election is rigged against you, a billionaire white boy. Rigged, my ass! No, you son of a bitch. Too much of America has been made to protect people like you. America protected you when it gave you a half dozen chances to rebuild from your multiple bankruptcies which screwed over thousands of people you never paid. America gave you a chance at a clear life with your four student deferments to avoid the draft in the 1960s while 50,000 men of your generation died fighting in Vietnam. America is giving you the right and free speech to demean and disgrace our soldiers today, calling our military a 'disaster' and our generals 'rubble.' I wonder, Mr. Trump, would that right exist in an administration you supervised? I doubt it. You won't give LGBT couples the right to marry once, but America gave you the right to pay for three divorces, and get married again and again. America is giving you and your rich fancy corporations the right to take millions and millions in tax deductions, while millions and millions of poorer Americans living week to week and paycheck to paycheck struggle every year to pay their fair share. They don't live in Mar-a-Lago with gold-plated toilet seats while guys like you crap all over them. America is also a place where if you live long enough Mr. Trump, you find karma. The good you do comes back to you. But guess what, Mr. Big Shot? So does the bad. The floodgates are open. Those female 'pigs' you were talking about? Like Miss Machado, they vote now- legitimately in numbers that will be correctly counted despite your desperately barren claims the election will be corrupted. Dishonesty? No, that's your department. You will get your drug test, Mr. Trump, soon enough. Maybe when your audit comes back. One week after you unceremoniously presented to the press a parade of women accusing Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct amazingly an hour before a presidential debate involving his wife the innocent residual victim of those accusers, you now face your own. Irony? You can deny these women their day even though your own words reveal you to be deceitful and dishonest, a hypocrite and a liar. You can demean yourself further and denigrate them more by suggesting they were 'not attractive' enough for you. It's more proof in the pudding that you just don't get it; that you are every bit the misogynist we say you are. And not all Republican nominees are bad people, either. Some might be rapists, some might be criminals, but some might be distinguished Americans like Mitt Romney, wealthy but with the wisdom to conduct a campaign that preserves the dignity of our democracy. You, Mr. Trump, have no dignity, no conscience, no temperament. You are nothing, just a bitter, angry old man, frustrated that your life has been a fraud and you have been exposed as a phony. You have a hedonistic, condescending, self-indulgent personality that tolerates no speech other than his own. That is dictatorial and despotic, unhinged and radical. You are perfect for Qatar, not Queens. In your rallies you refer to 'you people' and 'your country' as if it were not all 'ours.' One thing it can't ever be is yours. Your candidacy threatens the very liberties we have in the country that are dear to so many. So come after me, Mr. Trump. I will bet my 40 years as a constitutional rights lawyer trumps your 40 minutes of fame and national misfortune. I will bet my reading of the first amendment is accurate and yours anachronistic. I will bet that courts protect my right to criticize you, not your desire to silence me. Your candidacy has been rejected and repudiated by more party officials than ever before in the history of our nation. But not enough. Where are the voices of those who once stood up to Senator Joe McCarthy? Where is the conscience of the Republican party? On a bus with Billy Bush? Or in the dressing room of a teenage beauty pageant with Donald J. Trump? Here is a man fueling insurgency, impugning the integrity of our electoral process, and transparently lying to preserve his poisonous candidacy, and a wealth of his colleagues look on in shocking silence. They may be more of a disgrace than the nominee. 'They' are the Tea Party remnants who have been cultivating fear and hate for years now, holding up national budgets for partisan claims, shutting down our government in order to advocate their desperately discriminatory policies. They have no vision, only vitriol. They are disloyal obstructionists, not oppositionists. They helped make Trump the Republican nominee. Presidential campaigns have been dirty before, but with the Roger Stones and Breitbarts of the world infecting this one-standing by Trump's side- this one will get worse still. But here is where Mr. Trump will really lose. Just watch the TV ads coming soon. The truth is though that the election of Hillary Clinton will not 'lead to the destruction of our country.' It will prove again the inherent strength and resilience of our republic; that we can withstand the toxifying influence of Donald J. Trump, soon to be a dark and deplorable asterisk in American election history. I will say this. The genocide in Aleppo is generationally cataclysmic. ISIS is fascist and needs to be crushed and eliminated. Syria and Russia need to be stopped. Climate change is impacting our lives now, hacking is expanding, but Social Security, like health care, should be expanded. International trade and job losses are legitimate economic concerns. Our rights as citizens to protest and dissent must be jealously guarded, and police have to be respected as well as restrained. Gun violence and assault weapons restrictions must be addressed in legislatures, schools, and communities. Medical marijuana dispensaries should be supported nationally. College tuition can be cheaper. ENDA must be passed and a Supreme Court justice selected. White billionaires should pay taxes, too. These are the issues of presidential debates, not sex tapes. I would like to see ideas debated and discussed. If they are, the farce and fake that is Donald Trump will be exposed; the facts that Clinton has on her side will be revealed. More than anything else, if Chris Wallace is the Chris Wallace I know he can be, he will be the one everyone is talking about tomorrow- the man who proved Donald Trump never should have been on the world stage to begin with. But there is one leaving town in an hour. Hopefully he will be on it. Forever. Le Collectif Cheikh Yassine a organise un certain nombre dactivites et de festivites pour les enfants de Gaza sous le theme La joie des enfants de Gaza pour lAid . Ces activites ont commence le premier jour de lAid et continue jusquau 4eme jour de lAid dans la bande de Gaza. Plusieurs activites, ont ete organisees parmi lesquelles : des competitions recompensees par des prix, des jeux, des animations et des chants presentes par un groupe ainsi que des distributions de cadeaux et daides financieres. Antarctica NASA At the southern end of the Earth, a NASA plane carrying a team of scientists and a sophisticated instrument suite to study ice is returning to surveying Antarctica. For the past eight years, Operation IceBridge has been on a mission to build a record of how polar ice is evolving in a changing environment. The information IceBridge has gathered in the Antarctic, which includes data on the thickness and shape of snow and ice, as well as the topography of the land and ocean floor beneath the ocean and the ice, has allowed scientists to determine that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet may be in irreversible decline. Researchers have also used IceBridge data to evaluate climate models of Antarctica and map the bedrock underneath Antarctic ice. IceBridge completed the first research flight of its 2016 Antarctic campaign on October 14. The campaign will continue through November 19. This year, the mission is based in Punta Arenas, a city at the southern tip of Chile. From there, IceBridge is carrying 12-hour flights back and forth to Antarctica, covering most of the western section of the frozen continent the region that is experiencing the fastest changes and is Antarcticas biggest contributor to sea level rise. We have a total of 46 flight lines to choose from this year, said John Sonntag, IceBridge mission scientist. If were lucky -the weather is very tricky in Antarctica- well fly around half of them, for a total of 300 flight hours. IceBridges flights will be mostly revisits of lines flown in previous years, to monitor how the ice has evolved since the last time the mission measured it. Still, there are some variations and additions to this years plans. IceBridge intends to carry a new flight in the Bellingshausen Sea that will mimic some of the tracks that an upcoming NASA satellite mission -the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2, or ICESat-2- will follow in that area. The data collected during this flight will help calibrate ICESat-2s future measurements. This year, well mostly repeat our usual flight lines for sea ice, which have been proven to give us good coverage of the sea ice cover in the Weddell and Bellingshausen seas, said Nathan Kurtz, IceBridges project scientist and a sea ice researcher at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. For land ice, IceBridge has adjusted some of its planned flights to allow scientists to better understand rapidly changing areas that are still relatively unexplored, such as the Smith, Pope and Kohler glaciers and the Getz Ice Shelf. For flights elsewhere in Antarctica, the IceBridge team is also coordinating with a group of scientists from the British Antarctic Survey, who will also be conducting aerial surveys of West Antarctica in some of the areas that IceBridge studies. Were interested in knowing the differences between our radar and laser systems and theirs and making best use of finite flight time, said Joe MacGregor, IceBridges deputy project scientist and a land ice researcher at Goddard. If we fly portions of their flights, well be able to compare the data and collaborate in our efforts to understand the future of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. If we fly in between their tracks, then the combination of our datasets and theirs can produce a more complete picture of a changing Antarctica. Unlike in some previous years, when IceBridge flew on smaller planes with limited loads, this campaigns flights will again be conducted aboard NASAs DC-8 roomy airborne science laboratory, which allows the mission to carry its full instrument suite. The main instrument is a laser altimeter that records minute changes in the height of the ice surface from one year to the next. Accompanying the laser are three radars that analyze the elevation and layer composition of the snow and ice, as well as the shape of the land underneath, and a high-resolution camera system. The DC-8 also carries a gravimeter and magnetometer that measure small variations in gravity and the Earths magnetic field to map the ocean cavity underneath Antarcticas ice edges, which is essential for improving our understanding of how the ice and ocean interact. For the first time in the Antarctic, IceBridge will also be using an infrared camera to measure the surface temperature of the ice. A high-school teacher from Colorado, a handful of professors and students from Universidad de Magallanes, Chile, and several media teams, among other visitors, will be flying with IceBridge during the Antarctic campaign. Operation IceBridges mission is to collect data on changing polar land and sea ice and maintain continuity of measurements between ICESat missions. The original ICESat mission ended in 2009, and its successor, ICESat-2, is scheduled for launch in 2018. Operation IceBridge is currently funded until 2019. The planned overlap with ICESat-2 will help scientists validate the satellites measurements. NASAs Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia provided the laser altimeter and the infrared camera that are being used during IceBridges 2016 Antarctic spring campaign. The DC-8 research aircraft is based at NASAs Armstrong Flight Research Center facility in Palmdale, California. IceBridges three radar instruments come from the Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets at the University of Kansas, while NASAs Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, California, provided the Digital Mapping System, and the gravimeter and magnetometer onboard IceBridge are managed by Columbia University. For more about Operation IceBridge and to follow this years campaign, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/icebridge Chandra's Archives NASA Each year, NASAs Chandra X-ray Observatory helps celebrate American Archive Month by releasing a collection of images using X-ray data in its archive. The Chandra Data Archive is a sophisticated digital system that ultimately contains all of the data obtained by the telescope since its launch into space in 1999. Chandras archive is a resource that makes these data available to the scientific community and the general public for years after they were originally obtained. Each of these six new images also includes data from telescopes covering other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum, such as visible and infrared light. This collection of images represents just a small fraction of the treasures that reside in Chandras unique X-ray archive. From left to right, starting on the top row, the objects are: Westerlund 2: A cluster of young stars about one to two million years old located about 20,000 light years from Earth. Data in visible light from the Hubble Space Telescope (green and blue) reveal thick clouds where the stars are forming. High-energy radiation in the form of X-rays, however, can penetrate this cosmic haze, and are detected by Chandra (purple). 3C31: X-rays from the radio galaxy 3C31 (blue), located 240 million light years from Earth, allow astronomers to probe the density, temperature, and pressure of this galaxy, long known to be a powerful emitter of radio waves. The Chandra data also reveal a jet blasting away from one side of the central galaxy, which also is known as NGC 383. Here, the Chandra X-ray image has been combined with Hubbles visible light data (yellow). PSR J1509-5850: Pulsars were first discovered in 1967 and today astronomers know of over a thousand such objects. The pulsar, PSR J1509-5850, located about 12,000 light years from Earth and appearing as the bright white spot in the center of this image, has generated a long tail of X-ray emission trailing behind it, as seen in the lower part of the image. This pulsar has also generated an outflow of particles in approximately the opposite direction. In this image, X-rays detected by Chandra (blue) and radio emission (pink) have been overlaid on a visible light image from the Digitized Sky Survey of the field of view. Abell 665: Merging galaxy clusters can generate enormous shock waves, similar to cold fronts in weather on Earth. This system, known as Abell 665, has an extremely powerful shockwave, second only to the famous Bullet Cluster. Here, X-rays from Chandra (blue) show hot gas in the cluster. The bow wave shape of the shock is shown by the large white region near the center of the image. The Chandra image has been added to radio emission (purple) and visible light data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey showing galaxies and stars (white). RX J0603.3+4214: The phenomenon of pareidolia is when people see familiar shapes in images. This galaxy cluster has invoked the nickname of the Toothbrush Cluster because of its resemblance to the dental tool. In fact, the stem of the brush is due to radio waves (green) while the diffuse emission where the toothpaste would go is produced by X-rays observed by Chandra (purple). Visible light data from the Subaru telescope show galaxies and stars (white) and a map from gravitational lensing (blue) shows the concentration of the mass, which is mostly (about 80%) dark matter. CTB 37A: Astronomers estimate that a supernova explosion should occur about every 50 years on average in the Milky Way galaxy. The object known as CTB 37A is a supernova remnant located in our Galaxy about 20,000 light years from Earth. This image shows that the debris field glowing in X-rays (blue) and radio waves (pink) may be expanding into a cooler cloud of gas and dust seen in infrared light (orange). NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, manages the Chandra program for NASAs Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts, controls Chandras science and flight operations. For more Chandra images, multimedia and related materials, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/chandra The connections of four-year-old trotting mare Elegant Serenity have announced that the multiple stakes winner has been retired from racing. Doug Millard's homebred Kadabra mare out of the two-time O'Brien Award-winning mare Elegantimage spent her winters in Florida in training with Sandra Burns and was campaigned throughout her racing career by trainer/driver Roger Mayotte. She earned eight wins, three second-place finishes and seven thirds from 30 career starts while amassing $511,173 in purses. Elegant Serenity flourished under Mayotte's care during her sophomore campaign in which she won half of her 12 races, including the Simcoe Stakes in a lifetime mark of 1:53.2 at Mohawk Racetrack. She also won a division of the Casual Breeze and was a two-time Ontario Sires Stakes Gold champion and runner-up in the Super Final by just a neck. In the Elegantimage Stakes, named for her dam, she finished third behind world champion fillies Mission Brief and Wild Honey. With $425,652 in earnings, Elegant Serenity ended her three-year-old season as the top money-earner of her division in Canada. 2015 Simcoe Stakes - Three-Year-Old Filly Trot The highlight of her four-year-old season was a victory in a leg of the Miss Versatility Series at Mohawk. "She was probably the best gaited trotter that I've trained or driven," Mayotte told Trot Insider. "Winning the Simcoe was the highlight race for me, but I think her best race was the Super Final out of the 10-hole where she got beat a neck. She had a habit of drawing bad posts in most of her big money races." 2015 Ontario Sires Stakes Super Final - Three-Year-Old Filly Trot During her career, Elegant Serenity contributed to The Stable That God Loves, a fundraising initiative, with a small percentage of her earnings donated to the Standardbred Racetrack Chaplaincy of Canada. Elegant Serenity has been retired at Spring Haven Farm with the intent to breed her to Muscle Hill should a breeding be secured. On Tuesday, October 18, Ontario Minister of Finance Charles Sousa reiterated the Ontario Liberal Governments support for the provincial horse racing industry during question period in the Ontario Legislature at Queens Park in Toronto. Minister Sousas comments came after a question from Progressive Conservative MPP Randy Pettapiece. I think we all appreciate that we want a very sustained horse racing industry in the province of Ontario, and its why we have made a commitment for long-term sustainability of the horse racing industry, said Sousa. We have taken steps to support a stable industry by providing the appropriate funding by extending the governments $100 million annually funding program by two years. "The OLG will establish a future, long-term funding arrangement with the industry," said Sousa. "We have also passed legislation to integrate the operations of the Ontario Racing Commission with the OLG and the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario; all of which promotes and allows the industry to benefit from a centralized marketing resource and its expertise to expose more Ontarians to the thrills of horse racing. We are taking every step necessary to provide a sustainable industry, because we are partnering with that industry in an appropriate manner, in conjunction with members of the industry. Pettapiece's question was, Will the Minister ease that uncertainty and commit today to keeping the doors open at all 15 of our (Ontarios) racetracks? Moore Receives Unprecedented Suspension in Alabama History Contact: Liberty Counsel, 800-671-1776, Media@LC.org, Press Kit MONTGOMERY, Ala., Oct. 19, 2016 /Standard Newswire/ -- Chief Justice Roy Moore was given an unprecedented judicial suspension when the Court of the Judiciary (COJ) unlawfully suspended him on September 30 for the remainder of his term, which runs through January 2019. In 2001-2002, COJ Rule 16 was amended to require a unanimous 9-0 vote to remove a judge from office. The longest suspension of any Alabama judge under amended Rule 16 is 180 days, or six months. Therefore, Chief Justice Moore's suspension of 28 months is four times longer than the longest judicial suspension in Alabama history under amended Rule 16. Since Rule 16 was amended, no judge until now has ever been suspended for the rest of a term without pay. "To remove a judge under Rule 16 requires a 9-0 vote. The COJ did not have the required 9-0 votes, so the case should have been dismissed. Instead, the COJ violated the law and removed the Chief by suspending him for the rest of his term. This is illegal," said Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. This unprecedented punishment by the COJ is much worse than removal because the Chief is left without salary, benefits and the ability to receive retirement or earn any income. When his term expires in January 2019, Chief Justice Moore cannot run again for election as a judge due to his age. Therefore, the suspension until the end of his term is a de facto removal from the bench and is far more punitive. Justice Stuart's letter demanding Chief Justice Moore remove his personal items from his office, and the other three justices who joined her to terminate three of Moore's staff attorneys, illustrates they are treating the COJ decision as removal. But Rule 16 provides that the COJ must have a 9-0 vote to remove a judge, which the COJ admitted it did not have the unanimous vote. "This is another example that Chief Justice Moore's punishment is based on politically-motivated charges and nothing to do with the law," said Staver. "The Chief did nothing wrong. Yet, a judge who was sexting with a litigant or a judge who sets aside a rape conviction only gets a hand slap? Where is the justice? The Court of the Judiciary is calling its own shots by overstepping history and the law to remove Chief Justice Moore from the bench. The rule of law should always trump political agendas." "Liberty Counsel has filed an appeal of the decision with the Alabama Supreme Court and a request that four of the sitting justices should be recused," said Staver. Liberty Counsel is an international nonprofit, litigation, education, and policy organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of life, and the family since 1989, by providing pro bono assistance and representation on these and related topics. At the time, the US government was not admitting that Saudi Arabia and its Sunni allies were supporting Isis and al-Qaeda -type movements. But in the leaked memo , which says that it draws on western intelligence, US intelligence and sources in the region there is no ambivalence about who is backing Isis, which at the time of writing was butchering and raping Yazidi villagers and slaughtering captured Iraqi and Syrian soldiers. The memo says: We need to use our diplomatic and more traditional intelligence assets to bring pressure on the governments of Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which are providing clandestine financial and logistic support to Isis and other radical groups in the region. This was evidently received wisdom in the upper ranks of the US government, but never openly admitted because to it was held that to antagonise Saudi Arabia, the Gulf monarchies, Turkey and Pakistan would fatally undermine US power in the Middle East and South Asia. For an extraordinarily long period after 9/11, the US refused to confront these traditional Sunni allies and thereby ensured that the War on Terror would fail decisively; 15 years later, al-Qaeda in its different guises is much stronger than it used to be because shadowy state sponsors, without whom it could not have survived, were given a free pass. It is not as if Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State and the US foreign policy establishment in general did not know what was happening. An earlier WikiLeaks release of a State Department cable sent under her name in December 2009 states that Saudi Arabia remains a critical financial support base for al-Qaeda, the Taliban, LeT [Lashkar-e-Taiba in Pakistan]. But Saudi complicity with these movements never became a central political issue in the US. Why not? The answer is that the US did not think it was in its interests to cut its traditional Sunni allies loose and put a great deal of resources into making sure that this did not happen. They brought on side compliant journalists, academics and politicians willing to give overt or covert support to Saudi positions. The real views of senior officials in the White House and the State Department were only periodically visible and, even when their frankness made news, what they said was swiftly forgotten. Earlier this year, for instance, Jeffrey Goldberg in The Atlantic wrote a piece based on numerous interviews with Barack Obama in which Obama questioned, often harshly, the role that Americas Sunni Arab allies play in fomenting anti-American terrorism. He is clearly irritated that foreign policy orthodoxy compels him to treat Saudi Arabia as an ally. It is worth recalling White House cynicism about how that foreign policy orthodoxy in Washington was produced and how easily its influence could be bought. Goldberg reported that a widely held sentiment inside the White House is that many of the most prominent foreign-policy think tanks in Washington are doing the bidding of their Arab and pro-Israel funders. Ive heard one administration official refer to Massachusetts Avenue, the home of many of these think tanks, as Arab-occupied territory. Despite this, television and newspaper interview self-declared academic experts from these same think tanks on Isis, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf are wilfully ignoring or happily disregarding their partisan sympathies. The Hillary Clinton email of August 2014 takes for granted that Saudi Arabia and Qatar are funding Isis but this was not the journalistic or academic conventional wisdom of the day. Instead, there was much assertion that the newly declared caliphate was self-supporting through the sale of oil, taxes and antiquities; it therefore followed that Isis did not need money from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. The same argument could not be made to explain the funding of Jabhat al-Nusra, which controlled no oilfields, but even in the case of Isis the belief in its self-sufficiency was always shaky. Iraqi and Kurdish leaders said that they did not believe a word of it, claiming privately that Isis was blackmailing the Gulf states by threatening violence on their territory unless they paid up. The Iraqi and Kurdish officials never produced proof of this, but it seemed unlikely that men as tough and ruthless as the Isis leaders would have satisfied themselves with taxing truck traffic and shopkeepers in the extensive but poor lands they ruled and not extracted far larger sums from fabulously wealthy private and state donors in the oil producers of the Gulf. Going by the latest leaked email, the State Department and US intelligence clearly had no doubt that Saudi Arabia and Qatar were funding Isis. But there has always been bizarre discontinuity between what the Obama administration knew about Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states and what they would say in public. Occasionally the truth would spill out, as when Vice-President Joe Biden told students at Harvard in October 2014 that Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates were so determined to take down Assad and essentially have a proxy Sunni-Shia war. What did they do? They poured hundreds of millions of dollars and thousands of tons of weapons into anyone who would fight against Assad. Except that the people who were being supplied were al-Nusra and al-Qaeda and the extremist elements of jihadis coming from other parts of the world. Biden poured scorn on the idea that there were Syrian moderates capable of fighting Isis and Assad at the same time. Hillary Clinton should be very vulnerable over the failings of US foreign policy during the years she was Secretary of State. But, such is the crudity of Trumps demagoguery, she has never had to answer for it. Republican challenges have focussed on issues the death of the US ambassador in Benghazi in 2012 and the final US military withdrawal from Iraq in 2011 for which she was not responsible. A Hillary Clinton presidency might mean closer amity with Saudi Arabia, but American attitudes towards the Saudi regime are becoming soured, as was shown recently when Congress overwhelmingly overturned a presidential veto of a bill allowing the relatives of 9/11 victims to sue the Saudi government. Another development is weakening Saudi Arabia and its Sunni allies. The leaked memo speaks of the rival ambitions of Saudi Arabia and Qatar to dominate the Sunni world. But this has not turned out well, with east Aleppo and Mosul, two great Sunni cities, coming under attack and likely to fall. Whatever Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and the others thought they were doing it has not happened and the Sunni of Syria and Iraq are paying a heavy price. It is this failure which will shape the future relations of the Sunni states with the new US administration. While Hurricane Matthew brought destruction in its wake, the storm also washed up treasures across the East Coast. In North Myrtle Beach, North Carolina, Matthew washed up a Megalodon tooth, five inches long and in really good shape An artifact from what used the be the worlds largest shark. After a giant lobster in Bermuda, now a mammoth Megalodon tooth in North Carolina. A tourist couple went searching for shark teeth the day after Hurrican Matthew hit. They never thought theyd discover something so big. It was identified by an aquarist as a Megalodons tooth and that its millions of years old. The shark itself probably grew up to be 50 to 60 feet long. The size of the shark can be determined from the tooth, but only if it is known if the tooth came from the front or side of the mouth. If it came from the front it was probably a 40-foot shark. If it was a side tooth it could have come from a larger shark. The largest Megalodon shark would range from 60 to 70 feet long. It is thought that the Megalodon sharks went extinct about 2,500,000 years ago. Follow us: Facebook and Twitter Wisdom of the Crowd: 55 % of respondents said that the Trust Bak set up by Fairprice will not be profitable as there are already too many d... KALAMA A representative of McMenamins Pubs & Breweries Wednesday said other businesses in the Kalama area should benefit from the hotel his company will open at the Port of Kalama next fall. Weve had pretty good success with local businesses growing up around our locations with foot traffic going in and out, said Dan McMenamin, owner and general manager, said at a Kalama Chamber of Commerce meeting Tuesday. For example, the opening of the Kennedy School in Portland boosted efforts to revitalize the surrounding neighborhood. Within a year, the upscale organic grocery store New Seasons opened nearby, McMenamin said. McMenamin said his firm focuses on sourcing from local companies. For example, Kalama-based Mountain Log Homes helped design a small log house/bar that will be built along the river trails nearby. And McMenamins is considering sourcing bread from Kalama Sourdough Bakery. McMenamins also puts on periodic events in which half of the proceeds from a particular day are donated to local schools. The hotel and restaurant chain offers a passport program that encourages loyal customers to travel to as many of its locations as possible. Every year the company throws a party to reward participants, and in recent years 1,000 people attended, McMenamin said. The passport program pushes guests to visit places they might not have visited otherwise, said Renee Ignacio, director of marketing for McMenamins. And because the companys hotels are typically smaller, when concerts or larger events come to town, that drives overflowing customers to nearby hotels, Ignacio said. Our peak times have become their peak times. Its been actually a great community tie. ... The effects definitely extend beyond on our borders, Ignacio said. Portland-based McMenamins owns brewpubs, breweries, music venues, historic hotels and theater pubs across Oregon and Washington. The three-story, 30,000-square-foot Kalama hotel will have just 40 rooms. The first floor will have a brewery, restaurant/pub and bottle shop as well as meeting/banquet space. The hotel will be about the size of the new port administration building, minus the interpretive space, said Port of Kalama Director Mark Wilson. The port will build an $8.3 million shell for the hotel and restaurant, with the help of a $250,000 grant from Cowlitz County. The port will then lease out the space to McMenamins. Wilson said the port hopes to hand over the keys to McMenamins by late spring. The Portland-based company will then spend several months and about $3 million finishing the building with unique touches and design flourishes. Starting in the spring, McMenamins will likely begin its search for about 75 to 100 employees to work at the hotel and restaurant. The building will be modeled after an early 1900s-era Hawaiian inn, with tropical and native touches blending with elements of Kalamas history.(The towns Hawaiian connection was in itself a draw for McMenamin, who said he has been intrigued by Polynesian cultures from a young age.) McMenamins has a team of full-time historians who are working to gather stories and memorabilia from the local area so that the art and styling matches the towns character, Ignancio said. Construction is about to get underway in earnest. Contractors with Advanced Geosolutions will soon build concrete pilings to keep the building stable in earthquakes. The port is now accepting bids for construction of the actual building. An arson fire destroyed a vacant home west of Longview Sunday afternoon, and authorities have already ruled out one early suspect. According to the Cowlitz County Sheriffs Office, a 911 caller reported a fire at 153 Bunker Hill Road at 5 p.m. The house had not been occupied for several months. A person in the area saw a red Toyota flatbed leaving the house just before the fire started, according to the sheriffs office. The agency initially put out a request for public help to identify the owner/driver of the vehicle, but investigators later cleared the vehicle and the driver of involvement in the fire. Police and firefighters in Kelso and Longview already are investigating a string of arson events, many of them in the South Kelso, that occurred earlier this fall and early summer. But theres no reason to think they are related to the Bunker Hill fire, Charlie Rosenzweig, chief criminal deputy for the sheriffs office, said Wednesday. The sheriffs office still is seeking tips in the case. Callers can send anonymous tips using TIP411. Just send a text to 847411 and add CCSOTIP. The Daily News tech2 News Staff Airtel has announced that it will be offering 10GB of 4G/3G data on a recharge of Rs 259. The standard pack offers 1GB data and users who buy a new 4G handset get an extra 9GB through the My Airtel app. While that sounds vague, Airtel has clarified that the offer is valid on all newly bought 4G mobile phones and will not work on handsets that are already being used. The offer can be availed within 30 days of purchase of the handset The data will be valid for 28 days and users can avail a maximum of 3 recharges within 90 days. Ajai Puri, Director-Market Operations, Bharti Airtel, said, We are proud to have pioneered 4G network for users in India. This invitational offer has been designed for our data savvy customers who can now experience high speed broadband on Airtels 4G network with their new devices. The offer was introduced in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh last week and now it will be available across India in all 18 circles as well as valid on all brands of 4G handsets. In non-4G circles, 3G data will be available to customers with their 4G devices. This sounds like yet another move to counter Reliance Jio's highly competitive rates. Aditya Madanapalle This year in India, more feature phone units were shipped to consumers than smartphones, despite analyst expectations that 2016 would finally be the year smartphone sales would exceed those of feature phones. There is low perceived utility for these devices, and one of the reasons is the lack of anything to do on the phone. Access to critical services such as healthcare, banking, education and governance is restricted because of low availability of content and services in regional languages. To bridge this gap, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) has mandated that all smartphones are to have support for one official Indian language apart from English and Hindi by July 2017, according to a report in VCCircle. Requiring integration of a regional language is the latest in a series of measures taken by the government to make smartphones more accessible and relevant to the local population. India has 122 languages with more than 10,000 speakers, which is in itself a massive but fragmented customer base. India has low literacy levels and lower digital literacy levels. First time users of data packs on smartphones are not familiar with the richness of the ecosystem, and perceive the usage charges as exorbitant. TRAI tweaked the regulations to allow for year long data packs instead of 90 days, to bring down the cost and encourage internet use. MEITY had called for a meeting between Microsoft, Google and Rediff to implement e-mail addresses in regional languages, starting with Hindi. Today, we reported that a company called DataMail launched email addresses in Hindi, Gujarati, Urdu, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali and Marathi. Doordarshan is attracting smartphone users by starting free broadcasts of Doordarshan content to mobile devices. The mobile devices need a DVB-T2 dongle to access the television services. There is an Android app for viewing the content. The Digital Terrestrial Television services from Doordarshan are available in sixteen cities, with six channels being relayed. The most important of these is DD Regional or DD Kisan. One of the best efforts at making smartphone technologies available in local regional languages is Indus OS. The operating system is installed on the device in the factory itself, and cannot be installed on any device. There are 12 regional languages supported by Indus OS, with text to speech supported for 9 of these languages. A patented keyboard makes it easy to type in the regional languages. A helpful feature is swipe right to translate and swipe left to transliterate. There is an App Bazaar with a focus on regional and local apps and services. There are numerous efforts to develop the fonts, language packs, and dictionaries needed to support the consumption of technology in regional languages. The Indic Project provides open source local language infrastructure for web, mobile and embedded applications. The Indic Keyboard for the Android Operating System allows for text input in twenty three Indian languages, with transliteration support for many of them. Noto is an open source font developed by Google and Monotype that aims to create a homogeneous font for all the languages in the Unicode standard. Google is particularly active in creating products from the ground up meant just for India. Tap to translate is an expected feature that allows users to simply select text to translate them to a regional language in real time. There is also a camera app in the works that translates content on the screen itself. In states with a significant Hindi speaking population users can toggle Google search results between Hindi and English. There is a Hindi Input App that allows users to quickly type in Hindi. At the Google for India event in Delhi last month, Caesar Sengupta, Vice-President of Next Billion Users said, Our goal has not just been to help more Indians get online but also to help Indians create the online experience they want; one that serves their needs and enables them to have an impact on the entire world. So we have been thinking about how to build products and services for this wave of new users products that work for any level of connectivity, in local Indian languages, and across the devices that are most frequently used in India. https://twitter.com/tech2eets/status/780646028412190721 These are language infrastructure building efforts, but what will really make smartphones relevant to users is original content. We need apps, games, videos, and VR content created locally, for the locals, mindful of the topics, ideas and approaches relevant to the regional population. Translating content and services is a good start, but there is immense scope for production of local language and regional content. Translation can only take you so far, making already existing content available in different languages is going to be only a patchwork solution, without addressing the underlying problem. There is just no substitute for locally made original content in regional languages. As of now, the content creation process is stuck in a rut. There is little consumption of local content in regional languages because there is less production of local content in regional languages. There is less production of local content in regional languages because there is little consumption of local content in regional languages. The technology is in place, the next generation of data tariffs are getting increasingly cheaper, but the only major roadblock is original regional content. There are encouraging signs, Indus OS reports that the traffic consumption by its users is expected to grow by five times by the end of the year, with each user consuming one gigabyte of data per month. hidden Citigroup Inc's tie-ups with e-commerce companies in Asia such as ride-hailing firm Grab and online retailer Lazada Group are boosting revenues at its consumer business in the region, the boss of Citigroup Asia said. Revenues at Citi's Asia consumer division rose 3 percent in the third quarter from a year ago, helped by a 4 percent rise in credit card sales which was aided by partnerships with more digital technology-focussed firms, Asia CEO Francisco Aristeguieta said in an internal memo to staff on Tuesday seen by Reuters. "We now acquire one out of every four new cards online and over 46 percent of our credit card payments in China are now settled via digital partners," he said in the memo. A Citigroup spokesman in Hong Kong confirmed the content of the memo. For Western banks, digital banking is a cheaper and faster way to grow in Asia than traditional banking channels because they can offer loans, fund management and payment services via mobile Internet. Citgroup, the fourth-biggest U.S. bank by assets, last week beat expectations for third-quarter net profit. The U.S. bank last month added Grab and Lazada to its network of credit card partnerships, which include Alipay, the biggest online-payments platform in China, and Chinese messaging app WeChat. Reuters tech2 News Staff Messaging is a convenient platform for both businesses and customers to interact. Facebook, Google and Microsoft have all promoted the untapped potential of conversations during developer conferences held over the course of this year. For businesses, it gives a direct line of communication with the customer. The customer can participate whenever they can afford the time and attention, and continue the conversation later. Google has announced a new feature for advertisements shown in search results, that allows businesses to chat with their customers. For those businesses that use the feature, there will be a messaging option shown below the calling option attached to the advertisements. On tapping the chat bubble icon, a pre-generated text message selected by the business opens the conversation. Google consumer surveys conducted in US, Canada, Australia and UK show that sixty five percent of consumers are open to the idea of texting with a business to get information or schedule an appointment. The new feature is called click-to-message ads. A select few partners are already using the service. Gavin Chan, Digital Marketing Manager of AnyVan says "Click-to-message is a useful tool that allows consumers to engage with our business in a way thats comfortable and efficient for them. They could be on their commute or in a rush, so they can text us quickly through click-to-message. Its also a good medium to get questions answered that arent addressed on our website, or to reach us during hours when our office is closed." Gavin Parker, Paid Search Manager, Auto & General says "The results from click-to-message have been phenomenal and we've seen a 80 percent higher conversion rate when compared to other similar channels. We can now tap into an important consumer base that prefers to use SMS to learn more about our insurance products." Businesses can integrate chat with their advertising by setting up message extensions. The feature is expected to roll out over the course of the next few weeks. The click-to-message feature will be available to advertisers at no extra cost. The problem with the feature as of now is that it triggers an SMS interaction. A better implementation is to integrate with the more common instant messaging applications such as Telegram, WhatsApp and Messenger. The feature could potentially tie into existing chatbots by the businesses on these platforms. SMS is an outdated and expensive form of chatting, and is bound to be less engaging as an instant messaging application. tech2 News Staff Amid the ongoing Galaxy Note 7 fiasco, Samsung is gearing towards the launch of its other devices. The company just teased the arrival of the Galaxy On Nxt, which will be a Flipkart-exclusive. Samsung has tweeted not one but two teasers, announcing the upcoming device for 20 October, just ahead of the Indian festive season. https://twitter.com/SamsungMobileIN/status/788354111381053440 Going by the teaser, the Galaxy On Nxt will sport a full metal unibody and all the design that you need. Samsung further reveals an octa-core processor and a camera (unknown resolution) with LED flash. In terms of specs and design, this is all we know so far. Interestingly, the device follows the recently launched Galaxy On8. https://twitter.com/SamsungMobileIN/status/788355077987704832?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw The Flipkart page for the On Nxt doesn't reveal much either, except for the 20 Oct release date. The On8 launched last month was also Flipkart exclusive, and the On Nxt could be another mid-range option from Samsung for the festivities. In terms of specs, the On 8 is a 4G and VOLTE-enabled smartphone that came pre-loaded with two Make for India initiatives ultra data saving (UDS) and S-bike mode. Powered by 1.6 GHz Octa Core processor and 3GB RAM, the specs sheet included dual-SIM functionality, 13MP shooter, internal storage space of 16GB, expandable upto 128GB and 3,300 mAH battery. Anirudh Regidi The Qualcomm 4G/5G summit held in Hong Kong covered a lot of ground on mobile networks and the technology that enables them. By far the most important question the summit answered however, was: What is 5G? To the average consumer and the layman, each generation of mobile network only means speed. 1G was analogue communication, 2G was GPRS and EDGE, 3G was 3Mbps speeds and 4G/LTE meant 20-60Mbps speeds. To the engineers at Qualcomm, however, 5G is not just about speed. Yes, 5G promises ludicrous speeds that directly compete with wired broadband services, but 5G also means a vastly more efficient network and a more cohesive one. We spoke to Peter Carson, Senior Director, marketing, Qualcomm, and Serge Willenegger, Senior Vice President, Qualcomm, who took the trouble to explain 5G to us. What follows is a summation of the conversation we had with the two executives. So what is 5G? To put it simply, the use cases for 4G networks has expanded well beyond the initial scope of the standard. 5G is what you get when you reset the standard/design to cope with the increase in scope. 4G networks dont just support mobile devices anymore. IoT (Internet of Things) devices are everywhere and the number of them is only going to increase. Were seeing 4G modems in smart watches, in CCTVs and even in doorbells. The problem is that 4G was never designed to support such a varied set of devices and as a result, the 4G ecosystem is fragmented and also congested. 5G, as happened when the transition to 4G happened, will consolidate all these standards under one roof and accommodate for these expanding use cases. Essentially, 5G is bringing all existing, fragmenting networking standards under one roof. 5G is an iterative and progressive upgrade, says Carson. The initial transition to 5G will, from a customer stand-point, be a bit muddled, but thats good, says Carson. Qualcomm for one is making every effort to ensure that this transition is as seamless as possible in its initial stages. Getting a little technical Carson explains that while 5G does support the 28Ghz band (mmWave as they call it), it will also support all existing networking frequencies. The difference is that 5G is more efficient in every band as compared to 4G, resulting in the vast improvements in performance that 5G will offer. To put the improvements in perspective, 4G currently offers around 100-150Mbps speeds, 5G can potentially offer over 1Gbps speeds at the same frequencies and even higher at 28GHz. Qualcomm even suggests that speeds up to 20Gbps (peak) can be achieved at mmWave bands. But this is just about speed. What happens when a 4G or 5G network and a congested Wi-Fi/Bluetooth network are running in the same frequency band? Carson says that in such a situation, your Wi-Fi and Bluetooth networks will see an improvement in speeds when on 5G. He explains that 4G is less efficient than a theoretical 5G implementation. Even in a congested network, 5G will more efficiently handle the frequency bands, freeing up more bandwidth for say, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth networks. Whats mmWave? As a rule of thumb with wireless networks, the lower the frequency (or higher the wavelength), the higher the signals penetrative capabilities but the lower its speed. mmWave refers to an extremely high frequency (small wavelength) signal that can offer dramatically increased speeds and dramatically reduced penetration. As Carson put it, the signal wont even be able to penetrate your window. Whats the point of such a frequency? Outdoors, the improvement in performance is significant. Carson also explains that the smaller wavelength also means that you can incorporate newer technologies like beam-forming and pack in more network channels. This will help the world of IoT as much as it does regular mobile networks. What about legacy networks like 2G/3G? Welleneger tells us that Qualcomm will continue to support all legacy networks for as long as people are using them. There is no question about that. These networks can reside alongside newer network standards like 5G. Whats with the x50? The X50 5G modem from Qualcomm will not even be available till 2018. But, Qualcomm says, its the first such modem to be announced. Welleneger and Carson say that the modem is indicative of Qualcomms commitment to 5G as a standard, and indicative of their belief in their understanding of 5G networks. They add that the modem also gives manufacturers and partners a chance to prepare for the technology and adapt their strategy accordingly. 5G power consumption: Will 5G kill my battery even faster now? Right now, this is a bit of a grey area. Carson suggests that the net cost of using 5G, in terms of power, is should be around the same as using a 4G network, maybe even lower. While it is true that 5G uses more energy per unit of data transferred, as compared to 4G, this data transfer happens much faster so its likely that the high power state will only be used for a fraction of the time when compared to 4G. Its too early to speculate on this, says Carson. So there you have it. 5G is an umbrella standard of sorts that will attempt to consolidate the growing fragmentation in the 4G network. 5G will be more efficient and thus, offer far greater bandwidth to the user. Disclaimer: Tech2 was invited to the Qualcomm 4G/5G summit at Hong Kong by Qualcomm. All expenses related to travel and accommodation were borne by Qualcomm. However, every effort has been made to keep the events coverage as impartial as possible. tech2 News Staff Google has teamed up with Ola and Uber to make cab booking even more hassle-free. So, you can now look for directions and then choose the taxi service directly within the Search app or mobile search browser. The feature was made available on the latest version of Google Maps earlier this year, offering a tab with information for cab services in addition to the existing driving, public transport, or walking options. With the further integration, users can ask Google for directions and book the ride directly from Search. Google explains that on request for specific information such as Taxi to Bangalore airport or more specifically Uber to Bangalore airport or Ola to Bangalore airport, the app/ browser directs the user to select a service and automatically opens the app to book the ride, all in just one tap. In case, the app is not installed on the device, Google Search will show a link to install the app. Choosing the best transit option can be a task at times, our aim is to help users simplify their everyday travel. With this, users will be able to order, explore and make quick comparisons about the best estimated taxi fare directly from Google Search results on their mobile, said Sanket Gupta, Program Manager, Google. It worked quite fine on our Android offering taxi service options from both Ola and Uber along with the estimated time of arrival and fare. On searching for a cab service (using Siri) on iPhone 7, it asked what type of ride we are looking for and then listed out the options. However, iPhone 6 and iPhone 5s running iOS 10 didn't show the desired results in Google search. Dedicated to the Restoration of Progressive Democracy Ecuador acknowledges limiting Julian Assange`s web access Julian Assange, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of WikiLeaks speaks via video link during a press conference on the occasion of the ten year anniversary celebration of WikiLeaks in Berlin, Germany. BBC Online : Ecuador has acknowledged it partly restricted internet access for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is taking refuge at its London embassy. It said Mr Assange had in recent weeks released material that could have an impact on the US presidential election. Ecuador also said its move was not the result of pressure from Washington. The US denied WikiLeaks accusations that it had asked Ecuador to stop the site publishing documents about presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Transparency activist Julian Assange has sought asylum at London's Ecuadorean embassy since 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex assault allegations. In a statement (in Spanish), the Ecuadorean foreign ministry said WikiLeaks' decision to publish documents could have an impact on the US presidential election. It said the release was entirely the responsibility of the organisation, and Ecuador did not want to interfere in the electoral process. "In that respect, Ecuador, exercising its sovereign right, has temporarily restricted access to part of its communications systems in its UK Embassy," the statement said. It added that "Ecuador does not yield to pressures from other countries". WikiLeaks earlier said that Ecuador had cut off Mr Assange's internet access on Saturday evening. The site has recently been releasing material from Hillary Clinton's campaign, including those from a hack of Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta's emails. News in brief Philippine police van runs over protesters AFP, Manila A Philippine police van on Wednesday rammed and ran over baton-wielding protesters outside the US embassy in Manila. Police used tear gas and truncheons to try to disperse hundreds of people who had gathered in support of President Rodrigo Duterte's recent comments that he wanted to loosen his nation's alliance with the United States. Japan ministers visit controversial war shrine AFP, Tokyo Two Japanese cabinet ministers visited a controversial war shrine Wednesday, after a mass visit by lawmakers angered China and South Korea which see it as a painful reminder of Tokyo's past aggression. The ministers-internal affairs chief Sanae Takaichi and Katsunobu Kato, in charge of women's empowerment-are close to conservative Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who did not visit the Yasukuni shrine during this year's four-day autumn festival. Toxic leak from US air force base BBC Online An air base in the US state of Colorado says it has accidentally released 150,000 gallons of toxic contaminated water into the sewer system of the nearby city of Colorado Springs. Peterson Air Force base said the water contained perfluorinated compounds or PFCs, a component of firefighting foam. Iran sentences two US citizens to 10 yrs jail Reuters, Dubai An Iranian court has sentenced an Iranian-American businessman and his elderly father to 10 years in prison on charges of cooperating with the United States, Iranian media reported on Tuesday, the latest sign of an intensifying crackdown against Iranians with ties to the West. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in October 2015 detained Siamak Namazi, a businessman in his mid-40s with dual U.S.-Iranian citizenship, while he was visiting family in Tehran. The IRGC in February arrested his 80-year-old father, Baquer Namazi, a former Iranian provincial governor and former UNICEF official who also has dual citizenship. More than 350,000 Afghan refugees return from Pakistan: UN AFP, Kabul : More than 350,000 Afghan refugees have returned to their war-torn homeland from Pakistan this year, UN data show, with the torrent of people crossing the border expected to continue. Earlier in October the UN's refugee agency UNHCR said the number of documented Afghan refugees returning from Pakistan had soared past 200,000. But this week the body's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Afghanistan released updated figures that also include the number of undocumented refugees crossing the border. "So far this year, 162,186 undocumented returnees and 207,236 registered returnees (369,422) have returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan," an OCHA statement said, noting that the majority, some 333,000 people, have returned since July. "If that sounds like a lot, it is," the statement continued. "Based on current trends, we expect a further 446,000 (both registered and undocumented) Afghans to arrive before year-end." The influx of refugees threatens to overwhelm Afghanistan, with authorities there already warning of a humanitarian crisis as hundreds of thousands of people flee fighting within the country. "Due to hostilities in Kunduz and intensified fighting across the south we have seen a jump of 37,000 IDPs (internally displaced people) alone-more than 10 percent of the year total in just one week," Danielle Moylan, a spokeswoman for OCHA, told AFP on Monday. The total number of IDPs due to fighting since the start of the year stands at 323,500. For decades Pakistan has provided safe haven for millions of Afghans who fled their country after the Soviet invasion of 1979. Pakistan hosts 1.4 million registered Afghan refugees, according to UNHCR figures from earlier this year, making it the third-largest refugee hosting nation in the world. A further one million unregistered refugees are estimated to be in the country. Since 2009, Islamabad has repeatedly pushed back a deadline for them to return, but fears are growing that the latest cutoff date in March 2017 will be final. A security crackdown against undocumented foreigners in Pakistan coupled with a UN decision announced in June to double cash grants for voluntary returnees to $400, has also seen a surge in returnees. OCHA said that the vast majority of undocumented returnees claim they intend to return to the eastern province of Nangarhar. Many also settle in Kabul. The capital already has one of the highest population growth rates in the region-some 1,200 people every day, according to European Union ambassador Franz-Michael Mellbin-and is struggling to accommodate the new arrivals, with many forced to shelter in informal settlements on the city's edge. Many of the returnees to conflict-torn Afghanistan have lived in Pakistan for decades and hope to one day come back to their adopted country. "Inshallah, we will come here again, this time with passports," Mohammad Anwar told AFP last month as he prepared to leave the country he arrived in as a child and has sheltered him for 35 years. Russel's birth anniv observed Chittagong Bureau : The 52nd birth anniversary of Sheikh Russell, the youngest son of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, was observed in the city in a befitting manner. Political parties and different socio-cultural organizations have chalked out various programmes to mark the anniversary. Chittagong City Awami League (AL) started the day's programme with hoisting of its party flag atop at it's Darul Fazal Market AL office on Tuesday morning.The city AL leaders and activists observed the day through placing wreaths at the portrait of Sheikh Russell, cutting cakes and offering fateha for his departed soul.Leaders of the Chittagong city Chhatra League and Juba League placed wreaths at the portrait of Sheikh Russell. Chittagong south district AL also arranged a discussion at its Andarkillah office this afternoon with its President Moslem Uddin Ahmed in the chair.Chittagong city AL also organized a discussion this evening at Zila Parisad Hall, with its Vice President Mahtab Uddin Chowdhury in the chair.City Mayor AJM Nasir Uddin, also general secretary of city AL addressed it as chief guest. Leaders and activists of 41 wards of AL also addressed it. Sheikh Russell was born at Dhanmondi Bangabandhu Bhaban on October 18 in 1964. British PM May pins hopes on India to heal Brexit wounds IANS, London : Seeking to create jobs at home and stabilise the economy following the Brexit vote, British prime minister Theresa May will be leading a trade mission to India next month in her first major official visit outside Europe. May will be taking along some of the best of British business to India during her three-day visit beginning 6 November, aimed at boosting India-UK bilateral ties. Her visit is significant because of the ripple effect created by the Brexit referendum vote. As the pound falls, the country is looking for long-term trade deals and business associations to stabilise the economy. "The UK will be the most passionate, most consistent, and most convincing advocate for free trade," May said in a statement prior to the visit. "As we leave the European Union we have the chance to forge a new global role for the UK-to look beyond our continent and towards the economic and diplomatic opportunities in the wider world," she added. "I am determined to capitalise on those opportunities, and as we embark on the trade mission to India we will send the message that the UK will be the most passionate, most consistent, and most convincing advocate for free trade. The British prime minister will hold discussions with her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi during her visit on developing the strategic partnership between the UK and India, "building on the deep links and cooperation we already share". "In the past, the focus of trade delegations has been big businesses, but I want to take a new approach that recognises the full range of British business," she added. "So this time we will be focussing on small and medium sized businesses-and, importantly, the delegation will include representation from every region of the UK. I want to create an economy that truly works for everyone-and this new approach to international trade missions will help achieve just that. "The relationships between our two countries are strong, and the Indian diaspora plays a vital role in our national life. In my talks with prime minister Modi I want to build on our relationship for the benefit of both our countries, generating jobs and wealth and maintaining cooperation on defence and security." May will visit two cities in India, starting with the capital New Delhi, where she will inaugurate the India-UK TECH Summit alongside Modi. The TECH Summit, South Asia's largest technology conference, will provide a platform for promoting technology-intensive trade between the two countries. The visit will mark the British prime minister's first trade mission, with a business delegation drawn from regions across the UK due to accompany her to India. It will consist predominantly of small and medium sized businesses, including Geolang, an innovative cyber security company based in Cardiff, Torftech, a creative energy company based in the South-East, and Telensa, a company focussed on smart city solutions based in Cambridge. May will use the visit to deliver on the ambitious vision for Britain after Brexit she set out in a speech earlier this month, forging a new global role for the UK as a country with the self-confidence and the freedom to look beyond the continent of Europe. And she will use the visit to deliver on her pledge to create an economy that truly works for all, by introducing new and emerging enterprises, as well as more established players, to the key Indian market. A number of commercial deals are expected to be signed during the visit, creating and securing jobs at home and demonstrating market confidence in the strength of the British economy following the EU referendum vote. With approximately 1.5 million people of Indian origin in the UK, the Indian diaspora plays a vital role in our national life. India is now our second largest international job creator. Last year, India created 7,105 new jobs in Britain through 140 projects, and in total Indian companies currently employ over 100,000 people in the UK. We have unique ties between our two countries, and there is enormous potential to grow, she said. Secretary of State for International Trade Liam Fox will join the visit. The visit will mark prime minister May's second trip to India. In her capacity as Home Secretary, she previously visited New Delhi and Hyderabad in November 2012. Corruption the common enemy TRANSPARENCY International`s (TI) Chairperson Mr Jose Carlos Ugaz Sanchez-Moreno, who visited Dhaka early this week said his origination which works with corruption at high places of the government, not only in Bangladesh but all over, should not be taken as an enemy, corruption is the enemy and it must be jointly fought by all. It is true that the government might feel uncomfortable but corruption is a global malice, not only in Bangladesh and as TI Bangladesh is relentlessly working everyone must support it. The TI Chief made his comments in the backdrop of a recently passed new Bill on foreign funded NGOs; which has empowered the government to cancel their registration and stop funding for making malicious and derogatory comments against the Constitution and constitutional bodies. The paraphrase otherwise means if any such organization exposes corruption and criticizes the government for corruption, they would face punishment. Mr Jose Carlos Ugaz Sanchez-Moreno made his concerns clear saying it would reduce the space of civil society organizations and their moral strength to criticize the government and highlight corruption in government bodies and other high places. In his view Transparency International and its Bangladesh chapter is mandated to expose and carry out fight against corruption, it can't watch things in silent. We believe his remarks that civil society's freedom is vital to eliminate corruption from society, otherwise the level of corruption will keep increasing, deserves highest attention of the government leaders instead of using threats to organizations for disclosing corruption. Mr Jose Carlos during his visit to Dhaka to attend the 20th anniversary celebration of Bangladesh Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) also suggested that both TIB and ACC must work together to eliminate corruption. We must say his suggestion makes sense. We however believe the ACC must be able to exercise its independence and use the power like the TIB to dig out corruption in the government. Moreover unlike TIB, ACC has the constitutional power to arrest and prosecute people who have amassed illegal wealth. We must say TIB and such other civil society organizations now or in the past had not acted to unnecessarily defame the government. Their sole purpose is to bring high corruption in the society to the notice of the government for remedial actions. The TI Chief has correctly said corruption is enemy of the people not those who make disclosure of the corruption. Corruption must be common enemy to all. So in our view, it would have been better if the government instead of becoming intolerant every time corruption index in the government because public, rather make positive response to eliminate corruption. But when party men are mostly engaged in such corruption, and amassing illegal wealth, many believe that the new Foreign Donation Regulatory Bill has been enacted to keep the critics silent. In our view the government should pay heed to Transparency International Chief`s call for taking corruption as the enemy of the people, not the organizations and people who speak out against corruption. 22 hurt as school students, cops clash in Habiganj 22 students received injuries as the police open rubber bullets to disperse the demonstrators while they demanding for nationalisation of Hobiganj Bahubal School on Wednesday. UNB, Habiganj : At least 22 people, including 14 with rubber bullets, were injured as students of a school clashed with police in Bahubal upazila of the district on Wednesday. Witnesses said the clash ensued when the students, their guardians and members of school management committee of Dinnath Model School encircled the office of upazila secondary education office to press home their demand to nationalise the school around 11 am. Police fired rubber bullets and lobbed tear gas shells on the agitating students that left 20 people injured. Police said as the students vandalised Bahubal police station and threw brickbats towards the law enforcers at one stage of their demonstrations they resorted to rubber bullets to bring the situation under control. Bahubal thana officer-in-charge Md Maniruzzaman said four people, including two students, were arrested after the incident. Superintendent of police of the district Joydeb Kumer Bhadra visited the spot. Additional police have been deployed to avert further trouble. Defying ban on Hilsa catching goes unabated Fishermen not getting rice alleged Staff Reporter : Defying the government ban, some fishermen are catching Hilsa fish at midnight in the different rivers including Padma and Meghna to avert arrest. As combined operation is carried out at the daytime in the rivers, some fishermen refrained from netting Hilsa fishes during that time. Dodging the fisheries department, navy, air force, coast guard, police, river police, RAB, BGB, district and upazila administrations including the Fisheries and Livestock Ministry, the fishermen continue to net Hilsa fish. When night falls, several fishermen become active to net hilsa in absence of the mobile court and patrol duty of coast guard and police. Apart from these, a section of dishonest employees of the fisheries department and sources, alert the fishermen about the ensuing drive. Locals urged the administration for conducting drives especially in the night to nab the fishermen. "A section of unscrupulous fish traders engaged in earning money by any means and sources appointed by the fishermen, remain vigilant about our movements. When we get ready for operation, they informed the fishermen," Abu Sayeed, fisheries officer, Goalundo Upazila told journalists. He said a mobile court on Wednesday conducted operation at Doulatdia, Debgram, Bahirchar, Dhollapara, Kushata, Rakhalgachi and Antar Crossing arrested at least seven fishermen. Besides, a mobile court awarded one month's jail to 19 fishermen each for violating government ban on fishing Hilsha Fish during its breeding time in Barguna district. During a drive in the Bishkhali River, the members of the coast guard arrested them from Laldia and Zintola area. Coast Guard officer Lt Hasanur Rahman told journalists that they have held 20 fisherman from two trawlers owned by one Zakir Peda and one Mosta Farazi with three lakh meters net. Earlier the government imposed a ban on the catching of hilsha fishes from October 12 to November 2 on a vast area of 7,000 square kilometers along with twenty-seven districts in the country for conservation of mother fishes during its high breeding season. Apart from the hilsha breeding grounds, all the activities including procurement, marketing, buying, selling, transportation and hoarding of hilsha would be stopped for 22 days across the country. During the 22-day period, a massive combined operation would be carried out at all the fishery ghats, warehouses, hat-bazzars and chain-shops across the country. The 18 districts where the ban are: Chandpur, Laxmipur, Noakhali, Chittagong, Cox's Bazar, Barisal, Bhola, Patuakhali, Barguna, Pirojpur, Jhalakathi, Bagerhat, Shariatpur, Madaripur, Faridpur, Rajbari, Manikganj, Munshiganj and Rajshahi. Some fishermen told the journalists that they compelled to catch hilsha fish due to the influence of unscrupulous fish traders who are engaged in earning money by any means. Fishermen of Munshiganj district formed human chain alleging they are not getting rice as per government commitment. "As the authority asked us to refrain from netting, we did not go for fishing. But as we are not getting rice, we are facing livelihood challenges," a fisher said. Talking to journalists another fisherman said though each fisherman is supposed to get 30 kilograms of rice during the ongoing 22-day ban, they have not got the rice yet. According to Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Munshiganj, the process is on to distribute the sanctioned rice among the fishermen. District Fisheries Office sources said, of the total 9,729 registered fishermen, 2,435 are in Munshiganj Sadar, 1,972 in Gazaria, 1,994 in Sreenagar, 1,047 in Tongibari, 992 in Sirajdikhan, and 1,289 in Louhajang upazilas. Besides, 2,231 are VGF card holders and 2,708 are hilsa-netting fishermen. Of the VGF car holder fishermen, 513 in Sadar, 392 in Sreenagar, 516 in Louhajang, 291 in Tongibari, and 519 in Gazaria upazilas. In Manikganj a total of 9,729 fishermen of the district registered by the District Fisheries Office have not got the rice. On the other hand, each fisherman containing the Vulnerable Groups Feeding (VGF) card is to get 40-kg rice in each month from November to June, but actually they are getting the rice only for four months. As a result, the workless fishermen have expressed frustration as they are not getting the allocated rice. The contribution of hilsha to country's total fish production is 11%, the highest as the single species. A total of 5 lakh people are directly involved while 20-25 lakh indirectly with the catch of hilsha fish in the country. The catch of hilsa has risen significantly this year thanks to better management during the fish spawning season, enhanced vigilance against hilsa catching, marketing and trading during the ban period and increased frequency of drives against offenders. Female teacher of EWU found hanging in city Staff Reporter : The body of a lecturer of East West University (EWU) was found hanging at her rented residence in the city's Aftabnagar area early Wednesday. The deceased has been identified as Rabeya Kulsum Pinky, 26, lecturer of Finance and Banking Department of the EWU. She was daughter of Jahir Ahmed, a retired government high official and hailing from Halishahar of the Port city Chittagong, police said. Abdul Jalil, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Badda Police Station, said, "Brother of Rabeya Kulsum Pinkey found her hanging with the ceiling fan on the second floor at House No. 38, Road No. 3, at Aftabnagar around 2:30am. She was rushed to United Hospital in Gulshan by her brother where doctors declared her dead around 4:00am." Later, her body was sent to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) morgue, the OC said, adding that the primary symptoms showed it was suicide over the love affairs. Police are looking into the matter tracking the mobile call list and face book information to ascertain whether it was a case of suicide. The body was handed over to the family members of the deceased after autopsy at the DMCH morgue, the OC said. 4.2 lakh children employed as domestic aids SDG not possible, fear lawmakers Staff Reporter : Expressing severe concern, lawmakers at a discussion meeting on Wednesday said that it would not be possible to meet sustainable development goal [SDG] keeping around 420,000 children employed as 'domestic aids'. To eliminate 'risky child labour' from the country, the lawmakers also laid emphasis on primary education along with vocational training for the children as they can be able to earn their livelihood with less effort, and ensure a bright future. "For the first time in the country's history, the present government has introduced children's budget which disbursed among concerned ministries, including labour, primary education and health. Unfortunately, the finance ministry gets back the child allocation most of the time, as the relevant ministries cannot use it," said Deputy Speaker Fazle Rabbi Mia. Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum with the cooperation of Delhi-based Global March Against Child Labour organised the view-exchange meeting at IDP Conference Room of the National Parliament Bhaban in the city. Md Israfil Alam MP, Nazmul Haque Pradhan MP, Ummey Razi Kazol MP, Poet Kazi Rozi MP, and director of the forum Abdus Sahid Mahmud were present at the function, among others, while Deputy Speaker Fazle Rabbi Mia delivered his speech as the chief guest. "It means, the concerned ministries and departments do not give importance to the children's welfare. Whereas, the government has taken specific plans to eliminate the child labour by 2021 So, the officials of 47 ministries and departments, those are entitled to implement the work, must remain cautious in this regard," the Deputy Speaker noted. He further gave focus on creating awareness among the general people, and urged everybody not to keep children as 'house workers' in their houses. Expressing concern, Md Israfil Alam said: "At present, child labour has been reduced significantly due to proper steps taken by the government. The international organizations have already recognized the government's initiatives In our present labour law, the child labour is restricted. Now, initiatives have been taken to introduce new law for the labours of informal sectors. If it is possible, the child labour will also be eliminated forever." Mentioning the poverty as main reason behind the child labour, Nazmul Haque Prodhan said: "It will not be possible to eliminate child labour taking programmes only in the urban areas. We'll have to go to the villages to find out the root cause. We'll have to ensure employment for poor people of the villages. At the same time, there must be assurance of work-oriented-education for the deprived children." Mentioning the children as a gift of heaven, Kazi Rozi said: "We're proceeding forward despite different obstacles. The government has taken initiatives to eliminate child labour But I think, the non-government organizations will have to come forward to face the challenge." Ummey Razi Kazol urged the concerned departments and donor organizations for more cooperation in this regard. The key-note paper was presented by programme coordinator Abdullah Al Mamun where he mentioned that 13 lakh children are still engaged in risky labour in the country. Of them, 420,000 children are employed as 'house workers'. Sonali Bank on the brink Govt entities on list of big defaulters Kazi Zahidul Hasan : Sonali Bank Ltd, the country's largest state owned commercial bank, is now facing 'concentration risk' in credit portfolios arising from uneven distribution of large loans to individual borrowers. Thirty individual borrowers, mostly public sector's entities, owe the bank Tk 22,422 crore which is nearly 65 per cent of the bank's total outstanding loans. The outstanding loan of Sonali Bank stood at Tk 34,000 as of July 31 this year, according to an official figure. Expressing concern over the concentration risk, Bangladesh Bank (BB) recently issued warnings to the bank, asking it to take immediate steps to reduce the risk. "High loan concentration to a group of borrowers has been a source of concern for the central bank. Because this kind of credit concentration crippled the bank's financial health limiting its ability of credit expansion to other sectors," Subhankar Saha, a spokesperson and executive director of BB, told The New Nation yesterday. He said, "We have issued warning to the Bank in this regard asking the authorities concerned to reduce their exposure to this group of borrowers immediately." The Directorate General of Defence Purchase (DGDP) ranked the top among the individual borrowers with Tk 4,982 crore loan followed by Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) Tk 4,349 crore and Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) Tk 1219 crore. Beximco Group had a loan of Tk 1194.73 crore, Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation Tk1,113 crore and Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) Tk 1,005 crore, according to the official figure. Besides, North West Power Generation Company, Hall Mark Fashion, Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC), Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC), Max Spinning, Directorate General of Food, Electricity Generation Company of Bangladesh Limited and Anwara Spinning altogether had Tk 500 crore liabilities to the bank. "We are aware of the situation. But what can we do. We have to entertain the public entities as per the ministry's directive," a senior executive of Sonali Bank told The New Nation on Wednesday, preferring anonymity. He said, Sonali Bank is a public bank. So, traditionally, it has to finance the public entities and corporations. But the big credit accumulation by public entities has become a big headache for the bank which is now running with huge capital shortfall. "Sonali is now finding it hard to finance new businesses amid capital shortfall and defaulted loans," he said, adding, "A fresh capital injection is a must to run the bank smoothly." The capital shortfall of Sonali Bank stood at Tk Tk2, 605 crore as of June 30 this year. Pak link with Rohingya militants blamed bdnews24.com : Myanmar has blamed Aqa Mul Mujahideen (AMM) , a little known Rohingya Islamist group, for the recent spate of attacks on border outposts on the border with Bangladesh. Nine Myanmar policemen were killed in the attack and eight attackers were gunned down in the encounters on Oct 8. The AMM is headed by Hafiz Tohar, a 45-year old Rohingya man , who hails from Kyauk Pyin Seik village in Maungdaw . Myanmar intelligence says he was trained by the Pakistan Taliban for six months, after which he returned to the Rakhine state to recruit young Rohingyas who were angry with relentless Burmese persecution of the community. In the Maungdaw attacks, nearly 300 militants were involved . Indian intelligence which closely monitors Islamist radical groups including the Rohingyas says Tohar's group has grown out of the Harkat-ul-Jihad Islami-Arakaan (HUJI-A) The HUJI-A chief is Abdus Qadoos Burmi, a Pakistani national of Rohingya origin, who recruited Hafiz Tohar, 45, and arranged for his training in Pakistan. Tohar is said to be heading the AMM now and Qadoos Burmi is reported to be close to the Lashkar-e-Tayyaba/ Jamaat ud Dawa (LeT/JuD), headed by Hafiz Sayeed. bdnews24.com had earlier reported the LeT-JuD presence , specially that of its humanitarian front Fala- I - Insaniyat in Rohingya relief camps in Rakhine state after the 2012 riots. Qadoos Burmi developed the HUJI-A network in Bangladesh , using the remote hills on its border with Myanmar , where coverage by Bangladesh security forces was at best limited. After training a few promising recruits in Pakistan, they were send to set up bases on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border , where new Rohingya recruits were trained in combat techniques and use of explosives. That was during the 2013-14 phase when Bangladesh police and security forces were busy tackling violent political unrest unleashed by opposition parties against the Awami League government. Senior Indian intelligence officials said that in July 2012 , Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD)/ Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) started Difa-e-Musalman-e-Arakaan conference in Pakistan to highlight the Rohingya cause. Subsequently, senior JuD operatives, Shahid Mahmood and Nadeem Awan, visited (August 2012)Bangladesh to establish direct contacts with Rohingya elements based in camps along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border. Rohingya leader Chotta Burmi was killed in Indian Kashmir in fighting with troops alongside Pakistani militant leader Adil Pathan in Oct 2015. Burmi was found sharing the dias with Lashkar e Tayyaba supremo Hafiz Sayeed in a picture earlier used by bdnews24.com. Indian officials say Rohingya militants could be used to disturb the Myanmar-Bangladesh border zone not only by staging attacks inside Myanmar but also by forging close links with jihadi groups in both Bangladesh and India . "They could be an useful element for Pakistan's ISI to destabilise the border regions of Myanmar, Bangladesh and India after all the three joined in attacking Pakistan's export of terror," said A.B Mathur, a member of India's National Security Advisory Board and a former secretary (security) to the Indian government. Let it be known HC is there to do justice The High Court has acquitted the Tangail schoolboy from Sakhipur after cancelling his two-year jail term that was awarded to him by a mobile court for allegedly making some malicious remarks on Facebook on the local MP. The court comprising of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Ashish Ranjan Das on the other hand by asking the Govt and the Inspector General of Police to withdraw Sakhipur Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Mohammad Rafiqul Islam and OC Md Maksudul Alam ending the hearing of the suo moto rule clearly showed they had misused their power and need to be punished through proper investigation. They are public servants to serve the people and must not forget that. But in this case they have victimized a minor boy only to make the local MP happy. The public servants must maintain the honour of their positions in the service of the people. Earlier on September 20, the bench had granted permanent bail to the boy and summoned the UNO and OC to appear before the court to explain their conduct. In fact the court's quick action has saved the boy from being pushed to be a criminal as a reaction for being sentenced as a criminal although he had done nothing as such. The boy was clearly victim of ruthless and unjustified misuse of power by both the local official to appease the local lawmaker who had earlier lodged a GD for a threat on his life from a Facebook profile. Based on the lawmaker's complaint police detained the nine grader schoolboy from his home at night on mere suspicion without any verification. The OC tortured him at the police station, although the boy persistently denied of his involvement and even the skill to operate Facebook. The local UNO then took the matter into his hands, critically tortured the boy again and using the cover of a mobile court and power of an Executive Magistrate sentenced the boy to two years jail. The OC then quickly transferred the boy to Tangail prison treating him as a regular criminal. The boy's narrative of his arrest that he was beaten by the OC, kicked by the UNO and mishandled by the MP made headlines in national dailies and the High Court Bench issued the suo moto to give justice to the boy. What made the court and the nation totally worried is about the brutality that the UNO and OC used on the boy just to prove their loyalty to the ruling party lawmaker without being sure of his involvement. We don't know whether any local issue was involved but the way the two officials used their power without verifying the case appears to be a big threat to public safety of helpless villagers before powerful people. Police have their Code of Conduct. So also the UNO has the Administrative Guidelines how to punish criminals and save the innocent. Both of them are now accused of breaking the law and public misconduct. Their Lordships of the High Court Division have let it be known that we have the judiciary to help the helpless ones to get justice. We are lucky to have such admirable instances set by our Supreme Court when no other body or authority intervened to stop gross violation of one's rights. Our judiciary is still fully conscious of its responsibility to the people and their dignity as a nation. The court's order to transfer both officials outside Dhaka Division so that they can't influence the probe also shows the concerns of the court to ensure proper investigation into the case to punish the lawbreakers. Republicans already have a decent majority this term in the state Senate, but you couldnt tell based on the bills it passes and the support it provides to Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards. Wikimedia Republicans already have a decent majority this term in the state Senate, 25-14, but you couldnt tell, analysts and pundits claim, based on the bills it passes and the support it provides to Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards. With Senate President John Alario, R-Westwego, term-limited, along with 41 percent of the entire chamber 16 out of 39 seats the Senate looks to be a real area of opportunity for the Louisiana Committee for a Republican Majority, the independent expenditure group begun by Sen. David Vitter and now chaired by state Attorney General Jeff Landry. Through his raw legislative skill sets and healthy doses of tradition and institutional knowledge, Alario has enjoyed a tight grip over the Senate. When it loosens at the end of this term, Republicans hope a different voting pattern will emerge. But theres no guarantee that happens with the current membership. That will likely lead to LCRM endeavoring to flip a few Senate seats from incumbent Republican to ultra-Republican next cycle. It also means LCRM will have to keep its sights set on the Senate presidents election in 2020. Gov. Edwards has already said he plans to run for re-election and speculation about AG Landry opposing him on the ballot has reached a fevered pitch. If thats the matchup, legislative leadership positions may actually become an issue in that top race in 2019. In the House, 38 out of 105 seats will be open due to term limits, or 36 percent of the chamber. The overall goal there may be to at least maintain the current 59-42 majority there are also two independents and to build on it where possible. But much like the Senate, the big gavel is whats really in play. Speaker Taylor Barras, R-New Iberia, who Edwards did not want to see elected by the House, is term limited. Pre-purchase property inspection is a relatively new thing in the United Kingdom. Its not something that most people have heard about, but it has become increasingly popular over the last few years with the rise in property prices and increased demand for high quality homes. What are the benefits of pre-purchase building inspection? What can you expect to find out when you pay someone else to inspect your home before you buy it? And what should you look for during an inspection? Many people want to know if theyre buying a house thats been well maintained or if its had any serious problems. If youve found a place on the market that seems attractive, but then discover some issues after moving in, you may not be as excited about buying it as you thought you were. Its important to do your due diligence when looking at properties. A lot goes into making a property appealing to potential buyers, from the landscaping to the flooring to the kitchen appliances. The same applies when inspecting a property there are many things that need checking over to make sure everything is running smoothly. Here are some of the benefits of performing a pre-purchase inspection: You get to see exactly what will happen to your money When you go shopping for a new car, youll probably be shown several different models. You might even be shown one that looks like a great value, but doesnt fit around all of the extra features that you want. When it comes time to actually buy the vehicle, however, you wont have seen how your money will be spent on it once you drive it off the showroom floor. Likewise, when you shop for a new home, you dont really know what youre getting yourself into until you move in. In order to get a feel for whether the home youre considering is what you want, you normally have to spend quite a bit of time inside it. This allows you to learn more about everything that youre going to be spending your hard-earned cash on. A pre-purchase building inspection gives you much the same kind of experience without having to spend thousands of dollars. Since youre paying for the service, you can expect to see exactly what youre paying for, instead of just seeing a vague idea of what you might end up with. You find out about potential major repairs Some buildings are very expensive to maintain, which means that owners often neglect them for the sake of saving money. While youre paying for a building inspection, youre also paying for a professional who knows how to spot signs of trouble and repair work that needs doing. If you notice that a particular area of your new home needs fixing right away, you can call in an expert to take care of it quickly. If you find that theres something wrong with your boiler, you wont have to wait weeks for a plumber to come over and fix it. Instead, youll have access to a solution immediately. You can save hundreds of pounds by finding out about potential problems early on One of the biggest expenses when you first buy a home is the cost of moving in. Many people dont realize this until its too late. Buying a home involves not only paying for the actual house, but also for moving costs, furniture, and other items that have to be moved along with the home. Having a good idea ahead of time of what youre likely to encounter can help you avoid these kinds of costs. If you know youll need to replace the plumbing system, for example, youll be able to put together a budget for the expense and plan accordingly. You can protect your investment by finding out if the homes been well cared for While there are plenty of people who think that houses always look better when theyre newly built, youd be surprised at how well maintained older residences can still look nice. Sometimes, though, those homes need some additional maintenance to keep them looking their best. This could involve repairs that arent so noticeable or small improvements that you wouldnt consider otherwise. Even worse, some houses have fallen into disrepair without anyone noticing. This is why having a professional perform a building inspection prior to purchasing a home is such a big benefit. Not only will it give you insight into the state of the property, but it will also give you peace of mind knowing youre not getting taken advantage of. As long as youre aware of the potential pitfalls, youll have less reason to worry about the state of your new home. You can use information gathered during a building inspection to negotiate a lower price If youre worried about buying a home because you suspect that it may need extensive renovation work, you may already have a rough idea of how much work youll need to do to bring it up to scratch. That knowledge can come in handy if you decide to buy the home. You can use all of the details that you gather during a building inspection to present a realistic picture of what the home is worth to prospective buyers. If a potential buyer thinks that the home is worth more than what you paid for it, you can try negotiating a lower price. You can sell your home faster and for more money If you decide to list your home on the market soon after buying it, youll need to price it accurately in order to attract buyers. But if youve already done a thorough building inspection, youll know exactly what work is needed and what the current market conditions are. In other words, youll be able to make a more accurate estimate of the amount of money youve invested in the home and how much its worth. If you find that youre selling your house for close to its full market value, you can use this information to convince the potential buyer that your home is worth the asking price. Even if youre planning to stay in the home for a while before you decide to sell, the fact that you did a thorough building inspection will give you more confidence when listing it. Prospective buyers will know exactly what theyre paying for. Your home will hold its value longer As mentioned earlier, the value of a home depends heavily upon the condition of the building itself. If your home is in bad shape, potential buyers wont be interested in buying it. On the other hand, if youve performed a thorough building inspection and know what sort of repairs are necessary, you can offer your prospective buyer a compelling reason to invest in your property. When you buy a home, youre essentially agreeing to have it inspected periodically to ensure that it stays in top shape. Not only does this allow you to avoid expensive repairs down the road, but it can also increase the value of your home. You can make smart decisions about property investments Buying real estate isnt as simple as just driving a couple of minutes to pick up a house. There are lots of considerations involved, ranging from location to cost. The same is true when youre investing in property. If you find a house that meets all of your requirements, youll want to make sure that you have a solid understanding of where it stands with regards to the rest of the market. If you havent spent enough time researching the area, you could inadvertently end up with a bad deal. There are lots of resources available online that can help you determine the overall level of competition in your area. They can also help you figure out if there are any properties that meet your requirements that you didnt know about. If you own rental property, you can use the information to identify tenants who might cause damage If you own rental property and youve noticed that certain tenants consistently cause damage, you can use the results of a building inspection to identify them. You can then contact them directly to let them know that youre watching them closely and that you dont appreciate the problem theyre causing. They might start taking better care of their homes, which would be good news for everyone. It could also be the case that youll find out that theyre responsible for previous damages that werent caught during a previous visit. You can make smarter decisions about hiring contractors If youve hired contractors to build or repair your home, you might want to ask them for references. However, unless you perform a thorough building inspection, you might not know exactly what to look for. For instance, maybe you only checked the roof for leaks or the walls for cracks. You might not have looked underneath the foundation for anything that could cause a future issue. By performing a building inspection, you can ensure that you hire reputable contractors who will be trustworthy with your money. You can avoid purchasing a home thats in poor condition Of course, the main benefit of structural inspections perth is that it helps you avoid purchasing a home thats in poor condition. Before you make the decision to buy a home, you should do whatever you can to find out about the state of the building. You can also ask your realtor about what sorts of inspections are typically recommended. Some agents say that its standard practice to check the heating system, the roof, the electrical wiring, and the floors. Others will tell you that they recommend that you check the entire structure. Either way, if you choose to hire an inspector, youll find out exactly what needs to be fixed and how much it will cost to do so. As a result, it can be concluded that a pre-purchase building inspection is highly important for the buyers because it provides transparency regarding the current conditions of the structure. Additionally, the building owner is made aware of any upgrades or repairs that are required, which could lead to a fair deal throughout the purchasing and selling process. iStock/Thinkstock(MOSCOW) -- An eight-hour "humanitarian pause" declared by Russia in Aleppo, Syria, during which Moscow has told fighters and civilians to leave besieged rebel districts, has begun. But doubts have already been raised about the credibility of the pause, with the United Nations saying it needs longer to get relief in and the United States suggesting it may be too little, too late. Meanwhile, several residents of the besieged part of Aleppo say that leaving is not a real option and that they view the cease-fire as a media stunt. There is no sound of planes, but we can still hear shootings on the ground, Wissam Zarqa, a teacher in the besieged Aleppos al-Mashhad neighborhood, told ABC News. The government is still trying to advance. As long as fighting and clashes are ongoing it is not possible for civilians to leave. Some elderly people who cant keep living under siege might want to leave but they cant because its not safe. Even if he felt that it were safe for him to leave, he would choose to stay, he said. We dont feel like leaving our homes and becoming refugees, he said. None of my friends are considering leaving. Russias military said it and the Syrian government were halting bombings from the air on Tuesday to prepare for the pause, which was announced on Monday, offering a brief respite from relentless airstrikes on the rebel-held part of the besieged city that has seen hundreds killed in recent weeks. On Monday, 14 members of the same family, including eight children, were killed after their home was hit by an airstrike, according to activists in Aleppo and the White Helmets, a volunteer civil defense group that operates in rebel-held Syria. Humanitarian organizations have criticized the Syrian and Russian governments for the intense airstrikes and for reported use of chemical weapons and bunker-buster bombs, which can target people sheltering underground. Russias defense ministry said the pause was being held so civilians and rebel fighters could leave the city, saying two corridors would be opened for fighters and six more for civilians. The ministry said that Syrian government troops would pull back to allow fighters past, and pledged to guarantee the safety of civilians leaving and to allow aid organizations into the city to provide relief. But within minutes of the pauses formal start, at 8 a.m. local time, a senior Russian diplomat condemned rebel groups for refusing to leave and accused them of keeping civilians there as human shields. The U.N. and aid groups also warned that the pause was not sufficient to achieve the relief Moscow was suggesting. Since July, the city of Aleppo has been the center of intense fighting and is currently undergoing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, according to the U.N. Intense shelling has led to the destruction of hospitals, schools, roads and markets and severely affected civilian access to water and electricity. The U.N.s humanitarian spokesman said that while it welcomed any pause in the violence around Aleppo, more time was needed if relief workers were to be able to reach the city. "We will use whatever pause we have to do whatever we can," Stephane Dujarric, a U.N. spokesman, told reporters in New York. "Obviously there is a need for a longer pause to get trucks in." The international aid group, Doctors Without Borders, also said the pause was too short for them to evacuate the wounded safely and to reach those in the city. Another U.N. spokesman said that Russia had informed them that it intended to hold two more eight-hour pauses on consecutive days this week. Russias military has yet to announce that publicly. Jens Laerke of the U.N. humanitarian coordinator OCHA said that without guarantees for relief workers safety from all sides in the city it was impossible for them to enter. Russia has meanwhile said it will also begin work on defining which groups should be labeled terrorists and which can be considered moderate opposition in Aleppo, without the participation of the U.S. Agreeing upon which groups could be labeled as terrorists, particularly the al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra, had been a key condition for the cease-fire deal that collapsed in late September amid renewed bombing by Russian and Syrian government aircraft on Aleppo. Russia has previously been disdainful of any distinction between moderate rebel groups and those recognized as terrorists, saying it was the obligation of the U.S., which is supporting some of the rebels to do so. The U.S. ceased cooperation with Russia following the cease-fires collapse, accusing Russia of not working in good faith. Russias defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, said on Tuesday that Russian experts were already in Geneva, Switzerland, to begin discussions with the U.N. and other countries that have supported the rebels to begin work on identifying the different groups operating inside the war-torn country. The U.S. and United Kingdom have both voiced skepticism about the pause, suggesting it is insufficient. Britains foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, rejected the Russian plan as currently not credible: A durable and convincing cease-fire must be delivered by the Assad regime before any such proposal can conceivably be made to work. U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said on Tuesday that a pause would be a good thing but that after months of near-constant bombing, intended to starve out and drive out the opposition and civilians, it was a bit too little, too late. Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. Eizo (the word means "image" in Japanese), the high-end monitor (a.k.a. display) manufacturer based in Hakusan, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, has a new set-and-forget color management system called "Quick Color Matching." Developed in concert with Canon (as a printer manufactureryou don't need to use a Canon camera to use it...), Adobe (...but you do need to own Photoshop), and Epson, Quick Color Matching is intended to be extremely easy to useyou simply drag your file into the QCM icon with your printer and paper selected, and it launches Photoshop with all the color management duties, including profiling, automagically taken care of. Of course you also need to be using an Eizo monitor. I haven't quite sussed out yet if QCM works for all Eizos or if you need to buy a special one somehow. It matters, I would guess, because, although Eizo ColorEdge monitors have the reputation of being high-end, with prices to match, they are now competing in a more affordable price gamut (you see what I did there)the 16:10 ratio Eizo CS2420, new this year, currently costs on $799, which is cheap for an Eizo. The one with the built-in calibration hardware, the higher-spec'd CG2420, costs a stiff $550 more. I don't know if you can use Quick Color Matching on either of them or just one. (I know nuthin' from monitors, since I've always bought mine with an Apple computer built in [although I do pay attention to the display options when I buy computers]. It's not difficult to comprehend that there is a surfeit of choiceI can't even wrap my head around the dizzying number of alternatives from one manufacturer, much less all of them.) Anyway, a question: is anyone already using Eizo Quick Color Matching, or does anyone know of a good independent expert review of it (even on a forum)? I'm getting a handle on the various RIPs and quasi-RIPs, but I haven't yet found an explanation of what's going on in Eizo QCM under the hood. I'm only a techie on an as-needed basis...he added ruefully. Mike Original contents copyright 2016 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. Monitor photography. Join our support campaign or buy something (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.) Featured Comments from: Darlene: "I think Mikey enjoys the printing process. "Back in my film days when I had to do wet darkroom stuff, I never really enjoyed it. Speed ahead to the dry darkroom and I am thrilled with the prints I make on an Epson 3880 with ImagePrint (IP). Everything Dan Dill and others have stated [in previous comments Ed.] regarding IP is correct. "With IP, I find printing on new and different papers a real pleasure. I enjoy trying papers other photographers praise about just to see how they look and feel. In my usual fickle style, I will like a particular paper for about six months, then get bored with it, and want to try something else. IP has made this fickle heart for printing papers very happy. "IP has outlasted my printers (running my second 3880) and saved me a ton of time, money and frustration. Occasionally when printing for a school exhibit, I will demonstrate IP from my school workstation. My students receive training in color-correction and profiling (classroom uses NEC monitors with SpectraView), but at times a student's print will have a slight color cast that is not easily tweaked out. After we print it through IP, there is generally a sigh of relief, and then a few groans about the need to make money. :-) " Oleg Shpak: "http://www.eizoglobal.com/products/coloredge/qcm/ < lists all the compatible hardware. Note there are some software pieces in there too." President Joe Biden has decided to ban Russian oil imports, toughening the toll on Russia's economy in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine. The United States generally imports about 100,000 barrels a day from Russia, only about 5% of Russia's crude oil exports, according to Rystad Energy. Last year, roughly 8% of U.S. imports of oil and petroleum products came from Russia. Gas prices have been rising for weeks due to the conflict and in anticipation of potential sanctions on the Russian energy sector. The U.S. national average for a gallon of gasoline soared 45 cents a gallon in the past week and topped $4.06 on Monday, according to auto club AAA. Should the US ban Russian oil imports over Ukraine war? You voted: The sextoy market is growing quite rapidly in India right now. Although it is not a big trend, it is a hot topic on the internet as it is secretly expanding its market. In this article, we will focus on sextoy and introduce recommended sextoy for Indian beginners of sextoy by gender. India, the birthplace of the Kama Sutra, is very strict about sex. Also, premarital sex is basically not allowed. Therefore, there are many people who are sexually restricted. But what happens when you continue to be sexually restricted? Frustration may build up and you may end up taking your sexual stress out on your partner. If you are able to adopt sextoy in a timely manner, you can get rid of those problems. I want to have more exciting sex than Im having now. I want more variation in masturbation I want to get even stronger pleasure than I do on my own. If you have any of these problems, please stay with me until the end. What is sex toys for Indian? Sextoy, as the name implies, is a toy used during sex and masturbation. It is a generic term for vibrators, Egg-vibrators, Electric massagers, dildo, handcuffs and condoms. They are used to make regular sex more exciting or to make masturbation more pleasurable. Because sextoy is very stimulating, it can help you to get rid of the problems and frustrations of being in a rut of sex with your partner for a long time, or if you are unhappy with the lack of pleasure in sex with your partner. The ability to satisfy your desires with movement, texture, and size, which cannot be done by a normal human being, can help you to be satisfied with sex and, as a result, improve your relationship with your partner. It is also said to help improve sexual dysfunction (inability to get an erection or ejaculate) and difficulty in feeling during sex (insensitivity), which is attracting more attention than in the past. In recent years, the demand for sextoy has increased due to the spread of smartphones and the Internet and the increasing number of people using online shopping. Even those who are concerned about the appearance of sextoy (and find it difficult to purchase) can now easily obtain it by using mail order. In the case of online shopping, most of the stores have taken steps to ensure that the contents of the products delivered to you are not revealed, so you can purchase them without your family members knowing. Until a while ago, you had to go to the store where the adult goods were sold to buy them, so it was quite a hurdle to overcome. Also, many people may have an image that sextoy is somehow embarrassing to own. But nowadays, some of them are so stylish and cute that you cant believe they are sextoy at a glance. More and more people are using them for travel and outdoor use because they are not too bulky and are suitable for carrying around. Sextoy situation in India Before introducing the recommended sextoy for Indians, lets talk about one of the sextoy situations in India in recent years. In India, due to the high concentration of population, the following six cities have particularly high sales of sextoy in India. Mumbai Kolkata Bangalore Delhi Chennai Hyderabad These cities account for roughly 70 percent of sextoy sales in India. In the future, the percentage of sextoy use will gradually increase in other cities in India as well. If you never talk about sextoy publicly, that girl in your neighborhood might be a sextoy user too. If you are interested in sextoy, you dont have to suppress your desire for it. What are Sextoys for beginner? Among all sextoys, sextoy for beginners are vibrators, dildo, masturbators, Sex Lubricants, and condoms. Sex Lubricants and condoms, which are familiar to people who have had sex, are also a great beginners sextoy. I will explain the details of each toy later, but there are many sextoy products that are painful to use and can only be used after some anal expansion. I assume that the Indian readers of this article are people who have not had much experience with sextoy. If such people use professional sextoy suddenly, they are at risk of injury or trauma. Therefore, to introduce sextoy, you need to start with a beginners version and gradually become familiar with it. Advantages of using sextoy for Indians There are three advantages of using sextoy for Indians You can masturbate in a wide variety of ways. Can have stimulating sex Can develop new sexual zones If you try to masturbate with your own fingers or hands, it tends to be a pattern. However, with sextoy, you can easily masturbate in a variety of ways. You will definitely be fascinated by the attraction of new stimulation. Also, your daily sex life will be more exciting than ever. There are many things in sextoy that are visually stimulating and give you a strong and intense feeling of pleasure. This allows you to see your partners promiscuity in a way that you wouldnt normally see it. When you are in a relationship, sex with your partner may become a pattern, but it can also eliminate these problems. It can also lead to the development of new sexual zones (which is the training of sexual stimulation to allow you to feel orgasms). For more information on the development of new sexual zones, see the following articles [Women's Erogenous Zone]How to find and develop, 7 hidden sexual zones !![In India] In this issue, we will dissect the female erogenous zone! ..." Many of you may be like that. Men, in particular, shou... Thus, the use of sextoy can only be a good thing for the men and women of India. Sextoy for beginner men in India So, lets continue with the recommended goods for Indian sextoy beginners. For ease of understanding, we will introduce them by gender. Lets start with the men! The following five goods are recommended for novice Indian sextoy men Masturbator Cock rings Love Doll Sex Lubricants Toys for the prostate Lets check each one in detail. Masturbator The masturbator is a sextoy for men that elaborately reproduces a womans vagina, mouth, and anus, and is one of the most popular sextoy products. It is used by men to masturbate, and it is popular because it provides stronger stimulation and pleasure more easily than using hands. Most are made of good quality silicone, and their softness is something that cannot be achieved with ones own hands. They can provide stronger pleasure than a real womans vagina, so be careful not to overuse them. (You wont be able to have an orgasm in a womans vagina anymore.) Again Male masturbators are a wonderful toy. I do not need any favourite timing, bothersome bargaining. You do not have to worry too much. Revolutionize your masturbation time! ! ! Made in Japan is a wonderful kinky toy.#sextoysindia #SexToyIndia #Japanhttps://t.co/4k70QGzoTP pic.twitter.com/tRVdxTKPpa SEXToys India PR (@SextoysIndia) November 12, 2018 Some of them are disposable, while others can be washed and used over and over again, so its fun to buy a few to use depending on your mood. If you want to know more about masturbator, please click here Really pleasant male masturbation and how to do it Are you in a rut with your daily masturbation routine? I'm going to show you five ways men masturbate that you might ... [For Beginners] How to choose and use a male masturbator without fail Gentlemen.Have you ever used a masturbator? The person who sees this article is probably the one who has not experien... Cock Ring A cock ring is literally a ring-shaped sextoy that is worn on a mans penis. It maintains an erection by binding the penis with a ring of rubber and blocking blood flow. It is sometimes used as an accessory to be worn on the penis, and may be made of metal or plastic as well as rubber. In some cases, cock rings have parts or vibrators attached to them that stimulate the vagina, so they kill two birds with one stone, giving a woman pleasure while maintaining an erection. Cock rings are also sometimes used to treat erectile dysfunction. It can help with erectile dysfunction, where the penis doesnt get hard when you get an erection or doesnt last long when you try to insert it. Men who are prone to breakage or who are unsure of the hardness and size of their erections can use a cock ring to increase the size of their penis and maintain an erection for a longer period of time. Cock rings vary in price from around RS700 to over RS2000 with a vibrator function. Some of them do not fit your penis, so you should check the size of the cock ring before you buy. You should know the size of your partners or your own penis when it is erect. [Penis enlargement] What is a cock ring? Types and usage Cock rings can make your penis bigger and harder. It also makes sex with women more fulfilling and increases your sat... Love Doll Love dolls, also known as Dutchwives, are dolls with the appearance of a woman who can experience simulated sex. There are dolls that look like a woman, but they have no face and only have their breasts and lower torso cut off, and some dolls are so realistic that they can actually be mistaken for real women. Some expensive dolls can cost more than 1 million yen, and the quality of the doll is easily influenced by the price. The higher the price, the higher the quality of the doll will be, the closer it will be to the real woman, and the cheaper the doll will be, the less elaborate it will be, making it look like a real doll! Something is wrong! That is also true. You cant go wrong if you choose a balance between price and taste. There are stores that allow you to make custom-made love dolls, so you can create a girl of your choice. You can make a girl of your choice. You can start with inexpensive love dolls at first, and once you get used to it, you can try custom-made love dolls. If you want to know more about Love doll, please click here Thorough explanation of the charm of sex dolls! Have you ever heard of sex dolls that are used primarily for pseudo-sex purposes? It is a doll that is quite close to... Sex lubricants Sex lubricants are used as a substitute for lubricating fluid during sex or as a lubricant for men to use masturbator rules. It is not uncommon for women to have difficulty getting wet, depending on their physical condition, or to have difficulty getting wet due to their constitution. Forcing the penis into the vagina at such times can cause painful intercourse. There are various types of Sex Lubricants, some with a warming effect, some with a cooling effect, and some with a scent. Changing the Sex Lubricant used during play is recommended as a good sex accent. If you want to learn more about Sex Lubricants, click here. What is sex lubricant?Explain the difference and usage of each ingredient The word "sex toy" may seem like a hurdle to overcome, but lotion is actually one of the most familiar sex toys. Many... Toys for the Prostate Another sextoy for men is prostate toys. The most famous prostate toys include Enemagra, which was originally a prostate massager developed by an American urologist to treat an enlarged prostate line. Modern prostate toys are imitations of Enemagra that have spread as sextoy for men. Many people think of prostate toys as being used by gay men, but in fact they are often used by straight men. What is the prostate? The prostate is an organ found only in men. It is a walnut-sized organ located deep in the pelvis, just below the bladder, and its primary role is to protect and nourish sperm. You cannot touch the prostate gland from outside the body, but you can touch it by inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus. By inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus and touching the prostate and developing it, you can feel intense orgasms. Orgasms felt in the prostate are mainly dry orgasms, which are orgasms that do not involve ejaculation. (You can also feel orgasms with ejaculation through prostate stimulation.) The prostate is called the male G-spot, and dry orgasms can be much more intense than ejaculation. Therefore, men who are able to develop a prostate can become addicted to the pleasure. sextoy for beinner women in India The following are the recommended goods for Indian women who are new to sextoy. The following three are recommended for use by women who are new to sextoy. Vibrator. Dildo Electric Masserger Lets check out what each one is in detail. If you want to check out womens toys, click here. [BEST25]Sex Toys for Women in IndiaThat Can Help You Have an Orgasm There are many women who pretend to feel orgasm during sex. But don't worry, you don't have to pretend to feel orgasm... Vibrators A vibrator is a sextoy that vibrates with an Egg-Vibrator to provide stimulation and is often referred to simply as a vibrator. Some vibrate as well as rotate, and there are many variations of sextoy. It is quite a popular sextoy, and is well recognized by people who do not know much about sextoy. Its usage is similar to that of a massager, but it is more compact and easier to carry than a massager, and many of them look as cute as a lipstick or a macaroon, so they are popular among women. For a while, a famous influencer on twitter said, This is good! You may have heard of the topic of this article by introducing the recommended vibrators. Vibrators are great for women to use on their own, but they are also recommended for men who have difficulty satisfying women with sex. Since it is powered by electricity, it is far less tiring than moving your hands by yourself. This makes it easier to satisfy a woman with sex because you can caress her for longer than usual. Vibrators are mainly used on the female side, but they can also be used on men. When used on men, they are used to attack the nipples and glans, and in both cases it is recommended to wear a condom for hygiene reasons. Introducing how to use the vibrator, its purpose, and how to choose it! Vibrator uses the vibrations caused by the rotation of the motor to provide stimulation. It is one or two of the most... Dildo A dildo is a model sextoy made to mimic a male penis. It can be made of silicone, elastomer (think of it as a material similar to PVC), metal or glass. A dildo can be used by a man for his female partner during sex, or by a woman for masturbation to get pleasure from it. They are mainly inserted into women, but some can be used in the male anus as well. It is sometimes used synonymously with vibrators, but the vibrator is not the same thing as a vibrating device. A model of a penis that does not vibrate is a dildo. Some of them have suction cups that can be attached to the floor or wall so that you can enjoy realistic masturbation without using your hands. For fun, there is a dildo made in the shape of your partners penis. This one is also popular as a gift, and if youve been together for a long time and are having trouble finding a gift for your partner, you might want to pick one. To learn more about dildo, please click here. What is Dildo: Orgasms with Dildos for Men and Women A dildo is a model of a male organ that is used by women for masturbation and by men to stimulate the prostate gland. Th... Electric Masserger A Electric Masserger is a hand-held electric massager, also known as a handheld massager, and can usually be purchased at electronics stores. It was originally designed to relieve stiff shoulders and back pain, so the hurdle of buying one in a physical store is quite low. Many people may have seen or used it in some form or another, as it is often installed in leisure hotels. Such a massager is highly recommended for beginners because it is easy for women to get pleasure from it when they use it during masturbation. It is larger than Egg-Vibrator and vibrations are stronger than those of Egg-Vibrators and vibrators, so even just hitting the clitoris can give you a great deal of pleasure. For those women who have never had an orgasm during sex with their man, the massager may be a good way to get a feel for what it feels like to have an orgasm. It looks and feels like an electric massager, so you wont have to feel awkward if your roommate finds out. If you are in a rut of having sex with your partner, if you want to feel an orgasm through masturbation, or if you are thinking of using a sextoy, why dont you try it from a simple massager? To learn more about Electric Masserger, click here. What is a massager? Introducing types, selection methods, and usage Originally, the Magic-wand vibrator and the massage machine were sold as a home massage machine used for the back and th... How to choose a sextoy for Indian Now that weve covered the different types of sextoy, heres how to choose one. Especially if you are trying sextoy for the first time, pay attention to the following three points: Does the size fit you (the partner)? Does the size fit you (your partner)? Is the environment able to produce sound without problems? Price range First of all, the choice of size is quite important. Most sextoy are used against or inserted into the genitals, but the genitals are very delicate organs for both men and women. For this reason, using an inappropriate size may cause damage. Secondly, the environment should be able to produce sound without problems. Some sextoys not only wear, but also rotate and vibrate. Its easier to get pleasure from something that moves than something that doesnt, but the fact that it moves means that the internal rotors make some noise. If you live in a house with thin walls or if you have roommates, you may not be able to concentrate because of the noise, so it is best to choose one that is silent or has a low noise level. Especially in India, where many people live with their families, it is very important that you dont have to worry about sound when you use it. Finally, there is the price range. The price range of sextoy ranges widely, from around RS500 at the cheapest to RS10,000 or more at the highest. Its good to consider how much money you can afford and how much you want to buy. Do you want your family to not find out about sextoy? I live with my family and want to use sextoy without them finding out! If you are a man, you should buy a camouflage sextoy that does not look like a sextoy at first glance. For men, there are many masturbators that do not look like a sextoy, and for women, there are vibrators that only look like cosmetics. If you choose such a type, youll be safe in case your family members find out. How to buy sextoys in India The best way to purchase sextoy is through online shopping. For more information on how to purchase sextoy, please see the article below. Sextoy is one of them. Therefore, you can easily get sextoy in India by using online shopping. SexToysINDIA is a long established and stable sextoy store and you can have sextoy delivered to any place in India. They also offer cash on delivery, so those who are worried about shopping with a credit card do not have to worry. Of course, the latest security is in place, so your information will not be taken out when you use your credit card. To begin with, many people may be concerned about whether they are legally allowed to purchase sextoy. ikmAs it turns out, its not illegal. Right now, it is not open to the public because the Indian adult market is still in the development stage, but it will gradually spread from now on. Take advantage of sextoy and open the door to new pleasures and culture. Cautions for Indians using sextoy When using sextoy, keep the following three things in mind Keep sex toys clean Watch out for electrical leakage Beware of the heat generated by the body while using a sex toy As I mentioned earlier, many sextoy products are used for the delicate zone. Therefore, it is most important to keep the sextoy itself clean. It is very important to keep the sextoy itself clean, because if a slight scratch is created by friction, bacteria can enter and breed there. It is safe to wear a condom when using the masturbator, just in case. In addition, many sextoy devices are powered by a power source, so if they are not waterproof, there is a possibility of electric shock or malfunction due to wetness. Some may even develop heat during continuous use. If the fever becomes too much, you may get burned, so be careful. If you get a fever during use, stop driving the sextoy immediately and refrain from using it. You will enjoy sex more if you keep it safe and use it correctly. Summary What did you think? In this article, we have introduced the recommended sextoy for the beginners of sextoy in India. The sextoy market is growing rapidly in India and it will continue to grow steadily in the future. As India is a rather closed-minded country, it can be difficult to be open about ones sexual habits and values. However, being faithful to ones desires by properly dissolving ones sexual desire is very effective for ones physical and mental health. If this is your first time to learn about sextoy, or if you are interested in using sextoy, why not give it a try? Indian Sextoys for ur best! will introduce you to sextoy and other trivia about sextoy, sexuality, and sexuality for men and women. I want to read more! If you think its a great idea, please bookmark it. SPRINGFIELD A bipartisan pair of state senators are introducing legislation that would ban directors of state agencies and other high-level gubernatorial appointees from using their official authority or influence to sway elections. Announcing the proposal Wednesday at Statehouse news conference, Sens. Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill, and Sam McCann, R-Plainview, touted it as an important expansion of the states ethics laws. Manar said the measure will close a gaping hole in existing law and is similar to restrictions at the federal level and in other states. Im of the opinion that agency directors should not spend their time campaigning, he said. They should spend their time managing the agencies that they have been entrusted to run and to manage when the Senate confirmed their appointments. The proposal wouldnt place new restrictions on officials financial contributions to campaigns. The announcement comes during a tough election season, one in which Wayne Rosenthal, director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, has appeared in a radio ad for state Rep. Avery Bourne, R-Raymond. Bourne is running against Democrat Mike Mathis of Gillespie for Rosenthals former House seat, to which she was appointed when Gov. Bruce Rauner tapped Rosenthal to lead the state agency. In the ad, Rosenthal calls Mathis, a former circuit court clerk and Democratic Party chairman in Macoupin County, a career politician who will do or say anything to get elected. He doesnt identify himself by his current state position. The Department of Natural Resources declined to comment. In a written statement, Bourne noted Rosenthals service in the Illinois Air National Guard and the General Assembly. Its clear that Wayne is passionate about central Illinois and I share his commitment to defending our values at the Capitol, she said. Im honored to have his endorsement and hope to continue his record of service to the people of central Illinois. McCann said he and Manar began discussing the idea during the spring primary season when constituents contacted them both about Department of Agriculture Director Raymond Poe appearing in ads for McCanns opponent. The lawmakers said the issue isnt about any one election or party, noting that Manar testified on Rosenthals behalf at his Senate confirmation hearing and McCann testified on Poes behalf. This is good government, McCann said. This is what we should do regardless of whos in control. Rauner spokeswoman Catherine Kelly wrote in an email that the governor welcomes any discussion to reform our political process, like constitutional amendments on fair (legislative district) maps and term limits. Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, R-Lemont, issued a statement saying that the proposal may be too narrow. If we are to consider legislation to ensure accountability to the taxpayers, we should consider the same restrictions be placed on taxpayer-paid appointees to boards and commissions, term limits and redistricting reform, Radogno said in a prepared statement. Manar and McCanns proposal is modeled on the federal Hatch Act, a 1939 law that limits the political activities of federal employees. Similar laws exist in 43 other states. MURPHYSBORO An early morning fire at Murphysboro's Department of Human Services is considered suspicious, according to a spokeswoman for the state's DHS office. Marianne Manko said the Illinois State Fire Marshal told her the fire is considered suspicious. Manko said the office was closed and that there was forced entry into the building at 342 North St. The fire was reported about 3:48 a.m. Wednesday. When firefighters arrived, they saw fire emerging from the west side of the building, according to Murphysboro Fire Chief Steve Swafford. A window on the west side of the building appeared especially blackened Wednesday morning. One office space was destroyed and there was damage to the hallway, as well as heat and water damage, Swafford said. The fire was restricted to the DHS offices, according to a news release from the Murphysboro Police Department. The building was unoccupied at the time of the fire, and there were no injuries, Police Chief Chad R. Roberts noted in a news release. Swafford said because the facility is a state building, he alerted the state fire marshal's office. It is also a satellite office for State Rep. Terri Bryant and State Sen. David Luechtefeld and also home to some other businesses, Roberts said in the statement. In addition to the Murphysboro fire and police departments and the Illinois State Fire Marshal's office, the fire is being investigated by Illinois State Police and the Jackson County Sheriff's Office. Manko did not know how long the office might be closed, but is currently looking for alternate locations to work. In the meantime, DHS set up a command center on-site on Wednesday to help clients. Those needing help can call 800-843-6154, email dhs.webbits@illinois.gov, or visit another DHS center for assistance. A Cutler woman has been arrested on several drug-related charges, according to a news release from the Perry County Sheriffs Office. Heather J. Stewart, 27, was arrested at 9:49 p.m. Tuesday after authorities responded to a public complaint in Cutler. She has been charged with unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia, unlawful possession of methamphetamine, unlawful possession of a hypodermic syringe and two counts of possession of a controlled substance. The suspect also had a Randolph County warrant for retail theft on her record, authorities said. Bond has not yet been set. The investigation is ongoing. The Southern SPRINGFIELD A state senator from Chicago plans to use the General Assemblys upcoming fall veto session to continue pushing legislation that Exelon Corp. says is essential to the future of its financially struggling Clinton and Quad Cities nuclear power plants. Sen. Donne Trotter, a Democrat from the Southeast Side, made the statement Tuesday in Chicago during a forum on Illinois nuclear energy industry hosted by the University of Illinois nuclear engineering department and the Illinois AFL-CIO. The event, titled Nuclear Power: What it Means in Illinois, included officials from the U.S. Department of Energy, representatives from organized labor, federal and state lawmakers, local officials, and other experts. After Illinois lawmakers ended their regular spring legislative session without approving Exelons proposed Next Generation Energy Plan, the Chicago-based company announced that it would move forward with plans to shutter the Clinton Power Station next year and the Quad Cities Generating Station in June 2018. But Trotter and other sponsors of the legislation, including Republican state Sens. Chapin Rose of Mahomet and Neil Anderson of Rock Island, say negotiations with Exelon, environmental and consumer groups, the renewable energy industry, and downstate utility Ameren Illinois have continued in the intervening months. Its coming together, and hopefully by the time we get back on Nov. 15, therell be enough consensus that we can move forward with it and get it through the Senate as well as the House, Trotter said, noting that some House members were in attendance and that House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, made a brief appearance. Madigan spokesman Steve Brown said the speaker is waiting to review the final version of the legislation before taking a position. Exelon, which has lost a combined $800 million on the two plants over the past seven years, says the states current energy policy doesnt properly value the economic, environmental and reliability benefits of nuclear power. Its seeking subsidies for its nuclear operations similar to those given to the wind and solar energy industries. Experts who spoke at Tuesdays forum said nuclear power, which doesnt produce greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change, will be a key component in helping the United States achieve its goal of reducing carbon emissions by 32 percent from 2005 levels by 2030. Sustaining the current fleet of nuclear power plants and building new nuclear capacity can play an important role in meeting this goal and is also critical if the U.S. is to maintain its global leadership as the world looks to nuclear power to meet its clean energy needs, said John Kotek, acting secretary for the U.S. Department of Energys Office of Nuclear Energy. Nuclear power, which accounts for about 60 percent of the carbon-free energy generated nationwide, is responsible for avoiding hundreds of millions of tons of carbon dioxide emissions that would be released each year if we had to rely on fossil-fuel generation for that electricity, Kotek said, noting that the Energy Department doesnt take a position on specific state-level proposals. Union officials, including Lonnie Stephenson, international president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, spoke of the important role the Clinton and Quad Cities plants play in their communities by providing high-paying jobs for highly skilled workers, a message that was echoed by Clinton City Administrator Tim Followell and Henry Marquard, director of government affairs for the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce. The plants are also primary sources of property tax revenue for their communities, officials said. Marquard added that if energy prices rise as a result of the Quad Cities plant shutting down theres no doubt at all that manufacturers will leave the area. Rose, whose Senate district includes the Clinton plant, told attendees, We are here today because the state of Illinois is facing a generational choice. That choice is between a clean, reliable source of power and an uncertain future of possible energy price hikes, he said. Opponents of the legislation have argued that some of its provisions could cause unpredictable fluctuations in consumers energy bills and harm burgeoning renewable energy businesses. Some critics also call it a bailout for a profitable corporation. WOLF LAKE Seeing Union Pacific's mammoth Locomotive No. 844 up close gave Mike Phillips a way to connect with his 4-year-old-grandson in a way he and his father never did. Phillips said his father, Morris, who has passed away, would talk about the steam engine trains he saw passing through this region as a child. But even though Phillips' 4-year-old grandson Dakota held his hands over his ears, apparently bothered by the loud bursts of noise made by the steam locomotive, Phillips was glad they had the chance to experience seeing the train. "Shows him a part of history that me and him (Phillips' father, Morris) never got to see," Phillips said. Phillips was among maybe as many as 200 people who came to the railroad tracks off State Forest Road in Wolf Lake, turning the space off the tracks into an impromptu parking lot for dozens of vehicles. People waited inside and outside their vehicles for the arrival of Locomotive No. 844, and when it finally arrived, they moved in closer for pictures and videos and quick chats with those on board. A few people managed to get pictures on the track, with the imposing No. 844 in their backdrop, until a police officer shooed them off the tracks. The locomotive was the last steam engine built for Union Pacific Railroad and delivered to the company in 1944. It has never been retired from the Union Pacific's fleet service, earning it the name "Living Legend." It weighs 454 tons (the combined weight of 140 full-size pickup trucks) and has wheels that are 80 inches high higher than five stacked vehicle tires. The locomotive has made enough trips to have crossed the United States four times. This is the train's first multi-state trip since 2012, when it had some work done on it, according to Union Pacific spokeswoman Kristin South. One of those who came early for a spot was Tom Miller, traveling from Marion to arrive around 9 a.m. Wednesday at least three hours before the train was due to arrive. Miller said his grandfather, who lived in Simpson, used to work for the trains, including the Illinois Central out of Carbondale and the "mud line" that ran into Southern Illinois. "This has been a lucky year," especially with seeing the steam locomotive on Wednesday, Miller said. The 80-year-old said he's had two surgeries this year and has gained back almost 20 pounds he raised his shirt to show a belt marked with at least a dozen holes to accommodate his lost weight and had finished a stint in a Marion nursing home. At trackside, Miller met Ray Zilvitis, of Elizabethtown, who said he has been a rail fan all his life. For the past 40 years, he said he has been a volunteer conductor with the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in Wisconsin. The two were as anxious to see the train as were the load of preschoolers, mainly 4-year-old boys, who came from two local day care centers for the big event. The train aficionados also included a slew of train-chasers, people in several vehicles who raced into the impromptu parking area, a bit ahead of No. 844, then scampered into their vehicles to travel alongside the train as it headed to its next destination. The train had made stops earlier in the day in Chester and Gorham and was scheduled to pass through Thebes, without stopping. The onlookers also included Gus and Diane Garrow, who traveled more than one hour from Metropolis to Wolf Lake to see the train. "I haven't seen a real live steam engine in years," Gus said. "It still gives me the chills to hear this one and especially when they take off after they stop." CARBONDALE In announcing a chancellor search for the Carbondale campus of Southern Illinois University this week, SIU System President Randy Dunn said this hiring is one of the most critical decisions facing the university. Dunn said his desire is to hire someone who will invest in Carbondale for a "number of years." "Right now, what we need on this campus is stability," Dunn told the newspaper in an interview Monday following his State of the System speech on the Carbondale campus. Ten people have served as chancellor at SIUC during the past 20 years, four of them only in an "interim" capacity. "That churning and turbulence in the top administrative position has just been constant," Dunn said. "Its gone on for years and it has to come to an end." Presently, Brad Colwell is SIUCs interim chancellor, a position he has held for just over a year. Colwell was named to the post about a year after the death of then-interim Chancellor Paul Sarvela, who held the position from July 2014 until his death on Nov. 9, 2014. Dunn also served dual roles as system president and SIUC chancellor for about a year before Colwell stepped into that latter position. Counting Dunn, 11 chancellors have served the Carbondale campus since 1996. When the SIU Board of Trustees approved the appointment of Colwell as interim chancellor, it was with the understanding he would serve up to two years, prior to the conclusion of a national search for a full-status chancellor, Dunn said. The revolving door One of the largest organizational challenges I think for the Carbondale campus is the fact weve had a revolving door of leadership at the top of campus, Dunn said. And Im not just talking about the chancellor. Im talking about a number of high-level positions. Dunn said that various leaders in the top posts have implemented plans in line with their visions that were scrapped for new ones with the seating of new administrators. The effect of that has been a campus community that hasnt invested in any of those particular approaches long enough to see them gain traction and take hold and ameliorate some of the problems we have. Dunn also said during his State of the System address that SIU has become risk adverse. But maintaining the status quo is no longer an option in light of the unprecedented fiscal woes facing the state, the bitter political struggle underway in Springfield and what Dunn described is playing out to be a reshaping of Illinois relationship with its publicly funded universities a chapter thats still being written and without a clear end. Several campus leaders said that means high on the priority list for the next permanent chancellor is an administrator who is skilled at leading through transition. He or she also should be gifted in the art of listening and communication, they said, as it will be important for buy-in on the path forward from both the diverse Carbondale on-campus and off-campus communities. I think what were looking for is a leader with staying power to not only navigate through these difficult fiscal times, but to be with us at the end when we come out of this stronger, because I absolutely believe that we will be stronger, said Laurie Achenbach, dean of the College of Science at SIU who has been chosen to chair the 18-member Chancellor Search Advisory Committee. Echoing Dunns sentiments, Achenbach said SIUC has struggled with administrative turnover in recent years. The leadership follow through thats needed, she said, is not only for new initiatives, but as importantly on stabilizing the long-term mission of the flagship campus so that whomever may come and go at the top, the business of the institution can carry on uninterrupted. Casting a wide net Dunn said the search committee will cast a wide national net, and that he personally plans to reach out to potential candidates in the recruitment phase to discuss the strengths of SIU. While these are challenging financial times for the university and state, Dunn said, there are people out there who will answer the call to prove their mettle leading a university into a new era, and who are deeply committed to the mission of an institution as deeply rooted as SIU. Dunn said he expects people to express interest from out-of-state, in-state and on campus. Its my full assumption that Interim Chancellor Colwell will apply, Dunn said. We have others working on campus now who are absolutely qualified for the position and should be looking to apply if they have interest. Dunn also said he's had early broad discussions with one or two potential applicants presently employed at other Illinois universities. The price of rapid turnover Rapid administrative turnover at college campuses across the nation is increasingly common, particularly among the ranks of president and chancellor. SIU is not unique in that regard, various news and expert reports indicate. Often, those transitions come with a high price tag in immeasurable and measurable ways, such as in the interruption and angst that accompany shifting gears, and in the negotiated golden parachutes and transition-to-teaching plans that provide a soft landing for ousted administrators, respectively. Public university administrators are under increasing pressure from such wide constituencies that when controversy inevitably flares, the response is often change at the top. Dunn said he doesn't have a magic number of years in mind that someone should serve, and he said that obviously the person must be qualified for the post. "But I'll take somebody who is a good A- or A on the longevity question even if it means giving up a little bit in terms of having a fantastic researcher or one of the most brilliant academicians in the country," he said. 'We need to aim high' Dave Johnson, who teaches classics and is president of the SIU Faculty Association, said he thinks a commitment to stick with SIUC for awhile is important, but he doesn't rank it as his top priority for a new chancellor. Johnson said what he desires in the next full-fledged chancellor is a leader who can build consensus about the best way forward by listening to the various constituencies that make up the Carbondale campus. "We may need to make big decisions but we need to make them together," said Johnson, who is not a member of the search committee. "Were not looking for someone who will come in with a pre-packaged plan." Johnson also said he also would like to see a chancellor hired who can drive home the importance of public higher education to communities outside the university, in the region and beyond. If that support base is rebuilt and buy-in of the mission is widespread across campus, that momentum would survive whatever transition takes place at the top post in the future, he said. This is a search where we need to aim high, he said. This person could be the most important chancellor this campus has had since Delyte Morris. Were facing huge challenges and we need the most qualified person we can get in this job." Achenbach said the search committee will meet for the first time next week. Among early decisions the committee will consider is whether to hire a consultant to assist with the national search. Dunn did not establish a deadline for the committee, but has directed them to act "expeditiously." He did say he expects between two and four finalists to visit the campus for interviews and open forums during the spring 2017 semester. To the Editor: There is no question Illinois is in need of a drastic change to the school funding formula. Under the current formula, even when funding increases, the neediest schools gain the least. For too long, affluent Chicago school districts have seen funding increases at the expense of poor Southern Illinois school districts. Rauner and the Republicans who represent Chicago suburbs that are home to 20 of the states 25 wealthiest school districts, pushed for measures that would have cut $725 million in elementary and secondary education funding. Those 25 school districts spent roughly $21,000 per student, while poorer districts like Anna District 37 and Crab Orchard School District spent just over $7,000 per student. Good thing we have people like Sen. Gary Forby who understand that this is unacceptable and stood up to Republicans who sought to slash $725 million from education funding. Education has been a central issue of Forbys public service, which is why he has received endorsements from the IFT and the IEA in every single primary and general election he's run in. He has demonstrated an unfaltering support for the teachers and students of Southern Illinois, while his opponents campaign is funded by Chicago interests that have no concern for downstate schools or children. With the voice of Southern Illinois schools in the Senate at stake, it is important that Southern Illinoisans understand this election is less about partisanship and more about ensuring that our children receive the quality education they deserve. Maribeth Kay Herrin 19 October 2016 Even though overall conflict-related civilian casualty numbers in Afghanistan fell by one per cent in the first nine months of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015, child casualties saw a marked increase of 15 per cent, the United Nations mission in the country said today. According to the latest figures released by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan ( ), of the total 8,397 casualties (2,562 deaths and 5,835 injured), 29.3 per cent or 2,461 casualties were children (639 deaths and 1,822 injured). Increased fighting in densely populated areas makes it imperative for parties to take immediate steps to ensure all feasible precautions are being taken to spare civilians from harm, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA, Tadamichi Yamamoto, said today in a issued by the mission. Of particular concern, UNAMA noted in the release, was the continued rise in child casualties. In the first nine months of this year, 2,461 child casualties (639 deaths and 1,822 injured) were document, a 15 per cent increase over the same period in 2015. Ground engagements caused more than half of all child casualties in 2016 and some 84 per cent victims of unexploded ordnance were children. Emphasizing the need to protect children, UNAMA Human Rights Director Danielle Belle stressed: All parties must systematically track, mark and clear unexploded ordinance in order protect current and future generations of children from harm. Emphasizing the need to protect children, UNAMA Human Rights Director Danielle Belle stressed: All parties must systematically track, mark and clear unexploded ordinance in order protect current and future generations of children from harm. DENMARK -- Denmark City Council at its meeting Monday night gave unanimous first-reading approval to an agreement with an Aiken architect to design a new $600,000 city hall. Under the agreement, architect McDonald Law would be paid $45,000. The proposed new city hall would be constructed at the intersection of Beech and City Hall streets. The brick structure would consist of three offices, an area where customers can pay their water bills and a meeting room comparable to the size of the one at the Brooker Center where the council holds its meetings. Also during the meeting, City Administrator Heyward Robinson reported the city and the Federal Emergency Medical Agency did an inventory of the damages to city property from Hurricane Matthew. He said several limbs fell on fencing at the wastewater treatment plant and spray field, the city's marquee sign was damaged and several trees fell on city property, including a cedar tree at the Locust Street Park and several trees at the entrance of the Simmons-Davis Park. Denmark Police Chief Leroy Grimes reported his department was instrumental in helping with traffic flow during Hurricane Matthew and assisted in many other ways during the storm. According to Fire Chief Charles Breland, Denmark firefighters logged more than 400 hours cutting trees during and after the storm. He requested the town purchase two chain saws for the department because the firefighters had to use their own. Council took no action on his request. Breland also noted the diesel tank on the department's generator had a hole in it, but Palmetto Trucking and Trailer donated one for the town's use during Hurricane Matthew. In other business: Grimes reported the police department had 47 cases from Sept. 19 to Oct. 17, including: simple assault, burglary, larceny, theft of a motor vehicle, vandalism of property, a weapon on school property, unlawful carrying of a handgun, shoplifting, driving under suspension and a traffic collision. Breland reported the fire department responded to 18 calls last month, including two structure fires, six alarms, two EMS assists and a brush fire. Council approved a request from the Word of Lamb Outreach Church to use city-owned property for three nights for a tent revival. Accountant Rusty Munoz reported the city's income is still steady, noting they are awaiting some water funds to come in. Grimes announced the police department will sponsor a Costume Showdown from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on Halloween, Monday, Oct. 31, at Jim Harrison Park. He said candy will be given out to children at the park's gazebo. Grimes announced the curfew for Halloween trick-or-treating in Denmark will be 8 p.m. Grimes announced a National Night Out event, sponsored by South Carolina Regional Housing Authority #3, will be held from 3:30 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 3, at the gazebo. The event will feature a program, a candlelight walk, games, resource booths, giveaways, candy apples, popcorn, cotton candy, hula hooping, Double Dutch jump roping, a sack race and soccer and volleyball matches. Area police departments are partnering with the Housing Authority to put on the event, Grimes said. Mayor Pro Tem Jake Bookard presided during the meeting in the absence of Mayor Dr. Gerald Wright, who was attending a conference in Texas. The Federal Emergency Management Agency expects to open a disaster recovery center at Orangeburgs YMCA today, county officials say. FEMA employees will be able to help residents determine whether they are eligible for assistance following Hurricane Matthew. Its almost like a FEMA insurance office that comes and sets up and allows people to come in and to talk to them about what happened as far as damages to their houses, to their structures, Orangeburg County Administrator Harold Young said. FEMA, if its not covered by insurance, will cut checks to help them out. They will stay here until they feel theyve been able to help as many people as they need to help, he said. After last Octobers flood they stayed every bit of a month. A second site will open in Holly Hill at the county municipal building and FEMA representatives are reevaluating Eutawville for the possibility of a third site opening there as well. Details will be provided as they become available. Orangeburg County officials discussed the hurricane on Monday at a gathering of County Councils Public Works Committee. County Emergency Services Director Billy Staley said, Last Wednesday, I took FEMA through and did the preliminary damage assessment. Based on the assessment, the cost of the storm damage is estimated at about $8 million and could go up an additional $1.6 million with debris collection. FEMA and state officials recommended the governor request assistance for damage to government and individual property, Staley said. The requests went to FEMA at the same time, with individual assistance getting approved first. The thing that weve received so far is individual assistance and thats where a person can go to FEMA and get help with damages, Young said. Staley said, Theyre only going to look at property and structures that have been damaged. The county is hoping for FEMA public assistance because the money for repairing damage to government property is not currently in the countys budget. When we do our budget, theres no way to budget for how much damage a hurricane is going to do in any given year, Young said. All the expenses that we are incurring for fixing roads that were already fixed, scraping roads that were already scraped, the public assistance declaration will allow us to go to FEMA and get reimbursed for that as well as the utility companies would get reimbursed for all of the line damage and stuff that they went through, he said. If approved, the county will look to complete the cleanup as quickly as possible. The approach for the debris would be the same as the approach during the ice storm, we do it in-house, Staley said. We use county equipment to do it and then rent whatever equipment the county does not have to do anything special that we need to do. The county will release more information once the FEMA approval is received. During the regular county council meeting: Council approved third reading of an ordinance allowing Orangeburg County to enter into an encroachment agreement with Santee Cooper to install a rail spur. The agreement is for the continued construction of Inbra Chemicals at the intersection of Rowesville Highway and Gulbrandsen Drive. Inbra Chemicals produces plastics such as those used for childrens toys and has promised an investment of $7.7 million with 14 jobs. The Orangeburg location will be Inbras largest in the entire United States. Council approved first reading of an ordinance authorizing a special source revenue credit agreement between Orangeburg County and a project known now only by the name Project Prince. Project Prince promises a minimum capital investment of $2.3 million in the county with the creation of at least 10 jobs. The Community of Character Pack presented awards to Letoya Singleton for responsibility, Charlene Brown for creativity, Birdie Taylor for patience, Martin Ryant for sincerity, Shy Jacques for cooperation and Loxie Rael for respect. Council read a formal resolution honoring Ronal Lofts on his retirement as executive director of the Orangeburg County Disabilities and Special Needs Board. Absentee voting has begun but with the effects of Hurricane Matthew, some residents may have been unable to cast their votes. Rep. Jerry Govan, D-Orangeburg, has sent a letter to Jim Johnson, chairman of the Voter Registration and Election Commission, saying, I am requesting that this office provide the citizens of Orangeburg County with an opportunity to cast their ballots accordingly by opening on Nov. 5-6, 2016. We received complaints from some of the constituents who wanted to vote absentee, Govan said. Because of the closures of county offices during Hurricane Matthew and after, some voters were unable to cast their votes for much of this past week. Govan said he aims to maximize the amount of voters exercising one of the most important rights we have. The main thing right now is give people the opportunity, he said. Govan said he has the support of both South Carolina party chairs, Jaime Harrison of the Democrats and Matt Moore of the Republicans. This is not a partisan issue, this is a people issue, Govan said. He noted the local voter registration commission has the authority to grant their requests and everything is being done within state law. My hope is that they will agree with the request. Orangeburg County Voter Registration Director Aurora Smalls said that at this point there are no plans of opening outside of regular operating hours on Sunday, Nov. 6. But the office will be open on Saturday, Nov. 5. Absentee voting began Oct. 12. We are opening daily for voters, she said. Smalls said anyone unable to vote because of the storm can cast their votes at one of three locations: The Vance Senior Center at 10304 Old Number Six Highway, Vance. The North Challenge Center at 4589 Savannah Highway, North. The first floor of the Orangeburg County administration building at 1437 Amelia St., Orangeburg. Smalls said voters can go to the administration building Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Curbside is also available, as well as the option to call in, fax or email. Its always important to vote, Smalls said. Every election cycle is important. The presidential debates of 2016 were considered more anticipated than those of any previous election. To date, they have not disappointed in terms of voter interest. Record viewership is an indicator of the public interest. If the first two debates were rounds 1 and 2, then Wednesday night will see Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump trying to score a knockout. No matter which candidate you chose as winner of the first two debates, the outcome of No. 3 is vital to both campaigns. Trump will be hoping to cast aside the shadow of scandal surrounding his behavior and effectively put it on Clinton, who has managed to avoid much of the political fallout from ongoing revelations from leaked communications and her potentially compromising national security with use of private emails while secretary of state. Clinton will again look to display her knowledge of the issues and paint Trump as a candidate not to be trusted as president of the United States. The moderator for the 90-minute debate from Las Vegas is Chris Fox of Fox News. As reported by Nancy Benac of The Associated Press, here are some things to watch Wednesday night: Rigged: Trump in recent days has tried to deflect attention from the allegations by women about unwanted sexual advances by complaining that the election process is rigged against him. Without providing any evidence, he wraps together the potential for voter fraud with assertions that his female accusers are part of a plot to smear him. With millions of viewers tuning in, will Trump dwell on conspiracy theories or give voters a more positive reason to vote for him? Hacked: Largely overshadowed by the allegations against Trump has been WikiLeaks' day-after-day release of thousands of hacked emails from the Clinton campaign. The emails include excerpts of Clinton's closed-door speeches to Wall Street interests and lots of campaign strategizing over how to contain the political damage related to her handling of classified emails and her use of a private email server. Trump has responded with a scattershot series of criticisms about "Clinton corruption," but he has yet to hone a disciplined line of attack. Wednesday night gives him a fresh opportunity to try to synthesize his message and find a way to make the email controversy stick. Breathe: The campaign took a dramatic detour last week when a series of women came forward with allegations about Trump's sexual advances. Trump's combative response, calling the women "sick" and "liars" and alleging that there's a global conspiracy against him, overtook all other aspects of the campaign for a time. How much oxygen will it suck up in the final debate? Civil war: With a number of Republican officials in open revolt against Trump and worried that he will be a drag on the rest of the ticket, watch to see whether Trump gins up more discord with his party and whether Clinton steps in to make the case for Democratic control of the House and Senate. Fingers crossed: Immigration was hardly mentioned in the first two debates. Social Security never came up. The national debt has gotten only passing notice. Policy wonks have their fingers crossed that neglected issues will finally get an airing in the final debate. Wallace's list of potential topics includes debt and entitlements, immigration, the economy, the Supreme Court and foreign hot spots. Its Baaack: A subject that both candidates love to dwell on also is teed up for round 3: "fitness to be president." Trump and Clinton already have made plain their disdain for each other's qualifications to occupy the Oval Office, but they can be counted on to look for new ways to inveigh against each other's fitness for office. Closing arguments: The first debate attracted a record 84 million viewers and the second 66.5 million. Whatever the viewership for round 3, it is sure to be the candidates' last chance to speak to such a large audience before Election Day on Nov. 8. Watch what messages the candidates pick to drive home as their closing arguments. As'ad's Bio As'ad AbuKhalil, born March 16, 1960. From Tyre, Lebanon, grew up in Beirut. Received his BA and MA from American University of Beirut in pol sc. Came to US in 1983 and received his PhD in comparative government from Georgetown University. Taught at Tufts University, Georgetown University, George Washington University, Colorado College, and Randolph-Macon Woman's College. Served as a Scholar-in-Residence at Middle East Institute in Washington DC. He served as free-lance Middle East consultant for NBC News and ABC News, an experience that only served to increase his disdain for maintream US media. He is now professor of political science at California State University, Stanislaus. His favorite food is fried eggplants. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Answers Africa is one of a kind platform created for Africans both locally and in the diaspora and those seeking for more in-depth information about Africa. We have always focused on creating the highest quality informational contents right from the beginning. We share the most relevant information on the latest and trending news, events, people, and places in Africa. We produce contents across various categories including Politics, People, Love and Romance, Nature, Entertainment, Technology and pretty much everything else that Africans may find relevant. We aim to answer the most relevant questions about Africa in areas of entertainment, famous people, emerging technologies while we also engage with various distribution capabilities to connect with Africans in need of information who rely on our website to keep in touch with the world that is changing so fast. These are some of the articles you may be interested in reading: 10 Famous TV Personalities Born In Ethiopia Ethiopia is a country best known for its fast athletes like Dibaba and Bekele, breathtaking models like Liya Kebede and of course Haile Selassie but there are also famous TV personalities who are doing a great job in entertainment and pushing the country to civilization. The following is a list of ten most famous TV ... 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Tati Westbrook Bio Age, Husband & Net Worth With five videos dished out every week, alongside running her own brand, beauty guru, and YouTube superstar Tati Westbrook has proved to the world that theres utterly no impossibility or limit to whatever one is passionate about. Tati is best known for being the owner and manager of the worlds most-viewed beauty and lifestyle YouTube channel, ... Cathy Areus Long Road to Becoming a Freelance Journalist and What to Know About Her Kids An American freelance journalist, news analyst, and author, Cathy Areu has built a lasting reputation for herself on cable television. Popular for her skillful and sassy presentation of professional views on varying topics including cultural and feminist issues, Cathy is an inspiration to many women across the globe. In addition to being a journalist, she ... Tucker Carlsons Love Story With Wife Susan Andrews, their Children and Net Worth Today On the TV screens, Tucker Carlson is that fiery fellow who passionately dishes out his conservative and often controversial views on issues of national importance. Such brazenness has fetched him many enemies, especially on the left-wing, but it has also helped him cement a reputation as one of the foremost broadcast journalists in America. His ... Paige Wyatts Net Worth, Boyfriend and Where She Is Now Paige Wyatt became popular after the Wyatt family began running the reality television show, American Guns. The Wyatt family comprises Rich Wyatt (father), Renee Wyatt (mother), Paige and Kurt Wyatt (children). Rich Wyatt originally ran a gun shop, the Gunsmoke Guns in Wheat Ridge, Colorado which is outside of Denver. The business which he ran together ... The Progression of Howard Sterns Career As A Media Personality And Why He Divorced His First Wife Howard Stern is a legendary American radio host, who has also done some notable work as an actor, producer, author, as well as photographer. The radio personality achieved worldwide fame as a result of his self-titled radio program, The Howard Stern Show. As a professional radio personality, he has worked in different radio stations. Since 2006, ... Lisa Joyners Biography Ethnicity, Net Worth and Other Key Facts Lisa Joyner is an American Journalist, TV talk show host, and actress. Some of her well-known works are her correspondences for the Los Angeles based TV KCBS, inFANity show, Find My Family Show including her film and television appearances in Brimstone, American Sweetheart, The Bold and The Beautiful among others. Lisas passion for reconnecting people with their biological families ... Amanda Balionis Rise Through the Ranks of Sportscasting and the Identity of Her Boyfriend Amanda Balionis is an American sportscaster currently working as a golf broadcaster for CBS Sports. Among so many of her works in the field of sports reporting, Amandas PGA Tour coverage seems to be the most popular so far. She covered the Super Bowl working with CBS Sports social media team in Atlanta, where she ... Dissecting Charles Paynes Sexual Allegations, Its After Effects and More About His Wife Charles Payne had a respectable career as an analyst on Wall Street before he made the transition to television and became a contributor and later a host on Fox. In that time, his expertise has come under scrutiny, and he has been at the center of at least one major controversy. The major controversy in question ... Erik Asla And Tryra Banks Split: Everything You Need To Know Tyra Banks and Erik Asla have called it quits! 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Simon Cowell is a well-known talent show judge, TV producer, entrepreneur and one of the most popular TV personalities that Britain has ever produced. In conjunction with his company, Syco, Cowell is the brain behind hugely successful talent hunt shows such as The X-Factor UK, The X-Factor US, Britains Got Talent, Americas Got Talent and ... Everything To Know About Joanna Gaines Life With Chip Gaines, Their Business Pursuits and Kids Joanna Gaines and her husband Chip Gaines became celebrities after their television show Fixer Upper began airing back in 2013. The show which was about home renovation and decoration ran for about 6 seasons with a total of 79 episodes before the couple bade farewell to it in April 2018. Apart from their appearances on ... Who Is Larry The Cable Guy? What To Know About His Wife And Net Worth Larry the Cable Guy is a self-professed country kid renowned for his trademark Southern accent and sensational catchphrase Git-R-Done! 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Nayyera Haqs Bio What To Know About Her Husband, Parents And Family Nayyera Haq can take anyone on political debates as well as discussions on social issues affecting many. Her ability to masterfully deliver her stance on every issue or political debate has made her a regular face in morning and evening news media platforms. This is not a common feat especially for someone from her kind ... Inside Guy Fieris Family With Wife, Kids and Sister Who Died of Cancer Over the years we have seen men dominate the kitchen and churn out amazing delicacies from it. Some do it way better than their female counterparts and one of such men is Guy Ramsay Fieri an American TV host, celebrity chef, restaurant owner, bestselling author of four culinary books, and game show host. His ... Meet Phil Mudd of CNN The Former CIA and FBI Exec, Is He Married, Who Is The Wife? When it comes to discussing issues surrounding terrorism, American Counterterrorism and National Security Expert, Phil Mudd, occupies a globally significant position. He has voiced his interest in the fight against terrorism and insecurity on many popular media platforms, both print and broadcast, such as CNN, BBC, CBS, MSNBC, al-Jazeera, ABC, NBC, Fox, The New York Times, ... Jim Hoffer: Biography, Wife Mika Brzezinski, Children and Net Worth Jim Hoffer is an Emmy Award-winning journalist who works as an investigative reporter for Eyewitness News, New York City. In his over two decades of investigative journalism, Hoffer has been at the front lines of several crucial stories from the 9/11 attack to the crash of American Flight 587 to the 2003 Blackout. On top of ... The Ups and Downs of Erin Mcpikes Journalism Career and Other Facts About Her Personal Life Erin McPike is a journalist working for the Independent Journal Review (IJR) as a White House Correspondent but she gained widespread recognition for her coverage of general news. Whether its breaking news or some mainstream story, McPike has a reputation of baring the facts. As a journalist, her work as a White House Correspondent for Independent ... Bert Kreischer Is Married To LeeAnn Kreischer With 2 Kids Meet His Family Those familiar with Bert Kreischer mainly have the image of a large-bellied party man whose college life inspired the National Lampoon film, Van Wilder. It is an image that one would not naturally associate with a wholesome family. The standup comedian still maintains his wild party animal image on stage. But, back at home, he is ... How Brendan Greene Became a Game Designer to Look Out For and Facts About His Failed Marriage The name Brendan Greene may not easily ring a bell in the larger society but for gaming enthusiasts, he is considered a god and this is because of his invention of the video game, Player Unknowns Battlegrounds, also called PUBG. Based on the popular last-man-standing/battle royale concept, Greenes creation has taken the gaming world by ... WFAAs Sonia Azad Bio Does The Reporter Have A Husband Or Boyfriend? Emmy Award-winning journalist and Health & Wellness reporter Sonia Azad is on the news segment News 8 Daybreak for the television station WFAA-TV in Dallas, Texas, a channel which she joined in October of 2015. Besides her time on the news, Azad is also a marathon runner and a certified yoga instructor. She has covered major news ... This Is Everything You Should Know About Caroline Heldman, Her Career Portfolio and Other Facts Love it or hate it, there is no escaping the fact that feminism has come to stay in our world. The movement has continued to garner momentum over the years and this is due to the sustained push by several women, and even men, including the likes of Caroline Heldman. A Professor of Politics at ... Understanding The Enigma That Is Gavin McInnes, The Controversies He Has Stirred and All About His Wife Gavin McInnes is a polemical English-born writer and TV personality, who is best known for his racist and fascist ideologies, as well as his co-ownership of Vice Media and Vice Magazine. He is also an actor a Ramblings of a badly aged Baby Boomer who went from Rebel Without a Cause to Bozo Without a Clue in, seemingly, the same afternoon. By Azertac Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a phone call to President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on October 18, Azertac reported. The President of Turkey congratulated the head of state on the occasion of the Independence Day of the Republic of Azerbaijan and wished the people of Azerbaijan well-being. The head of state expressed his gratitude to the President of Turkey for his attention and congratulations. The presidents expressed their confidence that the friendly and brotherly ties between Azerbaijan and Turkey will continue successfully developing in all fields. Recep Tayyip Erdogan also sent a letter of congratulations to President Ilham Aliyev. The letter reads: On behalf of my people and on my own behalf, I extend my most sincere congratulations to Your Excellency and the brotherly people of Azerbaijan on the occasion of October 18 - 25th anniversary of State Independence. Azerbaijan has been developing and strengthening every year since the country restored its independence in 1991. Azerbaijan`s outstanding international standing is a source of pride for Turkey as much as for Azerbaijan. Undoubtedly, wise leadership of national leader Heydar Aliyev and yours has played a crucial role in this success. I do believe that cooperation and solidarity between our countries, which enjoy exceptional relations, will strengthen and develop in the future, and affirm that we will continue providing necessary support to the brotherly Azerbaijan. Taking this pleasant opportunity, Your Excellency, I wish my dear brother robust health and happiness, and the friendly and brotherly people of Azerbaijan peace and prosperity. By Azernews By Rashid Shirinov Baku called on Yerevan not to indulge in dreams and deceive their people through tricking statements on the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. "Instead of succumbing to dreams and deceiving their own people, Yerevan must ensure withdrawal of its troops from all occupied Azerbaijani territories, said Hikmet Hajiyev, the spokesman of Azerbaijans Foreign Ministry. He was commenting on Armenias Foreign Ministry Tigran Balayan's recent statement on the definition of status of Nagorno Karabakh". Balayan said that reportedly defining the "status through the will of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh is enshrined in the statements of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk group. Hajiyev told Trend on October 18 that Balayan remains committed to the traditions of the structure he represents, he tricks the Armenian public and consoles himself. The status of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, as noted in the documents of the OSCE Minsk group, can only be defined by consensus during the negotiation process, and by taking into account the will of the entire population of Nagorno-Karabakh, including the Azerbaijani community," Hajiyev said. "In his interview to Sputnik international news agency, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has clarified the question of the autonomous status of Nagorno-Karabakh, he added. Capturing Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven adjacent regions in early 1990s, Armenian armed forces killed more than 20,000 Azerbaijanis. As a result of the war, nearly 1 million Azerbaijanis were displaced from their native lands in Nagorno-Karabakh. Hajiyev recalled the firm position of President Aliyev on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Mentioning the statement of the Azerbaijani president at a recent meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers, Hajiyev said that unlike the criminal regime of Armenian military junta, the dialogue of Azerbaijani leadership with its people and its appeal to the international community are open and clear. By contravening numerous resolutions and agreements adopted in regard to the Nagorno-Karabakh problem, Armenia continues to remain illegally in the Azerbaijani territories. These particularly include UN Charter, Helsinki Final Act, and especially four UN Security Council resolutions calling for immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Armenian troops from Azerbaijan. Armenia should think about the opportunities that will create the solution to the conflict, to overcome the deep political, economic, financial and demographic crisis that are currently observed in Armenia. Official Yerevan should finally understand that the international community will not cater to its whims and desires, spokesman concluded. Azerbaijan is waiting for concrete steps by international community and the countries co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group, which is designed to find a peaceful solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. By Azernews By Gunay Hasanova Following the announcement on the cessation of attacks on Aleppo, Russia offered the UN Security Council to divide the opposition forces from the terrorists in Syria. Russia circulated in the UN Security Council a draft statement on the necessity to separate moderate opposition from terrorists in Syria, in the light of the halting the airstrikes by the Russian and Syrian forces in Aleppo area, Russia's Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin said. "We believe, that under these circumstances it is extremely important for the member states that influence the opposition groups in the eastern Aleppo and beyond, to intensify efforts, to separate expeditiously all moderate opposition forces from terrorist entities designated by the Security Council We have prepared a draft press statement and hope it will be approved by the members of the [UN Security] Council, " Sputnik quoted Churkin as saying. Churkin emphasized that it was also highly important to prevent providing individuals and groups that were associated with the terrorist groups, designated by the UN Security Council, with material and financial support. The situation in Aleppo has extremely deteriorated lately as heavy battles are going on in the city and its outskirts. The Syrian government launched an operation in Aleppo last month with Russian air support and Iranian-backed militias. Earlier, the U.S. accused the Syrian authorities and the Russian Federation of bombing peaceful civilians and armed opposition. Damascus and Moscow insist that strike blows only at the terrorists and accuses Washington of failing to pressure on the troops of "moderate opposition" so that they separate themselves from the terrorists. By Trend US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter will visit Turkeys Ankara October 21, Anadolu Agency reported on October 19. Carter will meet with Turkish leadership to discuss the Syrian crisis and the situation in Iraq. After his visit to Ankara, Carter will visit the UAE, France and Belgium. On October 25, the US secretary of defense will take part in the Paris talks between the defense ministers of member countries of the coalition against the Islamic State (IS, aka ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) terrorist group. Carter will arrive in Brussels October 26, where he will take part in the NATO defense ministers council meeting. Please note that the poems and essays on this site are copyright and may not be reproduced without the author's permission. Nakheel, a leading Dubai-based developer, will be showcasing some of its upcoming Dubai projects at an exclusive roadshow in Singapore. Among the projects are The Palm Tower, a 52-storey, luxury residential and hotel complex with a rooftop infinity pool 220 m above ground and Palm 360, a twin tower landmark featuring 12,000 sq ft penthouses complete with private infinity pools, gymnasiums and cinemas. During the two-day event, to be held at the Four Seasons Singapore on October 22 and 23, Nakheel will highlight the benefits of owning a property in Dubai - including annual rental yields that significantly outperform the likes of Sydney, New York, London, Singapore and Hong Kong. Annual return on investment from rental income on Dubai real estate averages 7.6 per cent - over four times that of Hong Kong (1.8 per cent) and more than double the return in London (3.2 per cent) and Singapore (3 per cent), according to global real estate advisory research. Rental yields in Sydney average 4.1 per cent, and, in New York, 4.2 per cent, it stated. Nakheel will also offer a variety of other projects - some of which are ready for handover - in several unique locations at varying price points. Investors from Singapore and other parts of South-east Asia and the Far East have already bought around 500 villas, apartments or land plots from Nakheel, spending a combined Dh900 million ($245 million) in the process. The company aims to boost these numbers by showcasing unique, iconic projects and sharing valuable insight into investing in Dubai, said a top official. "Since our formation in 2001, Nakheel has played a pivotal role in transforming Dubai into a global destination for living, tourism and trade, and a magnet for overseas investors," said Nakheel chairman Ali Rashid Lootah. "Home to the worlds busiest airport, host of Expo 2020, an increasingly-popular tourism hotspot and with a population expected to double by 2030, Dubai offers countless new opportunities for investors who want to be part of the citys exciting future," he noted. Lootah pointed out that Dubais excellent transport, education, trade and recreational facilities already entice millions of people to live, work and spend leisure time in the emirate. Nakheel has recorded year-on-year net profit increases for the last six years a clear sign of investor trust and confidence in Dubai real estate, he stated. "As the city continues to grow, so does the need for more accommodation and attractions for residents, tourists and businesspeople. All of this means more new and lucrative opportunities for investors," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Caterpillar, a leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, said its chief executive and chairman Doug Oberhelman will be stepping down from his post on March 31 after putting more than 41 years of service in the company. He will be replaced as CEO by Jim Umpleby, currently a Caterpillar Group President with responsibility for energy and transportation. Umpleby, a 35-year veteran of the company, will join the Caterpillar board of directors and become CEO effective January 1, 2017. The companys board lauded Oberhelman for his services in successfully steering the company through the unprecedented downturn affecting its key industries. He led the company to its highest sales and revenue peak in its 91-year history in 2012. During his tenure as chairman and CEO, Oberhelman had reinvigorated the companys focus on serving customers while also driving a culture of quality and safety, it stated. Welcoming the appointment, Oberhelman said: "Our people have heard me say many times that my greatest responsibility as chairman and CEO is to manage Caterpillar for today and position the company and its future leaders for long-term success. It has been an honour and a privilege to lead this company, and I am confident in the choice of my successor, Jim Umpleby." "During the last four years, Caterpillar has faced unprecedented global economic conditions that have significantly impacted the industries served by our customers, as those industries and economic growth in many regions around the world have slowed or severely contracted," remarked Oberhelman. "Faced with these challenges, our employees have responded like champions. We have improved our market position and grown our field population. Our product quality is at historically high levels, and I believe we are leading the industry in digital capabilities," stated the veteran. "I am confident that Caterpillar is stronger than ever, with product quality, power, technology and innovation that is the envy of our competitors. Add to that lean and agile manufacturing capabilities and an unrivalled global distribution channel. The future is bright, he added. Umpleby started his career with Solar Turbines Incorporated in San Diego, California, in 1980. Solar, a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc, is one of the worlds leading manufacturers of industrial gas turbine systems. Early in his career, he held numerous positions of increasing responsibility in engineering, manufacturing, sales, marketing and customer services. Umpleby lived in Asia from 1984 to 1990, with assignments in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Caterpillar board had elected Umpleby as VP and president of Solar Turbines in 2010. He was named group president and a member of Caterpillars executive office, effective January 2013. On his new role, Umpleby said: "For more than 91 years, Caterpillar equipment has been renowned for its quality, durability, innovation and value. I have been privileged to work with Caterpillar employees and dealers in supporting our customers as they develop the worlds infrastructure and improve standards of living and quality of life." "I look forward to leading our dedicated team as we build upon the accomplishments of those that have come before us," he added. Upon Oberhelmans retirement, Dave Calhoun, a current member of the Caterpillar Board, will assume the role of non-executive chairman of the board. Calhoun is a senior managing director and head of private equity portfolio operations of The Blackstone Group.-TradeArabia News Service The Dubai Economic Council (DEC) has announced a strategic partnership with dmg events Middle East, Asia & Africa (MEA) for the upcoming Excellence in Construction Summit in Dubai, UAE. The summit, to held on November 22 during The Big 5 2016 at the Dubai World Trade Centre, will gather 500 industry leaders to discuss current and future trends of the construction sector in Dubai, the GCC region and beyond. Our endorsement of The Big 5 2016 and the Excellence in Construction Summit mirrors DECs keenness to support and contribute to all activities that enhance Dubais economy, stated Hani Rashid Al Hamli, the secretary general of the DEC. The Big 5 is the largest construction event in the Middle East, and its summit is a rich opportunity for all stakeholders who look forward to develop the construction industry, he noted. The construction sector is considered among the key pillars of Dubais economy beside trade, tourism and banking, he added. According to a recent international report, the value of Dubais construction projects in execution and planning stages is expected to reach a record of $390.7 billion this year. Of this, 13.7 per cent of the developments worth $53.5 billion, are currently under progress. In 2016, Dubai is expected to award an additional $36.5 billion worth of projects, the report added. According to Al Hamli, the construction sector is key for the sustainable growth of Dubai. "Dubai Plan 2021, Expo Dubai 2020, and the massive number of projects launched by the government over the last few years are all vital areas intrinsically related to the construction industry," he pointed out. "Dubai is currently witnessing a new momentum of growth, thanks to the critical initiatives launched by Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. The knowledge-based economy, innovation, Islamic economy, in addition to the industrial Strategy 2031 to name a few are driving forces strengthening the contribution of the construction sector to Dubais economic growth," he added. Lauding the DEC endorsement, event director, Josine Heijmans, said: "We are extremely proud and honoured by DECs decision to support The Big 5s Summit this year. We are confident this partnership will positively support Dubais Vision, providing strategic insights into a world of opportunities as well as challenges faced by construction professionals in the region and from around the world, he added. Al Hamli will deliver a keynote speech at the Excellence in Construction Summit, offering a presentation on the construction industry in the current global economic framework. Also, DEC experts will join the workshop on the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and the future development of the infrastructure industry in the UAE and GCC.-TradeArabia News Service Mawarid Technology, one of the UAEs first home-grown technology platforms, aims to lead the way in the Middle East and Africa markets in digital and smart government services, as well as high-value, customised systems, said the company chairman. Mawarid Technology is focused on providing Mena-based public and private sector companies with a full suite of technology services. The business covers three core divisions: IT solutions and services, security and technology systems integration, payment systems solutions and services. Mawarid Technology is an innovative technology group that brings together three well-established enterprises: TACME, Falcon Eye Technology and QuickNet. Mohamed Al Nuaimi, chairman of Mawarid Technology, said: We are extremely proud to introduce Mawarid Technology as one of the UAEs largest home-grown technology companies. Its range of capabilities, offering and relationship networks together create value for clients and partners at a level that is difficult for other technology solutions provider in the Middle East to match. Our vision is to spearhead the further evolution of the regions ICT sector, focus on fast-growth sectors such as cybersecurity, e-government and digital services, payments, and contribute towards strengthening the UAEs position as a global technology hub, he added. The platform caters to a diverse client base across a range of strategic sectors such as financial, oil and gas and government. Current and previous clients of the group include the RTA,UAE Armed Forces, Dubai Municipality, ADNOC, Abu Dhabi Police, Meraas, Ministry of Interior of Iraq, Madinah Municipality to name a few. Its team of engineers has pioneered a set of high-value tools to tackle unique business challenges as well as high-profile infrastructure and military projects. Al Nuaimi added: There is a real need for a centralized software and hardware platform for governmental, enterprises and large businesses in Mena, and Mawarid Technology fills that need through its core divisions and prestigious global and regional technology partnerships. This will have a positive effect on the health of the business ecosystem in the Mena region, spurring innovation and growth. In particular, Mawarid Technology will continue to support the Emirates eGovernment initiative and is well positioned to support the UAEs dynamic efforts in meeting the goals of the National Innovation Strategy and the regions growing needs in the sector. In addition to software solutions, Mawarid Technology supplies a complete array of hardware and component technologies and services by leveraging the strong partnership with leading global and regional technology companies such as Oracle, Microsoft, QmaticAB and Zebra. TradeArabia News Service The upcoming Middle East Franchise Expo, the regions premier franchising event in Dubai,UAE will showcase local and international brands, products and services of over 100 companies. The upcoming Middle East Franchise Expo, the regions premier franchising event in Dubai,UAE will showcase local and international brands, products and services of over 100 companies, alongside workshops, networking opportunities and Meet the Buyer meetings. Organised by the Mena Franchise Association (MenaFA),the event will run at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel Convention Centre on October 25 and 26. During the two days, over 5,000 visitors &delegates will have the opportunity to attend as prospective development partners. Using the highly successful format of World Franchise Forums, the MenaFA Expo focuses on bringing together many high net worth investors and franchisors interested in building successful international and national networks. A major highlight of the event will be the presentation of the MenaFA Awards for Excellence in Franchising. The categories will include Best ME Multi-Brand Operator, Best ME Master Franchisee Operator, Best ME Franchise Brand, Best ME Franchise Professional and many more. We are bringing together franchisors and investors on a common platform,offering them an unrivalled opportunity to meet to do business. In addition, we will provide real depth and diversity through high level brand presentations and workshops to ensure that everyone benefits,said Dr Khalid Al Sharfa, Mena FA chairman. Among the topics to be covered at the Convention will be: Trends and opportunities in franchising, Choosing the right franchise, ABC of successful franchising, The 20points Score Card of Franchising, Franchise legal and regulatory requirements, Best practice for national and international expansion, eCommerce & social media and Shopping mall developments. The organisers has urged registered visitors to sign up for one to one meetings with franchisors with senior brand representatives to discuss their investment and business aspirations. The MenaFA Middle East Franchise Expo is a must for anyone involved or interested in franchising, from potential franchisees and investors to government organisations wishing to support the industry, added Sary Hamway, director of World Franchise Associates, MenaFA Strategic partner. The Middle East Franchise Expo will create networking opportunities with franchise professionals from across the world, presenting an unprecedented opportunity to evaluate established franchise brands from the US, Europe and the Middle East. Among the franchised business sectors represented at the expo would be food & beverage, retail, service, B2B and B2C. TradeArabia News Service National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri), a leader in logistics and transportation, said that it was honoured at the recently concluded All India Maritime and Logistics Awards (Mala) 2016, the leading awards programme for Indias maritime industry. Bahri was named the Shipping Line of the Year Break Bulk Operator at the event. The company beat out several domestic and international shipping companies operating in India to claim the coveted honour, said a statement from the company. Captain Jiten Bhosale, country manager India, Bahri, received the award at a ceremony held in Mumbai, India, and which was attended by leading officials of the Indian maritime industry as well as key policymakers and regulators, it said. Hosted by Exim India annually, Mala has emerged as the authoritative recognition of quality service, best practices and innovation in the various segments of the maritime and logistics sector. Winners are selected by a jury comprising experienced industry professionals and thought leaders. The win represents a major triumph for Bahri India, which is emerging as a player to reckon with in the domestic maritime industry, linking India with key global markets along the Gulf, Red Sea, the Mediterranean and the US via a fast and reliable liner service comprising a fleet of six newly-built RoCon vessels, it added. The service also helps connect the country to Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean via internationally recognised transhipment hubs, it stated. Matthew Luckhurst, liner director, Bahri General Cargo, said: The maritime sector in India has vast potential for growth and as far as Bahris involvement is concerned, we believe we are still only scratching the surface on what we can do to accelerate industry growth. We are very excited about the opportunities arising in the Indian maritime landscape and we look forward to playing a larger role in shaping its future course, he said. Bhosale added: We are honoured to be recognised as the best-performing break bulk operator in India. The award is a showcase of our companys commitment to its clients and its ability to deliver consistent high-quality service, which has earned us the trust and confidence of all stakeholders in the maritime industry, he added. Set up in 2000, Bahri India works with major Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) such as Tata, Maruti, Mahindra & Mahindra, Atlas Copco, and JCB for moving cargo exports out of India. Bahri also works with its partner HoeghAutoliners for shipment of Volkswagen units to Veracruz, Mexico, it stated. Bahri India is actively involved in the shipment of high and heavy equipment, serving a growing roster of clients that includes General Electric, Crompton Greaves, Larsen & Toubro, Godrej, Siemens, and Thermax, it added. TradeArabia News Service Bahrain-based Arabian Shipbuilding and Repair Yard (Asry) said that its board of directors recently held its 145th meeting and confirmed that the selection process for a new chief executive will be made before December. The meeting, presided over by Asrys chairman Shaikh Daij Bin Salman Bin Daij Al-Khalifa, included members from shareholding countries and the executive management, and was held at the company headquarters in Hidd, Bahrain, said a statement from the company. Shaikh Daij revealed that the board first discussed the overall challenging situation of the market and reviewed the companys performance, mentioning that the total sales up to the end of September was $114.5 million. Contributing factors to the level of performance were discussed, and included regional and international economic pressure, regional competition in the shipyard market, as well as the fluctuations in oil price, it added. With regards to the appointment of the new chief executive, Shaikh Daij said: Both the criteria and the process of finding the ideal candidate to lead the management of our company into a new era have been very carefully considered during this transition period. A combination of vision and experience will be required to maintain and strengthen our competitiveness going forward. The process is on schedule, and we will be in a position to announce a decision before December, he added. The board also confirmed several measures being implemented to combat the challenging conditions. These included the ongoing roll-out of cost-efficiency measures within the company, as well as the appointment of a business advisory firm to assist in the assessment and creation of the best possible forward strategy for the companys future success, said a statement. The consultants will be working with the Asry leadership to address the present and future challenges facing the company and propose the most effective solutions, it said. The board finally discussed the health and safety drive recently initiated, reviewing successes from that project, and re-iterated the primary importance of safeguarding employee health and safety. The board also agreed to appoint a new manager to oversee the branch of the company in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, noting the kingdom and other GCC countries being major clients of Asry. In closing, the board thanked the management and all the employees of the company for their sincere, hard work and efforts which was carried out in the face of severe competition, it stated. TradeArabia News Service Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) said it has signed a strategic partnership with Huawei, a global ICT solutions provider, to accelerate smart city initiatives at the ongoing Gitex expo in Dubai, UAE. This comes as part of Dewas efforts to achieve the Smart Dubai initiative, launched by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said a statement from the Dubai utility. As per the memorandum of understanding (MoU), Dewa and Huawei will establish a joint team to launch pilot programmes using the latest technologies. This will help in the development of new innovative initiatives, including ready-to-market or immediately actionable initiatives, to research and development (R&D) projects, remarked Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, the managing director and chief executive of Dewa, after signing the deal with David Wang, the chief executive of Huawei. The agreement also aims to build a partnership to achieve the strategic objective of both parties. This includes providing Dewa with the support required to launch unique smart services by making use of the latest innovative technologies in the field of Information Technology. This will enhance Dewas position as a leading international organisation, said a top official. Dewa is committed to enhancing collaboration and cooperation with government and private organisations, to expand horizons, and benefit from innovative experience. This will help us develop services and applications, at the highest international standards, and keep up to date with increasing demands across all fields, said Al Tayer. The partnership also aims to establish a framework to launch more smart initiatives, and develop innovative capabilities to implement the latest generation of technology, he noted. It includes a framework to develop smart grid infrastructure, and smart meters for electricity and water, demand side management, and self-maintenance, framework for telecommunication infrastructure and Dewas fibre optic backbone upgrade, big data management, system structure, analytics and interactive visualization, perimeter and ICT infrastructure security and cyber security. Wang said Huawei was pleased to collaborate with Dewa and to support its efforts in launching innovation ICT solutions that enable it to deliver on the vision of Dubais leadership to become a smart, happy city. Huawei recently released a Smart City Index, a study undertaken by global research firm Navigant and commissioned by Huawei,which revealed that Dubai is at the forefront of smart city adoption in the region, and todays partnership announcement will further strengthen its position thanks to Dewas forward-thinking approach to innovation, he added.-TradeArabia News Service Women do ask for wage rises just as often as men, but men are 25 per cent more likely to get a raise when they ask, according to new research from Cass Business School, the University of Warwick and the University of Wisconsin. Using a randomly chosen sample of 4,600 workers across more than 800 employers, the research is the first to do a statistical test of the idea that women get paid less because they are not as pushy as men. The researchers found no support for the theory. The authors of the study Do Women Ask? also examined the claim that female employees hold back for fear of upsetting their boss, and again found no evidence for this theory either. The findings come a week before the 18th Global Women in Leadership (WIL) Economic Forum 2016, due to take place in Dubai on October 24-25. Co-author Andrew Oswald, Professor of Economics and Behavioural Science at the University of Warwick said: We didnt know how the numbers would come out. Having seen these findings, I think we have to accept that there is some element of pure discrimination against women. Various ideas have previously been suggested as to why women might be reluctant to ask for an increase in their pay packet. These include: women dont want to deviate from a perceived female stereotype, and they may fear being less popular at work. Co-author Dr Amanda Goodall at Cass Business School said: Ours is the first proper test of the reticent-female theory, and the evidence doesnt stand up. When like-for-like men and women were compared, the men were a quarter more likely to be successful, obtaining a pay increase 20 per cent of the time. Only 16 per cent of females were successful when they asked. The survey has the distinctive feature that it asks individuals a set of questions about whether their pay is set by negotiation with the company, whether they have successfully obtained a wage rise since joining the employer, whether they preferred not to attempt to negotiate a pay rise because they were concerned about their relationships, why they decided that, and about their levels of job satisfaction. Using statistical methods, the authors analysis shows that it is crucial to adjust for the number of hours worked (because part-time workers feel hesitant to ask). The analysis also took into account the nature of the employer, the industry, and the characteristics and qualifications of workers. Dr Goodall said: This study potentially has an upside. Young women today are negotiating their pay and conditions more successfully than older females, and perhaps that will continue as they become more senior. Earlier this year, Cass Business School welcomed its tenth intake for its Executive MBA Programme (EMBA) based in DIFCs Centre of Excellence. Women comprised nearly 30 per cent of the new class of over 40 students, one of the highest levels of female participation for tier-one business schools in the region. Meanwhile in London, the home of Cass Business School, this years EMBA class consists of over 50 per cent female candidates, reflecting the gender diversity throughout the School. TradeArabia News Service Looking to grow its portfolio internationally, Steigenberger Hotels is consolidating its three hotel brands into one umbrella brand: Deutsche Hospitality. Puneet Chhatwal, CEO of Steigenberger Hotels, said: These two words combine our German roots and our international vision. The new umbrella brand is a vital lever that will unleash dynamism, help us to expand internationally, and drive innovation. Deutsche Hospitality unites three hotel brands under one name: Steigenberger Hotels and Resorts represent luxury and ultimate hospitality; Jaz in the City, with its pioneering concept, is young, urban, and close to the pulsating life of the city; and IntercityHotels are at the heart of the most beautiful cities in Germany with the best connections to important transport hubs. This makes Deutsche Hospitality a strong umbrella brand which can be home to additional hotel brands in the future. The international sound of its name lays the perfect foundations for expanding into new locations, the group said in a statement. A total of 116 hotels in 12 countries and on three continents are part of the Deutsche Hospitality umbrella brand. Twenty of these hotels are under construction or in the planning stage. Steigenberger Hotels and Resorts portfolio comprises 56 locations around the world. The brand represents luxury and ultimate hospitality. From historic buildings with a long-standing tradition to lively city residences right through to spa oases with amazing natural surroundings there is an extensive range of hotels with distinctive Steigenberger flair. The Steigenberger Hotel Koln in Cologne and the Steigenberger Airport Hotel Istanbul (Turkey) are the latest hotels to have opened. Two hotels outside of Europe the Steigenberger El Tahrir in Cairo and the Steigenberger Alcazar in Sharm el-Sheikh (both in Egypt) are set to follow this year. The first Jaz in the City hotel opened at the end of 2015 in Amsterdam and offers its guests lifestyle at its best. The exciting new concept has a young and urban vibe, and the hotel is close to the pulsating life of the city. The brand combines design, music, and indulgence for a thrilling experience. Spontaneous music performances in the lobby turn the hotel into a stage and make the guests stay an event in itself. And Jaz in the City has even more to offer: A cool and modern room design and the latest trends from the local food and drinks scene. Guests will also be greeted with the latest technology: they can check in and out and open the room doors with a smartphone app. The second Jaz hotel will open in Stuttgart in spring 2017. The 39 IntercityHotels are situated at the heart of the most beautiful cities in Germany and other international destinations. The modern city hotels provide superior midrange comfort and are all just a few minutes walk from central transport hubs such as train stations or airports. As an extra special treat, hotel guests can use local public transport for free with the FreeCityTicket, offering them all-round mobility. In July 2016, the first IntercityHotel outside of Europe opened in Salalah in Oman. New hotels in Qingdao (China), Brunswick, and Duisburg (both in Germany) are set to open in the coming months. The changes will only affect the external appearance of the hotel group. All of its companies, such as Steigenberger Hotels, IntercityHotel, and Jaz Hotel, will keep their registered names and the shareholder structure will not change, it said. - TradeArabia News Service Cox & Kings, a leading holidays and education travel group, launched its educational travel tours - Curious Cat Chronicles in Dubai, to cater to the changing perspective of educational travel in local schools. Curious Cat Chronicles transcends classroom learning and broadens the horizon of a childs world, by giving them the freedom to discover, share and explore. Each itinerary is curated in a way that expands a students knowledge and experience of the world. The itineraries include fun and educative experiences like tailor-made tours to places of historic significance in Europe, lunch with astronauts, Zero-gravity experience at Nasa centres and Universal Studios in the US, workshops on Biodiversity and visits to Science centres in Singapore, Art schools in London. Schools can pick and choose from an array of curated itineraries that can be further customised based on the curriculum needs. Speaking at the launch event, Karan Anand, Head, Relationships, Cox & Kings, said: As a leading education travel group, we have always emphasised on travel as a means to learn. Learning through travel exposes curious minds to new experiences that involve them. He further added: Today, schools and parents realise the importance of educational trips that complement the curriculum and enhances a child's learning. Keeping this in mind we have conceived and designed our educational itineraries that combine the best of fun and learning, in a safe setting. Cox & Kings with its strong portfolio of educational travel aims to reach out to schools in Dubai with further expansion plans in other UAE markets. - TradeArabia News Service Swiss watch retailer Boulevard is expanding its presence in Bahrain with a new outlet at the Bahrain International Airport, its third store in the kingdom. Held under the patronage of Bernard Regnauld-Fabre, the Ambassador of the Republic of France to Bahrain, the event was attended by Mohamed Yousif AlBinfalah, CEO of Bahrain Airport Company, representatives from the Ministry of Interior, senior officials of BAC and esteemed dignitaries from Airport Customs, Airport Police and others senior officials. "It is very delightful to be a part of the event and to know Boulevard for having carried a long history of successful business with the finest collections from around the globe, said Fabre. Al Binfalah said: "We welcome the addition of a prestigious outlet like Boulevard, to the growing family of exclusive stores within the airport complex." New brands and Boulevard's 2016 collections were launched at the inauguration. BIA has a comprehensive range of stores and services in the departure concourse. BAC is responsible for enhancing the international airport and elevating its operations, infrastructure and services. It is set to improve the airports capabilities to cater to the growing number of passengers as well as the changing demands of stakeholders. Boulevard is the latest addition to this family of retail offerings to the discerning traveller Boulevard area manager Prashant Gurung said: It is an honour and privilege to be having the French Ambassador inaugurate our new outlet. We are very excited with our own location in the Airport and are proud to have a presence in this prime location." This is the third Boulevard outlet in Bahrain, the first two being at Seef Mall and City Centre Bahrain. With a brilliant history of over seven decades, Boulevard has represented some of the most unique watches in the world to the clientele in Bahrain. It continues with the tradition of a new interpretation of an old set of values with trendy styles and time honored classics. The outlet is located in the Departure concourse, opposite Gate 16. The company represents brand names like Saint Honore, Zeades, Cover, Elixa, Seven Friday, Maurice Lacorix, Westend, Aztorin, Bergstern, Fila, am:pm, Morgan and many others. Their passion for unique timepieces crafted with attention to detail continues to drive Boulevard to select brands that appeal to a dynamic clientele that looks for quality and value, courteous service and a personalized shopping experience. - TradeArabia News Service Oman Air has announced an increased service on its Muscat-Paris route which will now operate daily, non-stop flights as of October 30. Abdulrahman Al Busaidy, deputy CEO and chief commercial officer of Oman Air, said: As the national carrier of Oman we are delighted to be boosting frequencies from five per week to daily flights between Muscat and Paris Charles De Gaulle." Oman Air first launched flights from Muscat to Paris in 2009. Its flights have grown in demand and increased from four to five flights per week and now to the daily service. The flights have attracted huge demand for travellers flying from Paris to the Middle East and from Paris to Muscat and onward destinations. "I would like to thank our trade partners, travel agencies, sales agents and the media, who have all been incredibly supportive and contributed to this growing demand. They have fully endorsed our award winning product and our unique onboard service and hospitality, which help to differentiate Oman Air from the competition," Al Busaidy said. "To develop the European market and particularly grow our presence in Paris we have focused very much on our premium product offering, developing very close relationships with a core corporate customer base. In addition our e-commerce teams have been instrumental in ensuring that we are maintain close contact with our valued customers through a range of initiatives. "We will operate a mix of 787 and 788 aircraft on the route to give our passengers maximum comfort during the flight," he said. This growing commitment in Paris is part of Oman Airs ambitious and dynamic programme of fleet and network expansion. This has included the delivery of new aircraft and the introduction of a range of exciting new destinations and new products and services which contribute to a seamless passenger experience. - TradeArabia News Service The TransGriot is available for speaking engagements, college lectures, panel discussions, media interviews, conferences or Trans 101 education efforts for your school, business or professional organizations. For local Houston area, Texas or national events, you can e-mail me at transgriot@yahoo.com For events outside the Houston metro area, I ask that my travel and lodging expenses be covered. This is separate from my speaking fee. If you are interested in having me appear as a speaker or panelist, you can e-mail me with the date and details of your proposed event. Please book as early as possible because my speaking and event calendar slots during the year rapidly fill up. Billions of tons of coal lie beneath the ground in southern Wyoming along the Interstate 80 corridor, according to a report set to be released next year. Some would like to see the coal mined, revitalizing the industry that gave Carbon County its name. Others say the coal is likely to stay put in the current market and is too deep and too expensive to mine. News that there are vast reserves of coal in southern Wyoming is hardly new. However, the U.S. Geological Survey is working on a study that will provide a more detailed analysis of just what lies beneath the surface and what portion of that could be worth mining. The report is part of a three-part series on coal in the Upper Green River Basin. The first part, which focuses on the Little Snake River and Red Desert area, will likely come next year. The biggest takeaway from it will probably be the distance between the coal beds, the thickness of the coal beds, where they are located (and) where they can be surface mined versus where they would be underground mined, said David Scott, a geologist working on the report. There is about 6.4 billion tons of coal in the 2,300-square-mile study area, but only 10 percent of that is even being considered for its economic viability, he added. The numbers come down drastically once you start applying restrictions and economics to them, Scott said. How cheaply a company could mine the coal is a key issue, and one that has dogged Carbon County coal in the past. Small towns like Carbon and Hanna shrank in population after mining companies shut down. Still, some see the report as good news, a reminder of a valuable resource waiting beneath the soil. Id hope that itd be developed, said Rep. Don Burkhart, R-Rawlins. The coal in Carbon County has a higher heating value than the coal in the Powder River basin. Its good quality coal. Though federal regulations such as the Clean Power Plan are likely to put a damper on coal in the decades to come, there is still a place for coal in the U.S. electricity market, he said. If you look many years out, I think coal is still a viable energy producer and we need to stay on top of it, he said. One way to do that would be to offer incentives to coal companies, like a reduction in royalty rates similar to what the state has offered uranium and oil in the past, he said. Such a move could counter the low prices that have beleaguered the industry in recent years and entice coal companies to invest. However, those in industry fear opening a dialogue on coal royalties, lest lawmakers decide to raise the rates instead of decrease them, Burkhart added. He said it was unlikely that he would be sponsoring such a bill. Burkhart is a member of the Appropriations Committee. Cindy Wallace believes coal could offer a local boon. However, the director of the Carbon County Economic Development Corporation acknowledged that coal is under considerable pressure during the downturn. I dont know if we will ever be a major player, but we can be a player, she said. I think people are kind of waiting to see what happens with our presidential election. Burkhart also criticized Washingtons influence, blaming the federal coal lease moratorium and Washingtons negative attitude on coal for the down market. The state has relied on coal lease income to build and maintain its schools, but in 2018 the last coal payment will be paid. However, not everyone agrees that the moratorium is to blame in Wyoming. The issue is the market, said Rob Godby, director of the Energy Economics and Policies Center at the University of Wyoming. Sales are down, prices are low and many companies have just recently emerged from bankruptcy, he said. The bottom line is the coal companies are hurting right now, he said. They are not about to spend millions and millions of dollars on new coal reserves. They dont need them right away is the bottom line. As recent as five years ago, coal companies saw the industry expanding and tried to tie down reserves, he said. That bet didnt play out as worldwide demand sank and large companies accrued significant debt leading in part to the large bankruptcies of companies like Arch Coal and Peabody Energy. Given the current state of coal, companies they arent looking to buy, he said. Nobody is running out of coal at their coal mines. Moratorium or not, there wouldnt be a rush to buy reserves. There may be coal in Carbon County, but its the economics of the commodity that will determine investment. There is lots of coal in lots of places, said Godby, The place where people would want to mine coal in Wyoming is the very cheapest place possible, and thats up in the Powder River Basin. Casper Fire Chief Kenneth King announced his retirement Wednesday, hours after apologizing for sending an email asking an investigator to delete bad parts from video evidence of the Cole Creek Fire. King will step down Jan. 2, 2018, the city announced. City Manager V.H. McDonald received and accepted his retirement letter Wednesday. The announcement came hours after Kings apology for the email. I deeply regret my insensitive words and lack of judgement, King wrote in a letter released after noon Wednesday. Words simply cannot express how truly sorry I am for the way my actions have offended and embarrassed members of the community and the City organization. King sent the email in October 2015, but it only became public when the Star-Tribune published a story about it on Oct. 9 10 days before Kings announcement. Mayor Daniel Sandoval said he learned about the chiefs retirement Wednesday. He said he knew McDonald had been wrestling with a decision about the chief, but the city manager had not shared many details with him or the Casper City Council. Sandoval said he was fairly sure the chiefs retirement was connected to the email, but couldnt say for certain. Maybe it was a mutual decision, maybe some pressure was applied, Sandoval said. The chiefs retirement was the best way to handle the controversy surrounding the email because it eases the transition between chiefs, the mayor said. I believe the thinking was that if you just come right out and fire the head of the department, it leaves that department in disarray, he said. And thats not something you do with a department that is a matter of public safety. King has been fire chief since July 2013 and has worked in the department since 1980. The process to find Kings replacement will begin immediately, according to a city announcement. Chief King has long been dedicated and committed to fire service and the community, McDonald said in the release. I appreciate Chief Kings earlier apology to the community and believe it to be sincerely heartfelt. King sent the email to fire inspector Devin Garvin on Oct. 14, 2015, as crews were still working to extinguish the Cole Creek Fire. The blaze had begun three days earlier when embers from burning wood chips escaped the city landfill and ignited the nearby prairie. The flames spread into rural Evansville, destroying 14 homes and charring about 10,000 acres. At the time, Garvin was helping collect evidence for the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation and the state fire marshals office. Could you cut out the bad parts, and make sure that no copies are made and only DCI views? King wrote in the email. The city turned over the email along with more than 1,000 others as part of Star-Tribune public records requests made this spring and summer. In an interview with the Star-Tribune this summer, King said the email was a joke. It was a joke, and it was a bad joke, King said this summer. And it was just between me and Devin to try to make light. I just got done telling him where some evidence was and then I just answered him. There was no thinking. In his letter Wednesday, King called the email inappropriate. While I cannot take it back, I can assure you that this scar will guide my future actions as I strive to serve the community with the highest degree of professionalism and commitment, King wrote in his letter. Tammy Clark, who lost her home and multiple animals in the fire, said she thought the apology was hollow and late. It happened because he was caught, not because he feels it with his soul, she said. Clark said she wants to see the chief back up his words with action. Has he been out here to help? she asked. Has he stopped at any of these houses and asked if we need help? City officials have declined on multiple occasions to say whether they had investigated Kings conduct or whether he had faced any disciplinary action, referring to city policy that bars them from discussing personnel matters. Speaking before the retirement announcement, McDonald declined to answer when asked if he personally had anything to say to those who are frustrated with the way the city handled the fire or to those who lost their homes and say they feel forgotten by city. The issue is under litigation, so I have no comment, he said. At least 24 claims related to the fire have been filed against the city, totaling about $1.7 million, city spokeswoman Tanya Johnson previously told the Star-Tribune. The city handed over the claims to its insurer, the Wyoming Association of Risk Management. State law caps the citys liability at $500,000, though losses are estimated to rise into the millions. Sandoval said he understands the frustration the fires victims have with the city but said the city does not have the power to change the limit. I understand their frustration because the claims they have are so far in excess of the $500,000 cap thats a terrible disadvantage, he said. All the bureaucracy can do is dole out disappointment, he said. Victims of the fire have until Oct. 10, 2017, to file claims as well as lawsuits. Almost a month after the fire, Tracy Belser who was then support services director and is now an assistant city manager sent an email to several city officials and asked that they stop using email to discuss the fire. Belser did not offer an explanation for the decision in her email but later told the Star-Tribune it was meant to encourage better communication and not an attempt to keep the emails out of the public record. Emails from city accounts are considered public record and can be viewed by anyone who requests them, including journalists and attorneys. A recent forum featuring Natrona County School Board candidates saw agreement as well as some sharp contrasts on issues ranging from budget cuts to attendance. Nine candidates are vying for five open seats. Kevin Christopherson, Rita Walsh and Dana Howie are seeking re-election. Elizabeth Horsch stepped down earlier this year, and Paula Reid is not running for another term. The other candidates on the ballot are Raymond Catellier (who was appointed to finish Horschs term), William Russell, Gregory Flesvig, David Martorano, Angela Coleman and Randy Quiq. Howie, Coleman and Quiq did not attend the session. Candidates talked about the districts new attendance policy, which has come under fire from parents who find it overly restrictive particularly the requirements around a physicians note for illnesses. The candidates seemed to agree the problem was how the policy was rolled out more than the rules themselves. I think we had a communications problems with the schools, said Christopherson, the boards chairman. We had some employees that were not treating the parents right, including my wife, who came to me and said, Hey, theres a problem at Kelly Walsh. And my wife is hard to upset. I disagree with the attendance policy. There was not enough parental input, said Flesvig. It makes it difficult if someone wants to go hunting, take their kids on a Disney cruise. Theyre just more burdensome regulations youve got to conform to. Candidates were asked whether they had a solution to the districts graduation rate, which has remained below the statewide average. The things I want to look at is, how do you have one-to-one dialogue with a kid? How do you sit down and get that kid tied in to why graduation matters to them and how to get that done? said Martorano. Because thats really what matters. Its the only thing that matters. Another question concerned the districts curriculum. Several candidates spoke of their hope for the new Pathways program, which offers career alternatives to a traditional college track. Only 25 percent of our kids graduating from high school end up graduating from college, so thats why I think the academies are so exciting, said Christopherson. We have taken on the challenge to get our kids career or college ready, it very important ... so Im really excited about the academies. As an engineer I think math and science are very important, but I think well-roundedness, having the opportunity to experience the arts, the extracurricular activities, and again those vocational studies, are necessary, said Russell. Related to curriculum was a broader question about the states education standards, basically the Common Core. I disagree with the Common Core that we see, the Next Generation Science Standardsits a large federal and global initiative ... frankly its a failed project, another large-government deal gone bad, said Flesvig. I dont think its worth blowing the whole thing up and starting over, said Catellier. I know the standards Wyoming was using before Common Core were not necessarily any better than what Common Core is. Weve got great local control ... so its not as much of a federal step into our lives as portrayed on this. The district has weathered the economic downturn so far, but another question concerned navigating further budget cuts. Several candidates appreciated having Superintendent Steve Hopkins steering the budget, as the former chief financial officer for the district. We were aware of this before the downturn happened ... we made our reserve fund whole. Christopherson explained. We have a list four pages long of programs that we can either eliminate, cut, or keep. I think there are areas in every aspect of the district theres fat that can be cut. I think there are efficiencies that we are missing out on, so to say one area, I dont think that would be fair, said Catellier. I really want to keep the cuts as far away from the students as possible, said Walsh. The candidates supported the districts school of choice program, though several said they would like to see a neighborhood school preference. Martorano, meanwhile, advocated for more change. I often refer to it as schools of chance. Theres a lottery system. It doesnt work. It doesnt serve our children at this point... Martorano said. We need to have schools for children who have specific needs, that have academic achievement, we should pilot programs, it should come back to what the parents want. The prospects for keeping Midwest School open also figured in forum. It is closed due to oilfield-related air quality problems, but the candidates agreed it should not be closed permanently. CHEYENNE Voters in House District 9 will get a chance to fill an open seat this year. Landon Brown, a Republican, is up against Mike Weiland, a Democrat, to represent the district. Neither has held public office in the past, though Weiland ran for the seat in 2014. The district is currently represented by Rep. Dave Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, who has been in the House of Representatives since 2006. Zwonitzer ran for the Senate District 6 seat this year but lost in the primary. House District 9 covers the area north of Dell Range Boulevard from the post office on the east side of Cheyenne. It includes the attendance areas of Dildine, Buffalo Ridge and Anderson elementary schools, as well as some areas on the south side of Dell Range. Much of the information in this story comes from candidate forums held last week by the Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce and the League of Women Voters. Brown At 29, if elected, Landon Brown would be one of the youngest state legislators. He said he feels he can bring new ideas and fresh perspectives to the Legislature. Brown supports Medicaid expansion, though with caveats, such as the ability to drop out of expansion if Wyoming were to lose federal financial support. He said Medicaid expansion was one of the top issues voters talked about in his district, and people supported it by about a 5-to-1 margin. Theyre tired of the Legislature not taking a stand on this, he said. Brown has concerns about transferring federal land to the state and is against privatizing public land. He further acknowledged such a transfer is unlikely at the federal level. This is not going to be an issue we are going to have any justification for moving forward, he said. Concerning the budget, Brown is against across-the-board cuts, the effects of which he said he witnessed as an employee of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality. (Wyoming is one of a number of states that allow public employees to become legislators, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.) He supports use of the rainy-day fund for programs the state is required to fund by law, as well as for improvements to make Wyoming communities more attractive to new business ventures. Brown has touted his community ties in the district, including growing up and attending schools in the district, and said he wants to improve the state. We need to make sure were electing people who can steer a boat on choppy waters, he said. Weiland Weiland, also a longtime resident of House District 9, said as a retired meteorologist, he can bring his background in science to the Legislature, something he feels is not well-represented. He said he feels he has the time and energy to serve people in his district. Weiland supports Medicaid expansion, noting support by hospitals and other organizations. He said he met a resident in his district who had a family member die because they could not secure insurance coverage. (Medicaid expansion) is the very first issue I would work on when elected, he said. I think its a no-brainer. Weiland is opposed to the state taking over federal lands and said its likely a takeover would result in land being sold off to private interests. In light of the state budget crunch, Weiland said state money needs to be invested wisely, and cuts to social service programs should be avoided. Weiland said there needs to be a plan for when and how the state should use its rainy-day fund, as one does not currently exist. Weiland noted that his children had to leave Wyoming for opportunities and wants to help create ways for young Wyomingites to remain in the state. We need a vision for the future, he said. Looking at the past is not going to help us. Ryan Greene, the Democrat running for Wyomings only U.S. House seat, raised eyebrows last week when he told a reporter that he didnt know whether he was going to vote for his partys presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, or Republican Donald Trump. Neither one has earned my vote, Greene is quoted as saying in an Associated Press story. I dont think a candidate should just get your vote by default. They should earn it. Some Democrats questioned whether Greene was pandering to conservative voters since hell need their support if hes to win Wyomings only House seat while abandoning voters in his own party. During a Monday interview with the Star-Tribune, Greene said hell vote for Clinton. The candidate accused the AP of getting the story wrong. I do not agree with her on every issue, the Rock Springs welder said. I dont like her stances on guns and energy, but she is the only one that can do the job. There are four living former U.S. presidents. None of them are backing Trump. And that says a lot about this race. Greene is in a tough spot. He needs Republicans to vote for him, but GOP members in Wyoming dislike Clinton. A poll commissioned by Greenes campaign in early September found Clinton has a 74 percent unfavorable rating in the Cowboy State. While most of his base will vote for her, Democratic support will not be enough to win the race against Republican Liz Cheney, the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, who has collected more than 10 times as much money as Greene and is competing in one of the nations reddest states. Longtime Wyoming political observer Marguerite Herman said shes noticed Republicans have toned down their message when seeking votes from Democrats, and Democrats have done the same to appeal to conservatives this campaign season. Im not surprised a candidate in a race that leans heavily toward one party is making an effort to look very nonpartisan not easily labeled, not easily pigeonholed so that everyone will take a look at him, she said. Cheneys campaign manager, Bill Novotny, seized on Greenes backing of Clinton. After he caucused for Bernie Sanders, who wants to end fracking and kill the fossil fuel industry, it is no surprise Ryan Greene would be supporting Hillary Clinton, Novotny said in an email. Clinton, whose conduct as Secretary of State put the security of our nation at risk, has vowed to continue the devastating policies of Barack Obama, including putting our coal miners out of work, violating our Second Amendment rights and appointing liberal judges to the U.S. Supreme Court. Since the AP story, Democrats are mixed on the issue. Some understand Greenes tricky political reality. Others think it was disingenuous to not publicly support his partys presidential candidate. However, Greene is unlikely to lose many Democratic voters on Nov. 8, as most find Cheney unpalatable. Former U.S. House candidate Charlie Hardy, whom Greene defeated in the Democratic primary, said he was concerned that someone would inform the Trump campaign that a Democrat in Wyoming was hesitant to back Clinton. He was afraid Trump would mention it nationwide that there was a Democratic candidate who is thinking about voting for him, said Hardy, of Cheyenne. Hardy believes Greene wavered in his support of Clinton, and he shouldnt have. In any case, a lot of damage has been done to the Democratic Party, said Hardy, who added that some disgruntled Democrats said they will write his name on the ballot. Democrat Sam Rise Roberson of Pinedale was initially surprised by Greenes comments. But shes sympathetic to Greenes balancing act. I know that Wyoming is a really difficult state to run in as a Democrat for a statewide seat, she said. Youre trying as best as you can to make sure the people who vote dont have a reason to dismiss you from the outset. But Greene, if he wins, wouldnt just represent conservatives who have fallen away from the party because of their presidential candidate, she said. Hes also representing me and other Democrats in the state. Lander Democrat Amy Rathke said the quote in the AP story didnt rattle her support for Greene. I can hear a quote like that, but it doesnt jive with my experience of talking to Ryan in person, she said. While I do think hes running as a centrist Democrat, he is a Wyoming Democrat. None of my experiences with Ryan Greene equate with any of the (statements) by Trump. Greene never asked for a correction or clarification from the AP. He said he was busy campaigning. Something was lost in translation, Greene said. Thats all that it amounts to. But the AP further quoted Greene as saying Clinton and Trump have to move beyond an insult war and provide details, details, details on tax policies and how they will create jobs. The AP story was written by a longtime Wyoming journalist. His editor, Joe Danborn, said the story speaks for itself. The states largest and oldest petroleum industry trade association is endorsing Republican Liz Cheney for the states only U.S. House seat. Leaders of the Casper-based Petroleum Association of Wyoming feel the oil and natural gas industry continues to be threatened by regulations from federal agencies, Randy Harris, the associations chairman, said in a statement. Wyoming needs leadership to be competitive in todays market, and Liz Cheney is the only candidate running for Congress who has outlined concrete policy proposals that will reform the federal regulatory process and strengthen Wyomings fossil fuel industry, he said. The Petroleum Association of Wyoming is proud to endorse Liz Cheney because we are confident she will be a leader that fights for a more prosperous future for Wyoming oil and gas, the consumers we serve and most importantly, for our country. Cheney said in the statement shes honored by the endorsement. Our fossil fuels are national treasures, and as Wyomings next representative and lone voice in the U.S. House, I will work to lead a national effort to roll back and rescind out-of-control federal regulations, such as the Clean Power Plan and BLM Planning 2.0, and fight for policies that support a stronger and expanded fossil fuel industry, she said. The other major contender in the race, Democrat Ryan Greene, did not hear from the association before its endorsement, Greene campaign manager Max Weiss said in an email. Many local associations interview candidates before deciding who to support. PAW never reached out to our campaign, even though Greene is an American Petroleum Institute-certified welding inspector, Weiss said. If this is how things work, we fully expect the Virginia Bar Association to endorse Greene. Bruce Hinchey, association president, said Cheney reached out to the association and met with its leaders, while Greene did not. We certainly liked what she had to say, he said. Candidates for Wyomings sole U.S. House seat will debate on Thursday at Casper College. It will be voters only chance to see the candidates verbally spar, as they have not debated in the past. The election is Nov. 8. All four candidates said they will attend: Republican Liz Cheney, Democrat Ryan Greene, Libertarian Lawrence Struempf and the Constitution Partys Daniel Cummings. Attendees will get the best sense of the candidates, said Dale Bohren, executive editor of the Star-Tribune and the events moderator. They will see how candidates react to each other and their demeanor when not on camera. Candidates will field questions from panelists Craig Blumenshine of WyomingPBS, Bob Beck of Wyoming Public Media and Erich Frankland of Casper College. The college, the Star-Tribune and WyomingPBS are hosting the debate, which is free to the public. The hourlong debate is at 7 p.m. in the Wheeler Auditorium, in the colleges music building. People are asked to be seated at 6:50 p.m., as the debate will be broadcast live on WyomingPBS stations and on Wyoming Public Media radio frequencies across the state. The auditorium accommodates about 400 people. Seating is first come, first served. It is a political year, and debates are the best way to inform your opinion as you witness how the candidates measure up to the each other, Bohren said. And if a voter has already decided on their candidate but is interested in the process, this debate attendance is a great way to be supportive of candidates and enjoy the process as well. Voters may also tune in to the debate on local PBS affiliates or Wyoming Public radio. The Star-Tribune will livestream the event at trib.com. The public television and radio stations will have live audio and vision broadcasts as well. WyomingPBS will rebroadcast the debate at 1 p.m. Sunday. SHERIDAN A 42-year-old Sheridan man has pleaded not guilty to a second-degree murder charge in the shooting death of his wife. Christopher Fisher entered the plea Tuesday in District Court. He faces a prison term of 20 years to life in prison if convicted. Fisher's jury trial is scheduled for March 20. Authorities accused Fisher in the fatal shooting death of his wife, Martha Bailey, last August. Fisher has said that Bailey had attacked him and the two struggled over a pistol pulled from Fisher's pants pocket. He said the gun went off during the struggle. Fisher and Bailey have five children, including a 9-year-old who witnessed the shooting. Fire chief Kenneth King owes the victims of the Cole Creek Fire an apology. As the blaze, which began in Caspers landfill about a year ago, consumed 14 homes and 10,000 acres of land in rural Evansville, the chief typed an email. Cut out the bad parts, he wrote to inspector Devin Garvin, a subordinate assigned to independently gather evidence about the fire and sharing it with state authorities. He also told Garvin to make sure no copies were made and that only the Wyoming Department of Criminal Investigation would see it. Even if the email is taken as the joke King insists it was, what the fire chief said was calloused and irresponsible and thats the best-case scenario. The reality could be worse. There are things we simply dont joke about, and certainly city department heads such as King should know that and be sensitive to it. People in our community rely every day on the critical services of department he supervises. To make matters worse, the fire chief typed those words on the fourth day of the blaze, which burned for six days. In other words, he sent the email while the fire was still actively scorching the Cole Creek area. Distraught and devastated residents were losing their houses, their belongings, their livelihoods all while the chief was displaying terrible judgment. If it was a joke, it was beyond bad. Destroying or manipulating evidence is a crime. Why would a fire chief joke about doing that to anyone? The poor judgment displayed by the Chief in this instance causes one to wonder if it may be a sign of larger problems. No responsible fire chief would ever write that email. But King is not the only one who deserves criticism. People in city hall who would have known about the remark for months did nothing to address it or ensure King was held accountable. City manager V.H. McDonald, too, had nothing to say about the situation this week. The public deserves to know what city officials did to ensure something like this never happens again. So far, though, the only people who are talking are the victims of the fire. Theyre rightly upset about Kings cavalier tone and the citys lack of response. Theyre tallying their mounting losses and feeling ignored by the people who were supposed to take care of them. Its also true that the list of people King did wrong by extends beyond the 14 families who lost their homes. Devin Garvin, the subordinate on the receiving end of that remark, would certainly have found himself in a tight spot, an unfair situation created by his superior. Kings carelessness, insensitivity and poor judgment also ran the risk of tainting the firefighters who toil honorably in the department he supervises. King did the Casper area and his department a disservice when he wrote that email. He added to the misery of the victims of the Cole Creek Fire. Thats worth at least an apology, and the community should settle for nothing less. Editor: Audrey Cotherman, who is running for Wyoming Legislature in House District 57, has received the endorsement of the Wyoming Education Association According to Kathy Vetter, chair of the Associations political action committee (PACE), the process of the WEA-PACE Council in choosing to endorse a candidate is a rigorous one. Decisions of the council are based on understanding the views of the candidate regarding the complex issues confronting public schools and colleges in Wyoming. Cotherman has an extensive background in education. She is best known locally for having served as Wyomings deputy superintendent of education under Lynn Simon. She received her doctorate in education at the University of Wyoming prior to that position, and has held executive positions at regional and national levels. She served a five-year stint most recently as a member of the Natrona County School District Board of Trustees. Cotherman held positions at both the University of Wyoming and the University of Wisconsin. She now teaches an OLLI writing course at Casper College. Cotherman said she was honored to be endorsed by educators, and she said that in her book, educators deserve our highest respect, along with doctors, among professional service providers. Employees at El Rio Community Health Center are mourning the loss of their longtime chief financial officer Celia Sarabia Hightower. Hightower died Oct. 12 of pancreatic cancer. She was 62. In the 29 years Hightower spent overseeing finances at El Rio, which has a history of caring for disenfranchised populations, the nonprofit never lost money. That was no small feat considering El Rio was coming out of a bankruptcy, comprised one location and had a budget of less than $2 million when Hightower joined the organization in 1987. In those early years, Hightower also acted as chief operating officer. Her passion for El Rios work fueled the energy she put into balancing its books. The community feels that this is their clinic, and theyve embraced it, Hightower told the Star of El Rio in 2005. We have generations of family members coming and we treat them with dignity and respect. When she retired Sept. 30, the budget was $135 million and the organization was up to 14 campuses. We have never lost money any year on her watch, said Nancy Johnson, who is the CEO of El Rio. Many of the employees here she hired 17 or 20 years ago, and there have been wonderful, heartfelt messages about how she believed in them and supported them in their education. El Rio is part of an organization of federally qualified health centers called Community Health Best Practices LLC, which recently set up a Celia Hightower Scholarship in her honor. The scholarship will fund educational opportunities for El Rio employees. Hightower was an early advocate for creation of the Pima Community Access Program (PCAP), which helps provide health-care options for people without insurance coverage, Johnson said. She also oversaw El Rios financing of a major purchase and move buying the downtown Manning House and relocating administrative headquarters there. In 2013, Inside Tucson Business named her CFO of the year. Celia lived her life with a passion, whether it was El Rio, traveling with her family, being with her grandsons or dancing, Johnson said. She was a breast cancer survivor and was very involved in influencing our work around mammography. Every October we have free mammography on Fridays. She did a lot of fundraising in the community, and was just a very passionate individual. She got behind everything 110 percent. Hightowers friends and family described her as capable, energetic and always someone one could count on to get the job done. She was born and raised in Tucson as the eldest of five children and learned responsibility at a young age because both of her parents worked, said her husband, Penn Hightower. The couple was married for 46 years. The couple met as students at Sahuaro High School. They graduated in 1972 and married in 1976, shortly before Hightower earned her nursing degree from the University of Arizona. She later went on to earn a dual MBA/MIS degree, also from the UA. In 2014 she was inducted into the Sahuaro High School Hall of Fame. Every job she ever interviewed for she got, her husband said. She was amazing, beautiful, intelligent and capable. Before joining El Rio, Hightower worked as a nurse at a Phoenix area hospital before becoming a trauma nurse in the emergency room at Carondelet St. Josephs Hospital in Tucson. After earning her graduate degree, Hightower got experience in the financial world working for Bank of America. Penn Hightower said his wife was first diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in January 2013. She had surgery and was back at work by April. If El Rio didnt mean anything to her she wouldnt have gone back, he said. It was like part of her extended family. When she turned 62 on Aug. 23, Hightowers co-workers threw her a dual retirement/birthday party. Hightower wore a tiara. In addition to her husband, Hightower is survived by two daughters: Kristina Menzies of Boulder, Colorado, Sandra Hightower of Tucson and three grandsons. The Board of Supervisors unanimously gave the go-ahead Tuesday to begin lease negotiations with Vector Space Systems, which announced last week it will locate its headquarters and rocket manufacturing plant in Tucson. A final deal, which will be for a 15- to 25-year market-rate ground lease for about 15 acres of county-owned land south of Tucson International Airport, will also need board approval. County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry told the supervisors that the land, which was acquired by the county several years ago to provide a buffer for nearby Raytheon Missile Systems, will be appraised to determine the market rate. The rockets Vector intends to build will send small satellites into space, work that will provide roughly 200 new jobs within three years of operations beginning in late 2017 or early 2018. Huckelberry and company CEO Jim Cantrell have said the ground lease is all the company has asked for at this point. However, Huckelberry said the county will explore the possibility of a deal comparable to that offered to the space balloon company World View. In that deal, the county built facilities on behalf of the company, the costs of which are to be more than recouped over the course of a 20-year lease. Though a critic of a number of county-led development efforts, including World Views, Supervisor Ally Miller joined her colleagues in approving negotiations with Vector. After the meeting, she said that if the final deal is a market rate lease and in full compliance with the state constitution, she could support that. Supervisor Sharon Bronson said the work of both World View and Vector bodes well for the county. Were going to own the stratosphere, she said. Fee schedule set for Section 10 permits The supervisors also unanimously approved a fee schedule Tuesday for developers hoping to take advantage of the countys recently granted federal Section 10 permit. To participate, some developers will have to pay a $720 application fee and a $2,450 compliance monitoring fee. The permit allows the county, and certain developers who choose to participate, the right to harass, harm or kill 44 vulnerable species during otherwise permitted development on about 36,000 acres in unincorporated Pima County. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service granted the permit in exchange for commitments to preserve and monitor roughly 116,000 acres of habitat elsewhere in the county. Only subdivisions and commercial and industrial developments that require a site construction permit from the countys Development Services will have to pay. Single, private lot developers issued permits to grade 14,000 or more square feet do not have to pay the fee. On Monday, a Pima County judge struck one little blow against Donald Trumps argument that the general election will be rigged. Superior Court Judge Richard Gordon ordered Pima County to preserve not just the ballots that we cast but also the scanned images of the ballots that the countys computers actually use to tally votes. Gordon made the ruling in a public-records case brought by an election-integrity group, Audit-AZ, requesting that the ballot images be declared public records. He said they are. That, said election-integrity gadfly John Brakey, will allow outsiders to be able to audit election results on their own, optimizing the abilities of Pima Countys new election systems. Its a great system. Its transparent, its trackable, Brakey said. Of course, the idea that we in Pima County will be able to count digital ballots on our own, if we choose, will not reassure some people that there isnt a nationwide problem with election fraud. Trump has energized that idea this week in his tweets and his public comments. On Monday morning he wrote: Of course there is large scale voter fraud happening on and before election day. Why do Republican leaders deny what is going on? So naive! And in Wisconsin he said, They even want to try to rig the election at the polling place. So many cities are corrupt and voter fraud is very, very common. It seems obvious that Trump is saying this to try to explain his likely loss as illegitimate. As many people have said, thats playing with fire: Our countrys elections have long been trusted, and undermining them like this is likely to unleash dangerous passions on the part of those who think they were cheated. But it would be wrong to look at this as strictly an issue of elections. The chair of the Pima County GOP, Bill Beard, pointed out to me that this concern about election fraud is part of a broader anger about society itself being rigged. Both Trump and Bernie Sanders, who spoke in Tucson on Tuesday night, built their campaigns on the righteous anger of supporters who feel systems are rigged against them. People see that the financiers who unleashed the Great Recession never were prosecuted, that the rich have gotten richer for decades while the rest of us have barely hung on, that Hillary Clinton wasnt prosecuted for email practices that may have landed someone else in court, that the Democratic National Committee worked to help Clinton beat Sanders. They conclude the whole big societal system is rigged. And to some extent thats true. The rich and powerful often get away with things that others dont. So if all those things are rigged, no wonder people would think the elections are rigged, too. And yet, thats a lazy conclusion. Because if you know anything about the election system, you know it is complex, localized, and replete with checks and balances. Not infallible, but stronger than you might think. Matt Roberts of the Arizona Secretary of States Office noted that the vote tabulation system itself is not connected to the internet. Outsiders cant hack into it as they tried to with the voter registration system. The voting equipment is also tested for logic and accuracy before each election, Roberts noted. We require the counties to provide us a random sample of their election equipment, he said. We have them program a test mock election. We vote a sampling of ballots. If the vote doesnt match the pre-determined vote exactly, we will not certify that equipment, and theyll have to find out what occurred. F. Ann Rodriguez, Pima Countys longtime recorder and a Democrat, also took umbrage at the critique that the election itself is somehow rigged. We check every signature on a ballot that comes in. At polling places, you show an ID. We have a lot of checks and balances in the system, she said. At the elections center were under party observation, she noted. The political parties are there. Theyre watching our signature processing. When we do tabulations, we have cameras in there. The Arizona Republic talked this week with former governor and secretary of state Jan Brewer, a Republican who is actively supporting Trump. Even Brewer contradicted her candidates claim, saying, I dont think theres a lot of fraud going on. But there have been occasional instances of fraud, noted Beard, the Pima GOP chair. And this week, the conservative provocateur James OKeefe put out a new undercover video allegedly showing Democrats willing to engage in voter fraud. Overall, its not a convincing video, but it will sow more doubt. So when you put together a few instances of actual fraud, a candidate willing to undermine our system rather than be seen to lose legitimately, and a real sense of society feeling rigged, no wonder some are willing to go along with Trumps claim that the whole thing is a sham. Its dangerous, of course. But its also curable. Beard noted that the parties always need volunteers willing to observe elections, vote tabulation, signature checks and other procedures. If you sit on the sidelines, youre contributing to the mistrust and your lack of faith in it being a fair process, he said. And with this new court ruling, we should eventually be able to count the ballots ourselves. Thats pretty transparent. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 18, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan received Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Republic of Armenia Seyed Kazem Sadjadi on October 18. . As Armenpress was informed from the press service of the Government of Armenia, noting that Armenia and Iran have traditionally enjoyed friendly ties of close partnership, the Prime Minister said it is necessary to go beyond the existing level and take further steps to develop mutually beneficial cooperation. In this context, Karen Karapetyan highlighted the construction of the third Iran-Armenia 400 kV power transmission line, Noravank substation, gas distribution networks in Armenias border communities, as well as the ongoing Gas for Electricity project. The head of the Armenian government said prospective ties of cooperation might be built up in Iran-Armenia-Georgia-Russia quadrilateral format. Coming to the North-South Highway project, the Premier said Iranian companies might get involved, if interested. As Karen Karapetyan pointed out, Armenia and Iran have huge potential to increase trade turnover and make new investments in different sectors, including agriculture, telecommunications, tourism, healthcare and other sectors. Seyed Kazem Sadjadi expressed willingness to closely cooperate with the Government of Armenia in a bid to implement mutually beneficial projects, contributing thereby to the furtherance of economic ties. Noting the importance of increased trade turnover, the Ambassador expressed confidence that the recent exposition of Tehran as attended by over 100 Armenian companies might advance the establishment of a free economic zone in Meghri. Karen Karapetyan and Seyed Kazem Sadjadi took the opportunity to discuss other issues on the agenda of the Armenian-Iranian relations. A precious parcel of land 65 scenic, saguaro-studded acres teeming with wildlife is now part of Tucson Mountain Park thanks to the generosity of Tucsonan Martha Hawes. Hawes, a University of Arizona professor specializing in plant pathology, donated the desert parcel to Pima County for inclusion in the park west of Tucson because theres nothing so important as saving at least part of the planet from development. She said she and her late husband, fellow scientist Hans Van Etten, had planned on donating the property southwest of West 36th Street and South La Cholla Boulevard to the county since buying the land, building a house and moving there in 2003. As a child, I had a dream about looking out and seeing a field being paved, Hawes said. I dont want them paving this field of desert landscapes around the house. County was approached more than 10 years ago Martha is a truly wonderful lady, said Steve Anderson, planning division manager for Pima County Natural Resources, Parks and Recreation. She and her husband came to me more than 10 years ago with an altruistic intent to make a lasting donation for the conservation of their land and the betterment of Tucson Mountain Park. And they really followed through, Anderson said. These donations happen periodically and its a wonderful thing. This helps us expand our parks and trails system and provide a public benefit for everyone. Previous donors have deeded land to expand trails around the Sweetwater Preserve, Ventana Canyon and Redington Pass. The agreement between Hawes and the county allows her to remain in the house on the property for the remainder of her life, Anderson said. EXQUISITE DESERT, variety of animals Asked to describe the landscape of the 65 acres surrounding her home, Hawes, said, Its the desert being desert. Ive studied plant roots for my whole career, and I still dont understand how desert plants do it, she said. Its a miracle every day to be out here. Out here includes slopes and ridges of volcanic rock, prickly forests of saguaros and several other types of cactus, and a sort of whos who of desert animal life. Hawes and her late husband have photographed many of the birds and animals in the area and the house is decorated with colorful wildlife pictures. Among the animals in the photo collection are a kit fox, javelinas, deer, rattlesnakes and birds including a cactus wren, a Coopers hawk and several kinds of hummingbirds. No immediate plan to build trails Anderson said there are no immediate plans for building trails on the newly acquired parkland. But a trailhead near the western end of West 36th Street could eventually serve as a starting point for those who might want to trek carefully cross-country into the area. There are no definite plans for Hawes house when she is no longer living there. About the only thing we would use it for would be environmental education, Anderson said. PHOENIX Arizonans want their next president to fix the economy and improve K-12 education. But the call by Donald Trump to build a wall apparently leaves them cold. A survey of 700 adult heads of household conducted earlier this month by the Behavior Research Center found the top-tier priorities were fairly uniform across most demographic groups, said pollster Earl de Berge. That suggests, he said, that voters want meaningful answers from the candidates versus what they have heard to date. One of the frustrations that voters have today is the national debate is really focused on personality issues, one side calling the other a liar and the other side inept and not fit for office, de Berge said. Voters want to know where these candidates are on issues. His staffers came up with a list of 23 priorities and asked respondents to rank their importance to them on a scale of zero to 10. The questions were rotated to prevent the results from being skewed based on the order the issues were suggested. On that scale, de Berge found improving the economy rated 9.0, followed by improving K-12 education and protecting the U.S. from terrorism at 8.8. But other top tier issues those rating 8.0 or higher include reducing the national debt, providing more funding for wounded warriors, assuring safety in food sold to U.S. consumers, and providing health care to the poor. At the other extreme, the idea of building and staffing a wall along the nations southern border rated just 4.7 on that zero-to-10 scale. Even Republicans rated it no higher than 7.3 despite the fact it has been a priority of the GOP presidential contender. The rallying cry of build the danged fence was a centerpiece of Sen. John McCains 2010 reelection campaign. This year, however, McCain has said little about the project. The survey also found relatively low interest in allowing companies more freedom to drill for oil and gas, weighing in at 5.2. And the idea of deporting all Muslims who the U.S. government believes may be terrorists was rated at 5.7. While the economy, K-12 education and terrorism were important across the political spectrum, de Berge said he found that Republicans had a much narrower scope of top priorities: Only dealing with the national debt, funding for wounded returning vets and strengthening the military ranked 8.0 or higher. Democrats didnt see a stronger military as a top concern. But they did get top priority to the issues of more affordable university education, food safety, repairing roads and highways, and raising income taxes on the wealthy. And independents? Theyre much more diverse in their priorities than adherents of either party. While they dont prioritize higher taxes on the wealthy, their 8.0-plus list of issues does include lowering middle class taxes, protecting and funding the national park system, and prosecuting computer hackers. Independents are people whove moved away from both political parties perhaps because they have a broader scope of interests on a variety of topics than those who have labeled themselves Democrats or Republicans, de Berge said. But he also said it may be a question of demographics. They tend to be younger and more interested in those kinds of issues, he said. The survey has a margin of error of 3.8 percentage points. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. 50 thousand Armenians are living in Fresno, USA. Armenians of Fresno are involved in various fields and most of them have achieved serious success, Pertch Apkarian Honorary Consul of Armenia in Fresno told ARMENPRESS. According to him, despite the fact Armenians have successes in various fields, they are mainly involved in agriculture. Armenians of Fresno are involved in farming. They contribute greatly to the economy. The fresh fruits and vegetables grown by Armenians are being shipped worldwide. Armenians are famous there for viticulture and making raisins, Mr. Apkarian said. He says the Armenian community of Fresno has an important position, both by investments and material-economic status, as well as respect. He reminded that back in the 1920s it wasnt the same, however due to their hard work and overcoming challenges, years later Armenians were able to achieve a high position. Regarding the issues of the Armenian community Mr. Apkarian said the issue is mainly regarding the preservation of the language. 3rd and 4th generation Armenians are already living in Fresno, and the issue of language preservation is gradually becoming more difficult, he said. Several projects and a number of initiatives are attempted to be implemented in Fresno, in order to bound the community with the Fatherland. One of those projects is bringing doctors from the US to Armenia and donating medicine and medical equipment to Armenia, with the communitys resources. Through this initiative, not only are the American-Armenians uniting, but also the local Armenians get to know each other and bound with one another. When we visited Armenia last year along with doctors and returned, we presented the work which we carried out, we showed the result, and they felt good having a contribution in the Fatherland. Thats why such projects are important, he said. Other projects are also planned to be carried out in the nearest future. According to Mr. Apkarian, discussions were held in the Diaspora Ministry on future initiatives. 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The United States and allies from the Middle East and Europe met in Geneva on October 18 to coordinate efforts toward a new ceasefire in Syria, senior U.S. officials and Western diplomats said, as Russia unexpectedly announced it had halted air strikes over the besieged city of Aleppo, Reuters reported. A Western diplomat said "like-minded nations" had agreed to create a "working group to see how to see how we could separate (Al Qaeda-linked group) Nusra from the moderate opposition. The first meeting is today in Geneva." The meeting was made up of experts from the United States, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, France, Turkey and Jordan. The talks did not include Russia, which on October 17 announced an eight-hour pause in Russian and Syrian government air attacks on the city of Aleppo on Thursday to allow civilians and rebels to leave the city and then on Tuesday suddenly halted all air strikes, two days ahead of time. Two Western diplomats said Russia would join the talks on October 19. Russia's state Rossiya 24 channel showed Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu as saying that military experts would meet in Geneva on October 19 to begin work separating "terrorists" from Syria's opposition. U.S. officials said it was too soon to tell whether Russia's softer stance on Aleppo was part of something more lasting or a gesture by Moscow before it joins the Geneva talks. The latest effort among countries with influence over the warring parties in Syria followed two failed attempts by the United States and Russia to stop the violence there. The last ceasefire agreement fell apart in September after Washington accused Russia of bombing a U.N. aid convoy and suspended bilateral relations over Syria. The allies are trying to figure out ways to separate moderate opposition groups in Aleppo backed by the United States, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, from al-Qaeda linked militants from the Nusra Front, which are also fighting to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The opposition fighters and Nusra militants have become intermingled in Aleppo amid a relentless air campaign from Russia and the Syrian government. There are concerns, however, that as Western allies try to separate the opposition from Syrian rivals in Aleppo, that Russia and Syrian government forces will use the opening to seize Aleppo. Photo by AFP Help India! By TCN News, Aligarh: Forum for Muslim Studies & Analysis (FMSA) Aligarh held at Media Centre, Aligarh, to analyze the fallout of the call of eminent Shia Maulana Kalbe Jawwad to the Muslim voters to oppose Congress candidates. The forum observed that fragmentation in the Muslim votes will only strengthen the communal and fascist forces in the country. It should be recalled that Maulana Kalbe Jawwad had visited several Shia Muslim concentrated areas in Lucknow and appealed to defeat the Congress candidates in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections. Analyzing the call, Aligarh Muslim University Department of Civil Engineering Professor Razaullah Khan pointed out that before every election; some people including Maulana Kalbe Jawwad come out in support or in opposition to specific party. It depicts that they have no community concern but have their own agenda. Support TwoCircles Editor of the Aligarh Movement Magazine & Secretary of FMSA, Jasim Mohammad said that the appeal of Maulana Kalbe Jawwad will have no impact because people have made their mind upon to change the government in state. He opined that there is a gigantic support for the Congress in many areas and the appeal by Maulana Jawwad or any other Maulana will fall on deaf ears. Senior columnist and political analyst N Jamal Ansari said that a sectarian view of the problems should not overtake national interests and the chain of reforms launched by Congress should not be broken through mere sentiments. Prof. Humayun Murad said that Maulana instead of performing religious duties and social reforms has gone beyond his domain by interfering in polities. Its not a healthy sign, he said. Prof. Syed Iqbal Ali pointed out that, the present context demands a positive approach and such minor issues should be put on back burner keeping the national interest in mind. Dr Fatima Zehra said that influence of Maulana Jawwad is confined to some localities of Lucknow onlyand it is better not to give importance to his outbursts. In the end, a resolution was passed which stated that, Saner elements of the Indian citizenry and Muslim society strongly condemns the appeal of Maulana Kalbe Jawwad to oppose Congress Partys candidates. The resolution has demanded that people should vote in favor of Congress to defeat the designs of the selfish elements of the society. Apart from the large number of intellectuals, teachers, and Research Scholars, DGF Sabri, Syed Imam Raza, Alisha, Deeba Abrar too were present for the meeting. Help India! By Shafeeq Hudawi, TwoCircles.net In a reply to the hate speech by preacher Dr. N Gopalakrishnan against Malappuram district, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) Rajya Sabha MP P V Abdul Wahab has invited him to have a glass of Sulaimani (black tea). Support TwoCircles Abdul Wahab In his YouTube video, Gopalakrishnan made comments against Malappuram, the lone Muslim majority district in south India, in derogatory language. Gopalakrishnan said that Malappuram got most number MLAs in the state as women in the district delivered babies like pigs. The Hindu preacher also compared Malappuram with Pakistan. In his Facebook post, Wahab invited Gopalakrishnan to Malappuram citing he can get a clear picture of Malappuram by having a glass of Malappuram black tea. I invite all the haters of Muslims in Malappuram to Malappuram. Let us have a glass of sulaimani (black tea) and feel how we host you without considering your cast or colour, Wahabs Facebook post said. Malappuram has played a key role in the Independence struggle of our country and also gave birth to many freedom fighters. It is the place where the literary icons like Thunjathu Ezhuthachan, Poonthanam and Vallathol have born. They have not felt any intolerance towards anyone here, it said. He said that Malappuram had stood behind secularism when various parts of country had witnessed intolerance after the demolition of Babri Masjid. Our leaders stood for peace when the sentiments had been hurt on different occasions. We are Muslims who are proud to be called as an Indian, he said. The Facebook note under the hashtag #entevakasulaimani, black tea from my part, has also gone viral. Meanwhile, IUML and Congress have demanded strong action against Gopalakrishnan. IUML state general secretary KPA Majeed told media persons that the party was thinking about taking legal action against Gopalakrishnan. Congress leader Rajmohan Unnithan demanded the State Government to take stringent action in the issue. Help India! By Raqib Hameed Naik, TwoCircles.net Delhi: More than 250 Kms from Rajasthans capital Jaipur is village Devli in District Dausa, where 18-year-old Balram Meena lives with his parents and six siblings. His father Ram Ji Lal Meena is a poor farmer barely earning Rs 2,000 a month making it hard to meet the ends. Support TwoCircles His son Balram, since his early childhood was inclined to education and struggled to clear his 12th standard from a government school in District Tok in Rajasthan earlier this year. After finishing his 12th, he worked as a security guard in Jaipur to contribute to his family income and support his further education. Taking a leap, he applied for Jamia Millia Islamia for doing Bachelors degree in Urdu and although he cleared the entrance exam and got admitted in the university, the biggest question for him was: where does he find accommodation? He applied for Jamias hostel facility, but his application was rejected prompting him to sleep on platforms of Delhi cantt railway station. Every day, after finishing his lectures in Jamia Millia, he used to go back to railway station for spending the night in open air. Since last few weeks, he is being helped by his fellow students. He is presently staying on a temporary basis with a Jamia Student at a rented accommodation in Gaffar Mazil area of Jamia Nagar. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. Russian and Turkish Presidents, Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, exchanged views on the Syrian settlement and discussed the operation to liberate Iraqs Mosul, the Kremlin press service said on Tuesday after a telephone conversation between the two leaders initiated by the Turkish side, TASS reported. "The Russian side stressed the importance of efficient separation of moderate opposition groups from militants of Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist groups affiliated with it," the Kremlin said. The two presidents discussed further development of bilateral cooperation in the political, trade-and-economic and other areas. "It was agreed to continue contacts on bilateral and regional problems at various levels," the press service said. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. The Turkish Foreign Ministry issued a travel warning on Iraq as operations in Mosul continue, Anadolu reported. In a statement the ministry urged the citizens to limit the visits to Iraq as much as possible and visit there in case of strict necessity. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. Turkeys National Defense Minister Fikri Isik said the Turkish side agreed with the international coalition forces to take part in the operations of liberating Iraqs Mosul from the Islamic State, Anadolu reported. The Minister said Turkey is also invited to take part in the upcoming meeting in Paris over Mosul operations. Its normal that Turkey is present at meetings on the developments in Mosul. Its impossible to decide on Mosuls future without Turkey, he said. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. In accordance with the agreements reached with the authorities of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, the OSCE Mission will conduct a planned monitoring of the Line of Contact between the armed forces of Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan in the direction of the Hadrut region, near the settlement of Ashaghi Abdurahmanli on October 20, 2016. From the positions of the NKR Defense Army, the monitoring will be conducted by Field Assistant of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Irzhi Aberle (Czech Republic), staff member of the Office of the CiO Personal Representative Peter Svedberg (Sweden), and representative of the OSCE High Level Planning Group, Major Christian Hirsch (Austria). The NKR authorities have expressed their readiness to assist in conducting the monitoring and to ensure the security of the OSCE Mission members. The Jungle refugee camp, accommodating an estimated 12,000 inhabitants, is set to be demolished in the upcoming weeks, following repeated efforts to shut down the camp on part of the French government.The French president, Francois Hollande, has said that refugees living at the camp will be moved to 140 different reception centres dotted across the country, meaning 12,000 housing placements will need to be created to ensure every refugee is safely relocated.Recently, there has been mounting pressure and a rise in political tension between the UK and France as authorities dispute who is responsible for the destruction of the camp and the safety of its inhabitants. The Jungle, which has been named and shamed for its horrific humanitarian conditions, has experienced ongoing heightened security, including a UK- funded wall to stop refugees reaching the ferry port and 24 hour armed police surrounding the A16 highway - calaiss main road.However, Frances interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, has vowedthat France will begin gradually dismantling the refugee camp and will press ahead with the greatest determination, according to regional newspaper Nord Littoral. Volunteers fight for action French and UK charities, such as Care4Calais and Calais Solidarity, are desperately fighting to ensure the 1000 refugee children living at the camp reach the UK, and are reunited with their families, before the man-made community is destroyed for good.While a group of 14 minors arrivedin Britain from Calais earlier this week, hundreds are still living in the human wasteland at the UK boarder, some as young as only eight years old, without parentsor legal guardians.The current attempt to demolish the camp is one of many. Less than six months ago, French police and authorities destroyed a large partof The Jungle, reportedlyby setting refugees tents and shacks on fire, throwing tear gas, and attacking those who stood in their way. Volunteers working on ground argue there is a multitude of reasons as to why shutting down the camp wont work. Cecile Burton, former human resources manager of the Help Refugees Calais, believes that relocation and eviction of the Jungle is not a solution. Cecile said: We find ourselves amidst the biggest refugee crisis since the Second World War. Figures are constantly being reported and everyone keeps talking about how its getting worse and our governments (both French and English) are playing dumb.They seem to believe if they make the jungle disappear this will all go away. They do not have the means to compensate for the destruction of ten thousand homes there isnt nearly enough alternative accommodation, she added.Completely relianton charities and donations, refugees and volunteers living in the camp have created a man-made community which includes a library, learning centre, multiple kitchens, donation shelter, a youth club and legal help. Fleeing war to livein hell It can take up to six months to travel torefugee camps such as Calais from The Middle East, as migrants flee war zones such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. Many refugees, including young teenagers, have lost their lives attempting to reach the UK, and others have died at the camp as temperatures drop below freezing in the winter months or they catch diseases from living in a human wasteland littered with rubbish and detritus. Moreover, there have even been reports of angry locals breaking into the refugees tents at night and attacking them with knives and knuckle dusters, as well as claims of armed far-right militants taking refugee men into fields near the camp, stripping them naked, tying their hands behind their backs, and then taking it in turns to beat them. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. Some 900 people have fled the Iraqi city of Mosul and crossed the border into Syria, the UN refugee agency says, reports BBC. This is the first large group of civilians confirmed to have escaped since the Iraqi government began its offensive to liberate Mosul from the so-called Islamic State (IS) on October 17. Up to 1.5 million are thought to be in Mosul, with up to 5,000 IS fighters. There are fears the militants will use the civilians as human shields as Iraqi forces get closer to Mosul. A spokeswoman for the Office of UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said that more than 900 people from Mosul had crossed the border into Syria and were now at a refugee camp. She said it was likely the agency would use the camp as a staging-post before moving them back across the border to a safe location in Iraq, the BBC's Richard Galpin reports. The movement of a significant number of people indicates that IS militants are not able to stop everyone leaving, our correspondent notes. It will also raise questions about whether some fighters might try to use the same route to flee, he adds. Mosul residents had been told by the Iraqi government that it may be safer to stay in the city while the operation is under way - with fears IS fighters have booby-trapped roads and placed snipers on routes in and out. But there are also fears that IS militants could use residents as human shields by moving into their neighbourhoods, and concern that the group may even use chemical weapons. Residents, reached by telephone by Reuters news agency, confirmed IS was preventing people from fleeing the city and had directed some of them towards buildings likely to be targeted by air strikes. The UN is working to create new refugee camps to the south, east and north of Mosul, and predict some 200,000 people will need shelter in the first days and weeks of the operation. But many of those who have already escaped have headed west to camps across the border in Syria, including Al Hol camp. Al Hol was built to house 7,500 people but currently has 9,000 refugees. Some 912 people have arrived from Mosul in the last 24 hours, and 3,000 people have been dropped off by smugglers and are expected to be brought to Al Hol once they have been cleared by security, the UN says. While Al Hol is being expanded to eventually take in 50,000 people, Save the Children says the camp currently has just 16 latrines, is littered with waste and faeces, and has no clean water. "These families arrive with nothing but the clothes on their backs and find almost nothing to help them," said the charity's Tarik Kadir. "The camp is bursting at the seams and risks being overwhelmed." Iraqi troops are moving towards Mosul from the south, while their Kurdish allies have been approaching from the east. They have taken back control of some 10 villages and are now between 30 and 40 km (19 and 25 miles) from the city. But progress is expected to be slow, and a Kurdish commander Sirwan Barzani told CNN that it could be two weeks before Iraqi troops enter Mosul and two months before the city is liberated. IS fighters appear to be putting up stiff resistance in places, with the group releasing video purporting to show them firing on coalition armoured vehicles. Mosul is the oil-rich capital of Nineveh province and Iraq's second-largest city. It was overrun by IS in June 2014 and was the place from where IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi proclaimed a "caliphate" in parts of Iraq and neighbouring Syria. Leaders mark the nation's progress Updated: 2016-10-09 16:10 By Zhang Yunbi and Qin Jize(China Daily Europe) Top officials affirm government's commitment to openness and engagement with the world Top leaders signaled China's growing openness to the outside world and reaffirmed the nation's commitment to maintaining peace, on the eve of the Oct 1 National Day holiday. Leaders including President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang embarked on a series of events and meetings in Beijing, including a ceremony honoring martyrs, a grand reception and meetings with foreign guests. President Xi Jinping and other top leaders arrive to attend a National Day reception at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Sept 30. Feng Yongbin / China Daily As he met with leading foreign experts working in China who received this year's Friendship Award, Li said China is ready to welcome more talent from abroad as the country becomes more open and inclusive. On Sept 29, Vice-Premier Ma Kai conferred medals on the 50 foreign experts and praised their contribution to the country's development at an awards ceremony in Beijing. Li observed that the foreign experts in China include both young and old, and the combination of their brainpower and experience could "help yield a greater boost to China's modernization process and world peace and development". He said China is offering greater openness, inclusiveness and convenience for outstanding foreign talent, and the country will speed up the processing of applications for permanent residence permits. Li also greeted foreign ambassadors and envoys assuming their new roles in China. He said China is committed to peace and development, and will join hands with countries to "achieve robust, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth". As the leaders attended a reception on Sept 30 evening, Li reiterated China's concept of "building the community of shared destiny". Su Ge, president of the China Institute of International Studies, notes that China's diplomacy this year has demonstrated greater readiness to contribute to global governance, including hosting the G20 Leaders Summit in early September. "China's tangible actions are showing to the world that it is a contributor and a mover for world peace, common development and international cooperation," Su said. On Sept 30 morning, leaders joined veterans, family members of martyrs and representatives from all walks of life gathered at the Monument to the People's Heroes at Tian'anmen Square. They attended a ceremony to honor deceased national heroes on the annual Martyrs' Day. Sept 30 marked the third Martyrs' Day on the eve of the National Day. A red carpet covered paths surrounding the monument, and attendees presented flowers in memory of the people's heroes. This year is also the 80th anniversary of the Long March, a famous military maneuver carried out by the Red Army in the mid-1930s. Xinhua contributed to this story. Contact the writers at zhangyunbi@chinadaily.com.cn Rocket carries school experiments into space Updated: 2016-10-18 20:08 By Honey Tsang in Hong Kong(chinadaily.com.cn) The successful liftoff of the Shenzhou XI manned spacecraft sets the stage for a group of Hong Kong students to make space history. Experiments designed by the three winning teams from the Space Science Experiment Design Competition for Hong Kong secondary school students last year have rocketed aloft and will be carried out in space. Wong Yeung, a teacher from Po Leung Kuk Laws Foundation College, was one of a 17-member delegation from the three Hong Kong teams to observe with what must have been a spine-tingling thrill, as Shenzhou XI blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu province. "We were all basking in the glory of having our pupils' creations carried into space to be tested," Wong said. The experiments were to see whether saturated saline water could form a porous, waterproof membrane in microgravity, watching the transformation of silkworms and silk production in space, and examining Chaos Theory by a comparative study of oscillating pendulums in space and on earth. Astronauts Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong will carry out a series of experiments, including the three designed by Hong Kong students, after Shenzhou XI docks with the Tiangong II space laboratory. Mak Tang Pik-yee, executive director of the Hong Kong Productivity Council, who led the Hong Kong delegation in Jiuquan, said designing experiments that would actually be carried out in space is a dream come true for the students. Mak said that the students had achieved something remarkable in terms of their inventiveness, originality of vision and also coming up with ideas that were workable. The winning entry, she said, once tested and proven successful, was expected to contribute to making artificial skin for medical use. "We hope that the test results will be in line with our expectations," said Tang Chi-yi, a student at Christian and Missionary Alliance Sun Kei Secondary School, and the project designer of the runner-up team. "But even if it doesn't, our team can learn from the failure. Scientific failures, anyhow, are the basic steps toward success." Wong Yeung, who was adviser to the bronze-winning team, said their pitch might be useful in robotic arm applications. "The experiment is meant to verify if gravity is the main driving force behind Chaos Theory," added Wong. "The concept is hard to grasp, especially for secondary school students. The students of our team, after going through a lengthy research process, managed to forge their own experimental model at last," Wong said. Internet media leaders gather to discuss future of web content Updated: 2016-10-19 10:41 By Jin Dan(chinadaily.com.cn) The 16th Forum on Internet Media of China is held on Oct 17, 2016 in Guiyang, capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] Algorithm. Big data. Smart technology. These were some of the key words from speeches made by many editors-in-chief of Chinese internet media who attended the 16th national forum held on Monday in Southwest China's Guizhou province. Under the theme of "new idea for development and new ecosystem for cyberspace", officials of Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) and the Communist Youth League, as well as leaders of both Internet media and corporations shared their views about the progress and challenges posed by internet media today. Ren Xianliang, deputy head of the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) highlighted that internet media should seek innovative and coordinated development and focus on social responsibility. His proposal resonates among internet media leaders. In a keynote speech on how ifeng.com takes on algorithm innovation and sticks to media responsibility in an age of artificial intelligence (AI), CEO Liu Shuang introduced their attempts in making Yidianzixun, a news recommendation app based on users' interests and reading habits. Meanwhile, he also said that media should be alert to the risks brought about by pandering to the number of views rather than focusing on quality. "Only integrating humanity into algorithms can prevent internet users from addiction to low quality and vulgar content," said Liu. Li Rong, standing deputy editor-in-chief of thepaper.cn, shared a similar view, saying that they take both quality and users' views into account when assessing a reporter's performance. Qin Yizhi, head of the Communist Youth League also gave a speech at the opening ceremony of the forum. He emphasized that a healthy cyberspace should be promoted for youth because they are "internet natives". His view is echoed in the statistics provided by Wang Changqing, deputy head of the internet development research department of China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), showing that most net users are young people. Wang also suggested media should think about how to take advantage of big data and social networks to cooperate on content production. He was grateful to see many leaders of traditional media attending the forum and sharing on this topic. This year's forum was hosted by youth.cn, and saw more than 700 guests gathering to discuss the issues. Top court vows to continue fight against defaulters Updated: 2016-10-19 11:02 By CAO YIN(chinadaily.com.cn) China's top court vowed on Tuesday to continue its fight against those who fail to comply with court orders and deliberately default on court fines. The announcement marked the first time that the Supreme People's Court has used a live online broadcast to talk about their work reigning in defaulters and debtors promising to alleviate the problem within three years. The top court said Chinese courts at all levels had taken several measures to retrieve money from defaulters, including sharing a blacklist of their names with financial institutions. The blacklist can help a court find and freeze a defaulter's assets while awaiting payment, the court said. In January, a memorandum was signed with 44 government departments and public organizations to impose restrictions on defaulters. As of September, information on nearly 5 million defaulters had been disclosed in this way, according to the court's statistics with many barred from buying rail and flight tickets. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. The wife of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad said in an interview her husband's foes had offered her the chance to flee Syria in order to try to shake confidence in him, but that she had not left the country since the war erupted, Reuters reported. Speaking in English to Russia's state-backed Rossiya 24 channel, Asma Assad, a London-born former investment banker, did not say who made the offers. But she said the people trying to get her to flee had not been Syrian and that their offers were "stupid." "I've been here since the beginning and I never thought of being anywhere else at all," the 41-year-old mother of three told Rossiya 24 in an interview broadcast on Tuesday. "Yes I was offered the opportunity to leave Syria or rather to run from Syria. These offers included guarantees of safety and protection for my children and even financial security. It doesn't take a genius to know what these people were really after. It was a deliberate attempt to shatter people's confidence in their president." Sharks 'beautiful, cute', diver says despite narrow escape Updated: 2016-10-19 07:07 By Agence France-Presse in Shanghai(China Daily) A Chinese diver whose near miss with a great white shark became a viral video sensation, viewed millions of times worldwide, calls the ocean's apex predator "beautiful". But the diver, a Shanghai resident originally from Hong Kong, also said it has made him appreciate life. Chan Ming, 51, was on a shark-watching excursion off Mexico's west coast when the shark broke into the metal cage protecting him. Despite their fearsome reputation, sharks do not normally feed on humans, and have to be drawn in with bait. The shark seized the bait and crashed into the cage, breaking part of it. Unable to swim backward, it entered the cage, where Chan was alone. The advertising executive and part-time diving instructor said on Monday that he tried hard to stay calm, "because if I get panicked it will be very horrible in there". "When the great white shark was breaking into the cage, the inside of its mouth was getting jammed in the cage, and at that moment I was thinking, 'Hey, don't think about coming in here', " he said. The video shows the shark apparently bleeding as it thrashes its way out through a gap opened by a crew member. An agonizing 20 seconds pass before Chan emerges safely. The harrowing incident did little to diminish Chan's fondness for the great white - he went back into the water the next day. "I still think the shark, the great white, is so beautiful - they're very beautiful and cute." In a company statement posted on Facebook, excursion operator Solmar V Luxury Live-Aboard said the shark was not seriously injured. "Shark breaches of this magnitude are a one in a million occurrence," it said. The company - whose priority is to offer "unique life experiences" - said its cages have been reinforced, and bait would be thrown farther away from them in the future. Premier: China-Uruguay FTA will be mutually beneficial Updated: 2016-10-19 21:35 By HU YONGQI(chinadaily.com.cn) Premier Li Keqiang said on Wednesday that the feasibility studies into a China-Uruguay free trade agreement, announced on Tuesday, would help take cooperation between China and Latin America to a new level. The premier made the remarks during a meeting with visiting Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez, who is on a state visit to China from October 12 until Thursday. China has been Uruguay's top trading partner in recent years as its largest buyer of beef, soybeans and wool. Amid the sluggish world economy and rising trade protectionism, the feasibility studies are beneficial in sending a positive signal to the international community to safeguard trade liberalization and economic globalization, as well as China's cooperation with countries in Latin America, Li said. Premier Li pledged to further cooperate with Uruguay. He said China was willing to cooperate with the South American country in areas such as trade and investment, infrastructure, agriculture and clean energy. President Vazquez said Uruguay was willing to sign the free trade agreement with China as soon as possible and welcomed Chinese companies to invest in the distant country across the Pacific Ocean. He also said both countries could deepen cooperation in finance, technologies and people-to-people exchanges. Canada in the eyes of photographers Updated: 2016-10-19 07:00 (chinadaily.com.cn) A whale in the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia, in 2006. [Photo by Wally Hayes/Provided to China Daily] They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. It can be in their camera lens as well. A new photo album called 100 Photographers Focus on Canada celebrating the nation's natural and cultural beauty made its debut at the Canadian International School of Beijing on last week. The book, compiled by China Daily, consists of about 300 photos from more than 140 Chinese and Canadian photographers. It displays Canada's charms from flaming maple leaves, dreamlike aurora borealis and rainbows over the Niagara Falls to the joyful interaction between humans and animals and the everyday lives of Canadians of all ages. Xi's trip advances key economic corridors Updated: 2016-10-19 07:39 By Wang Yuzhu(China Daily) Bangladeshi President Abdul Hamid, right, holds a welcoming ceremony for visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping in Dhaka, Oct 14, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] President Xi Jinping has just concluded a trip to Cambodia, Bangladesh and India, during which he participated in the BRICS Summit in Goa, India, at the weekend. From the perspective of geopolitics, this was an important diplomatic activity that deepened China's bilateral ties with the three countries, which are all important for the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative. It was also a trip that resulted in concrete achievements as China and Bangladesh agreed to deepen strategic partnership of cooperation and 31 cooperation agreements were signed with Cambodia, most of them in infrastructure construction and industry. These achievements are important for advancing the ChinaIndochina Peninsula Economic Corridor, and the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor. They are also the realization of China's latest efforts in carrying out the Belt and Road Initiative from the angle of bilateral partnerships and border-region cooperation. In a China-Cambodia joint communique, the two sides agreed to accelerate the effective integration of Cambodia's Rectangular Strategy with China's Belt and Road Initiative. For this, the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding regarding bilateral cooperation for the Belt and Road Initiative. This is the second bilateral cooperation agreement between China and a country in the Indochina Peninsula, after the one between China and Laos. In Bangladesh, a series of bilateral cooperation agreements were signed on industrial cooperation, information communication, energy and electricity, diplomacy, disaster-prevention and control and climate change, among other things, within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. Xi also attended the launch ceremony of some important bilateral cooperation projects. Bangladesh is located where South Asia joins Southeast Asia, an important intersection in the Belt and Road Initiative. The Belt and Road Initiative can be effectively integrated with Bangladesh's foreign-bound strategic cooperation, so as to create new opportunities for win-win cooperation between China and Bangladesh. The best thing about science is that it's all about solving mysteries. A new one comes from the world of archaeology and it's already making headlines around the world. Evidence suggests Xi'an's fabulous 8,000-man, 300 BC terracotta army may have been influenced by ancient Greek sculptures, the headlines read. "The figures' startlingly lifelike appearance could have been influenced by the arrival in China of ancient Greek sculptures," the Guardian reported. Greek sculptors themselves may have made their way to teach their techniques, one of the researchers suggested. The scientist cited DNA evidence that Europeans were mingling genes in Xinjiang in the second century BC, when the Silk Road officially opened (1,500 years before Marco Polo hit it), so the time frame can be nailed down. Li Xiuzhen, an archaeologist at the Xi'an site, said, "We now think the Terracotta Army, the acrobats and the bronze sculptures found on the site have been inspired by ancient Greek sculptures and art." There's apparently no prior tradition of Chinese artisans making life-sized human figures, but new ancient artifacts are turning up in China all the time and remember archaeology's cardinal rule: Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. Professor Lukas Nickel, chair of Asian art history at the University of Vienna, told Fox News that "the massive employment of sculpture in the mausoleum is totally unprecedented in the Chinese tradition" making it "likely that the skills necessary came not from China but from the outside". Nickel also had some written evidence in the form of a record written about 100 years after the death of Emperor Qin, the ruler the 8,000-man terracotta army was crafted over four decades to protect. "It states that the first sculptures the emperor made were intentional copies of other figures the Chinese had found at the Western end of the Chinese world," he said. A few days after the article went viral, Li Xiuzhen refuted the report, saying her remarks had been taken out of context and clarified to Xinhua. "I think the terracotta warriors may be inspired by Western culture," she said, "but were uniquely made by the Chinese." Looking ahead - Oct 19 Updated: 2016-10-19 17:20 (China Daily UK) Events and stories coming up in the next few days Gallery earns Time Out shortlisting The University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies is celebrating the shortlisting of its Brunei Gallery in Time Out magazine's Love London awards. The gallery, which is dedicated to promoting culture and stories from Asia, Africa and the Middle East, was named among the best venues for local culture in central London.The overall winner from the shortlisted candidates will be announced next month. UK delegates on Tianjin trade visit Representatives from UK businesses will be in Tianjin on Wednesday for a seminar organized by the British Chamber of Commerce in China and the China-Britain Business Council. Delegates will visit the Dongjiang Free Trade Zone, where they will learn about business opportunities for UK companies. The zone has 7,300 tenants and is northern China's main international shipping and logistics hub. China insights for creative companies The UK Department for International Trade and the arts production company Curated Place will share advice and tips with creative companies interested in international work, trade and investment at Bury Art Museum on Thursday. Penny Wang-Orme, an expert on trade with China, who works for the department, will deliver a lecture. She is a graduate of the Beijing Institute of Business and has worked in a range of sectors, including aerospace, automotives, oil and gas, food and drink, and home products. The museum is on Moss Street, Bury. Textile makers head to Shanghai The British Textile Machinery Association is leading a group of exhibitors to the ITMA ASIA expo, which is being held at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre from Friday to Tuesday. Companies involved in the textile industry, carpet makers and equipment producers are taking part in the exhibition. US official pushes for IMF reform, praises the AIIB Updated: 2016-10-19 10:46 By Chen weihua in Washington(China Daily USA) A senior US Treasury official expects the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to eventually have a chief from outside Europe. Nathan Sheets, the US undersecretary of treasury for international affairs, was talking about IMF reform on Tuesday when he was asked if the IMF managing director could come from an emerging economy such as China and Brazil. "I do expect that in the not too distant future, there will be discussions of managing directors from other parts of the world. And I think that is altogether appropriate and the way it should be," he said at a talk at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. He said the goal would be to find the most qualified and effective people to continue to move forward in the senior leadership of the IMF. As a tacit agreement between the US and European nations, the IMF has always been headed by a European while the World Bank is presided over by an American. That has raised eyebrows over the years when emerging economies seek to have more of a say in international financial institutions. "My sense is very much that the managing director at the IMF must be chosen based on competence, on experience and on the broad set of qualities and attributes that person brings to the table," Sheets said, praising the current managing director Christine Lagarde, a Frenchwoman, as being "exceptionally effective in that position". After a five-year delay and a harsh warning from Lagarde, the US Congress approved the IMF 2010 quota and governance reforms last December. The reforms doubled the IMF's permanent resources and gave greater voice to emerging markets and other underrepresented countries. The reforms preserved US voting share. "The 2010 reforms made important progress, but we are not finished reforming the fund," Sheets said, adding that the US is working to further modernize the IMF's system of governance and improve its capacity to deal with evolving challenges. He said that as emerging economies grow, they desire and deserve a greater stake in the institutions at the center of the global economy. "We believe that further enhancing the voice of emerging markets at the IMF is necessary to preserve the legitimacy and effectiveness of the institution," Sheets said. "Emerging markets comprise an increasing share of the global economy, and we should incentivize them to embrace greater responsibility to contribute to global economic prosperity through cooperative policies," he said. Sheets dismissed the notion that the US saw institutions such as the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) as a threat to US influence in the international financial system. "But we have been clear that the US stands ready to welcome new institutions into the international architecture, provided that they share the international community's strong commitment to sound governance principles and high social and environmental standards," he said. The US government drew sharp criticism at home and abroad early this year for its efforts to dissuade its allies, such as the UK, Australia and South Korea, from joining the AIIB. The efforts, which failed, were attributed to the fact that Congress would not grant the money needed for the US to join AIIB, according to former US treasury secretary Larry Summers. chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com Malan Breton Born in Taiwan, Malan Breton designs are considered among the 300 most recognized luxury brands in the world and the 24th most famous celebrity from Taiwan in the world. Malan Breton is worn by A-list celebrities, including Scarlett Johannson, Ariana Grande, Michael Buble, and Fan Bing Bing, and has costumed AMCs Breaking Bad, NBCs Minute to Win It, and more. His work has been featured in Vogue, ELLE, WWD, COSMOPOLITAN, W Magazine, Vanity Fair, and on Alist red carpets, including the Academy Awards. Malan is also the 2016 winner of the FGI Rising Star for menswear, and is an official Taiwan Tourism Ambassador of 2016-2017. Photos by Hezi Jiang. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan on October 19 received Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United Arab Emirates to Armenia Jassim Mohamed Al Qasemi, press service of the Government told Armenpress. PM Karapetyan said closer ties have been established between Armenia and the Arabic world, and based on that the intergovernmental relations are successfully developing. The PM said Armenia-United Arab Emirates high level dialogue enables to raise the bilateral economic ties to a new qualitative level for which sufficient potential and opportunities exist. In this context PM Karapetyan attached importance to develop the activity of bilateral intergovernmental joint commission. Ambassador Jassim Mohamed Al Qasemi congratulated Karen Karapetyan on his appointment, wished him success. He expressed confidence the productive cooperation between the Governments of two states will develop and will be strengthened. The sides agreed that although in recent years the bilateral ties are dynamically developing, and an increase in the trade turnover volume has been recorded, it is necessary to make additional efforts for further expanding and deepening them. Issues related to the cooperation prospects in agricultural, food industry, tourism, infrastructures and other sectors, as well as involvement and promotion of investments were discussed at the meeting. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan on October 19 held a meeting with His Holiness Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II, press service of the Government told Armenpress. PM Karapetyan expressed gratitude to His Holiness Garegin II for visiting the Government and said he attaches a great importance to state-church cooperation. His Holiness Garegin II wished the Prime Minister and the newly appointed Cabinet members success and productive work for the benefit of countrys prosperity, overcoming the difficulties, reaching new achievements. Thereafter, the sides discussed a number of issues related to further strengthening the state-church relations. YEREVAN, OOCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. The leadership and the opposition achieved a final agreement in parliamentary debates over a disputable provision in the bill on amending the Electoral Code, ANC faction leader Levon Zurabyan told reporters. False announcements will be differentiated, meaning announcements made negligently and intentionally will be differentiated, because if the announcement was made intentionally, let them initiate criminal responsibility, and if it was made negligently, we plan fines up to 800 thousand AMD or up to 2 years imprisonment. This means people will be held accountable for by fines for criminal negligence, Zurabyan said. Asked whether this means the leadership has agreed to the oppositions demands, he said this is a compromise between the 5 factions. We can say we achieved a mutual-concession solution, not that our proposal was accepted, he clarified. BRUSSELS - China and the European Union (EU) on Tuesday hailed the outcomes of a high-level trade dialogue in Brussels. The sixth China-EU High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue was co-chaired by Chinese Vice Premier Ma Kai and European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen. Ma said the dialogue, since inception nine years ago, has played an important role in promoting bilateral economic and trade cooperation. The sixth dialogue held on Tuesday deepens mutual trust, promotes pragmatic cooperation, and actively implements the agreements reached during the 18th China-EU summit and the G20 Hangzhou Summit, Ma said. Under the theme "strengthening policy coordination, promoting sustainable growth," the sixth dialogue highlighted topics on macro-policy coordination, the Belt and Road Initiative and the China-EU connectivity on development strategy. At the Dialogue, China and the EU reached consensus on cooperation on digital economy, third-party market and intellectual property rights. China and the EU should further coordinate on macro-policies and join hands in developing their economies, Ma said, adding that they should also enhance cooperative work on trade and investment. The Chinese official also proposed the two sides accelerate the connectivity of development strategies, so as to push for economic and trade cooperation in various fields. China and the EU should embrace the New Industrial Revolution for innovation and sustainable growth, Ma noted. Ma pointed out that as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the EU should fully fulfill its obligations under Article 15 of the Protocol on China's accession to the WTO. Article 15 requires WTO members to stop using an alternative calculation method in anti-dumping investigations against China after Dec 11 this year. Stressing that the EU pays high attention to the trade dialogue with China, Katainen said the bloc is willing to strengthen coordination on macro-policies with Beijing and will make efforts to fulfill the obligations aforementioned. Ma also met with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Tuesday. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. A helicopter of the Uzbekistan Defense Ministry crashed in the Fergana region, killing nine people including six servicemen, Armenpress reports, citing Sputnik, local media reported on October 19. According to the national Uzbekistan television channel, a Mi-17 (NATO reporting name "Hip") helicopter crashed on Tuesday due to a technical failure. Three crew members and six servicemen of the ministry were killed in the crash. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan left on a working visit to the Kingdom of Netherlands on October 19 to participate in the Summit of the European Peoples Party (EPP) which will take place on October 20 in Maastricht. As Armenpress was informed from the press service of the Armenian Presidents Office, the Heads of States and Governments representing political parties that are members of the EPP from the EU member states and Eastern Partnership countries are invited to the Summit. Russian and Turkish Presidents, Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, exchanged views on the Syrian settlement and discussed the operation to liberate Iraqs Mosul, the Kremlin press service said on Tuesday after a telephone conversation between the two leaders initiated by the Turkish side, TASS reported. October 19, 2016, 10:06 Putin, Erdogan discuss Syrian crisis, operation in Iraqs Mosul The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group are scheduling a working trip to the South Caucasus region later this month. October 19, 2016, 10:19 OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs planning regional trip STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 19, ARTSAKHPRESS: Speaking to APA News Agency, the Russian co-chair of the mission, Ambassador Igor Popov, said that they are planning to visit also Nagorno-Karabakh. We will visit Azerbaijan and Armenia, and will be in Karaabkh. Meetings with the countries leaderships and military officials are on the agenda. We are planning to consider the implementation of the agreements reached at the Vienna and St Petersburg summits. The ambassador added that their talks with Armenian and Azerbaijani top officials will focus on the future of the peace process based upon the earlier working proposals. We will finalize the military situation in the conflict zone, which we consider relatively calm after the April events, he added. On October 19, Arthur Tovmasyan, Head of the Free Motherland party at the NKR National Assembly, received a group of students of the Shoushi University of Technology, who practiced in various leading universities of the Republic of Armenia. October 19, 2016, 14:18 Arthur Tovmasyan received a group of students of the Shushi University of Technology STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 19, ARTSAKHPRESS: Arthur Tovmasyan asked the students about the experiences and knowledge gained during practice and noted that practical knowledge is very important for the acquisition of professional qualifications. All the necessary conditions are being created in Shoushi Technological University for practical and relevant knowledge," said Tovmasyan. At meeting, students talked about their knowledge received during the practice. According to them, the practice gave not only an opportunity to acquire new practical knowledge, but also gave new impetus to the growth of interest in learning and mastering new professional skills. In an interview with Artsakhpress, Tovmasyan stressed the importance of such events and noted that they will have periodic nature. "Once a week I give lectures at Shoushi University of Technology, and convey my professional knowledge to the new generation, he says. Paylak Martirosyan, a student of Shoushi University of Technology, told that they visited laboratories of leading universities of Yerevan and studied methods of modern education. "We have also received assignments for working within the framework of joint projects," said the student. The Dean of the Faculty of Engineering Technology of the University of Shoushi, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor Rudolf Israyelyan, in his turn, noted that they are establishing close ties with leading universities of different countries. Specialists, invited from abroad, regularly gave lectures at university and with such initiatives our university will be one of our leading universities in the region, said Israyelyan. Please turn JavaScript on and reload the page. Loading... Checking your browser before accessing the website. This process is automatic. Your browser will redirect to your requested content shortly. Please wait a few seconds. Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan welcomed His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians to the Office of Government, press service of the Government informed. October 19, 2016, 15:53 Prime Minister Meets with Catholicos Karekin II of All Armenians STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 19, ARTSAKHPRESS: Thanking His Holiness for visiting the Government, the Premier said he attaches great importance to cooperation between the State and the Church. His Holiness wished the newly appointed prime minister and cabinet members every success and fruitful work on their way to ensuring overall well-being for the people of Armenia, defying challenges and recording ever new achievements. Prime Minister Karapetyan and the Catholicos of All Armenians took the opportunity to discuss further consolidation of Church-State relations and other issues of topical interest. Peter was in the engine room of education reform as the tuition fee free policy rolled out in 2012. In a conversation with the Development Policy Centres Grant Walton, Peter reflected on the magnitude of the challenge that faced him and his colleagues, and some of the ways they coped with the complexity, long hours, and even offers of bribes, as they oversaw the roll-out of this large-scale policy. As statistical manager with PNGs National Department of Education, Peter Michael Magury who currently works with the PNG National Research Institute (NRI) is well positioned to answer this question. WHAT does it take to implement the biggest education reform in Papua New Guineas recent history? One of the key challenges the Department of Education faced in implementing the tuition fee free policy was the short timeframe in which they needed to deliver it. Prime Minister Peter ONeill announced the policy in August 2011, which caught the Department by surprise theyd been planning to increase student enrolments much more slowly. Despite this, the response was quick: by January 2012 the Department had released a policy outlining how the policy would be administered. This time pressure jolted many in the Department into action. To get subsidies for enrolled students out to schools before the start of the school year, Peter and his colleagues spent long days and nights at the office.; Department officers took turns sleeping at their desks (often without pillows or blankets) while working through the night. Sorting through payments for thousands of schools across the country, Peter barely saw his family. Dedication of this kind is not generally associated with the PNG public service, but on this occasion many Department of Education staff went to extraordinary lengths to get funding to schools. The tight timeline also made explaining the policy to key stakeholders difficult. This resulted in confusion, particularly amongst school management and parents. Peter devoted a lot of time to explaining how the payment would be calculated and how much schools should expect. Yet a number of schools failed to provide enrolment details on which the subsidy payment were to be based, making it difficult for the Department of Education to get funding to schools. Despite these challenges, according to Peter three-quarters of all schools registered with the Department had their funding delivered before the start of the school year, a figure that rose through 2012, the first year of implementation. With the promise of more funds and confusion about how subsidies would be calculated, some principals and school managers thought they could influence their allocation. Peter said: There were a lot of demands coming from principals, and schools board of management. Sometimes they wanted to get the school fee urgently. And so they would try to give you some money to speed up the process or inflate the fees, so they would get more money. Despite this pressure Peter insists he did not accept cash for inflated enrolment counts which would result in higher payments; however he believes many others have been seduced by the lure of a quick kina. The revelation that subsidies worth K50 million were paid to ghost schools was, he believes, caused by high levels of collusion between education officials: People in the district, and the province, they knew that those schools were closed or suspended, they still submitted the census forms to get more funds. They also knew that schools without school codes are not registered schools. For Peter this collusion wont be broken until the government gets serious about monitoring every level of school administration from national education policy makers and Department officers to principals at the remotest schools. Monitoring is important, but ultimately Peter believes that the threat of mismanagement and corruption can be best addressed by one thing: honesty. Producing more honest bureaucrats, he suggests, will require more stringent recruitment processes, ethics training, and better rewards for merit-based performance. It can also be helped along through redesigning government administrative systems. Despite many challenges, Peter insists that the tuition fee free policy contributed to improved accountability of school funds. When the policy was first implemented, Peter helped set up a system for paying schools their subsidies into bank accounts a key feature of the policy. Previously schools received funding through sub-national administrations. Peter argued that paying schools in this way significantly improved the management of school funds, as it cut out the potential for mismanagement through the government system. Peter suggests that reason the policy was initially able to deliver funding to the vast majority of schools across the country was the alignment of political goals and administrative capabilities. Peter ONeills buy-in was critical in ensuring resources and maintaining momentum. The capacity of the Departments staff built over a number of years to implement these changes and communicate their importance to a range of stakeholders was also important. While Peter is cautious about generalising beyond his experiences, his insights suggest that, for those seeking to implement such nation-changing policies, political buy-in is important but it is not enough. Such reforms require an extraordinary effort from a determined and committed bureaucracy. The bureaucracy overseeing these reforms needs to be able to ensure good enough rather than perfect governance. Things will go wrong when implementing a policy of this size and complexity, but keeping an eye on the broader objective in this case increasing student enrolment and getting enough funding to schools on time is crucial. In addition, the experiences of the policy shows that big, bold policies can given the right circumstances be rolled out quickly and (mostly) effectively in PNG. First-hand accounts such as Peters are rare but important if the policy community is to learn from what was initially at least one of PNGs few good news policy stories. In a country where there are many policy failures, its important to document the mechanics of success, especially given that, in the case of the TFF, some aspects of this success are being eroded. Peter Michael Magury is a research fellow with the National Research Institutes Universal Basic Education Research Program. He worked with PNGs Department of Education from 2002 to 2013. Grant Walton is a research fellow with the Development Policy Centre at the Australian National University HCM CITY More and more retailers in the country are shaking hands with big e-commerce companies in order to widen their businesses while ensuring cost savings. Experts say that this is an unavoidable trend as e-commerce is strongly developing in the country with many websites, mobile applications and social networks currently set up. A report from the E-commerce and Information Technology Department shows that in 2016, 34 per cent of companies are selling their products on social networks. Many traders and shop owners have also developed phone applications, the report said. In 2014, the volume of websites having phone applications was 15 per cent. It jumped to 21 per cent in 2015. However, not all retailers, especially the small ones, can afford this investment. Instead of pouring a big amount of the money into developing websites or mobile applications, traders choose to co-operate with big e-commerce companies as the latter will help them to manage and sell products on their platforms and marketplaces. The co-operation is a smart choice as it helps them to widen distribution while saving investment costs. Currently, the biggest online-shopping company, Lazada, has signed contacts with 40 retailers to distribute their products on their website. Lazada said the co-operation would benefit all: consumers, Lazada and retailers. Alexandre Dardy, CEO of Lazada Viet Nam, said the co-operation would help retailers to widen their distribution throughout the entire country, including remote places, thanks to a strong network. This was a chance for them to reach 47 million customers of Lazada, he added. Shopee, a mobile shopping app, has officially been launched and has attracted many shops and retailers. Last year, Sendo, an e-commerce company, together with Bizweb developed an application, offering a market place for shop owners. Zalo also launched a service to help shoppers sell their products. Talking about the effectiveness of the co-operation, a representative of Kid Plaza said his company had 55 supermarkets in the whole country and they now focus on e-commerce. After three months of shaking hands with Lazada.vn, this companys growth has reached 200 per cent per month. Nguyen Hong Phong, an amateur shop owner who co-operates with Shopee, said he came to the company without previous knowledge in e-commerce. With the support of the company, especially Shoppe university, which is a training programme where sellers can pick up key skills, it helped me become a successful entrepreneur with more than 100 orders per day, he said. VNS HA NOI The Government will submit a tax reduction plan to the National Assembly (NA) this month, which aims to meet targets of increasing the number of efficient enterprises in the country to one million by 2020. Pham inh Thi, director of Ministry of Finances Tax Policy Department, said the tax reduction plan was part of a Government draft resolution on clearing obstacles to boost the development of enterprises, which would be tabled during the NAs second session that starts on October 20. Under the draft plan, the finance ministry proposes to cut corporate income tax for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as start-ups from the current 20 per cent to 17 per cent between 2017 and 2020. Thi estimated that the tax reduction would lead to an insignificant drop in State budget revenues. It would reduce by approximately VN473 billion (US$21.11 million) per year if based on the current Law on Corporate Income Tax, according to which firms with a turnover of less than VN20 billion per year were exempted from the tax. The revenue drop would be as much as VN1.5 trillion per year if the draft Law on Support for Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises was passed as it decrees that firms with turnover of less than VN100 billion were exempted from the tax. "However, if the tax cut policy is approved, it will ensure that there are thousands of newly established enterprises every year," Thi said. "The contribution of these new firms to the State budget will help offset the revenue drop and over time will increase the State budget revenue." So far, to meet the target of increasing the number of efficient enterprises in the country to one million, the Government has issued a resolution on supporting and developing firms till 2020 and asked the Ministry of Planning and Investment to create a law that supports the growth of SMEs. In the draft resolution, the finance ministry also proposes to allow enterprises to use profits from their real estate projects to offset losses in other industries and sectors. Thi said the Government wanted to encourage firms to invest in agriculture, a vulnerable sector because of its dependence on the weather. The proposal to allow the use of profits from real estate projects to offset losses in other sectors would encourage companies to invest in the agriculture. ang uc Thanh, chairman of HCM City Economists Club and member of the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI)s Executive Committee, said meeting the one-million target by 2020 would be tough. To do that, he said, the country needed the comprehensive and thorough participation of all ministries, sectors and localities so as to build a conducive business environment that would create a start-up revolution in Viet Nam. Besides building a favourable business environment, Thanh recommended that the Government should encourage competitiveness by supporting the set-up of co-operation chains. Firms themselves, however, also would have to restructure to become more competitive, he said. As per statistics from the VCCIs Viet Nam Annual Business Report 2015, there were around 513,000 firms in Viet Nam at the end of 2015, which is very low when compared with the countrys population of more than 90 million. To meet the worlds average ratio, Viet Nam needs to have two million operational firms, VCCI said. Besides, the existing companies are also not doing well -- of the 513,000 firms, only 42 per cent made profits; the remaining broke even or make losses. The number of firms that had to shut down in the first nine months of this year was 8,365, up 20.2 per cent year-on-year, shows data from the Ministry of Planning and Investments Business Registration Management Agency. Most of these firms are small, with a registered capital of less than VN10 billion each. - VNS Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) receives Yoichi Kobayashi, Chairman of JCCIs Japan-Mekong Economic Cooperation Committee in Ha Noi yesterday. Photo VGP HA NOI Political stability, high growth and a quality workforce in Viet Nam are key reasons extending the Japanese investment wave from big corporations to small firms, a Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) official said yesterday. Yoichi Kobayashi, Chairman of JCCIs Japan-Mekong Economic Cooperation Committee, was speaking at reception hosted in Ha Noi by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. Kobayashi is heading a delegation of Japanese businesses visiting Viet Nam to explore investment and business opportunities. The fact that more than 1,600 Japanese firms had invested in Viet Nam indicated the importance they attach to doing business here, he said. Welcoming the delegation, PM Phuc suggested that the JCCI continues to support Japanese investment in Viet Nam, particularly in such sectors as electricity, agricultural machinery, agricultural and seafood processing, shipbuilding and environmental protection. He lauded the growing co-operation between the JCCI and relevant ministries and agencies of Viet Nam over the past years. Japan is at present the biggest official development assistance (ODA) provider for Viet Nam and ranks second among foreign investors with more than 3,000 projects worth US$42 billion. He assured the delegation that the Vietnamese Government would act on the proposals made by Japanese businesses, directing authorised agencies to deal with issues relating to tax, customs procedures, distribution and import of used machines. VNS Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) receives Bulgarian Economic Minister Bozidar Lucarsky in Ha Noi yesterday. Photo VGP HA NOI Viet Nam will support effective implementation of Bulgarian firms long-term projects in the country, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said yesterday. Receiving Bulgarian Economic Minister Bozidar Lucarsky in Ha Noi, Phuc expressed his wish that the two countries enhance economic and investment co-operation, as also boost commercial exchanges. While bilateral co-operation in economy and trade developed in recent years, it failed to meet expectations, Phuc said. Two-way trade turnover between Viet Nam and Bulgaria reached US$102.5 million in 2015. The Bulgarian minister agreed that economic co-operation between Viet Nam and Bulgaria did not match the potential. Addressing this was a main reason for his visit to Viet Nam, he said. He said he wished that Bulgaria would become a gateway for Vietnamese products to enter the European market and that Viet Nam returns the favour for Bulgarian products to enter Southeast Asia. He informed Phuc of the results of talks he held with Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh. The two sides have identified many orientations to boost co-operation in the coming time. Earlier yesterday, the Bulgarian Minister was received by National Assembly Vice Chairman Phung Quoc Hien. Hien hoped the Ministers visit would be followed by deals on goods, services and investments, boosting both economies and strengthening bilateral co-operation. On Monday, many entrepreneurs from both countries participated in a Viet Nam-Bulgarian business forum. VNS HA NOI Minister of Information and Communications Truong Minh Tuan has granted three giant mobile network operators licences to set up public telecommunication and provide 4G service on broadband 1,800 MHz. The operators are MobiFone Telecommunications Corporation, Viettel Group and Vietnam Post and Telecommunication Group (VNPT). It is estimated that more than 100 million mobile subscribers of the three mobile service providers will enjoy the services soon. Dong Soo Park, global marketing and sales general director of Samsung Networks, told local media that with the development of 4G service, Vietnamese customers would enjoy more value-added services. Its time Viet Nam developed 4G, he said. The permission for 4G service is part of the government-approved telecommunication development plan until 2020. In late 2015, Viettel piloted the 4G service in Ba Ria-Vung Tau and Ha Noi, while VNPT has been testing the service in HCM City and Kien Giang since January 2016. MobileFone also tested the service in the three major cities of Ha Noi, a Nang and HCM City. 4G, which is the fourth generation of telecommunication technology that is tens of times faster than the previous generation, has already been launched in several countries. According to the Department of Radio Frequencies, Viet Nam can only popularise the service from 2018. However, major telecommunication service providers said they could officially launch the service right after receiving the licences. Under the national broadband plan from now until 2020, the Vietnamese Government highlights the task of building and developing a modern and safe broadband infrastructure, which has large capacity, high speed and supplies multi-services to every place throughout the country. The plan emphasised 4G broadband infrastructure should cover 95 per cent of the population by 2020. The implementation of the most advanced broadband technology, such as long-term evolution (LTE), has received attention from both management agencies and telecom providers. The ministry has allowed businesses to carry out pilot 4G LTE programmes since 2010. Based on market demands, together with technologies, equipment and other conditions, the ministry granted licences for the pilot LTE and LTE-Adv networks to some telecom companies in various localities in the end of 2015. 4G LTE is a standard for high-speed wireless communication for mobile phones and data terminals, providing end users with mobile data service that is 10 times faster than 3Gs maximum speed. VNS HA NOI Some 800 small and medium sized gas trading companies have submitted a proposal to the Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh on gas trading requirements. They have asked to maintain the current regulations on requirements for gas trading under Decree No. 19/2016/N-CP. The businesses proposed that if the government reduces the requirements, they would claim compensation for the several billions of ong they had invested in gas infrastructure. Recently, several gas traders complained about shortcomings in the decree, leading to difficulties. They said the decrees regulations stipulating that gas companies have storage tanks and total LPG bottle capacities of at least 2.62 million litres were hard to fulfill, especially for those in remote and mountainous areas with low population density. Therefore, they asked for a review and amendment of the rules to facilitate trading as each gas company would have to invest VN25-30 billion (US$1.1-1.3 million) in the gas tank system when applying for a business licence. Le Xuan Tuyen, director of Viet Xo Gas Joint Stock Company in northern Thai Binh Province, said the company had to borrow a huge loan from banks to invest in the infrastructure to meet the requirement. The decree was promulgated on March 22, 2016, replacing Decree No 107/2009/N-CP on November 26, 2009, on gas trading to facilitate gas companies. Tuyen said the lower storage tanks and total LPG bottle capacities were one-third of what was stated in the previous decree. It meant that the decree allowed gas traders with low capacities to participate in the market, affecting other gas companies. Sharing his ideas, Nguyen Minh Chau, director of Thanh Hoa Petroleum Company, said smuggled gas trading is popular in the market. In case of a fire or explosion, it was hard to hold traders responsible for the violations. If the government continues to lower the business regulations, the ministry should consider compensating us for our loans from the bank for investment into gas infrastructure, Chau added. Le Khac Lam, director of Hoang Lam Transport and Trading Company, said the decree clearly stipulates the business models of gas importers, exporters, producers and processors, as well as distributors, agents and gas shops. It meant that companies could choose a business model suitable with their capacity. Lam said some agents could take advantage of the reviewed rules (if approved) to become distributors despite the lack of storage tanks and total LPG bottle capacities. It will be good if there are more number of traders participating in the market. However, those who do not meet requirements of infrastructure could cause unhealthy competition and be unsafe for customers, he added. He proposed that the government and the ministry maintain the conditions. In a conference held in Ha Noi last month, deputy minister Tran Quoc Khanh affirmed that the ministry has asked relevant departments to collect gas firms ideas to submit to the government for review with an aim to provide the most favourable business environment to the firms. VNS a Nang Viet Nam and the United States marked the start of the second and final phase of thermal treatments at the a Nang Airport yesterday to clean up dioxin contamination caused by US forces more than 40 years ago. This phase targets approximately 45,000 cubic metres of soil and sediment contaminated by dioxin (the defoliant also known as Agent Orange). The project is of great benefit to the people of a Nang and is of historic importance for the bilateral relationship. Attending yesterdays event, Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh said the ongoing project reflected a strong commitment of the two governments. We witnessed the first successful phase of the project, and the Government of Viet Nam urged relevant agencies to speed up the second phase and return a safe and clean space for a Nang City to build a second terminal at the airport in preparation for the 2017 APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation) Summit, Vinh said. I would say to the US President at the APEC Summit that the site, which used to be a former airbase and battle site, has been wiped free of dioxin contamination in a joint effort between Viet Nam and the US, he added. Vinh, who is deputy minister of the National Defence of Viet Nam, added that the airport would be used for the arrrival of top leaders from 21 member countries participating in the APEC event. He also said the defence ministry, in collaboration with the ministry of natural resources and environment and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) would continue a study of the dioxin-contaminated site at Bien Hoa Airport in ong Nai Province, as well as other spots in Viet Nam. Vinh said he hoped that the US Government would commit to the cleanup of Bien Hoa Airport which was an airbase during the American War. Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh and US Ambassador Ted Osius tour the thermal treatment system at the a Nang Airport. VNS Photos Cong Thanh US Ambassador Ted Osius and Vinh switched on the thermal treatment system with many US and Vietnamese Government officials, representatives of foreign embassies and development partners and media representatives in attendance. In a moment we will ceremonially start thermal treatment for the final batch of contaminated soil and sediment. I am encouraged by how this project continues to be a symbol of our honesty about the past, dealing with what remains, and turning an issue of contention into one of collaboration, he said. Both Vietnamese and Americans enjoyed the benefits of the growing friendship, Osius said. Osius reminded those present that during his visit to Viet Nam in May 2016, President Obama announced a commitment to partnering with Viet Nam to make a significant contribution to cleaning up dioxin contamination at Bien Hoa. He said both governments are reviewing the reports recommendations and developing a plan to address the contamination. In all, the Environmental Remediation of Dioxin Contamination at a Nang Airport will treat an estimated 90,000 cubic metres of contaminated soil and sediments to a level below the Government of Viet Nam standard of 150 parts per trillion. As scheduled, the second phase of thermal treatment is expected to be completed in mid-2017 with site restoration and demobilisation expected in 2018. The contaminated soil and sediment will be heated by 1,254 heating wells to a temperature of 335 degrees Celsius over four months, with approximately 95 per cent of the dioxin estimated to be destroyed within the structure. The five-year project draws on a total fund of US$84 million, of which VN35 billion (US$1.6 million) comes from the Vietnamese Government. VNS HA NOI Indonesian and Vietnamese painters are displaying introspective works at a joint exhibition in Ha Noi until October 30. Entitled "Contemporary Dialogue", the art exhibition features more than 40 modern paintings by 12 famous artists from the two countries. Speaking at the opening of the exhibition, Indonesian Ambassador Ibnu Hadi said, I am happy to see collaboration between Indonesian and Vietnamese artists. It reflects long relations between the two countries, not only in politics, the economy and business but also in culture and the fine arts. General Manager of Crowne Plaza West Hanoi, the exhibitions host, said that Contemporary Dialogue is a space of freedom where Vietnamese and Indonesian artists meet, break taboos, and confront viewers with works of great emotional intensity. This is a special exhibition that features cultural diversity. All these artworks are inspired by emotionally pictorial language. The artworks are filled up with a spirit of openness, and their non-binding order brings about a successful Contemporary Dialogue, Vietnamese artist Tao Linh, whose works are on display, said. For Indonesian painter Hadi Soesanto, who has travelled to Viet Nam a few times to display his work, the exhibition is a chance to create connection with local artists. For me, it doesnt matter if visitors purchase my paintings or not. Its more important that we can establish a link among regional and international artists, he said. For Indonesian artist Erica Hestu Wahyuni, the exhibition is for friendship, as she has joined her longtime Vietnamese friend painter Nguyen Ngoc an to unveil her latest paintings. We were roommates when we studied at the V. Surikov Moscow State Academy Art Institute, and weve been close friends for over a decade, she said. Although Wahyuni has visited Viet Nam several times, this is the first time she has presented her work here. Wahyuni fell in love with Viet Nam right in the first time she visited the country, and she hopes to open a solo exhibition in HCM City next year. Whenever Im here [in Viet Nam], I feel Vietnamese. I love this country and I want to show my art here, she said. The exhibition is at the Crowne Plaza West Hanoi, 36 Le uc Tho Street, Tu Liem District. VNS HA NOI The Viet Nam Journalists Association has launched the ASEAN One Community press photo contest, calling for the participation of members of press organisations from the ASEAN members. The event aims to enhance solidarity and unity, as well create a chance to exchange experiences among journalists and press organisations within the ASEAN community. The contest is also expected to reinforce the Confederation of ASEAN Journalists (CAJ) contribution to the regional development and its global influence. Taken within the three last months, the entries (which can be either colour or black and white), have to reflect the beauty of peoples life, customs, or traditional and modern cultures within the ASEAN community. Photos that express the close-knit relationship and solidarity among ASEAN members, for the common goal of a peaceful and prosperous ASEAN, are also eligible for the competition. Each entry must consist of a name and caption in English below 200 words, together with information about its author. The photo can be digital or panorama in either JPG or JPEG format with a minimum size of 1MB and a maximum size of 100MB. The deadline for submitting entries is November 10, 2016. The contest winners are expected to be announced by the end of this December. VNS WARSAW Hundreds of mourners including leading Polish artists and intellectuals gathered in a church in the heart of Warsaws historic centre Tuesday to pay their last respects to Andrzej Wajda, the Oscar-awarded legendary Polish filmmaker who died last week aged 90. Father Andrzej Luter, the Catholic priest leading the funeral mass, called the film director a "man of talent, a man of wisdom and a man of Poland". The phrase referenced Wajdas celebrated 1980 Man of Iron film, focused on the rise of Polands Solidarity trade union. Wajda left behind an opus of acclaimed films inspired by his countrys turbulent history. A large black-and-white photograph portrait of Wajda was perched on an easel in front of the altar where his steel urn stood. While top Polish artists and thinkers attended the funeral mass, ordinary residents also turned up to bid their final farewells. "I didnt know him personally, but thanks to his films, especially The Promised Land, I had the impression I knew him like a friend," Irena Dabrowska, a 40-year-old Warsaw seamstress said following the ceremony. Adam Michnik, editor-in-chief of Gazeta Wyborcza, Polands leading liberal daily, called Wajda an artist of "universal appeal", vehemently opposed to nationalism and anti-Semitism. Polish Film Institute director Jacek Bromski likened him to other late legends of world cinema. "After Visconti, Fellini, Kurosawa and Bergman, we have lost one of the last great national artists, the last of a generation that made cinema into a great art," said Bromski, who is also a film director. Wajda was close to Polands liberal opposition, currently locked in a bitter row with the rightwing Law and Justice (PiS) government over a string of legislative moves that critics allege undermine democracy. Wajda is to be laid to rest on Wednesday in the southern city of Krakow. He died on October 9 in a Warsaw hospital of lung failure after being in a medically-induced coma for days. AFP RIO DE JANEIRO The great skeleton of a humpback whale will greet visitors to the opening next month in Rio de Janeiro of South Americas biggest aquarium -- with sharks waiting for them inside. The November 9 opening in Rios port zone, part of the large-scale refurbishment of the city for the Olympic Games, will be Rios first aquarium and one of the biggest anywhere. The impressive whale skeleton is the remains of a whale found on the beach at Macumba, in Rio, and had probably been killed in a collision with a ship, said marine biologist Marcelo Szpilman, who headed the AquaRio project. But the focus is very much on the living, both to show ocean wonders to an expected million visitors a year and to promote protection of vulnerable species. The five-story AquaRio has 1.18 million gallons (4.5 million litres) of saltwater collected by ship well off Rios polluted coast and kept under close observation once at the aquarium. A 66-foot (20-metre) tunnel of clear acrylic snakes seven metres under water will give visitors "a sensation of total immersion," Szpilman says. Sleeping with the sharks The stars of the show are sharks that swim around outside the tunnel. In what could quickly become a huge hit in Rio, visitors will also be able to bed down for the night. "The idea is for children from six years old to be able to spend the night with their parents and experience the feeling of being at the bottom of the ocean," Szpilman said. For visitors who want to get even closer, then swimming in the shark tank will be on the menu. But its not all about the 40 or so species of sharks. AquaRio will stock some 3,000 fish from 350 species in total, with a capacity of 8,000 fish. Szpilman said 90 percent of the specimens have been captured at sea and are of the types found ordinarily along Brazils coasts, often fished for eating. The point, he said, is to educate the public about the wonders on their doorstep "When you bring people to this extraordinary universe you inspire them to want to help conservation," he said. AquaRio also will host a research centre for the study of reproduction in captivity. The aquarium was built on a 130 million reais ($40 million) budget in four years as part of the revitalization of Rios ramshackle port area ahead of the Olympic Games that were held in August. It has a capacity of about 1,000 visitors an hour and will be open seven days a week. . AFP President Tran ai Quang presents the Military Exploit Order, first class to the Ha Noi armed forces yesterday. VNA/VNS Photo Nhan Sang HA NOI President Tran ai Quang has urged Ha Noi to train its regular and elite forces toward a robust, modern fighting capacity. Speaking at a ceremony held yesterday in Ha Noi to mark the 70th anniversary of Ha Nois armed forces, the president praised the outstanding efforts and achievements that the forces have made to the national defence. On the occasion, the Ha Noi armed forces received the Military Exploit Order, first class. President Quang said that current complicated global challenges place a huge duty on our forces to protect national independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity. He called it a top priority for the municipal military power to ensure safety for the city as well as the whole nation. "Ha Noi is the countrys administrative and political centre, and a hub for culture, education, science-technology, economics, and international trade. Therefore, it is imperative for the citys armed forces to guarantee safety for Party and State organisations," the President said. The President requested the armed forces to work with police to ensure social order and safety, and diplomatic activities while holding exercises to prevent disturbances and terrorism. He asked the capital city armed forces to give proactive and timely national security advice to the citys Peoples Committee, the city Party Committee, the Ministry of National Defence. The forces should be active in detecting plots and sabotage activities of hostile forces that are threatening the national security and socio-economic development, said the President. Established on October 19, 1946, the Ha Noi armed forces made significant contributions to wars against France and the US, especially the Ha Noi -ien Bien Phu in the air victory in 1972. After the countrys reunification in 1975, the forces have strengthened cooperation with relevant forces to defeat the plots of hostile forces and joined efforts to develop the society and the economy. VNS Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong meets voters in the capitals Tay Ho District yesterday. VNA/VNS Photo Tri Dung HA NOI Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong told voters in the capitals Tay Ho District yesterday that strengthening the Party and fighting corruption and wastefulness is a key, long-term task. Many resolutions adopted by the Party relate to Party building, but words must be accompanied by deeds in order to raise public trust, the Party chief said. The resolution adopted at the fourth plenum of the 12th Party Central Committee mainly focuses on how to prevent the degradation in political thought, morals and lifestyle, self-evolution and self-transformation, he noted. The most important job is to seriously observe discipline inside the Party, Trong said, calling on the people, the National Assembly and organisations to engage in supervising Party building. He reiterated that corruption is a national disaster and Party building must be coupled with combating corruption. Voters shared the view that corruption and other bad deeds are lingering in many sectors and need to be dealt with constantly and drastically. They suggested the legislature step up its supreme supervision over development investment and give due attention to sustainable development, environmental protection and poverty reduction in rural and ethnic minority-inhabited areas. Many expressed their concerns over environmental pollution and violations of food safety regulations. Regarding agricultural land reclamation, they called for policies to help farmers switch jobs and stabilise their lives. In reply, Party General Secretary Trong said such issues should be handled in a scientific and effective fashion. At the meeting, Ha Noi voters were informed about plans for the second session of the 14th National Assembly scheduled to run from October 20 through November 23. High on the agena will be law making and socio-economic issues, among others. VNS The second session of the 14 th National Assembly (NA) is set to open tomorrow, said Vice Chairman of the NA Office, Nguyen Manh Hung at a press briefing yesterday. Photo baogiaothong.vn HA NOI The second session of the 14th National Assembly (NA) is set to open tomorrow, said Vice Chairman of the NA Office, Nguyen Manh Hung at a press briefing yesterday. During the session, lasting through to November 23, the NA is expected to adopt four bills and one resolution, including the Law on Associations, the Law on Faiths and Religions, the Law on Property Auctions, the amended Criminal Code and the amended Resolution on Elimination and Reduction of Tax on Using Agricultural Land. NA deputies will also review thirteen bills, including the Law on Railways, Law on External Trade Management, Law on Supporting Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises, the amended Law on the Management and Use of State Properties, the Law on Compensation Responsibility of the State, Law on Legal Aid, and the amending and supplementing of some laws on investment and business. The Resolution on the issuance of electronic visas for foreigners travelling to Viet Nam will also be reviewed. NA deputies will also review, debate and give opinions on a number of socio-economic reports, including: a report on the socio-economic situation of 2016, and the objectives of socio-economic development for 2017; a report on the implementation of the 2016 national budget; the 2016 national budget estimates and proposal for 2017 national budget allocation; a report on mid-term public investment in 2016-20; and a report on the objectives and directions of mobilisation and the use of loans and management of public debts in 2016-2020. Other reports include those on handling environmental incidents and lessons, solutions to protect the environment; and on the East Sea issue. The NA will oversee the plan on implementing a national goal for developing rural areas. The NA will spend two and a half days for question time. NASC closes 4th meeting The fourth session of the 14th NA Standing Committee concluded in Ha Noi yesterday after six days of working. Speaking at the closing ceremony, NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan said the meeting took place in two phases from October 3-6 and October 17-18, with all the agenda completed. In the first phase, the committee discussed the preparations for the second session of the 14th legislature, as well as some draft laws and reports for submission to the NA. The top legislator stated that the NA Standing Committee approved the Prime Ministers proposal to appoint a new Vietnamese Ambassador to Laos for the 2016-2020 tenure, and the establishment of a group of female parliamentarians. The committee suggested the Government further improve the draft law on amendments and supplements to laws on business and investment as it fails to follow fully the Law on the Promulgation of Legal Documents. Most deputies also agreed on the necessity of promulgating a resolution on the granting of e-visas for foreigners as a way to promote tourism, the investment climate and international cooperation. - VNS Two of the Central New York Regional Economic Development Council's newest members will bring a Cayuga County perspective to the panel. Cayuga Strategic Solutions Executive Director Tracy Verrier and Currier Plastics President John Currier joined the regional council at different points over the past few months. Verrier, who succeeded Andrew Fish as the head of the Cayuga County Chamber of Commerce and Cayuga Economic Development Agency, filled the council seat previously held By Fish. The work of the regional council is nothing new to Verrier, though. When Fish was Cayuga County's lead representative, she was a staffer and worked on various council initiatives behind the scenes. Verrier said in an interview that moving from her role as an outside observer to having a seat at the table has been a different experience. "I was always looking at it from an implementation standpoint and now I'm looking at it from a visioning and decision-making standpoint," she said. "That's a much stranger transition than I expected it to be." While Verrier brings an economic development perspective to the council, Currier offers a different view. Currier said it was Fish who asked if he would be interested in joining the panel. He went through the lengthy vetting process and was officially appointed to the council over the summer. Currier Plastics has benefited from the regional council's work before. The Auburn company received $1 million in 2011 for an expansion project. "We've been fortunate to be on the receiving side of some economic development assistance," Currier said. "We've seen where we felt the program worked very well for us and where we felt there was some need for improvement. From that perspective, I think I can offer some insight." One critique shared by Currier and Verrier is the timeliness of the awards. Companies slated to receive funding are left waiting for financial assistance, which can delay projects. Currently, the state's consolidated funding application is due in late July. The councils are tasked with reviewing and scoring projects. The central New York council recently issued its progress report, which includes its priority and strategic projects for 2016. But the 10 regional councils throughout the state won't know until December whether any or all of the projects will receive funding. That's when the state will hold an awards ceremony to announce the winning regions. All regions will get funding, but some will get more than others. The purpose of the regional council process is to make it easier for businesses to get help, but ultimately it's the state that must award the money. And that can take time. "When applications are due versus when they're awarded is not really on a business cycle," Verrier said. "Those are all things that we're aware of. It's the reality of what we have right now. We have to make that work, but is there room for improvement in the time frames for these things? Yes." Currier echoed that sentiment. "We're stewards for the taxpayers' money and I take that very seriously. But we also have to respond to the needs of the businesses that are looking for benefits because, quite frankly, it's a competitive market out there. If we don't, somebody else will." The regional councils launched in 2011. Central New York's panel is led by CenterState CEO President Rob Simpson and SUNY Upstate Medical University President Dr. Danielle Laraque-Arena. HA NOI The Ministry of Health has requested hospitals to tighten their regulations on the transfer of patients for treatment at clinics outside the hospital and have proper punishments for violations. According to Deputy Minister of Health, Nguyen Viet Tien, inspections, monitoring and information from patients show that after initial examination and diagnosis, many public hospital staff deliberately recommend patients have treatments at other hospitals or clinics. In a directive sent to directors of centrally run and provincial hospitals, as well as heads of local health departments on Monday, the ministry clearly stated the situation and asked for tough measures to rectify it, in order to ensure the safety of patients and minimise risks that may arise when patients have treatment at inadequate medical facilities. The ministry asked the heads of hospitals to seriously direct, review and take strict disciplinary actions against the doctors and medical workers illegal introductions and transfers, as well as strengthen the management of patients examinations and treatment at their hospitals. Hospitals suffering severe overloads can transfer their patients to other medical facilities that are their local satellite units if the units meet the requirements of professional skills, equipment and infrastructure. The Ministry of Health requested hospitals to have a contractual responsibility and develop mechanisms on the management of patients between hospitals and satellite units. VNS HA NOI Local authorities have been placed on full alert for typhoon Sarika, which is predicted to make landfall in areas from Quang Ninh to Hai Phong at around 4pm today. The storm was located 330km southeast of Quang Ninh-Hai Phong provinces at 4pm yesterday, with wind speed at the eye of the storm reaching 135km per hour, according to the National Hdyrometeorological Forecast Centre. The storm keeps moving north and north-west and is expected to weaken into a low tropical pressure in the next 36 hours. Torrential rains and strong winds were forecast to strike the northern provinces due to the storm. Downpours of up to 200mm-300mm are expected in Hai Phong City, Quang Ninh and Lang Son provinces. Some localities experienced rain starting yesterday due to the impact of the storm. Strong winds of up to 90km per hours were recorded in some areas of Quang Ninh province. Storm precautions Deputy Prime Minister Trinh inh Dung yesterday visited Hai Phong city and Quang Ninh province to inspect preparations for the storm, asking local authorities to take preventive measures and do everything in their capacity to deal with the typhoon. The Peoples Committee of Hai Phong, which is forecast to be directly hit by the storm, held an urgent meeting on Monday to discuss measures to cope with the storm. Committee Chairman Nguyen Van Tung called on all available forces to move vessels and fish cages to safe places and banned all operation of vessels starting at 5pm yesterday. The evacuation of people from high risk areas had to be completed by 3pm yesterday, he said. The city plans to allow all students to be off from schools today. Authorities of the northern province of Quang Ninh yesterday called on all departments, agencies and localities to cancel unnecessary meetings and focus on measures to cope with the storm. Local authorities have called on all vessels operating offshore to find safe shelter from the storm and temporarily stopped allowing vessels to sail for fishing or to take tourists to Ha Long Bay and its islands. The provincial Peoples Committee set up seven task forces chaired by the Committee Chairman and Vice Chairmen to directly oversee prevention measures ahead of the storm. The High Command of Border Guard reported that as of 6am yesterday, border guards of coastal localities from Quang Ninh to Khanh Hoa contacted and provided updated information and guidance for 70,739 vessels with more than 288,000 people on board. Flood recovery Meanwhile, authorities in the central region are dealing with the consequences of heavy rains and floods that battered the region late last week. Heavy rains and floods have claimed 29 lives and injured 30 others in the provinces of Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue, while one person was still reported missing, according to the latest report from the National Steering Committee for Storm and Flood Prevention and Control. The disaster destroyed 26 houses, damaged 1,015 houses and submerged nearly 1,800 others in these localities. More than 1,0181ha of rice were flooded and over 3,600ha of crops were damaged. Quang Binh provincial workers cleared debris and carcasses of pigs killed by floods at the farm of ang Thi Anh, in Thuan uc Commune, ong Hoi City. Anh lost 1,200 pigs va 700 chicken in the floods. Anh: Manh Thanh-TTXVN Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong on Monday arrived in Ha Tinh to check and guide measures to help local people deal with the flood impact. The Ministry of Health supplied affected localities with 400,000 tablets of Cloramin B, 200 doses of medicine and sterilising liquid. Electricity of Viet Nam said that the group fixed problems caused by rains and floods and resumed power supply to the central provinces of Nghe An and Thua Thien-Hue. Individuals and organisations nationwide are lending a helping hand to rainstorm-struck residents in the central region. The Office of the Party Central Committee yesterday raised a total of VN450 million (US$20,450) in support of the victims. At the event, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong also expressed his sympathy for the affected families. At the Presidents Office, President Tran ai Quang, Vice President ang Thi Ngoc Thinh and staff donated at least one-day of salary towards the fundraising. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc also launched the campaign at the Government Office and urged individuals and organisations nationwide to join in the effort. The Viet Nam Red Cross Society President Nguyen Thi Xuan Thu (R) receives donation at the launching ceremony of SMS campaign to raise funds for the flood victims yesterday in Ha Noi. Photo VNRC The Viet Nam Red Cross Society in collaboration with the National Humanitarian Portal, launched an SMS campaign yesterday to raise funds for the flood victims. People can support the campaign by texting UH to 1404 from yesterday until December 16, 2016. Each SMS costs VN18,000 (US$0.8). It is expected to mobilise at least VN3.5 billion (US$157,000) from donors. According to the Viet Nam Red Cross Society, more than VN20.6 billion (US$896,000) have been mobilised from organisations, agencies and individuals to support areas affected by flooding. Many localities, organisations and individuals also donated safe water, drinks, food and other essential goods for flood victims. Leaders of HCM City and the Viet Nam Fatherland Front yesterday visited the four central provinces. A total of VN10 billion (US$448,000) and 800 gifts each worth VN1 million ($45) were given to affected families. Vietnam Airlines yesterday announced that it had offered to transport relief goods across the country to flood-hit provinces free of charge. Flights by Vietnam Airlines, Jetstar Pacific and VASCO that depart from Ha Noi and HCM City to the four central provinces prioritised relief goods in their freight compartments beginning yesterday. - VNS BA RIA-VUNG TAU The helicopter that went missing yesterday in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau was found this morning with the bodies of all three military officers on board. The deceased are Captain Duong Le Minh and two pilot trainees, Lieutenant ang inh Duy and Lieutenant Nguyen Van Tung. The helicopter was located at Yen Ngua Pass on Bao Quan mountain, which is part of Dinh range in Tan Thanh District, the investigation unit of the provinces Military Command said. The districts military command and forest ranger forces worked together to bring the bodies down from the mountain. The crash site has been barricaded and the cause of the accident is being investigated. The three officers were out on a routine flying exercise and were using helicopter 8632 EC130 T2, which belonged to the Ba Ria-Vung Tau Training Centre of the Vietnam Helicopter Corporation. After 15 minutes of flying, the helicopter lost communication with its control centre. It was later reported to have crashed in the Dinh mountain. VNS HA NOI The Directorate for Roads of Viet Nam has proposed to spend VN35 billion (US$1.6 million) to upgrade the Quang Binh stretch of the Ho Chi Minh Highway. The proposal was made to reduce floods and traffic jams on the stretch during the rainy season. The project will be supported by the Governments Road Maintenance Fund for 2017. According to the directorate, the Quang Binh stretch of the highway, from km909 to km912 in Thuong Hoa Commune, was opened for use in 2003. The stretch is 7m wide, with both sides surrounded by mountains. A gully, which is some 20m wide and 10m long, lies on the right side of the stretch. Every year, during the rainy season, water overflows from the gully and inundates the stretch, making it dangerous for people and vehicles, in addition to causing traffic jams. To improve the situation, the proposed budget will be spent on lifting the stretchs foundation, improving the drainage system and widening the gully, the directorate said. The directorate ordered Road Management Department II to conduct regular patrols and direct traffic on the stretch when floods occur. Following the heavy rainfall on October 13-16, Le inh Tho, deputy transport minister, surveyed and evaluated the conditions of several stretches of the Ho Chi Minh Highway and the National Route 1A where floods often take place. The ministry plans to ask concerned authorities to replace the hard traffic separators with the soft ones so that water can be drained more easily. VNS HA NOI Minister of Information and Communications Truong Minh Tuan today decided to temporarily suspend the editor-in-chief and the deputy editor-in-chief of online newspaper infonet.vn. The suspension of editor-in-chief Vo ang Thien and deputy editor-in-chief Pham Thanh is valid for 15 days. It aims to help clarify their responsibilities to journalism faults that were recently found on the newspaper. The minister also assigned Nguyen Van Ba, a deputy editor-in-chief, to lead the online newspaper during those 15 days. Earlier this month, Nguyen Nhu Phong, editor-in-chief of news website petrotimes.vn, was dismissed from his position and had his press card revoked for violations in journalism activities. The ministry decided to temporarily suspend operations of petrotimes.vn for three months. VNS HA TINH National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan yesterday visited and presented gifts to flood victims in Huong Khe and Vu Quang districts the areas most vulnerable to flooding in the central province of Ha Tinh. She asked local authorities and relevant agencies to ensure sufficient water supply and environmental hygiene, affirming that the Party, State, authorities, agencies and army stand with the people. Le Quang ang, a disabled veteran from uc Huong Commune, Vu Quang District, said thanks to updates from the media, the local Party and authorities have made thorough preparations so that the locality reports no human loss. Ngan informed them that the National Assembly Standing Committee held a fundraising event for flood victims in the central region at its recent fourth session. At the 14th NAs second session slated for October 20, the legislature will continue raising funds in support of the victims, including those in Ha Tinh. Major General Nguyen Tan Cuong, Military Region 4 Commander, said more than 1,000 officers and 1,500 soldiers have been deployed for recovery efforts. Military Region 4 has also transported over 4 tonnes of food to local residents. On the occasion, Ngan visited the construction site of Ngan Truoi Cam Trang irrigation system. The past floods killed six in Ha Tinh, submerged 108 communes and wards with more than 30,100 households damaged, with agriculture, transport and irrigation also impacted. VNS HA NOI The Ministry of Health (MoH) has increased the Zika virus warning to level 3 - the dangerous level, Tran ac Phu, director of the Preventive Medicine Department, announced in an urgent meeting held in Ha Noi on Monday. In a meeting aimed at finding measures to deal with Zika-related diseases, Phu warned that women intending to get pregnant should avoid affected areas. If they must go there, the women should take preventive measures and study the disease, he said. Pregnant women especially those in the three first months of the pregnancy who have been in the affected areas and had dengue fever and conjunctivitis should go to medical stations for consultancy, Phu said. At the meeting, health experts called the Zika virus a complicated global virus. More than 70 countries and territories have seen cases. On October 11 this year, the World Health Organisation (WHO) warned that Zika had spread to Southeast Asia; seven out of 10 countries in the area had the disease. By Monday, seven Vietnamese cases of the disease were reported in Khanh Hoa, Phu Yen and Binh Duong provinces and HCM City. Suspected microcephaly case reported Last Friday, the MoH supervision system discovered a four-month-old baby in Krong Buk District, ak Lak born malformed with an unusually small head, suspected to be a case of microcephaly caused by Zika virus. The National Institute of Hygiene And Epidemiology is joining Japans Nagasaki University to conduct tests on the case. The MoHs study showed that the mother had dengue fever in the third and the sixth months of the pregnancy. The dengue fever condition in their living area was quite serious. So far this year, the Krong Buk District had nearly 300 cases of dengue fever, ranging across all seven communes. It is a 400 per cent increase compared with the same period last year. A representative from the MoH said that the disease caused by the Zika virus had spread in Viet Nam. Next time, more cases with innate malformations and small head could be discovered. The symptom of unusually small craniums can be seen in from one to ten per cent of newborns delivered by mothers contaminated with Zika virus in three first months of their pregnancy. But abnormal head sizes can be caused by other reasons, for instance, due to Rubella virus, syphilis bacteria, malnutrition and heredity. VNS LILLE, France French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said on Tuesday the demolition of the "Jungle" migrant camp in Calais would take place "within days" after a court rejected a last-ditch bid by charities to block it. Cazeneuve told parliament that talks with Britain on taking in some of the hundreds of unaccompanied minors living in the camp that want to join relatives across the Channel were "proceeding very smoothly." A group of 14 teenagers arrived in Britain on Monday, with dozens more set to follow in the coming days as French authorities prepare to bulldoze the camp in northern France. Cazeneuve pledged that all remaining migrants at the site, currently occupied by around 5,700 people according to official figures, would be given "dignified" shelter. Earlier Tuesday, a group of French charities failed in their last-ditch legal bid to save the camp, which has been a magnet for migrants trying to reach Britain by stowing away on trucks heading across the Channel from Calais. A court in the nearby city of Lille rejected their claim that dismantling the Jungles maze of shacks and tents was "an attack on the fundamental rights" of the migrants there, mostly Iraqis, Afghans and Sudanese. The court ruled that the evacuation was intended to end the "inhumane and degrading" conditions they endured, by moving them to shelters around the country. Under pressure to relieve pressure on Calais, French President Francois Hollande last month vowed to close down the Jungle by the end of the year. Several sources have said the operation could start next week. The camps demolition will remove a source of embarrassment for the Socialist government and will be welcomed by truck drivers and the port operator. Crime has also flourished in the makeshift settlement. A female interpreter was raped while working with a television journalist in the camp on Monday night, investigators said. The pair, who were working for France 5, were attacked by three knife-wielding Afghans, one of whom forced the woman who is also of Afghan origin into having sex, the prosecutors office in nearby Boulogne-sur-Mer said. A search was under way on Tuesday for the suspects. At another, smaller camp some 60km from Calais, a migrant died on Tuesday from his injuries a day after a clash erupted between groups from Ethiopia and Sudan, local authorities said. While the mans death was the first in the Norrent-Fontes camp, home to some 150 to 200 people, the Jungle has seen similar fatalities in recent months. Most of the 33 migrant deaths in the Calais region since January 2015 have been caused by road accidents, with many losing their lives as they attempted to climb onto lorries heading towards Britain under cover of night. Shelter sought The Jungle has been a constant source of tension between France and Britain. The pace of transfer of child migrants to Britain picked up this week after Paris demanded that London show more solidarity with minors who make the perilous journey to Europe alone, in the hope of joining relatives across the Channel. But the French governments relocation plan still faces challenges at home, with residents of several towns and villages chosen to host migrants protesting at their impending arrival. A shelter in Forges-les-Bains, about 30km south of Paris, was torched last month to try to thwart the arrival of a group of Afghans. Two other centres one in the southeast of the country and one in the west have been targeted by gunshots this month. AFP UNITED NATIONS, United States The UN Security Council agreed on Tuesday that a new UN mission for Colombia could continue to monitor a ceasefire despite a referendum vote rejecting the peace deal. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos last week extended a ceasefire with the countrys FARC guerillas until December 31 and said he hoped to have a new agreement for peace before that date. The council "welcomed the parties continued commitment to uphold the ceasefire," Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters following a closed-door meeting. He said the council had received a request from the parties "for the UN mission to monitor and verify the bilateral ceasefire" and that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon would present recommendations on that mechanism. Council members "encourage the parties and all political actors to continue momentum in the peace effort," said Churkin, who holds this months council presidency. In a presentation to the council Jean Arnault, the UN chief of the mission in Colombia, emphasized the countrys broad consensus on maintaining the bilateral ceasefire, highlighting the populations dedication to preventing a return to violence. The victory for the "No" vote in the October 2 referendum was a stunning setback to a nearly four-year effort to end Latin Americas last major guerrilla war. Former President Alvaro Uribe who led the main opposition campaign against the peace accord said on Tuesday he would be willing to meet with the guerrilla group to negotiate an end to the conflict. The right-wing hardliner had condemned the rejected agreement for letting rebels, even those guilty of gross human rights violations, escape jail time and run for elected office. AFP The Biocomplexity Institutes Research Symposium on Nov. 1 will feature an array of groundbreaking discussions, poster presentations, and networking opportunities with top researchers in the biocomplexity field. Lunch will be provided to all registered participants, and festivities will conclude with an open wine and cheese reception featuring poster presentations by more than 40 Virginia Tech research teams. Online registration is open through Oct. 30. President Emeritus Charles Steger and Vice President for Research and Innovation Theresa Mayer will deliver the keynote address, with opening comments by Chris Barrett, executive director of the institute. The keynote will feature a discussion about the universitys research mission and the institutes integral place in that mission. Panel discussions about the institutes research will follow, highlighting the molecules to policy theme. Democrats are once again tying U.S. Rep. John Katko to Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in a television commercial airing throughout the 24th Congressional District. The ad, which was released by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Tuesday, claims Katko, R-Camillus, "hitched up" with Trump when he told WSYR in May that "whoever the Republican nominee is I'm gonna support." The commercial follows a similar ad unveiled by Democratic challenger Colleen Deacon's campaign seeking to link Katko to Trump. The DCCC's ad goes further. It features clips of Trump making sexist comments about women and pledging to defund Planned Parenthood. The commercial also includes Trump's comments about U.S. Sen. John McCain, a Navy veteran who was a prisoner during the Vietnam War. Trump said of McCain: "He's a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren't captured, OK?" "Katko put politics first when he jumped on the Trump bandwagon and left central New York far behind," the ad's narrator said. Earlier this year, Katko said he would support the Republican presidential nominee. When Trump became the presumptive nominee, he backed off his pledge and expressed concerns about the GOP presidential candidate's tone and policy positions. Katko took a definitive position on Trump within the past couple of weeks. He won't vote for the Republican presidential nominee. That announcement came after a video was released showing Trump making sexually aggressive comments about women. The 24th Congressional District includes all of Cayuga, Onondaga and Wayne counties, plus the western portion of Oswego County. Election Day is Nov. 8. UPDATE: Chris Pack, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, issued a statement responding to the DCCC's new TV ad. "With Election Day less than 3 weeks away, has Colleen Deacon come up with a plan yet to keep Americans safe since she says it is her top priority? And is Deacon still searching for a single issue where she would break with Nancy Pelosi and Washington Democrats?" 00:30 Wet weather to impact Melbourne Cup Weather forecasters are predicting the coldest Melbourne Cup for a quarter of a century as an icy blast is set to hit Melbourne. 01:21 Sydney to host The Big Dance today A new Sydney horse race is being added to Melbourne Cup Day. 00:34 Lula da Silva wins Brazilian election The leftist former president Lula da Silva narrowly beat incumbent right-winger Jair Bolsonaro in the second-round run-off of the Brazilian presidential... 01:56 Calls for more defence assets in Darwin There are calls for more defence assets to be based in northern Australia as tensions rise in the Indo-Pacific region. 00:38 Not going anywhere: Jacinda Ardern dismisses quitting rumours New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has dismissed rumours she'll quit politics ahead of next year's federal election. WATERLOO A boy was taken to the hospital after he was struck by a pickup truck while crossing the street Tuesday night. The boys name and condition werent immediately available, but police said the 7-year-old was unconscious when they arrived and had suffered life-threatening injuries. Waterloo Fire Rescue paramedics took the child to Covenant Medical Center. He was later flown to Iowa City Hospitals and Clinics. The accident occurred shortly before 6 p.m. Tuesday in the 700 block of West 11th Street. The truck was headed north on West 11th when the child stepped in front of the vehicle, according to police. The childs family lives nearby, and relatives told police he was headed to a friends house. CLARKSVILLE A Clarksville man is alive because smoke alarms woke him to a fire at his house early Monday. I heard the smoke detectors, which I thought at the time was my alarm clock going off. I reached over and shut my alarm clock off and I still continued to hear this high-pitched beep, said Rex Ackerman. Ackerman, who was home alone after his wife stayed in Illinois following a wedding there, sat up in bed and noticed something didnt smell right. I stood up into a haze of smoke, ran down the hallway and down the steps, Ackerman said. He found his cellphone, despite the fact the fire had knocked out the power so the lights didnt work. He fled out the back breezeway door and called 911. Outside, clad in only his underwear and clutching his phone, Ackerman watched his dream home burn to the ground. The whole front of the house was engulfed, and then it just spread so rapidly. There was a 15 mph south breeze, and once the windows started to break out, it just got all the air it needed and it just went, Ackerman said. Firefighters from the Clarksville, Allison and Shell Rock responded, but the fire had too much of a head start. All that remains is a front porch that leads to a foundation filled with burnt timbers. Almost two days later, small patches of smoke still wafted in the wind. The cause hasnt been determined. An insurance investigator surveyed the damage Tuesday. Ackerman runs Orlys Meat Market, Locker and Deli in Clarksville and is seeking re-election to the Butler County Board of Supervisors following his first term. He and his wife bought the house at 20671 Quail Ave. about 12 years ago. It had been a rental, and they set about restoring it with a goal of bringing it back to its original condition. It was our dream, and we spent six months completely remodeling it, gutting it and putting all new everything in, Ackerman said. Its beautiful. We love this location. They are now living at a hotel in Allison but would like to rebuild. The community support has been overwhelming. I think Monday alone I had 33 places offered to me to stay. Ive had people bring be clothes, Ive had people offer me vehicles to food to you name it, Ackerman said. HUBBARD A former Iowa state trooper has been charged for allegedly failing to report a second job while collecting workers compensation for a duty-related injury. Lance Below, of Hubbard, was charged with first-degree theft on Wednesday in Hardin County District Court. Court records allege he was overpaid $26,604 from the state and the claims management company that is contracted for state employee workers compensation. Below joined the Iowa State Patrol as a trooper in May 2005 and was assigned to Post 9 in Cedar Falls. In July 2012, he was working an accident near Iowa Falls when he stepped in a hole and rolled his ankle, court records state. Despite four surgeries, he wasnt able to return to full duty and rounded out his service with the Iowa State Patrol on May 2014 on alternative duty. As a trooper, he was paid workers compensation through a fund managed by Sedgwick Claims Management that covers 66 percent of his wages with the remaining 33 percent coming from the state through his sick time benefits. After his ankle reached its maximum improvement in December 2014, the state discontinued paying its share, and Below began working as a dispatcher at J&T Logistics in Hubbard. Below then challenged the doctors determination that his ankle had reached maximum improvement, and he found another physician who suggested fixing it with another surgery. He then requested to be put back on the states payroll. When that happened, he allegedly didnt notify the store or Sedgwick that he continued to hold his second job, which would have reduced his compensation, according to court records. When Below finally left employment as a trooper on Sept. 16, 2015, his annual salary was $62,753.60. WATERLOO Our Islamic Center here is awesome, Madam Secretary. That was the message the Rev. Wendi Gillan of St. Timothys United Methodist Church delivered to former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright during a town hall meeting at the Masjid Al-Noor Islamic Center in Waterloo on Wednesday morning. The statement reflected support after the center was vandalized over the weekend. It also was a testament to the strength of the local inter-faith community. It was a message Albright heard throughout her 40-minute stop. Albright was campaigning for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, but when she learned about the vandalism at the center, she added a stop to hold an informal discussion about what it is to be Muslim is America. I really do think it is in communities that, here in America, people can understand each other as people and as believers in the commonality of what we all do, and how we treat each other, and what America is really about, Albright told about 30 people. Though Albright emphasized Clintons campaign message of stronger together, it was less a campaign stop and more of a listening session. The center was spray painted with the name of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, who has called for a ban on Muslims coming into the country. At Wednesdays session, there was much discussion about what this election means for people of faith. I hate to say this. I dont like this election at all. I love politics. This is a hideous election in so many ways, because it is done specifically to divide us. Theres just no question, Albright said. But first, she asked about the impact of the vandalism. That event shook us, our kids, our families, but what shook me more is the overwhelming support from the community at large, said Dema Kazkaz, president of the Islamic Center. Elizabeth Collins of Waterloo said she believes the hateful rhetoric and the bigotry people see in the media helped foment the vandalism. There have been no arrests. Waterloo police have been giving extra attention to the area. Republicans of Black Hawk County Chairman Scott Adkins condemned the vandalism. It becomes an issue when you have an overwhelming amount of media portraying something like Islam like its not, Collins said. You see more of the bad than you see more of the good. Kazkaz and Albright agreed the way to help change that narrative is for American Muslims immigrants and native born to share their stories. Kazkaz pointed to the joy Muslims felt at reading articles about Ibtihaj Muhammad, the American Muslim who won a bronze medal in fencing at this summers Olympics. Erin Maidan, a leader at the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Waterloo, told Albright about the local inter-faith groups peace tree project that included the signatures and support from a few thousand community members. Albright talked about her experience sitting next to a Trump supporter on an airplane recently. I thought, I cant talk to him anymore, and then I thought, Actually, I have to talk to him, Albright said. So, what has to happen after this is we actually have to do even more of what is going on in order to bring the country back to the country that we love and has treated all of us in our diverse ways as the strength of the fabric. She said she is very worried about what happens next after the election in three weeks, but she believes sharing those stories will be important. Members of the Islamic Center are worried whether the vandalism is an isolated incident. Thats the scary part will it continue? Thats what we are afraid of, said Zeeni Afridi, of Waterloo. Few in the audience mentioned Clinton by name, but it was clear they appreciated the power in the message stronger together. In the Jewish community, we know that if the Muslim community is under attack, so are we; we know that if they go after Muslim life, theyre going after our way of life too, Maidan said. And theres no separating that. WATERLOO Black Hawk County is heading back to the drawing board to replace its outdated jail security system. Members of the county Board of Supervisors voted 3-0 Tuesday to reject the two bids received Oct. 4 which exceeded the $1.7 million project budget. Sierra Detention Systems, of Brighton, Colo., and Stanley Security, of Noblesville, Ind., bid $1.88 million and $2.15 million respectively for the security system. The project also projected architectural and contingencies fees of $228,000 on top of the bids. This is the responsible thing to do when its that much over our budget, said Sheriff Tony Thompson. Building Maintenance Superintendent Rory Geving said county officials are meeting with the project consultant on ways to reduce costs and will be seeking to rebid the project in about six weeks. Geving said he hopes more companies will bid during the second process, as competition may lower prices. The computerized security system that controls some 320 door locks, intercoms, surveillance cameras, lights, toilets and more, was installed when the jail was built in 1995. Thompson has said the county urgently needs to replace the system before it shuts down and cant be rebooted. Its going to fail at some point, he said. The county budgeted to pay for the project with $750,000 of the countys general fund cash reserves and $950,000 of bond revenue leftover for other projects. WATERLOO A new poll commissioned by the House Majority PAC, a political action committee that helps elect Democrats, shows 1st District Democratic challenger Monica Vernon within 1 point of her opponent, Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Rod Blum. The poll shows Blum at 45 percent and Vernon at 44 percent, with 11 percent undecided. The poll conducted by Normington, Petts & Associates surveyed 400 registered voters in Iowas 1st District who are likely to vote in the Nov. 8 election. IA-01 voters are getting tired of Congressman Blums extreme, out-of-touch politics, House Majority PAC Communications Director Jeb Fain said in a statement. Democrats are increasingly well-positioned to win this competitive race come November. Iowas 1st District includes 20 counties in Northeast Iowa and the cities of Waterloo-Cedar Falls, Cedar Rapids and Dubuque. It has been considered one of the most competitive in the nation, as Blum is a first-term Republican in a Democrat-leaning District. But a poll by Loras College and one done on behalf of Blums campaign both have shown Blum leading. The Loras Poll from late last month showed Blum leading 45 to 38 percent, with 16 percent undecided. The House Majority PAC poll, however, sees Vernon has room to grow as the election approaches. It found Vernon, a former Cedar Rapids City Council member, is capturing 83 percent of the vote among Democrats, which is 9 points below Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton at the top of the ticket. It also noted of the 11 percent undecided, 26 percent are Democrats and 65 percent are independents, and those voters are more likely to support Clinton for president. The poll also found Blum is below 50 percent in measures of his share of the vote, favorability rating and job rating. Blums campaign, however, isnt concerned about the results from the poll commissioned by a Democratic group. Not even a questionable poll from (House Minority Leader) Nancy Pelosis liberal super PAC in Washington, D.C., can hide the fact that Congressman Blum is winning this race, said Daniel Sunne, Blum for Congress spokesman. Though every poll shows Congressman Blum ahead, we will take nothing for granted and will continue working hard through Election Day. The House Majority PAC poll was conducted on Oct. 10 and 11. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.9 percent. Presidents Xi and Vazquez also decide they will upgrade relations to a strategic partnership China and Uruguay have agreed to hold consultations on starting joint feasibility studies of a bilateral free trade agreement, diplomats confirmed. In a joint statement released after the meeting between President Xi Jinping and his visiting Uruguayan counterpart, Tabare Vazquez, the two countries pledged commitment to "pushing forward free trade partnership building". Additionally, the two leaders decided to upgrade the bilateral ties to a strategic partnership. Exports of agricultural and livestock products are an economic pillar of the country, which is south of Brazil. China, which has been Uruguay's top trade partner in recent years, is its largest buyer of beef, soybeans and wool. During the talks, Xi said both countries should optimize two-way trade and explore the services trade to boost trade growth. Vazquez said his country welcomed expanded investment by Chinese enterprises in Uruguay's infrastructure and is also willing to embark on discussions about an FTA. Zhu Qingqiao, director-general of the Foreign Ministry's Department of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs, said the upgraded ties and consensus on studying an FTA were the political and economic highlights of Tuesday's talks. "The two countries are highly complementary to each other on the economic front, and both countries agreed to embark on consultations at an early date for initiating negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement," Zhu said. Vazquez has been making a state visit to China from Oct 12 until Thursday. The two leaders witnessed the signing of more than a dozen documents on outcomes in areas including visa facilitation, industry, agriculture, customs, defense, culture and sports. Tang Jun, deputy head of the Institute of Latin American Studies at Zhejiang International Studies University, said an FTA "would help diversify two-way trade, lower the trade threshold and particularly facilitate Uruguay's exports to China". An FTA also would help boost investments in Uruguay by Chinese, Tang said. The upgrade of the bilateral ties is "a natural outcome", since the two countries' cooperation has great diversity, and the evolving ties can also be seen as part of the developing China-Latin America relationship, Tang added. Chinese Ambassador to Uruguay Dong Xiaojun said Beijing is also focusing on cooperation in such areas as production capacity, new energy and infrastructure. "China will continue to encourage powerful and qualified Chinese enterprises to invest in Uruguay," Dong said before Vazquez's visit. "The two countries are highly complementary to each other on the economic and trade fronts." zhangyunbi@chinadaily.com.cn Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has a sizable lead over Republican nominee Donald Trump in New York, according to a new Siena College poll released Wednesday. Clintons lead is 24 points, 54 to 30 percent. Shes supported by 79 percent of Democratic voters and 14 percent of Republicans. Among independents, her lead is 17 points -- 46 to 29 percent. Male voters prefer Clinton by a 50 to 34 percent margin. And the Democratic nominee holds a 31-point lead among women, 58 to 27 percent. New York is poised to be a blue presidential state for the eighth consecutive election, Siena pollster Steve Greenberg said. Clinton wins at least a plurality of the vote in each of New Yorks three geographic regions. In New York City, she leads by 56 points, 73 to 17 percent. She has a 9-point lead in the downstate suburbs and is up six points in upstate. New York voters view Clinton more favorably than Trump. The former secretary of states favorable rating is 52 percent -- twice as high as Trumps. More than two-thirds of voters -- 69 percent -- said they have an unfavorable view of Trump. His favorability among Republicans is 60 percent. One-third of GOP voters have an unfavorable view of their partys nominee. Both candidates continue to have trust issues with voters. Nearly 40 percent of respondents said they think Clinton is honest and trustworthy. One-quarter of voters said they believe the same is true of Trump. Regardless of who theyre supporting, a vast majority of voters agree that Clinton will be the next president. Seventy-nine percent of voters said Clinton is most likely to be the 45th president. Nearly all Democrats believe their nominee will win the election. A majority of Republicans -- 55 percent -- say Clinton will be the victor. DES MOINES - Members of the state Environmental Commission voted 8-0 Tuesday to deny an appeal by Cerro Gordo County officials to an Iowa Department of Natural Resources decision to approve construction of a hog confinement facility near Ventura. Also, the panel also adopted legislative changes to state regulations governing large-scale livestock confinement operations that drew praise from industry representative but displeased citizen and environmental groups that wanted tougher standards. During Tuesday's meeting, Cerro Gordo County Administrative Officer Tom Drzycimski said the proposal from River Edge Farms LLC to build a facility that would house 4,992 head of finish hogs near Ventura met all the requirements under a state master matrix for confinement animal feeding operation. However, Drzycimski said there were environmental, odor, health and other concerns that prompted the county Board of Supervisors to recommend denial of the application before DNR officials rejected the denial. Des Moines attorney Eldon McAfee countered the department had properly granted the permit and River Edge Farms owner Matt Roenfanz said he had not encountered any direct complaint about his planned facility. He noted he has operated a separate 6,000-head hog operation for 14 years without problems, and read a letter from state Rep. Terry Baxter, R-Garner, who lives near that facility, stating "I can vouch that it will be a top-notch operation with the best possible management." Before the commission vote, Drzycimski said there were concerned raised at an Aug. 16 public hearing about the environmental impact, particularly because of the proposed site's proximity to homes and nearby wildlife areas. He asked the commissioners to at least consider modifications or setting some conditions for the project if they rejected the county's appeal. Drzycimski said the county could appeal Tuesday's decision to district court, adding "We'll have to weigh our options and determine whether it's worth it to move forward with that." "Folks in Cerro Gordo County voiced overwhelming opposition to this massive hog factory farm. It's a major threat to water, public lands, and neighbors. We don't want it, and we are appalled that the DNR and EPC didn't respect our wishes," said Tom Willet, a member of Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement from Mason City. After the meeting, DNR Director Chuck Gipp said the state agency had no option but to approve the project because the landowner had complied with all the regulations. "Once they passed it, it was disingenuous to put it in our laps because we don't have any legal authority to do that once they approve the master matrix. We don't get to make the law. We follow the law." Gipp said that was the case for the confinement feeding operation rules as well, in which the commission approved changes supported by cattle, pork and farm organizations related to separation distances for livestock buildings, hauling dried nutrients for use as fertilizers and other changes enacted by lawmakers that the panel put into rules. But opponents said commissioners should close what they consider to be a loophole that confinement operations to build facilities in close proximity but keeping the numbers under the threshold triggering permit and design regulations. "The industry has had five years to implement best practices, but what do we see instead? Business-as-usual and voluntary compliance continues to be a colossal failure after two decades," said Cherie Mortice of Des Moines. Commissioners LaQuanda Hoskins and Joe Riding opposed the rules revisions with Riding expressed concern that lakes were no longer part of the definition for "public use area" which protects lakes from new factory farm construction. Hydrant flushing set for Thursday WATERLOO The Waterloo Water Works will flush hydrants Thursday in the area from Kimball Avenue to Hammond Avenue between East Ridgeway Avenue and East San Marnan Drive. Customers could experience water discoloration. The discolored water is bacterially safe. Breakfast with Mayor planned Saturday WATERLOO Amani Community Services will host a Breakfast with the Mayor event from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday at Mount Carmel Church, 805 Adams St. Speaker will be Mayor Quentin Hart, addressing domestic violence, its impact on the community and prevention, to mark October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Admission for the pancake breakfast is $7. After his talk, Hart will have a question and answer session, and there will be a silent auction to aid in expanding services for domestic abuse survivors. Amani Community Services is a nonprofit organization providing domestic violence and sexual assault services in Black Hawk and Linn County. Latino group to hold voter registration WATERLOO Latino Americans LULAC Council 370 is holding a voter registration drive from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday at La Michoacana, 1221 Franklin St. The voter registration drive is one of several initiatives LULAC of Iowa is undertaking as part of its 2016 Informed Voter Project. The nonpartisan organization created scorecards showing where candidates stand on various issues, from privatizing social security to ending private prisons. Ken Kammeyer for supervisor DAN PICKETT Bremer County Sheriff WAVERLY -- I am writing this letter to show my support for Ken Kammeyer in the upcoming election for Bremer County Supervisor. I have known Ken for more than 12 years and I'm glad he has decided to run another term. The word integrity comes to my mind when I think about what to say about Ken. He has the skills needed to manage as well as the knowledge for budgeting with the leadership and desire it takes to be a county supervisor. With his many years of business experience he has the ability to make common sense decisions that are fair and in the best interest for the residents of Bremer County. Ken truly cares about what happens here and I hope you will support him as I will in the Nov. 8 election. Vote Sadler MARIA MURPHY WATERLOO -- I have never seen a candidate work as hard as Bonnie Sadler. Bonnie has knocked on more than 20,000 doors. She's even been to my neighbors door more than once! When she's out door knocking she listens to Iowans, talks about her positive ideas for Iowa's future, and shares her concerns about the direction of state government. I know how much time she is spending out meeting voters at their doors, and how much she cares about Iowa, because she's my friend! I know Bonnie will serve us well in the Iowa Senate. Isn't this type of work ethic, accountability, and accessibility what we want in our representatives? Join me in supporting Bonnie Sadler! Vote Sadler CHRISTA WIARDA ACKLEY -- Dear Cedar Valley residents, the recent mailing that was sent out by the opponent about Bonnie Sadler and NuCara company is an insult to say the least. Professionally I have worked with both Bonnie and the company NuCara for many years, they are always putting the client first. Do you NOT realize that no matter what field of health care you are in whether private or for profit it is extremely difficult and all health care partners need to work together. Bonnie is an excellent health care partner and tries to figure whats best for the client. As far as the mental health facilities closing-it is a sad day and where are those folks going to live. Bonnie did not have anything to do with this however seems like her opponent did-voting on 3 occasions dating back to Governor Culver. Any one can slant the truth, however Bonnie Sadler and the NuCara company are professionally strong and has no slant on the truth and what they stand for. Letters to the Editor TPP: A bad idea RENATA SACK WATERLOO The proposed Trans Pacific Partnership, also known as TPP, in a nutshell is a very bad idea. There are layers of negative issues within this proposal, but maybe the most detrimental is the fact the U.S. would lose the right to settle disputes with its governments own laws. TPP would be ruled by something called investor state dispute settlement (ISDS), which would be allowed to challenge domestic laws that could impact their expected future profits. Under the existing NAFTA trade agreement, the ISDS has already been used by Trans Canada in June, suing the U.S. government for $15 billion over the blocking of the Keystone XL pipeline. We, the taxpayers, would be on the hook for that. Another example was when Vattenfall, a Swedish co-owner of a nuclear plant in Germany, under ISDS threatened to file a billion-euro lawsuit, when German Chancellor Angela Merkel, following the Fukushima disaster, immediately shut down several nuclear plants. The TPP significantly threatens U.S. environmental laws and life on this planet will become even more endangered. The candidates CHRIS SIMENSON DUNKERTON She lied about the Benghazi video; hes a bigot. She lied about sniper fire in Bosnia; hes a racist. She voted for Iraq war; hes a misogynist. She was broke when she left the White House; hes a xenophobe. She had an insecure server to avoid scrutiny; hes an islamophobe. She destroyed 30,000 emails; he has bad temperament. She called millions of Americans unredeemable deplorables; hes accused of sexual misconduct. She hit the reset button with Russia; he exaggerates. She supported Obamas withdrawal from Iraq and bombing of Libya; hes called women names. ISIS came into power during her tenure; he would work with Russians in Syria. She has called for open borders and amnesty for illegals; he wants Mexico to pay for a wall. She hides from the media; he attacks the media. She could not recall 21 times when asked about her private server; he is a sexist. She accepts money from dictatorships; he pays no taxes. She dismisses WikiLeaks as a Russian ploy; he has the Billy Bush video released a month before election. Shes rich; hes rich. She lies; he lies. Shes a politician; he is a businessman. Untrustworthy or boorish. Take your pick. Country at risk EDNA BRUNKHORST WAVERLY Independent voters are crucial in this election as they make up more than one-third of the electorate. They have no party affiliation, have no platform and yet have a vote, which is being sought by both of our flawed candidates for the presidency. The time has come for all good people to come to the aid of the country. These independent voters who profess a dislike for politics have a responsibility as citizens to pay their dues. They need to assess the platforms of each party and decide which one gets their votes. That sentence, The time has come for all good men to come to the aid of the country is not just a typing class assignment; it is a mandate for each and every independent voter because our country is at risk in a very serious way right now. past daily news Sep 13 (1) Sep 09 (15) Sep 06 (12) Sep 04 (10) Sep 03 (10) Aug 31 (17) Aug 29 (14) Aug 26 (13) Aug 22 (11) Aug 21 (12) Aug 19 (21) Aug 14 (6) Aug 13 (10) Aug 10 (10) Aug 08 (9) Aug 07 (10) Aug 06 (10) Aug 05 (8) Aug 03 (8) Aug 02 (7) Aug 01 (7) Jul 31 (14) Jul 29 (1) Jul 27 (7) Jul 25 (5) Jul 24 (10) Jul 22 (11) Jul 19 (16) Jul 17 (6) Jul 16 (10) Jul 15 (13) Jul 12 (7) Jul 11 (5) Jul 10 (8) Jul 08 (8) Jul 07 (3) Jul 06 (5) Jul 05 (8) Jul 04 (11) Jul 03 (8) Jul 02 (7) Jul 01 (5) Jun 30 (8) Jun 28 (7) Jun 27 (8) Jun 26 (7) Jun 25 (8) Jun 24 (6) Jun 23 (6) Jun 22 (9) Jun 20 (5) Jun 19 (9) Jun 18 (8) Jun 15 (9) Jun 13 (13) Jun 11 (11) Jun 09 (19) Jun 06 (10) Jun 04 (10) Jun 03 (8) Jun 01 (6) May 31 (5) May 30 (5) May 29 (6) May 28 (7) May 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Kirsten Gillibrand's push to establish a national paid family leave program has been endorsed by a prominent music streaming company. Spotify is throwing its support behind the FAMILY Act, a bill sponsored by Gillibrand, D-N.Y., that would provide up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave for employees. Gillibrand made the announcement following a roundtable meeting with Spotify employees at the company's New York City office. "Spotify's endorsement of the FAMILY Act is the latest example of a business recognizing that paid leave is a smart and pragmatic workplace policy," Gillibrand said in a statement. "Our current system is not working we are the only industrialized country in the world that doesn't guarantee its workers some form of paid leave." Gillibrand's bill would require employees and employers to contribute roughly $2 each week to fund the paid leave program, which would be managed by the Social Security Administration. Under the senator's proposal, all workers would be able to utilize the benefit. In an 2015 interview, Gillibrand said she believed paid leave was the top issue presidential candidates should be talking about on the campaign trail. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's plan is similar to Gillibrand's. It would offer 12 weeks of paid leave to care for a newborn child or a sick family member. Employees also would get 12 weeks of medical leave to take care of themselves in the event of a serious illness or injury, according to Clinton's website. Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, also rolled out a paid leave plan. His proposal would grant up to six weeks of paid time off for workers to care for a newborn child. This year's New York state budget included a provision that would lead to the creation of a state paid leave program. The plan was put forth by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. As Gillibrand and other Democrats have noted, the United States is the only industrialized country without a national paid leave program. But some companies have taken steps to provide paid leave to employees. Spotify is among those that have adopted a paid family leave policy. The company offers six months of paid parental leave to full-time employees. "While I fight to pass the FAMILY Act in the Senate, I hope more companies will follow Spotify's lead in the meantime and implement paid leave policies of their own," Gillibrand said. "I look forward to working with Spotify to help pass this bill and give every American worker access to paid family and medical leave." It's a project 15 years in the making. Sean Lattimore, owner of Springside Inn in Fleming, has been trying to build a larger hotel near Owasco Lake. It may become a reality after the Central New York Regional Economic Development Council designated the $8.7 million hotel one of its 2016 priority projects. According to a description provided in the regional council's 2016 progress report, the "upscale, mid-range boutique lake-view hotel" will have 55 rooms within three separate buildings. A bar and event facilities will be located on the grounds. The plan is to build the hotel on land across from Emerson Park near Owasco Lake. The facility would be located adjacent to The Point at Sand Beach, a former church that Lattimore also owns and runs as a banquet facility. The project is expected to create 30 new jobs. "Right now it seems everything is coming together," Lattimore said in an interview. Lattimore said he didn't want to build a large hotel near the lake. He preferred a boutique-style hotel with no more than 60 rooms. He believes that's a better fit for the landscape of the area. Cayuga County economic development and tourism officials are supportive of the concept. And it doesn't hurt that the regional council has endorsed the project and made it one of the panel's priorities for 2016. Tracy Verrier, executive director of the Cayuga Economic Development Agency and one of the county's representatives on the regional council, called the proposed hotel "an incredible opportunity." She said the hotel will not only help with the utilization of Emerson Park, but it'll also provide additional accommodations for people who attend events at venues such as Lattimore's Springside Inn. "We lose some of those people," she said. "There's just not a lot of options right there. They may be going to Onondaga County, Ithaca, Geneva. This is a great opportunity to capture some of those folks as well as those folks visiting the lake. "It will be higher end in its build and its service. It's just a fantastic opportunity to get more traffic along the lake." But first, Lattimore is hoping to secure the state's support. His company, S&B Lattimore, is seeking $1,743,322 from Empire State Development Corp., the state's lead economic development agency. The remainder of the costs will be covered by funds from lending institutions and private sources. "I think the state support is really what's going to allow us to get to that point," Lattimore said. "Just the belief from the state and the council's belief in the project is wonderful and the help there financially will be crucial to make sure that we get what I think our guests are looking for and what regional guests are looking for as well. "We have, in our mind, a really nice project there that, I think, could spark additional development and additional activity in and around Emerson Park." For now, Lattimore and local officials wait. The regional council released its progress report earlier this month, but the awards won't be announced until mid-December. Traditionally, a region's priority projects have received state support regardless of whether the council is selected as a top performer. Central New York is competing with nine other regions in the annual economic development competition. There is $750 million available to fund projects throughout the state. Canl Bahis siteleri sektoru son derece onu ack ve farkl ozelliklere sahip bir sektordur. Elbette bahis secenekleri arasnda yuksek kazanc getiren alan kuskusuz canl bahistir. Peki, canl bahis nedir? Canl Bahis Nedir? Canl bahis adndan da anlaslacag gibi devam eden musabakaya bahis yapmaktr. Bu bahis musabaka devam ederken de yaplabilir olmasdr. Basta futbol olmak uzere voleybol, tenis, hentbol, basketbol, buz hokeyi ve masa tenisi gibi spor organizasyonlarna canl bahisler yaplabilmektedir. Canl bahis siteleri bu oyunlarn hepsine yuksek oranlara bahis yapmanza imkan tanr. En fazla tercih edilen futbol canl bahisleri diger alanlara gore daha fazla on plandadr. Siteden siteye degisen sartlar ve uygulama esaslar soz konusu olsa da kurallar sabittir. Canl bahisi populer klan ve heyecan katan en onemli ozellikle musabakann basladg ana dek bahis yapabilmedir. Canl bahis icerisinde yer alan secenekler kazanma sansnz da dogrudan arttrmaktadr. Ilk korneri kim kullanr, ilk tac, gol, sar kart, krmz kart gibi futbol musabakas icerisinde olabilecek hemen hemen her seye bahis yaplabilmektedir. Normal bahisegore de son derece yuksek oranda olmas avantajl yonlerini ortaya koymaktadr. Nitekim dogru secenek ksa surede kazancl ckmanza etki edecektir. Strateji ve dogru analizle 90 dakika gibi bir surede anaparanzkatlayabilirsiniz. Tabi bunu basarabilmek icin mutlaka musabakaya dair ayrntlar iyi degerlendirmek gerekir. Soz konusu musabakann detaylarn inceleyip, cezal, sakat oyuncu veya performans dusen takm oyunu gibi detaylar bilmek canl bahiste kazanc belirleyen onemli unsurdur. Guvenilir Canl bahis hem heyecanl zaman gecirmeyi hem de musabakalar takip ederken para kazanmay saglamaktadr. Canl Bahis Nasl Oynanr? Bahislerinizi guvenilir sitelerden gerceklestirdiginiz zaman herhangi bir sekilde para cekme de sorun yasamazsnz. Guvenilir bahis siteleri tespit edip sonrasnda da uyelik islemlerini tamamlamanz gerekmektedir. Belirlenen uyelik sartlarn yerine getirip hesabnza da paray aktardktan sonra bahis islemlerini sorunsuz yapabilirsiniz. Peki, canl bahis nasl oynanr? Oncelikle bahis konusunda mutlaka dogru site arastrmas yapmalsnz. Yapacagnz arastrma neticesinde buldugunuz site uzerinden canl bahisislemlerini gerceklestirebilirsiniz. Bunun icin uye olup, hesaba para atp, canl bahis bolumune girmelisiniz. Sonrasnda dahil olmak istediginiz musabakann saatini ogrenip, gerekli analizleri yapmalsnz. Tahminlerinizi belirledikten sonra karsnza ckacak olan bahis sayfasndan istediginiz hamleyi yapmalsnz. Bahis tutarn belirledikten sonra musabaka baslayacaktr. Canl bahis diger normal bahis esaslarna gore farkllklar icermektedir. Bunlardan en onemlisi musabakann gidisatna gore islem yapabilir olmaktr.Ayrca musabakann 2. Yarsna gore hamle yapp ayr bir bahisin soz konusu olmas da ciddi avantajdr. Dogru hamle ile sizde istediginiz bahisi yapp kazanc elde edebilirsiniz. Nitekim canl olarak yapacagnz bahis icin mac oncesi raporlara gore hareket etmek onemlidir. Cunku takmlarn durumlarn analiz etmek tahmin gucunu arttracaktr. Misal tamnn en iyi oyuncusu sakat ya da kart cezals ise takmn performansnda dusus yasanacaktr. Buna ek olarak takmn deplasman performans ile evinde ki performans ayr olacaktr. Burada da takmn musabakay nerede yaptgna bakmak gerekir. Bu ayrntlar da iyice analiz ettikten sonra bahsinizi yapp kazanmann keyfini yasayabilirsiniz. Canl Bahis Siteleri Son derece yuksek getiriye sahip bahis sektoru uzun zamandr faaliyet gostermektedir. Cok ciddi rakamlarn soz konusu oldugu bu sektor zamanla sanal ortamlara donusmustur. Elbette guvenli ve bir o kadar da avantajl olan bu siteler cok yonlu frsatlar sunmaktadrlar. Canl iddaa siteleri gerek yeni uyelere gerekse de hali hazrdaki uyelerine bolca bonus frsatlar vermektedir. Yatracagnz tutara gore belirlenen bonuslar site icerisinde rahat hareket etmenizi de saglayacaktr. Canl bahis sitelerini kullanmadan once mutlaka guvenli olup olmadgna goz atmalsnz. Zira baz kullanclar guvenli olmayan sitelerden yaptklar islemlerden dolay magdur olmaktadrlar. Nitekim guvenli ve sorunsuz hizmet sunan yurt ds site tercih etmek en dogru secenektir. Sektorde uzun yllar faaliyet gosteren siteleri tercih edebilirsiniz. Bu alanda yer alan yabanc siteler musteri memnuniyetine onem vermektedir. Oncelik site kullanclarn sorunsuz sekilde bahislerini yapabilir olmasn saglamaktr. Bahis sitelerinde amac hem daha fazla kullancya hizmet vermek hem de sektorde emin admlarla ilerlemek onceliklidir. Dogru site tercihi ile sizde canl bahislerinizi sorun yasamadan gerceklestirebilirsiniz. Sizler icin hazrlams oldugumuz canl bahis siteleri listesi su sekildedir; Mobilbahis Tempobet Bets10 Bahigo 1xbahis Betboo Youwin Superbahis Sralams oldugumuz bu siteler sektorde basarl islere imza atms sitelerdedir. Canl bahis konusunda beklentileri karslayacak olan bu siteler sizlere kolaylk sunmaktadrlar. Bol bonuslu secenekle de sizlere farkl bahis yonlerini sunacaklardr. Sistemsel etki icerisinde her zaman etkin sonuc alabilmek icin surekli olarak faaliyet icerisindedirler. Canl Bahis Taktikleri Bahis sektorunun en fazla dikkat edilmesi gereken hususu dogru taktik ve dogru tahmindir. Elbette dogru tahmini yapabilmek icin analizi cok iyi yapmak gerekir. Canl bahis taktikleri arasnda ilk sra analiz gelmektedir. Analiz yapamadgnz zaman basarl tahminlerde bulunmanz pek de mumkun degildir. Cunku bahiste onemli olan konu musabakann analizini cok iyi yaplmas gerektigidir. Canl bahisin ozelliklerini iyi bilmek ve nasl bir hamle yapacagnz bilmek gerekir. Ozellikle riskli maclarda yaplacak degerlendirmeler cok daha onemlidir. Canl bahis yapacaklarn takip edecegi degerler takmlarn durumlar ile alakal olmaldr. Performans uzerine kurulu bahis sisteminde takm degerlendirmesine iyi bakmak gerekir. Iki takmn son 5 macta nasl bir sonuc ortaya koyduguna bakarak hareket etmek onemlidir. Ayrca hangi takm evinde daha iyi performans sergiliyor diye de ayrca bakmak gerekir. Analizlerle alakal puan durumlarna da goz atmak cok onemlidir. Puan degerlendirmesinde oncelikle takmlarn ihtiyaclar ile dogru orantl hareket etmek gerekir. Cunku olusturulan performans takmn da durumunu ortaya koymaktadr. Nitekim istenilen sonucu elde edebilmek icin tum ayrntlar bilmek gerekir. Takm ici duzenden tutunda da takmn son durumuna kadar her ayrnt onemlidir. Iki takmn birbirleri arasnda ki sonuclar da incelemek gerekir. Burada dikkat edilecek detaylarn basnda maclarda kac gol oldugu ve gollerin hangi dakikalarda atldgdr. Cekismeli gecen musabakalarda bazen goller ilk yarda daha fazla olurken baz maclarda da ikinci yarda daha cok gol olmustur. Iki takm arasnda ki maclarda gollerin cogunlugu ilk yarda geliyorsa buna gore bahis yapabilirsiniz. Canl Bahis Siteleri Bonuslar ve Kampanyalar Bahis yapanlar veya yapmay dusununler sitelerin sunmus olduklar frsatlar merak etmektedirler. Cunku siteler daha fazla kullancya erismek icin her donem kampanyalar duzenleyerek kullanc odakl hamleler yapmaktadrlar. Canl bahis bonuslar ve kampanyalar oldukca populer olup, siteler bu konuda adeta birbirleri ile yarsmaktadrlar. Birbirinden farkl ozelliklere sahip olan kampanyalar size frsatlar sunmaktadr. Daha cok kazanma ihtimalinizi arttran bu bonuslar daha cesur olmanza da dogrudan etki edecektir. Nitekim bonuslar sitelerin cekiciligini ve avantajlarn arttrmaktadr. En cok kazandran canl bahis siteleri bedava bonuslar ve kampanyalar icin http://www.milano2018.com/canli-bahis-siteleri-2022/ linkinden yardm alabilirsiniz. Hos geldin bonusu ile baslayan ve sonrasnda para yatrdkca bonus veren cok sayda site bulunmaktadr. Canl bahis bonusu veren siteler yeni uyelere sunduklar frsatlar farkl kampanyalarla mevcut uyelerine de sunmaktadrlar. Hali hazrda siteyi kullananlarn da bonus frsatlarndan yararlanmalar icin donemsel kampanyalar olusturmaktadrlar. Boylece baska sitelere gidisler olmayacag gibi site de daha keyifli zaman gecirmek mumkun klnmaktadr. Bu tur eklentiler yapan sitelerde musteri memnuniyeti daha fazladr. Bahis siteleri ozellik ve uygulama bakmndan farkllklar bunyelerinde bulundurmaktadrlar. Verilen bonuslarn olusturulmas ve kullanclar aktarlmasnda yatrlan para miktarlar belirleyici olmaktadr. 1.000 TL yatran bir kullanc yuzde 20 bonus frsat olan bir kampanyadan 200 TL bonus kazanabilmektedir. Yatracag tutar 10.000 TL oldugunda bu bonustutar 2.000 TL olabilmektedir. Gerceklesen ve uygulanan esaslar tamamen donemsel olarak yaplan kampanyalarla alakaldr. Iyi Canl bahis siteleri bonuslar ve kampanyalar icin sitelerin vermis oldugu oranlar takip edebilirsiniz. Canl Bahis Siteleri Para Yatrma Online Canl bahis yapacaklarn merak ettigi konulardan bir digeri de para yatrma islemleridir. Oldukca onemli olan bu konuda hata yapmamak cok onemlidir. Canl bahis sitelerine para yatrma islemi sanlann aksine son derece basittir. Oldukca basit ve uygulama esas dogru etki olusturan bu yapda sizde islemi rahatca tamamlayabilirsiniz. Para yatrma konusunda su yolu izleyebilirsiniz. Guvendiginiz ve herhangi bir sekilde aklnzda soru isareti kalmayan bahis sitesine uye olmanz gerekmektedir. Uyelik islemini sorunsuz sekilde tamamladktan sonra para yatrma islemine gecebilirsiniz. Kullanacagnz siteye uye olduktan sonra karsnza kullanc ad ve sifresini gireceginiz yer gelecektir. Buraya giris yaptktan sonra site icerisine islemlere devam edebilirsiniz. Sitede yer alan para yatrma sekmesine tklayp sonrasnda karsnza gelen sayfay inceleyebilirsiniz. Para yatrma bolumunde yer alan ksma ne kadar para yatracagnz yazp devam tusuna basmalsnz. Yatrmak istediginiz tutar girip sonrasnda da devam tusuna bastktan sonra karsnza kart bilgilerinizi gireceginiz sayfa gelecektir. Kredi kart kullanarak para gondermek isteyenlerin tercih ettigi bu sayfa tum bilgiler girilip islem onaylanmaldr. Canl bahis sitelerine para yatrma islemini gerceklestirmek icin hesaba havale secenegini de kullanabilirsiniz. Site icerisinde musteri hizmetleri ile iletisime gecerek banka hesap numaralarn ogrenebilirsiniz. Belirtilen IBAN numarasna istediginiz tutar havale edebilirsiniz. Havale ederken acklama ksmna yazlacak bilgilere dikkat etmelisiniz. Kredi kart veya banka havalesi ile gerceklesen para yatrma islemi sonucunda site hesabnzdan bakiyenize bakabilirsiniz. Bakiyenize gore dilediginiz sekilde bahislerinizi gerceklestirebilirsiniz. Canl Bahis Siteleri Para Cekme Canl bahiste dogru hamleler ve dogru tahminler sonucunda kazandgnz bedeli geri almak isteyebilirsiniz. Kazanclarnz istediginiz banka hesabnza cekebilmek icin uymanz gereken kurallar soz konusudur. Oncelikle bahis sitelerinden para cekebilmeniz icin uye olurken dogru bilgi paylasmnda bulunmanz gerektigidir. Cunku canl bahis sitelerinden para cekme islemi icin kullanc hesab ile talep edilen banka hesap bilgilerinin ortusmesi gerekir. Yani uye olurken verilen bilgi ile banka hesab kime ait ise o bilgiler ayn olmaldr. Bu uygulama sitenin hem kullancsn hem de kendisini guvene alma politikasdr. Ayrca frsatclarn onune gecerek yeni bir uye olusumunun da onune gecmek amac gutmektedir. Uye olan kisi farkl para cekilme talebi verilen hesap farkl oldugunda para cekme islemi gerceklesmeyecektir. Bahisleriniz sonucunda kazanc elde edebilir ve bu kazancnz da hakknz olarak almak isteyebilirsiniz. Burada son derece basit uygulama soz konusu olurken siteler aras farkl gorunumler soz konusu olabilir. Fakat yine de tum sitelerde uyenin site icerisinde para cekme bolumune girmesi yeterlidir. Burada cekilecek olan tutarn belirlenmesi ve hesap numarasnn girilmesi ile birlikte islem onay gerekecektir. Para cekme taleplerinde sizden gerekli bilgiler istenmekte ve havale islemi istenilen bilgiler esliginde yurutulmektedir. Dogru bilgi paylasmak sorunsuz para cekebilmeniz en onemli kuraldr. Istenilen bilgiler girildikten sonra site sorumlular gerekli kontrolleri yapp herhangi bir sorun yoksa ksa surede hesabnza gerekli paray aktaracaklardr. Canl Bahis Sitelerinden Para Cekmek Icin Istenen Belgeler Bahis sitelerine uye olduktan sonra baz kullanclar para cekme taleplerinin karslanmadg konusunda sikayetlerde bulunmuslardr. Bu sikayetlersektorde uzun zamandr bulunan guvenilir bahis siteleri de yer almaktadr. Fakat sikayetlerin dayanaklarna bakldgnda ise islerin tamamen farkl oldugu gorulmektedir. Yasanan bu durum kullanclarn hatal bilgi girmesi ve uyelik bilgileri ile banka bilgilerinin uyusmamas ile dogru orantldr. Birde canl bahis para cekmek icin istenen belgeler eksik ya da hatal olarak sunulmus olabilir. Ortaya ckan karsklar neticesinde para cekme talebinde bulunan kisi istedigini alamadg icin sikayetci olmaktadr. Oysa ki istenilen bilgiler dogru ve istenilen evraklar eksiksiz sunulsa para cekme islemi sorunsuz olacak. Sitelerin para cekme konusunda dikkatli hareket etmesi hilelerin ve illegal faaliyetlerin onune gecmek adnadr. Cunku baz kullanclar farkl bilgiler vererek ikinci hesap acabilmektedirler. Bazen de bilincsizce hatal bilgi girilebilmektedir. Hatal islemlerin cozumu konusunda islem yaptgnz sitenin musteri temsilcileri ile gorusebilirsiniz. Talepleriniz dogrultusunda para cekme islemlerinde ki sorunlar giderilecektir. Canl bahis para cekmek icin istenen belgeler listesi su sekildedir; Kullanc bilgileri ile banka bilgilerini karslastrmak icin kimlik fotokopisi Banka hesap bilgileri Ikametgah ve kisiye ait herhangi bir fatura. Kacak Iddaa Turkiyede dogrudan bahis yapmak icin resmi kanallar kullanlabilmektedir. Fakat tercih edilen ve oran olarak cok daha fazla frsatlar sunan kacar iddaasiteleri bulunmaktadr. Bu siteler kanunlara aykr sekilde yaplmakta olup, yasal bir dayanag yoktur. Elbette bu sitelerin kurulus merkezi Turkiye olmayp, ds ulkelerdedir ve faaliyetler belirlenen siteler uzerinden yaplmaktadr. Kacak Iddaa oldukca riskli olup, cok dikkatli olunmas gerekir. Kacak Bahis Kanunlar cercevesinde istediginiz gibi bahis yapamayabilirsiniz. Bahis yapabilmek icin ya kanuni olarak sorun olmayan ulke dsnda ki kumarhanelere gitmeniz veya kacak bahis sitelerinden islem yapabilirsiniz. Zira bu durum tehlikeli olsa da cok sayda site guvenli sekilde bu alanda hizmet vermektedir. Kacak bahiste oldukca fazla secenek bulunurken yuksek oranda kazanc sunuyor olmas da ragbeti arttryor. Illegal Bahis Bahisin bircok alanda yasak oldugu Turkiyede bu alanda cok sayda yabanc merkezli siteler hizmet vermektedir. Illegal bahis sektorunde faaliyet gosteren siteler guvenli hizmet anlays ile kullanclarna frsatlar sunmaktadr. Yurt ds merkezli bu siteler sorunsuz sekilde hizmetlerini surdururken bulunduklar ulkelerde kanunlara uygun sekildedir. Elbette faaliyet noktasnda bulunduklar ulkelerde sorun teskil etmese de Turkiyede faaliyet gostermeleri kanunin yasaklanmstr. Yasads Bahis Gerek olusturulan etkenler gerekse de ortaya konulan riskler yasads bahis de oldukca tehlikelidir. Kanunlarn mudahil olduklar bu alanlar da hem kullanclar hem de populer bahis yaptranlar tum riskleri goze almaktadrlar. Fakat yasaklardan uzak sekilde guvenli hizmet sunan siteler de bulunmaktadr. Takipler neticesinde kapatlan sitelerin muhakkak alternatifleri kurularak yollarna devam etmektedirler. Canl Iddaa Siteleri Nelerdir? Dunya genelinde kabul gormus cok sayda guvenli hizmet veren populer bahis siteleri bulunmaktadr. Elbette bu siteler dunyann bircok ulkesinde faaliyet gosterse de Turkiyede yasaktr. Sektorde yer alan cok sayda legal iddaa siteleri bulunmaktadr. Herhangi bir kanunsuzlugun olmadg bu sitelerden hzl ve guvenli islem yaplabilmektedir. Tabi bu sitelerde uygulanan oranlar yasal olmayan sitelere gore daha dusuktur. Illegal sitelerin tercih edilme sebeplerinin en onemli etkeni de olusturulan oranlardr. Peki, Iddaa siteleri nelerdir? Faaliyetleri ve uygulama esaslar nelerdir? Turkiyede faaliyet gosteren yasal iddaa siteleri listesi su sekildedir; Iddaa Bilyoner Tuttur Birebin Oley Nesine Misli Iddaa 2004 ylnda hizmet vermeye baslayan Iddaa Spor toto tarafndan kurulmus olup, ilk etapta bayilik seklinde calsmaya baslamstr. Elbette zamanla gelisen teknolojiye ayak uydurarak internet uzerinde de populer bahis severlerin hizmetine sunulmustur. Kuruldugu donemde devletin resmi kurumu olarak faaliyet gosterirken gelinen yeni donemde ozellestirilmistir. Bilyoner Turkiyede faaliyetine 2006 ylnda baslayan Bilyoner ilk ozel yasal bahis sitesi olma ozelligine sahiptir. Guvenilir bahis siteleri Turkiyede bunlardr. Ksa surede populer olan site halen faaliyetlerini sorunsuz sekilde surdurmektedir. Tuttur Ksa surede adndan bahsettirmeyi basaran Tuttur 2009 ylnda faaliyetlere baslamstr. Guvenilir bahis siteleri arasnda yerini almstr. Gunumuze dek bircok alanda populer bahis yapanlara frsatlar sunarken avantajlar ile de begeni toplamstr. Birebin Kullanc odakl calsmalar surdurse de 2011 ylnda sektore giren Birebindiger sitelere gore daha az ragbet gormektedir. Bahis oynamak ise bu sitede oldukca kolaydr. Elbette farkl yaklasmlara sahip olmasndan dolay ilerleyen sureclerde adndan sklkla bahsettirecek gibi gorunuyor. Oley 2009 ylnda Dogus yayn gruplarnn istiraki olarak kurulmus olup yasal olarak herhangi bir sorunu olmayan sitelerdendir. Bahis siteleri arasnda hzl cks yapms bir sitedir. Oley yapms oldugu yenilikler ile kullanclarn da dikkatini ksa surede cekmeyi basarmstr. Nesine Birbirini takip eden surecte Nesine de yine 2006 ylnda hizmet vermeye baslamstr. Yasal bahis siteleri arasnda yerini almay basaran firma ksa surede sevilen ve ragbet goren bir site olmustur. Misli 2009 ylnda sektore cok hzl giris yapan Misli cok sayda reklam filmi ile on plana ckmay basarmstr. Internet uzerinden hem yasal hem de sorunsuz hizmet veren bahis sitelerinden bir tanesi olmustur. Canl Bahis Siteleri Kayt ve Uyelik Islemleri Her zaman populerligini koruyan ve surekli gelisim gosteren canl bahis gun gectikce daha da gucleniyor. Bahis oynamak icin ise sitelere uye olunmas gerekir. Yuksek getirisi ve begeni toplayan faaliyetleri ile cok sayda site bu alanda faaliyet gostermektedir. Elbette sorunsuz sekilde uye olmanz ve faaliyetler gostermeniz de oldukca kolaydr. Canl bahis siteleri kayt ve uyelik islemleri dakikalar icerisinde gerceklestirilecek yapya sahiptir. Uye olacagnz siteyi belirledikten sonra siteye girmeniz gerekmektedir. Girdiginiz sitenin ana sayfasnda uye ol ya da kayt ol bolumu bulunacaktr. Siteler arasnda degiskenlik gosteren bu alanda temel unsurlar bulunmaktadr. Elbette farkllklar olsa da temelinde benzer bilgiler uye olmak isteyen kisilerden talep edilmektedir. Uye ol bolumune tkladktan sonra karsnza uyelik bilgi formu ckacaktr. Bu formda sizin kim oldugunuzu ogrenmek ve sitenin guvenligini saglamak adna islemler yaplmaktadr. Uyelik formunda yer alan ad soyad bolumunu eksiksiz ve dogru sekilde doldurmalsnz. Sizden bu formda istenen bilgilerin tamamn girmeniz istenecektir. Istenen bilgiler mutlaka dogru ve eksiksiz sekilde olmaldr. Eksik veya hatal bilgi uyelik islemlerinde sorun teskil edebilir. Yine de yanls bilgi girisine ragmen uyelik islemleri tamamlanabilir. Fakat boyle bir yol izleyenler sonrasnda buyuk skntlarla karslasabilirler. Bu skntlarn basnda da para cekme islemlerinde yasanan sorunlardr. Uyelik islemleri dikkatli ve ozenle doldurulmas gereken yapdadr. Canl bahis siteleri kayt ve uyelik islemleri gerceklestirilirken verilen bilgiler site yonetimi tarafndan muhafaza edilmektedir. Herhangi bir sekilde 3. Sahslarla paylaslmas gibi bir durum soz konusu degildir. Bu faaliyetleri surduren sitelerin guven unsurlar arasnda bu nokta onceliklidir. Bahis sitelerine uye olurken hatal bilgi paylasmnda bulunmak size faydadan cok zarar verecektir. Diyelim ki bilgileri hatal girdiniz ve uyelik onayland. Uyelik tamamlandktan sonra siteye para yatrdnz ve kazanc elde ettiniz. Kazancnz sonrasnda hesabnza almak istediginizde karsnza banka bilgileri bolumu gelecektir. Para cekme talebi gerceklestikten sonra site uyelik bilgileri ile banka hesap bilgileri ortusmez ise paranz alamazsnz. Boyle bir durumla karslasmamak adna bu hususa ayrca dikkat etmelisiniz. I am sure you have heard elementary school students in our community talking about Bee Bucks, PAW Tickets, Wise Choices or Gotchas," which are all positive reinforcements students can earn for demonstrating certain behaviors. Positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) is a framework for assisting schools in adopting and organizing evidence-based behavioral interventions that enhance academic and social behavior outcomes for all students. The Auburn Enlarged City School District was awarded the School Climate Transformation Grant for five years, October 2014 through September 2019, to support the implementation of PBIS, among many other initiatives, in some of our schools. By obtaining additional grants as well, the district has been able to fully implement PBIS in four of our elementary schools so far: Herman Avenue, Seward, Genesee and Owasco. Casey Park Elementary and Auburn Junior High will begin implementing PBIS in the second half of this school year. We are in our second year of implementing PBIS, which complements 'No Excuses' at Genesee, as well as the six exceptional systems we adhere to every day," said Genesee Elementary School Principal Stacey Cummings. Our first and most important exceptional system is creating a culture of universal achievement, and PBIS helps to create a positive and proactive culture that supports students achievement. We take P.R.I.D.E. at Genesee everyday by taking Personal Responsibility In our Daily Events; we do so by Productively struggling, being Respectful, being In control, being Dedicated to our learning, and being Empathetic. Cummings continued to share how students have the opportunity to earn PAW Tickets when they demonstrate one of Genesees PRIDE traits. PAW Tickets are used at the PAW Store to purchase various items, or used in the classrooms or building to purchase different rewards and incentives, such as sitting on a bouncy ball for the day or eating lunch with a teacher or administrator. Owasco Elementary School acting Principal Kelly Garback recently hosted the school's PBIS kickoff. Mrs. Garback stated that students participated in lessons encouraging Wise Choices and positive behaviors: respectful, responsible, safe and honest. Throughout the year, Owasco staff will continue to recognize students for consistently demonstrating positive behaviors throughout their day, including on the bus, in the cafeteria, at assemblies and in the hallways. Students' wise choices will build toward school-wide incentives, and the first incentive has already been earned: Hat Day! Herman Avenue Elementary School teacher Molly Grinnell attributed school behaviors improving significantly throughout the building to the implementation of PBIS last year. She shared that students are extremely excited to earn Gotchas for showing the correct behaviors in different areas of the school. The schools success in implementing tier one interventions has allowed it to move forward into tier two. Team members will be attending workshops in November in order to continue implementing tier two interventions. They are very excited to continue implementing the PBIS framework and are looking forward to watching students continue to SOAR: Safety first, Ownership of behavior, Act respectfully, Responsible citizen. Seward Elementary special education teacher Erin Northrup expressed that there is a lot of excitement around the positive reinforcements called Bee Bucks that students can earn for demonstrating one of their building expectations, which are "Bee responsible," "Bee respectful," "Bee engaged" and "Bee safe." Students can redeem Bee Bucks for a variety of privileges and incentives, and they will also be used by students in order to participate in the four school-wide celebrations that will take place this school year. Music teacher Mary Howard developed the "Seward School Rap" for the PBIS kickoff in September, and that really got the students engaged and excited. It was also featured on the AECSD's Twitter and Facebook pages for the community to enjoy. In addition, the new Seward mascot was introduced at the kickoff, and the student body will be voting to name him in the coming weeks. At our board of education meeting on Oct. 11, Seward students recited the Pledge of Allegiance followed by their "Seward School Rap." The lyrics to the song are: "Seward Bees, Seward Bees, Everyone knows were the Seward Bees. Shake your stinger and flap your wings, Jump up and down like your feet have springs. Seward Bees, Seward Bees, Everyone knows were the Seward Bees. Were engaged and safe when we play Respectful, Responsible in every way. Seward Bees, Seward Bees, Everyone knows were the Seward Bees." Oct 19, 2016 | By Alec While the potential of 3D scanning and 3D printing technology is obviously enormous, perhaps its most long-lasting effects will be felt through cultural and historical preservation. The ability to document and preserve precious artifacts and monuments in their current state, including distinctive marks, surface textures and coloration all in the finest of detail, means that even the passing of time, natural disasters, or even terrorists cannot truly destroy the worlds greatest artefacts. This is even being felt in war-torn Syria, and 3D printed replicas of the Bull of Nimrod and the Palmyra temple are preserving relics that were cruelly torn from humanitys grasp. The same principles are readily being applied all over the world, even in Vietnam thanks to the efforts of Quang Tri Nguyen. Even at a young age, he recognized the importance of preserving Vietnamese cultureone of the oldest in Southeast Asia. To preserve it from harm, he started 3D scanning and publishing digital 3D models of ancient Vietnamese sculptures through his company VR3D. Last year, this already resulted in a Virtual 3D Museum of the ancient Vietnamese sculptures that can be admired from every corner in the world. But fast forward a year, and VR3D has taken things to an even higher level. This time around, they have 3D scanned not just a series of statues, but a complete monument, with the data being several hundred times bigger than their previous project. The monument in question is the inh Tien Le, an ancient common house from the Vietnamese villege of Hoai Duc (near Hanoi). inh (village hall) is the common house of a Vietnamese village commune, and actually houses three functions: administrative, religious and cultural, Quang Tri Nguyen says. inh Tien Le has become the first large historic monument to be preserved and displayed fully intact through digitization and interactive 3D technology. Like the digital 3D museum, it has been completely set up to enable digital tours online. Anyone can freely interact with the high quality 3D scan as though they were in Vietnam. The developers also optimized the website on the HTML5 platform so users can access it and interact from nearly any device, from smartphones to smartTVs, without the need for installing additional apps, plugins or software. Whats more, a VR version is coming soon, that should be viewable with our without any VR goggles. Of course this is not the first digital tour of a monument or the first digitization project involving artefacts, but Quang Tri Nguyen explained that most others disappointed him. The result are mainly pointcloud type, or consist of low-quality and uncompleted meshes, and almost no project can be view online (and with this quality), he says. So we think this is the first large monument that has been completely digitized from inside to outside, with angles of a very high quality, and it's also very easy to view in 3D online. To ensure that level of quality, the monument manager also went through great care to get every detail just right. As a result, it is a perfect copy in terms of color, size, shape, and can even be used as a reference during restoration or repairing damage. Any deformations can easily be spotted, and researchers can even measure details in the 3D model or make cross sections without every visiting Vietnam. As a result, VR3Ds model is also an excellent educational tool, and it took more than four months just to scan the monument and process all that data. Check it out here. Posted in 3D Scanning Maybe you also like: Harry Mount at Literary Review: Anthony Powell said that John Betjeman had a whim of iron. To judge by these compulsive letters, Patrick Leigh Fermor had a pleasure-loving streak of purest titanium. From the first letter, written in 1940, soon after he joined the Irish Guards, until the last in 2010, sent when he was ninety-four, he was on a lifelong search for erotic, alcoholic, intellectual and courageous diversion. One moment hes in Crete, meeting the partisans who helped him kidnap the Nazi general Heinrich Kreipe, his most dashing escapade. The next hes at Chatsworth, sitting next to Camilla Parker Bowles immensely nice, non-show-off, full of charm and very funny. In between, its back to the Mani peninsula and the enchanting seaside home he and his wife, Joan, built in the mid-1960s. It was only there, in Greece, and then, in his fifties, that Leigh Fermor had a real adult home and reined in the wanderlust and the lust. Until then, hed continued the manic travels that began with his walk as a teenager across Europe in the 1930s. In the letters we follow him as he flits from borrowed Italian castello to French abbey to Irish castle, taking the edge off his high-level cadging by making jokes about it. In 1949, he wrote to Joan: Darling, look out for some hospitable Duca or Marchesa with a vast castle, and try and get off with him, so that he could have us both to stay. more here. Lorraine Berry in Literary Hub: If your Facebook feed looks anything like mine, the comparisons between Donald Trump and Adolf Hitler appear like surreal dreams, with Trumps face Photoshopped so hes standing in front of a rally at Nuremberg. It doesnt take too many comments before someone invokes Godwins Law and the conversation shuts down. Donald Trump is many things; Adolf Hitler, he is not. On February 19th, the public intellectual, novelist, essayist, and semiotician, Umberto Eco died in Milan. While the rest of the world has mourned the loss of rock star David Bowie, Ecos death meant the loss of one of our intellectual rock stars, a man who was as comfortable discussing Barbie as he was explaining the aesthetics of Thomas Aquinas. It was Eco who insisted that a fundamental reading of a textan approach espoused by Antonin Scalia, for examplewas of little use when trying to understand books. Books are not made to be believed, but to be subjected to inquiry. When we consider a book, we mustnt ask ourselves what it says but what it means. (How different Italys intellectual giant from the man who insisted the Constitution means exactly what it meant when it was first writtenby rich, white slave-owners). More here. Prashant Keshavmurthy in The Wire: For over a thousand years, since around the ninth century, the imagination of the Indian in Arabic and Persian literature coalesced in the figure of a non-Islamic religious specialist, the Brahman. Not that of the Kayastha Hindu, the men of whose caste, from the mid-16th century onward, increasingly staffed the bureaucracies of the Afghan and Mughal states of North India, nor that of the occasional Brahman who, by familial and personal circumstance, received a traditional madrasa education in Arabic and Persian. For both these types of men were so steeped in Persian-Islamic learning and comportment as to be Muslim, in an elite cultural sense. Rather, the Brahman of the Persian literary imagination was continuous with the Brahman of the earliest texts of kalamor rational theology in Arabic, whether Muslim or Jewish. This Brahman was purely a debate opponent invoked by Muslim and Jewish theologians to defend the necessity of prophecy. These heresiarchs presented him as a proponent of the sufficiency of human reason and thus of the redundancy of prophets. Sarah Stroumsa, a scholar of early Islamic-Jewish theology, has argued that early Muslim-Jewish theological debates were shaped by encounters with Brahmans and that these debates were conducted solely on the shared ground of logic, avoiding reference to theological doctrines specific to each side. The polemically simplified picture of the Brahman this left behind in the archive of early Muslim-Jewish heresiography was perhaps what allowed him to pass from theology into literature, where he congealed into a stock character. More here. SPACE236 can easily be missed. The narrow gallery tucked between large apartment buildings is the only business on the sleepy corner of Leavenworth and Eddy Streets other than a laundromat and taqueria. But peering in through rain-streaked windows last Saturday night, an undeniable warmth exuded as ten local artists gathered with friends, family and the community to highlight Tenderloin culture, and to fight for one of the few creative spaces left in the TL. (Vikram Valluri) Upon entering the gallery, a sweet pit bull sniffs his way out. Directly to the right is a description of the latest exhibit, "Neighbors," which showcases local photography of the Tenderloin along with the names of the 10 artists who have contributed. The wall on the left is splashed with notable San Francisco photographers including Adrian Sky of Sin Francisco, Phil Stockbridge, Robby Durler, Sothear "Salt" Nuon, and Vikram Valluri. The wall on the right features artists specifically from the TL: Abdullah Shakur, Ando Caulfield, Andrew Chan, Brenton Gieser, and Felix Uribe. A cheery gathering, one would never know that this was the opening night for the gallery's final exhibit. (Vikram Valluri) Originally conceived by the Tenderloin Housing Clinic and local branding consultancy Design Rehab, SPACE236 was launched and funded by the city to bring culture to the TL. Open for just eight short months (since Feb. 2016), the gallery is now being pushed out to become office space. "We really wanted to reveal something special that the Tenderloin has to offerit's the people, the structure, and the community that we want to showcase," says photographer and organizer Sothear "Salt" Nuon. (Vikram Valluri) "Our goal was to create vigor and inject new life-blood to the Turk and Leavenworth corridor," added gallery curator Barry Lai. "This gallery provided us a chance to rebrand the perception which so many have misunderstood this once vice-driven neighborhood. Paramount to everything, we wanted to manifest creativity, bring our community closer, and foster inspiration. It's unfortunate that our building was acquired with an alternative agenda of what the building should be used for in 2017." (Sothear "Salt" Nuon) Back at the exhibit, faces stare at faces as each set of photos offer a different perspective of the Tenderloin. One of the local residents points at one of the images and says, "That's me! That's me there on the wall!" For many, this exhibit is about much more than just saving a space. (Robby Durler) "This exhibit means everything," said photographer Adrian Sky. "At the age of 16, I was stabbed twice. After recovering, I battled opioid abuse for 3 years, but have been clean ever since. While documenting this project though, I found out a close family friend of mine is on these streets using. It's sad because all you can do is offer a helping hand and wait." (Vikram Valluri) Indeed,Neighbors became an intimate experience for each of the photographers, as they were pulled from their comfort zone and sometimes thrown into dangerous situations. "Getting to chop it up with these subjects I was shooting was what it was all about for me," said photographer Phil Stockbridge. "Yeah, of course I ran into mean mugs, and yeah I did get cornered by a huge dude threatening me for my gear, but that shit's nothing at the end of the day. I'm in their space doing me. It was an organic experience that only helped me grow." (Phil Stockbridge) Overall it was a celebratory night, with a group of people who love San Francisco converging to commemorate the bustling Tenderloin community and the accomplishments of SPACE236. "It means a lot to me that we were able to create, connect and bring together a new group, in an area with some problems, and get such a positive feedback and support from the community," said photographer Robby Durler. (Robby Durler) At the end of the night, Lai and each of the photographers gave their final thoughts, and the crowd cleared out into the night. The fate of the gallery and the Neighbors exhibit is still unknown. "We're losing the space but we made new friends," mused Lai. // Neighbors will be showing through November 11, 2016 at SPACE236, 236 Leavenworth St. (Tenderloin), space236sf.com Your guide to the tastiest foodie happenings going down this week. Bon appetit! Tartine Cookies + Cream Opens Liz Prueitt's Tartine Cookies + Cream opened earlier this week inside The Manufactory. The much-anticipated ice cream shop from the Tartine matriarch specializes in egg-free, gelato-style soft serve, using imported machines from Italy and buffalo milk Double-8 dairy. Opening flavors include chocolate, coffee, fior de latte, and an incredibly purple concord grape. There are also pies, ice cream sandwiches, and toppings to enjoyall made in house. // Open daily, 11am-5pm, 595 Alabama St. (Mission), tartinemanufactory.com Pal's Takeaway Opens in Forage Kitchen The formerly Mission-based sandwich pop-up Pal's Takeaway is now opened in Forage Kitchen in Oakland. Owner and sandwich genius Jeff Mason will be slinging salads and sandwiches for the Uptown lunch crowd, including his delicious Aunt Malai's Almost Famous Lao Sausage sandwich with cucumber-cilnatro relish, house mayo and greens. Yum! // Open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-5pm, 478 25th St. (Oakland), palstakeaway.com Aina Starts Dinner The Dogpatch's modern Hawaiian eatery and newly dubbed Michelin Bib Gourmand Aina started dinner service earlier this week. Previously the restaurant had only been open for brunch, so this is big news for the small eatery. Dinner items include Portuguese butter bean cassoulet and Okinawan sweet potato gnocchi, among other dishes. // Open Tuesday-Sunday, 10am-5pm, 900 22nd St. (Dogpatch), Ainasf.com Taste of Persia Book Signing at Omnivore Join James Beard Award-winning author, photographer, teacher, cook and world traveler Naomi Duguid at Omnivore this Thursday at she signs copies of her new book Taste of Persia. The book chronicles her travels through Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, and Kurdistan and includes delicious recipes from each country. // Thursday, October 20, 6:30-7:30pm, 3885a Cesar Chavez St. (Noe Valley), omnivorebooks.com Return of Mission Street Food Back in the days before Mission Chinese Food, there was Mission Street Food, a pop-up that featured a rotation of chefs throughout the city cooking up some of their most delicious fare. Well, The Perennial is hosting a throwback event featuring some of the pop-up's greatest hits. There'll also be karaoke and a special appearance by DJ cabelloooo who'll be spinning 80s new-wave/synthpop. // Monday, October 24, 5:30-10pm, 59 9th St. (SoMa), blog.missionstreetfood.com/ In her final White House state dinner as first lady honoring Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi Michelle Obama reminded us why her fashion sense catapulted her on par with Jackie Kennedy Onassis as a style icon. Wearing a gold, shimmering, floor-length, Atelier Versace gown, constructed of rose gold and chain mail, Obama appeared both regal and approachable. The dress accentuated her radiant, honey-mocha skin complexion as well as her sinewy arms. In some ways, the Versace gown was the ideal choice to conclude her eight years of attending state dinners 14 in total because it echoed the Naeem Khan gown she wore in her first state dinner in 2009, honoring Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. That one too offered the perfect complementary color for Obamas flawless skin; it also brought attention to her toned arms all of which gave her a glamorous, statuesque allure. Wearing the Versace gown could also be looked at as a fashionable victory lap after her galvanizing speech in New Hampshire in which she spoke eloquently and fiercely about the virtues and power of womanhood against the backdrop of political-campaign theater. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama at the first state dinner with India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur. Brooks Kraft/Getty Images Donatella Versace gave Obama a mighty shout-out on Instagram by saying: Thank you, Michelle, for all the things you have done for America and for the world, and especially, for empowering and inspiring women everywhere. The attendees for the Obamas 14th state dinner included such celebrities as Gwen Stefani, Gayle King, Savannah Guthrie, Giorgio Armani, Jerry Seinfield and Roberto Benigni. 6. Tax deductions The upside to paying self-employment taxes is that you can deduct all sorts of business expenses on your annual tax return. This includes your mileage, home office, computer, software, web hosting, part of your cellphone bill, health insurance premiums, professional dues and education, networking events, business travel and client dinners. "All this will help reduce the amount of taxes you owe," Mance says. Working with a tax preparer or tax software helps ensure you've taken advantage of all allowable deductions and don't claim anything you shouldn't, she adds. 7. Record keeping It's not enough to save bank and credit card statements. You have to save business receipts, too. "If you get audited, you have to prove your expenses," Mance explains. She suggests using a software program such as QuickBooks, or even Excel, to track deductibles. And Lopez, who enters all his expenses into a template his accountant provided, has found that storing paper receipts by category in an accordion binder can speed up data entry. 8. Business bank account If you become an LLC, you'll need to open a business bank account, Mance says. But business checking and savings accounts can make life easier for sole proprietors, too. Besides keeping your professional finances separate from your personal ones, a business account is a great place to set aside income for your quarterly tax payments, Fishman says. Plus, he adds, having one credit card you use for business can make it easier to track your expenses. 9. Retirement fund One of the downsides of working for yourself is giving up 401(k) employer matching. But that's no excuse to stop saving for retirement. Setting up automatic monthly deposits from your business account to your retirement fund is the easiest way to do it. Besides safeguarding your future, it helps reduce your federal tax bill each year. "You're putting away money pre-tax," Mance says. For example, a Simplified Employee Pension, or SEP-IRA, which you can open with an investment company, bank or other financial institution, lets you contribute as much as 25 percent of your net self-employment earnings per year, up to $53,000. The IRS offers a handy guide for this and other types of retirement funds for the self-employed; your accountant can offer further guidance. 10. Contracts Signing a document detailing the deadlines, terms of payment and other project particulars can help protect you and your clients against misunderstandings. Many clients provide a standard contract to their independent workers, Fishman notes. Don't sign blindly. Read carefully to make sure you approve all the details, and negotiate as needed. Provide your own contract if you can, be it a formal document or an email outlining the project details. "You always do better if you use your own contract," Fishman says. For help creating or deciphering contracts, consult an attorney who works with independent professionals or your industry association. You can also find contract templates online through sites like Nolo.com. Regardless of how you decide to handle these different tax and legal issues as an independent worker or small business owner, it's important to take time to think them through. Once they're taken care of, you can focus on the fun part building your business. CATO Last month, as Amy Christian scrolled through Facebook, she came across a contest from Kala Brand Music Co. The California-based company was asking East Coast educators to "like and share" their page. And the winners would receive 40 brand new ukuleles. A music teacher at Cato-Meridian Elementary School, Christian clicked her mouse and entered. And the next day, she received a response from Kala: She'd won. "This was a first for me," she said, explaining that she'd never joined a contest like this before. "I just happened to be in the right place at the right time." It turned out Christian was one of 80 teachers across the eastern United States to win a set of 40 Kala Makala Waterman ukuleles for their school. Worth $60 to $70 apiece, that's more than $2,000 worth of equipment. "It almost sounded too good to be true," Christian said. "I didn't really know what to expect when I won." But sure enough, around three weeks later, 40 plastic, translucent ukuleles arrived in the mail at Cato-Meridian Elementary. Half of them were bright blue while the other half were orange. But all of them were Watermans. The Waterman was released in early 2015 after Kala, inspired by the 1950s Maccaferri ukulele, created the new, affordable and water-resistant "uke" to use outdoors. At first, Christian admitted she wasn't sure about plastic ukuleles, as she'd never handled a Waterman before. But the K-five music teacher was soon pleasantly surprised. "They actually sound really nice and they're going to be very easy to clean and they won't warp," Christian said. "So the maintenance will be much easier." As far as the ukulele itself, the small, four-stringed instrument has made a major comeback in the past decade, Christian said, becoming more and more popular with middle school children across the U.S. "It's a great first instrument for kids ... and a lot of school districts are now teaching ukulele as part of their general music programs," Christian said. "Unlike guitar, which has six strings and some harder hand shapes, you can play a lot of one- and two-finger chords with the ukulele, so it's very approachable for younger students." That's why Christian plans to use Kala's prize to teach a ukulele unit in fourth grade and start a club at the middle school, which will allow the district to service more of its students. "It's something different for our kids to learn more about," Cato Elementary Principal Robert Wren said, noting that fourth-grade will also be switching from a tin whistle program to a recorder program. "It's just another thing that they can use to learn how to read and write music." As for when the ukulele lessons will begin, Christian said she's not sure yet because tuning brand new instruments and stretching those strings can take a while. But she hopes to start as soon as possible. "I'm still formulating a plan," she said, laughing. "But for now, I plan to take them all out of the box and tune them, and I'll try to get them in the kids' hands as soon as I can." Laws crafted by those elected should do most good for most people What is Auburns connection to the Adirondack Scenic Railroad? Its a legendary story that originated more than a century ago, but has since been lost to history. When tracing my family tree, it was an intriguing connection and I had always wondered if it was true. It wasnt until we purchased tickets to travel the ASR fall foliage tour that I researched further to confirm the story of Dr. William Seward Webb, a man vital to the opening of rail travel in the Adirondacks. Several sources state that Dr. Webb was named after William Henry Seward, of Auburn. Webb, born in New York City in 1851, was the son of Gen. James Watson Webb and Laura Virginia Cram. His father, James, was publisher of The New York Enquirer and Courier and enjoyed a personal friendship with William H. Seward. The first volume of "The Life of William H. Seward" has this to say about Gen. Webb: Next to Weed and Greeley, he was probably the most conspicuous Whig journalist in the State. He was pompous and severe in his writings. In 1842, one of his articles caused such a stir that the Hon. Thomas Marshall of Kentucky sent Webb a personal challenge. Webb traveled to Delaware, where he engaged in a duel against Marshall, which was illegal. While Marshall was never injured and never prosecuted, the same could not be said for Webb. He consequently suffered a leg injury and was arrested, convicted and sentenced to two years of hard labor at Sing Sing Prison. Following the sentence, 14,000 New Yorkers, including 14 out of the 17 jury members who convicted Webb, petitioned Gov. William H. Seward to issue a pardon. This case is well-documented and quoted in a publication on dueling laws of the United States. The pardon, creating much criticism, was granted for the following reasons: Because he (Webb) was not the challenger. The challenger had not been punished. The combat was not mortal. Webb had never intended to injure his adversary. He had waived all legal defense. Only three of all the previous offenders against the law had been prosecuted and they had afterward been pardoned. In appreciation of the pardon, Webb is said to have named his next born son after Seward. This is the entangled story as to the namesake of Dr. William Seward Webb. While Dr. Webb received medical training abroad, he graduated from Columbia College in 1875 as a physician but left medicine for finance, establishing the Wall Street firm W.S. Webb & Co. His holdings substantially grew with his marriage to Eliza Vanderbilt, daughter of William H. Vanderbilt. His next venture would be railroading. Vanderbilt, having an investment interest in the Wagner Palace Car Co., invited his son in-law to take over the operations after Webster Wagner was crushed between two of his own railcars. Webb accepted and also invited his brother Henry (future executive of the New York City Railroad) to join him. This firm would later merge with the Pullman Co. Dr. Webb also served as president of the Fulton Chain Railway Co., Fulton Navigation Co., Raquette Lake Transportation Co. and the Mohawk and Malone Railway. In 1890, he financed a railroad into the Adirondacks, with construction starting the following year at Remsen, which was completed in just 18 months. The line provided access to Webbs hunting preserve at Nehasane Park and carried other wealthy families such as the Morgans, Vanderbilts and the Roosevelts. The line became part of the New York Central System and is today used by the Adirondack Scenic Railroad for tourism. The Adirondack Scenic Railroad has been a staple of central New Yorks cultural heritage and tourist industry since its inception in 1992. With the support of individuals, corporate and foundation sponsorships, and large measures of support from government leaders, we have returned nearly 80 miles of track to passenger service, acquired and refurbished enough equipment to provide comfortable, regular, and safe service to over 100,000 passengers. The Adirondack Scenic Railroad, operated by the Adirondack Railway Preservation Society, is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation chartered by the New York State Department of Education. The railroad is operated and maintained by over 150 volunteers and only a few full- and part-time employees said Brenda Brucker, volunteer coordinator. If you are looking for an enjoyable train ride, put the the Adirondack Scenic Railroad on your bucket list. It offers a variety of themed packages where much of the terrain can only be seen by train. Enjoy the scenery and be reminded of Dr. Webbs unique connection to Auburns William Henry Seward. Distribution of company announcements to the professional platforms, finance portals and syndication of important corporate news to a wide variety of news aggregators and financial news systems. Flexiroam Partners With Carousell, The Mobile App Community Marketplace Perth, Oct 19, 2016 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Flexiroam Limited ( ASX:FRX ) is pleased to announce that its wholly owned subsidiary Flexiroam Sdn Bhd ("Flexiroam") has entered into a partnership agreement with Carousell Pte Ltd ("Carousell"). Carousell is a Singapore-based community marketplace which boasts one of the world's largest and fastest growing mobile marketplace apps. It was launched in May 2012 and has gained its popularity through the ease of its peer-to-peer selling. Users simply snap a photo of the product they want to sell and list it on the app and direct message the seller to buy, without having to go through a lengthy sign-up process. Anyone with a smartphone can snap, list and sell a product in 30 seconds. Carousell has more than 41 million listings and a presence in more than 14 cities around the world, and says their average user spends more than 17 minutes per day on the app. Flexiroam is partnering with Carousell on its In-App contest, "List, Refer & Win". The campaign is designed to create brand awareness and target consumers who are planning for their year end holiday and looking for travel related items in Carousell. Under the agreement, campaign prize winners will receive Flexiroam X starter packs and Carousell credits. In addition, Flexiroam is providing weekly prize winners with free data roaming. To promote the contest, both Flexiroam and Carousell will share the In-App contest on their social media platforms. Flexiroam is also listing Flexiroam X membership packs to be sold on Carousell. Jef Ong, Managing Director of Flexiroam, commented: "Carousell's "List, Refer & Win" campaign can create brand awareness for Flexiroam and allow Flexiroam to leverage off Carousell's extensive user base. This partnership increases Flexiroam's exposure in online shopping marketplaces and provides more accessibility to the rapidly growing online shopper community." ABOUT CAROUSELL Carousell is a mobile classifieds app that makes selling as easy as taking a photo, buying as simple as chatting. Launched in May 2012, Carousell began in Singapore and has spread to 14 cities around the world. With over 41 million listings, it is one of the world's largest and fastest growing marketplaces. Carousell has been ranked as the top Lifestyle and Shopping app in Singapore, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, and is backed by leading international Venture Capitalists Sequoia India, Rakuten Ventures, 500 Startups, Golden Gate Ventures, and QuestVC. In Singapore, Carousell has a diverse range of products in more than 30 categories, including cars, lifestyle gadgets, and fashion accessories. Download the app for iOS or Android, and visit Carousell website for more information, http://www.carousell.com Download the App for iOS or Android in the link below: http://www.abnnewswire.net/lnk/24XY5T5X About Flexiroam Ltd FLEXIROAM Limited (ASX:FRX) is a leading telecommunications company offering universal voice and data services for mobile users globally. Its flagship data roaming product, FLEXIROAM X has coverage in over 100 countries with 4G speed in over 56 countries. FLEXIROAM is an asset light telecommunications company that does not own physical infrastructure yet is able to connect to around 580 network operators globally. FLEXIROAM aspires to be a household name in borderless mobile broadband service in Asia and beyond. Please visit https://www.flexiroam.com Section 1 Content ACE, along with 23 higher education and independent schools associations, has submitted a brief (229 KB PDF) to the Connecticut Supreme Court in the so-called Hotchkiss School tick-bite case, a study abroad liability suit that is currently before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Last year, the federal appeals court asked Connecticuts highest court to help it decide the validity of a $41.5 million jury award to the family of Cara Munn, who contracted tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) on a school-sponsored trip to China in 2007. Munn was the first U.S. traveler ever to contract TBEV in China, according to a Centers for Disease Control report. The trial court decided the case by applying Connecticut state law. In referring particular legal and policy questions to the Connecticut Supreme Court for consideration ahead of rendering its decision, the three-judge federal panel noted that the sheer size of the award might discourage schools and other organizations from offering such trips for fear that they will suffer a crippling lawsuit. The federal appeals court asked Connecticuts highest court to focus on two points: whether the state's public policy requires schools to warn or protect against serious insect-borne diseases when it organizes trips abroad, and whether the size of the award is appropriate. Once the Connecticut Supreme Court rules on the referred questions, the federal appeals court will issue a decision regarding Hotchkiss appeal, taking into consideration the state courts perspective. That decision is not expected for many months. Section 1 Content ACEs Center for Internationalization and Global Engagement (CIGE) teamed up with the Centro de Desarrollo Universia (Universia) (a division of Banco Santander) to deliver a seminar on Partnering with U.S. Higher Education Oct. 5-7 in Miami for institutional leaders from Latin America, the Caribbean and Spain. CIGEs Heather H. Ward shares highlights from the meeting, which was conducted in Spanish. Access, affordability, quality, student learning. Higher education worldwide faces these and other challenges, which can best be addressed through cooperation and collaboration, according to Fernando Leon Garcia, rector of CETYS Universidad (CETYS) (Mexico) and the keynote speaker during the Partnering with U.S. Higher Education seminar organized by CIGE and Universia in Miami. Since taking the reins at CETYS in 2010, Leon has forged ties with dozens of institutions in the Americas, Asia and Europe. As a result of Leons relentless focus on internationalizationincluding participation in the seventh cohort of ACEs Internationalization Laboratory48 percent of CETYSs 2016 graduates had an international experience while earning their degrees. While many gained that experience through international study, Leon emphasized the limitations of student mobility due to cost, academic program requirements and other factors. Indeed, international experience and student learning figured foremost among reasons seminar participants are seeking deeper relations with U.S. higher education. While student exchange is the most common form of cooperation, these institutional leaders representing 10 countries in Latin America, the Caribbean and Spain hope to develop more faculty exchange, collaborative research, joint degree programs, experiential learning opportunities and virtual exchange with their U.S. counterparts. They came to Miami to get guidance from ACE and other experts on how to create and sustain different types of partnerships and align them with their institutional strategies and missions. This seminar is one of many ways that we are bringing ACE programs and research to international audiences, and at the same time learning about innovations worldwide that can enhance U.S. higher education. We chose the topic of partnerships with U.S. higher education for this seminar based on responses from participants of the previous ACE-Universia program for Ibero-American institutions, and because we hope it results in deeper ties to Latin America, the Caribbean and Spain for our ACE members. When considering a partnership strategy, said Susan Carvalho, associate provost and dean of the graduate school at the University of Alabama and ACE internationalization advisor, the key is to know yourself. Each word of a mission statement has been carefully chosen to describe an institutions core identity. From there, decisions about partner locations, academic focus and the type of joint activity can follow. Carvalho cautioned participants to invest in meaningful, coordinated and sustained partnership programs rather than projects, which can drain time and resources without meeting strategic objectives. R. McKenna Brown, senior international officer at Virginia Commonwealth University and Gabriela Rivera Magallanes, associate dean for International Affairs, International Projects and Initiatives at CETYS, guided participants through the initial steps of determining ones own capacity and goals, then identifying partners with similar academic focus and identity. Analogous to dating and marriage, each partner should be clear about expectations (including monogamy), degree of commitment, reciprocity and expected duration of the relationship. Participants noted the size and complexity of U.S. higher education can make it difficult to find the ideal partner, and that they often know about U.S. institutions only by international reputation and ranking. By the same token, few U.S. institutions are familiar with the education systems of Latin America, the Caribbean and Spain. Berklee College of Musics senior advisor for global initiatives, Guillermo Cisneros, discussed the unique approach that Berklee took in building global partnerships. Starting with the colleges core identity as a school of contemporary music, Berklee first worked with music academies in various regions to build capacity and transfer Berklees signature methodology. Over time, 19 of those institutions in 18 countriesincluding Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Ecuadorhave become members of the Berklee International Network, serving as brand ambassadors, local liaisons, recruiters, and partners for teaching and learning. During a session that I led on the size, complexity and diversity of the U.S. higher education system, many participants were surprised to learn that most U.S. students today are considered non-traditional and that some 83 percent rely on financial aid. No wonder, one participant noted, students from our U.S. partner institution dont come to my university to study. Cisneros pointed out further areas in which U.S. higher education differs from many other countries: Experiential learning (i.e., internships, service learning) is highly valued, and for the most part, U.S. institutions are not highly internationalizeddespite the strong global reputation of the U.S. system and many prominent institutions. For example, international students account for under 5 percent of enrollment, and under 10 percent of U.S. students study abroad. Many U.S. colleges and universities with limited international exposure would welcome new partnerships with Ibero-American institutions as a way of expanding global learning opportunities for their students. One area where there is currently significant partnership activity is the U.S.-Mexico border, according to Jermain Griffin, ACE research associate, who presented initial findings of the Observatory on U.S.-Mexico Higher Education Collaboration (2 MB PDF), a CIGE research initiative supported by Banco Santander-Universia. Griffin found more than a third of active U.S.-Mexico student exchange programs were between institutions in the border region. Misperceptions among U.S. students and families about security in Mexico and cost, however, stand in the way of more extensive cross-border collaboration. A final report will be released later this fall. As the group in Miami tracked the trajectory of Hurricane Matthew, CETYSs Fernando Leon Garcia offered this forecast for the future of U.S.-Ibero-American higher education ties: Robust regional or standardized national accreditation will facilitate greater mobility of students, academic credit and degrees across borders. International cooperation will shift from bilateralism to multilateralism, involving consortia and networks of partner institutions that can together tackle shared challenges. Collaboration will increasingly occur online through virtual exchange methods such as Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL), developed by the State University of New York and adopted by institutions worldwide. In November, Susan Carvalho and I will meet up with several who participated in the seminar at the Latin American and Caribbean Conference for Internationalization of Higher Education, or LACHEC, in Bogota. Well keep you posted as CIGE continues expanding its work with Latin American higher education, particularly as we discover opportunities for deeper and mutually beneficial collaboration with ACE member institutions. AUBURN The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation announced Tuesday that the state's promise of $600,000 made last year to study algal blooms and implement pollution reduction projects in the Owasco Lake watershed has been delivered. The funds arrived more than a year after being promised, and after nearly three weeks of testing of the town of Owasco and city of Auburn's treated water, with results showing fluctuating low levels of blue-green algae toxins. While the funds were put into the 2015-2016 state budget, Gilda Brower, secretary for the Owasco Watershed Lake Association, said she and other association members received word on Monday that the money was finally coming to help implement the many projects OWLA, Cayuga Community College and others have been working on. She was grateful for the news. "It's an absolutely amazing, crystallizing moment," Brower said. Scientists at the DEC have been perplexed by Owasco Lake, not anticipating the frequency or severity of recent algal blooms based on its relatively low phosphorous levels. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has cited high phosphorous levels as one of the primary factors spurring blue-green algae blooms. Some of the projects the state highlighted that the $600,000 will fund include new research on agricultural and stormwater phosphorous reduction practices, monitoring of Owasco Lake and its tributaries to determine sources of contaminant loading, harmful algal bloom sample analysis and food web monitoring, open water monitoring buoy deployment and maintenance and continued septic sampling. "DOH and DEC will continue to work together to better understand these types of problems in our continued efforts to ensure clean and safe drinking water for all New Yorkers," said Howard Zucker, commissioner of the state Department of Health in a release. In addition, the DEC has established a Finger Lakes Water Hub, a multi-region team to address water quality issues across the Finger Lakes. With the help of research partners, the hub will leverage the state's ongoing efforts to safeguard water quality. "It is critical that New York study what is causing algal blooms in Owasco Lake and continue to take action to reduce pollution in order to safeguard water quality in the Finger Lakes and across New York State," said Basil Seggos, commissioner of the DEC, in a press release. "As we continue the strong efforts of the Governor's Water Quality Rapid Response Team, the work of the Finger Lakes Water Hub and the State's investments to study algal blooms will be valuable resources in helping New Yorkers understand and mitigate this emerging issue." The Cayuga County Board of Health had sent a letter to the Rapid Response Team earlier this month, requesting assistance "to protect Owasco Lake from phosphorus loading from agricultural operations and funding to stabilize many watercourses." A spokesperson for the state Department of Health said agency representatives will be meeting with local leaders on Friday afternoon to discuss next steps. In addition to this latest news from the state, the Owasco Watershed Management Council is moving forward with two major projects that also hope to improve water quality in Owasco Lake. At Tuesday morning's meeting, several council members planned to draft new rules and regulations around the watershed, which have not been updated in more than 20 years. In addition, the council is working with the DEC on a Nine Element Watershed Plan. Cayuga County will be specifically responsible for implementing the Nine Element Watershed Plan, which will identify best practices to reduce phosphorous and other pollutants in the watershed. Michele Wunderlich, associate planner for the county's Department of Planning and Economic Development, said the plan involves a lot of modeling to figure out where nutrient loading is coming from. The council will take the lead, working with state's Department of State and the DEC. Wunderlich said they are expected to finish modeling where the loading comes from and site-specific best management practices by Aug. 31, 2019. The other option the county had looked into was implementing a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), which is the maximum amount of a pollutant allowed in a water body that still meets standards implemented by the U.S. Clean Water Act. Wunderlich said the DEC did not believe a TMDL on phosphorous was needed, again, citing relatively low phosphorous levels in Owasco Lake. But according to John Halfman, who has studied Owasco Lake for years and is a professor of geolimnology and hydrogeochemistry at the Finger Lakes Institute at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, phosphorous "always has been, and always will be," the reason for increased algal blooms. He said once phosphorous is dumped into the lake, it's likely that it will stay there, and can even take up to a year before it particulates and helps produce blue-green algae blooms. Even when the Cayuga County Water Quality Management Agency asked the DEC to list Owasco Lake as an impaired water body due to the number of blue-green algae blooms on the lake (which it did), the DEC did not add a TMDL for phosphorous. But the differences between the Nine Element Plan and TMDL's caused some confusion as Auburn City councilors were considering a draft resolution to call on Gov. Andrew Cuomo to develop, adopt and implement a TMDL for Owasco Lake. This was despite the county having already begun the Nine Element Plan. While the draft resolution did not cite phosphorous specifically, it called to reduce the "input of specific pollutant(s) that restrict waterbody uses." Wunderlich said they chose the Nine Element Watershed Plan because it will allow them to look at phosphorous and other pollutants including sediment, nitrogen and pathogens. A TMDL, however, is only used for one specific source of pollution. "The Nine Point Element Plan is more of a broad brush," Halfman said. "It looks at many different parameters to fix as many elements as you can." Both strategies, however, are very similar, and some council members worried that the county and the city suggesting both would look duplicative. Auburn City Councilor Debby McCormick said she would discuss holding or pulling that TMDL resolution for Thursday night's Auburn City Council meeting to get more information. Besides the Nine Point Plan, the council agreed to look at Owasco Lake Watershed's Rules and Regulations. In a letter to the council, Chairman of the county Legislature Keith Batman said those had not been updated since 1984, and called it "one important step in confronting our watershed issues." Several members of the council plan to draft new rules and regulations based on those implemented in the Skaneateles Lake Watershed. The Skaneateles Lake Watershed is much more strict in its rules, partially because the drinking water drawn from that lake does not go through a filtration system, according to the state Department of Health. Bruce Natale, environmental engineer for the county's Department of Planning and Economic Development, warned that in a 2009 or 2010 meeting with a representative from the state's Department of Agriculture and Markets, the county was discouraged from implementing any more stringent regulations in the watershed. The representative, Natale said, even considered loosening some of the rules and regulations already in place. "It was very disheartening," Natale said. "But we have to realize Ag and Markets could play an incredible role in this. But maybe it's time." In its release, the state did cite Ag & Markets as one of its partners in the effort to safeguard water quality. According to the release, more than $7.5 million is already being spent by the state to address Owasco Lake's watershed through the Water Quality Improvement Project Program and the Agricultural Nonpoint Source Abatement and Control Grants, programs which provide DEC protection funds to municipalities and farmers in the Owasco Lake watershed to improve wastewater treatment facilities, stop erosion along roadsides and stream banks and improve farm efficiencies. By Jeremiah Johnson As you are probably well aware, the Obama administration would like nothing more than to place the United States under Martial Law. Once that is accomplished, the country and people would be locked down and kept under control on the pretext of continuing with the government and/or maintaining the national security of the U.S. Lets take a look at 5 events the administration would be most likely to utilize to reach this end state. Note: All of these can occur simultaneously, successively, or individually in any combination at any time: there is no limit to their use or potential to recur! 1. Economic Meltdown Over the course of this past year, we have seen a tremendous amount of volatility in trade (international) and the U.S.s domestic manufacturing base. As our fragile economy is based on 75% of consumer spending, any significant downturn that keeps the shoppers home can lead to disastrous reports. Lower consumer spending means people do not buy goods and services beyond the absolute essentials, and worse: (in the governments eyes) they hoard money and withdraw their funds from bank accounts. The Baltic Dry Index (BDI) can be seen as a key indicator of raw goods and materials transported to manufacturers and consumers via shipping contracts. As mentioned in previous articles, Hanjinn Container Company, the 7th largest container corporation in the world just filed for bankruptcy over the summer. You can see the BDI fluctuations day by day when you visit http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/BDIY:IND. It has been fluctuating wildly over the past year. Deutsche Bank is on the verge of bankruptcy and large banks such as Bank of America and J.P. Morgan have been plagued by losses and lawsuits alike. The unemployment rate is truly about 25% and the Soviet style statistics quacked from the radio on record gains and economic improvements are false and intentionally misleading. A Bank Holiday has already happened in places such as Indianapolis, and when the politicians, bankers, and oligarchs decide, they will pull the plug on a Federal Reserve system of fiat currency that is already an ineffective laughingstock of a smirking world that is steadily returning to the gold standard. When that Bank Holiday is declared, you can be sure the financial systems will collapse and Martial Law will be waiting in the wings. 2. Cyberattack This one is definitely one of the administrations favorites. Weve been seeing signs of this with the DHS (Department of Homeland Security) and DNI (Director of National Intelligence) letters and statements that the Russian government is hacking into the American electoral and election process. The targeting of the DNC (Democratic National Convention) e-mails was assigned to the Russians and officially the Russian government has been accused by the administration of such, and trying to influence the presidential race on Friday, 10/14/16. We also saw on 9/7/16, two days before the 5th North Korean nuclear test, the corporation based in California that monitors North Korean missile launches and nuclear testing was hacked into. A DoS (Denial of Service) was placed into their computer systems, preventing them from uploading satellite feeds and photos that would have enabled them to monitor the North Korean launch. That corporation is the Project on Crowdsourced Satellite Imagery. You can read more about this in the article DoS Attack Crashes Website Monitoring North Koreas Nuclear Test Site, by Eric Niiler of Wired.com. If other governments can crash our Internet and servers, do you think it is possible that the U.S. government as directed by the Obama administration can do it on its own? When that occurs, cell phones will go down, the computers will go down, the financial markets will be in a turmoil and cease trading, and ATMs and bank cards will be rendered useless. Transportation, inventories, shipping, and deliveries will all be thrown into a turmoil and come to a halt. For an excellent description of this, read Mac Slavos article from SHTFplan.com entitled When the Trucking Stops, that shows how vulnerable our nations supply lines are, also check out mspy reviews. Bottom line: if all of this goes down as a result of a cyberattack, Martial Law will immediately follow. 3. Unforeseeable/Black Swan Event As of last week, Obama just signed an Executive Order (EO), entitled Executive Order: Coordinating Efforts to Prepare the Nation for Space Weather Events, signed 10/13/2016. Such an EO could cover meteor strikes, Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) from the sun, a comet, or any other space anomaly. Not a big deal, you may think? It is a big deal, because heres the bottom line: Who is to prevent Obama from either causing another nation to launch an EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse) weapon, or launching one of his own (U.S.-made weapon), taking down the grid and subsequently blaming it on a CME event/solar storm, courtesy of the sun? Other events would include potentially man-made or generated storms, such as earthquakes, hurricanes, or even volcanic activity. If one scoffs at such, remember all that it would need is a 1 megaton nuclear kicker to set off either Yellowstone Caldera or the San Andreas Fault. Such natural disasters (initiated by man or genuine) usually result in Martial Law at the state level on a regular basis, much less one that is national in scope that Obama would jump on to inculcate Martial Law. 4. Nuclear War/EMP Attack Any day we could be at war with North Korea, Iran, China, or Russia. The resulting devastation, whether a full-scale or a limited nuclear war would automatically set in motion the wheels for COG (Continuity of Government), and a declaration of Martial Law. Let me close this portion with my caveat: World War III will begin with the detonation of an EMP device or weapon over the continental United States, followed by a limited nuclear exchange and then conventional warfare. 5. Viral or Bacterial Pandemic Either naturally occurring, or man-made. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) just inherited a tremendous amount of police power over the summer regarding their newfound ability to quarantine individuals or large groups of people on the suspicion of contamination/communicability regarding viral or bacterial pathogens relating to a potential or real pandemic. There is an article by Catherine J. Frompovich entitled ALERT: U.S. CDC Giving Itself Unconstitutional Powers to Round Up and Detain Citizens En masse Anytime, Anywhere and Throw Away the Key, dated on 9/3/16. This article details how these police powers were created in the Federal Register as the Proposed Rule Control of Communicable Diseases on August 15, 2016 that are now in effect to be found under Federal Register Number: 2016-18103. Guess what? That proposed rule is now law, and could easily be utilized to justify Martial Law in the U.S. because of a pandemic: naturally occurring, man-made, or phony. In addition to all of these juicy tidbits, the deciding factor is what I refer to as the IHM, or Incredible Human Mob. Yes, Civil Unrest is a factor; yet it is not a method but a sign/symptom, a side-effect of what happens when one of the aforementioned 5 methods are employed. In the interests of public safety, or to protect the public, or to maintain law and order are the phrases trumpeted by our benevolent and friendly government. As Rahm Emmanuel said, Never let a crisis go to waste, the very ones who are to be protected (the public) are the ones who create the conditions for civil unrest. Its literally a problem that takes care of itself, and heres the bottom line to cover the Civil Unrest factor: Using the fake justification in the interests of the safety of the people, martial law will be declared to confine, restrict, and control the peopleprotecting them from themselves . Then come the restrictions to travel, the police state in the streets, at the workplace, and the confiscation of firearms. Then comes the removal of dissidents and potential troublemakers, as well as the curfews, restrictions, and limitations in every facet of our society. Martial Law is an objective of the Obama administration. The problem is that he (Obama) cannot just arbitrarily declare it. The declaration requires a prod, such as one of the 5 methods mentioned. In those circumstances, he then can suspend our rights under the Constitution and bypass the true laws of the U.S. Such an end state is his desire. Such an end state would also mean the end of the United States. Jeremiah Johnson is the Nom de plume of a retired Green Beret of the United States Army Special Forces (Airborne). Mr. Johnson was a Special Forces Medic, EMT and ACLS-certified, with comprehensive training in wilderness survival, rescue, and patient-extraction. Mr. Johnson is an ardent advocate for preparedness, self-sufficiency, and long-term disaster sustainability for families. He and his wife survived Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. Cross-trained as a Special Forces Engineer, he is an expert in supply, logistics, transport, and long-term storage of perishable materials, having incorporated many of these techniques plus some unique innovations in his own homestead. This article first appeared at Tess Penningtons Ready Nutrition.com. ADHD in Women: My Story Cant you sit still for just five minutes? Apparently not. But at least now, years later, I have an explanation in answer to my moms question if only she were alive to hear it. Turns out, my excess energy is attention deficit-fueled hyperactivity. Perhaps I should have been tipped off by the tempo of conversations I had with my friend, Chris (who was diagnosed with ADHD as a child). Our dialogues have always been like a pool game, with both of us taking shots at the same time, bouncing rapid-fire thoughts off each other without skipping a beat. One evening, Chris suggested I take an online quiz for ADHD. I assumed he was kidding. He wasnt. The results? I did very well. So well, in fact, that Chris declared, Zoe, were going to make you president of the club. Along with credulity came clarity. Maybe this was why Id spent every day of the last eight months spinning in a circle in the middle of my living room, unable to decide what to do first. Id repeat this procedure in my kitchen, bedroom, and office, then go back to the living room to start over. By mid-afternoon, Id accomplished nothing. At this point, I couldnt afford to pay my rent. I was in trouble. Here I was, a 47-year-old woman who had written a book, run for MPP (Member of the Provincial Parliament) in Canada, earned two university degrees and three college diplomas, spinning like Maria von Trapp in The Sound of Music. How do you solve a problem like Maria? [Self Test: Do I Have Adult Hyperactive and Impulsive ADHD?] Desperately Seeking ADHD Treatment The morning after my online quiz, I found myself in my doctors office, bawling as I described my out-of-control life. I left with a prescription for a long-acting stimulant (one of several medications used to treat ADHD), and began my quest for the Holy Grail a way to make my crazy life work. The medication calmed the frenetic energy Id felt my entire life. Soon after taking that first pill, all the cells in my body stopped jumping on the trampoline and lay down. The feeling of being overwhelmed, anxious, and out of control also seemed to subside. Now I could begin my long road to discovery and, I hoped, recovery. When I told my sister, Melissa, about the test results and the symptoms of ADHD, her first remark was, That explains everything. Having grown up with me, Mel could provide insight and anecdotes from our childhood, both of which are integral to a diagnosis. According to the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V), the professional reference of mental health disorders, symptoms need to be present before age 12 before a diagnosis of ADHD can be made. Having spent most of my public-school days in the hall for talking too much, I fit the bill. The same combination of intuition and impulsivity that earns kids a walk to the principals office can earn women and men their walking papers from jobs, friends, family, and bewildered lovers, who cant take the chronic lateness and off-the-wall remarks any longer. [Read: Finally, Everything Made Perfect Sense] Women and Their ADHD Symptoms Kenny Handelman, a child psychiatrist and an adjunct professor of psychiatry at the University of Western Ontario, calls the observational abilities of adults with ADHD a paradox. While were inattentive to some social cues, droning on while the listener checks her watch and mutters, Gotta go, we can also use our constant scanning ability to gather cues that others dont get, coming up with intuitive insights and responses. The problem is, sometimes we cant stop ourselves from blurting out our thoughts. When I started public school, not all teachers or child psychiatrists understood ADHD. Kids like me were out-of-control demon spawn, creating mayhem in class, community, and home. After professionals began to recognize ADHD, about 25 years ago, it was mostly boys who were diagnosed. While impulsive blurting and hyperactivity have been hallmarks of my life, females are often not blessed with the H-for-hyperactivity part. Instead of racing around classrooms with the boys (and me), many girls stare dreamily out the window. And so it continues into adulthood the majority of women diagnosed with the condition fall into the inattentive type of ADHD (the condition comes in several flavors, but all are clinically known as ADHD). Living the ADHD Life At 44, Denise Difede was diagnosed with the combined subtype of ADHD. She began taking a stimulant, and it worked. The true test that her medication made a difference came while a friend was visiting Difede for a month. One weekend, she decided to take a meds break. I didnt tell him I had been on [then went off] medication, says Difede. Come Monday, her friend remarked, Youre so much more together today, you were out of it most of the weekend. It was a shock, says Difede, who now works as an administrator at the Canadian ADHD Resource Alliance in Toronto. I asked him to describe what he saw on the weekend. He just said he thought I was not quite on my game. Difede and I are in good company: Some of the most successful athletes (Michael Phelps), actors, and entertainers (Justin Timberlake), not to mention scientists, entrepreneurs, and academics, display traits of ADHD. On the other hand, being in the minority a woman with the hyperactive form of ADHD I present entirely differently from Difede. Professionals tell me that having the H is actually a good thing: Hyperactivity can lead to earlier diagnosis and more energy later in life. For me, its been a mixed blessing. Being hyperactive helps me when performing standup comedy, but it does me no favors when I come across as near-manic during a job interview. After learning that I had the disorder and a euphoric moment of realizing that my apparent road to nowhere was not my fault a sense of embarrassment and failure flooded in. People will say theyre turning to crack, gambling, sex, but they dont want to say theyve got an inherited neurobiological condition, like ADHD, says Pete Quily, an ADHD coach in Vancouver, who has been diagnosed with the condition. Fighting the Stigma Because the medical field is just beginning to recognize adult ADHD, the condition is rife with stigma and stereotypes. My response? I resolved to become an ADHD crusader, and I made my first public confession at my local pet-food store. When the store owner asked if I wanted to apply for a frequent-buyer card, I said, Sure, why not? Rifling through her records, she discovered that I already had not one, but two, cards. I laughed. Theres a reason for that, I said. I have ADHD! Poor memory not to mention a cluttered wallet and purse can be an ADHD symptom. Her face dropped. I could have sworn she backed away. Then, in hushed tones, she confided that doctors had told her that her son had it, too. But, she said, I knew he didnt, because hes highly intelligent. She might as well have taken a 10-pound bag of dog food and smashed me in the face with it. Stereotype confirmed. Fact: ADHD has nothing to do with lack of intelligence. The Canadian Mental Health Associations website (where else would you go for information about a mental health issue? I naively thought) wasnt any better informed. ADHD is mentioned, but only in reference to children. Thats a big oversight, says Lily Hechtman, a professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at McGill University in Montreal, and co-author of Hyperactive Children Grown Up (#CommissionsEarned) . Hechtman explains that the medical profession is beginning to realize that, not only can many symptoms continue into adulthood, they can cause significant difficulties. Yet, she says, the reality is all the medical students at McGill get one lecture on ADHD, only part of which is on adult ADHD. In Canadian medical school, adult ADHD is mentioned briefly, unless one is specializing in child psychiatry. This is why a child psychiatrist, not a general practitioner, may be the best person to diagnose an adult. Finding Help for ADHD in Women Consequently, women like Difede are left to seek out the rare psychiatrist who can diagnose them (as she did) by attending conferences on ADHD, finding a coach, or finding or starting their own support group. Many women may cruise along until, as in my case, things start to fall apart. According to Quily and others, the unraveling often coincides with marriage and having kids. Suddenly, Quily explains, You have to organize not just yourself, but the kids, too. These added responsibilities can push a moms ADHD stress-o-meter over the top. As if thats not enough, chances are that the kids have the condition as well (some estimates suggest that up to 80 percent of ADHD is inherited), giving Mom an even greater challenge, as shell have to organize both herself and her kids. Juggling career, marriage, and child rearing can be challenging for anyone. But for someone with ADHD, it can feel impossible. Add to that the increased demands of household management, and a woman with undiagnosed ADHD can feel completely overwhelmed. Lets face it: Filing and paperwork are the nemesis of most people with ADHD. In fact, the only part of Martha Stewart a mom with ADHD can understand is the going-to-jail part (its not uncommon to be so disorganized that taxes havent been filed for years). Perfect pastries? Forget it! Its no wonder that some women end up feeling ashamed at their inability to keep up with their more organized friends and family. In the extreme, some women with ADHD tend to isolate themselves, unwilling to expose their self-perceived deficiencies. Instead of receiving a diagnosis and treatment, many women with ADHD have been told since childhood, even by well-meaning but uninformed professionals, that theyre lazy and should just try harder. No wonder one of the ADHD classics is called You Mean Im Not Lazy, Stupid or Crazy?! (#CommissionsEarned) , written by Kate Kelly and Peggy Ramundo, both diagnosed with ADHD. Diagnosis during menopause can be even trickier, as problems with memory, organization, anxiety, and mood disorders that arise at that time of life can all mimic ADHD symptoms, says Hechtman. One of the ways I would differentiate [ADHD] is to get a good longitudinal picture of that person from childhood onward, she says. If there were no ADHD symptoms prior to menopause, the symptoms are pointing to something else. Another imposter is learning disabilities (LD), which up to 20 percent of those with ADHD also have. Like mood disorders, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other ailments that accompany adult ADHD (80 percent of us have at least one co-existing condition), LD can be mistaken for ADHD. You and Your ADHD But, hey, lets not get all stressed out about it; stress, according to Quily, is like adding fuel to ADHD symptoms. We can take some solace in the fact that, although its not perfect, a newly minted set of diagnostic tools for adults was introduced with the DSM-V. This is a good thing, because two of the current diagnostic criteria (developed solely for kids) are climbing trees and running about excessively. Its no coincidence that hyperactive kids like to move their bodies: Physical activity is an excellent way to diminish ADHD symptoms. While tree-climbing and excessive running might not be realistic pursuits for adults with ADHD, the best treatment, according to long-term studies that observed kids into adulthood, is multimodal, using a variety of approaches from medication and behavioral therapy to biofeedback, exercise, and other alternative therapies to treat symptoms. Detailed, boring stuff is like kryptonite for people with ADHD, says Quily. So delegate or find a boss who will embrace your creative side, your mind thats so out-of-the-box its from another planet, and let the regular humans handle the paperwork. As for me, Ill keep using deadlines as my organizing principle, and accept the fact that, even when Im hyperfocusing, Ill still have to jump up, water the plants, check e-mail, and pet the dog to keep me on track. [Read: ADHD Looks Different in Women. Heres Howand Why] #CommissionsEarned As an Amazon Associate, ADDitude earns a commission from qualifying purchases made by ADDitude readers on the affiliate links we share. However, all products linked in the ADDitude Store have been independently selected by our editors and/or recommended by our readers. Prices are accurate and items in stock as of time of publication About half (47%) Indians said that they would consider buying a Used Car from a Company Showroom; according to a new study by global market research company Ipsos. The study was conducted by Ipsos to map perceptions towards Used Cars among 1029 Indian respondents across eight cities - Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Lucknow and Ahmedabad. The hoopla around online classified advertising sites like OLX, Quickr and others notwithstanding, only about 11% respondents said they would buy a Used Car online; 41% respondents were undecided. So, how do Used Cars fit in with the lifestyle of Urban Car Buyers? Ipsos study shows different mindsets for Used Cars: 30% respondents said they would never buy a Used Car; 23% respondents said they would buy a Used Car to upgrade from a 2-wheeler to a 4-wheeler; 22% respondents were undecided; 13% respondents would buy a Used Car as a second car at home and 12% said they would buy a Used Car to upgrade their status - by buying a fancy luxury car of a premium automaker. Amit Adarkar, CEO of Ipsos India said that these are interesting insights from stand point of a car maker: Consumers have different motivations for buying and not buying a Used Car and marketers will find these insights useful, after all India has some of the lowest penetrations of passenger cars vis-a-vis other markets, just 15 cars per 1000 persons, unlike other markets like China (60/1000), Brazil (160/ 1000) and Indonesia (42/ 1000). The study further delved into the psyche of consumers to find out their concerns towards ownership of Used or a Pre-Owned Car. Interestingly, consumers are concerned about the ROI and seem to tread on caution: 26% respondents felt that Used Cars can work out more expensive on pocket post purchase; 23% felt that lifespan and longevity of a car would be suspect; 19% were concerned about Certification & After Sales Service; 19% were not confident about the functioning of a pre-owned car and 13% felt some bit of stigma about owning a Used Car, felt they would be perceived as untrendy and uncool. Some of these concerns do take sheen off Used Cars, but these concerns are unfounded; Certified Cars are meant to be road ready for the long haul, said Adarkar. On the flip side consumers listed some tangible positives of owning a Used Car. 31% saw benefit in price in ownership of a Used Car; 24% felt a Used Car depreciates lesser vis-a-vis a new car; 19% felt a premium luxury Used Car is accessible and can elevate social status; 15% felt stakes were much less for buying and selling used cars; and 11% felt that Used Cars make car ownership a reality for those who felt that car ownership was beyond their means. Adarkar sees some paradox here with Yay Sayers & Nay Sayers being equally upbeat. Interestingly, views were divided on preference of Used Cars. 38% said Diesel; 31% said they would prefer a petrol Used Car; and 30% rooted for a CNG or Hybrid Used Car. Majority of the respondents polled supported governments proposed decision of hiking tax rates on old cars. In an endeavour to spread awareness around hygiene habits and the importance of hand wash, RB India launched its new initiative, on this Global Handwashing Day (15th October). Taking forward its commitment, to celebrate Global Handwashing Day RBs new campaign focuses on contributing Re 1 from the sale of select packs of Dettol Liquid Hand wash, Harpic, Lizol and Mortein towards the School Hand Washing program. Led by the launch of a new TVC, the campaign emphasises on creating a big impact by making a small contribution like investing in an RB product to raise awareness around healthy hand wash and hygiene. Talking about the new campaign in India, Nitish Kapoor, Regional Director RB South Asia said, We believe that its important to inculcate healthy behaviour changes at an early age. A simple act of hand wash with soap prevents a lot of illness and needless deaths, especially in developing country like India. Global Handwashing Day gives us the opportunity to create an awareness platform, and provides an occasion to our consumers where they can take a small step towards improving the sanitation and health conditions in India, therefore, making a huge impact in the life of millions of people. He further added,Under DettolBangea Swachh India campaign, we pledge to reach out to the masses across the county, in order to drive habit change and attitude towards hand hygiene. We sincerely believe that our Global Handwashing day initiative clubbed with Banega Swachh India campaignwill take us a step closer in achieving our mission of a healthy India by driving positive impact on peoples attitude towards their hygiene habits. Global Handwashing Day is an annual global advocacy day dedicated to increase awareness and understanding around the importance of handwashing with soap as an easy, effective, and affordable way to prevent diseases and save lives. Since its inception, through the School Hand Wash Program in India, Dettol has imparted education around healthy handwashing habits to almost 11 million children across 20,000 plus schools in India and aims to add more number of children in future. In addition, Dettol has also reached out to 6 million new Mom's in government and private hospitals across 40+ cities to spread awareness around good hygiene regime for them and their infants, thereby helping lay a strong foundation for good hygiene. To know more about the campaign, click here https://www.dettol.co.in/baneg a-swachh-india/ India Kawasaki Motors Pvt. Ltd (IKM), a 100 per cent subsidiary of Kawasaki Heavy Industries Japan, has appointed London based Public Relations firm, Eulogy for its brand management and image consultancy activities. The India arm of Eulogy with a pan-India network will service the account. As a Public Relations Consultancy, Eulogy Media will help enhance the image of IKM as a leading Superbikes manufacturer from Japan in India. Eulogy Media via its domain expertise in automobile sector will help IKM connect with its customers. Mandated to build positive mindshare of Kawasaki and bring the brand closer to its motorcycle enthusiasts. By employing a mix of traditional and new-age communication tools, Eulogy Media seeks to achieve the mandate of building upon a positive brand perception. On winning the account, Cyrus Jogina, Managing Director, Eulogy India, said, We are extremely proud to be associated with India Kawasaki Motors. We believe that our experience working with some well-known auto clients in India will help us heighten the brand recall for Kawasaki amongst its target consumers. The companys rich heritage and outstanding engineering has provided a true riding experience to millions across the globe. We aim to provide them a 360-degree communication strategy. Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd had first begun manufacturing motorcycle engines in 1953 and has a sole division called Motorcycle & Engine Company, providing products directly to general consumers. The motorcycle department has expanded its range of products and has contributed to the enhancement of the overall Kawasaki brand reputation. The company aims to continue pursuing customer satisfaction, setting its basic idea to develop products that are Advanced Environmental Technologies, Fun to Ride, and Ease of Riding. Two leading travel groups in India MakeMyTrip and ibibo Group (owned by global technology group Naspers) have agreed to pursue a transaction that will combine the two businesses under MMYT, creating one of the leading travel groups in India that provides a onestop shop for all Indian travellers and serves as a critical partner for travel industry suppliers. The combination will bring together a bouquet of leading consumer travel brands, including MakeMyTrip, goibibo, redBus, Ryde and Rightstay, which together processed 34.1 mm transactions during FY2016. The transaction is expected to unlock value for customers, supply partners and shareholders by combining the complementary strengths of each business. MakeMyTrip brings its strong brand, robust mix of domestic and outbound hotels and packages business and strong position in the air ticketing business. ibibo Group, via its brand goibibo and redBus, comes with a strong presence in various fast growing travel segments, including hotels, bus bookings and air ticketing. Following the closing of the proposed transaction, Founder Deep Kalra will remain Group CEO and Executive Chairman of MakeMyTrip and Cofounder Rajesh Magow will continue to remain CEO India of MakeMyTrip. Founder and CEO of ibibo Group, Ashish Kashyap, will join MakeMyTrips executive team as a Cofounder and President of the organisation. Deep Kalra, Chairman and Group CEO of MakeMyTrip, said, This announcement is a significant step forward for the rapidly growing travel industry in India. We expect this deal to create an even more scalable business with the expertise to transform the booking experience for Indian travellers. I am delighted to be leading such a strong team in our next chapter of highgrowth in this dynamic industry. Rajesh Magow, ofounder and CEO - India of MakeMyTrip, added here, We welcome the ibibo team to the newly expanded MakeMyTrip family. The combination of these two enterprises, with their deep understanding of customer preferences, will help us provide an even stronger value proposition to our users and offer further career growth opportunities for all employees. Ashish Kashyap, CEO, ibibo Group, said, Since I founded ibibo in 2007, we have innovated and grown to become one of the leading travel companies in India, providing solutions not just for travellers, but for suppliers too. Deep, Rajesh and I saw a great opportunity to join forces, and I am excited that this merger enables all of us to continue a great journey together as the leading travel group in India. According to Bob van Dijk, CEO, Naspers, India is a key market for Naspers, and this deal reinforces our commitment to the country. ibibo and MakeMyTrip have built leading companies through their innovative use of technology to create exceptional experiences for people travelling throughout India and, increasingly, beyond. Todays announcement underlines the continued ambition of Deep, Rajesh and Ashish and their teams, and I look forward to seeing the future success of this new and even stronger business. Naspers and Tencent, through their jointly owned holding company (91 per cent owned by Naspers and 9 per cent owned by Tencent), are selling ibibo Group to MakeMyTrip in exchange for an issuance of new shares by MakeMyTrip. Upon closing of the transaction, MakeMyTrip will own 100 per cent of ibibo Group. Naspers and Tencent will become the single largest shareholder in MakeMyTrip, owning a 40 per cent stake, and will contribute proportionate working capital upon closing. Additionally, prior to closing , the US$180 million, 5year convertible notes issued by MakeMyTrip to Ctrip.com International in January 2016 will also be converted into common equity, resulting in Ctrip having an approximately 10 per cent stake in the combined entity. The transaction is expected to close by the end of December 2016 and is subject to approval by MakeMyTrip shareholders and regulatory approvals. Morgan Stanley is acting as exclusive financial advisor to MakeMyTrip and has also provided a fairness opinion to the Board of MakeMyTrip. Latham and Watkins, S&R Associates and Appleby are acting as legal advisors to MakeMyTrip. Goldman Sachs is acting as exclusive financial advisor to ibibo and Naspers, while Cravath, Swaine & Moore, Trilegal and BLC Roberts are acting as legal advisors. Ahead of the US Elections, Film Focuses on Climate Threats and Practical Solutions Film Produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, Fisher Stevens, Brett Ratner, James Packer Executive Produced by Martin Scorsese National Geographic Channel announced today that it has acquired the worldwide rights the to the Untitled Climate Change Feature Documentary produced by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Fisher Stevens alongside Academy Award-winning actor, environmental activist and UN Messenger of Peace, Leonardo DiCaprio. The film presents an informative and engaging account of how society can prevent the demise of endangered species, ecosystems and native communities across the globe. Audiences are presented with visual evidence of a worsening environmental crisis that is inflicting irreversible damage on pristine landscapes from Greenland to Indonesia, disturbing the balance of our planets climate and hastening the extinction of beloved animals. Serving as a warning ahead of the US election for Americans to vote for leaders who prioritise climate change policies, the film also explains real, practical solutions to help save the planet. DiCaprio interviews individuals from every facet of society in both developing and developed nations who provide unique, impassioned and pragmatic views on what must be done today and in the future to transition economic and political systems into environmentally friendly institutions. Subjects include US President Barack Obama, Former US President Bill Clinton, US Secretary of State John Kerry, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Pope Francis, as well as top NASA researchers, forest conservationists, revered scientists, community leaders and fervent activists working to save the world. National Geographic has a long history of inspiring others to care about the planet, said Courteney Monroe, CEO of National Geographic Global Networks. Now, in the midst of the undeniable crisis that is climate change, we have a responsibility to inspire others to act. I have no doubt that the global reach of our brand, combined with DiCaprios passion for this issue and Fishers compelling storytelling will bring this critical issue to the forefront like never before. Climate change is the most fundamental threat facing our planet, said DiCaprio. We must work together as a collective voice to demand major action now. Our very survival depends on it. This documentary translates the symptoms and solutions of climate change before information is distorted, as it often is, by those with a financial interest in fossil fuel production. If you could know the truth about how much damage we have done to our planet and how much time we have to find solutions before this whole ecosystem collapses would you want to know? We can no longer turn a blind eye to this issue and hope that it resolves itself, added Fisher Stevens. My hope is that this film provides a wakeup call about our inevitable fate should we fail to act. And on the eve of what could be the most important election in US history, I hope this film not only educates the public on the serious threat we face, but also forces voters to really think about how important their vote is. National Geographic plans to release the film theatrically in New York and Los Angeles this October followed by a global premiere on National Geographic Channel in 171 countries in 45 languages preceding the US election in November. The film is a RatPac Documentary Films, Appian Way and Insurgent Media production. It is produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, Brett Ratner, Fisher Stevens, Jennifer Davisson, and Trevor Davidoski and executive produced by Martin Scorsese. The deal was negotiated by John Sloss of Cinetic Media with Tim Pastore, President of Original Programming and Production for National Geographic Channel. P Mark front runner in the mustard oil segment in India, has unveiled its new TV campaign one specialist to another. Reinforcing its commitment as specialists and educating the masses about the taste, the new TVC pays tribute to P Marks exceptional taster in the category. In the latest TVC, the brand redefines the food aroma while cooking. It shows how a traditional music protagonist played by Boman Irani gets carried away by the aroma of food cooked in P Mark mustard oil. Cooking in P Mark mustard oil tantalizes the all the organs especially the nose and the taste buds and also assures good health Targeted towards the people who love eating and are conscious about the cooking oil, P Mark mustard oil is a perfect solution as a cooking oil in the healthiest manner. Speaking about the new campaign Mr. Vivek Puri, MD, Puri Oil Mills said, P Mark Mustard Oil comes with a heritage and a goodwill especially across North India. Our aim is to offer our customers a premium and authentic cooking oil that is being used in their house by their grandmother and mother. The generation today is very conscious of what they eat. There is no better oil than Mustard oil when it comes to Indian cooking. Not only cooking, Mustard oil is also one of the most effective oil if used as a medicine as proved by Ayurvedic experts. This TVC is very special for us as Kayoze Irani, Bomans son has directed Boman. It strengthens our belief that cooking habits are passed from one generation other. Also our decision to have Boman as our brand ambassador has proved to be one of the best decisions as no one can define our brand better than him adds Puri. On the association the brand ambassador, Boman Irani said, I am very proud to be associated with a brand like Puri Oil Mills Limited. It is a brand which has a legacy of last three generations. I have grown up listening to my grandmother say that love that comes straight from heart makes food tastier and when it comes to the heart I only trust P Mark Mustard Oil. Scheduled to air across leading second week of October 2016, the ad campaign is conceptualised and directed by Kayoze Irani and production house is White Script. The campaign will roll out across cities in a combination of print and TV commercials, outdoor innovation for mall advertising and will also exhibit the use of new media and interactive sampling. Link of the TVC - https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=c92qnXceVXg&feature=youtu.be The International Air Transport Association (IATA) and IT provider SITA, have revealed that global deployment of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) with highly accurate tracking rates, could reduce the number of mishandled bags by up to 25% by 2022, mainly through efficient tracking. The SITA/IATA business case, released today at the IATA World Passenger Symposium taking place in Dubai, outlines how this will provide a major saving for airlines and deliver more certainty for passengers. Initial deployments of RFID by airlines, such as Delta Air Lines, show a 99% success rate for tracking bags. In particular, RFID will address mishandling during transfer from one flight to another, one of the key areas identified by SITA and IATA where the technology could help improve baggage handling rates. RFID technology will ensure that airports, airlines and ground handlers are able to keep track of bags at every step of the journey and ensure the right bag is loaded onto the correct flight. The technology also supports IATAs Resolution 753 that requires by 2018 airlines keep track of every item of baggage from start to finish. The deployment of RFID would build on the already significant savings delivered by the smart use of technology for baggage management. According to the SITA Baggage Report 2016, technology has helped reduce the number of mishandled bags by 50% from a record 46.9 million mishandled bags in 2007, saving the industry US$ 22.4 billion. This improvement comes despite a sharp rise in passenger numbers over the same period. Jim Peters, Chief Technology Officer at SITA, said: "The airline industry is at the brink of a revolution in baggage tracking. Deploying RFID globally will increase accuracy and reduce mishandling rates. This is a win-win situation passengers will be happier, operations will run smoother and airlines will save billions of dollars." Andrew Price, Head of Global Baggage Operations at IATA said: "Over the past few years we have seen more work to help airlines introduce and reap the benefits of RFID technology through better oversight of their baggage operations. This has included trials and of course the Delta Air Lines implementation. The advances in the technology and the immense benefits it brings to the airline industry has prompted IATA to revisit and fully explore the benefits of RFID today." Initial deployments of RFID by airlines, such as Delta Air Lines, show a 99% success rate for tracking bags, helping further reduce the number of mishandled bags. David Hosford, manager of baggage performance strategy at Delta Air Lines said: "We are investing in RFID to further improve our baggage handling rates and improve the customer experience. RFID technology provides us with more data and more precise tracking information throughout the baggage journey. The SITA/IATA business case shows that the improvements in handling rates do not come at a great cost. RFID capabilities can be deployed for as little US$0.1 per passenger on average while generating expected savings of more than US$0.2 per passenger. With some big airlines and airports already introducing RFID technology, combined with the fact that it is compatible with existing barcode technology, adoption of RFID across all airports could provide a positive return for airlines, both in cost savings and passenger satisfaction. SITAs and IATA's assumptions are based on RFID being deployed in 722 airports (representing 95% of passenger numbers globally) over a six-year period between 2016 and 2021 while the savings are calculated over seven years. The figures for 2016 take into account the RFID infrastructure already deployed or about to be deployed at multiple induction points on the baggage journey. SITA's research into RFID and baggage tracking is part of its ongoing investment in research for the benefit of the entire air transport community. Baggage tracking is one of the five community research programs that SITA has launched to address some of the industrys most pressing challenges. The others are identity management of the future; the facilitation of IATAs New Distribution Capability (NDC); an industry-wide disruption warning system; and enhancing cybersecurity across the industry. Yesterday, Thales UK opened its Electric Propulsion Integration Centre in Belfast, Northern Ireland - the first of its kind in the UK - with ESA astronaut Major Tim Peake cutting the ribbon at the inauguration event during his postflight tour of the UK. Above: (left to right) Magali Vaissiere, ESA Director of Telecommunications and Integrated Applications, Rt Hon. Arlene Foster, Northern Irelands First Minister, Philip McBride, General Manager at Thales Belfast, ESA astronaut Tim Peake, Minister Simon Hamilton, Minister for the Economy, Northern Ireland. Copyright ThalesUK The Centre will expand Europes all-electric satellite capability as part of ESAs Neosat programme, manufacturing state of the art electric propulsion systems for satellites. Electric propulsion is when electrical energy collected from the Sun is converted into thrust by the acceleration of inert Xenon gas ions from an electric thruster. Electric propulsion allows the satellite to carry larger payloads for longer periods, driving down the cost of operating the platform in space and requiring one fifth of the propellant to deliver the same mission compared to chemical-based engines. The facility represents a major milestone in the development of space design and manufacturing capability for Thales in the UK since the establishment in 2014 of Thales Alenia Space in the UK. Victor Chavez, Chief Executive, Thales UK, said: The opening of this propulsion centre represents a major milestone in our commitment to invest in the future of space manufacturing and game changing technology in Belfast and the UK. It also opens an exciting new chapter for a site which already enjoys a deserved reputation for world class precision engineering skills. The Thales Alenia Space Joint Venture investment has grown the business from 10 employees at its foundation to 150 today, and will more than double to 350 in the next two years. The investment will also see the expansion of Space engineering centres of excellence in Bristol and Harwell, Oxfordshire. The decision to open the manufacturing centre in Belfast was made after an evaluation of potential sites around Europe. The heritage of precision engineering for the defence sector, traced back to the iconic Short Brothers, and the similarity of skills to those of the space industry, made the Northern Ireland site an obvious choice. This was further reinforced by the UK Governments commitment to fund space activities and create new initiatives to foster growth in the space industry including the formation of the UK Space Agency, an increased contribution to the European Space Agency (ESA), the investment in the UK Space Gateway at Harwell and securing a significant share of the Neosat programme for the UK. The Belfast site will work closely with these centres and with other Thales sites around the world. The first 10 engineers from Belfast have completed their training in the new propulsion technology at the Thales Alenia Space headquarters in Cannes, France. The facility will manufacture around four satellite electric propulsion systems per year, including those for the European Space Agencys Neosat satellite programme. Neosat is part of the Agencys aim of developing in orbit next-generation satellite platforms for the core satellite communications market. Belfast will play an important step towards the qualification and production of the Thales Alenia Spaces Spacebus NEO satellite platform offering under the ESA Neosat programme. The Belfast facility has also received support and investment from Invest Northern Ireland in the form of a training and industrial research grant. First Minister of Northern Ireland, Arlene Foster commented: The Space Sector is an important emerging market with exciting commercial opportunities spanning numerous industries including engineering, ICT and communications. We want to ensure local businesses maximise their world class capabilities and expertise to position Northern Ireland as a globally recognised region for space sector innovation and expertise. The new clean room facilities at Thales are an important investment in the development of Northern Irelands space cluster and demonstrate the Groups confidence in the world-class engineering capabilities of its workforce in Northern Ireland. For more than 40 years, Thales Alenia Space has designed, integrated, tested, operated and delivered innovative space systems. Its cutting-edge products and services meet the needs of commercial and government customers from around the world, spanning the communications, navigation, earth observation, space exploration, science and defence sectors. Thales Alenia Space is also one of the main suppliers to the International Space Station (ISS), having constructed over half of the pressurised volume of the ISS. Thanks to the European Space Agency and to the Neosat development project, Thales Alenia Space has signed three contracts based on Spacebus NEO including three XPS modules to be built in Belfast facilities. Magali Vaissiere, ESA Director of Telecommunications and Integrated Applications, commented: Neosat aims to help European satellite builders to capture at least half of the worlds satcom market in the years to come. The opening of this dedicated facility in Belfast is an important milestone in the electric propulsion revolution. National Guard uniquely positioned to contribute in cyber realm The civilian-acquired skills of its members enable the National Guard to make unique contributions in the cyber realm, Gen. Joseph Lengyel, chief of the National Guard Bureau, said Oct. 17. Lengyel told audience members at the North American International Cyber Summit 2016 that Guard members can be found in high-tech companies ranging from startups to Google and Microsoft. Lengyel said civilian-acquired skills give guardsmen a unique ability to contribute in their military roles, and it's a two-way street. "We provide employers the military training and experience our guardsmen take back to their civilian positions," he said. The National Guard is not a new arrival in cyberspace. Fear that coding issues would cause problems after Dec. 31, 1999, popularly known as the Y2K or Millennium Bug prompted the formation of what are now called Defensive Cyberspace Operations Elements in each of the 50 states, three territories and Washington, D.C., where the National Guard operates. Networked technology has created tremendous freedom and opportunity, Lengyel said. "As with anything that is open and free, it presents some real vulnerabilities to those that would exploit them," he said. "The cyber domain also presents us with some of our greatest challenges from a security perspective." Challenges include protecting critical infrastructure, maintaining the freedom and agility of networked technology in spite of threats, defending Defense Department networks, defending the homeland against cyber threats and providing secure integrated cyber capabilities for military operations. "We have to build close relationships, partnerships and bridges with the rest of society when it comes to cyber," Lengyel said. The summit, which initiated in 2011, reflected those partnerships. Hosted by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, the summit was a collaborative effort with the National Governors Association, the Department of Homeland Security, private industry, educators, students and local partners. "We are experts at building enduring partnerships on all levels international, federal, state and local," Lengyel said of the National Guard. National Guard contributions include working closely with the combatant commands, especially U.S. Cyber Command, to fight off cyber incidents. Forty cyber units in 29 states support National Guard and CYBERCOM missions a number scheduled to grow through 2019. Two National Guard units are currently augmenting the active force in the cyber domain, just as guardsmen contribute every day in more traditional domains. "We are active in nearly every facet of cyberspace operations," Lengyel said. "And we practice our capabilities routinely at all levels." Lengyel mentioned recent cyber exercises in the U.S. and with overseas partners, as well as Cyber Guard, a CYBERCOM-hosted national exercise that simulates a domestic cyber incident with catastrophic disruption, bringing guardsmen together to train with industry partners, active component troops and federal agencies. Noting that 10,000 guardsmen recently contributed to the response to Hurricane Matthew, Lengyel said, "Just as the National Guard is ready to respond to major hurricanes, we now have contingency plans for major cyber incidents. "The more our world and society connects via the net, the more we are vulnerable," Lengyel continued. "Cyber warfare is a battle space that will only get more challenging. It's a battle space available to all both state and non-state actors. Staying one step ahead requires cooperation and teamwork." Success requires public-private and international partnerships, Lengyel said. "I challenge each of you to think and communicate how we can develop a culture of innovation to secure against those who wish to do us harm, he said. "We simply can't do it without your help." Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James hosted a Spouse and Family Forum in the Smart Center Auditorium on Joint Base Andrews Oct. 19.This forum provided an opportunity for Air Force leaders to address issues, suggestions, and questions directly from Air Force spouses and family members.Our Airmen are doing a great job, but no Airman does the job by themselves, James said. Every single person is backed up with a family -- many with spouses -- but everyone has a family and everyone has family concerns.James was joined by Air Force senior military leaders and subject matter experts as they fielded questions from the attendees and social media. The forum's agenda -- spouse employment and child care access; Air Force program for families with special needs; and schools, assignments, deployments and reintegration -- was based on frequently asked questions James received during her travels.The ongoing mobile military lifestyle for military spouses is something that isnt going away, according to Eddy Mentzer, the director of the Department of Defense Spouse Education and Career Opportunities Program.Our program is a DOD-wide program that serves all military spouses; its available through Military OneSource, and thats really where spouses should go as their first stop to look for information, resources and tools, Mentzer said. The ability to connect with one of our career counselors is paramount. They work individually one-on-one with the spouse as often as they need at no cost whatsoever to the spouse.There are also thousands of military spouses who have established successful careers, whether its entrepreneurial, or working at the highest levels of government or industry.I would call on those spouses to become mentors and work with those new and young spouses to show them how they were able to navigate that path, Mentzer said.Child care concerns have also risen across the Air Force, especially when child care operating hours dont coincide with duty hours. There are options available to those who face this issue parents may contact their on-base child development and school-age centers, and family child care program for information on Air Force-expanded child care programs, including community-based child care fee assistance through Child Care Aware of America For us, the challenge is educating our Airmen and families on the options available, said Deb Willey, the chief of Air Force Child and Youth Programs. Thats one thing we had already identified even before the forum. We seem to get the same questions, so were working on new ways to get the information out to our families.Working at a child care facility may be an opportunity for some spouses looking for employment. Thirty-two percent of the Air Forces Child and Youth Programs work force is military spouses.Were always looking for spouses who are willing to work; thats a challenge for us at some locations, Willey said. There are opportunities for advancement once you start working with us, and we really value training and education because were in the business of educating and developing youth.According to Lt. Col. Andy Cruz, the medical chief of the Exceptional Family Member Program, several EFMP pilot programs are being tested in the hopes of optimizing care for families.The DOD family member travel screening pilot will help streamline forms, he said. We are also trying to upgrade (information technology) systems so family members can track their family member relocation clearance package at any given time to alleviate stress.In addition, the new expedited clearance process, which is now available at 10 locations, will be implemented at more stateside locations, so families wont have to repeatedly go through the family member relocation clearance process.According to the Air Forces senior enlisted Airman, a more permanent fix to challenges within EFMP policy would have to be made by Congress.Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody said any changes to legislation will require advocates on many levels."We need to advocate, he said. We have to say there is a big enough need here, big enough challenge for our service members and their families, and there has been an evolution of what a family looks like since those laws were written."Some spouses were also concerned with the educational options and resources available for their dependents at each new assignment.We understand schools in general are a primary concern for our Airmen and their families, said Carl Buchanan, an Airman and Family Readiness policy analyst. Whether families have their children enrolled in public, Department of Defense, private schools, or home-schooled education for our Airmens children is a concern for many.We wanted to hear some of those difficulties, and we did, he said. We understand that there are many local challenges out there and this forum was designed so we could hear these concerns firsthand.He also recommended families engage with their installations Airman and Family Readiness Center for information and resources.There will be a school liaison or someone who can provide the resources for any questions families may have, he said. They dont even have to go to the base. You can search for the Airman and Family Readiness Center online and call from home.In addition, male spouses voiced their concerns that not enough resources were made available for them while their sponsors are deployed.Air Force senior leaders have witnessed robust key spouse programs across the Air Force and believe a model program should be identified and replicated across the Air Force.Commanders will reinforce the expectation that fun, family and culture are a mission priority, said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein. I can give you an example of every kind of squadron in the Air Force Ive seen. The common theme is the command team. If they choose to make it an obligation, its going to be vibrant.While time did not allow for every issue to be addressed, the majority of questions submitted via social media and at the forum will be answered on the Air Forces official website at a later date.(Editors note: Tech. Sgt. Robert Barnett and Staff Sgts. Alyssa C. Gibson and Jannelle McRae contributed to this article.)Panel 1: Spouse employment and childcare accessPanel 2: Air Force program for families with special needsPanel 3: Schools, assignments, deployments and reintegrationPanel 3: Continued King Mohammed VI, left on Tuesday Casablanca, heading for the Republic of Rwanda, as part of a royal tour that will also lead the Sovereign to Tanzania and Ethiopia. This is the first tour of the Moroccan monarch to East Africa where Moroccos presence and projection are weak in comparison to West Africa. The tour comes within the strategy designed by King Mohammed VI in recent years, which aims to diversify its partnerships, strengthen its ties with the most important players on the African continent, and also gain their support to its position with regards to the Western Sahara dispute. The visit comes three months after Morocco announced its intention to return to the African Union. Our friends have long been asking us to return among them so that Morocco may take its natural place within its institutional family. That time has now come, the King said in a letter to the 27th summit of the African Union held in Kigali, Rwanda, in July. Rwanda, Tanzania and Ethiopia recognize the virtual Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic and maintain diplomatic relationships with it. Thus, one of the Kings goals is to convince these countries to reconsider their position on the conflict and adopt a neutral stance pending the settlement of the dispute through the political process conducted under the aegis of the United Nations. The Moroccan monarchs visit to Rwanda comes four months after the visit that Rwandas President, Paul Kagame, paid to Morocco on June 20-22. Following this visit, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Salaheddine Mezouar, said that Morocco would open its embassy in Rwanda by the end of this year. An important delegation accompany King Mohammed VI during his tour in East Africa, including his advisors, Fouad Ali El Himma and Yasser Znagui. The delegation also includes Interior minister, Mohamed Hassad, Foreign minister, Salaheddine Mezouar, Endowments and Islamic Affairs minister, Ahmed Taoufik, Economy and Finance minister, Mohamed Boussaid, Agriculture and Fisheries minister, Aziz Akhannouch, and minister delegate to the Foreign minister, Nasser Bourita, as well as several other civil and military personalities. Former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira and three others have been arrested by Hyderabad Police in connection with an FIR registered against them in the alleged multi-crore rupee fraud involving the multi-level marketing company QNet. The Central Crime Station (CCS), a wing of Hyderabad Police, has made a breakthrough in a case of cheating which involved QNet and its Indian subsidiary M/s Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, by arresting four directors of Vihaan, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Detective Department) Avinash Mohanty of Hyderabad Police said. Michael Joseph Ferreira (78), Malcom N Desai, M V Balaji and Srinivas Rao, all directors and shareholders of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd who were earlier arrested in Mumbai by Maharashtra Police, have been brought to city on PT (production transit) warrants and arrested, the DCP said. On October 13 last year, a complaint was lodged by one Suman Ghosh, an assistant manager in a private bank here, wherein he stated that he paid Rs 16 lakh (via DD) in the name of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, on the promise of getting business. But, they did not give him any business despite collecting the amount. Based on the complaint, a case under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating) of IPC, besides relevant sections of Prize, Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, Mohanty said. He said during the course of investigation into the case registered here, on October 8 (this year) they received an information from the EOW wing of Mumbai Police that the four accused persons, who are directors of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, were arrested and remanded in judicial custody. Subsequently, Hyderabad Police filed an application at a court in Mumbai seeking their custody in connection with the case registered by them. The Mumbai court then granted transit remand and the Hyderabad Police took Padma Bhushan recipient Ferreira and three others into custody and brought them to the city late last night. Ramping up defence ties, it is nice that India and Russia announced deals worth about Rs 43,000 crores for purchase of state-of-art Russian air defence systems. Even in the past, India and Russia had decided to expand cooperation across various sectors as they signed 16 pacts, including deals on joint manufacture of 226 military helicopters and construction of 12 atomic plants with involvement of local companies in India. India and Russia also took forward a project to jointly manufacture military choppers under the Make in India initiative even as other plans, including one to construct frigates. Russia is one of Indias oldest and most trusted defence partners. Today up to 70% of Indias navy and up to 80% of Indias air force is of Russian-made. Indias increasing industrial strength has now prompted it to pursue this deal. It would be nice to further accelerate our partnership with one of the worlds fastest growing economies. India needs large number of helicopters both for military and civilian purposes. Ka-226T Helicopter will strengthen the Indian Air force . India has the capacity and strength to become a manufacturing hub. It must emerge as the best destination for manufacturing in the world. We have the reputation of the largest importer of defence equipment. Our Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that India needs to increase defence preparedness as it has huge requirements to manage internal security. It is to be remembered that to improve the acquisition and approval process we need to ensure that our technology does not fall into the wrong hands. If Indias defence industry becomes strong it will boost countrys security and will, add 200,000 skilled personnel in 10 years. Vinod C. Dixit (The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.) The 27-year-old wife of a national Kabbadi champion hanged herself in her home in Delhi, leaving a two-hour long audio message and a note in which she wrote: Im not strong enough to survive this, I have decided to quit. Lalita, the wife of pro-Kabaddi league player Rohit Chillar, was found hanging by a dupatta by her father on Monday evening in the apartment in west Delhi where she lived alone. The police say she recorded a two-hour audio message for her husband and a shorter one for her family. She alleges in them that she was tortured for dowry, taunted and beaten by her husband and his family. Rohit is a known name in the Indian Kabaddi circuit. Playing for the Patna Pirates in the third edition of Pro-Kabaddi League, he became the first player after Anup Kumar in 2014 to win the MVP award in his debut season. Lalita married Rohit, who now represents the team Bengaluru Bulls, in March. This was her second marriage. The police say Rohit is in Mumbai. The 26-year-old kabaddi player joined the Navy in 2009 and was posted there. Lalita reportedly said in her suicide note that she was forced to stay alone while her husband remained out of Delhi frequently. Last weekend, Rohit allegedly told her to leave him alone. Lalita said in the note that she was asked by her husband to leave him for his happiness, so she took this step, senior police officer Vijay Kumar said. The couple met when Lalita was in college. Her family believes she was depressed because she had suffered dowry harassment in her first marriage too. My daughter complained to us several times but said Papa, for the sake of the society and our family, please dont go to the police, said Lalitas father. The police are yet to question Rohit. His parents, who lived separately, are reportedly missing. [dropcap]T[/dropcap]he Rajasthan government has appealed the Supreme Court to direct an ordered to Salman Khan for surrendering immediately and should be lodge in jail in two poaching cases. In July, the Rajasthan High Court has acquitted Mr. Khan allegedly in killing an endangered species of gazelle or chinkara in two separate incidents in 1998 while he was shooting for a film in the desert state. Now, the state government has challenged his acquittal and wants him to be imprisoned to serve the rest of his sentence after being convicted in 2007 in the same case. He was awarded a one-year prison term and a five-year prison term respectively. He then spent a week in Jodhpur Jail before being granted bail. While finding him not guilty, the High Court said there was no evidence to prove that the animals that were found dead were shot by Khans licensed gun. Key witnesses, the driver of the jeep that was used by Salman Khan and his co-stars for their alleged hunt was missing, the prosecution admitted, which considerably weakened the case against the actor. However, just days later, media tracked down the driver, Harish Dulani, who said that he saw Khan shoot the chinkara, but had dodged testifying in court because he had been threatened. Khan is also accused of killing a protected species of blackbuck antelope in October 2, 1998. The trial in that case is being heard separately. As the debate on the acquittal of Bollywood actor Salman Khan in the infamous hit-and-run case is settled a bit, self-styled controversial godman Asaram drew attentions with his statement that he too is innocent like the actor. Asaram, while heading to appear for hearing of his case, told media persons, that he is also innocent and will come out of jail very soon. He has been jailed since last three years in connection with an alleged rape case. Now, SC asks Rajasthan government to respond to Asaram Bapus bail pleas. Rajasthan Government has to deal with two celebrity cases, one they asking for SC to direct Salman and in another case SC asking the government to look in to the matter. In August 2013, a 16-year-old girl accused Asaram of sexually assaulting her at his ashram in Jodhpur on the pretext of exorcising her from evil spirits. The girls parents filed a complaint with the police in Delhi, and a medical examination confirmed that she had been assaulted. When Asaram did not appear for interrogation by 31 August that year, Delhi police booked him under Indian Penal Code sections 342 (wrongful confinement), 376 (rape), 506 (criminal intimidation), and sections of the Juvenile Justice Act, and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. Asaram remained inside his other ashram in Indore and avoided arrest while his devotees clashed with journalists and policemen outside. Eventually, the Jodhpur police arrested him on 1 September 2013 from his ashram. Asaram dismissed the girls allegations, and claimed that the accusations were a conspiracy orchestrated by Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul Gandhi of the then-ruling Congress Party. He had also claimed that he was impotent and not capable of sexual assault, however this was proven to be a lie as tests showed him to be capable of the act. He has since been in jail and denied bail multiple times. In December 2013, Asarams son Narayan Sai was also arrested on charges of rape, after two sisters from Surat alleged that he and his father had raped them in Asarams ashram during the mid-2000s. The elder sister accused Asaram of repeated sexual assaults during 1997-2006 at the Motera ashram. The younger sister accused Narayan Sai of sexually assaulting her during 2002-2005 at the Surat ashram. One of the sisters also alleged that Asarams wife and daughter helped the two men exploit the girls Asaram has his own family life and enjoyed it like a common man having sex, relation, giving birth to son etc. and he knows if he indulges in such activity nothing will happen to his empire as he has thousands of followers and political support. He is booked on charges of forcing a girl to take part in an act of unnatural sex. In any complaint by a woman or a girl, the onus of proving oneself innocent, the burden of proof lies on the accused. This is not the first time that such allegations are made against him. We should look at him as accused and let the police do its job. If we all believe that he is innocent and has not done anything then, believe me if he will come clean that would be the biggest slap on conspirators face. He is not the first godman who is arrested in sexual assault. These Babas too are like us and even their libido can make them go wild and uncontrollable, this is just a human tendency and pervert instincts. Its high time; we need to accept the fact that Baba is not any super natural creature. And we have to realise that being celebrity, you are not above the law. I truly hope that justice will prevail as both the cases are dragged on for almost decades. (Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@afternoonvoice.com) The party has demanded the regularisation of those slums whose height is 20 feet. With an eye on the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) election Shiv Sena has opposed the demolition of slums above 14 feet. Since more than 60 per cent of Mumbais population reside in slums and these voters decide the electoral fortunes of political parties hence the party is trying to lure them. Even though Shiv Sena, Congress and Samajwadi party have ideological differences but these parties share same views pertaining to increasing the height of slums from 14 feet to 20 feet. Interestingly in 2014, Sena had opposed the Congress-NCP alliances move to extend the cut-off date of hutments upto 2,000. After the Behrampada slum collapse incident the BMC had issued notice to those residents staying in slums whose height exceeded beyond 14 feet. The civic body officials had started the work of razing illegal slums in Mumbai but they had to face stiff opposition from local residents and Shiv Sena, who is ruling the BMC. We are opposing the demolition of slums whose height surpasses more than 14 feet. Our party also has demanded the regularisation of those slums whose height touches 20 feet, said a corporator from Shiv Sena who doesnt want to be identified. Even Congress has demanded that the civic body allow shanties and slums to grow as tall as 20 feet and the state regularise them. Earlier opposition leader in BMC Pravin Chedda had pitched for vertical growth of slums in the city. He said, Mumbai is facing space crunch hence it is necessary to raise the height of slums for accommodating more people. Small slums hutments lack enough space to house more people. President of the state SP unit, Abu Azmi, said, There is a lot of unrest among slum dwellers over BMCs move to demolish slums above 14 feet. Civic officials should not have allowed these structures to come up in the first place. Instead of taking action against these officials, the civic body is targeting poor slum dwellers. On the other hand, BJP and MNS is favour of razing illegal structures whose height exceeds more than 14 feet. According to BJP if the BMC is following the rules while razing illegal structures then the civic body must be allowed to perform its job and nobody should come forward to stall it. If anybody wants to halt the demolition of the slums whose height exceeds more than 14 feet then they will have to seek the permission of the state government as the BMC doesnt have powers to make legislation in this regard. A senior civic official from the municipal commissioners office said, Though there are discussions going on in relation to this matter. We havent taken any official stand yet. The step is to drum up support from slum dwellers before the civic elections. Assyrian Forces Will 'Fight Relentlessly' To Free Mosul From ISIS Christian forces in Iraq have sworn to "fight relentlessly" to free Mosul and the surrounding areas from ISIS control. In a statement released on Monday, the Nineveh Plain Forces (NPF) said: "we salute the Peshmerga forces, all Iraqi military forces, the federal police and the international coalition on the launch of the operations that will allow the retaking of the province of Nineveh". Government troops backed by the US and other forces on Monday launched an air and ground offensive to recapture Mosul in the biggest operation since the Iraq invasion of 2003. The city, once considered the heartland of Iraq's Christian population, was overrun by Islamic State in June 2014 and remains the jihadist group's last stronghold in Iraq. The NPF said in its statement that it represents the "Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian" people of Iraq, and is "honoured to participate in these operations to liberate all of our occupied territories, and to push out the terrorist gangs of ISIS. Advertisement "We have sworn to fight relentlessly, side by side with the allied forces, in order to free all of our cities and villages in the Nineveh Plain and Mosul area," the statement continued. "We promise our people that we will honour this commitment." The NPF is one of several Christian militias operating in Iraq. The Nineveh Plain Protection Unites (NPU) is another -- the two belong to different political parties. The NPU last month claimed to have driven out ISIS militants from Badaneh, a "traditionally Christian village" south of Mosul. But though Assyrian Christians are among a number of religious minorities who have suffered immensely under Islamic State, there has been some disagreement within the Assyrian community as to whether so-called 'Christian militias' should exist at all. Patriarch Louis Raphael I Sako said in May that supporting Christian forces would be "a bad idea". "There are no 'Christian militias', but only politicized groups and simple people who are in desperate need of a salary," he said. "The remaining Christians in Iraq are only the poor and those belonging to the middle class, and among them, there are 100,000 displaced people." The Assyrian Confederation of Europe (ACE), however, said it was concerned by Patriarch Louis Raphael I Sako's comments. "There is broad agreement between Assyrian organisations in Iraq and the diaspora that Assyrians must actively participate in the military campaign to liberate the Nineveh Plain and secure the area after the liberation," ACE said. "The Nineveh Plain Protection Units (NPU), which is tasked with that mandate, is officially recognised and supported by the Iraqi government." On Tuesday, the armed forces closing in on Mosul said they had secured around 20 villages on the outskirts of the city. Early reports suggest that forces are already stationed close to Qaraqosh and Bartalla, two Christian towns that have been under ISIS control for more than two years. Qaraqosh was once home to Iraq's largest Christian community, with at least a quarter of the country's Christian population living in the city and its surrounding towns. Tens of thousands were forced to flee when militants moved in on August 6, 2014. Up to 1.5 million are expected to flee Mosul in the coming days and weeks, which could make it the worst humanitarian crisis this year. Forgotten Iraqi Assyrian Refugees Face Hunger In Turkey Everyone has a taste that reminds them home. For 26-year-old Mariam it's dolma -- a simple dish of vegetables stuffed with spices, meat, and rice, then flavored with lemon loved by Iraqis of all faiths and ethnicities. Today, more than two years have passed since 45,000 Iraqi Assyrian Christian refugees fled their homes in the Nineveh Plain for Turkey, and Mariam has witnessed many of these desperate families without the means to make dishes, like dolma, that taste of home. "What I remember most is the happiness we felt sharing plates of dolma with our neighbors, and afterwards exchanging our stories and secrets with sweet baklava under the stars at night," she says reminiscing on what life was like in the Nineveh Plain before the invasion of ISIS in August 2014 when hunger was rare. Home was a once-diverse town just 20 miles north of Mosul in what Mariam says was 'a mini-Iraq' where every faith and ethnic community--such as Assyrians, Turkmen, Yezidis, Kurds, and Arabs--lived together. Life wasn't perfect: bombings, shootings, and kidnappings were frequent after 2003, but Assyrian Christians like Mariam did what they could to survive in their native land. "Iraqis, all of us, were better people inside and out before the war started in 2003," she says. Then two years ago, everything changed and her family had to flee. "We knew we had to go when thousands of Muslim families from Mosul came without clothes and no possessions. Every field in the entire town was full of their cars. We thought to ourselves, if the Muslims themselves are running, what will ISIS do to us Christians?" she remembers. Mariam's family heeded their warning and escaped to Turkey. "It was as if we were just going to the store, we left with only our passports," she remembers. Even today, she is haunted with nightmares of ISIS fighters overrunning her town. Today most Iraqi Assyrian Christian refugees in Turkey are still waiting for resettlement into safe third countries, like the United States, and many have experienced hunger for the first time as victims to the lack of essential services that plagues Turkey's large refugee population of 3 million. Many refugees, like Mariam, suffer from unstable access to food, labor exploitation, and poverty, and more are expected to join. An estimated 100,000 Iraqis may flee to Syria and Turkey to escape the Iraqi government and US coalition's assault aimed at removing the Islamic State from Mosul, UNHCR said on Monday. Iraqi Assyrian Christian refugees in Turkey say they feel forgotten by the US State Department and the world. Despite recent efforts by the EU to improve refugee employment and services, Turkey is overwhelmed by the largest refugee population in the world, and unable to provide sufficient protection services according to the Refugee Convention, including the rights to work, health care, and education says Human Rights Watch. It's largely an urban refugee problem: 90 percent of refugees live outside of border camps, and are cut off from basic services including access to nutritious food. Outside of the 2.7 million Syrians living under a protective status in Turkey, Iraqis make up half of all asylum applications in the country, and they receive no support from the Turkish government. Iraqi Assyrian Christian refugees say their situation is unique as they face double persecution: first, as refugees, and second, as Christians often forced to live in small villages or urban slums, where they fear revealing their faith, or even wearing crosses. Turkey's history of Christian persecution is covered in blood to this day: more than 100 years have passed without an official acknowledgment of the state-perpetrated genocides against its Armenian and Assyrian populations, who once made up one in every four citizens. Today less than 1 percent of Turkish citizens identifying as Christian. As recently as this summer, churches were attacked in towns like Malatya and Trabzon, both sites of horrific Christian hate crimes just a decade ago, in efforts to scapegoat Christians for the attempted coup in July. Jobs, or lack thereof, are also a major problem contributing to hunger. Low wages means that families have to choose between paying rent and medical bills, or putting food on the table. "Refugee families living in rural Turkey, or small cities often have no work opportunities so even though we don't make a lot of money in the factories, we still can somehow survive," Mariam says. She explains that Iraqi Assyrian Christian refugee families in small villages often are dependent on family in the diaspora to survive, and often denied aid by local Turkish Islamic organizations because of their identity as Christians. Many who do work are victim to dangerous work conditions and low pay in a country with the highest rate of industrial accidents in Europe. Undeniably, refugee labor is a backbone to the giant textile industry which accounts for nearly 7 percent of Turkey's GDP according to the Ministry of Economy. Mariam, who worked at several textile companies, says that factories were always filled with Syrians and Iraqi Assyrian Christian refugees, who ran to Turkey in hope of escaping death in cities like Aleppo and Mosul. Now many are "squeezed like lemons" with long hours, no overtime, and salaries that meet just one-third of Turkey's minimum wage to produce fast fashion for popular brands like H&M, Adidas, Nike, and Zara. In the absence of policy enforcement to protect Iraqi Assyrian Christian refugees and others, it's critical that nonprofit organizations and the global church wake up to this crisis, advocate, and assist the most vulnerable, including individuals like Mariam. The world must step up and demand political solutions to end conflicts fueling the displacement of millions in the worst refugee crisis seen since World War II, and put an end to a lack of services, faith-based persecution, and labor exploitation in Turkey which contributes to an overall unhealthy environment among its most vulnerable. No victims of ISIS, like Mariam, should ever go hungry, abused, and forgotten. Sixty-year-old Wang Kanliang sat with his wife Ding Caifeng in the courtyard built near a fork in the road not far away from the Qinling mountain range. The day was rainy, dark and chilly and the old couple occasionally exchanged words when staring at the layers of land and foliage on the mountains drenched by drizzle. The old couple have spent their life farming in Nanwan Village, Shaanxi Province; however, nowadays, they can seldom work due to being diagnosed with liver cirrhosis. Last month, Ding was admitted to hospital after she started to spit blood, but she insisted on returning home, after lying in the ward for no more than two weeks, because of concern about the mounting expenditure running into tens of thousands of yuan, a huge cost for the poor family. More than once, Ding had spit blood. Worrying she might not survive long, the family built a tomb without her knowledge when she was hospitalized for the same reason as early as March this year. "The diagnosis and medicine costs have eaten up the family savings," said Wang. "We cannot further involve our children in paying the bills for our illness; therefore, we'll just have to let the disease take our lives." A few miles away from Wang's family, a complete new tomb was spruced up among others in a highland region, overlooking the traumatized village affected by the hepatitis C virus that has forced a generation of farmers -- feeble and fragile -- to face premature death. The spread of Hepatitis C in the village started from the 1970s into the 1980s when the destitute farmers in the desolate land sold blood to gain a bit more income. An organizer touted the blood-selling business among villagers who were later taken to cities extending from Shaanxi to Gansu in the far west of China. "I can still remember the day when people from the village flocked to the blood stations talking and laughing en route since it was a rare opportunity for us to see the world outside the village," Ding recalled. Before the repeated visits to the blood transfer centers, Wang and Ding were energetic and robust. They were happy to earn the quick-money -- 36 yuan -- every time when selling 30ml of blood. Apart from the commissions, the villagers could get the money and presents, such as, bread and quilts, for doing nothing more than rolling up their sleeves. The easy rewards enticed them to repeatedly sell their blood without considerations of hygiene and safety. However, in the 1990s when Ding set out to Tianshui, Gansu Province again to sell her blood, her physical report showed her to be Hepatitis C positive, an illness, and this was shared by many Nanwan villagers. Then, the blood-selling business long prevailing there had come to an end. The blood selling business was divided into whole blood and plasma, which required the operator to extract the plasma from the blood and re-inject the haemoproteins (such as haemoglobin) back into the blood vessels of the sellers. The rampant blood selling business did not abate until the 1990s when a certain number of villagers tested Hepatitis C positive. "Right before the 1990s, the blood transfer stations could only exam viruses such as HIV and Hepatitis B, and there was a lack of medical technology to identify Hepatitis C carriers," said Wang Jianjun, director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP) of Shangzhou District, Shangluo City, Shaanxi Province. Research conducted by the CDCP in Shangzhou District, where Nanwan Village is located, showed 40 out of 47 respondents involved in the blood selling experience, ranging in age from 43 to 72, had contracted Hepatitis C. The infection probably came from the needles used to collect blood. And the injection of haemoproteins also likely carried a high risk of contamination. Huang Shaojun, deputy director of the Health and Family Planning Bureau in Shangzhou District, said patients were encouraged to receive appropriate treatment and their medical costs would be reimbursed in accordance with pertinent regulations. Blood contamination, other than the transmission from mothers to children and sexual intercourse, is the major cause of the spread of Hepatitis C, with syndromes of fever and dysfunctional digestive tracts and livers. In the nascent stage, Hepatitis C is highly possible to be cured through use of ribavirin and interferon, said Chen Yanwei, a staff member from the CDCP in Shangzhou District. People should not be panic about their liver illness, he advised. Battle Begins To Liberate Largest Assyrian Town In Iraq From ISIS A town that once had the largest Christian population in Iraq may soon be liberated from Islamic State, according to local reports. Forces entered Qaraqosh [Baghdede in Assyrian], which was before ISIS home to at least a quarter of Iraq's Christian community, on Tuesday and began the battle for liberation. Kurdish troops stationed to protect Qaraqosh withdrew on August 6, 2014, leaving ISIS free to move in overnight and take it along with three other Christian-majority towns. The insurgency happened less than a month after ISIS overran nearby Mosul, which is now the subject of a major offensive led by Iraqi troops backed by the US and other forces. The battle to retake Mosul began on Monday, and the army has already secured 20 villages on the outskirts of the city. Advertisement Fraternit Chaldean Patriarch: May Iraq Find Peace and Unity With the Liberation of Mosul Baghdad -- The hundreds of Christians who fled from Qaraqosh, south of Mosul, in the summer of 2014 with the rise of the Islamic State (IS) yesterday celebrated the liberation of their village with songs, dances and masses. The local community, who fled with only the clothes on their backs a little over two years ago to escape the jihadist violence, celebrated the military successes achieved thus far by the army. On the morning of October 18, a coalition of 30 thousand men, mainly Iraqi soldiers and Kurdish Peshmerga militia, joined by Sunni tribal forces, began an offensive to retake Mosul, the jihadist stronghold in Iraq, and the Nineveh Plain. US military sources report the fighters of Daesh [Arabic acronym for the SI] are using civilians as human shields, as the Arab and Kurdish soldiers get closer and closer to the city. There are at least 700 thousand people trapped and unable to escape in Mosul, hostage to 5 thousand jihadists who are fighting in defense of their fort. According to military sources involved in the offensive for the liberation of Qaraqosh, one of the most important villages of the plain, about 15 km south of Mosul, is not yet complete; several jihadists are still hidden in some homes, and do not intend to lay down their arms. However, for the Christians in exile it is already time to celebrate (pictured). The Assyrian-Chaldean community in Iraq have posted photos and images of celebrations, with dancing and singing and there are videos of the celebrations of a group of refugees in a reception center in Erbil, in Iraqi Kurdistan. Still others wanted to remember the event with a solemn Mass (click here for video). Dozens of children, women and men gathered to pray in the church of Mar Shimon, in Erbil. The Chaldean Patriarch Mar Raphael Louis Sako has renewed his call for national unity for the success of this huge military. "We Iraqis - said the Chaldean Primate - are one in spite of our various affiliations". He hoped that the offensive would give birth to a "genuine democracy and civilian" that is "respectful of all." Here, below, we publish Mar Sako's appeal shared with AsiaNews: As you all know, a lot of effort is currently placed on the preparations for liberating Mosul (one of the most important historical cities in Iraq) and Nineveh Plain. Therefore, I would like on this occation to speak, from the bottom of my heart, to our Iraqi family as a whole and mainly in Nineveh, regarding our common concerns and worries under such difficult and exceptional circumstances. Especially, that the voices of division, inflexibility and break up began to rise, which may impede the operations of release! I strongly believe that we "Iraqis" are one family, despite of our different affiliations. Though, the current situation demands from all Mouslians, as is the case for all Iraqis, to bear a complete historical, national and moral responsibility in, building a balanced internal and external relationships; avoiding accusations and blame; putting an end to disputes; wavering self and factional interests; and upholding Iraqis' benefit before and above everything else. This way enables us to pave the actual path for a real communal reconciliation, love, peace, and the release of all occupied lands. So, we as Iraqis, can retrieve some confidence and hope for a quick solution to our long-standing dilemma, by the establishment of a genuine and civil democracy, that respects everyone in a peaceful and civilized means. This is the only way for our absolute recovery. I also urge the international community to take concrete steps in order that Iraq and the region regain their security and peace. This kind of success would be a triumph for everyone and for the international well-being. Finally, I pray: May God Protect us, Shorten our suffering, Preserve the purity of our human kinship and Watch over the unity of our beloved country. October 17, 2016 Known as the seventh art, cinema has become a platform for the Sahrawi people to share their stories in the desert refugee camps where they have lived for more than 40 years. As dusk arrived Oct. 12, Sahrawi refugees and their guests from across the world mingled in the dusty streets of Algerias Dakhla camp, ready to partake in the traditional gala that kicked off the 13th annual Western Sahara International Film Festival, or FiSahara. The event, known as the worlds most remote film festival, featured dozens of movies in a four-day screening lineup that included a strong presence of Sahrawi-made films produced in an audiovisual school the festival founded five years ago. Omar Ahmed is the director of Abidin Kaid Saleh institution, an audiovisual school in the Boujdour camp. He first began taking photos as a hobby when he was living in El Aaiun in the disputed territory of Western Sahara. Later he joined the army of the Polisario Front, the Sahrawi liberation movement, to document the 15 years of guerrilla battles his people undertook to seek independence from Morocco. Ahmed remembers he was part of a group of young Sahrawis, led by Saleh, working for a Spanish newspaper Saleh founded called La Realidad (Reality). This was before Saleh started his career as the first Sahrawi photographer to cover the Western Sahara war. Ahmed learned about cinema when he traveled to Cuba to specialize in cinematography in 1981. Then, he returned to the Polisario-controlled zone in 1983. I still reminisce about those moments, which seemed like a fiction movie, when Sahrawis [in off-road vehicles] chased Moroccan tanks. If I had not been there, I would not have believed such scenes, he told Al-Monitor, describing the courage of Sahrawi soldiers. According to Ahmed, Sahrawi cinema has thrived since 2003 when FiSahara was first organized in Smara camp, the biggest of five Sahrawi camps in southwestern Algeria. It opened doors we didnt even know existed. We received very famous actors we did not even know, and they put the Sahrawi issue in the spotlight, including Javier Bardem, who was hosted by a Sahrawi family in 2008, Ahmed told Al-Monitor. After Bardem visited the camps, the Spanish actor made a documentary called Sons of the Clouds. The film presents the issue of Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony, to a wider audience and includes testimonies of several figures who have served as UN officials on the Sahrawi case. This year, Spanish actress Clara Lago presented the closing ceremonies. Lago told Al-Monitor the festival was an extraordinary experience and she was amazed by the hospitality she was shown. This year, Brahim Chagaf received the White Camel, the award for the best film at FiSahara. Chagaf told Al-Monitor he could not express how happy he was with the award. His film, Leyuad, explains how Sahrawis love their land. It is a story of three old men who cross more than 1,200 miles to visit Leyuad, a mountain that represents a historical heritage for Sahrawis. Leyuad is a cave with ancient drawings and is a place for Sahrawi nomads to stay. It has also been known as a place for jinn, or evil genies, because there are some anecdotal stories of strange sounds heard there at night. Others say people who lived there used to interact with jinn in a normal way like any other human beings. In August, Chagaf also participated in the African Film Festival in Lausanne, Switzerland. When asked what motivated him to choose this art, Chagaf said, I wanted to learn how to make my peoples situation visible and keep it from falling into oblivion. Chagaf is a graduate of Ahmeds school, and Ahmed said that founding a Sahrawi cinema school was the most important step he has taken so far. I am really optimistic about the future of Sahrawi cinema. We now have dozens of filmmakers and are participating in international film festivals around the word, he said. For Taher Mulay Zain, a student at the film school, cinema is a heritage he must preserve. His late father was a photographer. While reviewing his fathers archive and looking at pictures of moments his father had shared with him, Zain fell in love with cinema and realized it had to be an essential part of his life. I realized that filming is in my blood and I could not resist it, he told Al-Monitor. Zain traveled to Boujdour to pursue his ambition to become a filmmaker. After years of hard work in school and at home, his perseverance is paying off. His film Memories in Mind was chosen for screening at this years FiSahara. The film focuses on how a mother is imagining bad things will happen to her child who always accompanies his father, a butcher, to work. I wanted to highlight how caring a mother is for her child, he told Al-Monitor. However, Zain has not yet been unable to convert his work into digital material for use in future projects. Azman Mohamed Salem, like some other students, said he didnt even know there was a cinema school in the Sahrawi refugee camps until he attended FiSahara and saw a workshop for production. I liked the stuff that they were doing and wanted to learn, so I came to the director and learned that it is a two-year course, and I decided to take it, Salem told Al-Monitor. Salem has produced a film on the devastating floods that hit the Sahrawi refugee camps a year ago. This idea came to him as he was visiting a tented elementary school when a sand storm hit. The sound was so frightening, he wondered how anyone could study in such conditions. Salems short movie was included in this years festival as part of a project to encourage Sahrawi production. The considerable interest in filming among youth spurred Lafdal Salem to leave his job as a mechanic to explore what it is like to tell his peoples story. He immediately chose to address social issues that he identifies as fake barriers. At FiSahara, he presented his work Daniela, the Sahrawi Girl, which tells the story of a disabled Sahrawi girl who overcame social challenges and integrated with society. I wanted to show her example as evidence that success depends on the person, not prejudices from other people, he said. It appears cinema has been granted a reserved seat within Sahrawi society, but other obstacles overshadow this industry as it undergoes difficult financial times. Funding from nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) usually goes to basic needs. Our problem is that most NGOs we have here think that bread and aspirins are enough for refugees, Ahmed told Al-Monitor. His school is forced to function as a center for both training and production, which he says is too much to handle in one place. October 18, 2016 TEHRAN, Iran Once again, Egypt and Iran appear to be heading toward rapprochement, with increasingly converging views on Syria bringing the two regional powers closer together. Tehran and Cairo have long followed a pattern of enthusiasm about normalizing ties only to see rapprochement remain a mirage. In December 2003, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak held a groundbreaking meeting with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Khatami on the sidelines of a UN technology summit in Geneva. The meeting the first between an Iranian and an Egyptian president since the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran generated talk of rapprochement, but such a thing never occurred. More recently, former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad traveled to Cairo in February 2013, a landmark visit in which he was greeted by his Egyptian counterpart Mohammed Morsi on arrival but again with no real subsequent warming of relations. Once very close, Iran and Egypt cut ties in the aftermath of the Islamic Revolution, given Iranian opposition to Egypt and Israels signing of the September 1978 Camp David Accords, Cairos later hosting of the deposed shah of Iran and the Iranian governments naming of a street in Tehran after Khalid Islambouli, the man who assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. Now, the Syrian crisis may be helping Iran and the Arab world leader finally get closer and perhaps even lead to their long-sought rapprochement. Normalization has been impeded by three main limitations on the Egyptian side. These include the US policy of seeking to isolate Iran, which has been weakened since the nuclear deal; Israels policy of confrontation with Iran, which has intensified after the signing of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action; and lastly, Saudi Arabias policy of seeking to curb Iranian influence, efforts that have been heightened in the aftermath of both the Arab Spring and the nuclear accord. Egypts stance on the Syrian crisis was far closer to that of Saudi Arabia during Morsis tenure, as the Syrian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood sided against embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. In his speech at the August 2012 summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in Tehran, Morsi, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, angered his Iranian hosts with criticism of the Syrian government. He also sided with the United Arab Emirates against Iran over three disputed islands in the Persian Gulf. A high-ranking Iranian diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity previously told Al-Monitor, Mr. Morsi had said that he would only come to Tehran for a few hours, that he would not spend the night here and that he will not meet with the supreme leader. In contrast, ever since Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi seized power in July 2013, Egypt has gradually distanced itself from its previous stance on Syria. At the same time, Sisi has tried to approach Russia, a move that has been welcomed warmly by Moscow, with the Kremlin currently negotiating the potential use of military bases in Egypt. Things may have taken a further turn on Sept. 23, when Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif met with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly summit in New York. The Syrian crisis seemed to be the main topic of the discussions between the Iranian and Egyptian diplomats. Indeed, according to Al-Ahram, Shoukry emphasized the differences between Saudi Arabia and Egypt over the crisis in Syria in subsequent interviews with Egyptian media outlets, saying, The coalition fighting in Syria may want to change the regime in the country, but that is not Egypts position. He added, however, The differences do not mean we have a problem. Its just a difference in point of view. The Zarif-Shoukry encounter was followed by a meeting between the new head of the Egyptian interest section in Tehran, Yaser Othman, and Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, the Iranian parliament's general director for International Affairs who until recently served as deputy foreign minister for Arab and African Affairs. During the meeting, Abdollahian expressed Irans enthusiasm about cooperation with Egypt on regional issues including the Syrian crisis. He said, Iran and Egypt are two major and influential countries that can play a constructive role in decreasing the tensions in the region through common regional cooperation. In response, Othman voiced hope for cooperation with Iranian friends to fill the gap between the two countries. He added, The increase of negotiation and consultations between the officials of the two countries will be effective for improvement of the situation of the region. The apparent increase in interactions between Iran and Egypt has irritated Saudi Arabia, which is locked in serious disagreements with Tehran over regional issues. A Sept. 26 report by the Russian news agency Sputnik claimed that a senior Saudi official called the Egyptian president following the Zarif-Shoukry meeting to express his anger over the encounter. The same report alleges that, during the same phone call, the Saudi official threatened to cut aid to Cairo. On Oct. 10, Saudi Aramco reportedly informed the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation, Egypt's state oil company, that it would halt the supply of refined oil products. However, a day later, an Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation official announced that such supplies would be resumed. The big picture appears to be that the recent string of meetings between senior Iranian and Egyptian officials could signal the beginning of unprecedented cooperation between the two countries. This warming could lead to a final normalization of ties and also potentially coordinated action on the Syrian crisis. In this vein, the confusion surrounding Irans participation in the Oct. 15 multilateral talks on Syria in Switzerland is particularly noteworthy. According to an Iranian diplomat who spoke to Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, Tehran initially refused to attend the meeting and only decided to do so on the condition that Iraq and Egypt be included as well. Indeed, on Oct. 14, a day before the talks, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Jaberi Ansari announced that Iran, Egypt and Iraq would join the meeting. This maneuver is far from good news for the United States and Saudi Arabia, as it suggests that the weight of the Iran-Russia axis in the multilateral dialogue on Syria could be growing. Nonetheless, although the Syrian crisis could be a game-changer in Iran-Egypt ties, it remains to be seen whether Egypt will fully side with the Iran-Russia axis and stand up to Saudi and US pressures. October 18, 2016 Egyptian member of parliament Elhami Agina made a proposal late last month to subject university female students to periodical virginity tests as a condition to be admitted to college or move from one academic year to the next. His proposal was met with wide rejection despite his saying that this would stop the spread of a practice known as customary marriage among high school and university students in Egypt. Customary marriage also known as nikah 'urfi is a traditional form of marriage within Sunni Islam that does not require a contract to be officially registered with state authorities. Such marriages have been subject to criticism in the past for being seen as a means for couples to have sex within a legal framework while not going through the traditional steps of marriage. Two days after he made his controversial statements, Agina backed down on his proposal and apologized during a phone call with an Egyptian satellite TV channel. However, member of parliament Yusry al-Maghazi told a newspaper that he would submit a new bill to parliament requiring the state to impose a virginity test on university and technical secondary school female students. Aginas proposal and Maghazis support prompted several government bodies and human rights organizations to submit notices calling on Egyptian Attorney General Nabil Sadeq to lift Aginas immunity from prosecution and refer him to criminal court. The notices indicated that the lawmaker's remarks calling for the imposition of virginity tests would pave the way for an indecent assault on women and fall under the crime of defamation under the Criminal Code. Ramadan Batikh, a constitutional law professor at Ain Shams University, told Al-Monitor that Aginas and Maghazis remarks gravely breach the Egyptian Constitution, stressing that if the parliamentarians immunity was lifted, they could face charges of defamation and violation of the constitution. Under Article 60 of the Egyptian Constitution, the human body is inviolable. Any assault, defilement or mutilation thereof is a crime punishable by law. Also, Article 99 states that any assault on the personal freedoms or sanctity of the life of citizens is a crime with no statute of limitations for both civil and criminal proceedings. Asked about Aginas referral to the parliaments Ethics Committee for interrogation regarding the statements he reportedly made, Batikh said Agina will face a penalty that the General Committee in the parliament will decide upon as soon as the interrogation is over. Agina could face sanctions ranging from his not being allowed to attend parliament sessions for a full term (at least nine months) to his not even being allowed membership in parliament. Lawyer and human rights activist Intisar al-Saeed, the director of the Cairo Foundation for Development and Law, said that the proposal is an insult to Egyptians as it shows that members of parliament are drifting away from their normal legislative and oversight role within the limits of what is guaranteed by the constitution and the law. Saeed told Al-Monitor that while members of parliament are paid by the people's taxes in exchange for legislative and supervisory work, they are coming out with proposals that disturb voter confidence. She stressed that this proposal has nothing to do with the constitution or the law and shows that the voters in Egypt need to elect people who have clear political platforms. Saeed said that its a cultural thing in Egypt to establish a link between a girls chastity and her virginity before marriage but stressed that disclosing a girls virginity is tantamount to an assault on her body, regardless of the goal behind it. She added that customary marriage is not a crime under the law, and the constitution does not prohibit girls who are customarily married from their right to education. While Saeed said that no criminal sanction is imposed on people who have a customary marriage, she said that the proposal of the members of parliament to impose virginity tests on female students is clearly biased against young women, as it overshadows the fact that marriage is between a male and a female. Saeed added that state institutions ought to perform their role in raising awareness against customary marriage in order to limit its spread instead of insulting and denying young women their right to education. According to a research paper prepared by a professor at the Faculty of Law at the University of Alexandria and published on the official website of the National Council for Women in 2012, customary marriage is a marriage that is not documented with the knowledge of a competent officer and it is legitimate if it meets the legitimate conditions and components, but is not official. This kind of marriage is common due to poor economic conditions that make young people unable to afford the cost of marriage, while some families impose harsh financial conditions on males, prompting them to resort to customary marriages without the knowledge of their wife's family in order to force them to approve of the marriage without conditions. The paper stressed that the Egyptian Personal Status Law deprives women who are in customary marriages from claiming any of their legitimate or legal rights arising from the marriage contract, except for the right to divorce, to dissolve the customary marriage or to prove child lineage. Although the nature of customary marriages make precise figures hard to come by, the scale of both figures shows that the practice is widespread. The latest research published by the Ministry of Social Solidarity in 2010 said that universities in Egypt saw about 552,000 customary marriages, while a study conducted by the Ministry of Population and the American University indicated the presence of 400,000 customary marriages across Egypt. Educational expert Kamal Moughith agrees with Saeed that state institutions must commit to educating young people about the consequences of customary marriages, especially given that it is difficult to prove such a marriage occurred if one of the two parties disavows it. Add to this the lengthy legal procedure to prove their childrens lineage. Moughith added that the main reason behind the spread of this phenomenon among college students is their lack of confidence in the future in light of the current economic conditions. Moughith believes that members of parliament ought to rearrange their priorities. He said that Egypt is filled with dozens of political, economic, social and educational problems that beset society as a whole, yet some legislators propose imposing a virginity test on girls instead of finding a way to address these problems and play their proper legislative role. Moughith said what is required is a law criminalizing customary marriages, not subjecting girls to periodic virginity tests. He emphasized that the role of the parliament is to discuss the real reasons behind the spread of customary marriages, such as unemployment, which leads young people to lose hope in the future and refrain from starting a family within the traditional framework set by both society and the law. He stressed that if members of parliament really want to fight the spread of customary marriages, it would be easy for them to submit a bill to parliament criminalizing such marriages instead of breaching the constitution and paving the way for the desecration of the bodies of young women. October 19, 2016 A key official in Turkeys ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has announced that a referendum to change Turkeys parliamentary system to an executive presidency may be held in April, fueling further debate about the merits of expanding the powers of the countrys authoritarian President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Deputy AKP chairman Hayati Yazici told the NTV news channel Oct. 19 that a package of constitutional amendments paving the way for a presidential system could be taken up by the parliament in January and put to a referendum in April. His comments came a day after Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told the parliament that his AKP was working on just such a bill. Erdogans long-cherished dreams to formalize the sweeping powers he already exercises through the introduction of a Turkish-style executive presidency have faced a number of hurdles. The biggest is the shortfall in parliamentary seats held by the AKP. A minimum 367 votes are needed for the requisite constitutional changes to be passed by the chamber. And at least 330 are needed to put the proposed amendments to a referendum. With only 317 seats, the AKP needs the support of rivals to push the bill through. Last week, the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), which has 40 seats, signaled that it might ride to the rescue. MHP leader Devlet Bahceli asserted that while he favored sticking with the current parliamentary system, his party would be prepared to carry out to the letter whatever falls upon us [to assure] Turkeys political and legal stability. In follow-up remarks this week about a possible referendum Bahceli said, There is no problem asking the people. Only months ago, Bahceli had blasted Erdogans presidential ambitions, saying a presidential system would inevitably lead to despotism. Bahceli has sought to cast his volte-face as that of a statesman uniting behind democracy in the wake of the failed coup attempt in July. He has since championed Erdogans twin clampdowns on the Gulenists and the pro-Kurdish opposition. He has also backed the extension of emergency rule and Erdogans calls for Turkish intervention in Mosul. While there is little question that Bahceli agrees with Erdogans steady shift from liberal reformer to aggressive nationalist, it is also true that he owes him a big debt. Erdogan helped Bahceli stave off a challenge to his nearly two-decade grip over the MHP from Meral Aksener, a feisty former interior minister. She nearly succeeded, rallying enough dissidents behind her to convene an extraordinary convention designed to give Bahceli the boot. But the Supreme Electoral Board ruled in favor of a legal counter-challenge mounted by the Bahceli camp, and Aksener was kicked out of the party instead. Some say the board was acting under pressure from Erdogan, who saw Aksener as a potential rival as well. Pro-Erdogan screeds have since sought to paint Aksener as a cats paw for the Gulenists, and their daily musings about how presidential rule alone can fix all of Turkeys problems appear to be having an effect. Recent opinion polls suggest that support for Erdogans executive presidency may be growing, if only narrowly. One polling outfit that shared its findings with Al-Monitor on strict condition of anonymity said 43% of those surveyed backed the presidential system while 41% did not. With most of the opposition media shuttered, the naysayers have few means to win over some 14% who say they remain undecided. In any case, what little debate exists is not about a presidential system, opined leftist academic Baskin Oran, but about one-man rule. October 19, 2016 Soon after the US Treasury Department granted licenses to Boeing and Airbus to sell passenger planes to Iran, Tehran welcomed the move as a fulfillment of American obligations under the nuclear deal. On Sept. 24, three days after the licenses were issued, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif confirmed that Iran had received the green light to purchase 80 out of the 88 aircraft it had sought to buy from Boeing, adding, Out of 118 Airbus jetliners, the license for selling 17 has been issued. Airbus and Boeing had previously agreed to sell or lease more than 200 passenger planes to Iran, which has sought to revamp its aging air fleet after the signing of the July 14, 2015, Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). After the formal Jan. 16 Implementation Day of the nuclear deal, the US Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued documents declaring that all US institutions wishing to sell or lease aircraft, spare parts or maintenance and safety services to Iran could apply for licenses on a case-by-case basis. OFAC guidelines further stipulated that non-US institutions also need licenses for selling and leasing aircraft to Iran if more than 10% of the components of their products are American made. Beyond the issue of securing licenses to sell the aircraft is the challenge of financing the deals. Hinting at this problem, Zarif told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York Sept. 23, The US Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control tells international banks that its OK to do business with Iran but and the buts and ifs are so long I mean there is one sentence that it is OK to do business with Iran and five pages of ifs and buts. So at the end of the day, these banks say we will take the safe road. We will forget about Iran. And that has been the outcome. No major European bank has started doing business with Iran now, eight months after the deal. And we believe thats a shortcoming. According to what has been reported so far, the Boeing and Airbus passenger planes are not going to be bought in cash but rather financed. In practice, this means that Iran will buy the aircraft with loans and will repay the debt through revenue generated from operating the planes. Thus, not only is a bank or other financial institution needed to make the deal happen, but the loans must be long term. The broader implication is that if Iran is able to purchase aircraft through external financing, it could also do so with regard to other projects. While negotiations to finalize the aircraft deals are still ongoing, Iranian officials say they have made good progress. Indeed, things appear to be particularly moving forward on the crucial issue of financing. On Oct. 14, Tasnim news agency quoted a source in the Iranian government as saying, Boeing and an American bank are reaching an agreement to finance Iranian purchase of the airliners through a Japanese bank. Prior reports said that issues related to financing of the Airbus deal had also been solved. On Sept. 24, Iranian Deputy Minister of Roads and Urban Development Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan told the Iran newspaper, A financing agreement between Airbus and a big financial institution has been finalized that has remained a secret in order to avert some enemies plots. Some experts are of the view that the OFAC licenses to Boeing and Airbus are a promising sign that serious banking cooperation between Iran and Europe is around the corner. This would be an important development since major European banks have remained wary of remaining US sanctions and thus refrained from resuming banking ties with Iran even after the formal implementation of the nuclear deal. As such, Tehran has so far relied on cooperation with smaller European banks while continuing dialogue with the bigger ones. Given the scale of the Boeing and Airbus deals and the need for financing to be long term, it is evident that small banks will not be able to finance the contracts. One can thus expect that major players are involved in the financing, and that the deals may help jump-start business between Iran and major Western banks in the near future. Indeed, beyond authorizing two major deals, OFACs licensing of aircraft sales to Iran is giving assurance to the world's major businesses that it is now possible to resume dealings with the Islamic Republic. Prominent Tehran economist Saeed Leylaz told Al-Monitor, The OFAC licenses will have a big psychological impact on major investors and financial enterprises. This matters especially because under immense pressure from Iran and Its European trading partners, the United States now has to abide by its obligations under the JCPOA. Leylaz added, Serious cracks have emerged in the most complex and oldest sanctions and this will impact non-nuclear sanctions as well. In as much as Boeing is one of the biggest financial enterprises in the world and the United States, its financial transactions with different US economic sectors will spread to other sectors. Al-Monitor also spoke with Tehran-based economist Tahmasb Mazaheri. He agreed that OFACs granting of licenses to Boeing and Airbus to deal with Iran is a good sign of the full implementation of the nuclear deal but argued that the United States has only facilitated the latter after having in effect been forced to do so. Pointing to Irans deep and lingering mistrust of the United States, Mazaheri added, Despite this good sign, we cannot trust the United States to fulfill its promises because in order to be assured of these promises, they must be credible but the United States is not trustworthy. The United States has so far shown that it doesnt want to fully implement the JCPOA and its acceptance of its obligations has always been accompanied with strict conditions. October 18, 2016 Javad Hashemi, a famous Iranian actor who is best known for his blockbuster roles as a compassionate Basij soldier, has caused controversy by saying in a televised interview, If I were in office in the Islamic Republic and [Golshifteh Farahani] said that she wanted to return, I would say 'come back.'" Farahani is a well-known Iranian actress who after playing in Ridley Scotts "Body of Lies" in 2008 appeared without hijab at the New York premiere, leading to her being banned from working by the Iranian government. Farahani was also an outspoken supporter of the 2009 demonstrations in Iran from her new home in France. Her most provocative act, however, was when she appeared topless in a video to promote the Cesars, the "French Oscars," in 2012, causing an outcry in the Persian-language media and threats against her family members in Iran. In an Oct. 16 television appearance, Hashemi revealed that he had been approached and asked to give an interview condemning Farahani. Hashemi, who is often respectably addressed in the media by the honorifics of "haji" or "seyyed," rejected the request, saying, Why should I do that? It is her decision. It must be respected. Hashemi also mentioned another actress who stirred debate and public confrontations in 2014 when she decided to forego makeup and colorful scarves in favor of the conservative black chador. Comparing the different choices made by the two actresses, Hashemi said, Mrs. Elham Charkhandeh prefers to dress this way. It is her business. It must be respected. Hashemis comments in favor of personal freedom surprised the hard-liners in Iran and triggered strong reactions. On Oct. 17, Javan Online, which has ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, published an article headlined, Is it possible to respect righteousness and sin at the same time? This headline referred to a comment by Hassan Rahimpour Azghadi, an influential scholar and a member of Irans Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution, comparing the two actresses. Disagreeing with Hashemi, Rahimpour Azghadi said, "One can't say we should respect the choices of someone who has publicly sinned. The discussions of whether artists in exile should return to Iran surface from time to time. On Oct. 13, another TV interview raised eyebrows during the holy month of Moharram. Highly respected eulogist Gholam Koveyti Pour asked, What act of sin did our Behrouz Vossoughi commit that he has to meet his elderly father behind the Turkish borders? Vossoughi, the legendary actor known as the Iranian James Dean, has not returned to Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and is often spoken of in an anti-revolutionary context. In the case of Vossoughi and Farahani, Javan Online reported, The Islamic Republic has not denied these people their nationalities to prevent their return. But the discussion of whether the Muslim community will embrace their activities is a different issue, and the answer is obvious. In other news, the Iranian judiciary's official Mizan news agency announced Oct. 18 that detained Iranian-Americans Mohammad Baquer Namazi and his son Siamak Namazi have each been sentenced to 10 years in prison for "espionage and cooperation with the US government." The same statement noted that Iranian nationals Farhad Abdesaleh, Kamran Ghaderi and Alireza Omidvar have each also been sentenced to 10 years in prison on similar charges, in addition to Lebanese national and US resident Nizar Zakka. The sentencing of the Namazis follows the surfacing of footage of Siamak's arrest on Oct. 17. Mizan offered no further details. In a statement, Babak Namazi, brother to Siamak, said, It is with utter shock and dismay that we have learned of the news of the unjust sentencing of my 80-year-old father Baquer Namazi and my brother Siamak Namazi both Iranian-Americans to 10 years in prison each. In the case of my father, this is tantamount to a life sentence. This follows one court session of a few hours for each of them. The details of the charges are unknown to us as of yet. October 19, 2016 RAMALLAH, West Bank The residents in east Ramallah have been waiting for the Israeli Supreme Court of Justice to issue a decision concerning the appeal submitted by the lawyer of the Israeli human rights organization Yesh Din about a month ago. The appeal argues that the Israeli authorities confiscation of Palestinian lands based on the absentee property law is illegal. Fatima Ayyad, who owns 5 dunams (1.2 acres) near the Ofra settlement, east of the city of Ramallah in the central West Bank, is one of those residents. Ayyad, along with other landowners, started litigations Sept. 22 in a bid to restore the lands and annul the confiscation decision. This land was a piece of a large lot, which was the property of my grandfather before it was passed on to my father and my uncles. My father passed away and three uncles moved to Jordan. In the 1970s, they lost their [Palestinian] IDs because they had been out of the West Bank for a long time. We have been taking care of and cultivating the land ever since they left, Ayyad told Al-Monitor. She said that the Israeli authorities have gradually confiscated the land. Israeli soldiers would occasionally prevent Palestinians from accessing their lands, but in 2014, Israel imposed a complete ban on accessing the plots of land, preventing the owners from harvesting the olive trees and cultivating the land. On Aug. 8, a decision was issued to confiscate the land of the Ayyad family. Under the pretext of the absentee property law, Israel has confiscated thousands of dunams in the West Bank and Jerusalem. As per the law, which was passed in 1950, the trustee for absentee property, an employee at the Israeli Ministry of Finance, is appointed to take possession and charge of the properties, which are lands and houses owned by Palestinians who fled them in 1948 or those who were displaced from the West Bank in 1967. Often, these lands and properties become settlements, which is the main reason they are confiscated from Palestinians, such as Ayyad and other Palestinian landowners in the area. In this context, Abu Mustafa Hamad from the town of Silwad, east of Ramallah, told Al-Monitor, The confiscation [decision] was made to transfer the illegal settlement of Amona [to the Palestinian lands], whereby the evacuation of the settlements will continue up until December. Hamad and his family own 12 dunams (3 acres) in the areas to be confiscated. The family used to cultivate the land's vineyards, despite the harassments of the settlers. When we were notified of the confiscation decision, we hired a lawyer to start the procedures for the determination of inheritance. We have proved that the owners of the land or their heirs live in the area. Some of them are still alive and others died and were buried here, he said. Of note, the confiscation decision includes land around the Ofra settlement and close to the Amona settlement. While Hamad and other citizens provided proof to the Israeli civil administration in the West Bank that they are not absentees, the Israeli authorities claimed that the lands are being confiscated because they were abandoned. We proved that the lands are not absentees properties. Yet the Israeli authorities insisted they are abandoned lands and started firing at anyone who approaches the premises to prove otherwise, Hamad said. In the same vein, Mohammed Shakir, a field researcher and lawyer at Yesh Din, who is pleading the case brought by one of the citizens in the eastern Ramallah area threatened by confiscation, told Al-Monitor, Having failed to control the lands under the pretext of the absentee property law, the Israeli authorities are now claiming that they are abandoned lands. Shakir believes that the absentee property law and the abandoned lands law are merely a ruse to circumvent laws and confiscate lands for settlers. When there is no legal ground for the absentee property law on some issues in the West Bank, the Israeli authorities are referring to the abandoned lands law in order to control the West Banks lands at the expense of their rightful owners. Shakir also said that the Israeli authorities have been trying to confiscate these lands in favor of Israeli settlers. We have filed a lawsuit with the Israeli Supreme Court on the illegal settlement [Amona] built near the lands that are threatened with confiscation. We managed to prove that it is an illegal settlement. As the date for the evacuation of the settlement is drawing near [in December], the Israeli authorities have been trying to pressure settlers into confiscating lands close to the illegal settlement of Amona and moving their houses there, Shakir said. The abandoned lands law No. 58 issued by the Israeli authorities in 1967 stipulates that an Israeli trustee would be appointed to take charge of the lands owned by Palestinians who had left their lands before 1967 or after the occupation of the West Bank in 1967, without transferring the ownership for such trustee. This law, however, does not apply to the plots of land of Ayyad and Hamad because the law stipulates that in case of an administrator or a guardian of said lands [is present], they are not placed under the charge of the trustee, Shakir said. Yet according to Shakir, the Israeli authorities insist on confiscating the lands for political considerations and to please settlers. There are political reasons behind this decision. Settlers are defying the Israeli courts ruling and yet they are being rewarded with new land to move to. We have noticed in many legal cases that these laws are being used to circumvent the decisions of the Israeli Supreme Court against settlers and settlements, he said. In further evidence of Shakirs statements, Bassam Karaja, the director of the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center (JLAC), which offers free legal services to Palestinians suffering human rights violations, told Al-Monitor, We are receiving increasing numbers of cases at the JLAC regarding land confiscation issues in the West Bank, as per the laws of the absentee properties and the abandoned lands. He said, These two laws have been activated as tools to confiscate more lands. The absentee property law and the abandoned lands law are being applied in accordance with the Blue Line procedure [in which a team of experts affiliated with the Israeli civil administration reviews maps in the West Bank] in a bid to control more lands to be used for settlement projects. Karaja further noted that these two laws pose a great threat to more than 60% of the West Bank lands, which are lands in Area C. Israel refuses to this day to transfer this area to the Palestinian Authority (PA), contrary to the Oslo Accord that stipulates the transfer of this areas authority to the PA within a five-year transitional period following the accords signing in 1993. Perhaps the application of these laws is a clear indication of the dire situation in the West Bank and the threat of the dramatic growth in the numbers of settlements, which can be seen as an attempt to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict by imposing a de facto status quo. October 18, 2016 RAMALLAH, West Bank In a special meeting held Oct. 13 to examine the legal repercussions of the decision issued by the Supreme Court of Justice ordering the cancellation of the local council election in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian parliamentary Legal Committee in Gaza recommended considering the possibility of reinstating Ismail Haniyeh's government, after what it described as the abandonment by the government of national consensus of its responsibilities. The local council elections that had been slated for Oct. 8 were suspended by a decision issued by the Supreme Court of Justice on Oct. 3 to allow elections in the West Bank and cancel them in the Gaza Strip. The decision prompted the Council of Ministers, which wanted to organize elections in both the West Bank and Gaza, to hold a meeting Oct. 4 and announce the postponement of the elections for four months. During the meeting, Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah said the postponement of the elections had been decided in coordination with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, which indicates that the president wants to hold elections in the West Bank and Gaza at the same time, contrary to the decision of the Supreme Court in limiting elections to the West Bank. This also means that all of the efforts exerted during the next four months to overcome the obstacles that have prevented the holding of the elections, as well as the decisions that may be taken by the government, will surely be subject to the presidents approval. It should be recalled that the Palestinian Authority (PA) did not recognize the jurisdiction of the Court of First Instance in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip competent under local election law No. 10 of 2005 to examine challenges against electoral lists. This pushed Hamdallah to talk Oct. 4 about the possibility of establishing courts specialized in electoral cases by virtue of a presidential decree, whose decisions would be binding for all. The local council elections law No. 10 of 2005, amended as a result of law No. 12 of 2005 and again in 2012, specified that the Court of First Instance in each region is competent to examine challenges against the electoral lists, while general election law No. 1 of 2007 (governing presidential and legislative elections) provides for the formation of courts to examine electoral cases and challenges, provided these courts are formed before holding general elections and dissolved after their completion. Government sources told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity that initial contacts were made by the ministers of the government in Gaza and national figures with the various factions in Gaza, including Hamas, to discuss new mechanisms of holding local council elections in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, and the possibility of amending the local council election law so as to provide for the formation of an electoral court subject to consensus just like the general election law. But these contacts are still in their early stages. Establishing electoral courts may be a solution for the electoral crisis, allowing the conduct of local council elections in the West Bank and Gaza, but this needs an amendment of the law by Abbas. Ahmed Khalidi, a constitutional law professor and head of the Palestinian Constitution Drafting Committee, told Al-Monitor, The electoral court specified in the general election law cannot be competent to examine cases related to the local elections unless the law is amended. Khalidi said, A law may be amended by the legislative council or by virtue of a presidential decree, in which case the law would entrust a single court to examine judicial disputes relating to legislative, presidential and local council elections. Abbas legal adviser Hassan al-Ouri told Al-Monitor that an amendment of the law is unlikely. There is no need for the establishment of a special court for elections, since the Supreme Court of Justice is competent to examine electoral cases and its members enjoy legal competencies, he said. Ouri explained, The Supreme Court decision to cancel elections in Gaza falls indeed within the scope of its competence and was issued based on its conviction that the elections in Gaza will not be fair, because holding elections in Gaza would mean that the PA would have to admit the legitimacy of the Hamas-led government and its institutions and illegal police and security services that are tasked with protecting the ballot boxes, which is contrary to PA policy. This is why the Supreme Court decided to cancel the elections in the Gaza Strip and hold them only in the West Bank, based on law No. 10 of 2005, which authorizes holding local elections in a specific part of the country and excluding other parts. He added, The postponement was in line with the law and we will not have a new law, since there is nothing wrong with the law in force. The amendment of the electoral law is not an option at the moment, since this requires efforts and time. Farid Jallad, the former president of the Supreme Judicial Council, told Al-Monitor, The Supreme Court is a court specialized in administrative challenges and when it ordered the elections to be held in the West Bank and not in Gaza, it exceeded the limits of its powers, since the government is the authority competent to determine the place and time of the elections. The [PA] government did not rule out the possibility of establishing a special electoral court as a solution for the electoral crisis. Minister of Labor Mamoun Abu Shahla told Al-Monitor, All the proposals are on the table for the time being in order to agree on how to conduct the elections. The government will not be intransigent and will not take any step not agreed upon with the factions. It is discussing proposed ideas, but so far no agreement has been reached. Immediately after the postponement of the elections, the government in Ramallah started making contacts with the factions through its ministers. Abu Shahla said, Since the government's postponement decision, contacts have been underway with all [Palestinian] parties to ensure that the elections will be subject of a consensus without the possibility for any errors that may lead to their cancellation or postponement one more time. In light of news about Hamdallahs intention to visit the Gaza Strip and meet with the Palestinian factions in Gaza in general and Hamas in particular to discuss how to conduct the elections, Abu Shahla said, Contacts with the factions are ongoing but have yet to lead to tangible results. The prime minister's visit to Gaza is still being discussed and a decision has not been reached yet on this issue. When the ongoing contacts with the factions lead to a tangible result, Hamdallah will visit Gaza as the head of a national unity government. About the possible scenarios put forward for the elections after four months, Hisham Kahil, the executive director of the Palestinian Central Elections Commission, told Al-Monitor, The government will put forward the scenarios for the upcoming elections; it must issue a new decree announcing these elections so that we can start our work. The Election Commission is an executive authority that does not interfere in the amendment of laws. We only apply the laws that are agreed upon. The establishment of a competent court to examine local election issues similar to the court provided for by virtue of the general elections law is one of the ideas that the government may implement to overcome the elections crisis. This would only require the submittal of an application to Abbas to amend the law. It should be noted that implementing this scenario would not affect the options that the government may choose to hold the elections such as holding the elections in the West Bank but not in the Gaza Strip if negotiations with Hamas fail, despite the continuing European pressure and repeated demands by Nickolay Mladenov, the United Nations special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, to hold elections in Gaza as well as the West Bank. October 19, 2016 A prominent Turkish journalist who migrated to Europe a few months ago and is convinced she can no longer practice her profession in Turkey has noticed something intriguing in her son, a primary schooler. He keeps drawing prisons, the journalist told Al-Monitor. I was worried about his future in Turkey, but it turns out he, too, was secretly worried about me. The journalist, who requested anonymity, shared the drawings with Al-Monitor on condition they not be published. In all of them, big prisons reminiscent of a panopticon are depicted in striking detail, including tiny cells with bars, control points and other compounds marked as armories, offices and visitors rooms. In the 2016 World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders, Turkey ranks 151st out of 180 countries. As of Oct. 12, 92 journalists were behind bars, according a widely referenced tally by Necati Abay, an activist who closely follows and documents the imprisonment cases. Press freedom in Turkey is usually assessed on the basis of the number of journalists in jail. Yet this fails to fully reflect the gravity of the situation if one omits the huge number of journalists who have lost their jobs and are facing an uncertain future and struggling to survive. According to the Turkish Journalists Syndicate, the number of jobless journalists has climbed to about 10,000 with the massive purges in the media that followed the July 15 coup attempt. Syndicate chairman Gokhan Durmus told Al-Monitor that some 7,000 journalists were out of work in 2015, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute. This figure has grown dramatically this year. The number of working journalists has now fallen from 40,000 to 30,000, he said. The government has left no room for critical journalism, Durmus said, stressing that alternative media platforms, which used to offer employment opportunities for the jobless, have been largely suppressed as well. Most recently, the government last month ordered the closure of 12 television channels and 11 radio stations, adding hundreds to the army of the jobless. Durmus noted that only about 4,500 of the 30,000 journalists who remain employed were unionized. Ahmet Sik, the winner of UNESCOs 2014 press freedom prize but still a jobless man at home, said a small number of his jobless colleagues managed to move to the public relations sector or the internet media, while some borrowed money to start up cafes or taverns. The vast majority, however, had to move back to their parents homes, unable to support independent households, he told Al-Monitor. No journalist the government dislikes can find a job at present. The three surviving [critical] newspapers Evrensel, BirGun and Cumhuriyet are grappling with financial problems, meaning they cannot recruit new journalists, he said. For those who lose jobs, the prospect of working somewhere else is totally nonexistent, as almost all critical media outlets have been closed. [The government is] seeking to discipline journalists by starving them. Erol Onderoglu, the Turkish representative of Reporters Without Borders, says economic links between the government and media bosses have been critical in the process. Wary to protect their interests in other business sectors, media bosses toed the line and reshaped their staffs accordingly, Onderoglu told Al-Monitor. In the process, he said, prominent TV journalists and household names such as Aysenur Arslan, Banu Guven and Mirgun Cabas disappeared from the screens of major channels, and then tried to soldier on in smaller media outlets. Their plight, however, did not end there. Guven, for instance, has found herself jobless again. IMC TV, where she was an anchorwoman, fell victim to the latest clampdown, along with 11 other TV stations, with the government using extraordinary powers under a state of emergency declared after the attempted coup. Guven was a hugely popular personality on the leading NTV news channel when she was fired in 2011 due to what she sees as her former employers business interests with the government. Before joining IMC TV in 2014, she went on reporting on her personal website, but this proved economically unsustainable. Guven told Al-Monitor how the governments drive to redesign the media escalated over the years. At one point while still at NTV, we began to receive lists of people who could or could not appear on our programs. And when the bosses submitted fully to the government, they began firing journalists like me, she said. But even then, I still believed we had space to maneuver, I had hope. Today, weve come to a point where any independent initiative is blocked. Any broadcast outside the governments criteria has become impossible, and no journalist can make a living outside those criteria. Faruk Balikci, who used to report for IMC TV from Diyarbakir in the mainly Kurdish southeast, is not that pessimistic. This gloomy period, he believes, will one day come to an end and critical journalism will return. Like Guven, Balikci had joined IMC TV after being fired from one of Turkeys biggest media outlets, the Hurriyet newspaper, last year. Balikci went through the lengthy states of emergency in the southeast in the 1990s, when the Kurdish conflict peaked and the state used heavy-handed measures to suppress dissent. Asked to compare those days and the current emergency rule, Balikci said, In the 1990s, many colleagues of mine were killed. Halit Gungen, Hafiz Akdemir and Huseyin Deniz are only a few examples. Yet the pressure on journalists was never as arbitrary and unlawful as it is today. Never were so many newspapers and TV channels closed, never were so many journalists arrested. True, there were arbitrary obstructions, but we went on doing journalism, one way or another. Today, its totally blocked. But this period will pass because its not something sustainable. A serious setback for the jobless journalists is the lack of a platform to unite and discuss joint action, a result of the very low unionization level in Turkeys media sector. Durmus lamented that this stood in the way of professional solidarity as well. In 2014, for instance, 300 people were fired from a TV station, but we managed to contact only 50 of them, he said, adding that many TV stations transferred staff to subcontractor companies to prevent unionization and evade compliance with related laws. Onderoglu added that Turkish journalists have long had a tendency for individualist careerism, placing little importance on organized and collective action. When journalists fail to develop internal professional dialogue in normal times, its beyond imagination that they can do so in times of emergency rule when pressure becomes the trend, he said. Onderoglu spent 10 days behind bars in June for participating in a solidarity campaign for a banned pro-Kurdish daily. These days, he is penning his quarterly Media Monitoring Report for the Independent Communication Network, an activist news site. Ive been doing this for 16 years, he said, but for the first time Im preparing a report describing how an independent media domain has been eradicated. As for the journalist who moved to Europe, she has yet to be jailed or prosecuted. Yet her son keeps drawing prisons. She says she is surprised, but the drawings perhaps indicate that even primary schoolers can now easily portray the state of press freedom in Turkey. October 19, 2016 A statement issued by UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova has angered Palestinian officials and activists. Bokova made the statement Oct. 14, the same day Israel decided to suspend its relations with UNESCO due to the organizations resolution on Israeli violations in Jerusalem that Israel feels ignored Jewish connections to Al-Haram al-Sharif compound. Bokova tried to re-emphasize the importance of the three main Abrahamic religions and called for tolerance and for dialogue. After explaining that UNESCO declared Jerusalem a World Heritage Site because of its universality and its importance to the three religions, she concluded by appealing for dialogue, not confrontation. But what angered Palestinians was the feeling that the UNESCO director-general tried to oppose the will of the majority of the member states. Of special concern was Bokova saying, The Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram al-Sharif, the sacred shrine of Muslims, is also the Har HaBayit or Temple Mount whose Western Wall is the holiest place in Judaism. A Haaretz article from May 2015 stated there was no connection between Al-Haram al-Sharif and the Jewish temples. While they did not question the existence of the First Temple, Israeli journalists Ruth Schuster and Ran Shapira wrote in the same Israeli daily in October that year, Archaeologists cannot conclusively point to stones they know comprised the Second Temple, let alone the first one. However, Elias Sanbar, the Palestinian ambassador to UNESCO, said Oct. 17 that the Oct. 13 UNESCO vote was about occupation, not the Temple Mount. Sanbar explained that since the Old City of Jerusalem is part of the occupied territories, the Geneva conventions make it illegal for Israel as an occupying power to change the names or references of locations. In an Oct. 15 press release, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Malki said that what Bokova did was unprecedented, adding, She insulted every member state with sovereignty that voted on the resolution, which successfully passed. Hanan Ashrawi, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organizations Executive Committee in charge of the department of culture and communications, said in an Oct. 17 statement that the UNESCO resolution will help protect Palestinian cultural heritage sites. We are advancing towards freedom and independence using all the tools available to us within the framework of international law, including our admission as a state to the United Nations and all of its specialized agencies. On Oct. 18, the Palestinian Cabinet added its praise for the UNESCO resolution but rejected the statements of the director-general, which run contrary to the resolution. An official in the Paris-based UNESCO headquarters told Al-Monitor that the issue of Jerusalem has come up regularly since 1968. The official, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue, said that Bokova was trying to reaffirm the fact that Jerusalem is important to all three religions. The official rejected the idea that the statement was unprecedented, saying that the director-general has made three statements before her latest one on Jerusalem and they are all available on the UNESCO website. Back in April, she made a similar statement distancing herself from the resolution of member states disregarding the Temple Mount's religious and historic significance for Jews. While Israelis were generally upset with the UNESCO resolution, some blamed the current Israeli government for it. An editorial in the independent daily Haaretz called the Oct. 16 UNESCO decision a diplomatic defeat for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel may be accepted behind the scenes, in back-channel dealings, but when the lights go on, legitimacy belongs to the Palestinians, it argued. The controversy over Bokova's statement has also brought back discussions about the decline of US influence in the cultural body. The United States was forced to suspend its financial support of $60 million a year to UNESCO once the UN body recognized the state of Palestine in 2011, and lost its voting rights when it failed to pay its debts to the Paris-based organization in 2013. A US State Department official rejected the idea that Washington has lost its influence in the international body. The official, who asked not to be identified, told Al-Monitor that the United States remains an active member of UNESCO and works to advance US interests relative to UNESCOs mandate. He said that the United States will continue to explore with Congress options for resuming payment of our dues, which will allow the US to play a stronger role in this organization as a whole going forward and strengthening our ability to push back on anti-Israel resolutions. UNESCO is a UN cultural organization that is mandated to carry out the will of its members. As a full-fledged member, Palestine, as well as the majority of states that voted for the latest resolution, have a right to have their votes and decisions respected by the director-general appointed by the member states. Naturally, UN staff, including the director-general, have the right and responsibility to speak out on issues that represent the core of the mission of the organization. The UNESCO resolution in question focused on the violations of the Israeli occupation forces that refused to meet with the UNESCO delegation visiting Jerusalem. While Israelis have a right to call the area in question any name they want, they cant force it on the world community, which has an obligation to treat the area in accordance with international law as an occupied area. Books-A-Million: Sales are down, despite record-setting 'Watchman' Books-A-Million won the silver Retailer of the Year Award in the category of Annual Sales more than $20 million at the state 2015 Retailer of the Year Awards in Birmingham on Oct. 18, 2-16. (Sharon Steinmann/ssteinmann@al.com) Here are the top stories in Alabama business for Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016. Follow all of Alabama's business news here, anytime. Books-A-Million is one of Alabama's largest retail business. The store has changed quite a bit, and continues to change, since the Anderson family opened its first news stand in Florence nearly a century ago, the CEO told an audience at the 2016 Retailer of the Year Awards Tuesday. The Pentagon's multibillion dollar Littoral Combat Ship program was dealt another damaging blow Friday after the commanding officer of the USS Freedom was relieved of his command. An email stolen from Hillary Clinton's campaign chair John Podesta listed Apple CEO and Alabama native Tim Cook as a potential vice-presidential candidate. A recently filed class action lawsuit claims PepsiCo is misleading consumers over the health benefits of its popular Naked Juice smoothies. Work is almost complete on The Garage at Clinton Row, a unique adaptive reuse project at the Clinton Avenue parking deck in downtown Huntsville. The City of Brent is receiving a $450,000 community development block grant for improvements. Brent will use the money to replace a main sewer line which serves about 600 residents in the central part of the city. The city of nearly 5,000 in Bibb County will contribute $90,000 in matching funds. Gov. Robert Bentley said the grant is important in aiding future growth. "Industries are looking at areas like this to start building and without solid infrastructure and a good workforce they are less likely to locate to an area," Bentley said, in a statement. "We are proud to provide this grant to the city of Brent needs which will assist with much needed improvements." CDBG funds are made available through the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA). Bibb County earlier this week was the scene of a major economic announcement, as German auto supplier One well-known retailer hopes to cash in on Black Friday sales a little early this year by opening its doors on Thanksgiving Day. Fortune Magazine reports Macy's will begin greeting holiday shoppers at 5 p.m. Nov. 24, an hour earlier than the chain opened on Thanksgiving 2015. "In response to significant, ongoing customer interest in shopping on Thanksgiving, both at Macy's and at many other retailers, we will be opening our full-line department stores at 5pm on Thanksgiving Day," Macy's spokeswoman Holly Thomas told Fortune in an email statement. Macy's, which has two Alabama stores at Riverchase Galleria and Brookwood Village, currently operates 734 locations in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. After announcing 40 closures in 2015, the company said in August it would shut down an additional 100 stores in the coming year, shedding about 15 percent of its total footprint. The department store has been open on Thanksgiving since 2013. Macy's told The Associated Press this week it is working to find associates who volunteer to work Thanksgiving. "Doing so means that our employees are able to make their own decisions about how they contribute to our most important and busiest weekend of the year," the company said in a statement. After Mall of America announced it will stay closed on Thanksgiving Day, Tennessee-based CBL & Associates Properties said it will also keep its doors shut. CBL operates Parkway Place Mall in Huntsville, Gadsden Mall in Gadsden and Wiregrass Commons Mall in Dothan. Stephen Lebovitz, president and CEO of CBL, said they made the decision after taking feedback from mall employees, retail partners and shoppers. "We want to bring back the excitement of Black Friday shopping as the true start of the holiday shopping season and allow our employees, retailers, and shoppers to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with their families," he said. Although CBL common areas will be off limits, department stores, movie theaters, restaurants and retailers with exterior mall entrances will have the option to open on Thanksgiving. Alabama is home to five new Ross Stores as the West Coast retailer looks to expand its brand across the U.S. through late 2016. Ross opened five new stores this year in Alabama. Pictured is a Ross Dress for Less store in Oregon. (Courtesy of Steve Morgan/Wikimedia Commons) Ross recently launched 25 Ross Dress for Less and nine dd's DISCOUNTS in 16 states, rounding out the company's plans to open 90 new sites this year. Of the 90 that have opened so far, five Ross locations were in Mobile, West Mobile, Albertville, Cullman and Foley. "Looking ahead, we continue to see plenty of opportunity to expand our store base across both new and existing markets, and remain confident that over the long-term, Ross Dress for Less can grow to 2,000 locations and dd's DISCOUNTS can become a chain of 500 stores," said President and Chief Development Officer Jim Fassio. Spokeswoman Connie Kao couldn't say whether Ross will continue to grow next year in Alabama as the retailer does not disclose new locations until closer to the opening date. She told AL.com Ross hires approximately 50 part- and full-time associates to staff each store. Including the new Alabama locations, Ross currently employs about 1,400 workers in 28 stores throughout the state. Ross, based in Dublin, Calif., saw fiscal 2015 revenues reach $11.9 billion. The company has 1,342 Ross stores offering 20-60 percent off department and specialty prices in 36 states, the District of Columbia and Guam. dd's DISCOUNTS, which also offers lower-cost brand name clothing, accessories, footwear and home goods, operates 193 stores in 15 states. There are currently no dd's DISCOUNTS in Alabama, but that could change as the retailer expands throughout Georgia and Tennessee. Repent or Perish.JPG The Rev. Jennifer Sanders, left, new pastor of Beloved Community Church in Avondale, talks with a protester holding a sign that says, 'Repent or Perish' outside her church. (Courtesy of Charlotte Givhan) After Beloved Community Church in Avondale elected the Rev. Jennifer Sanders as the new pastor, she organized a day of silent prayer and meditation at the church on Saturday, Oct. 15. It didn't stay silent for long. A protester with a megaphone, along with his wife and baby, who are not members of the church, stood outside with picket signs, apparently to protest that the church had hired an openly lesbian woman as pastor. The man held a sign that said, "Repent or Perish." Sanders went out to talk to them, and offered them water and chairs. "His name is Jim and I had a conversation with him and separately with his wife, Libby," Sanders told the congregation. "Though their theology is violent, I do not think they are physically violent. They are street preachers of deep conviction and fierce spirit. If you encounter them, please be kind." On Sunday, for her first sermon at the church, Sanders scrapped her planned message. She instead preached on Romans 2: 1-3: "Therefore you have no excuse, whoever you are, when you judge others; for in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things." She noted in her sermon that it was news that she was a lesbian pastor. "While full inclusion of LGBTQIAP people in the clergy around the country is increasingly commonplace, it's still pretty rare in Alabama," she said. "There are only a handful of clergy who openly identify as gay across the state - and even fewer who are serving as the primary pastor of a church." Some of the reaction had been negative, but not all, she said. "I and this church, separately and together, have received incredible support," she said. "There has also been condemnation from Biblical literalists in tones that can at best be described as disturbing. And yesterday for 5 of the 8 hours during Beloved's community day of silent prayer and meditation, a family of street preachers with signs that said REPENT OR PERISH stood across the street with a megaphone making loud witness of their very narrow interpretation of scripture. Pastor Jennifer Sanders is no stranger to protest. Here she holds a sign at Five Points South. "I went outside and spoke to them early on. They would not shake my hand or introduce themselves, though I did eventually learn their names from the wife. As the man, whose name is Jim, stood with his sign in my face, he kept hurling at me verses from the first chapter of Romans." Sanders said that Jim missed the message of that book of the New Testament. "The short answer is that there is nothing at all in the Bible that speaks to the reality of contemporary LGBTQIAP people in loving relationships and plenty of critique of practices of violent abuse of power, the failure to provide hospitality, and idolatrous acts in the Temple," she said. "In the midst of his avalanche of words he said 'the Gospel has nothing to do with accepting people as they are.' His accusation was that that's what we do here. He was accusing us of accepting people as they are." Sanders said critics of the church have wondered if they just let anybody in church now. "We sure do," Sanders said. "I don't see how you can claim to follow the example of Jesus and do otherwise. Furthermore, we will accept them as they are. If people wait until they're perfect before they come to church, they ain't never going to get here or there or wherever it is that considers itself a church full of perfect people. "At the same time - and here's a point where Jim and I agree - if we are following Jesus, it will affect what we think, what we say, and what we do. The invitation of the Gospel is to new life in Christ and through Christ. "And that's where the theological similarity between me and Jim ends. "Somehow his theology, in the context of everything that is going on in this world, dictated that the most important way to spend a day is protesting and preaching about me. Twenty percent of the people in Jefferson County live in poverty. "Statewide, 900,000 people live in poverty, 300,000 of them children. There are more than 4,000 people in Alabama living on the streets. "In this country there are more than 2.3 million people in prison, a system of mass incarceration that disproportionately penalizes people of color; 5.9 million children under the age of 5 died in 2015 around the globe. More than half of them from easily preventable or treatable problems. Preventable or treatable, that is, if we have the collective political will to do so. But we don't. And they can't afford to convince us otherwise. The Rev. Jennifer Sanders was elected pastor of Beloved Community Church in Birmingham on Oct. 9, 2016. "There are nearly 65 million refugees worldwide. 2016 is on pace to be the hottest year on record. We have polar ice caps melting at unprecedented rates, thousands of miles of coral reefs dying, sea levels rising and causing floods at levels never seen before. And not only no plan to address it, but entire industries of people devoted to convincing us that documented climate science is a hoax. "And I'm somehow the problem? "Never mind the questionable effectiveness of their methods. Nevermind who I am or what I am (and actually, as I told him, I work mighty hard to follow the example of Jesus and I challenged him to evaluate my life in terms of the fruits of the Spirit that Paul describes in the fifth chapter of the letter to the Galatians - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and self-control). But nevermind that for the moment: 300,000 children in poverty in Alabama. 5.9 million children dead in 2015, many of those preventable. "Remind me of what sin looks like again. "What does it say about the theology that forces on people a fear-inspired view of a terrible, wrathful judgmental God that the honest conclusion is that the best use of a beautiful fall Saturday is to protest me? Really? Because I live in a loving, committed same-sex partnership and because our church 'accepts people as they are'? "We do indeed offer an open invitation for people to bring their own authentic selves through this door. We invite people to be a part of a radical fellowship of love and of justice. "We are called to offer that invitation. And if we are to hear these words from Paul, we do so without judgment. Paul is writing to a young Christian community trying to navigate - and separate its values from - the oppressions of the injustice of the pagan - Roman - world. He raises the issue of one judging another, a role rightly left to God. "Who I am to judge anyone? Who was Jim to judge me? Who are any of us to judge another? "Together we live in covenant, one with another about how we function in community together. We are accountable to one another for our behavior. "Nobody ever said that was easy. "But if we are walking in the ways of Jesus, we take people where they are, as the precious children of God that they are, and we offer a vision of how we might together 'joyfully share with one another hope for the living, comfort for the dying, dignity for those in struggle, and freedom to ask and to seek and to grow more fully Into the persons we were created to be.' "I guarantee you that if you pattern your life after Jesus, it will change you. "If you see the world through Jesus' example of compassion, you will seek to embody compassion in your engagement with others. "If you see the world through Jesus' choice of meal companions, you will place yourself among every different kind of person out there. "If you use a Jesus lens to see the world, you will understand the importance of being a healing presence in this world, of offering sustenance to those in need. "If you see the world through Jesus' commitment to justice for the marginalized, you will strive to create a world where no one is an outcast and no one is stranger. "If we take those words from the Beloved Covenant and echo the words of Paul, we're left with a serious challenge. Our covenant talks about NO ONE being an outcast - and no one being a stranger. "And Paul's injunction speaks of judging no one? That judgment is left to God alone. That's not to say we don't hold people accountable for their behavior. But the task here is not for any of us to pass judgment on the very being of another. We must yet continue to see each and every person as a precious child of God. "That's why I've tried very hard in this sermon to distinguish my critique of Jim's theology from a judgment about Jim himself. It's a fine point, but it's so very important. It's especially important in our contemporary society. "I disagree with Jim's interpretation of both Scripture and tradition in the practice of the faith. But I still consider him a brother in Christ and an important member of the family of humanity. He would not shake my hand, but I offered - both at the beginning of our conversation and the end. I told him and his wife that if they needed water or a chair, that they were welcome to them (which they never asked for, but the offer was genuine). And I told them I would sit down and have a further conversation with them over coffee if they ever wanted to do so (I'd be surprised if that ever happened, but you never know). "In short, I did my best to recognize that of God within them, to respect their full humanity, and to not judge them, even while I both disagreed with and was troubled by their actions. "That - in my mind - is the sort of call that is put to as Christians. It is not easy - at least it's not easy for me - but it reflects an effort to live up to the call of the Gospel. "Fortunately for me - and I think we share this - I read the Scripture as an incredible story of God's love for us and of God's invitation for us to live after the example of Jesus. I kind of feel sorry for those whose vision is so very narrow. "Here at Beloved, we will keep preaching a theology of inclusion, of radical fellowship, and of committed love and truth and speaking truth with love. We are recognized for offering that vision into a community and a world that so desperately needs it. "That is what we do and that is what we will do - as we strive to embody the radical vision of Jesus and to see Jesus Incarnate in every one we meet." Vowing "never to touch another computer again," 19-year-old Peyton Pruitt walked out of the St. Clair County Jail Tuesday after his release was ordered following more than 11 months behind bars. Pruitt, wearing a T-shirt with his image used in recent protests bearing the legend "I am Peyton," was greeted by friends and family this evening as he walked up with his father Tony. Pruitt was arrested in November 2015 on charges of soliciting support for a terrorist act over the Internet. Supporters say the teen has an IQ of 50 and was not capable of knowing what he was doing. St. Clair County Circuit Judge Phil Seay ordered him released after a mental evaluation found him as possibly having Autism Spectrum Disorder and "may have a much more developed skill set/ability than was previously believed," according to the judge's order. Investigators last year said Pruitt used the Internet to communicate with what he believed were representatives of the Islamic State and the Pakistani Taliban, and that he told an FBI agent that he provided links to encrypted information on car bombs, pressure cooker bombs and suggested high value targets for acts of terrorism. In September, Pruitt was found not guilty by reason of mental defect following a mental evaluation. In his eight page order, Seay said Pruitt could be released to his father's custody under court supervision with several stipulations, including supervised Internet and cellphone access. With his father at his side, Peyton answered several questions from media gathered near the St. Clair County courthouse this evening, often giving one-word answers. He described himself as "happy" to be out of jail and looking forward to "spending time with my family." Describing his jail time as "hard," he thanked his supporters, telling them he "feel(s) bad for what I did." He told reporters what he wanted was to eat Mexican food. "You gonna miss that jail food?" his father asked. "No," he said bluntly, prompting laughter. James Gallini, Pruitt's attorney, said Pruitt plans to return to St. Clair County High School this week, and will be under supervision by law enforcement under the court's direction. He said Seay, along with St. Clair County District Attorney Richard Minor, worked to expedite a second court-ordered evaluation which made Pruitt's release happen faster. "The fact that the judge ordered his release without a second hearing says a lot," Gallini said. Tony Pruitt described the last year as "a daily nightmare." "That's how it's been every day," he said. "But today we got to wake up." The Clinton campaign tries to make inroads in the state that has voted Republican since 1996. Four years ago, when US President Barack Obama was running for a second term against Republican nominee Mitt Romney, he made exactly zero trips to the state of Arizona in the critical months leading up to the election. There was simply no point. After all, the state had a very conservative Republican governor, a popular longtime senator who ran against him in 2008, and a losing streak in presidential elections going back to 1996. But now that could be changing. Democrats are blitzing the state this week in an attempt to set up presidential nominee Hillary Clinton for a statewide win in November. Clinton superstars such as Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, Chelsea Clinton and First Lady Michelle Obama are all campaigning there this week. On a call with reporters on Monday, Robbie Mook, Clintons campaign manager, said the nominee herself could be making a trip there, too. He added that an additional two million dollars would be pumped into the state in direct mail and advertising. Why? The Clinton campaign is trying to run up the score as much as possible, according to Geoffrey Skelley, from the University of Virginias Center for Politics. He adds that with Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump making persistent remarks alleging the election is rigged in favour of Clinton, the Democrats are trying not only to beat him on November 8, but bury him to prove him wrong. Indeed, Arizona is ripe for the Democrats to pick. The growing Hispanic population, many of whom are motivated to vote against Trump because of his negative remarks about undocumented immigrants, will help Democrats. READ MORE: Donald Trump splits the Republican party Republican Senator John McCain, who represents Arizona in the US Senate, opposes Trump. He didnt help his cause in the state when he said in July 2015 that McCain, a former Prisoner of War in Vietnam, wasnt a hero because he was captured by the enemy. In September the Arizona Republic, a conservative newspaper, broke with tradition and, for the first time, endorsed a Democrat for president. A recent Emerson College poll showed Clinton in the lead in Arizona for the first time. But some analysts believe this could also be a strategy by the Clinton camp to throw Trump off his game at a time when his resources and money are stretched thin. Whether it will work is still unclear. We should watch to see if they [Clintons campaign] make any further investments, adds Skelley. The fates of Hosni Mubarak and General El-Shazly collided in Tahrir, with one honoured in death and the other disgraced. Veteran Egyptian war correspondent Yehia Ghanem recalls the day in February 2011 when it seemed as if the Egyptian people had finally broken free from the cage of dictatorship. Read the rest of his series, Caged, here. On the morning of February 10, as the revolution was at its peak, I received a call from a former Egyptian diplomat, Ambassador Mohamed el-Shazly. He was calling to break the news of his uncles death. Saad el-Shazly had been a legendary Egyptian military leader. Known as the Golden General, he had led the reconstruction of the Egyptian army after it had been shattered during the 1967 Six-Day War against Israel. The timing of his death seemed symbolic. As chief of staff, el-Shazly had led the army during the 1973 Arab-Israeli War, the most successful in modern Egyptian history. After the unprecedented success of the first 10 days of that war, the tide began to turn as a large Israeli force led by General Ariel Sharon broke through between the Egyptian 2nd army, which was positioned on the eastern bank of the Suez Canal in the Sinai Peninsula, and the Egyptian 3rd army, which was on its western bank. El-Shazly wanted to respond by redeploying two brigades and a battalion from the 2nd army in order to besiege the Israelis. But Sadat refused. He feared this would look like a withdrawal and that military morale would be damaged. The military consequences of ignoring his chief of staff were grave. After the war ended, the bitterness between the two men continued. Wanting to remove el-Shazly from the army, Sadat made him ambassador to the United Kingdom, and later to Portugal. It was during this time that Sadat undertook his historic visit to Israel in November 1977. El-Shazly publicly opposed the Camp David Accords, signed between Egypt and Israel in 1978, and resigned from his post. He was forced into exile in Algeria, from where he wrote a book that gave his account of the 1973 war. For this, he was court-martialed in absentia, accused of writing the book without approval and of divulging military secrets within it. He strongly denied the latter charge. But el-Shazly was sentenced in absentia to three years of hard labour, while all of his Egyptian assets were confiscated. When Sadat was assassinated in 1981, the bitterness towards el-Shazly was passed on to his successor, Hosni Mubarak, who as the commander of the air force during the 1973 war, had been one of el-Shazlys subordinates. When, in 1992, el-Shazly returned to Egypt after years in exile, he was arrested at the airport. Mubarak insisted upon executing his sentence, despite appeals for clemency or, at least, a retrial. The new president, it seemed, wanted to erase General el-Sazlys name from Egyptian military history. Now his nephew was calling me, asking if I would publish his obituary in Al-Ahram newspaper. But I had another idea. Would you mind moving the generals body to Tahrir Square so that the hundreds of thousands of protesters gathered there can observe a funeral prayer for him? I asked. The ambassador was stunned. It would be an opportunity to pay a long-overdue tribute to a much-maligned national hero, I explained. Could the demonstrators ensure the safety of the body? he asked me. Im sure they could, I replied. I called some of the protesters and proposed the idea to them. They welcomed the gesture and began to make preparations to receive the body. But moving it from Heliopolis, a suburb eight miles from Tahrir Square, proved too difficult in the circumstances and the plan had to be aborted. But on the following day, Friday, February 11, after Friday prayers, almost a million protesters in Tahrir Square and the surrounding streets observed the funeral prayer for General Saad El-Shazly. The symbolism was not lost on those who prayed for his soul. Here was a great military leader, who had been tarnished and punished by both Sadat and Mubarak, being honoured on the very day that Mubarak was eventually forced to step down in disgrace. On that day, millions of Egyptians celebrated. It was time for us to break free from the cage of dictatorship, it seemed. But, in just two years, we would learn that what we had thought was the end of dictatorship was, in fact, just a hoax. Worlds first mass-scale facility that grows tomatoes without soil, fresh water, or fossil fuels launches in Australia. In a desert region of southern Australia is a farm that grows and supplies 15 percent of the entire countrys tomatoes without using soil, fresh water or fossil fuels. Earlier this month Sundrop Farms marked the launch of what it called the first commercial-scale facility of this calibre in the world, which uses solar power to de-salinate seawater and operate greenhouses in order to grow more than 15,000 tonnes of the red fruit each year. Their tomatoes are being sold in hundreds of markets across the country. In a statement released on October 6, the company said that in comparison with conventional greenhouse farms, its cutting-edge, sustainable technology will save significant amounts of natural resources and avoid a substantial level of pollution. Approximately 26,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year would be avoided, which is equivalent to removing 500 cars from our roads, it said. The statement also said it could save fresh water the equivalent of 180 Olympic size swimming pools and more than two million litres of diesel a year. In an email to Al Jazeera, Sundrop Farms explained its sustainable growing methods. Tomatoes are grown hydroponically in coconut coir, eliminating the need for soil. Our concentrated solar tower produces both heat and electricity to maintain the perfect conditions inside the greenhouses to help the plants grow. This heat is also used to de-salinate one million litres of seawater a day; the fresh water produced is used to water the plants and cool the greenhouses. READ MORE: Australias rising solar power revolution The company said the $200m venture may have been costly to build, but it has substantially fewer operating costs than conventional greenhouses because of its sustainable nature. In the long run this means that we can cut down on expensive, harmful inputs like fossil-fuels, meaning that our operating costs are significantly lower than traditional greenhouse operations. Sundrop Farms said it sees itself as a potential model for countries facing shortages in fresh water and energy supplies. Mike Dixon, director of the Controlled Environment Systems Research Facility a department at the University of Guelph in the Canadian province of Ontario told Al Jazeera as food security becomes a pressing issue with growing populations energy is usually a limiting variable. He said although Sundrop Farms system may work well in desert regions in the Middle East, it would not be practical economically in places with an abundance of fresh water such as Canada. READ MORE: The Gulfs bright solar-powered future But Dixon noted that while the world has seen a boom in vegetables and fruits using controlled environments, fundamental staple foods such as rice, soy and wheat cannot be grown at the same level using greenhouses. You cannot compete with conventional farming it [greenhouse production] will never achieve the same on those staple products. You need hundreds of thousands of acres for staples like rice to produce it in a highly competitive way. Asked whether Sundrop Farms techniques could be applied globally, he said it depends on each case. It all comes down to money. This bussiness plan will last only as long as its profit margin is in the black if the company can economically use seawater. It is not a business case that can be made everywhere [It] depends on how costly the water treatment is in each area. Each business case has to be looked at as its own business model. In a Baltimore neighbourhood plagued by murders, Doc Cheatham thinks change is possible if people register to vote. Baltimore, United States Marvin Doc Cheatham is on a mission. He has been sitting outside the elementary school in the Matthew Henson neighbourhood since early morning, hoping to register new voters and convince them they can bring change. This neighbourhood desperately needs it. There have been ten murders in a year in an area so small that you can see one end of it from the other. All were related to drugs. On top of the violence, this almost exclusively African-American district also has high rates of crime and drug abuse, school dropouts, teen pregnancies, unemployment and poverty. Many houses have been abandoned, with weeds growing wild outside. There are a lot of good people here, but the bad overwrites the good. But if I didnt think we could make change, I wouldnt be doing this, Cheatham says, pointing at voter registration forms on a table in front of him. Rattling off a list of organisations he has been president of, including the local election board and the Baltimore branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the 66-year-old, born and raised in Matthew Henson, describes himself as a civil rights freak. When he heard that a majority of eligible voters in the neighbourhood were not registered, he decided to put his retirement on hold and spring back into action as a voting campaigner. His car is loaded with black and white posters of civil rights activists who changed the course of history in the 1960s and before. He brings them along to events to educate younger members of the community who may not know about those who fought segregation and for voting rights. Behind his table hang pictures of role models: Muhammad Ali and Martin Luther King. Are you registered to vote, sister? he shouts out to a passer-by. Since I was 18, and now Im 48, she responds, but comes over to get a registration form for her daughter. I always tell people that if they dont vote, they cant sit around and complain, she says, drawing applause from Cheatham. Though few people in the US know of the Matthew Henson neighbourhood, one of its former residents recently became famous for all the wrong reasons. Freddie Gray, who died in hospital from spinal injuries he suffered during an arrest by Baltimore police, grew up here. His death last year sparked days of trouble in Baltimore, with clashes breaking out between frustrated black youths and police. Several buildings in Matthew Henson were destroyed. Cheatham, who seems to know almost everyone who passes him on the street, is trying to channel that anger and frustration into civic engagement. Campaigning for people to vote is something he has done since he reached voting age, and community activism runs in his blood, his parents both having been activists. He talks about how 30-35 years ago, a black person not registered to vote was practically unheard of, as voting was seen as a badge of honour after the struggle for universal voting rights. WATCH: Baltimore Rising Cheatham interrupts himself, standing up and looking over to a car stopping in the street: I have to make sure theyre not selling drugs over there. As police rarely patrol this area, someone has to keep an eye on things, he argues, saying he is well aware that interfering in someone elses business around here could end badly for him. Satisifed nothing nefarious is happening, Cheatham goes on to explain how some 20,000 felons in Baltimore, who can now vote after new legislation came into force earlier this year, are part of his voting drive. Many of that number live in Matthew Henson. One of them, turning up at the school to register, is James Oliver, 24. He says the biggest motivation for him to vote is his dislike for the Republican party candidate, Donald Trump. I really dont like the way he is talking, about building a wall and about women, he says. He wouldnt represent the country well. With the state of Maryland, which Baltimore is a part of, being small and having voted Democrat since 1992, the presidential vote will not be decided here. But as well as a president, residents are electing a senator, members of congress, a mayor, and other city officials and judges. And it is at that local level Cheatham thinks change can be made by electing politicians who put people first. Before money and prestige, he says. If you think this is an awful place, you have to bring in someone who you think can help you, he says, grabbing a chocolate-chip cookie for lunch. One shop a stones throw from the school has been robbed twice in a year, and a 22-year-old was shot nearby in broad daylight in December. Nine of the men killed in Matthew Henson since last October were black, the tenth one a white man coming from outside to buy drugs. A white person would come here for two reasons: either to work at the school, or to buy drugs, Cheatham says. He points down the street: There you see guys doing what young men here do all day. They have no jobs, so theyre walking around, either up to no good, or about to get up to no good. Beyond election season, Cheatham is involved in myriad initiatives: training people how to dispense medication that can save lives from heroin overdose, cleaning up informal rubbish dumps springing up around the neighbourhood, and others. He meets a group of city officials in a street with mainly boarded-up properties and, after giving them a list of 18 places in urgent need of cleaning, he walks the bravest of the officials through an alley of abandoned houses and piles of rubbish, with rats so comfortable that they do not budge as the people approach. While he describes the neighbourhoods future as challenging, Cheatham still has hope. There is a God above and he helps those who help themselves, he says. I think that I was put here to lead those organisations, that was my calling. To help other people. We have to come together and help each other. On the frontline in Ukraine, a group of volunteer fighters composing a unit of the nationalist battalion of the Ukrainian Volunteer Army, operates side by side with official Ukrainian troops. These volunteers, the majority of whom have nationalist leanings, are still flooding into the war zone, despite the widespread belief that volunteer battalions were fully incorporated into the structure of the military. Although they do not operate heavy weaponry such as tanks or artillery, they are supported by the Ukrainian troops who do. The volunteers have become hardened nationalists, with their time spent in intense combat at the front. Many disapprove of the way their government has handled this war, which they still refuse to acknowledge as such, instead referring to it as the anti-terrorist operation. They view their governments willingness to accept onerous ceasefire terms as nothing short of treason, asking if this justifies the sacrificed lives of their comrades. They believed the Maidan revolution of 2014 would bring about a new Ukraine, and when separatists started the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, they went to fight for what they thought they had won at Maidan a more just Ukraine. But looking around, they say they see the same old Ukraine, with many of the same players, simply reorganised. READ MORE Ukraine: A dangerous game The future of Syria and Iraq will be shaped significantly by the outcome of the battle of Mosul that is now underway. The campaign launched earlier this week to liberate the northern Iraqi city of Mosul from ISIL control, immediately following the liberation of Dabiq in Syria, is likely to mark a historic turning point in the fate of ISIL in Syria-Iraq. It may also reveal prospects for the future political configuration of both countries. Yet the actual consequences of this weeks events depend heavily on several critical military, demographic, and political developments whose outcome now is totally unknown. These include: How fierce a fight will ISIL put up in Mosul, after not resisting much at Dabiq? Will Iraqi Sunni, Shia and Kurdish forces and political leaders be able to reach understandings on how to govern Mosul and other liberated areas? Will Turkey be satisfied that it has achieved its military-strategic aims in Syria and Iraq, and refrain from confrontations with Iraqi or Kurdish troops? Historic moment of reckoning It is already clear, however, that this is a historic moment of reckoning for almost every major actor involved in the battle against ISIL in northern Syria and Iraq. This is owing to several major developments, including, most notably: ISILs steady loss of territory it controls; enhanced military coordination among fighting forces from half a dozen countries or parties; an apparent important step forward in internal Iraqi political understandings on how to defeat ISIL; and clarifications in the war aims of neighbouring powerhouse Turkey. OPINION: Mosul will fall again, but at great cost The most important common of these and other factors is that ISILs military weaknesses are being quickly exposed as forces from many Arab and foreign quarters coordinate to attack important ISIL political bases, strategic logistical posts, and population centres. The battle to liberate Mosul has required serious, if often indirect, coordination and political understandings among the Iraqi government, armed forces, the police, the Kurdish forces in the north, Sunni tribal forces, Iraqi Shia militias that are close to Iran, the United States air force and special forces, along with other quarters that provide intelligence and logistic support. Such coordination among the different military and political partners has been very slow to materialise owing to major political and territorial disputes among most of these parties. The most important common consequence of these and other factors is that ISIL's military weaknesses are being quickly exposed... by It seems that the main parties in the Mosul battle have agreed on the limits of Turkish involvement and advances on the ground, and also limits on Iraqi Shiite militia involvement in the Sunni-majority city. These new realities allow both Turkish and Iranian-influenced Shia-Iraqi forces to lend their weight to the battle without triggering fierce opposition from Sunni or Kurdish quarters that oppose them both. In close coordination Also significant in the campaign against Mosul has been the Iraqi armed forces and government taking the lead on the ground, and unprecedentedly fighting in close coordination with Kurdish forces. This implies a critical new level of shared political appreciation that only these two groups of fighters should liberate the city on the ground, while others provide support from the air or in other ways, including intelligence and logistics. OPINION: Is protecting Mosul minorities an excuse for partition? It also indicates that the Iraqi state armed forces have reached a level of technical proficiency and political self-confidence both in their and others eyes that they can undertake and even lead this move. Their full prowess will be tested in the battle to liberate Mosul. A more capable and credible Iraqi army may augur well for the future state rebuilding prospects of the country, especially if it also reflects improved capabilities of the Iraqi police which actually handle security in cities and towns. One imminent test will be whether the police have been able to train an expected 20,000 Sunni tribal forces to handle policing action in and around Mosul. More capable, respected, and legitimate armed forces and police are needed to pull the country out of the cycle of regression and stagnation that it has had for the past decade, and allow the government and leading sectarian and ethnic forces to reach stable power-sharing agreements, reduce rampant corruption levels, and promote sustained development activities that improve the lives of ordinary Iraqis, including in realms such as electricity, jobs, incomes, and security. Turkeys involvement The direct military involvement of Turkey in both Syria and Iraq in recent weeks is a major new development that has helped to hasten the demise of ISIL in both countries. The disruption of ISIL supply routes in northern Syria and the fall of the religiously symbolic town of Dabiq (where ISIL believes the apocalyptic battle at the end of days will occur) have exposed ISILs limited defence capabilities there. The Mosul battle will show if ISIL also has limited will to fight when all its foes finally get together and attack it as a single coordinated force. Turkey says it has achieved its key strategic objectives in northern Syria (to prevent a contiguous land area run by Syrian Kurds and drive back ISIL from near its border). We may find out in coming weeks if the US and Turkey join with local rebels in Syria to launch a combined attack on ISILs second most important base, the city of Raqqa in northeast Syria. This and many other aspects of the future of Syria and Iraq will be shaped significantly by the outcome of the battle of Mosul that is now underway. Rami G Khouri is a senior public policy fellow at the Issam Fares Institute at the American University of Beirut and a non-resident senior fellow at Harvard University Kennedy School. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. As battle for Mosul begins, Iraq and the US must develop a humanitarian and political strategy before the fighting ends. In an article I wrote after the fall of Mosul in 2014, I argued that the sentiment of the population of this city under the occupation of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) had to be taken account, particularly to know their potential to rebel and resist. As of October 2016 evidence emerged from the city that the citizens of Mosul had begun to resist ISIL forces militarily. Apparently, weapons has been smuggled to these anti-ISIL rebels in Mosul. For the battle of Mosul to succeed, and to avoid a second battle for control of the city, the Iraqis of Mosul living under ISIL need more than weapons, but a message and a vision that there is a plan for them the day after liberation. A victory over ISIL in Mosul will not be the end of Iraqs problems, but rather the beginning of an internal political battle over territory. Daunting challenges Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi will face the daunting challenges of governing a post-ISIL Iraq and post-conflict security issues: first, the reintegration of territory and populations that were under ISIL control; second, agreeing to Iraqs internal borders with the Kurds; and third, presiding over a fragmented, sectarian state to deal with the aforementioned issues. This is one of the few occasions where I find myself arguing for American interference in domestic Iraqi affairs. KRG: Mosul victory depends on ISIL fighters morale This a time when the Iraqi state is most dependent on American and coalition military assets to achieve the liberation of Mosul. The US should have pressured the Iraqi parliament to begin the process of reaching a consensus on Mosul and other disputed territories, such as Kirkuk, before the first shots of this battle were fired. Populations in former ISIL-held territory When the battle for Mosul began, the Iraqi government had yet to articulate a strategy to manage the political end game after this battle. It is imperative that the Iraqi government and the US develop a strategy to deal with the first paramount issue: the internally displaced peoples (IDPs), and how to reincorporate previously-held ISIL territories and those who lived under ISIL rule. Political battles will ensue over who will secure and govern these areas, who will get to live there in the resettlement process, and how to reintegrate the IDPs. by Political battles will ensue over who will secure and govern these areas, who will get to live there in the resettlement process, and how to reintegrate the IDPs. This problem will also hinge on the pace of reconstruction of the ISIL-held areas. The political ramification of this issue is how the central government will manage this process. ISILs seizure of Mosul was a symptom of the failure of the Iraqi state. The question remains as to how Arab Sunnis will stay in this city, and whether Anbar and Salah al-Din provinces reconcile with the central government. For a good number of Arab Sunnis, the fear will emerge that after an ISIL victory, a Shia-dominated government will rule as a conqueror of this territory, largely supported by the Shia militias. Nowhere will this issue be more prevalent than in the city of Mosul. There is no political consensus over who will control the city after ISIL is expelled. In theory the central government would, but it was the central governments governance of this city that led to the conditions that allowed ISIL to find fertile ground in Mosul in the first place. Avoiding future battles Once the dust settles from the battle for Mosul, the question of who will control Kirkuk will inevitably emerge. There were already tense relations between the central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) before the ISIL invasion of 2014, and these continued afterwards when the KRG seized the city to prevent it falling into ISIL hands. ANALYSIS: Fall of Mosul Whats at stake for the Kurds? The battle for territorial sovereignty will not only involve this city and its oil reserves, but other contested areas, such as Tuz Khurmato, one half controlled by the Kurds, the other by Shia militias, ostensibly protecting the towns Shia Turkmen. The battle over territory will involve the complex issues of resource nationalism. Resolving the issue over Kirkuk and the allocation of oil will determine whether Iraq survives in the most optimistic scenario as a loose Shia-Kurdish alliance. What the US Needs to Do Now Rather Than Later The Iraqi parliament is notoriously slow in achieving results, such as the multi-year process of negotiating a hydro-carbon law to manage the countrys oil. The executive branch of the central government has delayed contentious issues for years, such as agreeing on the the final status of Kirkuk. When put under pressure, however, the Iraqi state, both executive and legislative branches, can achieve compromise in a relatively short time, the best case in point being in the crisis of summer 2014. After the elections of April 2014, Iraq had failed to form a government for months. It was only when ISIL seized Mosul that the US could pressure the Iraqi state. American military engagement was made conditional on replacing incumbent Prime Minister Maliki with a more conciliatory candidate, Haider al-Abadi, and forming a government afterwards. Maliki was replaced and the Iraqi government was formed within the span of a few weeks under such pressure. Similar leverage can compel the Iraqi parliament to come up with a draft document or pact on Iraqs governance after the expulsion of Mosul. The issues of Mosul and Kirkuk, or smaller towns such as Tuz Khurmato, will involve intense political rivalries, but at least this political battle should be addressed during the actual battle for Mosul, and not saved for the end. As the third US presidential debate is scheduled for October 19, a good test to gauge the candidates strategy for dealing with ISIL will hinge on the issue of planning for the day after the liberation of Mosul. So far Trump had focused on an ambiguous military solution to deal with this threat. It will be interesting to see if either candidate will acknowledge the need for political and humanitarian strategies to address the crisis in Iraq. Ibrahim al-Marashi is an associate professor at the Department of History, California State University, San Marcos. He is the co-author of the forthcoming The Modern History of Iraq, 4th edition. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. Reporter arrested by Somali security agents in the capital, Mogadishu, along with a driver, fixer and cameraman. Al Jazeera journalist Hamza Mohamed has been detained by Somali security agents in the capital, Mogadishu. Mohamed, a British national, was arrested on Tuesday afternoon along with a driver, fixer and cameraman. He had been in Somalia for a week on a reporting assignment. Mohamed has frequently travelled to the country over the past few years to cover politics, economics and culture for Al Jazeera with accuracy and integrity, according to a statement released by Al Jazeera Media Network on Wednesday. The Federal Republic of Somalia informed Al Jazeera that Mohamed was being held for questioning and there were no charges against him. Al Jazeera said it has been in touch with Mohamed since his detention and is hoping that he will be released without further delay. Police say Rashedun Nabi Bhuiyan led a team who shot and bludgeoned to death secular blogger Nazimuddin Samad in April. Dhaka, Bangladesh The family of a man arrested for the murder of a secular blogger in April has told Al Jazeera he could not have been involved in the killing because he was in another city at the time. Family members of Rashedun Nabi Bhuiyan, also known as Tipu, also said law-enforcement officials picked him up as early as six weeks after the murder of Nazimuddin Samad, not on Sunday as police said. On Monday, Monirul Islam, head of the countrys counterterrorism unit, said Bhuiyan was arrested on Sunday evening at the Sayedabad bus station in the capital Dhaka, in a joint raid involving three police units. Islam said Bhuiyan had led a team of five men who hacked and shot Samad to death at a traffic stop in Dhaka in April. Police also alleged that Bhuiyan is a leader of the banned Ansar al-Islam group, an organisation affiliated with al-Qaeda in the Indian subcontinent. Q&A: Why are bloggers being killed in Bangladesh? In a string of targeted attacks claimed by members of the group, Samad was the sixth secular writer or publisher to be hacked to death since February 2015 in the country. Islam said since his arrest, Bhuiyan had admitted to his role in the murder, and provided the names of his four accomplices. Bhuiyan also provided information on the murder of two LGBT activists Xulhaz Manan and Mahbub Rabbi Tonoy in Dhaka on April 28, he said. They took him away Bhuiyans family told Al Jazeera on the night of May 19, about 15 uniformed and plainclothed police officers, as well as paramilitary officers, stormed their house in Nangalkot, in the district of Comilla, and took him away. My husband was in the bedroom. They showed me a photo and asked me: Do you know that person? I replied: Yes, he is my husband. My husband then came out of the room. He was allowed to change his clothes and then they tied his hands and blindfolded him. I went outside the house and urged them not to take him away and one of the police officials in uniform told me that my husband was a criminal who had killed two bloggers. READ MORE: Extremism and shrinking space for dissent in Bangladesh The next morning, Bhuiyans family members said, they went to the local police station to find out where he was detained, but police denied knowledge of the raid, Tasnim said, adding Bhuiyans father and uncle were also refused when they asked to file a police report. Bhuiyans family claimed he was at home in Comilla at the time of Samads murder. I remember we were watching a television report on the blogger killing. He told me: Another blogger is killed. Where we are heading towards?' said Tasnim. My husband did not leave Comilla during March and April, she said. Rejecting the family claims, Deputy Commissioner Masudur Rahman, spokesperson of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said police picked up Bhuiyan on Sunday in Dhaka. The allegations made by the family are not true, he told Al Jazeera. When killers commit any offence, they try to escape the situation. Secret detentions The family said in the subsequent months after the May arrest they had met authorities many times, but no one had provided any information on Bhuiyans whereabouts. Bhuiyans uncle Sadek Bhuiyan, local member of the ruling Awami League Party, told Al Jazeera that police officials told him the operation was carried out by members of Dhakas counter-terrorism unit. Reports of secret detentions targeting opposition activists and alleged criminals have become increasingly common in Bangladesh. Following a July attack on an upmarket Dhaka restaurant, where fighters claiming links to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group killed 20 guests, the Bangladesh government has ramped up its counter-terrorism activities. Since then, there have been no further attacks in the country. Former lower house speaker detained as part of a probe into corruption at oil giant Petrobras. The central figure behind the impeachment of former Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff has been arrested on corruption charges. The office of Judge Sergio Moro and police officials said on Wednesday that former Congressman Eduardo Cunha, accused of pocketing millions of dollars in bribes from contractors with the oil company Petrobras, has been arrested. We can confirm that [Cunha] was detained in Brasilia, a police spokesman told AFP news agency. He was arrested on an order issued by Judge Sergio Moro, who has led the nationwide investigation into the corruption scandal. Moro ordered Cunhas detention, citing risks to public order, as well as a concrete possibility of flight given his access to hidden resources abroad, as well as double nationality, said the justice department for Parana state, where Moros operation is headquartered in the city of Curitiba. Cunha, 58, denied all charges. Brazil: Cunha accused of using Swiss accounts to launder money and $40m in bribes while president of lower house of congress. He denies Gabriel Elizondo (@elizondogabriel) October 19, 2016 Cunha began the process of impeaching Rousseff in December when he was speaker of the lower house of Congress. The process led to a vote to remove her from office in August. Two weeks later Cunha was removed from his position as speaker of the house by a vote of 450-10. His downfall signals the Petrobras corruption probe headed by Moro is continuing to send shockwaves through Brazilian politics. Dozens of politicians and executives have already been charged with or convicted of involvement in the embezzlement and bribery scheme. Rousseffs presidential predecessor and leftist icon Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva faces three corruption-related court cases and speculation is rife that he could also be placed in pre-trial detention. Rousseffs replacement in the presidency, former Cunha ally Michel Temer, has been battling allegations that he intends to weaken the Petrobras probe. Several of his choices for ministerial posts have been accused of taking part in the embezzlement scheme. Republican candidate sticks to his defiance but adds he will accept a clear election result next month. Republican White House hopeful Donald Trump has told his supporters that he would accept the results of the US elections next month if he wins. Trump stuck firm to his unprecedented defiance of US democratic norms, telling supporters: I will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential election if I win. A day earlier, Trump had refused to say that he would accept the election result if he loses, as he clashed with rival Hillary Clinton in their third and final debate. Declining to be drawn on what he would do, he had said: I will look at it at the time. Trump has leaned on an increasingly brazen strategy in the campaigns closing weeks, including peddling charges that the election will be rigged, despite no evidence of widespread voter fraud in previous US presidential contests. The biggest issue [from the debate] is his unwillingness to accept the outcome of the election, the Reverend Jesse Jackson, a prominent civil rights leader and member of the Democratic Party, told Al Jazeera. That could sabotage the entire American process. READ MORE: The psychological warfare of presidential debate guests One of the hotly debated topics on stage was immigration, which has been a key issue in Trumps campaign. He repeated a pledge that if he becomes president, a wall will be built on the Mexico border to stop people entering the country illegally. After discussing the wars in Syria and Iraq, the discussion turned to refugees in need of protection. While Trump repeated his claim that the US does not know who it is letting into the country, Clinton said: I am not going to let anyone into this country who is not vetted but I am not going to slam the door on women and children. Al Jazeeras Alan Fisher, reporting from Las Vegas, said Wednesdays debate was the first of three such confrontations in which we saw real policy differences between the two candidates. They argued about them in substantive terms, Fisher said. Is @realDonaldtrump undermining US democracy with his election rigging accusations? Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) October 20, 2016 But DAngelo Gore, a fact-checker with the website Politifact, told Al Jazeera that both candidates mischaracterised each others policy proposals during the debate. Trump said that Clintons immigration policy was to simply grant amnesty to all the immigrants living in the United States, which is inaccurate, Gore said. The reality is that Clintons immigration reform is much more comprehensive, including increased border control. According to Gore, Clintons accusation that Trump wanted to abolish NATO was also inaccurate, as Trump has thus far only expressed frustration that the alliance has not focused enough on fighting terrorism as well as the notion that the US carries most of the financial burden. The face-off at the University of Nevada came as early voting was already under way in more than 30 states at least 2.1 million voters have cast ballots already. For Trump, the debate was perhaps his last opportunity to turn around a presidential race that appears to be slipping away. In an average of national polls , Clinton has a lead at 48.6 percent over Trumps 42.1 percent. His predatory comments about women and a flood of sexual assault accusations have increased his unpopularity with women and limited his pathways to victory. Discussing the sexual assault claims in the debate, Trump said he did not apologise to his wife, because he didnt do anything. READ MORE: Why the Supreme Court is an election issue Clinton took the stage with challenges of her own. While the electoral map currently leans in her favour, she is facing a new round of questions about her trustworthiness, concerns that have trailed her throughout the campaign. The hacking of her top campaign advisers emails revealed a candidate who is averse to apologising, can strike a different tone in private than in public, and makes some decisions only after political deliberations. When the moderator brought up quotes from a Clinton email released by WikiLeaks in which she seemed to express a stance on trade that differs from what she has said publicly, she quickly deflected the question. She proceeded to say, Whats really important about WikiLeaks is that the Russian government has engaged in espionage against Americans this has come from the highest levels from Putin himself to influence this election. Military clampdown following unrest has prevented any supplies from reaching Muslim minority group in Rakhine state. Food aid deliveries planned for more than 80,000 people in Myanmars Rakhine state have been blocked because of a military clampdown in the area, according to the UNs World Food Programme (WFP). A predominantly Rohingya area in the north of the state has been closed off after attacks on police posts allegedly by Rohingya fighters over a week ago prompted a surge in government troops, WFP said in a statement on Wednesday. The WFP normally feeds 80,000-85,000 people in the locked-down area, which borders Bangladesh, but aid deliveries have been disrupted and the military has prevented any supplies from getting through. Rakhine state is where the countrys Muslim Rohingya minority group has allegedly faced systematic persecution since unrest broke out in 2012. There is military everywhere and a curfew in place. Its impossible to access any of the areas affected, said Arsen Sahakyan, WFPs partnership officer in Myanmar. The areas affected are also where we normally operate. According to state media, security forces have killed at least 30 people since the raids on the police posts. A tally of latest official figures show at least 40 people being held. Activists say a violent crackdown has been unfolding, with troops shooting dead Muslim civilians and torching their villages. But the military says it has been fending off violent attacks. The government has blamed the attacks on an armed group called Aqa Mul Mujahidin and said hundreds of fighters are planning more attacks. The unrest has raised fears of a repeat of the 2012 sectarian conflict which left more than 100 dead and drove thousands of Rohingya into squalid displacement camps. READ MORE: Myanmar bans officials from saying Rohingya About 125,000 Rohingya remain displaced and face severe restrictions on their movements, education and access to food while living in sqaulid camps. Tensions have recently simmered between the Buddhist Rakhine community and the Muslim Rohingyas, and fears that unrest between the two groups will spread to other parts of the state have prompted the WFP to restart aid to some 6,000 displaced people whom they had stopped feeding several months ago. Many Rakhines who are also an impoverished community in Myanmar resent the international aid given to the Rohingya. In 2014, most aid agencies pulled out of the state after mobs of Buddhists ransacked their offices and warehouses, accusing them of bias in favour of Muslims. That anger was on display outside a monastery in Maungdaw that has become a makeshift refugee camp for Rakhines, where a sign read: We dont need any support from UN, INGOs Maungdaw Rakhine state. READ MORE: Myanmar Buddhists boo ex-UN chief Kofi Annan When our Rakhine houses were burned and attacked in 2012, they didnt let the world know, Hla Shwe, a Rakhine villager, told the AFP news agency, referring to the aid agencies. They should think about the human rights of Rakhine ethnics as well. In June, the UN said widespread violations against the Rohingya, including denial of citizenship since they are accused of being illegal immigrants, forced labour and sexual violence, could amount to crimes against humanity. The EU, in July, urged Myanmars government to put an end to the brutal repression and systematic persecution of Rohingyas, but their requests for unimpeded access to areas where the Rohingyas were targeted have largely been ignored. Pro-China politicians stage walk out of legislative session to halt swearing-in of two pro-independence lawmakers. Dozens of pro-Beijing politicians have staged a walk-out from the Hong Kong legislature to stall the swearing in of two pro-independence legislators in the Chinese-administered city. The topic of independence has long been taboo in the former British colony, now governed under the one country, two systems principle since its return to China in 1997. The government failed in an unprecedented legal attempt on Tuesday to halt the swearing-in of the two. The politicians marched out of the legislative chamber, leaving Chinese and Hong Kong flags in their place, to deprive it of a quorum. It is unclear when swearing-in will take place. Al Jazeeras Sarah Clarke, reporting from the Legislative Council in Hong Kong, said: In an unprecedented move, Hong Kongs Chief Executive C Y Leung has intervened in this whole process. Hes trying to get two of the pro-democracy candidates disqualified from parliament. Leungs case is being mounted on the grounds that he believes last weeks oath-taking was invalid and disrespectful to Hong Kongs basic law. The government will formally challenge the decision of legislative authorities to allow Baggio Leung, 30, and Yau Wai-ching, 25, to retake their oaths in the High Court next month. Yau and Leung sparked outrage among Hong Kongs pro-Beijing establishment when their first oaths were rejected by legislative officials last week. Hong Kong is not China Then they pledged allegiance to the Hong Kong nation and displayed a banner declaring that Hong Kong is not China, using language some legislators portrayed as derogatory Japanese slang. The pair are part of a new generation of Hong Kong activists determined to force issues of self-determination and independence on to the mainstream political agenda. A judicial review will take place on November 3. OPINION: Hong Kong and China A special relationship Outside, hundreds of pro-Beijing protesters thronged the grounds of the legislature, some carrying placards of the pair dressed in Japanese army uniforms that denounced them as traitors and dogs. Others chanted that the pair must step down to protect Chinas dignity. The judicial review looms amid an unprecedented constitutional battle in the free-wheeling global financial hub, testing its rule of law and the separation of powers between the government and legislative branch. Some senior judges and government officials fear privately that the issue could force Beijing to invoke rarely used powers to re-interpret Hong Kongs mini-constitution, or push through new laws. Iraqi government must ensure appalling abuses against civilians do not happen in Mosul battle, report says. Civilians caught in the crossfire of the military operation to retake the city of Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) may face abuse, execution and torture, Amnesty International has said. The UK-based rights group released a critical 71-page report on Tuesday, detailing serious human rights violations when civilians previously attempted to escape areas controlled by ISIL, also known by its Arabic acronym, Daesh. Titled Punished for Daeshs Crimes, the report is based on interviews with more than 470 individuals, from detainees to witnesses and relatives of those abused by ISIL, Iraqi government forces and other armed groups. Publishing the report only two days into the Mosul operation, Amnesty said it aims to raise alarm about the risk of mass violations. As the battle to retake Mosul gets underway, it is crucial that the Iraqi authorities take steps to ensure these appalling abuses do not happen again, said Philip Luther, the groups research and advocacy director for the region. States supporting military efforts to combat IS in Iraq must demonstrate they will not continue to turn a blind eye to violations. The report found that under ISIL, Iraqi civilians, mainly minorities, face abuse in the form of deliberate attacks against them, mass killings, abductions, rape and sexual violence, among other human rights violations. Their mistreatment, however, does not end there, according to the report. Even after fleeing ISIL, thousands of men and boys, mainly Sunni Arabs, were rounded up by Iraqi security forces or armed groups backed by the government, on suspicion of links to ISIL, the report says. READ MORE: KRG Mosul victory depends on ISIL fighters morale Amnesty found that the Popular Mobilisation Units (PMU), a group of militias sponsored by the Iraqi government, was responsible for many of the abuses. It is unclear what post-IS governance will look like in Mosul given the clashing agendas and competing forces that are at play. by Fanar Haddad, Iraqi analyst PMU militias and government forces have repeatedly perpetrated such crimes, targeting Sunni men and boys in revenge and sectarian attacks, as a sort of collective punishment for atrocities committed by IS against Shia and other communities, Donatella Rovera, the senior crisis response adviser for Amnesty, told Al Jazeera. They have abducted thousands, most of whom remain disappeared, and have tortured and/or summarily executed many others. The PMU, comprised mostly of Shia militias but also include Sunnis and other sects, were officially designated part of the Iraqi armed forces in February 2016 after they took center stage in the fight against ISIL in 2014. They have been repeatedly accused of the crimes detailed in the Amnesty report. Despite Iraqi government promises to take precautions to protect the 1.5 million civilians stuck in the city, their fate remains unknown, especially as they try to flee. We know ISIL prevents residents from leaving, and those who manage to flee do so at great personal risk, said Rovera. While the goal to liberate Mosul may be good for the long-term, Rovera believes that depending on the operation, it is fair to say that combat will likely leave civilians at heightened risk. Some took to social media to express their solidarity and fear for the lives of the civilians. Abdul-Hadi Al-Qafari (@Ali80iip) October 16, 2016 The tweet reads: The battle for Mosul has begun, may God keep the civilians and innocents safe from the unrelenting attacks. #MosulOp is on. Thoughts and prayers with our Armed Forces,Peshmerga,Coalition advisers,and of course civilians. #Mosul Rasha Al Aqeedi (@RashaAlAqeedi) October 16, 2016 The United Nations said that up to one million could be forced to flee their homes, in addition to the half a million who fled when ISIL took over in 2014. Good luck to all Iraqi, Kurdish & allied forces working to free Mosul from monstrous ISIS. Hope for quick fight & minimal harm to civilians Emile Hokayem (@emile_hokayem) October 17, 2016 While the recapture of the city may be a step forward for its residents, many fear the struggle for control of the city that may ensue could put civilians in a vulnerable position once again. Mosul, the second largest city in Iraq, may become a microcosm of the security vacuum that was unleashed after the US invasion. Fanar Haddad, analyst and author of the book Sectarianism in Iraq, says there is a clear consensus that the difficulties in Mosul are more political than military. It is unclear what post-IS governance will look like in Mosul given the clashing agendas and competing forces that are at play, Haddad told Al Jazeera. The recapture of Mosul offers Iraq a chance to embark on a more politically sustainable path. However, and as ever, the odds are against Iraq: Given how much will be up for grabs, the redemptive potential of Mosuls liberation is going to depend on the goodwill of an unwieldy number of actors both within Iraq and beyond. Fighting enters third day as Iraqi forces backed by coalition air strikes push towards last major ISIL stronghold. Fighting has entered the third day as coalition forces focused efforts on the district of Hamdaniya as they march towards Mosul, the second largest Iraqi city and the last major ISIL stronghold in the country. Explosives and booby traps laid down by ISIL (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group), also known as ISIS, slowed down the Iraqi offensive in recent days, despite air support from the US-led coalition. ISIL snipers posed danger to Iraqi forces trying to advance towards Mosul as the coalition air strikes pounded Hamdaniya. The Iraqi army said that it had to destroy five cars being driven by ISIL suicide bombers during their advance. The Iraqi army, not the Peshmerga, are trying to advance into [Hamdaniya]. They tried to storm the area yesterday, but were forced to retreat, Al Jazeeras Zeina Khodr, reporting from Khazir near the frontline, said. OPINION: Mosul will fall again, but at great cost What we saw on the first day of the offensive with Peshmerga forces taking the lead, clearing ground, and taking villages that was easy, even though ISIL put up a fight, she said. It was easy because [those areas] were depopulated. Hamdaniya is more difficult. It is a built-up area with civilians inside. If [the Iraqi forces] take over Hamdaniya, they will be at the gates of Mosul itself, she added. Before ISILs takeover in 2014, Hamdaniyas population stood at 50,000. Although most civilians fled at the time, a few thousand people are believed to reside in the district. Although reports have suggested the use of human shields by ISIL, Khodr said that it was impossible to independently verify these reports given that communication with these towns and cities has been cut off. The Iraqi offensive to retake Mosul began on the first day with the taking of nine villages, mostly by Kurdish Peshmerga forces. But Al Jazeeras Hoda Abdel-Hamid, also reporting from Khazir, said that since then the armed forces advance was not as formidable as the first day. Iraqi commanders maintain that progress continues to be made as their forces push from two main fronts, namely, the south, where government troops are moving up towards Mosul, and the east and north, from where their Kurdish allies are advancing. Late on Tuesday, the Popular Mobilization Force, a coalition of mostly Iranian-trained militias, said it would back Iraqi government forces advancing toward Tal Afar, about 55km west of Mosul. Taking Tal Afar would effectively cut off the escape route for fighters wanting to head into neighbouring Syria, but it could also hamper the escape of civilians from the area of Mosul, a Sunni-majority city. ISIL forces are believed to be vastly outnumbered, with the US military calculating up to 4,500 fighters in and around Mosul, compared with an estimated 30,000 Iraqi army troops, Kurdish Peshmerga fighters and Sunni tribal forces. Iraqi forces have significant ground to cover before reaching the boundaries of the city, which ISIL is defending with berms, bombs and burning oil trenches. The US-led coalition said air strikes destroyed 52 targets on the first day of the operation. Early indications are that Iraqi forces have met their objectives so far, and that they are ahead of schedule for this first day, Peter Cook, the Pentagon press secretary, said. Most of the coalitions support has come in the shape of air strikes and training, but US, British and French special forces are also on the ground to advise local troops. Mosul is Iraqs second-largest city and the United Nations fears that up to a million people could be forced from their homes by the fighting, with 700,000 of them in need of shelter. We dont know where [the civilians] are going, Al Jazeeras Imran Khan reported, also from Khazir. We know people have fled from these villages [recently won by Peshmerga forces] and wound up in IDP camps, but weve heard very little about the people who are still stuck there are some 1.2 million people still in [Mosul]. Where they go once this fighting intensifies remains a very big issue. Battles intensify around Iraqs second-largest city with the town of Hamdaniya targeted for ISILs expulsion. Three days into the assault on Mosul, Iraqi and Kurdish forces are steadily recovering outlying territory before the big push into the city itself, expected to be the biggest battle since the 2003 US-led invasion. Units from Iraqs elite counterterrorism service, which has done the heavy lifting in most recent operations against ISIL, were poised to flush its fighters out of the town of Hamdaniya, officers said on Wednesday. We are surrounding Hamdaniya now, Lieutenant-General Riyadh Tawfiq, commander of Iraqs ground forces, told AFP news agency. There are some pockets [of resistance], some clashes. They send car bombs but it will not help them. Explosives and booby traps laid down by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant slowed down the offensive. The Iraqi army said it destroyed five cars driven by ISIL suicide bombers during the advance. The Iraqi offensive to retake Mosul began on the first day with the taking of nine villages, mostly by Kurdish Peshmerga forces. The Iraqi army, not the Peshmerga, are trying to advance into [Hamdaniya]. They tried to storm the area yesterday, but were forced to retreat, said Al Jazeeras Zeina Khodr, reporting from Khazir near the frontline. If [the Iraqi forces] take over Hamdaniya, they will be at the gates of Mosul itself. OPINION: Mosul will fall again, but at great cost An Iraqi officer from the 9th Division told the Associated Press news agency that his troops were now a kilometre away from Hamdaniya, a historically Christian town to the east of Mosul. Before ISILs takeover in 2014, Hamdaniyas population stood at 50,000. Although most civilians fled at the time, a few thousand people are believed to reside in the town. In Mosul, meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of civilians were trapped with dwindling supplies on Wednesday, many sheltering in basements. We couldnt sleep last night because of the air strikes. The explosions were huge but Im not sure what the targets were, said Abu Saif, a 47-year-old resident contacted by AFP news agency. Many families are starting to run out of some basic food goods, there is no commercial activity in Mosul the city is cut off from the world. The United Nations said it fears that up to a million people could be forced from their homes by fighting to retake Mosul. The Popular Mobilization Force, a coalition of mostly Iranian-trained militias, said it would back Iraqi government forces advancing towards Tal Afar, about 55km west of Mosul. Taking Tal Afar would effectively cut off the escape route for fighters wanting to head into neighbouring Syria, but it could also hamper the escape of civilians. ISIL forces are believed to be vastly outnumbered with an estimated 30,000 Iraqi army troops, Kurdish Peshmerga fighters, Shia militias and Sunni tribal forces moving in. Iraqi forces have significant ground to cover before reaching the boundaries of the city, which ISIL is defending with berms, bombs, and burning oil trenches. Iraqi forces advance towards Mosul amid ISIL resistance While most of the coalitions support has come in the shape of air strikes and training, American, British and French special forces are also on the ground to advise local troops. Some reports suggested Iraqi forces may allow fleeing ISIL fighters an exit to the west in a bid to minimise human and material losses from fighting inside the city. But Russias General Valery Gerasimov said Moscow was concerned about possible attempts by fighters to break out of Mosul and freely leave the city in the direction of Syria. Gerasimov said it was necessary not to drive terrorists from one country to the other but to destroy them on the spot. Almost 1,000 people had gathered in the capital supporting President Dutertes comments on loosening ties with the US. A Philippine police van rammed and ran over baton-wielding protesters outside the US embassy in the capital, Manila. Police also used tear gas and truncheons on Wednesday to try to disperse about 1,000 people who had gathered in support of President Rodrigo Dutertes recent comments that he wanted to loosen his nations alliance with the United States. Police made at least 23 arrests, said Chief Inspector Arsenio Riparip, one of the officers overseeing the incident, adding demonstrators broke through the line of police securing the embassys gates. The vans driver, police officer Franklin Kho, told reporters he was driving the van away from the protesters because he feared they would try to seize it and use it to attack the police. Photos showed a grey-haired man trapped underneath the stationary van with his leg and hips under one of the back tyres. The rally came as Duterte visits Beijing to strengthen relations with the worlds second-largest economy amid deteriorating ties with former colonial power, the US. We had to disperse them. They started it. They were trying to enter the embassy, Riparip told AFP news agency. We had to use tear gas. They overpowered our policemen. A police van reversed quickly back into a crowd of dozens of protesters and then forward, running over at least two people and banging into others, footage broadcast by local television network ABS CBN showed. Some screamed in surprise, others hurled stones at the van and yelled invectives. A speaker called the police puppies of imperialists on a loudspeaker. A fire truck doused the rowdy protesters with water to push them back, but they took hold of the water hose and confronted the outnumbered police with rocks and red paint. After breaking through the police corridor, they scribbled US troops out now and other slogans on the embassys tall fence with red paint. Manila police chief Oscar Albayalde confirmed that the van hit protesters but insisted the driver was not at fault. They werent really run over, Albayalde said in a statement, referring to the protesters. The rallyists were trying to flip over the patrol car. In the process, the driver extricated the patrol car and inadvertently hit some unruly protesters who sustained minor injuries. No justification The protesters were calling for the removal of US troops in the southern island of Mindanao. There was absolutely no justification [for the police violence], Renato Reyes, secretary general of left-wing activist group Bayan, said. Even as the president avowed an independent foreign policy, Philippine police forces still act as running dogs of the US. One of the protest leaders, Amirah Lidasan, accused the police of starting the violence. It was the police who attacked the protesters. First they rammed the police vehicle against the people. Then they released tear gas and hit us with truncheons, she said. While the Philippines is a defence ally of the US, Duterte elected president in May on a ruthless anti-crime platform has said he wants to distance the country from the United States. He has launched abusive tirades against US President Barack Obama and warned that he may eventually cut ties altogether, after the US government raised alarm over thousands of people killed in Dutertes anti-drug campaign. Dia Azzawis retrospective in Doha is a manifesto against events following the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. Doha, Qatar Dia Azzawi, the 77-year old Iraqi pioneer of modern Arab art, has described his latest major exhibition as a manifesto against the great theft from the Iraq Museum after the US invasion in 2003. Azzawis art reflects the destruction Iraq has witnessed, especially in the post-Saddam Hussein years, and much of it is now on display across two locations covering 9,000 square metres in Doha. The exhibition housed at Mathaf and Al Riwaq is titled: I am the cry, who will give voice to me? The [US] invasion buried Iraq, in a sense, he told Al Jazeera. Hours into the invasion 13 years ago, the national museum became the victim of the biggest museum theft in history, lasting 36 hours and disappearing tens of thousands of relics, including from the Mesopotamian civilisation. Nobody knows what happened to those pieces, said Azzawi. This [exhibition] is representing some pieces which disappeared They [US forces] allowed all these people [thieves] to do what they want, get what they want. READ MORE: Arab artists are key amid censorship Since the theft, around 5,000 pieces have been recovered some in the UK and US. The destruction of any antiquities, its a crime, said Azzawi. A crime not against the Iraqis only, against humanity this [art] belongs to humanity, it doesnt belong to Iraq only. This is my manifesto against what happened to Iraq in 2003. Azzawis exhibition in the Qatari capital features hundreds of his works spanning 50 years worth of drawings, books, and sculptures. Mission of Destruction is among the large-scale paintings and a response, he said, to the devastation suffered by Iraqis. The impact of conflict is a prominent theme throughout, felt by not only Iraqis but also Palestinians. His depiction of the Sabra and Shatila massacre in 1982 that saw thousands killed in a refugee camp in Beirut was acquired years ago by the Tate Museum. Now on display in Doha, it is a reminder of the ongoing atrocities around the world. Follow Andrew Chappelle on Twitter: @andrewchappelle Moscow and Damascus say halt in air strikes will continue to allow civilians and rebels to flee the besieged city. Russia announced that it will broadcast live images of the evacuation of civilians and wounded people from besieged eastern Aleppo during a humanitarian pause it has scheduled for Thursday. The planned pause would also be extended for an additional three hours to run from 0500 to 1600 GMT, General Sergey Rudskoi of the Russian General Staff said in a statement carried by the official Itar-Tass news agency on Wednesday. The extension is intended to give United Nations and Red Crescent representatives enough time to evacuate sick and wounded people and civilians from the rebel-held enclave, Rudskoi said. Activists and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, have said few civilians made use of humanitarian corridors from eastern Aleppo previously announced by Russia. The Syrian Foreign Ministry, meanwhile, said troops had pulled back from two designated humanitarian corridors to facilitate the transport of rebel fighters from eastern Aleppo to areas of their choice, Syrian state news agency SANA reported. Rebels have said they will not leave eastern Aleppo, the last remaining major urban centre controlled by opposition forces. The UN has said security fears, the fear of arrest, and the presence of Syrian troops at the corridors designated by Russia have prevented civilians from using them to leave the enclave. Some 275,000 people are thought to be trapped in eastern Aleppo, with minimal access to food and medical care after hospitals have been repeatedly hit in air strikes, apparently by Russian or Syrian forces. Syria: Air strike kills 14 members of one Aleppo family Youssef al-Youssef, of the rebel group Noureddine al-Zinki, described the new Russian announcement as mere propaganda. This is not a truce. Eight hours to evacuate Aleppo is a request for surrender. This is totally rejected, said Zakaria Malhafji, a spokesman for the rebel group Fistaqim. We will not leave the city. We want a total truce and the entry of aid, he told the dpa news agency. The Syrian regime and its Russian allies on Wednesday suspended air strikes on rebel areas in the divided city of Aleppo for the second successive day before Thursdays planned humanitarian pause. Aleppo has been the target of an intense campaign by the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Russia since a US-Russian brokered ceasefire in the country fell apart on September 19. Activists inside eastern Aleppo said government planes had dropped leaflets calling on fighters to leave because they have no other choice. OPINION: Aleppo and the myth of Syrias sovereignty Meanwhile, an unnamed diplomatic source told the Reuters news agency that Russian warships were headed to Syria in the largest military deployment since the end of the Cold War. The fleet passed the Norwegian city of Bergen on Wednesday, the diplomat said, while Russian media has said it will move through the English Channel, past Gibraltar, and into the Mediterranean Sea to the Syrian coast. They are deploying all of the northern fleet and much of the Baltic fleet in the largest surface deployment since the end of the Cold War, the diplomat said on condition of anonymity. This is not a friendly port call. In two weeks, we will see a crescendo of air attacks on Aleppo as part of Russias strategy to declare victory there, the diplomat said. Russia has said that the deployment will target Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant fighters in Syria. But the NATO diplomat said the additional military firepower was designed to drive out or destroy the 8,000 rebels in Aleppo, the only large city still in opposition hands, and allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to start a withdrawal. With this assault, it should be enough to allow a Russian exit strategy if Moscow believes Assad is now stable enough to survive, the diplomat said. The fleet off Norway includes Russias only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov, which is carrying jet fighters, and the Soviet-era nuclear-powered battle cruiser Pyotr Velikiy, or Peter the Great. International troops shoot dead attacker in Afghan army uniform who also wounded several American soldiers. A gunman in an Afghan army uniform has opened fire on a group of US soldiers, killing at least two Americans, including a civilian, in Afghanistans capital, Kabul. The shooting took place at 11am local time (06:30 GMT) on Wednesday while international troops visited a military base in Kabul, according to Dawlat Waziri, a spokesman for the Afghan Ministry of Defence. NATO said in a statement later on Wednesday that one US service member and one US civilian died as a result of wounds sustained in Kabul. The shooter was killed after an exchange of fire in the Rishkhor neighbourhood of Kabul, which houses an Afghan special forces training centre, according to NATO and Waziri. The Americans were conducting duties as part of their mission to train, advise and assist Afghan forces when they came under attack, NATO said, adding that an investigation had been launched into the incident. Any time we lose a member of our team, it is deeply painful, said General John Nicholson, the top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan. Our sympathies go out to the families, loved ones, and the units of those involved in this incident. To those who continue to target coalition forces [we] will continue to pursue our mission to help our partners create a better Afghanistan. READ MORE Afghanistan: Who controls what An American official said the shootout occurred at a military ammunition supply point near Camp Morehead, a base used for Afghan commando training. So-called green-on-blue attacks when Afghan soldiers or police turn their guns on international troops have been a major problem during NATOs long years fighting alongside Afghan forces. Dozens of international soldiers and advisers have been killed in attacks by Afghan security forces on their allies. Since 2008, the blog Long War Journal has registered 92 such attacks with at least 150 international soldiers killed and 187 wounded. Such attacks are sometimes caused by cultural misunderstandings or personal clashes. Taliban fighters have also often managed to infiltrate the ranks of Afghan security forces to carry out so-called insider attacks in the past few months. The appointment of federal justices is arguably the most lasting legacy of any president. When Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump debated the topic of the Supreme Court in their third and final debate, they outlined their vision for the future of the country well beyond the next presidential term. Trump said he would appoint justices who would block restrictions on gun ownership and do away with federal abortion rights, returning the issue of abortion to each individual state. Clinton said she would appoint justices who would reverse a past court decision allowing corporations to spend unlimited amounts on elections. She also urged the US Senate to act immediately to fill the Supreme Courts current vacancy. When a US Supreme Court justice dies or retires, the president typically nominates a replacement and the Senate swiftly votes on the choice. But after conservative Justice Antonin Scalias death in February, Senate Republicans refused to consider President Barack Obamas selection, insisting that the next Supreme Court justice should be chosen by the next president. This has made the Supreme Court one of the most important issues of the 2016 presidential election. Not only does the court make important decisions on policy, but the upcoming lifetime appointment comes at a rare moment when the ideological makeup of the court hangs in the balance. The Supreme Court should always be more of an election issue, because the appointment of federal justices is the most lasting legacy of any president, says Ilya Shapiro, senior fellow in constitutional studies at the Cato Institute. This year we have the unique occurrence of a Supreme Court justices death during the election year. WATCH: What does the campaign reveal about US politics? Since Scalias death, the remaining eight justices have been evenly divided between four liberal justices and four conservative justices. The next president will have the opportunity to fill Scalias seat and possibly more, if one of the courts several elderly justices chooses to retire. Currently, two justices are over the age of 80. The Supreme Court ultimately decides profound questions that deeply impact our lives, says Lena Zwarensteyn, director of strategic engagement at the American Constitution Society. The federal courts decide critical issues regarding elections, the environment, money in politics, healthcare, voting rights, marriage equality, immigration, and reproductive rights. According to Shapiro, Clinton has said she would appoint justices that would preserve the right to abortion and overturn certain freedom of political speech regarding campaign finance Basically this is a progressive theory of the law that the constitution evolves and that you need to look to more than just the text of the words on the page when interpreting the law. Shapiro says Trump took the step of naming 21 people he would consider as justices in order to reassure Republican Party elites that he would name conservatives to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Courts approach to these issues will vary greatly depending on whether Clinton is elected and the court is given its first liberal majority since 1969, or if Trump is elected and a conservative majority is restored. The two candidates have had starkly different approaches to the appointment of Supreme Court justices during their campaigns. While Trump has provided a list of potential nominees, Clinton has refrained. She has, instead, connected the nomination of justices to issues such as reproductive rights and whether the US constitution protects corporations political spending as free speech. Conservatives are generally enthusiastic about the names on the list, according to Shapiro, but many people are wondering how much they can trust the list. Republican Senator John McCain said on Monday that his party would block all court nominations if Clinton wins the election, raising the possibility that the Supreme Court might be forced to operate without a full bench indefinitely. READ MORE: Supreme Court blocks Obamas immigration plan The current, evenly split justices have been unable to decide some cases, such as a recent one challenging Obamas immigration initiatives aimed at providing deportation relief to undocumented families. The inability of the Court to render a majority decision impacts millions of families now, Zwarensteyn says. There are numerous other issues that the Court is reluctant to take up because it does not have the ability to cast a decisive fifth vote. Possible future cases should concern American voters as much as issues currently before the Supreme Court, according to Shapiro. Issues regarding executive power, immigration, the scope of federal power over regulatory agencies, the use of race in various contexts, transgender rights, employment discrimination law, religious liberty theres a lot of different things that could come up in the future. Detentions of Siamak Namazi and his father Baquer, a former UNICEF worker, come amid a crackdown on dual citizens. An Iranian court has sentenced an Iranian-American businessman and his elderly father to 10 years in prison on charges of cooperating with the US, Iranian media reported on Tuesday. Irans Fars News Agency reported that the pair were among a group of six who were sentenced for spying in Iran. Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in October 2015 detained Siamak Namazi, a businessman in his mid-40s with dual US-Iranian citizenship, while he was visiting family in Tehran. The IRGC in February arrested his 80-year-old father, Baquer Namazi, a former Iranian provincial governor and former UNICEF official who also has dual citizenship. Tehran prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, quoted by Fars, confirmed their sentences. The US State Departments deputy spokesman, Mark Toner, said the Namazis had been unjustly detained in Iran, and called for their immediate release. The detentions come amid an intensifying crackdown against Iranians with ties to the West, directed by powerful hardliners in judiciary and security forces in the aftermath of Irans historic nuclear deal with the United States and other world powers last year. Washington and Tehran have not had formal diplomatic relations since the 1979 Islamic revolution which toppled the US-backed Shah. READ MORE: Out of sight Imprisoned in Iran Babak Namazi, Siamaks brother and Baquers son, said the sentences were unjust. My father has been handed practically a death sentence, he said in a statement. Baquer has a serious heart condition and requires special medication, his wife wrote on Facebook in February. In a statement released on Tuesday, UNICEF highlighted Baquers work in Somalia, Egypt and Kenya, expressing concern for his health and appealing for his release on humanitarian grounds. Siamak, who was born in Iran and educated in the US, worked as a business consultant in Iran for several years. Detente alarms hardliners Mizan, the Iranian judiciarys official news site, published on Sunday video images of Siamak, set to dramatic music and spliced together with images of US President Barack Obama and Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, who was released from an Iranian jail in January after more than 18 months in detention. Tehrans deal with world powers lifted most international sanctions and promised Irans reintegration into the global community in exchange for curbs on its nuclear programme. The potential detente with the West has alarmed Iranian hardliners, who have seen a flood of European trade and investment delegations arrive in Tehran to discuss possible deals, according to Iran experts. Security officials have arrested dozens of artists, journalists and businessmen, including Iranians holding joint American, European or Canadian citizenship, as part of a crackdown on Western infiltration. On its Persian-language news site, Fars named the other four sentenced on Monday as Farhard Abdulsaleh, Kamran Qaderi, Nezar Zakka and Alireza Omidvar. Zekka has been previously identified as a US resident from Lebanon. No further details can be released, prosecutor Jafari Dolatabadi told Fars. Ecuadors government acknowledged on Tuesday it had partly restricted internet access for Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, who has lived in the South American countrys UK embassy since mid-2012. WikiLeaks said Assange lost connectivity on Sunday, sparking speculation that Ecuador might have been pressured by the United States due to the groups publication of hacked material linked to US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Ecuadors government said WikiLeaks decision to publish documents affecting the US election was entirely its own responsibility, and the country did not want to meddle in election processes or favour any candidate. In that respect, Ecuador, exercising its sovereign right, has temporarily restricted access to part of its communications systems in its UK Embassy, it said in a statement. Ecuador does not cede to pressures from other countries. The United States denied charges from WikiLeaks that Washington asked Ecuador to cut Assanges internet connection. While our concerns about WikiLeaks are long-standing, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down WikiLeaks is false, State Department spokesman John Kirby said. Reports that Secretary Kerry had conversations with Ecuadorian officials about this are simply untrue. Period. The State Department also denied a WikiLeaks tweet alleging that multiple US sources tell us John Kerry asked Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing Clinton docs during FARC peace negotiations a conversation alleged to have taken place on the sidelines of the Colombia-FARC peace agreement signing on September 26. READ MORE: WikiLeaks founder promises new leaks on US election Assange was granted asylum by Ecuador after a British court ordered his extradition to Sweden to face questioning in a sexual molestation case involving two female supporters. WikiLeaks said it activated contingency plans after Assanges cut-off, and Ecuador said that its action did not stop the group continuing journalistic activities. Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa has long backed Assanges right to free speech and has also supported Clinton publicly. For the good of the United States and the world I would like Hillary to win, he told broadcaster Russia Today last month. The appointment of federal justices is arguably the most lasting legacy of any president. We investigate the need for healthcare reform in the US and whether healthcare for all really is the best solution. This film was originally broadcast on Al Jazeera English in the run-up to the US elections in 2008. Healthcare is one of the most hotly contested issues the US presidential campaign. Most people in the country agree that the healthcare system is broken. But there is little agreement on how to fix it. About 47 million Americans dont have health insurance, and if you dont have insurance or plenty of money, you cant get reliable care. Only the poorest of the poor, those classified as living below the poverty line, are covered by government insurance. Everyone else falls through the cracks; the ill often wait until they are so sick that they are brought to emergency rooms which must provide treatment. Different states have tried to pick up the slack, creating a patchwork of solutions. We The People travels to the Denver health facility in Colorado, which has been established as the citys primary safety net for medical care. The goal is to provide even those without insurance with stable healthcare, but is this the best model for the rest of the nation? Governor Gretchen Whitmer welcomes guilty verdicts as proof that violence and threats have no place in US politics. Three weeks before the general election, Representative Keith Perry will debate his challenger at UF. Perry and Rod Smith, both running for District 8, will speak during a free event Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the Reitz Union Grand Ballroom. Accent Speakers Bureau and UF External Affairs are hosting the hourlong debate. Mike Greenberg, the Accent chairman, said he hopes students entranced by the U.S. presidential race would use this as an opportunity to learn about local politics. With all the attention that the presidential race gets, the local races often get very overlooked, the 21-year-old UF political science senior said. A lot of times, the policies enacted at the local level can have a great effect on students lives here in Gainesville. Greenberg said the debate will feature questions about the candidates policies, and students can submit their own questions. Sarah Spardy, a UF criminology and political science junior and an undecided voter, said she heard about the debate in class and is excited to attend, hoping it will help her decide between the two candidates. She said the media tends to be biased on the positions of politicians, and debates are important because they let people like Smith and Perry speak for themselves. You kind of hear different things from different sources, and a lot of them are conflicting, she said. So my way to be the most informed voter is hearing it from their mouths. Correction: The original article incorrectly state Keith Perry was an incumbent Florida Senator. He is in fact a state representative. The story has been to reflect that. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now Two UF professors juxtaposed how to make voting accessible and secure with what those votes could mean for the presidency Tuesday night. About 50 people sat in the Pugh Hall Ocora as UF professors Juan Gilbert and Michael McDonald discussed new voting technology, as well as the early votes already tallied for the upcoming Nov. 8 election. The Bob Graham Center for Public Service held the forum, which was called Explore More: The Democracy Machine. Gilbert spoke first, telling the audience about a voting system he and others created called Prime III. The technology allows voters with disabilities to cast a ballot and prevents errors in ballot counting, the chair of the UF Department of Computer and Information Science and Engineering said. When using Prime III, voters can touch the screen or use their voice to vote, Gilbert said. After the 2000 election, Gilbert and his team were inspired to change the voting system to avoid the errors that occurred with Floridas butterfly ballot and hanging chads. We didnt know, but we had created the worlds most accessible voting technology, Gilbert said. If you cant see, if you cant hear, if you cant read and if you dont have arms, you can vote using the same technology as anyone else. McDonald told students and Gainesville residents that based on current early votes in Iowa and North Carolina, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump would have to carry multiple swing states in order to win. Surprising events could happen between now and Election Day, but most likely from what we can look at in polling data and early voting data, things look good for Clinton, McDonald said. Kaitlyn Silverberg, a UF behavioral and cognitive neuroscience senior, said she attended to hear the professors unbiased, factual thoughts on the election. I thought (McDonalds) predictions seemed reasonable, and I liked how he showed the different possibilities for the outcome of the election, depending on swing states, the 21-year-old said. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now Two weeks before masked, candy-craving children prowl the streets of Gainesville, a major retailer has announced it will stop selling clown masks. In light of creepy clown sightings across the country including in Gainesville Target stores will no longer sell clown masks, according to USA Today. The decision was made last week, Target representative Joshua Thomas told the news agency. By Tuesday, all clown-related merchandise had been removed from the Target in Butler Plaza. Given the current environment, we have made the decision to remove a variety of clown masks from our assortment, both in stores and online, Thomas said in an email statement to USA Today. After first making headlines in South Carolina in August, the clown craze reached Gainesville on Sept. 27, when a woman called police and said a clown was standing outside Georgetown Apartments staring at her, according to Alligator archives. About two weeks ago, A.J. Hall, an employee at the Butler Plaza Target, said she saw a person dressed as a clown on Depot Avenue. It was just chasing people, she said. Im sweating thinking about it. Hall said although clowns are her worst fear, shes comforted by the fact that she has a concealed-carry gun permit. While Target decided to deflect the demand for clown accessories, local costume-store owner Michael Brooks has said he expected a surge in clown-related sales at his three stores in Gainesville, according to archives. Virginia Keselowsky, a Gainesville resident and a Target shopper, said as a mother, she thinks Target made the right decision. Maybe if I wasnt a mom, I wouldnt care as much, she said. If I saw a clown trick-or-treating, I probably wouldnt answer the door. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now An Impact Party student senator defended her recommendation to a Student Senate committee amid claims of nepotism from other senators Tuesday night. Senator Ford Dwyer (Access, Law) objected Senator Corben Champouxs (Impact, Rawlings) nomination during Senate to the budget and allocations committee, claiming some of the other 22 senators who applied were more qualified. The recommendation wasnt appropriate because she is Senate President Pro Tempore Austin Champouxs sister, Dwyer argued. She was eventually approved for the position. Dwyer said even if the siblings relationship didnt affect the nomination, it didnt appear right for her to receive the position over other senators. Not just that you two are related, not just that Senator Champoux is a first-semester freshman, but that (Corben Champoux) only applied for one committee seat, Dwyer said. Dwyer said Impact members approached him about the role of nepotism in the decision. Austin Champoux is the chair of the replacement and agenda committee, which recommends senators for positions. Austin Champoux, a non-voting member of the committee, said he didnt voice his opinion on his sister while the committee discussed her qualifications. When we are in the Senate Chambers, we are senators, he said. Senators Zachariah Chou (Independent, Infinity) and Wallace Mazon (Impact, District E) also spoke against the appointment. Corben Champoux said she has experience as her high schools student body president and swim team captain. I think people can see my credibility and my passion and my knowledge for all of the goals for the budget committee, she said. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now Two petitions filed Monday are challenging whether UFs Supreme Court can use the U.S. Constitution and Florida Constitution in its recent rulings, including remote online voting and campaign finance reform. Senator Ford Dwyer (Access, Law) said he wanted to submit the petitions after the Judiciary Committee failed bills submitted by members of Access Party on the basis that the bill didnt follow the Florida and U.S. Constitutions. In the petitions, Dwyer cites former UF Supreme Court rulings saying the court doesnt have the authority to rule on the U.S. Constitution. The first petition asks the court to review whether it can rely on the U.S. and Florida Constitutions as its primary defense of decisions, he said. The second petition regards the ability of the Student Government Judiciary Committee to also use the U.S. and Florida Constitutions in its rulings. Each petition has more than 20 student signatures. The UF Supreme Court previously ruled that the court didnt have the authority to interpret provisions of the U.S. Constitution. Our jurisdiction pertains exclusively to student body laws and the actions of Student Government officials whose power derives from the Student Body Constitution, the court wrote in an order after a hearing a 2012 petition concerning perceived First Amendment violations in the 700 codes, which govern UFs SG elections. Dwyer said he believes the 2012 order overturned a ruling the court made in 2006, which stated that SGs laws are governed by, and abide by, the Florida Constitution and the Florida Administrative Code. The conflicting opinions have caused problems for Access members who attempted to pass bills on online voting and campaign finance reform, Dwyer said. Before Student Senate could vote on them, the Judiciary Committee found them unconstitutional. If the UF Supreme Court isnt willing to make their decisions based off of federal and state law, then they cant serve as a check and balance to the Judiciary Committee, he said. If the court rules that it can use the U.S. and Florida Constitutions in its decisions, then the petitions ask the court to overturn five rules in the 700 elections codes on the basis that they violate students First Amendment rights. Parts of the codes limit how and when students can talk about and campaign for SG parties, he said. UF Supreme Court Chief Justice Chris Tribbey said he received both petitions Tuesday and will work with the court, Dwyer and the SG executive branch to pick time to hear the petitions. Were probably looking at two to three weeks, he said. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now 2005 .. How do you define fintech? Is it back-office technology that supports normal business operations? Is it electronic money transmission or new types of currency? Is it a third-party service provider that can fulfill bank functions? Is it a new business model that disintermediates existing players? The answer to all of these questions is "yes." A definition so broad and all-encompassing presents a challenge: how are state financial regulators those on the front lines of a wide range of financial services supervising fintech? At the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, our regulatory approach has been to focus on business activity, not technology. To do the reverse would be like the tail wagging the dog. In using this approach, we have found that most fintech firms can be placed in the context of existing law. For instance, if online companies are engaged in moving money from account A to account B think PayPal we apply money transmission laws. If other online companies are offering home loans think Quicken Loans we apply mortgage lending laws. And so on. States routinely examine their toolkit existing laws and regulations and determine whether new tools are needed. For example, the state of North Carolina recently approved a virtual currency bill whereby customer balances should be held in "like kind." In other words, rather than holding the present value of bitcoin in cash a difficult currency transfer calculation customer balances can be held in bitcoin. As regulators, we embrace technology to simplify the state licensing process. Financial firms can submit licensing information one time to multiple states through the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System, a form of "regtech" operated by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. Consumers, in turn, can use the NMLS consumer access website to view the licensed entities and any regulatory actions against the financial providers that are licensed to do business in one or more states. All of this reflects the value of the state regulatory system: we experiment; we see what works; we replicate the model in other states; and then we standardize the model nationwide. The progression is always the same: as business models mature, so do regulatory regimes. Lately, there is a lot of discussion on whether or not a regulatory regime for fintech should include a new federal business charter. Federal charters confer significant advantages, expectations and risks. Historically, these charters have been the exception, not the rule. For instance, in the mid-1800s, Congress sought ways to raise money for the Civil War and unify the currency. So it created the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, with authority to charter national banks. During the Great Depression, shoring up access to home loans became a national priority. So Congress created the Federal Home Loan Banks to provide liquidity to savings-and-loan associations, and the Federal Credit Union Act to charter credit unions. To supplement these local deposits with capital market funds, Congress chartered Fannie Mae and, decades later, Freddie Mac as a response to distress being experienced by S&Ls. From this history, we see a few common elements of federal business charters: They are rare; They are created in times of national crisis; They are focused on stabilizing the financial system; They create special ties to the federal government and taxpayers; and In exchange for this risk, federal charters are designed to produce broad, public benefits. A federal business charter for fintech does not fit in with this history. There is no national crisis. Stabilizing the financial system is not the driving force. And the public benefits of fintech do not appear to have the same impact and scale as unifying the U.S. currency, ensuring mortgage liquidity, and otherwise addressing the financial impacts of the Great Depression and S&L crisis. Meanwhile, consumers will have to be protected. From a state perspective, we recall federal preemption of state consumer protection laws occurred in the early 2000s. The housing crisis followed, and millions of Americans ended up losing their homes in foreclosure. It took Congress to reset the state-federal balance to consumer protection regulation. All this demonstrates why Congress should press fintech advocates on why a new federal business charter justifies a departure from historical traditions and lessons learned. Rather than addressing an economic crisis, a fintech charter would place the federal government in the business of choosing winners and losers within a marketplace, with the potential to distort, rather than strengthen, the banking system. Only Congress should determine chartering authority, as it has done in the past. In the meantime, state regulators will continue to do our job. As chairman of the CSBS task force on emerging payments and innovation, I realize there is much to do. Our emphasis on safety and soundness and consumer protection should not stifle worthy business innovation. While the process of multi-state licensing has become more efficient, there's still room for improvement. And more uniformity in state laws if done right would benefit everyone. Key to these endeavors is having regular, open communication with the stakeholders involved in fintech. Their insights are essential to more effective regulation. And in a fast-moving environment, the more forums for information sharing we have, the better. This is the direction to which we are committed. Bryan A. Schneider is secretary at Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. There is no disputing that cybersecurity is a top concern for banks today. Spending on digital protection continues to be one of the top line items in banks' tech budgets. Meanwhile, new regulations such as the ones proposed on Wednesday, continue to pop up with the intention of ensuring banks are more secure. But some banks are trying to be more than reactive, completely rethinking how they're approaching cybersecurity. Instead of looking to build a fortress, banks are seeking a bigger grasp of the threats they face and developing strategies that go beyond pure defense. Information security in banking "is no longer just about protecting the moat and the castle, it's knowing what's going on in the castle and, oh by the way, protecting the customer's castle, too," said Jim Ford, president and chief executive of Central Valley Community Bank of Fresno, Calif. The $1.4 billion-asset Central Valley is pairing with its auditors to anticipate vulnerabilities. The bank works with RLR Management Consulting, which advises small-to-midsize banks on matters including technology. The firm helps central Valley prepare for regulatory exams, and conducts audits in various areas in an effort to offer best practices and recommendations to fix areas with issues and prevent them from occurring again. That is something the bank couldn't do with its limited staff alone, Ford said. "In the old days [IT exams] were much less strenuous," he added. "Now, regulators are really shifting the burden of cybersecurity onto the institution." Ruth Razook, founder and chief executive of RLR, said one of her firm's priorities is to stay on top of regulators' ever-changing cybersecurity expectations so its clients are best prepared. "We try to have a great relationship with the regulators," she said. "In the last five years we've seen some good regulatory guidance on this topic, and we try to translate that guidance and help banks adapt." Catskill Hudson Bank in Kingston, N.Y., has invested in a "vulnerability management" solution from security vendor Tenable Network Security that allows it to get a broad-level view of its security situation. The bank initially partnered with Tenable to help it with regulatory audits, but now uses the technology to see where there might be gaps in its security network and work to patch them, said Ted Tomita, chief technology officer of the $452 million-asset institution. "You have to be constantly monitoring and trying to detect anything [that could be a cyberthreat]," he said. "Ten years ago[cybercriminals]were more like troublemakers; they weren't trying to breach your network and steal identities and large amounts of data." Though Catskill Hudson is subject to New York's newer cybersecurity regulatory standards, Tomita said regulatory compliance is not driving the bank's focus on cybersecurity. The threat level is. "Every day you hear about some organization being breached-- we decided that wasn't going to be us," he said. Tomita also added that often the regulations around cybersecurity "end up being useless; they don't cover what is actually happening in the world." Effectively combatting cyberthreats involves spending smartly on technology as well as tailoring cybersecurity strategy to evolving threats, experts say. But smaller banks struggle with this burden. "Only the top 10 to 20 banks in the U.S. have the resources to properly staff and create security teams to deal with what banks are facing today," said Eddie Schwartz, chief operating officer of WhiteOps, a security vendor. He is also the chair of the Cybersecurity Advisory Council for ISACA, an industry association for security professionals. Banks face a number of new threats, Schwartz said. Cybercriminals are now much more sophisticated and "acting similar to nation-state groups." They are targeting areas where large amounts of money can be compromised, such as trading systems. Further, he said, trends such as the consumerization of IT and companies' usage of social media platforms, banks are "operating in a more complex world than before; they no longer have total control over everything." For those banks without massive IT budgets, Schwartz recommends banks "look at where are the most vulnerable areas where cybercriminals and fraudsters are attacking banks successfully, and look to invest in technology there." But investing in technology is only the beginning, he said. Banks need to formulate a strategy around combatting cybercrime, such as increased training for personnel on, for example, how to recognize activity that might look like it's being performed by a bot as opposed to a human. This is where heightened attention to regulation could benefit banks, as it may spur more internal cybersecurity training. Schwartz said the "perfunctory" training done by many banks won't cut it today. "To put someone in front of a computer once or twice a year to answer 10 questions is not an effective strategy anymore" he said. WASHINGTON A new plan by federal regulators that would require large banks to upgrade their cybersecurity standards again shows just how much the issue has grown as a principal threat to the global financial sector. Just as running out of capital or liquidity can spark a crisis that puts a financial institution into a death spiral, a loss of control of sensitive data can lead to a reputational crisis and possibly have systemic consequences. "There's really three things now that are very significant in the context of the life of a financial institution: a capital event, a liquidity event or a data breach," said Kevin Petrasic, a partner at White & Case who advises banks on cybersecurity matters. As a result, banks appear likely to broadly support the new proposal, which was issued Wednesday by the Federal Reserve Board, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. "Generally speaking, a lot of what we've seen within the document are things which our largest financial institutions already have under way," said Doug Johnson, the senior vice president and chief adviser in payments and cybersecurity policy at the American Bankers Association. The plan would target only financial institutions with $50 billion or more in assets, requiring them to keep close tabs of their internal and external vulnerabilities, involve the board in cybersecurity decisions and establish offline storage capacity in order to protect critical data in the event of a large-scale breach. Regulators said such measures were intended to curb systemic risk caused by the interconnectedness of the financial system. "We must ensure that U.S. financial entities remain vigilant and resilient because a cyber incident that affects the safety and soundness of one entity may harm the safety and soundness of others and could end up having systemic consequences," said Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry. It could also play in banks' favor by targeting the interconnected financial system including third party providers and critical infrastructure entities like clearing houses . The proposal "is broadly positive for the banks as it puts even more pressure on the sector to be cyber safe," said Jaret Seiberg, the managing director at Cowen Group, in a note to clients. "Our positive assessment holds even if it results in higher expenses as banks are forced to implement new safeguards." Because the plan is at a very early stage, it is unclear how enforceable and prescriptive it will be; regulators offered three different degrees of flexibility for how it could be implemented. The ABA's Johnson said this was one of the key questions banks would have to raise with regulators. "It's up to us to demonstrate that the most effective . governance process over cybersecurity is to give financial institutions an appropriate level of flexibility," he said. Overall, the plan does go beyond existing standards, including those contained in the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council's cybersecurity assessment tool, the National Institute of Standards and Technology cybersecurity framework and various agency guidelines. The proposal "would give the regulators enforceable standards on cybersecurity, which are currently limited to" the cybersecurity standards laid out in the 2000 Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, said Valerie Abend, a managing director at Promontory Financial Group and former top OCC official who spearheaded the agency's work on this proposal. "It broadens the scope of the types of organizations that these potential enforceable standards would apply to, including third-party service providers," she said. The plan could eventually become one of the main tools used by examiners to assess how well a firm is prepared for cybersecurity incidents. "This is increasing the level of preparedness on the part of the bank," said Mitchell Glassman, a former FDIC director. "And I think it also is going to provide the regulators with a new way of looking at the institutions from a safety and soundness perspective that they'd never had before." Jaxport CEO Eric Green said the $23.5 million grant marks a milestone in our initiatives to build the port of the future and move cargo in the most efficient and eco-friendly way possible. What is wrong in health care reflects what is wrong with our relationship with government as a whole in America today. What is currently in place with Obamacare is a network of government and business elites administering a bloated bureaucracy divvying up dollars we don't have and giving lip service to "helping out the middle-class" by indirectly bankrupting them. There is an added anchor dragging the health care system down, just like the economy as a whole, caused by the cost of an undocumented alien population and their need for care. On top of all this is a "legal lotto" justice system that lurks in the background, pays little to no attention to the presumed legal contracts between the doctor and the patient, and has a vastly underappreciated cost, just as it does with our entire economy outside of health care. It is no wonder we've become sick and tired of the establishment behind the system. The Affordable Care Act has placed an estimated 247 new bureaucracies between our tax dollars and our health care. K Street crony capitalists, being what they are, have moved in to capture easy dollars created by these new pay-for-play government entities. The corruption in the system is made manifest by the real cost they add to administering our care with no added value. When you review your medical bill, the costs are frequently shockingly high, while the ultimate reimbursement to the physicians themselves is often laughably low. Who gets the real money? Americans think the entrenched politicians and their friends in business are the beneficiaries, just like in every other area where government is involved. When so much of the wealth of our country is absorbed into the Washington, D.C. area, it is hard to think otherwise. The two crony systems currently making a windfall profit through their lobbyists are the insurance companies and the hospital corporations. Obamacare has promised to make good on any losses incurred by Blue Cross, United Health Care, et al. in initiating the health care exchanges. Three years of artificially low risk is good for a company and its stock value a crony's best outcome. The reason every one of these companies is about to bail out or has already abandoned the system is because these dollars dry up in 2017. We are all waiting to see how the elites cash in on the next permutation of this craziness, because we know they will always come out ahead. Meanwhile, hospital corporations, who can charge more per "Relative Value Unit" a complicated source on which the whole current reimbursement system runs are taking this opportunity to absorb the struggling medical businesses that used to be run by the doctors themselves. Does this lower costs? Of course it doesn't, and it is the corrupt relationship between government and large corporations that allows this to happen. Doctors, meanwhile, aren't allowed to be doctors anymore because of the hoops that must be jumped through to allow for testing and treatment. Insurance representatives, often uneducated, check the medical records for necessary words and phrases before tests and treatments are allowed. Many are disallowed. A lot also falls on the patient, who must often check up on the denied test to see where to go from here. It is transparently obvious that the insurance companies actually want every party to give up, throw up their hands, and hope they can do without the desired information these abandoned tests would have shown. This keeps down costs and boosts profits. Entrenched elites are well aware of how this helps their bottom line, just as government-sponsored rules and regulations hold down competition in all kinds of businesses. Similarly, the trend in insurance coverage is for much higher deductibles in the policies obtained by the middle and upper-middle classes. This was a predictable outcome when you know that government is asking us to ignore actuary tables and is outlawing pre-existing conditions costs. Having to come up with $10K before you have any procedure performed is quite the argument against proceeding in that direction. Huge costs are being avoided by this little factor of the equation alone, and this outcome of Obamacare was predictable by these elites as well. Conversely, we as a country act as if there were unlimited dollars for undocumented aliens. Our hospitals are packed with uninsured and illegal residents getting essentially free cancer treatment, obstetric care, and emergency room evaluation. Just like the actual costs illegals foist on the country by depressing wages and worsening unemployment in America as a whole, the money spent on them and their health is a high-cost loss to American taxpayers, who should be getting the benefits instead. Elites have been playing the open border game for generations, getting cheap labor to pluck their chickens, stock their warehouses, roof their homes, cut their grass, and pick their grapes, meanwhile avoiding insuring them and laughing while their stooges in the government promise to do something about the issue. Finally, the rule of law and the sanctity of a contract administered and adjudicated by a mature and efficient legal system are essential for any business. Doctors spend a good bit of effort during their time with patients explaining the risks of surgery and other medical procedures. A supposed legally binding contract is signed when this is done. If anything untoward occurs, this contract is essentially worthless. The American legal system in regard to the medical profession is a legal lotto that resembles a slot machine to the network of elites in the legal system and the insurance companies. A good example of this idiocy is exemplified by the "negotiation" of reward, which has nothing to do with reality and nearly everything to do with the size of the doctor's insurance policy. Settlements are made within a few hundred dollars of the maximum the policy allows, because the threat of going to court is so odious to the doctor. As soon as the ink dries on the check, both sides "high five" and grab a drink at the bar while the doctor goes home doubting his choice of career. Many Americans at a certain stage of their lives, especially if they are trying to run a small business, know that the legal system is geared to benefit those who inhabit the network of elites. They know to avoid the courtroom. Whenever you have the misfortune to have to visit a courtroom in your city, you notice that those who bring along a lawyer are taken to the head of the line. While all the poor shmucks without representation watch in knowing disgust, the lawyer might bring up the fraternity that his son shares with the judge's kid, or the country club they belong to with the latest improvement on the par 3s. Americans have revolted against the entrenched power brokers in Washington, D.C. by screaming support for those who promise to break up the system. This is why such anti-establishment candidates as Trump and Sanders got traction. There is a wholesale repudiation of those elites standing arm and arm with the entrenched, establishment elected officials telling us what to do while we see their results doom us to lives that are less about Americans succeeding and more about enriching Washington, D.C. Just like American society as a whole, reliance on free markets, open competition, and removal of wasteful government barriers are the best way to have a good health care system with the possibility of it being more affordable and efficient. But if the corruption is not addressed; if the legal system isn't interested in the rule of law, property rights, and the sanctity of contracts; if the illegal immigrant issue isn't addressed; and if we continue to regulate small business so that big business isn't threatened, Americans should and probably will revolt. We shouldn't put up with Obamacare, just as we shouldn't put up with a government that stifles our freedoms and economic mobility, the latter being the secret to our nation's success and exceptional character. Remember when Sarah Palin was excoriated for suggesting that ObamaCare contained death panels? Then we learned that the nonexistent death panels were actually deleted from the law and then, oops, economist Paul Krugman let slip that "...we're also going to have to make decisions about health care, doc pay for health care that has no demonstrated medical benefits. So the snarky version... which I shouldn't even say because it will get me in trouble is death panels and sales taxes is how we do this [.]" Such is the usual seesaw when a law which should never have seen the light of day continues on its destructive path. Socialized medicine, single payer system -- all of which describe ObamaCare -- are designed to give substandard care by their very nature. And with Hillary Clinton doubling down on this unconstitutional boondoggle, here is what folks who still don't understand the existential harm that will befall all of us need to clearly comprehend. Adam Brandon explains how Obama is yet again showing his contempt for the Constitution with the result that "taxpayers could be on the hook for a bailout of health insurance companies that have lost money through the ObamaCare exchanges." In fact, "despite repeated attempts by Democrats to portray private insurance companies as the bad guys, the industry gets billions in subsidy checks from taxpayers under Obamacare." And even though "cost-sharing" subsidies were illegal in the first place, Obama diverted money to insurance companies. Who is the real culprit in these behind-the-scene shady transactions? Obamacare in Pictures shows the ever increasing adverse effects of the law. Thus, buying individual health insurance in the exchanges is generally more expensive than it was before ObamaCare. Fifty-year-olds will see premiums rise by 50% or more and millions will remain uninsured under ObamaCare. As experts have long predicted, ObamaCare is simply not sustainable and the proof is in the number of insurers now exiting the state exchanges. ObamaCare is a collapsing system and the inevitable losers are Americans who believed the false promises of reliable, affordable coverage. Co-ops continue to fail, insurers exit the state exchanges and premiums spike at unbearable levels. Furthermore, government subsidies result in higher deductibles and less coverage than in the past. Young people making as little as $20,394 won't be eligible for any ObamaCare subsidies -- yet another financial disaster in the making. Even Democrats admit that Obamacare is a huge failure. In the next decade, if the ACA is not repealed, over $1.9 trillion dollars will be spent to cover insurance subsidies and expanded Medicaid; yet, the majority of middle-class families will see double-digit premium hikes and strict limitations of their choice of doctors and hospitals. Yet now that more people are seeing the results of this deliberately flawed law, Democrats try to scapegoat the insurance companies for ObamaCare's failures. And has anyone who voted for this law ever apologized? Since there is no shame in this administration, it manipulates ObamaCare statistics by inflating the initial number of uninsured. Cooking the books is par for Obama and his cronies. From hoodwinking the Supreme Court to lying to the American people, Obama, in true totalitarian spirit, continues his radical leftist pursuit to control our lives so that "more than 1 in 4 counties are at risk of having a single insurer on its exchange." No competition means the government is in charge. Doctor shortages are becoming more evident. In California alone, there aren't enough doctors to "treat a crush of newly insured patients." Moreover, it is predicted that "fewer than 40 percent of physicians will own a practice at the end of 2013, with nearly 90% citing business expenses a top concern." The answer is, and, always has been, so that the government can have total control over our lives. Hillary Clinton wants to expand ObamaCare's spending even though doing so will increase federal debt, jeopardize seniors' access to essential health services, and continue to cause skilled nursing facilities and home health agencies to lose money. The Department of Injustice which is running riot under this administration is now "opposing the mergers of four large health insurers as they try to survive the ObamaCare wasteland." Obama despises free enterprise for America so it follows that this would be the next step, and since "everybody is losing money the taxpayers need to pick up the tab" -- yet, again. To make it perfectly clear, "Capitalism is freely giving your money in exchange for something of value. Socialism is taking your money against your will and shoving something down your throat that you never asked for." And, Mr. Obama, as the esteemed Walter Williams asserts, capitalism is a moral system because unfortunately, "it is the government, not the free market, that creates zero-sum games in our economy" thus hurting all the people. For those still in deep denial as to what this administration, the Congress and the Supreme Court have done, look at the end result of a socialist/communist/single payer environment in Venezuela. By "every economic, social and political measure, their nation is unraveling at breakneck speed." The culprit is the socialist economic mess that their government instituted. Thus, as Margaret Thatcher famously stated and which cannot be repeated enough times "...socialist governments traditionally do make a financial mess. They always run out of other people's money. It's quite a characteristic of them. They then start to nationalize everything, and people just do not like more and more nationalization, and they're now trying to control everything by other means." Shocking pictures of newborn babies in cardboard boxes "reveal the extent of the country's austerity: lacking cribs, newborn babies are placed in cardboard boxes. The pictures indicate "that the babies sleeping in cardboard boxes is just one instance of the demise of health care within Venezuelas hospitals." Moreover, "Mothers are not fed properly and babies are born really weak. On top of that, the shortage of medicines and vaccines creates a mortal situation that is like a death cocktail." Thus, "[e]verything from common painkillers to cancer and HIV drugs have become almost impossible to find across the country and some doctors have resorted to using veterinary medications in lieu of human ones [.]" Nor should America continue down the socialist path to copy the United Kingdom's failed Single Payer Health Care System because it is one in "which the government is the sole payer and provider for health services." This "essentially... [is] result[ing] in financial crises so that care is absolutely denied to some people despite claims of universal care." In Britain, "overweight people and smokers are now being barred from most surgeries." In fact, "[t]he nightmare stories of bungled care and needlessly dying patients are already legion for the NHS, which is notorious for delivering substandard service to its patients." Moreover, "rationing of other care is being imposed across Britain -- including strict limits on cataract surgery and hip and knee operations -- to deal with the health care system's bottomless need for more money. For the last year, the NHS lost about $3.2 billion, nearly three times larger than the loss of a year earlier. It now faces a series of wildcat strikes by doctors, and even some hospital administrators are calling into question whether 'free' universal health care can last." Yet, for decades "liberal Democrats have been advocating a single payer health care system [.]" Hillary will continue the charge. In true bald-faced politician-speak, Hillary claims she will make some adjustments and raise revenue. What that really means is that taxes will be raised. As Orwell explained "political speech and writing are largely the defense of the indefensible" and "sheer cloudy vagueness" is used to obfuscate the "gap between one's real and one's declared aims." ObamaCare must be repealed and replaced. The American people need to be fully roused and fight against the contempt for liberty that has been shown by far too many of her leaders. A vote for Hillary is a vote for our demise. Eileen can be reached at middlemarch18@gmail.com The American Founders often wore wigs, at least in their official portraits. The term "Whigs" became a label for the Founders' intellectual elite of highly (self-) educated men like Jefferson, Washington, Madison, and the others, who saw themselves as English gentlemen in the New World and who therefore insisted on the legal rights of Englishmen as well. That is what the Declaration of Independence insisted on. When the Declaration was refused, the moral and legal basis of the American Revolution was established. Jefferson died on July 4, 1826, and soon after came a popular revolt: Jacksonian Democracy. Ultimately, the Jacksonians gave rise to the greatest Jacksonian of all, Abraham Lincoln, a great man who, in the end, transcended parties and constituencies, at enormous cost in human pain and suffering, including his own assassination. Well, conservatives have their own Whig establishment today, people who refuse to support Donald Trump the Vulgarian George Will, Jonah Goldberg, Paul Ryan, and Bill Kristol prominent among them. In this do-or-die election between a radical-left fanatic (Hillary) and a commonsense conservative (Donald Trump), our Whigs are priggishly sitting out the fight. It's a breathtaking 50-50 election, and their systematic betrayal may bring us another four to eight years of Hillary Clinton, symbolic daughter of Betty Friedan the Communist. This is for real, folks. Check it out yourself. In the 1920s, Julien Benda wrote a vitally important book, The Treason of the Clerks (meaning the intellectual class), in which he nailed the radical left. In that time, as in ours, the biggest radical revolutionaries were safely ensconced in schools and colleges, with lifetime tenure, sniping at the bourgeois taxpayers. We have a thousand examples of the same treacherous rabble in this country. B.H. Obama; Bill Clinton; and yes, Hillary are their direct spawn. It's only one small step from being an "idealistic globalist" to committing treason against one's nation. Our college students these days are taught that patriotism is evil and globalism is good. Radicals like Hillary live in denial that America is only real protection from a dangerous world. Hillary and her daughter Chelsea are apparently in the habit of calling their Secret Service protectors "pigs," the same people who have volunteered to put their bodies on the line when some assassin goes for their charges. The least the Clinton women could do is express real gratitude and respect, but they aren't made that way. Is Hillary still the radical leftist who came out of Wellesley college? It is the only way to explain her treacherous behavior in Benghazi, in the email leak of national security secrets, and in her close alliance with the most obvious Muslim Brotherhood agent in the world, Huma Abedin. What the newsies now call globalism used to be called "internationalism" by the Communist Party anthem, "The Internationale." The fantasy dream of international peace and love captures a lot of gullible suckers. From globalism to actual treason is only a few steps, as we know from the idealistic Rosenbergs, who sent the Manhattan Project nuclear plans to Jozef Stalin. The Rosenbergs were nice, idealistic "liberals" who felt sure that Stalin deserved his own nukes. Obama and the Clintons are also "globalists," like George Soros and many a campus professor of Ethnic Studies. Hillary's B.A. thesis celebrating Saul Alinsky shows the same slippery slope. From a Goldwater Girl, she became a Wellesley radical feminist, Wellesley being at that time a hotbed of feminist agitation, along with lesbian recruiting. Sounds innocent enough? Not when you come out with an undergrad thesis called "There is Only the Fight," as Hillary did. The word "Fight" is the same in Communi-jargon as the word "Struggle" in Marx, which is the same as "Kampf" in Hitler's Mein Kampf, which is the same as "jihad" in radical Islam. Militant war-making fanaticism is always the same; only the labels change, to keep the enemy confused. But Saul Alinsky did us the favor of defining "the enemy" as the American middle class. At Wellesley, Hillary was exactly the right age to be recruited by some totalitarian cult; it might have been Scientology or Jim Jones. In Nazi Germany it would have been the Hitlerjugend. At Wellesley it was feminist leftism with its rhetoric borrowed straight from the Communist Party USA. Betty Friedan came straight from the CPUSA, only substituting the word "women" for "Workers." A recent article in the Atlantic makes the great confession: Betty Friedan was not a simple housewife driven to action by her own feelings of domestic captivity. Rather, she was a seasoned radical with years of experience in leftist politics. In other words, Hillary's heroine Betty Friedan was what we are now supposed to call a "community organizer." In the 1940s and 50s, when Friedan grew up on the hard left, that term was a "Communist organizer." To her credit, Hillary distilled the essence of Saul Alinsky in the title of her B.A. thesis: "There is only the Fight." Single-minded fanaticism can be very powerful. When Hillary was betrayed time and again by Bill, she might have consoled herself with that phrase, "There is only the Fight." When she has to be dragged bodily into her Secret Service van after collapsing, she might have thought the same thing: "There is only the Struggle." If she is elected president three weeks from now, she will continue Obama's fanaticism, which comes down to the same thing. Obama might call it his personal jihad. Hillary might call it her Struggle for women's liberation, in spite of the massive, worldwide oppression of women and children in the Muslim world. It's that kind of one-track fanaticism that can justify accepting millions of dollars from the Saudis and the Muslim Brotherhood. It allowed Hillary to take Huma into her inner circle 20 years ago, in spite of the obvious dangers. It explains Hillary's advocacy of the Libyan invasion a country we had no quarrel with, and a ruler who had agreed to take down his nuclear industry. It explains Hillary's absence on the night of Benghazi, when Ambassador Stevens and his protective detail could have been rescued but were left to die. It even explains Hillary's sociopathic pride in the Libyan invasion, legally a crime against humanity, when she proclaimed, "We came, we saw, he died." That refers to Moammar Gaddafi, who was killed on the street by anal impalement with a knife. Tens of thousands of human beings have been killed in Libya since that time, for no reason at all, other than adding to Hillary's resume. It is a shameful disaster. The Libyan invasion should be repudiated by all sensible Americans. This brings me back to our conservative Whigs, Jonah, Bill, George, and Paul Ryan. What are they thinking? Are they so deeply embedded in D.C. culture that they can no longer get up the elementary guts to endorse the official candidate of the Republican Party? If that is true, then they are sacrificing their hard-earned reputations among conservatives and Republicans. Their futures are also on the line, whether Trump wins or loses. We are seeing a flashpoint in the Culture War that was started by the left. Wars separate the sheep from the goats. Our conservative Whigs are hiding in their foxholes, thereby forfeiting their credibility forever. But the left is hanging together for fear of Obama's wrath, for fear of Podesta as Hillary's Enforcer, for fear of the mafia links advocated by Saul Alinsky, or maybe all of the above. Trump is leading a true popular rising against the monopoly establishment. Win, lose, or draw, this moment will echo down the years, and direct consequences will be felt. Let me be honest up front. Every one of my predictions about Mr. Trump has turned out to be wrong. In other words, I did not think he'd be the nominee, and he is. He has also come back several times in this campaign after self-inflicted wounds, like the fight with the Khan family and the arguments over Miss Universe. Trump comes into debate #3 as the underdog with some amazing opportunities to knock out Mrs. Clinton. 1) Our old friend "quid pro quo" has made his appearance in the campaign. We don't know for sure, but it smells like it. My good guess is that Chris Wallace will bring this up, and Trump should be ready to talk about it. He can say something like "quid pro quo" is just a fancy Latin term for "something for something," or I give you this and you give me that. 2) There is more and more evidence that the FBI overlooked wrongdoing by Mrs. Clinton, specially in light of the previous point, as The Federalist reported: Did Kennedy -- a man who owes his high position to the Clintons -- engage in this conversation on his own? Was he asked to do it? For months, law enforcement had attempted to contact him, and he ignored their inquiries. Why, according to FBI documents, did Kennedy only reach out to make this request? Whats even more curious is that FBI Director James Comey didnt consider this event -- or, for that matter, the litany of other actions Clintons lackeys took to protect her -- as a sign that there was, at the very least, an intent to influence the investigation. This is, of course, just the latest revelation in the Hillary email scandal. Its worth remembering that the illegal email setup was only inadvertently discovered through a congressional investigation into Benghazi. The server itself existed to evade transparency. 3) Media bias is real. My friend Barry Casselman called it a "A Media Coup D'Etat," the post that Newt Gingrich has mentioned a couple of times on Fox and ABC News. There is another story of journalists "showering" Clinton with cash. This is what Trump should be talking about. Voters are fair, and this kind of one-sided coverage smells bad, especially at a time when the public has such a low opinion of the media. Add Obamacare, more troops to Iraq, the U.S. economy, lousy job creation, and other tangible issues that the voters want to hear about. It's up to Trump. He can win this thing, but only if he talks about issues and stops talking about vote fraud in Philadelphia. Of course there is vote fraud in the inner cities, but it will matter little if Mr Trump wins the votes between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Memo to Mr Trump: You can win this thing if you can tell us about your plans for voters and expose the corruption that Mrs. Clinton represents. P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter. Imagine that you are thinking of defecting from a dictatorship. Pehaps you have important information about a plan by your country's "supreme leader" to assassinate unfriendly American politicians. With this information, you are sure the CIA will hide you and subsidize a new life in America. Then you get second thoughts. Your cold feet come from hearing of the following news item: When Bill Clinton was president, his wife Hillary ordered that John Huang be brought into the Commerce Department. Huang had worked at a bank controlled by James Riady. According to Barbara Olson's Hell to Pay, Riady had close ties with the Communist government of China. This is bad news for your plans to defect, because in the Commerce Department: John Huang could dip into the flow of U.S. cable traffic at will. He had access to hundreds of CIA documents... He had access to information that, if revealed to a foreign power, would have exposed informants to torture or execution. But then you think, Hillary is out of power, and Barack Obama, from what you have heard, is incorruptible and competent. So maybe you will defect after all. Then you read: In June 2015, perhaps 21 million personnel records of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) were stolen. (Before hiring applicants for sensitive positions, OPM asks the neighbors of applicants what they know that could be used to blackmail them.) The OPM had been warned multiple times of security vulnerabilities and failings. A March 2015 OPM Office of the Inspector General semi-annual report to Congress warned of "persistent deficiencies in OPM's information system security program," including "incomplete security authorization packages, weaknesses in testing of information security controls, and inaccurate Plans of Action and Milestones. So who was in charge of the OPM? The director was Katherine Archuleta, former national political director for Barack Obama's 2012 re-election campaign. Daniel Henninger, deputy editorial page director of the Wall Street Journal, speaking on Fox News's Journal Editorial Report, criticized the appointment of Archuleta to be "in charge of one of the most sensitive agencies" in the U.S. government, saying: "What is her experience to run something like that? She was the national political director of Barack Obama's 2012 re-election campaign. She's also the head of something called the Latina Initiative. She's a politico, right? ... That is the kind of person they have put in[.]" You start thinking the U.S. government is corrupt, even if it involves national security. And if they don't care about national security, why would they care about your security? So maybe you should not defect. You spend a sleepless night. But then your idealism kicks in. For the sake of liberty, you must defect! Until you read about Bradley Manning, the soldier who disclosed to Wikileaks nearly three quarters of a million classified or unclassified but sensitive military and diplomatic documents. "Amazing," you think. Any soldier can obtain all this classified information! This country is just not serious. But then you read that Bradley Manning has become Chelsea Elizabeth Manning, with an operation to make him look like a woman. You are enthusiastic. Only in America, a free and tolerant country, could such a thing happen. So you decide to defect. Until you read that Hillary Clinton is likely to become the next president of the United States. As secretary of state, she did not want her email correspondence to be on government servers, so she used a private one in her home. On this server, she sent emails, many of them classified, and, when caught, deleted at least 33,000 of them. This has to be a joke, you think. It can't be real. You decide to stay put. Then you think again... The FBI agent who spoke with State Department official Patrick Kennedy about reclassifying one of Hillary Clinton's emails in exchange for getting agents posted overseas went on the record with the Washington Post and denied that any collusion took place. FBI official Brian McCauley, who retired in 2015, had been trying to get in touch with Kennedy for days. When Kennedy called back, the first thing he said was "I need a favor." McCauley responded, "Good. I need a favor." Sounds exactly like the beginnings of a quid pro quo to me. Nevertheless, both the State Department and the FBI are denying that any quid pro quo took place. CNN: The FBI is denying that any "quid pro quo" was offered in the fight between the bureau and State Department over the classification level of the email, though one interview described it as such. "Not only is there no proof. It's absolutely not true, a completely false allegation. It just didn't happen that way," John Kirby, State Department spokesman told CNN's Chris Cuomo on "New Day" Tuesday. "There was no bargain sought by the FBI. There was no bargain rendered. This was simply an inner agency conversation about the classification over one particular email. So there was no wrongdoing here." But McCauley, who also denies that anything illegal or unethical took place, tells a story that leaves little doubt that the "favors" both men wanted constituted exactly the kind of quid pro quo that all parties are denying. McCauley said in an interview that when he agreed to look into the matter, he was just being kind and polite. And he said there was no contingency binding his looking into the email classification to Kennedys agreeing to approve his request for FBI personnel in Iraq. He had a request. I found out what the request was for. I absolutely said emphatically I would not support it, McCauley said. But one of his colleagues at the FBIs records division told investigators that McCauley relayed his conversation with Kennedy in a way that suggested Kennedy had offered a quid pro quo, according to a summary of that officials interview. McCauley disputed that characterization. Thats a reach, McCauley said. I said, Hey, what is this about? Kennedy would eventually press the FBI records official and others to change the classification of the email, absent any deal, the records official alleged. In one meeting of government agencies, when someone asked whether any emails were classified, the records official told investigators that Kennedy remarked, Well, well see, and spent 15 minutes afterward debating the classification of a message. Kennedy said in his statement that he thought the email should have been redacted but not because it was classified. We take very seriously our responsibility to decide whether our documents are classified or not classified, he said. We cant simply cede that responsibility to another agency, as it is my signature or one of my senior officers signature which goes on the classification action, and it is the State Department which must prepare the legal justification if we are challenged in court. For the record, the State Department refused to allow the additional agents to be posted to Iraq. It appears that Agent McCauley was oblivious to what was really going on while Kennedy was trying to manipulate him. At this point May 2015 the FBI was getting ready to ramp up a criminal investigation into the email controversy. Kennedy no doubt was aware of this and was trying to scrub the record before the investigation began. McCauley apprently did not see the significance of the reclassification and was, in his mind, engaged in simple horse trading the kind of deals that happen in Washington all the time. "You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours," or "I'll try to get the email reclassified while you try to get more agents posted to Iraq." The stakes in this quid pro quo were huge the probable Democrat nominee for president was fighting to stay out of jail. McCauley wasn't politically sophisticated enough to grasp that Kennedy was trying to use him. One of the most infamous slanders of the Tea Party may have claimed a victim, a member in good standing of the Congressional Black Caucus. The most recent revelations by James OKeefes Project Veritas have cast an old story in a new light for me. Ever since 2010, Missouri congressman and former mayor of Kansas City Rev. Emanuel Cleaver and those who share his political orientation and agenda have gotten a lot of mileage out of his claim that he was the object of racial epithets and was spat upon by persons attending a Tea Party rally in front of the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Theyve used it to perpetuate the meme that the Tea Parties, and Republicans, and conservatives in general are inherently racist. Having attended a number of Tea Party rallies myself, Ive always found it extremely hard to believe that meme or Cleavers claims. I seriously doubt that any Tea Partiers would perpetrate or countenance such actions. Now, Ive never been a particular fan of Cleaver, and Ive even taken him to task, in these pages, for his activities as head of the Congressional Black Caucus, especially his cozying up to the Castro brothers in Cuba, despite their regime being one of the worlds most blatantly racist against blacks. But while Rev. Cleaver and I have never officially met, on the two or three occasions when Ive encountered him in public, hes always seemed a decent, friendly fellow, with a genuine-looking smile, in contrast to Hillary Clinton, who couldnt manage a genuine-looking smile if her very life depended on it, and who seems to radiate negativity. If Cleaver harbors any of the racial animosity that so many black leaders (and so many of their followers) seem to project, he manages to hide or disguise it. That made it disappointing to me that he would concoct and perpetuate what seemed such an obvious, bald-faced lie. It made him just another lying Democrat. But now that were getting, thanks to Project Veritas, a more complete picture of the cynical tactics employed for years by Democrat operatives, and just how very low theyve been eager to stoop with their false flag ops and mini-Reichstag moments, I find it not so difficult to believe that Cleaver may not have been lying, but may have actually been spat upon, only by someone hired to impersonate a Tea Partier and thus cast Tea Partiers in a negative light (and with the intent that the press, eager to collude with the Dems, would fully exploit the story and perpetuate their narrative, something theyve been doing for years only now, thanks to exposes like OKeefes, the public is beginning to wise up). Were realizing that when Donald Trump complains that the whole process is rigged, hes talking not only about voter fraud, but also about the way the news is managed and propaganda points are promulgated, and the pervasive corruption that makes it all possible. It makes me want to give Rev. Cleaver the benefit of the doubt. Seems like every four years, Christians complain that they have to "vote for the lesser of two evils." And many follow that wonky wisdom by inevitably posing the Big Question: "Whom would Jesus vote for?" When that Jesus-vote question was posited during polite conversation in the 2012 election cycle, I responded, "Oh, Jesus would definitely vote for Obama if he wanted to punish America. If He wanted to give America another chance, He'd vote for Romney." Since America is a "free" nation (and God is all about "free choice"), Jesus lets America decide its own fate. Now, in 2016, the cry has risen again that America has to choose between two evils, and Christians on both sides of the political fence are claiming that their candidate is Jesus's choice. However, this election cycle really is different. There really are not just two, but now three "evils." America has been "fundamentally transformed," just as candidate Obama promised in 2008. And part and parcel of that transformation are new "standards" to which even Christians must bow down (e.g., gay "marriage" is the law of the land). That America is the New America representing the third, entrenched evil. The continuation of that evil is also a very real part of the vote in just a few short weeks. It's true that neither the Democrat nor the Republican candidate resonates with Christian voters who seek that elusive "purity"; one is a unindicted criminal retread, the other a foul-mouthed outsider. However, Hillary Clinton has vowed to continue the antithetical Christian practices of the past eight years and even add to the "progress." Donald Trump espouses a message of retraction, rebuilding, and restoration. Some might think that it's just campaign talk for Trump, but with his selection of Mike Pence as his V.P. and his alignment with Christian advisers and some true conservative leaders, Trump shows his willingness to listen to, and perhaps even be swayed by, traditional values. Clinton will have none of it. Leading up to the 2012 election, Rev. Billy Graham sent out an appeal to American Christians to take the opportunity to stem the downward slide of the country into moral decay. Christians responded by either voting for Obama or by staying home in droves, claiming they just could not stomach voting for a Mormon. For those of us who hoped and prayed that America couldn't or wouldn't get any worse, can Christians not agree that these last four years have been an acceleration of the decay introduced during the first four? Now, Graham's son Franklin has put out a similar appeal, trying to stop America's decline. He admits that Trump is an incredibly flawed human being in at least one aspect of his personal life. But does anyone on either side of the political spectrum doubt what would have happened if the call to rescue lives in Benghazi had occurred during a Trump presidency? Would Trump have done nothing? Or would he have sent in the cavalry and unleashed the "holy hell" of America's firepower? And if he hadn't responded with force and instead blamed the deaths of four Americans on a video...or a Valentine's Day card...or an ugly hand gesture, would the press have given him a pass? The devil's been "given a foothold," and it may take this particular imperfect person with a heart for America to team with other patriots to begin to set things right again. So, Christians especially Christians who voted for Obama once, even twice like it or not, Trump is certainly the least of three evils. One hundred twenty five kilometers north of Munich lies the old medieval town of Regensburg, situated at the confluence of three rivers the Danube, Naab and Regen. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Regensburg is famous for its historic medieval center containing as many as fifteen hundred listed buildings, the largest such collection north of the Alps. Among the most notable sights in town, is a 12th-century-old stone bridge over the Danube, and its contemporary and aptly titled Historic Sausage Kitchen that has been serving fine fried sausages to patrons for nearly 900 years. It is perhaps the oldest continuously open public restaurant in the world. Photo credit: Manuel Strehl/Wikimedia The story of the Historic Sausage Kitchen (Historische Wurstkuche in German) begins with the construction of the Stone Bridge in 1135. Prior to its construction, there was a wooden bridge across the Danube, about 100 meters east of the current bridge, but it was inadequate for the traffic and vulnerable to floods. So it was decided to replace the wooden bridge with a stone bridge. The Stone Bridge was built in eleven years, completing in 1146, and remained the only bridge across the river in Regensburg for more than 800 years. While the bridge was being built, a small building attached to the city wall served as the construction office. Once the bridge was completed, the office was closed and the building became a restaurant named "Garkueche auf dem Kranchen", literally, food stall near the crane, as it was situated near the then river port. For centuries, the tavern provided slow-simmered meat to dockers, sailors and the staff of the nearby St. Peter cathedral workshop. Exactly when the simmered meat was replaced by finer sausages is not known, but its believed that the transition happened towards the end of the 18th century or the early 19th century when the restaurant was taken over by a new owner. Charcoal grilled sausages served with rolls made with caraway seeds, home-made sauerkraut and mustard became the main dish which prevails to this day. As many as 6,000 sausages are served by the kitchen to guests every day. During the high tourist season in summer, additional wooden benches and tables are laid out in front of the tiny building. The Historic Sausage Kitchen currently occupies another building, not far from its original location. The place was shifted in the 17th century. Photo credit: Joe MIGO/Wikimedia Photo credit: Dr. Bernd Gross/Wikimedia Photo credit: L.Kenzel/Wikimedia Sources: Wikipedia / www.wurstkuchl.de Premier Li Keqiang said on Wednesday that the feasibility studies into a China-Uruguay free trade agreement, announced on Tuesday, would help take cooperation between China and Latin America to a new level. The premier made the remarks during a meeting with visiting Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez, who is on a state visit to China from October 12 until Thursday. China has been Uruguay's top trading partner in recent years as its largest buyer of beef, soybeans and wool. Amid the sluggish world economy and rising trade protectionism, the feasibility studies are beneficial in sending a positive signal to the international community to safeguard trade liberalization and economic globalization, as well as China's cooperation with countries in Latin America, Li said. Premier Li pledged to further cooperate with Uruguay. He said China was willing to cooperate with the South American country in areas such as trade and investment, infrastructure, agriculture and clean energy. President Vazquez said Uruguay was willing to sign the free trade agreement with China as soon as possible and welcomed Chinese companies to invest in the distant country across the Pacific Ocean. He also said both countries could deepen cooperation in finance, technologies and people-to-people exchanges. If 2016 is going to be known for two big things in the Android world, itll be the Galaxy Note 7 disaster and the launch of the Google Pixel. The former is no doubt to dominate news cycles for weeks, perhaps months to come, due to the scale of Samsungs mobile operation and their reputation, but the latter is still incredibly important. The Pixel line of smartphones is important not so much because of what they are right now, but because of what they will be in the future. Its not everyday that a firm known for software and servcies decides to take matters into their own hands. When Microsoft did it with the Surface line of tablets to make Windows the touch-friendly OS it is today, it shook up the PC world and its only the past year or so weve seen its effect. With the Nexus line of devices, Google set an example to partners such as LG, Motorola, Samsung and Sony, but with the Pixel line of devices, theyre not just setting an example, theyre creating the gold standard. Or are they? Rumors are often brushed away as nothing new, and nothing helpful, but they can tell us a lot about whats over the horizon. In the case of the Nexus now the Pixel brand a good rumor can prepare us for whats to come, and this year was no different. We first started to hear about the Pixel and Pixel XL as a new pair of Nexus devices made by HTC. The Pixel Launcher was even seen as the Nexus Launcher before the idea of a Pixel phone became the frontrunner, which makes us wonder whether or not the Pixel devices are really the second coming of stock Android that Google would want us to believe. Are these devices that Google have designed from the ground up as they told us on stage during their October 4th event? Or are they just Nexus devices without an HTC logo on the back of them? Our initial impressions of the Pixel and Pixel XL have been positive and now that we have one in-house our review is not too far behind, but we want to take our time, naturally. There are a number of things that Google have gotten right with the Pixel, but there are also a number of things that have people scratching their heads. For instance, the way that the devices are being marketed as being Only on Verizon, all the while being available unlocked to be used on any carrier throughout the United States online. This is confusing for the average user, and even for those that are a little more invested in the world of Android. Make no mistake, its the everyman that Google is going for with the new Pixel line of devices, and yet theyre not exactly helping people with this style of marketing. How is it the average person Google is going for? Well, its a hell of a lot easier to say to someone Google made this phone than to explain the relationship between Google and their chosen partner each year they release a new Nexus device, blurring who did what and who actually made the phone. Verizon might be one of the two largest carriers in the United States, but with every carrier offering their own special switching service, people dont want to be tied down, and given the poor experience customers had with the Galaxy Nexus its a wonder Google even went back to Verizon at all. Advertisement This kind of marketing and positioning in carrier stores and online isnt good enough, Sure, we could argue that this is a first time effort for Google, but thats not really the case. Ever since the Galaxy Nexus they teamed up with Samsung for, Google has been selling Nexus smartphones directly to the consumer, and it has never really worked out all that well for them. Its not enough to put a new name on something, to create your own hardware, you need to make sure that its readily available, easy to get hold of and make sure that consumers understand how to get their hands on it. Now that the Pixel is pretty much out of stock already, its clear to see that Google hasnt succeeded at any of that. This distribution of the device is perhaps the biggest indicator that the Pixel line is just the Nexus line under a different name, the Nexus devices were notorious for offering users a poor and frustrating service online. I remember when I got my Nexus 5. I was lucky enough to get in real quick, about five minutes after they went on sale in the UK. I chose a standard Nexus 5 and paid 300 for it, and was still asked to pay delivery. The fact that I had to pay delivery on something that expensive was a bit of an insult in the first place, but the fact that I had to rush to get my order in was just laughable. This isnt China, this isnt the land of super-cheap smartphones with marketing tactics to get rid of stock quickly to keep margins up, Google should have done better, and they should be doing better now. For the longest time, we have heard reports and rumors surrounding how the Nexus relationship with companies like Huawei used to work. The general consensus is that Google and a partner would agree on a device design and specification, and then Google would purchase a finite number of devices from said manufacturer. Its this reason that the Nexus devices are often out of stock very quickly, and also why it takes them a long time to come back into stock, because the manufacturer has to make more of them when Google requires them, How many batches are in the contract often determines how long the devices will be on sale, or so goes the story, at least. HTC is making the Pixel and Pixel XL this time around, and were seeing Nexus-style shortages already, as the Google Store now has all models of the Pixel and Pixel XL either out of stock or delayed perhaps to give HTC more time to make another batch? Regardless of the whys, this sort of thing is not how you sell a major release, and especially not one you want the average consumer to jump on board with. Advertisement Yes, its very likely that Google genuinely didnt see them getting such a positive response, but theres little excuse to be out of stock this soon after the launch of a device, even more so during the Holiday period. This is the classic, lazy, throwaway sort of approach that Google has had to selling smartphones since the original Nexus One. Regardless of whether or not youre Google, the household name the vast majority of the connected world knows, it is no longer enough to build it, and expect people to come. While they will, they wont come in the sort of droves that the Pixel rightly deserves. After all, theres a reason why Google themselves sell all manner of advertising options online, and theres a good reason they have ramped up their own marketing machine for the launch of the Pixel. To make the Pixel really feel like hardware from Google, and a fresh start, the devices need to be widely available in stores as well as available from all of the big carriers all over the world. It was only when Samsung got the Galaxy S III on to all the major carriers as the same device that we saw the South Korean firm reach major success, and this is the sort of thing that Google should be planning for Pixel version 2.0 because right now, they feel an awful lot like Nexus devices under a different name. It seems that Samsungs Galaxy Note 7 just wasnt meant to be. The phone which could have challenged everyone else for the title of the best Android flagship of 2016 has now been permanently discontinued as Samsungs ambitions quite literally went up in flames. Its been almost two months since weve first heard reports of Galaxy Note 7 units being a fire hazard and the South Korean tech giant still doesnt know why its latest flagship is liable to catch fire, melt, and sometimes explode in seemingly random situations. Thats obviously a huge issue given how Samsung proclaimed it managed to identify and eliminate the problem in just a couple of weeks and eagerly resumed sales of the device which potentially placed at least hundreds of thousands of people in danger. However, the fact that Galaxy Note 7 turned out to be a fire hazard isnt the biggest issue as far as industry experts are concerned. As reported by NPR, most of them agree that mistakes can happen and its not like Samsung hasnt been putting out fantastic Android devices for years now so the company obviously earned a lot of goodwill from both customers and critics alike. However, the smartphone maker is now under fire for its lack of transparency regarding the entire ordeal. While the initial recall was seemingly handled rather efficiently and relatively transparently, its results put Samsungs previous actions under scrutiny. Namely, when announcing that it was resuming Galaxy Note 7 sales, Samsung asserted that it has identified the faulty battery element of the device and assured us that replacement units are perfectly safe. As we all know how that turned out, the South Korean consumer electronics manufacturer is now facing accusations about prioritizing profits over customer safety and not being transparent enough. NPR reports that a high-ranking Samsung official recently revealed that the company still hasnt released an official version of the story because its yet to determine what went wrong and executives dont want to say something too early. Not surprisingly, that statement was met with harsh criticism from the industry. Avi Greengart, Current Analysis device expert commented that the fact Samsung still isnt saying anything is a problem thats almost as significant as the companys lack of understanding of the original issue. Whether this drama hasnt yet been concluded because Samsung is unable to identify the problem or simply doesnt want to disclose it remains to be seen but more information will hopefully follow soon so that were finally able to put this unfortunate episode to bed. Yahoo should be used to struggling, having seemingly moved from one calamity to another for a number of years now. The business had put itself up for sale and attracted interest from a number of buyers, including Americas two largest carriers by subscribers numbers: AT&T and Verizon Wireless. Ultimately, Verizon Wireless won out with a bid close to $5 billion for Yahoos core businesses. Things seemed to be about to improve for Yahoo until the news broke that 500 million accounts had been hacked and potentially sensitive information leaked last year. When the story broke, there was not so much news or comment about the data loss and yesterday, Yahoo announced its third quarter results but declined to have the traditional conference call afterward. As such, this means that the Chief Executive Officer, Marissa Mayer, is saying nothing about the data breach. Its likely that the main reason for this is she has been advised not to talk about the data hack: last week, Verizons senior lawyer announced that having 500 million accounts hacked meant the original deal between Verizon and Yahoo was open to renegotiation. Verizon Wireless believe that Yahoo is or at least could be worth less than the original agreed $5 billion. At this juncture, however, it is difficult to determine the effect on the companys valuation with so little information available. In order to judge the likely impact on the business, investors would like to understand how the hackers obtained the information, if there were previous breaches, was Yahoos corporate email also broken into and when did Mayer know about the hack? We need to wait for Yahoo to conduct an investigation and Verizon to assess the value of the business. Meanwhile, Yahoos business continues to struggle. Yahoos reported earnings of 20 cents a share was notably higher than the expected 14 cents per share earning, but looking through the details this is because Yahoo has massively cut costs. The company had been talking about reducing costs for a number of months so this should not come as a huge surprise. Unfortunately, display advertising revenue was down by 7% and search engine revenue by 14%, which points towards a lack of confidence in the business from both advertisers (and their corporate clients) and consumers using the search engine. These drops were helped in part by improvements in the mobile, video and native businesses, but overall business revenue was expected to fall to $862 million after allowing for partner payments. It dropped a little way below this to $858 million. Adjusted EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization, a key metric to determine business performance) dropped from $244.2 million to $229.2 million. This highlights that Yahoos business has shed costs quicker than it has lost sales: it has become more efficient but is still selling less. Investors and especially Verizon now need to wait for Yahoos data security investigation Zetta is a Spanish smartphone manufacturing company which youre probably not familiar with if you dont live in Spain. On the other hand, Xiaomi is one of the largest Chinese smartphone manufacturers. So, what do these two brands have in common? Well, it seems like Zetta tried to sell Xiaomis devices under its own name, the company has been rebranding Xiaomis devices and selling them as Zetta-branded devices (allegedly), which is, needless to say, against the law. Now, Zetta did not only rebrand and sell Xiaomis smartphones, they have also inflated the price points of Xiaomis smartphones before selling them as their own, at least according to accusations. Now, its worth noting that Zetta has denied such accusations, but the leaked info kind of points to the fact that Zetta is to blame here. This company was founded back in 2014, and has managed to become quite a successful business in its homeland. The companys exec had said a couple of days ago that the company is manufacturing their devices domestically, which is one of the reasons theyve managed to become so successful so fast. Now, the Xiaomi rebranding accusations have started popping up quite recently, and the first one surfaced on Spanish tech forum called Forocoches, a user found Xiaomis logo beneath the sticker on the inside and had opted to post that on the aforementioned forum. He basically removed the battery, peeled off the sticker underneath it and found a Mi logo there, as you can see in the provided image. Now, Thegeekhammer found this interesting, and has decided to dig deeper, he accessed Zettas custom ROM and has managed to find out that Zettas devices are running a version of CyanogenMod. Now, companies that want to use Cyanogens software commercially have to pay a fee to Cyanogen in order to license it, and then get access to Cyanogen OS, which is essentially CyanogenMod for commercial use. A number of Zetta-branded smartphones are now presumed of being rebranded Xiaomi smartphones, the Zetta Conquistador 4.7 SE is allegedly a rebranded Xiaomi Redmi 2. For comparison, the Redmi 2 retails for 90 online, while the Zetta Conquistador 4.7 SE costs 185.95 in Spain. FACUA, a Spanish consumer association, is basically requesting that Spanish authorities prosecute Zetta on allegations of fraud. It was a wealth of Bernie Sanders fans, versus a crowd of Hillary Clinton supporters, that filled Northern Arizona Universitys Prochnow Auditorium on Tuesday for the Vermont senators visit to Flagstaff to campaign for Clinton. Many in the crowd said they had voted for Sanders in the primary election, and remained fervent supporters, but didnt have any major misgivings about shifting their support to Clinton. In the long terms its like whats the next best thing? said Christopher Kiess, a Flagstaff resident. Several others said they supported Sanders decision to not only gracefully concede to Clinton but then throw his support behind her and travel the country campaigning for her. The best thing he could do is support Hillary to make sure Trump doesnt win, said Sharon Koshy, a NAU sophomore. I know a lot of people are calling him a sellout, but I think he made the smart choice. It is a show of Sanders character to get behind Clinton, NAU student Breegan Jones said. NAU student Alma Solis said that after the scandal over Clintons email server, she was looking to Sanders to communicate why voters should trust the Democratic presidential candidate. Several people said hes an asset that Clinton is lucky to have. Idalid Melo, an NAU freshman said the senator will be important to helping get out the vote among college students like herself, who supported him en masse in the primaries. Along similar lines, 62-year-old Flagstaff resident Lou LaChat called him probably the best voice and advocate Hillary could have for youth. Tribal support Navajo Nation Vice President Jonathan Nez was among those who attended the Flagstaff event He said the Obama administration has worked well with the Navajo Nation and other indigenous tribes and he would like to see that relationship continue with Clinton as president. We dont know how things would be with the Trump administration, Nez said. Its kind of scary for indigenous tribes. Among the many topics Sanders addressed in his 30 minute speech, Nez focused on the proposal to make in-state college tuition free for families making less than $125,000. Nez said it would be huge for Native American students to have that opportunity. He said he and other Navajo leaders are working to promote Clinton on the Navajo Nation in hopes of turning Arizona blue for the presidential race. Elaine Beyal, who is Navajo and lives in Flagstaff, has high hopes that the tribal vote will swing Arizona races to the Democrats this year. Native Americans haven't forgotten when Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump criticized native people by saying they are using their tribal identity to get certain benefits, said Beyal, who was wearing a yellow button with a taco truck driving through Clintons signature blue H. She said she hopes Clinton will follow through with her tilt toward policies Sanders campaigned for, like free college tuition and the importance of education. Jonathan Duncan said he isnt thinking of himself as a white male, but instead of minorities, oppressed peoples and women in his choice for president. Clinton has proposals that will help those people, while Trump makes comments degrading them, Duncan said. He specifically pointed to Sanders visit to Twin Arrows Casino Resort on the Navajo Nation in March, saying he hopes that focus on tribes spills over to Hillary. Still support for Sanders platform Flagstaff attendees pointed to Sanders stance on universal healthcare, free college tuition and economic equality that attracted them to support the former presidential candidate. Corrine Jarnagin, said she has dealt with many health problems and yet changes under the Affordable Care Act have dropped her healthcare payments to the lowest they have ever been. She supports even more reform with Sanders proposal of universal healthcare. Landon Andreas said he certainly noticed when Clinton drifted toward Sanders opinions opposing the Trans Pacific Partnership and supporting an increase in the minimum wage. A supporter of Sen. John McCain, Andreas said he is still undecided on whether he will vote for Clinton or a write-in candidate, saying the controversies around the Democratic candidate bother him and she hasnt put out a feasible proposal to fix the Affordable Care Act. LaChat said she admired Sanders ability to take on Wall Street and that she believes Clinton will take up some of Sanders causes as well as those of President Obama. Solis said Clinton seemed to piggyback on Sanders in her stance on affordable college tuition. She said she just hopes the candidate keeps those promises if elected. Check out the magic of the night sky at a star gazing party at historic Navajo Bridge in Marble Canyon. Telescopes will be set up by amateur and professional astronomers from northern Arizona and southern Utah. The star party includes an introduction to the constellations and locating the North Star, the Milky Way, planets and other less-known objects such as star clusters and dark clouds visible to unaided eyes. Coconino County Supervisor Lena Fowler, Glen Canyon Natural History Association and Lowell Observatory will host the free two-night party set for Friday and Saturday, Oct. 21 and 22, from 6:30-10 p.m. (Arizona Standard Time). The historic Navajo Bridge is on Highway 89A in Marble Canyon. For more details, call the Glen Canyon Natural History Society at 645-3900 or Coconino County Supervisor Lena Fowler at 283-4518. Ephemera exhibit explores Beasley's art An opening reception for the Dick Beasley Ephemera exhibit will be held Friday, Oct. 21, from 5-7 p.m. in the Beasley Gallery in the NAU Performing and Fine Arts Building. Richard Evans Beasley taught design, painting, drawing, printmaking and calligraphy at NAU from 1968 until his death in 1992 at age 58. More than 200 pieces will be included in the exhibit, only 12 of which have been previously displayed. Items will include program covers for the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra, posters advertising certain events, certificates, rough drafts, preliminary sketches, greeting cards and more. The exhibit is on display through Nov. 4. Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. The reception and exhibit are free and open to the public. Snowbowl General Manager J.R. Murray sent a letter of endorsements for mayor and city council to season passholders Friday evening, voicing support for incumbent Jerry Nabours for mayor, incumbents Jeff Oravits and Karla Brewster and candidate Charlie Odegaard for city council. Murray said he had never sent a politically motivated letter to Snowbowl patrons before, but said discussion of his business in public led him to send the message. I have never sent a letter like this, however, with the Snowbowl being mentioned and discussed in public, at forums and otherwise leading up to the election, I felt that voters should know who supports Snowbowl with a track record, Murray said in an email. In part, the letter said, If you are a registered voter in Flagstaff and have not already made your local election choices based on your beliefs and criteria, I would encourage you to consider the impact of this election on the Arizona Snowbowl. Mayor Jerry Nabours, councilperson Jeff Oravits and councilperson Karla Brewster have been very supportive of Arizona Snowbowl. Council candidate Charlie Odegaard, is a member of the City Water Commission and understands the relationship between Snowbowl and the City of Flagstaff. These four candidates are good for Snowbowl. The letter also specifically named candidates who Murray said have criticized Snowbowl publicly. Additionally, mayoral candidate Coral Evans and council candidate Jamie Whelan have made public comments that are politicizing Snowbowl and our relationship with the City of Flagstaff, Murray wrote. Murray wrote that without the citys support, Snowbowl would likely suffer. Evans and Whelan, who were named specifically in the letter, both pointed out that Snowbowl and the city have a 20-year contract, which would not be affected by the upcoming election. Snowbowl has been a part of the Flagstaff community for generations and there is no reason to expect this to change, Evans wrote in a statement. I would be happy to meet with their management to ensure the best working relationship between all parties. Whelan said she supports Snowbowls business, but does not support using reclaimed wastewater to make snow, which has been an issue between the city and Native American tribes for years. I do support Snowbowl, they bring much to the community, Whelan said. I dont support the use of reclaimed water on sacred land when we have been repeatedly asked not to. Murray, however, said many voters seek his input on the election and said the letter was intended for voters who had not yet made their decision on which candidates to support. The Royal Anguilla Police Force announces the retirement of PC 61 Maurice Bryson. Officer Bryson, who joined the ranks of the RAPF on 2nd January, 2001 has worked in several departments over the years including Beat and Patrol, Out Station, Drugs and Firearms Task Force and Prosecution. Officer Bryson is a trained and qualified Barrister at law having attain his LMB qualifications at Nothingham Trent University in 2012 post graduate legal practice course at University of Law UK 2014 He was admitted to Bar of England and Wales on 9th October, 2014 and to Anguilla Bar on 23rd June 2015. Officer Bryson also spent a year and six months in the Attorney Generals Chamber as a Crown Prosecutor and later worked as a Police Prosecutor. I am grateful to God Almighty for providing me with the various talents, achievements and positions that Ive held throughout my career, said Officer Bryson. I can honestly say that the road to success is not an easy one, but rather challenging providing many life learning experiences. I have set my sail for greatness and I will continue to live out my purpose always doing it with courage. Officer Bryson was a very bright star in the RAPF and we wish him all the best as he moves into a new chapter of his life, said Commissioner of Police, Mr. Paul Morrison. Suspected auto theft Flagstaff police are investigating a suspected vehicle theft. According to the police report, the owner parked his vehicle outside his home in the 3600 block of South Walapai Drive at approximately 10 p.m. last Wednesday. When he woke up at about 8:20 a.m. Thursday, it was gone. The owner told police he thought he left the doors to his vehicle unlocked and may have left the keys inside. The stolen vehicle was a white 1996 Jeep Cherokee with Arizona license plate number BFJ4680. The owner said there was a "7 Psychopaths" decal on the back window. Police entered the vehicle into the FBI's National Crime Information Center as stolen. The investigation is ongoing. Charged with DUI Flagstaff Police Department arrested Chet Jay Johnson, 23, of West Benjamin's Way on an extreme DUI charge at 1:27 a.m. Friday. City and county residents who want to report a crime but wish to remain anonymous may call Silent Witness at 774-6111 or (877) 29-CRIME, submit a tip online at www.coconinosilentwitness.org, or text the word Flagtip along with your information to 274637 (CRIMES). Rewards of up to $2,000 are given for information that leads to an arrest. Kelvin MacKenzie and the Sun beat Channel 4 News and a hijab On July 18, the Sun featured a column but its former editor Kelvin MacKenzie in which he asked, Why did Channel 4 have a presenter in a hijab fronting coverage of Muslim terror in Nice?. That the question was rhetorical became apparent in the next line: Would C4 have used a Hindu to report on the carnage at the Golden Temple of Amritsarof course not. And again: Would the station have used an Orthodox Jew to cover the Israeli-Palestine conflict? Of course not. Hundreds complained to Ipso, the press regulator. This meant lots of people were talking about the Sun and MacKenzie and so both became relevant. MacKenzie posed more questions: I could hardly believe my eyes. The presenter was not one of the regulars Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Matt Frei or Cathy Newman but a young lady wearing a hijab. Her name is Fatima Manji and she has been with the station for four years. Was it appropriate for her to be on camera when there had been yet another shocking slaughter by a Muslim? Was it done to stick one in the eye of the ordinary viewer who looks at the hijab as a sign of the slavery of Muslim women by a male- dominated and clearly violent religion? So why did they do it? With all the major terrorist outrages in the world currently being carried out by Muslims, I think the rest of us are reasonably entitled to have concerns about what is beating in their religious hearts. Who was in the studio representing our fears? Questions upon questions. And like all good columnists, MacKenzie triggered a heated debate. Manji called MacKenzies words ill-informed, racist and Islamophobic. Ben De Pear, who edits the Channel 4 news show, said: Whilst we agree that freedom of expression is a fundamental right, we do not believe that it should be used as a licence to incite or discriminate. His inflammatory comments on Fatima Manjis professional status, which were widely condemned, and his attempts to equate the wearing of a hijab with support for terrorism, have no place in a properly informed and tolerant society We employ reporters based on their journalistic skills, not their ethnicity. We see no reason why a Muslim journalist should be prevented from covering any story and Fatima will continue to report and present the news on the issues of the day with impartiality and depth. We are grateful for all the support shown to Fatima during this difficult time. Difficult time? Really? (See those questions are catchy.) Channel 4 is hardly a fan of the Sun and its readers. Surely the broadcaster got some satisfaction from MacKenzies rant? Prejudices, you know, we do so love them when we can back them up with evidence. Manji did not like it. But Ipso has rejected her complaints. There can be no doubt that this was deeply offensive to the complainant and caused widespread concern and distress to others. This was demonstrated by the number of complaints IPSO received. The article was highly critical of Channel 4 for permitting a newsreader to wear the hijab. It also contained pejorative references to Islam. But the essential question for the committee was whether those references were directed at the complainant. Clause 12 seeks to protect individuals while respecting the fundamental right to freedom of expression enshrined in the preamble to the code. The article did refer to the complainant. But it did so to explain what triggered the discussion about a subject of legitimate debate: whether newsreaders should be allowed to wear religious symbols. While the columnists opinions were undoubtedly offensive to the complainant, and to others, these were views he had been entitled to express. The article did not include a prejudicial or pejorative reference to the complainant on the grounds of her religion. Clause 3 seeks to protect individuals from harassment. In the light of its findings under Clause 12, and given that the course of conduct complained of was the publication of a single article on a matter which, while sensitive, was the subject of legitimate public debate, the Committee took the view that it did not amount to harassment under Clause 3. The columnists view that Islam is clearly a violent religion was a statement of his opinion. This view, however extreme or offensive to many, did not raise a breach of Clause 1. The suggestion that the complainant was a pawn in this tv news game was clearly conjecture, and underlined that the authors criticism was directed at Channel 4 and not at the individual newsreader. There was no breach of Clause 1. Kelvin MacKenzie and newspapers are still relevant after al these years. Who knew? Anorak Posted: 19th, October 2016 | In: Reviews, Tabloids Comment | TrackBack | Permalink Editors note: Candidates for Flagstaff City Council and mayor have each been offered a 500-word guest column to supplement the weekly candidate questions. As your city council representative, I will continue my commitment to enhancing the things that make Flagstaff a great place to live. I support collaboration to bring prosperity and good paying jobs. I support development consistent with our character and natural beauty. I served on the Flagstaff Planning & Zoning Commission for six years, where I helped stop an inappropriate cell phone tower in the Plaza Vieja residential neighborhood. I served on the Water Commission for five years, where I got lower water rates for residents who conserve. In the private sector, I successfully managed personnel and multi-million dollar budgets. Im running for city council to resolve our traffic, parking, and affordable housing problems. I want to protect our neighborhoods from inappropriate development like the Hub. Our zoning code does not allow the proposed Commercial Block building on the neighborhood side of the Hub, which is zoned T4N.1-O. (Commercial Block buildings were not allowed in any T4 zones until this year when council added them to another T4 zone.) There is disagreement about whether the Hub meets the current zoning code. I don't think it does, but the Coconino Superior Court is considering the issue. The Hub developer offered a plan that had some benefits, but would have changed the zoning to absolutely permit the out-of-scale Commercial Block building. Fortunately, neighborhood residents and businesses organized a petition drive to require a super-majority vote, so it was not approved by city council (even with the four votes it got). Regardless of what happens with the Hub, we need to improve the zoning code to protect our city. There shouldnt be any ambiguity about where these massive projects are allowed. The current council majority repeatedly changes the rules to allow inappropriate development. I only support development that protects Flagstaffs character and fits with our neighborhoods. To attract the best employers, we need to continue marketing our community character and business-friendly attitude. Flagstaff residents and potential employers want the basics like a cooperative government, public safety, good roads, and a sustainable water supply, but we also need to support and grow our science, arts, and cultural resources. We have famous observatories and bio-tech labs. We have a diverse economy, which we should continue to expand. Flagstaff is a perfect place for light manufacturing and business innovation. The council needs to encourage that spirit by supporting the Flagstaff Business Accelerator, NACET (Northern Arizona Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology), and our schools, including Coconino Community College. Extreme positions of any flavor produce gridlock and bad policy, and prevent us from achieving our potential. My guiding principles, as your council member, will be transparency, communication, and practical solutions. I will bring reason to city council by representing Flagstaff values. I look forward to working with city council members, staff, business owners, and you, the citizens of Flagstaff for the greater good of us all. Please visit my website at http://www.McCarthyForFlag.org/ and my Facebook page at facebook.com/mccarthy.for.flag/. I really would appreciate your vote. Thank you. (ANSA) - Rome, October 19 - Prefect Mario Morcone, head of the interior ministry's civil liberties and immigration department, on Wednesday expressed Italy's "anger" at the constant monitoring by Europe on migration while other member states are "not doing their bit". "We are angry because were are subject to constant and obsessive monitoring we are under the magnifying glass but we are doing our bit, the other countries are not doing theirs," Morcone told the Italian parliament's Schengen Committee. The prefect denounced a "persistent prejudice" by northern and central European countries towards Italy. "They are prepared to provide resources in exchange for closed (migrant reception) centres. But I want to be clear: we will not create closed centres, we will not create concentration camps in our country," Morcone said. Italy has been "beyond reproach" since mid-2015, when it completed introduction of new EU-mandated measures to handle the arrival of migrants in Europe, the prefect insisted. "The same cannot be said of those countries that have not complied with the (European Commission President Jean-Claude) Junker plan," Morcone continued in reference to an EU scheme to relocate asylum seekers from frontline countries such as Italy and Greece to other member states according to an agreed quota system. "We have managed to relocate 1,318 people, and certainly through no fault of our own," he said. (ANSA) - Rome, October 19 - Prefect Mario Morcone, head of the interior ministry's civil liberties and immigration department, on Wednesday expressed Italy's "anger" at the constant monitoring by Europe on migration while other member states are "not doing their bit". "We are angry because were are subject to constant and obsessive monitoring we are under the magnifying glass but we are doing our bit, the other countries are not doing theirs," Morcone told the Italian parliament's Schengen Committee. The prefect denounced a "persistent prejudice" by northern and central European countries towards Italy. "They are prepared to provide resources in exchange for closed (migrant reception) centres. But I want to be clear: we will not create closed centres, we will not create concentration camps in our country," Morcone said. NAFPAKTOS - The ancient city of Lepanto, known today as Nafpaktos, rises on the Gulf of Corinth across from Patras, and is a tourist destination much-beloved by Greeks but little-known by foreigners. Before the Rio-Antirrio Bridge spanning the gulf was inaugurated on the day before the opening of the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Greece, getting to Nafpaktos meant crossing the gulf by boat. "In the summer and during the Christmas holidays, there were three-hour queues of cars waiting to board the ferry for the crossing," said Ioannis, a driver who loves Benigni films and is bringing a group of international buyers to Nafpaktia, about a 45-minute drive north of Nafpaktos. "Now with the bridge, everything is easy," he said. "That crossing was the pregnant woman's nightmare," said Calliope, who works in the local tourism industry. "Oftentimes because of bad weather the ferry couldn't cross and so you couldn't get to the hospital," she said. The bridge - which cost 800 million euros to build and was managed up until 2015 by the French company Gefyra - costs 13 euros per car, and it's what local businesspeople and the region's politicians are counting on to develop the area's tourism sector. A group of entrepreneurs launched an "Expo" of alternative tourism in Nafpaktia to raise awareness of this part of Greece, which is different from the islands but has its own charm nonetheless. "There's the sea, the history of the Battle of Lepanto, and the mountains at your back," said Taki, a tour operator who moved to the Netherlands in the 1980s and sends thousands of tourists from there to Greece. Just an hour by car from Nafpaktos is Ano Kora, a small mountainous city with an altitude of 1500 metres, where there are 150 kilometres of forest paths for hiking, mountain biking or motorbiking. Nafpaktos also has the history of the 1571 Battle of Lepanto between the Christian and Muslim fleets for control of Cyprus and this part of the Mediterranean. There's a museum dedicated to the battle, containing a reproduction of a galley from the Christian fleet and a sign in front of the ancient port, circled by walls that during the summer host the many boats ready to bring tourists to the trendy bars on the square, to drink a glass of Tsipouro, a type of grappa obtained from the second pressing of grape skins. "This area is the Sterea Ellas - the true heart of Greece," Tiki said. "There are some Italians here, but international tourists still have to discover it". The sector is aiming for Russian tourists searching for new destinations and new flavours. But it's also counting on the Greek government, which is still finishing infrastructure following the bridge, despite many difficulties. The long motorway that connects the Gulf of Corinth to Athens has been under construction for several years, and two months ago the first lane was opened, running alongside the worksite for the second lane, so traffic is going in both directions in the first lane with some cars using the emergency lanes as well. "We've made it into a lane and a half, but it will be ready in March," a driver said while narrowly passing a lorry bringing east some shipping containers unloaded in Ancona. Goods are arriving, but Nafpaktos wants tourists to arrive as well. MOSCOW - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone on Tuesday evening with Russian President Vladimir Putin about an accord to make troops of Al-Nusra Front, now known as Fateh al-Sham Front, withdraw from Aleppo "as requested" by Moscow to "bring peace to the people of Aleppo", Erdogan said in a speech in Ankara on Wednesday. The Tuesday conversation centered on the humanitarian ceasefire in Aleppo set for tomorrow, as well as the Mosul offensive in Iraq, the fight against terrorism and bilateral relations. The two leaders met last week in Istanbul and signed an agreement for the Turkish Stream gas pipeline. "We have to avoid ISIS jihadists leaving Mosul and the surrounding areas only to turn up in Syria," said General Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia. "It's therefore necessary not to bring terrorists from one country to another, but to eliminate them in place," he said. Gerasimov emphasised that Russian and Syrian air forces haven't hit terrorists in Aleppo for over 24 hours, in order to enact a humanitarian ceasefire, while militants continue to hammer residential neighbourhoods with artillery fire "with the same intensity". He also said that the US "hasn't taken any initiative to separate terrorists from rebels". Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that suspension of Russian and Syrian airstrikes was "the US's only prerequisite for separating terrorists from moderate opposition". On Wednesday in Geneva, Russian and American experts met to talk about this separation of US-backed moderate rebels from terrorist groups. Russia and Syria will extend the humanitarian ceasefire set for tomorrow in Aleppo for three hours "upon request of international organisations", according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia. Russian and Syrian jets stopped operations on Tuesday and are keeping a distance from Aleppo of "at least 10 kilometres". The Russian Army will broadcast civilian evacuation operations in Aleppo on Wednesday live on its Defence Ministry website, said Sergey Rudskoy, head of the Russian General Staff Main Operations Department. "The evacuation will be registered in real time with the help of webcams set up near the humanitarian corridors and unmanned aerial vehicles," he said. Meanwhile, intense armed conflicts are underway in northern Aleppo between Kurdish-Syrian forces and local Arab insurgents backed by Turkey, local sources told ANSA. They said fighting began in the context of the Turkish-led offensive in northern Aleppo in the Marea and Tell Rifaat areas which have been under the control of Kurdish-Syrian forces for months. (ANSAmed). NAPLES - Stefano Amatucci's film 'Caina', selected for the First Features Competition at the 20th Tallinn Black Night Film Festival in Estonia from November 11-27, is a dark story that takes its inspiration from the migrant crisis to tell of ferocity and racism from a feminine point of view. The name of the film comes from the main character, played by Luisa Amatucci, who was formerly a cold-blooded assasin for hire, specialised in killing illegal immigrants. She then builds a particular job for herself - that of "body finder" - gathering up the bodies of migrants washed up on the shore and bringing them to a government disposal site, where they are then disposed of in cement blocks processed there. She hears the dead speak, feels their fear, their lament, she hears their suffering, their anguish, their disappointment. But Caina has a "body finder" competitor, the Tunisian Nahiri, who does the work illegally. With a group of illegal immigrants he steals the bodies from the beach in order to survive, selling them "under the table" to the disposal site. Things become more complicated when the illegals decide to drown the arriving migrants in order to have more "merchandise". "The emigration question has become, in the western world, one of the ills of our times - a threat that provokes aversion, anger, and fear," Stefano Amatucci said. "Something to resist and not to treat according to the illuminated and progressive ideas by which we were supposed to have been taught," he said. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ju5_E1wAAPE. Italy archaeologists discuss water in ancient Jordan Seminar on digs across kingdom (ANSAmed) - AMMAN, OCTOBER 19 - Italian archaeologists yesterday highlighted the significance of water resources in ancient civilizations in Jordan, following detailed studies of major sites across the kingdom. The findings were discussed during a seminar held at the Jordan University in cooperation with the Italian embassy titled 'Precious Water: Paths of Jordanian civilizations as seen in the Italian archaeological excavations'. Organizers said the seminar will help understand problem of water in Jordan, one of the water impoverished nations in the world. It would also help face challenges of water scarcity in the kingdom. During the event, several archaeologists discussed their area of research including Lorenzo Nigro (University of Rome La Sapienza), whose paper was about "Water and Power: early cities in Jordan and water control in the 3rd millennium BC, the case of Batrawy," Prof. Andrea Polcaro (University of Perugia) who discussed "Jebel Al-Mutawwaq, the mountain surrounded by water. The importance of water resources during the IV millennium BC in the TransJordan Highlands." Other speakers also included Dr. Davide Bianchi (Universita degli Studi di Milano) whose paper was about "Restore the Body, Soothe the Soul: the Water Systems of the Jordanian Monasteries," Prof. Giovanna De Palma (Istituto Superiore per la Conservazione e il Restauro) with a paper on "Real water vs. imaginary water in the Umayyad Castle of Qusayr Amra," Prof. Guido Vannini (University of Florence) who spoke about "Changing water management and exploitation strategies at Al-Wu'ayra (Petra). A 'long duree' perspective through Light Archaeology methodology". Moreover, Dr Roberto Franchi and Dr Roberto Gabrielli (National Research Council) spoke about "Cultural Heritage and conservation of ancient architectural structures in Petra: a study of the hydrological system," Dr Carmelo Pappalardo (Pontificio Istituto di Archeologia Cristiana) "Hydraulic system of water harvesting and distribution in Umm al-Rasas / Kastron Mefa'a" And Dr Giorgia Cesaro (UNESCO) "Protecting the cultural and geological heritage of Nabataean Petra: managing water runoff and mitigating rockfall in the Siq of Petra." (ANSAmed). RABAT - The seventh edition of the Medinit Expo aims to raise awareness of Italian design in the Moroccan and other African markets. The expo will be held October 27-29 in Casablanca, where about one hundred Italian companies in the sector of furnishings and construction will meet with African businesses working in the same sector. ''Morocco is easily reachable and has affordable logistics costs, and is thus of interest to Italian investors, with a GDP that is growing by 4.8% per year,'' said Medinit president Francesco Bresolin. He added that this year would include those working in the sector from Cameroon, Angola, Nigeria, the Ivory Coast and many other African countries. Last year almost 3,000 people visited the expo. This year's edition is sponsored by Verona Fiere and was organized in collaboration with the Italian Trade Commission (ICE) and the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Morocco. It also has the support of the embassy. In the sector on culture, Venetian villas and Moroccan riads are compared. Nearly 800 attacks on German migrant centres in 2016 In only 57 cases political motives not ascertained (ANSAmed) - BERLIN, OCTOBER 19 - The number of xenophobic attacks by the far right against migrant reception centres in Germany has risen in 2016, media reported on Wednesday citing federal police figures. Police recorded 797 attacks up to October 17 and in only 57 cases political motives were not ascertained. (ANSAmed). ISTANBUL - Turkish anti-terrorism police have killed a suspected aspiring ISIS suicide bomber in the capital Ankara, state news agency Anadolu reported on Wednesday citing security sources. The suspect, identified only as 24-year-old Ahmet B, was shot dead in the Etimesgut district on Tuesday night after refusing to "surrender". Explosives were found in his home. Turkish authorities say the man from the southeastern province of Diyarbakir was preparing a suicide attack in a crowded area and that he had visited the Ataturk Mausoleum and former seat of parliament in the capital three times in recent weeks. On Monday the authorities banned all public gatherings in Ankara until November 30 due to the risk of attacks. Its province is considered, along with those of Istanbul, Smirne, Gaziantep and Antalya, to be at high risk of attack by ISIS, according to an "urgent" secret service memo released last week. Alan Gordon, the well-known PR and marketing expert, who launched his own agency, Merlin Publicity, has died of a cardiac arrest. Bakels MD Paul Morrow said: Alan was a behind the scenes operator so few will be aware of his influence on the baking industry over the past 30 years. I first met him when he launched Baking Update magazine in the late 1980s. In that role he introduced the Baking Industry Awards, which will be his lasting legacy. When he decided to set up his own business I was one of his first clients. He taught me, and subsequent marketing managers now half his age, the difference between PR and advertising. PR is very much about communicating with people and Alans expertise was to define the message and then communicate it effectively. Morrow added: He also taught me to ask myself the so what? question. If, after making an enthusiastic presentation on some great new product, the audience says so what? either the product or message is wrong and you had better think again. Alan will be irreplaceable to his family, his friends and the colleagues who relied so much upon his advice. David Marsh, managing director Benier (UK), said: We have worked with Alan for over 20 years. He was a constant, someone who was always there to help us. A true gentleman, Alan was ever considerate of others. It was always a pleasure when he visited us for our Friday morning meetings to consider future publicity and/or advertising. His advice eagerly sought and highly valued. It was deeply saddening to hear he had been taken from us and, more importantly, his nearest and dearest to whom we extend our most heartfelt condolences. Former editor of British Baker, Sylvia Macdonald, said: Alan was exceptional, the best PR and marketing person in the business. He knew the industry inside out having worked as a journalist on British Baker, then the former Baking Today and Baking Update magazines, before launching his own agency. He was very conscientious, hard-working and effective, but he was also a lovely person whose kindness and good manners were always to the fore. He leaves a wife, Sue, and two daughters. The funeral will be held on Monday, 3 October at 11am at Eltham Crematorium in Falconwood, South London. Any donations should go to The British Heart Foundation (BHF). For online giving, a live link will set up to the BHF, shortly. Anti-Sarraj political forces meet for discussions Tobruk premier meets attempted coup leader to form new govt (ANSAmed) - Cairo, October 19 - Libya's Tobruk-based interim Premier Abdallah al Thani has met with Khalifa al-Ghwell, former prime minister of the national salvation government who led Friday's coup attempt against the UN-backed government of Fayez al Sarraj to discuss the formation of a new unified government to replace the authorities in Tripoli, Alwasat reports without saying when or where the meeting was held. "I met him, we are not enemies," al Thani said after the meeting with al-Ghwell. They first entered into dialogue three months ago, he added. The Tobruk premier also said Sarraj's presidential council was responsible for the deteriorating security situation in Tripoli. (ANSAmed). Netanyahu to urge opposition to UNESCO Jerusalem resolution In light of upcoming World Heritage meeting in Paris (ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, OCTOBER 19 - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will contact many of the leaders of countries who make up the UNESCO Executive Council in order to convince them not to support the Jerusalem resolution that the United Nations cultural agency adopted on Tuesday, diplomatic sources said. A meeting of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee is scheduled for October 24-26 at the agency's Paris headquarters. The meeting is a continuation of last July's meeting in Istanbul, which was suspended for the political situation in Turkey at that time. It will examine the state of conservation of the 'Old City of Jerusalem and Its Walls', which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site 'in danger'. (ANSAmed). (by Patrizia Antonini) BRUSSELS - The return to national frontiers "is not an option" in response to the European migrant crisis, European Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos has said in an interview with ANSA. "There will be no concessions on Schengen," said Avramopoulos ahead of a visit to Rome on Thursday and Friday for the G6 meeting on terrorism and migration. Countries wanting to extend border controls beyond the November 12 deadline will have to "justify their reasons" he added in reference to Austria, Sweden, Germany, Denmark and Norway, which reintroduced border controls temporarily in May. On asylum seeker relocations Avramopoulos admitted that there is "still strong opposition" to European Commission policy, adding however that he believed that ultimately "the spirit of European solidarity" would prevail. "I know the Italian Premier Matteo Renzi, who is a convinced Europeanist, will send strong messages to his colleagues" at the upcoming European Summit, "where dialogue is substantial and everyone is held to account". On the other hand the number of relocations has grown over the last two months and this "is an encouraging message for Greece and Italy", he said. "If things continue at the same rate we will soon be able to say that this policy is working," Avramopoulos added. The commissioner said that the work of EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini on repatriations and so-called 'migrant compacts', or deals with countries of migrant origin or transit, is ongoing and that she would soon travel with Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni to Mali and Niger "to send a strong message to the region". "We want to cooperate with them but they must also collaborate with us by taking back their fellow countrymen," Avramopoulos said. "There is a problem in the central Mediterranean," he insisted. "We are by Italy's side as it makes a big effort to manage such a complex situation, and once again I would like to praise the Italian authorities and Italians for all they have done to improve their systems over that last two years." In regard to the infraction procedure opened last December against Italy concerning its fingerprinting of new arrivals, Avramopoulos said he hoped for a positive outcome. "We have re-evaluated the whole matter and, given that Italy has now improved the system, I can say that this new evaluation will soon give results," he said. Doughnut retailer Krispy Kreme has opened up its 500th in-store cabinet with Tesco that signals a milestone for the two brands. The 500th cabinet has opened at Tesco Extra Silverburn, Glasgow and follows a year of expansion across the Scottish market. Krispy Kreme has continued to grow this year after opening up 48 brand new cabinets within Tesco stores across the nation. Each self-serve cabinet is supplied by one of Krispy Kremes 13 UK Hotlight stores, which produce the companys 16 doughnut varieties, and deliver them fresh every day to surrounding outlets. Suk Nicholas, UK sales director at Krispy Kreme, said: Our goal has always been to provide UK customers with the joy of Krispy Kreme and Tesco continues to be an important partner in achieving this. We are so proud of how far we have come together in just 12 years, and look forward to many more to come. Jim Colgan, store manager of Tesco Extra Silverburn, said: We are both delighted and proud to be the 500th Tesco site that stocks Krispy Kreme we have seen the positive impact Krispy Kreme has to our customers and we are excited to have this fantastic brand available for our customers." The retailer recently withdrew its plans for a 200m London flotation after announcing the 100% sale of its shares to US parent brand owner Krispy Kreme Group. The UK business sells about 50m doughnuts a year and was owned by Alcuin after it took control in a deal in 2011 that valued the company at around 25m. Visiting Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte struck a conciliatory pose during the second day of his four-day visit to China on Wednesday, downplaying the sensitive South China Sea issue at his first news conference in Beijing. "I'm here on a state visit to bring my respect to the great Chinese people and the Chinese government," he said. The plain-spoken leader defended his controversial anti-drug campaign and blasted US military involvement around the world. But he also added a bit of levity late Wednesday in explaining his lack of public engagements in the first 24 hours of his stay in the Chinese capital since his arrival on Tuesday night. "I slept," he said when asked what he did on Wednesday, triggering laughter from reporters. China is the first country outside ASEAN he has visited since taking office on June 30. He will meet with President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang and top legislator Zhang Dejiang on Thursday. The visit has stirred hopes that Duterte will raise China-Philippine relations from the low caused by the South China Sea arbitration case filed against Beijing by the Cabinet of his predecessor Benigno Aquino III. China has refused to recognize the result, which it says is invalid. When a reporter with the Japanese TV broadcaster NHK asked if he would raise the arbitration issue when meeting with Xi, Duterte said it is not the time to do so, and he will tell Xi, "I'm not here to make hard impositions". "I have to be courteous. ... It is a matter of courtesy and an Oriental way," he said, adding, "Because I am a visitor now, I cannot destroy the good will." On the potential economic outcome of his meeting with Chinese leaders on Thursday, Duterte said, "We will be asking for help from China." He did not elaborate. Ruan Zongze, vice-president of the China Institute of International Studies, said, "As long as the two sides embark on dialogue and return to consensus, divergences will be managed and controlled and a new window will be open for further repair of China-Philippine ties." Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said, "China-Philippine ties returning to the right track of healthy, stable development is good news for both countries as well as for regional peace and stability," Hua said. EAG was the winner of the award for the second consecutive year. EAG operates one of the regions largest managed fleets of business jets, with more than 25 aircraft based in Dubai, Oman, India, San Marino, Hong Kong and Nigeria. Paras Dhamecha, executive director, Empire Aviation Group, said: Empire Aviation Group is delighted to win this prestigious award for the second consecutive year. It is a recognition for the entire team which is dedicated to supporting aircraft owners with a very highly personalised level of service and a unique asset management approach. EAG continues to expand and develop with new aircraft coming on to our managed fleet across all our global operations and new services being added to enhance the aircraft ownership experience. The airline is a long-term partner of the fashion industry, supporting 17 Fashion Week events around the world annually Etihad Airways support of global fashion began with Fashion Weeks in Sydney, Berlin and Mumbai, culminating with the three major Fashion Weeks in New York, London and Milan. Patrick Pierce, Etihad Airways vice president sponsorship, said: Our custom partnerships with global Fashion Weeks began in style, with inspirational activations taking place across Europe, Asia and Australia, coupled with unique designer collaborations in each location. This alignment is a natural one for our commercial business, but also presents significant brand visibility and advocacy opportunities. It also gives us valuable access to influencers, opinion leaders, media and other stakeholders within the industry, in a manner previously not possible. Continuing to operate with a two-class Airbus A330-200 offering 22 Business and 240 Economy Class seats, the daily service will strengthen the air bridge between the two capital cities and appeal more to corporate and leisure travellers. From Madrid, travellers are able to connect to the network of Etihad Airways codeshare partner Air Europa to seven cities in Spain, including Barcelona, Bilbao, Gran Canaria, La Coruna, Palma de Mallorca, Tenerife and Vigo. Guests can connect with Air Europa beyond Madrid to destinations in South America and the Caribbean, including Asuncion, Cancun, Lima and Santo Domingo. Etihad Airways also offers links with codeshare partner Avianca between Madrid and the Colombian capital Bogota. Kevin Knight, Etihad Aviation Group chief strategy and planning officer, said: Our expanded Madrid operation is in line with Etihad Airways strategy to offer more choice, greater frequency and additional travel options when aircraft availability and market conditions permit. The extra flights will cater to the strong demand between the two capital cities, and connect our diverse international network even more with the Spanish capital and destinations across Spain and beyond, through our partners. The aircraft will be used for multi-purpose missions including both passenger transport and medevac services. This latest win, in a new territory for FAI, underlines the companys capabilities on the African continent which has already included operations with aircraft based in Sudan, South Sudan, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Mali. The head of FAIs air ambulance division Volker Lemke, said: We are proud that our significant expertise on the African continent has been recognised with the selection of FAI for this work. It demonstrates our strength in this field and strengthens FAIs position as a leading player in patient transport by air ambulance. Operations for the new contract will begin before the end of the year with two aircraft and operating crew setting up a base in Algiers. FAI recently took delivery of a new Learjet 60, bolstering the number of Learjet in its exclusively Bombardier fleet to 11. The latest aircraft will be used to support the new operations in Algeria and will replace FAIs last remaining Learjet 35A. FAIs dedicated air ambulance fleet now comprises: six Learjet 60s; two Learjet 55s and three Challenger 604s. This complements FAIs multi-purpose fleet of five Learjet 60s; two Challenger 604s and three Global Express, which serve both passenger transport and air ambulance roles. FAIs combined fleet totals 21 aircraft making it one of the largest business jet operators in Europe, by fleet size. FAIs chairman Siegfried Axtmann said: Time and time again the aircraft demonstrates its suitability for multi mission activity and really adds value to our offering for the new Algerian agreement. Pictured: FAI is adding an 11th Learjet 60 to the fleet which will support the Algerian contract. Kish Island pronounced quiche has been a focal point for Iranian aviation since the 1970s, when Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran, transformed the desolate Gulf island into a luxury casino and vacation resort. Its small airport was specifically designed to handle the supersonic Concorde, which whisked foreign dignitaries in from Paris under a wet-lease agreement with Iran Air. Much like the flag-carriers own order for Concordes, however, the debauchery came to an end with the 1979 Islamic Revolution that deposed the Shah and introduced more conservative values across the country. Kish now adheres to the same religious codes that govern the rest of Iran alcohol is forbidden; hijabs are mandatory for females. The island forged a new path in the 1980s by becoming one of Irans free-trade zones. Governing body, the Kish Free Zone Organisation (KFZO), now woos overseas investors with the promise of visa-free travel, 15-year tax exemptions and no restrictions on foreign ownership. Its overarching plan is to transform Kish into the next Dubai an oasis for business and high-end tourism in the Persian Gulf. Yet, sanctions have long scuppered that vision. Despite steady investment in shopping centres, luxury hotels and even a dolphinarium, Kish remains a predominantly domestic resort served only by Iranian and Iraqi airlines. Persians account for nearly 90% of the 1.5 million people who visit the island each year. Among foreigners, the largest contingent is migrant workers from the United Arab Emirates, who come solely to renew their visas. According to Saeed Kalhori, deputy-managing director of KFZO-owned Kish Air, the lifting of nuclear-related sanctions gives the island the best opportunity yet to make good on its long-standing aspirations. I remember when Concorde was landing here. Kish is a free-zone area and from the very beginning it has been a focal point for the tourists, he said. So we know it could be a very good transportation hub for cargo and for the passengers and there is no need for a visa when coming here. Anybody can come very easily. They are all welcome. Kish Air operates a dual-hub strategy from both Kish International Airport and Tehrans Mehrabad International Airport. Its network primarily focuses on domestic links from the capital, but also includes scheduled and charter flights to Turkey, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Oman and the UAE. As well as tapping into Kish Islands potential as a tourism destination, Kalhori is mindful of the Gulf's geographical advantage for connecting traffic. Iran is in the middle [of the world], so we have lots of capability to go to the north to Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries; to the south to all the Arabic places; and also to Europe or Asia, he said, using language reminiscent of the sixth-freedom Gulf carriers. Iran is just in the middle. We have possibilities in all four directions. Casting his eye over markets within narrow-body range, Kalhori named Vienna to the west, Delhi to the east, and Moscow to the north as the boundaries for route development. A mixture of both scheduled and charter flights will be pursued. Kish Airs expansion programme formally kicked into gear in March just weeks after the lifting of nuclear-related sanctions when the airline wet-leased two Airbus A320s from Jordan Aviation. The aircraft joined a pre-existing fleet of seven McDonnell Douglas MD-80s and three Fokker 100s. They will be followed or replaced later this summer by two A321s. With near-term plans for six to eight additional narrow-bodies, the fleet could number 20 by the end of the decade. We have lots of offers from difference companies, Kalhori noted, voicing a preference for second-hand units during the initial growth phase. For the price of one brand new aircraft, we can buy maybe three or four [older] aircraft. Asked whether the deliveries could allow Kish Air to retire some of its pre-existing aircraft the MDs and Fokkers are all between 21 and 29 years old he said adding capacity was the main priority in the short-term. Keeping the vintage planes in service will also give his pilots and engineers breathing space while they re-train for the latest generation of aircraft. We have to give ourselves a little time to be settled down, he stressed. Its better to do it step-by-step. Interestingly, although Airbus has secured a head start in post-sanctions Iran, Kish Air does not rule out transitioning to a Boeing fleet when it eventually acquires new-build aircraft. Kalhori held informal talks with the US manufacturer at last years Dubai Airshow, and he considers either the 737-800 or 737-900 to be viable long-term replacements for the A321. Whatever is available; we want to expand the airline as soon as possible, so who is coming first is the one who gets the door open, he said. Airbus has been here in Iran for the last 35, 40 years. Boeing is just starting to look [at Iranian deals], so they have to do a lot [to catch up]. Should one of the manufacturers secure a direct purchase, the spoils may even include wide-body commitments. Kish Air expects to order long-haul aircraft in about three years, Kalhori confirmed, and a mixed fleet is not in the plan. One type of aircraft is to the benefit of the airline, the deputy chief said, pointing to synergies for engineering, maintenance and training. By the end of the third year [of the initial growth phase] we will go for wide-body, long-range aircraft. If we go with Airbus for the narrow-body aircraft, then certainly it will be Airbus family for the wide-body. And the same [principle applies] for Boeing. As recently as December, media reports suggested that Kish Air was preparing to place an order for 10-15 Tupolev Tu-204s. Russian-built aircraft were easier to source and maintain during sanctions, but a spate of high-profile accidents tainted their image and prompted Irans Civil Aviation Organisation to impose a blanket ban in 2011. Despite previously operating Tu-154s, Kalhori was adamant that Kish Air would not be acquiring Tupolevs. With so much optimism about Irans post-sanctions prospects, it is important not to forget the uphill struggle that awaits its long-handicapped airlines. Kish Airs heavy exposure to the island after which it takes its name is particularly sobering. Though officials speak confidently about a doubling of visitor numbers within three years 2.7 million passengers passed through the airport in 2015 delivering that goal will be no mean feat. Even if the airports new terminal is completed on time, the ever-present threat of snap-back sanctions could deter some foreign businesses and hoteliers from setting up shop. Irans national ban on alcohol may also be a dampener for foreign tourists. Nonetheless, President Hassan Rouhanis visit to Kish in March, underscores how the government now sees the island as a test case for the countrys economic renewal and global reintegration. With Ayatollah Khamenei, Irans supreme leader, voicing support for a resistance economy that empowers domestic industries, the stars seem perfectly aligned for a new era of growth in the Shahs former playground. As a subsidiary of KFZO, Kish Air is in pole position to facilitate and benefit from the developmental renaissance. Three winning designs have been selected, from the entries from local Omani designers; all three kits will be produced and will be available on Oman Air flights in 2017. The design produced by Ahlam Hamad Al Mahrouqi obtained the first place, whereas Issa Saleh Al Sabaghs design won the second place, and the design of Jokha Abdullah Al Barwani was awarded the third place. Oman Airs executive vice president - Products and Brand Development, Abdulaziz Al Raisi said: We are the national carrier of the Sultanate of Oman and as such our history and heritage is incredibly important to us. The amenity kits not only play an important part in the passenger experience but we also wanted them to showcase Omani craftsmanship and innovation. The three winning designs are not only innovative but also will be incredibly practical and are premium examples of Omani design. The design competition was seen as a way to extend this support to lesser known local designers. The technology builds on success of eXPhone service, which is already installed on over 450 aircraft worldwide. The announcement follows increasing airline adoption of the eXPhone platform and increased customer demand for on-board mobile connectivity. The newly launched 3G technology delivers a richer and faster passenger experience and enables access to a greater number of applications. The inflight 3G network, which is operated over Panasonics eXConnect service, enables a range of services much closer to those experienced on the ground. Faster browsing, bigger attachments, quicker posts, more responsive apps and gaming, all lead to a better connected cabin experience taking travel into a new era. David Bruner, vice president of global communications services, Panasonic Avionics Corporation said: Our continued partnership with AeroMobile is testament to the eXPhone platform and how it enables airlines to offer mobile connectivity in the aircraft cabin that is easy and simple to connect to and use. The technologys continued success demonstrates how Wi-Fi and mobile connectivity are totally complimentary services, consistently doubling the number of connected users in the cabin and revenue opportunities for the airline. Kevin Rogers, chief executive officer at AeroMobile added: Passengers carry different devices, have different connectivity needs and have different payment preferences. Passengers each have their own connected world. We are all used to choice on the ground choice between mobile and Wi-Fi connectivity - and we are proud that our partnership with Panasonic continues to enable passengers to access different services at different times and pay in different ways. The Prinsenhof is a metropolitan, multipurpose building located in het Beatrixkwartier, The Hague. Completed in 2005, this brick-clad complex is composed of a series of towers that house various functions for living, working and leisure. Ten years after completion, the original tenants left, relocated or downsized. Therefore the owner/client Bouwinvest and property manager CBRE commissioned atelier PRO to completely renovate one vacant office floor in Tower C in one season within a specified budget, to illustrate the possibilities of the space for potential new tenants. Chalange Clothing in old photographs often indicates what was fashionable at the time; similarly, the vacated offices also show how times have changed. The then-typical arrangement of corridors lined with small offices now mostly waste internal travel time for personnel. An outdated layout, with outdated finishes. Corridors with transparent partitions were covered with frosted film. Inefficient open plan sections were definitely not permitted. Workspaces usually consisted of two- to four-person offices divided by flexible partitions, which ultimately remained fixed. For a potential tenant, its rather challenging to overlook the frosted film, worn patches in the multi-coloured carpet and old signage. Maximising the spatial quality To best capture the spatial quality of the vacant leasable floors, atelier PRO first organised the layout according to the clearest logistics, best orientation and most beautiful light. In line with the approach of Het Nieuwe Werken, (meaning New Ways of Working) the space is divided into different work and meeting areas. From having only conventional corridors lined with offices, the floor is transformed into a large, open space where more fluid work processes and a flexible work environment can be optimally facilitated. The choice of workspaces ranges from a lounge to boardroom, from multipurpose presentation rooms to quiet workspaces, and everything in between. Conventional office units with tables for a maximum of 6 staff are replaced by hot desks for making phone calls, holding informal meetings or taking short breaks. Alongside workspaces, the floor also accommodates a meeting zone with a reception, waiting lounge, lunch area and kitchen. Four interior styles The style of the interior follows the planning. Which atmosphere should be conveyed to potential tenants? In consultation with CBRE and Bouwinvest, atelier PRO conducted research into the aesthetic that would best fit the target group. Four different styles were designed to inspire tenants, of which one was realised. These styles are visualised in rendered interior perspectives displayed on four large panels each panel shows the same view/layout rendered in a different style. The four styles are: - Icy White - Industrial Brut - Italian Chic - Simply Scandinavian: this style was realised for the display office floor. Added value Additionally, atelier PRO styled the interior to deliver a complete vision. A set lunch table, fully operational kitchen, indoor plants, art and interior accessories give visitors the impression that they could move in right away. During the construction process, interested parties such as existing tenants from other floors already visited to see the change. This generates the right buzz. In the coming period, events will be held on the display office floor. This ensures the PR value for the investment. Even the clients and their team have decided to work in the office seated behind the new office desks with their laptops until the floor is leased. Display office floor The aim of the transformation was to create a display office floor to demonstrate how a modern company could occupy this new space in a contemporary way. In short: project-specific customisation. The project involved: - Demolition and removal of the old layout and interior - Constructional renovation of the entire floor - Completely new interior designed right down to the smallest detail. Renovation within a limited budget For this project, atelier PRO collaborated with a contractor/ supplier of partitions. Construction works were prioritised to maximise the limited budget. In this way, the ceiling is repaired instead of being completely renovated. Installations for heating, lighting, ventilation, fireproofing, electricity and data are adapted where necessary for safety and aesthetics according to the new interior design. After the old interior was demolished, the floor was completely levelled. Atelier PRO started the redesign of this 1050m2 space in June 2014. The project took four months to complete. YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, ARMENPRESS. The Defense Ministry of Nagorno Karabakh told Armenpress Azerbaijan violated the ceasefire regime more than 35 times at the Nagorno Karabakh-Azerbaijan line of contact. The Ministrys announcement reads: Overnight October 18-19 the Azerbaijani side violated the ceasefire regime more than 35 times across the Nagorno Karabakh-Azerbaijan line of contact. The Azerbaijani forces fired over 6100 shots from various caliber small arms at the Armenian positions. In the southern direction the Azerbaijani forces fired also DShK heavy machine gun (1160 shots). The Defense Army forces took counter measures for suppressing the Azerbaijani activeness and continued confidently fulfilling their military duties. The trend is evident in such acclaimed serials as Girls, Unreal, and Transparent in the U.S. Meanwhile in the U.K., period pieces Call the Midwife and Victoria, Blightys biggest new drama this fall, have put women to the fore in two different centuries. The fashion for female leads is just as clear in comedy. QUITO, Ecuador -- Ecuadors government acknowledged on Tuesday that it had temporarily restricted WikiLeaks founder Julian Assanges internet access at its embassy in London after the whistleblowing site published documents from Hillary Clintons presidential campaign. A foreign ministry statement said that while it stands by its decision in 2012 to grant Assange asylum, it doesnt interfere in foreign elections. Leftist President Rafael Correas government said it was acting on its own and not ceding to foreign pressures. The ministry didnt specify the extent of the restrictions on Assanges access to the internet, saying only that the limitations wouldnt affect WikiLeaks ability to carry out its journalistic activities. The announcement confirmed Wikileaks claim that Ecuador was behind the cut-off but disputed its assertion that the decision was made because of U.S. pressure. On Monday, the group tweeted: We can confirm Ecuador cut off Assanges internet access Saturday, 5pm GMT, shortly after publication of Clintons Goldman Sachs (speeches). In follow-up messages posted Tuesday, the group claimed U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had personally intervened to ask Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing documents about Clinton. Citing multiple US sources, WikiLeaks said the request was made on the sidelines of negotiations which took place last month in Colombia. The State Department denied the allegation. While our concerns about Wikileaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down Wikileaks is false, U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said in an email. Speaking to reporters later, deputy spokesman Mark Toner said Kerry never even raised the issue or met with Correa during his visit to Colombia. There just was no meeting, he said. They didnt discuss any of this stuff. Assange has been holed up at the modest embassy suite at No. 3 Hans Crescent for more than four years after skipping bail to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex crimes allegations, a position which - until now - hasnt prevented him from continuing to play a pivotal role in exposing state secrets and backroom trade deals. An Introduction to Doing Business in Singapore 2022 is designed to introduce the fundamentals of investing in Singapore, compiled by the professionals at Dezan... Mosul (AsiaNews) When Isis (or Daesh) was rising to power in Syria and Iraq i the letter "N" (Arabic word for "Nasrani", Nazarene) appeared on the homes of Christians to be exterminated or forcibly converted. Now as the Iraqi army advances on Mosul another letter is appearing on the citys walls, only this time the Arabic letter "M" from "Muqawamah" resistance (see image 2 ). This is the only way the citys people can express their desire for freedom after almost two years under the rule of the Caliphate. The news was confirmed by a Daesh site in Mosul, "Arab 21", listing the names of Iraqis caught in the act. For this reason, they were sentenced on the spot, without even the ruling of a Sharia court. The names mentioned by the site are: Yakzan Giuri, Baker Kassem, Hatem Ahmed, Ziyad Mohamed, Karam Zukayret, Mohamed Zukayret, Omar Yunes, Mohamed Hamed, Abdel Rahman Hamadi, Mohamed Imad and Omar Hazem. Mosul residents have promised in secret that in the future, once liberated the city from the Islamic State, will build a monument to their honor, proclaiming them national heroes. In a video released by Daesh in Iraq, you see the corpses of sentenced persons with their foreheads painted black to symbolize their belonging to the anti-Islamic "forces of darkness". They are shot 9in the head condemning them to death (images 1 and 3). In the video you hear the Executioner shouting in Arabic their sentence: "You have abandoned your religion with a single letter, you have sold your faith to a vile world so that now you have lost both religion and the world" . According to local sources contacted by AsiaNews, there is a growing nervousness among Daesh ranks, even if their leaders continue to act with cool calm and security. The fear grew yesterday with the arrival of many fighters fleeing from Hamadaniyah, to the east of Mosul, now under Iraqi army control. For two days in fact the Iraqi flag flies over the local government building. Iraqi TV Al Sumariya reported that Daesh is now on the run from Hamadaniya and has left 25 dead on the field. In Mosul, the AsiaNews sources say that Daesh fighters are fleeing in the direction of Raqqa and Deir Ez Zor in Syria, with the approval of many countries involved. In particular, Daesh militiamen are being allowed to pass through areas controlled by the Turkish army in Iraq. This would seem to confirm a complicity between Turkey and the Islamic state. A few days ago President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, speaking at the University of Riza, in the far northeast of Turkey, said: "We will not withdraw from Iraq until the fate of Mosul is defined." Erdogan and senior Turkish leaders nourish a neo-Ottoman dream and are planning future territorial annexations to incorporate northern Syria, northern Iraq with Mosul, Erbil and Kirkuk, and a part of Armenia. Pictures have been posted on Twitter of the new map of Turkey, which incorporates these new territories (see image 4). Turkeys allies, who linger in the murky waters of Daesh, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have launched a new media war spreading a hashtag titled "Mosul is annihilated". The Iraqi government immediately responded with another hashtag: "Mosul is liberated." (PB) by Louis Raphael Sako* The Christians of Qaraqosh, on the Nineveh Plain, celebrate the liberation of their town with Masses of thanksgiving, dancing and singing. Now in its third day, the Iraqi army and Peshmerga continues the offensive towards Mosul. The Islamic State use civilians as human shields. Mar Sako urges Iraqis to work for the birth of a "genuine and civil democracy". Baghdad (AsiaNews) The hundreds of Christians who fled from Qaraqosh, south of Mosul, in the summer of 2014 with the rise of the Islamic State (IS) yesterday celebrated the liberation of their village with songs, dances and masses. The local community, who fled with only the clothes on their backs a little over two years ago to escape the jihadist violence, celebrated the military successes achieved thus far by the army. On the morning of October 18, a coalition of 30 thousand men, mainly Iraqi soldiers and Kurdish Peshmerga militia, joined by Sunni tribal forces, began an offensive to retake Mosul, the jihadist stronghold in Iraq, and the Nineveh Plain. US military sources report the fighters of Daesh [Arabic acronym for the SI] are using civilians as human shields, as the Arab and Kurdish soldiers get closer and closer to the city. There are at least 700 thousand people trapped and unable to escape in Mosul, hostage to 5 thousand jihadists who are fighting in defense of their fort. According to military sources involved in the offensive for the liberation of Qaraqosh, one of the most important villages of the plain, about 15 km south of Mosul, is not yet complete; several jihadists are still hidden in some homes, and do not intend to lay down their arms. However, for the Christians in exile it is already time to celebrate (pictured). The Assyrian-Chaldean community in Iraq have posted photos and images of celebrations, with dancing and singing and there are videos of the celebrations of a group of refugees in a reception center in Erbil, in Iraqi Kurdistan. Still others wanted to remember the event with a solemn Mass (click here for video). Dozens of children, women and men gathered to pray in the church of Mar Shimon, in Erbil. The Chaldean Patriarch Mar Raphael Louis Sako has renewed his call for national unity for the success of this huge military. "We Iraqis - said the Chaldean Primate - are one in spite of our various affiliations. He hoped that the offensive would give birth to a "genuine democracy and civilian" that is "respectful of all." Here, below, we publish Mar Sakos appeal shared with AsiaNews: As you all know, a lot of effort is currently placed on the preparations for liberating Mosul (one of the most important historical cities in Iraq) and Nineveh Plain. Therefore, I would like on this occation to speak, from the bottom of my heart, to our Iraqi family as a whole and mainly in Nineveh, regarding our common concerns and worries under such difficult and exceptional circumstances. Especially, that the voices of division, inflexibility and break up began to rise, which may impede the operations of release! I strongly believe that we Iraqis are one family, despite of our different affiliations. Though, the current situation demands from all Mouslians, as is the case for all Iraqis, to bear a complete historical, national and moral responsibility in, building a balanced internal and external relationships; avoiding accusations and blame; putting an end to disputes; wavering self and factional interests; and upholding Iraqis benefit before and above everything else. This way enables us to pave the actual path for a real communal reconciliation, love, peace, and the release of all occupied lands. So, we as Iraqis, can retrieve some confidence and hope for a quick solution to our long-standing dilemma, by the establishment of a genuine and civil democracy, that respects everyone in a peaceful and civilized means. This is the only way for our absolute recovery. I also urge the international community to take concrete steps in order that Iraq and the region regain their security and peace. This kind of success would be a triumph for everyone and for the international well-being. Finally, I pray: May God Protect us, Shorten our suffering, Preserve the purity of our human kinship and Watch over the unity of our beloved country. *Patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Community by Mathias Hariyadi The president announces same prices in two remote, hard-to-reach provinces on the island of New Guinea where, in some regencies, petrol can cost up to 14 times than in the rest of the country. Locals welcome the decision but the state oil company slams it because of its hefty price tag of US$ 61 million. Jakarta (AsiaNews) Fuel prices in the provinces of Papua and West Papua will be the same as in the rest of Indonesia, following a decision by President Joko Widodo. Pertamina, the state oil and gas company, has criticised the move, which it claims will lead to huge financial losses. However, people in the two provinces on the island New Guinea welcomed the announcement, which will end decades of inequality and economic disadvantages. Widodo made the decision today during a visit to Yahukimo, a regency (district) in Papua, for the inauguration of a new airport. He is the first head of state to visit the place since 1945, when Indonesia proclaimed its independence from the Netherlands. The region saw violent clashes in 2009 and 2013, when a series of bad harvests caused protests that left scores of people dead. Because of logistical difficulties in reaching the remote provinces, fuel prices have been 14 times higher than in the other islands of the country. In Puncak Regency for example, a litre of gasoline costs 50,000 rupees (about US$ 3.85). Before the opening of the new airport, the area could only be reached by ultralight aircraft. Fuel prices in Papua "were unfair, said the president. A litre of gasoline costs 7,000 rupees in Java, but almost 70,000 in Wamena. I think it must not be like that." For a long time, Papua was the only province to remain under Dutch rule after independence. In 1969, through an Act of Free Choice, Indonesia annexed the province, but many remain convinced that it was all orchestrated by Jakarta. Since then, separatist movements have operated in the territory. They do not recognise the decision results and demand independence. These groups argue that the province is being subjected to a "slow-motion genocide" against its ethnic minorities and Christians. High fuel prices have often triggered protests from politicians, governors and civil society groups. Part of the population welcomed news of price parity, but the state-owned oil company Pertamina said it would lead to losses of more than 800 billion rupees (about US$ 61 million). For the President, "this is not a question of profit or losses. I ordered the National Enterprises Minister to find concrete solution to address this huge fuel price discrepancy. My concern is how to reduce this. Behnam Irani served a six year sentence in prison. While in jail he suffered abuse and mistreatment. An American entrepreneur of Iranian origin sentenced to 10 years. According to the indictment he "collaborated" with Washington. Tehran (AsiaNews / Agencies) - After spending six years in jail, the Protestant pastor Behnam Irani has been freed and left his cell in the Ghezel Hesar prison, the largest in the country about 20 km north-west of Teheran. According to sources from his religious community, the man had served the full term of his sentence and so was released. Behnam Irani, 43, is a former Protestant Christian from Karaj, some 20 km west of the Iranian capital. He is married to Kristina, a Christian Armenian, and they have two children: Rebecca, 11, and Adriel 5. His conversion took place in 1992 and, years later, he became a pastor and leader of his community. According says the president of Truth Ministries, Irani was arrested a first time in December 2006 and the second time in April 2010; in both cases he was tried on charges of "crimes" against national security. With this charge, continues DeMars, the aim is to bar persons who perform religious services in a private homes, and those proselytize or "convert Muslims to Christ." The second and final arrest (click here for video) dates back to April 14, 2010, while he was on his way to a church in a house of prayer. Officers of the Intelligence Ministry of the Islamic Republic detained him, while seizing Bibles, Christian materials, DVDs and other items. Released on bail, he was tried in January 2011 and convicted of "crimes against national security." The authorities decided to inflict all five years of the sentence (suspended) originally passed down in 2008 following his first arrest and trial. From the beginning of his captivity Behnam Irani has faced several physical problems and illnesses. He also suffered beatings from the prison security guards. This resulted in a drastic loss of vision, slurred speech and reduced mobility. Ulcers and other diseases have undermined his physical health but not his resistance and "with God's help," concludes DeMars, he managed to survive. In Iran the evangelical Protestant groups do not enjoy the recognition of the State. This recognition is given to the Catholic and Orthodox Christian communities, as well as several other minorities (other than Islam). They have freedom of worship and social activities, but they are prohibited from proselytizing. Protestant communities, from this point of view, practice their faith "illegally", sometimes with pronounced expressions of proselytism. Some friends of Pastor Benham had expressed fears that he could be convicted of apostasy and executed. But so far Iran has not passed any law on apostasy. As the Protestant minister was being released a US businessman of Iranian origin was being imprisoned for 10 years with his 80 year old father for "collaboration" with Washington's "hostile" government. Siamak Namazi, international relations expert and consultant for various companies, will have to serve 10 years in prison. His father Baquer Namazi, former employee of UNICEF and former governor of Khuzestan province before the Islamic Revolution of 1979, has also been jailed. Three other people have also been jailed for 10 years on similar charges: Nezar Zaka, an American of Lebanese origin and two others identified with the initials FHA and AA. According to Iranian state television Zaka has "numerous and deep ties" with the US intelligence and provided information vital to national security. The worlds most famous transport route between Europe and Asia is 100 years old. China, Japan and Western countries are looking for cheaper alternatives routes. One possibility is the Arctic. Moscow (AsiaNews) This month, the Trans-Siberian railway (popularly known as Trans-Sib) celebrates its first 100 years. However, Russia has no official plans to mark this occasion for the worlds longest railway (9,288 km) due to its advanced age and the countrys economic woes. The fabled Trans-Sib that inspires travellers and artists from around the world, is badly maintained that some wonder whether it might have reached the end of its usable life. Plans to upgrade the line are in the works, but corruption and lack of a transparent legal culture have forced the authorities to put them off. Earlier this year, the Russian Accounting Chamber discovered that Russian Railways had spent only 3.7 billion of the 50 billion rubles it had been given for rebuilding the Trans-Sib and other rail lines in Siberia. The rest it put out at interest, apparently deciding that was a more profitable venture than rebuilding the railways as it was supposed to. As a result, investigators found that no work had been done at 30 of the 88 sites where it had been scheduled. Another factor that might lead to the decommissioning of the railway is that Russias trading partners want a less expensive trade link between Europe and Asia. China, Japan and Europe might opt for alternatives routes or go for the Arctic, which is increasingly ice-free as a result of global warming. Despite this, Russian authorities plan to restart upgrading the Trans-Sib and and the related Baikal-Amur Mainline (4,234 km) next year. But if they abandon the project, Russias economic clout in Asia would suffer a major blow. Still, the Trans-Siberian carries 30 per cent of the countrys annual exports. Mikhail Abyzov, the Russian Federations minister for open government, expressed support for upgrading the line, which he considers an important goal for the government. One of the men ran fled to Syria for more than a year with his whole family. The other two killed in clashes with counter-terrorism squads. 233 thousand euro in funds handed over to bankroll the attack. Dhaka (AsiaNews) - The Dhaka Metropolitan Police has identified three prominent leaders of the new Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB New) who financed the massacre of foreigners carried out by Islamic militants at the Holey Artisan Bakery Cafe in the capital . The three men, two of whom died in recent clashes with anti-terrorism forces, have poured the equivalent of over 233 thousand euro (20 million taka) into the coffers of the local extremist group. The news was released yesterday by Monirul Islam, head of the anti-terrorism and transnational crimes unit. The three financers are: Dr. Rokon Uddin, Tanveer Quaderi and former army officer Zahidul Islam known as Murad. The head of counterterrorism revealed that Dr. Rokon donated 8 million taka (more than 96 thousand euro). The man has fled to Syria with his entire family at least a year ago, and probably joined the militants of the Caliphate. He is a former archivist of Bangladesh Children's Hospital and lived in Khilgaon. His wife Naima Akther was a botany teacher at MM College in Jessore. Of the two other funders, Zahid Islamic donated his pension to the organization, while Tanveer Quaderi gave the proceeds of the sale of his apartment in Uttara, 10 million taka (more than 116 thousand euro). Both died in the police blitz. In July 1 last a group of terrorists stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery Cafe in Dhaka, and killed 20 foreigners. This has sparked a massive manhunt and Bangladeshi authorities are pursuing the masterminds behind the attack. The security forces say that besides the money of the three local men, they are continuing to look for traces of funds from abroad, often disguised in the form of donations to non-governmental organizations. Monirul said that "weapons and money used for the Gulshan attack come from abroad. We found that some Bangladeshi citizens, who now do not live at home, have sent 1.4 million taka (over 16 thousand euro) ". Teen Sparks Fury Over Anti-Tampon Rant Trending News: This Tool Told Women To Forget Tampons And 'Control Ur Bladder' Why Is This Important? Because he must have skipped anatomy class. Long Story Short A 19-year-old from the U.K. is receiving backlash on social media and alleged death threats after telling women that they don't need tampons and they should just "control ur bladder." Long Story In the United Kingdom, sanitary items like tampons are taxed five percent as they're seen as a "luxury item." The (ridiculous) tax has come under scrutiny including a Change.org petition with over 320,000 signatures and may be amended, although it faces some opposition. A teenage self-proclaimed "meninist" (ugh) and Brexiteer tweeted his support for the 'Tampon-Tax' and was liked and retweeted nearly 6,000 times. Tampons should not be free, why does everyone keep saying they should be?? if u can't control ur bladder then that's not taxpayers problem! Ryan (@ryanwilliams97) October 16, 2016 If your bladder is too weak... which clearly it is for most of you, then see a doctor and have the same procedure. Ryan (@ryanwilliams97) October 18, 2016 Ryan Williams compared controlling a period with holding in a poo or pee. Quite obviously, he needs a class in anatomy because the female body simply doesn't work like that and social media has tried to educate him. @ryanwilliams97 do u know.. anything about vaginas jess (@hurrciane) October 16, 2016 It doesn't look like the free lessons have gone over too well. Williams, who's from Essex, tried to post a poll to validate his ignorant statement, but it backfired when 90% of over 20,000 voters said tampons should be free. Should Tampons be free? Ryan (@ryanwilliams97) October 17, 2016 Williams has since complained about the backlash he's received from "feminists," which include "death threats." "People have told me that I must have skipped biology lessons but I don't understand how that is relevant," he said according to the Mirror. "I have even had death threats." However, he said some men have supported him. "I have had a lot of messages from men saying I am right. I think it has been a real eye-opener for them." I'd like to think this kid is just trolling. At least, I hope so. Own The Conversation Ask The Big Question Is this kid just trolling? Disrupt Your Feed This show's the necessity of teaching sex ed. Drop This Fact Canada ruled in 2015 to lift its tampon tax. In light of continued developments, primarily since 2008, there exists in these United States a Legal System which operates on a proved Two Tiered approach to justice rendered, which primarily benefits Democratic Elites and Woke Ideological Virtue Signalers, representing their co-dependent wards, to the expressed exclusion of normal hardworking American citizens: What is your suggestion in remedying this widespread injustice and, if not corrected, its existential outcome for our Constitutional Republic? Complete overhaul of the Department of Justice and their enforcers - the FBI - to reflect a far more honest justice system to keep patriots remaining calm. Disband the FBI, and request that congress investigate all unethical and non patriotic practices to partially right the wrongs of a distrusted and politically weaponized "Department of Justice." Costco is shaking up wholesale and retail industries, IBIS viewpoint Viewpoint piece by IBISWorld. IBISWorld is an Australian research company which provides market research reports. Costco Wholesale Australia Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of the US-based chain Costco Wholesale Corporation, entered the Australian market in 2009 through a single store in Melbourne. Since then, the company has grown its presence across several retailing and wholesaling industries, and has put pressure on established supermarkets and grocery stores, grocery wholesalers and consumer goods retailers. Costco is continuing to rapidly expand, and now operates eight stores across Victoria, New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory, South Australia and Queensland, with plans to open another two new stores in Sydney and Melbourne. Costco sells memberships for approximately $60 per year, and members who pay this fee can then purchase the companys low-price products in a wholesale format. New store openings saw Costco record revenue of $1.3 billion in its 2014-15 financial year (year ending August), after 50.5% growth on the previous year. Among supermarkets and grocery stores, an industry expected to be worth $105.1 billion in 2016-17, Costco currently accounts for an estimated 1.7% of industry revenue. Despite this small proportion, the company has been rapidly expanding through new store openings and the appeal of its cheap prices. Costco has put pressure on Coles and Woolworths, the industrys two largest players, which are already struggling with Aldis growing presence. Costcos influence is expected to increase over the next few years, particularly if the company follows through with its reported intention to purchase the sites of Woolworths Masters big-box hardware stores, which are due to close in December 2016. The general line grocery wholesaling industry has faced difficult operating conditions over the past five years. Increasing instances of wholesale bypass and heavy supermarket discounting have constrained growth for wholesalers. As a result, industry revenue is expected to be limited, increasing at an annualised 1.8% over the five years through 2016-17, to total $21.4 billion. Increasing instances of wholesale bypass and heavy supermarket discounting have constrained growth for wholesalers. Despite accounting for a negligible proportion of the industrys total revenue, Costco provides wholesaling services to businesses through bulk order services for business members. If the company follows its parent companys model, its continuing expansion will likely lead to increased investment in its wholesaling operations. This would likely hurry along the exit of many smaller, independently-owned wholesalers, which are already struggling. Aside from groceries and other purchases traditionally made at supermarkets, Costco also supplies a range of other consumer goods. These include clothes, hardware, electronics, cleaning equipment, pharmacy products, and toys and games. The consumer goods retail industry is estimated to be worth $161.4 billion dollars in 2016-17. As the company continues to expand, Costco is anticipated to increase its market share in this industry and put pressure on major consumer goods retailers, such as Wesfarmers and Woolworths. Despite operating in Australia for less than a decade, Costco is already making its presence known across retailing and wholesaling industries. Although it is not yet a major player in any industry, this may change as the company continues to expand and increase its revenue growth over the next five years. This article was republished with permission from IBISWorld. Related articles New Zealand also decides to axe the Healthy Heart tick The New Zealand Heart Foundation is following in the steps of its Australian counterparts, deciding to retire the Healthy Heart tick in New Zealand too. The Healthy Heart Tick, which aimed to help consumers make healthier food choices, has been seen on New Zealand sold products for the past 25 years. The New Zealand Heart Foundation now however says it is time to follow a decision the Australian Heart Foundation made in December 2015 and retire the tick. New Zealand Tick Promgramme Manager, Deb Sue, said it was time to stop using the tick due to changes occurring across the nutrition landscape in New Zealand. The food and nutrition landscape is complex and our nutrition voice will continue to play a key role in guiding consumers through the maze of confusion, and towards making good choices for them and their families, Sue said. Behind the scenes, we will continue to work with companies to reduce sugar and sodium in a number of food categories. Were also continuing to help Kiwis to create nutritious meals using whole and less processed ingredients, and to make healthier choices through our recipes and visual food guide, Sue stated. Products sold in New Zealand can display a healthy star rating (HSR) the same as food and beverages sold within Australia. Additionally, the HSR is prompting food manufacturers to reformulate products so that they gain higher star ratings, Sue said. During its years in use the Healthy Heart tick helped raise revenue for the Heart Foundation with food manufacturers asked to pay a fee in order to display the logo. The fee was however one of the criticisms of the tick program. The program also drew other criticisms including when it was allowed to appear on some McDonalds foods and meals sold within Australia in 2007. In farewelling the tick, the New Zealand Heart Foundation said it resulted in 33 tonnes of salt being removed from three food categories in one year. It also ensured the inclusion of nutrition information panels on all tick packaged foods 13 years before it was made mandatory to do so in New Zealand. The tick will be phased out across New Zealand in 2017. Related articles A call to revamp Western Australias jury system has been made by a leading Perth lawyer. The plea was made by Tom Percy QC, president of the Australian Lawyers Alliance, after a juror dismissed for a Facebook post. Percy said that the number of jurors accessing the internet to comment or seek information about a case is alarming, a report from WAtoday revealed. The trend which possibly denies defendants a fair trial has become all too regular, he said. "The day of the jury may very well be nearly over," the lawyer said. It's too seductive for a [juror] to go home at night and go, 'geez what about this bloke, Bill Smith, I'll just go and Google him', he added They find out about him and what he does, they go on Facebook and look him up there and if they don't disclose that... they are armed with knowledge that's not in evidence at the trial that may well be considerable prejudice to the accused, he concluded. The dismissed juror is said to have posted on Facebook about a murder case a day before the trial was scheduled to commence. At Perth District Court, guilty! the woman posted on her Facebook account. Justice Stephen Hall called on the juror to explain the post and said she disrespected the legal process with the social media status that was inappropriate and foolish. The judge said he could not be confident the woman would be a fair juror. Theresa May can legally make Brexit happen by triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty without an Act of Parliament, the High Court has been told. The assertion was made as the legal challenge to the Brexit which began last week is heard by the High Court. Attorney General Jeremy Wright said the Prime Minister can use the royal prerogative to take Britain out of the European Union because after the referendum, the executive power is made available to give effect to the will of the people. This is not a narrow legal challengeIt seeks to invalidate the decision already taken to withdraw from the EU, said Wright according to The Guardian. The challenge seeks to force the government to be required to have an Act of Parliament authorise the initiation of Article 50. Under the article, it is decreed that any EU member state may leave the union in accordance with its own constitutional requirements, a stipulation vague enough to allow differing interpretations. The lord chief justice, Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, the master of the rolls, Sir Terence Etherton, and Lord Justice Sales are hearing the challenge but given the importance of the matter, the case is expected to make its way all the way up to the Supreme Court before the years end. Making and unmaking treaties are an established use of royal prerogative powers. The use of prerogative powers [to trigger Brexit] was wholly within the expectation of parliament, Wright told the senior judges. The question is, has parliament acted to limit the availability of the royal prerogative powers? The answer, we say, is no. Theres nothing expressed in legislation that [shows] parliament has attempted to circumscribe the powers to make treaties. Parliament has conspicuously refused to legislate on withdrawing from the EU despite many opportunities if it had so wanted. Hi, I'm on the verge of getting my Skilled - independent (Subclass 189) visa and planning to settle in Canberra ACT. However, as most of the jobs in Canberra would be in government sector and would require Australian citizenship, is it a wise decision to choose Canberra ACT over other cities in Australia? If not, then which Australian city would be best for a permanent residency visa holder? Any suggestions/advice will be highly appreciated. Cheers, Swaps Okay the confusion sets in once more. I was about to print out and fill out the 47 SP but I checked to see what others had to say about it and I see Mish and others advising that we don't need it. So, I've done the 820, 1220 and 40 SP and they all have the same damned questions! How much repeating do we have to do? Someone please tell me if we have to do the 47 SP or not if we've done the others and if not, why is it on there? Jeremy Hooper said: I don't think they will accept it. The Diploma of Engineering (Civil Engineering) is normally a 3 year qualification after year 10. That won't be accepted as a comparable Bachelor's degree .. Click to expand... They didnt accept my diploma or my MRICS. As a QS Estimation was also a part of y job, I'm wondering if I can choose Construction Estimator as my skill, this skill needs diploma with 3 yars of experience. Has anyone done this, can anyone advise? Hello Everyone, I am planning on undertaking Graduate Diploma from UTS in Engineering Management and was wondering if it will qualify for Visa 189. Masters degree is something I can't afford but if I am able to get Graduate Diploma and get PR it would be convenient and affordable. Thank you for your help in advance. Foha "Woodward made crucial contributions to two Pulitzer Prizes won by The Washington Post. First, he and Bernstein were the lead reporters on Watergate and the Post won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service in 1973." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Woodward After his period of study at the University of Melbourne, Assange and others established WikiLeaks in 2006. In 1999 Assange registered the domain leaks.org, but, as he put it, "I didn't do anything with it."[33][unreliable source?] He did, however, publicise a patent granted to the National Security Agency in August 1999 for voice-data harvesting technology: "This patent should worry people. Everyone's overseas phone calls are or may soon be tapped, transcribed and archived in the bowels of an unaccountable foreign spy agency." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Assange Amendment I. "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." Amendment II "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." HAVE FUN!!! Only angels can dance on the head of a needle. Considering that Hillary Clinton, from the recently concluded email investigation, is charged with gross negligence, dereliction of duty, was recommended that she lose her security clearance, while pathologically lying to congress, the press and the American People; and even though she was not referred for indictment because she is a Clinton: Will you? 11.84% Vote for Hillary 78.78% Vote for The Donald 9.39% Vote for none of the above 245 total vote(s) Voting has Ended! And now for your additional voting pleasure: What should be the priority of the Federal Government after the "Pulse" massacre: Should we turn our attention toward destroying, earadicating ISIS as Candidate Trump suggests, or, as Democrats' President Obama suggests, broaden our efforts to effect stricter Gun Control laws to limit "Gun Violence?" 88.24% After many years of trying to degrade and contain the murderous ISIS, we should make it the nation's policy to destroy ISIS immediately. 3.68% Gun Violence in America can be eliminated by limiting access to guns for all American citizens. 8.09% I don't care either way; I just live here. 136 total vote(s) Voting has Ended! Should Americans be thankful for North Carolinians setting precedent in taking a stand for their state's right to manage the safety of their public facilities, where separation of the sexes remains, or should they follow Bruce Springsteen's lead and boycott the state as bigots since they will not allow grown Transgender men to use the same bathrooms /locker rooms as pre-pubescent girls? North Carolina is right to control the separation of the sexes as a matter of decorum and safety. North Carolina is a bigoted state to not require that children of opposite sexes share the same public facilities with adults of the opposite sex, although misidentified - the Transgender. I generally prefer the natural environs of the vacant, although rather public, large tree. 236 total vote(s) What's your Opinion? In 1972-3 two enterprising journalist dug deep, to find out if their President was involved in the Watergate cover up. They were heralded as the best example of true journalism. Their story eventually made its way into a movie "All the Presidents Men."Let us move forward to 2006 when a young programmer named Julian Assange began hacking into various accounts on the internet. He eventually move on to greater things. During this election he has become the cause celeb for hacking and releasing private emails from the Hillary Clinton Camp.I am sure there will eventually be a movie about Julian and his life. We have all the makings of a great movie. It has secretes, sex, slander, computer age hacking, and political overtones. It also has the common thread of trying to influence an election with the release of information that may be true but obtained by non-traditional means.Some today would say that we should prosecute the leakers. The same things were said back in the Nixon administration and deep throat was protected until after his death. Today we know who the leaker is but he is outside our borders. Maybe we should send in a black ops squad. Apparently we don't use them anymore for protecting or rescuing our embassies.Therefore, the question is simple. Are all three journalist or traitors or is the information they reveal the most important thing? In 1972 the information was considered most important. Today we seemed more concerned withFor those who wish to point up that Julian is currently in exile because of a sexual charge in In November 2010, the point is valid. Assange was alleged to have committed several crimes against two different women during a visit to Sweden that August. But if you find this a evidence of him being a less than stellar journalist, I suggest you read Nora Ephron's autobiography "Heartburn" which is about her life with then husband Carl Bernstein. He was a serial cheater and philanderer in spite of his journalist credentials. I thought we had put the crossed the "SEX THREASHOLD" years ago. I may have been wrong. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heartburn_(novel)I am not advancing an argument that both are wrong or both are right. I am merely trying to establish the fact that the information and our judgment as to its accuracy is what is important. Naturally, at some point we may come to a consensus of opinion on what the meaning of "PRIVACY" actually entails. Until then, everyone should watch for the Red Light which indicates that the camera or microphone is hot and not only is big brother watching but so are everyone else. Then on the other hand, maybe we should just expect our politicians to express in private the same thoughts they express in public. What a unique idea.Some have said the genius of our founding fathers was based on their establishment of protection for the fourth estate; the Press or Media if you will. They specifically stated that the right to freedom of speech.They were equally explicit when they stated the following.Now it may be worth a debate on what the difference is betweenis. Doesrequire a bucket of ink and a printing machine or perhaps just a keyboard and DSL connection? On the other hand doesmean a regulation that requires a that person not be a convicted felon before the purchase of a gun.The answer to the main question above is While you can check out the sinister-looking test car in the piece of footage below, we need to discuss the confusion regarding this tester before moving on.You see, when it comes to the now-testing Neunelfer range-topper, the Internet is split into two main camps. There are those who, like us, believe the car we have here will get the GT2 badge, while there are also aficionados who expect this prototype to grow into the 911 GT2 RS.We don't see why Zuffenhausen would release the GT2 RS directly, skipping the "standard" GT2 in the process (no, Dieselgate consequences shouldn't confine the GT2 to the history book). Traditionally, the Rennsport incarnation of the GT2 arrives towards the end of a Neunelfer generation's lifecycle, so we'd expect the 991.2 GT2 RS to land in 2018 or 2019.As for the prototype we have here, German engineers have been testing the GT2 for quite a while now, with the supercar having gone through various aero stages (remember when the test cars had GT3 RS-borrowed front wing air extractors?). Thus, we should meet the new 911 GT2 next year, as a 2018 model.The rear end of the GT2 will follow the well-known recipe, being occupied by an upgraded version of the twin-turbo 3.8-liter in the Turbo/Turbo S. While the hp number is expected to jump from the latter's 580 hp to 650 hp, the 2018 Turbo/Turbo S facelift's civilian anti-lag system should also make it into the GT2.The rumor mill even talks about the GT2 becoming one of the first GT division machines to offer a six-speed manual as an option after the PDK-only GT3 and GT3 RS. Then again, if we are to listen to rumors, this rear-wheel-drive special is already sold out.P.S.: Ignore the wastegate comment in the video (lens tip to BridgeToGantry for the clip), as the soundtrack indicates this isn't relevant. This is the largest car market by volume, and if you can make it there, you don't need New York. Sorry, Alicia Keys! There's a variety of Citroen models that you can only buy there, and this is the latest and most exciting, the all-new C6. What's more, Europe supposedly doesn't want it, which is a huge mistake.So how have the Chinese made French cars better than the French? For starters, the C6 is cheap. According to local media, prices range between 189,900 and 279,900 yuan, which is equivalent to between 25,700 and 37,880.That is extremely cheap by European standards, about the same as a high-grade Peugeot 308. And let's not forget that we are talking about a flagship with the endless history behind it.So how have they made it this cheap? Well, for starters, they've used the EMP2 platform, but most of the development work had already been done for a nearly identical car called the Dongfeng Fengshen A9 . The good news is that they upgraded the C6 to have a digital dashboard and a better interior.Just like the Renault Talisman , this uber-large Citroen uses small engines. The basic one is going to be a 1.6 turbo rated at 67 horsepower and 245 Nm (181 lb-ft) of torque, followed by a 1.8-liter turbo that's unique to China and produces 180 hp plus 280 Nm (207 lb-ft) of torque. Do we need to remind you of the V6 in the European C6 or that fact that it's a presidential car?So what do you guys think - does French green play into this, or is it a case of lower wages in China? Let's not forget why Audi moved the Q5 to Mexico. kWh EV Other than that, the Chevrolet Bolt comes in a nice enough package with a design that's not too bold, but not that boring either, and dynamic performances that are way above the what its looks might suggest. The most important part, however, is that 238-mile maximum range obtained from a 60battery pack.GM was reluctant to tell how many Bolts it plans to build over the course of next year, but the American company's main partner in the Bolt project, the Koreans at LG, were a lot more loose-lipped. Electrek found out that the Vice President of LG Chem, the LG subsidiary that specializes in building battery cells, revealed during a conference call that his company is expected to deliver over 30,000 battery packs in 2017.Since GM isn't working with other battery suppliers, that means the first full year of production will see Chevrolet build somewhere around 30,000 Bolts. That's a far cry from Tesla 's planned output for the Model 3 as the Palo Alto company hopes to satisfy its 400,000 early registrations by mid-2018, with production scheduled to start no sooner than one year earlier.This goes to show that even though GM went through the trouble of putting together a more than decent, it's still not ready to make a mass-market product out of it. Or, more likely, it believes the public isn't ready to embrace it as such, and therefore will maintain a low production volume, at least for now.If everything goes to plan with the Model 3 , we will find ourselves in a bit of an awkward situation where GM becomes the niche manufacturer, and Tesla is the mass-market one. But only as far as EVs go, of course. SUV But if applying camouflage on test cars and screening those who enter restricted areas of a plant is easy, keeping relevant information from those inside the company can be a bit trickier. There, you have to rely on the belief that everybody's pulling in the same direction and have faith no one will misbehave.However, the temptation to be the first to show the public a new model can get the best of some, presumably making them feel a bit like Prometheus stealing the secret of fire from the gods and sharing it with the mortals. Well, the Jeep Grand Wagoneer might not have the same impact on mankind as fire did, but it's still important news.Somebody attending a dealer meeting decided to play the Greek Titan and published a few images of the upcoming Grand Wagoneer, Automotive News reports. In fact, the poster shows the entire Jeep range, starting with the Renegade and ending with the future luxury model. The image also shows the revamped 2018 Wrangler , confirming we have nothing to fear and its design will remain the same, but the recently revealed Compass is strangely missing.Jeep has been refreshing its lineup lately, and the consensus is that the legendary American brand is headed in the right direction. The Renegade was well received, the Cherokee had mixed reactions but is doing OK, and the new Compass that was just revealed looks absolutely juicy.But Jeep lacked a true flagship model as the current Grand Cherokee isn't really up to the job. Whether a brand like this actually needs an expensive range-topper is up for debate, but FCA clearly thinks it does since rumor has it a fully-loaded version could go as high as $140,000. Well, now that Jeep has ties with the Italians, it might just pull the luxury card off.Theappears to be sporting a lot of chrome and a lot of LEDs. The images are the kind you would expect from a teaser, so it's still early to pass any judgment. What we can see, though, is that the Grand Wagoneer looks like a much bigger Compass, which is about the best compliment it could possibly hope for.Speaking of sizes, if that poster is to scale, then the Grand Wagoneer will be nothing short of huge, dwarfing any other Jeep model currently in the range. It's got that seven-slots radiator grille, but the theme will also be carried over into the number of LEDs that make up the daytime running lights, as well as the taillights.The Grand Wagoneer is still some time away from an official reveal since it's expected to make a full debut in 2018 as a 2019 model year. Still, with so many pieces of the puzzle missing, there's plenty more to find out during all this time. You can view the images at this link. AMG The 577 hp supercar has dropped tons of Nurburgring hot laps since it made its debut back in the summer, with the lap time announcement expected to cause quite a stir.Boos Tobias Moers has already let it slip that the GT R will be quicker than the 991 Porsche 911 GT3 RS around the Nordschleife, so, after all that teasing, we can't wait to see the Affalterbach delight beating the 7:20 time of the Porsche.We'll take the time to mention that Porsche isn't exactly unprepared for this adventure. While the 991.2 Turbo S already delivers 7:18 Ring performance, the upcoming 2018 GT2, which we've shown you lapping the Ring earlier today, should show the Mercedes-AMG GT R who's boss on the Green Hell - speaking of which, we're curious what Pagani ( Huayra BC lap record attempts , anybody?) and Koenigsegg (have they finished rebuilding the Ring-crashed One:1 ?) think of this.Returning to the range-topping GT, the supercar has recently been spotted flying around the Ring again, this time without the psychedelic wrap the Germans kept on the test car long after the unveiling of the model.Instead, the prototype we have here is wearing the car's AMG Green Hell Magno launch color. And, in its stopwatch battle, this GT R won't spare anything. For instance, as you'll be able to see in the spy video below, a prototype that seems to be the 2018 Audi Q3 counted as collateral damage during one of the said hot laps.The clip allows us to see the GT R passing the Ingolstadt crossover furiously, as if the two were engaged in a race. And if that's not enough to convince you of the lap time determination around the project, the rest of the machine's Ring behavior should. However, Tesla invented many other things, including a revolutionary engine that never caught on.We had originally published an article about a design concept that used a Tesla Turbine for power . We did not go into further detail of the propulsion solution at the time, but we saw the potential for a dedicated story about Nikola Teslas fantastic creation that is not implemented on a broad scale in any branch of industry.To set things straight from the beginning, Nikola Tesla did not invent the blade-less turbine, which existed in patent form since 1832 in Europe. However, the Tesla Turbine named after the famous Serbian-American inventor managed to bring reason to what was just a concept, and then built multiple working prototypes.The result was a blade-less turbine that operated at high speeds, was reversible, and could function in many ways. It could have been operated as a pump, compressor, a turbine, and even as an internal combustion engine. Its level of efficiency exceeds the theoretical limit of piston engines, but it is nowhere near as widespread as them.Teslas Turbine also comes with a sad story: he created a working prototype that achieved 9,000 rpm and generated 200 horsepower, which was tested at the New York Edison Company.Unfortunately, some of the engineers present at the trial claimed it was a failure after not understanding the invention, and major electric companies of the time had already invested heavily in bladed turbines.As its description explains, the Tesla Turbine is a blade-less solution. Instead of a conventional pump or turbine, which has blades, the solution from Tesla lacks these elements. It uses flat discs instead. Think of them like DVDs or CDs instead of fan blades. Since those discs are flat, the turbine does not operate as a conventional pump, and it needs multiple drives to function.The cool part about this invention is that the number of discs is not fixed, and that they can be added or subtracted depending on the application.Evidently, multiple discs are required. The unique part of the invention is that it is a reversible turbine, which operates at the same level of efficiency if it spins clockwise or counter-clockwise.The discs found inside the Tesla Turbine are fed through nozzles, and it can run with air, steam or most fluids. The only rules involve using several discs of suitable diameter, and having openings on each disc near the shaft that holds them. The discs are separated using washers, and they are fixed to a shaft that rotates. HP The idea behind the Tesla Turbine is that the discs inside it will spin if they are fed pressurized liquid or gas (both act like fluids). It operates using two properties of fluid dynamics: adhesion and viscosity. The latter is a substances resistance to flow, while the former refers to dissimilar molecules tendency to cling together due to attractive forces. Fluid interaction with a solid surface comes under the operation of the boundary layer effect. In laymans terms, fluid will run across the surface of the discs while accelerating towards a suitable exit. The described interaction makes the discs turn, and this rotates the shaft that holds the discs.Once the discs are separated properly on the shaft, and the fluid has a place to enter and leave the system, the Tesla turbine is ready for action. A rule of thumb is that more discs will provide more power, but they will also require a bigger flow of fluid to spin.In turn, making the discs bigger will reduce the rpm of the Tesla Turbine, but it could increase efficiency. The main idea is that the Tesla Turbine needs more experiments to attain an ultimate formula. The good news is that it can be adapted to various applications.As Nikola Tesla once explained, his blade-less turbine design can be used for pumps, compressors, wind turbines, and even as combustion engines.Any application that can send pressurized fluid through tubes and into this system can employ a Tesla Turbine to generate electric energy. It can work the other way round, if it gets powered it can act as a more efficient pump.Unlike conventional pumps, the Tesla Turbine can operate with abrasive fluids, as well as with those that contain solids, or are viscous or shear-sensitive.In other words, it can work in conditions that make other pumps impossible to use reliably, or complicated to employ efficiently.Current applications include the medical field, where the concept behind the Tesla Turbine was successfully tested for centrifugal blood pumps, but Nikola Tesla imagined it for geothermal power. The latter employs conventional turbines, but an effective adaptation of the Tesla solution could bring enhanced efficiency with less maintenance.Nikola Tesla was granted the patent for this invention in 1913. It was ahead of its time by a dramatic margin, which made implementation difficult in the early 20th century.The limitations of technology that have made this system less efficient than existing turbines were caused by the craftsmanship of metal objects, particularly the discs that were required for Teslas invention.The purity of metal was a problem, and so was balancing the thin discs. Because of the described problem, they were prone to stretching because they operated at extremely high rpm. Once they were damaged, the discs had to be changed, which made the system potentially unreliable in the long run.There was nothing wrong with the design, and Teslas invention was not the only one that could not be employed because the rest of the industry was not on par with the requirements of its designer.Currently, material technology has reached a level where the Tesla Turbine could be manufactured using carbon fiber discs, or various other materials instead of metal.Nikola Tesla was Thomas Edisons arch rival. Both of them worked with electricity, but their inventions went further than that field. Inspired by the success of small scale testing, Tesla built a turbine that was meant to be tested in the main powerhouse of the New York Edison Company.Evidently, testing a new invention in your rivals facility is unheard of in this century, but it was not a good idea in 1911. The successful test showed two turbines that generated 200and achieved 9,000 rpm after placing the two units in a line.Unfortunately, the test was watched by engineers that were described as being loyal to Edison, who were not impressed with the entire system. Major electric companies had already invested in conventional turbines, and the poor reviews of Teslas invention made it difficult to sell to new investors.Nikola Tesla made a final attempt to sell his invention after commissioning three turbines from the Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company. The engineers of the said company were concerned about the mechanical efficiency of those turbines and their reliability.After the death of the Serbian inventor, researchers claimed that they had not managed to replicate the majestic results reported by Mr. Tesla. However, engineers still experiment with an invention that is over a century old.A company called Phoenix Navigation and Guidance from Munising, Michigan, is among the pioneers of the field. Will we see this technology in cars? If you ask us, the technology is too expensive to implement by any automaker, even though it has the theoretical advantage of efficiency over conventional engines. Photo of F-350 King Ranch Crew Cab 4x4 courtesy of Ford. Unspecified "parts issues" slowed shipments of Ford's 2017 Super Duty pickups in late summer, but Ford is ironing out these issues at its Louisville, Ky., assembly plant, according to a union official. Rodney Janes, the United Auto Workers union chairman at the plant, told the Wall Street Journal that assemblers will need to work "excessive overtime" to account for the shortfall. A Ford spokeswoman declined to confirm the parts issue, but said there has been strong demand for the new Super Duty trucks, which incorporate extensive alluminum body panels and a higher-strength frame. "We continue ramping up production on the all-new Super Duty," said Kelli Felker, Ford's manufacturing and labor communications manager. "As with all vehicle launches, we are working closely with our suppliers to meet customer demand for the truck, which has been outstanding in its early weeks." The move to aluminum on the Super Duty lineup will save about 350 pounds compared to as much as 750 pounds saved by moving the F-150 to aluminum. The 2017 F-250 through F-550 SuperCabs and SuperCrews will share cabs with the F-150 in a move that provides more interior room. The Bancorps commercial fleet leasing division has announced its continued expansion into the Northeast through an asset purchase from New Concepts Leasing Inc. in Parsippany, N.J. The new subsidiary, TBBK Direct Leasing, will serve as a fleet leasing and management service company to small and mid-size commercial and rental fleets throughout the New Jersey market. TBBK Direct Leasing will also extend The Bancorps service offering into the New York and Connecticut markets. With this acquisition, a new leasing resource that specializes in fleets fewer than 100 vehicles is now locally available to New Jerseys small business community, according to the company. This acquisition also presents an opportunity for other independent leasing companies to join forces with The Bancorp. The transaction included the acquisition of 3,500 leased vehicle assets, according to the company. TBBK Direct Leasing will access its financial services exclusively through The Bancorp Bank, Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender, which is headquartered in Wilmington, Del. The Bancorp offers a range of leasing services including federal leasing, municipal leasing, commercial leasing, franchise leasing, and equipment leasing. 19 October 2016 12:23 (UTC+04:00) By Trend Over the past 24 hours, Armenias armed forces have 13 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the press service of Azerbaijans Defense Ministry reported on October 19. Armenians were using heavy machine guns. The Azerbaijani army positions took fire from the Armenian positions located near the occupied Chilaburt village of Azerbaijans Tartar district, Gorgan village of Fizuli district, as well as from the positions located on nameless heights of the Goranboy district. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Sawomir Sierakowski Jarosaw Kaczynski and Donald Trump, two politicians who have shocked the world this past year, have mostly gotten away with their outrages. But not anymore. When Kaczynskis Law and Justice (PiS) party came to power last year, it immediately seized control over key Polish institutions, including the Constitutional Tribunal, the state prosecutors office, public media and enterprises, even state-owned horse stables. Because the PiS government inherited a sound economy and strong fiscal position, Kaczynski hasnt seen the need for a finance minister, so the post was recently liquidated. Trump, too, has been engaging in behavior that under normal circumstances would be politically disqualifying: attacking the parents of a Muslim-American soldier killed in combat, mocking a disabled reporter, and impugning Senator John McCain for being captured during the Vietnam War (he was held and tortured for more than five years). Everyone was outraged, except for Trumps voters. This state of affairs might have continued. But both Kaczynski and Trump have recently been confronted by a political force that neither reckoned with: women. Before last years parliamentary election in Poland, the far-right organization Ordo Iuris had proposed a blanket ban on abortion, one that would go beyond Polands current legislation, already among the most restrictive in Europe, by forcing women to give birth even in cases of rape, incest, health risks, and serious fetal defects. But, at the same time, another legislative proposal was put forward to liberalize abortion laws, introduce sex education into schools, and guarantee insurance coverage of contraceptives. Although PiS solemnly promised that the Sejm (parliament) would not reject the latter bill in the first reading, the legislation criminalizing abortion was advanced to a parliamentary vote, and the pro-choice proposition was rejected. Women spontaneously took to the streets en masse. For nearly two decades, Poles believed that the countrys abortion laws could not be changed, owing to the power of the Catholic Church and the subordination of the political class to religious authorities. But the actress Krystyna Janda, who starred in Andrzej Wajdas film Man of Iron, called on Polish women to launch a general strike. On October 3, instead of going to work, women across the country turned out to protest, following a model established by Icelands women in 1975, when 90% did not go to work and effectively paralyzed the country. The demonstrations occurred even in small towns, and despite dismal weather. Women also congregated outside PiS headquarters, the true seat of power in Polish politics. In solidarity with Polish women, women from Kenya to Berlin took to the streets dressed in black. For the first time since PiSs return to power last year, Kaczynski was frightened. The next day, he had his party vote to reject the anti-abortion proposal. Never before had he acted in a similar manner. In the United States, Trumps presidential campaign began to crumble only when it was revealed that he boasted about sexually assaulting women. Soon, women who had endured his attacks began to come forward and describe what had happened to them. Trumps spell was broken. Independent voters and many Republicans bolted. Michelle Obama delivered an emotional address about how Trumps behavior had shaken her, speaking in a way that Trumps opponent, Hillary Clinton, cannot because of the complicated history of her own marriage. Support for Trump, particularly among suburban women, crashed. According to recent polls, his backing from women plummeted from 39% to 29% over the course of a couple of days. And yet neither Trump nor Kaczynski seems willing or perhaps able to reverse course. After withdrawing his support for the Ordo Iuris proposal, Kaczynski couldnt leave the issue alone. We will strive to ensure that even pregnancies that are very difficult, when the child is doomed to die or is seriously deformed, are brought to term so that the child can be baptized, buried, and given a name, he announced on October 13. Women have called for another general strike on October 24. Perhaps Kaczynski has always been inclined to self-destruction. As Prime Minister in 2007, he handed power to his opponents on a silver platter, by attacking his coalition partner, the Samoobrona party, and calling for an early election. Once again, it appears that Kaczynski is his own greatest nemesis. This time, Kaczynski (who holds no official government position) first united the political mainstream (whom he dubbed the worst sort of Poles) against him by attacking liberal democracy. Now, by pressing his war on women, who form a majority in Poland, he has united the mainstream with the left and politicized and galvanized the countrys youth. Immediately after Kaczynskis latest comments, women began to gather in front of his house, warning him: You want to peer into our beds? Well peer into your home. According to an opinion poll by the newspaper Rzeczpospolita, 69% of Poles support the so-called black protest that women have mounted. If the October 24 strike is larger than the spontaneous demonstrations of October 3, support for PiS will surely drop significantly for the first time since it assumed power, and Poland will find itself in a new political situation. Trump, too, has doubled down on sexism, blaming the media for his travails and calling one of his accusers that horrible woman, adding, Believe me, she would not be my first choice. And, appealing directly to his many white-supremacist supporters among the so-called alt-right, he has also begun indulging a classic anti-Semitic trope, accusing Clinton of meeting in secret with international banks to plot the destruction of US sovereignty in order to enrich these global financial powers. But Americans arent buying it; nor are Poles. And it is only fitting that Trump, and possibly Kaczynski, will be defeated by those whose dignity and equality each refuses to recognize, with women in the lead. Copyright: Project Syndicate: The Populist War on Women --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 11:23 (UTC+04:00) Asleep or awake? The project of TechFall 2016 Hackathon which is charactarized as a training course and a competition designed for junior programmers, has started with the support of Azercell Telecom LLC and PASHA Bank and the organization of Barama Innovations and Entrepreneurship Center and WoWoman platform. Hachathon is a range of events bringing programmers together to solve various problems, develop projects and compete with each other. The programmers in Hackathon demonstrate their programming skills within a given period of time. Hackathon events are regularly held in various places over the world usually by gigantic companies, such as Google, Netflix, Facebook, HP and Microsoft. Under TechFall 2016 Hackathon, the programmers are required to develop a new mobile application in 36 hours without falling asleep and submit it to the board of judges. Individuals who are over 18 years old are eligible to join the project as a team with 3 members. To participate in the project, please complete the registration at http://techfall.barama.az/qeydiyyat/ by October 31. Selected teams will be entitled to join the final round to be held on November 5-6. During the final round, the teams will choose a topic based on a draw and develop an application within 36 hours. Once ready, the applications will be initially assessed by the technical board of judges. The teams will also present their applications before the professional judges in the presentation ceremony on November 9. The winner of TechFall 2016 Hackathon will receive valuable gifts from Azercell and PASHA Bank, the 1st runner-up will be given a coupon for one-month participation in IT courses by Step IT Academy and the 2nd runner-up will get presents from Barama Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center. Ozsut, the chain of restaurants, will provide catering services to the teams throughout the project. Official media support to the event is provided by technote.az. TechFall 2016 Hackathon is primarily aimed at promoting the IT industry in the country and provide the talented youth an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in this sphere. Furthermore, the facilitation to the development of various applications and tools and thus enabling the developers to test their knowledge in a competitive environment and obtain new knowledge can also be listed as the major project goals. Barama Innovation Center was founded in 2009 by Azercell with the purpose of supporting entrepreneurship in Azerbaijan. The Center generally supports the projects and start-ups in information technologies and helps them operate as business units. Barama Center has made a number of achievements during seven years of its activity. More than 100 projects were launched at the center and 40 of them completed successfully. 4 companies successfully running their operations have been established in the Center. For more information, please contact [email protected] The leader of the mobile communication industry of Azerbaijan and the biggest investor in the non-oil sector Azercell Telecom LLC was founded in 1996. With 48% share of Azerbaijans mobile market Azercells network covers 80% of the territory and 99,8% of population of the country. Currently, 4,5 million subscribers choose Azercell services. Azercell has pioneered an important number of innovations in Azerbaijan, including GSM technology, advance payment system, 24/7 Customer Care, online customer services, GPRS/EDGE, M2M, MobilBank, one-stop- shop service offices Azercell Express, mobile e-service ASAN signature, etc. Azercell deployed first 4G LTE services in Azerbaijan in 2012. According to the results of mobile network quality surveys of Global Wireless Solutions company and international systems specialized in wireless coverage mapping such as Opensignal and Testmy.net, Azercells network demonstrated the best results among the mobile operators of Azerbaijan. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 12:31 (UTC+04:00) By Amina Nazarli Azerbaijan and Russia will view opportunities in the economic sphere as the two sides business circles will meet at the 7th joint regional forum in Baku. To be attended by representatives of the Presidential Administration, heads of Russian regions, representatives of executive and legislative authorities, business community and NGOs, the event is scheduled for October 31-November 1. Alexey Ulyukayev, Minister of Economic Development of Russia will also visit Azerbaijan to participate in the forum. However, the final composition of the Russian delegation is still being formed, according to Assistant to Minister Elena Lashkina. The forum will discuss issues of bilateral trade and economic cooperation, inter-regional and cross-border cooperation, as well as cooperation in tourism, agriculture, humanitarian sphere, and strategic cooperation between Russia and Azerbaijan, she said, adding that following the event the sides plans to sign a number of bilateral regional agreements. The trade turnover with Russia in January-September 2016 reached $1.35 billion, some $251.6 million of which fell to export to Russia, according to the Azerbaijani State Customs Committee. Russian-Azerbaijani partnership is regarded as an important factor of regional stability. The relations between the two countries more developed in recent years and have reached the strategic partnership level, which are based on old traditions of friendship and good neighborliness, as well as equality, respect for each other's interests, and common history and culture. Azerbaijan ranks fifth in Russia's foreign trade with the CIS countries (following Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan). At the same time, Russia is also considered to be a leading importer of Azerbaijani goods. Some 600 Russian companies are operating in Azerbaijan. -- Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 11:54 (UTC+04:00) By Amina Nazarli Bilateral relations between Azerbaijan and Iran were in spotlight during Baku meetings, as an Iranian delegation led by Governor General of Ardabil province of Iran visits the country. Majid Khodabakhsh aims to discuss the possibilities of expanding cooperation in economy and eye other issues of mutual interest. During the Baku visit, the Iranian delegation was first received by President Ilham Aliyev, who hailed bilateral relations between the two countries as excellent. Underlining the importance of numerous meetings on the presidential level in recent years, the head of state noted that both countries spared no efforts to develop bilateral ties. Pointing to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's successful visit to Azerbaijan this August, President Ilham Aliyev noted that bilateral and trilateral issues were discussed during the visit, which aimed to further develop Azerbaijan-Iran relations, and bring the two nations closer to each other. Majid Khodabakhsh, for his part, mentioned his first visit to Azerbaijan in 1990-1991, noting he witnessed rapid development processes. The sides exchanged views on the expansion of cooperation between the two countries' regions in a variety of fields, including mutual investment and tourism. Later on this day, Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev met with the Iranian delegation. Mustafayev stressed the role of reciprocal visits of the Azerbaijani and Iranian leaders, bilateral meetings and the documents signed in the development of relations between the two countries. He said the volume of trade turnover between the two countries in January-August increased to a large extent. The ties in energy, transport, agricultural areas, tourism and healthcare spheres continue successfully. Mustafayev also touched upon the project on construction of a railway bridge over the Astara river, which is one of the important components of the North-South international transport corridor with the length of 8.3 km. Moreover, he mentioned the construction of a plant on production of medicine in Azerbaijan by Iranian company. Iran with its modern pharmaceutical system has 100-year experience in this sector, while the country experienced a sharp growth last year, rising to $1.2 billion. The minister emphasized that Iranian companies will also be able to use the opportunities of Pirallahi industrial park to be specialized in the field of pharmaceuticals. Stressing that the foundation for the automobile plant, a joint project has been laid in Neftchala industrial area, Mustafayev invited Iranian companies and businessmen from the province of Ardabil to use the opportunities created in industrial areas of the country. The history of relations between Iran and Azerbaijan has a particular specificity, causing all stages of the development of bilateral relations. The present Iranian administrations policy of improving international relations, Tehrans pursuit of win-win situations, and a political will shared by Iran and Azerbaijan have improved the chances of growing economic ties between the two neighboring countries. The volume of trade turnover between the two countries soared by 70 percent over the first seven months of the current year. The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Iran amounted to $105.7 million in January-July 2016, more than $77 million of which accounted for imports from Iran, according to Azerbaijans State Customs Committee. Azerbaijan's exports to Iran almost doubled to $14.4 million in the first quarter of 2016, while imports increased from $19.4 million in 2015 to $27 million in 2016. Agriculture, banking sector, pharmaceutics, as well as cooperation in the international North-South transport corridor are the main areas that the two states are focused on. -- Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Bangladeshi President Abdul Hamid, right, holds a welcoming ceremony for visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping in Dhaka, Oct 14, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] President Xi Jinping has just concluded a trip to Cambodia, Bangladesh and India, during which he participated in the BRICS Summit in Goa, India, at the weekend. From the perspective of geopolitics, this was an important diplomatic activity that deepened China's bilateral ties with the three countries, which are all important for the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative. It was also a trip that resulted in concrete achievements as China and Bangladesh agreed to deepen strategic partnership of cooperation and 31 cooperation agreements were signed with Cambodia, most of them in infrastructure construction and industry. These achievements are important for advancing the ChinaIndochina Peninsula Economic Corridor, and the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor. They are also the realization of China's latest efforts in carrying out the Belt and Road Initiative from the angle of bilateral partnerships and border-region cooperation. In a China-Cambodia joint communique, the two sides agreed to accelerate the effective integration of Cambodia's Rectangular Strategy with China's Belt and Road Initiative. For this, the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding regarding bilateral cooperation for the Belt and Road Initiative. This is the second bilateral cooperation agreement between China and a country in the Indochina Peninsula, after the one between China and Laos. In Bangladesh, a series of bilateral cooperation agreements were signed on industrial cooperation, information communication, energy and electricity, diplomacy, disaster-prevention and control and climate change, among other things, within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. Xi also attended the launch ceremony of some important bilateral cooperation projects. Bangladesh is located where South Asia joins Southeast Asia, an important intersection in the Belt and Road Initiative. The Belt and Road Initiative can be effectively integrated with Bangladesh's foreign-bound strategic cooperation, so as to create new opportunities for win-win cooperation between China and Bangladesh. 19 October 2016 17:23 (UTC+04:00) By Rashid Shirinov The delegations of Aviation Administrations of Azerbaijan and Iraq has held talks in Baku. During the talks, the sides discussed issues of bilateral cooperation in the field of air transportation, said a message of Azerbaijans State Civil Aviation Administration from October 19. Furthermore, they talked about the prospects of regular passenger and cargo flights between the two countries. The meeting was attended by representatives of Azerbaijan and Iraqs airlines. Moreover, the Iraqi delegation was acquainted with the activities of the Heydar Aliyev International Airport. Currently, Iraq has five significantly developed airlines, which conduct short and long-distance flights in many destinations worldwide. Noteworthy, Iraq demonstrated the highest rate of Arab tourists, visiting Azerbaijan in the first half of 2016. Thus, the country was visited by more than 11,000 Iraqi tourists, which is 30 times more than in January-June of 2015. Direct flight performed by Iraqi Airways on route Baghdad-Baku-Baghdad allowed Iraqi tourists to visit Azerbaijan more frequently. Obviously, short distance between the countries also contributed to that. Given this, continuation of Azerbaijani-Iraqi talks on aviation cooperation is definitely of great importance. --- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 18:17 (UTC+04:00) By Rashid Shirinov Azerbaijan and Indonesia have great potential for the development of trade relations. This was said by Sri Hamengku Buwono, Sultan of the Indonesian city of Yogyakarta, during a meeting with Azerbaijani businessmen, Embassy of Indonesia in Baku told Trend on October 19. Representatives of the Azerbaijani Silk Road Public Union for Promotion of Development of Entrepreneurship, Indonesian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Husnan Bay Fananie and part of the embassy staff are on a working visit in Indonesia. A number of Azerbaijani businessmen are also visiting Indonesia to find new markets for Azerbaijani business sphere. During the meeting, Sultan of Jogjakarta told the Azerbaijani delegation that the city is the center of industry and education. The delegation also met with Wawan Hermawan, the Deputy Head of the citys Commerce Chamber, as well as with a number of Indonesian entrepreneurs. Moreover, the delegation visited local textile factory. Within the trip to Indonesia, Azerbaijani entrepreneurs also held meetings in different Indonesian cities in search of opportunities to establish various business cooperation between Azerbaijan and Indonesia. Recently, the Azerbaijani delegation visited the Trade Expo Indonesia 2016 exhibition in Jakarta. Moreover, the delegation has already discussed the possibility of abolishing visa regime for tourists from Indonesia, as well as the launch of a direct flight on route Baku Jakarta. In general, the trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $101.73 million in the first nine months of 2016, according to Azerbaijans State Customs Committee. This is mostly related to the energy sector, as Azerbaijan is the second biggest supplier of crude oil to Indonesia after Saudi Arabia. Indonesia has been importing crude oil directly from Azerbaijan since 2015. The country is the third largest trade partner of Azerbaijan. --- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 16:45 (UTC+04:00) By Nigar Abbasova The further development of non-oil sector remains one of the main priorities for Azerbaijan, as the government seeks to diversify economy and improve business climate in the country. Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev said that since April some 62 projects received investment promotion documents worth about 787 million manats ($492.8 million). The minister added that the provision of the document for some nine projects worth 55 million manats ($34.4 million) is currently under consideration. Mustafayev made the remarks addressing the Non-oil exports: today's challenges and opportunities conference on October 19. Under the document, half of the revenue of an individual entrepreneur, profits of legal entity are exempted from income tax for seven years. Import of equipment for the implementation of the projects is also exempt of VAT and customs duties. The minister also spoke about the measures realized in the country to stimulate and support business environment. He mentioned that National Fund for Entrepreneurship (NFES) have already provided credits on easy terms worth some 2 billion manats ($1.25 billion), while financial means allocated by the Fund allowed to implement about 32.000 projects in different spheres of economy. The issuance of loans for entrepreneurs is carried out through authorized banks and non-bank credit organizations. Moreover, certain processes were implemented to facilitate registration process of goods, eliminate various bureaucratic obstacles, and save time. Deputy Chairman of the State Customs Committee Shahin Bagirov, in turn, said the country will significantly reduce the number of documents required for the export of production, mentioning that the committee is currently in talks with the ministry of economy. The export of agricultural products is expected to be a locomotive for non-oil sector exports as Azerbaijan possesses a huge potential in the sphere. Good climatic conditions and suitable soils are determining factors that allow the development of the sphere. The country plans to increase exports of agricultural products by entering the traditional markets with a larger volume and supplying the products to new markets. Deputy Minister of Agriculture Seyfaddin Talibov addressing the event said some 31.9 percent of goods exported by Azerbaijan fell to a share of agricultural products in the first nine months of 2016, mentioning that some 90 percent of local agricultural production is exported to Russia. He also said that the share of fruit and vegetables accounted for only 31 percent of the total volume of the export of agricultural products in 2010, while the figure currently stands at 80-90 percent. Mustafayev further spoke about the steps taken to promote Made in Azerbaijan brand in the world market. One of the mechanisms that will be directed at raising awareness about the brand is sending export missions to foreign countries. Mustafayev said that the first export mission to China (Hong Kong and Guangzhou) is expected in November 2016. In addition, Azerbaijans Economy Ministry will help the countrys entrepreneurs to promote their products in various retailer chains such as Carrefour, as well as in duty-free shops at the airports of the world. Moreover, entrepreneurs will get a chance to demonstrate their production in exhibitions held in Dubai, Moscow, Habsburg, and Dusseldorf. Azerbaijan exported output worth some $6.5 billion in January-September 2016, while the major share (some 76 percent) of export fell to a share of oil and petrochemical production. -- Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 18:00 (UTC+04:00) By Amina Nazarli Iran and Azerbaijan are planning to cooperate in exporting jointly produced commodities to a third country. Governor General of Ardabil Province Majid Khodabakhsh announced about this while talking to reporters in Baku on October 19. He said that Ardabil, for example, can exports potato to Azerbaijan and a joint venture can convert it into chips for exporting to a third country, like Russia. Ardabil and Azerbaijan have common borders with two checkpoints and customs. Pointing upon the common cooperation areas between Ardabil Province and Azerbaijan and also friendly ties between the two countries, the Ardabil governor said that these factors give an opportunity for the sides to increase the investments between the two countries. Khodabakhsh also mentioned the existing capabilities in Ardabil and proposed exporting power from Ardabil to Azerbaijan. There are many firms in Ardabil that can import materials from Azerbaijan including wood products, he said. As part of his visit to Azerbaijan, Majid Khodabakhsh was received by President Ilham Aliyev and Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev. The history of relations between Iran and Azerbaijan has a particular specificity, causing all stages of the development of bilateral relations. The present Iranian administrations policy of improving international relations, Tehrans pursuit of win-win situations, and a political will shared by Iran and Azerbaijan have improved the chances of growing economic ties between the two neighboring countries. The volume of trade turnover between the two countries soared by 70 percent over the first seven months of the current year. The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Iran amounted to $105.7 million in January-July 2016, more than $77 million of which accounted for imports from Iran, according to Azerbaijans State Customs Committee. Azerbaijan's exports to Iran almost doubled to $14.4 million in the first quarter of 2016, while imports increased from $19.4 million in 2015 to $27 million in 2016. Agriculture, banking sector, pharmaceutics, as well as cooperation in the international North-South transport corridor are the main areas that the two states are focused on. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 16:02 (UTC+04:00) By Rashid Shirinov Baku called on Yerevan not to indulge in dreams and deceive their people through tricking statements on the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. "Instead of succumbing to dreams and deceiving their own people, Yerevan must ensure withdrawal of its troops from all occupied Azerbaijani territories, said Hikmet Hajiyev, the spokesman of Azerbaijans Foreign Ministry. He was commenting on Armenias Foreign Ministry Tigran Balayan's recent statement on the definition of status of Nagorno Karabakh". Balayan said that reportedly defining the "status through the will of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh is enshrined in the statements of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk group. Hajiyev told Trend on October 18 that Balayan remains committed to the traditions of the structure he represents, he tricks the Armenian public and consoles himself. The status of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, as noted in the documents of the OSCE Minsk group, can only be defined by consensus during the negotiation process, and by taking into account the will of the entire population of Nagorno-Karabakh, including the Azerbaijani community," Hajiyev said. "In his interview to Sputnik international news agency, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has clarified the question of the autonomous status of Nagorno-Karabakh, he added. Capturing Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven adjacent regions in early 1990s, Armenian armed forces killed more than 20,000 Azerbaijanis. As a result of the war, nearly 1 million Azerbaijanis were displaced from their native lands in Nagorno-Karabakh. Hajiyev recalled the firm position of President Aliyev on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Mentioning the statement of the Azerbaijani president at a recent meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers, Hajiyev said that unlike the criminal regime of Armenian military junta, the dialogue of Azerbaijani leadership with its people and its appeal to the international community are open and clear. By contravening numerous resolutions and agreements adopted in regard to the Nagorno-Karabakh problem, Armenia continues to remain illegally in the Azerbaijani territories. These particularly include UN Charter, Helsinki Final Act, and especially four UN Security Council resolutions calling for immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Armenian troops from Azerbaijan. Armenia should think about the opportunities that will create the solution to the conflict, to overcome the deep political, economic, financial and demographic crisis that are currently observed in Armenia. Official Yerevan should finally understand that the international community will not cater to its whims and desires, spokesman concluded. Azerbaijan is waiting for concrete steps by international community and the countries co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group, which is designed to find a peaceful solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. --- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 18:07 (UTC+04:00) By Gulgiz Muradova High ranking political leaders from different countries have offered their support to the activity of the OSCE Minsk Group, established to mediate between the parties to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office said in an interview with Azernews newspaper. With regards to criticism in the address of the OSCE MG, Kasprzyk said co-chairs are informed in detail about the developments around the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The Chairmanship of the OSCE is paying constant attention and is informed in detail about developments. The Chairperson-in-Office, Dr Steinmeier, visited the region and the resolution of the conflict was high on the agenda of his trip. The CiO and other high ranking political leaders from different countries have offered their support to the activity of the MG, he said in an e-mail, further mentioning that the conflict is a frequent subject of public debate in other international organizations besides the OSCE. Kasprzyk emphasized that the co-chairs are involved in this mediation activity on a daily basis. Azerbaijan and Armenia fought a lengthy war that ended with the signing of a fragile ceasefire in 1994. Since the war, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. While the OSCE Minsk Group acted as the only mediator in resolution of the conflict, the occupation of the territory of the sovereign State with its internationally recognized boundaries has been left out of due attention of the international community for years. Kasprzyk, commenting on the armistice between the sides on the frontline, said that his office follows the situation on a daily basis. According to information obtained and from our own observations, from the end of May 2016 the situation along the front lines has been relatively stable, though there were still reports about ceasefire violations and, regrettably, recently about casualties. Every casualty is a tragedy and causes grief and sorrow for the family and friends of the deceased. I share these sorrows, he said , adding that the ceasefire will only hold based on the political will of the parties. Finally, I would like to stress that the monitoring exercises are not investigations, nor are they a peacekeeping measure. They provide a snapshot, an effective and consistent way of accessing information regarding the situation on the ground. With the support of the sides, we will continue our activity, he continued. As for the expansion of the Office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Kasprzyk said that his mandate and the modalities of work of his Office would be unaffected. The OSCE mission regularly holds monitoring on the contact line of Armenian and Azerbaijani troops, but it failed to regulate accurately the situation since the first days of its activity. The frequent ceasefire violations occur almost every day, causing great hardship for the people living near the frontline, as they can't live their normal everyday lives and are always under a threat. Persistent shootings by the Armenian forces lead to casualties, even deaths among the civilian Azerbaijani population. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 13:24 (UTC+04:00) By Trend The OSCE is expected to monitor the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops on October 20, said Azerbaijans Defense Ministry reported on October 19. The monitoring will be held under the mandate of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative along the line of contact near Ashagi Abdurrakhmanli village of Azerbaijans Fizuli district, said the ministry. On the Azerbaijani side, the monitoring will be held by field assistants of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative Hristo Hristov, Simon Tiller and representative of the OSCE High Level Planning Group, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Nepokrytykh. On the Azerbaijani territories occupied and controlled by Armenian armed forces, the monitoring will be carried out by field assistants of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative Jiri Aberle, Peter Svedberg and representative of the OSCE High Level Planning Group, Mayor Christian Hirsch. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 10:00 (UTC+04:00) By Rashid Shirinov Forestry in Azerbaijan is a major environmental resource and plays an important role in life of people, especially rural. Forests support human wellbeing in many ways, including timber production, wildlife habitat, air quality, soil protection, carbon storage and recreation. The forests tend to cause abundant and needed rainfall and to preserve the moisture when fallen, releasing it to the rivers gradually, and thus preventing abnormal freshets and extreme droughts, which is very important factor for the agriculture development. Azerbaijani forests are a rich source of biodiversity and habitat to a number of rarest species of flora and fauna. More than 450 tree and shrubbery species are growing in the Azerbaijani forests where overwhelming majority of the tree species are represented by the hardwood species. Softwood and coniferous species constitute 2, 2 and 1, 6 percent respectively. But the most important role of the forests is supply of oxygen. Thus, annually the forests absorb 10-20 ton of CO2; 1 ha of the forestland absorb 8 kg of CO2 every hour which is an equivalent to the volume of CO2 produced by 200 people every hour. Preservation of the nature and biological diversity is one of the basic priorities of the state policy in Azerbaijan, while large-scale state programs directed to the improvement of the ecological situation have been implemented during the past decade. Azerbaijan is one of the few countries, which managed not only to stop the deforestation, but also to increase the forest areas, said Firdovsi Aliyev, Deputy Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan. Over the past few years, the forest area in the country increased from 11.4 to 11.8 percent. Moreover, during past eight years, there were planted over five million trees in an area of more than 4,000 hectares, Aliyev told Trend. Today, the country continues its successful policy of protecting the forests and realizing the greening projects. Azerbaijan was ranked the 31st among 180 countries in 2016 Environmental Performance Index ranking, evaluating how nations protect their ecosystems and human health, prepared by researchers from Yale and Columbia University. Over the past decade, the number of protected areas, national parks and nature reserves has increased significantly in Azerbaijan, which is very helpful to prevent the deforestation. Moreover, the country imposed fines to protect the nature. For example, those, who harm the nature by cutting trees down, are fined in the amount of 1,500 manats ($933). Besides, the government has increased the fines for those who encroach on wildlife habitat, for instance, burning leaves in the areas closely located to animal populations. However, occupation of the 20 percent of Azerbaijans territory by Armenian militaries caused a significant damage to the forests, especially those located in the mountainous areas. --- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 18 October 2016 15:10 (UTC+04:00) Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev received the World Bank Regional Director for the South Caucasus Mercy Tembon on October 18, Azertac reported. The World Bank Regional Director for the South Caucasus Mercy Tembon hailed good partnership between Azerbaijan and the World Bank, and thanked the head of state for successful cooperation. Mercy Tembon stressed the importance of economic growth and said it is crucial to find new sources at a time when countries are facing challenges in the wake of falling oil prices on global markets. She expressed the World Bank`s readiness to support Azerbaijan, and noted the necessity of studying opportunities in various areas, particularly in agriculture. President Ilham Aliyev underlined the importance of improving the non-oil sector, and said great work is carried out in Azerbaijan on this front. They hailed long-term successful cooperation between Azerbaijan and the World Bank. The sides noted that this cooperation has featured work on over 50 projects so far on the construction of highways, water supply and sewerage services, improvement of the living standard of refugees, justice system and other areas, of which 40 have been successfully realized. They also discussed prospects for cooperation between Azerbaijan and the World Bank. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 18 October 2016 18:15 (UTC+04:00) By Amina Nazarli Armed conflicts, terror acts, refugee and migrant crisis, devastating humanitarian situation in certain countries, pervasive misconceptions about religion and many more other impediments for peace and security continue to exist in our vulnerable and fragile world. Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov made the remarks at a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Tashkent on October 18. To the deepest regret, at the moment a number of OIC Member States are face to face with the above-mentioned challenges, he said. Todays session gives us great opportunity to address one of the main root causes for the existence of these challenges - which is the lack of education and rise of ignorance that are rapidly gaining pace in our modern world. The slogan of our session Education and Enlightenment Path to Peace and Creativity is as though intended to remind us that the key to success in combating the problems confronting our world is laid in education, the minister said. Education is the primary engine as well as the guarantee for the sustainable development of an individual, a family, a community, a country and of our world. Education and enlightenment are the main forces that can strengthen solidarity among Muslims, eradicate the trend of Islamophobia, counter extremism, promote culture of tolerance and lead to conditions conducive to the peaceful co-existence of the people representing different cultures, religions and nationalities. It is education that brings prosperity and welfare of the humanity, he said. Mammadyarov further said that as a country which believes that peace and security is achievable through education, science, culture and dialogue, Azerbaijan has transformed into the hub of events fostering dialogue of cultures and civilizations such as 7th Global Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue. Last month we hosted the 5th Baku International Humanitarian Forum which included panels on a wide range of global issues in the interest of all humanity with the participation of renowned guests, among which were Nobel Prize Laureates. Besides this, as a country which has always been at the forefront endeavoring to foster Islamic solidarity Azerbaijan is honored to host the 4th Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku next year, he said. We all acknowledge that one of the primary reasons and factors contributing to the emergence of Islamophobia is undoubtedly violent extremism and terrorism, the minister emphasized. Azerbaijan strongly and unequivocally condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, committed by whomever, wherever and for whatever purposes, as one of the most serious threats to international peace and security, he said. Mammadyarov also touched upon Azerbaijans full support to the brotherly people of Palestine in their struggle for achieving peace, stability and establishment of an independent State. Azerbaijan stands for the two-state solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict which is the only guarantee of achieving the long-awaited, comprehensive, lasting and just peace, security and sustainable development in this sacred land. We highly commend the work done by the OIC in supporting the Palestinian people and serving the Palestinian cause, he said. The FM also mentioned Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, noting that Armenia continues to hold its destructive position in the negotiation process of the conflict by totally disregarding the position of the international community and flagrantly violating the international law. Azerbaijan reiterates its sincere gratitude to OIC Secretary General and OIC Member States for their constant principled position in condemnation of the Armenian aggression and occupation of Azerbaijani territories with notorious ethnic cleansing on the seized lands. We highly appreciate the establishment of the OIC Contact Group on the aggression of Armenia against Azerbaijan. We believe that the work of this Contact Group will contribute to the implementation of the relevant OIC and UN resolutions and help to harmonize the individual and joint efforts to this end, he said. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. -- Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Appeals Court says once an officer has concluded the business that led to the stop, a warrant is needed to keep a motorist any longer "Assuming, arguendo, that Trooper Lamm's exchange with defendant following the conclusion of the traffic stop was nonconsensual and that defendant's 'consent' was coerced, I believe that Trooper Lamm had reasonable suspicion of separate, independent criminal activity to support an extension of the traffic stop beyond the time necessary to complete the mission of citing Defendant for the traffic violation." During a traffic stop, how long after resolving the issue that led to the stop may a law enforcement officer continue to question the motorist? That issue was before the state's second highest court in September, in a case involving a state trooper who issued a warning ticket for speeding and later found more than 7 ounces of cocaine in the car he'd pulled over.On Sept. 9, 2014, State Trooper John Lamm stopped a Nissan Altima for a speeding violation on Interstate 95 in Johnston County. David Reed was driving the rented vehicle; his fiancee, Usha Peart, was riding in the front passenger seat. After resolving discrepancies in the rental agreement for the car, Lamm issued Reed a warning ticket.Despite telling Reed that he was "completely done with the traffic stop," however, the trooper did not tell Reed he was free to go. Instead, Lamm asked whether drugs, firearms, or illegal cigarettes were in the Altima and if he could search the car. Reed told the officer to ask Peart, who acquiesced to the search.Lamm discovered cocaine under the back passenger seat. After Superior Court Judge Gale Adams refused to suppress the results of Lamm's search, Reed pleaded guilty to trafficking cocaine in a deal that spared Peart from prosecution. He was sentenced to between 70 and 93 months in prison along with a $100,000 fine.On appeal, Reed argued that Lamm's search violated the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution's ban on unreasonable searches and seizures. Reed claimed the trial court incorrectly concluded that the officer had sufficient justification to continue the stop after issuing the warning ticket.The Court of Appeals agreed and overturned Reed's conviction.wrote Judge Robert N. Hunter for the appeals court.Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court held in the case of Rodriguez v. United States that the Fourth Amendment does not allow police to detain motorists, even briefly, after an officer has completed the tasks associated with the traffic infraction. To detain a driver further requires police to have aIn her ruling, Adams cited several reasons that Lamm might suspect illegal activity: Reed seemed overly nervous; he did not close the patrol car door until ordered to do so; there were discrepancies in the rental agreement; Reed paid cash for the rental; several air fresheners were in the car; a dog and dog food were in the car; and the car showed signs that Reed and Peart may have been living in it.The appeals court, however, did not find these reasons particularly convincing, as most were consistent with innocent travel, the majority said. More important, many of the facts Adams cited, such as Reed's nervousness, came to light only after the "tolerable duration" of the speeding stop had expired.wrote Hunter.Judge Chris Dillon disagreed with the majority.wrote Dillon.In Dillon's view, Lamm finished the traffic stop and then obtained the consent to searchCourt of Appeals decisions are binding on the state's trial courts unless overruled by a higher court, such as the N.C. Supreme Court. Because of Dillon's dissent, the state Supreme Court is required to hear the case if the state appeals the decision.The case is(16-33). 19 October 2016 10:19 (UTC+04:00) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a phone call to President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on October 18, Azertac reported. The President of Turkey congratulated the head of state on the occasion of the Independence Day of the Republic of Azerbaijan and wished the people of Azerbaijan well-being. The head of state expressed his gratitude to the President of Turkey for his attention and congratulations. The presidents expressed their confidence that the friendly and brotherly ties between Azerbaijan and Turkey will continue successfully developing in all fields. Recep Tayyip Erdogan also sent a letter of congratulations to President Ilham Aliyev. The letter reads: On behalf of my people and on my own behalf, I extend my most sincere congratulations to Your Excellency and the brotherly people of Azerbaijan on the occasion of October 18 - 25th anniversary of State Independence. Azerbaijan has been developing and strengthening every year since the country restored its independence in 1991. Azerbaijan`s outstanding international standing is a source of pride for Turkey as much as for Azerbaijan. Undoubtedly, wise leadership of national leader Heydar Aliyev and yours has played a crucial role in this success. I do believe that cooperation and solidarity between our countries, which enjoy exceptional relations, will strengthen and develop in the future, and affirm that we will continue providing necessary support to the brotherly Azerbaijan. Taking this pleasant opportunity, Your Excellency, I wish my dear brother robust health and happiness, and the friendly and brotherly people of Azerbaijan peace and prosperity. 19 October 2016 11:00 (UTC+04:00) Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Qazakh region for a visit on October 19. The head of state first laid flowers at a statue of national leader Heydar Aliyev in the center of the city of Qazakh. Head of Qazakh District Executive Authority Rajab Babashov informed President Ilham Aliyev about the work carried out around the statue and in the district. President Aliyev attended the opening ceremony of Qazakh-Kosalar highway after renovation, Azertac reported. Chairman of Azeravtoyol Saleh Mammadov informed the head of state that the highway connects two residential areas with the total population of 6,000 people. The 10km-long two-lane highway is six metres in width. Forty-two traffic signs were installed, one bus station was built along the road. President Aliyev cut the ribbon symbolizing the official inauguration of the highway. The president also attended the opening of Birinci Sxl Farm LLC in Qazakh. The head of state was informed that the farm occupies an area of 151 hectares. The administrative building of LLC is located here. There is a warehouse with the capacity of 2,000 tons in the farm. It also has a 250 square metre park for agricultural machinery and a 600 square metre production area. The President was informed that at the initial stage products manufactured by the farm will be supplied to the local market. There is also an arable land which occupies an area of 15 hectares, and an artificial rain-making technology is used here. The farm will create 170 jobs. President Aliyev met with staff of Birinci Sxl Farm LLC and local residents, and then posed for photographs with them. Later, President Ilham Aliyev attended the opening of 110/35/6 KV Das Salahl sub-station in Qazakh. The head of state was informed that the sub-station was built to improve electricity supply for the large part of Qazakh. Das Salahl is the fourth 110KV facility built in the western region of Azerbaijan and the 44th in the country. The previous sub-station supplied electricity to 3,637 consumers in 8 villages, while Das Salahl will supply power to 19,364 consumers in 22 villages. The sub-station will also supply electricity to farms, plants, hospitals, schools and other infrastructure facilities in Qazakh and Aghstafa regions. The ceremony featured demonstration of a photo and video slide show highlighting the work conducted by Azerishig. President Aliyev launched the sub-station. As part of his visit President Aliyev also inaugurated a new building of the Museum of History and Local Lore in Qazakh district. The head of state cut the ribbon symbolizing the opening of the museum. The head of state was informed that the museum was established in 1984. The construction of the new building of the museum started in November, 2015, and ended in October, 2016. The museum occupies a total area of 1,728 square metres. Some 2,450 exhibits reflecting the nature and history of the district are kept in the two-storey building of the museum. There are photo stands depicting national leader Heydar Aliyev`s and President Ilham Aliyev`s activities on the ground floor of the building. The museum has offices, a conference hall, a library, a kitchen and a cafe. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 09:50 (UTC+04:00) By Trend The EU congratulates Azerbaijan and its people on the 25th anniversary of the restoration of the state independence, said a message posted on the website of the European External Action Service (EEAS), the EU's diplomatic service. Azerbaijan has developed profoundly over the course of these years, the message said. The EU will continue to cooperate closely with Azerbaijan in support of developing strong democratic institutions, the rule of law, and economic prosperity for the benefit of all Azerbaijanis. This year also marks the 25th anniversary of the EU's relations with Azerbaijan and 20 years since the signature of the EU-Azerbaijan Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA), the message noted. The EU looks forward to the launching of negotiations on a new agreement with Azerbaijan, to replace the 1996 PCA and develop further our bilateral relations in areas of mutual interest, in line with the principles of the recently reviewed European Neighborhood Policy, as well as international law, reads the message. Alongside our engagement in the framework of the Eastern Partnership, this will serve to enhance bilateral dialogue, supporting efforts to build a more resilient economy and inclusive society, as well as increasing contacts with the people of Azerbaijan, the message said. Currently, bilateral relations between the EU and Azerbaijan are regulated on the basis of the 1996 PCA, which came into force in 1999. The new agreement envisages bringing Azerbaijan's legislation and procedures closer to the most important international and trade standards of the EU. This process is meant to improve the access of Azerbaijani products to the EU markets. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 10:48 (UTC+04:00) Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov congratulated his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Azerbaijans Independence, Trend reported. On behalf of the people and government of Turkmenistan and on my own behalf, I am honored to extend my sincere congratulations and best wishes to you and through you to the whole friendly people of Azerbaijan on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the restoration of state independence of the Republic of Azerbaijan, President Berdimuhamedov said in his congratulatory letter. I am proud to underline the great strides your country has made in the political, economic and social fields across the independence years, as well as the high level of overall development of relations between our countries, Berdimuhamedov said. I am confident that the commitment of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan to enhancing and deepening the intergovernmental dialogue is in the best interests of our nations. Dear Ilham Heydarovich, on this remarkable occasion, I wish you robust health, inexhaustible life energy, and happiness, the Turkmen president added. Please extend to the friendly people of Azerbaijan my wishes for peace, prosperity and well-being. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 16:18 (UTC+04:00) By Trend Embassy of the US in Azerbaijan has congratulated the people of the country on the 25th anniversary of independence celebrated on October 18. The US was among the first countries to recognize Azerbaijans independence and values the warm friendship we have built together since that time, the US Embassy said in a statement. Azerbaijan has made great progress in its first quarter century of independence, and we look forward to continuing to work together in support of measures to promote freedom of expression, political participation, and rule of law, increase economic prosperity, fight terrorism, and to ensure a peaceful and stable future for Azerbaijans citizens, the statement reads. The US remains committed as well to facilitating a negotiated settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, according to the statement. On this special occasion marking a quarter century of independence, Americans extend their best wishes to all Azerbaijanis, the US Embassy said. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 16:28 (UTC+04:00) An Azerbaijani delegation headed by chief of the State Migration Service Firudin Nabiyev has participated in the 36th GITEX Technology Week (GITEX-2016 exhibition) in Dubai, Azertac reported. On the sidelines of the exhibition Nabiyev met with Director-General of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs, Dubai Emirate, Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri. Nabiyev hailed relations between Azerbaijan and the United Arab Emirates. He said reciprocal visits of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, and Emir of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum have played an important role in elevating relations to the current level. A video presentation on the activity of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs was demonstrated after the meeting, followed by a question and answer session. Then the Azerbaijani delegation familiarized themselves with the activity of the General Directorate. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 17:56 (UTC+04:00) By Amina Nazarli British BP and the ADA University have announced about creation of the first Scientific-Research and Training Center Big Data in Azerbaijan. BP will support the establishment of the first Big Data, Data Sciences Instruction and Research Centre in Azerbaijan on behalf of its co-venturers in the projects that it operates - the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG), Shah Deniz, Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil export pipeline and the South Caucasus Pipeline projects. The project is part of BP and its co-ventures commitment to supporting education, training and capacity-building in the country. It is designed to have a wider impact by providing opportunities for utilization of the resources of the new centre by public institutions and private sector representatives. Gordon Birrell, BPs Regional President for Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey said that BP and its co-venturers are pleased to support this project, which is expected to provide an opportunity for establishment of a new area of development in Azerbaijan. The project is specifically about developing qualified data scientists, data and information engineers and big data analytics professionals for the country. We believe this will help improve analysis capabilities in a range of areas and disciplines in both private and public sectors, he said, addressing the project launch event held in Baku on October 19. Birrell emphasized that this is also an opportunity for BP and its co-venturers to expand their cooperation with the Education Ministry and to enter into a new partnership with the ADA University. ADAs Rector Hafiz Pashayev, in turn, noted that BP is one of the largest investors in Azerbaijan. BP's support is very important for us. The establishment of Big Data center at the ADA University thanks to this support will contribute both the expansion of our university and the development of its activities in various fields. The Centre will meet the needs of not only the ADA, but also the whole Azerbaijan in this sphere, said Pashayev. The expected outcomes of the project also include expansion of the capacity of the ADA University School of Information Technologies and Engineering to enable development of new areas of local expertise in a range of best-in-class software and hardware technologies. The center to be established at Bakus ADA University, will also result in commencement of a new Masters Degree program in Big Data Analytics and Data Sciences which will help meet the needs for data scientists and big data analysts. The project will be implemented by the ADA University. The duration of the project is 15 months starting October 2016 through December 2017. The cost of the project is $410,000. -- Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 11:57 (UTC+04:00) By Nigar Abbasova Azerbaijans state energy giant SOCAR may acquire another network of filling stations abroad. The company will participate in a tender announced by Austrian OMV Company to purchase a network of some 1,785 filling stations in Turkey. The network is operated by Petrol Ofisi, OMVs subsidiary in Turkey. The head of SOCAR's investment department, Vagif Aliyev, said that the company has already submitted an application for participating in the tender. Head of SOCAR Rovnag Abdullayev earlier confirmed the interest of the company in buying assets of OMV in Turkey, saying its connected with the launch of Star oil refinery in Izmir city. SOCAR earlier reached a preliminary agreement on the purchase of OMV Petrol Ofisi terminal located in Izmir, while the deal is expected to be signed by late 2016. SOCAR, which occupies a lions share in the total volume of investments made by Azerbaijan in Turkey, is expected to increase the volume of its investments up to $18 billion after the purchase of the terminal. In early 2016 Austrian company announced its intention to sell the whole packet of shares of OMV Petrol Ofisi A.S. to optimize its own costs. Within the scope of its strategy the company is intended to be focused on the extractive enterprises as well as on the oil processing activities. In this regard OMV has launched the selling process of 100 percent of OMV Petrol Ofisi A.S, which possesses one of the largest refueling station networks in Turkey. Being the sole producer of oil products in Azerbaijan, SOCAR also operates its filling stations in Georgia, Ukraine and Switzerland. It has representative offices in Georgia, Turkey, Romania, Austria, Switzerland, Kazakhstan, Britain, Iran, Germany and Ukraine, andtrading companies in Switzerland, Singapore, Vietnam, Nigeria, and other countries. -- Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 14:51 (UTC+04:00) By Nigar Abbasova World oil prices rose on October 19 supported by a drop in U.S. crude inventories and declining production in China. International Brent crude futures traded at $52.23 per barrel, recording an increase of 1 percent, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures stood at $50.85 per barrel, 1.1 percent up from the last settlement. The price of a barrel of Azeri Light crude oil increased $0.10 to trade at $52.16 on the world markets. The rise was mainly triggered by American Petroleum Institutes (API) weekly crude stocks data that revealed a fall of 3.8 million barrels in U.S. crude stockpiles. The attention is now on the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) official storage data which is to be released in a due course. Moreover, China, one of the world's top five producers released economic and trade data, which occurred to be supportive for oil prices. Crude output in the country fell by 9.8 percent to 3.89 million bpd, to near its lowest indices in six years, while economic growth rates was in line with expectations at an annual growth rate of 6.7 percent in the third quarter. The sharp decline, which followed a record 9.9-percent drop in August, was assessed by traders as an indication that a prolonged efficiency drop by drillers may help to bring a balance back to the oversupplied global market. Moreover, the prices also stabilized amid hopes that OPEC members will agree to output cuts. Oil was supported by Mohammed Barkindo, secretary general of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), who expressed his confidence about the prospects of a planned production cut. The focus is still on OPECs next meeting in Vienna, where the group is expected to finalize details, deciding on how much each of its 14 members can pump, and convince oil producers outside the group to join the deal. In its first output cut agreement since 2008, OPEC said it plans to reduce production to 32.50 million to 33.0 million barrels per day (bpd), compared with record output of 33.6 million bpd in September. Prices initially responded positively to the preliminary consent, doubts about the possibility of the agreement, however, still loom over the market. Moreover, the fact that some countries demand to be treated as an exception is an additional concern for the market. The recent OPEC data, which revealed fresh production records from the cartel earlier became an additional indication for investors that finalizing cartels decision would be difficult. Moreover, General Manager at the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Ali Kardor, told Trend that the volume of output in Iran, announced by the cartel, does not correspond to real indices. He said that the real volume is 250 million barrels higher than the volume of 3.65 million barrels per day announced by OPEC, adding that the real volume of oil pumped in September is 3.90 million barrels. He mentioned that the country exports some 2.05-2.1 million barrels a day, while the output is expected to reach 4 million barrels (pre-sanctions level) by March 21. -- Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 17:40 (UTC+04:00) By Nigar Abbasova The implementation of the Turkish stream project came in the spotlight after mending of ties between Russia and Turkey. The rapprochement of the two countries gave a new stimulus for the resumption of processes on the realization of the project, which envisages supplies of the Russian gas under the Black Sea (bypassing Ukraine) to Turkey and further to Europe. The sides earlier signed an inter-governmental agreement on realizing the construction of the Turkish Stream, while the agreement served as an additional signal that the project could be brought into force. The agreement envisages construction of two branches of the pipeline under the Black Sea, with the capacity of 15.75 bcm of gas each. The branches should be constructed until December 2019, according to the agreement. Most experts agree on the fact that the construction of the first branch of the project seems realistic for the time being. The construction of the second branch, however, raises certain doubts. Head of Turkish international research center Strategic Outlook Yusuf Chinar told Trend that the construction of the project in Europes territory mainly depends on the political choice of the EU. He mentioned that Europe needs uninterrupted supplies of energy and do not face any shortages in supplies. The crisis in Ukraine showed that political decision may influence energy policy of the union. Europe was for the continuation of supplies of Russian gas from Ukraine and this became a result of certain bureaucratic barriers for the South Stream project, he said. The European Commission was against the implementation of the South Stream as the project was in breach of the EU third energy package, which envisages that one and the same company is not eligible to implement delivery and operate the pipeline. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would halt the implementation of the South Stream on December 1, 2014. The European Commission has not yet totally refused the possibility of getting supplies from the Turkish Stream. ECs Vice President for Energy Union Morosh Shefchovych, earlier said that the issue needs to be analyzed and much will depend on the level of gas demand and commercial reasonability. The implementation of the Turkish stream project was suspended by Russia on December 3, 2015 after the deterioration of the relations between the two countries over the SU-24 incident. The issue on realization of the Turkish stream project came to the foreground following the talks between the presidents of Russia and Turkey held in Saint Petersburg on August 9 when the sides took a decision on the development of the plan and creation of the working group on carrying out the project. -- Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 11:59 (UTC+04:00) By Gunay Hasanova Following the announcement on the cessation of attacks on Aleppo, Russia offered the UN Security Council to divide the opposition forces from the terrorists in Syria. Russia circulated in the UN Security Council a draft statement on the necessity to separate moderate opposition from terrorists in Syria, in the light of the halting the airstrikes by the Russian and Syrian forces in Aleppo area, Russia's Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin said. "We believe, that under these circumstances it is extremely important for the member states that influence the opposition groups in the eastern Aleppo and beyond, to intensify efforts, to separate expeditiously all moderate opposition forces from terrorist entities designated by the Security Council We have prepared a draft press statement and hope it will be approved by the members of the [UN Security] Council, " Sputnik quoted Churkin as saying. Churkin emphasized that it was also highly important to prevent providing individuals and groups that were associated with the terrorist groups, designated by the UN Security Council, with material and financial support. The situation in Aleppo has extremely deteriorated lately as heavy battles are going on in the city and its outskirts. The Syrian government launched an operation in Aleppo last month with Russian air support and Iranian-backed militias. Earlier, the U.S. accused the Syrian authorities and the Russian Federation of bombing peaceful civilians and armed opposition. Damascus and Moscow insist that strike blows only at the terrorists and accuses Washington of failing to pressure on the troops of "moderate opposition" so that they separate themselves from the terrorists. -- Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 17:31 (UTC+04:00) By Gunay Hasanova Newly released from international sanctions, Iran now targets to attract partners from around the world and looks at practical steps needed to exploit the opportunities to cooperate in different spheres. Being the country with the largest natural gas reserves in the world, Iran intends to expand its cooperation with other countries primarily in the field of energy. Irans energy minister has called for the further partnership of Czech Republic in Irans power projects, particularly in the construction of incineration plants. Speaking at a meeting with First Vice President of the Senate of the Czech Republic Premysl Sobotka in Tehran, Irans Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian pointed to Irans power production capacity saying gas remains as the main source of electricity production in Iran while the share of nuclear energy is negligible amounting to only 1,000 megawatts, Mehr Agency reported on October 18. Iran and Czechia hold a long history of cooperation and currently Khoda Afarin hydroelectric power stations is being constructed in partnership with the European state, noted the official underscoring that Iran intended to mainly focus on renewable energies in coming years. In addition, Iranian Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian called Sobotka for cooperation in the field of renewable energy, as well as wastewater treatment. The Ministry has allocated 19 places in Iran, close to the big cities, the construction of power plants of this type, he added. In turn, the official recalled that Iran, at Paris climate conference (COP21) in December 2015, agreed to produce 7,500 megawatts of renewable energies by 2030 and will invite tenders for capacities over 100 megawatts. He outlined construction of waste-to-energy (WTE) plants in major cities as yet another priority pursued in Irans power industry. So far, a total of 19 large sites have been allocated to this end. Chitchian went on to note that Iran welcomes prominent Czech companies who are eager to provide finance to incineration projects maintaining these firms can also launch cooperation in water and wastewater treatment or manufacturing of water transfer equipment. Also at the meeting, First Vice President of the Senate of the Czech Republic Premysl Sobotka touched upon Irans capacities noting energy remains as a vital and significant aspect of economic development in all countries and Iran enjoys precious energy resources. Previously, Sobotka stressed several times that a great potential for Czech-Iranian cooperation also lies in the energy industry, water management, transport infrastructure and supplies of mass transport means. He expressed hope that old ties between Iran and Czech Republic will become strengthened following the removal of international sanctions. Sobotka emphasized that both sides could cooperate on nuclear energy and incineration plant projects given that Czechia hold invaluable experiences in these areas. At the end of his remarks, he deemed power grids and water treatment stations as possible venues for cooperation between Iran and Czech Republic. The CzechIranian relations were established on April 30, 1929. As of 2015, Czech firms mainly exported machinery products, electrical goods, and other products to Iran while the bulk of imports from Iran consisted of fruit and vegetables. The trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $24 million last year. The two countries mutual trade traditionally focused on industry, infrastructure, oil, energy, crystal products, and textile. In May of 2015 Iran and the Czech Republic signed an agreement to avoid double taxation in a bid to give a boost to the bilateral trade. --- Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 14:30 (UTC+04:00) By Trend US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter will visit Turkeys Ankara on October 21, Anadolu Agency reported on October 19. Carter will meet with Turkish leadership to discuss the Syrian crisis and the situation in Iraq. After his visit to Ankara, Carter will visit the UAE, France and Belgium. On October 25, the US secretary of defense will take part in the Paris talks between the defense ministers of member countries of the coalition against the Islamic State (IS, aka ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) terrorist group. Carter will arrive in Brussels October 26, where he will take part in the NATO defense ministers council meeting. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 19 October 2016 22:32 (UTC+04:00) By Gunay Hasanova Another international organization recognized the Gulen movement as a terrorist organization. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) recognized the movement of Fethullah Gulen as a terrorist organization, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on October 19, Anadolu Agency reported. "We thank the Organization of Islamic Cooperation over showing solidarity by understanding our sensitivities and declaring FETO as a terror group," Cavusoglu posted on his Twitter account and described the OIC move as a "milestone". The OICs Parliamentary Union, meeting in the Uzbek capital Tashkent on October 18, denounced all forms of terrorism in a joint declaration. Following the meeting, the body issued a declaration expressing its solidarity with Turkey in fighting terror. Previously, foreign ministers of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states designated FETO a terrorist group and stressed their support for the Turkish governments recent moves against the group. Founded in 1969, the OIC, with a current membership of 57 states, is the second largest inter-governmental organization after the UN and describes itself as the collective voice of the Muslim world". Turkey has been a member since 1969. Led by Fethullah Gulen, FETO is accused of organizing the defeated military coup as well as a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary. Turkey listed the Gulen movement as a terrorist group in 2015. Earlier, the Turkish Ministry of Justice officially requested the U.S. to arrest Fethullah Gulen. In addition, the Turkish authorities sent two requests to the U.S. for Gulens extradition. Prior to that, the Istanbul Court released an order to arrest Gulen. --- Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Gday, forex mates! The Aussie might have already seen some action this week, but the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) release of jobs numbers tomorrow (October 20, 12:30 am GMT) could give another crack at volatility for Aussie traders! If you love volatility like most of the FX-Men does, then get up to speed with this forex preview! What happened last month? Employment change: -3.9K vs. +15.2K expected Jobless rate slipped to 5.6% vs. steady 5.7% expected Labor force participation rate down from 64.9% to 64.7% Australias unemployment rate fell from 5.7% to 5.6%, a low not seen since July 2013. However, a net of 3,900 workers had also lost jobs for the month when analysts had been expecting an increase of 15,200 jobs. Whats up with that?! Details reveal that a net of 11,500 workers found full-time work, which, unfortunately, wasnt enough to offset the 15,400 declines in part-time jobs. Still, full-time job gains are preferable to increases in part-time work, as the former represents a more steady income for consumers. Just as the Aussie bulls geared up for a celebration, they took another look at the participation rate. See, the labor force participation rate slipped from 64.9% to 64.7%, suggesting that the drop in the unemployment rate is likely due to job-seekers getting discouraged rather than more workers getting employed. It also didnt help that seasonally adjusted working hours also dipped during the month. Forex traders initially sold the Australian dollar across the board but the bearish attacks didnt last long. Thanks to the mixed picture of the report and a risk-friendly environment in the next trading sessions, the Aussie was able to recoup all of its intraday losses by the end of the day. What is the market expecting this time? Employment change: +15.2K expected vs. -3.9K previous Jobless rate expected to go back up from 5.6% to 5.7% It looks like market players are expecting last months estimates to hold up this month. But what do the leading indicators say? National Australia Banks (NAB) survey of 500+ firms point to a pickup in hiring, as increases in sales, profits, and forward orders helped hold the index reading steady at +6 after two months of upticks. AIGs indices also point to pretty solid employment growth in September. The performance of the manufacturing index (PMI) popped up by 2.9 points to 49.8 thanks to 5 out of 8 sub-sectors showing expansion. The employment component also increased by 2.1 points but remained in contractionary territory at 46.7. Services activity also picked up with AIGs Performance of Services Index (PSI) rising by 3.9 points to 48.9 and its employment component ticking 0.8 points higher to 44.3. Even the construction sector showed improvement with its 4.8-point increase to 51.4. More importantly, its employment component was the biggest gainer with a full 10-point uptick to 57.6. The only party pooper was ANZs job ads data, which suggests that job postings declined by 0.3% in September after rising by 1.7% in August. Overall the leading indicators seem to point to stronger job growth in September. Though most PMIs remain in contraction levels, theyve shown improvements from the previous month. With a pretty tall order for net job gains though, its likely that the actual reading will disappoint like the last three September releases. However, its also likely that theyll be bumped higher after seasonal adjustments. As weve seen in the last few months, the Aussie has a straightforward reaction to the jobs release. That is, upside surprises tend to push it higher while worse-than-expected numbers tend to drag it downat least for the next hour or so. Aussie traders usually take profits before the next session starts, so keep an eye out for possible intraday reversals when you trade the report! Monetary contributions help ensure a steady flow of important services to those impacted. Monetary contributions to recognized disaster relief organizations are a fast, flexible and effective method of donating. Organizations on the ground know what items and quantities are needed. Local organizations spend the money in the local affected community, accelerating its economic recovery. Monetary donations, rather than un-solicited donated goods, avoid the complicated, costly and time-consuming process of collecting, transporting and distributing these goods. Contact: Crystal Feldman Crystal Feldman govpress@nc.gov Raleigh, N.C. Governor Pat McCrory is urging people to be aware of dangerous conditions that persist in flooded areas even as relief efforts are making progress in central and eastern North Carolina in response to Hurricane Matthew.said Governor McCrory.A recently-discovered fatality in Lenoir County brings the number of storm-related fatalities to 26.Federal assistance is available for individuals in 27 counties. More than $21.9 million in federal funding has already been approved for individual assistance and 40,000 people have already registered for assistance.More than 6,000 residents impacted by Hurricane Matthew have been assisted by North Carolina's 2-1-1 hotline.The number of statewide power outages continues to drop, down to only 600 from a peak of more than 800,000.There are more than 1,000 occupants in 21 shelters open throughout the state.Nearly 500 roads remain closed through central and eastern North Carolina due to damage or flooding, but the North Carolina Department of Transportation announced that a section of U.S. 74 at the Robeson-Columbus County line reopened today. Governor McCrory is reminding drivers not to rely on GPS devices for road closure and detour information. Call 5-1-1 or download the ReadyNC mobile app for the latest road conditions and updates.All North Carolina rivers should be below flood stage by October 24. The Neuse River at Kinston reached record-high levels and is not expected to drop below major flood stage until late Wednesday. The Tar River has dropped below major flood stage at Tarboro and dropped below major flood stage in Greenville this morning. The Cape Fear River has crested and is receding in all areas. The Lumber River has also dropped below major flood stage in Robeson County.While relief efforts are underway throughout central and eastern North Carolina, Governor McCrory stressed that Robeson County remains a top priority. A mobile hospital unit has been in use there since October 11, and residents continue to get needed prescriptions through a partnership that state and local leaders coordinated with Walmart.Monetary contributions to the North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund for Hurricane Matthew can be made by texting NCRECOVERS to 30306 or by visiting NCDisasterRelief.org . This is one of the best ways to help fund long-term recovery efforts. Additionally, information regarding monetary donations to recognize North Carolina relief organizations can be found at NCVoad.org , a fast, flexible and effective method of assisting North Carolinians who are in need.For more information about hurricane recovery in your area, call 2-1-1. For more details about Hurricane Matthew impacts and relief efforts, visit the Hurricane Matthew resource site. Follow N.C. Emergency Management on Twitter and Facebook for the latest on Hurricane Matthew. Becoming a homeowner doesnt necessarily require a large down payment; there are options to help you get the keys without giving up every dollar in your savings. Here are three main pathways that might be right for you: See if you qualify for a zero-down mortgage option. Bank of America just started a program with this goal in mind for minority neighborhoods. USDA and VA loans allow you to get a mortgage without a down payment. To qualify, though, youll need to meet certain criteria related to where the property is located, how much money you earn, or whether you or a spouse has served in the military. Explore low-down payment mortgage options. Both conventional mortgages and government backed mortgages are available for people putting down less than 20 percent. Ask family or friends for help. Many lenders allow you to use gift funds from a family member and in some cases, a close friend, labor union or an employer for your down payment. Youll need to provide a letter from the source of the gift that shows you dont need to pay the money back. Zero-down mortgage options The easiest way to avoid a down payment is to qualify for one of the two no-down payment government-backed mortgage programs: USDA and VA loans. In addition to government options you may be able to get a zero down loan through your local credit union, especially if its one based on membership in a professional organization. These are relatively rare but are worth looking into if you can find one. USDA loans The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) backs USDA home loans, a mortgage guarantee program for those buying a home in a designated rural area. USDA loans dont require a down payment, but borrowers must meet credit and income requirements to qualify, and, in some cases, be a first-time homebuyer. You can verify your eligibility via the USDA website. Although theres no down payment with a USDA loan, there is an upfront guarantee fee, which borrowers can roll into the cost of the mortgage. While you wont pay any money initially if you choose to roll it into the loan, keep in mind that it adds to the balance and will accrue interest over the loan term, which means youll pay more overall. VA loans If youre a military servicemember, veteran or surviving spouse, you could be eligible for a VA loan backed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) with no money down. There is no mortgage insurance with this type of loan, but like a USDA loan, you do have to pay an upfront funding fee, which can be rolled into the mortgage. (Note that you can reduce the funding fee by making a down payment, but no down payment is actually required.) Another perk of VA loans is that many lenders offer more competitive rates for these products, which helps you save quite a bit of money over the life of the loan. Low-down payment mortgage options If you dont qualify for one of the no-down payment home loans, you might still be able to buy a home with the next best thing: a low-down payment mortgage. Here are some of the options available: FHA loans Backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), an FHA loan only requires 3.5 percent down with a credit sore as low as 580. (If you have a credit score between 500 and 579, you might be able to qualify with a higher down payment of 10 percent.) Its a popular option for homebuyers with less-than-perfect credit. Like other government-insured programs, FHA loans are offered by private mortgage lenders, so you might also have to meet a lenders criteria in order to qualify. Additionally, you have to pay for FHA mortgage insurance, which adds to your monthly payment and the cost of the loan. Backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), an FHA loan only requires 3.5 percent down with a credit sore as low as 580. (If you have a credit score between 500 and 579, you might be able to qualify with a higher down payment of 10 percent.) Its a popular option for homebuyers with less-than-perfect credit. Like other government-insured programs, FHA loans are offered by private mortgage lenders, so you might also have to meet a lenders criteria in order to qualify. Additionally, you have to pay for FHA mortgage insurance, which adds to your monthly payment and the cost of the loan. HomeReady mortgage The Fannie Mae HomeReady mortgage, available through many mortgage lenders, is backed by Fannie Mae, a government-sponsored enterprise (GSE). The down payment requirement on a HomeReady loan is 3 percent, and the loan itself offers flexible underwriting. While youll have to pay mortgage insurance to compensate for the low down payment, its often at a lower price tag than what you might see with a conventional loan. The Fannie Mae HomeReady mortgage, available through many mortgage lenders, is backed by Fannie Mae, a government-sponsored enterprise (GSE). The down payment requirement on a HomeReady loan is 3 percent, and the loan itself offers flexible underwriting. While youll have to pay mortgage insurance to compensate for the low down payment, its often at a lower price tag than what you might see with a conventional loan. Home Possible mortgage Backed by Freddie Mac, Home Possible is a similar mortgage program to HomeReady, with a 3 percent down payment requirement. Borrowers do have to pay for mortgage insurance again, at potentially a lower rate but also enjoy the same credit flexibilities. Backed by Freddie Mac, Home Possible is a similar mortgage program to HomeReady, with a 3 percent down payment requirement. Borrowers do have to pay for mortgage insurance again, at potentially a lower rate but also enjoy the same credit flexibilities. Conventional 97 mortgage A Conventional 97 mortgage is another GSE-backed program, available from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, that only requires a 3 percent down payment. Its important to note that conventional mortgages require a higher minimum credit score of 620. As with other low-down payment programs, you need to be financially prepared to pay for mortgage insurance each month. A Conventional 97 mortgage is another GSE-backed program, available from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, that only requires a 3 percent down payment. Its important to note that conventional mortgages require a higher minimum credit score of 620. As with other low-down payment programs, you need to be financially prepared to pay for mortgage insurance each month. Good Neighbor Next Door The Good Neighbor Next Door (GNND) program is for borrowers who work in select public service professions teachers, firefighters, law enforcement and emergency medical technicians and are planning to buy a home in a qualifying area. The program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), provides a discount of up to 50 percent on a home with a down payment of just $100. Through the program, the borrower must qualify for a first mortgage, and the discounted portion of the home comes in the form of another loan. As long as the borrower continues to meet program requirements, the second mortgage wont have to be repaid. Pros and cons of a no-down payment mortgage The ability to buy a home with no or very little money down can be appealing, but there are drawbacks, too. Pros You can buy a home sooner. When you dont have to come up with a substantial down payment, its easier to buy a home sooner, especially if youre in an area where home prices are spiking. Alternatively, if you want to take advantage of a good deal or a dip in the market, you can move fast without having to spend time saving for a down payment. When you dont have to come up with a substantial down payment, its easier to buy a home sooner, especially if youre in an area where home prices are spiking. Alternatively, if you want to take advantage of a good deal or a dip in the market, you can move fast without having to spend time saving for a down payment. You can keep more cash on hand. Even if you have enough to make a sizable down payment, you might want to keep cash on hand for remodeling or to reach some other goal. With a zero- or low-down payment mortgage, that extra cash remains available to you. Cons Youll have no or little equity. When you start with a no-down payment home loan, you dont have much or any equity in your home at the outset because youll owe nearly 100 percent of the homes value. That means you wont be able to tap into your equity in an emergency, and during a downturn, you could end up owing more on the home than its worth, making it difficult to sell and move if that becomes necessary. When you start with a no-down payment home loan, you dont have much or any equity in your home at the outset because youll owe nearly 100 percent of the homes value. That means you wont be able to tap into your equity in an emergency, and during a downturn, you could end up owing more on the home than its worth, making it difficult to sell and move if that becomes necessary. Your interest rate might be higher. In some cases, you might have to pay a higher mortgage rate for a no- or low-down payment loan. Thats because with less money tied up in the home, a mortgage lender might view you as more of a Of course, the higher your interest rate, the more youll pay overall. In some cases, you might have to pay a higher mortgage rate for a no- or low-down payment loan. Thats because with less money tied up in the home, a mortgage lender might view you as more of a Of course, the higher your interest rate, the more youll pay overall. Youll need a bigger mortgage, which translates to higher costs. The less you put down, the more youll need to borrow, which means youll pay more in interest over the life of the loan. The less you put down, the more youll need to borrow, which means youll pay more in interest over the life of the loan. Your offer for a home might not look as compelling. Its a competitive housing market in most places around the country. If someone else makes an offer on a house with a large down payment, that buyer might look like a better bet for a smooth transaction in the sellers eyes. Its a competitive housing market in most places around the country. If someone else makes an offer on a house with a large down payment, that buyer might look like a better bet for a smooth transaction in the sellers eyes. You might have to pay extra fees. Some no-down payment home loans come with extra fees, which add to the cost of the loan. FAQs about no or low-down payment mortgages How do I save for a down payment? Calculate your budget. When youre applying for a mortgage, lenders will take a deep look at your finances, so determine how much house you can realistically afford. Once you have an idea of your monthly budget, you can do the math to figure out your target goal for a down payment. Cut costs everywhere possible. Saving money isnt just about earning more; its about spending less. As you start growing a down payment fund, scrutinize your monthly spending and think about how to shrink some expenses. Can you stop buying coffee each morning? How much can you save if you stop eating out and only cook at home? Even if youre on a tight budget, you can still identify ways to save. Consider adjusting your other financial goals in the short term. If youre 25 and want to buy a home, for example, consider reducing or pressing pause on your retirement contributions to shift those dollars toward your goal. Just remember that once you move in, youll want to focus on catching up on your retirement savings as soon as possible. Find savings matching programs. Saving for a down payment doesnt have to all fall on your shoulders. Some mortgage lenders such as Lower offer a boost that matches your savings up to a certain dollar amount. There are also some dollar-matching programs through state housing finance agencies. Make sure your savings are also earning. While youll be hard-pressed to find a lucrative interest rate on a no-risk savings account, there are banks and credit unions that pay an above-average yield on your deposits. When youre saving up to buy a house, every dollar counts. How do I get downpayment assistance? There are down payment assistance programs in all 50 states. Some programs are available for particular counties or cities and some are limited to special populations like nurses or school teachers. Most are restricted to first time homebuyers and have income restrictions but income limits are higher in areas with higher housing costs. Bottom line As home prices rise, hitting that oft-quoted 20 percent down payment is becoming increasingly difficult for many homebuyers. Dont let the need for a huge sum of money discourage you from trying to own a home. There are a range of programs that can help you buy a home with no money down or just a fraction of the purchase price. Compare all your loan options, and, more importantly, compare multiple lenders. By comparison-shopping for a mortgage, youll be able to land the best deal that makes sense with your savings and budget. With polls indicating a dead heat in Florida's U.S. Senate contest, Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign is reaching into its war chest to help the Democratic candidate, Patrick Murphy, unseat Sen. Marco Rubio. In recent polls, Patrick Murphy has pulled even with Rubio Jump in numbers could help get more funding from Clinton campaign A week's worth of advertising in Florida could cost $1.5 million RELATED: Rubio, Murphy jab at opponent's stances in UCF debate Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook told reporters this week the campaign is diverting $6 million to aid down-ballot Democratic candidates in seven swing states, including Florida. It's unclear how much of the money will benefit Murphy and other Florida congressional candidates through the party's coordinated campaign apparatus. "It's clear that (Clinton) needs a Democratic Senate to work with, and it's not just Florida, Pennsylvania, there's quite a few other states that she's investing resources into to ensure that when she gets to office, she's going to hit the ground running," Murphy said after a Tuesday roundtable discussion with Hispanic leaders in Tampa. The cash infusion comes at a critical time for Murphy. Despite pulling even with Rubio in polls conducted amid the sexual assault controversy engulfing Donald Trump, Murphy has seen pledges of support from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee evaporate. The DSCC has canceled millions of dollars worth of planned advertising in the Senate race, most recently nixing a statewide ad buy slated for the week before the Nov. 8 election. Democratic strategists say the DSCC's desertion of Murphy can be traced to the rising prospects of Democrats in Senate contests in Indiana, Missouri, North Carolina, home to smaller media markets and, as a result, less expensive advertising rates. Florida, on the other hand, boasts some of the most expensive media markets. A week's worth of statewide advertising can cost in upwards of $1.5 million, which is why the Clinton campaign's financial assistance likely won't enable the Murphy campaign to salvage the ad blitz. "In a presidential cycle like we're in right now, it doesn't matter if that entire $6 million was dumped into Florida," Democratic strategist Kevin Cate said. "It wouldn't make or break Patrick Murphy's campaign right now, because there's so much that has to go in to getting attention in Florida." If the money helps boost turnout for the entire Florida Democratic ticket, however, Murphy could emerge the prime beneficiary. Democratic operatives are encouraged at the prospect, pointing to data showing Democrats initially outpacing Republicans in returned mail-in ballots, a first for a Florida presidential election cycle. Pinellas County school leaders plan to bridge the achievement gap and they're holding a series of meetings to help make it happen. Bridging the Gap meetings in Pinellas County Offering programs, ways to help close achievement gap for minorities More meetings to come Parents at packed the school districts second "Bridging the Gap" meeting at Boca Ciega High School on Tuesday. Those who attended were able to talk about a number of things like increasing graduation rates with black and non-black students. They also talked about making sure those same students become more proficient in reading and math and that they participate in more accelerated courses and programs. Decreasing disciplinary infractions and eligibility for Emotional Behavior Disabilities was also talked about during the meeting. Its a tall order but its something Superintendent Dr. Mike Grego says they plan to tackle. This is not a sit and listen. This is actually where participants are getting involved," Grego said. "The experts at each station they can write, they can talk. People will be here taking notes. So its one way that if we have hundreds of people here, everyone can leave feeling like they had an opportunity to give input on these measures. Barbara Jones is a parent who attended the meeting. She says she wants to know more about it because her son attends Maximo Elementary school. Which is one of the disctricts lower performing schools and Jones says the dialog at the meeting is desperately needed. Im just one of those parents who want to get involved, Jones said. Some of the kids are struggling. Those teachers they be doing their job but some of the kids need some extra help. So thats why Im here to see what theyre gonna do about that. Are they gonna get extra teachers to come in and help or what are they gonna do? Thats why Im here. Jones passion is shared by many of the people in the meeting. School counselor Jackie Infanzon said examining the issues in the schools is vital. Its important to get everyone together and on the same page. Parents, teachers, counselors, administrators, school board, she said. I heard a man here who didnt have any kids here in the district. Hes just a community member and hes here because he cares about the kids and wants to be a part of the solution and I think this is what these sessions do for us. If youre a concerned parent, teacher or community member and you missed out on this meeting, dont worry, this is one of four meetings the district has planned. The next Bridging the Gap meeting is on Tuesday, Nov. 1 at Gibbs High School. The district says they plan to add more dates and locations for meetings. The next meetings are: Tom Campbell Wherever you go the overwhelming sentiment is that people can't wait until this election is over. Psychologists are calling this "Election Stress Disorder." While November 8th will clarify who wins and loses we would be naive to believe it all ends after the votes are counted.Win or lose, the populist Nationalism movement, for which Donald Trump has been the face and voice, won't go away. The schisms in the Republican Party will have repercussions and bring change. If Trump wins, traditional or mainstream Republicans will likely be forced to find a new home. If he loses, Trump followers will likely bolt, much as the Whigs split and formed their own party in 1834.It is hard to envision any Republicans scenario that doesn't result in a split. Nowhere will this be more in evident than in North Carolina, where the battle for the heart and soul of the party is well underway. North Carolina Republicans will cite Jim Martin and Pat McCrory as examples how more moderate Republicans were able to win but there is a vocal element, fueled by the Trump movement, who would rather be "right" than win. Republicans, however, are not alone in facing challenges.Win or lose, Democrats will be forced to reckon with the Bernie Sanders/Elizabeth Warren liberal faction of their party. If Clinton wins, the more liberal faction will claim her victory was a result of support from their followers including Millennials, those demanding change in the financial sector and supporters for free college and universal healthcare. They will insist on a stronger voice in policymaking. If Clinton loses, progressives will blame the defeat on her not being liberal enough.Counteracting that pressure will be Democrats who remember the Mondale/McGovern era that moved their party so far to the left that not only did they lose those elections but also large numbers (largely white men) revolted and joined the Republican Party. Leaders will remind Democrats that Bill Clinton's election and success in governing was the result of moving to more moderate political positions. Here in North Carolina we are watching the fledging group called "Main Street Democrats," espousing more middle-of-the-road, pro business philosophies. They are likely to gain strength to counteract efforts to move their party further to the left. Whatever the election results, it is hard to envision Democrats facing a party split to the extent facing Republicans.It would be idyllic to hope the rancor, partisanship and divisiveness we've experienced would yield to unity in coming months. Al Gore faced a similar hard-fought and highly controversial election in 2000 and began his concession speech reminding us of Stephen Douglas's concession to Abraham Lincoln. Douglas said,A disappointed Al Gore told the nation,We can only pray this sentiment would prevail. A senior US Treasury official expects the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to have a chief from outside Europe in the not near future. Nathan Sheets, the US undersecretary of treasury for international affairs, was talking about IMF reform on Tuesday when he was asked if IMF managing director would come from emerging economies such as China and Brazil. "I do expect that in the not too distant future, there will be discussions of managing directors from other parts of the world. And I think that is altogether appropriate and the way it should be," he told the talk at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. He said the discussion would seek to find the most qualified and effective people to continue to move forward in the senior leadership of the IMF. As a tacit agreement between the US and European nations, the IMF has always been headed by a European while the World Bank is presided over by an American. That has raised eyebrows over the years when emerging economies seek to have a bigger say in international financial institutions. "My sense is very much that the managing director at the IMF must be chosen based on competence, on experience and on the broad set of qualities and attributes that person brings to the table," Sheets said, praising the current managing director Christine Lagarde, a French, as being "exceptionally effective in that position." After a five-year delay and harsh warning from Lagarde, the US Congress approved the IMF 2010 quota and governance reforms last December. The reform doubled IMF's permanent resources and gave a greater say to emerging markets and other underrepresented countries. The reforms preserved US voting share. "The 2010 reforms made important progress, but we are not finished reforming the Fund," Sheets said, adding that the US is working to further modernize the IMF's system of governance and improve its capacity to deal with evolving challenges. He said as emerging economies grow, they desire and deserve a greater stake in the institutions at the center of the global economy. "We believe that further enhancing the voice of emerging markets at the IMF is necessary to preserve the legitimacy and effectiveness of the institution," Sheets said. A new brewery, movie theater and bowling alley would be likely pieces of the proposed $120 million One Big Sky Center in downtown Billings, but the complex project faces big hurdles, developers said Tuesday in a video conference in Billings. Skip Ahern and Burke McHugh of MontDevCo LLC told about 60 young professionals they are working on commitments for tenants to fill retail and office space and a brand for a proposed hotel and convention center. They said they plan to appear before the Billings City Council on Monday to discuss the project financing, which is a mix of private equity, up to $30 million in public tax-increment financing, bank loans and other sources. This would be a large, complex project if it were in New York, Los Angeles or Denver. To pull this off in Billings will take a lot of hard work, effort and, frankly, some good luck, Ahern said in the conference call from Denver, where he lives. The developers did not give details about the brewery, bowling alley and theater, only to say they are from out of town. MontDevCo has invested about $1.3 million in the project, which includes the purchase of a parking lot, McHugh said. The 90-minute meeting was held by NextGen, an arm of the Billings Chamber of Commerce, at the downtown satellite office of Coldwell Banker Commercial in the historic Sawyer Building. A St. Paul, Minn.-based firm, Springsted, is evaluating the financial reports of MontDevCo. David MacGillivray, chairman of the company, is scheduled to report to the Billings City Council on Monday on whether MontDevCo has the financial backing to complete the project. One Big Sky would include two skyscrapers (one of which would be the tallest in Montana), a hotel, a convention center, retail and office space and apartments. It's footprint would be on 29th Street between Third and Fourth avenues north. The developers say tax-increment financing, or TIF, dollars would be used for the public portions of the project, which include a new parking garage, the convention center and sidewalk and street work. TIF is used by municipalities to reimburse developers for cost of public improvements in blighted areas. The fund is one of the few available tools available for economic-development officials to lure new businesses. The remainder of One Big Sky would be paid for through bank loans, investor equity and a federal program called EB-5, according to developers. The latter program is designed to allow non-U.S. citizens to invest $500,000 in a project and create 10 or more jobs in exchange for a green card. During a question-and-answer period, attendees asked about the feasibility of completing the project in the proposed two-year window, what help might be available for displaced businesses and whether space would be available for local retailers. Greg Krueger, development director for the Downtown Billings Alliance, a project partner, said hes contacted all potentially displaced businesses and hopes to use TIF dollars to help relocate them downtown, if they so choose. Some retailers have said theyre uncertain if they could survive the two-year construction period and are exploring other options. The project remains in pre-development, and MontDevCo will seek a development agreement with the city, said Lisa Harmon, director of Downtown Billings. Attendees said they like the potential the project has for downtown, but they recognize the challenge. Im glad to hear they are open to small business, said Linda Brooks, who is seeking to open a clothing shop downtown and said shes worried she could be pushed out by national competition. Biologists report antelope season hunter participation is up in southwest Montana based on data gathered at the Kidd check station south of Dillon on opening weekend and anecdotal reports from around Region 3. At the Kidd station on Oct. 8 and Oct. 9, staff spoke with 251 pronghorn hunters. Of those, 158 harvested at least one antelope. A total of 173 antelope were checked over the weekend leading to an overall success rate of 63 percent, up from 61 percent the year before. Area biologist Dean Waltee said mild weather and more pronghorns contributed to hunter success. All but a few hunters reported at least observing antelope, and only 1 percent saw no game animals at all, Waltee said. Hunters are required to stop at check stations whether they are successful or not. They also need to keep evidence of sex naturally attached to one hind quarter of a headless or quartered big game animal, or to a muscle from one hind quarter of a boned out big game animal. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Hardin-Jefferson ISD wants to avoid several state regulations governing teacher certification, amount of instructional time and large class sizes by becoming a "District of Innovation," a designation from the Texas Education Agency intended to increase local control and autonomy. The plan was developed by a District of Innovation committee, which approved it at a public meeting Oct. 11. It was scheduled to go before the board of trustees for a vote Monday after the deadline for The Hardin County News. A law the Legislature passed in June 2015 outlines which requirements schools can opt out of by becoming Districts of Innovation. Hardin-Jefferson is the first district in Southeast Texas to seek the designation, which 35 other districts in the state have already obtained. If trustees vote to approve the plan, it will be sent to Education Commissioner Mike Morath who does not have the authority to approve or reject the plan. Any district with a state rating of "met standard" is eligible to become an Innovation District without state approval as long as it follows the process required by the law. Parental notification The district seeks be exempt from Texas Education Code policies on school start and end date; instructional minutes; class size reporting requirements; teacher certifications; probationary contracts; and professional development, according to the plan, which covers a five-year term. Only two community mem- bers attended the public meeting, and both requested that the committee add requirements to notify parents of the district's actions. Several of the exemptions seek to address paperwork submitted to the state that superintendent Shannon Holmes said was inefficient and ineffective. Currently, districts must request a waiver from the Texas Education Agency if an elementary class has more than 22 students, which the plan called "a bureaucratic step with no purpose," because "these waivers are never rejected by the TEA." Under the plan, which trustees were to consider at Monday's regularly scheduled meeting, the superintendent will notify the board when classes exceed 22 students. Karen Kiesling, one of the two non-committee members at the meeting, requested that the district continue to notify parents in that case, which the committee agreed to add to the plan. Districts also are required to request emergency certification from TEA when hiring or assigning teachers to courses for which they are not certified. The district plans to opt out of that to fill vacancies when needed or offer additional electives taught by industry professionals. The innovation plan calls for the district to "have the flexibility to hire individuals who are knowledgeable in the area" if finding an appropriately certified teacher is "not reasonably possible." This could include hiring a retired accountant to teach an accounting course or a history teacher teaching a section of an elective course if he or she has experience in that subject, Holmes said. Principals will be required to request local certification from the superintendent instead of the state. Although the plan originally called for not informing parents if their students are in one of those teachers' classes, Kiesling and Misty Cruse both requested that be changed. "The lack of parent notification is a big concern," Cruse said. "I want to know who's teaching my kids." Kiesling also argued for restricting the levels and subjects uncertified teachers would be able to teach. However, committee member and district trustee Gary Hidalgo said that would limit the flexibility the district is seeking with the plan. Other changes include opting out of state requirements for school start and end dates and numbers of instructional minutes to develop a calendar and schedule of non-instructional and early release days "to provide for student and district needs," and increasing the length of probationary contracts for experienced teachers who are new to the district. Hardin-Jefferson also plans to be exempt from current state eligibility requirements for teachers to mentor and be mentored. Instead, "the district will exercise local discretion" in assigning mentors and teachers, according to the plan. Although she was successful in adding parent notification requirements to the plan, Kiesling said that she was disappointed in its lack of details. "There are no criteria or comprehensive details" in the plan, she said, such as whether instructional time lost on early release days would be made up. Holmes said during the meeting that the plan lacks specific details to ensure the most flexibility for the board of trustees and administration. "The legislation is designed to give local control, and this plan is as detailed as the rules require," he said. "It's always a good thing when locally elected folks are making the decisions that impact the district," he said. LTeitz@BeaumontEnterprise.comTwitter.com/LizTeitz Jefferson County Sheriff's Office Authorities have arrested a 20-year-old Beaumont man involved in a Tuesday night robbery at Dollar General on the 7300 block of Highway 105, according to the Beaumont Police Department. According to officials, two men entered the store with guns shortly before 9 p.m. Officials said one suspect forced the clerk to open the safe at gunpoint, and the other stayed at the front door. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Plans are moving ahead for an $11.6 billion system to protect six coastal counties, including Jefferson and Orange, from a devastating storm surge, but doubts remain over whether Congress will provide the money. Regional officials have put aside years of bickering over how best to protect the coastline to unite behind the so-called "Ike Dike" concept, a coastal barrier that would keep a massive storm surge from rushing into developed areas. Planners have completed studies showing it could prevent $38 billion in losses and save 151,000 jobs over a 50-year lifespan. A six-county storm surge district in June recommended a plan that calls for 277 miles of coastal barriers in Jefferson, Orange, Galveston and Brazoria counties. Whether the Ike Dike ever becomes a reality, though, depends on convincing Congress to pay for all, or most, of it. The current plan calls for the coastal barrier to be completed by 2035, a date legislators would like to see shortened with help from Congress. The push comes eight years after Hurricane Ike pounded the Texas coast in September 2008, leaving three dozen people dead and up to $30 billion in direct damage. Galveston's 17-foot seawall, built after the catastrophic 1900 hurricane, did not protect the island from surge on the Galveston Bay side. Bolivar Peninsula, which has no protective barrier, took a devastating blow that leveled almost every home and business. The 16-foot Port Arthur seawall kept Ike's surge out of most of south Jefferson County, but the unprotected cities of Bridge City and Orange in Orange County were inundated with several feet of storm surge. Timeline Sept. 13, 2008: Hurricane Ike makes landfall at Galveston and Bolivar Peninsula. Texas A&M University Galveston professor conceives of Ike Dike as he watches storm surge. 2010: Gulf Coast Community Protection and Recovery District forms to study storm surge protection. 2011: Rice University's SSPEED Center recommends quick, cheap storm-surge protection measures without an Ike Dike. 2012: Texas A&M Galveston President Robert Smith III visits Netherlands to show support for Ike Dike. 2013: Gulf Coast Community Protection and Recovery District finally receives $4 million to do study. 2014: Joint Interim Committee to Study a Coastal Barrier meets. 2015: Gulf Coast Community Protection and Recovery District publishes Phase 1 of three phase study. January 2016: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers begins five-year coastal protection study. February 2016: Phase 2 published. June 2016: Phase 3 published. See More Collapse "We've got to come together and get one plan and start selling it," said state Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood and co-chairman of the Texas legislature's Joint Interim Committee to Study a Coastal Barrier, at a recent hearing. "We haven't directed Congress to do anything because we don't have a plan." Before Congress can appropriate money, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers needs to make a recommendation for the project. The agency is currently conducting a study of storm-surge protection needs for the entire Texas Gulf Coast, and is scheduled to make a recommendation to Congress in 2018, according to Sheri Willey, the Corps' project manager for the upper Texas Coast section. Willey said that Congress is funding the study in annual appropriations rather than giving it a lump sum, as they did for New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. There is no guarantee that the Corps will recommend a coastal barrier system like the Ike Dike. Willey said the Corps would base its recommendation solely on the science, although it has a close working relationship with the storm surge district. Orange County Judge Brint Carlton, a member of the storm surge district's board of directors, said that even if the Corps recommends a project like the Ike Dike, there could be key differences in the plans that are actually presented to Congress. One Corps' proposal would not include levee protection for Vidor and Rose City, he said. "That's a concern definitely from Orange County," he said, because "there were parts of Vidor and Rose City that received damage during Hurricane Ike." With an estimated cost in the billions of dollars, the project would need serious support from the state and federal government in order to be feasible, Carlton said. The price tag on just the Orange County portion is "in the neighborhood of $1.5 billion," he said, with an additional $5 million a year in annual maintenance and operations. Where's help for Texas? Taylor and others testifying at a joint committee hearing this month said that Congress should do for Texas what it did for New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and for greater New York after Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Although Ike was the third-costliest storm in U.S. history, news of the disaster was eclipsed by the national financial collapse days later. Congress appropriated about $3 billion for disaster relief, but nothing for coastal protection. "Nothing has been done since Hurricane Ike to fix this problem," said Bob Mitchell, president of the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership. "When Katrina hit New Orleans, Congress funded it. That is a community whose gross domestic product is one-sixteenth of the Houston-Galveston area." Mitchell was referring to Congress providing money for a New Orleans storm barrier within a year of Katrina. Jefferson County Judge Jeff Branick, another member of the storm surge district's board of directors, said that the region's economic importance should be taken into consideration when determining federal funding. "It certainly would be worthwhile for politicians at the state and federal level to pay heed ... because the bulk of the refining of gasoline and diesel fuel and commercial and military aviation fuels" happens in Southeast Texas, he said. "A catastrophic event that impacted these six counties would have a devastating impact not just here but across the United States," Branick said. Smaller projects As far back as 2011, there was disagreement over whether to build the Ike Dike or a series of smaller projects that could be built more quickly, as advocated by Rice University's SSPEED (Severe Storm Prediction Education and Evacuation from Disaster) Center. The dike system prevailed and the SSPEED Center now supports the idea of a coastal barrier, but has not given up on urging smaller, locally funded projects to complement the Ike Dike. Larry Dunbar, project manager for the SSPEED Center, told legislators that it was better to move ahead with smaller projects, such as the center's proposal for a gate inside Galveston Bay, that could be financed locally. "Are we going to sit back and wait for the federal government to give us the $10 billion we need?" Dunbar asked. "We believe ... it can be built in pieces if necessary." Christopher Toomey, vice president at AECOM engineering, told the joint committee this month that Congress was unlikely to fund the Ike Dike unless Texas paid some of the cost. "Securing congressional funding is becoming more and more challenging," Toomey said. "Our concern is that broad (congressional) support will only materialize after a disaster." Toomey offered several ways to obtain local funding, including the Legislature's projected $10.4 billion rainy day fund for fiscal 2017. State Rep. Joe Deshotel, D-Beaumont, doesn't think that's a realistic option. "It's very difficult to get the requisite number of votes to pull money" from the rainy day fund, he said. Pointing to the money that Congress gave New Orleans and New York, Taylor said it was worth trying to get 100 percent federal funding. "We should give it a shot, then come back," he said. The office of U.S. Rep. Randy Weber, R-Friendswood, said that House rules limiting earmarks, or legislation for specific projects, would make it difficult to get Ike Dike funding passed. Courtney Weaver, a spokeswoman for Weber, said the earmark rules could be changed when the new Congress is sworn in next year. Deshotel said that he's trying to be pragmatic because the state's congressional delegation is working on a bipartisan appeal to Congress. "I just don't believe that the federal government is going to fund the entire project without some matching from the state of Texas, and that's my concern," he said. "Unfortunately, Congress is usually reactionary" rather than preventative, he said. "I'm hoping that we can get them to fund this before a hurricane destroys the upper Texas coast." Staff writer Dug Begley contributed to this report. Harvey.Rice@Chron.com LTeitz@BeaumontEnterprise.com Twitter.com/lizteitz The man arrested after being pulled over with more than 50 pounds of marijuana asked to be released without bond Wednesday so he could make it to his cancer surgery next week. Travis Sean Tubert Jackson, 39, was denied release without bond after Justice of the Peace David Carter said the charges against him were too concerning to warrant the request. Carter held Jackson in place of a $10,000 bond. Jackson was charged with two felony counts of criminal possession with intent to distribute and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia. Jackson's attorney, Timothy Baldwin, asked the court to release Jackson so he could travel to Seattle for cancer surgery. Jackson had no felony history and has lived at the same address in Washington for 13 years. Jackson has no ties to the Billings community, however, Carter said. The amount of drugs allegedly being carried by Jackson also concerned Carter. Jackson was arrested Tuesday while traveling east on Interstate 90, near the exit for King Avenue West. A Montana Highway Patrol Trooper pulled over Jackson for driving 11 miles over the posted speed limit, court documents state. Jackson told the trooper he was driving from Washington to Wisconsin and Minnesota. The trooper asked Jackson to answer more questions, at which point Jackson "gave some vague answers" about having a medical marijuana card, according to court documents. The trooper asked if he could search Jackson's rental car, and Jackson said no. Another trooper had his K-9 check Jackson's car and the dog picked up the odor of drugs, according to court documents. Jackson was held while troopers obtained a search warrant from Yellowstone County Judge Mary Jane Knisely. The troopers found nearly 50 pounds of marijuana in three sealed bags, 28 syringes containing butane hash oil, 36 packages of hashish and another 28 grams of marijuana. A compressed puck-shaped material that smelled like marijuana was also found, according to charging documents. Troopers confiscated the drugs and $2,087 in cash. MHP has taken the cash as evidence and requested it be forfeited if it is proven the money was connected to drug distribution. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Lanora Read wanted to see and hear from Jefferson County's judicial candidates. With the sheriff's race dominating much of the political discussion this year, a forum Tuesday night at Lamar University allowed the four candidates vying for district and county court benches to take center stage. They fielded questions ranging from indigent defense funding to discretion in sentencing and managing conflicting interests. The forum was hosted by the Beaumont and Lamar University NAACP chapters. "It was a lot more relaxed and you really got to hear more from the judicial candidates," said Read, 64, of Port Neches. For Johnnie Durden, it was an opportunity to hear candidates' thoughts about injustices within the justice system, such as the disproportionate percentage of minorities sent to prison compared to whites. Durden said she was disappointed that more college students were not at the event, which was held at the university's John Gray Center. "These candidates would represent all of us in this community," said Durden, 68, of Beaumont. "All of us need to be part of the process." More for you Southeast Texas candidates address voters at forum Democrat Baylor Wortham and Republican Dana Timaeus are vying for the 136th District Court. Wortham, the son of district attorney and former district judge Bob Wortham, has spent most of his 10-year law career as a prosecutor, starting with the Jefferson County District Attorney's office in April 2006 before working as an assistant U.S. attorney in 2012. Wortham, a 35-year-old Beaumont native, was previously the chief prosecutor in two county courts at law. Timaeus, 60, runs a private practice firm in Beaumont, where he specializes in personal injury trials, mediation and training companies in risk management. Timaeus, a Mid-County native, began his law career in 1981. Neither candidate faced a challenger in the March primary election. The winner of the Nov. 8 general election will replace Judge Milton Shuffield, who was first appointed to the bench in 1995 before he was elected the following year. Shuffield announced his retirement in September 2015. The race for the County Court-at-Law No. 2 bench is between Democrat Terrence Holmes and Republican Luke Nichols. Holmes, 59, is a municipal court judge in Beaumont. He also runs a private practice firm as a public defender. Holmes was an assistant county attorney in Orange County in the early 1990s before going into private practice. He defeated Jesse Branick, brother of the county's top elected official, in the primary election. Nichols, 37, who ran unopposed in the primary, is a felony prosecutor in Jefferson County. He also spent the early part of his career as a defense attorney. The winner will replace Cory Crenshaw, who was appointed to the seat in June 2015. The vacancy was created by the death of Judge G.R. "Lupe" Flores. Early voting in the November general election begins on Monday. BScott@BeaumontEnterprise.com Twitter.com/BrandonKScott More health insurance companies are offering patients narrow networks to save money, with many studies showing narrow networks do not negatively impact patient access or care. However, a recent study presents different results and raises questions about narrow networks' sustainability, according to The New York Times. Here are five thoughts: 1. Philadelphia-based Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics researchers found of the plans offered on the Affordable Care Act marketplaces, very narrow networks (constituting plans that cover care by less than 10 percent of physicians) charge 6.7 percent lower premiums than plans with much broader networks. Broader networks encompass plans that cover care by up to 60 percent of physicians. 2. Despite these savings, many were worried narrow networks may impede quality patient care, but a 2012 Massachusetts Group Insurance Commission study alleviated many of these concerns. The commission offered government employees the opportunity to waive three months of employee premium contributions if they enrolled in new, narrow network plans, which yielded $500 in savings per enrollee, on average. However, the new plan covered about half as many physicians and 33 percent fewer hospitals than the previous plans. 3. The Massachusetts Group Insurance Commission offered the plan to nearly 100,000 state employees and their dependents, but did not offer the plans to nearly 20,000 enrollees who are state municipality employees for comparison purposes. The researchers found those who changed plans spent 36 percent less on healthcare and narrow network enrollees used emergency departments less. Researchers found no evidence indicating patients in narrow network plans used lower quality hospitals. 4. A notable study finding revealed the savings were concentrated amongst enrollees who kept their primary care physician even after switching to the narrow network plan. The study also found patients traveled less for primary care visits. NYT notes this finding falls in line with narrow network's aim to increase access to primary care specialist, as opposed to "costly specialists." 5. However, a recent study analyzing plans offered in California found patient access to primary care physicians was relatively poor for certain plans offered through the state's ACA marketplace last year. The majority of ACA plans in the state, like many other states, are narrow network plans. Researchers employed a "secret shopper" approach and found: Nearly 30 percent of attempts to make appointments with specific primary care physicians reaped success. In 15 percent of cases, the physician did not accept the shopper's plan, even though the physician was listed in the patient's directory. The directory included the wrong phone number or the number was busy in two calls on consecutive days in almost 20 percent of cases. Ten percent of the physicians called were not accepting new patients. Almost 30 percent of the physicians called were not primary care physicians, although the directory listed them as such. When the caller said they have acute symptoms, the average weight time for an appointment totaled one and a half weeks. More articles on coding & billing: Physicians react to CMS' final MACRA rule 6 things to know The judge has spoken: Anthem, Cigna required to disclose accusatory emails 5 thoughts After receiving 'overweight' rating Anthem shares drop 2%: 3 thoughts Broadly takes a look into people who have fooled countless patients, feigning to be physicians when they lack the necessary educational background and certification. Here are eight key notes: 1. Teenager Malachi Love-Robinson made headlines this past winter after posing as "Dr. Robinson." After Mr. Love-Robinson gave a physical exam and advice to an undercover officer, police arrested the teen. Mr. Love-Robinson allegedly tricked patients through a website and biography, in which he called himself a "well-rounded professional" who used psychotherapy, electrotherapy and other techniques to treat patients. 2. Mr. Love-Robinson's trial was slated to begin this past September, but is being postponed until November to give the teen's lawyer sufficient time to see if an insanity defense is viable. The court ordered Mr. Love-Robinson to undergo a mental health evaluation, and the results led his lawyer to explore the option of a defense centered on the teen's mental state. 3. In India, police are continually arresting unqualified medics, posing as physicians. However, due to the large number of 'quacks,' a charity, Liver Foundation, is trying to train these individuals in primary medical care. The charity is facing backlash with some claiming the charity's actions are doing the public a disservice. 4. Mr. Love-Robinson is one of many people, such as Nora Zakardas, a fake psychiatrist in Australia, tricking patients for years. Ms. Zakardas conducted medical examinations, wrote prescriptions and provided medical expertise to friends and family members. Ms. Zakardas' physician allowed her to sit in on patient examinations and access other patients' medical records. 5. Broadly reports the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency has successfully prosecuted nearly 17 unregistered practitioners since 2014, and the agency has eight pending cases before the courts. 6. Psychiatrist Danny Sullivan, MD, says fake physicians typically only perform a couple simple procedures as to not draw attention to their lack of skills. However, as they gain confidence and time passes, they may start performing more complex procedures. Dr. Sullivan told Broadly, "So, if they're successful, it's because they've started off as reasonably humble, and then only gradually ramped up what they're doing." He also notes these people will often work with non-English speaking patients. 7. These fake physicians often see themselves as "heroes" with many pulling the scheme to gain some type of recognition. Dr. Sullivan notes some may suffer from an undiagnosed mental illness or have "personality difficulties." 8. Medical boards strongly encourage new patients to look into whether their physician is a registered medical practitioner. However, most patients assume if someone is practicing, they have been approved. More healthcare news: Physicians react to CMS' final MACRA rule 6 things to know Senator urges DOJ to reject $465M Mylan settlement 4 takeaways The judge has spoken: Anthem, Cigna required to disclose accusatory emails 5 thoughts Chicago-based Mercy Hospital & Medical Center notified 547 patients that an error by a third-party billing company potentially exposed their personal information, reports Chicago Tribune. Mercy Hospital discovered the breach in August. The breach occurred when a third-party billing service employed by Mercy Hospital lost documents containing 547 patients' medical records, according to a statement from the hospital. The name of the billing company was not disclosed. Personal information included patients' names, health plans, member identification numbers, billing account numbers and dates of services and procedures. Mercy Hospital officials told Chicago Tribune it offered free credit monitoring to affected patients. Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Broward Health interviewed three finalists for the permanent CEO role, taking over from interim CEO Pauline Grant, according to a Sun Sentinel report. The finalists are: Timothy J. Harlin, the chief operating and acceleration officer of the Denver Health and Hospital Authority, a safety-net hospital system. He earned a master's degree in business administration from Emory University in Atlanta. Brett S. McClung, the executive vice president of Arlington-based Texas Health Resources. He previously was president of Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Southwest Fort Worth. Christopher T. Olivia, MD, the former president of Marlton, N.J.-based Continuum Health Alliance, a physician management company with more than 1,200 primary care physicians. He is the only physician among the finalists. Broward Health has interviewed the finalists, and the board will make its decision at an Oct. 31 meeting. Broward Health has been in the news for the better part of 2016 beginning in January when Nabil El Sanadi, MD, Broward's then president and CEO, was found dead in his condominium from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Dr. El Sanadi took over the system at a difficult time. In September 2015, the system ended a five-year government investigation into allegations that it held improper physician contracts to submit tens of millions of false claims to Medicare and Medicaid. The system agreed to pay $69.5 million to the government. After Dr. El Sanadi's death, Broward named Kevin Fusco acting president and CEO. He was demoted, however, following complaints of administrative chaos that could threaten patient care. Pauline Grant replaced Mr. Fusco on an interim basis in March, the same month in which the Florida Attorney General's Office demanded the health system pay more than $5.3 million for alleged violations of Stark Law and Florida's Anti-Kickback Statute and False Claims Act. Broward said the settlement demand represents a state claim related to the September 2015 settlement. In addition to these troubles, Broward terminated its contract with KPMG in September of this year, after the firm rejected an addendum that would have extensively restricted KPMG's inquiry powers into Broward's activities. This may make it difficult for the health system to complete its annual financial audit by the Dec. 31 deadline. One of the three finalists will take on the numerous challenges the public hospital system faces. "They were well prepared with questions about all that has transpired at Broward Health during the last year or so," Maureen Canada, a board member told the Sun Sentinel. "All the candidates seemed prepared for any challenges that are ahead for the district." The new CEO could earn up to $950,000 for the first year, as per Broward Health's contract with its executive search firm DiversifiedSearch, which the board approved in April. Blountstown, Fla.-based Calhoun Liberty Hospital has appointed Charles E. Durant its new CEO, according to a Tallahassee Democrat report. Mr. Durant, who is equipped with more than 25 years of healthcare leadership experience, replaces interim CEO James Heitzenrater as per an agreement with Louisville, Ky.-based Alliant Management Services. Alliant took over the daily operations of Calhoun Liberty Hospital in March. Mr. Heitzenrater took the helm of the troubled hospital following Ruth Attaway's seven-month stint as administrator and CEO. This change came mere days after Ms. Attaway fired two nurses and a paramedic for their handling of a case that turned fatal. In December 2015, Calhoun Liberty Hospital drew national attention when Barbara Dawson, a 57-year-old woman, died after being forcibly removed from the hospital by police. The Agency for Health Care Administration conducted an investigation at the hospital which uncovered 10 deficiencies, including issues with its patient rights and care, emergency services and risk management program. The AHCA filed a complaint leaving the hospital facing up to $56,500 in administrative fines. Late last month, the hospital reached a settlement agreement with the AHCA. "Under the settlement agreement, the hospital has until April 3, 2017 to pay $14,500. The balance of the fine ($42,000) will be held in abeyance pending the continued implementation of Agency-directed quality assurance measures for two years," said Ms. Attaway in a statement. As part of an effort to rally teens who have been "desensitized to violence," an executive of New York City-based Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center launched a seminar that culminates with a visit to the hospital morgue, according to The Trace. Khari Edwards, vice president of external affairs at Brookdale, wants the young people of the community to confront the growing crisis of gun fighting and bloodshed. The hospital serves some of the most violent neighborhoods in New York City. "What we're trying to show you is, this is the end," Mr. Edwards told a group of middle school students during the seminar, called "It Starts Here," according to the report. "We want you to never have to come down here." Mr. Edwards hopes that by exposing young people to the gruesome reality of gun violence and death, they will make better choices and stay away from guns. Before visiting the morgue, students who take the 90-minute seminar watch real video footage of a man who is shot, endoscopic footage of a bullet being removed from a victim's eye and a slideshow of bullet-ridden internal organs and body parts, including a gunshot to the face, according to the report. Although Mr. Edwards says the goal of the seminar is not to "scare kids straight," a method whose effectiveness has been discredited by behavioral researchers, some parents have not allowed their children to participate, calling the program too gruesome. Since he launched the program last spring, more than 120 teens have participated, according to the report. A 52-year-old Billings man accused of sexually abusing an 8-year-old girl in 2012 was sentenced to 15 years in prison with 11 years suspended. Bret William Hoelle appeared for sentencing Tuesday before Yellowstone County District Court Judge Gregory Todd. Hoelle was being sentenced on a plea agreement he made with the state, where he denied he was guilty, but said the evidence against him could lead to a conviction. Hoelle had a previous conviction for possessing meth in 2000. Prosecutors recommended the 15 years with 11 years suspended. The defense asked for the full 15 years to be suspended. "There are consequences to your actions, and youre not going to get a totally suspended sentence," Todd said. Based on the psycho-sexual evaluation of Hoelle, Todd ordered him to register as a level-two sex offender and complete phase one of the Montana State Prison's sexual offender treatment course. Todd told Hoelle he would have difficulty completing the course if he didn't admit his actions. In her statement to the court, the victim told Hoelle she forgave him for what he did. The victim in the case spoke to a counselor about the abuse in October 2013 and reported that Hoelle had touched her under her clothes about a year earlier, charging documents state. A detective with the Billings Police Department investigated, and the girl again said that Hoelle had sexually abused her and hurt her, records say. The detective also found that two other girls had reported that Hoelle had sexually abused them while he lived in Butte, according to prosecutors. Another witness also told police that Hoelle had made inappropriate sexual advances and exposed himself to her in the past. The girls mother reported earlier this month that Hoelle had contacted her and said that he was extremely high for several weeks during the time frame the abuse would have occurred, according to court records. The woman said Hoelle indicated he recalls very little from that period. He prayed God would never reveal to him the details of anything he may have done to the victim, records say he told the girls mother. Quorum Health Corp., the 38-hospital spin-off of Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems, has signed a definitive agreement to sell 64-bed Sandhills Regional Medical Center in Hamlet, N.C., to FirstHealth of the Carolinas in Pinehurst, N.C. The transaction, which is subject to customary regulatory approvals, is expected to close Dec. 1. The divestiture comes after Quorum ended the second quarter with an operating loss of $259.3 million a significant change from the operating income of $27.5 million the company recorded in the second quarter of last year. Last week, Fort Worth, Texas-based Q Investments LP blamed Community Health Systems for Quorum's downturn in a letter to Quorum's board. "We believe Community Health was desperate to raise cash, and they saw an easy path to do so by stuffing new investors in Quorum with inflated guidance and concealing costs within what they knew was a disintegrating business," the letter stated. Q Investments, which is one of Quorum's top-10 investors with 1.3 million shares, asked Quorum to "take appropriate legal action" against CHS. Due to its financial downturn, Quorum announced plans in August to divest underperforming assets to drive down debt. Earlier this month, Quorum signed a definitive agreement to sell Barrow Regional Medical Center in Winder, Ga., to Northeast Georgia Health System in Gainesville. On Wednesday, Quorum Health President and CEO Thomas D. Miller said the company is "working toward additional divestitures" to reduce debt and improve organizational performance. More articles on healthcare industry transactions: Kaufman Hall: 2016 hospital M&A activity keeping pace with 2015 Moody's: For-profit hospital operators continue to increase scale through acquisitions CHS to sell controlling interest in home health business for $128M Physicians and other healthcare professionals strive to meet two goals: provide and continue to improve on quality of care and run a financially healthy business. To meet these goals, many physician groups have joined hospitals or health systems. However, DuPage Medical Group has taken a different path. The Downers Grove, Ill.-based multispecialty medical group remains independent and, over the past 20 years, has grown from eight physicians to roughly 600. By the end of 2016, the group will employ roughly 610 physicians throughout all of its clinics, with at least 150 more to be added by the end of 2017, according to DuPage Medical Group President Paul Merrick, MD. In September alone, the group acquired eight independent physicians and two clinics. The sheer number of physicians employed at DMG allowed the organization to treat more than 700,000 patients so far this year. But what makes the group such a sought-after employer? DMG CEO Mike Kasper says it's the way they treat physicians, both inside and outside the group. "Our mission is to serve as a non-employment alternative for physicians. We're a physician-driven organization. We want our physicians to work independently for their own satisfaction and well-being," says Mr. Kasper. The physician-oriented model is what persuaded the group to join Illinois Health Partners, the 14th largest accountable care organization in the nation, comprised of healthcare organizations such as Naperville, Ill.-based Edward Hospital and Arlington Heights, Ill-based Northwest Community Hospital, along with 22 other organizations. According to 2015 data released by CMS, Illinois Health Partners maintained the lowest cost of care per beneficiary for any ACO in the Chicagoland area at $8,847. "By involving ourselves with Illinois Health Partners, we're able to obtain a more complete view of patients and their medical history, leading to a better relationship between our physicians and patients," says Mr. Kasper. The inclination to partner with like-minded organizations is reflective of the group's adaptability to changing trends in the industry, a cultural facet of the organization that has been a part of the group's philosophy since its founding in 1999. Dr. Merrick notes that one of those changes is the increase in Medicare patients and the streams through which the group obtains its revenue. "Ten years ago, our primary source of revenue, about 90 percent, came from our physicians' services. Those services probably amount to about 60 percent now. The other 40 percent comes from the ancillary services we provide," says Dr. Merrick. To be successful in this new environment, Dr. Merrick says price transparency is key. "When it comes to Illinois, quality care and lower costs will have patients flocking [to DMG]," he says. Despite changes in the industry, both Dr. Merrick and Mr. Kasper note there is no legislative solution that trumps a physician's ability to change their immediate environment and influence change in the larger arena of healthcare. Staying true to the ideals the organization was founded upon is, and will continue to make DMG an influential, non-hospital entity. "While we hope to expand outside the Chicagoland area eventually, our commitment is to our physicians, our staff and our patients and the quality of care we can provide for them," says Mr. Kasper. "Having true authority and clinical autonomy is important [to us and to our physicians]." Since declaring financial troubles in May, Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems has experienced a rollercoaster of events in its quest to regain financial stability. Here is a timeline of recent events concerning CHS. May 2016 CHS completes 38 hospital spin off Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems completed its previously announced spinoff of Quorum Health Corp., which included 38 hospitals across 16 states as well as CHS' hospital management and consulting business. CHS sees profit plummet, plans to sell 10 more hospitals to drive down debt CHS saw its earnings drop significantly in the first quarter of fiscal year 2016. August 2016 CHS to sell 12 hospitals to drive down debt The Franklin, Tenn.-based hospital operator declared its plan to sell a dozen hospitals by the end of 2016 two more than it was negotiating to divest in May. September 2016 CHS ups divestitures, will sell more than 12 hospitals In August, CHS said it would sell more than the 12 hospitals it previously anticipated. Accipiter Capital ups stake in CHS Hedge fund Accipiter Capital retained 2,432,366 shares of Community Health Systems after scooping up an additional 1,687,136 shares in the second quarter. CHS explores sale of its business The hospital operator declared its plans to work with advisers to explore a variety of options with financial sponsors, including the possible sale of its business. Chinese billionaire ups stake in CHS for $31.9M Chinese billionaire Tianqiao Chen acquired a larger stake in CHS after buying roughly 3.5 million more shares. Chinese billionaire again ups stake in CHS this time for $9.55M Mr. Chen then proceeded to buy an even larger stake in the for-profit hospital operator, obtaining a 13.8 percent stake in CHS after buying 929,813 more shares. CHS to sell four hospitals to Curae Health CHS officials signed a definitive agreement to sell three hospitals in Mississippi and one hospital in Florida to Clinton, Tenn.-based Curae Health. NLRB issues labor complaint against CHS The National Labor Relations Board Office of General Counsel declared its decision to move forward with a consolidated labor complaint against CHS, as well as the hospital operator's 38-hospital spinoff, Quorum Health. October 2016 CHS spin-off to sell Georgia hospital Quorum Health signed a definitive agreement to sell Barrow Regional Medical Center in Winder, Ga., to Northeast Georgia Health System in Gainesville. Metro Health CEO: I'm thankful the CHS deal fell apart After learning of CHS' financial troubles, Metro Health President and CEO Mike Faas said he's thankful, in retrospect, that the potential deal between CHS and Metro Health in 2015 fell through. CHS adopts short-term poison pill to protect stockholders' rights Roughly two weeks after Mr. Chen increased his holding in the for-profit hospital operator, CHS officials adopted a "poison pill" to protect shareholders' rights. Chinese billionaire claims he does not want to control CHS After news that CHS adopted the "poison pill," Shanghai, China-based private investment firm Shanda Asset Management Holding, owned by Mr. Chen, released a statement reiterating its role as a passive investor in the for-profit hospital operator. Simplex Trading scoops up additional 64,958 shares in CHS Chicago-based Simplex Trading purchased an additional 64,958 shares in CHS. CHS faces fraud allegations from investor in Quorum spin-off: 7 things to know Q Investments LP sent a letter to the board of Quorum Health, asking the board to conduct an independent investigation into potentially unlawful financial projections related to CHS. CHS to sell controlling interest in home health business for $128M CHS signed a definitive agreement to sell a controlling interest in CHS Home Health to Louisville, Ky.-based Almost Family, a provider of home health nursing services. CHS spin-off Quorum sells NC hospital Quorum Health Corp. signed a definitive agreement to sell 64-bed Sandhills Regional Medical Center in Hamlet, N.C., to FirstHealth of the Carolinas in Pinehurst, N.C. Four hundred healthcare workers and their supporters rallied at Pomona (Calif.) Valley Hospital Medical Center at noon on Oct. 19 to pressure hospital executives who they say have put profits and executive pay above quality and affordable medical care. Along with the rally, the workers held a formal press conference with U.S. Rep. Norma Torres (D), State Sen. Connie Leyva (D) and Rust Hicks, leader of the L.A. County Labor Federation. "We call on Pomona Valley Hospital to show the same level of commitment to patients as the healthcare professionals who care for them," Jeanette Castillo, a phlebotomist at Pomona Valley Hospital, said in a statement from the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West. "These days, our hospital seems more interested in boosting profits and CEO pay than doing what's best for the members of our community who have a right to expect the best possible care." "I urge Pomona Valley Hospital to honor the democratic vote of its employees and not delay the process further," said Rep. Torres. "This hospital plays such an important role in the community, and it's critical that employees and administration work together to strengthen patient care." Healthcare workers voted in January on whether to join the SEIU-UHW. Those who voted to unionize argue the hospital is refusing to recognize their votes, as 531 workers voted in favor of SEIU-UHW and 458 voted against SEIU-UHW. However, the outcome of the vote has not yet been officially determined because there were 214 challenged ballots. The National Labor Relations Board's Hearing Officer has agreed to open and count 62 of the challenged ballots, but the hospital is still waiting for a decision from the NLRB's Regional Director regarding the hospital's exceptions to the NLRB Hearing Officer's report on the remaining 152 ballots. "We believe that the 152 ballots should be counted. It is important to us that all of our associates' voices are heard on such a critical matter. As of this date, the NLRB's Regional Director has not yet issued a ruling," a statement from the hospital read. "With the pending decision by the NLRB's Regional Director, SEIU-UHW is trying to pressure the Hospital into giving up its right to utilize the procedures of the NLRB by spreading information apparently intended to make consumers question the quality of care at our Hospital. Our associates are dedicated to providing a higher standard of care to our community and we are proud of the collective work of our associates in helping us achieve a number of national safety and quality recognitions this year." Note: This article was updated 10/19/16 and 10/20/16. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services received a subpoena Tuesday for a criminal case against the agency's director Nick Lyon, according to The Detroit News. A lawyer for MDHHS confirmed receipt of the subpoena, which references a felony charge of "misconduct in office." However, as of Tuesday afternoon, a criminal charge had not been filed against Mr. Lyon, according to the report. The subpoena, which includes a prewritten case number, was an indication to Mr. Lyon's lawyers that he may be criminally charged in the Flint water investigation. Mr. Lyons was aware he was a target of the criminal investigation prior to receiving the subpoena. "Our investigation into the Flint water crisis has evolved over eight months of developing subjects and targets," wrote Todd Flood, special counsel for Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette, in a Sept. 7 letter to Mr. Lyon obtained by The Detroit News. "As a result of our investigation, you have become a target, specially regarding the time frame of January 2015 to January 2016." More articles on healthcare industry lawsuits: Methodist Health denies it improperly deducts pay from nurses for meal breaks 10 latest healthcare industry lawsuits, settlements Former health clinic CEO sentenced to 18 years in fraud case A nurse filed a collective action lawsuit in July claiming Dallas-based Methodist Health routinely fails to compensate nurses for time worked during meal breaks. Methodist Health denied that claim in its answer to the complaint filed last week. A nurse at Methodist Dallas Medical Center filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas on behalf of as many as 1,000 nurses at five Methodist Health facilities. In the lawsuit, the nurse alleges Methodist Health hospitals violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by routinely docking nurses' pay for meal breaks they do not take, according to The Dallas Morning News. Methodist Health nurses are allotted a 30-minute meal break during each shift, and their pay is reduced accordingly. However, the plaintiff claims nurses are responsible for patient care during their breaks, which frequently causes their breaks to be cut short, according to the report. In its answer to the complaint filed Oct. 11, Methodist Health denies the nurse's claims. The health system said the plaintiff was "properly compensated in accordance with FLSA," and asked the court to dismiss the nurse's complaint with prejudice. On Oct. 12, the judge ordered the parties to submit a joint status report on the case by Nov. 2. More articles on healthcare industry lawsuits: 10 latest healthcare industry lawsuits, settlements Former health clinic CEO sentenced to 18 years in fraud case Physicians, pharmacy owners charged in $100M healthcare fraud scheme New Hampshire Republican lawmakers are urging the state to re-bid a $36.5 million contract awarded to Dartmouth-Hitchcock for psychiatric services at the state psychiatric hospital in Concord, according to a New Hampshire Union Leader report. Here are eight things to know about the issue. 1. The Dartmouth College Geisel School of Medicine opted to not renew its contract with New Hampshire Hospital in June, despite providing psychiatrists and psychiatric nurse practitioners to the hospital for years. After the contract with Dartmouth College expired, NHH awarded a new staffing contract to Lebanon, N.H.-based Dartmouth-Hitchcock. The contract was approved Sept. 7, but was rescinded two weeks later amid the controversy surrounding the bidding process. 2. New Hampshire Republican lawmakers, who claim the bidding process was partial toward Dartmouth-Hitchcock, are urging the state to re-bid the contract in the wake of media reports of email exchanges between Dartmouth College and state officials. The documents released Friday to Chair of the New Hampshire Republican Party Jennifer Horn in response to a Right-to-Know request reportedly show direct communication between former New Hampshire Hospital CMO David Folks, MD, a Dartmouth College employee, his assistant and state officials regarding the staffing contract for NHH. The emails reportedly revealed that Dr. Folks provided significant input on Dartmouth-Hitchcock's bid to provide staff to NHH, according to the New Hampshire Union Leader. Dr. Folks announced last month that he will leave the hospital in January. 3. New Hampshire Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Sununu said new revelations in the documents "suggest the possibility of collusion between state officials and hospital executives and inappropriate communication between those parties leading up to the bidding process, which could present a clear conflict of interest." 4. In the report, New Hampshire Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan's spokesman, William Hinkle, called the allegations of collusion "baseless and politically motivated." "This was an independent bidding process and the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services sought input from every state psychiatric hospital in the nation in drafting the request for proposals," he said. "The RFP [request for proposal] was sent out proactively and broadly to potential bidders." 5. Only one hospital responded to the request for input on the RFP, and Dartmouth-Hitchcock was the only bidder, according to the report. 6. Physicians and nurses who lost their jobs in a labor dispute with Dartmouth-Hitchcock as the contract transitioned from Dartmouth College's medical school, said they were told repeatedly of a "seamless handoff" between the two organizations prior to the issuance of RFPs, reports New Hampshire Union Leader. 7. A spokesman for Dartmouth-Hitchcock, Rick Adams, told the Associated Press he didn't know if and how Dr. Folks was involved in Dartmouth-Hitchcock's bid. He did not return multiple follow-up requests from the Associated Press for details. 8. Ms. Horn said in the report that she is now preparing a complaint with the Executive Branch Ethics Committee, urging an investigation into what she described as a "pay-to-play scandal," given Dartmouth-Hitchcock's history of political donations to Gov. Hassan campaigns. The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons filed suit to block the implementation of legislation designed to prohibit balance billing practices in California. The physician advocacy group filed a complaint against Gov. Jerry Brown (D-Calif.) and Shelley Rouillard, director of the California Department of Managed Health Care, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California Oct. 13. The suit alleges bill AB 72 violates federal and state constitutions. Specifically, the suit claims the legislation denies state physicians due process as well as just compensation for their labor. AAPS requested the court issue an injunction against the legislation. Bill AB 72, signed into law by Gov. Brown on Sept. 26, aims to protect patients who inadvertently receive out-of-network care from receiving costly, unanticipated medical bills not covered by insurance. The bill requires insurers to reimburse out-of-network physicians at 125 percent of the Medicare rate, or at the insurers' average contracted rate. Physicians are prohibited from billing patients for any outstanding balance. "This bill basically empowers private insurance companies to set prices for physicians and other caregivers who are not even in their network," Andrew Schlafly, general counsel for AAPS, said in a statement. "It basically gives the insurance companies the power of the government." Bill AB 72 takes effect July 2017. About half of emergency room physicians across the U.S. said mental healthcare in their communities was worse this year than last, with most blaming inadequate inpatient and outpatient resources for patients with serious mental illnesses. That figure comes from a survey of more than 1,700 ER physicians and research presented at the American College of Emergency Physician's annual meeting last week in Las Vegas. Three quarters of ER physicians responding to the survey reported seeing patients at least once a shift who require hospitalization for psychiatric treatment, while 21 percent said they have patients waiting two to five days for in-patient beds. "More than half (52 percent) of emergency physicians say the mental health system in their communities has gotten worse in just the last year, and the consequences of that play out in our emergency departments," said Rebecca Parker, MD, president of the American College of Emergency Physicians. "Psychiatric patients wait in the emergency department for hours and even days for a bed, which delays the psychiatric care they so desperately need. It also leads to delays in care and diminished resources for other emergency patients. The emergency department has become the dumping ground for these vulnerable patients who have been abandoned by every other part of the healthcare system." Other findings from the survey include: 48 percent of respondents reported they see at least one psychiatric patient being held (or boarded) in the emergency department while they wait for an in-patient bed. More than half (57 percent) reported increased wait times and boarding for children with psychiatric illnesses. Only 16.9 percent reported having a psychiatrist on call to respond to psychiatric emergencies in the emergency department. More than 11 percent reported having no one on call to respond to psychiatric emergencies. More than 10 percent reported having 6 to 10 patients waiting for inpatient psychiatric beds on their last shift. The physicians called for comprehensive mental health reform to remedy the ailing system. Johnson & Johnson Innovation will open a facility dedicated to expediting the development of "breakthrough" medical devices at Houston-based Texas Medical Center. The Center for Device Innovation will contain a medical device engineering studio staffed with a team of researchers. J&J's scientists and engineers working in the center will also have access to preclinical facilities at the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston Methodist Research Institute and Texas Heart Institute, according to the report. William Cohn, MD, a cardiac surgeon and medical device entrepreneur, will head the Center for Device Innovation. Formerly, Dr. Cohn served as director of technology and innovation and head of the Cullen Cardiovascular Research Laboratory at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston. More articles on supply chain: TPC names ROi preferred supply chain partner: 3 things to know Sen. Blumenthal urges DOJ to reject Mylan settlement Tenn. high school opens medical device machinery lab Only a few weeks before the election, many Montanans are unsure who to elect to the state Supreme Court. Those who have decided are split. Among registered and likely Montana voters, 39 percent said they were undecided, according to a Mason-Dixon poll commissioned by Lee Newspapers with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points. In a race thats too close to call, the rest divide between Dirk Sandefur, a longtime Cascade County District Judge, and Kristen Juras, a Great Falls attorney and former adjunct professor from the University of Montana law school. Juras polled at 31 percent and Sandefur at 30 percent. This is by far the most fluid race among all the statewide races this year, said University of Montana political scientist Christopher Muste. This is the kind of situation that combines danger and opportunity for the candidates. The number of undecided voters is like a welcome mat for independent groups to spend. Montana State University political scientist David Parker agreed. It just shows you how little people know what the heck is going on here, he said. No one knows this race. It is not unusual for so many voters to be undecided in a judicial race. Analysts said it is difficult for many people to gauge what effect each candidate could have on future decisions, especially when the people running insist their job is to be impartial and avoid comments that might be viewed as evidence they would legislate from the bench. And because Montanas race is nonpartisan without party labels to which voters might default, there is little information left to guide a decision. Many end up skipping the race on their ballots. In 2014, two of the courts seven seats were contested. Nearly 374,000 Montanans cast ballots, but 71,464 people did not make a selection between incumbent Justice Jim Rice and Billings attorney David Herbert. And 43,624 people skipped the race between incumbent Justice Mike Wheat and former solicitor general Lawrence VanDyke. The gap of nearly 30,000 votes between the two races might be explained by one simple thing: money. A record $1.6 million was spent to influence the Wheat-VanDyke race, mostly by independent groups rather than the candidates own campaigns. Political action committees funded by the Montana Trial Lawyers Association and its members backed Wheat. The Republican State Leadership Committees Judicial Fairness Initiative, Americans for Prosperity and others supported VanDyke. The groups traded attack ads on television and flooded mailboxes with contradictory descriptions of the candidates. People will take that information and act upon it, Parker said. Thats why negative ads work. This years race might beat that 2014 fundraising record. Many of the same groups have returned, with the trial lawyers supporting Sandefur and the GOP group backing Juras. The latest campaign finance filings through the end of September show more than $1.1 million has been raised, about $900,000 by Sandefur or his supporters. The Republican group, however, has millions in the bank that it might direct into Montana during the final weeks as it has done in other states. To some extent, this is just name ID, name ID, name ID, Parker said of the campaigns likely strategy to pick up undecided voters. Muste noted that almost half of the uncertain voters identified as Republicans, and both candidates are likely to focus on that group in the coming days. Its an opportunity for Juras, who is perceived as more conservative than Sandefur on some of the issues," Muste said. "Sandefurs ads have focused on him being a policeman and are largely designed to appeal to conservatives. University of Montana political researcher and journalism professor Lee Banville said the way Juras has discussed issues and her legal expertise in the campaign is different from most previous races, which could be why she polled on par with Sandefur. I am struck by how well shes faring because not only has Sandefur spent a lot and raised a lot of money, hes also got institutional support, Banville said. I think in some part (its) because of her overt political campaigning and all the media attention shes gotten. Usually Supreme Court candidates are like Im going to support the law and Im going to uphold the Montana Constitution. Its apple pie and fair court, and she has been pretty outspoken about the positions she has. The independent spending in the race has been a focal point of debate between the candidates. Sandefur condemned the influence of the GOP group, which May tax filings compiled by the Center for Public Integrity show to largely be funded by business interests such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He has repeatedly argued that his experience as a district court judge has prepared him to make impartial decisions. The negative advertising is despicable, frankly, but not unexpected from these out-of-state corporate interests and their local bag men who have been doing this type of thing in other states, he said, seeing the polling numbers as a sign voters are starting to pay attention to the race. The lights are now on, and people are waking up to the sharp contrast between my proven judicial experience and public service record on the one hand, and on the other hand my opponents ideological agenda and a lack of relevant experience. He noted that attack ads paid for by the GOP-backed committee leave out the fact that the sentences referenced were the result of plea deals requested by the prosecutor, not prison time he decided upon after a trial conviction. Likewise, Juras has raised concerns about individual trial lawyers, many of whom have contributed more than $50,000 each to independent committees opposing her campaign and frequently have cases appear before the states top court. She dismissed Sandefurs attacks on her integrity as false, noting that she is running to bring new expertise to the court she developed in private practice. I am not the supposed activist my opponent tries to characterize me, she said. These groups are supporting Sandefur because they believe hes the best candidate to align with their special interests. What the Chamber of Commerce is seeking is an attorney who brings business expertise to the court not an ideology that favors business, but business expertise on the court that will be helpful in analyzing and applying complicated business, farm, ranch, water and property laws. While the lawyers group had to report who contributes to their committee under state campaign finance laws, the national organizations do not have to disclose spending or who supported them financially. That in large part is because of a 2010 decision by the Supreme Court of the United States that gutted many disclosure requirements and ended caps on corporate spending in politics including Montanas outright ban. Some, but not all, of the GOP groups backers can be gleaned from tax filings months after Election Day. The rising tide of unaccountable, secret money in judicial elections raises serious concerns about the integrity of our courts, said Alicia Bannon, a researcher with the Brennan Center for Justice. The political pressure and potential conflicts of interest that come with it are a threat to basic fairness and to the judicial independence that is so vital to a functioning democracy. Studies by the center show that most negative ads in judicial campaigns focus on criminal justice issues or try to paint a candidate as soft on crime even if the money funding that advertisement comes from business interests that generally have little or no clear interest in justice issues. Instead, Bannon said those topics are chosen because they are emotional and likely to influence to voters. In Montanas race, Parker said that leaves Sandefur weakened by his 14 years as judge. Juras doesnt have a judicial record. She doesnt have a court case you can pick apart, he said. The perverse thing is it has the potential for us to be electing people who are less experienced. To combat that, Parker said Sandefur or his trial lawyer supporters would need to hit Juras hard with negative imaging of their own more than they have done so far. Muste agreed. A new app developed around physician house calls raised $26.9 million in a Series A round of funding, according to the LA Business Journal. Here are five things to know about that app, Santa Monica, Calif.-based Heal: 1. Heal offers in-house physician visits for a $99 fee throughout California. The physicians are paid to see around 15 patients per day and the company includes around 12 full time physicians. It plans to expand to around 30 physicians by January 2017. 2. Tull Investment Group, the company led by Legendary Pictures Chief Executive Thomas Tull, led the funding for this round. 3. Heal plans to use the funding to grow services beyond California as well as improve software. The company hopes automating administrative tasks will streamline services and allow it to provide care cheaper and more effectively. 4. Investors in the Series A round included: Breyer Capital Qualcomm Executive Chairman Paul Jacobs Hashtag One March Capital Partners Slow Ventures 5. In total, Heal has raised $40 million. Major Peake also spoke at W5 about the importance of space exploration with Belfast schoolchildren and politicians Major Peake also spoke at W5 about the importance of space exploration with Belfast schoolchildren and politicians First Minister Arlene Foster and Economy Minister Simon Hamilton look on as Tim Peake officially opens the new Thales space propulsion centre in Belfast Astronaut Tim Peake praised Northern Ireland's "cutting-edge" technology as he opened a new space propulsion centre at Thales, in east Belfast. It's the first centre of its kind in the UK - and a major step forward for Northern Ireland's space sector. After he opened the new centre, Peake also met children from 200 local schools on a visit to W5. Thales will be manufacturing propulsion systems for sending high-tech satellites into space - for everything from telecommunications to weather-forecasting - as a result of Thales' 6m investment in its Belfast factory. Peake famously spent six months in the International Space Station, where he entertained the world and inspired the next generation of scientists. He described the range of his work for the European Space Agency. "I can go from melting metal alloys in the European lab, to the US laboratory, working with proteins for the pharmaceutical industry. "It gives me as much, if not more pleasure, to come back and visit industry that is driving investment in cutting-edge technology." A taste test suggests consumers seeking the finest mince pies and bargain prosecco this Christmas should head to discounters Iceland and Lidl Consumers seeking the finest mince pies and bargain prosecco this Christmas should head to the discounters Iceland and Lidl, according to an annual taste test. Lidl's 5.29 Allini Prosecco Spumante has been voted best bargain prosecco in Good Housekeeping's December edition, while Iceland's six Luxury Mince Pies - costing 1.50 - beat 24 other brands including Harrods and Selfridges for their "juicy mincemeat" and "lovely crisp and buttery pastry case". The blind taste tests also found Iceland's 4.95 a kg Luxury British Whole Brined Turkey with Orange & Thyme Butter to be top of its class, as was its Luxury Outdoor Bred Pork, Honey and Rosemary Parcels stuffing at 3 for 300g. However, Marks & Spencer took top placing in the Christmas pudding category with its 12 The Collection Belgian Chocolate & Orange Star Christmas Pudding for its "delicious twist on a traditional pud", although it only just beat Iceland's 6 Luxury 12-month Matured Christmas Pudding. M&S also appeared most frequently in the survey, making the top five in 10 of the 12 categories, and winning the Stilton and mulled wine tests. Ocado.com's 19.99 Champagne Faubert Brut NV was best in its category. Good Housekeeping consumer director Caroline Bloor said: "Our expert team and panel of consumer testers blind test an incredibly wide range of Christmas products, so we can be very confident that these results shine a light on the food and drink that tastes the best. "Everyone loves a bargain and so it's good to see Iceland mince pies and Lidl prosecco beating more expensive upmarket brands." Chris Morrow, head of policy at NI Chamber; Ann McGregor, chief executive of NI Chamber; Brian Murphy of BDO; and economist Maureen OReilly A third of Northern Ireland businesses have scaled back growth or investment as a result of the vote to leave the EU, according to a survey. A quarter of companies believe economic prospects are poor in the short to medium term, the latest quarterly study from the Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce, in conjunction with and financial services firm BDO, suggested. Some 42% of businesses quizzed said costs had risen following the Brexit vote in June. However, some companies are optimistic about what the vote to leave the EU can offer. Around 24% said Brexit could generate good or excellent prospects in the short to medium term. Overall, Northern Irish businesses enjoyed stilted growth during the third quarter, and confidence around turnover and profitability fell. However, the local services sector picked up, outpacing the rest of the UK. Manufacturing exports also increased, buoyed by a weak pound, but domestic sales were at their lowest level since the start of 2013. Currency fluctuations remain a concern for companies, with more than half of businesses citing it as an issue as the pound continues to weaken. Chamber chief executive Ann McGregor said the latest survey showed that the third quarter had been "particularly challenging for businesses, and growth appears to have slowed since the EU referendum". "Although it is important not to take one quarter's figures in isolation, the outcome of the EU referendum vote, the continued uncertainty surrounding it and sterling's response through depreciation has had a tangible impact on business growth and sentiment," she added. The survey suggested that while the Northern Ireland economy is still growing, "confidence around turnover and particularly profitability has fallen, recruitment intentions are lower and investment intentions have taken a significant hit". Ms McGregor said members remained concerned about the devaluation in the pound and whether the free movement of goods and services would be hindered by Brexit. "Sterling's devaluation is a particular concern for members," she added. "It has provided a welcome boost to exporters, but it is putting significant pressure on costs, particularly for local manufacturers. "This will impact on businesses' bottom lines, and we are already starting to see members' confidence - around profitability particularly - being eroded. It is only a matter of time before this will start putting upward pressure on prices. "Our members consider retaining the freedom of movement of goods, services, capital and people within the EU as a top priority. "Whatever terms are negotiated with the EU, it is crucial that tariff and non-tariff barriers are minimised, that the skills of existing EU workers can be retained and that businesses in Northern Ireland are able to attract EU nationals to meet future skills needs with minimal bureaucracy, costs or barriers." Brian Murphy, partner at BDO, added: "Clearly, the uncertainty surrounding Brexit is having an impact on business confidence in the local market, with many putting planned expansion and recruitment on hold. "This is an understandable reaction to a very unique situation. However, it is reassuring that some remain optimistic and confident about the future growth of their business in the medium to longer term once it becomes clear what Brexit will look like. "It is also encouraging that businesses are talking about maintaining staffing levels, rather than reducing them. "Given Northern Ireland's unique status as the only part of the country that shares a land border with the eurozone, it is also clear that there have been benefits for many local businesses, which have been able to capitalise on the strength of the euro against the pound in recent months." Supreme Court justices ruled in favour of Patrick McKenna after a hearing in London Tax officials say they are disappointed after losing a fight with the boss of an investment and advisory company who had featured in newspaper articles about avoidance schemes. Patrick McKenna, founder of the Ingenious Media group, had claimed that a senior official at HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) abused his power when disclosing information to journalists. He wanted a declaration that disclosures by David Hartnett were unlawful. HMRC bosses disputed his claim. A High Court judge and three Court of Appeal judges had ruled against Mr McKenna, but five Supreme Court justices have ruled in his favour after a hearing in London. Mr Hartnett was permanent secretary for tax when he had an off-the-record briefing with two journalists from The Times in 2012, judges were told. Supreme Court justices said the tax affairs of individuals were matters between the HMRC and those people. They said confidentiality was a "vital element" in the system, and information supplied by Mr Hartnett to Times journalists was "confidential in nature". They added that HMRC "owed a duty of confidentiality". An HMRC spokesman said: "Having earlier won this case in both the High Court and Court of Appeal, HMRC is naturally disappointed by the judgment handed down by the Supreme Court. "HMRC defended this case because it considered that the disclosure made by Mr Hartnett was lawful. "However, the Supreme Court has decided otherwise and we will examine the judgment in detail." An Ingenious spokesman said: "We are delighted that the Supreme Court has unanimously found in our favour. "This was never about restricting HMRC's ability to collect taxes, nor was it about preventing the press from investigating public interest stories. "Consistent with HMRC's own guidelines, this was simply about upholding the basic legal principle that HMRC owe a duty of confidentiality to each and every taxpayer and their affairs should not form the subject of 'off the record' background briefings to the media." A film production company formed by director Ken Loach is to be honoured at next month's Bafta Scotland awards ceremony A top hair and make-up artist and a film production company formed by Ken Loach and others are to be honoured at this year's Bafta Scotland awards. Sixteen Films and Christine Cant will be presented with outstanding contribution awards at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts in Scotland (Bafta Scotland) ceremony in Glasgow next month. The film production company, formed by director Ken Loach, producer Rebecca O'Brien and writer Paul Laverty, will receive the award for outstanding contribution to film. The team made Carla's Song, My Name Is Joe, then, under the banner of Sixteen Films, made Sweet Sixteen, The Angels' Share and Ae Fond Kiss. All their films have been recognised at major international film festivals, with The Wind that Shakes the Barley and I, Daniel Blake winning the prestigious Palme d'Or at Cannes. Mr Laverty said: "This is a total treat and a wonderful recognition of collaboration - the essence of film-making. We all swim or sink together. "And a double treat to think of the big Scottish family over the years. It will be an enormous pleasure so big thanks to Bafta Scotland." Ms Cant will receive an award for outstanding contribution to craft. With almost 25 years in the industry, she has worked on television shows including Absolutely Fabulous, Father Ted and Midsomer Murders. After graduating from Glasgow School of Art, she embarked on her first BBC training course in Glasgow before landing her first make-up job at Kick Up The Eighties, starring Miriam Margolyes and Robbie Coltrane. She won a Bafta for best make-up with Agatha Christie's Poirot in 1990 and was nominated for a second time, in 2005, for her work on Absolutely Fabulous. Ms Cant said: "I was thrilled to hear I was to receive the outstanding contribution to craft award at this year's British Academy Scotland Awards. "The awards are always very special to me and to be amongst so many talented people once again is a true honour." In addition to the outstanding contribution awards, 18 trophies will be handed out at the ceremony at the city's Radisson Blu Hotel on Sunday November 6, with categories including actor film, actress film, feature film and game. Nominees include Peter Capaldi, Brian Cox, Ashley Jensen and Kate Dickie. Bafta Scotland director Jude MacLaverty said: "We have a tremendous amount of talent in Scotland, so we feel extremely privileged to be presenting Christine Cant and Sixteen Films with our outstanding contribution awards." Rapper Eminem has slammed US presidential candidate Donald Trump as a "loose cannon" in a new track called Campaign Speech. He dropped the nearly eight-minute long politically charged song, which also mentions fatally shot teenager Trayvon Martin, to announce upcoming new music. The 44-year-old - real name Marshall Mathers - wrote on his social media pages: "Don't worry I'm working on an album! Here's something meanwhile." Lyrics in Campaign Speech include an angry attack at Republican candidate Trump. He raps: " Consider me a dangerous man, but you should be afraid of this dang candidate. You say Trump don't kiss ass like a puppet? 'cause he runs his campaign with his own cash for the funding? "And that's what you wanted? A fuckin' loose cannon who's blunt with his hand on the button, who doesn't have to answer to no one? Great idea!" Another assault comes from Eminem towards the supporters of Trump as he raps: "Run the faucet, I'm a dunk a bunch of Trump supporters underwater. Em flows at one point over minimalist swabs of synth. Snuck up on 'em in Ray-Bans in a grey van with a spray tan." Part of the lengthy and musically minimal track references George Zimmerman, the former neighbourhood watch volunteer who shot dead unarmed black teenager Martin in a 2012 confrontation. The song includes a mention of the police involved in Martin's death and also Eric Garner, a black man who died after being placed in a hold by white police officer Daniel Pantaleo in 2014. Eminem's last record was The Marshall Mathers LP 2 in 2013, his eighth studio album. The hip-hop performer, whose hits have included Stan and My Name Is, has yet to reveal more details of his forthcoming effort. HELENA In the race to be Montanas next state auditor, Republican Matt Rosendale, a state senator from Glendive, is leading Democrat Jesse Laslovich, chief legal counsel in the office hes running for, by 10 percentage points with a lot of voters undecided. Rosendale holds 43 percent of the vote to Laslovichs 33, with 24 percent unsure how they will cast their ballots. The poll, commissioned by Lee Newspapers, included 1,003 registered and likely voters contacted from Oct. 10 through 12 by landline and cellphone. The state auditor is a deceptively titled office. It does not audit anything, but regulates insurance companies and securities and prosecutes fraud cases. There have been two failed efforts to change the name in the state Constitution to the Commissioner of Securities and Insurance. Officeholder Monica Lindeen, a Democrat, is term-limited from running again and is a candidate for secretary of state. Rosendale said he hasnt paid much attention to polling. I try to block it out of my mind and continue to do my work, he said Wednesday. Laslovich said he wasnt surprised by the results. The poll went out as his campaign was ramping up, he said. Our TV ads started running, we did our mail then." The high percentage of undecideds could come from a lack of understanding what the auditor does and unfamiliarity with the candidates, said Lee Banville, a political researcher and journalism professor at the University of Montana. A lot of these races oftentimes come down to, Do I recognize that name, do I know what party theyre with? he said. Rosendale has been in the state Senate since 2012, became majority leader in the 2015 legislative session and ran for Congress, so voters could be more aware of who he is. Laslovich was a state representative from 2000-2004 and a state senator from 2004-2010 representing Anaconda. He ran for the Democratic nomination for attorney general in 2012 and was defeated by Pam Bucy. Like many other statewide races, this one could all come down to how Independents 27 percent havent settled on an auditor candidate vote. Even more than people that identify with one party or another, they seem up for grabs, Banville said. Independents are leaning toward Rosendale, with 44 percent supporting him over 29 percent for Laslovich, a 15-point difference. About a quarter of Republicans are undecided, which may speak to hesitation among party members to unite behind a candidate, said University of Montana political scientist Christopher Muste. Rosendale said he and other statewide Republican candidates who could end up serving on the Land Board are campaigning together in an effort to build party cohesion. The board is made up of the five statewide elected officials (governor, secretary of state, attorney general, auditor and superintendent of public instruction) who manage state trust lands to benefit schools. I dont know that anybody has done that in the recent past to show the Land Board, all five of the candidates, going out and saying we are united, he said. When youre going to different offices around the state and the volunteers are there, and they see that theres unity, that helps them and they see our enthusiasm. It basically creates that synergy. Laslovich said Independents are concerned about the Land Board preserving access to the outdoors and plans to push that issue hard in the weeks before Election Day. Thats why we feel very strongly once people learn about my position on public access that those Independents will turn out for us, he said. Muste said while Rosendale has a commanding lead, Laslovich can still come from behind if he makes a really strong campaign push. Banville said Laslovich can do that buy making a strong argument Rosendale doesnt have the experience to be the state auditor and highlight his endorsements, including from the Chamber of Commerce, which typically endorses Republicans. Laslovich should talk more about his record of prosecution in fraud cases and point to work hes done to help people who are fighting insurance companies, Banville said. But a lot of those past successes are insider-ish and wonky, such as participating in an expansion of Medicaid that rolled out better here than in some states. Thats not the stuff that fits well on a bumper sticker. Both pundits said Rosendale has done well by railing against the Affordable Care Act, often referred to as Obamacare. That resonates with a lot of Montanans, both Independents and obviously Republicans, but also small businesses, folks forced to go out on the small market and purchase health care. He can hit that message hard, Banville said. Up until Election Day, Rosendale said he will continue to travel around the state talking to voters. Its critical to make sure youre out in front of folks. I really am pleased with the positive message weve been able to bring forward, he said. Laslovichs approach is the same. Well be on TV with the rest of the candidates. I hope that resonates with people. Its on the ground too, he said, adding he and other Democrats will hold get-out-the-vote events around Eastern Montana soon. The consumer protection element, the broad support weve gotten from organizations throughout the state, that will resonate with people, he said. The only poll that matters is Nov. 8. To pull off a comeback, Laslovich needs to make sure Democrats vote in his contest, Banville said. The original Four Tops, seen here in the 1960s, with Duke Fakir on the back left The lone-surviving member of Motown stalwarts The Four Tops has recalled how a British TV producer saved the band's lives after he stopped them from boarding the doomed Lockerbie plane. The 1988 Pan Am flight was on its way from London to New York when it was blown up above the Scottish town, killing all 259 people on board and eleven people on the ground. Duke Fakir, the last surviving member of The Four Tops, revealed the group were prevented from making the flight after a Top of The Pops producer refused to let them record two performances in one session. Fakir, now 80 and still performing in a new-look Four Tops, told the Press Association: " We had two shows to do and we were going to record them at the same time. One of them was not going out until New Years' Eve and the producer didn't want us to play them at the same time. He wouldn't have it. "So the producer on Top of The Pops was the reason we didn't get on that plane. "And I was glad, so, so glad that we didn't do it in one session." The Four Tops, who are set to embark on a new UK tour with The Temptations, were one of Motown's most consistent hitmakers after forming in the early 1950s. Fakir said he was "looking forward" to the tour as British audiences treat the group "like royalty". The groups are set to visit Manchester, Leeds, Nottingham, Birmingham, Bournemouth, London and Southend during the tour, which starts in Liverpool on October 21. It was a tale of two nail trends backstage at the autumn/winter shows. "Some designers treated nails as an accessory to the look, others as a subtle finishing touch," says MAC senior make-up artist, Keri Blair. At one end of the spectrum, the blackest blacks and deepest reds packed a punch, while at the other, nude ruled the day. There's no grey area this season, so choose a side and pick a polish ... The prevailing fashion mood right now is gloomy glamour, so goth-tastic pitch-black nails are bang on trend - YSL has just released its first ever black polish, in fact, called Noir Over Noir, alongside blackened fuchsia and rouge shades. "It's the noirs," says nail expert Marian Newman. "Prune noir, Bordeaux noir, maroon noir ... These rich colours that read as off-black feel really interesting for now." Yves Saint Laurent La Laque Couture Noir Over Noir, 19 (www.johnlewis.com) Mavala Mini Nail Colour Polish in Black Cherry, 4.50 (NailPolishDirect.co.uk) "'Young and clean' was a request we heard a lot from designers this season," notes Newman. Variations on the nude nail were seen at Stella McCartney, Jason Wu, David Koma and Christopher Kane, and according to Newman, the chicest way to recreate the look also happens to be the easiest. "No base coat, no top coat - they can feel too manicured - just one coat of MAC Delicate Nail Lacquer to look groomed," she suggests. MAC Studio Nail Lacquer in Delicate, 10 (www.maccosmetics.co.uk) Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Au Nature-al, currently reduced to 4.99 from 6.99 (www.superdrug.com) Subtler than black, but just as chic, navy nails were seen at DKNY and Daks, two brands known for their polished, pulled-together clothes. "Using two colours, Salon Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Nightwatch, a deep navy, and Commander in Chic, a muddy grey-purple, we created four different nail looks which were randomly applied to the girls backstage," explains Sally Hansen global colour ambassador Madeline Poole, of the DKNY look. For a simpler option, apply a gloss navy to short, neat nails, a la the Daks catwalk. Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Nightwatch, 6.99 (www.boots.com) Nailed London Gel Wear in Fashionista, 7 (www.harveynichols.com) Scarlet talons never go out of style, and sure enough they cropped up on a couple of influential catwalks for AW16. At Erdem, Nailberry's rich rouge Le Temp des Cerises matched the bold matte red lip, while at Sibling, long rounded talons were painted with a bright pillar box red. Nailberry Le Temps des Cerises, 14.50 (www.nailberry.co.uk) Morgan Taylor Nail Lacquer in Put A Wing On It, 10.99 (SallyExpress.com) For an elegant twist on the rouge trend, take your cue from the Teatum Jones show, where Orly polish in Ruby was topped and tailed with nude crescents, resulting in an edgy take on the classic French manicure. Orly Nail Polish in Ruby, 10.50 (GraftonsBeauty.co.uk) Mavala Mini Colour Creme Nail Polish in Izmir, 4.50 (NailPolishDirect.co.uk) Patrick Toal was sentenced at Belfast Crown Court for abusing two girls in the same family A west Belfast pensioner jailed for sexually abusing two members of the same family has launched a bid to clear his name. Patrick Toal, 72, is serving a 12-year sentence for a catalogue of offences spanning two decades. But his lawyers claimed in the Court of Appeal on Wednesday that there was a procedural irregularity at his trial. Toal, formerly of Tollgate House in Bradbury Place, was found guilty by a jury last year of 29 separate counts of abuse against a woman and her younger relative. The campaign stretched to 19 years, and only ending in 2013 when the two victims went to the police. Following his conviction at Belfast Crown Court Toal was told his release date will only be determined by the Paroles Commission after he has served half his sentence. He was also made the subject of a Sexual Offences Prevention Order and due to spend a further three years on licence on leaving jail. But the pensioner has continued to maintain his innocence. Prison guards escorted him into the Court of Appeal for an application to secure permission to challenge the convictions. Defence barrister Charles McKay QC set out how Toal was previously acquitted on a separate charge of raping one of the complainants. He argued that permission to cross-examine her about that issue was wrongly denied. Refusing to allow details of the rape acquittal to be subsequently introduced at trial amounted to procedural irregularity in the process, Mr McKay claimed. Following deliberations the three appeal judges confirmed they did not require submissions from the prosecution. Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan said: "We will reserve judgment and deliver a written judgment as soon as we can." Journalist Ivan Little with the Steve McQueen portrait hanging once again at the Bullitt hotel in Belfast It took police over an hour to respond to the theft of a valuable artwork from the Bullitt Hotel in Belfast, even though a station is located across the street, the Belfast Telegraph can reveal. It is also understood that when officers did arrive, they were from a different station several miles away. Two pension-age women are being sought in connection with the removal of a specially commissioned 6ft x 4ft portrait of Hollywood star Steve McQueen from the newly opened business, named after one of the late actor's most famous movies. The audacious heist ultimately failed because the striking black and white piece of art, worth approximately 15,000, was too big to fit in the ageing suspects' getaway car, which was parked nearby. The unique portrait, by Slovakian artist Kamil Vojnar - a friend of hotel owner Bill Wolsey - has now been mounted to a wall in the Ann Street premises, which is diagonally opposite Musgrave PSNI station. Mr Wolsey, whose portfolio of local businesses includes the five-star Merchant Hotel, said he was awaiting news of the culprits' fate. "I would like to sit down and ask them, could they not have planned their getaway a bit better?" he added. "Secondly, I think they need to sit down and ask themselves how proud their granddaughter or a daughter will feel about what they did." Mr Wolsey, who was at home at the time, explained he had watched CCTV footage of the incident, which happened just after 8pm on Sunday, only two days after the four-star establishment was opened to the public. Standing in front of the artwork of McQueen - which was later recovered, having incurred some damage, beside Tedfords restaurant on nearby Donegall Quay - Mr Wolsey revealed that it has been securely attached to deter other potential offenders. "We hung it up on Friday night," he said. "I didn't want to nail it to the wall like the other pictures because it is a specially commissioned piece of artwork. But as you can see, that has changed and it's a shame." CCTV cameras captured the two females - who police said were in their late 60s, with shoulder-length blonde hair, and wearing glasses - initially checking out the hotel foyer before approaching their target. One gave her walking stick and handbag to her accomplice, who opened the cloak she was wearing to prevent hotel staff from noticing her partner in crime removing the massive portrait. They can then be seen leaving the hotel through a fire exit and slowly dragging the expensive artwork up Victoria Street, past Musgrave Police Station on Ann Street towards Donegall Quay, where they abandoned it. A spokesman for the PSNI said last night the investigation into the botched theft was ongoing. "On Sunday evening, police in Belfast were dealing with a large number of incidents and calls were prioritised according to risk to life and vulnerability," he added. "Unfortunately, on this occasion, police were unable to attend the call in as timely a fashion as they would have liked. "Details provided in the initial report enabled police enquiries to start and these are ongoing. An investigation was commenced immediately upon the arrival of police and the portrait was recovered in 40 minutes." The PSNI has asked anyone who can help to contact Lisburn Road police, quoting reference number 1256 of October 16, 2016. MLAs were briefed by HM Revenue and Customs officials at the Parliament Building in Belfast IT costs for delivery of the forthcoming cut in corporation tax have been estimated at 4 million. MLAs on Stormont's finance scrutiny committee were told the Executive had already been charged 96,000 for implementing new computing systems and staff costs for managing the massive project. The figures were revealed during a briefing from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) officials at Parliament Buildings during which Jon Sherman claimed they were on track to meet the April 2018 deadline. He said: "We are confident that we are in a position to have things ready to go for a April 2018 start." The key factors behind reducing the regional tax on profits generated by big businesses to 12.5% - the same as the Republic of Ireland - was to allow Northern Ireland to compete on a level playing field with its neighbour and to give it a distinct advantage over the rest of the UK. During the meeting, HMRC officials re-iterated the Treasury's stance that, despite Brexit, any cut in corporation tax profits would have to be paid for by the Executive through a reduction in the block grant - the money distributed from Westminster to the devolved regional government. Current EU rules require the devolved region to foot the bill for the shortfall but some Brexiteers had argued the so-called Azores ruling may not apply following the UK's departure from the EU. Mr Sherman added: "W ith a 2018 start date it seems highly probable that we will still be members of the EU at that point, I assume from what is being said. "Even beyond that, the principle of Northern Ireland meeting the costs of CT (corporation tax) devolution and getting the benefits and so on, is something that is written into the Stormont House Agreement; it is part of the process that has been agreed between the UK Government and Northern Ireland and I don't think that is a principle that simply depends on state aid." Meanwhile, during a separate briefing senior department of finance civil servants said negotiations on the costs of devolving corporation tax powers had not yet been agreed with the UK Government. Dr Colin Sullivan said: " We continue to liaise with Treasury officials on how best to take forward negotiations on the cost of devolution and to this end we are also engaging with academic experts to model costs and potential block grant adjustments in order to assist us with that engagement." Committee chairman Emma Pengelly said potential flexibilities in light of the referendum result should be explored during a meeting between Stormont's finance minister and Treasury bosses next week but should not impact on the projected start date. The DUP MLA said: "It is essential that we give confidence to businesses who are looking to invest in Northern Ireland around the date and the rate of this." A garda officer who escaped death in an IRA bomb, which killed his friend, has said he wants Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams to apologise. Retired Sergeant Jim Cannon saw his colleague Michael Clerkin die instantly in the blast, at an abandoned farmhouse in Co Laois. Five Garda officers had been lured to the property by terrorists, who claimed they were holding the then Fine Gael TD, Oliver J Flanagan, father of the Republic's current Minister for Foreign Affairs, Charlie Flanagan. It happened just days after the Irish government had introduced the Emergency Powers Act, following the murder of the British Ambassador Christopher Ewart-Biggs in Dublin. Three of the survivors of the blast - believed to have been carried out by the IRA - were reunited on Sunday at a memorial mass for Garda Clerkin in Portarlington, which marked the 40th anniversary. No-one has ever been convicted of the bombing. Mr Cannon - who was left buried in rubble and still receives treatment to this day for his injuries - told the Belfast Telegraph, he finds it very disappointing that the culprit was never caught. He managed to dig his way out of rubble and stumble across fields through barbed wire to the closest house to raise the alarm, before returning and helping to dig his colleagues out. He was never able to return to outdoor duties and was desk-bound for the remainder of his career. The former Garda Sergeant has called for Mr Adams to apologise on behalf of the bombers. "We are the forgotten people," he said. "I certainly would welcome an apology." Kenny Donaldson, from the South East Fermanagh Foundation victims' group, said 15 members of the Irish Defence Forces were murdered by republicans, and they deserve justice. "It is important that these families and the 60-plus civilian-based families in the Republic, whose innocent loved ones were murdered by terrorists, are remembered," he said. "They must also be supported in whatever way they require assistance, whether that be health and well-being needs, financial or compensation-based support, advocacy for the justice, truth and accountability path that they are on, or moreover, generalised acknowledgement of the hurts which have been inflicted upon them." A Sinn Fein spokesman said: "Sinn Fein has condemned this attack on the Gardai. We regret any loss of life during the conflict. "All victims of the conflict have a right to the truth about the past. "Mechanisms were agreed at Stormont House, with a range of options to provide families of victims of the past with the maximum disclosure about the killings of their loved ones. "The implementation of these mechanisms has been delayed by the British Government's insistence on a bogus national security veto on onward disclosure. "Sinn Fein is calling on the British Government to end its veto and engage in an intensive negotiation, so that the agreements made at Stormont House on the issue of the legacy of the past can be fully implemented." The man who overstayed his visa to join his spouse is being held at an immigration detention centre pending removal from the UK A 26-year-old man is awaiting deportation after immigration officials swooped on a Co Armagh restaurant. The Pakistani national was detained when officers carried out an intelligence-led operation at the Spice House on Thomas Street, Portadown, on Saturday. The man who overstayed his visa to join his spouse is being held at an immigration detention centre pending removal from the UK. On the same date, two Chinese nationals were found to be working illegally in Co Antrim. A 39-year-old man, a failed asylum seeker, and a 47-year-old woman with an outstanding immigration application did not have permission to work at Cam Hing in Longstone Street, Lisburn. They were escorted from t he premises and must regularly report to Immigration Enforcement while their cases are processed. Spice House and Cam Hing were served notices warning that a financial penalty of up to 20,000 per illegal worker may be imposed unless they can prove appropriate right-to-work document checks were carried out. Mike Golden, from Immigration Enforcement in Northern Ireland, said: "We are working hard to tackle illegal working and those who abuse the UK's immigration system. "Illegal working is not a victimless crime. It cheats the taxpayer, meaning less money is available for vital public services, undercuts honest employers and denies legitimate jobseekers employment opportunities. It also exploits some of society's most vulnerable people." When Fiona Mcllwaine's son Finn was stillborn at 41 weeks last year, she and her husband Stephen were devastated. But they were determined not to give up hope of becoming parents. So, when the Lisburn couple found out they were having twins in January, they were absolutely delighted. But their joy soon turned to dread, when they were told by a consultant at the Royal Jubilee Maternity Hospital in Belfast, that the twins - Robyn and Freya - had a life-threatening condition. The condition, TTTS (twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome), occurs in twins that share a single placenta, where blood passes from one twin, known as the donor, to the other - the recipient. It means that the recipient twin can end up with very little amniotic fluid, while the larger twin can have an excessive amount. Even with treatment, there was only a 70% chance of both Fiona and Stephen's babies surviving. Even if they did, there was a chance that the babies would suffer from a disability or health condition. The couple, who had never heard of TTTS, were in shock. "We just couldn't believe it," said accountant Fiona, who is 31. "We knew getting pregnant again would be really difficult because of our experience with Finn. "We thought: 'We'll go private. We'll do everything that we didn't do last time.' Not that we did anything wrong, but you keep wondering what we could have done differently." Their consultant, Dr Samina Dornan, step-mum of Hollywood actor Jamie, had dealt with TTTS cases before and was able to advise the couple. "She wasn't giving us false hope - she was giving us the facts," said Fiona. "But she did it in a way that really reassured us, so we were confident in her and what was happening." On Dr Dornan's recommendation, the couple travelled to St George's Hospital in London, where Fiona underwent laser surgery to separate the placenta between the two babies. By coincidence, the surgery was on April 12, exactly one year after Fiona had delivered Finn. "I thought we would be going up to Finn's grave and dealing with our grief - but we ended up going to London for surgery." Fiona was awake during the surgery, which she could see on a screen. It was then that she found out she was going to have girls. The surgery was a success and the couple returned to Belfast a few days later. But their ordeal wasn't over. Four weeks after the surgery, the sack of the recipient twin ruptured, and Fiona was rushed to hospital. Dr Dornan was away and the on-duty doctor had not even heard of TTTS. A few days later, Dr Dornan returned, and the sack eventually sealed again. On June 13, at just 27 weeks, the girls were born via emergency c-section. "They came out crying, and I think that was what really made it for me and my husband," said Fiona. "I had to have a natural delivery with Finn, so I was pushing him out knowing I wasn't going to be able to hear him cry. So to hear two girls crying was everything." Robyn, the donor twin, weighed just 1Ib 9oz, while Freya weighed 2Ib 3.5oz. Freya's middle name is Samina, after the doctor that saved her life. For Fiona, the next few weeks were a "rollercoaster", with both girls needing to be closely monitored. They ended up having seven blood transfusions between them. It was 10 days after the birth before Fiona was finally able to hold Freya, then Robyn a few days later. "It was amazing, but very scary because they were so small and there were so many tubes." Finally, at 12 weeks, the couple were able to bring Robyn home. Freya was discharged a week later. Fiona is happy with the way her pregnancy was dealt with at the Royal Jubilee Maternity Hospital, but she doesn't think her case would have been handled so well if Dr Dornan hadn't been there. "I think we were very lucky that Dr Dornan was our consultant," said Fiona. "If we had seen another consultant or midwife, they might have not picked up on the TTTS as early on." Soon, however, a new scheme will be helping couples like Fiona and Stephen. This November, the Royal Jubilee Maternity Hospital will become the first in Northern Ireland to support the TTTS Registry - a scheme aimed at saving the lives of unborn twins. Set up by the Twins and Multiple Births Association (Tamba), in partnership with nine fetal medicine centres in the UK, the registry will help doctors better understand multiple pregnancies and their potential complications. "We will, hopefully by November 1, be entering data in the TTTS Registry and sharing information and ideas with other consultants across the UK," said Dr Dornan. "We hope to improve survival rates and ensure we're offering the best possible care for families." It is now hoped that other consultants in Northern Ireland maternity units will get involved in the TTTS Registry. Back at home in Lisburn, the four-month-old twin sisters are thriving. "They're both wee smilers with big bright eyes. Everything about them is perfect," said Fiona. The Presbyterian Moderator has supported a ruling that saw the former Alliance Party leader David Ford ousted as an elder in his own church after voicing support for same-sex marriage. Dr Frank Sellar praised the ruling by the Judicial Commission - the highest court of appeal for the Presbyterian Church in Ireland - describing it as "carefully balanced". Earlier yesterday, Mr Ford had said "it was a matter of great sadness" that he had been forced from his post at the Second Donegore Presbyterian Church near Templepatrick, a position he held for nearly 30 years. But Dr Sellar said that there was hurt on both sides, and called for Mr Ford and those who opposed him to draw a line under events and move on. "It's a very carefully balanced comment on a very sad and complex situation," he told the Belfast Telegraph. "I think the judicial commission have been very keen to get a very balanced judgment. "Hopefully it's something that's affirming to the various hurt parties - it's not simply one side or another that are exclusively hurt." He added: "There are two parties here that are hurting. The judicial committee has spent a long time working on the situation and their comments are very well chosen and balanced. Hopefully it will enable those who are on both sides and will help them draw a line in the sand and together move forward with grace." However, acting Alliance party leader Naomi Long - a member of Dr Sellar's Bloomfield congregation in east Belfast - called it a "sad day for the church". Mrs Long said: "As a fellow Presbyterian and someone who believes passionately in freedom of and freedom from religion, who supports the separation of church and state, and who supports equal civil marriage because of my faith, not in spite of it, this is a very sad day for the church and a very painful day for many of us who support David Ford's position. "His faith is clear to anyone who knows him, a man of principle who respects those who hold different views: that others cannot be so gracious or show humility in disagreement is regrettable to say the least." In 2013 Mr Ford spoke of the difficulty he faced in balancing his party's support for same-sex marriage with his Presbyterian beliefs. It came after the Alliance Party voted in support of legislation to allow same-sex civil marriage in Northern Ireland. At the time Mr Ford said his personal position on same-sex marriage was the same as the party's. However, the Presbyterian Church strongly opposes same-sex marriage. Mr Ford voluntarily stepped aside as an elder in Second Donegore, also known as Dunamuggy, after some members expressed concerns about his views. The church considered his position and have now confirmed he has been removed from his role as an elder at Dunamuggy. A statement was read to the congregation on Sunday morning. Mr Ford said he was informed on August 31 that the Templepatrick Presbytery had resolved to remove him as an elder because the other elders in the congregation "refused" to work with him. On October 12 the Judicial Commission told him the decision would be upheld. Mr Ford said: "It is a matter of great sadness to (wife) Anne and I that both Presbytery and Session have failed to act to promote healing and unity within our church, despite repeated requests from us over the last nine months. "I believed, as an elder, I had a part to play in making our congregation fit for purpose. Unfortunately, Presbytery and the Judicial Commission have now made that impossible. It remains to be seen whether or not I have any role in Dunamuggy. "I thank those members of the congregation and others who have supported Anne, our family and me in word and in prayer through the last four difficult years of church life." A spokeswoman for the Presbyterian Church in Ireland said that while Mr Ford had been removed from his role as a ruling elder in Second Donegore, he remained an ordained elder of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland "without charge in good standing." Dr Sellar's traditional views on same-sex marriage have seen him indirectly criticise Alliance in the past. In 2015, former East Belfast Alliance MLA Judith Cochrane abstained on an Assembly vote over same-sex marriage, whereas Ms Long voted to allow it during a vote in Westminster in 2013. Both women attended Dr Sellar's Bloomfield Presbyterian Church. Dr Sellar said at the time: "On that particular issue, Judith's position would be closer to the Presbyterian Church in Ireland's official line." Earlier this year Mr Ford told the BBC's Nolan Show: "It saddened me that there was a lack of understanding from some people about the role I had as a legislator, compared to the role I have within the church. Walking into church on Sunday morning, in those circumstances, hurts." The Northern Ireland Executive has spent more than 1million in employing press officers in the past five months, it has been revealed. The figure was revealed by the Stephen Nolan Radio Ulster show on Wednesday morning. It comes following the controversial appointment of David Gordon. The former Nolan Show editor and Belfast Telegraph political editor was appointed press secretary to the Executive Office on a 75,000 a year salary. His appointment drew criticism after it emerged the post had not been advertised, and that the First and Deputy First Ministers used powers under what is known as the Royal Prerogative. He was to take up his position this month. Read More Stephen Nolan revealed that the Northern Ireland bill was over double what the Scotland administration paid. It has 25 press officers, compared to Stormont's 55. It was also almost double the number in Wales. Stephen Nolan outlined how many were in each department and the cost: The Department of Communities has 11 press officers costing 216,000 since May. The Economy Department has seven officers costing 124,000. Health has six officers costing 122,000. The Executive Office also has six officers costing 120,000. Infrastructure has five press officers costing 110,000. Justice and finance both pay out 97,000 each while Education is the lowest with a cost of 76,000. TUV MLA Jim Allister said the figures may sit "uncomfortably with many people who struggle to make ends meet". He also suggested the figures may not be the whole story as when he asked how many staff were in the Executive Information Service it was revealed to be 161 staff. "So they have a very substantial back-up as well," he said. "This speaks to me a culture of squander within the government and also insecurity in government that they need so many people to say what a good job they are doing. "We are also the region in the UK with the most special advisors also costing vast sums of money. "You have to ask why the likes of the Department of Communities has 11 press officers when the likes of its arms lengths bodies - like the Housing Executive - has its own press officers." Mr Allister did concede there was a need for press officers, as he himself has one who is also a researcher and does "all that needs to be done". "But I don't see the need for government to squander money to this scale." He also pointed out that there was no one on from the Executive to explain why they needed so many press officers. Mr Allister said: "Why is Mr Gordon not on to explain this spin regime? They have not enough spin doctors to answer this question. "Where is Mr Gordon? And if he is not available, why is one of his 55 lieutenants not on to explain the need for so many press officers? "Where are they, what are they doing? "There is a certain arrogance that they feel they don't need to provide an answer." A spokesperson for the Executive Office said: "Press officers provide media advice and support to ministers so that the work, objectives and achievements of the Executive are communicated to the public through both traditional and new media. "Communication with the public is an important function of Government. There are currently 55 press officers working in nine departmental press offices." Robert Ralph, 45, Peter Callaghan, 45, and Adrian Price, 46, were arrested after police stopped a car in Carrick's Castlemara estate early on October 6 Up to 60 people have received death threats linked to an ongoing loyalist feud in Co Antrim, a court heard today. Warnings passed on through police and the confidential Crimestoppers charity centre on tensions in the Carrickfergus area, a judge was told. The claim was made as three men from Newtownards, Co Down were granted bail on charges of having weapons allegedly connected to the dispute. Robert Ralph, 45, Peter Callaghan, 45, and Adrian Price, 46, were arrested after police stopped a car in Carrick's Castlemara estate early on October 6. Officers allegedly seized pick axe handles, a lock knife, hammer and crow bar during searches of the vehicle. Ralph, from Ballyrainey Road, Callaghan and Price, both of Blenheim Drive, are all charged with possessing an offensive weapon in public. Price faces a further count of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm to another man with intent. At a previous hearing for a co-accused police claimed the weapons are related to a UDA feud in the area which has continued for a number of months. As Ralph, Callaghan and Price appeared before Belfast Magistrates' Court today a detective claimed they had travelled to Carrickfergus to commit crime. She also expressed concerns for the safety of two of the defendants if released from custody. "They were specifically mentioned, that there may be an attack on them in relation to retaliation," the detective disclosed. District Judge Fiona Bagnall was told a property believed to be linked to one of the accused has already been set on fire and five vehicles damaged. But defence solicitor Gavin Graham, of Reavey and Company, disputed any connection to his clients. Arguing that two co-accused have already been released, he confirmed the defendants were prepared to deal with any risk to themselves. "There may be some information leaked to Crimestoppers, but over the last two to three months 50 to 60 people have received death threats in Carrickfergus," Mr Graham said. Granting bail based on the principle of consistency, Judge Bagnall banned all three accused from entering the Carrick area. She also imposed a night-time curfew, electronic tagging and ordered them to report to police twice a week. Margaret McCauley was with 15-year-old Manus when he was shot in the head by a soldier A woman who saw the Army fatally shoot a 15-year-old boy in Londonderry has told an inquest into his death how she held his head and prayed into his ears as he took his final breaths. Margaret McCauley (nee McCool), was among a number of civilian witnesses who gave evidence on the second day of a fresh hearing into the killing of Manus Deery. The court also heard one witness admit he had lied about seeing Manus pointing a stick at soldiers, as if imitating a gun. The victim was shot in the back of the head by William Glasgow, a private in the army serving in Derry in May 1972. Mr Glasgow, who died in 2001, was identified for the first time at Monday's hearing. Mrs McCauley, who was 14 years old at the time, said she was standing right behind Manus Deery when he was hit by a single bullet, fired from an Army observation point on the Derry Walls, overlooking the Bogside. She explained: "I was leaning on Manus's shoulder when I heard a piercing sound and then Manus fell back. I thought he was mucking about, but then everyone was squealing. "I put my hand under his head, and my hand was covered in blood. I remember crying and I prayed into his ear. "I said the Our Father and the Hail Mary and, looking back, I think he was already dead." Mrs McCauley also recalled that she, along with around seven other young people, were in an alleyway in the Bogside known as The Funnel. They were looking at a handkerchief from Long Kesh, which an older alcoholic man was showing them, when the shot rang out, killing Mr Deery. Her evidence mirrored that of other civilian witnesses. But questions were raised about a new witness - a man called Noel Duddy. Mr Duddy contacted the Coroner's office in June this year and told them he was with Manus Deery when he was shot. However, all of the other civilian witnesses said Mr Duddy had not been with them. In a written statement, Mr Duddy had said that Manus had a stick about three or four-foot long, which he pointed in the direction of the soldiers. However, he retracted that claim in the witness box. Mr Duddy, under cross-examination, further retracted part of his statement, in which he said he had a "vivid memory" of Manus gesturing in the direction of the soldiers with his hands as if he was firing a gun. This came after the court heard that not one other witness, including the soldiers themselves, had mentioned anyone making such a gesture. Mr Duddy also claimed he told Manus not to make that gesture in case the soldiers shot him. From the stand, he admitted: "It could be I made up this lie. My memory could be playing tricks on me and neither of these things may have happened." When pressed as to whether he was even there - as every other witness had said he was not present - Mr Duddy added: "Someone did suggest that, but I was there." The inquest reconvenes tomorrow. The Homeless Veteran Stand Down is set for 9 a.m. through 2 p.m. Thursday at the Shrine Auditorium, 1125 Broadwater Ave. Volunteers of America is working with the Veterans Affairs Montana health care system to host the event, which is held for military veterans and their families. VA staff and more than 45 veterans service providers will be on hand Thursday offering services and assistance to veterans, including information about employment, housing assistance, legal services, VA benefits, Social Security and other programs. Medical staff will provide free flu shots. The MET Transits Broadwater bus line will provide free transportation to veterans to and from the event. Prime Minister Theresa May has failed to offer any fresh commitments to the Northern Ireland Executive over the looming Brexit. She was responding to a letter from the First and Deputy First Ministers, in which they sought assurances over the impact of leaving the EU. The PM insisted the future of the Irish border post-Brexit was a priority for the entire UK, not just Northern Ireland. She also pledged to take full account of the region's specific interests in the negotiations with Europe. But her two-page letter did not include any detailed pledges around specific concerns raised by Arlene Foster and Martin McGuinness. Mrs May said: "I am committed to full engagement with the Northern Ireland Executive on the UK's exit from the EU, and will take full account of the specific interests of the people of Northern Ireland in order to get the best possible deal for all parts of our United Kingdom as we leave the EU." She highlighted five areas, including the treatment of the agri-food sector, the border and the energy market. Addressing the future of the border, Mrs May said it was "an important priority for the UK as a whole". She added: "The UK Government, the Northern Ireland Executive and the Irish Government have all been clear that we wish to see the continuance of the free movement of people and goods across the island of Ireland and the maintenance of the Common Travel Area across the whole of the UK and Ireland, which has served us well." Mrs Foster said it was "a significant response". "I think you'll agree that the Prime Minister has responded to all the issues that we raised, and we look forward to continuing that dialogue and discussion with the Prime Minister at the Joint Ministerial Council next Monday," she said. Mrs May's response was revealed on the BBC's Nolan show yesterday. It led the SDLP to question why the letter was not announced in the Assembly chamber on Monday. But Mrs Foster responded: "It was put into the (Stormont) library at the same time it was released to the media. "We're challenged about being open and transparent, so we have released it and we placed it in the library the day after we received the letter. "Of course this is going to be an ongoing issue, and we're going to be receiving many, many letters between ourselves and the UK Government, and we do of course want to release those letters." SDLP leader Colum Eastwood called for the Executive to abandon its "weak position" on Brexit. Mr Eastwood said the Executive's silence on the Prime Minister's response during Monday's debate on special EU status in the Assembly revealed that they are embarrassed by its contents. He added: "It is unfortunate that the reply from Theresa May is equally as vacuous as the original letter she received. "Four months on from the referendum, we are now left with two empty letters and no answers. "We are faced with a British Government which has substituted the substance of policy with meaningless mantra." Alliance MLA Stephen Farry added that more concrete assurances were needed from the Prime Minister. Efforts to tie Prime Minister Theresa May to a specific form of Brexit are undermining Britain's chances of negotiating a successful withdrawal from the European Union, Chancellor Philip Hammond has warned. His comments are likely to be seen as a lightly-veiled reproach to International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, who has made a very public push for a "hard Brexit" solution - which would see the UK leave the European single market and customs union. The Chancellor also moved to allay City concerns that Brexit might prevent them recruiting highly-skilled foreign staff, telling the House of Commons Treasury Committee that address ing the concerns of the financial sector will be " a very high priority" for the Government in negotiations. While regaining controls over the migration between the UK and EU was an essential part of Brexit, Mr Hammond said: "I cannot conceive of any circumstance in which we would be using those controls to prevent banks, companies moving highly-qualified, highly-skilled people between different parts of their businesses. "That is essential for the smooth operation of our economy." After days of press reports that other ministers privately see Mr Hammond as a drag on progress towards Brexit, the Chancellor told the committee that it was "no secret" there were differences of opinion within the Cabinet about the best way to proceed. He condemned leaks from meetings of the Cabinet Brexit committee, saying it would be "far more helpful to this debate if we were able to conduct these internal discussions privately without leaks to newspapers". And he insisted that it was not the Treasury which was undermining Brexit, as reports have suggested, but those trying to pin Mrs May down too soon to a preferred outcome for the two-year withdrawal talks under Article 50 of the EU treaties - which are due to begin before the end of March 2017. Mrs May hinted that the 2019 deadline for withdrawal under Article 50 could be extended - something that could happen only with unanimous agreement of all 27 remaining states - telling MPs at Prime Minister's Questions that the process would take "two years or more". Mr Hammond told the committee that Mrs May was operating within "two clear constraints" - that the UK will leaving the EU and will control migration". "Beyond that, she needs the maximum possible space," he said. "My objective in supporting her is to ensure that she has the broadest range of options - properly costed and understood - and the maximum scope to deploy that broad range of options in what might be a wide-ranging negotiation. "I would say that those that are undermining the effort are those that are seeking to close down that negotiating stance, seeking to arrive at hard decisions that we don't need at this stage. "Keeping as many areas open, as many options open, as possible is the key to the strongest possible negotiating hand." Mr Hammond did not deny reports that the Brexit Committee has been considering a Treasury paper produced ahead of the referendum, which warned that leaving the arrangement could risk a 4.5% fall in GDP by 2030. But he cautioned that official estimates of the economic impact of Brexit dating from before the June 23 poll had been prepared on the assumption that the UK would trigger Article 50 immediately after a Leave vote, and that there would be no mitigating action from the Bank of England - both of which had been proved wrong. Mr Hammond declined to say whether the Government wants to stay in the customs union, which would allow exporters and importers to trade tariff-free with European neighbours, but make it impossible for the UK to strike its own trade deals. He accepted there had been some "very long, drawn-out" multilateral trade talks, but insisted that "n egotiating a straightforward bilateral trade deal ought to be a great deal simpler" for Britain outside the 28-nation bloc. Until the Article 50 process is complete, he confirmed it was not appropriate for Dr Fox to enter into "any substantive negotiation with any third party". The Chancellor came under attack from committee members for refusing to publish analysis being drawn up by the Treasury of the pros and cons of various potential Brexit deals. Labour MP Rachel Reeves was backed by committee chair Andrew Tyrie as she said: "We can have a public debate, but it will be without the facts available to us. "That will be a very poor debate and I think that is a disappointing decision by the Government. "Taxpayers pay for the Treasury to do that work, Chancellor, and I think the public and parliamentarians deserve to see that work." But Mr Hammond insisted: "It would not be sensible - however irritating I understand that is going to be to some people - to go into the negotiation with all of our potential negotiating positions, all of the building blocks of a negotiating position spelled out in public with the costs and benefits and consequences displayed for our interlocutors on the other side of the table. "I can promise you the European Union will not be arriving at the negotiations with all the downsides as well as upsides of different negotiating positions set out for us to see." He added: "We cannot have a public debate about what our negotiating position is going to be. If we were to do that, we would have no negotiating position." Hungary's minister for foreign affairs and trade, Peter Szijjarto, told Channel Four News the EU needed to cut a "tailor-made" deal with the UK. "From my perspective we need a tailor-made solution. So, no-Swiss-type, no Canadian-type, no Norwegian-type, we need to look for a tailor-made solution for cooperation regarding trade, economy, and investments between the UK and the EU. "And the ideal situation would be, of course, free trade. Absolutely free trade between the UK and the EU, because currently there's absolutely free trade between UK and the rest of Europe." Theresa May acknowledged there had been "stories" about some of the individuals involved in the inquiry Theresa May was aware that there were "tensions" between the former chairwoman of the troubled inquiry into child sex abuse and its panel while she was still home secretary, No 10 has said. The Prime Minister is facing calls to "come clean" about the extent of what she knew about the problems at the probe when it was headed up by Dame Lowell Goddard. Mrs May earlier told MPs there had been "stories" circulating about the former chairwoman but said she could not have intervened on the basis of "suspicion, rumour or hearsay". No 10 confirmed that Mrs May was still home secretary when she heard about the tensions. A spokeswoman said: "The stories that she heard were just that there were tensions between the chair and the panel." Mrs May, who set up the inquiry, insisted the Home Office was not officially notified of concerns about the New Zealand high court judge until late July - less than a week before she finally resigned - by which time Mrs May was in Downing Street. Pressed on the issue at Prime Minister's Questions, Mrs May said: "There were stories around about the inquiry and about individuals related to the inquiry, but the home secretary cannot intervene on the basis of suspicion, rumour or hearsay." She added that as home secretary, she had been aware many of the abuse survivors believed "people in positions of power" had over the years intervened to "stop them getting justice". On Tuesday, the Commons Home Affairs Committee was told that a member of the inquiry panel had privately raised concerns with a director-general in the Home Office in April when Mrs May was still home secretary. However, Mrs May told MPs: "That conversation was asked to be confidential and it was, as far as I am aware, treated as such. "I think it is important for us to recognise that, when the Home Office was officially informed of issues, the Home Office acted. It's now for the inquiry to get on and deliver for victims and survivors." Labour MP Lisa Nandy, who raised the question with Mrs May in the House, said she must now needed to explain what exactly she had known. "Theresa May set up the abuse inquiry and appointed its chair. She was the home secretary in April when serious concerns were raised with her department, and only she had the power to act on them," she said. "Today she suggested that she did know of problems but did nothing at all. For this investigation to regain the trust of survivors the Prime Minister must now come clean about what she knew when, and why she failed to intervene." Some MPs remain angry that when current Home Secretary Amber Rudd appeared before committee last month she made no mention of the issues that had been raised, saying simply Dame Lowell had resigned because she was homesick. The Home Office finally issued a statement last week following press reports about the conduct of Dame Lowell, disclosing that it had been formally contacted by the inquiry on July 29. Six days later the judge resigned. Dame Lowell has strongly denied allegations against her - including claims that she used racist language - describing them as "falsities", "malicious" and part of a "vicious campaign" against her. At the committee hearing on Tuesday, MPs were told by members of the inquiry panel that there had been "challenges" working with Dame Lowell. The new inquiry chairwoman, Professor Alexis Jay, said: "It was clear from the beginning that Lowell Goddard really would have preferred to sit on her own without the assistance of a panel. "As a consequence of this view that was conveyed to us, we did feel that we were kept at a distance from a lot of the activities of the inquiry." Paula Hawks said she was raped at college A South Dakota Democrat running for the US House of Representatives has revealed she was raped at college, in an essay that condemned Donald Trump's predatory comments about women. In the essay on the website Medium, Paula Hawks said condoning such behaviour enabled sexual assault at colleges and in the workplace. Ms Hawks, 41, said in the essay that she was raped by "a person in a position of authority" while at college. In a telephone interview, she said it happened in 1995 while she was at South Dakota State University. She did not report it to police, but told KELO Radio News that the man got into trouble mutliple times and so "justice has been served on that person". Ms Hawks says she was "outraged" by the Trump tape and just had to speak out. She is challenging Republican House member Kristi Noem, who has said she will vote for Mr Trump because he will sign conservative legislation. Ms Noem said she was "heartbroken" by what happened to Ms Hawks but stood by her support of Mr Trump. AP Family members of the kidnapped girls depart to meet the Nigerian minister of women affairs in Abuja (AP) Nigeria's president has vowed to "redouble" efforts to secure the release of nearly 200 schoolgirls who remain missing more than two years after being abducted by Boko Haram extremists. President Muhammadu Buhari met for the first time with the 21 Chibok schoolgirls who were released last week after negotiations with Boko Haram. Mr Buhari said they would be reintegrated into society "as quickly as possible". Some 276 girls were kidnapped from a school in the north-east town of Chibok in April 2014. Dozens escaped early on and another was found in May. Last week marked the first negotiated release of any of the schoolgirls. One of the schoolgirls, Rebecca Malu, delivered brief remarks on behalf of the group at Wednesday's ceremony. "We are happy to see this wonderful day because we didn't know that we would come back," she said, adding that she was praying for the release of the others. Not all may want to come home. More than 100 of the schoolgirls appear unwilling to leave their captors, perhaps because they have been radicalised by Boko Haram or are ashamed to return because they have married extremists and have babies, Chibok community leader Pogu Bitrus said. Mr Bitrus said the freed schoolgirls should be educated abroad because they are likely to face stigma in Nigeria. The president said the government will assume responsibility for the schoolgirls' personal, educational and professional goals. "These dear daughters of ours have seen the worst that the world has to offer," Mr Buhari said. "It is now time for them to experience the best that the world can do for them." AP South Korean foreign minister Yun Byung-se and and Defence Secretary Ash Carter are seen before a meeting at the State Department in Washington (AP) US Defence Secretary Ash Carter has warned that any attack on American allies or use of nuclear weapons by North Korea would be met with an "overwhelming" US response. He was speaking at the start of talks between the top US and South Korea diplomats and defence officials to discuss their response to the growing threat from North Korea's nuclear and missile programmes. The meeting comes weeks after the North's most powerful nuclear test explosion to date, and days after its failed test launch of a ballistic missile. On the agenda is how to strengthen the so-called "extended deterrence" provided by US nuclear forces in defending South Korea. Seoul is looking to allay calls from conservatives at home who want South Korea to develop its own nuclear arsenal. "The US commitment to the defence of South Korea is unwavering. This includes our commitment to provide extended deterrence, guaranteed by the full spectrum of US defence capabilities," Mr Carter said in opening remarks. "Make no mistake, any attack on America or our allies will not only be defeated, but any use of nuclear weapons will met with an overwhelming and effective response," he said. The talks are between Secretary of State John Kerry and Carter, and their South Korean counterparts Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se and Defence Minister Han Min-koo. Mr Yun said that the threat posed by North Korea is "more grave than ever" and that it is "nearing the final stage of nuclear weaponisation." The North has conducted two nuclear tests this year and 23 missile tests, deepening concern that is moving closer to having a nuclear-tipped missile that could reach the American mainland. Mr Kerry reiterated the US will deploy "as soon as possible" a Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD), a missile defence system intended to protect South Korea and the nearly 30,000 US forces based there. The plans for THAAD have angered China and Russia, which see it as a threat to their own defense. Mr Kerry called for every country to rigorously enforce UN sanctions on North Korea, which are intended - but have failed - to prevent its development of weapons of mass destruction. The US and China, which is the North's traditional ally and main trading partner, are currently negotiating at the UN Security Council on tightening sanctions in response to the September 9 nuclear test. The US, South Korea and Japan are considering additional sanctions of their own. "We need to ensure, working together, that the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) pays a price for its dangerous actions, even - and I want to emphasise this - (as) we work for the peaceful denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula," Mr Kerry said.. The US hopes that tighter sanctions can force impoverished North Korea to return to long-stalled aid-for-disarmament negotiations, but there appears to be little prospect of their resumption because of Pyongyang's determination to have nuclear weapons. North Korea's state-run Rodong Sinmun newspaper on Wednesday said the North would strengthen its nuclear capabilities in quantity and quality in response to the threat from its enemies. "We have warned that South Korea will be engulfed in a sea of fire and the US military units in the Pacific region and the mainland will be in chaos if the US wages nuclear strikes against us," the newspaper said. "Our warning is not an empty word." AP Members of the public arrive for the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. Democrat Hillary Clinton and rival Donald Trump face off in their last presidential debate on October 19, with the Republican candidate spiraling downward amid allegations of sexual misconduct and wild charges of a "rigged" US election. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / joe raedleJOE RAEDLE/AFP/Getty Images US entertainer Wayne Newton and wife Kathleen McCrone attend the third and final US presidential debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Former presidential candidate, Dr. Ben Carson speaks with guests before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Investor and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban arrives prior to the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Donna Brazile (R) confers with US Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (L), D-Nevada, prior to the third and final US presidential debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Former presidential candidate, Dr. Ben Carson speaks with Jesse Jackason before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Republican candidate for Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen are seen before the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. Democrat Hillary Clinton and rival Donald Trump face off in their last presidential debate on October 19, with the Republican candidate spiraling downward amid allegations of sexual misconduct and wild charges of a "rigged" US election. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / joe raedleJOE RAEDLE/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Former NBA champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar attends the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) The Reverend Jesse Jackson arrives for the third and final US presidential debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Ted Danson and his wife Mary Steenburgen arrive prior to the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani (C) arrives before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) A television cameraman tests his equipment prior to showtime at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas, Nevada, where the final debate between US presidential nominees Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump will be held October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / PAUL J. RICHARDSPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images Police officers stand outside the Thomas & Mack Center ahead of the third presidential debate between Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at UNLV in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Members of the public arrive for the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. Democrat Hillary Clinton and rival Donald Trump face off in their last presidential debate on October 19, with the Republican candidate spiraling downward amid allegations of sexual misconduct and wild charges of a "rigged" US election. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / joe raedleJOE RAEDLE/AFP/Getty Images US entertainer Wayne Newton and wife Kathleen McCrone attend the third and final US presidential debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Former presidential candidate, Dr. Ben Carson speaks with guests before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Investor and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban arrives prior to the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Donna Brazile (R) confers with US Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (L), D-Nevada, prior to the third and final US presidential debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Former presidential candidate, Dr. Ben Carson speaks with Jesse Jackason before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Republican candidate for Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen are seen before the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. Democrat Hillary Clinton and rival Donald Trump face off in their last presidential debate on October 19, with the Republican candidate spiraling downward amid allegations of sexual misconduct and wild charges of a "rigged" US election. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / joe raedleJOE RAEDLE/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Former NBA champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar attends the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) The Reverend Jesse Jackson arrives for the third and final US presidential debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Ted Danson and his wife Mary Steenburgen arrive prior to the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani (C) arrives before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) A television cameraman tests his equipment prior to showtime at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas, Nevada, where the final debate between US presidential nominees Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump will be held October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / PAUL J. RICHARDSPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump acknowledges the crowd during the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton waves to the crowd as she walks on the stage during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Former U.S. President Bill Clinton and his daughter Chelsea Clinton speak to guests before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Fox News anchor and moderator Chris Wallace speaks to the guests and attendees during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump adjusts the microphone during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Guests and attendees wait for the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Guest and attendees wait for the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Republican candidate for Vice President Mike Pence (R) and Melania Trump are seen before the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. Democrat Hillary Clinton and rival Donald Trump face off in their last presidential debate on October 19, with the Republican candidate spiraling downward amid allegations of sexual misconduct and wild charges of a "rigged" US election. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / joe raedleJOE RAEDLE/AFP/Getty Images Co-chairs for the Commission on Presidential Debates, Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr. (R), and Michael D. McCurry (L) speak prior to the third and final US presidential debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Melania Trump arrives before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Ivanka Trump waits for the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Melania Trump arrives before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Eric Trump speaks with his wife Lara Yunaska before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Melania Trump arrives before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Ivanka Trump waits for the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Donald Trump Jr. and his wife Vanessa Trump wait for the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Melania Trump shakes hands with former presidential candidate, Dr. Ben Carson before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Melania Trump arrives before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Melania Trump is greeted by Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: (L-R) Ivanka Trump, Tiffany Trump and Malania Trump arrive before the start of the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) Police officers stand outside the Thomas & Mack Center ahead of the third presidential debate between Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at UNLV in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks during the third and final US presidential debate with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton waves on arrive for the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEBSAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is seen speaking on a TV screen during the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Brendan SmialowskiBRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks during the third and final US presidential debate with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton speaks during the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Robyn BeckROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump listens during the third and final US presidential debate with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks during the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEBSAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks during the third and final US presidential debate with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump listens to Democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speak during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Members of the media watch the third U.S. presidential debate with republican presidential nominee Donald Trump democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the media center the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Mark Ralston-Pool/Getty Images) Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton speaks during the third and final US presidential debate with Republican nominee Donald Trump at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / Paul J. RichardsPAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images Former President Bill Clinton, right, speaks to his daughter Chelsea Clinton, left, before the third presidential debate at University of Nevada in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks during the third presidential debate with Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton at UNLV in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speak during the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. AFP/Getty Images Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton (R) speaks as Republican nominee Donald Trump looks on during the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 19, 2016. AFP/Getty Images LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 19: Democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks during the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on October 19, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tonight is the final debate ahead of Election Day on November 8. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) Donald Trump has refused to say if he would accept the result of the US presidential election if he loses, as he clashed with Hillary Clinton in their final head-to-head debate. The candidates squared off at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas for the last time before Americans go to the polls on November 8. Republican Mr Trump was questioned about his claims that the election will be rigged in favour of his Democratic rival, after he tweeted that "there was large-scale voter fraud happening on and before election day". Asked by moderator Chris Wallace if he would accept the election result, the Republican nominee replied: "I will look at it at the time." Mr Trump said the media was "so dishonest" and had "poisoned the minds of voters". Of Mrs Clinton, he added: "She shouldn't be allowed to run. It's crooked. She's guilty of a very serious crime. "Just in that respect I say it's rigged. She should never have been allowed to run for the presidency based on what she did with emails and so many other things." Asked again if he would accept the results, Mr Trump replied: "I will tell you at the time. I'll keep you in suspense." Mrs Clinton said Mr Trump's remarks were "horrifying". "Every time Donald thinks things are not going in his direction, he claims whatever it is is rigged against him," she said. .@HillaryClinton lays out why she believes people should vote for her #DebateNight https://t.co/GDUuaLnbwZ Sky News (@SkyNews) October 20, 2016 .@realDonaldTrump lays out why he believes people should vote for him #DebateNight https://t.co/1BLjWfRC1u Sky News (@SkyNews) October 20, 2016 "There was even at time when he didn't get an Emmy for his TV programme three years in a row and he started tweeting even the Emmys were rigged against him. "This is a mindset. This is how Donald thinks. It is funny but it is also really troubling - that is not the way our democracy works." Claims v facts Both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump struggled in the final presidential debate to explain comments from their past. Here is a look at some of the claims. MRS CLINTON on Mr Trump's charge that she called for open borders in a 2013 speech to a Brazilian bank: "I was talking about energy." THE FACTS: She was actually talking about more than energy, but apparently less than an open border that immigrants can spill across at will, according to the partial transcript released by WikiLeaks. Mrs Clinton said in the speech that "my dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders, sometime in the future with energy that is as green as sustainable as we can get it, powering growth and opportunity for every person in the hemisphere". The remarks suggest a broad interest in open trade but were not necessarily evidence that she would support the unfettered movement of people, as Mr Trump claimed. MRS CLINTON: "I want to make college debt free." THE FACTS: She might aspire to that lofty goal, but she has only proposed making college tuition free for in-state students who go to a public college or university. Even with expanded grant aid, room and board can lead students to borrow. Mrs Clinton would have the government pay for in-state tuition at public colleges and universities for students from families earning less than 125,000 dollars a year. Students would still need to foot the bill for housing and food, which makes up more than half of the average 18,943-dollar sticker price at a four-year public university, according to the College Board. But Mr Trump is correct that government would shoulder higher costs with Mrs Clinton's plan, which would cost the government an estimated 500 billion dollars over 10 years, with additional costs possibly for state governments. MR TRUMP: "Her plan is going to raise taxes and even double your taxes." THE FACTS: Mrs Clinton's plan would not raise taxes at all for 95% of Americans, according to the non-partisan Tax Policy Centre. The very wealthiest would take the greatest hit, though a doubling is highly questionable. Two-thirds of her proposed increases would hit the top 0.1% of richest Americans, the centre estimates. The main components of her tax plan: a minimum 30% tax on those earning at least one million dollars a year, and a 5% tax surcharge for those earning more than five million a year. She would also cap the value of tax deductions and exclusions for wealthier taxpayers. .@realDonaldTrump running mate @mike_pence says "if the vote is fair, I'm confident we will accept it" https://t.co/0psTvwuJbH Sky News (@SkyNews) October 20, 2016 Read more Read More MRS CLINTON on her opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal: "It didn't meet my test." THE FACTS: It met her test when she was US secretary of state and she promoted it worldwide. Hacked emails from her campaign, released on Wednesday by WikiLeaks, showed that Jake Sullivan, her top foreign policy adviser, called her a "big champion" of the deal and worried about how to handle the issue in the face of Senator Bernie Sanders' opposition. She later flip-flopped into opposition during the Democratic primaries against Mr Sanders. Mrs Clinton says she no longer backs the proposed trade deal as written because it does not provide enough protections for US workers on wages, jobs and the country's national security. Yet the final deal also includes some of the strongest labour protections of any US trade agreement. MR TRUMP: "Hillary Clinton wanted the (border) wall. Hillary Clinton fought for the wall in 2006 or thereabouts. Now, she never gets anything done, so naturally it wasn't built." THE FACTS: He is partly right. As a senator from New York, Mrs Clinton did support the 2006 Secure Fence Act, which authorised the construction of hundreds of miles of fencing along the US-Mexico border. But it was built, contrary to Mr Trump's assertion. Nearly 700 miles of fencing was put in place during George Bush's second term and the beginning of Barack Obama's first term. The fencing is placed largely in urban areas along the nearly 2,000-mile frontier. It is not the type of solid wall that Mr Trump has pledged to construct at Mexico's expense. The fence has miles-long gaps and gates built in to allow landowners access to their property on the south side of the fencing. Immigrants have been known to go over and around the fence. DONALD TRUMP: Referring to a 2010 US-Russia treaty limiting both countries to 1,550 strategic nuclear warheads, Mr Trump said, "They create warheads. We can't." The FACTS: Incorrect. The New START treaty, which Mr Trump called "Start Up", does not prevent either the US or Russia from building nuclear warheads. It restricts each country to a total of 1,550 warheads deployed on bombers, submarines and in underground silos and requires that this limit be reached by February 2018. Mr Trump also said that after the treaty was signed, "they expanded and we didn't". It is true that the Russians have increased the number of their deployed warheads to 1,796, and the US warhead total has dropped to 1,367. But it also is true that their total was far below that of the US when the treaty went into effect in 2010. New data published by the State Department this month showed that although Russia has added to its warhead total, its inventory of missile launchers, such as underground silos, has shrunk. Hans Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists, who closely tracks US and Russian strategic forces, says the rise in Russian deployed warheads is temporary and is to be followed by the retirement of older nuclear weapons so that Moscow gets under the treaty limits. "Russian compliance with the treaty by 2018 is not in doubt," he wrote recently. MR TRUMP: "She's lied hundreds of times to the people, to Congress, and to the FBI." THE FACTS: His claim about the FBI does not square with what FBI director James Comey has said publicly. At a July congressional hearing, two days after announcing that he was recommending against bringing charges against Mrs Clinton over her use of a private email server to handle sensitive information while secretary of state, Mr Comey said, "We have no basis to conclude she lied to the FBI." MR TRUMP: Under Hillary Clinton, "six billion (dollars) went missing" at the State Department. THE FACTS: Not quite. That figure is a distortion about a legitimate record-keeping concern. In 2014, the State Department's inspector general released an alert warning that the documentation for six billion dollars in State Department contracts was incomplete. But there is no reason to think that all occurred under Mrs Clinton. The inspector general, Steve Linnick, specifically disavowed the conclusion that the money went missing. MR TRUMP: "President Obama has moved millions of people out ... millions of people have been moved out of this country." THE FACTS: True. Mr Obama has overseen the deportation of more than 2.5 million immigrants since taking office in January 2009. During Mr Obama's first term hundreds of thousands of immigrants were deported annually, following a trend of increasing deportations started under George Bush. The administration set a record in 2014 when more than 409,000 people were sent home. During his second term, deportations have steadily declined as he has opted to focus immigration enforcement resources on finding and deporting serious criminals and those who pose a threat to national security or public safety. But Mr Trump also claims that "nobody knows about it, nobody talks about it" and that is far from the truth. Mr Obama has been dubbed "the deporter in chief" by immigration advocates and opponents of his immigration enforcement policies. MRS CLINTON: "I disagreed with the way the court applied the Second Amendment" in the District of Columbia vs Heller decision in 2008. "I was upset because unfortunately dozens of toddlers injure themselves and even kill people with guns ... But there's no doubt I respect the Second Amendment, that I believe there's an individual right to bear arms." THE FACTS: While Mrs Clinton emphasised the protection of children from gun accidents, the main holding in that case was far broader: that individuals have a right to own guns, at least in their homes and for self-defence. The case marked the first time the court said that individuals have a Second Amendment right to own a gun. The decision struck down Washington's ban on handgun ownership as well as a separate requirement that people who have other guns store them either with trigger locks or disassembled. The court said both provisions violated the Second Amendment. One of David Cameron's greatest nightmares was that he would be the Prime Minister who presided over the departure of Scotland from the UK. He spent many anxious hours battling the surge for independence coming across the border in Scotland. He was a most relieved man when the Scottish referendum on independence in 2014 resulted in the rejection of independence by Scottish voters. The UK would, after all, remain united and David Cameron could not be blamed for its break-up. Cameron's political legacy would not be spoilt by Scotland's departure. However, now the whole issue of Scottish independence has been prematurely resuscitated as a direct result of Cameron's Brexit referendum. When Cameron devised his cunning plan to hold a referendum on membership of the EU (to keep his own Eurosceptic members happy and to keep the menace of Ukip at bay), little did he realise the Pandora's box that he was opening up. In fairness, he was convinced that the British people, after more than 40 years of EU membership, would vote in favour of remaining a member of the bloc. Of course, he was mistaken in that belief - along with the conventional wisdom of the political establishment. The 52% vote to leave came as a huge shock to both sides of the argument. Indeed, early on in the night of the count, Nigel Farage, the then Ukip leader, conceded defeat. But, as the count went on, it became clear that the vote to remain had been marginally beaten, though not in Scotland or Northern Ireland. Truly, this was the biggest and most far-reaching political shock in the history of post-war Britain. Even today, four months after the vote, no one really knows the ultimate consequences of the electorate's momentous decision. Immediately after the referendum result, Nicola Sturgeon, the impressive Scottish First Minister, emphasised that Scotland had voted to remain in the EU and saw its future as being part of Europe. She claimed, with undoubted authority, that the Scottish people had spoken decisively, with a strong and unequivocal vote to remain in Europe. She also warned that it was democratically unacceptable that Scotland could be taken out of the EU without its agreement. But Sturgeon went even further and threatened that she would use the Scottish parliament to veto the UK leaving the EU. She pointed out that any repeal legislation passed by the Westminster parliament to exit Europe would need a legislative consent motion from the Scottish parliament, as it directly impacted upon the devolved responsibilities of the Scottish parliament. This blocking mechanism could have enormous political and constitutional implications that might have to be resolved by the Supreme Court. London, of course, could use the nuclear option of either dissolving or suspending the Scottish parliament to get round this legislative obstruction, but the consequences of that would be enormously damaging and self-defeating. What is clear is that Sturgeon will not tolerate Westminster's current strategy, which she rightly describes as "constitutional vandalism". But this same obstruction tactic could be employed by the Assembly if a combination of the Opposition parties and Sinn Fein voted to reject a similar legislative consent motion from Westminster. This would reflect the will of the Northern Ireland electorate, who voted convincingly to remain. The DUP is still stupidly oblivious to the gravity of the Brexit decision and would not support such a move. But remember, Westminster has had to trim its sails before by delaying legislative consent motions going to the Assembly. It may be in this way that the Westminster Government will realise that there has to be a special relationship for Northern Ireland within the EU. Last week, at the SNP conference, Nicola Sturgeon reiterated the real prospect of a second Scottish independence referendum before Britain leaves the EU in 2019, arising out of the British Government's pursuit of a hard Brexit. This move by the shrewd Scottish leader has further complicated the already confused state of British politics. What would happen if a Scottish referendum votes in favour of leaving the UK in order to remain within the EU? She is firmly saying to the dithering Prime Minister Theresa May that Scotland's interests in remaining within the EU - especially the single market - cannot be ignored or subsumed into a hard Brexit position. Scotland must have a real and vital say in any negotiations with Brussels. Likewise, Northern Ireland's vital interests need to be protected in a similar manner, but the likelihood of agreement on that is remote, given the DUP's amazingly cavalier attitude to Brexit. What is urgently required is a united stance by the Executive and the Assembly in putting pressure on May's weak and increasingly directionless Government to fully and firmly accommodate the economic and political interests of Northern Ireland on the negotiating agenda with Brussels. Montana Highway Patrol found about 50 pounds of marijuana after pulling over a Washington state driver for speeding on Tuesday afternoon. The man was traveling eastbound on Interstate 90 about 1:40 p.m. when he was pulled over for going 76 mph in a 65 mph zone, said MHP Sgt. Craig Baum. The man pulled off the road at exit 446 near King Avenue West, and a K-9 trooper approached the vehicle, Baum said. The trooper got a search warrant after he saw the K-9's reaction to the vehicle, Baum said. The driver was arrested. In addition to the approximately 50 pounds of marijuana, the trooper also discovered an amount of hash oil that has yet to be weighed, Baum said. The Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that Japan exposed a wrong attitude toward history after the country held back its funding for UNESCO this year in protest at the organization's listing of documents about the Nanjing Massacre. "It is the obligation of international organization members to pay the fees. What Japan has said and done once again exposes its wrong attitude of not acknowledging the history," ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular press conference in Beijing. "Japan's behavior is irresponsible and it will fail to achieve its purpose," she said. Japanese troops killed an estimated 300,000 civilians and unarmed soldiers as they rampaged through Nanjing in 1937. UNESCO decided to include documents about the massacre in its "Memory of the World" program last year. Hua said the massacre was a serious crime committed as a result of Japanese militarism during WWII as well as a historical fact recognized by the international community. UNESCO's decision will help these documents play a positive role in remembering the history, cherishing peace and defending human dignity, she added. Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., generally is vocal in support of GOP positions, but partisan disputes didnt stop him from voting for the belated federal budget that finally became law last December. It wasnt everything anybody wanted, but Zinke reasoned that it was better than another stopgap measure that would further underfund the U.S. military. In his first term, Zinke has demonstrated that kind of pragmatism in getting things done for Montana. In his 21 months as a U.S. representative, Zinke has voted generally in favor of public lands and public access despite his partys platform supporting transfer of federal lands to states. (He resigned as a voting delegate to the GOP national convention in protest of the lands plank, but still gave a speech praising Donald Trump.) Zinke joined with Montana U.S. Sens. Jon Tester and Steve Daines to support designating East Rosebud Creek a Wild and Scenic river, to protect that beautiful Beartooth Mountains waterway for area residents and visitors. Zinke joined Tester in publicly endorsing the idea of putting public lands in Park Countys Paradise Valley permanently off limits to mining. A coalition of local businesses and residents are seeking legislation to preserve their way of life while two companies with foreign investors begin to pursue permits for possible gold mine development. I strongly support private property rights and responsible mineral development but Montana is the Last Best Place for a reason, Zinke said earlier this year when asked about protecting Paradise Valley. There are some places that are great to mine and other places that are just too precious. Zinke recognizes that the Affordable Care Act desperately needs work. We call on him to also recognize the good this federal law does in extending health coverage to many thousands of Montanans who otherwise would have no coverage. Rather than his repeal and replace mantra, Montana a needs an ACA fix that saves the beneficial parts and makes improvements to sustain a health care system that can serve all Americans while controlling costs. Our biggest concern with Zinke is his loyalty to Donald Trump. He should publicly condemn Trump's attacks on women, U.S. war heroes and minorities. But Zinke is not Trump, he is a Montanan, a U.S. veteran and a former state lawmaker. He has become a more polished speaker during his first U.S. House term. Montana needs a strong voice in the House, especially because we have only one representative. The House is likely to remain under GOP control in January, and then it will be even more helpful to have our lone representative in the majority party. As Zinke told us: You need a strong voice to make up for 55 voices from California. Democrat Denise Juneau has led successful efforts to help local schools boost statewide high school graduation rates. She improved the K-16 collaboration essential for preparing students to be ready for college and careers. She has in-depth understanding of education policy. But on the campaign trail she has repeatedly seemed to be running for a state office, rather than for Congress. She just doesnt seem as well-prepared as Zinke to make decisions on the array of issues the House must tackle. The death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej will not affect the juntas plans to hold elections in Thailand in September or October 2017, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha indicated on Tuesday. Prayuth touched on the issue as he spoke to reporters following the cabinets first regular scheduled weekly meeting after the kings death on Oct. 13. Thailand has since begun a year of national mourning for Bhumibol, who had ruled over Thailand for 70 years. Before his death, the junta headed by Prayuth had declared that general elections could be held next year and those elected could assume power by December 2017, a plan referred to as a part of the military government so-called roadmap for returning Thailand to democracy. Nothing has changed, Prayuth said Tuesday, according to Reuters. The policies of this government, the laws including elections will be according to the roadmap. Dont ask me when or how it will occur, the roadmap is the roadmap. The country cannot stop, we need to help each other, supporting the work of the government and moving forward, added Prayuth, the retired army general who led a coup that toppled a civilian-led government in May 2014. I ask for collaboration be patient, think the nation first. So any policy of the government, including the laws and election, will proceed. While speaking to reporters the prime minister also addressed the issue of the royal succession. On the night of the kings death, Thai lawmakers invited Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn to take the throne, as is stipulated according to the laws of royal succession, but the prince delayed that action so he could grieve along with the Thai people, the prime minister told the nation on Thursday. On Friday night, Prem Tinsulanonda, a 96-year-old former general who chairs the Privy Council, was appointed as the nations temporary regent and will serve in that role until the day when the prince ascends the throne. About the succession, do not worry, everybody. I've already said twice that it is clearly stated in the constitution, the Palace Law of Succession and also there is its tradition, therefore, all in country and abroad should not worry or not have any concerns, Prayuth told reporters Tuesday. He said a new king could take the throne after 15 days of mourning, according to Reuters. Pursuing critics of monarchy On Tuesday, Thais were still pouring out their grief for the passing of their king after seven decades on the throne. Apart from not having a king ruling them for the first time since 1946, Thais have not elected a prime minister since the military overthrew the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra two years ago. Meanwhile, the government continued to go after on people suspected of violating Lese-Majeste, the countrys strict royal defamation law. Justice Minister Paiboon Koomchaya told reporters that the government was tracking six high-profile suspects living abroad, but conceded that there were significant legal and diplomatic challenges around seeking their extradition, Reuters reported. Since the kings death, at least three people have been arrested for allegedly posting comments on social media that were deemed critical of the monarchy. One of the cases involved a woman from Surat Thani province, identified as Umaporn who allegedly insulted the monarchy on her Facebook page. She was made to kneel in public before a portrait of Bhumibol and issue an apology as a crowd of several hundred royalists jeered her, according to reports. ein Google-Unternehmen Google-Dienste anzubieten und zu betreiben Ausfalle zu prufen und Manahmen gegen Spam, Betrug und Missbrauch zu ergreifen Daten zu Zielgruppeninteraktionen und Websitestatistiken zu erheben. Mit den gewonnenen Informationen mochten wir verstehen, wie unsere Dienste verwendet werden, und die Qualitat dieser Dienste verbessern. neue Dienste zu entwickeln und zu verbessern Werbung auszuliefern und ihre Wirkung zu messen personalisierte Inhalte anzuzeigen, abhangig von Ihren Einstellungen personalisierte Werbung anzuzeigen, abhangig von Ihren Einstellungen Wenn Sie Alle ablehnen auswahlen, verwenden wir Cookies nicht fur diese zusatzlichen Zwecke. 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This is quite literally a life and death issue, and I hope that my fellow Montanans will vote with compassion by casting their ballots with a yes on I-182. This issue is personal for me. My wife, Peggy, has suffered from multiple sclerosis for 37 years. None of the medications prescribed to treat her excruciatingly painful leg spasms have worked. Tears come to her eyes when the spasms strike. Painful, sleepless nights occur several times a month. This summer, upon recommendations from two neurologists, we prepared to file paperwork to get my wife registered as a medical marijuana patient. Unfortunately, the timing was bad. New restrictions, passed by the Montana Legislature in 2011 under SB 423, went into effect at the end of August. Overnight, thousands of Montanans lost access to the medicine theyve been using at the recommendation of their doctors. My wife's last resort for relief from her pain was gone. The Legislature overreacted to the abuses we saw in 2010, like the cannabis caravans. Its unfortunate that a few bad actors sparked a massive backlash by the Legislature. Those abuses were corrected well before SB 423 went into effect by proper enforcement of the law. But five years later, sick and dying patients are paying the price for the Legislatures heavy-handed and politically motivated decision. Of 12,730 registered patients in Montana, 11,850 lost access to a provider. Thats 93 percent of Montanas registered medical marijuana patients. Its worth noting that patients who did not yet get their registration are not counted in that tally. Those patients have given up, and are waiting for the voters to decide on I-182. These are Montanans with debilitating conditions like cancer, epilepsy, Crohns disease, Alzheimers, Parkinsons, chronic pain and multiple sclerosis. These are our friends, neighbors and loved ones. In my case, this is my wife. If your loved one was suffering and medical marijuana offered relief, wouldnt you want them to have that option? These days, very few of us can count ourselves so lucky as to not have been touched by cancer or other debilitating and life-threatening conditions. Keep that in mind when opponents disrespect suffering people by insinuating that medical marijuana patients either dont need the medicine or arent really sick. This is not just a choice of whether patients use medical marijuana or not. This is often a choice between medical marijuana and other medicines that either do not work or come with dangerous side effects. Many patients who have lost their access to medical marijuana are now turning to opioid pain killers to manage their pain. In a time when our nation faces a prescription opioid overdose epidemic, it makes no sense to close off a safe and effective alternative. Still, big pharma continues to oppose medical marijuana to protect their opioid sales and to generate even greater profits by marketing expensive new drugs to combat the side effects of their opioid medications. When casting your ballot, please think of my wife and the thousands of other Montanans who are needlessly suffering. You have the power to save lives and ease suffering this election by voting yes on I-182. First up, Joe Biden is thinking about dropping tariffs against China. But theres a spy in prison this morning that helps us understand why he shouldnt. Ill explain. Your second brief, If youre looking for a good paying job, you might consider being a CEO for a health insurance company. One executive made $142M dollars last year. Let's talk about that. And as always, Im keeping an eye out for developing stories. Put this one on your radar. Mexican cartels are grooming American kids online and paying them cash to traffic illegals or run drugs across the border. Ill share details. If you enjoyed this episode of the President's Daily Brief, remember to subscribe and listen daily at podfollow.com/pdb. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Montanans were sold a bill of goods in 2004 that the process of getting medical marijuana was by going to their doctor and receiving a prescription. Montanans were deceived back then and the proponents of I-182 are trying to deceive Montanans this time as well. By 2008 Montanans saw the irresponsible, unregulated, and unmonitored program explode in Montana. Traveling doctors recommended cannabis to their clients, despite the fact that they lack even the most rudimentary information about the composition, quality and dose. While pharmaceutical companies are responsible for any harm that befalls a patient from their products and tobacco companies are held accountable for damage done by cigarettes, marijuana providers and dispensaries hold no accountability for their product where very little is known. At a time that efforts are being made to stem the epidemic of prescription drug abuse, I-182 would allow distribution sites to proliferate without true regulation. A state ballot initiative should not be the process to approve medicine. The general public is not qualified to make medical decisions. The practice of medicine is evidence-based, and the legalization of a drug with the potential for abuse by the general population that has no qualification to determine composition, quality and dose is a bad way to practice medicine. It guarantees the failure of a program that may have potential success for patients who need medical marijuana under a doctors care and it ensures the accessibility of recreational marijuana to the rest of the population. Montana should not pass I-182 because the marijuana provided to patients who have debilitating diseases should not be getting treatment without a doctors care by marijuana that is not reviewed for its safety and efficacy, where there is not standardization and formulation for dosing, and there is not regulated, closed system of distribution for marijuana, which is a drug with abuse potential. I-182 does not ensure that the established professional tenets of proper patient care are adhered to including: history and a good faith examination of the patient, development of a treatment plan with objectives, provision of informed consent, including discussion of side effects, periodic review of the treatments efficacy, consultation as necessary, proper record-keeping that supports the decision to recommend the use of cannabis or guarantee that a bonafide physician-patient relationship with the patient exists. The recommending physician should have a pre-existing and ongoing relationship with the patient. Under I-182, they do not. The physician that recommends the marijuana should not have a practice where the issuance of recommendations is not disproportionately large nor the exclusive practice of the physician. Under I-182 it is not. The recommending physician should always have adequate information regarding the composition and dose of the cannabis product. Under I-182 they do not. Have adequate training in identifying substance abuse and addiction. Under I-182, it is not even a concern. Montanans need to vote no to I-182. It wasnt a good idea in 2004, and it is not a good idea in 2016. If you take the time to compare the two initiatives from 2004 and 2016, it is obvious that not only have the pro-marijuana proponents not made the medical marijuana safer for people with debilitating conditions, they have also opened up the system so that those who want to use it recreationally can have easier access to it. For Immediate Release, October 19, 2016 Contacts: Noah Greenwald, Center for Biological Diversity, (503) 484-7495, ngreenwald@biologicaldiversity.org Tom Wheeler, EPIC, (707) 822-7711, tom@wildcalifornia.org Greg Loarie, Earthjustice, (415) 217-2000 George Sexton, KS Wild, (541) 488-5789 Lawsuit Filed Over Feds' Denial of Endangered Species Protection to Pacific Fishers Rare Mink-like Carnivore Threatened by Logging, Poaching, Poisoning SAN FRANCISCO Four conservation groups filed suit today in U.S. District Court challenging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services unexpected decision in April to deny Endangered Species Act protection to Pacific fishers. Closely related to minks, martens and wolverines, Pacific fishers are severely threatened by logging, use of toxic rodenticides by illegal marijuana growers and incidental capture in fur traps. Although the Service proposed federal protection for the fisher in 2014, the agency reversed course and withdrew the proposal in 2016 even though the fisher's poor status remained largely the same. The decision to deny protections to the Pacific fisher is the latest in a string of politically motivated decisions from the Fish and Wildlife Service, in which regional staff overruled decisions by Service biologists to protect species. In December 2015 conservation groups filed a lawsuit against the Service for inexplicably denying protection to Humboldt martens, another rare West Coast carnivore on the brink of extinction. In April 2016 a federal judge in Montana criticized the Service for bowing to political pressure in illegally reversing a proposal to protect the estimated 300 wolverines remaining in the lower 48 states. And in June the groups filed notice of their intent to bring todays suit against the Service over its failure to protect the Pacific fisher. We first petitioned for protection of fishers more than 20 years ago, said Noah Greenwald, endangered species director at the Center for Biological Diversity. It's a travesty that after finally acknowledging the precarious status of the fisher in 2014, the Fish and Wildlife Service bowed to the timber industry and declined to protect these beautiful carnivores. Fishers once roamed from British Columbia to Southern California, but due to intense logging and trapping, only two native populations survive today: a population of as few as 100 fishers in the southern Sierra Nevada and another small population in the coastal mountains of southwestern Oregon and northwestern California. Fishers have also been recently reintroduced in the northern Sierra, southern Cascades and Washington state, but it is unknown whether these new populations are sustainable. Science, not politics, should determine whether a species deserves protection, said Tom Wheeler, program director at the Environmental Protection Information Center. We are excited for our day in court to show that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service bent over backwards to appease industry interests that would prefer the fisher go extinct. The Center for Biological Diversity first petitioned to protect the fisher in 1994, and again in 2000, along with the three other groups on the lawsuit filed today. Rather than provide protection, the Service added the fisher to a candidate list in 2004. In 2011 the Center reached a settlement agreement with the Service requiring a protection decision for the fisher in 2014, when it was proposed for protection as a threatened species. But the Service abruptly withdrew its proposed rule in April of this year. Its gotten to the point where no amount of scientific evidence is ever enough for the Fish and Wildlife Service, said Earthjustice attorney Greg Loarie, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of the conservation groups. At the rate were going now, Pacific fishers will be extinct and the Service will still be debating the extent to which the species can survive in a clearcut. The Klamath-Siskiyou Mountains have the potential to be a key refuge for this imperiled species, yet the BLM recently committed itself to a land-management plan that dramatically increases logging and road building throughout Pacific fisher habitat. Without protections from the Endangered Species Act federal timber planners may drive this rare species into extinction, said George Sexton, conservation director for the Klamath Siskiyou Wildlands Center. Filing the suit are the Center for Biological Diversity, Environmental Protection Information Center, Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center and Sierra Forest Legacy. They are represented by Earthjustice. It can be tough to be a vegetarian. You have to work harder than everyone else to make sure youre getting all the nutrients your body needs. So, when its time to take a And these customers are more social than ever before The 2016 IAB MIXX brought together marketers, advertising executives, publishers, and ad technologists to discuss digital advertisings new world order. IAB President and CEO, Randall Rothenberg, foreshadowed many of the discussions in his opening address, as he declared that todays consumers demand more original, personal and provocative experiences. Consumers hold the power, and they are rejecting experiences that dont fulfil their needs. Deborah Wahl, Senior Vice President and CMO, McDonald's USA, echoed this sentiment, stating that the ad blocking trend is proof that we need to embrace a culture of listening. Consumers have the freedom to tune us out. This drives us to participate in a new dialogue, where we put the consumer first. The best way to connect is with authentic, human stories. Chinese dumpling brand, Wanchai Dumplings does this perfectly in an emotive advert that clearly resonated with its audience, as well as with audiences all over the globe click here to view. This poses a challenge to advertising agencies to not only evolve to digital but shift their thinking. Bryan Wiener, Executive Chairman for 360i noted that the agency of the future, 1) has storytelling that earns attention, 2) uses a data- driven approach, and 3) is digitally led but not digitally limited. Now more than ever, we have the tools to truly connect with consumers. Lauren Wiener, President, Buyer Platforms, Tremor Video and Chair, IAB (US) emphasised in her address that the paradox of modern advertising is that the more advanced our tech, the more human we can be. To be human is to be social. Sebastian Tomich, Senior Vice President of Advertising & Innovation, The New York Times, affirmed this, saying that while there is debate whether social feeds are going to be the future of where people consume journalism or news, theres no debate about socials dominance over peoples time. If advertisers want to get social with their customers, they need to devise valuable ways of entering the conversation. Adam Bain, Chief Operating Officer, Twitter, looked at the value and power of live video and its advertising potential. He used the presidential debate of the night before (shown live on their platform) to illustrate how the audience came for the live video but stayed for the conversation. The connected audience created and engaged an active community (and were fact checking Trumps claims in real-time), which is why Twitter, just getting started in the live content space, sees it as a growth driver. Audiences are not just connected to their phones and devices, they are connected to each other. Of course, its only a matter of time until Artificial Intelligence joins the human conversation. Stephen Gold, Chief Marketing Officer, IBM Watson, debuted a first look at IBMs Watson ad an AI powered digital ad that answers consumer questions. This possible new frontier in advertising promises the chance to understand mindsets like never before and allows for one-to-one communication with consumers. However, he added, better targeting needs to be balanced with better data security. Cognitive learning will undoubtedly be the next big disrupter in next two to three years says Steve King, Chief Executive Officer, Publicis Media. The cognification of things will usher the next great chapter as manufacturing, communications and marketing, as products and processes continue to make themselves smarter with AI. This extends to social platforms as well. With more users on top for messaging apps than social apps, chat bots are the next frontier of AI, allowing marketers to design personalised, always-on customer services experiences and seamlessly join customers on their individual purchase journey. This marks a tipping point for the industry as it gives us the opportunity to drive our medium in an effective way. He urged the audience to use tech to be respectful of the customer experience, keep consumers at the center, to focus on the user and all else will follow. While buzzwords and phrases such as snackable content, the mobile revolution, in-app mobile, social influencers and of course data, data (and now second party data) aligned with the predictions of last year, it was clear that IAB MIXX 2016 was all about collaboration, convergence and customer-centricity. As Sebastian Tomich noted, every media company is dealing with a fundamentally changing world. We need to rethink the value we deliver. This might mean making something worth paying for. So, make a memorable experience that is worth that most valuable commodity - everyones time! About the IAB South Africa: The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) South Africa, formerly the DMMA, is an independent, voluntary, non-profit association focussed on growing and sustaining a vibrant and profitable digital industry in South Africa. The IAB South Africa represents the digital industry across all sectors including the media, the marketing community, government, and the public, and also acts as the channel through which international bodies can enter the South African digital market. The IAB South Africa currently represents over 200 members including online publishers, creative, media and digital agencies, brands, and educators, between them accounting for more than 39 million local unique browsers. The IAB South Africa strives to provide members with a platform through which they can engage, interact, and address digital issues of common interest, thereby stimulating learning and commerce within the South African digital space. To find out more about the IAB South Africa, visit its website, like its Facebook page and follow @iab_sa on Twitter. Grocery chain Pick n Pay hiked its interim dividend 23.6% to 29.9c in its results for the 26 weeks to August 28 released on Tuesday morning. Richard Brasher, CEO of Pick n Pay.Picture: Business Day Interim revenue grew 7.4% to R38.3bn, of which 96% came from its domestic market and only 4% from its rest of Africa division. Slow sales growth was blamed on both a tough trading environment and disruption caused by its store-refurbishment programme. The group refurbished 35 stores in the 26 weeks, including 19 Pick n Pay and Boxer supermarkets and six local stores. "This is almost triple the number of stores refurbished in the prior period. The group completed the refurbishment of its Boksburg Hypermarket during the year, and is encouraged by its subsequent strong turnover growth," said CEO Richard Brasher. After-tax profit growth of 18.4% to R381.8m outpaced revenue growth thanks to "further efficiency gains and cost savings across its procurement and supply chain channel". "Growth in like-for-like trading expenses was restricted to 3.8%, against CPI for the period of 6.1%, notwithstanding high regulatory increases in electricity, rates and other utilities," the results statement said. Pick n Pay Online turnover rose 33.7% year on year, with particularly strong growth in the Western Cape which benefits from a dedicated online warehouse, at the Brackenfell Hypermarket. Pick in Pay hopes to replicate this in Johannesburg by developing an online warehouse in Isando. Much of the groups expansion appears to be through smaller, franchised owned stores. It opened nine Pick n Pay local stores and 23 express stores during the reporting period. "Our first spaza-to-store pilot project in Soweto has been well received in the community and is trading successfully. The group is developing four more sites in Gauteng, all of which will open by the end of the year," Brasher said. The group opened seven new supermarkets outside SA during the period: three in Namibia, three in Zambia and one in Zimbabwe. "The weaker performance of the rest of Africa division reflects the difficult trading environment in Zambia. However, the group remains confident of the long-term prospects of the region and it plans to open three new stores in Zambia in the remainder of the year," Brasher said. In a first of its kind, Brics countries have come together to invest in a gold mining project in Siberia. The representatives from the five nations signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the sidelines of the Brics summit in India. Sun Gold Limited, China National Gold Group Corporation, the Russian Sovereign Investment Fund, Far East and Baikal Region Development Fund (FEDF), Trans Africa Capital and a private investor from Brazil plan to develop the Kluchevskoyegold deposit located in the Chita region of Russia in Eastern Siberia. Source: Brics India 2016 Significant operation According to the feasibility study completed by Changchun Gold Design Institute, the proposed joint venture aims to develop a significant open pit mine and heap leach operation with an expected production rate of 12m tonnes of ore per year and gold dore production of over 6,5 tonnes per annum. The pre-production investment is expected to be $400-500m. Subject to all applicable Russian law requirements having been met, China National Gold will be the largest shareholder with majority equity interest in the joint venture company. It will provide management and development expertise, and will have responsibility for raising long-term favourable debt financing for the project. Combined expertise Sun Group has considerable long-term expertise working in Russia, while the FEDF will be an important shareholder in the joint venture company, acting within its mandate, to help support the projects growth, with a particular focus on gold and copper mining opportunities in the Russian Far East. Using the joint venture parties combined expertise, the project will be developed in accordance with best international practices in engineering, environmental, governance and community standards. It will utilise innovative technologies, and create substantial local employment and skill transfer. The project will provide material benefit to the local and national economies over its lifetime in terms of industrial development, development of the supply chain, employment and payment of taxes and royalties. Roadmap to collaboration This historic first mining project involving participants from all five Brics countries can act as a roadmap for future cooperation within the alliance, drawing on the strengths of all members to execute challenging and mutually beneficial projects in each others countries and around the world. Subject to the approval of the regulatory authorities in the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation (and other approvals as may be required), the parties intend to work together and implement the proposed joint venture at the earliest opportunity. I am honoured to be part of this first-ever, major industrial initiative bringing together our Brics countries in a new partnership that will create economic benefits for the people of all five member states. This is an important step in the evolution of Brics, and a concrete example of what our countries can achieve by pooling our resources and working together. We are proud to have the support of our respective governments, and have all committed ourselves to the success of this huge project. As the South African partner, I salute my fellow participants, and wish to congratulate our Governments for making this achievement possible, says Ivor Ichikowitz, chairman of Trans Africa Capital. SEED, with the support of the Government of Flanders, is inviting local companies with the potential to realise eco-inclusive business innovation in South Africa to apply for a place in the SEED Go Sustainable Programme. Eco-inclusive innovation enables conventional enterprises to integrate low-income groups into their value chain and to create a positive impact on the environment. The SEED Go Sustainable Programme will show 10 selected enterprises precisely where and how to integrate eco-inclusive solutions into the value chain. The three phases of the SEED Go Sustainable Programme During the six month programme, successful applicants will develop and refine their business innovations under guidance of experts: Design - Kick-off Workshop: 28-30 November 2016 Get inspired by successful eco-inclusive business models and advance your business innovations. This workshop will set the stage for the upcoming six months of the process. Deliver - One-on-one support Test innovation actions in the next phase. Use insights facilitated by one-on-one meetings with local advisors to refine your business case. Demonstrate - Going public Workshop: May-June 2017 Its time to go out and leverage the benefits of business innovations in terms of expansion and growth. Companies are given guidance through the process, but success depends on the ambition of the company! First milestone The three-day Leaders Kick-off Workshop, which takes place from 28 - 30 November 2016 in Pretoria, will set the ground for the upcoming innovation process. The workshop will be geared by a participant-led and hands-on methodology. Enterprises will work on their own company cases guided by new conceptual approaches, and business tools learning from real-life case studies. The workshop will provide selected companies with ample opportunities: INSPIRE Get inspired by others experiences of successful eco-inclusive business models. Get inspired by others experiences of successful eco-inclusive business models. ACT Advance your own eco-inclusive business model in participatory working sessions. Advance your own eco-inclusive business model in participatory working sessions. INNOVATE Generate eco-inclusive solutions through state-of-the art business tools. Generate eco-inclusive solutions through state-of-the art business tools. NETWORK Connect and build networks with a group of like-minded peers and fellow leaders. Who is eligible? The programme is for teams and individuals who lead small- and medium-sized enterprises in Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal, Free State, and Gauteng. It guides change makers in influential economic positions at the interface of politics, business and civil society. Applicants should be able to demonstrate that they have: Extensive experience in their industry Basic experience or a strong interest in developing their business further with eco-inclusive new products and services Staff resources to commit certain hours per month to the development of eco-inclusive new products and services Basic experience or a strong interest in expanding to new eco-inclusive markets How to apply? Please submit the completed two-page concept note, via email to onu.dees@elbaniatsus-og. Submissions are accepted until 2 November 2016. Access the concept note at: www.seed.uno/support/go-sustainable.html. Successful applicants will be notified by 14 November 2016. For more information, contact onu.dees@elbaniatsus-og or call +49 308 9000 6899. Is it better to work with one estate agent or work with many? Many homeowners feel that if they sign a sole mandate with an agent they are reducing their chances of finding a buyer in the most optimum time frame and for the highest price. However, while homeowners may think they are limiting their chances by signing a sole mandate, the truth is that it will be far more beneficial to them than they think. Signing a mandate means that the homeowner is giving the real estate agent an exclusive contract to market and sell a specific property. It is then up to that agent to find the right buyer for the home, ideally achieving the highest possible price within the shortest time frame. The agreement also allows the agent the right to deal with all of the legalities that are involved in the property sales transaction. Open mandate or a sole mandate Sellers have two options when it comes to mandate agreements an open mandate or a sole mandate. If a seller opts for the open mandate route, they are taking the exclusivity out of the deal. This means that multiple agents, often from a variety of agencies, will be working to secure the sale. As with most options in life, an open mandate has its pros and cons. While there are several agents tapping into their network to find the right buyer for the home, it can bring about complications and there is always the chance of a possible double commission claim. An open mandate allows for a wider net to be cast, however in doing so also opens up the potential for confusion as to which agent was the effective cause of the successful sale. One agent may have signed a sales agreement with a buyer, but it could have been the result of another agents advertising and marketing. Unlike a sole mandate, which is a written agreement, an open mandate can simply be a verbal agreement between the parties. If there is no written agreement in place, certain aspects could be misinterpreted, which could cause conflict. A clear, written contract protects both the seller and agent, reducing the risk of any misunderstandings. A written contract will also ensure that the agent puts maximum effort into fulfilling the goals that have been set. If an agent is working on an open mandate, they may be less inclined to spend as much time and money marketing the property, which will reduce the homes chances of selling. Legally binding document Conversely, a sole mandate is a legally binding document that must be reduced to writing. Within the agreement, an agent is given the exclusive right to sell the property for a period of time. During the allotted time frame, the seller may not appoint another agent to market the property. In the event that the seller is not satisfied with the service they receive from the selected agent they can appoint another agent once the sole mandate period has elapsed. If a homeowner has signed a sole mandate, they will still be entitled to market and sell the property themselves, but only if it has been confirmed in writing with the estate agency that has been awarded the mandate. In an instance where the homeowner does sell their property, they may still be required to pay a fee to the sole mandated agent. Homeowners can opt to give an agent an exclusive sole mandate, which is the same as a sole mandate but slightly more restrictive in that the homeowner is not allowed to sell the property themselves. An optional term of an exclusive sole mandate is that the seller may authorise the agent to accept or reject an offer on their behalf. The reason for a sole mandate is to ensure that the transaction is handled in the most efficient way possible and all parties are protected. It is highly beneficial for sellers to have a sole mandate in place, which is why most financial institutions and estate agencies recommend that sellers have one in place. Having a sole mandate will ensure more effective marketing of the property and an orderly conclusion to the sale. Safety perspective From a logistical standpoint, a sole mandate makes more sense because the seller only has to liaise and deal with one agent, not several. This simplifies the process with far less time spent coordinating the sellers schedule with the various agents. It is also better from a safety perspective, as only one agent will have access to the property. Before sellers sign any mandate, they must know that they are working with the right agent for their needs. It is imperative that sellers select a qualified agent with a valid Fidelity Fund Certificate (FFC). The agent should also provide the seller with a marketing plan for the property. If at any stage during the process the agent is not following the marketing plan they have provided, the seller will have the right to cancel the mandate. At all times the agent should work according to what is in the seller's best interest, giving sound professional advice and assisting them to make the right decisions - especially when multiple offers have been presented. While sellers might be inclined to think that signing a sole mandate is restricting their options, it is actually an opportunity to simplify the property sales process by working with one reputable, experienced estate agent. It will ensure that an entire team within a real estate network is cooperating to sell the property within a reasonable time frame at the best possible price. Veeam Software, provider of availability solutions for the always-on enterprise, hosted its VeeamON Tour conference in Fourways, Johannesburg on 13 October that provided over 360 delegates with insights on the latest research to help them make the most of their IT investments in server virtualisation and storage in the cloud. Claude Schuck, regional manager for Africa at Veeam. This annual event focuses on addressing the challenges of availability in the modern enterprise. This year was no different. With insights from several top global Veeam executives, delegates had the opportunity to engage and share experiences around the impact that the shift towards the always on enterprise has had on their business, says Claude Schuck, regional manager for Africa at Veeam. Veeams Doug Hazelman, vice president of product strategy and chief evangelist; and Gregg Petersen, regional director for the Middle East, Africa, and the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation, led discussions around availability and the impact it is having on business continuity and disaster recovery. Game-changing tech Respected South African independent trends analyst, Dion Chang, provided the keynote speech in which he discussed the ripple effect that game-changing technologies have on business and how companies manage the disruption and alter business models to ensure that they do not become obsolete. Every company in the world has become a software-driven organisation. They rely on data and applications for all aspects of their business with uptime being essential to the livelihood of the enterprise. This means that availability has become a global challenge. According to the 2016 Veeam Availability Report, the average hourly cost of downtime worldwide is $80,000, said Petersen. This, he added, has resulted in more business-critical applications moving into a virtualised environment. By doing so, organisations are showing their intent of moving away from a legacy world into a more dynamic, always on environment. A shift in thinking Hazelman echoed the point by stating that the shift in always-on adoption has seen Veeam releasing more new products in 2016 than at any other time in its history. These products are built around ensuring that organisations across industry sectors and sizes are able to address specific challenges around reducing the availability gap and catering for data access around the clock irrespective of device used. For Hazelman, the Veeam vision of providing solutions designed for availability and disaster recovery for the always-on enterprise illustrates the importance of a new way of thinking in business today. This is an exciting time for enterprises but one in which they need to keep continued business operations and the availability of data in mind. Without having 24.7.365 access to mission-critical data, the relevance of the organisation is bought into question, he concluded. The Port of Durban demonstrates a solid business case in introducing digital initiatives with some operations being conducted through wireless technology. The new era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution which involves developments in genetics, artificial intelligence, robotics and 3D printing, among other things, has informed the future introduction of the Smart People's Port. South Africas busiest commercial port is leading the pack in embracing this new industrial revolution by recently completing a three month proof of concept, providing a glimpse into a new era in port surveillance, monitoring, and communication using wireless connectivity and technology. The Smart Peoples Port concept is aligned to the companys Market Demand Strategy, which will not only see all commercial ports in South Africa increasing capacity ahead of demand but also increasing customer satisfaction by running seamless port operations. Speaking at the African Ports Evolution 2016 Conference, Ristha Joga, information, management and services manager at Transnet National Ports Authoritys Port of Durban said: A Smart Peoples Port will result in an efficient data-rich and information-rich eco-system connecting port assets, port employees, terminal operators and the port community including road and rail. Port technology It will also help the ports to achieve a more focused customer centric technology that will reduce the latency of information sharing and result in a more informed decision-making process. Aerial and underwater drones, as well as track and trace technology used to track port assets such as tugs and dredgers, have been piloted successfully at the port. The proof of concept exercise showed that drones can be used in a number of ways including inspecting infrastructure and the condition of the seabed, which can be done safely without interrupting port operations. The drone technology can also assist in collecting information on port traffic. Sensor technology provided port and terminal performance management data, including capacity utilisation, berth occupancy, port limit access and civilian count during surveillance and security management. The port has also introduced a mobile application (app) designed to streamline complaints and issues reported while ensuring improved accountability, transparency, and communication with port stakeholders, users, the government and community. Smart meters converted analog information to digital data for electricity and water metering. 3D printing was explored to make port and precinct modeling easier for port planning and development projects. Im writing in support of Denise Juneau for Congress. Denise grew up in rural Montana and her familys roots date back to before it was a state. Denise is a Montanan, through and through. I work as a caregiver and case manager in Billings. I know Juneau supports families like mine and those of my clients. Her work in Montana in education proves her commitment to bettering life for all Montanans. In Congress, Juneau will fight with and for us to make sure all of have access to the kinds of good jobs families need to have good lives. As a woman, recent coverage of the way women are treated and portrayed by Donald Trump has been alarming to me. I have also watched the recent response or lack or response from Juneaus opponent to renounce such misogyny. Congressman Zinke has said nothing, and for me, no words speak volumes. Join me in voting for Denise Juneau on Nov. 8. Deanne Wigen Billings Just like the adrenalin and anticipation you feel before going on a rollercoaster, so were the TEDxCapeTown speakers waiting to present their talks to an excited audience on 15 October at Ratanga Junction. The theme this year was Hear/Here to Listen, and one by one the speakers gave their interpretation of the theme and how it ties into their lives. The theme is an interesting concept of how important it is in this day and age of technology and communication, to stop and listen whether its to people, music or even nature. Gabriella Geffen started proceedings by really getting into the audiences minds and making them think about hearing people. She says it interests her that we so often say what we dont mean, and what the consequences are in our own relationships and the world around us. She spoke about Machiavellian Intelligence which posits that we become more intelligent by learning how to manipulate others. But with our changing environment Geffen asks: Can we still say that the ability to manipulate is a measure of intelligence today? With this mind, Anne Thistleton, spoke about social experiments used in the US where a famous violinist played in a subway. No one really paid any attention to him, and yet he was world-renowned playing on a 300-year-old violin. The point Thistleton makes is that we dont hear with our ears, we listen we hear with all of our senses which are constantly collecting information. She mentioned marketing and communication and that its all about having your idea really remembered, after all, memory is the most important factor in brand communication and advertising. Listen to nature We then had two talks revolving around nature. 14-year-old Tom Foster took to the stage to talk about his passion: sharks. But not just Great Whites, all sharks - big and small. As we know, sharks play a pivotal role in todays oceans, they are apex predators and at the top of their ecosystem, but, as Foster asks, What if the thing you fear is the thing that could save the planet? A profound question especially when we get 60% of the worlds oxygen from the oceans. Foster says that as the custodians of this planet, we have the duty to protect it. Strong words from a young man with a bright future! Staying with the environment, Wilmot Arendse spoke to the audience about littering. Its a massive problem in Cape Town and the world today, and Arendse is working hard to educate communities to pick up and throw away litter. Change is possible if every person picks up a littler litter every day. Wilmot Arendse is an award-winning sustainable community developer & project facilitator of the No Messing in Bonteheuwel project #TEDxCT pic.twitter.com/aEgPliBrtC Accenture SA (@AccentureSA) October 15, 2016 Listen to language Hanelle Fourie spoke to the audience about language, but not just any language she focused on sign language. She states that the challenges faced in the deaf community are linguistic and not everyone communicates in the same language around the world. She found that the dictionaries of today for the deaf community were out of date and didnt teach properly. So what did she do? She created a new dictionary, of course one that simplified the teaching and is helping kids in South Africa learn in a fun way. Phenomenal #TEDxCT presentation by Hanelle on creation of a children's dictionary for the deaf; a linguistic minority... #IdeasWorthSharing pic.twitter.com/31Xck7JyDU Andrea Morgan (@AndreaMorganZA) October 15, 2016 Christopher Venter wowed the audience with his strength and humour. He lost his sight a few years ago after contracting a rare illness in Africa during a motorcycle drive from Cape Town to Dublin. He says that he tells people he went blind, because he got bored of the sighted world and needed a new challenge. Venter surprised the audience by saying there are 40 million completely blind people in the world, and less than 1% of them are employed. The challenges faced by the community are real and difficult, but Venter says they can be overcome. Even though he is blind he still writes, does all his own social media and publishes blogs through an app called Screen Reader it allows the blind to still use technology effectively today. Accessible technology has given Venter and the blind community a new lease on life, one where they are not isolated but part of the digital world. This is why he is challenging developers, app builders and the retail business to create websites that are suitable and easy to navigate for the visually impaired. Wow I'm inspired by Christopher! A man who didn't feel sorry for himself but pursued his dreams and lives a full life! #BlindManCan #TEDxCT pic.twitter.com/kNJvYGdrop Nomsa Radebe (@NomsaRadebe) October 15, 2016 The rest of the day was filled with inspiring talks, from learning about diverse relationships between black and white, getting a lesson on finance and learning about the education system in South Africa. All in all it was a day of Ideas Worth Spreading. How far will using Apartheid reasoning to solve problems of today get us?Find your diversity partner,make yourself vulnerable,grow #TEDxCT pic.twitter.com/vi8iA7rULX Adriana Marais (@adrianamarais) October 15, 2016 A complex beautiful continent that needs real understanding and appreciation #TEDxCT https://t.co/BeWJ7BgmqC Alethea Hagemann (@AletheaHagemann) October 15, 2016 #eLearning: cheaper, always available & provides access to the very best regardless. Move from 1st - 4th revolution. - @PennyTainton #TEDxCT pic.twitter.com/qOuZdjA8yL Andrea Morgan (@AndreaMorganZA) October 15, 2016 Music and mathematics. Who knew the 2 could work together? Thanks Tatenda Mhunduru for teaching us something new #TEDxCT #HereToListen pic.twitter.com/lOmKd7wikd Jamey Du Plessis (@Miss_Jay_D) October 15, 2016 TEDxCapeTown 2016: Tech-enabled to go green and enhance audience experience For the first time since 2011, TEDxCapeTown is committed to a more tech-enabled team and delivery of the event. Audience members can expect to experience a web-enabled application, implemented by Accenture South Africa, allowing them to view the programme of the day, listed speakers and their bios and directly engage via the TEDxCapeTown social channels in-app. For the second consecutive year, Accenture South Africa has decided to partner with the largest TEDx event on the African continent, to demonstrate and share contributions to innovation. Accenture strongly identifies with the ethos of TEDx which exists to discuss ideas worth spreading. Accenture and TEDx believe passionately in the power of innovation to change attitudes, perceptions and behaviours. In South Africa, Accenture remains committed to playing a strategic role in supporting our clients and helping to drive sustainable economic growth, says Suren Govender, managing director of Accenture Analytics, part of Accenture Digital. Our focus at TEDx this year really is to listen to the ideas local TEDx folks have and assist by translating these ideas from strategy to outcome into meaningful and actionable results that could contribute to job creation and growing the economy. Corona SunSets Oval and The Bungalow Venue will host the Corona SunSets Festival On 16 December. The festival brings to life the transformative moment of sunset through music and culture. This years celebrations focus on the mood shift moment at sunset, ignited by melodic and deep house music. Corona SunSets is the everyday manifestation of This is Living the brands new global marketing campaign that reminds people to go outside, enjoy life and live more moments that matter. International and local ineup The lineup for the Cape Town show features internationally loved deep house DJ and producer, known worldwide for his single Need U (100%), UK-born Duke Dumont. The second international gracing the decks is Sam Feldt, the Dutch phenomenon who, while only in his early twenties, has become quite the deep house tastemaker of his day. The third international on the SunSets stage is Swiss-based, SA-born DJ, producer and musical maverick Nora En Pure. Nora is someone who connects dots between different and disparate sounds, styles and scenes with ease and adds levels of melodies and sound to her sets. The local artists who will feature at the festival include Timo ODV, Kyle Watson, Strange Loving, Chunda Munki & Vimo, Crazy White Boy, Good Luck, Tresor, Sketchy Bongo, Aewon Wolf, Kyle Deutsch, Shekinah, Cara Frew and dj low. Additional activities Along with the musical lineup, there will be eclectic musical performances, sunset rituals and shows, beach games, local merchants selling handmade items, and golden sunset tattoo and body painting stations. Thiago Zanettini, global vice president, Corona, says, Corona is excited to celebrate SunSets for a third year, and to bring people an experience where they can reconnect with their best self, outside. Sunsets mark the transition from the busyness of everyday life to a state of renewal, and its a moment where well unite people worldwide in that transformation. Ticket details Ticket prices (all excluding booking fee): Sunrise (Early Bird) tickets: R250 Sunshine (Phase One) tickets: R350 Sunset (Phase Two) tickets: R450 Eclipse (Phase Three) tickets: R550 Note: once each of the ticket phases sell out, ticket prices will automatically move into the next phase. Tickets are exclusively available at www.coronaextra.co.za For more information on the Corona SunSets experiences, visit www.CoronaSunSets.com South African motor franchise dealers continue to exhibit tenacity as they keep their businesses profitable even in these tough economic times, which have seen the dealer segment overall new vehicle market fall by more than 10% in the first half of the year. Warren Olsen, CEO of Sewells MSXI sub-Saharan Africa. However, the monthly analysis of a large percentage of local dealers by Sewells MSXI has revealed that their benchmark dealers (the top 30% of the dealers) are maintaining their gross profits (up 0.69%) in the first half of 2016, compared to 2015. Slightly improved margins on new and used vehicle sales are the main contributors. The median (top 50% of the dealers) are in a similar position with year-to-date gross profit for the first six months of the year up very slightly by 0.83%. Overall profit before tax (PBT) is up for both the benchmark and median groupings, with new and used vehicle sales the main contributors. There is also positive growth in the important overall return on operational assets (ROOA), with the benchmark dealers showing an increase of 12% and the median grouping up by 6%. We are very happy with the way in which the dealers we assist with managing the financial side of their businesses are faring in these tough economic times, said Warren Olsen, the CEO of Sewells MSXI sub-Saharan Africa. These results show how well these dealers are managing the combination of new and used vehicle sales, parts and service sales as well as income from finance and insurance to keep their businesses on a solid footing. Heavy vehicle success The analysis of data by Sewells MSXI, the local subsidiary of the global consulting and outsourcing firm that concentrates on the retail motor industry, also brings out some interesting facts about the way new vehicle sales have fared in the various sectors of the local market from 2013 to the first half of 2016. For instance, the segment which has shown the largest growth of 36% is large buses, with heavy trucks (up by 7%) the only other sector which has shown volume growth in this period. All the other sectors cars, LCVs, medium commercials and extra-heavy trucks show declines in sales volume, with the overall market down 10%. TOKYO: Honda said on Tuesday it will build a new factory in China, as the Japanese automaker expands its reach into the world's biggest vehicle market. Bjoern Wylezich via 123RF The firm, which already has several factories in China, would build its new plant in the city of Wuhan, a Tokyo-based company spokeswoman said, without supplying further details. The factory will start operating in 2019, the leading Nikkei business daily said. The plant will be able to produce 120,000 vehicles a year in the beginning, eventually doubling to 240,000 units, according to the report. That would be roughly a 20% boost from Honda's current China factory capacity of 1.08 million units, excluding facilities solely for exports, the Nikkei story said. Honda has three plants in southern Guangzhou and two in Wuhan, in addition to a factory dedicated to exports mainly to the Middle East, Russia and Africa. Last year, Honda said it would delay building a planned $822 million plant in Wuhan owing to an industry wide slowdown. But it revived the plan as sales began to recover late last year following the introduction of a tax cut on purchases of smaller vehicles, a key business for Honda, reports said. Source: AFP If not carefully managed, hydro-electric schemes along Angola's Kwanza River could have severe environmental impacts. The infrastructural boon aims to double the country's power generation capacity within the next five years. While hydropower is a popular renewable resource globally, it is not without its environmental and social impacts, according to Chris Dalgliesh, partner and principal environmental consultant at SRK Consulting in South Africa. Not least among these are the consequences of water inundating large areas to create the dams to feed the hydro-electric turbines. The might of the Kwanza River will help double Angolas electricity output within the next few years. SRK has been contracted by financial institutions to conduct the environmental and social due diligence for three of the dams, to ensure compliance with Good International Industry Practice (GIIP). The plans for Angolas hydro projects are ambitious and far-reaching for the countrys development, requiring substantial investment of some $10bn for the first tranche of projects. Finance for these projects has to be raised and the lenders are Equator Principles Financial Institutions (EPFIs), said Sharon Jones, associate partner and principal environmental scientist at SRK. To protect themselves against environmental and social risks, the lenders are committed to ensuring that the Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (ESIAs) and project implementation are compliant with GIIP typically a proxy for the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards and the Equator Principles. Up to seven hydro schemes The Kwanza River drops some 1,000m over about 200km of its middle course as it nears the coastline and discharges into the sea south of the capital Luanda. It has been estimated that this head of water could be harnessed to generate 7,000 to 8,000MW of energy from up to seven hydropower schemes along this reach of the river. The three proposed dams on which SRK is conducting Environmental and Social Due Diligence (ESDD) reviews are in an advanced stage of planning or execution, and could generate 5,000MW of electricity by 2021, said Jones. In addition to assessing the projects ESIAs, SRK is also conducting annual compliance reviews through construction and into operation to ensure that both these phases are compliant with best practice. In the case of the three projects that we are working on, the area to be flooded is about 230km2, she said. This will impact on terrestrial biodiversity and on a magnificent river environment that includes numerous sets of rapids over the affected areas. The cumulative impact of the projects may also be substantial, as the seven schemes are being considered in relatively close proximity to each other. Jones noted that the social impact of this kind of project often involved resettlement of people from their land or their villages. A dam on the Kwanza River harnesses the power of renewable energy, but still has important environmental and social impacts. Fortunately the area is not highly populated so very little resettlement will be required, she said. Nonetheless, the process needs to be transparent, systematic and equitable so that those who are moved or displaced from their land are not disadvantaged. Resettlement Action Plans (RAP) have been developed which SRK has reviewed, with the focus now shifting to monitoring implementation of the RAPs. Flow impacts The dams will alter flow regimes in the river, which in turn affect the levels of sedimentation; the sediment is usually deposited onto surrounding land in the floodplain during the annual flooding of the river, and this will now be less likely to occur. Other concerns are that dams are physical barriers that tend to restrict the migration of fish species, and flooding of rapids will destroy those particular habitats which might be particular to certain species. To help balance Angolas electricity demands with environmental protection, there are innovations that can be considered, said Dalgliesh. For instance, most habitats and species are unable to tolerate the daily changes in water levels and flow from a hydropower facility operating in peak mode releasing extra water at certain times each day to satisfy peak demand. A dam operated as a base-load facility, on the other hand, would release a more constant volume of water with fewer fluctuations, reducing impacts. Where a number of dams are in operation on the same river, as is the case on the Kwanza, there is the opportunity to operate at least some of them in base-load mode, and to limit the peak flow operation to as few dams as possible. Baselines Jones said the relatively short history of baseline environmental assessment in Angola meant that many areas were not well documented in terms of natural species and their prevalence. Rapids near a powerhouse exit will be affected by fluctuations in river flow levels. When studies are carried out for ESIAs, therefore, it is not uncommon that species new to science may be encountered, she said. It can be difficult to establish whether or not the species are common or rare, as little may be known about their occurrence in other parts of the country. Labour conditions Terms of employment for workers are also vital elements to consider, said Dalgliesh. These projects employ substantial numbers of employees, and standards must be applied regarding a range of issues including: health and safety; the rights of workers to organise; the accommodation they are entitled to; and the terms of their mobilisation and demobilisation, he said. These processes must, for example, be compliant with Angolan labour law and, in some cases, the standards of the International Labour Organisation. The third place winner in last year's 48 Hour Film Project, The Brave Cartel's fantasy drama, Renascence, has been released online. This is a worldwide competition that encourages filmmakers to write, film, edit and complete a short film over a weekend. It takes place in 130 cities, including Cape Town. Filmmakers are given a line of dialogue/writing, a character and a prop and then pick a genre out of a hat. With these elements and their crew and cast, the teams need to deliver a completed film 48 hours later. Renascence also won awards for Best Actress (for Bianca Simone Mannie) and Best Production Design (for Simon Mcloughlin). It was nominated for 10 other awards: Best Cinematography (Frances Kroon) Best Sound Design and Score (Morne Marais) Best Editing (Carol Groenewald) Best Costume (Catharina van Wyk) Best Make-Up (Lyndal Fitzgerald) Best Director (Yolande Botha) Best Producer (Yolande Botha/Rifka Carr) Best VFX (Matthew Desmond-Smith) Best Use of Line Since then, it has only been available via a password-protected link so that it could be sent to international festivals. Although it will continue to be sent to local short film festivals, it is now available online. It follows the strange journey of a young woman who receives an anonymous invitation. What first seems like an ordinary elevator becomes a portal to people and experiences from her past and even a brush with divinity. Bianca Simone Mannie gives a powerful, authentic performance and is supported by veteran actor Andre Jacobs and Gary Green. Shot on a Red Epic, DOP Frances Kroon is responsible for the dramatic look of the film. Renascence was penned and directed by Yolande Botha, who recently also launched the 20-minute dark comedy, Lina and Leo. Founded in early 2015, The Brave Cartel collaborates with various production partners, brands and ad agencies to conceptualise and produce film and branded content. Watch Renascence here. One of the arguments against Initiative 181 is that the Legislature alone should set the priorities of spending state funds. The voters of Montana, and not the Legislature through the initiative process, set up the Coal Trust Fund and the Treasure State Endowment Fund. Those funds have contributed hundreds of millions of dollars of state tax dollars in projects for infrastructure, water and sewer projects, and funding for agricultural, state parks and cultural events. We did not wait for the federal government or the Legislature. The National Institute of Health spends little more than 4 percent on Alzheimers research. The cost for Alzheimer's alone under current estimates runs some $214 billion per year. Care of the victims will cost Medicare and Medicaid over $150 billion; the remaining costs will fall largely on patients and their families. But the greatest cost is not financial, but personal. These ailments steal our memories, our independence, and finally, steal our dignity by eroding the ability to manage the basic tasks of daily life. Twenty million dollars a year for 10 years is a lot. But this initiative spends less than one cent of every state dollar now funding state government. We Montanans should do something now instead of waiting for someone else to solve our problems. We already did so with our trust funds. The Legislature is quite capable of placing more oversight and can eliminate this program at any time it does not produce results. I have no problem with the legislature doing so and welcome the oversight. John Cobb Augusta Editor's note: John Cobb is a former state senator who now serves on the Montana Transportation Commission. MANDAN, N.D. Actress Shailene Woodley has pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanors for her role in an Oct. 10 protest at a Dakota Access Pipeline construction site in south central North Dakota. Woodley was scheduled for an initial appearance Oct. 24 in Morton County District Court on Class B misdemeanor charges of engaging in a riot and criminal trespass. But her attorney, Alexander Reichert, pleaded not guilty on her behalf Tuesday, and her Oct. 24 personal appearance has been waived, court records show. Woodley live-streamed Facebook video of the protest along Highway 6 near St. Anthony and was arrested just after noon. She was released after posting $500 bond a few hours later. Twenty-seven protesters were arrested that day, the most in one day since protests of the four-state, $3.8 billion pipeline began in North Dakota in mid-August. Authorities have made 145 arrests so far. Each misdemeanor is punishable by 30 days in jail and a $1,500 fine. Half (55%) of the 450 UK marketers surveyed for Adobes annual Digital Roadblock study said they feel unable to keep up with the pace of digital transformation, up from 48% who said the same last year. More marketers suffer tech-induced anxiety than their European counterparts where an average 44% worry about technology skills and the pace of innovation. While most marketers in the UK (83%) see digital transformation as an opportunity, nearly two thirds (65%) said the pace of digital transformation within the marketing industry has been dramatic. This had led to the feeling that they are passive agents, rather than active, and that consumers and technology are in control. Furthermore, only a little over half (54%) of marketers feel they have the skills to consistently keep introducing new marketing technologies into marketing strategies. Its clear from what marketers are telling us is that they are really feeling squeezed, John Watton, Marketing Director EMEA commented. On the one hand they are expected to contribute more to the business and on the other, they have customers expecting instant responses and incredible experiences each and every time they interact with a brand. Furthermore, they are having to grapple with many new techniques for reaching customers and having to step out of their marketing heartland into sales and customer services. Given all of this, it is essential to stay focused on whats ultimately the most important thing providing your customers with the best possible experience you can. The state commissioner of political practices dismissed a campaign complaint against the I-182 medical marijuana ballot committee, saying the campaign was properly set up and legally funded. The decision cleared Montana Citizens for I-182 of the allegations made in late September by Safe Montana, the group opposing its ballot initiative. Safe Montana founder Steve Zabawa claimed the group used dark money practices to fund its campaign. The commissioner, Jonathan Motl, issued his decision Tuesday for just one entity named in Safe Montana's complaint. He did not rule on allegations made against the Montana Cannabis Industry Association, the trade association that set up an incidental committee. The incidental committee was formed by the trade association to support the I-182 campaign, and it spent $227,500 toward it. Motl ruled that Montana Citizens for I-182 reported its donations correctly, the bulk of which came from the industry association. The funds were reported by the I-182 campaign as in-kind donations from the industry association. Motl also dismissed other allegations that the I-182 campaign had filed late reports and that it had made vague expenditure descriptions. He wrote that the dark money allegations lacked basis in relation to Montana Citizens for I-182 and that the complaints were "made indiscriminately, without regard to the disclosure requirements of Montana's campaign finance laws." However, much of Safe Montana's dark money allegations focused on the Montana Cannabis Industry Association, the incidental committee, rather than the I-182 ballot committee. I've still got the incidental committee decision to make, and his complaint is more appropriately directed at the incidental committee, Motl said. An incidental committee is set up by a business or organization to support a ballot committee. Law requires that the incidental committee must have other business or operational interests than political campaigns. Still, Zabawa said Tuesday that he disagreed with Motl's findings. "Jonathan Motl's got the biggest broom in the state," he said, "because he just sweeps the dark money under the carpet." Zabawa has called on the Montana Cannabis Industry Association to release all of its contributors and said that the failure to do so was a "dark money" scheme. The trade association has been financially supported by medical marijuana providers. It sued in 2011 following the passage of a more strict medical marijuana law by the state Legislature. Motl said that he will issue a second ruling on the same complaint after further investigation. He has yet to rule on a separate complaint filed by Safe Montana against the I-182 campaign and two medical marijuana providers. HELENA A former Montana State Prison guard who pleaded guilty to smuggling marijuana and tobacco to inmates has been sentenced to 20 months in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Sam Haddon sentenced 25-year-old Martin Reap of Deer Lodge on Tuesday. His prison sentence will be followed by five years of supervised release. Reap acknowledged receiving about $6,400 for smuggling contraband into the prison 20 times over the course of about a year, beginning in February 2015. Reap's plea agreement called for dismissing charges of drug conspiracy, possession and distribution. FBI agents began investigating allegations of contraband being smuggled into the prison in 2015. The investigation led to a separate indictment charging five people with smuggling methamphetamine and another drug to inmates through a prison laundry worker. All five have pleaded guilty and await sentencing. Leading Czech politicians have issued a sycophantic pro-China statement 19. 10. 2016 cas cteni 2 minuty "As the highest constitutional representatives of the Czech Republic we wish to emphasise that our country fully respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Chinese People's Republic, of which Tibet is a part. The personal activity of some Czech politicians are not due to a change in the official policy of the Czech Republic [towards China] and we would regard as unfortunate if they were seen as such by anyone." This is a statement which has been signed by the Czech President Milos Zeman, the Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka, the Chair of the Upper House of Czech Parliament Milan Stech and the Chair of the Lower House of Czech Parliament Jan Hamacek.The text was written by the Czech Foreign Ministry. The statement is a reaction to an unofficial visit of the Dalai Lama in the Czech Republic. The Dalai Lama is attending the "Forum 2000" conference in Prague and he was received by the Czech Culture Minister Daniel Herman. The Czech President Milos Zeman is trying to develop close economic links with China. During a recent visit to Peking, Zeman pointed out that he "has not come to lecture China about human rights". The above mentioned Czech Social Democratic politicians have evidently published their sycophantic pro-Chinese statement in order to protect Chinese investments in the Czech Republic. According to President Zeman, China will invest about 3,8 billion dollars in the Czech Republic this year. By meeting with the Dalai Lama, Daniel Herman, the Czech Culture Minister, has sinned against the foreign policy of the Czech government and has damaged the image of the Czech Republic in China," said President Zeman's official spokesperson Jiri Ovcacek on Czech Radio on Wednesday. He added: "If Mr. Herman wanted to meet the Dalai Lama, he should have abdicated from the Czech government." For some people in the Czech Republic, the Dalai Lama has become a symbol of the late Czech President Vaclav Havel and his values, which are now being highly idealised by these Havel supporters. The sycophantic pro-Chinese letter, issued by the leading Czech social democratic politicians has produced howls of protest from them. In protest against the statement, 50 members of Czech Parliament from right of centre political parties have met with the Dalai Lama on Wednesday morning. The letter may mean that the Czech Social Democratic Party, which suffered a defeat in the regional and Senate elections earlier this month, may be trying to align itself with the pro-Chinese and pro-Russian President Milos Zeman in order to improve its political standing. However, those politicians who openly expressed pro-Zeman and anti-refugee attitudes in the election campaign, have actually failed to win their seats. 0 MISSOULA Two separate alleged sexual assaults involving University of Montana students on campus are under investigation. Law enforcement officials are apparently aware of the identities of the suspects in both cases, but they have not been identified and no arrests have been made as of Wednesday afternoon. The first, for which UM issued a text and email alert late Tuesday night, apparently was reported by a third party to campus police. The person reported that a non-stranger sexual assault allegedly occurred in an unidentified UM residence hall. UM police and the Missoula Police Department are working together on the investigation, and UM spokesperson Paula Short said no additional information is available at this time. Based on the circumstances of this incident, as well as information which became available to the university later in the evening yesterday, the decision was made to issue a UM Alert, which was sent at approximately 9:50 p.m., Short said. The university issues an alert if there is potential danger or a continuing threat to the campus community. The UM alert is intended to alert the campus community of a potential risk and to increase situational awareness around personal safety. Federal law requires campus officials to send out an alert if there are dangerous situations. The second case involved two UM students but was unrelated. Missoula Police spokesman Travis Welsh said that a woman came to the police department on Oct. 14 to report non-consensual sex with a male acquaintance on campus. The incident was reported to have occurred on Oct. 7. She was met by a detective, who took her report and has been assigned to the case. No arrests have been made in that case. Welsh said that the investigation is still ongoing, but police do not believe there is a threat to the public. Confirmed sponsors for the December forum include representatives from Arianespace, Eutelsat, Gilat, Intelsat, Newtec, SES and VT iDirect, while Advantech, APT, Asiasat, Amplus and Network Innovations are all among those already signed-up as exhibitors for the event which will be held in Yangon for the third consecutive year. The Platinum sponsor for the forum is KBZ Gateway, whose CEO, Stephane Lamoureux, will participate in the panel titled, What to expect from todays advanced VSAT networks. Co-located with the CommuniCast Myanmar Exhibition, the Forum takes place at Novotel Yangon Max on Wednesday, December 7 and presents an opportunity to meet and do business in one of Asias most exciting emerging markets. Satellite connectivity provides the networks of Myanmar with the opportunity to make key advances in social and economic development, and events like this are crucial to that growth, said Semir Hassanaly, Market Director, Cellular Backhaul and Trunking, at Newtec, who will speak on the Backhaul panel at the Forum. The Myanmar Satellite Forum continues to be a key event in our calendar and we look forward to attending again this year, with backhaul and broadband connectivity high on our show agenda. The Myanmar Satellite Forum anticipates a keynote address from the Ministry of Information and from the Ministry of Transport & Communications Information Technology and Cyber Security Department, as well as panel discussions on the countrys connectivity deployments and provisions for enterprise networks. The third Myanmar Satellite Forum provides a platform for government, industry and service providers to exchange ideas, develop relationships and build partnerships, said Show Director Rupert Owen. The fact that many of the sponsors are returning for another year speaks volumes about the value of the Forum. According to Naing Naing Kyaw, the leader of the demonstration, marchers came to the town of Moenyin last Thursday from as far afield as northern Sagaing Division to join Kachin-based Red Shans in calling for their own self-administered state. Throughout history, this area was ruled by the Shan, he said. Therefore, we want to govern our own territory. In Kachin, the KIA [Kachin Independence Army] controls the region; in upper Sagaing, the Naga and Kuki ethnic groups control large areas. But the Shan people have been oppressed, particularly in Kachin State. We are gradually dying out, Naing Naing Kyaw said. Thats why we staged this rally. The protest leader added that this was the second time that Red Shan people had taken to the streets demanding self-rule. A previous demonstration took place last month in Homakling Township in Sagaing Division. The Red Shan, also known as the Shan-ni in Burmese and Tai-leng in Shan language, was among a handful of ethnic groups that demanded their own self-administered region during the 21st Century Panglong Conference in Naypyidaw from August 31 to September 4. The other militias that stood up to demand an ethnic state for their nationality are: the United Wa State Army (UWSA), arguably Burmas strongest ethnic armed group; the Taang [Palaung] National Liberation Army (TNLA); and the Pa-Oh. Meanwhile, the National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA) based in Mong La demanded a self-administered zone for ethnic Akha people. Currently, Burma recognizes self-administered zones within Shan State for the Danu, Kokang, Pa-Oh and Palaung ethnic groups; the Wa group has its self-administered division and a self-administered zone for the Naga in Sagaing Division. In January, Shan Herald reported that the Red Shan had formed their own army to protect the minoritys interests and stand up for its claims of autonomy. With a population estimated at 300,000, the Red Shan people have sizeable communities in upper Sagaing Division and Kachin State, particularly in Moenyin (known as Mong Yang in Shan), Moegaung, Myitkyina, Puta-O and Bhamaw. By Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN) BISMARCK, N.D. The Standing Rock Sioux's tribal council has voted to make tribal land available for those protesting the Dakota Access oil pipeline, though an organizer from another tribe says many of the several hundred gathered will remain on federal land without a permit. The council voted 8-5 Tuesday to use the reservation land which is about two miles south of the large Oceti Sakowin, or Seven Council Fires, camp on U.S. Army Corps of Engineers property so permanent structures can be built to protect protesters from North Dakota's often brutal winter weather. "The cold is coming, and the snow is coming," tribal chairman Dave Archambault II said Wednesday. "It makes sense to be proactive and not reactive." But the offer is too late, said Cody Hall, a protest organizer who is part of the Cheyenne River Sioux tribe in South Dakota. "Some people might move, but I don't think the majority of them will," Hall said of the camp's population, which averages 500 to 700 people, though it sometimes swells to well over a thousand at times. "The (Standing Rock) tribe sat on its heels too long, and people started losing faith." Archambault countered that it took time to identify an appropriate spot for a new encampment on the 2.3 million-acre reservation that straddles North Dakota and South Dakota. The camp, which is the overflow from smaller private and permitted protest sites nearby, began growing in August and at one point was called the largest gathering of Native American tribes in a century. All were there to protest Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners' $3.8 billion pipeline tribal officials believe threatens sacred sites and the Missouri River, which is a source of water for millions. Protesters do not have a federal permit to be on the corps' land, but the federal agency had said it wouldn't evict them due to free speech reasons. Authorities have criticized that decision, saying the site has been a launching point for protests at construction sites in the area; about 140 people who have been charged in recent weeks with interfering with such work. In preparation for the winter, protesters have stockpiled mountains of firewood, winterized wall tents and set up traditional teepees and wigwams, Hall said, adding that his tribe will bear the costs of maintaining portable toilets, something the Standing Rock tribe has done in the past. Corps spokeswoman Eileen Williamson said the agency supports the Standing Rock Sioux's decision to make tribal land available. "We have been in communication with the chairman, and he has expressed his concern for life, health and safety," she said. "If people chose not to move, they are there at their own risk." Officials of the United States should look to the future, as the South China Sea issue is developing in a positive way, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Wednesday. Hua made the remarks as she refuted US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter's comments that China risks isolation in maritime issues. "It's obvious to all China has always been a firm champion of, and an active contributor to, international rule of law and international rules and orders," she said. "But I want to emphasize that rules should be discussed and agreed by all countries, and should be accepted by all," she said, adding that individual countries should not impose their will on others for their private ends and by disguising their concepts. Some people in the US have played a negative role in the South China Sea issue, which is now developing toward a positive direction under joint efforts by China and the ASEAN countries, Hua pointed out. "I hope individuals in the US will not always linger in the past. Instead, they should really contribute to the China-US ties and regional peace and stability," she said. MISSOULA Montana's attorney general will issue a legal opinion on a Missoula ordinance requiring background checks for private gun sales. The Montana Department of Justice received a formal request for an opinion on the measure from Austin Knudsen, the Speaker of the Montana House of Representatives, department spokesman John Barnes told the Missoulian. The Missoula ordinance takes effect in late October and will require the background checks for most private gun sales or trades. The rule makes some exceptions for family transfers, hunting and emergency self-defense. Attorney General Tim Fox has three months to issue his legal opinion. It will have the force of law unless overruled by a state district court or the Montana Supreme Court. Knudsen, a Culbertson Republican, has said Missoula's new ordinance is in direct violation of state law as well as sections of the Montana and U.S. constitutions. The Montana Code says a local government may not restrict or regulate the purchase, sale or transfer of a firearm. Missoula City Attorney Jim Nugent points to a subsection of the state law that allows local governments to prevent and suppress "the possession of firearms by convicted felons, adjudicated mental incompetents, illegal aliens and minors." But Knudsen says the ordinance is too broad to be covered by that subsection. Missoula is the first city in Montana to require a background check on private firearm sales. Gov. Steve Bullock, a former state attorney general, and his Republican opponent Greg Gianforte have also said they believe the ordinance violates state law. Paleo-Indian rock art in relation to eagle nesting sites will be the subject of a talk on Oct. 24 at the Sunset House in Cody, Wyo. The talk will be presented by Bonnie Smith, curatorial assistant of the Draper Natural History Museum, who is researching the topic. I propose that there is a direct correlation between ancient golden eagle nests, Native American eagle traps and thunderbird representations at rock art sites in the Bighorn Basin and the early Native American narrative, Smith said. The evening begins with a no-host dinner at 6 p.m. followed by Smith's talk around 7 p.m. The dinner and the presentation are open to the public. Guests are also welcome to attend only the presentation. Wyoming contains some of the most exceptional rock art in the Americas. Consistently depicted among the stones are raptors, large birds of prey. Smith will examine several sites in the Bighorn Basin. The evening is organized by the Pahaska Corral of Westerners, which is dedicated to stimulating interest and research in the history of the American West. Net income for the Bank of North Dakota may be headed toward another record year, according to bank President Eric Hardmeyer. The nations only state-owned bank reported net income of more than $109.2 million for the first three quarters of 2016, Hardmeyer reported Wednesday. Our income is up about $5.5 million above what we budgeted for, he said. This puts the bank's income about 5.4 percent above projections for the year to date. Hardmeyer said the numbers were pretty strong with one quarter left to go for 2016. (It) would be our third largest profit ever if we left it at that, he said. The Bank of North Dakota has posted record annual profits for 12 consecutive years. Profits were $130.7 million in 2015 and $111 million in 2014. We anticipate ending the year at $130 million to $135 million-plus, Hardmeyer said. While profits continue their upward trajectory, the banks total assets have seen a very small dip, according to third-quarter figures. Total BND assets at Sept. 30 were at about $7.27 billion. About $7.33 billion had been budgeted for this point in the year, amounting to a difference of 0.87 percent. Overall, the banks balance sheet is in very good shape, according to Hardmeyer. Quarterly and annual report information, as well as information on the programs the bank offers, can be found at bnd.nd.gov. A representational photo. NEW DELHI (PTI): After protracted negotiations, Russia has agreed to lease a second nuclear submarine to India in a deal which will cost around USD 2 billion. Sources on Wednesday said the deal was struck during the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 15 on the sidelines of the BRICS meet in Goa. However, it was not part of the slew of announcements made after the talks. The Defence Ministry and the Navy did not offer any information on the subject since it was a strategic platform coming under direct purview of the Prime Minister's Office. Alexei Nikolski, a columnist with Russian daily Vedomosti, which broke the story, wrote, "According to a source in the Russian defence industry, the long-discussed lease to transfer a multipurpose Project 971 nuclear submarine to India from the Russian Navy was signed in Goa." The Akula 2 class submarine is expected to arrive in Indian waters in 2020-21. The Indian Navy already operates an Akula 2 class nuclear submarine, INS Chakra (formerly known as K-152 Nerpa), which was leased by Russia for 10 years and commissioned on April 4, 2012 after India paid for its completion of its construction and sea-trials. India had been keen to lease a second nuclear submarine. Indian defence sources had said that Russia had linked the lease of the nuclear submarine to the agreement for four stealth frigates. In Goa, India and Russia announced an over USD 3 billion frigate deal. Under the agreement, two stealth frigates will be built in Russia while the other two would be built in India under license production. The Akula 2 class submarine, though not the latest class of nuclear-powered fast-attack submarines in the world, is still considered one of the most advanced. Capable of sailing at speeds up to 35 knots (nearly 65 km per hour) under water, it is among the quietest Russian submarines. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Police are expected to make an announcement today about three arrests and the seizure of drugs and guns from the Brandon area as the result of a major drug investigation. Project Derringer was a joint effort between the BPS, Winnipeg Police Service and Manitoba RCMP, and it was the Manitoba Integrated Organized Crime Task Force that made the arrests. Police raided a farm near Griswold on Thursday afternoon and reportedly arrested two men at that scene. Charges have been laid, and based on those it appears a third man was arrested on Friday in Brandon. Police also raided a home on the 1200 block of First Street on Friday, but its unclear if that raid is connected to the third man or how it is related to the investigation. Both raids involved the BPS Tactical Response Unit. There was also a report that the unit had arrested a man in the 900 block of Eighth Street on Friday. Police have been highly secretive about the months-long investigation. The allegations against two of the accused stretch between Jan. 27 and Oct. 13 of this year. However, its expected police will describe an investigation into the mass transport of drugs from the Toronto region to the Brandon area for distribution. The drugs the men are accused of trafficking are cocaine, marijuana, psilocybin and crystal meth. Anecdotally, Brandons courts have seen a higher presence of cases involving the possession of methamphetamine in recent years. Where the drugs and weapons were found hasnt been specified. The three accused face various weapons offences in connection with the illegal possession of a number of guns. Leslie Gerald Bisson, 36, is charged with 23 counts that include trafficking of cocaine, marijuana, psilocybin and crystal meth. Hes also accused of illegally possessing a tactical semi-automatic rifle, two pump-action shotguns, and three rifles. Justin Tyler Reimer, 28, is accused of illegally having a .22-calibre handgun, and an SKS 726 calibre assault rifle that seems to be a dated Soviet weapon. Reimer is also charged with illegally possessing ammunition for both guns, and a high-capacity magazine. In total, Reimer faces 19 charges that also include possession of cocaine, crystal meth, and marijuana for the purpose of trafficking. Its alleged he was found in possession of all these drugs and guns on Friday. Also charged is Javed Ali, 29, who faces six charges that relate to the trafficking and possession for trafficking of cocaine and crystal meth. All three men remain in custody. The allegations against them havent been proven and theyre presumed innocent. Its not known yet if the arrests are connected to a series of shootings in the Wheat City recently. The Brandon Sun will have details from the press conference, which is to be held at Manitoba RCMP headquarters in Winnipeg late this morning. Deputy Chief Randy Lewis will represent the Brandon Police Service. ihitchen@brandonsun.com Twitter: @IanHitchen Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Police say they seized more than $250,000 worth of illicit drugs, including crystal meth, during a series of raids in the Brandon area made as part of a seven-month multi-agency investigation. While he didnt specify how, but Brandon Police Service Deputy Chief Randy Lewis said there is a link between arrests made in connection with the investigation and recent gun violence in Brandon. We believe that the recent shooting incidents in Brandon are linked to those arrested and we hope that this will quell the gun violence in the city of Brandon, Lewis said during a press conference held in Winnipeg on Wednesday morning. RCMP handout Project Derringer was a joint effort between Brandon Police Service, Winnipeg Police Service and Manitoba RCMP, and it was the Manitoba Integrated Organized Crime Task Force that made three arrests. Three men have been arrested in connection with the operation, and Lewis said he sees the arrests and seizures as a significant blow to the Western Manitoba drug trade. It is certainly a very positive move in our battle against drugs, Lewis said. Project Derringer was led by the Manitoba Integrated Organized Crime Task Force. Lewis said the investigation involved an interprovincial investigation into the cross-border movement of illicit drugs into the Westman area. The Brandon Sun previously learned that the operation involved an investigation into the large-scale movement of illicit drugs from the Toronto region to the Brandon area. Nine search warrants were executed at three residences including a farm near Griswold on Thursday, a First Street home on Friday (although police didnt specify that that was one of the three homes.) A hotel room was also searched. One of the arrestees is from Ontario, and as part of the investigation his home was also raided, although details werent provided on that. Police didnt specify where the drugs were found but they seized more than three kilograms of cocaine, 1.5 kilograms of marijuana, and one kilogram of methamphetamine. They have a street value of more than $250,000. Nine guns were seized that included a handgun, a semi-automatic assault-style rifle and a crossbow and ammunition for the guns. Several vehicles believed to have been used to transport drugs were seized, and $25,000 cash. RCMP handout Police seized cocaine, marijuana, psilocybin and crystal meth, as well as, a large quantity of cash. The arrests were made with the help of tactical teams from both the Brandon Police Service and RCMP. The three accused remain in custody at this time. Lewis said further charges are pending against the men. He said there may be further charges against those men, and against others in Brandon and across the province. While the joint organized crime task force was involved, Lewis said there are no apparent ties to any specific street gangs. The investigation into the shootings continues, and police will do firearms testing in an attempt to link the drug case. During questioning by journalists, Lewis repeated a position previously stated by the BPS that the Brandon shootings were targetted at specific people and homes. The general public unless you are involved in the gun and drug subculture you have little to worry about, Lewis said. Leslie Gerald Bisson, 36, of Griswold and Justin Tyler Reimer, 28, of Brandon are charged with drug trafficking and weapon related offences. Javed Ali, 29, of Georgetown, Ont. faces six charges related to drug trafficking. RCMP handout A number of weapons were seized, including a SKS 726 calibre "assault" rifle that seems to be a dated Soviet weapon. The allegations against them havent been proven and theyre presumed innocent. Last weeks raids came shortly after a series of four shootings in Brandon in which one woman was grazed by a shot from a shotgun, another man survived being shot in the torso and two homes were fired on. There was also a home invasion, in which it appears the victims were targetted by mistake. Police made several arrests in each of those incidents, except for the most recent shooting in which a vacant Russell Street home was shot. ihitchen@brandonsun.com Twitter: @IanHitchen Already have an account? Log in here A man who tried to rob another at knifepoint was thwarted in his crime when his victim pulled out a knife of his own. We need your support! Local journalism needs your support! As we navigate through unprecedented times, our journalists are working harder than ever to bring you the latest local updates to keep you safe and informed. Now, more than ever, we need your support. Starting at $4.99/month you can access your Brandon Sun online and full access to all content as it appears on our website. or call circulation directly at (204) 727-0527. Your pledge helps to ensure we provide the news that matters most to your community! The North Dakota Public Service Commission is seeking federal dollars to offset some costs of enforcement and investigation of call-before-you-dig violations in the state. State regulators last week filed an application for $50,000 in grant dollars to the U.S. Department of Transportations Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. The grant is in addition to its annual $10,000 request, which for the last several years has been used for billboards across the state advertising the North Dakota One Call program. If approved, it would be the first time the PSC has received federal dollars for enforcement purposes for the North Dakota One Call program. Staff time and enforcement of the program is paid for by general fund dollars in the PSC budget. If received, the $50,000 wouldnt offset the entire cost of staff time and investigations into complaints. Commission members said, in a time of tight budgets due to declining general fund revenues, any way to relieve pressure on operations while maintaining services is a plus. PSC staff said they expect to hear back on whether or not they receive any grant dollars within about four months. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Andre Steppler, a second-generation cattle farmer near Miami, Man., will be the guest speaker at the annual Taste of Beef event next week. The event, which is hosted by the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba, kicks off Manitoba Ag Ex, a four-day show that starts Oct. 26 and includes the Manitoba Rodeo Finals, the provinces largest all breeds cattle show and Barrels of Cash Futurity, among others. Manitoba Ag Ex is important to me for three reasons, Steppler said. Number one, it gives producers a venue to promote their product; number two, it gives the end consumer an opportunity to learn about beef production as society moves farther away from agriculture; and number three, events like this allow the young producers a chance to find mentors within the industry. It was my involvement in Manitoba Ag Ex that enabled me to learn how to promote my product, which I could not have done without that mentorship. Submitted Andre and Kate Steppler operate Steppler Farms near Miami, Man. Andre will be the guest speaker at the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba's Taste of Beef event on Oct. 26, which kicks off Manitoba Ag Ex, a four-day event that includes the Manitoba Finals Rodeo and a cattle show. Steppler and his wife, Katie, who is also a longtime exhibitor, operate Steppler Farms, which encompasses cattle, grain and honey bee farming. The couples daughter, Brynn, shows cattle at the show and won her showmanship division in 2015. The committees vision is to showcase young, local producers that have had involvement with the Provincial Exhibition events, Manitoba Ag Ex co-chair Shannon Carvey said. Taste of Beef takes place on Oct. 26 at 11:30 a.m. at the Great Western Roadhouse. The Brandon Sun Out-of-state protesters should respect local law, property and friendly racial relations, said Scott Davis, executive director of the state Indian Affairs Commission and a Mandan City Commissioner. Davis weighed in on the outcome of the Dakota Access Pipeline protests late in Tuesday's city commission meeting, saying it was often the outside protesters that were needlessly disrespecting law enforcement and private property, and who are trying to invent a racist environment that didn't exist here just one year ago. Davis said the initial peaceful protest mission that started by local protesters as respectful is veering away from its original message. He said it's good that pipeline complaints have been processed through the federal court system. "I really have some concerns now of how outsiders have challenged us (Native American and non-Native Americans) on how we've learned to live together as citizens of the state and the city. I think we've come a long way with tribal and state relations ... I am questioning how really peaceful this is." He said law officers are protecting protesters' First Amendment rights, but also the public. "It concerns me when their statements of being peaceful when there is name-calling to our officers and people...You don't cross people's property no matter who you are." Nor is damaging private property done here, Davis said. "Even as of late, you are even killing private property -- cattle and resources. We are a very productive agriculture community. Those things concern me." He questioned the leadership of the camp. "There are different agendas on that camp." Davis will partner with city staff and Police Chief Jason Ziegler to work with tribal council members to improve the unfriendly direction the protest has taken. "Moving together in a different direction, will help reset some of our relations that are being challenged now." After the meeting, Davis said he attended a town hall meeting in Cannon Ball Sunday. He said "a lot of members said it's lost its identity,'" referring to protest. "I think what sparks it is the outsiders on Facebook." He conceded there is always some racism everywhere, but "to say it's bad up here, I don't believe that." Mayor Tim Helbling voiced concerns to Ziegler about placing roadblocks for city streets unless there are risks to public safety, in light of Monday's protest favoring journalist Amy Goodman near City Hall and the Morton County Courthouse. "I think (with) these folks, we need to extend the same rights and courtesies that we show every other citizen of Mandan. And if they want to have a road blocked off for a protest, they need to come to the commission and ask for that to happen." Most are friends and neighbors, Helbling said, but if protesters cross the line and violate the law, there needs to be consequences. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/10/2016 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. WINNIPEG The flurry of activity around Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus announcement of a federal carbon tax last week was followed the next day by the release of the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy. The FSDS received much less attention, because it was not greeted with the provincial petulance about federal decisions that tends to generate headlines. To be fair, there isnt a lot of drama surrounding this document. Intended as an open working framework covering the next three years (to 2019), it identifies 13 strategic areas for Canada to focus on in relation to the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. I was glad to see the ongoing intention to revise and extend it much wiser than attempting a strategy that tried to paper over its inevitable flaws and there are some interesting tidbits buried among some of the unfortunate efforts to encourage sustainable consumption (like suggestions to unplug appliances and not let taps run). For example, for Manitoba, there is a promise to continue funding the Experimental Lakes Area; another to contribute toward the reduction of phosphorus in Lake Winnipeg; money to fix the Lake St. Martin watershed problem; money for municipalities to fund infrastructure improvements to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and so on. There was also the welcome intention to sign on again, as soon as possible, with the global initiative to combat desertification that Canada shamefully abandoned a couple of years ago. But this strategy, however initial its steps, just does not go far enough. Nor does the $10-a-tonne federal carbon tax do much to save the planet, as critics have complained. So why bother? Who cares about carbon? First of all, it is clearly carbon-hunting season. Announcing a federal carbon tax is like firing off a warning shot in a marsh it startles the less experienced ducks into flying straight up into the gunsights of the hunters. Bluster and splutter all they liked afterward, the premiers who demanded their environment ministers fly home from the conference right away made themselves into easy targets. In the aftermath of our failure to meet Kyoto Accord goals, it is obvious that something not nothing needs to be done to meet the Paris goals. No one would claim that the $10 warning shot is enough, but it did serve to flush out the opposition. As the Manitoba government moves toward coming up with its own plan hopefully, it will also be an open framework that can adjust to a rapidly changing situation, but with enough specifics that we can get to work right away there are a couple of key things to consider. First, there needs to be some reason for the numbers that are advanced, either as emissions targets or to justify the amount of a carbon levy. We could take a minimalist approach Manitobas share of Canadas reductions and ignore any other argument about how we have contributed to the problem over time, or how many of our emissions are displaced to other locations because we buy what they manufacture. That would be simple, but unfair to people elsewhere who can afford far fewer alternatives than we enjoy. It also reflects no real hope that there will be enough of a planetary shift in how people live to make a difference for future generations. Minimalism means ignoring the problem with the foundation by slapping on a new coat of paint letting the person who buys your house watch it fall down around them while you escape with the cash you should have spent to fix it. Premier Brian Pallisters decision for a made-in-Manitoba solution has the potential for something more than this minimalist response, however. We could be global leaders, not provincial stragglers, if we developed a carbon policy intended to inspire co-operation rather than merely imposing a carbon tax to coerce it. Our numbers need to be based on making Manitoba a carbon-negative province. If we consider all the dimensions of the Manitoba landscape, we have many different resources to mobilize and develop to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while we develop ways to take more carbon out of the air than we emit. Second, the carbon tax by itself will not enable us to reach any goal, however minimalist. It would need to be something like $300 a tonne to have significant effects on consumer behaviour. Even then, that tax would not be of much use if there were no alternative ways to get to work or to heat our houses. The tax will put some pressure on business and consumer behaviour to reduce their GHG emissions, but the money should be used to create alternatives; to promote the research, development and deployment of green technologies and to nudge people and their communities to take responsibility for how they choose to live. After all, the society that lives for today at the expense of tomorrow has no future, while the society that lives for tomorrow at the expense of today will never survive to reach it. We need to balance these two realities, in a pragmatic and timely fashion, right here at home in Manitoba. Peter Denton teaches the history of technology at the University of Winnipeg and chairs the policy committee of the Green Action Centre. His column was also published in the Winnipeg Free Press. There's still a couple of days to the weekend so to get you through it here's something to cheer you up. Deuntay Diggs, a 2nd Lieutenant for the county sheriffs office in Stafford, Virginia, can be seen slaying it at a homecoming pep rally in the US on Friday. If his dancing rendition of Queen Bey's 'Formation' doesn't pick you up, then maybe the school kids going berserk will do it. My sister teaches at a high school in Virginia and she just sent me this video of their county lieutenant dancing to formation @ a pep rally pic.twitter.com/2jaXnFgYrC here for harry (@hereforthe1d_) October 14, 2016 Diggs is a motivational speaker and he says he is the first openly gay deputy to serve at the Stafford County Sheriffs Office. Two days before he gave this sensational performance, his mother had been given two months to live after her cancer diagnosis. Deuntay is getting married in July to his partner, Benjamin Leitner, and wants to dance with his mother at the ceremony. He cancelled his school visit to stay with her in hospital for a couple of days, but while he showed her some of his dancing videos he decided to go through with it after she encouraged him "to keep on dancing". He told Buzzfeed: "Were sitting there talking and I said, 'Well, I want you at my wedding because were supposed to dance together'. And she hasnt seen any of my dancing videos. "So we sat and laughed for a little bit and watched the videos, and she said, 'Well, I want you'. So I came back and I told them I wasnt going to cancel." Diggs - who deals with race and how law enforcement is percieved - said: "The reason Im doing this is to show kids that they can make it, that they can survive, that they can be successful. "Ive been very fortunate, at this time when people look negatively upon law enforcement, that Im able to change that narrative and open up some conversations and engage with people. I didnt want to disappoint the kids. And dancing helps. It certainly does. Let's look at it again. H/T: Buzzfeed The Taoiseach has defended the slow pace of relocating refugees from the Mediterranean to Ireland. He told the Dail that 69 refugees had been transferred to Ireland since October 11 after fleeing the Middle East via Greece. Doctors could be set to strike as part of a row with the HSE. The Irish Medical Organisation is demanding management reinstate the 3,000 'living out allowance' for non consultant hospital doctors. 2.38 tonnes of cocaine have been seized, 529 human trafficking victims identified and 386 individuals have been arrested following a week-long international operation carried out in over 11,000 locations worldwide. As well as this 181,550 was seized. Fifty one countries and four international organisations teamed up with Europol to deliver a major blow to organised crime groups operating across the European Union and beyond. The Global operation Ciconia Alba is said to have delivered a major blow to organised crime. The operations focused on disrupting the most dangerous criminal networks currently active including facilitated illegal immigration, trafficking in human beings, drug trafficking and cybercrime. Field law enforcement officers were supported 24/7 from an operation coordination centre located at Europol's headquarters in The Hague. In one case, Austrian authorities discovered a cannabis plantation while performing checks at a brothel to identify potential victims of sexual exploitation. The officers ordered the closure of the premises, which was being run as an illegal brothel, and a new investigation was initiated. In another case, Europol was able to establish links between a payment card fraud case and a case on facilitating illegal immigration. This information was forwarded to colleagues from the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) based at an airport in Athens, Greece. Following the lead provided by Europol, the officers intercepted four irregular migrants who were intending to travel to Italy. Four forged passports and four fraudulently-purchased flight tickets to Italy were found on them, and the individuals were arrested. Also, a fake travel agency was discovered in Greece that was facilitating the trafficking of human beings and illegal immigration. The successful result was based on analysis of Europol information, notifications from airlines and the proactive approach of Greek police. In addition, intelligence collected during the operations triggered the initiation of 449 new investigations. Director of Europol Rob Wainwright said: "Countries and organisations across the globe working together as one entity is the modern response to borderless serious and organised crime. As an immediate result, some 386 suspects have been arrested" 24 non-EU countries were involved in the operation including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Nigeria, Norway, Panama, Switzerland, Thailand, USA and the United Arab Emirates as well as others. Students are taking to the streets of Dublin today, calling for free publicly-funded third level education. Here's @UCCSUComms from @UCCSU talking about why marching for #EducationIs important! @TheUSI #Demo pic.twitter.com/f9gWGCgEoe The Union of Students in Ireland expects up to 5,000 people to march to Government Buildings for the protest. They want the Government to adopt the state-funded option proposed in the Cassels report on Higher Education. USI president Annie Hoey says an alternative option of student loan schemes would be a disaster for third-level education. "We don't believe that young people and our students should be strapped with mortgage-style loans and debt," she said. "We already have the second-highest fees in Europe, and we don't want them to go any higher, we believe that education should be publically funded and accessible to anyone who wants to avail of it." The Mercy University Hospital have appealed to the public to use other care services due to a surge in patients. Patients with less urgent complaints are asked to contact their GPs or South Doc or avail of the services at the Mercy Urgent Care Centre, St Mary's Health Campus and other urgent care units in Cork city. A senior Iraqi general has called on Iraqis fighting for so-called Islamic State in Mosul to surrender as a widescale operation to retake the militant-held city entered its third day. Lt Gen Talib Shaghati told reporters at a military base that up to 6,000 IS fighters are inside the city. He did not say how many of them are foreigners. IS captured Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, in a lightning advance in the summer of 2014. The extremist group has suffered a string of defeats over the past year and Mosul is its last major urban bastion in Iraq. So far, the militants have put up fierce resistance in villages surrounding the city, where most of the fighting has been concentrated. IS has sent trucks loaded with explosives towards the front lines and fired mortars to slow the Iraqi forces' advance. An Iraqi officer from the 9th Division said his troops were now around one kilometre away from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul. Over the past day, IS sent 12 car bombs, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, he said, adding that Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds. To the north, air strikes pounded Bashiqa as Kurdish forces fired mortar rounds from an area overlooking the IS-held town. Save the Children said 5,000 people have fled to a refugee camp in north-eastern Syria from the Mosul area in the last 10 days, with another thousand waiting to enter at the border. The group said the overwhelmed camp is "littered with waste and faeces, with a looming risk of outbreaks of disease". It said there are just 16 toilets shared by more than 9,000 people, many of whom only have access to dirty, untreated water. "Conditions there are among the worst we've seen, and we expect thousands more people to be on their way soon," said Tarik Kadir, head of the group's Mosul response. The top commander of US land forces in Iraq says US army Apache attack helicopters are striking IS targets in support of the push to retake Mosul. Adding US attack helicopter crews to the unfolding combat is an extra element of risk for American troops. Major General Gary Volesky said the Apaches were being used at night to strike targets from a distance. He said the mere presence of the Apaches was a confidence booster for Iraqi soldiers. Maj Gen Volesky, commanding general of the 101st Airborne Division, said he believes IS fighters in Mosul will put up a stiff defence in the city but eventually lose and morph into an insurgency. The operation to retake Mosul is the largest launched by the Iraqi army since the 2003 US-led invasion. Some 25,000 troops, including Sunni tribal fighters, Kurdish forces known as the peshmerga and state-sanctioned Shiite militias known as the Popular Mobilisation Units are approaching the city from different directions. The participation of the Shiite militias in the operation to retake the mainly Sunni Mosul has raised concerns that the campaign could inflame sectarian tensions. Rights groups have accused the Shiite militias of abuses in past campaigns against IS-held areas. In a bid to alleviate those concerns, Shiite militia leaders announced that they will only focus on capturing the mostly Shiite town of Tal Afar to the west of Mosul, and not enter the city itself. "The only troops who will enter Mosul are the army and police, not the Popular Mobilisation Units or the peshmerga," said Hadi al-Amiri, the leader of the Badr Brigade, one of the largest Shiite militias. "This has been agreed upon," he said at a press conference in the Shiite holy city of Najaf. Amnesty International said in a report released on Tuesday that Iraqi government and paramilitary forces detained, tortured or killed hundreds of Sunni Arab civilians fleeing IS-held areas during the operation to retake the Sunni city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, earlier this year. The Iraqi government has denied any systematic violations by security forces or the militias, and says individuals have been held accountable for occasional abuses. Ecuador's government has said it has "temporarily restricted" WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's internet access at its embassy in London. It came after the whistleblowing site released another batch of emails from the campaign manager of US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Ecuador's foreign ministry said it did not interfere in foreign elections but stood by its decision in 2012 to grant Mr Assange asylum. Mr Assange, who is wanted for questioning in Sweden over a sex allegation, has been living inside the Ecuador's London-based embassy for more than four years. Left-wing president Rafael Correa's government said it had not been pressured into making the move to restrict Mr Assange's internet access and had made the decision on its own. WikiLeaks claimed that US secretary of state John Kerry wanted Mr Assange to stop publishing documents while talks on a peace deal continued between Colombia's largest rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), and the Colombian government. An accord signed with the left-wing rebel group was narrowly rejected in a national referendum. WikiLeaks said in new tweets: "Multiple US sources tell us John Kerry asked Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing Clinton docs during FARC peace negotiations. The Ecuadorian ministry did not give details about the type of restrictions which had been placed on Mr Assange's internet access but stated that it would not would not change WikiLeaks' ability to carry out its journalistic activities. Mr Assange believes that if he leaves the embassy he will be extradited to the US for questioning over the activities of WikiLeaks. Meanwhile, WikiLeaks claimed there had been an "elaborate plot" to falsely claim that Mr Assange received money from the Russian government and a second plot to "frame" him for sexually molesting an eight-year-old girl. The second plot includes the filing of a fabricated criminal complaint in the Bahamas, a court complaint in the UK and laundering part of the attack through the United Nations, it was claimed. Kelly Steckler was born Feb. 29, 1972, in Fargo. Kelly's birth mother chose life for Kelly; for this choice, our family will be forever grateful. Kelly Steckler, 44, Mandan, donned her angel wings on Oct. 16, 2016, at Sanford Health. Services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 21, at Spirit of Life Catholic Church, Mandan. Burial will be at North Dakota Veterans Cemetery. Visitation will be held from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Weigel Funeral Home, Mandan, where a prayer service will begin at 7 p.m. Visitation will continue on Friday, one hour prior to the service at the church. At 18 months, Kelly was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis which limited her physical activity for her entire life. Kelly's joys in her life were her cat, horses, dogs and her Green Bay Packers! Kelly graduated from Mandan High School in 1990, the University of Mary in 1994 with a bachelor's degree in business administration and a minor in computer information systems. In 1999, she completed the Bismarck-Mandan Leadership program through Bismarck State College. Kelly earned a master's degree in library science from the University of North Texas in 2003. She was a member of Beta Phi Mu International Library and Information Studies Honor Society. Kelly started working at the Mandan Public Library in 1988 as a circulation clerk, in 1994 became Assistant Director, and in 2004, she became the Library Director of the combined Morton Mandan Public Library. She served as the Central Dakota Library Network's Financial Officer for over 20 years. Kelly was very active professionally, and was a member of American Library Association, the Mountain Plains Library Association, and the North Dakota Library Association. In over 20 years of service to the North Dakota Library Association, Kelly was an inaugural member of The Good Stuff Editorial Committee, the Public Library Section Chair, and a member of the Strategic Communications, Planning Committee and served as the Association's Legislative Committee Chair starting in 2006. In 2007, she received the President's Recognition Award for her outstanding work as the Legislative Chair. She advocated on behalf of all North Dakota public libraries and testified several times before the legislative body in support of state aid. Numerous legislators knew her by name. Her contributions have made a lasting impact that will strengthen libraries for years to come. She also served on the Bismarck-Mandan Mayor's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, Mandan Tomorrow Leadership Pride & Image Committee, and was a past director on the Mandan Progress Organization Board. Kelly was very active in the Arthritis Foundation and in 2006, she was chosen as North Dakota's representative to attend the Arthritis Foundation Advocacy Summit in Washington, D.C. She served on Arthritis Foundation's North Dakota Leadership Board and was the 2007 and 2016 Bismarck-Mandan Arthritis Walk Honoree. Kelly's family thanks the Sanford Seventh Floor nurses, staff and doctors for the caring, compassionate care for Kelly during her journey the past several years. One of Kelly's favorite quotes was, "She believed she could, so she did." This statement epitomizes how Kelly led her life and everyone who was lucky enough to know her can attest to that. Kelly is survived by her mother, Helen; her brothers, Todd (Mayra) and their children, Angela and Jacob, McAllen, Texas, and Scott (Kathy), Mandan; her aunts, Del Steckler, Edina, Minn., and Marian Gruenfelder, Laramie, Wyo.; her uncle, James (Isabelita) Doyle, Velva; and three cousins, Barbara Muller, Jean Petty and Judy Sanders. She was preceded in death by her father, Terry Steckler; and her grandparents, Lucas and Elizabeth Steckler and Bernard and Alice Doyle. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery, Arthritis Foundation, Central Dakota Humane Society or Morton Mandan Public Library. Go to www.weigelfuneral.com to share memories of Kelly and to sign the online guest book. Syrian government forces and their Russian counterparts are preparing to open corridors out of the besieged districts of Aleppo, in the hope that fighters and civilians will evacuate the contested city's rebel-held quarters after weeks of bombardment has left the area in ruins. The city's eastern quarters experienced relative peace for the second consecutive day in the run-up to the hoped-for evacuation on Thursday. Russia's military said two corridors would be opened for militants to flee to the neighbouring, rebel-held province of Idlib. The government's overture to rebels and civilians trapped in Aleppo's east follows a pattern of evacuations around the country that the UN has likened to "forced displacement." On Wednesday, some 2,000 residents of the once autonomous Moadamiyeh suburb of Damascus were carried by government buses to Idlib as part of an arrangement to restore government control after years of siege at the hands of the military. Hassan Ghandour, a former Moadamiyeh resident who liaised between the suburb and besieging forces, said on Wednesday the evacuees included 700 gunmen. He said the government is to release all detainees from the suburb in exchange for the evacuation. Several activists also left with the convoy. Wassim al-Ahmad said it would be "impossible" to live again under government authority, saying he did not trust official promises for amnesty. Some of those remaining in Moadamiyeh struck a defiant tone. "I'm not going to settle anything with the government," said local resident Mahmoud, who declined to give his family name out of safety concerns. "I'm going to stay in my home." "I've spent five years of my life besieged here. I've been through war, siege, starvation... bombardment, and poison gas - I've survived with all this so I can stay here." Government forces gassed the suburb along with two others with Sarin on the night of August 21 2013. About 1,300 people, mostly civilians, suffocated to death around the capital. Some 28,000 people remain in the Moadamiyeh, down from a pre-war population of 105,000, according to the government. In Aleppo, government buses queued at checkpoints leading to the besieged east prepared to take evacuees to Idlib on Thursday, according to the media arm of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which is fighting alongside the government in Syria. The government's foreign ministry said soldiers were withdrawing from the designated corridors to reassure evacuees. Civilians will also be allowed to evacuate to the city's government-controlled western districts. It is unclear how many people will take up the government's offer after weeks of siege and bombardment pulverised the east and shattered its medical network. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says more than 640 people, including 128 children, have been killed in rebel-held parts of Aleppo and the surrounding rural areas since a truce brokered by the US and Russia collapsed on September 19. It said 88 people, including 14 children, were killed in retaliatory shelling on government-held Aleppo. Bassam Heji, a member of the Nour el-Din al-Zinki rebel faction, said the Russian offer is a "trap" that only reflects its intention to "exterminate" the residents of the eastern, rebel-held Aleppo neighbourhoods. The arrangement follows a proposal by the UN Syria envoy, Staffan de Mistura, to allow al Qaida-linked militants to leave Aleppo in exchange for a truce and local autonomy for the city's eastern districts. Rebels, along with many residents, rejected the offer. But Russia and Syria moved ahead unilaterally with the evacuation arrangements without making any promises for an extended ceasefire or self-administration. Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the break in fighting should allow the moderate opposition in the east to sever ties with militants. Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his government would work with Russia's government to evacuate the al Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front, formerly known as Nusra Front from the east. Mr Erdogan warned about the possibility of an influx of at least one million people to Turkey in the event of a population movement from Aleppo. "We cannot pay this cost. Those who incite this must sit down with Turkey and talk," he said. Kurdish-led forces meanwhile pressed their campaign to drive Islamic State militants from areas in northern Aleppo province, expanding the front line with rival Turkish-backed opposition fighters also operating in the area, according to local rebels and activists. The Russian military accused a US-led coalition air strike of killing six civilians in Hassajek, hours before the announcement that the village had been taken from IS. Despite the brief lull in the fighting for Aleppo, most of the surrounding province has become Syria's hottest theater of combat, showcasing the complexity of the terrain where rival forces are vying for control. In the area of Hassajek, three rival groups are battling IS: the Kurdish-led forces, Turkey-backed Syrian rebels and troops loyal to the government of President Bashar Assad. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Kurdish-led forces, known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, gained control of Hassajek, killing at least 10 IS militants in fighting there. One of the fighting units in SDF, the Rebel Army, said in a statement that the clashes with IS militants continued for the third straight day further to the south. It said its troops also seized weapons and ammunition from IS. The advance by the Kurdish-led forces has widened the front line between them and rival Syrian rebels, who in recent weeks have pushed into northern Aleppo backed by Turkish tanks and aircraft, driving out the Islamic State group from villages and towns it controlled. The Turkey-backed offensive also aims to undercut Kurdish aspirations for a contiguous and independent east-to-west stretch of territory in Syria. The Russian military's Reconciliation Centre in Syria said the strike Hassajek also wounded four people and destroyed two houses. Russian military surveillance spotted two Belgian F-16 fighter jets over the area at the time of the strike, the centre said, adding that Russian and Syrian warplanes were not flying over the area. Russia's Tass news agency reported from Brussels that the Belgian defence minister denied Belgian aircraft had struck the area. British Police are hunting a man described as one of the country's most prolific conmen. Mark Acklom is believed to be on the run in Spain, after being released from prison for duping two brothers into paying him 200,000. As streaming platforms gear up to cater to the holiday season, Netflix and a slew of others are offering a variety... MUMBAI/ HANOI/ BANGKOK/DHAKA: Prices of rice from top exporter India edged up this week on an up tick in the rupee... The coal industry doesnt want to be left behind as the nation explores its energy options. Companies have been funding research for some time and North Dakota plants have adopted the latest technologies. In a Sunday story by reporter Jessica Holdman, Lignite Energy Council President Jason Bohrer noted the nation has started to move toward a carbon-free future. The industry plans to embrace, not fight, the change. It wants to increase research and down the road would like funding from the state. The industry approach makes sense. If coal is to remain part of the nations energy policy than some changes will be necessary. How quickly North Dakota will be in a position to provide funding is unknown. The states in transition as oil development slows and revenues decline. The upcoming legislative session will focus on balancing the budget and that might require more cuts. So the coal industry knows research funding will have to come later. That doesnt mean the industry cant outline its goals to legislators in hopes of setting the stage for future funding. Project Tundra, an effort to retrofit Minnkota's Milton R. Young Station near Center with scrubbers to capture carbon emitted by the plant, is being conducted by ALLETE Inc. and Minnkota Power Cooperative. Carbon-capture technologies have been deployed commercially on smaller scales, but this is a bigger challenge. The state could get involved in the project. The coal industry's proposed new energy investment program would have $250 million to $300 million funded for 10 years. The industry would like to make the fund permanent through taxes on coal extraction. Thats a large investment by the state. There also are other major projects awaiting state funding, so its good legislators will have at least one session to digest industrys proposals. It will be beneficial to the state as the industry takes carbon-free steps. Whether the state can provide as much assistance as the industry would like remains to be seen. Theres no doubt the opportunity exists for technological advancements. Its also possible that new technology thats developed could be sold, bringing a return on the investment. It will be interesting to see how the state and coal industry can work together. SINGAPORE: Palm oil may revisit its Oct. 25 high of 4,263 ringgit per tonne, as it may have resumed its uptrend from... FARGO The three North Dakota State University juniors laughed when asked about the presidential election. Itll be the first for Joe Knapp and Michael Petrich, both from Woodbury, Minn., and their friend Kali Oeltjenbruns, from Parkers Prairie, Minn., and they werent thrilled with the choices they faced. Its just like a joking matter between the top two candidates, Petrich said as he sat with his friends at the Memorial Union Monday. Its just the lesser of two evils you gotta pick from. An independent who leans Republican, he said he will not be voting for someone of Donald Trumps temperament. He knows how to run a business, he just doesn't know how to run a government. But he said he cant bring himself to vote for Hillary Clinton either because shes crooked. I think Hillary is the best option because she's had experience, said Oeltjenbruns, an independent who leans Democrat. Yeah, her experience hasn't been the greatest, but she knows that, so hopefully shell change. Knapp, an independent who leans Libertarian, said he plans to vote for Gary Johnson. Its been an unusual campaign season with two frontrunners who are both disliked by a majority of American adults, according to polls. For those who have never voted in any presidential election, its marred a milestone of citizenship. Asked if he was excited about voting, Petrich said, Voting, yes, voting for who, no. Emily Odland, an NDSU freshman from Velva is from a family of Republicans, and shes going to vote for the partys candidate but shes not thrilled about it: Our choices arent the greatest between the two of them, but I think that theres really only one choice, she said. Odland, who said she has long looked forward to voting, has already filled out her ballot. She voted for Trump, she said, because she dislikes just everything Clinton stands for, including Clintons support for abortion, not telling the truth, scams and being married to Bill Clinton. The leaked tape of Trump bragging about kissing and groping women without their consent came out before Odland voted, but it didnt affect her. She said the news media is biased in favor of Clinton. They make Trump look worse than he is. Jihan Brifki of Moorhead, Minn., immigrated here in 2011 as a Kurdish refugee from Iraq, and she became an American citizen last year. Brifki, who voted in Iraqi elections, will vote for a U.S. president for the first time in November. Brifki, 33, said she doesnt know too much about Clinton but plans to vote for her because of her experience in government. I like Trump, too, but, you know, the way he talks its not the president, she said. Brifki said shes eager to vote for a candidate who will be good for the country and the rest of the world. She said Clinton will be good for all refugees. Laura Orpen, an NDSU sophomore from Battle Lake, Minn., said shes been told its an unusual election. Ive heard from a lot of older people that this is the strangest election theyve ever seen, and theyve told me I feel sorry for you that you have to make this choice. Though she said she doesnt know exactly how shell vote, she is leaning toward one. I like Hillary Clintons confidence. I think she has a lot of poise, especially when dealing with an opponent whos very hot-headed. I see her as someone who can keep a cool head. Trump views on women upset her. I cant handle listening to him talk, she said. Shes felt that way for a long time, but when the leaked tape came out, she said she thought, Uh-uh, hes not good enough to be president. Orpen said she wished there was a candidate she could really embrace. When Dr. Ben Carson was in the running, she said she liked what she read about him though she didnt agree with him 100 percent. Ali Kuno, a 29-year-old Fargo resident, became a U.S. citizen last month after moving here from Kenya in 2012. He said the political brawling between Clinton and Trump is similar to the contentious campaigns of candidates in his home country. They accuse each other for corruption for not being good person, he said. As a first-time U.S. voter, Kuno said hell be casting his ballot for Clinton. I see her as somebody who is nonpartisan, somebody who is neutral to all people, to all religions, he said. Kuno said he could not vote for Trump, a racist who insults everybody. Mason Sattler, 19, is set to graduate next fall from Minnesota State University Moorhead. For him, picking a presidential candidate is painful. "Oh God, this hurts, he said with a smile before acknowledging that he plans to vote for Clinton. I would say that Clinton is at least more qualified. I would much rather somebody who's had some pretty nasty blunders but at least has some experience. Originally from Oregon, Sattler said he knows not all presidential campaigns are like this one. "It just doesn't feel like we're really discussing any issues. It's a circus," he said. "We're complaining about whose scandal is worst." Sattler, who describes himself as a hardcore liberal, said he took time to view debate footage from prior presidential races, and he found more civil discourse and more agreement between candidates on certain issues. "We're so polarized as a country, he said. It's really unfortunate. MADRID: Spains unemployment rate edged up slightly in the third quarter of this year after declining steadily since... WASHINGTON: The United States said Tuesday it was raising with Saudi Arabia a prison sentence handed to a US citizen... An actress arrested during an oil pipeline protest last week entered a written not guilty plea to the misdemeanor charges against her, and her scheduled court appearance on Oct. 24 has been canceled. Shailene Woodley also filed in court on Tuesday to allow her Grand Forks-based attorney, Alexander Reichert, to appear on her behalf at all future court dates in Morton County. Reichert said it's common for him to file requests to waive the first hearing with the court. "All that she would do is sit there in court for a couple hours waiting for her name to be called," he said. He does not know yet whether Woodley will return for future hearings. "We're still in the early stages of the case," he said. Woodley is charged with criminal trespass and engaging in a riot, both Class B misdemeanors, for her alleged role in a Dakota Access Pipeline protest near St. Anthony on Oct. 10. She is one of 27 people arrested during protests that day. Woodley posted a live video of her arrest at the Morton County construction site on Facebook. It has been viewed more than 3.6 million times. The movie star, who has acted in "Divergent" and "The Fault in our Stars," lives in Los Angeles, according to court records. She prepared for the installation with a "heart-making workshop" the aim being to make 1468 terracotta hearts, one for each refugee languishing on Nauru and on Manus Island. Now visitors to Seeking Refuge are invited to unwrap one of the cloth-wrapped hearts, to place that naked heart with all the other unwrapped ones in the centre of the installation, to write a message of support on the cloth and then to fix it to the fence (representing enclosure) that is part of the installation. When Australia's treatment of refugee boat people feels heartbreaking perhaps it helps the bleeding hearts among us (this reporter is one of them) to do some therapeutic heart-making. This reporter, while conscious of doing a masturbatory, feel-good, bleeding-heart thing that will not touch a single heart of ice in Australian government or opposition and that won't help refugees in the slightest, duly took part in the artist's prescribed ritual. One of Barak Zelig's contributions to the passionate, angry and a little despairing Seeking Refuge is his tiny clay and plastic Large boat for a few people. It is so tiny that, standing on a white-painted windowsill, it looks as though it is afloat on a flat expanse of white ocean. The little work requires quite a long, close stickybeak, the artist explained to this reporter. Look closely at the jet-black human figures and you'll find that there are men, women and children among them. Seasickness is plainly tormenting some of them. By their dress some of them are soldiers because, Zelig is saying, in these terrible boat people refugee circumstances the distinction between fighter and civilian is often blurred. He says that their jet blackness suggests that they are smothered in crude oil, a symbolic reference to how oil conflicts (for example in Libya and Iraq) are part of the horrors that Mediterranean region refugees are fleeing from. And another reason for the total blackness of everyone is that by making them all the same (no varieties of complexion and dress) they're given what Zelig calls a "universality". They are all alike just as all members of mankind are alike, meaning that all of us should think of them as brothers and sisters we should care about and work to help. There (desperately bobbing about on the sea in fragile boats) but for the grace of God, but for happenstance, go all of us. A motorcyclist who caused a horror crash which killed a man and seriously injured two others on the Monaro Highway south of Canberra has told a court he wished he was the one who died. Joe Ciantar, 67, had his leg amputated as a result of the Royalla collision in which Raymond Solway, 65, was thrown from his motorbike and died on November 28 last year. The scene of the fatal crash on the Monaro Highway at Royalla. Credit:Jay Cronan Fairfax Media He pleaded guilty to negligent driving causing death and two counts of negligent driving causing grievous bodily harm. Ciantar sobbed as five victim impact statements detailing the lasting grief and injuries caused by the smash were read aloud in the ACT Magistrates Court on Wednesday. After months of pressure, the Baird government has caved into the demands of lawyers and will reconsider some of the controversial aspects of its green slip reforms. On Wednesday, the NSW Department of Innovation and Better Regulation sent a letter to legal bodies, including the Law Society of NSW and the Australian Lawyers Alliance, saying it will reconsider aspects of the proposed compulsory third party insurance scheme. The reforms are not off the table. The government is pausing the process to re-examine recommendations put forward by the legal profession in relation to legal costs. Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation Victor Dominello confirmed the "interim measure" to implement a proposal to restrict legal fees for low-severity claims via a regulation change. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has widened its probe into Clive Palmer from his company Queensland Nickel to include other entities associated with the former parliamentarian. The revelation of the broader investigation in Mr Palmer's business affairs was made by ASIC commissioner John Price during Wednesday's Senate estimates hearing in Canberra. Clive Palmer at Brisbane's Federal Court during the public examinations into the affairs of Queensland Nickel. Credit:Jorge Branco "We do have some additional interests in various other corporate entities associated with Mr Palmer," Mr Price told the hearing. He declined to comment further on what other entities associated with Mr Palmer had come under investigation by the corporate watchdog. The new owner of Carlton & United Breweries has wasted no time extending an olive branch to union leaders in an attempt to end a feud that has seen the company's Abbotsford factory picketed for 18 weeks. Just weeks after AB InBev sealed its mega-merger with CUB's former parent SAB Miller, a special meeting has been organised for Thursday morning in front of Fair Work Commission president Iain Ross in an attempt to break an impasse over maintenance workers at the plant. In a letter to two unions, newly appointed CUB chief executive Jan Craps said management had asked the Fair Work Commission to "attempt to bring the parties together to resolve the dispute". In the letter last week, Mr Craps said he had recently commenced his new role as the regional president for AB InBev, the Belgium-based multinational that recently took over CUB from former owner SABMiller. Doing well in the final year of high school may no longer be enough to land that first job. A group of prominent employers including KPMG, Blackmores, Macquarie University, Hungry Jacks, Aussie Home Loans and Luna Park have agreed to ask prospective employees if they have a Duke of Edinburgh Award to help assess whether they are well-rounded and team players. The award is a youth development program for people aged 14 to 25 and involves community service volunteering, physical recreation, learning new skills and taking an adventurous journey. Neelam Gopalani believes her Duke of Edinburgh awards helped her secure her first job with a major accounting firm after she completed high school. After completing her bronze, silver and gold Duke of Edinburgh medals, she started work as a cadet accountant with PwC Australia. GRAFTON -- A Grafton man was ordered to 15 years in prison for what Pembina County prosecutors say is the worst attack on a law enforcement officer they have seen. Clifford Edward Monteith III, 27, signed a plea agreement that would drop four charges, including a Class A felony count of attempted murder, if he pleaded guilty to five charges, including a felonies for assault and disarming or attempting to disarm a law enforcement officer. Pembina County District Judge Laurie Fontaine sentenced Monteith on Monday to 15 years in prison minus 134 days credit for time served. What we were looking for was definitely a sentence that would serve the interest in protecting the community, and he will be off the street for 15 years, which is substantial, Pembina County States Attorney Ryan Bialas said. At 15 years, there is no doubt in my mind he will be able to go in and complete programs in order to keep him safe from himself as well as the community safe from him in the long run. The sentence follows a June 5 traffic stop in which Monteith attacked Deputy Brad Bowman with a hunting knife, according to court documents. Charges state Monteith punched and head-butted Bowman multiple times and tried to take the deputys gun from him. Bowman used a Taser on Monteith, who fought it off, and ran to his patrol car to escape the attack, which ended when the deputy shot Monteith three times. After kicking the side of the patrol car, Monteith fled but eventually was arrested. Bowman feared for his life and was injured during the attack but since has made a full recovery. Monteith also recovered from his injuries. Defense attorney Erik Escarraman said he thought his client was remorseful. I think what has happened was a tragedy for everyone, including himself, Escarraman said. It should help him enable a new life. I think this is the start of a path forward. Monteith had a long history of criminal cases, including theft, driving under the influence of alcohol and aggravated assault. On Thursday morning the board of Crown Resorts will be in the firing line. The shareholders, who will assemble before them at the company's annual meeting in Perth, will be looking for answers, having watched more than 10 per cent wiped off the value of their shares this week. But its largest shareholder, James Packer, won't be sitting on the stage and taking the investor heat. Crown is now a company in crisis its entire China-based workforce is in detention and its Chinese customers' details are in the hands of authorities following the police seizure of company laptops. Before facing investors, directors will have held their Wednesday evening board meeting a gathering that will more closely resemble a war room strategy session than a usual update of first-quarter trading conditions and consideration of the accounts. It will be a mettle-testing time for the board, who bear the ultimate responsibility for the operations of the company and its behaviour. The Australian Energy Market Operator's updated findings on Wednesday in effect clear wind power per se. The report says the operator-overseen settings designed to shut down individual wind turbine generation after a series of shocks to the system were wrongly set too low. As such nine of the 13 wind farms online at the time of the event did not ride through the six voltage disturbances that flowed from five system faults within 88 seconds. The Clean Energy Regulator figures gain extra potency in light of a second reality check: that the anti-renewables panic in reaction to the South Australia blackout on September 28 was misguided and politically skewed. First news that little more than a year's pollution from the Adani coal mine planned for central Queensland would wipe out most of the foreseeable gains from the $1.7 billion taxpayers have forked out for the Coalition's Direct Action emissions reduction scheme. What's more, the AEMO concludes that "the most well-known characteristic of wind power, variation of output with wind strength (often termed 'intermittency'), was not a material factor". Indeed, less than 5 per cent of the wind power reduction was due to excessively strong winds stopping turbine generation. By contrast, technical glitches stopped back-up coal-fired power stations from plugging the gap as the emergency plan demanded. The South Australian emergency findings expose Environment and Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg for unhelpful politicking. Despite backtracking later, he must be ruing this comment: "When you have a high use of renewables some 41 per cent in South Australia it leads to a lack of consistency in the quantity of generation namely that, when the wind is not blowing or when the sun is not shining, electricity is not being generated." Renewables such as wind, solar and hydro power must be part of any comprehensive plan to meet our global emissions reduction commitments. The question of how much depends both on cost and reliability. Oliver Yates, the outgoing chief executive of the government-overseen green bank, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, told the Herald that the Turnbull government should raise the renewable energy target and be more ambitious than targets it agreed to in Paris last December. They were to reduce 2005-level emissions by between 26-28 per cent by 2030 to try to hold global warming to less than 2C above pre-industrial levels. There must already be enough guns in Australia to shoot every feral pig a thousand times over. What is going on? Ian Trevena Mosman So, David Leyonhjelm likes guns and a fast action shotgun in particular. Big deal! But the fact that he is prepared to offer up his vote in the Senate on the completely unrelated matters of immigration or industrial relations law shows him to be an utterly unethical political game player. I hope the voters of NSW remember this when there is an opportunity to remove him from the Senate at the next election. Peter Winkler Vaucluse Senator Leyonhjelm is a very dangerous man to have in Parliament. Any agenda to relax gun control laws is not wanted by the vast majority of Australians. The Senator's support of guns would have an eager audience in the US where gun violence wreaks havoc everyday and causes nothing but misery. John Cotterill Kingsford What is the reason for wanting to import a rapid-fire Adler shotgun into Australia and why the need to reverse the ban on any such dangerous weapon? Perhaps more perplexing and worrying is that we have elected a senator, David Leyonhjelm, who is pushing this move and a Prime Minister who was apparently willing to consider compromising his integrity, ignoring the consequences and sacrificing the peace and safety of us all. Christina Foo Wahroonga As each day passes, Malcolm Turnbull is looking more politically inept and hamstrung by the arrangements he has been forced to put into place to protect his position as Prime Minister, as well as the concessions he might need to make in order to get crossbench support to get government bills passed by the Senate. His fumbling performance in relation to the import ban on the Adler shotgun and growing community outrage over recent revelations about government responsibility for abuse of asylum seekers, have left his government scrambling to find scapegoats for their own shortcomings. A most unedifying sight. Phyllis Vespucci Reservoir (Vic) We should not be surprised that the Prime MInister's political judgment is once again being questioned. His shortcomings in this area have been evident for some time. They were first exposed in the disastrous Godwin Grech affair and revealed again in his ill-timed and ill-thought double dissolution election. They were evident once more in the way he was caught flat-footed by Labor's Medicare scare campaign (lifting the freeze on the Medicare rebate would have spiked Labor's guns) and again in his refusal to budge on the issue of same-sex marriage. John Howard was often criticised for being a cunning politician yet it was this very cunning which made him such a political survivor. Malcolm Turnbull appears to have none of that cunning and, as a consequence, only a remote prospect of survival. Garth Clarke North Sydney Asylum-seeker treatment masked in cloak of hypocrisy In light of successive governments' well-documented outrages committed against asylum seekers and accepted refugees, and the various tactics used against those who keep their plight in the public mind, it must be some kind of sick joke that Australia is seeking a seat on the UN Human Rights Council, something akin to Roger Rogerson applying for the job of police commissioner ("Report finds human rights activists suffer climate of fear", October 19). I won't labour the point that has already been eloquently expressed by so many reports, the latest by Amnesty International and yet another UN envoy. That Australia not only trashes its own laws, conventions, treaties and reputation in a quest to stop asylum-seekers arriving by boat, but also does so under the sanctimonious pretence of stopping people-smuggling and preventing deaths at sea, is perhaps the most galling abrogation of our country's humanity. If I may paraphrase Abraham Lincoln, the government should direct its marketing campaign to deter refugees by suggesting that they seek sanctuary in Afghanistan or North Korea, countries where brutality can be taken pure and without the base alloy of hypocrisy. Andrew Dalton Annandale The level of self-flagellation on the Letters page over the issue of the treatment of asylum seekers on Nauru is worthy of a Dan Brown novel. Will all those who are "ashamed to be Australian" actually leave this "cruel" country and stampede to New Zealand in trendy disgust? Should New Zealand be worried? Garrett Naumann Cammeray NSW taxpayers facing losses So the Chinese are erecting a Great Wall between the new casino and the Chinese VIP market with the likelihood that Packer profits will shrink ("James Packer's Barangaroo could be the world's tallest white elephant", October 19). I'm not sure how Elizabeth Knight can confidently predict the Premier will stick to his promise to keep pokies out of the place given his recent pirouette. If she's right there are other solutions: Packer could just cop the loss, someone could write a children's book called "The Tallest White Elephant" and plough the profits back into the venture or another NSW asset could be sold off. My churning stomach tells me there is only one solution with the current mob in Macquarie Street NSW taxpayers are going to have to dig deep. Lyn Savage Coogee Let's get this straight. The Baird government allowed James Packer to build his hotel over height limits and on land dedicated for public space based on a business model that rests on practices considered illegal in China? Todd Hillsley Homebush More than a third of Crown Casino's revenue last year came from international visitors, mostly from mainland China. With China cracking down and Crown's income taking a hit, my bet is that James Packer will raise the stakes by crying poor and seeking more modifications to his Barangaroo casino plan. Perhaps more land, possibly more apartments and probably poker machines. Mike Baird may say "no" now, but I don't have a lot of confidence that he will hold that line if Packer threatens to pull the plug. This government has demonstrated time and again that money talks, and Packer still has oodles of it. Denis Wolff Carlingford Barangarooted. Jim Dewar North Gosford How many low-rent homes could fit into Packers' Barangaroo building? If its future as a casino fleecing whales is collapsing perhaps the government could take it over and offer it to the residents of Sirius and Millers Point as an alternative. Peter Wilson Quorrobolong I take it that James Packer is not planning on visiting China anytime soon. Patrick St George Goulburn Jobs for (Liberal) boys I can remember when the most regular taunting of the Labor Party by the Liberals was that it was a party run by "faceless men" and that it constantly provided "jobs for the boys". With two recent headlines, it would seem that the shoe is definitely on the other foot ("O'Farrell joins Abbott, Baird in backing Liberal voting reform", October 19, "Dumped MPs 'warehoused' by mates in advisory roles", October 18). Brian Collins Cronulla Life in the real world Don't you just love these people who claim they know about "the real world", and that others don't? Their "real world" mostly turns out to be a mean and cynical one, devoid of compassion. Stephen Sasse (Letters, October 19) asks: "Where is the vision and systems thinking in Merkel's unilateral decision to open Germany to more than a million refugees?" Well, no doubt Angela Merkel understands that taking in these refugees will slow the gradual decline in the population of Germany, and as they are mostly young, also slow its aging. That's vision and demographic systems thinking for a start. Moreover, it is likely she is aware that these refugees are survivors with above-average resourcefulness and a determination to make the most of the opportunities offered them. Undoubtedly she's also aware of the role that the the exclusion of minorities has played in German history, and wants to do what she can to make amends this time. And she's aware of the role that compassion can play in healing damaged lives. That's all real world thinking in my book. And good on her for her courage. Geoff Gordon Cronulla Senate poll drawback Ron McCallum's proposal of an election for every casual Senate vacancy would be open to gaming (Letters, October 19). Imagine the incentive for an incumbent government to offer jobs to opposition or minor party senators that would arise from his suggestion. A government would most likely benefit from a casual Senate vacancy in an election that would effectively freeze out minor parties. David Godden North Tamworth Little people ignored While the government presses ahead with its union-busting legislation, where is the legislation to protect the 200 home owners struggling to have their homes not only completed but completed satisfactorily following the collapse of Bob Day's building companies (Letters, October 19)? Corrado Tavella Rosslyn Park (SA) US disquiet Terry Beath (Letters, October 19) is surprised the US has reached peak snake oil but surely the central talent of Donald Trump is his capacity to weaponise stupidity and we are sadly still a long way from peak stupidity. That other great American oracle Forrest Gump warned that stupid is as stupid does, so given that voting has already been under way in the States for three weeks we must hope that Beath is not in for more unpleasant surprises. The number of Australians arrested and hospitalised overseas skyrocketed last financial year, prompting a warning from Foreign Minister Julie Bishop about reckless behaviour and the growing workload placed on Australian consular officials. A total of 1551 Australians were arrested in foreign countries in 2015-16, an increase of 23 per cent, with drugs, fraud and assault the most common offences. There were 391 Australians assisted in overseas jails, 61 of which were in mainland China. A further 1667 Australians landed themselves in overseas hospitals, an increase of 15 per cent. The biggest hospitalisation hot-spots were Thailand, (176 incidents) Indonesia (153), the US (122), New Caledonia (75) and Vietnam (72). Ms Bishop said the figures made for "interesting reading". She was particularly concerned about a lack of knowledge about local laws and customs, noting that Australian consular action was "significantly constrained" once people were subject to a foreign legal system. The task of being an intelligence chief has become tougher with the rise of cyber threats and terrorism, according to the former head of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, David Irvine, who says he would like to see a "much stronger" national cyber industry. Speaking during a rare interview in Canberra, Mr Irvine said "when you put cyber on top of [terrorism], it takes a bit of time off your sleep at night. The two issues have grown exponentially within a couple of decades and while the nature of the threats is the same, the vector has changed. And cyber is a new and very potent vector." Former director-general of ASIO David Irvine said Australian companies ''lose control'' of their information when it goes overseas. Credit:Jeremy Piper Mr Irvine, who led Australia's overseas spy agency ASIS before he headed up ASIO, said he'd been "horrified" at the revelations of Edward Snowden, the subcontractor to the National Security Agency who exposed vast top secret US government programs for monitoring global communications. "People say, well nobody lost their lives as a result of Snowden, but how do you know that? You run through your mind all the possible consequences of having your capabilities, which are there to defend the country, exposed, and once exposed they become much weaker capabilities. And that was the impact of Snowden." Mr Irvine expressed surprise at the "baldness" of the hacking of the Democratic National Committee data base (allegedly by Russia) in the current US presidential election campaign, aimed at damaging Hillary Clinton. "There has always been in the espionage/sabotage business the use of purloined information to obtain a political objective" he said. "But the baldness of [this] is a little bit surprising, the unsubtlety even more surprising. "The tragedy is that it restricts the freedom of our politics in a whole variety of ways, it puts strictures on our political decision makers ... they have less free conversations, become more afraid to express themselves in emails. I certainly am much more careful in the way I express myself in emails than I might have been a few years ago." Mr Irvine was a guest at a series of security briefings for government agencies organised in Canberra this week by Australian cyber security firm Nuix. Also attending the briefings was the company's US-based vice-president, Keith Lowry, who worked at the Pentagon at the time of the Snowden leaks and lead a team trying to assess the damage from the revelations. He told Fairfax Media that many Australian government departments were "still exposed to serious data security risks because they do not conduct ongoing insider threat assessments". Mr Irvine said cyber security was the area where those charged with protecting critical infrastructure in Australia "really had to focus in the next few years". So concerned is the head of the Treasury about the cost of housing, he says he is having to help out his own son, and that parents like him are endangering their superannuation. "It's a worry, the Bank of Mum and Dad," Treasury secretary John Fraser told a Senate estimates hearing. "I talk with people my age, and the Bank of Mum and Dad is becoming more and more prevalent. It has impacts on superannuation, where superannuation is going to, it has impacts on why people are saving in their older years, to fund their children's housing needs. And not just purchase, but often rents. "I am not talking not just about young people entering the housing market as young professionals, I am talking in particular about the lower income people. It's an area that I do worry about." Women currently make up 17 per cent of BHP's staff. So it's got a lot of work to do to reach its ambitious target to have women make up half its workforce by 2025. The policy will be announced at the company's annual shareholder meeting in London on Thursday. [James Wilson/Financial Times] () 3. China has Crowns' details Chinese police have seized computers, laptops and mobile phones of Crown employees and almost certainly have the company's detailed records on the gambling habits of the company's big spenders. [Philip Wen/Fairfax] 4. Abbott's new 'logic' Former PM Tony Abbott appears on the ABC's 7.30 program on Wednesday night. Credit:ABC It's a marvellous world inside Tony Abbott's mind. His latest request for sane folk to suspend their belief in things like logic and facts and written statements is a marvel. Last night he appeared on 7.30 and attempted to deny he had struck his own deal to allow the Adler shotgun into the country after 12-month ban. [Watch] The email confirming the deal was sent by an advisor to Minister Michael Keenan. But Tony Abbott says even though it belonged to his government, because the correspondence was sent by a "staffer in a minister's office," he never personally struck any deal on guns. [Tom McIlroy/Fairfax] "Tricksy," I think Gollum would say. When asked if he'd be interested in running for the leadership, he said: "I'm not expecting a vacancy anytime soon." "I think the last thing we need in this country is a revolving door prime ministership," he added. And when pressed on the speculation he'd like the job back: "Well it's not a question of what I might like, it's a question for what the partyroom wants." I think we can safely say once and for all, we all know what's he's up to! And who can blame him, watching Turnbull make a fist of it seemingly every other day. Malcolm Turnbull and Barnaby Joyce during Question Time. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen The Daily Telegraph reports Deputy Prime Minister and federal Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce also supports allowing the Adler in. [Andrew Clennell] This is also referenced in an excellent analysis piece by Gratts. [Michelle Grattan/The Conversation] It's a bizarre world indeed when Abbott is siding against the Nats, as Mark Kenny notes. [Fairfax] 5. In other politics news: You can't make this stuff up. DFAT flew 23 boffins to Paris for a talkfest on...how to save money! [Heath Aston/Fairfax] John Fraser Treasury Secretary before a Senate Committee at Parliament House in Canberra. Credit:Andrew Meares Australia's triple-A rating could be downgraded as soon as the mid-year economic update is issued (due by the end of the year) and Treasury Secretary John Fraser says this would affect us all. [David Uren/The Australian] Fraser says soaring private and government debt is threatening the rating. [Jacob Greber/Financial Review] In Queensland, former Premier Campbell is saying I-told-you-so after Standard & Poors cited his politically fatal public sector job cuts as a reason to affirm that state's AA+ rating. Newman also says public servants have since thanked him because they've gone on to start new and exciting careers. [Courier Mail] The bungled online census will cost taxpayers $30 million. [Primrose Riordan/Financial Review] And it's been a while since an intervention from Jacqui Lambie. The Tasmanian independent is now demanding Australian soldiers be allowed to conduct war crimes if their opponents belong to Islamic State or the Taliban. What was that about never letting the terrorists win? [Andrew Greene/ABC] Peta Credlin says male chiefs of staff are not accused of having affairs with their bosses and the accusation that she was having an affair with Tony Abbott is sexist. [Sky News] And don't miss Deborah Snow's excellent interview with former spy boss David Irvine. [The Sydney Morning Herald] 6. Saudi royal family executes one of its own Prince Turki bin Saud Al Kabir shot dead a man after a brawl. He was executed on Tuesday - making it one of the first-known executions of a royal family member since 1975. Saudis have reportedly largely approved of the decision. [Bloomberg] And that's it from me today, you can follow me on Facebook for more. For one of her final acts as America's First Lady, Michelle Obama confirmed she is the sun the White House revolves around, or, to be more apt, the disco ball. Obama saved the best til last and pulled on a bright, slinky, Studio 54-esque dress by Versace for her last State Dinner where she and husband Barack hosted Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi and his wife, Agnese Landini for an evening of buttermilk gelato and American Wagyu beef. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama welcome Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife Agnese Landini to the White House. Credit:AP The rose gold gown that lit up the usually dull Washington solar system was made out of a glomesh looking material. A fabric synonymous with Australian accessories brand Oroton, which created purses using the gold and silver metallic mesh back in the 1970s. Her latest look has been heralded by the fashion press as a "Goddess Fashion Moment" while others used the opportunity to pledge their allegiance to Obama, signing off stories about her outfit with, "Miss you already". It started with a trip to the pub on a Friday night. But what unfolded between a group of ice-addled young men over a weekend in suburban south-western Sydney is hard to fathom. Twenty-year-old Dane McNeill was subject to what the coroner described as a "lingering death" beaten, stabbed, bound and drugged before his body was stuffed into a suitcase, dumped in a reserve and set on fire. Victim Dane McNeill was attacked after asking for help with a debt. Azam Charbaji, 26, and his brother Haysem, 24, were found guilty of the brutal murder by a jury on Wednesday after a trial lasting nearly a month in the NSW Supreme Court. Haysem's then girlfriend Lexy May Jamieson, 26, was found guilty of accessory after the fact after she sought advice on how to clean up the murder scene and dispose of the body. He is accused of defrauding a Sydney-based technology company of $9 million and using the proceeds to make repayments on a multimillion-dollar mortgage and transfer money to bookmaker Tom Waterhouse. Andrew Sigalla, a former director of listed company TZ Limited, pleaded not guilty in the Supreme Court on Wednesday to 24 charges of defrauding the business. Andrew Sigalla (right) leaves the Supreme court on Wednesday. Credit:Jessica Hromas At times Mr Sigalla grimaced and shook his head in the dock in Court 1 in the King Street court building in Sydney. The complex fraud trial, which is expected to run for well over a month, opened with allegations Mr Sigalla used his position as a director "dishonestly with the intention of directly gaining a benefit" for himself, his companies or an associate. The State Health Department is revising permits for special oil field waste companies to require monitoring of all loads that have potential for radioactivity. The modification from suspected to potential radioactivity comes after department surveys this summer found three of 12 special oil field waste operators had illegal radioactive material at their landfills. Steve Tillotson, assistant director of the state's solid waste program, said about half of the companies affected have received notice of their permit revisions, with the rest in process. It is a fairly long process that we go through, said Tillotson, noting that the department has the authority to revise permits for cause. All three of the companies found with illegal radioactive waste had applied to change their permits to dispose of up to 50 picocuries of radioactive waste under new rules that increase the level from 5 picocuries. So far, none has been approved. One of those companies -- IHD Disposal, which operates a site north of Alexander in McKenzie County -- was ordered to hire a third-party inspector after radioactive waste was discovered in May and June. The company removed about 950 tons of material at that time, then removed an additional 980 tons in September based on the third-party findings. IHD has since put its radioactive waste disposal application on hold. Manager Chris Kreger said the landfill is monitoring all incoming loads with a hand-held detector and will upgrade to a portal-style monitor within a couple of weeks. He said some loads have had elevated readings, but they are as likely to come from soils with naturally occurring radiation, which is not regulated, as they are from prolonged contact with filters or other oil field technology. Kreger said the modified permit is not a problem for IHD. Theres not anything in there thats causing acid reflux. The procedural changes are nothing that we cant live with, he said. He said IHD intends to move forward later with its request for a revised permit to handle the new level of radioactive waste. We will, eventually. Right now, were working with the county to make sure the county is comfortable and understands our processes, he said. Tillotson said the department will not take action against IHD for the violation. As a result of the departmental survey, Gibson Energy removed 18 yards of illegal waste from its WISCO landfill near Williston, and Secure Energy removed 10 loads from its 13-Mile Landfill at Williston. Both of those companies also have applied to handle the new, higher level of radioactive waste allowed under the new rules. The debate over shaking up Queensland's retail trading hours is more complex than just a fight between big business and small corner stores, an issues paper says. The Palaszczuk government released the paper on Wednesday, inviting the public to have a say on options for retail trading hours reform as part of its review. The report illuminates how restrictions may encourage shoppers to make purchases online, outside of trading hours, rather than locally during trading hours, and the growing number of households with dual incomes or single parents contributing to many people being time-poor. It also points out that negative impacts of extended trading hours on small business may be "overstated". Zhang Sitong was saving a friend's phone number on his Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphone when it started to vibrate and smoke. He threw it on the ground and told his friend to start filming. Two employees from Samsung Electronics showed up at his house later that day, he said, offering a new Note 7 and about $US900 ($1166) in compensation on the condition that he keep the video private. Zhang angrily refused. Only weeks before, even as Samsung recalled more than 2 million Note 7s in the United States and elsewhere, the company had reassured him and other Chinese customers that the phone was safe. "They said there was no problem with the phones in China. That's why I bought a Samsung," said Zhang, a 23-year-old former firefighter. Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas met with the French owners of the state's dirtiest power station in Paris earlier this month amid speculation the plant could be shut down permanently as early as next April, costing up to 1000 jobs. The state government has confirmed Mr Pallas held private talks with Hazelwood's majority owner, French energy giant Engie, on October 4 whilst in Paris. Hazelwood plant and mine from the air. Credit:Jason South On Wednesday Premier Daniel Andrews refused to say what was discussed at the meeting. But it comes at a crucial juncture for the Latrobe Valley, with the government scrambling to formulate a community assistance plan ahead of a looming announcement. That followed revelations in The Age that Hazelwood, which supplies up to one-quarter of the state's electricity, could be closed as early as April 1. Russell Street bomber Stan Taylor has died in custody. Taylor has spent his last 30 years behind bars for the 1986 bombing of the old police headquarters in Russell Street, Melbourne. The bombing killed 21-year-old Constable Angela Taylor and wounded 21 others. Taylor is believed to have died at St Vincent's Hospital in Melbourne on Wednesday aged 79. His health had been deteriorating for more than a year. Jay Franklin says he is living in constant pain. Professor Downie said after the Quebec government restricted medically assisted death to people who who were "at the end of life" - the same approach since adopted for the whole country - one man decided to starve himself for 53 days to qualify. The 61-year-old man who was living with severe disability after a stroke, Jean Brault, also reportedly refused water for eight days so his body would deteriorate to the point where he was eligible for doctor-assisted death. In another cruel twist, Professor Downie said the wording of Quebec's law meant Mr Brault had to do it slowly so he would retain enough mental capacity to re-confirm his request immediately prior to a doctor giving him a lethal drug - a legislated requirement. In June, a Victorian parliamentary inquiry recommended the government introduce legislation to allow adults with "decision making capacity, suffering from a serious and incurable condition who are at the end of life to be provided assistance to die in certain circumstances". It describes end of life as "final weeks or months of life". The state government has until December to respond to this recommendation but already Health Minister Jill Hennessy has said she supports law reform based on her mother's experience of multiple sclerosis, a neurological condition that can slowly rob people of physical and mental function. In an interview with The Age last month, Ms Hennessy said her mother has at times expressed a desire to control her own death but instead "has to literally wither away until an infection takes her, or she chokes, or pneumonia comes by virtue of her body breaking down internally". "It's unbearable to think that will be the end of her life," Ms Hennessy said. Professor Downie said the Victorian government should consider that people with such conditions may not qualify for a law that is restricted to people dying, and that some of these excluded people might resort to desperate measures to qualify. Jay Franklin at hospital in 2016. Credit:Justin McManus Another practical problem that has arisen in Canada is that people receiving strong painkillers leading up to a medically assisted death have to be "lifted" out of their medication to ensure they have the mental capacity to re-confirm their request immediately prior to receiving the lethal drug. "Can you imagine that?... You bring somebody back into a state of excruciating pain in order for them to say that's what I want," she said. Ms Hennessy declined to comment this week on who should qualify for any future law, but chair of the committee that recommended the legislation, Edward O'Donohue, said six of the eight committee members agreed to restrict any potential law to people in the "final weeks or months of life". "Decisions at the end of life are a difficult and complex area and we were seeking to limit suffering while respecting the sanctity of human life," he said. Mr Franklin is disappointed with this and says if the South Australian government allows people without a terminal illness to access its potential law, he will move interstate immediately to try and qualify. He says over the past 10 years he has thought a lot about ways to die because he is not eligible for an intestinal transplant and his pain is escalating without adequate relief. Mr Franklin says there is no prospect of his condition getting better, and that he often requires hospital care to get intravenous painkillers, and treatment for infections that enter his blood stream through the catheter in his chest. He fears an infection could take his life in an intensive care unit where he is hooked up to machines with wires coming out of his body, or that a painful bowel obstruction will occur. "That's not the way I want to go," he says, adding that he could also continue to live for decades in increasingly distressing pain. Mr Franklin says he also faces another conundrum. He says he has obtained a lethal drug to take his own life, but isn't sure the dosage is sufficient to ensure his body absorbs enough to die. Even if he does come across an adequate dose, he says he would have to strongly consider taking it alone to prevent loved ones being suspected of assisting a suicide - a criminal offence with penalties of up to five years' jail. Teachers at a troubled high school in Western Australia's Goldfields region that was trashed just hours after a $45 million redevelopment was unveiled want security guards on-site around the clock. Three 13-year-old boys and a 10-year-old boy were charged with a string of offences after Kalgoorlie-Boulder Community High School and another school in the town were broken into and vandalised on the weekend, leaving a $100,000 trail of damage. The crimes prompted the mayor to ask Premier Colin Barnett to attend an emergency summit to deal with the town's social problems, which largely involve youth crime. Mr Barnett and deputy premier Liza Harvey will attend the Kalgoorlie Leadership Summit on Saturday, November 5. Just when we thought the Perth robber who accidentally pepper-sprayed himself in the face would take out the award for worst crook of the year, two teens on Wednesday have gifted us a new entry. The pair are allegedly linked to a break-in at a house in Waikiki two weeks ago where a raft of belongings were stolen from a Perth family, including the mother's mobile phone. The duo began taking selfies on the stolen mobile phone's camera. Credit:Facebook Weeks on, police investigations had failed to track down the culprits - that was until the duo began taking selfies on the stolen mobile phone's camera - which they assumedly didn't realise were being uploaded to the mother's iCloud account. "[On Wednesday], I noticed photos on my iPhone through streaming," the mother, who did not want to be named, said. "I had both my stolen iPhone and iPad hooked through my Apple account and connected through iCloud. Razor blades have been discovered buried in the sand of a Waikiki playground. The discovery was initially made on Tuesday evening, when two children were allegedly injured playing in a sand pit opposite to Waikiki Primary School. The playground is now open. A City of Rockingham spokesperson said council workers were sent to sift through the playground's sand on Wednesday morning. "The sand pit area has been blocked off since 7pm on Tuesday night, directly after the incident happened," a spokesperson said. London: The British government is counting on Australia's taste for British beer and cider to boost its Brexit trade plan and is planning an ad blitz to whet our appetites. It also hopes we want more of their jam, tea and biscuits. Some British ales on the bar at the Sun Inn in Faversham, UK. Credit:Bloomberg The "UK Food and Drink International Action Plan" was launched on Tuesday by the UK secretary of state for food Andrea Leadsom a prominent "Brexiter". It identified Australia and New Zealand as the first of nine "priority target markets" for an additional 293 million in exports over the next five years. DEVILS LAKE -- Devils Lake may eliminate its ban on pit bulls after local leaders said language in city code already addresses dangerous animals. The Devils Lake Commission asked City Attorney Tom Traynor to draft an amended document to eliminate a ban on specific dog breeds, including pit bulls. The request comes after a resident who is considering adopting a pit bull asked the city to reconsider its position on the ban. Pit bulls and some of these other breeds, its how they are raised, Mayor Richard Johnson said. Responsible owners, it is their duty to train (their dogs) in the right way. If you train them to be aggressive, a Chihuahua can be aggressive. Adopted in 1987, the animal section in the citys code of ordinances prohibits residents from keeping, owning, harboring or in any way possessing a pit bull within city limits. That includes bull terriers, Staffordshire bull terriers, American pit bull terriers, American Staffordshire terriers, dogs mixed with the aforementioned breeds or any dogs that have the appearance and characteristics of being predominately of the breeds commonly known as pit bulls, pit bull dogs or pit bull terriers. Those who possess pit bulls could face a $500 fine and spend up to 30 days in jail. The dog also would be removed from the city. There is enough language in the citys ordinance to address dogs that may be considered dangerous, City Administrator Terry Johnston said. Johnson agreed, stating the ordinance allows the city to address any dangerous animal, whether they be dogs, cats or any other pet allowed within city limits. To be breed-specific is probably not good, Johnson said, adding he and commissioners questioned why the city continued to target pit bull breeds. City code lays out what defines a dangerous animal, including those that attack people without provocation. Johnson said he has spoken with residents who said they would be fine with eliminating the ban on pit bulls as long as an ordinance addressed dangerous animals. Its unknown if the commission will pass the amendment, but it is willing to review it, he said. I got the sense that the commission wants to take a good, hard look at it and get some input from the people, he said. Well see once we get more public information out on it. The city likely will have the first reading of the amendment eliminating its ban on pit bulls at the Nov. 7 commission meeting. A decision to adopt or reject the amendment could be made as early as Nov. 21. Almost three quarters of the way through the debate, Donald Trump said the election was "rigged" and Hillary Clinton should not have been allowed to run. "Millions of people that are registered to vote that shouldn't be registered to vote," he said. "She should not be allowed to run, and just in that respect I say it's rigged." Clinton hit back with a response, which my colleague Nick O'Malley described earlier in this blog (1.13pm AEDT) as "devastating". "You know, every time Donald thinks things aren't going in his direction, he claims whatever it is, is rigged against him," she said. "The FBI conducted a yearlong investigation into my emails. They concluded there was no case. He said the FBI was rigged. He lost the Iowa caucus, he lost the Wisconsin primary, he said the Republican primary was rigged against him. Then, Trump University gets sued for fraud and racketeering. He claims the court system and the federal judge is rigged against him. "There was even a time when he didn't get an Emmy for his TV program three years in a row and he started tweeting that the Emmys were rigged against him." Trump responded, "Should have gotten it" to laughter from the audience. Here are some of his Tweets about the Emmys: Latest News Property investors abandon Queensland market Government laws threaten investor control, says industry body Call to expand approved housing projects Sunshine state planning laws should be eased, says developer Online mortgage marketplace HashChing has hit $2 billion in home loan applications one year and three months since it was first founded.The fintech reached $1 billion within a year of operation and then doubled this amount three months later.The fact that weve hit this next billion-dollar milestone so quickly is testament to the huge demand for our technology, said Mandeep Sodhi, CEO of HashChingNearly 4,000 customers have used HashChing which currently has more than 290 brokers registered with the platform.Being able to access mortgage brokers directly is something that previously hasnt been possible, and its saving our customers tens of thousands of dollars over the life of their home loans, Sodhi said.Atul Narang said that HashChing combined artificial intelligence and machine learning to match home buyers with mortgage brokers in their area.As soon as a user submits their details, HashChings unique algorithm uses analytics that matches them with the broker that will give them the best and most relevant service, he told Australian Broker.The algorithm looks at a number of factors such as how long it takes the broker to respond to a lead, and consumer feedback at the close of a lead.If a broker has received 20 five-star ratings and his or her response rate is really good, he or she will automatically transfer into the top list of brokers, Narang said.Sodhi told Australian Broker that the ancient CRM systems that brokers traditionally use were bringing down efficiency and increasing time and costs.Once brokers sign on to the HashChing platform, they get an intuitive dashboard with all the business tools essential to effectively manage leads, from custom reminders and document collection and through to other digital functions, he said.Brokers save on marketing costs as well, he added, as the firm does not charge on a per-lead basis.Brokers are only charged on loan settlements and a small monthly subscription for access to the CRM system with the right tools.This empowers brokers by allowing for easier customer management and updates, he said.HashChing wasnt looking to act as another player in the market especially with the low margins currently in the home loan industry, Siobhan Hayden, HashChing adviser and former CEO of the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia ( MFAA ), told Australian Broker.HashChing is seeking out value adding opportunities for all stakeholders, and ensures broker and customer experience is at the forefront of its service, he said.Ive always been passionate about the broker proposition; I think HashChing does inherently deliver a better service. We manage our system to not only make the broker successful but to improve the customers experience as well. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams 84th Precinct Brooklyn HeightsDUMBOBoerum HillDowntown Under the sneak A home invader wearing a snorkel and ski jacket wreaked havoc on two residences in the 84th precinct on Oct. 10. First, the masked man was caught in a womans Bond Street bedroom going through her drawer and jewelry box. The lady found the creep in her home near Atlantic Avenue at 8:55 pm, and yelled Who the f are you? The jerk motioned for the woman to be quiet by placing his finger over his mouth, prompting the terrified resident to run out of the room, cops said. When she returned, the burglar had fled through the window, according to a report. She surveyed the scene and discovered the filcher had taken her iPhone, yellow wedding band, and other jewelry. The bandit then struck less than an hour later at a Front Street home. The victim told police she walked into her residence near Bridge Street at 9:20 pm and the man approached her from behind, took her iPhone, wallet, and house keys from her, and fled. The pilferer passed the property to another guy on a bike on Gold Street, according to a report. Condiments and crooks A pair of thieves stole $400 from a 68-year-old woman on Plymouth Street on Oct. 14 after throwing mustard on her jacket and pretending to help her wipe it off while picking her pocketbook. The victim was strolling near Main Street at 2:30 pm when the two crooks splashed her with the yellow condiment and then started helping her clean it, apologizing as they went. But in the meantime, the men were busy removing the cash from her bag, police said. Sprayed A baddie sprayed a man with an identified substance on a Manhattan-bound N train on Oct. 11. The man was sitting in the middle section of the train when the cur sprayed a liquid substance in his face, causing him pain and discomfort, police said. The man went to Brooklyn Hospital, whose doctors were unable to identify the liquid, according to a report. Caned A man bashed a Court Street fast-food worker with a cane on Oct. 15 while demanding free food and a bathroom. The employee of the restaurant near State Street told police the man entered the establishment at 1:54 am and asked for food and a bathroom. He told the guy the restaurant was closed, and the nogoodnik started hitting him with his walking cane and then fled, authorities said. Lauren Gill Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams 76th Precinct Carroll Gardens-Cobble HillRed Hook Illegal teeth cleaning Cops cuffed a guy for swiping three toothbrushes from a Smith Street store on Oct. 17. The 48-year-old suspect put the battery-powered brushes in his jacket at the store between President and Union streets at 8:30 am, according to authorities. Bike swiper A punk stole a guys motorcycle parked on Pacific Street sometime overnight on Oct. 16. The victim parked his 2009 black and green Kawasaki between Clinton and Court streets at 10:30 pm, and when he went to pick it up at 8:30 am the next day, it was gone, police said. Smashed A nogoodnik threw a brick through the window of a clothing store on Atlantic Avenue on Oct. 17, police said. The baddie launched the brick through a glass window of the shop between Clinton and Court streets at 3 am, swiped merchandise, then fled down the street with the unknown property, according to authorities. What about the bike? A baddie stole a guys bike equipment from outside his home on Sackett Street on Oct. 16. The jerk took the 26-year-olds specialized black bike seat, specialized black handlebars, and a generic bike rack from the home between Clinton and Court streets at 3:20 pm, police said. The crook fled down Hoyt Street, according to authorities. Educated burglar A jerk stole several items from a students home on Clinton Street sometime overnight on Oct. 14. The malefactor swiped the 30-year-old victims college textbook and notebook, a set of keys, an engraved pen, an electronic benefits transfer card, and a blue totebag from her home between Mill and W. Ninth streets sometime between 11:12 pm and 7:50 am the next day, according to authorities. Julianne Cuba Making a state rainy day fund for K-12 education accessible to lawmakers for use for educational purposes will be a high-dollar matter before voters this fall. The states education and public employee union supports the Measure 2 and sees it as a way to protect education from serious cuts in tough fiscal times. The North Dakota School Board Association sees it as poor policy that could drain a valuable resource to fix a temporary problem. Measure 2 would amend the state constitution to change in what ways the funding from the Foundation Aid Stabilization Fund can be used. Currently, 10 percent of oil extraction tax revenue is placed in the Foundation Aid Stabilization Fund. A section would be added that, when the principal exceeds 15 percent of the total general fund appropriation for state aid to schools for the most recent biennium, the excess money could be transferred by the Legislature for education-related purposes. As of Aug. 1, the fund had a balance of more than $608 million. North Dakota United President Nick Archuleta said the Foundation Aid Stabilization Fund is a stranded asset that can only be used when the governor calls for budget cuts. Every school district has had this conversation already. Theres not a lot of fat in these budgets, said Archuleta, who indicated that the measure may be the only way to keep education funding whole next session. There just wont be enough funding. Theres just no other way around it." North Dakota School Boards Association Jon Martinson said the group has three concerns over Measure 2. Some are troubled by giving the Legislature access to the fund and the ability to spend down on the fund over a period of time to potentially exhaust it, according to Martinson. Finally, the language referring to education-related expenses is worrisome. Our association is not interested in giving access to our checkbook to someone else, said Martinson, indicating that if it does pass, his organization would want to be at the table to clarify the definition of education-related purposes. Archuleta argued Measure 2 would not deplete the fund, though he didnt have a concrete figure on how much could be tapped next session, if it passes. We will have to take a look and see what the numbers are, Archuleta said. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams The Gowanus Canal was introduced to its own, disgusting version of Louis XIVs famous Versailles water festivals on Saturday when a fleet of handmade vessels navigated its noxious waters under the light of the full moon during the inaugural Tides of October flotilla in Brooklyns Nautical Purgatory and every boat that took a dip paid the ultimate price. Vessels that floated along the sludge-filled thoroughfare emerged covered in a film of the waterways famous filth, and, much like the Titanic, will never sail again. They got pretty dirty and we threw them all out afterwards, said Andrea Parker, who is the executive director of the Gowanus Canal Conservancy, which sponsored the event. They mostly just looked wet, they werent covered with coal tar. Participants crafted their boats out of materials such as plywood, styrofoam, and even ice and one organizer put a Barbie and Ken doll at the helm of her vessel, which she said was right where the famous couple belonged. I thought they might like the canal, and maybe it was a little bit of a critique of gentrification, said Nancy Seaton, a Queens resident who helped put on the flotilla with a small crew of designers. The watercrafts set sail from the Carroll Street Bridge at 6:18 pm the time of high tide and drifted to Second Avenue as dozens of people watched the spectacle. But an unexpected tide in the opposite direction challenged the sailors, creating conditions similar to the worlds most treacherous triangle in Gowanus, said Seaton. They got caught in the tide which was coming in when we launched at the bridge so it was a little like the Bermuda Triangle she said. Canoers were ready for action, though, and staged a rescue mission by herding the fleet to its home port. And Parker said the flotilla reminded residents that the canal is much more than the butt of dead body and gonorrhea jokes (or facts) and is an important part of the area. Its nice to be able to get into the canal and do something creative and engaging, she said. The canal is also the center of our community. Saturdays boat parade marked the first Tides of October flotilla, but Seaton said that shes hoping it will grow into an annual event with even more boats next time around. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams 78th Precinct Park Slope Bad ticket A belligerent beast tried and failed to spit on a parking enforcement officer amid a juvenile tirade on 12th Street on Oct. 7. The officer reported that he was slinging tickets near Seventh Avenue at 1:35 pm when the irate man began hurling insults his way. But that wasnt all the victim had coming the enraged assailant discharged a virulent lugy in his direction, although, whether by swift action on the officers part, or the spitters poor aim, it failed to connect, cops said. Swell job A savage whack job attacked a woman as she sat waiting for a bus near Grand Army Plaza on Oct. 7, beating her so severely that her eye swelled shut. The victim told police she was lounging at the bus stop near Eastern Parkway at 10:15 am when the menace stomped up to her and started swinging. The brute clocked her three times in the face, cops said. Hot spot An indigent man threatened a motorists life over the matter of a parking spot on St. Johns Place on Oct. 4. The victim told police that he was attempting to park his car between Fifth and Sixth avenues at 6:15 pm when the irate nut ran over to claim the spot as his own and threatened to shoot the victim if he didnt scram. The victims assailant is a known homeless man, although it remains unclear if he owns a car, or a gun for that matter, cops said. Pedal pushers Thieves absconded with two bikes within the 78th Precinct on Oct. 1 The first theft occurred on Fifth Avenue after 4 am, when a victim chained his bike between Garfield Place and Carroll Street, only to return a few hours later to find it stolen. Later that day, another victim secured his bike to a rack near Eastern Parkway at 3 pm, and returned a few days later to an empty spot. Colin Mixson Porter is getting to umpire his second World Series Alan Porter is working his second World Series as an umpire. He'll be behind home plate if the Phillies and Astros need a Game 7. A film crew covering the Dakota Access Pipeline protests says they were accosted by protesters and prevented from leaving the camp in southern Morton County when they started asking questions about how protesters were using fossil fuels. Filmmaker Phelim McAleer said he was assaulted while conducting an interview and he and his crew held hostage in their vehicle for 30 minutes when they attempted to leave the camp Tuesday, Oct. 18. It was a mob scene and there was no leadership and nobody in charge and we feared for our lives, McAleer told Forum News Service on Wednesday. McAleer, one of the filmmakers behind FrackNation, a documentary that aimed to counter the anti-fracking movie Gasland, said he was reporting on the pipeline protest for the FrackNation Facebook page. McAleer, producer Magdalena Segieda and a local photographer, who McAleer declined to identify, spent time at the camp on Monday and covered two protests in Bismarck-Mandan. We werent asking many questions at that stage, we were observing and filming, McAleer said. About 10 a.m. Tuesday, they were conducting interviews near the kitchen area of the camp and asked questions that included how the protesters traveled to the camp and pointed out that the tents were made from plastic, a product of oil. Theyre using fossil fuels to come and protest fossil fuels, McAleer said. Is this not a contradiction, is this not hypocrisy? During one interview, McAleer said a man lunged at him, grabbed the microphone and elbowed and pushed him trying to take away the microphone. The crew then realized it was an unsafe situation and went to their vehicle to leave. Vehicles blocked them from leaving and a crowd McAleer estimated at about 30 surrounded the vehicle. Some had sticks, others threatened to slash their tires and others were demanding the video be deleted. Some also shook the car and punched the windows, according to the filmmakers. Morton County Sheriffs Department spokeswoman Donnell Preskey said authorities are investigating the incident for possible charges including terrorizing and felonious restraint, and officers have reviewed the video recorded by the filmmakers, part of which was shown to reporters at a press conference Wednesday afternoon. This is a public location that this campsite is on, and that is not acceptable to not allow people to leave their camp, Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said, referring to the camps location on U.S. Army Corps of Engineers land. Bismarck Police Lt. Glen Ternes, who was among the dozen officers in five squad cars that responded to the scene, described seeing the maroon Chevy Traverse being shaken by people in bandanas and blocked in by a white pickup. Authorities didnt want to go into the camp but would have if necessary, he said. I had to say please in the PA to get them to release that vehicle, and that just basically was because we were sitting there and I cant tell you the number but there was a lot of bandanas, a lot of people that were really riled up, and I had 12 officers there, he said. McAleer disputed a social media report that the crew was filming children and said all interviews were conducted in a public area of the camp. McAleer, who has been a journalist for 30 years and covered The Troubles conflict in Northern Ireland, said the most frightening thing was so many people there willing to do so many crazy things. There seemed to be no voice of reason there, he said. Anything could have happened. The crew called 911, but cell reception was poor and they were unsure if police were on their way. For both of us, it was most the terrifying experiences of our lives, McAleer said. After being trapped in their vehicle for 30 minutes, the journalists were able to leave with a police escort after law enforcement arrived and were taken to the Morton County law enforcement center in Mandan, where they were interviewed. They were staying at the Prairie Knights Casino and Resort on the Standing Rock reservation but decided to change hotels after some protesters approached them at the hotel and began filming them. Its an amazing situation where journalists need a police escort, McAleer said. McAleer said he does not plan to return to the camp and said journalists should not cover the protest if theyre not allowed to ask the pipeline opponents difficult questions. Whats very clear is that when journalists dont ask softball questions, then they get attacked and assaulted and put in fear for your lives, he said. This sends out a very clear message we wont want difficult questions. Cody Hall, a spokesman for the Red Warrior Camp within the Oceti Sakowin Camp where the incident took place, said he didnt witness Tuesdays incident but added journalists who obey the camps house rules are treated with respect. If you had the intention to kind of stir the pot, youd better be able to take the steam, as well, he said. Groups suing the State Health Council for approving new radioactive disposal rules at an illegally noticed meeting are asking the judge to award attorney fees plus $1,000 in damages. They also are seeking a determination that, even though the council later ratified its decision at a properly noticed meeting, the rules are not retroactive and can be voided. The suit was brought by the Dakota Resource Council and the North Dakota Energy Industry Waste Coalition. The groups initially asked the court to find the council in violation of the states public meetings laws after it approved new radioactive disposal rules at a meeting without giving the public proper notice. The council later decided to hold a do-over meeting without waiting for the court. In August a year after the illegal meeting the council ratified the new rules. The groups attorney, Sarah Vogel, said the do-over meeting did not make the initial lawsuit moot, and the judge still should make a decision on it to create case law on the topic. There is no reason to assume that similar violations of the open meetings law will not occur again and again unless the court steps in to clarify the law, impose appropriate sanctions and direct the attorney general to undertake appropriate steps for compliance, Vogel said in court filings. Further, although the council ratified the new rules, it did not expressly declare them to be retroactive as is required, she said; and therefore, they can be voided by the court. latest news October 31, 2022 Buddy TV In November, there are hundreds of new and returning TV showsit can be overwhelming to try and choose what to watch. That's why we've selected some of the best options... Emotions run deep on This Is Us, which isnt afraid to push the envelope a little bit. Just four episodes into the first season, The Pool brings up the topic of racism and even bullying. During a heat wave, Rebecca and Jack struggle to keep their cool, literally, at the local pool. In present day, Kate learns something unexpected about Toby, while Kevin heads to his first Broadway audition. Meanwhile, Williams presence is bringing up some tough memories for Randall. 10 Heartbreaking This Is Us Moments from Kyle >>> Keeping Their Cool Things we take for granted nowadays include central air! But in the 80s, Rebecca and Jack struggle to keep cool after their A/C breaks. So Jack suggests a fun, relaxing day at the pool. A reluctant Rebecca agrees, and they head off. At first, its fun and games, as Jack races around to find available chairs. But soon, Rebecca is no longer relaxed as she makes sure each of her kids are lathered up in sunscreen and sticking close by. Of course, this lasts all of five minutes, as Kate heads off to talk to some classmates, with a worried Rebecca concerned about Kate wearing a two-piece, fearing cruel kids. Her nightmare comes true when Kate is handed a note from one of the girls saying they dont want to play with her anymore. As Jack races around the pool, still in search of chairs, Randall sneaks off, leaving Kevin in the pool by himself. A frantic Rebecca and Jack search for Randall, and Rebecca finds him playing with a black family. At first, the tensions are slightly high as the mother is passive-aggressive toward Rebecca. Rebecca gets defensive about her son, and as she storms off, the woman offers her tips on how to properly cut Randalls hair to avoid razor burn. Meanwhile, Kevin is still in the pool with no one watching as Rebecca and Jack deal with their other children. They find the cruel note given to Kate, while Randall scribbles some numbers in a notebook. Kevin swims too far into the deep end and almost drowns. He freaks out on his parents, saying they dont care about him. Jack makes it right, though, reassuring him that they do love him. A now-calm Rebecca heads back over to the black family and asks the woman for the name of a good barber. The woman is kind and starts to write it down as she offers Rebecca tips on how to care for Randalls skin. Rebecca, seemingly grateful now, suggests they make a play date soon, and the woman gladly accepts the invitation. And Jack cheers Kate up by giving her his favorite T-shirt, telling her a story about how its magic. Stalking is Research, Right? Kate and Toby are out eating a healthy lunch when Toby runs into his ex-wife, Josie, who happens to be very pretty and thin, much to Kates dismay. This information sends Kate into a downward spiral, as she cyber-stalks Josie. She even takes it a step further and goes into the shop that Josie owns. When Josie asks if shes there about the job opening, Kate finds herself on a job interview, which she eventually gets. Toby obviously flips out on her. Kate pulls the I have issues card yet again, but Toby isnt having it. He explains that the reason he got divorced is because Josie was cruel to him. She cheated and lied throughout the marriage. He explains that after the divorce, he gained almost 100 pounds and had suicidal thoughts. He wants Kate to know that everyone has issues, including him. She apologizes and says that her issues just wont go away overnight, and Toby says neither will he. I mean, can this guy be any more perfect for Kate? She agrees that she wont take the job. Making It in the Big Apple After Kevin lands in New York, he calls Randall to let him know hes on the East Coast. Then he heads to his first Broadway audition, which he shows up late to. He starts by telling the director and playwright that hes not just another Los Angeles movie star wanting to break into the business. He wants them to take him seriously, except that the audition goes horribly wrong. The actress hes paired up with, Olivia, is exhausted and doesnt even want to let him audition. After the audition, Kevin runs into Olivia on the street. She asks him to get a drink. At the bar, she suggests, as a friend, that he move back to Los Angeles, as she wouldnt want to see him fail. However, after she goes through her whole speech, she gets a text that Kevin got the part and she storms out of the bar. This is Us Recap: Everything You Need to Know >>> Black and White Randalls kids seem to be adjusting well to the news that William is their grandfather. One morning, William heads out for a walk in the neighborhood when hes stopped by a security officer. When Randall heads out to find out whats up, the officer explains that someone called him about a person loitering in the area. He apologizes when Randall explains that William is staying with him, and the couple who called security apologizes too. Later on at a clothing shop, Randall confronts William about the incident. He explains that he chooses to ignore racism around him and just let things go, and perhaps William has to do the same. However, later that night, Randall cant let the feelings go as his daughter plays Snow White in the school play. He notices the irony of a black child playing Snow White and tries to ignore the laughter in the audience. Back at home, he has another chat with William. He explains how even though he grew up in an all-white family, that doesnt mean he didnt suffer. He tells William about the notebook he kept as a child and that he would mark down in the book every time he met another black person while growing up. He adds that he always wondered if any of the black men he met were his father. William then apologizes for everything and tells Randall that hes a good man. Just as Randall and William are sharing, the doorbell rings. As he gets up to answer the door, Randall passes a photo of his family with the woman from the pool. At the door is Kevin, and his nieces are thrilled! Kevin says he wants to crash with Randall, and both Beth and Randall reluctantly agree. Randall then introduces William to Kevin as his biological father, and William is thrilled. Hes also super pumped that The Manny is Randalls brother. Tough Subjects Racism, obesity, bullying. The list can go on and on about issues that people deal with on a daily basis, some more serious than others but all important to the people dealing with them. This Is Us seems to be taking them all on, just in small doses. I think Mandy Moore did a good job portraying a very stressed-out mother, just wanting whats right for her family, but at the same time its clear shes in over her head. Rebecca doesnt seem prepared for motherhood. But then again, what parent is fully ready when children are born? Especially triplets. It was nice to see Jack stepping up, but I am still curious about what happens to him! I like that Kevin is in New York and facing things he hasnt faced before, though its clear that hes always felt like the left-out child. So Im curious how staying with Randall will play out. And Kate needs to lighten up. Im curious about more of her backstory and why she is the way she is. To me, shes slightly self-absorbed, always talking about her issues with her weight and her insecurities. Im glad Toby finally stood up to her, but Im also glad that he still looks past those qualities to see the good in Kate because they are good together. So what did you think of The Pool? Do you think This Is Us does a good job with tough topics? How do you like the time jumps? Let us know in the comments below. This Is Us season 1 airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on NBC. Want more news? Like our Facebook page. (Image courtesy of NBC) Abuse of some prescription drugs can be risk for college sexual assaults, regretted sex This study shows NMUPD, particularly anxiolytics/ sedatives, can have similar effects as alcohol, including slowed decision-making and physical coordination, which can decrease the ability to recognize danger or fend off a potential perpetrator. BUFFALO, N.Y. Numerous studies have found that heavy alcohol use by the victim and/or perpetrator is a factor in more than half of sexual assaults on college campuses. Now, research from the University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions has found the abuse of prescription drugs by college students also can play a role in negative sexual events such as sexual assault and regretted sex. RIA Senior Research Scientist Kathleen Parks, PhD, studied the effects of nonmedical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD) by college students, including opioid analgesics (such as Oxycodone), anxiolytics/sedatives (such as Xanax, Valium or Ambien) and stimulants (such as Adderall or Ritalin). NMUPD is defined as the use of a medication without a legal prescription. The research found that among the 1,755 students studied, more than 500 reported NMUPD, and of those, a significant number experienced negative sexual events. More than 14 percent of the students who abused prescription drugs experienced regretted sex, and among the female students, 7.1 percent reported being victims of sexual assault. Significantly, the only prescription drugs associated with regretted sex and sexual assault were anxiolytics/sedatives. The responsibility for rape or any sexual assault always falls squarely with the perpetrator, Parks says. This study shows NMUPD, particularly anxiolytics/sedatives, can have similar effects as alcohol, including slowed decision-making and physical coordination, which can decrease the ability to recognize danger or fend off a potential perpetrator. The study did not find that nonmedical use of opioid analgesics or stimulants was associated with negative sexual events. NMUPD is an increasing public health concern, particularly among emerging and young adults, Parks said. Given the results of this study, parents and college administrators should be concerned about the relationship we found between nonmedical use of anxiolytics/sedatives and negative sexual events, and find ways to educate students about the potential dangers. The study is available online and will appear in a special issue of the journal Addictive Behaviors in December. Its co-authors are Michael Frone, PhD, senior research scientist at RIA, Mark Muraven, PhD, Department of Psychology, University at Albany, and Carol Boyd, PhD, RN, FAAN, University of Michigan School of Nursing. RIA is a research center of the University at Buffalo and a national leader in the study of alcohol and substance abuse issues. RIAs research programs, most of which have multiple-year funding, are supported by federal, state and private foundation grants. Located on UBs Downtown Campus, RIA is a member of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus and a key contributor to UBs reputation for research excellence. To learn more, visit buffalo.edu/ria. Campus News UB receives EPA Green Power Leadership Award UB currently is using nearly 213 million kilowatt-hours of green power annually, enough to meet 100 percent of the universitys overall electricity use. The university is generating electricity from on-site solar energy systems, including the 3,200-panel Solar Strand on the North Campus. Photo: Douglas Levere By DAVID J. HILL EPAs annual Green Power Leadership Awards recognize the countrys leading green power users for their commitment and contribution to helping advance the development of the nations voluntary green power market. EPA presented UB with a Green Power Partner of the Year award Monday at the 2016 Renewable Energy Markets Conference in San Francisco. UB was one of only three organizations nationwide to be chosen as a Green Power Partner of the Year. With this award, EPA recognizes Green Power Partners who distinguish themselves through their leadership, overall strategy and impact on the green power market. UB is currently using nearly 213 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually, which is enough to meet 100 percent of the universitys overall electricity use. In addition, the school is generating electricity from on-site solar energy systems. These include the 3,200-panel Solar Strand installed in 2012, and a series of panels on the roof of Norton Hall. By choosing clean, renewable energy, UB is accelerating the transition to a more sustainable energy future. UB is honored to be recognized by the EPA as a national leader in using clean, renewable energy, said Laura Hubbard, vice president for finance and administration. We are committed to making UB a more sustainable campus through a variety of green power initiatives. UB ranks No. 1 on EPAs Top 30 College and University list and No. 32 on the National Top 100 list. Each list highlights EPA Green Power Partners using the most renewable energy annually as of July 6, 2016. EPA updates its Top Partner Rankings quarterly. Green power is zero-emissions electricity that is generated from environmentally preferable renewable resources, such as wind, solar, geothermal, biogas, eligible biomass and low-impact hydro. Using green power helps accelerate the development of new, renewable energy capacity nationwide and helps users reduce their carbon footprints. According to the EPA, UBs current green power use of nearly 213 million kWh is equivalent to the electricity use of more than 19,000 average American homes annually. UB strives to evolve, build resilience and minimize its environmental footprint, as most potently illustrated by its aggressive commitment to become climate neutral by 2030. The past 12 months have seen one success after another for UBs sustainability efforts. Earlier this fall, UB landed at No. 57 on the Sierra Clubs 2016 Cool Schools list, which ranks colleges and universities based on sustainability criteria. The Princeton Review recently ranked UB among the nations Top 50 Green Colleges. In May, UB was named one of three winners of Gov. Andrew Cuomos Energy to Lead competition. Last fall, UB submitted an exhaustive report on its sustainability efforts, which earned a gold certification as part of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Educations Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment & Rating System, or STARS. The Board of University and School Lands said Tuesday the state is not trying to claim oil and gas minerals under Lake Sakakawea as some mineral owners had feared based on the states response to recent lawsuits. Gov. Jack Dalrymple, chairman of the land board, recommended Tuesday that members pass a motion clarifying that the board has not changed its position on mineral ownership under the Missouri River. The land board has traditionally leased minerals under the Missouri River but not minerals under Lake Sakakawea, created by the Garrison Dam. However, attorneys representing the state have argued in recent lawsuits that there is no distinction between the historical channel of the Missouri River and Lake Sakakawea, leading some mineral owners and oil industry representatives to question whether the state is trying to claim minerals under the lake. A motion passed unanimously Tuesday states that the land board has not changed its leasing practices under the Missouri River and Lake Sakakawea and board members would not do so unless directed by the Legislature. The lawsuits, including William S. Wilkinson v. the Board of University and School Lands, involve disputes over mineral ownership. Theres no question that because of the Wilkinson case and other cases and the way they are evolving, that some people are interpreting those cases to mean that well be doing things differently in the future, Dalrymple said. I dont think thats the case and I think we need to clear that up right now. State Treasurer Kelly Schmidt said some confusion could stem from the boards action in November 2015 to ask the state engineer for an estimate to survey the ordinary high water mark from the Highway 23 bridge to the Highway 85 bridge. I think there could have been an interpretation of that that said we were going in a different direction when we were just continuing to ask additional questions, Schmidt said. Secretary of State Al Jaeger said there was a misconception about what the board was doing by responding to lawsuits. We havent changed anything and we havent instituted any of these lawsuits, Jaeger said. Were just in a position where we have to respond to them. The land board consists of the governor, secretary of state, superintendent of public instruction, state treasurer and the attorney general. Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem was absent from the meeting. Ron Ness, president of the North Dakota Petroleum Council, said after the meeting that the land board provided the clarity that the industry and mineral owners were looking for. Clearly we hope that the attorneys on behalf of the land board do their due diligence on those lawsuits but not through those lawsuits seek to expand their ownership of the minerals, Ness said. Thats what the mineral interests and others were hoping to be clarified. World Series Game 3 postponed due to rain in Philly Rain is moving into Philadelphia and it could impact Game 3 of the World Series FARGO -- Democratic-NPL candidates for the North Dakota Legislature called upon top Republicans to withdraw their support of Donald Trump as the partys presidential candidate in light of his boasts that he made unwanted sexual advances against women. The Democrats said North Dakota Republicans have been virtually silent about Trumps conduct and statements, days after the recorded comments prompted some Republicans to withdraw their support. This is wrong, this is unacceptable, Karla Rose Hanson, a Democrat running for House in north Fargos District 44, said Tuesday. Enough is enough. What will it take to denounce Trump? Hanson and her fellow Democrats stood before a mosaic of blue posters asking What Will It Take? for Republicans, including legislative candidates, to denounce their presidential contender just three weeks before the Nov. 8 election. Hanson and fellow Democrats said Trumps comments make it more difficult for victims of sexual violence to come forward, and help to encourage a rape culture that makes it easier to abuse women. State Rep. Mary Schneider, who represents central Fargos District 21, said she has seen the damage rape and sexual abuse cause firsthand as a former police officer and as an attorney. Rape and sexual assault are about power and the abuse of power, she said. North Dakotans want leadership, said Rep. Josh Boschee, a House member in District 44. Unfortunately all we have heard is silence. Boschee said he hoped his Republican colleagues would have strongly denounced Trump, but said that so far that hasnt happened. Its twelve days and we still havent heard anything, he said. North Dakotas top Republican officeholders and candidates have issued statements critical of Trumps comments about groping women -- which some have called admissions of sexual assault, comments Trump later disavowed -- but have stopped short of calling for him to withdraw. Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., called Trumps comments offensive and wrong. He not only needs to apologize, he needs to show through his words and actions that he does not believe in the views expressed in the video. Since Hoeven made that statement on Oct. 8, Trump has not apologized, but has accused his female accusers and the news media of lying. Doug Burgum, the Republican nominee for governor, criticized Trumps remarks. These comments are offensive, wrong and unacceptable, he said in a statement at the time. It is disappointing that our presidential nominating system produced two flawed candidates. U.S. Rep. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., a staunch Trump supporter, said he continues to back Trump, who he has said is favored by North Dakota voters. I take my cue from North Dakotans, Cramer said, calling Trump a better choice than Hillary Clinton, the Democratic candidate. Kylie Oversen, a Grand Forks legislator and chairwoman of the North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party, said Trumps remarks raise concerns that go beyond politics. I dont think it should take political pressure to speak out about issues like this, she said. Chip Thomas and Lisa Nevada The Earth is turning away from the sun once again as we earthbound creatures pull on our hats and jackets to meet the new chill in the air. Overhead, the sandhill cranes, Western meadowlarks and American wigeons are arriving, while the chipping sparrows, blue-winged teals and Brewer's blackbirds are just beginning their long journeys southward to Mexico, South America and beyond. At the South Valley's Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge, the composition of the changing Earth is explored in the meditated movements of dancers and mural work wheat-pasted over the crumbling remains of a dairy barn. Together, the movement and the imagery articulates a different journey. Golden Migration is a collaborative work by dancer and choreographer Lisa Nevada and public artist and photographer Chip Thomas, aka jetsonorama. Thomas, who hails from North Carolina, has been living and working as a physician on the Navajo Nation since 1987. Through documentary photography translated to large-scale murals on underutilized structures, Thomas creates what he calls a love letter to the Navajo Nation. In addition to collaborating with Nevada on work at Valle de Oro, Thomas will also be creating a mural on the facade of 516 Arts. Both pieces are part of 516's DECADE programming, celebrating the beloved Downtown institution's 10 year anniversary. In anticipation of his upcoming work in Albuquerque, Thomas took some time out to illuminate his body of work. Alibi: How is healingin your work as a physician, for exampleand your art related? Thomas: There are definite parallels between my work as a physician and my work as a public artist. When I was in my middle school years in North Carolina I had a unique opportunity to attend a Quaker school where one of the things that was emphasized was consistency and continuity between one's work [and] spiritual life. I'm realizing this balance through my public art project. As a physician I work to help patients achieve wellness. I think of it as facilitating an environment of wellness within the individual; whereas my art, in reflecting back to the community some of the beauty they've shared with me, helps create a psychological environment of wellness. I see the two practices as being complimentary and though it sounds trite, I feel there's integration between the left and right hemispheres of my brain. Chip Thomas Do the landscapes of the Navajo Nation provide the ideal backdrop? Do they present any unique challenges? I'm originally from North Carolina. My most vivid memories of seeing the horizon there were on trips to the ocean. Here, I see the horizon daily in 360 degrees and in this enormity of space, [I] appreciate my place as but a grain of sand in the universe. The Southwest seems to demand work that is big and bold in order to be noticed, certainly, but also as part of a dialogue with the landscape. More specifically, I enjoy placing work on roadside stands, especially those that have fallen into disuse. I've had examples of the art reactivating these spaces. The other thing that can't be overlooked here is the quality of light as it changes over the course of a day and from season to season. I love appreciating subtle differences over time. What do you hope audiences gain from seeing your workboth audiences that live on the reservation, and those passing through? I see my primary audience for this work as being people on the reservation. I'm aware that motorists from all over the world pass though this area as they venture to the Grand Canyon, Lake Powell, Monument Valley and Canyon de Chelly; however, I'm hopeful people on the rez feel good about the work, themselves and their traditions in seeing [it]. Having said that, I've heard from non-Indigenous [motorists] passing through the area that the images help the rez seem more accessible. They get an idea of who is out here as they catch glimpses into the richness of the culture. What are your favorite places in the Navajo Nationnot just for presenting your workbut just to be and see and experience? I think my favorite spot to go sit and reflect on the meaning of life is up Highway 64 between the community of Cameron and the South Rim of the Grand Canyon along the Little Colorado River Gorge. As one climbs up to the South Rim you get an expansive view of the Painted Desert and lands beyond while looking at a deep, dark cleavage in the Earth. I find the Little Colorado River Gorge to be more immediate, personal and accessible than the Grand Canyon. Having said that however, I still ride my mountain bike regularly there's a series of canyons a mile from my house where there are ruins and arches. This canyon system extends 40 miles north to Lake Powell and the Escalante region in Utah. I ride my bike speeding past chasing dogs asking myself how I'll ever leave this place and its beauty. [It's put] an intoxicating spell on me for 29 years and counting. I've yet to come up with an exit strategy. Thomas, who hails from North Carolina, has been living and working as a physician on the Navajo Nation since 1987. Through documentary photography translated to large-scale murals on underutilized structures, Thomas creates what he calls a love letter to the Navajo Nation. How has your identity or personal history impacted the way you create and/or what you address in your work? In 1995 I was interviewed by the Utne Reader about my photography, my work on the rez and an amazing 12,000 [mile] bicycle expedition from the top of Africa to the bottom. In that interview I acknowledged how, as a person of color, I choose to have an inherent bias in my work in that I feel a need to counter the negative narrative that dominates much of the media. The struggle continues. As Bob Marley sang, "Who feels it, knows it." Social and environmental justice issues are present in your workwhat feels pressing now? I went to Paris last December, three weeks after the bombings, to attend the World Climate Summit. In the early 70s when I attended the Quaker school in the mountains of North Carolina, we were learning then about the greenhouse effect burning a hole in the ozone layer. That sensitivity to the planet and our impact on its resources for ourselves and future generations remains a pressing theme. One good thing about Arizona is it affords me multiple opportunities to be socially and politically engaged. The issues I've been most passionate about include climate change, climate justice, police violenceespecially against people of color criminal justice reform and gun violence. I've done some work addressing SB1070 (racial profiling of brown people), in Arizona. I'm a proponent of healthcare reform and universal access to care, but haven't generated any work around this yet. How was creating Golden Migration different from previous work? Well, I've done some interesting collaborations over the past couple years however, I've never collaborated with dancers before. I think what's interesting about the images I chose to present as public art [is the] focus on individuals within the company as opposed to group shots. While I appreciate form and pattern, I'm more intrigued with getting close to individuals and finding gestures or movements that speak to the universality of the human experience. In that sense this project really isn't different from what I normally do. How do you expect the dance component to deepen, change or express the idea differently? It's the difference between 2-D and 3-D. My work sets a theme, raises a question, the dancers answer the question and in so doing, dramatize the relationship between humans and the rest of the natural world. Visit 516 Arts (516 Central SW) to scope out mural work by Thomas; get an extra dose by making a reservation to see Lisa Nevada and Thomas' collaborative work, Golden Migration, in the form of a free dance tour at Valle de Oro on Saturday, Oct. 22, and Sunday, Oct. 23. The work will be performed at 3 and 5pm each day. Developers of a proposed nickel mine in northern Minnesota plan to move construction of its processing plant to North Dakota because of environmental concerns. Talon Metals has been under pressure from environmental groups and the Sandy Lake Band of Mississippi Chippewa about a plan to build the processing plant in Tamarack, about 50 miles west of Duluth. Talon says removing the processing facilities from the Tamarack mine site in Minnesota will significantly reduce land disturbance and the scope of environmental review and permitting. Talon is negotiating to buy an industrial brownsfield site in Mercer County, North Dakota. The company has received a $114 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy for the project. THE WEB OF FREEDOM J C Kumarappa and Gandhi's Struggle for Economic Justice Venu Madhav Govindu & Deepak Maghan Oxford University Press 358 pages; Rs 895 The Web of Freedom, a political biography of Mahatma Gandhi's close aide J C Kumarappa, comes at a critical juncture in Indian history. While on the one hand, the old understanding of capitalism's transformative powers has eroded, Dalits and other oppressed groups have taken to the streets, unable to bear the injustice that continues to be their lived experience despite being conferred political equality 66 years ago by the Constitution. British carmaker is planning to launch one new product every year globally and the same would come to India also, till 2020. The product line up includes a SUV, which would suit very well for India, said a senior official from the company. Meanwhile, the British marquee luxury automobile producer, which was witnessing slowdown in sales due to import duty hopes to sell around 10-12 units in India next year, said an official. Canadian alternative-asset-manager Brookfield, with $200 billion worth of assets under management, set up its office in Mumbai 2009. Anuj Ranjan, its managing partner for India office, did not make any investment in the first three years. Over the next three years, however, he invested in assets worth $2 billion. Unlock 30+ premium stories daily hand-picked by our editors, across devices on browser and app. Full access to our intuitive epaper - clip, save, share articles from any device; newspaper archives from 2006. Curated newsletters on markets, personal finance, policy & politics, start-ups, technology, and more. Pick your 5 favourite companies, get a daily email with all news updates on them. 26 years of website archives. Global accounting firm will pay $11.8 million to resolve allegations it failed to uncover deceptive tax practices at an oil services company, the US market regulator announced on Tuesday. The announcement follows September's settlement between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the oilfield services firm Weatherford International, which the SEC fined $140 million for fraudulently lowering its year-end tax provisions. The SEC said that Ernst & Young, one of the global "big four" accounting firms, had failed to detect the fraud for more than four years. Craig Fronckiewicz, the partner who coordinated the audits, and Sarah Adams, a former tax partner who was part of the audit team, both agreed to suspensions from handling the accounting of SEC-regulated firms to settle charges of having ignored "significant red flags" during the Weatherford audits and reviews, the SEC said in a statement. "The audit team was aware of post-closing adjustments that Weatherford was making to significantly lower its year-end provision for income taxes each year, but it relied on Weatherford's unsubstantiated explanations instead of performing the required audit procedures to scrutinise the company's accounting," the SEC said in a statement. Ernst & Young, which reached the settlement without admitting or denying the SEC's allegations, will pay $10.8 million in disgorgement and pre-judgment interest and a penalty of $1 million. Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault II said Tuesdays decision by law enforcement to remove the traffic checkpoint on North Dakota Highway 1806 is long overdue. It was always unnecessary, said Archambault, noting that hes been asking for its removal since it was set up in September. Law enforcement has said the checkpoint between Mandan and the Dakota Access Pipeline protest encampments was critical to protect motorists driving down the highway as well as protesters camped near the road or walking along it. Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said Wednesday there have been fewer people on the roadway, so he decided to move his limited resources elsewhere. Additional signage will remain at the former checkpoint site. The two to three dozen National Guard members who were manning the checkpoint are being reassigned to community outreach, according to Guard spokeswoman Amber Balken. The soldiers will visit with residents in rural Morton County, listen to people's concerns and report any illegal activities to local law enforcement. "We want to make sure we're taking care of those Morton County residents just like we've wanted to do all along," Balken said. Initially, Highway 1806 was barricaded and traffic toward the reservation was redirected to North Dakota Highway 6 because of protest activities that started in mid-August. Later, the barricade was rearranged so people could drive through, though people were often stopped there. Archambault said the checkpoint highlighted North Dakotas overreaction to the pipeline protest, which also is active in other states in which construction equipment has been burned and destroyed. You dont see those places declaring a state of emergency and sending up the Highway Patrol and National Guard. You only see that here, where people are trying to protect the water, he said. The chairman said hes thankful that despite the heightened threat brought by law enforcement, no major incidents have happened. Its pretty amazing with the number of people, and we continue to pray that no one gets hurt, he said. He said he has always emphasized that the action against the pipeline should be peaceful and prayerful. But we have a lot of guests from all over the world that are passionate about this, and they dont always conduct themselves in the best behavior. Were not all perfect, and it creates some disturbing results, the chairman said. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe does not encourage wrongful behavior. We say, do this in prayer and peace. Civil liberties groups also have criticized the checkpoint, though Morton County spokesman Rob Keller said this did not factor into the decision to remove it. In a statement released in September, Jennifer Cook, of the American Civil Liberties Union of North Dakota, said, "The states declaration of emergency, the highway roadblock and checkpoint, and National Guard call-up sets a tone of intimidation and signals its intent to silence and punish free speech." Samsung Electronics Co Ltd's U.S. unit is facing a proposed class action lawsuit from three Galaxy Note 7 customers, according to a filing in a federal court in Newark, New Jersey. The acquisition of rival firm Ibibo will give MakeMyTrip a dominant position in online air-ticketing and hotel business. Rajesh Magow, co-founder and India CEO of MakeMyTrip, explains the synergy benefits and strategy behind the transaction to Aneesh Phadnis. Excerpts: What kind of cost benefits and synergies can we see after this? What about margin growth? Well keep the MakeMyTrip and Ibibo brands intact and their distribution will remain separate. On the back end, there are opportunities for integration. We see synergies in contracting from hotels and other suppliers. We run separate customer service call centres and that could be integrated to bring more efficiencies. As a single entity, well have better negotiating power and the transaction allows us to optimise our advertising and marketing expense. We feel that margin growth will happen with the change in our revenue mix. Currently, our blended margin are 8-9 per cent and we expect that to increase with the growth in our hotel booking business. Currently, 50 per cent of our revenue is from hotel bookings and we expect it to increase to 70-75 per cent in the next three to four years. may prefer a higher rate at the top end of the goods and services tax (GST) bracket, rather than have a cess that is non-creditable by nature, with a cascading effect on the indirect tax system. Italy-based Bonfiglioli, which makes gearboxes, gear motors and inverters for the industrial automation and renewable energy sectors, is planning to expand capacity in India with an investment of about Rs 85 crore, by February 2018. Transmissions Pvt Ltd, the India-based subsidiary of the company, is targeting to reach Rs 1,000 crore turnover by 2020, from a revenue of around Rs 650 crore, posted last fiscal. The second draft of the regulations, which were notified by the Union health ministry on Wednesday, four months after the first draft was issued, have once again drawn flak. The fresh rules, while dividing the into four groups on the basis of risk, have capped their shelf life at five years. Companies, mostly multinationals (MNCs), protested saying the rules were too stringent, citing global norm of 10-year validity for . Consumers can now select a cab-hailing service from after typing in requests for taxi to Delhi, or Ola/Uber to airport, for example. They will see a tab for Uber and Ola, with fare estimates and pick-up times. Ola and Uber are cab-hailing apps. When a user requests for taxi to Delhi or Ola/Uber to airport, the app or browser will ask the user to select a service and open the app to book the ride. In case the user doesn't have the Ola/Uber app installed on the device, will show a link to install the app. "Choosing the best transit option can be a task at times. Our aim is to help users simplify their everyday travel. With this, users will be able to order, explore, and make quick comparisons about the best estimated taxi fare directly from Google Search results on their mobile," Google program manager Sanket Gupta said. Earlier this year, the feature was put on Google Maps. Ola said the move helped facilitate its focus on making cab bookings more accessible and seamless for customers everywhere. With sharp words and sharper actions, the Supreme Court is putting its might behind hapless home buyers who have for long suffered at the hands of developers. Over the past two days, the apex court has taken to task two developers and ordered them to refund investors' money at once for failure to deliver projects. Kirloskar Motor on Wednesday announced a partnership with ride hailing app Uber, giving 90 per cent funding to driver on the Uber platform to buy Etios and Liva models. Toyota's Financial arm, Financial Services India Ltd. (TFSIN) will provide the funding on-road funding of the cost for first time drivers. The funding scheme encompasses vehicle cost, accessories, service packages, registration road tax and insurance. The scheme will be applicable till December. Kirloskar Motor has collaborated with Uber offering major support to first time aggregator customers through this scheme. " We believe the 90% on road funding scheme will lead to a positive growth in the ride-sharing market. This initiative is another step closer to changing the dynamics of mobility needs of an average Indian and we are glad to be part of it. Fleet operators across India today have understood the value proposition of Etios. Etios & Liva have set a safety benchmark in the industry," said N Raja, Director & Senior Vice President (Sales & Marketing), Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt. Ltd said, " Toyota vehicles are among the most popular cars on the Uber platform worldwide. We are proud to partner with Toyota India to boost grassroots entrepreneurship," said Amit Jain, president, Uber India. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has agreed to dedicate a parcel of land near the community of Cannon Ball to a winter camp for people who plan to continue to participate in the anti-Dakota Access Pipeline movement. Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault II said Tuesdays 8-5 vote sets the stage for a process to partition the acreage, located on the south side of the paved access road to Cannon Ball about a quarter-mile off North Dakota Highway 1806. He said the partitioning is required because the tribe doesnt have a full interest in the land and has to obtain agreement from private individuals who share in it. Archambault said he hopes that can happen quickly, so that preparations to create shelters for pipeline activists can get underway. If people are willing to stay and continue the fight against Dakota Access Pipeline, we have to be more proactive in creating a safe place for people to take shelter, he said. The tribe has always been supportive of everyone whos been supportive of us. A working group of camp associates has developed a plan for the winter camp, including some central buildings for gathering, food preparation and dining; an educational facility; dwellings; and access to renewable energy. Tom Goldtooth, executive director of the Indigenous Environmental Network, said Tuesdays decision by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Council is a very positive step forward. It allows us to order materials for the main Mandan earth lodge. Teepees are coming in, and the structures for infrastructure need to start happening, Goldtooth said. Archambault said he is not trying to control who lives where this winter, but he is trying to ensure people who come to help have options during extreme winter conditions. I dont dictate, and I dont control. I work with people, and were doing our best to do that, he said. The land west of Cannon Ball was one of three possible locations for the camp. All were near the community of about 800 people that is already the gateway community to the original Sacred Stones spirit camp, which now has about 100 people living on the outskirts of town. The site picked Tuesday is the most easily accessible from Highway 1806. It's about 4 miles from the large overflow encampment that spontaneously formed when the pipeline activism started up in mid-August. Goldtooth estimates about 1,000 people are still in the overflow camp and that about 500 people will remain through the winter. He said he doesnt know exactly how many would move to a winter camp, but said it would be a good move for three reasons. The first is to move out of the Cannonball River floodplain, where the overflow camp sits now, in case theres high water in the spring. The second is that the new camp could be more well-thought-out than one that grew organically as people started coming in by the hundreds and, eventually, by the thousands. The third reason is the continued uncertainty of being on land owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which is under an extended grazing lease, he said. Theres already been feedback that some people want options. Some people will stay in the overflow camp, and some say if theres a winter camp they want to go there, Goldtooth said. He said the winter camp will be completed by volunteers with donated money and materials. Robert Fool Bear, the Cannon Ball district chairman, said the town has been welcoming to the anti-pipeline activists, though there are some concerns about strangers in town. He said the district did not want to decide if the camp should be set up there, out of the belief that the decision belonged to the tribal council. Bengaluru-based wealth management app Fisdom has raised Rs 7.33 crore ($1.1 million) from . The company will use these funds to further invest in technology, team expansion and customer acquisition, a press release stated. Wipro, India's third largest software exporter is expected to see subdued growth and see pressure on margins in the second quarter. After creating waves with its affordable smartphones in India, Chinese smartphone giant is now looking to make inroads into the country's hinterland for which it has partnered with rural-focused retail platform Storeking. The process of laying the 15-km-long railway track connecting Agartala to Bangladesh's Akhaura region will be completed in two and a half years, an official at the Ministry of External Affairs(MEA) said on Wednesday. "Of the total track, a stretch of five kms will be on the Indian side and the rest in Bangladesh. The project would be completed in two and a half years," told the MEA Joint Secretary, A K Gupte, while addressing a group of reporters at Agartala. According to Gupte, the total cost of the project, which is worth Rs 972.52 crore, would be borne by the government of India, adding that the Indian side was being funded by the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region. Whereas the MEA was financing the project across the border. An eight-member-team led by Bangladesh's Additional Secretary of Roads and Railway, Sashi Singh, met a group of Indian delegates led by Gupte at Agartala on Wednesday. This is the fifth meeting of the project's steering committee. Officials said, acquisition of lands on the Indian side have already begun. New Delhi is keen to establish a rail link, which will connect West Bengal and Tripura through Bangladesh. The Agartala-Akhaura railway route will connect Indian Railways with Bangladesh rail network to improve connectivity and boost trade between the two countries. The neighbouring country had agreed to lay tracks between Akhaura and Agartala during its Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to New Delhi in January 2010. At least some of the Indian language may start appearing in the internet domain names next year, effectively ending the monopoly of English over the internet medium in the country. The process of finalising the necessary rule sets for 22 Indian languages identified by Government of India was progressing towards this direction, say the Indian officials involved in this exercise. The Maharashtra government said on Wednesday it was bringing forward the start of the sugarcane crushing season to November 5, instead of the earlier date of December 1, for 2016-17. The state cabinet took the decision. In a bid to push for adoption of cleaner fuels by state transport corporations, the Green Tribunal (NGT) on Wednesday yet again rapped states for not clearly spelling out their compressed natural gas (CNG) policies. growers in Karnataka, earlier pinched by a drop in production and price, are now feeling the heat from a crash in price of arecanut, a major intercrop (growing in alternate rows or sections in the same field) for them. The price of arecanut (better known as the source for the betel nut or supari) has dropped over a year from nearly Rs 75,000 a quintal to Rs 25,000-30,000 a qtl. Around two-fifth of the country's crop (India is the world's biggest producer and consumer) comes from Karnataka. ST. THOMAS -- A woman who shot her husband at their home in St. Thomas will not face charges, but her spouse could spend more than 30 years in prison after investigators said he was the first to pull the trigger. Brandon Allen Thompson, 31, was charged last week in Pembina County District Court with a Class A felony attempted murder charge, Class C felony counts of aggravated assault and terrorizing, and a Class A misdemeanor charge of reckless endangerment after investigators said he opened fire on Edward Kennelly while he was visiting Thompsons wife, Lora. Though Lora Thompson shot and injured her husband, an investigation revealed criminal charges against her were not warranted, Pembina County States Attorney Ryan Bialas told the Herald on Tuesday. After lining up the distances, the trajectories and the statements, BCI (Bureau of Criminal Investigation) told me it would be inappropriate to file charges on this case, he said, referring to Lora Thompsons involvement in the shooting. As a prosecutor, if the forensics are not there, ethically, I cant file charges. Brandon Thompson came home Thursday to find another man in his house with his wife, investigators said. An argument broke out and Brandon Thompson fired a 9mm Luger handgun at Kennelly from 5 feet away, but he was not injured, according to court documents. During a struggle, Brandon Thompsons gun was dislodged, according to investigators. When witnesses said he went after a military-style rifle, Lora Thompson grabbed the dislodged handgun and fire at least three shots at her husband, with one hitting him in the back, according to investigators. Brandon Thompson was arrested but since has been released on bond. The decision to not press charges against Lori Thompson was based on forensic reports from the BCI, interviews and statements from witnesses and information disseminated from debriefings, Bialas said. The Sheriffs Department also didnt file criminal charges against Lora Thompson, a step prosecutors use in deciding if a case should go to court. Everyone was under agreement with the evidence that we had, it just was not appropriate to file charges against her, Bialas said. Lora Thompson claimed her actions justified self-defense, telling Forum News Service she was consoling a friend, and her husband misinterpreted the situation. While there is evidence Brandon Thompson did not want Kennelly at the Thompson house, investigators and Bialas agreed Lora Thompson acted in self-defense. Some have been critical of the lack of charges against Lora Thompson, with one group of people starting a petition on www.change.org to have Brandon Thompsons case dropped. The online petition stated he had no intention of killing Kennelly and was just trying to scare him away with a warning shot. The petition defending Brandon Thompson as an amazing dad of two boys had gathered more than 460 supporters as of 4:30 p.m. Tuesday. Bialas said his office wanted to be transparent about why no charges would be filed against Lora Thompson. Brandon Thompson faces 20 years in prison and a $20,000 fine for the Class A felony, five years in prison and a $10,000 fine for each Class C felony and one year in prison and a $3,000 fine for the misdemeanor charge. His next court appearance is Nov. 30. Forum News Service contributed to this report. The central government will establish at least one (KVK, agriculture science centre) in each of the 646 districts in country. Of this, 100 will have special facilities for skill development, while an equal number will be converted into pulses and oilseeds hubs, agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh said on Wednesday. Confident that 'Make in India' will transform the nation into a manufacturing powerhouse, Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh on Tuesday said India is seen as the sole bright sport in a troubled global . "India is now being seen as the sole bright spot in a troubled global . When foreign investors look at India, they feel confident and reassured. Nearly $26 billion has flowed into the country this year so far since we opened the floodgates for FDI across sectors," he said. He further said that there is no alternative to a robust manufacturing sector to uplift the over 1.25 billion people of this country and 'Make in India' programme will help in achieving this goal. Talking about the steel sector, Singh said that in 2015 India became the world's third largest producer of the metal and will take the second spot in a few months. The country led the growth in steel production and consumption globally in 2015 and the trend is continuing this year as well, he noted. He said the government is taking policy measures to further boost steel demand in the country. "R&D can be used to develop cost effective, environment friendly and new technologies. It can also be used to develop new products that can help in promoting steel usage. Pre-fabricated structures, steel toilets and other such innovative usages can be adopted using R&D," Singh added. 'Make in India' can help in a big way by focussing on R&D in the steel industry, whether it is in defence, space or nuclear power, which will help in two ways -- reducing outflow of foreign currency and inculcating a sense of pride in domestic technologies, the minister said. "The government is also taking steps to ensure that quality steel is available to Indian consumers. This is very important from the health and safety point of view," he said. On Monday, US defence giant became the first international vendor to respond to an Indian Air Force (IAF) letter, soliciting interest in building a single-engine, medium fighter aircraft in India, with full transfer of technology. With a view to attracting more IT companies in the state and provide space for offices and other purpose, state will soon expand its existing 'Crystal IT park' in Indore. "It would be a new IT park where we will offer more space to the existing and potential investors," Rajendra Prasad Shukla state industry minister told Business Standard. The state is likely to showcase the propsed park in teh forthcoming global investors summit to be hosted in Indore on 22-23 of this month. For millions in the country, the (PMUY) may be a harbinger of access to energy, but four-month-old Varshas hapless fate has raised concerns about the programme. Three financial institutions, including the BSE, have faced cyber attacks in the last three months. Several banks have faced an increase in some form of cyber attack or security breach in recent times. The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh inaugurated the celebration to commemorate the Canonization of Saint Mother Teresa here today. The event was jointly organised by the Catholic Bishops Conference of India, Archdiocese of Delhi, Diocese of Faridabad and Diocese of Gurugram. . . During the occasion, Shri Rajnath Singh said that Saint Mother Teresa has always been referred as Mother because of the love given to her, as a Mother. He said that from Macedonia, Alexander came to India to conquer land but Saint Mother Teresa came with love to conquer hearts. The Home Minister said that diversified language in India could not act as a barrier to Saint Mother Teresa, because she knew the language of smile and it has been acknowledged across the world. . . Shri Rajnath Singh said that as per Hindu culture, whole world is considered as one family and there comes no hatred, when we see others as a part of family. He further said that India is a university of tolerance and for peaceful coexistence, tolerance is the building block. . . Shri Rajnath Singh said that full security will be provided by the Government for all those who work towards humanity, in India. Recalling attacks on Minorities during the previous election in Delhi, he assured that Minorities will be protected in all possible ways. . . The Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) Shri Oscar Fernandes, Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, Cardinal Telesphore Toppo, Cardinal Oswald Gracias, Cardinal George Alencherry and other dignitaries were also present. . . Inland Waterways Authority of India awards contract for construction of Multi - Modal terminal at Sahibganj The multi-modal terminal at Sahibganj in Jharkhand is soon to become a reality. The Inland Waterways Authority of India has recently awarded the contract for construction of the terminal to Larson & Tourbo (L&T). With the targeted completion of Phase -1 in 2019, the state of the art terminal will have a cargo handling capacity of 2.28 MMTPA. Given Jharkhands coal reserves of nearly 80 billion tonnes, the location of the multi modal terminal at Sahibganj is especially significant. It will play an important role in transportation of domestic coal from the local mines to intended thermal power plants owing to its good railway connectivity . Besides coal, stone-chips are also expected to be transported through the terminal. The multi modal terminal will have facilities including berthing space for two vessels, stockyard for storing, belt conveyor system with fixed hoppers, barge loader, shore protection works, roads, ramps and parking area, and terminal buildings. The Sahibganj terminal is the second out of the three multi-modal terminals planned under the Ganga Jal Marg Vikas Project, to be awarded for construction in a record time. Earlier in May, IWAI awarded the contract to construct a multi-modal terminal at Varanasi to AFCONS Infrastructure Ltd. The third terminal will be constructed at Haldia in West Bengal. The Government is developing National Waterway-1 under the Jal Marg Vikas Project, with technical and financial assistance of the World Bank at an estimated cost of Rs. 4,200 crore. The project would enable commercial navigation of vessels with capacity of 1500-2,000 tons. Phase-I of the project covers the Haldia-Varanasi stretch. The project includes development of fairway, Multi-Modal Terminals at Varanasi, Haldia, and Sahibganj, strengthening of river navigation system, conservancy works, modern River Information System (RIS), Digital Global Positioning System (DGPS), night navigation facilities, modern methods of channel marking, construction of a new state of the art navigational lock at Farakka. MoU Signed between NICPR and All India Institute of Ayurveda for Cancer Prevention and Research An MoU was signed here today between the National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research (NICPR), an autonomous institute under Department of Health Research, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA), an autonomous institute under the Ministry of AYUSH. The main objective of the MoU is to set up a Center of Integrative Oncology at NICPR-Noida as joint venture of Ministry of AYUSH and Department of Health Research, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare for collaboration in the areas of cancer prevention, research and Care. The MoU was signed by Prof. Abhimanyu Kumar, Director- AIIA and Prof. Ravi Mehrotra, Director- NICPR in the presence of Shri Ajit M. Sharan, Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH, and Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, Secretary, Department of Health Research (Ministry of Health & Family Welfare) & Director General, Indian Council for Medical Research. This MoU would pave the way to carry forward the ongoing bilateral dialogue and facilitate collaboration with National Cancer Institute, USA. Setting up of this Centre is an outcome of the deliberations held in Indo-US Workshop where in the invited US delegates from Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), National Institute of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NIH) deliberated with the eminent experts from India having expertise in Cancer research and other promising areas for two days to share experiences and work out a road map for future collaborations. Dr. Swaminathan while appreciating the initiative observed that the main aim should be to reduce the incidence of cancer for which preventive aspects with the strengths of AYUSH systems should be explored. She viewed that the collaborative research should aim at developing traditional medicine as adjuvant therapy to reduce the side effects of chemotherapy. She emphasized on collaborative studies both short term and long term involving institutions of repute at national and international level. Shri Sharan appreciated the efforts and assured that funding would not be a constraint in carrying out the activities under the MoU. He outlined the five major action points as follows:- Awarding 10 new research fellowships every year - The process for the first batch will be completed by March, 2017. Minimum of five collaborative research projects will be supported in the financial year 2016-2017. Ministry would also develop few Centres of Excellence for cancer research and has identified the AIIA and the Rajaram Deo Anadilal Poddar Ayurveda Cancer Research Institute, Mumbai, a unit of Centre Council for Research in Ayurveda Sciences (CCRAS). This would be done by March, 2017. A Steering Committee and Scientific Advisory committee would be jointly constituted by the Ministry of AYUSH and the Department of Health Research, Ministry of Health & F.W by Dec, 2016 International Conferences would be organised annually. On this significant occasion, a Web portal on Network for AYUSH Cancer Care (NFACC) developed by the AIIA was also launched by Secretary, AYUSH. The portal would help to collect the national data of experts, scientists, practitioners, institutes, universities located across the country and engaged in cancer care & research. An online App of NFACC has also been developed. This app will be available on the website of various AYUSH institutions which will provide a hyperlink to the main Portal. In future, this portal will have collection of research papers related to Cancer care, information about the facilities available for Cancer care through AYUSH systems. NB/SK (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) PM sanctions ex-gratia relief for the victims of fire accident in Bhubaneswar SUM Hospital, Odisha Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has sanctioned an ex-gratia relief @ Rs.2 lakh each to the next of kin of the persons deceased and @ Rs.50,000/- each to the persons, who got seriously injured in the fire accident that occurred in the Bhubaneswar SUM hospital, Odisha on 17.10.2016, from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) President of India to Inaugurate 28th Accountants General Conference Tomorrow in National Capital President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee will inaugurate the 28th Accountants General Conference being organized by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India here on 20th October, 2016. Lok Sabha Speaker, Ms. Sumitra Mahajan, Public Accounts Committee Chairman, Prof. K V Thomas and CAG of India, Shri Shashi Kant Sharma will also address the Conference. On the second day of the conference Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley will address the officers. The Accountants General from all over the country will participate in the conference and will review the international best practices prevalent in audit and accounting. Besides the main theme, they will deliberate upon four brain storming sessions on (i) Auditing the programmes related to Sustainable Development Goals (ii) Meeting Challenges in Revenue Audit (iii) Impact of Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS)on Accounts & Entitlement (A&E) Functions & (iv) Audit of Local Bodies: Perspectives & Concerns. The recommendations emerging out of these sessions will be presented to the full assembly chaired by the CAG with all the Dy. CAGs and Addl. Dy. CAGs present. The environment in which audited entities, and consequently audit, functions is very dynamic - both in terms of structure and methods of implementation of public policy as well as the practice of audit and accounting. In order to keep pace with this dynamic environment, it is important that the IA&AD keeps reinventing and rejuvenating itself. A regular internal and external consultative process facilitates this effort to adapt and upgrade professional practices and methods of functioning. With this view, the IA&AD regularly organizes seminars, conferences and workshops. The Accountants General Conference is a prime platform where the entire top level management of the IA&AD come together once in two years to review, discuss and recommend the direction in which the IA&AD needs to move in order to deliver its mandated duties in the best possible manner. It offers a forum for exchange of ideas, grappling with evolving issues and experience sharing. . Indian Audit and Accounts Department (IA&AD), headed by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, constantly strives to discharge its professional duties, both as an auditor and an accountant, in accordance with the international best practices. Today auditors are seen as partners in improving the governance, and audit reports serve as an aid to governments. In the public domain there is an increasing awareness and demand for transparency and accountability in public sector service delivery. The Comptroller and Auditor General is seen as the agency which is mandated to keep a watch on economic, efficient and effective governance. The foundation of sound governance with accountability rests on a system of robust public financial reporting. . About 200 Accountants General posted all over the country, former CAGs of India, members of Audit Advisory Board, members of Government Accounting Standards Advisory Board and senior government officials are attending the conference. . The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh reviewed the work and activities of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) here today as a part of ongoing review of Central Armed Police Forces. This meeting was attended by MoS(Home) Shri Kiren Rijiju, Home Secretary Shri Rajiv Mehrishi, Secretary (Border Management) Shri Susheel Kumar, Director General SSB Smt. Archana Ramasundaram, Addl. Director General SSB Shri S.S. Deswal and Senior Officers of Union Home Ministry and SSB. Director General SSB gave a detailed presentation on the working and operational preparedness, deployment, Administration & Logistics and future plans of SSB in the meeting. . . Discussing the recent attack by militants on SSB troops in Jakura Srinagar, Kashmir, the Union Home Minister appreciated the retaliatory efforts made by SSB jawans and directed to provide all necessary support in terms of providing vehicles, Assault weapons, clothing etc, on priority to the troops of SSB deployed in J&K. It is pertinent to say that six Battalions of SSB are deployed in J&K since 2013 and seven Bns are also involved in anti LWE operations in Jharkhand, Bihar and Chhattisgarh. . . Shri Rajnath Singh said, a contingent of SSB will soon be deployed in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations. Director General, SSB informed that the SSB has already constituted 140 personnel Police Unit for the purpose. She also informed that SSB is the first CAPF to induct women Combatised Mahila personnel. The force is ready to depute one Female formed unit for overseas deployment under the UN Peacekeeping Operations. . . Shri Rajnath Singh, Union Home Minister appreciated the works and activities of SSB in the LWE-affected areas and also in the State of Jammu & Kashmir. He applauded the achievements of SSB in preventing Naxal activities and the alertness with which SSB is performing its duties in J&K. . . Union Home Minster also discussed the security arrangements of Indo-Nepal Border and directed that intensive vigil should be maintained on Indo-Nepal border as terrorists may take advantage of the porous border. . . The blue-eyed 18-year-old Arshad Khan from Pakistan, who caught the world's attention a few days earlier when a local photographer Jiah Ali posted his picture on social media has now landed himself a modelling career with online fashion retailer Fitnit. The Islamabad company, which was recently started by 15 young and enthusiastic student on a Facebook post, said Arshad will be working as a model for its full version launch. Chai wala is no more chai wala, now he is fashion wala!. The Instagram post on October 14 by Ali resulted in an internet storm with # being among the top Twitter trends not only in Pakistan but also in India, London and Dubai. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign considered tapping Apple chief executive Tim Cook to be her running mate, according to hacked emails published on Tuesday by WikiLeaks. In an email dated March 17 to Clinton, campaign chairman John Podesta also proposed the mega-billionaire Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, his wife Melinda and General Motors chief executive Mary Barra as possible Democratic vice presidents. "Let me know if there are people you would like to see added or removed," Podesta wrote, enclosing a list of more than 30 names. "I have organised names in rough food groups." The email also identified well known military figures -- such as Navy Admiral Mike Mullen, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Marine Corps General John Allen, the former commander of US forces in Afghanistan -- as well as Clinton's opponent for the Democratic nomination, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and other lawmakers. Podesta also suggested billionaire former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg as well as more conventional political choices, such as Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe and Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown. Clinton ultimately settled on Virginia Senator Tim Kaine to campaign with her. Podesta has not publicly verified that the emails are authentic, but told reporters that he believed that "Russian intelligence agencies" had hacked into his email account as part of efforts to favour Republican nominee Donald Trump. US officials have formally blamed state-sponsored Russian hackers for the exposure of internal emails from the Democratic party and other prominent people and institutions. German carrier Lufthansa is the latest airline to impose a total ban on passengers taking the smartphone on any of its flights. The airline had previously banned the phone from flights in the United States and told passengers on other flights to keep the device switched off and unplugged. On Wednesday, Lufthansa said on its Twitter account: "As per an official directive, Samsung Note 7 smartphones are not permitted on any of our flights. Please leave them at home!" Important: As per an official directive, Samsung Note 7 smartphones are not permitted on any of our flights. Please leave them at home! Lufthansa (@lufthansa) October 18, 2016 Samsung has recalled more than 2.5 million of the phones after faulty batteries reportedly caused the device to catch fire. prices rose on Wednesday, lifted by a report of a drop in US crude inventories and declining production in China, while an upbeat OPEC statement on its planned output cut also supported the market. A slightly weaker dollar boosted as well, traders said, as it makes fuel purchases cheaper for countries using other currencies, potentially spurring demand. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were trading at $50.73 per barrel at 0326 GMT, up 44 cents, or 0.87 per cent, from their last settlement. Brent crude futures were at $52.14 a barrel, up 46 cents, or 0.89 per cent. "The American Petroleum Institute crude inventory numbers were released ... this has given early Asian trading a bullish start," said Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at OANDA in Singapore. US crude stockpiles fell 3.8 million barrels in the week to October 14, to 467.1 million barrels, the API reported late on Tuesday. The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) is due to release official crude and fuel storage data later on Wednesday. Traders said oil was supported by Mohammed Barkindo, secretary general of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), saying he is confident about the prospects of a planned production cut following an OPEC meeting on November 30. "I am optimistic we will have a decision," he said. In its first output cut agreement since 2008, OPEC said it plans to reduce production to 32.50 million to 33.0 million barrels per day (bpd), compared with record output of 33.6 million bpd in September. The group also hopes non-OPEC producers, especially Russia, will cooperate in a cut. In China, a raft of economic and trade data was released on Wednesday. While economic growth was in line with expectations, at an annual growth rate of 6.7 per cent in the third quarter, its oil figures were supportive of higher oil prices, traders said. China processed 43.8 million tonnes (10.7 million bpd) of crude oil in September, up 2.4 per cent from a year ago, government data showed on Wednesday. Over the same month, China's oil production fell 9.8 per cent to 15.98 million tonnes (3.89 million bpd), in its steepest decline in 19 months. Around 620 rebels and their families began evacuating a besieged town, located southwest of the Syrian capital of Damascus, on Wednesday, a local official said. "The buses of rebels have begun moving," said Hassan Ghandour, a member of the local committee overseeing the deal in Moadamiyat al-Sham. According to the deal, brokered by the Syrian government, buses ferrying rebels and their families would head towards the Idlib province, northwest of Damascus. Moadamiyet al-Sham has been under a devastating government siege since early 2013. Syria's government has championed such local deals, which typically see rebels evacuated in exchange for an end to their encirclement, as a way to bring stability to the war-ravaged country. Another member of the local reconciliation committee who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity put the number of evacuees, including rebels and civilians, at 2,100 people. Any remaining rebels would hand over themselves to Syrian authorities "to have their status regularised," the member said. "Then, the Syrian army will enter the town and state institutions will return to it. Infrastructure like water and electricity networks will be repaired beginning on Sunday," the member added. More than 300,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011. Singapore signed an agreement on Wednesday to start testing self-driving buses, as the city-state pushes ahead with its vision of using autonomous technology to help deal with the challenges posed by its limited land and labour. Days ahead of Prime Minister Theresa May's India visit, the UK on Tuesday hailed Pakistan's "significant sacrifices" in combating terror while responding to a petition calling on the British government to "strongly condemn" for providing a safe haven for terrorists. Days ahead of UK Prime Minister Theresa May's visit, the country on Tuesday hailed Pakistan's "significant sacrifices" in combating terror while responding to a petition calling on the British government to "strongly condemn" Pakistan for providing a safe haven for terrorists, as reported earlier. Bonita India, a leading Indian manufacturer of stylish and innovative home utility products, has won the 'Best Emerging HR Strategy' award at the recently held 'HR Excellence Awards 2016' organized by World Magazine. The award is meant for startups that have a powerful HR strategy to promote excellence and achieve organizational goals in the formative years. Anurag Batra, Editor-in-Chief, World and Prabir Jha, CHRO, Cipla Limited handed the award over to representatives of Bonita India. The BW HR Excellence Awards recognizes excellence in HR and strategic planning of organizations and individuals who are currently pushing human capital as a key resource in development. The award categories this year was focused on three pillars, namely HR strategy excellence, HR execution excellence and HR people excellence. The awards ceremony was held at The St. Regis Hotel in Mumbai and a total of 22 categories of awards were given. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara on Wednesday expressed hope that the state would get justice on the Cauvery water dispute. Speaking ahead of the all-party meeting called by Karnataka Chief Minister K. Siddaramaiah, Parameshwara said that they would discuss in detail as to what best can be done on this matter. "We are hoping that we get justice, we always go before the Supreme Court with that kind of a mindset. But unfortunately we are been hard-pressed like this," Parameshwara told ANI. Earlier in the day, Congress leader N.A Harris said the water is scant in Karnataka with a modicum of it left for drinking purposes. He also said that the report accurately showcases the state's water scarcity. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court will today resume its hearing on the Cauvery water dispute after it directed the Karnataka Government to release 2,000 cusecs per day to Tamil Nadu till further orders are given. The Karnataka Government has in response filed a petition asking for larger constitutional bench to be constituted to look into the dispute. A bench comprising Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and AM Khanwilkar are presently hearing the case. The GS Jha-led Supreme Court appointed team had on Monday submitted its report before the apex court after inspecting the Krishnaraja Sagar and the Kabini dams in Karnataka, and the Mettur and Bhavani Sagar dams in Tamil Nadu. The high-level central technical team also interacted with the Public Works Department (PWD) officials and delta farmers in Thanjavur Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur districts. The farmers in Tiruchirapalli and delta regions told the team that the samba crop will be damaged if water from the Cauvery is not released by Karnataka. The committee has stated 42 of the 48 talukas of Karnataka in the Cauvery basin have been affected by drought. The team was constituted as per orders of the apex court to assess the realities in the Cauvery basin areas in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With the Supreme Court looking into the technical committee's report on the Cauvery river-sharing dispute, the Congress on Wednesday hoped that the report enlightens the judges of the court and make them understand the ground realities of Karnataka. Congress state leader N.A Harris said the water is scant in Karnataka with a modicum of it left for drinking water purposes. He also said that the report accurately showcase the state's water scarcity. "Hope the technical committee's report will enlighten them and make them understand the situation here and then only give a verdict on this. I am sure that the learned judges will give a very reasonable and fair decision which will not be against Karnataka," Harris told ANI "The problem with us is that we are lacking drinking water. The judges should understand that. We are not asking water for farming we are asking for drinking," he added. The G S Jha-led Supreme Court appointed team on Monday submitted its report before the apex court after inspecteing the Krishnaraja Sagar and the Kabini dams in Karnataka, and the Mettur and Bhavani Sagar dams in Tamil Nadu. The high-level central technical team also interacted with public works department officials and delta farmers in Thanjavur Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur districts. The farmers in Tiruchirapalli and delta regions told the team that the samba crop will be damaged if water from the Cauvery is not released by Karnataka. The committee has stated 42 of the 48 talukas of Karnataka in the Cauvery basin have been affected by drought. The team was constituted as per orders of the apex court to assess the realities in the Cauvery basin areas in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court will today resume its hearing on the Cauvery water dispute after it directed the Karnataka government to release 2000 cusecs per day to Tamil Nadu till further orders are given. In response, the Karnataka government has filed a petition in the court asking for larger constitutional bench to be constituted to look into the dispute. A bench comprising Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and AM Khanwilkar are currently hearing the case. The G S Jha-led Supreme Court appointed team on Monday submitted its report before the apex court after inspecteing the Krishnaraja Sagar and the Kabini dams in Karnataka, and the Mettur and Bhavani Sagar dams in Tamil Nadu. The high-level central technical team also interacted with public works department officials and delta farmers in Thanjavur Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur districts. The farmers in Tiruchirapalli and delta regions told the team that the samba crop will be damaged if water from the Cauvery is not released by Karnataka. The committee has stated 42 of the 48 talukas of Karnataka in the Cauvery basin have been affected by drought. The team was constituted as per orders of the apex court to assess the realities in the Cauvery basin areas in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A group of budding chefs recently celebrated World Bread Day by baking and preparing a huge vegetarian burger bun that attracted food lovers from across the city. It took almost 16 hours for 47 catering students and five chefs to make the 1.5 feet tall and three feet wide burger, which was handed over to an orphanage after display. The giant burger was prepared with 35 kilograms of refined flour (maida), two kilograms of sugar, one kilogram salt and yeast each, 12 litres of vegetable oil and 21 litres of water. Moreover, no preservatives were used in baking the huge burger that weighed 65 kilograms. In addition to this, a variety of bread from seven countries were also displayed at the venue. The initiative was taken up by a private hotel management institute. The event also saw students baking breads from countries like France, Italy and America. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Wednesday said the Constitutional amendment proposal would be put forward in the House before the upcoming Chhath festival. Asserting that the consensus of major political actors of Nepal will be taken, Dahal said the discussions were underway for the same, for tabling the proposal within next three weeks. "The draft proposal is at its final stage," said Dahal. The Prime Minister's statement holds importance in the wake of various madhesi organisations demanding two states for them, which requires an amendment in the Constitution. The Prime Minister was addressing Parliament to inform about his visit to Indian state of Goa for BRICS-BIMSTEC Outreach Summit earlier this week, a report in the Himalayan Times said. The government was doing further homework as dialogues so far had not been much fruitful so that it could be made more fruitful, he said. Dahal claimed that concluding the Constitution amendment process in consensus of the main opposition CPN-UML and agitating parties and groups including Madhesis, Tharus and Janajatis was government's top priority. While addressing the disgruntled groups, he ensured them that their concerns will be addressed. Dahal also informed that local body restructuring process was moving ahead in consensus of major political parties. After the Local Body Restructuring Commission would submit its report on time to ensure implementation of the Constitution, he was confident that the local body elections would be held by mid-April. Dahal claimed that he ensured effective implementation of past agreements signed with India during his recent India visit for the BRICS-BIMSTEC Outreach Summit and added that India had agreed to proceed with the financial cooperation pledged for major development projects including the Pancheshwor Multipurpose Project. "This visit has helped us to strengthen Nepal-India ties existing for a long," the Prime Minister said. He said that the bilateral meetings with leaders of India, China, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and South Africa were fruitful in developing ties with them. Terming his "joint meeting" with Indian PM Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping a "happy coincidence," Dahal said that it should not be dragged into "unnecessary comments." Urging that baseless comments could affect our relationships with our neighbours, he said that he felt proud that he could utilise the rare opportunity, which could have been impossible if it was planned. The legislative body was informed by Dahal that the Chinese President had assured him to visit Nepal at the earliest, if not this year. The PM in his around 45-minute long address did not mentioned the UML but had frequently targeted the opposition party, thereby rejecting the accusations it had made against his government on various occasions. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Stating that there were increasing intelligence inputs of activities in Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla district post the Uri terror strike, defence expert Major General (Retd.) P.K. Sehgal on Wednesday said that the Government of India must take apt steps to eliminate and neutralise such elements. Major General (Retd.) Sehgal, who was commenting on the raid conducted by the security forces last night in Baramulla district, said that it was based on intelligence inputs and carried out to find out the truth. "Ever since the Uri attack, there were increasing intelligence inputs of activities in Baramulla district. There were intelligence inputs that pro-Pakistan elements as well as terrorists have hidden in those places and the locals are beginning to give them some sort of a support either voluntarily or being forced to do so," Major General (Retd.) Sehgal said. "So, to find out the truth behind it, last night the army, the security forces, the paramilitary forces, the Jammu and Kashmir Police carried out a combined raid in 12 villages, recovered lots of arms and ammunitions and arrested 44 people who apparently had linkages with terrorists or had terrorists oriented design. Also quite a few hideouts were busted and a lot of other inputs were made available to us which will help the security forces to clean up that area," he added. In a major military operation, the security forces successfully bust the terrorist hideouts in Baramulla district last night. A large number of suspected hideouts were also located during the crackdown. After 700-odd houses were searched, the security agencies seized petrol bombs, Chinese and Pakistani flags, LeT and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) letter pads, illegal mobile phones and other seditious materials. The operation was a crackdown conducted jointly by the Border Security Force (BSF), CRPF, the army and the Jammu Kashmir Police. The cross border violations between India and Pakistan escalated after the Uri attack in which 19 Indian soldiers lost their lives. Pakistan violated ceasefire 25 times in 10 days other than the militant attack that also targeted civilians. India also tried to diplomatically isolate Pakistan globally following the Uri attack. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Zoological Park has temporarily shut down after nine birds died and a few of them were detected with influenza and is taking steps to ensure that the infection does not spread to the rest of the birds and animals in the zoo. "The issue was detected last Friday and Saturday in which a total of nine birds died including rosy pelicans, painted storks and ducks. We sent the samples to Jalandhar and Bhopal and few birds were detected with influenza and since then there have been no deaths," Riyaz Khan, PRO of the zoo told the media here. However as a cautionary method, all visits have been prohibited from the zoo for a few days until the entire area is declared as safe by the concerned agencies, who will be arriving to take stock of the situation. Asserting that all steps are taken for the infection to be contained, Khan added that the zoo is lush with vegetation and plants, making it difficult for the virus to spread. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday called upon IAS officers of the 2014 Batch of the Uttar Pradesh cadre to always uphold their reputation and credibility. Asking them to bear empathy for the last man in the queue, the Home Minister said, "The IAS officers shoulder big responsibility in the district and must win the trust of the common people without hurting their feelings." Recalling his tenure as the Uttar Pradesh chief minister, Singh asked the IAS Officers "not to hesitate to put across their point of view before the ministers in case of difference of opinion". About 35 IAS officers of the 2014 Batch of Uttar Pradesh cadre as well as officers, who are domicile of Uttar Pradesh and are currently posted in various ministries/departments as assistant secretaries, participated in an interactive session with 11 Union Ministers led by the Home Minister here today. Interacting with the officers, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said, "The IAS officer being the steward of administration in the district should always show concern to the interests of poor people." Parrikar asked them to show sensitivity to issues of the Armed Forces personnel and Ex-Servicemen. Minister of Women and Child Development Maneka Sanjay Gandhi said, "As District Magistrates, the IAS officers should show a sense of compassion and kindness to resolve the problems of the common man." Other Ministers, who participated in the interactive session, included Minister of State (MoS) for Tourism (Independent Charge) and Culture Dr. Mahesh Sharma, MoS for Minority Affairs (Independent Charge) and Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, MoS (External Affairs) General (Retd.) V.K. Singh, MoS (Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation) Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, MoS (Food Processing Industries) Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, MoS (HRD) Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, MoS (Women and Child Development) Krishna Raj and MoS (Health and Family Welfare) Anupriya Patel. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A new study has found out that brain cells called glial cells play a critical role in controlling appetite and feeding behaviour. In a study by of mice, the MIT neuroscientists found that activating these cells stimulates overeating, and that when the cells are suppressed, appetite is also suppressed. The findings could offer scientists a new target for developing drugs against obesity and other appetite-related disorders, the researchers said. The study is also the latest in recent years to implicate glial cells in important brain functions. Until about 10 years ago, glial cells were believed to play more of a supporting role for neurons. "In the last few years, abnormal glial cell activities have been strongly implicated in neurodegenerative disorders. There is more and more evidence to point to the importance of glial cells in modulating neuronal function and in mediating brain disorders," said senior author Guoping Feng. It has long been known that the hypothalamus, an almond-sized structure located deep within the brain, controls appetite as well as energy expenditure, body temperature, and circadian rhythms including sleep cycles. While performing studies on glial cells in other parts of the brain, researcher Naiyan Chen noticed that the hypothalamus also appeared to have a lot of glial cell activity. "I was very curious at that point what glial cells would be doing in the hypothalamus, since glial cells have been shown in other brain areas to have an influence on regulation of neuronal function," she said. Within the hypothalamus, scientists have identified two key groups of neurons that regulate appetite, known as AgRP neurons and POMC neurons. AgRP neurons stimulate feeding, while POMC neurons suppress appetite. Until recently it has been difficult to study the role of glial cells in controlling appetite or any other brain function, because scientists haven't developed many techniques for silencing or stimulating these cells, as they have for neurons. Glial cells, which make up about half of the cells in the brain, have many supporting roles, including cushioning neurons and helping them form connections with one another. In this study, the research team used a new technique developed at the University of North Carolina to study a type of glial cell known as an astrocyte. Using this strategy, researchers can engineer specific cells to produce a surface receptor that binds to a chemical compound known as CNO, a derivative of clozapine. Then, when CNO is given, it activates the glial cells. The MIT team found that turning on astrocyte activity with just a single dose of CNO had a significant effect on feeding behavior. "When we gave the compound that specifically activated the receptors, we saw a robust increase in feeding," Chen said. "Mice are not known to eat very much in the daytime, but when we gave drugs to these animals that express a particular receptor, they were eating a lot." The researchers also found that in the short term (three days), the mice did not gain extra weight, even though they were eating more. "This raises the possibility that glial cells may also be modulating neurons that control energy expenditures, to compensate for the increased food intake," Chen said. "They might have multiple neuronal partners and modulate multiple energy homeostasis functions all at the same time." When the researchers silenced activity in the astrocytes, they found that the mice ate less than normal. Still unknown is how the astrocytes exert their effects on neurons. Some recent studies have suggested that glial cells can secrete chemical messengers such as glutamate and ATP; if so, these "gliotransmitters" could influence neuron activity. Another hypothesis is that instead of secreting chemicals, astrocytes exert their effects by controlling the uptake of neurotransmitters from the space surrounding neurons, thereby affecting neuron activity indirectly. Feng now plans to develop new research tools that could help scientists learn more about astrocyte-neuron interactions and how astrocytes contribute to modulation of appetite and feeding. He also hopes to learn more about whether there are different types of astrocytes that may contribute differently to feeding behavior, especially abnormal behavior. "We really know very little about how astrocytes contribute to the modulation of appetite, eating, and metabolism," he said. "In the future, dissecting out these functional difference will be critical for our understanding of these disorders." The study has been published in mSystems. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned the Pakistan government that it risks meeting its repayment obligations with regard to the USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project despite it having the potential to lift the economy This warning has been issued in the IMF's latest and final review of the just concluded programme, reports the Express Tribune. "During the investment phase, as the 'early harvest' projects proceed, Pakistan will experience a surge in FDI and other external funding inflows," says the Fund in a short evaluation of the impact of CPEC related investments on Pakistan. However, the import requirements of these projects "will likely offset a significant share of these inflows, such that the current account deficit would widen" within manageable levels during these years. The report estimates that CPEC related imports could reach 11 per cent of total projected imports by 2020, equal to just over USD 5.7 billion, while inflows under the corridor will touch 2.2 percent of projected GDP in that year. Gross external financing needs of the country will jump almost 60 percent by then, from a projected USD 11 billion for the current fiscal year, to USD 17.5 billion in 2020. Pakistan will see USD 27.8 billion in "early harvest" projects under CPEC in the next few years, with the remaining USD 16 billion coming over a longer timeline stretching out to 2030. "Pakistan will need to manage increasing CPEC-related outflows," warns the Fund, once the Chinese investors begin repatriating profits, adding that the amounts involved "could add up to a significant level given the magnitude of the FDI". Outflows will also come in the form of repayment obligations on the loans taken from Chinese banks for these projects, which are expected to rise after 2021. Both of these, repayments and profit repatriation, "could reach about 0.4 per cent of GDP per year over the longer run". The Fund acknowledges that CPEC related growth could cover these payments over the longer term, but warns that this is not guaranteed. "Reaping the full potential benefits of CPEC will require forceful pro-growth and export-supporting reforms" the report says, citing improved business climate, governance and security as necessary preconditions to enable CPEC investments to generate the resources required to cover their own associated outflows. In addition, "allowing greater downward exchange rate flexibility" will also be necessary. The matter of rising CPEC related outflows was discussed between the Fund staff and the government during the discussions prior to the review. The government told the Fund that "additional Chinese investment over the longer term, building on CPEC as a platform, could also help cover the projected CPEC related outflows," according to the report. For the fund, CPEC outflows are one of the medium to long term risks facing Pakistan's economy. It calls for "sound project evaluation and prioritisation mechanisms based on effective cost-benefit analysis and realistic forecasts of macroeconomic and financing conditions" to help mitigate the risk. It points out "a need to ensure transparency and accountability in project management and monitoring", pointing specifically at the power purchase agreements being signed with Chinese IPPs, calling on the government to ensure that the cost of power purchase "remains favourable" for the distribution companies and consumers. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rajasthan Law Minister Rajendra Singh Rathore on Wednesday said the state government has filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court against the decision of the High Court that acquitted actor Salman Khan in the 1998 alleged chinkara poaching cases. The Rajasthan High Court on July 25 had acquitted Salman in the poaching case for the want of evidences. The Law Minister had said the government was studying the merits and demerits of the case, and has now decided to appeal against the decision in the Supreme Court. "Law is same for everybody, even if a person is a celebrity, and that is why the state government has decided to file an SLP," he told ANI. "In the SLP, we have urged the apex court to quash the decision of the high court and Harish Dulani, a key witness, whose statements are not recorded, should be record now and the apex court should also take his statement into consideration," he added. Salman was convicted by a lower court in 2006 in the two chinkara cases, but this was overturned by the High Court in its judgment Monday. One of the animals was killed at Bhawad on the outskirts of Jodhpur on September 26, 1998, and the other at Ghoda Farms on September 28, 1998. At that time, they were shooting for film 'Hum Sath Sath Hain'. Chinkara is an endangered animal accorded the highest protection under the Wildlife Protection Act. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Oscar-winning film-maker Michael Moore recently announced that he would bring a surprise documentary called 'Michael Moore in Trumpland' to the big screen. With an initial New York screening, where tickets will be free, the film will then be officially released on 19 October, reports the Guardian. The official description of the documentary reads, "See the film Ohio Republicans tried to shut down. Oscar-winner Michael Moore dives right into hostile territory with his daring and hilarious one-man show, deep in the heart of TrumpLand in the weeks before the 2016 election." The 62-year-old film-maker also recently took to his Twitter handle to announce the free screening. "Hey NYC- Who wants a peek @ what I've been up 2? Tues, 9:30pm, IFC Center. TIx free, 1st come, b.o. opens 8:30pm," he tweeted. Earlier last month, Moore had shared on social media that he was banned from performing and filming the show at a theater in Ohio. "It always amazes me when people choose to just outright lie instead of simply admitting the truth and then being proud of their decision," he wrote then. "I'm sure the good people who run this theater are not, in their hearts, proud of what they've done and were certainly hoping their little act of censorship wouldn't be known by anyone. They probably didn't think we'd bother to out them so publicly. That's how small towns get away with stuff like this. And if you grew up in one of these places, you know what I'm talking about," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) workers gathered at Multiplex Metro Cinema here on Wednesday to protest against screening of Karan Johar's 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' having Pakistani actor Fawad Khan as one of the casts. The party workers assembled at multiplex, and raised slogans against Johar and demanded his film not to be released. "The upcoming movie of Karan Johar 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' casts Fawad Khan and we will not let this film be released here. Right now, we are asking all the multiplex owners politely to not to showcase this film here and after that also, if they showcase the film, then we will break the glasses of those theatres," said MNS leader Arvind Gavade. Earlier on Tuesday, Johar broke his silence on the row over his upcoming film 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil', in an emotional video statement expressing a "deep sense of hurt and pain" by the charge of being anti- . "I condemn terror in the strongest terms; I respect our army, for me, the country comes first," the 44-year-old said. Johar, who made his directorial debut with the blockbuster romance Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, further said: "The best way to express your patriotism is to spread love and thats all I have ever tried to do through my work and cinema." Yesterday, prominent industry veterans including filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt met Mumbai Police Commissioner Dattatray Padsalgikar and Joint Police Commissioner (Law and Order) Deven Bharti, who assured them that they would provide protection to theatres screening Dharma Productions next release 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'. The meeting took place in the wake of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) veiled threat of vandalizing multiplexes if they screen 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'. CEO of Fox Star Studios Vijay Singh, CEO of Dharma Productions Apoorva Mehta and Siddharth Roy Kapur, the CEO of Disney India and the UTV Motion Pictures were among those present in the meeting. Shunning long-time speculations about whether the movie will release on its defined date or not, Bhatt confirmed that they would stick to the initial date of release, adding the movie will hit cinemas worldwide on October 28. Reaching out to the MNS workers, Bhatt urged them to show sensitivity about the fact that the movie has already been made and allow Diwali to be a festive affair for everyone. "I have a request as a fellow Indian to my brothers in the MNS, I am humbly requesting you to let us entertain people on the occasion of Diwali," he said. Meanwhile, Mumbai Police spokesperson Ashok Dudhe said that all multiplexes and single screen theatres would get protection to release the movie so that no disruption is caused in middle of the shows or in the city as a whole. The movie starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has been under fire because it also features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in a cameo. The MNS after imposing the ban on artistes from the neighbouring country, in response to the terror attack in Uri led by Pakistan, had on Monday openly threatened the theatre owners if they screen the movie. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Panthers Party chief Harsh Dev Singh criticized the meeting of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leader Agha Syed Hassan Al-Moosvi and Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit on Tuesday and alleged that Islamabad has used Hurriyat to vitiate the peace in Kashmir. "Hurriyat leaders have been allowed an easy access to Pakistan High Commission and they have been meeting the high commissioner earlier also and once again Agha Syed Hassan Al-Moosvi has called on the High Commission of Pakistan. They have discussed Kashmir as well this only shows that how is trying to persuade Hurriyat and other separatist to continue their struggle and crusade against India. That amply reveals their mindset and they are interested in vitiating peace and continue to do so," he said. "There have been several occasions where Hurriyat leaders have been meeting Pakistani high commissioner and Indian government has failed to act against Hurriyat for political reasons because BJP is a partner in PDP government in Kashmir which has a soft corner for the separatists and other Hurriyat leaders," he added. "We believe that government of India needs to assert and it should disallow such meetings because they tend to promote violence in Kashmir and they are being tutored by Pakistan and Islamabad is operating through this Hurriyat and other separatists," Singh told ANI here. Harsh Dev Singh urged the Union government to monitor these meetings sternly. On Tuesday, All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leader Agha Syed Hassan Al-Moosvi met Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit and discussed the situation in Jammu and Kashmir. The meeting comes in the backdrop of continued unrest in the Valley which has been witnessing violent protests since July 8 after the killing of Hizbul terrorist Burhan Wani, who has been hailed by Pakistan government as a "martyr". "The APHC leader Syed Al-Moosvi met Basit at the High Commission here and discussed the situation in the state," Pakistan High Commission sources said. However, they did not divulge any further details of the meeting. Syed Al-Moosvi along with other party leaders had strongly condemned the restrictions and use of force by security personnel. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress on Wednesday brought an adjournment motion in the Kerala State Assembly to discuss the rising political violence in Kannur. The Opposition party has accused Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI (M)) rivalry behind the rising crime in the city and making Kerala as a murder center. Declining the allegation of the Congress, CPI (M) leader and Kerala's Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the RSS makes deliberate attempt to create law and order problems in Kannur and alleged that till now six peace talk has failed as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) kept away from it. He further said that the police take strong actions with special control rooms and bomb squad adding that there is no emergency to discuss the matter in the assembly. Early this month, a CPM and a BJP worker were murdered in the Kannur. The CP (M) worker was killed and the BJP activist was hacked to death at a petrol pump near Pinarayi in Kannur district in Kerala. Meanwhile, both CPM and BJP are now blaming each other for the death of their respective party workers. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Deputy Director General of Pakistan's Intelligence Bureau (IB), Ali Ahmed Sabir, has reportedly told the Senate Standing Committee on the Cabinet Secretariat that intelligence agencies in India and Afghanistan are looking at various options to sabotage or damage the $46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. "The East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) are some of the potential threats to CPEC, as the former is directed towards China which is a prime stakeholder in the project," the Express Tribune quoted Sabir, as saying. According to the Express Tribune, this is the first time that a state agency has publicly talked about a possible nexus between India's Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and Afghanistan's National Directorate of Security (NDS) with regard to sabotaging the . The Senate panel has reportedly told all concerned agencies to take all possible measures to ensure the security of projects, particularly those located in the Gwadar and Gilgit-Baltistan regions. Intelligence Bureau Director General Aftab Sultan has informed the panel that there is a shortage of manpower, but every effort will be made to prevent subversive or suspicious activities. Pakistan's Supreme Court has asked the Nawaz Sharif-led federal government to convince it that it is willing to conduct a census in March 2017. A three-judge bench of the apex court rejected Attorney General Aushtar Ausaf's argument that the government is facing logistical roadblocks in completing the exercise, reports the Express Tribune. Supreme Court Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, who headed the bench, said in his order that "the AG has tried to impress upon the circumstances which are not in the control of the government, but we are not at all impressed with his contentions." The order directed the federal government to come up with "a specific date" on which it will hold the census when the matter is again taken up in a fortnight. The population census is the biggest peace time logistic exercise, involving the mobilization of about 200,000 manpower including 167,000 enumerators - one for each block - an exercise that will incur an expenditure of Rs14.5 billion. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A complete ban on airing of Indian content in the country has been approved by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) on Wednesday with effect from October 21, said a statement released by the regulatory authority. The authority took this decision in their 120th meeting held today here, reports the Dawn. Earlier, the Pakistan Government had suggested banning the airing of Indian content in a tit-for-tat, following a ban by India on airing Pakistani content. A statement issued from the regulatory authority said, "The ban will come into effect at 3pm on October 21, and the radio and television stations which violate the ban will have their licences suspended without a prior show-cause notice,". The ban extends to all Indian content on cable and radio being aired in the country. The PEMRA statement said, "PEMRA, with the authority vested by the federal government, today announces the cancellation of the one-sided rights given to India by the Pervez Musharraf government." Earlier in October, the power to revoke or suspend licences of companies airing Indian content without providing prior notice was granted to Absar Alam by the authority. On Aug 31, it had announced to take a strict action would against the channels airing foreign content more than the prescribed limit and traders selling illegal DTH sets. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan has urged the United States to revise its travel advisory pertaining to the country in a bid to promote a softer and more investor-friendly image to American citizens. This request was put forth by Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan, during the 8th Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) Council Meeting held on Tuesday. According to the Express Tribune, the meeting was aimed at securing preferential access to the textile market and an easy-visa regime for exporters of IT-related services to further strengthen trade ties between the two countries. The US delegation, led by United States Trade Representatives (USTR) Ambassador Michael Froman, included US Ambassador to Pakistan David Hale among others. The Pakistani delegation comprised Commerce Secretary Azmat Ranjha, Commerce Additional Secretary Asad Hayauddin and Trade Minister at Washington DC Ali Tahir. During the meeting, the two sides discussed ways and means to improve access of Pakistani exports to the United States, including those of textiles and agricultural items, enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights in Pakistan, opening up of defence procurement in Afghanistan to Pakistani companies among others. The United States is Pakistan's largest bilateral trading partner. In FY 2015, Pakistan's exports to all countries were estimated at USD 24.59 billion and its imports at USD 41.43 billion. In fiscal year 2015, the United States accounted for approximately 16 percent of Pakistan's exports, the second largest market behind the European Union, and USD 1.20 billion of its imports. Bilateral trade between the United States and Pakistan exceeded USD 5.1 billion. The United States is also one of the top sources of foreign direct investment to Pakistan, with USD 209 million. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The nerves we feel before a stressful event, like speaking in public, for example, are normally kept in check by a complex system of circuits in our brain. Scientists at Rockefeller University have identified a key molecule within this circuitry that is responsible for relieving anxiety. Intriguingly, it doesn't appear to reduce anxiety in female mice, only in males. "This is unusual, because the particular cell type involved here is the same in the male and female brain, same in number, same in appearance," said researcher Nathaniel Heintz. "It's a rare case where a single cell type is activated by the same stimulus but yields two different behaviors in each gender." Heintz and colleagues demonstrated that a protein called corticotropin releasing hormone binding protein (CRHBP) reduces anxiety in male mice by halting the activity of a stress-inducing hormone. The results may provide insights into new therapies for anxiety-related conditions. The study has been published in Cell. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Shiv Sena on Tuesday urged the Devendra Fadnavis government to be transparent about BJP worker Ganesh Pandey molestation case after giving assurance six months back. Shiv Sena leader Neelam Gore has asked the Bombay High Court and Commission for Women to monitor the State Women Commission's working. "What we are saying is that Ganesh Pandey is a BJP worker and co worker of Ashish Shelar and the victim women who has sent the letter to State Women commission has taken the name of many influential people," she said. "State Women Commission would investigate the matter and Chief Minister assured us on March29 in the state assembly that steps will be taken in this regard but six months have gone by and the State Women commission comes to the decision without proper investigation," she added "This is a grave situation that people who are fighting will get tired and still don't get the justice then who will watch the watch dog because it is the duty of Women's commission to protect the rights of women," she added. "In this situation we would urge Commission for Women and High Court to monitor the State Women Commission. They should have given the report within 3 months and it was important to strengthen the report," Ghore said. "Our Chief Minister is also the Home Minister and he always talks about the women issues. It would be appropriate if the state government informs people about the issue," she concluded. Seven months after a senior office-bearer accused the then BJP youth wing chief of molesting a the 41-yearold woman at a hotel in UP during a three-day party conclave. The women has told the state women's commission that it isn't worth her time to chase the case against Ganesh Pandey, who was booted out of the party right after she levelled the charge. The woman had complained to the BJP city chief on March 22 that Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha chief Pandey, 35, had tried to kiss her in a hotel room in Mathura on March 4 to win a bet, days after which Pandey was stripped of his position and suspended from the party. . (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In the wake of the recent horrific incident in Bhubaneswar's SUM Hospital where over 20 patients lost their lives and at least 120 others sustained injuries following a fire mishap, Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain on Wednesday called for an emergency review meeting of the officials of government hospitals. The hospital administration and fire officials would attend the meeting called by Jain. The blaze was suspected to have been triggered by an electric short circuit in the dialysis ward on the first floor of the Sum hospital and spread to the nearby Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday issued a notice to the Odisha government over the massive at the SUM hospital in which at least 20 people were killed, adding that the hospital in question was reportedly warned as early as in 2013 for not keeping the safety measures but the hospital authorities ignored it. In a statement issued today, the NHRC said that it had taken suo motu cognizance of reports that due to suspected short circuit, a major fire broke out in the SUM Hospital and Medical College. The Commission further stated that in Odisha, out of 568 hospitals, only three have clearance of the department of fire safety. "The Commission has observed that callous attitude and lapses of the authorities, if any, amount to violation of right to life of the patients. It has expressed shock how the State authorities allowed such a large number of hospitals to function without proper fire safety clearance," the statement added. Accordingly, it has issued a notice to the Government of Odisha through its Chief Secretary calling for a report in the matter within six weeks including the relief and rehabilitation granted to the next of kin of the deceased and the injured. He has also been asked to inform about the steps and precautions taken or proposed to be taken by the State Government to prevent recurrence of such mishaps. Meanwhile, after taking stock at the SUM hospital, Union Health Minister JP Nadda said that there were safety issues that needed to be addressed, adding that stringent action will be taken against the people responsible for the tragedy. Speaking to the media after interacting with the patients, Nadda said that he had been instructed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi the very moment the fire was reported, to ensure the safety of the patients at the hospital. "It is very saddening and shocking. It's also painful and worrisome that such an incident has taken place. I've been told that an inquiry is going on, but prima facie I find that some safety issues are there which need to be addressed," Nadda said. The Union Minister also called on the state government to take adequate steps and action so that the faith of the people is reposed, while adding that the people responsible should be punished. On the basis of the preliminary fact-finding report, Odisha government yesterday filed two criminal cases alleging negligence in conduct and safety against the hospital and initiated administrative inquiries into the mishap. The Bhubaneswar Commissionerate police have arrested four hospital staff on charges of negligence in conduct and safety. Some patients who were shifted from SUM Hospital to other hospitals in Bhubaneswar after the fire mishap, are said to be in critical condition and fighting for their life at the ICUs. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) After film-maker Karan Johar gave in to the pressure of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and said he will not work with Pakistani talent in future, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday said that it would have been better had the director expressed solidarity with India's armed forces post Uri and Pathankot attacks. BJP spokesperson Shaina NC told ANI that the Centre has decided to give protection to every theatre that is going to showcase Johar's film. "Clearly, there is a sentiment in public at large, which is anti-Pakistan at the given juncture as we all know post Uri and Pathankot. I wish the directors like Karan Johar would have come out with a statement in solidarity with our armed forces after the attacks rather than let a controversy break loose," said NC. "However, we do believe that the rule of law must prevail and because it cannot implement retrospective, our government has decided to give protection to every theatre that is going to showcase that film," she added. NC further said that the question is who has actually boycotted this particular film, as the government has no role to play. Earlier on Tuesday, Johar broke his silence on the row over his upcoming film 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil', in an emotional video statement expressing a "deep sense of hurt and pain" by the charge of being anti- . "I condemn terror in the strongest terms, I respect our Army, for me, the country comes first," the 44-year-old said. Johar, who made his directorial debut with the blockbuster romance Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, further said: "The best way to express your patriotism is to spread love and thats all I have ever tried to do through my work and cinema." Yesterday, prominent industry veterans including filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt met Mumbai Police Commissioner Dattatray Padsalgikar and Joint Police Commissioner (Law and Order) Deven Bharti, who assured them that they would provide protection to theatres screening Dharma Productions next release. The meeting took place in the wake of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) veiled threat of vandalizing multiplexes if they screen 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'. CEO of Fox Star Studios Vijay Singh, CEO of Dharma Productions Apoorva Mehta and Siddharth Roy Kapur, the CEO of Disney India and the UTV Motion Pictures were among those present in the meeting. Shunning long-time speculations about whether the movie will release on its defined date or not, Bhatt confirmed that they would stick to the initial date of release, adding the movie will hit cinemas worldwide on October 28. Reaching out to the MNS workers, Bhatt urged them to show sensitivity about the fact that the movie has already been made and allow Diwali to be a festive affair for everyone. "I have a request as a fellow Indian to my brothers in the MNS, I am humbly requesting you to let us entertain people on the occasion of Diwali," he said. Meanwhile, Mumbai Police spokesperson Ashok Dudhe said that all multiplexes and single screen theatres would get protection to release the movie so that no disruption is caused in middle of the shows or in the city as a whole. The movie starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has been under fire because it also features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in a cameo. The MNS after imposing the ban on artistes from the neighbouring country, in response to the terror attack in Uri led by Pakistan, had on Monday openly threatened the theatre owners if they screen the movie. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In Andhra Pradesh and Telangana CEAT announced the rollout of a new breed of 'Puncture Safe' tyres for the two wheeler market. This new range will offer a technology to consumers that will allow tyres to resist punctures with no loss of air pressure and allow a hassle free and safe ride. This new range is currently available only in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and the Company proposes to roll out the "Puncture Safe" tyre range in the other markets in a phased manner. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The multi-modal terminal at Sahibganj in Jharkhand is soon to become a reality. The Inland Waterways Authority of India has recently awarded the contract for construction of the terminal to Larson & Tourbo (L&T). With the targeted completion of Phase -1 in 2019, the state of the art terminal will have a cargo handling capacity of 2.28 MMTPA. Given Jharkhand's coal reserves of nearly 80 billion tonnes, the location of the multi modal terminal at Sahibganj is especially significant. It will play an important role in transportation of domestic coal from the local mines to intended thermal power plants owing to its good railway connectivity . Besides coal, stone-chips are also expected to be transported through the terminal. The multi modal terminal will have facilities including berthing space for two vessels, stockyard for storing, belt conveyor system with fixed hoppers, barge loader, shore protection works, roads, ramps and parking area, and terminal buildings. The Sahibganj terminal is the second out of the three multi-modal terminals planned under the Ganga Jal Marg Vikas Project, to be awarded for construction in a record time. Earlier in May, IWAI awarded the contract to construct a multi-modal terminal at Varanasi to AFCONS Infrastructure Ltd. The third terminal will be constructed at Haldia in West Bengal. The Government is developing National Waterway-1 under the Jal Marg Vikas Project, with technical and financial assistance of the World Bank at an estimated cost of Rs. 4,200 crore. The project would enable commercial navigation of vessels with capacity of 1500-2,000 tons. Phase-I of the project covers the Haldia-Varanasi stretch. The project includes development of fairway, Multi-Modal Terminals at Varanasi, Haldia, and Sahibganj, strengthening of river navigation system, conservancy works, modern River Information System (RIS), Digital Global Positioning System (DGPS), night navigation facilities, modern methods of channel marking, construction of a new state of the art navigational lock at Farakka. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rs. 2/kg wheat and Rs. 3/kg rice will soon be available to all beneficiaries under Food Security Act The Government has taken number of initiatives for the protection of the interests of consumers. Very soon services and products in the area of health, food etc. shall have to follow mandatory quality standards. Precious metal like Gold and silvers shall have to wear hallmarking for the larger interests of consumers. New Bureau of Indian Standards Act has been enacted for this purpose and rules are being framed. This was announced by Shri Ram Vilas Paswan, Minister of Consumer Affair, Food & Public Distribution while addressing Regional Editors' Conference in Chandigarh today. Sh. Ram Vilas Paswan said his ministry is also working on new Consumer Protection Act which will have more teeth to protect the interests of consumers. An authority has been proposed under the Act to take suo motto action if product and services are not up to the standard. The Minister said charging over MRP is unfair trade practice and expressed hope that the new Consumer Protection Act will effectively check that. Regarding misleading advertisements, Sh. Ram Vilas Paswan said effective provisions have been proposed in the new Consumer Protection Act. The Act will enable people to file complains in Consumers Courts online from any place in the country and it will ensure time bound admission of their complaints in the courts. Highlighting reforms initiated in Public Distribution System, Sh. Ram Vilas Paswan said that so far 100 percent digitization of ration card has been completed and about 70 percent cards have been linked with Aadhar Cards to make the system more transparent and leak proof. The Union Minister said that at present more than 81 crore people are getting subsidized food grains i.e .Rs. 2/kg wheat and 3/kg rice under National Food Security Act and very soon beneficiaries from across the nation except Tamil Nadu will get food grains as Kerala has also agreed to implement the Act next month. Referring efforts being made by Government to check prices of essential commodities, especially pulses, Sh. Ram Vilas Paswan said that incentives given to farmers will increase the availability of the produce soon. He said that besides increasing MSP for the pulses, the Government agencies are making direct procurement of pulses from the farmers at market price for the buffer stocks of 20 lakh MT. The states are being provided pulses at subsidies rates from this stock, said the Minister. Sh. Ram Vilas Paswan asserted that consumer awareness is of paramount importance for safeguarding their interests, and appealed media to play an active role in this regard. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today launched the National SC/ST hub, and the Zero Defect, Zero Effect (ZED) scheme for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) at Ludhiana in Punjab. Speaking on the occasion, he said Ludhiana is an important economic centre, and therefore, it is natural to launch a scheme related to MSME from the city. The Prime Minister said that the MSME sector is crucial for the economic progress of India. He said MSMEs must match global quality control standards. Talking about the distribution of charkhas, the Prime Minister said Khadi is a priority for us, and a charkha at home brings more income. He said Khadi is marketed well now, adding that once upon a time, the apt slogan was 'Khadi for Nation,' but now it should be 'Khadi for Fashion.' The Prime Minister said that a spirit of entrepreneurship among Dalits will benefit us. He added that there are youngsters whose dreams are to create enterprises and jobs. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A lot has happened since my last blog post more than seven months ago. In the fall I made several trips - in October to Wyoming for the annual meeting of ... 3 years ago Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's aide, who also serves as an upper house member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, visited the controversial here on Wednesday. Seiichi Eto's visit is the latest following some of the Prime Minister's Cabinet ministers and a contingent of more than 80 lawmakers from different parties paying homage at the shrine, Xinhua news agency reported. Abe himself made a ritual offering to on Monday to observe the spring autumn festival. Visits and offerings made at the shrine during its festivals by politicians, however, draw the ire of Japan's neighbours as the stands as a testament to the country's past militarism and acts that Japanese Army committed during wartime. The shrine honours 14 Class-A convicted war criminals among 2.5 million Japanese war dead from the World War II. China on Monday called on Japan to reflect upon its past aggressions after Abe sent a ritual offering to the Yasukuni Shrine. "We firmly oppose the wrong-doings of Japanese politicians," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said, stating that Tokyo should make a clear break with its militarist past so as to win trust from its Asian neighbours and the community. A leader of the Janata League, a front organisation of the ruling Awami League in Bangladesh, succumbed early on Wednesday to injuries sustained in a deadly attack the previous night, media reported. Sheikh Swadhin Monir, President of Fatulla Awami Janata League, was attacked near his house in Fatulla upazila of Narayanganj on Tuesday night, Dhaka Tribune reported. Monir's nephew Ashraf Hossain said: "My uncle had a feud with local Swechchhasebok League leader Mir Hossain Miru relating to the business of cable connection in the area." "Miru's supporters stabbed my uncle and two aunts while they were returning home from a relative's house on Tuesday night." The injured were taken to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) where Monir succumbed to his injuries. DMCH police outpost SI Bachchu Mia said: "Monir died at the hospital around 6.00 a.m. today." --IANS ss/dg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Fed up with the "betrayal" by the BJP, major Bodo groups in Assam are determined to go ahead with a 12-hour railway blockade on October 24 to revive the demand for a separate Bodoland state and "expose" the party that rules in the state and Centre. The strike is being spearheaded by the National Democratic Front of Bodo (Progressive), in collaboration with the All Bodo Students' Union (ABSU) and People's Joint Action Committee for Bodoland Movement. The Bodo groups say their faith in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to resolve the Bodoland issue was "misplaced" and they only got "false assurances" from the party -- during the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and the 2016 state elections. The Bodos - Assam's biggest tribal community -- claim the BJP is not even ready to discuss the issue of Bodoland any more. Bodo leaders claim they were rebuffed by BJP leaders whenever they tried to approach them in the past one year. "Before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Rajnath Singh (then BJP President) had assured us that the Bodo issue would be resolved if the Bodos support the BJP. The party fed us with false promises. The thousands of cadre of Bodo militant groups, who gave up arms thinking they would get to realise the dream of Bodoland under the BJP, are now getting increasingly frustrated," Promod Bodo, President ABSU, told IANS. "We have been betrayed, discriminated against, exploited and deprived by the BJP at the Centre, and at the regional level we have been suppressed and oppressed by the Assam government, though our party is part of the ruling coalition. The BJP is playing a game of political hegemony in the state. But we will do everything to achieve Bodoland," he said. Bodo said his community is struggling to preserve its culture and identity. The demand for Bodoland started in 1967. The struggle became an armed conflict after the formation of the Bodo Security Force, a militant group later rechristened NDFB. Currently, two factions of the NDFB -- NDFB (P) led by Gobinda Basumatary and NDFB led by Ranjan Daimary -- are in peace talks with the Centre, while NDFB (S) led by Songibijit I.K. is against holding talks with the Indian government under the Constitutional framework. The Songibijit faction was responsible for the recent killing of 14 civilians in an attack in Assam's Kokrajhar district, that also left 20 injured. The Bodo groups remained silent during the last couple of years waiting for the BJP to act on its assurance. The Bodo groups have decided to resort to a railway blockade on October 24, and are promising more severe measures of protest to make the government heed their demand. Asked if the Bodo community was divided over the Bodoland issue, Promod Bodo denied any differences. He said the Bodo community was united and even the NDFB (S) was ready to join the negotiations if the government had a "proper policy" to resolve the Bodoland issue. Gobinda Basumatary, General Secretary of NDFB (Progressive), told IANS: "We have been betrayed and exploited by the BJP. When the elections came in 2014, the BJP sought our support and assured us a small state within India. We supported the BJP and they came to power. But, in the last two years no talks on the statehood issue were held." Basumatary, the first NDFB militant to give up arms and join the peace process, said during his three meetings with Home Minister Rajnath Singh and more than seven meetings with his deputy Kiren Rijiju over the past two years, there was no response to their demand for a separate state. Another key NDFB leader, Ranjan Daimary, who has joined the peace process, has declined to join the revival plan for Bodoland. He feels that actively participating in the statehood agitation now would hamper the peace process. "After declaration of the ceasefire on August 1, 2011, we entered into formal ceasefire on November 23, 2013, and since then we have been holding talks with the government. We support the movement for Bodoland led by ABSU, but right now we are not involved directly as we are engaged in political dialogue," Daimary told IANS. (Rupesh Dutta can be contacted at Rupesh.d@ians.in) --IANS rup/rn/sac (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Wednesday accused the BJP-led central government of "misusing" Delhi Police, CBI and ACB against the "elected government" in Delhi. Addressing a press conference here, AAP leader Ashish Khetan urged Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah to cooperate with the Delhi government and not to use the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Delhi Police and Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) to "harass" the AAP MLAs. Khetan, who is also vice-chairman of Delhi Dialogue Commission (DDC), alleged that while Delhi Police is always in a hurry to book and arrest AAP MLAs, it doesn't show the same urgency in pursuing the case further. "Gulab Singh was the 14th AAP MLA to be arrested. But out of the 14 MLAs, Delhi Police has filed a charge-sheet against only one of them," he said. Delhi Police had filed charge-sheet against AAP MLA from Model Town, Akhilesh Pati Tripathi, last year in a case of rioting and assault. Tripathi was later acquitted of the charges. Khetan's remarks come after Gulab Singh, in charge of the AAP's affairs in Gujarat, got bail on Wednesday. "While granting bail to Gulab Singh, the court reprimanded the police for not disclosing all relevant information while procuring a non-bailable warrant against him," Khetan said. He added that Gulab Singh had written to Delhi Police on October 10 that he will be available for questioning from October 18 onward after Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's rally in Surat. "But Delhi Police did not inform the court about this letter while asking for the warrant," Khetan said. Gulab Singh, also an AAP legislator in Delhi, was arrested by the Delhi Police on October 16 in Surat -- ahead of Kejriwal's rally -- on a non-bailable warrant. The warrant was issued in connection with an extortion case after he failed to turn up for interrogation. --IANS vv-am/rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Brazilian President Michel Temer has played down the corruption charges against several of his cabinet members. The President said on Tuesday the charges are minor, describing them as "simply allegations." He said the government will wait and see whether the cases against his ministers move forward to a stage where there is a need to take action, Xinhua news agency reported. "These things need to be consolidated. If they do consolidate, then the government will see what it will do," said Temer. So far, several high-profile names of the Temer's administration have been involved into the Federal Police's Carwash Operation, which is investigating corruption conducts in state-run energy giant Petrobras and other government contracts. Temer himself has also been mentioned by some accused of taking bribe. In the past days, two more charges were added during the testimonies of some defendants, who reportedly turned into witness to the State. Moreira Franco, Executive Secretary of the Investment Partnerships Program, allegedly took 3 million reals (941,600 US dollars) in bribes in 2014. Sports Minister Eduardo Picciani was accused of money laundering through his family's company engaged in the sale of overpriced cattle. --IANS ss/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Jim Carrey is battling two lawsuits accusing him of complicity in his ex-girlfriend Cathriona White's suicide. Carrey has given the court a detailed account of his relationship with White, who died of drug overdose in September 2015, reports mirror.co.uk. He has attacked White's mother Brigid Sweetman and White's estranged husband Mark Burton, who also accused Carrey of supplying her with the pain killers the young woman used to end her life. Carrey's attorneys are seeking to put the litigation on pause until White's mother posts a $372,700 bond, which they contend will be necessary to cover the actor's legal defence. The motion also included a 10-page declaration from Carrey in which he narrated the troubled relationship in deeply personal terms. Carrey said he truly cared for White but like all couples they had their ups and downs. The actor claimed that in order to obtain a Green card, White married Burton, even though she and Carrey were still dating. According to mirror.co.uk, Carrey said that he paid for White's housing and provided her with a stipend but turned down her request for marriage so she could avoid deportation back to Ireland. Earlier, White's mother Brigid Sweetman said the actor should be ashamed of his treatment of her daughter. He is alleged to have illegally provided her prescription drugs involved in her suicide. White's mother also accused him of giving her three sexually transmitted diseases. --IANS sas/nn/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Delhi Zoo will remain shut for some more days, an official said on Wednesday, as tests confirmed that bird influenza had indeed killed two of the 10 migratory birds. "We sent the carcasses to a lab in Jalandhar which were forwarded to Bhopal. The presence of bird influenza was confirmed in two samples," a zoo official told IANS on the condition of anonymity. He said the zoo, which was shut on Tuesday, would remain closed for another four to five days while the staff take stool samples of other birds. The zoo was temporarily shut since nine uncaged or migratory birds died on October 14, 15 and 17. The 10th bird died on Wednesday. The dead birds included Painted Stork, Rosy Pelican and common ducks. Officials said these birds migrate from Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan in August and leave in March. An official told IANS that these birds dwell in the ponds of the zoo. Officials do not know where the birds caught bird influenza or bird flu. "The common ducks lived in a separate pond while Pelicans and Storks live in one. There are three such ponds in the zoo," an official said. The carcasses were sent to Northern Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, Jalandhar, which forwarded them to the High Security Animal Disease Laboratory, Bhopal. --IANS kd/ask/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) One hundred and ninety-seven countries have unanimously approved Indias nomination of Rajendra Shende as a senior expert to the United Nations Environment Programmes Technology and Economic Assessment Panel of the Montreal Protocol -- the most successful global treaty aimed at protecting the ozone layer. Shende, a former UN diplomat on global environmental treaties and presently Chairman of the TERRE Policy Centre, was seconded by the US, Brazil, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Moldova, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan. "The universal approval of Shende by the countries, that included China and Pakistan, is considered a welcome development for India and its leadership role under climate change," a statement said. The Technology and Economic Assessment Panel is the UNEP's overarching body of that assesses emerging alternative technologies in five main industrial sectors that safeguard the ozone layer and climate system. It provides the cost benefit analysis and policy relevant information for the countries to take transformative decisions towards sustainable development. Shende's approval came at a just-concluded meeting in Rwandan capital Kigali where negotiators from 197 countries reached a legally-binding agreement to counter climate change by cutting the global use of the powerful planet-warming hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) used in air-conditioners, refrigerators, foams and aerosols. "This has been considered as the Montreal Protocol would shift its focus from protection of the ozone Layer to climate change issues of reducing global warming, enhancing energy efficiency and reducing pollution. TEAP would advise, on transfer and development of alternative technologies and estimate level of financial assistance needed for the developing countries," the statement said. Shende is a gradate from Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay and worked in private sector before joining United Nations in Paris till 2011. He was coordinating lead author of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report of 2007, a co-winner of the Nobel Peace prize. He has won two awards from the US Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA) for ozone layer protection and then climate protection. As an expert reviewer, he has also been associated with number of UN assessment reports, including the Science Assessment Panel of the World Meteorological organization in Geneva. Shende currently leads a not-for-profit think tank and action platform focused on energy and food security. --IANS vm/dg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a move to meet the shortage of doctors in the state, the Haryana government on Wednesday decided to raise the retirement age of practicing doctors from 58 to 65 years. Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij told media here that the decision was taken at a meeting of the Haryana health department, chaired by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. Vij said that, however, those doctors who were working on administrative posts, would retire at the age of 58 years. "They will be able to continue to serve up to 65 years only if they opt to practice in any health institution of their choice," he added. The Health Minister said that it has also been decided to invite applications from those retired doctors who would like to rejoin service as medical practitioners. "They would be re-employed. This measure would help in checking the shortage of doctors in the state," Vij added. --IANS js/sm/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Shahid Kapoor, who has launched his own fashion brand called SKULT, says there was a time when he had poor sense of fashion. "I think I was a fashion victim 10 years back. I had absolutely no idea about what to wear or where to buy. I didn't have any knowledge of Google or social media where you could discover what's going on," Shahid said here. He launched his fashion brand on Tuesday here, and it will be exclusively available on Abof. The actor said: "I would wear a bright yellow T-shirt, tight jeans and boots, and thought it was cool. So, it's been a long journey. In last 2-3 years, I understood a little bit about style and wanted to express myself in the fashion line." Talking about the brand, the "Udta Punjab" star said: "SKULT is something very close to my heart. It is about freedom, freedom of expression, movement and street style." On personal front, Shahid and his wife Mira Rajput welcomed their first child, a daughter, in August. And work wise, he will be seen in Vishal Bhardwaj's upcoming period drama "Rangoon", and will soon start shooting for Sanjay Leela Bhansali for the upcoming magnum opus "Padmavati". --IANS iv/sug/vt (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The call for boycott of on Indian social media is "rabble rousing" as Indian products cannot compete with those of China, the state-owned media said on Wednesday. In an acerbic op-ed, Global Times launched a blitzkrieg of a sort against India, saying New Delhi can only "bark" and do nothing about the growing trade deficit between the two countries. ALSO READ: Modi made India more proactive: Key things Chinese media said about BRICS Summit China's continued opposition to India's effort to declare Pakistan-based militants as international terrorists has angered many Indians who have called for a boycott of Chinese products. It described Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pet project "Make in India" as "impractical". The daily warned Chinese companies not to invest in India as it would be "suicidal" to put money in a country where corruption is high and the workforce is not hard working. "There has been a lot of talk recently in the Indian media as well as on social media about boycotting Chinese products. It's just rabble rousing," it said. "Indian manufacturing cannot compete at all with Chinese products, for various reasons." The daily said that India was to yet build roads and highways and had chronic shortage of power and water supply. "Worst of all, corruption is highly prevalent from top to bottom in every single government department." It slammed India for courting the US. "The US is no one's friend. The Americans are just indulging India in order to contain China, as the US is jealous of China's development and global power," it said. "India has enough money but the majority of it is concentrated with politicians, bureaucrats and a few crony capitalists. Indian elites don't want to spend funds available in the country, which in reality is the taxpayers' money but is utilized by the Indian establishment for its own personal consumption," it said "Because of this, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has started impractical schemes like 'Make in India'. The reason is that the Indian establishment wants foreign companies to invest in the country. It would be completely suicidal for Chinese companies to put their money in India by starting manufacturing projects there. The labour class in India is not very hard working or efficient," it argued. The daily said that instead of opening shops in India, Chinese companies should set up their manufacturing units in China. The world's third-largest smartphone maker, Huawei, opened its manufacturing unit in India last month. "In any case, Indian businessmen flock to China in large numbers to buy products from China and sell them in India. This model suits China, so why disturb it by going and wasting money setting up manufacturing facilities in India? Let the Indian authorities bark about the growing trade deficit with China. The fact of the matter is they cannot do anything about it." India and Myanmar on Wednesday signed three agreements following delegation-level talks headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the southeast Asian nation's State Counsellor and Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi. "#IndiaMyanmar: Partners in Progress - The two leaders witness exchange of agreements in sectors of power, banking and insurance," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted. One memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on cooperation in the power sector. A second MoU was signed on banking supervision between the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Bank of Myanmar while a third MoU was inked for designing an academic and professional building programme for the insurance industry of Myanmar. Suu Kyi met Modi on the third and concluding day of her state visit to India. On Tuesday, she met President Pranab Mukherjee and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Though Suu Kyi is not the President as Myanmar's constitution bars her from this post, the Nobel peace laureate is effectively the de facto ruler of the country. This is the first official visit of Suu Kyi to New Delhi since her National League for Democracy (NLD) assumed power in Myanmar in March this year. Prior to reaching New Delhi on Monday for the state visit, she attended the BRICS-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa on Sunday. Her visit comes after Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw's visit to India in August this year. --IANS ab/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The fourth meeting of the India-Nepal Joint Commission, the top bilateral body at the Foreign Minister-level, will be held on October 26-27 in New Delhi, an official said on Wednesday. The Joint Commission meeting on October 27 will be followed by a Foreign Secretary-level meeting, Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement here. During the recent state visit of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' to India, both sides had agreed to hold the meeting "at the earliest". Foreign Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat and his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj will lead the respective delegations at the meeting that will review and assess all facets of bilateral relations and will give a direction to the future course, said the statement. The meeting will also dwell upon a wide range of bilateral issues and try to find a way out, including expediting the India-funded projects and setting up of a joint mechanism at the government level to monitor progress of these projects in Nepal. Besides, the meeting will also try to work out a time-bound plan to complete the pending projects, it said. Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Premier Dahal had agreed to expedite the pending projects through a bilateral monitoring mechanism. Earlier, the joint commission meeting was scheduled for August 20-22 in New Delhi, but it was cancelled after a change of guard in Kathmandu. The third meeting was held in Kathmandu in 2014 after a gap of 23 years. The joint commission is a high-level mechanism that comprehensively aims to review India-Nepal relations in the areas of politics and security, trade and investment cooperation, water resources and power, connectivity, development assistance and education and culture. --IANS giri/nir/dg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) After facing protests within the party, the BJP-led Jharkhand government has indicated that it will soften its stand on the changes proposed in the two land acts formulated during British rule to protect rights of tribal and indigenous people. The Raghubar Das-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in July this year had brought an ordinance to make changes in the Chotanagur Tenancy Act (CNT) and Santhal Pargana Tenancy (SPT) acts. Jharkhand Governor Draupadi Murmu had sent the ordinance to President Pranab Mukherjee, who sought a suggestion from the central government. The Centre referred the ordinance to National Schedule Tribe (ST) Commission, which advised against the state government's proposal. The ordinance is pending with the President. There are rumours that Mukherjee has returned it, but there has been no official confirmation on this. National ST Commission Chairperson Rameshwar Oraon had, in an earlier interview to IANS, said: "The changes in the two land acts are against the 2013 Land Acquisition Act and a violation of the fifth schedule of the Constitution." After clearance of the ordinance, the Jharkhand government can acquire agricultural land for non-agriculture purposes such as building roads, power projects and malls. The opposition parties, including the BJP's alliance partner, the All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU), had opposed the ordinance. Even a large number of tribal legislators had opposed it within the BJP. According to sources, at the two-day BJP state executive meeting which began on Tuesday, BJP leader Saudan Singh sought the view of the legislators on the issue. Sources in the BJP revealed that Singh categorically wanted to know the legislators' objection to the ordinance. Singh also sought suggestions from the tribal legislators on how to protect rights of the tribal people and at the same time allow the land act to be amended so that land acquisition can take place. The Chief Minister also agreed to accommodate the views of the tribal legislators. Party sources said the Jharkhand government can prepare a new draft to be tabled in the winter session of the state assembly. The party's move is seen as a bid to keep calm the restive BJP legislators at a time when the state government of the Chief Minister is completing two years in office in December. "The meeting of tribal legislators was convened during the state executive meeting so that a message is sent among tribal people that a non-tribal Chief Minister and the BJP are not imposing anything on them," a BJP leader said. "The party leaders are also of the view that the opposition which has scored over the BJP for now, can get mileage in the coming elections," the leader told IANS. The BJP MPs and legislators have openly opposed the state government's Domicile Policy and ordinance on land acts putting the party and the government in an embarrassing situation. Different tribal organisations in the past called rallies to protest the ordinance. Another rally has been called on October 22 by Adivasi Sangrash Morcha. --IANS ns/py/sac (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Karnataka on Wednesday agreed to abide by the Supreme Court's directive to release daily 2,000 cusecs of Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu till its further order. "We will abide by the Supreme Court order. I would not like to say more as the case is sub-judice," said state Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister T.B. Jayachandra here. Earlier in the day, reserving its ruling on the state's appeal against the 2007 award of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal, a three-judge bench of the apex court said its Tuesday's interim order to Karnataka for releasing 2,000 cusecs daily to Tamil Nadu would continue till further orders. "The interim order dated October 4 directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu will continue till further orders," said the bench comprising Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and A.M. Khanwilkar. The state cabinet, which met here, also briefly discussed the top's court order. State Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, however, maintained that the four reservoirs across the river basin had only water for drinking purpose in the region till the onset of next monsoon in June 2017. "We do not have surplus water in our reservoirs due to deficit monsoon rains this year. We have also conveyed our distress to the expert committee with data on inflows and outflows in the dams," Siddaramaiah told reporters here later. In a related development, Farmers Protection Forum President G. Made Gowda opposed further release of water, as the expert committee had submitted to the apex court its report stating that Karnataka was facing water shortage. "There is no need to release more water to Tamil Nadu for irrigation as we need it for drinking needs. Moreover, with the north-east monsoon due to set in next week, farmers in the neighbouring state will have rains for irrigation," Gowda told reporters at Mandya, about 100km from Bengaluru. --IANS fb/rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Kerala government will devise a new strategy to support small and medium IT companies in the state to tap into the Middle East markets more effectively, a senior IT official said on Wednesday. For this the government along with the industry body, Group of Technology Companies (GTech), is mulling over funds to support companies to create prototypes that have market potential. IT Secretary M. Sivasankar, who is in Dubai attending the five-day GITEX Technology Week, also held a series of discussions with a team of high level IT officials to cement the basics. Most often, small and medium companies face constraints of funds while trying to make innovative products, Sivasankar said. "Apart from addressing the gap between the buyer and the company entering the co-ownership model, the government will now consider a fund to support companies to create prototypes that have market potential," he said. Sivasankar pointed out that the relationship between TECOM Group -- a strategic business enabler of 11 communities in Dubai and Smart City Kochi -- IT Special Economic Zone, would benefit both the United Arab Emirates and Kerala. GTech feels that the current economic environment in the Gulf presents huge opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Kerala and it should be tapped. "Corporates are moving from expensive solutions provided by large conglomerates to cost effective ones offered by SMEs," GTech's Business Head Rafeek K Mohammed said. "If our companies are able to deliver economic and scalable solutions, there will be takers," he added. Twenty eight IT companies from Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode are currently participating in the GITEX that concludes on Thursday. --IANS sg/in/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Parma (Italy), Oct 19 (IANS/AKI) Prosecutors said on Wednesday they are probing a manager at the company that employed two Italian engineers who were abducted last year by Islamic State militants in Libya and killed in captivity. The unnamed manager at Parma-based engineering firm Bonatti is under investigation for manslaughter and breaking employment law over the deaths of Fausto Piano and Salvatore Failla in March last year, according to prosecutors. The offices of Bonatti were also searched as part of the probe, investigators said. Piano and Failla were kidnapped, and found dead after a firefight in the western city of Sabratha in Libya in March last year in circumstances that have not yet been fully clarified. The case has raised fears for the safety of two other Italians and a Canadian who were abducted outside the remote southwestern Libyan city of Ghat last month. No group has claimed the kidnapping of Bruno Cacace and Danilo Calonego and the Canadian, identified only as Frank. All three men work for the Libyan branch of Italian engineering firm Contratti lnternazionali Costruzioni. --IANS rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The eight-day long Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star will screen 175 films, including features, documentaries and short films from 54 countries, from Thursday here. Right from its opening ceremony at the revamped Royal Opera House here, the fest will be bigger than its previous editions, promises MAMI Festival Director Anupama Chopra. Actress Konkona Sen Sharma's directorial debut "A Death in The Gunj", which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, has been chosen as the opening film of the festival. "It will be a bigger festival in total in terms of events and the verticals," Chopra told IANS. While American drama film "Manchester by the Sea", directed by Kenneth Lonergan, will close the fest, Turkey has been selected as the country in focus. "A big delegation is coming from Turkey and we are very excited," she said. The "big movie mela", as Chopra likes to describe the fest, will showcase films from France, Brazil, the US, Australia, Germany, Russia and more, but the attendees won't get to watch a Pakistani classic. Amid the growing tensions between India and Pakistan, the festival organisers decided not to showcase "Jago Hua Savera", which was to be screened as part of the Restored Classics Section of the event. The decision comes after Prithvi Maske, President of Sangharsh Foundation, an NGO in Mumbai, filed a complaint at Amboli police station against Jio MAMI for screening of the 1959 A.J. Kardar directorial. When IANS asked her before the complaint was filed if she was expecting any kind of protest against the Pakistani film, Chopra said: "I hope not. We are just showing a movie. Our function as a festival is to bring great films to people." But there are other films that moviegoers can enjoy at the fest, which will conclude on October 27. The Jio MAMI Movie Mela with Star will showcase the first look of the much awaited S.S. Rajamouli's "Baahubali 2: The Conclusion" on October 22 here. Short film "Azaad", presented by filmmaker Mira Nair, is set to premiere at the fest. Political thriller "An Insignificant Man", which chronicles the journey of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal from a social activist to a controversial politician, will also premiere in India at the festival. The list of premieres doesn't end here. Filmmaker Vikramaditya Motwane's "Trapped" will have its premiere and so will actress Priyanka Chopra's Marathi film production "Ventilator". This time the fest is going big with Marathi cinema. It will celebrate Marathi cinema with the launch of its new segment Marathi Talkies. "Marathi cinema has always been a big part of the festival, but we have launched the segment to have one day to showcase it and highlight it," said Chopra. The Half Ticket, a section for children, is different this year. "Half Ticket is going to be something where parents can bring their children otherwise we used to work with schools," she explained. Film enthusiasts can also look forward to sessions and other activities. American filmmaker Cary Fukunaga will conduct a masterclass during the festival. The masterclass will give insights into his craft, challenges and choices of a filmmaker. "Music, Masti, Modernity - The Cinema of Nasir Husain", a book based on the legendary filmmaker Nasir Husain, will be launched. To celebrate the launch of the book, written by Akshay Manwani, Nasir Husain's cult musical hit film "Teesri Manzil" will be screened at the event. The book launch will be followed by a panel discussion about Nasir Husain's cinema and how it has shaped generations of directors. The panel will include superstar and Nasir Husain's nephew Aamir Khan, director and Nasir Husain's son Mansoor Khan, Manwani and producer Nuzhat Khan. "I hope people of Mumbai and who travel to Mumbai go back with great movies and memories with slightly new ways of thinking and looking at cinema. That's what film fests should do," she concluded. (The writer is in Mumbai at the invitation of Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star. Natalia Ningthoujam can be contacted at natalia.n@ians.in) --IANS nn/vt (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Myanmar will soon notify a new investment law according the same treatment to foreign companies as is being given to domestic companies, that will make doing business easier in that country also for Indian firms, Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi said on Wednesday. Suu Kyi said this at a meeting here with Indian business leaders, organised jointly by the Confederation of Indian Industry and the External Affairs Ministry, according to a CII release. "With the enactment of the new law, the Myanmar Minister hoped that there would be transparency in contracts, the rule of law would be enforced and corruption would be curbed," the statement said. She said issues such as repatriation of profit and also of capital have also been addressed in the new law, the statement added. Suu Kyi also said Indian investment in Myanmar must be linked to Myanmar's overall development. Suu Kyi is on her the first official visit to New Delhi since her National League for Democracy (NLD) assumed power in Myanmar in March this year. Earlier on Wednesday, India and Myanmar signed three agreements following delegation-level talks headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Suu Kyi. One memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on cooperation in the power sector. A second MoU was signed on banking supervision between the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Bank of Myanmar while a third MoU was inked for designing an academic and professional building programme for the insurance industry of Myanmar. In his address at the business meeting, Ministry of External Affairs Secretary (ER) Amar Sinha said India-Myanmar bilateral trade was well below par and measures needed to be taken to boost trade. He said India was working on completing the various connectivity projects that were underway which would link India's Northeast with Myanmar. India has been a major trading partner of Myanmar and since the signing of the trade agreement between the two countries in 1970, bilateral trade has grown steadily from $328 million in 1997-1998 to $2.052 billion in 2015-2016. The State Bank of India resumed banking operations in Myanmar earlier this month after a gap of 53 years by inaugurating a branch in the country's largest city Yangon on Monday -- becoming the first Indian bank to do so. --IANS bc/rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Myanmar's Union Election Commission on Wednesday announced to hold by-election of the parliament on April 1 next year. The by-election will be held to fill 18 vacant seats -- nine in the House of Representatives (Lower House), three in the House of Nationalities (Upper House) and six in state parliaments. According to the UEC, the date for issuing forms to overseas voters to cast vote in advance is set between November 15 and December 15 and date for submission of names of candidates is between November 28 and December 7, Xinhua news agency reported. Campaign period will be from January 30 to March 30 next year. Election result or names of winning parliamentarians-elect will be announced within the next four days following the by-election on April 1 next year. The vacant constituencies were produced when the country's general election was held on November 8 last year, there were some constituencies which failed to hold the polling. Other parliamentary seats were left empty after parliament members were appointed as government cabinet ministers. --IANS py/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) There was a time when young people dreamed of more earthly pursuits. Generations of children were put to bed with successive chapters of Robert Louis Stevensons Treasure Island and drifted off to slumber with visions of pirates and South Seas islands swimming through their heads. Its not that Stevensons characters have been completely relegated to the dustbin of history. Its just that todays tweens and pre-tweens are far more likely to be versed in the teenage dystopias of books like The Hunger Games than in the old-fashioned adventure yarns of Stevenson, Verne and the likewhich is why its refreshing to find such a lovely little kids adventure tale in the French-Danish film Long Way North. This animated tale reads like Jack London by way of Czarist Russia. Set in 1880s St. Petersburg, it begins by introducing us to Sasha, a 15-year-old aristocrat whose upper-crust parents are throwing her a debutante ball. Unlike her snooty friends, Sasha isnt interested in the comings and goings of the royal court. Years ago her grandfather, a famous explorer, disappeared while trying to reach the North Pole. Sasha idolized her grandfather and remains dedicated to his memoryeven though he vanished along with the Davai, a terribly expensive, state-of the art icebreaker. The Czar has offered a 1 million ruble reward for the location of the missing ship. And thanks to the timely discovery of some long-lost papers, Sasha believes she knows where it wound up. At her ball, however, Sasha offends a pompous princewho happens to be the Czars new minister of scienceby suggesting that everyone has been looking in the wrong place all these years. According to the notes Sasha has discovered, Grandpa Oloukine took a different path North. But Sashas impertinence ticks off the ministerwho had it out for old Oloukine anyway. With the country struggling financially (and the Russian Revolution not too far off on the horizon), Oloukines failed journey to the North Pole is seen as something of a brave folly. Worried about his own social standing, Sashas father punishes her for ruining the ball and chasing off the minister. This animated tale reads like Jack London by way of Czarist Russia. Set in 1880s St. Petersburg, it begins by introducing us to Sasha, a 15-year-old aristocrat whose upper-crust parents are throwing her a debutante ball. Unlike her snooty friends, Sasha isnt interested in the comings and goings of the royal court. But Sashas a stubborn young lady. Shes not about to abandon her beloved grandpappy and his reputation. So she runs away from home, figuring if she can find the Davai, she can claim the reward, save her family and rescue Oloukines reputation as well. Jumping a train, she heads to the northern coast, hoping to buy her way on a boat heading past the Norwegian archipelago of Spitsbergen, where she believes grandpa and the Davai veered east instead of west. Sasha has never been on a ship before, but shes a smart girl and has studied sailing, navigation and cartography. Once shes out in the real world, however, it becomes clear that her book learning only takes her so far, and that shes quite a bit more spoiled than she thought. In short order, Sasha is stuck in a backwater port town, broke and out of options. But thanks to her tenaciousnessand the kindness of some strangersthe young gal toughs it out and soon lands a berth on a ship willing to help her hunt for her grandfathers (hopefully still ice-bound) ship. Once on board she proves a quick study, pulling her own weight and earning the respect of the ships gruff captain and his occasionally hapless first mate. What follows is the stuff of classic adventure yarns and a welcome alternative to the majority of todays high-tech, ADD-style cartoons (in other words, most anything shot after Shrek). Long Way North is directed by animator Remi Chaye (who worked on 2009s The Secret of Kells and 2011s The Painting). The simple, graphic animation favors large blocks of sophisticated color, sans outlines. The stylish, story-book look is reminiscent of cut-paper illustration or early Soviet propaganda posters. Many of the films action sequencessuch as a climactic blizzardare wonders to behold, striking and poetic. The script (from European cartoon writer Claire Paoletti) is somber and a bit linear, offering a straight- on- till- dawn narrative with few surprises. Still, at doesnt shy away from the juvenile survival storys darker aspects, getting about as harrowing as it can for a PG-rated film (lots of danger, but definitely no cannibalism). The American voice cast is perfectly functional. There are no names of any note among them, and the often exposition-heavy dialogue comes across as a bit stiff at times. (The original French is reportedly much more fluid.) But everyone involved gets the job done, and things smooth out quite a bit as the action kicks in. In the end what will stick with viewers is the icy imagery and the admirable young heroine plucky enough to land herself a spot in a Hayao Miyazaki film. Thats more than enough to please Disney-weary adults in the audience. And with luck, it will inspire a young viewer or two to search for adventure closer to home than Hogwarts. While the federal governments war on poverty achieved some progress towards meeting basic material needs, says Ray Nothstine in this weeks Acton Commentary, it has no answers to the deeper dilemma of dependency and hopelessness faced by many Americans. One book that highlights the problem and that is receiving considerable attention this year is J.D. Vances Hillbilly Elegy. Vance uses his own story to depict a crisis of culture among the white working class, especially in Appalachia. When President Lyndon Johnson launched his Great Society programs over 50 years ago with an iconic visit to Eastern Kentucky, it produced forlorn images of families in dilapidated shacks. The region remains under siege by poverty. The problem, in large part, as Vance explains, is wrapped up in cultural and family decay. Vance, who declares, Poverty was a family tradition, was able to break free from the cycle and escape a chaotic future by moving in with a grandmother. Stability in the home brought with it a possibility to changes ones life trajectory. The full text of the essay can be found here. Subscribe to the free, weekly Acton News & Commentary and other publications here. Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda on Wednesday demanded action against those responsible for the massive fire in a hospital here that killed 19 people. "An inquiry is going on. Prima facie I find some safety issues which need to be addressed," Nadda said after visiting the Institute of Medical Sciences and SUM Hospitals. Describing the incident as "very shocking, painful and worrisome", he sought punishment for those responsible for the tragedy. "The state government must take necessary action so that people's faith is reposed." Nineteen people were killed in the fire in the ICU of the Dialysis Ward of the SUM Hospital on Monday. Another 106 were injured. --IANS aks/in/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A two-month-old baby weighing 2.1-kg has successfully undergone a liver transplant at a city hospital here and is claimed to be the smallest baby yet to undergo the surgical procedure. David, a Nigerian national, was brought to the Medanta Mediclinic Hospital by his parents in the absence of medical advancement in the African region. On the new born's arrival at the hospital, doctors discovered that he was suffering from Neonatal Hemochromatosis (NH) -- a rare metabolic disorder causing excessive iron deposition in the liver, causing it to fail. According to the doctors, while David's birth weight was 3 kg, the disease ravaged him, leading to malnourishment and weight loss. "David was in severe liver and bone marrow failure when he reached us, malnourished and barely alive. He and his parents travelled from Nigeria in the hope that we could save him. While the odds weighed heavily against him, we decided to proceed with the rare, first of its kind transplant," said A.S. Soin, Chief Liver Transplant Surgeon at the Medanta Mediclinic Hospital. Talking about the patient's condition, the doctors stated that the complication over performing the surgery was more because he also had jaundice, bleeding tendency, anaemia and low blood counts. Detailed evaluation not only confirmed liver failure due to NH, but also revealed bone marrow failure due to a condition called hemophagocytic lympho histiocytosis (HLH). However, a team of doctors, which also comprised Neelam Mohan, Chief Liver Transplant Physician, decided to go ahead with the transplant. "We cautiously treated HLH and infection for three days and proceeded with a high-risk transplant which would give him at least a 70 per cent shot at life. The usual success rate of transplants at our centre is 95 per cent. Without a transplant, the baby was unlikely to survive beyond a few days," said Mohan, while speaking to reporters. The doctors also said that the size of the baby was the biggest problem during the surgery. Mohan said: "David's father James, the only suitable donor, was about 43 times as heavy. There were no previous reports of a successful transplant with donor heavier than 25 times the recepient's size. This meant we could use only 5-6 per cent of James' liver for the transplant, whereas usually, about 10-20 per cent of the donor's liver is used for transplanting in children." Doctors said similar rare previous attempts elsewhere had ended in failure in 1-2 weeks. However, as the transplant of David is successful, he is expected to enjoy a normal life ahead though he will need close, long-term monitoring. Vijay Vohra, head of the liver anaesthesia, said: "It was a big challenge to maintain David under anaesthesia over the nine-hour surgery, because of his very small veins and wind pipe, small dosages of medicines needed, and the precision required down to a millilitre in managing fluid and blood product administration." --IANS rup/sm/vt (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A day after the West Bengal government constituted a CID probe into the repeated cases of fire in the country's oldest engineering firm Jessop's factory premises, the police on Wednesday started a suo motu case against its owner Pawan Ruia and other directors. Four people, allegedly burglars, have also been arrested for intruding into Jessop's factory near suburban Dumdum on Tuesday night, police said. "We have enhanced the security arrangements inside factory premises and started ambush system by posting personnel in civil dress. Four burglars were arrested yesterday. Police will start a suo motu case against them as the factory owners have not lodged any FIR," Barrackpore City Police Commissioner Tanmay Roy Chowdhury said. "Dumdum police station have also started a suo motu case against Jessop factory owner Pawan Kumar Ruia and other directors," he said. The West Bengal government on Tuesday ordered a CID probe after repeated incidents of fire over the past one month in the Jessop factory premises. On Tuesday, police accused Jessop owners of flouting High Court order to repair factory walls, clean bushes and make adequate lighting arrangements in the factory premises. Ahead of the state assembly elections this year, the West Bengal government passed a bill to take over the Pawan Kumar Ruia group-controlled ailing industrial units -- Dunlop India and the 228-year old Jessop, a maker of wagons, EMU rakes and cranes. Founded in 1788 as Breen and Company, the firm was re-christened Jessop in 1820. The central government took over its management in 1958 and then the company as a whole in 1973. Over the years, the company turned loss making. In 2003, the government sold its 72 percent stake to Ruia, who turned it into a profit making business within a short time. However, over the years, the firm fell into tough times. The company was shut down indefinitely in 2014. --IANS mgr/ssp/rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Madhya Pradesh Lokayukta Police on Wednesday unearthed property worth crores of rupees in raids conducted at two locations here of a senior officer of the Electricity Department. The raids against Satyendra Singh Chauhan were continuing when reports last came in. Lokayukta Superintendent of Police Amit Singh told IANS: "We had received complaints of Chauhan owning property disproportionate to his known sources of income." "Based on the information, two teams of Lokayukta Police conducted raids today (Wednesday) at his Bhagwan Colony residence and at a water plant located in Dwarkadheesh Colony," he said. According to Singh, documents pertaining to residential plots in Anupam Nagar and agricultural lands at several places have been found so far in the raids at the three-storey palatial building in Bhagwan Colony and the water plant in Dwarkadheesh Colony. Besides, two four-wheelers, three goods-carrying vehicles and passbooks of several bank accounts have also been recovered. The Lokayukta SP said the value of the movable and immovable properties traced from various locations and belonging to Chauhan run into crores of rupees. Chauhan is currently posted as Deputy General Manager (Vigilance) in Morena district. --IANS hindi-nir/dg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a major initiative, the Indian Railways on Wednesday signed an MoU with Union Urban Development Ministry to redevelop railway stations and adjoining areas on the lines of Smart City. To enhance passenger amenities, easy access to stations and enabling optimal utilisation of land at railway stations, the MoU for 10 cities was signed in the presence of Union Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu and Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu. These stations are: Sarai Rohilla (Delhi), Bhubaneswar, Lucknow, Varnasi, Jaipur, Kota, Thane, Margao (Goa), Tirupati and Puducherry. Both the ministers lauded the joint initiative as a historic landmark that brings synergy in development of smart cities since there cannot be a Smart City without a smart railway station. "This convergence based city development will result in qualitative improvement in city life," Naidu said on the occasion. He suggested that to begin with 10 cities could be taken up for the proposed redevelopment with the involvement of National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) which has successfully executed redevelopment projects on self-financing basis. "Railway stations have been the core of city development and have become congested over time and their redevelopment offers immense opportunities for changing city landscape," Prabhu said. He said that several countries like Germany, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK and Belgium have showed interest in redevelopment and a Round Table of domestic and overseas bankers will be organised next week to discuss financing of these redevelopment projects. To be implemented first in the 100 cities included in the Smart City Mission, redevelopment of railway stations will be undertaken in AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) and HRIDAY (Heritage Infrastructure Development and Augmentation Yojana) cities extending the scope of the MoU to over 500 cities. Railway station and the adjoining area in each of these cities will be redeveloped on the lines of Area Based Development provided in the Smart City Mission Guidelines. "The joint initiative of the Ministries of Urban Development and Railways widens the Smart City development to one more area in each of the mission cities with each city required to select one area under respective Smart City Plans in the first phase," an official statement said. While the Ministry of Railways takes the responsibility of forming Joint Ventures, the Ministry of Urban Development will work with the states and urban local bodies for integrating railway station redevelopment as part of smart city development plans. The MoU states that both railway station redevelopment and Smart City concepts are part of holistic development of respective city. Redevelopment of railway station and its area as part of Smart City Plans leads to an integrated public transport hub around railway station and encourage Transit Oriented Development. --IANS bns-aks/sm/vt (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) sub-committee has recommended to the Union HRD Ministry that a "no-detention" policy for school students till class eight should be reviewed. The sub-committee has also recommended that six per cent of the GDP should be spent on education. The CABE sub-committee chairman, Punjab Education Minister Daljit Singh Cheema, said that the 189-page report of the committee was on Wednesday submitted to Union Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Prakash Javadekar in New Delhi with recommendations on improving the school education sector. In a statement after submission of the report Cheema said that the committee has recommended pre-primary classes in primary schools to improve the level of students belonging to government schools. "Besides this, the committee also recommended the reviewing of 'No Detention' till eighth standard, apart from commencing fifth and eighth standard exams independently as was the case earlier," Cheema said. "While preparing the report, the expenditure by various countries on education was also compared, after which it was recommended that a minimum of six per cent of the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) should be spent on education," he added. "The committee has also recommended spending more on elementary/primary education besides having a head for every school compulsorily," he said. Significant aspects of the recommendations made in the report were also considered in the meeting with the HRD minister, Cheema said. The recommendations of the report would be debated in the annual meeting of CABE to be held on October 25 in which all the school education and higher education ministers of all the states would take part. The committee recommended that a recruitment calendar is needed to be prepared in advance in order to ensure that no post remains vacant in the wake of superannuation. "The committee has also recommended the constitution of a committee of academic experts to review the course syllabus, duration of course and practical training in vogue at present to become a teacher," he pointed out. --IANS js/ask/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday accused the RSS of deliberately trying to create unrest in Kannur district, which has been marred by political violence in the recent months. He, however, agreed to the Congress-led opposition's repeated demand in the assembly for a dialogue to ensure peace in the district. Ever since the Vijayan government assumed office in May, seven political murders have taken place in Kannur -- of four activists of the Bharatiya Janata Party and three of the Communist Party of India-Marxist. Senior Congress legislator K.C. Joseph, who represents Irikkur assembly seat in the district, sought to move an adjournment motion to discuss the Kannur violence. "It's rather strange that whenever the CPI-M rules the state, peace disappears in Kannur district. It's a matter of deep concern that the violence is unleashed by a party that rules the state and by a party that rules the country," he said. The Congress leader said the Chief Ministers in the past have always taken the lead to hold peace meetings whenever violence broke out. "Now, even after seven murders, the present Chief Minister is silent," Joseph said. In response, Vijayan said Thiruvanthapuram district led in terms of political murders while Kannur was at sixth place. "In Kannur, the RSS is trying to create unrest on purpose. RSS people arrested for crimes in Kannur hail from outside," the Chief Minister said. Former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy requested Vijayan not to let matters drift and urged him to immediately bring all parties to the table to sort out the problem. "The need of the hour is that there should be an overall change from within... that one should not act with vengeance. Now that Chandy and others have asked for peace talks, I am ready," the Chief Minister said. Vijayan said local leaders in Kannur should first sit down for talks and later state-level leaders of political parties can meet in Kannur or the state capital. "I will fix the time and let you know," he added. --IANS sg/tsb/dg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday wished speedy recovery to Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, who was seriously injured in a road accident in West Bengal. Abhishek, nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, sustained serious injuries on Monday when his car hit a towing van at Ratanpur, about six km from Singur on Durgapur Expressway in Hooghly district. "Sonia Gandhi has extended her good wishes for health and fast recovery to Abhishek Banerjee. Her thoughts and prayers are with Abhishek and the Banerjee family in these testing times," said an official statement. Gandhi also expressed her happiness over Banerjee's condition being stable and his responding to the treatment. Banerjee was rushed to a Kolkata nursing home where doctors said he had sustained an orbital injury in a facial bone below the eye. Mamata Banerjee has ordered a Criminal Investigation Department probe to find out if there was some foul play. --IANS and/nir/vt (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A manhunt is on to nab multiple suspects involved in a San Francisco high school shootout, authorities said. At least four teenaged students were injured, of whom one is reported to be critical. "One 15-year-old female victim with life-threatening injuries to her upper torso was rushed to the San Francisco General Hospital," San Francisco Police Officer Carlos Manfredi told Fox News. The San Francisco Unified School District said that the shooting was "an isolated incident outside of the school building, where one female student was targeted by outsiders", CNN News reported on Wednesday. Students of the June Jordan School for Equity had treated the initial shots fired on Tuesday as a prank, until school officials ordered an immediate lockdown. In the end, four students were injured in the parking lot shooting around 3.20 p.m. as they were being dismissed for the day, Manfredi said. Investigators had launched a combing operation tracking each room inside the school building to hunt down multiple suspects. The shooters, wearing dark hoodies and jeans, were last seen running across the parking area towards the locked-down school building. The restrictions were, however, lifted about an hour later after the police had cleared each room. Besides the girl victim, who appeared to be the target, all the other boys received non life-threatening injuries and were given first aid. According to police, all four male suspects were still at large. It was unclear whether they had fled on foot or in a getaway car. School district officials had tweeted that June Jordan high school would open for classes on Wednesday. However, they planned to have additional "support" on hand for both the students and staff. --IANS in/sac (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has invited President Barack Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother and the mother of one of the US citizens killed in the 2012 attack on the US consulate in Benghazi to the third and last debate with Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. The televised debate, which will take place on Wednesday evening in Las Vegas, will be the final face-off between the two candidates before the November 8 election, EFE news reported. In accord with his defiant attitude in the second debate, to which he brought three women who had accused former President Bill Clinton of sexual abuse or harassment, Trump has now decided to invite Malik Obama, the President's half-brother, who last July expressed his support for the magnate. Trump's campaign director, Kellyanne Conway, told MSNBC that Malik Obama "wanted" to attend the debate and that members of the mogul's team are "happy" he was invited. When asked at his daily press conference about that invitation, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said that the President has not spent "a lot of time" thinking about it and that no relationship exists between him and his half-brother. Also among Trump's invited guests are Patricia Smith, the mother of Sean Smith, a State Department IT consultant who was killed in the 2012 Benghazi attack. That attack occurred when Clinton was Secretary of State and, during the Republican National Convention in July in Cleveland, Smith specifically blamed the Democratic candidate for her son's death, EFE news added. Meanwhile, Clinton has invited to the debate, among other people, Hewlett Packard CEO Meg Whitman, who since August has been one of her high-profile Republican backers. Billionaire Mark Cuban, one of Trump's most ferocious critics, will also be on hand at the debate, just as he was in the first face-off between the two presidential candidates. The debate will be moderated by conservative Fox News journalist Chris Wallace and it is expected that it will be the first time the two candidates will discuss the immigration issue. The contest will be divided into six 15-minute segments covering the national debt and social programmes, immigration, the economy, the Supreme Court, foreign policy and the candidates' ability to be President. While Clinton has devoted several days to preparing for the debate, Trump has said that he trusts his own instincts to see him through. The latest voter surveys in Nevada, a state that could be key in deciding the Nov. 8 election and where Hispanics represent 27.8 per cent of the population and 17 percent of the possible voters, show that Clinton is leading Trump by 2.5 per cent. It is expected that the TV viewing audience for this contest will be smaller than that for the second debate, when 66 million people tuned in, a figure that was lower than for the first debate, when a record 84 million people watched. --IANS lok/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) This is a guest post by Philip Booth, Professor of Finance, Public Policy and Ethics, St. Marys University, Twickenham; Academic and Research Director, Institute of Economic Affairs. Booth will be speaking in London on Dec. 1 at Acton Institutes The Crisis of Liberty in the West conference (register here). This post is based on remarks prepared for delivery at the United Kingdom Government Foreign and Commonwealth Office conference on Preventing Violent Extremism by Building Inclusive and Plural Societies, Oct. 19-20. Economic freedom and economic harmony By Phillip Booth In a free society, persons participate in economic exchange and civil society freely, without interference as long as they do not harm others. Of course, actions such as inciting violence and so on need to be dealt with and possibly prosecuted. But, individuals and families, often working as communities and through civil society organisations are able to go about their life without undue impediment. In such a situation, the government does not have positive powers as such or at least not many of them it exists to promote justice, provide for the needy who cannot be provided for in other ways, ensure that there is peace and civil order, and so on. Such a society should be one in which parents can send their children to religious schools of the parents choice and where people can worship freely again, assuming that such schools or religious groupings are not inciting violence and threatening peace. When thinking about economic freedom, perhaps we focus too much on the economic efficiency benefits of a free society and do not talk enough about how such a society also promotes peace and harmony. Business is especially important here. This cannot be stressed enough. There are relatively thick ties within families and within churches and mosques, for example. However, there are often very thin ties between churches, mosques other religious groupings. Business makes those thin ties thicker. It requires people of different faiths to co-operate. People encounter a much greater variety of persons who are different from them in the business world as customers, employers or suppliers than they do in any other area of their life. Indeed, in the business world, discrimination is expensive. If I dont want to be served by a Pole, a Muslim, an Italian or a Chinese person in a restaurant in London, I would probably end up at a very bad restaurant! If I did not want to be driven by a Muslim taxi driver, in some cities I would literally never get a taxi. Business is a mutually enriching activity and so encountering others different from ourselves through business co-operation is very important. This is a not a relativist position. It is not an attempt to suggest that all religions are equally true. However, co-operation through business is an essential part of a free and tolerant society. The word competition often used in business means to strive together for. Business is about finding the best forms of economic co-operation between those who work in the business, its owners, its suppliers and its customers. Business freedom can nurture co-operation amongst people who would otherwise never know each other. So, my first contention is that business freedom matters not just for prosperity I shall come to that but for peace and harmony within society. Civil freedoms (for example, the freedom to educate ones children as one would wish) and freedom of association matter too of course. Economic freedom and prosperity There is also no question that there is a very strong relationship between economic and business freedom and prosperity. The pre-conditions for a thriving business economy are well known. They are peace, good governance (including respect of private property), freedom of contract, the effective enforcement of contracts through the courts, the rule of law, the absence of corruption, a regime in which businesses can establish freely and reasonably free trade. This list is not exhaustive and the different factors are linked. By and large, if these preconditions are present, there will be development and growth if they are not, there will not be. There are lots of different indicators of economic and business freedom and related issues. Research has been undertaken using the data from the Fraser Institute Index, which is probably the most used by academics. This research found, for example, that, between 1980 and 2000, which was the crucial period when the development of previously poor countries really took off, the top twenty-four countries ranked by the quality of their legal systems had an average GDP per capita of $25,700 at the end of the period and average economic growth of 2.5 percent. The bottom twenty-one countries had an average income of $3,000 per capita and average economic growth of 0.33 percent. Development and a thriving business sector is impossible without the basic legal structures necessary for free economic activity. We have no idea in the West what life is like, for example, in a country such as Haiti, where it takes 97 days to establish a business and 312 days to register property. This means that unregistered businesses cannot enforce contracts except by violence; corruption is routine; employees of unregistered businesses do not have proper contracts; and so on. In general, when the preconditions for a free business economy do not exist, there is no only poverty, but conflict replaces co-operation. It can also be argued that the prosperity that comes from business freedom also makes violent conflict less likely. If the youth of a country are unemployed or if people are desperately poor, they may feel they have not a lot to lose from a life of violence and something to gain. If they have the potential for prosperity, they have much to lose from turning to violence. The alternative to a free economy is one that is centrally controlled to some degree or other and where the state is responsible for the allocation of resources and determines on what terms people can participate in economic life. Then, the state becomes the main power centre and it uses its resources to coerce rather than to promote freedom. Furthermore, if the state is the source of economic power and largesse then this, in turn, sows the seeds of conflict as rival groups try to get hold of the levers of the state. The conflict over oil resources in some countries is a good example here. It is often argued that religious freedom tends to promote prosperity. However, business and general economic freedom has a tendency to promote harmony, including harmony between religions. Indeed, there can therefore be a virtuous circle of religious and business freedom promoting prosperity which then reduces violence. A reduction in violence then creates a better environment for business, which, in turn, provides an even better environment for peace, co-operation and prosperity. In recent weeks a great deal has been said about how, post the 'surgical strikes', we have 'isolated' Pakistan. First, Bhutan and Bangladesh closed ranks with us in condemning the terrorist attack in Uri and supporting the retaliatory action across the Line of Control (LOC). Later, they were joined by Sri Lanka in regretting their inability, along with India, to attend the SAARC meeting scheduled to be held in Islamabad later in the year. Nepal, not so forthcoming had, perforce, to back out as well. To some extent, therefore, it could be said that Pakistan stood isolated, at least, in the South Asian region though why Sri Lanka and then Nepal, did not join immediately in condemning the Uri attack or in supporting our action thereafter, remains a question unanswered. The visit of Myanmar's de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, to India for multilateral meetings in Goa and a bilateral summit in New Delhi is significant. This is her first visit to India since democracy was restored in earlier this year and comes two months after a state visit by Myanmar's President U Htin Kyaw. Ms Suu Kyi, the leader of Myanmar's pro-democracy movement during decades of military rule, has deep ties with India; she was an undergraduate at Delhi's Lady Shri Ram College. Yet considerable work will have to be done, particularly on India's side, if it is not to lose the initiative in its neighbour entirely to the People's Republic of China. Myanmar's long years of isolation have caused it to have an immense infrastructure gap. It now seeks to parlay its strategic location between the economic powerhouses such as China, India, and Southeast Asia into development gains. It also has considerable natural resources, including natural gas, to be exploited. With reference to "Why merge public sector banks?", Subir Roy has succinctly explained the futility of the current merger process evident in the banking sector. The Reserve Bank of India has surprisingly remained silent on the issue. Joita Estate had constructed a building at New Alipore in Kolkata and sold flats to various home buyers. The owners were given possession of their flats in March 1999 and they have been residing in their respective flats since then. The builder had also got the mutation entries carried out in the records of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, which reflected the names of the flat purchasers as owners of their flats. However, the builder failed to execute the sale deed despite repeated demands. My daughter has received a scholarship of Rs 5 lakh. Will she be taxed for this amount? Since she has never filed taxes, she does not have a PAN card. Should I make a PAN card for her?' As per section 10(16) of the Income Act, 1961, scholarships granted to meet the cost of education are exempt from income . The term scholarship is not defined under the Act. However, the dictionary meaning of scholarship is anything which makes education free of charge at a concessional rate of fees. Also, in general parlance, the cost of education may include not only the tuition fees but all expenses incidental to obtaining education. Considering this, scholarship received by your daughter to meet the cost of education may be claimed as exempt u/s 10(16) of the Act. Delhi Chief Minister on Wednesday accused the central government of harassing the Delhi government for doing "good work". After Gulab Singh, in charge of the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) affairs in Gujarat, got bail on Wednesday, Kejriwal asked the central government as to what purpose did his arrest serve. "Gulab gets bail today (Wednesday). FIR against Imran (Environment Minister) quashed by Delhi High Court yesterday (Tuesday). What purpose is served?" the AAP convenor tweeted. "Centre (is) harassing us because Delhi government (is) doing good work," Kejriwal wrote. Gulab gets bail today. FIR agnst Imran quashed by Del HC yesterday. What purpose is srved? Centre harassing us bcoz Del govt doing gud work (@ArvindKejriwal) October 19, 2016 Gulab Singh, also an AAP legislator in Delhi, was arrested by the Delhi Police on October 16 in Surat ahead of Kejriwal's rally on a non-bailable warrant. The warrant was issued in connection with an extortion case after he failed to turn up for interrogation. The Congress said it had issues with the Centre over the lack of uniformity in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) rate and exclusion of certain commodities in the proposed tax regime. The Congress on Wednesday attacked the government for denying that surgical strikes-like military operations also took place in the past. This comes a day after Foreign Secretary reportedly informed parliament's Standing Committee on External Affairs about having taken place in the past as well. Asserting that the Congress never doubted the September 28-29 across the Line of Control, party spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi questioned the silence of Prime Minister on the BJP's continued bid to politcise the defence force's action. "The government shouldn't deny that this (surgical strikes) happened before. While we support the operation, they should be magnanimous enough to say that this is not the first time that this country has conducted these strikes," Singhvi told the media here. "The Foreign Secretary in precise terms has said that have happened before. We have no reason to not believe his precise assertions," said Singhvi referring to the parliamentary panel being informed about previous surgical strikes-like military operations. "Does it look good for the Defence Minister of this country to be directly contradicted by none other than the Foreign Secretary?" "Which one of them is prevaricating? The Foreign Secretary has spoken in measured and precise terms," said Singhvi. This kind of prevaricating only to score brownie points is unfortunate because it paints the nation in a bad light, he said. "While the Prime Minister joins us in saying this issue shouldn't be politicised, it's happening under his nose by his colleagues," the Congress spokesperson said. "Why has not the Prime Minister mentioned even once about the posters dotting Uttar Pradesh, which politicise these strikes," Singhvi asked. Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar, who is known for being outspoken, on Tuesday claimed there was a time when MLAs used to defect for Rs 50 lakh, but nowadays not even a corporator can be made to switch the sides with that amount. Pawar, who was speaking at a party meet in Karmala in Solapur district, recalled the incident of how the Vilasrao Deshmukh-led state government had to ferry its MLAs to Bangalore to avoid any sort of horse-trading before the majority vote. "Due to the fear of horse-trading and defection of MLAs, Vilasrao Deshmukh got frustrated and in that period MLAs were ferried to Bangalore as that time MLAs used to defect for Rs 50 lakh, but nowadays even a corporator cannot be made to cross over with that amount," he said. Pawar also appealed to all the parties not to give candidature to those who defect and join other party. Even as the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) framework is being given the final touches for implementation from April 1, 2017, Uttar Pradesh is projected to be a major beneficiary under the liberal tax structure. Joe Carter Joe Carter is a Senior Editor at the Acton Institute. Joe also serves as an editor at the The Gospel Coalition, a communications specialist for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, and as an adjunct professor of journalism at Patrick Henry College. He is the editor of the NIV Lifehacks Bible and co-author of How to Argue like Jesus: Learning Persuasion from History's Greatest Communicator (Crossway). The Tamil Nadu governments Cabinet meeting on Wednesday was held under the leadership of Tamil Nadu Finance Minister in the absence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, who has been undergoing treatment at Apollo Hospitals here since September 22. A dozen workers of MNS were today arrested for protesting against the upcoming release of filmmaker Karan Johar's "Ae Dil Hain Muskhil" as the party rejected his statement that he will not "engage with talent" from Pakistan in future. The workers from MNS' film unit Maharashtra Navnirman Chitrapat Karmachari Sena were protesting and raising slogans outside Metro Cinema in South Mumbai. The Raj Thackeray-led party has asked the theatre management not to hold any show of "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. The MNS had given a written appeal to the theatre management urging them not to show the movie as it features a Pakistani actor. The party workers also raised slogans outside the theatre, police officials said. "We arrested 12 MNS activists and booked them under relevant sections of Maharashtra Police Act and also CrPC," Senior Inspector of Azad Maidan Police Station Vijay Kadam told PTI. They were produced before a local court which granted them cash bail of Rs 5,000 each in the case (carrying out procession without permission) under the Police Act. The MNS activists were also booked under the CrPC section 151 (3) (arrest to prevent the commission of cognisable offences) in which they did not get any relief and sent to judicial custody till November 4. Seeking to calm tempers over opposition to the release of his directorial venture, Johar had yesterday made a fervent appeal against stalling the release, saying he will not engage with talent from Pakistan in future. However, MNS said reality has dawned late on Johar. MNS cine wing head Amey Khopkar, after a meeting with senior party leaders and Raj Thackeray, said they were firm on opposing the release. "We will not allow the film to be screened in single screens and multiplexes. Reality has dawned late on the producer," Khopkar said. The MNS and some other political parties have opposed release of films with actors from Pakistan after the Uri terror attack, putting a question mark on the fate of Johar's movie, slated for release on October 28. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India, too, decided not to screen films with Pakistani actors in four states -- Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. A team from Johar's Dharma Productions along with filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt and Vijay Singh of Fox Star Studios had yesterday met Mumbai's top police officials and sought protection for the theatres to screen the film. Deputy Commissioner of Police Ashok Dudhe had said, "Mumbai police will provide adequate protection to cinema theatres. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two persons have been sentenced to life imprisonment by a special CBI court in connection with a 2005 honour killing case here. Justice Rajender Kumar held the brother duo, Suresh Pal and Angrej Singh, guilty of strangulating Pal's daughter, who married a man belonging to another community, under Section 302 (murder) of IPC. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 15,000 each on the accused, public prosecutor Kuldeep Pushker said. The incident took place on November 2, 2005 at Bhura village in the district. Subsequently, a case was registered against three persons. The third accused, Bhupender, died in jail during the trial. The probe was transfered to the CBI and the case was taken up in the special court in Ghaziabad. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two Indian-origin brothers in Singapore have been sentenced by a court here for failing to report for the compulsory National Service, in the second such case involving members of the Indian community this week. The brothers - Sakthikanesh Chidambaram, 25, Vandana Kumar Chidambaram who turns 23 in two weeks - remained out of Singapore without a valid exit permit and failed to report for the National Service (NS) for more than five years and for more than three years, respectively, the court was told. Yesterday, Sakthikanesh was jailed for three weeks, while his younger brother Vandana was fined SGD 6,000. Sakthikanesh, earlier pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to report for the the National Service for five years, six months and 17 days. Vandana earlier pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to report for the NS for three years, six months and two days. Both men also admitted to one count each of remaining outside Singapore without a valid exit permit and these charges were taken into consideration in sentencing. In June 2008, Sakthikanesh was told to register for the NS but he left Singapore later that month to pursue his university education at the National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra, only returning in April 2014, after he had completed his studies. He enlisted for full-time NS in September 2014. In May 2010, Vandana was told to register for NS. But he only returned to Singapore in June 2014 and enlisted for full-time NS in August 2014. In his judgement grounds, District Judge John Ng found that the brothers had "a substantial connection to Singapore". He noted that both got their NRICs and used Singapore passports for travel. "From the facts of this case, it is clear to me that the parents and the boys had no intention of giving up their Singapore citizenship before their NS obligations came to the fore," he said. The judge, however, took into account the fact that both men surrendered themselves and had pleaded guilty to their charges. They also performed their NS exceptionally well, he noted. Yesterday, a 22-year-old Indian-origin man Jay Kamal Shah was sentenced to six weeks in prison for not performing his national service obligations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a police shake-up, Uttar Pradesh government issued posting orders of three senior officials on administrative grounds. SP (crime) Pardeep Gupta, SP (rural) Rakesh Jolly and SP (city) Santosh Kumar Mishra were issued transfer orders here yesterday and three new superintendents of policehave been posted in their place. The step was taken five days after SSP Deepak Kumar's transfer to Ghaziabad. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) After Indore, telecom major Bharti Airtel today launched 4G services in Bhopal, Raisen and Vidisha districts in Madhya Pradesh. The service, Airtel said, will start in almost all the major cities of the state and Chhattisgarh by end-November. "We are delighted to launch our 4G services in Bhopal, Raisen and Vidisha," Bharti Airtel Limited (Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh) Chief Executive Officer Dharmender Khajuria told reporters here. "Our valued customers can now upgrade to 4G at no additional cost with our value-for-money plans for pre-paid, post-paid and devices," he added. Airtel 4G promises to deliver fast mobile broadband speeds and allows customers to enjoy uninterrupted HD video streaming, superfast uploading and downloading of movies, music and images, the CEO said. Khajuria said his company has also announced a new 4G offer for prepaid customers who can now enjoy 10 GB 4G data for just Rs 249 with any new 4G handset. "With Rs 249 recharge, 1 GB data will be instantly credited to the customer's account and the additional 9 GB data can be claimed by the customer through My Airtel app," Khajuria added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nearly one dozen armed miscreants looted over 500 gunny bags of wheat from the godown of Punjab State Warehouse Corporation in Batala, police said today. Manager, PSWC, Major Singh manager lodged a complaint with the civil lines police station that armed miscreants forcibly entered the godown last night and tied hands and legs of two watchman of there. They broke CCTV cameras installed in the godown and looted 531 gunny bags of wheat which valued at RS 5.50 lakh, police said. SP (Investigations) J S Saroya and other police officers inspected the spot and investigation is on , they added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A day after TMC MP and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, was injured in a road mishap, a team of forensic experts today visited the accident site near Singur on National Highway 2. The team collected broken glasses, examined the paints on the surface of the truck with which Abhishek Banerjee's car collided while returning to Kolkata after a public meeting in Murshidabad district. Police today registered attempt to murder and conspiracy case against unknown persons in connection with the mishap involving Banerjee, the All India Trinamool Youth Congress president. Sections under the Highways Act were also added in the case, a senior officer of the CID said. Though nobody was detained in the incident, a few persons, mainly eyewitnesses, were today questioned by the CID, the officer said. Sources in the CID said reconstruction of the entire incident would be done to evaluate "who was responsible for the mishap". The Chief Minister visited the nursing home, where Abhishek is under going treatment, towards the afternoon. Senior party leader Manas Bhuniya, who recently joined the TMC from the Congress was accompanying Abhishek, said that his own vehicle was behind the TMC MP's convoy. (Reopens CAL9) According to the medical bulletin of Abhishek Banerjee, issued in the evening, the MRI report confirmed "orbital floor fracture". At present the MP is under strict observation of the 14-member medical board. Any decision on surgical intervention will be made as soon as the acute swellings subside. The Madras High Court bench here today directed its Registrar (Judicial) to bring to the notice of Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry a matter related to the fabrication of documents allegedly by an advocate to help his client win a case. The matter related to the appointment of a Principal in a college under the ambit of a State-run varsity in Tuticorin district which was challenged by a teachers' association. Disposing of the writ appeal, the court said it was unfortunate that advocate V Dhayala Mani was found to have forged and fabricated records for the benefit of his client association but apparently without their collusion. The court also said that the police having booked a criminal case against the advocate in this regard must be brought to the notice of the Bar Council for necessary action. While representing the teachers' association which had challenged the appointment of Mohan Raj as principal, the advocate had allegedly fabricated an official communication to tilt the case in his client's favour. The petitioner association submitted that the fabrication was done without their knowledge. The court directed the Registrar to forward the papers to the Bar Council within two weeks. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Conservative party MP today triggered a row after he suggested dental checks must be used to determine the age of migrants entering the UK from France under a new agreement reached between the two countries over refugee children. Monmouth MP David Davies said mandatory teeth checks would reassure people that the unaccompanied migrants coming into the UK to join relatives were indeed children. "If they are jumping on lorries, they are not going to be averse to lying about their ages. We should do the tests," Davies said. Downing Street said "a whole range of checks are in place that the Home Office and Border Force are using in cooperation with partners" and theUK Home Office was forced to issue a statement against dental checks. "We do not use dental x-rays to confirm the ages of those seeking asylum in the UK," said a UK Home Office spokesperson. "Where credible and clear documentary evidence of age is not available, criteria including physical appearance and demeanour are used as part of the interview process to assess age," the spokesperson added. The first children with links to Britain arrived this week, after French authorities ratified a list drawn up by the charity Citizens UK, which is working with the UK government to bring unaccompanied minors over from Calais in France. However, photographs of some of the children have been printed on the front pages of some UK newspapers alongside headlines questioning their ages. The British Dental Association (BDA), which represents dentists and dental students in the UK, disputed claims that dental radiographs could accurately determine whether someone was under 18 or not. "It's not only an inaccurate method for assessing age, but it is both inappropriate and unethical to take radiographs of people when there is no health benefit for them," a BDA spokesperson said. Diane Abbott, Opposition Labour's shadow home secretary, said it was "an outrageous demand, which would further violate the human rights of vulnerable refugees". "They have suffered insanitary and dangerous conditions and should have been admitted long ago. This is a vile, reactionary clamour. It distracts from the government's responsibilities to these refugees, which it has largely neglected to date," she said. French authorities plan to close the so-called "Jungle" refugee camp, situated near the port of Calais, by the end of the year. UK officials in Calais have been focusing initially on unaccompanied minors who have the right to join relatives in the UK under EU legislation, known as the Dublin regulation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Showcasing better seat space and extra baggage allowance, Air India is taking on rival airlines with cheeky advertisements dotted with smiling and sad emojis. The national carrier, which has turned operationally profitable after a decade, is working on ways to attract more fliers as well as push brand 'Air India' against the backdrop of intense competition and aggressive ticket pricing ways. Close on the heels of indulging in a bitter war of words with IndiGo over placing of hoardings at the Mumbai airport, Air India today came out with cheeky advertisements that indirectly takes a dig at rivals. Without naming rivals, the state-owned carrier has made use of happy and sad emojis to convey that its flights provide more seat pitch, complimentary food as well as allow carrying extra baggage. Generally, an emoji refers to a digital image used to express emotions. "Today when airfares are almost on par, here's what makes the big difference... Choice is yours," Air India's latest advertisement said along with a tabular presentation of the three aspects spread across three categories. When contacted, an Air India spokesperson said the national carrier was only "presenting" facts through such advertisements. "We are only presenting facts and the good side of the airline to the customers," the spokesperson said. However, an Air India official said that getting aggressive is the demand of time amid cut-throat competition in the domestic airline space. "The profits and margins are so squeezed in the airline industry that you have to take competition head-on and go for aggressive advertisement and marketing pitch," the official noted. Against the attributes of 'best seat pitch, 'hot and delicious complimentary food' and 'free baggage allowance' in three separate rows, there is a smiling emoji for Air India while it is a sad emoji under the heading 'other rivals'. Air India allows up to 35 kilogram baggage for business class travellers and the same is up to 25 kilogram in the case of economy class fliers, as per the advertisement. Last month, there was a controversy over advertisement involving Air India and IndiGo and the matter was sorted out later. The controversy started when the Air India advertisement placed next to the check-in areas of IndiGo said: 'Wish you a comfortable flight. Next time fly with Air India and feel the difference.' IndiGo responded with a counter advertisement that named Air India directly. At the check-in bay of the national carrier, IndiGo had put up a small standee that read: 'Yes, Air India, there is a difference. Says the government.' The matter, however, was later resolved after the issue reached the Civil Aviation Ministry. For the first time in a decade, Air India has reported an operating profit of Rs 105 crore in 2015-16, aided by lower fuel costs and higher passenger numbers, even as the national carrier incurred a net loss after interest of Rs 3,837 crore in the same period. Registering robust growth, domestic airlines carried over 23 per cent more passengers at 82.3 lakh in September compared to the year-ago period, according to official data released today. Even though the growth rate is 23.46 per cent for September, the overall number is slightly lower than 83.81 lakh passengers flown by carriers in August. Last month, budget carrier IndiGo remained the market leader with 40 per cent share while rival SpiceJet had the highest passenger load factor of 93.5 per cent. Latest data from aviation regulator DGCA showed that local carriers flew 82.3 lakh people last month compared to 66.66 lakh people in September 2015. "Another month of record growth for Indian aviation. Maintains its top rank with 23.4 per cent growth in Sep 2016," Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said in a tweet. The sustained domestic air passenger traffic growth of more than 20 per cent over the past year also comes against the backdrop of airlines coming out with attractive fares to garner increased market share amid stiff competition. "Passengers carried by domestic airlines during January- September 2016 were 726.98 lakh as against 590.21 lakh during the corresponding period of previous year thereby registering a growth of 23.17 per cent," DGCA said. In terms of market share, Jet Airways was at the second position with 16.2 per cent. National carrier Air India emerged third with 14.7 per cent market share, followed by SpiceJet (12.5 per cent), GoAir (8.3 per cent), Vistara (2.5 per cent), Jet Lite (2.4 per cent), AirAsia (2.3 per cent) and Air Costa (0.6 per cent) and TruJet (0.4 per cent). Among others, Air Carnival's market share stood at 0.1 per cent while Air Pegasus did not operate any flights in September. The overall cancellation rate of scheduled domestic airlines stood at 0.42 per cent in September with Air Carnival seeing the maximum at 21.88 per cent. "Technical" reasons accounted for 48.1 per cent of the total cancellations last month. "During September 2016, a total of 728 passenger related complaints had been received by the scheduled domestic airlines. The number of complaints per 10,000 passengers carried for the month of September 2016 has been 0.9," the regulator said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Punjab Congress president on Wednesday castigated the Parkash Singh Badal government for allegedly neglecting families of fallen soldiers in the state. He said the SAD-BJP government had failed to maintain a statue of Victoria Cross and Maha Vir Chakra recipient Subedar Nand Singh at Fauji (Shaheed) Chowk here. Amarinder today led a large gathering of party workers and local residents in cleaning up the "neglected statue". Expressing anguish over its condition, Amarinder said there was no point in setting up memorials if the government could not ensure their proper maintenance. He urged the Indian Army to take over the upkeep of such properties to prevent them from falling into disrepair. "Our martyrs deserve no less," he said. Amarinder, who hails from the first Sikh battalion, described the condition of Nand Singh's memorial as "yet another glaring instance of how little the (ruling) Badals care for our soldiers and their memories." The soldier also finds mention in Amarinder's book 'Lest We Forget'. "Unfortunately, the Badal government has never shown much respect for our army or its personnel," he said, referring to the prolonged stir of the war widows in Punjab. "The war widows have been trying unsuccessfully to draw the government's attention to their plight," said Amarinder Singh, while reiterating his commitment to addressing the concerns of the widows and families of the martyred soldiers. Amarinder reached Bathinda, considered a Badal stronghold, yesterday at the culmination of the second day of his Kisan Yatra roadshow. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has total assets worth Rs 3.73 crore and also a debt of Rs 3.06 crore, his son and Telugu Desam General Secretary Nara Lokesh announced today. Naidu's assets include a house in Jubilee Hills area of Hyderabad valued at Rs 3.68 crore and an Ambassador car worth Rs 1.52 lakh. He also has cash of Rs 3.59 lakh in his bank account, according to Lokesh. Interestingly, the Chief Minister's one-year-old grandson and Lokesh's son Devansh is richer with a house worth Rs 9.17 crore and fixed deposits of Rs 2.4 crore in his name, besides a cash deposit of Rs 2.31 lakh, according to the family's assets declared by Lokesh. Naidu's wife Bhuvaneswari, on the other hand, has assets worth Rs 38.66 crore and debts to the tune of Rs 13 crore. Lokesh himself has assets worth Rs 14.50 crore and a debt of Rs 6.35 crore. Lokesh's wife Brahmani has assets worth about Rs 5.4 crore. "This is for the sixth consecutive year that we have declared our family's assets. Heritage Foods (a listed firm) owned by our family has a turnover of Rs 2,321 crore with a profit of Rs 55 crore," Lokesh told a press conference in Guntur. Referring to allegations that there were many benami properties (assets held in the name of another person or under a fictitious owner) in their names, Lokesh challenged those making the claims to prove them. "YSR Congress leaders are carrying out a misinformation campaign that we own benami properties. If they can prove it, I will give away such properties to them," the TDP General Secretary asserted. Replying to a question, he said the TDP would pressurise the Centre to ban currency notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denominations to curb black money. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Vice President Hamid Ansari today left for home after concluding his five-day trip to Hungary and Algeria during which he held discussions with the leaderships of the two countries on strengthening bilateral ties. Ansari held talks with Hungary's President Janos Ader, Prime Minister Viktor Orban and other top leaders as both the countries agreed on the need for elimination of the menace of terrorism and sought a strong global legal framework and sustained global action to deal with the threat. India and Hungary also signed two MoUs, including one on water management, during the three-day trip to the central European country. The Hungarian Prime Minister had said his country set up a working group on technology to explore the possibilities of bilateral cooperation in various issues, including defence production for mutual benefits. The Vice-President expressed India's appreciation for the support extended by Hungary to India's membership of the Missile Technology Control Regime and for its Nuclear Suppliers Group membership bid. During his two-day visit to Algeria, Ansari held wide- ranging discussions with Algeria's President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal and Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra and stressed on taking the India-Algeria ties to a new level and to "rejuvenate" the bilateral relations, officials said. Ansari also met President of Algerian National People's Assembly Mohamed Larbi Ould Khelifa and President of Council of Nations Abdelkader Bensalah and discussed with them various issues of mutual interest. Other issues like anti-terror cooperation between India and Algeria also figured in the meetings the Vice President had with the Algerian leadership. India is keen to join hands with Algeria to explore the possibilities of setting up a multi-billion dollar fertiliser project, bearing in mind the phosphatic reserves available in the North African country which is estimated to be more than 5 billion tonnes. A preliminary meeting on the issue was held here between Minister of State for Fertilisers and Chemicals Mansukh L Mandaviya and Algerian Minister of Industry and Mining Abdessalem Bouchouareb and if the discussions lead to setting up of a joint venture mega fertiliser company in Algeria, the price of fertiliser in India is expected to come down along with the subsidy burden of the government with regard to fertiliser. Mandaviya is accompanying the Vice President. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As part of efforts to "rejuvenate" India's ties with African nations, Vice President Hamid Ansari today met the top leadership of Algeria and discussed with them the ways to further strengthen bilateral ties in various areas including anti-terror, trade and economy. Ansari held wide ranging discussions with President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal and Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra and stressed on taking the India-Algeria ties to a new level and how to "rejuvenate" the bilateral relations, officials said. Other issues like anti-terror cooperation between India and Algeria were also figured in the meetings the Vice President had with the Algerian leadership. Secretary (West) in the External Affairs Ministry Sujata Mehta has said terrorism is not new for Algeria and it has fought a very difficult terror group in the recent past. India is also keen to join hands with Algeria to explore the possibilities of setting up a multi-billion dollar fertiliser project, bearing in mind the phosphatic reserve available in this North African country which is estimated to be more than 5 billion tonnes. A preliminary meeting on the issue was held here today between Minister of State for Fertilisers and Chemicals Mansukh L Mandaviya and Algerian Minister of Industry and Mining Abdessalem Bouchouareb. The price of fertiliser in India is expected to come down along with the subsidy burden if the talks between the two countries lead to setting up of a joint venture mega fertiliser company in Algeria. Mandaviya is accompanying the Vice President. Ansari's visit to Algeria came after a long "cooling off" period which, officials said, was over now. "They (Algeria) want cooperation and we want cooperation. Both sides want the relations to be strengthened," Ansari had said earlier. Algeria's President Bouteflika was the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in 2001. Ansari, who arrived here from Hungary on Monday night as part of his second leg of two-nation tour, yesterday met President of Algerian National People's Assembly Mohamed Larbi Ould Khelifa and President of Council of Nations Abdelkader Bensalah and discussed with them various issues concerning both the countries. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At least three pending judicial requests including one relating to 1984 anti-Sikh riots witness along with 13 extradition pleas from India may be discussed between the CBI Director and Royal Canadian Mounted Police Commissioner Bob Paulson who is visiting here. Paulson, who will be delivering D P Kohli memorial lecture here tomorrow on the theme of policing in 21st century, will hold discussions with CBI Chief Anil Sinha. They said at least three Letters Rogatory or judicial requests to Canada hovering around a corruption case, a cyber crime and examination of a witness of 1984 anti-Sikh riots involving Congress politician Jagdish Tytler are likely to crop up during the discussion. The agency had taken over investigation in the FIR registered at Bara Hindu Rao police station relating to anti-Sikh riots at Gurudwara Pulbangash in North Delhi where three people were killed on November 1, 1984, a day after the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. It had filed a closure report and claimed that it could not get in touch with Narinder Singh, son of an eye witness who is believed to be in Canada. Arms dealer Abhishek Verma had claimed that Tytler had allegedly helped Narinder Singh to settle in Canada. Besides, the sources said, India is also likely to raise the issue of 13 extradition requests which are "under process", including for some wanted persons facing charges of terror and drug trafficking among others. India had signed Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with Canada in 1998 to facilitate assistance in criminal matter. After the signing of MLAT, Canada has so far processed eight Indian judicial requests relating to human trafficking, bank fraud, anti-corruption among others. So far India has processed two requests related to cyber crime and human trafficking which had come from Canada besides six fugitives having charges of sexual abuse of children, drug trafficking and murder have been handed over to the North American country. Canada has processed four extradition requests from India handing over fugitives having allegations of murder, kidnapping and murder. India does not have any pending LRs emanating from Canada, the sources said. Among 13 extradition requests "under process" with Canadian authorities, seven are for alleged drug traffickers including several members of an international gang led by Jagdish Bhola. Paulson will be delivering the prestigious D P Kohli Memorial lecture which "is organised annually by the CBI in honour of its founder Director, late D P Kohli. He was the Head of Special Police Establishment and Central Bureau of Investigation from 1955 to 1968," CBI said in a statement. It said Kohli was a visionary who sowed the seeds for the evolution of CBI into an effective and vibrant organisation. It was on account of his vision that CBI today enjoys the reputation of professionalism and fairness and has the confidence of all sections of society. Commissioner Bob Paulson joined the RCMP in 1986 in Chilliwack, British Columbia. Prior to joining the RCMP, Commissioner Paulson served for almost seven years in the Canadian Armed Forces, it said. He became the 23rd Commissioner of the RCMP on November 21, 2011. He has worked in different capacities in areas of major crime, aboriginal & community policing, investigation of serious and organised crime etc, it said. Lt Gen Surinder Singh, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C), Western Command today reviewed field formations deployed in Himachal Pradesh along the International Border with China during his two-day visit. Lt Gen Singh, while reviewing the operational readiness of the formations in the forward areas, had detailed deliberations with field commanders, besides interacting with troops, a defence release said. The Army commander appreciated the high state of operational readiness and the motivation and morale of troops despite the difficult terrain and extreme weather conditions. He exhorted the troops to remain alert and operationally ready. He also emphasised on the need to ensure infallible security measures and be ready for all contingencies. The Army commander also met Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh at Shimla today and also had a meeting with Lt Gen DR Soni, GOC-in-C Army Training Command, it said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As ISIS sees its territory shrink to half its original size and its dreams of a caliphate evaporate, the extremist fighters are losing access to the sources of revenue that once gave them their power, prompting them to turn to extortion, kidnapping or foreign donations like their predecessors, the militant group al-Qaida. The Islamic State group had a unique ability to capitalise on the natural resources of its territory in Iraq and Syria and swiftly implement a system of taxation and governance that allowed it to rule an area that once was the size of Switzerland. As the battle gets underway to retake Mosul, the group's largest stronghold in Iraq, the Islamic State group is being denied access to revenue sources such as oil and gas and cash reserves that once amounted to more than USD 1 billion in 2014, said Daniel Glaser, the Treasury Department's assistant secretary for terrorist financing. With those resources slipping away, the Islamic State group is expected to revert to "traditional methods we see al-Qaida using whether it's deep-pocket donors, whether it's charities, whether it's NGOs, whether it's criminal activity," Glaser said in a recent discussion at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Beyond oil and gas sales, the Islamic State group also generated some USD 30 million per month in Iraq from taxation and extortion in 2015. Hisham al-Hashimi, an expert on IS who advises the Iraqi government, said the militant group currently makes about USD 4 million per month from taxes in Mosul alone. Al-Hashimi said the group charges a 4 per cent income tax on salaries less than USD 600 per month, and 5 per cent on monthly salaries between USD 600 and USD 1,000. Bank robberies made up the Islamic State group's third biggest source of revenue, mainly in Mosul, where there was more than USD 500 million in state-owned bank vaults when they captured the city in June 2014, but that was "a one-time take for them," Glaser noted, and they are quickly burning through that cash. Glaser says the Islamic State group is under financial duress. Fighter salaries have been cut in half in some areas, including in Raqqa, Syria, its de facto capital. The group also set up an internal corruption agency, suggesting corruption may be a factor, Glaser and al-Hashimi said. To compensate, there's been a noticeable spike in the IS group's revenue from criminal activity, such as extortion the Paris-based Center for the Analysis of Terrorism says extortion accounted for a third of its revenue in 2015, compared to 12 per cent in 2014. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ashoka Buildcon Ltd today said it has bagged Rs 178.66 crore project from DVVNL for execution of work on rural electrification on turnkey basis under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY) scheme. "The company has received Letters of Intent (LOIs) from DVVNL (Dakshinanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Ltd) for execution of work on rural electrification on turnkey basis under DDUGJY Scheme...On behalf of DVVNL/ Government of Uttar Pradesh for Aligarh and Kanpur Zones," the Ashoka Buildcon said in a filing to BSE. "The aggregate accepted bid value of the projects is Rs 178.66 crore," it said. The company is a leading highway developers in the country with portfolio of over 28 public private partnership projects. The company is present in 9 states across the country executing several prestigious projects for national and state governments. It is also active in power transmission and distribution sector with various power projects in Maharashtra, Chattisgarh, Tamil Nadu and Bihar. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has summoned the Assistant Inspector General of CBI and Deputy Commissioner of Police in connection with the suicide by tainted senior government official BK Bansal and his son allegedly due to harassment by a few officials. DCW had earlier issued notices to CBI and Delhi Police seeking action taken report in the case. But the commission was not satisfied with the responses received prompting it to issue summonses. "Prima facie, this appears to be a shocking instance of alleged victimization and abetment of suicide of the family of an accused. DCW had sent a notice to the Director, CBI. "However, no information was provided to the commission and it was informed that the matter is pending inquiry in the CBI," the summon issued today read. "The reply was found to be unsatisfactory and inadequate. The commission then sent another notice seeking a detailed point-wise reply. However, till date no response was received neither any action was taken on the suicide note. Therefore, the AIG, CBI has been summoned to appear before the panel and provide the detailed reply," it added. The commission said in a statement, "DCP East, Delhi Police was sent a notice to provide an action taken report in the case. The reply was found to be unsatisfactory and inadequate. Therefore he has been summoned to appear before the commission on October 25 to provide the detailed reply". Two months after his wife Satyabala and Neha committed suicide, Bansal, former Director General Corporate Affairs, and his son Yogesh had also allegedly hanged themselves on September 27. In their purported suicide note, Bansal had alleged that a CBI DIG, two women officers and a "fat" havaldar of the agency had tortured his wife and daughter to the extent that they ended their lives soon after his arrest on corruption charges in July. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Home Minister Rajnath Singh today asked a group of newly-inducted IAS officers not to hesitate in putting forth their point of view before the ministers in case of difference of opinion. The assertion was made during an interactive session between 11 union ministers, including Singh, and about 35 IAS officers of 2014 batch of Uttar Pradesh cadre as well as those officers who are domicile of the state, presently posted in various ministries as Assistant Secretaries. Addressing the young officers, Singh called upon them to always uphold their reputation and credibility. Asking them to bear empathy for the last man in the queue, he said the IAS officers should shoulder big responsibility in the district and must win the trust of the common people. Recalling his tenure as the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Singh asked the IAS officers not to hesitate to put across their point of view before the ministers in case of difference of opinion, according to an official release. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said the IAS officer being the steward of administration in the district, should always show concern to the interests of poor people. He asked them to show sensitivity to issues of the armed forces personnel and ex-servicemen. Minister of Women and Child Development, Maneka Gandhi said as District Magistrates, the IAS officers should show a sense of compassion and kindness to resolve the problems of the common man. Other ministers who participated in the interactive session included Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge) and Culture Mahesh Sharma, MoS for Minority Affairs (Independent Charge) and Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, MoS (External Affairs) V K Singh, MoS (Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation) Sanjeev Kumar Balyan and MoS (Food Processing Industries) Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti. Ministers of State for HRD Mahendra Nath Pandey, MoS (Women & Child Development) Krishna Raj and MoS (Health and Family Welfare) Anupriya Patel also participated in the session. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Belgian tourist was trampled to death by an elephant near Kenya's famed Maasai Mara wildlife reserve, police said today, the second such incident in a month. "He was badly injured by the rogue elephant and succumbed to injuries at the Talek Health Centre," a police officer in the area said on condition of anonymity. The death of the Belgian man on Monday in circumstances that remain unclear comes a month after an Italian man was trampled in the Tsavo National Park, southeast Kenya, while trying to take a photograph of an elephant. Kenyan daily The Standard reported that in a separate incident yesterday, a Kenyan secondary school student was killed by an elephant on the way to school. The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) warned in a statement today that a fierce drought gripping the country was pushing wildlife further from their traditional habitats in search of food and water, increasingly bringing them into contact with humans. "From the cases recorded by KWS, it is evident that there has been an increase in reported incidents of conflicts compared to past years; the notable ones being attacks on people, property destruction, livestock predation and crop raiding," said the statement. KWS warned that such interactions were likely to increase and urged caution in high-risk areas. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In the wake of death of eight water birds due to H5 avian influenza at the the Delhi zoo, bird sanctuaries, poultry farms and chicken markets in the city will be closely monitored, the city government today said. Delhi Development Minister Gopal Rai said the situation is "not alarming" for now and added that the influenza doesn't affect humans directly. Rai, who heads the state Animal Husbandry Department, said National Zoological Park (Delhi zoo) has been shut for three days as part of precautionary measures. The minister went to the zoo with officials today to take stock of the situation. He said this is for the first time that H5 avian influenza has affected birds here. The government has set up a monitoring cell and issued a helpline number (011-23890318) appealing Delhiites to inform in case they spot dead birds in their vicinity. At the zoo, a ten-member team will be closely monitoring the situation. "We've constituted six rapid action teams to monitor the situation in Okhla Bird Sanctuary, Ghazipur Murga Mandi, Yamuna Diversity Park, Najafgarh Drain, Nizamuddin, where migratory birds come in good numbers," he told reporters here. Rai said the dead birds were "migratory" which indicates that there are some affected points in their transit route due to which birds at Delhi zoo also got affected. "We are taking steps to prevent spread of virus. Tomorrow, we are holding a meeting with officials of Health, Revenue and other concerned departments. "In the meeting, discussion on medical arrangements in city's hospitals will also be made so that people don't face any problem in case of emergency," he said. Asked about human infection, Rai said that according to experts, birds are only affected. "If people consume infected chicken, they can get affected. If virus spread and its symptoms are spotted, we will put some restrictions," he further said. Rai also said the Delhi government has called a meeting on Friday with a team of officials of Maharashtra, which effectively dealt with this virus 10 years ago. Ten birds have died in the last 10 days and out of them, eight have died due to the H5 avian influenza. Two birds died while On October 14 while six were found dead the next day. "We had sent samples of these dead birds to Jhalandar lab which detected symptoms of some virus. For second opinion, we had sent these samples to Bhopal-based laboratory run by the Centre which also confirmed the same," he said. He said that on October 17, one more bird died. Today as well, one bird was found dead. The reason behind their death has not been confirmed. India had declared itself free from bird flu in September. In a statement, the Centre had also emphasised the need for "continued surveillance especially in the vulnerable areas bordering infected countries and in areas visited by migratory birds". Bird flu affects mainly the domestic poultry. The disease spreads from infected birds to other winged creatures through contact with nasal and respiratory secretions and also due to contamination of feed and water. Last time, the virus was detected in Chandigarh. In 2004, Kerela Bird sanctuary witnessed outbreak of the influenza. In 2006, poultry farm in Maharashtra was severely affected due to the bird flue. In 2008, it was detected in West Bengal Poultry Farm. Delhi's National Zoological Park has been battling a spate of animal deaths since early this year. Over 40 spotted deer were found dead on its premises in January. BJP in Kerala today hit out at the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for blaming the RSS for the violence in Kannur and doubted his "call for peace initiative". BJP state chief Kummanom Rajasekharan said it was unfortunate that Vijayan used the state Assembly to attackRSS for the Kannur violence and give a clean chit to CPI(M). Slamming the CPI(M), he said after the LDF government came to power in May, 250 incidents of violence took place and CPI(M) workers were accused in 80 per cent of them. CPI(M) attacked 31 houses in two stages at Pinarayi itself, the homeland of Chief Minister, after this government came to power, he alleged. Rajasekharan said police remain mere spectators to the violence in Kannur. "Police in Kannur had openly stated that they were helpless and CPI(M) cadres were even threatening them (police personnel)," he said. "The Chief Minister who knows everything that happens in Kannur is now blaming RSS for the violence. This triggers suspicion whether he was serious in bringing peace to the area," he said. Referring to the statement of CPI-M Kannur District Secretary that the party in Kannur did not have the "habit of suffering everything with folded hands," Rajasekharan said, "When the Chief Minister was calling for peace, his party leader was encouraging violence." Rejecting Vijayan's charge that BJP did not co-operate in peace talks, he said it was CPI-M who refused to budge. "It was CPI(M) leaders who rejected with contempt the peace talk proposal made by RSS chief", he pointed out. Meanwhile, senior CPI(M) leader P Jayarajan today said, it was not right to equate CPI(M) with RSS and said "the party ignore those who weigh both CPI(M) and RSS in the same weighing balance". "There will be permanent peace in Kannur if RSS decides," he told reporters here. RSS leaders from outside the district were also involved in the violence, he said, adding police should apprehend them by charging offences of conspiracy. He alleged that some BJP leaders were behind the murder of CPI(M) local committee member Mohanan in the district earlier this month. He also criticised CPI state secretary Kannam Rajendran's statement that CPI(M) should not fall in the trap of RSS that law and order situation has collapsed in the state. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BJP today organized a party workers convention in Srinagar summer capital. In the BJP workers convention all the senior members - including state office bearers, district presidents, constituency presidents and other members were president and discussed the prevailing situation in Kashmir, BJP spokesman said in a press release. The senior party members of the party appreciated the party workers for remaining steadfast during the present crisis in Kashmir. "The party leaders expressed grief over the loss of lives of both security forces and civilians in the ongoing unrest", spokesman said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With the Samajwadi Party (SP) embroiled in a "huge drama", no force can stop the BJP from forming the government in Uttar Pradesh next year, Union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy claimed here today. "Our campaigning for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election is on. There is a huge drama going on in netaji's (SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav) party. So, no force can stop us from forming the government in that state," the Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship told reporters on the sidelines of an event here. Assembly election is due in Uttar Pradesh early next year. A family feud had broken out in the ruling party in Uttar Pradesh recently over the sacking of two ministers, considered close to Mulayam's brother and state minister Shivpal Yadav, by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav who had also stripped his uncle Shivpal, who is also the SP's state unit chief, of key portfolios. Mulayam struggled to put a lid on the internecine conflict and the feud reportedly caused a heartburn among the SP cadre, believed to be divided between Akhilesh and Shivpal camps. Rudy was in the city to launch a Skill Development Plan of the Maharashtra government. On the occasion, he elaborated on various skill development initiatives undertaken by the Centre. He said the government would launch training institutes for drivers in "each and every district of the country" to produce "world-class" drivers. "Around 22 lakh trained youths are needed to operate various kinds of vehicles in the country. Thus, we have decided to open driver-training institutes in every district of the country. This will also give a boost to Prime Minister's Skill Development Mission," Rudy said. He appealed to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who was also present on the occasion, to open such institutes in all the districts of Maharashtra. "I request the chief minister to open such training institutes in all the districts of the state. They will not only train the drivers for the country, but will also fulfil the requirement of drivers across the world by teaching them French, Chinese and English languages," Rudy said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Accusing BJP of having upper caste tilt, senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar today insinuated that the saffron party used its backward class leaders with mass base like late Gopinath Munde to grab power only and then dumped them for likes of Nitin Gadkari, Prakash Javdekar and others. The former deputy Chief Minister also claimed that BJP was getting alienated from masses and deviated from principles laid down by social reformers like late Shahu Maharaj, Mahatma Jyotiba Phule and B R Ambedkar. "As a young boy, I used to hear that BJP is a party of 'Shetjis and Bhatjis' (insinuating that it represents only upper caste traders and Brahmins), but in recent years leaders like late Gopinath Munde, N S Farande and Annasaheb Dange, representing backward classes, contributed significantly for the growth of that party. "Today, when the party is in power we get to see leaders like (Nitin) Gadkari, (Prakash) Javdekar, (Suresh) Prabhu and Piyush Goyal (suggesting that they are upper caste leaders). It clearly indicates that the party has used its leaders from masses and (then) set (them) aside after attaining power," Pawar said addressing a rally at Pimpalner village in Madha tehsil of Solapur district. Ajit Pawar is the nephew of veteran politician Sharad Pawar. His remarks came at a time when mega rallies being taken out by Maratha community for reservation has brought a churn in state politics, whereas dalits too are asserting themselves against any perceived move to dilute SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. "Current leadership in state is mostly from Vidarbha region (from where Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis hails), hence they are biased towards sanctioning funds for western Maharashtra. This is nothing but sheer injustice," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With a video of two sons of a murder accused mercilessly beating their Dalit classmate here going viral on social media, the duo have been sent to a remand home even as police assured security to the family of the boy. The maternal grandfather of the boy, a class XII student of Kendriya Vidyalaya in Gannipur here, lodged an FIR with SC & ST police station on Monday. In the FIR he also claimed the entire family was terrified because the father of the two brothers is a notorious criminal lodged in jail outside the district in a murder case. According to Deputy Superintendent of Police Ashish Anand, the two brothers have been sent to remand home after being presented before Juvenile Justice Board yesterday. They have also been removed from the school which gave them forced Transfer Certificate. School principal Rajiv Ranjan had lodged a written complaint with the Kaji Muhammadpur police station. The purported video of the incident shows the two brothers -- one of them a student of class XII and the other of class XI -- pushing and thrashing the victim in presence of some other schoolmates on September 25. Meanwhile, police has assured security to the family of the boy. "I have given my phone number to the family to call me any time if they feel insecure. I have also directed Kazi Muhammadpur police station to ensure that the family is not hurt by anybody in the wake of the incident," Anand told PTI. He said he had told the school Principal that there should be no inconvenience to the boy in the school in the wake of the incident. Union Minister of State for HRD Upendra Kushwaha had taken strong note of the video and on his directive a team of Kendriya Vidyalaya officials had paid a visit to the school on October 14. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court, scrutinising the two-decade-old 'Hindutva' judgement, today asked whether non-contesting spiritual leaders or clerics can be held accountable for "corrupt practices" under electoral law for asking voters to vote for a particular party or candidate. "How can a person, who himself has neither contested nor returned as a winning candidate, be tried for allegedly resorting to corrupt practices under the Representation of the People (RP) Act," a seven-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice T S Thakur asked. The court is examining the "scope and width" of section 123(3) of the RP Act which deals with electoral malpractices amounting to "corrupt practices", among other things. "The appeal by a candidate or his agent or by any other person with the consent of a candidate or his election agent to vote or refrain from voting for any person on the ground of his religion, race, caste, community or language or the use of, or appeal to religious symbols or the use of, or appeal to, national symbols..., for furtherance of the prospects of the election of that candidate or for prejudicially affecting the election of any candidate" would amount to corrupt practices, the provision says. Senior advocate Arvind Datar, appearing for Abhiram Singh whose election as an MLA in 1990 on BJP ticket from Santacruz assembly seat in Mumbai was set aside by the High Court, referred to section 123(3) of the Act and said that corrupt practice can only be established if either the "candidate or his agent" seek votes on the name of religion. If any other person, like late Bal Thackeray and late Pramod Mahajan in the present case, sought votes on these grounds, referred to in the RP Act, then there has to be the "consent" of the candidate, he told the bench, which also comprised justices Madan B Lokur, S A Bobde, A K Goel, U U Lalit, D Y Chandrachud and L Nageswara Rao. During the day-long hearing, the bench asked the counsel as to how the statements of religious leaders or clerics, made much before the commencement of the election process, seeking votes on the objectionable grounds, would fall foul of the RP Act. Datar, during his arguments, stressed on the legal requirement that the consent of returned candidates was necessary if he is to be held liable for "corrupt practices" for allegedly using inflammatory statements of any religious leader or cleric. "In my case, main speeches were made by Bal Thackeray and Pramod Mahajan, who are now no more," he said, adding that "their examination was needed for holding me guilty under the provision concerned." It was alleged that both the late leaders had sought votes in the name of Hindutva and 'Hindu Rashtra'. "A returned candidate has been disqualified because of the speech of somebody else and that too without his consent," the bench observed. The bench further sought assistance of Datar, appearing for the former BJP MLA, on the issue whether the old and stale statements, used belatedly in an election, can be held to be violative of the RP Act. Another senior advocate Shyam Divan said the issue which required to be decided was on "narrow compass" as the court has to decide the scope of section 123(3) of the Act. "There is a contradistinction with regard to whether consent of the returned candidate, in adopting corrupt practices, can be inferred from the materials or it has to be established," Divan said while highlighting the differences of opinion in earlier apex court verdicts on the issue. Yesterday, the bench had referred to the instances of 'deras' in Punjab and their heads asking supporters to vote for a particular party or a candidate. "These deras are not connected to religion per se and follow a particular way of life. If the head of a dera asks its followers to vote for a particular political party, would that also fall foul of Section 123(3)," it had asked. The court had decided to go ahead with the hearing, ignoring the request of some parties in the matter to involve Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi for his assistance. The bench began the hearing by grappling with the issues which could be examined by it and wanted to know whether some of them could be remanded back to a smaller bench of five or three judges. Earlier, Datar had submitted that the case of his client Singh should be separated from this hearing as all similarly situated people had already got relief from the apex court. He said the appeal filed in 1992 by Singh, whose election to 1990 Maharashtra Assembly was set aside in 1991 by the Bombay High Court, has wrongly been tagged to the main petition of Narayan Singh whose appeal by the five judge bench was referred to the seven judges. The senior advocate said there were 10 such appeals against the high court order and, except in two, the election of others were restored by the apex court and therefore, Abhiram Singh should be treated on the same footing and his appeal should be remanded back to three-judge bench. He made reference to the similar relief secured by former Maharashtra Chief Minister Manohar Joshi contending that there was no conflict in that judgement. The apex court in February 2014 had tagged Abhiram Singh's petition with others in which the five judge bench had decided in 2002 to re-visit its 20-year old 'Hindutva' judgement for an authoritative pronouncement on electoral laws by a seven judge bench. The issue assumes significance as questions were raised on its 1995 verdict which held that vote in the name of "Hindutva/Hinduism" did not prejudicially affect any candidate, and since then three election petitions are pending on the subject in the apex court. The apex court's three-judge bench in 1995 had held that "Hindutva/Hinduism is a way of life of the people in the sub-continent" and "is a state of mind". The judgement was delivered in the case of Manohar Joshi versus N B Patil which was authored by Justice J S Verma who found that the statement by Joshi that the 'first Hindu State will be established in Maharashtra' did not amount to appeal on ground of religion". The issue of interpretation of section 123(3) again arose on January 30, 2014 before a five-judge which referred it for examination before a larger bench of seven judges. The seven judges is now dealing with the appeal filed in 1992 by Abhiram Singh. A three-judge bench on April 16, 1992 had referred to a five-judge Constitution Bench Singh's appeal in which the same question and interpretation of Section 123(3) was raised. While the five-judge bench was hearing this matter on January 30, 2014, it was informed that an identical issue was raised in an election petition filed by Narayan Singh against BJP leader Sunderlal Patwa and the another Constitution Bench of five judges of the apex court had referred it to a larger bench of seven judges. Thereafter, the five-judge bench had referred Singh's matter also to the Chief Justice for placing it before a seven-judge bench. The January 30, 2014, order said, "Be that as it may, since one of the questions involved in the present appeal is already referred to a larger bench of seven judges, we think it appropriate to refer this appeal to a limited extent regarding interpretation of sub-section (3) of Section 123 of the 1951 Act to a larger bench of seven judges. "The Registry will place the matter before the Chief Justice for constitution of a bench of seven judges. The matter may be listed subject to the order of the Chief Justice." The apex court had also noted that "in the course of arguments, our attention has been invited to the order of this court dated August 20, 2002 in Narayan Singh vs Sunderlal Patwa. By this order, a Constitution Bench of five judges has referred the question regarding the scope of corrupt practice mentioned in sub-section (3) of Section 123 of the 1951 Act to a larger bench of seven judges. "This became necessary in view of the earlier decision of a Constitution Bench of this court in Kultar Singh vs Mukhtiar Singh," the court had said. Canadian pension fund manager CDPQ today announced an investment of over Rs 1,000 crore to acquire a sizeable minority stake in TVS Group's third-party logistics arm, which will include buying out the existing private equity investors Goldman Sachs and KKR. "CDPQ will invest over Rs 1,000 crore (USD 155 million) to acquire a minority stake in TVS Logistics Ltd. With this transaction, Goldman Sachs and KKR will fully exit from their investments", TVS Logistics Services' Managing Director R Dinesh told reporters here. Declining to reveal the percentage of stakes held by Goldman Sachs and KKR, he said, "Goldman Sachs had done investments of about Rs 120 crore and KKR was about Rs 240 crore". Goldman Sachs had pumped in Rs 120 crore in two tranches from 2008 onwards while KKR invested in the company in 2012. CDPQ will purchase most of their joint stake (held by KKR and Goldman Sachs) while TVS family members and management will acquire the remaining, he said. "We are perfectly in align with CDPQ. They are ready to invest more", he said. CDPQ, which has done a slew of investments in the country, including buying a 30 per cent stake in Edelweiss ARC, will also "commit significant additional capital" for financing acquisitions and expansion of the company, a joint statement released by the two companies said. "TVS Logistics, which clocked revenues of about Rs 4,200 crore last financial year, has set a target of achieving Rs 5,700 crore in this year", Dinesh said. "Our target is to triple that revenue in the next three to five years," he added. Stating that the company has been diversifying its business, he said, "earlier our focus area was one hundred per cent in auto sector. Now it is less than 30 per cent. In the United Kingdom majority of the business is defence. We are talking about projects of about two billion pounds." Asked whether the company was looking to go public, he said, "We always have the option to go public but not now. Terming that the TVS Logistics a "very dynamic" company and has been growing very fast over the last few years, CDPQ President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Sabia, through a video message, said, "we are convinced that the company has grown under the leadership of Dinesh. We are coming on board to help it grow not only in India but also internationally". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A closed Catholic church in the US state of Pennsylvania has been sold to a Muslim cultural group for nearly two million dollars to clear debts, a media report said today. The Immaculate Conception BVM Church, situated in Bristol township in Bucks county, was sold for USD 1,775,000 on Friday to the United American Muslim Society (UAMS) of Brooklyn, LevittownNow.Com reported. The money from the sale will go to pay down a debt of USD 704,997 for Immaculate Conception and USD 258,042 for Queen of the Universe, Catholic community. The remaining funds will go to parish savings, Archdiocese of Philadelphia spokesman Ken Gavin was quoted as saying by the report. The church, which closed on January 1, was merged with the Queen of the Universe Parish in 2014. The announcement of the sale was made during weekend masses was "positively received by parishioners", Gavin said. UAMS is the parent corporation for the Turkish-American Muslim Cultural Association on Levittown Parkway where they are based since 1991. "They are widely known as people of faith, family, prayer and education in the moral life for their children and the families of Bristol Township," Gavin added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistani troops today violated ceasefire in Rajouri-Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir, shelling Indian positions with mortar bombs and using automatic arms. "There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Bhimber Gali (BG) Sector from 1630 hours today," PRO Defence said. The Pakistani troops used small arms, automatic weapons and 82 mm mortars bombs to target Indian positions, he said. Indian troops responded appropriately and befittingly, the PRO said, adding there were no casualties till last reports came in. This was the 30th ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir since the Indian army carried out surgical strikes in PoK to destroy terror launching pads. Yesterday, the Pakistani troops fired 82 mm mortar bombs, used small and automatic weapons in firing on Indian forward posts in Laam Battalion area in Naushera from 2030 hours to 0130 hours. Indian troops retaliated and gave befitting reply, he said, adding no one was injured in the ceasefire violation. On October 16, Pakistani troops violated ceasefire twice along LoC in Naushera and Rajouri sectors in which one jawan was martyred. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Central government team today visited Nehru Nagar in Nashik Road here for a proposed paper mill project, required for printing currency notes. The team will submit its report to Union Finance Ministry, under which city-based India Security Press (ISP) and Currency Note Press (CNP) function. The team comprised General Manager of CNP, S P Varma, members of Security Paper Mill (Hoshangabad, Madhya Pradesh) P R Gauda, Security Printing & Minting Corporation Ltd of India (SPMCIL) members Rakesh Kumar, Praveen Gupta, Manishankar and others. Shiv Sena MP Hemant Godse from Nashik while welcoming the members said, the Central government has set a target to produce 48,000 metric tonne note (currency) paper by 2024. "Currently, 16,000 MT paper is being produced. To achieve the target of remaining 32,000 MT, two machines have been sanctioned in-principle for Hoshangabad SPM to produce 16,000 MT, while scouting is underway to set up a mill here to produce another 16,000 MT," he said. Godsde further said the 250 acres land is lying unused with ISP and CNP at Nehru Nagar and it could be efficiently utilised for setting up a new paper mill which will be economically viable as well. He said Nashik Road railway station is close these places, transportation cost will be less and the cotton required for producing currency paper could be transported by train from neighbouring Jalgaon. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Asking Odisha government to take action against those guilty of "serious lapse" that led to death of 21 people in a hospital blaze here, Union Health Minister J P Nadda today said the Centre would soon issue a fresh advisory to all states to avoid repeat of such incidents. His remarks came on a day when another fire outbreak was reported in Kendrapara district headquarters hospital in the state. However, there was no casualty. "We have to see that such incidents do not repeat. I will ask the officials to make more stringent provisions. I will personally see which issues need to be revisited. A fresh advisory will be given to all the states so that such incidents do not take place anywhere," Nadda told reporters before winding up his one-day visit to the state. He said there was "serious lapse in the said hospital where people died. The state government should ensure that the culprits responsible for the incident should not go scot- free." Terming the hospital fire tragedy as "very serious", "worrisome" and "shocking", Nadda said, "There was breach of safety measures. The incident would not have taken place at all, had safety measures been in place." Though fire safety is a matter related to Home department, Health department also has a responsibility to ensure safety of patients in hospitals, he said. Nadda said he was told that the hospital did not have fire safety measures. "Inspite of that (not having fire safety clearance), the hospital was running. It is a serious matter," Nadda said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) China's Shenzhou-11 spacecraft carrying two astronauts docked with an experimental space lab orbiting the earth through a remote-controlled automatic operation in the wee hours today. The astronauts entered thespace lab Tiangong-2 after the spacecraft successfully docked with the space station and completed the automatic docking around 1 AM (Indian Standard Time), Beijing Aerospace Control Centre (BACC) said. Shenzhou-11 was successfully launched on Monday in China's longest-ever manned space mission. The rendezvous between the spacecraft and the lab took place over 393 kilometers above Earth, BACC said. The event was telecast live by the state-run China Central Television, (CCTV). The two astronauts aboard Shenzhou-11 -- Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong -- later entered the lab and will stay there for 30 days carrying out different experiments. Shenzhou-11, China's sixth manned spacecraft, will undertake the longest-ever space mission of China. The two astronauts will spend a total of 33 days in space. BACC deputy chief engineer Sun Jun told the state-run agency Xinhua that the precision needed for the orbit prediction and automated docking calculation was much higher than the previous docking missions. Once docking was complete, commander of the mission Jing Haipeng opened the hatch of Tiangong-2 and floated into the space lab, followed by Chen Dong. The two astronauts extended greetings to all the people of the nation in the space lab, and checked the status of the space complex formed by Shenzhou-11 and Tiangong-2. Before entering the space lab, the astronauts entered the spacecraft's orbital compartment and removed their intravehicular mobility unit spacesuits to change into blue jumpsuits. Tiangong-2 was sent into space on September 15. The space lab was launched as part of efforts to set up China's own manned space station by 2022, which will make it the only country to have such a facility in service as the current in-service International Space Station (ISS) will retire by 2024. Other objectives of the space mission include aerospace medical experiments, space science experiments and in-orbit maintenance with human participation, as well as other activities, Wu Ping, Deputy Director of China's manned space engineering office said. The astronauts will undertake ultrasound tests during space travel for the first time, cultivate plants in space, and test the three winners of an experiment design competition run in Hong Kong for secondary school students. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hundreds of displaced Iraqi Christians danced and sang to celebrate an Iraqi military operation to retake their community's main hub of Qaraqosh from jihadists. Iraqi Christian men, women and children -- some of them holding candles -- gathered at Mar Shimon church in the Kurdish capital of Arbil to pray and celebrate, an AFP correspondent reported yesterday. Iraqi federal forces on Tuesday moved deep into Qaraqosh, a town that lies around 15 kilometres (10 miles) southeast of Mosul and was seized by the Islamic State jihadist group in August 2014. "Today is a happy moment. There is no doubt our land will be liberated and we thank God, Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary," said Hazem Djedjou Cardomi, a journalist among the crowd. The evening gathering was organised in spite of what remained a fluid situation in Qaraqosh, with Iraqi forces taking position in several neighbourhoods but IS fighters potentially still holed up in others. Qaraqosh had a population of around 50,000 people prior to an August 2014 offensive across the Nineveh Plain east of Mosul that forced almost every resident to flee. The overwhelming majority of Qaraqosh residents were Christians, making it the largest Christian town in Iraq. "We have been through a lot of suffering and today we are looking forward to returning to our region as soon as possible," Cardomi said. Also present at the joyous gathering in Arbil, the nearby capital of the autonomous Iraqi Kurdish region to which most displaced Christians fled two years ago, was George Djahola, a Syriac father. "The people had this idea to celebrate when we heard this morning about the liberation... Or at least the army's progress and entry into Qaraqosh, the first Christian town in the Nineveh Plain," he told AFP. "Over the past two years, people were alive but their joy was not complete. They want to return to their homes, their land -- even if they have been destroyed -- and live in peace in their town," he said. Kurdish peshmerga and Iraqi federal forces on Monday launched a major offensive aimed at retaking Mosul, the second city and last major remaining IS stronghold in the country. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Shiv Sena is awaiting a proposal from the BJP over an alliance, if feasible, for the forthcoming civic polls in Maharashtra. The Sena is an alliance partner in the BJP-led NDA governments at the Centre and in Maharashtra. "The prospects of an alliance were discussed and it was decided to await a proposal from the BJP," a Sena source told PTI today. In view of the polls, slated to be held between November 2016 and January 2017, Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray today held a meeting with the outfit's district unit chiefs and district coordinators from across the state to discuss strategies. He is scheduled to address the ministers and legislators tomorrow. The four-phase polls will be held for 212 civic bodies, including 192 municipal councils and 20 nagar panchayats, in 25 districts. The contest, being dubbed as a 'mini' Assembly election, will be held for a total of 4,750 seats covering 2,485 civic wards. While the first phase is slated to be held on November 27, the subsequent phases are scheduled for December 14, 18 and January 8, 2017, barring the two districts of Mumbai and Thane. The counting of votes will be held on the next day of voting in each phase. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) kelly_4f13dbc0-e07a-4506-aa8f-1624d846be4c-prv.jpg Rep. Trent Kelly, R-Miss., talks with General Superintendent Lance Carnahan during a tour of Ingalls Shipbuilding on Tuesday. Kelly met with shipbuilders on the amphibious assault ship Tripoli (LHA 7) and amphibious transport dock Portland (LPD 27) and was also reunited with Ingalls employees who were fellow veterans of the National Guard's 890th Engineer Battalion in Gulfport. (Lance Davis/Ingalls Shipbuilding) PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- U.S. Rep. Trent Kelly (R-Miss.) toured Ingalls Shipbuilding Tuesday, with the tour serving as a de facto reunion of sorts for the Congressman, as well. This marked Kelly's first tour of the shipyard, the state's largest private employer, since winning a special election in June 2015 to fill the 1st District seat following the death of Rep. Allen Nunnelee. "As the largest employer in Mississippi, Ingalls sets the standard for the shipbuilding industry," Kelly said after the tour. "Their commitment to the nation, building the best ships for our service members, and their talented team members are the type of dedication that makes America great." In addition to the tour and meeting with Ingalls leadership, Kelly was reunited with Ingalls employees who -- like Kelly -- are veterans of the Mississippi Army National Guard 890th Engineer Battalion, based in Gulfport. Kelly has served 30 years in the National Guard and currently holds the rank of colonel. He served two tours in Iraq and earned two Bronze Stars for his actions. Kelly also met and spoke with shipbuilders on the amphibious assault ship Tripoli (LHA 7) and the amphibious transport dock Portland (LPD 27). "It is always a privilege to host one of our U.S. Congressmen so they can see the quality, pride and skills of our workforce," said Ingalls president Brian Cuccias. "Representative Kelly's visit allowed him to understand the complexity of our facility and the processes it takes to build four classes of military ships simultaneously at an affordable price. "We thank him for visiting our shipyard and supporting Mississippi's shipbuilders." Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump today accused Democratic rival Hillary Clinton of taking money from foreign lobbyists and interest groups as he asserted that her win in polls would mean that America has lost its independence. "If we let the Clinton cartel run this government, history will record that 2017 was a year America lost its independence. That's true, that's true. It will not happen on our watch," Trump told his supporters in Colorado ahead of the third and final presidential debate in Las Vegas. "It's like when they look back at us at this time, you know, in history, we will not be the ones that they talk about the replacement of the great Trojan horse, right? You understand that. We're not going to be the fools that allow that to happen. I say it again, when it comes to Washington, D C, it is time to drain the damn swamp," he said. Trump also asked the outgoing US President Barack Obama to stop campaigning for Hillary. "He should stop campaigning for crooked Hillary, and he ought to get out and work on jobs and work on the border. Boy, oh boy, he's got a lot of work. Fortunately, he doesn't have much time left," the 70-year-old business tycoon said. "But to be a rich country we must also be a safe country. National security begins at the border. Speaking in secret to a foreign bank, crooked Hillary Clinton said her dream is for open trade -- there go your jobs -- and open borders -- there goes your country. That's what it is. Your jobs, your country," he said. Trump reiterated that the current system is rigged by the donors giving hundreds of millions of dollars to Clinton's campaign. "The reason crooked Hillary pushes for NAFTA or the Transpacific Partnership and for completely open borders is because her international donors control her every single move," he alleged. Referring to Wikileaks, he said the series of leaked e-mails show top officials in the Clinton campaign scheming to take massive sums of money from registered foreign lobbyists. "But don't hear the media talking about it. We all talk about it WikiLeaks proved. And by the way, they are not being covered, they want to cover fictitious stories about me, it's fiction. They want to cover -- they just want to cover fictitious stories on me," he said. WikiLeaks has provided things that are unbelievable but the media is an extension of the Hillary Clinton campaign, Trump alleged. "Clinton and her cronies have sacrificed your security, your family's safety and your country's safety as though it meant nothing at all to her. Remember also that Hillary lied under oath to Congress, saying she had never sent or received classified information on her insecure server, and pretended not to know what the letter C meant, confidential information that was classified, right," he said. "Hillary then told the FBI she couldn't remember 30 times, right? Thirty-nine. Thirty-nine times, and then in written testimony last week under oath she couldn't remember another 21 times. Bad memory. She's got a bad memory," he said. In a bid to introduce clean fuel across the country, the National Green Tribunal today directed five northern states to explain their stand on making CNG as the main fuel for vehicles. A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar directed Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Delhi to file affidavit giving details about cities which are connected with the supply of CNG and the areas proposed to be connected. It asked them to explain which functions are to be performed by the states and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) in this regard. The green panel also asked PNGRB to submit a comprehensive plan for laying CNG pipeline for distribution. "PNGRB shall clarify how many cities shall be covered with supply of CNG and what is the current status of CNG use in these five states," it said. The matter was listed for next hearing on October 28. On the last date of hearing, the tribunal had warned of halting state transport if they did not introduce CNG, saying most particulate matters in the air inhaled by Delhi'ites emanated from there. The NGT in September had asked Uttar Pradesh and Haryana government to mull over the possibility of installing CNG stations in NCR while refusing to grant permission to over 10- year old diesel vehicles to ply in these areas. On July 18, the green panel had directed authorities in Delhi-NCR to cancel the registration of all diesel-powered vehicles which were more than 10 years old. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has played a major role in safeguarding the maritime interest of the country, Director General of ICG Rajendra Singh said today. Addressing a gathering after Commissioning the Inshore Patrol Vessel (IPV) of ICG Ship 'Rani Gaidinliu' at Coast Guard Jetty here, he said the changing security Scenario in the Maritime domain dictates the need for coastal security on a 24X7 basis where the coast guard have to maintain a constant vigil. Singh said the Indian Coast Guard's fleet Strength has gone to 123 Ships and 62 Aircraft From 1997. He said ICG ship Rani Gaidinliu, named after the freedom fighter from Manipur, will Primarily focus on surveillance at the sea, coastal patrol, anti-smuggling operations, protection of fishermen, beside the routine Search and Rescue Operations. ICGS Rani Gaidinliu is the fourth of its class and has been designed and build ingeniously by Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL), Visakhapatnam. The Vessel is equipped with the most advanced and sophisticated Navigational and Communication sensors and equipment, Singh said. It is 51-metre in length, 330 tonnes displacement, capable of achieving maximum speed of 34 knots. The ship is fitted with the state-of-the-art communication, navigational equipment and 30 mm CRN-91 gun on-board as main armament. It will be based at the Krishnapatanam Port. Indian Coast Guard Region (East) Inspector General, Rajan Bargotra, Deputy Chief Minister of Manipur Gaikhangam, Flag Officers and other civilian officers also attended the function. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Citing importance of free and fair elections, President Pranab Mukherjee today said it is important to create a conducive atmosphere to enable people to exercise their voting rights without fear or favour and see that the outcome of elections is not vitiated. He was speaking to the heads of election management bodies and international electoral institutions of different countries attending the 'International Conference on Voter Education for Inclusive, Informed and Ethical Participation'. Addressing the delegates, the President quoted Tomas Garrigue Masaryk, co-founder of erstwhile Czechoslovakia and said "Democracy is the political form of humanity". He said that the heads of election management bodies present there were custodians of democracy and therefore of humanity. Mukherjee said that democracy would succeed through their responsibility of discharging free and fair elections as per the Constitution of the country concerned. The President said that after India became independent and was transformed into a Republic, there were many doubting voices with regard to success of adult suffrage in the country. However, the Election Commission of India, which has an important role in our democracy, has been delivering the citizens well managed elections in a country with a vast area and a huge population. The country has seen consistent rise in voters' participation in successive elections. The General Elections to the lower house of Indian Parliament in 2014 recorded a historic turn out, the President said. Mukherjee said that he was happy that the voters also chose a stable political regime by electing a single majority government. The President said that the basic objective of democracy is to have an electorate which is informed and constantly engaged with the affairs of the State. "It is important to create a conducive atmosphere to enable people to exercise their voting rights without fear or favour and see that the outcome of elections is not vitiated. "Voters must be educated to exercise their right to vote with full responsibility and seriousness," he was quoted as having said in a press release issued by Rashtrapati Bhavan. He told the delegates that being experts in their field it was for them to decide how successful elections were to be implemented. Mukherjee hoped that the deliberations at the conference would lead to better voters' education and increased voters' participation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress today alleged that the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh is in the thick of a "scam of monumental proportions" in the resettlement and rehabilitation of the oustees of the Sardar Sarovar project on the Narmada. Party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told reporters that the Judicial Commission headed by Justice S S Jha has "indicted" the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government in the matter. Congress has already been targeting the government over the multi-crore Vyapam scam and demanding the resignation of the chief minister. "The Chouhan government seems to have become a Vyapak Ghotala-all Pervasive Scamster-Government, even as the Prime Minister continues to patronise him (Chouhan) and his corruption," Singhvi alleged. He said the scandal has put question mark on the future of thousands of families affected by the Sardar Sarovar Dam. The Commission, after a seven-year investigation, has "exposed the rampant forgery of documents" that allowed compensation to be paid to impostors, he said, claiming the scam is of "monumental proportions". The Jha Commission was appointed by the Supreme Court, he said. The compensation was meant for those who will be displaced when the dam's height is raised. The commission has also brought to the fore that the state government did not cooperate with its inquiry and made every attempt to prevent the damning report from being made public before it was finally tabled in the state's Vidhan Sabha at the end of July, Singhvi said. Targeting the Prime Minister, he said Narendra Modi never misses any opportunity to politically encash the Sardar Sarovar Dam but could not prevent the massive corruption in this 'Narmada Dam Scam'. "Congress demands that the Jha Commission report be made public and appropriate action under the Supreme Court guidelines taken so that the culprits of this massive Narmada Scam can be brought to book", Singhvi said. "The Prime Minister talks about 'Swachh Bharat'. It is high time that Narendra Modi first provides us a 'Swachh Sarkar', which is devoid of corruption", he remarked. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A special CBI court today granted bail to Financial Technologies (India) Ltd promoter Jignesh Shah in connection with a case against him for allegedly suppressing facts to get an extension for stock exchange MCX-SX from market regulator SEBI. Special court judge P S Tarare granted bail to Shah on a surety of Rs one lakh. Shah was arrested on September 20 by CBI. The central agency had said that it suspected some former SEBI officials of being hand-in-glove with Shah, who may have bribed them. MCX-SX, promoted by Shah and others, had submitted an application in 2008 to SEBI, seeking extension of its recognition as an exchange for currency futures trade. MCX-SX promoters had entered into a share buyback arrangement with Punjab National Bank, L&FS and IFCI in violation of Securities Contract Regulation Act and Securities Contract (Regulation) (Manner of Increasing and Maintaining Public Shareholdings in Recognised Stock Exchanges) Regulation, 2006. CBI alleged that Shah, with the connivance of SEBI officials, suppressed this fact while obtaining extension. SEBI officials deliberately did not issue a notice to the exchange for cancellation of its recognition in the currency derivatives segment when the markets regulator had already rejected a request of MCX-SX for trading in other segments, CBI had said. The agency named Vishaka More, the then Assistant General Manager of SEBI, Rajkumar Dangeti, then Deputy General Manager, and Muralidhar Rao, who was then the Chief General Manager at the markets regulator as accused, did not arrest them. Claiming innocence, Shah had argued in the court that he was only a non-executive director and one of the members of the 18-member board of the exchange. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan today suspended the principal of its school in Bihar's Muzaffarpur and transferred the Vice Principal along with 14 teachers in connection with the incident of two students mercilessly beating their Dalit classmate whose video went viral on social media. The errant students were already suspended yesterday. HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar took to twitter to announce that stern action has been taken against the accused students and school authorities. "Stern action has been taken against the accused students & school authorities in connection with the unfortunate violent incident. The 'victim' student will be provided admission in another #kv if he so desires & necessary medical help will also be provided to him," he tweeted. The decision to suspend the principal and transfer the 15 staff members was taken by the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) after deliberating on the report of a panel that probed the incident. "KVS has taken strong action against the students involved in the incident. The duo have been suspended along with principal Rajiv Ranjan. 13 teachers and one assistant besides the Vice Principal have been transferred," an official statement said. The decision has been taken on basis of recommendations of the probe panel which concluded the school administration had tried to cover up the incident. "Also, the video reflects that this was not a sudden incident but was well planned and was deliberately shot to create fear among students," KVS said. The incident came to light when video of two sons of a murder accused mercilessly beating their Dalit classmate went viral on social media. The purported video of the incident shows the two brothers -- one of them a student of class XII and the other of class XI -- pushing and thrashing the victim in presence of some other schoolmates on September 25. The maternal grandfather of the victim, a class XII student, lodged an FIR with SC and ST police station in Muzaffarpur on Monday. In the FIR he also claimed the entire family was terrified because the father of the two brothers is a notorious criminal lodged in jail outside the district in a murder case. Though the incident took place on September 25, the school principal has been accused of not acting promptly on the victim's complaint. The victim student, fearing threat to his life, has gone into hiding. It was only after the video of the incident went viral, including on Facebook and Twitter, that the principal filed a written complaint, following which the police lodged an FIR. The two students have been sent to a remand home even as police have assured security to the family of the victim. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Heavy fighting rocked Yemen hours before a UN-brokered ceasefire was due to begin today, as warring parties come under mounting pressure to end a conflict that has raged for more than two years. The truce will be the sixth attempt to end the bloodshed since a Saudi-led Arab coalition intervened in March 2015 to support the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi after rebels overran much of Yemen. Civilians have paid the highest price in a country that was already the Arabian peninsula's poorest. Almost 6,900 have been killed -- more than half of them civilians -- while another three million are displaced and millions more need food aid. A United Nations report said air strikes by the coalition were suspected of causing around half of all civilian deaths, while rebel-affiliated groups were responsible for about a quarter. The UN special envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, on Sunday announced the truce from 23:59 (local time) for an initial three days, subject to renewal. But clashes involving heavy artillery and air raids killed at least five people across the country on Wednesday, including fighting near the Saudi border and around the capital Sanaa, military sources said. The last ceasefire attempt began in April alongside UN-brokered peace talks in Kuwait but both the rebels and the coalition accused each other of breaches. After peace talks collapsed in August, fighting escalated until an October 8 coalition air strike which the UN said killed more than 140 people and wounded at least 525 at a funeral in Sanaa. The United States announced an "immediate review" of its intelligence and refuelling assistance to the coalition, whose investigative team then released unusually quick findings from a probe of the incident. It said a coalition aircraft "wrongly targeted" the funeral based on "incorrect information". In another major development, the US Navy for the first time targeted Huthi rebels directly. On October 13 it hit radar sites which, the US said, were involved in missile launches against a US warship and other vessels. Yemen's Huthi rebels are allied with members of the security forces loyal to ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh. They control the capital Sanaa and other territory but coalition-backed forces earlier pushed them back from the southern port of Aden and adjacent areas. Both the rebels and pro-government forces have come under increased international pressure to silence their guns. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In the wake of the fire tragedy at a Bhubaneswar hospital, Delhi government has ordered a fire safety audit at all its hospitals and sought a report on it to ensure no such mishap occurs in the national capital. Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain today held a meeting with senior government and medical officials to review the fire safety measures in place at various city hospitals. At least 21 persons died and more than 100 others were injured in a blaze that broke out at the SUM Hospital and Medical College on Monday evening. The hospital in the Odisha capital was functioning without any fire safety clearance. "We reviewed the fire safety procedures at various Delhi government hospitals. Director of Delhi Fire Service and other senior officials were present. We were told that most of them are fine. But, we decided that a fresh inspection be done. A copy of the report would be sent to me," Jain said. "It was decided that a committee including Secretary Health, Secretary PWD, Regional Director Health Services and other officers/departments of Delhi government will be constituted to handle the same. PWD Secretary Ashwani Kumar will be the nodal officer for this exercise," Jain said. It will be the responsibility of the committee to suggest guidelines for disposing contaminated waste. During the meeting, it was also decided that dedicated teams would inspect all hospitals within seven days to ensure that all staircases, corridors, roofs and open spaces are kept free of any encroachment. The minister said all efforts will be made to make Delhi hospitals fire-safe and that the government will set up fire-safety protocols on the basis of the report of the committee. "Within a month the government would finish inspection of all hospitals. The inspection would include key government hospitals such as GTB Hospital, G B Pant Hospital and LNJP Hospital," he said. The Health Minister said deficiencies in the hospitals would be checked and listed. "The team has also been directed to visit private hospitals so that all arrangements can be made in case of any deficiency," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Wildlife and bird experts today advised against any panic in the wake death of birds at Delhi zoo, saying chances of the H5 avian influenza spreading among exotic migratory birds was very less. Chances of the virus affecting humans at this point was not even a distant possibility, experts said. They also pointed out the absence of mass mortality among birds, which are seen in case of flu outbreaks. "Saying the birds were migratory would be misleading. There are local migratory birds as well, as not all of them come from places like Siberia. And those species have not started coming yet. It's just the beginning of the migratory season," wildlife biologist Dr. Faiyaz A. Khudsar said. Dr Khudsar, who is the lead scientist at the Yamuna Biodiversity Park, said the H5 avian influenza, which largely hits poultry, does not usually affect humans. Chances of infection come further down when poultry meat is properly cooked at or above 70 degrees Celsius, he said. Noted ecologist Prof CR Babu echoed Dr Khudsar's views, saying there have been no reports of large flocks of migratory birds landing as of now. "The October temperature is also warmer than usual. And there should also be a differentiation between exotic migratory birds and resident migratory birds. There is no reason to panic," he said. Bird watcher Anand Arya, however, said the situation can be problematic in case the birds that have died are of exotic species, as birds from the similar source could have landed in wetlands across India. Birds also cohabit during the migration season, he said. "The first landing point of these birds is usually Himachal Pradesh's Pong dam. Then they gradually come down to warmer areas as the temperature falls in the upper reaches. So infections can spread but it is early to say," Arya said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar today said if voted to power in the Mumbai civic body polls slated early next year, his party would provide template for development of the metropolis. Addressing the NCP's city unit workers, Pawar said all civic bodies run by his party are functioning well and there had been no allegation of irregularities. The former Maharashtra Minister said traffic woes and unplanned dumping of garbage are some of the issues the Shiv Sena-BJP ruled BMC has "failed" to address. In Nagpur, where the civic body is run by the BJP, civic employees are not being paid their salaries. In Nashik, people are fed up with the Raj Thackeray-led MNS whom they had voted to power in 2012, Pawar alleged. But people of Pune and adjoining township of Pimpri- Chinchwad, where the civic bodies are ruled by the NCP, are happy with the party's performance, he claimed. "If Mumbaikars give power to us, we will show them what development is all about," Pawar maintained. The NCP leader said farmers and the common man are fed up with the policies of the BJP-led Government in Maharashtra. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ecuador has said that it had cut the internet access of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is holed up at its London embassy, due to leaks by the anti-secrecy website that could impact the US election. "The government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states. It does not interfere in external electoral processes, nor does it favor any particular candidate," the Ecuadoran foreign ministry said in a statement yesterday. In consequence, the ministry said, it decided to "temporarily restrict" communications at the embassy. WikiLeaks has published a damaging trove of hacked emails from US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's campaign in the recent weeks. On Monday it accused Ecuador of cutting off Assange's internet communications at the behest of US Secretary of State John Kerry. The United States denied the allegation. "Reports that Secretary Kerry had conversations with Ecuadorian officials about this are simply untrue. Period," State Department spokesman John Kirby said yesterday. Ecuador also implicitly denied the claim in its statement. "Ecuador's foreign policy responds to sovereign decisions alone and does not yield to pressure from other states," it said. Ecuador reaffirmed its decision to grant Assange asylum, and said the restriction on communications at its embassy did not hinder WikiLeaks itself. "This temporary restriction does not prevent the WikiLeaks organization from carrying out its journalistic activities," it said. Assange fled to Ecuador's London embassy in June 2012. The 45-year-old Australian is fighting extradition to Sweden to face a rape accusation. He denies the allegation and says he fears Sweden wants to hand him over to the United States to face trial for the leaking of hundreds of thousands of classified US military and diplomatic documents in 2010. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rashtriya Progressive Kisan Association, a consortium of seven farmer organisations, has written to the Prime Minister demanding commercialisation of genetically modified (GM) mustard at the earliest. The consortium favoured quick rollout of GM Mustard for farmers in arid and semi-arid regions and asked stakeholders to stop politicising the commercialisation of GM Mustard, which is currently under review with the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC). "A consortium of 7 leading national farmer organisations under the aegis of the Rashtriya Progressive Kisan Association (RPKA) has submitted a petition to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting the commercialisation of GM Mustard," a statement said. RPKA said it represents over 80 million farmers across 16 states. It had earlier collected over 1.38 lakh signed farmer petitions from across key agricultural states and submitted this to the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Environment in support of GM Mustard. The association's CEO Hari Singh Yadav said: "The on-going polarization around GM Mustard is unfortunate as it not only hurts the farm economy, impedes India's agriculture self-reliance but also takes away the Indian farmer's right to choose technologies best suited to him." Farm technologies should be allowed to be effected by regular market forces which will determine their success or failure. "Our entreaty to the government is to let the technology speak for itself and to go ahead with its commercialisation as soon as the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee gives it a go-ahead with regards to its bio-safety," he said. "Globally and in India, GM technology successfully co- exists with conventional hybrids as well as organic farming methods," RPKA said. The seven organisations under RPKA are -- Sir Choudhary Choturam Bhartiya Kisan Samiti (BKS), Consortium of Indian Farmers Association, Kisan Coordination Committee, Shetkari Sanghatana Trust, United Farmers Empowerment Initiative (UFEI) and Confederation of NGOs of Rural India (CNRI). (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The fee income generated by overseas branches of Indian banks declined to Rs 8,680 crore (USD 1.3 billion) in 2015-16 from 9,430 crore a year ago. However, total income of Indian banks' branches operating abroad increased by Rs 1,970 crore to Rs 45,200 crore, whereas the income of foreign banks' branches operating in India declined marginally by Rs 30 crore to Rs 64,740 crore. This was reflected in a survey on International Trade in Banking Services (ITBS) put on RBI's website. The survey provides information on the branches/subsidiaries of Indian banks operating abroad and foreign banks operating in India. "The fee income generated by overseas branches of Indian banks declined to Rs 8,680 crore in 2015-16 from Rs 9,430 crore a year ago," the survey said. Trade finance related services of the Indian bank's overseas branches declined from Rs 1,510 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 1,370 crore in 2015-16. It also fell in case of foreign bank branches operating in India. Indian bank branches in UK had the largest contribution in providing banking services in terms of fee income, followed by the UAE and Hong Kong. Fee income of foreign banks' branches operating in India also declined to Rs 7,080 crore from Rs 7,270 crore in the previous year. Indian banks' branches operating abroad recorded credit growth of 5.8 per cent to Rs 8.81 lakh crore (USD 132.9 billion) in March 2016 and lending by foreign banks operating in India increased by 12.4 per cent to Rs 3.77 lakh crore. On the other hand, deposits of foreign banks' branches operating in India increased by 13.7 per cent to Rs 4.57 lakh crore in March 2016, whereas the deposits of overseas branches of Indian banks declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to Rs 5.6 lakh crore. Overseas branches of Indian banks employed 63.1 per cent of local employees, 33.9 per cent from India and remaining 3 per cent from other countries in 2015-16. In contrast, 99.4 per cent employees of foreign banks operating in India were from local sources. During the year, employee-strength of overseas branches of Indian banks and foreign banks operating in India increased by 3.7 per cent and 4.4 per cent, respectively. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Amid suspicion of foul play in the road mishap in which West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew and TMC MP, Abhishek Banerjee, was injured, a team of forensic experts today visited the accident site near Singur on National Highway 2. The forensic experts collected broken glasses, examined the paints on the surface of the truck with which the TMC youth wing president's car collided while returning to Kolkata after a public meeting in Murshidabad district. Police today registered attempt to murder and conspiracy cases against unknown persons in connection with the mishap. Sections under the Highways Act were also added in the case, a senior officer of the CID said. Though nobody was detained in the incident, a few persons, mainly eyewitnesses, were today questioned by the CID, the officer said. Sources in the CID said reconstruction of the entire incident would be done to evaluate "who was responsible for the mishap". The Chief Minister visited the nursing home, where Abhishek is under going treatment, towards the afternoon and again in the evening on her way back home from the state secretariat to oversee her nephew's health condition. According to the medical bulletin issued in the evening, the MRI report confirmed that Abhishek suffered "orbital floor fracture". At present he is under strict observation of the 14-member medical board. Any decision on surgical intervention shall be made as soon as the acute swellings subside. Earlier in the morning the medical bulletin said Abhishek was out of danger and his health condition was improving. "The condition of Abhishek Banerjee is much better. He is completely out of danger. The CT scan report was normal," hospital CEO P Tandon said. Abhishek is presently in the ITU, Tandon said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A four-and-half year-old girl died after falling into an open septic tank near the premises of a private school in northwest Delhi's Swaroop Nagar area, police said today. The incident took place yesterday at around 2 PM at a vacant plot situated between Sant Sujan Singh International School and the Sardar Colony Gurudwara when Nandini was returning from her school, they said. "Nandini was returning with her mother and her siblings when she started running and accidentally fell into the septic tank," said DCP (Northwest) Milind Mahadeo Dumbere. "Nandini's mother, who was accompanied by her two other children, jumped after her daughter but could not save her. Nandini was taken out by the locals after her mother raised alarm and rushed to a nearby hospital where she was declared brought dead," he added. The deceased's father Ranjeet, an auto driver, alleged the tank was being used by the school for discharge of sewage. A case under sections 336 (Act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 304 A(causing death due to negligence)has been registered at Swaroop Nagar police station and the police is trying to ascertain the ownership of the land where the tank is situated. Meanwhile, the authorities at Sant Sujan Singh International School claimed the land was not under their ownership. "The incident did not take place in the school premises and the agricultural land in which the septic tank is located does not belong to our school," said Vice Principal of Sant Sujan Singh International School Mandira Yadav. Locals protested outside the school's gate in the afternoon alleging that Nandini was killed because of the school's negligence. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Undeterred by the Kashmir turmoil, Rs 4,300 crore of NPAs and a big fall in profitability, J&K Bank's new Chairman and CEO Parvez Ahmed has set out to clean things up and is hopeful of a turnaround in fortunes soon. "I don't see any concern. It is a challenge for me. We will manage the situation (due to the huge fall in profit and NPAs)," Ahmed told reporters here. Ahmed took charge last week. "We have a dedicated and competent workforce and senior employees. With their moral up, we will improve the present state of the bank," he said further. Ahmed is the first in-service and second in-house chairman and CEO of the bank. Asserting that there is no substantial impact of Kashmir unrest on J&K Bank's business operations, he said loan accounts affected by the unrest are being restructured. "There is no serious effect on J&K Bank due to unrest. No substantial impact is on J&K Bank. Once the situation revives, cash flow... Which is down by 30 per cent will be back," the chairman hoped. J&K Bank, the state's only listed company, reported a net loss of over Rs 56 crore in the quarter to March -- a first in its operational history of 75 years -- which is mostly attributed to bad loans. In the first quarter, the fall in bottom line was sharp -- as much as 85 per cent. As of March 2016, the bank's gross non-performing assets (NPAs) soared to Rs 4,368.62 crore, that is nearly 10 per cent of gross advances. "Now, our focus will be on consolidation and recovery of NPAs at J&K Bank. Once we focus on NPAs, it will reduce the impact on the bottom line and will improve profitability. It is an area of concern for us," Ahmed said. "We are planning to restructure loans badly affected by the unrest. Such loans will be covered under a package subject to approval of RBI." The tense conditions in Kashmir spanning over 100 days following street violence have hit business, industry, trade and travel sectors hard, impacting the business of J&K Bank. "We have set 18 months as the target to put the situation back on track. If the situation improves (in Kashmir), we will not take much time to consolidate," he claimed. The J&K Bank chairman promised a better performance ahead and is clear that "once we are through with this consolidation phase -- and I assure you we will manage it successfully -- we will head towards greater numbers". He backed it up, saying the record speaks for itself as the bank had managed things in the most turbulent phase of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir. Born in 1964, Ahmed, with science background, joined the bank as the company secretary in 1998 and headed the business support division, corporate credit and customer care. Ahmed, who has also served as Zonal Head for Kashmir, is member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) and has been the honorary chairman of Srinagar chapter of NIRC of ICSI. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Online furniture rental company Furlenco today said it has raised Rs 200 crore (USD 30 million) in funding through a mix of equity and debt. The fresh round of funding includes USD 15 million of equity and USD 15 million of debt, according to Ajith Mohan Karimpana, Founder and CEO of Furlenco. The equity portion of the investment is led by Lightbox along with Axis Capital (no relation to Axis Bank), a Hong Kong based VC fund and a clutch of prominent high networth individuals or HNIs, the company said in a statement. The debt was raised from banks, NBFCs (Non-Banking Financial Company), HNIs and Indian family offices. "The funds raised will be used for expansion to newer categories, product ranges and more cities in the next one year," it added. In March 2015, Furlenco had raised about Rs 37 crore (USD 6 million) from Lightbox. In the past 18 months, Furlenco has furnished nearly 15,000 homes with products worth over Rs 100 crore of market value, the release added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) RSS-affiliated Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) today burnt the effigies of Madhya Pradesh Finance and Industries ministers in protest against the invitation to Chinese companies for Global Investors Summit to be held on October 22-23 here. The SJM workers set afire the effigies of MP Finance Minister Jayant Mallaiya and Industries Minister Rajendra Shukla at the historic Rajbada in the city. "We are totally against inviting Chinese representatives for the Global Investors Summit (GIS) as China is continuously extending financial support to Pakistan which is involved in anti-India activities," Coordinator of SJM Indore-Ujjain Division, Suresh Bijolia said. Terming China as an "anti-India country", he demanded that no Chinese company should be allotted even an inch of land for setting up any industry in the state. Meanwhile, Mallaiya had clarified on October 15 that since invitation to Chinese representatives was sent quite earlier, it is not wise to prevent them from taking part in the GIS at the last moment. Shukla, too, in his statement on October 10 had said, "In our country only those Chinese goods are opposed which are made in China. But if a company of that nation sets up its plant here then it will not only generate employment for the people but also earn revenue for the state. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Chief Electoral Office in Goa has ordered an inquiry into pictures which surfaced on the social media showing hundreds of EPIC cards dumped in a roadside drain in Margao, 40 kms from here. Goa Forward (GF) party too met officials at the Chief Electoral office producing pictures of the voter cards which were found dumped in the poll-bound state. "I have asked District Collector to submit a report within 48 hours about those pictures," Joint Chief Electoral Officer Narayan Navati told PTI today. Navati said a thorough probe will reveal the truth behind the cards but the first look at the pictures indicates that these are old Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC) cards. "They may have been dumped in the dustbin during shifting of mamlatdar office in Margao town. But I will be able to comment properly only after the inquiry," he said. The Collectorate complex including mamlatdar office which was earlier located in the heart of Margao city has shifted to the outskirts in a new complex. Goa Forward (GF) Party had raised an alarm when nearly 500 voting cards were found in the roadside drain on the way to Old Railway station in Margao town. The party suspected foul play behind the act and has demanded a probe into the entire episode. "We demand a thorough inquiry in the matter and action on the officers handling the process of electoral roll. We have been getting complaints from a certain section of a community from across the state that their names are deleted from the electoral rolls which is done mechanically at the behest of BJP workers," party's spokesman Durgadas Kamat alleged. He accused BJP workers of coaxing election commission officials to delete names from voting list. "BJP is so desperate that they are trying all this dirty tricks so that the names of those voters who are against BJP are deleted from the rolls and they would not be able to vote in the upcoming assembly elections," he said. Goa Forward will petition the Election Commission at Delhi in this matter by October 19, Kamat said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Government today said work on multi-modal terminal at Sahibganj to handle 2.28 million tonnes of cargo per annum will become a reality soon with the award of the contract. "The multi-modal terminal at Sahibganj in Jharkhand is soon to become a reality. The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) has recently awarded the contract for construction of the terminal to Larson & Tourbo (L&T)," Ministry of Shipping said in a statement. With the targeted completion of Phase-1 in 2019, the state-of-the-art terminal will have a cargo handling capacity of 2.28 million tonne per annum (MMTA). Given Jharkhand's coal reserves of nearly 80 billion tonnes, the location of the multi modal terminal at Sahibganj is especially significant, it said. It will play an important role in transportation of domestic coal from the local mines to intended thermal power plants owing to its good railway connectivity. Besides coal, stone-chips are also expected to be transported through the terminal. The multi-modal terminal will have facilities including berthing space for two vessels, stockyard for storing, belt conveyor system with fixed hoppers, barge loader, shore protection works, roads, ramps and parking area, and terminal buildings. The Sahibganj terminal is the second out of the three multi-modal terminals planned under the Ganga Jal Marg Vikas Project, to be awarded for construction in a record time. Earlier in May, IWAI awarded the contract to construct a multi-modal terminal at Varanasi to AFCONS Infrastructure Ltd. The third terminal will be constructed at Haldia in West Bengal. The Government is developing National Waterway-1 under the Jal Marg Vikas Project, with technical and financial assistance of the World Bank at an estimated cost of Rs 4,200 crore. The project would enable commercial navigation of vessels with capacity of 1,500-2,000 tonnes. Phase-I of the project covers the Haldia-Varanasi stretch. The project includes development of fairway, Multi-Modal Terminals at Varanasi, Haldia, and Sahibganj, strengthening of river navigation system, conservancy works, modern River Information System (RIS), Besides, a Digital Global Positioning System (DGPS), night navigation facilities, modern methods of channel marking, construction of a new state of the art navigational lock at Farakka. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Government has sought putting on hold the arbitration initiated by British oil explorer against a Rs 29,047 crore retrospective tax demand and instead wants a parallel arbitration initiated by Vedanta Resources to be taken up first. The government using retrospective tax legislation had in January 2014 issued a tax notice on for alleged capital gains it made on a 10-year-old internal reorganisation of its India unit. Three months later in April 2014, it imposed a tax demand of Rs 20,495 crore on Cairn India, the UK firm's erstwhile subsidiary for failing to deduct tax on the capital gains. and Vedanta, which had bought Cairn India from the Scottish firm in 2011, had initiated separate arbitrations against the tax demands. Cairn Energy had initiated the arbitration in March 2015 and the three-member arbitration panel had been constituted. But at a hearing earlier this month, the government contended that the proceedings should be put on hold, sources said. Its counsel argued that the government wants the arbitration initiated by Vedanta to be taken up first. Sources said the counsel also made an application seeking more time to reply to Cairn Energy's demand for a compensation of USD 5.6 billion from the Indian government for raising a retrospective tax demand. As per the schedule drawn up, the reply was to be filed by mid-November. Sources said that in the Vedanta arbitration, the government may contend that tax issues cannot be arbitrated under bilateral investment protection treaty and once it wins a favourable verdict there, it will use the same to quell Cairn Energy's plea as well. A three-member arbitration panel headed by Geneva-based arbitrator Laurent Levy began hearing Cairn Energy's plea against tax demand in May and the company filed its 'Statement of Claim' in late June. The Indian government was to file its 'Statement of Defence' by mid-November and evidential hearing was expected to commence in early 2017, sources said, adding that the plea made by the government will essentially delay the entire process. The British firm challenged the tax assessment by seeking an international arbitration under the UK-India Investment Treaty, which unlike the Dutch treaty provides for resolution of tax issues. UK telecom firm Vodafone has initiated arbitration on a separate retrospective tax under the Dutch treaty. Cairn Energy named former Bulgarian minister Stanimir Alexandrov as its arbitrator in the tax dispute, while India appointed Singapore-based lawyer J Christopher Thomas as its arbitrator. The seat of the panel was decided to be at Hague in Netherlands. An accused in a post-Godhra riots case in Ode village of Anand district of Gujarat was today brought from London, where he was arrested, and produced before a local court, which remanded him in 14-day judicial custody. Samir Patel, who had escaped to UK after jumping bail, was brought to India in the wee hours of today by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the massacre. Patel became the first person to be sent back from Britain 24 years after India and the UK signed an extradition treaty. Later in the day, the 40-year-old was produced before Additional Sessions Judge R T Panchal, who sent him to judicial custody for two weeks. Patel has been lodged in Anand sub-jail. He was arrested in West London in August by Scotland Yard following a Red Corner Notice issued against him by Indian authorities in the case in which 23 people from the minority community were killed during the riots. Three members of the SIT had left for London on October 12 to bring him to India. His extradition order was signed by UK Home Secretary Amber Rudd on September 22 and the "surrender arrangements" were finalised for his departure. Two other accused in the case, Natu Patel and Rakesh Patel, still remain at large. The massacre at Ode took place on March 1, 2002, when 23 people, including nine women and as many children of the minority community were burnt to death in a house by a mob of over 1,500 following the Godhra train burning incident. The next day, four more persons were killed in a different locality in the same village. In its verdict delivered on April 9, 2012, a Special Court had convicted 23 people and acquitted as many in the Ode riots case. The Ode episode is one of the nine riots cases being investigated by the Supreme Court-appointed SIT. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Aviation regulator DGCA today informed the Delhi High Court that they have taken all necessary steps to ensure safety and security of aircraft and passengers in the country. The Director General for Civil Aviation (DGCA) made the submission in response to a petition alleging that aviation authorities were overlooking the prescribed maintenance schedules and seeking directions to ensure safety of passengers on aircraft flying in and out of India. "All these issues have been dealt with. We have already filed a detailed affidavit. I can take this court through all the steps taken by us. The petitioner cannot be above the DGCA technical committee," DGCA's counsel told a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal. The counsel appearing for the petitioner said there were several vacancies in DGCA and proper monitoring of aircraft should be done by them. The bench then observed "How can the court go into these aspects? There is a ministry for this and DGCA is an expert body. They will do that." The bench fixed the matter for hearing on December 1. The petitioner, Alok Kumar, has given some suggestions like setting up of an independent expert committee to monitor the functioning of DGCA and ensure strict compliance by airlines operators of usage and maintenance of each aircraft. He has also suggested that existing vacancies in DGCA should be filled up and it should also install systems to monitor and check usage and flying hours of each aircraft. In its affidavit filed before the court earlier, DGCA has said they have been "carrying out review of airworthiness of aircraft every year. During airworthiness review, the maintenance carried out in the preceding year vis-a-vis approved maintenance programme are also scrutinised". While seeking dismissal of the plea, DGCA has said they had a "surveillance programme covering continued airworthiness management and aircraft maintenance of all the organisations to ensure that airworthiness and safety of aircraft are not compromised." The Centre had earlier refuted the claim that civil aviation authorities were overlooking the alleged violation of aircraft maintenance schedules by airlines, endangering passenger safety. Civil Aviation Ministry and DGCA had denied that various private airlines operating in the country were "violating/ circumventing the mandatory provisions for airworthiness and air safety". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Kerala High Court Advocates' Association has suspended the membership of former Lok Sabha MP and media analyst Dr Sebastian Paul for allegedly criticising the stand taken by certain judges on the issue of tussle between lawyers and media persons in the state. Citing a speech made by Paul in Kozhikode last week on the issue, Kerala High Court Advocates Association alleged that Paul, a practising lawyer, continuously made "defamatory comments against the judicial system and legal fraternity." "You are already facing disciplinary proceedings and again continuously making contemptuous statements defaming the judicial system and legal fraternity with an ulterior motive to have an unlawful gain from the media," the association said in its notice issued to Paul. Reacting to the suspension, Paul said such action further reveals that Kerala High Court Advocates' Association, which cherishes a golden past, has failed to touch the core of the issue between the advocates and media in courts in the state. Aul had been raising issue of freedom of press in all possible avenues eversince media was targeted by a section of lawyers in Kerala High Court and other courts in the state following reporting of a molestation case allegedly involving a government pleader. Media persons have not been allowed to report court proceedings since July after some advocates had attacked them outside the Kerala High Court complex and warned against covering the proceedings there. The Advocates Association's move came a day after five advocates were arrested in connection with a case relating to threatening and dragging of journalists who had gone to cover legal proceedings at a Vigilance Court in Thiruvananthapuram on October 14. They were later released on bail. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Uttarakhand High Court today once again asked former chief ministers of the state occupying government bungalows here to specify a time-frame for vacating them. Hearing a petition filed by activist Avdhash Kaushal in 2010, a division bench comprising Justice K M Joseph and Justice V K Bisht asked the five ex-CMs to give a written undertaking by tomorrow, spelling the time-frame for vacating the bungalows, petitioner's lawyer Kartikeyan Gupta said. The directive came after the state government submitted to it copies of its orders, asking the former CMs to vacate their official bungalows by December 16. The High Court had asked the state government on October 7 to explain the steps taken by it to evacuate the government bungalows occupied by former CMs, years after demitting office. The notices have been issued to five former CMs, including N D Tiwari, Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, Bhuvan Chandra Khanduri, Bhagat Singh Koshiyari and Vijay Bahuguna. The High Court also rejected Bahuguna's request for extension of the two-month deadline to six months to vacate his premises. It also turned down Tiwari's request for exemption on grounds of sickness. Armed with a recent Supreme Court order directing former chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh to vacate government bungalows occupied by them for years in Lucknow after demitting office, Kaushal, a Padmashree awardee, had sought early hearing and disposal of his six-year-old petition on a similar matter at the Uttarakhand High Court. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court today restrained omni (private) bus operators in Tamil Nadu from collecting higher fare during the coming festival season. The court passed the interim order on suo motu proceedings initiated by it based on media reports that passengers were being fleeced in view of expected heavy rush on account of Deepavali festival falling on October 29. A division bench ordered that the bus operators should charge the same fares, which they had been collecting since last year, from October 27 to 31. The bench earlier observed that the bus operators should not be allowed to charge even a single paise as extra fare using the festival season rush. It wondered why state government was not fixing the omni bus fares as in other states. The counsel for the bus operators submitted that there was provision in rules to prevent collection of extra fares during festival season. He, however, said the fares were fixed according to the diesel price. The omni buses were already suffering loss, and they proposed to charge only 10 per cent extra during the festival season and it had been conveyed to the concerned officials. At this the court wondered why operators were in the business if they were incurring loss. The government pleader submitted that no meeting was held between the omni bus operators association and officials. Transport department officials said omni buses were operated on contract basis and fares fixed according to luxury provided. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bombay High Court has expressed unhappiness over non-payment of pension and arrears to retired judicial officers and warned that if they are not paid their dues, it would summon state government officials concerned and deprive them of their pension for two years. "We are most unhappy at this state of affairs. We expect the payment of pension and arrears to commence within four weeks," said a bench of justices S C Dharmadhikari and B P Colabawalla in an order delivered on October 13. The court was hearing a bunch of petitions, filed separately by Retired Judicial Officers Association and some retired judicial officers in their individual capacity, urging for a direction to the state government to release their pension and arrears forthwith. Posting the matters for hearing on November 17, the bench clarified that it would be constrained to pass an order summoning all the officials concerned to the court. "If we find that they are recalcitrant and were avoiding to perform their duties for no genuine and justifiable reasons, then we would go ahead and deprive them of their pension by issuing a direction that they will not obtain any benefit post-retirement including payment of arrears for two years. We hope that none will invite such drastic consequences," the judges noted. Government pleader Abhinandan Vagyani told the court that the recommendations of Shetty Commission and Padmanabhan Commission with regard to computation and payment of pension are being implemented by the state. Even the issue of arrears has been considered, he said. However, there were some clarifications sought by the office of the Accountant General and now the Department of law and Judiciary has taken steps to prepare replies and forward these clarifications to the Accountant General's office. "That would be done within two weeks," he assured. Helios, multi-brand premium watch retailer from Titan Company limited, today said it has partnered with Swiss watchmaker Raymond Weil to offer its watches in India. Through this strategic partnership, Raymond Weil will be exclusively retailed in India through Helios along with another retailer for luxury watches 'Ethos', the company officials said. "...If you look at the contribution of Swiss brandsit is somewhere in the range of about 25 to 30 per centtoday. We want to scale that up, and specifically the affordable luxury brand's sales are expected to double over next three to four years," Titan Company Limited CEO (Watches and Accessories) S Ravi Kant told reporters here. "Today we are taking an important step in that direction...At Helios, we are always looking to partner with brands that share our passion for craftsmanship and synergy with Raymond Weil...(which) is a testament to this cause," he said. Claiming to be the first Swiss brand to enter the Indian market, Raymond Weil said it has been reaching out to the discerning Indian consumer since last 30 years and hasa strong base of loyalists. It has presence in about 110countries. Raymond Weil President Olivier Bernheim said the reason for the partnership is to have a quality distributionnetwork in the country for their products. "Our aim is to build in India and to partner with the same kind of quality we think we have in United States, England, Australia and Spain, where we see trained and educated sales staff who are coherent with our strategy." Responding to a question on service requirements, Bernheim said Helios staff are trained by Raymond Weil in Geneva. Also, spares will be regularly shipped for the service requirements. Helios houses a wide collection of stylish timepieces for men and women, offering a range of the latest collections from over 25 international brands. It also provides after-sales services across its stores.Helios will soon be having 50 stores in about 27 cities in the country. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hindustan Zinc today reported a 15 per cent fall in net profit at Rs 1,901.87 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 on account of higher depreciation charges, among other factors. The firm had clocked a net profit of Rs 2,248.42 crore in the year-ago period, it said in a BSE filing. Total income of the firm declined by 11 per cent to Rs 3,877.47 crore in July-September quarter of this fiscal from Rs 4,357.88 crore during the same quarter in 2015-16. Total expenses were, however, lower at Rs 2,232.44 crore from Rs 2,347.29 crore during the period under review. "The y-o-y decrease for Q2 2016-17 was due to higher depreciation and lower investment income on account of smaller corpus despite higher mark to market gains," Hindustan Zinc said in a statement. On the year-on-year decline in revenues, the firm said the decrease during the quarter was on account of lower volumes, partly offset by higher zinc and silver prices and rupee depreciation. HZL Chairman Agnivesh Agarwal said: "The price rally in zinc continued this quarter with prices climbing 18 per cent from the previous quarter, consistent with its strong fundamentals. Silver prices too have rallied coupled with increasing silver volumes." Favourable market scenario and firm's smooth transition to underground mining has boosted investor confidence, heralding HZL's entry in the top 25 club in terms of market capitalisation in India, he added. Zinc metal's cost of production per MT before royalty (COP) during the quarter was at Rs 54,186 (USD 809), down 12 per cent from previous quarter and up 8 per cent y-o-y (5 per cent in dollar terms), it said. The sequential reduction in COP was mainly on account of higher volumes, while the y-o-y increase was attributed primarily to lower average grades due to change in mining mix, higher mine development and planned lower production. Cost reduction initiatives for operational and commercial efficiencies were partly offset by higher petroleum product prices and lower acid prices, the firm added. HZL said its net cash and cash equivalents was Rs 25,166 crore, out of which Rs 22,726 crore was invested in mutual funds and Rs 4,331 crore in bonds. It also announced that in accordance with the recent Sebi guideline, the Board has approved the Dividend Policy, which entails a minimum dividend of 30 per cent of net profits or 5 per cent of net worth, whichever is higher. Integrated zinc metal production during the quarter was at 149 kilo tonnes (KT), down 30 per cent y-o-y, in line with mined metal production. Integrated lead and silver metal output during September quarter stood at 31 KT and 107 tonnes, respectively. On y-o-y basis, integrated lead production was down 22 per cent in line with mined metal production, while integrated silver production was down 3 per cent. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Beaverton Christian Church, 13600 S.W. Allen Blvd., invites the community to tour the Compassion Experience on its campus Oct. 28-30. This is a free community-wide event that brings visitors into true stories of life in the developing world. The Compassion Experience is part of Beaverton Christian's church plant in Bolivia through Compassion International, the world's leading authority in holistic child development. through sponsorship. The 2,000 square-foot interactive exhibit emphasizes the harsh realities of children living in extreme poverty in a developing country like Bolivia by visiting homes, markets and schools. Each guest receives an iPod and headphones for a 20-minute, multi-media tour that showcases the lives of actual Compassion children, narrated from their own perspective, that presents an inside look into how they live and their stories of hope. There is no cost but guests need to register online at compassionexperience.com to schedule tours of the exhibit during morning, afternoon and evening hours. "We are really excited about hosting the Compassion Experience as part of our Bolivia Church project," said Dan Ferguson, Beaverton Christian's Executive Pastor. "I recently traveled to Bolivia with Compassion International and was very impressed with the organization, its accountability, and dedication to the Great Commission." "The difference that can be made in the life of a child in poverty is life changing.," Ferguson said. "Hope is on the rise in the developing world, however there are still so many children waiting." "This event is available to the whole community, so be sure to invite your neighbors, friends and family," he said. On Sunday, Beaverton Christian Church members will have the opportunity to sponsor a child from the church plant in Bolivia. "We hope to sponsor hundreds of children through Compassion International" Ferguson added. "I know this ministry makes a difference in a child's life and the sponsor's life, too." For more information, contact the church office at 503-646-2151 or visit www.bcc.org. About Compassion International: Compassion International is the world's largest Christian child development organization that permanently releases children from poverty. Founded in 1952, Compassion successfully tackles global poverty one child at a time, serving more than 1.3 million children in 26 of the world's poorest countries. Recognizing that poverty is more than a lack of money, Compassion works through local churches to holistically address the individual physical, economic, educational and spiritual needs of children - enabling them to thrive, not just survive. Compassion has been awarded eleven consecutive, four-star ratings by Charity Navigator, America's largest charity evaluator. Militant outfit Hizbul Mujahideen has asked migrant Kashmiri Pandits, who were forced to flee the Valley in early 1990 after the eruption of militancy, to return to their homes, assuring protection to them, and also said it was planning to raise a group of Sikh youths. "We request Kashmiri Pandits to return to their homes. We take responsibility of their safety," Zakir Rashid Bhat alias 'Musa', the self-styled commander of the militant outfit, said in a brief video message released on Tuesday. Thousands of Kashmiri Pandits were forced to flee the Valley after they were targeted by militant groups during the outbreak of militancy and have been living in Jammu and other parts of the country. "They should look at those Pandits who never left . Who has harassed or killed them?" asked slain militant Burhan Wani's 'successor'. Dressed in military camouflage and fiddling with a grenade in the video, Bhat, who dropped out of engineering course from a Punjab college and joined Hizbul Mujahideen some years back, also gave a bizarre argument that Pandits were forced out of the Valley under a planned strategy to target Muslims. He claimed that the government was planning to take action in the Valley in an operation similar to 'Operation Blue Star' in Punjab. Bhat revealed in the 1.38 minute video that the militant was planning to raise an exclusive group of Sikh youths in the outfit. "Our Sikh brothers are requesting us to join Hizbul Mujahideen...We are with them on every front and God willing, we will try and make an exclusive group for Sikhs in the outfit," he said. About the latest trend of weapon snatching in the Valley, especially in south districts, he said, "Many youths have taken to Jihad, snatched the weapons and joined our ranks." Two green banners with religious slogans and as many weapons on both sides behind him could also been seen in the video which was shot at an unknown location. South witnessed a spurt in weapon snatching incidents over the past three months of unrest which was triggered by the killing of Wani in an encounter with security forces on July 8. The unrest has so far claimed 84 lives and injured thousands of others. Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) today said it has sold more than 50,000 units during the three months to June in Rajasthan. "...Honda has sold 51,654 units in Rajasthan from April to June this year," a company statement said. "Growing at a robust 26 per cent, automatic scooters are becoming preferred choice of customers. With a dominant market share of 60 per cent in the scooter segment, Honda is leading in Rajasthan," Yadvinder Singh Guleria, Senior Vice President - Sales & Marketing of the company, said in the statement. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Japanese car major plans to introduce new products, including SUV and bigger sedans, as well as add more features in future models to regain lost ground in the Indian market. Aware of the change in market dynamics with a big shift from A and B segments to premium side, the company is gearing up to meet the new demand in India. "The market is changing. We are seeing a big shift from A, B categories to upper segment and that's why Maruti and Hyundai are also trying to move to the premium side. So, we are also carefully monitoring this segment movement," Cars India President and CEO Yoichiro Ueno told PTI. Besides, there is growth in the SUV segment so that's also a big change, he added. Asked if the company plans to launch a new SUV model soon, Ueno said: "You can expect, yes," he said. When asked if the model could be HR-V, he said: "It really depends on customers' voice. If there is a lot of demand or request, then we might look at it." Admitting that the gap between products in different segments has not helped the company, Ueno said: "There is a lot of demand to upgrade from City to bigger cars and unfortunately, we don't have a bigger car... Especially the dealers are requesting. They don't want to lose these City customers to other brands." Ueno added: "We are receiving a lot of request to reinforce the SUV market, we have CR-V but practically City is the flagship model." Stressing on the need to be nimble-footed and deliver products which customers want in a fast changing market, Ueno said: "We think it is very important to catch up." When asked if the company plans to develop models specifically for Indian market, Ueno said: "At the moment, our strategy is to bring global models rather than exclusively develop for any specific market." The shift in demand from diesel to petrol in India has also resulted in the company losing ground and it was late to adapt to the changes. "Unfortunately, from end of last year to this year, there was mismatching of the inventory. Our inventory was not matching the market demand," he said. However, by July this year, "dealer supplies normalised and so the situation is now coming back to normal". In April-September this financial year, the company's domestic sales were down 23 per cent at 74,855 units while its sales in September fell 18.77 per cent to 15,034 units. Hong Kong's legislature again descended into chaos today as the pro-Beijing camp blocked the swearing in of two new lawmakers who want the city to split from China. Tensions are high in the semi-autonomous city as fears grow that Beijing is tightening its grip, fuelling an independence movement in Hong Kong. The former British colony was handed back to China in 1997 under an agreement protecting its freedoms for 50 years, but there are concerns those liberties are being eroded. A new wave of lawmakers advocating independence and self-determination were voted into the Legislative Council (Legco) -- Hong Kong's lawmaking body -- in citywide polls last month. But at last week's fraught swearing-in ceremony, young pro-independence lawmakers Yau Wai-ching and Baggio Leung had their oaths rejected after they draped themselves in "Hong Kong is not China" flags. The oath states that Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China. Both refused to pronounce China properly, and Yau was heard to replace the words "the People's Republic of China" with "the People's refucking of Zeena". They were given permission to retake their oaths on Wednesday, but when it came time to do so, pro-Beijing lawmakers walked out, forcing the meeting to be suspended due to an insufficient number of legislators in the chamber. That led to a shouting match between furious pro-Beijing and pro-democracy legislators outside the chamber. "If they want people to respect their oaths, they have to express regret over their behaviour last week and to apologise to all Chinese around the world," pro-Beijing lawmaker Priscilla Leung told reporters. Her fellow legislators chanted "Apologise!" Hundreds of pro-Beijing supporters waved Chinese flags and stamped on pictures of Baggio and Yau outside the legislative council building ahead of the swearing in. Baggio and Yau said they wanted to complete their oaths, but would not apologise for last week's behaviour. "We are empowered by the people to enter the Legco," Baggio said. One pro-democracy lawmaker left in the chamber as Wednesday's confrontation raged was surrounded by security after turning China and Hong Kong flags on pro-Beijing legislators' desks upside-down. The session was eventually adjourned without Yau and Baggio having the chance to make their pledges. The chaotic scenes came after a late-night court bid on Tuesday by city leader Leung Chun-ying and justice secretary Rimsky Yuen to block the pair from taking up their seats. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Goa Tourism department today announced that its adventure initiative of Hot Air Balloon rides has re-commenced in the state with the advent of the tourism season. "The initiative was launched during the last tourist season for the first time in the coastal state providing another avenue of adventure tourism for the travellers," Nilesh Cabral, Chairman, Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) told PTI today. The hot air balloon rides are provided in South Goa's Assolna village. "We are very happy to re-start operations of Hot air ballooning services in Goa. Hot air ballooning service was abig hit in Goa last seasonandin the second year promisestoan excitingand mesmerising affairthan before," he added. Cabral said presently, two hot air balloons are put intooperation for domestic and international travellers. "We are confident about attracting high-end tourists this season to experience the thrill of touring the state ina hot air balloon in addition to many more newtourism adventure services," he added. TheHotAirBallooningSafarisare designed by CampingRetreats, a Delhi-based agency, an official statement said. All the required permissions and safety checks for the balloons are obtained. The entire system meets all the required safety standard and certifications, it added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Haryana Urban Local Bodies minister Kavita Jain today said she has decided to give Rs 50,000 to each of the 19 district jails out of her discretionary funds to make available "quality literary and religious books" to the prisoners lodged in these jails. She said the Jail Superintendents would constitute committees for purchase of literature for libraries established in each jail. The grant would be released directly to the Jail Superintendents concerned at the earliest, Jain said. She said it is the "responsibility" of the government to "connect" every citizen of the state with its cultural heritage. Provision of such reading material could also help the prisoners in giving up the tendency of committing crime. The books would also increase the knowledge of prisoners, she added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Haryana government today said it has decided to raise the retirement age of practicing doctors from present 58 to 65 years to check the "shortage" of doctors in the state. Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij stated this here after the decision for the same was taken in a meeting presided over by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. He said that in doing so, the state government has followed the "vision" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Vij said it has also been decided that those doctors who were working on administrative posts would retire at the age of 58 years. However, he said, they would be able to continue to serve up to 65 years only if they opt to practice in any health institute of their choice. The minister said it has also been decided to invite applications from the retired doctors who would like to rejoin the service as medical practitioner. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) British star Hugh Grant has joined the sequel to the 2014 hit "Paddington". Brendan Gleeson will also be a part of the sequel, whose shooting is currently underway. Grant will be seen in the role of a vain, charming acting legend whose star has fallen somewhat in recent years, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Gleeson, meanwhile, will play the role of a notorious safe-cracker and strongman who becomes Paddington's unexpected ally. The story will see the Peruvian bear embark on a series of odd jobs to buy a book for Aunt Lucy's 100th birthday. But when the book is stolen, it's up to Paddington and the Browns to unmask the thief. Ben Whishaw again voices the famous bear while Imelda Staunton is voicing Aunt Lucy. Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, Peter Capaldi, Madeleine Harris and Samuel Joslin all return from the first CGI live-action outing. David Heyman is again producing with Paul King back in the director's chair. The movie was a surprise hit in 2014, amassing more than USD 270 million internationally. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Over 300 school children were hospitalised in China due to food poisoning, authorities said today. Shigella sonnei bacteria were found in the feces of patients who are among hundreds treated for food poisoning in northern China, they said. More than 300 school children have been hospitalised since yesterday afternoon, but none face life-threatening illness, state-run Xinhua agency reported. According to doctors, patient blood test reports showed high white blood cell levels, indicating infection. Experts said the discovery confirmed that the students were suffering from gastrointestinal diseases caused by the bacteria. "Shigella sonnei bacteria can breed in food and water at an optimum temperature, which can easily cause bacillary dysentery," they said, adding severe cases of shigellosis can be so serious that patients, particularly young children and the elderly, need to be hospitalised. Further investigation into the cause of the outbreak is under way, the report said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan says he respects the decision of the people with regard to the ban on Pakistani artistes following the Uri terror attack, but believes that art transcends boundaries. When asked if cross border talent should be encouraged or the demand for ban on Pakistani artistes is justified, Khan told PTI, "I respect the decision of people of India, the government of India and our Prime Minister Narendra Modi." However neither the government nor the PM has said anything regarding the ban on Pakistani artistes. "Whatever the government and our PM would decide, I would respect their views," Khan said. But at the same time, he said, "I think artistes are not bound by any religion. Art has no religion, art is beyond boundaries." The Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena has been protesting against the release of films featuring Pakistani actors and has intensified its efforts to stall the screening Karan Johar's upcoming film 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' as it features Fawad Khan. They even issued a veiled threat to vandalise multiplexes and theatres exhibiting the movie, which is slated to release on October 28. "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" stars Ranbir Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Anushka Sharma in lead roles while Fawad, whose casting has been at the center of the controversy, is in a cameo. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) When it comes to apocalyptic visions, its hard to beat those of tangerine-hued prophet of doom Donald Trump. According to his 3am Twitter visions were on the verge of an American hellscape of invading Muslim jihadists, ruined economies, rape-crazy Mexicans, conspiracy-stoking media manipulators, rigged elections and fat, entirely undatable beauty queens. In comparison, the end-of-the-world scenario laid out in Syfys new series Aftermath seems rather quaintand if were being honest, a little silly. Aftermath is, like most stuff on Syfy, a cheap Canadian TV series sneaking over the border and trying to pass itself off as American. (Hmm. Maybe Mr. Trump is right.) The maniacally paced cluster-hump follows the lives of the Copeland family, a patently unrealistic clan of random stereotypes living on a farm in North Pasco, Wash. Mom Karen (Anne Heche) is a former Air Force pilot with kick-ass survival skills (a role Heche has a hard time selling no matter how hard she wears those mirrored sunglasses). Dad Joshua (James Tupper) is a world cultures professor who drives a hybrid. (Because thats a totally realistic husband-and-wife pairing.) Theyve got a son (Levi Meaden) and two twin daughters (Julia Sarah Stone and Taylor Hickson). Life around the Copeland farm is difficultmostly due to the endless earthquakes, hurricanes and meteor showers battering it and every other part of the globe. Also, there are the assorted demonic entities that stop by every once in a while to kidnap family members. Not to mention the feverhead disease sweeping through the population, turning people into blood-crazed killer zombies. Cartoonishly self-reliant Karen does her best to poo-poo talk of the Apocalypse. Whats a little fish rain or flesh-eating bacteria to a mom in mirror shades? Meanwhile, everyone else seems to worry more about their cell phone coverage than about the impending end of all life on Earth. Despite one teenage daughters plan to run away and join her online boyfriend at college (a perfectly reasonable plan when faced with tornadoes and killer zombie hordes), the Copelands family up and hunker down at their farm. Huddling safely near a picture window during a Category 5 hurricane, the Copelands emerge unscathed. Heck, leaves arent even blown off trees as various low-budget natural disasters attempt to knock off our scrap-happy brood. Their resolve is broken, however, when a supernaturally possessed neighbor (whom Joshua somehow identifies as a skinwalker) flies off into the sky with their daughter. Naturally, the remaining Copelands pile into their RV and go looking for her, Walking Dead-style. Its a brilliant plan, setting up the inexpensive road-trip momentum of the shows first season. Its hard to tell if Aftermath is trying and failing to make fun of its cheesiness or if everyone involved just gave up as they were shooting it. Syfys equally goofy Z Nation at least has a sense of humor. Nearly every po-faced character here seems oblivious to the extinction-level destruction unfolding around them. With just a slight tweak in attitude, this could have been the Naked Gun of Syfy shows. Instead, its an overstuffed, underfunded mishmash of every apocalyptic scenario Hollywood has ever barfed up. More than two months ago I started the process to have my ESP8266 WeatherStation listed on Amazon. The big online platform offers a service called Fulfilled by Amazon or short FBA which allows you to send your items directly to their warehouse. Your product will then be shipped to your buyers with the usual speed and quality as if it was a product sold directly by Amazon. While the products you order from my shop come directly from China I have limited possibilities to customize the starter kit with this supplier. For Amazon I wanted an improved product: ready with instructions, packed in a convenient plastic box for storage. So I had to look for another supplier for this special batch. Alibaba helped me to get into contact with some suppliers and picked three to send me samples. All of them sent express and arrived within a few days in Switzerland. I tested the display and the NodeMCU module rather carefully but neglected to test the USB wire since I thought it was a commodity. I picked the supplier based on language, how fast the responded and the price. I made the order and had 20% of them sent to Switzerland while the other 80% went directly to a Amazon warehouse in Texas. While the shipments were still on the way to Switzerland and the US I desperately needed a USB cable and picked the one from the sample box. But for some strange reason I didnt see the NodeMCU when plugged into my Mac. I slowly realized that all the USB cables I had ordered were just for charging and not for data transfer. Some harsh emails were exchanged with the supplier in China but I had to realize that it was at least partly my fault. By that time the shipment for the US had just arrived in Texas. What should I do? Removing items from the Amazon inventory is only possible with a destination address in the US and I live in Switzerland. I remembered that a friend from grammar lived now with her family in the US and contacted her through Facebook. I asked her if her boys could help me to replace the wrong USB cables in exchange for some pocket money and she agreed. Now it took almost a month until Amazon completely removed all the items from their warehouses all over the country. When all of them had arrived at my friends place she and her boys quickly replaced the USB cables with the ones from China my supplier had sent to her. After that UPS picked up the box with the starter kits and brought it to yet another Amazon warehouse. The moral of the story is that you should always test every aspect of your product even commodity items like USB cables. On the other hand this story also shows that there is (almost) always a way out of such a frustrating situation. Look at it as a challenge and not as a problem. This is the very short story of my long and winding road from a Chinese supplier to a Amazon warehouse in the US. Now the next chapter has just begun and I keep my fingers crossed that it was worth all the troubles so far You can see and order the result of that work here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KE7BA3O The idea of compulsory has not been found practical, Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi said on Wednesday, months after the government rejected a similar demand in the Lok Sabha. "Issue of compulsory as prevalent in some countries has been a matter of discussion earlier...We found the idea not so practical. But we will like to hear," he said. He was addressing an international conference on voter awareness here. In February while responding to a private member's bill introduced in the Lok Sabha on compulsory voting, then Law Minister D V Sadananda Gowda had said though he appreciated the intention of the members, it would not be possible for the government to introduce compulsory and penalise those who failed to exercise their franchise. The Law Commission in its report on electoral reforms submitted in March last had also decided against recommending compulsory voting by terming it as "highly undesirable" for a variety of reasons such as being undemocratic, illegitimate, expensive, unable to improve quality political participation and awareness, and difficult to implement. Later, responding to a question by reporters on the holding of simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly elections, Zaidi said the Commission has told a Parliamentary committee and the Law Ministry that such an exercise can be undertaken once political parties are unanimous in amending the constitution and the poll panel's certain demands like buying new EVMs are met. In its reply to the Law Ministry in May on the issue, the Commission had said it supported the proposal but cost involved will be to the tune of over Rs 9,000 crore. Deposing before the parliamentary panel which gave its report on 'Feasibility of holding simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and state Legislative Assemblies' in December last, the Commission had expressed similar "difficulties". The Commission has told the government as well as the committee that simultaneous conduct of elections would require large-scale purchase of Electronic Voting Machines and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines. While as per electoral law, elections can be held six months prior to the end of the term of a House, the term of the House cannot be extended except during proclamation of Emergency. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said during a meeting of BJP office-bearers on March 19 that state elections coupled with local-level polls, spread across virtually every year, often "hinder" the execution of welfare measures. He was keen on simultaneous elections once in five years. In a first, India and China today carried out a joint army exercise in eastern Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir, a move that comes amid hectic diplomatic manoeuvring between the two countries over a host of issues like Nuclear Suppliers Group and designation of Masood Azhar as a terrorist by the UN. During the day long exercise on Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR) a fictitious situation of earthquake striking an Indian Border village was painted. Thereafter joint teams carried out rescue operations, evacuation and rendering of medical assistance. This was done as a sequel to the first Joint Exercise held on February 6 in the area of Border Personnel Meeting Hut at Chushul Garrison of Eastern Ladakh, along with Chinese troops of Moldo Garrison. Sources said that in February, the exercise was held in the Chinese side and this time in the Indian side along the line of Actual Control. The Indian team for the exercise was led by Brigadier R S Raman and that of the Chinese was led by Sr Col Fan Jun. The exercise was a great success and has not only refined the drills to provide succour to the border population in case of natural calamity but has also increased the level of trust and cooperation between the two border guarding forces along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh, the Army said in a statement here. The joint exercise, compliments the Hand in Hand series of the India-China joint exercises and the effort of both the nations to enhance cooperation and maintain peace and tranquillity along the border areas of India and China, it said. This year's edition of 'Hand in Hand' will be held at Aundh, near Pune in Maharashtra, from November 15 to 27. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The fourth meeting of the India-Nepal Joint Commission, the high level bilateral mechanism, is scheduled to be held in New Delhi next week, the Nepalese government said today. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Nepalese counterpart Prakash Sharan Mahat will lead the two delegations at the October 26-27 meeting that will review and assess past agreements and commitments reached between the two countries, according to Foreign Ministry officials here. The Joint Commission meeting to be held between the two foreign ministers will be followed by a Foreign Secretary -level meeting, the officials said. During the recent state visit of Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' to India, both sides had agreed to hold the Joint Commission Meeting "at the earliest". During the meeting discussions will be held on a wide range of bilateral issues and also focus on expediting the India-funded projects and setting up of a joint mechanism at the government level to monitor progress of these projects in Nepal. Besides, the meeting will also chalk out a time-bound plan to complete the pending projects, they said. The third meeting of the joint commission was held in Kathmandu in 2014 after a gap of more than two decades. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Indian-American hotelier has been charged with criminal mischief for allegedly trying to light two dogs on fire, an allegation his lawyer has denied. Chatwal, 44, had turned himself to the police early Tuesday morning and has been charged with criminal mischief, torture and injure animal, reckless endangerment and arson. The charges stem from an October 7 incident in which Chatwal allegedly got into an argument with a woman walking the dogs outside his home in the city. Chatwal, accused of allegedly pulling out a lighter and aerosol can to hurt the two dogs, pleaded not guilty to the charges during his appearance in a Manhattan court on Tuesday. Chatwal's bail was set at $50,000 and the next hearing in the case is set for December 8. His attorney Arthur Aidala told PTI that Chatwal denies all the charges and "proclaims his innocence". He said he is a non-violent person who would never injure an animal or human being. "His personality and disposition in his 44 years is not of somebody who would injure another animal or another human being," Aidala said. He informed the judge that Chatwal's "personality and disposition is that of a calm, peaceful and non-violent person" as Chatwal himself owns many dogs and even takes care of a horse. "He is known as being an animal lover. We vehemently disagree with the set of facts that the prosecutor put forth in court," Aidala said. Aidala said he also informed the judge that the dogs in this case were not hurt and were not even taken to the veterinarian until days after the alleged incident occurred. He said even the case the prosecutor puts forth says that some of the hair on the dogs' back was burnt but none of the dogs were burned and neither did they suffer. It was among Chatwals' priority to make sure that the dogs in question were unharmed and were well-treated and cared for, Aidala said. "The big takeaway from this is that the dogs were never hurt, that was very important to Vikram and his whole family to make sure no one is accusing him of actually hurting the dogs. Even the prosecutor said the dogs were never hurt. What flies in the face of the charges is that Chatwal is just not the kind of person who is going to attack anybody, let alone the dogs walking down the street," he said. Aidala said he would meet with the prosecutors in the coming months and explain to them what really happened. "We will try to work out some sort of disposition regarding case," he added. An Indian-origin private equity investor has been convicted of conspiracy and securities fraud in the US for tipping off two friends about a proposed 2013 acquisition of a firm by India-based Apollo Tyres, an insider trading scheme that netted over USD 1 million. Amit Kanodia, 49, was convicted by the federal jury in Boston following a six-day trial of one count of conspiracy and 10 counts of securities fraud, with each count representing the purchase of Cooper Tire securities by co-conspirators Iftikar Ahmed and Steven Watson. Kanodia was acquitted of eight additional counts of securities fraud related to other purchases made by Ahmed and Watson. US District Court Judge Nathaniel G Gorton scheduled sentencing for January next year. Ahmed, a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi and Harvard Business School, previously fled to India in May 2015 after prosecutors accused him and longtime friend Kanodia for having engaged in insider trading. Ahmed remains a fugitive, while Watson pleaded guilty and is set to be sentenced in November. In the spring of 2013, Kanodia tipped off his two friends, Ahmed and Watson, about the contemplated acquisition of Cooper Tire and Rubber Company by India-based Apollo Tyres. Kanodia learned about the possible acquisition from his wife who was the General Counsel of Apollo at the time. In the months leading up to the public announcement of the acquisition, both Ahmed and Watson purchased shares and options in Cooper Tire which trades on the New York Stock Exchange. On the day of the announcement, Cooper Tire's share price increased 41 per cent and Ahmed and Watson began selling their interests in the company for a combined profit of more than USD 1 million. Both Ahmed and Watson paid Kanodia a portion of their illegal profits. The conspiracy statute provides for a sentence of upto five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of USD 250,000 while the securities fraud statute provides for a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, five years of supervised release and a fine of USD 5 million. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Iraqi forces prepared to retake the country's largest Christian town from the Islamic State group today, a key milestone in their progress towards the jihadists' main hub of Mosul. of the move to recapture Qaraqosh sparked jubilation among Christians who had fled the town, with many dancing and singing in the city of Arbil. Launched on Monday, the long-awaited advance on Mosul was making quick progress but US President Barack Obama joined a chorus of warnings the battle for ISIS' last Iraqi stronghold would be tough. Officials have said the retaking of Mosul - in Iraq's largest military operation in years - could take weeks or months and warned that the hundreds of thousands of civilians still in the city could be used as human shields. Federal forces stormed Qaraqosh, about 15 kilometres southeast of Mosul, yesterday but ISIS fighters remained in the town. Units from Iraq's elite counter-terrorism service (CTS), which has done the heavy lifting in most recent operations against ISIS, were poised to flush jihadists out of the town, officers said. "We are surrounding Hamdaniya now," Lieutenant General Riyadh Tawfiq, commander of Iraq's ground forces, told AFP at the main staging base of Qayyarah, referring to the district that includes Qaraqosh. "There are some pockets (of resistance), some clashes, they send car bombs - but it will not help them," he said. Displaced Christians held early celebrations last night in Arbil, the capital of the autonomous region of Kurdistan, where they fled after IS seized the town. After gathering for a group prayer outside a church in the city, some in the crowd sang, danced and clapped their hands, while others held lit candles. "Today is a happy moment. There is no doubt our land will be liberated and we thank God, Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary," said Hazem Djedjou Cardomi, a journalist among the crowd. Qaraqosh was the largest of many Christian towns and villages seized by the jihadists who swept across the Nineveh Plain east of Mosul in August 2014. The mass exodus it sparked displaced a large proportion of Iraq's already dwindling Christian minority, sending most into the neighbouring Kurdish region. Qaraqosh was a town of around 50,000 people in 2014 and is home to at least seven churches, making it a key hub for the more than 300,000 Christians still in Iraq. Three days into the operation, Iraqi forces were closing in on Mosul from several directions, including the south where federal troops and police have been battling through IS defences and retaking villages as they work their way up the Tigris Valley. Today, Iraqi forces reached the village of Bajwaniyah, about 30 kilometres south of Mosul. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A senior Iraqi general today called on Iraqis fighting for the Islamic State group in Mosul to surrender as a wide-scale operation to retake the militant-held city entered its third day. Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati told reporters at a military base yesterday that up to 6,000 IS fighters are inside the city. He did not say how many of them are foreigners. IS captured Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, in a lightning advance in the summer of 2014. The extremist group has suffered a string of defeats over the past year, and Mosul is its last major urban bastion in Iraq. So far, the militants have put up fierce resistance in villages surrounding the city, where most of the fighting has been concentrated. IS has sent trucks loaded with explosives careening toward the front lines and fired mortars to slow the Iraqi forces' advance. An Iraqi officer from the 9th Division told The Associated Press that his troops were now around 1 kilometer away from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul. Over the past day, IS sent 12 car bombs, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, he said, adding that Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds. The officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters, did not provide specific figures. The operation to retake Mosul is the largest launched by the Iraqi army since the 2003 US-led invasion. Some 25,000 troops, including Sunni tribal fighters, Kurdish forces known as the peshmerga and state-sanctioned Shiite militias known as the Popular Mobilization Units are approaching the city from different directions. The participation of the Shiite militias in the operation to retake the mainly Sunni Mosul has raised concerns that the campaign could inflame sectarian tensions. Rights groups have accused the Shiite militias of abuses in past campaigns against IS-held areas. In a bid to alleviate those concerns, Shiite militia leaders yesterday announced that they will only focus on capturing the mostly Shiite town of Tal Afar to the west of Mosul, and not enter the city itself. "The only troops who will enter Mosul are the army and police, not the Popular Mobilization Units or the peshmerga," said Hadi al-Amiri, the leader of the Badr Brigade, one of the largest Shiite militias. "This has been agreed upon," he said at a press conference in the Shiite holy city of Najaf. Amnesty International said in a report released yesterday that Iraqi government and paramilitary forces detained, tortured or killed hundreds of Sunni Arab civilians fleeing IS-held areas during the operation to retake the Sunni city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, earlier this year. The Iraqi government has denied any systematic violations by security forces or the militias, and says individuals have been held accountable for occasional abuses. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Jihadist leaders are fleeing Mosul, a top US general in the coalition battling the Islamic State group said today as Iraqi forces closed in on the northern city. Mosul was where IS supremo Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared his "caliphate" two years ago but is now the group's last major stronghold in Iraq. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who announced the launch of a broad offensive to retake the city on Monday, visited the front line today. In the biggest Iraqi military operation in years, forces have retaken dozens of villages, mostly south and east of Mosul, and are planning multiple assaults for Thursday. "We are telling Daesh (IS) that their leaders are abandoning them. We've seen a movement out of Mosul," said Major General Gary Volesky, who heads the anti-IS coalition's land component. He told reporters in a video briefing that the many foreigners among the 3,000 to 4,500 IS fighters would likely end up forming the core of the holdout jihadist force. Volesky noted that the Iraqis would screen anyone leaving Mosul, and attempts by foreign fighters to blend in to an expected exodus of displaced people would be thwarted. "It's difficult for them to blend into the local population based on the number of different types of foreign fighters that there are," he said. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were still trapped in the city with dwindling supplies, many sheltering in basements as air strikes intensified on IS targets. "We couldn't sleep last night because of the air strikes. The explosions were huge," said Abu Saif, a 47-year-old resident contacted by AFP. "Many families are starting to run out of some basic food goods, there is no commercial activity in Mosul -- the city is cut off from the world," he said. East of Mosul, forces were poised for an assault on Qaraqosh, which lies about 15 kilometres away and was once Iraq's largest Christian town. of the move to recapture Qaraqosh sparked jubilation among Christians who had fled the town, with many dancing and singing in the Iraqi Kurdish city of Arbil on Tuesday night. Units from Iraq's elite counter-terrorism service, which has done the heavy lifting in most recent operations against IS, were poised to flush jihadists out of the town, officers said. "We are surrounding Hamdaniya now," Lieutenant General Riyadh Tawfiq, commander of Iraq's ground forces, told AFP at the main staging base of Qayyarah, referring to the district that includes Qaraqosh. "There are some pockets (of resistance), some clashes, they send car bombs -- but it will not help them," he said. Qaraqosh was the largest of many Christian towns and villages seized by the jihadists who swept across the Nineveh plain east of Mosul in August 2014. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Italy has moved to crack down on the widespread exploitation of farm workers with tough new penalties for abuses to which immigrants from Africa and South Asia are particularly vulnerable. A law approved by parliament late yesterday provides for mandatory prison terms, fines and asset seizures for farm owners and intermediaries involved in illegal practices that can result in casual workers taking home little more than a euro (dollar) an hour for backbreaking work. The new legislation was hailed as a "major step forward" by trade unions, who say some some 430,000 agricultural workers are subject to extreme exploitation across the country. Under the so-called "caporalato" system, fruit pickers and other seasonal workers are typically recruited, organised and paid by an intermediary, enabling the real employers to sidestep payroll taxes. A daily rate of between 22 and 30 euros for a 10-12 hour day - less than half the legal minimum - has reportedly become the norm across much of the sector. In practice, many workers frequently earn far less because the intermediaries charge them for transport to-and-from the farms or even for water. Lawmakers were moved to tighten regulation of the sector after several deaths on farms in the summer of 2015. Activists say the problem has grown worse in recent years with the arrival of tens of thousands of migrants in Italy, many of whom end up living clandestinely. Agriculture Minister Maurizio Martina welcomed the new law. "Now we have more effective instruments to wage what needs to be a daily battle because you don't negotiate where human dignity is concerned," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Government-run India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO) today said it has fixed a revenue target of Rs 250 crore for this fiscal year. This was stated by ITPO CMD L C Goyal while signing an MoU with the Department of Commerce. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a negotiated agreement and contract between the administrative ministry or department or holding CPSE, to fix the targets before the beginning of the financial year. "On this occasion, Goyal mentioned that for the year 2016 -17, the 'excellent'' financial target for Revenue from operations (gross sales) has been fixed at Rs 250 crore," the commerce ministry said in a statement. He also mentioned that ITPO will make all efforts to achieve 'excellent' rating as per the targets given by the Department of Public Enterprises for the year 2016-17 and ensure delivery of better services to all the stakeholders. ITPO is the premier trade promotion agency of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In the last two decades, London has forged a reputation as the technology capital of Europe and as a global capital of the fashion technology sector a competitor to New York and Silicon Valley, where creative, commercial and digital talent thrives in a single cosmopolitan place. Some of the biggest names in the fashion industry, especially in e-commerce such as Asos, Farfetch, Lyst and Yoox Net-a-Porter have headquarters in the British capital. But in the wake of Britains vote in June to leave the European Union, a development that raised the possibility of an immigration crackdown, a drop in foreign investment and economic uncertainty, Londons high-ranking position has come into question. Taavet Hinrikus, the Estonian co-founder of the money-transfer company TransferWise, which says it has a valuation of more than $1 billion has told The Guardian that his company is unlikely to continue hiring at its London headquarters. Peter Smith, chief executive of the financial technology company Blockchain, said this month that many non-British tech entrepreneurs in London were deeply offended by the British governments stance on immigration since the vote. And while the fashion community has stayed relatively silent on the subject, there is little doubt that businesses have been mulling their options as European capitals on the Continent position themselves as worthy alternatives. Venture capital investments in Britain plummeted 40 percent in the second quarter this year compared with the first quarter, as uncertainty before the vote held investors back, according to data published this week by CB Insights. Given that climate, an announcement this week from the Yoox Net-a-Porter Group about plans to centralize its Britain-based technology operations in the BBCs former headquarters in West London has been a welcome vote of confidence. Yoox Net-a-Porter, a British-Italian company, said on Monday that it planned to accommodate about 600 staff members in its new technology hub by March, taking two floors about 70,000 square feet of state-of-the-art (and expensive) office space in the new MediaWorks building at White City Place. That represents a 20 percent increase in the size of the groups technology team, which the company says will have as many as 1,000 employees in Britain and Italy. Although a majority of Londons technology headquarters are in the east of the city, Alex Alexander, chief information officer of Yoox Net-a-Porter, said the company wished to stay in the west to be close to its other operational base, above the Westfield shopping center. Other big names in the local creative sphere said to be setting up offices in the White City development include the fashion label Stella McCartney and the Royal College of Art. We were keen to show our commitment to the U.K., Mr. Alexander said by telephone from New York, and felt that bringing all of our technology talent into a single hub was an important step in terms of bringing our five-year plan, which is based on outpacing our competition on mobile, to fruition. He brushed off suggestions that Londons reputation had been tarnished by the countrys decision to leave the European Union. We continue to have real confidence in London, regardless of the decision to leave the E.U., and see this investment as an opportunity to reaffirm that, Mr. Alexander said. We dont see any side effects in terms of talent being drawn here. We are expecting to see a steady flow continue and think the city will remain a world-leading tech hub. Fashion companies are not alone in doubling down on the British capital. Facebook and Google, among other American tech giants, also have plans to expand their London operations, investing in development and sales teams to fuel their European activities. Predictably, signs of major technology and fashion companies taking steps to expand its presence in London was met with open arms. I am delighted that there will be yet more new tech jobs coming to the capital, said Rajesh Agrawal, Londons deputy mayor for business and enterprise. This highlights once again that London is open for business, new investment and global talent. For now, the signs for Britain are encouraging. Of Europes technology unicorns private companies with a valuation of more than $1 billion almost 40 percent are based in the country. Nearly a third of all European venture capital funding comes to Britain. But it is still early. There is no certainty that Europeans working in Britain will be forced to leave once the withdrawal from the bloc is final, and a report by Balderton Capital shows that while engineers in Berlin or Paris earned on average almost 18 percent less than their London counterparts do, the devaluation of the pound was fast closing that gap. Whether entrepreneurs looking to start the next billion-dollar fashion technology business might favor Berlin, Dublin or Stockholm which have established technology sectors and benefit from the European Unions free flow of labor remains to be seen. red bridesmaid dresses | bridesmaid dresses uk Two Japanese cabinet ministers visited a controversial war shrine today, after a mass visit by lawmakers angered China and South Korea which see it as a painful reminder of Tokyo's aggressive past. The ministers -- internal affairs chief Sanae Takaichi and Katsunobu Kato, in charge of womens' empowerment -- are close to conservative Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who did not visit the Yasukuni shrine during this year's four-day autumn festival. Abe, often criticised for what some see as revisionist views on Japan's wartime record, sent a ritual offering to the shrine instead. He has not gone to the site in central Tokyo since late 2013 in an apparent attempt to ease diplomatic tensions. Yesterday a group of about 85 legislators arrived at the leafy site for an annual pilgrimage, sparking a rebuke from Beijing and Seoul, which called on them to show "humble self-reflection and sincere remorse for Japan's past wrongdoings". Yasukuni honours millions of Japanese war dead, but also senior military and political figures convicted of war crimes after World War II. The indigenous Shinto religious shrine has for decades been a flashpoint for criticism by countries that suffered from Japan's colonialism and aggression in the first half of the 20th century, including China and Korea. Abe and other nationalists say Yasukuni is a place to remember fallen soldiers. They compare it to Arlington National Cemetery in the United States. His visit in 2013 to mark his first year in power sparked fury in Beijing and Seoul and earned a diplomatic rebuke from close ally the United States which said it was "disappointed". Ave has since refrained from going, sending ritual offerings instead. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das today launched two-day Gram Sabha from Littipara block's Sonadhani village in Pakur district. Launching under 'Hamari yozana, hamari vikas', Das laid on-line foundation for over 20 yozanas. Das told the villagers to discuss and prepare 'yozanas' as per their priorities and the government would transfer funds directly in the gram panchayat account. He also told the villagers that they should decide how should their village turn 15 years from now and on that context prepare 'yozanas'. Jharkhand Rural Development Minister Neel Kanth Singh Munda had said the two-day gram sabha meetings would be held in 32,000 revenue villages, beginning today. It would continue till October 31. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The winter session of Karnataka legislature will be held at Belagavi from November 21 to December two. Announcing the schedule after a cabinet meeting here, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister T B Jayachandra said the session would deliberate issues including Mahadayi water dispute affecting North Karnataka region. 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. Last month, tension had gripped most parts of northern Karnataka after Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal rejected the state's plea citing various grounds, including ecological damage that the Kalasa-Banduri Nala project may cause. The protests turned violent on July 28 during which government offices were attacked and public property was damaged. A state-wide bandh was also observed on July 30. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Karnataka Co-operative Milk Producers Federation Ltd (KMF) today commenced operations in Maharashtra, where it is targeting to supply 25 lakh litres milk each day. "We are expanding our network of milk supply. KMF is currently supplying over 80 lakh litres of milk to Karnataka and Chennai per day and is now targeting to supply 25 lakh litres in Maharashtra," Federation Chairman P Nagaraju told reporters here. The largest co-operative dairy federation in south India has been playing a vital role in boosting the rural economy since its inception in 1975, he said. KMF covers 22,000 villages, 13,000 milk co-operative societies, 14 district milk unions and 22 lakh milk producer members. It procures 65 lakh litres of milk each day and pays Rs 15 crore to farmers, Nagaraju said. The company launched its milk brand - 'Nandini' - in Mumbai today. It sells products like liquid milk, long-life milk (flexi) and pasteurised curd under the Nandini brand. Over the last 40 years, KMF has turned Karnataka from a milk-deficit state into a milk-surplus state. KMF is striving to excel on three critical fronts namely, quality, competitive price and service, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Karnataka government today welcomed the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (KWDT)'s refusal to look into allocation of the river water to four basin states afresh, saying it had vindicated the state's stand on the issue. With the Tribunal's decision, "We would urge the Union government to issue notification of the final award of the KWDT-II," Karnataka Water Resources Minister M B Patil told reporters here. While refusing to look into allocation afresh, KWDT headed by Justice Brijesh Kumar however said it will take up the issue of distribution of water allocated to erstwhile undivided Andhra Pradesh between the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have termed the decision as "disappointing". "It has vindicated our stand on the issue," Patil said, adding, Karnataka had made a strong plea against any steps to reallocate the Krishna water afresh. He said today's decision would help Karnataka go ahead with its plans to utilise the state's share of Krishna water as allocated by the tribunal earlier. Patil said the state counsels had argued before the tribunal that reallocation of water should be confined to sharing of water between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana from the share allocated to the erstwile united Andhra Pradesh. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejariwal and Aam Admi Party (AAP) leader Kumar Vishwas today filed a petition in the Allahabad high court challenging summonses issued against them by a lower court in connection with a case of allegedly making provocative speeches during the last Lok Sabha elections. The petition is likely to come up for hearing on October 21. According to petitioner's counsel Onkar Pandey, on April 20, 2014, during Lok Sabha election, an FIR was lodged by the Assistant Election Officer against the two leaders for allegedly making provocative speeches in Gauriganj area of Amethi constituency represented by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. A charge sheet was filed in the case on April 13 and on October 7 this year the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Sultanpur issued orders summoning them. They have challenged the order before the Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court, Pandey said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) CPI(M)-led LDF government in Kerala is getting ready to expand "community kitchens", envisaged to distribute nutritious food among tribals across Attappady, one of the largest tribal belts in the state. Minister for Scheduled Castes and Tribes A K Balan informed the Assembly that the kitchens would be expanded in all 192 hamlets in Attappady in Palakkad district this month itself. A total of Rs 3.48 crore had been handed over to the women self-help group 'Kudumbashree' for setting up the kitchens in rest of the hamlets. "Community kitchens are already functioning in 93 hamlets in Attappady. It will be expanded to all 192 hamlets in the belt this month itself.", he said. "The number of community kitchens were 53 during the time of previous UDF government," he said while replying during the question hour. The number of infant deaths due to malnutrition had come down remarkably in tribal areas after the LDF government came into power, the minister said. In the last three months, six tribal children died in various settlements, which was low compared to the figures in the previous years, he said. A total of Rs 30.51 crore had been allotted for the treatment expenses of tribals during the present government's tenure, he said. Community Kitchen is a nutritional meal programme envisaged to address the malnutrition issues of tribals in the state. It was first started in the tribal areas of Palakkad district in 2013 to provide one full meal each day to children below six years, adolescents, pregnant women, and those above 60 years of age. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Agitated locals today staged a demonstration in front of the SUM hospital here during the visit of the Union Health Minister J P Nadda demanding a compensation of Rs 15 lakh to the families of those killed in the hospital blaze. They were also demanding the arrest of the chairman of the trust that manages the medical facility and job to each of the affected families. Siksha 'O' Anusandhan (SOA) University, which runs the Institute of Medical Sciences and SUM Hospital, had yesterday announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the next of kin of those killed. The Odisha government has also announced a solatium of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of those killed. With the locals staging the demonstration demanding arrest of the "owner" of the privately-managed hospital, the Odisha government today indicated that the police might take action against him. "We have filed FIR at the Khandagiri police station against the SUM Hospital authorities. As he (owner) is part of the management, the police may take action against him also," director of medical education and training (DMET) P C Mohapatra said. Mohapatra said, "As we have filed a case against the management of the hospital, there is a chance of his arrest, as he is part of the management." The DMET's statement is significant in view of the public resentment against the SUM Hospital management. One more person died of suffocation today, taking the number of those killed in the fire at the hospital to 21. Yesterday, on the basis of an FIR filed by the fire service department, the police had arrested four officials including the medical superintendent. Besides the medical superintendent Pushparaj Samantasinghar, the police had booked electrical maintenance engineer Amulya Kumar Sahu, Fire Safety Officer Santosh Das and retired Junior Engineer Malay Kumar Sahu. A case has been registered against the four officials under sections 304, 308, 285 and 34 of IPC. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) R Madhavan and Dia Mirza are back as the adorable couple, Maddy-Reena from "Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mei", for a special photoshoot to celebrate the 15 years of their hit romantic film. The duo recreated the film's official poster and Madhavan shared the new version on his Twitter page, much to the delight of the fans. "And a recreation of the poster.. How gorgeous does @deespeak still look..#15yearsofRHTDM," Madhavan tweeted. The picture showed Madhavan resting his face on Dia's head as the two pose for the photo, looking as dreamy as the original poster. Replying to his tweet, his co-star posted, "He is as charming as ever :) @ActorMadhavan Reena will always love Maddy. #15YearsOfRHTDM." "Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein", released in 2001, was written-directed by Gautham Menon and also starred Saif Ali Khan. It followed a Mumbai boy, Maddy, who does not believe in the idea of love until he meets Reena. Soon, he learns that Reena is set to marry Rajeev Samra, an old friend who is now an NRI. After he gets to known that Reena doesn't know how her friend looks like now, Maddy pretends to be Rajeev to woo her. The love triangle was backed by melodious music. The film wasn't successful at the box-office but over the years made its place in the youth's heart for its endearing love story. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra government here today launched 'Kaushalya Setu', its skill development programme for students. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Union Minister of State Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (Independent Charge) Rajiv Pratap Rudy and state Education Minister Vinod Tawde were present on the occasion. Under the Kaushalya Setu initiative, students of Maharashtra State Board of Secondary & Higher Secondary Education, who fail to clear Class X or SSC exam, would be accommodated in the skill development courses, so that they do not lose a year. Praising the initiative, Fadnavis said, "We have started various skill development programmes, but this (Kaushalya Setu) is the best among them." "Maharashtra will play a leading role in fulfilling Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Skill India Mission-2020," he added. Rudy said, "This is a pilot project and if it is successful, it will change the fortune of the entire country." Elaborating on the initiative, Tawde said, "No student (of Class X) will be termed failed in the exam, but will be provided training as per his skills under this initiative." Under this programme, no student will sit at home after matriculation and will receive skill-oriented training, the minister said. "The programme will give a big boost to Modi's dream of skill development as about 24,000 students will be provided training under 'Kaushalya Setu' initially," Tawde said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Catholic education group has released a new set of academic standards that weave Roman Catholicism throughout the curriculum. The standards are being pitched as an alternative to the Common Core State Standards . The standards were created by the Cardinal Newman Society, a nonprofit whose mission is to promote and defend faithful Catholic education. It was founded in response to a concern among some Catholics that Catholic education was undergoing a creeping secularism. The Cardinal Newman Society has been cautioning the nations more than 6,500 Catholic schools against adopting the common core for almost three years. Some of the groups arguments echo those of other common-core critics: One is the concern that there is less focus on literature in the standards, and another is that the math standards dont prepare students to take calculus in high school . Other criticisms are particularly Catholic. The group argues that the common cores utilitarian objectives and lack of emphasis on the whole person represent an incomplete understanding of the purpose of education. Because common core gets man wrong, it gets education wrong, the group writes . Catholic insight into human nature and into mans relationships with his fellow man, nature, and God allows for a more complete exploration of the world and not just all that is in it, but also that which transcends it as well. The new standards cover history, science, math, and English, and are broken into two sets: Grades K-6 and 7-12. The content is notably different from the common cores. An early literature standard, for example, asks students to be able to demonstrate how literature is used to develop a religious, moral, and social sense. A math standard asks students to learn to display a sense of wonder about mathematical relationships as well as confidence in mathematical certitude. A set of appendices also highlight other aspects of Catholic education. Appendix A focuses on Educating to Truth, Beauty, and Goodness . The standards also come with resources for teachers hoping to create learning progressions . Earlier this month, the Cardinal Newman Society published a blog post urging Catholic schools to leave the common core behind , citing the findings of a report from the Pioneer Institute for Public Policy Research called After the Fall: Catholic Education Beyond the Common Core . The report argues that the common core is focused on workforce development and not aligned with the broader project of Catholic education. The Cardinal Newman Society isnt the first Catholic group concerned about how the common core fits into Catholic schools. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops released an FAQ about the common core in 2014. The conference took a softer line, pointing out that the dioceses have typically considered state standards and adapted them to their schools, and that students who attend Catholic schools will be assessed on tests such as the SAT that are influenced by the common core. The CCSS should be neither adopted nor rejected without review, study, consultation, discussion, and caution, they wrote. But the bishops also wrote that a critical part of Catholic schools missionto educate young people as Christiansis not covered in the standards. Thomas Burnford, the president of the National Catholic Educational Association , which represents Catholic schools and teachers, said in an interview with Education Week that Catholic schools will not be required to use the new standards. Individual dioceses (geographic districts that are overseen by bishops) select their curricula. Burnford said that in the last few years, more Catholic schools had looked seriously at the Common Core State Standards. But the vast majority use other curricula, often produced by Catholic publishers. We respect the individual decision making of each diocesan system and schools, he said. As for the new standards, he said, Im sure some dioceses will look at them as a new potential resource. Burnford said that the NCEA is not for or against the common core. What we are for is an authentic integration of faith into the curriculum, he said. Catholic schools have been undergoing a long-term demographic shift , as my colleague Arianna Prothero reported last year. Enrollment has dropped to 2 million students from a peak of 5.2 million in the 1970s. (Some 50 million students attend the nations public schools.) The nations Catholic population is also shifting westward and southward, while there have historically been more Catholic churches on the East Coast and in the Midwest. But the NCEA is still the largest association of private school educators. The overlap between Catholic schools and the public sector has also been evolving. Catholic schools make up the bulk of schools that receive school vouchers, and the NCEA argues for school choice, tax relief, and vouchers. Some Catholic schools have even converted into charter schools . Related stories: Group-owned SmartShift, an aggregator for cargo owners and transporters, is targeting to build a community of one million stakeholders in three years. The company, which has completed one year of operations, has so far garnered 10,000 stakeholders and claims to clock about 1,200 transactions every day. "Going ahead, we will continually focus on nurturing customer relationships and move beyond mere transactional business to add significant value to customers' lives," Kausalya Nandakumar, CEO, SmartShift, told reporters on Wednesday. The company has been growing 50 per cent month-on-month, and is servicing over 500 pin codes in two cities apsrt from fulfulling the last mile requirements of over 25 corporates, she added. "Currently operational in Mumbai and Hyderabad, the platform plans to extend its services to two more cities during the current financial year as part of its overall expansion plans across India," she said. According to industry estimates, the logistic space in the country is pegged at USD 130 billion with up to 40 percent being in the intra-city space. SmartShift is the first in-house startup incubated within the Group. Elaborating on the company's revenue model, Nandakumar said SmartShift is "revenue positive" now, and works on a commission-based model, which is collected from the transporter. Since its inception the company has collaborated with LendingKart to provide collateral free loans to business owners including Insurance Brokers and Indian Oil Corporation. The Bombay High Court today asked the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to file its reply to an appeal by Lt Col Prasad Purohit, a prime accused in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case, against the trial court's order rejecting his bail plea. A bench headed by Justice Naresh Patil posted the matter for hearing on November 16 along with the bail petition filed by a co-accused in the case, Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur. The judges also called for original documents and case papers filed by the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) of Maharashtra police and NIA, the two agencies which had probed the matter. In June 2016, the HC had dismissed an appeal filed by Purohit against the trial court's order rejecting his bail plea and asked him to approach the trial court afresh. Thereafter, Lt Col Purohit moved the trial court, but the bail plea was once again rejected. Aggrieved, he approached the high court, which sought NIA's response today. The high court had earlier asked the trial court to consider the new material in the supplementary charge sheet filed by NIA while hearing his bail plea. Purhohit contended that the trial court had not taken into account the new material in the supplementary charge sheet. His lawyer Srikant Shivade argued that Purohit was in jail for more than seven years and, as NIA had concluded the investigation, he should be enlarged on bail. The trial court has consistently refused bail to Purohit since 2010. His last bail plea was rejected in October 2015, following which he moved the high court. Purohit has claimed in his appeal that the trial court should have appreciated that he has "an outstanding, meritorious record and that he risked his life to fight against terrorism across the country". He also alleged that he had been "framed". Co-accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur too has moved for bail separately and the high court has kept both the petitions for hearing on November 16. Thakur was given a clean chit by the NIA earlier this year, but the trial court refused to grant her bail. Her petition in the high court said the lower court had failed to take into consideration the change in circumstances. On May 13, NIA had filed a supplementary charge sheet, giving a clean chit to six accused, including Sadhvi Pragya. It also said that the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) was not applicable in the case. Six persons were killed in a blast at Malegaon, a Muslim-majority town in north Maharashtra, in September 2008. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A local court has sentenced a man from Navi Mumbai to two years simple imprisonment for duping people through 'ponzi' schemes promising to double investors' money in a short time. Special Judge V V Bambarde found Gurmitsingh Kundansingh Bhatti guilty under section 3 of the Maharashtra Protection of Interests of Depositors (In Financial Establishments) Act, 1999, under which he was sentenced to 2 years imprisonment and fined Rs 5,000. He was also found guilty under section 420 (cheating) of IPC and sentenced to one year imprisonment and fined of Rs 1,000. Both the sentences will run concurrently. As per the prosecution, Bhatti was managing business of a city-based private company Shreehari Enterprises. The case pertains to 1999, when he collected deposits for 3, 6 and 12 months from 300 to 350 depositors, totalling to around Rs 70 to 75 lakh, the prosecution claimed. The Reserve Bank of India informed Thane police that they had not given permission for the said collection of money, the court was told. The firm had promised to double the investors money, who deposit for at-least three months. Depositors were issued cheques of interest which were firstly en-cashed but on the second occasion onwards, they bounced, it said. The prosecution said investors found that the firm was closed and hence they lodged a police complaint. During the proceedings, statements of 133 depositors were recorded and 28 witnesses were examined. The judge in his order said the prosecution has proved that, during March to August 1999, the accused who was responsible for management of or conducting business or affair of financial establishment company, which has fraudulently defaulted repayment of deposit on maturity with interest and in furtherance of common intention with absconding accused, cheated depositors. "It is seen that the depositors/witnesses have been induced by advertisement. Similarly they have been induced by the accused that they will get double amount if kept in fixed deposits with Shreehari Enterprises. It is impossible to pay the double amount. So there was intention on the part of Shreehari Enterprises and the accused to deceive those depositors. It shows dishonesty on the part of accused," the order stated. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 43-year-old married man was arrested today for allegedly cheating a city-based woman of Rs 7.5 lakh under the pretext of marrying her by posing as a groom and resident of UK. The accused, identified as Sasidharan Kattiri, a native of Kerala's Palakkad district, is working as an administration officer in an infra firm at Bengaluru, police said, adding that he had registered his marriage profile on a matrimonial website. The victim, a resident of Madhapur area here, had also uploaded her profile on the matrimonial website after which the accused sent request to marry her. "She accepted his request and communication started between them and finally marriage got fixed," stated a release from Cyberabad Police. Kattiri then asked money from the woman in the name of marriage and for obtaining visa to UK. "As he portrayed himself that he is a permanent resident of UK, the woman in good faith transferred Rs 7.5 lakh to his bank account. Apart from this amount, Kattiri has taken a gold ring, a gold chain along with a golden pendent and a mobile phone worth Rs 32,000 in the name of marriage rituals," police said. After taking all these goods, they were supposed to get married in the presence of the woman's family and relatives. "However, the accused went absconding. Though, she tried to contact him several times but he changed his mobile number too. She came to know that Kattiri is already married with two children and lodged a complaint," police said. Cyberabad Police registered a case and during the course of investigation apprehended the accused and found that he also had a dowry harassment case lodged against him by his wife. Kattiri has allegedly been involved in similar cases in Gujarat, Karnataka and Rajasthan, police said. He was produced before a court at Kukatpally for judicial remand. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal today refuted the allegations that the Centre was planning to shift a mega power equipment production plant at Mannavaram out of Andhra Pradesh, saying it will not be shifted but intensive efforts would be made to improve its business to create more employment opportunities. "The Mannavaram Power Projects Equipment Manufacturing Plant will not be shifted to any other place and intensive efforts will be made to ensure more business for employment generation," Goyal said, after a review meeting chaired by Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu here today. Naidu convened a meeting with Goyal, Heavy Industries minister Anant Geete, Chairmen and Managing Directors of NTPC, BHEL and other senior officials including those of NTPC, BHEL Power Projects Ltd (NBPPL) which is executing the project. Recently, Member of Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council Yandapalli Srinivasulu Reddy had accused the central government of making moves to shift the Mannavaram project out of Andhra Pradesh and also staged a dharna in association with Left parties. Also, there were allegations that the Centre was deliberately sidelining the project brought by Congress regime. "It was also decided in the meeting that a four-member high level committee, chaired by CMD of BHEL, will explore and recommend measures for ensuring sufficient work orders for Mannavaram project, including through diversification of manufacturing activities," Goyal said. He also said necessary action would also be taken to do away with the condition that makes it mandatory for NBPPL to take prior approval of BHEL to participate in competitive bidding. Explaining the reasons for lesser than expected performance of Mannavaram project, Goyal said this project was "poorly conceived" and initiated in 2010 without adequate homework and assessment of business environment which led to deferment of Rs 4,800 crore investment in second phase within six months by the then government. Meanwhile, Naidu said that Coal Ministry has agreed to provide domestic coal linkage from Coal India Limited to the 4,000 MW Pudimadaka Power Project, so as to make available power supply to the people at lower cost. Goyal also told Naidu that tenders will be opened tomorrow for commissioning of another 125 MW of solar power generation at the 1,000 MW Kadiri Solar Photo Voltaic Power Generation Park in Ananthapuram district. 250 MW of solar power is already being generated here and for the remaining 625 MW, tenders will soon be called, he said. Naidu also said the New and Renewable Energy Ministry will soon decide in consultation with the Andhra Pradesh government whether the National Renewable University at Ananthapur is to be set up under central law or state law and will take necessary action in this regard. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Marathi film industry body today backed calls for ban on Pakistani film artistes working in India and opposed release of films featuring them. In a statement here, the Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Chitrapat Mahamandal said it opposed release of films featuring Pakistani artistes till relation between the two countries improved. "If such films are released, there would be tension during the festive season and people would not be able to properly celebrate Diwali," said the Mahamandal, which is affiliated to the Film Federation of India. The organisation said it supports the ban on Pakistani artistes and technicians imposed by the Indian Motion Pictures Producers Association and Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association of India, which has said it will not screen films featuring actors from the neighbouring country. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) British Prime Minister Theresa May today indicated in Parliament that during her India visit next month she would be encouraging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in the UK. Conservative Party MP Hugo Swire asked her during the weekly Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons if the topic would figure during her first visit to India as British Prime Minister between November 6 and 8. "When she goes to India next month, will she commit to persuade Prime Minister Modi to attend the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in the UK," Swire asked, in reference to the "increasing relevance" of the Commonwealth for trade given Britain's impending exit from the European Union (EU). In response, May said, "I am happy to encourage all leaders to attend CHOGM when it takes place here in the United Kingdom...We are indeed looking at the possibility of trade deals in relation to the Commonwealth." "I applaud that first-ever meeting of Commonwealth Trade Ministers (2017), which is an important step as we look to forge a new global role in the world, ensuring that we make a success of leaving the EU and trading our way around the world," she said. May will arrive in New Delhi on November 6 to inaugurate the India-UK TECH Summit along with Modi. The two leaders are expected to hold bilateral talks over a working lunch on November 7 before the British Premier heads to a second Indian city, likely to be Bengaluru, on November 8 as part of her three-day visit. May will be accompanied by UK international trade secretary Liam Fox, who will be attending the Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO). The UK delegation will also include representatives of small and medium businesses from regions across the UK and a number of commercial deals are expected to be signed during the visit. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Scientists, including one of Indian origin, have found that people who suffer from migraines harbour significantly more microbes in their mouths which have with the ability to modify nitrates. "There is this idea out there that certain foods trigger migraines - chocolate, wine and especially foods containing nitrates," said Antonio Gonzalez, from University of California, San Diego in the US. "We thought that perhaps there are connections between what people are eating, their microbiomes and their experiences with migraines," said Gonzalez. Nitrates, found in foods such as processed meats and green leafy vegetables and in certain medicines, can be reduced to nitrites by bacteria found in the mouth. When circulating in the blood, these nitrites can then be converted to nitric oxide under certain conditions. Nitric oxide can aid cardiovascular health by improving blood flow and reducing blood pressure. However, roughly four in five cardiac patients who take nitrate-containing drugs for chest pain or congestive heart failure report severe headaches as a side effect. Using publicly available data from the American Gut Project, a crowdfunded citizen science effort managed by Gonzalez and colleagues sequenced bacteria found in 172 oral samples and 1,996 fecal samples from healthy participants. The participants had previously filled out surveys indicating whether they suffered from migraines. The bacterial gene sequencing found that bacterial species were found in different abundances between people who get migraines (migraineurs) and non-migraineurs. In terms of bacterial community composition, the team did not find huge differences in either fecal or oral samples from migraineurs compared to non-migraineurs. Researchers, including Naseer Sangwan from the University of Chicago, then used a bioinformatic tool to analyse which genes were likely to be present in the two different sets of samples, given the bacterial species present. In fecal samples, they found a slight but statistically significant increase in the abundance of genes that encode nitrate, nitrite and nitric oxide-related enzymes in migraineurs. In oral samples, these genes were significantly more abundant in migraineurs. The study was published in the journal mSystems. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two auto-rickshaws, one of them belonging to a local Hindu Munnani functionary, went up in flames, in this tourist town, police said today. North town Secretary of Hindu Munnani and owner of one of the auto-rickshaws, Nagaraj had lodged a complaint that the vehicle parked near his house, was destroyed in fire, they said. The incident came to light when some passers-by noticed the auto-rickshaw burning, around 4 AM today and alerted Nagaraj, who rushed to the spot, they said. While Nagaraj's vehicle was completely gutted in the fire, another auto-rickshaw parked nearby was burnt partially, triggering tension in the area, police said. A huge posse of police personnel has been posted in the area, which is communally sensitive, to prevent any untoward incidents, they said adding investigations are on. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rejecting filmmaker Karan Johar's statement that he will not "engage with talent" from Pakistan in future, the MNS today protested outside a cinema hall here while asserting that it will not allow "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" to be screened in single theatres and multiplexes. Four MNS film wing workers were later detained by police after they protested outside the Metro cinema hall in South Mumbai, asking the management not to hold any show of movie "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. "The MNS activists were raising slogans outside the Metro theatre for some time. The police asked them to carry it out peacefully but they were not in a mood to listen to us. We have detained four MNS workers so far," a police officer from Azad Maidan police station said. Seeking to assuage tempers over opposition to the release of his directorial venture, Johar had yesterday made a fervent appeal against stalling the release, saying he will not engage with talent from Pakistan. However, the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) today said reality has dawned late on Johar. MNS cine wing head Amey Khopkar, after a meeting with senior party leaders and Raj Thackeray, told PTI that they were firm on opposing the release. "We will not allow the film to be screened in single screens and multiplexes. Reality has dawned late on the producer," Khopkar said. The MNS protested outside Metro cinema he said, adding that such protests will be held at all cinema halls. The MNS and some other political parties have opposed release of films with actors from Pakistan after the Uri terror attack, putting a question mark on the fate of Johar's movie, slated for a pre-Diwali release on October 28. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India too decided not to screen films with Pakistani actors in four states -- Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. Johar's film starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is facing trouble for Pakistani actor Fawad Khan's extended cameo. A team from Johar's Dharma Productions along with filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt and Vijay Singh of Fox Star Studios had yesterday met Mumbai's top police officials and sought protection for the theatres to screen the film. Assuring all help from their end, Deputy Commissioner of Police Ashok Dudhe had said, "Mumbai police will provide adequate protection to cinema theatres as and when required. Party's cine wing executive president Shalini Thackeray today said Karan Johar's video has come very late. "... And after seeing it, I find he is acting and not appealing from his heart. He should have listened to our demands at the first time. We have intensified the agitation and now it cannot be withdrawn easily," she said. Meanwhile, Mumbai Congress unit president Sanjay Nirupam pointed out the handling of law and order over the threats by MNS. "I am against Pakistani artistes in Indian films. But it is upto the government to take a decision on release of a film which has been shot with artistes from the neighbouring country...," he told How Are Police Using Facial Recognition Software? And Is It Accurate? Law enforcement is always looking for better tools for analyzing criminal evidence in the hopes of achieving more accurate convictions. And, as technology advances, there are more tools at the police's disposal. One of the newest is facial recognition software and facial examination experts. The new software has already been used to catch, and convict, alleged criminals. But how comprehensive is the technology, and how accurate are its results? Federal Faces In 2014, the FBI launched the billion-dollar Next Generation Identification system, claiming at the time to house 51 million photographs and would grow exponentially over the coming years. And the NGI system has already been credited with tracking down criminals, including an alleged pedophile who had been on the run for 19 years. (The city of Chicago also installed its own facial recognition technology, which it claims helped them nab a stickup artist.) But considering the FBI has admitted to faulty forensic evidence testimony when it comes to hair and bite mark analysis, it's fair to question whether the new facial recognition technology is any more accurate. Forensic, or Fake? In 2009, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) issued a blistering critique of forensic science in which it concluded that, outside of DNA analysis, no other forensic method could reliably and consistently "demonstrate a connection between evidence and a specific individual or source." And a Virginia Law Review article from the same year showed how junk forensic science can lead to faulty convictions: "[I]n the bulk of these trials of innocent defendants -- 82 cases or 60 percent -- forensic analysts called by the prosecution provided invalid testimony at trial -- that is, testimony with conclusions misstating empirical data or wholly unsupported by empirical data." And The Intercept last week related the story of Steve Talley, a Denver-area financial adviser who was twice arrested for bank robbery. Both times his arrest was based on facial recognition analysis. And both times police got the wrong man. Fortunately for Talley, he had other evidence --phone records and eyewitnesses -- to clear him of the charges. While it seems clear that judges, juries, prosecutors, and defense attorneys should approach facial recognition technology with the same skepticism of other failed forensic sciences, other defendants may not find themselves so lucky when faced with a similar analysis. Related Resources: The Immigration department has submitted to Home Ministry its report on the lapses on part of its officers in allowing controversial meat exporter Moin Qureshi to go out of the country despite ED's Look Out Circular (LOC) against him. Qureshi, who has a money laundering case pending against him, had managed to leave for Dubai last weekend after showing a court order in an income tax case. The Delhi-based meat exporter was detained at the IGI airport here based on a LOC issued by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The probe has suggested Home Ministry that the mistake by the immigration officials was "bonafide" and not "malafide", official sources said today. The Home Ministry is reviewing the report and any action would be taken against the officials involved in the gaffe after its perusal, they said. The report gives a blow-by-blow account of the incident and has documents submitted by Qureshi to the immigration authorities, the sources said. Qureshi was detained at the airport on October 15, following which the Immigration department had informed the ED about it. He then presented a court order in which there was no restriction on his flying abroad. The immigration officer checked for the veracity of the order and allowed him to fly to Dubai. When the ED team reached the airport to take the meat exporter into custody, they were informed that he had been allowed to fly on the basis of the court order. Later, the immigration officer realised that the order was in connection with an Income Tax case and not in the ED matter, prompting the authorities to order an inquiry. The ED had registered a case against Qureshi under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) last year. He is under the scanner of probe agencies for alleged tax evasion and hawala-like dealings. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BSP national general secretary Naseemuddin Siddiqui today cautioned the Muslims against SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav describing him as "more dangerous than Prime Minister Narendra Modi". "Muslims, you all need to be wary of Mulayam Singh Yadav...He is more dangerous than Narendra Modi...During Modi's term as chief minister of Gujarat, 42 Muslims were killed in the Godhra riots, while 187 of them were killed in the Muzaffarnagar riots (in Uttar Pradesh) under the SP government," he said at the BSP's 'Bhaichara Committee' meeting here. "Muslims, if you dislike Modi so much, why don't you dislike Mulayam?" Siddiqui asked, adding that the community had been voting for Mulayam for 25 years but what had he given to them in return. "Mulayam remembers the minorities only at election times but after that, they are forgotten...All the parties, be it the Congress or the SP, have used Muslims as a vote-bank," alleged the BSP leader. Siddiqui said riots did not take place "on their own" but were "instigated". "Both the SP and the BJP instigate riots as part of a conspiracy for their political gains," he alleged. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Myanmar will come up with new investment guidelines to make business environment transparent for foreign companies, its top leader Aung Sung Suu Kyi today said and also evinced interest to cooperate with India in sectors such as infra, agriculture and skill development. "Opportunities for cooperation must be mutually beneficial and must be a fair deal for both countries," industry body CII quoted the Myanmerese leader as saying at an event here. According to the statement, Suu Kyi, who is State Counsellor and Union Minister for Foreign Affairs, Republic of the Union of Myanmar, further said Myanmar was in the process of notifying a new investment law which would accord the same treatment to foreign firms as was being given to domestic companies. "With the enactment of the new law, Suu Kyi hoped there would be transparency in contracts and the rule of law would be enforced and corruption would be curbed. Issues such as repatriation of profit and also of capital have also been addressed in the new law," the statement said. She said the Indian industry could cooperate with Myanmar in areas such as skill development, agriculture especially organic agriculture, agri-machinery and infrastructure development among others. On this occasion, Secretary (ER) in Ministry of External Affairs Amar Sinha said that economic relations between the two countries needed focused attention. Sinha noted that bilateral trade was well below par and measures needed to be taken to boost trade. He further highlighted certain issues between the two countries which needed to be resolved including the need to modernise banking and finance channels in Myanmar, equal treatment in terms of tariffs and duties, tariff rationalisation in the automobile sector and clarity on Myanmar's energy policies. The Secretary stated that on its part, India was working on completing the various connectivity projects that were underway which would link India's Northeast with Myanmar. Suu Kyi is on her first visit to India after her National League for Democracy wrested power from the military junta in a landmark election earlier this year. Suu Kyi, who could not become Myanmar's President due to a constitutional provision but has full control over the government, holds the position of State Councillor and Foreign Minister. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A mysterious hybrid species, recorded by Ice Age cave artists in great detail more than 15,000 years ago and dubbed as the Higgs Bison due its elusive nature, was the ancestor of the modern European bison, scientists who analysed ancient DNA have discovered. The mystery species originated over 120,000 years ago through the hybridisation of the extinct Aurochs (the ancestor of modern cattle) and the Ice Age Steppe Bison, which ranged across the cold grasslands from Europe to Mexico. Research led by the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA (ACAD) at the University of Adelaide showed that the mystery hybrid species eventually became the ancestor of the modern European bison, or wisent, which survives in protected reserves between Poland and Belarus. "Finding that a hybridisation event led to a completely new species was a real surprise - as this isn't really meant to happen in mammals," said Alan Cooper, ACAD Director. "The genetic signals from the ancient bison bones were very odd, but we weren't quite sure a species really existed - so we referred to it as the Higgs Bison," said Cooper. The team, including researchers from the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), studied ancient DNA extracted from radiocarbon-dated bones and teeth found in caves across Europe, the Urals, and the Caucasus to trace the genetic history of the populations. They found a distinctive genetic signal from many fossil bison bones, which was quite different from the European bison or any other known species. Radiocarbon dating showed that the mystery species dominated the European record for thousands of years at several points, but alternated over time with the Steppe bison, which had previously been considered the only bison species present in Late Ice Age Europe. "The dated bones revealed that our new species and the Steppe Bison swapped dominance in Europe several times, in concert with major environmental changes caused by climate change," said Julien Soubrier from the University of Adelaide. "French cave researchers told us that there were indeed two distinct forms of bison art in Ice Age caves, and it turns out their ages match those of the different species," said Soubrier. The cave paintings depict bison with either long horns and large forequarters (more like the American bison, which is descended from the Steppe bison) or with shorter horns and small humps, more similar to modern European bison. "Once formed, the new hybrid species seems to have successfully carved out a niche on the landscape, and kept to itself genetically," said Cooper. "It dominated during colder tundra-like periods, without warm summers, and was the largest European species to survive the megafaunal extinctions," he said. "The modern European bison looks genetically quite different as it went through a genetic bottleneck of only 12 individuals in the 1920s, when it almost became extinct," Cooper said. The study was published in the journal Nature Communications. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu today condemned the attack on his colleague Babul Supriyo in West Bengal and asked the state government to take immediate action against the guilty. Stressing that political differences would always be there, he called for tolerance among the political parties and respect for each other. "I strongly condemn the attack on my colleague Babul Supriyo. The state government has to take immediate action against the people responsible for it. "Political differences will always be there. There has to be tolerance among political parties. We must respect each other," he said on the sidelines of an event here. Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Supriyo was today attacked with bricks allegedly by Trinamool Congress activists in Asansol when he was on way to a police station to stage a protest against the arrest of some BJP workers. On the issue of triple talaq, Naidu said many Muslim countries have banned the practice, while it continues in India because of the self-interest of some political parties. "There is no question of forcing anything on anybody...Any religion on anybody. This government does not interfere in religious affairs of anyone at all. When we talk of triple talaq, our aim is justice and equality for women, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rajya Sabha MP Parimal Nathwani has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to name the Vadodara airport after late visionary king Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III, who ruled the erstwhile princely state of Baroda from 1875 to 1939. The Prime Minister is set to inaugurate the new international airport terminal building here on October 22. In a letter to Modi, Nathwani, an independent MP from Jharkhand has written, "I request you to name the Vadodara airport after the noble and popular ruler of erstwhile princely Gaekwadi state of Baroda - Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III." "Over the years, NGOs, business organisations, educationists, artists and others have been raising this demand to name the airport after Gaekwad," Nathwani said. "Gaekwad played a key role in development of Baroda's textile industry, and his educational and social reforms included among others, ban on child marriage, legislation of divorce, removal of untouchability, spread of education, development of Sanskrit," he added. Nathwani also said that late BR Ambedkar in a letter written had thanked Gaekwad for making him (Ambedkar) what he was. As per Nathwani, "It (naming of airport after Gaekwad) will inspire the youth to undertake philanthropic work and give them an opportunity of learning lessons on effective leadership". Recently, Union Minister of State for Social Justice Ramdas Athawale had also demanded rechristening of the Vadodara airport after Gaekwad. Shubangini Devi Raje Gaekwad, a member of the Royal family and Chancellor of Mahararaj Sayajirao University of Baroda has also penned a latter to Modi, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar requesting them to name the airport after Gaekwad. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A premier national cancer institute under the ICMR and All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) have joined hands to set up a 'Center of Integrative Oncology' for collaborating in areas of cancer prevention, research and care. An MoU in this regard was signed by the National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research (NICPR), Noida and AIIA, an autonomous institute under the Ministry of AYUSH in the presence of Soumya Swaminathan, Secretary, Department of Health Research, Union Health Ministry & Director General, Indian Council for Medical Research and other top officials. "The association will allow validation of claims made in the Ayurveda and other domains of Ayush, both at laboratory and clinical levels, as to the efficacy of this traditional school of medicine," Swaminathan said. The ICMR Director General also said the main aim of this tie-up should be to reduce the incidence of cancer, for which preventive aspects with the strengths of AYUSH systems should be explored. "The collaborative research should aim at developing traditional medicine as adjuvant therapy to reduce the side effects of chemotherapy. Adjuvant therapy for cancer usually refers to surgery followed by chemotherapy or radiotherapy to help decrease the risk of the cancer recurring. She also emphasised on collaborative studies, both short-term and long-term, involving institutions of repute at national and international levels. Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH, Ajit M Sharan assured that funding would not be a constraint in carrying out the activities under the MoU. He also outlined the major action points of the ministry, saying, "10 new research fellowships would be awarded every year. The process for the first batch will be completed by March, 2017." "Minimum of five collaborative research projects will be supported in the financial year 2016-2017. The Ayush Ministry would also develop few centres of excellence for cancer research and has identified the AIIA and the Rajaram Deo Anadilal Poddar Ayurveda Cancer Research Institute, Mumbai, a unit of Centre Council for Research in Ayurveda Sciences (CCRAS). This would be done by March, 2017," he said. A steering committee and scientific advisory committee would be jointly constituted by the Ministry of AYUSH and the Department of Health Research, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare by December, he said. International conferences would also be organised annually, he added. The centre is an outcome of the deliberations held in Indo-US Workshop (in March) and, the MoU would pave the way to carry forward the ongoing bilateral dialogue and facilitate collaboration with National Cancer Institute in the US, officials said. A portal on 'Network for AYUSH Cancer Care (NFACC)' developed by the AIIA was also launched. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Delhi government today informed the Delhi High Court that no coercive action would be taken against street vendors in the national capital during the ongoing festive season of Diwali. The AAP government told a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal that after deliberations, the authorities concerned have decided not to take action against street vendors as of now and this has also been communicated to the office of the Lieutenant Governor (LG). The bench then asked, "Who will be a genuine street vendor? Who will identify that a street vendor is genuine or not?" Responding to this, the government and civic bodies said "it is a stop-gap arrangement only for Diwali festive season". The bench said it would not take on record the copy of decision taken by the authorities concerned, which was placed before it, as it might further complicate the issue. "If you (authorities) want, you can take action. We will not say anything. We will not take it (copy of decision) on record as it might complicate the matter," the bench said and fixed the matter for hearing on November 7. The bench was hearing pleas of Congress leader Ajay Maken and two NGOs alleging that municipal bodies of central and south Delhi were "throwing out" street vendors from hawking zones, despite a high court order protecting them from such action. During today's hearing, the counsel appearing for the applicants told the bench that despite the high court order, the authorities were removing the street vendors. The bench, however, said, "we cannot go on reviewing our order. We have passed a detailed order. You wait till November 7. We will hear the matter along with the main matter". Maken and the NGOs, in their applications, have said the high court on October 5 had ruled that its September 9 order that no street vendor should be evicted from the city roads without due process of law, shall not be applicable on non- hawking zones. They had contended that under the garb of this order, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) have started throwing out people even from hawking zones like Rajiv Chowk, Indira Chowk and Lajpat Nagar. The applicants have sought that NDMC and other municipal corporations be restrained from taking any coercive action against street vendors in any area which has not been declared as a 'no-vending zone' under the earlier scheme. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Goa's plush Kingfisher Villa, where Vijay Mallya has hosted several glitzy parties in the past, failed to attract a single bidder at an e-auction today -- marking yet another failed attempt by lenders to recover dues from the embattled businessman. While repeated attempts have been made without any success for sale of several other assets kept as collaterals by erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines of the Mallya-led UB Group, the famed Villa was put under hammer for the first time. However, the auction turned out to be a damp squib, supposedly due to its high reserve price at Rs 85.3 crore, sources said. The 12,350 sq mt Villa was once used by Mallya to host lavish parties in his 'good times'. "None of the bidders came forward, so the auction of Kingfisher Villa failed. Higher reserve price could be the reason," a source said. The sea-facing palatial villa, situated in Candolim, Goa had earlier attracted interest from at least half a dozen players in the hospitality industry and a media group, when it was opened for inspection to interested bidders during the end of September and early October. The 17-lender consortium led by State Bank of India took physical possession of the property in May after a long legal battle with United Spirits over tenancy rights. The Villa was owned by United Breweries Holdings and mortgaged by Kingfisher Airlines to the consortium of banks to obtain loans in 2010. The Villa is among many movable and immovable properties under lenders' possession, which they are trying to auction as a part to recover Rs 9,000 crore from Mallya. In August this year, lenders to the now-defunct airlines and tax authorities had put under hammer various movable and immovable assets of the KFA for a second time, but failed to get any buyers. The assets which were put on sale included the airline's erstwhile headquarters, Kingfisher House, near Mumbai airport, cars, Mallya's plush personal jet and numerous brands and trademarks, including the famed 'Fly with Good Times'. Most of these assets were put on auction for a second time, and with a lower reserve price. Lenders had reduced the reserve price of Kingfisher House, which has a built-up area of over 17,000 sq ft and is located in the prime suburb of Vile Parle, to Rs 135 crore from Rs 150 crore. Similarly, the reserve price of the airline's trademarks, including Kingfisher logo and the tagline 'Fly the Good Times', for the last month's auction was reduced to Rs 330.33 crore from Rs 366.70 crore. All auctions had failed as bidders found the reserve prices too high. The grandeur of the Kingfisher Villa finds mention in the autobiography of flamboyant West Indies batsman Chris Gayle. Gayle, after joining Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), which was earlier owned by Mallya but is now with Diageo, got an opportunity to stay in the Villa where he had spent five days as "the king of the villa". Mallya owes over Rs 9,000 crore to lenders like SBI, PNB, IDBI Bank, BoB, Allahabad Bank, Federal Bank and Axis Bank, among others. He had left the country in March and is currently said to be in Britain, having defied several court orders to return to India. In a bid to cope with festive rush, Railways have said there will be no sale of platform tickets from October 27 to November 5 at major stations in Delhi Division, including New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin. According to Northern Railway, there will be no sale of platform tickets at major stations including Old Delhi, New Delhi, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Sarai Rohilla and Anand Vihar terminals from October 27 to Novemeber 5 this year due to Diwali and Chhat festival rush. However, persons coming to stations to assist the aged and lady passengers who are not in a position to fend for themselves at the railway station will be exempted from such restriction, a Northern Railway official said. Northern Railway has pressed many special trains to clear the festival rush. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Software Engineers Over 40 Can Join Age Discrimination Suit Against Google Last week, a federal judge in Northern California granted the motion to conditionally certify the class action case against Google for allegedly committing age discrimination against applicants. The lawsuit claims that programmers over the age of 40 were discriminated against in the application process at Google. The judge's ruling means that the lawsuit can proceed to the next stage in the class action process of sending out notifications to potential class members. Google will likely be required to provide the contact information for anyone that fits within the case's definition for class members. What's Being Alleged? The plaintiff in the case against Google claims that Google actively avoids hiring programmers over the age of 40. The plaintiff explains that she was required by Google to put her school graduation years on her resume so that the interviewer would be able to know her age. Additionally, it is alleged that the average age of programmers at Google is 29, compared to an average of 42 around the country. The plaintiff was also able to find several others to declare under penalty of perjury that they experienced a similar situation of being asked for information for the purpose of identifying their age, and not being selected after the disclosure. The court found laughable and unconvincing Google's argument that they could not have committed discrimination because they have a clear anti-discrimination policy. What's Conditional Class Certification? A class action or collective action is when a person or group brings a lawsuit against one entity, or party, on behalf of themselves as well as others who are similarly situated. Typically, courts allow these types of cases because they are efficient, cost effective mechanisms to provide legal remedies when many people have been affected. When a court grants class certification, the court is saying that the plaintiffs have enough evidence to convince the court that there are numerous individuals entitled to relief, that those individuals are properly defined/definable in the case, that it serves the court's goal of efficiency, and the case has a certain threshold level of merit. In some class actions, a court will grant conditional class certification at an early stage in order to be able to identify the number of potential class members. When a Conditional Class Certification is granted, the plaintiffs, as in the Google case, will be allowed to request contact information for and contact other potential class members. Circuits Split on the Law Last week, a ruling in an Eleventh Circuit basically stated that this exact type of case, an applicant's age discrimination suit alleging disparate impact could not proceed because the ADEA does not protect applicants from disparate impact, only intentional discrimination. The court did distinguish however that employees can make ADEA disparate impact claims, only applicants cannot. While the case against Google may turn out to have some underpinnings of intentional age discrimination, the bigger class action component would more than likely still be a treated as disparate impact claim. While the Eleventh Circuit based its decision on a close reading of the law, their decision is not precedential on the Ninth Circuit courts where the Google case is pending. Related Resources: The Deputy Commissioner of East Singhbhum district, Amit Kumar today directed the concerned administrative and police officials that no slackness will be tolerated in dealing with law and order situation. The directive was issued after Kumar convened an emergent meeting of the officials in the district headquarter here. Earlier, while addressing a 'Jan Samvad' in connection with deteriorating law and order particularly spurt in criminal activities in Mango, Azadnagar, Olidih and MGM police station areas under his assembly segment (Jamshedpur West) on Tuesday, Jharkhand Food, Public Distribution and Consumer Affair Minister Saryu Roy threatened to resign if immediate action was not taken to rein in criminals. No slackness in maintaining law and order will be tolerated, the DC said while asking the officials to identify government lands under Mango, Jugsalai and Jamshedpur Notified Area Committees and put up a board following a videography. Expressing dissatisfaction over the action taken by the Excise department to check sale of illegal liquor, Kumar reprimanded the Assistant Commissioner of the department and asked him to ensure that not a single drop of illegal liquor be sold in the distirct. The DC assured to provide adequate manpower, if needed, including magistrates and police force to conduct massive raid by forming team and report to him. Kumar reiterated that the excise and police department should not fulfill formalities by arresting small fishes in the trade but catch the big one indulged in selling illegal liquor in an organized manner. Strict action will be taken against erring officials if found adopting partial or negligent approach in this regard, he said. The DC also asked the Senior Superintendent of Police as well as Superintendent of Police (city) to gather adequate intelligence about the criminal gangs involved in gang war and crush them to ensure peace and tranquility. Besides, identify the criminals disturbing the prevailing law and order and recommend to bar their entry into the distirct, he said while asking to intensify patrolling to put rein on illegal lotteries, gambling etc. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Norway has evinced interest to collaborate with West Bengal in the fisheries sector in the near future, a state government official today said. "Norway has expressed an interest in collaborating with the state on technical knowledge in fishery and investment in this sector," state fischery secretary P K Mishra said on the sidelines of an interactive session with Norweigian Ambassador to India Nils Ragnar Kamsvag at ICC. The ambassador said Norway was keen on investment opportunities in this sector in India. The Scandinavian country is a big exporter of Salmon to various countries, including India. Another area of collaboration could be LNG terminals where Norway has in-depth knowledge. Kolkata Port Trust has shown interest in attracting Norwegian companies in setting up LNG terminals here. Norway is one of the big investors in India with its sovereign wealth fund, which is the biggest in the world with total investment of USD 13-14 billion. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Only three of Odisha's 568 hospitals have fire safety clearance, the National Human Rights Commission said today and issued a notice to the state government over the fire incident at a hospital in Bhubaneswar which has left 21 people dead so far. The Commission has taken suo motu cognisance of media reports that at least 21 persons died and more than 100 others were injured in the blaze that broke out at the SUM Hospital and Medical College on Monday evening. "In Odisha, out of 568 hospitals, only three have clearance of the department of fire safety," the NHRC said in a statement today. The Commission has issued the notice to the Odisha government's Chief Secretary and sought a report in the matter within six weeks, including on the relief and rehabilitation efforts for the next of kin of the deceased and the injured, an NHRC official said. "He has also been asked to inform about the steps or precautions taken or proposed to be taken by the state government to prevent recurrence of such mishaps," the official said. The Commission has observed that "callous attitude" and "lapses of the authorities", if any, amount to violation of right to life of the patients, and expressed shock as to how the state authorities "allowed" such a large number of hospitals to function without proper fire safety clearance. The NHRC has also observed that reportedly the hospital in question was warned as early as in 2013 for not having adequate safety measures but the hospital authorities "ignored" it. The Director General of Fire Service in Odisha Binay had Behera yesterday submitted a report to the state government on the fire that reportedly started in the Operation Theatre of the Dialysis Ward and spread to ICU and nearby wards. Behera has mentioned in the report that fire safety norms as per the 2013 guidelines were not followed by the hospital authorities, a government official said. "40 patients in a critical condition were admitted to different hospitals," the statement said. Detecting serious lapses in safety measures, Union Health Minister J P Nadda, who inspected the fire-ravaged hospital, today said all those responsible for the incident should be punished. The state government has ordered a high-level probe by the Director, Medical Education and Training, into the incident. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In the last 13 years only two Special Economic Zones (SEZs) have come up in Madhya Pradesh, according to an RTI query. "Since 2003, 10 SEZs had been notified in MP. But only a Multi Product SEZ at Dhar district's Pithampur Industrial area and Crystal IT Park having the status of IT SEZ in Indore have become operational," Chandrashekhar Gaud, an activist based in Neemuch told PTI citing information given to his RTI query. The two SEZs have been developed by Indore Audyogik Kendra Vikas Nigam, he said. "A mining product-based SEZ and an agriculture produce based SEZ to be developed in Jabalpur by Jabalpur Audyogik Kendra Vikas Nigam have been denotified," the RTI reply said. Aluminium products based SEZ to be developed by Hindalco Industries in Singrauli district and an IT SEZ that was to be developed by Parshwanath Developers in Indore have also been denotified, it added. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Impetus are developing their SEZs, which were notified in 2013, at different locations in Indore. The central government's levy of Minimum Alternative Tax (MAT) and Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT) on SEZ have come as a deterrent to SEZ expansion in MP and India, sources said. Pithampur Audyogik Sangathan head Gautam Kothari said they had urged the previous UPA government to roll back MAT and DDT on SEZ. He added that the NDA government was yet to take decision in this regard. "The industrialists are shying away to make investment in the SEZs due to burden of MAT and DDT," Kothari said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Amid Indo-Pak tension, Pakistan's media regulatory authority today decided to enforce a complete ban on Indian TV and radio contents from Friday and warned that the licences of those found guilty of violating the ban will be suspended. Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) decided to ban airing of Indian content from October 21 at the request of the federal government, it said. "The ban will come into effect at 3 PM on October 21, and radio and television stations which violate the ban will have their licences suspended without a prior show cause notice," PEMRA said in a statement. The ban extends to all Indian content on cable and radio being aired in . The authority also decided to cancel one-sided rights given to Indian media by the government of former military dictator Pervez Musharraf in 2006. PEMRA has already decided to get tough with Indian contents after complaints that most of the local channels were using more than five per cent foreign contents as allowed by it. The regulator on August 31 said that strict action would be taken against the channels airing foreign content more than the prescribed limit and traders selling illegal DTH sets. The decision was implemented from October 16 as PEMRA launched crackdown on those channels using foreign contents illegally. Earlier in October, PEMRA granted its chairman Absar Alam final authority to revoke or suspend licences of companies illegally using Indian content. Tensions have ran high between India and since the terror attack on an Indian army base in Uri on September 18. Later, India said it carried out "surgical strikes" across LoC and destroyed terrorist launchpads on September 28. Pakistan has denied any surgical strikes took place, but said two of their soldiers were killed in cross-border firing by Indian Army. A Palestinian woman approached Israeli border police with a knife in the northern West Bank today and was shot dead by officers, police said. A police statement said the 19-year-old approached officers at the Tapuah junction, ignored orders to stop and pulled a knife. "At this point the officers shot her," police said, adding that she was killed. Police identified her as a resident of Asira Al-Shimaliya, a village north of Nablus, which is located near the Tapuah junction. Also known as Zaatara junction, it has been the site of a number of violent incidents. The Palestinian health ministry said "a woman was killed after being shot by the occupation forces at Zaatara checkpoint." The incident comes as Jews celebrate Sukkot, a week-long holiday that has led to tensions with the Palestinians in the past. Violence since October 2015 has killed 234 Palestinians, 36 Israelis, two Americans, one Jordanian, an Eritrean and a Sudanese national, according to an AFP count. Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out attacks, according to Israeli authorities. Others were shot dead during protests or clashes, while some were killed in Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) For the first time after the Tamil Nadu Governor re-allocated the portfolios of ailing Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, state Finance Minister O Panneerselvam today presided over a meeting of the state cabinet to discuss, among other matters, the vexed Cauvery issue. Although the government did not release details of the agenda of the meeting, the Cabinet is understood to have deliberated on the ongoing Cauvery water sharing dispute with Karnataka, besides other subjects. The meeting also comes ahead of the scheduled onset of north-east monsoon later this month. The rains in December last year had wreaked havoc, flooding Chennai and nearby districts. Last week, Tamil Nadu Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao had allotted the portfolios including Home held by to Panneerselvam, till the time she returned to resume official duties. The government released photographs of today's cabinet meeting, where Panneerselvam was seen seated with a picture of placed on his desk. The nearly hour-long meeting was held in the backdrop of the ongoing Cauvery water sharing row with Karnataka and demands by Opposition parties for an all-party meeting on the issue. Farmers' bodies and political parties had staged a two-day state-wide rail blockade ending Tuesday, urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Management Board. The Raj Bhavan had last week in a release, said Paneerselvam, who holds the Administrative Reforms portfolio, in addition to Finance, "will also preside over cabinet meetings." The last Cabinet meeting held by was in July this year to discuss the state budget. 68-year-old Jayalalithaa was admitted to the Apollo hospital on September 22 after she complained of fever and dehydration. A specialist from London besides three-member team of doctors from AIIMS, Delhi, had also examined Jayalalithaa, who is being treated for infection with respiratory support. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With a picture of Jayalalithaa placed on his desk, Tamil Nadu Finance Minister O Panneerselvam today presided over a meeting of the state cabinet for the first time after the Governor re-allocated the portfolios of the ailing Chief Minister to him. Although the government did not release details of the agenda of the meeting, the Cabinet is understood to have deliberated on the ongoing Cauvery water sharing dispute with Karnataka, besides other subjects. The government, however, released photographs of the meeting, where Panneerselvam was seen seated with the picture of Jayalalithaa placed on his desk. The meeting also comes ahead of the scheduled onset of north-east monsoon later this month. The rains in December last year had wreaked havoc, flooding Chennai and nearby districts. Last week, Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao had allotted the portfolios including Home held by Jayalalithaa to Panneerselvam, till the time she returned to resume official duties. The nearly hour-long meeting was held in the backdrop of the ongoing Cauvery water sharing row with Karnataka and demands by Opposition parties for an all-party meet on the issue. Farmers' bodies and political parties had staged a two-day state-wide rail blockade ending Tuesday, urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Management Board. The Raj Bhavan had last week in a release, said Paneerselvam, who holds the Administrative Reforms portfolio, in addition to Finance, "will also preside over cabinet meetings." The last Cabinet meeting held by Jayalalithaa was in July to discuss the state budget. 68-year-old Jayalalithaa was admitted to the Apollo hospital on September 22 after she complained of fever and dehydration. A specialist from London besides three-member team of doctors from AIIMS, Delhi, had also examined Jayalalithaa, who is being treated for infection with respiratory support. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Philippine police van rammed into protesters, leaving several bloodied, as an anti-US rally turned violent today at the American embassy in Manila. At least three student activists had to be taken to a hospital after they were run over by the van driven by a police officer, protest leader Renato Reyes said. AP Television footage showed the van repeatedly ramming the protesters as it drove wildly back and forth after protesters had surrounded and started hitting the van with wooden batons they had seized from the police. Police later arrested 23 protesters, who broke into a line of riot police and hurled red paint at the policemen and a US government seal at the seaside embassy. "There was absolutely no justification for it," Reyes said of the violent police dispersal of about 1,000 protesters. "Even as the president vowed an independent foreign policy, Philippine police forces still act as running dogs of the US." The violence happened as the protesters gathered to demand an end to the presence of US troops in the country and to support a call by President Rodrigo Duterte for a foreign policy not dependent on the US, the country's longtime treaty ally. Duterte was on a state visit to China, where he is seeking to repair relations strained under his predecessor over territorial conflicts in the South China Sea. Duterte is also seeking to expand two-way trade and investments and seek financing for badly needed infrastructure projects. Amid an uneasy relationship with the US, Duterte has tried to reach out to China and Russia, bringing uncertainty to his country's long alliance with America. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said it was "time to say goodbye" to the US during a visit to China today, as the combative leader reconfigures his country's diplomatic alliances. Duterte is in China for a four-day trip that is expected to confirm his tilt away from Washington and towards Beijing's sphere of influence. During a speech addressing the Filipino community in Beijing, the firebrand president said the Philippines had gained little from its long alliance with the US, its former colonial ruler. "Your stay in my country was for your own benefit. So time to say goodbye, my friend," he said, as if addressing the US. "I will not go to America anymore. I will just be insulted there," he added, before once again referring to US President Barack Obama as a "son of a whore". Duterte, who took office in late June, said he was fed up with the Philippines' foreign policy being dictated by a Western agenda. "What kept us from China was not our own making. I will charter a new course," he said. Foreign policy under Duterte has dramatically shifted from that pursued under predecessor Benigno Aquino, who took Beijing to an international tribunal over its extensive territorial claims in the South China Sea and won a resounding victory. The move infuriated Beijing. But Duterte, who took office in June shortly before the tribunal ruling, has made a point of not flaunting the outcome. He has also suspended joint US-Philippine patrols in the South China Sea, and has threatened an end to joint military exercises. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Real Online Reviews, Real Lawsuits, Fake Defendants? Are businesses (or their reputation management companies) suing fake defendants in order to get rid of negative online reviews? That's the argument made by Eugene Volokh and Public Citizen's Paul Alan Levy recently in the Volokh Conspiracy. The duo looked at 25 court cases that followed a suspiciously similar pattern. First, a self-represented company, often with ties to a reputation management firm, sues a defendant for a defamatory online review. Then, the defendants agree to an injunction which quickly results in a court order to take down the allegedly offending content. Suddenly: poof, no more bad review. But when someone tries to find track down those defendants, they're no where to be found. Indeed, they might not even exist. The Case of the Missing Defendant Why conjure up a fake defendant and bogus litigation, you might ask? The answer, as Volokh and Levy explain, is fairly straightforward: [Google and other internet platforms] won't take down material (or, in Google's case, remove it from Google indexes) just because someone says it's defamatory. Understandable - why would these companies want to adjudicate such factual disputes? But if they see a court order that declares that some material is defamatory, they tend to take down or deindex the material, relying on the court's decision. Volokh and Levy detail a host of bizarre lawsuits that seem to follow nearly the same pattern. Here's a representative example. A Georgia man named Matthew Chan complains about his dentist on Yelp and other sites. Several months later, Yelp pulls the review, due to a court order. A Matthew Chan had been sued, but not the Georgia Chan. Instead, this Matthew Chan was in Baltimore -- a person who, according to Volokh and Levy, doesn't seem to exist. In another case, a debt relief company sues to remove a series of blog posts on abusive practices written by Steve Rhodes. But they don't sue Rhodes, who is based out of North Carolina. Instead, one lawsuit goes after Deborah Garcia of Rhode Island, another unlocatable defendant. Garcia stipulates to a libel judgment and Google is soon sent a court order resulting in Rhodes' posts being yanked from Google's search results. To make matters worse, the ostensible plaintiff's in both Chan's and Rhodes's case claim that their signatures on the complaint were forged and that they never authorized the lawsuits. That's One Way to Manage Your Reputation ... So what's going on here? The common thread in many of the cases, according to Volokh and Levy, seems to be a reputation management company headed by Richart Ruddie, which advertises a "lawsuit removal service" to get rid of "slanderous material" on the internet. Ruddie declined to comment on Volokh and Levy's investigation. But, if Ruddie is drumming up bogus suits to get negative content ripped from the web, he wouldn't be the first. The website Pissed Consumer reported earlier this year that online reputation management companies in California were allegedly using "suspicious plaintiffs" (read: fake) to file defamation suits for the benefit of third party companies. Some web platforms, for their part, are fighting back against the sort of schemes Volokh and Levy detail. Yelp will go before the California Supreme Court soon, to challenge a default judgment against a negative reviewer and a resultant court order telling Yelp to remove the post. (There don't seem to be allegations that the absentee defendant in that case is not real, though the Los Angeles Times notes that service was delivered to an address where she no longer lived.) Yelp argues that the orders violate the company's First Amendment and Due Process rights, though it has been unsuccessful in the lower courts so far. Related Resources: The Gujarat High Court today asked the state government to furnish details of the contractual appointment of two retired police officers who are accused in Ishrat Jahan and other alleged fake encounter cases after a PIL challenged their appointment. A division bench of Chief Justice R Subhash Reddy and Justice V M Pancholi asked government pleader Manisha Luvkumar to seek instructions from the government over the appointments of N K Amin and Tarun Barot, both accused in encounter cases, for a tenure of one year on contractual basis after their retirement. The court, while hearing the PIL filed by retired IPS officer Rahul Sharma, rejected the petitioner's request to grant interim stay against their appointments, and kept the matter for further hearing on November 16. Sharma said in his petition that the two officers have "criminal antecedents, and their appointment to senior positions in the police force is not conducive to general public interest." Amin was chargesheeted in two alleged fake encounter cases--one of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, Kauserbi, and Tulsi Prajapati, and the other of Ishrat Janah, Javed Shaikh alias Pranesh Pillay, Amjadali Akabarali Rana and Zeeshan Johar-- the petitioner said. He was arrested in both the cases and served eight years in jail since August 2007, and was discharged in the first case, while the Ishrat Jahan case against him is still pending before the trial court, Sharma said. After getting bail in August 2015, the state government posted him as SP Mahisagar, and after he superannuated on Aug 31, 2016, he was reappointed on contractual basis as SP of Mahisagar, "against the existing rules," Sharma said. Barot, also an accused in two alleged fake encounter cases of Ishrat Jahan and Sadiq Jamal, was charge sheeted and arrested in both the cases and released on bail in June 2015, the petitioner said. He superannuated in 2014 while still in jail, the petitioner said, but the government appointed him on October 13, 2016 as DSP Western Railway, vadodara, for a year on contractual terms. "The aforesaid contractual appointments of retired police officers with criminal antecedents is not in the interest of a healthy police administration...They are against the provisions of the Gujarat Police Act as also contrary to the directions issued through various circulars of the government of Gujarat," the petitioner claimed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a joint action Loni and Sahibabad police arrested two notorious criminals and jeweller from Kirawal nagar area of North-East Delhi and seized stolen gold and silver ornaments worth Rs 20 lakh, two country made pistols and four live cartridges from them. Senior Superintendent of Police, Ghaziabad, Deepak Kumar Singh said acting on a tip-of teams of both the police stations conducted raid at a place near Lal Bagh trisection of Kirawal nagar area of North East Delhi and arrested the three persons. Singh said the arrested trio have been identified as Ashoo, Faraz (both robbers) and Chetan Sehgal, a Karol Bagh resident and goldsmith who used to buy stolen gold from the duo. Around 18 cases of loot, theft and arms act are registered against Ashoo and Faraz in Ghaziabad. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The biennial election for six seats in the Maharashtra Legislative Council from as many local bodies will be held on November 19. The six candidates will be elected from the local governing bodies where the elected corporators of municipal corporations and councils will vote. The elected members will have a tenure of six years, stated an Election Commission (EC) release today. Gurumukh Das Jagwani, currently representing the Jalgaon local authorities constituency, is the lone BJP face for these six seats. Amarnath Rajurkar from Nanded, a close aide of Congress' state unit chief Ashok Chavan, is likely to get the party ticket again. The remaining four seats are currently represented by the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). While the Satara-cum-Sangli seat is represented by Prabhakar Gharge, Yavatmal is represented by Sandip Bajoriya, Pune by Anil Bhosale and Bhandara-cum-Gondia by Rajendra Jain. The notification for the polls will be issued on October 26. The candidates will have to file their nomination papers by November 2 and the last date for withdrawal of nomination is November 5. Counting of votes will be taken up on November 22. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Puducherry government-run engineering college will be upgraded into a technical university in the next couple of years, Higher Education Minister R Kamalakannan, today said. Inaugurating a two-day international conference on 'Advances in computational intelligence in communication' at the Engineering college here, Kamalakannan said, the upgradation of the 31-year-old college would take place under the central scheme of RUSA (Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan). The Centre would provide the funds required for the development of infrastructure and other amenities once the college is upgraded into a university, he said. The Minister called upon the management of the college to put in strenuous efforts to ensure that the institution notched the top rank from the present 49th rankit occupied at the all India level. The college principal P Dananjayanalso spoke on the occasion. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A big change in the health of families would be seen through the 'Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana' as it would save the beneficiary from inhaling smoke for an hour, equal to 400 cigarettes, while cooking at home on firewood, Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan said here today. Quoting from a survey on domestic pollution, he said it was "unfortunate" that Jharkhand had so many of such kitchens, even though gas connections came to the country around 1955. Addressing the gathering at the launch of the scheme by Chief Minister Raghubar Das, Pradhan lauded the chief minister for giving free gas connections with stoves and predicted that the state's fool-proof 'yojana' would enable 23 lakh poor families get LPG connections in the coming years. He said the government was also mulling pipeline gas in the next three-four years in Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Hazaribagh, Bokaro and Giridih districts. Pradhan lauded the state government for launching Direct-Benefit-Transfer (DBT) in kerosene sale in four districts -- Chatra, Jamtara, Hazaribagh and Khunti -- as the "first" in the country. Referring to state Food, Public Distribution and Consumer Affairs Minister Saryu Rai's statement that Rs 700 crore could be saved with the introduction of DBT, the Union minister said it would certainly be discussed at the international stock exchanges. In his speech, Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Sudarshan Bhagat said the Ujjwala Yojana would help protect the environment and it covered "women's dignity". (REOPENS CES 25) Pradhan claimed that six lakh new gas connections were given in the last two-and-a-half years, adding that there was a plan to add 27 lakh BPL families with the Ujjwala Yojana. He said the Sindri fertiliser plant would be revived, adding that it has been decided that the pipeline yojana would be through Bokaro. The pipeline would go from Allahabad to Haldia, he said, adding that Rs 50,000 crore would be spent to lay the pipeline for 2,500 km. Delhi High Court today said that the principles of natural justice applicable in criminal cases would not be the same for disciplinary proceedings being held by a university against its students. Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva made the observation in response to the argument on behalf of some students, including former JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, that JNU did not give them the due opportunity to defend themselves against the charge of indiscipline. Apart from the three, 18 other students have moved the high court challenging Jawaharlal Nehru University's (JNU) order holding them guilty of indiscipline in connection with a controversial February 9 event. The court heard arguments on behalf of Umar and listed the matter for further hearing on November 7 when it will hear the pleas of the other students. Till then, the interim position will continue, it said. The students have contended that not giving them due opportunity to defend themselves against the charge of indiscipline, violated the principles of natural justice. The court, however, said a university has to maintain strict discipline amongst its students and where disciplinary proceedings are being held, "you cannot expect the same principles of natural justice as you see in a criminal case." It, thereafter, asked the lawyer for the students to show the rules that JNU had to follow while taking disciplinary action against its students. Advocate Akhil Sibal, appearing for Umar, then told the court that the JNU Students Discipline and Conduct Rules say that due opportunity to defend themselves has to be provided. He said that in the case of Umar, no such opportunity was given to him. He was not even informed about the charges against him and was only told that a high-level enquiry committee was looking into the February 9 incident where he has to appear to explain his role and defend himself, he said. The students in their pleas have also challenged their punishment, which ranges from rustication for a few semesters to withdrawal of hostel facilities. The appellate authority of the university had rusticated Umar from JNU till December this year, while Bhattacharya was asked to be out of the varsity for five years. Kanhaiya, Khalid and Bhattacharya were earlier arrested in a sedition case in connection with the February 9 event on the campus against hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru during which anti-national slogans were allegedly raised. They are now out on bail. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ahead of investors summit in Madhya Pradesh, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today said proposals worth over Rs 2.78 lakh crore are at different stages of implementation. The two-day Global Investors Summit (GIS) at Indore aims to showcase the strengths and industrial prowess of the state, and provide a platform for interaction with Indian industry leaders, policy makers, investors and other stakeholders. "Investment proposals worth over Rs 2.78 lakh crore are already in different stages of implementation after GIS-2014," the Chief Minister said in an interview to PTI. Chouhan said he would be giving details of preceding four biennial summits at Indore. In the 5th edition of the GIS, the UK, the US, Singapore, South Korea and UAE are partner countries. Total 6,819 people had registered for participation but we could accommodate only 4,695 of them, Chouhan said. As many as 260 investor representatives from 37 countries are participating in this GIS. Besides, 368 Guests of Honour have consented to attend it. Investment proposals worth USD 66 billion were received at the 4th GIS in 2014. Expecting a good response from the summit, Chouhan said the state grants 84 types of approvals online through single window system. "Now we have moved forward from single window to single table. Under it the ministers, investors and myself sit together and after discussing the investors' problems solve them in one go," the Chief Minister said. On problems related to land allotment, he said the state has taken a very concrete arrangement for hassle-free land allotment to the investors. "We have created a land bank vesting 1.20 lakh acre land for industrial purpose. Of this, 25,000 acre is developed and about 7 thousand acre is under development," he said, adding that about 15,000 acre developed land is readily available for industrialists which they can obtain by booking online. To ensure availability of land at reasonable rates, the state government has decided to bear expenditure on external infrastructure in industrial area and to provide 40 per cent of expenditure on internal development by way of grant. Chouhan further said his government has implemented sector wise policies and taken special care that the processes and procedures are very simple to attract investments. He also informed that State Tourism Policy-2016 has been implemented and 9 thousand hectare reserved for tourism projects. The policy provides for a number of fiscal incentives in tourism sector. Referring to other initiatives to attract investments, Chouhan said the state government has implemented Science and Technology Policy-2016, which offers concessions to IT and electronics manufacturing units. "Now IT units can be set up on PSP land use also in the Master Plan areas of major cities. Arrangement has also been made to develop IT investment area in private sector," he said. A new package policy for promoting food processing units was announced last October which provides for tax exemption equal to 20 per cent of the cost of machines and plants. The Chief Minister also said that six food parks have been set up in the state. In health sector, the state has introduced Madhya Pradesh Health Sector Investment Promotion Scheme offering capital subsidy. Land at Re 1 premium can be made available for setting a medical college outside urban areas, he said. "We have come up with a Start-Up policy that provides for capital subsidy among other things. We have set up a Rs 100 crore Venture Capital Fund for promoting ventures based on innovative ideas," Chouhan informed. The Summit, he said aims at attracting investment by showcasing Madhya Pradesh's resources, potentials, investment prospects and investor friendly policies to the prospective domestic as well as overseas investors Madhya Pradesh is now among top five states of India in Ease of Doing Business. "Now Madhya Pradesh has been established as a creditable brand at national and international level. Global Investors' Summits have played a major role in it," Chouhan said. Industrial growth rate of the state has been about 8 per cent continuously and almost all major industrial houses have invested in the state and are willing to further increase their volume of investment. Thus, the investors' summits have "yielded very good results", he said, adding "Our Make in Madhya Pradesh initiative has been quite successful". The Chief Minister said the state received FDI worth Rs 6,614 crore in the last one year. The 'Make in India' initiative is opening up new vistas in Madhya Pradesh, too, he said. Chouhan said at the first GIS held in 2007, investment proposals of only USD 18.3 billion US dollar were received and 301 delegates attended it. Unitech Resorts Ltd was today directed by the Supreme Court to refund Rs 15 crore to 39 home buyers in its Gurgaon project, saying a property developer must respect the contractual commitment and live up to the terms of the contract. The apex court while directing Unitech Resorts Ltd to deposit Rs 2 crore in four weeks with Supreme Court registry said the firm by "delaying or procrastinating" the completion of the flats cannot base its stand on "excuses or any subterfuge" to advance the stand that constructions take time. "It needs no special emphasis to state that the property developer has to respect the contractual commitment. It has to live up to the terms of the contract and gain trust so that the people who dream of houses can repose faith in him. Not for nothing, it has been said, 'the foundation of any economy is faith and if faith is lost, everything is lost'. "True it is, there is a saying, 'Rome was not built in a day' but it is in the realm of metaphor," a bench of Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar said. The bench noted that Rs 16.55 crore was deposited by the 39 home buyers who had booked flats in Unitech Vista project in sector-70, Gurgaon and are before the court. It also noted that the company has deposited Rs 15 crore with apex court registry in compliance with an earlier order. "As Rs 15 crore has been invested and some interest has accrued, let the same be given to the respondents (home buyers) on pro rata basis on proper identification by the counsel. "The appellant company is directed to deposit a further sum of Rs 2 crore within four weeks hence," the bench said and posted the matter for further hearing on January 11, 2017. The apex court said, "the appellant (Unitech) by delaying or procrastinating the completion of the flats cannot base its stand on excuses or any subterfuge to advance the stand that the constructions take time". The apex court clarified that the aspect of interest and compensation payable to the home buyers for the delay in giving the flats on part of the company will be deliberated at a later stage. Taking the real estate company to task for saying construction takes time, the apex court said "the submission ... Rests upon the metaphor that 'Rome was not built in a day' but serves no purpose. It is flat or money. And nothing else." "The respondents (home buyers) collectively make a demand for refund of money because they have fought the litigation with ceaseless vigour and enormous hope," it said. The bench, which heard the grievances of some of the home buyers who were present during the hearing, recorded their anguish and said, "the voice of anguish is echoed in the court room as they say their dreams have been shattered and they have been constrained to pave the path of impecuniosity". The home buyers, through advocate Brajesh Kumar, refused to accept the proposal given by senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Unitech, that three towers will be completed by end of April 2017 and some of them will be given flats along with some amount as directed by the court. He said that Rs 5 crore deposited by the company with the apex court be distributed among the purchasers towards principal amount and flats be handed over by April 2017. Singhvi said the remaining Rs 10 crore deposited with the apex court should be given back to the company for facilitating the construction. The flat-buyers who were present in the court room and through lawyers outrightly rejected the proposal and demanded refund, along with interest and compensation. The apex court had on August 17, directed the embattled real estate firm to deposit Rs 15 crore principal amount by September-end to pay back investors and home buyers who were not given possession of the flats on time. Investors have told the court that they had paid money to the firm on time and the company was scheduled to hand over the possession of flats in 2012 but has not done till date. Over two dozen home buyers of Unitech's housing projects in Noida and Gurgaon had approached the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) after the builder had failed to give them possession of the flats as per schedule. The consumer forum had asked Unitech to refund the money to the home buyers with interest. The apex court had earlier asked the company to deposit an interim penalty of Rs 5 crore with the court registry after the firm challenged the order of the consumer forum which had asked the developer to pay Rs 5 crore penalty to three buyers of its Burgundy project. The court had said the penalty deposited with the court will be awarded to the buyers or returned to Unitech, depending on the outcome of the case. A leading pro-left civil society group here appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi today to scrap a deal with Bangladesh for building a coal-fired power plant near the fragile Sundarbans even as UNESCO warned against the project it says threatens the world's largest mangrove forest. "We have sent the Indian premier an open letter reiterating our demand to scrap the Rampal power project to save the Sundarbans through the Indian High Commission in Dhaka," National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral, Resources, Power and Ports spokesman Anbu Mohammad said. He said the letter was sent as construction process of the plant being built with Indian assistance near the World Heritage Site of Sundarbans was underway despite widespread criticism and protest from national and international experts and general public. Witnesses said police allowed five representatives of the group to hand over their letter to the High Commission as over 200 activists marched towards the mission at upmarket Gulshan diplomatic enclave. The protesters submitted the letter a day after police stopped them on their way to the Indian mission. The UN's culture and science agency UNESCO, meanwhile, issued a second statement in the past month yesterday urging Bangladesh to halt construction of the huge coal-fired power plant reiterating its fears that it posed a serious threat to the delicate ecosystem of the Sundarbans forest. "The Sundarbans in Bangladesh is part of the world's largest mangrove forests, home to the famous Bengal Tiger and a hotspot for dolphins, turtles, and birds. Millions of people depend on this labyrinth of tidal rivers for food, homes, and flood protection," the UNESCO statement read. It added, "The proposed Rampal power plant, a 1,320 megawatt super-thermal power plant located just 65 kilometres from the World Heritage property, poses a serious threat to the site". UNSECO identified "pollution from coal ash by air, pollution from wastewater and waste ash, increased shipping and dredging, and the cumulative impact of industrial and related development infrastructure" as four key concerns related to the plant's construction. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina earlier denounced protests against the proposed coal-fired power plant. "Let me tell you one thing, I would have been the first person to oppose the power plant had there been the slightest chance of damage to the Sundarbans," she had said. REOPENS FGN 10 The premier said the proposed plant would be a "ultra-super critical plant" having "all available ultra modern technology to prevent pollution" using "highest standard coal to be imported from Australia, Indonesia and South Africa" instead of low-grade Indian coal. "I would like to suggest those who are opposing the coal-based plants to visit Barapukuria Plant at densely crowded location (in northwestern Bangladesh). Despite being a sub-critical plant, it did not cause any harm to the environment and public life in the past 10 years and rather it made fertile the land there," she said. Bangladesh and India in July signed the landmark deal paving way for launching the construction work for the plant marking the transition in cooperation from electricity export to generation Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company Limited (BIFPCL), a joint venture enterprise, inked the deal with state-run Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) which was selected under an open international tender for constructing the plant at Bangladesh's southwestern Rampal near the Sundarbans. India's Exim Bank will finance the USD 1.49 billion project, scheduled to launch generating power in 2019 while Bangladesh will share 50 per cent of the profit with India while the produced electricity would be used entirely by Bangladesh. Bangladesh earlier earmarked Maitree Super Thermal Power Project as one of its fast track projects under a bilateral agreement signed during Hasina's India visit in 2010. Ignoring warnings by state authorities on burning paddy stubble, many in Haryana and Punjab are still continuing the banned practice, leading to health risks and adversely affecting soil health. Both the Haryana and Punjab governments have imposed a ban on burning of paddy residue and the erring can also be prosecuted by authorities. However, reports from various areas, including Karnal district in Haryana and Patiala district in Punjab, suggest that are still burning paddy straw despite being asked to shun the practice by the authorities, including the state pollution control boards and the agriculture departments. Farmers are also being provided subsidy on farm implements like happy seeder, rotavators, straw reapers for managing straw in a sustainable manner to stop the practice. In the last few years it has been noted that when stubble is burned in the two leading agrarian states, the pollutants enter Delhi, adversely affecting the air quality in the capital. The magnitude of the problem can be gauged from the fact that within a span of just three weeks in the current harvest season, authorities in Haryana have initiated action in 480 incidents of paddy burning. "We are taking action as stubble burning is a serious issue. Till yesterday, we have initiated action in 480 cases against those found burning the stubble," Principal Secretary, Environment Department-cum-Chairman, Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB), Shrikant Walgad told PTI today. He said fines were imposed on violators and cases under the Environment Pollution Act were tried by environment courts at Kurukshetra and Faridabad. Asked in which areas of Haryana the problem was more prevalent, Walgad said, "Generally it is the paddy belt of Kaithal, Kurukshetra, Karnal and Yamunanagar". Burning of paddy residue causes air pollution, smog and also poses a serious threat as it leads to medical problems such as breathing issues, allergies and asthma attacks. It causes emission of smoke and toxic gases such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, methane and nitrous oxide. It also leads to poor soil health by eliminating essential nutrients, agri experts said. Training workshops and awareness programmes for farmers are conducted from time to time in both states where peasants are informed about the harmful affects of stubble burning, officials said. The Haryana government has also directed district level committees, which have been constituted for this purpose, to monitor the incidences of crop residue burning through satellite images and submit a daily report to headquarters, Walgad said. Besides, the committees have been directed to ensure strict compliance with the provisions of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, and register cases against violators of this Act in special environment courts along with photographic and videographic evidence. A multimedia campaign would also be launched in Haryana under which the district administrations would conduct workshops, competitions and rallies, apart from making preventive and educative efforts, he said. While the air quality is being monitored through Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations of the Pollution Control Board, the incidences are monitored electronically and remotely through satellite images for which Haryana Remote Space Application Centre (HARSAC) has been engaged. Walgad also directed deputy commissioners to gear up their field machinery to monitor the incidences of violation of the ban. President Vladimir Putin faces a grilling over Russia's role in Ukraine and Syria at talks in Berlin today, on his first visit to the German capital since the Ukrainian conflict erupted. Host Chancellor Angela Merkel said the talks -- the first four-way summit for a year -- were aimed at "offering a brutally honest assessment" of progress on implementing the frayed Minsk peace accords for Ukraine. "Things are stalled in many areas such as the ceasefire, political issues and humanitarian issues," she told reporters yesterday. "We have to seize every chance we have for progress. I have to say that we cannot expect a miracle but it is worth every effort at this point." But Moscow poured cold water on hopes for headway toward a lasting resolution of the conflict. "We do not expect any breakthroughs," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters ahead of Putin's trip. "I don't expect easy talks," admitted German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who will also attend the meeting that is due to start after 6:00 pm (1600 GMT). "A peaceful solution is not yet in sight... But we will not stop trying." Putin has not visited Berlin since Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014, sending relations with the West plunging to their lowest point since the Cold War. Moscow's involvement in the Syrian civil war, which has deepened the diplomatic freeze, will also figure at the top of the agenda, Merkel said. Speaking of the "disastrous" situation in the besieged city of Aleppo, Merkel said she and French President Francois Hollande would talk to Putin "about somehow alleviating people's suffering". "Here too, we cannot expect miracles but it is essential to talk, even if the views are far apart," she said. In a small conciliatory gesture, Russia said it was extending an eight-hour truce in Aleppo, which is planned for Thursday, to 11 hours to allow civilians and rebels to leave the city's battered east. The move came after Hollande said he would work with Merkel to persuade Putin to prolong the ceasefire. Syria's second city, held by rebels determined to oust President Bashar al-Assad, has come under heavy bombardment since the Russian-backed military announced an offensive in late September to regain control of the east. Air strikes there have flattened numerous residential buildings and civilian facilities, in a campaign the European Union said could amount to war crimes. The Berlin meeting takes place on the eve of an EU summit in Brussels on relations with Russia, including sanctions over Ukraine, which come up for renewal at the end of the year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with the leaders of Turkey and Iraq about battle for Mosul, where Iraqi forces are fighting to oust the Islamic State group, the Kremlin said today. Putin "wished the Iraqi army and its allies complete success in their objectives," the Kremlin said in a statement on his conversations with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. He also informed the Iraqi leader about the "measures taken by Russia to defuse the situation" in the Syrian city of Aleppo. Moscow announced yesterday that Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo ahead of an eight-hour "humanitarian pause" in the battered city tomorrow. Putin is to attend a summit on Syria in Berlin later today with the leaders of France and Germany. In a separate conversation, Putin also discussed the battle for Mosul with Erdogan, the Kremlin said, but gave no further details. The long-awaited offensive against Iraq's second city began on Monday with air and ground support from a US-led coalition. Turkey said yesterday it will continue to take part in the air operation after Ankara agreed a deal with its coalition partners. Plans for the offensive were marked by tensions between Iraq and Turkey, which insisted on being part of the operation despite objections from Baghdad. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira and three others have been arrested by Hyderabad Police in connection with an FIR registered against them here in the alleged multi-crore rupee fraud involving the multi-level marketing company QNet. The Central Crime Station (CCS), a wing of Hyderabad Police, has made a breakthrough in a case of cheating which involved QNet and its Indian subsidiary M/s Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, by arresting four directors of Vihaan, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Detective Department) Avinash Mohanty told reporters here. Michael Joseph Ferreira (78), Malcom N Desai, M V Balaji and Srinivas Rao, all directors and shareholders of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd who were earlier arrested in Mumbai by Maharashtra Police, have been brought to city on PT (production transit) warrants and arrested, the DCP said. On October 13 last year, a complaint was lodged by one Suman Ghosh, an assistant manager in a private bank here, wherein he stated that he paid Rs 16 lakh (via DD) in the name of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, on the promise of getting business. But, they did not give him any business despite collecting the amount. Based on the complaint, a case under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating) of IPC, besides relevant sections of Prize, Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, Mohanty said. He said during the course of investigation into the case registered here, on October 8 (this year) they received an information from the EOW wing of Mumbai Police that the four accused persons, who are directors of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, were arrested and remanded in judicial custody. Subsequently, Hyderabad Police filed an application at a court in Mumbai seeking their custody in connection with the case registered by them. The Mumbai court then granted transit remand and the Hyderabad Police took Padma Bhushan recipient Ferreira and three others into custody and brought them to the city late last night. It has come to light that several cases have been registered against QNet and its earlier companies in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi and Telangana states, Mohanty said. Ferreira is a director of the accused company Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, which is a master franchise of M/s QNet in India. The four accused will be produced in a local court and police will file a petition seeking their custody for further interrogation, the DCP said. Police is also probing into the allegations that QNet cheated unemployed persons and software engineers on the pretext of providing employment and business, he added. Around 60 complaints have been received in the city against the company, police said. Former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira and three others were arrested by city police in connection with alleged multi-crore rupees fraud involving network marketing firm QNet, but got a quick reprieve from the high court which temporarily stayed further probe in the case. As Ferreira (78), a Padma Bhushan laureate, and others moved the Hyderabad HC and secured a stay on investigation till Monday, they will now be shifted to Mumbai on the directions of a local court. A copy of the HC order was filed in the lower court by the lawyers representing the accused after which it directed the police to send them back to the same jail from where they were brought here. Ferreira, Malcom N Desai, M V Balaji and Srinivas Rao were in judicial custody in Mumbai when they were brought here last night on production transit (PT) warrants. "They were arrested and produced before a local court and sent to judicial custody. The court, in compliance with the HC order, asked us to send them back to Mumbai. They were in judicial custody there and we had brought them to Hyderabad on PT warrant. As per the court order, they will be taken back to Mumbai where they are already under judicial custody," DCP (Detective Department) Avinash Mohanty told PTI. QNet and its Indian master franchise M/s Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd are allegedly involved in a cheating case. Ferreira, Desai, Balaji and Rao are directors and shareholders in Vihaan. They were earlier arrested in Mumbai. A complaint was lodged against them here on October 13 last year by Suman Ghosh, an assistant manager with a private bank, alleging that despite paying Rs 16 lakh (via DD) in the name of Vihaan Direct Selling India, he failed to get any business as promised. A case was registered under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating) of IPC, besides under Prize, Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, Mohanty said. During the probe, police received an information from Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) on October 8 that the four accused, who all are directors of Vihaan, had been arrested and remanded in judicial custody there. Subsequently, Hyderabad Police moved a court in Mumbai seeking their custody. According to Mohanty, several cases were registered against QNet and its associate companies in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, AP, Maharashtra, Delhi and Telangana. Police are also probing if QNet cheated unemployed persons and software engineers under the pretext of providing employment and business. Around 60 complaints have been received in Hyderabad against the company, police said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn will become chairman of Mitsubishi Motors after Japan's number two automaker announced a major investment in its scandal-hit rival, a report said today. The reported appointment would make Ghosn the head of three major automakers, including France's Renault which holds a major stake in Nissan. Nissan threw Mitsubishi a lifeline in May when it announced plans to buy a one-third stake in the crisis-hit automaker for about USD 2.2 billion, as the smaller rival wrestled with a mileage-cheating scandal that hammered sales. Mitsubishi declined to comment today's report in Japan's leading Nikkei business daily. Investors cheered that Ghosn - widely credited with turning around a nearly bankrupt Nissan and overhauling Renault - would take the helm. Mitsubishi's Tokyo-listed shares soared more than 10 per cent shortly after the Nikkei report. The stock closed at 522 yen (USD 5), up 7.85 per cent, while Nissan rose 0.52 per cent to 1,004.5 yen. After markets closed, Mitsubishi warned it was on track to lose 240 billion yen in the fiscal year to March, ballooning from an earlier net loss forecast of 145 billion yen as the scandal eats into its bottom line. The company has admitted it had been falsifying mileage tests for years, manipulating data to make cars seem more efficient than they were. Mitsubishi has asked its current chairman and president Osamu Masuko to stay on as president, the Nikkei said, citing unnamed sources. Ghosn will be officially appointed after a board meeting later this year, it said. Two of the affected vehicle models were being made for Nissan, which was the first to uncover problems with the fuel economy data. Mitsubishi is on the hook to pay more than USD 1.0 billion to Nissan and other suppliers as well as compensate customers who bought the affected cars. Nicknamed Le Cost Killer, Ghosn is known for overhauling Renault and Nissan starting in the nineties. Ghosn is being given the senior job so he can oversee Mitsubishi's turnaround, the Nikkei said. "It's easier for him to do things he did at Nissan, such as combining platforms, cutting costs and even closing plants," said Koji Endo, a Tokyo-based auto analyst at SBI Securities. "In order to implement such massive restructuring, you need someone as powerful as Ghosn to get things going." But Hans-Peter Wodniok, a Frankfurt-based analyst with AlphaValue, was less convinced. "I think (Ghosn) has enough work to be done at both Renault and Nissan," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) RLD activists held demonstrations at three toll plazas on Yamuna Expressway in support of farmers whose land was acquired by the government. They held the protest last evening for over two hours and party district chief Ramveer Singh Bharangar warned that they would hold a huge dharna if their demands are not met. The protestors were demanding free toll for farmers of the area, return of 10 per cent of acquired land to farmers, payment of compensation to them and a job for one member of the farmer's family whose land has been acquired. Collection of toll at Mant was suspended during the agitation but the movement of the traffic remained unaffected. They also presented a charter of demands to SDM Sadanand Gupta who will forward it to the Chief Minister. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Russia's state-controlled oil giant Rosneft and its partners' USD 12.9 billion deal to take over India's Essar Oil is not in violation of any US-EU sanctions against Russia, the US said today. "I don't think we see any violation of any US or EU sanctions stemming from this deal," State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner told reporters at his daily conference, when asked about the deal announced during BRICS Summit in Goa last week. Economic sanctions have been imposed on Russia for its actions in Crimea and eastern Ukraine. The deal was announced on October 15 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting of the leaders of the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa). "We've seen the reports in general about this oil deal. I'd refer you to the governments of India and Russia," he said. In the largest inflow of foreign direct investment in India, Rosneft bought a 49 per cent stake in Essar Oil's refinery, port and petrol pumps while Netherlands-based Trafigura Group Pte, one of the world's biggest commodity trading companies, and Russian investment fund United Capital Partners split another 49 per cent equity equally. The remaining 2 per cent will be held by minority shareholders after delisting of Essar Oil. The acquisition is the biggest in India and largest outbound deal for Russia. The all cash deal is expected to close in first quarter of 2017. Essar Oil, part of a steel-to-ports conglomerate controlled by the billionaire Ruia brothers, operates a 405,000-barrels-a-day refinery at Vadinar in Gujarat. The refining complex also has a captive power plant as well as a port and terminal facilities. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) After protracted negotiations, has agreed to lease a second nuclear submarine to India in a deal which will cost around $2 billion. Sources today said the deal was struck during the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 15 on the sidelines of the BRICS meet in Goa. However, it was not part of the slew of announcements made after the talks. The Defence Ministry and the Navy did not offer any information on the subject since it was a strategic platform coming under direct purview of the Prime Minister's Office. Alexei Nikolski, a columnist with Russian daily Vedomosti, which broke the story, wrote, "According to a source in the Russian defence industry, the long-discussed lease to transfer a multipurpose Project 971 nuclear submarine to India from the Russian Navy was signed in Goa." The Akula 2 class submarine is expected to arrive in Indian waters in 2020-21. The Indian Navy already operates an Akula 2 class nuclear submarine, INS Chakra (formerly known as K-152 Nerpa), which was leased by for 10 years and commissioned on April 4, 2012 after India paid for its completion of its construction and sea-trials. India had been keen to lease a second nuclear submarine. Indian defence sources had said that had linked the lease of the nuclear submarine to the agreement for four stealth frigates. In Goa, India and Russia announced an over $3 billion frigate deal. Under the agreement, two stealth frigates will be built in Russia while the other two would be built in India under license production. The Akula 2 class submarine, though not the latest class of nuclear-powered fast-attack submarines in the world, is still considered one of the most advanced. Capable of sailing at speeds up to 35 knots (nearly 65 km per hour) under water, it is among the quietest Russian submarines. Russia said today it was extending an eight-hour truce in Aleppo, which is planned for tomorrow, to 11 hours to allow civilians and rebels to leave the city's rebel-held east. The humanitarian pause, which was to run from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm (0500 GMT to 1300 GMT), has been extended "by three hours until 7:00 pm (1600 GMT)," senior military official Sergei Rudskoi said at a briefing at the defence ministry in Moscow. He said this was done after "numerous requests" from representatives of international aid organisations. The extra time "will allow representatives of the United Nations and the Syrian Red Crescent to carry out all their operations to ensure the evacuation of the sick and wounded, and also to allow peaceful civilians out of the city," the military spokesman said. The UN today said that all sides needed to back an extended ceasefire -- at least 48 hours -- before humanitarian convoys could roll. Moscow announced yesterday morning that Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo ahead of the pause in fighting and the halt held into a second day today. According to Moscow, once the pause begins six corridors out of the city will open for civilians with another two -- via the Castello Road in the north and Souk al-Hal in the city centre -- designated for rebels. Rudskoi also said Russian and Syrian planes were keeping 10 kilometres from Aleppo after Moscow pledged yesterday to stop bombing the city ahead of the truce. "Since 10 am yesterday in the area of Aleppo air strikes by Russia and Syrian forces have completely ceased. Russian and Syrian planes are not getting closer than 10 kilometres to the city," Rudskoi said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Russia unveiled a new state-financed Orthodox cathedral complex in a prime position near the Eiffel Tower in Paris today without the intended guest of honour, President Vladimir Putin. He cancelled his trip last week after French President Francois Hollande said Russia's bombing of the Syrian city of Aleppo could amount to war crimes. In a statement from Moscow, Putin said the more than 100-million euro (USD 110 million) complex, built around the cathedral which has five golden domes, was a "visible testament to the cultural and human ties between France and Russia". The theme was taken up by speakers at the low-key event today, where Russian Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky overlooked current tensions to say the project was "testament to the solidity of our bilateral relations." The Saint-Trinite cathedral, which will be consecrated by the patriarch of the Russian Orthodox church in December, sits on a prime location by the river Seine and is a striking illustration of Kremlin support for its national church. It has raised eyebrows not only because its five giant cupolas covered with 90,000 sheets of gold leaf rise up in front of the Eiffel Tower when viewed from the surrounding area. The project has also reportedly sparked concerns among France's intelligence agencies because of its proximity to nearby government buildings, including the foreign ministry just a short walk along the Seine. Putin has given it strong political and financial backing, acknowledging it was "very difficult" to realise but thanking France for its "continuous support". The Russian president has developed close bonds with the powerful Russian Orthodox church, whose patriarch Kirill has backed him personally and his policies such as military intervention in Syria. "We thank President Putin in particular. Without his personal commitment, it would never have happened," said bishop Antoine from the town of Bogorodsk, who was representing patriarch Kirill at the ceremony. Only the cultural centre was officially opened today, but journalists were allowed inside the cathedral for the first time ahead of its consecration on December 4. The growing Orthodox community in France, swelled by immigration from Russia as well as the Middle East and the Balkans, is not united behind the new cathedral, which will only be fully completed in 2017. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Recent visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Goa for BRICS summit may put the coastal state back on list of favourite destinations of Russian tourists whose falling numbers have worried local tourism industry. The tourism stake-holders feel that Goa would regain favour among Russians in the wake of Putin's visit. "Definitely, Goa would be on top of the mind of Russians as their President Putin was here and the event was widely covered internationally," Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) president Savio Messias told PTI today. The 8the BRICS summit was held between October 15-16, which was attended by the heads of the five-nation grouping, including Putin. "We can expect more Russian tourists this time, but economic situation in Russia should improve," Messias said. He said post BRICS, Goa would be in the focus of various countries besides Russia, which would open up opportunities of good footfall for the tourist season that has just begun. The first chartered flight from Russia had arrived in Goa on October 2. Around 15 million Russians travel overseas for their holidays every year. Of them, nearly 6 million travel to Egypt and Turkey while around 1 million travel to South East Asia and India. "According to figures from the Russian Federal State Statistics Service, the total number of Russians who visited India in the 2013-14 season stood at 1,12,695," said Vikram Varma, Legal Advisor to Russian Consulate in Mumbai. He said this number dropped to 51,076 in the 2014-15 season. "90 per cent of Russian tourists who arrive in India, come to Goa. With the visit of the Russian president in Goa for BRICS summit, every newspaper and television station in Russia has provided information and coverage on various aspects of Goa to the millions of Russians enjoying international tourism," Varma said. "I am confident that this publicity of Goa will translate into a larger bloc of Russians visiting Goa in oncoming season," Varma added. Quoting Russian statistics, Varma said that during 2013-14 Vietnam had 1,79,616 Russians whose number slumped to 1,70,140 during 2014-15 even as Thailand received 6,48,691 Russians in 2013-14 and 3,13,573 Russians in 2014-15. "It is evident that despite the political instability in Thailand, they received six times more Russian tourists than Goa/India. (However), though the cultural heritage and beach lines are far larger in India, we are yet to proportionally capitalise on it," he said. According to Varma, "there are clear impediments due to language for Russians travelling to India." He listed Goan taxi drivers and local police as among issues concerning Russians, which need to be adequately addressed. "Goa has wonderful minds capable of resolving such issues," he added. Shiromani Akali Dal has lined up a series of public programmes in the build up to next year's Assembly election even as party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal has been entrusted with taking key decisions including finalising the party candidates. The decisions were taken in the meeting of the party's core committee today chaired by the party patron in Chief Parkash Singh Badal at his residence. All the SAD and BJP senior leaders will jointly address public gatherings at these functions. "A war memorial will be inaugurated in Amritsar on October 23 in which the country's elite from the armed forces including major generals, former chiefs of staff, decorated officers and soldiers will take part," said General Secretary Harcharan Singh Bains. "This will be followed by the inauguration of the Heritage Pilgrimage (Virasat Darshan) around the Golden Temple Complex on October," he added. The state-level Punjab Day function will be held in Amritsar with a massive state level rally at Ranjit Avenue. Apart from the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister, senior central BJP leaders are also expected to take part in the function during which homage will be paid to warriors of the Punjabi Suba movement. The Jang-e-Azadi Memorial, a monument to pay tribute to the warriors of the country's freedom movement, will be inaugurated on November 6. A huge gathering of devotees will pay homage to the tenth master Guru Gobind Singh on his 350th Parkash Utsav on November 27 at Sri Anandpur Sahib. On the political front, the SAD will organise a massive rally at Moga on December 6, birthday of the Akali stalwart and Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Coming out in support of Karan Johar, veteran director Shyam Benegal today said it is sad that the "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" filmmaker had to reiterate his patriotism. Johar made a video appeal yesterday to those protesting the release of his directorial venture because it has Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. Raj Thackeray-led MNS has threatened to stall the movie's release on October 28. Benegal, 81, also questioned the constant demand made on people to prove their patriotism. "I feel very sad that he had to make a statement like that because how can anybody doubt his patriotism or his love for this country. Does it need to be reiterated everyday of his life or my life, because there is a demand on people to prove his patriotism? Why should one do that? "When you are born here, when you live here or make a livelihood here, you are going to live all your life in your country and you are not planning to leave or go anywhere else. You are an important and successful member of the society. Why should a person like him have to constantly say that he will not do this? Why have we come to this situation?," Benegal said. In the video, Johar had said that he was hurt to be called an anti-national because "country comes first" for him. Meanwhile, veteran scriptwriter Salim Khan tweeted that film industry is not divided and is the only place where talent is valued. "What works is talent & capability. This is true from the time of Dada Saheb Phalke till date. It is true that there are some amongst us who have aligned themselves to political parties for personal gain. "And yes we are a happy lot. If our films work we are happy and if a rivals film flops we are happy too. And we live happily ever after," he tweeted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Saudi Arabia plans to raise up to USD 17.5 billion from its first international bond issue, a media report said today, as analysts expect strong buyer interest. It would make the Saudi issue the largest ever from an emerging-market nation, said Bloomberg News, which cited two people with knowledge of the offer. The figure exceeds the USD 15 billion which an analyst had previously told AFP could be the value of the issue. Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, projected a budget deficit of USD 87 billion this year after a fall in oil revenues, which still account for most of its income. To cover the shortfall, Saudi Arabia is re-orienting its economy by imposing unprecedented subsidy cuts, slowing government projects, and in September it chopped cabinet ministers' salaries, among other measures. The kingdom last week began meetings with potential investors ahead of the bond issue. According to the sources cited by Bloomberg News, the kingdom plans to sell dollar-denominated five-year bonds yielding about 140 basis points above US treasuries with similar maturity. Saudi Arabia will also issue 10-year notes and 30-year securities at a premium, the report said. It added the proposed pricing is also higher than neighbour Qatar's bonds which offer a similar maturity. Christopher Dembik, global head of macroeconomic research at France's Saxo Bank, told AFP the kingdom's offer "is going to arouse strong interest on the part of investors", and could be four or five times oversubscribed. He said investors are desperately looking for yield, and the Saudi offer "will be certainly slightly above that of its neighbours because of its less favourable sovereign debt rating and a recent global trend towards higher sovereign rates," he said. Saudi Arabia has already issued domestic bonds but that has led to a tightening of bank liquidity, according to Patrick Dennis, lead Middle East economist at Oxford Economics in London. "So that's the main reason why they're now borrowing overseas," he told AFP. Saudi banks' loan-to-deposit ratio rose for the fifth consecutive month in August, reaching 90.8 per cent, because of faster growth in credit relative to deposits, Riyadh's Jadwa Investment said in a report this month. Borrowing abroad also reduces the drain on the kingdom's foreign reserves, Dennis said. Official data show those reserves declined to USD 562 billion in August from USD 732 billion at the end of 2014. The reserves remain very large but their rapid drawdown shows a need for diversified funding, Dennis said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court today reserved its order on maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala against the 2007 award of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (CWDT). "Judgement reserved. Interim order of October 18 to continue till further orders," a bench of Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar said. The bench asked the parties to file their written submissions by October 24 and said it would pass the order thereafter. The Centre, through Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, had raised a preliminary objection claiming that the CWDT award amounted to a final decree in the dispute and the apex court had no jurisdiction to hear appeals against the award of the tribunal. Continuing its argument, Karnataka today said that appeals filed by the state against the award of the tribunal was maintainable. Noted jurist and senior advocate Fali S Nariman, appearing for Karnataka, said the Supreme Court had the jurisdiction to adjudicate the appeals filed by the state against the award of tribunal. Senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, appearing for Tamil Nadu, also contended that the appeals were maintainable and no statute can take away the powers of the apex court. "Section 6(2) of Inter-state Water Disputes Act, 1956 cannot oust Supreme Court's constitutional appellate powers given under Article 136 of the Constitution," Naphade said. Similarly, Kerala also supported the stand of Karnataka and said that the appeals were maintainable. However, Puducherry supported the stand of the Centre that the appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala are not maintainable. Rohatgi reiterated his yesterday's argument that Supreme Court had no juridiction to adjudicate the appeals pertaining to the dispute relating to use, distribution and control of inter-state water or river valley. "The appeals filed by the states are not maintainable as per article 131 and 262 of the Constitution and the provisions of Inter-state River Water Disputes Act, 1956," he said. The attorney general said as per the constitutional provisions, the inter-state water dispute tribunal is headed by a retired Supreme Court or High Court judge and its decree has a force like that of a decree of the Supreme Court and thus the apex court cannot hear the appeals against its own order. The bench had yesterday said it would first go into the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala against the award of tribunal and then hear arguments on the report filed by the Supervisory Committee formed to assess the ground realities in the Cauvery basin region. The apex court-appointed panel had in its recent report suggested doing away with "outdated and unscientific water application techniques" to resolve the wrangle, saying both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu were facing water shortage which had created unemployment and financial hardship for the people. It had said the neighbouring riparian states needed to appreciate interest of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry to protect their established irrigation and Karnataka's aspirations for development and educate their people accordingly. The panel in its 40-page report had noted that farmers in both states were in severe distress and adequate crop compensation must be provided to them. Supreme Court had on October 4 directed Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs Cauvery water every day to Tamil Nadu from October 7 to 18 and deferred its order asking the Centre to set up Cauvery Water Management Board (CWMB) till it finally decided on appeals relating to the age-old dispute. It had yesterday directed Karnataka to continue to supply Tamil Nadu with 2,000 cusecs of water till further orders. The apex court had also directed the Centre to establish the CWMB, saying once it was constituted, its team would visit the sites to take a prima facie view of the ground reality and submit a report. On October 1, Karnataka had moved a review petition in the apex court against its three orders on Cauvery water release to Tamil Nadu and direction to the Centre to create the CWMB. In its review petition, Karnataka said "grave miscarriage of justice" has been caused to it pursuant to the three apex court orders of September 20, 27 and 30, by which it was directed to release 6000 cusecs of water till October 6 and the Centre was to constitute the Board by October 4. A bus driver of a private school was today arrested today for allegedly attempting to rape a four-year-old student on the school premises in Durg district of Chhattisgarh, police said. "The incident happened at an English medium school in Smriti Nagar area under Supela police station yesterday," City Superintendent of Police (Bhilai Nagar) Virendra Sathpathy told PTI. The accused driver Netra Tandi (35) has been arrested based on the complaint filed by the victim's relatives. "As per complaint, the girl, a student of KG-2, was sexually abused by the accusedon Tuesdayin the store room of the school," the officer said. After the girl reached home, she narrated her ordeal to the parents, following which the crime came to light, he added. Subsequently, parents along with some locals reached the school today and expressed their outrage and protested. After being alerted, a police team rushed to the school and arrested the accused after registering an offence against him, the SP said adding that further probe was on. Meanwhile, district authorities also reached the spot and assured the parents of appropriate action in the matter. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Despite growing defiance by the public, separatist groups, which have been spearheading the ongoing 103-day-old agitation in Kashmir, today extended the strike till October 27. In a statement, the separatist camp called for protests for three days outside the residences of legislators on Friday and separate rallies to various places on Monday and Tuesday. The separatists accused the legislators of justifying participation in elections in the name of 'sadak-pani-bijli' (road, water and electricity) and motivating people to vote. The separatist camp, comprising both factions of Hurriyat Conference headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, and JKLF led by Mohammad Yasin Malik, also announced 17-hour relaxation from 5 PM from October 22 to October 25, while asking people to observe complete strike during the rest of the days. The extension of the agitation came even though more and more people are defying the separatist strike call by resuming their day-to-day activities in the valley. Many shops and business establishments are remaining open in civil lines areas of Sanat Nagar, Jawahar Nagar, Rajbagh and Bishembar Nagar and in the outskirts of the city, a police official said. He said a large number of roadside vendors set up their stalls on the TRC crossing-Batamaloo axis passing through Lal Chowk, while there was increased movement of private vehicles and auto-rickshaws in the city. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Regional dynamics does play a role in Afghanistan, the United States has acknowledged after former Afghan President Hamid Karzai's remarks that situation in the country is dependent on America and Pakistan's interest along with the two nations' relations with India. "Well, as much as you know, regional dynamics play into any country's domestic situation, there's an element of truth to that, which is why we're always working hard to push Pakistan to go after those terrorist groups that seek safe haven on their territory," State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner told reporters yesterday. "We are pushing for more dialog between Pakistan and India, which we believe will help reduce tensions in the region. We have seen India play a more supportive role with regard to Afghanistan and support for the Afghan government," he said. Toner noted that for the conflict in Afghanistan, there's a range of different regional dynamics that play into it. "It's just a matter of fact. "But our goal is to continue to support the Afghan military as it steps up its fight against the Taliban and pushes much needed reforms in the economy and the democratic system," he said, adding the US supports an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process. Toner was responding to a question on Karzai's latest statement that America and Pakistan's interests and the two countries' relations with India determine events in the war-torn Afghanistan. "I think a combination... Of the two, of the US interests in the region and Pakistani interests in Afghanistan and the nature of their relations with India has been determining events in Afghanistan - negatively, unfortunately," Karzai told RT in an interview. The deputy spokesman said America is supportive of the peace process and is not looking to engineer it, even as he refused to say anything on its role in the latest talks between the Afghan Government and the Taliban in Qatar. "I'm not going to speak about what our role may or may not be with regard to this new initiative, but as we made clear before, we believe that a peace accord is really the primary or the only pathway to ensuring peace and stability long-term in Afghanistan," Toner said. "We have supported and continue to support an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned process for negotiated resolution to the conflict there. And we're committed to promoting that as much as we can," he said when being asked about the talks that took place in Doha. While making it clear that the peace process needs to be Afghan-lead and Afghan-owned, Toner said the US is not looking to engineer or supervise it in any way, shape or form. "This is something the Afghan government and the Taliban would have to take on their own," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Eighteen fishermen from Tamil Nadu were arrested today by Sri Lankan naval personnel on charges of fishing in Lankan territorial waters, officials said. The fishermen from here, who set out for fishing in a country made boat, were arrested by Lankan personnel off Neduntheevu, Fisheries Department Deputy Director K T Gopinath told PTI. The fishermen have been taken to Sri Lanka, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As part of the ongoing year-long celebrations of 350th 'Prakash Utsav' of Guru Gobind Singh, Punjab government has decided to ply special buses from different parts of the state to ferry devotees to Takht Patna Sahib in Bihar, the birth place of the tenth master of Sikhs. These buses will run from December 1 till the culmination of the mega event at Patna Sahib on January 7 next year. A decision to this effect was taken during a meeting presided over by the Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal here today. The Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who also attended the meeting, has asked the Chief Secretary to work out the modalities for plying buses from different destinations across the state to facilitate the devotees to have hassle free pilgrimage to Takht Patna Sahib, an official release said. These buses would halt at different Gurudwaras enroute for accommodation and free community kitchen (langar) at night as per the schedule being chalked out by the SGPC authorities. The special buses would run in addition to the charted trains already allotted by the Railways from different places across the state to Patna Sahib. The Chief Minister also gave his approval to organise a grand show at Virasat-e-Khalsa, Anandpur Sahib on November 27. Another mega event would be held in Delhi on December 11 by the state government in coordination with DSGMC. It was also decided to hold a mega Kirtan Darbar for the first time at India Gate, New Delhi on November 25 while a Kirtan Darbar would be organised at Anandpur Sahib on November 26. The Chief Minister also decided to extend special invitation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be the Chief Guest of the functions to be held at Anandpur Sahib and New Delhi. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal today launched a scathing attack on state Congress chief Amarinder Singh, asking whether the latter was feeling "ashamed" to talk about his tenure in the state by maintaining a "complete silence" about it. Hitting out at the former Congress chief minister, who has launched an aggressive campaign ahead of the polls where he often targets the Akalis, Sukhbir said, "I am seeing that in his campaign, Amarinder not even once mentionied about his five years tenure (200-207). Is he ashamed of his five years rule. I challenge him to mention just five things or achievements which he has done." "Whenever we (Akalis) fight elections, we talk about our works, the development we have undertaken," Sukhbir claimed. Taking a dig at the PPCC chief over his statement that he will be fighting his last elections in 2017, Sukhbir, who is also SAD president, said, "I want to say one thing, a person who says he is going to fight the last elections of his life, people should never vote for him. It means that he just wants to grab power before retiring." When reminded that even Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had reportedly said during last assembly polls that it will be his last election, Sukhbir, who was interacting with reporters here, quipped, "but he (Parkash) is fighting again." He then quickly added, "Badal Sahib is an institution, there are few parallels to people like him. I am not saying this because I am his son. Nobody can match his acumen and energy levels. Even I can't match his energy levels." The Deputy Chief Minister also targetted Amarinder's "Kisan Yatra" roadshow. "Actually, he (Amarinder) is feeling very frustrated. He has started Kisan Yatra. From Chandigarh he went to Bhagapurana, but he did not meet any farmer along the way, he did not go to any field, after that he went to Kotkapura in Faridkot. From there he gave a lecture and went straight to Ludhiana. Is this Kisan Yatra," he said. "Let me clear you one thing, Amarinder knows nothing about farming. He never had any field, he never did any farming. Ask him where his field is and when was the last time he went there to tend to his crops," Sukhbir said. "Now, they (Congress) have started to spread another lies telling farmers they will waive their debts (if they come to power in Punjab). Why don't they begin from Himachal Pradesh where they are in power. They have a government in Karnataka, where maximum number of suicides are taking place, let them do it there (waive farmers' debts)," he said. Sukhbir alleged, "What did Capt Sahib (Amarinder) do for the farmers during his tenure. You know what, he has collected a group of liars, it is not a Kisan Yatra, but a 'Jhoot Yatra'". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hailing India's diversity and pluralism, Myanmar's iconic leader Aung San Suu Kyi today invoked Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, saying people of her country drew huge inspiration from the two Indian greats in their yearning for democracy. Suu Kyi, who led her National League for Democracy to wrest power from the military junta in a historic election earlier this year, said the new government wants to significantly deepen engagement and expand existing cooperation with India, asserting that the intention is to "depend on each other". "In our struggle for democracy, we have been helped greatly by the thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. The two great leaders of Indian Independence movement have inspired with their vision and with their belief," Suu Kyi said in her press statement in presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Modi held extensive talks with her covering entire expanse of bilateral ties, signalling the importance she holds in Myanmar's polity and government though she is the State Councillor and Foreign Minister. Describing her visit here as "happy and extremely fulfilling", Suu Kyi said the visit has confirmed the "long-standing friendship and trust" that exist between the two countries. She said "very very" wide range of subjects were covered in her talks with Modi. "It is our intention to engage more closely together, to depend on each other," she said. Her comments were seen as allaying apprehension here that Myanmar was getting close to China which has been increasing its footprint in that country and making huge investments in several major projects there. "We as a nation struggling to make democratic culture take root in our country, we believe India will be able to help us. We are going to be cooperating in areas of construction, energy, culture and education," she said. Referring to her meeting with top business leaders, Suu Kyi said she urged them to invest in "trust" so that trade can flourish. "We have much to do. We are behind India in the field of development and in the field of politics. But we are confident that we will be able to make up for the lost time," she said. Observing that Myanmar was much ahead of many other countries in South Asia a few decades ago, she said, "Things change, life changes unexpectedly but with good friends and with commitment and endeavour on our side, we are confident of making up." Suu Kyi said her aim now was to bring peace and stability to Myanmar and to the region and beyond. "We have been trying to bring peace to our country for decades. We hope that time has come for us to be able to say we have made the breakthrough and we are now firmly set on the path to a union, that will be a union which will be just to people. "For this too we look up to India with its experience of federalism, to teach us how we bring all our people into the process and to be part of our search for peace, stability and enduring federalism," she said. Talking about India's spiritual resources, she said the country's pluralism and federal structure were inspiration to Myanmar. "We always admired India as the greatest democracy in the world and for being able to maintain the system despite many challenges that have raised their heads since Independence," she said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) After MNS, Telangana BJP MLA Raja Singh has opposed screening of upcoming Bollywood film "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil", starring Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. Singh threatened that he would "attack" theatres in entire Telangana, starting from his constituency Goshamahal, if the film is screened there. "My idea is that a message should go to Pakistan in all possible ways about India's opposition and public anger against Pak-sponsored terrorism," Singh said. "There is widespread anger in the country against Pakistan at the moment following the neighbouring country's support to terrorism against India," the MLA claimed. He alleged that the tax paid by Pakistani actors to their country is used against India. The filmmaker should know that there are many talented actors in India itself, Singh said. The legislator said he is also "campaigning against China which is supporting Pakistan". Singh was in earlier for opposing a proposed beef festival here. The Raj-Thackeray led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) has opposed the movie and threatened to break glasses of film theatres screening it. "We will oppose the screening of the movie everywhere in the state (Maharashtra). If any multiplex operator dares to screen the film, they (operators) should remember that multiplexes are decorated with expensive glass sheets," MNS leader Amey Khopkar had said. Under pressure over opposition to the upcoming release of "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil", Johar had yesterday said he will not "engage with talent" from Pakistan in future and made a fervent appeal against stalling the blockbuster. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Taliban today rejected reports of secret meetings with the Afghan government in a bid to resume long-stalled peace negotiations, insisting that their hardline policy remains unchanged. Afghan officials yesterday said they held two meetings since September in Doha, where the Taliban maintain a political office, after the was first reported by Britain's The Guardian newspaper. But Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid in a statement rejected any reports of talks or meetings. Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai, Afghanistan's intelligence chief, and National Security Advisor Mohammad Hanif Atmar had attended one of the Qatar meetings, local Tolo television said citing a presidential palace source. "The representatives of the Islamic Emirate have not met with Stanekzai or any other officials. Our stance about the negotiations has not changed. Our policy is very clear on that," Mujahid said, referring to the Taliban's official title. The Taliban have long insisted on the complete withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan as a precondition for peace talks with the government. The Guardian said the talks were attended by Mullah Abdull Manan Akhund, brother of Taliban founder and long-time leader Mullah Omar who died in 2013. A senior American diplomat was also present in the Qatar meetings, the newspaper said citing a Taliban official. Pakistan - the Taliban's historic backers - have hosted several rounds of international talks over the last year to jumpstart peace negotiations, which yielded little progress. The dialogue process ground to a halt when the US killed former Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour in a drone strike in May. The insurgency has shown stubborn resilience under new Taliban leader Haibatullah Akhundzada, attacking northern Kunduz city for a second time and threatening the capital of the southern opium-rich province of Helmand. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Home-grown auto major has increased prices of its passenger vehicles by up to Rs 12,000 across models to offset rising input costs. "We have hiked prices of our passenger vehicles by one per cent ranging between Rs 5,000 and Rs 12,000 due to rising input costs," Mayank Pareek, President, Passenger Vehicles Business Unit, Tata Motors, told PTI. He said prices of raw materials such as steel and zinc have gone up prompting the company to take such a step. sells a range of passenger vehicles, including the entry-level small car Nano, newly-launched hatchback Tiago and crossover vehicle Aria, which were priced at a range of Rs 2.15 lakh to Rs 16.3 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). Home-grown rival Mahindra & Mahindra has hiked prices of some of its passenger and small commercial vehicles by up to 1 per cent from this month. In August, Hyundai Motor India had hiked prices by up to Rs 20,000 across its models while Maruti Suzuki India had also done so for its various models by up to Rs 20,000. Tata CLiQ, Tata group's e-commerce venture, today said it has appointed Vikas Purohit as its Chief Operating Officer. The company has also appointed Amit Rawal to head its 'Luxury' business. Purohit will spearhead commercial, seller management and digital marketing functions, the company said in a statement. He was one of the first few employees of Amazon.In and comes with a strong e-commerce and fashion retail experience. He has also previously held leadership positions at Reliance Brands, Tommy Hilfiger India and Aditya Birla Group's Madura Garments. "Tata CLiQ has witnessed a multi-fold growth since its launch in May this year... These appointments come at a time when TataCLiQ is at a crucial growth juncture and is expected to launch two new categories and the luxury portfolio," it said. Rawal, who will focus on building Tata CLiQ as a luxury-lifestyle destination, had founded Elitify.Com. He has also worked with Thomson Reuters and Deloitte Consulting. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Highlighting the advantages of Hyderabad as an investment destination, Telangana Industries Minister K T Rama Rao today sought investments from US investors in pharma and medical-related sectors. Rao, who is on a visit to America, interacted with industry leaders from pharma, medical technology companies on the sidelines of Medical Technology Conference - AdvaMed 2016 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a Government release said here. Noting that Telangana ranked high in ease of doing business index and has implemented a business-friendly industry policy, he explained the "unmatched advantages Telangana offers in the fields of healthcare, pharma and medical technology devices". "The Minister drew the attention of the industry leaders, about a 100 in number, to the measures Telangana Government is taking to further strengthen the USD 50 billion extant life sciences industry in Hyderabad. Rama Rao mentioned the state-of-the-art Pharma City and Medical Devices Park that Telangana is setting up near Hyderabad," the release said. Rao held one-to-one discussions with leaders from healthcare, pharma and medical devices industries, it said. In the meeting with Gary Pruden, Worldwide Chairman, Medical Devices, Johnson & Johnson, Rao held discussions on topics ranging from manufacturing, intellectual property rights, to regulatory issues. He had a meeting with Omar Ishrak, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for medical technology firm Medtronic on the sidelines of AdvaMed 2016, it said. Benson Smith, Chairman, President and CEO of Teleflex Inc, met Rao. The Minister asked the medical devices firm to consider investing in Telangana. The minister also met Kevin Lobo, President & CEO of Stryker Corporation. Earlier, Rao met Paul Kalil, Vice-President and Vemuri Murthy, India Liaison of American Heart Association in Chicago. The Minister urged them to join the State Government for a collaborative effort to reduce cardiac risks in Telangana. The association said they will soon visit Hyderabad to formalise the engagement, the release added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Trinamool Congress MP and the party's youth wing president Abhishek Banerjee's health condition improved today, a day after he met with an accident on NH-2 near Singur, while returning to Kolkata from Murshidabad. "The condition of Abhishek Banerjee is much better. He is completely out of danger. The CT scan report was normal. An MRI has also been conducted today. We are waiting for the report and are planning to shift him to a normal cabin in a day or two," hospital CEO P Tandon said. Abhishek is presently in ITU, Tandon said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Attacking the NDA government over triple talaq and uniform civil code, TMC MP Sultan Ahmed today accused the BJP of trying to infringe into the fundamental and religious rights of Muslims and stir up communal passion in the country. Ahmed said the BJP should leave it to the Muslim community of the country to decide on the issue of triple talaq. "This will be a disastrous decision to take for the secular and pluralistic fabric of our country," Ahmed told PTI. Asked about the legibility of triple talaq for Muslim women, Ahmed, a prominent minority face of the TMC, said, "It is a religious issue of the Muslims and only they can decide on it." Ahmed said that the matter of BJP trying to interfere in triple Talaq and uniform civil code would come up in the the All India Muslim Personal Law Board's three-day triennial convention in Kolkata starting from November 18. Ahmed wondered if the BJP government was really so concerned about the condition of Muslim women it should create jobs for them, higher education facilities and facilitate social empowerment. "But the BJP will not address those issues as it has only this triple talaq issue to address," he said. For the first time in India's constitutional history, the Centre on October 7 had opposed in the Supreme Court the practice of triple talaq, 'nikah halala' and polygamy among Muslims and favoured a relook on grounds like gender equality and secularism. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Twelve days after the filing of the charge sheet in the Kopardi rape and murder case, which has generated much heat across Maharashtra in the last three months, trial in the case began in a local court today. Noted criminal lawyer Ujjwal Nikam, who has been appointed as the special public prosecutor in the case, today opened the case by describing the charges of criminal conspiracy for committing rape and murder against all the three accused. The accused-- Jitendra Babulal Shinde, Santosh Gorakh Bhawal and Nitin Gopinath Bhailume-- were produced in the court under heavy police presence. Stressing that criminal conspiracy charge need to be framed against all the accused, Nikam told the court that four to five days before the incident, the accused had stopped the girl and tried to molest her. "Four to five days prior to the incident, all the accused had interrupted and obstructed the victim and accused Jitendra alias 'Pappu' Shinde had tried to drag her to the nearby field," Nikam said, adding, however, when she resisted, the other two accused said that they would see her later. "Four days later the incident of rape and murder occurred and it shows the complicity of other two accused," Nikam argued in the court. The 15-year-old victim was raped on July 13 at Kopardi village in Ahmednagar district, allegedly by the trio, who also inflicted injuries all over her body and broke her limbs before throttling her. On October 7, Ahmednagar police filed the charge sheet running into over 350 pages before a sessions court in the district in which the trio has been charged under IPC Sections 302 (murder), 376 (rape) and relevant sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Nikam said that on the day of the incident, all the accused were moving on their motorcycle and were keeping a watch on the movements of the victim. He urged the court that besides the charge of criminal conspiracy, the charges of murder, rape and those related to relevant sections of POCSO Act- are also required to be framed against the trio. Nikam said with the statements of 70 witnesses, the prosecution will complete the trial expeditiously. The Kopardi incident proved to be the trigger for the silent marches (mook morchas) taken out by the Marathas across the state as the victim belonged to the community, while the culprits are Dalits. Through their campaign they have also raised long-pending demands like quota in education and jobs. (Reopens LGB 7) Meanwhile, one of the accused, Nitin Bhailume, filed an application in the court seeking his discharge in the case. The trial in the case will continue tomorrow. The Kopardi incident had sparked a huge public outrage and political slugfest with the Congress demanding Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis's resignation on "moral grounds". Fadnavis had assured the victim's family that the matter will be heard in a fast track court and announced a solatium of Rs 5 lakh. They say the Myanmar president - and the country's intelligence - has got it right. Senior officials in Indian intelligence, who have closely followed the Rohingya armed militancy for decades, told Mizzima that the AqaMul Mujahideen (AMM) leaders were indeed trained in Pakistan. "Later they recruited Rohingya youths in Rakhine and trained them in jungle bases on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border," said one official of India's Military Intelligence, who preferred not to be named. He said that AMM is a new armed group that originated from the Harkat-ul-Jihad Islami-Arakan (HUJI-A) which enjoys close relations with the Pakistan Taliban. The HUJI-A chief is Abdus Qadoos Burmi, a Pakistani national of Rohingya origin, who it is claimed recruited Hafiz Tohar, 45, from Kyauk Pyin Seik village in Maungdaw in Myanmar and arranged for his training in Pakistan. Tohar is said to be heading the AMM now and Qadoos Burmi is reported to be close to the Lashkar-e-Tayyaba/ Jamaatud Dawa (LeT/JuD), headed by Hafiz Sayeed. Mizzima had earlier reported the LeT-JuDpresence especially that of its humanitarian front Fala- I - Insaniyat in Rohingya relief camps in Rakhine State after the 2012 riots. Qadoos Burmi developed the HUJI-A network in Bangladesh, using the remote hills on its border with Myanmar, where coverage by Bangladesh security forces was at best limited. After training a few promising recruits in Pakistan, they were sent to set up bases on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, where the new Rohingya recruits were trained in combat techniques and use of explosives. That was during the 2013-14 phase when Bangladesh police and security forces were busy tackling violent political unrest unleashed in their country by Islamist opposition parties against the ruling Awami League. Bangladesh intelligence zeroed in on a few such bases but security forces raiding them found they had just been abandoned by inmates days, sometimes hours, before the raids. Senior Bangladesh intelligence officials said that in July 2012, Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD)/ Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) started the Difa-e-Musalman-e-Arakan conference in Pakistan to highlight the Rohingya cause. "Subsequently, senior JuD operatives, Shahid Mahmood and Nadeem Awan, visited,in August 2012, Bangladesh to establish direct contacts with Rohingya elements based in camps along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border," said a top Bangladesh intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity. Indian intelligence officials say that Pakistan-linked Rohingya terror groups have also been noticed in Mae Sot area on the Thai side of the Thai-Myanmar border. Frequent movement of Maulana Ustad Wazeer @ Noor Kabir and Fareed Faizullah, both Pakistani nationals of Rohingya origin, have been noticed in Thailand border areas, they said. Wazeer and Fareed have been recruiting Rohingya illegal migrants who fled from Bangladesh to Thailand or Malaysia but could not get necessary documentation in those countries. "These migrants were on the edge and recruiting them was not so difficult," said one Indian intelligence official. He said that Indian security forces found Rohingya jihadis fighting alongside Pakistani fighters in Indian Kashmir. One of their top leaders, Chotta Burmi, was killed in Indian Kashmir alongwith JeM commander Adil Pathan in October 2015. Chotta Burmi was found to be sharing the dias with Le Tsupremo Hafiz Sayeed in a picture used in a Mizzima report. Earlier, the Bangladesh authorities arrested Maulana Shabeer Ahmed, a Pakistan-based Rohingya operative in 2012 who revealed that he was coordinating with Rohingya militants in Bangladesh on behalf of Jaish e Mohammed (JeM). Shabeer Ahmed was involved in carrying out illegal financial transactions from Pakistan to Bangladesh, said a Bangladesh intelligence official. He said that besides Qadoos Burmi, another Rohingya militant network said to be operating out of Pakistan is headed by Maulana Abdul Hamid, a Pakistan national of Rohingya origin, who is reported to be active along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border. Abdul Hamid maintains close links with LeT, according to Indian intelligence. It says that Pakistan's ISI's special operations cell coordinates the activity of the different Rohingya groups, whose leadership is based in the country. Rohingya community sources say that Nur Hussain Arakani, head of the Pakistan chapter of Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO), has been collecting funds and relief material from Hafiz Mohammed Sayeed of JuD/ LeT and Maulana Abdu Rauf of JuD-linked Falah-e-Insaaniyat foundation (FIF) in 2015. The RSO is the mother group, from which a number of more militant offshoots have now emerged. Both India and Bangladesh are said to be very worried over the new spurt in Rohingya militancy. Bangladesh's secular Awami League government, fighting a rising curve of Islamist militancy at home, has come forward to extend all cooperation to Myanmar in its efforts to curb Rohingya militancy. "We cannot rule out that these Rohingya armed groups may have close links with Bangladesh's homegrown jihadis and could share hideouts, finances and sources of weapons supply," said a senior official of Bangladesh's Counter-Terrorism Centre. He said Bangladesh and Myanmar needed to cooperate in handling a problem that both shared. India also suspects Rohingya militants could use Indian territory to attack Myanmar tourists and pilgrims and may be used by Pakistan to hit at Indian targets as well. "They persuade the young people using religious extremism, and they have financial support from outside," said a Burmese language statement from the President's office. "They are broadcasting their videos on the Internet like ISIS, Taliban and al Qaeda. They now have 400 insurgents fighting in Maungdaw region." Several videos showing armed men speaking the language of the mostly stateless Rohingya have circulated online this week. According to a Reuters report, the agency has not been able to verify the authenticity of the videos, but government officials say they believe they show the perpetrators of the attacks that began on October 9. An Indian-American social-worker running for the US Congress from New Jersey is confident of winning the seat and dislodging a four-time Republican veteran in the November 8 general elections due to Donald Trump's rhetoric and lewd remarks about women. "Things are changing fast. I have a very good chance now," said Peter Jacob, 30, a Democrat who is running for the US House of Representative from 7th Congressional District in New Jersey which is known to be a strong Republican bastion. Trump's unpleasant rhetoric and lewd remarks about women appears to be changing the dynamics of New Jersey, which over the past several decades has repeatedly sent Republican leaders to the Congress. On Saturday, hours after his morning door-to-door campaign, he managed to convince a Trump supporter to vote for him, Jacob, who was born in Kerala, claimed sitting in his small single-family home in a Union neighbourhood of New Jersey. A recent internal survey shows he has narrowed the gap with his opponent Leonard Lance. While Lance is supported by 37 per cent of the registered voters, he is being supported by 34 per cent. Yesterday, several of the senior advisers from the Bernie Sanders Campaign joined his Congressional campaign. US Senator from Vermont, Sanders has already endorsed him, which he says has given a big boost to his campaign among the youths. Adam Burgdorf, who held the position of Political Affairs Adviser at the UN, has joined Jacob's team as Deputy Communications Manager. "The campaign is expanding its reach; Peter continues to gain supporters because he talks aboutthe important issues and he is not a 'career politician' type," said Fred Lonsdale, former GOTV Director for the Bernie Sanders campaign. Latest Federal Election Commission filings show Jacob out- raise his opponent Lance on individual contributions by a margin of nearly three to one. Jacob has consistently campaigned to put "People Over Politics" by prioritising the concerns and needs of everyday people over those of large corporations and career politicians. Jacob, who spend several hours a day in his door-to-door campaign, said he plans to reach out to most of his 500,000 voters before the election day either personally, or by phone, email, letters and television advertisement. Based on his interaction with the voters, he feels that this time there would be a high voter turnout. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Seeking to put the Democrats on the back foot, Donald Trump has roped-in President Barack Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother to be his guest at the third and final presidential debate here, US media reported today. Hillary Clinton will be joined at the prime-time debate by two well-known billionaires who are backing her campaign, in what may be an attempt to rattle Trump, the controversial Republican nominee by subtly questioning his own net worth. Meg Whitman, the Hewlett-Packard CEO and former Republican California gubernatorial candidate, and Mark Cuban, the outspoken billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, will both be Clinton's guests at Wednesday's third and final presidential debate, CNN reported. Meanwhile, Trump is countering with Malik, President Obama's half-brother and a ghost from Clinton's past: Patricia Smith, the mother of Benghazi victim Sean Smith, who has accused the former secretary of state of "murdering" her son. The New York Post first reported Trump's invitation to Obama's half-brother. The Post also reported that Malik Obama called now-deceased Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi one of his best friends -- a potential source of awkwardness for Smith. Malik Obama, who was born in Kenya and is an American citizen, voiced his support for Trump in July, saying he hoped to meet the Republican nominee. Trump's feelings are mutual. "I look very much forward to meeting and being with Malik," Trump said today. "He gets it far better than his brother." Malik Obama shares the same father with the president but has a different mother. He told the Post that he blames Clinton, who was secretary of state at the time Gadaffi was toppled and killed, for making the situation worse in Libya. Clinton invited both Cuban and Whitman, campaign spokeswoman Jennifer Palmieri said, and the duo agreed to attend. Whitman, a longtime Republican, endorsed Clinton earlier this year, saying in a statement that she would vote for and donate to Clinton. Since then, Whitman has headlined events for Clinton and contributed a considerable amount of money to her campaign. Cuban sat in the front row at Clinton's first debate against Trump, a move that was intended to shake the Republican nominee because the Dallas Mavericks owner has been so outspoken against the businessman. Trump lashed out at Cuban for attending the debate with Clinton, calling him "dopey." At the second presidential debate, Trump appeared with three women who have in the past accused former President Bill Clinton of inappropriate sexual behavior as part of an effort to rattle Hillary Clinton. Trump invited Kathleen Willey, Juanita Broaddrick, Paula Jones and another woman, Kathy Shelton, whose alleged rapist was defended by Clinton as a young lawyer. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two persons have been arrested for allegedly presenting a forged cheque at the branch of a nationalised bank here on October 17. The Senior Manager of the bank had filed a complaint to the police yesterday stating that the two- identified as Kamalavasan and Krishnan- had approached the bank and handed a cheque for Rs 3.93 crore. The cheque was presented to be credited to the account of Kamalavasan the founder of a NGO. When the local bank contacted the bank's branch at Kolkatta it was alleged that the cheque was a fake one, a police release said. Cases under IPC sections 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using as genuine a forged document)against them. Police are on the look out for one more person alleged involved in the case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A court here today remanded four Naxals arrested from Noida in seven-day custody of Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS). "The ATS has got remand of four naxals from today to October 26. The remand was granted by Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Gautam Buddha Nagar on the application moved by ATS on October 17," a senior police official told PTI. The Naxals, who were taken in remand included Ranjit Paswan, Krishan Kumar, Pawan Kumar Jha and Ashish Saraswat, he said. Averting a major Naxal attack in the national capital and its neighbourhood, the UP police ATS had on October 16 smashed a gang of ultras arresting 10 of them, including a self-styled area commander, and recovering a huge cache of arms and ammunition. The left-wing extremists were adept at making bombs and were planning some incidents in the Delhi-NCR region, IG (UP ATS) Aseem Arun had said. Nine Naxals were arrested from Noida, on the outskirts of Delhi, while one from Chandauli near Varanasi. Self-styled area commander Pradeep Singh Kharwar from Bariatu village in Jharkhand's Latehar district was hiding in Noida since February 2012 and carried a reward of Rs 5 lakh on his arrest, he said. The ATS had recovered 550 live cartridges, an INSAS assault rifle, two other rifles and three self-loading rifle magazines along with a huge quantity of explosives and detonators. The recovery of the INSAS rifle showed that they must have looted it from security personnel as the weapon is used by them against the ultras, ATS said. The arrested Naxals were active in eastern UP and adjoining parts of Bihar and had made Noida their base. They had rented two flats and posed as property dealers. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 20-year-old man, allegedly working as "urban supplier" for naxals, was today arrested from a market place in Chhattisgarh's Kondagaon district, police said. The cadre, identified as Sukhram Korram, was picked up when he was procuring items of general use for Maoists from the market in Kondagaon town, district superintendent of police Santosh Singh told PTI. The arrest came as security forces have been directed in all seven districts of Bastar division to keep a close watch on the movement of suspects in local weekly and daily markets that serve as agood source for rebels to procure items of daily use. Korram was caught by a team of District Reserve Group (DRG) and local police, based on a tip-off given by some surrendered rebels. "During interrogation, Korram, a native of Barsoor area in Dantewada district, confessed that he was acting as the urban supplier for rebels and had also served as member of Chetna Natya Manch (CNM), a cultural wing of Maoists, in Maad area," the officer said. Police recovered a big knife, naxal banners and posters, medicines and other related literature from Korram. In a similar incident, anaxal was apprehended from a weekly market under Dhanora police station limits of Kondagaon on October 16. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 37-year-old man, who ripped off a Muslim woman's hijab on a flight while shouting "this is America!", has been sentenced to a year of probation, including two months of home confinement. Gill Parker Payne was also fined USD 1,000 for the attack, according to a statement by the US Attorney's Office in the District of New Mexico. "You hurt me, you disrespected me you violated me," the victim, Khawla Abdel-Haq was quoted as saying in court by the Albuquerque Journal. "I was scared, and it shouldn't be like that," she said, adding that she did not leave her home for weeks out of fear after the in-flight attack last December. Payne, from North Carolina, was sentenced in US District Court yesterday to a year of probation, including two months of home confinement. US Magistrate Judge Steven Yarbrough also ordered Payne to pay a USD 1,000 fine, along with a nearly USD 4,000 fee. In May, Payne had pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of obstructing a person's free exercise of religious beliefs. Payne also apologised during yesterday's hearing and said he has taken online courses to familiarise himself with other religions and recently toured a mosque in hopes of learning more about Islam. "I'm embarrassed. I'm 100 per cent embarrassed," he was quoted as saying. Payne said he was drunk on the flight and "doesn't fully remember everything" that happened. But Abdel-Haq remembers. "I'm not gonna forget it. It's going to be with me every minute of every day of my life," she said. She was sitting in an aisle seat on the Southwest Airlines flight from Chicago to Albuquerque after a trip to Ohio when Payne approached her about 30 minutes before the flight landed, she said. "I was minding my own business. He went and he grabbed my scarf, my hijab, and he told me, 'Take it off... This is America,'" she said of the incident. A shaken Haq pulled the scarf back onto her head. She met with police after the flight landed, and the FBI launched an investigation. Before he announced the sentence, Yarbrough said he had taken into account Haq's willingness to forgive along with the public shaming Payne endured and his recent efforts to learn about world religions. "I hope that that has made an impact on the way you see the world," Yarbrough said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The United States said today that it would deploy a missile-defense system to South Korea as soon as possible, despite opposition from China. US Secretary Of State John Kerry confirmed that the THAAD system would soon be sent to the peninsula at a meeting with South Korean ministers in Washington. Washington sees the US-built Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system as protection against North Korea's pursuit of missile and nuclear technology. But China has warned it sees it as a threat to the balance of power in the region, fearing it would make its own nuclear deterrent less credible. "The United States will do whatever is necessary to defend ourselves and to honor the security commitment we have made to our allies," Kerry said. "And we will deploy as soon as possible a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery to our Korean ally," he added. Kerry and US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter were welcoming South Korea's foreign minister, Yun Byung-Se, and defense minister, Han Min-Koo. Washington and Seoul agreed to install THAAD this summer following repeated nuclear and missile tests by Kim Jong-Un's authoritarian Pyongyang regime. The move angered Beijing, the main trading partner of otherwise isolated North Korea and a key player in international efforts to control the regime. Last week, Chinese General Cai Jun told a defense forum in Beijing that THAAD is "not conducive to the peace and stability of the Korean peninsula. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Defeated Islamic State fighters from the Iraqi city of Mosul are likely to enter Europe to carry out terrorist attacks, the European Union's (EU) security chief has warned. Thousands of Europeans who left to fight for ISIS in Iraq and Syria over the past few years may have already begun returning to the continent after the terrorist group suffered a string of territorial defeats in the Middle East, warned Julian King, theEU's Commissioner for Security. "The retaking of Islamic State's northern Iraq stronghold, Mosul, may lead to the return to Europe of violent ISIS fighters," King told the German newspaper'Die Welt'. According to King, a British diplomat who recently took charge as security commissioner, even a handful of such terrorists returning would pose a serious threat. French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has warned the fight to liberate Mosul in its entirety could take a long time. "It's not a blitzkrieg. It's a city with 1.5 million residents, so it's a long-term project - several weeks, maybe months," he said. Some 34,000 Iraqi security personnel, Kurdish fighters, Sunni Muslim Arab tribesmen and Shia Muslim paramilitaries have been deployed against ISIS, with backing from the US, France and others. Their advance on Mosul comes over two years after the city was seized by ISIS in a major coup that enabled the extremist group to announce a self-proclaimed caliphate spanning Iraq and Syria. Iraqi forces say they have captured 10 villages near Mosul since beginning their long-awaited offensive on Monday. As many as 5,000 ISIS fighters are believed to remain in the city. If the city is reclaimed by the Iraqi government, ISIS will be left with the Syrian city of Raqqa as its last major stronghold. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rebel RSS leader Subhash Velingkar-led Goa Suraksha Manch (GSM) has offered to project MGP leader Sudin Dhavalikar as the Chief Ministerial face for the upcoming Goa Legislative Assembly elections, if the latter's party forges an alliance with them. "We have informally conveyed to Sudin Dhavalikar that he would be projected as CM face for the election, if his party (MGP) aligns with us (GSM)," Velingkar told PTI today. GSM is an off-shoot of Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch (BBSM), an outfit which has been on loggerheads with the BJP-led government over demand on making regional languages the Medium of Instruction (MOI) in elementary education. Velingkar said that while GSM's proposal is still pending with MGP, it has in-principle agreed to have an alliance with Shiv Sena. "We will be informing Shiv Sena President Uddhav Thackeray during his Goa visit this weekend (October 22) that we are ready to align with them on seat sharing basis," he said. Thackeray's visit which was scheduled on October 16-17 was postponed due to BRICS Summit in the state. "The seat sharing would be discussed in a meeting that will happen after Thackeray's Goa visit," he said. Shiv Sena has already submitted the proposal to GSM stating that they (SS) will contest on 20 seats. About Dhavalikar, Velingkar said MGP has told GSM that they will take a call on the alliance only after notification for the election is issued. "MGP has told the same to BJP too," he added. MGP is currently in alliance with BJP in the state with two of its legislators inducted in Laxmikant Parsekar's cabinet. Dhavalikar had recently ruled out possibility of aligning with GSM reiterating that the party will go with BJP for Goa polls which are due before March 2017. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A special court today directed the Enforcement Directorate to supply certain documents to LIC agent Anand Chauhan, an accused chargesheeted in a money laundering case involving Himachal Pradesh CM Virbhadra Singh. Special Judge Vinod Kumar directed the probe agency to hand over the documents which were filed along with the final report in the case. The direction was passed on Chauhan's application seeking the documents, as the court posted the matter for next hearing on November 5. The court had on September 7 taken cognisance on the charge sheet filed against Chauhan, who is currently in judicial custody, while asking the ED to provide him a copy of the final report and other documents. The charge sheet was filed for offences under sections 3 (money-laundering) and 4 (punishment for the offence) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Act. Chauhan was arrested from Chandigarh on July 9 under the provisions of PMLA on the grounds that he was allegedly not cooperating with the probe. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Letters Are You Really Willing to Subject the World to a Trump Presidency? Dear Alibi, Obviously there is much anger and pain dividing the country, with many citizens not experiencing the benefits of the last 8 years when unemployment was reduced from 7.8 percent to 5 percent, the monthly hemorrhaging of lost jobs was halted and millions of new jobs created. But to blindly go for change should not mean throwing away every moral and ethical standard that America has always prided itself on exemplifying. Donald Trump is a congenital liar, a bully, a sexual predator, a deliberately uninformed policy maker and a man who has spent the last 18 months stirring up hatred against Muslims, Blacks, Latinos, immigrants and anyone who disagrees with him. His claim to be a brilliant businessman is refuted by his numerous bankruptcies, where he kept his money but his investors lost their shirts, where he reneged on paying his contractors. He is the subject of 3,500 lawsuits thanks to this practice. His arrogant behavior towards women is finally being noted. Trump is the ultimate hypocrite, proclaiming his disgust at those who send their businesses overseas, yet he has done exactly that for decades. Even this year, opening a new hotel built with steel and furnishings made in China. Is this how he will make America great again? He sees everything in term of his own bottom line, which is why he said he thought wages were too high and the housing crisis, where thousands lost everything, was actually good for him. His thin skin causes him to lash out intemperately at anyone who offends him. Is this the temperament you want in the person whose finger will be on the nuclear trigger? For your own sake, the sake of the country and the world, do not allow this narcissist anywhere near the Oval Office. In this wonderful animation, billionaire Russian physicist and investor Yuri Milner explains his effort to launch tiny probes, powered by 12 foot solar sails, on an interstellar mission to the nearest star, Alpha Centauri, within two decades. Cosmologist Stephen Hawking and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg are on the board of Milner's group, called Breakthrough Initiatives. The project builds on decades of work by scientists Carl Sagan, Louis Friedman, and Bruce Murray who pioneered solar sail technology through the Planetary Society, the fantastic citizen-funded space advocacy and research organization they co-founded in 1980. Indeed, Friedman is an advisor to Milner's Starshot effort. For more on solar sailing, check out the Planetary Society's LightSail project and their blog post earlier this year about Milner's far out project. Voicing concern over spurt in political violence in Kerala's Kannur district, the Communist Party of India has urged the CPI-M to exercise restraint and not get provoked by the RSS as it has the responsibility of maintaining law and order in the LDF-ruled state. "It's very unfortunate that continuously these type of murders and revenge murders are taking place," General Secretary S Sudhakar Reddy told PTI. "Both should exercise restraint, particularly RSS. Every time, it's the RSS, who has done it first (political murder). That does not mean that I defend the revenge murders (by CPI-M). Both should exercise restraint," he said. "Our advice (to CPI-M) is exercise restraint, and not to get provoked (by RSS) with this type of things and after all it's the responsibility of government of Kerala about the law and order situation. More responsibility is with CPI-M as it's in government (as the lead partner)," Reddy said. He charged the RSS-BJP with trying to create a "communal atmosphere" by "these" (political violence). Reddy alleged that BJP president Amit Shah has appealed to editors of all news channels and newspapers that "this (political violence in Kannur district) should be made an all-India issue ... It should be in limelight. That shows they have got ulterior motives". He denied suggestions of cycle of political violence happening whenever CPI-M is in power in Kerala, saying, "Even earlier it was taking place, even when CPM was in opposition". BJP activist Remith was allegedly hacked to death in Kannur district, the hometown of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan last Wednesday, within 48 hours of the murder of a CPM activist and toddy shop worker Mohanan. The BJP called a 'hartal' in Kerala last Thursday to protest against the killing of its party activist. The HIV virus increases the potency of the tuberculosis bacterium by affecting a central function of the immune system, a new study has found. The discovery by researchers at Linkoping University in Sweden helps to explain why infection with HIV greatly increases the risk that infection by tuberculosis bacterium (Mtb) will progress to active tuberculosis. In most people who are exposed to tuberculosis infection, the immune defence deals with the bacteria by enclosing them in a special scar tissue. In this condition the tuberculosis is said to be "latent". Around 10 per cent of those with latent tuberculosis will go on to develop active disease. We know that infection with HIV is the greatest risk factor for the development of active tuberculosis after infection with Mtb. "The risk of infection progressing to active tuberculosis is around 30 times higher for people who are HIV-positive. But the reason for this has not been known at the cellular level," said senior lecturer Robert Blomgran, who led the study. In the new study, the researchers looked in more detail at what happens in one particular type of immune cell, known as dendritic cells. These play an important role in the immune defence. Dendritic cells break down tuberculosis bacteria and other foreign microorganisms, and display the bacteria fragments at the cell surface. Other cells of the immune system, in particular T-cells, recognise the fragments and bind to them. The dendritic cell then activates the T-cell such that it can kill the tuberculosis bacteria efficiently. In this way, dendritic cells act as a communication link between the innate immune defence and the specific immune defence, of which the T-cells are part. The researchers infected human dendritic cells with both Mtb and the HIV virus. They showed that co-infection reduced the ability of the dendritic cells to present foreign molecules to the immune defence. They also had a lower capacity to activate tuberculosis-specific T-cells than was the case when the dendritic cells were infected with Mtb alone. "We have now shown that HIV has a clear effect also on the innate immune defence, in particular the dendritic cells, which link the innate and the adaptive immune defences. "We can already suggest that one important future treatment strategy for infection should be to find ways to strengthen or boost cells in the immune defence using what is known as 'host-directed therapy'," said Blomgran. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), around 9.6 million people around the world develop tuberculosis each year, researchers said. About 10 per cent of these, or 1.2 million people, are also infected with HIV. Of those who die from tuberculosis, one third are infected by HIV, but the fraction differs greatly between different parts of the world. The study was published in the American Journal of Pathology. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaih today said he will be meeting his Maharashtra and Goa counterparts on October 21 in Mumbai to discuss the Mahadayi water dispute with a "positive mind" as advocated during an all-party meeting held by him here. This meeting is being held after the Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal on September 1 asked the concerned states to resolve the water dispute amicably by holding discussions with or without third party mediation. Ahead of the October 21 meeting, Siddaramaiah today held an all-party meeting to discuss the state's strategy. "All the members who attended today's meeting have given suggestion, how we should proceed in the negotiation. The suggestion is that we should go the meeting with positive mind," Siddaramaih told reporters after the meeting. Pointing out that Karnataka has been consistently pressing for an outside tribunal settlement of the issue and had also sought for Prime Minister's intervention, he said "I'm going with positive mind, keeping in mind the state's interest. "In any negotiations the parties concerned cannot be rigid, always give and take will be there.With open mind I'm going," he added. Siddaramaih also clarified that during the meeting on October 21 the discussion will be on the larger issue of sharing Mahadayi River water. "We have told the tribunal that according to our requirements we will require 36.558 tmc water. That is our claim. On this basis, keeping in mind our requirements for drinking water, irrigation and power generation I'm going to the meeting with a positive frame of mind," he said. Karnataka has for long been advocating an out of court settlement of the issue. Siddaramaiah had even led an all party delegation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his intervention. Earlier, Goa government had rejected Karnataka's stand, saying the people of the state felt it was more prudent to settle the dispute through the Tribunal. Karnataka government, which has locked horns with the neighboring Goa on the larger issue of sharing Mahadayi River water between both the states, had earlier petitioned the tribunal seeking the release of 7.56 tmcft of water for the Kalasa-Banduri Nala project, but it was rejected in an interim order on July 27. The Kalasa-Banduri project is being undertaken by Karnataka to improve drinking water supply to the twin cities of Hubballi-Dharwad and the districts of Belagavi and Gadag. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 27-year-old Malaysian woman was today jailed for two years by a top court for possessing over 100 images related to Islamic State's terror activities in her cellphone. Siti Nor Intan Shafinaz Johari was sentenced after she pleaded guilty to the charge of having 139 terror-related images of dreaded Islamic State terror outfit in her handphone. Judge Datuk Azman Abdullah of a Malaysian High Court while handing out the sentence said preventive action should be taken against those involved in such activities as it could cause instability in the country. "We should address this problem as they are using religion to cover up their activities," he said. Abdullah said the punishment was aimed at curbing the terrorist activities which he termed as a "subversive movement." "This subversive movement is something that has to be addressed as it uses religion as a facade. It is a threat that leads to violence and chaos, if not curbed," he was quoted as saying by the 'New Straits Times Online'. The judge ordered Shafinaz to serve the jail sentence from the date of her arrest, which was last March 22. The mother of an eight-year-old child was charged the Panel Code which provides an imprisonment for up to seven years, or fine, and liable to forfeiture of the items concerned, according to a media report. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) On a high-profile visit here after his spat with the US, the Philippines' mercurial President Rodrigo Duterte maintained a low-key stay here today ahead of his key meeting with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping tomorrow to discus the SCS dispute and ways to forge close ties. China rolled out a red carpet for Duterte when he arrived here last night, with Foreign Minister Wang Yi himself present at the airport to receive him saying that the visit is "historic" and that no "individual" or "foreign force" could stand in the way of rebuilding the friendship between China and the Philippines. "Our arms are open and ready for friendship and cooperation," Wang said. Beijing made no effort to conceal joy over Duterte's break with the US as Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying took a dig at Washington at a media briefing today, saying while people from China and the Philippines are happy about the visit "some people are anxious, upset and have mixed feelings about this". Ahead of Xi-Duterte meeting tomorrow, Chinese officials have been speculating that as both China-Philippines cannot resolve the South China Sea dispute, the only way out is that it should remain a free passage especially for fishermen from both sides provided Manila does not press for implementing an international tribunal's ruling that struck down China's expansive claims over the area. This was discussed when former president of the Philippines Fidel Ramos visited Hong Kong earlier and held talks with Chinese officials. It is no cake walk for Duterte either, as the arbitration closely backed by the US and Japan was held over the petition filed by the Philippines. Any concession from him on the vexed dispute will have a big fallout at home. For Beijing, his visit was seen as coup of sorts and a turning point over its South China Sea troubles since the tribunal's ruling seriously dented its claims. Besides the Philippines, China's claims over the South China Sea were contested by Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. On the second day of his landmark visit here, Duterte - who caused ripples all over the world by abusing US President Barack Obama for criticism of his violent crackdown against drug smugglers - kept a low profile meeting Filipino expatriates in the evening. An official with the Philippine delegation said Duterte had cancelled most of his events except for a dinner with Filipino expats. In his interviews with the Chinese official media ahead of his visit, Duterte has reiterated his opposition to foreign interference in the South China Sea, warning that such unwelcome overtures would pose a great threat to regional stability. "Even though countries like the US say all nations are by the Philippines' side, I say we are close to a third world war," Duterte said during an interview with CCTV on October 13. He believes that stubborn insistence on territorial claims does not help with economic development, state-run People's Daily reported. Though the South China Sea issue has dampened the two countries' relations, Duterte said he still has faith that China and the Philippines can "totally erase these dark spots", and added that he wants to establish a more cohesive and stronger bond with China. "In one word, I would say it is a defining moment of my presidency to open the frontiers of friendship and cooperation, and enhance (the) relationship between our two countries," he said. Discussing the balance of Manila's diplomatic ties with the US and China, he said his country "should not be too constrained (by) the dictates of any other country". He also stressed that China and the Philippines are neighbours, while the US is thousands of miles away. "I am not breaking away from the US - I just want to be friendly with everybody. So you do not restrain me from doing (the same thing to) China. Why should we be afraid? Why should we stick to a certain country?" Duterte said. As for his expectations for his state visit to China, he said he hopes that better Sino-Philippines relations can benefit his country's sluggish domestic economy, adding that China is the only hope for his country's economy. According to some media reports, he evinced interest in buying Chinese weapons though China was guarded in its response to such statements. "China is willing to cooperate with the Philippines on drugs control and fight against drug crimes and terrorism," Hua said when asked whether China is willing to sell arms to Philippines. By Rajendra Jadhav AURANGABAD, India (Reuters) - Despite pleas from the government not to, Indian farmers like Santosh Wagh went right back to planting sugar cane as soon as the first nourishing monsoon rains brought water to his drought-stricken region of central India. For growers like Wagh, a 35-year old from the Marathwada region in the west of Maharashtra, sugar cane has two attributes that make planting the crop lucrative - hardiness and state policies that ensure higher returns. These farmers sow the cane even as its outsized water demands relative to other crops threaten to plunge this traditionally arid region back into a drought. "It is the only reliable crop. Earlier this year I cultivated onions and incurred a 50,000 rupees loss as prices crashed," said Wagh, who plants 1.5 acres (0.6 hectares) of sugar cane. Four months ago Maharashtra, the biggest sugar producing region in India, suffered the worst drought in four decades that ravaged crops, killed livestock, depleted reservoirs and slowed down hydroelectric power output. Environmental activists and the government blamed the rapid expansion of sugar cane growing for creating the water scarcity. Cane consumes about 22.5 million litres of water per hectare during its 14-month long growing cycle compared to just 4 million litres over four months for chickpeas, a pulse, commonly grown in India and called gram locally. Without government intervention to reset the revenue balance in favour of other crops, experts warn the sustained production of sugar cane will further deplete scarce water resources and leave the region prone to droughts. This could create social unrest stemming from the widening income gap between cane growers and other farmers. "The government asks farmers to shift to less water consuming crops, but it does little to support those crops. It failed to solve the problems of oilseed and pulses growers," said Pradeep Purandare, a former professor at Maharashtra Water and Land Management Institute based in Aurangabad. Erratic prices for vegetables, oilseeds and pulses limit the incentive for farmers to plant them. In contrast, the government requires sugar mills to buy cane at a set "fair and remunerative price" (FRP). The government also buys wheat and rice at what is called the minimum support price (MSP). "Returns from other crops are unpredictable. This year I allowed 5 tonnes of onions to rot. Prices were so low that my losses would have increased by transporting onions to the market," said Suresh Kothawale, another Aurangabad farmer. India's government hopes higher subsidies for pulses and oilseeds will change farming patterns. "We are creating oilseeds and pulses as an alternative for sugar cane by raising their minimum support prices," said a senior official at India's Agriculture Ministry who declined to be named. But industry critics said the pulse and oilseed MSP only exists on paper as the government never procures them aggressively like wheat or rice. "Green gram prices were trading below support prices due to higher production. This makes the support price irrelevant for farmers," said Nitin Kalantri, a pulses miller based at Latur in Maharashtra. HARDY CROP, POLITICAL CLOUT The sugar mill buildup in Marathwada was initially pushed by politicians in the region trying to replicate the prosperity of mills in other areas of Maharashtra state and was focused on areas with plentiful water, said Jaidev Dole, a political analyst in Aurangabad. "But later politicians opened mills everywhere, even in areas where drinking water is not available, to build a constituency rather than making farmers rich," he said. Farmers sell cane directly to sugar mills, effectively getting 100 percent remuneration, but other crops pass through middlemen, ensuring farmers get half the price consumers pay, said Sanjeev Babar, managing director of the Maharashtra State Co-operative Sugar Factories Federation. Sugar cane's sturdiness also attracts farmers because of limited access to insurance that protects against crop failures. Mature cane withstands heavy rainfall or dry spells and is also less vulnerable to pest and diseases compared to other crops, said farmer Sharad Mate, who has lost pulse crops due to droughts and un-seasonal rainfall. "I had taken crop insurance for pulses last year, but didn't get compensation despite losing an entire crop," said Mate, a farmer from Sillod, northeast of Aurangabad. (Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Christian Schmollinger) (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Thirty-eight owners of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone in South Korea plan to file a class action lawsuit against Samsung Electronics Company for alleged inconvenience experienced after the discontinuation of the device, a law firm said on Wednesday. Each person in the suit, which will be filed with the Seoul Central District Court on the following Monday, is seeking 300,000 won ($266.8) in damages, Harvest Law Office said. The proposed suit alleges that owners of the Note 7 were forced to visit stores several times for battery checks or to get replacements, Yonhap news agency reported. The complaint also states that the consumers experienced anxiety over safety while using the Note 7. Koh Young-il, an attorney at the law firm, said he expects the firm to win the suit, given precedents for faulty products. Last week, Samsung permanently halted sales and production of the fire-prone Note 7, about two months after the device's launch. The government has sought putting on hold the arbitration initiated by British oil explorer Cairn Energy against a Rs 29,047 crore retrospective tax demand and instead wants a parallel arbitration initiated by Vedanta Resources to be taken up first. The government using retrospective tax legislation had in January 2014 issued a tax notice on Cairn Energy for alleged capital gains it made on a 10-year old internal reorganisation of its India unit. ALSO READ: Cairn India shareholders clear merger with Vedanta Three months later in April 2014, it imposed a tax demand of Rs 20,495 crore on Cairn India, the UK firm's erstwhile subsidiary for failing to deduct tax on the capital gains. ALSO READ: Vedanta CEO says response from Cairn India shareholders to sweetened bid positive Cairn Energy and Vedanta, which had bought Cairn India from the Scottish firm in 2011, had initiated separate arbitrations against the tax demands. Cairn Energy had initiated the arbitration in March 2015 and the three-member arbitration panel had been constituted. But at a hearing earlier this month, the government contended that the proceedings should be put on hold, sources said. ALSO READ: Cairn-Vedanta merger: LIC says still not on board Its counsel argued that the government wants the arbitration initiated by Vedanta to be taken up first. Sources said the counsel also made an application seeking more time to file reply to Cairn Energy's demand for $5.6 billion in compensation from the Indian government for raising a retrospective tax demand. As per the schedule drawn up, the reply was to be filed by mid-November. Sources said that in the Vedanta arbitration, the government may contend that tax issues cannot be arbitrated under bilateral investment protection treaty and once it wins a favourable verdict there, it will use the same to quell Cairn Energy's plea as well. A three-member arbitration panel headed by Geneva-based arbitrator Laurent Levy began hearing Cairn Energy's plea against tax demand in May and the company filed its 'Statement of Claim' in late June. The Indian government was to file its 'Statement of Defence' by mid-November and evidential hearing was expected to commence in early 2017, sources said, adding that the plea made by the government will essentially delay the entire process. The British firm challenged the tax assessment by seeking an international arbitration under the UK-India Investment Treaty, which unlike the Dutch treaty provides for resolution of tax issues. UK telecom firm Vodafone has initiated arbitration on a separate retrospective tax under the Dutch treaty. Cairn Energy named former Bulgarian minister Stanimir Alexandrov as its arbitrator in the tax dispute while India appointed Singapore-based lawyer J Christopher Thomas as its arbitrator. The seat of the panel was decided to be in The Hague, the Netherlands. London-based arbitrator James Spigelman to represent its case. The government has named Donald McRae, a member of the UN International Law Commission, to defend itself while Singapore-based senior counsel and chartered arbitrator Michael Hawng will be the chairman of the arbitration panel. The Income Tax Department had in January 2014 slapped a draft tax assessment of Rs 10,247 crore on Cairn Energy on alleged capital gains it made when in 2006, it transfered its India assets to a new subsidiary, Cairn India, and listed the firm. The British firm sold majority stake in Cairn India to Vedanta Resources in 2011, but still holds 9.8 per cent stake in the company, which was attached by the Income Tax Department. This year, a final assessment order was slapped on it that included Rs 18,800 crore of interest on top of Rs 10,247 crore principal tax amount. Cairn Energy, on its part, said no capital gains tax was due under the law in force in 2006 when the restructuring was done. The company is claiming full compensation for the $1 billion value lost following the tax notice and freezing of its 9.8 per cent shares in Cairn India. The I-T department alleges that Cairn Energy made a capital gain of Rs 24,503.50 crore in 2006 when it transferred shares of Indian assets that were held in a subsidiary set up in the tax haven of Jersey to the newly-incorporated Cairn India. It listed Cairn India on the stock exchanges through an IPO thereafter. Through the IPO, it raised Rs 8,616 crore and then in 2011 went on to sell majority stake in Cairn India to mining giant Vedanta Group for $8.67 billion. An article in China's state-owned newspaper The Global Times has said New Delhi can only "bark" about the growing trade deficit between the two countries and do nothing. The article comes in the backdrop of growing clamour for boycott of Chinese products on Indian social media platforms. New Delhi or the Indian government has not made any statement about boycotting Chinese products. In fact, China is India's biggest trading partner, and experts feel that a further growth in trade between the two countries is significant for the Indian economy. However, anti-China sentiment has pervaded social media platforms in India over China's repeated blockade to India's efforts to get Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar designated a terrorist by the United Nations. The article in the Global Times said that the call for boycott of Chinese goods on Indian social media is "rabble rousing" as Indian products cannot compete with those of China. "There has been a lot of talk recently in the Indian media as well as on social media about boycotting Chinese products. It's just rabble rousing," the article said. It further said that Indian manufacturing cannot compete at all with Chinese products, for various reasons. ALSO READ: Goa BRICS Summit: Does trade imbalance make India the weakling? Underlining high corruption in India, the article also warned Chinese companies not to invest in the country as it would be "suicidal" to put money in a country where corruption is high and the workforce is not hard working. It also argued with its own logic behind the prevalent corruption in India and said: "India has enough money but the majority of it is concentrated with politicians, bureaucrats and a few crony capitalists. Indian elites don't want to spend funds available in the country, which in reality is the taxpayers' money but is utilized by the Indian establishment for its own personal consumption. Because of this, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has started impractical schemes like 'Make in India'. The reason is that the Indian establishment wants foreign companies to invest in the country." "It would be completely suicidal for Chinese companies to put their money in India by starting manufacturing projects there. The labour class in India is not very hard working or efficient," it asserted. India's trade deficit with China is huge and it has only widened every year. As per data available on the website of the Department of Commerce, India's imports from China accounted for over 16 percent of country's total import in 2015-16. India imported goods worth $61.7 billion from China last fiscal year, while its export value was just $9.05 billion. We thank our sponsor for making this content possible; it is not written by the editorial staff nor does it necessarily reflect its views. Having more devices is a plus, right? Well. except when it comes to charging them. Then, you're tripping over cables as you attempt to keep your technology powered up for the day. That's READ THE REST The biggest merger in the online travel industry has just been announced. The coming together of two of the largest online travel companies - MakeMyTrip and ibibo Group - is going to shake up the online travel market, and will create a giant entity that can knock off competition with substantial money power, aggressive pricing and backing of large venture capitalists. Both players have substantial market share, and the combined entity is expected to command about 20 per cent market share. They will also have one of the highest inventories of branded and unbranded hotels. The future of OTA (online travel agents) market is hotels. According to Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), the online hotel market is pegged at around Rs 5,200 crore. Even though the air ticket market is the biggest contributor to the industry's revenues - 39 per cent - the margins are extremely low. The hotels segment, on the other hand, is a relatively high-margin business, especially the unbranded category, because the budget hotel operators are ready to share a decent part of their profits in return for higher occupancies coming through OTAs. While the deal looks rosy, there are various downsides that take its sheen off. First, the travel market has reached a point where market shares rise and ebb on the basis of discounting. The trend was started by latecomer ibibo Group in order to garner market share. The others followed suit. The discounting doesn't guarantee customer loyalty. The combined entity will have to continue with discounting to keep the market share intact. Otherwise, it risks losing market share to other big players such as Expedia, Yatra, OYO Rooms, Booking.com and Cleartrip. Flushed with funds, the combined entity still has some leeway to burn cash before starting to worry about what next. MakeMyTrip, for instance, raised $180 million from a Chinese firm early this year whereas ibibo Group raised another round of $250 million from its primary investor Naspers in February this year. However, the current level of discounting is unsustainable. For instance, a deluxe room cost in New Delhi's Hotel Hari Piorko varies widely. On goibibo and MakeMyTrip, the most aggressive players in terms of pricing, the cost is Rs 1,500. Yatra is selling the same deluxe room for Rs 3,832. The difference in tariffs is likely to come down unless the combined entity gets more funding. As such MakeMyTrip is a loss-making company. In fiscal year 2016, the company reported losses of $88.5 million on revenue of $336 million. The lower penetration is another area that the OTAs are trying to crack. According to some estimates, just 16 per cent of hotel rooms are booked online in comparison to 70 per cent in Europe and 35-50 per cent in the US. To grow penetration, the OTAs have to reach out to smaller towns and cities. But the inability of hotel operators to maintain standards poses a big challenge. The online travel segment accounts for 61 per cent of the Indian e-commerce market, as per an IAMAI-IMRB study. Much like e-tailers, online travel companies are struggling to run a profitable business. The consolidation ensures higher market share, but at the end of the day, the investors are looking for returns - either through dividends or exit. With stakes getting high and already-weak business models, the possibility of decent returns seems like a distant dream. Country's largest lender State Bank of India has said it would re-issue around six lakh debit cards to customers after being hit by a malware-related security breach in a non-SBI ATM network. ALSO READ: Arundhati Bhattacharya given extension to drive overhaul "It's a security breach, but not in our banks' systems. Many other banks also have this breach - right now and since a long time," Shiv Kumar Bhasin, SBI's chief technology officer (CTO), told The Times of India, adding that customers who used their cards only at SBI-run ATMs have not been affected by this. "A few ATMs have been affected by a malware. When people use their card on infected switches or ATMs, there is a high probability that their data will be compromised," Bhasin said. ALSO READ: NPAs to dip on high industrial capacity utilisation: SBI chief The malware has led to blocking of cards of several SBI accountholders. SBI said fresh cards would be issued to consumers. Currently banks are not required to report to the public any security breach in their network. Some customers' cards have been blocked, the TOI report, quoted a SBI branch manager in Pune as saying. The manager also asserted that the bank had sent SMSes to the customers regarding the same. The report quotes several SBI accountholders facing the card blockage issue and states their experiences regarding the same. In July 2016, there were 20.27 crore active debit cards from SBI, states the RBI website. SBI's associate banks had a count of 4.75 crore active debit cards. The cards hit by the malware comprise about 0.25% of this. Two thirds of adults in Ireland have reported they are unhappy with the rate of returns they are receiving according to new research from Irish Life. This is up 10% on figures from March 2016. Furthermore, the research also found that close to 40% are now investing their money in order to secure their financial future, with a quarter of adults who invest stating that they put 6% or more of their annual income into investments. Of those that do invest currently, the most popular investment types are shares (43%) and investment funds (29%), with gold (6%) a less popular option. The survey also revealed the financial advice people in Ireland would give to their younger selves, including saving more (64%). Almost half (47%) of those surveyed said they would specifically advise their younger selves to save or invest some of any bonus or pay rise, rising to 59% of over 55s who would give this financial advice. Over a quarter of adults in Ireland said they would recommend their younger selves not to leave all of their money sitting in the bank, with more men encouraging their younger selves to do this (33%) compared to only 21% of women. However, the report also revealed that of those surveyed who have not previously invested, close to a third 32% are not yet comfortable with the concept of investing in general or wouldnt know what type of investment could suit them (31%). One in four also say that not having any ideas as to what types of returns they could expect is a key reason they havent yet invested. Fund Manager at Irish Life, Teresa Carolan says, "Our research shows that many people in Ireland are still not happy with returns on their deposit accounts. Thats why investing could be an excellent option for those looking to build their financial nest egg." Source: www.businessworld.ie About us A record 800 Irish businesswomen are today taking part in events all over the country to mark the 10th annual National Womens Enterprise Day. The National Womens Enterprise Day events are taking place in Galway, Kerry, Kilkenny, Meath, Westmeath, Dublin and Cavan. Organised by Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs), the events are being attended by some of Irelands most successful business leaders who are sharing their stories and offering advice to women on how to achieve success. All 31 LEOs are supporting the initiative with established female entrepreneurs acting as Regional Ambassadors and sharing their inspiring success stories. The number of Irish female entrepreneurs receiving business supports from the LEOs increased by 20% last year. More than than 6,250 female-run businesses received financial and mentoring supports in 2015, whilst more than 11,000 participated in specialist training programmes. Minister of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Mary Mitchell OConnor today commented, "Women have a huge amount to contribute to business in Ireland and are very important to our economy. Female entrepreneurs are creating jobs right across the country in every town and village across Ireland creating innovative enterprises that are focused on exports, growth and job creation." She added, "This event today is a fantastic networking event which offers continued support to those female entrepreneurs thinking of starting a business and those developing and expanding their business." Source: www.businessworld.ie About us Irish firm, CES Energy have launched their first solar project in Northern Ireland. The new private wire solar farm in County Tyrone will see dairy producer Dale Farm switch to solar power for much of the energy requirements at its cheese processing facility in Dunmanbridge. Construction is due to start mid 2017 on the 37 acre site which will be made up of more than 18,000 solar modules, making it the largest of its kind on the island of Ireland and thought to be one of the largest in the dairy sector Worldwide. The 5MW solar farm will be connected directly to the private network of the business and it is estimated Dale Farm will switch to solar power for as much as a 20% of the companys on-site power needs at its cheese processing facility. The scheme will also deliver considerable environmental gains. The project will provide the company with a vast energy reduction, saving 2,460 tonnes of carbon emissions each year, the equivalent of taking 1,588 cars off the road. The new scheme will guarantee over 20 years of low cost, green power at Dale Farms cheese processing site and enable significant savings for Northern Irelands leading dairy company. Chief Executive at CES Energy, Tom Marren said, "This project continues CES Energys focus on financing on-site energy infrastructure projects which provide cost savings for our customers globally. After nearly 20 years of delivering similar projects in Australia, Saudi Arabia and across the UK in the energy, water and waste sectors, we see it as a key solution for delivering cost efficiencies and reduced carbon for our customers." Source: www.businessworld.ie It was announced this week that there will be more programme highlights for the Worlds only economic festival with laughs, Kilkenomics. Running from 10th-13th November, some of the worlds most noted economists along with the UK and Irelands top comics will descend on the Medieval Mile of Kilkenny for four days of economic enlightenment with a healthy dose of laughs. Using comedy to bridge the gap between economics theory and what the public see played out in front of their eyes in everyday life and in mainstream media, Kilkenomics is probably the only place on the planet to get informed in economics with a guaranteed laugh and a pint in your hand. This years programme is the biggest yet with world renowned economists Dan Ariely, Tim Harford, Diane Coyle, and Stephanie Kelton all making their way to the Marble City where they will be joined by always entertaining comedians including Dara OBriain, Des Bishop, Karl Spain and Colin ORegan. As ever the most topical events of the year will be discussed and debated from the Irish housing crisis to the American presidential race. New additions to the programme include David McWilliams who leads a panel featuring Stephen Kinsella, Cormac Lucey, Bill Black, Colm McCarthy as they debate NAMA, Vulture Funds and Repossesions: The New Lock-Out. Other Programmer Highlights include: Dan Ariely Introduced by David McWilliams The Road to Ruin: The Global Elites Secret Plan for the Next Financial Crisis: Jim Rickards in Conversation with David McWilliams Brexit: Could Englands Difficulty be Irelands Opportunity? The Future of Things: Will Technology Ruin us or Save us? Trump/Clinton: Are we Witnessing the Beginning of a New American Civil War? Kilkenomics Brunch Jargon Busting...Again Source: www.businessworld.ie About us It was announced today that Dublin-based startup, Beats Medical has become the first Irish company to be invited to pitch at the prestigious Google Demo Day in Silicon Valley on November 2nd which will see 12 female-led startups from around the world pitch their businesses to over 100 investors, venture capitalists and judges at Google Headquarters. The goal of Google Demo Day is to shine a light on innovation and showcase innovative female-led companies to Silicon Valley investors. Investor judges in previous years have included Steve Case, founder of AOL, who has personally invested $1.4 million in previous pitching companies and at Google latest event, vowed to invest a total of $1.1 million in pitching companies which included $100,000 for each startup that raised $1 million in the 100 days following the Demo day. Google began running their annual Demo Days two years ago, having never featured an Irish company to date, and only two other European companies. Its Womens Edition was set up for highly innovative companies founded or co-founded by women and gives female entrepreneurs in high growth companies the opportunity to present to renowned technology investors. Beats Medical was founded in 2012 and treats mobility, speech and fine hand movement symptoms of Parkinsons disease which affects almost 10 million people worldwide. The technology, which is the first app developed to treat Parkinsons disease, provides a form of sound wave treatment called auditory cueing which has been used since the 1950s to treat the walking symptoms of Parkinsons disease such as shortened, shuffling steps and freezing. Beats Medical individually assesses and prescribes this treatment in the home daily via the mobile phone to help alleviate walking symptoms. Ciara Clancy, CEO of Beats Medical, who is a finalist in this years EY Entrepreneur of the Year programme beat out more than 800 applicants from over 65 countries to secure her place at the Demo Day alongside female entrepreneurs from Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, India, Kenya, the Netherlands and the US. Commenting on the opportunity, Ciara Clancy said that she hopes Google Demo Day will help build awareness for Beats Medicals innovative technology and ultimately, help more people with Parkinsons disease. "I am honoured to have been given the opportunity to pitch at Googles Demo Day. This event is an incredible platform for Beats Medical to showcase the technology that we have developed, and ultimately highlight how it can be used to help those living with Parkinsons to have a better quality of life which is at the heart of everything that we do," she said. Source: www.businessworld.ie About us LOGAN A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for 38-year-old Dustin James Mangum, as prosecutors accuse the Richmond man of sexually abusing a second victim. Mangum appeared in 1st District Court Tuesday morning and was arraigned on two new charges of sodomy on a child, both first-degree felonies. In August, prosecutors filed 23 charges against him, including eight counts of sodomy of a child and 15 counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child. The new case brings the total number of charges to 25. Each charge carries a penalty of five-years-to-life in prison. State attorney Jacob Gordon said the new charges allege that Mangum sexually abused a girl in May 2003. The victim, who is a teenager now, claims the abuse occurred when she was around four-years-old. The older charges allege that he repeatedly sexually abused an 11-year-old girl over the course of several years, before he was arrested August 19. During Tuesdays hearing, defense attorney Bryan Galloway asked for the preliminary hearing, where a judge will determine if prosecutors have sufficient evidence for all of the charges. Judge Kevin Allen set the hearing date for November 2. Mangum remains in the Cache County Jail. He is being held without bail.

will@cvradio.com Telehealth technology has arrived at Logan Regional Hospital and the Budge Surgical Service Clinic. It is a service that connects patients with specialists at Intermountain Medical Center in Murray. Budge Clinic Assistant Operations Officer Kris Larsen explains the process. There is a large computer monitor in the room where the patient sits, said Larsen. The provider in Murray has the same kind of set up. One can see the other via a webcam and microphone. High-definition cameras, audio equipment and televisions are used to complete the connection into private conference or examination rooms. Currently the service is connecting patients with infectious disease specialists at Intermountain. This is very effective in situations like follow-up visits where previously you would have to drive to Salt Lake City for a 5-10 minute appointment. Now that can be done with this technology and you never leave the valley. Limited access to specialty care is a challenge hospitals in rural communities have always dealt with. But since patients get sick everywhere this service provides the possibility severe infections can be identified in every facility, even those without an infectious disease subspecialist. Larsen said the program also helps provide oversight and support for antibiotic stewardship, a top concern for the UN and World Health Organization. Update: According to The Verge, Facebook has verified the authenticity of the screenshot below. In what appears to be an internal Facebook post, Zuckerberg defends his company's ongoing association with Peter Thiel Facebook investor/board member and major donor to white-supremacist/pro-rape presidential candidate Donald Trump. Zuckerberg's defense echoes that of Y Combinator boss Sam Altman, who said that a truly inclusive business can't afford to write off a candidate supported by millions of Americans. Presumably, they feel the same way about the millions who believe in the ideology of Osama bin Laden. Mark Zuckerburg comments on Peter Thiel controversy regarding Trump donation [Hacker News] (via Dan Hon) (Image: Mark Zuckerberg South by Southwest 2008, Jason McELweenie, CC-BY) Researcher Yarden Katz scraped the database of Intellectual Ventures, a giant business that buys up patents, but produces nothing but lawsuits (previously), and discovered that IV claims ownership of nearly 500 patents that were created at public expense by researchers employed by public universities, and another 100 or so patents filed by the US Navy. The research comes as more than 100 universities have pledged not to sell their patents to trolls. Both the University of California and Caltech signed the 2007 statement, yet IV now owns tens of patents from these schools that were filed after 2007. For instance, the IV portfolio includes a Caltech patent filed in 2010 (granted in 2011) and University of California patent filed in 2008 (granted in 2014). Other universities that signed the statement, such as Stanford, Harvard and MIT, did not have patents in the portfolio. Apart from universities, IV's portfolio includes nearly 100 patents from the U.S. Navy, as well as patents from weapons manufacturers such as Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. In addition, some notable computer scientists and software developers are listed as inventors on patents owned by IV, like Danny Hillis and the developer of Linux, Linus Torvalds. Universities have turned over hundreds of patents to patent trolls [Yarden Katz/Medium] Inside Intellectual Ventures' Portfolio: Nearly 500 University Patents [Elliot Harman/EFF] Since the death of Uzbekistans President Islam Karimov in early September, signs have emerged of a thaw in relations between Uzbekistan and its neighbor Tajikistan. In the years since independence, bilateral relations have been plagued by mistrust, disputes over water resources and outright hostility. Both sides have adopted a series of punitive measures against each other. Although acting President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has expressed interest in resetting relations with Tajikistan, any improvement will be tempered by the ongoing conflict over Tajikistans planned hydropower plants. BACKGROUND: Once part of the Soviet Union, both countries host large ethnic Tajik and Uzbek minorities, cut off from their titular homelands by the Soviet border delimitation. Responding to the threat posed by the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, which was based in Tajikistan at the time, Uzbekistan started mining the border with Tajikistan in 1999. In 2001, it introduced a visa regime for Tajik citizens. In recent years, tensions have centered on access to water resources. Seventy five percent of the Amu Darya, Central Asias largest river, originates in Tajikistan. Uzbekistan, the worlds sixth largest cotton producer, relies on water from the Amu Darya to irrigate its land. Agriculture constitutes an estimated 20 percent of the Uzbek economy and employs a quarter of the countrys workforce. In its bid to become energy independent, Tajikistan has built dams in the tributaries of the Amu Darya. With the support of Russia, the Sangtuda-1 hydroelectric plant began producing electricity in 2008. The Iranian-backed Sangtuda-2 opened in 2011. The Rogun dam, which at 335 meters would be the tallest in the world, is the main source of tension with Uzbekistan. If completed, the dam would produce 3,600 megawatts of power. The project, which began during the Soviet Union, is expected to cost US$ 4 billion, around half of Tajikistans GDP. Rogun has become an important symbol of Tajikistans independence and lynchpin of Rahmons plans for developing the national economy. Billboards with slogans such as Rogun is our national idea and Rogun is the key to victory can be seen across the country. According to Uzbek officials, the reduction in the flow of water whilst the reservoir for Rogun is formed will last for up to ten years and cost the Uzbek economy US$ 20 billion. President Karimov claimed in 2011 that without upstream dams, irrigated land in Uzbekistan would increase from 4.3 million to 10 million hectares. In the years before Karimovs death, a few signs emerged that relations between the two countries were improving. Karimov visited Dushanbe in September 2014 for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, his first visit in seven years. In June 2015, Uzbekistans Minister of Internal Affairs Adkham Akhmedbayev visited Tajikistan, becoming the first interior minister to visit since 1998. Since Karimovs death, additional indications suggest that the relationship is improving. Rahmon was one of only three heads of state to attend Karimovs funeral in Samarkand on September 3. Whereas in previous years Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov had used his speech at the UN General Assembly to chastise Tajikistans plans to build Rogun, this year he was more reserved, focusing on the ecological disaster of the Aral Sea instead. Visiting Dushanbe on September 29, Kamilov expressed interest in resetting relations with Tajikistan. IMPLICATIONS: When he became acting president in September 2016, Shavkat Mirziyoyev could have openly provoked Tajikistan in an effort to unite Uzbeks behind him. Instead, he has cautiously offered to improve relations. Uzbek foreign policy decision making remains shadowy and identifying the reasoning behind the friendlier stance is a difficult task. It could be that Mirziyoyev wishes to reduce the countrys tensions with its neighbor in order to allow him to prioritize the consolidation of his power domestically. Although the rhetoric coming from Mirziyoyevs regime is certainly less confrontational, it remains to be seen how relations between Tajikistan and post-Karimov Uzbekistan will develop in the long term. At present, the improvement in relations exists as a series of statements rather than concrete actions. The resumption of transport links and easing of visa regulations would certainly improve the lives of border communities, and benefit Tajikistans ailing economy in particular. In recent years, Tajikistans economy has suffered as a result of punitive measures adopted by Uzbekistans government. Tajikistan remains dependent on Uzbekistan for energy links and transport all of Tajikistans rail connections with the outside world run through Uzbekistan. Uzbekistans government has used this position to pressurize its neighbor. In 2008, the government of Uzbekistan started seizing railroad cargoes bound for Tajikistan. In late 2011, all railway traffic was halted after what Uzbek officials called a terrorist attack damaged the line near the border. Of the 16 border crossings between the countries, just two remain open. As a result, bilateral trade fell from US$ 300 million in 2008 to just US$ 2.1 million in 2014. Responding to the blockades, both sides have started building railroads that avoid each others territory. In February 2016, Uzbek officials opened the Angren-Pap railway line, running from Tashkent to the Fergana Valley, bypassing Tajikistan. President Rahmon opened a new line between Dushanbe and Qurgon-Teppa in August 2016, bypassing Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan has also used its position as energy supplier to put pressure on Tajikistan. In 2009, Uzbekistan withdrew from the Soviet-era power grid, through which it had supplied electricity to Tajikistan. In 2012, Uzbekistan stopped supplying natural gas to Tajikistan, claiming it needed to fulfil contracts with China. This compounded the energy crisis in Tajikistan. Dependent on glacial meltwater to replenish its reservoirs, the government of Tajikistan limits electricity supplies to the population during winter months. Although it is clearly in both parties economic interests to find an amicable solution to the ongoing disputes, tensions will remain strong so long as both sides maintain their stance on hydropower. Rahmon has made the stakes very clear, stating that Rogun is a symbol of the life of our nation, a symbol of life and death of the Tajik state! A 2014 feasibility study conducted by the World Bank found that the dam will fit within international safety norms. The Tajik government is pushing ahead with plans to construct the dam, although it remains unclear how it will fund the project. In July, the government offered the contract to construct Rogun to Italian firm Salini Impregilo. In August, Rahmon visited Rogun, insisting that the dam will serve the Tajik nation for centuries to come. Despite the change in leadership, it is unlikely that Uzbekistan will abandon its opposition to Rogun entirely. Such a move would constitute a serious loss of face for a president still consolidating his position in power. Recent diplomatic communications suggest that the disagreements are ongoing. After the government of Tajikistan gave the construction contract to Salini Impregilo in July, then Prime Minister Mirziyoyev sent a strongly-worded letter to his Tajik counterpart Kohir Rasulzoda. In the letter, he stated that the Rogun hydropower plant is associated with the huge threats to the entire Central Asian region. Clearly not all Tajik officials read the letter closely. A few days after it was sent, the Tajik Minister of Energy and Water Resources Usmon Usmonzoda claimed that Uzbekistan had no opposition to Rogun. The Uzbek Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded with an August 1 statement declaring that, never and under no circumstances, would they support the project. A lasting improvement in relations will require a compromise from both sides. Although Tajikistan stands to gain most from improved relations, it has appeared less willing than its Uzbek counterparts to compromise. Uzbek officials have suggested that Tajikistan can become energy independent without drastically altering the water flow and environment of the river basins if it builds more, smaller dams. These plants could be installed more quickly than Rogun and are unlikely to cost more than the mega-dam. Even though the Tajik government has the most to gain from improved relations, it remains committed to building Rogun. The mega-dam has become more than just a dam; it a symbol of the Tajik nation and its achievements. Without a change in attitude, the prospects for a change in policy remain slim. CONCLUSIONS: Although foreign policy making in Central Asia remains opaque, there is reason to expect a slight improvement in relations between the governments of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the coming months. These are less likely to be revolutionary changes than small improvements in areas not directly linked to hydropower, such as the resumption of direct flights between Tashkent and Dushanbe, or the simplification of visa restrictions. In the end, rebuilding energy and transport links is in the interest of both governments. But mistrust and tensions will remain. Neither side looks set to climb down from their entrenched position on hydropower, the primary source of the conflict between the two states. AUTHORS BIO: Edward Lemon is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Harriman Institute, Columbia University. Image source: www.bultannews.com, accessed on October 18, 2016 Belgian resistance scuppers the EU's CETA agreement Published on October 19, 2016 Story by euro topics Translation by: euro topics en de es it fr pl The EU's trade ministers postponed signing the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) on Tuesday after failing to reach an agreement. The strongest opposition comes from the French-speaking part of Belgium, whose consent the federal government needs to approve the agreement. Are the Walloons spoiling a major opportunity for Europe or are they the voice of the people? If not with Canada, then with whom? - Hospodarske noviny, Czech Republic Hospodarske noviny is aghast at the prospect of CETA falling through after seven years of negotiations: "After the Brexit decision the EU wanted to show that 27 countries can also move forward together. But the shameful dispute over CETA shows that they are unable even to reach a consensus over the liberalisation of trade with Canada. The Walloons and a few other troublemakers have turned everything on its head. But this is not just about Walloonian farmers who are frightened of GM fruit from Canada. This is about the pan-European protest of people who feel that the globalization train has set off and are unwilling to wave goodbye to the world as they know it, even if it is falling apart. Who else will we be able to do trade deals with in the globalized world, if not with Canada, which shares our cultural values?" (19/10/2016) Shape globalisation instead of blocking it - Neue Zurcher Zeitung, Switzerland The Neue Zurcher Zeitung also voices disappointment, pointing out that the agreement was negotiated very much in the EU's interests: "[Canada] supported the EU's idea of investment tribunals for settling conflicts between foreign investors and the host state. This overcomes the weaknesses of the private arbitration courts that have been used until now. All this is very far removed from the distorted image spread by the opponents of the deal, who portray CETA as a dictatorship of big business which will undermine the rule of law and democracy. Those who can't stop globalisation but want to have a say in what it looks like, need precisely such agreements until multilateral progress is made in the World Trade Organization. Those who reject CETA must ask themselves whether they are not in fact against any liberalisation of trade, and therefore want to further the interests of economic nationalists. If so, they must be willing to accept the negative impact on growth and employment." (19/10/2016) Populist Walloons ruining everything - Jyllands-Posten, Denmark Jyllands-Posten fears that Europe is squandering an important opportunity: "In times when the key players - among them the two presidential candidates in the US - are moving towards protectionism, when global trade is stagnating and global economic growth and the labour market are suffering as a consequence, trade agreements are more important than ever. Since World War II free trade has hoisted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty by creating economic growth and jobs. It would be intolerable if a handful of populist Walloons were able to destroy a far-reaching free-trade agreement like this one, from which the great majority of true Europeans stand to benefit." (19/10/2016) CETA gets to the heart of the Europe debate - De Morgen, Belgium De Morgen defends the Walloons against all the criticism: "'What do they think they're doing?' people across Europe are saying. We heard the same thing after the Ukraine referendum in the Netherlands, and after the Brexit vote... Clearly representing the people is regarded as a threat to democracy... The row over Ceta gets to the heart of the debate about European democracy. Should a member state - or part of a member state - say no when 'Europe' has already said yes? ...Whether the Twitter economists like it or not, such 'classic' agreements are no longer supported by a growing section of the European population. The opposition to mega-treaties comes from all kinds of groups, from eurosceptic right-wing populists to red-green voters... Either legitimate criticism continues to be suppressed or the day will come when the European project really is torpedoed at the polls - as was already the case in England." (19/10/2016) --- 30 Countries, 300 Media Outlets, one press review. euro|topics presents the issues affecting Europe and reflects the continent's diverse opinions, ideas and moods. Story by euro topics Translated from EU-Kanada: Wallonen wehren sich gegen Ceta In Rich do not rise early: spatio-temporal patterns in the mobility networks of different socio-economic classes, a group of transportation engineers analyze an open data-set about the commutes of people in the Colombian cities of Medellin and Manizales, concluding that the rich and the poor commute the furthest distances, but that the rich have much shorter commutes, thanks to private transport and superior routing, which translates to substantially more sleep for the wealthy. Sleep deprivation is well-understood to cause cognitive impairment and physical illness. Poor commuters in the study leave their homes later, and return later, than rich ones, suggesting that their livelihoods are at odds with their ability to sleep. In addition to these spatial patterns, the authors are also interested in temporal patterns. So they look at the times of day when people in the different groups are likely to travel. The researchers were surprised to find that the timing of movement is also closely linked to socioeconomic status. They saw that as socioeconomic class increases, every morning's peak transit time moved to later and later in the day. So people with the lowest status had peak morning transit times around 5AM or 6AM, whereas those with higher incomes didn't peak until nearly 7AM. The authors conclude that higher socioeconomic status allows people to buy more time to sleep or engage in leisure activities in the morning, so they can leave their homes later. In contrast, people with less economic capital tend to leave their homes earlier because they utilize slower and less reliable modes of transit, such as walking or taking public buses. Though this study was meant to probe the importance of socioeconomic status in human mobility, it also shows another important point: wealth allows people to buy a more comfortable life. This is sobering because it suggests that possessing wealth is a self-perpetuating state. The poor, who spend more time stuck in transit, have less opportunity to increase their income. The poor may also be unable to afford the luxury of sufficient sleep, which influences their ability to pull themselves out of poverty. Rich do not rise early: spatio-temporal patterns in the mobility networks of different socio-economic classes [Laura Lotero, Rafael G. Hurtado, Luis Mario Floria, Jesus Gomez-Gardenes/Royal Society Open Science] The wealthy commute later, get to take more direct routes [Roheeni Saxena/Ars Technica] (Image: Four-poster bed Casa Loma, Thomas Quine, CC-BY) Galicia: Journey to the land of disenchanted youth Published on October 19, 2016 en es pl it fr de The Spanish region of Galicia is known for two things: the clothing company Inditex and the famous Camino de Santiago. However, neither of these regional gems offer much for young people hoping to build a future. Many young Galicians leave in the hope of gaining a more global outlook, tired of waiting for opportunities that never materialise. It's a typical autumn day in La Coruna and the city is bustling with people. Shops open their doors and the steady flow of customers begins. The scent of saltwater fills the air. Judging by its appearance, it seems like the city is thriving. Sadly, the reality is rather different. It's estimated that on a day like today, particularly after the summer holidays, around 84 young people aged between 20 and 34 leave Galicia in the hunt for better opportunities. Nationally, this statistic is only surpassed by Castile and Leon. Behind Galicia, sits Castile La Mancha, Aragon and Extremadura. Many head to Madrid or go abroad to Switzerland and the UK. Nevertheless, some do decide to stay. Santiago is 27 years old and works as an administrator for a tow trucking company in La Coruna. He feels lucky to have a job, given that "people often spend many years preparing themselves for the future to find that the doors are closed off to them." In his case, unemployment is not an immediate concern, as it is for the 26.6% of young people in the 16-29 age bracket who are out of work. However, his current contract does not give him the necessary stability to truly gain his independence. "The type of contracts you get nowadays don't give you the best working conditions to allow you to move out of your parents' house," he argues. Doris Fernandes, a journalist and translator based in Mos (Pontevedra), is the same age as Santiago, and has found herself in the frustrating situation many young people find themselves in: "by having to accept work that's precarious and unstable, we are unable to enjoy a fulfilling social and personal life. A worse situation than ever? In this region, independence from the family unit is not the only type of independence causing debate. Galiza Nova, a youth organisation stemming from the Bloque Nacionalista Galego (BNG) has gone beyond espousing nationalist sentiments to openly advocating for the region's independence from Spain. "We are in a worse situation than ever," says Alberte Mera, the secretary-general of Galiza Nova, for whom independence is a necessary option. This is an argument that Santiago disagrees with, viewing it as a divisive option, much like Brexit in the UK, and it leaves a lot of questions up in the air. "What we need to encourage is the equal treatment of every region," he says, in reference to both Spain and Europe. He has his doubts about the EU: "the idea of creating a union of European states wasn't a bad thing, the problem is how it's been constructed." Europe happens to be the desired destination for many of these Galician youngsters. Olalla, a 27-year-old journalist, lives in Berlin. She explains that it would simply be impossible to maintain the standard of living she has in Germany at home in Galicia, and she speaks of migration as a "freedom" that allowed her to leave the vicious circle that Galicia is trapped in. Similarly to Olalla, 20-year-old Yago Grela from Vigo looked for opportunities overseas. For him, the situation feels a bit more daunting, although he thinks that it is inevitable, due to Galicia's awkward geographical placement which leaves it isolated from the rest of the country. When he finishes his studies in Lannion, France (where he has been able to stay thanks to an Erasmus grant), he hopes to move to Madrid to find work. This is something that Beatriz, a young Galician living in London, is still not sure about. "The only option for me if I move back home, is to become self-employed," she says. "Zara is not a great example to follow" Since 1981 - the year when Galicia became an autonomous region of Spain following four decades of a centralising dictatorship - the lack of opportunities, emigration, the aging population, the lack of infrastructure and the struggle to keep the Galician language alive have remained hot-button issues in electoral campaigns. Nevertheless, there have not been any dramatic changes in voting patterns in recent years. When you ask young people about the results of the recent regional elections, in which the Partido Popular (PP) [Spain's equivalent of the Conservative Party, Ed.] reigned victorious with an absolute majority, almost all of them express a certain discontentment with the status quo. Only Beatriz sees the positive side to this result: there is a greater sense of energy and anger in parliament than ever before. "It saddens and infuriates me to see that a party steeped in corruption not only has done nothing to clear its name, it's actually come back even stronger," Doris, the young journalist and translator from Pontevedra, sighs. Yago, much like Olalla, thinks that it was a predictable result that evidences a growing generational gap. A party like the PP, supported mainly by the older population in Galicia, controls the direction the region takes, even though it's young people who are most affected by current policies. While young people are unhappy about the dominant party in their region, they are also not proud of Inditex, the international symbol of Galicia. The biggest textile company in the world and the owner of clothing brands like Zara, Bershka and Stradivarius, is criticised by young people for its factories in developing countries, a company policy that brings no benefits to its local community. "It's a company built upon destroying its competition, which is why I don't think it's a great example to follow," argues Olalla. Yago also criticises the company's production as he believes that Amancio Ortega, the owner of Inditex, "could easily design, produce and make his clothes in Galicia, creating thousands of jobs and improving the local economy. However, he'd prefer to put his factories in China and India, where he can exploit underpaid workers." "Being Galician is about running away" Emigration is not a recent phenomenon in Galicia. The previous generation also know what it is like to have to leave home. Luis Castro is 41 years old and is from Santiago de Compostela, where he finished the famous pilgrimage. In the 90s, he was the first of his family to go to university to study engineering. Due to his chosen specialism, he had to move. He had spent eight years away from Galicia, in Valencia, before moving back home to work in Pontevedra. In his eyes, the region has two pressing needs: better quality public services and jobs. "It is said that being Galician is more about running away than facing up to realities," he muses. "Galicia could make itself the doorstep to Europe from the Atlantic, with Vigo and La Coruna as strategic cities: we could be the new Rotterdam, but to achieve this aim, we need to be better connected." The main artery of the region, the motorway connnecting its three main urban centres (Vigo, La Coruna, Santiago de Compostela), has tolls that complicate commercial trading. With regards to the train network, investment in high speed trains has not managed to reduce the travel time to Madrid to under six hours. The inadequacy of the rail network in the region was clear to see in the aftermath of the 2013 train accident in Galicia, the worst train disaster in recent Spanish history. Nevertheless, due to the rather unstimulating environment, many young people try to fight against the conformism of Galician society. The prevailing "that's life" attitude is fiercely criticised by authors like Manuel Rivas and Xose Neira Vilas. As Doris explains, Galicia is not only known for Inditex, it's also known for its "idiosyncrasies, its ancestral wisedom, its languages, its landscapes, its food, its countryside, and above all, the successes of its universities, its industry, its social movements, its literature..." The provinces of La Coruna and Vigo now have their own universities, which, alongside the traditional university of Santiago de Compostela, have managed to staunch the outward flow of students of university age. These two cities, which boast the biggest populations in the region, have also built airports to improve their connections with Spain and the rest of Europe, making the region more international. So, all is not lost. There are initiatives in Galicia that prove that change is possible. An exciting example of this is the street art festival DesOrdes Creativas, which has taken place since 2010 in the Ordes region, which is sandwiched between La Coruna and Santiago de Compostela. During the festival, artists from across all of Galicia decorate the ugliest walls in their village. This has created a domino effect with many Galician towns copying the initative. It's a festival that could have passed by unnoticed, if not for a younger generation that's ready to rebel against their rather bleak backdrop in Galicia. This is a generation that understands that with crisis comes opportunity. Story by Ruben Rivas de Roca Garcia Translated from Galicia, viaje a una tierra de jovenes desencantados | BY Ricki Green | This years brief line up for New Blood Awards 2017 has just been released. What does this mean? It means that the next generation of creative disruptors can now sharpen their pencils, roll up their sleeves and start tackling the real-world briefs to showcase their talent. For 2017, D&ADs partners are a mix of returning favourites like John Lewis, Nationwide and BBC as well as some exciting new faces with Amazon, The National Autistic Society and Squarespace signing up this year. Collaborating with the Arjowigginsbrief will be Facebook, Instagram and Sony Music, whilst board game fans can cut their teeth on the Hasbro brief in collaboration with Big Potato Games. (See the full list of briefs here). The full briefs are available for download from www.dandad.org/new-blood-awards. New creatives will have until 22 March 2017 to submit their entries, with the winners announced at the Awards Ceremony in early July 2017. Winning work will be selected by a panel of judges and awarded a Wood, Graphite, Yellow, White or Black pencil. Each brief has been designed to set a unique challenge and all are supported by a great range of learning resources and industry insight. This years topics range from the real-world tangibility of paper to the possibilities of big data, food and drink, music and movies, finance to festivals, things to play and places to stay, education and causes to fight for. All the briefs have been designed in collaboration with industry experts to both reflect the real current business challenges faced by modern brands and develop the creative skills most sought after by industry, ensuring that these ones to watch of tomorrow are ready for the challenge. Whether its through launching new services or reinventing established brands, inventing crazes or revitalising causes, taking events to the world or bringing purpose to events, the New Blood of 2017 will be storytelling, shifting perceptions, standing out and shaping the future with passion. Says Paul Drake, D&AD Foundation director: We need new exciting talent in this industry, and year after year we are blown away by the professionalism, ambition and skill of the work that is entered into the New Blood Awards. Answering tough, real-world briefs set by globally-renowned partners, these students show the full breadth of talent that will be entering the industry in the next few years. As always the 2017 New Blood Awards are designed to be both challenging and demanding. This year they feature a mix of topical ideas and craft-based briefs, encouraging creatives to hone their skills, test their abilities and show why those already in industry need to be looking over their shoulder. Open to any young creative aged 23 or under, in addition to current students and those within two years of graduation, the New Blood Awards offer tomorrows creative superstars a chance to tackle real briefs, set by real clients and judged by top industry creatives. The 2017 Brief Partners: Adobe Amazon Arjowiggins in collaboration with Facebook, Instagram and Sony Music BBC Crowne Plaza Desperados Hasbro in collaboration with Big Potato Games John Lewis Monotype MUBI Nationwide Pearson Respect for Animals Squarespace The British Army The National Autistic Society What some of this years returning New Blood Awards Brief Partners said about the experience: Says Emma Bryson, digital media marketing manager, Adobe: What we enjoy most about setting a D&AD New Blood brief is getting to see the passion come through and the magical things these students can create with our products. Says Ana Saenz-Castellano, manager creative, brand creative, John Lewis: Working with D&AD New Blood we gain creative insight. I enjoy the wealth of creative talent and the incredible quality of the presentations. Says Timothy Cryer, design lead, Nationwide: What I enjoy the most about New Blood is the breadth of creativity and original thinking. As a brand, setting a New Blood brief is a fantastic way to gain insight into this demographic and also to hear their ideas, importantly in their tone of voice. This years D&AD New Blood Awards 2017 creative campaign is being designed by The Beautiful Meme, more information on this to follow. | BY Ricki Green | Frost*collective has appointed Graham Humphreys as head of Frost*Design for its brand and design division. The position has been newly created to support the business recent spate of high profile project wins and a growing team. UK-born Humphreys has relocated from San Francisco vacating a VP, director client services position at fuseproject. Humphreys has a 20-year international career in cross disciplinary creative consulting where he has led teams of diverse talents, disciplines, sizes and cultures. He has extensive experience in strategic innovation, brand positioning, creative development and marketing strategy as well as product design, environmental design, integrated digital programs, site design and e-commerce. Says Vince Frost, CEO Frost*collective: We couldnt be happier that Graham has joined us as our new Head of Frost*Design. His impressive expertise and depth of understanding of the creative process and approach to business challenges, in combination with his proven leadership and strategic thinking, are all assets that are consistent with Frost*collectives service offer and future strategy. Over the course of five years and 250 assignments at fuseproject, Humphreys and his teams have delivered global rebrands including Nivea and Paypal, and product innovation for Sodastream and Samsung amongst many others. He can lay claim to building a globally recognised Integrated Design Management discipline and playing a major role in doubling the size of the studio. Humphreys earlier career included senior roles at Dare London, Agency.com (in London & San Francisco) and Zenith Media with clients ranging from British Telecom, the UK Government, Wells Fargo, Toyota, Barclays Bank, Visa and Capital One. Says Humphreys: Im driven by the opportunity to harness design thinking to solve problems for people, businesses and institutions. Vince has built Australias leading brand and design agency with clear purpose and vision, and there was a perfect synergy from the start. Im passionate about the power of design to improve any of lifes experiences, large and small this is exactly what Frost*collective delivers. Im impressed with everything the agency has achieved, excited about the future, and privileged to join such a talented team. | BY Lynchy | DIRECTORS THINK TANK director Rajay Singh has just completed the latest ALLIANZ film for Ogilvy & Mather Malaysia. In a break from category conventions, Allianz Malaysia is choosing to inspire rather than arouse sympathy in this latest campaign. Courage Never Fails is the Malaysian interpretation of the global platform, Dare to. Were with you. The centrepiece of the campaign is Sisters, a film that gives audiences an intimate view of the struggles of two orphaned sisters. But through it all they face adversity with a sense of hope, grounded in the legacy their parents left them. says Tan Chee Keong, Group ECD at Ogilvy Malaysia. What I love about the campaign is how we made the global platform relevant to Malaysians on a personal level. We took inspiration from real stories and put together a powerful and poignant story that represents the feats of courage the regular Malaysian goes through every single day, says Susan Ong, Chief Market Management Officer at Allianz Malaysia. More than five months in the making, Ogilvy Malaysia made the deliberate decision to have the campaign rooted in real Malaysian stories to create personal and relevant stories that could resonate with its audience. We went out in search of real stories from everyday Malaysians and ended up with a pool of rich and textured stories that really felt worlds apart from the overly scripted stories the category is known for. says Alicia Hew, Copywriter at Ogilvy Malaysia. But it was a close collaboration with Directors Think Tank that finally brought the film into a space that felt both fresh and genuine. Working with Jay is always a scary experience. In a good way. We never know where the script will be taken to, how it will be dissected or where the story can be elevated to. But that free-flowing collaboration is what we love about it, says Adam Chan, CD at Ogilvy Malaysia. What we hope is that people dont just watch the spot, but that they be inspired and bring about change, says Gavin Simpson, Chief Creative Officer at Ogilvy Malaysia. Courage Never Fails was launched yesterday. Credits: Client: Allianz Malaysia CMO: Susan Ong Agency: Ogilvy Malaysia CCO: Gavin Simpson Group ECD: Tan Chee Keong CD: Adam Chan ACD: Jarrod Reginald Copywriter: Alicia Hew Art Director: Amanda Kok, Chu Khong Liang Managing Partner: Shireen Peterson Business Unit Director: Frederick Aloysius, Liew Wai Sim Account Manager: Kelsey Rabindran, Bowie Tiong Head of AV: Eric Yan Producer: Seng Tuck Traffic: Julie Saw Production House: Directors Think Tank Director: Rajay Singh Producer: Tek Nam DOP: Andre Francis Nenezes 1AD: Kelvin T 2nd Unit Director: Wei Peow Music Studio: Two AM Editor: Raja Affendi Wednesday, October 19, 2016 at 12:12AM It was bound to happen and now it has indeed. US law firm McCuneWright has filed a lawsuit against Samsung over the Galaxy Note7 recall. The plaintiffs claim the recall has left them without phones for weeks. They seek reimbursement of cell phone service fees and are also look for class-action status. According to a post by McCuneWright on its site, While Samsung has offered consumers replacement phones or a refund, it has failed to reimburse consumers for monthly costs associated with owning an unusable Note7. CNET reached out to Samsung and they said they wont comment on pending litigation. "It will take a great deal of work to undo the public's perception of the Canberra Liberals as too socially conservative, but that work must be done if we want to see a change of government in 2020." "We now have a situation where the major parties have not only made back the entire cost of their campaign, but are now in a position to profit off any additional donations, potentially from vested interests," he said. Your digital subscription includes access to content from all our websites in your region. Access unlimited news content and The Canberra Times app. Premium subscribers also enjoy interactive puzzles and access to the digital version of our print edition - Today's Paper. [Your Business Name] Contact Info Phone: Fax: Email: Web: CAPITOLHILLCUBANS.COM Business Overview Geographic Area Line of Business Brands We Carry Products and Services Discounts Offered Additional Information Business Hours Timezone We Accept *M*ake what you will of this. In the modern era of partisan polarization, which can be dated back to the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980, only the presid... Our Promise: Welcome to Care2, the world's largest community for good. Here, you'll find over 45 million like-minded people working towards progress, kindness, and lasting impact. Care2 Stands Against: bigots, racists, bullies, science deniers, misogynists, gun lobbyists, xenophobes, the willfully ignorant, animal abusers, frackers, and other mean people. If you find yourself aligning with any of those folks, you can move along, nothing to see here. Care2 Stands With: humanitarians, animal lovers, feminists, rabble-rousers, nature-buffs, creatives, the naturally curious, and people who really love to do the right thing. You are our people. You Care. We Care2. Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are looking at various options to make themselves better in terms of student strength and funds. A couple of months ago during an IIT council meeting headed by HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar, the nod was given to accomodate non - residential students into undergraduate and post graduate programs in a move to increase the total student strength to one lakh by 2020. However, some of the IIT branches came up with challenges like lack of infrastructure and funds to achieve that goal. Seven IITs from Bombay, Delhi, Guwahati, Kharagpur, Kanpur, Madras and Roorkee denied to agree with the idea. In a fresh development, most of the IIT directors have expressed their disinterest towards the idea as the non -resident students might not reflect the brand of IIT when it comes to their shaping. Students have to be nurtured in the ecosystem of the beautiful campus in order to be a complete IITian, some of them feel. One of the directors said, ''IIT is also about the larger environment of free debate and liberal atmosphere. Moreover, our undergraduate courses are most sought after." Nevertheless, there is more opposition to have non-resident students at an undergraduate level as that would be a hindrance to a wholesome education. Another director has suggested that in order to generate income to help the poor students to meet their hostel expenses, the maintenance of the hostel can be outsourced to a third party who can pay a commission to the college and charge the students at market rate. The management is looking at more options to arrive at a feasible solution for all their requirements. Bengaluru, October 19, 2016: The Green Talents Award held under the patronage of the German Research Minister Professor Johanna Wanka is recognizing young talented researchers for the eighth time and providing a platform to share their innovative and creative ideas which aim to answer pressing sustainability and environmental protection questions of our time. A high-ranking jury of experts selected 25 up-and-coming scientists out of 757 applications from over 104 countries. The award consists of the "Green Talents - International Forum for High Potentials in Sustainable Development" where the awardees travel through Germany for two weeks, to visit hotspots of green science and to meet the sustainability research elite. In the following year, the Green Talents have the possibility to conduct research in Germany for up to three months. This year's "Green Talents" can expect to interact with leading experts and some of the most renowned research institutions and companies, including the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Hamburg University of Technology, the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Siemens AG and the Southern African Service Center for Climate Change and Adaptive Land Management. What is Environmental Architecture? India's 'Smart City' project, and other recent initiatives established to form a sustainable region involving citizens, also focuses on aspects such as environmental and other green initiatives which has been a priority since the Urban Renewal Mission Plan. The galaxy of Green Talents Award winners The 25 awardees will be honoured during a festive award ceremony at the Green Talents Alumni Meeting 2016 attended by representatives of the participating institutions, their experts, jury members, politicians and other distinguished guests. Minister Professor Johanna Wanka will open the conference; Professor Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, will hold a keynote speech on "Climate effects and vulnerability." Shamik Chowdhury (29), an Indian PhD student in Environmental Engineering from the National University of Singapore is also one of the Green Talents attending the awards ceremony. His specialisation area, 'Green synthesis of Graphene Structures', to provide innovative societal solutions for a sustainable development platform, really impressed the jury. What is Sustainable Architecture? - Scope and Career Opportunities The conference's highly diversified programme offers all of its participants countless networking possibilities. During the conference Green Talents can get connected to the science community and exchange ideas with key innovators and lay the foundations for future cooperation. Such efforts are supported by the invitation to return to Germany for a fully funded research stay at an institution of the Green Talent's choice in the year after the award. Both conference and festive award ceremony will be held on 27 October 2016 at Kosmos, Berlin. What is Urban Planning? - Scope and Career Opportunities Newscity Boyd Trial Ends in Hung Jury, APD Officers Watch Protesters Robert Maestas A small group of protesters met outside the Downtown Albuquerque District Court last week to show their frustration following the court's declaration of a mistrial in the James Boyd murder case. That decision came after Judge Alisa Hadfield polled the District Court jury individually, finding that after two days of deliberation the jury was split 9-3 in favor of acquittal. For a jury's decision to be valid in a murder case, it must be unanimous. The trial focused on two officersKeith Sandy and Dominique Perezwho were accused of second-degree murder for the 2014 shooting and killing of James Boyd, a homeless man illegally camping in the Foothills, who authorities say suffered from schizophrenia. Sandy was also accused of aggravated battery. Special Prosecutor Randi McGinn, in her closing statement to the jury, argued that anticipatory shootings are unacceptable, and that police officers should not be allowed to shoot unless someone is already attacking them. Defense attorney Sam Bregman laid the blame on systemic problemsthe inability of the state to properly provide for the mentally illand argued that the officers only used their official training to inform the decisions they made. After the judge declared a mistrial, a small group of protesters who were waiting for the decision gathered outside the courthouse to speak out against police killings and to voice their anger at what they believe was a gross mishandling of justice. They want the case retried. Tactical police officers monitored the protest from the top of a nearby building, but the gathering remained peaceful. APD has said it will continue the practice if any further protests are organized. It is unclear whether or not prosecutors will seek a new trial. CNA brought on a Chubb veteran to help run its Global Services arm. JLT Re hired a new executive to lead and build up its South Korea operations. RSA named a new group pricing director. XL Catlin has a new client distribution leader based in Los Angeles as part of its Broker & Client Management team. *** A Chubb veteran joined CNA as its new vice president, Global Services. Laurie Munson will be tasked with helping to grow the companys international business by streamlining and boosting efficiencies, processes and technology. Shell report to Kathleen Ellis, senior vice president, International, CNA Commercial, who joined the insurer earlier in 2016 with a mission to build a stronger global platform to support its commercial and specialty clients. Munson is based in Chicago and has more than 30 years of insurance industry experience. She most recently served at Chubb as vice president, worldwide services manager, Multinational Solutions. *** JLT Re appointed Jong Kuk (JK) as CEO of JLT Re Korea. Moon is expected to be based in JLT Res Seoul office and will report to Kenny Moyes, CEO, JLT Re Asia. Moons mission: overseeing JLT Re Koreas ongoing strategy and business development across treaty, facultative, analytics and strategic advisory for JLT Res core Korea clients. Moon joins JLT Re, a London-based reinsurance broker and consultant, after 23 years at Korean Re. *** RSA appointed Richard Read as its new group pricing director. The international insurer said that Read will report to Nathan Williams, group underwriting director, and hell start in November 2016. Reads job will include leading the development and launch of pricing and underwriting strategy across RSA. Read, a 14-year insurance industry veteran, comes to RSA from EY, where he led the pricing and product insurance analytics offering. *** Steven Zimmerman joined XL Catlins Broker & Client Management team as a client distribution leader in Los Angeles. Hell report to Mike Soper, XL Catlins U.S. West Regional Broker and Client Management Leader. Hell be tasked with helping area brokers and businesses tap into XL Catlin expertise and products among its 30-plus business insurance lines. Zimmerman has more than 20 years of business development and insurance industry broker experience. Previously, he was senior vice president of Gallagher Bassett Services. Sources: CNA, JLT Re, RSA Living Gospel Equality Now: Loving in the Heart of God: Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests Featured Post Standing Rock: Six Years Later -- Militarized Police, Cover-ups and the Fight for Justice Militarized police attack Water Protectors in prayer, Oct. 27, 2016 Images from video by Unicorn Riot https://unicornriot.ninja/2016/police-... White Mesa Ute Spiritual March to Shut Down Uranium Mill Mohawk Warrior Society Book Launch Lakota Jean Roach: The True Story of Leonard Peltier Justice for Dad: Taylor Dewey Shares the Harsh Road to Justice Justice Dept Files Lawsuit Against Rapid City Hotel Western Shoshone Ian Zabarte Speaks on Radiation Archive Search This Blog About Censored News Censored News is published by Brenda Norrell. Since 2006, Censored News has received more than 20 million pageviews. As a collective of writers, photographers and broadcasters, we publish news of Indigenous Peoples and human rights. Contact publisher Brenda Norrell: brendanorrell@gmail.com From the publisher Censored News is published by Brenda Norrell, a journalist in Indian country for 40 years. Norrell created Censored News after she was censored and terminated as a staff reporter at Indian Country Today in 2006. She began as a reporter at Navajo Times during the 18 years that she lived on the Navajo Nation. She was a stringer for AP and USA Today and later traveled with the Zapatistas through Mexico. She has been blacklisted by all the mainstream media for 14 years. Contact brendanorrell@gmail.com Translate While Seat has yet to confirm the existence of a high-performance Ateca, the car may have been spotted hiding in plain sight at the unveiling of the facelifted Leon in Barcelona. Rumors of an Ateca Cupra have been circulating ever since the carmaker debuted the SUV, and it looks like the model is pretty much completed. The matte black car is said to be driven by SEATs executive vice-president for research and development, Matthias Rabe, and although its paint scheme helps it fly under the radar, it did little to conceal it this time. Although its not probably an official color, the Seat Ateca Capra will use other aggressive visual characteristics, including a different body kit, bigger wheels, a lower ride height, and quad exhausts (as seen in the Twitter pictures), to separate itself from the standard variants. Technical aspects of the car are unknown, but the model is expected to sport a tuned variant of the Cupras powertrain to compensate for the extra weight. That translates into a turbocharged 2.0-litre engine developing around 300 hp, capable of pushing the SUV from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in approximately six seconds. But well find out more after the car will be officially unveiled, sometime in 2017. H/T to Auto Express; Rendering courtesy of X-Tomi Design PHOTO GALLERY Another what if, but what if the head of General Motors became vice president of the United States? It might have happened under Hillary Clinton. In another batch of emails released by WikiLeaks from Clinton Campaign Chairman John Podestas account, a list of possible vice presidential picks worth looking at was revealed, including a number of prominent elected officials and business leaders including current GM CEO Mary Barra. The list is extensive and rough, with some names having been long mooted (her pick, Tim Kaine) and others thought to have been long shots (Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders). Previous political news reports have indicated the Democratic Presidential nominee long had her heart set on Kaine, a senator from Virginia and former governor of that state. But Clintons campaign appeared to be casting the net wide before she became the presumptive nominee. Barra, who became the first woman to be named GM CEO in 2014 and became chair in 2016, has pretty much steered clear of making comments about the presidential race this year something her counterpart at Ford has been unable to do. But since taking her post nearly three years ago, she has been admired as one of the leading women in business. The move may have been unprecedented to have two women on a major partys ticket in the U.S., but its not the first time a Detroit auto executive has been pulled in to serve under the president. Robert McNamara was the president of Ford Motor Company before he became Secretary of Defense under Presidents Kennedy and Johnson. Other business leaders on the list included Apple CEO Tim Cook, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his wife, Melinda. Current Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx was also among a string of names. GM hasnt issued any statement regarding Barras name in the hacked email. Video McLaren may bear the name of its eponymous founder Bruce McLaren, but its modern history has been shaped by Ron Dennis. That era, however, looks like its about to come to an end. Autosport reports that Ron Dennis will not have his contract as chairman renewed once it expires at the end of this year now less than a month and a half away. The company, however, denies that any such change is afoot. Dennis originally served as head of the F1 team from 1982 (when it merged with his Project 4 racing team) through 2009 when he stepped back from its day-to-day leadership, then returned to the groups chairmanship at the beginning of 2014. He was reportedly working to consolidate his ownership (currently resting at 25 percent) of the company by acquiring shares from fellow stakeholder Mansour Ojjeh (who also holds 25 percent) and the government of Bahrain (which holds the other 50 percent), but has apparently failed to raise the necessary capital for a buyout. With the F1 team (still the core of the company) struggling to regain its once winning form, the other shareholders have apparently lost confidence in Dennis leadership. Just who would replace him remains to be seen, but group COO Jonathan Neale would be a smart bet. The company also recently brought in Jost Capito to head up the racing department, while the applied technologies and automotive divisions have their own CEOs. McLaren Automotive, the group entity responsible for its road-going supercars, is not expected to be directly affected by any change in leadership in the umbrella organization. Photo Gallery Nissans North American division will offer employee pricing for most of its vehicles to those whose vehicles were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Matthew. The Japanese carmaker says that those affected by the ferocious storm in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida will be able to receive the offer if they redeem a claim ID before October 31st. While there is a limit of one claim per damaged vehicle, individuals and businesses affected by Hurricane Matthew are eligible for multiple replacements if more than one vehicle was totaled. Additionally, customers can secure employee pricing alongside any other current incentives offered on Nissan models. To be eligible, residents need to present Insurance Adjuster documentation confirming their vehicle was damaged or totaled during the date range of Hurricane Matthew. PHOTO GALLERY Seats extensive marketing campaign for their first-ever SUV, the Ateca, continues with an interesting proposal for UK fleet and business customers. According to the Spanish-based car company, prospective business buyers can get under the skin of the Ateca with a four-day test drive, during which their families and friends will get to experience the SUV as well. A test drive is one of the most important stages of choosing a new car; its a time for decision makers to consider whether a new vehicle will help them achieve business objectives and project the image they really want. So, we wanted to give them the chance to really get to know the Ateca and all of the benefits it delivers, as the brands local Head of Fleet & Business Sales, Peter McDonald, commented on the launch of the program. Seat has already begun taking orders for the 96-hour test drive and the vehicles are available through the brands network of Business Centers, until the end of the year. The first units of the Seat Ateca have arrived in UK dealers this fall. The most affordable model carries a starting price of 17,990 ($21,890) and comes with a 1.0-liter, three-cylinder TSI petrol engine that develops 113 horsepower. Depending on the selected version, future owners can also get a 1.4-liter TSI with 148 HP, a 1.6-liter TDI with 113 HP and a 2.0-liter TDI, with 148 HP or 187 HP, mated to a standard six-speed manual gearbox or an optional DSG and front- or all-wheel drive. PHOTO GALLERY Dont feel bad if you need a guide to spot all the differences between the fifth-gen Honda CR-V and the outgoing model. Having proven its worth where it counts on the showroom floors, with 345,647 fourth-generation CR-Vs sold in the U.S. alone last year, Honda took the decision to polish instead of reinvent its compact crossover. At first glance, the new models busy design seems almost identical to its predecessor, to the point that a casual observer might even think that its a facelift, but once you delve into the details, it becomes more clear that were talking about two separate iterations. Sure, the shape remained the same, but everything else was updated. The front fascia, for instance, adopted a cleaner look; the fog lamps migrated to the bottom portion of the bumper, while Honda also re-arranged the chromed, contrasting elements in clusters, making the grille more dominant. The air vent below the logo has increased in size, while the headlamps (which appear like they are an extension of the upper grille) contribute to the clean design. On the side, things are more familiar, with the CR-V rocking almost the same design cues. Theres a chrome strip on the new model, which together with the smaller side mirrors, make it seem more slender. Moreover, the rear quarter panels are more bloated, and separated from the vehicles derriere. Around the back, the CR-V obtained some sportier cues, including more contemporary tail-lamps that now extend horizontally on the tailgate and which represent the biggest design change. It also gets bumper-integrated exhaust pipes and a relocated license plate holder. Inside, Honda has tried to simplify the design. The climate control functions are still where youd expect them to be (just above the gear shifter), but everything else was re-arranged. For instance, the clumsy center screen flanked by two air vents has now been replaced with a cleaner screen that governs the entire console, while most users will hail the return of the physical volume knob. The steering wheel was revised, while the instrument cluster gained digital LCDs. Attesting to the CR-Vs newfound style are the (optional) wood trim inserts and the leather-covered dash. All in all, Honda took the CR-V to the next level with (what may seem) minor, but effective modifications. It looks like the CR-V is growing along with the segment, and the customers, slowly, but steadily becoming more serious as it ages. PHOTO GALLERY VW is going to launch their new Phideon flagship model in China this Friday, which is aimed to compete with other established premium car makers in this huge market, including Audi, Mercedes and BMW. The German company is targeting a clientele that looks for a premium, yet discreet model as the market trend moves towards to less flashy cars. Shiny, blingy showing-off is no longer the behavior in the (larger) cities, said Holger Santel, vice president of sales for SAIC Volkswagen to Reuters. Customers are increasingly saying I dont want Audi, Benz, BMW. I dont want to show off. Why these brands specifically? Because VW displayed the new Phideon next to the Audi A6, BMW 5-Series and the Mercedes E-Class at a media event in Shanghai, revealing their expectations for their new flagship to compete with these models. Another reason for VW wanting the new Phideon to succeed in China is that it will help the brand move on from its mass-market image and even help in increasing their overall sales there. Unlike VWs previous flagship, the Phaeton, the new Phideon is a China-only model for now, with the company not ruling out yet the possibility of exporting it to other regions in the future. The range-topping 3.0 TSI 4Motion version is powered by a supercharged V6 petrol engine with 295hp (300PS) while entry-level models are powered by a 2.0-litre TSI unit. Plug-in hybrid versions are also on the cards. The new VW Phideon is priced from 359,000 yuan (around $53,000 in current exchange rates). PHOTO GALLERY A police officer had an extremely close call near the Minnesota-Wisconsin border, when a pickup truck ran into her squad car after she had got out to help a motorist. Just as this footage from NBC News gets under way, you can see the officer walking back towards her squad car when she suddenly viewed a car heading directly for her vehicle. In a split second, the acknowledgment turned into self-preservation, as police officer Hilary Lundberg starts backing away, presumably looking for ways in which she could avoid getting hit. She looks up and sees the car coming and shes got basically no place to go because theres a gap between the two bridges. So if she were to jump over the ledge, theres a chance she would fall into the river, stated Chief Marty Jensen of the Hudson Police. As you can see, the patrol car was in really bad shape after the crash, indicating that the impact was extremely severe. I am just thankful that my officer is alive and not injured, added Chief Jensen. Her squad car and this pickup truck were within feet of her as they went by. I am amazed that she did not get hit. As for the driver of the truck, a 31-year old St. Paul man, he sustained non-life threatening injuries, as reported by the Valley News. Photo: Hudson Police Department VIDEO Photo: Getty Images I have written about various aspects of Alzheimers disease as well as research into new treatment possibility, and, at times, I may have sounded pessimistic because we still have so much to learn. We have yet to develop a treatment that can stop or significantly slow the progression of dementia in Alzheimers patients and we still dont understand how we can prevent it from occurring in the first place. Because of this and also due to fear about the prognosis of this degenerative condition, many people wait too long to speak to their doctor if they suspect themselves or loved ones are experiencing the early signs of Alzheimers. It is easy to think that if there is not much to be done to slow or stop the condition, what is the point of getting scared by an official diagnosis. Although these feelings are certainly understandable, there are many benefits to early diagnosis and management of this disease. Early diagnosis gives patients and their families some resources and support as they face an unknown future. Not only can it be reassuring to learn more about the specific type of dementia youre facing and what its course and difficulties can be, but there are other reasons early diagnosis is helpful. For some people, the earlier a medication is started, the more effective it can be. Also, an early diagnosis can help the individual be more involved in decisions about future care and management of the condition. Perhaps one of the most important reasons to speak with your doctor early if you believe youre experiencing symptoms of dementia, is that these symptoms can be caused by illnesses other than Alzheimers. Some of these conditions are treatable and a proper assessment from a doctor can help determine what the true underlying cause of symptoms may be. Understanding what is known about your condition and accessing resources and support help to ensure a better quality of life. Finally, individuals with dementia can advocate on behalf of themselves and others experiencing dementia and even help advance the understanding of Alzheimers by participating in clinical trials for potential new treatment. Although a diagnosis of dementia can seem frightening, it is important to know that there is life even with these symptoms. If you or a loved one think you might be experiencing early signs of dementia, speak with your doctor immediately. At Okanagan Clinical Trials we are currently seeking volunteers for a study of an investigational treatment for Alzheimers disease. Contact us for more information or to learn if you are eligible: 250 862-8141 or [email protected]. This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet. Photo: Kate Bouey - File photo The number of homeless people who died on Vernon streets has more than doubled since last year, according to Chuck Harper who is organizing the third annual Vernon Homeless Memorial. In 2015, there were eight deaths, but already in 2016 there have been 20, Harper said. Harper could not point to one particular reason for the dramatic increase in deaths, but acknowledged drugs did play a role in the rise in numbers. Health problems and other factors added to the total. The memorial will be held Thursday at 2 p.m. at Polson Park and will be a time to remember the lives lost. Harper said the memorial service is open to everyone and will be quiet, respectful where people can honour those who have died. This year has been a particularly tough year, said Harper. We lost 20 men and women. Kelly Fehr, with the John Howard Society, said there have been numerous deaths of homeless people this year, but he did not have the exact number. Following the service, there will be a dinner at the Upper Room Mission. The mission is putting on the dinner with help from Interior Savings. They have chosen the Mission again for their Day of Difference so they will be helping us set up for the special dinner, as well as help with serving and clean up, said Lisa Anderson, director of resource development with the mission. This will be the second in a row year staff from Interior Savings will be donating their time to benefit the mission. Photo: The Canadian Press An advocacy group has launched a private prosecution under the Fisheries Act against the B.C. government and a mining company over the disastrous consequences of the collapse of the Mount Polley tailings dam. The legal action by MiningWatch Canada says the dam released a torrent of mine waste in B.C.'s Cariboo region, creating a new valley and permanently altering or destroying fish habitat, affecting 20 different fish species. MiningWatch says in a news release that it has launched the prosecution now because more than two years after the spill, the Crown hasn't brought charges under the Fisheries Act. The charges allege the province and the Mount Polley Mining Corp. violated the act that prohibits serious harm to fish and forbids the deposit of deleterious substances into fish-bearing waters. None of the allegations have been proven in court and neither the provincial government nor Mount Polley Mining could be immediately reached for comment. A letter from the Department of Fisheries mailed recently to a lawyer for MiningWatch says investigators from three agencies are still examining evidence and potential charges will go to the Public Prosecution Service of Canada for consideration. Photo: CTV British Columbia's education minister says no schools in Vancouver are expected to be closed following the dismissal of the district's entire school board. Mike Bernier says the former superintendent tasked with being the board's new official trustee has told him school closures are not being considered for the foreseeable future. Former Delta School District superintendent Dianne Turner was appointed to the new position Monday after Bernier fired the nine-member board following months of controversy that included allegations of workplace bullying. Turner's appointment will last for at least 12 months, and Bernier says it may be extended if she needs more time to stabilize the organization. The minister says he fired the board primarily because it had not passed a balanced budget as required by provincial legislation and that he could not "take at face value" anything board members said. Board chairman Mike Lombardi has called the move outrageous, saying trustees were elected to stand up for public education, not to do the government's dirty work of closing schools, cutting programs and selling off public assets. Photo: Contributed They found the accident easily enough, but it took Salmon Arm RCMP a while to find the driver. On Oct. 16 at approximately 7:15 p.m., police and ambulance were dispatched to a single-vehicle rollover east of Salmon Arm toward Sicamous. Staff Sgt. Scott West said initial information suggested there was one occupant outside of the car. Upon arrival, the RCMP and ambulance personnel could not find any signs of occupants. Subsequent search of the area revealed there were no injured people in the immediate area, said West. Inquires revealed that the driver had left the area. The driver has since contacted police as a result of messages left with family and at recent residences, said West. It is believed that the road conditions coupled with the condition of the vehicle's tires may have been a contributing factor in the accident. Photo: Getty Images No matter who wins the U.S. election, it could have a detrimental effect on Canada's economy. A new study released by the Fraser Institute found the emergence of strong opposition to trade in the U.S. presidential election and Europe threatens Canadas future economic prosperity. There is growing opposition to the nearly four decades-long consensus regarding the benefits of trade, said Philip Cross, the former chief economic analyst with Statistics Canada and author of The Importance of International Trade to the Canadian Economy: An Overview. This is particularly true in the U.S. presidential election, where both Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and Republican candidate Donald Trump oppose the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), an unratified trade agreement between 12 Pacific Rim countries including Canada. And while Clinton has said she would review the terms of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Trump has vowed to renegotiate the deal entirely. In Europe, regional lawmakers in Belgium effectively struck down the Canada-European Union Trade Agreement (CETA), which puts its ratification later this month in jeopardy. Canada is a trading nation and a significant portion of the countrys prosperity is tied to our ability to trade with other countries, Cross said. In 2015, the value of goods and services produced in Canada and sold abroad (exports) accounted for 31.5 per cent of Canadas economy up from 25 per cent in 1988, when Canada began establishing free trade agreements with the U.S. and other countries. Despite new trade agreements with other countries, roughly 75 per cent of all Canadian exports still go to the U.S., making access to our southern neighbour vitally important. And according to the most recent available estimates, some three million jobs in Canada are directly or indirectly tied with exporting. Too many Canadians take for granted the economic benefits that freer trade has provided, until protectionist threats remind us how much we have to lose, Cross said. Photo: City of Penticton Penticton residents showed up in droves at Penticton City Hall to voice their opinions on a recovery house, filling the main council room and an overflow room. Council unanimously approved the Penticton Recovery Resource Societys application to rezone 633 Winnipeg Street, which would add another home to its existing recovery operation, called Discovery House, on Wade Avenue. The community showed overwhelming support for the proposal, including neighbours of the current Discovery House, who raved about the house as neighbours who help shovel driveways and with other chores. There was some level of dissent, including several letters written to the city, but during the meeting, opposition to the house came from only three out of more than 20 speakers. Opposition voiced concerns of zoning, including a concern that if and when Discovery House leaves the lot, the congregate housing zoning would continue, allowing for other things like hostels or flop houses to take its place, among other concerns. To that end, a caveat was proposed that would rezone the building only while it is used by Discovery House. Due to the uncommon nature of that type of legislation, staff asked for time to come up with the proper wording to add to the bylaw amendment. But the vast majority of those who spoke in council Tuesday evening showed support. Emotions ran high, with instances of tears and laughter in the room, as recovered addicts, family members thereof and family members of now-deceased addicts spoke in support of the amendments. One woman, who said she spoke for her granddaughter whose father died of a heart attack years after a successful recovery through the house, said it's not a zoning issue. About peoples lives and progress that this positive program can do, particularly for the kids," said the woman, whose speech was met with applause from the overflow room. A man who said he went through the program at Discovery House had difficulties speaking when he shared his experience of his heroin overdose. We need more beds," he told the room. "People are dying trying to get into the house that saved my life. Following the meeting, two of those who spoke out against the rezoning spoke with Discovery House executive director Jerome Abraham, with one even congratulating him on the approval. Doug Gaidica said he's still uncertain whether the zoning will work for the building and neighbourhood, including the number of occupants in the house, but said he was touched by the speeches and reiterated that he was never against having more spaces for recovery houses. He said he was happy that the city promised a caveat that would limit the zoning amendments to the building's occupancy by Discovery House. "What that does is protect us from future flop houses, that we've had in the neighbourhood before, and that was principally what we wanted," he said. "So in the future if some other manager comes along, that building doesn't become a drug house." Photo: Getty Images It was 1987 and I was just finishing up my masters degree and one of the most intriguing areas of study for me had been a comparison between B. F. Skinner and Carl Rogers. Skinner was the behaviorist and Rogers the originator of self-actualization. Now, I had just come back to the elementary level from the junior secondary and I had been awarded the most rambunctious, high-spirited, rollicking group of Grade 4s Id ever seen. The boy-girl ratio was about 4-1. I knew I had a great challenge in front of me. On the first day of school, I began with a captivating discourse about classroom expectations. As I spoke, Matthew Taggart, who was about four feet tall, had a long neck and beady eyes, slowly disappeared behind his desk. Being an experienced teacher by now, I continued to speak while slowly circling around the room. My intention, of course, was not to draw any attention to the situation, but handle it indirectly and in a non-threatening way. This was a great opportunity to show my students how fair and basically intelligent I was. As I got to the back of the room, I looked to see what Matthew was doing. To my amazement, he was playing with some little trucks and cars, running them back and forth along the track inside his desk. He was completely oblivious to anything I had said, especially the part about listening to directions. When I think about it now, I believe that Matthew was self-actualizing in his own way. The problem was that I needed him to behave in a different way. The other problem was that, as I viewed the other boys desks, they were all stuffed full of cars and trucks as well. Matthew! I roared. My facade was shattered, however, Matthew jumped up on his chair, folded his hands and looked about like a smiling little angel. I continued my sermon, pleased with my victory. By the time I made it full circle to the front of the room, Matthew had disappeared once again. After about a week, I was completely flummoxed with this little group of angels. They had no intention of listening to reason. I couldnt even shame them into being more grown up. All they really wanted to do was play with their little trucks and cars. What I needed to do was teach them some math, reading, writing, spelling, grammar, speech arts, social studies, science, P. E., health, music, art, drama Yikes! Thats a lot. Enter B. F. Skinner. One of Skinners most notable achievements was the Skinner Box. He placed a chicken in a small cage that had a lever. When the chicken pecked the lever, a piece of grain came down a shoot. The secret to this experiment was to find the frequency threshold. In other words, if a piece of grain came each time the chicken pecked, it would peck so many times per minute. But if he withheld the grain at certain random intervals, the chicken would go into a frenzy. Slot machines are based on the same principle. I was fascinated with this concept, and desperate. So, I slipped on my imaginary white coat and devised my own plan of operant conditioning. I programmed my classroom computer to beep at random intervals. I told the students that, if they were listening or working quietly when the computer beeped, I would put a tick on the board. If we reached 20 ticks by the end of the day, wed have five minutes of free time. After finding the perfect threshold frequency, my plan worked like a charm, and my students actually enjoyed this little experiment. After awhile, I even eliminated the reward and my students continued to beep along joyfully. But then there was a slight nagging sense of guilt. Was I treating my students like lab rats? What about Carl Rogers and self-actualization? I decided to stop and see if the training in this experiment had any effect. The first day without the beeps was hugely successful. My students worked quietly and actually listened to me. After about a week, things started to regress and I was getting that confounded feeling again, except that when I moved to the part of the blackboard where I had put the ticks before, my students seemed to quiet down. Then I realized that I was doing most of my talking and teaching right from that spot. When I moved away, my students became distracted and noisy. When I moved back, they quieted down. I was hit with a thunderbolt. I was the lab rat, not them. This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet. Photo: Google Street View The British Columbia Court of Appeal has ordered a new trial on sexual assault charges for a former fire chief of a small town in central B.C., ruling that the actions of the trial judge could be perceived as being unfair. The former chief of the Fort St. James Fire Department was charged with three counts of sexual assault relating to three female volunteers with the department. The trial judge rejected arguments that the man's behaviour and conduct was accepted by members of the fire department. At the trial, the judge read a section of the Criminal Code on perjury to a witness who was favourable to the defence, and said an RCMP investigation should be launched into the witness's testimony. The former fire chief later appealed his conviction, arguing those actions led to an unfair trial and a miscarriage of justice. The three-judge panel in the court of appeal says in a unanimous written decision released Tuesday that based on those actions, the judge could be perceived as being unfair and a new trial has been ordered. The judge's actions would lead a "reasonable and informed observer" to believe the judge had pre-judged the witness's evidence, writes Justice John Savage. "That impression of unfairness is not cured by the conduct of the remainder of the trial." There is a publication ban on some aspects of the case and the former fire chief is identified only by initials in the court of appeal decision. Photo: Creep Catchers A charge of breach of trust has been dropped against a Surrey Mountie scheduled to appear in court today on a charge of child luring. Surrey RCMP Const. Dario Devic was charged after a Creep Catchers sting last month in which he allegedly attempted to meet an underage girl. The first charge was dropped following "a full review of all the available evidence," the Criminal Justice Branch said Tuesday. The Crown said it did not meet its charge assessment standard. Devic was removed from active status after the incident and still faces the child luring charge. He is also the subject of an internal RCMP Code of Conduct investigation. with files from CTV Vancouver Photo: cancer.ca The Canadian Cancer Society released its 2016 cancer statistics Wednesday. An estimated 202,400 new cases of cancer (excluding non-melanoma skin cancers) will be diagnosed in Canada this year. An estimated 78,800 people will die from the disease. Lung, breast, colorectal and prostate cancers will account for more than half the cases. Canadians aged 50 to 79 will represent 70 per cent of all new cancer cases and almost 62 per cent of cancer deaths. The highest proportion of new cases will occur in those 60 to 69, while the highest proportion of deaths are expected in those 80 and older. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men: 21,600 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer and about 4,000 will die from the disease. Breast cancer remains the most common cancer among women: 25,700 will be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016 and about 4,900 will die from it. Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death for both men and women, followed by colorectal, breast and pancreatic cancers. This year, an estimated 28,400 Canadians will be diagnosed with lung cancer and about 20,800 will die from the disease, making it responsible for more than a quarter of all cancer deaths. Colorectal cancer will be diagnosed in about 26,100 Canadians and will lead to the deaths of about 9,300. Overall, an estimated two in five Canadians are expected to be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes; an estimated one in four Canadians will die from the disease. Canadian Cancer Society epidemiologist Leah Smith said studies suggest that as Canada's population continues to grow and as it ages, there will be an almost 40 per cent jump in the number of annual cancer cases by 2030, even though the rate of new cancers per 100,000 Canadians will remain relatively stable. Photo: Thinkstock.com A 41-year-old British Columbia man has received a 12-month conditional discharge after beating the family's chihuahua to death with a fence post. Christopher Mathes was sentenced in Kamloops provincial court on Tuesday after pleading guilty to causing unnecessary pain and suffering to an animal. Mathes is also banned from being in the presence of dogs for one year. He was charged just over a year ago after hitting the pet, a rescue dog, on the head with the post because it had bitten his six-year-old daughter on the face. BC SPCA chief prevention and enforcement officer Marcie Moriarty says she is appalled by the decision. She says Mathes could have turned to a trainer for help managing the dog's behaviour and she worries the sentence will set a lenient legal precedent for anyone who mistreats animals. "It is very worrisome, and I hope that, in future cases, this case gets distinguished as an oddity because it most certainly should not reflect what, in 2016, animal owners' responsibilities are with respect to duty towards their animals," Moriarty said. (CFJC, CHNL) Photo: BC Wildfire Service Salmon Arm's mayor is pleading for Rapattack staff to be permitted use of barracks at the local base after January 2018 and has expressed her fear that, without housing, the base may shut down. The Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations has confirmed a decision was made to phase-out catering services and accommodation services for the crews stationed there. A Salmon Arm city press release states there is justifiable concern about the viability of the base if the 30 affected staff members are unable to secure housing. We are not asking for the ministry to subsidize housing for their staff, just to ensure that these workers have accommodation for the months of May to October, a time when the vacancy rate in our area is at its lowest and our need for these services is at its highest, said Mayor Nancy Cooper. Cooper further stated the staff could be charged market value for the accommodations. The Shuswap area's tourist season is in full swing during the summer months and the city fears people may be left without fire protection services by the highly-trained Rapattack staff if the barracks are closed or moved. Rapattack firefighters rappel from helicopters into remote locations to fight fires where helicopters are unable land and have been a fixture in B.C.'s forest firefighting arsenal since the 1970s. The Salmon Arm base is the only one of its kind in the province. Catering service at the base is slated to end in January, and housing for the fire crews in 2018. Photo: Contributed Tours of the new jail in the South Okanagan, slated to take place this month, filled up quickly. B.C. Corrections spokeswoman Cindy Rose said they have now booked 3,000 visitors for the tours of the Okanagan Correctional Centre. We would like to thank the community for their incredible interest in touring the Okanagan Correctional Centre," she said. "In an effort to accommodate as many people as we could, we expanded dates to double the original plan." Rose added that public interest definitely exceeded their expectations and they are thrilled they have been able to provide this opportunity to thousands of residents in the region. The phone number will also no longer be monitored as they cannot accommodate any further bookings. On the guided walk-throughs, people will get a first look at the facility's living units, cells and secure inmate areas. They'll also learn about the day-to-day operations of the correctional centre and what life in custody is like for inmates. People are asked to bring a non-perishable food item for donation to local food banks. For security reasons, cameras and recording equipment including smart phones must be left in vehicles or at home. The jail, about 8.5 kilometres north of Oliver in the Senkulmen Business Park, will start to take in both male and female inmates starting in 2017. About 300 South Okanagan residents will work at the facility. Photo: The Canadian Press Health Minister Jane Philpott offered an apology of sorts to her provincial and territorial counterparts Tuesday after some of them pushed back against her argument that federal health dollars need to be earmarked for health spending. "I apologize if people misunderstood," Philpott said, standing among her fellow health ministers after day-long meetings at a downtown Toronto hotel. "There is certainly no intention to make accusations." The day before, Philpott spoke frankly and at length about what she called the need for greater accountability on the part of the provinces and territories, as well as more innovative ideas on efficiently delivering health services. "There are countries in this world, and there are many of them, developed countries ... that are getting far better value for money than we are," she said. "I have a responsibility as the health minister for Canada to invest in health, to help improve health systems but when we are going to my finance minister to ask for more money, I need to be able to tell that finance minister it is going to be used for health." On Tuesday, Philpott refined her message, saying the federal government wants to see greater accountability for future investments. "What we are talking about is new investments in health care," she said. "That's just what I talked about, the fact that when we are investing in home care ... people in this day and age, health experts from across the country, believe in measurement." The tensions that have permeated the talks come from provincial resistance to a federal plan to proceed with a reduction in the rate by which federal transfers increase each year: three per cent, down from the six per cent escalator established in 2004. Those transfer payments currently flow into the provinces' general revenue pool; Philpott said Tuesday that further investment will require additional detail so the federal government can know what to "expect." The provinces say a three per cent increase in Canada Health Transfer payments will mean $1 billion less the provinces would otherwise have received in 2017-18, and $60 billion over the next decade. Photo: CTV Police in New Zealand say they've found partial remains of a Canadian man whose vehicle went off a highway in the country three years ago. Connor Hayes and Joanna Lam were in a campervan near New Zealand's Haast Past in September 2013 when police say the vehicle was swept off a highway by a landslide. Police say the Ottawa couple was killed in the crash. Twenty-four-year-old Lam's body was recovered days later from a beach north of the tourist town of Haast, but twenty-five-year-old Hayes was never found. On Wednesday, New Zealand police announced that a hunter located a human thigh bone at the confluence of two rivers in August, which DNA analysis has confirmed is Hayes's. Insp. Mel Aitken says the discovery prompted a new search of the Haast River this Sunday and a number of "items of interest" were recovered from the riverbed, but police have yet to confirm they belong to Hayes. Aitken says anything believed to belong to Hayes, including bones, will eventually be released to his family in Canada. Photo: CTV British Columbia MP Peter Julian is stepping down as NDP House leader to explore the idea of running for the leadership of his party. "That will mean lots of conversations hundreds of conversations in the coming period," Julian said Wednesday "I'm inspired by New Democrats, I'm inspired by Canadians, and I'm looking forward to those conversations," said Julian, who represents the riding of New Westminster-Burnaby. Murray Rankin, another B.C. New Democrat, will take over as House leader. Julian, 54, was first elected to the House of Commons in 2004 and has been re-elected four times. So far, there are no official candidates to replace NDP Leader Tom Mulcair. Mulcair said he would step down next year after delegates at the party's April convention in Edmonton voted against his leadership. That followed a poor showing in the 2015 election, despite Mulcair having begun the campaign with the most credible shot the NDP has ever had at forming the federal government. Julian said that one year after the Liberals came to power, Canadians are disappointed. The party is to select Mulcair's replacement in October 2017. Photo: Contributed A Penticton man was arrested and charged after threatening another man with a knife during a fight in the city, last week. Cpl. Don Wrigglesworth said officers were called out to a report of two men fighting, apparently over rent one of them owed, on Orchard Avenue at about 1:20 p.m. on Oct. 14. The victim was located by officers on Padmore Avenue and the accused was found in the vicinity of the Penticton Library. The men were not co-operative with the police, and the man who was wielding the knife was subsequently charged with assault with a weapon. This incident follows a reported stabbing at the 24/7 Convenience Store on Main Street on Oct. 7. Photo: NASA Astronauts headed to the International Space Station in 2018 won't only be conducting their own experiments they'll be part of a bigger experiment themselves. The Canadian Space Agency and the University of Calgary announced Wednesday they are collaborating on a new experiment to study how long-duration missions impact astronauts' brains. Known as wayfinding, the study will examine how reduced gravitational forces affect the astronauts' ability to find their way around. "We're the perfect guinea pigs for medical research," said Canadian astronaut David Saint-Jacques, who will head to the International Space Station for a six month mission in late 2018. "It's part of the job. I mean if I can contribute to medical research and help save lives ultimately down the road and come up with the cure for something, it would be a great privilege." It is hoped the research will eventually help those affected by neurological conditions and neural degeneration related to aging. Studies have already shown that spending extended time in space can reduce bone density. Astronauts lose an average of more than one per cent bone mass for every month spent in space. "There isn't a single system in your body that isn't affected by the lack of gravity," said Saint-Jacques. "We have evolved on Earth for millions of years in the presence of gravity and our body works with gravity. You remove gravity and everything goes out of whack and, because of that. astronauts develop problems that often resemble real disease." Giuseppe Iaria, the principal investigator for the wayfinding experiment at the University of Calgary, said his team will perform brain scans on the astronauts before they leave for the space station and after they return. "We will do some behaviour testing, some video-game like environments where we test the ability to find their way around in environments that we create and we manipulate just to see how their orientation skills are," said Iaria. Photo: The Canadian Press A book of condolence for former Alberta premier Jim Prentice at the MacDougal Centre in Calgary. A state memorial service that will be open to the public will be held next week in Calgary for former Alberta premier Jim Prentice, who was killed in a plane crash last week near Winfield. The twin-engine Norjet Cessna Citation crashed Thursday night, shortly after taking off from Kelowna Airport. A statement from the premier's office says the service will be held Oct. 28 at the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium and will begin at 11 a.m. Details of the service, including speakers and attendees, are still being worked out. Prentice was killed last Thursday when the business jet slammed into the ground east of Wood Lake. Also killed were optometrist Ken Gellatly, the father-in-law of one of Prentice's daughters, and former RCMP officer Jim Kruk, who was piloting the aircraft. The family of Calgary businessman Sheldon Reid, another victim of the crash, says in a statement he enjoyed telling stories about his travels around the world and was most proud of his son, Dylan. "Sheldon was a man of incredible generosity generosity for his family, his loved ones, and the community of Calgary," the family wrote. "He will be fondly remembered for his smile, his laugh, and the depth of his care and compassion for those he loved." The Transportation Safety Board investigation into the crash is expected to take at least a year. News / Africa by BBC At least 16 people have been killed in a row over a disputed charge on the sale of caterpillars in the Democratic Republic of Congo.The larvae were being sold for food in south-eastern Katanga province.Days of violence began when a group of Batwa, also known as pygmies, accused the Luba ethnic group of imposing an illegal levy on the sale of caterpillars and beating up vendors.The two groups have clashed several times in the last few years.The Batwa killed several members of the Luba ethnic group near the region of Kabalo in Katanga. The Luba then launched a revenge attack, killing at least 13 pygmies.Tensions between the hunter-gatherer pygmies and the Luba, a Bantu ethnic group, have caused hundreds of deaths over the past three years.Caterpillars are a delicacy in western DR Congo, in the area around the capital Kinshasa, hundreds of miles from Katanga where the deadly clashes occurred.They are harvested from trees, smoked and often eaten with sauce.However they are an unexpected cause of conflict in DR Congo, particularly in Katanga.That province is not known for its love of eating caterpillars and people have certainly never killed for them before.But there is a running feud in the area between pygmies and other ethnic groups.Pygmies are native to the region but they feel they are marginalised, with unequal access to resources and education.So when they felt that one of their main sources of income was being subject to an unfair tax, the result was violence. Photo: Contributed The Penticton Trade and Convention Centre is losing money, but thats nothing out of the ordinary according to a business planning expert. Jonathan Hack of Sierra Planning and Management presented to city council on Tuesday during a committee of the whole meeting to put forth suggestions for the city to undertake to shed less money from the centre. In his presentation, Hack noted that the PTCC lost over $195,000 last year, while the year previous it lost $18,400. In 2012, the centre lost nearly $280,000. In fact, over the past five years, according to the data provided in the presentation, the centre would have lost $776,062, averaging out to just over $155,000 per year. But compared to other convention centres, the PTCC's loss per square foot is smaller than numerous others, according to Hack's presentation. While the PTCC lost $3.25 per square foot, others ranged from $6.73 per square foot at the Victoria Conference Centre to a staggering $282.43 per square foot loss at The Banff Centre according to the most recent available data. The Whistler Conference Centre was the only one in the black in Hack's presentation, which saw an $18.79 per square foot gain. The expansion of the Lakeside Resort may impact the amount of events that come to the PTCC, such as conventions and recurrent events, but Hack said the city should still welcome the expansion for potential positive impacts on the local economy. In order to grow the market share, however, Hack offered a potential solution: one or more hotels added to the area. He said the city could provide moderate investment in the building, but the benefit of that would be a non-significant compliment to other investments. By investing more in the building, and potentially a hotel on site, Hack said economic benefits could arise, and Penticton would remain a relevant spot on the map. Some of those potential investments include a pair of new multi-purpose rooms, an expanded lobby to the north and expansion of the back-of-house, though that all comes with a hefty price tag at $25.4 million. But without digging so deep into their pockets, the PTCC could make more minor improvements, like renovating its back-of-house operations to accommodate more patrons, performing more routine improvements to the building and re-planning meeting rooms. That was priced out at just over $8.5 million. In all, Hack offered four options, including a full re-purpose of the PTCC, partial re-purpose of the building, investment into the centre and demolition of the building and sale of the land. However, Hack tossed three of those options aside as not justified, and said the focus should be on investing more into the PTCC. Photo: Twitter Actress Shailene Woodley has pleaded not guilty in a North Dakota court to criminal trespass and riot charges after her arrest in a protest against the Dakota Access pipeline. Court records show the "Divergent" star entered her pleas on Tuesday through her attorney Alexander Reichert. Woodley and 26 other activists were arrested Oct. 10. She livestreamed her protest on Facebook. The Standing Rock Sioux want construction of the $3.8 billion pipeline halted, saying it could taint the water supply and encroach on tribal burial sites. Protests supporting the tribe have been going on for months. Woodley could face 60 days in jail and $3,000 in fines if she is convicted of criminal trespass and engaging in a riot. Photo: Deborah Pfeiffer Firefighters responded to a small fire in a city garbage can in downtown Penticton on Wednesday afternoon. Smoke coming from the waste bin near Starbucks on Main Street was first observed by customers at about 1 p.m. Employees contacted the fire department, who quickly arrived on scene. A Starbucks employee said customers told her someone was smoking nearby, just before smoke started coming from the garbage can. She said there has been small fires in the receptacles before, which can be a little unnerving for customers. Capt. Ken Younghusband said they did find some cigarette butts inside, making that the possible cause. He advised not getting rid of butts in garbage cans. Photo: File photo A warrant has been issued for a couple wanted in a daring New Brunswick diamond theft that has been connected to a series of similar heists nationwide. The Saint John Police Force said Wednesday they had obtained a Canada-wide arrest warrant for a 70-year-old man and a 44-year-old woman in the Oct. 7 theft at W. Smith and Co. Fine Jewellers. The force did not give further details, but storeowner Wayne Smith said the couple were European and living in the Toronto area. "The police have been right on to it, they've just been working diligently here," Smith said Wednesday. Smith went public about the robbery at his store this month, and said he has since heard directly from stores and police officers from coast to coast about similar heists. The thieves present themselves as a middle-aged couple arguing over how many carats to buy, and then switch real diamonds with fakes while salespeople are distracted. The most recent reported robbery was at a store in Charlottetown, where police said the same couple that hit Saint John "managed to swap useless stones for two diamonds valued at approximately $20,000." Smith said such thefts are not uncommon at jewelry stores, but they're usually kept quiet. He said he decided to speak out because his insurance deductible is so high it won't cover the loss, and because the video is so clear the culprits can be easily identified. Smith said he now directly knows of a half-dozen thefts from Vancouver to the Maritimes, and thinks there are likely dozens more. He said more than $1 million in diamonds may have been stolen. "It'll make me ecstatic when some of the jewellers get their goods back, and it may be a start of jewellers communicating across Canada more when they do have a robbery, so that we can narrow this down and maybe prevent something from happening in the future," Smith said. "It's also a good awareness that all jewellery stores need to have up-to-date, sophisticated camera equipment." Photo: Contributed Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard has turned down a request for a televised debate on sovereignty and federalism with Parti Quebecois Leader Jean-Francois Lisee. Couillard says he prefers to discuss jobs and the economy. Lisee used question period in the national assembly on Wednesday to ask for the debate. On his way later to a cabinet meeting, Couillard said he's not interested in discussing sovereignty with his political foe. The new PQ leader held a news conference to scoff at Couillard and accuse him of using sovereignty as a diversionary tactic. Lisee said the premier always turns the conversation to independence when he is asked about the economy. "I'm telling him,'If you want to talk about sovereignty, we'll have a one-hour debate on it,''' Lisee said. "And he says, 'No, I want to discuss the economy.''' Couillard maintained that his interests lie in areas other than independence. "I prefer to talk about subjects that are of concern to Quebecers, such as the economy and jobs," he said. If you have just started your journey in an online casino or are looking for a new site to play,... News / National by Staff reporter A SENIOR police officer in Bulawayo yesterday allegedly committed suicide by shooting himself in the head in his office at Westgate Police Station.Chief Inspector Edgar Dube (50), the Officer-in-Charge of the Police Protection Unit at Westgate, used a service pistol to shoot himself at around 7AM.According to local media, there was no suicide note but a Bible, opened to Romans Chapter Two, was found beside his body in his blood spattered office.The first verse reads: "You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things."Sources close to the matter said he was found with a gun in his hand and a gunshot wound under his right ear and above his left eye.National police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba confirmed the incident. News / National by Stephen Jakes The Mutare Magistrate's Court has cleared the commemoration for Operation Hakudzokwi which is scheduled for the 1st of November in the diamond rich Marange communal lands. Operation Hakudzokwi (You shall not return) was a violent crack down launched by Zimbabwe's security forces to capture Marange diamond fields from artisanal miners and local villagers.Hundreds of artisanal miners were gunned down whilst scores of women were gang raped and others forced to be raped as punishment by artisanal miners under threat of the security forces.Although the effects of the crackdown were severe and far-reaching, the subject is still discussed with hushed tones, even by the victims. In 2014 Centre for Natural Resource Governance held the first ever commemoration of Operation Hakudzokwi in Mutare, attended by more than 200 people drawn from Marange community, civil society and international solidarity organisations.In 2016 the commemoration will be even bigger, with more than 500 people expected to gather at Bambazonke Business Centre in Marange to evoke, remember and reflect over what happened in November 2008, in order for the victims and their families to reclaim the recognition they deserve and raise awareness to prevent future repetitions of similar brutalities.The Officer in Charge at Bambazonke Police Station had barred Chiadzwa Community Development Trust and Centre for Natural Resource Governance from holding the commemoration in the community. In denying the two organisations permission to hold the event, Police demanded a Memorandum of Understanding between CCDT and CNRG with the Mutare Rural District Council.Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights filed an urgent court application arguing that Section 26 of the Public Order and Security Act (POSA) exempts applicant from complying with sections 25 of the Act as it is not a political grouping; hence, the notice itself was just out of courtesy, adding that the Officer in Charge was awarding him/herself powers that s/he does not have.The ruling states the following that the oral prohibition order given on 14 October 2016 prohibiting Applicant's meeting at Bambazonke Business Centre be set aside, as its issuance is not compliant with Section 26 of POSA, that the 1st Respondent and its agents or anyone acting under Respondent's instruction are interdicted from disturbing or interfering in any way with the meeting to be held at Bambazonke Business Centre on 1 November 2016 to be convened by applicant and that the applicant goes ahead with the meeting as scheduled and promote its right to freedom of association and assembly as set out in section 58 of the Constitution and with the right to freedom of expression as guaranteed in section 61 of the same.Centre for Natural Resources Governance indicated that operation Hakudzokwi commemoration becomes the biggest gathering of Zimbabweans to reflect on the cost of mining to poor communities."As corporate violence in the mining sector is on the rise, with several cases of beatings and extra-judicial killing of artisanal miners by mine security guards being reported, this event seeks to discuss real alternatives to mining and lay out approaches to sustainable development that leaves no one behind," the organisation said."The 2014 commemoration was the first ever public meeting for the survivors of Operation Hakudzokwi to speak publicly about what happened to them and demand justice. The 2016 commemoration, running under the theme Operation Hakudzokwi: Remembering those who lost Lives, limbs, Land and Livelihoods, aims highlighting the urgent need for transitional justice and to ensure that the events that happened in Marange shall never happen again. The constitution should protect the lives of all Zimbabweans regardless of their social status." News / National by Staff Reporter Water experts say the drying up of water sources poses a major crisis to the region and Zimbabwe in particular as it will escalate water shortages, reduce power generation and increase food insecurity throughout the country.The mighty Zambezi River is a lifeline for Southern Africa and reports indicate that the source is drying up.Zimbabwe generates power from the Zambezi River at the Kariba Hydro Power Station and now finds itself wondering as to the future of the expansion project currently underway in Kariba.Water engineer and SADC Water and Sanitation Coordinator, Mr Takudzwa Noel Mushamba said water is key to any national development and its scarcity has multiple negative effects on communities and the industry at large.Oxfam Water and Sanitation Expert, Lynn Chiripamberi said the drying up of water sources such as dams, rivers and tributaries have seen both urban and rural communities facing water shortages, exposing them to unsafe drinking water and in some cases forcing people to walk long distances to fetch water.A local non-governmental organisation, Action 24 Director, Mr Archibold Chemhere said dwindling surface and underground water is posing a huge challenge to the agriculture sector, causing food insecurity especially in communities that rely on rain feed agriculture.Faced with such a looming crisis, experts said governments must prioritise water infrastructure development to avert a crisis. News / National by Staff reporter President Robert Mugabe has convinced the Msipa family that the late national hero, Cephas Msipa be buried at the National Heroes Acre where other members of his league are interred.Mugabe visited the Msipa residence in Borrowdale, Harare this Wednesday evening in the company of the First Lady, Dr Grace Mugabe, where the final decision was reached.Msipa succumbed to pneumonia on Monday morning at West End Clinic in Harare and after the conferment of the national hero status, there were disagreements in the family as some argued that Msipa's wish to be buried next to his wife at the Midlands Provincial Heroes Acre in Gweru should be respected.However, President Mugabe, said as a nephew to the Msipa family, he wants Msipa to be buried at the national shrine alongside other towering national giants."Msipa deserves the respect and honour that he worked for through his political activities aimed at liberating the country and maintenance of peace in Zimbabwe," said Mugabe, adding that although provincial heroes acres are looked after, the maximum care is given to the national shrine.According to government protocol, national heroes are interred at the National Heroes Acre.The body of the late national hero will be taken to Msipa's rural home in Zvishavane on Thursday.It will be in Gweru on Friday and will return to Harare later in the evening.It will lie in state at the Msipa Borrowdale home on Friday before burial on Saturday.Several government ministers who included Oppah Muchinguri - Kashiri, Christopher Mushohwe, Kembo Mohadi and Ignatius Chombo, among others, were also at the Msipa home. News / Press Release by APO NAIROBI - At a press conference, the CEO of the African Trade Insurance Agency (ATI) (www.ATI-aca.org), George Otieno, along with H.E. Dina Mufti, the Ethiopian Ambassador and Gabriel Negatu, Regional Director, African Development Bank announced today that it is ready to begin covering transactions in Ethiopia and Zimbabwe. After a year-long process that was supported with funds from the African Development Bank, both countries are now members.The announcement will give investors crucial comfort to start or continue doing business in these countries.ATI was established in 2001 by African governments and a range of other shareholders to ease the concerns of investors by providing a range of investment and political risk insurance products.In the case of Ethiopia, one of Africa's fastest growing economies, ATI will help the country maintain its status as one of Africa's biggest success stories.The $66 billion economy has been expanding as much as 10.3 percent annually over recent years, according to the International Monetary Fund, with a dip to 6.5 percent last year due to drought. Ethiopia has also been successful in attracting large manufacturers such as Unilever NV, Diageo Plc and Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) and has taken the lead in export of agricultural products.For Zimbabwe, membership in ATI would give a boost to the country's quest to attract foreign direct investments."I have no doubt that our membership will contribute to Zimbabwe's current efforts to reduce the cost of doing business by making political risk and credit insurance, as well as non-payment and FDI cover readily available to exporters, importers and investors," noted Industry & Commerce Minister Mike Bimha.He also noted that his office had been inundated with inquiries from the private sector and potential investors on how they could access ATI's insurance services."The African Development Bank is pleased to have financed Ethiopia and Zimbabwe's membership into ATI. The affiliation with ATI will attract prospective investors with additional guarantees to participate in the priority areas of powering & lighting, feeding, industrializing and integrating both countries. It will also help improve the livelihood of millions of Ethiopians and Zimbabweans," noted Gabriel Negatu, African Development Bank's Regional Director.In both countries, ATI has a current project pipeline estimated at over one billion USD, which is expected to double in the short-term based on existing demand for its products. Prospective projects include a 400 MW solar energy plant in Ethiopia that would contribute to the country's carbon neutral growth plan to improve the living conditions of its citizens. And in Zimbabwe, ATI is considering a line of credit targeting commercial banks that will allow them to increase their lending volumes."I believe our entry into Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, particularly at this time, sends a powerful message to investors. Our presence signals that both countries are open for business because we are standing beside them as a credible and internationally-respected insurer with an A' rating from S&P. This should be positive news to anyone interested in doing business in the either country," noted Mr. Otieno, ATI's Chief Executive Officer.ATI provides political, investment and trade credit risk insurance and surety bonds to clients doing business in its member countries. The products are created to help countries attract more investments and to promote domestic trade by providing insurance that mitigates against sovereign risks and specifically, currency inconvertibility and exchange transfer, expropriation, trade embargoes, non-honouring of contracts and payment default risks among others.Companies and investors interested in learning more about ATI's products and services can send an enquiry to AfricanRisks@ATI-aca.org. News / Regional by Stephen Jakes Matobo villagers are appearing in court for demonstrating against Arda and Trek's invasion of their land.MDC official Descent Bajila said the people have a long and well documented history of resistance."They fought the very first war against occupation in form of the Anglo Ndebele war of 1893. Even if Cecil John Rhodes had been granted the Royal Charter by the British Crown our people resisted him with sticks and stones. Our people fought Ian Douglas Smith even if he had won elections and Unilaterally declared independence. Our people fought Rodney Mashingaidze even if he had an "offer letter" to occupy our land. We are proud of these heroic fights we have been through," he said."We are however conscious of the battles we were beaten hands down particularly the Gomala- Bere incident, the battle of Mbembesi and Operation Gukurahundi. We are also conscious of the hand of Gukurahundi era Ministers like Emerson Mnangagwa in the ARDA Trek invasion. My knowledge of our people is that even if Trek were to forcibly take that, they will never see a season of harvest. It is in our mutual interest for Trek to VOETSEK from Maphisa."He said all the best to the legal team Abammeli and ZLHR."Have a great fight. In our hearts and spirits you have already won the matter," he said. News / Regional by Staff Reporter Farmers at Thuli-Makwe Irrigation Scheme in Gwanda have entered into a joint venture with a local investor in a development that is expected to enhance agricultural productivity at the underutilised facility.The partnership between Thuli-Makwe Irrigation Scheme and Sense Marketing Private Limited will see the investor occupying 139 hectares of land while 55 hectares will remain in the hands of the farmers.Thuli-Makwe Irrigation Scheme chairperson Mrs Shiela Sibanda said the challenges faced by the farmers which include constant breakdown of engines, high utility bills and shortage of inputs necessitated the partnership.The investor has agreed to settle the farmers ZESA and ZINWA bills totaling to US$120 000, repair all electric motors and fence the scheme among other commitments.Government has however advised the farmers at Thuli-Makwe to review the contract every five years instead of the 10 year period initially agreed by the two parties.Other farmers are however not happy that only 30 hectares of land has been dedicated to the Command Agriculture Programme.Thuli-Magwe Irrigation Scheme which had 489 plot holders closed operations in September 2012 due to a huge electricity debt that had risen to US$135 000 and water bills amounting to US$77 000.It reopened in 2013 after farmers managed to reduce the debt and currently there are 222 plot holders after many other withdrew from the scheme.Meanwhile 53 hectares have been put under the summer crop. Opinion / Columnist Zimbabweans have been under economic problems for quite a long time and the situation seems to have no end as corruption is threatening to economically destroy all what the western-imposed - economic sanctions left during the over a decade long sanctions-induced-economic demise. For over a decade now Zimbabweans have not economically tested peace as some western-imposed sanctions in the country did not do any favour to our economy and now corruption is causing havoc to the same tattered Zimbabwean economy.Now it seems people have come to accept as normal mingling with corrupt individuals the same way how people have accepted that it is common and normal for one to have H.I.V and AIDS pandemic. Similarly with corruption despite the effects which this scourge has caused economically in the country people seem to have accepted that as normal. Some people even abet the commission of corruption in the country the same how some people abet the spread of H.I.V and AIDS in the country.However like how those in the medical field had fought tirelessly to with ways to contain the scourge of H.I.V and AIDs globally, the two Vice Presidents in the country Cdes Emerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko also came out strongly denouncing corrupt activities in the country. They both agreed that corruption has not done any good to the country hence those caught on the wrong side of the law should be either dismissed from their jobs or get arrested and thrown into jails.While addressing residents in Area Two of Old Pumula suburb in Bulawayo some few days ago as he handed over 2 900 day-old chicks to the residents, Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko said that corrupt officials at public hospitals such as Mpilo Central Hospital and United Bulawayo Hospitals must be fired for fleecing patients. VP Mphoko went further to blast corrupt officials by saying that there was conflict of interest at some institutions as some officials ran businesses similar to that of their employer.VP Mphoko said that such scenarios breeds corruption thereby disadvantages those who need to be assisted medically on public hospitalsVP Emerson Mnangagwa speaking at the National Journalism and Media Awards in Harare on Thursday 13 October 2016 said it was the responsibility of every Zimbabwean to expose corruption in the country. He hailed the media for exposing corruption saying that the scourge must never be rewarded with "impunity, while righteousness is punished with hostile editorials." VP Mnangagwa called for the media to make sure that there is no scared goat when it comes to exposing corruption in the country. He encouraged some journalist to make sure that they do investigative journalism so they are able to expose such vices without fearing anyone.For that reasons, Zimbabweans should take heed on what the VPs said on corruption since those are the only ways in which corruption could be tackled. If corrupt individuals are exposed they would probably stop such activities. This scourge should not be left unattended because Zimbabweans have been suffering for a long time. Corruption should not be accepted the same way people have accepted the scourge of H.I.V and AIDS. While people have been informed on how they can protect themselves from the scourge of H.I.V and AIDS but the scourge of corruption seem to be a problem as it is mainly coming from the top downwards.The hope now that corruption could be dealt with rests with what both VPs said about fighting corruption. Such moves by the VPs should now be taken as a turning point by all Zimbabweans to fight corruption. As said by VP Mnangagwa that the media should work tirelessly in exposing corruption so the media should make sure that those engaged in corrupt activities are exposed. There is need for the media to make sure that noone is feared when it comes to exposing corruption in the country.Actually those involved in corrupt activities should be jailed or fired from positions of authorities as pointed out by VP Mphoko as to send a clear message to would be corrupt individuals. Zimbabweans should not embrace corruption the same way as they embraced H.I.V and AIDS because this pandemic came sometimes unplanned and unknowingly unlike corruption where one plans to so.Zimbabwe is in dire need of the foreign direct investment which could make the economic turnaround of the economy viable but such a move cannot be possible if a country is full of corrupt individuals who always see the coming of any investor in the country as an opportunity for both top public and private sector officials to fatten their wallets. So corruption in whatever sector should be dealt with. Now that the VPs have now come out strongly talking against corruption the government should work tirelessly to arrest those found on the wrong side of the law. Actually laws to facilitate prosecution of corrupt individuals should be enacted so that this scourge is minimised if not eradicated totally.It is a fact that Zimbabweans from all walks of life have been talking against corruption and now that the powers that be have also joined the bandwagon of Zimbabweans in denouncing corruption, people expect action to be taken. Corruption has been talked about many times in different meetings, seminars and even in parliament but nothing tangible has been done to deal with those involved in corrupt ways.During a briefing with the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs on the functions and status of the National Prosecuting Authority on 31 March 2013,the then National Prosecutor-General who was by then the Acting Attorney-General, Mr. Johannes Tomana, told the committee that the government was supposed to capacitate institutions mandated to fight corruption while creating an enabling legal framework if the country was to deal decisively with the scourge of corruption in the country. Such a view by the then top government lawyer in that time should have been taken seriously as it was overdue for such an enabling legal framework to be enacted as a means to deal with corruption.Surprisingly such an enabling legal framework meant to deal with corruption has not been put in place despite the presence of the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) in the country which is only there to fleece tax payers' money in salaries and allowances but being toothless when it comes to powers of arrest. The government should immediately enact laws which empower ZACC to investigate and arrest those involved in corrupt activities as way of making its presence understandable. Failure to do that by government would render useless the existence of ZACC but only to be there to drain the national fiscus. Opinion / Columnist Zimbabweans were astounded to read that, "Police have not arrested Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Minister, Professor Jonathan Moyo because no report has been made to that effect." The story quoted the Acting Police Commissioner-General, Senior Assistant Commissioner as saying.Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) exposed that Professor Moyo misappropriated $450 000. What amazes many is the fact that police is deliberately ignoring effort put by ZACC in the course of their constitutional mandate. This leaves more questions than answers.Where is the missing link between the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) and ZACC? These two public statutory bodies should synchronise their workmanship in order to weed out corruption which gnawing our national resources at an alarming rate.Supposedly, one had committed murder and the murderer is identified, Was the ZRP going to await a formal report to that effect? Certainly not! ZRP should play its constitutional mandatory obligation without any fear or favour. This is the only way to ensure the existence of justice in the Republic of Zimbabwe.ZRP is obliged to safeguard itself against facing allegations of the selective application of the law amongst citizens.One may ask if ZACC hasn't engaged the involvement of ZRP in the Moyo saga. It is unlikely, considering the fact that ZACC has no arresting powers. Honestly, what role does the ZRP play in nabbing corruption if they behave in such a hypocritical manner of pretending never to understand the elementary facts of the simple matter at stake.Possibly, to avert this misnomer, ZACC should be given prosecutorial powers to enhance the statutory body's mandate to execute its duties effectively and efficiently.Meanwhile, ZACC says it is dependent on the Zimbabwe Republic Police, and the Prosecutor General's office for processing corruption cases. More oftenly, ZACC claims that most cases have been compromised due to the long pipeline which involves other agencies. Therefore, gaining both arresting and prosecutorial powers would certainly shorten the process and improve on service delivery.Studies have revealed that agencies possessing both prosecutorial power and enhanced investigative power, like in Georgia, USA, emerged to be extremely powerful agency which can fight corruption efficiently.In Georgia, the Investigative Division of the Prosecution has the power to investigate and prosecute corruption. The only limitation to this power is the ability of the Minister of Justice to intervene where high level officials have been implicated. However, the minister's power has not hampered the effectiveness of the agency owing to the strong political will to fight corruption in the country.At the time of starting the anti-corruption reform agenda in 2003, Georgia was ranked 124 out of 133 countries on the Corruption Perception Index, but is now ranked 51 out of 174 countries.One of the main reasons policymakers cite for establishing a stand-alone, independent anti-corruption agency is the need to strengthen the enforcement of their nation's laws against bribery, conflict of interest, and other corruption crimes. But while a broad international consensus exists on the value of creating a new agency with investigative powers, opinion remains sharply divided on whether these agencies should also have the power to prosecute the crimes it uncovers.No matter the country, debate about whether a single agency should have the power to both investigate and prosecute corruption cases inevitably comes down to a small set of conflicting claims. Those who oppose giving a single agency both powers raise an argument at the centre of the older debate about the relative responsibilities of police and prosecutors investigator bias.In the words of a British Royal Commission that studied the relationship between English police and prosecutors, an investigator "without any improper motive, may be inclined to shut his mind to other evidence telling against the guilt of the suspect or to over-estimate the strength of the evidence he has assembled." That is, once an investigator hones in on a suspect, confirmation bias sets in, and he or she will interpret all evidence as supporting the suspect's guilt.Putting the decision about whether to prosecute a case in an agency wholly separate from the one that investigates provides a strong check against such bias, reducing the chances that the innocent will be put to a trial or weak cases brought to court.Ideally, studies have indicated that anti-corruption agencies with both responsibilities for both investigating and prosecuting corruption are likely to be more effective in enforcing the anti-corruption laws.It is however, worth noting that, some anti-corruption agencies have succeeded without having prosecutorial powers. For instance, the Hong Kong and Singapore agencies being notable examples were infamous agencies which possessed both investigative and prosecutorial power, but have been ineffective in their public mandate to fight corruption. But by and large dividing the powers between two agencies makes the effective enforcement of the anti-corruption laws all the more difficult to achieve.Effective enforcement of all laws demands, a close, professional, and robust relationship between investigators and prosecutors. But again, if the two are in separate agencies, this goal is all the harder to achieve. When prosecutors decline to prosecute a case an investigator has worked long and hard developing, it is easy for the investigator to treat it as a personal slight.Furthermore, prosecutors often need a good deal of time to review a lengthy file, but delays are commonly seen by civil society as a lack of commitment to prosecuting corruption case or, when after a delay the file is rejected, that corruption has have infected the review process.Identifying who is accountable for weak enforcement of the anti-corruption laws is virtually impossible when responsibility is split between two agencies. Investigators say weak enforcement is the prosecutors' fault; they are refusing to prosecute solid cases. Prosecutors point the finger at the investigators, saying the cases they present are weak.So there is need to establish an independent committee to re-look into the best international practices which can be adopted and implemented to fortify the ZACC so as to foster their duty execution in curtailing corruption.Otherwise the Moyo saga is a tip of the iceberg. Much more should be exposed by ZACC in order to cleanse our nation of corruption demon which is bedevilling our nation. There should be no sacred cows. Opinion / Letters 4556 Griffith Mxenge StrSamora Machel7785 NPOno: 096-615South AfricaHon. Knowledge Malusi Nkanyezi Gigaba, MP.Minister of Home AffairsDepartment of Home AffairsRepublic of South Africa.19th September 2016Dear Minister Knowledge Malusi Nkanyezi Gigaba, MPRef: Request for Special Immigration Protection Status for people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi).This letter constitutes a formal request to the ANC government of the Republic of South Africa through your Ministry to take immediate steps towards giving the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) , currently residing in South Africa, a "Special Immigration Protection Status" and regularise their stay in our Republic.Hon. Minister it is good for us to state clearly that the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) are an Inter-cultural Society made of 16 multi-ethnic nationalities namely Aba-Thwa-San or Basarwa, Asians, Black immigrants, Coloureds, Kalanga, Karanga of Matebeleland, Nambya, Nguni, Shangwe, Sotho, Tswana, Swazi, Venda, White Matebele and Xhosa.Hon. Minister the strong grounds for the request for "Special Immigration Status" are on the basis of the following committed by the sectarian state of Zimbabwe against the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) since 1980 up to the present day.1. The violation of the following articles of the 1992 UN Declaration on Rights of Persons Belonging to National, or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities.Article 1i. States shall protect the existence and the national or ethnic, cultural, religious and linguistic identity of minorities within their respective territories and shall encourage conditions for the promotion of that identity.ii. States shall adopt appropriate legislative and other measures to achieve those ends.Article 2i. Persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities (hereinafter referred to as persons belonging to minorities) have the right to enjoy their own culture, to profess and practise their own religion, and to use their own language, in private and in public, freely and without interference or any form of discrimination.ii. Persons belonging to minorities have the right to participate effectively in cultural, religious, social, economic and public life.iii. Persons belonging to minorities have the right to participate effectively in decisions on the national and, where appropriate, regional level concerning the minority to which they belong or the regions in which they live, in a manner not incompatible with national legislation.iv. Persons belonging to minorities have the right to establish and maintain their own associations.v. Persons belonging to minorities have the right to establish and maintain, without any discrimination, free and peaceful contacts with other members of their group and with persons belonging to other minorities, as well as contacts across frontiers with citizens of other States to whom they are related by national or ethnic, religious or linguistic ties.Article 3i. Persons belonging to minorities may exercise their rights, including those set forth in the present Declaration, individually as well as in community with other members of their group, without any discrimination.ii. No disadvantage shall result for any person belonging to a minority as the consequence of the exercise or non-exercise of the rights set forth in the present Declaration.Article 4i. States shall take measures where required to ensure that persons belonging to minorities may exercise fully and effectively all their human rights and fundamental freedoms without any discrimination and in full equality before the law.ii. States shall take measures to create favourable conditions to enable persons belonging to minorities to express their characteristics and to develop their culture, language, religion, traditions and customs, except where specific practices are in violation of national law and contrary to international standards.iii. States should take appropriate measures so that, wherever possible, persons belonging to minorities may have adequate opportunities to learn their mother tongue or to have instruction in their mother tongue.iv. States should, where appropriate, take measures in the field of education, in order to encourage knowledge of the history, traditions, language and culture of the minorities existing within their territory. Persons belonging to minorities should have adequate opportunities to gain knowledge of the society as a whole.v. States should consider appropriate measures so that persons belonging to minorities may participate fully in the economic progress and development in their country.Article 5i. National policies and programmes shall be planned and implemented with due regard for the legitimate interests of persons belonging to minorities.ii. Programmes of cooperation and assistance among States should be planned and implemented with due regard for the legitimate interests of persons belonging to minorities.Article 6States should cooperate on questions relating to persons belonging to minorities, inter alia, exchanging information and experiences, in order to promote mutual understanding and confidence.2. Additionally, since 1980, the sectarian Zimbabwean State under the leadership of R. G. Mugabe has been in violation of all the articles (Article 1 to 30) of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, of which we have limited space to itemize them all in this letter.3. Cognizant of the above mentioned flagrant violation of the Rights of the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) by the sectarian state of Zimbabwe, the following are some of the specifications for the above charge sheet.Specification 1: That the sectarian government of Zimbabwe under the leadership of Robert Gabriel Mugabe committed Gukurahundi Genocide against the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) between 1983 to 1987 that led to deaths of between 50 000 to 100 000 Matebeles and the displacement of millions to neighbouring countries including the Republic of South Africa and to Western Countries. Thousands of orphans were left with no one to fund their education as bread winners were killed with impunity.In February 2012, Genocide Watch, an international body that "exists to predict, prevent, stop and punish genocide and other forms of mass murder" declared Gukurahundi a Genocide and a source of "Polarization" between the Shona and people from Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi).Not forgetting and being mindful of the fact that the Gukurahundi Genocide included the deliberate and calculated assassination of our ZIPRA comrades (Gen. Lookout Masuku and others) and Zapu leaders (Njini Ntutha, Sydney Malunga and others) as well as uMkhonto weSizwe comrades that were based in Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) at the time and some other parts of Zimbabwe. Due to these shared and strong historical liberation links, we therefore have a moral and ethical duty to protect the vulnerable people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi).Specification 2: That the sectarian government of Zimbabwe, through its planned and calculated 1979 Grand Plan and its Revised Version (attached), has deliberately violated the ethnic, cultural and linguistic identity of the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi)by denying them conditions that can enable them to promote and develop their culture and language.Since 1980, there has been a calculated massive deployment of government employees in Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) from the majority Shona ethnic group in all state Institutions of Zimbabwe and other private entities. This has driven the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) out of their Homeland to seek sanctuary in this country. They need a reprieve and protection from Zimbabwe's calculated Genocide and marginalization programme in order for them to have opportunities to rebuild their lives, families and their communities in South Africa and in Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) from years of Zimbabwean state brutality, repression and persecution.Specification 3: Linguistically, children at a tender age at primary school level are being denied opportunities to learn at school from teachers that are able and competent to use "instruction of their mother tongue" in schools. Since 1980 there has been a deliberate programme of massive deployment to primary schools of teachers of Shona origin who are not competent or proficient in local Matebeleland and Midlands's languages or have never been tested for competency or proficiency in local languages to teach in Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) schools. This has resulted in alarming poor school pass rates in Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) and an inability of the children of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) to access further education and tertiary institutions of learning. These lost opportunities can be availed to the vulnerable people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) in South Africa once their status is regularised.Any protest by the vulnerable people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) against the above immoral behaviours of language and cultural genocide by the sectarian state of Zimbabwe is met with ruthless state aggression and repression using state machinery to cow them into submission.Specification 4: Marginalization in all sectors of employment and land redistribution has driven a large number of the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) out of their Homeland to this country in search of employment opportunities since 1980. Land is confiscated from white farmers and locals and given to outsiders from Matebeleland and Midlands. Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) people are therefore an endangered and vulnerable people seeking refuge to survive in South Africa. A Special Immigration Protection Status will give the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) an opportunity to work and rebuild their shattered lives in this country as well as develop their areas in their Homeland.Hon Minister, the indicated above specifications, are by no means exhaustive. Genocide and marginalization of the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi)over years by the sectarian state of Zimbabwe has caused and continue to cause long term social, health, cultural and economic damage to the people of Matebeleland and Midlands. It will take the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) years to recover and rebuild their lives and their Homeland. We need to support them in this journey of rebuilding their shattered lives and shattered Homeland.Hon. Minister, we therefore believe that the need for the protection of the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) by our government has been established beyond reasonable doubt in this letter. They are living without their fundamental human rights both in Zimbabwe and South Africa as well as in other neighbouring African states. This is unacceptable in a modern day world that we live in. We therefore call upon the South African government, through your Ministry, to intervene immediately and protect the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) from all forms of harm here in South Africa as well as pressurize the sectarian Zimbabwean government and state to abandon its Genocidal programmes against the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) and afford them their freedom and other fundamental human rights.We also call upon the South African government through your Ministry once again to make Gukurahundi Genocide Denialism a prosecutable offence in South Africa. We believe that it must be made a criminal offence for anyone to deny that Gukurahundi was a Genocide and remains a Genocide. But most importantly we call upon the South African government to assist in the arrest of Gukurahundi Genocide perpetrators and hand them to the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague, Netherlands to be tapped on their criminal shoulders by the long arm of the law for their crimes against humanity.While we call upon the South African government to act on the above, Hon. Minister, you will be pleased to know that as Siphesakhe Youth Organization and supported by the general citizenry of South Africa and the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi), have come up with a play called Loyiko to expose the Truth about the Gukurahundi Genocide and to expose the continued injustices being committed against the people of Matebeleland and Midlands (Mthwakazi) today by the sectarian state of Zimbabwe under the leadership of Robert Gabriel Mugabe. Matebeleland needs freedom as well as Truth, Justice, Reparations and Healing for the Gukurahundi Genocide. We, as Young South Africans, share their trials and tribulations. We stand shoulder to shoulder with them in their hour of need and we call upon our government to do the same and intervene.Thank you for taking time to consider this request Hon. Minister Knowledge Malusi Nkanyezi Gigaba. We would also ask your good and kind self, Hon. Minister, to kindly respond to our request and indicate the steps our government will take to address the plight of the people of Matebeleland and Midlands.Yours SincerelySiphesakhe Youth Organization Opinion / Letters Dear EditorToday I received photos from someone who claims to be a ZIMRA official in Beitbridge, which shows two full truck loads of imported stationery from South Africa in Browns's name, browns is a sister company of Marvo infact its the same people running the two companies.According to the Zimra officials the trucks have been there for the past two weeks now at the Border yet the government put an import ban on finished goods from out side and thats corruption and is stopping us from recieving our money.The Zimra employee says he supports us and he is also against corruption. I quote ( varume piwayi mari dzenu tinokusapotayi Pasi ne corruption neniwo khule vangu vakamboshanda ikoko vakafa vasina kupiwa mari yavo. Saka I know the story those guys have money but are not willing to pay back basa kuswera vachita corruption. They are very selfish. Marvo/Browns must just pay you your money no more no less and stop taking advantage yemtemo wenyika usinga protect vashandi).Marvo Stationery management owes us our money as workers and has since last year completely stopped production at Marvo factory rendering all workers jobless and destitudes preffering instead to import finished goods. These two trucks are not suppose to be a problem to any ordinery worker what has made us to be of interest to the matter is our money there, thier rudeness, and ignorance to our plight.For years we have been cheated into believing that they are genuinely willing to pay our money but since we realise that its all about corruption we have concluded that we know longer fear and we no longer want corruption. A situation where the Judicial manager told workers that they will only recieve their money when the company reopens, but they continue to bring in finished goods is unacceptable. This service applies to you if your subscription has not yet expired on our old site. You will have continued access until your subscription expires; then you will need to purchase an ongoing subscription through our new system. Please contact The Chanute Tribune office at 620-431-4100 if you have any questions - T. S. Eliot Thoughts After Lambeth "The World is trying the experiment of attempting to form a civilized but non-Christian mentality. The experiment will fail; but we must be very patient in awaiting its collapse; meanwhile redeeming the time: so that the Faith may be preserved alive through the dark ages before us; to renew and rebuild civilization, and save the World from suicide." Map Shows How-To Questions Googled More Frequently Than Any Other State Trending News: This Map Showing 'How-To' Questions By State Actually Reveals A Lot Why Is This Important? Because some of these fit the state's stereotypes far too well. Long Story Short Real estate company Estately has followed up their map about odd town names in each state with a new graphic showing 'how-to' questions that each state Googles more frequently than any other. Long Story What people ask Google can be quite revealing and sometimes disturbing. For instance, when it came out that the U.K. Googled "Why did Britain leave the EU?" following Brexit. Now, let's not get carried away and take Google search to be an exact science or even up to the level of polling which is problematic in itself but it doesn't hurt to take a peek at Google and that's just what this blog did, with some pretty hilarious and shockingly informative results. The Estately blog, which had runaway viral success with its map about rude-sounding town names in each state (I'm still peeved about the inclusion of my last name), have come out with a new map. What they did was use Google Autocomplete to find out the most common how-to questions Americans type into the search bar and then ran those searches through Google Trends to determine the most popular questions in each state over the past five years. The map doesn't show the most popular search questions overall, just the most frequently asked ones compared with other states. Now, as I said previously, it'd be unfair to assume that each state could be stereotyped by these questions but let's put that aside for a second and just stereotype away shall we? In Florida, people (mostly women presumably) don't know "how to keep a man" while those in South Dakota are grappling with "how to be single?" Dudes in Kentucky are stuck with stubble and wonder "how to grow a beard?" Kentucky also wonders "how to make a baby?" In other wow-worthy questions, Indiana wants to know "how to vote for Trump" and "how to Google something." I think they're onto something with that one! The force is with Texas as they wonder "how to be a Jedi," but also disturbingly wonder "how to sell your soul." For the full list, complete with way more facepalm-worthy questions, check out the blog post here. Own The Conversation Ask The Big Question How do you sell your soul anyway? Disrupt Your Feed I thought there was no such thing as a bad question. Drop This Fact Apparently, Wisconsin really doesn't like Governor Scott Walker as they searched for "How to impeach a governor?" Someone Erected A Statue Of A Naked Hillary Clinton In NYC, And A Fight Broke Out Trending News: Massive Fight Starts Over Naked Hillary Clinton Statue In NYC Why Is This Important? Because theres freedom of speech, and then theres defamation of character and creating a disturbance of the peace this would probably fall into the latter. Long Story Short An artist erected a profane statue of Hillary Clinton in the nude in New York City Tuesday morning causing an intense squabble between the artist and offended bystanders. Long Story Early yesterday morning, 27-year-old artist Anthony Scioli began putting the finishing touches on a statue in Downtown Manhattan of Democratic Presidential Nominee Hillary Clinton. Scioli was not going for accuracy with his portrayal, as the statue featured Clinton completely naked with hooves for feet and a Wall Street banker resting his head on her bare breasts. Naked statue of Hillary Clinton sparks fight in Manhattan pic.twitter.com/lWIOmCRXRA World Latin Star CEO (@WorldLatinStar) October 18, 2016 In the very blue state of New York, this didnt last long. New York Daily News reported that the statue was up for less than three hours before an enraged employee of the nearby National Museum of the American Indian, known only as Nancy, toppled it over and started yelling at the statues creator. This is obscene! shouted the woman. To put something up like this in front of my work place...I shouldnt have to see this, The argument went from an exchange of words to a physical altercation very quickly. At one point during the tussle, the woman sits down on the statue to prevent Scioli from picking it back up. Nancy defended her post and saw to it that the statue would not remain standing. Due to the huge public display, officers with the counterterrorism unit arrived to the scene and ordered Scioli to remove the statue since he failed to obtain a permit for it. No one involved with the demonstration was arrested and the statue was taken away in van after Scioli took it down. Own The Conversation Ask The Big Question Was Nancy was acting out of turn and infringing on Sciolis right to express his freedom of speech? Disrupt Your Feed Wonder if this wouldve gotten praise instead of ridicule in a state like Oklahoma where Trump is leading in the polls. Drop This Fact NPR reported yesterday that with three weeks out from this election, Hillary Clinton is winning and it's not close. Lee Universitys Dee Lavender Missions Week, will be held Oct. 24-28, raising funds for the Phebe Grey Orphanage in Liberia, Africa, for the second year in a row. The orphanage was founded in 1996 by a team of missionaries who desired to help children affected by the countrys violent civil wars. Today, the Phebe Grey Orphanage has expanded, having its own school and church, but lacks the necessary resources to meet the high demand for shelter in the area. Missions Week will bring special chapel services to campus. The first chapel service will be a time of celebration. On Thursday, Oct. 27, Dr. Carolyn Dirksen, director of faculty development and distinguished professor of English, will share about the universitys projects and ongoing work in the Phebe Grey Orphanage. Missions Week is one of my favorite times of the year at Lee University! said Campus Pastor Jimmy Harper. I get excited when our campus community can come together as a family to bring impact to a project around the world, especially one as important as the Phebe Grey Orphanage in Liberia. The funds raised during Missions Week will help provide the orphanage with a steady operating budget. Donations, special offerings in chapel, and Missions Week T-shirt sales are the main fund raisers. Students and faculty are also working on special projects across several different departments on campus that will contribute. Associate Lecturer in Special Education Alex Sandoval and his class are developing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) boxes as a way for science students to learn hands on. Dr. Mava Wilson, associate professor of computer information systems, is working with her class to refurbish and reprogram computers for the schools computer lab. Sigma Tau Delta, the English honor society, and the Young Adult Literature class, taught by Dr. Donna Summerlin, are collecting books to contribute to the library, which was originally installed last summer. Dr. Dirksen and her Biblical and Theological Foundations for Benevolence class are working together to build teaching materials for a health promotion class at the school. The Community Psychology class, taught by associate professor of psychology Dr. Heather Quagliana, is developing a transition plan for the children at the orphanage who finish high school and reach the age of 18. They are also creating training materials so that the orphanage workers can be better equipped to deal with issues of childhood trauma. According to Dr. Dirksen, these are just a few examples of the projects in which students and faculty are involved. Other departments are also working to contribute to the orphanage, school, and church. We believe that our continued partnership with the Phebe Grey Orphanage can help bring about sustainability and stability and make a lasting impact that will change the lives of children and a nation for eternity, said Becky Stevens, Campus Ministries secretary. Since 1991, Missions Week has been carried out in honor of Lee University student Dee Lavender, who died on a summer mission trip to Panama just before her 21st birthday. Missions Week projects have been in place for more than 20 years, and a week devoted to missions has been part of Lee programming since the 40s. For more information about Missions Week or to make a donation, visit http://www.leeuniversity.edu/missions-week/ or contact Campus Ministries at 614-8420. A new type of atomic force microscope (AFM) uses nanowires as tiny sensors. Unlike standard AFM, the device with a nanowire sensor enables measurements of both the size and direction of forces. Physicists at the University of Basel and at the EPF Lausanne have described these results in the recent issue of Nature Nanotechnology. Nanowires are extremely tiny filamentary crystals which are built-up molecule by molecule from various materials and which are now being very actively studied by scientists all around the world because of their exceptional properties. The wires normally have a diameter of 100 nanometers and therefore possess only about one thousandth of a hair thickness. Because of this tiny dimension, they have a very large surface in comparison to their volume. This fact, their small mass and flawless crystal lattice make them very attractive in a variety of nanometer-scale sensing applications, including as sensors of biological and chemical samples, and as pressure or charge sensors. Measurement of direction and size The team of Argovia Professor Martino Poggio from the Swiss Nanoscience Institute (SNI) and the Department of Physics at the University of Basel has now demonstrated that nanowires can also be used as force sensors in atomic force microscopes. Based on their special mechanical properties, nanowires vibrate along two perpendicular axes at nearly the same frequency. When they are integrated into an AFM, the researchers can measure changes in the perpendicular vibrations caused by different forces. Essentially, they use the nanowires like tiny mechanical compasses that point out both the direction and size of the surrounding forces. Image of the two-dimensional force field The scientists from Basel describe how they imaged a patterned sample surface using a nanowire sensor. Together with colleagues from the EPF Lausanne, who grew the nanowires, they mapped the two-dimensional force field above the sample surface using their nanowire compass. As a proof-of-principle, they also mapped out test force fields produced by tiny electrodes. The most challenging technical aspect of the experiments was the realization of an apparatus that could simultaneously scan a nanowire above a surface and monitor its vibration along two perpendicular directions. With their study, the scientists have demonstrated a new type of AFM that could extend the techniques numerous applications even further. AFM today widely used The development of AFM 30 years ago was honored with the conferment of the Kavli-Prize beginning of September this year. Professor Christoph Gerber of the SNI and Department of Physics at the University of Basel is one of the awardees, who has substantially contributed to the wide use of AFM in different fields, including solid-state physics, materials science, biology, and medicine. The various different types of AFM are most often carried out using cantilevers made from crystalline Si as the mechanical sensor. Moving to much smaller nanowire sensors may now allow for even further improvements on an already amazingly successful technique, Martino Poggio comments his approach. PerkinElmer, Inc. announced that Samuel R. Chapin has been elected to the Company's Board of Directors. "I am pleased to welcome Samuel to our Board, as he brings extensive experience in strategic advisory, mergers and acquisitions, and deal financing for a wide range of transactions, along with deep knowledge of the industrial marketplace," said Robert Friel, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, PerkinElmer. Chapin most recently served as Executive Vice Chairman of Global Corporate & Investment Banking for Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where he held the role since 2010 and was responsible for managing relationships with the firm's largest clients. He retired as of June 30, 2016. Chapin was named Vice Chairman of Merrill Lynch & Co in September 2003 and was a member of the firm's executive Operating Committee. From 2001 to 2003, he was Senior Vice President and Head of the Global Investment Banking division. He previously led the investment banking group that covered industrial companies, actively managing the firm's relationships with clients in the industrial, resources and consumer products industries. He joined Merrill Lynch in 1984 as a member of the Mergers & Acquisitions group and was named a managing director in Corporate Banking in 1993. He has worked on a wide range of financings and strategic advisory assignments totaling over $500 billion. Chapin has also been named Investment Banker of the year by Investment Dealers' Digest. Chapin received a Bachelor of Arts from Lafayette College and a Master of Business Administration, with distinction, from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He also serves on the board of trustees at Lafayette College and is a director for the Wharton Financial Advisory Board. Chapin is also a member of the board of directors of the Roundabout Theatre Company. Celebrating jailhouse recovery Audio Article Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle Sears paid a visit to the Chesterfield County Jail last week, meeting with over 50 of the men and women participating in the HARP (Helping Addicts... An icons legacy memorialized Audio Article Enon Library was dedicated in memory of the Rev. Wyatt Tee Walker on Friday, Oct. 21. Board of Supervisors Chair Chris Winslow, right, was joined by Walkers daughter, Patrice Walker... Sometimes it seems like there are two U.S. Constitutions: The one applied in minority communities and the one Professor Craig Futterman teaches in his law classes at the University of Chicago. Futterman, who was instrumental in the Chicago Police Department's release of the dash cam video from the Laquan McDonald shooting, told the crowd gathered at a Chicago Ideas Week panel Tuesday that he's seen it firsthand. Advertisement He's spent hundreds of hours talking to kids at schools blocks from his university on the city's South Side. The kids at those schools, most of whom are black, won't go to the police even if a loved one is hurt. "They're just everyday kids who live with the ever-present possibility of being stopped and frisked and being treated like a criminal," he said. Advertisement In contrast, at his daughter's nearby, mostly white school, almost none of the students have been stopped and frisked by police. Futterman was one of four speakers on the Ideas Week panel "Policing: Force of the Future," which drew about 170 people to the Museum of Contemporary Art. Another panelist, journalist and Morehouse College Professor Marc Lamont Hill, said he's seen this tale of two Constitutions as well. "You ever go to traffic court in a big city?" he asked. "You'd be like, 'White people are really good drivers.'" Eugene O'Donnell, a lecturer at New York-based John Jay College of Criminal Justice and a former New York Police Department officer, said he sees things a little differently. The media decided about three years ago that police discrimination was going to be an issue, and hasn't let up since, he said. "The media picks up issues, hammers them and they're not always involved with the nuances," he said. His point: If police departments do self-report data on police shootings and other incidents like President Barack Obama's Task Force on 21st Century Policing has called for it won't change anything. People are too swayed by the media to start trusting police, he said. Futterman said he couldn't disagree more. If people know the truth about what's happening inside police departments, they will trust police more. The police system can't be reformed unless there's trust, he said. Advertisement "The truth matters," he said. "The truth is where we need to start." NPR correspondent Cheryl Corley moderated the panel. The fourth panelist, DeKalb County, Ga., Public Safety Director Cedric Alexander, serves on Obama's policing task force. Chicago Ideas Week is a seven-day festival offering more than 150 panels, labs and talks throughout the city. It is in its sixth year. amarotti@tribpub.com Twitter @allymarotti Channing Harris, creator of the app Excuse Me Officer, talks to teenagers at Gray Matter Experience, an entrepreneurial experience program at Blue1647. (Annie Grossinger / Blue Sky) A Chicago startup wants to let citizens rate and review interactions with police officers, a la Yelp. The Excuse Me Officer website, and its upcoming mobile app, could provide data about heroic officers providing good service as well as about bad actors who might discriminate or sexually harass, said CEO Channing Harris. Advertisement The startup won this month's South Side Pitch competition, hosted by the Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship. In a test period that ran from August through last week, users could leave online reviews, videos and tips regarding civilian-police interactions. Advertisement "We allow the public to keep up with the law enforcement behavioral trends happening in our own communities," Harris said. The database will combine public ratings with Chicago Police Department data on police misconduct allegations. (About 56,459 allegations were sent to the CPD from 2012 to 2015; 95.9 percent of them were found unsustained, according to the site.) An iOS app is scheduled to be launched Dec. 5. Features include emergency contacts that can alert lawyers or loved ones when and where a person is stopped and, if arrested, which precincts they are headed to. If a user reports a negative interaction, the app advertises a list of lawyers. "If you see me getting harassed and you have video, you now can get it over to me, and I can get the support that I need," Harris said. "It's the easiest and most efficient way to report any type of police mishap." It's also a way of going on record to salute good cops, he said. "As a child of a police officer, I struggled for an answer to the madness that was happening in my city," Harris said. "Police-public relations were hitting an all-time low due to the Laquan McDonald situation being revealed." The business promotes activities to improve citizen-police relationships. Excuse Me Officer sponsored a block party in August to bring community residents and police officers together. Advertisement "We can show you there are indeed cops that serve and protect and which ones they are," Harris said. "Our platform loves good cops." Such an app could be effective, provided there's a way to vet users, said Clarence E. Cox III, vice president of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives. Harris' mother is president of a local chapter of the organization. "I think it can help if done in the right way: If there's legitimacy to the app and there's an opportunity for the sender to be contacted later to address the issue," Cox said. And it should have a way to measure the numbers of complaints to the numbers of interactions officers have, he said. Dean Angelo Sr., president of the Fraternal Order of Police's Chicago lodge, said he hopes the developers promote the ability to give police officers favorable reviews. "If (Harris) said he developed it to bring out better relationships, it would be great if he markets that prominently, so that people realize this is an app for people to engage in that type of sharing one's positive experiences with the police," he said. Advertisement "The negative stuff; it's sometimes the same voices repeatedly sharing experiences," Angelo said. "Similar to the accountability task force sessions and those public forums people that come to every event and speak at multiple sessions." Harris, who grew up in North Lawndale, is a serial entrepreneur who sold his stake in his first company, Socks to Your Door, to a cofounder at age 19. He's now 26. Excuse Me Officer plans to make money through advertisements, merchandise sales and providing customized data for organizations, he said. His team includes co-founders Mike Shaw, from the Englewood neighborhood, and Christopher Hutchinson, from Rogers Park. Although Excuse Me Officer can receive reviews from across the nation, it's starting by providing data for Chicago communities. It hopes to expand to other cities in 2017. Cheryl V. Jackson is a freelance writer. Twitter @cherylvjackson Are you a Hillary supporter? On the Trump Train? It can really make a difference, particularly to your employees if you're a chief executive or business owner. According to new research released this week and reported in the Harvard Business Review, CEOs have a "significant influence" on the political leanings of their employees. The study found that employees donate, on average, three times more money to the campaigns of candidates that their bosses support. The study was conducted by Ilona Babenko, an associate professor in finance at the W.P. Carey School of Business, Arizona State University and Viktar Fedaseyeu, an assistant professor of finance at Bocconi University in Italy. In 2012, for example, Barack Obama raised three times more money from employees of firms whose CEOs donated to his campaign versus Mitt Romney. The study found the same pattern for all races House and Senate not just the presidential campaigns. Voter turnout among employees was also higher where contributions were made. Is this just a coincidence? Maybe those employees just share the same love of the same candidate? Not so. "We first looked at CEO turnover and observed that when a new CEO contributes to different political candidates than the ones supported by the prior CEO, employees tend to follow the new CEO's lead and redirect their donations," Babenko and Fedaseyeu wrote. The study focused on big companies firms that are part of the S&P 1500 where political contributions over $200 are required to be disclosed (along with who made the contribution). The researchers concluded that CEOs are indeed a political force that should not be ignored. It makes me wonder if CEOs of a larger company can have that kind of influence over their companies, wouldn't a small business owner be even more influential? Some information is starting to trickle out about what Illinois residents will find when they shop for health insurance on the state's Affordable Care Act exchange. (Karen Bleier, AFP/Getty Images) Though full details won't be released until later this month, some information is starting to trickle out about what Illinois residents will and won't find when they shop for health insurance on the state's Affordable Care Act exchange. Neither Northwestern Memorial Hospital nor its physician group, Northwestern Medical Group, will likely be in-network on any exchange plans, said Northwestern spokesman Christopher King. Rush University Medical Center in Chicago also doesn't anticipate it will be in-network on any exchange plans, said Charles Jolie, a Rush spokesman. Also, Cigna, new to the state's exchange next year, will offer individual and family HMO plans both on and off the exchange that include hospital systems Presence Health and Amita Health in their networks. That means people who pick Cigna plans will be able to go to hospitals and doctors in those systems for care. Advertisement The federal government is expected to release full, final details about all the plans that will be offered on the exchange by Nov. 1, when consumers may start officially shopping for insurance for next year. Presence is the largest Illinois-based Catholic health system, with 11 hospitals stretching from Evanston to Urbana. Amita has nine hospitals in Hoffman Estates, Elk Grove Village, La Grange, Hinsdale, Glendale Heights and Bolingbrook. Advertisement The Cigna plan will be available to individuals in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kankakee and Will counties. Cigna spokesman Phil Mann declined to provide information about premiums and deductibles for the plans. "We worked to make it competitively priced and our objective was to make sure we were on the top end of affordability," said Michael Phillips, president of Cigna's Midwest market. A spokeswoman for the state's largest insurer, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, declined to release details about its on-exchange and off-exchange plans ahead of the federal release of the data. Hospital system Advocate Health Care, however, will be in-network for two of Blue Cross and Blue Shield's HMO products on the exchange: BlueCare Direct and Blue Precision, said Advocate spokeswoman Lisa Lesniak. NorthShore University HealthSystem also will be in-network for the Blue Precision HMO, said NorthShore spokesman Jim Anthony. Also, Northwestern Medicine's hospitals in Winfield and Geneva will be in-network for the Blue Precision HMO as will its Regional Medical Group, and doctors from those entities can refer Blue Precision patients to specialists anywhere in the Northwestern Medicine system, King said. Blue Cross and Blue Shield is the only insurer offering plans on the exchange in Lake and McHenry counties next year. It also plans to offer PPO plans across the state, and is the only insurer that will do so. Many exchange consumers, however, were disheartened when Blue Cross and Blue Shield this year ceased offering its broadest PPO plan for individuals on the exchange, instead offering a smaller PPO network that didn't include NorthShore hospitals or academic medical centers at Northwestern University and the University of Chicago. Attempts to reach Celtic Insurance Co., which is offering individual plans on the exchange in Cook and DuPage counties, were unsuccessful. Advertisement In recent months, a number of insurers announced they won't take part in the state's exchange next year, including Aetna, its Coventry brand, UnitedHealthcare, UnitedHealthcare subsidiary Harken Health and Land of Lincoln. Consumers shopping for companies still on the exchange can expect to dig deeper in their pockets for coverage. Rates will increase by an average of 44 percent for the lowest-priced bronze plans, 45 percent for the lowest-priced silver plans and 55 percent for the lowest-priced gold plans. Most Illinoisans get health care coverage through their employers or government insurers Medicare and Medicaid. But more than 300,000 Illinois residents bought insurance through the exchange this year. lschencker@chicagotribune.com Twitter @lschencker Lake Forest's Colbert Packaging announced it will move 65 jobs to Kenosha, Wis., at an event attended by, left to right, Scott Beightol of Michael Best & Friedrich; Wis. Gov. Scott Walker; Kenosha County Executive Jim Kreuser; Nancy Colbert MacDougall, chairman of Colbert Packaging; Jim Hamilton, president of Colbert Packaging, and Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian. (Handout) Colbert Packaging, a Lake Forest-based maker of cartons and boxes, including for Frango mints, is moving 65 jobs from Lake County to Kenosha, Wis., citing "the state's favorable business climate" as one of the reasons. Colbert's headquarters, which has about 145 workers, will remain in Lake Forest. Advertisement But the family-owned company's flexographic packaging operation and related warehousing, which has 65 employees, will move just over the Illinois border to a new building that the company is buying in an industrial park less than a mile from Interstate 94. The agreement with Wisconsin requires Colbert to have 108 workers within three years, said Mark Maley, a spokesman for the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., which helps lead business efforts for the state. Advertisement Colbert could receive up to $850,000 in state tax credits over the next three years. And Kenosha County provided $250,000 to support the project Since 1998, Colbert has run its flexographic division out of a 45,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Lake Forest, a few blocks from headquarters. To support its growth, in 2011, a 25,000-square-foot warehouse was opened in Libertyville. The Kenosha facility replaces both of those properties and has 173,000 square feet. The announcement was made Tuesday at the new property, with Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker among those in attendance. Colbert President Jim Hamilton said southeastern Wisconsin was an obvious choice for a variety of reasons, including its proximity to Lake Forest headquarters and major transportation hubs, as well as "the state's favorable business climate." Besides getting more than $1 million in incentives, Hamilton also said Wisconsin has a more favorable tax environment for companies in the graphic arts production industry. "Wisconsin, widely known as home of the Green Bay Packers, cheese curds and craft beers, is also a great state for the printing and paper-making industries," he said. Colbert also considered properties in Illinois for its expansion, Hamilton said. Advertisement Many Colbert workers live along the Illinois-Wisconsin border and I-94 corridor, and some already call Kenosha County home, he said. The move is expected to be completed by the end of the year. Colbert also has about 125 workers in Indiana. Colbert was founded in 1959 when Charles Colbert bought the property and assets of Kroeck Paper Box, which was founded in 1892. The company's original location was 1701 W. Superior St. in Chicago until Colbert bought Franklin Folding Box in 1969. At that time, operations were moved to the acquired location in Melrose Park. In 1986, corporate headquarters and folding carton operations were moved into a custom-designed 96,000-square-foot building in Lake Forest. Charles Colbert died in 1995. byerak@chicagotribune.com Advertisement Twitter @beckyyerak Walgreens now lets customers shop online and pick up orders at more than 7,600 of its stores. (Charles Krupa / AP) Walgreens now lets customers shop online and pick up orders at more than 7,600 of its stores. Online orders ship to stores for free and typically will be ready for pickup within one to three business days, the Deerfield-based pharmacy chain said Monday. Advertisement Walgreens' ship-to-store option doesn't match the near-instant gratification of services offered by competitor CVS Health or those Walgreens itself previously tested. Last month, CVS began offering curbside delivery of online orders at more than 4,000 stores, including 181 Chicago-area locations. Those orders usually are ready for pickup in less than an hour, according to CVS. Advertisement In three cities, including Chicago, Walgreens had offered a Web Pickup program that let customers retrieve online orders in local stores in as little as an hour. Walgreens discontinued that service after about five years in January, also abandoning a smaller curbside pickup pilot. But in exchange for waiting a few days, customers aren't limited to ordering items on store shelves. "Our new Ship to Store program provides value to our customers by giving them access to a wide range of products that are typically not found in-store," Joe Hartsig, Walgreens senior vice president of merchandising, said in a news release. "With Ship to Store, customers have the ability to ship orders to their preferred Walgreens store if their residence or workplace isn't a secure option." lzumbach@chicagotribune.com Twitter @laurenzumbach The coming weeks bring a few chances to wine and dine to aid charitable causes. If you have the funds, check out these events: Sazon Soiree Carlos Gaytan (Mexique) teams with two other former "Top Chef" contestants Amanda Baumgarten of Victor Bar in Chicago and Katsuji Tanabe of Mexikosher in Los Angeles and New York and "Masterchef" Season 6 winner Claudia Sandoval (Covina Claudia in San Diego) on a four-course dinner to benefit Boys & Girls Clubs of Chicago. A cocktail hour precedes the Latin feast. $175, includes open bar, dinner, tax and gratuity. 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 26 at Chez Chicago, 247 E. Ontario St., www.celebritychef.eventbrite.com Advertisement James Beard Celebrity Chef Dinner Dine on eight courses, each from a different acclaimed chef, at Formento's in the West Loop. Participants include 2015 Jean Banchet Chef of the Year winner Chris Pandel (The Bristol, Balena, Swift & Sons), 2016 James Beard Best Chef: Midwest winner Paul Berglund (The Bachelor Farmer in Minneapolis), Food & Wine-honored pastry chef Stephanie Prida (Manresa in Los Gatos, Calif.) and host chef Todd Stein, a former "Iron Chef" contestant. Proceeds benefit the James Beard Foundation, which supports culinary education programs and provides scholarships to aspiring culinary students. $175. Seating every 15 minutes from 5:30-8:45 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 1 at Formento's, 925 W. Randolph St., formentos.tocktix.com Meals on Wheels Chicago Celebrity Chef Ball There are two experiences to be had to support Meals on Wheels Chicago, which helps home-bound seniors and people with disabilities live independently in their own homes. The Chef's Table dinner (6 p.m., $350) is a cocktail reception followed by a six-course dinner with cocktail pairings each table is paired with three chefs and a mixologist to make the experience more intimate. Diners then continue to the Chef's Tasting Party, featuring dozens of food stations and an open bar. Or, just buy tickets to the Tasting Party (8:30 p.m., $200). Friday, Oct. 21 at Morgan Manufacturing, 401 N. Morgan St., www.mealsonwheelschicago.org You can score a likable bottle of soave for as little as $12. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune) The list of wines that awaits you below has 10 bottles, all in a particular wine style that is delicious and usually priced much lower than it is worth "worth" meaning what most of us would be willing to pay for wines of such quality. The wines in question are lively, dry white wines from Italy at fair or even bargain prices. Say no more, right? Truthfully, the rest of the story is not that involved anyway. We're talking about soave, the wine that took a beating in decades past for its lack of everything but wetness. It was practically odorless, colorless, flavorless liquid. But somehow it kept arriving by the shipload in the United States, and people kept buying it until better options were available. Advertisement It's a different story today, qualitywise. It's not as if the entire soave region has transformed itself; there are certainly blah soaves alive and kicking out there. But now, really nice bottles are pretty easy to find. Soave wines come from the Veneto region in northeastern Italy not far from the enchanting city of Verona, which is a modern Italian wine mecca (host of the famous Vinitaly wine exhibition) in addition to being the "home" of Romeo and Juliet, among other Shakespeare characters. Some of the nice bottles come from the Soave DOC, but the majority of the area's best wines come from the predominantly hillside Soave Classico region, which features both volcanic and limestone soils, and wine styles that range from angular, steely and citrusy to rounder, more lush, melony and earthy all with bright and lively acidity. Advertisement Look for Soave Classico DOC or Soave Superiore DOCG on the labels to find the area's top bottlings. And don't be surprised that most of them will cost you somewhere in the neighborhood of $15. Some specially designated single vineyard names might also appear on labels. Expect to pay about double for those. Still, you're often topping out at about $30. One has to believe that today's popular pricing is due in part to the wine style's image issues presently deserved or not. From light- to medium-bodied, soave is made mostly of the garganega grape variety (the law calls for 70 percent) with a few other grape varieties allowed for blending trebbiano di soave, chardonnay and pinot bianco among them. These are expressive wines that will wake up your nose and taste buds, and could also match well with appetizers, salads, sushi, other fish dishes, poultry and pastas with vegetables. They are easy to drink and easy to like. The best part of it all if you are still even reading is not that you can return to a wine that you once looked down on, or always avoided because of what you had heard about it. The best part is that you now have a new white to explore, and it won't require you to skip any utility bill payments. Discovering and delving into a wine style that is easily affordable is one of the great joys of anyone's wine journey. Sharing your bounty with a fellow wine lover is another. The following wines were my 10 favorites from a recent tasting. They are listed in ascending order, according to price. Most are 100 percent garganega, but at least three of them (noted below) also used trebbiano di soave in their blends. Their alcohol contents landed within 12 to 13 percent, making them great as stand-up-and-chat aperitifs as well as sit-down-and-eat pairings. 2014 Franchetto Recorbian Soave: Citrusy and mouthwatering, this wine was tempered by a hint of orange zest, minerality and a slight note of spice on the finish. $12 2014 Inama Vin Soave Classico: Minerality, a satisfying earthy character, lemon, spice and fresh minerality made this wine fun and easy to drink on its own or with food. $15 2014 Cantina di Soave Rocca Sveva Soave Classico: Full of pear, this brightly acidic wine offered a suggestion of stone fruit that leads to a clean, refreshing finish. $16 2014 Cantina del Castello Soave Classico: Crushed stone, lime and pear are prominent in this wine, which consists mostly of garganega, blended with some trebbiano di soave. $16 Advertisement 2014 Fattori Danieli Soave: Fermented and aged in stainless steel, this one offered ripe melon aromas that segued to tropical and citrus flavors, ending with a subtle hint of spice. $17 Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. > 2014 Marcato Monte Tenda Soave Classico: Floral with bursts of lime and lemon plus bright acidity, this vineyard-designated wine combines garganega and trebbiano di soave with great success. $18 2014 Cantina di Monteforte Castellaro Soave Superiore: This DOCG wine, fermented and aged in barrels, had a soft mouthfeel that delivered sweet lemon, peach, a nuttiness and prominent minerality. $18 2015 Pieropan Soave Classico: Bursts of peach aromas and flavors were balanced by minerality and bright acidity in this wine composed of 85 percent garganega and 15 percent trebbiano di soave. $20 2014 Gini La Frosca Soave Classico: Stone fruits and green apple gave way to a subtle midpalate sweetness, and just a touch of spice on the finish. $28 2013 Suavia Monte Carbonare: This layered wine started with minerality and a wave of acidity followed by a pinch of fresh lime that finished with a pleasant crispness. $29 Advertisement food@chicagotribune.com Twitter @pour_man "Hamilton" opens Wednesday night at the PrivateBank Theatre in Chicago in relatively low-key fashion the key creative team that has worked on the show will be present, including the creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, as well as Ron Chernow, who wrote the bestselling biography "Alexander Hamilton" on which the show is based. But the usual red-carpet premiere with the TV cameras and the celebrity guests is not on the schedule of events. Advertisement For at least one good reason: The show does not need to promote itself. And the "Hamilton" people are of the ilk that prefer to slip in the side door anyway. Already, a year's worth of performances in Chicago are virtually sold out, despite many tickets being sold at premium prices and a theater in Chicago that holds nearly 40 percent more audience members than the Richard Rodgers Theatre on Broadway. Yet more remarkably, this unprecedented level of demand in Chicago has been achieved without any billboards, TV commercials, taxi toppers or newspaper advertisements, all the regular order of business in New York, even for the biggest Broadway hits. "Hamilton," which is in a category all of its own in both New York and Chicago, has become the hottest show in the entire Midwest this fall without expending any meaningful dollars on promotion. The local media has been only too happy to write about a show that has crossed over into the mainstream more than any other production in the history of theater in Chicago. Advertisement With the usual opening-night list of bold-face names and low-wattage local celebrities cut to a fraction of its usual size, social media Wednesday was full of fans declaring their delight at just being in the room where it happens. At TV stations and newspapers, there was some quiet relief that the show would not have to compete for the headlines with news of the Cubs clinching a berth in the World Series not tonight, anyway. The other big event Wednesday night is to be the final presidential debate, a show far more difficult to predict than "Hamilton." But with Miranda spending Monday night headlining a Broadway benefit for Hillary Clinton, at least one member of the creative team has already served notice he needs to watch no more debates to make his allegiance clear. Meanwhile, in a warehouse-style space in the West Loop, designated party planners from the office of the producer Jeffrey Seller were on Wednesday planning a big post-show bash for the Chicago company and its supporters marking the beginning of a long and likely very profitable relationship with an appreciative city. RELATED STORIES: Quiz: In 'Hamilton,' was this fact or fiction? Who has the edge? Cubs-Dodgers vs. 'Hamilton' vs. presidential debate Inside Chicago's 'Hamilton' and how Lin-Manuel Miranda changed musicals Chicago's 'Hamilton' and other cast members announced Advertisement 'Hamilton' ticket rush creates long waits; secondary market prices reach $10,000 'Hamilton': Hip-hop and Founding Fathers in dazzling Broadway musical Jeremy McCarter's best-seller more than stands beside 'Hamilton' Watch the latest movie trailers. Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 122 Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, anger management student, in "Dark Phoenix." The film, the latest in the "X-Men" franchise, costars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Jessica Chastain. Read the review. (Twentieth Century Fox) Jean Kennedy Smith takes comfort in memory in her new book, "The Nine of Us: Growing Up Kennedy." Now 88, the last of her parents' children alive, the former ambassador to Ireland is entitled to tell the story of her storied family any way she likes. After all, she was there. One might wish that she was, well, a little more "there" or, perhaps, more revealing but such is the difference between "memoir" and "history." Advertisement Smith doesn't tell the whole story; leave that to the gazillions of Kennedy books out there, from the scholarly to the scandalous. There's no Jimmy Hoffa or Marilyn Monroe or Fidel Castro in this book. Of her famous sisters-in-law, Jackie O is barely mentioned and Ethel, Jean's roommate at our mutual alma mater, Manhattanville, makes only a cameo appearance. John F. Kennedy's White House years cover barely two pages and the family's tragedies, notably the assassinations of JFK in 1963 and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy in 1968, are addressed briefly but with feeling. The family mourned privately with the nation and "carried on," she writes. "The Nine of Us" is her clear, steady focus. While the book reaches back to the 19th-century roots of the Kennedy and Fitzgerald families in Boston and touches briefly on today, Smith writes mostly of a time in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s when her wealthy and political family was winning considerable renown but had not yet become the cultural superstars they would be beginning in the 1960s, a definite gradation of profile and power most of us will never experience. Advertisement Jean Kennedy Smith is the author of The Nine of Us: Growing Up Kennedy. (Todd Plitt / Getty Images 2010) Smith's recollections are shaped, I think, by her place in the pecking order. Her memories are most vivid about the two boys who bracketed her in age, the older Bobby and the younger Teddy (whom she fondly calls her "number one playmate, my lieutenant in life, the barrel of laughs that came after me, number nine." The older children, especially Joe Jr., the eldest son who died in action during World War II, and Kathleen, the vivacious sister who married into the English aristocracy and died in a plane crash three years after the war, seem more fleeting sketches. That makes sense given the age difference between them and the author and how young Smith was when they died. (Smith writes that proceeds from book sales will be donated to the restoration of the USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., the warship named in honor of her brother that she christened in 1945.) While the title of the book refers to the nine Kennedy children, the real stars here are the Kennedy parents, who, Smith writes in her dedication, "were always there for us, through the good times and bad." Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy seem to do no wrong in her eyes. There's no finger-pointing, no whining, no second-guessing although she admits that would be easy to do now over the decision to lobotomize her sister, Rosemary, who had been diagnosed with "mental retardation." Her father, a business tycoon and politician who served as U.S. ambassador to Great Britain at the start of World War II, "had a well-earned reputation for being a tough, skilled negotiator. It was a reputation I suspect he enjoyed," she wrote. "Yet he was enormously big hearted and openhanded in a way that few people would ever imagine and others would never acknowledge." Of her mother, Smith would describe her as "a petite woman with an indomitable nature and a sure understanding of what we needed in life." "The Nine of Us: Growing up Kennedy" is written by Jean Kennedy Smith, the lone surviiving child of Joseph and Rose Kennedy. Smith places much of her narrative on Cape Cod, at the Kennedys' summer residence in Hyannis Port, Mass., or Bronxville, N.Y., the tony suburban enclave 15 miles north of Manhattan (New York City, not Boston, was the Kennedy power base in those days). Her tales are affectionate and nostalgic, the memories a grandmother would tell the grandchildren as they leafed through a photo album. Smith's memories are educational, too, as she places her Kennedy relations in the context of their world and explains how her parents shaped them all into doers who made a difference. There are useful lessons here, not just for grandchildren but for Americans as a whole, especially those who might wonder how the Kennedys so captured the popular imagination. Smith's book gets to that in its final pages as she turns from looking back to looking forward. Joseph and Rose Kennedy had 28 grandchildren, she writes, and they and their children and grandchildren "are now part of the future of our world." They "live very different lives from their forebears yet the problems that they and the world face today are no different." "These problems carry the same burden and offer the same opportunity," she adds. "They require the same determination, focus, and drive that they required of my grandparents, parents, brothers, and sisters, and all the young people of generations before." To illustrate the point, Smith closes with a letter from her father in England to her 14-year-old brother, Bobby, during World War II. Advertisement "It is boys of your age who are going to find themselves in a very changed world, and the only way you can hold up your end is to prepare your mind so that you will be able to accept each situation as it comes along," the father writes. "So don't, I beg of you, waste any time. Do all the things necessary to get yourself in good physical condition and work hard." Smith's final word is characteristically brief. "Amen." wdaley@chicagotribune Twitter @billdaley 'The Nine of Us' Advertisement By Jean Kennedy Smith, Harper, 272 pages, $29.99 Mental Health America just released its annual assessment of Americans with mental illness, the treatment they receive and the resources available to them - and the conclusions are sobering: Twenty percent of adults (43.7 million) have a mental health condition, and more than half of them do not receive treatment. Among youth, the rates of depression are rising, but 80 percent of children and adolescents either get insufficient treatment or none at all. "Once again, our report shows that too many Americans are suffering and far too many are not receiving the treatment they need to live healthy and productive lives," Paul Gionfriddo, president of the national community-based nonprofit, said in a statement. "We must improve access to care and treatments, and we need to put a premium on early identification and early intervention for everyone with mental health concerns." Mental Health America ranked all 50 states and the District of Columbia on 15 different measures, including adults with any mental illness, youth with at least one major depressive episode in the past year and mental-health workforce availability. Despite more Americans being insured, the report found a dire need for adequate treatment, especially in the Deep South. Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama had the least access to care for the mentally ill and the highest rates of imprisonment, with a total of more than 57,000 incarcerated men and women in those states suffering mental-health conditions. "This is ultimately about the policy decisions we make," Gionfriddo said. "It isn't just about what states are red and what states are blue. . . . But political environments in states do seem to matter. Those that invest more in mental health clearly have to throw away less money on jails and prisons." In the overall rankings, the top three states with the lowest prevalence of mental illness and best access to care were all in New England: Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont. The worst were Oregon, Arizona and Nevada. The four states with the most movement from last year to this year: Wisconsin dropped from eighth to 35th and Indiana from 19th to 45th, while New Mexico improved from 44th to 22nd and Oklahoma from 41st to 24th. By age, the states with the fewest mentally ill youth and best treatment options were Minnesota, South Dakota and Connecticut; the worse were Oregon, Arizona and Arkansas. "It's time to act," Gionfriddo said. "We must invest in the overall physical and mental well-being of our citizens - every day." The Washington Post Sunny, warm days and cool nights trigger the best color in trees such as sugar maples. (The Morton Arboretum) A green fall has had many fans of autumn trees wondering: When will the color come? It all depends on the weather, said Ed Hedborn, manager of plant records at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, who has been tracking the progress of fall color at the arboretum for 30 years. "The best fall leaf color comes when we have bright, sunny, warm days and cool nights," he said. "The timing and brightness of the color varies so much from year to year because Chicago weather is so variable." Advertisement In early October this year, there were a number of cloudy and rainy days. As mid-October approached, the sun returned, with temperatures still in the 70s, but nighttime temperatures remained mostly in the high 50s and 60s. That's in contrast to 2014, when it snowed on Oct. 4 and dropped to 35 degrees that night. On the same date in 2015, the daytime high was 60 degrees, but then a series of nights in the 40s led to good leaf color. Advertisement This year, "all we can do is wait and see what the weather brings," said Hedborn, who tracks the color progress each year at mortonarb.org/colorscout. At the arboretum, sumacs, maples, redbuds and many other trees were beginning to turn in mid-October. Fall colors are a byproduct of the preparations trees are making for winter, he said. Temperatures may trigger the color, but the big signal trees are heeding is that the days are growing shorter. That tells them to stockpile food in their wood and roots to get a good start in spring. While their leaves are still green, they make the most of sunny days by producing as much sugar as they can through photosynthesis. Once they've moved that sugar down toward their roots, deciduous trees give up on their leaves, which are too thin and flimsy to survive the winter. They stop making the green chlorophyll pigment used for photosynthesis. Then they let the leaves fall to the ground, where they will decay and provide nutrients that the trees' roots can use again. "Trees are great recyclers," Hedborn said. As delightful as the bright yellows are to color connoisseurs, they're just accidents underlying pigments revealed when the green drains away from the leaves. Reds and oranges come from anthocyanin, another pigment produced by some trees in fall. Years with sunny days and cool nights produce the most red pigment and the most varied colors. Other weather conditions can affect the color show. On clear, dry days with little moisture in the air, we can see the colors more clearly. "They really seem to pop," Hedborn said. A windy storm can sweep colorful leaves from the trees, but if days are still, the leaves will linger longer. "Every year, we cross our fingers and hope for lots of color," Hedborn says. "And every year, the weather will decide." Beth Botts is a staff writer at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle (mortonarb.org). Advertisement For tree and plant advice, contact the arboretum's Plant Clinic at 630-719-2424. RELATED STORIES: Powdery mildew leaves its mark on fall garden Throwing a fall party outdoors How to transition your house to fall Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 11 The Lolla Bootie from Sorel for women is crafted with waterproof leather (for light rain) and stylized with cutouts and a two-tone stacked heel, providing comfort and style for spring and summer and obviously for Lollapalooza, it's in the name), $160 www.sorel.com (Sorel) Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 9 A West Loop condo situated at 659 Randolph St. Unit 614 is currently on the market for $462,900. (Rick Knoell / VHT Studios) The innovative, but dilapidated, House of Tomorrow, which was built for the 1933-34 Chicago world's fair, is being named a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The move is an effort to draw attention and funds to the house in Beverly Shores, Ind. (Michael Tercha/Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune) One of the wonders of Chicago's 1933-34 World's Fair was the House of Tomorrow, a 12-sided, three-story peek into the future. It had huge plate-glass windows, one of General Electric's first dishwashers, central air conditioning and an attached garage (rare at the time) with room for an airplane as well as a car. Designed by Chicago architect George Fred Keck, the house is revered in architectural circles as a forerunner of mid-20th century glass houses, like Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House. Yet it now sits empty and deteriorating, high on a wind-blasted sand dune in the Beverly Shores section of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. With the house covered in a protective wrap, little of its original design is visible other than the ship-like railings of its outdoor terraces. Advertisement On Wednesday, the Washington, D.C.-based National Trust for Historic Preservation will take a first step toward changing this deplorable situation when it declares the house a "National Treasure." The honorific designation, which the trust has previously given to threatened structures such as Houston's Astrodome, has a clear purpose: Raise funds for a $2 million restoration. "We see (the House of Tomorrow) as a Chicago landmark in Indiana," Marsh Davis, president of Indiana Landmarks, a statewide preservation advocacy group that nominated the house for the honor, said during a tour Monday. Advertisement Is this project a good idea? Absolutely, despite its seeming improbability and attendant financial hurdles. An avatar of innovation, the House of Tomorrow forms an essential strand of Chicago's architectural DNA. Restoring it would be another jewel in the city's architectural crown. Losing it would be a black mark, even though it sits in northwest Indiana. Through its innovative construction techniques and use of modern appliances, the House of Tomorrow advanced the theme of the fair, which was titled "A Century of Progress International Exposition." Yet like most architectural experiments, it had its share of hiccups. At times, as I learned Monday, the glass house got so hot inside that it had to be closed to visitors. To keep things cool, the restoration would introduce insulated, double-pane windows rather than the single-pane originals. The kitchen, which still has the original General Electric dishwasher, would be refurbished, as would the living areas and the third-floor solarium. First, though, the house would be stripped down to its original steel structure a circular core from which steel beams radiate like spokes from a hub. Then it would be rebuilt according to plans devised by Chicago architect Bill Latoza. "We want to see it reborn as a new House of Tomorrow," said Todd Zeiger, director of Indiana Landmarks' northern regional office. The house is dry inside, he said, courtesy of a roof put on some eight years ago. If you need convincing that restoration projects such as this can succeed, look no farther than the meticulous work done on four other houses from the 1933-34 fair that are now in Beverly Shores: the Florida Tropical House, which has an exterior that is Flamingo pink; the Cypress Log Cabin, which looks as woodsy as its name suggests; the Armco-Ferro House, which has a facade of glistening steel; and the Art Deco Wieboldt-Rostone House. By barge and truck, Chicago developer Robert Bartlett brought the Century of Progress houses to Beverly Shores to promote his plans to turn the area into a vacation destination. But that dream died with the economic hardships of the Great Depression. The houses deteriorated until the early 2000s when Indiana Landmarks began leasing them from the National Park Service, which controls the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. In turn, the landmarks group gave long-term leases for the homes to people who put sweat equity and private money into restoring them even though they're not owners. "From a financial standpoint, it's one of the dumbest things I've ever done. From a personal standpoint, it's one of the best things I've done," said Bill Beatty, 79, who lives in the Florida Tropical House and enjoys views of Lake Michigan from its rooftop decks. "It's great to sit up here with a cooler full of beer and the binoculars." Advertisement In addition to seeking contributions for the House of Tomorrow restoration, Indiana Landmarks expects to borrow money to get the project going, Davis and Zeiger said. The goal is to begin work next spring and finish the job in 2019. Once that's done, the group plans to issue three-year subleases to people whose rent would help pay down restoration costs. Will the plan work? Perhaps. But the "National Treasure" designation doesn't always protect threatened structures from the wrecker's ball. Consider what happened a few years ago to Chicago's old Prentice Women's Hospital, a powerfully sculpted example of 1960s concrete construction designed by Marina City architect Bertrand Goldberg. The National Trust named Prentice to the treasures list, but Northwestern University went ahead and demolished it. The House of Tomorrow deserves a better fate. bkamin@tribpub.com Twitter @BlairKamin Amy van Singel helped start Living Blues magazine after falling in love with blues music as a west suburban teenager hanging out in Chicago's Jazz Record Mart. In addition to the magazine, which was launched in 1970, van Singel co-authored an award-winning book on blues performers, "The Voice of the Blues: Classic Interviews From Living Blues Magazine," and hosted blues music programs on radio stations from Alaska to Maine. Advertisement "She shared a rare expertise with our listeners in an accessible way," said Matt Murphy, the general manager of WERU-FM Community Radio in Blue Hill, Maine. Van Singel, using the on-air name Atomic Mama, had a Tuesday afternoon radio show called Blue Hill Blues that aired on the station for the past three years. Van Singel, 66, died Sept. 19 in her home in Ellsworth, Maine, according to Murphy. She had lived in Maine for the past several years. Advertisement Born Amelia van Singel, the daughter of a Chicago banking executive, she grew up in Hinsdale. After attending Hinsdale Township High School she went to Northwestern University. There she met Jim O'Neal, who became her husband in 1970. He was among the group co-founding Living Blues, and collaborated with his wife on "The Voice of The Blues: Classic Interviews From Living Blues Magazine." Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 75 Mike Haley, a lifelong Cubs fan who helped start the Left Field Bleacher Bums, a group that inspired a play and a made-for-TV movie, died of natural causes on Dec. 31, 2016, in Chicago. He was 67. Read more. (Family photo) Van Singel had a radio show on the campus radio station WNUR, and the two starting interviewing blues artist for the show and for the magazine. "We were both crazy about the blues," O'Neal said. Van Singel, who had a blues radio show on WXFM in the early 1970s, was an important part of the start of Living Blues, according to Bruce Iglauer, another co-founder and now head of Alligator Records in Chicago. "Amy did a lot of the production and a great deal of the heavy lifting," Iglauer said. "She had a very warm and communicable enthusiasm for the blues." In a 2013 interview with WERU, van Singel recalled going to Lincoln Center in New York in 2003 to accept an award the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers Deems Taylor Special Recognition Award for the book she and her husband wrote. The book was also inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall of Fame in 2012. Van Singel also spoke to WERU about how she was exposed to the blues at Jazz Record Mart, run by Bob Koester of Delmark Records, whom she called a mentor. She also heard British music groups playing what was then called rhythm and blues. O'Neal, who co-founded Rooster Blues Records and operated the Stackhouse record label, said it was strange to hear music coming from Britain that had its roots on the South Side and West Side of Chicago. Advertisement In 1983, Living Blues moved its operations to the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss., although O'Neal and van Singel remained in Chicago until 1986. Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 133 William Christopher, who was known as Father Mulcahy on "MASH" from 1972 to 1983, died Dec. 31, 2016. He was 84. Read more. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times) Brett Bonner, the magazine's current editor, said he met van Singel in 1987, the same year he started with the magazine and not long after the magazine had been transferred to Ole Miss. He wrote recently about her contributions to the blues and the blues community. "Amy's passion for real blues and real blues musicians was boundless," Bonner wrote. "Throughout her life, she championed the cause of the blues via the pages of Living Blues and for over 40 years with her radio program, "Atomic Mama's Wang-Dang-Doodle Blues Show." O'Neal agreed. "She was always dedicated to trying to promote African-American artists' rights in the blues," he said. O'Neal and van Singel divorced in 1987, but she stayed on in Oxford and opened a blues record store called Back Forty Records, Bonner said. Van Singel moved from Oxford to Memphis, Tenn., where she also had a radio show, and then to Anchorage, Alaska, where she broadcast on KNBA for more than 10 years. Advertisement Bonner and O'Neal said van Singel's influence extended to women inspired by her example to learn and write about the blues. "Amy was a pioneer for women in the blues and for women studying the blues," Bonner said. "Amy was groundbreaking. (The blues) is a real boys' club and she was right there in the middle of it." "I don't think she knew how much impact she had," O'Neal said, adding that her radio nickname "Atomic Mama" didn't fit her personality. "She wasn't explosive," he said. "Everybody remembered her as very sweet and kind." Van Singel is survived by her husband of six years, Chuck Cameron. Services were held. Graydon Megan is a freelance reporter. Hundreds of drinking fountains in Chicago parks have been shut off after testing revealed high levels of lead in the water. (CBS Chicago) (CBS Chicago/CBS Chicago) Long before the first winter frost, hundreds of drinking fountains in Chicago parks have been shut off after testing revealed high levels of brain-damaging lead in the water. Chicago Park District officials said Tuesday they decided to take 459, or about 18 percent, of their 2,435 water fixtures out of service based on samples collected during the summer. The action is another response to an ongoing crisis in Flint, Mich., that has drawn nationwide attention to lingering hazards in cities where lead pipes and plumbing were used for more than a century. Advertisement Though the dangers of lead have been well known for decades, until recently there has been little testing for the toxic metal in drinking water beyond samples the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requires municipal water systems to periodically collect from homes. Consultants found a wide range of lead levels in Chicago parks and Park District facilities, similar to earlier reports from Chicago Public Schools, suburban school districts and parochial schools operated by the Archdiocese of Chicago. Advertisement Park District officials took action when the amount of lead flowing from a particular fountain or sink exceeded 15 parts per billion, a level described in an online summary as the EPA's standard for drinking water. But the agency's regulations apply to testing carried out across municipal water systems, not test results at any one time from one fixture. A government edict that reflects how people typically use drinking fountains is the Food and Drug Administration's limit on lead in bottled water 5 parts per billion. If Park District officials had followed the FDA standard, another 250 fixtures would have been shut down, according to a Tribune review of the test results. It is difficult, if not impossible, to assess safety based on a snapshot of test results, said Yanna Lambrinidou, a Virginia Tech researcher who served on an EPA advisory committee that last year called for more aggressive efforts to eliminate lead hazards in public water supplies. Lead can appear sporadically as particles break off or leach into water an unpredictable phenomenon researchers describe as a version of Russian roulette. "Sadly, what people should make of these reports is that tap water at Chicago parks is not lead-free and they are on their own to protect their children from exposures," Lambrinidou said. "Demanding that public officials abandon the misleading crutch of the 15 (parts per billion) 'action level' and develop solutions that reflect current scientific understanding about lead in water would be a good first step." Even at low levels, lead can permanently damage the developing brains and nervous systems of young children. Studies have linked childhood exposure to learning disabilities and violent behavior later in life. The Park District is still investigating where the lead in the fountain water is coming from. Potential sources include lead pipes and solder or lead in the fixtures themselves. Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > About 40,000 children attended summer day camps at city parks. Thousands attend other programs during the school year. Advertisement The Park District shut off nearly a quarter of its outdoor fountains based on the testing. Three percent of the district's indoor fountains and sinks were taken out of service. The highest lead levels were in a two-level fountain in Avalon Park off 83rd Street near Stony Island Avenue. The taller fountain registered 1,800 parts per billion, while the shorter one recorded 1,200. Another two-level fountain in the park had 400 and 270 parts per billion. Grant Park, often described as the city's front yard, highlights the dramatic differences between individual water fountains. The majority of fountains tested in the park 48 registered lead levels at or below 5.4 parts per billion. But one had 1,200, another 560 and 15 were between 81 and 5.8, according to the Park District summary. It is unclear how much it will cost to repair or replace the fountains with elevated lead levels, said Jessica Maxey-Faulkner, a Park District spokeswoman. "Ensuring the health and safety of all park patrons and staff is a top priority of the Park District," she said in a statement. mhawthorne@chicagotribune.com Twitter @scribeguy Members of the Chicago Police Department work at the scene where a vehicle involved in a shooting in West Pullman eventually crashed in the parking lot of Prairie Junior High School in the 4400 block of West 119th Street Thursday, Oct. 20, 2016, in Alsip, Ill. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune) (Erin Hooley, Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune) Updated Oct. 25, 2016 Two people were arrested after police officers witnessed a shooting in West Pullman on the Far South Side that wounded a 22-year-old man Thursday morning, police said. A third suspect remained at large, and Alsip School District 126 canceled classes for the day as a precaution as police searched the area. Advertisement Two high schools in the area went into shelter-in-place mode, officials said. Students and teachers at Shepard High School in Palos Heights and Eisenhower High School in Blue Island stayed behind locked doors during first period, according to Bob McParland, spokesman for Community High School District 218. Police later told school officials it was safe to resume normal schedules. Schools will be released at 3:15 p.m. as usual, McParland said. The incident began around 2:40 a.m. when officers on an unrelated call heard shots from at least two different kinds of guns near the 11800 block of South Lowe Avenue, police said. They responded on foot and saw someone in a vehicle firing shots at a group of people, police said in a statement. They identified themselves as police when people in the car began to fire at them. Advertisement One of the officers drew his weapon and returned fire but did not hit anyone, police said. The officers were also not hit. Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 17 A police officer searches for evidence at a crime scene in the 800 block of North Leamington Avenue on Oct. 20, 2016, in Chicago. Two people were shot and transported to hospitals. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune) The vehicle carrying the shooters drove west on 119th Street. The officers radioed a description and police spotted it as the car crashed more than four miles away, in the 4400 block of West 119th Street in Alsip. Three people ran from the car and two of them were arrested, police said. The third was at large. A weapon was recovered from the car, police said. Back at the scene of the shooting, a 22-year-old man was found with a gunshot wound to the leg, police said. He was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center, and his condition was stabilized. The man was one of 14 people shot across Chicago between Wednesday morning and early Thursday. A 39-year-old man was shot and killed about 7:25 p.m. in Back of the Yards, police said. He was hit in the torso in the 4300 block of South Paulina Street and was pronounced dead at the University of Illinois Hospital. Earlier, Fire Department officials said the victim was taken to Stroger. The Cook County medical examiner's office identified him as Alejandro Morales of the 4500 block of South Hermitage Avenue, the office said Oct. 24. At 7 p.m., a 24-year-old man was shot and killed in Bronzeville. He was in the 4700 block of South Prairie Avenue when someone shot him in the leg and shoulder. He went to Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Police said his condition initially was stabilized, but he later was pronounced dead at 7:49 p.m. He was identified as Christopher Walters, of the 6200 block of South Champlain Avenue, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office. Information was not immediately available about the circumstances of the shooting. A 39-year-old man was shot in the 4300 block of South Paulina Street in the Back of the Yards neighborhood and transported to the University of Illinois Hospital, where he was pronounced dead Oct. 19, 2016, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune) (Chicago Tribune) Other shootings: At 3 a.m., a 22-year-old man was shot in the 1900 block of South Damen Avenue in the Heart of Chicago neighborhood. He went to Stroger Hospital with a gunshot wound to the back. Details of the shooting were not available. About 1:55 a.m., two men ages 26 and 44 were shot and critically wounded in South Austin. They were in a car in the 800 block of North Leamington Avenue when they heard gunfire. The older man was shot twice in the arm and once in the back. The younger man was shot in the back and leg. Both were taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition. About 10:35 p.m. Wednesday, a 24-year-old man was shot in Little Village. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital with a gunshot wound to the ankle after an attack in the 2200 block of South Ridgeway Avenue. He would not tell investigators any details about the incident, according to police. At 10:30 p.m., a 22-year-old man was shot in the Marquette Park neighborhood. He was in the 7100 block of South Artesian Avenue when someone fired shots from a gangway, hitting him in the arm and calf. He went to Advocate Christ, and his condition was stabilized. Just before 10:10 p.m., a 16-year-old boy was shot in Gresham. He was walking in the 7500 block of South Loomis Boulevard when someone fired shots from a dark-colored sedan and the boy was struck in the left arm. He went to an area hospital and his condition was stabilized. About 9:40 p.m., a 22-year-old man was shot in the cheek in the East Garfield Park neighborhood. He was driving south in the first block of North Homan Avenue when someone in a vehicle pulled up alongside him and fired shots. He went to Mount Sinai Hospital and his condition was stabilized. About 6:55 p.m., a 22-year-old man was shot in a West Side park. He was in the 200 block of South Central Avenue in Austin when a gunman approached on foot and shot him in the leg and shoulder, police said. He was taken to Mount Sinai in serious condition. Much earlier, a person was shot at 9:20 a.m. Wednesday in the 3200 block of West Madison Street in the East Garfield Park neighborhood, said Officer Bari Lemmon, a Chicago police spokeswoman. According to preliminary reports, a person in a red vehicle began firing at a 28-year-old man, striking him in the head. The man suffered a graze wound and was taken to Mount Sinai, where his condition was stabilized. Another man was shot shortly before 8:30 a.m. Wednesday in the 5800 block of West West End Avenue in the Austin neighborhood. The man, 31, suffered several wounds to the torso and was dropped off at West Suburban Hospital in Oak Park. He was transferred to Stroger Hospital and listed in critical condition. About 7:40 a.m. Wednesday, a 34-year-old woman drove to Roseland Community Hospital after she was shot on the West Side, police said. She was in the 700 block of North Laramie Avenue when she was hit in the right side. She was listed in good condition at Roseland. Surveillance photo of a man who robbed a bank in the Aon Center, 200 E. Randolph St., on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. (Surveillance photo via the FBI) A man robbed a bank in the Aon building downtown Wednesday morning, authorities said. The robber walked into the Associated Bank at 200 E. Randolph St. about 8:05 a.m., according to the FBI. Advertisement He initially acted like a customer, then jumped a counter and demanded money, the FBI said. The man did not show a gun, and he escaped on foot after getting cash. The robber was believed to have dropped a cell phone during the robbery, police said. Advertisement The robber was described as black with a dark complexion and a slim build. He was wearing dark jeans and a yellow hooded sweatshirt with the word "Iowa" emblazoned on the front. Anyone with information can call the Chicago office of the FBI at 312-421-6700. Check back for updates. A construction worker was killed and three other workers injured when a beam fell on a crew of workers in Des Plaines on April 5, 2016. (WGN-TV / Chicago Tribune) (Chicago Tribune) An Elgin -based company has been fined $152,000 in the death of worker who was killed by a falling 45-ton beam at a construction site on the Jane Addams Tollway in April. The U.S. Department of Labor 's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Omega Demolition Corp. earlier this month for "over-stressing" the beam during demolition of an Interstate 90 bridge near Touhy Avenue in Des Plaines , according to a statement from the agency. Vicente Santoyo, a 47-year-old Omega Demolition employee from Berwyn, was standing in an aerial lift cutting steel bracing between two beams supporting the highway when one of the beams collapsed on him, according to the statement from OSHA. OSHA fined the company $152,433 and issued citations for safety and health violations. A spokesperson for the agency, Scott Allen, said OSHA representatives are due to meet with Omega Demolition executives next week to discuss the agency's determination. At that time, he said, Omega representatives will either indicate they intend to abide by the findings and pay the penalties or contest the citations before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. The scene of a fatal construction accident that occurred underneath the I-90 expressway at Touhy Road in Des Plaines early morning on April 5, 2016. A construction worker was killed and three others injured when a 45-ton beam fell on the crew of workers. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune) Ken Nishiyama Atha, OSHA's regional administrator in Chicago, called the incident "preventable" in the statement. "Federal safety standards for demolition address specific procedures for preventing steel structures from being overstressed, a safety violation that directly contributed to the death of this worker," he said. Advertisement Omega Demolition representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Illinois Tollway issued a statement that it will "take whatever actions are appropriate" after reviewing OSHA's full report on the incident. Advertisement The Tollway removed Omega Demolition, a subcontractor for bridge project, from all Tollway projects. The statement also said the agency "rescinded permission for Omega Demolition to conduct any work for the Tollway at this time" but later clarified that Omega "at this point is free to bid on future Tollway contracts." Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > The manager for the general contractor for the project, Judlau Contracting, and an engineer supervisor were also removed from all Tollway projects, and the agency said alternative contractors were hired to finish the bridge demolition and construction work. "The Tollway offers its deepest sympathies for the families and loved ones of the worker killed in this tragic incident, as well to his co-workers who were injured," the statement reads. Omega Demolition has been cited nine times by OSHA since 2006 mainly in connection with lead hazards, and the company has paid violations and penalties to the agency totaling $6,465. OSHA has placed Omega Demolition in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program, which allows the agency to inspect the company's facilities and construction sites if they believe violations are present, according to the statement. The program "focuses on recalcitrant employers that endanger workers by committing willful, repeat or failure-to-abate violations," the statement reads. Shortly after Santoyo's death, Adolfo Zamora, secretary-treasurer of Laborers Local 225 union, described Santoyo as "a great guy, a hard worker." An official with the union said Santoyo had spent more than two decades working in construction in the Chicago area. Lee V. Gaines is a freelance reporter. Someone who allegedly fired a gun at Chicago police officers is in custody Tuesday night, police said. The suspect opened fire at police about 4:45 p.m. in the 7100 block of South Normal Avenue in the city's Englewood neighborhood, said Officer Michelle Tannehill, a spokeswoman for the Chicago police. Advertisement No one was injured and the gunman was taken into custody, Tannehill said. Charges are pending. Advertisement Check back for details. Jack McCullough walks out of Judge William Brady's courtroom at the DeKalb County Courthouse in Sycamore, Ill., on April 22, 2016, with Crystal Harrolle, an investigator with the public defender's office. Brady formally dismissed a murder case Friday against McCullough, a retired Washington state police officer, who a prosecutor says was wrongly convicted in the 1957 killing of a 7-year-old Sycamore girl, but he put off a decision on whether to appoint a special prosecutor. (Danielle Guerra / Daily Chronicle) The man whose conviction for the 1957 murder of a Sycamore girl was vacated this year is now seeking a formal declaration of innocence from the judicial system. Attorneys from The Exoneration Project who are representing Jack McCullough will be in court Thursday in DeKalb County, where they have filed a petition asking the court to make a finding of McCullough's innocence in the death of Maria Ridulph. Advertisement "Mr. McCullough had absolutely nothing to do with the abduction and murder of Maria Ridulph," wrote attorneys for The Exoneration Project, which is a legal clinic at the University of Chicago. The petition reiterates main points raised by DeKalb County State's Attorney Richard Schmack, whose report to the court earlier this year led to the stunning reversal of McCullough's conviction in what was thought to be the coldest case in U.S. history to result in a guilty verdict. Advertisement McCullough, The Exoneration Project attorneys said, was wrongfully convicted of the girl's murder, based on a faulty eyewitness identification made a half-century after the crime, and modern authorities' willingness to disregard evidence of old telephone records that placed McCullough in Rockford, almost 40 miles away, around the time the 7-year-old disappeared. Investigators, the petition said, ignored or manipulated evidence to convict McCullough, who had an "airtight" alibi. Should McCullough, 76, be granted the certificate of innocence, he would become eligible for a settlement with the state Court of Claims that could amount to about $85,000, attorney Russell Ainsworth said. But, the attorney said, McCullough's primary motivation is to clear his name. "He wants the community to know that he had nothing to do with this heinous crime," Ainsworth said Tuesday. McCullough, a Seattle-area resident, will not be at Thursday's court hearing, the attorney said Schmack, who believes McCullough was wrongly convicted, filed a brief response to the petition, saying he has no objection to it. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan could choose to intervene in the case and argue against the innocence certificate. Maria Ridulph disappeared from Sycamore on Dec. 3, 1957. She was last seen with a man who introduced himself as "Johnny" after approaching the girl and her 8-year-old friend, Kathy Sigman, as the children played in their neighborhood. Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > Ridulph's disappearance sparked a huge search. Her body was found in April 1958 in a wooded area in northwest Illinois. McCullough, who in 1957 was a 17-year-old Sycamore resident who went by the name John Tessier, was arrested in 2011 following an investigation by Illinois State Police. Advertisement A year later, McCullough was found guilty in a bench trial that included testimony from Maria's friend, who now has the name Kathy Chapman, who identified an old picture of McCullough as being the man named "Johnny" who had approached her and Maria more than 50 years ago. McCullough was sentenced to life in prison and later filed a post-conviction petition that came back to the local courts. Schmack, who was not state's attorney when McCullough was prosecuted, has said that he examined the evidence as part of the process to respond to McCullough's petition and became convinced that McCullough had been wrongly convicted. Jack McCullough walks out of Judge William Brady's courtroom at the DeKalb County Courthouse in Sycamore, Ill., on April 22, 2016, with Crystal Harrolle, an investigator with the public defender's office. Brady formally dismissed a murder case Friday against McCullough, a retired Washington state police officer, who a prosecutor says was wrongly convicted in the 1957 killing of a 7-year-old Sycamore girl, but he put off a decision on whether to appoint a special prosecutor. (Danielle Guerra / Daily Chronicle) Schmack filed a lengthy report that cited problems with the investigation, highlighting the telephone records that he said would have made it impossible for McCullough to have been in Sycamore at the time of Maria's disappearance. Based on the report, Judge William Brady vacated McCullough's conviction, and Schmack then dropped the charges. Previous counsel for McCullough had asked the judge to dismiss the charges with prejudice, meaning that McCullough could not be recharged in the crime. Brady, though, declined to do that, which means that, although it's considered unlikely, McCullough could be recharged in the case. Ainsworth said the certificate of innocence could grant McCullough some peace of mind that he finally has been cleared. "No one should have to walk around with something like that hanging over their head," he said. Clifford Ward is a freelance reporter. Aldermen Proco Joe Moreno, 1st, left and Joe Moore, 49th talk in council chambers earlier this month. Budget hearings have kicked off this week. (Nancy Stone / Chicago Tribune) Welcome to Clout Street: Morning Spin, our weekday feature to catch you up with what's going on in government and politics from Chicago to Springfield. Topspin While they're gathering at City Hall the next two weeks to dig into the nitty-gritty of Mayor Rahm Emanuel's 2017 spending proposal, many aldermen are doubtless also excited about their chances to tuck into the revered budget hearing lunch spreads that serve as an annual source of local pride for aldermen offering their wards' culinary highlights. Advertisement The daily big buffet is a way to break up the long days of pressing Emanuel administration officials about salaries and other budget priorities. Budget Committee Chairman Ald. Carrie Austin, of the Far South Side, threw down the gauntlet Monday, sponsoring lunch along with four longtime colleagues. More than two dozen aldermen lined up with employees from all over City Hall to chow down in the meeting room behind council chambers. There were trays of chicken, pork chops, catfish, mac and cheese, spaghetti, salad and three desserts. Advertisement Budget Committee Vice Chairman Ald. Jason Ervin, of the West Side, did the honors Tuesday, presenting baked and fried chicken, beef short ribs, collard greens, sweet corn, more mac and cheese, green beans and potatoes. In the past, aldermen have touted the often politically connected restaurants providing the food each day, in a bit of a Chicago-style farm-to-table shout-out. This week, the spreads so far have come with no such signs advertising the grub's provenance. (John Byrne) What's on tap *The third and final presidential debate between Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump will take place at 8 p.m. Central. Check your local listings. *Mayor Emanuel is scheduled to tour the Chicago Riverwalk in the early afternoon. The final phase is scheduled to open this weekend, according to City Hall. *Gov. Bruce Rauner will hold a 1:30 p.m. event at the University of Illinois Medical Center to highlight what his office says is $220 million in savings within the state Medicaid health care system. The announcement comes six months after Rauner appointed a task force aimed at rooting out waste, fraud and abuse in the state health care system. *Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk will campaign with Mitt Romney, the 2012 GOP presidential candidate, at a downtown health care tech start-up. That comes after Democratic challenger U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth raised money with David Letterman on Tuesday night. *Chicago City Council budget hearings: human resources, emergency management and communications, Fire Department. *Cook County budget hearings: a.m.: Board of Review, assessor, record of deeds, ethics board; p.m.: County Board president's office, Cook Workforce Partnership. Advertisement *The Chicago Teachers Union's House of Delegates is scheduled to meet to discuss a tentative contract agreement with Chicago Public Schools. What we're writing *Duckworth's record: Few legislative successes, some veterans' programs sputtered. *Ald. Willie Cochran under federal investigation into whether he improperly used campaign funds for personal expenses, sources say. *Despite Trump's claim, city and state election officials say technology means voting fraud largely thing of the past. *Key figure in CPS bribery probe pleads guilty. *Chicago parks shut off 459 drinking fountains after tests find lead. Advertisement *Chicago aldermen want crackdown on problem businesses, Airbnb inspectors hired more quickly. *Women protest Trump outside Trump Tower Chicago. *Ex-Ald. Sandi Jackson's prison term ends, she joins ex-congressman husband on parole. *Police Board hearing: Cop's expert witness questions quality of video in off-duty shooting. *The Chicago-flavored guest list at Obama's last White House state dinner. What we're reading *Cook County judge says Chicago cop's testimony doesn't pass the smell test. Advertisement *Cubs playoff push brings mixed emotions to families of recently departed fans. *Revolution Brewing recalls a whole lot of beer for off flavors. From the notebook : *Will Chicagoans leave their tax rebates on the table? Mayor Emanuel's property tax rebate program got off to a slow start this month, with only about 1,600 out of about 155,000 eligible homeowners applying, according to the administration. Molly Poppe, the city's budget spokeswoman, noted the program runs through the end of November and many folks tend to wait until the deadline is approaching to get such things done. The program is designed to soften the blow of recent property tax increases for homeowners with household incomes of less than $75,000. Rebates range from $25 to $200, depending on income and the size of the tax increase. Qualifying seniors would get an extra $100. Advertisement The average rebate so far is $116, city officials said. Information on the program can be found here. (Hal Dardick) *Quinn endgame? Pat Quinn reappeared on the political scene once again Tuesday to tout his petition drive for mayoral term limits, a pet project the Democrat picked up after he was ousted from the governor's office by Republican Bruce Rauner. Left unclear, though, was what end game the former governor envisions for his own political future, as he repeatedly brushed away questions about whether he'll run for governor or mayor of Chicago. "I won't make any decision on that at this time. I'm in petition-passing and we're trying to get signatures to put term limits on the mayor of Chicago, that referendum on the ballot, and we're also trying to establish an elected consumer advocate in Chicago. So, first thing's first," Quinn said. Now a private citizen, Quinn collects pensions that total $140,636 a year. He has been spending his free time circulating the mayoral term-limits petition, which he estimates will need 100,000 signatures to make the March 2018 ballot. As of Tuesday, he'd gathered about 30,000 signatures, he said. Quinn contends Mayor Emanuel, who is in his second term, should "voluntarily do what George Washington did and announce that two terms ... is enough." Advertisement But the former governor who succeeded impeached Gov. Rod Blagojevich in 2009, went on to win a full term in 2010 and then lost to Rauner in 2014 left the door open for seeking to put his own name back on the ballot at some point. "I just haven't made my decision up about that. I have run in the past. I might in the future, I might not," Quinn said. "You know, I enjoy doing this now. And I think in life you should do things you think you can make a difference on right now." (Kim Geiger) *U.S. Senate debates set: The final two debates between Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk and Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth have been set. The next one is at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27, at the University of Illinois at Springfield. The final debate will take place just a few days before the election. ABC7 will livestream the debate at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 4, and air it at 10:35 that night. *Schneider features Obama in new ad in IL-10: Former Democratic congressman Brad Schneider, trying to reclaim his North Shore seat against Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Dold, has a new TV ad that features a testimonial from home-state President Barack Obama. "This is not your typical election. It's not just a choice between parties or policies. It's about who we are as a people. Vote for Brad Schneider and the Democrats," Obama says in the ad. "So we can keep America's promise to our seniors. Protect our kids and our cops from gun violence. And preserve a woman's right to choose. Join me. Reject cynicism and fear. Reach for what we know is possible. Support Brad Schneider and the Democrats," Obama says. Advertisement Of the ad, Schneider said in a statement: "I look forward to working with Hillary Clinton to build on Obama's legacy by finally passing comprehensive immigration reform and common sense gun safety legislation." (Rick Pearson) Follow the money *Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan reported nearly $198,000 in contributions, led by maximum $53,900 donations from an engineers union fund and a United Auto Workers fund. But wait, there's more. Madigan's Democratic Majority fund picked up $101,400 in contributions, led by a maximum $53,900 contribution from an operating engineers fund. A day earlier, the Madigan-controlled Democratic Party of Illinois fund reported $45,600 in contributions, led by $21,600 from ComEd. *Democrat Sheila Simon, the former lieutenant governor who's running for state Senate in southern Illinois, got about $107,000 from the Senate Democrats. She's running against Republican Paul Schimpf, who lost to Attorney General Lisa Madigan in 2014. The Senate seat is now held by retiring Republican Sen. Paul Luechtefeld. *Senate Democrats got $500,000 in transfers from Senate President John Cullerton, who has been piling up contributions from traditional allies in unions and trial lawyers opposed to Republican Gov. Rauner's agenda. *Track Illinois campaign contributions in real time here and here. Advertisement Beyond Chicago *What you need to know about the third Clinton-Trump debate, per WSJ. *Obama to Trump: "Stop whining" about rigged vote. *WikiLeaks reveals the real Huma Abedin, says Politico. *Mosul battle: Traps, smokescreens and suicide bombers, NYT reports. Claims from Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump that voting is rigged to help Democratic rival Hillary Clinton on Nov. 8 have served to dredge up Chicago's controversial history of vote stuffing, ballot boxes floating in the river and dead people voting. But state and city elections officials contend the massive voting fraud of the past is history, citing new technology and changes in voting laws have made the potential for fraud a fraction of what existed in the past. They say the concern now is voter intimidation techniques. "We don't claim perfection. We know we're trying to live down the history of this agency from our parents' and our grandparents' generations," said Jim Allen, spokesman for the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners. Advertisement That notion has been one Trump's campaign pushed ahead of Wednesday night's final presidential debate. Appearing on Tuesday in western Colorado, Trump raised the issue, responding to recent media reports that voter fraud is not as rampant of a problem as he has said. "Take a look at St. Louis. Take a look at Philadelphia. Take a look at Chicago," Trump said. "... Look, look, if nothing else, people are going to be watching on Nov. 8. Watch Philadelphia. Watch St. Louis. Watch Chicago, watch Chicago. Watch so many other places." Advertisement Those remarks came after prominent Trump surrogate Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor, fanned the fraud flames earlier this week. "There are a few places, not many in the swing states, there are a few places where they've been notorious for stealing votes: Pennsylvania, Chicago. There have been places where a lot of cheating has gone on over the years," Giuliani, a former federal prosecutor, told CNN. "If you want me to tell me that I think the election in Philadelphia and Chicago is going to be fair, I would have to be a moron to say that. I mean, I would have to dislearn everything I learned in 40 years of being a prosecutor," he said. Giuliani cited the 1982 Illinois general election contest that pitted Republican Gov. James R. Thompson seeking re-election against former Democratic U.S. Sen. Adlai E. Stevenson III a race Thompson won by 5,074 votes, the slimmest vote total in statewide history. A federal grand jury investigation, prompted in part by Chicago Tribune reporting, led to 62 indictments and 58 convictions, many involving precinct captains and election officials. The grand jury concluded that 100,000 fraudulent votes had been cast in the city and that the city's patronage system was a driving force in spurring the illegality. Authorities found massive fraud involving vote buying and ballots cast by others in the names of registered voters. In one case, a ballot punched for the Democratic slate had been tabulated 198 times. In 1987, a canvass of voter records by the Chicago elections board projected up to 52,000 people improperly cast ballots in then-Mayor Harold Washington's Democratic primary win over former Mayor Jane Byrne. A citizens' group said it had evidence of thousands of additional illegal votes using similar methods. Decades before that, stories of election fraud were predominant about then-Mayor Richard J. Daley and the Chicago vote in the presidential election of Democrat John F. Kennedy in 1960. More recently, critics contended then-Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn 's Neighborhood Recovery Initiative that dashed out money to anti-violence programs was a disguised political slush fund to try to influence South Side and south suburban voters ahead of the 2010 election. Quinn ended the initiative under criticism, and the state auditor general found it was hastily put together and lacked proper checks and balances. "I can't sit here and tell you that they don't cheat," Giuliani said of Democrats on CNN. "And I know because they control the polling places in these areas. There are no Republicans. That is very hard to get people there who will challenge votes. So what they do is they leave dead people on the rolls and then they pay people to vote those dead people four, five, six, seven, eight, nine times." Advertisement But Allen, the Chicago elections spokesman, said much has changed when it comes to actual voter fraud. "To give some context, in the last 10 years we've had 10 referrals of suspicious activity to the state's attorney's office and at the same time we've had 9 million ballots cast," Allen said. One referral led to the convictions of two men on misdemeanor charges of manipulating absentee ballots in a 50th Ward aldermanic contest in 2007. Allen said the city board's use of electronic poll books at polling places blocks "the prospect of double voting," and the electronic connections between early voting sites make it "impossible" to vote more than once. In addition, Allen cites the work of the Illinois voter registration system and database with the State Board of Elections that tracks each of the state's 109 election authorities seeking duplicate registrations and checking on death records. "The assumption that just because there may be some outdated voter records on the rolls is immediately followed by voter impersonation fraud there's no evidence of it happening in the United States on any kind of significant measure," Allen said. Ken Menzel, general counsel for the state elections board, said the state database of registered voters is frequently refreshed with new and updated registrations as well as death records so "that dead voting in Chicago (is) kind of malarkey." Advertisement Menzel also said the decentralized nature of balloting in Illinois, coupled with different voting systems in use by local election officials and no centralized internet connection among election authorities, makes wholesale election fraud to be considered "far-fetched" by election experts. "We have a system with a lot of different observers and a lot of checks and balances and we're confident we'll have a solid and reliable result for our election," he said. Allen said voters are encouraged to call the city elections board for investigation or contact county, state or federal prosecutors if they have an allegation of something that looks unusual. But, he said, the largest complaints involve electioneering, where campaigning takes place too close to a polling place. Trump has called for more vigilance from his supporters at local polling places. Allen said concern exists "that there's talk of vigilantism in questioning voters at the door" of polling sites. "We strongly encourage any voter that encounters that anywhere in the United States to contact their local police department and/or election authority but also contact the U.S. Justice Department . Voter intimidation is a violation of federal law," Allen said. Even Giuliani acknowledged that cheating isn't a concern of the Trump campaign in Illinois, with its traditional Democratic leanings in presidential contests and Clinton having been born in Chicago and raised in suburban Park Ridge. "Look, if she wins Illinois by 8 percent or he wins Illinois by 8 percent, then that cheating isn't going to make any difference," Giuliani said. Advertisement "But we do cheat. We have people who cheat in elections. I've found very few situations where Republicans cheat. They don't control the inner cities the way Democrats do. Maybe if Republicans controlled the inner cities, they'd do as much cheating as Democrats," he said. Chicago aldermen got into the act Tuesday, alluding to the city's notorious history of deceased voters casting ballots while poking fun at the voter fraud claims. Ald. Raymond Lopez , 15th, mentioned during the budget hearing for the city Board of Election Commissioners that there had been reports of "some seriously concerning things going on in Chicago." "So I would just like to know if we can have an update on what are the (voter) registration numbers at both Graceland and Rosehill cemeteries as of right now," Lopez asked election commissioners. "Does the Oak Woods Cemetery have seven registered voters?" called out Ald. Leslie Hairston , 5th. "If you can add that to the mix, I'd appreciate it." "If we could add Oak Woods as well just to see what our registration numbers are there," Lopez continued as election officials laughed along. "As well as, supposedly, not only the budgets for bribes for votes, which was reported as well, our cemetery registrations, our absentee ballot round-ups, as well as any other miscellaneous voter fraud funds that you have available to you, we'd like to have all that information." Chicago Tribune's John Byrne contributed. rap30@aol.com Advertisement Twitter @rap30 Robert Creamer after his sentencing in a federal check-kiting case on April 5, 2006. At right is his wife, Illinois U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky. (Nancy Stone / Chicago Tribune) For four decades, Robert Creamer has been part of the fabric of Illinois and national Democratic campaigns, from helping elect wife Jan Schakowsky to Congress and giving Mayor Rahm Emanuel his first post-college job to helping on Barack Obama 's two presidential campaigns and working this time to elect Hillary Clinton . Now Creamer, who largely has worked behind the scenes as a consultant, particularly after a 2005 federal check-kiting conviction, finds himself in the limelight after surfacing on edited undercover videos released by a conservative group that alleges an orchestrated Democratic effort to conduct voter fraud and foment violent protest at rallies for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump . The more incendiary comments on the videos came from a Democratic activist working for Creamer's firm Democracy Partners, not Creamer. And it's also questionable how central of a role the group played in the last-minute cancellation of Trump's March rally at the University of Illinois at Chicago Pavilion. But the release of the videos came amid a concerted push by Trump's campaign that the election is rigged against him due to his claims about the potential for widespread voter fraud, especially in big cities controlled by Democrats including Chicago. And so Creamer issued a statement saying he has told the Democratic National Committee that he was "stepping back from my responsibilities" working with the Clinton campaign because he was "unwilling to become a distraction" toward electing her president. Democracy Partners declined to make Creamer available for an interview Wednesday, instead pointing to his statement. Advertisement In it, Creamer criticized the work of conservative activist James O'Keefe and his Project Veritas Action, who produced the videos. "Democracy Partners regards our nation's election laws and the integrity of our democratic institutions with utmost seriousness. And we have only ever engaged in legal and nonviolent methods to demonstrate how Donald Trump is unfit to be president." Conservative undercover journalist James O'Keefe holds a news conference at the National Press Club September 1, 2015 in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images) Despite a controversial past in Illinois, Creamer has worked for a list of clients that includes the state Democratic Party, several members of Congress, former U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun's campaign, major public and private sector unions, the campaign of now-imprisoned former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, and then-Mayor Richard M. Daley 's campaign committee. In 1975, Creamer was a founder of the consumer group Illinois Public Action, which touted itself as the state's largest consumer organization. It was best known for its door-to-door neighborhood canvassers who sought donations to push liberal Democratic-backed causes, including lower utility rates and universal health insurance. Creamer gave Emanuel his first political job after the future mayor graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Advertisement Perennially facing money troubles, Illinois Public Action turned to telephone soliciting as a fundraising technique, promoting the sales of credit-card insurance. The Chicago Tribune first reported on controversies surrounding the group's fundraising practices in 1993 and the organization ultimately closed four years later. Those fundraising activities led to a lengthy federal investigation in which Creamer ultimately pleaded guilty. He was sentenced in 2006 to five months in prison for purposely floating bad checks to prop up the finances of the struggling consumer group and for an income tax charge. He also was sentenced to 11 months of home confinement. "I will never again allow my passion for that goal to overwhelm my good judgment or my respect for the law," Creamer said after the sentencing hearing. At the time, Evanston U.S. Rep. Schakowsky issued a statement about her husband, saying, "More than anything, I am proud of who Bob is. ... He has been a constant crusader." Prosecutors maintained Creamer carried out a check-kiting scheme to finance his salary of about $100,000 as the group's executive director and to further his public policy goals. Then-Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Ferguson said Creamer "stole money from banks," more than $2.5 million, that amounted to unintended, interest-free loans. Creamer was able to turn the field-organizing tactics of his consumer group into an influential and profitable political consulting business with several high-profile clients. He earned more than a half-million dollars from Blagojevich's campaign fund. Other Creamer clients included 49th Ward Ald. Joe Moore , Cook County Circuit Clerk Dorothy Brown, County Commissioner Larry Suffredin and then-commissioners Forrest Claypool, now the CEO of Chicago Public Schools, and Mike Quigley , now a congressman. Creamer was ever-present during Blagojevich's 2002 bid for governor. He helped orchestrate the campaign kickoff event at the Near North Side A. Finkl & Sons Co. steelworks. Blagojevich was introduced that day by Schakowsky. The scope of Creamer's political consulting expanded nationally in line with the rising stature of his wife in the Democratic congressional campaign hierarchy. Creamer helped found the Strategic Consulting Group in 1997, and the organization is now part of Creamer's Democracy Partners firm. The conservative group released its undercover videos this week. The context of what subjects say in the videos is not always clear, and at times a narrator or subtitle attempt to connect the dots. Project Veritas Action also previously has released the entirety of its video stings in the past, but has not done so for this latest two-part video series. Advertisement In them, Scott Foval, a national field director for Americans United for Change, discussed his relationship with Creamer as a subcontractor for Democracy Partners. "So Bob Creamer comes up with a lot of these ideas. I work with Bob Creamer one-to-one all the time. I'm the white hat. Democracy Partners is kind of dark hat," said Foval, who lost his job after the videos were posted. In one of the videos, a Project Veritas undercover staffer discusses with Foval a potential scheme to allow unregistered Hispanic immigrants the ability to register to vote by working as day laborers. Eventually, the video cuts to Creamer purportedly reacting to such a scheme, though the full context of the conversation is unclear because of how the video is edited. "Let me see if I can chat with the people who are most involved in Hispanic voter registration. And, uh, I can see what their thoughts are. I mean, there are a couple of different organizations that's their big trick," Creamer said. "We'll help you do this. I mean, this is very important this stuff. Turnout is huge, huge, huge." In a different hidden recording, Creamer is presented with a person appearing to offer to bankroll the vote fraud scheme. Creamer responded, "My fear is someone would decide this was a big voter fraud scheme." The video continues with Foval going on to say that such a scheme might have merit if he and Creamer were not directly involved in coordinating it. Advertisement In another video, Foval discusses his efforts to provide "agitator training," in which he and Creamer worked to dispatch people to events to entice Trump supporters into confrontations that would in turn garner media coverage. "There's a script of engagement. Sometimes the crazies bite, sometimes they don't bite," Foval says, noting that the agitators are instructed only to engage with Trump supporters in line outside, "because once they're inside the rally, they're under Secret Service's control The media will cover it no matter where it happens." Foval said he worked to create messaging for the planted protesters that would lead Trump supporters "to punch you." Creamer also describes his role in helping organize turnout among Democratic operatives at Trump events. "Where Trump and Pence are going to be, we have events. And we have a whole team across the country that does that, both consultants and people from the Democratic Party and the Democratic Party apparatus and people from the campaign, the Clinton campaign," Creamer said. "And my role in the campaign is to manage all that." In another segment, the conservative group identifies an individual as Aaron Black, billed as working for Creamer as deputy rapid response director on behalf of the DNC at Trump events. The video portrays Black giving Creamer credit for shutting down the Trump rally in Chicago. Black, though, only refers to a "him," whom the video identifies as Creamer. "So the Chicago protest, when they shut all that down, that was us," Black says in the video. "It was more him than me, but none of this is supposed to come back to us, because we want it to come from people, we don't want it to come from the party." Advertisement While the March Trump rally at UIC featured confrontations outside, a large contingent of hundreds of UIC students inside who signed up for free tickets were instrumental in getting the rally canceled as they repeatedly chanted anti-Trump slogans. rap30@aol.com bruthhart@chicagotribune.com KABUL, Afghanistan A man wearing an Afghan army uniform killed a U.S. service member and an American civilian in the capital Kabul on Wednesday, NATO and an Afghan official said. A NATO statement said another U.S. service member and two U.S. civilians were wounded in the attack and were in a stable condition. Advertisement "Anytime we lose a member of our team, it is deeply painful," the statement quoted General John W. Nicholson, Commander of U.S. Forces-Afghanistan. "Our sympathies go out to the families, loved ones, and the units of those involved in this incident." Dawlat Waziri, spokesman for the Afghan defense ministry, said the attack took place inside a military base in the capital. The ministry had launched an investigation on the incident, he added. Advertisement The NATO statement said the attacker was later killed. The victims were conducting duties as part of the larger NATO mission to train and advise the Afghan security services, and an investigation was being conducted to determine the exact circumstances of the incident. In May, two Romanian soldiers were shot and killed when two Afghan army recruits opened fire on them in southern Kandahar province. Both attackers were later killed by other troops in a military comp. Associated Press MANILA, Philippines A Philippine police van rammed into protesters, leaving several bloodied, as an anti-U.S. rally turned violent Wednesday at the American Embassy in Manila. The van's driver, police officer Franklin Kho, told reporters he did not deliberately hit the protesters but was trying to drive away from them because they were hitting the vehicle with wooden clubs and he feared they would commandeer it and use it to attack other policemen. "They were already trying to seize the vehicle," Kho told reporters. Advertisement Associated Press TV footage showed the van repeatedly ramming the protesters as it drove wildly back and forth after activists surrounded and started hitting it with the wooden batons they seized from police. In front of horrified crowds, the van suddenly charged backward then sprinted forward twice over a space of about 20 meters (60 feet), barreling through the scattered protesters and hurtling some to the side like bowling pins. A few were run over but somehow managed to stand. Advertisement Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 9 A firefighter aims his hose at surging protesters as they force their way toward the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines, on Oct. 19, 2016. (Bullit Marquez / AP) Some screamed in surprise, others hurled stones at the van and yelled invectives. A speaker called the police "puppies of imperialists" on a loudspeaker. At least three student activists were taken to a hospital after they were run over by the van, protest leader Renato Reyes said. "There was absolutely no justification for it," Reyes said of the violent police dispersal of about 1,000 protesters. "Even as the president vowed an independent foreign policy, Philippine police forces still act as running dogs of the U.S." More than two dozen policemen were injured, police officials said, adding that police observed "maximum tolerance" but rowdy protesters kept assaulting the law enforcers. Police lobbed tear gas and arrested at least 29 protesters who broke through a line of riot police and hurled red paint at the officers and a U.S. government seal at the start of the rally at the seaside embassy compound. A firetruck doused the rowdy protesters with water to push them back, but they took hold of the water hose and confronted the outnumbered police with rocks and red paint. After breaking through the police corridor, they scribbled "U.S. troops out now" and other slogans at the embassy's tall fence with red paint. Filipino protesters scuffle with police during a protest in front of the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines, on Oct. 19, 2016. (Mark R. Cristino / EPA) The national police said in a statement that the violent dispersal was "unfortunate" and an investigation would try to determine if the riot policemen followed crowd-control procedures. Investigators will also evaluate criminal and civil liabilities of the protesters and their leader for an alleged illegal mass assembly. A left-wing legal group, the National Union of People's Lawyers, condemned the police violence and said it would help the injured and detained protesters file criminal complaints against the police for violating their constitutional rights to free assembly. Advertisement The protesters, consisting of students, workers and tribespeople, were demanding an end to the presence of visiting U.S. troops in the Philippines and to support a call by President Rodrigo Duterte for a foreign policy not dependent on the U.S., the country's longtime treaty ally. A firefighter aims his hose at surging protesters as they force their way toward the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines, on Oct. 19, 2016. (Bullit Marquez / AP) The activists came from the largest left-wing umbrella group, Bayan (Nation), which has organized regular anti-U.S. protests in front of the embassy for decades, most of which are peaceful. Duterte was on a state visit to China, where he is seeking to repair relations strained under his predecessor over territorial conflicts in the South China Sea. He is also seeking to expand trade and investments and financing for badly needed infrastructure projects. Amid an uneasy relationship with the U.S., Duterte has tried to reach out to China and Russia, bringing uncertainty to his country's long alliance with America. But the protesters also opposed the president's effort to lean toward China. "The Philippines will not be dictated on, whether by the U.S. or China," they said in a statement. The violence happened as the police and Duterte are under increased international scrutiny for their alleged role in the killings of thousands of drug suspects and pushers as part of the president's war on illegal drugs. Advertisement Associated Press Jeffrey Scott Jones, 56, of Huntington Beach was convicted of raping a girl when she was 13. (Orange County district attorney's office) A Huntington Beach man slit his throat in a courtroom Wednesday morning after a jury found him guilty of raping a girl when she was 13. Jeffrey Scott Jones, 56, had just been convicted of two felony counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child and one felony count of continuous sexual abuse. Advertisement As the verdict was announced at about 11 a.m. in Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana, Jones produced a small razor blade and sliced his throat, according to Jones' attorney, Edward Welbourn, and Deputy Dist. Atty. Heather Brown. Jones was screaming and bleeding heavily from his neck while a sheriff's deputy tried to restrain him and the jury was rushed from the room, Brown said. Advertisement Welbourn said he saw his client's head hit the defense table as he bled profusely. Jones had to be handcuffed as medical personnel tried to stop the bleeding, Orange County sheriff's Lt. Mark Stichter said. As Jones was taken out of the courtroom on a gurney, a pool of blood was left on the table, Brown said. Jones was being treated at a hospital for injuries that are not life-threatening, Stichter said. It wasn't clear how he got the razor blade, the attorneys said. Stichter did not confirm that it was a razor blade, calling it a "cutting instrument." He said the Sheriff's Department would investigate whether Jones brought it into the courthouse or found it in the building. Jones had been released from custody after posting $1-million bail on July 25, 2013, according to the Orange County district attorney's office. Jones was a teacher for 27 years at Bell High School in Bell and Gahr High School in Cerritos, according to prosecutors. Advertisement Brown said during Jones' trial that his abuse of the girl who is now 17 began when she was in the eighth grade. At first, Brown said, Jones made sexual comments to the girl before progressing to inappropriate touching in the fall of 2012 and rape in the spring of 2013. Judge Steven Bromberg scheduled Jones' sentencing for Nov. 4. He faces a maximum of 68 years to life in state prison, according to the district attorney's office. Brazil writes for Times Community News. benjamin.brazil@latimes.com Twitter: @benbrazilpilot WASHINGTON Hillary Clinton holds a decisive advantage over Donald Trump in the competition for votes in the Electoral College, leading in enough states to put her comfortably over the 270 majority needed to win the presidential election in November, according to a new SurveyMonkey poll of 15 battleground states conducted with The Washington Post. Based on the results from the 15 state surveys, along with assumptions of the likely outcomes in other states that have consistently voted for one party or the other, Clinton, the Democratic nominee, holds leads of four points among likely voters or more in states that add up to 304 electoral votes. Advertisement Trump, the GOP nominee, has the advantage in states with an estimated electoral vote total of 138. Arizona, Florida, Ohio and Texas, which account for 96 electoral votes, remain as toss-ups. All results in the 15 state surveys are based on ballot tests that include Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson and Green Party nominee Jill Stein. The results underscore the importance for Trump of Wednesday's final presidential debate, which will be held in Las Vegas. National polls have moved in Clinton's direction since the exchanges began in late September. Her current average margin is seven points in polling averages from the Huffington Post Pollster and RealClearPolitics. The most recent Washington Post-ABC News poll put her national lead over Trump at four points. Advertisement The effect of the shift toward Clinton in national polls is evident in the new 15-state study. In late August, The Post, using SurveyMonkey's online methodology, conducted individual polls in all 50 states among registered voters. At that time, Clinton led in states that added up to 244 electoral votes, while Trump led in states accounting for 126. Toss-up states equaled 168 electoral votes. The SurveyMonkey surveys also included polls of Senate and gubernatorial races, where applicable, in the same 15 states. The results show two things. First, many Republican Senate candidates are outperforming Trump in their states. Second, that still may not be enough to maintain the GOP's majority in the chamber. Democrats need a net gain of five seats to take outright control of the Senate, four to exercise control if Clinton becomes president. The results showed them with leads of four or more points in three states with GOP incumbents: New Hampshire, North Carolina and Wisconsin. Republican incumbents lead in Florida and Ohio, the latter by a wide margin. Meanwhile, Nevada, currently held by Democrats, and Pennsylvania, now in Republican hands, continue to be close. Pennsylvania is emblematic of the problem for GOP Senate incumbents, trying to survive in states where Trump struggles. Clinton leads Trump by six points but the Senate race is even at 47 percent apiece for Republican Sen. Patrick Toomey and Democrat Katie McGinty. Illinois was not included in the survey, but based on other polls appears to be one of the likeliest states to shift from Republican to Democrat in November. Republicans also are defending seats in Indiana and Missouri, both of which are now highly competitive but neither of which was included in the 15-state survey. The 2016 campaign has produced apparent shifts in several states - battlegrounds and non-battlegrounds - that could foreshadow more permanent changes in future elections. Demographic trends have moved several swing states more strongly in the direction of the Democrats this year - Colorado and Virginia are prime examples. Other states such as Arizona, Georgia and possibly Texas show predicted signs of moving from traditional GOP strongholds to potential future battlegrounds. The demographic changes would put Republicans at an even greater disadvantage in the future if they cannot find a way to appeal to a changing electorate. At the same time, the electoral map looks somewhat different from past campaigns owing to the uniqueness of Trump's candidacy - the coalition he has attracted and the voters who are repelled by his message and temperament. His relative strength in states with high percentages of non-college graduates and of white voters, such as Iowa and Ohio, are the example of the former. Utah, which has been scrambled this year by Trump's candidacy, is an example of the latter. Advertisement Utah was not included in the SurveyMonkey analysis. But recent public polls suggest that this traditionally rock-solid Republican state is now a competitive battleground. Trump can hardly afford to lose the state's six electoral votes, given his current disadvantage. Overall, the results of the 15-state survey underscore Clinton's margin of error in the state-by-state competition over the final three weeks of the campaign as well as the increasingly tortuous path for Trump to cobble together an Electoral College majority. Clinton has many paths to 270; Trump has few. This has been the case for some time, based on all available evidence from state and national polls. Trump now needs a clear shift nationally and then a strategy for converting that into state-by-state victories. Among the states that have moved in Clinton's direction since the previous 50-state survey are Colorado, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina and Wisconsin. Of those, the results in Georgia differ from the current average of all recent polls in that state. The Huffpost Pollster average in Georgia gives a Trump a four-point lead while the SurveyMonkey poll puts Clinton ahead by four points. Texas is another state that, by historic results, should end up in Trump's column. The SurveyMonkey results show the state splitting 44 percent to 42 percent between Trump and Clinton. The average of other public polls shows Trump with a larger, although single-digit, lead there. But with virtually the entire Bush family on the sidelines and with an endorsement of Clinton by the Dallas Morning News, Texas has proved to be a more competitive battleground than anyone expected. The SurveyMonkey results also put Clinton in a stronger position in New Hampshire and North Carolina than other public surveys. Public polls in North Carolina show her with a low single-digit advantage. In New Hampshire, public polls show her ahead but not by the 11-point margin in these findings. Advertisement None of that negates the obstacles for Trump. If he were to win all the toss-up states, plus hold onto Georgia, which has consistently voted for Republican presidential candidates since 1984, he would still be 20 electoral votes short of the 270 needed to win. Were he to eke out an additional victory in North Carolina, which has 15 electoral votes, that would not be enough. Trump's campaign has claimed for a long time that, because of his support among white, blue-collar voters, he would be able to make inroads in traditional Democratic territory such as Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The new findings underscore the degree to which he is falling short in those Midwestern battlegrounds. He trails Clinton in Michigan by 45 percent to 37 percent; in Pennsylvania by 46 percent to 40 percent; and in Wisconsin by 43 percent to 38 percent. Two other Midwestern states remain among his best of the battlegrounds. He leads Clinton in Iowa by five points and in Nevada by four points, a state where other polls have shown Clinton with a slight edge. In Ohio, the results are Trump at 44 percent and Clinton at 41 percent. But traditionally Republican Arizona is equally close, with Trump at 44 percent and Clinton with 41 percent. In state after state, Trump appears to have a relatively low ceiling on his support. Of the 15 measured, he garners 45 percent in just two states and at or below 40 percent in eight. Clinton's lowest is 40 percent in Iowa and Nevada but she is at 45 percent or more in six states, topping out at 49 percent in Virginia. The demographic contours of support for Clinton and Trump show some variance from state to state, but there are some consistent patterns, beginning with gender differences. Among women, Clinton leads Trump by four points or more in 14 of the 15 states surveyed. Averaging across all 15 states, her lead over Trump among women is 49 percent to 35 percent. Among men, Trump leads by four points or more in 12 of the 15 states and by 10 points (47 percent to 37 percent) on average across all states. Advertisement Trump has comfortable leads among white men in all states, except New Hampshire, where he and Clinton are tied. Clinton leads by four points or more among white women in Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Trump leads among white women in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Texas. The two are running close to even among white women in Nevada, Ohio and Virginia. Racial divisions are stark. In Georgia, Trump leads among whites by more than 30 points. Among nonwhites, Clinton leads by just over 70 points. In Michigan and Pennsylvania, whites split almost evenly while nonwhites back Clinton overwhelming. In Virginia, Clinton's lead of more than 50 points among nonwhites easily overcomes Trump's five-point advantage among white voters. Educational achievement remains a clear dividing line in the competition and one of the potential mold-breakers of this campaign. Republicans have generally won the votes of whites with college degrees and those without college degrees. This fall, among white voters without college degrees, Trump leads by four points or more in 14 of the 15 states surveyed, most by sizable margins. Clinton, however, leads among whites with college degrees in 12 of the 15 states. Trump leads narrowly among white college graduates in Georgia and the two are running about even in Florida and Texas. In Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania, Clinton leads Trump by double digits among white voters with college degrees, helping offset losses among those without degrees. In these battlegrounds, Clinton holds a higher percentage of Democrats than Trump among Republicans. Averaging across the 15 states, she wins 92 percent of self-identified Democrats while Trump has support from 85 percent of Republicans. Trump leads among independents by six points (38 percent to 32 percent), while Johnson, the libertarian, averages 20 percent among independents. The SurveyMonkey poll was conducted online Oct. 8-16 among 17,379 likely voters across 15 states, including between 569 and 1,702 respondents in each state. No margin of sampling error is calculated, as this statistic is applicable only to randomly sampled surveys. Advertisement The Washington Post's Emily Guskin contributed to this report. GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. As Donald Trump continues to insist that voter fraud is "all too common" and could cost him the presidential election, he provided his supporters with a list of three cities where they should watch for corruption on Election Day. Only one is in a battleground state. "Take a look at St. Louis. Take a look at Philadelphia. Take a look at Chicago," the GOP candidate said at a rally at a regional airport in this western Colorado town on Tuesday afternoon, responding to recent media reports that voter fraud is not as rampant of a problem as Trump has claimed. "... Look, look, if nothing else, people are going to be watching on November 8. Watch Philadelphia. Watch St. Louis. Watch Chicago, watch Chicago. Watch so many other places." Advertisement Two of those cities are in states that are not considered competitive. In Missouri, where Trump has a solid lead in the polls, a Republican has won during the past four presidential elections. In Illinois, where Democrat Hillary Clinton has a double-digit lead in most polls, a Democrat has won during the past six presidential elections. Pennsylvania is a state where the race is closer, and Trump is hoping that he can win, although a Democrat has won the past six presidential elections. For months, Trump has alleged that voter fraud is rampant and, in the past few days, he has suggested that the results on Election Day might not be accurate. At other rallies, Trump has urged his followers to visit polling locations in neighborhoods other than their own and watch - a vague suggestion that some voting rights activists have interpreted as a call for voter intimidation. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the spin room after the first presidential debate against Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton at Hofstra University, Monday, Sept. 26, 2016, in Hempstead, N.Y. (Evan Vucci / AP) A couple of months ago, I had a nasty chore that I have to perform every so often. I had misquoted what a politician said in 1992, and a co-worker noticed the discrepancy. I wrote a correction, which the Tribune promptly published. Does making a mistake like that cause me pain? Well, yes, sort of like the pain I'd get from being bitten by a wolverine and then dousing the wound with Tabasco. But sometimes mistakes happen, and when they do, the Tribune makes a point of letting our readers know. Advertisement It's not hard to get a correction when a reputable newspaper gets something wrong. Wednesday's edition of The New York Times included 13. The Wall Street Journal had four. The Tribune had none, but it prominently featured a phone number and an email address, inviting readers to report errors. Donald Trump tells voters the news media do not provide honest information. "They will attack you. They will slander you. They will seek to destroy your career and your family," he insists. "They will lie, lie, lie, and then again they will do worse than that." Advertisement Funny thing. As an opinion columnist, I've written dozens of columns disputing, contradicting, rebutting and even ridiculing him. I've met him and his campaign spokeswoman, Hope Hicks, and emailed with her. Yet neither of them nor anyone else associated with his campaign has ever asked for a correction of anything I've written. If I'm one of the journalists lying about him, why don't they point out my false claims and force the Tribune to set the record straight? Maybe they've been too busy meeting with his attorneys about the lawsuits he's planning. After The New York Times ran a story about two women who said he had sexually assaulted them, Trump threatened to sue for libel. His wife, Melania, threatened to sue People magazine after one of the alleged victims, a People writer, recalled a chat with her on the street. Neither lawsuit will ever come to pass. If he were to sue the Times, Trump would have to undergo interrogation about these and other accusations. His ex-wives and girlfriends could be deposed. So could his children, his friends, his enemies and his employees, past and present. From those depositions, the Times' lawyers might learn a lot of things that Trump would rather they didn't. In spite of all his bluster, Reuters reports, he hasn't sued a newspaper for libel since 1984 when he took the Chicago Tribune and its then-architecture critic, Paul Gapp, to court for disparaging a skyscraper Trump had proposed. Trump lost and apparently learned a lesson. It's harder for a public figure to win a libel suit than it is for a private individual, because the legal requirements are different. But even a famous person has only to prove that the newspaper published a false story that harmed his or her reputation and knew or should have known the story was false. (Melania Trump would have no chance suing People because the offending passage, true or not, wasn't damaging.) Such lawsuits rarely get filed and even more rarely succeed because news organizations hardly ever do what the defamation laws punish. Trump's fulminations against the coverage of his campaign are equally hollow. He doesn't ask for corrections because, as a rule, there is nothing to correct. Newspapers routinely acknowledge when they get facts wrong because their credibility is all they have. Trump doesn't admit or retract falsehoods, because his falsehoods are deliberate. Advertisement PolitiFact has documented that 53 percent of his statements are entirely false and only 4 percent are entirely true. (For Hillary Clinton, the figures are 12 percent entirely false and 24 percent entirely true.) He thinks the news media are biased against him. What they are really biased against is his flagrant, incessant lying about matters large and small. Clinton has told her share of lies which the news media have exposed. The difference is that her misstatements are limited in number and scope, while he emits a never-ending torrent of outlandish fictions, which he goes on repeating long after each one has been exposed. His approach is a repudiation of the very idea that factual reality matters, which happens to be a sacred tenet of honest journalism. Trump spouts brazen misinformation every time he opens his mouth, and he resents being called on it. But when he makes war on the truth, he shouldn't be surprised to find the news media mounting a defense. Steve Chapman, a member of the Tribune Editorial Board, blogs at www.chicagotribune.com/chapman. Download "Recalculating: Steve Chapman on a New Century" in the free Printers Row app, available at www.printersrowapp.com. Advertisement schapman@chicagotribune.com Follow him on Twitter @SteveChapman13 and Facebook. During a campaign stop in Florida, Donald Trump said the reality of the election is "a small handful of global special interests rigging the system." Oct. 13, 2016. (C-SPAN) (Chicago Tribune) Colorado Springs, Colo. We are three weeks from the election, and very close to the edge. Retiree Gerald Miller, a volunteer at Donald Trump's rally here, is confident his man will win on Nov. 8 unless there's foul play. Advertisement Miller, wearing an NRA pin and a tea party cap over his long hair, shares Trump's concern that the election may be "rigged" by the Clinton campaign. "It is enough to skew the election. They can swing it either way," he said, particularly because Hillary Clinton may have "the FBI working for her" in committing the fraud. So what happens if Clinton is declared the winner? "Donald Trump is going to holler fraud if he doesn't win," figured Miller, who is white and says he has PTSD from "racial violence" he suffered in the military. "I think we're on the verge of a civil war, a racial war. This could be the spark that sets it off." Advertisement I fear Miller may be right. Objectively, Trump is in big trouble; master handicapper Stuart Rothenberg wrote for The Washington Post online on Tuesday that Trump's path to Electoral College victory is "nonexistent" and said he could win fewer than 200 electoral votes. But I spent a couple of hours before the rally in this indoor show ring talking to many Trump supporters and found them in states of denial and fury. I didn't find one who expects Trump to lose. To varying degrees, most agreed with Trump that the election process is rigged. And some predicted ominous things if Trump loses if not violence, a mass rejection of the legitimacy of the democratic process. Ann Macomber, a Christian, retired teacher and Trump volunteer handing out fliers saying "Hillary Clinton is coming for your guns," told me the voting system in Colorado has been "infiltrated": dead people voting, voters with bogus addresses, precincts that report more votes than registered voters. "It's happening. It's sad," Macomber said. "If we lose this election, we can't trust anything in America anymore. We're not sovereign." Some observers dismiss Trump's talk of a "stolen" and "rigged" election as just more rantings of a narcissist who can't accept that he is almost certain to lose. But the talk of election fraud is more nefarious than that and clearly an effort to destabilize the post-election environment. In early August, Trump consigliere Roger Stone declared that there is "widespread voter fraud" and argued that "if there's voter fraud, this election will be illegitimate we will have a constitutional crisis, widespread civil disobedience and the government will no longer be the government." In an interview with the conservative outlet Breitbart, Stone said Trump has "gotta put them on notice that their inauguration will be a rhetorical bloodbath." Now the head of Breitbart News is the head of the Trump campaign, and Trump, who had quieted the fraud talk when he was improving in the polls, is raising it more than ever. "Voter fraud is all too common," Trump told a few thousand people Tuesday afternoon in Colorado Springs, but if you mention it, he said, "they say bad things about you, they call you a racist." He scolded Republican leaders for saying "everything is peachy" with the election process and warned that this could be the year "America truly lost its independence." Warned Trump: "It's going to be a one-party system. This is your final shot." Advertisement He particularly scolded the press, which "created a rigged system and poisoned the minds of so many of our voters." But he also found corruption in voter surveys ("I don't believe the polls anymore") and in his opponent ("many times worse than Watergate"). "We won't let them stop maybe the greatest movement in the history of our country!" Trump said, prompting chants of "USA!," some foul language shouted at the press corps and, after the rally, a mass chant of "Shame on you!" directed at the press risers. The candidate's reckless closing message that nothing is on the level not Democrats, not the press, not the polls, not Republican leaders, not even the integrity of the voting process has left many of his supporters prepared to declare the election results illegitimate. Joseph Salmons, wearing a "Les Deplorables" T-shirt and pin, told me the election won't end anything. "The movement's starting. Even if he doesn't win, it's gonna tip," he said. But tip into what? "I sincerely hope people don't lose their minds," Salmons said. If they manage to keep their cool, it will be despite the best efforts of Trump. Advertisement Washington Post Writers Group Dana Milbank is a Washington Post columnist. @Milbank That Hillary Clinton would make a better president than Donald Trump should be evident to any mammal. Substantiating this assertion does not require one to make a positive case for Clinton, so disqualifying are Trump's many negative qualities. Clinton does not challenge freedom of the press or threaten her political opponents with jail time. She is not a sociopath. She does not call for banning members of an entire religion from entering the country, or killing the families of terrorists, or any number of other blatantly unconstitutional measures. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who has since endorsed Trump, previously said that the Republican nominee was an "erratic individual" who could not be trusted with the nuclear codes. Whatever one thinks about Clinton, launching a nuclear strike against another country out of pure spite is difficult to imagine. Advertisement The case for Clinton, then, boils down to one's appreciation for the democratic values to which all of our elected officials, from alderman on up, are expected to adhere. Clinton respects those principles, and Trump does not. The case for Clinton transcends ideology because Trump's strongest convictions have nothing to do with standard political principles and everything to do with sheer self-aggrandizement. What's most important to Trump is Trump. Many conservative writers and intellectuals recognize this, which is why so many of them, along with former Republican administration officials, have endorsed Clinton, however grudgingly. Nonetheless, a significant number of conservatives and Republicans who realize the awfulness of Trump including many of those who have signed up to the amorphous #NeverTrump movement refuse to endorse the one candidate actually capable of beating him: Hillary Clinton. Operating under the delusion that Trump and Clinton are equally bad options, some anti-Trump conservatives have refused to vote, or pledged to support a third-party candidate. Advertisement As much as some of its denizens might wish to deny it, the conceit behind #NeverTrump (and the independent conservative campaign of Evan McMullin that arose from it) is effectively pro-Clinton, diverting elsewhere votes that would normally go to the GOP nominee. But at the end of the day, a posture of #NeverTrump that does not acknowledge the preferability of Clinton is a cop out, particularly for people who work in and write about politics. Come Nov. 8, either Clinton or Trump is going to be elected president, and it's the job of people who opine about politics to inform voters which of the two options is better. That some cannot testifies to just how poisonous is the partisanship in our country, to the point where even those conservatives who acknowledge Trump's unfitness cannot bring themselves to admit that Clinton represents an even marginal improvement. American conservatives still wavering about supporting Clinton can look to an unlikely historical parallel for moral guidance: the French Socialists in 2002. That year, Jean-Marie Le Pen, then-leader of the far right National Front, won a surprise second place in the presidential election, defeating the Socialist Party candidate and entering into a runoff against center-right incumbent Jacques Chirac. In the second round, Socialist voters held their noses and rallied to Chirac, their longtime political adversary, helping deliver him an 82 percent victory. In so doing, they not only beat Le Pen, but sent a message to the world that, when threatened by a populist movement from the authoritarian right, France would defend its republican values. Just as French citizens from many different political tendencies backed Chirac as the democratic alternative to neo-fascism in 2002, so today must those Americans who support liberal democracy conservatives included hope for a Clinton victory. Granted, the analogy isn't perfect. In France, Socialist voters were forced to choose between a center-right candidate and an extreme right one, whereas here conservatives are being asked to vote for a mainstream Democrat over a nominal Republican. On the other hand, Trump has a far greater chance of winning the presidency than Le Pen ever did, making the role of right-of-center voters even more consequential to his defeat. Ultimately, the basic principle in both elections is the same: small "r" republicans must support the democratic option over an explicitly authoritarian one. Some #NeverTrump Republicans, in an attempt to nourish their belief that the Republican and Democratic nominees are ethically equivalent, cite President Barack Obama's executive overreach as cause to believe that Clinton would be just as destructive to the rule of law as Trump. They're right to be concerned about these tendencies, but would executive orders on immigration and overzealous implementation of Dodd-Frank financial regulations really compare to a politicized IRS that rivals that of the Nixon administration, or a Justice Department war on the news media, or a Russian invasion of Eastern Europe while the U.S. is under a president who says NATO is "obsolete?" Considering what the world would look like with a President Trump, complaining about Clinton's faults (and they are many) is a bit like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Any conservative alert enough to have joined #NeverTrump must wake up and realize that it's his or her civic duty to protect the country from the ravages of a megalomaniac by voting for Hillary Clinton. Los Angeles Times James Kirchick is a fellow with the Foreign Policy Initiative. His book "The End of Europe" is forthcoming from Yale University Press. In this Dec. 19, 1998 file photo, then-first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton watches President Bill Clinton pause as he thanks those Democratic members of the House of Representatives who voted against impeachment. (Susan Walsh, AP) For 18 years I have taught a freshman seminar on "Scandals and Reputations" at Northwestern University. There has never been a shortage of material. This fall I could run the class 24/7. When I began teaching the course, back in the days of Monica-gate and her stained blue dress, I believed that scandal alienated voters, especially first-timers. Over time, I have come to doubt that easy assumption. Scandal can promote civil engagement, not prevent it. It doesn't turn us off. It turns us on. Advertisement What does it mean to come of age in a scurrilous age? At a time in which politics reads like fiction? How does scandal affect the newly minted citizen? The mud of disrepute draws in students, committing them to politics, if not to politicians. I confess that my first-year students are not a representative sample of American political beliefs. Progressives are most common, with some Libertarians in the mix. Conservatives often hide in an airless closet. As the class began, no student intended to vote Republican, a consensus unlikely to change. To ensure that students are exposed to the wide range of scandals, I take the role of the Trump Whisperer. These young women and men are entering civil society. As 18-year-olds, they are casting their inaugural votes just as my students have in each quadrennial year. They are becoming politically responsible in a world of cynicism, frustration and anger but passion, hope and optimism, too. Advertisement Scandal is part of our political birthright, and it may be beneficial. Scandal has long been tied to democracy, and, in fact, may be essential. The late conservative thinker, William Safire, wrote a vivid fact-based novel, "Scandalmonger," depicting the vicious whispers of our Founding Fathers, recognizing that it was scandal that brought out the supporters of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, not their positions on global trade. Since then, few elections have been only about issues: Those are the boring ones. Scandal keeps otherwise apolitical citizens engaged in selecting their leaders. Gossip makes us care about people, and from people to ideas. Perhaps we should wish for saints, but if we nominated saints, what would we discuss? Some claim that harmful effects of slander have become more evident recently. In 1991 a quarter-century back Suzanne Garment made this case in her book "Scandal." She worried that America was being overwhelmed by what she labeled the "culture of mistrust," a toxic brew that owed much to the aftermath of the Vietnam War and Watergate. Garment worried that those children coming of age in the 1980s the parents of my students were developing a crusty cynicism that would depress citizenship. Her argument was plausible, but talking with my students over the years, it does not seem accurate. Surely the esteem in which politicians are held is tarnished, but it was hardly sterling in the first place. Mark Twain opined, "There is no distinctly native American criminal class save Congress." Students believe that most politicians are corrupt, yet they still hold to a belief in civic virtue. Young people such as my students disdain political leaders as a group and are less likely to vote than their elders (about 38 percent in 2012), despite the many voter registration efforts on college campuses. Still, if they do not always vote, it is wrong to suggest that they have given up on America. They talk politics through gossip. Scandal seduces them, and also provides a challenge: Will the next generation prove to be more righteous? Over the decades I have found that scandal of personal failings (Donald Trump as shock jock) and public policy (Hillary Clinton's Wall Street lovefest) capture student interest, rather than dissuade it. These claims keep politics alive in daily discourse in the way textbooks never could. When we discuss scandal, we think about politics. For college freshmen, this is no minor service. As teens become adults, they learn that the world of politics is as fascinating as the soaps. The world would be less riveting without sinners. Scandal is good to think about, and fun, too. To be politically invested depends on the belief that you can do better; this hope is made possible by the belief that others will do better. And whether American politics benefits, my seminar certainly does. Gary Alan Fine, a professor of sociology at Northwestern University, is the author of "Difficult Reputations: Collective Memories of the Evil, Inept and Controversial." FILE - In this Feb. 9, 2016 file photo, copies of President Barack Obama's fiscal 2017 federal budget are displayed by the Senate Budget Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. (J. Scott Applewhite / AP) If you're busy shielding impressionable children from one presidential candidate's sexual boasts, or busy being one of the other candidate's irredeemable deplorables, you may have missed this news: The Obama administration confirms that the government's annual budget deficits, which had declined since the close of the Great Recession, are rising again. The deficit for the federal fiscal year that ended Sept. 30 was $587 billion. That's 34 percent higher than the previous year's deficit. When we peeked Tuesday at USDebtClock.org a live-action website that delivers terrible news to despairing readers our government's debt stood just north of $19.7 trillion. That's more than $60,600 for every man, woman and innocent child. Oh, and those numbers don't include the unfunded liabilities of entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare. Did you know that the number of Americans 65 and older will explode by almost 40 percent over the next decade? Advertisement So if we could interject one question into Wednesday night's final presidential debate of 2016, it would be this: Secretary Clinton, Mr. Trump, you have children. Why aren't you scared? Advertisement We know these major-party candidates are blissful about Debt Mountain because each of them plans to increase its height. The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget calculates that Hillary Clinton's policies would add $200 billion to the national debt over the next decade. She would raise tax revenue but devote that money to new spending, not to retiring debt. And Donald Trump? Because he would cut taxes, his policies would grow the national debt by $5.3 trillion over the same decade. Here please add your screed of choice to this editorial. Among your options: We wouldn't be in this fix if President Barack Obama hadn't been forced to clean up the economic debacle that started on George Bush's watch. If Obama and the Democratic Congress of his early years had spent more money to stimulate the economy, we'd have more jobs and more tax revenue today. Obama has nearly doubled a national debt that was $10.6 trillion when he took office in January 2009. He's been spending all he can for eight years, the better to buy votes for himself and other Democratic candidates. When did you last hear him warn Americans about how this vast debt will constrict their children's futures? Stop litigating how we got here. What matters is where we're headed. And with Clinton or Trump, the likely answer is: toward doom. In our next recession it's sure to arrive, the only question is when what will we do if the world gets nervous and stops buying U.S. government securities? Then what, big spenders? I'm from Illinois. Debt is all I know. During this campaign, Americans have heard next to nothing about these enormous obligations debts taken in the name of taxpayers, and debts that taxpayers truly will have to repay. We'll listen Wednesday night for clues that Clinton or Trump cares in the least about this. We'll also be mulling one of the Obama administration's disclosures in its acknowledgment of the fiscal 2016 deficit. Among the areas where spending is rising quickly: interest payments to investors, here and overseas, on that nearly $20 trillion national debt. Advertisement Which prompts another debate question: Can either of you suggest a less productive way than that for the U.S. government to spend taxpayers' dollars? If you're fed up with state lawmakers raiding the road fund to pay for emergencies of their own making, you might be attracted to the notion of keeping transportation revenue in a "lock box" so it can't be spent on other things. If you worry that our highways and bridges are in disrepair despite the taxes you pay to maintain them, you might like the idea of voting for a so-called "safe roads" amendment. Advertisement Don't do it. On Nov. 8, voters will be asked whether to change the Illinois Constitution to safeguard dollars taxes paid at the pump, fees collected at driver's license facilities, and others that are supposed to be dedicated to roads, bridges and infrastructure statewide. Advertisement State and local governments have regularly skimmed that money to cover other expenses. It's just too tempting for elected officials who are desperate to fulfill promises they made, but don't have the money to pay for. In Springfield, that's every year. Supporters of the amendment say $6.8 billion has been swept from the road fund in the past decade. They say our roads are in disrepair and our construction workers are underemployed because lawmakers have treated those transportation dollars as a "slush fund." Acknowledging their own lack of discipline, those same lawmakers are asking voters to change the constitution to protect that money. Think about that. If the consensus among lawmakers is that the road fund shouldn't be raided, then they should stop raiding it. Many of those same lawmakers have proved remarkably averse to making changes for other (and better) reasons. Illinois voters overwhelmingly support two issues, term limits and redistricting reform, that the legislators resist: The General Assembly its Democratic leaders, primarily will not listen. They've refused repeatedly to allow votes on the House and Senate floors. To get around their elected representatives, citizens have collected signatures and raised and spent millions of dollars trying to get redistricting on the ballot. Citizens also have lobbied for term limits. Yet they've been thwarted by those very politicians. If you're keeping score: The Illinois Supreme Court in August blocked from the ballot a citizen-generated redistricting reform amendment. Measures that would put term limits to a vote always get stuck in the committees controlled by House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton, two leaders who have long benefited from the lack of term limits: Together they've spent 84 years in Springfield. Yet Madigan and Cullerton responded swiftly to the interests of road-builders the unions, the construction companies, the campaign donors who demanded a constitutional change. Rank-and-file lawmakers got on board too. They know spending more on road projects provides them the opportunity to scissor pretty red ribbons back home. Putting this amendment on the November ballot passed with overwhelming support from both parties. Advertisement We still say: Vote "no." Yes, we wish lawmakers would stop dipping into that money. Again, that is completely within their control. But a constitutional amendment would take away the flexibility required if there's an unexpected drop in revenue, a serious emergency or a crushing recession. It would be a mistake to protect road-building at the expense of education, social services, health care and other needs. Who doesn't want safe roads? We all do. But transportation needs should not be enshrined in the constitution and prioritized above all others. Vote "no." Now, on to another measure we hope Cook County voters will support: Vote "yes" to abolish the office of recorder of deeds and merge its duties into the clerk's office. The ballot question will let voters decide whether to keep a countywide elected office or eliminate it by the end of 2020. It's a rare opportunity for Cook taxpayers to downsize a government designed for the 19th century. And we mean rare. The last chance voters had to eliminate an elected countywide position was in 1972. Advertisement We hope voters agree these two offices should merge. It would save roughly $800,000 annually and make county government more consumer-friendly. This one is a no-brainer for anyone who writes property tax checks to Cook County. To recap: Vote "no" on the safe roads amendment. If you live in Cook County, vote "yes" to combine the offices of recorder of deeds and clerk. Join the discussion on Twitter @Trib_Ed_Board and on Facebook. Former Redflex CEO Karen Finley, seen here at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago on Aug. 20, 2015, was sentenced in Ohio on Oct. 19, 2016, to 14 months in federal prison for her role in a bribes-for-contracts scheme there. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune) The former CEO of Chicago's longtime red-light cameras vendor ousted as part of a $2 million bribery scandal at City Hall was sentenced Wednesday in Ohio to 14 months in federal prison for her role in a smaller bribes-for-contracts scheme there. Karen Finley, 57, who was CEO of Redflex Traffic Systems, Inc., still faces sentencing next month in Chicago for her part in the massive, long-running corruption scheme that brought traffic cameras here. Advertisement The scheme was first exposed by the Chicago Tribune in 2012. Finley pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery in federal courts in both Cincinnati and Chicago after working out a plea deal with prosecutors that calls for her to serve her prison terms at the same time. Advertisement "This sort of crime goes to the very integrity of government," the Columbus Dispatch quoted U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson as telling Finley at her sentencing. "It certainly calls into question whether the competitive bidding process is real or a sham. At least with respect to your situation and Redflex's situation, it would appear this playing field was less than level." Earlier this month, Finley wrote a plea for leniency to the judge in Ohio, calling Redflex "a toxic and soul-sucking place to work." "I do not think I will ever know the exact reasons that I participated in the fraud," she wrote. "Looking back now, I believe it may have been a combination of things, including a misguided sense of loyalty to Redflex, a fear of losing my job . . . and an unfortunate desire to fit in." She apologized for "letting the good people of Ohio and Illinois down." Finley has cooperated in several investigations of Redflex as the scandal spread around the country and to Australia, home to its publicly traded parent company, Redflex Holdings Ltd. She provided key testimony in January at the Chicago trial of John Bills, a longtime City Hall insider who took hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash bribes and lavish gifts from Redflex that included a condominium, a Mercedes Benz and pricey hotel stays throughout the country over the course of the 10-year conspiracy. Finley testified that in exchange for the bribes, Bills, then the No. 2 official in then-Mayor Richard Daley's Department of Transportation, steered the contracts to Redflex and helped grow the city's camera program to the largest in the nation. At its peak, 384 cameras peppered the city, raking in more than $600 million in automated traffic fines. Finley told jurors that Bills, a longtime precinct captain in the powerful patronage army of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, instructed company executives which lobbyists to hire and even met with Daley and Madigan to discuss the program. Advertisement At the trial, Bills' lawyers tried to deflect blame by asserting the bribe money went to elected officials and well-connected lobbyists, but he has not provided evidence to back up those assertions. No elected officials have been charged or implicated in Chicago. Bills was convicted on all 20 counts and then sentenced in August to 10 years in federal prison. Last month, a Bills' friend hired by Redflex to act as a "bagman" was sentenced to six months in federal prison. Martin O'Malley had pleaded guilty and testified as well at Bills' trial. Last year, Finley pleaded guilty in Columbus to the one bribery count for helping to steer at least $70,000 concealed as campaign contributions to elected officials, records show. As in Chicago, the records show that Redflex exerted pressure on Columbus officials to expand their city contracts to avoid competition. Advertisement One lobbyist in Ohio was sentenced to 15 months in prison after pleading guilty to one count of extortion. He admitted he threatened Redflex executives with the loss of contracts if they did not make the political contributions. Since the scandal broke in Ohio, state lawmakers there have banned red-light camera tickets unless an officer is present when the infraction occurs. Columbus officials have said they have no plans to restart a red-light camera program. Chicago's automated enforcement program is now run by a new vendor and still remains the largest in the nation. A series of Tribune reports have revealed unfair enforcement practices, failed program oversight and a dubious safety record. Mayor Rahm Emanuel has appointed a panel of experts led by Northwestern University to study the program and recommend reforms. dkidwell@chicagotribune.com Twitter @DavidKidwell1 Dear Tom, Does Lake Michigan experience high and low tides? Advertisement Bruce Nathanson, Glenview Dear Bruce, Advertisement Lake Michigan and the other Great Lakes are considered to be essentially nontidal. That being said, Lake Michigan, like all bodies of water, does experience tidal fluctuations caused by the gravitational pull of the sun and moon. However, they are so minute that they are masked by much greater fluctuations of the lake level produced by wind and air pressure and are unnoticeable. There are twice-daily tides of 0.5 to 1.5 inches on Lake Michigan, and Dave Schwab of the Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab in Ann Arbor, Mich., notes the existence of a larger Lake Michigan tidal swing in the Bay of Green Bay, where local geography can generate fluctuations up to four inches. As a longtime educator, stepping into the role of principal on Tuesday at Olive-Mary Stitt Elementary School was not a stretch for newly-appointed State Sen. Tom Rooney. "It better come naturally to me," said Rooney, who spent the morning at the Arlington Heights school while participating in the Illinois Principals Association's Principal for a Day program, which brings federal and state legislators into the classroom. Advertisement Rooney, 48, an economics and history teacher at West Leyden High School in Northlake and a former mayor of Rolling Meadows, was selected by the Republican party last month to represent the 27th Senate District after the resignation of former Sen. Matt Murphy, who stepped down to take a job in the private sector. But aside from a spirited reading of children's author Doreen Cronin's "Duck for President," Rooney steered clear of politics, and instead delivered a mini-civics lesson to Olive second graders who are studying the branches of government, followed by joining in a high-energy kindergarten physical education class game of Cops and Robbers. Advertisement Kindergartners at Olive-Mary Stitt Elementary School joined forces during their physical education class on Oct. 18 with newly-appointed State Sen. Tom Rooney, left, who participated in the Illinois Principals Association's Principal for a Day program, which brings federal and state legislators into the classroom. (Karen Ann Cullotta / Pioneer Press) "I need to keep my feet on the ground, because the Springfield culture can suck people in," said Rooney, who plans to keep teaching at West Leyden while he serves as a legislator through a job sharing program at the high school. "There's nothing like teaching and being around kids to help you stay grounded," he added. Olive Principal Becky FitzPatrick said she was excited to learn that one of the Olive neighborhood's own state legislators would be their guest. "He told the kids how the buttons work when you're voting in the statehouse, what his desk looks like, and about his experiences working as a page during the summer when he was a teenager," FitzPatrick said. Observing Rooney racing around the Olive gymnasium with the kindergartners, FitzPatrick added: "I told him to wear comfy shoes, and I'm so excited he heeded my advice." kcullotta@tribpub.com Twitter @kcullotta If someone were to ask me about baked goods, shopping or US Weekly magazine, I could probably teach people a thing or two. But for this week, I am writing about a fascinating topic I know little about alcohol. You see, my good friend, and Buffalo Grove resident, Adam Kosh just celebrated the 50th anniversary of the store he co-owns with his family Antioch Fine Wine and Liquors. Advertisement After speaking with Adam, I definitely added a few new words to my vocabulary. In fact, words like "cruvinet" and "Pappy Van Winkle" are just rolling off my tongue now. Antioch Fine Wine and Liquors began in the summer of 1966 when Kosh's father, Don Kosh, opened Foremost Liquors. Advertisement "We changed our name to Action Liquors, then to Armanetti Liquors and in 2006, we became Antioch Fine Wine and Liquors," Adam Kosh said. But the ownership remained the same whether the business was in downtown Antioch or its current location. "My father still comes in several days per week," he said. "And my mom comes in each week, too." Adam Kosh did not always know he would be in charge of the day-to-day operations of a 16,000-square-foot liquor store known for having one of the best selections in Lake County. "I went to law school, got a law degree and went on to get a master's in labor and industrial relations," said Kosh, who worked as a labor lawyer for about five years. "During that time, I decided to give our family business a try. So in October of 1997, I started working at the store and I just really loved it. That was almost 20 years ago and I've never looked back." Antioch Fine Wine and Liquors now is building a cool-looking bar inside the store. "We have an on-premise license, so people can drink in the store," Kosh said. "When the bar is finished, you'll be able to buy a drink. We'll have things you can't get anywhere other than getting it off our tap system, like limited release items. We'll have a 16-bottle cruvinet, a three-tap beer keg system and assorted spirit items. We'll also have some very hard-to-get spirit items for sale by the pour, such as Pappy Van Winkle." If you're wondering what in the world a cruvinet is like I was it means a cabinet-looking thing that holds a bunch of wine bottles. Kosh told me the cruvinet keeps the wine bottles under pressure so they don't spoil. You can serve them by the glass. Advertisement I'm definitely going to casually pepper future conversations with the word "cruvinet," so I sound more worldly. Antioch Fine Wine and Liquors also is known for their whiskey barrel picks. "We go to Kentucky and taste from different barrels of whiskey," Kosh said. "We pick our favorites, which get bottled and sent out to us." In addition to the assortment of liquor, Antioch Fine Wine and Liquors boasts incredible employees. "We couldn't do this without them," Kosh said. "We're like family. That's part of what makes us we have such great people here." One employee even has worked there for 40 years. Employees also have specialties, with some dedicated to wine, some dedicated to beer and some dedicated to liquor. Advertisement "We also love the Antioch community," Kosh said. "I'm on the chamber of commerce board, and we're active with charitable organizations within the community. We also love seeing our customers who come all the way up from Chicago or down from Wisconsin." He also noted upcoming events at the store, including its annual "Spirit Tasting" from 1 to 5 p.m. Nov. 12 and a holiday/champaign tasting from 1 to 5 p.m. Dec. 3. When the new bar is complete, the store will have a "50th and a little beyond" celebration, he said. "The last 19 years at Antioch Fine Wine and Liquors have flown by and I'm looking forward to the next 19," Kosh said. "I love working with my parents, and I feel so lucky to own a family business with them. It makes me look forward to hopefully having at least one of my children as the future generation of the store." For information about Antioch Fine Wine and Liquors, visit www.antiochwine.com. Susan Dubin is a freelance columnist for Pioneer Press. Reach her at gabbin@susandubin.com. I am writing to share my opinion on the design and costs of the proposed new Hinsdale Middle School. Substantial data on school construction costs in similar communities in Illinois has been reviewed, analyzed and benchmarked to arrive at the cost presented to the community. Related projects in Northfield, Barrington and Inverness all have higher per-square-foot costs compared to the proposed new HMS. Furthermore, outside of Illinois, in the top 25 ZIP codes similar to Hinsdale and Clarendon Hills, new middle school projects average 15 percent higher per-square-foot costs than the proposed design of the new HMS. Advertisement New schools being built around the country have modern efficiencies, diverse amenities and unparalleled technology to support the ever-changing way children learn. There is such a need today to ensure the appropriate school environment is safe and open to innovation and new technologies to allow our children to compete with the rest of the world. Staying in the existing HMS will continue to demonstrate to our children our community is not invested in their future. Voting Yes in November will prove we are a community committed to advancing our children to the forefront of learning, while at the same time producing a remarkable school which reflects our community appropriately. Advertisement Craig Cassell global leader, education sector Cushman and Wakefield, Inc. A Harvey man has been charged with forcing a minor he brought across state lines into Wisconsin to engage in prostitution, federal authorities announced Wednesday. Deronarte Norwood, 30, pleaded not guilty Wednesday afternoon during an arraignment in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary Rowland in Chicago, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois. He is charged with sex trafficking and knowingly transporting a minor to engage in prostitution. Advertisement In May 2015, Norwood brought the minor to Wisconsin from Illinois for the purpose of engaging in sex for money, authorities said. If convicted, Norwood faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, authorities said. Advertisement Norwood was arrested Tuesday night in Waukegan. He is being held in custody until a detention hearing on Oct. 24. Nick Swedberg is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown. When he stood before a judge and was offered drug court for the first time, Chris Marr basically said thanks, but no thanks. But after spending some time "drying out" in the county jail, the 21-year-old Mokena man had a change of heart and realized he needed help to kick his heroin habit. Advertisement He is now one of about 75 people in Will County's drug court program. He credits that time he spent in jail -- away from heroin's grip -- as the key for getting him into drug court. On Tuesday, Marr shared his struggles with U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin, who was at the Will County government building in Joliet to discuss the drug court program and the ongoing epidemic of heroin addiction. Advertisement "If it wasn't for that, I'd be dead or I'd be in prison awaiting my release date so I could relapse again," Marr told Durbin about the program. The drug court offers offenders a program that trades prison time and a felony record for support, treatment and counseling. Though cocaine was the drug of choice when the program started in 2000, heroin addictions are the most common today. Participants meet weekly with a drug court team that includes a judge, case workers and treatment experts. "We've had a pretty dramatic change in America," Durbin said, noting heroin was once primarily an inner-city problem. "There isn't a town to small or a town too wealthy to avoid heroin." Will County Coroner Patrick O'Neil told Durbin the county already has set a new record for heroin deaths this year. So far, 56 deaths have been attributed to heroin overdose. Previously, the record was 53 deaths in 2012. O'Neil anticipates the number will continue to climb this year and could top 70 by year's end. Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday > Durbin has supported measures that would have increased funding for drug court programs, expanded Medicaid coverage for treatment and improve access to Naloxone, a drug that reverses the effects of opioid overdoses. He added that this year pharmaceutical companies have agreed to decrease the production of opioid painkillers by 25 percent. He noted that pharmaceutical companies have produced 14 billion pills annually or enough for every American to have a one month supply. He also supported a measure for the Centers for Disease Control to set up guidelines for physicians when prescribing painkillers. Marr's been clean for about seven months. Advertisement Marr, who suffered a back injury at the age of 13, said his addiction started with pain killers. But when doctors cut him off, he realized he could go into Chicago to buy heroin. He overdosed three times. Each time, his heart stopped and had to be shocked into rhythm, he said. "Until you change who they are and how they view the world, they're just going to go back," he said, stressing the time he spent in the county jail helped him realize he needed help. Will County State's Attorney James Glasgow said he will continue the fight against heroin and expects county officials to start another round of talks across the county to make parents, educators, health care providers and others aware of heroin's toll. Alicia Fabbre is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown. Police sought the publics help in identifying a man accused of robbing a bank Oct. 18, 2016, in Frankfort, officials said. (FBI Chicago Bandit Tracker / Handout) Police are seeking the public's help in identifying a man accused of robbing a bank Tuesday afternoon in Frankfort, officials said. The U.S. Bank, 9795 West U.S. 30, was robbed and a "weapon was implied," according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.. Advertisement The suspect is a 30 to 40-year-old white male wearing blue jeans and a dark gray or black long-sleeved tee shirt. He is approximately 6 feet tall with medium build, officials said.. The suspect fled westbound on foot, the Frankfort police statement said. Advertisement Anyone with information should contact the FBI at 312-421-6700. Erin Gallagher is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown. A 43-year-old New Lenox man was charged with battery following an argument at a Frankfort bar about the man's son entering the military, police said. Bernard Powers, of the 1100 block of Georgia Way in New Lenox, is charged with a Frankfort ordinance violation for an incident occurring at Jameson's Pub, 9545 St. Francis Rd., according to Frankfort Police Deputy Chief Kevin Keegan. Advertisement "Powers' son is going into the military, and somehow (the victim) found out about it, and he wanted to give his approval to Bernard and shake Bernard's hand," Keegan said. The two men apparently had an ongoing riff, Keegan said, "they don't like each other." Advertisement "Bernard didn't want to shake his hand," the deputy chief said. The alleged victim then texted messages to Powers' son, who showed the texts to Powers, "and that caused Bernard to go off on (the victim) and push him into the front door," Keegan said. The alleged victim, a 31-year-old Tinley Park man, was treated on the scene for a "cut to the head" by Frankfort paramedics, who then transported him to an Olympia Fields hospital, Keegan said. Powers is scheduled to appear in local court at the Frankfort Township building on Nov. 10. If found guilty, the judge will determine any fine or penalties, which may include paying the victim's medical costs, Keegan said. If Powers pleads not guilty on Nov. 10, the court will set a date for trial. Powers was released on his own recognizance. Erin Gallagher is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown. Tinley Park will study staffing levels and productivity of several village departments and compare their work with counterparts in similar size communities. The Village Board on Tuesday approved hiring Matrix Consulting Group, at a cost of $42,700, to evaluate departments including the clerk's office, village manager, human resources and finance. Advertisement The study is expected to take 10 weeks to complete, with the findings likely to be presented at a Village Board or committee meeting. The California-based firm will look at areas such as productivity, use of technology, if there are overlapping or duplicated functions and whether some tasks now being performed can be eliminated, according to a village memo. The study wouldn't look at departments such as police or public works. Advertisement Matrix also will survey employee attitudes toward current staffing, services, organization and management issues, according to that document. Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday > Part of the work also will involve comparing findings, such as staffing levels, to six comparable "public entities," with Matrix ultimately making recommendations to the village based on its findings. Matrix is doing separate work from another study being performed by a Maryland firm, Paypoint HR, which is assessing employee salaries and benefits in certain village departments. The Village Board earlier this month approved hiring the firm, which is being paid $37,500 for the work. In other business Tuesday, trustees approved a special use permit for Holladay Properties, which plans to build a 120-room WoodSpring Suites extended stay hotel at 18644 West Creek Drive, northwest of the interchange of Harlem Avenue and Interstate 80. Indiana-based Holladay holds exclusive rights to develop WoodSpring hotels in the Chicago area, having completed two of 15 planned locations. It has built two of the hotels, in Darien and Romeoville. Construction of the Tinley Park hotel is expected to get under way next spring. The board also adopted a resolution recommending to the Cook County Board of Commissioners a property tax break for commercial space at 17511-17515 Duvan Drive. The resolution supports lowering the assessment level from 25 percent, the typical rate for commercial property, to 10 percent for a 10-year period. The property owner, Conigan Partners, plans an investment of $250,000 in repairs and improvements at the property, according to the village. mnolan@tribpub.com Members of the Syrian Civil Defence, known as the White Helmets, search for victims amid the rubble of a destroyed building following reported air strikes in the rebel-held Qatarji neighborhood of the northern city of Aleppo, on Oct. 17, 2016. (KARAM AL-MASRI / Getty-AFP) Several weeks ago, the United Nations issued a report confirming that without question the Assad regime in Syria is continuing to use chemical weapons against its domestic rebel adversaries and the populations living near them. Since that time, further reports of chemical weapons used by Assad around Aleppo have been appearing with regularity. Advertisement The United States government immediately responded to the UN report with high dudgeon, issuing sharp warnings and appealing to the UN Security Council to take appropriate measures against Assad and his forces. Few commented on the bizarre character of this request. But we've been here before, and what's changed is startling indeed. Only four short years ago, in August 2012, President Barack Obama stated that he had drawn a "red line" that Assad was not to cross, promising to take dramatic, if unspecified, action in Syria if there was confirmation that the Syrian government was using internationally-outlawed chemical weapons. That confirmation was not long in coming, and the president began making threatening utterances about bombing Assad's forces. At the very last moment, however, Obama backed off, ostensibly to seek congressional support, which he had previously disdained. Advertisement Then, like a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat, and to much applause, Obama found a way to make any such intervention seem unnecessary. Taking up a Russian hint, he and Secretary of State John Kerry negotiated a solution under which, with Russia's help, all chemical weapons in Assad's arsenal would be eliminated. There were surprisingly few skeptics as Obama then declared a great victory, touting the wisdom of his approach. As recently as July of this year, one supportive national magazine agreed, saying the president's handling of the episode "accomplished everything it set out to do in fact, it surpassed our expectations." The recent news from the UN that Assad's chemical weapons program is alive and well, and as deadly as ever, is only the most recent proof that the supposed success was an inimitable failure, in fact pure illusion. Contrary to the rosy assessments, there has been a cascade of bad consequences from Obama's supposed judgment and foresight. Russia's Vladimir Putin, for example, fresh from having duped the president in Syria, drew the correct conclusion that the American president would remain unwilling to fight, while always seeking comfort instead in illusory compacts that have all failed, often with deadly consequences. Putin then occupied Crimea with his uniform-less soldiers and invaded enough of Ukraine to be sure always to be able to destabilize its politics, not to mention those of the European community. He also intervened in Syria, itself. Erstwhile, American allies in the Middle East, like Saudi Arabia and Egypt, having become convinced of American fecklessness, have chosen to go it alone, or with each other, rather than rely on U.S. support. The Iranians have poured men and materiel into Syria sufficient to keep Assad safe from his rebellious people, while fomenting violence in Gaza, Yemen, Iraq, Lebanon and elsewhere. And, in the modern world's most frightful calamity, the Syrian people, themselves, those who cannot flee to an increasingly hostile EU, have suffered and died in horrifying ways and numbers, often from the very chemical weapons Obama's supposedly bold move had eliminated. So much for "surpass[ing] expectations." While this is horrible enough, there is a larger story. Last spring, White House staffer Benjamin Rhodes explained that the entire "red line" episode was not what it seemed. As Rhodes explained in an interview initially praised by the White House and never disavowed, the president's non-action was part of a larger, secret policy, one of currying favor with Iran. Apparently in pursuit of Obama's policy of rapprochement with the Iranians, the United States had made major changes to its entire Middle East policy. It turned a cold shoulder toward Israel. It turned a blind eye to Iranian meddling in Iraq, as it made common cause with Iranian militias in fighting ISIS. It provided only tepid support for the Syrian rebels in Syria and for the Saudi effort to counter an Iranian intervention in Yemen (while also not trying to moderate it). Advertisement It has also tolerated countless aggressive acts by Iran itself against U.S. interests, including the taking of hostages, the harassment of U.S. ships in the straits of Hormuz, and the testing and development of ballistic missiles, all in violation of international norms. And it refrained from taking action against an Iranian-backed Assad. The avatar of this new policy was the Iran nuclear deal, which the Obama administration pursued at almost any cost and that now appears to have numerous secret protocols easing the publicly-announced restrictions on Iran. Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday > Was it worth it? Whatever its long-term effects, it has meant only disaster for the Syrian people who have died in large numbers at Assad's hands. Supported by his unrestrained Russian and Iranian allies, Assad has gone on torturing prisoners, bombing hospitals, and starving cities into submission, and has now gassed those who still hold out, all amidst the gay science of agreeing to short-lived and meaningless treaties with a U.S. left without viable options. And so, with more irrefutable proof that Assad is using chemical weapons on Syrian citizens again, what can the Obama administration do? The vain gesture of appealing to the UN shows how far we have come. Four years ago, we were in a position to bomb Syria in punishment for its perfidy, perhaps as part of a larger plan to protect ordinary Syrians from Assad and bring about a favorable regime change. Now, we are capable of nothing at all, for fear of hitting the Russian troops and machinery that are keeping the execrable Assad in power, not to mention upsetting the still-recalcitrant Iranians. And, the UN, where Russia has a veto, has predictably done nothing either. This is tragedy. In our modern usage, we view any experience with injury and pain as a species of tragedy, and the pain and suffering of the Syrians is undeniable. It would be tragic in our modern sense even were it the result of a mere miscalculation or momentary failure. The ancients, however, had a more nuanced, and ultimately more terrifying, vision of tragedy. This was that man who was sometimes a tool of his own or a people's destruction, usually when a leader became so infused with hubris as to believe his intelligence could outwit not just everyone else, but the gods themselves, only to find that his too-narrow understanding made happen what he was trying to avoid. Advertisement No man, the ancients taught, nor any leader, no matter how astute, could understand matters well enough to be cock-sure of his own intelligence and judgment and deaf to the counsel of others more experienced and thoughtful. At a minimum, a healthy skepticism about one's own largest ideas was essential if disaster to oneself and to innocent people was to be avoided. The most famous of tragic figures, Oedipus, had such hubris, believing he could overcome the gods' prophecies, even while strangely believing in them in the first place. He destroyed himself and brought horror to others. So too our president's unbreakable confidence in his own insular thinking, kept distant from the cautionary advice of others more experienced than himself and applying his own unvetted governing principles of uncertain provenance, has unleashed forces of incredible destructiveness. This has hardly caused him any harm, but the great mass of Syrians who have not been so fortunate are proof of a tragedy all by themselves. Robert E. Shapiro, a practicing trial lawyer for Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg LLP, and an adjunct professor of political philosophy at Saint Xavier University in Chicago. Noted Elgin musician and builder Les Pace here with his cat, Champ died Oct. 12 at the age of 88. (Dino Pace / handout) Known throughout senior citizen circles for the music and mirth he made and the positive attitude he had, lifelong Elgin resident Les Pace, 88, died Oct. 12 at his home on the city's northeast side. "Les was a great man," Elgin City Councilman and longtime friend Terry Gavin said. "He was involved in the community and very well-respected." Advertisement In his later years, Pace started a band called Les Pace and the Pacemakers, an act which played pre-rock era big band music, typically for audiences at venues including local VFW and American Legion Posts and the Heritage Ballroom in The Centre of Elgin. "My father also once was the head of the neighborhood's benevolent association and was very well-known for building quality homes," Dino Pace said. Advertisement In his later years, Les Pace of Elgin played piano and led the band Les Pace and the Pacemakers. Pace died Oct. 12 at the age of 88. (Pace family / handout) Dino Pace said his father took up piano at the age of 8 and played in bands from the 1940s after he returned from serving in the U.S. Navy through the mid 1960s. He stopped while raising his family. "Les loved the piano. He practiced a lot when we were kids," Les's younger brother, Jim Pace, 86, said. Dino Pace noted his father once ran a used car lot on Elgin's northeast side, and according to Jim Pace, Les used to run a fender and body shop, too. "He didn't get into construction until he was in his early 30s," Dino remembered. Les Pace had his own company, Les Pace Builders, while Jim Pace had his own James R. Pace Inc. general contracting business. "Instead of hiring extra guys, we'd help each other out a lot," Jim Pace said. "Les built a good many homes on Elgin's east side, and I built on the west." Jim Pace recalled his brother's kindness to friends included sometimes driving Donald Anderson to his classes at John Marshall Law School in downtown Chicago. Anderson, who died in 2011 at 81, went on to become a Kane County judge for more than 27 years as well as a major figure in local Republican politics. "Don couldn't see too well, so Les would take him to school," Jim Pace said. Advertisement Les Pace playing piano with a group sometime during the 1950s. Pace, a lifelong Elgin resident, died Oct. 12 at the age of 88. (Pace family / handout) Les Pace was a single father for a time, Dino Pace recalled, and as those were the days before readily available daycare, Les would bring Dino to work with him sometimes. "He was my best friend," Dino Pace said of his father. Jim Pace said he and his brother had a strong bond, too. "We always had a good relationship," Jim Pace said. "We had our disagreements, but we never held a grudge." "Les had the most beautiful relationship with his brother Jim," Pace's stepson, photographer Sandro Miller, said. "Rarely do you see two brothers that have remained so close for so many years. It was beautiful to see their love and respect for each other." Dino Pace said his father formed the Pacemakers in the late 1990s after being diagnosed with cancer and being treated with chemotherapy. Advertisement "He wanted to go out with a bang," Dino Pace said. The group became the subject of the 2001 documentary, "The Riverside Club," which was titled after the Elgin establishment where the band once played. The 35-minute piece was created by then-West Dundee businessman Greg Samata and his associates. Samata said that making the film taught him a lot about what it's going to be like later in life and about following the things you love. It was gratifying to see that desire and passion can still be there, Samata said. In the opening shot of Samata's video, Les Pace pulls out of his garage driving his 1957 Ford Fairlane convertible. Les Pace played piano with bands from the 1940s through the mid-1960s, his family said. Pace, of Elgin, formed Les Pace and the Pacemakers in his later years, and that big band entertained at local gatherings for senior citizens. (Pace family / handout) Dino Pace, who runs his own auto detailing business, said his father loved classic cars and at one time, in addition to the Fairlane, also had a 1927 Ford Model T, which Les built from parts he found here and there. While those cars have been sold, at the time of his death, Les Pace still had a 1967 Ford Thunderbird. Dino Pace said his father's cancer went into remission for years, to which in part he credited Les's affirmative outlook on life. But in the last year or so the cancer came back with complications. Advertisement "My girlfriend, Robin Madsen, and I have been living with my dad, and she was a caregiver for him. She's fighting breast cancer, and he was very supportive of her and what she's going through," Dino Pace said. Jim Pace noted that his brother also kept his sense of humor while ill. "I went to visit him when he was in the hospital one time, and he was convincing people that I was his doctor, before we'd tell them I was his brother," Jim Pace said. Dino Pace said in his final years, Les Pace also enjoyed the company of two cats, Champ and Buddy, who were almost always by his side and provided comfort as well as companionship. "We live in the basement, an in-law apartment, and every night my dad would look downstairs and say, 'Good night kids.' He was that kind of dad," Dino Pace said. In addition to Dino Pace and Sandro Miller, Pace is survived by grown children Douglas Pace, Mario Muth, Michael Miller, Pauletta Kluender and many grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, Leslie and Mildred, his wife, Elena Silvana Pace, son Scott Pace and daughter Piera Echevarria. Advertisement Visitation is set for Friday from noon until 2 p.m. at the Laird Funeral Home, 310 S. State St. (Route 31), Elgin. Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society. For information, call 847-741-8800 or go to www.lairdfamilyfuneralservices.com. mdanahey@tribpub.com Early voting is underway in Illinois for the November election. (Linda Girardi / The Beacon-News) Three people running to represent the 5th Congressional District cite among top issues economic development, reducing noise at O'Hare International Airport and term limits. The candidates are incumbent Democrat Mike Quigley, Green Party candidate Rob Sherman, who's widely known as an atheism advocate and Vince Kolber, a Republican businessman from Chicago. Advertisement The 5th District includes portions of Cook and DuPage counties as well as all or parts of Westchester, La Grange Park, Oak Brook Terrace, Franklin Park, Norridge, Harwood Heights and Northlake. Kolber said small businesses are being crippled by too much regulation, and would try to change that. Advertisement "Let's start with the plethora of executive orders," said Kolber who cited as one example President Obama's directive in 2014 to raise the salary threshold at which employees are eligible for overtime pay from $455 a week to $913 a week, which Kolber said is causing businesses to cut employee's hours. "It's telling businesses that they have to pay overtime at a higher pay threshold," he said. "It's also going to make it difficult for people who are less skilled to find employment." Kolber also wants to scrap the Affordable Health Care Act. "It's anything but affordable," he said. "It's causing insurance companies to get out of the business. Others are ratcheting up the costs like has never been seen before. I'm in the repeal and replace camp." Quigley, who voted for the Affordable Health Care Act, said he believes it is a good thing that, while not perfect, is working. "Health care costs are growing at the slowest rate in 50 years and millions of Chicagoans have been provided access to quality health care, some for the first time," he said. Sherman said he'd want to eliminate concierge services offered by doctors for which patients pay annual fees of up to thousands of dollars to access the physician's services. "It forces out people of modest means," Sherman said. "It forces them to doctors with larger patient loads and with less time to spend with them.' Advertisement Sherman whose campaign motto is Real Change Dramatic Chance, cites stopping anti-atheist bullying as one of his top concerns. He wants to eliminate "God" from U.S. currency and from the Pledge of Allegiance. "Why does the government condone anti-atheist bullying?" he asked. Sherman, who recently moved to Poplar Grove from Buffalo Grove, said he'd also push for election reform including making districts more compact and putting term limits in place. Quigley, who has served in Congress since 2009, does not support term limits at any level. "This concentrates power and responsibility for passing and enforcing laws with unelected special interest groups," Quigley said. "These groups are not accountable to citizens, but to their donors and members instead." Sherman, who has lived in both the city and suburbs during his life, charges that Quigley does not pay enough attention to the suburbs. Advertisement "Obviously, his interest is in the people in the city and the suburbs are essentially ignored," said Sherman, noting that he would have two district offices, one in the suburbs and one in the city. Quigley disagrees. "I strive to make myself and my office accessible to suburban communities in the district by hosting local Congress on Your Corner events and mobile office hours, attending events hosted by local community groups, and by communicating regularly with local elected officials," he said. Quigley said he often meets with suburban residents and neighborhood groups to hear their concerns about O'Hare Modernization Project and advocates on their behalf with the FAA, O'Hare airport officials and the airlines. "I have consistently called on the FAA to revisit and revise the current 65 Day-Night Average Sound Level that measures how individuals are impacted by noise due to aviation activities. Updating the 65 DNL could potentially allow more residents near O'Hare to qualify for important sound proofing measures," he said. Sherman, who is a pilot, said there are other ways that noise can be reduced. Advertisement "As soon as you take off you can turn by degrees by 2 degrees, 3 degrees or 5 degrees so the noise isn't over the exact same communities every day," Sherman said. Quigley said storm water management and urban flooding also are concerns and has introduced the Urban Flooding Awareness Act to address those issues. It would create a standardized definition of urban flooding, would encourage creation of effective flood prevention practices and policies and require a study to comprehensively analyze both individual and societal costs associated with urban flooding across the country, he said. Candidate Info Mike Quigley Party: Democrat Advertisement Age: 57 Town: Chicago Family: Married to Barbara; two daughters Education: bachelor's degree Roosevelt University; master's degree in public policy, University of Chicago; law degree, Loyola University School of Law Civic/Elected Service: Cook County Board, 1999 to 2009; elected to U.S. Congress in 2009. Vince Kolber Advertisement Party: Republican Age: 64 Town: Chicago Family: Married to Patricia; a son and two daughters Education: bachelor's degree, the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania; master's of business administration, University of Chicago Profession: Founder and principal of Residco, an equipment leasing company for railroads and airlines. Advertisement Civic/Elected Service: Kolber lost bid for Congress in the 5th District in 2014. Rob Sherman Party: Green Age: 63 Town: Moved recently to Poplar Grove from Buffalo Grove Family: Married to Celeste; two children. Advertisement Education: Studied for two years at National Louis University; classes at Harper College and Northwestern University. Profession: Former radio talk show host and founder of Rob Sherman Airplanes, which makes two-seat airplanes. Civic/Elected Service: Ran for state representative in 2006 and 2008 and lost; ran for village clerk of Buffalo Grove in 2013 and lost; daughter was plaintiff in a lawsuit that sought to end a for a daily moment of silence in public schools; lawsuits involving removal of crosses from city seals. Residents like Gary and Jodi Dubofsky, whose yard, shown above, is near the current freight train tracks, have expressed concern about the proposal to build a freight train holding track near their home to accommodate additional rail traffic. (Jodi Dubofsky) In a 6-0 vote, the Glenview Board of Trustees approved on Tuesday a resolution that opposes the findings of an environmental assessment for a proposal to increase the number of trips on a Chicago to Milwaukee rail line. The environmental assessment was released Oct. 6 by the Illinois and Wisconsin departments of transportation and the Federal Railroad Administration. It addresses the impacts of increasing Amtrak Hiawatha service, which runs from Chicago to Milwaukee and stops in Glenview, from seven to 10 daily round trips. Advertisement The village has three "major" concerns with the assessment: the need to increase Hiawatha service by three round trips, short-term solutions proposed to accommodate rail traffic, and environmental impacts, Jeff Brady, the village's director of planning, said at the meeting. He said village officials dispute whether ridership has increased to the point that additional round trip trains are needed. Advertisement Trustee John Hinkamp said he has seen Hiawatha trains pass through Glenview, and to say that the trains are filled with passengers "doesn't pass the eye test." "I see empty seat after empty seat as it goes by," he said. "If (Amtrak) is telling you that there is increased need, I'd like to check those facts." Brady said village officials also object to the environmental impact findings in the assessment because it is unclear what the findings were based on. The proposed Hiawatha round trips would run during off-peak hours, which would disrupt freight activity and increase freight traffic in Glenview, Brady said. To address the expected increase in freight traffic, the environmental assessment proposes building either a 10,000-foot holding track on the east side of the two existing Metra train tracks or an 11,000-foot holding track on the west side of the existing tracks, from Glenview to Northbrook. Brady said those options are short-term solutions to addressing the increase in rail traffic. The resolution says the village prefers another idea suggested in the assessment: establishing a 30-mile freight bypass through the area. Trustee Deborah Karton said building the proposed holding tracks would be unfair to nearby Glenview residents. "When people bought their homes, they would never have expected to have this track with new times of usage or idling trains," she said. "That's out of your realm of what you would expect." Advertisement Village Manager Todd Hileman said he hopes the agencies involved in the proposed project will respect Glenview residents and "not simply ride over the community." The FRA will consider all concerns brought by the public after the public comment period ends Nov. 15, FRA spokesman Matt Lehner said in a phone interview. "We are listening to everyone's thoughts what they like, what they don't like. This is part of the environmental process," he said. Glenview resident Mike Souter told the board he lives near the site of the proposed holding track. The trains that go by his home today are "longer, heavier and noisier" than when he moved in 11 years ago, he said. "The last thing I want to see is more trains and more idling trains," he said. "I'm glad to see that the proposal is out there to reject (the proposed Hiawatha project.)" With the board voting in favor of the resolution, village officials will send an objection letter to the agencies involved in the assessment, Brady said. Advertisement Meanwhile, Glenview residents can attend a village-hosted informational meeting on the proposal and its environmental assessment on Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. at Park Center, 2400 Chestnut Avenue. The Illinois and Wisconsin departments of transportation and the Federal Railroad Administration will also host a Nov. 2 meeting at Park Center from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. to discuss the environmental assessment. Northbrook Village President Sandy Frum said Wednesday that Northbrook officials will attend the Nov. 2 meeting. She said she has concerns for the effect of the proposed expansion on her town, but not as significant as those of Glenview. "If the area where the train idles does not cross (to north of) Techny Road, there's not as much of a concern, because it's industrial to the south," she said of the Northbrook segment of the possible expansion. "If it gets north of Techny, then that's a concern, because that's a residential area." Irv Leavitt contributed to this story. akukulka@tribpub.com North Shore District 112 will use this boundary map to assign pupils to elementary schools for the 2017-18 school year. (District 112) The North Shore District 112 school board Tuesday approved a school map that divides the district into four, rather than eight, attendance areas to reflect the 2017 closing of Ravinia and Lincoln elementary schools and the creation of dual language academies at Red Oak and Oak Terrace schools. Indian Trail School near downtown Highland Park will absorb all Lincoln students and about half of the Ravinia population those students living north of Roger Williams Avenue. Advertisement The remainder of students currently assigned to Ravinia will attend Braeside Elementary School, with the exception of children around the Chantilly subdivision, who will attend Sherwood Elementary School in southwest Highland Park. The district dropped the idea of sending Lincoln and Indian Trail students west of Green Bay Road near downtown to Sherwood amid fierce opposition from parents. Those students will attend Indian Trail. Advertisement The approved map also keeps students living in an area east of the Edens Expressway and north of Lake Cook Road at Braeside Elementary School. Parents in the area had opposed a proposed move to Sherwood. Currently, students living in Fort Sheridan's military housing are split between Red Oak in southwest Highland Park and the closer Wayne Thomas Elementary School in north Highland Park. The boundary plan will begin transitioning military students from what has been the Red Oak area to Indian Trail closer to home. John Petzke, the district's chief technology officer, said that moving about 67 students simultaneously to Indian Trail next year could push the school's enrollment to 605 students and leave the building short one classroom. Under the transition plan, current military families living east of Patton Road will move from Red Oak to Sherwood along with other peers electing monolingual instruction. Red Oak School will become a dual language, or Spanish-English immersion school, as will Oak Terrace School in Highwood. New military families in the Fort Sheridan area east of Patton Road will attend Indian Trail. Superintendent Michael Bregy supported the transition option, but said some administrators preferred keeping the students within the Red Oak and Sherwood community. "These are not decisions that are taken lightly," Bregy said. "I personally look at this as an opportunity to have all students in schools that are closest to their home." Board member Jane Mordini voiced opposition to the transition plan, saying it would fragment military students already coping with a move to a new community. "To isolate children who have just moved to a new base from the other children on the base, I think, is a big mistake," Mordini said. Advertisement She preferred waiting until the district implemented a longer-term map following a successful referendum. But colleague Eric Ephraim thought the transition plan a sound approach to ultimately allowing military children to be educated closer to home. "The complaint I always heard from military families was, 'Why are we driving all the way across town to go to school?'," said Ephraim, a former Red Oak parent. "For parents to come to a function at night is a 20-minute drive each way, as opposed to being right up the block." He said the transition plan will allow the military population at Indian Trail to grow as enrollment is declining. The boundary plan, which includes a middle school map, was approved by a 5-0 vote with board members Yumi Ross and Mordini abstaining. Both board members said they were not comfortable voting for the plan without first hearing from the military community. North Shore School District 112 has not redrawn school attendance areas since the district was created out of three small school districts in the early 1990s. John Petzke, the district's chief technology officer, said Tuesday that in a budget-reduction scenario, the district will need to closely monitor school enrollments and student distribution and regularly revisit school boundaries. kberkowitz@pioneerlocal.com Advertisement @KarenABerkowitz Defendant Jose Reyes, of Chicago (right), speaks with his attorney, Katherine Hatch, during his bench trial in Lake County for predatory criminal sexual assault of a child, aggravated kidnapping and possession and production of child pornography. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune) Eyewitnesses to both the alleged abduction and return of a 3-year old Mundelein girl, who authorities said was sexually assaulted in September 2013, took the stand Tuesday and Wednesday in the trial of Jose Reyes. On Tuesday afternoon, the victim's sister testified about details of the alleged kidnapping and identified Reyes in court as the man who abducted the child. Advertisement On Wednesday morning, a mechanic who had been working on a friend's car in the parking lot of the complex where the girl was living at the time, testified he saw her dropped off by a man, and he then identified the vehicle the man was driving as one registered to Reyes when shown a photo of the vehicle. Reyes, 31, of Chicago, pleaded not guilty to charges of aggravated kidnapping, predatory criminal sexual assault and possession and production of child pornography. He faces up to 120 years in prison if convicted in the bench trial that began Tuesday before Judge Mark Levitt. Advertisement The victim's sister, now 12, was 9 at the time of her sister's abduction and identified Reyes in court Tuesday afternoon while being questioned by Assistant State's Attorney Fred Day. The girl said that she was playing with her two sisters, one of which was the victim, in the entranceway to their Deepwoods Drive apartment on the late afternoon of Sept. 30, 2013, when a man in a black car stopped in front of the building and asked through the car window if the children wanted lollipops. The sister testified that she told the man no, and that he drove away but returned, this time getting out of the car and approaching them. He again offered candy and then, the girl testified, "He took my sister." When Day asked for details of how it happened, the girl said the man picked the girl up, put her over his shoulder and ran to the car, where he put her in the back seat before driving away. The girl testified her sister was yelling and crying when the man grabbed her. When asked by Day if she saw the man in court, she said yes and pointed a finger toward Reyes, who was seated at the defense table. She also noted he was wearing an orange shirt. In 2013, after the incident, the girl also identified Reyes by circling his picture in a photo lineup provided by the Mundelein Police Department. She confirmed that she had circled the picture when shown the photo lineup while on the stand Tuesday. On Wednesday morning, the mechanic testified that, as he was working on the car shortly after 5:30 p.m., he saw a black car enter the lot "really quickly," heard a car door open and close, and then "heard the cries of a really small girl." Isai Guevara Pantoga testified, "I saw a very small girl there crying and just saw the car leaving very quickly." Advertisement Under questioning by Assistant State's Attorney Eric Kalata, Pantoga said he was able to tell that a man was driving the car, and that he remembered what it looked like primarily because of its black color and the rims of the tires. Pantoga said he identified the car in a photo at the Mundelein Police Department a few days later, when shown a picture of Reyes' car. He identified it in the same picture again in court Wednesday. Under cross-examination from defense attorney Eric Rinehart, Pantoga acknowledged that he had told police he believed the car was a Nissan Sentra, although it turned out that Reyes' car was actually a Hyundai Accent. Rinehart noted that Pantoga's written statement to police made no mention about uncertainty regarding the make of the car, but Pantoga remained adamant on the stand that the car in the photo was the one he saw due to the body, the color and the rims. Also on Wednesday, a sexual assault nurse from Advocate Condell Hospital testified that she did an examination of the girl, and completed standard evidence collection procedures on the evening of the kidnapping. The woman noted she observed and took photos of what prosecutors have alleged was evidence of a sexual assault. Prosecutors have said DNA and sexual assault experts will testify later in the trial. They added that surveillance video turned over to investigators by the apartment complex show glimpses of Reyes in the entryway of the building when the girl was abducted, and of a black car driving up and letting her out in the parking lot of the building less than an hour later. Advertisement Reyes was arrested at his Libertyville workplace on Oct. 2, 2013, and Day said when police obtained a search warrant for his car, evidence found included lollipops that matched those found at the scene of the abduction and Reyes' cell phone, which contained a video of the sexual assault. The trial is expected to continue possibly into next week. jrnewton@tribpub.com Twitter @jimnewton5 As Brian Grams and Lisa Santiago walked toward the grave of Civil War soldier Wallace H. Gale at the Volo Cemetery, a burst of cold wind blew in dark clouds, casting a shadow on the formerly sunny October day. It's just the autumn weather, Grams thought. But Santiago, his cousin, thought it might be a sign from Gale. The soldier has been said to haunt the Volo Antique Mall she manages, which is right next to the Volo Cemetery. Advertisement The building that houses the mall is owned by the Grams family and once was a dairy barn built in 1848 by the Gale family. Wallace H. Gale, who grew up on the property in an old farmhouse next door to the barn, starved to death in Tennessee while serving in the Civil War, Santiago said. His body was returned to the homestead for burial, she said, and you can see the tombstone from a window in the antique mall. Advertisement Over the years, mall visitors have reported seeing a young boy staring at them from outside the window on the fourth floor. Others claim to have seen perfume bottles floating in the air, and images of a soldier, Santiago and Grams said. "Our whole family has had unexplained experiences since they purchased the property" more than a half-century ago, said Santiago, whose parents, Grams' aunt and uncle, now live in the 1850s farmhouse where Wallace H. Gale lived. Grams, his own parents and Santiago have lived in that house as well, and say they have experienced spooky occurrences there. Meanwhile Grams, who owns and manages the Volo Auto Museum, which is also on the property, said he's never experienced any ghostly happenings there. Civil War soldier Wallace H. Gale is said to haunt the Volo Antique Mall. (Sheryl DeVore / Lake County News-Sun) Farm house spooks His mother, Myra Grams, said her first otherworldly experience in the farm house was before Brian was born. She went to the bathroom in the middle of the night, turned on the light and noticed a black figure out of the corner of her eye. She went back to bed, with her husband still asleep. In the morning, she said, he told her he had seen a black figure standing at the end of the bed that night. Once, when she was home alone in her bed, "I would feel the bed go down a bit as if someone were sitting on it," she said. At family gatherings, relatives would tell similar tales before having heard Myra's experience. Brian said when he was growing up in the house, "TVs would turn on and turn off. Lights would turn on and then turn off. I'd blow it off as radio waves. "The house is set up as a duplex. My family lived on the main level, (and) we had other relatives who would come and go upstairs," he said. "Everybody has said it's haunted. They've seen things. Advertisement "I could not get any of my friends to spend the night when I was growing up," he added. "But there's never been anything bad that's happened. It doesn't seem like (the ghost) is out to harm anybody." The tombstone of Wallace H. Gale, a Civil War soldier, at the Volo Cemetery across from the Volo Antique Mall. (Sheryl DeVore / Lake County News-Sun) 'Ghost Lab' The family, employees and visitors to the mall kept their allegedly haunted grounds a bit of a secret, until the Discovery Channel which hosted the now-canceled television show "Ghost Lab" learned about it. According to the show, a shadowy figure was captured on film sitting on some furniture inside the mall. The shadowy figure, some say, was the ghost of Wallace H. Gale. Televised in November 2009, the show prompted more guests, workers and the family to come forward with more ghost stories and, since then, mall visitors have sent in photos and stories about creepy experiences, mostly at the mall or the grounds nearby, including stories of white dogs walking through mirrors, dolls found in strange places and a boy peering through the fourth-floor window from the outside. Santiago said she thinks the ghost likes the mall "because of the antiques." Advertisement One woman said she saw a young man sitting in a rocking chair in the mall, listening to a music box and dressed in uniform. She went to get her husband and when they returned, there was no music box and no man there, Grams said. One of the spookiest stories Grams has heard involved a truck driver delivering cars to the auto museum, who had never been to the mall before and never heard anything about it being haunted. Cousins Brian Grams, owner of the Volo Auto Museum, and Lisa Santiago, manager of the Volo Antique Mall, stand in front of the home in which they grew up, which was built in the early 1850s and is said to be haunted. (Sheryl DeVore / Lake County News-Sun) "He pulled in at about 11 o'clock at night and was going to spend the night in the lot in front of the mall," Grams said. "Twenty minutes later, he backed up and drove off. He said he saw somebody in a trench coat walking through the parking lot, and when he asked if it was OK if he slept there, the guy in the trench coat walked right through the walls into the barn." Grams added that the truck driver told him, "I sleep with a Smith & Wesson, but there was no way I was going to sleep in that parking lot." Recently, according to Santiago, a customer said she was looking into a mirror and felt a cold, bony hand on her arm. An oil painting dropped to the floor, got a big gash in it and broke other items in its path. "These floors are creaky. I would explain it that way," Grams said. Advertisement A new employee, Felica Hornback of Island Lake, said last month her purse flew off a shelf to the floor. She believed it was a ghostly occurrence, but is not frightened to return to work. "I don't scare easily," she said. Haunted train ride People have become so inquisitive about the haunted antique mall that Grams created a train ride as a bonus to those who visit the Volo Auto Museum. The 45-minute rides, free with paid admission, operate on weekends through Oct. 30. Riders hear stories about the ghosts and then get dropped off by the mall, where they are led into a small theater where a facsimile of the soldier's tombstone is encased. They hear crackling noises and see a figure on a projected screen, which Grams created for some scary fun during the Halloween season. Grams doesn't believe in ghosts, he said, although he admitted some of the happenings on his family's property are difficult to explain. Advertisement "Either you're a believer and it intrigues you," Grams said, "or you're a skeptic, and it still intrigues you." Sheryl DeVore is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun. "Fates and Furies," the best-selling novel by Lauren Groff, began as two separate books. Groff, who will be in Lake Forest on Oct. 27 and 28 for the Lake Forest Reads program, began "Fates and Furies" in mid 2009 while also writing her previous novel "Arcadia." Advertisement "For the first few years it existed only on my wall on these huge pieces of paper," said Groff from her home in Gainesville, Fla. "I'd write something from the husband's point of view and then run across the room and write something from the wife's point of view." She pitched the two manuscripts to her agent who told her it had to be a single novel, so she spent much of 2013 cutting and stitching the stories together. Advertisement The novel was sold and eventually published in 2015. "Fates and Furies" spent time on the New York Times Best Sellers List and was a top ten finalist for the National Book Award in 2015. "I thought for the years it would take me to write it that I was writing two books and that nobody would publish it,' Groff said. "I would have been fine with the book not being published because I has such a marvelous time writing it." The novel is divided into two sections. The first is told from the point of view of Lancelot "Lotto" Satterwhite, a husband who first struggles as an actor before finding success as a playwright. The second section is from the point of view of his wife, Mathilde. The two characters share a marriage and much of their lives, but the latter half of the novel forces readers to reconsider the characters and their marriage. "In all my books I resist the idea of this simple uncomplicated narrative," Groff said. "I'd been thinking about the ways multiple stories can coexist and there is not the privilege of one story over the other and they can exist in layers." Readers who seek a bodice ripper should look elsewhere, Groff aimed to present a fresh literary portrayal of a couple. "If you read about marriage, a lot of times, particularly in the 1960s, nearly every narrative is about infidelity," Groff said. "I know its common but it's not the only narrative we can tell. I wanted to tell about a happy and loving marriage without having infidelity as the prime mover of plot." Lake Forest Reads was started four years ago as a joint effort of the Ragdale Foundation, Lake Forest College and Lake Forest Library. "We look for someone who has been in residence at Ragdale," said librarian Kate Burkardt. "Someone who has had a recent book, something easily accessible and downloadable. (An author) who the people at Ragdale know to be a good speaker, charismatic and interesting." Advertisement Lake Forest residents appear to be reading the novel. As of Oct. 13, the various versions of "Fates and Furies" hardcover, paperback, CD, downloads had been checked out 495 times, Burkardt said. Lauren Groff will take part in a conversation with Davis Schneiderman, an English professor, at Lake Forest College, 555 N. Sheridan, at 7 p.m. Oct. 27. The event is free but advance registration is required. She'll also take part in Tea & Talk at Ragdale Foundation, 1260 Green Bay Road, at 10:30 a.m. on Oct. 28 with an entrance fee of $20. Groff will also be on hand to sign books at 12:30 p.m. Oct. 28 at Lake Forest Book Store, 662 N. Western. mlawton@pioneerlocal.com Twitter: @reporterdude A man awaiting trial for an alleged Aurora burglary has been charged with last month's theft of a purebred Pomeranian puppy, who's still missing, from a pet shop on Naperville's far west side. Naperville police Cmdr. Jason Arres confirmed Wednesday that a $50,000 warrant has been issued for the arrest of Benjamin Ocasio Jr., 27. He last lived on the 200 block of Spruce Street in Aurora. Advertisement Ocasio has been charged with retail theft in connection with the Sept. 4 incident at Petland in the Fox River Commons shopping center, near Aurora Avenue and Route 59. Video surveillance tape filmed about 4:21 p.m. that day showed a man and a woman walking out of the Petland with Bella, a 12-week-old, black and white, female Pomeranian dog valued at $2,500. Advertisement Ocasio and a 27-year-old female relative were quickly identified by police from the tape. Arres said both were interviewed in the days and weeks following the alleged theft. "The investigation led to (Ocasio) being charged with the crime," Arres said. "The facts of the case led to only Ocasio being charged (while) the female who was with him will not be charged with the crime." Using statements and other information gleaned during the investigation, police began looking for the puppy, which the pair claimed to have abandoned in the backyard of a home near New York and Root streets in Aurora. Despite "extra effort" by police that Arres said included posting fliers, canvassing parts of Aurora and working with Aurora police, the puppy is still missing. "However, we remain hopeful at some point the dog will turn up," he said. An examination of court records revealed Ocasio is scheduled to appear Nov. 16 in Kane County Circuit Court in connection with an alleged June burglary in Aurora. He also was convicted in 2011 of drunken driving and was sentenced in 2014 to 150 days in jail for domestic battery, according to records. Petland owner Carl Swanson was not available for comment. A recorded message at a number listed for Ocasio said the phone did not accept incoming calls. A Naperville Crime Stoppers reward of up to $1,000 for information about the dog's whereabouts remains unclaimed. Crime Stoppers can be contacted at 630-420-6006 or www.napervillecrimestoppers.com, and callers can remain anonymous. Advertisement wbird@tribpub.com Naperville Deputy Police Chief Brian Cunningham, a longtime police veteran who oversees the department's investigations division, has been named police chief for the village of Woodridge. The news was announced Wednesday on Woodridge's municipal website and the Naperville police Facebook page. Advertisement Cunningham's selection followed a "state-wide search and recruitment process, which included gathering input from the community at large and a community interview panel, which reflected the leadership and diversity of Woodridge," the village's announcement said. "We are excited to have (Cunningham) begin his duties," Woodridge Mayor Gina Cunningham said in a statement. The two are not related. Advertisement The mayor lauded Cunningham's 30 years of police expertise, saying he had "an impressive background in policing and an excellent reputation in the law enforcement community." As chief, Brian Cunningham will oversee 65 employees, 51 of them sworn officers. He said in the release he was "honored by this opportunity (and looking) forward to meeting community members" and municipal employees. Cunningham joined the Naperville Police Department as a patrol officer in June 1986. Since then, he has held several positions, including patrol supervisor, special enforcement unit supervisor, major crimes unit supervisor and patrol commander. He was named investigations commander in August 2012. He has served as commander of the DuPage County Major Crimes Task Force since 1999, developing and implementing county-wide protocols and overseeing numerous homicide investigations. A founding member and current president of the Illinois Homicide Investigators Association, Cunningham is also part of the Illinois Crisis Negotiations Association, a member of the Naperville Honor Guard member and participates in the Pipes and Drums of the Emerald Society. He obtained his bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Governors State University in University Park. He attended Northwestern University staff and command, Colorado State University's Rocky Mountain Leadership course and the Senior Management Institute for Policing. He has been an adjunct professor at the College of DuPage. Cunningham is scheduled to be sworn in as chief during Woodridge's Nov. 3 village board meeting. wbird@tribpub.com Trustee Michael Gadzinski is shown being sworn in to a third term on the Harwood Heights Village Board. Gadzinski is leaving the board two years shy of the end of his third term in office. (Natalie Hayes / Pioneer Press) Michael Gadzinski, a trustee who last month announced his intention to resign from the Harwood Heights Village Board at the end of the year, has left the board earlier than expected. He handed in his resignation on Oct. 13. Gadzinski is leaving the board two years shy of the end of his third term in office. He previously spoke about his decision to resign because of plans to move to Chicago, but he declined this week to elaborate on why he left more than two months before his announced resignation date, Dec. 31. Advertisement "I resigned earlier because some personal things have changed with my family," he said in an email. He would not comment further. According to the Illinois Municipal Code, his vacancy on the six-member board will be filled via the April 4 municipal election, on the ballot along with the three trustee seats set to expire next year held by Annette Brzezniak-Volpe, Larry Steiner and Lester Szlendak. In order to be filled via the election, the unexpired portion of the term must be at least 28 months, and the vacancy must occur at least 130 days before the next municipal election. Had he waited until Dec. 31 to resign, it would have been less than 130 days before the election, and Harwood Heights Mayor Arlene Jezierny would have needed to make an appointment. Advertisement Gadzinski was re-elected to his seat last year after campaigning as part of a political slate rounded out by Trustee Therese Schuepfer and newcomer Jeff Rasche. All were elected. Public real estate records show Gadzinski bought a home just north of the Harwood Heights border in Chicago on the 5300 block of North Nordica Avenue in December 2015. Gadzinski said rumors had been circulating that he's been lying about his residency. Illinois law requires public officials to reside in the town they're elected to serve. Gadzinski claims that despite buying the house last year, he had not occupied the Chicago residence yet and had been living in a home owned by his family on the 4200 block of North Newland Avenue in Harwood Heights. The 33-year-old works for the Cook County Board of Review as a property assessment analyst. Natalie Hayes is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press. Carpenter Elementary School teacher Becky Keenan traveled to Ethiopia with her brother, which led her to supporting research, assisting in creating a health curriculum for students and raising money to build wells. Q: How did you become interested in teaching fifth-graders? Advertisement A: I've always wanted to be a teacher, and I kind of fell into teaching fifth grade. I've been doing it for a long time now, and I love it. The kids are more independent, and for the most part they are pretty motivated to learn. Plus, fifth-graders are sweet and fun, which makes coming to work each day very enjoyable. Q: Tell us a little about you became involved in a project to build wells in Ethiopia? Advertisement A: My brother is an ophthalmologist at the University of California, San Francisco. The majority of his work involves conducting research in developing countries. His project in Ethiopia focuses on eliminating trachoma, which is the leading cause of preventable blindness in the world. Last year, he asked me to go to Ethiopia and create a health curriculum for students. After seeing the conditions there, I wanted to do something to help. When I mentioned this to the staff at Carpenter, they suggested doing a school-wide fundraiser. Part of my brother's project involves building wells. Our hope was to raise enough money to buy one well. Q: This past spring you led a Carpenter school-wide "read-a-thon fundraiser" to help the wells to be built. How did that turn out? A: It turned out exceptionally well. Our goal was to raise $15,000, and we raised over $23,000. We had enough money to buy one deep well and one hand dug well. We also had funds left over to buy household sanitation stations for many homes. These are large plastic jugs with spigots and mirrors to check for clean faces. I am amazed by the generosity of the Carpenter community. Q: We heard that you traveled to Ethiopia this summer to see the Carpenter wells. What did you enjoy best about your trip? A: I don't think I can fully express into words what it was like to actually visit the wells and see the faces of the people who have been affected by the generosity of the Carpenter community. With each visit, there was so much to take in. Ethiopia is a beautiful country, and many of these villages were along the tops of expansive mountains. The villages themselves were made from every resource the land could provide, whether it was clay, sticks, or stones. Seeing this reinforced the level of poverty there. It really emphasized that we were helping the poorest of the poor. Their faces were full of joy when they saw the clean water streaming out of the wells. Seeing them rush to get clean water is something I will never forget. Q: What was the biggest challenge of your trip? A: Ethiopia is a developing country, so we didn't always have water or electricity. I had to walk to a water source with my empty bucket and bring it back to my room. I had to use that water sparingly to bathe. Eventually, we ran out of water and we could not clean ourselves. It definitely made me appreciate running water! Electricity would often go out. We would be in a restaurant, and all of a sudden we couldn't see each other. We would just sit there in darkness until we were finished with our meal. Toward the end of the trip, the town ran out of gas. ... On a personal note, it made me realize that any problems I have are truly first-world problems. Q: How can others get involved in participating in supporting building wells for Ethiopia? Advertisement A: You can donate money to the fundraising center at UCSF's ophthalmology department (That Man May See) and donate to my brother's research. Go to thatmanmaysee.org and make sure to indicate that you would like your donation to go to Dr. Keenan's research in Ethiopia. He will be putting in another 20 wells soon, so donations are greatly appreciated. Karen Medina is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press. Michelle Fajman, Director of the Lake County Board of Elections & Registration, discusses the need for voters to correct missing or conflicting information . (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune) As Donald Trump's GOP presidential campaign doubles down on claims of a "rigged" presidential election, employees at the Lake County Voter Registration and Election Board are working extra hours to ensure registrations that are part of an ongoing Indiana State Police investigation into possible voter registration fraud are verified. Lake County Sheriff John Buncich, chair of the Lake County Democratic Central Committee, said he has been in contact with Michelle Fajman, election board director and a Democrat, and the two say all registrations submitted by the Indiana Voter Registration Project will be processed as any registration received by the office. Advertisement "We are not going to be accused of voter suppression," Buncich said. The office receives voter registration from multiple sources including the Secretary of State's office, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, individual applications and applications from voters' registration drives, such as the one conducted by Indiana Voter Registration Project. Voter registration in Indiana ended Oct. 11. Advertisement Voter registration cards await entry into the system at the the Lake County Board of Elections & Registration. (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune) The state police has been to the Lake County voter's registration office four times regarding the investigation into IVRP and have taken some suspect registrations with them for review. Fajman and Patrick Gabrione, the department's deputy director and a Republican, said the office is cooperating with the investigation. They say many of the problems they have been finding with the IVRP registrations center on sloppy paperwork. "We don't know which applications are part of the investigation or not," Fajman said. The investigation by the state police into IVRP registrations now includes 56 of Indiana's 92 counties. The Indiana Secretary of State's office said Tuesday voters contacted it after discovering their dates of birth or first names were incorrect on state voter rolls. The investigation into possible voter registration fraud has pitted the Democratic organization responsible for the IVRP drive, Patriot Majority USA, against GOP vice presidential candidate Gov. Mike Pence. Michelle Fajman, Director of the Lake County Board of Elections & Registration, shows voter registrations in various states of processing. (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune) Craig Varoga, president of Patriot Majority USA, said in a release Saturday that Pence is using the state police to "harass African American voters and prevent them from voting in this November's election. The state police denied the allegations. "In fact, it is clear from evidence documented to date that we have uncovered intentional acts of fraud by representatives of Patriot Majority USA," said Capt. David Bursten, chief public information officer for the state police. Problems have been discovered as Lake County election workers check the applications. Advertisement Gabrione said in at least one instance, the office referred all applications submitted by one canvasser after mistakes were found in multiple different forms. Fajman said the office was able to garner enough information from most of the forms to enter them into the system and cross check them with existing registrations. Legibility and missing information were among the problems with many of the applications. "If we can decipher it, we can enter it," Fajman said. Staff has been working evenings, Saturday and Sunday to tackle verifying all of the registrations that came into the office by the Oct. 11 deadline including those from IVRP, Fajman said. About 1,600 IVRP registrations remain to be processed of the more than 6,000 received, she said. The office has been calling voters with applications that have missing information in order to finish the processing. Fajman said in some cases the voter was not comfortable providing information like their driver's license number to the person registering them for fear of being scammed. Dan Dernulc, Lake County Republican Party chair, said there is no suppression of votes by the Republican Party. He likened the current voter registration fraud investigation to the ACORN investigation in 2008. Advertisement "With one group coming out and saying the governor is trying to suppress the vote is just talk of trying to divert attention from what is really going on. What is really going on is people are being registered to vote who might not live here, who might not be qualified to vote in our state," Dernulc said. "The vote should be as pure as it can be," he said. Fajman and Gabrione said incorrect or missing information does not necessarily constitute fraud. They said the office itself will make no determination as to fraud and will rely on the state police. The bottom-line issue, however, reflects the dissatisfaction of the electorate. Marie Eisenstein, associate professor of political science at Indiana University Northwest in Gary, said proclamations of a "rigged election" by the Trump campaign and the investigation into the IVRP are on two different levels. She said she sees little difference between Trump's allegations now and those made by Bernie Sanders during the primary campaign. It is a continuation of the anti-establishment message. Advertisement The allegations and claims of corruption and voter fraud only serve to reinforce the low confidence the public in general has in government, a perception that has been growing since the 1970s, she said. "Voter confidence isn't that great to begin with," Eisenstein said. "Our individual trust in government, how it responds to us is at epic lows. This all more than shakes voters trust. It confirms a trust they did not have." Carrie Napoleon is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune. Associated Press contributed. Porter County councilman at large Bob Poparad gives his opening remarks on Tuesday during a forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Porter County and the Valparaiso Chamber of Commerce. (Kyle Telechan / Post-Tribune) Candidates for Porter County Council and the Board of Commissioners shared their views at a forum Tuesday on a wide range of topics, from how to handle proceeds from a recently created foundation to thoughts on a public/private partnership for renovation of the pavilion at Indiana Dunes State Park. The Valparaiso Chamber of Commerce and the Porter County League of Women Voters held the forum, meant to educate voters on candidates' views. More than 20 people attended the event in which the audience submitted questions to the candidates. Advertisement Democrats Sylvia Graham, Bob Poparad and Dan Whitten, all incumbents and candidates for another term as at-large representatives on the county council, appeared at the forum, as did Republican candidate Jeff Larson. Republican Jim Biggs, candidate for the north county seat on the Board of Commissioners, attended the forum as well. He currently holds the District 1 seat on the council. Advertisement Richard Parks and Travis Gearhart, Republicans running for at-large seats on the council, were not able to attend, nor was Democrat Jeffrey Chidester, who is running for the commissioner's seat. Earlier this year, the County Council and Board of Commissioners created a foundation to handle $147 million of the proceeds from the 2007 sale of the county hospital. Any use of the funds or the interest they generate requires a unanimous vote by both bodies, which also serve as the foundation's board. County officials "took a little bit of time" moving forward with plans for the funds, Larson said, which cost the county in the long run. "When you wait on something, the cost never goes down," he said, adding he "loves" what was done with the money, but officials missed an opportunity to put the money to use when the recession hit in 2008 when people were out of work. But Graham and Whitten said the county couldn't invest the funds right away because the money was frozen for five years after the sale of the hospital and because the legislation allowing for the creation of the foundation, the first in the state, didn't take effect until July 2016. "We have the principal working for us," Graham said, adding income can be used for public safety and road improvements. The foundation is already generating more interest than expected, Whitten said, and he and other candidates agreed it could be used to improve the quality of life in the county. "We are putting together an application process for grants for that money, things that make people want to come to Porter County and stay in Porter County," he said. Advertisement Noting that any decision on the funds required a unanimous vote by the council and commissioners, Biggs said officials "absolutely made the right choice" in what to do with the money. "As we've done up to this point, we're going to take a cautions approach to spending these monies," he said, adding the funds can be used for enhancing the quality of life in the county, including building improvements. Some of the money will be needed to shore up the budget, Poparad said, adding the other option is raising taxes. The funds also can be used for public safety and improving county parks. "Some has to be used for operations, some for capital projects, and some set aside" and invested back in the foundation, he said. The candidates shared mixed views on public/private partnerships in light of a partnership between Pavilion Partners, a private entity, and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources to renovate the pavilion at the state park and build an adjacent, 17,000-square-foot banquet center. Remodeling the pavilion and building new restrooms, also part of the project, were a good idea, Larson sad, adding private investment in public projects has been going on for years. Advertisement "Most of the time when public and private funds are put together, they can be put to good use," he said, adding in this case, disturbing the dunes is "disheartening." The rest of the candidates came out against public/private partnerships in general, or this one in particular. While Biggs said such partnerships could be a good thing, privatization at the state park shouldn't have been allowed because the area is environmentally sensitive. State law also shouldn't have been changed to allow a liquor license for the project after state and local boards voted against it, he added. "That was wrong. We didn't deserve to be undermined like that," he said. Poparad, Graham and Whitten said they were opposed to public/private partnerships because taxpayers get shortchanged, the state park is public property, and Pavilion Partners got a generous deal in its lease. The partnership was not the only way to get funds to renovate the pavilion, Whitten said, since the state had the money available. Advertisement "I'm very concerned about how the negotiations took place," he said of the lease agreement, adding the park is being privatized unnecessarily and he was against the change in the state law. "To me, that's not democracy. It's not the way government is supposed to work." Amy Lavalley is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune. Trump campaign employee Cody Reynolds, right, and volunteer Karin Amptemeyer work on assembling and distributing Trump/Pence lawn signs. (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune) With the presidential race entering its final weeks, the Trump-Pence Indiana campaign is concluding a statewide tour, hoping to ramp up support and publicity for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and his running mate, Gov. Mike Pence. "We're here to hand out signs and get Trump support up before Election Day," Karin Amptmeyer, a volunteer with the Trump-Pence Indiana campaign since April, said Wednesday. Advertisement The Trump-Pence Indiana campaign stopped in Griffith to encourage early voting, deliver campaign signs and to discuss the final presidential debate hours before the event in Las Vegas. People from across Lake and Porter counties filed into the campaign office, extending the line outside, to pick up lawn posters, bumper stickers and shirt stickers. "I want to publicly show my support for Trump," said Katherine Hester, of Michigan City. "Me and my boyfriend are huge supporters. We believe in what he wants to do with America." Advertisement With Trump's recent claims that the process is rigged against him, alleging vast election fraud and favorable news coverage of Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton, many of Trump's supporters expressed their frustrations with how the media has portrayed their candidate. "The election is absolutely being rigged by the dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary but also at many polling places SAD," Trump wrote Sunday on Twitter. Hester said she believes the media are skewing the election in Clinton's favor. A line of Trump supporters wait to get their lawn signs and bumper stickers early Wednesday in Griffith. (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune) "The media will do anything they can do to either give Trump a bad name or even Mr. Pence," she said. "They don't want either of them in office. They want another Obama, and in my opinion that's the worst thing for this country." As far as Trump's voter fraud allegations, Amptmeyer said she believes "everything is rigged." "If you can hack emails, you can hack a voting system," she said. Rita Perez, of Chesterton, said she hopes the candidates are able to focus on politics and refrain from the "constant bickering." In spite of unfavorable polling statistics, Amptmeyer said she believes the early polls aren't an accurate representation of the voting public. Advertisement Trump campaign employee Cody Reynolds assembles a lawn sign for Rita Perez of Chesterton. (Jim Karczewski / Post-Tribune) "I think more people are going to vote for it that aren't saying it out loud, and I just do not want another 30-year politician in there," she said. George Bollhorst, of Hammond, agreed with Amptmeyer, adding that he's tired of robotic politicians who have to always be politically correct. "As a politician you have to always say the right thing and do the right thing," he said. "Trump has flaws, and the American people want something different. I want somebody who is not a career politician. I want somebody real." jaanderson@tribpub.com Twitter @JavonteA In the latest step in the country's fight against poverty, China's cabinet released a plan on Tuesday that will enable the poor to share earnings from local hydropower plants and mining projects. To pilot the reform, the government will choose a maximum of 20 projects in impoverished contiguous areas and counties targeted in the state poverty alleviation program, according to the State Council plan. Local rural residents will be able to acquire stakes in such projects with compensation they receive for land occupied by the project construction, the plan said. This way, rural residents get proceeds from the operation of the projects, with priority given to registered poor households. The reform will be carried out from late 2016 to the end of 2019, and the chosen projects will start construction in 2017. The environment will be strictly protected during the project, the plan said. By the end of 2015, China still had 55.75 million people living in poverty, equivalent to the entire population of a medium-sized country. The government has named poverty reduction as one of its top priorities, pledging to eradicate poverty in China by 2020. More than 600 million Chinese were lifted out of poverty over the past three decades -- about 70 percent of the global total. The reform was part of the country's "precision" poverty relief, or targeted efforts to help specific impoverished groups, said Yang Qian, an official with the National Development and Reform Commission. The poorest regions in China are rich in water or mineral resources, but development projects in these areas have done little to bring local people out of poverty due to ineffective profit-sharing. With these reforms, poor people will get long-term stable proceeds from the exploitation of local natural resources, compared with the current lump-sum compensation payments, Yang told a press briefing, "If the pilot projects go smoothly, the reform will allow local residents to get higher proceeds than they receive now," Yang said. "But there are uncertainties too, depending on market changes and business operation." To ensure the proceeds, authorities should choose projects that are economically viable with good profitability prospects and a short period of construction to pilot the reform, the plan said. Members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) should comply with WTO rules and ensure Chinese companies' right of defense while imposing trade remedy measures, an official said Tuesday. In a preliminary ruling made by the European Commission earlier this month, anti-dumping duties will be imposed on imports of hot-rolled steel from China for six months, with the exclusion of tool steel and high-speed steel products. The exclusion was the result of the defence put forward by Chinese steel and cutting tool maker Tiangong International Co., but will also be enjoyed by other manufacturers of those products, Shen Danyang, spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce, told a press conference. As there will be half a year before the announcement of the final ruling, Shen said Chinese companies should make continued efforts to defend themselves. "The central government will continue to support Chinese companies with regards to the foreign anti-dumping investigations," Shen added. China is against trade protectionism and advocates a prudent, restrained and rule-based use of trade remedy measures, according to Shen. A cargo ship to Singapore departs from Qinzhou bonded port, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Nov. 5, 2015. [Xinhua] China's economy showed signs of stabilizing as GDP growth remained at 6.7 percent in the third quarter, although the government faces the challenges of balancing debt control and economic growth. Official figures released on Wednesday kept China on track to meet the government's target of 6.5 to 7 percent growth for the year. The economy expanded 6.9 percent in 2015, the slowest pace in a quarter of a century. Growth on track "The general performance was better than expected, and the national economy grew steadily with progress being made and quality improved," said Sheng Laiyuan, spokesperson with the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). As external demand remains soft, the stabilization in China's economy is largely propped up by improving domestic demand, especially in the property and automobile sectors. China's industrial output growth slowed to 6.1 percent year on year in September, down from 6.3 percent in August, as weak global demand weighed on the world's largest trader in goods. Fixed-asset investment rose 8.2 percent in the first nine months of the year, while retail sales grew 10.7 percent year on year last month, marking a slight acceleration from August. Private investment rebounded after a lengthy poor streak while property investment continued to accelerate in September. As evidence that a rebalancing of China's economy from being investment-led to consumption-driven is well underway, consumption contributed to 71 percent of economic growth, up 13.3 percent year on year, while the tertiary sector grew 7.6 percent year on year in added value, the fastest among all sectors. Meanwhile, China's producer price deflation disappeared in September for the first time since early 2012, thanks to China's efforts to cut excess capacity and promote supply-side structural reforms, especially in steel and coal, Sheng said. The NBS said in a statement that the economy was in a critical period of transformation and upgrading, with old drivers of growth to be replaced by new ones, with many uncertain factors in the economy remaining, and that the foundations for sustained growth were not solid. Risks under control With GDP growth on track, the government has signaled a shift in policy focus away from stimulus and toward containing financial risks caused by easy credit. China's new lending boomed again in September with loans to households continuing to rapidly increase, official data showed Tuesday. This pointed to a positive sign for property and auto demand but added concerns that consumers were following the same high-leverage path as corporates. To deleverage the economy, the government rolled out a debt-for-equity swap program in early October to bring down the corporate leverage ratio, while over a dozen Chinese cities have introduced measures to cool overheated markets, which led to marked drops in sales. These steps gave rise to concerns whether the government could balance reducing debt with sustaining growth, as less leverage almost always means short-term slower economic activity. The property market restrictions are timely and effective and aim to stem speculative purchases while supporting real demand, with limited impact on the economy, Sheng said. This round of property tightening will unlikely drag down the headline growth as sharply as from 2010 onwards, as housing investment has remained lukewarm in the past few quarters despite soaring property prices, Zhou Hao, Senior EM Economist Asia with Commerzbank, said in a research note. While a drop in housing sales will add downward pressure on the economy, we do not really foresee a risk of sharp investment slowdown, and in the coming quarter China's monetary policy will be less aggressive than estimated, Zhou added. Expansionary fiscal policy is expected to be the major tools for the government to sustain economic growth, according to analyst estimates. There might be continued policy support mainly in the form of infrastructure and public private partnership project approvals, said Tom Rafferty, Asia Economist with the Intelligence Unit with the Economist. You are here: Home The Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft successfully completed its automated docking with the orbiting Tiangong-2 space lab at 3:31 a.m. Wednesday Beijing Time, according to Beijing Aerospace Control Center (BACC). Photo taken on Oct. 19, 2016 shows the screen at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center showing astronauts Jing Haipeng (R) and Chen Dong celebrating on the success of the automated docking between Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft and the space lab Tiangong-2. The Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft successfully completed its automated docking with the orbiting Tiangong-2 space lab Wednesday morning, according to Beijing Aerospace Control Center. (Xinhua/Ju Zhenhua) Shenzhou-11, which was launched Monday morning from northwest China's Gobi Desert, began to approach Tiangong-2 automatically at 1:11 a.m. Wednesday and made contact with the space lab at 3:24 a.m.. The rendezvous took place in the orbit about 393 kilometers above Earth. The two astronauts aboard Shenzhou-11, Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong, monitored and reported on the docking operation, relaying their findings to the control center. According to the mission schedule, once they enter the space module, the astronauts will stay there for 30 days. Shenzhou-11, China's sixth manned spacecraft, will undertake the longest-ever space mission in the country. The two astronauts will spend a total of 33 days in space. Sun Jun, deputy chief engineer of BACC, told Xinhua that the precision needed for the orbit prediction and automated docking calculation was much higher than previous docking missions. China is the third country, after the United States and Russia, to complete successfully space rendezvous and docking procedures. Tiangong-2 was sent into space on Sept. 15. It is hailed as China's first space lab "in the strict sense" and a key step in building a permanent space station, which the country aims to accomplish by 2020. After reading about numerous officials accused of bribery and other forms of corruption, the public is finally hearing from some of the disgraced officials themselves. An eight-part documentary being aired on national television provides a first full look inside their stories, including tearful expressions of regret and even surprise at their own actions, which brought them a posh life at the public's expense. At the same time, anti-corruption officials see it as a chance to showcase their work over the past four years, and as a cautionary tale for public servants. It also comes right before a high-level meeting expected to develop stricter rules for CPC members. "I never expected I would have such an ending," Zhou Benshun, 63, former top Party official of Hebei province, tells the camera. "I was brought up in a poor family. ... I hated corrupt officials since I was young, but I became one in the end." He was placed under investigation in October. Juicy details also are coming to light, such as bribes in the form of "gifts", like a jade bracelet worth 15 million yuan ($2.2 million) given to Bai Enpei, 70, a former top official in Yunnan province, in exchange for a piece of land. The series is being aired shortly before the Sixth Plenary Session of the Communist Party of China's 18th Central Committee. The meeting, to be held Monday through Oct 27, is expected to propose tougher rules for Party members in the form of two draft disciplinary documentsfor professional and personal conductto be submitted for discussion and approval. The series, produced by the CPC Central Committee for Discipline Inspection and the national television system CCTV, entitled Corruption Fight Is Always Underway, began airing nightly on Monday at 8 pm on CCTV-1. It features the cases of about 10 former provincial or ministerial-level officials and one former State leader, Su Rong, former vice-chairman of China's top political advisory body. The interviews were done while the former officials were detained but before any convictions. The cases of disgraced officials who held higher positions, from former State security chief Zhou Yongkang to former Central Military Commission officers Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou, are discussed, though they are not interviewed. Airing the series before a key national political meeting is "a good opportunity to tell good anti-graft stories and promote building a clean and honest government," said Hong Daode, a law professor at China University of Political Science and Law. Yang Weidong, a law professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, a school for training senior officials, said, "After watching the corrupt officials' stories, officials and CPC members will exchange their views on the lessons they will have to learn, and to regulate their own behavior according to the new rules." The series' production team visited 22 provinces and regions to gather information on more than 10 former top officials linked to more than 40 corruption changes. They also interviewed 70 experts from home and abroad as well as anti-graft officers to explain the cases and how they were handled. In the first episode, aired on Monday night, viewers heard from Bai, Zhou, and Li Chuncheng, former deputy Party chief of Sichuan province. In the second episode, screened on Tuesday, Wan Qingliang, former Party chief of Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong, and Gu Chunli, former vice-governor of Jilin province, told their stories. Bai, Li and Wan have been convicted, while Zhou and Gu await trial. The series has had a big impact. "After watching the TV series, we know how serious and complex the graft issues are, and (that) it's necessary for the government to carry out a continuous and persistent campaign to target corruption," said Li Wei, an anti-graft officer in Liaoning province. Zhang Li, a teacher at Beijing No 11 Middle School, said, "It's being shown to reflect the central leadership's resolute determination and the measures taken to fight corruption, which will leave no place for the corrupt suspects to hide and escape." Since November 2012, when the new leadership took office, anti-corruption has become a top priority, and President Xi Jinping has launched a sweeping campaign to target both high- and low-ranking officials. Over 140 senior corrupt officials have been investigated over graft issues, according to the CCDI. You are here: Home Xi Xiaoming, former vice president of the Supreme People's Court (SPC), and Gu Chunli, former vice governor in Northeast China's Jilin province, have been indicted for taking bribes, the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) said on Tuesday. The SPP has designated Tianjin and Harbin procuratorates to initiate prosecution against Xi and Gu respectively. According to the indictments, Xi and Gu both took advantage of their posts to seek benefits for others and accepted a huge amount in bribes. Prosecutors have informed Xi and Gu of their litigation rights, questioned the defendants, and listened to representations from their lawyers, according to a statement from the SPP. You are here: Home A former senior official in north China's Shanxi Province was sentenced to 15 years in prison for accepting bribes amounting nearly 45 million yuan (6.68 million U.S. dollars) by a court in Jiangsu Province on Wednesday. Personal assets worth 4 million yuan belonging to Nie Chunyu, former secretary-general of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Shanxi Provincial Committee, were confiscated, according to a statement from Nantong City Intermediate People's Court. His ill-gotten gains must be turned over to the state, the court ruled. Nie was found guilty of taking advantage of his positions to seek profits for others in promotion of officials, job transfers or corporate development between 2004 and 2013, it said. The court issued a lesser punishment as Nie admitted his crimes and voluntarily turned over his illicit gains. Nie was ousted from the CPC in February 2015 after an internal probe found he had accepted bribes and committed adultery. You are here: Home President Xi Jinping on Wednesday called for greater cooperation between the military and civilian sectors to contribute more to the dream of building strong armed forces. Xi made the remarks when visiting an exhibition on the high-technology achievements resulting from military and civilian cooperation. Bai Yun, a former senior official in north China's Shanxi Province, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for accepting bribes amounting to 17.81 million yuan (2.64 million U.S. dollars) by a court in Jiangsu Province on Wednesday. Personal assets worth 2 million yuan belonging to Bai, former member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Shanxi Provincial Committee, were confiscated, according to the verdict by the Nantong City Intermediate People's Court. Her ill-gotten gains must be turned over to the state, the court ruled. The court found that Bai, also former head of the United Front Work Department of the provincial committee of the CPC, took advantage of her various positions to seek profits for others in corporate restructuring, contracting projects, and job promotions and transfers between 2004 and 2013. The court issued a lesser punishment as Bai admitted her crimes and voluntarily turned over her illicit gains. Bai was expelled from the CPC in February 2015 after an internal Party investigation found she had accepted bribes. Also on Wednesday, the court sentenced Nie Chunyu, former secretary-general of the provincial committee of the CPC, to 15 years in prison for accepting bribes. A worker checks steel product files at a cold rolling mill of Tangsteel Group Ltd in Tangshan, Hebei province. [Photo/China Daily] Soon after Chinese Vice-Premier Ma Kai took part in a high-level economic dialogue with European Union officials three years ago, Beijing and Brussels reached an amicable solution to end their dispute over China's solar panel exports to Europe that had almost frozen bilateral relations for a year. With that obstacle removed, they entered into talks on opening their markets to investments by the other. Soon after the dispute was settled, Xi Jinping made the first visit ever by a Chinese president to the European Union's Brussels headquarters. These developments established a solid foundation for Beijing and the EU to forge closer ties. But when Ma returned to Brussels to attend a new round of the high-level economic dialogue between the EU and China in Brussels on Tuesday, he faced the challenge that the problem-plagued EU is once again getting tough on access to its market. And this despite the fact that bilateral trade now stands at $1 billion dollars a day. As much trade is now done in seven hours with one EU country Belgium as it took a whole year to achieve 45 years ago. A number of issues are expected to be discussed during this week's talks. Both sides set an end of year deadline to come up with an agreed text after 12 rounds of negotiations. But, even with the best efforts of both sides, it will not be easy to find a compromise on the issue of market access within that timeframe. There is also the issue of over-capacity in the global steel industry. The EU position, reinforced by lobbyists and industry groups, is as tough as it was in the dispute over solar panels. This year, steelworkers from around the EU took to the streets of Brussels to demand greater protection for their ailing industry. Their complaints against foreign imports have to be set against the fact that expensively run European plants also bear a share of the blame for what is a global problem. Since China embarked on its economic miracle decades ago, much European capacity in steel-making has moved to China. Brussels should stop blaming Beijing for the problems, and work with it to find a solution. China has been making its contribution to solving the issue by reducing its steel capacity, which has led to a rising number of lay-offs in the domestic steel industry. Also at the conference table, the two sides will not be able to avoid the topic of China's market economy status as Dec 11 is very close. After that day, in line with a World Trade Organization agreement, Brussels should no longer charge anti-dumping duties against Chinese exports to the EU on the basis of China's non-market status, since the transitional period of 15 years since China joined the WTO is over. Beijing insists that the matter is non-negotiable, but so far Brussels has not offered a solution. Voices within the European institutions recently started commenting that the market economy issue is "not a technical but a political" one at a time when the EU is facing an existential crisis that challenges its political unity. Within the context of the rule-based international community, it is maybe time for Brussels to show political wisdom and respect the WTO agreement. Ideally, it would send such a message in the talks with Ma. And then, Brussels and Beijing could renew harmonious relations at a number of levels. The author is deputy chief of China Daily European Bureau. Flash The Syrian army said on Tuesday that it will deal decisively with Islamic State (IS) terrorists fleeing Iraq's Mosul city into Syria, according to the state news agency SANA. Mosul, an IS stronghold, has been under extensive attack by the Iraqi army in order to drive out IS militants. Although the military statement hailed the progress made by Iraq's army "heroes" against the IS, it warned of a "Western scheme, whose features have started to become obvious." The scheme, the statement continued, is for IS militants to obtain access from Mosul into Syria' eastern region, mainly the province of Deir al-Zour by Iraq's border. "While the general-command of the Syrian army stresses that the battle to liberate Mosul from terrorism is its battle too, it will deem any infiltration of the Syrian borders as an aggression and will deal with the infiltrators as terrorists with all possible means," the statement said. Military experts in Syria have recently warned that Western countries, mainly the United States, want IS militants to flee Iraq into Syria. This comes particularly after the U.S.-led anti-terror coalition attacked Syrian military posts recently, killing 90 soldiers and allowing IS militants to control bombed military posts in Deir al-Zour. Officials in Syria said the U.S. intends for IS to remain strong in Deir al-Zour and for the province to become a safe haven for IS militants fleeing Iraq in order to pressure the Syrian army and its Russian ally. Flash Turkey joined airstrikes by the U.S.-led coalition during the operation to retake Mosul from the Islamic State (IS), Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Tuesday. Speaking at the Justice and Development Party's parliamentary group meeting in Ankara, Yildirim said "Our Air Forces have also participated in airstrikes in Mosul." He stated that Turkey would do "everything necessary" against all kinds of threats and did not need permission from others,local Hurriyet reported. The prime minister also warned that Ankara would respond if developments in Mosul lead to negative consequences against Turkey. Turkish Pesident Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at the International Law Congress on Monday that Turkey will take part in operations and it will be coming to the diplomatic table in the aftermath. Erdogan stressed that Turkey has a 350-kilometer border with Iraq, and therefore the country cannot be expected to remain impartial to developments right across the border. He also warned against the danger of sectarian clashes if Ankara's concerns are not taken into consideration. Ankara has been locked in a row with Baghdad about the presence of its troops at the Bashiqa camp in northern Iraq and over who should take part in the U.S.-backed assault on Mosul. You are here: Home Flash Saudi Interior Ministry announced on Tuesday the execution of a Saudi prince for shooting to death a Saudi citizen, Saudi Press Agency reported. Prince Turki bin Saud bin Turki bin Saud Al Kabeer killed a Saudi national during a fight between a group of people four years ago. Death penalty is the punishment for various crimes in Saudi Arabia that follow Islamic regulations in almost all walks of life. Murder, terrorism and drug-related crimes are mainly penalized with capital punishment. The Interior Ministry spokesperson told the press that the executions that are done through the sword or shooting are carried out inside prisons. Flash U.S. drone strikes killed about seven members of the Yemen-based al-Qaeda offshoot in the country's southeastern province of Shabwa on Tuesday, a military official told Xinhua. The military source said on condition of anonymity that three vehicles carrying al-Qaida members were struck by U.S. drone raids while traveling in a mountainous area of Shabwa province. Initial reports indicated that more than seven al-Qaida members were killed and others left injured, the source said. Local residents told Xinhua that suspected al-Qaida gunmen launched an armed attack on a military checkpoint in Shabwa hours before the U.S. airstrikes. At least three army personnel were killed and two others injured as a result of the al-Qaida attack, the residents said. Yemen, an impoverished Arab country, has been gripped by one of the most active regional al-Qaida insurgencies in the Middle East. The Yemen-based al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), also known locally as Ansar al-Sharia, emerged in Jan. 2009. It had claimed responsibility for a number of terrorist attacks on Yemen's army and government institutions. U.S. drones have been active over Yemeni cities since years ago, launching hundreds of airstrikes that killed scores of al-Qaida leaders and many other extremists. The Arab country has recently seen a growing number of al-Qaida activities in eastern and southern provinces, due to the prolonged security vacuum resulting from the 19-month civil war between the exiled government and Houthi rebels who seized much of the country's north, including capital Sanaa, since 2014. The UN figures show that the military conflict has left more than 6,400 dead, displaced thousands, leading to a catastrophic humanitarian crisis. Flash Radical anti-Islam groups are beginning to pose a significant threat to Australia's national security, the country's head of intelligence said overnight. The Australian Security Intelligence Organization's (ASIO) director general, Duncan Lewis said the fast rise of the radical far-right group Reclaim Australia was of particular interest to the nation's top security agencies. Lewis said following the first arrest of one of the group's members under new far-right counter-terror laws earlier this year, ASIO has started to monitor the activity of the anti-Islam group more closely. "(If) there is a possibility of violence, or there is indeed violence being offered, that is of interest to us," Lewis told a Senate committee overnight. Reclaim Australia is a self-described patriot group which has been involved in a number of violent protests about the construction of Mosques in Australia, as well as the rise of Muslim immigration. When asked if the group posed any threat to Australian citizens, Lewis said: "Yes it is, but I wouldn't describe it as going up in any vertical way. It's come off a low base and it's now more present than it was." Meanwhile Lewis added that ASIO was investigating up to 200 people who were actively supporting terror groups such as Islamic State (IS). He said there were about 110 Australians also currently fighting for IS in Iraq and Syria. "The threat of terrorism in Australia is real and present in our community," he said. "It requires vigilance by both the Australian community and abroad, and governments of all levels to continue to combat it." Flash No charges would be filed against two police officers who fired 56 unanswered rounds and killed an armed father and son in East Baltimore earlier this year, prosecutors said on Tuesday. "We have concluded that there is no legal basis to charge these officers, who appear to have prevented even further violence on the streets of Baltimore," prosecutors wrote in an email to the Baltimore Sun newspaper. The shooting occurred at the end of March when the two policemen, who were on unmarked patrol with another police officer, saw Matthew V. Wood, 43, and Kimani Johnson, 18, drive into the block near a playground and emerge from a vehicle with weapons. The police said they believed the father and son were poised to shoot a group of people across the street, though after the gunfire police determined the dual had not fired any shots. The third officer at the scene didn't fire his weapons. Tawanda Johnson, Kimani's mother, said in a phone interview with the newspaper on Tuesday that she had not been told that prosecutors had declined to charge the officers and felt upset with the decision and an overall lack of information provided about the case. "They wouldn't shoot a stray dog 56 times," she said. "They shot my son as if he meant nothing." An autopsy showed Johnson was shot 12 times, in his body, arms, legs and head. Wood was struck eight times, also in the body, arms, legs and head. The third officer who did not fire, Reginald Jones, told police investigators that the officers had been in the area due to violence and drug complaints when they saw Wood open the driver's side door and emerge with a rifle in his lap. But Kimani's mother argued that the fact that Jones did not fire "says to me his life was not in jeopardy". "Something is fishy. It's been fishy from day one." she lamented. The police report said there were "several" CCTV cameras in the surrounding area but they captured "nothing of evidentiary value." The dead father was found with an assault rifle loaded with 25 rounds, while Johnson had a 9 mm Ruger handgun loaded with seven rounds, according to the police, adding that both of them had gun charges on their record. The two police officers have already returned to full duty, though an internal review of the case is still pending, said the Baltimore Sun report. One of them, Sgt. Joseph Wiczulis, has been involved in two previous fatal shootings since 2010, including an incident in which he shot a man who had shot two officers. In 2013, he also shot and killed a 25-year-old man with a handgun. He was also cleared of criminal wrongdoing in both cases. Despite the increased tensions between police and black communities across the country in recent years, charges against officers remain rare, with prosecutors affirming police actions, said the report. Baltimore City officers so far have shot nine people this year, killing four of them. Six cases remain under review by the Baltimore State's Attorney's Office. Flash One person was killed and four others injured in an explosion at a South Korean chemical factory in the southern inland city of Gumi, local media reported on Wednesday. Police and fire department were quoted as saying that a fire broke out at a factory of Star Chemical following an explosion at around 9:21 a.m. local time (0021 GMT). The plant is located in the Gumi industrial complex in North Gyeongsang province. The fire was extinguished about 40 minutes after it broke out thanks to some 20 fire trucks and 140 personnel that were dispatched to the scene. Among five workers at the scene, one sustained a heavy injury and was taken to a nearby hospital, but he finally passed away while being treated. Four others suffered minor injuries. The explosion happened while workers were demolishing raw material tanks at the factory set to be shut down. Initial indications suggested that the fire was caused by an oxygen tank's explosion. Star Chemical has reportedly been out of business since January 2013 to get procedure for liquidation. Police and fire department are still investigating the cause of the accident. A series of major measures will be adopted in an effort to further revitalize the slowing economy in Northeast China, especially as the region's pillar industries are cutting production capacity and private investment has dropped. The measures were in two support documents, including the 13th Five-Year Plan for Revitalizing Northeast China, approved by the central government on Tuesday at the second meeting of the Leading Group for Revitalizing Northeast China and Other Old Industrial Bases. The meeting was presided over by Premier Li Keqiang. The documents aim to boost local economies and private investment in Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces and the eastern part of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region. Details of the documents were not immediately available. The region was vital to the country's establishment of a complete industrial system, but it has relied on heavy industries such as steel and coal mining, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. As the country cuts overcapacity in industries that pollute heavily, GDP growth in Liaoning and Heilongjiang during the first eight months has been below the national average. The National Development and Reform Commission has announced plans for 127 major projects for the region, at a cost of 1.6 trillion yuan ($237.3 billion), to boost local economies. Premier Li urged local governments to stabilize investment and consumption. The region should also promote the service sector, including tourism and cultural events, to cultivate new areas for growth, he said. Negative lists for corporate investment and market access will be established in the region, while reforms of State-owned enterprises will be conducted to boost private investment and raise confidence in a vigorous recovery of the local economy, Li added. To attract and keep private investment, Li also called on local governments to make further efforts to improve the business environment by streamlining administrative procedures and strengthening governmental services. Private investment in Northeast China has declined sharply, with that in Liaoning decreasing by 58 percent in the first half of the year. At the meeting, the premier pledged support for resource-exhausted cities to upgrade local economies, and he encouraged the region to cooperate with rapidly growing provinces in southern China. The region's economic slowdown stems from a worsening business environment and a lack of vitality for enterprises, said Nie Huihua, vice-president of the National Academy of Development and Strategy at Renmin University of China. The nation's new yuan loans in September were largely supported by an increase in mortgage lending, but the contribution is expected to decline with tightened policies introduced in the property sector, economists said. Chinese banks issued 1.22 trillion yuan ($181 billion) in new yuan loans in September, up from 948.7 billion yuan in August, according to data released on Tuesday by the People's Bank of China, the central bank. New housing loans issued to individuals stood at 475.9 billion yuan, according to Ruan Jianhong, head of the statistics and analysis department at PBOC. In the first three quarters, China's new housing loans to individuals rose to 3.63 trillion yuan, or 35.7 percent of new loans, said Ruan. "The high proportion of new household lending has to do with the booming housing markets, asset allocation preferences of residents and financial institutions, said Ruan. China's booming housing market has seen a surge in trading volume, especially in first- and second-tier cities, according to Ruan. The release of the data came after Zhou Xiaochuan, the central bank's governor, said at a G20 meeting in Washington this month that China would rein in excessive credit growth. Zhou said the government has been "paying attention" to rising property prices and will take steps to promote the real estate market's "healthy development". Wang Youxin, an economist at the Institute of International Finance, a think tank affiliated with the Bank of China, said that the cooling measures would curb a sharp increase in credit growth. Zhao Yang, chief China economist with Nomura Holdings, said the tightened policy introduced earlier this month to restrict purchases would reduce the demand for mortgage loans. Yao Yudong, former head of the Research Institute of Finance and Banking of the central bank, said further monetary easing is not very likely. An employee works on the nose of a Boeing Co 737 MAX airplane on the production line at the company's manufacturing facility in Renton, Washington. [Photo/Bloomberg] Boeing Co will reveal the location of its first overseas B737 completion center in China by the end of the year, as it expands its industrial footprint in the world's fastest growing aviation market, the US aircraft manufacturer said on Tuesday. Zhoushan, a city in Zhejiang province near Shanghai, already sent its plan for the Boeing facility to the State Council after preparing for the program for more than two years, Shanghai Securities News reported. Other cities including Shenyang in Liaoning province and Xi'an in Shaanxi province, have also expressed their hope to host the new facility, with local government support. Boeing Co and Commercial Aircraft Corp of China, signed an agreement last September to jointly establish a Boeing 737 completion center in China, after President Xi Jinping's visit in the Seattle area, home to the headquarters of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The center, which will be joint venture of the two, will cover completion activities including cabin installation, painting and flight testing. "The center will deliver 100 planes every year, and our team is ready for the work wherever the center is," said Ian Chang, vice-president of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, who is responsible for China operations and business development. "The growth potential of the aviation market in China and the Asia-Pacific region is huge, we may expand the facility in the future, and manufacture aircraft besides 737, to serve other Asian customers besides China." By 2018, Boeing plans to produce 74 jets a month, jumping 70 percent compared to its production of 44 commercial airplanes per month in 2011, the company said. "The facility will help Boeing to increase its output of 737 aircraft, and support the growth of China's aviation market, where it is the largest for single-aisle airplanes," Chang said. "We will cooperate with more Chinese interior suppliers, and help them to raise their capabilities and competences, from raw materials to assembly." Cofco Meat Holdings Ltd, the Chinese mainland pork producer part-owned by KKR & Co, is seeking to raise as much as $333 million in a Hong Kong initial public offering. The State-backed company is offering 975.6 million shares at HK$2 (25 US cents) to HK$2.65 apiece, according to terms for the deal that were obtained by Bloomberg on Monday. Haier Group Corp agreed to buy $57.4 million of stock as the biggest cornerstone investor in the offering, the terms show. Investors are returning to the Chinese food industry after a series of safety scandals that shook consumer confidence. Shares of WH Group Ltd, the Chinese mainland owner of the Smithfield bacon brand, have risen 56 percent in Hong Kong trading this year, outpacing the 5.2 percent gain in the city's benchmark Hang Seng Index. KKR, Baring Private Equity Asia, Hopu Investment Management Co and Boyu Capital bought stakes in Cofco Meat in 2014, according to a pre-listing filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Hopu sold its interest in the company last year to Singapore state investment firm Temasek Holdings Pte, the filing shows. Cofco Meat follows Dali Foods Group Co, the maker of "Copico" brand potato chips, and seasoning producer Yihai International Holding Ltd in pursuing a Hong Kong listing to fund expansion. First-time share sales in the city have raised $19.1 billion this year, down from $21.1 billion during the same period in 2015, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Other cornerstone investors in the Cofco Meat offering include China Life Insurance Co, which agreed to purchase $20 million of shares, the terms show. China Life Franklin Asset Management Co will invest $10 million, according to the terms. Such stock buyers agree to keep their holdings for six months in return for early, guaranteed allocation. The company plans to price the offering on Oct 24 and begin trading on Nov 1, the terms show. BLOOMBERG A view from street level looking up at the Lloyds Building, Tower 42 and The Gherkin, in London's City business district known as the square mile. [Photo / IC] Chinese outbound real estate investment has slowed down, and Chinese enterprises now tend to invest in global gateway cities which have good infrastructure. According to property consultancy Knight Frank, the outbound investment in the real estate market was $10.7 billion in the first half of this year, a 13.6 percent drop from the same period of last year. Because of increased uncertainties in the global real estate market, 84 percent of the money has been invested in New York, London, Sydney, Melbourne, and Hong Kong. During the same period last year, the figure was 42 percent. The US remains the top destination for Chinese capital, having attracted $5.1 billion in the first half of 2016, an increase of 21 percent year-on-year, Knight Frank's executive director Paul Hart said. The Brexit vote has not scared off Chinese investors. In the first half of this year, $1.7 billion in Chinese capital outflows went to the UK property market, soaring 75 percent from the same period last year, according to Paul Hart. Although Chinese capital outflows into the Hong Kong property market saw a 9 percent drop to $1.68 billion in the first six months of this year, the city is still hot destination for Chinese investors. Moreover, Chinese property investment in Australia also fell 37 percent to $1.7billion in the first half of this year. PHNOM PENH - Cambodia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on agricultural development with a Chinese company from East China's Shandong province on Wednesday. The deal was inked between Veng Sakhon, Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery, and Shen Chen, chairman of Tian Rui (Cambodia) Agricultural Cooperation Special Economic Zone. Shen said the company has planned to invest about $2 billion in developing a 300-hectare Special Economic Zone in western Kampong Speu province, in which storage facilities, packaging factories, and processing factories for agricultural products will be built. "Under the MoU, the company will update the ministry about the types of agricultural products that are in high demand in Chinese market, so the ministry can advise farmers to grow those kinds of crops and sell them to our company," he told reporters after the signing ceremony. He said the firm would also cooperate with the ministry to establish an Agricultural Research and Development Center and a Center for Sanitary and Phytosanitary Control. Shen added that the company would try to attract more Chinese enterprises to invest in agricultural processing factories in its special economic zone. Meanwhile, Veng Sakhon said the cooperation between the ministry and the company would contribute to developing Cambodian agriculture under the framework of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative. "The company will also help boost the exports of Cambodian agricultural products to international markets, particularly Chinese market," he said. British Airways' iconic planes will not be seen in Chengdu, China, after January. [STEFAN WERMUTH/REUTERS] British Airways is suspending its regular London to Chengdu flight in January after having tested the waters for three years, despite booming numbers of people traveling between the UK and China. A BA spokeswoman confirmed the news to China Daily on Tuesday. "We have a proud tradition of flying to China but, despite operating this route for three years, it is not commercially viable," she said, requesting anonymity. The final service from Heathrow will be on Jan 12 and the last BA fl ight out of Chengdu will be on Jan 13. BA added the London-Chengdu flight in 2013, initially flying the route five times a week. It reduced the service to three fl ights a week in 2014. Meanwhile, BA also flies from London directly to Hong Kong and also to Shanghai and Beijing. The company's announcement came at a time when Chinese airlines are adding new flights to London, fuelled by growing visitor numbers. The latest additions were made in June, when Tianjin Airlines launched a flight between Tianjin and London's Gatwick airport that stops in Chongqing. Hainan Airlines also added a direct flight between Beijing and Manchester. Chinese airlines expressed immediate interest last week when Britain's Department of Transport announced a deal with its Chinese counterpart that means each country can authorize up to 100 flights a week, compared to 40 previously. Restrictions on destinations have also been lifted. Hainan Airlines said last week it would consider increasing the frequency of its Manchester flights while considering new flights between second-tier Chinese cities and London. Tianjin Airlines also welcomed the agreement. Paul Argyle, managing director of Flight Directors, an aviation industry sales and marketing company, said Chinese airlines have an advantage because traveler number growth is originating from China, as opposed to the UK. "More Chinese visitors are wanting to visit the UK than UK visitors wanting to visit China, so Chinese airlines enjoy a brand advantage, because Chinese visitors are already familiar with their brands," Argyle said. He added that the important thing to note about BA's statement is that, with the Chengdu route considered to be unviable commercially, the airline is now free to use those landing slots to fl y to more profitable locations. Currently, landing slots are hard to get because Heathrow is operating close to its capacity. The industry is awaiting the UK government's delayed decision on whether to add another runway at one of the capital's airports, boosting capacity. Argyle added that another factor that would have made Chengdu less profitable for BA was its lack of a local partner airline there that could participate in its One World Alliance. In comparison, BA passengers flying to Shanghai and Beijing can more easily connect to other destinations through partner airlines, making those destinations more attractive. According to statistics from VisitBritain, the official tourism board, more than 1 million passengers traveled between Britain and China last year, an 11 percent increase on 2014. Last year, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Britain grew by 40 percent. Sino-Russia relations are mature and stable and will not be weakened by particular incidents or temporary factors, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said while answering questions from Itar-Tass on the sidelines of the "Two Sessions" on Tuesday. "The China-Russia relationship is mature and stable. Our comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination is built on a solid foundation of mutual support and mutual trust," Wang said. "The two sides have a strong desire to strengthen win-win cooperation. The relationship can pass the test of any international development and will not be weakened by any particular incidents." Regarding the five meetings between President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2015 as setting the tone for bilateral cooperation, Wang said the countries are making progress in various projects, including the eastern route of the natural gas pipeline. "China and Russia have strong economic complementarities and a significant desire to work with each other," Wang said and he wishes to turn the countries' "strong political relations into more fruits of practical cooperation". Russia opposes actions "internationalizing the South China Sea issue" and favors direct negotiation between the countries involved, as China aims to uphold "the authority of the law" by rejecting unilateral arbitration. The show of support came as a tribunal at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague prepares to issue a ruling, expected in late Mayor early June, in Manila's sovereignty case against China. The tribunal was established in 2014 at Manila's request, and China has rejected the arbitration process since the request was filed. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, while meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Moscow on Monday, said Moscow supports direct negotiation by countries directly involved to resolve disputes. According to a Foreign Ministry media release on Tuesday, Wang told Lavrov that Beijing's rejection of the Philippines' unilaterally proposed arbitration case is a move meant to "uphold the dignity and authority of the law". "Both China and Russia should remain alert against behavior abusing the mechanism of compulsory arbitration," said Wang, who visited Moscow to attend the 14th meeting of foreign ministers of China, Russia and India. On Monday, Wang said China is "entitled to choose by itself, in accordance with relevant laws, ways for resolving disputes". Reuters noted that the court has no powers of enforcement and its rulings have been ignored before. Wu Shicun, president of the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, said that the tribunal "has triggered concerns over it assertively expanding its realm of jurisdiction as well as its impartiality". Wu said the Philippines and Western supporters, including the United States, are attempting to force China into a corner, and the disputes "will not be resolved by the arbitration, but will flare up and worsen". Reuters and Xinhua contributed to this story. zhangyunbi@chinadaily.com.cn A number of key political documents and cooperative documents will be signed by China and Russia during Russian President Vladimir Putin's upcoming visit to China, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Monday. Putin will pay a state visit to China on Saturday at the invitation of President Xi Jinping, the ministry spokesman Lu Kang announced in a press release earlier. This will be Putin's fourth visit to China since taking office as president in May 2012. According to Hua, Putin will hold talks with Xi. The two sides will exchange views on bilateral ties as well as regional and international issues of common concern. They will also make arrangements on the future development and priority cooperation fields of the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries. During the meeting, the two leaders will sign and announce a number of key political documents and witness the signing of a series of cooperative documents between the two countries' departments and enterprises. In Beijing, Putin will also meet with Premier Li Keqiang and National People's Congress Standing Committee Chairman Zhang Dejiang. This year marks the 15th anniversary of the Sino-Russian Good-Neighborly Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation, and events will be held by both sides to celebrate this anniversary, the spokeswoman said. "China expects Putin's visit to further consolidate the political and strategic trust between China and Russia, to promote practical cooperation in various fields, to inject new impetus to the bilateral strategic partnership and making more contribution to global and regional peace, security and stability," Hua said. A man stands near a vehicle on display at the Hyundai Motor Co booth during the press day of the Seoul Motor Show in Goyang, South Korea, March 28, 2013.[Photo/VCG] South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co said two new factories in China will produce more environmentally friendly vehicles and models targeting the world's biggest auto market, as the automaker strives to fend off growing competition from Chinese rivals. Hyundai said in a statement on Tuesday it has completed its latest Chinese plant, its fourth, in Cangzhou, Hebei province, and will open another one in Chongqing next year. The addition of the two plantseach with annual production capacity of 300,000will lift the total number of vehicles it can make in China, its biggest market, by about half to 1.81 million a year. The focus on green cars is part of a new Hyundai strategy for China. The automaker, which ranks third in China sales together with affiliate Kia Motors, has seen its market share fall to 8.9 percent last yeara seven-year lowfrom 10.4 percent a year earlier as Chinese rivals lured away customers. "We will accelerate our efforts to achieve a market share of more than 10 percent again with the opening of Cangzhou factory," Hyundai said. It didn't disclose how much it's investing in the new plants. The South Korean duo will have total production capacity in China of 2.7 million vehicles once Kia's 890,000 capacity is counted in. Hyundai said it aims to produce nine green vehicles in China by 2020, targeting 10 percent of its sales in the country by that year, to meet fuel economy regulations and compete with Chinese automakers, which dominate the segment. The automaker said the new plants will build models of varying sizes to compete with low-cost Chinese rivals. As part of its new strategy, Hyundai will boost the number of China dealerships to 1,400 by 2020, from 1,000 currently. It also plans to secure dealers in southwestern regions and small cities. REUTERS A Chinese mobile phone user uses the taxi-hailing and car-service app Didi Chuxing on his Apple iPhone smartphone in Jinan city, East China's Shandong province, Feb 22, 2015. [Photo/IC] China's largest online car-hailing platform Didi Chuxing announced on Wednesday that it had signed a strategic partnership agreement with travel site TripAdvisor (China), to gear up its expansion in travel offerings. The partnership targets visitors who want to enjoy convenient travel experiences, aiming at establishing a full service ecosystem covering travel information, scheduling and car-hailing services. To implement the partnership, Didi and TripAdvisor will build offline Didi stations at up to 100 five-star hotels, mainly chosen by TripAdvisor. These stations will be located in destination cities with high demand for car-hailing services, directly connecting hotels with tourist attractions. "Didi looks forward to integrating its smart transportation capabilities with robust high-demand travel scenarios to create a more seamless mobility experience for our users, especially when they travel in unfamiliar cities in China," said Yang Jun, vice president at Didi Chuxing. Zhu Ming, vice president for Strategic Partnership and Account Management at TripAdvisor China, said: "As a world leading travel site, TripAdvisor has unparalleled access to information and reviews about everything a traveler would care about. We are delighted to work with DiDi to make it even easier for travelers to discover popular cities in China." As a one-stop travel platform covering more than 400 cities in China, the Beijing-based Didi Chuxing offers services in different fields, including taxi hailing, private cars, enterprise solutions, hitch and test drive. According to its official website, TripAdvisor has 350 million average monthly unique visitors, reaching 385 million reviews and opinions covering 6.6 million accommodations, restaurants and attractions. In the future, the two companies will jointly introduce more specific car-hailing products, catering to individuals' customized needs. The booming internet economy is playing an increasingly important role in supporting wealth growth in China's IT industry, according to a report released on Tuesday. According to the annual Hurun IT Rich List, the average wealth of the top 50 Chinese IT tycoons hit a record, surging 13 percent year-on-year to 26.9 billion yuan ($4 billion). Jack Ma, founder and executive chairman of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd topped the ranking of China's richest IT people for the third consecutive year, defending his position against rivals including Tencent Holdings Ltd founder Pony Ma. Jack Ma and his family's total wealth in IT industry was 195 billion yuan, followed by Pony Ma, whose wealth increased by 30 percent year-on-year to 134 billion yuan, according to the Shanghai-based Hurun Research Institute. Due to the rapid growth of the online gaming sector, NetEase Inc founder Ding Lei doubled his wealth to 96 billion yuan, surpassing Baidu Inc Chairman Robin Li and ranking third in the IT rich list. Hurun Chairman Rupert Hoogewerf said: "Those entrepreneurs should be called 'super wealth creators' instead of simply 'rich people', which could highlight their contribution to China's society and economy. They've created such a lot of opportunities and jobs." "The recent technological explosion provides a better environment for those IT tycoons. In the last two to three years, several technologies have seen breakthroughs, including artificial intelligence, virtual reality and cloud technology. Some have already been integrated into our daily lives, while others will soon be implemented," said Zhao Ziming, an analyst at internet consultancy Analysys. Compared with an average age of 45, 52-year-old Jack Ma is the oldest among the top 10 IT tycoons. Among the top 50 IT tycoons, five were born in the 1980s, including 33-year-old Cheng Wei, chief executive officer of Beijing-based Didi Chuxing. The TCL booth at a mobile phone expo in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province.[Photo/China Daily] BUENOS AIRES - Chinese electronics giant TCL Corporation plans to invest $100 million in Argentina over the next 12 months, Argentina's government announced on Tuesday. The announcement followed a meeting between Argentine President Mauricio Macri and the CEO of TCL, Li Dongsheng, at the presidential headquarters and residence in Argentina's capital Buenos Aires. "TCL Corporation, based out of Huizhou, in Guangdong province, is one of the largest firms in its field, producing mobile phones, televisions and home appliances, among other consumer goods," according to a news item posted on the presidential website. "The goal is to build a joint venture with an Argentine company to expand its presence in the country's electronics market," the government said. Founded in 1981, TCL began as a manufacturer and seller of telephones and related equipment, but its business expanded into other areas in the 1990s. Today, the TCL employs more than 75,000 people in 80 countries. In Argentina, it has been working with local company Radio Victoria Fueguina since 2004. The announcement comes amid increasing cooperation between Buenos Aires and Beijing, whose ties are at the level of a comprehensive strategic partnership. Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei, for example, has made significant headway in Argentina's market. In July, Macri met with the head of Huawei, Sun Yafang, who announced the company's intention to "expand its presence" in Argentina. The following month, Huawei opened a Training Center in Buenos Aires, from which the company offers its services to telecom operators, government agencies, educational institutions and private firms in the country and the region. Located in the city's southern Puerto Madero district, the 1,300-square-meter facility features one of Huawei's signature Customer Solution Innovation & Integration Experience Centers, or CSICs. "The inauguration of the Training Center drew company clients, suppliers and employees, as well as the ministers of Modernization, Andres Ibarra, and Communications, Oscar Aguad; China's ambassador to Argentina, Yang Wanming, and his Argentine counterpart in China, Diego Guelar," financial daily Cronista Comercial reported on the event on Aug 17. Throughout 2016, China has consolidated its position as Argentina's second-largest trade partner worldwide, with a 13 percent increase in imports from Argentina, thanks to a wider range of goods and a more balanced trade structure. A former police chief, who was involved in a high-profile case in which a teenager was wrongfully convicted, was sentenced on Tuesday to 18 years in prison on four criminal charges, a court in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region said. Feng Zhiming, the ex-deputy director of the public security bureau in Hohhot, the region's capital, was handed the sentence for bribery, embezzlement, illegal possession of firearms and holding a large amount of undeclared assets, according to a judgment released by the regional Hulunbuir Intermediate People's Court via its micro blog. Feng was also fined 1.1 million yuan ($163,000), the judgment said. It said that Feng abused his work post in the bureau between 2008 and 2014 to benefit 13 departments and individuals, and then accepted money in return. He and his wife sold real estate worth more than 3.8 million yuan at above-market value during the same period, and he could not clarify how he had come to own more than 34 million yuan worth of property, it said. He was also found guilty of illegally possessing four firearms and 549 rounds of ammunition, and selling a State-owned car worth 150,000 yuan, it added. The case received wide attention in the public and the legal industry, as Feng headed the investigation into Hugjiltu, a teenager who was wrongfully convicted about two decades ago. Before standing trial on Aug 1, he was accused of dereliction of duty, "but it's a pity that the charge was not proved in the judgment," said Zhao Li, a criminal lawyer from Jingshi Law Firm in Beijing. Hugjiltu was executed quickly after he was sentenced to death for rape and murder in 1996. He was declared innocent in December 2014 and his sentence was announced as a wrongful conviction. In Zhao's view, the court did not confirm that Feng's dereliction of duty attributed to insufficient evidence, "because proving the police officer tortured in interrogations or made mistakes in the investigation was difficult". But the lawyer said: "The difficulty does not mean that we will stop blaming those responsible for judicial miscarriages, or arguing against the torture that mainly brought wrongful convictions." "The penalty for the former chief may comfort the teenager's family to some extent and seems to give some sort of explanation to the public, but the way to reduce legal mistakes for judicial bodies is still difficult," he said. He suggested that it is effective to regulate the ways that police officers can collect evidence. caoyin@chinadaily.com.cn A court in Central China's Hunan province has accepted a case filed by 27 firework manufacturers against the provincial government for refusing their administrative review request over a government decision to shut down their factories. The intermediate people's court in the provincial capital, Changsha, said the decision complies with the law, adding that the two sides could visit the court's website for updates on the case, according to a written notification the companies disclosed on Sunday. All 46 firework manufacturers in Qidong county were shut down in December last year after the Hengyang city government, which has jurisdiction over Qidong, issued a notification in October 2014 to shut down all firework manufacturers in the city within three years. However, the Qidong government only agreed to pay 30 percent of the value of the manufacturers' facilities, forcing 39 companies to turn to administrative review. Chen Junming, legal representative for Shenghua Firework, said the company's annual production was estimated to be worth 60 million yuan ($8.9 million) before it was shut down, adding that the government only promised to pay compensation of about 4.8 million yuan, despite the manufacturer's facilities being worth about 16 million yuan. "The company owes debts of almost 10 million yuan, which includes 4.3 million yuan in loans from banks," Chen said. "I have been under great pressure due to the debts, as I may be sued by the creditors. I hope the government allows us to resume production or fully compensates us according to the asset valuation." The companies made their review request to Hunan province's legislative affairs office on Feb 4, asking the office to deliver a verdict that the government's decision to shut down all firework manufacturers was illegal and that the economic losses of the factories should be fully compensated, while 12 of the companies withdrew their request in May before it was recently refused. The office said the companies should have known that their factories would be shut down, as the government had organized talks with them and carried out asset valuations between late 2014 and late last year, adding that such companies had failed to file an administrative review request within 60 days, in accordance with law, the Beijing Times reported. However, lawyer Tu Siyi said that while companies could file administrative review requests within 60 days of being told their rights, they were never told their rights, adding that there is no time limit to request an administrative review under such circumstances. Chen Yongjun, head of Xiangzhang Firework, said all firework manufacturers in Qidong were built in accordance with national standards, and the local government did not consult them before asking them to shut down. He said they only knew they could turn to administrative review after seeking advice from a lawyer in January. A request for interview sent to Hunan province's legislative affairs office went unanswered. Contact the writers at houliqiang@chinadaily.com.cn The 16th Forum on Internet Media of China is held on Oct 17, 2016 in Guiyang, capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] Algorithm. Big data. Smart technology. These were some of the key words from speeches made by many editors-in-chief of Chinese internet media who attended the 16th national forum held on Monday in Southwest China's Guizhou province. Under the theme of "new idea for development and new ecosystem for cyberspace", officials of Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) and the Communist Youth League, as well as leaders of both Internet media and corporations shared their views about the progress and challenges posed by internet media today. Ren Xianliang, deputy head of the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) highlighted that internet media should seek innovative and coordinated development and focus on social responsibility. His proposal resonates among internet media leaders. In a keynote speech on how ifeng.com takes on algorithm innovation and sticks to media responsibility in an age of artificial intelligence (AI), CEO Liu Shuang introduced their attempts in making Yidianzixun, a news recommendation app based on users' interests and reading habits. Meanwhile, he also said that media should be alert to the risks brought about by pandering to the number of views rather than focusing on quality. "Only integrating humanity into algorithms can prevent internet users from addiction to low quality and vulgar content," said Liu. Li Rong, standing deputy editor-in-chief of thepaper.cn, shared a similar view, saying that they take both quality and users' views into account when assessing a reporter's performance. Qin Yizhi, head of the Communist Youth League also gave a speech at the opening ceremony of the forum. He emphasized that a healthy cyberspace should be promoted for youth because they are "internet natives". His view is echoed in the statistics provided by Wang Changqing, deputy head of the internet development research department of China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), showing that most net users are young people. Wang also suggested media should think about how to take advantage of big data and social networks to cooperate on content production. He was grateful to see many leaders of traditional media attending the forum and sharing on this topic. This year's forum was hosted by youth.cn, and saw more than 700 guests gathering to discuss the issues. NANJING -- A former senior official in North China's Shanxi province was sentenced to 15 years in prison for accepting bribes amounting nearly 45 million yuan ($6.68 million) by a court in Jiangsu province on Wednesday. Personal assets worth 4 million yuan belonging to Nie Chunyu, former secretary-general of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Shanxi Provincial Committee, were confiscated, according to a statement from Nantong City Intermediate People's Court. His ill-gotten gains must be turned over to the state, the court ruled. Nie was found guilty of taking advantage of his positions to seek profits for others in promotion of officials, job transfers or corporate development between 2004 and 2013, it said. The court issued a lesser punishment as Nie admitted his crimes and voluntarily turned over his illicit gains. Nie was ousted from the CPC in February 2015 after an internal probe found he had accepted bribes and committed adultery. TAIPEI -- The impact of Typhoon Haima has been downgraded as it moves southward, but heavy rainfall is likely to hit eastern Taiwan on Thursday and Friday, the local meteorological authority said Wednesday. As of Wednesday morning, Haima was 990 kilometers east-southeast of Eluanbi on Taiwan's southernmost tip, moving at 27 kilometers per hour in a west-northwesterly direction, and will arrive at Luzon Island in the Philippines on Wednesday night, according to the island's meteorological bureau. There is a lowered possibility of a sea warning for Typhoon Haima since it is moving southward and will not hit the island directly, the bureau said. However, moisture carried by Haima's peripheral currents could gradually reach the island and bring heavy rainfall to eastern regions and the Hengchun Peninsula in the south. The bureau also warned of offshore waves along the island's coast and asked residents to take precautions accordingly. BEIJING -- China's top court has pledged to protect the reputation and honor of the country's heroes in accordance with the law to "uphold socialist core values." The Supreme People's Court (SPC) on Wednesday published five examples of lawsuits involving derogatory or humiliating comments about China's famous war heroes. The cases include one in which a local court in Beijing ordered an Internet celebrity and a beverage maker to apologize to the family of deceased war hero Qiu Shaoyun for microblog posts that the court said infringed on Qiu's rights to reputation and honor. Qiu, who burned to death while trying to protect his troop's position in an ambush mission, was flippantly mocked by the defendants. Another case involved a court ruling against a magazine's former chief editor, who called into question facts surrounding "The Five Warriors of Mount Langyashan," a famous group of Chinese war heros who jumped off a cliff when fighting against Japanese invaders during World War II. Cheng Xinwen, a senior civil tribunal justice of the SPC, said the cases not only matter for the personal reputation and honor of the heroes themselves, but also for the socialist core values and public interest. Publishing these cases is intended to illustrate the essence of socialist core values and encourage the public to respect the country's heroes, learn from them and care for them, Cheng said. Cheng cited social mores in the protection of deceased heroes' reputations. Warning that the freedom of academic research and speech should have boundaries, the judge also noted that ordinary academic issues are not within the judiciary's power, thus the courts are required to exert careful discretion in relevant cases. Cheng further explained the general principles regarding trials for slander and infringement via online media. Inspired by the "Chinese dream" mentioned by First Lady Peng Liyuan two years ago, German graduate Maximilian Volges came to South China's Guangxi province as a volunteer to teach English to rural students. "You told us that your Chinese dream is let all children, especially girls, to have access to good education," Volges, who arrived in China earlier this year, told Peng in Chinese at the Diaoyutai State guesthouse in Beijing on Wednesday. "I was deeply influenced by your 'Chinese dream', so I came to China to teach English voluntarily in Guilin," said Volges, whose Chinese name is "Kong Hao". The 18-year-old high school graduate is part of a delegation consisting of students and teachers from the Burg- Gymnasium (High School) in Essen. In March 2014, Peng visited the school during President Xi Jinping's state visit to Germany. Peng spoke highly of the German volunteer's contribution to rural education in South China. "A year later, you will feel the seed of China-Germany friendship that you sowed in the students' heart will blossom beautifully," Peng told the volunteer. A tree is uprooted by the strong winds of typhoon Sarika in Haikou, Hainan province. [Photo By Ma Zhiping/China Daily] A rampant typhoon Sarika has brought grave losses to local people's daily lives since it made its landfall in Hainan province on Tuesday morning. Sarika, the twenty-first typhoon this year, seriously affected the life of more than 1.55 million people as it wreaked havoc in Haikou, the provincial capital, as well as Sanya and Danzhou. More than 2,600 rooms collapsed and about 81,700 hectares of crops were hit, leaving 17,000 hectares certain to suffer total failure this year, according to initial statistics from the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Direct economic losses have reached 2.62 billion yuan ($388.7 million). That figure is expected to grow further as damage inspection is still underway, the ministry said. The Ministry of Civil Affairs' National Disaster Reduction Committee dispatched working groups on Wednesday afternoon to coordinate rescue efforts in areas that have been seriously lashed by the cyclone, which brought winds of up to 162 km per hour on Tuesday morning and rainfall of up to about 300 millimeters in some areas. The typhoon, reportedly one of the most serious in more than 40 years for October, has halted traffic to and from the island since Monday. But flights, trains and highway transportation have been resumed as of late Tuesday. Yet there are only partial services in some areas. Hainan provincial and local authorities have sent large amounts of daily necessities such as tents, quilts and various foods to residents in disaster-stricken areas. Rescue work will continue on the island, according to officials with the Hainan provincial disaster relief authorities. Astronauts enter high-tech lab on national TV while scientists start shaping future Clockwise from upper left: Scientists fix their gaze on monitors at Beijing Aerospace Control Center as Shenzhou XI prepares to dock with the Tiangong II space lab on Wednesday. The two spacecraft dock, in this artist's rendering. Chen Dong floats in the space lab. Jing Haipeng, left, and Chen greet viewers shortly after entering the space lab. [Photo/Xinhua] As two Chinese astronauts peered into the heavens from the Tiangong II space lab they docked with early Wednesday, Chinese rocket scientists on the ground said they are looking into ways to shape the future of the nation's space market. When the astronauts left their "divine vessel", Shen-zhou XI, and entered the newest high-tech "heavenly palace" floating above Earth early on Wednesday, it was one for the history books. The docking with the Tiangong II space lab wasn't the first such maneuver in the Chinese space program. But it was highly significant, with more experiments planned, a space stay twice as long as earlier missions and a space lab that's a significant step toward the nation's goal of having a permanent space station orbiting in just a few years. Once the two vehicles docked, mission commander Jing Haipeng, 49, and Chen Dong, 37, extended greetings to all of the Chinese people and checked the status of the Shenzhou XI-Tiangong II combination to ensure equal pressurization. The two took off their spacesuits to change into blue jumpsuits. They will remain within the space lab for 30 days, making the longest space stay by Chinese astronauts. They will verify the life-support capability of the spacecraft-space lab combination and conduct scientific research and engineering experiments. Jing and Chen will sprout seeds and study their growth in space. They also will take part in an experiment in which a futuristic device will try to translate their brain impulses into words to communicate with the ground control and to operate instruments in the spacecraft. Shenzhou XI blasted off atop a Long March 2F rocket on Monday from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, about one month after the launch of Tiangong II in mid-September. This is China's sixth manned spaceflight and is expected to pave the way for the permanent space station, construction of which is scheduled to start in 2018, with a launch planned around 2022. However, in the eyes of rocket scientists at the China Academy Launch Vehicle Technology, the country's largest developer of ballistic missiles and carrier rockets, more is needed than State programs alone for the future growth of China's space sector. CALT is a subordinate of the larger China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp, the State-owned main contractor for the Chinese space program. Hao Zhaoping, vice-president of CALT, said the academy will strive to tap the commercial launch market because commercial space activities have begun to represent the development trend of the industry. More policy support is needed to help cities to integrate a rapidly growing number of older migrants, said a report released on Wednesday by the national health authority. Migrants age 60 or over numbered 17.8 million last year, 7.2 percent of the total of 247 million migrants, the 2016 Report on China's Migrant Population Development showed. In 2010, there were 9.3 million in that demographic, 4.2 percent of a total of 221 million migrants. The report, based on surveys and monitoring by the National Health and Family Planning Commission, said the average age of migrants has risen from 27.9 in 2013 to 29.3. "The increase in older migrants reflects China's aging population," the report said. It shows that more are joining their families in "migrant destinations". Most of these are still in the more-developed eastern region, but western areas have attracted a larger share in recent years. "It is foreseeable that the number of migrant elders will keep increasing," the report said, adding that, "more support and aid" is needed "to help them to better integrate". Duan Chengrong, a professor of population studies at Renmin University of China, said the trend began to develop about five years ago. "Society has not paid enough attention to this group, and governments should do more to improve services for them," he said. Wang Qian, chief for migrant population affairs at the National Health and Family Planning Commission, said the diversity of migrants is putting pressure on governments. "Previously, migrants were mostly young workers seeking jobs in big cities," he said. "Now, with more elderly joining the group and more families migrating together, they may have different demands, such as housing, medical care and children's education." The report said 43 percent of the older migrants move to look after children or grandchildren and 22.5 percent migrate for jobs. Another 25.4 percent move for senior care. Many rely on their children for elderly care, while others find services on their own, including wealthier migrants who move south for the winter. But for poorer migrants, the move may not stick. Zhai Junsheng, 61, a migrant worker from Henan province who collects parking fees in Beijing, said he moved a few months ago to join his daughter. Zhai said he has no medical insurance and he is considering going back to Henan soon. "The biggest problem is lack of room. I cannot afford to rent a house and have to stay with my daughter, but her house is too small." BEIJING -- China on Wednesday urged Japan to face up to history after two cabinet ministers visited the notorious Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo during the annual Autumn Festival. The two ministers were Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Sanae Takaichi and Katsunobu Kato, minister for promoting dynamic engagement of all citizens. Both cabinet ministers are close allies of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who himself visited the shrine on Monday. "[The fact] that Japanese Cabinet members visit the Yasukuni Shrine, which not only honors Class-A convicted war criminals but also beautifies war, again, reflects the Japanese government's unhealthy attitude toward its past transgressions," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a daily press briefing. "China is firmly opposed to this," she said. A staff worker runs to the rescue of a panda cub falling off a platform at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in September. Twenty-three cubs born this year met the public. [Photo by Zhang Lei/China Daily] Dressed in clothing covered in cartoon pandas, from his T-shirt to his socks, William Burke flew all the way to Southwest China from Hawaii with his wife, Karom Burke, to see their adopted pandas. At the first Chinese International Panda Culture Communication Activity, which ended on Sunday in Chengdu, Sichuan province, more than 60 panda "parents" from around the world had a chance to visit the animals they have sponsored through donations. "I was so surprised that a giant panda cub could be as small as a stick of butter when I first saw Tai Shan at the National Zoo in Washington DC in 2005," Karom said. "Karom and I then decided to adopt a panda. Look, this one on my T-shirt is our first daughter, Bai Xue," William said. Since 2007, William and Karom have sponsored three pandas: Bai Xue, Bai Xue's son Jin Ke, and Bai Xue's granddaughter Lin Ping. The bears have become part of their family. "When Bai Xue died last year, we were so sad that we had lost a family member," Karom said. But William said that "there are happy moments too", adding: "We were so excited when pandas were upgraded from 'endangered' to 'vulnerable' on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List last month. My cousin sent me this watch with a panda cartoon on it to celebrate." Suzanne Braden, from the United States, has adopted four pandas. In 1999, she adopted her first panda and named it after her late father, Harvey. "On our way back home from seeing pandas in China, I thought we must do something to protect the cute species," Suzanne said. She and her friend Diane Rees cofounded Pandas International, an NGO devoted to protecting pandas, in 2000. So far, more than 5,000 people from over 20 countries have participated in Pandas International activities. By Xinhua in Chengdu BEIJING -- A TV series adaption of "Red Star Over China" written by American journalist Edgar Snow, will be screened in China on Saturday. "Red Star Over China," written in 1937, was one of the most influential books with a western understanding and sympathy for the Communist Party of China (CPC) in the 1930s. The 30-episode TV series will be faithful to the original book, extensively depicting military and political developments in China, especially Chinese bravery in fighting against Japanese invaders. The first western journalist to meet Chairman Mao and other CPC leaders, Edgar Snow recorded the first authorized account of Mao's life, as well as the history of the Long March and the people responsible for the Chinese revolution that made China what it is today. Ye Lang, professor at Peking University. Photos provided to China Daily An updated bookand several translationstake readers beyond an academic understanding of Chinese culture by highlighting personal stories, the authors tell Mei Jia. Authors Ye Lang and Zhu Liangzhi had a daunting task: Boil down Chinese civilization that has spanned thousands of years into a book of about 300 pages. Both influential professors of philosophy and of aesthetics and arts from Peking University, the two sifted through many options when they proposed a book on Chinese culture as a gift for the world when Beijing was hosting the 2008 Olympic Games. Insights Into Chinese Culture was so well received that after 20 reprints of the first edition, the Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press released the book's updated second edition late last month, as well as versions in eight foreign languages, including English, French, German, Russian and Arabic. The professors wanted to offer something refreshing and authoritative, and yet easy to follow with the appeal of a story book. While many titles on Chinese culture seem academic, such as condensed histories, their book approached the material by focusing on Chinese people: their personalities, core values and attitudes toward life. The authors believe that Chinese people "respect nature, expect a prosperous life, pray for peace, and love life", which form deep layers within Chinese culture. Combination photo taken on Oct 12, 2016 by Zhou Mi (L) shows the tomb of Chinese playwright Tang Xianzu in Fuzhou of East China's Jiangxi province, and taken on March 24, 2015 by Han Yan (R) shows the tomb of British writer William Shakespeare in Stratford-upon-Avon, Britain. This year marks the 400th anniversary of the passing of the two literary giants from East and West respectively. [Photo/Xinhua] Four hundred years ago, when William Shakespeare was writing his sonnets with a quill, Tang Xianzu was recording verses with a brush nearly 6,000 kilometers away. Four hundred years later, to commemorate these literary giants from East and West, plays by both have been staged together in eastern China's Fuzhou city, Tang's hometown. "They were in the same contemporary period," said Juliet Short, mayor of Shakespeare's hometown Stratford-upon-Avon. "They are very similar, in different aspects, even though they lived in totally different cultures." This year marks the 400th anniversary of the death of Shakespeare and Tang. China and Britain have been hosting a series of events to commemorate the anniversaries. On Saturday, Tang's date of birth, a three-day festival was launched in Jiangxi province, where people can pay tribute to Tang, open a memorial for him, put on drama performances and hold seminars. Poster of Love Is Not Blind. [Photo provided to China Daily] The romantic-comedy drama Love Is Not Blind, which is based on the movie with the same title, will be staged in Beijing from Nov 11 to 27 at the Tianqiao Performing Arts Center. The movie, which was directed by Teng Huatao and adapted from an online novel written by Bao Jingjing, achieved huge popularity in 2011. The movie has also been adapted into a TV series. The story revolves around Huang Xiaoxian, a 27-year-old woman who dreams of marriage but broke up with her longtime boyfriend after she learns that her best friend has been dating him. Huang starts recovering from depression with help from her colleague, Wang Xiaojian, and eventually the two fall in love. Directed by Chen Liang and adapted by scriptwriter Chen Shuling, the play will feature a group of actors in their early 20s. Besides the professional actors, some amateur actors, who are selected from nearly 1,000 people in Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing and Hangzhou, will perform in two shows. "It will be a nostalgic experience for both the audiences and us," says the director. Related: Socially relevant themes get a stage Croatian pianist Maksim Mrvica. [Photo provided to China Daily] Croatian pianist Maksim Mrvica has launched a tour in China by visiting 26 cities, including a Beijing concert on Nov 27. Titled Croatian Rhapsody Tour, he will play eight new pieces from his album, Croatian Rhapsody. With his band, the pianist will add electronic and symphonic elements to his performances. The upcoming tour will conclude on Dec 18 in Shanghai. Always eager to work with Chinese musicians, Mrvica says he will perform with Chinese erhu player Zhao Lei during his tour. "Every time I visit China, I feel the audiences' growing passion for music, especially the young people," says the 41-year-old pianist, who was born in Sibenik, Croatia, and took up piano lessons at the age of 9. He won his first major competition in Zagreb in 1993, which made him determined to become a professional pianist. He went on to study at the Music Academy in Zagreb before he spent a year at the Franz Liszt Conservatoire in Budapest. His debut CD, Gestures, was released in 1999. It became one of the fastest-selling classical recordings to be released in Croatia. In 2000, he moved to Paris to study with Igor Lazko and won first prize in the Pontoise Piano Competition in 2001. His career as a crossover pianist started when he met British impresario Mel Bush, who helped him release a string of successful albums, including The Piano Player. "As a young man, I loved a variety of music, especially electronic music, though I was trained as a classical pianist. I am lucky to be able to explore music without boundaries," says Mrvica. "Sometimes classical music is difficult to listen to, but crossover production makes music easy, especially for the young audiences." Related: Sixth Yangtze River Piano Festival opens in Yichang A bank staff member checks RMB banknotes at a bank in Lianyungang, East China's Jiangsu province, Jan. 7, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] FIFTEEN PEOPLE in Mianyang, Sichuan province in Southwest China, have been caught leaking and trading the personal banking information of 2.57 million users. Those involved, who included bank managers, raked in 2.3 million yuan ($349,000) selling the information to brokers. Beijing Youth Daily commented on Tuesday: According to the reports, managers in a sub-branch of a rural commercial bank sold the information of people making credit system queries at 10,000 yuan per person. Likewise, two employees from a branch of CITIC Bank accessed the credit reports of customers and sold the information to brokers. The frequent reports of personal information leaks have raised concerns about how people's personal information is used and protected. But the case revealed by Mianyang police is worrying as it involves the comprehensive selling of customers' personal details by bank employees. Information stored on corporate networks is at risk because it is more accessible than ever. Organizations provide easy access to databases containing the personal information of huge numbers of people. Banks have an obligation to safeguard the information they collect on individuals, and they should be held accountable for any disclosures of the confidential data of customers. In other words, in dealing with this case, it is necessary to not only hold the staff involved accountable, but also the banks involved. Moreover, the banks should compensate those individuals whose personal information has been leaked by their employees. Such breaches of the regulatory requirements for handling sensitive data can reduce customer confidence and damage a company's reputation. Enterprises that collect and store personal information have a responsibility to protect it and to foster a corporate culture in which employees adhere to policies and procedures that provide internal checks of staff access to such information. Photo shows the anti-corruption smartphone app released by China's top anti-corruption watchdog, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China. [Photo/crienglish.com] The local anti-graft commission in Tunliu county of Changzhi city, North China's Shanxi province, issued a report on Sept 30 criticizing 24 high school teachers for spending a total of 1,390 yuan ($207) on a meal that included alcohol. However, whether it has the right to discipline the teachers in this instance has been questioned as the teachers paid for the meal themselves. The Changzhi discipline authorities said on Sunday that the previous accusation of the local anti-graft commission in Tunliu county, which stopped short of explaining why the teachers' gathering was "improper", was not well thought out and it decided to withdraw it. However, two teachers were required to criticize themselves at a faculty meeting, and the others were summoned before the commission. Since the nationwide campaign against corruption was launched at the end of 2012, members of the Communist Party of China face stricter austerity rules aimed at reducing bureaucracy and extravagance. Indeed, the anti-graft efforts have paid off and become more efficient, thanks to these rules and an increasing number of residents who contribute to the anti-graft efforts by reporting the misdemeanors of Party members. Whether the 24 Changzhi teachers' feasting was reported by anonymous residents remains unclear, but there are doubts about whether the local discipline commission had any grounds for criticizing the teachers. Its sternly worded report was not based on a thorough investigation and the teachers' explanation, fueling speculation that the anti-corruption campaign always picks on the vulnerable and powerless. The Changzhi discipline authorities have now withdrawn the case. However, damage has been done to procedural justice. Before issuing a disciplinary penalty, the discipline inspection departments at all levels should widely solicit public opinions and listen to the appeals lodged by the accused. Disclosing corruption cases on a regular basis is no doubt needed as a credible deterrence. Some punished rule-breakers will seek to hide their misconducts and pretend nothing has happened, if what they have done is not made public. Some even seek revenge on the "whistleblowers" that report their abuses of power to the disciplinary watchdogs. Yet, rushing to distribute inaccurate, if not unfounded, disciplinary punishments, is counterproductive, because they may cause unnecessary trouble for officials that are innocent of any wrongdoing and have negative social impacts. Therefore the disciplinary authorities need to double-check alleged "severe violations of discipline" as well as the reports that are to be issued about such cases before making them public. On their part, residents, especially Party members, have the right to tip off the local discipline commission to corruption, but they also have the responsibility to make sure what they say via online reporting platforms is correct and well-documented. This is not to say they are not supposed to supervise corrupt officials. Quite the contrary, residents should be mobilized and encouraged to join the anti-corruption fight, which in turn is likely to give them a sense of participation in social governance. They are just not allowed to overstep the boundaries in supervision. The author is a professor of law at Zhongnan University of Economics and Law. China's steady economic growth in the third quarter has not only won precious time for the country to further boost domestic consumption and take up the slack for slowing trade growth. It also highlighted the limitations of a red-hot property market fueled by easy credit to drive overall economic growth. Latest statistics showed that the Chinese economy expanded by 6.7 percent year on year in the past quarter. Although the third-quarter pace was only as fast as the previous two quarters, it is still a remarkable achievement for the world's second largest economy as the global recovery is increasingly troubled by slowing trade growth and lingering financial uncertainties. The World Trade Organization recently cut its forecast for global trade this year to just 1.7 percent from its previous estimate of 2.8 percent in April. The new figure, the lowest growth rate since the 2008 global financial crisis, indicates a drastic slowdown in global trade that has fairly explained the strong headwinds China's trade sector faces. As a result, China's foreign trade in the first three quarters shrank by 1.9 percent from a year earlier to only 17.53 trillion yuan ($2.61 trillion), with exports and imports down 1.6 percent and 2.3 percent respectively. This reconfirmed Chinese policymakers' judgment that the country can no longer rely on exports as a major growth engine that had served well to propel China's rapid rise as a global trading power since the beginning of this century. It is obvious that the double-digit growth of domestic consumption has timely lifted the country's economic growth at a moment of tremendous downward pressures in other sectors. In spite of all the economic difficulties at home and abroad, China's retail growth climbed by 10.4 percent in the third quarter, 0.1 percentage point faster than that in the first half year, to ensure a steady growth of the overall economy. Under such circumstances, it seems wise for the Chinese government to give more support to foster a sustainable domestic consumption upgrade. Unfortunately, much needed bank loans and credit support have been granted to home buyers in the belief that soaring house prices will both encourage fixed-asset investments and help create a wealth effect that would drive consumption growth to bolster real GDP growth. Ehizuelen Michael Mitchell Omoruyi is participating the events during retrace the steps of those brave Chinese soldiers through Yanan in Shaanxi Province to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Long March. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] As part of a group of foreign visitors that was invited to retrace the steps of those brave Chinese soldiers through Yanan in Shaanxi Province to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Long March, I discovered another part of rural China. Wuqi and Yanchuan Counties the rich soil of Shaanxi province might not be as famous as other towns in China, but today both counties, and the small farming community in North East Chinas, enjoy comparative serenity, unlike the period when it was under siege right before the epic Long March. Both towns today are peaceful and provide business opportunities to both farmers and entrepreneurs. Visitors are warmly welcomed by friendly inhabitants to a serene atmosphere and pollution-free surroundings. Like most rural communities, both counties are devoid of the daily frenzied atmosphere and chaos in cities across China. The people, like other rural people in China, are friendly. I am a living witness to the kind of reception a foreigner can receive when you visit Wuqi and Yanchuan Counties; this is as a result of the way we were treated. We were welcomed like royals with fruits, good spicy food that reminds me of home and unique Chinese tea which I kept drinking. However, the reception started before I got to Yanan when Chen Ziyan, a China Daily staff was asked to assist me during my trip. She made the whole exercise a remarkable one; she gave me numerous reasons to believe that the spirit of the Long March was truly in her. She acted like the veterans that sacrificed everything for the China we see today. It was a cold October morning at about 8am, when we were whisked along with other local organizers and media in one of the three buses on smooth highways through tunnels and bridges to witness one of the greatest epic treks in the history of mankind; the length of the journey they undertook eight decades ago has often been underestimated. Although most of the buildings and sites have undergone some form of renovation, there were still indications of what the area looked like during the era the Red Army camped there. We visited two museums: one in Yanchuan County, the home of President Xi Jinping and the other in Wuqi County where items belonging to the leaders and soldiers of the revolution were carefully preserved. The items breathe life back into the memories of the Long March struggles and the victory of 1930s China. It displays how the embattled Chinese Communists broke through Nationalist enemy lines and begin an epic trek from their encircled headquarters in southwest China. Looking at the pictures on the first day of our visit at the Wuqi Central Red Army Long March Victory Memorial Museum and Yanchuan Museum, I found it hard to visualize how much they must have suffered for their cause. It was there I discovered I was at the hub of Chinas Great Revolution. It was an epic journey; the journey lasted 369 days; though it was unintended, it did turn out to be a very Long March covering 6, 000 miles (9,650 kilometers); another author from Chinasage said the distance its almost twice the distance from New York to San Francisco. So, standing in the museum and looking at the various items that were displayed, I was reminded how the Long Marchers often had to cross difficult terrains like 24 rivers, 18 mountain ranges (5 snowy mountains), swamps and 11 provinces; it was an epic fight for survival for the Chinese Communists. The total numbers involved in the march are hard to put down as many left and many joined the march along the way. Over 75,000 set out together with 20,000 non-combatants and only about 7,000 reached Yanan. During the march, 236 days were occupied by day marches and 19 days by night marches; on average they took one days rest for every 115 miles covered. It was estimated that 55 per cent were aged 16-23; 45 per cent 24-40; only 5 per cent were over forty years old. Only about a quarter were actually members of the Communist Party. Part of the Communist effort was to spread support, so leaving people behind to organize local resistance was part of the plan. Fatigue, hunger and sickness claimed many lives and only one-tenth of the force that left Jiangxi completed the Long March. Based on the story the tour guide was telling us, it was now clear to me that among those that survive the march were almost all the high ranking communist officials in Chinese regime for the next six decades Deng Xiaoping, Lin Biao, Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai. As one of the surviving communist officials, Mao believed that during the Long March a powerful new weapon had been formed. The epic trek was inspirational, undeniable evidence of the superiority of men over weapons, and more broadly demonstrates the power of human will. The epic event has inspired and guided the Chinese people, and it has by no means been easy for the Chinese people to improve their lives over the past eight decades. The hardworking spirit the world sees today in China is a result of the sacrifice from the Long March and it has never faded. The Long March spirit is with the Chinese people today as well as everyone who steps into China aiming to march towards their China dreams. The march has gone beyond the boundaries of China; today, the Chinese development model and principle informal as it may be is quickly gaining momentum among developed and developing countries. Chinese investment is welcomed globally; according to research, this will soon place China to become one of the worlds biggest cross-border investors by the end of this decade, with global offshore assets tripling $6.4 trillion to almost $20 trillion by 2020. The Chinese model of development is exceptional in history and has made China assume a very significant position within the global economy. The veterans of the Long March gave an outward display of unity and solidarity that laid the foundation for the victory of the Chinese revolution and is regarded as the critical moment for Communist party. This epic march shows that when shared hardship forged bonds of unbreakable loyalty and understanding, it can turn into wealth creation and redefined a nation. The tough journey had left a legacy not only to the Chinese people but to other nations struggling with conflicts. Let China Sleep, for when the Dragon awakes, she will shake the world. The saying is attributed to Napoleon and he seems to have been right. The dragon is awake, and she is not going to take a great leap forward but instead is now on the long march; a march of victory. Today, China rightly remembers its heroes, whose bitter struggles would ultimately help build a steady, stronger, greater and better tomorrow for the Chinese generations of tomorrow. Ehizuelen Michael Mitchell Omoruyi is a researcher from Institute of African Stuties Zhejiang Normal University The unveiling ceremony of Southeast Asia Biodiversity Research Institute in Myanmar. [Photo/Xinhua] The Southeast Asia Biodiversity Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS-SEABRI), established by China and Myanmar, was unveiled in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, on Oct. 12, and is expected to be a leading institution for collaborative scientific research on and preservation of biodiversity among the Southeast Asian countries. CAS-SEABRI, co-sponsored by CAS and the Myanmar Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation, is CAS' first overseas project in Myanmar. Its construction began in 2013 under a bilateral MoU. At the opening ceremony, Bai Chunli, president of CAS, approved of CAS-SEABRI's performance in joint field studies, researcher visits and talents cultivation in the past year and expected that CAS-SEABRI will be a pilot project for international cooperation in biodiversity research. Bai Chunli is addressing at the opening ceremony. [Photo/xtbg.ac.cn] Despite having a very high level of biodiversity, the ecosystem in many parts of Myanmar is under threat from fast economic development, according to U Khin Maung Yee, permanent secretary for the ministry of natural resources and environmental conservation of Myanmar. He encouraged more Myanmarians to get involved in CAS-SEABRI to receive academic training to increase their ability to preserve their own bio-resources. U Khin Maung Yee is addressing at the opening ceremony. [Photo/xtbg.ac.cn] So far, CAS-SEABRI has set up four research groups in plant diversity and conservation, aquatic plant diversity, traditional medicine and ethnobotany, and animal diversity and conservation. Researchers from both counties have finished three large-scale field biodiversity investigations, collecting 1,500 plant specimens, capturing 10,000 photos by infrared thermal cameras and finding 20 new plant species and 100 new spider species. CAS-SEABRI will serve as a powerful international platform for collaborative research and discovery, training outstanding youths from Southeast Asia in master and PhD programs. CAS-SEABRI, regarded by Hong Liang, Chinese ambassador to Myanmar as a historic symbol of China-Myanmar science and technology cooperation, was established for closer international collaboration in scientific research among the countries along the Belt and Road and in Southeast Asia. Jvari Church was built in the 6th century to celebrate the country's conversion to Christianity more than 100 years earlier. Photos provided to China Daily Georgia charms with amazing architecture, multiculturalism and its claim as the land that invented wine. Mike Peters explores its allures. You can tell if a country is a prize by checking how many times it has been invaded. By that measure, the little Caucasus land of Georgia is a treasure indeed. Long an important Eurasian crossroads, Arabs overran the place in 645, making the captured capital, Tbilisi, an emirate for four centuries. Later came the Mongols, Huns, Persians, Ottomans and Russians in turn. Visitors today will encounter all of those influences and more, coming together in a Caucasian people with a distinctly European outlook. An ancient wine culture is flourishing, and beautiful Orthodox churches have become social centers for a newly energized faithful. After relative isolation in the Soviet era, the old Silk Road hub is back to its old ways, making a trade pact with the European Union and a brand-new free-trade agreement with China. The country's scenic charm is apparent as soon as you land in Tbilisi, which straddles the Mtkvari River and commands good views of the surrounding mountains. The Old Town gives smartphones and selfie sticks a workout as tourists flow through narrow lanes amid colorful two-story houses fronted with charming balconies. There are lots of small wine bars and an occasional tree-lined square. The village feeling is enhanced by street stalls jammed with colorful rugs and fabrics, fresh pomegranates and figs, vegetables, honey, fragrant cheeses and nuts fresh from the surrounding countryside. By Erik Nilsson and Yang FeiyueThe East is Red. And green. | China Daily | Updated: 2016-10-19 07:55 Autumn scene in Dandong in Liaoning province. Dong Renbin/China Daily That's gold for Dandong. The city in Liaoning province has long been known as a Red tourism destination, largely for its location across the Yalu River that traces its border with the People's Republic of Korea. That's not to mention other revolutionary history. But it's now dabbing a green tinge onto its portrait to imbue a new hue to lure visitors to its primeval forests and purewater ways. Locals claim chain smokers don't cough in the clean air that serves "natural oxygen bars" in its woodlands. Mineral-water springs are likened to fountains of youth. Dandong is said to host the most centenarians among northern Chinese cities. But the biggest natural draw is the millions of migrating birds belonging to 250 species that arrive at its intertidal mudflats during autumn, especially around this month, and spring. They don't eat, drink or rest for a week before or after binging along the coastline. Masses of lanky shorebirds tiptoe over tidal rocks that stab above mucky sand. They punctuate their gangling gaits with flicks of elongated beaks, spastically thrusting at any morsel they can snap up. Anything. They're famished. And there's plenty squirming in the sandy goop for them to fill up for a week before or to go of nonstop flying without any bodily intake or rest but extraordinary exertion. USTC supported me by funding my year-long overseas experience at University of Manchester by collaborating with Andre Geim, laureate of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics.The opportunity was a turning point for my academic career, as it broadened my perspectives on research. Wu Hengan, USTC professor focused on graphite The university doesnt have many restrictions as to how to use the initial funds given to recruited talents, so we can use the money more reasonably. Zhang Huafeng, a life sciences professor at USTC, who came to USTC from Johns Hopkins University in 2011 I found that the atmosphere among the faculty and the students is just like what I have experienced in the United States. Gong Chen, a USTC professor who joined the university in 2014 and has been focusing on optical wireless communication and networks (China Daily USA 09/30/2016 page 9) The University of Science and Technologyof China has been encouraging prominent young employees to broaden their perspectives on scientific research through overseas education and work experience. One example is Wu Heng'an, who had an opportunity to work with Andre Geim, laureate of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics, at the University of Manchester from 2010 to 2011. He cherishes the one-year experience as a turning point for his academic career. Wu, 41, professor of USTC in area of graphite, had been studying at USTC from 1993 to 2002 and got his bachelor's, master's and PhD degrees there. Students from around the world perform Taichi during their overseas program at USTC. Provided to China Daily After working at the National University of Singapore from 2002 to 2004, Wu was employed by USTC asan associate professor at the university's School of Engineering Sciencein 2004. "Being focused on the mechanical properties of nanometer materials, my first years in USTC as a principal investigator, or holder of an independent grant administered by the university and the lead researcher for the grant project, were quite challenging,since I thought I urgently needed to broaden my perspectives on research", said Wu. Wu realized only the top scientist in the field could help him with his research on graphite, a field on which he has been focused since 2008. In September, 2009, USTC initiated a program to encourage prominent young scientists to seek overseas experiences by covering their expenses. After learning the favorable policies at a campus conference, Wu emailed Andre Geim, telling the latter what he had been focusing on, what he had achieved and how he wanted to further his research. "I didn't want to miss such an exceptional opportunity," said Wu. To Wu's surprise, Professor Geim replied the next morning and invited Wu to his laboratory at the University of Manchester. After some preparatory work, Wu left for Geim's lab the next year, in which the scientist won the Nobel Prize in Physics. Wu's experience in Geim's lab lasted for almost a year, after which his collaboration with the world-renowned scientist continued. After Wu returned to USTC at the end of 2011, Wu achieved some major breakthroughs in his field and published two joint papers in the journa l"Science" and three other ones in "Nature" with Geim. "My team now includes dozens of prominent researchers, many of whom are also returnees fromsome of the world's leading scientific institutions," said Wu, now director of the Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and Designof Materials. "And we now welcome more talents to join us," said Wu. Contact the writer at zhulixin@chinadaily.com.cn (China Daily USA 09/30/2016 page 9) China is "fully prepared to open arms of friendship and extend our hand of cooperation to the people of the Philippines," Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday ahead of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's state visit to China. The four-day visit by Duterte will be his first, as president, outside the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Speaking at a news conference in Beijing, Wang praised Duterte for making the decision to restore friendship with China after taking office, saying that "no foreign force could stand in the way of that progress". "This reflects the wishes of the Philippine people, and is in line with the national interests of the country, as well as the historical trend," he said. Relations between Beijing and Manila suffered after the Philippine government, under Duterte's predecessor Benigno Aquino, initiated a unilateral arbitration to challenge China's sovereignty over the South China Sea. While the retrogression in ties undermined the interests of the Philippine people and regional stability, the historical visit of Duterte will be a new beginning in the China-Philippine relationship, Wang said. "We are fully prepared to open our arms of friendship and extend our hand of cooperation to the people of the Philippines," Wang said. "We are confident that this visit will be a success that will not only put the China-Philippine relationship back on the track of normal growth, but also open up new vistas for mutually beneficial cooperation," he added. People shop at a market in the old city of Sanaa, Yemen, on Oct 18, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] SANAA -- Yemen's dominant Shiite Houthi group and its ally of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh's party welcomed on Tuesday a United Nations-proposed 72-hour ceasefire to facilitate humanitarian aid access to the war-stricken Arab country. The ceasefire between Houthi fighters and their rival Saudi-backed exiled government forces was declared by the United Nations on Monday to take effect at 2359 local time (2059 GMT) on Wednesday. "The Supreme Political Council (a governing body composed of top officials from Houthi group and Saleh's party) welcomes the ceasefire without preconditions and demands immediate stop to the (Saudi-led coalition) aggression and lift of the air, sea and land blockade imposed on the Yemeni people," said the Houthi group and Saleh's party in a joint statement carried by Saba news agency late on Tuesday. On Monday, the exiled President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi agreed to the 72-hour ceasefire, according to a statement by his government's Foreign Minister Abdul-Malik Mekhlafi. The minister demanded Houthis lift siege to the southern city of Taiz and access of humanitarian supplies to the war-torn city. The 19-month civil war have killed over 10,000 people, mostly civilians, and pushed the country's 26 million people to near famine. China expressed its firm opposition after two Japanese cabinet ministers visited a controversial war shrine on Wednesday, urging its neighbor to face up to, and reflect, upon its history of aggression. The ministers, internal affairs chief Sanae Takaichi and Katsunobu Kato, in charge of women's empowerment, visited the Yasukuni shrine during a four-day autumn festival. The shrine in Tokyo honors Japan's war dead, including 14 Class-A war criminals convicted by an Allied tribunal, and is seen as a symbol of Japan's past militarism. "The cabinet ministers' visit reveals the Japanese government's wrong attitude toward history," Hua Chunying, spokeswoman of the Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday. "China urges Japan to make a clean break with militarism and win back trust from its Asian neighbors and the international community with concrete deeds," she said. Peace and prosperity should be maintained by regional, instead of individual countries, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in Beijing on Wednesday. Hua made the remarks after Vietnamese Vice-Defense Minister Nguyen Chi Vinh voiced support for the United States' presence in the Asia-Pacific region. When meeting Cara Abercrombie, the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and South-East Asia on Monday, Nguyen said Vietnam supports US "intervention" in the Asia-Pacific region if it helps keep peace and stability, Reuters reported. Responding to the report, Hua said: "History and reality both show that a country's sovereignty, security and development interests should be judged, handled and maintained by its own people. Likewise, peace, stability and the prosperity of a region should be maintained together by all the regional countries through negotiation and cooperation, instead of relying on so-called 'intervention' by a certain country or some certain countries." Vice-Premier Ma Kai said on Tuesday the global economic slowdown was the main cause of the overcapacity of steel, something Beijing and Brussels will tackle together. Ma said steel overcapacity is a global problem but noted that China made concerted efforts between 2011 and 2015 to cut its overcapacity. "We are determined to reduce steel overcapacity by 100-to-150 million tons during the 2016 to 2020 period," said Ma, who was co-chairing the annual EU-China High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue in Brussels, along with Jyrki Katainen, vice-president of the European Commission. "This amount roughly equals the total of European capacity." "I can tell you that we are going to reduce 50 million tons this year and we will complete this task," he said. "We have checked the numbers onsite and they are solid." Katainen said both sides followed up on the last summit's agreement to establish a dedicated bilateral platform on steel and the Global Forum set up at the G20 summit in Hangzhou. More than 50 top executives representing the European steel industry have written to European Union leaders calling for tougher anti-dumping measures to deter what they regard as unfair competition from China. Their demands for a tougher US-style tariff regime will find an echo among some European leaders worried by the impact of imports of domestic plants and jobs. But once again Britain, facing negotiations on the terms of its exit from the EU, is likely to be the odd man out. The UK has consistently said it backs China's claim to market economy status. Britain has in the past been among those blocking proposed toughening anti-dumping measures, despite the challenges currently confronting the UK steel industry. In March, unnamed senior EU officials were quoted as saying Britain had blocked attempts to reform EU anti-dumping rules to combat what was described as a glut of cheap Chinese steel imports. The European Commission called on European Union institutions and member states to speed up action on proposed new trade defense instruments to come into effect when the protocols on calculating anti-dumping tariffs involving Chinese exporters expire in December. The December 11 deadline marks the 15th anniversary of China's accession to the World Trade Organization. The Commission, the executive arm of the 28-member EU, issued a document ahead of its Wednesday weekly meeting urging finalization of a package of proposals on the long-debated issue between China and EU. The Commission said it has already put forward proposals in 2013 but they had failed to gain unanimous agreement from European institutions and member states as the December deadline approaches. The meeting comes one day after China's Vice-Premier Ma Kai and Vice-President of the European Commission, Jyrki Katainen, confirmed that Brussels would live up to its obligations under China's WTO accession agreements signed 15 years ago. China maintains that its WTO accession deal included automatic recognition of Market Economy Status, which some EU members object to. At their annual high-level trade and economic dialogue on Tuesday, both sides also agreed to jointly put impetus into the global economy, cut steel overcapacity and speed up bilateral investment talks while injecting more efforts to find synergies between European investment scheme and China's Belt and Road Initiative. During the 15-year WTO transitional period, the accession agreement allowed the EU and other WTO members, in anti-dumping cases, to compare the cost of China's exports with that of a surrogate country and to disregard China as a market economy. The EU usually choses economies where the cost is much higher than in China in order to calculate the margins of industry injury and to levy anti-dumping tariffs on China's exporters. Many European Union member states, such as the UK, the Nordic countries, Greece, Hungary and the Netherlands, have favored abiding by China's WTO accession protocol. Globally, up to 100 countries worldwide have treated China as a market economy since its WTO entry in 2001. After meeting with Ma Kai on Tuesday, Kris Peeters, Belgium's deputy prime minister, said in a news release that his country also believed it must abide by provisions and agreements of China's WTO accession. However, the experts have warned that it is still too early to conclude that the European Union will complete the complex debate, consultation and approval procedures to reform its trade defense instruments before a December 11 deadline. Fredrik Erixon, director of Brussels-based European Center for International Political Economy said it is not a decision for the European Commission to make on its own. It needs the support of member states and the European Parliament, and for the time being there is not enough support for them to change EU anti-dumping legislation reflecting China's market economy status. "Let's see what happens,"said Erixon during an interview with China Daily. "The way the Commission has proposed to deal with it, proposing a wholesale reform of how trade defense instruments deal with trade-distortive state interventions, is very complicated and will take time to get through the EU machinery." Pierre Defraigne, Executive Director for the Brussels-based think-tank the Madariaga College of Europe Foundation said the EU should have treated China as a market economy at an earlier date but it failed due to its long-time policy of following the United States regarding to its China policy. "I have long called on the EU to treat China as a market economy but it is regretable that it had not shown such political vision as of today,"said Defraigne, who worked as cabinet head of former trade commissioner Pascal Lamy when China joined WTO in 2001. To contact the reporter: fujing@chinadaily.com.cn Two Chinese industrial groups are considering bidding for Doncasters, one of the oldest engineering manufacturers in Britain, media reports said. A person involved in the proposed sale who requested anonymity would not confirm the names of the interested bidders, but said Doncasters was attracting interest from Asia and the US. Sky News and City A.M. newspaper identified the potential Chinese bidders as the Yinyi Group of Ningbo and Impro of Hong Kong. The auction for Doncasters is being handled by Goldman Sachs. The firm is expected to go for between 1 billion and 1.5 billion pounds, though the Chinese firms are yet to lodge formal offers. Yinyi Group, which deals in real estate, construction and industrial equipment, and precision machining specialist Impro would be going head-to-head with a handful of other interest parties thought to include three American investment firms: Clayton Dubilier & Rice, Blackstone; and Carlyle. The Chinese interest may further fuel debate in the UK over foreign ownership of industrial projects, following the signing of an 18 billion pound contract with France and China for the Hinkley Point nuclear power station. Prime Minister Theresa May has said future deals involving foreign ownership would be subject to scrutiny. Doncasters is, however, already in foreign hands, as Dubai International Capital (DIC), the country's sovereign wealth fund, acquired the company in 2006 for 700 million pounds. DIC then put the 238-year-old manufacturer up for auction in April this year as part of the winding down of the private investment fund. Doncasters is a leading manufacturer of specialized, high tolerance metal components for application in civil and military aerospace equipment, as well as for the construction, industrial and transportation markets. The company was founded in 1778 and has 30 sites across the UK, continental Europe, the US, Mexico and also has a manufacturing facility in Tianjin, China. A spokeswoman from Doncasters declined to comment when contacted by China Daily. To contact the reporter: angus@chinadailyuk.com Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) meets with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the western Indian state of Goa, Oct 15, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] GOA, India - Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi here Saturday and the pair exchanged views on enriching their countries' partnership and enhancing cooperation within multilateral frameworks. The development momentum of China-India ties is encouraging, and a healthy and stable China-India relationship is conducive not only to both countries' development, but to safeguarding the developing countries' reasonable interests in global governance and international systems, said Xi. China and India should constantly enrich their strategic cooperative partnership and chart the course of bilateral ties in line with the fundamental interests of their peoples, added the Chinese president. The two countries should maintain high-level communication and dialogue at all levels so as to expand consensus, improve mutual trust and deepen cooperation, he said, adding that they should also raise the level of cooperation in various fields and continue to push forward cooperation on major projects such as railway and industrial parks. China and India should consolidate public support for bilateral friendship by boosting exchanges between their political parties, local governments, think tanks, cultural bodies and media organizations, Xi said. Meanwhile, the two countries should support each other in participating in regional affairs and enhance cooperation within multilateral frameworks including the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and the East Asia Summit, he added. Meeting Modi in the western Indian state of Goa on the sidelines of the eighth summit of the emerging-market bloc of BRICS, which groups Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, Xi said the Chinese side is willing to work with India to carry on the positive momentum of last month's Group of 20 summit in the Chinese city of Hangzhou and push for positive results of the BRICS summit in Goa, so as to send out a positive signal of confidence, solidarity and cooperation. The Chinese president also called for joint BRICS efforts to deepen practical cooperation and elevate cooperation to higher levels, as well as to strengthen communication and coordination on major international issues so as to safeguard their common interests. China, which will hold the rotating chair in 2017, is willing to work with India and other BRICS members to successfully host the ninth BRICS summit next year, Xi added. For his part, Modi said it is in the two countries' as well as the region's common interests for India and China to maintain frequent high-level exchanges and strategic communication. India and China have the responsibility to join hands and turn the 21st century into an Asian century, said the prime minister. India is willing to strengthen cooperation with China within multilateral frameworks including BRICS and the SCO, Modi said, adding that his country supports China in hosting the BRICS summit next year. India is the last stop of Xi's ongoing Asia tour, which has already taken him to Cambodia and Bangladesh. President Xi Jinping has just concluded a trip to Cambodia, Bangladesh and India, during which he participated in the BRICS Summit in Goa, India, at the weekend. From the perspective of geopolitics, this was an important diplomatic activity that deepened China's bilateral ties with the three countries, which are all important for the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative. It was also a trip that resulted in concrete achievements as China and Bangladesh agreed to deepen strategic partnership of cooperation and 31 cooperation agreements were signed with Cambodia, most of them in infrastructure construction and industry. These achievements are important for advancing the China - Indochina Peninsula Economic Corridor, and the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor. They are also the realization of China's latest efforts in carrying out the Belt and Road Initiative from the angle of bilateral partnerships and border-region cooperation. In a China-Cambodia joint communique, the two sides agreed to accelerate the effective integration of Cambodia's Rectangular Strategy with China's Belt and Road Initiative. For this, the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding regarding bilateral cooperation for the Belt and Road Initiative. This is the second bilateral cooperation agreement between China and a country in the Indochina Peninsula, after the one between China and Laos. In Bangladesh, a series of bilateral cooperation agreements were signed on industrial cooperation, information communication, energy and electricity, diplomacy, disaster-prevention and control and climate change, among other things, within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. Xi also attended the launch ceremony of some important bilateral cooperation projects. Bangladesh is located where South Asia joins Southeast Asia, an important intersection in the Belt and Road Initiative. The Belt and Road Initiative can be effectively integrated with Bangladesh's foreign-bound strategic cooperation, so as to create new opportunities for win-win cooperation between China and Bangladesh. The neighboring countries and regions are important starting points for the construction of both the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. That's why China attaches great significance to consolidating its neighborhood cooperation as a foundation for implementing the Belt and Road Initiative. Xi's visits indicate bilateral cooperation is an important means to furthering the construction of the Belt and Road. The countries visited have huge needs in infrastructure construction, including roads, airports, ports, energy, and telecommunications, and constructing this infrastructure is key to building the aforementioned corridors, which should not only promote interconnectivity in their infrastructure construction, but also create jobs, and form regional production networks and value chains for industrial development in the countries concerned. There was an international seminar on the Belt and Road Initiative held in Xi'an, Shaanxi province, recently. A report issued at the seminar showed the achievements of the initiative in the past three years have been more than expected. Xi's visit to Pakistan in 2015 effectively pushed forward the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, and the construction of the China - Indochina Peninsula Economic Corridor will be of practical importance to deepening win-win cooperation between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and shaping the maturity of China-ASEAN partnership in the coming years. Likewise, the construction of the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor will inject new vitality into China-South Asia cooperation. Only when these two corridors see concrete progress will the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road be pushed forward in a balanced way. The author is a researcher on Asian-Pacific studies and global strategies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. (Photo : Getty Images/Justin Sullivan ) A view of cellular communication towers on March 6, 2014 in Emeryville, California. Advertisement Tech giants Qualcomm, Netgear, Ericsson and Australian network provider Telstra are working on a new wireless technology that can theoretically support speed of up to 1Gbps. The technology is simply called Gigabit LTE and the companies involved in developing it are hoping to roll it out before the end of the year. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement Telstra said to achieve such breakneck speed, they have used a variety of technologies, including carrier aggregation. The technology also runs on Telstra's existing LTE networks. In addition to the Gigabit LTE mobile hotspot from Telstra, Qualcomm is also launching its next-generation 800 series smartphone processor platform. This nwill include the X16 modem that has the capability of supporting gigabit LTE speed. Qualcomm said this new 800 series chipsets still have no officially name, although the company confirmed that it is slated to be the successor for the recently launched Snapdragon 821. Qualcomm added that the new chipsets will be rolling out by the first half of 2017. According to The Verge, Qualcomm's X16 modem offers speed boosts of up to 600Mbps compared to the current X12 platform. Qualcomm expects that major carriers around the world will start launching their own gigabit LTE services once the company's chipsets and modems are made available to smartphones. Furthermore, Qualcomm is also looking forward to launch its first 5G compatible modems by 2018. It is even projecting that its X50 chipset, which supports speed of up to 5Gbps, will be available by 2018. Advertisement Tags5G, telstra, gigabit mobile LTE, LTE, mobile network (Photo : To l Brewery) Fresh out of the lab: the world's first powdered instant beer. Advertisement A "gypsy brewery" in Denmark has managed to create the world's first "instant beer" in powder form. Like most instant products like instant coffee, powdered instant beer becomes beer when a liquid is added. In this case, the liquids are water alcohol. The amount of liquid you use is up to you. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The beer created by the two owners of "To l Brewery" in Copenhagen, capital of Denmark, isn't ready to market, however. It's a proof of concept both men said they'll continue to refine. But is there a market for powdered instant beer? Probably not considering how fanatical Beer Lovers are. Tobias Emil Jensen and Tore Gynther have branded their prototype "To l Instant Craft Beer." The word "To l" is Danish for two beers. They describe their "company" as a gypsy brewery. What that means is "we don't own our own brewing facilities but lend in at other breweries with spare capacity," they explained. But they do have a website. A gypsy brewery is also called a Pirate/Nomad/Contract/Gold Digger Brewery. These gypsy entrepreneurs made their instant beer by freeze-drying four different beers to separate the dry components -- sugars, bitter compounds, and flavor elements -- from the water and alcohol. The four beers they selected were "a heavy deep beer brewed with coffee, a fruity IPA brewed with different tropical fruits, a Wild Yeast hop forward IPAs and a fairly dry pilsner." Separating the alcohol from the dry components allows consumers to customize the beer they drink, adding their own water and whatever alcohol they want. Jensen and Gynther added mezcal to the powdered instant beer they tested. Mezcal is a wine made in Mexico derived from the agave plant. The duo created powdered instant beer so people can enjoy beer in places where it would be logistically difficult to enjoy beer, such as when mountain climbing or when aboard a plane. They said they teamed-up with GEA to make To l Instant Craft Beer to facilitate a larger scale freeze drying capacity. They said GEA are the experts in freeze drying. GEA, which is based in Copenhagen, is one of the largest suppliers of process technology for the food industry and for a wide range of other industries. Advertisement Tagsinstant beer, powdered instant beer, To l Brewery, Denmark, Tobias Emil Jensen, Tore Gynther, To l Instant Craft Beer, pirate brewery (Photo : RAF) Four Storm Shadow cruise missiles mounted on an RAF Panavia Tornado. Advertisement The long-range cruise missile named "Storm Shadow," the most powerful missile in the Royal Air Force (RAF) inventory, is among a large number of British-supplied, air-launched weapons being used by the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) in its campaign to oust Houthi rebels that took over the government of Yemen in January 2015. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement Since April 2015, the RSAF has led a relentless bombing campaign against Yemeni forces and their militant allies along with support from eight other Arab nations as part of the Saudi Arabian-led War in Yemen. The Yemeni Civil War from 2004 to 2015 ended with the Houthis toppling the legitimate government of Yemen, which was forced into exile to Saudi Arabia. Intervention by Saudi Arabia and its allies followed. The British are playing a key role in the RSAF air campaign in Yemen and have deployed military personnel in the command and control center responsible for Saudi-led air strikes on Yemen. The British also have access to targets lists and provide missiles and bombs for the RSAF. The United States also supplies bombs and other weapons to the RSAF and its coalition partners. It provides intelligence and logistical support; aerial refueling and search-and-rescue for downed coalition pilots. RSAF airstrikes in Yemen are mostly carried out by its Panavia Tornado IDS strike fighters capable of mounting an enormous array of smart bombs and air-to-ground missiles. RSAF operates 80 Tornadoes. The use of the Storm Shadow by RSAF Tornadoes against Houthi Yemini forces was only recently detailed to the British Parliament by Secretary of State for Defense Sir Michael Fallon. Fallon said the RSAF has deployed Storm Shadow and other British-supplied air launched weapons since the Saudi-led intervention began. Other British-supplied precision-guided weapons being used by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen are the Dual Mode Brimstone (a fire-and-forget air-to surface missile); ALARM (Air Launched Anti-Radiation Missile used against radars); the U.S.-made Paveway IV laser guided bombs and the PGM500 guided bombs (called Hakim 2 by the United Arab Emirates). By far, the most impressive British weapon used by the Saudis is Storm Shadow, a British, French and Italian air-launched cruise missile manufactured by MBDA. The fire-and-forget missile is five meters in length and weighs 1,500 kg, of which 450 kg is its multi-stage warhead. It has a range of 450 km and after launch, its wings deploy and the weapon navigates to the target at low level using terrain profile matching and an integrated Global Positioning System. Publication of the types of British air-launched precision-guided weapons used in the Yemeni war comes at a time of growing international condemnation of the number of civilian deaths caused by the Saudi-led coalition's air strikes. Advertisement TagsWar in Yemen, Royal Saudi Air Force, United Kingdom, Storm Sharow missile, Houthis, Yemeni Civil War, Saudi Arabia, Sir Michael Fallon (Photo : D-Wave) D-Wave quantum computer system. Advertisement D-Wave Systems, Inc., the first company in the world to sell quantum computers, will open a subsidiary in Washington D.C. to locate closer to the U.S. government, the largest buyer of computers on Earth. The government focused subsidiary will be named, D-Wave Government, Inc. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The federal government, especially the Pentagon and the Department of Defense (DoD), is the main market for D-Wave's quantum computers. D-Wave has so far sold systems to three major U.S. customers: Lockheed Martin, Google and the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Other customers such as the U.S. Navy are renting time on D-Wave owned computers. Based in British Columbia in Canada, D-Wave is the only company in the world currently offering a functioning quantum computer. In 2011, D-Wave announced D-Wave One, which it claimed was "the world's first commercially available quantum computer." It launched a Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab based on the D-Wave Two 512-qubit quantum computer used for research into machine learning. In August 2015, D-Wave announced the general availability of the D-Wave 2X system, a 1000+ qubit quantum computer. In September, D-Wave said it had installed this system at the Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab at NASA Ames Research Center. D-Wave president Bo Ewald said his company wants to make the most of the U.S. government's interest in quantum computing and that opening a government-focused subsidiary was part of this plan. "The U.S. government is the largest procurer of computers on the planet," said Ewald. "They also are the ones who typically apply technologies before others do for programmatic needs, whether it be the Pentagon programs or Department of Energy or the intelligence community." He noted that while he doesn't have an exact dollar figure for the potential business with the federal government and the military, "I can imagine that as this business really gets rolling that there will be several of these big systems within the DoD, the DoE labs, the intelligence community networks." "Whether they lease them, purchase them or are using a cloud service, it's too early to tell yet." Ewald said D-Wave's systems are mostly used for research and experimentation by its Pentagon customers. That includes serious work going on with various DoD research labs and the Navy's Space and Naval Systems Warfare Command. Advertisement TagsD-Wave Systems, Inc., D-Wave Government, Inc., quantum computers, D-Wave One, Bo Ewald, washington d.c. (Photo : Getty Images) An investor observes the stock market at an exchange hall on August 21, 2015 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province of China. Advertisement Chinese authorities are limiting the number of stock accounts each investor could own in the A-share market, a move to curb illegal market activities. Under the new regulation, individuals are only allowed to own up to three accounts in a single mainland market, a steep decrease from the previous 20, according to a statement by the China Securities Depository and Clearing Corp. (CSDC) posted on its website. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement Investors who own more than three active accounts will be allowed, but inactive accounts are considered dormant, the Wall Street Journal reported. "The utilization rate for investors with more than three accounts is very low. The accounts have taken up too many technical resources," the company said in a statement, adding that some investors are taking advantage of multiple accounts by carrying out illicit activities. The regulation immediately became effective following CSDC's announcement, China Daily reported. "We believe the regulators have learnt the lesson... The key intention of this new rule is to remind investors that the crazy bull will not happen again," Judy Zhang, head of China banks and brokers at Citigroup in Hong Kong, said referring to China's market crash last year, which caused about a third of local Chinese investors to run and wiping away trillions of U.S. dollars in value. Chinese securities regulators scrapped the "one person, one account" rule in 2015 to give investors' more freedom to manage their stock portfolios. Meanwhile, the CSDC has also reportedly created a black list system to monitor illegal trading activities. It has penalized over 500 stock accounts involving more than 70 investors for irregular activities after it adopted a new policy in April that allows investors to own multiple accounts, the China People's Daily reported. Advertisement Tagsstock accounts, securities accounts, China Stock Exchange, stock exchange, China stock market (Photo : Ukrainian Ground Forces) Men of the Ukrainian Ground Forces. Advertisement Russian state-owned media has begun openly speculating about the increased chances of a new war against Ukraine following the assassination of a notorious pro-Russia separatist leader accused of cold bloodedly murdering 15 Ukrainian prisoners of war. The illegal and pro-Russia Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) in east Ukraine is blaming Kyiv for the death of Arseny Pavlov (aka Motorola), the notorious commander of the DPR militia's Sparta Battalion, who was blown-up in a booby trapped elevator along with his bodyguard. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement At the time of their deaths, both Pavlov and his bodyguard were wearing body armor and were heavily armed. Pavlov was a Russian citizen. A group claimed responsibility for Motorola's execution on behalf of the "misanthropic division" of Ukrainian nationalists. They posted an online video showing four masked men in front of an Ukrainian flag. The men said they were inside Donetsk and would target other separatist leaders. Officially, the DPR has blamed the attack on a Ukrainian nationalist cell operating in the city. Others, however, believe the killing to be the latest in a brutal territorial war between different rebel factions in the Donbas, and that Russia might be responsible for Pavlov's death. Pavlov was praised by Russian President Vladimir Putin as a war hero and reviled by Ukraine as a murderer who admitted shooting to death 15 unarmed Ukrainian soldiers that were prisoners-of-war. Pavlov himself admitted murdering the defenseless men. "I don't give a f*** about what I am accused of, believe it or not," he said in an interview. "I shot 15 prisoners dead. I don't give a f***. No comment. I kill if I want to. I don't if I don't," he said. Officials from Ukraine's breakaway DPR have publicly said Pavlos's killing last Oct. 16 was a declaration of war by Ukraine. Russian media warns the assassination might draw both NATO and Russia into the conflict in east Ukraine. DPR leader Alexander Zakharchenko stated bluntly the attack constituted a violation of the ceasefire, and "an effective declaration of war." Russian media said Pavlov's death adds to the tensions along the fragile ceasefire between Kiev forces and the Donbass militia. It claims the DPR is reporting a buildup of heavy equipment along the contact line, as well as the presence of "foreign mercenaries" in the area. It also alleged the Ukrainian Ground Forces launched a probing attack on a settlement near the village of Leninskoe in Donetsk after an artillery and mortar barrage. A DPR defense ministry spokesman said Ukrainian nationalist volunteer forces and "foreign mercenaries" (read NATO troops) were present in the assault. The DRP also alleged that Ukrainian forces in a single day violated the ceasefire 398 times, including 336 violations using heavy artillery and mortars. All these allegations are taking place to give Russia and the DPR an excuse to launch a new offensive against Ukraine. Advertisement TagsUkraine, Russia, Donbass, Arseny Pavlov, Motorola, Donetsk Peoples Republic, assassination, Alexander Zakharchenko (Photo : Getty Images ) Rodrigo Duterte arrived in Beijing on Tuesday evening at the start of a historic visit to China. Advertisement China and Philippines may agree to share natural resources in the disputed South China Sea. The two countries are reportedly discussing joint exploration for oil and natural gas in the contested waters, a Philippine media report revealed. "What we are looking at is a deal that will first cover exploration activities in uncontested areas," a senior Filipino official told the Philippine Daily Inquirer. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The official even added that the South China Sea areas closer to the Philippines, including the Recto Bank, would be considered as potential locations for joint exploration. "We're still finalizing it, but we will finish this deal in time," he said. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, known for his anti-U.S. tirade, arrived in Beijing on Tuesday evening at the start of a historic four-day visit to China. It is Duterte's first state visit outside ASEAN since taking office in June. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that the Philippines President will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Keqiang during his four day long visit to country. "This is a historic visit, and presents an opportunity for relations between China and the Philippines to restart on a fresh, more positive footing," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said. China and Philippines have long been engaged in a bitter dispute over the South China Sea. In July, an international tribunal had rejected China's ownership claims over the contested waters. Advertisement TagsSouth China Sea, South China Sea Dispute, china, Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte (Photo : Getty Images ) China is Pakistans largest supplier of arms. Advertisement India said it is not worried about a recent China Pakistan submarine deal. A high ranking official from Indian Navy said on Tuesday that India is not concerned about China's stealth attack submarines sale to Pakistan. "We are not concerned about such a deal," Indian Navy's vice admiral GS Pabby said. "We are only concerned about our submarine program, which is running behind schedule." Like Us on Facebook Advertisement As far as China's decision to sell eight submarines to Pakistan is concerned, the Indian Navy is far ahead of Pakistan and much more capable in terms of strength," Pabby continued. Beijing recently admitted that it has agreed to export eight attack submarines to Pakistan as part of the approximately $5 billion deal signed earlier this year. Last week, the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) organized a conference to discuss the details of the deal . The country's state media reported that the corporation will supply the eight modified diesel-electric attack submarines to Pakistani Navy by 2028. Four submarines will be reportedly built in CSIC's facilities in China, while the remaining four will be built in Pakistan. China is a close ally of Pakistan and it is also Pakistan's largest supplier of weapons and one of its biggest trading partners. Meawnhile, India has been accusing China of supporting its arch rival Pakistan. The tension between India and Pakistan has recently been heightened following a deadly attack on an Indian military camp in Kashmir state that left eighteen Indian soldiers dead. Beijing continues to support Islamabad despite New Delhi's displeasure over its stance relative to the Kashmir issue. Advertisement Tagschina, Pakistan, Submarine Sale, submarine, Uri Terror Attack, kashmir (Photo : Getty Images) President Duterte seeks China's financial assistance to build high-speed railways and roads on his first day of visit to Beijing Advertisement President Rodrigo Duterte's state visit in China has already achieved a positive result, as the country has committed US$3 billion to fund the Philippines' infrastructure projects. The Philippine leader arrived in China on Tuesday as part of his four-day state visit to the Asian giant upon the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement Duterte said he bears goodwill in his China trip saying he aims to "make friends" and not "make war" with Beijing. Analysts said Duterte is expected to seek financial support from the Chinese government and the various business groups to prop up its economy during his first official state visit to Beijing. US$3 billion State-run news agency Global Times said China has already offered the Southeast Asian country US$3 billion to fund its infrastructure projects, which include high-speed rail, roads and electricity grid development. "Infrastructure serves as the core of the manufacturing industry to boost economic development in the Philippines, while China could provide cost-effective, though not the most advanced technology that Manila can afford," said Zhuang Guotu, a scholar at Xiamen University. One of Duterte's pet projects, which he hopes to achieve during his six-year term, is the construction of a massive railway system in Mindanao, the southern part of the country. China Railway Group China's state-owned infrastructure firm China Railway Group Ltd. has expressed interest in investing in the Philippines' infrastructure projects to the tune of US$3 billion in the coming years. China Railway's funding commitment is one of the several business deals expected to be signed by both countries in the four-day visit, according to Global Times. Philippine Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said numerous agreements on the said funding assistance from Chinese banks and private business sector will be inked by the Philippine government and China. The fund will be provided in the form of investment and soft loan. President Xi Jinping Duterte is slated to meet his counterpart, President Xi Jinping, as well as Premier Li Keqiang and other officials, including China's National People's Congress chairperson Zhang Dejiang, China's Foreign Ministry said. "This is a historic visit, and presents an opportunity for relations between China and the Philippines to restart on a fresh, more positive footing," said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday. Wang said no "foreign force" can stand in the way of improving Sino-Philippine relations and that China's doors are always open for friendship among Filipinos. Advertisement TagsPresident Xi Jinping, President Rodrigo Duterte, high-speed rail, infrastructure projects, China visit, business deals, economic development (Photo : Indian Army) BrahMos will soon envelop all of Pakistan. Advertisement India and Russia have agreed to work together to more than double the range of India's BrahMos supersonic cruise missile to over 600 kilometers, an upgrade that will bring all of Pakistan within range of the missile's high explosive or nuclear warheads. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The far longer range will also enable this as yet unnamed model to attack more People's Liberation Army bases in the interior of Tibet that threaten the Line of Actual Control, especially those bases aimed at the imperiled Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh China claims is part of Tibet. One of the biggest drawbacks to BrahMos -- the world's fastest cruise missile -- is its paltry range of just 290 kilometers. That drawback was imposed because Russia, the co-builder of the missile, was a member of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) at the time BrahMos was being developed in the 1990s and India wasn't. The MTCR, which now consists of 35 nations, forbids its members from selling, jointly producing or exporting missiles with a range in excess of 300 km. India became the newest member of the MTCR club last June 28, which means it can now develop but not export missiles with a range exceeding 300 km. BrahMos is being produced by BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture between India's Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and Russia's Federal State Unitary Enterprise NPOM. The decision to extend the range of BrahMos was announced by Russian president Vladimir Putin during the recent 17th annual India-Russia bilateral summit in Goa last Oct. 15. "We have also agreed to improve the BrahMos missile, which will be land, air and sea launched. We will also work to increase its range. And we will work together on a fifth-generation aircraft," said Putin said. During this summit, India also signed a total of 16 agreements covering national defense, including an agreement to purchase of the potent S-400 Triumf air defense missile system (one of the world's best) for about $5 billion. This new system will be used against Pakistan, as well. The Pakistani military is justifiably worried about BrahMos. One of its websites described the Indian missile as "stealthy, fast and extremely difficult to shoot down." It also noted that "BrahMos's ability to maintain supersonic speeds while skimming at low altitude makes it very difficult to detect and intercept. To cap it off, the BrahMos performs an evasive 'S-maneuver' shortly before impact, making it difficult to shoot down at close range." BrahMos' accuracy is astonishing. It can deliver its 200 kg conventional semi-armor-piercing or nuclear warhead to one meter of its target. Its speed is equally stunning. The missile can hurtle towards its target at Mach 3 (3,700 km/h). The newest version under development will double this speed to Mach 7 (8,600 km/h) Advertisement TagsBrahMos, cruise missile, India, Pakistan, china, Line of Actual Control, Missile Technology Control Regime (Photo : Pixabay) Typhoon Sarika has wrecked havoc in China's Hainan province. Advertisement Chinese authorities have evacuated half a million people in the wake of Typhoon Sarika hitting Hainan. The country has also issued a red alert. A large number of flights bound for Hainan have also been canceled. The typhoon landed at Hele Town at 9:50 a.m. Sarika is the 21st typhoon of the year. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement Sarika packed winds of 162 kms per hour, causing havoc. A bus carrying 45 passengers was reportedly overturned by the strong winds and slippery road. However, no casualties have been reported. The National Meteorological Centre has issued a red alert, which is the highest level alert in China's color-coded weather warning system. The capital city of Haikou is estimated to have suffered economic losses amounting to nearly $148 million. The Hainan Civil Affairs Department has been evacuating fishermen and people living in low-lying areas. The department is also providing relief materials including food, water, and quilts. The main civil airport of the area--the Meilan International Airport--has had to cancel 250 flights on account of the typhoon. Similarly, high-speed train services have also been negatively affected. Cai Qinbo, the provincial meteorological station chief, said that the losses caused by the typhoon are likely to be grave. He said that the Sarika is likely to be the most destructive typhoon to land in Hainan in a decade. Typhoon Sarika hit the Philippines before reaching China. It is estimated to have caused $44 million worth of agricultural damage in the country. Two casualties were also reported in the Philippines. Advertisement TagsHainan, Sarika, typhoon (Photo : https://pixabay.com/en/life-beauty-scene-transport-863180/) Pakistan is participating in $46 billion economic corridor project. Advertisement The International Monetary Fund (IMF) sent a warning to Pakistan about the growing Chinese investments in the country. While investments are expected to help the ailing Pakistani economy in realizing its potential, the country may possibly face difficulties in meeting its repayment obligations. Pakistan is participating in $46 billion economic corridor project. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement In its evaluation of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) investments, IMF said the growth projected for the investments is likely to be strong enough to cover the repayments over the longer term. However, it also noted that such repayment is not guaranteed. IMT added that it is important that such investments are coupled with export and growth-related reforms in the country to ensure the country's repayment capacity. According to the report, CPEC-related imports are expected to touch 11 percent of total forecasted imports by 2020. The gross external funding needs of Pakistan, though, are likely to jump by 60 percent by then, reaching $17.5 billion. The report advised Pakistan to manage its CPEC-related outflow properly. Accordingly, this is important in the scenarios when Chinese investors start to repatriate the profits from their investments in Pakistan. IMF further stated that owing to the massive amount of Foreign Direct Investment involved, the repatriation can run into huge amounts, as Pakistan needs to manage the outflows in the form of loan repayments. Furthermore, IMF said Pakistan's growth rate may increase, touching five percent in the current fiscal year. The report also lauded the investment's potential with a huge chunk of the inflow going towards transportation, energy and infrastructure projects. It is expected that nearly $10 billion worth of investments are allocated for road, rail and port developments. Advertisement TagsPakistan, china, IMF (Photo : Korean People's Army) Hwasong-10 launch. Advertisement There are indications North Korea might be further ahead than expected in finishing the development of its Hwasong-10 (Musudan) mobile intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) that might be able to reach the vicinity of Guam. This missile can carry a nuclear warhead. North Korea has conducted seven tests involving eight Musudans from this April until Oct. 15. None of these tests were considered completely successful by the west. One test, a launch of two Musudans last June 22 from Wonsan, was considered a partial success. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement North Korea, however, praised the twin launches as a complete success. The latest test on Oct. 15 from Kusong on the west coast was a complete failure that saw a Musudan destroyed at launch. The U.N. Security Council strongly condemned for the October launch, calling it a "grave violation" of resolutions banning North Korea from using ballistic missile technology. First revealed in 2010, Hwasong-10 is a liquid fueled IRBM capable of carrying a 1,000 kg high explosive warhead and, later on, a nuclear warhead if the North ever perfects this technology. North Korea claims the missile can reach out to 4,000 km but western analysts believe this to be false based on the trajectories of the missiles used in its tests. Despite the mostly failed record of the Hwasong-10, the American think tank 38 North believes North Korea is on track to perfect Hwasong-10 faster than expected. It cited an aggressive schedule with multiple tests and believes the latest launch from Kusong suggests Hwasong-10 might enter service as early as 2017. The website is part of Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies. It believes the North Koreans aren't "taking the slow path to developing a reliable system, with a year or so between each test to analyze the data and make improvements ... instead, they are continuing with an aggressive test schedule that involves, at least this time, demonstrating new operational capabilities." The frequent launches of the missile increase the probability of failures, but "it means they will learn more with each test." The think tank noted that launching from the west coast allows the missile to achieve longer range without flying over neighboring countries such as Japan. Previous tests from the east coast were limited to 400 kilometers or so to avoid Japanese airspace. To compensate, the North decided on a lofted trajectory that "probably did not demonstrate the missile's full performance." "From the west coast, launching south, a North Korean missile could fly 3,000 kilometers (1,900 miles) or more before splashing down in the Philippine Sea," said the report by 38 North (a reference to the 38th Parallel dividing North and South Korea). Advertisement TagsHwasong-10 (Musudan), intermediate-range ballistic missile, IRBM, North Korea, 38 North, Guam Christian refugees threatened by immigration officials after fleeing Vietnam to seek asylum 19 October, 2016 by Staff , | PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (Christian Examiner) A group of indigenous tribal Christians from Vietnam who fled persecution in the country's Central Highlands are about to be sent back into the lion's den, Radio Free Asia has reported. The believers, part of several of the many hill tribes known as Montagnards (French for "mountain people"), left Vietnam last year under pressure from a government which supposedly guarantees religious liberty, but only allows it insofar as it supports the objectives of the state which is Marxist atheism. According to the report from RFA, the Cambodian government plans to deport "some" of the 160 Montagnards whose asylum claims have been processed and denied, with officials claiming they have failed to prove they are refugees. Those Montagnard asylum-seekers must leave Cambodia within two weeks after the decision of the immigration department. In the case that they do not leave, we will arrest them and send them back to Vietnam. Khieu Sopheak, a spokesman for Cambodia's interior ministry, said it could take up to one month for each of the Montagnard Christians to be returned to Vietnam. First, they have the opportunity to appeal the Cambodian government's decision. "The results of the interviews I obtained yesterday show that many of them didn't satisfy the requirements to be recognized as refugees," Sopheak said. "Now they have to submit additional evidence to justify their claims of mistreatment or persecution. After that, we will decide whether or not to deport them." But another spokesman for Cambodia's immigration agency, Kim Sarin, took a much harder line. He said the Montagnards have two weeks to return to Vietnam, or else they will be forcibly returned. "We have interviewed those Montagnard asylum-seekers one by one for the last few months and we evaluated that those people have no right to receive asylum from a third country because their answers do not comply with the convention on refugees," Sarin told the Cambodia Daily. "Those Montagnard asylum-seekers must leave Cambodia within two weeks after the decision of the immigration department. In the case that they do not leave, we will arrest them and send them back to Vietnam," Sarin said. This group of 160 Montagnard Christians was part of a larger group that fled Gia Lai, Dak Lak, and Kon Tum provinces in central Vietnam in May. Some of the original group have already been returned to Vietnam while 13 were granted refugee status and allowed to move to the Philippines. RFA also reported that Vietnamese authorities came to Cambodia to question the Montagnards and "encourage" them to return home. RFA said that move was "condemned by civil society as intimidation" of the ethnic minority Christians. Politically-motivated UNESCO denies history, calls Israel 'occupying power' -- makes no reference to 'Temple Mount'' 19 October, 2016 by Gregory Tomlin , | NEW YORK (Christian Examiner) In its latest insult to the nation of Israel, the United Nations' educational and cultural body (UNESCO) has adopted a resolution by a slim margin which denies the Jews' ancient claims to the Temple Mount. In fact, the resolution makes no reference to the "Temple Mount," but instead refers to the location of the ancient Jewish Temple only as al-Haram al-Sharif, home of the al-Aqsa mosque. It also refers to the Western Wall (traditionally called the "Wailing Wall") predominantly as "al-Buraq Plaza" a site where Muslims claim Muhammad tied up his winged horse when he supposedly visited Jerusalem. No real evidence exists that Muhammad ever visited Jerusalem. To say that Israel has no connection to the Temple Mount and the Western Wall is like saying that China has no connection to the Great Wall of China or that Egypt has no connection to the pyramids. By this absurd decision, UNESCO has lost what little legitimacy it had left. The resolution, approved by UNESCO's executive board, was sponsored by a group of Arab nations and purports to safeguard "the cultural heritage of Palestine and the distinctive character of East Jerusalem." Last week, Israel ceased cooperating with UNESCO as the resolution was debated, claiming that the Palestinians were "playing games" with history. In a Facebook post, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the passage of the resolution a performance in the "theatre of the absurd." "To say that Israel has no connection to the Temple Mount and the Western Wall is like saying that China has no connection to the Great Wall of China or that Egypt has no connection to the pyramids. By this absurd decision, UNESCO has lost what little legitimacy it had left," Netanyahu said. David Keyes, Netanyahu's spokesman, went so far as to invite "expert historical witnesses" to describe the Jews' association with the Temple Mount. Among those witnesses, he said, was King Solomon, the Roman Emperor Titus, and even the Supreme Muslim Council, which declared in its pamphlet, A Brief Guide to al-Haram al-Sharif, in 1925: "The site is one of the oldest in the world. Its sanctity dates from the earliest (perhaps from pre-historic) times. Its identity with the site of Solomon's Temple is beyond dispute." In spite of this earlier recognition of the location of the Temple, Mounir Anastas, Palestine's deputy ambassador, said he hoped the resolution would shock Israel into making adjustments in its policies, stopping "all their violations" and excavations of the areas around the Temple Mount. When Israeli archaeologists do dig around the site, they uncover more and more ancient evidence of the Jewish presence at the site. In the resolution, proposed by Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar and Sudan, Israel is referred to as "the occupying power" on four occasions. Twenty-four nations, including Russia, Iran and China, voted in favor of the resolution. Twenty-six nations abstained. Only Germany, Estonia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and United States voted against it. In a commentary in the Jerusalem Post, columnist Tovar Lazaroff wrote that Israel will have to fight more battles over resolutions like the one passed by the UNESCO board. "Until the nations of the world are willing to vote for history instead of politics, or until the UN finds a way to set a basic accuracy standard that resolution must meet, Israel will find itself again and again battling against such texts," Lazaroff wrote. Persecution watchdog group Open Doors reports that in 2016, Muslim refugees attacked some 743 Christian refugees while they were living in camps in Germany. Open Doors officials say there could be even more unreported cases. "The documented cases confirm that the situation of Christian refugees in German refugee shelters is still unbearable. As a minority they are discriminated against, beaten up by and receive death threats from Muslim refugees and partly by the Muslim staff (securities, interpreters, volunteers) on grounds of their religion," according to a major survey published by Open Doors Germany in October, representing a number of organizations, such as Persecuted Christians and the Needy, European Mission Society Fellowship, and the Central Council of Oriental Christians in Germany. "Taking these new cases into consideration there are now 743 Christian refugees who have reported religiously motivated attacks. With more staff at hand, a significantly higher number of cases could have been included in the survey," it added. The refugees had fled from Syria and other regions, escaping terror groups and the violence from war. Instead, the Christian refugees found violence within what were supposed to be safe camps. As a Christian charity, Open Doors is not against Muslims, as CEO Markus Rode has already made clear in a comprehensive statement in January 2015. It is a constitutive element of Christian faith that Muslims are loved by God and are to be met with love and compassion," the report said. "At the same time it has to be stated that Islam, which is the majority religion in most of the refugees' home countries, is responsible for the massive violation of the human right to freedom of religion. Publication date: October 19, 2016 Muslim Fulani herdsmen killed more than 40 Christians in an attack in this town in northern Nigeria on Saturday (Oct. 15) and left another eight dead in an assault three weeks earlier, area leaders said. Besides the eight slain on Sept. 24-26 in Godogodo, a predominantly Christian community in Kaduna state, the Muslim Fulani herdsmen also wounded eight Christians by gunshot and machete cuts, the leaders said. Godogodo residents said that the second massacre began at 5 p.m. on Saturday (Oct. 15), barely two hours after Morning Star News left after investigating the September attack. The Rev. Thomas Akut of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) Good News Church in Godogodo said the assailants burned houses and shot Christians dead in the attack over the weekend. The 41-year-old Pastor Akut and his family escaped harm, sleeping on the ground outside town until Sunday morning (Oct. 16), when they made their way to Kafanchan, he told Morning Star News by phone. We fled into the bushes, and some of us escaped to safer areas, he said. The attackers were in the hundreds and were well armed. Some of them wore army uniforms, while others wore police uniforms. Some of them exchanged gunfire with the few soldiers stationed at the post office in the town, while others burned down houses of Christians. Initially he saw 22 Christians had been killed, he said. This casualty figure is only those I saw the following morning, but the number of deaths may be higher as many were killed in the bushes too, Pastor Akut said. Solomon Musa, an attorney and president of the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU), said at a press conference on Monday (Oct. 17) that local residents identified at least 40 people who had been killed. Godogodo communities once again came under very fierce, terrifying, brutal, savage and barbarous attack by Fulani herdsmen without provocation of any nature from Saturday 15th October, 2016, to Sunday afternoon, he said. So far, the locals have been able to identify not less than 40 corpses, aside from the several other corpses burnt beyond recognition. A Kaduna State Command spokesman reportedly said the official death toll remained at 20. Nearly all houses in Godogodo have been burned, SOKAPU's Musa said, and the Muslim Fulani herdsmen also destroyed property worth hundreds of millions of naira, besides grazing their cattle on farmers crops and destroying what remained. The savagery and barbarity of the attack is beyond belief, Musa said. Yet, governments at the federal and state levels appear quiet and noncommittal. We have been abandoned, deserted and neglected. Pastor Isaac Balason of Nasara Baptist Church, Godogodo, spoke to Morning Star News while the town was under attack. It is now 8:30 p.m., and the attack is ongoing, he said by phone on Saturday night. Were not sure well survive this time. Please be in prayers with us. The following morning, Pastor Balason told Morning Star News that herdsmen had burned down houses in Angwan Ninzo and Angwan Jaba, among other areas. Thank God we survived, but many others have lost their lives, he said. Wounded Son Loses Father Christian leaders in Godogodo told Morning Star News that 16 church buildings and worship centers were affected in the two attacks on Godogodo. The damaged buildings belonged to St. Francis Catholic Church, St. Simeon Anglican Church, Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN), Deeper Life Bible Church, Grace of God Church, Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Assemblies of God Church, ECWA I & II, ECWA Good News, ECWA Kibam, Lords Chosen Church, Methodist Church of Nigeria, Nasara Baptist Church, Christ Apostolic Church, and Seventh-day Adventist Church. Pastor Akut said the herdsmen have also been destroying Christians farms, a tactic he said is aimed at displacing Christians and starving survivors to death. Our farms have been destroyed, Pastor Akut said. Crops that are now ready for harvest have all been destroyed by the herdsmen. Members of our churches cannot even go to these farms, as anyone who attempts to do so is murdered by the herdsmen. Most of the villages around Godogodo have been destroyed and thousands of Christians displaced. Akut said the attack has displaced all 245 members of his church including himself. He said he saw the attacks as an Islamic war against Christians. This is a jihad, he said. It is an Islamic holy war against Christians in the southern part of Kaduna state. Pastor Balason, 34, said all 120 members of his of Nasara Baptist Church had been displaced. Three out my 120 members were killed during the first attack, and the rest, including myself, have been displaced, he said. I cannot say whether they all survived this latest attack, as it is difficult at this moment to know the situation they are in. Samuel Musa, a 60-year-old elder with the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Godogodo, told Morning Star News shortly before the second attack that during Sabbath worship, the church usually had 50 members, but that the first attack on the town displaced all of them except him and three others. We have lost so much to the attacks by the herdsmen, Musa said. Ishaya Danladi Mallam, 46, an elder with the Evangelical Reformed Church of Christ (ERCC), told Morning Star News that the first attack displaced all but 24 of the churchs 220 members. We covet your prayers and those of other brethren, he said. We are facing very threatening, tough times. Those killed in the first attack were identified as: Ajiya Hamza, 20; Monday Hamza, 18; Musa Gwari, 45; Joseph Nok, 46; Luka Ali, 22; Ishaku Ali, 26; Ikechukwu James, 30; and Daniel Silas, 30. Those wounded were Baba Joseph Nok, 20, whose father was killed in the attack; Menshack Waziri, 22; Gideon Peter, 29; Solomon John, 41. Others injured were Blessed Musa, 35; Inuwa Tanet, 32; Abba Samuel, 30; and, Uba Monday, 28. At this writing three of the injured were receiving treatment at Jos University Teaching Hospital, while five others were at the Throne-room Hospital, Kafanchan. If you would like to help persecuted Christians, visit http://morningstarnews.org/resources/aid-agencies/ for a list of organizations that can orient you on how to get involved. If you or your organization would like to help enable Morning Star News to continue raising awareness of persecuted Christians worldwide with original-content reporting, please consider collaborating at http://morningstarnews.org/donate/? Publication date: October 19, 2016 I had the privilege or reading a pre-release version of "God Shines Forth: How the Nature of God Shapes and Drives the Mission of the Church." Here are 20 quotes from the book, which you should pick up. home US 3rd presidential debate gives Donald Trump last big chance to make a mark before Nov 8 election U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump faces a formidable challenge on Wednesday when he and Democrat Hillary Clinton face off in their third and final debate as Trump tries to reverse his standing in an election that appears to be tilting away from him. Damaged by accusations that he made unwanted sexual advances towards women - which he denies - Trump will get his last best chance to sway large numbers of American voters when he faces off against Clinton at 9 p.m. EDT (0100 GMT Thursday) at the University of Las Vegas Nevada. "This one is important if Trump is going to have any chance to get back into this race," said Republican strategist Charlie Black. "He's going to have to talk about issues effectively and not get down in the mud, and he needs to talk about jobs." For Clinton, who leads national opinion polls and leads in most of the battleground states where the Nov. 8 election is likely to be decided, the 90-minute debate offers her a chance to make her closing argument on why she is the best suited to succeed President Barack Obama. "It's hard to imagine at this point anything that could happen in this debate that could change the overall dynamic of this race," said Democratic strategist Steve Elmendorf. "I can't imagine what Donald Trump could do positively or a mistake Hillary Clinton could make to change the trajectory of this race." In a campaign that has been more about character than policy differences, both candidates enter the debate ring a bit wounded from recent events. Trump has spent the past week denying and defending himself from charges that he groped women. Clinton has struggled to get past a flap over her handling of classified emails while U.S. secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. "She needs to be able to answer the email question," said Democratic strategist Bud Jackson. "She hasn't quite hit that nail on the head yet. She should do better this time. And she should expect the unexpected." But Trump's troubles have loomed the largest, weighing down the New York businessman's extraordinary political run at the worst possible time. This has prompted him to lash out at what he feels is a political and media system rigged against him, an apparent bid to discredit the process before the election takes place. Obama said on Tuesday that Trump needs to "stop whining" and make his case to the voters. Republicans who have watched Trump shoot himself in the foot time and again said the Las Vegas debate was a final opportunity to appear presidential. "Trump needs to make a real closing argument and stop the personal attacks and come across like a commander-in-chief," said Republican strategist Scott Reed. Trump himself called the debate an important opportunity to talk to voters. The event, moderated by Fox New anchor Chris Wallace, is to include a discussion of six topics: debt and entitlements, immigration, the economy, the Supreme Court, foreign hot spots and fitness to be president. "I see it as another important cog and really another important evening in the whole very complicated puzzle," Trump told conservative talk radio host Mike Gallagher. Clinton, who is now competitive in traditionally Republican states like Arizona, is considering a stop in Arizona in the closing three weeks of the campaign. Clinton senior adviser Jennifer Palmieri told reporters that the former U.S. secretary of state hopes to focus at the debate on what she would tackle if elected. "If (Trump) chooses to continue to embrace his strategy of a scorched-earth campaign and bringing that to the debate stage, she'll be prepared to handle that as she has the last two times," she said. home World Boko Haram might demand ransom for Chibok girls' release The militant group Boko Haram is expected to lay out two major conditions to the Nigerian government for the release of 83 more Chibok girls. Last Thursday, 21 girls were freed by the group after a series of negotiations with the federal government. It was not revealed what Boko Haram received in return. An unnamed source who has knowledge of the negotiations told Vanguard that the next negotiations might involve ransom payment and the release of no fewer than 16 Boko Haram commanders. According to the source, only 104 remain in captivity of the group. The others were reportedly married off to Boko Haram members and have been radicalized. "The remaining 83 girls are with a top leader of Boko Haram and those are the only ones we are going to work for their release in the next phase of our negotiations which starts immediately," the source told Vanguard. The negotiations are expected to resume this week. The source indicated that Boko Haram might ask for payment before releasing the girls. "I think the guys are settled on the idea that the cash must come ahead of the release since they had proved to government that they are reliable by releasing the 21 girls last week without many conditions attached," the source added. Two sources close to the negotiations told CNN that money had been paid to Boko Haram for the freedom of the 21 girls last week. The Nigerian government stated that the release of the Chibok girls "was not a swap" but it has not spoken about the issue of money. The militants captured 276 girls from the town of Chibok in April 2014. As many as 57 girls were able to escape. A Boko Haram insider told CNN that the girls are under the control of the group's longtime leader, Abubakar Shekau. home World Iranian pastor released after six years in prison Pastor Behnam Irani was freed by Iranian authorities on Monday after serving a six-year prison sentence for charges related to his Christian activities. The pastor's release has been confirmed by the advocacy group Present Truth Ministries (PTM). "Irani has been released from prison and is now free. We thank you all for your prayers. The Lord has preserved him in a mighty way!" said PTM in a statement. According to Prisoner Alert, Irani was first arrested and charged for crimes against national security in December 2006. The pastor was released in January 2007 but he was arrested again later. He was sentenced to five years in prison which was suspended. In April 2010, Iranian authorities raided his house church and took him into custody. He received a one-year prison sentence which he voluntarily served in May 2011. A few months later in October, he received a letter which stated that he is now required to serve the five-year sentence which had been previously suspended. It has been reported that Irani was in poor health and mistreated during the first few months of his sentence. In February 2012, his family revealed that he was suffering from an intestinal disorder. He was transferred to a prison hospital later that year where it was discovered that he had a bleeding ulcer. The pastor underwent surgery for his stomach ulcers and colon complications in February 2014. Officials added another six years to his sentence in October that same year and he was transferred to another prison in the city of Zabol. In December 2014, he appealed the decision and the court informed him that he no longer has to serve the additional six-year prison term. According to a report from the advocacy group Release International, Irani is still in poor health after being freed. The group's CEO, Paul Robinson, was pleased about the pastor's release but he noted that there are still 200 other prisoners who have been jailed because of their faith. "Release urges Iran to end its long-running crackdown on the church and set free all of its prisoners who are behind bars for their religious beliefs," said Robinson. home World Mob wants Pakistani Christian teen hanged over Facebook post about Islam A mob is demanding that a 16-year-old Pakistani Christian should be hanged because of a Facebook post that allegedly insulted Islam. Nabeel Masih was arrested and charged with blasphemy last September after a photo of the Kaaba in Mecca reportedly appeared on his Facebook profile. It was claimed that the image showed a pig's head on top of the Kaaba, one of the holiest sites in Islam. It is unclear whether he was tagged in the post, liked the photo or posted the image himself. According to Express, the mob threatened Masih and his family and called for his execution when he appeared in court last week to face the charges against him. The judge stated that the teenager could face the death penalty if convicted. Masih's legal team said that 80 people from different age groups attended the hearing and each of them are calling other people on the phone to go to the hearing. The lawyers were also reportedly threatened. Masih's lawyer, Aneeqa Maria from the Pakistani Christian advocacy group, The Voice, said the prosecution also intimidated the defense team for taking Masih's case. "The situation is getting more and more tense in this case and we do not have any security to handle the situation," said Maria. The date for the next hearing is yet to be announced. Masih will remain in prison until then. His family has already left their home out of their fear of violence. The British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA) is worried that the authorities are trying to find more evidence they can use against Masih. "The investigation is taking longer then expected so they have asked for more time to complete their supplementary report. In other words just in case Nabeel escapes a blasphemy charge due to international outrage, the police will find another way to detain Nabeel against his liberty," the BPCA said in a statement. home US Over 700 Female Christian leaders denounce Trump for lewd comments More than 700 female Christian leaders signed a letter to condemn Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump for the inappropriate remarks that he made towards women. The candidate was heard bragging about groping and kissing women in a 2005 video that was leaked earlier this month. At least nine women have come out to accuse Trump of sexual assault since the clip was released. Trump downplayed the recording as "locker room talk" and denied the allegations of sexual misconduct. In a statement issued last week, the women criticized the candidate for trying to make light of the lewd remarks. "As Christian women, we are appalled by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's recorded remarks that disparage women and condone sexual assault," the letter began. "Such language cannot be dismissed as 'locker room talk.' Mr. Trump must offer public contrition that fully acknowledges the seriousness and depravity of his actions," it added. The women also called out other Christian leaders who continued to support the business magnate even after the release of the recordings. "Christian leaders cannot condone such violent speech about women as a minor mistake or an innocent attempt to be 'macho,'" it continued. "These excuses teach our young people that such language is acceptable and do further harm to those who have been abused," the letter read. Last week, Christian Broadcasting Network founder Pat Robertson suggested that Trump was just "trying to look like he's macho" when he made the remarks. He went on to compliment Trump for recovering from the backlash against him at the second presidential debate. The letter urged other religious leaders to preach against misogyny and sexual violence and teach the children to speak out against vulgar language. Some of the signatories of the letter include Faith in Public Life CEO Rev. Jennifer Butler, Union Theological Seminary President Dr. Serene Jones, Wesleyan Church Ambassador Jo Anne Lyon, Chicago Theological Seminary President Alice Hunt and Auburn Seminary President Dr. Katharine Rhodes Henderson. home US Student president says most at Liberty University will vote for Trump despite petition Student body president Jack Heaphy issued a statement saying that many students are supportive of Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr.'s decision to continue endorsing Donald Trump despite the allegations of sexual misconduct against the candidate. A group of students from Liberty Universtiy launched a petition last week to protest Falwell's support for Trump. They voiced out their concern that through his endorsement, Falwell is linking the name of the university to the Republican candidate. Around 2,500 people have signed the petition, according to the Huffington Post. As many as 1,100 petitioners have verified Liberty University email addresses. In response, Falwell stated that he always makes an effort to clarify to the media that he does not speak for the students or the faculty when he declared his support for Trump. He also noted that the group that started the petition was "led by a never Trump activist" and many of the signatories are not students of the school. Heaphy said that majority of the students agree with Falwell's endorsement but they are not following him blindly. He explained that most of those who support Trump are more concerned about the dangers of electing Hillary Clinton as president. "A Clinton presidency holds the prospect of a further decline in the social and moral fabric of our nation. This is evident by her views on abortion, traditional family values, and the other critical issues most important to evangelical Christians," Heaphy wrote in a statement. It has been noted in the petition against Falwell that the Republican candidate only received 90 votes from the students during the primary elections. Heaphy himself supported Florida Sen. Marco Rubio before Trump became the nominee. "While I vehemently disagree with many of the things Trump has said and done, I also realize that Hillary Clinton is no better," he told TheBlaze. "In reality, she is the most morally corrupt candidate in U.S. history and would stand against many of the principles evangelicals hold dearly," he added. British Foreign Minister Condemns Assad For Failing To Protect Christians A senior Foreign Office minister has attacked President Bashar al-Assad of Syria for failing to protect Christians and for being responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of civilians. Baroness Anelay, Minister for Human Rights, accused Assad and his Russian allies of being responsible for the crisis in Syria. She was speaking a conference at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London on how freedom of religon and belief can help the struggle against violent extremism. Speaking to Christian Today and The Tablet during the conference, Baroness Anelay made a strong attack on Assad's regime. "As far as one can see throughout Syria, Assad is not protecting minorties who are Christian. Assad is the cause of the destruction of security across the Syrian region. He is responsible for up to 400,000 deaths." She said between 85 and 90 per cent of the civilians deaths were as a result of Assad and now his Russian allies. It was not just Christians but all minorities who were not being protected in any way. She added: "I'm delighted that Russia has said they will have an eight-hour cease fire. Let's see if that works. "What I condemn utterly is that Russia has apparently been involved in attacking civilians because they are civilians. I've met the 'white helmets' who have gone through this appalling double-drop system whereby the gunships of Assad and his allies come over the helicopters, drop their barrel bombs." The white helmets are a force of around 3,000 volunteers formed in 2013 to rescue the victims of Syrian airstrikes. They have saved thousands of lives but some of the volunteers have themselves been killed while trying to rescue victims. Baroness Anelay said: "The white helmets come out and resue people, start pulling them from the rubble, and as they are doing that, gunships that have been hovering, waiting, come back and barrel-bomb them again. That is obscene." As tensions between Britain and Russia increase due to the escalation of the Syria crisis, leaders of the Russian Orthodox Church were in the UK this week. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow met the Queen and the Archbishop of Canterbury as Baroness Anelay met Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, who is chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate's department for external church relations. Hilarion spoke about the tragic situation of Christians in the region, with many being forced to flee Syria. He told her that the world community was responsible for preserving the Christian presence in the Middle East. Baroness Anelay said she responded firmly: "I made it clear that Assad is the cause of the problem and not the result and that he has not made any attempt to protect minorities." She added: "Assad and his allies, which include Russia, have not provided and cannot provide protection for minorities." Baroness Anelay, speaking also about Islamic State, said the terror group was not motivated by faith but by power. "Daesh doesn't target individuals because of their faith. They simply target them because they want to grab power. This is about a power grab." The point of Daesh was not to attack other faiths. "Daesh want power. It is their perverted sense of how they want to grab power they present themselves as some kind of jihadis. They are not," she said. The aim of the conference, which continues tomorrow, is to start finding ways to counter a mindset that is threatening the extinction of Christians in the Middle East in particular. It is a "groundbreaking" conference because it is the first time the Foreign Office had been able to bring together representatives of faiths, government and NGOs who are working around the world to build relationships between faith. "Wherever I go when I talk about the importance of respecting difference, I acknowledge that sometimes change can come slowly in societies," said Baroness Anelay. In the UK, change had sometimes taken centuries. For example, it was only recently that British society had fully made the changes it needed to in regards of LGBT rights and equality. "So we have to understand that when we assist countries to look at difference as something that is of value, not as something that might divide society, that we have to look at their own history and their own political systems and how legislation may need to change." The best way to achieve change was not just to use the ambassadorial network but also to help organisations on the ground to create change by the funding they provide. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson says in the conference programme foreword that human societies have always struggled to cope with their differences. "But the networked and interconnected nature of our modern world seems to have made this harder. "Years of global inaction have created a dangerous climate of impunity in which violent prejudice can thrive and individuals are persecuted or even murdered because of their religion or beliefs," he says. "So the years of drift must end: as an international community, we need to unite against extremism." Chibok Girls Don't Want To Come Home Because Of Stigma More than 100 Chibok schoolgirls do not want to go home either because they have been radicalised or because of the stigma they will face as ex-Boko Haram captives. The Nigerian government is currently negotiating the release of another 83 girls from the 276 kidnapped in April 2014. But many are ashamed to return, chairman of the Chibok Development Association Pogu Bitrus told the Associated Press. His comments followed the first negotiated release last week where 21 girls were freed. The news was received with "delight, relief and optimism" by the Anglican Church of Nigeria. But Bitrus said the girls should be educated and cared for abroad in order to avoid further abuse in their own communities. "We would prefer that they are taken away from the community and this country because the stigmatization is going to affect them for the rest of their lives," he said in a telephone interview. "Even someone believed to have been abused by Boko Haram would be seen in a bad light." All those who have already escaped the terror group have left their home region after being labelled "Boko Haram wives" and mocked. Nigeria must "stand strong" to "protect them from stigma, ostracization and rejection," the UN special rapporteurs on the sale of children said in a statement Tuesday. The comment was particularly directed at the small town of Chibok, a conservative Christian community in the Muslim-majority north of Nigeria. The girls were split into two groups when first captured, according to their own testimony since being released. They were given the choice of embracing Islam and becoming saints. Those already freed and those under negotiation are all from the second group who chose slavery. The girls told their parents they never saw those in the second group again, said Bitrus. The released girls were used as were used as domestic workers and porters but were reportedly not sexually abused. Christian Pastor Accused of Being a Spy Continues to Suffer in Jail in China A Christian pastor is still languishing in jail in China after he was arrested almost two years ago on espionage charges. Pastor Li Guozhi, alias Yang Hua, the vicar who used to be in charge of the Huoshi Church in Guizhou province, has developed a serious liver disease while incarcerated and his health condition continues to deteriorate, the Express reported, quoting his lawyers. Lawyers Chen Jiangang and Zhao Yonglin, who recently visited the Christian pastor, said Hua is currently "suffering from serious health conditions and is suffering from liver pain along with various other serious diseases." They also maintained that the vicar is being subjected to "inhumane" conditions while in prison. Pastor Hua was taken into custody by Chinese authorities in December 2015 after he refused to give the police a hard drive belonging to his church. He was subsequently charged for allegedly "divulging state secrets." Despite his frail condition, Pastor Hua is still being tortured by Chinese prosecutors, who are trying to force out a confession from him, his lawyers revealed. "Prosecutors visited him twice, applied pressure to his feet, and repeatedly threatened to kill him and harm his family members if he failed to confess his supposed crimes," the lawyers said. They said they are planning to sue the Chinese prosecutors for allegedly "using torture to extort a confession," although this might further delay Pastor Hua's trial. It was also recently revealed to the lawyers that the vicar's wife, Wang Hongwu, has been put under surveillance by Chinese authorities. Wang said Chinese police officers are keeping watch on her house round-the-clock, with state agents even sleeping in cars near her home. "They wanted to check the identity cards of friends that came to my house. I said, 'Why are you checking my friends' identity cards? Is it illegal to come to my house?'" Wang said, as quoted also by Express. The persecution of Pastor Hua and his family is only the latest indication of the Chinese Communist Party's tighter grip on religious practices in the mainland. At present, there is an existing ban on singing Christian songs in public, while strict travel restrictions have been imposed on religious workers going to China. Christians Face 'Unbearable' Situation in German Refugee Camps; Official Admits 'Underestimating Role of Religion' An apparently contrite Germany has admitted a grievous mistake, resulting in an "unbearable" situation for Christian refugees in the country. "We have underestimated the role of religion," said Germany's Home Secretary, Thomas de Maiziere, at a conference last month, World Watch Monitor reported. He was referring to the "integration experiment" approved by Chancellor Angela Merkel where Christian and Muslim refugees were "mixed" in refugee centres. Thomas said the "experiment" was agreed upon based on the "widespread belief" in Germany that the importance of religion and faith has decreased globally. He said that presumption proved to be wrong. Now, a group of German NGOs, led by Open Doors Germany, is calling on the German government to end this experiment. The problem with mixing Muslim and Christian refugees was exemplified when a recently arrived refugee was confronted with these words written on the wall in the refugee shelter where he was placed: "The time has come to cut off the heads of all non-believers!" The asylum seeker, apparently a Christian, was horrified. "I was shocked! In Iran this may happen, but I never expected such a thing to happen in Germany. This has shattered my trust," he said. Two surveys conducted by the German NGOs among asylum-seekers in German refugee centres this year detailed the minorities' accounts of intimidation by Muslim refugees, according to World Watch Monitor. The surveys showed that 743 Christian refugees reported various acts of intimidation. Of this number, 617 of them (83 percent) reported multiple assaults; 314 (42 percent) death threats; 416 (56 percent) violent assaults; and 44 (6 percent) sexual assaults. Ninety-one percent (674) of the Christian respondents said the assaults were committed by Muslim refugees, 28 percent (205) by Muslim guards and 34 percent (254) by "other parties." The German NGOs' report says the testimonies of the refugees clearly show that the assaults are religiously motivated and that such attacks on minority refugees in shelters occur all over Germany. A German government office placed the burden of restoring order on the refugees themselves. "It is expected of all asylum seekers to live together peacefully, irrespective of their religion... The constitutionally protected freedom of religion, which is a highly valued asset, is every person's due," the German statement said. However, the German NGOs countered by saying refugees who belong to religious minorities are not experiencing religious freedom since they lack the opportunity to freely practice their faith in refugee centres, adding that they only suffer from violence and threats if they try to live their faith. Glenn Beck - Evangelical Divisions Over Trump Are More Damaging Than 1980s Televangelist Scandal Glenn Beck, the conservative talk-show host and Mormon commentator has agreed with the Christian ethicist Russell Moore that evangelical division over Donald Trump will be more damaging to the credibility of evangelicals than the televangelist scandals of the 1980s. The comments come amid growing signs of Christian support ebbing away from the Republican presidential nominee following his lewd comments about women revealed earlier this month. For the first time, Trump's Democratic rival Hillary Clinton has taken a lead among white Catholics. "It saddens me that our fellow Christian leaders don't see the long lasting effect here," Beck wrote on Facebook this week. "I agree with the evangelical leader in the interview when he says this will be harder to overcome than the televangelist scandals in the 80s. I pray he is wrong but fear he is correct. We are going to need all hands on deck - ALL PEOPLE of real faith." In his post, Beck linked to a CNN interview from earlier in October in which Moore, who is the president of the Southern Baptist's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, said: "What we are seeing right now is a divide in evangelical Christianity. It wasn't created by 2016, but it is highlighted and was shown by 2016". Moore added that the divide is "leaving a wreckage of cynicism," and that "it is going to take us longer to recover from this year than it took us to recover from the scandals of the TV evangelists of the 1980s." Meanwhile, the poll by the Public Religion Research Institute showed that Clinton has taken a 46-42 per cent lead among white Catholics. At the start of the month, Trump led Clinton by 56-31 per cent among the category. Clinton enjoys a 61-34 lead among Catholics overall. The conservative group Catholic Vote said in a statement: "Newly released comments by Donald Trump...are disgusting and simply indefensible. Christians should not waste their breath defending them. The mere fact that this conversation is occurring in the context of a presidential campaign impoverishes us all. If Donald Trump is unwilling to step aside, the Republican National Committee must act soon out of basic decency and self-preservation." Referring to the latest polling, Robert Jones, a Public Religion Research Institute pollster, told the New York Times: "That's not where Trump wants to be in the home-stretch, particularly with a core constituency in Mid Western battleground states." Hundreds Of Christian Refugees Beaten And Sexually Abused In German Refugee Camps Hundreds of Christian refugees have been beaten and sexually abused in German refugee camps, a report by the persecution charity Open Doors revealed. A total of 743 Christians and 10 Yazidis were victims of religious motivated attacks in camps between February and September 2016, the report showed, but it warned the figure was the "tip of the iceberg". The report was presented to a press conference in Berlin on Monday and said "religiously motivated attacks occur frequently and nationwide". It added "a number of unreported cases" must be assumed. Only 17 per cent of refugees affected reported the incidents to the police because they feared their situation would become worse. Christian refugees faced death threats, sexual assault and violent attacks at the hands of the Muslim-majority cohabitants in the camps. More than half of those affected said the persecution they had received was violent and 44 reported sexual attacks against them. An overwhelming majority, 83 per cent, said the attacks had happened "several times". Christian converts were most at risk, the report stressed. "The highest risk in participating in the survey was taken by the converts from Islam to Christianity, according to the Quran their change of faith is considered as a crime worthy of the death penalty, therefore they are explicitly in danger." Seperate accommodation must be provided for at-risk minorities like Christians and Yazidis, it insisted. "There must be no more 'integration experiments' at the expense of Christian refugees and other religious minorities in German asylum and reception centres." The survey was conducted by Open Doors, Action on Behalf of Persecuted Christians and the Needy (AVC), International Society for Human Rights (IGFM), Aid to the Church in Need and Central Council of Oriental Christians in Germany (ZOCD). Open Doors felt obliged to defend its criticism of Muslims as the main perpetrators and said it acknowledged the risk of "putting all Muslims under general suspicion". But it said "this must not be allowed to thwart efforts to protect victims of these attacks", insisting the charity was "not against Muslims". Nevertheless it concluded: "Because of their faith, Christians are devalued to second class citizens and branded impure and apostates while enduring constant physical assaults. "Often, those Muslims who are responsible for such attacks, are the ones who see themselves bound to the declarations of the Prophet in the Quran. "In some cases moderate Muslims named religiously motivated attacks towards persons of other faith and sided with them. Nevertheless, the way of thinking which resides in the Quran, that non-Muslims are infidels and impure is a widespread reality." Museum Backs Down Over Controversial Exhibit Which Allowed Visitors To 'Kick' Virgin Mary The new National Museum in Estonia has backed down over a controversial display that allowed visitors to kick an exhibit which then showed an image of the Virgin Mary shattering, with the word 'Reformation' appearing. The 'holographic' exhibit, which was criticised by church figures and politicians when it was unveiled earlier this month, will still appear to shatter at scheduled intervals but visitors will no longer be able to kick a spot on it. Varro Vooglaid, the head of the Estonia Foundation for Family and Tradition, said that the museum, situated in Tartu, "has taken a big step in the right direction which we welcome." Vooglaid told LifeSiteNews: "Of course we want the exhibit removed entirely...But we welcome this change. It is an outrage, really very brutal and banal to allow people to kick an image of Our Lady." Vooglaid claimed that a public relations officer for the museum, Kaarel Tarand, publicly acknowledged that the exhibit was intended as mockery. "He basically admitted it was a way of insulting religion," said Vooglaid. "He said it shows that Estonia is a secular society, where it is allowed to mock religion. But when the national museum does it, it is insulting religion in the name of the Estonian state." Priit Sibul, parliamentary faction chairman of the ruling Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica, said that "kicking an image of the Mother of God is something they did in the Soviet cultural space but would not demonstrate in public." The Archbishop of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church, Urmas Viilma said the exhibit is offensive not only to Lutherans, but also to Catholics and Orthodox Christians alike. He pointed out that the entire nation of Estonia was dedicated to the Virgin Mary 300 years before the Reformation, so "for Estonians, Virgin Mary has a special meaning; no wonder the country is popularly called the Land of Mary." Archbishop Viilma had previously written on Facebook: "I very seriously doubt that this exhibit is suitable for the permanent collection of the National Museum of Estonia, even if it is interesting from a technical point of view or from the perspective of modern approach to the depiction of historical events. "The virgin Mary for a huge number of believers is not some historical figure or event, gone into oblivion, but a reality today." Mart Helme, the leader of the opposition Conservative Party, warned that the exhibit could offend the large Russian minority in the country. "Most Russians living in Estonia are actively religious people and their integration is not helped by the religious insult approved on a state level," said Helme, who was Estonia's ambassador to Russia in the 1990s. "An attack on symbols may lead to an escalation of social tensions and a cooling of the interstate relations." Formerly part of the USSR, Estonia is on the front line between Europe and Russia and is the focus of rising fears about Russian expansionism following the assault on Ukraine. Last year it announced it would build a border fence to improve security. Nigerian President To 'Redouble' Rescue Efforts For Missing Chibok Schoolgirls Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari today told the 21 girls released by Islamist militants last week that he will "redouble" efforts to bring home about 200 still missing after the kidnapping in Chibok in 2014. "We shall redouble our efforts to bring the rest back home," Buhari said. "Aside from rescuing them, we are assuming the responsibility for their personal, educational and professional goals and ambitions in life. "It is not late for the girls to go back to school and continue the pursuit of their studies." About 270 girls were seized at their school in the north-eastern Borno state, where Boko Haram has waged a seven-year insurgency, killing thousands of people and displacing more than 2 million. The kidnapping prompted outrage worldwide and the girls' plight was publicized with Twitter hashtag #bringbackourgirls. Boko Haram controlled a swathe of land about the size of Belgium at the start of 2015, but Nigeria's army, aided by troops from neighbouring countries, has recaptured most of it. The group still stages suicide bombings in the north-east as well as in Niger and Cameroon. Earlier this week there was speculation that a further 83 of the girls held by a faction of Boko Haram could be released imminently. The faction released the 21 girls last Thursday after the Red Cross and the Swiss government brokered a deal. They were brought from the north-eastern city of Maiduguri to the capital Abuja to meet state officials. Additional reporting by Reuters Not Lovin' It: Cardinals Protest Over Proposed McDonald's At The Vatican It may be popular with millions of tourists, but cardinals aren't, exactly, lovin' it. The decision by the Vatican to rent out one of its properties to McDonald's has caused consternation among "princes of the Church" especially those living in the building with one reportedly writing to Pope Francis in protest at the world famous golden arches imposing themselves a stone's throw from St Peter's Square. Already dubbed "McVatican" by some and "a disgrace" by others, the new fast-food 'restaurant' will unless the plan is scuppered be located in a Vatican property on the intersection of Rome's Via del Mascherino and Via Borgo Pio, around the corner from St Peter's Basilica. Criticism centres on both the belief that the American chain's presence would damage the mystique of the Vatican, and that its 'Big Macs', chicken nuggets and French fries go against culinary traditions in the Eternal City. The Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA), which oversees the Vatican's assets, decided to rent an empty space to McDonald's for 30,000 euros a month after receiving bids from numerous companies, the Catholic News Agency reported. But in an interview with the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, the Italian Cardinal Elio Sgreccia, president emeritus of the Pontifical Academy for Life, called the deal "a controversial, perverse decision to say the least." Cardinal Sgreccia, who is rumoured to have written to the pope, said the move "is not at all respectful of the architectural and urban traditions of one of the most characteristic squares overlooking the colonnade of St. Peter visited every day by thousands of pilgrims and tourists." He added that the deal is "a business decision that, moreover, ignores the culinary traditions of the Roman restaurant." Meanwhile, what are perhaps more serious concerns are being expressed about the fates of homeless people who live outside the building in question, and what will happen to them once the chain is opened. Cardinal Sgraccia told La Repubblica that, as well as being a "disgrace" to hand the property to McDonald's, the area should be used for "activities in defence of the needy in the area, hospitable areas of welcome and help for those who suffer, as the Holy Father teaches." However, Cardinal Domenico Calcagno, president of APSA, has been unapologetic. He told La Repubblica on Saturday that everything was done "in respect of the law and that there will be nothing done which will go against the current rules, tradition and interests of the Holy See." The Cardinal added: "Above all there is respect for the law...[APSA is] not prepared to make any step backward because everything is in order." Cardinal Calcagno said of the cardinals that "we are free people" and everyone has "the right to express their own views". He went on: "We can't all be in agreement on everything...I do not see anything negative in this initiative. The technical departments of APSA have felt the offer of the American company executives fair and just. I do not see any scandal." Putin's Ally Patriarch Kirill Claims 'Full Understanding' With Justin Welby The Archbishop of Canterbury is willing to work with Vladimir Putin's ally Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, the Orthodox Church leader said on Tuesday. Kirill said he "enjoyed full understanding" with Justin Welby at their meeting in Lambeth Palace on Tuesday afternoon. He spoke at the end of a four-day UK visit where he also met the Queen at Buckingham Palace and consecrated the Cathedral of the Dormition of the Mother of God in Kensington, west London. "There is this common concern about the events ongoing in the world and the willingness to work together to make the world better as much as the Churches can," he said of his meeting with the Anglican primate. Kirill's visit was the first from a Russian Patriarch for many years and came at a time of particularly strained relations between the two countries. Last week the UK foreign secretary Boris Johnson called for protests outside the Russian embassy in London over its bombing of civilians in Aleppo. A UN relief convoy was attacked last month in Syria an action blamed on Russian President Vladimir Putin. But the Russian Orthodox Church has close ties to the state and Kirill has remained a loyal supporter of Putin, once calling his time in office a "miracle of God". In a private meeting between Welby, other Anglican representatives including the Bishop of London and Patriarch Kirill it was acknowledged that "tensions" exist between the Russian and British governments. "It's true that we are living at a difficult time, and everyone acknowledges this, including British politicians, Russian politicians, and church leaders. Too many radical changes have happened in human civilisation and in the world in general. All of us are facing very dangerous challenges, global challenges," the patriarch told a press conference at Luton airport on Tuesday night, according to Interfax. "It is absolutely obvious that humankind is passing through a very risky stage of its historical development." A statement from Lambeth Palace after their meeting said they discussed their "shared compassion for Christian, and other, minorities in many parts of the world, especially in the Middle East". It added: "Archbishop Justin and Patriarch Kirill agreed that the first loyalty of the Christian Church is to the Lord Jesus Christ, and they affirmed that reconciliation was the key ministry of the Church in situations of conflict." Samsung Galaxy S8 release date, specs: Samsung begins developing firmware; device to arrive Feb. 26? It is already expected that Samsung's next flagship will come out early next year. It seems that the Galaxy S8 is on track for its Feb. 26 launch, as Samsung starts firmware development for the device. SamMobile reports that it is already confirmed that firmware development has started for the Samsung Galaxy S8. Apparently, the ROM is now being built for region-exclusive editions of the device. The firmware development will be the UI used for China, France, Germany, Italy, Korea, Poland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Looking at the list, the firmware is meant for major market regions. The industry follower believes that once a stable ROM build is finished, Samsung will then follow-up with firmware development in other areas, since the Galaxy S8 is expected to have a global launch. With firmware development already starting, the next flagship is implied to be on track for its intended Feb. 26 launch next year. It is expected that the Galaxy S8 lineup will debut a day before the annual Mobile World Congress, much like how previous Galaxy S-series iterations were launched. The 2017 MWC is scheduled from Feb. 27 to March 2. Meanwhile, although firmware development is already starting, only scant details about the Galaxy S8 are available. Still, supposed leaks on its specs and features continue to circulate. Speculations suggest that a number of major improvements, as well as new features, will be incorporated into the new lineup. This is already expected, as Samsung will want to take back some market base that it lost during the Galaxy Note 7 debacle. Purported specs for the Galaxy S8 include a new Snapdragon 830 or an Exynos 8895 chipset, depending on the region, at least 4 GB of RAM, and a new, dual camera setup as its main camera. The lineup is also said to only have dual-edge display versions, as Samsung ditches regular, flat screens. Site Of Moses' Death Reopens After 10 Year Restoration The spot where Moses is supposed to have died after seeing the Holy Land has been reopened after nearly ten years of closure. The Memorial Sanctuary of Moses on Mount Nebo is one of the most important pilgrimage sites in Jordan and has opened its doors after extensive renovation work. The church and monastery are perched on a 3,300 foot mountain 20 miles southwest of Amman and offer views of the West Bank, Jericho and Jerusalem. Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, special envoy for Pope Francis and prefect of the Congregation for Eastern Churches, said he was thrilled to officiate. "The spiritual treasures that this place holds today are returned to Jordan and to humanity," he told the 500-strong gathering of religious leaders, Jordanian politicians and diplomats. "With this gesture, the Holy Father, to whom we turn our grateful thoughts, intends to pay tribute to the importance of this symbolic place, which serves as a crossroads of dialogue and encounter for the three great monotheistic religions, all of which were born in this beloved Middle East," he said. "The figure of Moses, as a prophet, friend of God and giver of the law, is indeed held in high esteem by our Jewish, Christian and Muslim brothers." Sandri thanked those who had worked on the memorial, noting it was in a time where "treasures of religious history from the region are being looted or destroyed". He also paid tribute to the role Jordan has played in protecting refugees as well its sites of religious significance. "The Kingdom of Jordan, which, extending its boundaries nearly to this mountain, has become in recent years a place of welcome, hospitality and healing for thousands of refugees and exiles from the suffering lands of Palestine, Syria and Iraq," he said. "We must set out toward a newfound freedom, in a concrete and fraternal solidarity with our neighbours, whoever they may be, especially the poor and suffering. This process demands a profound faith in God, who can never be invoked to cause terror and violence." Mount Nebo is now an active Franciscan monastery after monks took charge of the ruins left by archaeologists in the 1930s. It has been a popular site for pilgrimages and St John Paul II visited in March 2000 on his journey to the Holy Land. Pope Benedict XVI gave a speech there in 2009. The restoration began in 2007 after the remains of an early church basilica were found to be crumbling and unfit to house the memorial. This Christian Woman Was Locked In A Shipping Container And Tortured - Because She Kept Saying The Name Of Jesus A young Christian woman from Eritrea has described how she was imprisoned in a shipping container, tortured and beaten and starved - all because she refused to stop saying the name of Jesus. Helen Berhane is from Eritrea, one of the worst countries in the entire world for Christian persecution. She found asylum in Denmark after spending years locked in a shipping container because she would not deny her Christian faith. When guards tortured and beat her and told her to stop saying the name of Jesus, she simply sang and spoke more, trying to convert them too. She was in London today, at a Foreign and Commonwealth Office conference on preventing violent extremism, to tell religious leaders and government officials from throughout the world her horrific story of deadly and relentless persecution - all because of her unshakeable faith. According to the charity Open Doors, Eritrea is number three on the list of nations worse for persecution of Christians. Of a population of 5.4 million, 2.6 million are Christians. The main religion is Islam. Some churches are permitted but undeground house churches are strictly forbidden. Helen Berhane came to the attention of security services when she made a CD and video promoting the message of Jesus as the "cure for the world". She said: "The government didn't like that." Without the gospel, nothing is possible, she said. "We can try but we will fail." Her church was raided and she and other young people were tortured. "Prison is not new for me. I have been in and out many times." The church was closed. "It was a good opportunity for me to evangelise in prison. We started telling them about the gospel. Telling them that Jesus loves them. In the evening I was singing." She was punished, tortured and sent to a military prison full of young people vomiting, crying. She was held in a small cell in solitary confinement, basically a hole dug in the ground with a trap door. When she prayed for her guards, she was moved to a prison of shipping containers that functioned as an asylum for the insane. It was freezing at night, baking hot in the day with no lights at all inside. The bathroom was a patch of ground outside the container, in full view of the guards. The prisoners were fed in the dark on gruel made mainly of water, chilli and salt. "So I said the only thing we can do now is sing. We worship God because he gave us life. We started singing, thank you God for this cold, this toilet, thank you God for everything. The guards were shocked when we sang inside the metal container. So they opened the container and tortured us with this black metal stick that burned our bodies." She and other women singing with her were chained up inside the container in contorted positions. "It was very harsh. They torture you all the time. You get stomach ache all the time." She was placed with one woman who had gone completely mad. "It was a kind of test. I know in the Bible it says everything is good for us believers, but I asked, in this what is good? That this woman beats me all the time? "I didn't give up because I must follow our father's footsteps." She strengthened her resolve by meditating on the Bible passage where Abraham prepares to sacrifice his son Isaac. "If it is asking me to sacrifice something in my life, I can sacrifice for God. To survive like me is very rare. Many die because of this torture. It is not easy." Somehow, she had found material to write on, and began sending letters to the guards urging them to follow Jesus, quoting the Bible. "They found what I was sending to the guards so they tortured me and put me in solitary confinement and asked me to sit in the dirt. They asked for my Bible. I said it is in my mind. So they said they must destroy it. They beat my head and everything, and they were shouting, shouting. "For me to be tortured for Christ, it is amazing. So they took me and said we know you are teaching many prisoners but you must stop teaching guards. I was in prison for three years now, for preaching the gospel. I said no. Even for you, you need God. "So he took the stick to torture me." She reminded herself that when Jesus was tortured, he said nothing. "I kept silent. The guard tortured me countless times. He said I need your hands to torture them because they are the ones writing. They beat me everywhere. My whole body started shaking. They gave me five minutes rest and said Helen you must stop saying Jesus. "I said no. I accept him until death. I said I cannot stop saying Jesus, he is my life. My body was red and blue. The guard was the one exhausted. He said Helen, what do you think? I said, you are doing your job, I am doing my Father's job. I couldn't stand. I was taken to the container again." She was finally sent to hospital because she couldn't walk, and from there sent home to her family. She fled to Sudan. Her daughter followed her, travelling with nomads across the Sahara. Denmark accepted her asylum request, where she lives now. Human rights minister Baroness Anelay, who hosted the conference at the Foreign Office, said: "Helen's story was of the power of faith to overcome the most appalling torture and treatment." Her story had added to her determination to help create a world so that whatever faith a person practices, they can do so in safety. Dr Khataza Gondwe, team leader for Africa and the Middle East for Christian Solidarity Worldwide, the charity that helped Helen get to Denmark in 2008, said her story validated the findings of the recent UN human rights commission of inquiry into Eritrea. "Her testimony never fails to move me. What is particularly moving is the fact that this is emblematic of what is happening to many Christians in Eritrea. Others have suffered the same thing she was describing, being tied in contorted positions and left for lengthy periods. Earlier this year a person was similarly tied and left so long they had to have an arm amputated." U.S. Missionary Forced to Strip by His Kidnappers Who Raided His Home, Killed 2 Guards in Niger An American missionary is now under the mercy of a drug-trafficking jihadist group in the West African country of Niger after the Islamist militants attacked his home, killed two of his guards and kidnapped him, The Christian Post reports. The missionary, identified as 55-year-old Jeffery Woodke of McKinlyville, California, was reportedly even forced to strip down to his underwear before he was abducted on Friday. A Niger government source told CNN that removing clothes from hostages was a usual practice of terrorist groups trying to avoid being tracked. Woodke has been living in Niger since 1992 and is a long-time aid worker with Youth With A Mission charity, according to the Independent. He is now believed to be in the hands of a drug-trafficking jihadist group called The Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO). According to a Paris Match report, Woodke's kidnapping could be the result of a dispute concerning a stolen drug shipment which implicates a local government official. Woodke, the report said, is being used as collateral. On Friday night, the gunmen raided Woodke's house in central Niger, killing his guard and housekeeper before driving him across the desert toward Mali, Reuters reported. The Associated Press said Woodke's abduction was a first for an American citizen in the Sahel region of Africa, where al-Qaeda and criminal gangs have targeted French and other European nationals for more than a decade, demanding millions of dollars in ransom. Woodke is listed as an instructor at Redwood Coast School of Missions, which is operated by the Arcata First Baptist Church. In a statement on Facebook on Saturday, the church said it is "praying for the safety of Jeff, for the victims' families and for peace in the region." "Jeff Woodke is a home grown product of Arcata First Baptist Church where as a student at Humboldt State University he gave his life to Christ," the church said on the school's website. "Jeff's passion in providing humanitarian aid to those who are amongst the poorest in the world, coupled with his desire to see God's Kingdom advanced in a largely Muslim world has played a large part in the life and ministry of AFBC," the church added. Why Every Christian Should Watch I, Daniel Blake Gritty new film I, Daniel Blake follows the frustrating journey of a widower, a carpenter, who finds himself without work following a major heart attack but is assessed by the DWP as 'fit for work'. Christians Against Poverty (CAP) wants everyone to see the film because the character may be fictional but his downward spiral is a daily reality for thousands. Chief Executive Matt Barlow said: "Go into your local Job Centre or Foodbank and you will meet scores of Daniel Blakes and that should make us very angry but as film director Ken Loach says, we mustn't let it stop at anger. "The film offers no solution to Daniel's situation but actually there are things that all of us can do and we call upon everyone to see this film and be stirred into action." CAP is working with hundreds of churches across the UK helping people escape debt, find employment, manage their money, break addictions and learn essential life skills. In its 20th year this year, the charity expects to help 20,000 people, most of those on low incomes and many are vulnerable. One man, on CAP's books, lives in Derbyshire. He has had five heart attacks and is receiving treatment for a brain tumour. His GP has said categorically that he must not work. Meanwhile, the DWP has assessed him as fit to work so he goes to the Job Centre, which arranges interviews for him, all for manual labour jobs. He is matched with employers who say they won't take him on with such a poor health record. It's a frustrating merry-go-round but one made so much more bearable by the love of the Church. Two local fellowships provide him with a variety of prayer and care, food, transport, regular visits from a befriender, the chance to serve at a local drop in where he can see people over tea and biscuits and he gets invites to events and men's breakfasts. All the while, the local CAP centre is tackling his creditors and keeping off the pressure. Essentially, he has friends. Another couple, Chris and Wendy in Oxfordshire, were threatened with eviction when poor health prevented both from working and life became a struggle. Thankfully, the local Job Centre was able to refer them to the nearby CAP centre which brought food (the first hot food they had enjoyed in a month). They were supported through a lengthy but ultimately successful DWP appeal and the congregation provided an instant caring community which fuelled their faith. They even were able to get married because the congregation pitched in to give them the wedding they had never been able to afford. Chris said: "We're coming along nicely and should be debt free in nine months. God's made us millionaires, not in a monetary way; freedom to worship and talk to God with people who do the same. We all help each other." Matt Barlow said that examples like this show the impact that be achieved through contact with local Christians. "Is your local Job Centre able to refer to a CAP centre do you have one? We need to ask what is our church doing for people falling between the cracks in the system then we need to ask, is our church doing enough to show the reality to those in positions of power?" I, Daniel Blake is in UK cinemas from Friday, October 21. #IDanielBlake #WeareallDanielBlake Xiaomi Mi Note 2 release date, specs: bezels are nearly invisible in new leaked images It is already confirmed that the new Xiaomi Mi Note 2 will be launched on Oct. 25. Meanwhile, supposed leaked images showcase its near-invisible bezels. Reportedly, some images out of China-based social media site Weibo highlights the ultra-thin bezels featured on the Xiaomi Mi Note 2. However, as a social media post, its authenticity could not be verified to date. If the images turn out to be true, then the Mi Note 2 is looking to be one of the releases with the largest panel-to-display ratio, with most of the front panel dedicated to the screen. However, the images if they are real also point out that Xiaomi may have done away with front sensors and the selfie camera. The ultra-thin bezels may also be featured on a flexible display. According to 9to5Google, a video ostensibly showing an upcoming Xiaomi flagship (unnamed) but running on MiUI 8 has been posted online. Meanwhile, although Xiaomi has already confirmed that the Mi Note 2 will launch on Oct. 25, confirmed specs and details have yet to come out. However, a number of supposed leaks have already surfaced. Allegedly, the Mi Note 2 will come out with a base model that has 4 GB of RAM and a top-tier variant with a 6-GB one. Both versions will run on the new Snapdragon 821 processor. There are also rumors that Xiaomi may opt to come out with a premium version of the device, with massive 8 GB of RAM and up to 256 GB of onboard storage. All the iterations will feature a 5.7-inch, dual-edge curved screen. However, the lower versions of the Mi Note 2 will carry full HD display, while the premium variant is supposed to feature a Quad HD screen. Other supposed specs for the device include a 4,000 mAh battery and an ultrafast fingerprint scanner. The Xiaomi Mi Note 2 is also supposed to come out with a dual-cam, 12-MP setup for its main camera. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The Texas-Mexico border is long, dangerous and, at night, very, very dark. U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Air and Marine Operations agents fly over looking for people crossing illegally into the United States and smugglers working with them. READ MORE: Number of immigrants caught at border surged last year The airborne agents often coordinate with officers on the ground to locate and catch people crossing, as well as anyone who may be in distress. While patrolling, the agents use night-vision goggles and are frequently armed. The issue of illegal immigration has been a hot topic for GOP nominee Donald Trump, who has promised to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico and to make Mexico pay for it. READ MORE: Can't block this: Feds sue Texas man to clear route to border fence Polls have also showed that by harping on the issue, Trump has killed his chances with Hispanic voters in states such as Texas and Arizona. The agency took John Moore of Getty Images along for the ride as it patrolled the border near McAllen, Texas. Click through to see images of U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Air and Marine Operations at work. ask the fool Putting your funds in funds Q: What can I do if I want to invest in a particular mutual fund and my brokerage says it can't help me? - F.M., Woodville, Mich. A: Brokerages vary in the funds they offer. Some offer hundreds, some relatively few. A brokerage may not offer a fund you want, or it may not be able to get you into it if the fund is closed to new investors. Funds will sometimes be closed if the managers believe they have more money than they can invest effectively. (That's a good thing. Lots of funds just keep taking money, even if they have to park much of it in less promising investments.) Some funds will just do a "soft close," though. That means they won't accept new shareholders coming in from third parties such as brokerages, but they will let you invest directly through them, such as via their company's website. It can be convenient to invest in funds through your brokerage, as you'll be able to move money between funds and fund companies more easily - though there will likely be a commission fee charged. But know that you can usually invest in an open fund directly, via the fund company itself. foolish trivIa Name that company I trace my roots back to 1905, when the creator of the Oldsmobile car formed a new company that morphed into the Nuclear Corp. of America. That company bought Vulcraft, a steel joist and girder company, in 1962. In 1965 my new president helped me avoid bankruptcy by selling off some of my businesses and turning me into a steelmaker. My mini mills took off, and as I grew, I shortened my name. Today I'm the largest steelmaker in the U.S., and North America's biggest recycler. Among other things, my products include carbon and alloy steel in many forms. Who am I? Last week's trivia answer: Yuengling the take Kroger still has lots on the shelf Shares of grocery giant Kroger (NYSE: KR) recently hit a 52-week low, making it even more attractive as an investment. Kroger has been facing challenges such as falling food prices and increased competition. That's especially tough in an industry known for narrow profit margins. Still, Kroger is a top performer with a lot in its favor. For starters, its industry is defensive. During hard economic times, consumers will cut back on or delay spending on cars, appliances, vacations and other nonessential expenses. They'll keep spending on categories such as electricity, medicines and groceries, though. Kroger's strength is reflected in the fact that its sales in stores open a year or longer have been growing each quarter since 2004 - through economic downturns and upturns. Price cuts have hurt its profit margin, but it has more than made up for that through increased volume. Kroger has also been boosting business in its 2,700-plus stores via a growing line of store-branded products that now generate about a quarter of its revenue. Patient believers can enjoy Kroger's dividend, which recently yielded 1.6 percent. It has been growing by an annual average of 18 percent over the past five years and still has room to grow. Universal Uclick Members Choice Credit Union will move to a new 80,000-square-foot, four-story building by October 2017, the company's CEO told the Houston Business Journal. Construction began in August on the new building at Barker Cypress Road and Interstate 10 in west Houston. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The state of Texas wants the estate of murdered trucking tycoon Bill Hall Jr. to pay up on a $160,000 court judgment. But a lawyer for the estate said Halls companies and his widow, who last month was convicted of murder in his 2013 death over his infidelity, have fallen on financial hard times and are unable to satisfy the states claim. I do not believe that the family has the liquid assets to meet your demand at this time, lawyer Edward Lavin, who represents the estate, wrote in a Sept. 29 email to an assistant attorney general. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality had provided more than $475,000 in grants to Bill Hall Jr. in 2008 and 2009 to buy environmentally friendly trucks for his trucking business, which picks up and delivers road-building materials. He later returned the trucks to a dealership before the contract with the state expired. The state sued to recover the unearned grant money. The state filed papers on Friday seeking a court order directing the estate to either make the $160,000 payment or sell assets to satisfy the claim. The request came about a month after Bill Hall Jr.s widow, Frances Hall, was sentenced to two years in prison for his murder. A Bexar County jury found Hall acted with sudden passion when she knocked her husbands motorcycle off a highway. She denied she killed her husband. The love triangle, Frances A. Halls ensuing rage over her husbands infidelity, his dramatic death and her murder trial have attracted national attention. They were the subject of an hour-long special on the CBS News show 48 Hours Saturday night. Driven By Extremes drew about 4.8 million viewers, according to preliminary Nielsen ratings. During the program, Bill Hall Jr.s best friend and cousin, Hank Hall, said Frances Hall was angered by a barrage of text messages she received from her husbands mistress, which included photos of the two of them having sex. Dateline on NBC News is working on a separate in-depth report on the case. Click here to read the full story or turn to Wednesdays Business section in the newspaper. pdanner@express-news.net Paul Drinkwater/ NBC Universal, Inc -- FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY -- DO NOT ARCHIVE -- NOT FOR RESALE This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Houstonians will be starring in yet another reality show. But instead of following rich women, like in "The Real Housewives" franchise, the new show on the Bravo network will star working doctors and women looking to break into the medical field. "Married to Medicine Houston" a spin-off of Bravo's Atlanta-based "Married to Medicine follows five women, four of whom are doctors. (To see a trailer for the show, click here.) The fifth, Bravo reportedly says, is Rachel Suliburk, described as a "sassy Southern belle" who's married to a surgeon. Suliburk is working to become a nurse and "make her mark on the Houston charity circuit." Plastic surgeon Erika Sato is "adjusting to being a new wife and contemplating whether or not she wants to start a family." The show also features fellow doctors Monica Patel, Ashandra "Shan" Batiste and Elly Pourasef, who juggle their careers while dating or being married. All the women work through their careers and the Houston social scene. "Married to Medicine Houston" premieres Nov. 11 at 9 p.m. central time. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Theater Duck for President: Unhappy with the working conditions on Farmer Brown's farm, Duck campaigns to put himself in charge. Presented by Main Street Theater. 12:30 and 3:30 p.m. Sunday, through Oct. 29; $20; MATCH, 3400 Main; 713-524-6706, mainstreettheater.com. De Kus (The Kiss): U.S. premiere of Ger Thijs' play. Presented by Stages Theatre. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday, through Oct. 30; $25-$45; 3201 Allen Parkway; 713-527-0123, stagestheatre.com. Remote Houston: The Alley Theatre hosts an audio tour through Houston. 4 p.m. Thursday and Friday, through Nov. 18. $39; Evergreen Cemetery, 500 Altic; 713-220-5700; alleytheatre.org. Becky Shaw: Houston premiere of Gina Gionfriddo's off-Broadway play. Presented by Firecracker Productions. 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; $10-$40; 1502 Sawyer, Studio 232; 281-300-9656, firecrackerproductions.org. The Musical of Musicals, (The Musical!): One story becomes five delightful musicals, each written in the style of a different master of the form. Presented by Theater LaB Houston. 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; $34; MATCH, 3400 Main; 713-868-7516, thelabhou.org. A Midsummer Night's Dream: Four young lovers and a troupe of actors find themselves in the middle of a dispute between the King and Queen of the fairies. Presented by Alley Theatre. 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, through Nov. 5; $26-$79; 615 Texas; 713-220-5700, alleytheatre.org. The Bear & The Proposal: Classical Theatre Company presents two plays that examine love among the landed aristocracy of Czarist Russia. 8 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Wednesday, 2 p.m. Sunday; $10-$25; 4617 Montrose; 713-963-9665, classicaltheatre.org. Little Shop of Horrors: A floral assistant stumbles across a new breed of plant. Presented by Stageworks. 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday, through Oct. 30; $15-$26; 10760 Grant; 281-587-6100, stageworkshouston.org. Sherlock Holmes: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic story on stage. Presented by A.D. Players. 7:30 Friday and Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, through Oct. 30; Grace Theater 2710 W. Alabama; $12; 713-526-2721, adplayers.org. Wolf Hall Part One: Part one of play based on Hilary Mantel's novel. Presented by Main Street Theater. Rice Village location, 2540 Times Blvd.; 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday, through Dec. 18; $10-$45; 713-524-6706; mainstreettheater.com. Classical/Opera Itzhak Perlman: 7 p.m. Saturday at Jones Hall, 615 Louisiana, $53-$178, 713-224-4240, houstonsymphony.org. Lorenzo Coppola: The renowned Italian clarinetist pays tribute to Richard Muhlfleld. Presented by Music in Context. 4 p.m. Sunday; Alice Pratt Brown Hall, Rice University; $35; 713-665-2620, musicincontext.org. Chamber Choir: Houston Cecilia's "Peace" concert. 5 p.m. Sunday; All Saints Catholic Church, 215 E. 10th; free; 281-486-5052; houstoncecilia.org. Dance Deep:Seaspace: Karen Stokes Dance premieres an evening-length work inspired by Houston's historical relationships with water and space, with a commissioned score by Bill Ryan that will be played live. 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; Hobby Center, 800 Bagby; $15-$38.50, 713-315-2525, thehobbycenter.org. Comedy Dance Festival: Suchu Dance Company hosts other area companies and choreographers in a program of comedic works. 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday; The Pilot, 1502 Navigation; $20 or pay what you want; suchudance.org. Dracula: Bay Area Houston Ballet & Theatre performs its production of the Victorian-era vampire story. 7:30 p.m. Friday; 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday; University of Houston-Clear Lake, Bayou Theater, 2700 Bay Area Blvd., $27.50-$37.50; 281-480-1617, babt.org. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Sip on wine at Camerata or dine at Oxheart and you'll already be familiar with Gin Braverman's work. The Houston-based interior designer, owner of gindesigns, is frequently called upon by restaurateurs to create dramatic, stylish interiors. What some might not know is that she's also popular among homeowners, and it's a residential project that just earned her an HGTV Faces of Design award. RELATED: Kitchen design inspiration from your neighbors Braverman nabbed the HGTV Editor's Pick for First Impressions award for her work at a Heights-area house. This accolade is granted to those who create fashionable entryways and foyers. "I'm very honored that they chose our project because I feel the editors of HGTV have pretty much seen it all," Braverman says. The local visionary's prize project is an eclectic space with unique doors. The main entrance welcomes guests with a tall, Indian doorway that leads to another identical entry. Inside, an Asian entryway makes a bold statement its vibrant orange, patterned panels. The home's interior has stark white walls, which create a strong visual contrast with its rustic decor. "I find myself drawing inspiration from so many places, but before I began designing interiors I was most inspired by my my time working at Installations Antiques," she explains. "(It's) an incredibly unique experiential retail space curated by the ultra creative Van der Oords, which I'm hoping will soon re-open in the Heights." SEE ALSO: Renowned architect John Staub helped Houston build on its beauty Braverman's other transformations can be visited around town. Among her other clients are Raven Tower, Public Services Wine & whiskey and F Bar. Her work extends to Dallas, New Orleans and New Canaan, Conn. The seasoned professional has some advice for up-and-coming designers who want to stand out in the field. "Make your clients happy at all costs and provide the best customer service you are capable of," Braverman says. The HGTV Faces of Design awards are split up between editor's picks and people's choice. Some of the other award categories include kitchen and dining rooms; children's spaces; public areas and colorful transformations. Representative democracies do not simply impose the will of the people. They over-perform, producing better policies than the people actually want because elites keep the masses in check (and vice versa). But the new wave of populism through Europe and North America threatens to upset the balance. We are witnessing a rising tide of nationalist populism. The end of the Cold War was supposed to bring about a cosmopolitan, globalized, liberal world. But now larger and larger segments of voters in Western democracies want to close borders, cut trade, and kick out the brown and yellow people, especially the brown people who practice scary religions. Incentives, rewards, and power Whether you use "populist" as a compliment or an insult depends a great deal on what you think makes "populism" tick. If you think populist movements are about the disaffected and left-behind forcing their governments to help them, you'll like populism. But if you thinkas I dothat populist movements consist of misinformed people pushing for counterproductive policies, policies that will hurt them rather than help themthen you'll sigh with relief when such movements fail, as they usually do in the end. Politics are often thought of as apocalyptic battles of good and evil, of the good guys versus the bad guys. Populist waves tend to be made up of low information voters. Jason Brennan But economists prefer to think in terms of incentives. In particular, people behave (and misbehave) as they do because they're incentivized to do so by the way we distribute political power. When we concentrate power in the hands of an elite few, such as kings, oligarchs, or a band of aristocrats, they have every incentive to use it for their own interests at the expense of others. When we spread power out widely, as in a democracy, no individual voter has significant power. This removes the incentive to vote selfishly, but it also removes the incentive to vote wisely. Individual voters aren't rewarded for being knowledgeable or thinking carefully about their votes; they aren't punished for being misinformed or indulging delusions. Averaging ignorance (the Brexit vote?) To illustrate, imagine you were in a 1,000-student class and the professor announced a final exam. But suppose she adds, "I'll grade each of you, but instead of being awarded your own grade, I'll average all the grades together, and you'll each receive the class average." The other students and you probably wouldn't study much, or might not bother to focus on the more challenging material presented in lectures. The class average could easily wind up being an F. Democratic politics faces the same problem. The American National Election Studies and other surveys of voter knowledge routinely find that most voters are uninformed. Voters know who the president is and not much else. They can't estimate the unemployment rate within five percentage points. They don't know how much money the government spends on different programs, or what the government did last year. After the Brexit vote, we discovered that "leave" voters who wished to flee the European Union greatly overestimated the number of immigrants in the U.K. and greatly underestimated how much foreign investment comes from the E.U. Democracies do sometimes collapse when populist demagogues rise to power. Jason Brennan Voters not only lack the background in the social sciences needed to evaluate or make sense of the relevant facts. They lack knowledge of the relevant facts themselves. Non-voters tend to know even less. It's not stupidity It's not that citizens are stupid; it's that they just don't care and that's a rational response to the incentives democracy creates. Since none of our individual votes matter except as part of the collective majority, it's easy to conclude that we can afford to remain ignorant, or indulge irrational and false political beliefs. In fact, understanding how to vote wellwhether politicians deserve to be kicked out and replacedrequires tremendous knowledge. One needs to know: 1) who has been in power, 2) what they had the power to do, 3) what their options were, and 4) what the likely effects of different policies would have been. It's tempting to view populist movements as the people "taking back" their government, rebelling against corrupt and incompetent leaders. But this gives the movements more credit than they deserve. Populist waves tend to be made up of low information voters. Consider a stereotypical early Donald Trump supporter. He might look around his rural hometown and have a vague sense that white people in the fancy suburbs are richer, happier, have healthier children, and hold better jobs. He might know that 50 years ago his hometown held a small factory, which disappeared when he was a child. He might vaguely be aware that poor Chinese people have gotten richer, and wonder if somehow that happened at his expense. But being aware of these conditions does not magically transform him into a good voter. It's tempting to view populist movements as the people "taking back" their government, rebelling against corrupt and incompetent leaders. But this gives the movements more credit than they deserve. Jason Brennan To know which policies would help his hometown, he'd need significant knowledge of economics, sociology, and related disciplines. If you have felt ill for the past month that does not magically enable you to self-diagnose that you have cancer, nor does it magically imbue you with the medical knowledge to treat your cancer. Elitism vs. Populism Representative democracy tries to split the difference between elitism and populism. To win elections, politicians have incentives to cater to the policy preferences of the median voter. But politicians and bureaucrats also retain significant independence. They sometimes override or ignore what voters want. They can use this independence for good or ill. Recently, political scientist Martin Gilens measured how responsive presidents have been to different groups of voters. Gilens found that when voters at the 90th, 50th, and 10th percentiles of income disagree about policy, presidents are about six times more responsive to the policy preferences of the rich than those of the poor. As a committed "small-d democrat," Gilens is upset by these findings. But he admits there's a positive twist: Voters at the 90th percentile of income tend to be significantly better informed than voters at the 50th or 10th percentiles. Gilens found that poor Democrats approved more strongly of invading Iraq in 2003. They more strongly favor the Patriot Act, invasions of civil liberty, torture, economic protectionism, and restricting abortion rights and access to birth control. They are more opposed to gay rights. In contrast, high information Democratssuch as party elitesare more strongly in favor of free trade and the strong protection of civil rights, and are less interventionist. I read Gilens's work as showing us an uncomfortable truth: Democracy works because it doesn't quite work. If politicians just did exactly what the median voter wanted, we would have worse policies policies people support because they are ignorant or misinformed. Democracies work because politicians and bureaucrats can to some extent override most voters' preferences. Often they make better choices aligned with what better-informed elites would like to see. Political elites are far from perfect. They often cater to special interest groups in ways that undermine the common good. For instance, economists of all ideological persuasions despise agricultural subsidies. Yet the federal government grants subsidies and protective tariffs to the corn lobbythat's why your Coke has corn syrup rather than sugar in it. Limited benefits are concentrated for a select few (companies like ADM) and steep costs diffused among the many (taxpayers and consumers). This kind of "rent seeking" is pervasive in representative democracy because politicians have every incentive to indulge it while voters have no incentive to learn about it, let alone fight it. No workable solution, but... These problemsvoter ignorance and misinformation, populism, rent seekingare endemic to representative democracy. It's not because bad people sabotage the system. Rather, the system incentivizes these behaviors. No one has yet come up with a workable solution. The good news is that representative democracy still performs better than the other political systems we've tried. In general, people living in representative democracies are more prosperous, happier, and healthier than people living elsewhere. Representative democracies do a consistently better job of protecting civil and economic liberty. They allow popular movements and educated, powerful elites to serve as checks against each other. Overall, representative democracies work quite welland that's true whether you prefer railing against elitist cosmopolitanism or pitchfork nativist populism. But there's no guarantee that the system will continue to work. Democracies do sometimes collapse when populist demagogues rise to power. It looks like we'll dodge that bullet this election, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't worry about the future. *** Jason Brennan is the Flanagan Family Chair of Strategy, Economics, Ethics, and Public Policy at Georgetown University, and the author of Against Democracy. Brennan wrote this for Zocalo Public Square. Police have a new lead in the brutal Mother's Day murder that rocked a Baytown neighborhood. A possible person of interest in the May 8 slaying of 50-year-old Nataliya Shal is being sought for questioning, and police are asking the public's help in finding him. The person of interest is described as a young man more than 6 feet tall with a slim build. Police released an artist's sketch on Tuesday showing the man wearing a black hoodie. Shal's husband of nine years, David Englerth, was out of town and called police sick with worry that Sunday evening because he'd been unable to reach his wife by phone and wanted officers to do a welfare check. When police showed up at the Lakes of Madera Apartments on West Baker, they peered in a window and caught a glimpse of Shal's lifeless body. Police forced their way through a locked door to discover the mother of one, brutally murdered. "She's the only woman I've ever loved, period," Englerth said, tearing up at a packed press conference on Tuesday. For more than five months, Baytown officers have knocked on doors and canvassed the area searching for witnesses. The sketch shows a man who was seen around the apartment on the day of the crime, but police emphasized that he is not considered a suspect at this time. "We are asking for the public's help in identifying and locating this person of interest, as well as any information that would help us solve this crime and help the family of Ms. Shal start the healing process," Lt. Steve Dorris said Tuesday at the press conference. There's still no word on a possible motive and police declined to release details about the crime, citing the integrity of the ongoing investigation. Baytown Crime Stoppers has increased the reward from $5,000 to $25,000, Dorris said. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Tips from concerned citizens regarding an alleged illegal dumping site resulted in one arrest Tuesday, Oct. 18, but other arrests could be forthcoming as the investigation continues, according to Liberty County Sheriff Bobby Rader. The site first popped up on a 20-acre tract a mile west of Cleveland on FM 787 about two weeks ago, authorities say. Since that time, the operators of the dump site have allowed as many as 100 loads of construction debris, tires, metal, plastic and glass to be dumped at the site, Rader said. When authorities arrived on the scene Tuesday just after noon, some of the debris had been ignited and there was a fear that the fire would quickly spread to other piles and threaten neighboring homes and buildings, including the Pct. 2 county barn off of CR 2206. Firefighters from five departments -- Cleveland, Tarkington, HWY 321, Dayton and North Liberty County -- helped bring the fire under control. So far, only one person has been arrested -- a truck driver who reportedly was seen preparing to dump a load of old tires and rims when authorities arrived. He is identified as Carlos Duarte, 43, of Houston. He is charged with Illegal Dumping, a state jail felony with a punishment of up to $10,000 in fines and/or 180 days to two years in prison. The owner of the property, Son Nguyen, 60, was questioned by the sheriff's investigators and could be charged with crimes as the case proceeds, the sheriff said. Nguyen's driver's license shows him as a resident of California but he reportedly is staying in the Livingston, Texas, area at a sawmill he purchased and is operating under the name of Texas Tech Lumber, Inc. Tuesday's investigation was quickly pulled together after Pct. 6 Justice of the Peace Ralph Fuller decided to pay a visit to the site. "I first started hearing about it at a luncheon at the Masonic Lodge in Cleveland. There were some concerned citizens who told me about it and I said I would check into it," he said. Fuller, who was one of the county's environmental officers until he was elected as judge, offered his assistance to the county's current environmental officer, Sheriff's Deputy Linda Bloomingdale. Fuller said when he arrived on the scene around noon Tuesday, he saw trucks dumping material onto the ground and called Bloomingdale, who showed up not long after to investigate. "What people don't realize is that you can't transport debris from one location to another for disposal without a permit," said Fuller, adding that he believes the owner faces multiple violations. The multi-agency investigation includes the sheriff's office, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the office of Pct. 2 Commissioner Greg Arthur. The sheriff said that once the investigation is complete it will be referred to the Liberty County District Attorney's Office for charges. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Pablo is coming back to Houston. Kanye West returns Dec. 2 for his second Toyota Center date this year. It follows a sold-out show in September. PABLO PART ONE: Kanye West wowed Houston fans Tickets are $29.50-$149 and go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday via the venue site. The second leg of his Saint Pablo Tour includes more than 20 shows. It comes behind his critically-acclaimed "The Life of Pablo," one of the year's best albums. Two of its singles, "Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1" and "Fade," are currently lighting up radio. ALL HAIL KANYE: His genius is a work in progress West's Sept. 20 show at Toyota Center was a striking blend of art and music. He was tethered to a stage that floated above the crowd, surrounded by smoke, scaffolding and minimal lighting. It's easily one of the year's most memorable shows. Online retailer Amazon has continued growing its seasonal hiring by tens of thousands of positions with each holiday season. "Last year we announced we were hiring for 100,000 seasonal associates and in 2014, we announced we were hiring for 80,000 seasonal associates," Ashley Robinson, Amazon spokesperson, said. "Our hiring has increased and we feel fortunate to be adding jobs in local communities. "We're grateful to our customers for choosing Amazon." This year, Amazon is prepared to hire 120,000 seasonal employees for customer fulfillment and customer service positions in centers across the country including the Houston-area facility, or fulfillment center, at 8120 Humble Westfield Road in Humble. Amazon is now accepting applications at its Humble facility for part-time seasonal fulfillment associates and part-time seasonal logistics sortation associates. Information about the seasonal roles available at the Humble facility can be found at http://www.amazondelivers.jobs/about/our-opportunities/hourly-fulfillment-jobs/hou1-jobs. "We employ seasonal employees as a way of finding high-quality talent while managing variation in customer demand," Robinson said. "Seasonal employees play a critical role in meeting customer demand during the holidays." Amazon's hiring practices serve not only to cover the increase in orders during the holiday season, but also provide an opportunity to find new permanent Amazon employees. In 2015, approximately 14,000 seasonal associates were kept on in regular, full-time positions after the holiday season. "Full-time employees receive competitive wages and comprehensive benefits, including health care, 401(k) with 50 percent match, stock awards and bonuses," Robinson said. "Amazon also offers employees innovative programs such as Career Choice, which pre-pays 95 percent of tuition for courses related to in-demand fields, regardless of whether the skills are relevant to a career at Amazon. "Since the program's launch four years ago, more than 7,000 employees in 10 countries have pursued degrees in game design and visual communications, nursing, IT programming and radiology, to name a few." For more information about Amazon's seasonal employment opportunities visit www.amazon.com/seasonal. Harris County Precinct 4 residents will have two choices for constable in the Nov. 8 election. Incumbent Republican Mark Herman was appointed to serve as the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable after Ron Hickman left to serve as Harris County Sheriff; and Democrat Jeff McGowen is challenging him. The Observer sent both candidates several questions regarding things they may change in the future and why they decided to run for the position or run for re-election. 1. Why did you decide to run again for this particular position? Herman: Since being unanimously appointed by Commissioners Court and winning my primary election by a vote of close to 81 percent of the voter populous It is necessary for me to run against a Democratic candidate in November I have worked at the Pct. 4 Constable's office for the past 31 years, and understand what it takes to serve and protect the citizens of Pct. 4 in a law enforcement capacity. I know the employees of Pct. 4 and their abilities, and more importantly I know the communities we serve and their law enforcement needs. McGowen: I've been a public servant since I was 17, when I joined the Army Reserves while still in high school. Running for Harris County Precinct 4 Constable is just a natural progression from what I've done in the past. We need change in leadership and that can only happen if we work together to elect someone that is committed to the fullness of this position. 2. What are some things you would like to change in school districts in the area? Herman: We continue to work with all school districts and their police departments daily. We coordinate all law enforcement efforts and aid in teamwork to assist in keeping our kids safe. McGowen: Teachers, staff and parents are helping our students thrive, however issues such as bullying must be addressed. Our youth and communities can't live in fear or silence, so I would like to see more interaction between the police and community before an issue arises. Intervention and education are key to keeping residents abreast to challenges we all face. 3. What will you bring to this position if elected? Herman: We, at Pct. 4, will continue to provide a professional law enforcement application to the citizens and communities we serve. We will maintain open communications with our community and continue to fight crime and make our communities safe for citizens and their families. McGowen: Honor, integrity and a heart for the position. Our county is growing and we have to make sure we are apart of the growth and building strong communities for everyone. I pledge to listen, participate and above all work with residents, police and others to create a dialogue of safety, transparency and opportunity. Lately, our precinct has been haunted by missing evidence and lack of leadership. In order to serve the community in which we reside and love, we need to invest in additional training for our officers, coordinate with other precincts and lead by example. As the past-president of the Texas Crime Prevention Association, past-president and member of the Texas Gulf Coast Crime Prevention Association, the safety of my family and community is #1. 4. What makes you qualified to run for this position? Herman: I understand the entire Pct. 4 organization and each law enforcement division inside the organization. From Patrol, Investigative Units, Massage Parlor, Gaming Room, Dispatch, Civil and Warrant Division. Being able to understand each and apply Law Enforcement techniques to our communities with each in an effective manner to fight crime and keep our communities safe. The Pct. 4 Constable's Office has close to 500 total employees that work in a really great coordinated effort to provide services to the communities we serve. We have a 47 million dollar budget yearly, and through various law enforcement techniques and strategies. At Pct. 4, we do a very good job in fight crime and making our communities safe. All of these things can not happen in such an effective effort without a strong leader at the helm that understands all the personnel and areas within the organization. McGowen: 23 years ago, I took an oath to protect and serve. Since then, I have volunteered, attended sporting events with youth, hosted outreach activities, moved up in the ranks and watched the community thrive. But I've also witnessed a shift in how we interact with the community. Being a Constable is not a passive position. It's a position that requires knowing, hearing and responding to the community. It's a position that requires long hours and a willingness to change a broken system. I will take responsibility for what happens under my leadership, ensure transparency and restore public faith in the Harris County Constables Office. Harris County residents may go to www.harrisvotes.org to find a sample ballot for their area, as well as other pertinent information. The hours for early voting in Harris County are Oct. 24-28: 8 a.m. - 6 p.m.; Oct. 29: 7 a.m. - 7 p.m.; Oct. 30: 1-6 p.m. and Oct. 31-Nov. 4: 7 a.m. - 7 p.m. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate To gain insight into what hungry people go through on a daily basis, Lone Star College-Kingwood student invites the campus and community to the Hunger Banquet 6-8 p.m. Oct. 26 In the Student Conference Center. The Hunger Banquet, hosted by the Center for Civic Engagement, is a student-led project designed to raise community awareness about global and local poverty. "The purpose of the hunger banquet is to raise awareness of the harsh and atrocious conditions that a vast number of humans across the globe struggle with on a daily basis," said Nelson Mendez, a LSC-Kingwood student on the Hunger Banquet Committee. "Since not all of us are born with the same opportunities as others, we hope to better our community and the surrounding areas by persuading our audience to help the ones in need." General admission is a $5 donation or three non-perishable food items. Upon entry, guests will draw tickets that will randomly assign each of them to a high-, middle-, or low-income tier, based on the latest statistics about the number of people living in poverty. The middle and upper class will receive corresponding sized ceramic bowls with a meal. Bowls are made by students in the LSC-Kingwood Advanced Ceramics class and local businesses will donate the meals. "Since we have started this event, more than 500 community members, employees and students have participated. This year, we are expecting 300 people to attend," said Dr. John Theis, director, and Seth Howard, coordinator, of the Center for Civic Engagement. The 20 percent in the high-income tier will be served a sumptuous meal; the 20 percent in the middle-income section will eat a simple meal of rice and beans; and the 60 percent in the low-income tier will receive small portions of rice and water. Students will guide participants through an interactive event which illustrates how the rise in global poverty and hunger affects everyone. Guest speakers will discuss needs in the community and what actions have taken place in the fight against hunger. "We believe it is always good to help kids and families, not just here in the United States but from other countries, who need help because they cannot provide food for their citizens. Today for you, tomorrow for me," said Claudia Lezama, a LSC-Kingwood student on the Hunger Banquet Committee. The Hunger Banquet is one of many civic-minded events developed by the Center for Civic Engagement. To combat hunger facing students and employees at LSC-Kingwood, the college, Humble Area Assistance Ministries and The Mission Northeast host a monthly food drive on campus. For more information on the Center for Civic Engagement, visit www.LoneStar.edu/LSC-Kingwood-Civic-Engagement.edu or email CCE@LoneStar.edu. JOB FAIR SET NOV. 8 A Business Administration and Professional Services Job Fair will be hosted by Lone Star College-Kingwood's Career Services department from 12-2 p.m. Nov. 8 In the Student Conference Center. "Because this job fair is geared toward our December graduates and alumni, we are seeking employers with positions that relate to some of the programs offered at the LSC-Kingwood campus," said Kim Hammond, career services employment specialist. Open positions are preferred in: business administration, management, marketing, medical front office, computer information technology, fire science technology, graphic design, game design and simulation, and visual communications. Local businesses that are currently hiring full-time and part-time positions in these fields are invited to participate. "This is a great forum to recruit a local work force," said Jill Todd, career services program manager." Participation in the event is free, but registration is required. To qualify, businesses must have a store front/office location and pay an hourly wage as required by law. Businesses conducted from a home office and businesses with commission-only positions are asked not to participate in this event. Space is limited and early registration is recommended. LSC-Kingwood's Career Services department hosts two job fairs each semester and provides free resources to students and the business community. Career Services is open Monday-Friday from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. and is located in the SCC room 205. "We are dedicated to helping students make informed decisions about their career choices, and connecting them with opportunities in our community," Todd said. To register for the Job Fair or to post an ad on the campus Job Board, contact Kim Hammond at 281-312-1624 or email Kingwood.CareerServices@LoneStar.edu. PROCESS TECHNOLOGY STUDENTS NEEDED To equip the industry with qualified, educated workers, Lone Star College-Kingwood will start its brand new Process Technology program in January. The program will be housed at the LSC-Atascocita Center. "The chemical and refining industries are in great need of process operators/technicians due to the large number of seasoned operators retiring in the next five to seven years," said Linda LaCoe, director of process technology at LSC-Kingwood. in preparation of the January start, faculty are looking for interested students to enroll in the program. The college will host information sessions 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Oct. 25 and Nov. 29 from in the LSC-Atascocita Center cafeteria. Potential students are encouraged to bring their unofficial transcripts if they have not enrolled in Lone Star College. "Our goal is to inform prospective students about the process technology associate of applied science degree (AAS) and certificate," LaCoe said. "We will also discuss what process technology is and the job duties of a process operator/technician." In order to be accepted into the Process Technology program, students must be at college level in reading writing and math. Students should possess aptitude in science and math, have good interpersonal and communication skills and be a team player. LSC-Kingwood's Process Technology program will prepare graduates for entry level careers in the petrochemical, refining, power generation, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, plastics and related manufacturing industries. Program courses include introduction to process technology, process instrumentation, safety, health and environment, process systems, principles of quality, and troubleshooting. In fall 2017, the program will be moved to the new Lone Star College-Process Technology Center located in Generation Park. The 40,200 square foot facility will be furnished with state-of-the-art simulation equipment, a fully functional pilot plant and general academic classrooms to train students. The LSC-Atascocita Center is located at 15903 West Lake Houston Parkway. For more information on the program or information sessions, email Linda.Lacoe@LoneStar.edu or visit http://www.lonestar.edu/Process-Technology-AAS.htm. For general information about Lone Star College-Kingwood, call 281.312.1600 or visit http://lonestar.edu/kingwood.htm Breaking into intermittent sobs in a Houston federal courtroom Wednesday, a Katy couple admitted in a plea deal they helped a Nigerian woman enter the U.S. under false pretenses, held onto her passport and threatened harm if she did not continue working long hours, cleaning and caring for their five children for less than minimum wage. Each pleaded guilty to the steepest individual federal charge against them, but prosecutors said the dismissed charges would not have impacted the length of their sentences. Chudy Nsobundu, 57, pleaded guilty to visa fraud, admitting he fraudulently filled out an online application for a tourist visa for the nanny, falsely representing that she was his sister and would be coming to the United States for her niece's graduation. Sandra Nsobundu, 49, pleaded guilty to unlawfully withholding the woman's passport during her employment with the family. In exchange for their pleas, the couple will not have to forfeit their home. The government, however, has asked that they pay $129,000 to their former employee, who remains in the U.S. under protected status. Senior U.S. District Judge Nancy F. Atlas set sentencing for Jan. 4. The Nsobundus remain free on bond. The couple had been charged with forced labor, withholding documents, visa fraud, conspiracy to harbor and harboring an illegal alien. They were originally charged by criminal complaint Feb. 4, 2016, and arrested four days later. According to the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint, the 38-year-old victim was subjected to physical and verbal abuse while employed by the Katy couple and regularly referred to as "the idiot." The victim allegedly worked every day from 5:30 a.m. until 1:00 a.m. and was responsible for cleaning the house, making meals and taking care of five children. The criminal complaint alleges she was told she could not watch television or even sit down during her work hours. She was also allegedly told to sleep on the floor and could not use warm water to bathe or wash her hair. The affidavit also claims that she was not allowed to eat fresh food and was only permitted the leftovers from the previously prepared meals. She was told the strain the milk out of the children's cereal bowls to use for tea. In one instance, the criminal complaint charged that Sandra Nsobundu dragged the victim by her hair and hit her across her face because she did not like the socks the victim put on one of the children. The victim did not have access to a phone and could not communicate with her family, according the charges. Her movements were mostly limited to the residence and allegedly only allowed out for short walks with the youngest children around her block. The charges outlined in the complaint indicate the victim also did not have access to her passport and other travel documents. The couple had previously agreed to pay the woman 20,000 Nigerian nairas $100 U.S. dollars per month, according to the charges. The Nsobundus allegedly never paid the victim for any of her work here in the U.S. The victim was rescued Oct. 10, 2015, after more than two years with the Nsobundus in the U.S., following a tip to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center. The investigation leading to the filing of criminal charges was the result of an investigation conducted by members of the Human Trafficking Rescue Alliance in Houston, which includes Homeland Security Investigations, Fort Bend Sheriff's Office and the Department of State Diplomatic Security Service. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Julie N. Searle and Ruben R. Perez are prosecuting the case. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Students gathered in the Student Conference Center at Lone Star College-Kingwood Oct. 11 to listen to four candidates running for various offices discuss their visions if elected Nov. 8. The candidate forum featured Hal Ridley Jr., Green Party candidate running for U.S. House District 36; Kathie Glass, Libertarian Party candidate running for Texas Supreme Court, Place 3; James Veasaw, Libertarian Party candidate running for U.S. House, District 2; and Scott Ford, Libertarian Party candidate running for Texas State Representative, District 127. Each candidate was given approximately seven minutes to introduce themselves. Hal Ridley Jr. "I'm not a politician," Ridley said. "I don't really have a campaign. I don't ask for donations. Mostly what I'm trying to do is spread ideas because you can lose, but your ideas can still win. A lot of times, your ideas, once they're out, they go on their own. Somebody will pick them up." Ridley hopes to bring positive change to the U.S. through invention and innovations. "I am a musician, a songwriter, semi-retired truck driver, but mostly I'm an inventor," Ridley said. "Invention, innovation and entrepreneurial acumen are all we have to pull up from this spiral. A lot of the technologies and innovations are already here." He conveyed his vision for a personal robotic revolution to localize the economy. "Bring the economy back: localized," Ridley said. "Everything we need is here. We just need to look around, pick the projects that work and help advance the situation." Kathie Glass Having practiced law for more than 30 years, Glass said her reason for running is to fight to mend a legal system she feels is not fulfilling its purpose. "I want to run for Supreme Court because I think a free people need a functioning legal system and we don't have one currently: not on the civil side; not on the criminal side," Glass said. "I've been a civil trial lawyer for over 30 years and it's what I was born to do. "Washington is broken and the two-party system is corrupted by cronyism. The well-connected people have controlled and corrupted all of our processes including our legal process. I saw justice was not being done, but I want to change that." James Veasaw Veasaw focused on fighting for constitution rights, specifically the Second Amendment. "When they go after your Second Amendment rights, you have no other recourse," Veasaw said. "That's the one thing that stands between us and the government. The constitution gives us this right and when they redefine your right to carry weapons and defend your family and property; we've lost it. "We've become servants of the tyrant." Scott Ford Ford said, with approximately 15 years of experience as an educator, he is concentrating on the need for educational reform and his intention to make a difference at the state level. "Educational policy is handled predominately at the state level," Ford said. "How many of you felt like your public school really prepared you for life? Education is very important to me. Statewide, this is where this is handled." Questions and answers Ridley left before the question-and answer-session. A question was posed to Glass concerning how her political views influenced her interpretation of the law. "I think you have an inalienable natural right to live your life the way you want to, provided that you're not interfering with the identical rights other people have; interfering by force or fraud, with their right to live their life," Glass said. "I think that is a fundamental bedrock principle that our legal system was enacted to uphold and should be, but often is not." Ford was asked about his thoughts as a Libertarian and educator on abolishing the Department of Education at the federal level. "The Department of Education at the federal level is an absolute disaster," Ford said. "Education should be controlled at the local level with some state involvement. This is different than a traditional Libertarian platform and different from even a traditional Republican platform, but I think there is a place for public education, but we need to change it. We need to rip it up from the ground up." What are the candidates' ultimate goals if elected? "Ultimately, I would love to see us get back to our constitutional roots," Ford said. "I don't care what you do with your personal life as long as it doesn't hurt me or what I do with my personal life. I want you to keep as much money as you can, but I want to limit government as much as humanly possible." Glass said she would vote to hear more cases, have more written opinions and dissent. "Discretionary review means that (the Supreme Court) doesn't have to take anything they don't want to and the pattern seems to be that they take cases where the cronies lost so they can fix that," Glass said. "If the cronies won, they don't take the case. They also don't write opinions as much as they should. Sometimes they just issue 'petition granted,' 'petition denied' and you don't know why, so you don't have any confidence that the rule of law is being applied." Veasaw said he would go after corruption and cronyism. "If you can't get a government job, one of the reasons is that you're not given a fair chance," Veasaw said. "The fix is already in and most of the money that we're spending in taxes is going to corruption. If we could just clean up the corruption that's in Washington, D.C., we can solve most of our financial problems." Ford was then asked what government programs he would like to see trimmed down and how he would propose to fix issues with education. In addition to his career as an educator, Ford spent time working for government agencies including the FBI and CIA. He said he would like to see across-the-board budget cuts at the state and federal levels. "In regards to education, I would love to at least get rid of STAAR," Ford said. "In testing preparation you are told what to do if a student gets so scared they throw up on their testing booklet. We're taking children who should have a love of learning and we're driving that love out of them. Step one is to get back to making these kids love education." Importance of Forums Seth Howard, assistant director for the Center of Civic Engagement at Lone Star College System, explained the importance of hosting political forums like this at the college level. "Part of my job is to engage students to become more engaged citizens," Howard said. "We try to provide those opportunities to become more engaged, more powerful and more skillful actors so that (students) can make the change (they) want to see within the community today rather than tomorrow." For more information about Lone Star College-Kingwood visit www.lonestar.edu/kingwood.htm. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Authorities have arrested and charged a Houston man in the September slaying of Spring chef Michael Kusuma, who was gunned down by intruders to his north Harris County home. John Wesley Baldwin, 28, is charged with capital murder. He was apprehended on Tuesday, according to Harris County District Clerk records. Kusuma, a beloved 33-year-old chef, was killed Sept. 18 when armed assailants stormed into his house on Canvasback Glen Court around 9:30 p.m. and demanded money. His brother, Sebastian Kusuma, was injured in the attack. The Kusumas immigrated from Indonesia. Michael originally moved stateside for college and eventually the family settled in Texas. Michael's uncle Tony opened popular breakfast hot spot Sunny Side of the Street a few years ago in a Spring shopping center. Since the murder, the restaurant has shut its doors for good. Nick Rama, a regular customer at Sunny Side, said he hopes the killer pays for his crime. "I hope justice is served and he gets the maximum punishment," Rama said Wednesday. "This guy ruined an entire family's livelihood and the lives of hardworking employees all for a little bit of money." Rama got to know the Kusumas well through their eatery, and at one point he featured Michael and his younger brother Sebastian in an article for Public News. Now, he wants answers. "I want to know why he targeted Michael and his brother," Rama said of the killer. "I also hope this will bring some type of closure for Michael's family." Three top executives at a physical therapy company were convicted this week by a federal jury in Houston of conspiracy, health care fraud, wire fraud and money laundering. After a five-week trial and 14 hours of deliberation before U.S. District Judge Ewing Werlein, Jr., the jury on Monday convicted three officials from Team Work Ready, which operates clinics in five states, including Texas and Louisiana, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney Ken Magidson in Houston. Convicted of more than 20 criminal counts each were Jeffrey Eugene Rose, 54, the CEO; his wife, Pamela Annette Rose, 55, who was the chief financial officer; and Frankie Lee Sanders, 55, the vice president of operations. A fourth defendant, Dr. Hugo Gerardo Jaime, 44, who signed treatment notes and trained the technicians at the clinic, was found not guilty on all counts. Vivian R. King, the defense attorney for Pamela Rose, said she respected the jury's verdict but feared it might have been influenced by cultural bias against her client, who along with the other two convicted defendants is black. King said Rose has spinal cancer and worked offsite. The three or four witnesses who testified they knew her said she worked in the business office and had little to no role in the billing process. Lawyers for the other two convicted defendants could not immediately be reached for comment. On Tuesday, the jury heard more testimony and returned a special verdict requiring the company to forfeit $220,807, an annuity contract and real property. Christopher Downey, who represents Sanders, was also very surprised at the verdict and agreed about King's client. "I thought it was absurd for the federal government to prosecute Pamela Rose given the fact that she was essentially a part-time worker and a survivor of bone cancer who is confined to a wheelchair," he said. In addition, he said, he believed this investigation that led to his client's prosecution, was based in an effort by the U.S. Postal Service to put companies that serve postal workers who have been injured out of business. "These were very, very good people who helped a huge number of federal workers," he said. "This was a company that met a very special need in the marketplace for injured federal workers and had marketed itself well but was struggling to meet the needs of the customers it brought in. The mistakes it made, I believe, were not intentional. This verdict was based on a finding that those acts were intentional and I just don't think that's supported by the evidence." Chip Lewis, who defended Jeffrey Rose, said, "With the acquittal of the chiropractor, the guilty verdict of the executives is both illogical and completely contradictory to the government's theory and witnesses' testimony. The government alleged the chiropractor intentionally overbilled the Department of Labor while the executives turned a blind eye and enjoyed the profits of his malfeasance." Witnesses testified that the company submitted $9.6 million in claims for postal workers getting treated at four clinics for physical therapy services that were not provided. The defendants were found guilty of billing for one-on-one physical therapy, when experts testified that the patients said they simply used treadmills, bicycles and elliptical machines, the Nintendo Wii game and other exercise equipment. According to witnesses, a patient at the San Antonio clinic was told to use the massage chair for therapy. According to court documents, patients at the packed New Orleans clinic saw the treatment program as the equivalent of a gym. Sanders and Jeffrey Rose were ordered to remain in federal custody until sentencing on Jan 13 and 20, respectively. Pamela Rose will remain free on bond until her sentencing Jan. 13. They may have have been clowning around, but Houston police weren't. Sixteen people, some wearing clown makeup, were charged Monday with breaking into an abandoned hotel in downtown Houston. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Over the opposition of animal welfare groups that closely followed the case, a Brenham veterinarian who killed a cat with a bow and arrow has received a one-year full suspension, followed by four years of working in her field on a probationary basis. The Texas State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners made the decision Tuesday after a three-hour morning hearing in Austin, according to a board spokeswoman. The suspension begins as soon as the order is signed, which will take place today, but Lindsey has 30 days to appeal the decision, spokeswoman Loris Jones said. Lindsey's attorney, Brian Bishop, said in an emailed statement that she would appeal the decision. "Dr. Lindsey and I are disappointed that the Board ordered suspension of Dr. Lindsey's license based on an action that had nothing to do with the practice of veterinary medicine.," Bishop said in the statement. "We are also disappointed that the Board has, for all intents and purposes, chosen to take sides in the culture war between the animal rescues zealots who have campaigned to destroy Dr. Lindsey and her family versus rural property owners who have the right to protect their property and their own animals from feral animals who are destroying their property and threatening their own animals....," the statement continued. Under terms of the four-year probation, Lindsey must be monitored by another veterinarian approved by the board and must submit quarterly reports, Jones said. In addition, Lindsey must receive six hours of continuing education in animal welfare, in addition to the annual requirement of 17 hours. READ MORE: Proposed 5-year modified suspension for vet who shot cat with arrow draws opposition The five-year discipline was based upon a proposal issued Aug. 15 by two administrative law judges. An online petition calling for her permanent suspension got more than 380,000 signatures before it was closed. Among the approximately 25 attendees at Tuesday's hearing was Misty Christo, lead attorney for Alley Cat Allies, a nonprofit organization that consistently pushed for harsh punishment for Lindsey. "Only a permanent revocation of Kristen Lindsey's license is an acceptable ruling given the level of contempt for animals she has demonstrated," Christo said in a prepared statement. "She shot Tiger, dangled him by an arrow through his head as he slowly died, and then celebrated the killing on social media with a grisly photo. She clearly broke the public trust we place in veterinarians and should never practice medicine again." Christo expressed concern about the prospect of Lindsey practicing veterinary medicine again in another year. "With this ruling, animal owners may soon unknowingly place their animals in the care of a veterinarian who grossly violated her oath to prevent animal suffering" Christo said. READ MORE: Mediation fails to resolve case against vet who shot cat with arrow Also attending the hearing was David Rosengard, an attorney on a one-year fellowship with the Animal Legal Defense Fund's criminal justice program in Portland, Ore. Rosengard, who spoke during the public comment period, said the reaction among spectators was one of profound disappointment at the board's decision. "The public comments were uniformly interested in seeing Ms. Lindsey held accountable for the severity of her actions," Rosengard said. "She not only harmed the owners of the cat, Tiger, but she also harmed the trust that the public puts in veterinarians and, of course, she harmed Tiger himself." According to the board's complaint against her, Lindsey shot an orange male cat through the head with a bow and arrow in April 2015. She posted a photo of herself on Facebook, smiling and holding up the arrow "with the cat's body dangling from the arrow shaft," the complaint stated. READ MORE: The case of the cat-killing vet Although Lindsey referred to the orange tomcat as feral, the board's complaint stated that the cat, named Tiger, belonged to a couple who lived near her home at the time of the incident. On March 21, Lindsey was arrested in Harris County on a misdemeanor, first-offense charge of driving while intoxicated. According to court documents, her blood-alcohol level at the time was "at least 0.15," or nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08. She was released on $1,000 bail and has a court date Nov. 10 in Harris County Court No. 6. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 5 1 of 5 Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Show More Show Less 2 of 5 Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Show More Show Less 3 of 5 4 of 5 Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Show More Show Less 5 of 5 The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services is asking for the public's help in locating Anthony Porch, 13, of Cypress/Spring. Anthony has been missing since Sept. 29, 2016. He is described as about 5-foot tall, 110 pounds and may or may not be wearing glasses. Authorities believe he may still be in the Houston area or traveling to San Antonio. A 39-year-old British conspiracy theorist and UFO phenomenologist who was found dead in Warsaw in June sent his mother a text days before his death telling her, "If anything happens to me, investigate." Max Spiers, who was in excellent health according to his family, was discovered dead on a couch by a woman he was staying with ahead of a conference he was due to speak at in Poland. Polish authorities attributed the death to natural causes, but no post-mortem was performed at the time. "I think Max had been digging in some dark places and I fear that somebody wanted him dead," his mother, Vanessa Bates, told the Telegraph. Scott C. Waring of UFO Sightings Daily told the Metro, "This is really strange. It does seem that UFO researchers are now being targeted, probably to slow the rate of information being leaked to the public." Adds another UFO blogger, Craig Hewlett "If it wasn't true what he talks about then why would they kill him? Healthy people don't just get sick and die, they get poisoned." But British UFO expert Nick Pope denied there was any any clandestine campaign by the so-called Men in Black or other government agents to eliminate UFO hunters who get to close to "the truth." "The death of Max Spiers was a tragedy, but having run the UK government's UFO project I promise we don't go around killing UFO researchers," he said via Twitter. Bates said her son had made a name for himself among investigators of UFO sightings and alleged cover-ups. She vowed to get to the bottom of her son's death. After Spiers' body was returned to England, an autopsy was carried out by a pathologist in east Kent, according to the Metro, but Bates said the results will not be known for several months. The North East Kent coroner's office confirmed the death was at the "very early" stages of investigation. Spiers, the father of two boys, was buried in a Canterbury cemetery. Among his beliefs, compiled by the Mirror, include these: Zionists and Nazis: "I believe because they have the same agenda they both want to put into place the New World Order." Extraterrestrials: "We are receiving all kinds of help from masters, ETs and extra dimensional type angelic beings, and learning very quickly to go inward." Information downloads via sex: "A lot of women were being used to be set up with very important politicians or entertainers - people in high positions - and sleep with them. They would seduce these people in high positions. And when they sleep with them this information would be downloaded through the act of sex, and it would go back to whoever is controlling them." On Monday, President Barack Obama announced that the high school graduation rate in the country set a new record for the fifth year in a row. According to the announcement, the U.S. reached an all-time high with 83 percent of high school students actually graduating. The figures are for the 2014-15 school year and were compiled by the U.S. Department of Education. While that might seem like good news to most, I point out that it is not as good as it should be. What I see is that 17 percent of all high school students are failing to graduate. For every 100 students, that means 17 of them don't graduate. It gets scary when the numbers get bigger. If you have 100,000 students, 17,000 of them have failed to graduate high school. That does not mean they are bad people. Many people who don't graduate the traditional way go on to get a GED or find a job, living perfectly fine lives. In Texas, the graduation rate falls in the at 85-90 percent area that is shared with 22 other states. Only Iowa graduates at a higher-than 90 percent rate. At the bottom of the spectrum are Washington, D.C., and New Mexico, where fewer than 70 percent of all high school students graduate. In January, the Texas Legislature will meet and begin its discussions on budget issues for the next two years. Unfortunately, there is less money in Texas than in the last two years. The oil industry downturn always affects the money the state gets to spend. The first things that get cut as the biggest chunks of the budget are education and transportation funding. Those are two things Texas cannot afford to spend less money on. It Texas wants to succeed and be a home of opportunity, those politicians in the Legislature need to find a way to spend more on education and cut elsewhere. The key to health, wealth and happiness oftentimes has a foundation in a good education. Texas should be trying to diversify its economy. High-tech jobs that wind up in California, for instance, should be highly sought-after by Texas. Besides the fact that it is cheaper to live in Texas, we don't have earthquakes, have lower real estate costs and don't have a state income tax, all things a major corporation should love. (We do have out-of-control taxing authorities tied to real estate, but that is a different story.) Texas needs to focus its efforts on educating its youth and getting it prepared to go to college. Once students become college graduates, they need to have a place to work close to home. That will require attracting new high-tech businesses that populate California, which has a lower high school graduation rate than Texas, by the way. Just saying. Getting a high school education is not the badge of honor it used to be. In order to make a good wage, post high school training is a must. A two-year program can get a high-paying job on the Houston Ship Channel, for instance. There are opportunities for those without any additional training beyond high school, but those chances are drying up and are a harder road to travel. Come on Texas, pony up and be ready to support education. The six-year-old civil lawsuit accusing former Houston school board member Larry Marshall of bribery remains on track for trial this month, after federal Judge Keith Ellison on Tuesday denied last-minute motions. The jury trial is expected to start Oct. 24 and last at least two weeks, said Houston attorney Chad Dunn, who is representing the Gil Ramirez Group, a local construction firm that sued Marshall in December 2010. "We'll stay with it as long as it takes," U.S. District Judge Ellison said in court Tuesday. The lawsuit claimed the Gil Ramirez Group lost out on lucrative construction work in the Houston Independent School District because it did not participate in an alleged bribery and kickback scheme that supposedly enriched Marshall. He served on the HISD board from 1998 to 2013. The lawsuit alleged the scheme involved Marshall, his business partner and political campaign treasurer Joyce Moss-Clay, and two construction companies, RHJ-JOC and Fort Bend Mechanical. Each of the parties has denied wrongdoing. Marshall's attorney, Rick Morris, who has taken the lead on the case, declined comment after the hearing Tuesday. Brooks Harrison, an attorney for Fort Bend Mechanical executive Pete Medford, told Ellison that Medford plans to exercise his Fifth Amendment right and not answer some questions in Marshall's trial because he has a deal with the U.S. Justice Department. Harrison referred in court Tuesday to an unspecified federal investigation and offered no details. Harrison declined to answer a reporter's questions after the hearing. The Houston Chronicle reported in 2013 that federal authorities had launched a criminal investigation related to the Ramirez Group lawsuit against Marshall, but it was unclear who was being targeted. The status of any such investigation remains unclear. "We're satisfied that the court is going to allow the jury to get a full view of the evidence, and that's all our clients ever asked for," Dunn said after Tuesday's hearing regarding the trial pending this month before Judge Ellison. Houston police hurled hateful insults at a transgender man while arresting him on a trumped-up trespassing charge that was later dismissed, according to a lawsuit filed recently in Harris County. Officers taunted Kris Smith for not being a "real man" in a "jaw-dropping" barrage of insults, the 38-year-old told the Chronicle. Eventually prosecutors dropped the charge. Smith is suing the city and arresting officers, alleging wrongful arrest and false imprisonment, in a suit seeking up to $1 million in damages. Smith's fiasco started last December outside a Montrose-area Burger King. "My girlfriend lives around the corner from there and I was leaving her house when I took a phone call for a job and walked around back behind the Burger King," Smith said. As he chatted during the 15-minute phone call, he noticed a police car pull up in front of a man who appeared to be homeless, sitting in the corner of the parking lot. Smith decided it was time to make an exit and started walking away - but the officer beckoned him over. "He said, 'Turn around,' and started handcuffing me and I asked what for - and he said trespassing charges," Smith recalled. Officers later said that a Burger King manager had called in the trespassing complaint, but Smith says no one ever bothered to come outside and ask him to leave. Smith maintains he was not even on the property at the time of the arrest, but was outside a small wall around it. Police took in the other man, too, and dropped him off at a downtown jail without incident. But once the other accused trespasser got out of the car, Smith's ride took a turn for the worse, according to the lawsuit. Fearing safety issues at a men's facility, Smith told the cops he was transgender and would probably need to be taken to a women's jail. "They told me they don't care if I [don't] have a penis, they'll put me in the guys' side anyway," he said. On top of the alleged verbal onslaught, Smith was handcuffed but not belted to the seat. He ended up with a bruised nose, swollen and bruised wrists and a swollen bicep, according to the lawsuit. The police made the trip "a pretty rough ride," he said. Police have a very different account of the day's events. According to sworn statement by authorities read aloud in court, Smith was sitting on the curb drinking a beer when police showed up, Harris County District Attorney spokesman Jeff McShan said. The statement says Burger King manager Tiffany Ross told police she'd asked Smith to leave the premises after catching him panhandling in the drive-through line. Smith called the police account "complete made-up craziness." Ross failed to show up in court, however, so prosecutors eventually dismissed the case. Smith's lawyer, U.A. Lewis, filed suit last month but she admitted it could be challenging. "The city will likely claim immunity and the officers will also claim their immunity, so the case is going to be difficult," Lewis said. Burger King, which is also named in the suit, did not respond to a request for comment. Smith said that the unwarranted arrest was the worst part of the whole experience - and the transphobic taunting that followed is just a frustratingly normal aspect of being transgender. "That's a severe bullying technique that they use and they think they can get away with it because it's just conversation," Smith said. "They think it's OK, and it's not OK. It's bullying, and no one deserves that." This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate On Oct. 10, former Houston Chronicle photographer Blair Pittman passed away at the age of 79 in Odessa, Texas due to complications from a stroke. Longtime Houstonians probably remember seeing his name attached to many great photos documenting Houston pop culture during his time on staff, starting in 1967. He previously worked at the Denton Record-Chronicle. After his time here at the Chronicle he would go on to capture life in the West Texas, Big Thicket and Big Bend regions through photos and words, with his work in high demand. RELATED: Vintage photos show Big Bend National Park in all its desolate beauty Pittman moved to the West Texas area in 1999, but his first brush with the region coming during a family trip when he was all of 7 years old. Pittmans "Tales from the Terlingua Porch series of stories told and retold from the series' namesake location will likely be read for decades to come. He was also an avid caver, starting when he was an adolescent, exploring caves in Texas and Mexico. Friends and colleagues revered Pittman for his eye for an image and he was loved as a mentor and a role model. Publications like National Geographic, National Wildlife, Time-Life, Forbes, Texas Monthly, Texas Parks & Wildlife and Smithsonian all carried his award-winning work. He was selected by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to participate in the five-year "Documerica" project, which is still routinely seen around in the web. RELATED: Stink bombs cast pall over Martin Luther King visit In our Houston archives we can see shots he snapped of luminaries as diverse as Waylon Jennings, Judy Garland, Elvis Presley, Don Knotts, the Jackson Five, Truman Capote and Prince Rainier and Princess Grace of Monaco as they all visited Houston. He was also on hand to cover a 1967 appearance by civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. at the Sam Houston Coliseum, capturing one of the biggest names of the 20th century onstage giving a speech at a rally to benefit the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Photos of notable Houstonians like Ninfa Laurenzo, Leon Hale, John Mecom, Gus Wortham, Lynn Wyatt, Mickey Gilley, Barbara Jordan and Ima Hogg also appear in his archives. He was there at the Astrodome in 1974 when KTRK-TV anchor Dave Ward broke his leg, pelvis, and collarbone during a Houston media motocross event. For what its worth it appears he won the race. The media races were ended the next year lest anyone else break any further bones. RELATED: 43 years ago: The Houston mass murders come to light Pittman was also on hand at serial killer Dean Corlls Pasadena house in 1973 as officials began looking for the bodies of his murder victims. Elmer Wayne Henley Jr., then just 17 years old, had placed a call to Pasadena police telling them had shot and killed 33-year-old Corll following a struggle. A memorial service for Pittman will be held Saturday, Oct. 22 at the St. James Episcopal Church in Alpine. Click through the slideshow above to see Pittmans work for the Houston Chronicle Last June, U.S. Rep. John Lewis led more than 170 lawmakers in a historic 25 hour sit-in on the floor of the House of Representatives, protesting in hopes of forcing a vote on gun control legislation. On Tuesday, the Georgia Democrat sat down again, this time as symbolic gesture, on the floor of the Walter J. McCoy Auditorium at Texas Southern University as part of a public discussion on gun legislation. "There's just too much violence in our country, too many killings," said Lewis, a civil rights icon who helped to organize the 1963 March on Washington. "Sometimes when you see it, something that's not right, not fair, not just, you have to stand up, insist on doing something, and sometime you do it by sitting down, sitting-in," Lewis said. Packing the auditorium at the historically black university were a number of students, professors, pastors, and local civic leaders, including U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston. Poster boards with pictures of firearms sat on either side of the stage. At one point, Lee and Lewis presented another poster with statistics on mass shootings, listing deaths and injuries in 10 incidents, ranging from the 1984 McDonald's massacre in San Ysidro, Calif., to the 2016 Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando, Fla. Flanking the two representatives were four women. Each gave emotional testimonials on how gun violence had personally affected their lives. Three of the women were members of Moms Demand Action, an organization that advocates for gun safety reform. Holding up a photo of her son George Kemp Jr., 20, who was shot and killed three years ago in Richmond, Calandrian Simpson-Kemp spoke of the shock she felt following her son's death, passing her son's photo to Lewis. "I didn't know that we had a problem like this. I had no idea that a gun would meet my child here," Simpson-Kemp said. "I'm standing today to fight on behalf of George and all the other little George's that are out there to say that this is wrong." Kathy Blueford, whose son Patrick Charles Murphy, 20, was shot outside a Houston convenience store 10 years ago, said she was thankful for the support, but she hopes no other mother has to undergo the loss of a child by gun violence. "Just close your eyes and imagine your child is dead. Your heart won't let your brain go there," Blueford said. "As you sit around and enjoy your families, think about us because we'll carry this grief for the rest of our lives." In a question and answer period, TSU junior Ebony Greenfield, 26, asked about including mental health evaluations with gun purchases. Greenfield, who was holding her 2-year-old son, tearfully explained that her 20-year-old brother was killed in Jackson, Miss., by a mentally unstable uncle. Lewis and Lee said they would take these stories back to Washington, where they hope to pass gun safety legislation, incorporating mental health records into background checks. At a news conference following the event, Lewis acknowledged that given the current congressional leadership's record, it was unlikely that any gun safety legislation wouldbe considered this year by the House. Authorities are searching for man whom a homeowner apparently interrupted as he was in the process of burglarizing her house last month in northwest Houston. The incident happened about 9:30 a.m. Sept. 19 in the 9800 block of Eblen Drive, according to the Houston Police Department. Police said the woman locked her home and left. When she returned about three hours later she saw a red pickup with a hard shell covering the bed parked in her driveway. As she was sitting in her car, she saw a man walk from her front porch. He asked if she was the homeowner and said he was looking for a man who did masonry work. Then he removed a pair of white gloves, got into the truck and drove away. When the woman went inside her house, she saw her personal property lined up near the front door. The house was ransacked and the back door had been kicked in. Anyone with information about the case is urged to contact Crime Stoppers at 713-22-TIPS or online at www.crime-stoppers.org. Tips may also be submitted by text message. Text TIP610 and tips to CRIMES. Crime Stoppers will pay up to $5,000 for information that leads to the arrest of the suspect or charges being filed against him. All tipsters remain anonymous. Police fired a Taser at a man late Tuesday night to take him into custody during a tense standoff at a residence in west Houston. The incident began about 11:45 p.m. in the 1400 block of Confederate Street, said Lt. Larry Crowson of the Houston Police Department. A wolf that was rescued earlier this year by the Houston SPCA is on the move, relocating to a new home in Washington state. In August SPCA cruelty investigators discovered the wolf in a dirty, rusty metal cage at a feed store in North Houston. He was a part of a larger cruelty case that the SPCA was working with the Harris County Pct. 1 Constables Office. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Sometimes, it is a van or a car. Other times, a homemade fence pops up on Boathouse Road in San Benito. But, no matter the obstruction, federal officials are telling Ramiro Vasquez that when it comes to the access road, he can't block this. The U.S. Attorney's office in Houston on Tuesday sued Vasquez over his persistent habit of blocking the road leading to the fence between Texas and Mexico in Cameron County. Officials say the road blocks prevent them from getting to the fence to make updates and repairs. READ MORE: Where rhetoric meets reality: Texans have lived with border wall for years For good measure, someone keeps putting up a sign changing the name of Boathouse Road to "Vasquez Road." Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Kincheloe sent Vasquez a letter on Sept. 28, warning him about the obstructions and asking him to stop blocking the road and renaming it. Kincheloe warned a lawsuit would be in the offing. "For more than a year and a half, you have regularly parked a vehicle on Boathouse Road, a/k/a Vasquez Road, to obstruct the road," Kincheloe wrote. "Your actions now interfere with the United States' rights to use the easement which it purchased." READ MORE: Sorry Donald Trump: Building a border wall would be impossible because of this There's no record of a response from Vasquez in the court file and a phone number for him could not be found. Now, it is up to U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen in Brownsville to decide whether to grant an injunction blocking Vasquez from obstructing the road. Whether Vasquez will respond or comply remains to be seen. Tim Sharp/Special to the Chronicle In what is likely to be a symbolic gesture, a Dallas County judge has awarded a woman $50 million in the death of her son. According to court records, Judge Martin Hoffman of the 68th Judicial District in Dallas County ordered the award Sept. 19 as a final judgment in the case brought by Takeysha Keys over the death of her son, Octavius Lanier, on Nov. 22, 2011. According to real estate website Estatelys routine exploration of Google search data by region, they were able to find out what things each state in the union were asking Google how to do. Of course, Texas has some very interesting queries because, as amazing as we all are, some of us still would like to know how to be Jedis and read minds. Ordinary Time - Cicle C Author: Order of Carmlites | Source: www.ocarm.org 1) Opening prayer Almighty and everlasting God, our source of power and inspiration, give us strength and joy in serving you as followers of Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. 2) Gospel Reading - Luke 12,39-48 Jesus said to his disciples. 'You may be quite sure of this, that if the householder had known at what time the burglar would come, he would not have let anyone break through the wall of his house. You too must stand ready, because the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect.' Peter said, 'Lord, do you mean this parable for us, or for everyone?' The Lord replied, 'Who, then, is the wise and trustworthy steward whom the master will place over his household to give them at the proper time their allowance of food? Blessed that servant if his master's arrival finds him doing exactly that. I tell you truly, he will put him in charge of everything that he owns. But if the servant says to himself, "My master is taking his time coming," and sets about beating the menservants and the servant-girls, and eating and drinking and getting drunk, his master will come on a day he does not expect and at an hour he does not know. The master will cut him off and send him to the same fate as the unfaithful. 'The servant who knows what his master wants, but has got nothing ready and done nothing in accord with those wishes, will be given a great many strokes of the lash. The one who did not know, but has acted in such a way that he deserves a beating, will be given fewer strokes. When someone is given a great deal, a great deal will be demanded of that person; when someone is entrusted with a great deal, of that person even more will be expected. 3) Reflection Todays Gospel presents again the exhortation to vigilance with two other parables. Yesterday, it was the parable of the Master and of the servant (Lk 12, 36-38). Today, the first parable is the one of the householder and the burglar (Lk 12, 39-40) and the other one speaks of the one of the master and the steward (Lk 12, 41-47). Luke 12, 39-40: The parable of the householder and of the burglar. You may be quite sure of this , that if the householder had known at what time the burglar would come, he would not have let anyone break through the walls of the house. You too must stand ready, because the son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect. So just as the householder does not know at what hour the burglar will come, in the same way, no one knows the hour when the son of Man will arrive. Jesus says this very clearly: "But as for that day or hour, nobody knows it, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, no one but the Father! (Mk 13, 32). Today many people live worried about the end of the world. On the streets of the cities, we see written on the walls: Jesus will return! There are even persons who are in anguish because of the proximity of the end of the world, and they commit suicide. But time goes by and the end of the world does not arrive! Many times the affirmation Jesus will return is used to frighten people and oblige them to go to a determinate church! After that long wait and speculation around the coming of Jesus, many people no longer perceive the presence in our midst, in the most common things of life, in daily events. What is important is not to know the hour of the end of the world , but rather to have a look capable of perceiving the coming of Jesus who is already present in our midst in the person of the poor (cf Mt 25, 40) and in so many other ways and events of every day life. Luke 12, 41: Peters question. Then, Peter said, Lord, do you mean this parable for us, or for everyone? The reason for this question asked by Peter is not clearly understood. It recalls another episode, in which Jesus responds to a similar question saying: To you it is granted to understand the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, but to them it is not granted (Mt 13, 10-11; Lk 8, 9-10). Luke 12, 42-48: The parable of the householder and the steward. In the response to Peters question, Jesus formulates another question in the form of a parable: Who then is the wise and trustworthy steward whom the master will place over his household to give them at the proper time their allowance of food? Immediately after, Jesus himself gives the response in the parable: the good steward is the one who carries out his mission of servant, he does not use the goods received for his own advantage, and is always vigilant and attentive. Perhaps this is an indirect response to Peters question, as if he would say: Peter, the parable is really for you! It is up to you to know how to administer well the mission which God has given you: to coordinate the communities. In this sense, the response is also valid for each one of us. And here the final warning acquire much sense: When someone is given a great deal, a great deal will be demanded of that person; when someone is entrusted with a great deal, of that person even more will be expected. The coming of the Son of Man and the end of this world. The same problems existed in the Christian communities of the first centuries. Many people of the communities said that the end of this world was close at hand and that Jesus would return afterwards. Some from the community of Thessalonica in Greece, basing themselves in Pauls preaching said: Jesus will return! (1 Th 4, 13-18; 2 Th 2, 2). And because of this, there were even persons who no longer worked, because they thought that the coming would be within a few days or few weeks. Why work if Jesus would return? (cf 2 Th 3, 11). Paul responds that it was not so simple as it seemed, and to those who did not work he would warn: He who does not work has no right to eat! Others remained looking up to Heaven, waiting for the return of Jesus on the clouds (cf. Ac 1,11). And others did not like to wait (2 P 3, 4-9). In general the Christians lived expecting the imminent coming of Jesus. Jesus would come for the Final Judgment to end with the unjust history of this world here below and to inaugurate a new phase of history, the definitive phase of the New Heavens and the New Earth. They thought that it would take place after one or two generations. Many people would still be alive when Jesus would appear glorious in Heaven (1Th 4, 16-17; Mk 9, 1). Others, tired of waiting would say: He will never come back! (2 P 3, 4). Even up until today the final return of Jesus has not yet taken place! How can this delay be understood? We are not aware that Jesus has already returned, and that he is in our midst: Look, I am with you always, yes, till the end of time. (Mt 28, 20). He is already at our side in the struggle for justice, for peace and for life. The plenitude, the fullness has not been attained, but an example or guarantee of the Kingdom is already in our midst. This is why, we wait with firm hope the total liberation of humanity and of nature (Rm 8, 22-25). And when we wait and we struggle, we say rightly: He is already in our midst! (Mt 25, 40). 4) Personal questions The response of Jesus to Peter serves also for us, for me. Am I a good administrator of the mission which I have received? What do I do in order to be always vigilant? 5) Concluding prayer From the rising of the sun to its setting, praised be the name of Yahweh! Supreme over all nations is Yahweh, supreme over the heavens his glory. (Ps 113,3-4) This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate NASA's Earth Observatory captured images of Haiti a week before and after Hurricane Matthew tore across the country, killing at least 1,000 people on the Caribbean Island and leaving more than a million people in need of aid. This level of devastation, NASA said, can be seen from space. "Generally in Haiti land is managed in very small patches, with a household having subsistence crops in a number of locations, often on steep slopes," Alexandra Morel, an ecosystem scientist at the University of Oxford, told NASA. "When I look at these images, I see what seems to be seriously denuded hillsides, which I assume are from crops and fallows being washed away." READ MORE: Hurricane's destruction puts schools on hold in Haiti The first two images captured the damage in the southwest coastal city of Les Cayes. The New York Times reported that 90 percent of the town's buildings were destroyed or damaged by the storm. More information can also be derived from what is shown just off of the coast, according to Peter Wampler, a geologist at Grand Valley State University who spoke to Earth Observatory. "You can see from the change in ocean color that a significant amount of debris has been washed away," Morel said. "I would conjecture that a good amount of topsoil, which Haitian farmers can't really afford to lose, is likely a large contributor to that." Click through above to see NASA's before and after pictures of Haiti. 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. Eyes on the Street: The Life of Jane Jacobs, by Robert Kanigel (Alfred A. Knopf, 496 pp., $35) When writing about Jane Jacobs, it can be tempting to focus solely on her ideas, especially her criticisms of the received wisdom about urban planning of the 1940s and 1950s. Jacobs was the first to draw attention to the nakedness of urban-renewal emperors like New Yorks Robert Moses, Philadelphias Edwin Bacon, and Bostons Edward Logue. We still live with the bitter fruits of their work. So-called urban renewal had the opposite effect on cities. Across the country, cityscapes remain littered with midcentury public-housing projects that are isolated, crime-ridden, and devoid of the street life and small stores that, as Jacobs was the first to understand, help keep cities safe and economically dynamic. We also still live with the massive anti-urban installations called super blocks that, like New Yorks Lincoln Center, become frozen landscapes within the city, prevented from being used for new purposes and new visions. Who can doubt that the brownstones, row houses, and walk-up apartments that Jacobs defended against the planners wrecking balls would be more valuable today than their lifeless replacements? Property values in Brooklynas in Bostons North and South Ends, Philadelphias Rittenhouse Square, and San Franciscos Tenderloinmake the case that they would. Robert Kanigels Eyes on the Street is the first full-length biography of Jacobs, a woman without a college degree who became one of the most influential urban thinkers of the twentieth century. Kanigel deftly links Jacobss life experiences to the development of her original ideas. Born Jane Butzner in 1916 in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Jacobs wrote for a living, and not always for glamorous New York publications. She began her journalism career as an intern at the Scranton Republican and then contributed to Iron Age, a trade publication at which she learned the nuts and bolts of the metals industry. She learned, for instance, that non-ferrous metals were vital to modern life and how the markets for them worked. She worked briefly as a financial writer for Hearst and wrote an extended feature about Manhattans fur district for Vogue and another for Harpers Bazaar about the crabbing culture on Marylands Tangier Island. She was, in other words, soaking up the details of how business, culture, and the urban environment worked together when done rightthe very combinations shed go on to celebrate in her breakthrough masterpiece, 1961s The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Jacobs always remained what Kanigel calls an uncredentialed woman. Only graduallyand always through observation and writingdid she begin to gather the raw material for her famous criticism. Like kindred spirit George Orwell at the BBC, Jacobs became a successful propagandist for the Office of War Information during World War II. At Amerika, a Russian-language magazine published by the State Department during the Cold War, Jacobs was intensely edited by Marion Sanders, who would go on to Harpers. The idea, Sanders would write, is to convey some notion of the wealth and flexibility of our language. Once shed proved herself, Jacobs wrote about the full panoply of American lifeNew York City high schools, American cafeterias, and, ultimately, American architecture. As Yogi Berra is said to have put it, you can observe a lot just by watchingand Jacobs did. In Kanigels telling, only when she took a job as a staff writer at Time-Lifes glossy Architectural Forum did she really begin to see. Her husband, architect Robert Jacobs, had taught her how to read blueprints and she was assigned to writepositively, it was assumedabout Edwin Bacons new urban-renewal projects in Philadelphia: She joined Bacon for a tour, letting him show off all he was proudest of. . . . First they walked along a down-and-out street in a black neighborhood destined later for the Bacon treatment. It was crowded with people, people spilling out onto the sidewalk, sitting on stoops, running errands leaning out of windows. Here was Before Street. Then it was off to After Street, the beneficiary of Bacons visionbulldozed, the unsavory mess of the old city swept away, a fine project replacing it, all pretty and new. Jane, Bacon urged her, stand right here, look down this street, look what weve done here. . . . Ed, she said, nobodys here. Now, why is that? Where are the people? Why is no one here? Jacobs had, simply by looking, identified what Kanigel aptly describes as the great gulf between how things were supposed to work in the modernist city and how they really did. The seed of Jacobs disenchantmentnurtured by experience and observation, not theorywould blossom in ways that would eventually overshadow the world of Bacon, other architectural planners, and much of what Architectural Forum had featured and celebrated. The Philadelphia trip proved to be the moment when Jane Jacobs, a 40-year-old magazine writer and mother of three, began the journey to becoming Jane Jacobs, slayer of urban-planning giants. Her debut as a giant slayer came at a 1956 CK conference at the Harvard Graduate School of Designthe very citadel of modernism. It was organized by GSD dean and uber-modernist Luis Sert, himself a student of Le Corbusier, the godfather of towers in the park housing. Jacobss appearance there was a coincidence. Architectural Forum editor Douglas Haskell couldnt attend, so he sent Jacobswhod written only one major essay on the topicto deliver her newly formed contrarian views in his place. During what Kanigel dramatically calls ten minutes at Harvard, she told the design professions elite in plain English that their work led to a social poverty beyond anything their slums ever knew. The reception to Jacobss talk was largely positive; architecture and city planning would never be the same. Among Jacobss fans was The New Yorkers famous architecture critic, Lewis Mumford. Her Harvard talk, he wrote, had established her as a person to be reckoned with. Here was a new kind of expert . . . This able woman had used her eyes and, even more admirably, her heart to assay the human result of large-scale housing and she is saying, in effect, that these top lofty barracks . . . were not fit for human habitation. What made Jacobss rise to prominence possible? In addition to her years of training as a writer, she had been vetted by a series of what today might be called establishment gatekeepers: Architectural Forum; Random House and its legendary editor, Jason Epstein; and even National Review, which reviewed Death and Life favorably. What bound these institutions together were their fair-mindedness and their openness to challenging received wisdom that many had helped mold in the first place. Could anything similar happen today? Jacobs fit no ideological niche and would resist being pigeonholed. She was investigated by the FBI for her alleged leftist leanings, yet nonetheless admired by William F. Buckley. In the early sixties, though, a career path like Jacobss was not entirely uncommon. Rachel Carsons Silent Spring and Ralph Naders Unsafe at Any Speed burst on to the scene at about the same time, upending public conceptions about, respectively, the safety of human efforts to control the environment and the good faith of General Motorsthe latter still roughly synonymous with the health of the American economy. Like Jacobs, Carson and Nader stormed fortresses from the outside, as did Jacobs. Outsiders who reshape established fields are rare. Rarer still is the outsider who is thanked for her efforts by the insiders. Jacobss influence on how we think about cities is undeniable. By standing up to Robert Moses, she helped make community opposition to public projects respectable. And her writings provided an intellectual defense for mixed-use neighborhoodsan idea that now enjoys broad popular and political support. Thanks to Jacobs, we understand the importance of cities of human scale, we appreciate that poor neighborhoods can still be good neighborhoodsand we resist centrally planned efforts to fix them. Photo by Frank Lennon Caritas Cehia in cautarea unui expert/unei experte sau unei echipe de experti in prestarea serviciilor de consiliere psihologica (pe segmentul burnout) pentru echipa mobila de prestare a serviciilor psiho-sociale pentru refugiatii ucraineni The story has finally hit home for retirees of the Newark Star-Ledger. In late September, the benefits administrator for Advance Publications, which owns the paper, sent a letter to retirees notifying them that they would no longer be covered by a company-sponsored group retiree plan. In its place, Advance informed them it was pleased to offer a new solution a smorgasbord of health insurance options available through something called the Mercer Marketplace 365, an insurance exchange and they would be given a subsidy to help pay premiums and out-of-pocket expenses. Ex-employees were stunned. One of them, Anne-Marie Cottone, who had taken a buyout in 2008 after 35 years at the paper, said she now would have to pay for health-care coverage, and in some cases, this will force people into Obamacare if they arent eligible yet for Medicare. She said the move was particularly galling to employees like her who took a buyout from the paper, at least in part on the promise of continuing health-care coverage. The company told us that we would be given health benefits for life, for ourselves and dependents if we agreed to retire and start drawing our pensions one year after the buyout, she said. Since employees were eligible for full pensions at age 65, that meant people like Cottone, who was only 58 at the time of the offer, would receive a reduced benefit for the rest of her life. The company had threatened to sell the paper if 200 employees did not take the proposed buyout and a new agreement was not reached with unionized employees. Related: What a professor learned after interviewing a lost generation of journalists Those taking the buyout who were not considered retirees were promised continuation of medical benefits for one year. Those retiring and taking their pensions, according to the terms of the deal, believed they would be getting lifetime benefits, although Cottone told me she had nothing in writing that I can find, which would confirm that expectation. She says she considered the prospect of lifetime health benefits a trade-off for taking early retirement and leaving some of her pension benefits on the table. We all seemed to have understood we had health benefits for life. It sounds a bit much to say we were expecting to be taken care of, but we were expecting to be taking care of. And for eight years they were. Sign up for weekly emails from the United States Project Then came the September surprise. Although Star-Ledger retirees may have been blindsided by Septembers letter, they shouldnt have been. Employers in all industries have been dropping retiree health benefits since the early 1990s, says Paul Fronstin, the director of health research at the Employee Benefit Research Institute, a private, non-profit, nonpartisan organization that conducts studies and provides research on employer benefits and is funded by a diverse group of employers, insurers, benefit consultants, unions, consumer groups, and healthcare providers. Whats happening now is they are not dropping benefits. They are changing benefits. There are no federal protections for retiree benefits as there are for certain kinds of pension plans. In every industry, places that have had retiree benefits in the past have mostly eliminated them. If an employer has the ability to end them, theyve done so, at least for future retirees. The new health insurance arrangements confronting Star-Ledger retirees are part of a sweeping national trend to shift more of the cost of medical care from employers to current workers and to retirees either through higher premiums or scaling back benefits. According to Anthony Napoli, a local representative at the NewsGuild of New York, In every industry, places that have had retiree benefits in the past have mostly eliminated them. Napoli added, If an employer has the ability to end them, theyve done so, at least for future retirees. Star-Ledger retirees are, in fact, lucky. They will still receive health benefits although they will now have to pay a portion of the cost, and for some retirees coverage may not be as good; for others it might be better. Fronstin explained that Advance is offering retired employees whats called a private exchange, which is similar to Obamacares state insurance exchanges, where people select policies insurers sell. The sales pitch is that when they buy a policy through the Mercer Marketplace 365, they can choose a plan that works for them taking into account a combination of premiums, deductibles, coinsurance, copay and networks. Usually there are shopping tools that help them make decisions, and Mercers website promotes access to a healthcare concierge and opportunities for second opinions. Employers, though, are the biggest winners. By shifting the rising costs of healthcare to current and retired employees, they save gobs of money over time. Mercers website advertises an average first-year cost savings of nine percent, almost $1,000 per eligible employee cost savings. The financing vehicle for the new coverage is a health reimbursement account. Advance said it is providing a subsidy through the account, and retirees will be responsible for paying premiums directly to the insurer they choose as well as any other out-of-pocket expenses the new insurance calls for. The amount employers contribute is completely up to them, says Fronstin. It could be $1,000 or $900 annually, or it could be different for a family than a single person. The catch is that retirees could end up paying a lot more for their premiums as time goes on. The employers premium subsidy might be sufficient now, but it may not increase much or at all in future years, and rising premiums may be tough at a time when income diminishes. As Star-Ledger retirees have learned, nothing is forever in the world of healthcare. The era of good benefits with little out-of-pocket expense is over. That means paying close attention to the fine print whenever youre asked to agree to changes in health insurance, pensions, or any other benefit. Try to get promises in writing, though Fronstin says thats often unlikely. Above all, ask lots of questions. How the employers contribution will change over time is an important one. Journalists know how to ask questions. Insurance is hard even for the experts. We know how to find sources for our stories. Now we have to find them to explain how this new arrangement will work for us, what the terms mean, what strings are attached. The lesson from the Star-Ledger retirees is that we have to learn to do that for ourselves. Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today Trudy Lieberman is a longtime contributing editor to the Columbia Journalism Review. She is the lead writer for CJR's Covering the Health Care Fight. She also blogs for Health News Review and the Center for Health Journalism. Follow her on Twitter @Trudy_Lieberman. Getting robbed at gunpoint is a horrifying enough experience. But if youre Kim Kardashian West, you can pretty easily replace your jewelry (since we can assume it was insured). More valuable than the reported $11.2 million in ice that was stolen by two masked thieves in Paris, though, was something that might be a bit harder to regain: Kardashians virtual universe. For her and a lot of celebs the phone is a gateway to their fans they use it for Instagram, Facebook, tweeting and its actually the true communication device to the communities they reach, said Michael Kaiser, executive director of the National Cyber Security Alliance. Not only is it data-rich, but its functionality becomes part of everyday life and they have lots of important information on them, including a lot of data about you. In the case of celebrities, they have all their contacts on there personal contacts, other celebrities information and numbers that truly should not be available to the public. Theres a high responsibility for stewardship of that information thats been entrusted to you. Kardashian Wests two iPhones were reportedly stolen during the incident, and if she had proper security measures on them its likely the thieves wont be able to get much information from the phones. Kaiser, whose organization recently teamed with the White House and dozens of other organizations to launch the Lock Down Your Login campaign as part of National Cyber Security Awareness Month, gave Billboard six tips for keeping your phone safe from cyberthieves. Layers and layers: It always starts with the credentials you use to access your devices, he said. Step one is adding multiple layers of authentication to your accounts. He suggested using a biometric log-in such as a fingerswipe (or, if available, a retina scan) in addition to having a very strong passcode and PIN to get into your phone. Location, Location, Location: Make sure you turn on your Find my iPhone app in case your phone is lost or stolen. Also, look into a remote wipe app that will allow you to delete all the data using your computer or another device, which the Find my iPhone web app can do. Stolen phones hard to fence: The good news, according to Kaiser, is that most phones companies now maintain a database of stolen phones so that when a report comes in of a stolen device that phone cant be reused or turned back on again by a nefarious party. That makes phones less valuable from a monetary perspective, he said. You cant steal a $700 iPhone and turn it back on, which helps the everyday user, but not a celebrity whose phone is a target because of the data on it. No WiFi is good WiFi: It might be hard for most people, but Kaiser said you should be very careful about using open WiFi networks with your phone. There is a lot of vulnerability on those networks and you never know who else is on them and what they are doing on that network, or what they plan to do, he said. You need to understand that your cell phone connection to the internet is much more secure that a WiFi network. Put it on the cloud: Your phone can be a storage device or a transit device, which means you can either keep everything on your device where a crafty criminal can find a way to get into anything on it, even if its locked down or you can move your photos and other critical information onto the cloud. Just deleting something doesnt mean its 100 percent deleted, Kaiser said. You still need to have really good credentials on those iCloud accounts, the same principals apply. You can also program your phone to only hold your most recent emails, with the rest sitting wherever your primary account is, which should, of course, also have strong authentication. Your email account is really critical, the crown jewel, and when you forget the password you can click to send an email reminder. But if your phone is compromised someone can reset your passwords across the internet with access to your email. Double down: A number of sites and networks now offer (or demand) a secondary authentication code. Make use of that code and have the website or app send a text to your mobile device before allowing you to log in. You can have that code sent to your regular phone as well and then go back into the account and put it in, he said. For the most significant protection, use a logon approval to get into your account for a device that has never been used before. That way it will ask you, is it okay that this iPhone was trying to access your Facebook account?' For even tighter security, Kaiser said there are hardware devices you can get that plug into or tap on the back of your phone that require both devices to unlock your mobile. The bottom line, according to the NCSA is that 72 percent of Americans think their accounts are secure with just passwords and usernames, but every two seconds someone is the victim of identity fraud. Assurant Inc., the insurer that sells coverage protecting mobile phones and homes, posted the second-biggest decline in the S&P 500 Index after third-quarter profit slumped. The insurer dropped $4.82, or 5.3 percent, to $86.48 at 10:06 a.m. in New York trading, the biggest fall since February. That narrowed the companys advance for the year to 7.4 percent. Net operating income was $54 million to $66 million, compared with $104 million in last years third quarter, the New York-based company said late Tuesday in a regulatory filing with preliminary results. Assurant said catastrophes, including flooding in Louisiana, hurt the property unit. Results were worse than expected at the Solutions division, which backs phones and also issued extended-service contracts and credit insurance. Management had expected growth in mobile, combined with expense savings, would help offset the decline in legacy portions of the segment, John Nadel, an analyst at Credit Suisse Group AG, said in a note. The updated 2016 outlook suggest growth in mobile will fall shy of expectations. He lowered his estimate for 2017 operating earnings to $6.50 a share from $6.77. Assurant plans to release final third-quarter results on Oct. 25. The biggest decliner in the S&P 500 was Intel Corp., which gave a disappointing forecast for sales Tuesday, signaling lackluster year-end demand for personal computers. Copyright 2022 Bloomberg. Stray Dog 1.jpeg Stray Dog cafe on Main Street in Akron features a variety of hot dogs and home-style sides with a healthy twist. The cafe also features an espresso machine for gourmet coffee drinks. (Stray Dog Cafe) AKRON, Ohio - October's turning out to be a good month for downtown Akron and for local foodies. Stray Dog Cafe and Chameleon Cafe both recently opened for lunch on Main Street. The cafes are part of the second phase of Downtown Akron Partnership's pop up retail program, which provides rental assistance for the first six months through support from the Burton D. Morgan Foundation. Stray Dog Cafe Stray Dog Cafe offers turkey, beef and veggie hotdogs with toppings like mac 'n cheese, as well as corn beef sandwiches, beef brisket and a popular veggie burger. For Akron's downtown workers, Stray Dog offers the Doggy Bag Grab 'n Go, a $5 combo lunch deal. The cafe's goal is to blend home-style sides with a healthy twist, such as its couscous salad or super food slaw. The cafe also features an espresso machine for gourmet coffee drinks. Stray Dog began as a food cart catering events in downtown Akron, such as the National Hamburger Festival, Rib White and Blue Festival, Brew at the Zoo and Lock 3 concerts. "We are thrilled to finally have a permanent location for our business," said Charly Murphy, Stray Dog Cafe general manager and founder, in a news release. "This is a big step for us and allows us to expand our menu and be open all year round, which is something we were unable to do with our food cart." Stray Dog Cafe, located at 75 S. Main St., is open 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Culinary Chameleon The Culinary Chameleon's first location is in the Federal Building in downtown Akron, but cafe owner Mike Burzek wanted to expand to a more accessible spot. The Chameleon Cafe offers health-conscious menu offering wraps, soups, sandwiches, salads and pastries. Everything's made from scratch including salad dressings. "We jumped on this space as soon as it opened up," Burzek said in a news release. "It is the perfect location for us and we are excited to serve the people of downtown Akron." At the Main Street location, the Chameleon Cafe features a health-conscious menu offering wraps, soups, sandwiches, salads and pastries. Everything's made from scratch including salad dressings. The cafe also focuses on hot or iced coffee creations, with a choice of several coffee flavors. The Chameleon Cafe, located at 23 S. Main St., is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and could open for breakfast in the future. police tape.jpg Beachwood police are searching for an armed robbery who mugged a woman Saturday after a homecoming photoshoot. (File photo) BEACHWOOD, Ohio -- A Beachwood woman was robbed at gunpoint Saturday evening following a homecoming photoshoot with one of her children. The robbery happened about 7:30 p.m. on Havel Drive just as the homecoming dance was starting about two miles away at Beachwood High School. The mother was part of a group of parents and students who attended a private gathering prior to the dance, police said. The armed robber approached her, pointed a gun at her and made off with her purse, credit cards and phone, Beachwood police Chief Keith Winebrenner said. Investigators said the robbery appeared to be a random act. "Although (the victim) was involved in a Beachwood High School homecoming-related event, there is no indication (she) was targeted specifically for that reason," a news release says. Police released no description of the robber. No arrests have been made and police have no suspects, Winebrenner said. If you'd like to comment on this story, visit Tuesday's crime and courts comments section. Brecksville Council C.JPG Brecksville City Council approved a bunch of parking-code amendments Tuesday night. (Bob Sandrick, special to cleveland.com) BRECKSVILLE, Ohio - The city will increase the amount of time drivers can park in the downtown business district - centered at Brecksville Road and Ohio 82 - from one to two hours. Mayor Jerry Hruby said the change will help businesses by giving their customers more time to shop. And while the one-hour limit was in effect from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily, the two-hour limit will end at 5 p.m. "This should make it easier for people to visit downtown Brecksville," Hruby said in an email to cleveland.com. Hruby said police will more strictly enforce the two-hour parking limit than they did the one-hour limit. That's because the city wants to stop Brecksville residents, commuting by bus to their jobs in downtown Cleveland, from leaving their cars in parking spaces meant for businesses. "They (leave) their car, locking up a parking space all day long, depriving potential customers from its use," Hruby said. Hruby said residents who bus to downtown Cleveland can park their cars for the day in two municipal parking lots and the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority Park-N-Ride lot on Brecksville Road. The time limit was one of several changes to the municipal parking code approved by City Council Tuesday night. Sergio DiGeronimo, Brecksville's assistant law director, said most of the code amendments are clarifications meant to eliminate uncertainties in the existing parking laws. "We're cleaning up the parking ordinances," said DiGeronimo, who added that parking-violation fines typically range from $15 to $50, although the fine for parking in a handicapped space is $250. Here is a rundown of some additional parking-code changes council approved Tuesday: Jordan Poyer Jordan Poyer has a lacerated kidney. (Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com) BEREA, Ohio -- Terrelle Pryor said the most vicious thing about Antonio Andrews' illegal blindside hit on Jordan Poyer is that he posted it on Instagram. Andrews posted the clip -- with the caption "Relentless'' -- while Poyer was still in a Nashville hospital with a lacerated kidney that may need up to four months to heal. He was also checked for a concussion, but without confirmation of one. The hit occurred during a second-quarter punt return in Sunday's 28-26 loss to the Titans. Poyer was taken to the hospital by ambulance. Andrews was flagged for unnecessary roughness. "I don't want to get into it because right now it's about Cincinnati but I love Poyer like a brother and that really angered me,'' Pryor said. "That was bullcrap." Poyer saw the post when he was being driven home from Nashville Tuesday -- he had been told not to fly. It was more than an eight-hour drive. "For me, when I first saw it it kind of angered me because to hit a guy blindside, if you're going head up with a man face to face and he sees you, you see him, all right, cool,'' said Pryor. "But if you're a special teams guy and you're popping that stuff on there like you're some type of super hero or something just because you're hitting a guy blindsided and you think that's cool, that's where the problem comes in. "So I think he should stay to his special teams and what he does and don't post stuff when a man's not looking and taking a hit like that." Pryor can see how such a hit would occur in the heat of the moment. It was the posting on social media that irritates him. Andrews has since made his Instagram account private. "Obviously it's a game,'' Pryor said. "We put ourselves in that situation by signing the contract to play here, but the only thing that I didn't like was when the guy posted about it bragging 'Relentless.' What is relentless about that? Hitting a guy, another man when he's not looking?'' Andrews told reporters in Nashville Wednesday that he's not sorry for the post. WATCH: #Titans' Antonio Andrews sorry #Browns' Jordan Poyer injured, not sorry for posting video of hit on Instagram https://t.co/lBpoTRwDvD Jason Wolf (@JasonWolf) October 19, 2016 Coach Hue Jackson said he'd "be disappointed'' if one of his players posted such an injurious hit with the opponent still hospitalized. Would he discipline the player? "I don't know,'' he said. "I'm not going to sit here and pass judgment. I just know that I've heard about it, saw it and that's disappointing to me. That's one of our players. There's a code among players in the National Football League. That young man suffered a serious injury. So, I don't think that's something to celebrate. I would hope that he reaches out to Jordan and maybe even explain why it even went that far. "I hope that's not a feeling that he really has because I really think Jordan took that kind of personally. That's hard to be injured and not playing because somebody took a shot at you that maybe everybody felt was different than what it was, but those things happen.'' Jackson saw Poyer on Wednesday. "I gave him a big old, hug today,'' said Jackson. "Big hug. Glad to see him. Glad he's back. Looks like himself. Look good. Left tackle Joe Thomas also took exception the posting. "Certainly you'd hope that there was some sensitivity involved when a guy does go to the hospital because of a hit,'' said Thomas. "That's one thing that I'd like to see the NFL do is not use highlights of plays that were penalties, like celebrating, you know. "There was an issue a few years ago actually on Mohamed Massaquoi, Browns player, where James Harrison had a big hit across the middle. It was a penalty and then (the league was) using that as like the cover photo of something they were trying to sell. "So I think it's a double standard that I'd like to see the NFL look at a little bit.'' Receiver Andrew Hawkins, who was sent to the hospital with a concussion last season after a hit by Pittsburgh's Jarvis Jones, understands how Poyer feels but noted it's not uncommon. "I've seen it happen before,'' Hawkins said. "It's unfortunate. We're just praying Jordan makes a speedy recovery and joins us back in the locker room." He stopped short of saying Andrews crossed the line. "It's up to discretion,'' he said. "It's a very violent sport. It's what we're taught. It's what we make our money doing. I've obviously been hit illegally very hard and it's just kind of the game we sign up for." Poyer reacted to the post Tuesday in a series of tweets. Buddy posted the hit to his Social Media page? Jordan poyer (@J_poyer21) October 18, 2016 Wow Jordan poyer (@J_poyer21) October 18, 2016 Not complaining about the hit... its football.. stuff happens... but dam.. idk why but thats wild to me.. good for him tho Jordan poyer (@J_poyer21) October 18, 2016 Andrews didn't back from his post on Twitter. CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Six weeks ago, we started reporting on Verizon Wireless and head-scratching increases in data usage on customers' cellphones, or at least on their accounts. On Thursday, Verizon will publicly release its financial results for the third quarter, from July 1 through Sept. 30, the period when most of these overages and hefty charges occurred. What will those results show? Will Verizon talk about the barrage of consumer complaints to its offices and to the Federal Communications Commission? We don't know. But we do know a lot more today than we knew in early September. Here's a look at what we've learned in the last six weeks: Our initial Sept. 9 story about mysterious cellphone data overages struck a nerve nationally. Within a few days, the story garnered more than 1 million page views and was shared more than 200,000 times nationwide. That's a record for a Plain Dealer story. That's not a reflection on the quality of the story by my colleague John Caniglia and me. It is an indication that this has clearly been a huge problem among customers of Verizon, the nation's largest wireless carrier. Within a week, we heard from more than 4,000 consumers nationwide, most of them Verizon customers. They wanted to vent about their problems with data overages, which they insist are mind-boggling because, they said, their cellphone habits haven't changed notably compared with six months or a year ago. We've continued hearing from consumers but stopped counting almost a month ago, at more than 5,000. Some customers incurred $15 overages. Others experienced overages of $300 to $800. Others were hit with overage fees of $1,500 or more. Verizon last month denied any knowledge of a widespread problem or any significant increase in consumer complaints. The FCC says complaints to its office jumped to 2,079 in September, compared with a typical month of 180. That's a 1,055 percent increase. All complaints to the FCC are forwarded to the company involved. In 2009, Verizon denied it was overcharging customers for data. Then in 2010, the company acknowledged it improperly charged 15 million customers for data. It paid $80 million in refunds and a settlement to the FCC. Most consumers say their data increases this time around started earlier this year, with the lid blowing off starting in July as their data doubled or tripled or even increased 10 times over in one month. There is still no clear indication about what has caused this. We believe, based on customers we've heard from, there are at least two or three causes, with some customers affected by multiple issues and other customers affected by just one. They're not all necessarily caused by Verizon. Complaints we've received have been split roughly equally between iPhone and Android users. Most complaints have involved accounts with more than one phone. A handful have involved businesses. None of the huge overages we've heard of involved individuals with one phone line on their account. Some iPhone users were hit late last year or earlier this year with a new setting that Apple introduced, called Wi-Fi Assist. The setting allows the phone, not the customer, to decide if it doesn't like the strength of a Wi-Fi connection and then switch the phone -- without the customer's permission -- from free Wi-Fi to costly data. It comes default "on" for iPhones. A similar setting is default "off" on Androids. So people with iPhones could chew through data instead of being on their Wi-Fi without their permission. When someone's phone switches from Wi-Fi to data because of Wi-Fi Assist, we don't know whether it will get switched back to Wi-Fi again within minutes, or hours, or days, or ever, without intervention. The Wi-Fi Assist setting wasn't widely publicized. Even though Verizon has knowledge the setting is a source of big problems for many customers, it didn't alert customers to check this setting. Verizon could have sent out mass text messages or could have included an alert in customer bills. Verizon says it has a page buried in its web site that cautions customers about the dangers of Wi-Fi Assist. "When turned on, Wi-Fi Assist can result in unexpected data charges," We also learned there are a few other settings people should check on their phones: Background App Refresh, Cellular Data and Location Services. These should be turned off on apps that you don't want to use data. This move won't affect the apps' ability to use Wi-Fi. Many customers with iPhones and Androids have been affected by issues with apps such as Amazon and other apps that are powered by Amazon Web Services, including Netflix, Pinterest, Lyft and Expedia. Glitches or intentional software settings offer a strong possible explanation about why the data churns so much in the backgrounds of some cellphones. In other cases, customers turned off their Wi-Fi Assist months ago and haven't gotten new phones or new apps. But their problems started within hours or days of making a change to their account, such as changing their data plan. Some experts and former Verizon employees believe there may be a software glitch in the billing system that handles new or updated Verizon accounts. We also know that Verizon launched its new LTE Advanced network in August. Many experts believe there's a connection between this network -- which Verizon acknowledges processes data 50 percent faster -- and higher data consumption by consumers, even if they're not doing anything different with their phones. Newer phones with bigger screens are most susceptible to using data faster. No matter the causes, it is clear that Verizon underestimated the ire of its customers and moved too slowly in addressing the issue. Even after thousands of customers complained to the FCC and The Plain Dealer, the company has not gone into detail about what could be causing the problems. Even after it settled with a Florida mother who had a $9,100 and a Cleveland educational nonprofit that had $20,000 bill, it has failed to address the issue with its customers. One of the most curious aspects of the data mystery are nighttime spikes. Many, many customers complained that their phones, while on Wi-Fi, chewed up data at night -- when they were asleep and not using their devices. Dama Galceran, a customer service supervisor, said in an interview last month that Verizon isn't sure why people are getting middle-of-the-night data usage when they're sleeping. "We're actually looking into that," she said. "We have reached out to our teams to ask them exactly that." In other cases, cellphones have chewed data when the data was turned off. Or flip phones with data blocked used extraordinary amounts of data, according to Verizon. In one case, a woman who held on to her deceased husband's phone started seeing data spikes on the unused phone 18 months after his death. Verizon has attempted, in almost all cases, to shift the blame for data problems to customers. On accounts with at least one young person, the company has been quick to tell families their kids were tearing through gigabytes of data at all hours of the day and night. The issue caused arguments at kitchen tables across the country. Beyond the issue of overages, the recent billing issues have underscored disappointing customer service. Customers said Verizon representatives pushed more data when overages hit customers, but seldom did those representatives work to help rein in high overages or offer answers to questions of how this could be happening. Verizon has stopped sending reliable text alerts for data usage. Until a few months ago, the company would, if you signed up for the free service, send out alerts when you hit 50 percent of your data, and 75 percent, 90 percent and 100 percent. It doesn't do that consistently now. Some people still get 50 percent alerts. Some people get only 90 percent ones. Some people get no alerts at all. In some cases, when a customer's phone hits 100 percent of data, the text message sent by Verizon is what actually pushes the phone over its limit. So even if the customer turns his phone off immediately, he'll go over by 0.0001 gigabyte and get charged for a full gigabyte. Verizon on Sept. 2 started offering its Safety Mode service at no charge for all customers who have one of Verizon's new data plans. It used to charge $5 a month for Safety Mode for people with data plans of less than 16 gigabytes. Safety Mode works like this: When you reach your data limit, whatever level you're paying for, Verizon will allow you to continue using data -- but at a much slower speed of 128 kbps for the rest of the billing cycle. Think bicycle vs. car. So you'll go over your limit, but you won't pay extra fees. Safety Mode is still unavailable at any price for older plans like More Everything or America's Choice. More customers have taken an interest in monitoring their usage by logging into their accounts online or relying on their phone's own internal data meter that is independent of Verizon. We also learned that wireless customers have few rights to fight their bills. If you get a bill for electricity, or natural gas, or even a telephone landline, that you believe charges for too much usage, you have different rights than if you get an oversized cell bill. Utilities beyond cellular service are regulated at the state level. In Ohio, for example, a consumer can pay his normal electric or gas or landline bill, dispute the overage and not pay it while it's being investigated without risking disconnection. Wireless customers can complain to the FCC, their state attorney general's office and other consumer protection offices like their local Better Business Bureau. Last week, Verizon announced it plans to eliminate up to 3,200 jobs as it closes seven call centers in five states -- in Rochester and Orangeburg, New York; Bangor, Maine; Lincoln, Nebraska; Wallingford and Meriden, Connecticut; and Rancho Cordoba, California. "Verizon is going through an internal restructuring process and has recently made cutbacks in its retail operations," according to Zacks Investment Research. CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, Ohio - The Cleveland Heights Police Department is holding a news conference Wednesday to announce charges against a man accused of fatally shooting a 15-year-old boy at Mr. Hero. The man will be charged in the Friday shooting of Sunny Ravi Patel at the sandwich shop on South Taylor Road, police said. Charges will be announced at an 11 a.m. news conference at the Cleveland Heights Police Department. Cleveland.com will cover the event on Facebook Live. The armed man entered the sandwich shop just before 8 p.m. and shot Patel once in the head, police said. The Highland Heights teen died after paramedics took him to University Hospitals. Investigators released surveillance photos from the incident on Saturday and asked the public to help identify the shooter. Detectives arrested him late Sunday running from a Dollar General on Lee Road at East Overlook Road. Watch the live video: CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, Ohio - A Cleveland Heights man has been charged with aggravated murder in the shooting death of a 15-year-old boy at Mr. Hero. Daveion Perry, 20, is charged in the Friday shooting of Sunny Ravi Patel at the sandwich shop on South Taylor Road, Chief Annette Mecklenburg said Wednesday at a news conference at the Cleveland Heights Police Department. Detectives arrested him late Sunday as he ran from a Dollar General on Lee Road at East Overlook Road in what Mecklenburg called an "unsuccessful" robbery. Perry remains in custody and is scheduled to appear Wednesday afternoon in Cleveland Heights Municipal Court. The armed man entered the Mr. Hero just before 8 p.m. and shot Patel once in the head, police said. The Highland Heights teen died after paramedics took him to University Hospitals. He took money from a cash register and ran from the store, police said. Investigators released surveillance photos from the incident Saturday and asked the public to help identify the shooter. Perry is also charged in a Saturday armed robbery at a Subway in University Heights, police in Cleveland Heights and University Heights said. A Subway employee reported that an armed man entered the store just before 9 p.m. and took $299 from a cash register, according to a police report. No injuries were reported in that robbery. The Mayfield City School District identified Sunny as a sophomore at Mayfield High School and offered condolences to his family. Funeral services were held Monday in Parma, Cleveland Heights Mayor Cheryl Stevens said during Monday's city council meeting. If you'd like to comment on this story, visit Wednesday's crime and courts comments section. 19DARCY-FBI.jpg An FBI official and Clinton State Department official had discussed a quid pro quo deal to alter the security classification of emails sent to Hillary Clinton regarding Benghazi. CLEVELAND, Oho -- The FBI official who discussed a deal with Clinton State Department under secretary Patrick Kennedy, to change the security classification of a Clinton Benghazi email, has confirmed it was a quid pro quo proposal. But insists it wasn't politically motivated. Monday, the FBI released documents from their investigation of Clinton that revealed a dispute between the Clinton State Department and the FBI over the classification of a Benghazi email sent to Clinton. The documents detail a quid pro quo proposal to settle the dispute that would have left the email unclassified in exchange for the State Department restoring the posts of two FBI agents at the Baghdad embassy. When the documents were released the FBI official negotiating with Kennedy had not been named. It was also implied that Kennedy had made the quid pro quo offer. Tuesday, the FBI official involved came forward in a telephone interview with The New York Times. Brian McCauley, who had retired from the agency for health reasons, told the paper that the deal originated with him, not Kennedy. "It was a quid pro quo; I don't deny it," said McCauley, a day after the FBI and State Department did deny it. McCauley told the NYT that Kennedy had called him in the spring of 2015 to get the FBI not classify the email in question. McCauley said he initially agreed to help Kennedy if the State Department would agree to allow two FBI agents to be re-stationed at the Baghdad embassy. But McCauley changed his mind when he found out from another agent that the disputed email was related to the Benghazi attack. "When I found that out, all bets were off; it wasn't even negotiable." McCauley said he called Kennedy to tell him, "It was off the the table; the quid pro quo was not even close to being considered." Kennedy is a career civil servant who has served under Republican and Democrat administrations. He said he didn't believe the email should be classified as secret. Instead he wanted sections redacted because of an ongoing investigation. The New York Times reports, McCauley said he remembered Kennedy wanted to redact part of the email on different grounds so it would be "buried in the basement" of the State Department. Another FBI document said State Department employees, reviewing and preparing 300 Clinton emails on the Benghazi attacks for release, were under "intense pressure" from Kennedy to "not label anything as classified." Both McCauley and Kennedy insist their actions were not politically motivated. They characterized the negotiations as typical inter-agency favor swapping. However at the same time Kennedy was pushing the FBI and State Department workers to not label Clinton emails classified, the former Secretary of State had been publicly insisting none of the emails found on her private server were classified. FBI Director James Comey's report on the FBI's investigation into Clinton's email management said classified email had been found on Clinton's private server. The report chastised Clinton and her State Department for their reckless handling of classified information. Evidence that the Clinton State Department pushed the FBI to alter email classification just feeds Donald Trump's line of attack on the FBI's handling the Clinton email investigation. But since the quid pro quo deal was ultimately a no-go, Clinton can say that at least in this incident, the system wasn't rigged. Ceremony speakers (left to right): DNR Deputy Commissioner Walter Rabon, Rep. Jimmy Pruett, and Telfair County Commission Chair Pat Ray Attendees and speakers at landing ceremony New ramp Previous Next Anticipating more than 5,000 users each year, Rep. Jimmy Pruett, Department of Natural Resources Deputy Commissioner Walter Rabon, Telfair County Commission Chair Pat Ray, and other Telfair County representatives on Tuesday dedicated the Scuffle Bluff Landing located at Horse Creek Wildlife Management Area, giving boaters, anglers and hunters improved access to the Ocmulgee River.This facility includes a 20-foot wide boat ramp, canoe steps, and parking for 18 trucks and trailers, with space available for overflow parking.The area will be accessible to the public 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except when road is closed due to flooding."The installation of boat ramps gives anglers, boaters, and hunters improved access to waterways. This helps facilitate fishing participation in Georgias exceptional fishing resources. Additionally, the availability of ramps in communities brings people through those areas, with potential for economic increase," officials said.Scuffle Bluff Landing was constructed using a mix of bond funds and federal Sport Fish Restoration fund dollars."There have been several participating people and agencies involved with the development of this area, including the Telfair County Board of Commissioners and the Telfair County Chamber of Commerce," officials said.To find a boat ramp near you, visit www.georgiaoutdoormap.com . For more information on recreational activities at Horse Creek WMA, visit www.georgiawildlife.com/hunting/regulations Andrew Brookes | Getty Images From attacks on Ukrainian power grids to central bank heists in Bangladesh and the leak of stolen information from the Democratic National Committee in the U.S., cybersecurity threats have escalated massively in recent years. Governments, companies and individuals are equally susceptible all over the world, but cybersecurity experts believe Asia is most vulnerable to such attacks. Data from American security company FireEye showed 28 percent of organizations in Asia Pacific were hit with an advanced cyber-attack in the second half of 2015, nearly double the global average of 15 percent. Experts told CNBC there were several reasons why Asia is a prime target for hackers. Large, potential victim pool to target Housing nearly 60 percent of the world's population, the aggregate number of people connected to the Internet in Asia is massive - nearly a billion people have access to the Internet, with more than half of them in China. In August, Xinhua, China's official news agency, reported the country had 710 million internet users as of June 2016, according to an official report from the China Internet Network Information Center. "That's a lot of people on the Internet, transacting, doing social work, social media [and] doing business," Keshav Dhakad, regional director at Microsoft's Digital Crimes Unit, told CNBC in a recent interview. Low awareness towards cyber threats and cybersecurity Collectively, experts say, Asia's level of awareness towards cyber threats and cyber security was comparatively lower than other regions, such as the United States and Europe. As a result, many companies were less likely to devote additional resources to secure their technology infrastructure against external breaches and their response time to detect such breaches would be slower. FireEye data showed globally, companies took a median of 146 days in 2015 to identify a security breach, while in Asia Pacific that number was at 520 days. The delayed response time meant attackers were more likely to succeed in stealing information without immediate detection and could make a good return on their investment, according to Bryce Boland, chief technology officer for Asia Pacific at FireEye. Cyber attackers usually have to invest capital, time and effort to build new forms of attack and their reward is often in selling the data they manage to steal. Boland explained to CNBC, "If I spend $10,000 to try to break into a company, and they keep detecting me, I'm not going to make any money back." By remaining undetected for longer, the same attack could be used repeatedly to steal data. Lack of disclosure regulation In the United States and the European Union, when a company is breached and their data are stolen, they are legally obliged to report the issue or risk facing penalties. "In Asia, it's different. It varies from country to country," Paul Haswell, a partner at law firm Pinsent Masons in Hong Kong, told CNBC by phone. "In Hong Kong, there is no requirement under law to notify someone if there has been a data breach." This created the perception that cyber attacks in the region were comparatively lower than those reported in the U.S. and Europe, according to FireEye's Boland, even though Asian businesses were twice as likely to be targeted. watch now watch now watch now In 2015, a Hong Kong-based company that made electronic toys for children, V-Tech, said information about at least 6.4 million children and 4.9 million adult customers was compromised due to a data breach, according to The Wall Street Journal. "There was no penalty for them for not telling because they were required to," Haswell said. He added it was possible that only 10 to 20 percent of the data breaches that take place in Asia Pacific are reported. Earlier this month, the Singapore government announced plans for a new cybersecurity act that will make it mandatory for companies in 11 critical information infrastructure sectors to report cybersecurity incidents to relevant authorities. Such regulations, however, are still uncommon across the broader region. Use of outdated or unlicensed technology London's High Court said on Tuesday it would rule "as quickly as possible" on whether British lawmakers, and not the government alone, must trigger the formal process of leaving the European Union, in a case closely watched by politicians and markets. Campaigners have taken legal action to argue Prime Minister Theresa May and her ministers do not have the authority to invoke Article 50 of the EU Lisbon Treaty, the mechanism by which a nation can leave the bloc, without the explicit backing of parliament. During three days of legal wrangling involving some of the country's top lawyers, the High Court has heard from the government that a decision to trigger Article 50 could not be reversed and that it was "very likely" the final exit deal agreed with the EU would have to be ratified by parliament. However, the key issue of whether May can invoke Article 50 using the ancient power of "royal prerogative" remains to be determined. "We shall take time to consider the matter and will give our judgments as quickly as possible," said Lord Chief Justice John Thomas, Britain's most senior judge who has been hearing the case with two other leading justices. The world's second-largest economy grew 6.7 percent on-year during the July-September quarter, unchanged from the previous three months, government data showed on Wednesday. The report was bang in line with Reuters' prediction and revealed a steadying pace of expansion as the Chinese government ratchets up spending and as a property boom offsets stubbornly weak exports. "As always, the GDP figures will be met with some skepticism...We think that the official figures, which failed to reflect much of the sharp slowdown in growth shown by our measurements last year, are now failing to acknowledge a recent pick-up in growth," Julian Evans-Pritchard, China economist at Capital Economics, said in a note. Asian equity markets were little changed following the data, while the Australian dollar was steady at $0.7685. With the economy regaining its poise, the government may now look to curb the frenzy in the country's property sector, analysts said. "The government will now focus on capacity reduction and corporate deleveraging. Supply-side structural reforms will set the tone of overall economic policy through to the Congress meeting next March," Australia New Zealand Bank economists said in a note. They expect the People's Bank of China to leave interest rates unchanged until year-end while focusing on managing liquidity in the money market. It's that time again! Jim Cramer rang the lightning round bell, which means he gave his take on caller favorite stocks at rapid speed: Charter Communications : "I like the cable business very much, in full disclosure we own the stock of our parent Comcast, but I think cable is here and doing a lot of good things. And people keep underrating it." CVS Health : "I like that idea. I think that the stock has come down too much because of one of the divisions that it has, and I think that is wrong. I think that the company itself is doing quite well." SunPower Corp : "I don't like the solar companies. I don't think oil is going to explode up, and somehow they really do trade together. Even though I do think obviously, organically and theoretically they should not." Clovis Oncology : "I like Clovis Oncology, but just as a spec, not as anything that is remotely like a Pfizer. You've got to understand that." Arris International : "When it comes to speculative, I've been saying Twilio and Acacia. When it comes to conservative, I have been saying Cisco. My charitable trust owns Cisco ... I feel good about Cisco. I like that dividend, and I like I like the slow, nice projection." Nordic American Tanker cutting its dividend: "That's why we gave up on Nordic American Tanker. I've got to tell you, don't buy. Enough is enough. Enough is enough with that!" Tech Data : "Bob Dutkowsky [CEO], he crushed it! That is a stock worth owning. That was a great merger that he is doing. I think Tech Data is terrific." Intercontinental Exchange : "I love that. More important, I want you to buy more ICE. We just did a nice profile of these exchanges and that company is making a lot of money. A lot of money." Ecuador's government acknowledged on Tuesday it had partly restricted internet access for Julian Assange, the founder of anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks who has lived in the South American country's London embassy since mid-2012. WikiLeaks said Assange lost connectivity on Sunday, sparking speculation Ecuador might have been pressured by the United States due to the group's publication of hacked material linked to U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Ecuador's leftist government said WikiLeaks' decision to publish documents impacting the U.S. election was entirely its own responsibility, and the country did not want to meddle in election processes or favor any candidate. "In that respect, Ecuador, exercising its sovereign right, has temporarily restricted access to part of its communications systems in its UK Embassy," it added in a statement. "Ecuador does not cede to pressures from other countries." Assange was granted asylum by Ecuador after a British court ordered him extradited to Sweden to face questioning in a sexual molestation case involving two female supporters. WikiLeaks said it activated "contingency plans" after Assange's cut-off, and Ecuador said that its action did not stop the group continuing "journalistic activities." Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa has long backed Assange's right to free speech and has also supported Clinton publicly. "For the good of the United States and the world ... I would like Hillary to win," he told broadcaster Russia Today last month. Follow CNBC International on Twitter and Facebook. Former death row inmate Ray Krone will share how DNA evidence led to his exoneration at an event at Chattanooga State Community College on Thursday, Oct. 27 at 6 p.m. Panelists Amy Lawrence, coordinator for Tennessee Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty, Marcus Easley, former law enforcement officer, and Professor Michael McCamish will join Mr. Krone in discussing the failures of the capital punishment system, officials said. The event is part of the Criminal Justice Speaker Series hosted by the Social and Behavioral Sciences Division at Chattanooga State Community College. Microsoft is set to surge after it reports earnings, predicts one trader who could make more than five times his money off a Microsoft bet. Microsoft has surged more than 19 percent since its Brexit low in June. And though the stock has traded in a range for most of the summer, Andrew Keene of AlphaShark sees good signs in the charts for the tech giant, especially with earnings as a "catalyst" for Microsoft. "It has rallied five of the last eight quarters on earnings," Keene said Tuesday on CNBC's "Trading Nation." "Combine that with the chart, and I think Microsoft is going higher." On a daily chart of Microsoft, Keene says that the stock has consolidated since jumping off of the company's last earnings beat in July. While Microsoft has been trading in a range of $56 to $59, the stock has generally managed to stay above its 50-day moving average, which indicates to Keene that this smoothing mechanism is serving as support. Meanwhile, Microsoft's weekly chart shows what Keene terms a "bull channel," and based on that trend, Keene believes that Microsoft could be headed to $62.50. In other words, Keene sees Microsoft climbing more than 8 percent in the short term, especially if the company's past earnings trends repeat. Two years since becoming the seventh President of Southeast Asia's largest economy, Joko Widodo has survived a tough initiation process. The next test: Delivering on reforms while navigating Indonesia's complex political system. Commonly referred to as Jokowi, the 55 year-old celebrates his second anniversary in office on Wednesday following a tough first year in which he faced both domestic and external challenges, including a global economic slowdown that sent the rupiah tumbling to 17-year lows. Indonesian President Joko Widodo in Berlin, Germany, on April 18, 2016. Sean Gallup | Getty Images "There were unreasonably high expectation that greeted his election, but political realities quickly burst this bubble. Jokowi's first year was largely disappointing, while the last 12 months have shown more promise. On balance, he has done well given the hand he was dealt," summed up Hugo Brennan, Asia analyst at Verisk Maplecroft. The populist leader rose to power in a campaign that focused on his connection with low-income Indonesians, who make up the bulk of the population. The self-professed metalhead grew up in a Java slum, worked as a carpenter and then a furniture exporter before getting elected as mayor of Jakarta, becoming the first Indonesian president outside of the military and political elite. Here, we chart out Jokowi's biggest feats to-date and the obstacles that lie ahead. Accomplishments Given Indonesia's long history of current account and budget deficits, Jokowi's efforts to free up fiscal space are typically regarded as the biggest feathers in his cap. In late 2014, his government abolished gasoline subsidies and in July this year, he launched a tax amnesty program that has so far met 60 percent of the government's $12.7 billion revenue target for year-end. But for many, his ability to survive politically in a nation dogged by corruption and patronage remains the biggest triumph. "Many have failed to consider how tough it is for him to find a footing in the rough world of Indonesian national politics," explained Achmad Sukarsono, Asia analyst at political risk consultancy Eurasia Group. In his early days, Jokowi struggled with a minority in the parliament and faced daily taunts from fellow party members who considered him a greenhorn politician from the sticks, Sukarsono continued. Fast forward to the present, and Jokowi is now backed by nearly 70 percent of parliament, nearly double of the support he held in 2014. That includes political entities that were previously in the opposition, such as Indonesia's second-largest party Golkar. watch now "Having started out as a political outsider, Jokowi's greatest achievement has been consolidating his power [in his second year]. Thanks to some shrewd political maneuvering, he is now the undisputed master of the political stage and in a strong position to implement his agenda over the next three years," echoed Brennan. Following Golkar's re-election endorsement in July, speculation is high for the President to win another five-year term in the 2019 general election. "That is a great achievement for a furniture seller who five years ago thought being a mayor of a medium-size city in Central Java was the pinnacle of his life," Sukarsono noted. Thanks to his fiscal reforms, Jokowi has also been able to start financing various infrastructure projects, including national roads, airports, irrigation plants, enhanced electricity capacity, a high-speed railway, maritime toll routes and the Trans-Papua highway. Hurdles Salesforce.com had weighed 14 possible acquisition targets in May, including Adobe Systems , according to leaked emails, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. The list of potential targets was from thousands of emails of current Salesforce board member and former Secretary of State Colin Powell, which were published last month by "hacktivist" group DCLeaks, the report said. While Twitter wasn't included among the potential targets in the May presentation, software company Salesforce had considered Adobe, which has a market capitalization slightly larger than Salesforce, as well as Pegasystems , Demandware and LinkedIn , the report said. Salesforce agreed to acquire Demandware in June, but Pegasystems said it had not held any acquisition talks with the company, the report said. The full Wall Street Journal story can be read here. Credit Suisse aggregated the latest fund holdings data and figured out which stocks are being most aggressively bought and sold by institutional investors. "Each quarter we take a deep dive into the stock level holdings of long-only, actively managed small, SMID, mid & large cap funds," chief U.S. equity strategist Lori Calvasina wrote in a note to clients Monday. "Our analysis is unique, as we incorporate the holdings of both retail funds tracked by Lipper & Morningstar and institutional funds tracked by eVestment, making it more robust than other sell-side holdings studies." Here are the five large-cap stocks that saw the biggest increase in fund ownership. On the flipside, here are the five stocks with the largest decrease in fund ownership. Editor's Note: Credit Suisse's fund holdings analysis is as of June quarter end. Indra K. Nooyi, CEO of PepsiCo., rings the opening bell with other executives at the New York Stock Exchange. Getty Images The move had long been expected, given that the company released MacOS Sierra last month but had yet to introduce any new computer models sporting the software. It also comes just in time for Apple to have the new products on sale for the full holiday season. Apple is planning to introduce new Macs at an Oct. 27 event, sources confirmed to Recode. Apple has gone a long time without making significant changes to any of its Mac models, with most experts encouraging customers to hold off all but essential new purchases until the lineup was updated. Tops among the rumors have been reports that Apple will introduce a new MacBook Pro sporting a row of customizable touchscreen keys. Sierra, for its part, adds support for Apple's Siri voice assistant and the ability to copy and paste between iOS and MacOS devices, among other features. More from Recode: Apple's new patent is basically a giant flower pot Instagrambrings stories to the explore tab Clintoncampaign considered Bill Gates, Tim Cook for VP The Mac event is expected to take place at or near Apple's Cupertino campus rather than in San Francisco, where the company held many recent events, including the iPhone 7 announcement. It's going to be a busy week. Apple has its earnings report on Tuesday, Microsoft is holding a Windows 10 hardware event in New York on Wednesday and then the new Macs will debut on Thursday. Apple declined to comment. Ina Fried, Recode.net. CNBC's parent NBCUniversal is an investor in Recode's parent Vox, and the companies have a content-sharing arrangement. Influential hedge fund managers also have been voicing their concern around China's debt problem. Hayman Capital's Kyle Bass told CNBC's " Power Lunch " that he wasn't confident in China's growth story specifically when it pertained to the country's banking system. "Growing levels of Chinese debt are one of the biggest risks to our mostly positive outlook," said Sameer Samana, global quantitative strategist at the Wells Fargo Investment Institute. "The most recent numbers on aggregate financing and new yuan loans were 24 percent and 22 percent above consensus estimates, which shows that policymakers are still choosing debt-fueled growth over reforms and that is unsustainable because it creates a lot of excess capacity and inefficient growth," The International Monetary Fund recently warned that China's debt problem is becoming unsustainable and should be addressed sooner rather than later by Beijing. China's debt to GDP ratio is at 250 percent. But the growth also heightens worries around the government's spending habits and raises questions as to how long officials can continue to allocate large sums of capital into the economy to sustain these growth rates . China delivered growth right in line with estimates at 6.7 percent for the third quarter , suggesting that the government's fiscal stimulus continues to support the world's second-largest economy. "They have to recapitalize their banking system ... what I'm saying is you have to be very careful studying how fast and how recklessly they built their assets," Bass said. Distressed investors have been looking at China's banks and the nonperforming loans they are sitting on as a potential investment opportunity, sources told CNBC. "Unfortunately, it all comes back to timing and when this will become a larger issue and how it will be resolved, and it may be less of a short-term issue than a long-term issue," Samana said. "I think there is some hope on the part of investors that with the in-line [GDP] report last night, they will get some breathing room to go back to enacting reforms, but we'll have to wait and see if they follow through on that." One sector that has benefited from China's large stimulus efforts is the property industry, which makes up about 15 percent of China's GDP. Home sales have been rising due in part to this larger migration from smaller cities to metropolitan cities that offer better pay and more promising opportunities. But the good times may be ending. "The government is now seeking to shift down a gear in the property market," said Duncan Wrigley, head of research at NSBO. "Home sales are expected to slow after over 20 cities tightened home sales policy, in terms of mortgage terms and restricting the maximum number of properties each individual can buy. Developers will keep building the properties that they have already sold off-plan (as the majority of home sales in China are). But this points to a drag on growth going into 2017." Despite worries about China's growth story, emerging markets have been outperforming this year. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is up 17 percent in 2016 while the Shanghai composite is down 12 percent during the same time frame. Whether EMs can continue to recover may depend on China's ability to rebound. Capital Economics is not confident in these markets rallying writing to clients "there are growing risks of a downturn in China in the medium term." Leah Baxter, a senior at Girls Preparatory School, earned the highest possible composite score of 36 on the ACT. On average, less than one-tenth of 1 percent of students who take the ACT earn a top score. The ACT consists of tests in English, mathematics, reading and science, each scored on a scale of 136. A student's composite score is the average of the four test scores. In a letter to the student recognizing Ms. Baxters exceptional achievement, ACT Chief Executive Officer Marten Roorda said, Your achievement on the ACT is significant and rare. While test scores are just one of multiple criteria that most colleges consider when making admission decisions, your exceptional ACT composite score should prove helpful as you pursue your education and career goals. ACT test scores are accepted by all major U.S. colleges. Exceptional scores of 36 provide colleges with evidence of student readiness for the academic rigors that lie ahead. watch now Deutsche Bank has moved to suppress speculation that the beleaguered European firm may seek to wind-down its investment banking operations in the U.S., with one prominent figure at the bank telling CNBC that it was positioned for a long future in the country. "We're all in a long-term game", Alasdair Warren, Deutsche Bank's head of corporate and investment banking (CIB) EMEA, told CNBC Wednesday. Addressing the importance of following a coherent cross-border strategy, Warren clarified that the U.S. CIB division formed an inseparable component of the German bank's offering. "We have built over the last fifteen, twenty years a global franchise and if you're going to be globally relevant you have to have a meaningful presence in the U.S. in the same way you've got to have a meaningful presence in Europe - which we clearly have - and a meaningful presence in Asia," he posited. "That will continue," Warren confirmed. An American and a Deutsche Bank AG flag fly outside the company's office on Wall Street in New York. Mark Kauzlarich | Bloomberg | Getty Images The clear statement follows reports from earlier this week suggesting Germany's largest lender was strongly considering shrinking its U.S. CIB unit to offset the high level of capital required to cover rising legal costs. Chief Executive Officer, John Cryan, has told investors he does not intend to pursue a capital raise and that he believes the $14 billion payment requested from the U.S. Department of Justice during September will be whittled down. This as cost cutting measures, including a hard-hitting series of job cuts and a broad restructuring of the business, continue apace. Warren also addressed fears of a vicious spiral revving up in which capital concerns would cause both talent and clients to abandon the bank, saying employees across the sector would need to adapt to a new reality that would be different but offer a recalibrated set of draws. According to Warren, "It's not a Deutsche Bank issue but across the whole industry, it has to be much broader than just compensation, it's got to be all about the opportunity to develop, the opportunity to really broaden your skills and really be able to take a longer-term view around that, and that's where we've been focusing a lot." "Compensation dollars or euros at any bank this year with volumes being down are going to be a challenge," he warned. Post-Brexit landscape watch now Turning to clients, the senior Deutsche Bank executive emphasized that the message he had repetitively heard from clients in his last few months of intense client conversations, was that they consider it essential to have a strong global European bank, particularly within Europe. Warren said, "Global multinational corporations want to have a choice of advisory services that they can solicit from a range of banks." "They need a credible alternative to what is becoming an increasingly U.S. field." They share their lineage and a last name but that's pretty much where the similarities end. Malik Obama, Barack Obama's half-brother, will attend the final presidential debate not to support the Democratic candidate who the president has rallied behind but rather, as a guest of Republican nominee Donald Trump. "I'm excited to be at the debate. Trump can make America great again," Malik told The New York Post on Tuesday. More from NBC News: Who is Trump debate guest and Hillary Clinton critic Patricia Smith? Illegal immigration is changing. Border security is still catching up Florida man gets 20 years for shooting at George Zimmerman's vehicle The Trump campaign confirmed to NBC News that it was bringing Malik to the debate in addition to other guests, including Patricia Smith, the mother of a victim of the 2012 Benghazi, Libya, attack who has said she blames Hillary Clinton "personally for the death of my son." In Malik, Trump has found an enthusiastic supporter who isn't afraid to criticize Democrats just because he's related to Barack Obama. Malik revealed in July that he planned to vote for Trump, prompting Trump to tweet, "[He] was probably treated badly by president like everybody else!" TrumpTweet Malik, who at 58 is three years older than his famous half-sibling, was raised in Kenya and first met the future president in 1985, when they were in their 20s. The firstborn son of their father, Barack Hussein Obama Sr., Malik has said he and Barack Obama at one point shared a close bond and even served as best men in each other's weddings. But their relationship deteriorated over the years. Malik did not return inquiries from NBC News. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Wednesday he hadn't spoken to the president about Malik's attendance at the debate and he didn't anticipate Barack Obama "will spend a lot of time thinking about it." An American citizen, Malik, 58, splits his time between the tiny western Kenya village of Nyangoma-Kogelo and Washington, according to The Associated Press. In 2013, he tried his own hand at politics, running for governor in his home county of Siaya. But he lost by a landslide and criticized Obama for not endorsing him. Malik runs the Barack H. Obama Foundation, which does humanitarian projects. Its website makes clear that the foundation is "in memory of their father, and is not dependent on the endorsement of his brother, President Barack Obama." Obama Sr. was killed in a car crash in 1982 and left behind three wives, a daughter and six sons, according to the AP. One son died in 1984. No matter who wins the presidential election, the United States must continue to engage in global affairs, former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told CNBC on Wednesday. Rasmussen said he is eager to hear Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump speak in Wednesday night's debate about "how they want to promote global trade and economic growth [and] how they will counter [Russian President Vladimir] Putin." Most importantly, Rasmussen said he is looking for a candidate who will demonstrate true "American global leadership" in the face of increasingly tumultuous world affairs. "I do believe that the best way to facilitate peaceful, political and diplomatic solutions is, now and then, to threaten to use your military force," he said on "Squawk Box." The former secretary general added that economically, ditching significant global trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership in favor of protectionism is not the solution to maintaining the United States' internationally powerful position. "Of course the United States shouldn't act alone as the world's policeman. You need someone to help you," he said. "That's why, in my book, I suggest that the next president will convene all democratic leaders from the whole world to establish an alliance for freedom that can counter the still more aggressive autocrats like Mr. Putin," said Rasmussen, a former prime minister of Denmark. U.S. government debt prices were mixed on Wednesday, as investors focused on the world's leading central banks. The Federal Reserve's Beige Book said most districts reported modest or moderate pace of expansion while labor market conditions remained tight. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note sat slightly higher at 1.75 percent at 3:45 p.m., ET, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was slightly higher at 2.51 percent. The two-year note yield, meanwhile, traded about flat at 0.8027 percent. Bond yields move inversely to prices. Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein denied Donald Trump's claim that Hillary Clinton met with the banking chief in secret to "plot the destruction of U.S. sovereignty." Blankfein responded, telling CNBC's "Power Lunch" on the sidelines of Goldman Sachs' Builders + Innovators Summit that it is a "waste of time" to argue against "irrational" comments and that it is a "very extreme moment" in politics. Last week, Trump alleged at a rally in the swing state Florida that Clinton "meets in secret with international banks to plot the destruction of U.S. sovereignty in order to enrich these global financial powers, her special interest friends and her donors." "We could parse that clause by clause, but to every clause, the answer is 'no, we weren't doing it.' We weren't meeting in secret and we certainly weren't plotting destruction," Blankfein said with a smile. The Goldman CEO's comments follow renewed criticism of Clinton and the perception of her cozy relationship with Wall Street, fueled by purportedly hacked emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta released by WikiLeaks. NBC News has not authenticated any of the alleged emails. The Clinton campaign has not offered authentication of the alleged emails. watch now The British government should expect a tough time ahead in its discussions to leave the European Union as member countries work to make sure that its citizens working in the U.K. will not suffer from the Brexit decision. "We want to fully protect the rights of those Hungarians and EU citizens who have already been working here in the U.K. My understanding is that these people actually contributed to the success of the U.K," Peter Szijjarto, the Hungarian foreign minister told CNBC on Wednesday. "We will be very tough on negotiations," he added. Earlier this year, Hungary's Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, told a news conference that the 55,000 Hungarians living in the U.K. pay more than what they receive in benefits and should therefore be protected, the U.K.'s Independent reported. Hungary has been heavily criticized for its stance on migration since large numbers of people fleeing conflicts in the Middle East and Africa began arriving at the EU borders. The Hungarian government has refused EU quotas on migrant distribution. But Szijjarto denied calls that the Hungarian anti-migrant rhetoric fuelled support for a Brexit vote. watch now LONDON, UK October 20, 2016 The Sohn Conference Foundation, in partnership with CNBC, announces today the world-class speaker lineup for its 5th Annual Sohn London Investment Conference, bringing together some of the most influential investors to hear their strongest ideas and strategies for navigating the unprecedented and complex challenges Europe now faces. Douglas Hirsch, Co-Chair of the Sohn Conference Foundation said: "The Sohn London Conference once again draws together elite investors from across the globe. This supports our mission of fighting pediatric cancer and other childhood diseases. With the invaluable backing of the UK investment community, we are proud to have raised more than 55 million to date for this cause." Piers Butler Board Member of Sohn London: "With a line-up of outstanding speakers we are looking forward to a conference which will deliver unique and actionable ideas. We are thrilled to have received so much support from the investor community for a fifth straight year to help support children with cancer and we are excited to be partnering with The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity to achieve this." The speaker lineup for the 5th Annual Sohn London Investment Conference includes: Elif Aktug, Agora Fund Manager, Pictet Asset Management Ltd Ivan Martin Aranguez, Founding Partner and CIO, Magallanes Value Investors, S.A. S.G.I.I.C. Robert Bishop, Founder and Managing Principal, Impala Asset Management Bo Bortemark, Co-Founder and Portfolio Manager, Carve Capital AB Dureka Carrasquillo, Senior Portfolio Manager, Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board Marc Chatin, Partner and Co-Portfolio Manager, Parus Fund Adrian Croxson, Head of European Equities, Och-Ziff Management Europe Limited Anne-Sophie D'Andlau, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, CIAM Ashish Goyal, Portfolio Manager, Citadel Investment Group Christopher Hohn, Founder, Managing Director and Portfolio Manager, TCI Fund Management Limited (TCI) David Jones, Founder and CEO, You & Mr. Jones Erik Karlsson, Founding Partner and CEO, Bodenholm Capital AB Mans Larsson, Founder and CIO, Makuria Investment Management Michel Massoud, Founder and CIO, Melqart Asset Management Masroor Siddiqui, Co-Founder and CIO, Naya Capital Management UK Limited Nicolas Walewski, Founder, Portfolio Manager and Managing Director, Alken Asset Management Under the leadership of the Sohn London Committee, including Piers Butler, Dina Geha, Alexandre Casin, Armenio Keusseyan, and Manuel Stotz, the Sohn London Conference has developed a reputation as London's premier investment conference and charity event. All proceeds from this year's conference will support The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity, providing crucial funding to support medical research and cancer treatment for children across the UK. For more information about the Sohn London Conference, visit www.sohnconference.com/london/, Follow Sohn on Twitter @SohnConf, #SohnLDN2016 for meeting updates, news and highlights. ABOUT THE SOHN CONFERENCE FOUNDATION The Sohn Conference Foundation is dedicated to the treatment and cure of pediatric cancer and other childhood diseases. The Foundation supports cutting-edge medical research, state-of-the-art research equipment, and innovative programs to ensure that children with cancer survive and thrive. The Foundation raises its funds through premier investment conferences and special events, including its renowned annual New York Sohn Investment Conference. Founded in 1995, the Conference honors the memory of Ira Sohn, a Wall Street professional who lost his battle with cancer at age 29. The Foundation has expanded its reach to include Sohn Canada Conference, Sohn Hong Kong Conference, Sohn India, Sohn London Conference, Sohn San Francisco Conference and Sohn Tel Aviv Conference. To date, the Foundation has raised more than $70 million. More information on the Sohn Conference Foundation can be found here: www.sohnconference.org. ABOUT CNBC With CNBC in the U.S., CNBC in Asia Pacific, CNBC in Europe, Middle East and Africa, and CNBC World, CNBC is the recognized world leader in business news and provides real-time financial market coverage and business information to approximately 381 million homes worldwide, including more than 94 million households in the United States and Canada. CNBC also provides daily business updates to 400 million households across China. The network's 15 live hours a day of business programming in North America (weekdays from 4:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. ET) is produced at CNBC's global headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., and includes reports from CNBC News bureaus worldwide. CNBC at night features a mix of new reality programming, CNBC's highly successful series produced exclusively for CNBC and a number of distinctive in-house documentaries. CNBC also has a vast portfolio of digital products which deliver real-time financial market news and information across a variety of platforms including: CNBC.com; CNBC PRO, the premium, integrated desktop/mobile service that provides live access to CNBC programming, exclusive video content and global market data and analysis; a suite of CNBC mobile products including the CNBC Apps for iOS, Android and Windows devices; and additional products such as the CNBC App for the Apple Watch and Apple TV. Members of the media can receive more information about CNBC and its programming on the NBCUniversal Media Village Web site at http://www.nbcumv.com/programming/cnbc. For more information about NBCUniversal, please visit http://www.NBCUniversal.com. "I think half the people in Silicon Valley don't know what encryption is," Palihapitiya said. "The reality is these are very difficult, nuanced technical concepts. And I think when you have a public stage that she does and frankly, any politician does I would hope that they would call the experts." If Hillary Clinton is talking with tech giants like Apple about encryption, it's a good thing, venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya told CNBC's " Squawk Alley " on Wednesday. WikiLeaks released hacked emails of John Podesta, chair of Hillary Clinton for America, drawing attention to Clinton's encryption stance, and one email appears to show an Apple employee lobbied Podesta about Apple's battle with the FBI. The company was at odds with law enforcement earlier this year over demands to access the iPhone of San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook. Podesta has said that he does not have time to verify which of the WikiLeaks files are real. Business Insider pointed out this summer that Clinton's language was lockstep with Apple's when it comes to encryption, despite her 2015 call for a "Manhattan-like project" to break encrypted terrorist communications. Apple declined to comment. While the Clinton campaign does not authenticate individual emails, representative Glen Caplin called the Wikileaks hack a "propaganda campaign." He pointed to Clinton's rival, Donald Trump's, record on cybersecurity. "Even after being briefed by U.S. intelligence before the first debate on Russia's role in the hack, Trump has oddly chosen to coddle [Russian president Vladimir] Putin by deflecting blame," Caplin said. But if the ties do exist, Palihapitiya said it's a positive that Clinton took the time to learn the facts from Apple and that he hopes she takes the same approach for topics like health care and education. Palihapitiya did not address Clinton's private email server during her tenure as secretary of state, which has also been central to the cybersecurity debate. FBI Director James Comey said earlier this year that hostile actors likely gained access to accounts that Clinton had contacted during her use of a personal account, and it was possible that the hostile actors also gained access to her account, though there was no direct evidence of a breach. "Well, here's what I'll say about Hillary I think she is fundamentally prepared for the the job," Palihapitiya said. "I think she has a temperament to sort of bring people together and create a more pluralistic and inclusive government. Frankly, I think she has to just not trip up between now and November 8, and I think she'll win." A lawyer for Roger Ailes said Wednesday that the former Fox News boss and Donald Trump did not have a falling out, after an earlier report suggested the pair had stopped talking after disagreement about presidential debate preparations. "He was never an official adviser to Trump, and his status hasn't changed. They have been friends for 35 years. But Roger has never attended any debate prep meetings and has not been advising him on debates," said Susan Estrich, a partner at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and counsel for Ailes. Earlier Wednesday, Vanity Fair reported that Ailes, who left Fox earlier this year amid sexual harassment allegations, had reportedly helped Republican presidential candidate Trump prepare for his debates against Democrat Hillary Clinton. The outlet said the pair had a falling out, with both sides saying debate prep had not gone the way they wanted. The report came just hours before Wednesday's third presidential debate in Las Vegas, where Trump will try to dig out of a recent polling hole. The report said that Ailes had concerns that Trump could not focus and that preparation would be a "waste of time," while Trump thought Ailes spent too much prep time telling old stories, according to New York magazine's Gabriel Sherman and Vanity Fair contributing editor Sarah Ellison. Estrich denied that Ailes had ever advised Trump for the debates. A Trump campaign spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Read the full Vanity Fair story here. Ooltewah (and former Woodmore) Elementary teacher Sarah Lane and Lakeside Academy teacher Zena Hanner-Buckley, pictured with PEF VP of External Relations Emily O'Donnell, studied of the origins of fairy tales in France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, and England this summer after receiving a Fund for Teachers grant through PEF, and are now sharing what they learned with their students. East Ridge Elementary teacher Stevie Davis and North Hamilton County Elementary teacher Veronica McCuiston, pictured with Fund for Teachers' Alycia Johnston, researched and observed endangered North American red wolves in several habitats of the Southeast U.S. this summer after receiving a Fund for Teachers grant through PEF, and are using this information to create wolf-study activity boxes and lesson plans available to all Hamilton County teachers. Barger Academy of Fine Arts teachers Daniel Silva, Mary Avans, and Latanya Mason visited Ecuador and Peru this summer, including Machu Picchu and the Galapagos, after receiving a Fund for Teachers grant through PEF to study landforms, wildlife, and indigenous peoples, and are using their findings and videos for environmental and cultural student projects. Ivy Academy teacher Reanee Jackson and East Ridge Elementary teacher Michele Pesce attended several Spanish language/cultural immersion programs in the U.S. and in Central America including Costa Rica this summer after receiving a Fund for Teachers grant through PEF to learn and evaluate different language acquisition strategies, and are sharing those with their students. Previous Next For the fifth year in a row, Hamilton County public school teachers earned grants for summer learning experiences across the globe so they could come back and share what they learned with their students. The grants are made possible by the national nonprofit Fund for Teachers, administered locally through a partnership with Public Education Foundation.Fund for Teachers fellowships get to the heart of one of our strategic goals at PEF: to develop and advance highly effective teaching so that all students learn in classes that are engaging, relevant, and rigorous, said Dan Challener, PEF president.We know that when teachers return to their classrooms, their Fund for Teachers experiences help them create rich learning opportunities for our students.Fund for Teachers allotted $71,300 in grant awards for Hamilton County public school teachers this year. Teachers could apply for up to $5,000 as an individual or $10,000 as a team. Eighteen grant recipients (or fellows) from 11 schools visited 15 countries across four continents this summer. The 2016 cohort included: Cara Stiles of Sale Creek Middle/High explored Iceland with a National Geographic team to pique student interest in global warming, geothermal energy, and space travel;. Jessica Hubbuch and Sean Brown of The Howard School, who are environmental science teachers, trekked through Costa Rica, Belize and Guatemala to explore tropical rainforests, plate tectonics, and aquatic diversity as well as Central American culture and the Spanish language; Christopher Raynolds of Signal Mountain Middle/High investigated the historical and cultural effects on Japan resulting from scientific innovation during World War II, to provide deeper perspective and context for history and science classes; Sarah Lane of Woodmore (& now Ooltewah) Elementary and Zena Hanner-Buckley of Lakeside Academy are unlocking students imaginations as a result of their study of the origins of fairy tales in France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, and England; John Echols, Elizabeth Bullard, and Melanie Collins of Center for Creative Arts attended the Boothbay Literacy Retreat in Maine to develop collaborative strategies and knowledge that will transform literacy teaching and school culture across 6th, 7th and 8th grade classrooms; Michele Pesce of East Ridge Elementary and Reanee Jackson of Ivy Academy attended several Spanish language/cultural immersion programs in the US and in Central America to learn and evaluate different language acquisition strategies, and are employing those with the greatest potential to raise academic achievement; Stevie Davis of East Ridge Elementary and Veronica McCuiston of North Hamilton County Elementary researched and observed endangered North American red wolves in several habitats of the Southeast US and are using this information to create wolf-study activity boxes and lesson plans available to all Hamilton County teachers; Latanya Mason, Mary Avans, and Daniel Silva of Barger Academy of Fine Arts visited locales in Ecuador and Peru (including Machu Picchu and the Galapagos) to study landforms, wildlife, and indigenous peoples, and are using their findings and videos for environmental & cultural student projects; and Kathryn Russell and Amanda Colvin of East Hamilton Middle/High traveled to Poland and Israel to gain insight into the experiences of Holocaust victims, bystanders and perpetrators, and to see how the lessons of the Holocaust are being applied to improve the modern world.In partnership with PEF, Fund for Teachers has provided more than $450,000 in grants to 121 Hamilton County teachers over the last five years. Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih said on Wednesday that oil markets were at the end of a considerable downturn as fundamentals were improving and supply and demand were rebalancing. He called on non-OPEC producers to help stabilize the market saying their role was as critical as the role of OPEC members. "Market forces are clearly working after a testing period of sub-$30 oil prices... Oil demand is expanding at a healthy rate despite slower global growth," he said. He added that by freezing production or slightly reducing it, OPEC wanted to signal to the market that it wanted to lower inventories and encourage investment. "I am happy to see more rigs coming back," he said, adding that unconventional oil production was important for helping to meet global demand growth. Donald Trump may have a point with claims that polls don't reflect the full extent of his support, said Mark Hannah, a former campaign advisor to President Barack Obama and a Hillary Clinton supporter. "People respond to pollsters with what they think the pollster wants to hear sometimes," he told CNBC on Wednesday. In the same "Squawk on the Street" interview, Republican strategist Charlie Black disagreed with Hannah, saying the nation's pollsters are "very astute," and there may be 1 to 2 percent of voters "secretly for Trump." But Hannah countered: "I'm concerned that Trump might have this latent base of resentful support." Clinton "needs to go for the knockout punch" in the third and final presidential debate on Wednesday night in Las Vegas, he added, saying it would be a "mistake" for Clinton to continue "waiting in the wings," as she's done in past debates. The Democratic nominee should go after Trump for bragging about groping women on the leaked 2005 "Access Hollywood" video and allegations from women who said he treated them in a similar fashion, Hannah said. "There's near universal assent that the behavior of Donald Trump in the past is discrediting to the office," he said, suggesting Clinton make an appeal for gender unity, like Obama did with a speech on racial equality in his first presidential campaign in 2008. Black who's has advised every GOP nominee from Ronald Reagan to Mitt Romney said the key for Trump at Wednesday night's debate comes down to the issues. "[Clinton] represents the status quo. He represents change. And he needs to explain how he's going to make things better with economic policy, trade [and] immigration." Trump is behind and he knows it, said Black, who was more recently an advisor to Ohio Gov. John Kasich's failed bid for the Republican nomination. "[Trump] was effective in August and early September in talking about issues and sticking to his teleprompter. He gained in the race. He needs to do that again. He still has time." Black said he understands why some Republican leaders, including Kasich, may not support Trump, but he plans to vote for his party's nominee in the November election that's less than three weeks away. An employee works on the assembly line producing the new Ford Fiesta at the Ford Motor plant in Cuautitlan Izcalli, Mexico. Susana Gonzalez | Bloomberg | Getty Images Before Donald Trump takes to the debate stage Wednesday night for one last chance to prove U.S. trade policy is letting Mexico steal Michigan and Ohio's auto jobs, he might want to do some research on manufacturing trends in the global auto industry. Mexico's biggest and fastest-growing carmakers aren't American brands like Ford and General Motors ' Chevy. The biggest Mexican carmaker is Nissan, and the newest plants belong to Audi and Kia, with big BMW and Toyota plants in the pipeline. For a candidate who argues that free trade has led to the hollowing-out of U.S. manufacturing, the most ironic cut may be that car companies are building in Mexico rather than the United States, largely because it has freer trade than the United States does with the rest of the world. Critics of the North American Free Trade Agreement, who are placing all the blame on it, are denying the reality of global auto manufacturing. "That's what gets lost in the narrative," said Bernard Swiecki, director of the automotive communities partnership at the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Michigan. "Free trade agreements are driving BMW and Audi, but they're not free trade agreements with us. Blame NAFTA all you want it wasn't the trade agreement that made that happen.'' Free trade agreements are driving BMW and Audi, but they're not free trade agreements with us. Blame NAFTA all you want it wasn't the trade agreement that made that happen. Bernard Swiecki director of the automotive communities partnership at the Center for Automotive Research Automakers from outside North America have invested at least $13.3 billion in Mexico since 2010, more than half the $24 billion invested in total, according to the Center for Automotive Research, which receives funding from corporations and government sources. Money from outside the NAFTA zone includes new plants for BMW 3-series sedans and Audi Q5 crossovers. By contrast, Ford's announcement Sept. 15 that it would move small-car production to Mexico from a Michigan plant that will switch to making pickups and Broncos was the first new assembly plant in Mexico announced by a Detroit 3 carmaker since the 2008 financial crisis. There's no obvious patriotic reason for Munich-based BMW or Yokohama-based Nissan to base new factories exclusively in the United States, Swiecki said. Both companies make cars in America already. Nissan has plants in Tennessee and Mississippi that make about 1.1 million Altimas, Leafs, Muranos and other vehicles annually and employ more than 10,000 workers. BMW's Spartanburg, South Carolina, plant makes about 450,000 vehicles, mostly SUVs from BMW's X-series lines. Spartanburg wasn't seriously considered for the 3-series sedan production line, because it's running at its maximum efficient capacity, BMW spokeswoman Sandra Schillmoeller said. watch now Put foreign automakers who import from Mexico together and they make up a large and growing chunk of the $23.4 billion worth of finished autos the U.S. imports from its southern neighbor each year $20 billion more than the $3.1 billion of passenger cars the United States ships to Mexico. Nissan made 571,490 cars in Mexico in the first seven months of this year, according to the Mexican Automotive Industry Association, and says it sends about 40 percent of them to the United States the rest stay in Mexico or are shipped duty-free to South America. The Detroit 3 of Ford, General Motors and Fiat Chrysler are the three next-biggest car producers in Mexico. The trade deficit in vehicles and parts is more than the entire $42.2 billion U.S.Mexico trade gap. In all other goods and services combined, the United States has a trade surplus with Mexico, according to U.S. statistics. Tariffs and trade Why are so many non-U.S. automakers choosing Mexico? It's not just low wages, though Mexican auto workers make about 18 percent of what U.S. counterparts do, saving $600 on assembling a midsize Ford Fusion, according to the CAR. The real key is having free trade deals with more of the rest of the world than the United States, Swiecki said. On a Fusion sent to Europe, just the tariff difference from producing in Mexico saves Ford $2,500, while on a more expensive BMW or Audi, the difference is even more. And labor cost savings don't rise much as the cars get more expensive, but the potential gains from avoided export taxes do, he said. That pushes many (but not all) automakers into a decision to build cheap cars in Mexico, where the labor savings are a bigger part of the price. Larger cars and trucks bound for U.S. consumers get made in the United States, and makers of cars headed for South America or Europe, at any price point, have a built-in reason to pick Mexico. Take Nissan. The company sells 37 percent of the cars it makes in Mexico within the Mexican market, spokesman Brian Brockman said. Of the rest, about 377,000 went to the United States last year, mostly low-margin small cars like the Versa and Sentra models. The rest, about 140,000, go to 50 other markets, mostly in South America, he said. About a quarter of the cars Nissan sells in the United States come from Mexico, 15 percent are from Japan, and 57 percent are made here, he added. "The Versa, as long as we've offered it, has come from Mexico," Brockman said. "Our two biggest-selling vehicles, the Altima and the Rogue, are built in Smyrna (Tennessee)." watch now South Africa, not the United States, is where BMW has been making 3-series cars whose production will move to Mexico in 2019, Schillmoeller said. The company needed to accommodate rising worldwide demand for X-series SUVs that Spartanburg couldn't fill, and the company decided expanding Spartanburg beyond its current size wasn't efficient, she said. So the South Africa plant will make X3s for Europe, and that meant BMW needed a new place to make 3-series sedans. A location near the United States made sense, but since many of the cars will go back to countries in the European Union, which levies a 10 percent import tax on U.S.-made vehicles, the United States wasn't competitive, Schillmoeller said. "Our goal is to have production near where we have the cars, and we do have demand in the NAFTA region," Schillmoeller said. "There is no movement of production from the U.S. The Mexico plant is additional capacity." A small advantage The recent presidential election polls have been mixed but mostly between polls that are good for Hillary Clinton and polls that are fantastic for her. Clinton now leads Donald Trump in national polling averages by about 7 points, with every recent live interview poll showing her up by between 4 and 12 points. She continues to hold on to solid leads in a series of states that would put her over the 270 electoral votes she needs to win, and she seems to have taken the lead in even most of the swing states she doesn't need (like Florida, North Carolina, and Nevada). Read more from Vox: I'm voting for Jill Stein. It's a moral choice. It reflects who I am as a person. I trolled my IRS scammers for weeks. I learned something really dark. Third presidential debate live stream: how to watch Trump vs. Clinton online, TV New, troubling signs are emerging for Trump in states like Utah, and the Clinton campaign is signaling confidence by making a new push into Arizona and focusing more on down-ballot races. And every major election forecasting model gives Clinton at least an 87 percent chance of victory. The election is three weeks away, and there's still time for the race to tighten somewhat. But we're getting to the point where, for Trump to win, we'd need either a truly seismic event to transform the campaign or massive systemic polling failure. Clinton is leading almost every national poll There have been more than 24 national polls of the presidential race released in the past two weeks, and Hillary Clinton is leading in nearly all of them. Recent live-caller polls of a four-way race have shown a Clinton up 4 (ABC/Washington Post), up 7 (Fox), up 8 (GWU/Battleground), up 9 (CBS News), up 11 (NBC/WSJ), and up 12 (Monmouth). Internet polls and automated phone polls, however, have tended to show somewhat smaller leads for for Clinton she's up by an average of just 2.4 points in those, according to HuffPost Pollster. Only one pollster has shown Trump ahead in its newest survey that's the LA Times/USC tracking poll, which has long had a pro-Trump lean largely for idiosyncratic methodological reasons, as the Upshot's Nate Cohn explains. Rasmussen polls, which often tend to show a pro-GOP "house lean," have also sometimes shown Trump ahead, but Clinton leads in the outlet's latest poll by 1. These are very clear outliers at this point. Meanwhile, Gary Johnson and Jill Stein both appear to have lost a couple of points' worth of support. Johnson now averages about 6.5 percent support and Stein averages 2.4 percent, according to RealClearPolitics. Clinton appears to be the main beneficiary here her margin in a four-way race used to be smaller than her margin in a two-way race, but lately it has tended to be about the same. The state polls look either good or great for Clinton For months, Hillary Clinton's easiest path to an Electoral College majority has appeared to be through winning six states: Wisconsin, Michigan, Virginia, Colorado, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire. And she still appears to be on track to make that happen, with room to spare. The latest HuffPost Pollster averages show her up at least 4.9 points in each of these six states. There have been zero polls in the past two weeks showing Trump ahead in any of them. Clinton is also up 7.5 points in Maine, a state some speculated Trump could make competitive. It remains possible that Trump could pick up one electoral vote in Maine's Second Congressional District, but if she wins the above states, that wouldn't affect the electoral math she'd already be at 272 electoral votes. And it gets worse for Trump from there. Florida is an absolute must-win state for Trump, since there are 29 electoral votes in play. But though the Sunshine State looked close in September, Clinton appears to be pulling away there now, leading by 3 to 4 points in the five most recent polls. North Carolina a state Mitt Romney won in 2012 now looks to be leaning Clinton. The past 11 polls of the state have shown her ahead. Nevada polls also now tend to show Clinton ahead; Trump hasn't led any of the past 7 polls in the state. Only six electoral votes are at stake in Nevada, but there is a competitive Senate race there, and the GOP candidate recently unendorsed Trump. Ohio, a swing state Trump hoped he had put away, now looks close again. (Meanwhile, Trump is at war with the state's Republican Party.) The Clinton campaign is even making a big push into Arizona, which has been a red state for decades, and is funding voter turnout pushes to help Democratic Senate candidates in Indiana and Missouri, two states Trump is expected to win. And finally there's the strange case of Utah, a state Romney won by 48 points. Trump is very unpopular among Mormons, who make up about two-thirds of the state's population, and several leading politicians in the state condemned and unendorsed him after his leaked tape scandal. And lately, new polling shows third-party candidate Evan McMullin (who is Mormon) surging, to the point where he may have a shot to actually win (or tip Utah to Clinton). The upshot of all this is that Trump has gotten almost uniformly bad news in state races in the past few months and will now face a tremendously difficult time winning 270 electoral votes. The forecasting models view Clinton as an overwhelming favorite But enough about polls, you say what are those data wizards with their fancy models telling us? Well, they are essentially telling us the same thing as the polls that Hillary Clinton is an overwhelming favorite to win. FiveThirtyEight is currently the least pro-Clinton of the major forecasters as of midday Tuesday, its polls-only model put her at a mere 87.4 percent of victory. But every other major model has her in the 90s, as you can see at the Upshot's rundown. There were bigger discrepancies during the various models at earlier points in the race mostly about whether Clinton should be viewed as a narrow favorite or a solid favorite. But now they're all basically saying the same thing. Now, the polling averages are not infallible they've frequently been off from the final outcome by a few percentage points. Indeed, they undershot Barack Obama's margin of victory by a few points in 2012, and tended to underestimate Republican strength in 2014. So, yes, the polls could be wrong but at this point, Clinton appears to be up by enough that a Trump victory would mean a truly massive polling error. Also keep in mind that Trump's ground game and turnout operation are reputed to be dreadful. Trump's best hope, then, is that some truly major, unpredictable news event scrambles the race in the final weeks. Because the way things are looking now, he's headed to a big defeat. While the majority of Hamilton County students enjoyed the week off for Fall Break, 38 Hamilton County students spent their week on by participating in The Bethlehem Centers Leadership Unit (B.L.U.) Boot Camp. These students were selected to participate as a result of their academic achievement and are recognized student leaders from Howard, Brainerd, Tyner, Central, Lookout Valley, Hixson High Schools and East Lake Academy and Orchard Knob Middle School. Throughout the five-day camp, students were exposed to the concepts of servant and student leadership and entrepreneurship. epublican presidential nominee Donald Trump's plane (TOP) passes Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's campaign plane at McCarran International Airport on October 18, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on the eve of the two candidates' third and final US presidential debate. Shortly after announcing his run for president last year, Donald Trump said he would spend up to $1 billion of his own money on the campaign. But in recent weeks, the Republican nominee has said that number is now $100 million. "Remember, by the time this ends," Trump told a crowd in Colorado Tuesday, "I will have spent over $100 million on this campaign. Hillary has spent nothing. She gets all her money from the special interest and donors. My interest is you." Yet to hit even the $100 million mark, he'd better start spending. According to election filings, Trump has coughed up around $60 million of his own money for the campaign. And rather than ramping up his contributions as the election gets closer, he's been cutting back. In the beginning of the year, Trump was spending more than $5 million a month on his campaign, hitting a peak of $11 million in March. But in July and August, the latest periods measured, Trump had dialed his spending back to $2 million a month. Though September's official filing isn't due until Thursday, Trump's camp has already said the candidate contributed $2 million to his campaign that month. That means to hit his target, he would have to spend roughly $40 million over the course of a few weeks. What's more, some of Trump's campaign spending has gone to companies owned or related to him. So his net out-of-pocket expenditures may actually be lower than the reported amount. "Mr. Trump's contribution more than covered the costs of any reimbursements to him (or his related entities)," a spokesperson for the campaign said, adding "he has contributed an unprecedented amount to his campaign." However, the researchers found that many of these tweets were generated by bots: Automated Twitter accounts programmed to send out tweets. The most active bot accounts can make more than 500 or even 1,000 tweets a day. Analyzing 9 million tweets following the first presidential debate and 11.5 million tweets after the second debate collected from 2 million users, a team of researchers from Oxford University, Corvinus University and the University of Washington found the amount of traffic in pro-Trump hashtags was roughly double the activity in the hashtags of his Democrat rival Hillary Clinton. During the debates themselves, around 40 percent of tweets included pro-Trump hashtags, as opposed to 12 or 13 percent using pro-Clinton hashtags. Twitter seems to be heavily in favor of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump , but a sizeable slice of his support comes from social media bots, according to new research. "The accounts using a high level of automationthe accounts that tweeted 200 or more times with a related hashtag and user mention during the data collection periodgenerated close to 25 percent of all Twitter traffic about the presidential debate," the researchers which include Philip Howard, a professor at Oxford University - said in the new report published Wednesday. "It is difficult for human users to maintain this rapid pace of social media activity without some level of account automation, though certainly not all of these are bot accounts." The report did not speculate on the sources of these bots, so it is unknown who controls them. According to the report, automated pro-Trump accounts generated four tweets for every tweet from a highly automated pro-Clinton account. In addition, about one third of the pro-Trump traffic on the social media website Twitter was driven by bots and highly automated accounts, compared to one quarter of the pro-Clinton traffic. "Pro-Clinton highly automated accounts increased their activities from the first to second debate but still never reached the level of automation behind pro-Trump Twitter traffic," Howard told CNBC via email. Using bots to flood support for one candidate or the other on social media is part of a troubling trend to distort public opinion, the researchers said. "Political actors and governments worldwide have begun using bots to manipulate public opinion, choke off debate, and muddy political issues," the team said. "Political bots tend to be developed and deployed in sensitive political moments when public opinion is polarized." The media representatives for Donald Trump's presidential campaign were contacted but were not immediately available for comment. Follow CNBC International on Twitter and Facebook. The Department of Transportation on Wednesday unveiled a new plan to increase the rights and protections of airline passengers. The department said the rules will forbid "undisclosed bias by airlines and online ticket agents," compel companies to provide "more complete" airline performance reports, better protect travelers with disabilities and give passengers a more detailed picture of "mishandled" checked bags. Wednesday's actions aim to ensure that customers "know exactly what they're buying" and that they "get what they pay for without hidden fees or last-minute complications," the White House said in a statement. The department also said it is planning a rule that would require airlines to refund baggage fees to customers when their luggage has been "substantially delayed." It did not define the amount of time. It also said it is considering requiring airlines to provide customers with "all-in pricing information." The new regulations follow an executive order President Barack Obama issued in April to boost competition and increase transparency for consumers. The order said, "maintaining, encouraging, and supporting a fair, efficient, and competitive marketplace is a cornerstone of the American economy." Airlines for America (A4A), an industry trade organization, warned that regulation efforts could drive up the cost of air travel. "Airlines have different business models and must be allowed to continue offering optional services in a manner that makes sense for both their customers and their business," A4A President and CEO Nicholas E. Calio said in a statement. "Efforts designed to re-regulate how airlines distribute their products and services are bad for airline customers, employees, the communities we serve and our overall U.S. economy."U Until 1978, when President Jimmy Carter signed the Airline Deregulation Act, federal rules included setting air fares and routes and controlling the entry of new airlines. S.P. Raj, interim dean of the Martin J. Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University. Photo credit: Syracuse University website SYRACUSE, N.Y. Syracuse University has named S.P. Raj as interim dean of the Martin J. Whitman School of Management, effective immediately. The appointment follows the removal of Kenneth Kavajecz as dean following his arrest last month for soliciting a prostitute in the town of Salina. The school announced Kavajeczs removal on Sept. 14, while the Onondaga County Sheriffs Department on Sept. 21 announced that Kavajecz was among eight people arrested in the prostitution sting. Kavajecz had been charged on Sept. 13. The Whitman School described Raj as a longtime leader and widely respected scholar in its online news release posted Wednesday. Raj, a member of the Syracuse faculty since 1978, says he is honored to be asked to serve as interim dean at such a critical juncture in the life of the Whitman School. The school describes Raj as an expert in marketing strategies, specifically their influence on customer behavior, and on managing new product development and innovation. He has taught marketing strategy, marketing management, integrated marketing communications, marketing and the Internet, and marketing research. His pioneering use of multimedia in the classroom was featured in Apples Imagine series of videos for educators, Syracuse noted. The announcement of Raj as interim dean follows more than a month of conversations between vice chancellor and provost Michele Wheatly; vice chancellor and acting dean J. Michael Haynie; along with students, faculty, staff, and members of the Whitman School advisory council. For the last several weeks, Ive had the good fortune of speaking with a number of stakeholders about the future of the Whitman School, Wheatly said in the release. During those conversations, I encountered engaged and passionate students, faculty, staff and alumni, all committed to seeing the Whitman School continue its upward trajectory of growth and success. While many people I spoke with discussed overall qualities and characteristics for an interim leader, an overwhelming number of people specifically recommended Professor Raj. As a former senior associate dean in the Whitman School, Professor Raj is a seasoned leader whose strong institutional knowledge, commitment to shared governance and excellence in teaching and research make him the ideal person to lead the Whitman School in the interim. I am grateful to Professor Raj for stepping into this very important leadership position, and look forward to working with him in his new role. In addition to his work at Syracuse, Raj has also served as a tenured professor of marketing at Cornell University and as a visiting faculty member at Northwestern University. He earned a Ph.D. and a masters degree in industrial administration from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh and a bachelors degree with distinction in electronics engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Madras, India, Syracuse said. Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com October 19, 2016 Two Russian cosmonauts and a U.S. astronaut are now on their way to the International Space Station, where they will begin the outpost's 50th expedition a week after they arrive. Cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrei Borisenko and astronaut Shane Kimbrough lifted off Wednesday (Oct. 19) on board Russia's Soyuz MS-02 spacecraft on a two-day rendezvous with the station. Their launch at 4:05 a.m. EDT (0805 GMT; 2:05 p.m. local time) came atop a Soyuz FG rocket from Site 31/6 at Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The crew reached orbit nine minutes later, signaled by a "zero-g indicator" in the shape of Russia's next generation crew spacecraft "Federatsiya," which is planned to replace the Soyuz by 2023. The Soyuz MS-02 crew of Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrei Borisenko of Roscosmos and Shane Kimbrough of NASA seen waving before boarding their spacecraft for launch, Oct. 19. (NASA/Joel Kowsky) Wednesday's launch, which had been scheduled for Sept. 23, was delayed after a faulty cable was discovered during pre-flight tests inside the Soyuz descent module's control system. The cable was replaced, but the delay shortened the crew's planned stay aboard the space station from five months to a little more than four. The postponed launch also limited the time that Ryzhikov, Borisenko and Kimbrough will serve as Expedition 49 crew mates with cosmonaut Anatoli Ivanishin, NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), who have been on board the space station since July and are set to return to Earth just before midnight (EDT) on Oct. 29. "The short hand-over time we are going to have with the previous crew is unfortunate for us," said Kimbrough in a pre-flight press conference on Tuesday, "because we were really looking forward to spending almost two months with them. But now it is just a week and we're going to have a great week with them. We're going to learn as much as we can from them in that week and soak up all the knowledge they can send our way so that we can be more efficient once they leave." Ivanishin will hand over control of the station to Kimbrough on Oct. 28, during a change-of-command ceremony. The departure of the Soyuz MS-01 crew the next day will mark the start of Expedition 50. International Space Station Expedition 50 crew insignia. (NASA) "That is pretty significant, for it to be the 50th time we've sent a crew to the International Space Station kind of a really remote outpost, is pretty significant, in my mind, so I hope we do it justice," said Kimbrough in an interview with collectSPACE. "We just happen to be the crew." The crew's expedition patch features a large, stylized "50" with the numerals wrapping around representations of the Earth and the moon. Expedition 50 will grow to six members when Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy, astronaut Peggy Whitson and Thomas Pesquet with the European Space Agency (ESA) arrive on Soyuz MS-03 on Nov. 16. Kimbrough, Ryzhikov and Borisenko will be busy almost immediately upon arriving at the space station Friday (Oct. 21). Two days after they dock, Orbital ATK's Cygnus cargo spacecraft will berth at the orbital complex, bringing more than 5,000 pounds (2,300 kg) of supplies and equipment for Expedition 50. The Russian supply ship Progress MS- 04 will then dock in early December. JAXA's H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) "Kounotori 6" is scheduled to arrive by the middle of the month. Expedition 50 crew: Andrei Borisenko, Shane Kimbrough, Sergey Ryzhikov, Thomas Pesquet, Peggy Whitson, Oleg Novitsky. (NASA) Another Orbital ATK Cygnus is scheduled to resupply the station in early January, followed by another Progress in early February. SpaceX may also launch a Dragon cargo vehicle to the space station, pending its Falcon 9 rocket's return to flight after a launch pad failure in September. Kimbrough, Ryzhikov and Borisenko will also work on the hundreds of experiments underway on the space station, as will begin new investigations into the behavior of fire in space, the effects of lighting on astronauts' health and the physics, nature and dynamics of neutron stars. Kimbrough may also conduct one, if not two, spacewalks, in part to replace batteries for the station's solar arrays. The Soyuz MS-02 launch marked the start of Borisenko's and Kimbrough's second spaceflight. Soyuz MS-02 crew patch. (Roscosmos/Spacepatches.nl) Borisenko, 52, logged 164 days on board the space station as an Expedition 27 flight engineer and the commander of Expedition 28 in 2011. Kimbrough, 49, first visited the space station as a mission specialist on space shuttle Endeavour's STS-126 mission in 2008, logging almost 16 days in orbit. Ryzhikov, 42, is making his first flight as the commander of the Soyuz MS-02 mission. The three crewmates are slated to return to Earth aboard Soyuz MS-02 on Feb. 25, 2017. Soyuz MS-02 is the 48th Soyuz to fly to the International Space Station and the 131st to launch since the first flight of Russia's Soyuz-class of spacecraft in 1967. Students are invited to attend the Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) at Chattanooga State Open House on Thursday, Oct. 27 from 4-7 p.m. Chattanooga State offers 20 one-year technical diploma programs and six technical certificate programs, giving students a wide variety of choices. 2017 Tennessee high school graduates attend tuition-free with the TN Promise. using the TN Reconnect grant. During the Open House, faculty members will be available to discuss programs and showcase program labs. Student services will assist students with applying for the Tennessee Reconnect Grant, applying to Chattanooga State, filing the FAFSA, and registering for a TCAT program. TCAT Spring classes begin Jan. 11. For more information, please call 423.697.3379 or visit https://www.chattanoogastate.edu/tcat. Types of obituaries The Missourian publishes two types of obituaries family obituaries and life stories. A family obituary is the version submitted by a funeral home or family. Please see the submission form for details on cost and deadlines. Family obituaries A life story is a closer look at a person's life and involves a reporter contacting family and friends. Life stories are based on newsworthiness and consent of the family. Life stories. The Missourians Opinion section is a public forum for the discussion of ideas. The views presented in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Missourian or the University of Missouri. If you would like to contribute to the Opinion page with a response or an original topic of your own, visit our submission form Report details family's care for Santulli Danny Santulli's family has created a hospital room for him in the living room of their Eden Prairie, Minnesota, home, his dad wrote in a report. On The Eve Of 'Hamilton's' Chicago Debut, A Look At Its Radical Empathy By Chicagoist_Guest in Arts & Entertainment on Oct 18, 2016 8:44PM By Caroline Siede Note: This is not a review of the Chicago production of Hamilton, but a consideration of larger themes encompassed in the musical, book and cast recording. After three weeks of preview performances, Hamilton officially opens at The PrivateBank Theatre on Wednesday, Oct. 19. In the final few moments of Hamilton, after the duel for which theyre both most famous has finally occurred, Aaron Burr bemoans to Alexander Hamilton, Now Im the villain in your history. But while that may be the case for the history books, it isnt the case for Hamilton itself. Burr isnt the villain of the musical, he is its narrator and co-protagonist. And in choosing to humanize Burr rather than vilify him, creator Lin-Manuel Miranda establishes Hamiltons most powerful thesis statement: History is rarely shaped by easy binaries, and more often by flawed humanity. It wouldve been understandable had the show bearing his name fallen into pure Hamilton hagiography, but Miranda is as interested in Hamiltons flaws as he is in his achievements. Mirandas version of Hamilton is brash, proud, defensive, and hyper-intellectual. Those qualities make him both a great leader and, at times, an insufferable human beinga duality the show acknowledges rather than ignores. The show celebrates Hamiltons strengths, while inviting the audience to sympathize with his flaws too. Which is the case for Burr as well. Though hes depicted as overly cautious, and lacking in a strong principles, Burr emerges as perhaps the most relatable character in the entire show. His timidity stems not from laziness but from a fear of making a mistake, as he admits in his Act One solo Wait For Ita song Miranda has cited as one of the best in the show. Im not falling behind or running late, Burr sings, Im not standing still I am lying in wait. In constructing a motive for Burrs historical inactivity, Miranda selects the most empathetic option; Burr isnt a bad person, hes a man struggling to figure out how to make his move even as everyone around him seems to have all the answers. But nowhere is Hamiltons inherent empathy more apparent than in the shows treatment of its female characters. Plenty of historical stories simply ignore the perspectives of women in favor of focusing on more iconic men. But Miranda realizes that even though they were denied access to political power, women were no less complicated and compelling historical figures. In sisters Angelica and Eliza Schuyler, Miranda crafts characters every bit as complex as Hamilton and Burr. And he offers a compassionate understanding of their actions too. The song Satisfied zeroes in on the kind of social and emotional intelligence women of Angelicas social standing needed in order to survive in a world that was especially unkind to them. That Angelica is later seen both fiercely protecting her sisters happiness and carrying on an emotional affair with her brother-in-law is a sign not of her inherent moral failing, but of her imperfect, relatable humanity. 'Hamilton' Broadway / Getty Images / Photo: Neilson Barnard And though the show laments the way Hamiltons achievements have largely been forgotten over time, it also acknowledges that the achievements of women were seldom even noted in the first place. Remarkably, Miranda gives the final number of the show not to Hamilton but to Eliza, who outlived her husband by 50 years. Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story is a powerful historical corrective in which Miranda allows great men like George Washington and Lafayette to literally sing the praises of the woman who helped keep their legacies alive. Thats an empathetic, revolutionary reframing of the role women played in history. If Alexander Hamiltons story proves that politics have long been tumultuous and scandalous, Hamilton the musical argues our tendency toward simplification seldom encapsulates the full picture. For every truly scorn-worthy King George or Donald Trump, theres a dozen complex figures deserving of a more nuanced examination. History may sometimes obliterate fine distinctions, but Miranda paints with a far more empathetic brush. Photos: Field Museum's 'Tattoo' Exhibit Illuminates An Overlooked Art By Marielle Shaw in Arts & Entertainment on Oct 19, 2016 4:39PM Tattoos are personal. They're an ancient art formwildly popular today, yet sometimes controversialbut it's rare for the public to get an education on the art form itself. That's about to change for those of us lucky enough to visit The Field Museum starting this Friday, as the Tattoo exhibit opens to the public. Tattoo, a special exhibition first developed for Paris' musee du quai Branly, features an impressive collection of artifacts from the very beginning of the art to the beautiful, unique forms it's taking as technology progresses. Tattoo offers a far-reaching look at the often overlooked art form. The exhibit explores more than five thousand years of creative skin-marking practice from around the globe, spanning from ancient Egypt to the modern era; and it starts to feel more and more like a gallery showing as you progress through its corridors. There are beautifully tattooed silicone forms, amazing artifacts from each corner of the world that follow tattooing's 5000-year timeline, and absolutely stunning photography, featuring some of the most intricate, amazing tattoos we've ever seen. The central message of the exhibition is about human creativity," Alaka Wali, curator of North American Anthropology, said in a release earlier this year. "Its important to understand creativitys different manifestations and not dismiss cultural practices and art forms because they were somehow stigmatized. The exhibition is going beyond the stereotype of tattoos to explore their aesthetics and artistry across cultures." There's also a tattoo shop inside the exhibitsomething that not even the original exhibit in France was able to accomplish. The shop, which is a work of art in itself, will be manned each weekend by one of six local artists, including Joel Molina of Chicago Tattoo and Lance Lloyd of Taylor Street Tattoo who was at the gun during Tuesday's press opening. The roster of high-profile artists also includes Tine DeFiore (Black Oak Tattoo), Stephanie Brown (the recently shuttered Butterfat Studios) and Zach Stuka (Deluxe Tattoo). Spots for tattooing at the Field's shop filled up fast, but if you'd still like a chance to get inked in exhibit, you can sign up for the waitlist. It looks like its flash only, but thats understandable considering the circumstances. Appointments cost $250 and include admission to "Tattoo." Check out booking and bio details here. And for those just curious, the shop offers a near-360-degree view of the artists in action Tattoo represents an ambitious and thoroughly successful attempt by the Field Museum to educate people on the anthropological importance of tattooing, its global significance and how tattoos function as beautiful pieces of art and storytelling. Tattoo opens to the public on Friday, Oct. 21 and will run through April 30, 2017. For more information, and to get tickets, click here. Donna James Leads a Bold Plan to Revive Victorias Secret James has a proven record as a C-suite executive and adviser. Now, shes guiding the lingerie giant toward a more inclusive, financially sound future. Things to See and Do in and Around Columbus in November With Apple set to announce new Macs next week, enterprise users may want to open their wallets to get hold of the new kit, as theres a big business case that says they should, according to IBM. Up to $535 saving per Mac IBM today told the record-setting seventh Jamf Nation User Conference that it is saving even more money by deploying Macs across the company than it thought: each Mac deployment saves the company up to $535 over four years, in contrast to the $270 per Mac it claimed last year. Thats a hugely significant statistic for any Mac user and follows extensive use of the platform by IBM. IBM VP of Workplace as a Service, Fletcher Previn, told the conference that 90,000 employees are now using Macs, up from 30,000 in 2015. 100,000 of IBMs global workforce will be using Macs by the end of the year, he said, and the number is climbing. There are lots of reasons for this, not least that better OS software means Apple needs to update its systems far less often than Microsoft updates Windows. "We have to go out and manage the Mac environment 104 fewer times a year than PC, Previn said. When it comes to mobile devices, 65 percent of iOS users run the latest OS, while 60 percent of Android users are running an OS thats at least two years old. IBM began replacing PCs with Macs in early 2015, when it began giving employees the choice to upgrade to a Mac when their company kit needed upgrading. The data speaks for itself, at IBM an astonishing 73 percent of employees will choose a Mac when they get the chance to choose for themself, Previn said. Today, "Macs are the standard at IBM, Japan, and PCs are the exception," he said -- and seems to think this is the future across the rest of the company. Time to switch Thats a major enterprise deployment and highly significant, as the statistics the company is sharing are real world figures based on real world experience across one of the worlds biggest businesses. It also suggests small business users should focus on the platform, particularly in light of Intuits recent move to integrate Apple Pay in QuickBooks and Apples eminent suitability for modern business. The icing on the user preference cake is that it turns out there are solid business reasons to encourage staff to move to Mac. Not only has the company been saving between $264-$535 for each Mac deployment over four years, but just 3.5 percent of employees using a Mac will call the company help desk, he said. Give employees the devices they want, manage those devices in a modern way, and drive self sufficiency in the environment, Previn explains. My fair platform This is fully in line with experiences shared in 2015, when Previn said just 5 percent of IBMs Mac users needed to call the help desk; In contrast, an astonishing 40 percent of PC staff request tech support help. At IBM last year just 25 staff supported 30,000 Macs. Moving to Mac has also had a big impact on employee engagement at IBM, which climbed 10 percent year-on-year, with an employee survey attributing this freshened up enthusiasm to IBMs provision of better tools for IT. The company reports a hugely impressive 91 percent user satisfaction from its Mac users. The longer this scheme runs the more compelling the business case becomes, he admits. I can confidently say every Mac that we buy is making and saving IBM money, Previn said in 2015. Big news at Jamf These are just some of the many big highlights emerging from this years record-breaking Apple IT administrator event from Jamf (formerly Jamf Software). The company introduced new and improved Device Management solutions to help support Apple in the enterprise, including JAMF Now, which is so simple that any Apple user should be able to manage numerous devices in SMEs and up. We want to provide a simple environment where anyone with or without tech skills can manage and deploy apps, Jamf CEO, Dean Hager told me. In a refreshing philosophical departure from the complex management ecosystem of other platforms, he said, Managing your devices is not something you should have to spend too much intellectual capital on. It also announced that the number of customers it serves has climbed rapidly. It now includes nine of the top ten banks; eight of the top ten universities, all ten top marketing groups and seven out of ten tech companies. Nineteen of the top 25 global organizations use Jamf to manage their Mac deployments. Hager noted that even at the high-end enterprise level, once they become a Jamf customer, they remain a customer. The all-new Jamf Pro 10 was announced, this ships next year. Closing Windows? IBMs ringing endorsement of Apples platforms for use across the enterprise is just one of many in recent months. Cisco claims Apple delivers the worlds most innovative mobile tech, while Deloitte recently claimed Apple products are essential to the modern workforce. Just last month, Mike Gilfix, IBMs VP of Mobile First and Smarter Process told me: Swift is now ready for the enterprise. As Apple introduces new Macs and as we see big enterprise names evangelize its platforms even as enterprise IT replacement budgets open up for another year, it will be interesting to see how big a slice of the PC industry Apple carves for itself in the next 12-months. We already know Macs are replacing PCs across the enterprise at an unprecedented rate. Google+? If you use social media and happen to be a Google+ user, why not join AppleHolic's Kool Aid Corner community and join the conversation as we pursue the spirit of the New Model Apple? Want Apple TV tips? If you want to learn how to get the very best out of your Apple TV, please visit my Apple TV website. Got a story? Drop me a line via Twitter or in comments below and let me know. I'd like it if you chose to follow me on Twitter so I can let you know when fresh items are published here first on Computerworld. Police in the Czech Republic have arrested a Russian hacker suspected of targeting the U.S. for cybercrime. Czech police, working in collaboration with the FBI, arrested the Russian man at a hotel in central Prague. The suspect, who was not identified, is in police custody and faces possible extradition to the U.S., depending on what the local courts decide, according to a statement from the Czech police. The arrest comes as the U.S. has blamed the Russian government for hacking U.S. officials and political groups in an effort to influence this year's upcoming election. However, it's unclear if the Russian hacker is in any way involved. On Wednesday, the FBI would only confirm that the suspect had been arrested. "Due to the ongoing investigation, no additional details can be provided at this time," the agency said in an email. The Czech police said that the Russian citizen had been found traveling in a luxury car with his girlfriend. Upon his arrest, the man offered no resistance, but immediately collapsed and was later hospitalized. Czech police have released video of his arrest. His name is reportedly Yevgeniy N, according to the Associated Press. Although the suspect may face extradition to the U.S., the Russian government reportedly is insisting that the man be returned to his home country. "We are in contact with his attorney," said Russian embassy spokesman Andrey Kolmakov, according to the country's state-run news agency Tass. "Russia repudiates Washingtons policy of imposing its extraterritorial jurisdiction on all countries." Russian and Eastern European cybercriminals are seen as possible culprits behind the data breaches involving LinkedIn and Yahoo, according to security experts. Those breaches stole details from hundreds of millions of user accounts, including hashed passwords, but the full scale of the intrusions have only recently come to light. The idea of a smart gun -- a weapon that uses electronics and biometrics to limit who can fire it -- has been around for 15 years or so. But early prototypes often used outdated tech, weren't always reliable and would-be inventors had little R&D money to innovate. That seems to be changing. Computerworld writer Lucas Mearian explains how newer technologies like fingerprint sensors and updated RFID chips have opened the door to smart guns that might actually see success in the market. The public largely likes the idea, gun makers are on board and the White House has been pushing the idea as a way to curb gun violence. One gun manufacturer thinks he's found just the target audience. And another is planning to roll out a new smart gun in the U.S. in 2017. Shifting gears, Executive News Editor Ken Mingis gets an update from Multimedia Editor Keith Shaw -- a.k.a., the gadget guru -- on Sony's latest foray into VR and Lenovo's modestly priced but very cool Yoga Book. (Look, ma! No keyboard!) For an audio podcast only, click play (or catch up on all episodes) below. Happy listening, and please, send feedback or suggestions for future topics to us. We'd love to hear from you. Todays workforce is defined by a familiar mantra: business users expect to be able to work from anywhere, at any time, while using any device, all without limitations. As such, mobile devices are rapidly becoming the conduit into the enterprise. However, these expectations for seamless access to information puts a strain on IT to create and support an environment where expectations meet reality. The kicker? Users expect that experience to remain the same as they switch from their desktop interface to their smartphone or from their smartphone to a tablet, and back again, often multiple times per day. And, in some instances, users are not even using their own devices to access cloud-based applications and data meaning that traditional mobile device management solutions alone dont provide the functionality required for truly seamless access. Its not just a functional issue. Often, security concerns keep businesses from fully realizing the advantage of mobile applications. To change those perceptions, and enable the increasingly mobile user base, organizations need to embrace a robust identity management solution that protects the enterprise while making it easier for employees to consistently access their preferred browser-based and native mobile apps. Modern mobile identity management solutions should provide single sign-on capabilities for accessing both cloud-based and legacy applications and systems. Single sign-on might be more important than some IT leaders think, especially when considering the number of cloud-based apps alone that a workforce accesses on a daily basis. In 2015, enterprise organizations ran an average of 18 cloud applications. By 2017, that number will nearly triple (52). Each app requires credentials, and with a fraction of these apps on a users device, sign-on can rapidly become a daunting, time-consuming task. This only works if identity management is paired with a workspace solution with OS-native capabilities. Otherwise, even if the single sign on populates the device with the same apps each time the experience is often clunky and far from seamless. For instance, without OS-native capabilities, an apps ability to access device hardware and capabilities can lag or fail altogether. Unfortunately, a poor experience leads to users seeking alternatives. While 79% of consumers are willing to retry a mobile app only once or twice if it failed to work the first time, only 16% would give it more than two attempts. The overarching goal of any identity management solution especially within the mobile arena is to ensure the level of security necessary to protect the business. This is especially true when IT doesnt have the luxury of always knowing what devices its workforce will leverage. Identity management also represents an opportunity for IT to track app and device metrics, as well as provide an individual user or entire user base with credentials needed when the organization rolls out a new business app. Furthermore, it enables the use of customized app stores for simple, automated provisioning. Likewise, this layer of management means having the ability to revoke credentials just as easily as authorizing them crucial for when users leave a company or lose their phone. Understandably, mobile identity management is continuing to evolve with various biometrics entering the scene, especially as the looming Internet of Things environment promises to introduce significantly more connected devices. Beijing environmental authorities issued a yellow alert for air pollution on Tuesday afternoon, as smog is forecast for the capital for two days. Pedestrians wearing masks walk on an overpass in the West Third Ring Road area in Beijing on Oct. 19, 2016. A yellow alert for air pollution was issued in the capital city on Tuesday. [Photo by Chen Boyuan for China.org.cn] The yellow alert, the third-highest warning level, came shortly after smog eased Sunday. It means the Air Quality Index will exceed 200 for 48 hours. Disadvantageous climatic conditions will contribute to the upcoming haze, according to the local emergency office for severe air pollution. Residents have been advised to take protective measures, such as keeping their windows and doors closed and reducing outdoor activities. In addition, construction sites and factories have also been ordered to reduce emissions, and regulation of burning of straw must be enhanced, according to the city's contingency plan for severe air pollution. The weather is expected to improve starting from the morning of Oct. 20 thanks to the arrival of a cold front. Zhang Dawei, head of the Beijing Environmental Protection Monitoring Center, said the city experienced fifth of every year featuring climatic conditions that fail to help dispel smog. Despite persistent haze this month, official data indicted improved air quality in the first nine months of this year. During the period, the density of fine particulate matter PM2.5 in Beijing decreased by 10.1 percent year-on-year. Since the central government rolled out an action plan on air pollution control in 2013, Beijing has seen the amount of burned coal reduced by 48 percent, the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau announced Tuesday. Fang Li, deputy head of the bureau, said the watchdog has fined more than 60 million yuan (8.9 million U.S. dollars) in over 10,000 law-breaking cases this year. Follow China.org.cn on Twitter and Facebook to join the conversation. Prime Minister rejects First Ministers demand for single market guarantee The battle of wills between Theresa May and Nicola Sturgeon continued this week, Downing Street rejecting the First Ministers demands for Scotland to receive a separate immigration policy andaccess to the single market. May has shown a steeliness on Westminsters constitutional mandate on too often missing from unionist politics what the Sunday Post called fighting talk a Number Ten spokeswoman is quoted as saying: Theres a very clear delineation between issues that are reserved and devolved. As I wrote earlier this week, Brexit has put the SNP in a bind: Sturgeon acted as received wisdom recommended by reviving separation after the vote in June, but is now trapped between energised activists and an unwilling electorate. Nationalists are already floating ways by which the threat of Indyref 2 could be averted, and the current consensus amongst observers is that they are looking for ways to secure yet more powers! and back out with a further erosion of Britain. David Cameron would likely have buckled. May seems much less likely to do so, and if so her courage is not without foundation: both the Heralds political editor and a leading Yes campaigner said this week that the separatist cause, and party, might have peaked. Northern Irish Tories disquiet at Partys closeness to the DUP Earlier this week, the Irish News broke the story that the NI Conservatives, as our provincial branch is sadly called, were mulling a formal complaint to the Party Chairman about the increasingly cosy relationship between the national Conservatives and the Democratic Unionist Party. The focus of their concern was a hastily-reversed decision by James Brokenshire, the Northern Irish Secretary and so-called protege of the Prime Minister, to address a DUP fundraising dinner. As Stephen Bush put it in the New Statesman, Brokenshire has been at the forefront of the Tory charm offensive: Brokenshire has already made a good start, impressing Stormonts politicians and helping with the wooing of the DUP at Westminster. That task has gone so well that, on most issues, the government starts with a working majority of 32 rather than its Conservative-only one of 16. As I explained this week, despite the risks there are clear incentives and opportunities for both parties in striking a deal, provided it were done on the right terms. May is a unionist by instinct and needs the DUPs eight Parliamentary votes. Arlene Foster, the First Minister of Northern Ireland, cant take the usual easy out of devolutionary politics and rail against London because her party campaigned for Brexit: they own it. That need to make our departure from the EU work has injected a new, pan-UK dimension to her historically parochial party, and could yet drive it closer to the Tories in ways I didnt think of earlier this week. For example if Foster were to embrace the case that EU subsidies have masked the fundamental weakness of the Ulster economy, it could justify shifting the DUPs economic position towards that of the Conservatives. Former Plaid leader quits party to sit as independent Wales Online reports that Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas, a former leader of the Welsh Nationalists and one-time Presiding Officer of the Welsh Assembly, has resigned from the party. The site describes it as a hammer blow to Plaid, coming as it does a week before their annual conference. His decision brings the party back down to 11 AMs the same number Andrew RT Davies Conservatives, whom they overtook in May. Its also a boon to Labour. Lord Elis-Thomas cited Leanne Woods failure to work constructively with Carwyn Jones administration as one of his reasons for walking out (although he had wider differences with Wood). Hes unlikely to join the government as the last Liberal Democrat AM did, but will likely still provide welcome support. Had he got his way and Plaid joined Labour in coalition, however, it would have left the Tories and UKIP as the only major opposition options available to Welsh voters. He may not have liked the results. Blair accused of appeasing IRA with amnesty to secure legacy as peacemaker Back in 2014, this column ran several items on the unfolding scandal of the so-called Comfort Letters, documents issued to IRA on-the-runs (OTRs) assuring them they didnt face arrest which collapsed the trial of one of the men believed to be behind the 1982 Hyde Park bombing. Summoned to appear before Parliaments Northern Ireland committee, Tony Blair warned the Government not to tamper with the scheme, lest it jeopardise the peace he had secured in the province. Now the Belfast Telegraph reports that a new book, by barrister Austen Morgan, makes the case that the then-Prime Minister and Jonathan Powell, his Northern Ireland envoy, over-egged the threat of IRA violence to rush a deal through before Gordon Brown succeeded him in 2007. He also claims that Blair made several legal judgements which prevented judicial reviews which might have proved fatal to the OTR scheme. P.S. This piece by Nick Cohen in the Spectator about the gagging of Stephen Daisley, an STV journalist, by SNP pressure is well worth the few minutes it will take you to read it. A national interest view of Syrias terrible war to peer at it through a Theresa May-friendly lens might judge Assad the lesser of two evils. The country has become a proxy for war between Sunni and Shiite Islam, with Saudi Arabia backing the opposition (or parts of it) and Iran backing the government. Iran is not an ally, but neither is Shiite terror being exported to the bars, newspaper offices and shops of Paris or London. Saudi Arabia is one, but attacks on civilians in the West, from 9/11 through 7/7 and beyond, have been inextricably bound up with the Wahabi version of Sunnism that dominates that country. ISIS is a futher twist in the pattern than brought us Al Qaeda. So let Assad blast ISIS to smithereens, the logic runs, and good for him. There are at least three problems with this viewpoint. The first is a humanitarian one. One estimate claims that Assads regime is responsible for 95 per cent of roughly 400,000 civilian deaths enough to fill Wembley Stadium four times over. Even if that percentage is exaggerated, Syrias Government is guilty of horrible atrocities. To support Assad, rather than wish a plague on both or all houses in the fight, is to excuse them. But a national interest view will be unmoved by this case. The second is more practical. Britains Muslim population is largely Sunni. To back Assad or even to stay neutral is to act as a recruiting sergeant for ISIS, and to encourage the flow of young British Muslims to Syria to fight against him. However, it can be argued and with justification that Britain should not frame its foreign policy to please the more extreme forms of Sunni Islam. National interest first. And that if British Muslims journey to Syria to fight they should be allowed to return back, or at least be charged with offences when they do. The third problem with support for Assad is more persuasive from a national interest point of view. It is an illusion to believe that Assad is really fighting ISIS at all. He has instead been targetting other parts of the Syrian opposition much of it Islamist, bits of it not rather than ISIS itself. He doesnt want to knock the latter down, at least yet; he wants to build it up, in order to present the West with a stark choice: ISIS or me. There are other practical difficulties with simply piling Britains eggs in Assads basket. The Sunni world is far bigger than the Shiite one, and there may be diplomatic and perhaps economic consequences if we do all at a time when, as Brexit looms, we need to keep and build our trading links. But the final problem is far bigger. Not so long ago, Assad was losing the war, but now he is winning it and all because of the direct intervention of Russia. It is Russian bunker buster bombs that are blasting underground hospitals in Aleppo. It is Russian planes that bomb the White Helmets who seek to dig civilians out of the Syrian rubble. It is Russia that is playing double or quits in military terms before America can elect a new President. Putin is racing against the clock to win the war. Barack Obamas Syrian policy is passive. A President Clinton might well take the John Kerry view and be more active, perhaps ramping up sanctions against Moscow. But whether she does or doesnt or whether she is elected at all Russias role in Syria should give anyone concerned with our national interest reason to think deeply. Russia is not exactly an enemy. We need its help in Afghanistan and with Iran. But nor are its authoritarian rulers allies. Wherever the blame may lie in the continuing story of Ukraines troubles, we are signed up as part of NATO to defend the Baltic States. And the long and short of it is that Russia increasingly sees itself as top dog or at least as a growing dog while America broods in its kennel. Obama is a sign of this; so, more dramatically, is Donald Trump. To grasp the scale of the change, have a look at the Israel-Palestine problem. America was once the actor who sought to solve it. For better or worse, Obama hasnt tried to. Putin is stepping into the gap. He is making overtures to Netanyahu and Abbas, inviting them to a summit. Even the Saudis, who seem to be giving up in Syria, are recalibrating, nervously asking themselves whether they should be knocking on Moscow rather than Washingtons door. The Foreign Office, still struggling to come to terms with Brexit, will be keeping a nervous eye on these developments. There is a danger that, at some point in the future, an over-confident Russia miscalculates and seeks to destablise or, worse, dismember the Baltic States or push into the western part of Ukraine. A lobby in the Commons, powered as much by humanitarian concern as geopolitical calculation, wants an international coalition to impose a no-bombing zone in Syria. This is for the birds during whats left Obamas presidency. That might change if Clinton wins. But it presents considerable obstacles to sober thought. Yes, Russia might stop bombing civilians. But then again, it might not. What then? And while Russia might not be able to strike back directly at such a coalitions forces, it could instead expand its activities in other theatres such as the Ukraine. This would be seriously destabilising. Furthermore, the imposition of a no bomb zone could boost Sunni jihadis in the short-term while not stopping Assad in the medium. That sounds like the worst of all worlds. Obamas policy has been to cut a deal with Iran and, in dealing with Russia, essentially confirm a policy of spheres of interest. He has judged that Syria, like the eastern part of the Ukraine, lies within Russias sphere. There is a pragmatic case for this brutal realpolitik. But allowing autocrats rather than democrats to set the pace in the Middle East has consequences. It is also puzzling in terms of fundamentals. Americas economy may have its problems, but they are nothing compared to Russias. The Eagle still packs a more powerful punch than the Bear. A President Clinton will need to pick up the pieces and help reinforce NATOs presence in the Baltic States further. Military intervention in Syria looks like a risk too far. Tightening sanctions on Russia a notch does not. Typhoon Sarika, the 21st typhoon of the year, made landfall in south China's Hainan Tuesday morning as torrential rain and gales lashed the island province. Branches are broken in typhoon-hit Qionghai City, south China's Hainan Province, Oct. 18, 2016. Typhoon Sarika, the 21st typhoon of the year, made landfall at Hainan Province Tuesday morning. [Photo: Xinhua] The tropical cyclone, with maximum winds of up to 162 km per hour recorded in the eye of the storm, landed at Hele Town, Wanning City, at 9:50 a.m., according to the local meteorological bureau. The National Meteorological Center issued a red alert, its highest-level alert, for Sarika, Tuesday morning. Nearly half a million people, including fishermen and residents in low-lying areas and unsafe houses in Hainan, have been evacuated as of Tuesday afternoon, said Ding Sheng, a disaster relief official with the Hainan Civil Affairs Department. The department has allocated relief materials such as tents and quilts, food and water to the typhoon-affected areas, he said. Xinhua reporters saw waves surge and trees fall from the storm in coastal Wanning. The municipal authorities said more than 137,000 residents have been evacuated. The typhoon also caused power cuts in parts of neighboring city Qionghai. Sections of the Wenqu River breached its banks and cut off road access for many in the city's Wanquan Township. At the main airport, Meilan International Airport, in the provincial capital Haikou City, 250 flights were canceled Tuesday morning, authorities said. High speed train services were halted starting Monday. Nearly 8,000 wireless communication base stations also began to disfunction due to the weather. Local traffic police reported that gales and wet roads were to blame for the overturning of a passenger bus carrying 45 people on one of Hainan's major highways Monday night. Severe waterlogging was reported in some counties and low-lying rural areas, in addition to landslides and mud-flows on Tuesday. Fortunately, there were no casualties. However, 31 cattle in Dongxing, Wanning, where the storm landed, were electrocuted Tuesday morning by a falling high-voltage line, which ran above the animals' shed. The residents of the farm were evacuated to a safe building on Monday evening. Provincial meteorological station chief Cai Qinbo previously predicted losses from the typhoon would be "grave," as the cyclone was projected to be the most powerful and destructive to land in Hainan in a decade. Cai drew an analogy between Sarika and a typhoon that hit Hainan in 2005 which triggered flash floods, destroyed roads and plantations. From 8 a.m. Monday to 1 p.m. Tuesday, four townships in Hainan reported more than 300 mm of rainfall, according to the provincial meteorological station. Classes have been suspended in kindergartens, middle and primary schools in eight counties in the province, and tourist sites are closed to the public. Residents and tourists have been warned against hiking or strolling along the beaches. Authorities have also ordered safety checks of reservoirs and power and water supplies, while demanding that fishery and farming entities take extra precautions. To brace for Sarika, some coastal scenic spots in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region were closed Tuesday. Nearly 8,000 tourists from Weizhou Island were evacuated Monday. Sarika has also brought gales with a maximum speed of around 100 km per hour to the waters off Guangdong Province and six-meter-high offshore waves, according to the provincial flood control authorities. Apple Picking When you arrive, you'll have to make a tough decision! Do head out into the orchard to pick your own apples or grab a few half-pecks of the pre-picked apples that are laid out under the main shed? There's something about eating a big bag of apples that you picked with your own hands, but to get those prized apples, you've got to walk quite a ways up and down several hills. As I mentioned before, we've been to Sky Top Orchard once a year for over a decade now, so I've roamed all over the property in various states of parenthood. The year we visited when I was pregnant with my second kid, it was unseasonably warm, and I was even more turtle like than normal. Despite my obvious pregnancy waddle, we went for the you-pick option that year and slooooowly made our way to the Granny Smith rows, which were, naturally, one of the furthest available apple types. Two Chinese beggars with severe physical deformities were followed for two days in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, by a couple of reporters from The Star. The reporters also found at least 30 beggars in Petaling Street, reported the Reference News on Tuesday, October 18. Transnational gangs are maiming and disfiguring Chinese children, keeping them captive for a number of years before sending them to Malaysia on tourist visas to beg in holiday hot spots, the reports said. 33-year-old Xiu Yuan was one of the victims of the gang. He said he was born healthy but was abducted and maimed by the gang when he was young, and brought to Malaysia years later. Another beggar Do Feng, 30, from Zhengzhou, said they could collect as much as 3,000 Malaysia ringgits (around 4,800 yuan) on weekends. The amount of money they could get usually depended on the degree their disabilities could provoke sympathy from people, Do said. The reports said the gang's leaders appeared a few hours later to collect the money and the beggars returned to their hotel rooms. Increasingly, Chinese couples are waiting to adopt children as a result of the one child policy. A policy made difficult through official channels. As a result, they started to turn to internet adoption, the Reference News cited a western media earlier. People can easily reach adoption information through online forums and advisements in China, however, child trafficking cases have been increasing as a consequence, the report said. China had 502,000 orphans by the end of 2015, among which 92,000 are available for adoption. There were 22,000 registered adoption cases in the same year, according to media reports. Children of Se ethnic group sit in front of a monument that reads "China's No. 1 Poverty Relief Village" at Chixi Village, Panxi town, Fuding city in East Chinas Fujian province, Feb 14. The village has shaken off poverty thanks to assistance from Party and government officials at all levels over the past 30 years. [Photo/Xinhua] Every year, the international day for the eradication of poverty unites world leaders in seeking to show tangible progress and create prosperity for citizens without discrimination. Some data, however, isn't very encouraging, even for developed countries. A recent Eurostat survey shows approximately 119 million people (23.7 percent of the population) in the European Union were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2015. Although this is a slight decrease in comparison to previous years, it is still higher than in the pre-financial crisis period. Greece, Cyprus, Spain and Italy have the biggest problem due to the dramatic consequences of austerity measures. If the situation in developed countries can prove problematic, it is apparently even more complex in developing ones no matter how they measure poverty. The case which subsequently deserves particular attention is that of China for two main reasons. First, the country has the largest population so that the numbers facing poverty can easily become headline-making. According to World Bank data, China had 1.371 billion inhabitants in 2015 followed by India with 1.311 billion. Second, however, the country has already made an enormous contribution to poverty reduction and this performance constitutes a model for its own future policies as well as an example for other states. A new White Paper provides useful numbers. Specifically, more than 700 million Chinese people have been lifted out of poverty over the past three decades. In addition, the proportion of people living in extreme poverty fell from 61 percent in 1990 to 4.2 percent in 2014. The 2015 Report of the UN Millennium Development Goals makes special reference to the "central role" played by China in global reduction of poverty. That is because the country had met all relevant UN objectives including the achievement of gender parity in primary schools and the increase of access to clean drinking water. Steady development of several sectors of the national economy and the implementation of market-oriented reforms were the keys to this success. The systematic effort of the Chinese administration to eradicate poverty has also led international bodies to study its potential applicability to other cases. From 2009, for instance, the UN World Food Program argued that steps taken in China in the past could help reduce hunger in developing countries. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published a study one year later drawing on lessons for African countries from China's experience in transforming agriculture despite major historical and geographical differences. Several scholars have also elaborated on similar comparisons in their research and this theme has become familiar in academic journals. However, this is not the right time for triumphalism or relaxation. The mission of the Chinese government has not been accomplished yet. In fact, more work needs to be done as approximately 70 million people still live under the poverty line. President Xi Jinping is committed to completely eliminating the problem by 2020. The 13th Five-Year Plan includes measures addressing social imbalances and protecting rural residents. Relocation to urban centers will continue. Moreover, local administrations have a big responsibility to share the economic burden while the central government keeps up spending. Specific measures themselves as stipulated in the 13th Five-Year Plan are certainly important for the government to keep its promises. These measures also reflect Beijing's will to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Premier Li Keqiang focuses on this goal last month in New York on the margins of the UN General Assembly. However, what is perhaps even more important is the existence of a vision for the future that can inspire people. As long as the "New Normal" is marking the course of the Chinese economy, a different type of growth must be pursued. Quantity gives way to quality as consumption, protection of the environment and innovation become fundamental parameters of Beijing's economic strategy. There is no better investment for the next decade guaranteeing affluence than the efficient education of the younger generation. Knowledge and qualifications will be critical for the long-term improvement of living condition within the continuously modernizing Chinese society. George N. Tzogopoulos is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit: http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/GeorgeNTzogopoulos.htm Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn. Flash Russian and Syrian air forces have halted airstrikes against Syria's Aleppo from 10 a.m. local time (0700 GMT) on Tuesday ahead of a humanitarian pause set for Thursday, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Tuesday. "This will ensure the safety of exit of civilians via six corridors and to prepare the wounded in the eastern part of Aleppo for evacuation," Shoigu said. By the start of the humanitarian pause Syrian troops will withdraw a certain distance, allowing the militants with their weapons to freely leave eastern Aleppo by two corridors, he added. He also urged countries that have influence on the armed groups in the eastern part of Aleppo to persuade their leaders to cease hostilities and leave the city. The Russian Defense Ministry Monday announced a pause in strikes against rebel-controlled areas in the city of Aleppo for eight hours from 8 a.m. (0500 GMT) till 4 p.m. (1300 GMT) local time on Oct. 20. Russian warplanes and Syrian forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have restarted strikes against rebel-controlled areas of Aleppo since the collapse of the ceasefire agreement reached between Moscow and Washington last month. Flash Iraqi security forces on Tuesday recaptured more villages from the Islamic State (IS) militants, as part of a major offensive aimed at liberating the city of Mosul, the last major IS stronghold in Iraq, a security source said. The Iraqi army and the Kurdish Peshmerga forces launch military operations in Khazar village, 35 kilometers south of Mosul, Iraq, on Oct. 18, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] On the west side of the Tigris River, the Iraqi forces and allied paramilitary Sunni and Shiite Hashd Shaabi units, backed by Iraqi and U.S-led coalition aircraft, recaptured the villages of Lihoud, Abbasiyah, Khuder al-Yas, Bajwaniyah and Tal al-Samen, while moving north to the IS-held town of Shoura, some 30km south of Mosul, a security source from the Operations Command of Nineveh Liberation told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. On the east side of the river, the army forces also cleared several villages while moving to the IS-held town of Hamdaniyah, some 40 km southeast of Mosul, the source said. On Tuesday afternoon, the troops arrived at the southwestern edge of Hamdaniyah and shelled IS positions inside the town in preparation for a battle to recapture it. Meanwhile, the Kurdish Peshmerga forces east of Mosul suspended fighting and advance, as they are reorganizing their ranks to prepare for more battles, the source said. Early on Monday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is also the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi forces, announced the start of a major offensive to retake the country's second largest city from the extremist IS group. "Today I declare the launch of the operation of liberating Nineveh province. The time of victory has come, and the moment of the great victory is approaching," Abadi said in a brief address aired on Al Iraqiya. Mosul, some 400 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, has been under IS control since June 2014, when Iraqi government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to take control of parts of Iraq's northern and western regions. Timor oil and gas Sea of greed Last month the Permanent Court of Arbitration rejected Australias claim it had no jurisdiction to conciliate the dispute in the Timor Sea. This means Australia must come to the table and negotiate with East Timor. But Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has been quick to note that Australia will not be bound by the international panels outcome. At the end of the day, Timors deal will still come down to what the Australian government thinks they can get away with. Under the UN International Law of the Sea, all the areas presently being drilled are in East Timors half of the Sea. The reason successive Australian governments have forced East Timor, the poorest nation in our region, to defer making a decision on the maritime boundary for 50 years is precisely because they know that Australias position is untenable under international law and the UN Law of the Sea. This would very quickly become apparent if the decision was decided by an independent international authority. The treaty on Certain Maritime Arrangements in the Timor Sea (CMATS) was signed in 2006 between the Howard government and the government of Timor-Leste (East Timor). The negotiations had been tense over the years. Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri and the ruling Fretilin party were opposed to the maritime boundary between the two countries not being drawn half-way between them but closer to Timor-Leste along the seabed limits of the continental shelf. The theft had been agreed between the Hawke Labor government and Indonesias Suharto dictatorship with a treaty in 1989 and the boundary was a major factor in Australias hypocritical, indulgent stance towards Indonesias invasion of East Timor in 1975 (see below). In 2004, the then Howard government Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer promised to give Alkatiri a lesson in politics for his pursuit of his struggling countrys interests. It would get royalties from a Joint Petroleum Development Area and thats it. Alkatiri would soon be removed from office in coup-like circumstances. The Howard government refused international arbitration on the maritime boundary. The Australian public knew about the humiliation of Timor-Lestes representatives in 2004 but it would not have been aware that Australian spies had bugged government offices in Timor-Leste so that Howards negotiators would have the drop on their local counterparts. Some years later, a veteran spy told Canberra lawyer Bernard Collaery about the shameful operation he had been involved in. Collaery was acting for the government of Timor-Leste at the International Court of justice in The Hague. The Timorese want the current treaty scrapped and a new one drawn up. They insist the negotiations that led to CMATS were not entered into in good faith by Australia, a fact confirmed by the whistle-blowers revelations. But rather than move to repair damaged relations, the Abbott government turned on Collaery and Witness K the remorseful former ASIS agent and the government of Timor-Leste. ASIO raided the lawyers Canberra office and seized large numbers of files. Witness K has had his passport confiscated to prevent him giving evidence on the matter at The Hague. They could both be slapped with criminal charges. Attorney-General George Brandis insisted the heavy-handed actions were in the oft-cited national interest. But they are ultimately in the interest of oil and gas companies (such as generous Liberal Party donor Woodside Petroleum). Woodside is a huge Australian company and they were proposing to invest billions of dollars in Greater Sunrise [oil and gas field] to create wealth, which would inter alia have been wealth for Australians, but obviously substantially for the East Timorese as well. So I was all in favour of that. I was all in favour of it, Alexander Downer told Marian Wilkinson of the ABCs Four Corners program. Five eyes spies Australian security agencies spy on their own citizens and they help the US, UK and others to do so, too. The five eyes the intelligence networks belonging to the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand help each other to keep tabs on individuals, groups, political, military and other developments of interest across the globe. Australia is a junior member of this club and most people realise its basic purpose is to serve US strategic interests, especially in the Asia-Pacific region. Despite this deputy-sheriff status, Australia has considerable spooking capacity of its own and, puts this at the service of transnationals operating in Australia. Nothing is allowed to get in the way of the national interest; not even if it means cheating one the worlds poorest nations out of much of its potential oil and gas revenues. No-one from the governments ranks would comment on the spying allegations but there is plenty of ominous talk about grave consequences for Timor-Leste if it persists with its legal challenge to CMATS. The Abbott government was fuming on investors behalf that Timor-Leste stood up for a pipeline to allow processing of offshore resources on its territory rather than aboard a floating plant. At the same time, Australia poses as a friend and generous benefactor to our northern neighbour. Peter Galbraith, head negotiator for Timor-Leste in 2004, was not fooled. His reaction to the spying revelations says it all about Australias deteriorating reputation in the region. You know, its hard to imagine that would really be done by a friendly government and especially for what were essentially commercial negotiations. That really seems there wasnt a national security issue here for Australia. It wasnt as if, you know, the Timorese were posing some kind of military threat or hatching some kind of plot. This was really bugging for commercial advantage, he told Four Corners. At issue in the maritime border dispute are royalties estimated at between $10 billion and $20 billion over the next 30 years. Australia has sucked in over $2.1 billion from royalties on the oil and gas in question since 1999. With its fair share of these funds, East Timor could meet the needs of its people and build some financial security. Without it, as Oxfams policy director James Ensor pointed out, the country runs the risk of joining the ranks of failed states in the region. Origins of dispute The current dispute has its origins in Australias relations with and support for the brutal Suharto dictatorship in Indonesia (see page 4). In 1972, Australia obtained an agreement from Indonesia that the end of the continental shelf to our north west would be the boundary between Australia and Timor even though the border is only 60 kilometres from the coast of East Timor. On the eve of Indonesias invasion in 1975, Australias then ambassador in Jakarta, Richard Woolcroft, advised the Whitlam government that Indonesia would be easier to deal with over the natural resources in the Timor Sea than the government of the newly-independent, former Portuguese colony of East Timor. Australia stood by and 24 years of genocidal occupation by Indonesias military followed. In 1989 Foreign Minister in the Hawke Labor government Gareth Evans and Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alitas toasted a deal to share out the oil and gas resources off the coast of Timor from the comfort of a jet flying high above the stolen territory. In 2002, the Australian government withdrew from UN Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) negotiations in the International Court of Justice. In circumstances like those involving Australia and East Timor, UNCLOS lays down that the border of the states should be the median line drawn halfway between them. Such an arrangement would see East Timor in charge of 90 percent of the Seas oil and gas. As it stands, it gets 90 percent of the royalties from the Bayu Undan field within the Joint Petroleum Development Area (JPDA) described in the Timor Sea Treaty of 2002. However, the largest fields by far Laminaria and Greater Sunrise are located outside the JPDA and from these East Timor will only get 20 percent of the royalties on the Greater Sunrise gas field. It should be noted that the Laminaria field is totally within East Timors half of the Timor Sea as are most of the Sunrise and Troubador fields. East Timor has refused to ratify the Timor Sea Treaty. It wants Australia to return to the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice and UNCLOS for the adjudication of the maritime boundary. It wants the royalties from the fields outside the JPDA to be held in trust (escrow) until the dispute is finalised. 1965 Indonesia bloodbath A US/Australian coup In a 1965 fascist coup in Indonesia led by army generals including Major General Suharto (who became president), the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI), third largest in the world, was virtually wiped out. President Sukarno of Indonesia shaking hands with Robert Menzies during Menzies visit to Indonesia in 1959. Although accused of planning and even attempting an armed coup, it is clear that the PKI in fact was largely unarmed and in no way contemplating military action. Its members were unable to offer meaningful resistance to the wave of terror unleashed against them by Generals Nasution and Suharto. The coup which saw the deaths of around one million people involved the US Embassy with US Ambassador Marshall Green actively supporting the army-organised orgy of killing: consulting with leaders of anti-Communist death squads, arranging for the US Information Agency to beam anti-PKI propaganda over the radio and orchestrating an international media barrage to push the Indonesian Armys cover story of a Communist coup. Green rejoiced in the slaughter of Communist leaders, the forced closing of the Communist university (and the banning of leftist student organisations), and the sacking of PKI bookstores. The Suharto-Nasution clique were of a like mind with the US about the necessity to undermine the prestige of China in Indonesia. The generals sought the aid of the US to alert the Indonesian people to the dangers of association with Communist China using the techniques of psychological warfare which the US was only too happy to supply. US Embassy cables also pointed to the US covertly supplying weapons to the Indonesian Army for the arming of the civilian anti-communist groups that at one stage were killing 50-100 PKI members every night in Central Java alone. Under President Sukarno, Indonesia had become a leading force in the non-aligned movement, a major impediment to US efforts to roll back Communism and to isolate China, in particular. It is inconceivable that the US government would just sit back and wait hopefully for something to happen in Indonesia to change that situation. US diplomats and CIA agents would have been working flatout to bring that change about and nobody in the world is more proactive than the State Department and the CIA. To prevent Sarawak and North Borneo eventually becoming part of left-leaning Indonesia, they had been brought in 1963 into a federation with newly independent but staunchly anti-Communist Malaya, to be called Malaysia. Indonesia objected, and in 1965 US allies Britain and Australia joined in sending troops to Borneo. (Australia was as concerned as the US about rolling back Communism: in April that same year it had committed the first Australian troops to Vietnam.) At the same time, the policies and practices of US oil companies in Indonesia, as in other parts of the developing world, were causing concern in Jakarta. The countrys huge and much needed oil wealth was going to enrich Caltex rather than the people of Indonesia. Sukarno went so far as to threaten to break diplomatic relations with the US and to nationalise US oil assets. Perbum, the Communist-led oil workers union, was very active in defending the rights and conditions of Caltexs Indonesian employees. Indonesias Foreign Minister, Subandrio, claimed Western diplomats were conspiring with senior Indonesia army officers to kill or otherwise eliminate Sukarno. In late October, a US diplomat reported from Riau province in Sumatra: Army has raided PKI leaders houses and informed Caltex management it plans on October 29 to arrest key leaders of communist oil workers union Perbum, which forms core of PKI structure in that province. A declassified Australian Embassy report tells how the Army dealt with worker unrest. The Army would assemble the workforce of the factory or mine and ask them whether they wish to continue work as usual. Those who decline are asked again and, unless they change their mind, summarily shot. The US and Australian governments eagerly supported one of the worst bloodbaths of the 20th century because it was basically good for business. You are here: Home Flash Turkey's National Intelligence Agency (MIT) issued warnings against imminent attacks by the Islamic State (IS) group in five Turkish provinces, reported the daily Cumhuriyet on Tuesday. According to MIT's report, terrorists might target Istanbul, Ankara, the southeastern province of Gaziantep, the southern province of Antalya and the western province of Izmir. The report added that the five provinces were high-risk areas and that public transport is also an IS militants' target. Metros, buses, bridges, airports, bus terminals and sea transport were listed as IS targets. The agency warned that the Eurasia Tunnel is also an IS target. The tunnel is scheduled to connect Istanbul's European and Asian regions in December. "The terrorist group is seeking an attack targeting the Turkish aviation sector," MIT said in the report citing "intelligence information was received on militants planning to sneak explosives or sharp objects such as knives and razors onto airplanes hidden inside electronic devices." "The danger of attacks has increased in recent days," MIT declared. Fed up with no respect During a two-day on-country meeting at Yule River last month, more than 350 Aboriginal traditional owners, Elders and community members passed a resolution of no confidence in Western Australias Aboriginal Affairs Minister Peter Collier. Western Australias Aboriginal Affairs Minister Peter Collier. The group passed a further resolution around the WA Regional Services Reform units roadmap, which focuses on the state governments blueprint for Aboriginal communities. Yamatji Marlpa Aboriginal Corporation (YMAC) chief executive Simon Hawkins said the message from traditional owners around WA was loud and clear. Aboriginal people in WA are fed up with Minister Colliers blatant disrespect for their culture, heritage and traditions, he said. Aboriginal people want the people who are in control of their heritage to be held accountable. Traditional owners want answers, and they want to be included in the decisions that will ultimately affect their way of life. YMAC co-chair and Njamal Elder Doris Eaton urged people to unite and speak with one voice. Its about looking after our community, our next generation and our heritage, she said. We need to come together as one Aboriginal people. We need to fight. We have to come together as a nation, as one cultural nation. It saddens me that this year our minister, who holds our future, did not attend. This is the third year weve come together at Yule River, and we come together as one, as human beings. But he has no respect for us. Resolutions were passed unanimously by the group, and given to Regional Development Minister Terry Redman to take back to Parliament. They were: that Aboriginal people be front and centre in designing and implementing regional and remote service reforms; that the state government acknowledge the significant contribution Aboriginal corporations make each year in the form of funding, infrastructure and service delivery and involve them directly in decision-making about services reforms; that both state and federal governments be more transparent and accountable as to the existing spend on Aboriginal services in regional and remote communities; and that at the ministerial level, Peter Collier, who is Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and chair of the Aboriginal Affairs Cabinet subcommittee, be more responsive and accountable for the impact on Aboriginal people in the region. The Koori Mail Culture & Life Doctors not missionaries I see that, in Poland, the reality of what the overthrow of Socialism really means is finally beginning to sink in. About time, I hear you say? Well, yes, but remember the unfortunate history of the country, wedged between and until WW1, actually divided between Tsarist Russia, an expansionist Prussia and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The justly-named Great War put an end to all three of those empires. Polish women protest against abortion ban. After WW1, an independent Poland safely under the domination of its landed gentry was established as a buffer against the danger of Revolutionary Russia. Anti-Russian sentiment was encouraged and the all-powerful Catholic Church exerted all its influence to oppose Russia and Godless Communism. The ruling landlords were more than happy to support such policies. As early as 1921, thanks in part to the foolishly provocative machinations of Trotsky, Poland went to war with Soviet Russia and seized a large chunk of territory which the USSR did not recover for 20 years. In the decade prior to WW2, while Nazi Germany developed its armed might and prepared for a war of imperial conquest, a war in which the German army would of necessity have to pass through Poland, landlords Poland prepared for war not with Germany but with its large neighbour Russia. Polish cavalry rehearsed invading the Russian steppe, Polish governments refused to co-operate with any moves to restrict German aggression, Polish diplomacy supported every anti-Soviet action. At Munich, Poland even seized its share of Czechoslovakia, blind to what was clearly looming on its own horizon. Although Britain and France had both guaranteed Polands security, only the USSR was in a position to actually do so and that the Polish gentry resolutely refused to countenance. So when Hitler finally invaded and the Anglo-French guarantees proved in fact to be worthless, the Polish government fled the country. The Red Army moved to occupy the territory seized by Poland in 1921 and deny it to the invading Nazis. Thousands of Polish Jews were evacuated to the east. When they returned at the end of the war, they were shocked to find themselves reviled by Polish Catholics, who pelted their trains with stones and shouted at them to Go home we dont want you here! Poland was almost the only European country where the Communists were unable to unify the anti-Nazi Resistance movement. Polish workers and poor peasants, led by the Communists, formed a partisan army to fight the Nazis but anti-Communist and anti-Soviet Polish nationalists formed the Armia Krajowa (the notorious AK). The latter was far more interested in fighting Communists than Nazis, with whom they were politically in sympathy. Specially trained groups of AK terrorists waylaid and murdered Red Army soldiers and spokesmen for the [Soviet-backed] Warsaw regime. ... AK terrorists killed 594 Red Army officers and men over a period of eight months ...(Sayers & Kahn, The Great Comspiracy). The Catholic Church in Poland was fiercely anti-Communist as well as anti-Jewish. The Nazi propaganda that had equated Jews and Communists was eagerly absorbed by the priest-ridden Polish nationalists. After the war, the country was awash with weapons and the former members of the Armia Krajova and bandit groups such as the so-called Forrest Brothers were easily able to turn to terrorism in their attempts to stop the formation of collective farms or the establishment of state or collective enterprises. Communist activists were assassinated with frightening frequency. When the Nazis retreated from Eastern Europe, the Abwehr left cells of intelligence agents behind to organise espionage and sabotage for after the war. This network was taken over in full by the US. Nowhere did it have as much support as in Poland, thanks in large part to the unfortunate role of the Catholic Church. Like all the Socialist countries, post-war Poland had to exist in conditions of economic and political siege. This inevitably caused problems, but these could have been surmounted as they have been in Cuba, for example, if the Party had had the full support of the people. In Poland, however, the Partys support was patchy at best. US and other imperialist intelligence agencies worked assiduously behind the scenes and US propaganda services worked openly and equally assiduously to destabilise Socialist Poland, disrupt its economy and discredit Socialism itself. The demagogue Lech Walesa was able to opportunistically use real grievances in the Gdansk shipyards to create an anti-Communist union, which he called Solidarity and which imperialism and the ultra-left embraced with equal delight. After 1989, and the overthrow of Socialism in most of Eastern Europe, an outcome greatly facilitated by the machinations of Gorbachev, Lech Walesa became President of the new anti-Communist Poland. The term Communist and Communist symbols such as the hammer and sickle were banned and still are. Democratic elections were held under conditions that guaranteed success for a far-right government, which has taken Poland into NATO, engaged in joint exercises with the US rehearsing a war against Russia, and overseen the destruction of the countrys ship-building industry. Poland is now economically subservient to Germany where many of its workers must now seek employment if they do not want to starve. Astonishingly, in these conditions, Polands far-right government at the behest of the Catholic Church has sought to overturn some of the basic rights that date back to the countrys Socialist past. The Church has proposed a new law that would make it almost impossible for women to get abortions. That the Catholic Church, or indeed any church, can put forward laws is itself a sad commentary on the countrys political situation, dominated as it is by right-wing extremism. But all is not lost. Thousands of Polish women declared a national strike against the new law. Over 5,000 angry women marched in Warsaw on what they dubbed Black Monday in mourning for their reproductive rights with signs reading, We want doctors not missionaries and A government is not like a pregnancy it can be terminated. Protests in solidarity have been held in other countries, alarmed at this retrograde grab for power by a Catholic Church seeking to reclaim the untrammelled power it had in parts of Europe before WW2. Polands progressives are determined that it shall not succeed. Sussex News Story Saved You can find this story in My Bookmarks. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. Flash The Chinese government has donated two million U.S. dollars to the World Food Programme (WFP) for its humanitarian work in Somalia, where a drought has deteriorated food security situation. A ceremony was held in the Somali capital Mogadishu by the WFP Somalia on Tuesday to thank the Chinese government for the donation. WFP Somalia Country Director Laurent Bukera said Somalia is facing "unpredictable weather shocks" that have caused a drought and affected harvests in many parts of the country. He said the donation by China would be used to provide access to nutritious and curative food for malnourished children and mothers. "We are honored to be in the company of China, which has an even longer history of partnership with Somalia and this contribution is evidence of these excellent ties," said Bukera. Chinese ambassador to Somalia, Wei Hongtian, said at the ceremony: "China has been and will continue to be a firm partner and supporter to the Somali government and UN agencies including the WFP." He said he hoped the donation would help those needy mothers and children. On behalf of the Somali government, Abdirashid Mohamed Hidig, State Minister of Interior and Federal Affairs of Somalia, expressed appreciation to the Chinese government, adding that the government and people of China had long supported Somalia's development. A UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report issued in September says five million people in Somalia are not getting enough food, which is more than 40 percent of the country's population. Among them, over 300,000 children under five are acutely malnourished. Channel programs News Accenture Buys International Consultancy To Help Banks Build Digital Capabilities Jimmy Sheridan Share this Channel giant Accenture has acquired London-based consultancy Allen International to help its banking clients reinvent their physical branches with new digital networks and digital capabilities. The Dublin-based company, No. 2 on the 2016 CRN Solution Provider 500 list, said Allen will help banks transform their digital offerings and networks in their branches to reduce costs, increase revenues and better engage customers. "Our acquisition of Allen International will expand and complement our capabilities to help banks make the branch a physical manifestation of the digital experience," Sushil Saluja, Accenture Senior Managing Director said in a statement. [Related: Accenture Scoops Up Another Cloud Provider, Acquiring Top Workday Partner ] He added banks have to clearly understand what the role and value of their branches are so they can be sure that it fits best into their customer's lives. The acquisition of Allen will give Accenture the tools to help banks for banks reduce their distribution costs by an average of 30 percent, while still maintaining customer engagement, he said. Accenture will also benefit from Allen's history in the vertical, he said, noting that the company has worked with more than 350 banks around the world. This acquisition strengthens Accentures current distribution transformation offering, which analyzes how banks interact with its customers, according to a statement from Accenture. Accenture has been working with banks to help them transform physical locations and branches by providing the kind of interactive, multimedia experience consumers are beginning to expect. Banks need to ensure they have the appropriate digital capabilities to handle the demands of customers that prefer online to in-person interactions. Combining Accentures deep financial services, distribution and marketing expertise and scalability with Allen Internationals digital and physical banking experience will enable banks across Europe to optimize branch networks strategically. However, Accenture also reported that although many customers utilize digital services offered by their banks, nearly 70 percent of banking customers still rely on physical bank branches to make decisions about their money according to a study Accenture published in 2015. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. This acquisition was Accenture's twentieth in the last 12 months, with a heavy focus on security, vertical practices and growing capabilities around Salesforce. This acquisition is the company's eighth digital transformation consultancy acquisition within the last 12 months. Components & Peripherals News Epson Exec: Demand Exploding for Tablet-Based Point of Sale Systems Michael Novinson Share this Solution providers must embrace mobile point of sale (POS) devices to help retailers improve in-store customer experiences, same store sales and to avoid losing (more) business to Amazon. That's what Epson North America's director of commercial channel sales, Tom Kettell, told more than 200 solution providers at the ScanSource Partner Summit on Tuesday. Epson's mobile POS business has, for the first time, surpassed its traditional, fixed-location POS business as many mom and pop shops have ripped out their electronic cash registers and replaced them with table-based systems, Kettell said. [RELATED: ScanSource-Intelisys Deal Shines Light On Solution Selling, Hardware Opportunities for Agent Partners] The mobile POS business is expected to grow from $2 billion in 2015 to $38 billion in 2024, with analysts projecting a 36 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) between now and 2019, Kettell said at the conference here in Greenville, S.C. While hardware and software are bundled together for traditional POS devices, Kettell said the hardware and software are independent of one another in mobile POS systems, with many software providers focused solely on creating software and having little to any interest in the hardware sale. Mom and pop shops are happy to rip out their electronic cash registers and replace them with mobile payment terminals, but Kettell said a rip-and-replace model would be very expensive for major retailers, who would prefer to incorporate mobile technology into their existing infrastructure. Retailers, though, are very focused on figuring out ways to enhance their customer experience so customers can make their final purchase in the store, Kettell said, rather than doing their brick-and-mortar research in a store and then making the purchase off Amazon with one-day shipping. Nordstrom has succeeded with this, Kettell said, as the upscale department store company has sought to improve its customer experience by having its sales associates walking around each department with a tablet that can check customers out rather than forcing customers to go to a fixed cash register and wait in line. Similarly, Kettell said Best Buy ran a pilot where the consumer electronics retailer brought a mobile cart of tablets to an area of the store where a major sale was taking place to try and take advantage of impulse buys before the customer left the department. In the hospitality sector, Kettell said bigger restaurants are increasingly turning to mobility to enhance their customer experience. For instance, he said that a steakhouse at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas gives customers an iPad with their wine list, allowing them to research and order wine directly from the table without having to interact the server. POS resellers must become more sophisticated as the customer demand for mobile and completely wireless payment terminals grows, said Bobbi Boyer, a hardware sales specialist for Aptos, an Atlanta-based ScanSource partner. Support and integrating mobile POS offerings is more difficult, Boyer said. The hardware and software are typically developed separately, and the setup is expected not to involve any wires, he said. Channel programs News Michael Dell's Vision For Partners: 'It's You And Your Customers' Driving The Future Of The World Matt Brown Share this Dell Technologies Founder, Chairman and CEO Michael Dell's vision for the future of the IT industry is so forward-looking that he wonders if people can adapt to technology as quickly as new technologies are being developed. He also envisions an important role for channel partners in that tech-forward future. During a Q&A with partners during the Dell EMC Partner Summit held at the Dell EMC World conference in Austin, Texas this week, Dell took the opportunity to comment on his vision for the next decade or two. [Related: CRN Exclusive: Channel Chief Byrne On The New Dell EMC Unified Program, 'Zero Tolerance' For Violating Deal Registration And Fixing Unrealistic EMC Partner Sales Targets] In the past, the aim of technology was to help businesses automate processes, or to make businesses more efficient, he said. "Now, you say we want to re-imagine the company with all this digital information," Dell said. "I don't think anybody really knows what it means, and fortunately, we don't necessarily have to predict all that. We're going to provide the infrastructure for the digital future, but it's you and your customers that are going to create and do all the combinatorial inventions that will result in the big improvements that are coming in the world." Dell tackled the explosion of data, saying one of the key challenges for the industry is helping customers figure out how to use the data they produce. "What are you going to do with all this data?" Dell asked. "When you apply artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning; there's also something new occurring called unstructured learning. This isn't so much people learning in an unstructured way, I'm all for that, too. This is computers learning in an unstructured way. "So, you release computers on your data and as you get more computing power, the computing engines are discovering correlations among the data that are beyond the comprehension of normal mathematical human beings. It's a very interesting field of computer science. I think there's going to be all kinds of things like that. "I think the intersection of the biosciences and the information sciences is incredibly exciting. There are questions: Can people adapt as quickly as the technology is changing? We couldn't be more excited about the opportunities ahead and I actually think it's just the beginning of our industry in that sense." Partners said Dell's grand vision, and the success he's had so far in bringing Dell and EMC together bode well for the future of the channel. Chris Kelleher, director of strategic alliances at Insight, a large solution provider that works with Dell EMC, said the opportunities are huge for partners that are positioned correctly. "What's really exciting about everything coming together is the breadth of the market that we're going to have the ability to go penetrate," Kelleher said. "Existing Dell customers, we're going to be able to go talk to them about EMC and vice versa, it just really opens things up with respect to the channel. Partners like Insight that have traditionally sold both are going to be really well positioned going forward." Bob Olwig, vice president of business development and innovation at World Wide Technology, a large solution provider that works with Dell EMC, said Dell's visibility, willingness to talk to partners and clear love of technology is a good sign for the future. "It's not a one-and-done with Michael Dell," Olwig said. "He's very visible, very participatory. He's engaged. The breadth of the portfolio, he believes it, and I think he believes its a great opportunity for partners to share in that." The Dell EMC World conference is taking place in Austin this week. It's the first major conference since Dell completed its landmark, $58 billion acquisition of EMC in early September, and the event has attracted scores of channel partners from around the world. Suppose youre on the TV game show, Jeopardy!. Youre tied with the reigning champion, and theres one category left: Famous Bible Characters. Ive got this, you think, making a mental list of the bigger-than-life characters from your fifth-grade Sunday school class: Adam and Eve, Moses, Abraham, David, Solomon. Oh, the Daily Double bells are ringing in your ears. But just as youre about to press the buzzer and select Famous Bible Characters for $100, you look again. Oh no, it doesnt say Famous Bible Characters, it says Not-So-Famous Bible Characters. Could you still rattle off a list, or would your buzzer stay silent while your opponent walks away with the win? If your knowledge of obscure Bible personalities is a little lacking, or if youre interested in learning more about real people who stood behind the spotlight instead of in it, check out this short list of amazing yet under-recognized Old Testament characters. Abigail, the Wife of Nabal Abigail is truly amazing. We read her story in 1 Samuel 25, where the Bible describes her as an intelligent and beautiful woman (v. 3). Unfortunately, she was married to a sorry, good-for-nothing man named Nabal, a homesteader who made his living raising sheep. The Bible describes him as surly and mean in his dealings. Enter King David, before he was king. He and his band of renegades had been hanging out in the wilderness hiding from King Saul, who was trying to kill him. In their wanderings, they encountered Nabals flocks and shepherds. Not all outlaws are bad, and such was the case with David and his men. Since they were an army of fighting men camping out in the wilderness with nothing to do, they decided to keep their skills sharp by guarding Nabals sheep from marauders. These men were very good to us, one of the servants told Abigail, They did not mistreat us, and the whole time we were out in the fields near them nothing was missing. Night and day they were a wall around us (v. 15-16). When shearing time came, David sent a message to Nabal, asking if hed send over a few legs of lamb in gratitude for their protection. Nabal sent Davids messengers packing, hurling insults at them. The Bible doesnt record exactly what Nabal said, but when the messengers repeated his words to David, he was enraged. "It's been uselessall my watching over this fellow's property in the desert so that nothing of his was missing. He has paid me back evil for good. May God deal with David, be it ever so severely, if by morning I leave alive one male of all who belong to him!" (v. 21-22). He mustered his troops and prepared to destroy Nabal and his household. And this is where Abigail shines on the pages of biblical history: Quick thinking and resourceful, she piled bread, meat, and raisin cakes onto donkeys and headed out to meet David. When she saw him, she dismounted and bowed her face to the ground. Falling at his feet, she said, "My lord, let the blame be on me alone. Please let your servant speak to you; hear what your servant has to say. May my lord pay no attention to that wicked man Nabal. He is just like his namehis name is Fool, and folly goes with him. But as for me, your servant, I did not see the men my master sent. She affirmed Davids calling as future king, begged forgiveness for her husbands folly, and pleaded with him to spare her people. David accepted her eloquent and humble plea and received the food she brought. Ten days later, God struck Nabal dead. When David heard of Nabals demise, he wasted no time and promptly asked Abigail to marry him. Im not sure what the traditional period of mourning was in those days, but I dont think Abigail observed it. Scripture tell us, Abigail quickly got on a donkey and, attended by her five maids, went with David's messengers and became his wife (v. 42). Abigails story contains a Cinderella ending by any centurys standards. Ittai the Gittite Fast forward in biblical history a few decades, and you come to the story of Absaloms rebellion in 2 Samuel 15. David had been king of Israel for many years. Unbeknownst to him, his son Absalom had been turning the hearts of the people away from his father in order to overthrow his reign and steal the throne. Picture the scene as the aging King David, his family, counselors, and loyal followers fled the palace to escape Absaloms murderous coup. Heartbroken, eyes downcast, and clothes torn in mourning, David stops in surprise when he sees Ittai the Gittite, a foreigner who had only recently arrived in Jerusalem, along with his family and servants. "Why should you come along with us? he asked. Go back and stay with King Absalom. You are a foreigner, an exile from your homeland. You came only yesterday. And today shall I make you wander about with us, when I do not know where I am going? Go back, and take your countrymen. May kindness and faithfulness be with you" (v. 19-20). And this is where Ittai the Gittite shines on the pages of biblical history: But Ittai replied to the king, As surely as the LORD lives, and as my lord the king lives, wherever my lord the king may be, whether it means life or death, there will your servant be. "Then David said to Ittai, Go ahead, march on. So Ittai the Gittite marched on with all his men and the families that were with him (v. 21-22). Faithful Ittai wins the distinction for Most Loyal New Friend, encourages David, and secures a spot in my list of amazing yet under-recognized Old Testament individuals. Shiphrah and Puah Now I can almost guarantee these two ladies wont end up on your short list of easily recognized Bible characters, but the nation of Israel owes them a debt of gratitude. Shiphrah and Puah were two of the midwives assigned to attend Israelite women during childbirth in the years preceding the exodus. Scholars disagree about whether they were Hebrew or Egyptian, but they all agree that these women were courageous. You may remember that during the time of Joseph, the Israelites enjoyed favor before Pharaoh and his court. After he died, however, another pharaoh took his place. As the Israelites population increased, the Egyptians felt increasingly threatened and feared the Israelites would take over the nation. To limit their population growth, the king of Egypt gave the midwives a chilling order: "When you help the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live" (Ex. 1:16). But Shiphrah and Puah feared God. They refused to do what the king of Egypt ordered. Deliberately disobeying their leaders command, they delivered each tiny newborn with all the skill and ability they possessed. Before long, their disobedience came to the attention of the king, and he summoned them to stand before him. Why have you done this? he asked. Why have you let the boys live?" (v. 18). This is where Shiphrah and Puah shine on the pages of biblical history: Not only were they God-fearing, they were also wise. While they recognized their responsibility to obey their leaders, they also understood that Gods law supersedes mans law. They knew they could not sin against God by killing the Hebrew babies. Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women, they said to Pharaoh. They are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive." Scripture tells us God smiled on their courage and commitment to do what was right. He was kind to the midwives... and because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own (v. 20-21). Shiphrah and Puah are powerful, though obscure, examples of doing whats right no matter what the cost. I hope this short list of little-known Bible characters has inspired you to crack open the pages of Scripture and read the rest of their stories. You never know, the Daily Double might just ask you to name Nabals quick-thinking wife or King Davids new loyal friend. Jeopardy! questions aside, its important to remember that obscure doesnt mean insignificant in the kingdom of God. If he can use a quick-thinking housewife, a loyal new friend, and two courageous midwives in his great plan of redemption, imagine what he will do with you. Lori Hatcher is a blogger, inspirational speaker, and author of the Christian Small Publishers 2016 Book of the Year, Hungry for God Starving for Time, Five-Minute Devotions for Busy Women. A Toastmasters International contest-winning speaker, Loris goal is to help busy women connect with God in the craziness of everyday life. She especially loves small children, soft animals, and chocolate. Youll find her pondering the marvelous and the mundane on her blog, Hungry for God... Starving for Time. Connect with her on Facebook, Twitter (@lorihatcher2) or Pinterest (Hungry for God). Photo courtesy: Thinkstockphotos.com Publication date: October 19, 2016 You are here: Home Flash Yemen's dominant Shiite Houthi group and its ally of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh's party welcomed on Tuesday a United Nations-proposed 72-hour ceasefire to facilitate humanitarian aid access to the war-stricken Arab country. A security member checks a car in the old city of Sanaa, Yemen, on Oct. 18, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] The ceasefire between Houthi fighters and their rival Saudi-backed exiled government forces was declared by the United Nations on Monday to take effect at 2359 local time (2059 GMT) on Wednesday. "The Supreme Political Council (a governing body composed of top officials from Houthi group and Saleh's party) welcomes the ceasefire without preconditions and demands immediate stop to the (Saudi-led coalition) aggression and lift of the air, sea and land blockade imposed on the Yemeni people," said the Houthi group and Saleh's party in a joint statement carried by Saba news agency late on Tuesday. On Monday, the exiled President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi agreed to the 72-hour ceasefire, according to a statement by his government's Foreign Minister Abdul-Malik Mekhlafi. The minister demanded Houthis lift siege to the southern city of Taiz and access of humanitarian supplies to the war-torn city. The 19-month civil war have killed over 10,000 people, mostly civilians, and pushed the country's 26 million people to near famine. In its first full year selling health insurance policies in Connecticut, Massachusetts carrier Harvard Pilgrim Health Care made a dent in the market but only just barely, piling up members at a fifth of the pace of market titan Anthem BlueCross BlueShield. Wellesley, Mass.-based Harvard Pilgrim signed up about 22,000 members in 2015, according to the newest data that the Connecticut Insurance Department releases annually in mid-October. This was in addition to about 600 it picked up in late 2014 as Harvard Pilgrim entered the Connecticut market for the first time. The company had hired Fairfield resident and former ConnectiCare CEO Mickey Herbert as a consultant to help it gain early traction in Connecticut. Herbert this week was named the new CEO of the Bridgeport Regional Business Council, beginning in November. Across all carriers it tracks, the Connecticut Insurance Department reported just over 2.4 million health policies in force for 2015, a slight reduction from the year before. The reduction was due primarily to four companies omitted from the data that are letting their membership base dwindle away as they exit the market; and the omission of Wallingford-based Healthy CT, an insurance cooperative that is in the process of shutting down after being subjected to sharp increases in federal payments under the Affordable Care Act. The arrival of the nonprofit Harvard Pilgrim was considered a major coup for Connecticut, as market power coalesces in the hands of Indianapolis-based Anthem, which added more than 100,000 members last year to give it 1.2 million in all, leaving it just shy of the 50 percent mark in Connecticut market share. The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit seeking to block a proposed merger between Anthem (NYSE: ANTM) and Cigna, which shed nearly 120,000 members in Connecticut last year to leave it with a 15 percent market share, down from nearly 20 percent in 2014. More Information Health insurance market share in Connecticut Select underwriters, ranked by change in membership Underwriter 2015 Share 2014 Share Change Anthem 1.2 million 49.9% 1.1 million 44.3% 106,500 Harvard Pilgrim 22,500 0.9% 600 0.02% 22,000 ConnectiCare 239,000 9.9% 228,000 9.2% 11,000 Oxford/UnitedHealth 175,500 7.3% 168,000 6.8% 7,500 Aetna 399,000 16.5% 458,000 18.5% -59,000 Cigna 370,000 15.3% 489,000 19.7% -119,000 See More Collapse The deal would be subject to the approval of the state of Connecticut, with the states insurance commissioner Katharine Wade recusing herself last month from the process after a state panel scrutinized the possibility of any conflict of interest due to her prior employment with Cigna where her spouse remains an executive today. Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-354-1047; www.twitter.com/casoulman Since this years presidential election has been characterized with bullying, torment, poor behavior and foul language, I cant help but keep listening to Broadway show tunes to keep my spirit alive in the classroom. For some time now Ive been humming in my head, How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria? from The Sound of Music because the melody is friendly and welcoming. For me, accentuating the positive what Michelle Obama calls the high road seems to work. It is also a strategy our current superintendent, Fran Rabinowitz, has upheld since her arrival to the district. Maybe thats why Ive enjoyed her leadership. Or maybe its because she treats everyone with civility. When I won the Beard Excellence in Teaching Award in 2014, part of the achievement was to serve in an advisory capacity to the superintendent. I love to advocate for my colleagues, my profession and my students. No such committee existed before Fran Rabinowitz because previous superintendents, perhaps, did not feel it was necessary. Fran started the Superintendents Advisory Council because she believes in the importance of teacher voices for creating a successful school district. She upholds the community as members of the larger democracy. Its not just Beard Award winners she meets with, either; she solicits feedback from teachers district-wide. Rabinowitz is in tune with teachers, the senior leadership team, her administrators, and, most importantly, her students. She personally takes time out of her busy schedule to advocate for the work we do. In fact, she came to watch my students dress rehearsals for our productions of Prospect High: Brooklyn and 12 Angry Jurors. She could have left at intermission, but that is not the integrity she upholds. She stayed until the very end of the rehearsals so she could personally congratulate each and every cast member. In fact, I have a picture of her surrounded by my cast that radiates the joy she felt from being our district leader. The kids in Bridgeport have had a fierce advocate in Fran. The numbers speak volumes about the direction she envisioned for our community. Our students math and reading scores are showing growth over the last two years on district-wide benchmark tests and suspension rates are categorically low. By introducing the importance of socio-emotional on the learning process, too, Fran has made Bridgeport a model district for how to address mental health in the classroom of high needs school districts such as ours. In my own work at Central High School, Ive begun to see more confident students with an understanding of their emotions making better decisions. Weve felt it, too, at the staff level. Ive always felt we were a family at Central High School. I give credit to the outstanding leadership Eric Graf has provided us. But its also easy to feel Frans presence when Eric starts every staff meeting asking the teachers and staff, How are we doing today? Although Im saddened, like many, that Fran Rabinowitz will leave Bridgeport Public Schools, I hope her many contributions, like The Mood Meter, remain. In the last few years Ive been able to meet and observe superintendents from across the country through my work with The Connecticut Writing Project. I wish I could report that such leadership is common in American schools, but sadly excellent visionaries, such as Fran Rabinowitz, are too often pushed out of a system they are working so hard to change. Anyone would be a fool to think Bridgeport Public Schools have had anything less than the best since she arrived. Fran Rabinowitz is the real deal. Anyone who has worked closely with her these past few years would recognize that the way she is portrayed by very few, uninformed individuals in the city of Bridgeport, is not how she is known by many. We have to celebrate Fran Rabinowitz for her achievements while she is still in the district with us. We must remember what she did for our children so that future superintendents can emulate her work and build on the legacy she is leaving. Fran Rabinowitz was quick to remind her employees that she was an interim, but her work ethic never showed anything other than permanent investment as a superintendent. In the meantime, as I wait to see what the future of Bridgeport Public Schools holds for my colleagues and me, Ill keep singing show tunes in my head, specifically the line from How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria? about holding a moonbeam in your hand. With the angst and negativity fluttering through the district at this time, I am thinking fondly of Fran Rabinowitz and the light she has brought to so many. Shaun Mitchell was a 2016 Connecticut Teacher of the Year finalist, a former Bridgeport Teacher of the Year and a recipient of the Theodore & Margaret Beard Excellence in Teaching Award. He teaches English at Central High School in Bridgeport, in addition to serving as a consultant for the Connecticut Writing Project - Fairfield. CultNews101.com: news, links, resources. Cults101.org: resources about cults, cultic groups, abusive relationships, movements, religions, political organizations and related topics. CultMediation.com: offers resources designed to help thoughtful families and friends understand and respond to the complexity of a loved ones cult involvement. Intervention101.com: to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement. CultRecovery101.com: assists group members and their families make the sometimes difficult transition from coercion to renewed individual choice. These real PA creatures could become cryptids if we don't save them Labour MP Dennis Skinner, 84, is the subject of a forthcoming documentary film, The Nature of the Beast. His former colleague, John Prescott, 76, announces via Twitter: 1.5K short of amount to get Dennis Skinner film finished. 10 gets your name on the credits. 30 = credit & DVD. Go! With his customary grace, Skinner isnt overcome with gratitude. Prescott needs a stick to walk now, he points out. A documentary film about Labour MP Dennis Skinner, pictured, is 1,500 short Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter says Donald Trump, posing in a luxurious, 1,000 plus Loro Piana cashmere sweater for one of the magazines photoshoots, was asked to take it off but refused, thinking it might disturb his extraordinary, comb-over hairstyle. So they had to cut the sweater off his back. Does The Donald wear a hairnet at night? Buzzfeed UKs editor-in-chief, Janine Gibson, 44, pictured, says the news website rejected the story of Jeremy Corbyn having to sit on the floor of a train when a Labour activist offered it. Anthony Casey, she says, attached a load of conditions around the words and wanted it written his way. Asked if she was surprised by The Guardians decision to publish it, Ms Gibson says: Im not going to comment on The Guardian. Interestingly, she hoped to become its editor in succession to Alan Rusbridger. Indeed she was his favourite. But the staffs candidate, Katharine Viner, 45, got the job. I expect Ms Gibson is heartbroken that Ms Viner later had to print a humiliating apology for printing as news a misleading tale concocted by Corbynistas. Jeremy Paxman, 66, who quit BBC2s Newsnight in 2014, complains on Radio 5 Live about news presenters: Have you noticed this fashion for people in television studios standing up? Why are they standing up? Why arent they sitting down? Its just ridiculous! The old boy had good reason to be against standing up. He suffers from wonky knees. While Sir Cliff Richard, 76, expressed his grievances against the BBC in Parliament this week hes also suing the corporation its forgotten that the Beeb originally hoped its live report of the 2014 raid on his Berkshire home would win awards. The appallingly intrusive Sir Cliff coverage, involving film of his home from a helicopter, produced in cahoots with South Yorkshire Police, was nominated disgracefully for Scoop of the Year at the 2015 Royal Television Society Awards. Mercifully, it didnt win. The BBC hoped its coverage of the raid on Sir Cliff Richard's home, pictured, would win journalism awards Tory legend Norman Tebbit fears his old party might be hijacked by extremists. Writing in the Left-wing New Statesman, the life peer, now 85, worries that the Conservative Party in the country could be taken over in the way that Labour has been hijacked by Trots, Marxists and delusionals. The tweet has already been retweeted over 300 times in just a day The five-year old has created a much ruder series of Mr Men characters A mother has posted a picture of her five-year-old son's brand new take on the original Mr Men series of children's books. Writer Anna Mazzola, who lives in London, took to Twitter to share her son's artwork and revealed: 'I'm not sure whether to be appalled or proud.' The picture features new Mr Men characters who go by the names of Mr Testicles, Miss Boobs and Miss Bottom as well as Mr Anus, Miss Wee and Mr Fart. Anna Mazzola tweeted the above picture of her son's artwork and said she wasn't sure whether to be appalled or proud They make up a much ruder series of the Mr Men children's classics but the Internet seems to approve of them. In just a day, Anna's tweet has already been liked nearly 1,000 times and retweeted nearly 500 times. The series of 16 new Mr Men characters has been welcomed by Twitter and the responses have been wholly positive. Gemma asked mother Anna: 'In comparison to all your wonderful authorly/writerly tweets, has this one by your son been your most popular to date?' The picture showed a different and much naughtier version of the Mr Men children's classics we have come to know and love Una said that the drawing might be 'one of the greatest things I've ever seen' although Ms Vagina 'doesn't look too healthy' Anna reluctantly replied saying yes, 'Anuses. This is what people really want.' Abir Mukherjee told the mother her son will be a millionaire someday and that she should be proud. Another pointed out that her personal favourites were Miss Wee and Mr Snot. She then followed it up by saying: 'Vivid colours, excellent artwork. A+'. Una took to Twitter to say 'This may be one of the greatest things I've ever seen. '(Ms Vagina doesn't look too healthy, though, tbh)'. Mr Anus seemed popular with people on Twitter and even led to one woman inhaling a piece of pasta because she was laughing so hard Anna had to resign herself to the fact that her son's artwork has been vastly more successful than any of her usual literary tweets. She signed off by saying: 'You should all be ashamed.' One Twitter user said they were coping with the pictures until they got to Mr Anus and then proceeded to laugh so hard they inhaled a piece of pasta. Sarah B says: 'Miss Tung. Genius. Although amongst all the sniggering hilarity I'm finding Mr Drane a bit sinister to be honest.' Eventually, the boy's mother tweeted again and said: 'So this tweet, about Mr Anus and Miss Boobs has been bastly more successful than any of my usual literary tweets. In November, 2013, 35-year-old Chris Boyd died after being bitten by a Great White shark while surfing at Umbies surf break in Gracetown, Western Australia. His former girlfriend, Krystle Westwood, was told of the tragedy by police when she arrived at the beach parking lot shortly afterwards. Now, three years on, the 29-year-old has revealed how Mr Boyd's memory inspired her to start up her own women's adventure brand, Mermaids Down Under. Tragic: In November, 2013, 35-year-old Chris Boyd (right) died after being bitten by a Great White shark while surfing at Umbies surf break in Gracetown, Western Australia Moving forward: Now, three years on, Mr Boyd's former girlfriend Krystle Westwood revealed how Mr Boyd's memory inspired her to start up her own women's adventure brand Shortly before Mr Boyd passed away, Ms Westwood was working as a manager for a winery, yet felt like she needed to do more with her life. 'When Chris passed, I saw it as the universe saying, "Bang, you have to make a change. If you dont make a change you will fall straight back into that",' Ms Westwood told PerthNow. 'It inspired me to look outside the box, to have your own gig, to try and move forward.' Inspired: 'When Chris passed, I saw it as the universe saying, "Bang, you have to make a change. If you dont make a change you will fall straight back into that",' Ms Westwood said Moving forward: 'It inspired me to look outside the box, to have your own gig, to try and move forward,' she said Ms Westwood launched her business to 'help others enjoy the sea' and this week, she launched a line of women's wetsuits designed for surfers, divers and spearfishers. The ocean-loving conservation advocate said the wetsuits have 'attitude' and hopes they empower the women who wear them. 'Designed for the wild woman at heart. A woman who is not afraid to challenge herself, push her limits and enjoy life to the fullest. An independent woman who aspires to surf bigger waves, catch bigger fish and 4WD along rugged coastlines,' the description of one of the wetsuits reads. Mermaids: Ms Westwood launched her business to 'help others enjoy the sea' and this week, she launched a line of women's wetsuits designed for surfers, divers and spearfishers Making a difference: The ocean-loving conservation advocate said the wetsuits have 'attitude' and hopes they empower the women who wear them 'Desert dreamer lives for the ocean. She thrives on solitary coastline where the desert meets the sea. She lives to explore.' Shortly after Mr Boyd's death, Ms Westwood quit her job and moved further north to Exmouth to come to terms with everything that had happened and start fresh. 'I was at work the day it happened and I had had a few phone calls from friends asking whether I had heard about the attack,' Ms Westwood told 60 Minutes in 2014. 'He's really helped me': But while up north, 12 months on from the incident, Ms Westwood unexpectedly found love again with professional surfer and fisherman, Ry Craike 'When I walked up the hill [towards the beach] there were about six police officers there and I just walked up the hill staring blankly. 'I said "can you please tell me who it was" and then they grabbed me and I just went crazy. I feel like everything's been taken off me... I feel like I've got nothing.' But while up north, 12 months on from the incident, Ms Westwood unexpectedly found love again with professional surfer and fisherman, Ry Craike. These include covering up, talk of bottles and how best to be a mother Having spoken to mothers, she collated the top 10 worst comments As many breastfeeding women will know, everyone has an opinion on it Whether it's your partner, brother, friend or grandmother, when you have a new baby, it can often seem as though everyone has an opinion. One of the most popular subjects on which people like to air their views is breastfeeding. How you do it, when you do it, why you do it and how long for are all popular conversation starters. FEMAIL spoke to Melbourne-based parenting expert and mother of five, Pinky McKay, to hear the top things to avoid mentioning to a woman who is breastfeeding. She collated the information by speaking to countless mums in Australia. Don't say you haven't been warned. Opinionated: FEMAIL spok to Melbourne-based parenting expert and mother of five, Pinky McKay, who collated the top things to avoid mentioning to a woman who is breastfeeding WHAT NOT TO SAY TO A BREASTFEEDING MUM * Shouldn't you cover up? * Once you stop your baby will sleep better * It takes too much out of you * Is he or she hungry AGAIN? * How do you know your milk hasn't gone off? * He's using you as a dummy * There is no goodness in your milk after... * If you give them a bottle, can't other people feed him or her? * What, have you stopped breastfeeding already? * Mooooooooo Advertisement SHOULDN'T YOU COVER UP? 'Wouldn't you feel more comfortable if you covered yourself up as you feed?,' is one of the things Ms McKay hears a lot. 'Don't you really mean: "If I cover myself up YOU will feel more comfortable",' she told Daily Mail Australia. 'Do these people think you should stay barefoot in the kitchen now you are a mother, just in case your baby dares to feel peckish? Sorry folks, but women need to go out and do things.' Ms McKay says that for the people who say that women should cover themselves, the best retaliation is to ask them to throw a blanket over their heads. Yup. ONCE YOU STOP YOUR BABY WILL SLEEP BETTER 'Are you sure? Because if he doesn't I won't be able to just whip a boob into his mouth and make him go back to sleep,' says Ms McKay. The mum of five says that babies wake for all sorts of reasons, from teething to allergies and sickness, and they don't go away just because you wean. 'It's better to try and address the reasons why your baby is waking before you ditch the easiest solution - a boob,' she says. Commonplace: Ms McKay says common things that she hears are people asking breastfeeding mums to cover up: she also hears people say babies sleep better when bottle fed IT TAKES TOO MUCH OUT OF YOU Mums and experts alike will tell anyone who says that breastfeeding makes you tired that being in charge of a baby 24/7 is exhausting: 'It's got nothing to do with how you feed your baby'. 'At least when you're breastfeeding you get to sit down and relax a few times a day!,' Ms McKay says. 'If you are feeling depleted, have your iron and thyroid levels checked, eat healthy foods, especially breakfast, exercise and rest when you can to help maintain your energy levels and enjoy this precious time.' IS HE HUNGRY AGAIN? Pinky McKay says that, among the mums she asked, this question was one of their top bugbears. 'If you are feeling depleted, have your iron and thyroid levels checked, eat healthy foods, especially breakfast, exercise and rest when you can to help maintain your energy levels and enjoy this precious time 'Way to make a mama doubt her milk supply - question how often she's feeding her baby,' she says. 'You can't overfeed your breastfed baby,' she says. 'She will determine the consistency of the milk she gets by how she sucks. Whether your baby is hungry, thirsty, tired or upset, if he or she is seeking the boob, stick to the mantra "if in doubt, flop it out".' HOW DO YOU KNOW YOUR MILK HASN'T GONE OFF? Ms McKay advocates a shocked-looking reply to this: 'Goodness, can that happen?'. She says that of course you're making fresh milk and it will no more go off than it will curdle if you bounce around at the gym. Expert view: Other common annoying things which are commonly said to breastfeeding women include 'it takes too much out of you' and 'is he or she hungry again?' HE'S USING YOU AS A DUMMY Ms McKay says that a dummy is a fake boob, not the other way around. 'It's comfort, connection, sensory stimulation, brain food and a wonderful immune boost for your baby. 'Sometimes a baby will need to feed longer and more often if he or she is tired, hungry, sick or sad. They can't exactly explain why they need a boob, so trust them and ignore this stupid comment,' she says. THERE IS NO GOODNESS IN YOUR MILK AFTER... Whatever follows this, whether it's three months, six months or more, Pinky McKay says: 'Breastmilk doesn't have a best before date, however long you feed for, this magic potion is like medicine. 'Breast milk is like a daily vaccination against every bug your baby comes into contact with. All that goodness is still there, whatever the age of your baby. 'In fact, immune factors even increase during the second year of a baby's life.' Your baby, your business: According to Pinky McKay (pictured), how you look after your baby is fundamentally down to you - she says it's really up to the mum when they stop feeding IF YOU GIVE HIM OR HER A BOTTLE, CAN'T OTHER PEOPLE FEED? To which your response should be: 'Even at 3am?'. While some people who tell you this might genuinely be trying to be helpful, Pinky McKay says that others haven't got your best interests at heart. 'Do they really think it would be easier to express and wash pumps, tubes and bottles when you're not separated from your baby?,' she says. 'Friends and relatives can bond with your baby in other ways to give you a break, whether it's feeding, bathing or playing.' HAVE YOU STOPPED BREASTFEEDING ALREADY? Pinky McKay has few words for this type of person. 'Your boobs. Your baby. Your business.' MOOOOOOO Last but not least, are those who find this sort of comment funny. ' What an insult you are a superwoman, milk goddess, not a damn cow!,' says Ms McKay. What's the most annoying thing someone has said to you while breastfeeding? Email FemailAU@mailonline.com If you can't figure out whether you belong in the sticks or the city, a clever new tool may well have the answer. An interactive quiz aims to help users discover which of the 63 cities in England, Scotland and Wales best mirrors their lifestyle and taste. Users answer six questions and the three best-suited cities are then revealed, along with the reasons why each one is a desirable prospective location for them. Finding the dream city involves configuring 756 data points in millions of ways, taking into account everything from relationship status to household income. The quiz, which was created by Web Blinds, explains: 'Imagine a better life, with all the things you love on the doorstep Do you long to live in a city that mirrors your life and tastes? Maybe you want a big-city vibe or a coastal setting or an exciting nightlife. Its time: go find the best city for you.' The first question asks your geographical preference - whether that's the North, Midlands or South. Next, you're asked 'how young do you feel?', followed by your relationship status. After that, you have to reveal your household income, how often you like going out, whether you 'like it quiet or love the big-city thunder' and how much you like the great outdoors. An interactive quiz aims to help users discover which of the 63 cities in England, Scotland and Wales best mirrors their lifestyle and taste. It asks questions such as 'how young do you feel?' and asks you to select your relationship status It also asks you to reveal your household income, how often you like going out, whether you 'like it quiet or love the big-city thunder' and how much you like the great outdoors The tool will then work out which city you're best suited to and what it has to offer you - plus two extra options if you're not keen on the first. For example, Brighton is described as 'having it all'. 'A strong economy and great employment opportunities; a jam-packed cultural calendar; the South Downs just moments away and, of course, the beach,' reads its description. A spokesperson for Web Blinds, who created the quiz, said: 'Dreaming of finding the city that perfectly matches your tastes and lifestyle is all very well, but taking the big step and moving there requires a more detailed thought process. 'By applying data to dreams, its possible to truly understand why a city is the best place to live.' Whether they opt for a satin, ivory or lace number, most brides plump for an elegant classic gown that stands the test of time. But it seems that fashionable brides hoping to be on trend for their upcoming nuptials will be walking down the aisle in crotch-baring designs, kooky veil hats and completely sheer gowns. Indeed, if the trends at Bridal Fashion Week, which took place in New York, and the new season lookbooks are anything to go by, blushing brides will certainly be turning heads on their big day. Want to be on trend next season when you walked down the aisle? According to the new bridal trends, it's all about flashing as much flesh as possible Thought the side boob was bad? Cringed at the concept of a 'bumster' dress, which exposes your bottom cleavage a la Rihanna? Well, it just got a whole lot worse. Models at the Alon Livne White show were certainly dressed in the most daring designs, sporting the 'almost naked' look. Revealing their pelvic bones in a gown slashed from the floor to waist, the models seemed intent upon stealing the spotlight. It wasn't just legs on show, bridal models flashed plenty of cleavage and chest, too. Models at the Alon Livne White show were certainly dressed in the most daring designs, sporting the 'almost naked' look Veils, which are usually a subtle accessory, look set to take centre stage with many designers making them more important than the dress itself Bows were also big business and were added to gowns in unexpected places, including teeny-tiny bows tucked into the skirt of Reem Acra's gowns and added to the backs of other dresses Yolancris's delicate bridal gowns come with completely sheer cleavages It all started with the side boob - the subtle glimpse of bare breast revealed either by design or by accident - which quickly escalated into the extreme cleavage trend led by Miranda Kerr and Kim Kardashian. But next season's cleavage style is much, much more daring, if Bridal Fashion Week is anything to go by. The audience at the Yolancris show were given quite the eyeful as models took to the catwalk wearing delicate bridal gowns with their full frontal breasts shining through. Models wearing the layered cake style dresses flashed their assets in the sheer gowns. It seems that fashionable brides hoping to be on trend for their upcoming nuptials will be walking down the aisle in some rather interesting designs It seems that the bigger, the better for next season, with models wearing heavily layered dresses teamed with fishnet tights Many designer dresses allow room for the bride to bare their chest in dresses slashed to the naval like these Likewise, over at Vera Wang, who has designed for the likes of Kim Kardashian, models bared their chests in dresses slashed to the naval, whilst at Marchesa, ladies donned revealing dresses, too. Veils, which are usually a subtle accessory, look set to take centre stage with Viktor & Rolf releasing imagery of models dressed in full veils as long as their dresses. The designers also sent models down the runway in quirky little veil hats, whilst Alon Livne added huge white hats, which were double the size of the models themselves. Bows also look set to be big business and, as new lookbook imagery attests, will be added to gowns in unexpected places, including teeny-tiny bows tucked into skirts and added to the backs of dresses. Two bold strangers took the brave - and some might say foolhardy - step of marrying each other after meeting at the altar as Married At First Sight returned last night. But if the pairing doesn't work out, groom Clark, a business development executive, will not be short of offers after his good looks and charming manners won over an army of fans. Viewers went into a frenzy after the 26-year-old, looked stunned by his bride Melissa, saying 'you look amazing' when he first saw her - and many offered him marriage proposals of their own. Scroll down for video Student nurse Melissa, 27, was paired with business development executive Clark, 26, in the new series of Married At First Sight - despite the pair never having met before Emotional: And as the pair lock eyes for the first time they are both close to tears with Clark telling his bride: 'You look amazing' While many of the show's viewers couldn't understand why on earth the hunk was single, they uniformly shared their praise for him. Viewer @aldopacason gushed: 'This Clark guy on Married at First Sight actually seems like a dream' @aimeejaayne agreed, saying: 'Clark and Melissa on Married at First Sight are SOOOO adorable' Beth McDermid wrote: 'The reaction that Clark had when he saw Melissa on Married At First Sight is the reaction I need in my life' LauraIsabella asked: 'Where do I sign up for married at First Sight? #clark' Alexandra Power swooned, 'OMG this is literally the most emotional thing I've watched. When he said 'wow'. Natasha, from London, concurred, 'I need to find a guy like Clark, what a gent' Viewers couldn't contain their excitement over business executive Clark on Married At First Sight Emily Aspell asked, 'Is Clark not the loveliest man in the world!' Lidia Lowe revealed that the groom had been single for a while, when she admitted, 'LOL the guy on #MarriedAt FirstSight, Clark, I matched with him on Tinder back in the day. Clearly things never went right for him.' Gemma Chalcroft is also a member of his fan club, saying, 'Clark is adorable! I'd marry him.' Holly Tweddle tweeted, 'If it doesn't work out I'll marry you Clark' Ellis Taylor agreed: '100% would marry Clark' Women watched gripped as Clark met student Melissa, 27, on their wedding day itself at Islington Town Hall in north London, as part of Channel 4's social experiment. Melissa donned a sweeping white gown for the lavish ceremony at Islington Town Hall. Until their wedding all the bride and groom knew about each other were their first names Special moment: as the pair locked eyes for the first time they were both close to tears, with Clark telling his bride: 'You look amazing,' before the pair exchange their vows He was told nothing about his wife-to-be apart from her name, saying: 'Wow, that's a very nice name. I am so nervous right now.' And despite not having laid eyes on Melissa, he told cameras: 'I don't think I've ever been more ready in my life. To be committed to someone is the one thing I've been missing, massively. I don't think I've ever been more certain of anything in my entire life. I am ready to say "I do."' Davina Elizabeth appeared ready to join the show herself, writing, 'Why didn't I sign up to this? I'd well marry Clark' Siobhan Butler was equally smitten: 'Bloody hell do men like Clark exist? He's so nice... Can I marry him?' Natalie said the same, 'I'd marry Clark at first sight' Melissa makes her way to the wedding venue. She reacted in shock when she was told that experts had found her a potential love match. 'It's just crazy, oh my God,' she said The bridal party make their entrance. Clark had previously told cameras: 'I don't think I've ever been more ready in my life. To be committed to someone is the one thing I've been missing' Melissa has an emotional moment as she prepares to see her husband for the first time at the wedding venue. Later the pair bonded over the ideal 'teeth to gum ratio' and zodiac signs Lucy Gornall said: 'Good god this Clark guy on #MarriedAtFirstSight is GORGEOUS. Why is he on this!!!???' Katie McGee, however, brought a note of scepticism to bear, noting, 'If Clark was 36 I might believe he's ready to commit to one person and settle down. He's got 10 years in him yet!' Stacey Smith joined in, 'If Clark is divorced by now, I'll have him.' The couple - who tied the knot four months ago - spoke to the camera as their big day loomed, admitting to huge pre-wedding jitters. Clark told friends: 'I just hope she likes me. I can actually feel my heart in my head.' And as the pair locked eyes for the first time they were both close to tears with Clark telling his bride: 'You look amazing.' 'So do you, thank God!' she replied. The couple then exchanged a brief kiss on the cheek before exchanging vows. Only after the ceremony did they sit down with a glass of champagne and begin the awkward process of getting to know everything about each other - with Clark admitting he's relieved that his new wife has the right 'tooth to gum ratio'. He admitted to his bride that he has ploughed through 'numerous' failed relationships in his life. Before the ceremony begins, the nerves begin to set in and Clark tells friends: 'I just hope she likes me. I can actually feel my heart in my head' However, romance was very much in the air when they take to the floor for their first dance to Ray Charles' Come Rain or Shine. 'I really am the luckiest guy ever,' Clark said, before adding as they left the wedding party, 'We've known each other for less than five hours and it feels like I've known you for ages.' According to the show's formula, the pair now have five weeks to see if their marriage will work. And their fans are desperate to know how the two of them have fared since that dramatic day. Gemma Kidd gushed: 'Absolutely love Married At First Sight! Hope Clark and Melissa are together forever!' So far so good: Melissa and Clark appear the picture of happiness after their wedding. This year, producers received nearly 3,500 willing volunteers looking for love on the programme A viewer known only as Animagus admitted: 'I'm already way too invested in Clark and Melissa' Russ Peers chimed in, 'Call me an old romantic but I reckon Clark and Melissa will last' Lydia couldn't contain herself over how their relationship is going, asking: 'Come on Mel & Clark, Someone's gotta know you! Just let us know if it's happily ever after - I can't stop searching.' Natalie Duce agreed saying, 'I NEED to know if Clark and Melissa are still together... Come on, break the silence.' Guests throw confetti following the ceremony. The couple will now have to survive a honeymoon and four weeks of living as man and wife despite being complete strangers David, from London, also wished the well, saying, 'Fair play to Melissa and Clark! Hope they make it! Brave!' This year, producers received nearly 3,500 willing volunteers looking for love. By putting their trust in science and a panel of experts - psychologist Mark Coulson; sex and relationship therapist Jo Coker; evolutionary anthropologist Dr Anna Machin; and Nick Devenish, a Church of England vicar - they all hope to find the man or women of their dreams. Viewers are desperate to know how if the pair are still together a month after their nuptials Experts sift through thousands of applicants until eight singletons are set to become four couples. The five-week 'experiment' begins when the couples meet as complete strangers and marry at first sight, and continues with a honeymoon and four weeks of living together as man and wife. It concludes with 'decision day', when the couples must decide whether to stay together or seek a divorce. Instead of having surgery, Tom wanted his wife to consider alternative medicine A Married at First Sight star found herself teary-eyed when she awkwardly refused her husband's request for her to finally move back into their marital home but she was willing to put her wedding ring back on. On Tuesday night's episode of the FYI reality series, Nick Pendergrast, 32, and Sonia Granados, 33, headed to Miami's South Beach for a romantic getaway, but even they ended up sleeping in the same bed together, he was unable to convince her to come home. 'He hurt me, and I forgave him, and although it's getting a lot better, I don't want to fall back to where we were,' Sonia explained to the cameras. Scroll down for video Breaking the news: Sonia Granados, 33, told her husband Nick Pendergrast, 32, that she wouldn't be moving back in with him on Tuesday's episode of Married at First Sight Hesitation: Sonia explained that although she has forgiven him for calling her unattractive, she wasn't ready to go back to their marital home At the start of the episode, Sonia gushed that Nick has been 'amazing', but she still wasn't ready to put herself out there again just yet. The Miami-based couple, who spent the night at the Eden Roc Hotel, kicked off their staycation with a tandem bike ride, which made Sonia a bit nervous at first. The social worker told the cameras that she was worried about Nick leading them, but in the end they had a great time together. Sonia said they've been more comfortable and at ease with each other, which is a far cry from the explosive fight they got into two weeks before. Staycation: During the episode, the couple headed to South Beach for a getaway in their home city of Miami Out and about: Sonia and Nick had a great time riding a tandem bicycle through the streets When they returned to the hotel, Sonia pulled out all the stops while getting ready for dinner. She put on her low-cut 'freak-em' dress and donned red lipstick to see if Nick would notice that she was decked to the nines. She explained that they after they had sex, Nick yelled that he thought she was unattractive, and although she had forgiven him, it was clear she was still affected by his cruel words. However, Sonia's plan worked, and as soon as she stepped outside the bathroom, Nick said: 'Wow. Hey, you look beautiful.' Nick also told the cameras that he was 'blown away' by how his wife looked in the sexy dress, and she definitely appreciated his reaction. Impressed: During their trip, Nick was blown away by how stunning Sonia looked in a little black dress Eating his words: Although Nick claimed he wasn't attracted to Sonia in a previous arguement, he is now singing a different tune 'It's good to hear that he thinks that I am beautiful,' she said. At dinner, Sonia was worried about what was going to be said, and sure enough, Nick brought up how much he wanted her to move back in. Nick pointed out that all the experts think she should return to their marital home, and he even offered to sleep on the couch while she took the bed, but she explained that wasn't the issue. After Sonia refused, Nick admitted that he was confused by the status of their relationship. 'I feel like she should maybe be giving it a little more forward effort because in a week we have to decide whether we're going to stay married,' he said. The next day Nick revealed to the cameras that he and Sonia did sleep in the same bed, but that was all that happened. Disapointed: Nick revealed that Sonia finally agreed to sleep in the same bed with him during the overnight getaway, but they didn't have sex Already over: Meanwhile, Sonia wished they had more time on their vacation together 'It just reminded me that the one thing I am missing in my life is a partner to share everything. I want to fall in love with someone and be married and live happily ever after,' he told the cameras. 'I am really attracted to my life, but unfortunately, we did not have sex last night,' he added. Meanwhile, Sonia told the cameras that it wasn't weird waking up with her husband, which is a good thing. 'I'm sad that we're leaving because I wish that we can stay here longer,' she said of their trip. 'But I'm ready for this last week, and [we will] see what happens. You never know with this.' By the time they arrived home, Nick was convinced that their marriage was over, but Sonia had a surprise for him. Newfound hope: When they returned home, Nick was convinced there marriage was ever. However, Sonia surprised him by putting her wedding ring back on Dedicated: Sonia explained that the ring was a sign that she was committed to their marriage even though they weren't living in the same home After he took his beloved dogs outside, Sonia followed him and revealed that she put her wedding ring back on to show that she was 'committed' to their marriage. 'I agree that's why I haven't taken mine off yet,' Nick joked, but his wife's actions gave him newfound hope for their relationship. Meanwhile, Tom Wilson, 28, convinced his wife Lillian Vilchez, 25, to take the refurbished bus he was living in before they got married on a getaway to Key Largo. Lillian, who said she was willing to do anything to make her marriage work, agreed, but a bus was definitely not her ideal mode of transportation. Going for it: Meanwhile, Tom Wilson, 28, convinced Lillian Vilchez, 25, to take the refurbished bus he was living in before they got married on a weekend getaway to Key Largo She looked appalled when a pile of dust burst out of the vents because Tom had forgotten to clean them, and she could't resist complaining about the bus's lack of air conditioning and working interior lights. Lillian also struggled with how the bed caused a lot of pain to her injured shoulder. Tom thought she was being 'prissy' and noted that she has a tendency to 'complain about things'. The experience made Lillian question whether she and Tom were really compatible because of their different lifestyles, but she admitted that she was 'falling in love' with him. In attempt to show Tom that she was trying to focus on their marriage, she made sure not to have her cell phone out the entire trip, which made her husband 'really proud'. Price and joy: It took Tom a long time to finally admit to Lillian that he lived on a bus before they got married Whoops! Lillian was appalled that the bus didn't have any air conditioning or interior lights Adventure time: Despite the rough start to their trip, they had a great time snorkeling together Meanwhile, Lillian was impressed that Tom stayed by her when they went snorkeling because she was initially afraid to do it. 'We had a great trip. You know we had a lot of positive moments,' Tom told the cameras. 'We are still working together to make marriage work, and especially traveling with somebody else, especially on a bus I mean we had a great trip.' However, things started to go south when they went out for some celebratory beers, and Tom brought up Lillian's upcoming shoulder surgery. After Lillian revealed that she had already gotten a second and a third opinion from other doctors about the surgery, Tom asked her whether she would be willing to consider seeing someone who specializes in alternative medicine. Tom insisted that 'it's not like hocus pocus', but Lillian was uninterested from the get-go. Trouble in paradise: However, things turned sour when Tom insisted that Lillian should consider seeing an alternative medicine practitioner before having surgery on her shoulder Different opinions: Lillian refused, and while she was frustrated that Tom wasn't listening to her, he was annoyed that she wouldn't consider what he was saying 'You're not willing to give it a chance?' Tom asked, and Lillian reiterated that she went to medical school in Nicaragua and 'an MRI isn't going to lie to you'. However, he continues to push the issue, noting that there were 'way more options out there'. Lillian admitted to the cameras that she didn't think Tom fully understood everything she had been through with her shoulder injury, and while she claimed she appreciated his intentions, she was clearly not pleased that he wouldn't drop it. And Tom was equally concerned with his wife's behavior. As the pets of the most famous woman in the land, it's no surprise that they have lived a pampered life. Royally spoiled! The Queen's former chef reveals how her 'nasty yappy Corgis' had their own menu featuring lamb and beef - and duck shot by Prince William But now the Queen's former chef has revealed just how spoiled her precious corgis really were over the years. Speaking to Hello! magazine Darren McGrady revealed that the monarch's precious pets had their own menu, which would be sent to Sandringham each month detailing what they were to eat on specific days. Scroll down for video The Queen with her dogs: clockwise from top left Willow (corgi), Vulcan (dorgie), Candy (dorgie) and Holly (corgi). Her former chef has revealed how her beloved pets used to have their own menu of fresh meats The menu would consist of beef, chicken, lamb and duck on alternating days so they didn't get bored. However, he confessed that the chefs were not so keen on the dogs, who he described as 'yappy' and 'nasty'. 'Prince William and Prince Harry used to shoot rabbits on the Windsor Estate, so we'd get the rabbits, they'd have to be cleaned and then cooked,' Mr McGrady revealed. Meats would be chopped, boiled and then finely chopped again to ensure it didn't contain any bones. Darren McGrady, who was the Queen's chef for 11 years, admits that his colleagues weren't keen on the 'yappy' and 'nasty' corgis If the dogs were suffering from constipation the food might be mixed with cabbage and at other times rice was added. The monarch herself would feed her previous pets after she'd taken her own tea in the afternoon. She now only has one Corgi left after 13-year-old Holly, who appeared in the celebrated James Bond sketch for the opening of the London Olympics in 2012, was put down at Balmoral earlier this month. The Queen took the heartbreaking decision to summon a vet for the dog, which was suffering from illness and the effects of old age. The Queen walking her corgis in 1980. The monarch has had 30 of the dogs over the years but won't replace Holly who recently died as she doesn't want her pets to outlive her It means that after more than seven decades of the continuous companionship of corgis, the Queen has only one left Willow, also 13. Insiders say she was very sad after the decision was taken to have Holly put to sleep. The Queen was deeply upset but she doesnt like seeing her dogs suffer and Holly had reached a very good age, said one. She gets more unsettled if they are distressed and she knows that putting a dog down is often the kindest solution. She was devoted to Holly and wherever the Queen was, the dog was never far behind. The Queen arrives at Aberdeen Airport with her corgis in 1974 to start her holidays at Balmoral Since 1945 the Queen has had more than 30 corgis, a good proportion of them direct descendant of Susan which she was given by her parents on her 18th birthday. Her first puppies, Sugar and Honey, were born in 1949 and it marked the beginning of a new royal dynasty. Despite her sadness over Holly's death, the Queen will not replaced her beloved dog with a new puppy. In her first acting role, the Queen was seen to leave Buckingham Palace with Bond, played by Daniel Craig, and clambered aboard a helicopter, leaving behind her corgis Monty, Willow and Holly 'She always had about 12 but now she's saying I'm not going to outlive them, so when they die they're just going to die off,' Mr McGrady revealed. After 11 years working for the Queen, Mr McGrady went on to serve Diana, Princess of Wales and now runs his own catering company in Dallas, Texas. He's previously revealed that the Queen is practical when it comes to eating and is definitely not a foodie. 'She eats to live; its Prince Philip that lives to eat. He loves food, he's interested in food, he wants to know where it comes from. The Queen, not so much,' he said. But he added that the Queen was always very much at the helm of catering at Buckingham Palace, overseeing the 'menu book' which was sent to her two or three times a week for the coming days. 'The menu book was sent up to her and she'd put a line through the ones she didn't want,' Darren recalled. 'We could never serve garlic to the queen but Prince Philip loved it,' he said. 'If we were at Balmoral and she was out, wed slather his steak in garlic. Prince Harry will be taught the remarkable skills of the man dubbed 'the original horse whisperer', who has been helping psychologically damaged military veterans. Harry, 33, has asked Monty Roberts to perform his technique of communicating with horses through body language, a method he has taught to ex-servicemen and women in a bid to help with conditions like post traumatic stress disorder. California-born Mr Roberts told the Evening Standard: 'The prince has learned of this work and wanted to get a greater understanding. It will be an honour to show him.' Scroll down for video Prince Harry is to be given a demonstration of the remarkable skills of the man dubbed 'the original horse whisperer', who has been helping psychologically damaged military veterans Harry has been supporting the nation's injured, sick and wounded servicemen and women and veterans through a number of projects including his Invictus Games, a Paralympics-style competition where many of those competing have lost limbs fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. Mr Roberts has become a worldwide star thanks to his innovative techniques with horses and has been working with the Queen's horses for more than 25 years, after she first asked him to Windsor Castle in 1989. The 81-year-old, who modestly describes himself as a Californian cowboy, regular stays at the Queen's private Sandringham home when training the monarch's animals. California-born Mr Roberts said: 'The prince has learned of this work and wanted to get a greater understanding. It will be an honour to show him [my techniques]' Mr Roberts has become a worldwide star thanks to his innovative techniques with horses and has been working with the Queen's horses for more than 25 years The horse whisperer spent a day working with veterans at a Help for Heroes centre in 2014, teaching them his now famous method of horse taming - and he has also run classes for US military at his Californian ranch. Last year he spoke of his friendship with the Queen, saying that without her support he would still be a cowboy in California. The octogenarian said he regularly meets the monarch to discuss all things equine. His comments came after he had staged a demonstration of his skills for supporters of the animal welfare charity the Brooke. He has become a worldwide star thanks to his innovative techniques with horses and last year stayed at the Queen's private Sandringham home working with her animals. The 81-year-old, who modestly describes himself as a 'Californian cowboy', regular stays at the Queen's private Sandringham home when training the monarch's animals In 2015 he became a global ambassador for the Brooke and, speaking about the effect the Queen has had on his life, said: 'If she hadn't pushed me, I'd be a cowboy in California doing parochial stuff.' He went on to talk about when he first met the monarch: 'She sent a man over to California - I thought it was a joke - they brought me to Windsor Castle in April of 1989. 'Her Majesty had 23 horses ready for me to work with and it was one week with Her Majesty there every day, when it was only supposed to be one hour. 'She said there had to be a book and she sent me to 21 cities in 30 days because she wanted this message out there. From Sep 22 to Oct 10, 2016, Xinhuajie Church of Inner Mongolia Ulanqab Jining District carried out "Showing God's Love and Serving the Community" themed charity event during the "Religious Charity Month." They contacted the local office and the community visited 10 poor families and brought them rice, flour, and oil worth 2,000 CNY ($300). Among the poor families were seniors without family, five guarantees families (the aged, the infirm, old widows and orphans taken care of by the people's communes in five ways: food, clothing, medical care, housing and burial expenses), and the bed-ridden on minimum subsistence allowances, which gave the event a positive practical meaning. On Sep 28 with the active support of the principle of Jianguo Silu primary school, they brought 2,500 CNY ($375) worth of winter clothes and grants to seven poor students in the school. Teenagers are the future of our country and strong youths lead to a strong country. Xinhuajie Church cares about the physical and mental health of the teenagers and gives love to their healthy growth. The community leaders spoke highly of the help they extended to the poor students and the seniors without family. Ulanqab is located in the center of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. It has jurisdiction over 11 counties with a population of 24 million and covers an area of about 120 thousand square kilometers. Christianity was introduced to Ulanqab in the 1920s and began to take shape in Jining District before liberation. From the 1930s till liberation, there were three Christian denominations in Jining: American "Baptist," British "Salvation Army" and the domestic "Church Meetings." During the Cultural Revolution, all gatherings were suspended and the services resumed after Reform and Opening in the 1980s. In 1985 the government chose the four-room house in Qiaodong Simalu as the church till now. In 1998 Jining Xindianlu Church was built, in 2007 Jining Xinhuajie Church was built, and in 2015 the main church of Xinhuajie Church was built. The church can hold 500 people and the floor space is around 2,400 square meters. Xinhuajie Church was voted "Advanced Group of the First Harmonious Church Establishment." There are 2 elders, 2 teachers, 3 theological seminary college graduates, and 10 graduates from Inner Mongolia Bible Junior College in the church. In 2013 with the approval of Jining and Ulanqab Bureau of Religious Affairs, they set up two venues in Donghe Road and New District. Jining Xinhualu Church is where CCC&TSPM of Ulanqab is located and it has become the hub of the churches in Ulanqab and a platform for communication and carrying out the Christian work in the city. The church provides a location for the regular training of the clergy and preachers. It also became the national CCC&TSPM approved bookstore for the whole Ulanqab and neighboring cities for selling permitted books. A supermarket has been forced to apologise after it delivered a jar of Seville marmalade which had its name altered to read 'Jimmy Saville'. Bar owner Kate Shepherd, of County Durham, was left shocked when she noticed the jar had been vandalised. Before the preserve made its way to Kate it had someone had used black marked to scrawl the name of the notorious paedophile on the label of the jar. Kate Shepherd was shocked to find that her Mackays Seville marmalade had been defaced to read 'Jimmy Saville' marmalade when it was delivered by Tesco Kate had her shopping delivered from the Tesco Extra store in Durham and spotted the disgraced DJ's name as she was putting her goods away. She later tweeted: 'So I had my @tesco shopping delivered and someone has written on my marmalade... @tesco staff must have a lot of time on their hands.' A spokesperson for the supermarket giant has apologised to Kate for the unexplained addition to her shopping. Tesco have issued an apology to Kate and offered her a full refund on her shop and will be investigating the incident further In a statement she said: 'This is clearly unacceptable and we are investigating how this could have happened. 'We have apologised to Ms Shepherd, and offered her a full refund and a voucher off her next shop with Tesco.' Most of us know that stressful jobs can wreck our health. But it seems if you have control over that work it can actually be better for you. Researchers followed more than 10,000 workers in their sixties from 2004. The stress of their job was measured by asking employees regardless of their income or managerial status how hard they worked, how much they needed to concentrate and if they were asked to do too much. It seems if you have control over that work it can actually be better for you (file image) Seven years later, those who worked in high-stress, low-control jobs were most likely to have died. But surprisingly, being in a stressful job with control over your workflow and the freedom to set your own goals was found to be better for health. Workers in more demanding jobs, where they had this control, were 34 per cent less likely to die than those in less stressful careers. Lead author Erik Gonzalez-Mule said: These findings suggest that stressful jobs have clear negative consequences for employee health when paired with low freedom in decision-making, while stressful jobs can actually be beneficial to employee health if also paired with freedom in decision-making. Cancer was found to be the leading cause of death among the study group, with stress known to be a risk factor. People also died from circulatory diseases, with the authors speculating that the stressed may overeat and smoke as a coping mechanism. Those with the most demanding jobs and no control over them are 15 per cent more likely to die than those with less taxing careers. The study by the University of Indianas Kelley School of Business, is believed to be the first to examine the relationship between job characteristics and mortality. But the researchers said it does not necessarily suggest employers need to cut back on what is expected from their employees. Surprisingly, being in a stressful job with control over your workflow and the freedom to set your own goals was found to be better for health (file image) Rather, they demonstrate the value in restructuring some jobs to provide employees with more say about how work gets done. Professor Gonzalez-Mule said: You can avoid the negative health consequences if you allow them to set their own goals, set their own schedules, prioritise their decision-making and the like. He recommended that employees have a say in setting their own goals, so when youre telling someone what theyre going to do its more of a two-way conversation. The study, published in the journal Personnel Psychology, also found people in high-stress, low-control jobs were more likely to be overweight. Professor Gonzalez-Mule said: When you dont have the necessary resources to deal with a demanding job, you do this other stuff. You might eat more, you might smoke, you might engage in some of these things to cope with it. The study also found people with a higher degree of control over their work tend to find stress to be useful. Professor Gonzalez-Mule said: Stressful jobs cause you to find ways to problem solve and work through ways to get the work done. Having higher control gives you the resources you need to do that. The NHS faces its first funding cut per head of population since the 1990s despite growing pressures, its chief executive warned last night. Simon Stevens said funding would drop in 2018-19, making it the most pressurised year in recent history. It will be the first time the Health Service has received such a reduction since at least the turn of the century, NHS sources said. Simon Stevens said funding would drop in 2018-19, making it the most pressurised year in recent history Yet Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt insisted he would not accept rationing of care by local health boards stressing that hospitals could do more for less. Prime Minister Theresa May is not expected to provide any additional funding in next months Autumn Statement. NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts, has warned patients will no longer receive the services they expect without more cash. The NHS is currently in the grip of the worst bed-blocking crisis since records began, with thousands of patients languishing in hospital. Wards are overcrowded and sick patients are having to stay on trolleys in A&E as there are no free beds, with waiting times soaring. Mr Stevens told the Commons health select committee he had not received the full funding he had requested from the Government for his five-year NHS transformation plan. For the current year, 2016-17, the NHS is receiving the kick-start requested an extra 3.8billion, equivalent to a 3.7 per cent rise. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt insisted he would not accept rationing of care by local health boards But next year the NHS will receive only an extra 1.3 per cent and in 2018-19 only 0.4 per cent. With the population in England growing by 0.6 per cent every year, an annual 0.4 per cent increase equates to less per head of population. Mr Stevens told the committee: Given we have an ageing and growing population, if you just look at population growth, even before you look at ageing, 2018-19 will be the most pressurised year for us, where we will actually have negative per-person NHS funding growth in England. 'But the other years we will have very modest increases. He added: For this year year one of the spending review we did indeed get the kickstart to the funding that we were looking for, which we needed because we had to absorb nearly 1billion of extra pension costs. We are going to cut the hospital deficit by more than two thirds, we are going to bring some stability to parts of the Health Service that are under pressure and we are going to make some modest starts to improvements. The Royal College of Physicians is urging relatives to clear obstacles from wards to prevent serious accidents (stock image) Up to 600 patients are having falls in hospital each day due to poor hospital care, leading doctors have warned. The Royal College of Physicians is urging relatives to clear obstacles from wards to prevent serious accidents. It has published guidelines for families and patients with simple tips to help avoid what it estimates are 200 preventable falls every day. These include reminding patients to call for nurses if they need assistance walking and ensuring they always wear sensible shoes. Relatives are instructed to check for clutter around the bed after visiting patients and making sure walking frames are close at hand. The College suggests that 240,000 mainly elderly patients fall in hospital in England and Wales a year, the equivalent of 600 a day. But research has shown that 30 per cent of these, about 200 a day, could be easily prevented by doctors and nurses clearing clutter and helping patients while they are walking. Yet the fact they are having to urge family members to help out will raise concerns that hospital staff are not currently doing enough to protect patients. The guidelines are contained in a 16-page leaflet which will be distributed in hospitals today. Other advice includes telling patients to use their call bells if they need help walking to the bathroom or toilet. They are also instructed to remember to eat and drink, to ensure they dont become dizzy. Dr Shelagh ORiordan, of the Royal College of Physicians said: When a patient falls in hospital, particularly an older patient, it can cause anxiety and distress for them and their families, even if the fall does not result in serious injury. The College suggests that 240,000 mainly elderly patients fall in hospital in England and Wales a year, the equivalent of 600 a day (stock image) The RCP falls prevention guide informs patients and their families about the need to be falls aware. Dr ORiordan added: It encourages them to be alert to risks and how these risks can be minimised. It also covers measures that hospital staff should take to reduce the risk of patient falls. Great grandmother Sylvia Page died when she fell over on a hospital ward and hit her head on a wall as she was helped to the toilet. The accident happened after an unsupervised student nurse tried to help the 86-year-old out of her hospital bed. She had been in the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow, Essex for 11 days, when she stumbled. The health worker held her hands in a bid to keep the elderly woman steady but Mrs Page hit her head and died two days later from bleeding on the brain. The family were awarded a five-figure sum of compensation for the mistake, which took place in June 2013, but Mrs Pages son Michael, 62, said he had little faith things would improve. The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust said at the time: We have apologised to the family for the identified failings in the care provided to Mrs Page, which fell short of the standard of care that patients can reasonably expect to receive. His mother says he is unable to go to school unless he wears special shoes A six-year-old boy whose feet grow at different speeds is allegedly forced to miss school - due to being deemed a health and safety risk. Spencer Kristianson, from Castleford, has a rare condition called Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome which causes the extra growth of one limb. In his case, it affects one of his feet and his mother Amber, 26, claims he is not allowed to go to school unless he is wearing special shoes - which cost 300. But because of his age and his constant growth - she can't always afford to buy him a new pair. She claims he is not allowed in the school if he isn't wearing the shoes - which help him to walk normally - because of health and safety reasons. But he has been unable to go to school since the end of August after a delay getting the specially-made shoes from Portugal. Spencer Kristianson, from Castleford, has a rare condition called Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome which causes the extra growth of one limb. In his case, it affects one of his feet His mother Amber, 26, claims he is not allowed to go to school unless he is wearing special shoes - which cost 300 (pictured). But because of his age and his constant growth - she can't always afford to buy him a new pair of orthotic shoes, which help him to walk normally Ms Kristianson said: 'I can't afford the shoes as a single mother and Spencer has had to do without sometimes, which is frustrating for him because he can't go to school. 'Without the shoes he's not allowed in the school because of health and safety and I accept that because there are hundreds of kids running around. 'It's not a case of just going to the shop and getting a pair of shoes for him because his feet grow longer and wider than regular feet. 'It devastates me that he misses school because he absolutely loves his friends - he's very active and has just started rugby training. 'He's a really happy lad but if you look into his eyes now then you won't see an ounce of happiness in there. 'Watching Spencer live with this condition is a horrible thing to see as a mother and there is absolutely nothing I can do about it.' Ms Kristianson said: 'It devastates me that he misses school because he absolutely loves his friends.' She added that if you look into his eye you 'won't see an ounce of happiness' While some orthotic shoes are available on the NHS, because of how often he would need a new pair the health service wouldn't fund them, Ms Kristianson said Spencer was diagnosed with Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome - which affects the development of blood vessels, soft tissues and bones - as a toddler. It caused him a difference in the circumference size or length of his foot, as one grows quicker than the other. His family struggle to find him shop-bought footwear as a result of the disease and instead must rely on custom-made orthotic shoes. While some are available on the NHS, because of how often he would need a new pair the health service wouldn't fund them, Ms Kristianson said. She said while her son has done well to battle the effects of the condition, the expensive shoes are pushing her finances to the limit. But they are needed to help him walk normally - and she claims to allow him to attend Oyster Park Primary School. As a result of missing school he is being tested for autism, as his family say it 'can't be good for him'. Ms Kristianson said: 'He gets shoes every six months but by four months I'm on the phone because I know what is coming because he is a six-year-old and they just get wrecked. Ms Kristianson said: 'Watching Spencer live with this condition is a horrible thing to see as a mother and there is absolutely nothing I can do about it' (pictured together) As a result of missing school he has had tests to see if he has autism, as his family say being away from his friends 'can't be good for him' 'And it's such a rare condition and nobody seems to know about it, I certainly haven't met anybody near me who has the condition or has kids who have it. 'It's massive for Spencer and he does so well to put up with so much. It would be hard for me as a 26-year-old to deal with it, let alone a six-year-old.' WHAT IS KLIPPEL-TRENAUNAY SYNDROME? Klippel Trenaunay syndrome (KTS) is a rare genetic condition which affects the development of blood vessels, soft tissues and bones. It has three main side effects: a 'port wine stain' (Marley's big 'bruise'), the overgrowth of bones - particularly limbs - and varicose veins. The disorder is estimated to affect around one in 100,000 people. It can occur in people who have no history of the disorder. There is no cure and treatment is symptomatic. KTS is often a progressive disorder, and complications may be life-threatening. Source: US Library of Medicine Advertisement Spencer's specialist shoes are provided by the Steeper Group, a firm who make orthotic shoes. A spokesman said: 'Within our orthotics services where we treat Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome, we prescribe specialist orthotic footwear that is custom-made to accommodate the size difference of the affected lower limb. 'The footwear may often be longer and wider on the affected side to accommodate these differences in limb size, and in many cases we need to add a shoe raise, to ensure the shorter limb is accommodated, the pelvis is levelled and there is no long-term detrimental effect on the spine. 'These prescriptions enable service users with Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome to achieve a normal walking pattern and ensure well-fitting footwear, despite the difference in lower limb size. 'Orthotic paediatric boots have really advanced in the past eight years, meaning children with Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome now have more choice than ever. 'The designs replicating retail footwear, which enables our patients to continue with as normal life as possible.' A mother-of-two is hoping doctors can find a way to remove the large tumour growing from her eye without killing her. Nicoleta Leizeriuc, 28, has lived with the benign tumour all her life which covers her left eye completely and affects her vision. She is set to undergo surgery to cut the growth - but doctors first need to reduce its size using chemicals to prevent any blood loss during the operation. Mrs Leizeriuc, from Mileanca, a small village in north east Romania, has been forced to live as a recluse due to the constant ridicule she gets. She says people in her village often judge her and make cruel comments and that surgery would transform her life. Scroll down for video Nicoleta Leizeriuc, 28, has lived with the benign tumour all her life which covers her left eye completely and affects her vision 'I can't go into town or work or go to the kindergarten when there are parent meetings,' Mrs Leizeriuc said. 'I have to go the next day because there are some parents who do not like me. 'I would have more courage to get out in the world. I wouldn't stay alone. This is what I think it will change firstly.' Despite being ostracised by her community, Nicoleta has a great support system in the form of her two young sons and her husband Aurel. Mr Leizeriuc said: 'I'm attached to her and she to me, she's a very warm person to me. I found trust in her and we went forward together.' A team of doctors has been put together at a hospital 414 miles away in the south west of the country, to come up with a plan to treat her. It will involve undergoing several 19 hours trips by overnight train to have a series of treatments. Buried deep within the tumour is her eyeball, surrounded by malformed blood vessels which are connected to her jaw and cheek, and these could burst. She is set to undergo surgery to cut the growth - but doctors first need to reduce its size using chemicals to prevent any blood loss during the operation Plastic surgeon Dr Zorin Crainiceanu said: 'It's impossible to cut the tumour off because the bleeding might kill the patient.' Instead, the medical team will first seek to reduce the tumour by injecting chemical agents directly into it, which will make it smaller and easier to operate on. 'This is important because when we get to the surgery the tumour will be smaller and the risk of haemorrhaging will be reduced,' said the doctor. It's impossible to cut the tumour off because the bleeding might kill the patient. Plastic surgeon Dr Zorin Crainiceanu After reducing the size they will carry out a process known as embolisation which will help to block off blood vessels from the tumour to the brain, effectively starving it of blood. Once the team of doctors feel the tumour is a more manageable size, they will then begin to surgically remove it from Nicoleta's face. Radiologist Dr Adrian Tutelca said: 'In my opinion, this tumour, as it is, it's hard to pull it out. The fact that it is vascular makes it more difficult. It's a difficult intervention.' Infections from three sexually spread diseases have hit another record high. Chlamydia was the most common. More than 1.5 million cases were reported in the U.S. last year, up 6 per cent from the year before. Nearly 400,000 gonorrhea cases were reported, up 13 per cent. And there were about 24,000 cases of the most contagious forms of syphilis, up 19 per cent. The three infections are treatable with antibiotics. Gonorrhea (pictured), chlamydia, and syphilis are becoming more common, the CDC warns Officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say part of the growth may be due to better testing and diagnosis, but much of it is a real increase. They're not sure why. The CDC released the new numbers Wednesday. An estimated 20 million cases of sexually transmitted infections occur each year in the U.S. The worrying new figures come amid fears sexually-transmitted diseases could soon become untreatable as infections build a resistance to antibiotics. Last month, the WHO updated its guidelines on how to treat chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis for the first time since 2003. Together, the diseases infect 200 million people every year. They are normally treated with a short and simple dose of antibiotics. But at the rate the diseases are developing, it could be just a matter of years before this method becomes ineffective. Crucially, the health officials warn, doctors must stop over-prescribing antibiotics, and patients must be vigilant about taking the correct doses. 'Resistance of these STIs to the effect of antibiotics has increased rapidly in recent years and has reduced treatment options,' the UN agency said. Antibiotic resistance also exists in chlamydia and syphilis, though it is less common. The CDC recommends treating the infection with a combination of two antibiotics: azithromycin and ceftriaxone. The infection has already become immune to penicillin, tetracycline and fluoroquinolones. Increasingly, gonorrhea is building up a resistance to the individual drugs. When left undiagnosed and untreated, the three diseases can have serious consequences, causing pelvic infamatory disease and ectopic pregnancy in women, and increasing the chances of miscarriage, stillbirth and newborn death. Medical officer Teodora Wi, who was involved in WHO's update, called gonorrhea a 'very smart bug' that repeatedly adapts to new antibiotics. It can infect the genitals, rectum, and throat. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, a triumphant President George Bush (Sr) proudly proclaimed the birth of a New World Order. This New Order was to be dominated by the US and its Western allies. This grouping would be free to invade those countries whose leaders they found distasteful. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomes Russian President Vladimir Putin for a bilateral meeting before the start of the BRICS summit India, which cherished its strategic autonomy, was at the receiving end of coercive moves to curb, roll back and eliminate its nuclear programme through economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation. India broke free of these shackles only after it conducted nuclear tests and overcame American sanctions. Global perceptions of India changed significantly after Goldman Sachs came out with a startling report in 2003. The report averred that over the next 50 years, Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) could become a much larger force in the world economy than the G6, comprising the US, Canada, UK, Germany, France and Italy. If things went right, the BRIC economies together could be larger than the combined economies of the G6 in less than 40 years. The key takeaway of the Goa meet was new momentum for India-Russia ties. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right) welcomes Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) Heads of State of the BRICS nations: Brazilian President Michel Temer, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and South African President Jacob ZumaZuma By 2025 it could account for over half the economic power of the G6. Of the current members of G6, only the US and Japan may be among the six largest economies in 2050. India, the report averred, has the potential to show the largest growth rates for the next 30 years. Indias GDP will outstrip that of Japan by 2032. The four emerging countries, thereafter, got together to fashion a new grouping (BRICS), which sought to influence global policies. South Africa joined in 2011. Has the BRICS lived up to the expectations of India in 2003? The answer is a categorical No. Russias energy dependent economy, its falling birth rates and growing criminalisation have seriously eroded its potential and influence. The leaders wear traditional Indian vests for an informal dinner at the Taj Exotica Hotel in Goa With falling oil and gas prices and deteriorating relations with the US, Russia is increasingly echoing Chinese policies in our Western neighbourhood, and particularly in Pakistan and Afghanistan. It appears to have become a junior partner of China on this score. But, it would be a folly to think that the current Russian slide is permanent. Likewise, Brazil and South Africa are both afflicted with internal political uncertainties and falling growth rates. The main achievement for India in Goa was the announcement of measures to give new momentum to our relations with Russia. These included Russian agreement to invest a record $11 billion, which will lead to a Russian takeover and restructuring of the ailing, debt-ridden Essar Petrochemicals refinery and of the Vadinar Port in Gujarat. The main achievement for India in Goa was the announcement of measures to give new momentum to the country's relations with Russia This has been accompanied by agreement for investment of a further $5.5 billion by India in Siberian oilfields. Russian grievances about India lowering emphasis on bilateral defence cooperation have been addressed by decisions to buy S-400 air defence missile systems, establish a joint venture to manufacture 200 twin propeller transport helicopters for armed forces and pact on measures for timely acquisition of spares for defence equipment. One expects that, in turn, Russia will be more circumspect on its defence ties with Pakistan. The Goa BRICS Summit has mercifully and hopefully ended misconceived and unrealistic perspectives in India about Chinas intentions. China is more determined than ever to encircle and contain India, by stepping up defence cooperation with Pakistan and proceeding with its One Belt One Road Project from Xinjiang to the strategic port of Gwadar, through Gilgit-Baltistan in POK. President Xi Jinpings visit to Bangladesh and Chinas assiduous courting of Bhutan and Nepal are pointers we cannot ignore. Do we have a comprehensive strategy to deal with this threat? One sadly doubts this, given the widespread illusions in New Delhi about Beijings good intentions. Despite such reservations, one cannot but compliment South Blocks smart move in deciding well before the Uri tensions that we would invite the members of BIMSTEC (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal), and not SAARC, for the Goa Summit. We have served ourselves well, realising, albeit belatedly, that given Pakistans obstructionism, SAARC really has no future as a grouping to promote regional economic cooperation. Every SAARC summit has turned out to be yet another soap opera, revolving around whether Indian and Pakistani leaders would meet for yet another round of fruitless talks. The time has come for us to progressively disengage from SAARC, while placing much greater emphasis on a quadrilateral India-Sri Lanka-Maldives-Seychelles corridor and BIMSTEC. We can, in course of time, evolve new institutions for trilateral cooperation with Afghanistan and Iran, while extending our reach across our western shores in the Indian Ocean. Regional cooperation with Pakistan should be dealt with by a policy of benign neglect. Angry: Anurag Kashyap Anurag Kashyap is an angry man. And hes fed up of clarifying his stance on the Pakistani artists ban. And thats why he ranted in a series of tweets to PM Narendra Modi asking pertinent questions about why an art form should suffer when there is geo-political unrest which wasn't foreseen. After he put out those tweets, the media had a field day, going on to mention how Kashyap had demanded an apology from PM Modi. Anurag has now clarified his stance and the reason behind his tweets through a Facebook post. I am tired of the film industry being soft targets. We are damned if we do, damned if we dont! When we dont involve ourselves, they ask why is Bollywood quiet now? "When we involve ourselves, we become the scapegoats to distract you from the real news. "Either way they use us to sensationalise news. Still, I'd rather put my opinions out there on my own platform, then give the media a bite. "No, Anurag Kashyap did not ask the PM to apologise (which most of the headlines would want you to believe, no one has their mind anyways), I merely questioned the fairness in judgement of a situation: the PM visited Pakistan for talks at the same time that a filmmaker was working with a Pakistani actor. Not everyone was critical of his Tweets (above) but he was forced to explain on Facebook "Neither was aware of future events or mood. Yet only one pays the price. Im also well aware that the government did not cry BAN or demand that Pakistani artists be sent back. "Just as Im aware that the PM himself doesnt censor my films. But we elected them and so it is their responsibility to protect us from bullies - media or political parties. "And when the governing partys designated members don't respond in hours of crisis because they are second guessing the mood of the PM then I would rather talk straight to the PM himself. The dacoits (armed robbers) of Chambal are coming to Delhi. And with them are the Maoists. The aim of these criminals and red rebels is simple: to make quick buck in the urban base and keep their gangs alive. According to the police, Maoists from the jungles and dacoits from Chambal are increasingly moving to urban centres like Delhi and NCR looking for more money. The dacoits (armed robbers) and 'jungle' Maoists of Chambal are coming to Delhi to make quick buck in an urban base and keep their gangs alive (picture for representation only) Here they are targeting big businessmen to get access to sophisticated weaponry. Last week, the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested nine suspected Maoists from sector 47 in Noida. After detailed interrogation the gang confessed that they were planning to loot bank ATM machines, cash vans or carry out abductions for ransom in the National Capital Region. The gang was allegedly trying to create a base in Delhis neighbourhood - Noida where they had plans to expand their network with the help of local thugs. Last week, the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested nine suspected Maoists from sector 47 in Noida The Maoists - who were arrested with sophisticated weapons, explosives and detonators - were allegedly planning to kidnap big businessmen to fund their activities in hinterland of Bihar. "The Maoists usually fight the security forces in the jungles or attack the villagers. But they have now realised that they need more money to continue fighting. "So they shifted to places like Noida where they can find their potential targets," a senior officer associated with the case told Mail Today. He said these dacoits and Maoists can make just about Rs 50,000 to a lakh from a bus or train robbery. But they would make several lakhs from the ransom money if they could abduct a rich businessman in the NCR. "They are old-school criminals but they are now interested in modern crimes like extortion, bank robbery and even financial frauds. "Some of the members of the gangs are sent to urban centres to make friends with local criminals and learn the new crime techniques," said a senior police officer. Though the police had earlier claimed to have arrested Maoist ideologues from cities such as Delhi and Hyderabad, this was for the first time that they are nabbing these rebels who have plans to carry out criminal activities in major urban areas. 'Some of the members of the gangs are sent to urban centres to make friends with local criminals and learn the new crime techniques,' a senior police officer told Mail Today In Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand they have to rely on snatching weapons from armed forces. But in cities like Delhi, Noida and Gurugram, a country-made gun is easily available to local criminals. Besides arresting Maoists, Delhi Police recently busted a gang of dacoits from Chambal, who were running extortion racket in the NCR. Police said the dacoits of Chambal have expanded beyond the ravines and are now abducting people from big cities like Delhi and other NCR towns. A Faridabad doctor and his compounder, who were abducted from Jaitpur last month, were victims of one such gang based out of Kampil. The two key accused in this case, Rishi Khalifa and Pramod Kumar, were arrested from Hathras and Birpur last week. They were part of a gang that was operating in the Capital for the past few years. Khalifa had approached Kumar, who was a conduit for Chambal gangs, to float a new gang. The gangs operate out of estuaries and islands of river Ganga between Kanpur and Gwalior. The gang was in touch with local criminals in the NCR cities who provided information about potential targets and also made arrangements for abduction. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has found an unlikely ally: Arvind Kejriwal. In at least two state assembly elections due in 2017 - Goa and Gujarat - the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will convert a binary BJP-Congress contest into a triangular fight. The result: AAP will split the minority vote in both states. Its a vote-bank the Congress has so far had a lock-on. In Goa, Christians and Muslims comprise 35 per cent of the electorate. In Gujarat, Muslims are just under 10 per cent. Election The results of the latest India Today-Axis opinion poll seem to bear this out. In Goa, the poll projects the BJP will win 17-21 seats in the 40-seat Goa assembly with the Congress a close second at 13-16 seats. AAP is projected to win just 1-3 seats. Crucially, most of AAPs 16 per cent vote-share would have been cannibalised from the Congress, allowing the BJP to beat anti-incumbency in Goa by a whisker. To his dismay, Kejriwal would thus have merely played spoiler to help the BJP retain power in a state it hasnt governed particularly well. Gujarat presents a more complicated picture. Kejriwal has wooed the Patidars to gain a foothold in a state he thinks is ripe for the picking. After Modis move to the Centre, lacklustre leadership by former Chief Minister Anandiben Patel, the Patidar agitation, atrocities on Dalits, and more than 20 years of anti-incumbency have weakened the BJPs traditional hold on Gujarat. UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhis political secretary and MP Ahmed Patel comes from Bharuch, a city at the mouth of the Narmada river in southern Gujarat. He will be Sonias eyes and ears in the December 2017 Gujarat assembly elections. Patel knows that a BJP defeat in Modis home state would demoralise the BJP leadership and cadre barely a year before the 2019 Lok Sabha election. But Patels calculations may be unravelling. The plan to use Kejriwal to inflame a Patidar revolt against the BJP hasnt gone according to plan. The upsurge in nationalist sentiment following Indias surgical strike on Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK) is likely to be most keenly felt in Gujarat where sentiment against Pakistan-sponsored terrorism runs high. Worse, Kejriwal may, as in Goa, poach more voters in Gujarat from the Congress than from the BJP in a triangular contest. The Delhi chief ministers recent four-day sweep through Gujarat was poorly timed with much of the attention focused on the BRICS and BIMSTEC summits in Goa and counter-terrorism cooperation in the region. Following Indias surgical strike in POK, terrorism from Pakistan-based terror groups has become a default election issue. It is Kejriwals weakest suit. His early questioning of Indias strikes in POK has drawn sharp criticism. In a border state like Gujarat that could be an electoral millstone around Kejriwals neck. The Delhi chief ministers recent four-day sweep through Gujarat was poorly timed with much of the attention focused on the BRICS and BIMSTEC summits in Goa and counter-terrorism cooperation in the region Ambition Months ago, the BJP would have been pleased to settle for around 100 seats in the 182-seat Gujarat assembly and just about retain power in 2017 despite anti-incumbency. Now its ambitions will be set higher, courtesy Kejriwals disruption of the Congress vote and the armys action in POK. Punjab is the other state where Kejriwal could have miscalculated badly. Not long ago AAPs internal surveys claimed it would win over 100 seats in the 117- seat Punjab assembly. Mis-steps have reduced this estimate to less than half in the India Today-Axis opinion poll to 42-46 seats - a close second to the Congress (49-55 seats). The tainted SAD-BJP alliance is projected to finish a dismal - and fully deserved - third with 17-21 seats. Kejriwals biggest mistake in Punjab has been to export his Delhi team to the state. The sacking of veteran leader Chhotepur Singh and the failure to bring Navjot Singh Siddhu on board have compounded AAPs problems. Reports about misgovernance in Kejriwals Delhi government too have filtered through to the villages of Punjab. Reeling from the drug mafia and horrific corruption by Akali leaders, Punjab deserves better. Former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has given the Congress a real chance to capture its first major state after three years of the partys retreat around the country. Reform number one? Restore the Congress to a political party by rescuing it from the family business Sonia Gandhi has so diligently converted it into Statistics The Congress has lost not only Assam and Arunachal Pradesh to the BJP but, according to the India Today-Axis opinion poll, could lose Manipur and Uttarakhand as well in 2017. With Himachal Pradesh likely to be another casualty in late 2017 and the Congress also set to cede misgoverned Karnataka to the BJP in 2018, winning Punjab becomes critical: It could be the only state (bar Meghalaya) with a Congress government ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Thats not good news for Indian democracy. India needs two strong national parties. None of the regional fronts - JD(U), AAP, TMC, BSP or SP - has been able to step up to the plate. India needs two strong national parties. The Congress has lost not only Assam and Arunachal Pradesh to the BJP but, according to the India Today-Axis opinion poll, could lose Manipur and Uttarakhand as well in 2017. Theres further bad news for the Opposition: the India Today-Axis opinion poll was completed just days after the surgical strike. The full impact of the Armys action and the Oppositions self-destructive politicisation of the strike have not been factored into the poll. If the penny hasnt yet dropped for the Congress high command, it should now: to expand beyond Punjab and Meghalaya in Indias 36 states and union territories, it needs to reform the party. The new boss of The Restaurant Group, owner of Frankie & Benny's, is set to pocket up to 1million of shares under a bonus scheme. Andy McCue, 41, took over as chief executive last month after former head Danny Breithaupt was ousted following a string of profit warnings. He will pick up 282,675 shares in three years under a long-term incentive plan if performance conditions are met worth just over 1million at today's prices. This will be on top of a basic salary, annual bonuses, benefits and a pension. Tasty: Andy McCue, the new boss of Restaurant Group, owner of Frankie & Benny's, is set to pocket up to 1m of shares under a bonus scheme Full details of McCue's pay have not yet been released but his predecessor picked up 1.1million last year. Stock market filings also reveal that McCue spent 178,350 on 50,000 shares in the firm earlier this week. Chairman Debbie Hewitt bought 7,012 shares for 24,859, meaning her total holding is worth around 136,600. And new finance boss Barry Nightingale spent 49,632 on 13,617 shares, his only holding in the group. McCue, a father of one, the former chief executive of betting giant Paddy Power, has taken on a difficult turnaround job, with the business's brands facing stiff competition in Britain's cut-throat leisure trade. The firm which also operates the Chiquito and Garfunkel's chains has been battling increased rivalry from pubs and branded restaurant chains. Bosses are set to shut or sell 33 underperforming sites. The company made 36.6million of profits in the first half of this year, 3.7 per cent down on the same period in 2015. Goldman Sachs bankers pocketed an average 75,000 each for three months work as the US firm's profits bounced back. The financier made 2.4billion in the quarter to September 30 some 40 per cent more than a year earlier. Its investing and lending division put in a particularly strong performance as the American economic recovery gathered pace, with revenues more than doubling. Goldman Sachs made 2.4bn in the quarter to September 30 40 per cent more than a year earlier And there was a 90 per cent fall in costs for bad behaviour such as fines and compensation, which dropped to 37.4million from 338.5million. The bank has reduced staff numbers in the past 12 months, cutting 2,000 jobs, but its quarterly wage bill rose from 1.9billion to 2.6billion. Chief executive Lloyd Blankfein said the figures showed his business had made encouraging progress. 'We saw solid performance across the franchise that helped counter typical seasonal weakness,' he said. Tourists taking advantage of the cheap pound gave Burberry a sales boost by snapping up its ponchos, bags and dresses. But despite the lift, disappointing demand from American department stores and concerns about trading in Hong Kong and China sent its shares down 7.2 per cent, or 109p, to 1403p yesterday. This morning shares had recovered, rising 1.4 per cent, or 20p, to 1,423.00p Chief executive Christopher Bailey described the past six months as challenging while finance director Carol Fairweather said a 20million cost-cutting plan was under way. Tourists flocked to Burberry's UK stores, fuelling a 30 per cent jump in sales She also said the firm would receive a 125million boost from currency benefits an improvement from the 90million forecast in July. The tumbling pound meant a raft of tourists flocked to its UK stores, fuelling a 30 per cent jump in sales which contributed to a 2 per cent rise in store revenues over the second quarter the first growth seen in a year. Fairweather said: Tourists have been changing their travel plans to come to the UK. As the currency moved, people realised they can benefit from that. We have also seen growth from local customers due to improved products and services. There has been a big response to our new range of bags. Burberry launched a new bridal bag a rounded satchel with equestrian features at its latest catwalk show. The alligator skin version costs almost 5,000. A 1,395 black nylon and leather rucksack with sequinned flowers has also been popular. About 40 per cent of costs originate in the UK. Sales from UK customers accounted for about 15 per cent of sales in the half year, up from about 10 per cent. Total revenue for the six months to September 30 was down 4 per cent to 1.1billion. Hong Kong saw double-digit falls, and America also had a difficult time. Burberry, along with other luxury goods firms, has been hit hard by the economic uncertainty sweeping the world, as well as currency swings. This has had a negative impact on confidence among wealthy American shoppers. Chief executive Christopher Bailey described the past six months as challenging Wholesale revenue, which is primarily sales to department stores, was down 14 per cent to 287million, which was more than analysts had forecast. Sales of its beauty lines fell to 76million from 82million. Fairweather said more needed to be done to establish Burberry as a luxury brand in America. She warned that pushing more stock into US department stores when demand was weak could have forced retailers to have discounted items, denting the image. She said: It would have been the wrong thing to do. The company, which is now using actress Lily James as a model, has been working on improving its stores around the world and investing in new products. A new chief executive, Marco Gobbetti, will join the group next summer, when Bailey will step into the president role while retaining his position as chief creative officer. A decision to build parts in Spain for Britain's newest taxpayer-backed wind farm has sparked outrage. Scottish Power, which is owned by Spanish giant Iberdrola, has awarded 150million of contracts to build the foundations of a 2.5billion wind farm off the coast of East Anglia to a shipyard in Spain which is backed by the Spanish government. It flies in the face of the Government's strategy to support British jobs, and it has caused a crisis at Newcastle-based OGN Group which had hoped to secure the investment and 2,000 jobs. Scottish Power has awarded 150million of contracts to build the foundations of a 2.5billion wind farm off the coast of East Anglia to a shipyard in Spain Mary Glindon, Labour MP for North Tyneside, said: 'If the Government wants to ensure work comes to British workers they have to take a stronger line with these companies. 'Why should the British taxpayer give money to support companies unless there's some material benefit to the UK? It's not international aid, it's business.' Scottish Power will receive millions in taxpayer-funded subsidies over the 15-year project. OGN is asking the Government to deliver on its promise to support British business and the Northern Powerhouse. Scottish Power said it awarded the contract following an open tender process, and the company Navantia was selected based on its technical and economic competitiveness. A spokesman added: 'We are working with a range of UK suppliers and supporting major investment in UK infrastructure. A continued slowdown in Londons property market is taking a toll on Foxtons as income from house sales fell by more than a third in its last quarter. The London-focused estate agent, which also has offices in Surrey, said fewer home sales meant revenues declined 34 per cent to 12.2million in the three months to the end of September. It also saw lower demand of homes to rent, but contract renewals meant its lettings revenues were flat at 22.6million. Slowing down: Foxtons' income from house sales fell by more than a third in the last quarter Despite the results, shares in the group were about 2 per cent higher at 97.25p in mid-morning trading. The quarter results come after Foxtons issued a profit warning in July, with boss Nic Budden blaming it on Brexit and higher stamp duty for landlords. But today, despite the drop in revenues, Mr Budden said that Londons property market remained attractive in the long term. We have built Foxtons to withstand sales market cycles with our lettings revenue comprising over half the business, he said. The estate agent said it had now 65 branches after opening seven new ones so far this year in Loughton, Sutton, New Malden, Fulham, Maida Vale as well as in Vauxhall and Peckham. It said it was planning to open another two branches at the beginning of next year in outer London. Recent housing market surveys have suggested that London has been one of the regions to be mostly affected by Brexit, with uncertainty denting Londoners' appetite for buying and selling homes. A 3 per cent increase in stamp duty for landlords introduced in April is also said to have caused a slowdown in transactions. To let: Foxtons also saw a reduced activity in tenants demand in its last quarter However, the capital has seen some of the biggest price increases in recent years, with values currently around 35 per cent higher than their pre-crisis peak. There are rumours that new Chancellor Philip Hammond will try to axe vital tax breaks Savers have been hit by a double blow to their pensions from meddling politicians. Last night the Treasury U-turned on a promise to allow retired savers to cash in their annuities. And now there are rumours that new Chancellor Philip Hammond will try to axe vital tax breaks that help savers built up larger retirement funds. Politicians are being lobbied heavily by insurers to hack back pension tax relief for middle-class workers who are in their 30s and older. At present, savers do not pay income tax on money they put into a pension - under the principle of saving into a pension from untaxed earnings. It means that 1 paid into a pension costs a basic-rate taxpayer 80p and a higher rate taxpayer 60p. A consultation on changing pensions tax relief was launched last year. It claimed it wanted to simplify pensions, however, critics said the Government was simply trying to take in more tax from higher rate taxpayers' pension contributions. Former Chancellor George Osborne shelved the idea of making any changes in his final Budget but the door was left open to future tinkering. The most common suggestion so far has been a shift to a flat rate of pension tax relief, such as 30 per cent for everyone. This would reduce the benefit to higher rate taxpayers and mean that those paying 40 per cent tax no longer saved entirely from untaxed income, however, it would increase the benefit for basic rate taxpayers. Last night the Treasury U-turned on a promise to allow retired savers to cash in their annuities. Under radical proposals now being considered by the Treasury, for every 1 paid into your pension you would receive another 1, less your age, from the Government. So a 25-year-old would receive a 75p top-up, compared to just 20p today. But anyone paying higher-rate taxes after the age of 35 would lose out. Critics have pointed out that while this would encourage younger people to save early it could backfire and discourage older savers who haven't yet built up a retirement pot from doing so. The Treasury yesterday announced that it no longer plans to launch a marketplace for savers to sell their annuities back to companies for a lump sum. It says not enough insurers had signed up to buy the contracts, which pay an income for life, and that this could have put savers at risk of getting a bad deal. Obama and a White House invite for dictator who has stolen billions from his impoverished African nation Barack Obama has come under fire for extending a formal invitation to a shamed African dictator who has ruthlessly plundered billions of dollars from his own country. The U.S. President is today having a coveted private meeting with President Ali Bongo of Gabon in the Oval Office despite his appalling track record. Bongos family has ruled the impoverished African nation with an iron fist for five decades and have used its oil riches to fund a life of outrageous luxury. Invite: Barack Obama today had a coveted private meeting with President Ali Bongo of Gabon in the Oval Office despite his appalling track record Meanwhile one third of people in Gabon live on less than $2 a day and thousands starve to death each year or are forced to pick through garbage to find food. Critics have pointed out that Gabon, with a population of 1.5 million, is the third-largest oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa. They claim that the only reason Mr Obama has agreed to the meeting is that he wants to curry favour with an ally to secure Americas fuel supplies - regardless of who it is. The Bongo familys abuse of Gabon is well-documented and dates back to 1967 when Omar Bongo, Alis father, took over. Two years ago he died paving the way for Ali Bongo to continue the reign of corruption. Investigations have revealed the Bongos have dozens of luxury homes in places like the French Riviera and a $120million 14-bedroom townhouse in Paris. Meeting: The two leaders discussed 'a range of critical regional and global issues', according to The White House During one shopping spree in 2006 Ali Bongos then wife balked at the idea of moving into a property that cost a mere $25million. GABON: Country factfile Population: 1,577,000 Birth rate: 35 births / 1,000 Death rate: 13 deaths / 1,000 Infant mortality rate: 50 / 1,000 Life expectancy: 52 years HIV/Aids prevalence: 5.2% Literacy rate: 63 per cent GDP per capita: $14,500 Unemployment: 21 per cent SOURCE: CIA World Factbook I need something really big, really, really, really big, Inge said. I would think for that amount of money, I would expect a bit more grandeur. I've tried to downsize, but it's just not in my character. Jack Blum, a United Nations consultant and expert on offshore banking, told ABC News that the meeting with Mr Obama sends out the wrong message. He said that over the years the Bongos had siphoned off a quarter of Gabons GDP which has made them incredibly rich. There's absolutely no shame, Blum said of Bongo and his cronies. I would say that the people who are running the country are guilty of grand theft nation. Senator Carl Levin, D-Michigan, added that: Omar Bongo and now his son Ali Bongo have for more than 40 years run a regime in Gabon which diverts their country's wealth for their family's personal use. Long running: The Bongo family's abuse of Gabon is well-documented and dates back to 1967 when Ali's late father Omar Bongo, pictured, took over A Congressional report he wrote last year showed that the Bongos misused U.S. financial institutions to carry out suspicious transactions involving millions of dollars. Omar Bongo and now his son Ali Bongo have for more than 40 years run a regime in Gabon which diverts their country's wealth for their family's personal use Senator Carl Levin Speaking to ABC News White House press secretary Jay Carney admitted that Bongo has a less than sterling record. First of all, the president of Gabon is making reform efforts, which we support, he said. Secondly ... Gabon has been an important partner in some of the issues that are very important to American national security. Manhattan college student Samy El-Goarany died last year fighting for ISIS in Syria, it was revealed in court papers on Monday A New York City college student died last year fighting for the Islamic State in Syria and the mosque in his hometown was told he died in a car crash. The imam of the Islamic Center of Middletown, New York told News 12 that they held a service for Samy El-Goarany after he died, and that he even comforted the young man's mourning family. He added that he was surprised by the potential connection to ISIS. El-Goarany's identity as a jihadi fighter was revealed this week in documents filed on Monday in Manhattan federal court. That's because before he allegedly died in November, the 24-year-old recorded a video trying to clear the name of an Arizona man who had been arrested for recruiting him. The Arizona man, Ahmed Mohammed el Gammal, who's accused of helping the student travel to Syria and receive military and religious-style training, was arrested last year and has pleaded not guilty. His lawyers said the video is unreliable and 'overly prejudicial' and should be precluded from a trial scheduled for December. Prosecutors say El-Goarany left his parents' home in Middletown, New York, in January 2015, telling them he was returning to his Manhattan college. Instead, the government said, he flew to Turkey and then Syria. Reached by phone, El-Goarany's father said the family didn't wish to speak. Court papers did not identify El-Goarany's college. The imam at the El-Goarany's mosque in Middletown, New York says they were told Samy (right) died in a car crash last year . Pictured above with members of his family The Middletown, New York imam says he was surprised to learn about Samy's involvement in ISIS. Pictured above at a Japanese steakhouse in a photo posted to Facebook Above, the Islamic Center of Middletown, New York where the El-Goarany family held a memorial service for Samy after his death. The imam of the mosque said that they were told he was surprised to learn of the young man's connection to ISIS this week Prosecutors said an unidentified person contacted a relative in November to say El-Goarany was killed fighting in Syria. The person provided photographs of a handwritten note in which the student said, 'If you're reading this then know that I've been killed in battle,' prosecutors said. The government also said it had found a YouTube video in which El-Goarany, clad in military fatigues, said on September 8, 2015, two weeks after el Gammal's arrest, that he was in the 'Islamic State.' Prosecutors said El-Goarany claimed in the video in an 'unabashed effort to falsely exculpate el Gammal that no one assisted him in traveling to Syria, including 'Ahmed Mohammed El Gammal.' El-Goarany's identity as a jihadi fighter was revealed this week in court documents for the upcoming trial of Ahmed Mohammed el Gammal (left and right), a man who has been accused of recruiting the college student Prosecutors argued in the court papers that the video should be admissible at trial to show El-Goarany went to Syria to join the Islamic State group and that he and his co-conspirators took extensive measures to maintain secrecy in the group's methods for recruiting personnel and helping recruits travel. El-Goarany's lawyers said in court papers that the video depicts their client sitting on a mat in a sparsely decorated room. They say he states his name, explains he is a U.S. citizen 'currently residing in the Islamic State' and says el Gammal did not assist him in his travels. The lawyers said the video should not be shown to jurors because it 'constitutes inadmissible hearsay.' 'Additionally, the entire video should be precluded as overly prejudicial,' they wrote, noting that El-Goarany is unavailable to testify at el Gammal's trial and cannot further explain how el Gammal did not facilitate his travel. The defense lawyers also challenged the admissibility of El-Goarany's handwritten note, saying claims of his death were 'unreliable,' especially since he had written to his brother weeks earlier to say he might have to fall out of contact because he was being monitored. A woman who was allegedly shot dead by her husband was found in a shallow grave behind her in-laws' home, along with a bag of potato chips, a bottle of perfume and an 'apologetic' note. An autopsy record shows Valerie Tieman, 34, was found in the grave in Fairfield, Maine, alongside the items last month. Her husband Luc, 32, has been charged with murder. He initially claimed his wife had run away, then when her body was found he said she died as a result of a drug overdose. But it soon emerged that she had in fact been shot twice in the head. Valerie Tieman (left, and right with her husband Luc), was found buried in a shallow grave behind her in-laws' home in Maine He has been described by friends as a disabled army veteran suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A report obtained by the Morning Sentinel said a note that 'reportedly has an apologetic tone' was found beneath her body on September 20. Police say the victim was shot in the head and neck. The victim's husband first claimed he thought his wife had run away with another man, then after her body was recovered he said she had died from a drug overdose A toxicology report discovered buprenorphine - which is often used to help heroin or opiate users fight their addiction - and tramadol, used to manage pain. Mrs Tieman had first been reported missing by her parents on September 9. Her husband first told police that she vanished while he was in a Wal-Mart store, and he suspected she had run off with another man. When her body was found, he said he had watched as his wife overdosed on heroin. The Leinie Lodge is a popular destination for Chippewa Valley residents and countless tourists. With the recent resurgence of microbreweries, neighbor Lori Geissler thinks the lodge is gaining in popularity. Its great for the community, but not so great for Geissler and her neighbors, who have to deal with overflow parking on Elm and Prairie streets. It is getting more difficult in our corner of the world down here, Geissler said at the Public Safety Committee meeting Tuesday night. We want a solution thats going to work for (Leinie) Lodge, too. We know theyre in the business of bringing tourists to area, and thats great for area. Everythings great unless you live right there. Geissler and her husband, Robert, brought up safety concerns regarding cars and buses parking in front of mailboxes, driveways and fire hydrants in front of homes on Elm Street and Prairie Street, just across from the lodges parking lot. Parking is currently allowed on both sides of the two streets, and neighbors have resorted to putting up their own No Parking signs to try and keep driveways clear. But especially on weekends, the Geisslers said those dont always stop visitors. Lindsey Everson, Leinie Lodge manager, acknowledged their concerns and said the safety of neighbors and guests is the companys number one concern. We want to be the best neighbor we possibly can and do what we can to enforce all restrictions that are currently in place, Everson said. She pointed out their lot on the other side of the creek, in front of the brewery, also houses some parking on the weekends when there arent retailer and distributor trucks coming and going. Leinies is growing, and Everson said they are exploring opportunities to support their business. Nothing is set in stone yet, but they want to continue providing an experience for tourists while remaining responsible neighbors. But the Geisslers dont think current ordinances are enough. Robert Geissler said there are safety issues such if a fire truck or ambulance needed to go down those roads. With parking on both sides, it would be nearly impossible for a vehicle of that size to get down the streets. The committee members as well as Chippewa Falls Police Lieutenant Brian Micolichek discussed options, ranging from using the Marshall Field parking lots to reducing parking only on non-residential sides of both Prairie and Elm Streets. Committee chair Paul Olson, who occasionally travels down those streets, said he recognizes there is a problem and wants to address it. But coming up with a solution to keep Leinie Lodge customers and its neighbors happy is a big feat, and he motioned to table the item for further discussion. Something is not going to happen tonight, but something will be done here, Olson said. If we dont have to do something real dramatic, we wont, but if we have to we will. Its something we need to think about first. The committee also approved a new Leinenkugels Brewery illuminated sign to be placed in front of the brewery parking lot. The sign, complete with the companys logo, would direct visitors to the brewery, whether customers or distributors, to the proper place. Eric Marty of Zebradog, a company out of Madison who designed the sign, said customers are confused where to go and dont understand the lodge is where tours start. The sign, on a brick foundation which has already been laid, will lessen that confusion with arrows pointing toward shipping & receiving as well as visitor center & brewery tour. Elm Street to see changes The Public Safety Committee also heard results from Rob Krejci, assistant city engineer, regarding a speed study done in the Elm Street neighborhood regarding concerns to school, specifically where Highway N turns into Elm Street and the speed limit drops from 55 mph to 25 mph. Krejci recommended a transitory speed limit of 45 mph coming down the hill. This allows transition up the hill but reduces speed (for traffic) coming down, Krejci said. He also recommended two 25 mph signs with flagging, similar to what was recently done on northbound Highway 124 coming into downtown Chippewa Falls. Micolichek said the police department recently installed an electronic speed board in that area, and thought more speed limit reminders would be helpful. We find many people speed simply because they dont know theyre speeding, Micolichek said. (Reminders) have proven to be quite effective throughout the city and area in informing the speed limit. The committee unanimously voted to recommend Council approve installing a 45 mph transitory speed limit area when entering the city, as well as installing a pedestrian crossing and signage at Hilary Street and Elm Street at the walking path and periodically having the electronic speed board on Elm Street. Because the city needs to go through the county to change the speed limit, Krejci said he will give the same presentation at 9 a.m. Thursday to the Chippewa County Traffic Safety Committee. An Air Force base in Colorado said Tuesday it accidentally released about 150,000 gallons of water containing toxic chemicals into the sewer system of the adjacent city of Colorado Springs, but the potential health hazards weren't immediately known. Peterson Air Force Base said the water contained perfluorinated compounds or PFCs, which have been linked to prostate, kidney and testicular cancer, along with other illnesses. The Air Force hasn't said how high the levels were. Peterson Air Force base (pictured) said Tuesday it accidentally released about 150,000 gallons of water containing toxic chemicals into the sewer system of the adjacent city of Colorado Springs Fred Brooks, Environmental Element Chief at Peterson Air Force Base, second from right, answers questions during a press conference on Tuesday Video courtesy of KKTV The chemicals didn't get into the city's drinking water, said Steve Berry, a spokesman for Colorado Springs Utilities. The tainted water passed through a wastewater treatment plant, but the plant isn't set up to remove PFCs, so they were still in the water when it was discharged into Fountain Creek, Berry said. No communities take water directly from the creek downstream from the treatment plant, said Meghan Trubee, a spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. The Air Force said the tainted water was released from a storage tank sometime in the past week, but the cause of the leak was still under investigation. It was discovered during a routine inspection of the tank on October 12. PFCs are a component of firefighting foam widely used by the military, including at Peterson. The holding tank was part of a system used to recirculate the water to a fire training area, officials said. The Air Force is already investigating whether Peterson is the source of PFC contamination found in well water in two other nearby communities, the town of Fountain and an unincorporated community called Security-Widefield. Peterson Air Force Base said the water contained perfluorinated compounds or PFCs. PFCs are a component of firefighting foam widely used by the military, including at Peterson (stock) The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said in August it was highly likely that Peterson was the source of the PFCs in the two communities, although it hasn't been determined exactly how it got into the underground water. The Air Force agreed to pay for filters and monitoring wells for the water systems. Trubee said Tuesday that state officials were aware of the latest discharge of PFC-contaminated water from the Air Force Base and were awaiting more information from the military. Australian stores also stripped by consumers wanting to ship it to China The price of Australian cereal Weet-Bix soared to a whopping $50 a box in China after it was featured on a popular Beijing soap opera. Actress Liu Tao grabbed a box of Weet-Bix as she sat down to eat breakfast, claiming she didn't eat traditional Chinese breakfasts and preferred the more Western-style meal of cereal. And that was all it took to send sales sky-rocketing. Weet-Bix sales skyrocketed after it made an appearance on popular Chinese drama Ode to Joy (pictured) The price of Weet-Bix peaked in China in May directly after it made the appearance on TV drama Ode to Joy. It made China the single biggest exporter for Weet-Bix. But shortly after the craze, the cost stabilised out to about $14 for a 1.4kg box, still almost three-times what a box costs in Australia. China became the biggest exporter of Weet-Bix after the product placement 1.4 kilogram boxes were selling for up to $50 in china, when they only sold for about $5 in Australia The company behind the popular Australian breakfast cereal Sanitarium said the reaction to the product placement was insane. Online sales were hounded by celebrity-obsessed Chinese buyers and Australian stores were also stripped of stock by business savvy consumers who wanted to ship the product to China with an exorbitant mark-up price, according to News.com.au. Sanitarium is now relaunching the cereal as Nutri-Brex in an attempt to prevent any confusion that it was linked to rival product Weetabix, made the in the UK. Sanitarium Weet-Bix on sale for $50 from National Hotel Supplies online Weet-Bix sales jumped by about 50 per cent after it was featured on the popular soap opera Weet-Bix has been marketed in Australia since 1985, but only entered the Chinese market in 2008 But the new product Nutri-Brex will continue to be made in the same factories as Weet-Bix in Australia, with the exact same ingredients. Sanitarium Health & Wellbeing Australia general manager Todd Saunders said sales in Mainland China jumped by about 50 per cent in 2016, and Sanitarium expected them to continue after its re-brand. Mr Saunders said its re-brand would give them a distinctive brand asset, and a name that stood out in the Chinese market. He said the re-brand would give the product its biggest surge since it entered the market in 2008. Weet-Bix has marketed itself on the slogan 'Aussie Kids are Weet-Bix kids' The new product Nutri-Brex will continue to be made in the same factories as Weet-Bix in Australia, with the exact same ingredients He said the launch of the new name would kick off with a photo of an actress from the Ode to Joy show holding Nutri-Brex in Sydney in front of the Opera House. He hoped the same show which launched it to popularity in 2008 would again be behind its to success in 2016. Prime Minister Theresa May has insisted she will defy opposition to push through her plans for a new generation of grammar schools Almost half of grammar schools now prioritise poor pupils in admissions and some reserve up to a quarter of places for the least privileged, new research shows. A survey carried out by the BBC found 73 out of the countrys 163 selective schools favour children who are eligible for free school meals the official deprivation indicator. The analysis revealed that 21 grammar schools set aside places in quotas for pupils from lower income families. A further 43 give some degree of priority in their over-subscription criteria, while nine grammar schools use it as a tie-breaker for allocating places to academically matched pupils. The research was presented on Radio 4s Today Programme, which pointed out that some schools were doing absolutely nothing to help the poor But Professor Anna Vignoles, from the University of Cambridge, said the measures were an interesting development which would make a difference. She told the programme: The good thing about the action that grammar schools are taking is that it will send a strong signal to primary schools and to parents that pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds are being prioritised, and that could influence some of the choices that children and their parents make because many poor students dont even apply to grammar school. It comes amid government plans to reintroduce grammar schools into the poorest areas of the country in an effort to boost social mobility. It would reverse a ban imposed by Tony Blair in 1998 which stopped any new selective schools being created. Critics say competition is so fierce to get into grammar schools that only the wealthiest children whose parents can afford private tutoring can score highly on the admissions test and gain a place. But the Grammar School Heads Association, which represents the leaders of the 163 remaining schools, is encouraging members to introduce quotas for poor pupils and other measures. Grammar schools have in the past tried to introduce positive discrimination, but were prevented from doing so by the government. However, in 2014 the admissions code was changed to allow all state-funded schools to prioritise places for children from the poorest backgrounds. BBC researchers examined the most recently published admission policies for applications for 2017-18 of grammars. They found the five grammar schools within the King Edward VI foundation in Birmingham go furthest, with a quota policy allocating up to 25 per cent of places to pupils who are eligible for pupil premium funding in order of their test scores. This means children who have been entitled to free school meals, and therefore the pupil premium grant, in the past six years are considered before remaining places are awarded. The policy has been in place for two years, so it will be some time before it fully alters the profile of the schools. Urmston Grammar School, in Manchester, sets aside just three places out of an intake of 150 for pupils entitled to pupil premium. The Skinners School in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, gives five places, out of 150, to pupils eligible for free school meals. The Government has promised there will be no return to the 11 Plus entrance exam for grammar school pupils and insists Britain already has a postcode lottery, with richer parents moving to areas with better comprehensives. Prime Minister Theresa May also stressed that new grammars will have to show they are genuinely reaching out to poorer pupils and that education is not going back to the 1950s. Former Prime Minister Tony Blair (pictured) banned new grammar schools in 1998 -one year after the Labour Party won the general election The government consultation document on grammars states: Selective schools also need to ensure the pupils they admit are representative of their local communities. However, Gary Hickey, headteacher of Adams Grammar School in Shopshire, said while he prioritises poorer pupils he would be wary of lowering entrance standards. He said: If you set lower standards, what we are potentially doing is setting them up to fail because they wont be able to cope with the academic standards of the grammar school. A Department for Education spokesman said: The Government is currently consulting on scrapping the ban on new grammar schools, and allowing them to open where parents want them. Too often, the chance of getting the best education depends not on their talent or hard work but on where they live or how much money their parents have. Our new approach is not about recreating the binary system of the past or maintaining the status quo. Motorcycle racing legend Wayne Gardner and his son have been jailed for alleged road rage and driving infringements in Japan. The pair had been in the country for the Japanese Motorcycle Grand Prix but on Sunday, Gardner senior, 57, was arrested for allegedly inflicting 'violence by grabbing the victims' collars and such over traffic troubles' at the race venue. Son Remy, 18 and also a motorcycle racer, completed the event but was arrested on Monday for allegedly driving a car without a licence, according to the Courier Mail. Father and son Wayne and Remy Gardner pictured in Japan before they were both arrested Remy Gardner, 18, and father Wayne Gardner, 57, pictured together. The pair have both been jailed in Japan, according to a report Remy Gardner son of former 500cc World Champion Wayne Gardner Remy Gardner heads down a straight during the Moto2 race during the MotoGP of Japan They could spend up to 23 days in prison or more as criminal suspects can be held for that period without charge, followed by a further detention period, it was reported. It could throw into doubt Remy's anticipated appearance at this weekends Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix on Phillip Island, Victoria. Brother Luca reportedly took to Twitter to express his apparent displeasure with his father and older sibling. A tweet made on Monday read: 'loss of respect to @GardnerRemy @TheWayneGardner honestly'. Luca Gardner took to Twitter to express apparent displeasure with his releatives Gardner was Australia's first 500cc motorcycle world champion, in 1987. Pictured in son Remy, next to one of his father's motorcycles Gardner's arrest followed an incident about 8am on Sunday, where two middle-aged Japanese men and a 19-year-old boy were victims, the Courier Mail reported. Police in Japan would not confirm Remy was arrested as he was still considered a minor in the country, but newspaper reports said he'd been spotted in the driver's seat of car and failed to present the required International Driving Licence for foreigners. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade released a statement on Tuesday saying the department was 'providing consular assistance to two Australian men arrested in Japan'. Gardner was Australia's first 500cc motorcycle world champion. British rider Sam Lowes leads Remy Gardner during the Moto2-class second free practice session at the Japanese Grand Prix Wayne and Remy Gardner at the Honda Museum during the Japanese Grand Prix recently The husband of a woman whose body was discovered after a house fire has been charged with murder. Residents on Clement Street in Guildford, western Sydney, described hearing a woman's screams for help as the fire tore through the home of a family from Afghanistan in the early hours of Tuesday. Abdul Barati, 43, and his two sons, aged six and nine, escaped the inferno, but his wife, Adelah Barati, 30, was found dead. Scroll down for video Damage caused by the blaze at a Guildford, western Sydney home, where a 30-year-old woman died Damage to the house on Clement Street in Guildford after the blaze tore through it Fire and ambulance crews on the scene, where Adelah Barati's body was found The family is understood to have recently migrated from Afghanistan, 9 News reported. According to reports, Barati attempted to put out the blaze using water from a tap and told neighbours to call fire crews. Emergency services found the man and children outside the property, which was well alight when they responded to numerous triple zero calls about 3.35am. Barati will appear in the Fairfield Local Court on Wednesday after being questioned, charged and refused bail on Tuesday. Police at the scene of a house fire in Guildford on Tuesday, October 18 Family and friends of the couple will be questioned about their marriage as part of one line of inquiry, Superintendent Matt Appleton said. 'The relationship between the deceased and her husband is something investigators are looking at,' he told reporters at Merrylands Police Station. He declined to say whether Mrs Barati was killed by the fire and in which part of the house her body was found. Their sons were being cared for by family members. Dairy farmers in Western Australia are pouring thousands of litres of milk down the drain as a global oversupply forces them off the land. Fifth-generation dairy producers in the state's south-west are closing as milk processors Brownes Dairy and Harvey Fresh terminate contracts. Graham Manning has poured 16,000 litres of milk and 156 years of family history down the drain as an oversupply of dairy products and plummeting demand from Asia and Europe destroys his livelihood. The fifth-generation farmer said he was preparing to sell his cows and farm at Harvey, south of Perth. 'Today's the day we start dropping milk. We've got 16,000 litres in our vats,' he told reporters at his property on Tuesday. 'Very sad day.' His two-year contract with Brownes expired on September 30. Milks pours from a drain (pictured) at farmer Graham Manning's Harvey property in WA Fellow farmers Dale Hanks and Tony Ferrano also lost their delivery contracts. Harvey Fresh bought two week's worth of milk from the three farmers, following the end of the Brownes contract, but that ended on Tuesday. A crisis meeting between those milk producers and WA Farmers was held. WA Farmers dairy council president Michael Partridge criticised the milk companies of the two processors for their handling of the global dairy glut. 'For these three farmers to take the brunt of the industry problem at the moment is absolutely disgusting,' he told reporters on Tuesday. 'There's not much of a way forward for Graham and guys like him at the moment. Fifth-generation farmer Graham Manning (pictured) empties 16,000 litres of milk down drain 'We just need to make sure it can't happen to anyone else. 'There's other ways to balance milk and control supply. 'Just so devastated it's come to this.' Brownes declined to comment but pointed Daily Mail Australia to a Facebook post by the processor on September 23. 'In Western Australia, we face an unprecedented situation where our milk supply is far greater than the demand of the local and export markets combined,' it said. Brownes (pictured, left) says it supports WA dairy farmers of Friesian cows (pictured, right) Five more farmers in WA's south-west face an uncertain future as Harvey Fresh ends contracts in January. Earlier this year, Brownes and Harvey Fresh told nine farmers in the state's south-west their produce was no longer required because of a global oversupply of milk. In May, Brownes managing director Tony Girgis said Western Australia was producing 390 million litres of milk a year but only 310 million litres was being consumed. Mr Manning said he would sell 250 cows and stop another 100 from producing milk. 'It's been a pretty rough time, but we've got to get through this,' he said. 'We can't think too much about ourselves, it's just as important for us to deal with these cows.' Milk at Graham Manning's Harvey dairy farm is emptied into effluent ponds (pictured) Milk at Graham Manning's dairy farm is flushed down the drain (pictured) as deliveries end West Australian dairy farmer Dale Hanks' tweet (pictured) about Brownes ending his contract Plenty of politicians like the prestige that a podium provides but in Hillary Clinton's case, having a fixed platform was a requirement promoted by her staff. A newly released email obtained by Citizens United in its running federal records lawsuit includes several messages by longtime aide Huma Abedin negotiating the setup of a 2009 Hillary Clinton event. 'Just want to make sure someone has coordinated with you on hrc speech set up,' Abedin wrote Clinton Foundation aide Ami Desai and another aide, Ed Hughes on September 14. A newly released email obtained by Citizens United in its running federal records lawsuit includes several messages by longtime aide Huma Abedin negotiating the setup of a 2009 Hillary Clinton event. She is pictured at another event the same year 'She won't be able to give it in the round like he does walking around with microphone,' she said, in reference to Bill Clinton. 'Are we able to set it up so shes speaking at a podium?' Abedin asked. In an email reported by the lifezette website, Hughes responded that the room for the event ' s set 'stage in the round' with the circular stage in the center of the round, audience all around in concentric circles similar to some of last year's campaign rallies with public in the background.' Clinton had held countless town hall events during her failed presidential bid in 2008. Abedin responded: 'I'm worried that will be an issue for her. Can we do a half round or something?' Abedin frequently acts as a gatekeeper guarding Clinton's time while also seeing to her physical comfort. Abdein said Hillary would not be able to walk around the stage as easily as her husband Bill, so required a podium. She is pictured speaking at a conference in Jakarta, Indonesia, in 2009 In emails released as part of the Wikileaks dump, Diplomatic Security agents complain that it is sometimes Abedin who required them to break security protocol when traveling with Clinton. One security agent event complained that Clinton made them roll down a window in her secure vehicle while traveling through the West Bank in rough territory controlled by the Palestinian Authority. When Clinton was preparing a statement following the Benghazi Committee hearings, aide Dan Schwerin wrote,'I would make it shorter only because it's a bank of Mics and no podium.' He's been called the Mozart of chess. But during a recent stroll in New York, grandmaster Magnus Carlsen was just like any other player in Washington Square Park. The 25-year-old Norwegian, who's the world's best chess player, was joined by actress Liv Tyler as he challenged a number of players and most of them had no idea who he was. Scroll down for video Magnus Carlsen, 25, (right), the top-ranking chess grandmaster in the world, went undercover to challenge hustlers in New York's Washington Square Park Most who faced off against Carlsen at Washington Square Park (pictured) didn't know who he was but quickly discovered once he started beating them in 10 moves He stopped by the Manhattan park alongside close friend Liv Tyler to challenge a number of local hustlers 'At the moment, I didn't know who it was,' said one of the players who faced off Carlsen, which was captured in a video shared October 6. 'I was just playing. I tried to win, but when I saw him make a move, already I knew it was like, you know, he's a very strong player. 'In like 10 moves, he checkmated me.' Meanwhile, 39-year-old Tyler smiled and snapped photos on her cellphone while watching Carlsen play in the park. Tyler, 39, smiled and snapped photos on her cellphone while watching Carlsen play in the park Carlsen became a grandmaster at 13. By 19, he was already considered the world's best player. Carlsen and Tyler have appeared together on a number of occasions. They were seen playing each other at the Village Chess Shop in a 2010 video. That same year, Carlsen co-starred in a G-Star Raw ad and shared the red carpet with Tyler during New York Fashion Week. Carlsen became a grandmaster at 13. By 19, he was already considered the world's best player. Carlsen and Tyler have appeared together on a number of occasions since 2010, when they co-starred in a G-Star Raw commercial (pictured). They also shared the red carpet during New York Fashion Week Carlsen and Tyler were also seen playing each other at the Village Chess Shop in a 2010 video In 2014, he checkmated Bill Gates in just nine moves. At Washington Square Park, one player said he 'tried to win, but when I saw his move, I knew I was going to lose.' Another player said he was asked by several people if he knew who Carlsen was. 'I remember that I said, "Well, I know that I'm playing a strong player,"' he said. Carlsen said the man 'didn't play too badly.' At Washington Square Park, one player said he 'tried to win, but when I saw his move, I knew I was going to lose. They died of organ failure and 'organising pneumonia' in 2015 All the victims abused alcohol since they were teenagers It was made with $2 bottles of wine from auction and other sources The moonshine had toxic methanol in it, produced by poor distilling They all lived in a remote Aboriginal community in northwest NSW Three people died after drinking their neighbour's $2 moonshine so strong that one sip could paralyse the drinkers arms for 15 minutes, an inquest has heard. Roger Adams, 37, his girlfriend Sandra Boney, 40, and her brother Norman Boney, 46, all died within two months of each other in early 2015. Police found about 100 empty bottles lying around a tank at the home of Ms Boney and Mr Adams in the indigenous community of Walli Reserve, near Collarenebri in northern NSW, after the deaths. Three people died after drinking their neighbour's $2 moonshine so strong that one sip could paralyse the drinkers arms for 15 minutes, an inquest has heard (stock image) The bottles contained highly-toxic methanol, which can be fatal in small amounts of just 100 millilitres or less and is produced when alcohol is not distilled properly. Their neighbours Mary Miller and Graham Stewart had allegedly for six months been supplying the trio with boxes of spirits they illegally distilled at home, the inquest heard. The coroner's court heard a woman in the community said her arms went numb for 10 to 15 minutes after just one nip of red liquid just before Christmas 2014. 'She purchased some moonshine rum, different to the red drink, for $30. It tasted like methylated spirits,' counsel assisting the coroner Peggy Dwyer told the court. 'Some of the moonshine contained highly toxic levels of methanol. Liquid from some of the other bottles seized smelt like apple juice and unleaded petrol.' The victims lived in the indigenous community of Walli Reserve, near Collarenebri in northern NSW The bottles contained highly-toxic methanol, which can be fatal in small amounts of just 100 millilitres or less and is produced when alcohol is not distilled properly Ms Miller said the wine seized from her home and used to make the spirits was bought for $2 a bottle at auction. 'They also told police that these bottles of spirits were occasionally given as gifts, or as part of a bartering system,' Ms Dwyer said. All three victims died of organ failure and 'organising pneumonia' after a history of alcohol abuse dating back to when they were teenagers, the court heard. Ms Boney died in February 2015, Mr Boney two weeks later and Mr Adams a month later after convulsing, vomiting blood and suffering a heart attack. Mr Adam's sister told the inquest he began to drink more than usual after his girlfriend's death, buying bottles of red wine and port from an IGA supermarket. 'Naturally he was grieving the death of his partner... and appeared to have difficulty coping with (it),' Ms Dwyer said. Ms Dwyer said it was illegal in Australia to distil alcohol without a license. The inquest in Walgett, near Collarenebri, was expected to run until Friday. The cost of seeing a doctor will Patients will have to fork out $78 to see a doctor next month as health professionals hike fees to cover rising costs amid a freeze in Federal Government funding. The Australian Medical Association (AMA) said on Wednesday it had recommended its members increase fees two percent from November 1, meaning a standard GP visit of under 20 minutes will increase $2. For patients whose doctor does not bulk bill - which means they accept the Medicare rate as full payment for the consultation - fees will increase to $41, as the current rebate is $37. Doctors' fees for a standard GP visit of under 20 minutes will be hiked $2 to $78 next month 'Input costs have gone up - rents, cost of insurance, cost of supplies - they continue to rise and in that environment we need to continue to apply a quality service,' AMA Vice President Dr Tony Bartone said. 'What is unfortunate is that we are in a middle of the MBS freeze,' he said, referring to the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS). The government announced this year it was extending the freeze on rebates paid to doctors and other health professionals until 2020 in a bid to save $2.8 billion. Dr Bartone said the freeze was putting pressure on GPs, who were becoming more likely to abandon bulk billing. 'While the government continues to freeze the rebates it will fall back on patients, out of pocket costs will increase and the ability to continue bulk billing will be questioned time and time again,' he said. Health Minister Sussan Ley said it was up to doctors how much they charge patients. 'We respect and value that doctors are small businesses and they have scope to set their fees according to their wishes, their business model and their patient cohort,' she told reporters at Parliament House. Ms Ley said the prime minister's pre-election declaration that no one would pay more to see a GP because of the rebate freeze was underpinned by a record-high bulk billing rate. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said GPs were being squeezed to breaking point. Retailer had already annoyed customers by changing its free coffee offer The minimum spend to receive a free newspaper will go up from 5 to 10 Furious Waitrose customers are threatening to desert the upmarket supermarket after it introduced another curb on its popular loyalty scheme. The minimum spend to receive a free newspaper with your shopping will double to 10 from November 1. The retailer had already prompted anger by insisting customers have to buy something before getting a free hot drink at eight stores. Furious Waitrose customers are threatening to desert the upmarket supermarket after it introduced another curb on its popular loyalty scheme The minimum spend to receive a free newspaper with your shopping will double to 10 from November 1. Customers reacted with fury on social media An email announcing the change was sent to MyWaitrose cardholders on Monday. It said: 'From 1 November 2016, the minimum spend to receive money off your shopping with selected newspapers from Monday to Friday will be 10. 'It will remain at 10 at weekends as it is now.' The decision prompted ire on social media, with Twitter user Mark Phillips writing: 'Dear @waitrose your 5 newspaper offer keeps me coming to your store most days. 'Doubling it to 10 I'm afraid won't bother #change it back.' Twitter user Bryan RS criticised the store for saying the hike to 10 was 'a small change'. He wrote: 'Why not be honest? The newspaper offer isn't "changing". It's getting worse. Spin like this makes you look like Tesco.' A spokesman for Waitrose told MailOnline: 'Like any business, we regularly review promotions to ensure we balance providing value for our customers with a return on our investment. We are still the only supermarket where if you buy a selected newspaper, you will receive money off the rest of your shopping.' The news came just four days Waitrose put restrictions on its give-away of free takeaway coffee for loyalty card holders at eight stores. The change means that customers now have to buy something else before they can collect a free hot drink. The move followed complaints from customers in some towns that the deal was creating queues and attracting the 'wrong sort of people'. Small independent coffee shops had also been critical of the scheme, complaining that it took away vital custom. The retailer had already prompted anger by insisting customers have to buy something before getting a free hot drink at eight stores It seems likely that the decision, which the company calls a 'small change', will be rolled out to hundreds of other stores. The offer of a free hot coffee or tea without the need to buy anything has been hugely popular since it was introduced in 2013, attracting thousands of extra people through their doors. However, while the offer has created queues at tills, it does not appear to have translated to a big uplift in sales. As a result, the chain has imposed a series of caveats that have made it more difficult to claim the free drink. An email announcing the change was sent to MyWaitrose cardholders on Monday. These loyal customers were not happy In January last year, Waitrose decided that anyone who wanted to have their free drink in one of its store cafes would have to buy something else, such as pastry, to qualify. Now, the trial at the eight stores means customers cannot have a hot drink to take away unless they buy something else. And the something else can't be a 5p plastic bag, tobacco, stamps, mobile or e-top up vouchers, a lottery ticket, or gift voucher. The eight stores involved in the trial are in Essex and parts of the east of England - Billericay, Bury St Edmunds, Clifton, Leigh-on-Sea, Mountsorrel, Norwich, Southend and Swaffham. Waitrose says: 'We are carrying out a trial in eight branches where we will be making a small change. 'We'll simply be asking myWaitrose members in these shops to make a purchase before collecting their free coffee at the checkout.' Waitrose has 15 petrol stations that offer a free hot drink, but this requires a minimum spend of 30 to qualify. The offer of a free coffee and newspaper with your Waitrose shopping has attracted thousands of new customers to the supermarket The upmarket chain faced a Middle Class backlash when it adopted the free hot drink policy for loyalty card holders three years ago. Shoppers took to social media arguing it was harming the store's image by attracting 'chavs'. One person in Hertfordshire, tweeted: 'Bit disconcerting seeing people carrying cups of hot coffee around Waitrose whilst they text and push trolleys with their bellies.' Many small cafes have suffered because of the Waitrose policy. In 2013, Gilly Chu, owner of Gilly's Cafe in the high street, Nailsea, Bristol, said the decision to give hot drinks away had resulted in her morning hot drink trade plummeting by more than 50 per cent. Mrs Chu stepped down from her position as chairman of the area's chamber of trade because she was not prepared to front an organisation which included Waitrose as a member. 'It is totally incompatible with my business morals and principles to share a platform with a national retailer, Waitrose, who sees independent high street retailers as collateral damage,' she said. On a subreddit called Last Images, grieving friends and family find comfort by sharing the final pictures taken of their loved ones before they died. The rules of the thread which has almost 50,000 subscribers require posters to provide full context about the people in the pictures and what happened to them. Gory details are prohibited, as well as jokes at the expense of the victims, but the posts can be about anyone, including celebrities - and many of them are. The reported last images of well-known figures who have died in 2016 such as David Bowie and Muhammad Ali and stars much longer dead, like Marilyn Monroe. Posters also tend to share images of people who died in tragic events victims of school shootings, terror attacks and infamous murders. It is difficult to independently verify the authenticity of the posts, but DailyMail.com believes the cases below are legitimate. Here are some of the images and stories people have shared 'The last photo of me and my boyfriend together. He died in a motorbike accident one year ago today, aged 27,' Rache captioned this post with her boyfriend Merrick before he died Rache posted the last picture she took with her boyfriend Merrick before he died in a motorcycle accident. It was taken during a trip introducing him to her favorite spot from when she was a child - a seaside village on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales. She stopped to snap a selfie of the pair of them together after a walk along the beach. Merrick died just days after the picture was taken - and on the first anniversary of his death, she wanted him to know she was thinking of him. 'I posted on Last Images because I felt like I wanted to show people what I was dealing with that day, other than people who knew me. I wanted some support but from people I could talk to anonymously,' she told Vocativ. ' I just felt like I wanted him to know I was still thinking about him in a different way than just with my family and friends.' 'This is the last time I saw my grandmother,' wrote one woman alongside an image of herself with her elderly relative A user called KristenKutThroat shared this image of the last time she saw her grandmother, who died a couple of days after it was taken. The woman said her grandfather had died a few days before the picture was taken. And that her grandmother had told her that her recently departed grandfather was 'bringing the car around.' 'She knew,' Kristen added. 'Three years ago today he was killed in Iraq. This is the last picture of he and I at my wedding thirteen years ago,' wrote a user called stationcommando about a friend 'The only photo I have of my dad. A few weeks later, he was murdered by his brother,' wrote dumn_and_dumner 'My ex-girlfriend before leaving home to pursue her dream of riding her bike across America,' wrote Beer-Wall alongside this picture A poster called Beer-Wall shared this picture of his ex-girlfriend taken before she went off to ride her bike across the country. She was taking the trip to raise money for research into multiple sclerosis, which her grandfather had. But she was killed by a distracted driver halfway through her journey - and her grandfather died later that same year 'of a broken heart,' the poster added. He wrote: 'I remember when I found out, it didn't seem real. Three years later, it still doesn't seem real. 'We weren't together at the time but she was still important to me and I cared about her. She had just graduated college with honors and survived ovarian cancer when she was 13. 'It still really hurts that she's gone. I just wanted people to see her and know something about her. She was really special.' 'My dad drinking his last beer the day he passed away in his sleep,' Max captioned this photo of his father Per Max spent his father Per's last day biking around the island of Uto in Sweden with him. When his father grew tired, they stopped at a bar - and 15-year-old Max was playing with his phone while his dad enjoyed a drink. As Per was finishing his second beer, his son unknowingly snapped what would be the last picture taken of him. Two years after his father died, he stumbled across the subreddit and shared the photo. 'The comments I got really brightened my day. I still get some, and every time they remind me of what a good person my dad was,' Max told Vocativ. 'This was the first positive thing to come from my dad's passing. Nothing has made me more relieved from the loss.' 'This is the last picture of my brother and I, taken days before he was murdered this February. He was only 17.. I miss him terribly,' wrote a user called itssydneyy 'Last picture of my best friend and I taken on June 14th, 2015. She died in a car accident,' wrote the poster alongside this picture 'The last photo with my grandmother... tomorrow will be one month since her passing. I miss her every day,' wrote a woman along with the last picture with her loved one CaitFresh shared this image of her nephew, writing: 'My nephew, hours before he was killed by his best friend in a car crash' Government whips 'have ordered Tory MPs to talk to staff about conduct' He works for Tory MP Craig Mackinlay whose office 'attack took place in' Sam Armstrong, 23, questioned after being arrested on Scotland Yard was preparing last night to question several Tory political aides over the alleged rape of a young woman in an office in Parliament. Detectives want to know exactly what took place in the hours before she claims to have been assaulted in the office of Tory MP Craig Mackinlay. Sam Armstrong, 23, the MPs chief-of-staff, has already been questioned after being arrested on suspicion of rape. He will answer bail next year. He and the woman were among a group of people seen drinking heavily on the House of Lords terrace earlier that evening. Sam Armstrong, pictured right with former prime minister David Cameron, has been arrested on suspicion of rape over an alleged sex attack in Parliament It is understood the woman went to police alleging that she was sexually assaulted after being invited back to Mr Mackinlays office. It is located in the neighbouring Norman Shaw Building, the former Metropolitan Police headquarters that is part of the Parliamentary estate. It is a few hundred yards from the Commons. The inquiry has sent shockwaves through the Westminster establishment. Last night it emerged that Government whips have ordered all Tory MPs to confront their staff about their conduct. Insiders said they are frustrated at a string of rumours about less serious allegations of drunken high-jinks. One said they believe cheap drinks and long working hours have led some ambitious young staff to treat Parliament like a university student union. It is believed to be the first time that a woman has reported being raped in the Houses of Parliament to police. She contacted the Metropolitan Police at around 1am last Friday alleging she had been raped. She had spent the evening with Mr Armstrong and others at the luxury terrace bar, which is a popular destination for MPs, political staff and their guests. Mr Armstrong works as chief-of-staff for Tory MP Craig Mackinlay, pictured, whose office the alleged offence took place in Detectives arrested Mr Armstrong immediately. Uniformed officers were seen searching Mr Mackinlays office after obtaining permission from him and the Commons authorities. It was also sealed off for forensic tests. The South Thanet MP, who beat Ukip leader Nigel Farage in the 2015 general election, was not in Westminster at the time of the alleged attack. Mr Armstrong, a history and politics graduate, who has posed for pictures with former prime minister David Cameron, has been running Mr Mackinlays office for the past nine months, his LinkedIn profile says. In that role, he has served as Mr Mackinlays press spokesman, co-ordinated his movements, updated his website and advised him on committee work. Mr Armstrong states that from September 2014 until May 2015 he was a political campaigner for the Conservative Party. He hit the headlines last year after being named among a group of young Conservatives in the Tatler Tory bullying scandal. It was triggered by the suicide of 21-year-old activist Elliott Johnson and led to bitter recriminations in Conservative circles. Mr Armstrong, who studied history at Nottingham University alongside Mr Johnson, was barred from last years Conservative conference. Mr Mackinlay's office is located in the Norman Shaw Building, right, which neighbours the Houses of Parliament, left The ban was imposed while party bosses investigated claims that a photo may exist of Tory MP Robert Halfon leaving the East India Club with his mistress as part of a failed blackmail plot. Mr Armstrong vehemently denied the unsubstantiated, anonymous, and untrue allegations and no further action was taken. A spokesman for Mr Mackinlay said: He is awaiting further information from the police. A Met Police spokesman said: A 23-year-old man was arrested on Friday on suspicion of rape. Anthony Danner, 55, from Peoria, Illinois, has been accused of having sex with a female husky named Velvet and a male malamute named Wolf A 55-year-old Illinois man has been indicted for allegedly having sex with two of his pet dogs. Anthony Danner from Peoria has been charged with felony counts of sex with an animal, according to the Journal Star newspaper. If convicted, he could face up to three years in prison. The court could also force him to give up his pets and ban him from keeping animals in his home. Danners alleged conduct with animals has been the subject of a months-long investigation by the Peoria Police Department. Authorities believe that Danners two dogs, a female husky named Velvet and a male malamute named Wolf, were victimized by their owner between March 1 and March 17 this year. Danners criminal record includes traffic violations as well as citations for failing to vaccinate his pets for rabies. He was being held in Peoria County Jail on $35,000 bond. Danner is alleged to have made sexual contact with a female husky named Velvet and a male malamute named Wolf. An Alaskan malamute is seen left and a Siberian husky is seen right (file pictures) A suspected Iraqi insurgent is suing the Ministry of Defence over his varicose veins. The man, who cannot be named, is blaming the condition on British troops who detained him nearly a decade ago. His High Court damages claim using the Human Rights Act is likely to be in the tens of thousands of pounds. A suspected Iraqi insurgent has taken the Ministry of Defence to the High Court, pictured, blaming his varicose veins on his detention by British troops In a case management hearing yesterday in central London, lawyers also argued the way UK troops treated him led to respiratory conditions and a broken tooth. He was detained in 2008-2009 by the UK and subsequently transferred to US forces a move his lawyers claim was illegal. His case against the Ministry of Defence is being heard alongside two others. All three claimants are represented by Leigh Day, a human rights firm facing a disciplinary tribunal next year over alleged drummed-up cases against UK soldiers. The MoD has so far paid out 22million in compensation to Iraqi civilians. The MoD, whose London headquarters is pictured, has paid out 22million in compensation to Iraqi civilians Mr Justice Leggatt, the judge overseeing cases arising from abuse claims over the Iraq war, asked the lawyers how the claimant was arguing that the varicose veins were caused by his detention. Phillippa Kaufmann QC, acting for the Iraqis, said that he would not be claiming for it if he was not arguing it was caused by his ill-treatment by British soldiers. Ofcom, the broadcasting watchdog, has dismissed every complaint of bias over coverage of Jeremy Corbyn since he became Labour leader Ofcom, the broadcasting watchdog, has dismissed every complaint of bias over coverage of Jeremy Corbyn since he became Labour leader. Some 71 complaints against broadcasters coverage of the Labour leader have been filed since September, 2015. The left winger and his fans have consistently complained about unfair treatment by what they term the MSM mainstream media. Sky has been fingered as the biggest culprit, attracting 31 complaints, while Channel 4 attracted 23 complaints and ITV had 12, according to figures obtained by political website, Politicshome [must credit]. Ofcom did not specify which channels attracted the other complaints. The BBC does not come under Ofcoms remit but supporters of the Labour leader have often accused the corporation of bias. But an investigation by the independent watchdog has thrown out every charge of bias by other broadcasters. Ofcoms rules say due impartiality must be maintained in all news coverage. However broadcasters are not under any obligation to give equal air time to each side except during election periods. Some 71 complaints against broadcasters coverage of the Labour leader have been filed to Ofcom since September, 2015 An Ofcom spokesman said: After careful assessment of the complaints and the broadcast material, Ofcom did not identify any issues which warranted further investigation under its rules. The most complaints against broadcasters were made in September 2015, when Mr Corbyn became the surprise victor in the Labour leadership election. Some 41 concerns were filed that month about coverage across all channels. Seven complaints were submitted in September this year concerning Channel 4s Dispatches show about the grassroots group Momentum, which rallied behind Mr Corbyns leadership bid. Channel 4 has often attracted criticism from Mr Corbyns team. He refused to take part in a leadership hustings with the broadcaster, saying it was not impartial enough. In July, Mr Corbyn blamed a ludicrously biased media for a systematic undermining of his leadership. A study by the London School of Economics department of Media and Communications said 57% of all print news stories about Mr Corbyn were antagonistic or critical in a measured but even-handed manner... something we would expect from the media. The rest were either neutral or positive. The study also said 44% of stories about Mr Corbyn quoted him in his own words and 23% quoted pro-Corbyn Labour sources. By comparison 28% quoted anti-Corbyn Labour sources and 20% quoted Tories. The left winger and his fans have consistently complained about unfair treatment by what they term the MSM mainstream media And a study by the Corbyn-supporting Media Reform Coalition and Birkbeck, University of London claimed media outlets - including broadcasters - have shown marked and persistent imbalance in coverage. Ofcom attracted even more complaints about the BBCs coverage of the Labour leader than other broadcasters, receiving 68 complaints about the state broadcaster. But it could not rule on the complaints as the BBC does not fall under Ofcoms remit. In January, Labour made an official complaint to the BBC over its handling of the resignation of Stephen Doughty, a shadow minister. The party claimed that the shadow foreign minister had orchestrated his resignation live on the Daily Politics just minutes before Prime Ministers Questions started. He had informed the BBCs political editor about his decision and she had invited him onto the show. The shows producer denied any charges that the resignation had been encouraged or orchestrated by the BBC. But other shows have far higher complaints in a single episode than supporters of Mr Corbyn have filed in a year. Lord Mandelson and the millionaire City public relations man Roland Rudd were last night revealed as the two figures masterminding the campaign to frustrate Brexit. The two arch-europhiles are pulling the strings of the Open Britain campaign group, which is demanding that MPs have a new vote on Britain leaving the EU. The organisation described as a band of fifth columnists by Leave MPs last night does not reveal the names of its board on its website. But records from Companies House show Lord Mandelson and his close friend Mr Rudd both hold key roles. Both men previously tried to drag Britain into the euro and were prominent figures in the failed Remain referendum campaign. Lord Peter Mandelson (left) and millionaire City public relations man Roland Rudd (right) are masterminding the campaign to frustrate Brexit Open Britain claims it is anti-democratic for the House of Commons to be denied a vote on implementing Brexit. MPs pointed out the irony that two of the groups main backers were themselves unelected. Open Britain has issued a series of apocalyptic warnings about the dangers of what it calls hard Brexit. Last week, it released a statement by the Tory MP Anna Soubry which said: The horrific damage of a hard Brexit is clear. Less tax revenue means less to invest in schools and hospitals, lower trade and investment means businesses and jobs at risk. The group is also co-ordinating attempts by Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg and other pro-EU MPs to force a Parliamentary vote on the terms of the Brexit negotiations. They are demanding that the UK stays inside the single market. Records from Companies House show Lord Mandelson and his close friend Mr Rudd (right) both hold key roles in the Open Britain campaign group Critics say this amounts to an attempt to keep Britain in the EU by the back door. Brussels has said that, if the UK wants to stay inside the single market, it must continue to allow free movement of migrant workers and take orders from the European Court of Justice. Open Britains Companies House records reveal it is in effect a re-branding of the failed Britain Stronger In Europe campaign, which fought and lost the June 23 vote. Lord Mandelson, nicknamed the Prince of Darkness, invented the art of modern political spin and was a key ally of Tony Blair. But he was twice sacked as a cabinet minister, before becoming Britains unelected EU commissioner. Mr Rudd, the founder and chairman of the public relations firm Finsbury, is the brother of Home Secretary Amber Rudd. Other board members who were prominent in BSE include Will Straw, who is the son of former home secretary Jack Straw and was awarded a CBE for running the Stronger In campaign; Joe Carberry, co-executive director of Open Britain, who is Lord Mandelsons godson; and James McGrory, co-executive director of Open Britain, who is a former Lib Dem spin doctor. Other board members who were prominent in BSE include Will Straw (shown), who is the son of former home secretary Jack Straw The board also includes TV presenter June Sarpong (shown), who made her name on youth programmes The board also includes TV presenter June Sarpong, who made her name on youth programmes; Richard Reed, one of the founders of the Innocent smoothie brand; and Trevor Phillips, former chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission. Former Cabinet minister and Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said: They are a kind of fifth column of people whose sole purpose is to delay the process to the point where they think we will not actually leave. These people are fighting the same battles all over again because they do not like the result. Tory MP Charlie Elphicke added: Open Britain appears to simply be the Stronger In campaign with a changed nameplate. It is clear that they have not accepted the decision of the British people. The group has yet to publish records saying where its funding is coming from. Last night, a spokesman for Open Britain said: The campaign respects the result of the referendum. The country has voted to leave the European Union but the terms on which we leave are going to be the subject of much debate for some time to come. We are campaigning for the best deal possible for Britain in the negotiations with the EU. Will Straw is on the board of Open Britain but is not active in day-to-day campaigning. Insiders say he is tying up legal loose ends from the referendum campaign. Advertisement A critically endangered black rhino has given birth to an 80-pound female at the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines. The unnamed baby rhino was born to mother Ayana and its father Kiano on October 11, the Des Moines Register reported. Zoo CEO Mark Vukovich called the birth 'an extremely significant event' for the zoo and efforts to reverse a long decline in the number of black rhinos. An endangered black rhino has given birth to an 80-pound female at Des Moines' Blank Park Zoo The baby rhino (pictured) was born to Ayana and male rhino Kiano on October 11. Zoo CEO Mark Vukovich called the birth 'an extremely significant event' for the zoo and efforts to reverse a long decline in the number of black rhinos The two adult black rhinos at Blank Park are among 46 housed in North American zoos. Of those, only six are breeding females. Pictured is the baby rhino and its mother Ayana Eastern black rhinos are listed as critically endangered by the World Wildlife Fund. The animal's combined wild and captive population now numbers less than 1,000, which represents a 96 per cent decline from the population's height in 1970. The two adult black rhinos at Blank Park are among 46 housed in North American zoos. Only six of those are breeding females. Zoo spokesman Ryan Bickel says the calf was standing and walking within an hour of birth and attempted to feed within two hours, which are signs of a healthy baby rhino. The adorable baby rhino is just one of seven black rhinos to be born this year in zoos worldwide, according to the Register. Susie Ellis, executive director of the International Rhino Foundation, told the newspaper that 'it's so great that the baby is a female because the black rhino population tends to be skewed toward male'. The foundation works to stop the world's rhino population from becoming extinct. Speaking of the baby rhino's mother, Ellis said: 'Her reproductive potential is quite high and, hopefully, she will contribute greatly to the overall population.' Eastern black rhinos are listed as critically endangered by the World Wildlife Fund. The animal's combined wild and captive population now numbers less than 1,000, which represents a 96 per cent decline from the population's height in 1970. The mother stands watch over her youngster (left) and later they share kisses (right) Zoo spokesman Ryan Bickel says the calf (pictured) was standing and walking within an hour of birth and attempted to feed within two hours, which are signs of a healthy baby rhino Food prices have fallen since the Brexit vote despite warnings that the plunge in the pound is pushing up the cost of everything from meat and fish to fruit and vegetables. Grocery prices in the last three months were 0.8 per cent lower than in the same period last year, reported research group Kantar Worldpanel yesterday. A separate official report showed food prices fell 0.3 per cent last month alone and were 2.4 per cent lower than they were in September last year. Food prices have fallen since the Brexit vote despite warnings that the plunge in the pound is pushing up the cost of everything from meat and fish to fruit and vegetables A weekly food shop which cost 100 a year ago now sets consumers back 97.60, said the Office for National Statistics. The reports undermine Nick Cleggs warning this week that the row over the cost of Marmite was just the tip of the iceberg as the fall in the pound would push up import prices. Sterling is down 14 per cent against the euro since the June referendum. The former deputy prime minister also warned that leaving the single market would result in punishing tariffs being imposed on a huge range of products. The reports undermine Nick Cleggs warning this week that the row over the cost of Marmite was just the tip of the iceberg' But his claims were immediately torpedoed in a report by the Institute of Economic Affairs which said prices would fall as farmers will be free of Brussels rules. Director general Mark Littlewood said: Not only will leaving offer tremendous prospects to cut costs, our new trading options will be substantial. Yesterday Matt Davies, chief executive of Tesco UK, also pledged that supermarkets would do all they could to keep prices down. The stores stand-off last week over Marmite fuelled fears that the cost of food and other essentials was about to rocket. Tesco hit back after supplier Unilever had tried to push up prices by 10 per cent. Kantar reported that grocery prices in the 12 weeks to October 9 were 0.8 per cent lower than in the same period last year. This is the 27th month in a row it has recorded a fall in grocery prices and underlined the scale of supermarket price wars. Kantar reported that grocery prices in the 12 weeks to October 9 were 0.8 per cent lower than in the same period last year The ONS said the average price of meat fell 4.5 per cent in the past year while vegetables are down 4.1 per cent. Milk, cheese and eggs have dropped 2.9 per cent. Its report showed a kilo of beef mince fell from 7.75 a year ago to 7.20 while a shoulder of lamb is down from 8.14 per kg to 7.73. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson had his wings clipped this week with the departure of one of his most senior aides, Will Walden. But Boris's personality cult nevertheless grows. Royal sculptor Frances Segelman has completed a clay bust of the blond Brexiteer to be cast in bronze and exhibited at the Tower of London next week to raise money for the Stroke Association. 'He's so fabulous,' Frances gushes of Boris. Royal sculptor Frances Segelman has completed a clay bust of Boris Johnson (shown) Frances described Boris as 'fabulous' and said he was a pleasure to work with 'He was a pleasure to be with because he is so bright and positive. There's a lovely aura around him, so it was a nice feeling and it came out in the sculpture. 'Boris loved it,' she adds. 'He is not vain.' Perish the thought. Samantha Cameron says Dave is 'chilling' OCCASION: Red Women of the Year Awards at the Royal Festival Hall's Skylon Bar, South London. GUESTS: Samantha Cameron, Olympic cyclist Victoria Pendleton, Downton actress Joanne Froggatt and artist Grayson Perry. TALKING POINT: Samantha, wearing a custom-made Roksanda dress, enjoyed being out of her former PM husband's shadow. Samantha Cameron donned a custom-made Roksanda dress to the Red Women of the Year Awards at the Royal Festival Hall's Skylon Bar, South London Presenter Fearne Cotton (right) asked Samantha, who, of course, no longer lives at 10 Downing Street, if she could come round to her 'actual house' for tea. The answer was 'No' 'Things are definitely different,' she told me. 'Dave's chilling and I'm the one that's working! I think he's still adjusting, but he's very happy.' AWKWARD MOMENT: Presenter Fearne Cotton asked Samantha, who, of course, no longer lives at 10 Downing Street, if she could come round to her 'actual house' for tea. The answer was 'No'. ROYAL SNUB: Grayson Perry was disappointed Prince Philip didn't greet him at the Royal Academy of Arts party he hosted last week. 'He never said hello to me. I was really disappointed because I wanted to be insulted by him. 'Maybe everyone was worried he'd be inappropriate because I was dressed as a woman? I don't know.' CYCLE CHIC: Gold medallist Victoria Pendleton looked stylish in Stella McCartney, but her trousers, cut above the ankle, still resembled pedal pushers. Victoria Pendleton (shown) looked stylish in Stella McCartney, but her trousers, cut above the ankle, still resembled pedal pushers Downton stakes its claim on King Tut The Earl and Countess of Carnarvon made a fortune from Downton Abbey, which was filmed at their Highclere Castle home in Hampshire. Now Fiona Carnarvon wants to make sure the money keeps rolling in by publicising the stately home's connection to ITV's latest Sunday night drama, Tutankhamun. In the series, Sam Neill plays the 5th Earl of Carnarvon, who funded Howard Carter's 1922 dig that discovered the tomb of Egypt's boy king. Fiona Carnarvon wants to make sure the money keeps rolling in by publicising the stately home's connection to ITV's latest Sunday night drama, Tutankhamun (shown) Fiona has written a blog publicising an Ancient Egypt show at Highclere. She says of the tomb's discovery: 'It could be considered the first global world media event. 'I began to research the story for our own exhibition here, to share the characters and detail of an extra- ordinary story.' Lady Colin Campbell's behaviour on I'm A Celeb... shocked fellow contestants, but that has not stopped the controversial royal biographer teaching good manners. Evil Incarnate -- Let the Truth be Known Throughout the Land Contact: Tony Martelli, Maryland Coalition for Life, 443-254-5433, tony@mdcoalitionforlife.com ANNAPOLIS, Md., Oct. 19, 2016 /Christian Newswire/ -- Let us take a moment to examine some defining characteristic of three troubling movements, which have cast long and dark shadows across modern history. Nazism Tactics: Terror, mutilation, and dismemberment Human Tragedy: millions of innocent adults and children slaughtered Ideology: that Jews and others are inferior, sub-human, and less than the Aryan race Radical Islamic State Tactics: Terror, mutilation, and dismemberment Human Tragedy: thousands of innocent adults and children slaughtered Ideology: that all those who oppose radical Islamism are inferior and honor false god Abortion Tactics: Terror, mutilation, and dismemberment Human Tragedy: more than a billion unborn babies slaughtered worldwide Ideology: that unborn babies are inferior, undeserving of all humans rights These three movements have led to similarly staggering human tragedies justified by illegitimate ideologies. However, abortion uses a tactic that neither Nazism nor the Radical Islamic State widely attempted: to deceive mothers into cooperating with the abortion of their own babies. The deployment of this evil tactic has led to the destruction of more lives than have been destroyed by the Nazism, Radical Islamic State, and all other evil empires combined. The deception upon which abortion is founded that abortion is choice and not murder has been vehemently embraced by some of American society's most-notables. Among these are influential individuals who claim to be outspoken advocates for women, including contraception pioneer Margaret Sanger, civil rights activist Jesse Jackson, Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards, former Senator Ted Kennedy, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and President Barack Obama. While the evil of abortion has the most shattering impact on unborn babies, it has a much broader destructive effect. This watershed atrocity begins with one child, spills over into mothers, fathers and families, and floods across all of human society. In 1986 at the United Nations General Assembly and again in 1994 at the National Prayer Breakfast, Nobel Peace Prize winner Mother Teresa of Kolkata (Calcutta) clearly stated her grave concerns with abortion: "I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?" (1986) "Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. This is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion." (1994) Noting Mother Teresa's concerns, we cannot help but look at the carnage occurring on streets across America: school shootings, rampant homicide, domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, and violent breakdown of the trust between citizens and police. Mother Teresa's worst fears have become a way of life and it's not unreasonable to trace this crisis to the devaluing of human life which extends even into a mother's womb. The worsening carnage on our streets is a deplorable but ultimately unavoidable result of the carnage of abortion. In light of this most pressing holocaust, we must not shy aware from truth because it convicts us and our society. Whether complicit or not, all of us children, mothers, families are victims of the evil of abortion. We must all stand together to defend the right to life of all persons, to defend the health and safety of all women, and to defend the liberties upon which our nation was founded. Maryland Coalition for Life Call to Action Considering the above information, if you wish to stand together with us in our fight against intrinsic evil and for human life, we urge you to forward this message to everyone you know and can reach. You can help us to spread the truth about the outrage of abortion. Furthermore, we urge you to contact your legislators and implore them to respect the dignity of every human person and put an end to abortion. As you ponder whether you will stand with us, we leave you with the following words of wisdom: "The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it." -- Albert Einstein "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men should do nothing." -- Edmund Burke May we all have the courage and strength to do the right thing! The woman police chief in charge of a discredited VIP child sex abuse probe has been accused of sexual discrimination by an employment judge. Pat Gallan crushed the career of a junior officer in an extraordinary row over the supposed macho culture of a high-profile Met Police unit, a panel ruled. The Assistant Commissioner a potential candidate to succeed Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe was criticised in a tribunal judgment. It found Miss Gallan, who was also ultimately responsible for Operation Midland, was at the centre of an ugly saga that has left the Met facing a six-figure payout. Pat Gallan crushed the career of a junior officer in an extraordinary row over the supposed macho culture of a high-profile Met Police unit, a panel ruled A Central London employment tribunal judge said Chief Inspector Adrian Denby, 47, who was responsible for a Territorial Support Group unit in Paddington, had been treated unfairly and found the force guilty of sex discrimination. The officer, who had protected the Royal Family and served in a policing role in Iraq and Afghanistan, was blamed for the macho image of the team. Within weeks of Deputy Assistant Commissioner Maxine de Brunner making an unannounced inspection in September 2014 to find an officer wearing only a towel, Mr Denby was put under criminal investigation, placed on restricted duties and had his chances of promotion blocked. The unit had already been accused of racism and fiddling overtime, while officers were probed after an anti-corruption raid found a fridge of beer used as an ad-hoc off licence. The judge Tamara Lewis found Mr Denby had been unfairly punished for failings, while a female colleague in a similar position was not. Miss Gallan was found to have contributed to the sexual discrimination by instructing Commander David Musker to overturn a decision to lift restrictions of Mr Denby. In another instance of sexual discrimination, she decided his removal from post would be permanent, telling him this through another officer. The panel heard he is on long-term sick leave and does not expect to return to work. The size of his payout will be determined in February. Chief Inspector Adrian Denby, 47, who was responsible for a Territorial Support Group unit in Paddington, had been treated unfairly and found the force guilty of sex discrimination Mrs Lewis criticised Miss Gallan the countrys most senior ethnic-minority policewoman and Mrs De Brunner, saying the case was striking for its unfairness. In particular, she said, it was often unclear who in reality has made or influenced decisions and that there was a desire to disguise the influence of senior decision-makers. The judge noted that the Met had been desperate to limit public fallout from the investigation into the units shortcomings. And, while she said it was right to try to increase the representation of women in the unit, Mrs Lewis added: It would not be legitimate to treat a man less favourably because of his sex, whether consciously or unconsciously, in pursuance of that agenda. As political stunts go, it should have been a triumph. Under fire for his controversial opinions about women and alleged racism, US presidential candidate Donald Trump tried to kiss a young black girl at a rally yesterday. But the staged photo went disastrously wrong when she pushed him away. Donald Trump had an embarrassing moment during a photocall when he tried to kiss a young girl only for her to try to squirm away, pictured The girl, whom Mr Trump described as beautiful, was filmed wriggling from his grasp before he managed to finally plant his lips on her cheek at the event in Wisconsin. It came as Melania Trump, 46, played down her husbands comments about sexual assault as boys talk. She told CNN he was egged on to say dirty and bad stuff in the taped 2005 interview. The ex-model said Mr Trump could sometimes behave like a teenage boy but was somebody who supports women. The Republican candidate, pictured at a rally, is under fire over alleged racism and lewd comments on women She said the women who accused him of misconduct were liars and claimed the allegations were part of a Democrat conspiracy. In a separate interview Mr Trumps daughter Ivanka, 34, said she can shrug off the claims against her 70-year-old father because she knows what he is really like. An NBC poll put Republican Mr Trump 11 points behind Democrat Hillary Clinton. Theresa May last night committed Britain to the introduction of a targeted visa system to control immigration to the UK. The plan was revealed in Government documents setting out the work of a string of Whitehall sub committees on implementing Brexit and regaining control of the UKs borders. The Mail first revealed on Saturday that Mrs May was intending to make EU migrants secure a skilled job before they are allowed to work in the UK. Theresa May (pictured) has committed Britain to the introduction of a targeted visa system to control immigration to the UK Chancellor Philip Hammond urged caution over the proposal which is likely to infuriate EU member states and rule out Britain remaining a member of the single market. Brussels has insisted that, if the UK curbs the free movement of migrants, it will have to leave the EU and the single market altogether in a so-called hard Brexit. Yesterday, Number 10 released documents showing that the Governments powerful immigration taskforce has been ordered to ensure a new regime is introduced to slash the net number of arrivals into the UK to below 100,000 a year. The implementation taskforce is chaired by the Prime Minister and made up of 13 of the most senior members of the government, including Mr Hammond and Home Secretary Amber Rudd. The three leading Brexit secretaries of state Boris Johnson, David Davis and Liam Fox are also on the committee. The immigration taskforce existed under David Cameron, but its terms of reference have been ripped up to reflect Mrs Mays desire to withdraw from EU free movement diktats. The taskforce must now deliver the Governments immigration target by implementing domestic measures to control migration and ensuring an efficient and targeted visa system. Mrs May has also asked the taskforce to help cut migration numbers by making it harder for illegal immigrants to stay in the country. The terms of reference for Mr Camerons taskforce made no mention of a visa system, focusing instead on controlling immigration from the EU through reforming welfare rules and reducing reliance on migrant labour. Meanwhile, Number 10 insisted the Government is all about Brexit despite the fact that a key Cabinet committee is stuffed with Remainers. Mrs May yesterday also unveiled the membership of the European Union Exit and Trade Committee, which will sign off Britains negotiating position with Brussels. Of 15 members of the committee, no fewer than nine campaigned for Remain before Junes referendum. Chancellor Philip Hammond (pictured) urged caution over the proposal which is likely to infuriate EU member states It will be chaired by Mrs May herself, who was a low-profile supporter of staying in the EU. Six of the members are Leavers, including the so-called three Brexiteers Foreign Secretary Mr Johnson, Brexit Secretary Mr Davis and International Trade Secretary Mr Fox. Also attending will be Leave-supporting Chris Grayling, the Transport Secretary, Environment Secretary Andrea Leadsom and Priti Patel, the International Development Secretary. But they are outnumbered by ministers who campaigned on the Remain side, including Amber Rudd, who accused the Leave campaign of misleading the public over potential savings from withdrawal in a bitter TV debate clash with Mr Johnson. Others on the committee who backed Remain in the referendum include Mr Hammond, Business Secretary Greg Clark, Work and Pensions Secretary Damian Green and Conservative Party chairman Sir Patrick McLoughlin. Scotland Secretary David Mundell, Wales Secretary Alun Cairns and Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire all Remainers will also attend, although only as required. Responding to suggestions that the committee was weighted against enthusiasts for Brexit, Mrs Mays official spokesman said: The Prime Minister and a number of Cabinet ministers who indeed advocated the UK remaining in the European Union have been clear that we are all now there to deliver the decision of the British people, which is to leave. Cabinet committees are groups of ministers that can take collective decisions on specific issues on behalf of the full Cabinet that are binding across Government. The Prime Minister decides their membership, which can include ministers from outside the Cabinet. The Brexit committee was one of 14 Cabinet committees and seven implementation taskforces appointed by Mrs May. The 14 committees announced by Downing Street include the National Security Council along with four sub-committees dealing with nuclear deterrence and security; threats, hazards, resilience and contingencies; strategic defence and security review implementation; and cyber. Ready to head out to a party, I placed my hand on the door handle. Thats when the pain struck. For the first few minutes, it took my breath away, but I reassured myself it would pass. I sat down on the sofa at home in London to wait for it to do so. Instead, it kept coming in waves of excruciating agony, again and again. Within ten minutes I was writhing on the floor. Being a doctor, Ive seen so many false alarms I convinced myself the cause had to be no more than very bad trapped wind. But the pain did not let up. What I hadnt realised but discovered on that fateful Saturday night was quite how dire the situation was, and how frightening were the pressures that it operates under I dragged myself to the bathroom and hauled myself up to the mirror. I was deathly pale, shaking uncontrollably, my shirt wet through with sweat. I began to realise that this was something serious: I needed to go to hospital. I started to call for an ambulance, but found myself struggling to speak. Fortunately, at this point my partner returned home and, seeing the state I was in, telephoned 999. And so began close to three-and-a-half hours of waiting, which goes down as one of the most unpleasant experiences of my life. We tend not to think too much about the ambulance service until we actually need it. I was aware that it had experienced cuts. What I hadnt realised but discovered on that fateful Saturday night was quite how dire the situation was, and how frightening were the pressures that it operates under. From the first call, we were reassured that an ambulance had been dispatched and was on its way. It would be there in ten minutes. After 40 minutes, my partner telephoned again. The original ambulance had been diverted to another emergency, we learned, and so they had to send another. But another 40 minutes passed with no sign of an ambulance, resulting in a flurry of calls back and forth between my partner and the ambulance control. We kept being told Its on its way, before learning, yet again, that the vehicle had been diverted to another patient, judged to be in more serious need. In the meantime, I blacked out several times because of the pain. My partner also a doctor was becoming increasingly concerned. I was too weak and in too much pain to get a taxi, so an ambulance was my only option. After waiting for two-and-a-half hours, the ambulance co-ordinator eventually called us back to explain that she had now put me down as the highest priority patient in London but that there were no free ambulances. Not one. Eventually, after a further 50 minutes, three paramedics arrived. I cant remember much except that they were kind and very apologetic. The situation wasnt, of course, their fault. They were all horrified that Id had to wait so long, but explained that there simply werent enough ambulances to meet demand that evening and they had been working flat out. They rushed me to hospital, where I was diagnosed with a kidney stone which although serious indeed, it had damaged part of my kidney was not life-threatening. I was lucky. While I lay on the trolley waiting for a scan, I wondered what would have happened if I had been having a heart attack. Which is how I came to realise that the first point of contact for patients in extremis the ambulance service could no longer be relied upon to be there when they most need it. The idea shook me. The full extent of the crisis was exposed yesterday by figures obtained by this newspaper, showing that ambulances arrive late for a third of life-threatening emergencies. In the year to August, more than 1.1 million patients classed as category A those most seriously in need were left waiting longer than the target of eight minutes. Some had to wait for nearly two hours. There is no doubt that cuts to the ambulance service have had a serious impact, but it would be wrong simply to blame the crisis on a lack of cash. A significant part of the problem is that some people abuse the ambulance service, treating it like a taxi service rather than an absolute last resort for people who require urgent medical attention or who are seriously unwell and unable to get to hospital by any other means. After all, its a free ride, so why on earth would they pay for a cab or bother with a bus? After waiting for two-and-a-half hours, the ambulance co-ordinator eventually called us back to explain that she had now put me down as the highest priority patient in London but that there were no free ambulances They fail to realise that an ambulance is not a taxi with a flashing light on top. Its meant to transport a highly skilled team of health-care professionals and, because some people are misusing this vital service, others are unable to get the urgent care they need, with potentially fatal consequences. Ive heard of ambulances being called out for headaches, sore knees and even a skin rash. These conditions shouldnt be dealt with in A&E, let alone prompt someone to dial 999. Even more insidious is the fact that some people deliberately exaggerate or out-and-out lie about their condition in order to get an ambulance sent to them. Its not just deliberate misuse of the system that is causing the crisis. Too often, the ambulance service is having to act as a wet-nurse for those who cant hold their drink. Having worked in A&Es across London for more than a decade, thats what really makes me furious witnessing, night in, night out, drunks being brought into casualty by ambulance. The difficult thing for the ambulance control centre staff is they are often called out by concerned members of the public who are rightly worried they have found a stranger who has collapsed and is unresponsive. The ambulance controller doesnt know if the person in question is simply drunk or if they truly have a life-threatening condition. So, they err on the side of caution and dispatch an ambulance as soon as possible. But every drunk that an ambulance is called out for represents one fewer vehicle thats available for a real emergency. Whats worse is that the dearth of ambulances affects the weak the most, because they are the least able to insist on being prioritised. Its heart-breaking, but Ive seen old ladies, frail and confused, waiting hours for an ambulance, while slowly deteriorating alone at home. I remember one with COPD (a chronic lung condition that results in shortness of breath) who developed potentially life-threatening pneumonia. She had waited three hours for the ambulance and, by the time she got to hospital, was barely able even to say her name. Yet as I stood there, I counted three ambulance crews waiting outside with drunks on board. In the year to August, more than 1.1 million patients classed as category A those most seriously in need were left waiting longer than the target of eight minutes It seems to me that we urgently need to review how this abuse of the system is costing the lives of genuinely ill people. There has been success in some towns with drunk tanks mobile medical facilities which take care of very drunk people instead of their being sent to A&E or police cells and perhaps its time they were rolled out across the NHS. And while I am wary of the idea of introducing financial penalties in the NHS, for fear it will put people off using a service who actually do need it, I think we have to look at the idea of charging people for calling out ambulances unnecessarily. A&E is a focus for problems throughout the care system its where pressures on resources elsewhere become all too visible. For instance, cuts to social care budgets mean there are often delays in discharging elderly or frail patients from the wards because there is no place for them in a care home. This can mean there arent enough beds available on the wards for patients blocking up casualty so ambulance crews often sit waiting for a space to become free before they can hand over their patient to the hospital. Its a horrifying fact that last year almost 77,000 ambulances waited outside casualty for at least an hour, the figures showed yesterday. This nightmare is worsened by an ever-increasing number of people resorting to A&E because of difficulties in getting GP appointments, and the well-documented inadequacies of the 111 medical advice phoneline. None of this is the fault of the ambulance service and certainly not the fault of the stressed, beleaguered and harassed paramedics and ambulance-drivers. This is one hell of a lucky penny! Some 100 special pennies have been hidden across major cities in the United States and those who find them will receive a $1,000 cash prize. Ten of the coins were placed in each of the following cities: Los Angeles, San Diego, Denver, Austin, Chicago, Charlotte, Detroit, Miami, New York and Washington, DC. Some 100 special pennies have been hidden across major cities in the United States and those who find them will receive a $1,000 cash prize The special pennies (pictured) are slightly larger than common ones, with an Ally logo on one side and '100,000 cents' on the other The campaign launched Tuesday in an effort by financial services company Ally Financial to 'demonstrate the importance of valuing every cent, while encouraging Americans to look for opportunities to save.' 'We believe every penny counts when it comes to saving, and it's important for everyone to understand that routinely saving, even the smallest amounts, is important to generating wealth over time,' said CEO Diane Morais, of Ally Financial, in a statement. Clues for the locations of the lucky pennies can be found on the company's social media page. Clues for the locations of the lucky pennies can be found on the company's social media page Ten of the special coins were placed in each of the following cities: Los Angeles, San Diego, Denver, Austin, Chicago, Charlotte, Detroit, Miami, New York and Washington, DC In New York, one clue says: 'How to honor the Constitution's author? With his own NYC park & and #AllyLuckyPenny in it.' Another says: 'Every penny honors our 16th President. This Manhattan green honors our 4th.' The special pennies are slightly larger than common ones, with an Ally logo on one side and '100,000 cents' on the other. Tied up, stuffed into a car boot, and then left to bleed out as the streets run red around them - this is the fate of thousands Australian animals sold to Muslim countries for Islam's annual 'Festival of Sacrifice'. Distressing new footage shows goats and sheep being beaten, dragged and thrown about as they are taken to be slaughtered in conditions that are 'nothing short of a blood-bath'. Now politicians and activists are calling on the government to properly enforce four-year-old laws that were designed to stop such abuses. Thousands of Australian sheep and goats are being exported to Muslim countries for the annual 'Festival of Sacrifice' where they are being killed in inhumane conditions, activists say Andrew Wilkie, the independent MP for Denison, branded the Animals Australia footage 'appalling' and called for the export industry to be shut down. He said: 'Here we see Australian sheep and goats being sent to Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman and Lebanon to suffer horrific treatment during the annual Festival of Sacrifice. 'Surely this alone is all the proof we need that the live export trade is inherently cruel and needs to be shut down. Distressing footage filmed in Lebanon, the UAE, Malaysia, Oman and Kuwait shows the livestock being trussed up, thrown around, and crammed into tiny vehicles The 'Festival of Sacrifice' takes places during the final month of the Islamic calendar and celebrates Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael to appease God Activists and politicians are calling for four-year-old laws designed to stop these practices to be properly enforced or for the export industry to be shut down 'No other industry would be allowed to consistently breach regulations and still be able to operate.' WHAT IS THE 'FESTIVAL OF SACRIFICE?' The 'Festival of Sacrifice', or Eid al-Adha, is a four-day celebration carried out during the month of Dhu'l-Hijjah, when hundreds of thousands of Muslims take part in the pilgrimage to Mecca. Eid al-Adha honors Ibrahims willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael, known as Isaac in the Christian tradition, to show his devotion to God. As part of the festival, Muslim men are expected to kill their best halal animals to symbolize Ibrahim's sacrifice, before distributing a third of the meat to the poor, before giving the rest to their family. Advertisement A petition entitled 'stop the illegal torture of exported animals' has already collected 1,800 signatures online, and is rising at the rate of dozens per hour. Passed in 2011, the Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System requires all animals from Australia sold abroad to be sent to approved buyers and slaughtered in line with international guidelines. All exporters are required obey the laws in order to get a licence, but campaigners say the rules are still being 'openly flouted'. In the four years since they were introduced, not a single exporter has been prosecuted under the legislation, Animals Australia say. Lyn White, the group's chief investigator, said: ' We were shocked to see Australian sheep once again being openly sold in notorious livestock markets. 'It is abundantly clear that exporters believe that they have nothing to fear in terms of regulatory consequences. 'Profit is not a legal defence, nor should it excuse animal abuse. One thing is clear: If a trade is not viable without breaking laws and causing extreme suffering then that trade should not exist. ' Exporters are required to sell their livestock only to approved buyers who slaughter in line with humanitarian guidelines, but footage shows this is not the case Animals Australia called conditions at slaughterhouses in Malaysia as 'among the most distressing [we] have witnessed' As part of its investigation, Animals Australia traveled to Malaysia for the first time in order to examine practices there. White concluded: 'The handling and slaughter of Australian sheep and goats in Malaysia at numerous non-approved sites was some of the most distressing I have witnessed. It was nothing short of a blood-bath.' Simon Westaway, CEO of the Australian Livestock Exporters Council, said he supports a ban on exports to Malaysian facilities shown to be breaking the law, and said more suspensions could follow. The council refused to let him off because there is no exemption to rule over the road kept blocking him in He did it because parents at the A Sydney father was fined $180 for parking across his own driveway after parents picking up their kids from a nearby school kept blocking him in when he parked off the street. Matt Burke, who lives on Trevenar Street across the road from Ashbury Public School, said parents frequently parked across his driveway during busy drop-off and pick-up times. 'I have to pick up my son from preschool so I cant take the risk of leaving my car in my driveway because Ive been parked in so many times,' he told the Canterbury-Bankstown Express. Sydney father Matt Burke (right) was fined $180 for parking across his own driveway after drivers picking up their kids from a neighbouring school kept blocking him in Mr Burke's house on Trevenar Street, located across the road from Ashbury Public School, with his car parked over the driveway NSW Centre for Road Safety executive director Bernard Carlon said according to NSW road laws, drivers can't park across driveways for more than two minutes - even if it was their own. '[It] is a safety issue as it stops emergency services from having easy access to the property and it can obstruct the line of sight for other drivers entering and exiting other nearby properties,' he said. Mr Burke appealed the fine to the NSW Office of State Revenue but said he was labelled a 'serious offender' and was fined a similar amount as drivers who ignore stop signs in school zones. He said at least half of drivers do not follow school zone speed limits down his street, and he was concerned authorities seemed more worried about parking rules than the safety of children. The council is unwilling to reduce or cancel the fine (pictured in Mr Burke's hands) because the offence is considered serious and there are no exceptions Mr Burke's street in Sydney with the school over the road on the right The OSR said it 'may be more lenient if the client lived at the outer limit of the school zone, or the vehicle was parked during non-school zone times'. But it was unwilling to budge on Mr Burke's case because him living across the road from a school 'represents a higher risk'. Mr Burke's only option is to fight the issue in court, but he would be doing so without the law on his side. Mr Burke's home is over the road from Ashbury School Bereaved families face a postcode lottery over the price of funerals with some areas paying almost 7,000 more than others, according to a report. Burials in one area of London cost almost 10,000 on average, more than three times the amount charged in other parts of the country. The huge expense means 90,000 bereaved families were forced to borrow 1,601 on average this year to cover the costs. This is up from 1300 in 2014, according an analysis of data from the Institute of Cemetery & Crematorium Management by insurer Royal London. Kensal Green cemetery in London, pictured, is the 'most expensive place to die' where a burial costs an average of 9,769 In total Britons have racked up 147million in funeral debt. The most expensive place to die is Kensal Green cemetery in London where the average burial costs 9,769 and the average cremation costs 3,165. The average cost of a burial in Belfast the cheapest location is - 2917, while the average cremation costs 2,879. Generally costs are highest in London and the South East where the price of land is more expensive and wages paid to funeral directors and other staff are higher. Royal London said it is vital that the government tackles funeral poverty by addressing the flaws in the Social Fund Funeral Expenses Payment which was set up to help families on low incomes. It said the fund often fails to cover the cost of a funeral, particularly in more expensive parts of the country. This includes everything from burial or cremation costs to renting limousines for the family and hiring a minister for the service. Most people employ a funeral director to arrange the day for them, who typically pays these fees and passes them on to the customer. Half of the average funeral bill goes on basic burial costs paying a gravedigger and buying the lease of a grave plot with the right to erect a headstone. Mona Patel from Royal London said: When dealing with the loss of a loved one, the last thing that people need is financial stress as well. 'It is shocking that more than 90,000 people had to borrow an average of 1,600 simply to give their loved ones a decent send off. Some areas paying almost 7,000 more than others for funerals, raising fears of a 'postcode lottery' (file picture) Local councils, which own crematoria and graveyards, as well as private funeral firms such as Dignity and the Co-op have been criticised for ratcheting up their charges in recent years. But for the first time in more than ten years the average cost of a funeral fell - by 27. This follows three decades of funeral costs rising each year by an average of 6 per cent. Royal London said the sharp increase in funerals after one of the biggest jumps in deaths last year in a century had caused funeral providers and local councils to be more competitive on price. Official figures showed 603,000 people died last year, up from 569,000. The increase was driven by over-75s, many of whom died of flu or dementia. Chilling footage has emerged of three masked teenagers - including one disguised as a creepy clown - storming a petrol station with weapons and making off with thousands of dollars worth of cigarettes and cash. The robbery took place in the New Zealand city of Christchurch on Tuesday when three teens wielding hammers and screwdrivers burst through the door of a Challenge service station about 3.47am. CCTV footage shows the thugs threatening an employee and demanding he open the cash register. Three masked teenagers robbed a petrol station in Christchurch, New Zealand, on Tuesday CCTV footage shows the thugs threatening an employee and demanding cash The bespectacled employee can be seen with his hands raised above him and backed into a corner while the robbers plunder the cash box and cigarette drawers. After more than two terrifying minutes the teenagers dash out the front door, with the service station employee in pursuit. A staff member at the petrol station said more than $5000 of tobacco products were snatched, along with $300 cash, stuff.co.nz reported. Police said in a statement on Tuesday night that the three teens had been arrested and would appear before the Youth Court on charges of aggravated robbery. The stolen property has been recovered and Police are not seeking anyone else in connection to this crime. Two teens were wielding hammers and screwdrivers and another had a black bag (pictured) President Obama's half-brother Malik Obama will be at the final presidential debate on Wednesday night - but he won't be there to support his sibling's choice to succeed him. Malik Obama has reportedly accepted Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's invitation to be his guest at the debate, Mediaite reported. The president's brother has previously publicly supported Trump's bid for the White House and expressed anger at not being invited to the Democratic National Convention. He told the BBC it was 'sort of disappointing, somewhat hypocritical' that no members of Obama's Kenyan family attended the DNC this summer. President Obama's half-brother Malik Obama (pictured) will be at the final presidential debate on Wednesday night to support Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump Malik Obama (left) told the BBC it was 'sort of disappointing, somewhat hypocritical' that no members of Obama's Kenyan family were invited to attend the DNC this summer Malik will be seated next to Trump's other guest Pat Smith, the mother of Sean Smith who died in Benghazi. Pat Smith spoke at the RNC over the summer. Along with inviting his guests to try and throw Clinton off, Trump mocked her during a campaign. 'She's home sleeping and I'm working. That's the way it's going to be in the White House, too. She'd be sleeping. I'd be working,' Trump told a crowd in Colorado on Tuesday afternoon. Clinton is also inviting guests to Wednesday night's debate that have rocky pasts with Trump. Malik will be seated next to Trump's other guest Pat Smith (pictured), the mother of Sean Smith who died in Benghazi At the last debate, Trump paraded three women who claimed they were sexually assaulted by Bill Clinton Billionaire Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and Republican businesswoman Meg Whitman, will be seated in the crowd as her guests. At the last debate, Trump paraded three women who claimed Bill Clinton sexually assaulted to raped them, and another woman who was raped at age 12 and Hillary Clinton, as a public defender, got a plea deal for her attacker. The four women Paula Jones, who won a sexual harassment case against Clinton, Kathleen Willey, who says the ex-president fondled her in the White House and Juanita Broaddrick, who say Clinton raped her back when he was running for Arkansas' governor, were joined by rape victim Kathy Shelton were Trump's guests and sat in the front row. Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, a top adviser and surrogate for Trump, suggested that Smith's presence at this debate might get the families of Benghazi victims a 'solid answer' from the former secretary of state. Kathleen Willey (left), Juanita Broaddrick (center), and Kathy Shelton (right) attended the second presidential debate as Trump's guests In May 2016, Avo Cigars announced a new line called the Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata. As the name indicates it is the second line released under the Avo Syncro Nicaragua umbrella. Early in 2015, the Avo brand under Davidoff underwent a restructuring. Later that year, the first Avo Syncro Nicaragua was unveiled the first regular production Avo line to be box-pressed and incorporate Nicaraguan tobacco. The Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata is an all new blend that is also Nicaraguan-centric, but is in a rounded format. With the addition of the Fogata line, it gave the Avo brand its sixth regular production line. Today, we take a closer look at the Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata in a Short Torpedo format. The Avo brand draws its inspiration from brand ambassador Avo Uvezians musical roots. The name Syncro is a play on the theme of synchronization in music. At the same time, this is also carried over into the cigar experience. Obviously,the Nicaragua in the cigar name reflects the use of the Nicaraguan tobacco. In addition to Nicaraguan tobacco, the Fogata also contains Dominican tobacco. With tobaccos from these two countries, it is meant to bring a synchronization of both a Nicaraguan and Dominican cigar experience thus the Syncro name. As for the name Fogata, it means bonfire or campfire, and happens to be a personal favorite setting of Uvezian. Davidoff has branded many cigars in its various brands as Nicaragua. In each of these cases, it has incorporated Nicaragua tobacco in a brand not known to use this tobacco. In addition to the Avo Syncro Nicaragua and Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata, the Nicaraguan name has been seen in Davidoff lines such as: Davidoff Nicaragua, The Griffins Nicaragua, Cusano Nicaragua Esteli, and Cusano N1 Nicaragua. Without further ado, lets break down the Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata Short Torpedo and see what this cigar brings to the table. Blend Profile As mentioned the Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata is a completely different blend than the original Avo Syncro Nicaragua. While the original Syncro Nicaragua utilized Ometepe tobacco from Nicaragua in the filler. The Syncro Fogata uses Nicaraguan tobacco from Esteli and Condega. These Nicaraguan tobaccos are balanced with Dominican tobaccos which include Davidoffs signature Yamasa-grown tobacco. The Fogata also features a completely different wrapper (Ecuadorian) and binder (Mexican) from the original Avo Syncro Nicaragua. Wrapper: Habano 2000 Clara (Ecuador) Binder: Negro San Andreas (Mexico) Filler: Esteli Ligero (Nicaragua). Condega Visus (Nicaragua), Yamasa Visus, Piloto and San Vicente Ligero (Dominican Republic) Country of Origin: Dominican Republic (Occidental Kelner) Vitolas Available The Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata is available in four sizes. Each of the four sizes are packaged in 20 count boxes. Short Torpedo: 4 1/2 x 52 Robusto: 5 x 50 Toro: 6 x 54 Special Toro: 6 x 60 Appearance The Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata Short Torpedos Habana wrapper has a medium brown color. Depending on how the light shines on it, it might have a slight colorado red tint. There was not much in the way of oil on the surface. I found the wrapper had a slightly bumpy feel to it. There were several visible veins on the surface of the wrapper. Most of the wrapper seams that were visible were on the very thin side. The torpedo tip has a slightly sharp taper to it. There are two bands on the Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata. The primary band of the Fogata is similar in design to the original Syncro Nicaragua, but with a different color scheme. Prominently on the center of the band is a white, gray, and silver Avo logo. Surrounding the Avo logo on the upper 2/3 of the band is both orange and rust coloring with white trim. To the left of the logo is the text AVO UVEZIAN in small silver font. To the right of the logo is the text SYNCRO in small silver font. The lower third of the band is yellow-orange colored background with white trim on the lower portion. On the background is the text NICARAGUA in silver font. The secondary band rests below the primary band. It is orange in color with silver font. On the center of the band is the text FOGATA. To the left and right of that text is a small campfire-like design. Preparation for the Cigar Experience As I typically do for torpedo and belicoso vitolas, I used my Credo Special T cutter with the 36 ring gauge hole to get an ideal cut on the Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata Short Torpedo. Once the tip was successful removed, I moved on to the pre-light draw. The cold draw delivered a mix of wood, orange, and cinnamon spice. Overall I considered this to be a very good pre-light draw. At this point I was ready to light up the Fogata Short Torpedo and see what the smoking experience would have in store. Flavor Profile The start to the Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata Short Torpedo started with notes of wood and earth. In the background I detected a mix of cedar and bakers spice. In addition to some spice in the background, the cedar / bakers spice also delivered some sweetness. The cedar had a slight lingering effect on the after-draw. Meanwhile the retro-hale produced of cedar and assorted pepper spices. Later in the first third, I started to see the cedar / bakers spice combination start to make its way into the forefront from time to time. In the background I also detected a mineral note as well as a subtle grassy note. This pattern continued through the second third. During the last third of the Fogata Short Torpedo, the woody and earth combination remained in the forefront. While the cedar / bakers spice combination was still remained in the forefront, I found I was now getting more in the way of spice from these notes as opposed to sweetness. There still were some mineral and grassy notes in the distant background. This is the way the cigar experience came to a close. The resulting nub was firm to the touch and cool in temperature. Burn and Draw The burn to the Avo Syncro Fogata Short Torpedo had a slight amount of jaggedness from point to point. While this did require some additional touch-ups along the way, I didnt find the amount to be excessive. The Fogata Short Torpedo did maintain a straight burn path and was never in danger of canoeing or tunneling. While the resulting ash does appear to look loose in the photo below, I didnt find this to be the case. At the same time, this wasnt an overly firm ash either. The ash had a classic salt and pepper color scheme. The burn temperature was ideal. I did find the burn rate to be ideal as well, but the short torpedo format is going to be a quicker smoke because of the short length and tapering of the cigar. In a nutshell, the shape of this cigar will contribute to a shorter smoking time and give a perception of a faster burn. The draw to the Fogata Short Torpedo was ideal. It was not too loose, nor too tight. I found the torpedo tip to be well constructed and this contributed to an excellent draw. Strength and Body From a strength and body perspective, this cigar is was a solid medium from start to finish. During the course of the cigar experience, there was a slight increase in both the strength and body however both attributes didnt cross into medium to full territory. When looking at strength versus body, I found both attributes to balance each other nicely with neither one overshadowing the other. Final Thoughts One thing that really has set Davidoff apart from other companies has been its innovation strategy and the company seems to be executing on them very well. The incorporation of Nicaraguan tobaccos into brands such as Avo is an example of this strategy. The company had great success with the first Avo Syncro Nicaragua and is poised to continue the journey with the new Fogata. Overall I found the Short Torpedo format worked quite well with this blend. The only problem is that it is a Shorter Torpedo and this cigar had me wanting more. I found this cigar to deliver a very unique profile in the Davidoff portfolio and in the end it delivered a satisfying smoke. Overall the Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata Short Torpedo is a cigar I could recommend to a novice or experienced cigar enthusiast. As for myself, this is a cigar I would smoke again and its worthy of a box split. Summary Burn: Excellent Draw: Excellent Complexity: Medium Strength: Medium Body: Medium Finish: Very Good Assessment: 3.5-Box Split Score: 90 References News: Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata Announced Price: $8.90 Source: Cigars Provided by Manufacturer (Prior to August 8th) Stogie Geeks Podcast: Stogie Geeks News May 13, 2016, Episode 206 Stogie Feed: Avo Syncro Nicaragua Fogata Short Torpedo Brand Reference: AVO Photo Credits: Cigar Coop Just two months after the country voted to leave the European Union, a group emerged calling itself Open Britain, arguing for something no one had ever heard of before soft Brexit. With startling gall, this group demanded Britain stay in the single market, while ignoring the inevitable consequence: yet more open-door immigration. Open Britain also resurrected Project Fear, by seizing on every negative economic headline while ignoring all the good news. Most brazenly, its supporters argued it would be undemocratic to begin leaving the EU without a vote by MPs. Open Britain does not reveal the same people are pulling the strings as the official campaign, namely Labour peer and former EU commissioner Peter Mandelson and the unaccountable City lobbyist Roland Rudd At first they were largely ignored. Only with the help of copious and entirely unwarranted BBC airtime did their insidious attempt to undermine the referendum result gain any prominence. So who is behind this gang of bitter Bremoaners? As the Mail reveals today, Open Britain is simply the official Remain campaign group, Britain Stronger in Europe, under a different title. Like a bankrupt fraudster starting over, they just changed the name above the door. Nowhere does it advertise this fact. Nor does it reveal the same people are pulling the strings, namely Labour peer and former EU commissioner Peter Mandelson and the unaccountable City lobbyist Roland Rudd. So it is that powerful men with no mandate from the electorate are determined to subvert the 52 per cent of the country who voted to leave the EU. Lord Mandelson who is busy making himself rich from some of the worlds dodgiest regimes and Mr Rudd, who serves shadowy powers in the City, have not one ounce of democratic legitimacy. No more delays! In just three months, Theresa May has made two major decisions to improve Britains creaking infrastructure: to build the Hinkley Point nuclear power station (pictured), and the High Speed 2 rail line In just three months, Theresa May has made two major decisions to improve Britains creaking infrastructure: to build the Hinkley Point nuclear power station, and the High Speed 2 rail line. Regardless of their individual merits, this was impressively decisive. Also to her credit, Mrs May will next week do what David Cameron cravenly avoided, and decide whether Gatwick or Heathrow will build a new runway. Nevertheless, it is profoundly disappointing to put it mildly that the project faces further delay, with MPs not expected to vote for another 18 months. Despite the three-year Davies commission firmly backing Heathrow, there will be another interminable public consultation. As Mrs May told her Cabinet yesterday, the decision on airports is in the national interest and has been delayed for too long. The Mail couldnt agree more. With years before building work begins, and inevitable court battles ahead, further delay would be utterly unconscionable. Deplorable waste Even with its appalling record of wasting public money on mismanaged and fruitless projects, the 1.3billion Troubled Families programme is a new low for Government. Launched with great fanfare by David Cameron, and run by the all-purpose Whitehall tsar Louise Casey, it was supposed to tackle worklessness, truancy, anti-social behaviour and crime. Only last year, Mr Cameron claimed it had turned around 90 per cent of the families involved. But, as a scathing report reveals, his claim relentlessly peddled by the civil service spin machine was utter fiction. It found no evidence the programme was having any significant impact, but regardless, councils were rewarded with thousands of pounds per family. Police are on the hunt for an Asian man who allegedly loitered in Sydney libraries and sexually assaulted two women as they bent down to collect books. The man allegedly waited until a woman bent over to collect a book before indecently assaulting her on Friday night, October 7 at a library in Kogarah, a suburb in Sydney's south. The same man is wanted for a similar incident at a library in Hurstville, just four kilometres away, on Monday October 10. olice are on the hunt for an Asian man (pictured) who allegedly loitered in Sydney libraries and sexually assaulted two women as they bent down to collect books Both alleged sexual assaults were reported to the police, but investigators believe there may have been more assaults which were not reported. The New South Wales Police Force released photos of an Asian man in glasses and a blue collared shirt who they claim could 'assist with inquiries'. He's described as being Asian in appearance, aged between 25-30 years old, with short black hair and wearing glasses. The family of a dead 79-year-old Minnesota man who was killed by a teacher while she was texting at the wheel insist they have forgiven her - even though she will serve just four days in prison. Joe Tikalsky, a school bus driver, walked out of his New Prague home and headed toward his mailbox when a car driven by Susan Ann Russo, 48, plowed into him on October 28 of last year. A judge in Le Sueur County, Minnesota, sentenced Russo to four days in prison, WCCO reported. The sentence was in accordance with a plea agreement struck by Russo's attorneys and prosecutors. Susan Ann Russo (mugshot left), 48, ran over and killed Joe Tikalsky (right), 79, in New Prague, Minnesota, on October 28, 2015, while she was texting at the wheel. She was sentenced to just four days in jail on Monday Tikalsky's wife of 54 years, Emma Jean Tikalsky, said on Monday that she and her children met Russo for the first time. 'We cried together and they begged us, my daughter and myself, "Would you please find it in your heart to forgive us?"' Tikalsky said. 'I knew that was the godlike thing I would be expected to do and we did. We said yes.' The widow said that her family would not protest the sentenced handed down to Russo. Emma Jean Tikalsky (right, with her late husband) said that she and her family forgive Russo 'I knew that [forgiveness] was the godlike thing I would be expected to do and we did,' Emma said. 'We said yes' Joe was hit by Russo's car as he was walking out to the mailbox near his home in New Prague Above is the mailbox just outside of Joe Tikalsky's home in New Prague, where the accident occurred 'Four days or 400 days, it really doesn't matter,' Emma Jean Tikalsky said. 'I know she didn't mean to kill anyone.' The judge, Mark Vandelist, told Russo that she should take advantage of her light sentence and serve as an example by warning the community about the dangers of distracted driving. 'You are a gifted teacher, use that gift,' he said to Russo. Russo was contrite in her statement to the court. She tearfully read aloud a letter that she addressed to the victim, beginning with: 'Dear Joe.' Russo said that she would trade places with her victim 'in a heartbeat' if she could. 'Four days or 400 days, it really doesn't matter,' Emma (above) said. 'I know she didn't mean to kill anyone.' 'I'm struggling to know how to move on,' she said. 'It is very difficult to comprehend what I did and make sense of it all.' She then addressed her comments to the Tikalsky family, saying: 'I will spend my entire life trying to make up for my mistake.' Russo will serve her stint in prison on the anniversary of the incident. The first two days will be served beginning October 28th of this year, and the remainder will be served on the same day in 2017. The judge also placed Russo on probation for two years. She is not allowed to take any electronic devices into her car, nor is she permitted to use drugs or alcohol. In the courtroom, Greg Tikalsky, the victim's youngest son, said that his father's death has motivated him to publicly advocate for tougher laws against driving while texting, according to the Star Tribune. 'We have to view distracted driving as we view drunk driving,' he said. The lenient sentence given to Russo and others has prompted calls for tougher laws against texting drivers. 'I would wish the way he died might be an example to other drivers to forgo electronics and concentrate on driving,' Emma Tikalsky said. After the court hearing was over, she and her daughter, Mary Jo Dorman, approached Russo and gave her a hug, according to the Star Tribune. Ivanka Trump, has finally spoken out about comments her father made on a hot mic tape, in which he talked about grabbing women's genitals. The businesswoman called her father's remarks 'clearly inappropriate and offensive' but said she's glad he apologized. 'Im glad that he acknowledged this fact with an immediate apology to my family and the American people,' she told Fast Company. Donald Trump's eldest daughter, who has been one of his most powerful female surrogates, says she has no plans of making her campaign role permanent if the billionaire wins the White House. Scroll down for video Ivanka Trump (pictured) has finally spoken out about her father's lewd remarks in a 2005 hot mic tape The businesswoman called her father's remarks 'clearly inappropriate and offensive' but said she's glad he apologized (Access Hollywood tape pictured) 'Im glad that he acknowledged this fact with an immediate apology to my family and the American people,' she said 'No, I don't intend to be part of the government,' Trump told Fast Company in an interview released Monday. That doesn't mean her father hasn't flirted with the idea, telling 'First Coast News' in August, as Politico pointed out, that supporters would love to see Ivanka in his cabinet. In mulling over future cabinet members Trump said, 'Well, there are so many different ones to choose, I can tell you everybody would say "Put Ivanka in! Put Ivanka in! You know that, right?"' Trump said. 'She's very popular, she's done very well. And you know Ivanka very well,' Trump continued. 'But there really are so many that are talented people, like you,' the Republican nominee adding broadening his cabinet search outside his family tree. As far as a role in the campaign, Ivanka Trump even pushed back when the writer of the Fast Company profile referred to her as a 'surrogate wife,' likely referencing the fact that Ivanka Trump is on the campaign trail more than her dad's wife Melania. It's 'deeply offensive,' Ivanka said of that term. 'I feel that that's a very sexist thing to say.' Fast Company detailed some of the highs and lows of being Ivanka Trump throughout this campaign. Business-wise, her father's presidential bid has been a boon for the young businesswoman. Net sales of the clothing arm of the company were up $11.8 million during the first six months of 2016 compared to last year and the light pink dress that Ivanka Trump sported when introducing her father at the Republican National Convention quickly sold out. The company's website traffic is up 50 percent over last year, Fast Company also reported, due to Ivanka Trump's even more public profile. But the potential first daughter has also had to deal with her family's name and reputation dragged through the mud. She said the media coverage of her father has made her 'tougher.' When Donald Trump was mulling who he might want to put in his cabinet, his daughter's name was the first to come up. But Ivanka Trump said she wouldn't be working in Washington 'I mean, it's been a year and a half of enormous scrutiny of my family, every business, every movement, action,' Ivanka Trump said. 'But I think that, you know, that sort of comes with the territory. And I think I've probably learned a lot through it and I've probably grown a bit tougher in terms of my resilience toward what is our thrown our way because, you know, I've read some very negative stuff.' As far as some of the more painful accusations, like women coming out publicly to say that they'd been kissed or groped by the Republican nominee against their will, Ivanka Trump said she doesn't believe it. 'The greatest comfort I have is the fact that I know my father,' she said. 'Most of the people who write about him don't. I do.' Sir Alan Moses, chairman of the Independent Press Standards Organisation, says newspapers are doomed if they become state-regulated Newspapers are doomed if they become state-regulated and lose their precious independence, the head of the press watchdog has warned. Sir Alan Moses, chairman of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), said the industry was at risk from the powers that be who want to control it. Speaking at the Society of Editors annual conference, he warned gathered journalists: You should be very wary indeed of anything that looks like an attempt to corral you into submission. The powers that be want to goad you, prod you into doing what they want. Sir Alan, a former Court of Appeal judge, said implementation of legislation which could make newspaper and magazine groups pay all the costs in libel actions, even if they win their case, was a real and underlying danger to the freedom of the industry. The essence of our press is that it cannot and should not be forced into doing anything it does not choose to do. If it acts under compulsion it is indeed doomed, he said. He urged journalists to defend their freedom against the London-based wittering and burble as they and the public have most to lose from state regulation of the press. Making the case for newspapers and magazines free from Government control, he said: The essence of successful press regulation, I believe, is that it is voluntary. It is something you choose to do, not something into which you are driven. Regulation of the press will never work if it is compulsory. Of course with that freedom comes the risk and dangers of abuse, but those dangers must be balanced against what I believe to be the far greater dangers of a country and of regions without an independent untamed regional and national press. SFPD's Carlos Manfredi said: 'This was not just a random shooting' A 16-year-old girl is in a critical condition, three others were injured Four male suspects wearing hoodies were seen running away from scene Three of the victims ran inside the school, while another went to hospital June Jordan School for Equity and City Arts and Technology High School, which share a parking lot Police are hunting four young men after a shooting in the parking lot of two San Francisco high schools left a 15-year-old girl fighting for her life. Three other students, including a 16-year-old boy, were also injured when the shooting erupted on Tuesday afternoon in a parking lot shared by June Jordan School for Equity; and City Arts and Technology High School. San Francisco Police spokesman Carlos Manfredi said: 'This was not just a random shooting. We believe one of the victims may have been the initial target.' Four teenage students were shot in the shared parking lot of two San Francisco high schools Tuesday, and one of the students is in critical condition, authorities said. Officers stand at the scene of the shooting Officer Manfredi said: 'One female victim has life-threatening injuries to her upper torso'. The shooters seemed to have targeted the female student, said Karwin Sui, a spokeswoman for the San Francisco Unified School District. June Jordan School tweeted: 'Today at dismissal time, gunshots were fired outside the school near dismissal time. There were four perpetrators.' The school district tweeted that a student had been targeted by 'outsiders.' A female employee told SFGate.com there were 'building tensions outside the classroom' which boiled over, leading to the shooting. Cops are seen scouring the area after the shooting. Police have suggested it was a targeted attack, but would not reveal the motive Fernando Rodriguez, 16, described the chaos and fear inside the school. He said he heard at least six 'pops' and saw students running in all directions. 'It was terrifying. We walk into this school every day, every morning, and to hear gunshots like that, just scary,' he told SFGate.com. An officer from the SFPD is seen pulling police tape across the scene following the shooting Three of the victims ran inside the school, and police ordered students to stay inside until police searched each room and determined it was not an active shooter situation. Four male suspects wearing dark hoodies and jeans were seen running away from the area, Manfredi said. Advertisement Its almost fight night in Las Vegas and Trump Force One skirted narrowly past Hillary Clintons much smaller campaign plane when they both landed at McCarran International Airport on Tuesday ahead of the third and final presidential debate. Trump's Boeing 757, the renovated commercial jet the billionaire has on occasion used as a backdrop for his rallies, is like the Republican nominee himself - bigger and flashier. But Clintons plane a Boeing 737 was unveiled to great fanfare last month. Specially outfitted for a presidential candidate, it bears the Democratic nominees campaign slogan Stronger Together on its side as well as her H logo on its blue tail. Trump, however, acquired his jet for $100million from Microsofts Paul Allen back in 2011. Scroll down for video Trump Force One is seen landing near Hillary Clinton's campaign plane at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas on Tuesday ahead of the third and final presidential debate He then decked it out in his trademark black and gold livery with the signature Trump stamped across its side. Inside, it was kitted out to suit the 70-year-old moguls ostentatious style complete with suede ceilings and plenty of gold detailing. The 757 is favored among presidential candidates, according to the aviation experts. Both George W. Bush and Barack Obama flew 757s and went on to win the White House in 2000 and 2008. But Clinton had traveled across America in her own plane for months while the reporters who cover her campaign followed in a separate charter jet. A brand new Boeing 737-86J like the one she is now using would cost around $96million, but hers was first issued in 2002 for AirBerlin and she's leasing it from a Florida company, according to the Journal News. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton is pictured getting off her plane in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Tuesday Clinton (above, getting into a car at McCarran International Airport) had traveled across America in her own plane for months before unveiling her campaign plane last month Clinton's plane bears her campaign slogan Stronger Together on its side as well as her H logo on its blue tail Huma Abedin, a top Clinton aide, speaks with staff while travelling with Hillary Clinton to Las Vegas on Tuesday A COMPARISON OF TRUMP AND CLINTON'S CAMPAIGN PLANES DONALD TRUMP Price: $100million Model: Boeing 757-200 Size (from nose to tail): 155 ft Nickname: Trump Force One Special features: Double bed, spacious lounge with sofas and a 52-inch flatscreen TV, seats with 24-carat gold seat belt buckles and a marble bathroom HILLARY CLINTON Price: She is leasing, but a brand new version would cost around $96million Model: Boeing 737-86J Size (from nose to tail): 129 ft Nickname: Hill Force One Special features: Wi-Fi and broken up into four cabins - one each for Clinton and some aides; extra staffers; for her Secret Service detail and for press Advertisement The arrangement broke with typical campaign tradition and Clintons penchant for drinking wine with reporters aboard Hill Force One, the New York Times reported. Then again, much of the 2016 election has broken with tradition. Trump and Clinton will face-off for the final time before Election Day at the University of Nevada Las Vegas on Wednesday night. Already, protesters are planning to create a wall of taco trucks in front of the Trump International Las Vegas hotel. Trump opponents are planning the stunt to demonstrate against the GOP nominees controversial pledge to build a wall at the US-Mexico border and force Mexico to pay for it. Trump supporters cheer as the GOP nominee's jet - dubbed 'Trump Force One' lands in Grand Junction, Colorado, on Tuesday ahead of its final destination of Las Vegas Trump greets supporters as he arrives to speak at a rally at Grand Junction Regional Airport before making his way to Las Vegas for the third and final presidential debate Trump waves to supporters as he arrives to speak at a rally at Grand Junction Regional Airport on Tuesday Protesters against Trump are planning to create a wall of taco trucks in front of the Trump International Las Vegas hotel The idea of using taco trucks to form the wall came from a Hispanic Trump supporters assertion that without Trumps border wall, there could one day be taco trucks on every corner. Latinos for Trump founder Marco Gutierrezs statement during an MSNBC interview in September sparked widespread ridicule online. Meanwhile, a Trump impersonator stormed into the billionaires Vegas hotel on Tuesday claiming he owned it. It was actually Mini Trump a character from Jeff Beachers Madhouse. The tiny version of Trump arrived with a motorcade and with a beauty pageant contestant on his arm, TMZ reports. Police and hotel security escorted the imposter out and he was given a warning for trespassing, according to the website. Donald Trump supporter Kathy Kohler hold up signs outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on Tuesday Nick Allen, his mother Stephanie Allen, and Mathew Burgart show their support for Trump outside the GOP nominee's hotel in Las Vegas on Tuesday $1.2 million is bet on the election, with $1 million of it placed on Trump TAB says the US election is the biggest political market in its history If Donald Trump is successful, the gambler will win a $500,000 An enthusiastic punter has placed a $100,000 bet with the TAB on Donald Trump to win the U.S. election ahead of the final debate. The $100,000 bet was placed at odds of $5, which means the punter would collect $500,000 if Trump pulls off an upset. TAB said the $100,000 bet was so large it dramatically changed the market, shortening Trump's odds up from $5 to $4.50. TAB said the $100,000 bet was so large it significantly changed the odds, firming Donald Trump's (pictured) odds up from $5 down to $4.50 However, Democratic Party nominee Hillary Clinton is still the clear favourite to win, sitting on skinny odds of just $1.20. But despite this, Trump still had the greatest showing of support by punters. How the odds have moved Opening market October 30 2015 $1.90 Hillary Clinton, $13 Donald Trump Trump named Republican candidate July 21 2016 $1.30 Hillary Clinton, $3.00 Donald Trump Clinton named Democratic candidate July 28 2016 $1.45 Hillary Clinton $2.75 Donald Trump Clinton's time off for sickness September 16 2016 $1.65 Hillary Clinton $2.35 Donald Trump Advertisement TAB said it was currently sitting on more than $1.2 million on the US Election, $1 million of which was backing Trump. 'Punters just can't get enough of the election betting,' TAB's Shaun Anderson said. 'Despite Trump being an outsider it's all one way traffic for him to pull off an upset. 'If he gets up it will be a horrible result for the TAB but a great result for punters, particularly the one who bet the $100,000 this week.' If Trump does win, with the current odds TAB will be forced to pay out almost $3 million dollars. TAB said the massive figures were the result of the most popular political market ever recorded in its history. It said double the money was bet in this US election compared to the 2016 Australian Federal Election. Trump's longest price was $13 when the market first opened, and his shortest was $2.35 when Clinton fell ill in September. A student has sparked a 'clown purge' scare, sending their school into lock down on Wednesday morning. Smithfield Public School in west Sydney went into state of alert after a student showed a Facebook post referring to clowns in the area, police said. A New South Wales Police spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia despite the post, no clown appeared. Scroll down for video Police at Smithfield Public School in Sydney, which was put into lock down on Wednesday morning after a clown scare A New South Wales Police spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia a student told a teacher about a Facebook post regarding clowns in the area A message posted on the school fence regarding the lock down Pupils pictured inside the school on Wednesday when it was locked down Images from the scene showed numerous police officers and vehicles at the school and signs warning of the lock out on a fence. A Department of Education spokesman told Daily Mail Australia: 'After being made aware of a vague social media post, the school held a brief precautionary lock out this morning. 'There was no incident and students were not in any danger.' The incident follows a recent trend of 'clown scares' imitating similar incidents in the U.S. involving people clad in clown costumes attempting to intimidate the public. The trend of people dressing up as creepy clowns originated in the U.S. Recently, the behaviour began to pop up in Australia as people dressed up as clowns There have been numerous reported sightings of creepy clowns across the country Police vehicles outside the school on Wednesday when it was locked down Despite the lock down, no clowns were seen in the vicinity of the school Earlier in October a number of clown sightings across Australia prompted harsh criticisms from police. South Australia's police commissioner said last week: 'Anyone who dresses up as a clown with the intention of scaring other people can only be described as a d**khead. 'There is enough for us out there to do now, without having to respond to instances where people think that this is funny.' The commissioner said people dressed as clowns will not receive much sympathy from SA police if those they frighten then retaliate. 'We'll be looking at taking action against them for their behaviour, which has instigated that level of fear that someone feels they have to protect themselves,' he told FiveAA radio. Police officers arrived at the school in west Sydney on Wednesday Amanda Issa was eight years old when American soldiers who had just defeated the Iraqi military and overthrew longtime dictator Saddam Hussein entered her hometown of Mosul. When she encountered a Marine who was kind enough to hand her a mint chocolate bar, she knew she had found her calling. 'I was one of those kids that always ran after the Humvees,' Issa, now 21, told the Marine Corps Times. 'There were a lot of [American] military there Army, Navy but the Marines were different.' Amanda Issa (left) prepares for a graduation ceremony on Parris Island, South Carolina, on September 30, 2016 Thirteen years later, she achieved her dream of one day sporting her own Eagle, Globe, and Anchor the official insignia of the Marine Corps. Just a day after she became a United States citizen, she was promoted to the rank of lance corporal, officially becoming a Marine. Issa's journey is a fascinating one. As Christians, her family was increasingly vulnerable, particularly in 2010, as American soldiers began gradually leaving Mosul in preparation for a wider withdrawal from Iraq. 'We couldn't go to school or work, or get basic needs,' she said. 'My sister couldn't go to college. It was hard to stay there and be safe. There was no safe option.' Just a day after Issa (above) became a United States citizen, she was promoted to the rank of lance corporal, officially becoming a Marine. Issa (above) and her family fled Mosul in 2010 and found refuge in Turkey. Soon after, they were granted asylum in the United States and relocated to Detroit In light of these trying circumstances, Issa and her family fled to neighboring Turkey in July 2010. They lived there as refugees in 'complete peace,' she told the Marine Corps Times. Nonetheless, being strangers in a foreign land presented its own set of challenges. 'It was hard for us to get anything, even simple things, because you couldn't speak with the locals,' she said. '[The Turks] knew we were refugees and any time you would go and try to buy something, they would charge you more, but you couldn't do anything about it.' In May 2011, her family's request to relocate to the US with refugee status was approved, and soon they would call Detroit home. 'I was so happy, but it was completely different than what I imagined,' she said. 'We came here and it was still hard; coming to a new country and learning how to adapt to the new culture and new way of life, everything.' A US soldier stands at a military base in the Makhmour area near Mosul. American troops and their Iraqi allies have launched an offensive there to purge the area of ISIS fighters Issa was eager to assimilate into American life. Instead of the slower pace English as a Second Language classes that her high school offered, she decided to be enrolled with the regular classes so that she could be completely immersed. Her hard work and courage had paid off. In just two years, she went from speaking almost no English to finishing among the top 10 students in her class. What she really wanted to do, though, was be a Marine. 'It was always there. I knew this was the change I wanted,' she said. 'After I got here (to the United States), I said: "This is the time for it now".' This past January, she enlisted for boot camp, though there was concern as to whether she would complete her training after she injured her wrist during a drill. Iraqi security forces advance in Qayara, south of Mosul, to attack Islamic State militants But she didn't allow the injury to derail her military career. 'A lot of people told me 'Ah, you're not going to be able to do it and you're just going home and you won't make it',' she recalled. 'At some point some people told me 'Oh, you're probably staying here because you just want to get your citizenship,' but the only reason I stayed and continued training was I wanted to be a Marine,' she said. Being fluent in Arabic, Issa knows that she may be called upon to return to Iraq, where a major offensive is underway to eliminate elements of Islamic State from her native hometown, Mosul. 'I want to give it my best, whatever job I'm doing,' she said. 'Wherever the Marine Corps needs to send me, I'll go. It doesn't matter if it's Mosul or any other country.' In secret, behind locked gates, our Nation's Oldest City dumped a landfill in a lake (Old City Reservoir), while emitting sewage in our rivers and salt marsh. Organized citizens exposed and defeated pollution, racism and cronyism. We elected a new Mayor. We're transforming our City -- advanced citizenship. Ask questions. Make disclosures. Demand answers. Be involved. Expect democracy. Report and expose corruption. Smile! Help enact a St. Augustine National Park and Seashore. We shall overcome! Beynon changed into a T-shirt and jeans combo once they touched down and headed for their hotel There was no packing light as each carted at least four suitcases piled high on trolleys across the terminal was highlighted by pimped-out gold slippers and plenty of bling They dressed in identical attendant-like outfits making quite an entrance Advertisement Travers 'The Candyman' Beynon always travels in ostentatious style and Monday was no exception as he jetted off the to New York flanked by his usual entourage of women. The flamboyant tobacco tycoon rolled up to Brisbane Airport in one of his many luxury cars, complete with a champagne dispenser, with five busty babes on board. Beynon went for an aviation theme with his entourage dressed in identical flight attendant-inspired outfits. Scroll down for video Travers 'The Candyman' Beynon always travels in ostentatious style and Monday was no exception as he jetted off the to U.S. flanked by a gaggle of girls A fan of dramatic entrances, Beynon tried to re-create iconic pilot-hostess movie scenes as he strolled across Brisbane Airport with his beauties linking arms on either side of him The eye-catching ensembles featured white tops with matching shoes and jeans slashed at the knees, black leather jackets, and grey silk scarves. No Candyman adventure would be complete without a little bling, so the whole crew including the man himself added bright gold belt buckles. Beynon was dressed for luxury comfort in blue and gold patterned silk pyjamas over a white T-shirt with a gold face on it, blinged-up with a gold watch, chain and bracelet. Beynon went for an aviation theme with his entourage dressed in identical flight attendant-inspired outfits What stole the show were his pimped-out gold slippers encrusted with hundreds of gleaming studs The flamboyant tobacco tycoon rolled up to the airport in one of his many luxury cars with five busty babes on board Beynon as usual got very close and personal with the girls in his entourage The comfortable ride even included a champagne dispenser (L) Beynon gives his photographer a high five as they travel in style But what stole the show were his pimped-out gold slippers encrusted with hundreds of gleaming studs. A fan of dramatic entrances, Beynon tried to re-create iconic pilot-hostess movie scenes as he strolled across the terminal with his beauties linking arms on either side of him. Before heading to the airport, the notorious playboy posed for a few pictures in his Candyshop Mansion on the Gold Coast, showing off his fast cars, stunning decor and furniture fit for a king. Before heading to the airport, the notorious playboy posed for a few pictures in his Candyshop Mansion on the Gold Coast The venue of many crazy parties includes sunning decor and furniture fit for a king Beynon poses in one of his more photogenic rooms He also showed off his collection of fast and funky cars His showroom includes a jet-black Rolls Royce and a $600,000 Audi His party could not claim to be traveling light as he was pictured standing among a sea of identical orange suitcases, with a few black ones for himself The epic suitcase haul was assembled at the front door of the mansion ready to be piled into waiting cars Beynon seemed to be struggling to fold an item of clothing His party could not claim to be traveling light as he was pictured standing among a sea of identical orange suitcases, with a few black ones for himself. After their glamourous car ride, the posse pushed their luggage inside piled four-high on trolleys, with Beynon managing six by himself. Once on board, the girls settled into their (of course) business class seats all in a row, while Beynon posed sprawled on his side on the floor in front of them, with his trademark self-satisfied expression. After their glamourous car ride, the posse pushed their luggage inside piled four-high on trolleys, with Beynon managing six by himself Beynon strikes a pose as he finally arrives at the check in line Beynon's beauties line up behind him as they line up to make their flight Beynon gets some help from a friendly airline employee It was much the same when the group arrived in New York, but most of the women had shed their jackets to instead carry them under their arms and one had made a whole wardrobe change. Beynon himself had slipped into daytime wear by the time his party arrived at their fancy hotel. This time he was clad in a muscle-exposing blue T-shirt with a gold face on it, dark blue jeans and matching sneakers, plus a gold chain with a large white pendant. Beynon and three of his women then crammed into a very small but stunningly adorned lift up towards their room, having a bit of a giggle as he pushed the button. Beynon arrives in New York arm-in-arm with one of his women They smiled as they walked through the terminal happy to be on holiday Beynon and company roll their carry on bags on the way to collect the rest of their bags They waiting for the conveyor to start in one of JFK Airport's many corridors They looked much the same as when they left but most of the women had shed their jackets to instead carry them under their arms and one had made a whole wardrobe change Beynon hits the kerb outside the airport having collected all his bags and about to be taken to their hotel Beynon himself had slipped into daytime wear by the time his party arrived at their fancy hotel This time he was clad in a muscle-exposing blue T-shirt with a gold face on it, dark blue jeans and matching sneakers He also had a gold chain with a large white pendant Not every one hates the pesky rats that hang out on New York City's streets! And it seems the New York Fire Department has a bit of a soft spot for the creatures after a paramedic rescued one hungry rat that was stuck in a garbage can. The Brooklyn rat was saved on Tuesday after getting its head stuck in the dumpster while scavenging for food, according to the New York Daily News. This Brooklyn rat was saved on Tuesday after getting its head stuck in the dumpster while scavenging for food As the rat was scurrying around the bottom of the trash can, it came across a few ventilation holes (pictured) The hungry creature (pictured) poked his head into one of them, but to its dismay couldn't get back out, Reuters photographer Lucas Jackson said As the rat was scurrying around the bottom of the trash can, it came across a few ventilation holes. The hungry creature poked his head into one of them, but to its dismay couldn't get back out,Reuters photographer Lucas Jackson told the Daily News. Jackson was able to take some adorable photos of the rat's unfortunate situation before it was rescued. The FDNY paramedic then loosened the garbage can's grip on the tiny rat with the help of a hand wipe. In just a few moments, the rat scampered happily away after being freed from its dilemma. And that's how the trapped rat lived to tell its tale. Jackson was able to take some adorable photos of the rat's unfortunate situation before it was rescued The FDNY paramedic then loosened the garbage can's grip on the tiny rat with the help of a hand wipe President Barack Obama showed off the top ten tracks that keep him moving on Monday as he revealed his workout playlist President Barack Obama has revealed his workout playlist and in doing so proved he's just as big of a Beyonce fan as the rest of us. The commander-in-chief gave WIRED a peek at his top ten workout songs, which include Queen Bey, the Black Eyed Peas, Bob Marley, Nina Simone and more. Living with first lady Michelle Obama and upholding her 'Let's Move' campaign to combat childhood obesity means the president has to stay fit, too. While guest editing WIRED's November issue, Obama shared his workout playlist with the nation and proved POTUS knows how to get pumped. Obama put Beyonce's 'Get Me Bodied' as the No. 1 song on his playlist, which has a quick beat and powerful vocals. It's no shock that president Obama has a soft spot for Beyonce. Queen Bey sang the national anthem at the president's second inauguration in 2013. After Beyonce kicks off the cardio, Obama turns to the Isley Brothers with 'Live It Up' for an old school jam to keep him moving. Next, is an unconventional gym jam - Nina Simone's 'Sinnerman'. Obama put Beyonce's 'Get Me Bodied' as the No. 1 song on his playlist, which has a quick beat and powerful vocals Obama enjoys this unconventional gym jam - Nina Simone's 'Sinnerman', which has a quick jazzy beat The jazzy tune has a quick pace and WIRED suggests imagining Simone saying 'I run to Barack' when she croons, 'I run to the rock'. OBAMA'S WORKOUT SONGS 1. Beyonce - 'Get Me Bodied' 2. The Isley Brothers - 'Live It Up' 3. Nina Simone - 'Sinnerman' 4. Icona Pop - 'Emergency' 5. Black Eyed Peas - 'Let's Get It Started' 6. Forro in the Dark - 'Perro Loco' 7. Jay-Z - 'Off That' 8. Courtney Barnett - 'Elevator Operator' 9. Bob Marley - 'Could You Be Love' 10. Sting - 'If You Love Somebody Set Them Free' Advertisement Obama's fourth track might be one he's picked up from Sasha or Malia - Icona Pop's 'Emergency'. While the band might be known better for 'I Love It', the president gets moving to the lesser known high energy song. A song that has been played at sporting events, proms, weddings and any other event where a large group of people gather to get down is the Black Eyed Peas 'Let's Get It Started'. The song is on Obama's playlist and helps him keep it started throughout his workout. 'Perro Loco' or 'Crazy Dog' by Forro in the Dark is the outlier in the Obama playlist. The Spanish tune is lively and fast and still perfect to keep POTUS on his toes. Keeping it all in the family, Beyonce's husband Jay-Z makes an appearance on the list with the song 'Off That' from The Blueprint 3. The song might have made it on to the president's list because one lyric is a direct reference to Obama himself. Courtney Barnett's 'Elevator Operator' made the list of Obama's favorite jams to play in the gym 'Perro Loco' or 'Crazy Dog' by Forro in the Dark is the outlier in the Obama playlist. The Spanish tune is lively and fast and still perfect to keep POTUS on his toes 'Got a black president, Got green presidents,' the lyrics say. It might not be one of Jay-Z's hits, but it's clear why it made its way on to Obama's playlist. Song number eight is Courtney Barnett's 'Elevator Operator', which is followed by the Bob Marley classic 'Could You Be Love.' The list closes out with 'If You Love Somebody Set Them Free', by Sting for a nice cool down before heading back to the oval office. Obama's playlist runs about 50 minutes long and WIRED has created a Spotify playlist for anyone who wants to work out like a president. Two brothers have been found guilty of murdering a Sydney drug dealer who they bashed, stabbed, drugged, and stuffed in a burning suitcase. When he was found guilty of murder, co-accused Haysem Charbaji stood up in the dock and shouted 'f***ing dumb dog' towards the family of murdered man Dane McNeill. Haysem's outburst came shortly after one of Mr McNeill's supporters called co-accused Lexy May Jamieson a 'f***ing dumb sl*t'. The two groups of supporters then continued to hurl profanity laced insults at each other in the public gallery of the NSW Supreme Court. Scroll down for video Haysem Charbaji, 24, (pictured right) was found guilty of murder while his girlfriend Lexy May Jamieson, 26, (pictured left) was found guilty of being an accessory after the murder. Brothers Azam Charbaji, 26, and Haysem Charbaji, 24, were found guilty of murdering Sydney drug dealer Dane McNeill, 20, in court on Wednesday. Haysem's girlfriend Lexy May Jamieson, 26, was also found guilty of being an accessory to the murder. Mr McNeill's body was found badly burnt, and almost unrecognisable in a suitcase dumped in the middle of the road at Picnic Point in Sydney's south west in 2014. He was tortured by the brothers in the lead up to his death, bashed, stabbed, force-fed Xanax tablets and tied up in a laundry during a prolonged attack which lasted over the course of a weekend, the court heard. He died of a combination of the effects of multiple stab wounds and the toxic effects of the drugs, before his body was burnt and abandoned inside a suitcase. Haysem Charbaji (pictured) was found guilty of badly burning Mr McNeill's body and leaving it in a suitcase in the middle of the road in Picnic Point, Sydney's south-west Azam Charbaji (pictured) and his brother Haysem were found guilty of torturing Mr McNeill over the course of a weekend A witness, whose name was suppressed, told police Jamieson asked for advice about disposing of a body and cleaning up blood in a flat. But at the trial, he said he had lied in half of the statement he gave to police. Another witness who was a friend of Mr McNeill's, Brendon Gallo, said he was there with the men for much of the weekend, when Mr McNeill was killed. He claimed all four men had smoked the drug ice together. Dane McNeill, 20, (pictured) was found murdered inside a burnt suitcase in 2014 Dane McNeill (pictured) was bashed, stabbed and force-fed Xanax before he was ultimately found dead in 2014 Both Azam, 26, and Haysem, 24, pleaded not guilty in the New South Wales Supreme Court to the 2014 murder, and Jamieson, 26, denied being an accessory to the murder. But the jury delivered guilty verdicts for all three accused when they returned to court on Wednesday. Azam, Haysem and Jamieson will face a sentence hearing at a later date, while Jamieson, who was on bail throughout the trial, is applying for it to continue despite being found guilty. Haysem's girlfriend Lexy May Jamieson, 26, (pictured) was found guilty of being an accessory to murder A Melbourne chiropractor planned to incinerate his fiancee's ex-boyfriend on a farm after paying to have him kidnapped using drug-filled syringes. Adrian Oorloff pleaded guilty to incitement to kidnap after paying an undercover police officer $5000 to snatch the man. He even attached a tracking device to the man's car and handed over two syringes filled with GHB to immobilise the victim. Adrian Oorloff, 48, (left) has been jailed over plot to kidnap his fiancee's ex boyfriend Oorloff told the police officer he planned to make the man 'disappear without a trace'. As well as admitting to the kidnapping plot, the 48-year-old pleaded guilty to four drugs charges, including trafficking methylamphetamine, and possessing cartridge ammunition. Judge Michael Bourke said Oorloff planned to have his victim disappear by having him kidnapped, drugged with GHB, and incinerated at a rural property in Skye. He is alleged to have constructed a backyard crematorium from steel drums and boasted to an officer he knew the temperature needed to 'turn a body into dust', the Herald Sun reported. Oorloff also provided an undercover cop, known as 'Daz', a body of evidence about the victim and his family including photographs, employment status and information from a tracking device he had attached to their cars. When police raided his home and office they found a third syringe, schedule four poisons, cannabis, and a trafficable amount of methamphetamine. In sentencing Oorloff in the County Court on Wednesday, Judge Bourke described his actions as 'serious and disturbing'. The judge said he caused a high level of psychological damage to his intended target, which was evident in a victim impact statement previously read to the court. Oorloff paid an undercover police officer $5000 to snatch his victim The man said he and his siblings were forced to go into hiding, moving 14 times in six weeks - it was not clear to the court on Wednesday if this occurred before or after police alerted them to the plot. 'You caused them fear, paranoia and vulnerability,' Judge Bourke said on Wednesday, noting they would need ongoing psychological treatment. Oorloff was sentenced to six years and three months jail, within a minimum of four years and three months before he is eligible for parole. An incitement to murder charge had to be dropped because it is illegal for an undercover officer to agree to commit a murder, the Herald Sun reported. Dressed in a pinstripe grey suit with dark rimmed glasses, Oorloff showed little emotion and stared forward as he stood in the dock during sentencing. He has already served 426 days in pre-sentence detention. If not for his early guilty plea, Judge Bourke said he would have sentenced Oorloff to nine years jail, with a seven year minimum. The horrifying effects of street drug 'flakka' have been laid bare in a new police video amid an outbreak of overdoses on the Gold Coast. In disturbing video caught on bodycam by officers from Queensland, an 18-year-old girl can be seen collapsed in the street while screaming and writhing around in pain. Officers say they were forced to sedate the girl in order to take her to hospital after they were called out at around 9pm on Saturday, October 15. Police in Queensland have released footage showing people suffering from drug overdoses, believed to be caused by flakka, after 16 incidents in just 48 hours over the weekend In one clip an 18-year-old woman can be seen writing around and screaming after collapsing in the street on Saturday, before being put on a stretcher Elsewhere a 42-year-old man wearing nothing more than a pair of boxers and a single sock was filmed begging for help after collapsing on the back seat of a car. Police and medics had to wrestle the man into an ambulance on Monday at around 11.30pm after being called by an Uber driver when the man started lashing out. While police tests have yet to identify the exact substance involved, it is believed to be 'flakka' - a synthetic compound that is often sold as MDMA but which causes hallucinations, violent outbursts and paranoia. AFL player Riki Stephens, 27, from Victoria, is also in a coma at a Gold Coast hospital after a suspected overdose of the drug. Police say she had to be sedated before being taken to hospital after suffering the ill-effects of a new hallucinogenic drug, believed to be flakka In another clip a man wearing nothing other than a pair of boxers and a single sock begs for help after collapsing on the back seat of his car He was one of 16 people who were hospitalised in just one weekend on the Gold Coast as police warn the problem could be about to get worse. Kathleen Florian, assistant commissioner for the Queensland crime and corruption commission, added: 'A substance has become available which has acute hallucinogenic effects as well as causing considerable aggression. 'Whilst we don't know what that drug is at the moment, we do know the damage that drug is causing is considerable. 'We know from our intelligence that there are times of the year when drug use on the Gold Coast spikes, and we are heading into a period when that is relevant.' Medics and police attempt to comfort the man as he screams 'help me, please help me' Eventually emergency workers get the 42-year-old on to a stretcher before he is loaded into the back of an ambulance and taken to hospital WHAT IS FLAKKA? NEW DRUG PLAGUING THE GOLD COAST Flakka, also known as gravel, first emerged in the United States in 2013. It costs as little as AUD$7.50 and can be accessed easily online, with some services offering next-day delivery. Most users do not know what they are purchasing, and are commonly told the substance is MDMA, the abbreviated chemical name for ecstasy. Flakka's active ingredient is a synthetic stimulant called alpha-PVP, which is chemically similar to MDMA. However, it has vastly different effects, causing users to hallucinate, become psychotic, rip their clothes off and run into the street. Flakka is most commonly snorted but can also be smoked or injected. Advertisement She added that the drug is almost certainly being distributed by an organized gang, who could be stockpiling it to release in the coming weeks or months. Brian Codd, assistant commissioner for the South East, said: 'As we lead into the Gold Coast 600 and the schoolies, our focus will be on the safety and security of our community. 'The reality is this: There is no safe way to take these illicit drugs. Reference to recreational drugs, party drugs, feeds into a narrative that sometimes give attraction to what these poisons, toxins and compounds are, and what they do to people.' The Gold Coast case comes after videos of flakka users in the United States emerge showing people writhing on the ground and screaching. Many have been spotted hiding from non-existent gunman, running naked through streets, trying to have sex with a tree and claiming they are God. Riki Stephens, 27, and AFL player from Victoria, is in a coma in hospital after a drugs overdose which is also suspected to be flakka Police are warning people about the dangers of the drug, which is often sold as MDMA, ahead of the Gold Coast 600 and school holidays This woman was film in southern Florida while allegedly under the influence of flakka This woman (pictured) under the influence or flakka or alpha-PVP writhes on the ground and her eyes roll back in her head was shown on television in South America This woman got out of her vehicle in a car park and then began rolling around on the ground and shrieking in a paranoid state at passersby The young boy (pictured) after taking flakka is fearful, wrestles with a man trying to help him, strips off his shoes and sits outside a shop unwilling to move Tony Abbott's call to maintain a ban on rapid-fire guns has been shot down by a gun-toting Nationals senator from regional Victoria. Australia's former prime minister has resisted calls from within the coalition for import bans to be lifted on the Adler seven-shot lever-action shotgun. Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie, a renowned gun enthusiast, was having none of that declaring: 'Take the emotion out of it and seek to classify this gun in an appropriate way.' Victorian senator Bridget McKenzie (pictured) believes rapid-fire gun should be imported Mr Abbott spoke to reporters on Wednesday, following reports he had done a deal with pro-gun Liberal Democrats senator David Leyonhjelm, to allow the Adler into Australia, if the coalition wanted his vote on border protection. 'No one needs a rapid-fire gun other than perhaps our law enforcement agencies, the military and just possibly people involved in serious pest extermination,' Mr Abbott told reporters in Canberra. 'But this idea that shooters generally should have access to rapid-fire weapons is just crackers and it should never happen as far as I'm concerned.' Senator McKenzie shot back, declaring the Adler seven-shot gun should be allowed into Australia. Bridget McKenzie (pictured, left) disagrees with Tony Abbott (pictured, right) on Adler guns 'I'd call on states and territories right across the country to actually look at the evidence, take the emotion out of it and seek to classify this gun in an appropriate way,' she told the ABC. Instead of criticising Mr Abbott directly, Senator McKenzie praised New South Wales Deputy Premier Troy Grant's call to ease import restrictions on the Adler. Mr Grant, who leads the Nationals in NSW, told the ABC import restrictions on the gun should be unwound so farmers could apply to import the firearm for a specific purpose like shooting feral pigs. 'Throw the book at criminals and anyone dealing in illegal firearms, but get off the backs of hard-working decent farmers and sport and recreational shooters,' he said. The Abbott Government introduced a temporary import ban on the Adler shotgun in 2015 that was due to expire in July, but this has been extended. Senator Bridget McKenzie (pictured) says the emotion should be taken out of gun debate NSW Deputy Premier Troy Grant (pictured) who wants import restrictions on Adler eased Mr Abbott's successor Malcolm Turnbull has rejected reports his government was willing to negotiate with Senator Leyonhjelm over those gun laws to win his vote on coalition plans to revive the Australian Building and Construction Commission. Australia has had no gun massacres since 1996 when former prime minister John Howard introduced national firearm laws, following the shooting deaths of 35 people at Port Arthur in Tasmania. 'If you allow rapid-fire guns into the country under relatively loose conditions you obviously raise the danger that people who want to do us harm will get access to them,' Mr Abbott said. 'With a heightened terror threat there is just no way that any serious coalition government, any government in the tradition of John Howard, should be allowing rapid-fire weapons on a very large scale into our country.' John Howard (pictured) laying a wreath in Port Arthur following the 1996 gun massacre In September, Senator McKenzie told the ABC's Q&A program recreational shooting was beneficial for Australia. 'Indeed shooting has a great social and environmental and economic benefits for our community,' she said. Pennsylvania prosecutors claim Bill Cosby used his fame and fortune to conceal his sex crimes against a slew of women over the course of decades. Attorneys trying the case on behalf of Montgomery County in suburban Philadelphia accused Cosby's 'cadre of high-priced lawyers' of exaggerating claims that their client's health and mental state are deteriorating to the point where he is unfit to stand trial. Prosecutors, however, countered that they want to try Cosby after new evidence emerged in the wake of an unsealed deposition from a civil lawsuit 10 years ago. Bill Cosby (left) is on trial for allegedly sexually assaulting Andrea Constand (right), a former Temple University employee, during an encounter in 2004 'He is an individual who has used his fame and fortune for decades to conceal his crimes and hide his true nature,' District Attorney Kevin Steele wrote on Tuesday, noting Cosby fought repeated efforts by The Associated Press to unseal documents from the civil case file. They said they want 13 other women who have accused the comedian of molesting them to testify in his upcoming felony sexual assault trial that will start June 5. Montgomery County Judge Steven O'Neill said last month that Cosby is blind and offered whatever special accommodations that the actor may need. 'This case now 252 days from filing of criminal complaints,' O'Neill said in his Pennsylvania courtroom. 'There is a right to a speedy trial.' The criminal case against the actor involves a single 2004 encounter at his home near Philadelphia with former Temple University employee Andrea Constand. He was charged with drugging and molesting Constand, and this is the only criminal case stemming from dozens of claims of sexual misconduct. Cosby has denied any wrongdoing, but prosecutors can introduce evidence of other acts, even though no charges were brought in those cases, to show a pattern of behavior. Cosby (right) is seen arriving at Montgomery County Courthouse on September 6, 2016. His sexual assault trial has been scheduled to begin on June 5, 2017 Constand is seen here posing for a photo in Toronto in 1987. In 2005, she filed a civil lawsuit against Cosby, during which the actor admitted to drugging her with quaaludes before sex Steele said his office re-investigated the case for six months last year before deciding to file charges on Dec. 30, days before the statute of limitations ran out. Steele's predecessor spent only a month on the case before deciding not to charge Cosby over Constand's complaint in 2005, he said in the filing. Prosecutors said they reviewed accusations made against Cosby by about 50 women and concluded 13 should be allowed to testify. 'An individual who, over the course of decades, intentionally intoxicates women in signature fashion with the intention of sexually assaulting them cannot also be mistaken about whether or not these women are consenting to the sexual abuse,' prosecutors wrote in their motion last month. The defense is expected to oppose such testimony. The judge postponed hearing arguments on the filing to allow the defense team more time to review the copious material. Constand told police that Cosby drugged and molested her. Legal experts have said a judge might allow as evidence similar allegations against Cosby in which drugs or alcohol were involved. Cosby's lawyers meanwhile asked that prosecutors not be allowed to use a telephone conversation recorded by his accuser's mother and other evidence at his trial. O'Neill has scheduled hearings on the potential trial evidence for November 1-2 and December 13-14. Hundreds of people packed an auditorium in Arizona for a rally Bernie Sanders held in support of Hillary Clinton's presidential bid. The Vermont senator first apologized to his audience at Northern Arizona University for 'the mistakes my generation made', before launching an attack on Donald Trump. 'In my view, electing Donald Trump as president would be a disaster for this country,' he said. 'Donald is the least qualified candidate in the history of this country.' But Sanders was then interrupted by a protester who was wearing a Bill Clinton t-shirt. Hundreds of people packed an auditorium in Arizona for a rally Bernie Sanders held in support of Hillary Clinton's presidential bid. The Vermont senator first apologized to his audience for 'the mistakes my generation made', before attacking Donald Trump Sanders was then interrupted by a protester who was wearing a Bill Clinton t-shirt. Security dragged the man out of the rally as he yelled: 'Clinton is a rapist' Security dragged the man out of the rally as he yelled: 'Clinton is a rapist.' Sanders went on to say: 'This is a candidate who says to our Mexican brothers and sisters, 'You are rapists, and you are criminals.' We cannot have a candidate like that.' The senator is the first of three big-name Democrats visiting Arizona this week to support Clintons presidential campaign. The senator is the first of three big-name Democrats visiting Arizona this week to support Clintons presidential campaign Clintons daughter Chelsea Clinton will appear at Arizona State University on Wednesday, and first lady Michelle Obama will be there on Thursday, according to Cronkite News. No Democratic presidential candidate has won Arizona since Bill Clinton in 1996. The recent interruption at the Sanders rally by the protester claiming 'Clinton is a rapist', is one of several incidents that have occurred at Hillary Clinton's events since Trump brought three women to the second presidential debate who accused the ex-president of sexual misdeeds. In two incidents last week, the 68-year-old husband of the Democratic presidential nominee had his remarks overshadowed by demonstrators taunting him with rape allegations. Hillary Clinton confronted the accusations about her husband's alleged behavior last week when a protester crashed her rally wearing a shirt accusing her husband of 'rape'. 'You know, I do hope someone follows that gentleman out and stages an intervention,' Hillary Clinton told the crowd. 'He clearly has not been following this election very closely.' President Barack Obama got his own handful of Bill Clinton 'rape' protesters last Tuesday when two young people sporting 'Bill Clinton Rapist' t-shirts interrupted his Greensboro, North Carolina, rally. The president appeared to find the whole thing funny, pausing at length while Secret Service hauled them out. 'You know, this is the great thing about politics in America, it takes all kinds,' he laughed. 'Folks will just do all kinds of stuff. Now where was I?' During the second presidential debate, Trump brought Juanita Broaddrick as a guest. The recent interruption at the Sanders rally by protesters claiming 'Clinton is a rapist', is one of several incidents that have occurred at Hillary Clinton's events since Trump brought three women to the second presidential debate who accused the ex-president of sexual misdeeds Hillary Clinton confronted the accusations about her husband's alleged behavior last week when a protester crashed her rally wearing a shirt accusing her husband of 'rape' She was one of three Clinton accusers he had at the event. A fourth, Kathy Shelton, blames Clinton for successfully arguing for reduced charges her rapist. Broaddrick has said Clinton raped her in Little Rock in 1978 and bit her lip during the alleged assault. At a Trump-organized photo-op in St Louis the night of the second debate Broaddrick said: 'Mr Trump may have said some bad words, but Bill Clinton raped me, and Hillary Clinton threatened me. I don't think there's any comparison.' According to Broaddrick, Clinton came up to her not long after the alleged attack and thanked her in a way she found threatening and considered a way of telling her to keep quiet. Charges were never brought and Clinton has vehemently denied the accusation. Kathleen Willey (left), Juanita Broaddrick (center), and Kathy Shelton (right) attended the second presidential debate as Trump's guests But despite the 'rape' allegations against her husband, Hillary Clinton is in good shape going into the third and final presidential debate, polling six points ahead of Trump. She captured a 46 per cent share of the vote, while Trump slipped a point to 40 Broaddrick herself denied that the incident occurred in a deposition given in connection to the Paula Jones sexual harassment lawusit. But she later recanted and said it happened. 'He starts to bite on my top lip, and I tried to pull away from him,' she recalled. 'And then he forces me down on the bed. And I just was very frightened, and I tried to get away from him and I told him "No," that I didnt want this to happen but he wouldnt listen to me.' But despite the 'rape' allegations against her husband, Hillary Clinton is in good shape going into the third and final presidential debate, polling six points ahead of Trump. She captured a 46 per cent share of the vote, while Trump slipped a point to 40, according to a weekly NBC News/Survey Monkey poll, published Tuesday. Two female students at the University of California at Berkeley say they were sexually assaulted on the same weekend at different off-campus fraternity houses. The students reported the assaults after attending parties at different fraternities on Friday night and Saturday. One of the women said she knew her attacker. The second did not. Scroll down for video Two female students at the University of California at Berkeley (campus pictured) say they were sexually assaulted on the same weekend at different off-campus fraternity houses The students reported the assaults after attending parties at different fraternities on Friday night and Saturday. One student said she knew her attacker while the other did not 'We responded to the scene, we collected and processed evidence and the investigation is ongoing,' Sgt. Andrew Frankel told ABC7 News. One of the fraternities is located on fraternity row, on the 2300-block of Piedmont Avenue. The other is located on the 2400-block of Prospect Avenue, CBS reported. The cases are being investigated by the Berkeley Police Department and not campus police because they happened outside the university. 'It was very shocking that someplace like UC Berkeley would have that going on,' student Maite Garcia told ABC7 News. One of the students says she was attacked at a fraternity (not shown) on the 2300-block of Piedmont Avenue (pictured) The second student says she was sexually attacked on the 2400-block of Prospect Avenue (pictured) Police have warned students to be cautious. 'I think anytime where college students in a lot of cases are drinking more alcohol than they should, going out without a plan, maybe not looking out for their friends, there is the potential that this could happen,' Frankel told ABC7 News. The cases are being investigated by the Berkeley Police Department and not campus police because they happened outside the university (pictured) One student, Wyatt Goertler, told ABC7: 'They're really adamant about what consent was, like what certain situations consent can be given and stuff like that. Another student, Ashley Romo, says her classmates are trying to be extra cautious. place and he is arrested They order Taylor to climb out of the This is the moment Florida cops discovered a suspect hiding inside his own bedroom dresser. Jason Taylor was wanted by police for violating his probation in connection with an armed robbery. Police were dispatched to his Pasco County home in Florida to search for the suspect. This is the moment Florida cops discovered a suspect hiding inside his own bedroom dresser Police were dispatched to his Pasco County home in Florida to search for suspect Jason Taylor when they suddenly notice a drawer in the dresser moving of its own accord and ordered him out Body cam footage shows the deputies searching a bedroom of the home when they suddenly notice a drawer in the dresser moving of its own accord. 'That drawer's moving,' one cop shouts to his partner. 'Hands up or you're going to get tasered or shot,' he shouted to the suspect. 'Get out of there. Get out.' Taylor is then seen in the video crawling out of the tiny hiding spot - before being arrested by the two officers. 'I thought he wasn't here ma'am?' one Pasco County officer is heard addressing a female resident at the home, who appears to have denied knowledge of Taylor's presence. 'Funny how that works' Taylor is then seen in the video crawling out of the tiny hiding spot in the bedroom The suspect is then ordered onto the bed and arrested by the officers. He is being held on a $50,000 bond Despite the cops' arrest, they seemed genuinely impressed with the ingenuity of the suspect's hiding spot. After going back to inspect the hollowed-out dresser another time, an officer tells Taylor: 'That's real neat buddy.' Taylor was arrested and is being held on a $50,000 bond. Iranian authorities have sentenced a dual Iranian-American national and his elderly father to 10 years in prison for allegedly spying for the United States, the Islamic republic's state media reported on Tuesday. Siamak Namazi, a businessman in his mid-40s with dual US-Iranian citizenship, was detained by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in October 2015 during a visit to relatives in the capital of Tehran. This past February, the IRGC arrested his 80-year-old father, Baquer Namazi, a former Iranian provincial governor and former UNICEF official who also has dual citizenship. Both men were sentenced to 10 years in prison for spying and cooperating with the US government, said Tehran prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, according to the Fars news website, without specifying when exactly the sentences had been handed down. Iranian-American Baquer Namazi (left) and his son, Siamak Namazi (right), were sentenced to 10 years in prison for allegedly spying and cooperating with the US government The US State Department's deputy spokesman, Mark Toner, said the father and son had been 'unjustly detained' in Iran, and called for their immediate release. The sentences were the latest against dual nationals directed by hardliners who are powerful in Iran's judiciary and security forces, in the aftermath of Iran's historic nuclear deal with the United States and other world powers last year. Washington and Tehran have not had formal diplomatic relations since the 1979 revolution where the United States-backed Pahlavi dynasty under Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi was overthrown. Babak Namazi, Siamak's brother and Baquer's son, called the sentences unjust. 'My father has been handed practically a death sentence,' Babak Namazi said in a statement. Baquer Namazi has a serious heart condition and other medical issues requiring special medication, his wife wrote on Facebook in February. On Tuesday, UNICEF called for his release on 'humanitarian grounds.' The US State Department's deputy spokesman, Mark Toner, said the father and son (pictured in this undated photo) had been 'unjustly detained,' and called for their immediate release 'We join recent calls by international organizations and UN human rights experts for the immediate release of all US citizens unjustly detained in Iran, including Siamak and Baquer Namazi, so that they can return to their families,' said a State Department spokesman, Mark Toner. UNICEF, the UN children's agency, expressed 'deep sadness and personal concern' over the sentence of Baquer Namazi. 'The entire UNICEF family are deeply concerned for his health and well-being,' UNICEF said. 'Baquer has been a humanitarian all his life. We appeal for his release on humanitarian grounds.' The Mizan news agency report said Nizar Zakka, a US permanent resident from Lebanon, also received a 10-year prison sentence. His supporters had earlier told The Associated Press about the sentence, though the Mizan report was the first official Iranian confirmation of it. It said two others had been convicted as well, without naming them or identifying their nationalities. Later Tuesday, the semi-official Fars news agency quoted Tehran prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi as saying three Iranians were sentenced to 10-years imprisonment for 'espionage and cooperating with the US government.' He named them as Farhad Abdesaleh, Kamran Ghaderi and Alireza Omidvar, without elaborating. It was unclear if they had lawyers or if they were among the two previously mentioned by Mizan. The Namazi family fled after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, but appears to have kept business ties in Iran, and the younger Namazi traveled back several times. An ISIS suicide bomber has been shot dead by Turkish police as he was preparing to carry out an attack during a national ceremony. Armed officers descended on a ninth-floor flat on the outskirts of the Turkish capital Ankara and ordered the terror suspect to surrender. But police opened fire when he ignored the warnings, according to city governor Ercan Topaca. An ISIS suicide bomber has been shot dead by Turkish police as he was preparing to carry out an attack during a national ceremony (file picture) Police later released a photo of the suspect when he was captured on CCTV cameras at the mausoleum of Turkey's founder Kemal Ataturk in Ankara The man was believed to be planning a suicide attack in the city either targeting large gatherings or to coincide with two national ceremonies in the coming weeks. Topaca said police seized explosive materials from the apartment. Turkey has been rocked by a series of deadly suicide bombings over the past 18 months that were carried out by ISIS or Kurdish militants. Officials banned demonstrations or large gatherings in Ankara until the end of November citing intelligence over possible attacks. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told reporters that the man was spotted scouting Turkey's old parliament building as well as the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk the founder of the Turkish republic where ceremonies are scheduled to take place. 'The Daesh militant was rendered ineffective following very important tracking and intelligence work,' Soylu said, using the Arabic acronym for ISIS. 'These operations are continuing.' The man was believed to be planning a suicide attack in the city either targeting large gatherings or to coincide with two national ceremonies in the coming weeks (file picture of ISIS fanatics) Meanwhile, Kurdish rebels attacked a van carrying Turkish security force members with a rocket in southeast Turkey on Wednesday, killing a government-paid village guard and wounding three others, Anadolu reported. It said rebels belonging to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, attacked the van in the region of Tepe, in the mainly-Kurdish Diyarbakir province. An operation was launched to catch the attackers, it said. Violence between the PKK and the security forces resumed last year, after the collapse of a fragile cease-fire agreement. The entire staff of a California store was reduced to tears at the fate of two tiny kittens, who were used as bait for pitbull fights. Both tiny cats, named Will and Grace, were barely alive when they were dropped off at Pet Food Express. Their legs were bound, rendering them defenseless against dog attacks. Adorable: The two kittens had their legs tied with rubber bands, meaning they could not fight back against pitbulls The two were named Will and Grace by staff, but sadly Grace did not survive the ordeal in California Sadly Grace, who like Will was believed to be six weeks old, did not survive the ordeal, and had to be euthanized as she was suffering from severe gangrene. Leona Edejer, manager of the store in Benicia, told ABC7: 'It's the first time I've seen our entire staff reduced to tears, everybody. 'Apparently these kittens were being used as pit bull bait. So the kittens had their legs bound with rubber bands because they want their dogs to learn to fight and kill, but not be damaged by the kittens. 'It's the first time I've seen our entire staff reduced to tears, everybody,' said Leona Edejer, manager of the store in Benicia 'So the kittens have no way to protect themselves. So they can't run and they can't fight and they can't bite.' She warned people who advertise their unwanted animals to be sure they know where they are going, to ensure they don't end up in the hands of cruel owners. The abuse is being investigated by the Solano County Animal Control Division, which wants to locate the woman who dropped the kittens off at the store. Investigators are endeavoring to uncover illegal dog fighting rings in the area. Ruby Waderich, from rescue group Solano County Friends of Animals said she had never seen anything like this case. She told ABC7: 'We've had them come in with bites and chews and, you know, but not with the feet the way they are.' Afghan Dadollah told MailOnline: 'I have no family in London so I can't go' An 10-year-old boy was among a group of young children who mobbed a British official in the Calais Jungle and begged: 'Please take me to England'. Dadollah Ahmadzai has been stuck in the French camp on his own for four months - but has been denied entry to the UK because he has no relatives there. He is pleading to be brought across the Channel as aid workers raised concern that the most vulnerable children are being left behind. The British government is taking at least 350 migrant children who have family already living in the UK before the Calais is bulldozed later this month. The first 14 child migrants supposedly aged between 14 and 17 arrived in London on Monday as doubts were raised about their age. Meanwhile Dadollah, from the Baghlan province, in Afghanistan, said his application had been blocked. 'I have no family in London so I cannot go,' he told MailOnline. 'No family, no brother, no sister, no father or mother there, so no go.' Stuck in Calais: Ten-year-old Dadollah Ahmadzai, pictured, from Baghlan province in Afghanistan, has been living in the Calais Jungle camp in France on his own for four months Begging to come to UK: Dadollah was among a group of child migrants, pictured, who yesterday pleaded with a British official to be taken to London. He told MailOnline: I have no family in London so I can't go. The boy, who is travelling without his parents who are back in Afghanistan, has been stuck in the camp since the start of the summer. A friend said: He is here alone. It is just him. He has been here for four months. The British government has said children without links to the country must be looked after in France before their cases are considered and could be brought over later. Officials are in Calais processing applications. But it has emerged the Home Office has no way of verifying migrants' ages before they come to Britain, stoking concerns about adults posing as children to take advantage of the scheme. Stranded and alone: Dadollah has had to watch as the first groups of unaccompanied migrants are taken to start new lives in the UK. But he was denied entry because he has no family living in Britain A group of boys in a similar position as Dadollah pleaded with the British official yesterday as the Home Office have the task of processing the unaccompanied children coming to the UK Stuck: Daniel Gadi, a nine-year-old boy, from Eritrea, in Africa, whose mother is dead, is also stuck in the camp. His father Abaye said he wants his son to be looked after by his late wife's sister in London, but was refused entry to Britain as he is not an unaccompanied child Pleading: Another boy, Mirwais Hotak, claiming to be 16, said he hoped to be allowed into the country as he has an older cousin living in Brighton. He said: I have a family in England but I dont know when I can go. I have to wait.' And new figures released yesterday reveal that two-thirds of 'child' refugees who were quizzed by the Home Office were found to be adults. Last year 371 'child' asylum seekers were adults. A British aid worker in Calais said yesterday that some migrants may be pretending to be children to get around the scheme. Another called the selection process 'chaotic' and a 'shambles'. Another boy from Afghanistan, Mirwais Hotak, claiming to be 16, said he hoped to be allowed into the country as he has an older cousin living in Brighton. He said: I have a family in England but I dont know when I can go. I have to wait. I told the man my name, where I am from and who my relatives are. I want to go to England because I have family there. He has my phone number. I have been here for five months. Daniel Gadi, a nine-year-old boy, from Eritrea, in Africa, whose mother is dead, is also stuck in the camp. His father Abaye said he wants his son to be looked after by his late wife's sister in London, but was refused entry to Britain as he is not an unaccompanied child. New arrivals: Britain will take around 350 child migrants aged between 14 to 17 with family already living in the UK. Pictured: An asylum seeker arrives in London yesterday An aid worker suggested that some of those arriving are adults may be pretending to be children. Pictured: Two new arrivals, in a black jacket and light blue hooded top arrive at the Home Office in Croydon from Calais. There is no suggestion they are lying about their age It also emerged the Home Office has no way of verifying the child migrants' ages. Pictured: A child migrant arrives in London from Calais. There is no suggestion he is lying about his age He said: 'My son is nine. I want him to go to London to be with his mother's sister. We have been here for three months, I do not want my son to be here. 'I have two sons aged 12 and 16 who are already in London with their aunt. Their mother is dead.' A French court yesterday rejected a request to delay the closure of the migrant camp where 10,000 people are living. Several aid groups filed an emergency appeal to postpone the demolition, which is expected in coming days, arguing that authorities do not have enough spaces in migrant centres across France. However, this was rejected. Indonesian President Joko Widodo has defended the introduction of castration and the death penalty for paedophiles. His parliament last week voted to introduce the tough new measures and the leader has spoken of the country's 'no compromise' approach to sex crimes. 'Our constitution respects human rights, but when it comes to sexual crimes there is no compromise. 'In my opinion, chemical castration, if we enforce it consistently, will reduce sex crimes and wipe them out over time,' he said. Indonesia's President Joko Widodo has introduced a series of tough punishments for child sex offenders through an emergency decree, including chemical castration and the death penalty The emergency decree was introduced following an outcry in the aftermath of the fatal gang-rape of a schoolgirl. Widodo defended introducing chemical castration, a decision that has sparked anger from human rights activists and the Indonesian Doctors Association, which has said its members will not perform the treatment. He told the BBC the government 'will hand out the maximum penalty' for sex crimes. Twelve of the men accused of raping and murdering a 14-year-old schoolgirl in Bengkulu Province, Indonesia in April were seen hiding their faces as they emerged from a police cell guided by a plain clothed officer Yuyun (above right in a family photograph released by her mother) was walking home from school when she was killed Indonesia is among a small group of places worldwide which use the measure, including Poland and some states in the USA. In 2011 South Korea became the first Asian country to legalise the treatment. Chemical castration involves using drugs to reduce libido and sex drive. Widodo was spurred into action after the murder and gang-rape in April of a 14-year-old girl Yuyun. She was set upon by a gang of drunken men and boys as she walked home from school on the western island of Sumatra. The leader of the gang was sentenced to death last month after being found guilty of premeditated murder, a crime already punishable by death before the new laws were introduced. Advertisement A huge panorama print of London produced 300 years ago has emerged for sale - and shows not only how much the capital has changed but also highlights a tumultuous royal row in Georgian Britain. The incredibly rare piece of art, measuring 40in by 80in, was produced in 1717 by Dutch artisan Jan Kip for King George I's daughter-in-law Caroline of Ansbach, the Princess of Wales. It shows a far-reaching view from Buckingham House (which was to become Buckingham Palace) over St James's Park and Westminster towards the City of London and the River Thames. A huge panorama print of London, measuring 40in by 80in and produced 300 years ago, has emerged for sale to highlight a tumultuous royal row in Georgian Britain. It shows a far-reaching view from Buckingham House (which was to become Buckingham Palace) over St James's Park and Westminster towards the City of London and the River Thames The changing face of London: 1. Piccadilly; 2. Pall Mall; 3. St Martin-in-the-Fields; 4. The Mall; 5. St Paul's Cathedral; 6. St James's Park; 7. Westminster Hall; 8. Westminster Abbey The incredibly rare piece of art was made in 1717 by Dutch artisan Jan Kip for Caroline of Ansbach, the Princess of Wales. One detail from the artwork shows her carriage (above) being followed by the King's through St James's Park The print, worth 60,000, became a topic of controversy when its publication was banned due to a prolonged rift that erupted between the King and his son, Prince George Augustus, in 1717. Pictured, a distant view of old London Bridge It is incredibly detailed and depicts 100 London landmarks that are identified with numbers and captioned at the bottom of the print. Carriages, which were used to transport royalty, can been seen carrying King George I and his daughter-in-law, the Princess of Wales, through the grounds of St James's Park. The print, worth 60,000, became a topic of controversy when its publication was banned due to a prolonged rift that erupted between the King and his son, Prince George Augustus, in 1717. The Prince insulted Lord Chamberlain, the Duke of Newcastle, who was a close friend of his father, and both prince and princess were confined to their apartments and banished from visiting St James's Palace. Slide me From 18th century to the modern day: The print was so large that it has to be made in eight separate parts, which were then joined together Prince George Augustus (right, who later became George II) insulted Lord Chamberlain, the Duke of Newcastle, who was a close friend of his father (left), and both prince and princess (Caroline of Ansbach, centre) were confined to their apartments and banished from visiting St James's Palace Multiple versions of the panorama were produced through a complex process known as copper plate printing that involves lines being cut into a metal plate by hand. Pictured, the road to 'Chelsey' (later Chelsea) Shunned by his own father, for the next several years the Prince of Wales was identified with opposition to King George I's policies. His London residence became a frequent meeting place for his father's political opponents, including Sir Robert Walpole. The princess ordered that the print should not be made public as she did not want to be seen with her father-in-law. Eventually in 1726, when tensions between the two had alleviated, Kip was able to publish his work, entitled, 'A Prospect of the City of London, Westminster and St James's Park'. George I died in 1727 and George II, who did not attend the funeral, succeeded him as King. A spokesman from Daniel Crouch Rare Books, which is selling the print, said: 'This is a magnificent early panorama of London with a wonderful history. 'The print itself is a fantastic work of art - at the time, it was the largest panorama of the capital ever produced. The princess ordered that the print should not be made public as she did not want to be seen with her father-in-law. Eventually in 1726, when tensions between the two had alleviated, Kip published his work, entitled, 'A Prospect of the City of London, Westminster and St James's Park'. Above, Westminster Hall and Abbey with the Tower of London in the background 'The story about the prince and the king meant Kip had to delay its publication a number of times. It's a fascinating story.' They added: 'There is great interest in this piece. It will appeal to a great number of collectors.' Multiple versions of the panorama were produced through a complex process known as copper plate printing that involves lines being cut into a metal plate by hand. Next, ink is applied to the surface, which sinks into the incised lines. Paper is then placed over the top and rolled at a high pressure, pushing it into into the grooves of the metal plate to create the final image. It was so large that it has to be made in eight separate parts, which were then joined together. So precise is the detailing that dogs can be seen playing in the park and boats are visible down the Thames. While the history of this particular copy is unknown, there is a possibility it was the one the Prince and Princess owned. A British couple on a snorkel trip in Turkey watched in horror as a spear fisherman was 'ripped apart' by the propeller of their tour guide's speedboat, it has emerged. Lois Reid and Sharly Thomas, from Letchworth, Hertfordshire, felt a 'massive thump' as the vessel hit a man in the water off the coast of Kusadasi in Turkey. Seconds later the shocked holidaymakers, both 24, said they saw pools of blood on the surface. Lois Reid (left) and Sharly Thomas (right), from Letchworth, Hertfordshire, felt a 'massive thump' as the vessel hit a man in the water off the coast of Kusadasi in Turkey Ms Reid and Ms Thomas, who are engaged, had paid 60 for a private snorkel trip organised by the Pine Bay holiday resort Ms Reid and Ms Thomas, who are engaged, had paid 60 for a private snorkel trip organised by the Pine Bay holiday resort, according to the Daily Mirror. Ms Thomas, who works in IT, said the captain was driving 'really fast' and was 'always on his mobile'. 'As we approached the bay, a banana boat started coming towards us, so he veered closer in. Then a head popped up and we heard a massive thump. 'We saw these massive dark pools of blood. He had been ripped apart.' Her partner Ms Reid, who works as a rifle range manager, said they both started screaming and crying while the driver swore when the blood emerged. The couple started screaming and crying while the driver swore when the blood emerged The couple, who have been signed off work since returning to Britain, have been told they may have to give evidence in court in Turkey Locals said the man who was struck by the boat was a 54-year-old married father of two. The couple, who have been signed off work since returning to Britain, have been told they may have to give evidence in court in Turkey. Travel firm Thomas Cook said: 'We are sorry Ms Reid and Ms Thomas witnessed such a tragic event on holiday. Gregory Paul Lawler, 63, is scheduled to die Wednesday by injection of the barbiturate A Georgia man convicted of killing a police officer has requested his last meal to feast on before he is executed Wednesday evening. Gregory Paul Lawler is scheduled to die Wednesday at 7pm by injection of the barbiturate pentobarbital at the state prison in Jackson. The 63-year-old was convicted in the October 12, 1997 slaying of Atlanta police officer John Sowa, 28 and for critically wounding then 38-year-old officer Patricia Cocciolone. The condemned cop killer has asked for a rib eye steak, a baked potato with sour cream, asparagus, dinner rolls with butter, French onion soup, strawberries, pistachio ice cream and apple juice as his last meal to feast on. Lawler fired 16 times from an AR-15 rifle at the two officers after they were dispatched to check on a report of a man hitting a woman in a parking lot near the intersection of Piedmont Avenue and Lindbergh Drive. Gregory Paul Lawler (left) is scheduled to die Wednesday at 7pm by injection of the barbiturate pentobarbital. He was convicted in the 1997 slaying of Atlanta police officer John Sowa (right) When they arrived, they saw Lawler trying pull his girlfriend, Donna Rodgers, to her feet, as she was drunk. He walked off and the two officers then drove Rodgers home. The shooting happened moments after Sowa and Cocciolone had walked Lawler's intoxicated girlfriend to the apartment they shared. He greeted the two officers who knocked on the door with a rant of obscenities and yelled, 'get the f*** away from my door.' Sowa had tried to stop Lawler from closing the door once the woman was inside, but Lawler then grabbed the AR-15 and starting shooting at the two officers who tried to flee. 'I was calling out to John, but he never called back,' Cocciolone testified in the 2000 trial. 'He killed John, and then he went back to me. He shot me a couple of more times. 'He stood right over me to shoot me again, trying to make sure I would die. But I turned at just the right time. Otherwise I would have died.' Sowa and Cocciolone both wore bullet-proof vests, but they were shot multiple times as their guns remained holstered. Police spent the next six hours negotiating with Lawler to come out of the apartment, even after his girlfriend had escaped. Lawler (above) fired 16 shots at the officers from an AR-15 rifle from his apartment. When investigators went inside, they found bomb-making instructions, paramilitary manuals and about 20 weapons The gunman walked out of the apartment and was immediately arrested by officers. When investigators went inside, they found bomb-making instructions, paramilitary manuals and about 20 weapons. At the time, Lawler had lived with more than a dozen cats, was an avid photographer and had even earned a master's degree in business from Emory University, the AJC reported. Prior to the shooting, Lawler had a misdemeanor simple battery charge for hitting his roommate on the head with a camera tripod in 1991 and a DUI in 1989. He was convicted of murder, aggravated assault on a police officer, aggravated battery on a police officer and using a firearm in the commission of a felony in 2000. Earlier this month, Lawler's attorneys argued that a recent autism diagnosis helps explain his actions that night and that his life should be spared. The State Board of Pardons and Paroles, which is the only authority in Georgia with power to commute a death sentence, on Tuesday declined to grant him clemency. The five member board heard pleas from his brother and lawyers for three hours. According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Sowa's widow, his sister, Cocciolone and Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard spent nearly two hours with the board Tuesday afternoon. 'As most of you realize, the execution of Gregory Lawler is set for October 19th. We appreciate all the support we have received during the last few days,' Cocciolone wrote in a Facebook posting. 'We would like to ask only for your love and prayers through this difficult time.' Legal maneuvers to save his life are pending in the courts. Lawler is scheduled to be the seventh person in the state put to death in 2016. It is more than any other year since the death penalty law was adopted in Georgia 40 years ago. Australian rugby player Michael Quinn was addicted to methamphetamine when he travelled to Los Angeles to rape a six-year-old boy at a sex party, a US court heard. Court documents have this week revealed Quinn's addiction, a blog he wrote about sexually abusing children and plans he was making to meet 'like-minded pervs' in New York, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. The IVF geneticist was arrested in an undercover operation in May while on a US rugby trip. Scroll down for video Australian rugby player Michael Quinn (pictured) was addicted to methamphetamine when he travelled to Los Angeles to rape a six-year-old boy at a sex party organised by paedophiles, a US court heard He will be sentenced in a Los Angeles court on October 31. Prosecutors have recommended the 33-year-old be sentenced to 12 years in prison and have lifetime supervision after his release. In a sentencing memorandum filed this week US attorney Joey Blanch wrote: 'Despite the friendly, congenial mask [the] defendant showed to the world, [the] defendant lived a secret life online.' 'He used the anonymity of the internet to share his secret sexual interest in children, searching out like-minded people and ultimately arranging to purchase a six-year-old boy he intended to sodomise.' Quinn was in the US to play with the Melbourne Chargers rugby union team in the Bingham Cup in Nashville Quinn was in the US to play with the Melbourne Chargers rugby union team in the Bingham Cup in Nashville. He was caught when he went alone to a LA hotel and handed $US260 to an undercover agent posing as a pimp. Authorities said they seized a meth pipe and found child pornography on his phone. Holidaymakers face Christmas travel chaos unless airport service staff are given new contracts, Unite warned today. More than 1,700 workers face being left in limbo when baggage carrier firm Aviator closes its operations at Birmingham, Gatwick, Manchester and Newcastle airports on November 30. The staff work in baggage handling, refuelling and check-in for major airlines including British Airways, Virgin, Thomas Cook and easyJet. More than 1,700 workers face being left in limbo when baggage carrier firm Aviator closes its operations at Birmingham, Gatwick (pictured in file image), Manchester and Newcastle Unite has called for more clarity over the employees' futures, warning there could be Christmas travel disruption if they are not taken on by other companies 'as a matter of urgency'. The union said there were some 1,200 Aviator employees at Gatwick, 196 at Birmingham, 192 at Manchester and 145 at Newcastle. They also service airlines such as Monarch, Thomson and American Airlines. Sweden-based Aviator is understood to be ending its contracts at the airports for financial reasons. Unite national officer Oliver Richardson said: 'Unite will be seeking assurances from the company, airlines, other handlers and ultimately, the airports that there will be no compulsory redundancies. 'It is a matter of serious concern for both our members and the travelling public that, so close to Christmas, most of the airlines have not announced where their baggage handling and check-in contracts are going. Unite warns the employees must be taken on by other companies 'as a matter of urgency' to avoid disruption to Christmas travel plans. File images of queues at Gatwick Airport 'The airport owners and the airlines, which require these services for their planes to land and take-off efficiently, need to get their skates on to sort this out, without any detriment to the staff jobs, pay and conditions - otherwise Christmas travel chaos is on the cards.' A spokesman for Aviator said: 'We note the statement issued by Unite today and completely understand the desire for more clarity on plans. 'We're in discussions with a large number of stakeholders including airlines to ensure that this process is orderly and well-managed. 'We're consulting with employees and their representatives to deal with any concerns they have and providing further information as and when we have it and will continue to do so. Police in the Czech Republic have arrested a Russian man accused of staging cyber attacks on the United States. The man was detained in a joint operation between police in Prague and the the FBI after Interpol had issued a so-called Red Notice about the suspect. The arrest comes after Washington formally accused the Russian government of trying to 'interfere' with the upcoming presidential election. Police in the Czech Republic have arrested a Russian man accused of staging cyber attacks on the United States. Pictured is the man being arrested at a hotel in Prague However, the Kremlin has repeatedly denied the allegations of launching cyber attacks. But there was no indication from Czech police that the arrest in Prague was linked to the US claims. In a statement, Czech police spokesman David Schon said: 'Czech police have successfully collaborated with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 'The aim of the operation was a Russian citizen suspected of hacking attacks on targets in the United States.' The statement also added that the arrest took place in a hotel in Prague but did not identify the man or say when it took place. The man is now in police custody after being taken to hospital when he was detained as he collapsed. Czech judicial authorities must now rule on his extradition to the United States. At the weekend, the Kremlin slammed Washington for its 'unprecedented' threats after US Vice President Joe Biden told NBC that Putin would receive a 'message' over the alleged hacking. Biden said Washington would respond to the alleged attacks 'at the time of our choosing and under the circumstances that have the greatest impact.' The man was detained in a joint operation between police in Prague and the the FBI after Interpol had issued a so-called Red Notice about the suspect NBC later reported that the CIA was preparing a retaliatory cyber attack 'designed to harass and 'embarrass' the Kremlin leadership.' The Kremlin was propelled to the heart of American politics in July after Hillary Clinton's campaign blamed Russia for an embarrassing leak of emails from the Democratic National Committee. Russia has been accused of favouring Republican candidate Donald Trump - who has praised Putin and called for better ties with Moscow - over Clinton. She was found on August 27 and will face court via video link on Friday Sharp provided officers with a more flattering photo through Facebook She responded to the police alert after they posted her mug shots online Teenager spends time in jail as she faces charges including shoplifting A teenager who made headlines after asking police to use a more flattering photo of herself on Facebook while on the run has been taken into custody. Amy Sharp, 18, was found on August 27 after she escaped from Surry Hills Corrective Services Cell Complex in Sydney on August 19, The Daily Telegraph reported. Police had released mugshot images of the teenager looking tired and draped in a blanket as they sought help from the public on her whereabouts after she escaped from the cells at the Sydney Police station. An 18-year-old who asked police to use a more flattering photo of herself (right) instead of her mug shot (left) while on the run through Facebook is in jail Shortly after Sharp posted a cheeky response underneath NSW Police's Facebook alert and included a fresh-faced photo of herself. 'Can you use this photo, please and thank youYours Truly, Amy Sharp xx,' she wrote on Facebook. Police found Sharp two days after she made the comment, which attracted more than 67,000 likes. The teenager, from Victoria, was staying in housing commission in Sydney when she allegedly committed four offences. Amy Sharp wrote to the police: 'Can you use this photo, please and thank youYours Truly, Amy Sharp xx' Police found Sharp, two days after she made the comment which attracted over 67 thousand likes Sharp pleaded guilty to the shoplifting charges after she stole $192.80 worth of clothes from Cotton On, Typo and Rebel stores at a shopping centre. She has pleaded not guilty to possessing identity to commit an indictable offence, receiving or disposing of stolen goods and financial advantage by deception. Sharp is currently a remand inmate at Dillwynia Women's Correctional Centre at Windsor in western Sydney. She will face Central Local Court on Friday via video link. Sharp is currently a remand inmate at Dillwynia Womens Correctional Centre at Windsor in western Sydney Ministers are at loggerheads over whether to quit the European customs union amid warnings it could mean a 4.5 per cent hit to GDP . Papers circulated at a meeting of the Brexit Cabinet committee apparently suggested that leaving could clog up trade through Britain's ports. The forecast for a GDP hit, is the average prediction for how much growth would be sacrificed by 2030 made in three studies carried out ahead of the historic referendum. Theresa May apparently told the Brexit Cabinet committee that she was not yet ready to take a decision on the UK's negotiating position The research, by the Treasury, the thinktank Niesr, the Centre for Economic Performance and London School of Economics focus on a Norway-style model where the UK exits the single market but stays inside the customs union. They have been heavily criticised by Leave supporters, who regarded them as part of the failed 'Project Fear' attempt to scare voters off Brexit. International Trade Secretary Liam Fox is said to have backed withdrawal from the bloc at the meeting, arguing that it would prevent global deals being done. But Chancellor Philip Hammond highlighted the economic risks and Theresa May insisted she was not yet ready to make a decision on the UK's negotiating strategy, according to the Guardian. The latest tensions emerged amid claims that Boris Johnson and David Davis have formed a pact to push for their version of 'hard' Brexit. They are said to take joint positions in meetings and make a concerted effort not to disagree with each other. The customs union covers all EU states, along with Turkey and a number of smaller countries like Monaco, Andorra and San Marino and non-EU UK territories such as the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey. Boris Johnson, left, and David Davis are said to have agreed a pact to present a united front in meetings on the type of 'hard' Brexit they advocate Members can trade goods without customs levies, but must impose common tariffs on goods from outside the area and - crucially - negotiate trade deals as part of the union and not as individual states. The warnings come as Theresa May prepares to head to Brussels on Thursday - 100 days since taking office - to update European counterparts on Britain's plans to quit the EU. The symbolic anniversary will see the Prime Minister address the rest of the bloc informally on the "the current state of affairs in the country" but no detailed discussion of Brexit is expected. After entering Downing Street in July, the PM was quick to hold meetings with key players from the other 27 countries but the European Council summit will be the first time she sits round the table in Brussels with leaders of other member states. No 10 has indicated MPs will have a vote on the final Brexit deal secured by the Government if the agreement results in a new treaty with the EU - but dismissed demands for a vote before Article 50 is triggered. A paedophile was caught on camera by vigilantes who duped him into believing he was meeting a 13-year-old girl for sex. Adrian Stroe, 28, arranged the meeting after sending dozens of sexually explicit texts and images to a 'girl' named Lucy Stephens on a mobile messaging service. But when he arrived at the meeting point near East Croydon station, London, he was instead confronted by a group of men from vigilante group The Hunted One. Stroe, a Romanian national, said he was in 'big trouble' before he was arrested by passing British Transport Police officers. Scroll down for video Adrian Stroe, 28, pictured, arranged the meeting after sending dozens of sexually explicit texts and images to a 'girl' named Lucy Stephens on a mobile messaging service when he arrived at the meeting point near East Croydon station, London, pictured, he was instead confronted by a group of men from vigilante group The Hunted One Stroe, a Romanian national, said he was in 'big trouble' before he was arrested by passing British Transport Police officers. The confrontation was captured on camera, pictured The Hunted One posted messages between Stroe and 'Lucy' on its website, in which he discusses having sex and oral sex with the child. He told her he was 24 years old. He writes: 'If you still want try sex [sic]. We can try sex'. When 'Lucy' asks 'will it hurt?', he replies: 'Just 1-2 minutes after that you can feel pleasure. I told you many times'. He also speaks about performing oral sex on the child and explains how she would perform oral sex on him. Stroe also says they will take a shower together. Footage of the moment Stroe was confronted was also posted online. Members of The Hunted One say: 'You like meeting children for sex do you?' The Hunted One posted messages between Stroe and 'Lucy' on its website, in which he discusses having sex and oral sex with the child. Pictured, Stroe being confronted by police His head in his hand, he insists that is not why he is there before admitting: 'I think so, big trouble'. Stroe admitted one count of attempting to meet a child after sexual grooming as well as a count of attempting to cause a child to watch a sexual act at Croydon Crown Court on Monday, the Croydon Advertiser reported. Prosecutor Andrew Collings told the court Stroe's actions were brought to light when a member of The Hunted One contacted police. He said: 'He explained to police that he had been using a friend messaging app called Waplog since about August 2016. In the messages Stroe (pictured) speaks about performing oral sex on the child and explains how she would perform oral sex on him. Stroe also says they will take a shower together '[The vigilante] went on to say when he spoke to police he had been posing as a young person, under 16, and had been doing that for about a year, apparently to raise awareness amongst young people and families about the dangers of sexual predators on the internet. 'In relation to this defendant, he had been posing as a 13-year-old girl called Lucy Stephens and whilst posing as her he started to speak to an individual. There's no dispute that individual was the defendant.' Imprisoned Saudi blogger Raif Badawi risks a new round of lashes one year after his public flogging in the kingdom generated a global outcry, it has been claimed. Evelyne Abitbol, who founded the Raif Badawi Foundation with Badawi's wife, said a 'reliable source' in the kingdom claims he faces a new flogging. It comes after his first punishment in 2015 for breaking Saudi's technology laws and insulting Islam. Raif Badawi was publicly flogged 50 times last year which severely damaged his health and his sentence stipulates there are 950 more to go Saudi embassy officials in Ottawa and Saudi government officials in Riyadh were not immediately available for comment. The source's claims have not been independently confirmed yet. Evelyne declined to name the source but said it was the same person who had alerted Badawi's wife, Ensaf Haidar, in 2015 before he received his first 50 lashes, the only part of the flogging that was reportedly administered. It is not known when the flogging will take place but it is thought it could begin at any time. Raif's wife is desperately trying to help her husband, and has asked countries with ties to Saudi Arabi, to intervene on the blogger's behalf. Ensaf Haidar, his wife, has launched a world-wide campaign to get the blogger released The Free Raif campaign has received global support and the Raif Badawi Foundation was set up to raise awareness of his punishment Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion said in Ottawa that his department is trying to confirm whether the claims are true and has urged the Saudi government to allow Badawi to join his family in Canada. 'We are trying to have the most accurate information possible, because if this information is true, it would be shameful,' Ms Dion said yesterday. 'Canada completely condemns this type of lashing.' Ensaf, who was in Germany to present a journalism award on Wednesday in her husband's name, could not be reached for comment. She was granted asylum in Canada, where she lives with the couple's three children in the province of Quebec. Saudi despots to continue @raif_badawi lashings - this time in private within confines of prison. @foreignoffice @POTUS Free the man now! https://t.co/Q2P4R3tw1p Ian Reynolds (@pumps1000) October 18, 2016 Your Majesty, @KingSalman, please hear @raif_badawi's wife's plea to strip her husband off Saudi citizenship. Send him to Canada! #FreeRaif Angel Undercover (@_Atheist_Angel_) October 18, 2016 Evelyne, the foundation's director, wants Saudi Arabia to withdraw the flogging punishment, strip Badawi of his Saudi citizenship and let him leave the country for Canada. This is the terrifying moment four divers were left trapped underneath a huge great white shark after it cut their air supply and dived down inside their cage. The 4.5-metre shark bit through the divers' air hose before plunging into the cage jaws-first, becoming trapped as it tried to snap at the people inside. Panicking below, the four divers watched in horror as the monster shark thrashed around, getting itself further lodged in between the bars. This is the terrifying moment four divers were left trapped underneath a huge great white shark after it cut their air supply and dived down inside their cage Katie Yonker, who was one of the divers who was left trapped in the cage off Guadalupe Island, Mexico, described the horrifying moment the shark attacked. She said another diver, called Yann, had pushed the aggressive shark away from the cage just moments before it tried to break into the cage. 'A few seconds later, the shark bit the air hose that supplies air from the surface to the divers in the cage, creating an explosion of air bubbles,' Ms Yonker wrote on the Bluewater Travel page. 'The shark swam vertically down into the balcony of the cage, made a sharp turn, and swam right through the bars of the cage. 'She thrashed around for several seconds and in the process got further lodged into the bars of the cage.' Yann was forced to bail out of the cage after their regulator was knocked out of their mouth by the shark, while another was trapped right next to the shark for 30 seconds. The four-and-a-half metre shark bit through the divers' air hose before plunging into the cage jaws-first, becoming trapped as it tried to snap at the people inside Just as Yann left the cage, another shark - the largest the group had seen - arrived on the scene. Nicknamed Air Demon or Big Mama, the shark passed by the cage but thankfully did not get involved in the chaos. The divers got out of the cage through a different exit and made their way to a boat waiting above, but had to swim directly past the thrashing shark to get there. 'It was nearly impossible to see anything because the shark was blocking much of the exit and visibility was limited by all the air bubbles and blood in the water,' Ms Yonker wrote. 'I could see the boat, but had no idea how I would get around the shark. I heard someone yell to me to go around the tail, but on the first attempt the shark flicked her tail and I was shoved back to where I started. 'Divemaster Miles threw me a life ring from the boat and Yann pushed me down to help me swim under the tail. Within seconds Miles pulled me onto the boat.' The incident follows another terrifying video of a shark wriggling its way inside a diver's cage near the same Mexican island After everyone was safely on board the boat, the crew tied a rope around the shark's tail and lowered the cage into water in an attempt to pull the huge animal out backwards. After that technique failed, One of the divemasters had to jump back into the cage to press on its gills so it could free itself. Peter Maguire, who filmed the encounter, said no one - including the shark - was injured. Pulled over for traffic violations, Jessica Jauch was held for 96 days in a Mississippi jail without seeing a judge, getting a lawyer or having a chance to make bail. She was charged with a felony based on a secretly recorded video that prosecutors finally acknowledged showed her committing no crime. Only when she finally got a hearing and a lawyer, who persuaded prosecutors to watch the video, did the case fall apart. Then, the 34-year-old mother sued, alleging violations of her rights to bail, legal representation, a speedy trial and liberty. Jessica Jauch was held for 96 days in a Mississippi jail without seeing a judge, getting a lawyer or having a chance to make bail But a federal judge dismissed her case against Choctaw County and Sheriff Cloyd Halford last month, ruling that because she had been indicted by a grand jury on the felony drug charge, none of her constitutional and legal rights were violated. The outcome has flummoxed civil liberties advocates who have been waging legal battles to reform Mississippi's criminal justice system, which provides almost no state funding for public defenders. 'I can't think of a situation where denying someone an appearance before a judge for 96 days after arrest passes constitutional muster,' said attorney Cliff Johnson, who has sued Mississippi localities over pretrial detention and high bails for indigent defendants. Similar lawsuits have been filed across the country. The American Civil Liberties Union is working state by state to force increased funding for public defenders, particularly in places where court-appointed lawyers depend on stingy local governments and court fees to get paid. 'I think each state suffers from the symptoms we see in Mississippi,' said Brandon Buskey, a senior staff attorney for the ACLU's Criminal Law Reform Project. 'This state just seems to have all of them at the same time.' Pulled over for traffic offenses on April 26, 2012, Jauch was held thereafter because prosecutors relied on the word of an informant who said Jauch sold her eight Xanax pills for $40 in February 2011, according to court papers. In fact, a Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics video showed Jauch asking to borrow the $40. But Jauch's lawyer in her federal suit, Victor Fleitas, said no one knew that because investigators and prosecutors apparently never watched the video before persuading the grand jury to charge her with selling a controlled substance. She wasn't arraigned until the next court term in Choctaw County, three months later. Jauch posted $15,000 bail and was released August 6 after she finally got a lawyer. Once the assistant district attorney watched the video, he immediately agreed to drop the charges, Public Defender Hays Burchfield wrote. Two local assistant district attorneys did not respond to requests for comment. District Attorney Doug Evans did not return calls and e-mails. Fleitas also declined comment, and Jauch didn't respond to multiple requests for an interview. The 34-year-old mother sued, alleging violations of her rights to bail, legal representation, a speedy trial and liberty at the Choctaw County courthouse in Ackerman, Mississippi Even the county and its sheriff told the federal judge that 'Jauch states a plausible case for multiple constitutional deficiencies,' but their motion blamed circuit judges and the district attorney. 'It is the court's obligation to afford her an opportunity before the judge,' Halford told The Associated Press after the case was dismissed. 'In layman's terms, I can't call the court and talk to the judge and tell them I've got somebody and you need to arraign them.' U.S. District Judge Sharion Aycock, however, ruled that people in Jauch's situation aren't required to get a court hearing within 48 hours, and that her right to a lawyer was satisfied by the appearance of a public defender at her arraignment, 96 days after her arrest. 'Put simply, the plaintiff was arrested and held on a valid felony grand jury indictment that established the existence of probable cause,' Aycock wrote. 'Therefore, the Fourth Amendment is not implicated here.' Other federal judges also have considered constitutional challenges to Mississippi's justice system, with mixed results. U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves told Lauderdale County officials in July to do more to ensure inmates get representation and speedy trials. In June, Reeves blasted judges statewide for long detentions, even as he reluctantly ruled out damages for a man held 23 months in jail before his charges were dismissed in Hinds County. Choctaw County Sheriff Cloyd Halford (right) says it's not his fault that Jessica Jauch was held for 96 days without a hearing before a judge, a lawyer or bail. Halford and the county told a federal judge that scheduling such hearings were the responsibility of a state court judge or district attorney Still pending before U.S. District Judge Henry T. Wingate is a lawsuit by the ACLU and the MacArthur Justice Center accusing Scott County of jailing two inmates illegally without lawyers or grand jury hearings. 'There is no uniform practice in Mississippi that I can identify in terms of getting people in front of a judge in a timely manner, where counsel is identified and appointed, where bail determinations are made on an individualized basis,' said Johnson, a MacArthur Center lawyer. 'We're a mess right now in Mississippi when it comes to pretrial process in the justice system.' The ACLU also has sued in California, Idaho, Louisiana, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and Utah, following lawsuits elsewhere. No one has sued yet in Mississippi over the state's public defender system but a task force there is studying the issue. State Public Defender Andre de Gruy's office only handles death penalty cases, appeals and training. But he believes Mississippi law already requires the swift appointment of a public defender for people facing charges that could result in prison. In practice, though, local public defenders typically must wait for a judge to appoint them to a case. 'It's because we have this fractured system where no one ever has to take responsibility,' de Gruy said. Mississippi is considering new rules of criminal procedure; one says people in Jauch's situation 'shall be taken without unnecessary delay before a judge.' But many of the circuit courts in rural Mississippi sit only twice a year. Donald Trump has declared war on Congress, by promising to introduce term limits and cracking down on lobbyists. Trump, who has long claimed that America is riddled with political corruption, said he wanted to 'drain the swamp' in Washington. He told cheering supporters in Grand Junction, Colorado: 'If I am elected President, I will push for a constitutional amendment to impose term limits on all members of Congress.' Trump said members of the House of Representatives should be limited to six years and 12 years for Senators. Donald Trump (pictured at the rally Tuesday) has stressed that he is an outsider who is not close to the Washington establishment and he has even fallen out with prominent Republicans in Congress, like Paul Ryan At present there are no limits on the amount of terms a congressman can serve and the record is 49 years, held by the late Senator Strom Thurmond, a Republican from South Carolina, who was in office from 1954 until 2003. Trump is expected to push his agenda hard at tonight's third Presidential debate with Hillary Clinton in Las Vegas. He believes it will strike a chord with many Americans who perceive Washington as a cozy club where politicians and 'special interests' lobbyists scratch each other's backs. Under the U.S. Constitution there are no limits on terms for Congressmen. The late Senator Strom Thurmond (pictured) holds the record, having held office for 49 years until 2003 A spokesman for the Clinton campaign, Brian Fallon, said the Democratic nominee 'will be ready for whatever scorched earth tactics (he) tries' tonight. Trump has invited Pat Smith, whose son, Sean, was one of four Americans killed during the 2012 attack in Benghazi, to the debate. She has said she holds Mrs Clinton personally responsible for her son's death. Republicans will be hoping Trump can close the gap on Clinton by focusing on her weaknesses, which include her closeness to Washington, and President Obama and their alleged failure to have addressed America's underlying problems. Donald Trump punches the air as he greets supporters in Grand Junction, Colorado yesterday Trump himself has described the Republican Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan, as a 'weak and effective' leader and has distanced himself from the GOP in Washington. In his speech last night Trump said: 'Decades of failure in Washington, and decades of special interest dealing, must come to an end. 'We have to break the cycle of corruption, and we have to give new voices a chance to go into government service. The time for Congressional term limits has arrived.' Hillary Clinton (pictured testifying before Congress in August) is expecting Donald Trump to 'go low' in tonight's third and final debate But experts say it would be almost impossible to get term limits passed by Congress and the president does not have the power to force them through because it would require the amendment of the constitution. Washington Post journalist Amber Phillips pointed out: 'In 1995, the Supreme Court decided in a 5 to 4 vote that states or Congress can't just make a law limiting the number of terms members of Congress can serve.' Molly Reynolds, a congressional expert with the Brookings Institution, told the Washington Post: 'If members are restricted to only serving a few terms the logic goes, they have neither the time nor the incentive to develop the relevant expertise they need to be good at their jobs. 'If members don't have that expertise themselves, they're more likely to rely on outsiders, including lobbyists, to replace that expertise.' Trump told his supporters: 'If we let the Clinton cartel run this government, history will record that 2017 was the year America lost its independence. 'We will not let that happen. It is time to drain the swamp in Washington, D.C. 'That is why I am proposing a package of ethics reforms to make our government honest once again.' He promised to bring in a ban on all executive branch officials lobbying the government for five years after they leave government service. Trump also wants Congress to bring in its own five-year ban on lobbying by former members of Congress and their staff. He also threatened to 'expand the definition of lobbyist so we close all the loopholes that former government officials use by labeling themselves consultants and advisers'. Trump pointedly promised to issue a lifetime ban against senior executive branch officials lobbying on behalf of a foreign government. Channel Ten has been forced to apologise for joking about footage of a Thai woman mourning the death of the country's king in its news quiz program 'Have You Been Paying Attention?' It is believed quiz show's five-person panel poked fun at the wailing woman on Monday, inciting an angry response from Thailand's Ambassador Chirachai Punkrasin, who called the sketch 'very inappropriate, disrespectful, and certainly not amusing. The jokes from Peter Helliar, Ed Kavalee, Sam Pang, Jane Kennedy and Celia Pacquola, who sat on the panel, mocked people 'who are feeling intense grief at the passing of their monarch,' he said. Channel Ten has apologized for poking fun at a Thai woman crying over the death of the country's king in the comedy program 'Have You Been Paying Attention?' (pictured) 'While it may not be the intention of the Network 10 to cause offence, the programme needs to show greater cultural sensitivity and media professionalism when it deals with a topic that makes reference to another country, institution or culture,' he said, asking for the segment to be removed and taken off of social media.' The sketch incited an angry response from Thailand's Ambassador Chirachai Punkrasin (pictured), who called the sketch 'very inappropriate, disrespectful, and certainly not amusing' 'I count on your understanding and your cooperation in removing the inappropriate segment on Thailand in the above-mentioned programme from your future diffusion programme as well as other social media channels.' Channel Ten responded on Tuesday by tweeting that 'in no way was any disrespect intended' and apologised for any distress. The video has since been removed from social media and the channel's streaming service. The sketch will also be edited out of the 30-minute program before it is rerun on television, according to The Sydney Morning Herald. Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej died last week at the age of 88. He took over the throne in 1950 and is said to be one of the longest serving monarchs in the world. A year-long mourning period was announced for the country following his passing. The jokes from Peter Helliar, Ed Kavalee, Sam Pang, Jane Kennedy and Celia Pacquola, who sat on the panel, mocked people 'who are feeling intense grief at the passing of their monarch,' he said (pictured) Amazon's chief executive, Jeff Bezos, is the second richest man in America - overtaking Warren Buffett - the Forbes 400 list has revealed. Bezos has seen $20billion added to his net worth after a run up in Amazon stock, bringing it up to $70.7billion. Bill Gates remains in the top spot, with his fortune standing at $81billion. Scroll down for video Jeff Bezos is the second richest man in America, having overtaken Warren Buffett in the Forbes 400 list Bezos, 52, owns close to 18 per cent of Amazon. Buffett, chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway, fell to third place, with a net worth of $64.9billion. He has trailed Gates on the list for the past 15 years. Larry Ellison, the chief executive of Oracle, fell out of the top three for the first time in nine years. Mark Zuckerberg is the fourth richest man in America, with a $55.4billion net worth. Warren Buffett (left) slipped a place to third on the Forbes 400 list, while Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg (right) rose to fourth Gates remains the richest man in the world, but Spanish magnate Amancio Ortego is the second, sandwiched between him and Bezos. Ortego is the founder and chairman of the Inditex clothing company, which owns the Zara brand across the world. Mexican businessman Carlos Slim Helu is the only other non-American to make the worldwide top 10, with a net worth of $49.3billion. The Microsoft chief has headed the Forbes list for 23 straight years. The billionaires on the 2016 ranking have a record-breaking, combined total net worth of $2.4 trillion, up from $2.34 trillion in 2015. The average net worth of a Forbes 400 member hit $6 billion, also a record high, said Forbes. By comparison, US presidential hopeful Donald Trump has fallen 35 spots on the list, and now stands at number 156. His fortune has dropped from $4.5billion in March to $3.7billion - a fall of $800million. This is the moment terrified schoolgirls were forced to wade through a snake-infested mud pit as part of a jungle training exercise. The group of 45 children, who are just primary school age, were being disciplined by Civil Defence Force trainers in Malaysia. The exercise required the young girls to dash from one end of the muddy snake pit to the other, and climb out via a steep slope on the other side. Footage of the exercise shows the little girls scream and cry out in terror, while the men 'training' them look on, spraying water and throwing snakes into the muddy pool as the children try to get out. Scroll down for video A jungle training programme has been suspended after footage emerged of terrified schoolgirls being forced to wade through a snake-filled pit The shocking film shows a group of the children huddling together and screaming in fear as they struggle to climb the muddy wall of the pit. One girl jumps up and down, her face contorted in terror, as a wriggling snake is thrown in her direction. The exercise required the young girls to dash from one end of the muddy snake pit to the other, and climb out via a steep slope on the other side The young pupils are all dressed in long trousers, long-sleeved tops, and hijabs, and are soaked up to their knees with muddy water. The girls are all pupils at a primary school in Kuala Kangsar in Perak state, in the north west of the country. The girls were being disciplined by Civil Defence Force trainers in Perak state in Malaysia Authorities in Perak state said the training programme had been immediately suspended pending an investigation into the incident, after the footage was released on Monday. Jungle survival training is offered by many groups across Malaysia, teaching a diverse range of skills from identifying edible plants to trapping wild animals. Four police officers have been wounded - some of them seriously - after a right-wing radical opened fire on them as they prepared to search his home. The gunman, 49, opened fire on police officers when they turned up at his home in Georgensgmund in Bavaria this morning to search for weapons. Media reports said officers returned fire and the man was slightly wounded and taken into custody. Police officers gather in front of a house where a 49-year-old far-right Nazi group avaria's Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann speaks during a news conference in Roth, Germany Four police officers have been wounded - some of them seriously - after a right-wing radical opened fire on them as they prepared to search his home Police and government officials said the gunman who opened fire on four police officers today had a stash of 30 weapons in his home. They said the gunman pumped shots through the door of his home at the officers before they even had a chance to ring the doorbell. Police planned the inspection because they feared the gunman had become unstable and was not storing his weapons and ammunition correctly. The gunman was wearing a bulletproof vest when he opened fire. One officer suffered life threatening injuries and went immediately into surgery. His condition is 'stable but he remains in a dangerous condition.' A second police officer was wounded in the arm. Two other officers were treated as outpatients. The gunman was a so-called 'Reichsburger' - reich citizen. These individuals are predominantly right-wingers who do not recognise the Federal Republic of Germany and want the pre-war borders of the Third Reich to be recognised once again. Reichsburger members recognise no courts or authorities of the modern day German state and are linked through Internet chat forums and right-wing associations. Joachim Herrmann, the Bavarian interior minister, will give more details about the injuries sustained by the officers and the police operation later in the day. A unit of anti-terror sek officers were on hand at the scene but the suspect took the regular police unit by surprise. Authorities have increasingly warned in recent months that neo-Nazis in the country are becoming increasingly militarised and prepared to use violence in their opposition to the country's asylum policy for refugees. A woman has fought off an attempted kidnapper who tried to abduct her by dragging her into his car. Terrifying CCTV footage shows the man grabbing the woman by her hair and forcing her into the back seat of a silver Commodore in Canberra. Another woman is seen watching the kidnapping unfold before slowly edging away. A woman has fought off an attempted kidnapper who tried to abduct her by dragging her into his car Meanwhile the violent man repeatedly tries to slam the door on the woman who is seen desperately kicking back as she tries to break free. The offender opens the door and stamps on her twice but she continues to fight back, and at one point gets out of the car. But the man wrestles her back inside and appears to bang the woman's head against the roof of the car. The woman eventually managed to escape and left with the the other female as the driver made a swift getaway. Terrifying CCTV footage shows the man grabbing the woman by her hair and forcing her into the back seat of a silver Commodore in Canberra Meanwhile the violent man repeatedly tries to slam the door on the woman, who is seen desperately kicking back as she tries to break free It is not clear if the women knew the man and ACT Police have appealed for them to come forward. The dramatic incident took place in Red Hill about 6.45pm on October 10. The man's vehicle is likely to have damage to both the driver's side and rear right door, police said. Anyone with information or who might know any of the three people involved is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. A third wave of 'child' migrants arrived in Britain from the Calais Jungle today - but the Home Office refused to carry out dental checks to prove their real age. Around 12 migrants - all burly lads aged anywhere between 15 and 21 - were escorted off a coach and taken inside a Home Office building, before being released. It came as the row over the age of migrants intensified after officials revealed two-thirds of 'child' refugees quizzed about their age last year were found to be adults. At least 100 more child migrants are expected to arrive in the UK by Friday - to join the three coachloads that have already made the journey to London this week. But the Home Office ruled out calls for dental checks to verify their age because the tests are deemed 'inaccurate, inappropriate and unethical'. A third wave of 'child' migrants arrived in Britain from the Calais Jungle today - but the Home Office refused to carry out dental checks to prove their real age Around 12 migrants - all burly lads aged anywhere between 15 and 21 - were escorted off a coach David Davies, the Conservative MP for Monmouth, had called for dental investigations or X-rays to establish the age of refugees coming to the UK. And former home secretary Jack Straw also threw his weight behind the idea, saying the lack of testing was undermining public confidence in Britain's asylum system. Concerns were raised about the possibility of migrants trying to 'deceive' authorities after pictures of the group arriving on Monday showed many looked older than 17. The 12-strong group that arrived on Wednesday was greeted by raucous supporters. The coach pulled up to Lunar House, a 20-storey office block in Croydon, at around 12.30pm after leaving Calais at 7.30am. The all-male group were escorted in batches of two at a time as the crowds clapped and cheered their arrival in the UK. The group that arrived on Wednesday was greeted by raucous supporters Ahmed Sharaf (left) and Muhammad Alkharbajieh (right) were seen celebrating after the arrival Safe Passage, the migrant arm of charity Citizen UK, has been identifying children in the camp They underwent checks before being collected by relatives or released into foster care. Only two refugees remained inside the immigration centre this evening as they waited for family members to arrive. The refugee who moved Lily Allen to tears when she visited the Calais Jungle was among the group. Shamsher Sherin, 13, spoke to Lily during a BBC interview to highlight the plight of children living alone in the squalid camp. A third group of 'child' refugees are on their way to Britain after being loaded into a minivan in Saint Omer, in Calais, France Lily, 31, shared the news with her 5.87 million followers on Twitter. She tweeted: 'So happy to see that Sham Sher made it to the U.K. safely and won't be risking his life jumping on to moving vehicle.' Ahmed Sharaf, 17, was waiting outside Lunar House for his cousin Khalid Sharaf as he arrived in Croydon from the Jungle camp. He said: 'My cousin has just arrived on the bus. He is 17 from Syria, we are all from Syria, he is also 17. 'I have been here four months and now live in Wembley with my brother, who came here two-and-a-half years ago. 'My mother and father are still in Daraa in Syria. It is very dangerous and I'm very worried for their safety. I'm very happy my cousin is able to join us. We were worried it might not happen. 'I was in the Jungle for a year and my cousin was there for seven months. It is very bad there. The worst part is the police beat us and there is a lot of fighting going on.' Khalid's friend Muhammad Alkharbajieh, who has been in the UK and lives with Ahmed for two months, was also waiting outside when he received a call from his friend who was inside the building. He said: 'He is fine, he is very happy. I'm very happy to be in here and very happy my friend is also here. The 13-year-old reduced the singer to tears during a BBC interview to highlight the plight of unaccompanied children living in the squalid Jungle camp This afternoon Allen tweeted: 'So happy to see that Sham Sher made it to the U.K. safely and won't be risking his life jumping on to moving vehicles' 'I came here from Calais, I left Syria and went to Turkey, Greece, Macedonia, Serbia, then Belgium. 'We were both brought here by the UN. I just want to have productive life in the UK, I go to school and want to be a social worker.' Abdul Kader, a Syrian refugee who quit Syrian leader Bashir Al-Assad's army to escape the war, was also in the crowd greeting the new arrivals. But he said he no longer want to be in Britain, adding: 'I want to deport myself. 'I would tell those arriving from Calais to go back. It is better there than it is here. 'I want to go back to Syria. In this county I cannot work, I have nowhere to live, I Iive in hotels. 'I was a Captain Doctor in the army, but I left when they started the war. I cannot kill civilians. 'I was put in jail, then I fled to Saudi Arabia, Turkey, then Greece, then to Germany.' Yesterday the 14 youngsters who arrived in the UK were taken to temporary foster homes, where they will stay until social workers have interviewed their British-based relatives to ensure their homes are safe for them to live in. Mohammed and Ahmad, both 17, from Daraa in Syria, said their friend Khaled only found out yesterday that he was being brought to the UK to stay with his cousin. Citizens UK said he will 'almost certainly' stay with a social carer or foster carer for a night or two before they are reunited with his family, in a part of London. Reuben Martin, pastor of West Croydon Baptist Church, a member of Citizens UK, said each unaccompanied child refugee is being accompanied by a member of the charity who act as chaperones while they are being processed. Tensions flared when the Home Office revealed that nearly two-thirds of child refugees quizzed about their real age last year were found to be adults. In the 12 months to September last year, 65 per cent were found to be aged over 18. The figures show the scale of how adult migrants try to deceive the UK authorities in a bid to be granted sanctuary. They emerged after Tory MPs raised questions about the ages of 28 refugees brought to the UK this week from the Calais Jungle. Yesterday, one migrant in particular, wearing a blue hoodie with stubble on his chin, was rated by a facial recognition program as having the features of a 38-year-old. 'I WOULD RATHER GO BACK TO ALEPPO THAN STAY HERE' Syrian doctor Abdul Kader al-Zuebi Abdul Kader al-Zuebi, a Syrian doctor supporting the new arrivals from Calais, has offered a warning to those seeking permission to live in the UK - saying he would rather return to Aleppo than stay in Britain any longer. The 28-year-old, a qualified doctor who has three British relatives and a British fiancee, said his short time in the UK had been miserable due to Home Office delays which he said made it difficult for him to rent or seek employment as a medic. He said: 'It is a big lie to be in the UK, we think the UK is something from the heavens. 'I am living in hotels for the last 11 days, I can't go anywhere. The Home Office are refusing to let me leave. They don't know where my passport is. 'I wanted to come here, I have three British uncles and am engaged to a British lady. They (Home Office) took me from the airport, to a hostel in Dulwich, after four days they took me to a miserable place in Cardiff. 'So I chose to go to hotels. I asked to rent a house, they refused. I didn't ask for money just papers to be legal but they didn't. 'I would rather be back in Aleppo than stay here. Honestly, I want to go back.' Advertisement He was one of 14 to be bussed to Croydon from the notorious Jungle camp shanty town before it is demolished by the French authorities. The first female child refugee, a teenager from Eritrea, was also part of the group. They followed another set who arrived on Monday, as Britain works to reunite unaccompanied youngsters from war-torn countries with family members in the UK. A Home Office spokesman refused to confirm how many child refugees were due to arrive in Britain today, or whether any were female. Asked if Prime Minister Theresa May had 'faith' in the age verification being carried out, her official spokeswoman said: 'There are a whole range of checks in place which the Home Office and Border Force are using in cooperation with partners.' Former Home Secretary Jack Straw today backed calls for child refugees to be subject to age tests. He said the large number of over-18 migrants deceiving authorities by posing as children will 'undermine public confidence' in Britain's asylum system. Mr Straw said there was also a problem with the number of economic migrants pretending to be refugees and said the best way to deal with the migrant crisis is to house them nearer to their country of origin. He told Sky News: 'Officials made a judgment, we have to accept that judgment, but if there is a case for dental checks, I would certainly not as Home Secretary have ruled that out. 'What I would say to those supporting increase in numbers of refugees to come to this country is this. If it turns out those coming in here are over 18 - and the truth will emerge after a while - then it will undermine public confidence in the whole system. 'So having tests, providing they are not too intrusive and invasive is actually a sensible thing to do for everyone concerned.' He added: 'Most of them are economic migrants and you have to be pretty firm about this. 'Part of the problem with the issue of whether they are children is you have got to test their age because you will understandably always get quite a lot of people who, knowing that it's easier to get in because they are younger will pretend they are under 18 when they are not. 'My own view is that the best place to deal with refugees is near to their country of origin. The youngsters have been bussed to Croydon from the notorious Jungle camp shanty town Tory MP David Davies has been condemned by dentists after last night calling for tests on teeth to verify the age of child migrants REVEALED: FATHER OF CHILD REFUGEE WHO MADE LILY ALLEN CRY IS AN EX-ISLAMIST FIGHTER LIVING IN BIRMINGHAM It emerged last week that the father of the migrant boy controversially championed by Lily Allen sneaked into Britain in the back of a lorry to claim asylum. The Mail on Sunday also revealed how he then returned to the country he fled in terror for a three-month holiday after being given the right to stay here. Hazrat Gul Sherin, whose son Shamsher appeared with the tearful pop star last week as she 'apologised' on behalf of Britain for bombing his country and putting him 'in the hands of the Taliban', came to the UK illegally in 2005, having fled war-torn Afghanistan. Hazrat Gul Sherin, father of the Afghani boy who moved pop star Lily Allen to tears, was loyal to a brutal warlord and fled to the UK to claim asylum - on the back of a lorry His decision to flee the country was prompted not by the Taliban but because as a leading supporter of a brutal Islamist warlord and an officer in his private army he was afraid of the US and UK-backed Northern Alliance. After seven years, Sherin was given indefinite leave to remain in the UK, then promptly returned to Afghanistan to visit his family. The 49-year-old was a commander in the Islamist group Hezb-e Islami, led by the Butcher of Kabul, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. Picture of Shamsher Sherin, who Lily allen apologised to on behalf of the whole UK, taken in Afghanistan ten years ago with his father Hazrat Gul Sherin and his sister In the early 1990s, Hekmatyar's group of fundamentalist Sunni Muslim Pashtuns clashed violently with other mujahideen factions in the struggle for control of the capital, Kabul. Hezb-e Islami was blamed for much of the terrible death and destruction of that period and was accused of appalling human rights abuses, including the assassination of intellectuals and throwing acid in women's faces. The civil war led to Hekmatyar's fall from grace and he quickly became one of the most reviled men in the country. And in 1996, when Hekmatyar went into exile, Sherin also began to lead a quieter life. Shamsher Sherin, aged 13 pictured having a brief telephone conversation with his father Hazrat Gul Sherin in Birmingham. He has never heard of Lily Allen He revealed the startling truth behind his journey to the UK in an interview with The Mail on Sunday. To reach Britain, he hiked across eight countries before being stowed away by traffickers in a fruit lorry. He spent seven years living on benefits in Birmingham before his claim for asylum was accepted in September 2012. He then went back to Afghanistan, flying in via Pakistan, for the first of two three-month visits to the very country that had put him in fear of his life. After 11 years in the UK, he can barely speak English. Advertisement 'Some of those who are at Calais are genuine refugees but an awful lot are economic migrants. 'Our international obligations are to people who have a well-founded fear of persecution from the State from which they come.' Elsewhere, Tory MP David Davies has been condemned by dentists after last night calling for tests on teeth to verify the age of child migrants. Meanwhile, official figures show that in the year ending September 2015, some 590 asylum applicants had their age disputed. Of those, 574 had an age assessment with 371 were found to be adults. Since 2006 there have been 11,121 age disputes. Of those, 4,828 or 43 per cent were found to have been adults. Safe Passage, the migrant arm of charity Citizen UK, has been identifying children in the Jungle. Sources say it insists on seeing a document which states the names, ages and addresses of their relatives plus evidence such as family pictures. Migrants are then interviewed by a psychologist who reports to the Home Office, which conducts more checks before they are allowed to cross the Channel. There was a welcome party for the migrant children arriving from the Jungle camp in France Two teenagers arrive at Lunar House in Croydon, south London, from the Calais Jungle camp However, it has emerged the Home Office has no way of verifying the migrants' ages before they come to Britain, stoking concerns about adults posing as children to take advantage of the scheme. Officials insist the migrants have undergone rigorous interviews and document checks to establish they are aged under 18. But it has emerged that this is simply a screening process where they are verified as a child based on their 'physical appearance' and 'demeanour', with social workers signing off an 'age assessment'. MIGRANT CATCH 22 FARCE Home Office officials say they are unable to use dental checks to verify the age of child refugees because such tests require parental consent. It means that because the 'children' are unaccompanied, it is in effect impossible to obtain such permission. The catch 22 situation means there is no way to verify the ages of child refugees coming to Britain unless they have papers including their personal details. Meanwhile, Tory MP David Davies has been condemned by dentists after calling for tests on teeth to verify the age of child migrants. The British Dental Association said his demands for testing on those heading to Britain from the Jungle refugee camp was 'inappropriate and unethical'. Advertisement A Home Office spokesman admitted that routine medical tests, such as checking dental records, have not been carried out because it could be 'intrusive'. They added that children may appear older 'because war has toughened them up'. The spokesman said: 'We work closely with the French authorities and their partner agencies to ensure all those who come to the UK from the camps in Calais are eligible under the Dublin regulations. 'All individuals are referred to the UK authorities by the France terre d'asile (FTDA) and are then interviewed by French and UK officials. 'Where credible and clear documentary evidence of age is not available, criteria including physical appearance and demeanour are used as part of the interview process to assess age.' Britain is taking in dozens of youngsters from war zones including Afghanistan, Syria and Sudan. As unaccompanied children, they are entitled to move to the UK under EU asylum law if they have families in Britain. But the Home Office does not begin rigorous verification of their claimed ages until after they arrive in Britain, charity workers have told the Mail. Until then, UK officials largely rely on checks made by charities working in the Jungle. Today a group of child refugees were loaded into a minivan ahead of their journey from Calais All smiles: Child migrants are loaded into a van in Saint Omer ahead of their journey to Britain Figures: In the 12 months to September last year, 65 per cent were found to be aged over 18 But after the blue-clad migrant's photograph was widely published online yesterday, some wondered about his age. Analysis of his picture by Microsoft's face recognition program How Old Do I Look? suggested he had the facial features of a 38-year-old, although the software company cautioned it was just an estimate. A spokesman said: 'How-old.net was designed to be an example of how developers could build a fun app using modern development practices. It is not intended to be used as a definitive assessment of age.' And Dr Ross Perry, medical director of the Harley Street skin clinic Cosmedics, said: 'It is very difficult to assess someone's age based on just one photograph, but I would guess he is late 30s to early 40s. 'The wrinkles around the eyes are the tell-tale sign, and the loss of volume in the cheeks. 'He doesn't look like a child. But then if he has been living in a war zone, it could well have aged him prematurely, and it is impossible to know without meeting him.' It comes as it was revealed nearly two-thirds of those quizzed about their real age last year were found to be adults, according to the Home Office A third batch of 'child' refugees are on their way to Britain after getting into a van in France Shamsher is interviewed on BBC2's Victoria Derbyshire show before leaving France for Britain THE BOY WHO LEFT LILY ALLEN IN TEARS: SHAMSHER'S STORY Shamsher Sherin, the teenage refugee in Calais Lily Allen apologised to in the Jungle Shamsher Sherin left Afghanistan about nine months ago and began a gruelling six-month trek halfway across the globe. He walked most of the journey, but he also used about 5,400 to take buses, motorbikes and cars as he travelled through Pakistan, Iraq, Turkey, Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Austria and Italy before finally arriving in France three months ago. The teenager was one of between 800 and 1,000 unaccompanied children in the shantytown left facing an uncertain future when it is bulldozed this month. 'I'm so worried about that,' he previously said. 'Where will we go?' Shamsher said his father, Hazrat Gul Sherin, went on ahead of him to set up a home for the family, and now lives in Birmingham. But in the chaos of escaping Afghanistan he said he lost contact with his whole family. Shamsher had admitted that due to hold-ups in the process of applying to move to the UK he had also tried to jump on lorries to get to Britain. He said: 'Life here is very hard. It is very cold, especially at night. 'I hope I can make it to England as soon as possible.' Allen's apology for the nation to Shamsher, broadcast on BBC2's Victoria Derbyshire programme last week, prompted a wave of negative comments online. She said: 'It just seems that at three different intervals in this young boy's life, the English in particular have put you in danger.' But some viewers claimed her apology was 'ridiculous'. Richard Hughes tweeted: 'You should be ashamed of yourself, apologising on behalf of a nation and its people. Just who the hell do you think you are?' Advertisement As he left the immigration centre in Croydon last night, the migrant in the blue hoodie was clutching a piece of paper entitled: 'Application for biometric resident permit.' The 14 youngsters were taken to temporary foster homes, where they will stay until social workers have interviewed their British-based relatives to ensure their homes are safe for them to live in. Last night Tory MP David Davies said: 'This is just a joke. Some of these people are clearly not children, they're not even young men. 'This one has got lines around his eyes, lines on his face and what appears to be flecks of grey in his hair. The singer's comments provoked a backlash 'There is no way of knowing if someone is a child. We could end up causing even more misery if we are not careful. We should invite anyone who wants to come to the UK to take dental tests.' Mr Davies was condemned by dentists after calling for tests on teeth to verify the age of child migrants. The British Dental Association (BDA) said demands by the Monmouth MP for testing on those heading to Britain from the Jungle refugee camp were 'inappropriate and unethical'. Mr Davies, chairman of the Commons Welsh Affairs Select Committee, said mandatory dental checks would reassure the public the system was not being exploited. But a BDA spokesman said: 'We are vigorously opposed to the use of dental X-rays to determine whether asylum seekers have reached 18. 'It's not only an inaccurate method for assessing age, but it is both inappropriate and unethical to take radiographs of people when there is no health benefit for them. 'X-rays taken for a clinically justified reason must not be used for another purpose without the patient's informed consent, without coercion and in full knowledge of how the radiograph will be used and by whom.' Doctors of the World, which works in Calais, condemned Mr Davies's stance as 'unethical, inappropriate and divisive' and called for disciplinary action to be taken against the MP. Leigh Daynes, the charity's executive director, said: 'It's as unethical as it is inappropriate to expect healthcare workers to conduct tests on patients for immigration enforcement purposes. 'Health staff are not border guards; and in any event such tests have been shown to be unreliable.' She added: 'Such is the seriousness of Mr Davies's unethical and divisive remarks that we are asking his party chairman to consider disciplinary action.' Former Home Secretary Jack Straw backed calls for child refugees to be subject to age tests Two children, one in a black jacket and another in a light blue hooded top, are pictured left arriving in the UK from a migrant camp yesterday. Right is a migrant involved in the age row Mr Davies defended his stance, saying the authorities should not be 'naive' about the issue of adults trying to get into the UK. He said refugees who had been through an ordeal to reach the UK would not be concerned about having their age checked. 'We must not be naive about this. It's no good Lily Allen turning up with tears in her eyes and all the rest of it - we need to be quite hard-nosed here,' he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme. 'People are desperate, I understand that, and they will say what they need to say to get in. 'When I was in the camp in Calais there were caravans with notices on saying 'Come here, we will coach you in what to say to get into the UK'.' This is just a joke. Some of these people are clearly not children, they're not even young men Tory MP David Davies He added: 'People in Britain, I think, want to help children but we don't want to be taken for a free ride either by people who seem to have got to the front of the queue even though they clearly look, in some cases, a lot older than 18.' Mr Davies also said he did not accept that it was 'intrusive' to take an X-ray of a migrant. The Jungle refugee camp could be closed imminently after a French court rejected an appeal from aid groups to delay the clearance. French authorities are expected to empty the migrant camp in Calais in the coming weeks and dismantle it by the start of winter. A Lille court has rejected a request from aid groups to postpone the closure, arguing that authorities are not ready to relocate its residents. Charity groups warned that many of the migrants do not want to stay in France and may set up camp elsewhere to continue trying to cross the English Channel to Britain. The French interior and housing ministers welcomed the court's ruling and said the camp should be dismantled before winter sets in. THE HOME OFFICE HAS NO SAFE WAY TO CHECK AGE Despite bringing child refugees to Britain, the Home Office has no failsafe way of guaranteeing that they are actually under 18. Amid fears that adults are posing as minors, it emerged that officials do not carry out medical tests subjecting migrants instead to rigorous interviews. Home Office officials in Calais work with French authorities to ensure applicants qualify under the Dublin Regulation, which lets children lodge asylum claims if they have close family here. If a refugee does not have a birth certificate, a screening officer can certify them as a child based on their 'physical appearance and demeanour'. Unless the refugee appears 'significantly' over 18, they should be 'afforded the benefit of doubt'. Meanwhile in Britain, the child migrants' relatives will be contacted by staff trained to spot inconsistencies in accounts. On arrival, the children will be assessed and screened again. On medical tests, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health guidance states 'age determination is extremely difficult to do with certainty because it is an inexact science'. Dental checks are also inconclusive, with a margin of error of around two years. Similar care must be taken with bone-age x-rays, with the RCPCH saying differences 'may be due to differences in the timing of the onset of puberty'. Advertisement 'I think you're making a series of sneering fatuous little points': Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan hits out at Tory MP David Davies as the pair clash over the 'child' refugee age row Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan was today involved in a furious spat with a Tory MP over what he called the 'demonisation' of child refugees. In an angry exchange with David Davies, the presenter said there was 'a whiff of unpleasant racism and anti-foreigner-ism' about the migrant age row. The Monmouth MP had been quoted as saying 14 teenagers who arrived in the UK from Calais on Monday 'don't look like 'children', and called for dental checks to verify their age. Clash: Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan was today involved in a furious spat with Tory MP David Davies over what he called the 'demonisation' of child refugees But a seething Piers, 51, told him: 'Who are you to decide that these very impoverished people who've been through an absolutely hellish time - and are coming to this country in actually comparatively small numbers to what I feel our country's moral duty is to these people. 'And all your response is, 'uh, I don't think they're the right. age. Let's check their teeth'.' Mr Davies, 46, had defended his position, saying: 'I don't think it's in the least bit intrusive to do a short X-ray on somebody, particularly if you're saying you want to help. 'I want to help young children. Certainly charities seem to have given the impression that there are very young children who need our help, and not quite the hulking young adults who seem to be coming over.' Difference of opinion: In an angry exchange with Mr Davies, the presenter said there was 'a whiff of unpleasant racism and anti-foreigner-ism' about the migrant age row The Monmouth MP had been quoted as saying 14 teenagers who arrived in the UK from Calais on Monday 'don't look like 'children', and called for dental checks to verify their age In response, Piers said: 'These hulking young adults have come from war-torn countries, wars that this country helped create in some cases, desperately in need of help. 'Whether they're five, 10, 15, 20 or 25 there's a whiff of very unpleasant racism and anti-foreigner-ism about this, going 'look at him, check his teeth', 'how old is this asylum seeker'. 'Who are you to say we're going to check the teeth of these little miscreants because I don't believe they're the right age?' Mr Davies replied: 'I'm not suggesting they're miscreants. You're getting carried on a tide of emotion. We need to be hard-nosed about this. We've said we're going to help children, not 25-year-olds. Furious: Piers Morgan was angered by David Davies' suggestion that dental tests be used to check the age of child refugees arriving in Britain from the 'Jungle' migrant camp in Calais 'I appreciate you feel very strongly about this,' he added, before Piers interjected with: 'I do. I don't like the demonisation of this and I think your proposal to check all their teeth is quite offensive.' Visibly irritated, Mr Davies then replied: 'OK, sorry am I interrupting you or would you like to carry on? I don't want to interrupt your monologue here.' But his comment was met with a stern response from Piers, who said: 'I think you're making a series of rather sneering, fatuous little points and I would like you to address mine. A man got revenge on a pervert who was sending sex-texts to his girlfriend's Facebook account by replying with a picture of himself in her frilly yellow knickers. Karl Hughes, 28, intervened after another man started sending suggestive messages to his partner Jessica Davidson - with hilarious consequences. So when Karl - posing as Jessica - offered the creep 'sexy underwear' photos, he donned a pair of Jessica's yellow size 12 French knickers and replied with the caption: 'There ya go darling'. Karl Hughes, left, responded to a text message sent to his partner Jessica, right, who just gave birth to their first daughter Valencia just three week ago looking for sexy photographs Karl sourced a pair of his girlfriend's yellow French knickers for the secret admirer Instead of a photograph of the mother-of-one, the pervert received photographs of Karl Mother-of-one Jessica, who gave birth to daughter Valencia just three weeks ago, said the man had sent her unsolicited messages after spotting her out shopping. Karl, from Middlesbrough, Cleveland, said: 'This guy started messaging her after he'd seen us in town together with our new baby, which is a bit weird because we were clearly together. 'We were sat in bed together and Jessica had drifted off to sleep and I could see these messages coming through so I thought I'd get my own back. 'He was taking quite a creepy tone and saying things like 'I'd literally ruin you' even though Jessica had already told him we were together. 'So I thought I'd play a bit of a prank and squeezed into a pair of her pants to get a selfie and see how he liked that. Karl Hughes from Middlesbrough took an unusual approach when a man sought photographs of his girlfriend wearing just her underwear after spotting the mother-of-one in the shops Karl, pictured with Jessica, said the pervert began sending messages after seeing the couple in Middlesbrough town centre with their newborn baby daughter Valencia Karl said the man had known Jessica, pictured, but had not spoken to her in years 'so him sending her dodgy messages when he's just seen us in town together is a bit off' 'I'm 16.5 stone and covered in tattoos so it probably wasn't what he was hoping for. It took a lot of effort to squeeze into them. 'This guy does know Jessica but they've not spoken in years and for him to start sending her dodgy messages when he's just seen us in town together is a bit off. 'He came on saying things like 'why are you so ignorant' which was a bit strange and then he started with the suggestive comments. 'Jessica says it's happened to her before so I thought this time I would teach him not to message a woman who's just had a baby. 'He was expecting a picture of her so I'm sure his face dropped when he saw me.' Karl said he had to rummage through Jessica's underwear drawer to find an item that fit him before finally settling on the saucy La Senza number. His topless picture was met with silence, with Karl believing the recipient was too embarrassed to even send a response. Jessica, 21, said: 'The first few pairs he looked at were a bit small and everything would have been hanging out of them. 'The yellow ones have a bit of a tear on them now so I'm not sure I'll be wearing those again. 'At first I was sleeping so I didn't really know what Karl was doing but when I saw it I thought it was hilarious. 'It was pretty tragic for the other fella who obviously thinks I'm a bit of a mug if I'm going to send him sexy pictures when I've just had a baby with Karl. 'He's not replied. Maybe he's still upset. It makes me laugh at the shock he must have got after getting himself all excited. I'm not that sort of girl. A man in a wheelchair has died after blowing himself with a pipe bomb inside a Californian health clinic. Oakland Police said the man entered the San Antonio Neighborhood Health Center with what appeared to be an explosive device. Witnesses say he was sitting in the waiting room for around an hour when he detonated the bomb close in the lobby at 6.30pm yesterday. Oakland Police said the man entered the San Antonio Neighborhood Health Center, pictured, with what appeared to be an explosive device before blowing himself up Nobody else was injured in the incident with police now investigating and are thought to be treating it as a suicide. However, it is not immediately clear what might have motivated the man to kill himself and he has not yet been identified. His death has been likened to a scene from the TV show Breaking Bad, where one wheelchair-bound character plants a bomb under his wheelchair and blows himself up in a bid to kill himself and a rival. Oakland Police told the East Bay Times that it appeared it was an isolated incident and that it was not related to terrorism. They also added it was not immediately clear if the man planned to just harm himself or also injure others. After the explosion, the Almeda County Sheriff's Office sent a bomb squad to the scene to scour the area for any further explosives. It is also believed the Alameda County Sheriffs Office Coroners Bureau has taken possession of the body. The San Antonio Health Center is located near to a church in one of the most multi-cultural areas of Oakland. A police van rammed into protesters, leaving several bleeding in the street, after an anti-U.S. rally turned violent in the Philippines. At least three student activists had to be taken to a hospital after they were run over by the van driven by a police officer, protest leader Renato Reyes said. The demonstration took place at the American Embassy in the capital Manila, and was calling for an end to the presence of visiting U.S. troops in the Philippines. Scroll down for video Demonstrators clashed with police outside the U.S. embassy in Manila when protests against American intervention in the country turned violent At least three people were taken to hospital for treatment, and at least 23 people were arrested after the clashes turned violent Several people were run over when a police vehicle surged towards the crowds of protesters Video footage showed the van repeatedly ramming into protesters as it drove wildly back and forth. The van surged into the crowds after activists surrounded the vehicle and started hitting it with wooden batons they had seized from police. In front of horrified crowds, including videojournalists and photographers, the police vehicle suddenly charged backward then sprinted forward twice over a space of about 20 meters, barreling through the scattered protesters and hurtling some to the side like bowling pins. Activists surrounded the vehicle and started hitting it with wooden batons they had seized from police Some protesters hurled stones at the van and yelled expletives at police officers Protest leaders criticised the heavy-handed tactics police had used to disperse protesters Some of the protesters managed to struggle to their feet after being hit by the van, while others hurled stones at the van and yelled expletives. Some screamed in surprise, while a speaker called the police 'puppies of imperialists' through a loudspeaker as the van charged. 'There was absolutely no justification for it,' Reyes said of the violent police dispersal of about 1,000 protesters. 'Even as the president vowed an independent foreign policy, Philippine police forces still act as running dogs of the U.S.' Shocking pictures and video from the scene shows injured protesters lying on the ground after they were struck by the police truck The hundreds of protesters included Indigenous People, students and militant groups Protesters hurled red paint at the officers and a U.S. government seal on the building Police lobbed tear gas and arrested at least 23 protesters who broke through a line of riot police and hurled red paint at the officers and a U.S. government seal at the start of the rally at the seaside embassy compound. A firetruck doused the rowdy protesters with water to push them back, but they took hold of the water hose and confronted the outnumbered police with rocks and red paint. After breaking through the police corridor, they scribbled 'U.S. troops out now' and other slogans at the embassy's tall fence with red paint. The protesters, consisting of students, workers and tribespeople, were demanding an end to the presence of visiting U.S. troops in the Philippines and to support a call by President Rodrigo Duterte for a foreign policy not dependent on the U.S., the country's longtime treaty ally. The activists came from the largest left-wing umbrella group called Bayan (Nation), which has organized regular anti-U.S. protests in front of the embassy for decades, most of which are peaceful. The violence happened as the police and President Duterte are under increased international scrutiny for their alleged role in the killings of thousands of drug suspects and pushers as part of the president's war on illegal drugs. President Duterte has come under increased international scrutiny for his war on illegal drugs Police officers last night examined the body of suspected drug dealer Herman Cunanan, whom authorities said was killed by men riding in two motorcycle President Duterte was on a state visit to China, where he is seeking to repair relations strained under his predecessor over territorial conflicts in the South China Sea. He is also seeking to expand two-way trade and investments and financing for badly needed infrastructure projects. Amid an uneasy relationship with the U.S., President Duterte has tried to reach out to China and Russia, bringing uncertainty to his country's long alliance with America. Advertisement Amateur code-breakers are being asked to earn their 'licence to puzzle' in a competition to mark the launch of a new book from spy agency GCHQ. The Government's listening post, based in Cheltenham, is releasing its first puzzle collection on Thursday, as well as a Sudoku and picture board conundrum for its competition. The GCHQ Puzzle Book includes a foreword written by the Duchess of Cambridge, whose grandmother was a Bletchley Park code-breaker during the Second World War, and will raise money for Heads Together, the mental health awareness campaign spearheaded by Kate, her husband the Duke of Cambridge and his brother Prince Harry. Amateur code-breakers are being asked to earn their 'licence to puzzle' in a competition to mark the launch of a new book from spy agency GCHQ. The Government's listening post, based in Cheltenham, is releasing its first puzzle collection on Thursday, as well as a Sudoku and picture board conundrum for its competition The brain-teaser will feature more than 140 pages of codes, puzzles and challenges created by GCHQ's experts in their spare time. These will range from 'easy' to 'mind-bending' and include ciphers and substitution codes, tests of numeracy and literacy, picture and music challenges. And its compilers say that it will take someone working alone 'months' to solve the many stages that lead to the final answer. It follows the success of the agency's Christmas cryptography challenge, which saw some 600,000 people attempt to beat what was dubbed the 'hardest puzzle in the world'. Nobody managed to entirely solve the series of challenges set by GCHQ director Robert Hannigan in his Christmas card last year, although three men who came closest were declared joint winners. The GCHQ Puzzle Book includes a foreword written by the Duchess of Cambridge, whose grandmother Valerie Glassborow (right) was a Bletchley Park code-breaker during the Second World War. It will raise money for Heads Together, the mental health awareness campaign spearheaded by Kate (pictured at Bletchley in 2014), her husband and his brother Prince Harry In announcing the latest contest, GCHQ dropped a hint, saying: 'To start the competition, players are challenged to a form of Sudoku and a picture board of famous people - but in what shouldn't be a spoiler, this is a multi-stage competition. 'Solving these two grids unlocks a series of puzzles, challenges and instructions that will bend and twist the minds of players in their quest for their "licence to puzzle".' The closing date for the competition, which is only open to those who buy the book, is Tuesday, February 28, 2017. DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A CODEBREAKER? TRY THESE GCHQ PUZZLES 1. Can you identify what the following letters represent? GOCWIKTCEPIPEWNMBCMVFSCFTFLCWPGROCBLCPSM 2. The answer to each question pairs with another answer on the list, and the words will only differ in their first letter. Note that the pronunciation might differ between them. 1. One half of a titular TV sitcom couple. 2. British budget clothing and homeware retailer. 3. Type of hat. 4. One of the Channel Islands. 5. River that passes through northern English city. 6. TV space alien. 7. Capital of country with a coastline on the Persian Gulf. 8. Surname of an England football captain. 9. An Irish county. 10. An English city that is a county town. 11. One of the official languages of the fourth largest country in Europe. 12. District of South East London. 3. Identify the following place My first is in Finland but not in Finnish My second is in Estonia but not in Estonian My third is in Albania but not in Albanian My fourth is in Sweden but not in Swedish My fifth is in Germany but not in German My sixth is in Iceland but not in Icelandic My last is in Wales but not in Welsh My whole is in England but not in English Where am I? ANSWERS ARE BELOW The brain-teaser will feature more than 140 pages of codes, puzzles and challenges created by GCHQ's (above) experts in their spare time. These will range from 'easy' to 'mind-bending' and include ciphers and substitution codes, tests of numeracy and literacy, picture and music challenges ANSWERS Question 1: GOCWIKTCEPIPEWNMBCMVFSCFTFLCWPGROCBLCPSM represent the first letters of Monopoly squares. Go, Old Kent Road, Community Chest, Whitechapel Road, Income Tax, Kings Cross station, The Angel Islington, Chance, Euston Road, Pentonville Road, In Jail/Just Visiting, Pall Mall, Electric Company, Whitehall, Northumberland Avenue, Marylebone station, Bow Street, Community Chest, Marlborough Street, Vine Street, Free Parking, Strand, Chance, Fleet Street, Trafalgar Square, Fenchurch Street station, Leicester Square, Coventry Street, Water Works, Piccadilly, Go To Jail, Regent Street, Oxford Street, Community Chest, Bond Street, Liverpool Street station, Chance, Park Lane, Super Tax, Mayfair. Question 2: The pairs are... 1. Terry 9. Kerry 2. Matalan 11. Catalan 3. Panama 7. Manama 4. Jersey 5. Mersey 6. Mork 10. York 8. Beckham 12. Peckham Question 3: The answer is Londres Each line refers to a letter which appears in the name of the country in English, but not the name of the country in its native language. My first is in Finalnd but not in Suomi: L My second is in Estonia but not in EestiL O My third is in Albania but not in Shqiperia: N My fourth is in Sweden but not in Sverige: D My fifth is in Germany but not in Deutschland: R My sixth is in Iceland but not in Island: E My last is in Wales but not in Cymru: S Who whole is in England but not in English: Londres Advertisement According to official records, the German U-boat was simply a casualty of the First World War scuttled after her crew surrendered. However, the legend of UB-85 tells a different tale of a huge sea monster with glistening teeth and large eyes. Now, almost a century after the boat vanished beneath the waves, marine engineers believe they may have stumbled across the 148ft wreck off Stranraer, Wigtownshire. Marine engineers believe they have found the wreck of the UB-85 - a German U-boat which, legend has it, was attacked by a Loch Ness monster-like sea creature The U-boat would have looked similar to this one when it was sunk by the British in 1918 They made the discovery while preparing to lay cables under the Irish Sea in ScottishPower and National Grid's 1billion Western Link project. Innes McCartney, a historian and nautical archaeologist trying to identify the vessel, believes the riddle of the sea monster could now be unravelled. Dr McCartney said: 'In the waters of the Irish Sea there are at least 12 British and German submarines known to have sunk. 'The features of this wreck, largely intact, confirm it as a UBIII-class submarine, of which we know of two lost in the area the more famous UB-85 and its sister boat UB-82.' He continued: 'Unless a diver can find a shipyard stamp, we cannot say definitively but yes, we're certainly closer to solving the so-called mystery of UB-85 and the reason behind its sinking whether mechanical failure or something that is less easily explained.' Official reports from the time tell how the submarine was caught on the surface on April 30, 1918, by patrol boat HMS Coreopsis. Official reports from the time tell how the U-boat was caught on the surface by HMS Coreopsis A chart shows the location of the sunken submarine off the south-west coast of Scotland The Germans surrendered without resistance, much to the surprise of the British, who then sank UB-85. But rumours quickly surfaced of a sea creature terrorising the German crew. According to folklore, when the commanding officer was questioned why he had been cruising on the surface he revealed an astonishing encounter with a creature from the deep. Captain lieutenant Gunther Krech told how the U-boat had been recharging batteries at night when the beast emerged from the sea. It is claimed he described a creature with 'large eyes, set in a horny sort of skull' and 'teeth seen glistening in the moonlight'. Startled, his men began firing at the monster which refused to let go of the forward gun mount. As the vessel began to list, the captain ordered his men to continue the attack until the monster finally slipped back under the water. A German captain said the ship was attacked by a sea monster with glistening teeth. File photo The famous 1934 hoax 'Nessie' photo. Many believe sea monsters were in Scottish waters Shaken but unharmed, the crew quickly realised the boat was badly damaged and unable to submerge. The captain is said to have told the British: 'That is why you were able to catch us on the surface.' Gary Campbell, keeper of the Loch Ness Monster official sightings register, believes there could be some truth in the incredible tale. 'The WWI report from the captain of the British ship HMS Hilary a year earlier makes it clear that seafarers were well aware of large sea "monsters" that could harm their ships.' The area where the U-boat sank had a history of sea monster sightings. The DNC said the driver had been worried about the contents leaking, but branded the incident 'unacceptable' The Democratic National Committee has been forced to apologize after raw sewage was dumped from one of its buses, which bore the face of candidate Hillary Clinton. Businessman Mike Robins spotted the unpleasant mixture oozing from the bottom of the bus in Gwinnett County, Georgia, and police were called. Witnesses reported a 'foul smell' left in the air, and a large amount of drying toilet paper left in the road. Scroll down for video The circled area shows raw sewage oozing from the bottom of the campaign bus, which carries the image of Hillary Clinton and running mate Tim Kaine, in Gwinnett County, Georgia. It was posted on Twitter, and critics voiced their horror The bus, which bears the slogan 'Forward Together' and features the likenesses of presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and running mate Tim Kaine, was in town for an early voting event. Robins told Fox5: 'You don't pull up and dump raw sewage on the street and in the storm drain. You just don't do that.' The 60-year-old told the New York Daily News that it didn't matter which party was responsible for the dumping, as it should not have happened. He said: 'I wouldnt care who did it. I dont care if it was Hillary. I dont care if [the bus] had Trumps name on it. 'It was the wrong thing to do.' The bus was on the campaign trail for Hillary Clinton and her running mate, Tim Kaine, and was in town for an early voting event And Captain Jeff Smith continued: 'There is a violation, there is a city violation for dumping materials into the storm drain system, obviously this feeds into streams.' A DNC representative said the sewage container was full, and the driver was concerned about the contents leaking. A party statement said: 'This was an unacceptable mistake and we apologize to the Lawrenceville community for any harm that was caused. 'We are taking corrective action with the charter bus company to prevent this from ever happening again and contacting local officials to determine the best course of action.' Gwinnett County fire hazmat crews cleaned up the spill, and Georgia's Environmental Protection Division is investigating. Desperate: Kayleigh-Emma and Gary Shiel A woman who has a fear of being pregnant was rejected by an adoption agency because of her unusual phobia. Kayleigh-Emma Shiel, from Elland, West Yorkshire, dreams of becoming a mother but suffers from tokophobia, a fear of pregnancy and childbirth. Mrs Shiel, 30, and her husband Gary, 47, applied to adopt in January this year, believing it was their only way of having a child together. But they were rejected by Calderdale Council, who cited Mrs Shiel's condition as a contributing factor. She said: ' I feel like my heart has been ripped into a million pieces. I truly believe that my only chance to become a mum has been taken away from me. 'It's disgusting. Gary and I are hardworking, decent people. We own our own home and both of us work full-time. 'I know that we would be able to provide a child with a loving, safe environment, so to be rejected for such a ridiculous reason is devastating.' Mrs Shiel, who works as a payroll manager, started suffering from tokophobia as a teenager but was not formally diagnosed until April. Rejected: The letter from Calderdale Council, who cited Mrs Shiel's condition as a factor WHAT IS TOKOPHOBIA AND WHO IS AFFECTED? Fear of pregnancy and fear of childbirth is sometimes known as 'tokophobia'. One study estimates that one in five women is affected by the fear and six per cent are so scared of giving birth it affects their pregnancy and birth choices. Some women avoid getting pregnant, or they opt for termination, or they feel very strongly they want to have a caesarean section. Women might specifically fear a number of areas relating to pregnancy or childbirth, including, childbirth pain, fear the baby may be hurt or injured, fear of being injured or dying, or fear of being in the hands of healthcare professionals. Women who are already fearful of hospitals or injection might also find their fear of pregnancy and childbirth exacerbated by these pre-existing fears. Source: National Childbirth Trust Advertisement The condition can manifest as an intense fear of pregnancy affecting up to six in 100 women in the UK. Those afflicted can suffer from severe panic attacks and depression due to their inability to have a child. Mrs Shiel said just being around pregnant women can make her feel sick and admits she even avoids pregnant friends. She said: 'I'm scared of the pain, of a baby growing inside me, and of dying during childbirth. Giving up hope: Kayleigh-Emma and Gary Shiel on their wedding day in October 2015 'I've had a contraceptive patch for nine years, plus I take at least once pregnancy test per week. I'm absolutely terrified that I will accidentally fall pregnant. 'People laugh, but it's like someone with a phobia of spiders being trapped inside a room with lots of spiders.' Mrs Shiel, whose husband has two children from a previous relationship, said she considered surrogacy but was put off after she was abused on an online forum. The couple applied to adopt in January but two months later were told they had been unsuccessful. The council listed a number of reasons explaining why they were not suitable, including Mrs Shiel's phobia of 'needles and pain'. She said: 'I could barely believe my eyes when I read their response. Not only did they spell my name wrong, but they confirmed that they were rejecting me for the adoption process because I was scared of the pain of childbirth. 'To be fair to Calderdale Council, there were other reasons on the letter, including the fact that Gary and I smoke. We are both in the process of giving up. 'But the fact that my phobia was even on there really upset me.' Mrs Shiel added she wants to raise awareness for other people in similar situations who are desperate to become parents but do not fit the criteria. She added: 'All I've ever wanted to do is be a mum. I just want to be given a chance.' Raising awareness: Mr and Mrs Shiel, pictured left on their wedding day and right today Director of Calderdale Council's Children and Young People's Services, Stuart Smith, said: 'I know that Mr and Mrs Shiel were deeply disappointed by our decision. This is never an easy decision for us to take and never one which we take lightly. 'We have a rigorous but sensitive adoption process founded on what we believe will provide the best adoptive family for the very vulnerable children in our care. This is a very challenging and demanding role and unfortunately not everyone is able to do it, even if they are keen to try. Three British warships have been deployed to man-mark a Russian naval fleet including an aircraft carrier and nuclear-powered battlecruiser as it heads to the Channel. The Russians boasted they were seizing control of the seas and had no equal in terms of naval power as the fleet makes its way through the Mediterranean to Syria. Type-45 destroyer HMS Duncan the worlds most advanced air-defence destroyer sailed from Portsmouth last night to join frigate HMS Richmond, which has intercepted the Kuznetsov task group of eight ships. The Royal Navy is observing the Russian aircraft carrier the Admiral Kuznetsov conducting fight operations from its flight deck as it sails off the coast of the Orkney Islands. Scroll down for video A Royal Navy seaman onboard the HMS Richmond today keeps watch on the Russian carrier fleet as it conducts training flight operations off the coast of the Orkney Islands The Norwegian Air Force shadowed the Admiral Kuznetsov heading south on Monday, pictured The HMS Richmond has taken up station a few hundreds yards from the task force. It will remain as an escort while the Russians remain in an area of UK national interest. In a sign of the escalating tensions with Russia, UK Defence Secretary today warned Moscow: 'When these ships near our waters we will man-mark them every step of the way. We will be watching as part of our steadfast commitment to keep Britain safe.' It marks a further breakdown of relations between the two countries after after Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson became embroiled in a row with the Russian embassy last week. The Russian Defence Ministry earlier released footage of fighter jets training on the aircraft The HMS Richmond is observing the Admiral Kuznetsov conduct flight training operations off the coast of the Orkneys as the Russian carrier fleet prepares to deploy to the Mediterranean Type-45 destroyer HMS Duncan the worlds most advanced air-defence destroyer sailed from Portsmouth last night to join frigate HMS Richmond, which has intercepted the Kuznetsov task group of eight ships The Russian fleet is being shadowed by the Type 23 Frigate HMS Richmond, pictured today Mr Johnson called on people to demonstrate outside Russia's London embassy last week in protest against Russia's bombing campaign in the Syrian city of Aleppo. But Moscow responded by branding his call for protests 'shameful' and accused him of 'Russophobic hysteria'. Britain's mobilisation of the aircraft carrier fleet off the coast of Scotland is the latest in an increasing presence of international naval assets in the area. After completing training it is understood the aircraft carrier fleet will head to an anchorage on the Moray Firth where it will be refuelled before continuing to the Mediterranean. Naval assets from Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Netherlands are all believed to be on standby. As well as the Royal Navy, the Royal Norwegian Navy, Finnish Navy and Royal Netherlands Navy have vessels surrounding the North Sea. NATO aircraft are also patrolling the area, with tanker aircraft on station ready to refuel any fighter jets tasked with observing the Russian fleet. The aircraft carrier is supported by the nuclear-powered battleship Pyotr Velikiy, pictured on Monday passing the Norwegian coast by a Lockheed P3-Orion surveillance aircraft The Russians have also sent a submarine, pictured, to protect the aircraft carrier fleet Russian military expert Alexander Khrolenko said: 'While the North Atlantic bloc is stalling in the sands of the Middle East, the Russian Navy seizes control over the Atlantic, not to mention the Mediterranean and Black Seas.' He added: 'They [NATO] have no equal in the Mediterranean.' In addition the RAF Quick Reaction Alert squadrons in RAF Lossiemouth in north east Scotland and RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire. The Admiral Kuznetsov is protected by a battle cruiser and a pair of large anti-submarine ships. It is also protected from below the surface by an attack submarine. The Kuznetsov has undergone an extensive refit since its last deployment to the Mediterranean in 2014 when it had to be followed by several tugs in case its steam turbine engines packed up. Earlier this week the Norwegian navy followed the heavily-armed fleet as it sailed south from Severomorsk, near Murmansk in the Barents Sea. According to the Ministry of Defence, the Russian fleet is being kept under close observation by the Royal Navy and the RAF. The Admiral Kuznetsov is carrying Sukhoi SU-27-K Flanker fighter bombers A source told MailOnline: 'The Admiral Kuznetsov is currently conducting flight operations off the east coast of the Orkneys. 'The pilots need to be certified for carrier take-offs and landings at day and night before it takes up station in the Mediterranean. 'They are free to do this in international waters, but once they are in the English Channel, the aircraft will be grounded.' The MOD confirmed the Royal Navy would shadow the carrier and its fleet while it remains in the UK's area of interest. Also, RAF Typhoons and Tornadoes are on red alert at airbases in Lossiemouth in North East Scotland and Coningsby in Lincolnshire in case any Russian jets stray into UK airspace The French Navy has the nuclear powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle in the Mediterranean already conducting combat operations against ISIS targets in Syria The Charles De Gaulle is the only non-American nuclear powered aircraft carrier in service The Charles De Gaulle is been protected by the guided missile destroyer USS Ross, pictured here in the Combat Information Centre where its Tomahawk cruise missiles are controlled The USS Ross was tasked to support the Charles de Gaulle in the eastern Mediterranean The fleet could possibly route around Ireland's west coast to avoid the English Channel, however there is far greater shelter avoiding the Atlantic Ocean. However, after going through the Bay of Biscay and down the Portuguese coast, the fleet will pass through the nine mile wide Gibraltar straits before reaching its area of operation. ADMIRMAL KUZNETSOV OPERATIONAL: 1995 DISPLACEMENT: 55,000 tonnes LENGTH: 305 metres BEAM: 72 metres DRAFT: 10 metres PROPULSION: Steam Turbines POWER: 200,000hp SPEED: 29 knots RANGE: 8,500 nautical miles CREW: 1,690 plus 626 in the air group. AIRCRAFT: 12x SU-33 fighters 24x helicopters Advertisement It is understood the fleet will resupply before continuing to the Mediterranean. The Admiral Kuznetsov is the Russian flagship and the country's only aircraft carrier. The French already have the Charles De Gaulle operating in the eastern Mediterranean. Major Elisabeth Eikeland, spokeswoman for the Norwegian Army's National Joint Headquarters said: 'We have been informed that they are en route to the Mediterranean. It's not every day that so many ships sail together off Norway.' According to the Russian Ministry of Defence, the aircraft carrier taskforce departed on Saturday to the Mediterranean. A spokesman said: 'The group consists of the aircraft-carrying heavy cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov, the Pyotr Velikiy battlecruiser, large anti-submarine ships Severomorsk and Vice-Admiral Kulakov and support vessels.' The Russian MOD claimed: 'Special focus will be made on safeguarding security of maritime traffic and other types of maritime economic activity of Russia and also on responding to the new kinds of modern threats such as piracy and international terrorism.' The Admiral Kuznetsov had previously operated in the Mediterranean early in 2014. Starbucks' new Citrus Mint Green Tea Latte (pictured) contains a whopping 321 calories in every 470ml 'grande' sized cup - more calories than one average-sized Mars Bar Starbucks is selling a cup of green tea containing more calories than a single Mars Bar and two cans of Coca Cola. The chain's new Citrus Mint Green Tea Latte contains a whopping 321 calories in every 470ml 'grande' sized cup. That's significantly more than the 230 calories found in a standard 51 gram Mars Bar. And it's even more than the 278 calories found in two standard 355ml cans of Coke. Starbucks is selling the tea drink as part of a new line of 'Teavana' branded teas. Health campaigners say that in doing so, the company is contributing to Britain's obesity epidemic. Kawther Hashem, a nutritionist from health pressure group Action on Sugar, described the tea's calorie content as 'shocking' and called for Starbucks to adjust its recipe. 'Coffee shop chains must immediately reduce the amount of sugar in these hot drinks, improve their labelling and stop selling the extra-large serving sizes,' she said. 'The huge quantities of sugar in hot drinks, such as these, can contribute to the onset of obesity, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay and immediate action and responsibility needs to be taken by these companies in reducing sugar levels and introduce healthier alternatives.' Starbucks is rolling out its 'Teavana' autumn drink range across the country this month. Promotional material claims the company has 're-imagine[d] tea into a vibrant experience to uplift your mind and spirit.' The Teavana selection contains standard teas such as English Breakfast and Earl Grey, which when drunk with neither milk nor sugar have zero calories. But it also features elaborate 'tea lattes' in which water is replaced with frothy milk. The Citrus Mint Green Tea Latte contains a whopping 321 calories in every 470ml 'grande' sized cup - more calories than two standard 355ml cans of Coke (file picture) The new 'Teavana' Green Tea Latte contains more calories than the 230 in a standard Mars Bar Starbucks' online nutritional data shows that these 'tea lattes' can be laden with sugar - making them extremely calorific. The U.S. firm's new Citrus Mint Green Tea Latte with Matcha contains milk, sugar, green tea, citrus and mint flavoured syrup and a sweet lemon topping. Official Starbucks nutritional data shows that a 470ml 'grande' sized cup of the drink made with whole milk contains 321 calories. Most of these calories are likely to be accounted for by the drink's 39.2 grams - nearly ten teaspoon's worth - of sugar. The same sized cup of whole milk Chai Tea Latte contains 255 calories and 41.2 grams - over ten teaspoons' full - of sugar Starbucks' online nutritional data shows that the 'tea lattes' can be laden with sugar - making them extremely calorific. Health campaigners say it is contributing to Britain's obesity crisis The Chai Tea Latte can even be bought in Starbuck's extra large Venti (590ml, or just over a pint) cup. This amount of Chai Tea Latte contains 322 calories and nearly thirteen teaspoons of sugar. A Grande-sized (470ml) Green Tea Latte is likely to contain around 250 calories and around 26 grams - or six teaspoons' worth - of sugar. Starbucks' in-store signage does reveal the calorie content of each of the new Teavana drinks. But it does so for drinks made with skimmed milk. Only by asking at the counter - or by looking online - can customers learnt the calorie content of drinks made with more fattening whole milk. The Teavana tea latte drinks range in price from 2.80 at their cheapest to nearly 4. A Starbucks spokesman said: 'We are committed to helping our customers make balanced and informed choices by displaying nutritional information and providing a wide range of drinks options. This is the moment a camel slumped over a pile of hay - because he didn't want to share it. The hungry animal, called Fergus, was seen lying spread-eagled across the giant bale in Nyngan Riverside Caravan Park in New South Wales, Australia. Pictures show other animals in the farmyard, including alpacas and goats, looking on from a distance as Fergus sprawled over the pile of hay. Greedy: A camel was pictured lying over his pile of hay in Australia - because he didn't want to share it The images were captured by Lauren Mortimer, from Greenock, near Glasgow. Ms Mortimer, 28, works in housekeeping at the park and at a nearby farm to fund her travels. She said: 'Fergus and the other animals get on really well but he's quite selfish when it comes to feeding time as you can see. 'I think it's funnier looking at the picture now than it was at the time. 'Although me and the two girls I was with were laughing a lot when we saw Fergus lying on the hay, it's only now after looking at the pic that you can see all the other animals looking on. 'Normally they all share the food - it's the first time I've seen him do that. It looked as if he didn't want the other animals to eat it. Pictures show other animals in the farmyard, including alpacas and goats, looking on from a distance as Fergus sprawled over the pile of hay 'He was there a full five minutes face-planting it.' Ms Mortimer, who has been in Australia for the last 11 months, said she had a soft spot for all the animals at the park including Fergus, the goats, the alpaca and the donkey who were all spotted in the snap. 'I love animals and discovering their strange and wonderful personalities so as you can imagine, I was delighted to catch this moment on camera,' she said. Rommel Alleyne has been jailed for attempting to run over and then attacking a love rival A jealous male model was jailed for two years for trying to run over a love rival in his gold car. Model Rommel Alleyne, 25, flew into a rage after spotting Thomas Church hand in hand with a former girlfriend. Alleyne - known as 'Rome' - swerved his customised gold Peugeot at Thomas Church walking at night with his ex-lover. A court heard Mr Church leapt our of the way of the car driven - but Alleyne jumped out to confront him in the street. Prosecutor Jason Howells said: 'The two men then entered into a fight. 'Alleyne was punched to the floor three times but got back up each time. He got into his car and drove off at speed.' Alleyne parked in a nearby B&Q car park to waited with a metal pole for Mr Church to walk by. Alleyne, who is also a rapper whose music videos have been viewed thousands of times, then hit him across the head with the pole before fleeing in his car. Mr Church was take to the Royal Gwent Hospital, Newport, where a 3cm wound to his head needed gluing together. Alleyne, of Cwmbran, Gwent, pleaded guilty to unlawful wounding. The court heard Alleyne, who has appeared in rap videos online, lay in wait for his victim Judge Thomas Crowther said Alleyne had swerved at his love rival before waiting to attack him with his weapon. Sentencing him to two years in prison, Judge Crowther said: 'You approached the couple in your car and swerved towards them. 'There was then a fight which you comprehensively lost.' A shop worker has admitted sending a death threat to Labour MP Angela Eagle after she announced a bid to oust Jeremy Corbyn as party leader. Steven King, 45, sent an email which warned: 'If you become leader of the Labour party... you will die you Bitch.' He also wrote: 'Next time you see me I'll be with a real gun or knife cutting your life to an end.' Angela Eagle was sent the email in July after she announced her intention to challenge Jeremy Corbyn for the Labour leadership Steven King, 45, pleaded guilty to a charge of sending a grossly offensive, indecent, obscene or menacing message King pleaded guilty to a charge of sending a grossly offensive, indecent, obscene or menacing message. Wirral Magistrates Court heard shop worker King told police he was 'venting his anger' and would never have acted on any of the threats he made. King, of Mirin Wynd, Paisley, Scotland, sent the email from his mobile phone while getting ready for work on July 12 - the day after Wallasey MP Ms Eagle formally announced her bid to oust Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader. His email, which was littered with poor grammar and spelling mistakes, read: 'If! You become the leader of the Labour Party you will split and make Labour lose but also will too have time too enjoy it, you will die you Bitch, you will have too watch every step.' King told Ms Eagle to leave the UK and said she would 'never be safe'. He also threatened an 'IRA sniper or bomb on you the day you steal the leadership of the Labour party.' He also called the MP 'an evil witch', and wrote: 'Do you really believe you can win and live to use that power? this is my one and only warning next time you see me I'll be with a real gun or knife cutting your life to an end.' The email ended with: 'Leave the UK... or die.' Amanda Cullen, prosecuting, said the email was read first by Jay Glover, who works as constituency officer manager for Wirral South MP Alison McGovern, but was helping Ms Eagle. She told the court: 'He was deeply concerned regarding the contents and reported the matter to the police.' When interviewed by police, King admitted sending the email as a way to 'let off steam' over Ms Eagle's bid to take over the Labour leadership. He said he had no access to firearms and no plans to travel to Wallasey, and simply looked up her email address while getting ready for work. King admitted drinking whisky before sending the email but said he was not drunk as he had to work that afternoon. The court heard he was left 'annoyed and very upset' at hearing of Ms Eagle's leadership bid, and wanted her to 'feel as upset as he had felt'. Sinead Fearon, defending, said: 'This is a man who clearly needs some sort of help. He sent the email on July 12, which was extremely distressing to the recipient. 'He did it on a whim without any thought as to the consequences of that. Jeremy Corbyn, pictured at a film premiere last night, has said the problems in Wallasey CLP must be resolved 'He said he was venting his anger and would never have acted on those threats he made in the email. 'He is not a gentleman who gets into trouble regularly in these courts or up in Scotland.' The court heard King was suspended from his part-time job in a shop after being charged with the offence. Magistrates said the case was serious enough for him to be jailed because of the words used and the political environment at the time the email was sent, including the murder of MP Jo Cox. They gave King an eight-week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, and ordered him to complete a 25 day rehabilitation order. He must also complete 80 hours of unpaid work and pay 200 in costs. A spokesman for Ms Eagle said: 'The death threat received by Angelas office was credible and frightening. It led staff to fear for their and Angelas safety, especially coming weeks after our friend and colleague, Jo Coxs, murder. 'Despite all this having been upsetting, Angela has always remained upbeat and focused on the important work of holding this rotten Tory government to account, most importantly on their chaotic approach to Britain leaving the European Union and investment into the Wirral.' Separately, a Labour review has found Ms Eagle was subjected to homophobic abuse and had her office bricked because she challenged Mr Corbyn. The incidents have been bitterly disputed by some supporters of Mr Corbyn who believe he has been subject to a conspiracy of media smears. But an internal Labour investigation into the events, which occurred after Ms Eagle officially began a challenge to Mr Corbyn's leadership in July, did happen and were linked to the fight over Labour's future. The senior Labour MP today said it was now clear the abuse against her and her staff 'both happened and is intolerable'. Ms Eagle thanked Mr Corbyn for his support. Ms Eagle's Wallasey constituency party remains suspended because of the 'toxic' atmosphere making it impossible for activists to meet 'safely'. Mr Corbyn unexpectedly took a full part in a three hour meeting of a sub-committee of Labour's ruling NEC to discuss the report, which was leaked to the Liverpool Echo today. Ms Eagle said: 'The report by national party officers comprehensively explains what happened earlier this year and the NEC has accepted the findings. 'I am grateful that Jeremy took the unusual step of both attending and speaking in the meeting and that he expressed sincere sympathy for both me and for my staff. 'It is now clear and accepted by the NEC that homophobic abuse was perpetrated by some members of the local Party. 'I will simply not tolerate it, and I know I have the backing of both Jeremy and union leaders when I say that there is no place for it in the Labour movement either. 'As regards the vandalism of my office, I am grateful to both the internal investigators and the NEC for making clear both the facts of the matter and for the support of members up and down the country, including the Leader of the Labour Party, that such abuse both happened and is intolerable.' A friend of Angela said: 'Angela is ferociously protective of her staff and her activists and seeing them upset and scared has made her even more determined to get on with doing her job as the MP for Wallasey.' 'I imagine those guilty of homophobic abuse, who were clearly identified in the meeting and have had their names passed to NEC investigators, will be particularly worried by the NEC's ruling that the abuse did occur; such abuse has no place in the Labour movement.' A spokesman for Mr Corbyn said: 'Jeremy wants the issues relating to Wallasey CLP to be resolved so campaigning can resume.' Mr Corbyn urged at the NEC meeting for a review of Wallasey CLP to be brought forward to January so the problems in the local party could be resolved. It emerged in August that Ms Eagle was allegedly branded 'Angie the dyke' at an official Labour Party meeting in her constituency. At the same meeting a party member was threatened with being punched in the head, an official complaint has alleged. Angela Eagle's constituency office on Manor Road in Wallasey in the Wirral (pictured) was bricked in July just hours after she challenged Jeremy Corbyn for the Labour leadership Ms Eagle, who in 1997 was the first female Labour MP to come out, was not present at the June 24 meeting which is the subject of the complaint, the Guardian reported after seeing the letter sent to officials. The complaint has been lodged by 17 members of the Wallasey Labour Party who were in attendance at the annual general meeting. Today's report, based on around 100 statements, said: 'The investigation has found that some members have truthfully claimed that homophobic instances occurred during the AGM. Others truthfully said that they were not aware of those instances. 'It is possible for the events to have occurred without the knowledge of all members. 'The allegations are not that the CLP is institutionally homophobic or that members were aware of homophobia but took no action, but are specific to individuals.' On the brick incident, the report said it was 'categorically untrue' Ms Eagle had lied about the incident and concluded: 'It's highly likely that the brick thrown through the window of Angela Eagle's office was related to her leadership challenge. 'The position of the window made it very unlikely that this was a random passer-by.' The report concluded there was a 'genuine fear and intimidation' about some members and said: 'This culture is toxic and it is self-perpetuating.' A homeless man who attacked an off-duty New York cop with a meat cleaver has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder after being brought into court in a wheelchair. Akram Joudeh, 32, was shot twice by police after a chase through midtown Manhattan which was sparked when he tried to remove an immobilizing boot from his Nissan Sentra car. The car, which Joudeh had been sleeping in, had been parked illegally near Penn station and two uniformed officers confronted him as he tried to pry the boot off his front wheel. Akram Joudeh (pictured) was wheeled into Manhattan Supreme Court for a brief hearing. He is due back in court on November 29 As the officers approached him, Joudeh pulled out an 11-inch meat cleaver and ran. Brian ODonnell had just finished his shift at the 19th Precinct and was heading home to his wife Krista and three children who are aged, 12, nine and three When he saw Joudeh running he tried to stop him and received the slashing blow across his face, leaving a huge, disfiguring scar. NYPD Officer Brian O'Donnell (pictured) was discharged from Bellevue Hospital after being attacked with a meat cleaver. He said he was 'just doing my job' Afterwards Officer O'Donnell said modestly: I was just doing my job. Joudeh was shot by other officers and was taken to hospital after the incident on September 15. Yesterday he was brought into Manhattan Supreme Court in a wheelchair, pushed by a court guard. A video later emerged showing Joudeh (pictured) stomping on the parking boot and using a jack to try and get it off his tire near Penn Station, shortly before police arrived The New York Daily News said Joudeh, wearing an orange jail uniform, smiled slightly as he was brought before Judge Charles Solomon. O'Donnell, who was originally from Ireland, was discharged from Bellevue Hospital after undergoing emergency surgery. Joudeh is reportedly of Palestinian origin and has suffered from mental health problems. He also is reported to have a long rap sheet. Akram Joudeh (pictured) said 'Not guilty' in a soft voice as he appeared in court today O'Donnell (pictured, in a wheelchair) was applauded by fellow officers when he left hospital with his family He underwent emergency surgery to repair the six-inch gash to his face Mugshot: Akram Joudeh, (pictured), is understood to have a long rap sheet as well as mental health issues During the incident chased him through the heavily-patrolled area to West 32 St, near Penn Station, where he mounted the grill of a marked NYPD car. Police fired 18 shots, striking Joudeh at least twice. Joudeh, whose last registered address is in Queens, had been sleeping in the car. The vehicle had reportedly been parked in the middle of the street in a busy, tourist-heavy area of Midtown. When police approached, however, he went into a rage, pulling out the cleaver and fleeing while 'waving it around,' a police spokesman said. After a brief appearance yesterday Joudeh was remanded in custody and is due back in court on November 29. He is thought to be held in a secure psychiatric institution. Shot: Joudeh was shot by police on West 32 Street (pictured). He had been chased after allegedly trying to pry a boot off his car a block away Joudeh has a long criminal record with 15 prior arrests. One of those was an August 27 booking for carrying knives near a synagogue, NBC reported. And according to the NY Post, in 2013 Joudeh was arrested for criminal mischief after smashing a car up with a wooden fence post. While being arrested he told officers: 'I thought it was a detective's car.' Gunned down: Cops fired 18 shots hitting Joudeh (pictured lying down) multiple times after he slashed detective Brian O'Donnell with the 11-inch cleaver Attack: O'Donnell was off-duty when Joudeh allegedly climbed on a cop car; the detective then attempted to subdue him but received a six-inch gash on his face, cops said Evidence: The scene had gruesome evidence of the attack, including a towel (left) that had apparently been used to stanch blood, and a cap (right) that had apparently been cut Weapon: This is the 11-inch cleaver that was used to attack O'Donnell A mother who murdered her eight-year-old son when the boy allegedly discovered she was having an affair with his grandfather has been jailed for 30 years in Italy. Veronica Panarello throttled her son Loris Stival with electrical cables and abandoned his body in a remote gully in Santa Croce, Sicily. Panarello had tried to pretend her son had been abducted, telling police she had taken him to school and that he had disappeared by the time she came to collect him in the afternoon. Convicted: Veronica Panarello (left) throttled her son Loris Stival (right) with electrical cables Police began to suspect the boy's mother, judge Andrea Reale was told, when CCTV footage at the school did not back up her story. She was found guilty of the boy's murder and of concealing a body. Prosecutors branded her an 'egocentric, manipulative liar.' When Panarello confessed that her son had been killed, she blamed her husband's father Andrea Stival. Discovery: The child's body was abandoned in a remote gully in Santa Croce, Sicily (file picture) She told an earlier hearing that he had helped to plot and then carried out the murder because Loris had caught them having sex. Stival is being investigated as an accessory to murder, reports Italian media. He has denied the claim and is threatening to sue his daughter-in-law for slander, it has emerged. He said: It is just another lie of that crazy woman. Stival also denied any role in his grandson's death, adding: That accusation is something completely out of this world. I went mad for my grandson, my little angel. Leigh Sales has grilled Tony Abbott over changes to gun laws as he denied claims he was making another tilt for prime minister. The former Prime Minister raised eyebrows on Tuesday after tweeting his thoughts that it was 'disturbing' to see reports of the Federal Government apparently horse-trading on gun legislation. Appearing on ABC's 730 program on Wednesday, Mr Abbott maintained he never made a deal with key crossbench senator David Leyonhjelm to change gun laws, insisting it was his government that 'stopped the guns'. Senator Leyonhjelm claimed the Abbott government made an agreement with his office to insert a sunset clause of 12 months on the importation of the Adler lever-action shotgun. However, Mr Abbott said every piece of legislation has a sunset clause and letters purporting of such a deal was about telling Senator Leyonhjelm what was happening anyway. Scroll down for video Leigh Sales (left) has grilled Tony Abbott (right) in a firey debate over whether he negotiated a deal to change gun laws - as he denied claims he was making a tilt for prime-ministership 'No deals from me. No deals from my office. No deal,' he told the program. These guns were stopped because of his government, he said. 'But for the Abbott government we would now have tens of thousands of these weapons in this country,' Mr Abbott said. 'The Abbott government stopped them.' But Ms Sales refused to back down at his comments as she fired up with a string of questions about whether he was denying having any part in the ban. During the interview, Mr Abbott also insisted he was not expecting a vacancy for his old job any time soon. 'The last thing we need in this country is a revolving door prime-ministership,' he told the program. His public appearances have shot up in the past week as he's taken up the cause of pushing NSW Liberal party reform. Mr Abbott says while he's still determined to be the best local member for Warringah 'in this term of parliament', he would naturally air his feelings on such major matters. 'Occasionally on important national and international issues, as a former prime minister, I will have something to say.' Mr Abbott insists he wants Malcolm Turnbull to be the best possible prime minister throughout this term and the government to succeed. 'It's not a question of what I might like, it's a question of what the party room wants and the party room wants to end the revolving door prime-ministership.' Mr Abbott dismissed claims he negotiated with crossbench Senator David Leyonhjelm on a ban on the Adler shotgun when he was in power Earlier, Mr Abbott said no serious coalition government would allow rapid-fire weapons into Australia as he responded to calls within the coalition for the Adler to be allowed to be imported. 'With a heightened terror threat there is just no way that any serious coalition government, any government in the tradition of John Howard, should be allowing rapid-fire weapons on a very large scale into our country,' he told reporters in Canberra. Tight gun controls were one of the reasons Australia had avoided mass casualty events. 'If you allow rapid-fire guns into the country under relatively loose conditions you obviously raise the danger that people who want to do us harm will get access to them,' he said. Earlier, Mr Abbott said no serious coalition government would allow rapid-fire weapons into Australia as he responded to calls within the coalition for the Adler to be allowed to be imported (stock image) Asked whether the Turnbull government should rule out issuing any import permits for the Adler weapon, Mr Abbott said it should do whatever it needed to do to ensure that rapid-fire guns were not readily available in this country. 'This idea that shooters generally should have access to rapid-fire weapons is just crackers and it should never happen as far as I'm concerned.' Asked about Mr Abbott's comments in parliament, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said his government would 'never weaken Australia's gun laws'. Mr Turnbull attacked Labor leader Bill Shorten, who asked the question, over his opposition to mandatory sentencing for convicted gun smugglers. 'Let's call that smugglers' cove over there,' Mr Turnbull said, pointing to the opposition benches. 'All he needs is a parrot and he could be a pirate.' Mr Abbott said it should do whatever it needed to do to ensure that rapid-fire guns were not readily available in this country Labor has written to the prime minister offering support for 20-year jail sentences for gun traffickers, up from the current 10 years. Mr Shorten said in the letter to Mr Turnbull there was no convincing evidence of mandatory sentencing being an effective deterrent in any area of criminal justice. However, Labor would be willing to back new government laws if mandatory sentencing was removed and the 20-year maximum sentence included. Bills that havent been passed into law die at the end of the second year of the Legislatures two-year session. Some die in committee, others are left at various stages of debate. Some have been mercifully killed or withdrawn during debate. But the concepts live on and are often given a new number and come back for another shot. It took Ernie Chambers 26 years to get the death penalty repealed. The motorcycle helmet issue keeps coming back as long as those who want to ride without helmets can find a sponsor. Same old stuff in a new sack. One gets used to the reruns over time. The lucky ones find a dynamic sponsor, a new twist, outside support, and hope in a bi-partisan coalition. Theres a good possibility that some of the following issues will come up again when the new 105th Legislature convenes in January. Heres a breakdown by committees. Agriculture: The big issue left hanging last session was a proposed constitutional amendment that would have guaranteed Nebraskans the right to farm and ranch. Senator John Kuehn of Heartwell wanted voters to decide the measure, which would prohibit the Legislature from passing laws that restrict the rights of Nebraskans to use agricultural technology and ranching practices without a compelling state interest. Appropriations: Its time to draft a new two-year budget in the wake of revenue shortfalls, new faces in the Legislature and new leadership and members on the Appropriations Committee. Banking, Commerce and Insurance: There are always lingering regulatory issues covering both the banking and insurance industries. A decision by Blue Cross and Blue Shield to drop out of the Affordable Care Act market will cause a new focus on primary care issues. Business and Labor: Two bills left behind dealt with benefits for employees families. Bellevue Senator Sue Crawfords would have provided paid family medical leave for covered individuals in the event of the birth of a new child, adoption or foster care placement, serious illness or pregnancy or illness of a family member. Omaha Senator Heath Mellos proposal would have provided monetary compensation to the family of a police officer, correctional officer or firefighter killed in the line of duty, including the families of those who work on a voluntary basis. Education: A bill that would have required the state to use general funds to reimburse schools for most of their special education costs was held by the committee. Senator Al Davis of Hyannis wanted the state Department of Education to reimburse school districts for at least 80 percent of the total excess allowable costs for special education programs and support services. Omaha Senator Bob Krist had a proposal that would have required high school students to pass a 100-question civics examination based on the U.S. Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services naturalization test. Government: A measure that would have allowed an 18-year-old to hold public office in Nebraska stalled after two days of debate. ONeill Senator Tyson Larson wanted a proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot that would change age eligibility for public office in Nebraska to the federal voting age. One must now be 21 to serve in the Legislature and 30 to serve as governor, lieutenant governor or as a Nebraska Supreme Court judge. A bill that would have reinstated the winner-take-all system for allocating Nebraskas presidential electoral votes stalled on final reading. Currently, the winner of Nebraskas statewide popular vote receives two Electoral College votes. Each of the three congressional districts also award one electoral vote each based on their popular vote winner. Maine also uses this system. General Affairs: In the wake of a failed petition drive to bring gambling issues before voters, expect more proposals. Judiciary: There may be life beyond dealing with the troubles at the Nebraska Department of Corrections. But the spotlight will stay on that issue. Health: Perhaps a fifth attempt to expand Medicaid coverage as an alternative health coverage to approximately 97,000 uninsured Nebraskans who are newly eligible under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In the wake of the discovery of $13 million in un-cashed checks, expect continued scrutiny of the Department of Health and Human Services. Natural resources: Theres always the ban on the hunting of mountain lions. Revenue: This committee is stuck with the on-going clamor for tax relief and finding ways to generate the money to pay for it. Transportation: Theres a hefty plan out there for 600 miles of new roads. Now the committee must keep track of the bridges and the less-flashy infrastructure needs. Remember, this is just the menu as I see it today. Things can, and will, change in January. J.L. Schmidt is the statehouse correspondent for the Nebraska Press Association. He has been covering Nebraska government and politics since 1979. He has been a registered independent for 17 years. The Ministry of Defence was accused of racism today after a bizarre photo was posted on the Army's Twitter feed. The tweet, posted shortly after 10am this morning, showed a soldier in a jungle with black paint covering his face. The image was accompanied by the message: 'Being a #soldier in the jungle requires a robust sense of humour'. The tweet was later taken down. But the picture sparked angry accusations of racism, with critics comparing it to the caricatures of black people by early 20th century 'minstrels'. The British Army sparked anger today by tweeting this image of a 'blacked-up' soldier One Twitter user wrote: 'Camp & blacked up. British army living in the 70s.' Another added: 'I detest the idea of non-white people fighting for a country that sees their skin colour as something to joke about.' Another joked: 'Social media manager role going at @BritishArmy.' An Army spokesman said: 'The content of the Tweet shows a picture of a soldier wearing camouflage and concealment measures, standard for jungle training in Belize. 'We can see how the tweet may have been misinterpreted, have immediately removed it and apologise for any offence it may have caused.' Videos shared on the Army's Facebook page showed troops from the 1st Battalion Irish Guards on exercise in the jungle of Belize. The soldiers, who also had camouflaged faces, could be seen attempting a river crossing and firing a machine gun. I care if my government is going to look the British public in the face and expect us to believe all 28 individuals are children There are days when I wonder if our country is utterly mad. I wonder if our government, so utterly devoid of a backbone, thinks it can take taxpayers for a joke, mock every hour of every long shift they put in to fund this country. The so-called 'child' migrants from Calais are a perfect example. Fourteen child migrants from the Calais jungle arrived here on Monday. Another 14 on Tuesday, fast-tracked by the UK because, we are told, they have family here. I don't care if you want to call them migrants, refugees or asylum seekers. All semantics to me. They are people from other places who have travelled through many safe countries, determined to come to England. Desperate people stop when they are safe. The comfortably determined keep going. I don't care if you quote the Dubs Amendment at me (enabling unaccompanied children to seek refuge in the UK if they have family here, even if they have passed through safe countries en route). I don't care if you call them migrants, refugees or asylum seekers. They are people from other places who have travelled through many safe countries, determined to come to England Desperate people stop when they are safe. The comfortably determined keep going Lord Dubs is a good man who fled Nazi Germany on the Kindertransport. Not a campsite at Calais on an air-conditioned bus with snacks and security. But I really do care if my government is going to look the British public in the face and expect us to believe all 28 individuals are children. Amber Rudd said those under 12 would be her priority. Right, Miss Rudd. Can you explain this gentleman to us, please? Facial recognition software says he is 38. Your own guidance from your department, which you run, says an asylum seeker should be treated as an adult if their physical appearance or demeanour 'very strongly suggests' that they are significantly over 18 years of age. Has the rule book gone out of the window along with any scrap of sanity I thought we had? The Islington Intellectuals sit weeping into their linen hankies, reminding us that living through war can have the effect of making a child look older than he is. A modern-day progeria, a condition ageing children before their time. The Islington Intellectuals sit weeping into their linen hankies, reminding us that living through war can have the effect of making a child look older than he is Sure thing. Their journey through safe countries to continue their crusade to England has turned them all into Benjamin Button. Asked what was the worst thing about Calais, one of our most recent 'child' arrivals said queuing. Queuing for jeans, queuing for food, queuing for new shoes. I spent two days at the Jungle camp in Calais and was tear-gassed for my trouble Get used to it, sunshine. We are British. We love a queue. And if someone told us we could queue for free handouts of clothes and food, we'd happily stand there for days. We'd probably bring picnic chairs and umbrellas and make an adventure out of it. We arent used to getting something for nothing, you see. We aren't used to being fast-tracked past the queue. We understand we have to wait our turn, work for what we want. Unlike Silly Lily Allen and crocodile tears for camera, wafting around the charity warehouse at Calais, I spent two days in camp and was tear-gassed for my trouble. The reason these kids queue when new clothes arrive is because at night the camp becomes a bazaar. A market place, the Calais Car Boot, if you will, where these clothes donated by strangers are sold on by migrants for cash. For the men, life in camp is not hard. It is easy. Too easy. Facilitated by endless do-gooders playing at being selfless volunteers whilst indulging in a bit of a migrant gawp-fest. For women and real children it must be harder. One lady I met was desperate to get out with her little girl because she was afraid. But she was the only lady with a small child I met in the main camp. Asked what was the worst thing about Calais, one of our most recent 'child' arrivals said queuing. Queuing for jeans, queuing for food, queuing for new shoes Once again, women and children appear to be last in the line where migrants are involved. That is not the British way. Our culture does not see women as second class. Amber Rudd, our Home Secretary, said it would be 'a good result' if the UK took 500 children. Fourteen child migrants from the Calais jungle arrived here on Monday. Another 14 on Tuesday, fast-tracked by the UK because, we are told, they have family here Can anyone explain to me how this is a good result? A good result for whom? A good result for these 'young' men, certainly. But explain to me exactly how this is a good result for the taxpayer or parents of children in our own country. How is this good news for British parents hoping to get their child a place at a school? London councils say demand overtakes primary school places in 2017/2018. Across the country there will be a shortfall of 200,000 places by 2020. Try calling your local doctors surgery for a same-day doctors appointment today. Now try again if you have been up all night with a sick child; try to convince a receptionist you matter more, your child matters more. Bargain for care, and the pressure of limited resources suddenly feels very real indeed. And even as we look around at the state of our own children here in the UK, can we really say we are in such a good place we can afford to be the Motherland for all the world's waifs and strays? The Fostering Network in the UK says it needs to find 8,370 families this year alone to look after vulnerable children in Britain. There are 80,000 children in state care on any one day in the UK. The shortage of homes means desperate social workers can end up placing children with families who arent quite right for them. Lily Allen has been apologising for our proud country with her crocodile tears for the camera Calais's Benjamin Buttons (as portrayed by Brad Pitt in 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) only strengthen our resolve for hard Brexit And that's before we consider foreign young men resilient enough to make it to our border yet, strangely, not hardy enough to make a living for themselves in the first safe country they arrive in. Home Secretary Amber Rudd said it would be 'a good result' if the UK took 500 children You know, the picture of little Alan Kurdi washed up on a beach, drowned aged three, was a pivotal moment in history, and led to the most disastrous political decision of our time. Uncontrolled mass immigration. These pictures of apparently grown men, appearing to laugh in the faces of the British taxpayer from under their stubble and branded hoodies, have the very opposite effect. So, too, Lily Allen apologising for our proud country, or refugee charities trying to politicise their 'good deeds'. They have all shot themselves in the foot. We are a generous country. But we will not be mocked. We will not be apologised for, or laughed at. If anything, we are certain we should not allow any of these young men into our country. Advertisement At first glance these portraits may appear to be the work of a skilled photographer, but in reality they were hand-painted with soft pastels. From intricately detailed portraits of a pack of wild dogs, to a tender picture of a mother cheetah and her cubs, these paintings are the work of talented artist Leon Fouche. Leon is also a wildlife photographer and has captured images of animals including Africas big five at game reserves across South Africa. Leon Fouche paints a range of African wildlife including big cats, elephants and birds, in soft pastel Leon, above, sells his work to corporate companies and private buyers Not only has he a talent for photography but he also has the skills to recreate some of his favourite photos, turning them into incredibly detailed paintings. Speaking about his collection of artworks, Leon, 33, said: 'Its my original artwork that is my career, I take my own photos mostly to use as reference when I do my drawings. 'And of course being out there photographing our amazing wildlife is what inspires me to continue with my career.' Leon lives on the edge of Kruger National Park, one of Africa's largest game reserves in northeast South Africa, which enables him to access the park easily. Leon grew up near wild and wonderful beasts such as this wild dog pup Wild dogs, also known as African dogs, can have as many as 16 pups at a time Amazingly, Leon has never taken an art course or studied it as a subject at high school and claims his skills were a gift he inherited from his mother - who is also a wildlife artist. His passion for African wildlife also drove him to develop his talent. 'My favourite subject to paint is the leopard. Theyre the most work to paint but so worth it when the painting is complete. Theyre just exquisite animals,' he added. The caracal is a medium-sized wild cat that lives in Africa, the Middle East, Persia and the Indian subcontinent Would you guess this is a painting? Despite his already fine-tuned skills, Leon endeavors to improve his art with each painting. 'Every painting is a new challenge and I do try and better myself with every one, so when I see that I have achieved something Im really happy with its really satisfying. 'What I also love is the act that it allows me to spend weeks in the African bush with my camera and our amazing wildlife.' Leon's mother is also a wildlife painter and she helped him to learn techniques The artist's favourite animal to paint is the leopard Several of Leon's collectors have invested in over 30 original pastel drawings. And he has exhibited his work in venues around the world, including the Safari Club International, Hoedspruits Safari Wine Club in 2015. The esteemed painter has also taken home countless awards. Taleka White, 27 a paramedic, was forced to take time off work after being brutally attacked by her Uber driver last year An Uber driver who punched a female passenger in the face and called her a 'black c***' when her friend asked for another drop off point has avoided prison. Taleka White, 27 a paramedic, was forced to take time off work after being brutally attacked by her Uber driver last year. Shahab Akbar, 33, dragged the mother-of-one from his car and hit her twice in the face after flying into a rage outside her parents' house in Addiscombe, south London. A court heard the driver became angry after confusion arose when Miss White's friend asked for different drop off points. Miss White, who had never used an Uber before, was left with a lump on her head, bruising to her face and a bloody wrist and knuckles. Speaking shortly after the incident on November 29 last year, Miss White, who has a four-year-old son said: 'Just one night out has led to a whirlwind of events which he has no concept of. 'It happened in the early hours of the morning - about 3am. My friend and I had been to a bar in East Croyden and we wanted to get home. 'I'd never used Uber before so she called for one on her phone. 'She wasn't sure how to use the app to say that we wanted to be dropped off at different addresses - but we thought we'd explain it to the driver when he arrived. Miss White, who had never used an Uber before, was left with a lump on her head, bruising to her face and a bloody wrist and knuckles (pictured) 'When we ordered it - my friend couldn't see the registration number - but she thought nothing of it and assumed there was a problem with the system - just his face and the route on the map came up. 'She got a call from the driver to say he'd arrived and we got in the cab and explained we wanted to go to different addresses. 'Initially he had no problem with it, but after, as he was driving to the address he became quite agitated. 'There was a misunderstanding about where the address was and then we got near and she said he could pull up there and he started yelling: 'Get out of my fucking cab'. The next morning Miss White went to A&E to get x-rays on her hand and Uber suspended the driver after she reported the attack Akbar continued to drive and Miss White tried to reassure him that her stop was less than 20 minutes away and that he would be paid. But Akbar's language became increasingly aggressive. Miss White said: 'He called me a black c*** and a black 'b****' and told me to shut my 'f****** face' and said 'she gave me the wrong address'. 'I just went quiet and I thought maybe staying silent would diffuse the situation. 'I was in the cab alone with him and my battery on my phone had gone at the end of a long day. I wasn't sure what he was going to do. He continued to drive in the right direction so I just stayed quiet. But when the pair reached Miss White's stop, Akbar's behaviour escalated to full-on assault. Miss White said: 'I was being dropped off at my parents' and when we arrived I had a can of coke in one hand and a kebab in the other. But when we arrived he dragged out of the car by my right arm and punched me in the face. 'My drink went everywhere but I used the car to hold myself up. I was yelling, asking him what his problem was, why he was doing it to me, hoping my parents would hear from inside. 'The second time he punched me, I went flying and hit the pavement. 'My mum came out just to see the car driving away and found my lying on the pavement.' Miss White's mum told her daughter to take pictures of her injuries an call 999. The next morning Miss White went to A&E to get x-rays on her hand and Uber suspended the driver after she reported the attack. The case went to trial and Akbar was found guilty of racially aggravated common assault in September. Akbar was handed a 16 week prison sentence suspended for 24 months, at Croydon Magistrates Court on Tuesday. He was ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work as a community on top of 620 in costs and 115 in victim surcharge. Akbar was also ordered to pay 500 in compensation to Miss White. Uber confirmed Akbar no longer has a private hire license which is needed to work for the firm. An Uber spokesperson said: 'We were appalled by this horrific incident. Uber does not tolerate violence or discrimination of any kind. A prolific British conman suspected of posing as an MI6 agent to romance a divorced mother-of-two before fleecing her of 850,000 is on the run in Spain. Mark Acklom, 43 - once an infamous schoolboy fraudster allegedly posed as a spy and a Swiss banker in a bid to seduce 55-year-old Carolyn Woods, of Bath, Somerset. Over the course of a year-long relationship, he reportedly promised to marry her and tricked her into handing over the huge sum of money. Mark Acklom, 43 - once an infamous schoolboy fraudster allegedly posed as a spy and a Swiss banker in a bid to seduce 55-year-old Carolyn Woods, of Bath, Somerset But before they could walk down the aisle, he vanished with the cash - leaving Ms Woods emotionally and financially ruined and on the brink of suicide. One of Acklom's false ID documents was this passport calling him Marc Rodriguez During a 12-month relationship he 'promised to marry Carolyn Woods, 55' Avon and Somerset Constabulary began investigating Acklom, who told Carolyn his surname was Conway, two years ago after she reported the fraud. At the time he was awaiting trial in Murcia, Spain for defrauding two brothers into paying him 200,000 as a deposit on the sale of buildings he didn't own. Ms Woods met Acklom in 2012 when he went into her boutique to buy a jacket, chatted her up and said he was a Swiss banker visiting the UK to buy a Cotswold airfield Before they could walk down the aisle, he vanished with the cash - leaving Ms Woods emotionally and financially ruined and on the brink of suicide. He was jailed for three years but released in March - and is now back on the run after British police issued an arrest warrant in his name. Heartbroken Ms Woods told Sky News: 'I was completely devastated, he left me destitute and destroyed my life. 'I felt as though I had fallen in love. He told me he had never felt this way about anyone and we must get married. 'I've still got the wedding dress I never wore. It was all a charade. At the time I actually wished he had killed me. I was suicidal.' Ms Woods met Acklom in 2012 when he went into her boutique to buy a jacket, chatted her up and said he was a Swiss banker visiting the UK to buy a Cotswold airfield. They sparked up a relationship within days and moved in together, though she later discovered he had a second home nearby with his wife and two young children. She said: 'He was flirtatious, charming and very entertaining. Over the course of a year-long relationship, Acklom reportedly promised to marry Carolyn Woods (pictured) and tricked her into handing over the huge sum of money. However, after receiving 850,000 from her he then vanished and is now said to be on the run in Spain 'He has a great presence and charisma, he exudes confidence and the air around him was electric. I was caught up in a whirlwind of excitement. 'He said he was doing things for The Prince's Trust and helping fundraising at Clifton College and everything was cloaked in respectability. 'One of the most extraordinary things he told me was that it was all a cover and he was an MI6 agent. It sounds very far-fetched, but he convinced me it was true. 'We were in London and he said he'd been called in by his boss, so he drove me to the MI6 building and I watched him walk down into a car park past two armed policemen. Acklom is pictured outside Inner London Crown Court aged 18 after admitting theft of his father's Gold American Express card, obtaining money and property by deception, and obtaining a mortgage by deception 'There are no photographs of us together because he said his handlers would not allow it because of his security.' Ms Woods claims that one day she heard him saying he was struggling with money and offered to lend him some cash. She said: 'I had just sold my house and I offered him a loan of 26,000. In the end I lent him everything I had.' 'He began to get to me psychologically and I became frightened,' she added. 'What he was trying to do was isolate me, he got me to leave my job, move in with him and by the time I had given up my independence I was a prisoner.' Ms Woods said her two daughters believe she was brainwashed by Acklom, who she later learned had been jailed for fraud as a public schoolboy. At 16, while studying in Eastbourne, East Sussex, he stole his father's gold Amex card, posed as a stockbroker and hired jets to fly his friends around Europe. Ms Woods said her two daughters believe she was brainwashed by Acklom, who she later learned had been jailed for fraud as a public schoolboy The youngster even convinced a building society to give him a mortgage of nearly 500,000 which he used to buy a small mansion in London. Sky News found that he has since been jailed three times in Spain for a variety of fraud offences. He also changed his name to Marc Ros Rodriguez. Acklom told the news channel that Ms Woods' claims were 'nonsense' but later insisted he didn't really understand what she was saying about him. Starbucks is pushing ahead with its expansion into China and said Wednesday that it is on track to having 5,000 stores there by 2021, more than doubling the number of coffee shops it currently has in the country. The coffee chain is looking to China to fuel the company's growth. Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has said that China could one day surpass the U.S. as its largest market. Schultz told the Seattle Times that the Chinese market 'will be larger than the U.S. over time'. Starbucks is pushing ahead with its expansion into China and said Wednesday that it is on track to having 5,000 stores there by 2021, more than doubling the number of coffee shops it currently has in the country (file photo of a store in Shandong Province in China) Starbucks Corp., which is based in Seattle, has about 13,000 stores in the U.S. To oversee the expansion, Starbucks named Belinda Wong on Wednesday as the first CEO of its Chinese business. Wong was president of Starbucks China, and has worked for the company for 16 years. Starbucks said in a release: 'In her elevated role, Wong will focus on the overall long-term growth strategy and lead the innovation pipeline for Starbucks China. 'She will be responsible for key areas, including the vast digital and e-commerce opportunities across the market and overseeing the opening of Starbucks first international Starbucks Roastery in Shanghai in 2017. ' To oversee the expansion, Starbucks named Belinda Wong (pictured) on Wednesday as the first CEO of its Chinese business. Wong was president of Starbucks China, and has worked for the company for 16 years Wong said in a statement: 'It is a privilege and honor to be appointed to lead Starbucks business in China during this important time. 'There continue to be tremendous opportunities for Starbucks in China and I look forward to further elevating the mission and values of our company through growth and innovation for our Chinese partners and customers.' Chinese customers are spending more time in Starbucks and are buying more food than Americans, Schultz said. He told CNN: 'We had to educate and teach many Chinese about what coffee was - the coffee ritual, what a latte was. So in the early years, we did not make money.' According to the report, Starbucks' first China location opened 17 years ago. Schultz told the news outlet: 'If you look five years ago, most of our business, believe it or not, was expats and tourists in China. Today, it's mostly Chinese.' The company has been adding unique flavors to attract Chinese customers, such as a Black Forest Latte, a mix of cherry juice, cocoa powder and coffee The company has been adding unique flavors to attract Chinese customers, such as a Black Forest Latte, a mix of cherry juice, cocoa powder and coffee. In September, Starbucks began selling its Teavana tea brand at its China locations. Late next year, Starbucks plans to open a 30,000-square-foot in Shanghai that Schultz called a 'Disneyland for coffee'. Eric Johnson, pictured, was jailed after he stabbed David Williams, 30, in 2007 A drug-dealing killer who was jailed for manslaughter cannot be deported as it would violate his human rights, the Supreme Court ruled. Eric Johnson was sentenced to nine years in prison for killing David Williams, 30, by hitting him with a piece of wood and stabbing him in his flat in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, in 2007. Then Home Secretary Theresa May said he should be deported to Jamaica, where he was born to a British father and Jamaican mother out of wedlock. Because he was illegitimate he was not entitled automatically to become a British citizen on birth and then did not apply before he was 18. Johnson argued he should not be deported as it would amount to discrimination. He lost his case in the Court of Appeal earlier this year but secured a victory at the Supreme Court today. Five judges said that to remove Johnson would be to punish him for 'the accident of his birth outside of wedlock' as he would have been entitled to British citizenship if his parents had been married. Lady Hale ruled the time had come to do away with every legal disadvantage endured by children of unmarried parents. Johnson was born in Jamaica in 1985 but was brought to Britain at the age of four to live with his father and his new wife. If his parents had married at any point he would have been entitled to seek British citizenship. Five Supreme Court judges said that to remove Johnson would be to punish him for 'the accident of his birth outside of wedlock'. Above, file image of the Supreme Court He could not apply for citizenship in his own right at the age of 16 as he had run up a string of convictions and was therefore not considered to be of 'good character'. At a previous hearing a judge described Johnson as 'a supplier of class A drugs for commercial gain' and told how he was convicted of manslaughter in August 2008 after a trial in which he falsely claimed to have acted in self-defence. Upholding Johnson's appeal, Lady Hale ruled deporting him simply because of the accident of his birth outside wedlock would be unlawfully discriminatory. Johnson was in no way responsible for his parents' unmarried status and there could be 'no justification' for deporting him. The requirement that a person in his position must also be of good character to qualify for citizenship was also 'incompatible' with human rights, she said. An exclusive boarding school that counts JFK and Ivanka Trump as former students has hired a lawyer to investigate allegations of sexual misconduct by teachers in the early 1990s. Choate-Rosemary Hall School in Connecticut has asked New York attorney Nancy Kestenbaum to investigate claims that staff had sex with their students at the institution more than 20 years ago. The investigation was revealed in a memo sent by the highly selective prep school last month, where parents pay boarding fees of up to $56,000. Exclusive boarding school Choate-Rosemary Hall, pictured, which has hired a lawyer to investigate allegations of sexual misconduct by teachers in the early 1990s In it the school said the claims center around a woman who graduated in 1992, who has since informed them that two former faculty members had improper relationships with her. The school confirmed that both staff members left and are no longer employed by Choate. The Boston Globe reported earlier this month about prep schools' handling of a French teacher who had a sexual relationship with the student and was forced to resign, but ultimately received a letter of recommendation for a position at another school. In the memo, which was obtained by the New Haven Register, the school said: 'We are deeply saddened by the report of faculty misconduct we received from a 1992 alumna. Former US presidnet John F. Kennedy is the most famous former pupil to have attended Choate-Rosemary Hall 'Although the Boston Globe article about this alumnas experience reported one improper relationship, she has made us aware that another former teacher had an improper relationship with her. 'Both faculty members left the school in the early 1990s. We have also received correspondence from alumni concerned about these and other reports.' While a spokeswoman from the school also told the publication that by hiring a lawyer, it shows how they are taking the allegations very seriously. However, she added: 'No allegations against a current faculty or staff member prompted our actions.' Ms Kestenbaum of law firm of Covington & Burling will be given access to school files, records, and personnel to complete her investigation. On her law firm's website, she is described as having 25 years experience in important, sensitive government and internal investigations. The site adds that her former clients have included large multi-national companies and even the United States government. Choate-Rosemary Hall is one of the most prestigious boarding schools in the US to offer college-preparatory education. Ivanka Trump, daughter of Donald Trump, who also attended the prestigious school. Other notable students include actors Michael Douglas, Glenn Close and Jamie Lee Curtis It has taught generations of the upper-classes in New England, including the former president and others related to the American political elite. As well as JFK and Ivanka Trump, Choate's alumni include former Democratic party presidential nominee Adlai Stevenson, author of the USA Trilogy John Dos Passos and philanthropist Paul Mellon. Tory MP Peter Bone was left blushing today after Theresa May said she hoped he would get an 'appropriate' birthday gift from his wife. The smutty line came as the Prime Minister took her regular questions session in the House of Commons today. Although Mrs May did not seem to have intended the innuendo, proceedings in the the packed chamber briefly ground to halt as MPs dissolved into laughter. Scroll down for video Tory MP Peter Bone mentioned that it was his birthday as he spoke at PMQs in the House of Commons today Theresa May wished him many happy returns, and added to the amusement of MPs that she hoped Mrs Bone would give him 'appropriate' treatment The exchange came after Mr Bone kicked off PMQs by noting that it was his 64th birthday. 'It's my birthday today!' he said to cheers from the Conservative benches. 'The Prime Minister has already given me a huge birthday present by letting everyone know that we will be out of the European Union no later than the 31st March 2019. 'Could I press her for another present? Her policy of closing Victorian prisons and opening modern ones is an excellent policy. 'Would she support the reopening of Wellingborough prison as part of this excellent policy, or would she prefer to just sing happy birthday?' Mrs May rose to her feet at the despatch box and replied: 'I would say to my honourable friend I am very happy to wish him a very happy birthday, many happy returns. 'I hope that Mrs Bone is going to treat the occasion in an appropriate manner.' The Wellingborough MP is known for his frequent references to wife Jennie Bone, who works as his secretary. He often hails Mrs Bone as an embodiment of Tory common sense, citing her approval or otherwise of key policies. Mrs May did not appear to have intended the innuendo, and looked slightly uncomfortable as the House descended into laughter Proceedings in the Commons today ground to a halt for several seconds as MPs enjoyed the smutty gag After Mrs May's remark, she was unable to continue for several seconds as the House was filled with laughter. With the PM herself looking slightly uncomfortable and Mr Bone blushing, Speaker John Bercow broke in to calm MPs, saying: 'Order! I want to hear what's coming next.' Mrs May said: 'Calm down, Mr Speaker.' The racy episode had echoes of another PMQs in 2011, when Mr Bone told David Cameron thathis wife was pleased Britain would not be involved in the Greek bail-out. Mr Cameron replied that he felt a very big part of his life was dedicated to 'giving pleasure to Mrs Bone'. A man accused of bashing a toddler to death before hiding the girl's body in the roof claims his de facto wife was the one who carried out the murder, a court heard. John Clifford Torney is on trial after pleading not guilty to murdering Nikki Francis-Coslovic, the daughter of Peta-Ann Francis, at her Mildura home, in north-west Victoria, in August 2015. While the prosecution allege Torney bashed the two-year-old girl to death, he told police Ms Francis said she had 'gone too far' with Nikki. His defence lawyers added the girl's mother told 'big, bad lies.' John Torney (pictured), who is accused of bashing a toddler to death before hiding the girl's body in the roof claims his de facto wife Peta-Ann Francis was the one who carried out the murder His defence attorney Julie Condon told the jury on Wednesday Francis (pictured) allegedly killed Nikki because she couldn't cope with the 'demands of motherhood' Torney's denial comes after the prosecution claimed the pair had smoked cannabis and had sex either before or after he killed the two-year-old. Ms Francis, who will testify against her former lover, and Torney have accused each other of lying about what happened the day Nikki died. Nikki was reported missing by her mother on August 25 last year after she discovered the little girl's bed was empty. The toddler had spent the morning at home with Torney while her mother ran errands, which have been verified by CCTV footage, said Mr Silbert. Torney is on trial after pleading not guilty to murdering Nikki Francis-Coslovic (pictured) in August 2015 The prosecution alleges there is a four-hour window during which Torney killed her. Torney was alone with Nikki until about 12.30pm when her mother returned home. Mr Silbert said the pair smoked several cones of cannabis, had sex, and fell asleep before Ms Francis woke up at 2.40pm and realised her daughter was missing. Her body was discovered in the roof cavity of the home by a police officer who had noticed dirty fingerprints on a manhole cover in the hallway and climbed on a chair to investigate. The officer noticed the girl was not moving and carried her down to a bedroom. Paramedics were called, and on arrival they observed rigor mortis had set in. Mr Silbert said a post-mortem examination found Nikki had died between 11am and 2.30pm that day. 'A pathologist will tell you that, based on the horrific injuries sustained, she could have been alive for up to an hour after the bashing before she died.' Nikki had also injuries to her kidney, liver and skull and had lost one third of her body's blood volume, he said. Nikki (pictured) had also injuries to her kidney, liver and skull and had lost one third of her body's blood volume In a police interview after Torney was charged with murder, he alleged Ms Francis told him 'I've gone too far with Nikki, she's not breathing' while standing outside the toddler's bedroom. Barrister Julie Condon said Ms Francis told Torney she had thrown the girl on the bed, and asked him to hide the body and go along with the missing person's story. 'She's a woman who has spun so many lies, not little lies but big, bad ones,' Ms Condon said in her defence opening statement to the trial. Ms Francis had been monitored by child protection officers, and was not coping with the demands of motherhood, said Ms Condon. Central CC board to meet COLUMBUS -- The Central Community College Board of Governors will meet 1 p.m. Thursday in rooms 176/177 at the Columbus Campus, 4500 63rd St. The meeting will include a public participation segment. The agenda is available at http://cccneb.novusagenda.com/agendapublic. A live video stream of the board meeting will be available for viewing at www.cccneb.edu/boardmeeting. Square dance lessons planned COLUMBUS -- Harolds Squares Square Dance Club will have beginner square dance lessons at 7 p.m. beginning Sunday at Cottonwood House, 3271 29th Ave. The first lesson is free, and the public is invited to come and try it. Mary Channer-Paul from Fullerton will be the caller/instructor. For more information, call Bob or Rayetta Williams at 402-564-5502. Trunk or treat at Berean church COLUMBUS -- Columbus Berean Church and J-Club will host a "trunk or treat" event for the community from 6-7:30 p.m. Oct. 26 in the church parking lot, 3027 38th St. This event is a safe, family-friendly way for parents and children to enjoy a fun evening out before the Halloween holiday. Members of the community may join the church's Facebook event at facebook.com/ColumbusBerean. For more information, contact Columbus Berean Church at 402-562-5647. Trunk or treat at Federated COLUMBUS -- Federated Church, 2704 15th St., will host a "trunk or treat" event from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Oct. 29. This event is open to all kids dressed in costume. Blues group to perform in city COLUMBUS -- Heartland blues rockers Moreland & Arbuckle of Wichita celebrate their Alligator Records debut "Promised Land Or Bust" with a live performance at 9 p.m. Nov. 5 at Shenanigans Bar and Grill, 3808 E. 23rd St. Aaron Moreland, guitar and cigar box guitar, and Dustin Arbuckle, harmonica and vocals, call their music gritty blues and roots rock from the heartland. Admission is free of charge. For more information, visit www.beer30time.com. PCHS meeting slated Nov. 6 COLUMBUS -- The Platte County Historical Society will hold a meeting at 2 p.m. Nov. 6 in the west building meeting room of the museum, 2916 16th St. The program will be Nebraskas Unique Unicameral Legislature -- a panel discussion, some history, and observations. Sen. Paul Schumacher and former senators Lee Rupp, Arnie Stuthman and Don Dworak will be on hand to tell about their experiences in the Unicameral and answer questions. The public is welcome to attend. Admission is free to PCHS members and $3 for nonmembers. A millionaire New York businessman strangled his British girlfriend in a hotel room after meeting her on a Muslim dating site, a court heard today. Nadine Aburas, 28, was found on New Years Eve by hotel staff - and hours later it is alleged her killer fled in her car to drive to London Heathrow Airport to evade justice. Sammy Almahri, 44, had hung a Do Not Disturb sign on the door of Room 203 of the Future Inns in Cardiff before fleeing abroad, the court was told. Trial: Millionaire New York businessman Sammy Almahri (left) allegedly strangled his British girlfriend Nadine Aburas (right) in a hotel room after meeting her on a Muslim dating site Roger Thomas, prosecuting, told Cardiff Crown Court: This was the killing of a defenceless woman by a jealous and dangerous man. The court heard Miss Aburas, who lived alone in her own flat in Cardiff Bay, met Almahari on an internet dating site called MuslimMatch.com. Mr Thomas said: They became friendly and contacted each other regularly by telephone, text and Skype. The friendship developed. Its clear Almahri visited Nadine two or three times in 2013 and she travelled to New York to see him in the summer of 2014. The court heard Almahri was besotted by Miss Aburas - showering her with money and expensive presents. Mr Thomas said: There can be no doubt their friendship developed into an intimate relationship. Discovery: Miss Aburas was found by staff at the Future Inns hotel (pictured) in Cardiff - and hours later her killer allegedly fled in her car to drive to Heathrow Airport to escape justice But the court heard Miss Aburas - described as a slim, petite, Muslim lady of 5ft 3in and 9st had suffered violence during the last meeting. She returned home with an injured lip. The court heard the student then began seeing other men in her hometown of Cardiff. Andrea Aburas, the mother of Miss Aburas, is pictured at a press conference last year after a global manhunt was launched for Almahr Miss Aburas called police to say she had been raped by Almahri in New York - and claimed he had also attempted to strangle her. The court heard Almahari became increasingly jealous then bombarded her with abusive messages. The court heard he warned her: You will be in hell. Mr Thomas said she was concerned that Almahri would show topless pictures to her family. Almahari travelled from the US to see Miss Aburas - and booked into the Future Inns hotel near her home on December 30, 2014, the court heard. But shortly after 3am on December 31, Almahri allegedly left the hotel and travelled in her car to Heathrow and booked a flight at 10.35am to Doha. Miss Aburass body was found at around 12.20pm on New Years Eve by the duty manager - and police were called in. The court heard Almahri as eventually located in Tanzania and arrested on an Interpol arrest warrant on January 19 before being returned to Britain. The court heard he pleaded guilty to manslaughter but denies murder. Almahri claims he was suffering from abnormality of mental function. He claims he was in a psychiatric state of hearing the voice of God telling him to kill Miss Aburas. This was the killing of a defenceless woman by a jealous and dangerous man Roger Thomas, prosecuting The court heard Almahri claims he is not guilty of murder because his responsibility is diminished. Mr Thomas said: We submit quite simply this was the killing of a defenceless woman by a jealous and dangerous man. The court heard Almahari claimed he worked and travelled on behalf of the FBI, but Mr Thomas said: That seems to be fictitious. Police are hunting the owner of a German shepherd which was left at the side of a Houston road with duct tape over her eyes. Rescuers endeavored to ease the animal's pain, but her injuries were so severe that she had to be put down. Her skull had been crushed and she was suffering from tumors, investigators discovered. The dog, a German shepherd, did not survive the ordeal, having suffered a crushed skull The animal was found at the side of a road having suffered horrific injuries, which meant she had to be euthanized A $5,000 reward has been offered to find the person responsible for the dog's death. Sgt Christine Kendrick told ABC13: 'Dogs get dumped on the side of the road all the time. Video courtesy of Fox 26 'Unfortunately the duct tape issue is a rare occurrence and it does happen. 'People sometimes will duct tape the dog because they bark too much and things like that but it really causes an extensive amount of damage to the skin and the tissue of the dog. So, it's certainly nothing that's acceptable.' A $5,000 reward has been offered to help track down those responsible for the injuries the dog suffered Vets worked to ease the animal's pain, but they were unable to save her life Suffering: The animal had to be put down because of the injuries she had suffered before being left for dead at the side of a road Jana Nguwen, who found the dog at the side of the road, told KPRC-TV: 'Tried to help him and stuff, I was crying. It was really hard to see.' A statement on Houston SPCA's Facebook page said: 'Upon examination, the senior, female German Shepherd was suffering from head trauma, had her muzzle taped closed and multiple tumors with punctures. 'The Houston SPCA veterinary team worked attentively to ease her pain and ascertain her injuries. 'It was soon determined that she could not be saved as her skull had been crushed -she was humanely euthanized.' It described the animal's treatment as 'cruel' and urged people to come forward to find those responsible. French President Francois Hollande has suggested the rise of ISIS can be attributed to Barack Obama not backing his calls for Syrian air strikes back in 2013. Since then, France has been victim to a string of savage Islamic State terror attacks and the President insisted too many migrants were being let into the country. 'I don't know what would have happened if we had carried out strikes. What I can say is that we did not carry out strikes, and there's Daesh,' he said, referring to ISIS by its Arabic acronym. French President Francois Hollande has suggested the rise of ISIS can be attributed to Barack Obama not backing his calls for Syrian air strikes back in 2013 'I don't know what would have happened if we had carried out strikes. What I can say is that we did not carry out strikes, and there's Daesh,' he said, referring to ISIS by its Arabic acronym The book - A President Shouldn't Say That - has exposed the inner workings of Hollande's troubled presidency and his views on Islamic veils, Barack Obama and his private life. Normally a man of consensus and caution, President Francois Hollande's frank comments in a new book written by two journalists is causing shockwaves in France. The book - A President Shouldn't Say That - has exposed the inner workings of Hollande's troubled presidency and his views on Islamic veils, Barack Obama and his private life. In it, Hollande criticised his political rivals as well as other state leaders - including President Barack Obama. In a 2015 interview recounted in the book, he explained he felt abandoned by his U.S. ally in August 2013 when Obama informed him at the last minute he would not agree on an immediate military intervention in Syria in response to the alleged use of chemical weapons by Bashar Assad's government. Hollande suggested that ISIS might have been weakened by such strikes. Since 2013, extremists with links to IS have repeatedly attacked France, with deadly consequences. This includes the attack on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo killing 12 people, the Paris atrocities of November 2015 in which 130 people were slaughtered and the Bastille Day attack this summer in which 86 victims were killed by a truck driven by a terrorist in Nice. Hollande's comments on Islam and immigration, which tend to be in contradiction with expectations from his Socialist electorate, have prompted particular controversy According to the new book, the president went as far as sharing top secret information, including that he allowed 'at least four' military operations to kill people believed to be responsible for hostage-taking and actions against French interests. He didn't specified where and when. And Hollande's comments on Islam and immigration, which tend to be in contradiction with expectations from his Socialist electorate, have prompted particular controversy. In July 2014 - six months before Islamic extremists attacked satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo and a kosher supermarket - Hollande said 'there is a problem with Islam,' according to the book. He specified: 'It's not Islam itself that poses a problem in the sense of its being a religion that is dangerous in itself, but because it wants to assert itself as a religion inside the French Republic.' He also said France was becoming home to too many refugees. 'I think there are too many arrivals, immigrants who shouldn't be there,' he said. 'We teach them to speak French and then another group arrives and we have to start all over again. 'It never stops, so, at some point, it has to stop'. 'I think there are too many arrivals, immigrants who shouldn't be there,' Hollande said. 'We teach them to speak French and then another group arrives and we have to start all over again.' This year, as the question of national identity is one of the key themes of the presidential campaign, Hollande said that 'the veiled woman of today will be the Marianne of tomorrow' - in a reference to the symbol of the French Republic. The quote was widely misinterpreted as meaning that France in the future will be represented by a woman in a Muslim headscarf, prompting outrage from the conservative opposition in a country with a very firm separation between church and state and strictly enforced secularism. However, Hollande told the books' authors he means the Muslim woman 'will free herself from her veil and become a French woman, while remaining religious if she wishes.' Davet said: 'It's a classic vision of secularism. 'Hollande is for freedom. He wants people to be free in their lives. 'In order for everyone to live together peacefully, you need a way for people to live their religion freely. Hollande confirmed that he refuses to formalise his relationship with his girlfriend, the actress Julie Gayet (pictured) while he is president 'For him that's it.' Hollande even accepted - yet reluctantly - to talk about his private life. Lhomme told the AP 'he never called us to say `tonight we are going to talk about my private life, and you'll have fun.' He hates this. We had to force it.' Hollande confirmed that he refuses to formalise his relationship with his girlfriend, the actress Julie Gayet, while he is president. 'I make sure it's not public even if it's known. 'It protects her, it protects me. 'I see her periodically, but not as often as we'd like.' He acknowledged Gayet 'is suffering from this situation.' He said his breakup with ex-companion Valerie Trierweiler in January 2014 - after his affair with Gayet was disclosed by a gossip magazine - was 'the worst personal moment of the term'. The book's authors said for five years they have had the feeling that Hollande wants to run for re-election. 'But there's a big distance between wanting to and being able to,' Davet stressed. 'If he finds a space, he will run. Theresa May today defended her role in the disastrous child abuse inquiry after it emerged that concerns were raised when she was still Home Secretary in April. She denied the Home Office dragged its feet over allegations Dame Lowell Goddard, the former chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), had mishandled the probe despite members of the panel revealing yesterday that Home Office officials were told of tensions in the inquiry four months before she quit. Mrs May, who set up the inquiry more than two years ago, said those concerns were raised confidentially and insisted she was not made aware of them at the time. Theresa May (pictured at Prime Minister's Questions today) defended her role in the disastrous child abuse inquiry after it emerged that concerns were raised when she was still Home Secretary in April She admitted she was aware of 'stories around about the inquiry' at the time but told MPs today that it would have been wrong for her to intervene 'on the basis of suspicion, rumour or hearsay'. The Government would have been accused of trying to interfere with bringing justice to victims of child abuse if she or other ministers had intervened to resolve problems on the information they had at the time, the Prime Minister said. And she added that it was now for the inquiry to 'get on and deliver for victims and survivors'. The Prime Minister's official spokeswoman later declined to be drawn on what action the Home Office took, but stressed that, as an independent inquiry, it was first and foremost the responsibility of the panel to deal with the issue. But Mrs May faced criticism from Labour MPs for failing to say what and when she knew about the inquiry's concerns with the New Zealander chair Dame Lowell. The inquiry raised 'concerns' over New Zealander chair Dame Lowell Goddard (pictured) with a Home Office official in April, MPs were told yesterday Theresa May (pictured at Prime Minister's Questions today) denied the Home Office dragged its feet over allegations Dame Lowell Goddard, the former chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), had mishandled the probe despite members of the panel revealing yesterday that Home Office officials were told of tensions in the inquiry four months before she quit Yesterday the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee heard that concerns about Dame Lowell were raised with a senior Home Office official as April - months before she resigned in August. But the department's top mandarin, Mark Sedwill insisted he was completely unaware of the worries until the end of July. Asked by Labour MP Lisa Nandy when she 'personally learnt of the serious problems' with the inquiry and 'why she took no action at all,' Mrs May said today: 'There were stories around about the inquiry and about individuals related to the inquiry. 'But the Home Secretary cannot intervene on the basis of suspicion, rumour or hearsay.' Mrs May said members of the inquiry's panel had asked for their concerns about Dame Lowell's handling of the inquiry to be kept 'confidential' and told MPs today that as far as she knew, they were treated as such. The PM added: 'I think it is important for us to recognise that when the Home Office was officially informed of issues, the Home Office acted. It's now for the inquiry to get on and deliver for victims and survivors.' Labour MP Lisa Nandy (pictured in the House of Commons at Prime Minister's Quesitons today) asked Theresa May when she 'personally learnt of the serious problems' with the inquiry and 'why she took no action at all' Home Secretary Amber Rudd (pictured today) told MPs yesterday that she was told of leadership failings in the child abuse inquiry in late July Ms Nandy said the PM must now 'come clean' about what she knew and when. 'Theresa May set up the abuse inquiry and appointed its chair. She was the home secretary in April when serious concerns were raised with her department, and only she had the power to act on them,' she said. 'Today she suggested that she did know of problems but did nothing at all. For this investigation to regain the trust of survivors the Prime Minister must now come clean about what she knew when, and why she failed to intervene.' Some MPs remain angry that when current Home Secretary Amber Rudd appeared before committee last month she made no mention of the issues that had been raised, saying simply Dame Lowell had resigned because she was homesick. At yesterday's set-piece evidence session, the new chair of the troubled inquiry, Professor Alexis Jay, hit out at her predecessor Dame Lowell. She said Dame Lowell had shown little interest in working with the expert panel, and it would have been 'very difficult' if she had not quit. Theresa May (pictured at Prime Minister's Questions today) admitted she was aware of 'stories around about the inquiry' at the time but told MPs today that it would have been wrong for her to intervene 'on the basis of suspicion, rumour or hearsay' Professor Alexis Jay is the fourth chair of the child sex abuse inquiry, which was launched by Theresa May when she was Home Secretary It has also emerged that a relationship counsellor was drafted in to try to smooth over tensions between the New Zealander and her team. The details came as Dame Lowell said she was ready to 'assist' the MPs but stopped short of agreeing to appearing before them for a grilling. Prof Jay - the fourth head of the struggling inquiry - told the committee: 'It was clear from the beginning that Lowell Goddard really would have preferred to sit on her own without the assistance of a panel ... 'As a consequence of this view that was conveyed to us, we did feel that we were kept at a distance from a lot of the activities of the inquiry.' Prof Jay added that 'we did make every effort to make the arrangements work from the beginning'. Professor Jay made clear she did not recognise the claims in a letter sent by Dame Lowell after her resignation, in which she suggested the huge scope of the inquiry meant it was doomed to fail. Professor Jay was giving evidence to MPs on the Home Affairs Committee yesterday Giving evidence alongside Prof Jay, panel member Ivor Frank said that things were so bad at one point a 'relationship' facilitator was drafted in help them work together. He suggested that Dame Lowell had spent a good deal of her time in New Zealand. 'What I will say is the chair was not always present in the United Kingdom through that entire sixteen month period, so we were able to continue with our work for extensive periods without very much contact with the chair,' he said. TIMELINE: HOW THE TROUBLED INQUIRY INTO CHILD ABUSE HAS HAPPENED July 7, 2014 - Theresa May, then home secretary, announces a public inquiry with the remit of investigating whether 'state and non-state institutions' have taken seriously their duty of care to protect children from sexual abuse within England and Wales. Its chairwoman will be Baroness Butler-Sloss, a retired High Court judge. July 9 - Baroness Butler-Sloss faces calls to quit due to a potential conflict of interest over a family connection. Her late brother, Sir Michael Havers, was attorney general in the 1980s. Then prime minister David Cameron stands by the appointment. July 14 - Baroness Butler-Sloss steps down. September 5 - Dame Fiona Woolf, a leading tax lawyer and then Lord Mayor of the City of London, is appointed as the new chairwoman of the inquiry. October 22 - Child sex abuse victim launches a legal challenge against Dame Fiona's appointment over her suitability for the role. She is accused of having 'close association' with Lord Leon Brittan, the late Labour peer against whom allegations of sex abuse were later dropped. October 31 - Dame Fiona quits as chairwoman. February 4, 2015 - Mrs May tells the House of Commons she is disbanding the former inquiry into child sex abuse and setting up a new statutory inquiry. Dame Lowell Goddard - described as 'one of the most respected and experienced judges in the Commonwealth' - is announced as its chairwoman. March 12 - New inquiry is set up with same remit as first. April 29 - Dame Lowell announces the inquiry will conduct a full investigation into the issues surrounding the allegations of sexual abuse against Lord Greville Janner, citing 'clear public interest' over the adequacy of institutional responses to allegations against public figures. July 9 - Dame Lowell officially opens the inquiry. October 16 - Former child protection manager Peter McKelvie resigns from the inquiry's Victims' and Survivors Consultative Panel as it is revealed that he may face questioning over his own handling of pursuing allegations of child sex abuse. November 27 - Inquiry announces its first 12 investigations and Dame Lowell says she is committed to completing the in inquiry in five years. December 19 - Lord Janner dies aged 87. March 9, 2016 - Inquiry holds first hearing on the investigation into allegations against Lord Janner. August 4 - Dame Lowell writes to Home Secretary Amber Rudd to offer her resignation citing her career and family life. August 11 - Professor Alexis Jay, who led an earlier inquiry into abuse in Rotherham, is promoted from within the inquiry to take over as chairwoman. September 28 - Ben Emmerson is suspended as the inquiry's top lawyer amid reports he fell out with Professor Jay over the scale of the inquiry. September 29 - Elizabeth Prochaska, who was junior counsel to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), confirms that she had stepped down a fortnight ago. Advertisement 'There were times when things were perfectly amicable and perfectly professional. There were other times when it was less the case.' Asked what this meant, he said: 'There are different working methods that people have and different experiences and backgrounds. 'It may be that as a judge working perhaps mostly on her own, it wasn't easy for her to adapt to a situation where she was necessarily having to work in a more collegiate way.' Mr Frank told the committee that a 'facilitator' was brought in to try to resolve differences between the panel and Dame Lowell. He said: 'The inquiry staff asked for the assistance of a facilitator, I think is the expression, who has a professional role in engaging parties who have difficulties in understanding a common purpose.' He also strongly defended the cost of the inquiry, which racked up a 14.7 million bill in the last year, saying: 'Reducing the level of child sexual abuse in this country is not a choice between competing priorities, it is an imperative. 'Every child has a right to be brought up without the threat of being subjected to sexual abuse. It is our job to make sure that we hold institutions to account for past failures and put in place procedures to stop it happening in the future.' The most senior lawyer appointed to the inquiry, Ben Emmerson QC, resigned last month, but Prof Jay would not comment on 'anything to do' with his circumstances. She denied having any disagreement with the barrister. 'There was no truth whatsoever in the suggestion that he and I had a disagreement about anything, that was entirely untrue.' Another member, Drusilla Sharpling said she had met the director general of the Home Office in April to report 'concerns' about the chair. She said the discussion related to worries about the 'leadership and progress' of the inquiry. 'At the end of April, with the panel's knowledge, I reported my concerns about the leadership of the inquiry to the then director general of the Home Office, Mary Calam,' she said. 'I want to take the opportunity to make absolutely clear that I did not give anyone permission to spread these concerns amongst anybody else, that I did not, and neither did the panel, require any action to be taken.' There are allegations that Dame Lowell made 'racist' comments in private and behaved like a tyrant - claims that she has vehemently denied. The new chair and the panel members refused to be drawn on the nature of the 'concerns' they reported back about Dame Lowell, insisting they could not speak about 'HR' matters. Mr Sedwill, permanent secretary at the Home Office, said he was not aware of the meeting in April 'for the reasons that Drusilla Sharpling set out'. He told the Committee: 'I presume - the director general has now left the Home Office but she has spoken to one of my colleagues - she was observing the conditions that were set by Dru Sharpling in having that exchange, which was not to share the information and not to seek any action on it. Anyway, it wasn't drawn to my attention.' He added: 'It wasn't until the 29th of July that the tensions within the inquiry were drawn to my attention.' Mr Sedwill dismissed any suggestion that the department may have picked up 'rumblings'. He added: 'I wasn't aware, there's nothing in the Home Office records to suggest any of my staff dealing with the inquiry were aware, of concerns about the leadership and progress of the inquiry until it was brought to my attention on the 29th of July - with the exception of the separate conversation, which again was not brought to my attention, between Dru Sharpling and the director general of the group responsible.' Professor Jay, who took over from Dame Lowell in August, said earlier this week that it was unrealistic to hold a public inquiry-style hearing into all of the institutions where abuse is said to have occurred. She said while the inquiry would endeavour to look at many institutions where youngsters were allegedly abused, it would be 'impossible to do so for all of them'. Professor Jay sought to appease victims by saying the inquiry remained 'very interested in the past' and promised to complete most of its work by the end of 2020. The panel members were speaking after the inquiry was wracked by months of turbulence The panel members were speaking after the inquiry was wracked by months of turbulence But she refused to say if she plans to cut any of the 13 investigations examining child abuse claims in institutions from Westminster to the Church, schools and Armed Forces over the last 60 years. Professor Jay had ordered a review of the inquiry amid concern its scope was so vast it was unlikely to be completed within a decade and could cost more than 100million. Amber Rudd said she was alerted about allegations over Dame Lowell Goddard's 'professionalism and competence' several weeks before she told MPs the judge had quit because she was 'lonely'. Miss Rudd was accused of being 'economical about what she knew' after the admission, which follows claims of a Home Office cover-up. She told MPs last month that New Zealander Dame Lowell had left the inquiry because she felt lonely and 'a long way from home'. Hauled before the Commons earlier this week, Miss Rudd said it would have been 'entirely inappropriate' to tell the home affairs committee about the racism allegations against Dame Lowell. Hauled before the Commons on Monday, Home Secretary Amber Rudd admitted being made aware of problems at the inquiry a week before Dame Lowell's resignation Drusilla Sharpling said she had met senior Home Office officials in April to report 'concerns' about the chair In evidence to the committee on September 7, she said of the judge's departure: 'I think she went I have to say that it is a matter for her, but I have the information that you have because she found it too much ultimately she found it too lonely, she was a long way from home and she decided to step down. That is all the information I have about why she decided to go.' But on Monday Miss Rudd admitted she became aware on July 29 that concerns about Dame Lowell's 'professionalism and competence' had been raised by inquiry staff with a senior Home Office official. 'On July 29, the secretary to the inquiry met my permanent secretary and reported concerns about the professionalism and competence of the chair,' she said. 'My permanent secretary encouraged the inquiry to raise those matters with the chair. He reported this meeting to me the same day.' Despite this, Miss Rudd agreed to a payoff of almost 90,000 for the New Zealand judge when she resigned as chairman on August 4. Seumas Milne is Jeremy Corbyn's closest aide and spokesman. His weekly briefing with journalists was cancelled today Jeremy Corbyn's top spinner has cancelled a weekly briefing with journalists on Prime Minister's Questions, a week after his performance prompted demands he be sacked. Seumas Milne provoked outrage after the session a week ago when he compared British bombing of ISIS terrorists with Russian attacks on civilians in Aleppo. The weekly 'huddle' after Prime Minister's Questions is the main opportunity each week for journalists to question Mr Corbyn's team on Labour issues and a chance for the Opposition to respond to Theresa May's performance at the Despatch Box. An unannounced complete cancellation of the briefing is unheard of. Mr Corbyn's team left the Commons chamber as soon as the Labour leader finished his six questions, instead of waiting until the end of the session to hear all of Mrs May's answers, as is normal. Reports suggested today is the final day of Mr Miline's contract as Mr Corbyn's director of communications and the team were spotted at the Bellamy's Restaurant on the Parliamentary Estate. Sources in Mr Corbyn's team promised individual briefings later today when contacted by MailOnline. Mr Corbyn last week faced demands to disown his 'disgraceful' top aide after he sparked fury by comparing British bombing of ISIS to Russian atrocities in Syria. Mr Milne complained that the focus on horrors in Aleppo was 'diverting attention' from the consequences of Western military action. He also suggested people should be protesting outside the US embassy in London rather than Moscow's embassy. Jeremy Corbyn's press team skipped the weekly briefing with journalists shortly after the Labour leader challenged Theresa May on the NHS, pictured Mr Corbyn's team hold a weekly briefing each week to answer questions about Labour and The extraordinary outburst came a day after Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson condemned war crimes linked to Vladimir Putin's forces and urged protests against Russian involvement in Syria's civil war. It was quickly condemned by Labour moderates, who branded Mr Milne a 'Putin apologist' and a 'disgrace'. Former frontbencher John Woodcock said: 'By any reasonable measure this is just not true. 'This absurdity seems like a deliberate provocation, unworthy of our leader and our party.' Brendan Cox, widower of Labour MP Jo Cox, who campaigned for an end to the bloodshed in Syria, said: 'This isn't just wrong, it's absolutely disgraceful.' A child waits for treatment at a makeshift hospital after an airstrike on a residential neighbourhood last week The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says Wednesday that Tuesday's bombings killed 25, while others put the death toll at 41 Milne's comments come as bombs continue to fall on Aleppo, where thousands of civilians have been killed. Former shadow defence minister Kevan Jones described Milne's comments as 'completely outrageous'. He told MailOnline: 'To compare the rule based intervention by the UK in Syria against Russian bombing, including the use of bunker busting bombs to target innocent civilians. 'Jeremy Corbyn should completely distance himself from this. It will further alienate decent, ordinary people who are put off voting Labour by someone who is clearly an apologist for Putin and his regime.' Liberal Democrat MP Tom Brake demanded Mr Corbyn confirm whether he agreed with the remarks. 'It is ludicrous for Labour to suggest it sides with Putin over Obama,' he said. 'To only ever point the finger at the West is puerile politics not serious international diplomacy. 'Jeremy Corbyn must clarify immediately if this is his party's official position.' 'Both the US and British authorities have been reluctant to accept any independent assessment of those.' Asked if the UK was as culpable as Russia, Mr Milne said: 'We are not in the business of allocating blame on the whole thing. Russia's intervention in the civil war has been opposed by Jeremy from the start and the intervention of foreign powers in the conflict has no doubt escalated and fuelled it throughout.' Pressed on whether that meant people should protest outside the US embassy instead of Russia's, the spokesman replied: 'People are free to protest outside the intervening powers' embassies and there are a number of them not just the United States and Russia, but multiple foreign interventions.' Planners have refused proposals for a Highland home because it would increase traffic - above one vehicle every two hours. Glen Wyvis distillery, near Dingwall in the Scottish Highlands, wants to construct an on-site house for its manager in common with other whisky makers in Scotland. But the council planning committee say the manager's car would pose a significant traffic danger - on a road that currently records just 13 journeys a day. Glen Wyvis distillery wants to construct an on-site house for a manager in common with other whisky makers in Scotland. But planners refused proposals because it would increase traffic - above one vehicle every two hours. (Above, David O'Connor, director of the distillery) The council planning committee say the manager's car would pose a significant traffic danger - on a road that currently records just 13 journeys a day. Above, a stretch of road by the proposed site, near Dingwall in the Scottish Highlands Highland Council gave permission for the distillery - due to open next year - but opposed the four-bedroom house (pictured, from architect's plans) for a distillery master. Mr O'Connor said they hoped to overturn the decision and advertise for the manager's job in December The decision has come despite local people giving no objections to the plans, and welcoming the employment opportunities the distillery would bring. The former police area commander behind the scheme has said he is 'baffled' by the ruling and vowed to fight it. Highland Council has given permission for the distillery but opposed the four-bedroomed house for the distillery master. Area Planning Manager Dorothy Stott stated: 'Transport Planning objects to the application on road safety grounds, due to the increase on traffic at an access onto the public road where there is a significant shortfall in visibility. 'The traffic count taken for the previous application showed that the existing average volume of traffic is 13 vehicles per day. 'The average traffic movement generated by a single house is around five movements per day. This represents an average increase of around 38 per cent and is judged significant.' Area Planning Manager Dorothy Stott stated: 'Transport Planning objects to the application on road safety grounds, due to the increase on traffic at an access onto the public road where there is a significant shortfall in visibility' David O'Connor, director of the Glen Wyvis Distillery, which is due to open next year, said: 'Every other distillery in Scotland has a house for the master. For health and safety on-site, it's essential.' He added: 'I'm a former policeman who served for 31 years, road safety was a clear part of my remit. I'm baffled. 'It seemed more like politics, because we didn't put the application for the house originally with the distillery.' Mr O'Connor said they hoped to overturn the decision and advertise for the manager's job in December. Local community councillors expressed no objections to the plans. Minutes from the council meeting state: 'The Community Council is supportive of the four elements of the proposed distillery development. Disgraced former Labor minister Joe Tripodi has been questioned by police over allegations he failed to stop after a car crash. Mr Tripodi is accused of fleeing the scene of the accident in Eastwood, north-west of Sydney, in July. But the former NSW politician has denied the allegations. Mr Tripodi arrived at Green Valley Police Station on Wednesday afternoon after being contacted by officers for further questioning, 9News reported. He was not arrested or charged. Scroll down for video Disgraced former Labor minister Joe Tripodi has been questioned by police over allegations he failed to stop after a car crash - in which he has denied being involved in The incident allegedly occurred between Mr Tripodi's BMW and a Honda Accord. The driver of the other car alleged the former minister failed to stop following the accident. Speaking to 9News after leaving the police station, Mr Tripodi denied he was involved in the crash. 'This is a completely false allegation, I've explained it all to the police,' he said as he looked directly at the camera. 'There's not much more comment to make. Thank you.' He arrived at Green Valley Police Station on Wednesday after being contacted by officers Mr Tripodi is accused of fleeing the scene of the accident in north-west of Sydney in July A NSW police spokesman confirmed to Daily Mail Australia officers have questioned a man over the incident. James Ferrell's father said Watson had been abusive towards his girlfriend, and her sons would often come to her defense Ms Ferrell discovered her mother and sons killed at a Sacramento housing complex on Saturday evening Watson is the ex-boyfriend of Twanna Lucas, the mother of the two slain young men stab wounds, and one of her grandsons was Police in Sacramento are searching for a man suspected of murdering his ex-girlfriends two adult sons and her elderly mother, a local pastor, over the weekend. A felony warrant for homicide has been issued for the arrest of 52-year-old Jerod Watson in connection to the triple homicide that took the lives of 68-year-old Christine Lucas and her grandsons, Marquise Brown, 23, and James Ferrell, 20, on Saturday. According to a press release from the Sacramento Police Department, Watson remained at large Wednesday morning and it is possible that he has fled the state. Records indicate that he has ties to Texas and Louisiana. Accused killer: Jerod Watson, 52 (left), is wanted for the killings of three people, including 68-year-old pastor Christine Lucas, pictured right with her husband, John Brothers slaughtered: Watson is also accused of murdering Marquise Brown, 23 (right), and his 20-year-old brother, James Ferrell (left), who were the sons of his ex-girlfriend, Twanna Ferrell (center) The bodies of the female pastor and her grandsons were discovered just before 8pm on Saturday when Christine Lucas daughter, Twanna Lucas, entered her mothers home at a housing complex in the 700 block of Broadway and saw her family slaughtered. Ferrell ran across the street to Fire Station 5 and alerted first responders, who then followed her to the crime scene. All three victims were pronounced dead at the scene. A medical examiner has determined that Christine Lucas, known to her family and friends as 'Tina,' died from multiple stab wounds, and one of her grandsons was slashed. The autopsy for the other sibling is still pending. Mrs Lucas served as pastor at Gloryland Revival Center Intentional Ministries along with her husband, John Lucas, according to the affiliated Faith Ministries International Network's website. Crime scene: The bodies of the grandmother and her two grandsons were discovered by the boys' mother at this housing complex in the 700 block of Broadway in Sacramento Saturday Troubled relationship: The father of James Ferrell said that Watson (left) had been abusive towards Twanna Lucas (right), and her sons would often come to her defense A Faith Ministries biography says Tina Lucas and her husband helped feed Muslim children in the Philippines and Nigeria, and they were helping to build a church in the Virgin Islands. James Ferrell had just graduated in May from Heritage Peak Charter School in Sacramento and was planning to attend American River College, reported the Sacramento Bee. His brother Marquise Brown worked with the Sacramento Regional Conservation Corps, a nonprofit education and workforce training program for young adults. He had been taking basic classes through the affiliated John Muir Charter School since September to earn his high school diploma, said David DeMers, the program's executive director. He was a young man of hope and he was coming from a very difficult environment and background, DeMers said. The 23-year-old man leaves behind his young daughter. Robert Ferrell, the father of Twanna Lucas' son James, said the 20-year-old and his older brother often argued with Watson, mostly over his abusive treatment of their mother. 'They were pretty much protecting their mom all the time,' Mr Ferrell told the station KCRA. Getaway car: Watson is known to drive this white 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander with a California license plate 7CYL933 Court records indicate that the 52-years-old suspect has a history of domestic violence charges. CBS News reported that Watson was sentenced to jail three times between 2009 and 2011 on one of the charges and for repeatedly violating his probation. He also completed a court-mandated batterers treatment program. Watson is described as an African-American male, standing at 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighing 180lbs. He is considered armed and extremely dangerous, according to police. Members of the public who encounter him are urged not to approach him and contact the authorities. He is known to drive a white 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander with a California license plate 7CYL933. A former NHS worker wants 1.6million in compensation for breaking her ankle after claiming the injury forced both her and her husband to quit their jobs. Sandra Mehmetemin was 53 when she suffered the bad break and other minor injuries in a collision with another motorist on an A-road in Essex. The NHS administrator claims she was left in constant pain after the December 2009 accident and has 'not worked since', London's High Court heard. Sandra Mehmetemin was 53 when she suffered the bad break and other minor injuries in a collision with another motorist on an A-road in Essex. She was left in constant pain after the December 2009 accident. The court heard she had to be medically retired from her job in 2011 and her husband, Mustapha, in his 50s, 'gave up his employment in order to look after his wife.' The other motorist's insurers swiftly admitted full liability for the crash which caused Mrs Mehmetemin's injuries. Her lawyers said the driver was going 'too fast' and 'failed to keep a proper look out'. But claims handling firm, Eldon insurance, have now 'taken umbrage' with some parts of her claim - including its valuation at 1.6m. Today her lawyers denied there was any 'element of artificiality' in her case, insisting she and her husband need every penny claimed. Paul Rose QC, for Mrs Mehmetemin, now 60, told the court she has endured numerous operations on her broken ankle and suffers 'significant ongoing symptoms.' The court heard Mrs Mehmetemin had to be medically retired from her job in 2011 and her husband, Mustapha (pictured left) 'gave up his employment in order to look after his wife' The former NHS worker now uses a mobility scooter to get around and told the judge she is unable to enjoy shopping trips and visits to family as she used to. She needs a stairlift to get upstairs in her three-bedroom rented home in Heybridge, Maldon. Mrs Mehmetemin added that she can't walk her dog alone, using the scooter because 'he walks under the wheels and I'm afraid I'll run him over.' She needs her husband's help with that and many other day to day tasks, she told the judge, Sir Robert Nelson. 'I'd like to get back to as near to normal, as I was before the accident, in any way I can,' she added. Mr Rose said that aspects of Mrs Mehmetemin's claim had 'caused umbrage' with insurers, despite the admission of liability. Eldon Insurance says Mrs Mehmetemin is asking for 1million more than she needs, putting the value of her claim at 600,000, Mr Rose said. He added that the issue of how much care she will need in future, and from whom, is particularly 'controversial.' Defence council, Patrick Blakesey, cross-examining Mrs Mehmetemin, said she had been having only 'sporadic' physiotherapy treatment on her injured ankle. He also queried her claim for funds to enable her to move to a new home, specially adapted to her needs. And he went on to question whether her husband really needed to quit work completely in order to look after her. 'You have spoken about the devoted care your husband has lavished upon you and the sacrifices he has made to do that. 'There is an issue in this case about what happens into the future,' the barrister said. 'Your husband stopped working in 2010 in order to look after you...looking after you and the house is now effectively his occupation. 'There has been no proposal for him to go back to work and you don't want him to go back to work,' Mr Blakesey added. 'I don't see how he could,' Mrs Mehmetemin responded. 'Has he investigated any alternative work which might fit around the care?' the barrister asked. 'No' she replied. A golden retriever is proving that there is more to doggy paddle than a simple swim in the sea. Ricochet is a champion surfer who puts her talents on the board to good use by teaching disabled children how to surf. And is now set to star in a 3D movie for IMAX screens called Superpower Dogs, which will celebrate Ricochet's amazing abilities and her remarkable bond with the people she helps. A golden retriever is proving that there is more to doggy paddle than a simple swim in the sea Ricochet is a champion surfer who puts his talents on the board to good use by teaching disabled children how to surf Parents of children, suffering from a range of conditions from autism to physical impairments, have been shocked at how the dog encourages them into the sea As well as working with disabled children, she has also worked with former soldiers suffering with post traumatic stress disorder Ricochet is a champion surfer and seeing him on the board encourages many of the children to do the same as it shows them just how easy it is Children previously scared of the water have even followed Ricochet out onto the water On a beach in San Diego, she showed off his skills with children there with the Best Day charity Ricochet's owner, Judy Fridono, who has a degree in Service Dog Training, said: 'She just seems to connect on that heart to heart level with people. I just know by the way that she behaves that she can tell how a person is feeling. 'Ricochet has touched millions of people she really belongs to everyone.' Judy, 58, initially intended for Ricochet to work as a guide dog, but the playful pup was too distracted chasing birds to make the grade. But Ricochet's ability to intuit emotion combined with her surfing dexterity meant that she was able to help people in a less conventional way. Judy said: 'When she was eight weeks old she was in a kiddie pool and there was a little board inside and she climbed on and had really good balance so I kept playing around with it. 'She actually made that decision and showed me what to do. Ricochet offers comfort to those that she works with, who range from people suffering from autism to amputees She may be able to surf but this image shows that she still enjoys a rub on the belly like any other dog Her calm demeanour means that Ricochet can be trusted with children who would usually have to stay away from excitable dogs 'I thought maybe she could raise some money or something and her first fundraiser was for a quadriplegic boy. 'My idea was to put her and the boy on separate boards but she jumped onto his board with him and at that point I literally saw her come to life. 'This is what she was here to do and that is why we call her a SURFice dog rather than a service dog. 'She provides a service still, but it's very different and she chose to do it.' Judy said: 'The transformation in some of the people she has worked with has just been incredible. 'She's able to bond with people immediately and is instinctively alert to their anxieties and triggers it's remarkable.' Ricochet is now an ambassador for a number of assisted surfing organisations, including Life Rolls On and Judy's own non-profit company, Puppy Prodigies and has bagged herself a starring role in Superpower Dogs. The 3D movie celebrates powerful pooches like Ricochet, and will showcase the remarkable talents of working dogs by following several real-life canine superheroes as they brave earthquakes and avalanches, bring animal poachers to justice, and protect us from danger. Producer of the film Taran Davies said: 'Superpower Dogs will give people an entirely new perspective on the amazing abilities of dogs and their heroic achievements. Ricochet learnt on a small surfboard when she was just a puppy (pictured as a fluffier youth) Ricochet filmed with charity Best Day in California, but it won't be her last on-screen appearance She is also set to star in a 3D movie for IMAX screens called Superpower Dogs, featuring the heroic work of canines 'In the movie we're going to meet a number of veteran working dogs all over the world. We're going to the Canadian Rockies to show the work of avalanche rescue dogs, who can find people buried in 15 feet of snow. 'We're going to travel to Kenya where Bloodhounds are right now tracking down animal poachers and saving endangered species such as elephants and rhino. 'And then we come to California, where we will meet Ricochet. Ricochet is a dog that knows how to surf, but her true beauty is her empathy and ability to help children who suffer from autism and veteran soldiers with post traumatic stress.' The movie looks set to be a roaring success, given her large number of obviously adoring fans Another young boy snuggles up to Ricochet on the sand during the action-packed day in San Diego, California Though she serves an important role on the day, she still has time for some sillier games For a time Ricochet found success in dog surfing competitions routinely finishing in the top three but she gave up surfing competitively to concentrate on her work with people. Now she takes part in an autism surf camp during the summer months and recently headed up a new programme working with army veterans and children. Judy said: 'We are bringing people back who Ricochet has helped to help others. 'We had a 10-year-old boy who used to be afraid of dogs and water and he's come such a long way and now he's helping other kids. The eight-year-old retriever spends up to four hours in the water with children, and is said to have a sixth sense for those who are suffering One of her handlers says that Ricochet can tell instantly if someone is sick and will automatically go to them and try and provide comfort 'Everyone for the most part is disabled but they're helping each other. 'People with disabilities can be patronised but the programme allows us to empower them.' Ricochet also works with a volunteer organisation called Best Day, helping children with special needs. Todd Gasparik, a Best Day organiser, said: 'She makes our jobs easier because when Ricochet is around the kids are drawn. 'If they see Ricochet in the water, they're drawn to the water.' Kevin Carter, a Best Day volunteer, said: 'Ricochet makes children more comfortable. Ricochet shows her patriotic side as he works with a soldier while wearing the stars and stripes The talented dog readies herself on the board, wearing his bright rescue uniform as she heads towards the sea 'When they see a dog out there that can surf, they think, hey, I can do that too.' Judy is now preparing for the arrival of a golden retriever Labrador mix puppy next month, which she hopes will join Ricochet in her legacy. She said: 'They're called Superpower dogs for a reason. I hope the puppy can help people in the way Ricochet has. 'I believe dogs are here to teach us lessons. I'll wait to see if the puppy wants to surf, but I'm interested to see what she's bringing to our lives and what she's offering.' Next week is going to bring an exciting day to our region as progress begins again on our four-lane connection to the rest of the world. A group from around the region will gather Tuesday morning to hold a groundbreaking ceremony on the extension of Highway 30 Expressway. We will gather at the place where the current four-lane highway transitions to two lanes east of Schuyler. The ceremony will feature remarks from U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer, U.S. Congressman Jeff Fortenberry, Lt. Gov. Mike Foley and Nebraska Department of Roads Director Kyle Schneweis. Actually, construction to expand US-30 to a four-lane divided expressway is already underway. Construction on the Schuyler to Rogers phase will continue through most of 2017 and will take place along the north side of the existing highway. The project will be completed in two more phases -- Rogers to North Bend and North Bend to Fremont -- after completion of this first segment and is expected to be completed by 2019. Construction of the project is partially paid for by the Build Nebraska Act. BNA was a project led by Sen. Fischer when she was a state senator, and were proud shell be able to see some of the fruits of her labor at this event. Since then, the state has added the Transportation Innovation Act to the transportation toolbox, and through that we have seen Highway 81 south of Columbus added to the list of projects on the to-do list. Its exciting to see Nebraska moving forward on needed infrastructure projects. The chamber has a couple other opportunities on-tap for the near future that Id like to highlight in todays column. If youd like the economic forecast for our region, that comes tomorrow. Members can get a look into our regions economy as the chamber hosts Dr. Eric Thompson and Dr. David Rosenbaum from the University of Nebraskas Bureau of Business Research. They will give the economic status report and the future forecast for our region. The Lunch n Learn is at noon Thursday at the chamber office. All employees of any member are welcome to hear the presentation, but we would appreciate an RSVP so we can provide lunch and seating. Monday night is the monthly Business After Hours for October. Our friends at Dynamic Life Therapy & Wellness are hosting us this month. Please remember any employee of a chamber member business is welcome to attend Business After Hours. As usual, the event will run from 5-6:30 p.m., and we hope lots of our members will join us for this opportunity for some informal networking. I hope chamber members will take advantage of these opportunities to meet each other and to learn about issues and events that impact your business. Its just one more benefit of membership. Students were angry for overpricing an item that was a female necessity A Sydney university has sparked a furore after students spotted sanitary pads being sold for double the price in supermarkets. Female students were shocked to find Macquarie University's Macshop was selling a 12-pack of sanitary pads for $9.95, Grapeshot reported. The issue of overpriced sanitary products was raised last month at Macquarie University after students complained it was unfair as the products were a necessity for females. The overpriced product comes as females across the country continue to mount pressure on the Federal Government to remove the tampon tax. Female students at a Sydney university were shocked to find a 12 pack of sanitary pads being sold for $9.95 at a uni shop (stock photo) Bec Lumbroso, a member of the Women's Collective, was surprised to see the price of the pads when she entered the university store, Macshop. 'It's different when that student has no real choice as to whether or not they can afford a pack of pads,' she told Grapeshot. 'It's outrageous that they have the audacity to put women in a position where they are charged incessantly for goods that they cannot live without in that given moment.' As the supermarket pricing war continues, prices for sanitary products were slashed. Macshop noted that they find it difficult to compete against big supermarkets but will take another look at the pricing to see if they can accommodate students A 16-pack of Libra Slimpons have been cut from $5.60 to $4 at Coles, while Libra Liners Purse Pack 28-packs have been reduced from $3.90 to $3. Libra Pads Ultra-Thin and Extra Pads 10- to 14-pack have dropped from $5.90 to $4.80. Woolworths followed suit by slashing their prices as well. Macshop have since said they will take a look at their pricing to see whether they can offer it at a closer price to what is on offer at supermarkets. The woman at the centre of former Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi's 'bunga-bunga party' sex-for-hire scandal has been indicted on charges of giving false testimony. Berlusconi was convicted but found not guilty of appeal of paying prostitute Karima el-Mahroug for sexual services between February and May 2010 when she was under the age of 18, and using his influence to cover up the liaisons. El-Mahroug, also known by the stage name Ruby Rubacuori - Italian for 'Ruby the Heartstealer', is due to go on trial alongside 22 others. Scroll down for video Berlusconi was convicted but found not guilty of appeal of paying underage prostitute Karima el-Mahroug for sexual services Berlusconi was initially sentenced to seven years in prison, but his conviction was overturned on appeal in 2014 Ruby, now 23, and her co-defendants are accused of accepting bribes and lying on the stand to protect Berlusconi in his trial. They are facing various charges centered around corruption in judicial proceedings and giving false testimony. Berlusconi was sentenced Court of First Instance to seven years in prison, and banned from public office for life, but his conviction was overturned in 2014. Ruby, now 23, as been indicted on charges of giving false testimony at Berlusconi's trial Berlusconi also faces possible indictment, but a judge is yet to decide whether or not he will face trial, due to health issues He was acquitted on he grounds that there was no proof that he knew that 17-year-old Ruby was under 18 at the time. The trial judge in Milan has set a date of January 11 for the opening of the court case against the 23 accused. The other 22 defendants include Luca Giuliante, the former lawyer of El Mahroug, journalist Carlo Rossella, and Senator Mariarosaria Rossi. Berlusconi also faces possible indictment, but his case was separated from the others due to health issues. After a long road trip in a stuffy, cramped car, anyone would be a little grumpy. So spare a thought for this king brown snake who spent 500km trapped inside the engine of a vehicle as it travelled along bumpy outback roads. The 'unwanted hitchhiker' slithered its way into the motor of a car in the Northern Territory and the driver was unable to get it out. Ssstuck! A snake travelled 500km inside a car's engine after getting itself trapped in there The motorist had no other choice but to carry on driving with the venomous snake inside the engine, travelling 500km on bumpy roads before arriving at a reptile centre in Alice Springs. Amazingly the king brown survived the ordeal and a snake catcher was able to free it from the engine. Unsurprisingly, the sizeable snake was not in the best mood when it was pulled out from under the bonnet. But after a few attempts, the snake catcher was able to bag up the snake for a safe release. The 'unwanted hitch hiker' slithered its way into the motor of a car in the Northern Territory and the driver was unable to get it out Alive! Amazingly the king brown survived the ordeal and a snake catcher was able to free it from the engine Writing on the Alice Springs Reptile Centre Facebook page, the snake catcher said: 'Late arvo, just locking up and a car pulls into the reptile centre driveway. 'They picked up an unwanted hitch hiker miles out. This snake has sat in the engine bay for over 500km of some of the roughest roads out there. 'It's a mulga snake and not a small one. I am tailing the snake here into the bag and notice that it doesn't want to go in the bag either.' King browns, otherwise known as mulga snakes, are one of the longest venomous snakes in the world and can grow to up to three metres long. Broken marriage: Ron Sheppard, 68, bombarded eighth wife Weng Plantino, 36, pictured, with presents, letters and messages Britain's most married man has been given a restraining order after harassing his eighth wife as he tried to stop her divorcing him, a court heard. Ron Sheppard, 68, of Martock, Somerset, bombarded Weng Plantino, 36, with presents, letters and Facebook messages in a desperate attempt to rekindle their relationship. The harassment forced Ms Plantino to move house and leave the church where she had made 'true friends', it was heard. When Sheppard's advances failed he turned to intimidation, telling Ms Plantino was '99 per cent likely' the case against him would be thrown out and she could be arrested for perjury. He has since proposed to Cristel Marquez, a Filipina call worker who is 40 years his junior. Sheppard pleaded guilty to harassment and was handed a 607 fine at Yeovil Magistrates Court. He was also given a two year restraining order banning her from directly or indirectly contacting Ms Plantino, who was named in court as Rowena Sheppard. In a victim impact statement read to the court by the prosecution, Ms Plantino said she felt 'scared and like he was watching everything I did'. She even fled her home in Summertown, Somerset, leaving behind friends and the church group she had joined. The statement said: 'I don't know why he won't stop contacting me and leave me to get on with my life. People there [the church] have become true friends and I had to leave them all behind.' Most married man: Ron Sheppard outside Yeovil Magistrates' Court in Somerset today, left. Right, Sheppard with Ms Platino on their wedding day on the Isle of Wight in 2004 New love: Sheppard with fiancee Cristel Marquez, a Filipina call centre worker in her 20s Defending Sam Morton said he client pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and accepts the length of the restraining order. He also pleaded with the judge to allow Sheppard to able to continue attending St Clairs Church in Summertown as that is where his support network is, which the judge accepted. Sentencing Sheppard, district judge Dave Taylor said: 'No matter what might have been your experiences of matrimony in the past, it seems to me you were unable to accept and give up this is a relationship at an end. First bride: Sheppard was just 19 when he married first wife Margaret in 1966, pictured left. Bride number three, pictured right, Lesley wed Mr Sheppard in 1976 'You wont be the first or last who has been unable to deal with the affects of a relationship breakdown. 'The way you conducted yourself did cause actual and real distress to Mrs Sheppard. It does not surprise me to hear from her she felt she needed to leave the area. 'She felt alone and isolated by your conduct. You caused Mrs Sheppard real harm.' After passing sentence Sheppard told the judge: 'I would just like to apologise to my wife and apologise to the court.' Wife number four, Kathy. Britain's most married man tied the knot with wife number four, 18-year-old Kathy, in 1982. The couple had a daughter during their four years together Wife number five, Sue, who he met at a bingo hall. They married in 1986 although he was not 'swept off his feet'. They had two sons before he was thrown out in 1997 Wife number seven, Wan. The couple met in Bangkok in 2003 and married that year. They were together for 11 years and broke off their relationship in 2015 Speaking after the hearing, Ron dismissed everything heard in court as 'lies'. He said: 'I wouldn't want patch things up now, even if I could meet her. There is too much water gone under the bridge. She has done so much to me mentally and walking out on me. At the moment I'm angry. She has ruined my life.' He is now focused on his relationship with Miss Marquez and is working to bring her over to Britain from the Philippines. He said: 'I need Cristel here to take my mind off things. Every time I look around the house, sometimes I can hear her, hear her calling me. Bride number eight, Weng Plantino, who took out a restraining order on her former husband Next step: Sheppard proposing to Miss Marquez, who is set to become his ninth bride 'I have been alone for ten months. I have never been alone in my life.' He added: 'I'm still looking for love. I have got Cristel but we have never made love or anything together as she doesn't believe in it until after marriage. 'I'm just trying to find the money now to get Cristel over here now.' Sheppard was just 19 when he tied the knot with first wife Margaret in 1966 and the pair had two children together before divorcing two years later. RON SHEPPARD'S WIVES Wife No 1: Margaret in 1966. Had three children and divorced after two years. Wife No 2: Jeanette, married in 1973 and divorced after just one year together. Sheppard later described the union as a 'business transaction'. Wife No 3: Lesley, wed in 1976. He left five years later following a string of arguments. The couple have two sons. Wife No 4: Kathy, met in a holiday camp and they married in 1982. They had a daughter and lasted four years. Wife No 5: Sue, whom he met in a bingo hall and married in 1986. They had two sons but she threw him out in 1997. Wife No 6: Usha, wed in 1999. They split after four years when Sheppard cheated on her while in Thailand. Wife No 7: Wan. The couple met in Bangkok in 2003 and married that year. The pair were in the UK together for just eight months when Wan left him and returned to her home country. Wife No 8: Weng, married in 2004. The pair met online and Sheppard flew out to the Philippines. The couple were together for 11 years and split in 2015. Wife-to-be No 9: Cristel. Sheppard proposed on December 31, 2015, weeks after leaving Weng. Advertisement He then met second wife Jeanette in a Kingston bingo hall and they wed in 1973, but it lasted one year. He has since described the marriage as a 'business transaction' which enabled them to receive a bigger house from the council. Shortly after their divorce, Mr Sheppard met third wife Lesley and in 1976 they tied the knot. They went on to have two children together and he said he thought she 'was for keeps', but he left five years later following a string of arguments. He went on to meet 18-year-old blonde Kathy at Pontins holiday camp in Somerset and the pair married in 1982. They had a daughter together and lasted four years, despite Mr Sheppard claiming it was a 'rebound relationship' following his split from Lesley. He then met his fifth wife Sue at a bingo hall. Despite admitting he was not 'swept off his feet by her', he moved in to her two-bedroom home and they married in 1986. They had two sons together but she threw him out when he was offered a job in Bournemouth. He then went on to marry Usha in 1999, after the pair met while he was on a stop-off trip to Singapore. They lasted four years but split after Mr Sheppard cheated on her during a holiday alone to Thailand. With divorce number six behind him, he met seventh wife Wan in Bangkok in 2003 during a trip to visit an old friend. However, after returning to the UK, the pair stayed together for just eight months before the bride announced she was returning to her native country in 2003. It was then Mr Sheppard met Weng after meeting her online. He flew out to meet her in the Philippines. A teenage boy from Columbus, Georgia, will have his right leg amputated today after a teacher allegedly body-slammed him to the floor three times, causing nerve damage. Montravious Thomas, 13, was attending Edgewood Student Services Center on September 12 when Bryant Mosley 'had to physically restrain a student... due to behavioral issues,' a Columbus Police Department report said. But an attorney representing Thomas and his mother says Mosley repeatedly threw the boy to the ground then sent him home without medical attention or telling his mom, The Ledger-Enquirer reported. Scroll down for video Injury: Montravious Thomas lost his leg after a Georgia teacher allegedly threw him to the floor three times. The family's lawyer Renee Tucker (left) is now preparing a $5million lawsuit Thomas was attending the AIM program, which hosts children who have been temporarily removed from their regular schools due to disruptive behavior, when the incident happened. It was his first day at the program, according to WTVM. According to Renee Tucker, who represents Thomas and his mom Lawanda, the boy was trying to leave class to call his mom when Mosley, a behavioral specialist, stopped him. Mosley then threw him to the floor for an 'unknown reason,' Tucker said, and did it again when the boy tried to leave again. Video courtesy of WTVM.com Tucker also claims that Eddie Powell, the assistant principal, saw the violence at one point, an that a school resource officer saw Thomas limping away but didn't help or file a report. The attorney also says that the school talked about calling for an ambulance, but then decided against it, and that Mosley then put the boy on a bus home without calling his family. 'We dont know the extent that the injuries were worsened by the failure to render aid and certainly by picking him up and seating him on the school bus,' Tucker told the Leger-Enquirer 'Then they had him ride in that same school bus home without any support or stabilization of that leg.' Incident: The incident occurred at Edgewood Student Services Center (pictured) in September during a class for disruptive teens. Teacher Bryant Mosley is no longer there The boy's mom took him to a Columbus hospital when he got home. He was then airlifted to an Atlanta hospital. Since then, he has undergone four surgeries AllOnColumbus reported. Lawanda Thomas spent as much time with her son as she could - to the point that she lost her job. But on Sunday the 13-year-old was told that the nerve damage was so severe, his leg would have to be amputated. 'My client is certainly aware of the situation and naturally hes emotional,' Ticker told AllOnColumbus. 'Doctors talked to him and his mother on Sunday and told him they were having to take his leg since they were unable to improve the flow of blood to his lower leg. 'Right now we are all concerned for his long-term health.' The family will be pursuing a lawsuit, Tucker said, and that early filing notices put the figure at $5million. A police report filed at the time cited 'behavioral issues' as the reason for Mosley having to 'physically restrain' the boy, according to WTVM. And in a statement to the press, Muscogee County School District director of communications Valerie Fuller cited safety issues for the altercation. 'It is our understanding that there were issues concerning the safety of the child and others in the room, which called for the use of restraint per state guidance,' she said. She added that 'physical restraint' is allowed in Georgia schools if 'the student is an immediate danger to himself or others and (they are) not responsive to less intensive behavioral interventions including verbal directives or other de-escalation techniques.' There were no other children in the room at the time, Tucker said. The attorney also says that an insider has told her there is video footage of the alleged assault and has filed an open records request to see it. Fuller also appeared to distance the district from Mosley, saying that he was not hired directly by them. 'Bryant Mosley was provided by Mentoring and Behavioral Services, a contract service provider, to the Muscogee County School District,' she said in her statement. 'Mr Mosley is not presently providing services to the Muscogee County School District. 'Mr Mosley is specifically trained in MindSet curriculum, a system of preventing and managing aggressive behavior, and Georgia restraint requirements.' The teacher is no longer working at the school, Fuller said, although it isn't known when that decision was made. Mentoring and Behavioral Services' (MBS) website says that it provides Autism, Aspergers, ADHD, and behavioral services in Columbus and Phenix City. The site says it is a 'client focused organization that specializes in individualizing holistic behavioral approaches to produce a healthy and productive environment that fosters positive growth.' It says that it follows the 'wholesome values' including compassion, caring, honesty and integrity. It is currently 'accepting clients between the ages of 2-18 that have been diagnosed on the autism spectrum.' When asked whether Bryant was still employed by MBS, Dailymail.com was directed to the company's Rob Poydasheff, who declined to comment. ' At this point, we are still in the early stages of investigating the events which occurred and I have advised my client not to comment or speculate on the matter until we have completed our investigation,' he wrote. 'We are certainly very concerned for Montravious and our hearts go out to him. He and his family are in our thoughts as prayers.' Bryant has not been charged with any crimes related to the incident, according to WTVM. Women are walking out of work and wearing black to protest against femicide for a teenager who was raped and killed in Argentina earlier this month. Lucia Perez, 16, was plied with cocaine and cannabis before her attackers carried out a harrowing sex attack that caused her death. The protest, Miercoles Negro or Black Wednesday, was launched after her family were threatened for demanding justice. The organisers of the march wrote: 'In your office, school, hospital, law court, newsroom, shop, factory, or wherever you are working, stop for an hour to demand "no more machista violence"'. Lucia Perez's tragic death has shocked Argentinians who are now protesting against femicide and calling for her justice Machismo is used in Spanish to describe excessive masculinity, which campaigners believe can lead to men abusing or killing women. The concept of Miercoles Negro was born in 1992 and thousands of women have taken to the streets in protest each year since. It is thought Lucia had been speaking with her killers on Facebook before meeting them outside her school in Mar del Plata. #NiUnaMenos translates as 'not one woman less.' Even though I consider myself a feminist, I often forget how deeply misogyny is ingrained outside of the US. RIP Lucia Perez #MiercolesNegro Annie Grujich (@anniegrujich) October 19, 2016 https://twitter.com/monaeltahawy/status/788716132542865408 Two men left Ms Perez at a drugs rehabilitation hospital, washed and dressed, on October 8 and medics treated her for what they thought was an overdose. Police have arrested three men suspected to have been involved with Lucia Perez's murder. Above, policemen guide one of the arrested attackers It wasn't until staff carried out a more detailed examination that they discovered the cause of her ill health. Prosecutor Maria Isabel Sanchez said: 'The girl was impaled and this was the cause of her death. 'She had been subjected to brutal, inhumane sexual abuse. 'She died because of the injuries she suffered from being impaled." After Police traced the van used to drop Lucia at hospital, Matias Gabriel Faroias, 23, and Juan Pablo Offidani, 41, were arrested. Police found used condoms, drugs, sex toys and gun ammunition in the van and have now located Alejandro Maciel who is also believed to be connected to the incident. Her family said the three men's associates should be investigated, as well as the drug trade they were involved in, and were threatened after demanding justice. Two armed men allegedly turned up at the family home and told Lucia's parents, Guillermo and Marta, they would be shot dead. Police guards have been patrolling the house since the threat. An official police document shows the name of two of the men who were arrested in connection with the teenager's death Lucia's 19-year-old brother Matias released a moving letter about his deceased sister: 'Next time it could happen to the person you love the most. We should be strong and go out the street in order to shout together, now more than never: "No one else". Only like this will we will be able to sleep at night, and my sister can rest in peace. 'I originally just wanted to write a letter as a tribute to my sister, and to include a picture of her that meant a lot to us, of her being hugged by my parents. But even this simple form of closure is not open to us, because now we have death threats hanging over our heads. Argentina introduced a law against femicide in 2012 and there are harsher punishments for men 'My sister was a quiet girl, she did not often leave the house, and on the weekend she died, she had been picked up from home at 10 AM. My father had just left the house, and my mother had returned four hours later at 3 PM. Sweden is planning to give ISIS defectors housing grants and free driving licences to encourage them to reintegrate into society, it has emerged. Lund County council in southern Sweden is looking at offering incentives to jihadi defectors - including helping them to secure work. The plan has reportedly received backing from an anti-violent extremism body. Sweden is planning to give ISIS defectors housing grants and free driving licences to encourage them to reintegrate into society, it has emerged According to the Daily Express, about 140 Swedish citizens have come back to the country having fought for terror groups in Iraq and Syria. Defectors would be encouraged to re-enter society with incentives like housing grants and driving licences under the plans. Those leading the proposals believe they should be dealt with the same way as criminals who are trying to reintegrate. Anna Sjostrand, Lund County's municipal coordinator against violent extremism, reportedly said: ' When the subject first came up, we thought Oh God, how should we handle this? A similar approach has also been discussed in other councils in Sweden. The country's capital Stockholm is shown in this file picture 'But we pretty quickly realised that we should deal with [people defecting from ISIS] in the same way [we deal with people defecting from criminal gangs].' In a report by the national coordinator against violent extremism, Christoffer Carlsson said: 'Its a straight social, economic and material question. You need to be able to reintegrate into the job market, you may need to have a driving licence, debt settlement and a roof over your head.' Police officers were left red-faced after they were forced into a high-speed chase with a naked motorcycle rider. Dashcam footage captured the moment the biker flew past a squad car waiting at the junction of a roundabout in Havirov, Czech Republic. The officers quickly gave chase after the man, 22, who seemingly set out to goad the cops into chasing him as he had written 'police' on his back in marker pen. Dashcam footage captured the moment the biker flew past a squad car waiting at the junction of a roundabout in Havirov, Czech Republic The officers quickly gave chase after the man, 22, who seemingly set out to goad the cops into chasing him as he had written 'police' on his back in marker pen The footage shows the officers finally catching up with the man after he appeared to crash, legging it without a stitch of clothing on. It is believed the man then led officers on another chase, this time on foot, before they caught him hiding behind a tree in a meadow. He was arrested for dangerous driving, for not wearing a crash helmet, for having no insurance or driving licence, and for not having a registration plate on the vehicle. Bohuslav Muras, head of police in Havirov, said: 'It seems that they came to the station to provoke the officers. 'They were in front of the station and then they left quickly.' The man was arrested for dangerous driving, for not wearing a crash helmet, for having no insurance or driving licence, and for not having a registration plate on the vehicle A chilling video captures a woman being slashed and stabbed 21 times in a brutal machete attack - but she miraculously survives. The video shows Santosh Venkatesh, 25, launching himself at Kumari Venkatswamy, 50, as she is speaking to another woman in a corridor. Santosh is seen rushing through a doorway and striking a blow on Kumari's head and her then struggling to escape the relentless blows from the machete. Kumari Venkatswamy, 50, is seen speaking to another woman in a corridor in the shocking video showing a brutal attack Santosh Venkatesh is seen rushing through a doorway and striking a blow on Kumari's head and her then struggling to escape the relentless blows from the machete He continues to beat her relentlessly with the machete as she cowers away from his attack The incident happened in Kotiligeshwar temple in Karnataka in southern India on Sunday evening where Kumari serves as an administrator But Santosh stops after a man jumps in to rescue Kumari's and some other locals are later seen catching the attacker. The incident happened in Kotiligeshwar temple in Karnataka in southern India on Sunday evening where Kumari serves as an administrator. Santosh, an engineer, was immediately handed over to the police after the incident. Santosh who hails from same village as Kumari was scorned after his father Venkatesh Appa died three years ago in a heart attack, and he blamed Kumari. Santosh, an engineer, was immediately handed over to the police after the incident, in which he continued to pursue her even when she tried to flee Santosh (pictured) who hails from same village as Kumari was scorned after his father Venkatesh Appa died three years ago in a heart attack, and he blamed Kumari Shiv Shankar Reddy, Head Constable at Bethamangla Police Station said: 'Santosh's father Appa was a former member of local municipal body that was headed by Kumari. The two had a dispute over an outstanding bill and Appa apparently died of a heart attack. 'Santosh could not stomach it and blamed her for his father's death. He later took the extreme step in vengeance.' Luckily, Kumari, a single woman, escaped with only minor gashes and wounds on her left hand. Advertisement British jets and drones have hit crucial Islamic State targets in Mosul as part of the push to drive the jihadist group out of their Iraqi stronghold. The RAF took part in strikes around the northern Iraqi city, hitting targets including a truck bomb and anti-tank gun in support of the ground offensive. Dramatic footage captured the moment the bombers took out a large armed truck, before it could be used by Islamic State. It comes amid warnings that 1.5 million people in Mosul could be at great risk of being targeted, caught in cross-fire, forcibly expelled or used as human shields during the operation to oust ISIS extremists. Fanatics have been preventing the residents from escaping in recent weeks and holding them 'against their will', according to Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis. But thousands have now started fleeing the city, which has been under IS control since 2014, leading to warnings of a humanitarian crisis. British jets and drones have hit crucial Islamic State targets in Mosul, pictured is the moment bombers took out a large armed truck, before it could be used by Islamic State A Typhoon flight to the south of Mosul used a Paveway IV guided bomb to destroy the large truck bomb, seen here in MOD footage ISIS thugs have resorted to using human shields as they attempt to defend Mosul as it emerged the terror group's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is thought to be trapped in the city. Aerial pictures show how ISIS fanatics are torching oil in the city Fanatics have been preventing the city's 1.5 million residents from escaping in recent weeks, according to Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis. Iraqi forces are pictured in the Bajwaniyah village, south of Mosul Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon has described the effort to liberate Mosul as a 'big moment' in the war against IS, also known as Daesh. He vowed that British forces would continue to play a major role as part of the coalition supporting the Iraqi and Kurdish forces on the ground. The Ministry of Defence released details of a series strikes carried out by the RAF on Monday and Tuesday. On Monday, a Reaper drone was in action south-east of the city, attacking targets including a mortar position, an armed truck and two IS heavy weapons teams - one equipped with an anti-tank gun. A Typhoon flight to the south of Mosul used a Paveway IV guided bomb to destroy a large truck bomb before it could be used by IS, with video footage capturing the large explosion on impact. On Tuesday, a Reaper flying to the south-east of Mosul targeted two groups of IS fighters and an armed truck, while to the north-east of the city Typhoons destroyed targets including a string of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) laid out in a defensive belt. British jets and drones have hit crucial Islamic State targets in Mosul, pictured footage showing the moment the bombers took out a large armed truck Foreign Office Minister Tobias Ellwood said 'huge amounts of planning' had gone into laying the groundwork for the operation The RAF took part in strikes around the northern Iraqi city, hitting targets including a truck bomb and anti-tank gun in support of the ground offensive A video grab shows an RAF Typhoon using a Paveway guided bomb to safely dispose of a large truck-bomb, before it could be used by ISIS Coalition forces expect IS to have laid a series of booby traps in and around Mosul as part of their effort to hamper Iraqi advances. It has been claimed that ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is still holed up in Mosul along with his explosives expert Fawzi Ali Nouimeh. Senior Kurdish official Hoshiyar Zebari said there were 'solid' intelligence reports saying Baghdadi was in the city. It was in Mosul's Great Mosque of al-Nuri that the terrorist declared the ISIS 'caliphate' in 2014. The head of Russia's General Staff Valery Gerasimov said today that that any ISIS militant trying to escape Mosul for Syria should be killed on the spot. Foreign Office Minister Tobias Ellwood said 'huge amounts of planning' had gone into preparing for the liberation of Mosul. 'The place will be covered in booby traps, in IEDs, it will not be safe for anybody to enter, there will be huge sums of refugees seeking shelter and support elsewhere,' he told BBC Radio 4's World At One. He said the city would be liberated by Iraqi Sunni forces and made safe, allowing refugees to return. The similar tactics were used by Saddam Hussein in Kuwait. The burning of oil wastes millions of dollars worth of supplies and damages the environment The images have already been compared to the tactics used in the 1991 Gulf War, when Saddam took his troops out of Kuwait with defeat in sight Residents are being held there 'against their will' and coalition forces 'know they are being used as human shields,' Davis added ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is believed to be holed up in the city along with his explosives expert Fawzi Ali Nouimeh Discovery: Peshmerga forces stand around a tunnel used by ISIS militants on the outskirts of Bartila, east of Mosul ISIS radicals have begun setting fire to oil wells as they flee Mosul - with striking similarities to Saddam Hussain's defeated troops 25 years ago A truckload of refugees flee the area as the flames and plumes of smock billow out behind them The jihadis have begun feeling the key territory, as the battle to defeat the terror group starts to reach a conclusion Iraqi army forces arrive in the village of Hut as smoke can be seen rising from oil wells behind them The scorched earth tactics are used to limit the visibility of enemy pilots during air strikes Iraqi troops retreating after a seven-month occupation in 1991 smashed and torched 727 wells Several blown-out wells damaged by retreating Iraqi soldiers in Al-Ahmadi oil field burn in the Gulf War of 25 years ago Long road ahead: The battle looks set to be lengthy affair that could last months according to the French Defence Minister Heavily armoured military vehicles head towards Mosul on Tuesday in a major offensive A vehicle full of Iraqi soldiers arrive in Hut as an Iraqi flag is seen planted in the ground two years after the army's defeat there Humanitarian charity Save The Children has said that thousands of desperate Iraqis have made their way to an already-overcrowded Syrian refugee camp in an effort to escape the offensive. About 5,000 people, mostly women and children, have arrived at the Al Hol camp from the Mosul area in the last 10 days, and at least 1,000 more are now massing at the border waiting to cross, the charity said. The UN's humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien said the protection of the elderly, disabled and pregnant women who may not be able to move to safety without assistance cause the greatest concern. He told the UN Security Council on Wednesday that no large-scale displacement of civilians has been reported on the third day of the Iraqi government-led operation. But Mr O'Brien said the UN anticipates 'a displacement wave of some 200,000 people over the coming weeks, with up to one million displaced in the course of the operation in a worst-case scenario'. Of that one million, the UN believes 700,000 would require shelter and emergency assistance, he said. The civilians fleeing from ISIS-controlled areas of Mosul to find safer locations while the battle rumbles on Iraqi refugees are seen after they have arrived at Al Qayyarah town, which has been secured by Iraqi Army Iraqi internally displaced civilians are seen as they have arrived at Al Qayyarah Displaced people, who are fleeing from clashes in Al-hud village, south of Mosul, head to Qayyarah, during an operation to attack ISIS COLUMBUS A proposed road use and maintenance agreement between Platte County and a company constructing a wind farm turned into a discussion on whether the project is being completed in an upfront manner. Matt Robinette, project manager for Omaha-based Bluestem Energy Solutions, met with the Platte County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday to ask that the agreement be signed for the project that includes the addition of three wind turbines near 220th Avenue and 445th Street southwest of Creston. It is an expansion of the Creston Ridge Wind Farm, a four-turbine project completed in December 2015. The county signed a similar contract for the wind farm's first phase to protect road quality during and after turbine construction. That agreement made Bluestem responsible for any damage to county roads during the construction process or when repairs may have to be made to the turbines. The new contract would be put in place prior to the installation of turbines for the expansion project. The turbines are expected to arrive later this year or early next year, Robinette said. County supervisors tabled action on the contract until their next meeting after Deputy County Attorney Elizabeth Lay said she hadnt had time to look over the agreement. But that didnt stop board members from voicing their concerns about the project. Supervisor Tom Martens spoke out about his displeasure with the process, which he has also done in the past. He said the county board was not notified that the initial Creston Ridge Wind Farm or its expansion were going to happen until agreements were already signed with landowners. They are not being upfront with us. Theyre getting this stuff done, in my mind, behind the scenes and then coming forward to the public in the area and us. Im not happy about it, Martens said. Bluestem has an agreement with Loup Public Power District to provide wind power to the local utility. Under its agreement with Nebraska Public Power District, Loup is allowed to purchase up to 10 percent of its customers peak electricity demands from outside sources. Martens also said hearings were not held to gather input from the public. But Robinette said there were two meetings, one in Humphrey and another in Creston, that allowed the public to voice their opinion and concerns about the expansion. Martens rebutted, saying the agreement had already been signed with property owners and Loup to move forward with the expansion before those meetings were held. This (the meetings) should have been done prior to this project going on. It is not being done in the proper way. I feel were not being told the truth, Martens said. Robinette said the process for such a project starts with securing land lease agreements to do a resource assessment of the site and come up with a construction estimate. Once we have an idea of where we are going within their service territory, then that is when we have a public hearing, which is what we did with this project, he said. Feedback from the public meetings can have an impact on a project, Robinette said. Martens, who attended the Creston meeting in February, said protests from such meetings wouldnt stop projects from moving forward because agreements were already signed with landowners and Loup. They are not going to back out of that, he said, adding that he thought the majority of people at the Creston meeting were against the project. Bluestem doesnt need approval or support from the county for the wind farm because Platte County doesnt have zoning. Supervisor Hollie Olk suggested zoning as an option in the future because she said the federal government is forcing power districts to get a certain percentage of their power from renewable resources. NPPD is under pressure to meet these federal guidelines and Loup is under the same pressure, as well, she said, adding that she thinks it wont stop at 10 percent. I think it will probably continue to be more and more and just slowly phasing it in. So if youre not happy with how this process is going, you should seriously consider a specialized permit zoning, Olk said. Other board members said a way to prevent the project from moving forward would be to not approve the road use and maintenance agreement. The board is expected to consider the agreement at its Nov. 1 meeting. In other business, the board: tabled a discussion and possible action on a feasibility study on merging Platte County dispatch with Merrick County. approved the purchase of two 2017 Caterpillar motor graders from Nebraska Machinery at a cost of $276,500 each. A prominent Georgia attorney who says he accidentally shot and killed his wife last month was indicted in 1990 for firing into a car containing three teenagers, it was revealed this week. Claud 'Tex' McIver claimed to have inadvertently fired a handgun inside his SUV on the evening of September 25, mortally wounding 63-year-old Diane McIver. On Tuesday, the station WSB-TV uncovered court documents showing that more than 26 years prior to the deadly incident, Claud McIver was charged with three counts of aggravated assault, possession off a firearm and criminal damage to property. No one was injured in the February 1990 incident in DeKalb County, and prosecutors ultimately decided to drop the charges against McIver. Scroll down for video Indictment revealed: Claud 'Tex' McIver (left), who says he accidentally shot his beloved 'life partner,' Diane (right), had been indicted in 1990 for firing a gn at a car carrying teens The victims in the shooting declined to pursue the case after McIver agreed to pay restitution for the damage to the vehicle. McIver's attorney Stephen Maples, who also represented him in the 1990 case, told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that his client acted in self-defense at the time, and that the two incidents were totally unrelated, completely different in fact, pattern and situation. Police investigating the death of Diane McIver confirmed that they were aware of the 1990 shooting involving the womans husband. As of Wednesday morning, no charges have been filed in connection to the womans killing. Maples told the paper that on the evening of February 27, 1990, Claud McIver returned home late to find his first wife alarmed about the presence of some strangers at the end of their cul-de-sac on Cravey Trail in the northeast Atlanta. McIver retrieved his handgun from the bedroom and went outside. According to Maples, the attorney saw some people sitting in a car nearby, and when they spotted him, they drove toward him. McIver told his lawyer at the time he felt threatened because the driver of the vehicle, a Ford Mustang, made no attempt to avoid running him over, forcing him to jump out of the way. McIver fired to warning shots into the ground and a third shot into the trunk of the vehicle. Court documents stated that that lawyer struck the car twice. One of the victims offered WSB-TV a slightly different version of events, saying that he and two friends were drinking beer on the night of the incident when Claud McIver emerged from his home and shot into the air. The teens jumped in the car to get away, at which point McIver fired into the car. Police filed criminal charges against McIver in connection to the shooting and a grand jury indicted the lawyer, but nine months later, the district attorneys office decided to drop the charges, pointing to the fact that the parties in the case had already settled the matter civilly. Speaking to Atlanta Journal Constitution by phone earlier this month, Mr McIver vehemently rejected the notion that he intentionally shot his second wife, Diane. 'I absolutely did not,' he said. 'She was my life partner. My life as I know it is ruined because of this accident.' Police have been reluctant to divulge information related to this case, citing an ongoing investigation. Tragic couple: Atlanta businesswoman Diane McIver, 63 (left), was reportedly shot dead by her husband, attorney Tex McIver (right), when a handgun accidentally discharged Claud McIver has passed a polygraph test conducted by an examiner who was hired by his attorney, Stephen Maples, reported the station CBS46. During the test, McIver was asked if he intentionally shot his wife, if he knowingly shot his wife, or if he was consciously doing anything with the gun that could have made it go off. Richard Rackleff, who conducted the lie detector test, said that McIver replied, 'no,' to all three questions, and that the polygraph did not register that he was lying. Rackleff said McIver appeared to be overcome with grief and cried several times while undergoing the test. The polygraph expert also revealed that in his conversation with McIver prior to the test, the man told him that on the evening of September 25, he was dozing in the backseat of his Ford Explorer SUV when he woke up with a jolt, causing the gun in his lap to fire. His wife was riding directly in front of him, and the bullet from the revolver struck her in the back, leaving her mortally wounded. McIver's attorney told the Journal Constitution that the reason his client had the .38-caliber revolver in his lap in the first place was because earlier in the evening, as he and Diane were ridding home from their farm in Eatonton, they saw a group of people approach their vehicle. Mr McIver then asked his wife to take the gun out of the center console and hand it to him for protection. The husband placed the gun in a plastic grocery bag in his lap and fell sleep. As the SUV was passing by Piedmont Park, Claud McIver abruptly woke up. Describing that fateful moment to the paper, Mr McIver said: 'I lurched and the gun fired. I must have forgotten it was in my lap. I saw a flash.' The widower told the paper he is consumed by grief and guilt, and his only desire is to join his wife. Lingering questions: It is unclear whether the gun fired as Mr McIver, pictured on the left outside Atlanta police headquarters, was removing it from a plastic bag, or when the SUV hit a bump in the road Im down to crying 25 times a day,' he added. Mark Guilbeau, an investigator with the Fulton County Medical Examiner's Office, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that 63-year-old Diane McIver's cause of death has been listed as homicide the death of a person at the hands of another. In early October, Bill Crane, a friend of the Atlanta couple acting as a family spokesman, told the paper that Claud McIver had retrieved his handgun, a .38-caliber snub-nose revolver, because they were concerned about unrest in Atlanta related to the Black Lives Matter movement and feared of getting carjacked. But Mr McIver on Thursday denied ever mentioning Black Lives Matter, reported 11Alive. Boss: Diane McIver was president of Corey Airport Services, an Atlanta-based marketing company where she had worked for more than 40 years Crane also told the paper that the revolver was in Mr McIver'a lap when their 2013 Ford Expedition hit a bump in the road and the weapon accidentally discharged, killing Diane. It was a tragic accident, he said. Atlanta Police Sgt Warren Pickard on Tuesday called into question Crane's account of what went on inside the McIvers' car that night, saying that the friend 'wasn't in the car, so he is not a witness to what happened.' Pickard declined to offer any more details on the investigation, only saying that the case is 'more complicated' than first thought. In an earlier interview with WGCL, Mr Crane had said that the handgun fired as Claud McIver was taking it out of a plastic shopping bag. Police said they are now in the process of conducting repeat interviews of witnesses to the shooting. Sometimes you have to question the person three or four times to get the answer you need, said Sgt Pickard. We are going to let those interview sessions lead us in the right direction. Diane McIver was president of Corey Airport Services, a successful Atlanta-based marketing company where she had worked for more than 40 years. Pied a terre: Diane and Tex McIver own an apartment in a luxury complex in Buckhead, Atlanta (pictured) Her husband is a partner in the Atlanta office of Fisher Phillips LLP specializing in labor and employment law. He is also a vice president of the Georgia State Election Board, and as of August, a member of the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Gun Violence. The fatal incident took place at around 10.40pm on September 25 as Diane and Tex McIver were riding in the 2013 Ford Expedition from their sprawling farm in rural Putnam County to their apartment in the Buckhead section of Atlanta. Sad irony: Mr McIver is a member of the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Gun Violence The SUV was reportedly riding along Piedmont Avenue, past Piedmont Park, when Claud McIver became concerned about carjackers after seeing some people make their way towards their SUV and asked for the gun. After the shooting, Diane was rushed to Emory University Hospital, where she succumbed to her injures shortly before 1am Monday. An incident report that was put out by the department last Wednesday made no mention of any other occupants of the Ford SUV other than the victim, but Mr McIver said the driver of the vehicle was a close family friend named Dani Jo. 'This is one of those situations were working through very slowly,' police Sgt. Warren Pickard said. 'We want to get it right.' Diane was a vivacious, beautiful, entertaining woman who was a lot of fun to around, Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills told the station 11Alive. Mervyn Conn, 82, faces prison after being convicted of two rapes and indecent assaults in the Seventies and Eighties An 'arrogant' music promoter who worked with the Beatles, Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton used his fame to rape two girls aged 15 and 16. Mervyn Conn, 82, faces prison after being convicted of two rapes and indecent assaults in the Seventies and Eighties. It can now also be revealed Conn served a two month prison sentence in 1989 for sexually assaulting a secretary at his offices but emerged from semi-retirement in 2012. He was arrested at Gatwick airport in 2014 when the fresh claims were made. The court heard how the country music mogul Conn hired the 15-year-old girl to dress as a cowgirl at a Country and Western music festival he promoted at Wembley Arena in the 1970s. She described him as 'arrogant' as he boasted about his connections to the Beatles and showed off cash. The victim, now 56, broke down in tears and became extremely distressed in a police interview that was recorded and played to jurors. She said: 'He was a dominating person, very egotistical. He had this bouffant hair, smelt like cigars, looked almost like he was in the mafia.' The 'arrogant' music promoter who worked with the Beatles, Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton used his fame to rape two girls aged 15 and 16 She said she was employed by Conn as a hostess in 1976, and was made to hand out brochures to festival goers, dressed as a cowgirl. She insisted the father-of-four knew her age because she gave her date of birth during an interview. The woman said she was approached by Conn while she was working at the festival and he gave her a cloth bag that he wanted her to bring to his dressing room at the end of the event. Once there, she claims he took advantage of her, groping her breasts and forcing her to perform a sex act on him. The alleged victim said she was also summoned to to Conn's head office in Charing Cross, central London, on a number of occasions by telegram. On her second visit to his office, she said she went straight from school in her uniform and Conn showed her a wad of money as if he was 'showing off'. Conn pleaded not guilty but was convicted at Kingston crown court of one count of indecent assault and two of rape Conn was described him as 'arrogant' as he boasted about his connections to the Beatles and showed off cash Once other staff had left she said Conn 'talked about many people like Crystal Gayle' and forced himself upon her again. 'He was forceful and aggressive,' she said. 'I felt slightly bruised and shocked. It seemed to happen quite quickly.' On her third visit to his office she claimed Conn insisted on taking her home so he could show off his Rolls-Royce. He joked how a person 'wasn't alive' because of a scratch of the car. But instead he took her to his gated house in Wimbledon, south-west London, and raped her in the marital bed next to a photograph of him and his wife, the court heard. Mark Milliken-Smith QC, prosecuting, told Kingston Crown Court: 'She described feeling like a rag doll, feeling out of her body, dumb struck and holding back tears.' Conn took a 15-year-old girl back to his Wimbledon house in his Rolls Royce (pictured) and raped her in his marital bed next to a photograph of his wife Nine years later, in 1985, Conn, then aged 51, raped a 16-year-old girl at his London office. Conn at met her in a grocer's in Southfields, south west London, and left his number, promising concert tickets if she contacted him. When she went to collect the tickets she was raped but Conn would still visit her at her Saturday job and tell her to visit him at his office. Mr Milliken-Smith said: 'She felt she had no choice, that she couldn't say no. He of course was 51, she 16. He was a famous and powerful man. 'He had effectively tricked this young 16-year-old-girl into coming to his office under the guise of obtaining free tickets for a concert. 'He forced himself upon her, fully aware that she was not consenting, utterly unconcerned with her age and the impact which his actions had upon her there and then, nor for any concern for the long term effects his conduct would have. 'He thought only of his own sexual gratification. 'She had made it absolutely plain to him that she did not consent and he knew that full well - he couldn't have cared less.' Conn joked how a person 'wasn't alive' because of a scratch on his Rolls Royce' Conn pleaded not guilty but was convicted at Kingston crown court of one count of indecent assault and two of rape. He was acquitted of two counts of indecent assault and one of assault with intent to commit buggery. Conn, whose wife supported him in court, will be sentenced on Friday October 28. Detective Constable Ashley Lees who led the investigation said: 'I am very pleased with the outcome of the trial. 'I'd like to pay tribute to the victims who have had to recount very traumatic details of offences as part of this case and the strength they have shown during the investigation. 'Historical allegations of this nature are treated seriously by the Met and I hope this result encourages others to have the confidence to come forward if they have been victims of historical sexual abuse.' With an early-morning slip of the tongue, Donald Trump's campaign manager said Wednesday that the Republican presidential nominee has 'a five-point plan to defeat Islam.' Kellyanne Conway made the comment on MSNBC, drawing howls of outrage from officials in Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's campaign. Sparring with host Stephanie Ruhle about Trump's incendiary statements during his high-energy campaign rallies, Conway tried to shift the subject to his policy proposals. 'You should cover the news as you see it,' she told Ruhle. 'In addition, though ... I'm saying he's also giving plans. He gave a 10-point Veterans Administration reform plan, five point plan to defeat Islam, four-point plan for middle-class tax relief.' SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Donald Trump presidential campaign manager Kellyanne Conway goofed Wednesday morning on MSNBC and said her boss has 'a five-point plan to defeat Islam' Trump laid out a five-point plan in August for combating radical Islamic terrorism, not the Islamic religion itself 'Yesterday was his multi-point plan to, I think to as he says "drain the swamp." The number-one trending term on Twitter yesterday, "drain the swamp",' Conway added. 'And I think that's the basis, that's the essence of his candidacy.' Clinton senior spokesman Jesse Ferguson vented on Twitter: 'Um. @KellyannePolls just said Donald Trump has a 5 point plan to defeat Islam. Defeat Islam?' Ofirah Yheskel, the Clinton campaign's Wisconsin press secretary, tweeted that she 'nearly spit out my coffee.' '@kellyannepolls just said on @msnbc that @realDonaldTrump has a 5-point plan to defeat Islam,' she added. 'Not ISIS. Islam.' After her appearance on-air, Conway clarified to DailyMail.com that she was referring to a plan to defeat radical islamic terrorists that Trump laid out months ago. 'He released that I'm going to say [in] July, right before or after the convention. He had a big speech about it,' she said. 'His five-point plan for defeating radical Islamic terrorism. It's probably on the website ... but he released it months ago.' Hillary Clinton's senior spokesman Jesse Ferguson (top) and Wisconsin press secretary Ofirah Yheskel (bottom) went ballistic when Conway made her on-air goof Trump did deliver a mid-August speech in Youngstown, Ohio, describing in detail his plan to combat global terrorism. He said he would end America's involvement in 'regime change' and 'nation-building' projects and win the 'ideological war' against Middle Eastern radicals. Trump also pledged to reform America's immigration system to screen out jihadis, create a 'Commission on Radical Islam' to recruit moderate Muslims who will work with national security agencies, and encourage a national attitude that takes 'pride' in immigrants' assimilation into American culture. Trump has spoken of his desire to root out 'radical Islamic terrorism' and to 'knock the hell out of ISIS' the Middle Eastern terror army but he hasn't articulated a plan to 'defeat' the religion, either in the U.S. or globally. He did express a desire in December 2015 for a temporary 'total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States' in the wake of terror attacks in the U.S. and France. That statement is still on his website. It drew howls from liberals, including President Obama, who insisted that America shouldn't have a 'religious test' for immigration. Trump later morphed his policy proposal into a nation-specific form of what he called 'extreme vetting' that would target immigrants from countries that have become terror hot spots. Conway appeared on MSNBC at 6:40 a.m. local time. By then she had already appeared on two other morning shows, in a time zone three hours removed from both major presidential campaigns' campaign's New York City headquarters. Like other networks, MSNBC was broadcasting from Las Vegas, the site of Wednesday night's final presidential debate. The time shift had reporters, anchors and their on-air political guests waking up in the middle of the night. Donald Trump arrives in Las Vegas today to face a WALL of taco trucks as campaigners line up to deride his famous plan to build a huge barrier along the Mexican border. The Republican candidate's opponents are lining up dozens of taco trucks in front of a Trump-owned hotel as he prepares for tonight's third and final presidential debate. Yvanna Cancela, of the Culinary Workers Union, told NBC: 'We did not come up with the idea for the wall, Donald Trump came up with building the wall. Scroll down for video Donald Trump will arrive in Las Vegas today to face a wall of taco trucks (pictured) set up by campaigners mocking his plan to build a huge barrier along the border The idea for the voter registration stunt came after Marco Gutierrez, the founder of Latinos for Trump, told a reporter that if illegal immigration continued: 'You're going to have taco trucks on every corner' Pili Tobar, a communications director for Latino Victory, tweeted photos of the campaigners (pictured) who lined up dozens of taco trucks in front of a Trump-owned hotel as he prepared for tonight's final presidential debate The group want to encourage people to sign up and vote in the election on November 8. Yvanna Cancela, of the Culinary Workers Union, told NBC : 'We did not come up with the idea for the wall, Donald Trump came up with building the wall 'We want to show him that walls don't divide us, and rather what he has done is uniting us. And when I say "us" I mean it as in every group that Trump has vilified: Muslims, women, immigrants and workers. Ana Navarro, who describes herself as 'Nicaraguan by birth. American by choice' tweeted this 'We are all coming together to make sure that Donald Trump never becomes president,' said Ms Cancela, whose Local 226 represents 57,000 workers in Las Vegas's hospitality industry. Ms Cancela pointed out that Trump had refused to negotiate with the union at his Trump International Las Vegas hotel despite it winning a ballot among workers who wanted it to represent them. Donald Trump is trailing in the polls and, like a boxer way behind on points, he is expected to come out swinging in tonight's debate The GOP candidate has promised to build a wall along the border and to force Mexico to pay for it. Although Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has said they would never pay for it, Trump has not dropped the policy and he even maintains it is a popular idea with Latino Americans. But Hillary Clinton is expected to retain the support of the majority of Latinos - in 2012 a whopping 71 percent of Hispanic voters sided with Barack Obama, over his Republican opponent Mitt Romney. The idea for today's stunt came after Marco Gutierrez, the founder of Latinos for Trump, told a reporter that if illegal immigration continued: 'You're going to have taco trucks on every corner'. As if that was a bad thing! His remark was mocked by many and they organized for 35 taco trucks to line up in the hotel's parking lot, all of them offering Mexican food. A cardboard cutout of Donald Trump is turned against the wall at the headquarters of the Culinary Workers Union in Las Vegas Elvis Presley impersonator Eddie Powers walks past a sign in Las Vegas sign as Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump prepare for the final presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center Pili Tobar, from the Clinton-supporting Latino Victory Project, said: 'Having these taco trucks around, having music playing and at the same time registering people to vote - and obviously people here want to vote against Donald Trump - there is a celebration of culture happening. Marco Rubio has shared an old photograph of his Democratic rival Patrick Murphy appearing to 'grope' a woman, in an attempt to secure his Florida Senate seat. Rubio referenced the picture during Monday's senate debate in Orlando, defending himself against attacks from his opponent in the wake of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's recent controversies. 'Tonight that youve implied that I dont somehow respect women or that somehow Im someone who condones the outrageous behavior that the nominee of my party or others may have conducted against women,' Rubio said, the Miami Herald reports. Marco Rubio has shared an old photograph of his Democratic rival Patrick Murphy appearing to 'grope' a woman, in an attempt to secure his Florida Senate seat The picture shows Murphy with one arm around a woman's shoulder and his other hand on her breast. The Democrat Senate candidate says the picture was taken while he was at college, and the woman in the photo was his girlfriend at the time 'Congressman, youre the one that posted a picture four years ago on Facebook of you groping a woman. Thats inappropriate behavior.' The newspaper reports Murphy was thrown off by the comment, and could only muster a reply about Trump. He told reporters next day the picture was of him and a college girlfriend, before putting a new twist on Michelle Obama's now-famous line about Trump. 'When Donald Trump goes low, Marco Rubio goes lower,' Murphy said, according to the Herald. 'Rubio showed just how desperate he was last night by trying to wiggle, and got himself in this knot about Donald Trump. 'Hes trying to pivot and change the subject. It was very clear to me how uncomfortable Marco Rubio was when talking about Donald Trump and someone whos bragging about sexually assaulting women.' Murphy was forced to defend himself over the photo on Monday, after Rubio mentioned it during the Florida Senate debate Rubio and Murphy are locked in a tight race for the seat, with the Republican holding a lead of just four percentage points The Rubio camp instead used the picture to claim Murphy is a hypocrite for attacking Trump and Rubio's reaction to the scandal. The Senate race between the two bitter rivals is not over, with the latest polls giving Rubio an edge of just four percentage points, according to RealClearPolitics. The photo controversy comes after Rubio refused to pull his support of Trump, despite admitting he wishes there were better options in the presidential race. 'I wish we had better choices for President. But I do not want Hillary Clinton to be our next President. And therefore my position has not changed,' Rubio's statement read. 'I ran against Donald Trump. And while I respect that voters chose him as the GOP nominee, I have never hesitated to oppose his policies I disagree with. Another witness, Mark Wilson, was in a DUI 'holding pit' when Harris arrived at the police station. He was 'pretty nonchalant and didn't appear sad or upset,' Wilson recalled In the weeks before Cooper Harris died, Ross Harris was texting back and forth with Caitlin Hickey Floyd, a young Atlanta woman he met in the social app 'Whisper.' She was single at the time she met him online. 'I am so horny' and 'too much of a sexual freak,' Harris texted her only days before Cooper died, it was revealed in Wednesday's testimony. And while Cooper was left in the boiling hot SUV on shortly after lunch on June 18, Harris asked to see pictures of the woman naked. He said, 'Can I see your t**s?' she told the court. She sent him a picture of her breasts. Harris replied, 'Mmmmm.' 'I asked if he wanted to play with them. He said, 'F*** yes I do,' Floyd continued. She testified that when first meeting him on the social app, Harris admitted he was married. 'I asked if he had a conscience. He said 'No.' He never said he had a child,' she said. Jurors were shown numerous messages sent by Harris on June 18, 2014. A large display screen in the center of the courtroom glowed with text messages and website links from Ross Harris' iPhone 5s -- messages the accused killer likely never thought would become so public. Caitlin Hickey Floyd testifies about her sexting conversations with Ross Harris in the weeks leading up to Cooper's death Harris was in court again Wednesday, as an engineer described the heat conditions inside the SUV where he left his infant son Cooper One text to the Whisper site read, "I love my son and all but we both need escapes," according to Det. Ronson Smith, a Cobb County Police investigator who extracted pages of data from the phone's memory. Smith's evidence showed Harris texted a contact known as "alwaysinmyfeelings" at 9:15 a.m. that morning, just a few minutes after ordering breakfast at the Chick-fil-A restaurant near the day care center as well as Harris' office. Harris drove into his office's car park at 9:25 and entered the building known as the 'Tree House' two minutes later. Cooper would stay in the SUV, strapped into his car seat with no means of escape, as he died later in the day, according to evidence presented sat the trial. It was hot and sunny that day, and Harris drove to his workplace with his infant son Cooper in the back. The ride from Chick-fil-A, where the pair breakfasted, to Harris's Home Depot office was likely air-conditioned and comfortable for the father and son, on the morning of June 18, 2014 in Marietta, Georgia. But once Harris had left the family SUV - with his son inside - and headed into the office, the temperature inside the vehicle rose steadily, the jury heard Wednesday. 'I love my son and all but we both need escapes', Harris texted on the day that Cooper died Data recovered from Harris's iPhone 5S that showed numerous text messages on June 18, 2014 By 1 p.m., as Harris worked inside his cool office, the temperature inside his car where Cooper had been trapped had risen to over 100 degrees as it sat in direct sunlight. By 3:30, the car seat that held Cooper was 125 degrees, according to evidence presented Wednesday as his father's murder trial continued. Those were the findings of Dr. David Brani, an engineer who placed temperature gauges inside the Harris SUV and on Cooper's car seat on July 8 and measured the conditions throughout the day. The weather and temperatures on the testing day were similar to the day Cooper died, Brani said. Harris is charged with intentionally leaving his 22-month-old son Cooper in the hot car to die. Brani said he drove the SUV from the police evidence impound facility for 30 minutes to the Home Depot lot, using the air-conditioning settings in place when Harris was arrested several weeks before. Brani parked the SUV in the Home Depot lot Harris used on the day Cooper died and set up the sensors that tracked interior and external temperatures from 9 a.m. until 4:14 p.m., he told jurors. The thermal coupler sensors recorded conditions on the car seat, Brani explained. Defense Attorney Carlos Rodriguez questioned Detective Ronson Smith about text messages extracted from Ross Harris phone. A defense attorney for Harris points to his SUV in the parking lot Harris was in tears in court on Tuesday, as a medical examiner described Cooper's 'prolonged' and 'agonizing' death. Former Cobb County Medical Examiner Brian Frist detailed Cooper's final hours, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, saying his death would have been a slow one. 'I believe he went through various stages as he was passing,' Frist said. 'He would've experienced nausea, a headache, dehydration, seizures, anxiety.' Harris wept as jurors were shown 34 autopsy photographs of Cooper's body. The child died of hyperthermia after he was left in the SUV for roughly eight hours on that June day while his father, a Home Depot worker, sat in his office nearby. Harris says he did not realize he had left his son in the vehicle until it was too late. At one point he stopped by the car to drop off some light bulbs. By that point Cooper had already been in there for around four hours. Frist could not say with any certainty whether Cooper would have been alive by that time. Another witness, Mark Wilson, told the court Tuesday that he was in the Cobb County Police 'holding pit' on a DUI charge when Harris arrived. Harris said, 'What's up, guys?' Wilson recalled. He was 'pretty nonchalant and didn't appear sad or upset,' he added, saying that Harris never told Wilson why he had been arrested. They sat beside each other in the large holding area and engaged in 'small talk' for two to three hours as they waited to be processed into the system, Wilson said. Video from the jail showed Harris sitting in a chair near the front with his arm on the back, in a seemingly relaxed way. Wilson learned the reason for Harris' arrest from newscasts the next day. When prosecutors asked if Harris' behavior in the holding area was consistent with someone who had just lost a child, Wilson replied, 'Absolutely not.' Wilson admitted to selling his story to the National Enquirer the following month. Cobb County Prosecutor Jesse Evans questioned mechanical engineer Dr. David Brani on Wednesday about the interior temperatures recorded inside the SUV. By 3:30pm the car seat that held Cooper was 125 degrees, the court heard Harris broke down in tears in court on Tuesday as a medical examiner detailed the final hours of his son Cooper The car seat in which Cooper was left on the hot summer's day in June 2014 Jurors have had to endure hard-hitting photos of Cooper's body after he was removed from the car Harris also cried in court two weeks ago during opening statements, when his defense attorney Maddox Kilgore told the jury that ' Cooper's death was an accident, it was always an accident.' But prosecutors say he deliberately left his son in the car as he wanted him out of his life. On Monday an Alabama teenager testified that she exchanged sexually explicit messages with Harris. 'C' was 15 years old when she and Harris began texting each other, sending explicit images of their genitals over their mobile phones. The woman, now 19, testified Monday that she and Harris found each other on Whisper, an anonymous website, in May 2014. Harris's son Cooper was discovered dead a month later. On Monday, the young woman identified as 'C' said she had initially lied about her age to Harris, posing as an 18-year-old. 'I love older guys,' she posted on the website. Harris soon responded with a photo of himself as well as a graphic image of his penis, which was introduced as evidence Monday. 'I apologize,' Cobb Prosecutor Chuck Boring told the jury as he displayed the image of Harris' genitals to jurors. The teen girl told the court: 'He told me he wanted me to make him a naughty old man.' During testimony, prosecutor Chuck Boring showed jurors the photo of Harris' penis that was sent to the girl. Jaqueline Robledo also described using multiple apps to communicate with Harris in 2013 when she testified on Monday. Jaqueline Robledo (pictured in court on Monday) also described using multiple apps to communicate with Harris in 2013. She said she was 19 when they first started sexting after she posted on the app Whisper about the 'Fifty Shades of Grey' movie. They had sex at Harris's house in 2013 Justin Ross Harris with his son Cooper, who died aged 22 months after being left in his father's car Robledo said she was 19 when they first started sexting after she posted on Whisper about the Fifty Shades of Grey movie. Robledo told the court their conversation quickly turned sexual and they eventually agreed to meet at his place, where they had sex. 'It was at night, and it was at his house,' and he wasn't the least bit nervous, she said. They maintained their friendship following the tryst, and Harris also revealed to her that he 'had relations' with a man while on vacation the following year in 2014. Harris met that man on the Whisper site as well, according to her testimony. Last week Daniela Doerr, a former prostitute, told the court that Harris had sex with her three times in the weeks before his son died. Harris, 35, had contacted her after finding an ad that listed her services, she said. Police located her after discovering her number on Harris' cell phone following his arrest for Cooper's death. 'He had no presence, he was just dumpy. It was vanilla sex,' she told the court. Doerr (pictured) distinctly remembered Harris as a 'repeat' client when police showed her his photograph, she testified on Friday during the seventh day of Harris' murder trial Detective Ray Yager testified that if Harris had used his computers to search for information on 'hot car deaths' neither he nor his colleges could confirm it, despite investigators' claims The alleged searches of 'children dying in hot cars' that Harris had reportedly admitted to police couldn't be verified on any of his numerous computers, cell phones or external hard drives, Yager explained to the jury Cooper's death came under public scrutiny after investigators said they found evidence Harris had researched child deaths inside vehicles just weeks before his son perished. But on Friday Detective Ray Yager testified that if Harris had used his computers to search for information on 'hot car deaths' neither he nor his colleagues could confirm it. Yager, a computer forensics expert for the Cobb County police, had been alerted that Harris and his wife Leanna had researched child deaths online. But the alleged searches of 'children dying in hot cars' that Harris had reportedly admitted to police couldn't be verified on any of his numerous computers, cell phones or external hard drives, Yager explained. 'No notable files' were detected with key words including 'murder, child, cruelty to or in-car deaths, surviving prison, murder, homicide, divorce, alimony or legal defense,' according to Yager. The only topic revealed was a Reddit link to 'child free', he added. And on Monday Harris' college friend revealed that the story behind that link may not be as terrible as it first seemed. Defense attorney Maddox Kilgore cross examines teen girl. 'He told me he wanted me to make him a naughty old man,' the girl told the court on Monday James Alex Hall, who also works with Harris at Home Depot, testified that he sent Harris the link. Harris clicked on the site and quickly replied 'Grossness', defense attoney Maddox Kilgore showed the jury. That evidence contradicts the prosecution's assertion that it was Harris himself who initiated the search, court observers noted. In opening statements two weeks ago, prosecutor Chuck Boring told the jury Harris wanted a new life without children, and that desire may have served as motivation to allow his son to die in his hot car. Prosecutors previously said Harris was messaging six women the day Cooper died. He told one woman on Whisper: 'I love my son and all but we both need escapes.' They are arguing that Harris intentionally killed Cooper by leaving him for more than seven hours in a vehicle parked outside his workplace. Harris' lawyers called the death accidental. An indictment filed against Harris in September 2014 listed the following eight charges: malice murder, two counts of felony murder, cruelty to children in the first degree, cruelty to children in the second degree, criminal attempt to commit a felony of sexual exploitation of children, and two counts of dissemination of harmful material to minors. He faces life in prison if convicted of murder. Hail to the Queen! Elizabeth Hurley does not want to see Americans getting 'royally teabagged' in the wake of next month's presidential election, and has just the solution. In an upcoming promotion for third season of her E! series The Royals, Queen Hurley lets it be known that Americans are welcome to return to 'merry old England' should things not go their way next month. The cheeky campaign then ends with a slogan pointing fun at Donald Trump - 'Make America Great Britain again.' Scroll down for video Hail to the Queen: Elizabeth Hurley pokes fun at the upcoming election and Donald Trump in a new ad campaign for season three of her show The Royals 'It's been a few centuries since your Boston Tea party mishap, and look who's getting royally teabagged now,' says Hurley in the spot 'Happy election season y'all! How's that whole president thing working out for you? Missing home are we?' asks Hurley, who plays Queen Helena in the series, at the beginning of the new ad. 'It's been a few centuries since your Boston Tea party mishap, and look who's getting royally teabagged now.' She then goes on to say: 'Paul Revere warned everyone, "The British are coming!" Now I'm warning you, your next president is coming.' It is then that she reassures all Americans that they can come back any time before saying: 'We'll be expecting you.' Season three of The Royals will premiere December 4 on E! (Hurley above with her fellow cast members) It ends with the show's new tagline for this season, 'Make America Great Britain again' Then, at the end, Hurley stares directly into the camera and says: 'God save me.' The Royals is currently running an ad on the homepage of DailyMail.com. The third season of the show will premiere December 4 on E!. Filming in that season just wrapped last week, something Hurley commemorated by posting a photo of herself and actress Alexandra Park on her Instagram. The mysterious leader of Islamic State Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been reported to have been killed or seriously injured at least 10 times in the last year and a half. His evasiveness led to the US Government sticking a $10million bounty on his head for anything that would lead to his capture or death. It turned up nothing, though it is understood that after 13 years as an active terrorist he is cornered in Mosul as the battle continues to liberate the city. Scroll down for video The mysterious leader of Islamic State Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been reported to have been killed or seriously injured at least 10 times in the last year and a half Unlike other leaders of huge terror groups, such as Osama Bin Laden, ISIS head honcho prefers to stay under the radar. He has only appeared in one video - in Mosul last year - and there are only two authenticated photographs of him. This ability to go undetected coupled with his alleged likening for wearing masks when addressing his commanders has earned him the nickname The Invisible Sheikh. There is good reason for his incognito way of life. In 2006, one of his predecessors and leader of vicious jihadist group in Iraq Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi was tracked down and was killed in a US bombing raid in 2006. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of Islamic State, is shown in a US State Department wanted poster Zarqawi, like Al-Qaeda's Bin Laden, was a showman, and it caught up with him. Baghdadi is credited with transforming the breakaway Al-Qaeda group turning it into the independent ISIS group that is arguably the most powerful and wealthiest jihadist organisation in the world. He started life as Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim and is thought to have been born in Samarra, north of Baghdad, in 1971. Though there is no official confirmation, he is understood to have gained a doctorate from a university in Baghdad having read Islamic studies. His classmates described him as a shy, unimpressive religious scholar and a man who abstained from violence. But by 2003, he was a fully-fledged jihadist, living in a small room attached to mosque. He had called this his home for a decade. Reports suggest he was a cleric in a mosque in the city around the time of the US-led invasion that year. Some believe he was already a militant jihadist during the rule of Saddam Hussein. Others believe he was radicalised during the four years he was held at Camp Bucca, a US facility in southern Iraq where many al-Qaeda commanders were detained. His first involvement in an organised terror group came when he founded the Jamaat Jaysh Ahl al-Sunnah wa-l-Jamaah (JJASJ) with his friends in 2003. Here he was given his first role of responsibility - as head of the sharia committee. By 2006, his group had joined the Mujahideen Shura Council in Iraq, which was then an Al-Qaeda branch. The terror group was renamed Islamic State in Iraq the same year, and Baghdadi served again on the sharia committee. By this time, it is thought he was being mentored as a potential member of the jihadist organisation's top brass. He started life as Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim and is thought to have been born in Samarra, north of Baghdad, in 1971 His time came in 2010 when he emerged as the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq. It was the group that became Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) in the same year and rose to prominence during the attempted merger with al-Nusra Front in Syria. ISIS as we know it was born and Baghdadi's bloody reign of terror was underway. Between March and April 2011, he had allegedly masterminded 23 attacks south of Baghdad. He had a penchant for suicide bombings and it took less than a year for the US to officially designate Baghdadi as a terrorist, offering a $10million reward for information leading to his capture or death. The White House issued a statement with the reward, saying: 'Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, also known as Abu Du'a, is the senior leader of the terrorist organisation, the Islamic State. 'Reflecting its greater regional ambitions, al-Qaeda in Iraq changed its name in 2013 to ISIS and stepped up its attacks across Syria and Iraq. 'ISIS attacks are calculated, coordinated, and part of a strategic campaign. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is in charge of overseeing all operations and is currently based in Syria. Iraq's Interior Ministry claims this picture shows Baghdadi, the head Islamic State 'Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has taken personal credit for a series of terrorist attacks in Iraq since 2011 and claimed credit for the June 2013 operations against the Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad, the March 2013 suicide bombing assault on the Ministry of Justice, among other attacks against Iraqi Security Forces and Iraqi citizens going about their daily lives.' Under Baghdadi's leadership ISIS thugs have shocked the world with their sadistic and savage murder of thousands of people in the Middle East and Europe. Away from the battleground, there are conflicting reports of his private life. Some believe him to have three wives, some say he has children and last year he was reported to have married a German teenager. A woman claiming to be his ex-wife Saja al-Dulaimi told how she met and married who she thought was a university lecturer, only to discover seven years later he was 'the most dangerous man in the world'. Lifting the lid on what she described as their 'shallow' and unhappy marriage, Dulaimi told how Baghdadi had a 'mysterious personality' and she dared not have discussions with him. 'I didn't love him,' she told Swedish newspaper Expressen. 'He was an enigmatic person. You couldn't have a discussion or hold a normal conversation with him He just asked about things and told me to fetch things. He gave orders, nothing more.' Al-Dulaimi told how al-Baghdadi would disappear for days at a time but she had no suspicions of his involvement in the Syrian resistance while they were together. 'He was a normal family man,' she added. 'How he could become emir of the most dangerous terrorist organization in the world is a mystery.' She said that after her first husband died in an Iraqi resistance group her uncle approached her father about a potential new husband looking for a widow. Al-Dulaimi then moved her and her young twin boys in with al-Baghdadi and his first wife and her children, an arrangement she described as 'tough' in such a small space. Her children looked at the ISIS leader as their 'idol', she said, but al-Dulaimi told how she fled from him after just a few months while pregnant with a daughter, Hagar. She claims the last time she spoke to her ex-husband was in 2009 when he asked her to come back and she refused. Facebook has 1.7 billion users and the IRS is chasing it for $5 billion in tax Zuckerberg was 'hungry to learn' how he could influence public policy She said Mark Zuckerberg was keen to meet Podesta to discuss issues Schmidt also headed effort to store credit card information, accept donations, and get email addresses Effort also included plan to 'raising lots of money' and creating 'excellent' content Internal memo reveals Google founder led team to develop 'back-end' of the web site, emails obtained from hack of Clinton campaign chair John Podesta show Leaked emails reveal Hillary Clinton's campaign had Google founder Eric Schmidt leading a team to develop what would become the campaign web site By GEOFF EARLE, DEPUTY U.S. POLITICAL EDITOR FOR DAILYMAIL.COM IN LAS VEGAS AND CHRIS SUMMERS FOR MAILONLINE When Hillary Clinton wanted a new campaign website, she went to the top enlisting former Google CEO Eric Schmidt to head up a technology effort, hacked emails reveal. Schmidt oversaw an effort that involved developing the early 'back-end' stages of a web site that would be a powerful tool to promote Clinton's message and harness the efforts of volunteers while storing information on supporters. The details of the effort are outlined in a strategy memo authored by Clinton digital strategist Teddy Goff and sent to Clinton, according to documents posted on Wikileaks that were hacked from Clinton campaign chair John Podesta's emails. The memo went to now campaign manager Robby Mook, longtime aide Cheryl Mills, campaign chairman John Podesta whose emails got hacked and Barack Obama campaign guru David Plouffe. BIG GUNS: Hacked emails reveal former Google CEO Eric Schmidt's efforts to help the Clinton campaign develop its website 'I have been kept apprised of the work being done by Eric Schmidts group and others working directly and indirectly with your team. On the whole, I am comfortable with where we stand and confident in our roadmap to launch day and beyond,' Goff wrote Clinton in October 2014. The memo was reported by the Washington Free Beacon. 'We have selected a team of developers, unaffiliated with Eric, to build the front-end of your website a relatively simple process that does not need to have begun yet,' he continued, saying he could use former employees of whom he had the 'highest confidence.' Goff wrote that 'we have instructed Eric's team to build the most important products in their portfolio specifically, the back-end of the website, the ability to accept donations (along with associated features, most importantly the ability to store credit card information), and the ability to acquire email addresses first.' Among the 'PRIORITIES' listed at the top of the memo were: 'Raising lots of money,' 'Creating and distributing excellent content, for both supportive and persuadable audiences,' and 'Recruiting, engaging, and organizing volunteers and prospective volunteers.' HUNGRY: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg was 'hungry to learn' about 'how to move the needle' the needle on public policy, and sought a meeting with John Podesta Hillary Clinton received an update on digital strategy, a few months after former State Department Chief of Staff Cheryl Mills was lining up a meeting with Eric Schmidt Clinton campaign chair Robby Mook was also included in emails meant to line up meetings with Schmidt The memo also states that 'Working relationships with Google, Facebook, Apple, and other technology companies were important to us in 2012 and should be even more important to you in 2016, given their still-ascendent positions in the culture.' 'These partnerships can bring a range of benefits to a campaign, from access to talent and prospective donors to early knowledge of beta products and invitations to participate in pilot programs. We have begun having discreet conversations with some of these companies to get a sense of their priorities for the coming cycle, but would encourage you, as soon as your technology leadership is in place, to initiate more formal discussions.' Schmidt, the CEO of Alphabet, Google's parent company, has been a frequent advisor to President Obama and Democrats. In another Wikileaks document released last week, Podesta wrote Schmidt in April of 2014 trying to set up meetings with campaign chief Robby Mook and longtime advisor Cheryl Mills. Clinton was presented with the digital strategy memo in 2014, when her presidential campaign was still being formed 'Robby is in Australia. Back the 23rd. We could arrange a call before or wait and do a meeting shortly after return,' Podesta wrote. 'Cheryl Mills is in town and I think it would be good for you two to talk. Her office is in Bethesda but probably could come down this afternoon. Up for that?' Schmidt responded that, 'Cheryl would be great to see; I have a meeting with President from 11 to 1145 and free after that all afternoon any time in the afternoon that is convenient for her is good for me.' The high-tech planning wasn't just academic. According to the memo, 'Quick Donate' functions in the 2012 campaign raised an estimated $115 million incrementally. Schmidt wasn't the only top tech exec closely inside the campaign orbit. Facebook's founder Mark Zuckerberg sought advice from the chairman of Hillary Clinton's campaign about how he could get involved in politics and said he was 'hungry to learn', according to other leaked documents. Emails from Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg to John Podesta, published by Wikileaks, suggested he was keen to influence public policy on issues like immigration, education and scientific research. In one email, in August last year, Sandberg wrote to Podesta: 'Mark is meeting with people to learn more about next steps for his philanthropy and social action and it's hard to imagine someone better placed or more experienced than you to help him.' Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, left, endorsed Hillary Clinton in July. The leaked email suggested she contacted Clinton's campaign manager on behalf of Zuckerberg She writes: 'As you may know, he's young and hungry to learn - always in learning mode - and is early in his career when it comes to his philanthropic efforts.' Sandberg said Zuckerberg was keen to meet people who could help him understand 'how to move the needle' on public policy issues he cared about, such as 'immigration, education and basic scientific research'. The leaked emails supports Donald Trump's claims that Clinton is too close to those with vested interests, such as Zuckerberg, whose Facebook empire has 1.7 billion users globally. John Podesta (pictured, left) was Chief of Staff under Bill Clinton and is now chairman of Hillary Clinton's election campaign Hillary Clinton (left) and Mark Zuckerberg (right) both attended an event for scholarship student hosted by billionaire Carlos Slim's Telmex Foundation in Mexico in September 2014 The Guardian reported recently that Facebook could be forced to pay an extra $5 billion in tax after an investigation by the IRS. Facebook was accused by former staffers this year of suppressing conservative news from its trending section. The company denies that charge. Earlier this month other leaked emails showed Sandberg had gave Hillary Clinton aides research on 'gender and leadership by women' as they put together the former first lady's presidential campaign. After Sandberg emailed him Podesta wrote back enthusiastically (pictured), suggested times when he might be able to meet Zuckerberg Sandberg met with Clinton insiders who would become senior staffers on the campaign a month before it launched, including pollster Joel Benenson. The day Clinton accepted the Democratic nomination for president at the party's quadrennial convention in late July Sandberg declared her support in a Facebook post. Politico reported last month that Sandberg is on the short list for Treasury Secretary if Clinton wins the election. Mark Zuckerberg (pictured centre, with the microphone) is reportedly keen to influence public policy on immigration, education and scientific research Former Arkansas television reporter Leslie Millwee has come forward to Breitbart News and accused Bill Clinton of sexually assaulting her three times in 1980. Millwee, who went by the name Leslie Derrick back then, says Clinton, then the governor of Arkansas, slipped into her television station's small editing room and groped her from behind while she was seated, 'hunching' her chair to the point of orgasm. 'I could feel what he was doing from behind me. I do not know if he had taken, you know, private parts out. Or if he was doing it. I assumed he was doing it through material but I could be wrong,' she said. Scroll down for video Former Arkansas television reporter Leslie Millwee says she was sexually assaulted by Bill Clinton three times in 1980 Milwee encountered a young Bill Clinton, when he was the governor of Arkansas, and claims she was sexually assaulted by him three times Millwee said Clinton did this on three occasions and also stopped by to see her at home. She said she interviewed the Arkansas governor about 20 times the year that she worked at the now-defunct television station KLMN-TV, as she was covering the Cuban refugee crisis and 20,000 refugees called Arkansas' Fort Chaffee home. She was 19, turning 20, when she worked at the station. Clinton would be flirtatious, she said, when the two saw each other. 'Hey pretty girl. How are you today?' he would say, she told Breitbart. He also gave her an autograph, she said, claiming that one day he would be president. He also wrote Clinton directly above her name on her reporter's notebook. A picture of the signed notebook was included in the Breitbart piece. 'And I said, "What are you doing? Giving me an autograph now?" And he said, "No, I just wanted to show you how good Clinton looks on top of Leslie."' Words led to actions, Millwee testified to the right-leaning news site, that has Donald Trump ties. When the first unwanted encounter happened Clinton followed the young reporter into the 'very small' editing room. 'There was a chair. I was sitting in a chair. He came up behind me and started rubbing my shoulders and running his hands down toward my breasts,' she said. 'And I was just stunned. I froze.' 'I asked him to stop. He laughed,' she continued. She then noted to Breitbart's Aaron Klein that these encounters happened three times. 'And each time it escalated where the aggressive nature of his touch and what he was doing behind me escalated.' She said the second and third alleged assaults involved Clinton rubbing his genitals against the reporter. The second assault occurred about a week later with the governor making a 'beeline' for Millwee and with the reported making a beeline herself into the editing room. 'And he came in behind me,' she said. 'Started hunching me to the point that he had an orgasm. He's trying to touch my breasts. And I'm just sitting there very stiffly, just waiting for him to leave me alone. And I'm asking him the whole time, "Please do not do this. Do not touch me. Do not hunch me. I do not want this."' 'And he finished what he was doing and walked out,' Millwee told Breitbart, noting that the encounter probably lasted three to five minutes. She then responded to Klein saying she did not know whether Clinton actually revealed his private parts. The third alleged assault played out similarly to the second one. He 'came in, hunched me from behind. Grabbing my shoulders, and you know, having an orgasm and then leaving.' 'I was crying,' Millwee continued. 'The third time it happened it was just so overwhelming. I waited a few minutes. I came out. I went to the ladies' room. I was crying and very upset. And we had a lady that had a local show there and she actually came into the bathroom. An older lady. And she said, "Honey, what is wrong? And I said I just had a really bad experience and I don't really want to talk about it. But I'm very upset."' The next time the reporter saw the governor he had come to her home. 'He knocked on the door for probably give, ten minutes,' she said. 'Knocking. Calling my name. Saying, "I know you are home, please answer the door." 'I did not answer the door,' Millwee said. Millwee said that Clinton coming to her home was 'the final straw' and that she spent the night discussing it with her grandmother before deciding to leave the station. In vetting Millwee's claims, Breitbart News was unable to find footage of her interviews with Clinton from that era. Karen Pharis, who was Millwee's assignment editor at KLMN, confirmed to Breitbart that Millwee was a reporter at the station and her job 'absolutely' included conducting interview with Clinton. Pharis recalled Millwee editing her own footage in the 'tiny' and isolated editing room. She said Clinton came to the newsroom 'maybe twice,' while she was there, though she added that she may not have always been present if the governor had stopped by. Pharis said she also recalls Millwee leaving the station abruptly around 1980, but was not provided a reason. The former assignment editor said she was surprised that Millwee had left the job. In the 1990s, Millwee said she told three friends about the encounter and two of them verified to Breitbart that they remembered the story. Millwee also thought about making her story public in 1998, when the Monica Lewinsky affair was uncovered. 'I was very prepared to go forward then and talk about it. And I watched the way the Clintons and Hillary slandered those women. Harassed them. Did unthinkable things to them. And I just did not want to be part of that,' she explained, worrying about the damage it could bring to her career and small kids. Eighteen years later things have changed. COLUMBUS Columbus Public Schools is looking to go underground while getting district facilities connected to a new fiber optic cable network that could become operational next year. The CPS school board approved an interlocal agreement Monday to join the city in sharing the costs of building and operating an underground cable network that would connect dozens of school and city facilities. Columbus City Council is expected to consider the agreement to share development of the network at a meeting next month. The first step after the city OKs the interlocal agreement would be the selection of an engineering firm to design the communications system, said Leonard Kwapnioski, executive director of technology and operations at CPS. Once the network design and specifications are drawn up, hopefully before the end of this year, the proposed system would go out for bids from contractors, Kwapnioski said. The contractor selected would install the underground system during 2017 and provide continuing maintenance. The interlocal agreement didnt include any preliminary cost estimate for the proposed cable network. The proposed partnership between the city and CPS is modeled on a network set up by Fremont Public Schools, the city of Fremont and a third-party vendor, Great Plains Communications of Blair. Any entities that join the network later would be equal partners in sharing costs. The CPS technology chief said a new system buried in a trench would replace the school districts current aerial fiber optic network mounted on power poles, providing better redundancy and greater reliability. The existing system is subject to weather-related hazards, such as ice storms, heavy rain and extreme heat. The network applications for CPS schools and other facilities would include all internet, phone services, security and data storage. The city has identified about 20 of its facilities that could be connected to the network. Kwapnioski said the network would resemble a wheel, with spokes (school buildings, administrative offices, maintenance shop, warehouse) all connected to multiple hub sites. CPS and the city are getting the ball rolling on the new fiber optic system, but the planned network could have a far greater reach for local government and schools. Networks are often overbuilt initially to allow for the sharing of costs as more entities come on board. Platte County, with the courthouse downtown and jail and probation offices on the city's east side, and the communitys Catholic and Lutheran schools have shown interest in participating in the network. The possibilities are endless, Kwapnioski said. In other business, the CPS board recognized Stephen Mancuso for receiving the Award of Excellence from the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists. In June, Mancuso represented Columbus High and the state of Nebraska at the Congress of Future Medical Leaders in Boston, Massachusetts. The CHS junior is the son of Steven and Beth Mancuso. Sleeping man wakes up but heartless officer continues to soak his clothes Officer hoses man directly in the face and on his head in a bid to wake him Shocking mobile phone footage has captured the moment a policeman used a hose to spray a homeless man sleeping by the side of the road. The incident was filmed from inside the car of two passers-by, who seemed to find the goings-on somewhat bizarre and funny. The video which has now gone viral on social media platforms is believed to have been snapped in the city of Baku, capital of Azerbaijan. The video shows the officer, whose face is not revealed, standing right next to the unconscious man, who is lying on the pavement while dressed in a dark coat The cop hosed the man directly in the face and on his head in an apparent attempt to wake him up It shows the officer, whose face is not revealed, standing right next to the unconscious man, who is lying on the pavement while dressed in a dark coat. The cop hosed the man directly in the face and on his head in an apparent attempt to wake him up. The sleeping man did eventually wake, but the officer did not stop pointing the hose in his direction, covering the mans clothes in water as numerous people pass by. None, however, seemed willing to stop and challenge his behaviour. The man, who managed to sit up, ended up washing his face with the water. Reports suggested that the man was either drunk or homeless or both, but those online agreed that the situation did not call for such behaviour. Online users criticised the cop, but it does not seem like he will receive any punishment for the treatment, according to reports. When Estonian soldier Varjo Jurisoo fired a string of bullets across the Narva River during World War Two, he had no idea his brother was on the other side. At the age of 16, he had managed to dodge being called into the Russian army after the conflict broke out, but his brother had not been able to avoid the fate. Three years later, in 1943, Jurisoo was dragged into the war when he was drafted into the German army, alongside hundreds of Estonians. Varjo Jurisoo, who died in Minnesota, was drafted into three armies and was responsible for guarding a Nazi war criminal after being freed from a prisoner of war camp Unknown to him as he fought the 1944 Narva river battle in Estonia, his older brother, Uno Jurisoo, was firing back from the Russian side - a fact he did not learn until 1991 when he finally returned to his homeland. Jurisoo was injured by gunfire, but was able to return to the battlefield as the German war machine ground toward defeat. He and other Estonian soldiers surrendered to the US Army, and was sent to a prisoner-of-war camp in Belgium, where he spent the last year of the war. Jurisoo was responsible for guarding Nazi war criminals, including Rudolf Hess, Hitler's deputy After Jurisoo - who was known as 'Joe' - was released, he was hired at the Palace of Justice, where he was one of the guards responsible for guarding notorious Nazi war criminal Rudolf Hess and other prisoners during the Nuremberg trials. He immigrated to the United States in the late 1940s, fearful of his safety if he returned to Estonia, which was rife with political tensions. He went through more in his first 25 years of life than I ever will in my whole life. David Jurisoo In order to pay for his journey, he took a job picking oranges in California, on land which is now part of Disneyland. His experience of war was not yet over though, and Jurisoo was drafted to fight in the Korean War, and served in Europe. It was only after his return that he was able to enjoy a quiet life, and his family said he did not open up about his incredible experiences. Nephew Daniel Hunt, 35, told the Star Tribune: 'He would just sit quietly in the corner and not talk. In my first 35 years, I heard him say two words.' Despite the hardship he endured, Jurisoo, who died on October 8 after a long battle with cancer, did not linger on it. His son David Jurisoo, 54, said: 'He definitely didn't talk much about his past. 'He went through more in his first 25 years of life than I ever will in my whole life.' He never saw his father again after being sent to war, and only reconnected with his brother and mother in 1991 - when he learned the two had fought in the same battle, but on different sides. David said: 'He never complained about it. Its not like he thought, "My lifes unfair".' An RV-loving former theater actor, he died at the age of 91 in Coon Rapids, in Minnesota, where he had moved with wife Margaret in the 1970s. His wife, paying tribute to him, said: 'It always strikes me as remarkable that a guy who had to go through so much at such a young age was not only so normal, but so engaged with the people around him. 'I think he was like, "Well, thats kind of how life goes".' Jurisoo was an active member of the Good Sam RV Club, and for several years ran its website. Most restaurant customers are happy to leave a tip to their waitress as a way of showing gratitude after eating in a restaurant. But one stingy couple decided against leaving cash and instead wrote their waitress a note on a napkin telling her 'a woman's place is in the home.' The waitress, who has not been named but was working at a restaurant in South Carolina, had finished serving the couple and went to collect what she thought was a cash tip after they left. The note that a couple left for a waitress in a South Carolina restaurant telling her a woman's place is 'in the home' But she looked down and saw it was a note telling her she had no right being in the workplace and that she should be at home. And after showing the note to her friends, it angered them so much they persuade her to post it on Facebook. The note read: 'Your place is in the home. It even says so in the Bible. You may think that you're contributing to your household by coming into work, but you're not. While you're in here 'working' this is the reason your husband must see another woman on his way home from a long day at his work. 'Because you should be home taking care of the household duties, you may think what you are doing 'working' is right, it is really essentially a disgrace to his manhood and to the American family. 'So instead of coming to your 'job' and looking for handouts to feed your family, how's about going home and cleaning your house and cooking a hot meal for your husband and children, the way your husband and God intended, and help make America great again. Praying for families and our nation.' The waitress told WYFF News 4: 'The guests were very friendly and polite while I served them, which made this come as an even bigger surprise. I felt mortified, embarrassed, humiliated even. I felt hurt, and a bit heartbroken 'I have never been married, and have no children. I have a very loving and supportive boyfriend who has been by my side as I have been working and trying to further my education.' 'I felt mortified, embarrassed, humiliated even. I felt hurt, and a bit heartbroken. It is a bit disheartening and discouraging that things like this happen at this day and age.' Meanwhile, her friends have decided to write a reply to the couple on a napkin, which was also posted on Facebook. It read: 'You cannot demean a worker that provides a service that you enjoy. Without my coworker, myself, and the countless others females in the service industry, you and others with your same mindset would not enjoy the 'excellent service' that we provide. Donald Trump's campaign manager says she doesn't know if the Republican candidate believes his own claim that Hillary Clinton could be on drugs and should be tested before tonight's debate. Kellyanne Conway candidly told DailyMail.com this morning that she doesn't have an eye into Trump's mind and can't say he if he truly thinks his 68-year-old opponent is doping. 'I don't know what he thinks about that. I can't answer questions like that because that's his opinion. That's not a campaign strategy.' She suggested that he doesn't, though, as she attempted to walk back the extraordinary accusation. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Kellyanne Conway, Donald Trump's campaign manager, says she doesn't know if the Republican candidate believes his own claim that Hillary Clinton could be on drugs and should be tested before tonight's debate 'He was saying that something was going on with her energy and her stamina towards the end of that second debate,' she said. 'I think it was just, he had rattled her, and really got her off her game.' The senior Trump aide argued that the GOP White House contender was merely articulating what he's said in the past about Clinton's fitness when he said she should submit herself to testing. 'It just goes to the fact that he doesn't take days and days off,' Conway told DailyMail.com from the site of tonight's debate, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 'And he's out there at rally after rally in swing states, pressing his case directly to the people.' Pressed on the matter, and whether Trump had shared his suspicions about Clinton with her, she said 'You heard what he said publicly - I'd go with that.' Trump has not revisited the allegation since he told a New Hampshire audience that Clinton's debate high in St. Louis may have been induced with drugs. 'Athletes, they make them take a drug test right?' the Republican presidential nominee said Saturday from the stump. 'I think we should take a drug test prior to the debate.' 'Why don't we do that? We should take a drug test prior, because I don't know what's going on with her, but at the beginning of her last debate, she was all pumped up at the beginning, and at the end it was like, "Oh, take me down." ' Clinton and Trump will square off one last time tonight in Las Vegas and the University of Nevada Conway candidly told DailyMail.com this morning that she doesn't have an eye into Trump's mind and can't say he if he truly thinks his 68-year-old opponent is doping and should be tested before tonight's match He claimed Clinton 'could barely reach her car' by the end of the 90-minute clash earlier in the week. 'So I think we should take a drug test. Anyway, Im willing to do it,' he proclaimed. Responding to the charges for the first time, Clinton's communications director seemed to imply in a Tuesday gaggle with reporters that the concept occurred to Trump because he considered or is currently abusing drugs. 'I find it very curious that suggesting a candidate is doping for the debates is on Donald Trumps mind,' Jennifer Palmieri said. 'Im glad that, you know...he thinks her performance was that great.' Palmieri said 'it's just odd' that Trump would even go there. 'I dont understand why that is whats on his mind.' Clinton's campaign says Trump's call for drug-testing before the Las Vegas showdown is 'curious' The chief Democrat in the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, told CNN's Jake Tapper on Sunday that Trump was probably 'projecting.' 'When his he knows that his temperament is not going over very well he said, "I have the temperament for the job." When he knows that his stamina is lagging he says, "I have the I have the stamina for the job." ' Continuing, she said, 'When he knows that I don't know what this drug things is, but I'm very suspicious that he is saying, she should take a drug test. 'What's he talking about there.' Former Vermont Governor Howard Dean, a practicing doctor before he became a politician, assessed after the first debate that the billionaire might be on drugs. 'Notice Trump sniffing all the time. Coke user?' he tweeted. He's the rank outsider, but one bookmaker has identified a trend it claims could lead to Donald Trump sitting in the Oval Office. Betting agency William Hill says 65 per cent of all the bets it has taken on the race have been for the Donald to win, despite him being the overwhelming underdog. And while at first glance it may appear that Trump's fans are throwing their money away, the bookmaker says the same pattern emerged in the lead up to Britain's Brexit vote, which was shockingly won by the 'Leave' side. From Mr Brexit to Mr President: A bookmaker says betting on Trump's campaign matches the pattern on the unexpected but ultimately successful 'Leave' vote in the UK's EU Referendum 'It was the case that consistently throughout the EU Referendum campaign, some two thirds of the money gambled was for "Remain", but in terms of individual bets, it was around two thirds for "Leave",' spokesman Graham Sharpe said. 'The stats currently show 71 per cent of all the money gambled on either Clinton or Trump is for Hillary, but 65 per cent of all bets placed are for Trump.' But those backing the man who once called himself 'Mr Brexit' might want to hold off on their celebrations, as another agency has already called the race for the other candidate. Irish bookmaker Paddy Power confidently declared that Hillary Clinton will become the first female president, and has already paid out almost $1 million to those who backed her to make history. On his way to the White House: William Hill says 65 per cent of bets in the election has been placed for Trump to win, which suggests he could pull off an unlikely upset Mo money, Mo problems: William Hill 71 per cent of the money bet on the result has been put on Hillary Clinton to win, but says that might not make the difference Paddy Power says the odds of a Clinton victory are 1/5 - or 83.33 per cent. By contrast, the company puts Donald Trump's chances of winning the White House at 4/1 - about 20 per cent. 'Trump gave it a hell of a shot going from a rank outsider to the Republican candidate but the recent flood of revelations have halted his momentum and his chances now look as patchy as his tan,' a spokesman said in a statement. 'Recent betting trends have shown one way traffic for Hillary and punters seemed to have called it 100 per cent correct. Despite Trumps Make America Great Again message appealing to many disillusioned voters, it looks as though America are (sic) going to put a woman in the White House.' Madam President: Despite William Hill suggesting Trump could surge to a win, Paddy Power has already called the race for Hillary Clinton Market leader: Hillary Clinton is the overwhelming favorite with online international betting agencies Called it: Paddy Power started paying out bets on Barack Obama to win the 2012 election a full two days before election day The Irish bookmaker also called the election early in 2012, and forked over more than $700,000 to those who bet Barack Obama would win - a full two days before he beat Mitt Romney. Sportsbooks in the US are also backing Clinton, with online site Oddsshark actually making her even more of a favorite. The website has Clinton as the -600 favorite, meaning she has a 1/6 or 85.71 per cent chance of being elected. Marc Grosjean attacked his wife after using her Sat Nav to discover she was having an affair, pictured outside Westminster Magistrates Court today A former Credit Suisse director punched his wife and tried to tear off her wedding ring after he used her Sat Nav to find out she was having an affair, a court heard. Frenchman Marc Grosjean, 43, hit Artemis Berberi in the face and injured her hand in the struggle at their London home which was witnessed by their son. Grosjean had gone through Ms Berberi's phone and Sat Nav to confirm his suspicions that she was seeing another man, Westminster Magistrates Court heard. The former banker was found guilty of assault and sentenced today to eight weeks jail suspended for two years for the sake of his son. District Judge Paul Goldspring noted that Grosjean had shown 'controlling behaviour' by monitoring his wife's movements before the 2015 attack. That was evidenced by your analysis of the sat-nav to find out where she had been,' he said. This was in my view serious within the context of the common assault because it was in a domestic setting, some of it in the presence of your child and the level of violence was significant. You used your hand when it was clenched to hit your partner twice. In doing so you did cause injury, which was reddening and bruising to her cheek. Ms Berberi also had to endure a retelling of her sexual infidelity in front of a strange court with strange people.' The court heard Grosjean was stressed at the time of the attack because of the strain of starting his own Market Engineering Abbas Lakha, in defence, said setting up his own business had taken 'an enormous toll.' Grosjean had gone through Ms Berberi's phone and Sat Nav (stock) to confirm his suspicions that she was seeing another man, Westminster Magistrates Court heard 'This has been an extremely stressful time for him. It has taken an enormous amount out of him, as well as the matrimonial proceedings. 'In 2015, around the time of these events, he was in the process of setting up his own business. Mr Lakha added: 'He has always been a hard worker and someone who has provided for his family. 'His work, by definition, involved enormous risk and, by definition, to his family's well-being and financial security. 'His then-partner, the complainant, was undoubtedly in an affair behind his back. At the time, she made a total denial.' Judge Goldspring found Grosjean was a 'good and loving father' apart from the 24 hours when he lost control. 'But your behaviour in that 24-hour period was nothing short of shocking. You used the back of your hand to strike your partner to the face,' he said. 'You were frustrated that the relationship was ending. But you are an intelligent 43-year-old man and should know that violence is never the way to deal with frustration. 'What saves you is nothing to do with you. It is to do with the welfare of your son, particularly when you are his sole carer. It is that saves you immediate custodial sentence.' Grosjean was fined a total of 900, ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work and told to take part in a domestic abuse intervention programme, for 20 days. Responding to Mr Lakha's request for six months to pay, the magistrate noted Grosjean had 'paid for very expensive QC'. He added: 'I would ask people on benefits to pay quicker than that.' Grosjean, who lives in Paddington, was found guilty of one count of assault by beating and one count of common assault. A restraining order preventing him from contacting Ms Berberi was also made. Jake Sullivan, Clinton's foreign policy adviser, had suggested Clinton get behind laws that ensure Two of Hillary Clinton's top advisers worried that it might be politically dicey for their candidate to come out in support of strengthening bribery laws, a leaked email conversation shows. Neera Tanden, the head of the Center for American Progress, and Jake Sullivan, Clinton's chief foreign policy expert, talked in late February 2016 and early March about what government reforms Clinton should get behind, according to an email made public by Wikileaks from campaign chairman John Podesta's cache. 'This is a jump ball,' wrote Tanden to Sullivan. 'She may be so tainted she's really vulnerable = if so, maybe a message of I've seen how this sausage is made, it needs to stop, I'm going to stop it will actually work.' Scroll down for video Hillary Clinton's (left) adviser Neera Tanden (right), the head of the Center for American Progress, worried the Democrat might have trouble politically when pushing for certain open government reforms Hillary Clinton adviser Jake Sullivan suggested a number of reforms that the Democrat could get behind, but he really liked the proposal to 'Strengthen bribery laws to ensure politicians [don't] change legislation for political donations' Sullivan had outlined a number of proposals, but said that one of his favorites was: 'Strengthen bribery laws to ensure that politicians [don't] change legislation for political donations.' He noted that it was supported by 62 percent of soft partisans. 'The second idea is a favorite of mine, as you know, but REALLY dicey territory for HRC, right?' he asked, to which Tanden agreed. The conversation took place while the Democratic primaries were still ongoing. And Clinton's allies were likely trying to find policies the former secretary of state could latch onto as Sen. Bernie Sanders message against billionaires buying political power was resonating with progressive Democrats. Earlier in February, a video featuring another powerful progressive voice, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, was circulating, which suggested Clinton may have changed her vote on a bankruptcy bill thanks to political donations from credit card companies. John Podesta's (left) hacked emails have exposed some top Clinton adviser's thinking including Neera Tanden's (center) worries that Hillary Clinton (right) was 'too tainted' to push for bribery reforms As first lady Clinton sat down with Warren, a Harvard law professor, and convinced her husband Bill Clinton to veto a bill that would have tightened bankruptcy, because it disproportionately hurt single mothers. But, as Warren recalled in a 2004 interview with Bill Moyers, when Clinton was a U.S. Senator and receiving donations from financial services companies she did an about-face and supported the legislation. Clinton addressed the issue on 'Good Morning America' saying she voted for the 2001 bankruptcy legislation because she was able to add an amendment that would protect the child support and alimony payments for single mothers. But that kind of political 'sausage' making response didn't sit well with many Sanders supporters who used Warren's words as testimony that Clinton had been hijacked by special interests. Despite the fact that Clinton may be 'tainted,' Tanden believed the eventual Democratic nominee should push for reforms. Angela Merkel's open door immigration policy has unleashed the fury of some unexpected victims other migrants. Berlin's public broadcaster Rbb24 took to the streets to garner the attitudes of established immigrants in Germany, and filmed some of their surprisingly hard-line reactions. One woman wearing a headscarf, who had been living in the county for 40 years, said: 'It's a catastrophe. The refugees They have to go. 'They don't belong here' said one migrant complaining that they get social housing, welfare, 'and this, and that, and this' 'They don't belong here', and complained that they get social housing, welfare, 'and this, and that, and this 'In my opinion, I don't care, I'm a foreigner myself. Yes. I vote NPD.' The National Democratic Party (NPD) is a far-right fringe party in Germany, which has faced off multiple attempts to ban it for its neo-Nazi inclinations. Over one million migrants were welcomed into the country last year, with millions more arriving in the years before as well. But as the interviewees proved, it has not been a wholly popular decision. One migrant, who had been living in Germany for nearly 39 years, said he was happy with a family and 'good children', but added new migrants are causing lots of problems. One migrant, who had been living in Germany for nearly 39 years, protested migrants 'have caused so much s*** in Germany' 'These foreigners that come now the ones that came 2 or 3 years ago They've caused so much s*** in Germany,' he protested. 'If I were a German mayor, the mayor of Berlin, I swear to you, when these foreigners steal something, even if it's small, deport them. Immediately. 'But they always ramble about a 'free country' and 'democratic'. What the h*** does that even mean?' he added. And another migrant, wearing a bright hijab, said: 'It's become a little terrible around here. Not like it used to be.' Another migrant, wearing a bright hijab, said: 'It's become a little terrible around here. Not like it used to be' 'Too many people came to Neukolln. When they come they have to earn a living. 'They have to give something else don't give them our apartments for example. 'Don't give them our jobs.' 'Now there's only refugees and foreigners' said a market trader concerned people were not buying his goods any more Neukolln is a borough in Berlin and has one of the highest percentage of immigrants in the city. Rbb24 posted the footage to their Facebook page last month, where it has received tens of thousands of views and thousands of shares. Since her arrest, Hagling turned to stripping to make a living, performing under the stage name 'Bambi' Accused the teen of exploiting her vulnerability at a time when she was having problems with her boyfriend A former substitute teacher from Iowa facing sex abuse charges involving one of her students has insisted that she was the real victim in the case and accused her teenage paramour of ruining her life and career. Appearing on the Dr Phil show Monday, Mary Beth Haglin, wearing a striking red mini-dress and matching lipstick, revealed that since her arrest in July, she has turned to stripping in order to make a living, performing under the stage name 'Bambi.' Haglin, of Cedar Rapids, pleaded not guilty last month to a charge of misdemeanor sexual exploitation by a school employee in connection to her illicit six-month affair with a student at Washington High School. Her trial date has been set for November 14. Scroll down for video Teacher speaks: Disgraced teacher Mary Bath Haglin, 24, is accused of having sex with a 17-year-old student. Haglin appeared on the Dr Phil show Monday, saying she is the real victim Career change: Haglin told Dr Phil McGraw that after she was fired, she became a stripper The sultry 24-year-old brunette told Dr Phil McGraw that the boy had seduced her with fawning love notes written on Post-Its and twisted her brain into accepting their forbidden love affair, until she became convinced that the pair were in a real relationship, which she could keep a secret. 'He did so with such intelligence and such an elevated vocabulary that i was completely duped by the whole facade,' Haglin said on the show. Haglin admitted to having sex with the 17-year-old almost every day for nine months, sometimes in her or his car, other times in the homes of the boy's parents. Eventually, she said he convinced her to send him sexy photos of herself, including some naked selfies, which he later reportedly shared with his friends at school. 'I dont know what was going through his brain,' Haglin said. 'He thought it would be cool... bragging rights... I dont know.' Haglin said she did not think he would disseminate the intimate snapshots 'because in my mind if youre in a real relationship, you dont just run around with your phone saying, "Hey, look, look everybody, look how hot my girlfriend is."' She added, 'Looking back now I think, "Oh, my God, what was I thinking? What was I doing?"' The 24-year-old woman placed the blame on the teenager, saying that he caught her in her weakest moment,' at a time she was having trouble with her boyfriend, which made her vulnerable to the underage Casanovas romantic advances. The high schooler would write letters to her, calling her my empress and Mrs Robinson, in a reference to Anne Bancrofts iconic character from the movie The Graduate, in which a middle-aged woman seduces a recent college graduate, played by Dustin Hoffman. In one letter, the adolescent wrote suggestively to his substitute teacher, who also moonlighted as a waitress at the time: I love the way you smell like pizza. It drives me crazy wanting a piece of the crust. Haglin admitted to having sex with the 17-year-old almost every day for nine months Teenage seducer: Haglin said the boy caught her in her weakest moment,' at a time she was having trouble with her boyfriend According to the woman, her student was aggressive in his pursuit of her, constantly trying to kiss whenever they were alone in class, and even more than that. Haglin claimed that when she tried to end things with the boy, he threatened to speak out about the affair. When things got way out of control, and I wanted out, he began saying, I will light a match and burn your life down, she told the talk show host. The scandalous relationship finally came to light when one of Haglin's female students, a junior named Tye, noticed what she described on the Dr Phil show as suspicious behavior between the student and teacher. She recounted how she would see the 17-year-old go into Haglins classroom on breaks and close the door behind him. The girl eventually went to her mother, Rebecca, with her concerns. The woman confronted Haglin and asked her point blank about the rumors swirling around the school. Bad teacher: Haglin (left and right), has been charged with sexual exploitation for having an affair with the student Haglin met the 17-year-old boy at Washington High School in Cedar Rapids in January 'She said, Yes, it's true, said the parent. 'She kept telling me that she was in love with this young man, that as soon as he graduated, they were going to get married. Rebecca had Haglin write a statement confessing to the tryst, which she then took to school administrators. Haglin was fired from her job in May at the conclusion of an internal investigation and arrested in July. If convicted, she could face up to two years in prison and be required to register as a sex offender for 10 years. An earlier probe conducted in February had failed to prove any wrongdoing on Haglins part. Both investigations have since been labelled as ineffective by the school district and led to the resignations of three high-ranking officials, according to The Gazette. It is believed that Haglin and the victim had been in a sexual relationship for almost the entire duration of her tenure at Washington High School. Speaking to Inside Edition last month, the 24-year-old woman apologized for the hurt she has caused, but claimed that it was her underage lover who seduced her. He would come into my classroom, grab a Post-It, write something and stick it to my desk on his way out, she said. One note read: I love you so much, my empress. Teen Casanova: Haglin says it was the boy (seen right) who seduced her with love letters Sticky love notes: Haglin shows the Post-It notes that her underage lover would leave on her desk after class Regal moniker: One note allegedly penned by the victim read, I love you so much, my empress' In return, the statuesque brunette sent the high-schooler risque selfies showing her posing in sexy lingerie. By her own admission, Haglin fell 'completely head over heels' for the boy, and before long the pair began having sex almost daily in her car at a public park. Haglin says that after a while, she allowed herself to think that she was in a 'real relationship,' but it all came to an end when another student spotted her and the 17-year-old and went to the authorities. In retrospect, Haglin says it was 'stupid' to think that their forbidden liaison, which she described as 'a terrible mistake', could be kept a secret. Raunchy snapshots: In exchange for the notes, the brunette beauty sent the high-schooler risque selfies showing wearing lingerie Outdoor romps: Haglin says she and the boy had sex almost every day in her car at this public park Regrets: Haglin says it was 'stupid' to think that their forbidden liaison was a real relationship. The 24-year-old described what happened as 'a terrible mistake' I want to go back and smack myself and ask, What were you thinking Mary Beth?" she tells the site. In an interview with The Gazette after her release from jail on bail, Haglin claimed school administrators were aware of the affair and told her to keep it hush-hush. In the wake of this bombshell revelation, a trio of long-time school officials, including Washington High Principal Dr Ralph Plagman, opted for an early retirement. Says she is 'not sheepish' about expressing her views to her father Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka stressed her political independence in an interview at a women's summit in California and insists she is not the mastermind of her dad's campaign. 'My opinions are my own I express them to him,' said Trump, a visible presence on the campaign trail, at Fortune Magazine's Most Powerful Women Summit on Wednesday. 'I'm certainly not sheepish about sharing those opinions. But I do so in private,' she said. One of those opinions, Trump revealed, is that her dad's comments on a leaked 11-year old tape where he talked about grabbing women without consent were 'offensive.' Scroll down for video Ivanka Trump called her father's hot mic comments about women 'offensive,' speaking at Fortune's 'Most Powerful Women Summit' 'I think my remarks were clear on this. I did find it to be offensive. He acknowledged it as well,' she said, referencing her earlier statement that the comments were 'clearly inappropriate and offensive.' 'Way to warm up,' she quipped to Times Magazine editor in chief Nancy Gibbs, who asked about it at the top of the interview. But she defended her father using familiar arguments of the campaign. 'This tape was over a decade old. I'm sure he didn't remember this conversation,' she said, adding that her dad was 'embarrassed that he said those things' adding that the comments were 'a bit jarring for me to hear.' Former President Bill Clinton greets Ivanka Trump, daughter of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, followed by her brothers Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., before the start of the second presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis Trump, who appeared on Good Morning America in September, rejected the label of campaign 'surrogate' 'NOT SHEEPISH': Ivanka Trump said Wednesday she shares candidate opinions with her dad in private. In public she has now called his hot mic comments about women 'offensive' She honed her TV skills on her father's show 'The Apprentice' Ivanka Trump and Nancy Gibbs speak onstage at the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit 2016 in Laguna Beach Trump spoke about business as well as the way she gives advice to her father It was revealed during the campaign that she is registered independent. She wasn't eligible to vote for her dad in the New York primary. 'I stood in front of the RNC and shared that I'm an independent, which is very consistent with many other millennials and many other people,' she said while being interviewed by Nancy Gibbs of Time Magazine. 'I'm not dogmatically aligned with any party and I share my thoughts with my father very candidly.' Despite constantly stumping for her father, Trump said, 'I do dismiss this idea of a surrogate. I don't think it appreciates the role that I'm playing as my father's daughter.' 'I'm not the campaign mastermind as people love to portray and speculate,' she said. Her husband, Jared Kushner, is also a prime mover within Trump's inner circle. 'I hate the word surrogate because what does that mean? Major newspapers were writing that I was a vice presidential candidate. I'm saying, 'No I'm a daughter. I don't express my views on policy with one exception, as it relates to childcare and advocating for women.' Tennessee senator Bob Corker floated the idea this summer at a time when he was under consideration for the VP job. 'His best running mate, by the way, would be Ivanka,' Corker said. 'I know that wouldn't pass muster, probably,' Corker added. 'But I don't know that I've met a more composed, brilliant, beautiful-in-every-way person.' Ivanka Trump said she was nervous when she spoke at the Republican National Convention. 'I was very nervous about that. I said what kind of response will I get to this, standing in front of an arena packed with Republicans and expressing myself candidly as an independent who really votes based on the candidate as opposed to dogmatically based on party affiliation.' 'I think that a lot of people are like me are socially more liberally and fiscally rather conservative. And find themselves somewhere in the middle. I wasn't groomed to be any one thing and my father never expected me to sort of fall in line,' she said. Donald Trump has said his children will continue running his real estate empire if he gets elected. Ivanka Trump plans to continue her own women-centered brands. LINCOLN Forget creepy clowns and other nightmarish characters. Travis and Becky Koester want to put you in the Christmas spirit. The husband-and-wife duo and fellow Lakeview graduates they met in band at the local high school in the mid-90s released their first Christmas album this week. Rock Rockin Christmas features four holiday classics performed with a rockabilly twist, as well as the original title track. Travis Koester, 38, says the album will get people tapping their feet. He described Rock Rockin Christmas as a little country twang with some swing flavor. Koester and his wife Becky, 36, co-wrote the title track then put their own flair on Jingle Bells, Joy to the World, O Holy Night and Angels We Have Heard on High. The Koesters have been playing music together for years theyre both members of the Lincoln-based band The Dust Jackets and branched out as a duo known as The Time Burners a couple of years ago. We decided to go that route as it opened up the doors to playing a larger variety of venues and events, as well as musically it made sense for me as a songwriter, said Koester, who released his third solo album, Livin the Blues, in December. The Lincoln residents performed this year at the Omaha Summer Arts Festival, Nebraska State Fair, Iowa State Fair and other venues, including a mini-tour in northwest Arkansas. We know each others musical moments and how to make them shine, Koester said of his onstage connection with his wife. The Time Burners have a vintage vibe, playing classic country and rockabilly from the 1950s and '60s mixed with their original tunes. Theyve released two full-length albums so far, but Koester said hes always wanted to put out some Christmas music. The duo with his wife presented the perfect opportunity. Its the greatest time of the year and were both fans of old-fashion Christmas music, Koester said. I wanted to put a rockabilly twist on what we love. Rock Rockin Christmas is currently available on Amazon, cdbaby.com and www.thetimeburners.com, and will soon be added to iTunes. A CD release event and concert is scheduled for 7 p.m. Dec. 3 at Gratitude Cafe and Bakery in Lincoln. The Time Burners have a full schedule of shows to finish out the year theyre playing from 6-8 p.m. Saturday at Valas Pumpkin Patch near Gretna and plan to release another full-length original album in early 2017. Folks tell us they love what we do as a duo and keep them old songs coming, and we have no plans of stopping that, Koester said. An Oklahoma high school student has come forward with a video of a teacher that she took in class, showing the male teacher instructing his students: 'To be white is to be racist.' The unidentified student from Norman North High School used her cell phone to record the lesson, which she said felt like the teacher 'was encouraging people to kind of pick on people for being white'. The strange lecture, which took place in a philosophy class, began with a video called 'Mistreatment of Native Americans'. A man - not the teacher - is seen using white-out to paint over a country on a globe, and then wrote the name 'Dylan' in the space. 'He was basically comparing what he had done to the globe to what we did to America,' the student told KFOR. Scroll down for video Bizarre demonstration: A student used her cell phone to record a classroom lecture at Norman North High School in which her teacher (not pictured) explained how to 'heal the racial divide' The lecture featured a video of a man putting white-out on a country in South America and then writing his name on it. He said it illustrated what white people did in North America 'He was basically comparing what he had done to the globe to what we did to America,' the student told KFOR When her teacher laid out his theories of racism afterwards, the student said she was stunned. 'To be white is to be racist, period,' the teacher is heard saying in the recording. 'Am I racist? I say yeah. I don't want to be. It's not like choose to be racist, but do I do things because of the way I was raised?' The teacher claimed the lecture was about 'how to heal the racial divide'. The student said she was instantly offended and felt the teacher was branding her and everyone other white person in the class a racist. 'Half of my family is Hispanic so I just felt like, you know, him calling me a racist just because I'm white I mean, where's your proof in that,' the girl said. 'I felt like he was encouraging people to kind of pick on people for being white.' The unidentified Oklahoma (pictured) student used her phone to record the lesson, which she said felt like the teacher 'was encouraging people to kind of pick on people for being white' The student said she believes the teacher - who hasn't been identified - should apologize for what he said. The teacher has thus far refused to comment. However the Norman Public Schools released a statement regarding the issue, saying that he was trying to mimic something he saw during a philosophy lecture. 'Racism is an important topic that we discuss in our schools,' the statement said. 'While discussing a variety of philosophical perspectives on culture, race and ethics, a teacher was attempting to convey to students in an elective philosophy course a perspective that had been shared at a university lecture he had attended. The Norman North student said the teacher was lecturing on how to 'heal the racial divide' The statement continued: 'We regret that the discussion was poorly handled. When the district was notified of this concern it was immediately addressed. We are committed to ensuring inclusiveness in our schools.' An all-out search for a missing college student has been launched by authorities in Texas after her family said she never returned home from a date to the movies with her ex-boyfriend. Zuzu Renee Verk, a student at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, was last heard from during the early morning hours of October 12, as Alpine Police say she is possibly in danger. Her father, Glenn Verk, said his 22-year-old daughter was absent from school, where she is studying conservation biology, and also missed work later that day. 'We're all special but there's something exceptional about this young woman. She's vibrant and she's full of excitement and life,' her father told CBS11. Missing: An all-out search Zuzu Renee Verk (above) has been launched by authorities in Texas after her family said she disappeared more than a week ago before going on a date Verk left her parents' home on October 11 to go on a date to the movies later that evening. Her parents reported her missing after she missed classes and work the next day 'I'm just very proud of her and I want to see her again,' he said while choking back tears. Verk left her parents' home in Keller to go on a date to the movies back in Alpine with her on-again, off-again boyfriend on the night of October 11, Fox News reported. In addition, she had planned to go on a camping trip with friends on Friday. Authorities do not have a suspect or a person of interest as of Wednesday and they did not release the name or the whereabouts of her ex-boyfriend. The Texas Rangers and the FBI are assisting in the search for Verk, which was expanded outside of the Alpine, which is about 100 miles from the Mexican border. As the search intensifies, her family is hoping for her safe return and is asking any who may have information to call police. Verk, a student at Sul Ross State University (file above) in Alpine, was last heard from during the early morning hours of October 12, Alpine Police say 'The community has reached out to an amazing degree putting together huge search parties,' her father said. 'If they have any connection to anything that might've happened her in Alpine, the smallest inclining of a suspicion. Nothing is being overlooked.' The Alpine Police Department is looking for two vehicles possibly related to her disappearance: a grey 2006 Jeep Liberty and a 2004 Mazda Miata convertible with a beige colored top. Both of those vehicles were spotted in the area between 12am and 10am on October 12, police say. The Alpine Police Department is looking for two vehicles possibly related to her disappearance: a grey 2006 Jeep Liberty (left) and a 2004 Mazda Miata (right) convertible with a beige colored top. Authorities are asking ranchers in Brewster County to inspect their property for 'any suspicious signs of disturbed earth, personal items on the ground, anything that might raise your suspicions that it may need to be investigated further,' the Dallas Morning News reported. Verk is described as 5 feet tall, weighing 110 pounds with blonde hair and hazel eyes. A $30,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the whereabouts or the safe return of the young woman. Advertisement The Iraqi military have called for ISIS fighters defending Mosul to surrender amid a huge offensive to retake the militant-held city. Major General Gary Volesky, of the US Army, who heads the anti-IS coalition's land component, added ISIS commanders are 'fleeing the city' ahead of 'multiple assaults' planned for Thursday. ISIS is also evacuating the 'wives of leaders' according to a reported order by ISIS boss Abu Bakr al-Baghdad. But the UN fear up to 1.5million people could be caught in the cross-fire, used as human shields or be forced out of the region by the campaign. In the biggest Iraqi military operation in years, forces have retaken dozens of villages, mostly south and east of Mosul - but the flying bullets, car bombs and explosions have not stopped people taking selfies next to burning wreckage. Scroll down for video Despite burning fields and fierce fighting in Qayyarah, around 35 miles south of Mosul, one man is not deterred from taking a selfie next to huge flames, pictured The Iraqi Army are making progress in their campaign and tanks and troops have been fighting in Qayyarah, pictured, while leaders of ISIS are said to be 'fleeing Mosul with their wives' One Iraqi soldier cannot hide a smile, pictured, ahead of more planned assaults in the region over the next 24 hours Coalition forces are closing in on Mosul from all areas, with the British, US, Iraqi, Kurdish and Shia military all involved Iraqi soldiers are pictured surveying the scene in Qayyarah as top US generals believe the fight for Mosul could 'go on for months' due to ISIS being able to 'adapt to setbacks' But life goes on as normal for these Iraqi civilians who are pictured walking past an oil field set ablaze by the terror group Despite the horrors of war, two children - one wearing a Real Madrid shirt, right - looked delighted to be pictured covered in dust in Qayyarah Maj Gen Volesky said: 'We are telling Daesh (IS) that their leaders are abandoning them. We've seen a movement out of Mosul.' He told reporters in a video briefing that many foreigners among the 6,000 IS fighters would likely end up forming the core of the holdout jihadist force. The Iraqi media outlet Al Sumaria added: 'The ISIS evacuated what it called the women of caliphate from the city of Mosul to the Syrian ISIS-held cities including Raqqa, over the last two days,' pointing out that, 'These women are the wives of the leaders of ISIS.' 'The women of caliphate were evacuated by orders from Baghdad to avoid being captured by the security forces or rebellious people of Mosul after liberating the city.' But Army General Joseph Votel, commander of U.S. Central Command, said the battle could last 'for months'. Army Gen Votel said Iraqi officials have publicly spoken of the Mosul battle lasting for weeks or months, amid speculation the army may launch a simultaneous offensive to retake Raqqa in Syria. He said he is comfortable with the Iraqis' timeframe and said it was important to ackowledge the Islamic State are an 'adaptive enemy capable of adjusting to setbacks'. Army Gen Votel said: 'I'll give you an example. The operation we did to Manbij, in northern Syria, took about 71 days to complete, from start to finish.' He also stressed the importance of 'simultaneous application of pressure' in Mosul and Raqqa. He said: 'I think it's extraordinarily important and we are certainly attempting to do that. 'I think what we've seen is when we apply pressure on the Islamic State forces, they do squirt out, they try to go to other locations, they move leaders, they move the bulk of their forces, they try to relocate some of their operations.' Young children, pictured, have fled their homes after the arrival of the Iraqi army in Qayyarah ISIS is using 'scorched earth tactics' in Qayyarah oil fields, pictured, to prevent the advancing Iraqi army making use of them Iraqi soldiers are pictured firing M109 self-propelled howitzers on the village of Al-Muftuya from a position in Kani al-Harami, which is around 21 miles away from Mosul, as they continue their advance So far morale among the Iraqi forces seems high, with soldiers pictured celebrating their initial successes, pictured But the UN fears civilians, such as this man in Qayyarah, will be put at risk by the fighting with up to 1.5million at risk of being caught in the crossfire Families have been spotted gathering on the outskirts of Qayyarah with their possessions as they try to avoid the danger Livestock is also very much at risk with this shepherd pictured leading his flock away from danger in Qayyarah He said the U.S. and its coalition partners could respond to that in various ways, including directing airstrikes at IS fighters seeking to move from Mosul to Raqqa. Maj Gen Volesky noted that the Iraqis would screen anyone leaving Mosul, and attempts by foreign fighters to blend in to an expected exodus of displaced people would be thwarted. 'It's difficult for them to blend into the local population based on the number of different types of foreign fighters that there are,' he said. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were still trapped in the city with dwindling supplies, many sheltering in basements as air strikes intensified on IS targets. UN humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien said the protection of the elderly, disabled and pregnant women who may not be able to move to safety without assistance cause the greatest concern based on previous evidence of IS practices. He told the UN Security Council on Wednesday that no large-scale displacement of civilians has been reported on the third day of the Iraqi government-led operation. But Mr O'Brien said the UN anticipates 'a displacement wave of some 200,000 people over the coming weeks, with up to one million displaced in the course of the operation in a worst-case scenario'. Scorched earth tactics like these, pictured, were also used by Saddam Hussein during the first Gulf War in Kuwait in 1991 Meanwhile Iraqi forces are taking up positions in al-Houd, pictured, south of Mosul, after taking it from ISIS forces Coalition forces have been carrying out airstrikes in al-Houd over the past month, with troops, pictured, now ready to move in Soldiers in the Iraqi Army have been covered in dust as they march along the roads on the way to taking position in al-Houd Others looked in fine spirits, pictured, after they re-took the village of Hut as forces close in on the main target Of that one million, the UN believes 700,000 would require shelter and emergency assistance, he said. Iraqi troops are now around half a mile away from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul. One Iraqi officer, who asked not to be named, said ISIS have sent out 12 car bombs in the past day but that all exploded before reaching their targets, with Iraqi troops suffering 'small casualties' from mortar rounds. To the north, airstrikes pounded Bashiqa as Kurdish forces fired mortar rounds from an area overlooking the IS-held town. Meanwhile ISIS thugs have resorted to using human shields as they attempt to defend Mosul as it emerged the terror group's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is thought to be trapped in the city. Fanatics have been preventing the city's 1.5 million residents from escaping in recent weeks, according to Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis. Iraqi soldiers sit triumphant upon armoured vehicles, pictured, celebrating the successful operation in Hut Victory is still far from assured and soldiers remain on their guard with a machine gunner and troops seen engaged in what appears to be an important conversation It is believed the Iraqi Army, pictured, could be going up against up to 6,000 militants holed up in Mosul Smoke rises out of Hut, pictured, after the nearby oil fields were set on fire to limit visibility for coalition planes as well as destroy valuable resources Soldiers trudge along the road near Qayyarah, pictured, to their next destination as the campaign rolls on They are being held there 'against their will' and coalition forces 'know they are being used as human shields,' Davis added. It comes as it was claimed that ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was holed up in the city along with his explosives expert Fawzi Ali Nouimeh. Senior Kurdish official Hoshiyar Zebari said there were 'solid' intelligence reports saying Baghdadi was in the city. It was in Mosul's Great Mosque of al-Nuri that the terrorist declared the ISIS 'caliphate' in 2014. The head of Russia's General Staff Valery Gerasimov said today that that any ISIS militant trying to escape Mosul for Syria should be killed on the spot. It comes as British jets and drones hit ISIS targets as part of the push to drive the jihadist group out of their Iraqi stronghold. The RAF took part in strikes around the northern Iraqi city, hitting targets including a truck bomb and anti-tank gun in support of the ground offensive. The Iraqi flag flies high above an army vehicle as more soldiers, pictured, arrive to take up positions in the village of Hut Iraqi families in Qayyarah have already been displaced, pictured, and a total of around 1million people could follow over the batlle The assault on Mosul has led to warnings of a humanitarian crisis as people flee the city, which has been under ISIS control since 2014The assault on Mosul has led to warnings of a humanitarian crisis as people flee the city, which has been under ISIS control since 2014 The Iraqi army could claim a huge prize in Mosul, as it is claimed ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is holed up in the city, although he may now have fled with other commanders Meanwhile soldiers, pictured, have been holding their positions in the town of Nimrud ahead of the Mosul assault The assault on Mosul has led to warnings of a humanitarian crisis as people flee the city, which has been under ISIS control since 2014. Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon has described the effort to liberate Mosul as a 'big moment' in the war against ISIS and vowed that British forces would continue to play a major role as part of the coalition supporting the Iraqi and Kurdish forces on the ground. The Ministry of Defence released details of a series strikes carried out by the RAF on Monday and Tuesday. On Monday, a Reaper drone was in action south-east of the city, attacking targets including a mortar position, an armed truck and two ISIS heavy weapons teams - one equipped with an anti-tank gun. A Typhoon flight to the south of Mosul used a Paveway IV guided bomb to destroy a large truck bomb before it could be used by IS, with video footage capturing the large explosion on impact. But for all the gains in Hut, the escalation of fighting means many families are evacuating the area, pictured Iraqi Major General Najim al-Jabouri, second left, is pictured here addressing the media to give updates on the campaign As smoke continues to rise of Qayyarah, a group of boys huddle next to a building, pictured, but don't look too downbeat about what is going on around them Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi (centre, black cap) and high-ranking army officials have visited troops today as the Mosul offensive continues The split in what is going on in Iraq is captured in this photo as a shepherd moves his flock while soldiers watch on On Tuesday, a Reaper flying to the south-east of Mosul targeted two groups of ISIS fighters and an armed truck, while to the north-east of the city Typhoons destroyed targets including a string of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) laid out in a defensive belt. Coalition forces expect ISIS to have laid a series of booby traps in and around Mosul as part of their effort to hamper Iraqi advances. In an indication of the humanitarian consequences of the attack, Save The Children said thousands of desperate Iraqis have made their way to an already-overcrowded Syrian refugee camp in an effort to escape the offensive. About 5,000 people, mostly women and children, have arrived at the Al Hol camp from the Mosul area in the last 10 days, and at least 1,000 more are now massing at the border waiting to cross, the charity said. Foreign Office Minister Tobias Ellwood said 'huge amounts of planning' had gone into preparing for the liberation of Mosul. 'The place will be covered in booby traps, in IEDs, it will not be safe for anybody to enter, there will be huge sums of refugees seeking shelter and support elsewhere,' he told BBC Radio 4's World At One. The city would be liberated by Iraqi Sunni forces and made safe, allowing refugees to return, he insisted. ISIS thugs have resorted to using human shields as they attempt to defend Mosul as it emerged the terror group's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is thought to be trapped in the city. Aerial pictures show how ISIS fanatics are torching oil in the city Fanatics have been preventing the city's 1.5 million residents from escaping in recent weeks, according to Pentagon spokesman Jeff Davis. Iraqi forces are pictured in the Bajwaniyah village, south of Mosul Residents are being held there 'against their will' and coalition forces 'know they are being used as human shields,' Davis added ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is believed to be holed up in the city along with his explosives expert Fawzi Ali Nouimeh Last night, ISIS radicals started setting fire to oil wells as they carried out scorched earth tactics in Mosul - with striking similarities to Saddam Hussein's defeated troops 25 years ago. The jihadis have begun sending huge plumes of black smoke into the air above the key territory, as the battle to defeat the terror group enters a third day. But images showing smoke flying in the sky have already been compared to the tactics used in the 1991 Gulf War, when Saddam took his troops out of Kuwait with defeat in sight. The scorched earth tactics are used to limit the visibility of enemy pilots during air strikes. It also destroys millions of dollars worth of oil that is crucial in a way that is also extremely bad for the environment. Civilians have already begun fleeing the villages around Mosul as the allies advance, in a bid to stay clear of the ongoing fighting. The ongoing conflict brings Iraqi forces back to the scene of their disastrous collapse in 2014, but ISIS has long since been put on the defensive. Commanders have said progress is already being made in the battle to recapture the area. Iraqi forces have even been said to be 'ahead of schedule' as they push into the dusty plains surrounding the city, reports AFP. More than 40,000 Iraqi and Kurd troops are leading the offensive, backed by air and ground support from a 60-nation US-led coalition, in what is expected to be a long and difficult assault. From the south the Iraqi army are just 24 miles away, with Kurdish fighters 19 miles to the east. British jets and drones hit ISIS targets as part of the push to drive the jihadist group out of their Iraqi stronghold. Aerial pictures show a truck bomb south of Mosul A video grab shows an RAF Typhoon using a Paveway guided bomb to safely dispose of a large truck-bomb, before it could be used by ISIS The RAF took part in strikes around the northern Iraqi city, hitting targets including a truck bomb and anti-tank gun in support of the ground offensive Discovery: Peshmerga forces stand around a tunnel used by ISIS militants on the outskirts of Bartila, east of Mosul Displaced people, who are fleeing from clashes in Al-hud village, south of Mosul, head to Qayyarah, during an operation to attack ISIS Yet there is still a large amount of ground to cover before the city boundaries can be breached, with berms, bombs and burning oil trenches blocking the way. As many as 5,000 IS soldiers are thought to remain in Mosul, with US President Barack Obama warning of the tough battle ahead. During a news conference with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi he said: 'Mosul will be a difficult fight. There will be advances and there will be setbacks.' Even though the IS forces are vastly outnumbered, the battle looks set to be lengthy affair that could last months, according to the French Defence Minister. Jean-Yves Le Drian said it won't be a 'Blitzkrieg', a lightning war achieving success in a short period of time. 'It's a city of a million-and-a-half inhabitants, so this is an affair that will last a long time,' he said, adding that the offensive is 'essential' to prevent new IS attacks. French war planes are supporting the military campaign on the ground, where US, British and French special forces are advising local troops. A truckload of refugees flee the area as the flames and plumes of smock billow out behind them The civilians fleeing from ISIS-controlled areas of Mosul to find safer locations while the battle rumbles on A line of Iraqi women and young children leave as they head towards Al Qayyarah A group convenes as the near the town where the refugees are heading to escape the conflict But most of the coalition's backing has come from air strikes, which reportedly destroyed 52 targets on the first day of the operation. Despite the warnings of a protracted assault, Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said: 'Early indications are that Iraqi forces have met their objectives so far, and that they are ahead of schedule for this first day.' The UN is expecting people to start fleeing the city 'basically any minute now', fearing IS soldiers will use the escaping residents as human shields. And humanitarian agencies have warned the battle could unleash the 'worst man-made humanitarian crisis' seen in modern times. 'In a worst-case scenario, we're literally looking at the single largest humanitarian operation in the world in 2016,' said Lise Grande from the UN. 'In Mosul, depending on what happens militarily, a million people could move in a time span of a couple of weeks.' Several blown-out wells damaged by retreating Iraqi soldiers in Al-Ahmadi oil field burn in the Gulf War of 25 years ago Iraqi troops retreating after a seven-month occupation in 1991 smashed and torched 727 wells The scorched earth tactics are used to limit the visibility of enemy pilots during air strikes As the battle got underway, terrifying body cam footage captured the fierce fighting between the two sides. A Kurdish fighter filmed the moment he sprinted across open land amid deafening gunfire and explosions during one of the early advances. ISIS fanatics ran around 'like rats' as they emerged from a network of tunnels to surprise the soldiers with suicide attacks. bid on the Republican candidate and was prepared to die carrying it out This is the moment a delusional man unloaded a Glock 17 pistol at a Las Vegas shooting range - 24 hours before he attempted to grab a police officer's gun in a bid to kill Donald Trump. In CCTV footage - obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com - mentally ill Michael Sandford is seen plugging 20 rounds in to a target at the range during a $29 training session. Sandford was arrested in a dramatic scenes the following day at a Trump rally in a Las Vegas casino on June 18 after going for the police officer's weapon as he asked for Trump's autograph. He told police he had plotted to assassinate the Republican presidential candidate for a year and believed he would die during the bid. Relaxing in to it: The gun range owner's told DailyMail.com that the 20-year-old became more competent during his session with the handgun Aftermath: Las Vegas officers were pictured hustling Sandford away from the Treasure Island Casino in the city after he went for one officer's gun at a Trump rally The footage has been released to DailyMail.com ahead of the next presidential debate in Las Vegas tonight. Last month Sandford, a British citizen, pleaded guilty to federal charges and is awaiting sentencing as part of a plea deal. He faces around two years in a US prison and will be deported after pleading guilty to be an illegal alien in possession of a firearm and disrupting an official function. The 20-year-old could have faced up to 20 years in prison if he had been convicted at trial of the charges. Court documents say Sandford acknowledged reaching for the gun while Trump was on stage during a campaign speech. Fortunately did not get hold of the weapon before he was wrestled to the ground and arrested, and no shots were fired. In security video footage obtained from Battlefield Vegas - a shooting range popular with tourists - Sandford is seen being schooled on how to shoot the 9mm Glock. He was given a safety tuition before being taken by an instructor to a booth in the busy range. Sandford is then seen shooting 20 rounds using the pistol. Battlefield Vegas owner Ron Cheney told DailyMail.com that Sandford appeared 'nervous and apprehensive' when he first arrived and took hold of the weapon. Cheney said: 'He rented a Glock 17, he said he wanted to learn how to fire a hand gun. Europeans for the most part have seen guns in the movies but have never held them in their hand. 'So the way he was, he was a little nervous and apprehensive, it was his first time shooting a gun.' But Cheney said slightly built Sandford, who was seen wearing a gray t-shirt and large ear protectors, soon relaxed in to the 15-minute training session. Autistic: Sandford was said by his family to have been diagnosed with autism. His lawyer told the court he was delusional at the time of his arrest Prepared to die: Sandford told cops that he realized his plot might cost him his life. He left an easy trail for them, signing in to the range on the day before the rally Tuition: The 20-year-old illegal was given expert advice by staff at the gun range on how to handle a handgun. The instructor saw 'nothing out of the ordinary', bosses told DailyMail.com 'By the time he was done with his magazine he was comfortable, he wasn't shaking anymore,' he said. 'The instructor said he was a nice kid and noticed nothing out of the ordinary. 'The staff explained to him how to hold a weapon, how to center it, how to aim a pistol. 'Usually from the movies people want to hold the gun sideways or with one hand, we show them how to properly hold a weapon, it's safer for everybody that way. 'He shot 20 rounds in total, it's usually a 17-round magazine but we put an extension on for him.' Video footage shows Sandford leaving the range with the rolled up target in his hand. A Glock 9mm handgun is one of the handguns officers in the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police are authorized to carry Cheney also revealed the reason Sandford was unable to take the officer's weapon the next day - because he had a retention holster. 'My staff have retention holsters here for safety reasons, you can't just pull the gun out, there's either a lever that's flipped or a certain twist you put on the gun that allows it to expel from the holster. Plea: Sandford's mother Lynne, of Dorking, Surrey, said her son was autistic and should be getting help, not jail 'And that's what the police officer had when he tried to go for the gun, it looks like it will come right out because you don't see any straps, but it won't release. That's why he couldn't pull it out.' Cheney said his company was contacted by the FBI, Secret Service and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department after the incident. 'They were here soon after it happened and they asked that we hold off from releasing any video or make any statements that may affect the case and we agreed,' he explained. 'It's a tough one, I feel bad for the kid, he has a mental illness, but if you want to kill someone you can't just get a slap on the wrist.' Sandford's mother had told the judge in his case that he had been treated for obsessive compulsive disorder and anorexia as a youngster. Lynne Sandford also said son had 'a lifetime of mental health problems' has autism and Asperger's syndrome and watches children's cartoons. She said her son would not have understood the consequences of his actions and was on suicide watch while in a Nevada jail. Family attorney Saimo Chahal added that Sandford was delusional at the time According to court research Sandford did not have permission to be in the US and was unemployed. He was originally from Dorking, in Surrey, and his mother told the BBC in July: 'He needs help not prison.' Gun venue: Battlefield Vegas is one of the city's most popular destinations for tourists. There are no legal restrictions on people going to it and learning how to handle a weapon. In Sandford's home country, the United Kingdom, possession of a handgun is illegal Papers filed at the court said he had been in the country for around 18 months and lived in Hoboken, New Jersey. He had driven across the US to San Bernardino, California, and had been living out of his car before traveling on to Las Vegas. The following day he went to the Treasure Island Casino where Trump was addressing a rally of 1,500 supporters amid tight security. Attendees had to pass through metal detectors manned by Secret Service, police and casino security officials. Asking to get an autograph from the billionaire, he tried to take a police officer's holstered gun before being tackled and frogmarched from the venue. A Secret Service report said Sandford told officers he had been planning the assassination for around 12 months and believed he would die in the process. He had also bought a ticket to a rally in Phoenix, Arizona, for later on Saturday as a back-up. Sandford was carrying a UK driver's licence at the time he was arrested. Officials working for the Harrisburg School District would not comment on the allegations The police ultimately referred the matter back to the school and said even if Donald's claims were true they would not press charges Donald's mother, Ciara White, called police and had them take a report at the school A young boy from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania claims that his teacher washed his mouth out with soap after he got into an argument with another student in his class. Donald Thomas, 10, said that the teacher at Camp Curtin Academy, whose identity has not been revealed, was absent when the argument between the two students took place, but punished him when she returned to school following her absence. 'She told me to go by the sink and she got a bar of soap and she started rubbing it on my tongue,' Donald told WHP. He also said that he only wanted to return to school if the teacher was fired from her job. 'I do want to go back to the school, if she doesnt work there anymore. I just dont wanna stay in that class,' said Donald. Scroll dow for video Donald Thomas (above), 10, claims that his teacher washed his mouth out with soap after hearing he had been in an argument with another student The incident occurred at Camp Curtin Academy (above) in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Ciara White, Donald's mother, was so concerned about what happened to her son that she called police. 'Its definitely assault, maybe even poisoning. Soap doesnt belong in someones mouth,' said White. White also said that she had some questions she would like to ask the teacher. 'So many questions, first of all why would a teacher do that? What kind of soap? I mean I just dont understand why a teacher would do that,' said White. The entire experience has left her 'very upset, hurt, confused' she said. Donald's mother, Ciara White (above), called police and had them take a report at the school Police meanwhile took a report and then referred the complaint back to the school. Law enforcement said that even if the incident did occur, the teacher did not commit a crime. Five states, including California, will vote on legalization in November Even support among Republicans has increased by double, to 42% Support for the legalization of marijuana among the American public is now at 60 per cent says, polling company Gallup - that's the highest in its 47-year trend, and almost double what it was in 2005. That enthusiasm is evenly spread across all ages, races, genders and political demographics, according to a poll of 1,017 adults who were asked 'Do you think the use of marijuana should be made legal or not?' The lift in support comes as legalization measures appear on the ballots in five states this November, Gallup noted in Wednesday's poll. Joint agreement: A Gallup poll says 60 per cent of Americans are now in favor of legalizing marijuana, up from 36 per cent in 2005 (pictured: Colorado 420 pro-weed rally, 2014) Higher and higher: Approval for marijuana legalization has increased rapidly since the early 2000s. A long flat period in the 1980s coincides with the 'Just Say No' anti-drug campaign The company first started asking the question in 1969, at which point just 12 per cent said that they were in favor of legalization. That rose to 28 per cent in 1977, but dipped again and stayed around 25 per cent in the 1980s. Perhaps not coincidentally, that was the period in which the US government ran its 'Just Say No' anti-drugs campaign. But at the start of the 2000s it began to inch higher, hitting 36 per cent in 2005 and then ramping up to the present day rate of 60 per cent. Politically, approval for legalizing pot spans the divide, with all groups showing an increase in approval: Democrats from 38 per cent in 2003 and 2005 to 67 per cent now, and independents up from 46 per cent to 70 per cent. And while Republicans are on the whole less enthusiastic about getting high, support among their group has more than doubled, from 20-42 per cent. Those figures combine 2003 and 2005 statistics because each survey only asked the question of a half-sample of respondents. Red, blue and green: Increasing support for legalization spans parties, with even traditionally anti-pot Republicans experiencing a more than 100 per cent increase Support has also increased across all age groups, from those aged 18 upwards. And that approval might well continue to increase, Gallup suggested, if California decides to legalize marijuana in November. That state is just one of five - the others being Arizona, Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada - looking at legalization this year. But the 'Golden State' tends to set political trends for the US, Gallup says, and California giving the nod might well be the tipping point for the US. Potted history: Increased approval likewise spans age ranges, with those who were children in 2003 and 2005 now firmly in favor of legalization It might also end in a Supreme Court case similar to the one that saw gay marriage legalized across the US, the report said. Buying pot for medicinal and recreational purposes is already legal in Washington and Colorado, and more than half the US has legalized marijuana use in some way. Gallup notes that the 60 per cent approval noted in this poll is statistically similar to the 58 per cent recorded in 2013 and 2015, so it's not known whether support is actually larger or has just stabilized. A man who claimed to be Jesus and was calling for Scottish independence had to be removed from a court today. The person attended an appeal case at the Court of Session in Edinburgh which is to rule on whether a group of independence campaigners should be evicted from a protest camp they have set up outside the Scottish Parliament. The campaigners - who said they were not affiliated with the man - had previously told the hearing that the real Jesus had given permission for the camp to be there and was in favour of Scottish independence. When 'Jesus' then appeared during a break in proceedings, he claimed to be 'answering a summons to court' and was carrying a USB stick that he claimed had evidence of Christ's 'divine support' for Scotland to leave the UK. A group of Scottish independence campaigners have been ordered to leave the camp, pictured, they set up outside the country's Parliament in Edinburgh The man, who had long hair and was dressed in long robes, was subsequently removed when he climbed over public benches and refusing to leave the courtroom. The 'Indycamp' in Holyrood was set up in November 2015 but was soon ordered to be disbanded, prompting a lengthy legal battle with the campaigners, known as JAH, claiming eviction would breach their human rights. Richard McFarlane, 49, representing JAH, told judge Lady Dorrian she would be 'made redundant' by the second coming of Christ. He said: 'I know it's very difficult for you given that you will be made redundant upon the coming of his Kingdom. 'However, the Lord is very serious. He has given permission for the camp to stay there.' Mr McFarlane, who said he had spoken to Christ, also told the court that the judges would face a 'second death' if they didn't comply with Jesus's wishes. According to its website, JAH believes Christ was reborn in Sheffield in 1948. They believe the official second coming will begin when Jesus sits atop the Stone of Scone, aka the Stone of Destiny, which was used to coronate British monarchs at Westminster Abbey before being given to Edinburgh Castle in 1996. The campaigners believe judge Lord Turnbull applied the law wrongly earlier this year when he ruled that independence campaigners should be evicted from parliamentary grounds. The judge ruled in favour of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body.The organisation's legal team had requested an eviction order from the court. Another campaigner, known only as David after he would not confirm his surname for the court, said a jury trial should be set up to decide the matter. However, the judges ruled that trial by jury was incompetent because it was dealing with an appeal. The judges ruled that there is no stage of the legal process which allows juries to consider disposals. David then told the court that it was committing a 'criminal' act. He asked for the judges to bring the case to an end. When the judges said they weren't bringing the case to an end, David said he would set up his own jury trial. He added: 'We will live stream it and we will have jurors consider the decision. These jurors will be those people who will swear they are sovereign indigenous people of Scotland so help me God. 'I will need to see about hiring out a hall for it.' A man claiming to be Jesus interrupted the eviction appeal case at the Court of Session, pictured, in Edinburgh today Another independence campaigner called 'Mr Keatings' told the court that judge Lord Turnbull didn't pay enough attention to the European Convention on Human Rights when considering his decision. He said that the campers had the right to be outside Holyrood and urged the judges to overturn Lord Turnbull's decision. Gerry Moynihan QC, for the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body, said that Lord Turnbull made the right decision. The judges will issue their decision at a later date. Speaking after the case outside the Court of Session, the man claiming to be Jesus said he did not know anyone in JAH. He said: 'I am Jesus. I only speak for myself.' It is understood 'Jesus' and the campaigners spoke after the end of the first day and left the hearing on good terms. 29 stone primate prowled a staff corridor after he was called for dinner The 29st gorilla who broke out of his London Zoo enclosure got through two unlocked gates before downing 12 pints of undiluted squash, it was revealed today. Kumbuka was able to walk out of his den when his first door was left open and a second security gate was unlocked after he was called for dinner. A zookeeper in the area scrambled to secure the gorilla as the thirsty primate gulped down a huge bottle of cordial he found. Scroll down for video Gorilla Kingdom reopened after being closed throughout the morning - and Kumbuka (pictured) was back in his den Zoo keepers today patching up the gorilla enclosure at London Zoo where Kumbuka the Gorilla escaped Professor David Field, Zoological Society of London's Zoological Director, has revealed the real events behind Kumbuka the gorilla's dramatic escape Zoological Society of London's Zoological Director, Professor David Field, revealed the real events behind the escape in a blog post titled 'Kumbuka the Gorilla: What Actually Happened' In the post he describes the dramatic events from the point of view of 'those who were actually there'. He admits that there were unsecured doors, which the wily primate was able to exploit in his bid for freedom. Staff said Kumbuka was given a chocolate chip cookie yesterday evening as a 'special treat' from his specially managed diet which consists of nuts, vegetables and fruit Bid for freedom: The gorilla is reported to have escaped 'through an open door', and an unlocked gate before entering a staff area Kumbuka was called in to his own private quarters, as he must east separately from the female gorillas - due to his appetite the others 'wouldn't get a look in'. He then made an opportunistic escape from his unlocked den into the staff-only service corridor where a zookeeper was working. The zookeeper had formed a strong bond with the huge animal, and was able to keep Kumbuka calm before setting off to get help. Gorilla Kingdom was this morning closed to members of the public for repair work Back on display: Gorilla Kumbuka pictured eating his lunch in front of visitors to London Zoo Prof Field said: 'The zookeeper was able to continually reassure Kumbuka, talking to him calmly and in the same light-hearted tone he would always use, as he removed himself from the area. The gorilla was then contained in the non-public area of the zoo. He curiously prowled around his new surroundings, and came upon a stash of undiluted blackcurrant squash - which he promptly drank. The zoo confirmed Kumbuka was back in his den at 6.21pm after being tranquillised. Prof Field stressed that at no point was the large male gorilla a threat to the public. Following the breakout Kumbuka (pictured today), spent more than an hour outside his main enclosure before keepers were able to use a tranquilliser dart Witnesses said the gorilla launched himself at the glass (pictured) earlier on the day of his escape. But the behaviour was just 'posturing' He explained in his post that the behaviour exhibited by Kumbuka earlier in the day of his escape was posturing on his part, which is to be expected by a father and dominant male. Zoo curator Malcolm Fitzpatrick agreed that Kumbuka had not displayed aggression before his escape, and described him as a 'gentle giant'. As the dominant male in the troop he sometimes behaves in a way to assert his position within the hierarchy, which are said to be 'completely natural'. Although the species needs attentive care and can be volatile in nature, most gorilla charges occur when provoked. There was a police presence outside London Zoo on Friday morning following the incident Irony: This image from 2014 shows Kumbuka in his enclosure looking at a stocktake board Then a 16-year-old silverback, the gorilla pictured playing in his den two years ago Many said yesterday's escape with rather ironic, after these photographs re-emerged The 'gentle giant' was soon happily back in his enclosure, and given a treat special treat after his dramatic episode. Prof Field said: 'Kumbuka and his family are happily playing, eating and sleeping in Gorilla Kingdom. More than $200,000 was spent flying 23 senior bureaucrats from Canberra to Paris for a conference about saving money. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade staff were flown to and from the French capital business class, and they stayed at the Mercure Paris Centre Eiffel Tower Hotel, Fairfax reported. Australia's ambassador to France Stephen Brady hosted the event, which was attended by a departmental psychologist, a conduct and ethics manager, and a health and safety officer. Scroll down for video 23 bureaucrats were flown return from Canberra to Paris business class and stayed at the four-star Mercure Paris Centre Eiffel Tower Hotel (pictured) According to the Qantas website return business class tickets from Canberra to Paris cost upwards of $6100 - putting flights for the group at over $140,000. This is not including the cost of travel for the Europe-based delegates who also attended the two-day event. The four-star hotel where the guests stayed has views of the Eiffel Tower, and mid-week prices start around $250 according to the website. Taking in to account a $150-per-day meal allowance, Fairfax estimated a 'conservative' estimate of the trip would sit around $215,000. The DFAT employees attended a conference from September 7-9 this year According to DFAT Foreign Minister Julie Bishop did not have to approve the trip. 'The conference was focused on streamlining work and improving efficiencies at posts in Europe through training and briefing on financial management, human resources, consular and passport services, security (elevated levels of terrorism), procurement governance, staff welfare, audit and risk, health and safety, legal risk, IT and property,' a DFAT spokesperson told the publication. 'Security was also prominent, given the elevated levels of terrorism, as well as work health and safety issues.' Daily Mail Australia has contacted DFAT for further comment. Advertisement Risking a death sentence for talking to the outside world, the man on the end of the line spoke with quiet authority, his voice a mixture of hope and dread. A once-prosperous trader in Mosul Iraqs third-largest city he had spent the past two years praying for the reign of Islamic State to end. Now, with a massive force of troops in a U.S.-led coalition massing for an all-out assault to regain Mosul from its hated new rulers, he admitted he may not survive the battle to come. Iraqi forces are leading a huge offensive against ISIS in Mosul, with the terror group expected to use mustard gas, car bombs and human shields in their defence of the city Iraqi soldiers are pictured firing M109 self-propelled howitzers on the village of Al-Muftuya from a position in Kani al-Harami, which is around 21 miles away from Mosul, as they continue their advance Other troops sit triumphant upon armoured vehicles, pictured, celebrating the successful operation in Hut, near Mosul Meanwhile soldiers, pictured, have been holding their positions in the town of Nimrud ahead of the Mosul assault But for all the gains in Hut, the escalation of fighting means many families are evacuating the area, pictured ISIS has been rigging all of Mosul with explosives, and forcing people to leave their neighbourhoods on the outskirts to go deeper into the city, he said last week, warning that the entire populace could become human shields. But do you know what? We dont care any more. We just want rid of these gangsters once and for all. Seldom has a mission of liberation carried such a risk of carnage. In the coming days, Mosul will see the worlds biggest battle against ISIS to date, as more than 30,000 Iraqi troops, backed by American and British airpower and special forces, try to oust the jihadists from their main Iraqi stronghold. Months of blood-soaked street fighting lie ahead, potentially turning the ancient city into a kind of Arab Stalingrad, the city that suffered such devastation as Russia and Germany grappled for supremacy in World War II. As I will explain, Mosul has a totemic significance for ISIS. And, chillingly, its leaders view the citys million-strong population as its biggest and best means of defence. This is the reason for the terror groups frenzied activity in recent weeks around Mosuls outskirts. It has dug trenches which have been filled with oil, and is setting this alight both as a defence against infantry and to disrupt attacks from the sky. It has erected concrete barriers and built sand berms or defensive walls. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi (centre, black cap) and high-ranking army officials have visited troops today as the Mosul offensive continues Iraqi Major General Najim al-Jabouri, second left, is pictured here addressing the media to give updates on the campaign Many soldiers are in fine spirits, pictured, after they re-took the village of Hut as forces close in on the main target Other reports suggest bridges that connect the two areas of Mosul on either side of the River Tigris have been mined, and that ISIS has forced women and children on to the tops of taller buildings to discourage air strikes. The idea is partly to keep the enemy out. But it is also to keep Mosuls innocent civilians in. A lucky few people have escaped in recent weeks by bribing their way past checkpoints ISIS zealots are not above backhanders but most remain trapped and will be shot if they are caught trying to flee. Once the fighting starts in earnest, ISIS plans to blend in among the civilians, using innocent men, women and children as protection from coalition bombs and missiles. In effect, a city almost the size of Glasgow is being held hostage by fanatics with no compunction about slaughtering captives when it suits their purpose. Small wonder then that aid chiefs fear a catastrophe even by Iraqs blood-soaked standards. The operation has the potential to be largest man-made disaster for many, many years, warned Bruno Geddo, the UN High Commissioner For Refugees top official for Iraq. He said the agency was trying to provide tents, food and clinics for up to 700,000 people who may flee the fighting in the coming weeks, but that the consequences could be apocalyptic. By the end of October, there will be five new permanent camps set up to provide shelter. Sitting on the Tigris as it winds through Iraqs arid northern plains, Mosul is just 100 miles from the Syrian border, making it a strategic stronghold for Islamic State across both countries. It was the scene of another famous last stand in 2003, when Saddam Husseins two fugitive sons, Uday and Qusay, were killed in a shoot-out with U.S. troops at a mansion in the suburbs. Scorched earth tactics like these, pictured, were also used by Saddam Hussein during the first Gulf War in Kuwait in 1991 Despite burning fields and fierce fighting in Qayyarah, around 35 miles south of Mosul, one man is not deterred from taking a selfie next to huge flames, pictured The Iraqi Army are making progress in their campaign and tanks and troops have been fighting in Qayyarah, pictured, while leaders of ISIS are said to be 'fleeing Mosul with their wives' ISIS thugs have resorted to using human shields as they attempt to defend Mosul as it emerged the terror group's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is thought to be trapped in the city. Aerial pictures show how ISIS fanatics are torching oil in the city Visiting the city back then, I remember a quiet, laid-back place that seemed free and relatively at peace: restaurants were open late into the night, and whisky was freely available. That liberal Western lifestyle is a distant memory today under the iron fist of ISIS. The jihadis conquered the city in a lightning strike back in June 2014, when convoys of masked, black-clad fighters roared across the border from Syria. Not only did they smash the 75,000-strong Iraqi army, which collapsed despite a decade of U.S. and British training, they robbed Mosuls central bank of half-a-billion dollars, netting themselves the biggest war chest in terrorist history. The capture of the city marked the turning point in ISISs fortunes, transforming it from just another jihadist faction in Syrias civil war into the global terror outfit it is known as today. The triumph symbolised the chaos spawned by the Western military invasion led by George W. Bush and Tony Blair that was not followed by a coherent plan for post-war reconstruction. A month after ISIS invaded, Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi, ISISs black-bearded leader, declared himself leader of its new Caliphate during prayers at Mosuls Grand Mosque, and ever since the city has been one of the groups most prized assets. Christians in Mosul were given a brutal choice: to convert to extreme Islam, leave the city or be killed. Men were told to grow their beards. Acts of adultery were punished by stoning or the lash. Looters had their hands cut off. The Caliphates subjects were flogged, tortured and beheaded for transgressions of Islamic edicts. Women whose clothes failed to conceal their bodies faced the wrath of biters, all-female morality police armed with metal pincers that mark offenders for life by ripping out chunks of flesh. Mobile phones and internet access were mostly cut off, and the few who still had access to either businessmen who paid taxes to ISIS such as the Mosul resident who spoke to the Mail last week, risked arrest and death as spies. Meanwhile Iraqi forces are taking up positions in al-Houd, pictured, south of Mosul, after taking it from ISIS forces Despite the horrors of war, two children - one wearing a Real Madrid shirt, right - looked delighted to be pictured covered in dust in Qayyarah But life goes on as normal for these Iraqi civilians who are pictured walking past an oil field in Qayyarah set ablaze by the terror group Yet Mosuls notoriety now makes it a major symbolic prize for the U.S.-led coalition of forces surrounding the city. American and British air power such as the devastating Thunderbolt bombers, Typhoon jets and Apache attack helicopters will play a role in the battle, as will SAS soldiers and U.S. special forces. But the ground fighting will be done mainly by Iraqi forces. And much as that might limit the U.S. body-count, it may lead to the opposite for Mosuls citizens, who face being liberated by a force with a rough and often blunderbuss approach to urban warfare. The Iraqis tend to be risk-averse and slow relying on heavy use of artillery first to clear the territory before they come in, warned Professor Toby Dodge, an expert on the Iraqi military at the London School of Economics Middle East Centre. They are often somewhat indiscriminate. Supporters of the operation point out that Baghdad will have its very best men on the job. Rather than the badly led regular army divisions that melted away from Mosul two years ago, the 30,000-strong strike-force will be spearheaded by the Golden Brigade, an elite U.S.-trained counter-terrorism force that has already squeezed ISIS out of the smaller Iraqi cities of Ramadi and Fallujah. They will be backed in the air by coalition warplanes and drones, and British special forces will help call in targeted airstrikes, and also supervise hunts for high-value terrorists. Indeed, it was reported yesterday that Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi himself may be trapped in Mosul. The Iraqi general commanding the operation said this week he plans to leave open a corridor for jihadi fighters to flee the city, in the hope that they will leave the citizens safely behind and the battle will take place in the deserts to the north-west. H e said many ISIS commanders have already fled, but he knows that fighting Islamists among the citys populace will be terribly difficult, like a surgeon lifting out a cancer. The danger in this strategy, of course, is that many Islamists might escape from the city. This sparked a warning this week from the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Julian King, who urged the EU to prepare for an invasion of terrorists if Mosul is liberated as Islamic State fighters seek to return to their home countries and wreak havoc. What is beyond doubt is that Mosul may prove a far tougher fight than any other ISIS stronghold so far. Between 4,000 and 8,000 jihadists are thought to remain there, far more than the few hundred who held out in Fallujah for five weeks in the summer. Most are hard-core fighters who will not shy away from battle, although their first tactic will be to simply slow the coalitions advance by littering Mosul with booby traps and improvised explosive devices. As the fight intensifies, ISIS is likely to fall back to the Old City on the west bank of the Tigris, a maze of narrow alleyways that will force the Iraqis to abandon their heavy armour and fight on foot. Soldiers trudge along the road near Qayyarah, pictured, to their next destination as the campaign rolls on Families have been spotted gathering on the outskirts of Qayyarah with their possessions as they try to avoid the danger ISIS is using 'scorched earth tactics' in Qayyarah oil fields, pictured, to prevent the advancing Iraqi army making use of them ISIS will put bombs everywhere by roadsides, under cars, in buildings and so on, including some that are fake, said Dr Michael Knights, of the Washington Institute For Near East Policy, who has spent time on patrol with Iraqi security forces. The idea is just to create a huge improvised minefield, and when the enemys forces are trying to pick their way around them, they will open up with machine-guns or mortars. It doesnt take many fighters to do that. Another tactic, he said, may be mass waves of armoured suicide trucks. Industrial estates in the city have been commandeered to mass-manufacture car bombs one of which was deployed on Monday outside the city and the group is likely to launch tens of them at a time to overwhelm attackers. The Iraqis are getting better at dealing with this threat, and they will have drones and anti-tank weapons to protect them, said Dr Knights. But there may be some bad days where an entire brigade crumbles after being hit by ten suicide bombers at once. In addition, the jihadis have also created a range of underground tunnels to shield fighters and transport equipment. And there is a fear that they may have stocks of home-made chemical weapons such as mustard gas, so tens of thousands of gas masks have been issued to Iraqi troops as a precaution. While the gas is not very effective militarily there is a high risk of it blowing back on those who use it the mere sight of clouds of potentially deadly fumes can spread panic in enemy ranks. One possibility is that as Islamic State comes under pressure, local people may join the fight against the jihadis themselves. The city is already home to a number of resistance cells, and in recent months they have reportedly carried out a number of killings sometimes by male assassins disguised in abbayas, the billowing black cloaks that Mosuls womenfolk now wear. Other residents have acted as spies for the coalition, which has killed more than a dozen ISIS field commanders in Mosul since September, including three Islamists from the Russian republic of Chechnya who were in charge of the defence plan. But for all that ISIS is widely loathed, any hope that the city might liberate itself may prove somewhat forlorn. First, ISIS has set up a police state to rival Saddam Husseins, indoctrinating young children at religious schools and encouraging them to inform even on their parents, according to the blog Mosul Eye, one of the few reliable sources of information in the city. Second, the Iraqi forces coming to free them are almost as disliked as ISIS itself by the residents here. One of the reasons Mosul fell to ISIS in the first place was because of the age-old hatreds between two branches of Islam, the Sunnis and Shias. The citys overwhelmingly Sunni population hated rule from Baghdad, where the government is dominated by Iran-backed Shia Muslim politicians. (Islamic State itself practises an extreme form of Sunni Islam.) To many residents in Mosul, the Shia Iraqi army that fled was seen as a sectarian occupying force, and much as most people now hate ISIS even more, they also fear a return to the past. ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was believed to be holed up in the city along with his explosives expert Fawzi Ali Nouimeh, but they may have now fled The RAF took part in strikes around the northern Iraqi city, hitting targets including a truck bomb and anti-tank gun in support of the ground offensive Making them more nervous still is the presence in the coalition massing outside the city of Shia militias, some of which have served elsewhere in Iraq as anti-Sunni death squads, and have been accused of widespread torture and executions. Iraqs prime minister, Haider al-Abadi, says the militias will be restricted to holding ground outside the city, but Shia commanders have other ideas. Mosul is the capital of ISIS and our forces are needed, said Jaffar al-Husseini, spokesman for the Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah brigade. Nobody can stop us in this fight, not even Mr Abadi. Others with a close interest in the battle include militias from the autonomous state of Kurdistan in northern Iraq, who will secure the area to the north of the city, and local Sunni militias, who are actually anti-ISIS, and may vie for control of Mosul when the battle is over. Optimists in the coalition camp hope that a successful purging of Islamic State from Iraq could start the beginning of a national healing process, with Iraqi forces for once being seen as liberators rather than oppressors of their own people. However, there will obviously be no quick fix in the aftermath of this vital battle. And the nature of what will come afterwards is, unsurprisingly, still very much up in the air. If ISIS is successfully defeated in Mosul, there will be a dangerous power vacuum, with rival factions vying for supremacy. First, though, there is the massive challenge of dislodging the murderous fanatics who hold the city. LINCOLN The contract the Lincoln Atheists signed with Lamar Advertising called for the nonprofits billboard to go up outside of the combination Subway-Phillips 66 at 1648 South St. on Oct. 10. But a day earlier, the group's president, Brian Aden, was at the regular Sunday get-together at Meadowlark Coffee, and there it was. The Good Life without God? the sign reads. Its possible. Visit us at LincolnAtheists.org. According to Lamars statistics, the south-facing junior poster makes an average of 26,218 impressions a week. The text, printed atop an outline of the state of Nebraska, was set to be on display for a month. But then several people threatened to stop doing business at the gas station/store, and the sign's coming down early, according to correspondence between Lamars Lincoln general manager and the Lincoln Atheists. The group was told Tuesday. We are grateful for the work Lamar did for us and with us, but we are disappointed that we dont get an equal platform to share ideas, said Shawn Capler, marketing director of the atheist group. I think a group like ours is necessary because not everyone is religious, but I think everyone needs a community. Wed like to think that we provide community for those without any religious beliefs. The reason the group sought to advertise in the first place was to reach out to other atheists, said Aden. Our goal of course was never to upset any property owners or anything, he said. A day before he learned the billboard would be removed, Aden said reaction to the sign had been cordial, if limited. Surprisingly, we havent had as much feedback regarding our billboard as I expected, he said Monday in an email. A few people had commented at LincolnAtheists.org that they were happy to see the sign. The groups Facebook page saw an uptick in members as well, Aden and Capler said. Aden said its likely that was driven by the billboard and by an article on a blog called the Friendly Atheist that has been shared this month. He said he'd gotten no negative comments about the sign. To us directly, we still havent gotten anything, Aden said Tuesday. The comments were made without ever bothering to contact us through our website. In some ways, its what I expected, to be honest. Our very existence is offensive to a lot of people. Scott Morton, general manager of Lamar's Lincoln branch, said the company must respect the wishes of landowners upon which the company leases space. At this point, were just going to refund them all of their money, even though they got some display time, he said. Morton said he and the companys staff consider free speech rights when making decisions on which organizations and companies they do business with. They also balance those considerations with the possibility that the words on the billboards could offend passersby. Ive turned away so many messages over the last 28 years, I cant tell you, he said. In the case of the atheists billboard, the company rejected the first design submission -- a black background with the words Let God on it with the d crossed out, leaving the words Let Go visible. Soon after, the parties soon after agreed on a second choice, the runner-up in a design contest voted on by the group's 24 members. My first choice would be to put it up somewhere else in Lincoln, Aden said. If thats not possible, were not upset at Lamar. Its unfortunate because I dont think theres anything offensive about it. Capler said the group, which incorporated as a 501(c)(3) in March 2015, will continue with its scheduled get-togethers and volunteer work. Members meet for coffee and board games and adopted a 2-mile stretch of U.S. 79 near Raymond. This December, the Lincoln group and the Omaha Atheists, who put up a billboard in the summer of 2012, will have displays at the Capitol for the second-straight year. Capler said the paperwork has already been filled out. As for the billboard on private property, he said, his group is willing to let go. A message left Tuesday afternoon for the gas stations owners, listed as Dao & Nguyen Properties LLC in Lancaster County Assessor records, was not returned. We have nothing to gain from that fight, Capler said. Thats beyond the scope of our organization. Were just a humble little nonprofit that wants to help people. Puajaysa has served more than two years in federal prison, half of it in notoriously violent Texas facility dubbed 'Bloody Beaumont' According to civil lawsuit filed by the woman, which was settled last year, she emerged from her room 'painted with blood' from head to toe He also tried to throw the woman overboard, but being a trained acrobat and fitness instructor, she managed to hold onto balcony Pujayasa was initially sentenced in January 2015, but appeals court said judge failed to explain why he handed down much longer sentence than recommended under Sentenced: Ketut Pujayasa, 31, a former room service attendant on a nude Holland America cruise, has been sentenced to more than 30 years in prison for brutally raping, beating and nearly throwing overboard a female guest A former room service attendant on a nude Holland America cruise has been sentenced to more than 30 years in prison for a second time after admitting to brutally raping, beating and nearly throwing overboard a female guest. Indonesian national Ketut Pujayasa, 31, has already served more than two years in federal prison, half of it in a notoriously violent correctional facility in Texas, for the February 2014 attack. Pujayasa told police after his arrest that he decided to punish the female cruise guest on board MS Nieuw Amsterdam after she apparently told him: 'Wait a minute, son of a b****' when he knocked on her door with her breakfast. He said he took her words as an offense directed at his mother. In the course of the savage assault, which lasted up to an hour, the female victim was raped, choked with electrical cords, and battered bloody with various objects inside her room. Pujayasa even attempted to throw the woman from the balcony, but thanks to her training as an acrobat and fitness instructor, she was able to hold on. The victim eventually was able to escape. In printed reports she was described as appearing in a hallway partially naked and 'painted with blood' from head to toe. She still had the wire from a curling iron used in the attack wrapped around her neck. WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT 'Painted with blood': The female passenger, seen in this grisly photo presented as part of a civil lawsuit last year, suffered horrific injuries in the savage Valentine's Day attack in 2014 Mama's boy: Pujayasa said he ambushed the married woman inside her room after she called him 'a son of a bitch,' which he took as an insult to his beloved mother The 31-year-old attacker pleaded guilty in September 2014 to charges of aggravated sexual assault and attempted murder and was sentenced in January 2015 to 30 years and five months in federal prison. However, an appeals court later threw out the sentence, saying that the judge presiding over the case failed to adequately explain his decision to hand down a sentence that was twice as long as recommended under sentencing guidelines, reported Orlando Sentinel. On Tuesday, US District Judge Jose Martinez imposed the same sentence on Pujayasa, but explained to the court that the more severe punishment was appropriate considering the shocking nature of his actions and the impact on the victim, who has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, depression and other problems. Upon his release from prison, Pujayasa will be deported to his native Indonesia from the US and barred from ever re-entering the country. Speaking through an interpreter in court, the former cruise ship worker apologized for his actions and begged the judge for mercy, saying that he did not want to return to the violent Texas prison dubbed 'Bloody Beaumont.' 'Every day, I have to witness people fighting,' he lamented. Pujayasa sought to justify his conduct by saying that he acted out of anger sparked by what he believed to be an insult to mother, whom he loves the most in the world. Last year, Pujayasa's victim filed a civil lawsuit against the cruise line seeking $50million compensation and $365million in punitive damages, which settled out of court. The savage assault took place on MS Niuew Amsterdam (pictured). The victim, an acrobat and fitness instructor, avoided being thrown off her balcony by her attacker According to the civil complaint, then-29-year-old Ketut Pujayasa, a junior room service attendant, used his company-issued, master key to enter the cabin of the victim, identified as Jane Doe, where he was able to lurk on her balcony for several hours until she returned. On February 14, 2014, the married woman, who was on the nudist cruise with a group of friends but had a room to herself, returned around midnight and got ready for bed. As she climbed into the bed and turned off the lights, in the shadows, she became aware of a figure lurking on the stateroom balcony. Pujayasa, a 29-year-old employee originally from Indonesia, pounced on the woman. During the sustained attack, which lasted close to an hour, Pujayasa punched her, smashed heavy blunt objects into her head including a laptop, and threw her across the room. The rapist attempted to strangle his victim with his hands and then used a telephone cord and a curling iron cord. The victim lost consciousness during the attack where she was raped and sexually assaulted. Pujayasa pulled the woman to her room's balcony and tried to throw her overboard into the dark waters. She screamed repeatedly but no one responded. The victim was able to hold on to the door handle to prevent being dragged on to the balcony. Mr Hickey said it was only by having a certain degree of physical strength as part of her career as an aerialist, that his client was able to hold on. The victim eventually escaped herself. She managed to wrestle free of Pujayasa, opened the door to her cabin on her own, and ran into the hall where other passengers had congregated. An FBI report on the attack stated: '[The woman], fearing death was imminent, asked the passenger to relay to her family how much she loved them.' The victim suffered a deep laceration to her left cheek, skull fracture and a wound to the back of the head which required staples. According to the now-settled lawsuit: 'He [Pujayasa] beat her head and face so hard that she experienced shifting of her teeth. All of the trauma to her head produced a traumatic brain injury.' A state room with a balcony on a Holland America cruise ship (file picture) She suffered bites to the hands which left marks; a spinal fracture, swelling, bruising and lacerations to the face, scalp, head, neck, back, front of torso, arms, and legs and abrasions on both arms. Cord marks were left on her neck from being repeatedly strangled. She has suffered a long-term brain injury due to being beaten about the head and having her oxygen supply cut off with repeated strangulation. An Indiana judge has admitted his decision in denying a warrant request had 'the most tragic result possible' after a man who stalked his estranged wife killed her. Anthony Russell, 51, attacked and killed his wife, Laura Russell, in her home by stabbing her multiple times on October 7, police say. He killed himself with a self-inflicted gunshot wound immediately after she died. The day before Jefferson County Superior Court Judge Michael Hensley denied a warrant request from prosecutors to have Anthony arrested on five felony stalking charges for violating a no-contact order 44-year-old Laura had in place, the Madison Courier reported. Prosecutors had requested an arrest warrant be issued for Anthony days before he committed the horrific crime, but instead Hensley ordered Anthony to appear in court on the charges following a three-day holiday weekend. Judge Michael Hensley (left) has admitted his decision in denying a warrant request on October 6 for Anthony Russell had 'the most tragic result possible.' Anthony stabbed his estranged wife Laura Russell (right) to death the next day Sadly, before the court date, Anthony and Laura were found dead. Authorities say Laura and her husband had a history of domestic violence. She had requested a no-contact order back in August after Anthony was arrested and charged with strangulation, domestic battery, and interference with reporting a crime. Police say Anthony violated the protective order several times, including when he waited for Laura outside of a restaurant and her daughter's school, sent her text messages and followed her to the gym, WHAS reported. Each time that Anthony violated the protective order, Laura called 911 to report it, police say. 'I think she tried all the avenues that she could to stay safe,' Jefferson County Sheriff John Wallace told the TV station. Each time that Anthony violated the protective order, Laura called 911 to report it, police say. Anthony and Laura are pictured together above in an undated photo Hensley issued a statement to the Madison Courier about denying the request for the warrant after her family held her funeral. He said that he did not have enough probably cause to issue a warrant, despite the fact Anthony violated the protective order several times. 'I express my deepest condolences to her loved ones. I feel horrible about her death and realize the regret I express and information I provide in this statement do not bring her back,' Hensley said. He said that his role 'is not to simply grant all warrants without review' and that 'certain legal standards must be met' before he can issue a warrant. 'I made what I thought to be the correct legal decision,' Hensley said. 'Obviously, I made a decision that had the most tragic result possible.' He added that he will now change his procedure to hold a hearing on the same day when a warrant request is issued. Politicians have condemned the peers' attempt to 'subvert' people's will Peerrs have demanded a veto on priem Minsister Theresa May's strategy for Brexit A group of peers has sparked outrage by demanding that the House of Lords is given a veto over Theresa Mays Brexit strategy. The Lords EU committee said the decision was too important to be left to ministers. Critics said demands for a vote were cover for attempts to overturn the referendum result. Mrs May has said she will activate Article 50 the two-year process for leaving by the end of March next year. In their report today, the peers say too much is at stake for the negotiations to be left to ministers. But ex-Cabinet minister Owen Paterson said: The Government has a duty to carry out the will of the people Peers or MPs calling for a vote so they can draw out proceedings in the hope that they can somehow overturn the outcome is an attempt to subvert the verdict the people gave on June 23. Both houses will be allowed to vote repeatedly over the coming months as the Great Repeal Bill passes through Parliament. Tory backbencher Jacob Rees-Mogg said the Lords would look very foolish if they try to thwart the popular will. The peers report said Parliament should have the chance to debate and approve Brexit strategy, and be given access to secret documents drawn up by officials for Brussels talks. Ex-Cabinet minister Owen Paterson, left, ha said the demands of the peers will undermine the will of the people. Jacob Rees-Mogg, has said the Lords would look foolish if it vetoed Brexit Lord Boswell of Aynho, chairman of the Lords EU committee, said parliamentary scrutiny should start before Article 50 is triggered. An Institute of Government report revealed that MPs and peers have launched more than 30 inquiries into Brexit. Sir Philip Green has failed to submit a concrete offer to rescue the BHS pension scheme, a Government minister claimed last night. The revelation by pensions minister Richard Harrington flies in the face of claims by Green that he would sort a deal to fix the companys 571 million black hole. On Tuesday night, Green repeatedly claimed he would rescue the pension fund and said he was in very strong dialogue with the regulator for a solution. Green (pictured) has repeatedly pledged to solve the BHS pensions problem and save the nest eggs of the funds 20,000-plus pensioners But less than 24 hours later, Mr Harrington said: I do understand that there has been no written offer from him [Green], but things can change. Its not for me to get involved with what the regulator is doing on this its my job to wait and see what happens. Green has repeatedly pledged to solve the problem and save the nest eggs of the funds 20,000-plus pensioners. During a Parliamentary inquiry into BHSs collapse in June, he said: We will sort it, we will find a solution and I want to give an assurance to the 20,000 pensioners that Im there to sort this. But several months have passed with no sign of a deal any nearer to being struck. The behaviour of the billionaire tycoon dubbed Sir Shifty by critics has come under intense scrutiny after he sold BHS to thrice-bankrupt former racing driver Dominic Chappell last year. And last night, Green was facing the ultimate humiliation as it emerged almost 50 MPs have backed calls to strip him of his knighthood over the destruction of BHS. Politicians of all parties have rushed to show their support in an effort to force Commons Speaker John Bercow to stage the first-ever vote in Parliament today on removing an honour. MPs will today debate the tycoons role in the retailers demise. The last BHS stores closed their doors for the final time on August 28. The brand had been a high street staple for 88 years Labour MP Stephen Kinnock said: Philip Green was knighted for his services to retail and British business, but it seems his main service has been to himself and yacht salesmen. What we see here is not about rewards for failure, but rewards for destruction. Stripping Green of his undeserved knighthood would make it clear that these kind of practices have no place in modern Britain. The vote in Parliament, if it goes ahead, will not be binding. But MPs hope it will put pressure on the secretive Honours Forfeiture committee to take action. Francois Hollande told Theresa May to expect 'hard' negotiations if she pursues a 'hard' Brexit as she came face-to-face with EU leaders at her first Brussels summit today. The French President's comments set a defiant tone ahead of the meeting of 28 EU leaders and contradicted EU chief Donald Tusk's warm remarks minutes earlier as he appealed to Mrs May to work in close partnership to achieve a successful departure. The European Council president dismissed media descriptions of her crucial first meeting as a 'lions den,' insisting the EU was 'more like a nest of doves,' adding: 'You can be sure she will be absolutely safe with us'. Mr Tusk's sentiments towards Britain's new PM appeared to be echoed by European leaders as Mrs May kissed and embraced her counterparts in the European Council chamber today, including EU Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. But Mr Hollande, pictured wagging his finger at Mrs May today, warned as he arrived in Brussels: 'I say very firmly; if Madame Theresa May wants a hard Brexit, then talks will be hard too.' Mr Hollande, pictured wagging his finger at Mrs May, warned as he arrived for the summit: 'I say very firmly; if Madame Theresa May wants a hard Brexit, then talks will be hard too.' It was in stark contrast to the welcome Jean-Claude Juncker gave to Mrs May, pictured kissing her at the summit this afternoon Theresa may came face-to-face with EU leaders at her first Brussels summit today His comments were set to be met by a similarly defiant message from Mrs May, who is set to tell European leaders clinging to the idea Britain will stay in the EU that the referendum is irreversible. At a dinner with her European counterparts tonight she will crush suggestions made by some senior Eurocrats that Brexit will never happen. In what were likely to be tense talks, she was set to say that the British people have spoken loud and clear and there will be no backsliding or second referendum. But on her arrival in Belgium Mrs May sought to reassure EU leaders that Britain is not seeking to destroy their project and told her counterparts that the UK will 'play a full role until we leave and will be a strong and dependable partner after we've left'. Mr Tusk attempted to set a cordial tone for the summit, which will only address Brexit in an informal manner as official negotiations cannot begin until Britain has triggered Article 50 next spring. Theresa May grimaces as she chats to French President Francois Hollande at the summit today. He earlier warned her that if she pursues a 'hard' Brexit, she should expect 'hard' negotiations Theresa May attended her first EU summit as Prime Minister today. Pictured, she talks to EU leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel (in the red top) at the start of the meeting in Brussels today Theresa May shares jokes with fellow European leaders Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, left, Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite, right, and Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades Theresa May was set to crush suggestions made by some senior Eurocrats that Brexit will never happen He said: 'Let me say I'll be very happy to welcome Prime Minister Theresa May today. 'Some media have described her first meeting in the European Council as entering the lion's den. It's not true. JEREMY CORBYN INVITES EU LEADERS TO ALTERNATIVE BRUSSELS SUMMIT Jeremy Corbyn has invited a string of EU leaders to his own Brexit summit in Brussels weeks before Theresa May opens formal negotiations with Brussels over Britain's departure. As Theresa May attended her first EU summit as Prime Minister today, the Labour leader followed her to Brussels to meet with his fellow European socialist leaders. Mr Corbyn said his alternative summit early next year will show there's a different 'way forward in Europe' to the Tory Government's 'chaotic' plans for leaving the EU. The veteran left-winger met four EU Prime Ministers today, who told him they were 'more than disappointed' with the British Government's approach to Brexit so far. Mr Corbyn, who was re-elected Labour leader last month, pledged to 'work to protect jobs and workers' rights' with his European partners. But the Tories hit out at Mr Corbyn's plans for an alternative EU summit. Conservative MP Maria Caulfield said: 'If Jeremy Corbyn was serious about making a success of leaving the EU he would get behind the Prime Minister's negotiation not try and talk Britain down from the sidelines. 'The Conservative Party are committed to making a success of Brexit Labour want to delay it, obstruct it and subvert the will of the British people.' Advertisement 'It's more like a nest of doves. Just look at me, I think it's obvious. 'You can be sure she will be absolutely safe with us and I'm sure she'll realise the EU is still the best company in the world.' Asked if there would be any chance EU leader might talk informally before the triggering of Article 50, Mr Tusk said: 'Absolutely not. We will not discuss our future negotiations with her, it's also a request from Theresa May that we need today only a short information about her intentions and not discussions, not pre-negotiations. 'We have to wait for the formal decision on Article 50.' The Brussels meeting of all 28 EU leaders will confine the discussion about Brexit to the 'starter course' of a working dinner, in what some will see as a snub to the UK. But Number 10 insisted it was relaxed about the decision. The main item on the agenda will be the aggressive behaviour of Russia, officials said. Arriving in Brussels at lunchtime today, Mrs May condemned Russian aggression in Syria and said it showed the need for the UK and the EU to show a 'robust and united European stance'. She said: 'The UK has put Russian actions in Syria on the agenda for this summit; we must continue to work together and it's vital that we work together to continue to put pressure on Russia to stop its appalling atrocities, its sickening atrocities in Syria.' With Brexit a sideline issue at the summit, other EU leaders have made it clear they will refuse to discuss the terms of Britain's exit, such as limiting immigration until Article 50 is triggered in March. Officials said that, nevertheless, Mrs May had a strong message to deliver. Theresa May received one of Jean-Claude Juncker's typical kisses as she lined up for the EU family photo of European leaders in Brussels today Angela Merkel chats to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Oban (left), Greek PM Alexis Tsipras (second left) and Italian PM Matteo Renzi as the EU summit got underway in Brussels today Last week, European Council president Donald Tusk raised the idea that, when faced with the reality that leaving the EU will be painful for Britain, the referendum result could be set aside. He said: 'If you ask me if there is any alternative to this bad scenario, I would like to tell you that yes, there is. In my opinion, the only real alternative to a 'hard Brexit' is 'no Brexit'. Even if today hardly anyone believes in such a possibility.' Aides said Mrs May will tell fellow EU leaders the 'British people have made their decision and it is right and proper that decision is honoured'. A No 10 source said: 'There has been a sense there is still some debate in certain quarters of the EU on whether it might still be possible [that Britain remains a member of the EU]. 'The PM has been absolutely clear that this is not the case, but this is an opportunity for her to say that to all the other leaders because we now need to be focusing on the future. That is a future with the UK outside of the EU.' Theresa May arrived in Brussels today to tell European leaders clinging to the idea Britain will stay in the EU that the referendum is irreversible European Council president Donald Tusk (pictured arriving at the Brussels summit today) has suggested that the result of the historic referendum could be set aside given the potentially painful exit from the EU In her first EU summit as Prime Minister, Theresa May (pictured arriving in Brussels today) will crush suggestions made by some senior Eurocrats that Brexit will never happen Theresa May greets Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte during the EU summit in Brussels today Separately, Mrs May will strike a conciliatory tone, telling her counterparts she wants to leave the Brussels club without 'damaging' the EU and remaining members. She will commit Britain to remaining a 'strong partner' of the EU and will pledge that, until we are out, the UK will remain a 'responsible, active and engaged member'. This means continuing to pour an estimated 10billion a year into the EU's coffers and allowing free movement of migrant workers. Yesterday, it was reported that German chancellor Angela Merkel's government is instructing officials to avoid any back-door contacts that could hand the UK an advantage in trade talks. They are sticking to an official line that no negotiations can take place until Article 50 is triggered. Theresa May received one of Jean-Claude Juncker's traditional kisses at the Brussels summit today as Italian PM Matteo Renzi (top left), Greek PM Alexis Tsipras (second left), Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny (top right) and Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite look on German chancellor Angela Merkel (pictured at the summit today) has reportedly instructed underlings to avoid any back-door deals with the UK, which could give Britain an advantage in possible talks Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn followed Mrs May to Brussels today to hold meetings with his fellow European socialist leaders. He used his visit to announce that he is inviting a string of EU leaders to his own Brexit summit in Brussels weeks before the Prime Minister opens formal negotiations with Brussels over Britain's departure. Mr Corbyn said his alternative summit early next year will show there's a different 'way forward in Europe' to the Tory Government's 'chaotic' plans for leaving the EU. The veteran left-winger met four EU Prime Ministers today, who told him they were 'more than disappointed' with the British Government's approach to Brexit so far. Mr Corbyn, who was re-elected Labour leader last month, pledged to 'work to protect jobs and workers' rights' with his European partners. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn followed Mrs May to Brussels today to hold meetings with his fellow European socialist leaders As well as making clear that Brexit will mean Brexit, Mrs May (pictured greeting Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny today) is expected to reassure her European counterparts that she does not mean to damage the European project Theresa May chats to Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny (top right) and Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite (right) during a family picture of EU leaders in Brussels today Theresa May (pictured arriving in Brussels today) will crush suggestions made by some senior Eurocrats that Brexit will never happen Meanwhile, the chairman of the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee claimed ministers in charge of Brexit have 'no idea of their plan'. German MEP Elmar Brok said the 'reality' had 'not arrived' in London and a 'realistic plan' was needed. EU diplomats are worried about the hostile reaction Mrs May could get. A senior British government source said officials in Brussels were seeking to calm tensions. Mrs May will address the group for around 10 to 15 minutes at the start of the meal. The source said: 'I think some will respond, and some will feel provoked to respond staff working for Donald Tusk are probably doing a ring around to say we don't want two hours on the British question in the middle of Thursday night.' The source said some EU countries were angry about proposals set out by Home Secretary Amber Rudd to limit the number of foreign workers in the UK. But he added: 'They are broadcasting tough messages on no negotiations without notification, they want to sound spine-chilling about the implications of a hard Brexit.' Mrs May will also call for fresh action against Europe's migrant crisis upstream. She wants more done to stop people making the journey to the EU in the first place. Advertisement Hundreds of Jungle camp migrants stormed the fence at Calais yesterday and clashed with riot police in a last-ditch bid to force their way into the UK. Some broke through the 16ft razor-wire fence and sprinted down the motorway towards the French port - leaving workmen needing to carry out emergency repairs. Pictures show how the mob of migrants ran towards the fence as night started to fall - prompting French police to fire tear gas canisters into the crowd. It came one day after all the refugees were told to leave the Jungle, home to 10,000 UK-bound migrants, before it is dismantled at the start of next week. Immigration chiefs are on red alert for a surge in attempts to scale the fence as the migrants make their last efforts to smuggle their way into the UK. The Jungle was due to be demolished on Monday, but a last minute legal challenges and the rescue of 400 unaccompanied children temporarily halted the operation - leaving a window of opportunity for those left. Hundreds of Jungle camp migrants stormed the fence at Calais today and clashed with riot police in a last-ditch bid to force their way into the UK Pictures show how the mob of migrants ran towards the fence as night started to fall - prompting French police to fire tear gas canisters into the crowd Riot police were seen patrolling the area amid fears many migrants will attempt to scale the fence before the Jungle is closed Some broke through the 16ft razor-wire fence and sprinted down the motorway towards the French port - leaving workmen needing to carry out emergency repairs The migrants were tear-gassed after a group rushed the fence and broke through in a bid to reach the UK Pictures show how the mob of migrants ran towards the fence as night started to fall - prompting French police to fire tear gas canisters into the crowd It came one day after all the refugees were told to leave the Jungle, home to 10,000 UK-bound migrants, before it is dismantled at the start of next week The Jungle was due to be demolished on Monday, but a last minute legal challenges and the rescue of 400 unaccompanied children temporarily halted the operation - leaving a window of opportunity for those left One migrant was seen protecting his face as police fired tear gas cylinders into the crowd on Wednesday Police were seen walking towards the Jungle migrant camp after a number of refugees attempted to rush the fence A couple from China have been forced to post back a toilet seat they stole from a Japanese hotel. The couple were on a trip to Japan and stole a toilet seat from their room in the Toyoko Inn hotel in Nagoya on October 17, reports Huanqiu, an affiliation with the People's Daily Online. Upon discovering the couple had taken the expensive Japanese toilet seat, the hotel reportedly demanded the couple return the item. Not a good idea: The couple allegedly returned the toilet seat to the hotel the following day The couple were staying at a hotel belonging to the Toyoko Inn chain (pictured), reports said The couple from Taizhou, eastern China, travelled on a group trip to Japan and were staying in Nagoya when they decided to take the multi-function toilet seat with them. Upon realising the toilet seat had been taken, the hotel called the group's tour guide and reported the theft to the police, according to the Huanqiu report. The couple, named Li and Chen, claimed they took the toilet seat because they thought it was left by other guests who had stayed in the same room. Ms Chen is said to be a commercial bank manager. Japanese toilets have many functions and are becoming incredibly popular (File photo) The couple published an apology letter online which said: 'I hope the hotel and local travel agency can treat this with leniency. I promise this behaviour won't happen again.' Japanese toilet seats are known for having many functions and devices and are becoming a sign of wealth in China. Spring Airlines, the company the couple flew with, told MailOnline: 'We have verified that the involved tourists had purchased a six-day travel package to Japan via Tuniu.' The company added: 'They stayed at the Toyoko Inn Chubu Kokusai-kuko Honkan where they mistook a toilet seat for an item left by other hotel visitors. They took it and left the hotel. 'The toilet seat was sent back to the hotel on October 18. Currently, the involved tourists and the tour guide are still travelling in Japan. They will head back to China on October 22.' There are few places in the world where a piece of land without so much as a house on it would command such a high asking price. But a sliver of beachfront land in Sandbanks on Britain's south coast has gone on the market with a staggering 6million price tag - despite being on a main road and barely having enough space to build two family homes. The area is known for having some of the most expensive property in the world, with many properties only being bought to be knocked down and replaced with new buildings that make the most of every last square inch of the plot. The latest plot to go up for sale comes with planning consent for two modern homes. Pictured is a computer generated image of what they would look like. It means many modest sixties bungalows have been replaced with glass and concrete homes. This latest plot to go up for sale is no exception, with planning consent for two beachfront modern homes to be squeezed onto the 6,250,000 piece of the peninsula. Saxe Cobury, the estate agent handling the sale, described the land as 'a rare opportunity' to buy a plot on 'one of the finest locations on the South Coast'. It added there are 'far-reaching views across the bay and return views over Poole Harbour and Brownsea Island'. The homes - each around 4,000 sq ft - would be built across four floors and would have direct access to the beach. 'The location and size of the site make it a truly unique opportunity,' the agent concluded. Sandbanks has become known for having some of the most expensive property in the world The new homes will have far-reaching views across the bay and return views over Poole Harbour and Brownsea Island There are only 70 or so homes around the edge of the peninsula in Dorset, making a location on the seas front highly sought-after. Celebrities who live in the area include former QPR boss Harry Redknapp and Tony Pulis, manager of West Brom. There are only 70 or so homes around the edge of the peninsula and many have been turned into luxury homes The new homes would cover around 4,000 sq ft each and would be built across four floors. This computer generated image shows what the interior could look like once completed. The average price of a property in Sandbanks - at 1,134,647 - is one of the few places in the country that costs more than London. Average values in the capital currently stand at almost half that amount at 658,483, according to the property website Zoopla. Both areas are significantly higher than the UK average, which stands at 297,600. It has been quite a turnaround in fortunes for one of the one of the world's most expensive addresses as 100 years ago the Sandbanks peninsula was little more than a windswept wasteland. It was cut off from the rest of the country and unrecognisable from the glossy coastal resort that exists today. In 1880 the tiny enclave in Poole was only home to a solitary hotel on the southern tip of the peninsula, where guests could get away from the rest of civilisation. Advertisement Mission controllers face an agonising overnight wait for news of the Schiaparelli lander that could become the first European craft on the surface of the red planet. Controllers confirmed SchiaparelliI's mothership, the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, is back in contact with Earth after a successful maneuver to enter orbit around Mars, and is working perfectly and in a 'perfect orbit'. However, they say they have not heard from the lander - and admit 'the signs are not good'. Scroll down from video A small robot plans to make history today by becoming the first European spacecraft to survive a landing on Mars, and it might be a bumpy ride. Scientists will be crossing their fingers as Schiaparelli (artist's impression) flies itself on autopilot through the Martian atmosphere, which is expected to welcome the probe with stormy weather. THE EXOMARS MISSION The main goal of ExoMars is to find out if life has ever existed on Mars. The spacecraft on which the Schiaparelli travelled to Mars, Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO), carries an probe to study trace gases such as methane around the planet. Scientists believe methane, a chemical that on Earth is strongly tied to life. The second part of the ExoMars mission, delayed to 2020, will deliver a rover to Mars' surface. It will be the first with the ability to both move across the planet's surface and drill into the ground to collect and analyse samples. Schiaparelli will test technologies for the rover's landing in four years. Advertisement At a press conference on Thursday morning members of ESA told the public the lander has not sent any data since Schiaparelli landed. Data was received during the descent, and most of the parts of the landing went to plan. However, the final part of its landing did not go as expected, the ESA scientists said, and the retro rockets fired for much shorter than expected - only around three or four seconds. This means we are not sure whether the lander is now in one piece, as the landing might not have been soft enough. The lander was expected to send out another radio signal on Thursday and the Mars Express orbiter or a telescope in India might pick it up. 'We will keep monitoring...if there is a signal coming we will pick it up,' they said. All the key pieces of hardware were activated as the lander descended, and the team now need to analyse this data. 'The ESOC teams are trying to confirm contact with the Entry, Descent & Landing Demonstrator Module (EDM), Schiaparelli, which entered the Martian atmosphere some 107 minutes after TGO started its own orbit insertion manoeuvre,' the official statement read. 'We saw the landing sequence waking up in real time using a radio telescope in India,' said ESA's Paulo Ferri. 'We saw the signal through the descent phase, but at a certain point it stopped - but we couldn't conclude anything from that. 'It stopped at a certain point we reckon is before the landing. It is clear these are not good signs.' The small robot probe is hoping to make history by becoming the first European spacecraft to survive a landing on Mars. But scientists are still waiting for the signal from Schiaparelli to say it has successfully landed on the Martian surface. Dr Manish Patel, senior lecturer in planetary scientists at the Open University who has an instrument on board the lander told MailOnline he feels 'a mixed feeling, of great joy that the orbiter in successfully in orbit and our instrument is safe, and disappointment that we lost contact with the lander.' The ESA team confirmed the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) is successfully in its orbit around Mars. Signals from the Pune telescope were received up until the lander was expected to have landed. The very faint line at the centre of this image is a signal from Schiaparelli as seen by the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) in Pune, India, about 20 minutes before the probe hit the Martian atmosphere The ESA Operations Twitter account revealed the initial signals from Mars Express showed the landing site was the expected size, which could be a good sign for the lander's chances. Its Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) mothership, meanwhile, was on its own hairy mission to enter the red planet's orbit, at a distance of some 175 million kilometres from Earth. Confirmation that the manoeuvre was successful was received at just before 6pm BST (1pm ET). Scientists, however, are still waiting to hear back from the pool-sized probe. After a descent lasting six minutes, the 2.4m-wide (8ft) disc-shaped lander planned to briefly fired its retro rockets before belly flopping on to a plain near the Martian equator. 'This is no reason for us to despair,' a spokeswoman for ESA said. The lack of signal might not mean disaster, but it seems the world will have to wait for the main recordings from MarsExpress to be sent back to Earth and analysed by the flight dynamics team, before a confirmation. Signals from the Pune telescope were received up until the lander was expected to have landed, which was a good sign, Mr Blancquaert added. The Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) mothership was on its own hairy mission to enter the red planet's orbit, at a distance of some 175 million kilometres from Earth. Confirmation that the manoeuvre was successful was received at just before 6pm BST (1pm ET) Some Twitter users were quick to suggest the probe might have crashed, in a repeat of the Beagle landing in 2003, with one saying 'Beagle 2.0'. The only previous European Space Agency (Esa) spacecraft to attempt a Mars landing was the ill-fated British-built Beagle 2 on Christmas Day in 2003. After separating from the Mars Express orbiter that carried it to the red Planet, Beagle 2 was not heard from again. It was not until 2015 that scientists discovered the Beagle had landed, but could not communicate after failing to deploy solar panels. The probe is expected to send images of Mars back to Earth and conduct scientific measurements on the surface, but its main purpose is to test technology for a future European Mars rover. Dr Manish Patel, senior lecturer in planetary scientists at the Open University who has an instrument on board the lander told MailOnline a successful landing would be a 'huge milestone in...the study of the potential for life elsewhere in the universe.' THE FAILED MISSIONS TO MARS: BEAGLE 2 AND OTHER LOST LANDERS An artist's impression showing how the Beagle 2 landing craft may look once it landed on Mars The only previous European Space Agency (Esa) spacecraft to attempt a Mars landing was the ill-fated British-built Beagle 2 on Christmas Day in 2003. After separating from the Mars Express orbiter that carried it to the red Planet, Beagle 2 was not heard from again. It was not until 2015 that scientists discovered the Beagle had landed, but could not communicate after failing to deploy solar panels. Esa isn't the only space agency to lose a spacecraft on the way to Mars. Part of Nasa's Mariner mission, the Mariner 8 was supposed to send images and data back from the red planet. Instead, a launch failure in 1971 meant that it ended up in the Atlantic Ocean without making it into space. In 1999, Nasa's Mars Climate Orbiter disintegrated in the Martian atmosphere. The space probe ventured to close to the atmosphere following a software programming error. Following the successful launch the Sputnik satellite, the Soviets attempted to send the Mars1M to the red planet in 1960m but a technical failure shortly after take off meant that it broke up before it reached orbit, and a second launch, the Mars 1M No. 2, also failed. In 1962, the Sputnik 22 probe, was lost in low Earth orbit, while both Sputnik 23 and and 24 also failed to make it to Mars. In 1969, the Soviets' Mars 1969A exploded shortly after launch over the Altai Mountains. A month later, the Mars 1969B suffered a similar fate, crashing back to the ground just 41 seconds after launch. In 1971, the Kosmos 419 also failed to make it out of low Earth orbit. Later that year, the Soviets' Mars 2 lander made it to the red planet but crashed and was lost. A series of failures followed, ending with Mars 7. After launching in 2011, China's Yinghuo-1, which was the country's first and only attempt at reaching Mars, failed to make it out of Earth orbit and eventually broke up over the POacific Ocean. In 1998, Japan launched the Nozomi probe, which made it to Mars in 2003, but failed to make it into Martian orbit. Contact was later lost. Advertisement 'This really has huge implications for our future exploration of Mars,' he added. 'It really does open the doors for the UK and Europe to explore the surface of Mars in ever-more sophisticated ways in the future, so it will enable the chance to look for life at the surface of Mars directly through future Rover missions. Schiaparelli hitched a ride to Mars on the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) spacecraft, crossing a distance of 310 million miles (500 million km) on its seven-month journey from Earth. Although it carries some instruments, Schiaparelli's main job will be to test out the landing system for a future ExoMars rover mission due to be launched in 2020. Engineers stand in the main control room of the European Space Agency (ESA) prior to the expected landing of the decent modul Schiaparelli of European-Russian ExoMars 2016 mission. Mission control faces an agonising wait for the signal to be heard from the Mars Express orbiter Michel Denis, French ExoMars Flight Director, works in the main control room of the European Space Agency (ESA) prior to the expected landing. The probe is expected to send images of Mars back to Earth and conduct scientific measurements on the surface, but its main purpose is to test technology for a future European Mars rover The probe parted company with its mothership on Sunday. Scientists were concerned about the conditions on Mars for landing today, because of a dust storm sweeping the planet. 'The lander is designed to be able to cope with a dusty environment, so Im not too worried,' Dr Manish Patel told MailOnline on Wednesday morning. 'But of course, Id prefer to land on a nice clear day, and then have a dust storm roll in once weve landed,' he said. 'That would be great for the weather measurements that wed be making.' #GMRT signal trace has jumped again, which should be the signature of @ESA_EDM parachute deployment #ExoMars ESA Operations (@esaoperations) October 19, 2016 Dr Patel is part of a team looking at the atmospheric properties as the lander plunges through the atmosphere during landing, and also part of the team that is measuring the 'weather' at the surface of Mars. 'From this, we will get measurements of pressure, temperature, wind speed and UV levels, which will tell us about the environment the lander has landed in,' he said. Dr Patel said he felt 'excited, and nervous, and [is] preparing to be unbelievably happy or devastated' before the landing. 'This has been about 13 years in the making for me, following on from Beagle 2, so theres a lot of personal momentum behind this for me.' This artists concept illustrates a Martian dust storm, which might also crackle with electricity. The Schiaparelli lander is forecast to be heading into a global dust storm on Mars today WHAT WAS EXPECTED DURING TODAY'S LANDING The main engine burn of the Trace Gas Orbiter started at 2:05 PM BST (9:05 AM ET). Atmospheric entry of the Schiaparelli lander started at 15:42 BST (10:42 ET),, and landing was at 15:48 BST (10:48 ET). Initially slowed by the friction on its heat shield, the probe deployed its parachute at altitude of about 6.8 miles (11km). As it neared the ground, three clusters of retro rockets fired, slowing the craft's speed to less than 4.3 mph (7km/h) 6.5ft (two metres) from the surface. The rockets then switched off, allowing the probe to drop the rest of the way. A special crushable structure built into the spacecraft cushioned against the final shock. During the six-minute descent Schiaparelli took pictures of the approaching Martian terrain The landing site is Meridiani Planum, a flat region that interests scientists because it contains an ancient layer of haematite. Atmospheric entry of the Schiaparelli lander started at 15:42 BST (10:42 ET),, and landing was at 15:48 BST (10:48 ET). Initially slowed by the friction on its heat shield, the probe deployed its parachute at altitude of about 6.8 miles (11km) Advertisement Dr Colin Wilson from Oxford University was also be experiencing the nerves he felt in 2003 again this morning. 'Im really excited, but also nervous,' he told MailOnline. 'For a successful landing, the probe has to carry out a large number of steps perfectly, from deploying its parachutes to controlling its rockets, if it is land successfully. 'And this is all happening over 100 million miles away, which means that we cant help the lander to carry out these steps.' The ExoMars 2016 entry, descent, and landing demonstrator module, known as Schiaparelli, will land on Mars in a region known as Meridiani Planum. The landing sites of the seven rovers and landers that have reached the surface of Mars and successfully operated there are indicated on this map Mission controllers hope Schiaparelli, part of an ambitious joint European and Russian mission to search for evidence of life on Mars, will fare better than Beagle 2 but stress landing on the planet is notoriously tricky. 'At the same time as the landing, the orbiter will be conducting a critical manoeuvre to go into orbit around Mars so its all of the above feelings, multiplied by two!' Dr Patel added. It was due to enter the Martian atmosphere at around 3.42pm today, travelling at roughly 13,050 mph (21,000 km/h). SCHIAPARELLI'S INSTRUMENTS Schiaparelli carries a small science payload, called DREAMS (Dust Characterisation, Risk Assessment, and Environment Analyser on the Martian Surface), to study the environment. DREAMS consists of a suite of sensors to measure the local wind speed and direction (MetWind), humidity (DREAMS-H), pressure (DREAMS-P), atmospheric temperature close to the surface (MarsTem), the transparency of the atmosphere (Solar Irradiance Sensor, SIS), and atmospheric electric fields (Atmospheric Radiation and Electricity Sensor; MicroARES) at Mars. The payload will operate on the surface of Mars for 28 Martian solar days. Advertisement The Schiaparelli lander will make its groundbreaking attempt to navigate to the Martian surface today at 3.42 PM UK time. Initially slowed by the friction on its heat shield, the probe will deploy its parachute at altitude of about 6.8 miles (artist's impression pictured) A special crushable structure built into the spacecraft will cushion against the final shock. During the descent Schiaparelli will take pictures of the approaching terrain. The landing site is Meridiani Planum, a flat region that interests scientists as it contains an ancient layer of haematite. On Earth, the iron oxide mineral almost always forms in a watery environment Dr Wilson will be looking at properties of the Martian atmosphere. 'Ive built a sensor which measures wind speed and direction,' he told MailOnline. 'This lander carries, or the first time, a sensor which can measure electric charge in the atmosphere. 'We think that turbulent gusty winds carrying sand and dust particles can lead to high electric charges building up in the atmosphere a kind of Martian static cling. 'This is important to understand for future Mars explorers, whether they are robots or humans.' TRACE GAS ORBITER - THE INSTRUMENTS ON BOARD THE 'MOTHERSHIP' The Trace Gas Orbiter carries a science payload of four instruments: NOMAD, ACS, FREND and CaSSIS The Trace Gas Orbiter carries a science payload of four instruments: NOMAD Nadir and Occultation for MArs Discovery NOMAD combines three spectrometers, two infrared and one ultraviolet, to perform high-sensitivity orbital identification of atmospheric components, including methane and many other species, via both solar occultation and direct reflected-light nadir observations. ACS Atmospheric Chemistry Suite This suite of three infrared instruments will help scientists to investigate the chemistry and structure of the Martian atmosphere. ACS will complement NOMAD by extending the coverage at infrared wavelengths, and by taking images of the Sun to better analyse the solar occultation data. CaSSIS Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System A high resolution camera (5 metres per pixel) capable of obtaining colour and stereo images over a wide swathe. CaSSIS will provide the geological and dynamical context for sources or sinks of trace gases detected by NOMAD and ACS. FREND Fine Resolution Epithermal Neutron Detector This neutron detector will map hydrogen on the surface down to a metre deep, revealing deposits of water-ice near the surface. FRENDs mapping of shallow subsurface water ice will be up to 10 times better than existing measurements. Source: ESA Advertisement Although most focus will be on the lander today, the TGO also completed a difficult mission, as it will have one chance to be captured by Mars' gravity and go into orbit. The Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) probe will tell scientists whether Martian methane is most likely to have a geological or biological origin. At the moment the Trace Gas Orbiter is still firing its main engine to be captured by Marss gravity. The spacecraft is now behind the planet and so out of contact with the ground but this was expected, and will be in view of Earth again at around 17:30 BST. 'It will map in detail the gases found in Mars atmosphere, to see if there is any clue there about whether any kind of life developed on Mars in the past or whether its there today,' Dr Wilson said. 'This is a really interesting question and Im looking forward to trying to answer it.' Dr Patel is in charge of the instrument on the orbiter that will be looking for traces of methane in Mars' atmosphere. This artist's impression shows the Mars lander on its way to the Martian surface, with its mission to scour the surface for signs of life. Schiaparelli will test the rover's descent and landing system - which uses a heat shield, parachute, and retro rockets. It also carries a small instrument package that will record wind speed, humidity, pressure and temperature at the landing site SCHIAPARELLI'S KEY STATS Diameter 2.4 m with heatshield, 1.65 m without heatshield Height 1.8 m high Mass 577 kg (wet) Heat shield material Norcoat Liege Structure Aluminium sandwich with Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer skins Parachute Disk-Gap-Band canopy, 12 m diameter Propulsion 3 clusters of 3 hydrazine engines (400 N each), operated in pulse-modulation Power Primary batteries Communications UHF link with the ExoMars Orbiter (with 2 antennas) On Earth, the gas is chiefly generated by billions of bacteria, many of which live in the guts of animals such as cows. But it can also be released by the breakdown of organic molecules deep underground or volcanic activity. 'It really does open the doors for the UK and Europe to explore the surface of Mars in ever-more sophisticated ways in the future, so it will enable the chance to look for life at the surface of Mars directly through future Rover missions. 'A successful landing will be a huge milestone in the field of astrobiology, which is the study of the potential for life elsewhere in the universe.' The Schiaparelli lander will make its ground breaking attempt to navigate to the Martian surface today at 3.42 PM UK time (10:42 ET). Initially slowed by the friction on its heat shield, the probe will deploy its parachute at altitude of about 6.8 miles (11km). This artist's impression shows the interior of the Schiaparelli entry, descent and landing demonstrator module. Schiaparelli, part of the ExoMars 2016 mission, was launched together with the Trace Gas Orbiter on 14 March 2016 and will arrive at the red planet today The 600kg flight model of the ExoMars Schiaparelli demonstrator module pictured prior to the start of thermal tests in the ESP70 Thermal Vacuum Chamber at the Thales Alenia Space premises in Cannes, France last year As it neared the ground, three clusters of retro rockets will have fired, slowing the craft's speed to less than 4.3 mph (7km/h) 6.5ft (two metres) from the surface. The rockets should have then switched off, allowing the probe to drop the rest of the way. A special crushable structure built into the spacecraft should have cushioned against the final shock. During the descent Schiaparelli will have taken pictures of the approaching Martian terrain. The landing site is Meridiani Planum, a flat region that interests scientists because it contains an ancient layer of haematite. On Earth, the iron oxide mineral almost always forms in a watery environment. While the landing is taking place, TGO will settle itself in orbit around Mars. Three new crew members are en route to the International Space Station after blasting off from Kazakhstan this morning. A Soyuz rocket carrying two Russians and an American launched from the Russian-operated Baikonur facility in the steppes of Kazakhstan at 2:05 pm local time (9:05 am BST). The Soyuz MS-02 space capsule is set to dock at the space outpost in two days' time, delivering the new crew - Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko and NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough. The Soyuz rocket carrying two Russians and an American to the ISS launched from the Russian-operated Baikonur facility in the steppes of Kazakhstan at 2:05 pm local time (08:05 am GMT) Kimbrough, Ryzhikov and Borisenko are to spend just over four months at the station before coming back to Earth in late February. They will join three crew members currently aboard the station, Nasa's Kate Rubins, Japanese (Jaxa) astronaut Takuya Onishi and Russian commander Anatoly Ivanishin. With Nasa's fleet of shuttles long retired, the Russian space agency is the only tried and tested safe program for ferrying crew members to and from the ISS. Also en route to the space station is a resupply mission,carrying food and science equipment. This morning's Soyuz launch is carrying NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough (left) and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov (middle) and Andrey Borisenko (right) The launch was originally set for 23 September, but it was postponed because of a technical issue with the Soyuz spacecraft that was eventually fixed FRESH ISS CREW MEMBERS This morning's Soyuz launch is carrying three new crew members to the ISS: Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko and NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough. The trio will join the station's current expedition crew, Nasa's Kate Rubins, Japanese (Jaxa) astronaut Takuya Onishi and Russian commander Anatoly Ivanishin. Advertisement Yesterday an Antares rocket took the unmanned Cygnus capsule into orbit, carrying more than two tons of supplies. The capsule is on target to dock with the space station on Sunday, when the crew will unload the cargo and refill the empty capsule with waste before releasing it to burn up in the atmosphere. In addition to the activities of the ISS, China's space agency has also stepped up its manned orbital presence, with two astronauts arriving today at the nation's new space station, the Tiangong 2. The two crew members will carry out experiments with medical equipment and test out technology aboard the module, before returning to Earth in mid-November after a total of 33 days in orbit. One day, you could be using your own personal drone to help you find your vehicle again in a busy car park. That is if a patent granted to Amazon becomes a reality. The company has revealed plans for an 'unmanned aerial vehicle assistant' could also be used by traffic police to help them catch speeding drivers. One day traffic police might become a thing of the past, as humans might be replaced by drones. That is if a patent granted to Amazon becomes a reality. The company has revealed plans for an 'unmanned aerial vehicle assistant' (patent image pictured) WHAT WILL THE UAVS DO? The 'unmanned aerial vehicle assistant', would launch from a dock on a policeman's microphone. The mini flying robots could act as miniature 'dash cams' for the police, to chase criminals, to find missing children or to help people locate their vehicle in a busy car park. The drones could also be used for a variety of other applications, according to the patent. 'If a user is waiting in a long line to buy concert tickets, for example, the user may not be able to see over the crowd to see how many total people are in line,' the patent says. Advertisement The mini drones could act as miniature 'dash cams' for the police, to chase criminals, to find missing children or to help people locate their vehicle in a busy car park, according to the patent. 'The UAV may be used, for example, to record information from a perspective different than the user's perspective, scout dangerous situations, or locate/retrieve items for the user, among other possible task,' the patent said. 'In some examples, the UAV can be small enough to carry on the user's person (e.g., in a bag, in a pocket, on a jacket, etc.) and allow for ready deployment.' Amazon wants these drones to be 'smaller, lighter, and less expensive than conventional UAVs'. This means the processors, which will need to be capable of voice recognition to obey commands, would have to be small. 'During a routine traffic stop, for example, the officer can command the [drone] to "hover" or "follow me",' the patent says. The drones could also be useful for non-policemen. 'If a user is waiting in a long line to buy concert tickets, for example, the user may not be able to see over the crowd to see how many total people are in line,' the patent says. 'In this case, the user can simply say "hover" to the UAV and the UAV can take up a position at a predetermined distance above the user (e.g., 15 feet).' The mini drones could act as miniature 'dash cams' for the police, to chase criminals, to find missing children or to help people locate their vehicle in a busy car park, according to the patent The mini drones could launch from a dock on a policeman's microphone, according to the patent (pictured). This means the processors, which will need to be capable of voice recognition to obey commands, would have to be small CURRENT DRONE RULES The FAA currently bans commercial drone flights except for a few dozen companies that have been granted waivers. That ban will stay in place until regulations become final, but FAA officials plan to continue granting waivers case by case. The vast majority of drones being flown today are operated by recreational users. FAA regulations permit recreational users to fly small drones as long as they stay at least 5 miles away from an airport, limit flights to less than 400 feet in altitude, keep the aircraft in line of sight and fly only during the daytime. Advertisement Amazon has been working on drone inventions for the past few years. In July, the company was awarded a patent that illustrated using 'docking stations' for its autonomous carriers. The patent that describes using tall structures such as lamp posts or churches that would allow the drones to recharge and continue on their route. Amazon announced its idea for delivery drones back in 2013, which it called 'the future of home delivery'. The Internet shopping firm's chief executive Jeff Bezos said that he wants to use octocoptors to replace postal workers and cut delivery times to just 30 minutes. In 2013 Bezos said he planned to launch Amazon Prime Air within four to five years, and it seems the e-commerce giant is right on schedule. Amazon announced its idea for delivery drones back in 2013, in which they called 'the future of home delivery'. The Internet shopping giant's chief executive Jeff Bezos said that he wants to use octocoptors to replace postmen and cut delivery times to just 30 minutes Under the brand Amazon Prime Air, the online retailer is at the concept stage of launching a delivery service using drones rather than vans to transport many of its products. These battery-powered aircraft will operate within several miles of an Amazon distribution centre This past April, the US Senate passed the bipartisan aviation policy bill that demands the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) authorize package deliveries by drones within two years. It says that the agency must create a small drone 'air carrier certificate' for operators of delivery drone fleets, similar to the safety certificates granted to commercial airlines. These rules are needed for Amazon and other companies to deploy fleets of delivery drones. In August, Amazon announced that it will team up with the UK Government to explore the steps needed to make the delivery of parcels by small drones a reality, allowing Amazon to trial new methods of testing its delivery systems. These trials are being supported by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), which is allowing Amazon to experiment with whether its drones can be flown in ways that are not permitted under the authoritys present stringent regulations. This announcement strengthens our partnership with the UK, a press release said, and brings Amazon closer to our goal of using drones to safely deliver parcels in 30 minutes to customers. Under the Amazon Prime Air brand, the online retailer is at the concept stage of launching a delivery service using drones rather than vans to transport many of its products. These small, battery-powered, unmanned aircraft will be able to operate within several miles of an Amazon distribution centre. They can fly at around 50mph, carrying loads weighing up to 5lb. The aim is to deliver packages within 30 minutes of them being ordered online. We might imagine cave men crudely making tools out of rocks, but Middle Stone Age man might in fact have been an innovative artisan. New evidence suggests some early humans placed rocks into hot embers before shaping them into blades in order to make them harder and more precise. This clever tool-making technique may explain why one group in southern Africa was so successful around 70,000 years ago. Humans living in South Africa in the Middle Stone Age may have used advanced heating techniques to produce silcrete blades, according to the new study WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF HEATING STONE? The advantages of heat treating the silcrete rock were many. It facilitates knapping - chipping of pieces of stone by striking it - because it reduces its fracture toughness and makes it harder. 'This means less force is needed to detach a flake or blade after heat treatment, resulting in better control and precision during percussion,' the researchers wrote. By heating the rock early in the tool-making process, the people also had the advantages of getting rid of weakening impurities and producing angular fragments suitable for knapping. Advertisement Experts already suspected prehistoric humans treated rocks with heat when making tools, but the study, led by the University of Bordeaux, sheds light on the exact role of this technology on the Stone Age production line for the first time. Experts analysed 70,000-year-old artefacts made from a local rock called Silcrete, at Klipdrift Shelter, a recently discovered Middle Stone Age site located on the southern Cape of South Africa. The shelter is thought to be consistent with the Howiesons Poort a cultural period in Africa, when Middle Stone Age people were thought to be ahead of their time, showing signs of culture such as using symbolism and giving presents, as well as making impressive tools. The researchers, led by Anne Delagnes, used a novel non-destructive approach to analyse the heating technique used in the production of silcrete, or flint-like artefacts at the shelter. They compared unheated and heat-treated samples of silcrete samples from 31 locations around the site, which overlooks the sea. They believe the people living in and around the shelter deliberately heated the rock to modify its properties the first evidence of a transformative technology suggesting they realised the process made the rock easier to fracture when making tools. New evidence suggests some early humans placed rocks into hot embers before shaping them into blades in order to make them harder and more precise. Pictured is an artist's impresssion of Middle Stone Age man A map shows the Klipdrift Complex, where the Klipdrift Shelter, a recently discovered Middle Stone Age, is located. Experts analysed 70,000-year-old artefacts made from a local rock called Silcrete at the site This means that less force is needed to detach a flake or blade after heat treatment, resulting in better control and precision during percussion the researchers wrote in the study, published in the journal Plos One. Heating the rock makes it harder and would have resulted in sharper blades, probably used for hunting. WHAT IS HOWIESONS POORT? Howiesons Poort is a cultural period of lithic technology in the Middle Stone Age in Africa. It occurred between 70,000 and 59,500 years ago and is named after the Howieson's Poort Shelter archaeological site. It's a mystery why the culture disappeared. The period is characterised as being ahead of its time, based on the technology used to make tools and cultural features such as the use of symbolism and the exchange of gifts. Composite weapons have been discovered, made from 'geometric backed' blades that were hafted together with heated ochre and gum compound glue. The blades are sometimes known as segments or microliths and are used to identify Howiesons Poort sites. Fine-grained stone such as silcrete and quartz make up a large percentage of Howiesons Poort artefacts than in both earlier and later Middle Stone Age cultures. Advertisement The experts found 90 per cent of the artefacts they studied had been heat treated, showing how important and widespread the technique was. They were able to tell artefacts had been treated because they had a smoother surface than un-treated blades, or because they had traces of tempering residue from being in direct contact with hot embers. The heating step appeared to occur early during the blade production process - at an early reduction stage where stone was flaked away to shape the silcrete core. The hardening, toughening effect of the heating step would therefore have impacted all stages of silcrete tool production. The whole Chaine operatoire [operational chain], from core preparation to blade production and tool manufacturing, benefited from the advantages of the heating process, the experts wrote. The authors believe this process may be the first direct evidence of the intentional and extensive use of fire applied to a whole lithic chain of production and there are no known contemporaneous equivalents anywhere else in the world. They said the geology of the area surrounding the shelter did not lend itself to tool making, but the peoples clever use of heat compensated for this and was one of many innovations that allowed them to flourish. The adaptable and innovative attitude was likely one factor that favoured the widespread distribution of Howiesons Poort material culture in southern Africa, the experts wrote. However, the ingenious culture did not last, and it took a vast stretch of time before technology like heat treatment was re-discovered. It is only from c. 20 ka [20,000 years ago] that the heat treatment of stone developed in Asia and Europe, the experts explained. A mammoth tooth, believed to be up three million years old, has been found on an Essex beach. The artefact was discovered at the Naze on the Essex coast. While some experts say the tooth could be up to three million years old, one believes it may be much younger, at around 50,000 years old. Wendy and John Booth discovered the mammoth tooth fossil (pictured) at the Naze, where they often go searching WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY Professor Adrian Lister, lead mammoth at London's Natural History Museum told MailOnline that the tooth may not be quite as old as 3 million years. It is an upper molar of a mammoth, probably woolly mammoth. 'It is not as old as 3 million years old its impossible to be precise without knowing the geological context, but more like 50,000 years old (last glaciation). Mike Benton, Professor of Vertebrate Palaeontology at the University of Bristol also confirmed that the find was indeed a mammoth tooth. 'As for the age though, that depends on the rocks from which it was found - there is Red Crag (which is up to 3 million years old) and Pleistocene (which is from 1 million to 11,000 years old),' he said. 'The mammoth could be from either'. Advertisement Wendy and John Booth discovered the fossil at the Naze, where they often go searching. Wendy said: 'We were out on the foreshore in Walton by the pill boxes, right out past the tower. 'At first I just thought it was a lump of brown concrete. It was probably dredged up by a boat. 'I was ecstatic when I realised what it was. 'We have never found anything like this before. 'You could call it a find of the century. 'We are keeping it as a souvenir and are proudly displaying it in our cabinet at home.' Steven Walker, publicity officer at Naze visitor centre, said: 'It's a very rare find.' The Walton cliffs are famous for finding sharks teeth, which come out of the London clay - a sediment which was laid out 50 million years ago. The mammoth tooth may have come from the Red Crag formation which was laid out 3 million years ago. Mr Walker explained: 'They have been turning up in Clacton. The theory is they were dredged up in the sand that was used to recharge the beaches in Holland-on-Sea. 'We know mammoth bones have been found in Walton which are nothing to do with the dredging. 'Thus, it's a genuine Red Crag fossil, dating back 3 million years.' However, Professor Adrian Lister, lead mammoth at London's Natural History Museum told MailOnline that the tooth may not be quite as old as that. The mammoth tooth fossil was found on the beach at the Naze on the Essex coast A map showing the stretch of the Essex coast where the fossil was found It is an upper molar of a mammoth, probably woolly mammoth. 'It is not as old as 3 million years old its impossible to be precise without knowing the geological context, but more like 50,000 years old (last glaciation). Mike Benton, Professor of Vertebrate Palaeontology at the University of Bristol also confirmed that the find was indeed a mammoth tooth. 'As for the age though, that depends on the rocks from which it was found - there is Red Crag (which is up to 3 million years old) and Pleistocene (which is from 1 million to 11,000 years old),' he said. 'The mammoth could be from either'. Wendy and John Booth discovered the fossil at the Naze on the Essex coast, where they often go searching The couple who found the fossil, from Cliffe in Kent, have visiting the Naze regularly in recent years, often 'fossicking' at the cliffs with Walton friends Stephen and Rhoda Ryder. Ms Rhoda said: 'We have found sharks teeth and bones, run of the mill stuff, but nothing as big as this. It's as big as a boot. Naze is famous for finding fossils.' The Naze visitor centre's Mr Walker said people are not allowed to dig for fossils on the cliffs but can pick them up on the beach. He said the recently opened visitor centre has a geographical display which highlights the tropical climate of 50 million years ago when sharks would feed on the smaller fish around Essex shores. Hundreds of repositories across nearly two dozen major cloud services are actively providing malware, including phishing, drive-by downloads, and fake sites, according to a new study. The list includes domains from Google, Amazon, and Yahoo, and according to the team, the malicious content can be difficult to spot. Researchers say hackers could hide components of malware in separate locations in the cloud, allowing them to go untracked as individual items but, these seemingly innocent pieces can quickly be assembled to launch an attack. Hundreds of repositories across nearly two dozen major cloud services are actively providing malware, including phishing, drive-by downloads, and fake sites, according to a new study. Areas most heavily affected are indicated in light green in the map above TELLTALE SIGNS OF MALICIOUS CONTENT According to the researchers, the malware is split into different elements, and hidden among separate repositories. These pieces, however, are assembled rapidly. The team found that bad actors often had redundant repositories connected by redirection schemes that would allow them to continue the attacks even if one were lost. And, they often used gatekeepers to block out scanners. The bad guys all had bodyguards at the door,' Beyah said. 'Thats not normal for cloud storage, and we used that structure to detect them. Advertisement In the study, researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology, Indiana University Bloomington, and the University of California Santa Barbara created a scanning tool called BarFinder to track down the unique features of bad repositories. These, known as Bars, are often associated with redirection schemes and gatekeeper elements to protect malware from scanners. The study investigated 20 major cloud hosting services, scanning more than 140,000 sites. This revealed roughly 10 percent of the cloud repositories had been compromised in some way, with 700 active repositories for malicious content. Bad actors have migrated to the cloud along with everybody else, said Raheem Beyah, a professor in Georgia Techs School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The bad guys are using the cloud to deliver malware and other nefarious things while remaining undetected. 'The resources they use are compromised in a variety of ways, from traditional exploits to simply taking advantage of poor configurations. The nature of the bad content makes it extremely difficult to detect. According to the researchers, the malware is split into different elements, and hidden among separate repositories. These pieces, however, are assembled rapidly. Scanning large amounts of storage on cloud hosting services is challenging, and operators may not have the resources to do so. And, their monitoring abilities may be limited by service-level agreements. Some exploits appear to be benign until they are assembled in a certain way, explained Beyah. When you scan the components in a piecemeal kind of way, you only see part of the malware, and the part you see may not be malicious. Researchers say hackers could hide components of malware in separate locations in the cloud, allowing them to go untracked as individual items but, these seemingly innocent pieces can quickly be assembled to launch an attack 'LURKING MALICE' IN 20 MAJOR CLOUD SERVICES The study investigated 20 major cloud hosting services, scanning more than 140,000 sites. heroku & herokuapp.com amazon S3 & s3.amazonaws.com cloudfront & cloudfront.net windowsnet & windows.net azure & azurewebsites.net google & googledrive.com appspot & appspot.com msecdn & msecdn.net bitbucket & bitbucket.org github & github.io sina & sinaapp.com olympe & olympe.in rackcdn & rackcdn.com baiduyun & duapp.com qiniu & qiniucdn.com akamaihd & akamaihd.net yahoo & hostingprod.com sogo & sogoucdn.com go2cloud & go2cloud.org aliyun & aliyuncs.com The team says it has notified affected companies of their findings. Advertisement This strategy, while it helps to hide the bad content, also worked to the researchers advantage, they say. The researchers found that bad actors often had redundant repositories connected by redirection schemes that would allow them to continue the attacks even if one were lost. And, they often used gatekeepers to block out scanners. We observed that there is an inherent structure associated with how these attackers have set things up, says Beyah. For instance, the bad guys all had bodyguards at the door. Thats not normal for cloud storage, and we used that structure to detect them. The tool revealed malicious content hidden throughout the cloud. Some of the hackers opened an inexpensive account to host their software, while others hid theirs within the domains of well-known brands. Researchers created a scanning tool called BarFinder to track down the unique features of bad repositories. These, known as Bars, are often associated with redirection schemes and gatekeeper elements to protect malware from scanners Its pervasive in the cloud, Beyah said. We found problems in every last one of the hosting services we studies. We believe this is a significant problem for the cloud hosting industry. Attacks ranged from phishing to drive-by downloads, and even fake antivirus or computer update sites, the researchers found. The team has notified affected companies of their findings. They can attack you directly from these buckets, or they can redirect you to other malicious buckets or a series of malicious buckets, Beyah said. It can be difficult to see where the code is redirecting you. The researchers say cloud-based repositories can be protected through the usual defences, including patching of systems and proper configuration settings. Moving forward, the team is hoping to make BarFinder widely available, whether through licencing or as an open-source tool to help protect the cloud. Attackers are very clever, and as we secure things and make the cloud infrastructure more challenging for them to attack, they will move onto something else, Beyah said. Emirates has suspended flights to Guinea over fears of spreading the Ebola virus. The Dubai-based carrier is the first major international airline to cancel flights due to the epidemic which has taken hold in West Africa. However, British Airways continues to operate its flight from Liberia to London Heathrow, which also stops at Lungi International Airport in Sierra Leone. Emirates has suspended flights to Conakry after there was an outbreak of Ebola in Guinea Emirates confirmed the decision to suspend flights Conakry came after there was an outbreak of the virus in Guinea. The suspension of the route follows a similar decision by Pan-African airlines Arik and ASKY, which have stopped flying to Liberia and Sierra Leone. A spokesperson for Emirates said: 'Emirates will be suspending its service to Conakry from (Saturday) 2 August, 2014 until further notice, due to the outbreak of the Ebola virus in Guinea. 'We apologise for any inconvenience caused to our customers. However the safety of our passengers and crew is of the highest priority and will not be compromised.' Liberian soldiers walk through streets to prevent panic over fears the virus could spread to city of Monrovia British Airways also released a statement, saying: 'The safety and security of our customers and crew is always our top priority. 'We fully comply with the guidance provided by local health authorities and continue to monitor the situation closely.' The current Ebola outbreak is the largest ever recorded since the virus was first detected in 1976, with more than 1,200 cases so far. It far exceeds the next largest outbreak, involving 425 cases. Around 60 per cent of cases so far have been fatal and more than 700 people have died since the start of February. The outbreak began in Sierra Leone and has spread to Liberia, with a Liberian also dying in Lagos, Nigeria last week, after a flight from his home country. Following his death, both Arik and ASKY halted all flights to Liberia and Sierra Leone. Guinea's capital Conakry will not be serviced by Emirates flights until further notice Despite fears over flights still operating into and out of West Africa - often with direct routes to London - the Foreign Office claims Border Staff have been trained to recognise symptoms. A statement from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) read: 'Border Force has been working closely with Public Health England and other agencies to ensure staff are prepared to deal with the threat of the Ebola virus. 'As part of this planning, guidance has been issued to front line staff on how to identify and safely deal with suspected cases of Ebola that makes clear what steps need to be taken should a passenger arrive at the border unwell. 'If a person is identified at the border as being a potential carrier of Ebola they will be immediately referred by a Border Force officer to a specialist medical care provider and reported to the Public Health England.' ADVICE TO TRAVELLERS IN EBOLA-AFFECTED COUNTRIES Public Health England (PHE) advises that the risk to tourists, visitors or expatriate residents in affected areas is considered very low as long as they take the correct precautions. The highest risks of infection are associated with caring for infected patients, particularly in hospital settings, unprotected exposure to contaminated bodily fluids, and unsafe medical procedures, including exposure to contaminated medical devices, such as needles and syringes. It is recommended that travellers: Avoid contact with symptomatic patients and their bodily fluids Avoid contact with corpses and/or bodily fluids from deceased patients. Avoid close contact with live or dead wild animals (including monkeys, forest antelopes, rodents and bats) Avoid consumption of 'bush meat' Wash and peel fruits and vegetables before consumption Practise safe sex Follow strict hand washing routines The FCO has also stopped short of restricting travel to the crisis-hit nations, simply referring travellers to the National Travel Health Network and Centre, which offers advice on how to reduce the risk of infection. For its part, the World Health Organization does not recommend any travel restrictions to Guinea, Liberia or Sierra Leone and confirmed there has never been a case of Ebola imported into the UK. The leader of Guinea's Ebola task force has said that moves by neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone to contain the disease that has killed 729 people this year may have the opposite effect. Liberia has put in place measures including closing all schools and some government departments as well as possibly quarantining affected communities. Sierra Leone declared a state of emergency and called in troops to isolate Ebola victims. The virus, which has gripped both Sierra Leone and Liberia (pictured) has also spread to neighbouring Guinea 'Currently, some measures taken by our neighbours could make the fight against Ebola even harder,' said Aboubacar Sidiki Diakita 'When children are not supervised, they can go anywhere and make the problem worse. It is part of what we will be talking about,' he said. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported 57 new Ebola deaths on Thursday in the four days to July 27 in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria and said the number of cases had topped 1,300. WHO director general Margaret Chan will also attend the meeting in Guinea's capital Conakry today. British Airways has confirmed it will continue to run its route to Liberia and Sierra Leone The outbreak of the virus, for which there is no known cure, began in the forests of eastern Guinea in February, but Sierra Leone now has the highest number of cases. The haemorrhagic virus can kill up to 90 percent of those infected, though the fatality rate in this epidemic is about 60 percent. In the final stages, its symptoms include external bleeding, internal bleeding, vomiting and diarrhoea - at which point Ebola becomes highly contagious. The jump in the number of cases and the death toll has raised international concern and placed under-resourced health facilities in the region under strain. WHO said on Thursday it would launch a $100 million response plan. The United States said it was providing material and technical support to the three countries and further assistance will be discussed at a summit meeting in Washington next week. Advertisement Painting a picture of the frail relationship between humans and the animal kingdom, these photos are at once beautiful and sad. This year, the Natural History Museum challenged photographers to tell visual stories about society's interactions with the natural world, and the winners, announced in London, did not disappoint. American photographer Tim Laman won Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 for his image, Entwined lives. It frames a critically endangered Bornean orangutan above the Indonesian rainforest. This image won the Natural History Museum's Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 award, and depicts an endangered young male orangutan climbing a 100-foot high tree in the Gunung Palung National Park, Indonesia Beating almost 50,000 entries from 95 countries, Mr Laman's image will be on show with 99 other shots selected by an international panel of judges at the 52nd annual exhibition. Sir Michael Dixon, director of the Natural History Museum, stated: 'Wildlife Photographer of the Year highlights some of the big questions for society and the environment. 'How can we protect biodiversity? Can we learn to live in harmony with nature? The winning images touch our hearts, and challenge us to think differently about the natural world.' Mr Laman's winning image took dedication. He spent three days rope-climbing the 100-foot tall tree to set up several GoPro cameras that he could trigger remotely. This captured the orangutan's face from above within a wide-angle perspective of the forest below. Mr Laman's winning shot was one in a series of six, including this one of workers at the West Kalimantan rescue centre, who are transporting a wheelbarrow of orphan orangutans to a nearby forest for playtime Winner of the urban category was Nayan Khanolkar, who captured a solitary leopard slinking down an alleyway in a suburb of Mumbai bordering Sanjay Gandhi national park, where the Warli tribe has learned to co-exist with the nocturnal big cats Luis Javier Sandoval, from Mexico, won the Impressions category for his tricky underwater photo of a playful California sea lion pup grabbing a starfish near shore break at sunrise in Espiritu Santo Island near La Paz Baja California Sur, Mexico Swedish photographer Mats Andersson triumphed in the black-and-white category with his heart-wrenching photo of a Eurasion pygmy owl mourning the death of its partner, who was lying dead on the forest floor below, near Bashult, Sweden Wild orangutans face a crisis of habitat loss due to agriculture and logging. Combined with increased poaching for the illegal pet trade the species' future seems bleak. 'Protecting their remaining habitat is critical for orangutans to survive,' Mr Laman said. 'If we want to preserve a great ape that retains its vast culturally transmitted knowledge of how to survive in the rainforest and the full richness of wild orangutan behaviour, then we need to protect orangutans in the wild, now.' Winner of the urban category was Nayan Khanolkar, who captured a solitary leopard slinking down an alleyway in a suburb of Mumbai bordering the Sanjay Gandhi national park. In a rare example of harmony, the Warli tribe living there has learned to coexist with the local big cats, allowing them to navigate the villages at night in search of food despite their occasional too-close-for comfort encounters. It took four months for Mr Khanolkar to get the image he was after, using carefully positioned flash lights. Indian photographer Ganesh H Shankar won the Birds category for capturing a rose-ringed parakeet kicking a Bengal monitor lizard out of its roosting hole, a campaign that lasted two days before the lizard squatter gave up Gideon Knight, 16, from the UK, won the Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year title for his poetic image of a moonlit crow on a sycamore tree , a sight he described as reminding him of 'something out of a fairy tale' Australian photographer Paul Hilton won the wildlife photojournalist award for his grim image of 4,000 defrosting pangolins - the world's most trafficked animal - intercepted on their way to China and Vietnam for the exotic meat trade Sixteen-year-old Gideon Knight from the UK won the Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year title for his image, The Moon and the Crow. Shot near his London home, it shows the twigs of a sycamore tree silhouetted against the blue dusk sky and the full moon. This 'makes it feel almost supernatural, like something out of a fairy tale,' said Mr Knight. 'If an image could create a poem, it would be like this. It should certainly inspire a few lines,' remarked Lewis Blackwell, chair of the jury. 'The image epitomises what the judges are always looking for - a fresh observation on our natural world, delivered with artistic flair.' The images were selected from 16 category winners, depicting nature at its finest, from displays of rarely seen animal behaviour to exotic landscapes. American Tony Wu won the underwater category with his photograph of twinspot snappers engaged in a mass spawning aggregation in Palau, where thousands of fish gather each month according to the moon and tides Winner of the Detail prize, Rudi Sebastian's aerial photo of the Lencois Maranhenses National Park on Brazil's Atlantic coast shows white sand being blown into vast crescent-shaped dunes Valter Binotto from Italy won the Plants and Fungi category with his long-exposure image of a hazel tree amid its own wind-blown pollen Images from both professional and amateur photographers are selected for their creativity, artistry and technical complexity. Swedish photographer Mats Andersson triumphed in the black-and-white category with his touching photo of an owl mourning the death of its partner, taken in a forest near his home in Bashult, southern Sweden. Other winners included Luis Javier Sandoval, from Mexico, with his photo of a playful California sea lion pup for the Impressions category. And Ganesh H Shankar, from India, with his image of a rose-ringed parakeet harassing a monitor lizard. Temperatures in Iceland might be on the chilly side right now but on the tourism front, the country is feeling the heat. Visitor numbers have grown threefold since 2010, due to new, low-cost flight routes and alluring photographs flooding social media. This year, the Icelandic Tourist Board says American tourists will outnumber locals for the first time in history. Must-see spot: Temperatures in Iceland might be on the chilly side right now but on the tourism front, the country is feeling the heat (pictured, the historic town of Husavik) Approximately 332,000 people live in Iceland, and to date 325,000 Americans have visited the Nordic island. By the time December comes around this number is set to increase by around 20,000. In comparison, 51,000 Americans visited Iceland in 2010. According to Vox, the tourism boom all started with the volcanic eruptions of Eyjafjallajokull in 2010, which caused flight cancellations and dozens of delays which affected ten million travellers. At the time, Icelands tourism industry was flagging, and the countrys economy was feeling the force of the 2008 recession. Rapid growth: A graph showing the amount of international visitors to Iceland from 2010 to 2015 - the tourist board says numbers have grown threefold in six years Holidaymakers: A table shows the demographic of visitors to Iceland, the country proves most popular with visitors from the UK and US But Icelands tourist board decided to put a sunny spin on the situation and launched a marketing campaign off the back of the natural disaster. The initiative, entitled 'Inspired by Iceland', showcased the countrys assets, with sweeping and rugged landscapes revealed in a series of videos. The other turning point was down to the countrys budget airline, Wow Air. In 2012 the company started offering cheap flights linking Europe and the U.S with a free stopover in Iceland on the way. Icelandair is the main carrier for the country and also offers similarly low-cost deals on the same routes. Turning point: In 2012 WOW Air began offering cheap flights linking Europe and the US with a free stopover in Iceland on the way Travel experts also say that Icelands recent popularity can be attributed to social media. Indeed, Brian Young, managing director of G Adventures, told MailOnline Travel that the adventure company has seen a surge in bookings from young, tech-savvy customers. Touching on the trend, he said: 'Demand for Iceland has grown dramatically over the past couple of years, with G Adventures doubling its numbers at 115per cent growth in 2016 compared to 2015. 'Our most popular trip is our Best of Iceland tour which is a seven-day journey around the country. Snap happy: Travel experts also say that Icelands recent popularity can be attributed to social media While the boom in tourism has helped the economy, some are concerned by the strain the influx of visitors might have on the country's natural highlights. Pictured is Godafoss waterfall 'Travellers to Iceland are getting younger, and in 2017 were adding three new trips to cater to this market.' While the boom in tourism has helped the economy, some are concerned by the impact a rapid influx of visitors might have on the country. Strain on infrastructure, vandalism, illegal camping and rising prices are among the complaints from locals. In May, MailOnline Travel reported that a proposal had been made to parliament to place restrictions on Airbnb rentals in Iceland, in a bid to protect the country's landscape and lifestyle from being spoilt by visitors. Tiffany Scanlon felt she'd 'lost control' of her life before embarking on a two-year fitness journey, finally revealing her slim and toned figure on Instagram this week. The former Bachelor contestant said she 'could not be more proud' as she showed off the results of a Bikini Body Guide program she's been following since 2015. And as she approaches her 30th birthday, the reality TV star spoke candidly about her physical transformation on Tuesday. What a bikini body! The Bachelor's Tiffany Scanlon showed off her body transformation on Tuesday after posting a pair of before and after photos to her Instagram account 'I started doing an exercise program called Bikini Body Guide by @kayla_itsines at the start of 2015, nearly two years on and boy has it been a transformation!' she wrote. Tiffany explained she's been dealing with some personal issues during the course of her journey and that it hasn't only been a physical change. She revealed: 'I started the program after feeling I had lost control over my life. 'I didn't value myself and therefore was attracting people into my life who didn't value me either. 'I started the program after feeling I had lost control over my life': In the caption, Tiffany explained she wanted to change after going through a period of 'not valuing herself' Sleepover club: Tiffany (L) and her rumoured girlfriend Megan Marx (R) have been inseparable since meeting on The Bachelor, and often pose for racy photos on Instagram More than just friends? The pair have been spending a lot of time together in recent weeks 'While there are many things out of my control, my body is entirely mine and if I couldn't be strong on the inside then damn it I was going to build strength from the outside.' The regime that Tiffany credits with her transformation, Bikini Body Guide, is used by thousands of women worldwide, with founder Kayla Itsines regularly sharing before-and-after shots of her happy clients. And while the program's nutrition and workout guides have clearly worked for Tiffany, the physical side has also helped her overcome other issues. 'I started to feel better about myself and built up somewhat of an armour to protect myself,' she said. Joined at the hip: Tiffany (R) has told how she 'could not be more proud' of her transformation over the past two years 'It would be a long time before I let anyone in again. It hasn't been the smoothest journey, I've come off the wagon a couple of times, I still eat chocolate and have a few drinks, but overall I could not be more proud.' With her 'journey' now at an end, Tiffany has begun to let people back into her life - most notably her rumoured girlfriend Megan Marx. Both women failed to find love with Richie Strahan on The Bachelor, but now they appear to be romantically involved. Zach Galifianakis has thanked Australia for giving Isla Fisher to the world - but only after The Hangover star took a playful dig at the actress. Appearing on The Today Show to promote their new film Keeping Up With The Joneses, the 47-year-old was asked how it felt it working alongside an Australian national treasure. Living up to his funny man reputation, the Hangover actor was quick-witted in his reply, much to the amusement of his co-star. Scroll down for video Co-stars: Zach Galifianakis and Isla Fisher said they enjoyed a lot of 'good-natured ribbing' when filming Keeping Up With The Joneses 'She's a national treasure? Wait, let me just make sure you said that right - treasure?' he quipped. The remark caused the actress to burst into laughter and Zach hinted that there were plenty more laughs to be had during filming. 'Isla and I had a really nice time working with each other,' he revealed, before adding: 'There was a lot of ridicule. A lot of good-natured ribbing.' Hands up: The pair play a suburban couple who are thrown into the world of international espionage when they discover their neighbors, the Joneses, are spies In character: Isla plays the role of Karen Gaffney, Zach's on-screen wife, in the movie, which hits cinemas on Thursday Aside from enjoying their on-set banter, the actor also put on record what he thought of Isla's acting abilities. 'I think there's a lot of respect that I have for Isla Fisher, for sure. And I think that her acting is very underrated,' he said, as the former Home And Away star shot him a look of surprise. He continued: 'She's making faces right now because she doesn't believe me, but I really do believe that.' Double act: The Hangover star revealed his admiration for his co-star's acting abilities, saying he has a lot of respect for her And it seems the feeling was mutual, the 40-year-old Aussie telling how she enjoyed playing Karen Gaffney, Zach's on-screen wife. 'I had so much fun,' she said. 'It was really great and it's so great to do a comedy again. I haven't done one in a while.' The duo play a suburban couple who become involved in an international espionage plot when they discover that their neighbors, the Joneses, are spies. It's the first time Zach and Isla have starred alongside each other on the big screen, and the American was thankful for the opportunity to work with her. In his final comment of the interview, he said: 'Thanks a lot, Australia, for giving us Isla Fisher.' Australian socialite Imogen Anthony has channeled Kylie Jenner's latest outfit while running errands in Sydney on Tuesday. Wearing an over-sized T-shirt as a dress, the 25-year-old cinched her waist with a tight corset, while adding thigh-high boots for an extra touch of glamour. The blonde starlet revealed in the caption she'd had an 'easy day' of working out as well as meeting with lads' mag Maxim, hinting at a possible photo shoot. Scroll down for video Who wore it better? Imogen Anthony channeled Kylie Jenner's latest outfit on Tuesday, showing off her physique in a T-shirt dress, corset and thigh-high boots Posing with her hands on her hips, the model oozed confidence as she showed off her slender legs in the daring outfit. She captioned the snap: 'Easy day today. Some of the things I've done include a workout, a meeting with @maxim_aus, semi put together a mood board for an upcoming collaboration (which I need to finish btw), rescued a gecko, went to look at something special for Summer, briefly caught up with a friend over a glass of Rose and chocolate chip cookies (sic).' Imogen sported flawless makeup for her day-time outing, with heavy bronzer and highlighter contouring her cheek bones. Glam queen: The blonde model showed off her very slim waist in the black leather corset Looks familiar: Reality star Kylie has been seen sporting the same type of outfit recently False eyelashes and shimmery brown eyeshadow added drama to the model's look. Imogen is known for showing off her physique in risque outfits on social media. On Tuesday, the fashion designer shared a photo of herself posing in a T-shirt and black jeans while suggestively posing with her hand down her pants. Racy: Imogen shared a snap of herself posing with her hands suggestively down her pants while flashing her taut tummy 'When your world turns crazy and comes crashing down, you will turn to me for solace,' Imogen captioned the snap shared with her 121,000 followers. The raunchy image saw Imogen show off her model figure as she revealed a glimpse of skimpy white briefs. BURT COUNTY Two days after a rural Burt County man was killed by leaking anhydrous ammonia, pipeline officials say the 40 residents who were evacuated still won't be able to go home. Magellan Midstream Partners of Tulsa, Oklahoma, was meeting Wednesday afternoon in Decatur with people who were evacuated from their homes Monday night. On Wednesday morning, Magellan officials said more than 50 company and pipeline contract representatives, federal regulators and state and local emergency responders were on site. They are working to repair a leak and said air quality readings continue to improve. "It is our goal to completely isolate the failed portion of the pipeline today, which will allow the reopening of local roadways," Magellan spokesman Tom Byers said in a news release Wednesday morning. The 8-inch pipeline owned by Magellan ruptured and leaked anhydrous ammonia Monday night. Phillip Hennig, 59, died while driving to check on the leak, 23 homes within a 2-mile radius were evacuated and roads in the area were closed. Anhydrous is widely used as fertilizer. It's transported as a liquid but turns into a gas when released. Magellan reported 294,000 gallons of liquid anhydrous spilled. The Magellan pipeline provides fertilizer in several Midwestern states. It starts near Borger, Texas, and travels through Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa, with a branch that extends into Minnesota. The majority of the pipeline, including the rupture, is underground, although it does come above ground near where the leak occurred. She has spent 400 for individual passports for Bella and Rocky Flying up to 16,000 miles a week would take its toll on anybody. But Sharon Osbourne has a unique and rather expensive way of managing the stress: she flies her beloved two dogs with her first class. At a cost of around 230,000 a year, the X Factor judge gets around stringent airline rules about pets on board, insisting the pooches are emotional support animals. While Bella and Rocky the pomeranians might not look like your average hardened service dogs, Mrs Osbourne asserts they are and has spent a further 400 issuing them individual pet passports. Scroll down for video Bella (left) and Rocky (right) the pomeranians might not look like your average hardened service dogs They are flown out by the 64-year-old star said to be worth 180million once a month, usually via Air New Zealand Once in the air, the duo each have their own fully reclining business class seats at a combined cost of 19,600. They are flown out by the 64-year-old star said to be worth 180million once a month, usually via Air New Zealand, and enjoy a selection of healthy doggie biscuits, and mineral water. A friend said: Sharon adores these dogs they are like grandchildren to her. 'She has an incredibly hectic transatlantic job and understandably finds all the flying pretty exhausting and stressful. It takes its toll. 'Bella and Rocky provide a real sense of security and comfort, and are both perfectly happy at 36,000ft. They have their own flat-down beds, and are as good as gold. Emotional support animals require a special letter from a licensed mental health professional before being allowed on board the aircraft. The doctor must state that the passenger requires the presence of their pet for their physical and mental wellbeing. The airline also requires 48 hours notice. Once in the air, the duo (pictured here with Sharon's husband Ozzy) each have their own fully reclining business class seats at a combined cost of 19,600 The doctor must state that the passenger requires the presence of their pet for their physical and mental wellbeing. The airline also requires 48 hours notice Bella enjoys a trip to the X Factor to meet Sharon's fellow judge Louis Walsh The music manager, married to Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy, jets out from her home in Los Angeles to London to film the X Factor, before returning to the US hours after Sundays live show. In total the return flights are a little over 21 hours long. Mrs Osbourne is understood to have been paid 1.8million for this series of the X Factor. She recently admitted having a mental breakdown last year, blaming her hectic work schedule. She has come under fire from fans of the series following a blunder in which she forgot the name of one of her contestants. Khloe Kardashian has been busy plugging her new denim line Good American. And her big sister Kourtney showed her support on Tuesday when she stepped out with son Mason and a bodyguard in a pair of jeans from the just-released collection. The 37-year-old, who was spotted in Calabasas, California, certainly made a great advert for it while showing some skin in black skinny jeans with large rips down each leg. Scroll down for video Sister support: Kourtney Kardashian wore a pair of jeans from sister Khloe's denim line on Tuesday Kourtney displayed her flat stomach and much of her slender legs in the denim, which she teamed with a long-sleeved and high-necked black jacket. The reality star also sported simple black pumps and carried a matching handbag, while looking picture perfect with natural make-up. Kourtney had earlier been showing fans her hairstyle on Snapchat, which consisted of a bun with braided detail at the back. She also used the social media app to let everyone know that she was clad in a pair of Khloe's jeans. Let it rip: The reality star showed off her legs and stomach in ripped black skinny jeans from the Good American collection Extra protection: Kourtney was seen taking Mason to an art class while joined by a bodyguard Beefing up her security: The 37-year-old is being extra careful after sister Kim's armed robbery The mother-of-three was spotted taking her eldest son Mason, six, to art class. Not seen were her two other children with ex-partner Scott Disick, four-year-old daughter Penelope and son Reign, who turns two in December. Kourtney also had a burly bodyguard by her side, having beefed up security in the wake of her sister Kim's armed robbery in Paris last month. In fine form: Kourtney looked great in the jeans, which she teamed with a high-necked jacket and pumps Mixing it up: The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star also wore a braided bun hairstyle and picture perfect make-up The Kardashian family have all rallied around the 35-year-old, who is taking some time off following the terrifying ordeal. On Monday, Kim's assistant Stephanie Shepherd announced the star's friends and family will be updating her subscription based app and website kimkardashianwest.com while Kim recovers. Kim is also planning a low-key celebration for her 36th birthday on Friday, with just her family by her side, according to E! Online. Plait's nice: Kourtney showed off the bun with braids at the back on her Snapchat She's the Hollywood it-girl with millions of Instagram followers and an A-list entourage. And Hailey Baldwin has proven her star power knows no bounds as she poses for the November issue of Harper's Bazaar Australia. The 19-year-old oozed elegance and sex appeal as she flaunted her model physique in a white Gabriela Hearst dress. Scroll down for video White on the mark! Hailey Baldwin sizzles in a white long-sleeved dress for the November issue of Harper's Bazaar Australia The slinky frock, chosen by stylist Karla Clarke, draped the blonde beauty's slender frame perfectly, while a very high side split showed off her toned pins. Another shot saw the ex-girlfriend of Justin Bieber lying on a soft blue sofa as she gave the camera a sultry stare. Hailey embodied Hollywood glamour in the Christopher Kane dress, which featured intricate embroidery at the bust and a long silk skirt. Celebrity hairdresser Charles McNair at Jed Root styled the starlet's blonde tresses in loose beachy waves to complement her carefree and laid-back demeanor. Classic: The 19-year-old looked gorgeous and classy beyond her years in a Christopher Kane dress, styled by Karla Clarke Blonde ambition: Hailey flaunted ample cleavage in another shot, wearing an all-white ensemble by Gabriela Hearst With Sam Addington of Kramer+Kramer in charge of beauty for the shoot, Hailey's make-up was kept matte and simple with bronzed foundation and eyeshadow. A subtle touch of nude lipstick highlighted the beauty's plump pout. Another image from the shoot with celebrity photographer, Darren McDonald, saw the star show off ample cleavage as she posed atop a wooden desk. Hailey looked gorgeous in the plunging white top and matching trousers by Gabriela Hearst. Star power: The teen is considered Hollywood royalty and has been linked to Justin Bieber previously With a string of celebrity pals such as Bella Hadid as well as Kendall and Kylie Jenner, the stunner has become part of the modern-age brat pack. Inside the magazine, the teenage model protested against comparisons with the original supermodels of the early nineties, telling the publication: 'The older supermodels sometimes dont agree with the fact there is a new generation of models,' 'Were not saying were supermodels. Id rather people look at us as businesspeople, and, yes, modeling is our business right now, but were not trying to take anybodys spot, and were not trying to discredit the past,' she added. Entourage: Boasting 7.9 million Instagram followers, Hailey also counts Kendall Jenner (pictured) and her sister Kylie as close friends Earlier this year, Hailey was announced as the face of Guess, starring in their Winter campaign. The IMG-represented model has also starred in New York, London, Paris and Milan Fashion Weeks last month - walking for the likes of Julien Macdonald, Dolce and Gabbana, Tommy Hilfiger and Elie Saab. The Instagram sensation is the daughter of Stephen and Kennya Baldwin. Harper's Bazaar Australia's November issue is on sale now. Azealia Banks and Russell Crowe were flirting with each other before things turned ugly on Saturday night, the rapper has claimed. The two have given very differing accounts of what occurred at the Beverly Hotel on Saturday Night. Banks wrote in a Facebook post that Crowe had 'called me a n****r, choked me, threw me out and spat at me'. Turned ugly: Azealia Banks and Russell Crowe were flirting with each other before things turned ugly on Saturday night, the rapper has claimed But a number of witnesses claimed the rapper was the aggressor, and that the actor was forced to physically remover her from his room after she became violent, and threatened to slash another guest with a broken wine glass. Speaking to the Sun newspaper, the 25-year-old gave her detailed version of what happened, but not before labeling the Gladiator star 'a racist, misogynist pig'. 'This is a stain on me. My femininity feels stained. I feel stained as a woman, I feel mishandled, I feel mistreated, I feel dirty. I feel very f*cking low,' she said. According to Azealia: 'Russell had moonshine on the table, and then Russell calls for whisky, so then they just start mixing them up. Account: Speaking to the Sun newspaper, the 25-year-old gave her detailed version of what happened, but not before labeling the Gladiator star 'a racist, misogynist pig' 'You know, moonshine, whisky, vodka, and smoking cigarettes and smoking weed. 'Russell and I get next to each other. He's talking to me, I'm talking to him, and we start flirting. We're having a really good time. He's got his knee on my knee, he's touching my leg, I'm playing him my music, he tweets my song The Big Big Beat. 'He's like, 'I love this, you're beautiful, this is great.' As the party continued, a girl approached who Azealia guessed 'was his girlfriend'. 'She gets next to me and I guess this is just her chance to try and size me up and see what I'm about. 'And she's in my ear and she's like, "Yeah, Russell thinks you're so hot". And I was like, "Oh, really? Well that's on you girl." You know, I'm not here for that.' The American claimed the mood turned when she mocked another guest, an aspiring horror film maker. Before the storm: 'Russell and I get next to each other. He's talking to me, I'm talking to him, and we start flirting. We're having a really good time. He's got his knee on my knee, he's touching my leg, I'm playing him my music, he tweets my song The Big Big Beat She said: 'Russell just kind of switched. He was like, "Well you know what? You're young and you've never done anything in your career so you don't know what you're talking about." 'I'm a little offended but I was still keeping it light. I was like, "Your best days are behind you." Azealia claims another woman then stepped in to defend Crowe. She continued: 'I said, "Girl, this is not the right time or place for us to be fighting, like what would happen if I got up and I slapped the sh*t out of you, or I took a glass and f*cking threw it at you and you were bleeding all over the place? I would be wrong and we'd all be wrong, and the party would be done." He said, she said: The 25-year-old rapper took to her Facebook to explain her side of the story 'I want to f***ing die': She has since deleted this string of posts on her account She claims this is when Russell turned on her and got physical. 'Then Russell turns to me and he goes, "Well, you wouldn't even get close enough to get the chance, n****r." 'And he says the word n****r so, like, quietly, under his breath. 'He calls me a n*****, and then grabs me, picks me up, he chokes me by the throat, picks me up, throws me out of the room and then spits on me. 'You don't just spit on somebody. And in front of everybody,' she said. Banks filed a battery report against the actor at the Beverly Hills Police Department on Sunday. Hurt: 'This is a stain on me. My femininity feels stained. I feel stained as a woman, I feel mishandled, I feel mistreated, I feel dirty. I feel very f*cking low,' she said. It is claimed that Crowe had invited about 10 people over to his room to listen to music, including rapper RZA - who brought Banks. The 47-year-old Wu Tang Clan member had previously worked with Crowe on The Man With The Iron Fist and recently signed Banks to his record label. Originally TMZ claimed it all began when Azealia snickered at Russell's music selection and called him and another person in the room 'boring white men.' Then when a female party guest jumped to his defense, the 212 rapper went on a threatening diatribe. According to their insider, Banks said: 'You would love it if I broke my glass, stabbed you guys in the throat, and blood would squirt everywhere like some real Tarantino s***.' Witnesses say she used the n-word numerous times and Crowe remained calm until she reached for a glass and cocked it back. The 53-year-old actor star then reportedly grabbed her and carried her out of the suite before calling security guards to remove her from the grounds. Courting controversy: Azealia (pictured in court earlier this year) did not show up to her court case in New York last month, and the judge was less than impressed warning a bench warrant will be issued if she does not show next time At least four guests/witnesses who gave statements during the investigation used the word 'erratic' to describe Azealia's behavior according to TMZ. They also claim that RZA said she used the N-word and not Crowe. In Azealia's since-deleted posts on social media, The Big Beat hitmaker has a much different story as she wrote: 'To recap my night, I went to a party at Russell Crowe's suit, at which he called me a n*****, choked me, threw me out and spat at me. 'Last night was one of the hardest nights of sleep I've had in along time. 'The men in the room allowed it to happen. I feel terrible today.' 'I was there, she was out of control: Australian comedian Jim Jefferies, who was a witness, defended Crowe afterward, branding Banks 'a complete liar' She also posted two other statuses on Facebook, in which the rapper talked about being depressed and that 'I wish I had someone to beat him up for me.' Australian comedian Jim Jefferies, who was apparently witness to the encounter, has defended Russel by branding Azealia as a 'complete liar.' Taking to Twitter on Tuesday, Jim wrote: 'This is 100 percent the truth. I was there, she was out of control. Russell did absolutely nothing wrong. He even offered to take a lie detector test to back up his account. Another source close to Crowe told DailyMail.com that there were ten people in the room at the time, each has provided statements, all of which are 'completely inconsistent' with Banks' claims. 'Per all of the witnesses, her erratic behavior and abusive language scared everyone there. Her bizarre antics culminated in her practically lunging across the table with a glass in her hand while threatening to slice the throats of at least two people,' the source said. 'No one called her the n word. She was yelling the n word at everyone else. 'Russell behaved like a hero. He acted in defense of his guests and removed her from his suite by putting her in a bear hug and picking her up. The source claimed her 'vile and offensive behavior' was triggered by her finding it corny that everyone was listening to music which she apparently didn't like. Dynamic duo: Banks was reportedly a guest of rapper RZA, who is pictured with Crowe at The Man With The Iron Fist screening in October 2012 as they worked on the flick together 'The person who invited her - RZA - has provided a statement to police which is consistent with that of all the other witnesses,' they added. 'Banks' story has changed dramatically since Sunday. On Sunday, her only contention was that Russell called her the n word. He did not call her that. She demanded an apology and threatened to go to the police until she got one. Her story has grown and become more involved with each passing day.' Banks meanwhile is no stranger to controversy. Last month a judge was not too pleased as she failed to appear at her court case in New York after allegedly attacking a bouncer at a nightclub last year. Banks was charged with misdemeanor assault, attempted assault and disorderly conduct after the incident at Up&Down in Chelsea on December 16, where she allegedly bit a female bouncer on the breast. The bite caused 'redness, swelling and bruising' and 'substantial pain', according to the criminal complaint, but the woman declined medical attention at the scene. Banks is infamous for her Twitter rants against other rappers, as well as politicians - she once suggested Sarah Palin be gang-rapped. She's been busy filming her new movie Flammable Children in Queensland with her former Neighbours co-star Guy Pearce. And on Wednesday, Kylie Minogue was seen once again on-set, shooting scenes at a Gold Coast beach in her seventies attire. The pop princess - who has made headlines this week for looking unrecognisable on set - was seen wearing a short blonde wig and white crochet vest under a silk robe, while her co-star was shirtless. Scroll down for video Back to it! Kylie Minogue (front right) was seen on-set of her new movie Flammable Children alongside Guy Pearce on Wednesday, while filming in Queendland Kylie wore a pink robe adorned with yellow flowers and green leaves printed all over it and tied up around her petite waist. She covered her face with a pair of vintage rose-coloured glasses and while walking on cement, teamed the look with gold sandals. She appeared to have light make-up on, including foundation and a soft pink lip. All white! Kylie dons a white one piece which she wore under the silk robe You can't miss her! Kylie wore a pink robe adorned with yellow flowers and green leaves printed all over it and tied up around her petite waist Stripping off: Guy, 49, meanwhile showed off his trim physique in black, red and white vintage-style trunks and remained shirtless for his scenes Guy, 49, meanwhile showed off his trim physique in black, red and white vintage-style trunks. He wore a hat on top of a blonde wig, accompanied by a moustache and side burns, while he partially covered his face with sunglasses. The pair could be seen filming in the sun, taking shade underneath umbrellas held up by film crew in-between scenes. Is that you? Guy too was almost unrecognisable in a hat on top of a blonde wig, moustache and side burns A day in the life: The pair could be seen filming in the sun, taking shade underneath umbrellas held up by film crew in-between scenes Doing the rounds: Kylie (right) could then be seen chatting to other actors, including Radha Mitchell (left) Kylie could then be seen chatting to other actors, inlcuding Radha Mitchell, as well as crew and appeared in high spirits on the day, smiling and laughing. At one point, Kylie could be seen looking over Guy's shoulder in what appeared to be one scene in the movie. Kylie and Guy have previously worked together on Neighbours, playing friends Mike Young and Charlene Robinson on the soap. According to The Courier Mail, the film also stars the likes of Kylie's former brother-in-law Julian McMahon, as well as Gold Logie winner, actress Asher Keddie. Life's a beach! The pop princess appeared in high spirits on the day, smiling and laughing with the cast What're you looking at? At one point, Kylie could be seen looking over Guy's shoulder in what appeared to be one scene in the movie They go way back! Kylie and Guy have previously worked together on Neighbours, playing friends Mike Young and Charlene Robinson on the soap According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the set is 'about to be transformed' into Sydney's Dee Why back in 1975. Based on a 14-year-old boy Jeff who has a crush on a shy girl Melly, the publication also reports that the film 'revolves around surf mats, baby oil, boxed win and the new miracle of Kentucky Fried Chicken'. In April, it was announced that Kylie and Guy would be reuniting on-screen for the first time since Neighbours. Turning back time: According to The Sydney Morning Herald , the set is 'about to be transformed' into Sydney's Dee Why back in 1975 Star cast: The movie also stars Gold Logie Award winning actress Asher Keddie (centre, with Kylie) Exciting to see what they do next: In April, it was announced that Kylie and Guy would be reuniting on-screen for the first time since Neighbours Romance: Kylie is currently engaged to British actor and Galavant star Joshua Sasse, while Guy is in a relationship with Games of Thrones star Carice van Houten Kylie is currently engaged to British actor and Galavant star Joshua Sasse, while Guy is in a relationship with Games of Thrones star Carice van Houten. Guy and Carice have just celebrated the birth of their first child, Monte Pearce, in August. Guy is known for films including Memento and The Rover. Kylie meanwhile is one of Australia's biggest singing exports and is known for hits including Can't Get You Out of My Head, Locomotion, Love at First Sight and Spinning Around. New dad! Guy just celebrated the birth of his first child with Game Of Thrones actress Carice in August, naming the bub Monte Pearce Doing what he does best: Guy is known for films including Memento and The Rover Bikini babe! The film is understood to 'revolve around surf mats, baby oil, boxed win and the new miracle of Kentucky Fried Chicken' as evidenced by a brunette beauty in a blue costume, with KFC's Colonel Sanders' face printed on her stomach Underwraps: The film also stars the likes of Radha Mitchell (grey robe) and Julian McMahon She has one of the sexiest wardrobes in showbiz. And Halle Berry is even dressed to impress when she's heading for a business meeting. The 50-year-old actress went hell for leather in a sexy ensemble in Beverly Hills on Tuesday. Hell for leather! Halle Berry is even dressed to impress when she's heading for a business meeting She was clad head to toe in leather, with skintight trousers making the most of her toned legs. The former Bond girl wrapped her jacket to cinch her slim waistline. The Oscar winner completed her rock and roll look with silver studded black heels, and giant sunglasses. Looking good! The 50-year-old actress wore a sexy ensemble in Beverly Hills on Tuesday The Monster's Ball star showcased her natural beauty with minimal make-up. Her honey-tinged tresses were tousled and in a loose low ponytail. She celebrated her son Maceo's third birthday at the weekend, sharing images of his celebrations on social media. Fabulous at 50: The former Bond girl wrapped her jacket to cinch her slim waistline He had a motorcycle birthday cake and a large quantity of balloons. The X-Men beauty also joked that she was keeping up with the cool kids, by practicing her selfie game. Halle's divorce from Maceo's father, estranged husband, French actor Olivier Martinez, appears to be on hold, but a source denied to People earlier in September that the couple are getting back together. Growing up quick! She celebrated her son Maceo's fourth birthday at the weekend Cute touch: She was sharing images of the birthday party on social media Birthday boy: He had a motorcycle birthday cake and a large quantity of balloons Mirror image: The X-Men beauty also joked that she was keeping up with the cool kids, by practicing her selfie game 'Berry definitely has no interest in getting back with Olivier unless his temper and controlling nature change,' the insider told the magazine. 'And there's no indication that either will, so it seems that they will remain separate.' Meanwhile Halle will appear in the drama Kidnap, which is due to hit theatres December 2. She will also star in Kingsman: The Golden Circle, scheduled for release in June 2017. Naomi Campbell was the belle of the ball for a very good cause on Tuesday evening. The model was in New York City to attend a VIP Talk with Tina Brown that was held by the Women's Brain Health Initiative. The fashion model looked flawless in a high neck black dress with red and green detailing all over. Beautiful: Naomi Campbell was the belle of the ball to attend a VIP Talk with Tina Brown in New York City on Tuesday She teamed the mini dress with a pair of black booties as she let her long raven locks cascade down her back. Her very long tresses were styled in a poker straight fashion as she smiled and posed for photos at the event. Naomi also made sure to wear a full face of make-up, opting for dramatic eye shadow and liner. Always stylish: The fashion model looked flawless in a high neck black dress with red and green detailing all over Advocate: Naomi was seen talking on the panel at the event The pros: Candace Bushnell (left) and Dr. Samantha Boardman (right) were also speakers at the event She was seen at the event with the woman of the hour - Tina. Tina is a woman of many talents - a journalist, magazine editor, columnist talk-show host and author. The initiative began due to learning that women suffer from depression, stroke and dementia twice as much as men. Powerful women: From left to right: Dr. Samantha Boardman, Tina Brown, Naomi Campbell, Mamie Gummer An astounding 70% of new Alzheimers patients will be women, however research still mainly focuses on men. The cause was created to help women just as much as men. Doing her part: Actress and former model Lauren Hutton was also in attendance The Womens Brain Health Initiative goes above and beyond to help women with this crisis. They create education programs and they also fund research to combat brain aging diseases that affect women. Here come the girls: Actress Mamie Gummer and novelist Candace Bushnell were also there Meanwhile, Naomi looked in better spirits on Tuesday after gathering to pay her respects to Bill Cunningham. She attended the renowned fashion photographer's memorial service at Carnegie Hall in New York on Monday. Naomi previously described the photographer as 'a great man with a beautiful soul'. Lovely: June Ambrose made a stylish appearance at the event Her sister was famously involved in an armed robbery in Paris just a few weeks ago. And Khloe Kardashian was an arresting sight on her latest outing. The 32-year-old rocked a very revealing outfit while heading to a Good American Launch Event in Los Angeles on Tuesday. Scroll down for video Revealing: Khloe Kardashian turned heads at a Good American Launch Event in Los Angeles on Tuesday Not taking any chances: It appeared as if the 32-year-old reality star certainly beefed up security at the event No doubt she was not taking any chances since sister Kim's ordeal as Khloe noticeably beefed up security for the event held at the Nordstrom in highly-popular shopping area The Grove. As she spends several hours in the gym every week, she made sure top show off the results in a see-through black mesh bodysuit. The sheer number featrured a backless cutout as it was tucked into a pair of on-trend skinny light blue jeans. Wow factor: As she spends several hours at the gym, she made sure to show off the results Dynamic duo: She was joined by mother Kris Jenner Stunning: The mother-and-daughter duo were in fantastic form The trousers featured a slight tear at the hemline as she teamed the look with a pair of furry black stilletos. She accessorised the look with studded earrings and two choker necklaces. Her signature dyed blonde locks were worn down into waves flowing over her shoulder as she sported natural, complimentary make-up on her face topped off with brown lip. On the prowl: Khloe also hit the stage at The Grove to show off her new jeans as she is part of their advert campaign Having fun: She looked fantastic in her skintight trousers Ooh la la: The bodysuit featured a backless cutout detailing Mommy and me: Khloe and the 60-year-old matriarch seemed to have fun answering questions Pretty: She wore her dyed blonde tresses down into waves flowing over her shoulders Speaking out: The momager looked more than happy to be at the event Out and about: Leading up to the event, Khloe could be seen on Snapchat Looking good: She also wore black furry heels Stunning: No doubt she enjoyed parading around her curvaceous figure Friendly to fans: Regardless of the security she did not hesitate in saying hello to a few fans Having a blast: She was all smiles while greeting her biggest fans Khloe was not alone for the occasion as she was joined by her 60-year-old momager Kris Jenner. The matriarch of the Kardashian-Jenner clan sported a long white coat over a black top. She teamed the look with a pair of black leather booties and matching ripped skinny jeans. Big day: There was a gaggle of security at the event She doesn't skip squat day: Khloe looked good in those jeans On-the-go: Her security made sure the area was clear for her to walk through Her signature short raven-coloured locks were combed to the side as she completed her make-up with a swipe of bright red lip. No doubt it was a fun event as Khloe took to her Snapchat to document the gala including footage from an interview with Kris and herself. The star-studded gala at luxury store Nordstrom was put together to celebrate the launch of denim brand Good American. In a snap: Khloe was all over social media leading up to and during the event Having a blast: She addressed her followers while on the red carpet Got back: When she wasn't on the phone, Khloe stuck the mobile in her back pocket Sisterly love: Her sister Kourtney Kardashian joined her at the event Hugged up: Kourtney gave her a big hug on the grey carpet Having fun: The 38-year-old reality star poked fun at her younger sister Just us: The sisters were very active on Snapchat Tremendous trio: She was joined by twin gal pals Malika and Khadijah Haqq Motley crew: Khloe shared this group photo from the gathering Hello: She shared a video of he grand entrance on Snapchat Busy: Her account also shared a few videos from the event Feeling good: Khloe looked comfortable despite the family troubles she has endured as of late Mama: Khloe also shared this image of Kris addressing the crowd The entire reality series family has beefed up security in the wake of 35-year-old Kim Kardashian's armed robbery in Paris last month. The Kardashian family have all rallied around the 35-year-old, who is taking some time off following the terrifying ordeal. Out and about: Khloe looked fantastic as she left the big event Mother dear: Kris also looked fantastic as she made her exit Incognito exit: Instead of leaving out in the open like her sister and mother Kourtney opted to use the back way Hole-y moly: Her jeans featured huge rips in them In good hands: There was plenty of security by her pick-up vehicle Pretty in patterns: Television persinality Catt Sadler rocked a patterned jumpsuit at the event On Monday, Kim's assistant Stephanie Shepherd announced the star's friends and family will be updating her subscription based app and website kimkardashianwest.com while Kim recovers. Kim is also planning a low-key celebration for her 36th birthday on Friday, with just her family by her side, according to E! Online. Finishing touches: She shared this video of her make-up being touched up Glam squad: No doubt plenty of preperation went into the outing All smiles: Khloe posted several snaps leading up to the event Vanessa Paradis donned an effortless ensemble as she touched down at LAX on Tuesday. The 43-year-old actress wore a pair of denim jeans, a lime green sweater and a brown suede jacket. She added a pair of black trainers and a over-sized sunglasses to complete her casual chic look. Effortlessly chic: Vanessa Paradis donned an effortless ensemble as she touched down at LAX on Tuesday The French actress and model let her blonde highlighted hair fall naturally as she opted to wear minimal make-up. She was seen making her way to a waiting vehicle as she left the international airport. Meanwhile, the actress has recently been dragged into the Johnny Depp, Amber Heard saga. Vanessa was married to Depp from 1998 to 2012 and the pair have two children together. Stylish traveler: The 43-year-old actress wore a pair of denim jeans, a lime green sweater and a brown suede jacket Their son John Christopher Depp III is 14-years-old and their daughter Lily-Rose is 17-years-old. Ever since Depp and Heard's public divorce, rumours have been swirling that Depp might get back together with former wife Vanessa. Natural: The French actress and model let her blonde highlighted hair fall naturally as she opted to wear minimal make-up Depp and Paradis were together for fourteen years before the couple chose to part ways in 2012. Even at the time of their separation, fans hoped that the two would reconcile but instead Depp moved on with actress Heard. Heard and Depp's separation has been hitting headlines over recent months as she accused him of physically abusing her when she filed for divorce. Home sweet home: She was seen making her way to a waiting vehicle as she left the international airport Depp has denied the charges and appears to be deeply disturbed by the accusations. However, it looks as though Vanessa still has a soft spot for her former husband as it was revealed a few months ago that she backed her ex in restraining order case against Heard. It was revealed the actress took to the stand in August at a hearing to determine whether Heard will be issued a permanent restraining order against Johnny, her estranged husband. Models Kris Smith and Maddy King confirmed they had called time on their four year relationship this week. And on Wednesday, Maddy was seen showcasing her washboard abs and incredible curves during a photoshoot in Sydney. The brunette beauty was ocean side for the day and wore a variety of looks. Scroll down for video Showing him what he's missing: On Wednesday, Maddy King was seen showcasing her washboard abs and incredible curves during a photoshoot after she and Kris Smith split One outfit featured Maddy wearing a black tights with a matching crop top and white sneakers. She had her hair pulled back off her face in a messy ponytail and showed off a golden tan. She wore light makeup including foundation and mascara. Suits you! One outfit featured Maddy wearing a black tights with a matching crop top and white sneakers Sport luxe: She had her hair pulled back off her face in a messy ponytail and showed off a golden tan Looking good! She wore light makeup including foundation and mascara Another outfit featured a splash of colour, with the lingerie model wearing a purple and white crop top with dark leggings. She posed with no shoes on as she sat on some steps on the beach, holding a drink bottle and at times pretending to take a sip after a workout. The stunner could be seen smiling as she enjoyed some time in the sun. Sitting pretty: Another outfit featured a splash of colour, with the lingerie model wearing a purple and white crop top with dark leggings Thirsty work: She posed with no shoes on as she sat on some steps on the beach, holding a drink bottle and at times pretending to take a sip after a workout Flawless: Maddy looked in shape on the day and didn't have an inch to pinch Candid: At one point she could be seen gazing off camera and into the distance At another stage of the day, she posed in a white crop top and loose shorts with a blonde model. Maddy held some skipping ropes and had her hair pulled into a chic plait. The shoot comes after she and Myer model Kris confirmed their split on Monday. They say three's a crowd: At another stage of the day, she posed in a white crop top and loose shorts with a blonde model Keeping fit: Maddy held some skipping ropes and had her hair pulled into a chic plait No breakup blues! The shoot comes after she and Myer model Kris confirmed their split on Monday Single: Father of one Kris, 38, told The Daily Telegraph he didn't want to rush into another relationship anytime soon Father of one Kris, 38, told The Daily Telegraph he didn't want to rush into another relationship anytime soon. 'I am definitely very single and will be for a while I imagine,' Kris said. Kris - who shares son Ethan, six, with ex Dannii Minogue - told the publication he isn't dating. Sad: On Monday, Kris confirmed to Daily Mail Australia he had split from Maddy after four years together Mutual? Kris said the pair had split a while ago and 'our lives are just heading in different directions' Flying solo: Maddy also confirmed the news to DMA, saying: 'There are no hard feelings and are still friends' Speaking up: Kris also denied reports by New Idea he had been on three dates with different women in six days He said: 'Obviously we have a lot of love and respect for each other so we are just letting each other go our own path.' On Monday, Kris confirmed to Daily Mail Australia he had split from Maddy after four years together. 'Maddy and I are no longer together, we haven't been for some time,' Kris said. 'It's sad, but she is an amazing girl and we had a great time. Kicking back: She is seen here sitting on a concrete wall wearing tight bike shorts and a white crop top Model moment: She is no stranger to the camera having posed for various brands in the past including lingerie brands 'Our lives are just heading in different directions,' he concluded. Maddy also confirmed the news to DMA, saying: 'There are no hard feelings and are still friends. My dad has beers with him every Sunday.' Kris also denied reports by New Idea he had been on three dates with different women in six days. Kris and Maddy's split comes two months after they were seen flirting at the Myer Spring-Summer 16 fashion launch in Sydney. At the event, Kris spoke to DMA about the couple's plans for marriage and children while admitting he had found himself a 'keeper'. Versatile: She gave the photographer variety, kneeling down and resting her hands on her legs Earlier this month she showed off her incredibly trim post-baby body on Instagram in skinny jeans. And fans have been left in disbelief at her trim figure once again on Wednesday, as Rebecca Judd showcased her enviable pins in a gold miniskirt - just three weeks after giving birth to twins. Cutting a very stylish figure, the mother-of-four wore an Asilio the label skirt, paired with a denim shirt, which was tucked in, further highlighting her svelete figure. Scroll down for video Dressed to impress! Rebecca Judd fans have been left in disbelief at her trim figure once again on Wednesday, as she showed off her enviable pins in a gold miniskirt just three weeks after giving birth to twins One user commented: 'You look gorgeous. You have snapped straight back after the twins and that is perfect!! Love the fashion posts x.' Another remarked: 'How are you looking this good just weeks after twins?? Please tell me your secret.' The 33-year-old stunned in her outfit, which she teamed with strappy nude heels. She had her thick brown locks out in her signature loose tousled curls and showed off a golden tan. 'Hard to believe you were ever pregnant!' Rebecca Judd flaunted a slender post-baby body in an Instagram post last Monday, leaving fans in disbelief that the TV presenter had given birth to twins just eleven days ago When she flaunted her figure in maternity jeans just eleven days after giving birth, Bec stunned her followers with her trim frame. The television reporter said at the time she wouldn't be giving up her maternity wear anytime soon. Comments of disbelief flooded the post, as statements read: 'Hard to believe you were ever pregnant!' 'Is this you today after babies???' 'Did u just give birth to twins??? Stunning as ever!!' While others added: 'Wow you do look amazing bec... you must have a tight fitness schedule.' 'She had twins five seconds ago... I hate myself,' said another. Rebecca teamed the jeans with a monochrome striped shirt and a double breasted Balmain blazer, which retails for more than $2,000. 'Feeling semi human today': Rebecca revealed her postpartum struggles on Instagram, telling fans that she feels 'semi human' five days after giving birth to twins and has taken to wearing '50 pairs of spanx' after ditching her maternity wear The Glamorous AFL WAG, married to Carlton player Chris Judd, recently detailed her postpartum struggles in another Instagram post, declaring she felt 'semi human' after ditching some of her maternity wear. The post read: 'Feeling semi human today, not wearing activewear or maternity clothes! Hello spring wardrobe (and 50 pairs of Spanx). While some fans supported the slender beauty's desire for body shapewear, others suggested that Spanx were simply unnecessary, particularly so soon after birth. Do you really need body shapers? The Channel Nine presenter maintained a slender frame even during the final trimester of her pregnancy 'It's disheartening to see ... Take the Spanx off and relax, helps other women feel less pressure about being out of maternity wear,' one follower suggested. While another commenter came to her defense: 'She is probably wearing Spanx for support after her skin as stretched so much from being pregnant with twins nothing to do with beauty.' Now a mother of four, the new cute arrivals join Oscar, 4, and Billie, 2, in the Judd family residence. She caused a stir when she visited refugee camps in Turkey earlier this month. And it seems Lindsay Lohan is hoping to give the unfortunate residents a boost after it emerged she is planning to send them energy drinks. It is claimed the 30-year-old has teamed up with German beverage Mintanine, which coincidentally supplies her eponymous Greek nightclub Lohan. No Mean Girl: Lindsay Lohan is said to be planning to send energy drinks to Syrian refugees after her visit to camps in Turkey An insider told Page Six: 'Theres hardly food, water or anything, so at this point sending anything is helpful. 'This is all part of Lindsays mission to help refugees.' The Mean Girls favourite's selfless action will see the drink, described as a 'blue caffeine lemonade' on its website, handed out to the thousands of people who fled their native land following the outbreak of a civil war in 2011. The makers describe the stimulating beverage as 'Blue tastes woohoo.' In addition the makers are proud of the ingredients used, boasting 'We do not use synthetic flavors or caffeine, no taurin, no aspartame, no inosit, but natural guarana.' Who needs Hollywood: The Herbie Fully Loaded star visited a government-run refugee camp near Turkey's border with Syria on October 8 Giving them a boost: Refugees will soon be able to consume 'blue caffeine lemonade' The source also claimed that her nightclub has been such a success that she and her Greek partner Dennis Papageorgiou are hoping to expand their business. Investors are said to be keen to open a club in London, while Lindsay herself is keen on finding partners so she can open a Hong Kong venue. Linsday was spotted locking lips with Dennis at a nightclub, but sources close to the self-styled actress say they are not dating. The Herbie Fully Loaded star visited a government-run refugee camp near Turkey's border with Syria on October 8. Not dating: But Lindsay was spotted locking lips with business partner Dennis Papageorgiou in Athens at the weekend She toured the social facilities and preschool in Nizip before giving refugee children there presents. She also visited an art and handicrafts workshop where she talked with the female students. Around 5,000 Syrian refugees live in container homes in the camp, which was visited by British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in September and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in April. However she had been been visiting refugee families and facilities around Turkey for two weeks leading up to the visit. He may be ready to ride into the Danger Zone again. Tom Cruise said he is open to a Top Gun Sequel during his appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday. As it has been 30 years since the release of the action film, the 54-year-old actor shared several stories about the movie and was pressed by the 48-year-old chat show host about making another one. Scroll down for video Opening up: Tom Cruise appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday night Signature role: It was on the programme, where he opened up about a sequel to Top Gun which was released 30 years ago Tom did seem into the idea as he said: 'It's just got to be right. That's all. We've just gotta figure it out.' He even talked about the casting process for the film as producer Jerry Bruckheimer has long said Tom was not on board to be on the film until he took a flight with the Blue Angels. The Mission: Impossible star tells a much different story, however, as he explained: 'This is really funny, now Jerry I've never told you this story.' Hello there: The 54-year-old actor looked happy as he was introduced Meeting of the minds: Tom and the 48-year-old actor shook hands after the introduction Man of the hour: Tom received a rousing ovation He went on to say after the first meeting at Paramount Pictures with Bruckheimer and director Tony Scott he got in the car with his agent and said: 'I'm going to do this movie. 'But don't tell Jerry that I want to make this movie because I want to fly with the Blue Angels. You've got to work these things, you know. 'I want to fly in the F-14, I've got to have at least three flights in the F-14, I want all the training and he's such a brilliant producer that I was able to be in every single meeting while we were working and developing the scripts so I could learn from it. Interesting: He admitted that he wanted to do the movie but played a little hard to get as he wanted to take a ride with the Blue Angels and get trained Gushing: He loved the experience with producer Jerry Bruckheimer as he said: 'To learn about movies really because he's obviously one of the greatest producers of our time' 'I watch it every day': Tom joked about the frequency in which he watches the classic action movie 'To learn about movies really because he's obviously one of the greatest producers of our time.' He also shared a funny story about throwing up on a test flight with the Blue Angels. The house band on the show had a special guest in Kenny Loggins all night long as he is famous for Top Gun's smash hit song Danger Zone. Having a blast: He also shared a funny story about throwing up on a test flight with the Blue Angels Talented: The house band on the show had a special guest in Kenny Loggins all night long as he is famous for Top Gun's smash hit song Danger Zone First impressions: Tom said it was the first time meeting Kenny Tough guy: Jack Reacher: Never Go Back is set for release on Thursday in the UK and Friday in the US Tom explained that they actually met for the first time backstage before the show as he said: 'I love his music, he's been a part of my life and mine in his.' He was on the show to promote his latest sequel Jack Reacher: Never Go Back which also stars Cobie Smothers. In it he reprises his role as he must uncover the truth behind a major government conspiracy in order to clear his name. It is set for release on Thursday in the UK and Friday in the US. On-the-go: Earlier in the day he was spotted arriving at the studio Back in black: He looked cool in a pair of aviator shades Friendly to fans: He could be seen waving to his followers Party posse: He had quite the entourage with him On the dot: Tom did not hesitate in signing autograhs for his big fans Tilda Swinton was also on the episode as she touched on several topics including her children hanging out with her on set. The 55-year-old British actress had a sweet moment on the show as she asked a couple there on their Honeymoon if they would like to attend the Hollywood premiere of Doctor Strange on Thursday. Doctor Strange, also starring Benedict Cumberbatch, is set for release in the UK on 25 October with the US release following on November 4. Azealia Banks' assault accusations against Russell Crowe are 'completely inconsistent', a source close to the actor has claimed. After attending a party at the actor's room at the Beverly Hotel on Saturday, the rapper accused him of choking her, spitting at her, calling her n****r and throwing her out. The Gladiator star gave a very different version of events, which involved Banks threatening to slash guests with a broken wine glass. Two sides: Azealia Banks' assault accusations against Russell Crowe are 'completely inconsistent', a source close to the actor has claimed The source told DailyMail.com that the rappers story has 'changed dramatically' since Sunday, adding that of the ten people who were in the room nine of them agree on what happened. 'There were ten people present at the time this incident occurred. They have all provided statements. All of their statements are completely inconsistent with Ms. Banks',' the insider said. 'Per all of the witnesses, her erratic behavior and abusive language scared everyone there. Her bizarre antics culminated in her practically lunging across the table with a glass in her hand while threatening to slice the throats of at least two people,' the source said. 'No one called her the n word. She was yelling the n word at everyone else. Odds are: The source told DailyMail.com that of the ten people who were in the room nine of them agree on what happened 'Russell behaved like a hero. He acted in defense of his guests and removed her from his suite by putting her in a bear hug and picking her up. The source claimed her 'vile and offensive behavior' was triggered by her finding it corny that everyone was listening to music which she apparently didn't like. 'The person who invited her - RZA - has provided a statement to police which is consistent with that of all the other witnesses,' they added. 'Banks' story has changed dramatically since Sunday. On Sunday, her only contention was that Russell called her the n word. He did not call her that. She demanded an apology and threatened to go to the police until she got one. Her story has grown and become more involved with each passing day.' Dangerous: The source said Banks' 'bizarre antics culminated in her practically lunging across the table with a glass in her hand while threatening to slice the throats of at least two people' Following the altercation, Banks wrote in a Facebook post that Crowe had 'called me a n****r, choked me, threw me out and spat at me'. But a number of witnesses claimed the rapper was the aggressor, and that the actor was forced to physically remover her from his room after she became violent, and threatened to slash another guest with a broken wine glass. Daily Mail has contacted a rep for Azealia Banks for comment. Speaking to the Sun newspaper, the 25-year-old gave her detailed version of what happened, but not before labeling the Gladiator star 'a racist, misogynist pig'. 'This is a stain on me. My femininity feels stained. I feel stained as a woman, I feel mishandled, I feel mistreated, I feel dirty. I feel very f*cking low,' she said. According to Azealia: 'Russell had moonshine on the table, and then Russell calls for whisky, so then they just start mixing them up. Account: Speaking to the Sun newspaper, the 25-year-old gave her detailed version of what happened, but not before labeling the Gladiator star 'a racist, misogynist pig' 'You know, moonshine, whisky, vodka, and smoking cigarettes and smoking weed. 'Russell and I get next to each other. He's talking to me, I'm talking to him, and we start flirting. We're having a really good time. He's got his knee on my knee, he's touching my leg, I'm playing him my music, he tweets my song The Big Big Beat. 'He's like, 'I love this, you're beautiful, this is great.' As the party continued, a girl approached who Azealia guessed 'was his girlfriend'. 'She gets next to me and I guess this is just her chance to try and size me up and see what I'm about. 'And she's in my ear and she's like, "Yeah, Russell thinks you're so hot". And I was like, "Oh, really? Well that's on you girl." You know, I'm not here for that.' The American claimed the mood turned when she mocked another guest, an aspiring horror film maker. Before the storm: 'Russell and I get next to each other. He's talking to me, I'm talking to him, and we start flirting. We're having a really good time. He's got his knee on my knee, he's touching my leg, I'm playing him my music, he tweets my song The Big Big Beat She said: 'Russell just kind of switched. He was like, "Well you know what? You're young and you've never done anything in your career so you don't know what you're talking about." 'I'm a little offended but I was still keeping it light. I was like, "Your best days are behind you." Azealia claims another woman then stepped in to defend Crowe. She continued: 'I said, "Girl, this is not the right time or place for us to be fighting, like what would happen if I got up and I slapped the sh*t out of you, or I took a glass and f*cking threw it at you and you were bleeding all over the place? I would be wrong and we'd all be wrong, and the party would be done." He said, she said: The 25-year-old rapper took to her Facebook to explain her side of the story 'I want to f***ing die': She has since deleted this string of posts on her account She claims this is when Russell turned on her and got physical. 'Then Russell turns to me and he goes, "Well, you wouldn't even get close enough to get the chance, n****r." 'And he says the word n****r so, like, quietly, under his breath. 'He calls me a n*****, and then grabs me, picks me up, he chokes me by the throat, picks me up, throws me out of the room and then spits on me. 'You don't just spit on somebody. And in front of everybody,' she said. Banks filed a battery report against the actor at the Beverly Hills Police Department on Sunday. Hurt: 'This is a stain on me. My femininity feels stained. I feel stained as a woman, I feel mishandled, I feel mistreated, I feel dirty. I feel very f*cking low,' she said. It is claimed that Crowe had invited about 10 people over to his room to listen to music, including rapper RZA - who brought Banks. The 47-year-old Wu Tang Clan member had previously worked with Crowe on The Man With The Iron Fist and recently signed Banks to his record label. Originally TMZ claimed it all began when Azealia snickered at Russell's music selection and called him and another person in the room 'boring white men.' Then when a female party guest jumped to his defense, the 212 rapper went on a threatening diatribe. According to their insider, Banks said: 'You would love it if I broke my glass, stabbed you guys in the throat, and blood would squirt everywhere like some real Tarantino s***.' Witnesses say she used the n-word numerous times and Crowe remained calm until she reached for a glass and cocked it back. The 53-year-old actor star then reportedly grabbed her and carried her out of the suite before calling security guards to remove her from the grounds. Courting controversy: Azealia (pictured in court earlier this year) did not show up to her court case in New York last month, and the judge was less than impressed warning a bench warrant will be issued if she does not show next time At least four guests/witnesses who gave statements during the investigation used the word 'erratic' to describe Azealia's behavior according to TMZ. They also claim that RZA said she used the N-word and not Crowe. In Azealia's since-deleted posts on social media, The Big Beat hitmaker has a much different story as she wrote: 'To recap my night, I went to a party at Russell Crowe's suit, at which he called me a n*****, choked me, threw me out and spat at me. 'Last night was one of the hardest nights of sleep I've had in along time. 'The men in the room allowed it to happen. I feel terrible today.' 'I was there, she was out of control: Australian comedian Jim Jefferies, who was a witness, defended Crowe afterward, branding Banks 'a complete liar' She also posted two other statuses on Facebook, in which the rapper talked about being depressed and that 'I wish I had someone to beat him up for me.' Australian comedian Jim Jefferies, who was apparently witness to the encounter, has defended Russel by branding Azealia as a 'complete liar.' Taking to Twitter on Tuesday, Jim wrote: 'This is 100 percent the truth. I was there, she was out of control. Russell did absolutely nothing wrong. He even offered to take a lie detector test to back up his account. Dynamic duo: Banks was reportedly a guest of rapper RZA, who is pictured with Crowe at The Man With The Iron Fist screening in October 2012 as they worked on the flick together Banks meanwhile is no stranger to controversy. Last month a judge was not too pleased as she failed to appear at her court case in New York after allegedly attacking a bouncer at a nightclub last year. Banks was charged with misdemeanor assault, attempted assault and disorderly conduct after the incident at Up&Down in Chelsea on December 16, where she allegedly bit a female bouncer on the breast. The bite caused 'redness, swelling and bruising' and 'substantial pain', according to the criminal complaint, but the woman declined medical attention at the scene. Banks is infamous for her Twitter rants against other rappers, as well as politicians - she once suggested Sarah Palin be gang-rapped. They are both married to Madden boys. And Cameron Diaz and sister-in-law Nicole Richie took some girl time on Tuesday as they went to the salon together in Studio City. But, as to not wreck their fresh pedicures, the ladies made a rather unglamorous exit as they headed outside carrying their shoes while clad in flip flops. Putting their best foot forward! Cameron Diaz and sister-in-law Nicole Richie took some girl time on Tuesday as they went to the salon together in Los Angeles Cameron, 44, led the way while holding her metallic sneakers as Nicole, 35, followed closely behind. The Mask actress kept it casual in a grey sweater, matching top, and blue jeans. Yet she made sure to glam up the look with a bold slick of cherry red lipstick and a perfect coat of makeup upon her face. Nicole meanwhile rocked a lightweight orange coat, black skinny jeans, and a low-cut top to match, along with the pink flip flops. Pop of colour! Diaz made sure to glam up the look with a bold slick of cherry red lipstick and an perfect coat of makeup upon her face Her hair was casually scraped back away from her face, and she also wore a pair of sunglasses. The reality star has been married to Joel Madden since 2010, and the couple are parents to eight-year-old daughter Harlow and seven-year-old son Sparrow. Nicole introduced Cameron to her brother-in-law, Benji Madden, and the actress and rocker married in 2015. Low-key: Nicole meanwhile rocked a lightweight orange coat, black skinny jeans, and a low-cut top to match Aww: The reality star has been married to Joel Madden since 2010, and the couple are parents to eight-year-old daughter Harlow and seven-year-old son Sparrow (Richie pictured with Joel in January in Los Angeles) Twins Benji and Joel, 37, have been working on music for their band Good Charlotte. Earlier this year they completed some tour dates. Meanwhile, Cameron has been taking a break from Hollywood and spending time with her gal pals that include not just Nicole but also Gwyneth Paltrow and Drew Barrymore. The multi-millionaire actress who starred in such films as The Holiday, There's Something About Mary and Charlie' Angels said in the documentary Human last year that fame is not important. 'Fame does not define me. If you are looking for fame to define you, then you will never be happy and youll always be searching for happiness, and you will never find it in fame,' she said. 'Fulfillment comes from within you, by being authentic to yourself not chasing fame.' He's got a reputation as a reality show lothario. And in a candid chat to promote his new book Scotty T: A Shore Thing, Geordie Shore star Scotty T has admitted that his antics once led to him paying for a former fling's abortion. Speaking to The Sun, the 28-year-old confessed he felt 'overwhelming relief' when the girl told him she wasn't planning on keeping the baby. Revealing all: In a candid chat to promote his new book Scotty T: A Shore Thing, Scotty T has admitted that his antics once led to him paying for a former fling's abortion Scotty, who also reveals in his book that he's slept with almost 1,000 women, recalls of the moment he was told by the woman that she was pregnant: 'She said she felt it was only right to let me know she was pregnant and that she wasn't going to go through with it.' 'Forgive me for saying it, but the sudden relief I experienced when she said that she wasn't planning on keeping the baby was overwhelming, because I knew for sure that I wasn't ready to be a dad.' Lothario: Scotty, who also reveals in his book that he's slept with almost 1,000 women, recalls of the moment he was told by the woman that she was pregnant Scotty went on to reveal that he was responsible when dealing with the unexpected pregnancy, explaining: 'To be honest it was the only occasion this had happened. But I dealt with it properly and respectfully, as should anyone else in that situation, FYI.' While he's had plenty of flings in his time, Scotty seems to have got things back on track with girlfriend Francesca Toole. Speaking out: Speaking to The Sun , the 28-year-old confessed he felt 'overwhelming relief' when the girl told him she wasn't planning on keeping the baby The star was unceremoniously dumped by his girlfriend after he was rumoured to have enjoyed a casual fling with married Loose Women panellist Katie Price. But the pair were spotted putting on a passionate display in Newcastle on Sunday amid claims they are back together. The Geordie Shore lothario revealed he had been ditched by his girlfriend of a year and a half earlier this month, as he wrote in his Daily Star column: 'Got dumped by my girlfriend and had to change my number, buzzing.' Just friends: Scotty was unceremoniously dumped by his girlfriend this month after he was rumoured to have enjoyed a casual fling with married Loose Women panellist Katie Price Back together? The Geordie Shore lothario revealed he had been ditched by his girlfriend of a year and a half Francesca Toole earlier this month It came after he was pictured visiting a hotel with Katie Price for two hours - although they claim they were simply getting a sunbed. Shes genuinely just my pal. I literally took her for a sunbed at my friends salon and that was it, he told Radio Aire while rehearsing for an appearance in new panto Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Katie also strenuously denied claims her marriage to husband Kieran Hayler is on the rocks following reports she met with the Geordie Shore hunk. Cheeky: An old tweet of Scotty's from 2015 has also resurfaced, in which he tells Katie to ditch her husband Kieran for him The mother of five took to social media to lash out at rumours her husband was threatening to walk out on her after the 'humiliation'. Scotty previously denied claims of a secret hotel tryst with Katie in his Daily Star column, writing: 'Yes, of course I would bang her, she is FIT. 'She is also a wicked woman and a laugh to be around. But she is married with kids and I respect that'. She's an English beauty who can pull off a myriad of styles. And Poppy Delevingne, 30, opted for a rock 'n' roll ensemble as she jetted into LAX on Tuesday in a vintage leather jacket. The model looked radiant, despite having just stepped off a transatlantic flight from London. Scroll down for video Rock chick: Poppy Delevingne, 30, opted for a rock 'n' roll ensemble as she jetted into LAX on Tuesday in a vintage leather jacket Poppy had help carrying her mound of luggage, with a male aide pushing a trolley beside her stacked with suitcases. Her golden locks glistened in the sun as they fell over her jacket, and she covered her eyes with some yellow-tinted, mirrored shades. She wore a black top with matching skinny jeans and a pair of classic Converse kicks. Glowing: The model looked radiant, despite having just stepped off a transatlantic flight from London Goldilocks: She ran her fingers through her hair as she made her way outside Low-key: She wore a black top with matching skinny jeans and a pair of classic Converse kicks The stunner finished her outfit with a denim jacket tied around her waist and a dainty necklace around her neck. She ran her fingers through her hair and flashed a bright smile at the cameras as she sauntered through the car park holding her phone. The outfit was far more low-key than the lavish ensembles Poppy was seen wearing last month during London Fashion Week. A girl needs options: Poppy had help carrying her mound of luggage, with a male aide pushing a trolley stacked with suitcases beside her Blonde bombshell: Her golden locks glistened in the sun as they fell over her jacket, and she covered her eyes with some yellow-tinted, mirrored shades Walking pretty: Poppy looked relaxed and confident as she sauntered Mixing it up: The outfit was far more low-key than the lavish ensembles Poppy was seen wearing last month during London Fashion Week Poppy was on the guestlist of some of the week's most prestigious events. She turned heads in a vivid floral mini dress with a daringly short hemline at the Burberry SS17 show, before switching into another tiny number for the LOVE magazine and Marc Jacobs bash at Lou Lou's. And the sister of model-turned-actress Cara, made a fashionable splash on the FROW at Erdem's SS17 show alongside Daisy Lowe. Happy: Poppy looked thrilled to be stateside, producing a bright grin She is usually shown heavily made up, often looking particularly glamorous on a night out. But like many people, Charlotte Crosby showed she can suffer from a bad skin day. The ex-Geordie Shore star posted a series of shots on Snapchat showing herself with a bad case of acne. Scroll down for video Laid bare: Charlotte scrawled 'bad' on a shot of her which featured her with red spots all other her cheek The snaps showed the make-up free star with her face close up to the camera, and a cluster of red spots all down one side of her cheek. Charlotte wrote captions on the snaps, with one shot captioned 'bad one' and another with the words 'bad' along with an arrow pointing to another breakout on her cheek. This isn't the first time the brash reality star has shared her skin troubles with her fans. Not happy: Charlotte Crosby showed she can suffer from a bad skin day Breakout: Charlotte's appearance was a far cry from her usual heavily made-up look Baring all: Charlotte went make-up free for the Snapchat shots She posted pictures of herself in May where she counted spots on her face, and a video where she is seen saying: 'I am absolutely furious about this situation. Spotty face and greasy hair.' She told followers she was 'fuming.' Meanwhile, Charlotte recently came under fire from TV bosses of Celebs Go Dating for her recent romance with model Ash Harrison. Hard to handle: This isn't the first time Charlotte has suffered from spots on her face Producers of the series, which follows celebrities going on dates with members of the public, are claimed to be frustrated she didn't tell them she had a secret boyfriend during filming. The Sun report that E4 felt let down because Charlotte's new relationship means she wouldn't have found love on the show, which has already seen the star break down in tears over her ex Gaz Beadle. Charlotte is clearly moving on from her on/off five year relationship with Gaz,which came to a head earlier this year when she announced she would be quitting Geordie Shore as she couldn't be around him anymore. She's known for her flirty interviews on Good Morning Britain. But the tables were turned on Susanna Reid on Wednesday morning as Hollywood hunk Justin Timberlake sent her a saucy message. Susanna, 45, features in Justin's new animated film Trolls as the voice of his grandmother Grandma Rosiepuff, and after seeing a photo of his onscreen relative the actor deemed her 'super hot. Shock: Susanna Reid was left red faced on Wednesday morning's GMB as Hollywood hunk Justin Timberlake sent her a saucy message GMB's Richard Arnold captured the moment on camera, with Justin, 35, seen holding up a photo of Susanna during the VT with his co-star Anna Kendrick. 'Good morning Britain! Susanna look you're here with us!' he exclaimed. Looking at the pic, the heartthrob added: 'You play my grandmother in Trolls. You look way too young...I have a super hot grandmother!' Anna added: 'Your grandmother is a babe.' He's a fan: Susanna features in Justin's new animated film Trolls as the voice of his grandmother, and after seeing a photo of his onscreen relative the actor deemed her 'hot' Reacting to the VT, Susanna's GMB co-host Piers Morgan said: 'Oh my god, that's astonishing!' 'I didn't know you got all that! That is very cool though Timberlake doing the whole you look too young to be a granny!' He cheekily added: 'He's right in your target range,' only for Susanna to respond: 'What does that mean?' Checking her out: GMB's Richard Arnold captured the moment on camera, with Justin seen holding up a photo of Susanna during the VT with his co-star Anna Kendrick After a touch of embarrassment, the stunning star seemed more than happy with Justin's comments, quipping: 'I can retire now!' Last year Susanna insisted she does not flirt with male guests on Good Morning Britain, confessing she does not want to come across as rude and stonewalling. The presenter told Daily Mirror newspaper: Any interviewer's mission is to get the best from a guest. I enjoy the interviews I do and it would be bizarre, wouldn't it, if I didn't laugh at a guest's joke, or didn't smile?' Loving it: Reacting to the VT, Susanna's GMB co-host Piers Morgan said: 'Oh my god, that's astonishing!' I would just look rude, she added. So I'd rather look like I'm comfortable, and enjoying myself than rude and stonewalling. She memorably caused a storm during an unfortunate interview with Downton Abbey star Dan Stevens, when she unintentionally made an embarrassing double entendre. The interviewer asked him if he had to 'beat off a lot of American men' for his latest part in a Hollywood film - not realising that the innocent question could be misinterpreted. She recently announced she has her own bun in the oven after sharing her pregnancy joy. And mum-to-be Molly Sims looked sweet as pie as she attended the pre-release party for Candace Nelson's The Sprinkles Baking Book alongside Reese Witherspoon in Beverly Hills on Tuesday. Showing off her blossoming baby bump, the 43-year-old actress wowed in a floral gown that clung to her pregnancy curves. Scroll down for video Bun in the oven: Pregnant Molly Sims looked sweet as pie at the pre-release party for Candace Nelson's The Sprinkles Baking Book with Reese Witherspoon in Beverly Hills on Tuesday Featuring a stylish ruffled neckline, the garment flared out to mid-calf length, flashing a hint of her model pins. Rolling up her sleeves as she cradled her bump, the mum-of-two kept her accessories simple with a pair of tan heeled sandals and a small brown bag. Adding a splash of glitz to her ensemble, she wore a chunky gold bangle on her slender wrist. Something yummy, mummy? Showing off her blossoming baby bump, the 43-year-old model-turned-actress wowed in a floral gown that clung to her pregnancy curves Blooming lovely: Featuring a stylish ruffled neckline, the garment flared out to mid-calf length, flashing a hint of her model pins as she cuddled up to Candace Nelson There's no batter look: Rolling up her sleeves as she cradled her bump, the mum-of-two kept her accessories simple with a small brown bag as she leant against Sara Foster Ladies who lunch: Molly added a splash of glitz to her ensemble with a chunky gold bangle on as she joined Candace Norah Weinstein, Robyn Casady and Marlien Rentmeester Hello, petal: Molly - who kept her accessories simple with a pair of tan heeled sandals - was joined by her gal pal Reese, who looked equally as stunning in a floral co-ord She was joined by her gal pal Reese, who looked equally as stunning in a floral co-ord. Flashing her lean legs, the Sweet Home Alabama star donned a navy miniskirt, which she teamed with a matching short-sleeved blouse. Painting her pout with a slick of red lipstick, she styled her golden locks in a side parting, framing her pretty face with the loose waves. The proof is in the pudding: Reese seemed in great spirits as she examined all the goodies on offer, and couldn't resist making a beeline for the cake Blonde beauty: Painting her pout with a slick of red lipstick, Reese styled her golden locks in a side parting, framing her pretty face with the loose waves Leggy ladies: Flashing her lean legs, the Sweet Home Alabama star donned a navy miniskirt, which she teamed with a matching short-sleeved blouse as she posed with Candace Orange you glad to see me: Reese seemed in playful spirits as she looked at Candace's home-baked goods. The writer dazzled in a rust coloured floral dress Light reading: The pair took some time out to read through the baking book together Thanks for muffin! Reese posed with a mini cupcake as she cuddled up to chic Candace Lovely ladies: The pair seemed in great spirits on the day as she celebrated the impending release of Candace's baking guide book Reese and Molly seemed in good spirits on the day, despite Molly's recent admission that she's been suffering with terrible morning sickness. Updating fans on her pregnancy on her vlog, she revealed: 'I was in New York and I threw up on the Long Island expressway next to a homeless man. 'And then when I went to get crackers inside of the gas station after throwing up, I almost threw up again because of the smell in the gas station.' Two of a kind: Kelly Sawyer (L) and Rachel Zoe looked lovely in floral dresses as they posed for snaps at the glamorous cookbook pre-launch party Fantastic four: Jenni Kayne, Rachel Zoe, Kelly Sawyer and Jessica de Ruiter posed together The star is expecting her third child in January with husband Scott Stuber. The couple are also parents to one-year-old daughter Scarlett, and son Brooks, four. She recently admitted that pregnancy has been 'really stressful' so far because she was worried about potential complications as a result of her age. Whilst she was looking forward to welcoming a third child into their family she admitted that the couple were 'super nervous' about the tests she has had to undergo. Luckily, she revealed that everything is 'on track', but admitted to succumbing to some bizarre cravings - including drinking hot chocolate with marshmallows every night and eating turkey with salt and crackers. Sprinkle of elegance: Rachel Zoe, Candace Nelson and Sara Foster seemed chirpy as they posed with the new baking book in their colourful ensembles BEATRICE -- Like many of the issues surrounding the so-called Beatrice 6 case, the idea that Gage County could ask the state for a loan to pay a $28.1 million federal jury award is without any sort of precedent. The mechanism for getting the loan and paying it back is simple enough. Any Nebraska political subdivision ordered to pay a court judgment can apply to the State Treasurer's Office for a loan of sufficient funds to pay any judgment in its entirety, then pay it back at one-half of 1 percent interest. The idea was broached last week by Jeffry Patterson, one of the attorneys representing six people convicted of murder after a 1989 cold case investigation into the rape and beating death of Helen Wilson in her downtown Beatrice apartment. Joseph White, Ada JoAnn Taylor, Thomas Winslow, James Dean, Kathleen Gonzalez and Debra Shelden spent a combined 75 years in prison until DNA evidence pointed to a seventh person, and they were exonerated. The six sued Gage County, Deputy Sheriff Burdette Searcey, Reserve Deputy Wayne Price and others for violating their civil rights, and in July a federal jury awarded them $28.1 million, plus attorneys fees. Patterson made the suggestion to Gage Countys team of private-practice attorneys in a letter copied to Gov. Pete Ricketts, Sens. John Stinner of Gering and Roy Baker of Lincoln, State Treasurer Don Stenberg and others. Gage County has not replied to the letter, nor has it applied with the treasurer's office for a loan covering any or all of the judgment, Stenberg said. He did say that he discussed the issue last week with Patrick OBrien, one of the attorneys representing Gage County. In fact, no application for a loan has ever been made to the treasurer since Gov. Norbert Tiemann signed the Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act into law nearly a half century ago. That leaves attorneys and public officials little in the way of guidance. Stenberg said he asked Attorney General Doug Peterson for his opinion Friday on how the law may apply to Gage Countys circumstances. My main question to the attorney general was if this statute applies to a federal judgment, Stenberg said Monday. Since being signed into law in 1969, the Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act has been applied to civil cases brought against cities, counties, school districts and other entities in state court. It was introduced alongside the State Tort Claims Act by then-Sen. Roland Luedtke of Lincoln and intended to abolish the doctrine of sovereign or governmental immunity by governmental entities in Nebraska. A Federal Tort Claims Act allowing citizens to pursue some claims against the federal government was enacted in 1946. During floor debate, Luedtke, a former Lincoln mayor and Nebraska lieutenant governor, said that for more than a century after the state Constitution was ratified, Nebraska and its subdivisions operated on a king can do no wrong position of governmental immunity that limited recourse in the event of injury or other damages. Claims filed against Nebraska school boards and the city of Omaha, and Nebraska Supreme Court rulings weakened the idea of governmental immunity and brought attention to the issue, which was later the subject of an interim study. The act established a uniform method for bringing lawsuits against subdivisions and outlined a two-year statute of limitations for a claim to be made. The final part of the law gave governmental entities in Nebraska the option of applying for low-interest loans from the treasurer's office to pay any claims awarded to citizens by a court if they could not pay the claims through insurance or other remedies described by law. Because of the constitutional limitations on expenditures and the like, we realize that (governmental entities) could have a very catastrophic loss, a negligence claim, which would result in a judgment which perhaps a local subdivision of government could not even meet, Luedtke told the Judiciary Committee during a 1969 hearing. But it appears the Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act applies to damages awarded in state court and not under federal law, Stenberg said, meaning his office might not have authority to give a loan to Gage County. He said it's also unclear whether any loan his office could grant to Gage County would be capped at $5 million. The Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act caps payouts for claims at $5 million per occurrence under the law but does not assign a cap to the loan amount. Given those limits, the Legislatures intent may have been to limit any loan to the maximum amount of recovered allowed under the Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act, Stenberg wrote. His final question to Peterson centered on what options Gage County may have with his office if the Political Subdivisions Tort Claim Act does not apply to the case. (Is) there any other statute that would authorize the State Treasurer to make a loan to Gage County related to the judgments in question? he asked. Peterson's spokeswoman Suzanne Gage said late Monday that the attorney general will "respond as expeditiously as possible" to Stenberg's request. In his letter to Gage County, Patterson said his clients would consent to a stay on collecting the nearly $30 million if the county "were able to guarantee prompt payment" if the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals finds in their favor. She's the reigning Queen of the Jungle. And Vicky Pattison, 28, has nothing but fond memories of her gruelling three-weeks in the Australian wilderness, calling the experience the 'best of her life' on Wednesday's edition of Good Morning Britain. The former Geordie Shore star was recently announced as one of the hosts of the revamped I'm A Celebrity spin-off show Extra Camp. Scroll down for video Fond memories: Vicky Pattison, 28, called her I'm A Celebrity experience the 'best of her life' on Wednesday's edition of Good Morning Britain She was joined on GMB by her co-hosts Joe Swash, Stacey Solomon and Chris Ramsey for a chat with Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid ahead of the upcoming series. Vicky gushed: 'For me, it was the best experience of my life. I think I've romanticised it. I think the most difficult part is missing your friends and family.' Stacey, 27, who won the crown in 2010, echoed similar sentiments, saying: 'It was the experience of my life. I loved doing it. I feel I've had the time of my life ever since.' The former X Factor finalist also revealed that the hosts weren't allowed to know the identity of the contestants until the last minute thanks to her boyfriend Joe, 34. New look: She was joined on GMB by her co-hosts Joe Swash, Stacey Solomon and Chris Ramsey for a chat with Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid ahead of the upcoming series Stunning: Vicky looked stunning in classy cream co-ords Dropping him in it: Stacey Solomon, 27, revealed that the hosts weren't allowed to know the identity of the contestants until the last minute thanks to her boyfriend Joe, 34 Reigning queen: The former Geordie Shore star was recently announced as one of the hosts of the revamped I'm A Celebrity spin-off show Extra Camp All smiles: Richard Arnold joined the four hosts in the jungle-themed set up Raring to go: The next series of the hit show is due to start next month The cheeky actor explained how one year he told his nan, who lives in Thetford, Norfolk, the line-up and it filtered back to London. He added: 'The jungle is amazing. I'd just come out of EastEnders, I didn't think I would get any acting work. It just opened up a new world.' Comedian Chris, 30, is the only one of the four who hasn't previously been a contestant. Can't fault it: Stacey, who won the crown in 2010, also said it was her best experience Stylish: Stacey looked great in a black bardot top with a leopard print skirt Smitten: Joe and Stacey cosied up, with the couple very much looking in love Mic check: Susanna said were she to go in the jungle her biggest fear would be saying something she wouldn't want being broadcast Oops: The cheeky actor explained how one year he told his nan, who lives in Thetford, Norfolk, the line-up and it filtered back to London Laughing out loud: Bubbly Stacey giggled heartily beside Joe He said: 'I'm terrified. I've only just found out we've got to eat the willies and stuff.' He also heaped praise on his colleagues, saying they were 'amazing' for having braved the jungle. Meanwhile, Susanna said were she to go in the jungle her biggest fear would be saying something she wouldn't want being broadcast. Funny man: Comedian Chris, 30, is the only one of the four who hasn't previously been a contestant Kris Jenner has advised her daughter Kim Kardashian to take 'one day at a time' after she was robbed at gunpoint earlier this month. The reality superstar was involved in a terrifying incident when a group of men disguised as policemen broke into her hotel in Paris, France. The social media sensation has retreated from the spotlight in a bid to come to terms with the incident - and now Kris has revealed that she told Kim that recovering is a 'process'. Scroll down for video Mum's the word: Kris Jenner has advised her daughter Kim Kardashian to take 'one day at a time' after she was robbed at gunpoint earlier this month Speaking to E! News about her daughter, the momager said: 'One day at a time. It's a process.' Kris added that her maternal instinct has taken over since the incident on October 2, and she is focusing solely on her children now. Kim's younger sister Khloe has admitted her and her siblings have to now be 'more aware' of their surroundings, and respect Kim's request for privacy to allow her to 'heal.' The 32-year-old television personality said: 'It's more just being more aware and just really respecting Kim's privacy and letting her heal and do what's best for her and her family. Advice: Kris has told Kim, pictured above in Paris days before the robbery, that she needs to take time to recover from the terrifying incident Revealing: Khloe Kardashian also spoke about how the family is helping Kim to 'heal' while rocking a racy ensemble at the Good American Launch Event in Los Angeles on Tuesday Not taking any chances: It appeared as if the 32-year-old reality star certainly beefed up security at the event after Kim's robbery 'Well, I think it's just a wake-up call to make a lot of life adjustments. This is a really serious matter for Kim I think that's really personal as to when that emotional terror you could move on from that. 'I think for us it's all a wake-up call for all of us, but definitely just to make sure our sister's OK.' The star and Kris were speaking at a Good American Launch Event in Los Angeles on Tuesday. Taking Kim's ordeal into account, Khloe had noticeably beefed up security for the event held at the Nordstrom in highly-popular shopping area The Grove. As she spends several hours in the gym every week, she made sure top show off the results in a see-through black mesh bodysuit. The sheer number featrured a backless cutout as it was tucked into a pair of on-trend skinny light blue jeans. Dynamic duo: Kris joined her daughter at the event Stunning: The mother-and-daughter duo were in fantastic form The trousers featured a slight tear at the hemline as she teamed the look with a pair of furry black stilletos. She accessorised the look with studded earrings and two choker necklaces. Her signature dyed blonde locks were worn down into waves flowing over her shoulder as she sported natural, complimentary make-up on her face topped off with brown lip. On the prowl: Khloe also hit the stage at The Grove to show off her new jeans as she is part of their advert campaign Having fun: She looked fantastic in her skintight trousers Ooh la la: The bodysuit featured a backless cutout detailing Mommy and me: Khloe and the 60-year-old matriarch seemed to have fun answering questions Pretty: She wore her dyed blonde tresses down into waves flowing over her shoulders Speaking out: The momager looked more than happy to be at the event Out and about: Leading up to the event, Khloe could be seen on Snapchat Looking good: She also wore black furry heels Stunning: No doubt she enjoyed parading around her curvaceous figure Friendly to fans: Regardless of the security she did not hesitate in saying hello to a few fans Having a blast: She was all smiles while greeting her biggest fans Khloe was not alone for the occasion as she was joined by her 60-year-old momager Kris Jenner. The matriarch of the Kardashian-Jenner clan sported a long white coat over a black top. She teamed the look with a pair of black leather booties and matching ripped skinny jeans. Big day: There was a gaggle of security at the event She doesn't skip squat day: Khloe looked good in those jeans On-the-go: Her security made sure the area was clear for her to walk through Her signature short raven-coloured locks were combed to the side as she completed her make-up with a swipe of bright red lip. No doubt it was a fun event as Khloe took to her Snapchat to document the gala including footage from an interview with Kris and herself. The star-studded gala at luxury store Nordstrom was put together to celebrate the launch of denim brand Good American. In a snap: Khloe was all over social media leading up to and during the event Having a blast: She addressed her followers while on the red carpet Got back: When she wasn't on the phone, Khloe stuck the mobile in her back pocket Sisterly love: Her sister Kourtney Kardashian joined her at the event Hugged up: Kourtney gave her a big hug on the grey carpet Having fun: The 38-year-old reality star poked fun at her younger sister Just us: The sisters were very active on Snapchat Tremendous trio: She was joined by twin gal pals Malika and Khadijah Haqq Motley crew: Khloe shared this group photo from the gathering Hello: She shared a video of he grand entrance on Snapchat Busy: Her account also shared a few videos from the event Feeling good: Khloe looked comfortable despite the family troubles she has endured as of late Mama: Khloe also shared this image of Kris addressing the crowd The entire reality series family has beefed up security in the wake of 35-year-old Kim Kardashian's armed robbery in Paris last month. The Kardashian family have all rallied around the 35-year-old, who is taking some time off following the terrifying ordeal. On Monday, Kim's assistant Stephanie Shepherd announced the star's friends and family will be updating her subscription based app and website kimkardashianwest.com while Kim recovers. Kim is also planning a low-key celebration for her 36th birthday on Friday, with just her family by her side, according to E! Online. Out and about: Khloe looked fantastic as she left the big event She always injects some added elegance to a red carpet affair. And Naomie Harris did not disappoint as she attended a screening for her new film, Moonlight, in Atlanta on Tuesday. Looking effortlessly glamorous, the 40-year-old actress proved that less is more as she teamed a billowing vest with a printed midi skirt. Scroll down for video Glamorous: Naomie Harris proved that less is more as she teamed a billowing vest with a printed midi skirt at a screening for her new film, Moonlight, in Atlanta on Tuesday Flaunting her toned arms in the cream tank top, she also showed off her decotellage, adding some glitz with a delicate gold necklace. Highlighting her small waist, the star donned a navy wool skirt with large orange patches, whilst she added some height in quirky white stilettos. She was joined at the screening by Janelle Monae, who donned a rose embroidered leather jacket over her little black dress. Dazzling duo: The 40-year-old actress flaunted her toned arms in a cream tank top that also showed off her decotellage as she cuddled up to co-star, Janelle Monae Brunette beauty: The stunning star kept her accessories simple with a delicate gold necklace and a pair of intricately designed silver chandelier earrings The pair co-star in Moonlight, which is set in a rough Miami neighbourhood and chronicles one man's lifetime. Naomie stars as Paula, his mother, who is funding her growing drug habit with prostitution. Moonlight has received universal acclaim and will be released in UK cinemas on October 21. Everything's coming up roses! Naomie seemed in great spirits as she cuddled Janelle, who looked uber chic in a studded leather jacket with a pretty floral pattern Filming for the movie shockingly only took three days, as Naomie was in the midst of her promotional tour for Spectre, but she revealed she 'loved every minute of it'. Speaking to Vulture, she said: 'I loved it. I loved the opportunity to work morning, noon, and night. There was no time to languish in a trailer it was like, "Get on, and deliver."' She added that one of the benefits of a concentrated filming period was that she could easily transition back into real life. Terrific trio: Highlighting her small waist, Naomie donned a navy wool skirt with large orange patches as she posed between Janelle and their other co-star, Trevante Rhodes Naomie revealed: 'I felt really cleansed, in a way. Often, when you're inhabiting a character for three to six months, it can feel afterwards as though they're under your skin and it takes a long time to get them out of you, to exorcise them. 'With Moonlight, I felt as though I truly managed to inhabit Paula, so at the end of it, I could just let her go. That was a really nice feeling, and so satisfying. 'She's all out there, all done and finished, and I could get back on a plane and go back to my promotional tour for Bond.' He recently raised concerns for his welfare by disappearing from social media. But Kurt Coleman is truly alive and well and he posted his first selfie after five days of radio silence. The 19-year old is known for posting daily so when he finally took to Instagram on Wednesday, the social media star wrote a long and lengthy explanation. Scroll down for video Alive and well: Kurt Coleman is truly alive and well and he posted his first selfie after five days of radio silence. The 19-year old is known for posting daily so when he finally took to Instagram on Wednesday, the social media star wrote a long and lengthy explanation He wrote: 'I just took a break off social media for a week because I never have and I feel so good... 'I've realised so much more things around me just from simply not using my phone,' he continued. 'Everything on here, everything on our phone shouldn't even mean ANYTHING to our lives because it's not a real experience,' Kurt added. Scroll down for video Missing? Instagram 'celebrity' Kurt Coleman raised concerns for his welfare with the 'selfie a day' addict disappearing from social media 'So here's a real life photo.. I'm literally glowing from the inside because I'm in a very happy place.. Love you all, just remember your life is more than a phone. AND why do all of you edit your photos? Who for?' 'Your 'followers' that don't even give a fuck about you? So many people take this so seriously and it's not even real. 'Especially so fake how so many people just photoshop everything real away anyways. Lol.. (sic)' Nightmares: Kurt last tweeted on Sunday, after sharing bizarre thoughts about having nightmares and being attacked by a group of cats Earlier this week, Daily Mail Australia became aware of a recently-established Twitter account named 'Find Kurt Coleman'. It was supposedly set up by three 'deeply worried' fans of Kurt, who were apparently concerned for his safety. They claimed Kurt's recent 'disappearance' from social media was linked to a mystery board game he played last week. Spooky: Fans claimed Kurt's recent 'disappearance' from social media was linked to a mystery board game he played last week Kurt last tweeted on Sunday, after sharing bizarre thoughts about having nightmares and being attacked by a group of cats. Given Kurt's previous posts promoting the film on social media, it was speculated his alleged 'disappearance' was simply a viral marketing campaign by digital brand Amplify, run by Sydney-based Marquee Studios. However it is unknown whether Kurt has any relationship with them. Taking a break? Alternatively, he could have just taken a social media break as suggested by his manager Alternatively, he could have just taken a social media break as suggested by his manager to Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday. But Loren O'Keeffe of MPAN criticised the decision to use a 'missing person' to promote a horror film. 'To joke about something that impacts so many people so enormously - to sell more tickets - is a slap in the face to those genuinely dealing with the torment of not knowing where their loved one is. Bizarre: Kurt posted weird tweets before he supposedly went 'missing' Insomnia? He also complained about lacking sleep Earlier this week: Daily Mail Australia became aware of a recently-established Twitter account named 'Find Kurt Coleman' 'Not to mention Kurts fans who were legitimately concerned for his welfare,' they told Daily Mail Australia. Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Marquee Studios for comment. In the past, Kurt has been criticised by an educator as 'self obsessed' and a 'narcissist'. The social media enthusiast told Daily Mail Australia at the time the comments were 'unprofessional' for a teacher. If youre searching for a missing loved one, please go to: www.missingpersonsguide.com She became one of the most enviable women in the world after her steamy sex scene with Tom Hiddleston aired earlier this year. But The Night Manager star Elizabeth Debicki has revealed that shooting the show's most memorable moment was far from sexy. The stunning actress, who is currently starring in the West End, told This Morning on Wednesday that she had no idea the fuss the sex scene would cause. Coy: The Night Manager star Elizabeth Debicki has revealed that shooting the show's most memorable moment was far from sexy Elizabeth, 26, played Jed in the hit BBC series, who begins a sizzling affair with Tom's Jonathan Pine - an intelligence operative tasked with infiltrating the inner circle of Jed's arms dealer boyfriend Roper (Hugh Laurie). Elizabeth said she had the time of her life shooting the series with Tom and Hugh, gushing: 'I would love to [do a second series] I adored shooting it. I loved everyone on that cast.' 'Hugh is a wonderful wonderful man. I was just emailing him the other day to come to the show.' Steamy: The stunning actress shared a memorable sex scene with Tom Hiddleston in this year's hit BBC drama The Night Manager The scene that caused the most fuss was a hot encounter between Jed and Jonathan, which saw Tom flashing his bum. On the now dubbed 'Hiddlesbum' moment, Elizabeth insists: 'We werent laughing when we were doing that scene. That was quite intense.' She added that she lost track of what episodes were screening so wasnt aware of the big fuss around the scene until journalists started bombarding her with questions. Speaking out: The stunning actress, who is currently starring in the West End, told This Morning that she had no idea how much fuss the 'Hiddlesbum' moment would cause In the moment: On the now dubbed 'Hiddlesbum' moment, Elizabeth insists: 'We werent laughing when we were doing that scene. That was quite intense' One woman I remember speaking to was asking so many questions and I had to say "hold on a minute what's going on?" And she said "don't you know? It's a huge thing here, everybody's talking about it."' 'So I didn't realise that the now famous Tom's bottom scene was screening that night and the next morning I was doing radio interviews for it and someone bought it up.' 'We shot that scene quite quickly in a way efficiently. I didnt really realise that was going on in the scene I was looking at his face,' she added. While The Night Manager was one of the biggest TV hits of the year, Elizabeth revealed that she's a huge fan of a current BBC show - The Great British Bake Off. Hunky co-star: 'We shot that scene quite quickly in a way efficiently. I didnt really realise that was going on in the scene I was looking at his face,' she added Wow factor: Elizabeth looked stunning in a pair of statement striped trousers and a chic white shirt 'Im the hugest Bake Off fan. I love Mary Berry deeply. I do bake. We [the cast of her play The Red Barn] became obsessive about it. It was a little bit of emotional escapism.' Elizabeth stars alongside Mark Strong in The Red Barn, which opened at the National Theatre's Lyttelton Theatre this week. Based on the novel La Main by Georges Simenon, the play is set in Connecticut, 1969, when on their way back from a party, two couples struggle home through the snow but not everyone arrives safely. An extravagant party organised in honour of Kim Kardashians 36th birthday has reportedly been cancelled by concerned husband Kanye West amid fears for her security following her terrifying multi-million dollar robbery in Paris. The American TV personality will celebrate her birthday on October 21, but sources claim the party has been significantly downscaled and will be a subdued affair following the ordeal, during which thieves escaped with an estimated 8.5 million in jewels after posing as police officers and breaking into her rented apartment in the French capital. But while Kanye, 39, has reportedly moved to cancel plans for a lavish celebration, the rapper has sought to ensure her big day is still memorable by buying her a pair of ruby drop earrings from designer Lorraine Schwartz, understood to be worth $50,000. Scroll down for video Not happening: An extravagant party organised in honour of Kim Kardashians 36th birthday has reportedly been cancelled by concerned husband Kanye West amid fears for her security Kanye is devastated he has to cancel but his familys security come first, a source told The Sun Online. He had gone all out for Kims birthday and it was going to be all expenses spared with champagne and canapes. Now they will do something low key instead. Hes made sure he will still spoil her with the stunning one of a kind earrings though as he doesnt cut corners when it comes to his missus. A star-studded guest list including close friends Ciara and Kelly Rowland and family members Caitlyn Jenner and Blac Chyna were understood to be attending a 1920s themed bash in honour of Kims birthday at Hollywood venue The Nice Guy prior to its cancellation. MailOnline have contacted Kim and Kanye's representatives for further comment. Private party: The American TV personality will celebrate her birthday on October 21, but sources claim the party has been significantly downscaled and will be a subdued affair Meanwhile mother Kris Jenner has advised Kim to take 'one day at a time' following the robbery. The social media sensation has retreated from the spotlight in a bid to come to terms with the incident - and now Kris has revealed that she told Kim that recovering is a 'process.' Speaking to E! News about her daughter, the momager said: 'One day at a time. It's a process.' Mum's the word: Kris Jenner has advised her daughter Kim Kardashian to take 'one day at a time' after she was robbed at gunpoint earlier this month Kris added that her maternal instinct has taken over since the incident on October 2, and she is focusing solely on her children now. Kim's younger sister Khloe has admitted her and her siblings have to now be 'more aware' of their surroundings, and respect Kim's request for privacy to allow her to 'heal.' The 32-year-old television personality said: 'It's more just being more aware and just really respecting Kim's privacy and letting her heal and do what's best for her and her family. Advice: Kris has told Kim, pictured above in Paris days before the robbery, that she needs to take time to recover from the terrifying incident 'Well, I think it's just a wake-up call to make a lot of life adjustments. This is a really serious matter for Kim I think that's really personal as to when that emotional terror you could move on from that. 'I think for us it's all a wake-up call for all of us, but definitely just to make sure our sister's OK.' The star and Kris were speaking at a Good American Launch Event in Los Angeles on Tuesday. Revealing: Khloe Kardashian also spoke about how the family is helping Kim to 'heal' while rocking a racy ensemble at the Good American Launch Event in Los Angeles on Tuesday Not taking any chances: It appeared as if the 32-year-old reality star certainly beefed up security at the event after Kim's robbery Taking Kim's ordeal into account, Khloe had noticeably beefed up security for the event held at the Nordstrom in highly-popular shopping area The Grove. As she spends several hours in the gym every week, she made sure top show off the results in a see-through black mesh bodysuit. The sheer number featured a backless cutout as it was tucked into a pair of on-trend skinny light blue jeans. Dynamic duo: Kris joined her daughter at the event The trousers featured a slight tear at the hemline as she teamed the look with a pair of furry black stilletos. She accessorised the look with studded earrings and two choker necklaces. Her signature dyed blonde locks were worn down into waves flowing over her shoulder as she sported natural, complimentary make-up on her face topped off with brown lip. On the prowl: Khloe also hit the stage at The Grove to show off her new jeans as she is part of their advert campaign Having fun: She looked fantastic in her skintight trousers Khloe was not alone for the occasion as she was joined by her 60-year-old momager Kris Jenner. The matriarch of the Kardashian-Jenner clan sported a long white coat over a black top. She teamed the look with a pair of black leather booties and matching ripped skinny jeans. Her signature short raven-coloured locks were combed to the side as she completed her make-up with a swipe of bright red lip. No doubt it was a fun event as Khloe took to her Snapchat to document the gala including footage from an interview with Kris and herself. The star-studded gala at luxury store Nordstrom was put together to celebrate the launch of denim brand Good American. Sisterly love: Her sister Kourtney Kardashian joined her at the event Busy: Her account also shared a few videos from the event Feeling good: Khloe looked comfortable despite the family troubles she has endured as of late The entire reality series family has beefed up security in the wake of Kim's armed robbery in Paris last month. The Kardashian family have all rallied around the TV star, who is taking some time off following the terrifying ordeal. She is used to playing the object of desire in her movies. So Isla Fisher's transition into playing a dowdy stay at home mum was no doubt a shock to the system as she starred opposite Zach Galifianakis in forthcoming movie Keeping Up with the Joneses. Yet the 40-year-old still managed to steal the show when her character, Karen Gaffney attempts to seduce her husband Jeff, by slipping down to her lingerie - in an eye-popping scene. Isla's latest role sees her play one half of a suburban couple who grow suspicious of their new neighbours Natalie and Tim Jones, played by Gal Gadot and Jon Hamm. The duo discover their perfect fellow residents are government agents as they become embroiled in an international espionage plot. As the Gaffneys get to know the couple they grow suspicious leading to an intrigued Karen starting to follow Natalie, who catches on to her games when she runs into her in a lingerie shop. As the statuesque beauty walks out of the changing room she sizzles in a sexy black lace two-piece after which an intimidated Karen scuttles away. Not so dowdy now... Isla Fisher's transition into playing a dowdy stay at home mum was no doubt a shock to the system as she starred opposite Zach Galifianakis in forthcoming movie Keeping Up with the Joneses Saucy! Yet the 40-year-old still managed to steal the show when her character, Karen Gaffney attempts to seduce her husband Jeff, by slipping down to her lingerie - in an eye-popping scene Tight stuff: Isla yet again put on an eye-popping display in a glimmering bodycon dress which showed off her ample cleavage to full effect However all the attention is on her later in the clip when she sits her husband down and whips off her dressing gown to reveal a super saucy nude bodice and stockings. She wore her long red tresses in bouncy waves while looking at her astounded husband who looks delightedly on as his wife sizzles. Later on the duo are embroiled in a plot in which they headed on a date while wearing microphones to communicate with the Joneses. Isla yet again put on an eye-popping display in a glimmering bodycon dress which showed off her ample cleavage to full effect. Excitable: However all the attention is on her later in the clip when she sits her husband down and whips off her dressing gown to reveal a super saucy nude bodice and stockings Bored: Isla's latest role sees her play one half of a suburban couple who grow suspicious of their new neighbours Natalie and Tim Jones, played by Gal Gadot and Jon Hamm Stay in touch: Later on the duo are embroiled in a plot in which they headed on a date while wearing microphones to communicate with the Joneses While the trailer certainly catches the eye it seems it did not catch the critics as The Hollywood Reporter dished up a scathing review: 'Stale as week-old bread and every bit as bland. 'The movie saddles a strong cast with a groaningly ineffectual script (courtesy of Michael LeSieur, who wrote 2006s You, Me and Dupree) and wastes the directors gift for bringing lived-in charm and feeling to broad comic premises... 'Even by standards of low-IQ escapism, the film falls short. At least Masterminds, another recent goof-fest headlined by Keeping Up With the Joneses star Zach Galifianakis, gave the actor an epically awful pageboy hairdo to divert our attention from its disappointments.' He sent hearts aflutter by posing for the cover of Mills & Boon's romance novel Country Calling wearing nothing but a pair of water-drenched jeans. And The Bachelorette break-out star Rhys Chilton, 29, channeled another amorous book by the name of Fifty Shades Of Gray as he posed in a blue business shirt for a fashion shoot this Wednesday. Staring down the barrel of the camera with piercing blue eyes, the buff Adonis looked every inch the modern Christian Gray in a behind-the-scenes snap uploaded to his Instagram page. Scroll down for video But who's his Anastasia Steele? The Bachelorette's Rhys Chilton, 29, channeled his inner Christian Gray as he posed in a blue business shirt for a fashion shoot this Wednesday 'Being a coat-hanger and giving @devereuxxo a lot of work to do post-shoot,' joked the social media star in the caption. As usual, the debonair Brisbane-local decorated his post with comedic hashtags, including: #bluesteel #needmorepractice #poser #ausmodel and #baldy. It's the latest in a slew of extremely provocative posts shared by Rhys, who sent fans into meltdown on Tuesday by sharing a photo of himself clad in nothing but a pair of nether region-hugging underpants. What a page-turner! He sent hearts aflutter by posing for the cover of Mills & Boon's romance novel Country Calling wearing nothing but a pair of water-drenched jeans during a group date on The Bachelorette Since emerging from The Bachelorette mansion without a rose, Rhys has been teasing the release of a new lifestyle blog. According to his website, Rhys plans to canvas topics such as sex, dating and technology in the forthcoming publication. 'You see I've a keen interest in a few things, social behavior, technology, dating, sex and relationships. As the dating scene has evolved with the addition of technology and internet dating, so have the issues faced by young singles,' he explains. Is that a rose or are you just happy to see us? He sent fans into meltdown on Tuesday by sharing a photo of himself clad in nothing but a pair of nether region-hugging underpants 'Many of which haven't yet been talked about I feel. So my blogging/vlogging will for the most part, aim to ask and answer questions around the new age of dating, relationships and promiscuity.' 'I'm certainly not afraid to be open about my thoughts and I'm happy to share my well tested male insights with the young ladies out there,' he adds. The well-clad hunk is also set to dive back into his work as one of Brisbane's most in-demand ladies' events models, having announced earlier this week that he has booked his first gig since departing the Bachelorette mansion. 'I've been booked for a 30th B'day this weekend and I need to be at my best,' announced Rhys next to a photo of himself posing shirtless at the gym on Monday. Gleeful fans serenaded Rhys with compliments, with one gushing: 'Looking great! Loving the new look!!!!' Dating guru: Since emerging from The Bachelorette mansion without a rose, Rhys has been teasing the release of a new lifestyle blog She's the Bachelor reject who often posts bikini-clad pictures to Instagram. And Noni Janur was at it again as she posted a selfie to social media on Wednesday. But this time she was pictured with her younger sister Franny Elliot who bares a striking resemblance to the brunette beauty. Scroll down for video Twinning: Noni, 26, was pictured with her younger sister who bares a striking resemblance to the brunette beauty on Wednesday The swimwear designer captioned the post: 'Miss my little sissy.' Fans responded by posting, 'omg there's two of you.' Franny Elliot then replied 'Missing you so, so much.' Sleek in black: On Friday night, The Bachelor Australia star Noni Janur decided to cover up a bit more than usual, by sporting a sophisticated jumpsuit Meanwhile, last week Noni decided to cover up a bit more than usual by sporting a sophisticated jumpsuit. But the 25-year-old's stylish outfit still featured a daringly low neckline, revealing a glimpse of her decolletage. The Bali-based beauty shot to fame after appearing on The Bachelor earlier this year. Flaunting it: She's known to show off her incredible curves in an array of sultry bikinis While Noni failed to win the heart of Richie Strahan, she has made a good friend in fellow contestant Kirralee 'Kiki' Morris. The pair often flaunt their close bond on social media and Kiki recently confirmed that they are now living together. She even raised eyebrows by announcing they would be starting a 'new life' together in Sydney after finding fame. A very dressed-down Jessica Alba arrived at LAX Airport Wednesday morning after taking a red-eye flight from Texas. The 35-year-old Golden Globe nominee - who relies on stylist duo Emily Current & Meritt Elliott - sported black silk pyjamas beneath a matching coat. The Mechanic: Resurrection actress strutted through the bustling terminal looking impossibly fresh-faced with her brunette locks down. Back in Los Angeles! A very dressed-down Jessica Alba arrived at LAX Airport Wednesday morning after taking a red-eye flight from Texas Rolled out of bed: The 35-year-old Golden Globe nominee - who relies on stylist duo Emily Current & Meritt Elliott - sported black silk pyjamas beneath a matching coat Gorgeous: The Mechanic: Resurrection actress strutted through the bustling terminal looking impossibly fresh-faced with her brunette locks down Boudoir attire: Jessica finished off her cozy jet-setting ensemble with a red quilted purse, black platforms, matching carry-on, and a $295 Raden 'A22 Carry' luggage trolley Jessica finished off her cozy jet-setting ensemble with a red quilted purse, black platforms, matching carry-on, and a $295 Raden 'A22 Carry' luggage trolley. The Pomona-born beauty has picked out two Halloween costumes this year, one of which will match either Honor, 8, or Haven, 5. 'My daughter really wants me to go as Shimmer and Shine with her,' Alba told THR of the Nickelodeon cartoon. 'So I have to be a genie with blue hair.' Kid-friendly: The Pomona-born beauty has picked out two Halloween costumes this year, one of which will match either Honor, 8, or Haven, 5 Alba told THR: 'My daughter really wants me to go as [Nickelodeon cartoon] Shimmer and Shine with her, so I have to be a genie with blue hair' Romy and Michele last year! The Dear Eleanor actress also has a more adult-themed costume with her BFF, Baby2Baby co-president Kelly Sawyer Jessica laughed: 'This year we're going to go as Ab Fab. I get to be the crazy one [Edina Monsoon]. The absolute nut job' The Dear Eleanor actress also has a more adult-themed costume with her BFF, Baby2Baby co-president Kelly Sawyer. 'This year we're going to go as Ab Fab. I get to be the crazy one [Edina Monsoon]. The absolute nut job,' Jessica laughed. The Honest Company mompreneur just returned from Dallas where she hosted a haircare event at the Ulta Beauty inside Preston Forest Village. Boss lady: The Honest Company mompreneur just returned from Dallas where she hosted a haircare event at the Ulta Beauty inside Preston Forest Village 'Hey #Dallas we here!': Joining Alba were her hairstylist Jennifer Yepez (B-R), make-up artist Daniel Martin (T-L), and Honest marketing director Jen Kroog Rosenberg (T-R) Branching out: On Friday, the Veil star launched her 18-piece collection (priced between $178-$878) with sustainable denim brand DL1961 on Revolve.com Joining Alba as she promoted her billion-dollar business were her hairStylist Jennifer Yepez, make-up artist Daniel Martin, and Honest marketing director Jen Kroog Rosenberg. On Friday, the Veil star launched her 18-piece collection (priced between $178-$878) with sustainable denim brand DL1961 on Revolve.com. As for Jessica's husband of eight years, Cash Warren, he fronts his own Target sock line, Pair of Thieves. Fifteen women and 26 men were arrested in Nebraska for prostitution or solicitation of prostitution during a nationwide sting last week. Nationally, the FBI said 82 sexually exploited minors were saved and 239 pimps and other individuals arrested during the operation. In Nebraska, the Omaha, Lincoln, La Vista, Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Glenwood, Iowa, police departments along with the Douglas, Lancaster, Pottawattamie and Mills county sheriff's offices were involved in the sting. Through our strategic partnerships with state and local law enforcement agencies, specifically the Child Exploitation Task Force, the FBI will continue to work with our partners to make a difference in our communities," said FBI Special Agent in Charge Randall Thysse. Operation Cross Country is focused on recovering underage victims of prostitution and drawing attention to the problem of sex trafficking at home and abroad. Last week marked the 10th time the operation was conducted, expanding this time to become an international enforcement project with Canada, Cambodia, the Philippines and Thailand joining the effort along with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children during the coordinated three-day operation that ended Sunday. Two sisters in Milwaukee, ages 16 and 17, told police their mother was their pimp. The girls said she also rented out their brothers room to a man who was a registered sex offender, according to the FBI. In Thailand, authorities arrested an American citizen -- a registered sex offender -- after he allegedly coerced five Filipino girls, ages 14 to 16, to take sexually explicit photos of themselves and send them to him online, the FBI said. In the Philippines, two boys, 11 and 5, and a 2-year-old girl were found when five adults were arrested for operating a web-streaming service where individuals paid for access to live-streamed child sexual abuse, as well as access to the children for the purposes of illegal sexual acts, the FBI said. Kim Kardashian is trying to make herself feel better after being bound, gagged and held at gunpoint in her Paris residence in early October. It's not enough for the 35-year-old Keeping Up With The Kardashians star to simply be holed up inside her $20m Bel-Air mansion that is located in a gated community. Mrs Kanye West is also building a state-of-the-art panic room, is hiring the type of security that looks after government officials and is also calling her therapist at all hours, a source told InTouchWeekly. Terrified: Kim Kardashian is trying to make herself feel better after being bound and gagged in her Paris residence in early October; here she is seen hours after the crime Her hideout: It's not enough for the 35-year-old Keeping Up With The Kardashians star to simply be holed up inside her $20m Bel-Air mansion that is located in a gated community The panic room will have a large room, a bathroom and cameras. 'It will be made to withstand a fire of over 1,000 degrees and a 7.0 earthquake,' said an insider. The construction will begin immediately. The cost could run as high as $100,000 depending on how much security she has installed. The security team watching over her - as well as her children North, aged three, and Saint, 10 months - day and night is the best money can buy. 'Kanye has hired a company that protects government officials in war-torn countries,' said the friend. Changes: Mrs Kanye West is also building a panic room, is hiring the type of security that looks after government officials and is also calling her therapist at all hours, a source told InTouchWeekly. Here they are seen in September As far as her therapist, the person is on call 24 hours a day. 'Kim can reach out any time, day or night,' said the source. 'It's been very comforting for her.' And the insider said that Kim is worse off than anyone would have guessed. 'She's not well. It's worse than anyone knows,' said the pal. 'She's been suffering severe panic attacks and refuses to be alone. She's been having flashbacks and nightmares. She's a nervous wreck. She gets especially anxious late at night. This is the ring they took: It has been claimed the thieves, dressed as police men, made off with this rock from West Small lock: The building Kim was staying - Hotel de Pourtales - in had a pass code the robbers allegedly already knew 'When the kids are sleeping she has time to think and she just replays that dreadful night over and over. 'Kim's ordeal is far from behind her.' And it doesn't help that Kanye is on his Pablo tour, which has just been extended. On Tuesday evening her mother Kris talked about how Kim is trying to take it 'one day at a time.' The old Kim, the new Kim: The reality star in September, left, and in October after the robbery with North, right The 60-year-old momager added that recovering has been a 'process.' Speaking to E! News about her daughter, the momager said: 'One day at a time. It's a process.' Kris added that her maternal instinct has taken over since the incident on October 3, and she is focusing solely on her children now. Kim's younger sister Khloe has admitted her and her siblings have to now be 'more aware' of their surroundings, and respect Kim's request for privacy to allow her to 'heal.' Dynamic duo: Kris Jenner talked about Kim taking time to recover as she posed with Khloe Kardashian at the Good American denim event Nordstrom inside The Grove on Tuesday Sisterly love: Her sister Kourtney Kardashian joined her at the event The 32-year-old television personality said: 'It's more just being more aware and just really respecting Kim's privacy and letting her heal and do what's best for her and her family. On Monday, Kim's assistant Stephanie Shepherd announced the star's friends and family will be updating her subscription based app and website kimkardashianwest.com while Kim recovers. Kim is also planning a low-key celebration for her 36th birthday on Friday, with just her family by her side, according to E! Online. 'Well, I think it's just a wake-up call to make a lot of life adjustments. This is a really serious matter for Kim I think that's really personal as to when that emotional terror you could move on from that. 'I think for us it's all a wake-up call for all of us, but definitely just to make sure our sister's OK.' The star and Kris were speaking at a Good American Launch Event in Los Angeles on Tuesday. Given her mixed fortunes on the current series of Strictly Come Dancing it was a focused Laura Whitmore who made her way to a London rehearsal studio on Wednesday afternoon. The Irish presenter, 31, was joined by professional dance partner Giovanni Pernice, 26, as she prepared to polish her ballroom skills ahead of Saturday evenings live show. Sporting a retro gold fitted sweater and super-skinny jeans, Laura cut a typically stylish figure ahead of her latest rehearsal session with the fleet-footed Italian, whose specialty is steamy Latin dance routines. Scroll down for video Let's dance: Given her mixed fortunes on the current series of Strictly Come Dancing it was a focused Laura Whitmore who made her way to a London rehearsal studio with professional partner Giovanni Pernice on Wednesday afternoon The diminutive star accentuated her height by opting for a pair of generously heeled platform boots, while a knee-length black coat kept her warm on a chilly day in the capital. Keeping her willowy blonde locks conventionally styled with a simple centre parting, Laura revealed a naturally pretty face as she made her way inside. The presenter recently confirmed relationship with Giovanni is strictly platonic after rumours of a romance began to circulate. Looking good: Sporting a retro gold fitted sweater and super-skinny jeans, the Irish presenter cut a typically stylish figure ahead of her latest rehearsal session Head and shoulders above the rest: The diminutive star accentuated her height by opting for a pair of generously heeled platform boots, while a knee-length black coat kept her warm on a chilly day in the capital Nothing happening: The presenter recently confirmed relationship with Giovanni is strictly platonic after rumours of a romance began to circulate 'My relationship with Giovanni is completely professional', she told The Daily Mail. 'Thats all I ever want it to be. When all this happened he called me and told me not to let any of it get to me, to ignore it and get on with the show. 'To be honest hes far too young for me and even though Im single Im still going on a couple of dates when I have the time - but not with Giovanni.' No chance: Laura also admitted that she was upset to be linked to Giovanni because his ex-girlfriend Georgia May Foote, who was partnered with the Italian pro on the show last year, is a close friend In you go: Both Laura and Giovanni were in high spirits as they prepared for their latest rehearsal on Wednesday afternoon Popular: Laura has enjoyed a series of well received performances with Giovanni on the hit show Laura also admitted that she was upset to be linked to Giovanni because his ex-girlfriend Georgia May Foote, who was partnered with the Italian pro on the show last year, is a close friend. She said: 'I wanted to do Strictly because it's a family audience - there will be a lot of people who don't know anything about me' She has made her mark in Hollywood by starring in major productions Resident Evil: The Final Chapter and John Wick 2. And Ruby Rose, 30, sent fans into meltdown by suggesting that she has another big film in the works by sharing a selfie with Pitch Perfect 2 director Elizabeth Banks. Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, the Australian beauty uploaded a happy snap of the pair accompanied with the message: 'This BABE is everything... what are we up to? @elizabethbanks two cheeky monkeys...' Scroll down for video 'Pitch perfect 3?!?!?!!!!!' Ruby Rose, 30, sent fans into meltdown by suggesting that she has another big film in the works by sharing a selfie with Pitch Perfect 2 director Elizabeth Banks Fans immediately flooded her page with speculative comments about a possible film collaboration. 'Hopefully a new movie or something 2gether [sic],' one fan gushed. 'Pitch perfect 3?!?!?!!!!!' another fan squealed. Action flick: Ruby recently appeared in the new theatrical trailers for Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, in which she plays opposite fellow model-turned-actress Milla Jovovich Elizabeth also shared the photo to her social media page with an equally vague caption that read: 'This gorgeous talented spirit @rubyrose brought some needed excitement to life recently.' Ruby recently appeared in the new theatrical trailers for Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, in which she plays opposite fellow model-turned-actress Milla Jovovich. Ruby is also set to appear in xXx: The Return of Xander Cage with Vin Diesel and John Wick 2 with Keanu Reeves. New Hollywood 'it' girl! Ruby found her first big break in Hollywood last year when she landed a lead role in Netflix cult series Orange Is The New Black She is gearing up to appear in sci-fi flick Meg, which tells the tale of a deep-sea suicide mission. Ruby found her first big break in Hollywood last year when she landed a lead role in Netflix cult series Orange Is The New Black. She was cast in nine episodes playing the role of sharp-tongued inmate Stella Carlin. As a glamour mode, she's never been shy about showing off her body. But Casey Bachelor showed off more than she bargained for as she hit the town this week. The star headed out in London for an evening of party-hopping and turned heads in a flirty white mini-dress. Scroll down for video Legs be having you: Casey Bachelor showed off more than she bargained for as she hit the town this week The belted number made the most of her curves, including her ample assets, but it was her peachy behind that made people look twice. The star hopped up a flight of stairs, but the wind caught her dress and flashed her posterior. The brunette beauty is hoping to carve out a career as an actress after starring in new gangster movie Bonded By Blood 2, set for release next year. The gangster flick - which also stars former TOWIE star Kirk Norcross and Danny Dyer's daughter Dani - showcases the voluptuous brunette, 32, struggling to contain her assets in a skintight ensemble. Gone with the wind: The star hopped up a flight of stairs, but the wind caught her dress and flashed her posterior Boots were made for strutting: The belted number made the most of her curves, including her ample assets, but it was her peachy behind that made people look twice Sporting a come-hither look, the Celebrity Big Brother star's ample cleavage is just about contained in a bodycon vest, with her bra cheekily peeking out. Casey will be playing the role of Claire and although not much is known about her character, her jaw-dropping physique may have caused an issue on set, as the flick also stars Essex boy Kirk, her former flame. The Sugarhut favourite looks in character in the short video, which teases sex, glamour and gritty action. Casey and Kirk enjoyed a brief fling back in 2011 but things didn't appear to be too awkward as filming took place last year. Film debut: The brunette beauty is hoping to carve out a career as an actress after starring in new gangster movie Bonded By Blood 2, set for release next year She's got front: The gangster flick, which also stars former TOWIE star Kirk Norcross, showcases the glamour model, 32, struggling to contain her assets in a skintight top Racy display: Sporting a come-hither look, the Celebrity Big Brother star's ample cleavage is just about contained in a bodycon vest, with her bra cheekily peeking out Story-line: The gritty film is based on Bernard O'Mahoney's book titled Essex Boys: The New Generation, which is set in 1985 Back in the day: The film also stars Casey's former flame and ex-reality star Kirk (Pictured together in 2011) And the sizzling brunette proved to be a hit with the cast and crew as she enjoyed a night out with the Essex based movie's producer, Jonathan Sothcott, earlier this year. Casey seems to be more confident than ever when it comes to her work commitments, as well as her personal life. Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Casey revealed: 'People don't know you and they'll still judge you, but most of the time them sort of people behind the keyboard have no life whatsoever, and they've got nothing else to do. 'I don't care. Listen, we're all human. I'd be lying if I say it doesn't get to me sometimes. To be in this industry you need to be thick-skinned otherwise there's no point in being in it.' Eerie: At one point a scary looking clown visits a patient in the hospital with a bouquet of flowers And she is set to impress in Bonded By Blood 2 which is based on Bernard O'Mahoney's book titled Essex Boys: The New Generation, which is set in 1985. In the movie, it is feared that a void left behind by three murders from the original Essex Boys firm will spark a gangland war, and the instinct is to expand and conquer. The film also stars EastEnders actor Sam Strike and Dani Dyer the daughter of Danny Dyer, another regular on the BBC soap. While movies may be new to Casey, Dani, 18, is seasoned in gangster thrillers and already has Age Of Kill due for release in 2015. Producer Jonathan Sothcott told MailOnline: 'Kirk came in to audition for my film Vendetta in 2012 and although he's very charismatic, he was nervous and it didn't work out. Provocative: The film also teases sex and glamour with some saucy snippets included in the video 'He went away and studied it and took it very seriously and when he came in to audition for Bonded By Blood he absolutely nailed it. The fact he looks like Tom Hardy doesn't hurt but he's really good in the movie.' 'I knew Casey socially, we lived near each other in Essex at the time and she asked me if she could audition. 'She has a big part in the movie and I didn't want it to look like she was getting it because we were friends. 'She screen tested for the director and everyone was very impressed - any negative expectations there may have been were immediately expelled and her performance is excellent - very natural, very gritty. 'If Casey wants a career as an actress its easily within her reach.' His time on the Corrie cobbles may have been brief. But Ian Kelsey has made quite the impact as conman Vinny Ashford. The actor was seen shooting his final scenes in Weatherfield on Wednesday, jumping in a black cab for his dash to Hawaii after scamming his neighbours out of their cash. Making a run for it: Ian Kelsey shot his final Coronation Street scenes on Wednesday, jumping in a black cab for his dash to Hawaii after scamming his neighbours out of their cash Ian's Vinny was seen heading out of his house and jumping in a waiting black cab, appropriately dressed for his eventual destination in a Hawaiian shirt. Later his partner in crime Pat Phelan (Connor McIntyre) rang Vinny's doorbell only to be told by his neighbours that he'd left for good. Ex Emmerdale favourite Ian joined the Corrie cast in the summer as an old associate of schemer Pat. Together the conmen lured the unsuspecting Sarah Platt into buying one of their rip-off flats, much to the ire of Todd Grimshaw. Having received an unexpected amount of money the street's resident former Hell-raiser was determined to make good use of it, and provide a home for her family. Making his exit: Ian, who plays Vinny Ashford, carried a holdall as he locked up his house But Sarah (Tina O'Brien) managed to head straight to two of the street's most untrustworthy people. Planning to rip off hopeful homeowners, a scheme hatched with swindler Pat and trouble-maker Todd (Bruno Langley), Sarah stepped unwittingly into Vinny's sights. However, with a long history between them, and Sarah being one of Todd's only real friends, he tried to intervene and get Sarah out of trouble - something Pat wasn't too keen on. Confronting his mother's back-stabbing boyfriend over the trio's latest target, Todd threatened to blow the whistle on the whole operation. Though the builder revealed it's not him that Todd should be worried about, but Vinny. She's just started her stint as Holly Golightly in the theatre production of Breakfast at Tiffany's. And Georgia May Foote managed to take from rehearsals to soak up the sights of Sheffield - where the play is currently showing - on Wednesday. Keeping her head down as she strolled along, the 25-year-old actress seemed deep in thought on the outing - possibly thinking about her rumoured new beau, George Alsford. Scroll down for video Chic and cheerful: She's currently performing in Breakfast at Tiffany's. And Georgia May Foote managed to take from rehearsals to soak up the sights of Sheffield on Wednesday Dressed down for the stroll, the former Coronation Street star looked casual but chic in a pair of skinny jeans and a plain white vest, whilst she injected some colour with a pair of suede red trainers. Injecting some glitz, she also donned a pair of silver hooped earrings and boasted a glossy red manicure. She finished off the look with a grey beanie hat and slung a khaki parka jacket over her arm. Someone your mind? Keeping her head down as she strolled along, the 25-year-old actress seemed deep in thought on the outing - possibly thinking about her rumoured new beau Casual but chic: Dressed down for the stroll, the former Coronation Street star looked casual but chic in a pair of skinny jeans, a plain white vest and a pair of suede red trainers Georgia's outing comes amid reports she is dating hunky male model George, following her split from her boyfriend and Strictly Come Dancing partner Giovanni Pernice in August. Speaking to the Daily Star, a source said: ' George fancies the pants off Georgia. They met at the offices of their agency and have been meeting up as much as they can around her hectic work schedule.' Georgia's outing comes amid reports she is dating hunky male model George, following her split from her boyfriend and Strictly Come Dancing partner Giovanni Pernice in August. Natural beauty: Georgia looked stunning as she carried her shopping down the street All about the accessories: Injecting some glitz, she also donned a pair of silver hooped earrings and boasted a glossy red manicure Speaking to the Daily Star, a source said: ' George fancies the pants off Georgia. They met at the offices of their agency and have been meeting up as much as they can around her hectic work schedule.' 'They're really enjoying each other's company. He thinks she's really hot and they're having a lot of fun together.' George, who stands at 6ft 3in tall, is signed with Select Model Management, the same firm which represents Georgia. He has appeared in campaigns for Hugo Boss, Pepe Jeans and Russell & Bromley, among other top-flight brands, and frequently shows off his gym-honed torso on his Instagram account. Catch of the week: George Alsford, a model signed with Select Model Management, is reportedly dating Coronation Street alum Georgia Happier times: In May Georgia and then-boyfriend Giovanni Pernice looked smitten while attending a dance performance at Sadler's Wells Pec-tacular: George, who stands at 6ft 3 in tall, has appeared in campaigns for Hugo Boss and Pepe Jeans Georgia announced her split from Giovanni on Twitter in August, making it clear that the decision came down to them and them alone. The 25-year-old wrote: 'It is with great sadness we have decided to split up. There is nobody else involved. 'Although it was not an easy decision to make, sometimes you realise that it is better to be friends and this is one of those times.' Stud muffin: George showed off his razor-sharp cheekbones in this Instagram snap from last year Georgia - who has taken over the role of Holly Golightly in the stage production of Breakfast At Tiffany's from Pixie Lott - recently appeared on Belfast Live and talked about the breakup. She said: 'I'm quite a private person so I just get on with life, I've always said that my job is the most important thing in my life and my family. 'My family are happy and healthy and I'm working on a great show. 'I've literally just thrown myself into it completely. It's been such a great experience and I'm lucky that I've got it right now, I think, to do - to keep me busy. I just kind of get on with life, I don't really listen [to what's being said].' Scarlett Johansson was back in action filming her upcoming movie Rock The Body earlier this week in Los Angeles. The actress, 31, was spotted in a dark red dress and wearing a 'bride to be' sash as she shot scenes on Sunday with co-star Kate McKinnon. The dark comedy, slated for a 2017 release, is about a weekend bachelorette party at a Miami beach house that ends with the death of a male stripper. Filming: Scarlett Johansson, 31, was spotted in a dark red dress and wearing a 'bride to be' sash as she shot scenes on Sunday with co-star Kate McKinnon in Los Angeles Johansson's short cropped blonde hair was sleekly styled and she wore lip color to match her halter-neck frock. She appeared to be waiting for a car to pick her up as she stood on the sidewalk in front of a 7-11 store clutching a multi-colored flag-themed suitcase. In addition to McKinnon, actress Ilana Glazer was also in the scene dressed in shorts and a denim vest with a 'friend of the bride' sash slung across her body. On location: Johansson, McKinnon and co-star Ilana Glazer shot scenes in front of a 7-11 store Female driven plot: The dark comedy is about a weekend bachelorette party and a dead male stripper Mixed messages: Johansson seemed to be having a good time; the 'friends of the bride' not so much Night shoot: The ladies appeared to be waiting with their luggage for a ride Rock The Body is a change of pace for Johansson who usually stars in dramatic or action themed films. The movie is one of the latest female-driven projects greenlit by Hollywood. Also starring are Demi Moore, Zoe Kravitz and Jillian Bell with male support from Colton Haynes, Ty Burrell and Dean Winters. Looking good: The Lost In Translation beauty showed off her fabulous figure in the dark red dress with a cross-halter top and a slit at the back of the skirt In character: Her cropped blonde hair was style din a sleek bob and she wore lip color to match the dress Advertisement They're both rogues who've used their wits to outsmart the killing machine in the past six series. And it seems that Tyrion 'The Imp' Lannister and Ser Davos 'The Onion Knight' Seaworth are combining the marshal nous to take on the next blood-drenched series of Game of Thrones. Shooting scenes for the already highly-anticipated seventh season of HBO's fantasy romp on Wednesday, the two actors hit the beach in Barrika, Spain dressed in the most roguish garb available to the men of Westeros. Scroll down for video A return to Westeros? It seems that Tyrion 'The Imp' Lannister and Ser Davos 'The Onion Knight' Seaworth are combining the marshal nous to take on the next blood-drenched series of Game of Thrones With both characters having had to flee The Seven Kingdoms after bad luck saw their fortunes fall in the 'Game of Thrones', the two appear to have joined forces in the pursuit of a common goal. Striding out onto a beach dressed in black medieval robes, the two actors were surrounded by a veritable army of crew and cameras. With fans of both George R.R. Martin's books and the HBO show familiar with Ser Davos' past as a smuggler, it's hardly surprising to see that the low-born knight and the exiled imp have arrived at their destination in a small smugglers boat. Two rogues: Shooting scenes for the already highly-anticipated seventh season of HBO's fantasy romp on Wednesday, the two actors hit the beach in Spain dressed in the most roguish garb available to the men of Westeros As the two characters disembark the craft and stroll up the beach, Tyrion and the ever-noble Ser Davos appear to be deep in conversation. Dressed all in black Tyrion looks to have fared quite well from his time spent in exile - fans last saw The Imp forming an alliance with Daenerys Targaryen in Mereen - the outcast Lannister looks to be in his usual effervescent mood. Sporting an unruly mop of curls and a scraggy beard, it looks as though Tyrion is firmly enjoying his life as a rogue agent. Smugglers in the sun: Striding out onto a beach dressed in black medieval robes, the two actors were surrounded by a veritable army of crew and cameras Out of the frying pan and into the fire? While it's not known where the two men have headed to, extras dressed as armed and chain mail-clad guards were spotted on the beach alongside Peter and Liam Ser Davos was instantly familiar thanks to his shock of white hair and his peppered beard, although his far from noble clothing was also a give-away. More comfortable with the life of a smuggler and pirate than in the courts or at his King's side, it seems Ser Davos has left his feud with Melisandre behind him in order to seek out Tyrion. And while it's not known where the two men have headed to, extras dressed as armed and chain mail-clad guards were spotted on the beach alongside Peter and Liam. The cast and crew are currently filming scenes in Northern Spain's Basque Country where they are believed to be also using the islet of San Juan de Gaztelugatxe as a main filming location. They've become household names thanks to their roles on ITVBe reality show, The Only Way Is Essex. And Kate Wright, Lydia Bright and Georgia Kousoulou both battled to stand out in their respective ensembles as they headed out in Essex for a day of filming. Kate made sure that all eyes were on her, wearing a low-cut white vest top which showed off her ample assets. Scroll down for video She's got it going on: TOWIE's Kate Wright looked incredible in an all-lycra ensemble when she headed out in Essex to film scenes for the reality show on Friday She teamed it with a form-fitting peach pencil skirt which clung to her shape, but covered up a little in a longline jacket. Adding some extra inches to her height, she wore a pair of statement heels in khaki which matched the hue of her outerwear perfectly. Also looking the part was Lydia, who flashed the flesh in a black crop top and matching flirty skirt. Back to black: Also looking the part was Lydia Bright, who flashed the flesh in a black crop top and matching flirty skirt A step back in time: Georgia took a leaf out of a Nineties style book, wearing an oversized baggy jacket which was covered in colourful iron-on patches Prepare to be stunned: She wore it over a super short black mini dress and added some serious sex appeal in a pair of claret coloured suede thigh-high boots She wrapped up a little wearing a lace style cardigan and wore a sexy pair of black court shoes. Her blonde locks were styled in pretty curls and she showed off a golden tan, carrying a monochrome tote in her hand. Georgia took a leaf out of a Nineties style book, wearing an oversized baggy jacket which was covered in colourful iron-on patches. She wore it over a super short black mini dress and added some serious sex appeal in a pair of claret coloured suede thigh-high boots. Also present on the day was Danielle Armstrong who kept things low-key in a cream jumper which had holes ripped throughout the base. She also wore baggy black ripped jeans and a pair of peeptoe ankle boots as she gave photographers a beaming smile. Finally, Jon Clark was pictured holding hands with a beautiful blonde as he made his way to set, no doubt setting tongues wagging. Wow thing: Also present on the day was Danielle Armstrong who kept things low-key in a cream jumper which had holes ripped throughout the base New girl? Finally, Jon Clark was pictured holding hands with a beautiful blonde as he made his way to set, no doubt setting tongues wagging Meanwhile, while the girls all looked drop dead gorgeous, the boys also came out to play in stylish ensembles. Dan Edgar, James Lock and James 'Arg' Argent all looked trendy as they arrived with their pals to film. Bobby Norris also managed to look fashionable wearing one bedazzled trainer while hobbling on one crutch. The next episode of TOWIE is due to air on Wednesday night at 10pm on ITVBe. The boys are here! Dan Edgar, James Lock, James 'Arg' Argent gave the girls a run for their money in terms of style Fashion first! Bobby Cole Norris still managed to looked fashionable in one bedazzled trainer as he hobbles on one crutch Stylish: Dan Edgar was handsome in an all-black ensemble while the rest of the boys rivaled him with their slick looks Casual: Arg kept it simple with a cream-coloured shirt which was un-tucked Kim Kardashian had become an expert in conspicuous consumption, globe trotting and flaunting her fabulous figure. But now that the reality diva has been rattled to the core after a shocking Paris robbery that left her begging for her life, the 35-year-old Keeping Up With The Kardashians star is changing her ways. According to People, the mother-of-two is now 'withdrawn' and has 'zero desire in resuming her old lifestyle.' Flash: Kim Kardashian, seen here before her Paris robbery on October 3, has no interest in resuming her old lifestyle, according to People Cash: The 35-year-old star used to flaunt her wealth like she did here when she showed off her large diamond ring from Kanye West. The rock was stolen during the heist, it has been reported On the town: The E! queen in Miami beach with husband Kanye West in September Kim has been staying at home - first in New York then Los Angeles - since the robbery took place on October 3. The beauty has also been spending as much time as she can with her two children North, aged three, and Saint, 10 months. 'She is still having a difficult time,' a source told the site. 'She has zero desire to resume her old life.' Now under wraps: Kim has been staying at home - first in New York then Los Angeles - since the robbery took place on October 3 Rattled: 'She is still having a difficult time,' a source told the site. 'She has zero desire to resume her old life' Now that husband Kanye West is currently on his Saint Pablo tour, she visits her mother Kris Jenners home in nearby Hidden Hills. She has 'only left her house for overnight visits with the kids to Kris and for important appointments.' It was added: 'On every solo outing, she uses a bodyguard. Before the robbery, she would enjoy solo outings. This has totally changed now.' Till further notice: And she is not sure what the new Kim will be like. 'Kim is still figuring out what she wants to do,' said the insider. 'She has no plans for any public appearances'; here she is with Kourtney on October 2, the day before the robbery And she is not sure what the new Kim will be like. 'Kim is still figuring out what she wants to do,' said the insider. 'She has no plans for any public appearances.' During her 36th birthday on Friday she will be 'very low key.' She canceled a birthday party in Las Vegas last weekend. 'She just wants to be with her kids and out of public,' says the source. No one is pressuring her either. She has the best support from her family.' She leans on her sisters: Khloe told Ellen DeGeneres last week, '[Kims] not doing that well. I mean, its incredibly traumatic what happened to her. But our family is super close and great and well get through it together'; here they are seen in 2014 The Selfish author has been described as 'nervous' and 'anxious.' And she 'doesnt want to be photographed,' a massive change from the old Kim who seemed to love a photo op. 'Kims whole life has basically changed. Before, she was like a social butterfly. Now she acts much more withdrawn,' said the pal. Her home base: Kim has been holed up in her Bel-Air home, but sometimes she visits mom Kris Jenner in her Hidden Hills home On Monday, her assistant Stephanie Sheppard shared a handwritten note on Kardashian's website and app. 'She is taking some much needed time off,' wrote the pal. Khloe told Ellen DeGeneres last week, '[Kims] not doing that well. I mean, its incredibly traumatic what happened to her. But our family is super close and great and well get through it together, and we do appreciate all of your guys love and support and it will take time. You know, it was horrible what happened to her.' On Tuesday at The Grove her mother Kris Jenner said, 'She needs to take it one day at a time.' Keeping Up with the Kardashians returns Sunday (9 p.m. ET) on E! Jennifer Aniston's husband Justin Theroux may want to look away. On Tuesday his 47-year-old wife was seen caressing a handsome man on the set of a SmartWater photo shoot in the Universal City neighborhood of Los Angeles. The Friends vet was not in jeans and a T-shirt either. Rather the beautiful blonde was dressed to the nines as she showed off her chest in a plunging black and white floor-length gown. Scroll down for video A special friend: Jennifer Aniston caressed a man on the set of a SmartWater photo shoot in the Universal City neighborhood of Los Angeles on Tuesday Is he fixing her dress? The Friends vet was not in jeans and a T-shirt either. Rather the beautiful blonde was dressed to the nines as she showed off her chest in a plunging white gown She can't lose the guy! The salt and pepper mystery man was most likely the photographer for the stylish shoot The Horrible Bosses actress had both hands on his neck and face as she took a break form posing in a very touchy-feely moment. The beauty looked ravishing with her long blonde locks stick straight and her makeup done in a dramatic red-carpet style. Aniston also was wearing her diamond engagement ring from her Wanderlust co-star. The mystery man had on a white T-shirt, black jeans and white sneakers. He was most likely the photographer at the shoot for the bottle water company as he was seen behind a camera. Bling it on! Aniston also was wearing her diamond engagement ring from her Wanderlust co-star Justin Theroux Here's looking at you, kid! The beauty was ravishing with her long blonde locks stick straight and her makeup done in a dramatic red-carpet style Hair today: Aniston seemed to be in good spirits as she played with her golden locks Also seen on set was Aniston's longtime hairstylist Chris McMillian who she launched Living Proof with. And there were a female makeup artist on standby. Aniston seemed to be in good spirits as she held onto an iPad and played with her hair. The Vogue cover girl wed actor Theroux in August 2015 at their Bel-Air mansion with Sandra Bullock and Courteney Cox as guests. Theroux and Aniston have seemed to be happy newlyweds as they have traveled to Mexico as well as their other residence in New York in the past year. Her steady dude: Also seen on set was Aniston's longtime hairstylist Chris McMillian who she launched Living Proof with That looks like it hurts! Chris, who has also worked with Kim Kardashian, pulled on the Emmy winner's tendrils She earns it! The Bruce Almighty star had to bend her back to let her McMillian do his thing In the past few months he has been filming The Leftovers in Australia while she shot Office Christmas Party in New York. When Jennifer was accused of being pregnant this summer, her spouse stood up for her. 'She has lived through a lot of bulls***. Many people would have crumbled under some of the stresses that have been put on her. I'm very proud of her for that, for the way she handles herself,' said Theroux. Lash fix: It also looked as if her makeup artist was pulling off one of her lashes Does it really take this many people to shoot a picture? Apparently, yes. There were at least a dozen people on set. And there is Jennifer's mystery man behind the camera Their relationship has been going from strength to strength since they celebrated their first anniversary in August with a low-key anniversary celebration. He flew to Los Angeles from Australia to ensure he would be with his wife on their special day. A source told People magazine: 'Justin flew from Australia to LA to spend their anniversary week with Jen.' She likes the stuff: Here is the Cake star's ads for the Glaceau company 'They relaxed at home, had dinner with friends and had a small anniversary celebration at home.' Jen has previously said that she felt like they were husband and wife for a long time before they tied the knot. She said: 'We felt married for so long. Married life is so normal and fun and not much different.' She shared: 'I'm lucky because Justin is the funniest person I've met, and we make each other laugh. Laughter is one of the great keys to staying youthful.' On Tuesday, Ben Stiller was hard at work on the set of his film Brad's Status in Montreal's Verdun neighborhood. It was first sighting of the Emmy-winning writer - who turns 51 next month - since he revealed his battle with prostate cancer earlier this month. The Zoolander 2 funnyman - wearing a tartan top and jeans - peeked through the window of a fake Mexican restaurant called Renata's. Scroll down for video Bonjour! On Tuesday, Ben Stiller was hard at work on the set of his film Brad's Status in Montreal's Verdun neighborhood Stiller - who visited the Medz Salon on Monday - plays Brad, a man jealous of his old friends' lifestyles while visiting East Coast colleges with his son. The social media-centered comedy is being produced by Ben's Megamind co-star Brad Pitt and it's written and directed by Mike White (Enlightened). On October 4, the Frat Packer shocked his fans by penning an article in Medium recounting his terrifying three-month cancer ordeal. Action! It was first sighting of the Emmy-winning writer - who turns 51 next month - since he revealed his battle with prostate cancer earlier this month Hungry? The Zoolander 2 funnyman - wearing a tartan top and jeans - peeked through the window of a fake Mexican restaurant called Renata's 'De Hollywood a Verdun!' Stiller - who visited the Medz Salon on Monday - plays Brad, a man jealous of his old friends' lifestyles while visiting East Coast colleges with his son Brad's Status: The social media-centered comedy is being produced by Ben's Megamind co-star Brad Pitt (pictured in 2016) and it's written and directed by Mike White (pictured in 2015) 'I got diagnosed with prostate cancer Friday, June 13th, 2014. On September 17th of that year I got a test back telling me I was cancer free. The three months in between were a crazy roller coaster ride with which about 180,000 men a year in America can identify,' recalled Stiller, who underwent a robotic-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy. 'Taking the PSA (Prostate Specific Antigen) test saved my life. Literally. That's why I am writing this now. There has been a lot of controversy over the test in the last few years. Articles and op-eds on whether it is safe, studies that seem to be interpreted in many different ways, and debates about whether men should take it all. I am not offering a scientific point of view here, just a personal one, based on my experience.' 'Taking the PSA test saved my life': On October 4, the Frat Packer shocked his fans by penning an article in Medium recounting his terrifying three-month cancer ordeal Stiller recalled: 'I got diagnosed with prostate cancer Friday, June 13th, 2014. On September 17th of that year I got a test back telling me I was cancer free. The three months in between were a crazy roller coaster ride with which about 180,000 men a year in America can identify' Family-of-four: Curiously, the New York native did not mention his wife of 16 years Christine Taylor nor their children - Ella, 14, and Quinlin, 11 - in his essay (pictured February 9) Curiously, the New York native did not mention his wife of 16 years Christine Taylor nor their children - Ella, 14, and Quinlin, 11 - in his essay. Last year, Ben suffered the loss of his Golden Globe-nominated mother Anne Meara, who passed away from 'natural causes' at age 85. Meanwhile, his Emmy-nominated father Jerry - 89 - briefly reprised his role as imprisoned agent Maury Ballstein in Zoolander 2 earlier this year. Rest in peace: Last year, Ben suffered the loss of his Golden Globe-nominated mother Anne Meara, who passed away from 'natural causes' at age 85 (pictured 2004) She has a fabulous figure and she's determined to keep it that way. Beautiful Bachelorette star Andi Dorfman was spotted out pounding the pavement in New York on a sunny Tuesday afternoon. The 29-year-old poured her slender physique into a black cropped top that showed off her tummy. Pounding the pavement: Bachelorette alum Andi Dorfman was spotted jogging along the Hudson River in New York on Tuesday She paired it with skin-tight black leggings and bright pink Nike sneakers as she jogged along a path beside the the Hudson River. The brunette, who smoothed her tresses back into a ponytail, sensibly did a few stretches before setting off. The same day, Andi posted an Instagram snap of herself in exercise-wear and a black cap as she stood by the river in West Side Highway Park with the city's skyscrapers glittering on the water behind her. She captioned it: 'Evening run made a whole helluva lot easier thanks to this view.' Stretching it out: The 29-year-old poured her slender physique into a black cropped top that showed off her tummy Get your hands up: The beautiful brunette did a few exercises before going jogging Bright lights: Andi posted this Instagram taken from West Side Highway Park, which she captioned, 'Evening run made a whole helluva lot easier thanks to this view' Andi, the former Assistant District Attorney for Fulton County, Georgia, quit her job after landing a role on the 18th season of The Bachelor. She went on to star in 10th season of The Bachelorette, which premiered on May 19, 2014. She handed the rose to Josh Murray, who asked her to marry him. But they called their engagement of after eight months. Her man: Andi gave the winning rose to Josh Murray in the 10th season of The Bachelorette in 2014. But their engagement ended eight months later Feathered friend: Andi and runner up Nick Viall in Venice, Italy during the show. She was upset when he later revealed they 'made love' in the Fantasy Suite, a camera-free room Andi was upset when runner up Nick Viall, 35, revealed during the After The Final Rose special that they had 'made love' in the Fantasy Suite, a private room free of cameras that contestants enter in the later stages of the contest. But she made good on her reality star experiences by writing a bestseller, It's Not Okay: Turning Heartbreak Into Happily Never After, published in May. Last month she told UsWeekly that sales had soared since Nick's appearance in Bachelor In Paradise and the decision to make him the main man in next season's The Bachelor. 'We got an extra boost that Im not going to complain about,' Andi dished. She got to know Donald Trump in 2004 after winning the Miss Universe pageant in the U.S and living in Trump Tower in New York during her reign. Now, Jennifer Hawkins is trying to distance herself from the potential US President as he prepares for his final pre-election debate against Hilary Clinton, Stateside. According to the Daily Telegraph, the 32-year-old model has cancelled a number of interviews after regularly being asked questions about the politician. Scroll down for video Stepping aside: Jennifer Hawkins has cancelled a number of media interviews as she refuses to answer questions about Donald Trump Hawkins manager, Sean Anderson of 22 Management confirmed the reasoning in a statement to the publication. 'Jennifer is not interested and will not be commenting on Donald Trump,' he commented. 'She is not interested in getting involved in the politics.' Hawkins has reportedly cancelled interviews with Daily Telegraph, Woman's Day, KIIS FM's Kyle & Jackie O and Nova radio in the last week. No part of it: Hawkins manager, Sean Anderson of 22 Management confirmed the reasoning in a statement: 'Jennifer is not interested and will not be commenting on Donald Trump' The Daily Mail Australia has contacted Hawkins' management for comment. Hawkins' refusal to comment on Trump, comes seven months after she praised the Republican candidate for being a 'brilliant businessman'. During an interview with Today Extra, she revealed: 'He is charming. He has presence'. Cancelled: Hawkins has cancelled interviews with the Daily Telegraph, Woman's Day, KIIS FM's Kyle & Jackie O and Nova radio in the last week In August, Hawkins also admitted Trump was one of her inspiration sources. 'He inspired me to keep going and follow my heart,' she told the Daily Telegraph at the time. 'Hes really passionate and really driven. Hes like, "Whats next?" He prompts you to think, "All right, what is next?"' She wrote of her 'current nocturnal existence' on Instagram this week. So it was no surprise to see new mum Olivia Wilde pick up a caffeine fix on Wednesday, eight days after welcoming daughter Daisy. The 32-year-old actress teamed boyfriend jeans with an oversize white shirt as she strolled in the New York sunshine. A little fix: Olivia Wilde stepped out solo on Wednesday to grab a coffee in New York just days after giving birth to daughter Daisy Josephine The Vinyl star kept it comfy in some white trainers and shaded her no doubt tired eyes with some large sunglasses. Olivia and fiance Jason Sudeikis welcomed Daisy on October 11, with the actress posting a sweet Instagram of the new arrival several days later. She wrote alongside the snap: 'There goes the neighborhood. Daisy Josephine Sudeikis. Born, like a boss, on #internationaldayofthegirl. [heart emoji].' And like most new mums, Olivia appears to be suffering from sleep deprivation, posting an Instagram shot with the caption 'You awake?' on Monday. Off-duty: The Vinyl star wore ripped boyfriend jeans and an oversize white shirt for the outing Bliss! The actress shared this touching snap of her newborn daughter snuggling on her chest on Wednesday Tired eyes? Olivia wore her long locks loose and donned some large shades Happy news: The actress announced the birth of her second child on Instagram on Sunday 'Yup. Yup I am,' she captioned the snap. 'My current nocturnal existence.' Jason and Olivia also share a two-year-old son Otis who was born in April 2014. They began dating in 2011, with the We're the Millers star later proposing in January 2013. Olivia was previously married to Tao Ruspoli for eight years, before divorcing in 2011. Jason split with Pitch Perfect writer Kay Cannon in 2010 after six years of marriage. 'Nocturnal existence': Olivia revealed she's been lacking sleep since the birth of her second child on October 11 Her love rat ex Pete Wicks vowed to win her back on Sunday's episode of TOWIE. However, Megan McKenna put her recent romance turmoil to one side as she headed to filming the reality show in Essex on Wednesday. The 24-year-old flaunted her sartorial chops in a sexy ensemble as she was joined by her pal Amber Dowding for the girls' night out. Scroll down for video Night out glam: Megan McKenna, 24, put her recent romance turmoil to one side as she enjoyed a night out in Essex on Wednesday Stylish: The TOWIE star flaunted her sartorial chops in a sexy ensemble as she was joined by her pal Amber Dowding for the girls night out A pair of sexy skin-tight leather trousers clung on to fine-tuned pins and complemented the simple black vest top, which flaunted her busty front. Keeping it chic, she opted for an a-line khaki blazer which boasted rolled up sleeves and skimmed her figure to perfection. Never forgoing any element of glamour, she strutted forth in a pair of racy black caged heels while gripping on to a stylish matching handbag. Obviously loving her new fringe, the beauty looked refined as her locks were styled super straight - framing her perfectly chiselled features. Sexy lady: A pair of sexy skin-tight leather trousers clung on to fine-tuned pins and complemented the simple black vest top, which flaunted her busty front Chic: She opted for an a-line khaki blazer which boasted rolled up sleeves and skimmed her figure to perfection Megan oozed sex appeal and any signs of heartache weren't prominent as Amber was hot on her tails for their bonding time together. The TOWIE newcomer decided to embrace the sexy trend of thigh-high boots with her own pair of sexy suede grey shoes. Finding the right balance between casual and glam she donned a figure-hugging knitted mini-dress which fell at thigh-level. The stunner matched her eye-shadow to the ensemble and allowed her blonde locks to flirtatiously fall beside her. Walking the walk: Never forgoing any element of glamour, she strutted forth in a pair of racy black caged heels while gripping on to a stylish matching handbag Ready to have fun! The former CBB star looked in great spirits for the night ahead Amber proved to be the perfect companion for Megan who was faced with her estranged ex Pete on this week's episode of the ITVBe episode. The inked star declared his absolute love for her and expressed huge regret over his actions by promising to fix their estranged relationship. Megan was seen admitting inside that she found it too difficult to be in the same place as him - after it emerged that he had sent sexual messages to his ex model Jacqui Ryland during their holiday to Marbella, Spain last month. Standing tall: Amber decided to embrace the sexy trend of thigh-high boots with her own pair of sexy suede grey shoes Fashionista: Finding the right balance between casual and glam she donned a figure-hugging knitted mini-dress which fell at thigh-level In good spirits: Megan looked happy and welcoming to her estranged beau And while Megan is still contemplating her future with Pete, the rest of the TOWIE cast kept themselves busy as they filmed further scenes for the hit show. Kate Wright, Lydia Bright and Georgia Kousoulou both battled to stand out in their respective ensembles as they headed out in Essex for a day of filming. Kate made sure that all eyes were on her, wearing a low-cut white vest top which showed off her ample assets. She's got it going on: TOWIE's Kate Wright looked incredible in an all-lycra ensemble when she headed out in Essex to film scenes for the reality show on Friday She teamed it with a form-fitting peach pencil skirt which clung to her shape, but covered up a little in a longline jacket. Adding some extra inches to her height, she wore a pair of statement heels in khaki which matched the hue of her outerwear perfectly. Also looking the part was Lydia, who flashed the flesh in a black crop top and matching flirty skirt. Back to black: Also looking the part was Lydia Bright, who flashed the flesh in a black crop top and matching flirty skirt A step back in time: Georgia took a leaf out of a Nineties style book, wearing an oversized baggy jacket which was covered in colourful iron-on patches Prepare to be stunned: She wore it over a super short black mini dress and added some serious sex appeal in a pair of claret coloured suede thigh-high boots She wrapped up a little wearing a lace style cardigan and wore a sexy pair of black court shoes. Her blonde locks were styled in pretty curls and she showed off a golden tan, carrying a monochrome tote in her hand. Georgia took a leaf out of a Nineties style book, wearing an oversized baggy jacket which was covered in colourful iron-on patches. She wore it over a super short black mini dress and added some serious sex appeal in a pair of claret coloured suede thigh-high boots. Also present on the day was Danielle Armstrong who kept things low-key in a cream jumper which had holes ripped throughout the base. She also wore baggy black ripped jeans and a pair of peeptoe ankle boots as she gave photographers a beaming smile. Finally, Jon Clark was pictured holding hands with a beautiful blonde as he made his way to set, no doubt setting tongues wagging. Wow thing: Also present on the day was Danielle Armstrong who kept things low-key in a cream jumper which had holes ripped throughout the base New girl? Finally, Jon Clark was pictured holding hands with a beautiful blonde as he made his way to set, no doubt setting tongues wagging Meanwhile, while the girls all looked drop dead gorgeous, the boys also came out to play in stylish ensembles. Dan Edgar, James Lock and James 'Arg' Argent all looked trendy as they arrived with their pals to film. Bobby Norris also managed to look fashionable wearing one bedazzled trainer while hobbling on one crutch. The next episode of TOWIE is due to air on Wednesday night at 10pm on ITVBe. The boys are here! Dan Edgar, James Lock, James 'Arg' Argent gave the girls a run for their money in terms of style Fashion first! Bobby Cole Norris still managed to looked fashionable in one bedazzled trainer as he hobbles on one crutch Stylish: Dan Edgar was handsome in an all-black ensemble while the rest of the boys rivaled him with their slick looks Casual: Arg kept it simple with a cream-coloured shirt which was un-tucked The FBI is continuing to look into exactly what went down between Brad Pitt and son Maddox, 15, on a private flight back to the U.S. on September 14. Angelina Jolie and the couple's six children were interviewed by two FBI agents on Tuesday, TMZ reported Wednesday. Law enforcement sources told the website that the agents spent more than three hours at Jolie's Malibu home as part of a 'fact-finding' mission. Ongoing investigation: Two FBI agents visited Angelina Jolie and her children on Tuesday (pictured here that day) It seems that officials not only wanted a 'step-by-step' account of what happened but are also trying to pinpoint exactly where the private jet was when the incident occurred. The former power couple announced their split four weeks ago after Jolie filed for divorce on September 19 with the actress, 41, pushing for sole custody of the children. Pitt, 52, is currently being investigated by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services as well as by the FBI after allegedly drinking and physically attacking Maddox on board the airplane. Pitt denies the claims and is seeking joint custody of the kids - Maddox, Pax, 12, Zahara, 11, Shiloh, ten, and twins Vivienne and Knox, eight. Getting to the bottom of it: Officials are seeking more information about the alleged incident on board a private jet last month between Brad Pitt and son Maddox, 15, according to TMZ Hunting the truth: Law enforcement sources told the website that the agents spent more than three hours at Jolie's Malibu home as part of a 'fact-finding' mission According to TMZ, law enforcement wants to ascertain whether or not the plane was in U.S. airspace when the argument between Pitt and Maddox occurred, and also want to know exactly what happened during a refueling stop in Minnesota en route to Los Angeles. Sources told TMZ that Jolie was cooperative with investigators and it remains highly unlikely that any case will be brought in the matter. It was also claimed Wednesday that the two A-Listers, who were together for 12 years and married for just over two years, have not had any contact since their split. Cooperative: Sources told TMZ that Jolie was cooperative with investigators and it remains highly unlikely that any case will be brought in the matter Out and about: Angelina and the children (Zahara is pictured here) were seen on Tuesday for the first time since she filed for divorce from Brad Helping out: Angelina's brother James Haven was also spotted with the group in Los Angeles Instead they have opted to have their negotiations - especially the custody battle - handled by their respective teams, according to a new report from People. 'They are still working on issues that they can't agree on,' said People's insider. 'Things are strained between them.' Pitt recently had a tearful reunion with his children nearly three weeks after Jolie announced she was divorcing him but apparently there was one missing. Not talking: Angelina and Brad, shown with Maddox in 2013, have allegedly not had any contact since the split Rift: Maddox, pictured with his family in 2011, was adopted by Jolie two years before she began her romance with Pitt and it's claimed the teen did not accompany his siblings to a supervised visit with his father in LA this week. Pitt legally adopted Maddox in 2006 His 15-year-old son Maddox opted not to see his father according to a story in the new issue of Us Weekly. 'Maddox is very close with Angie.' a source close to Jolie told the publication. 'He [Maddox] chose not to go and stayed with Angie.' DailyMail.com has contacted spokesmen for both Pitt and Jolie. Representatives for Pitt have declined to comment. Divided: Pitt and Jolie with their children Zahara, Knox, Maddox, Shiloh, Pax and Vivienne together in Tokyo back in November 2011 Pitt is reportedly 'desperate' to agree a deal with Jolie, who has custody of the children for now. He volunteered to undergo random drug and alcohol tests to prove he does not have a problem with either. The first test reportedly came back negative. A friend told Us magazine that Pitt will co-operate 'in any way he can' so long as he can see his children. Social workers will make another evaluation on October 20 about how to resolve the dispute. She's one of the world's most in-demand models. And Miranda Kerr certainly proved exactly why when posing on the cover of Elle Spain. The 33-year-old Australian beauty flashes a hint of her toned torso in a stunning Louis Vuitton two-piece ensemble. Scroll down for video Cover girl: Miranda Kerr stuns on the cover of the latest issue of Elle Spain Miranda's stylish blouse features splashes of red and dark blue, broken up with a bold black print. It is teamed with a matching skirt that fits her stunning figure perfectly, and layered with with a sleek black jacket to take the look to the next level. Proving she's an absolute natural in front of the camera, Miranda effortlessly oozes sass and style as she places her right hand on her head. Red carpet sensation: Miranda has worn a similar Louis Vuitton creation when attending the Met Gala in New York earlier this year Her brown locks are worn in tousled waves, and she stares sultrily into the camera with her piercing blue eyes. Miranda has worn a similar Louis Vuitton creation when attending the Met Gala in New York earlier this year. For the star-studded night, Miranda opted for an edgy look as she flaunted her washboard abs in the long-sleeved Louis Vuitton crop top and pencil skirt. While her makeup is rather soft on the cover of Elle Spain, the model pulled out all the stops to create a dramatic look for the red carpet back in May. Edgy: For the star-studded night, Miranda opted for an edgy look as she flaunted her washboard abs in the long-sleeved Louis Vuitton crop top and pencil skirt The mother-of-one's stunning features were accentuated by having her hair pulled back in tight braids. She made a statement with bold dark lipstick while keeping the rest of her makeup soft with a touch of bronze eye shadow, a slick of mascara and some pink blush. Meanwhile it has been a tumultuous week for Miranda, after her security guard was recovering in hospital after being stabbed in the face by an intruder at her luxury home in California. Her activewear range is marking its third year and has experienced impressive growth, but this week it faced a very serious bump in the road. Just a day after it was revealed her Fabletics company was being sued by a former employee, Kate Hudson gushed about those she works with. The 37-year-old spoke about her athleisure business at the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit 2016 in Dana Point, California, on Wednesday. Scroll down for video Happy boss: Just a day after it was revealed her Fabletics company was being sued by a former employee, Kate Hudson gushed about those she works with Speaking to audience members and moderator Laura Brown, Kate said she has been blown away by how fast her company has grown. 'I just found out we're going to make $250m revenue in our first three years,' she told the crowd. While loathed to say the word, the Almost Famous actress said her celebrity status is both a benefit to the company and also has its pitfalls. 'The bigger it gets the more challenging it gets and because you are under a microscope you have to be more on top of things,' Kate said. Celebrating success: Speaking to audience members and moderator Laura Brown, Kate said she has been blown away by how fast her company has grown, 'I just found out we're going to make $250m revenue in our first three years' Under a microscope: While loathed to say the word, the Almost Famous actress said her celebrity status is both a benefit to the company and also has its pitfalls Kate told the audience that she would not have it any other way however, and is able to juggle the business, her movie career and motherhood because of those who work for her. Kate said: 'I like to work. I love to be busy and really, honestly, it is about the team you create. 'Some days I am really stressed out with two kids - but I don't complain - but for me I just try to be on top of everything and when I am, I am very happy and feel really grateful. Struggles: The star explained, 'The bigger it gets the more challenging it gets and because you are under a microscope you have to be more on top of things' 'Only as strong as your team': Kate told the audience that she would not have it any other way however, and is able to juggle the business, her movie career and motherhood because of those who work for her '[However] you can only really be as strong and together as the people you have around you.' Her praise comes the day after former vice president Talitha Peters filed papers in a Los Angeles court alleging she was wrongfully let go. Peters is suing Fabletics, along with parent company TechStyle, claiming she was wrongfully terminated after she sought medical treatment, which her company assumed was to deal with illegal drug use. Not everyone thinks so : Her praise comes the day after a former vice president Talitha Peters filed papers in a Los Angeles court alleging she was wrongfully let go According to The Hollywood Reporter, Peters says in court documents that after being promoted to vice president of creative, her doctor prescribed her Ambien to help her sleep. In court: Peters is suing Fabletics, along with parent company TechStyle, claiming she was wrongfully terminated after she sought medical treatment which her company assumed was to deal with illegal drug use After two years, the exec claims she was medically disabled and took three weeks leave. When her doctor extended her leave, other executives started asking her what was wrong and then researched her doctor, leading them to assume she was seeking treatment for illegal drugs - something she denies. When Peters returned from leave after six weeks, she says she was fired during a breakfast on her first day back. Peters is suing for 11 causes including disability discrimination, retaliation failure to accommodate, failure to grant medical leave and invasion of privacy over the manner in which they handled the situation. In response, the company said in a statement that they found the ex-employee's accusations 'to be baseless and meritless,' vowing to 'vigorously defend' themselves in court proceedings. They continued: 'Please know that we take the welfare of our employees extremely seriously and strive to create a happy and healthy workplace.' Meanwhile, other celebs speaking at the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit included comedian and TV host Chelsea Handler, 42, and 47-year-old former supermodel Christy Turlington Burns. Taking aim: Peters is suing for 11 causes including disability discrimination, retaliation failure to accommodate, failure to grant medical leave and invasion of privacy over the manner in which they handled the situation. Kate is pictured earlier this month Put your hands up: Other celebs speaking at Fortune's Most Powerful Women Summit included comedian and TV host Chelsea Handler, 42 He's the handsome Queenslander that's been spotted having a few kisses with Georgia Love when the cameras are rolling. And on Thursday, Jake Ellis admitted there has also been a few sneaky pecks between the pair when the cameras weren't around as well. The 30-year-old admitted the cheeky antics toOK! Australia, telling them cryptically: 'There's lots you don't see'. Scroll down for video 'There's a lot you don't see': Jake Ellis admitted he and Georgia Love have shared a number of kisses while the cameras aren't rolling Jake says the pair would check in with each other across the series to ensure their chemistry was still there, after he was the first one to score a single date at the start of the series. Now in the final four, there's one thing the sales professional is still hesitant about - a move to Melbourne. 'It would all depend on everything that's going on at home,' he admitted, after openly discussing his mother's cancer battle on the show. 'Although that's one city I've always wanted to live in... and you never know, for the right girl, you would do anything,' he added. Up in the air: The handsome Queenslander admits he needs to see 'what's happening at home' with his mother, who has been diagnosed with cancer five times, before he could commit to moving to Melbourne for Georgia Jake has been open with the former TV journalist about his mother battling cancer five times. During their date, the pair cosied up on the couch of a hotel salon, before getting into a deep discussion about their families. After Georgia opened up about her mother's recent diagnosis with cancer, Jake admitted he could relate. Checking in: The handsome sales professional revealed the pair would regularly check if there were still sparks between them throughout the show - and there always was Speaking to the camera, the 27-year-old said she had found a confidant and source of relief in her date. It was really nice to be able to speak to Jake so openly about what's happening with my mum,' she said. 'I felt he really, really understood, and he just made me feel better about the whole thing.' Today Extra's David Campbell lost his temper on Thursday's Today Extra after Kourtney Kardashian appeared to ignore his question about sister Kim's Paris robbery. The 43-year-old co-host hit out at the reality TV star after the interview suddenly came to an end, which turned out to be a technical glitch. After asking the 37-year-old, 'how is Kim going?', Kourtney began talking to staff behind-the-scenes, ignoring the Australian TV personality. Not impressed: Today Extra's David Campbell lost his temper on Thursday's Today Extra after Kourtney Kardashian appeared to ignore his question about her sister Kim's Paris robbery 'Hello Kourtney have we lost you?' David asked, as his co-host Sonia Kruger added: 'Alright. It looks like Kourtney doesn't really want to go there with that question.' He was less than impressed by the loss of communication, saying: 'I think she's totally blanking me on that question!' Sonia attempted to stand by Kourtney, explaining it may have been a PR issue behind -the-scenes, before David hit out: 'She could just say her sister is fine!' Cutting it: The 43-year-old co-host hit out at the reality TV star after the interview suddenly came to an end, which turned out to be a technical glitch Not keen to answer? Co-host Sonia Kruger believed 'Kourtney doesn't really want to go there with that question' 'I mean I think we just said that you know we're very concerned and we were onside and we hoped that everyone's fine which I still do,' he continued. Despite the interview cutting short, the Today Extra hosts still plugged her Manuka Doctor skin care range. After returning from a television break, David apologised on-air to the mother-of-three who was still on the other end of the line, in their LA studio, before continuing with the interview. Not happy: David hit out: 'She could just say her sister is fine! I think we just said that you know we're very concerned and we were onside and we hoped that everyone's fine which I still do' Blank faced: During the Today Extra's outburst, Kourtney glared blankly at the camera as she responded to people in the background 'Something happened in the studio and we sort of lost contact with Kourtney. We are happy to say she's still here,' he explained, a little red-faced. 'I'm sorry about what just happened there. Can we ask, first of all, is everything OK where you are right now?' Kourtney went on to explain she had experienced a 'bad connection'. Fresh start: After returning from a break, David apologised on-air to the mother-of-three who was still on the other end of the line, in their LA studio, before continuing with the interview Opening up: The Keeping Up With The Kardashian's star continued to speak out her sister, Kim, admitting she's 'not doing great' The Keeping Up With The Kardashian's star continued to speak out her sister, Kim, saying she's 'not doing great'. 'I think we're all really still shaken up and I just - you know, I think she has a big supportive family and I know that, like, all of the traumatic things that we've been through, we get through them together as a family,' she continued. Kim was robbed of $11 million worth of jewellery while staying in a luxury hotel in Paris on October 3. Kourtney Kardashian has spoken out about her sister Kim Kardashian following her dramatic robbery at gunpoint in Paris earlier this month. The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star was asked about Kim during an appearance on Australia's Today Extra show on Thursday, however the interview began on a slightly awkward note. As co-host David Campbell began interviewing the 37-year-old beauty, she began speaking to members of her team - appearing not to hear him. Speaking out: Kourtney Kardashian says sister has spoken out about her sister Kim Kardashian following her dramatic robbery at gunpoint in Paris earlier this month Eventually, what appeared to be technical troubles were restored and the segment proceed without any further issues. Kourtney revealed that Kim 'is not doing great' following the jewellery heist that saw the 35-year-old robbed of over $10 million. 'You know, she's not doing great. I think we're all really still shaken up,' she explained. Scroll down for video Kourtney's comments about her younger sibling came after a brief technical glitch on the show, with the socialite claiming 'we just had a bad connection' when she was first asked about Kim. She continued: 'I think she has a big supportive family and I know that, like, all of the traumatic things that we've been through, you know, we get through them together as a family and that's what family is about'. Kourtney said the serious incident is 'definitely' a wake up call for the family and she is 'still shaken.' Tough times: Kim was robbed on October 2 while attending Paris Fashion Week Serious: Speaking to Australia's Channel Nine program Today Extra, the 37-year-old said Kim 'is not doing great' following the jewellery heist that saw the 35-year-old robbed of over $10 million 'I feel like in our family especially, [when] we go through traumatic things just like our lives move so quickly at times we don't have a chance to digest them,' she explained. 'But I felt, like, you know I have personally been taking time to just digest everything and - you know, I'm still shaken up,' she candidly admitted. 'Of course you are,' host David responded. 'Can I just say on behalf of us and our team here thank you for coming back on and talking to us again. We do appreciate your input on this,' he continued, making reference to Kourtney not answering the duo's questions the first time around. Intense time: Kourtney said the serious incident is 'definitely' a wake up call for the family and she is 'still shaken' Back on-air: Kourtney's comments about her younger sibling came after a brief technical glitch on the show, with the socialite claiming 'we just had a bad connection' when she was first asked about Kim 'You know what what I understand you guys are the Kardashians. It's hard to always preach and ask questions and there will be people protecting you. For you to come on and come back to us is a testament to you,' the Australian television presenter added. Kim was robbed on October 2 while attending Paris Fashion Week. Five robbers in masks and dressed as police officers held her at gunpoint in her Parisian luxury apartment. They bound and gagged her and placed her in a bathtub after she reportedly begged for her life. The robbers escaped with over $10 million worth of jewelry. The investigation is ongoing. Earlier this month: Kourtney's comments come after her sister Khloe spoke about the ordeal on The Ellen DeGeneres Show earlier this month Kourtney's comments come after her sister Khloe spoke about the ordeal on The Ellen DeGeneres Show earlier this month. The 32-year-old said of the crime's impact on her family: 'I mean, it's incredibly traumatic what happened to her.' 'But our family is super close and great and we'll get through it together,' she continued, 'and we do appreciate all of your guys' love and support and it will take time.' 'You know, it was horrible what happened to her,' Khloe added. The reality star went on to reveal how she and her family are reevaluating their social media presence after the incident. 'I think it's just a wake up call to make a lot of life adjustments,' Khloe explained. 'This is a really serious matter for Kim' 'I think it's just a wake up call to make a lot of life adjustments,' Khloe explained. 'This is a really serious matter for Kim.' 'I think that's really personal, as to that emotional terror [and when] you could move on from that. It's a wake up call for all of us, but definitely [the focus is] just to make sure our sister is okay.' Khloe said that the entire family has escalated their level of security: 'Just [to] make sure we're protected as well as possible. 'Like I said, we're a family, we'll do this together. I think it's important to make those adjustments and to pull back a little bit I think is always smart.' Yahoo rakes in profits as it prepares for Verizon deal Yahoo's quarterly profits shot up by more than double to $163 million even as it prepares for a takeover by Verizon. The faded internet pioneer skipped its usual quarterly earnings call with analysts due to the pending takeover by the US telecommunication company, for which chief executive Marissa Mayer said Yahoo is busy preparing despite recent revelations about a major data breach that may affect the deal. "We launched several new products and showed solid financial performance across the board," she said in an earnings release, which beat expectations despite only a slight rise in revenue. Yahoo beat expectations with quarterly earnings that showed profit more than doubled Justin Sullivan (Getty/AFP/File) Shares were up 1.49 percent to $42.30 in after-market trades following the earnings report release, reflecting confidence the breach is not prompting a significant number of users to abandon Yahoo. Revenue for the quarter that ended on Sept. 30 came to $1.3 billion, up from the $1.2 billion in the same period a year earlier. Mobile revenue during the quarter reached $396 million, up from $271 million the previous year. The boost in profits came from cutting workers and costs, not from the strength of its core business. They hit the mark nevertheless, according to independent Silicon Valley analyst Rob Enderle. "For the most part, people were expecting a burning crater where Yahoo used to be," he said. "This is the kind of financial report they needed to not increase the probability that Verizon runs away screaming from the deal." - Hacks and scans - The beleaguered internet company agreed in July to sell its core assets to Verizon for $4.8 billion, ending a 20-year run as an independent company after several attempts to refocus failed to help it catch up to Google and Facebook in key segments of online advertising. The deal would separate the Yahoo internet assets from its more valuable stake in the Chinese online giant Alibaba. However, Verizon said last week that a recently revealed hack affecting 500 million Yahoo customers worldwide could have a "material" effect on the deal. The comments from Verizon general counsel Craig Silliman suggest the telecom company could seek to reduce the purchase price or walk away from the deal. Although the hack took place in late 2014, Yahoo announced it only last month, dealing the company a fresh blow. The attack was probably "state sponsored," it said, although some analysts have questioned the source. "We're working hard to retain their trust," Mayer said of Yahoo's users, "and are heartened by their continued loyalty as seen in our user engagement trends." Yahoo's image took another hit recently from allegations of mass email surveillance that triggered an outcry from privacy activists. Yahoo has denied doing any such thing, rejecting as "misleading" a report that it secretly scanned hundreds of millions of email accounts to help US intelligence. "We narrowly interpret every government request for user data to minimize disclosure," the company said in a statement to AFP. "The mail scanning described in the article does not exist on our systems." Hopes low for Putin talks on Ukraine, Syria in Berlin Russia played down hopes of diplomatic progress over Ukraine at talks Wednesday between President Vladimir Putin and his German, French and Ukrainian counterparts in Berlin, where he also faced pressure over the Syrian conflict. Host Chancellor Angela Merkel said the talks -- the first four-way summit for a year -- were aimed at "offering a brutally honest assessment" of progress on implementing the frayed Minsk peace accords for Ukraine. "Things are stalled in many areas such as the ceasefire, political issues and humanitarian issues," she told reporters Tuesday. The Kremlin has announced that Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo prior to an eight-hour "humanitarian pause" in the battered city Karam Al-Masri (AFP/File) "We have to seize every chance we have for progress. I have to say that we cannot expect a miracle but it is worth every effort at this point." But the Kremlin poured cold water on hopes for headway toward a lasting resolution of the conflict. "We do not expect any breakthroughs," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters ahead of Putin's trip, his first to the German capital since the Ukraine conflict erupted. Putin has not visited the German capital since Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014, sending relations with the West plunging to their lowest point since the Cold War. Russia's involvement in the Syrian civil war, which has deepened the diplomatic freeze, will also figure at the top of the agenda, Merkel said. Speaking of the "disastrous" situation in the besieged city of Aleppo, Merkel said she and French President Francois Hollande would speak to Putin "about somehow alleviating people's suffering". "Here too, we cannot expect miracles but it is essential to talk, even if the views are far apart," she said. - Ending the devastation - The gathering will be aimed at "giving the same message to Vladimir Putin on Syria: a durable ceasefire in Aleppo and humanitarian access so that the devastation of this city can end," an aide to Hollande said in Paris. Syria's second city, held by rebels determined to oust President Bashar al-Assad, has come under heavy bombardment since the Russian-backed military announced an offensive in late September to regain control of the east. Air strikes in the city have flattened numerous residential buildings and civilian facilities, in a bombing campaign the European Union warned could amount to war crimes. The Berlin meeting takes place on the eve of a European Union summit in Brussels on relations with Russia, including sanctions over Ukraine, which come up for renewal at the end of the year. The two-day Brussels talks are also expected to cover Russia's role in Syria, which sparked a furious row between Russia and France last week, prompting Putin to cancel a visit to Paris. - Swapping recriminations - The last four-way summit in the so-called Normandy Format took place in Paris in October 2015. Hollande's office said in a statement that Wednesday's gathering would "discuss the next steps in the process towards ending the crisis in eastern Ukraine". Russia backs a separatist, pro-Moscow insurgency in the region that has claimed nearly 10,000 lives. But it denies accusations that it has sent troops and weapons across its border with Ukraine to fuel the conflict. In the run-up to the meeting, Moscow and Kiev swapped recriminations. Peskov said Tuesday that Putin believed there was "no alternative" to implementing the Minsk accords. "We know that on this point, the situation leaves much to be desired," he said. "For the moment, Kiev is doing nothing." Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko also indicated he had little hope for progress in Berlin. "Am I optimistic enough? Yes I'm very optimistic about the future of Ukraine but unfortunately not so optimistic about tomorrow's meeting," he said Tuesday on a visit to Oslo. Ukrainian political analyst Taras Berezovets said it would require more than Western diplomacy to convince Russia to stay out of eastern Ukraine. "I don't have any illusions about Merkel and Hollande being able to calm Putin's ambition at this stage," he wrote on Facebook. "In general, the Russian president is satisfied with the current balance of forces in the east of Ukraine." Germany currently holds the rotating presidency of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which has monitors in eastern Ukraine. Fighting in east Ukraine -- which has claimed nearly 10,000 lives -- has dragged on despite a peace plan brokered by Germany and France Aleksey Filippov (AFP/File) The West has expressed increasing alarm at the situation in Aleppo, saying the ferocious Russian-backed onslaught on the rebel-held east could amount to a war crime Ameer Alhalbi (AFP/File) Hong Kong pro-independence lawmakers blocked from taking oath Hong Kong's legislature again descended into chaos Wednesday as pro-Beijing politicians blocked the swearing in of two new lawmakers who want a split from China, in an increasingly divided parliament. It comes as fears grow in the semi-autonomous city that Beijing is tightening its grip, fuelling an independence movement in Hong Kong. Wednesday saw rival lawmakers clash in a heated shouting match after the pro-Beijing camp walked out of the swearing-in session. Lawmaker Eddie Chu argues with a pro-Beijing counterpart after members of the group walked out of the Legislative Council to block the second swearing-in of pro-democracy lawmakers in Hong Kong Tengku Bahar (AFP) The walkout led to the meeting being cancelled, preventing pro-independence lawmakers Yau Wai-ching and Baggio Leung from taking the oath that would allow them to take up their seats. In the ensuing confrontations one veteran pro-democracy legislator threw slices of luncheon meat at his opponents while another was surrounded by security after turning China and Hong Kong flags displayed on pro-Beijing lawmakers' desks upside-down. Meanwhile, pro-Beijing lawmakers chanted "Apologise!", demanding Yau and Leung say sorry for their failure to take the oath properly at last week's swearing-in ceremony. The pair had their oaths rejected last Wednesday after they draped themselves in "Hong Kong is not China" flags. The oath states Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China. Both refused to pronounce China properly, and Yau was heard to replace the words "the People's Republic of China" with "the People's refucking of Zeena". They were given permission to retake their oaths Wednesday, but the session was abandoned after the pro-Beijing walkout left an insufficient number of legislators in the chamber. "If they want people to respect their oaths, they have to express regret over their behaviour last week and to apologise to all Chinese around the world," pro-Beijing lawmaker Priscilla Leung told reporters. Hundreds of pro-Beijing supporters waved Chinese flags and stamped on pictures of the two outspoken lawmakers outside the legislative council building. The pair said they wanted to complete their oaths, but would not apologise for last week's behaviour. "We are empowered by the people to enter the Legco," Baggio Leung said. - Court challenge - The former British colony was handed back to China in 1997 under an agreement protecting its freedoms for 50 years, but there are concerns those liberties are being eroded. Leung and Yau are part of a new wave of lawmakers advocating independence and self-determination who won seats in the Legislative Council (Legco) -- Hong Kong's lawmaking body -- in citywide polls last month. Five legislators, including the pair, had their oaths rejected at last week's swearing in. Of those five, one pro-Beijing lawmaker and one pro-democracy lawmaker, whose oaths were declared invalid the first time round, were allowed to retake them Wednesday morning. The Beijing camp then walked out, forcing the session to be abandoned before Yau, Leung and pro-democracy teacher Lau Siu-lai, who read her oath at a snail's pace last week, took the stand. The chaotic scenes came after a late-night court bid Tuesday by city leader Leung Chun-ying and justice secretary Rimsky Yuen to block Yau and Baggio Leung from taking up their seats. That went directly against a decision by the pro-Beijing president of Legco, who had already given the green light for them to have a second chance at the oath. The court refused to grant an injunction against Wednesday's oath-taking, but gave permission for a judicial review into whether the pair should be disqualified, putting their future as lawmakers into question. In a separate case Wednesday, former pro-democracy lawmaker Raymond Wong was convicted of throwing a glass at city leader Leung Chun-ying inside the Legco in 2014. Wong, 64, was convicted of common assault and will be sentenced on Tuesday, local media reported. Pro-Beijing legislators walk out of the Legislative Council in Hong Kong to block the second swearing-in of pro-independence lawmakers on October 19, 2016 Tengku Bahar (AFP) Taliban reject reports of secret talks with Afghanistan The Taliban on Wednesday rejected reports of secret meetings with the Afghan government in a bid to resume long-stalled peace negotiations, insisting that their hardline policy remains unchanged. Afghan officials on Tuesday said they held two meetings since September in Doha, where the Taliban maintain a political office, after the news was first reported by Britain's The Guardian newspaper. But Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid in a statement rejected any reports of talks or meetings. Security guards stand outside the Taliban political office in the Qatari capital Doha Faisal al-Tamimi (AFP/File) Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai, Afghanistan's intelligence chief, and National Security Advisor Mohammad Hanif Atmar had attended one of the Qatar meetings, local Tolo television said citing a presidential palace source. "The representatives of the Islamic Emirate have not met with Stanekzai or any other officials. Our stance about the negotiations has not changed. Our policy is very clear on that," Mujahid said, referring to the Taliban's official title. The Taliban have long insisted on the complete withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan as a precondition for peace talks with the government. The Guardian said the talks were attended by Mullah Abdull Manan Akhund, brother of Taliban founder and long-time leader Mullah Omar who died in 2013. A senior American diplomat was also present in the Qatar meetings, the newspaper said citing a Taliban official. Pakistan -- the Taliban's historic backers -- have hosted several rounds of international talks over the last year to jumpstart peace negotiations, which yielded little progress. The dialogue process ground to a halt when the US killed former Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour in a drone strike in May. Philippines' Duterte says 'goodbye' to US ties in Beijing Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said it was "time to say goodbye" to the US during a visit to China on Wednesday, as the combative leader reconfigures his country's diplomatic alliances. Duterte is in China for a four-day trip that is expected to confirm his tilt away from Washington and towards Beijing's sphere of influence. During a speech addressing the Filipino community in Beijing, the firebrand president said the Philippines had gained little from its long alliance with the US, its former colonial ruler. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has vowed he will not "barter" away territory and economic rights during his visit to Beijing, where he hopes to mend ties frayed by a row over the South China Sea Manman Dejeto (AFP/File) "Your stay in my country was for your own benefit. So time to say goodbye, my friend," he said, as if addressing the US. "I will not go to America anymore. I will just be insulted there," he added, before once again referring to US President Barack Obama as a "son of a whore". Duterte, who took office in late June, said he was fed up with the Philippines' foreign policy being dictated by a Western agenda. "What kept us from China was not our own making. I will charter a new course," he said. Foreign policy under Duterte has dramatically shifted from that pursued under predecessor Benigno Aquino, who took Beijing to an international tribunal over its extensive territorial claims in the South China Sea and won a resounding victory. The move infuriated Beijing. But Duterte, who took office in June shortly before the tribunal ruling, has made a point of not flaunting the outcome. He has also suspended joint US-Philippine patrols in the South China Sea, and has threatened an end to joint military exercises. - Manila 'a pawn' - The South China Sea is of intense interest to Washington and it has repeatedly spoken out on the various territorial disputes between China and its neighbours over the strategically vital waters. Tensions have risen between the US and China over Washington's so-called "pivot" to the Asia-Pacific, a move that Beijing says is intended to contain it. Duterte will meet top leaders including President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang during his stay. Hours before he spoke, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular briefing that Beijing was pleased to move towards resolving the territorial dispute "through consultation and dialogue". "Anyone who truly wishes for peace, stability, development and prosperity in the Asia Pacific" should welcome Duterte's visit, she said. In an editorial Wednesday, China's nationalist Global Times newspaper said Washington had treated Manila "as a pawn", adding Duterte was now "redesigning Philippine foreign policy based on Philippine interests". Duterte has said his China trip will focus on promoting economic ties. The Philippines is hoping, among other things, that Beijing will repeal a ban on imports of its bananas -- an economic sanction intended to punish Manila for its South China Sea stance. Hua said Wednesday announcements on infrastructure cooperation and economic development projects could be expected during the Philippine leader's visit. - Drug war - As Duterte has cosied up to Beijing, he has repeatedly denounced the United States for criticising the deadly war on crime he instigated upon taking office. Last month Duterte sparked a diplomatic storm when he branded Obama a "son of a whore" after being told the US president would raise the rights concerns at an Asia meeting. Beijing, meanwhile, has enthusiastically endorsed Duterte's war on drugs, which has seen more than 3,700 people killed and led the International Criminal Court to warn that those responsible could face charges. Hua said Wednesday that the two sides were already in close communication about cooperating on drug control and anti-crime issues. China has also offered to train some Filipino cadets in "anti-illegal drug and VIP security protection", according to Ramon Purugganan, deputy director of intelligence with the Philippine National Police. Disputed claims in the South China Sea Adrian LEUNG, Gal ROMA (AFP) Bedouin village caught up in Israeli settlement rift Abu Youssef is tired. He has already seen his family home destroyed once and now faces a second demolition. But this time he has a controversial opt out clause: agree to move his small Bedouin community less than a mile away, and Abu Youssef could get a brand new home with running water and electricity. The catch is that the offer comes from Israel, and Palestinian leaders and those concerned with Israeli settlement building are vehemently opposed. The Bedouin village of Wadi Abu Hindi, amounts to a collection of shacks of corrugated metal in a desert valley, unbearably hot in summer, freezing in winter Ahmad Gharabli (AFP) Any move, even if the 50 families who live in the tiny community of Wadi Abu Hindi agreed to it, would violate international law and could be disastrous for the Palestinian cause, they say. "We are between two sides," Abu Youssef told AFP. It is a dilemma faced by other Bedouin communities in the West Bank, the Palestinian territory Israel occupied in 1967. Palestinian leaders say moving Wadi Abu Hindi would amount to forcible transfer of a population by an occupying power -- a breach of the Geneva Conventions -- and could lead to more relocations. The village is located east of Jerusalem, where rights groups fear demolitions could eventually clear the way for further Israeli settlement construction. This could partly divide the West Bank between north and south while further isolating the territory from east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians see as their future capital. That scenario would make a contiguous future Palestinian state difficult to achieve. But for Abu Youssef, the issue is far more personal. - Desert home - Wadi Abu Hindi amounts to a collection of shacks of corrugated metal in a desert valley, unbearably hot in summer and freezing in winter. Abu Youssef, 56, has lived there his entire life, but under two different rulers. When he was six years old, Israel occupied the West Bank, seizing it from Jordan, in a move never recognised by the international community. The government began building settlements, including on land formerly used by semi-nomadic Bedouin farmers. There are now more than 400,000 Israelis living in the West Bank, according to Israeli statistics. Wadi Abu Hindi was demolished by Israeli forces in the late 1990s then rebuilt, and since 2011 has faced a new demolition order. Last year, the Israeli lawyer for the community, Shlomo Lecker, says he received an offer he felt he had to present to them. He previously fought many proposed relocations of Bedouins as they would be moved far away, imperilling their traditional agricultural lifestyles, he said. But this offer involved moving less than a mile to where many of their extended family members live. Infrastructure would be available and, crucially, they would be free from the threat of demolition. "Nobody wants to be transferred far away but if they can have a chance to build a village near where they come from that is good," Lecker told AFP. Abu Youssef said Lecker has won numerous battles for them, so they took the offer seriously. He stressed they have not made a final decision, but added that personally he was "tired" and tempted. "We need water, we need electricity and we want to live," Abu Youssef said. Israeli officials would not confirm details of the offer, but noted an agreement hadn't yet been reached. The temporary homes of Bedouin communities between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea are often demolished by Israel, which says they lack permits. Such permits are nearly impossible for Palestinians, including Bedouins, to obtain. Israel has offered to relocate more than 40 unrecognised Bedouin villages into pre-planned communities but so far none have accepted. One successful agreement could pressure other Bedouin communities to move, Palestinian officials argue. - 'Forcible transfer' - The concerns of the Palestinians and the UN can be seen close to Wadi Abu Hindi. A few hundred metres above the village, a shiny and clean Israeli settlement, Kedar, peeks over the hill. Further away, the suburban-like settlement of Maale Adumim houses some 35,000 Israelis. After a international NGO cut his funding when he recommended the villages discuss taking a deal, Lecker has worked pro bono for more than six months. He says he can no longer do so, while the Bedouin don't want a different lawyer. The UN was considering stepping in, UN sources said, prompting senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat to protest earlier this month, in a letter seen by AFP. It warned that lawyers paid by international organisations "have provided legal aid to negotiate and/or mediate on behalf of these communities to reach a settlement agreement for their own transfer. "These legal aid actors have in fact facilitated the forcible transfer of these communities," it added. UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the Palestinian territories Robert Piper said in a statement to AFP he was concerned by potential forcible transfer but also by the legal aid gap for Bedouin communities. Lecker accused the Palestinian Authority of ignoring the villagers' needs. "They are soldiers of the PA without anyone asking them." The Bedouin village of Wadi Abu Hindi was demolished by Israeli forces in the late 1990s then rebuilt, and since 2011 has faced a new demolition order Ahmad Gharabli (AFP) Pause in Aleppo bombing holds into second day A pause in Russian and Syrian strikes on Aleppo held into a second day Wednesday, ahead of a brief ceasefire aimed at allowing civilians and rebels to quit the devastated city. The halt came ahead of talks in Berlin between the Russian, French, and German leaders on Syria's five-year conflict. Moscow is backing President Bashar al-Assad's regime in its war with a wide range of rebel groups, including with air strikes in the divided northern city of Aleppo. Hadi Mustafa Habbush lies on a hospital bed in the rebel-held area of Aleppo, on October 12, 2016 Thaer Mohammed (AFP) Under growing international pressure over the devastation and civilian deaths caused by strikes, Moscow announced early Tuesday that Russian and Syrian warplanes would stop bombing rebel-held parts of the city to pave the way for a "humanitarian pause". That window, starting at 0500 GMT on Thursday and due to last eight hours, is expected to see all fighting stop to allow civilians and rebels to exit opposition-held districts via six corridors. An estimated 250,000 people live in Aleppo's eastern districts and have been under near-continuous government siege since July. Moscow's offer was initially met with scepticism, but the bombing halt held for its first 24 hours. "There have been no air raids from yesterday morning until now," Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said as the pause entered its second day. Russian and Syrian bombardment had been providing air cover for a government offensive that started on September 22 aimed at seizing the city's east, held by rebels since 2012. Despite the bombing pause, troops pressed their ground assault in the Old City on Wednesday as they vied to shift the front line in the heart of Aleppo, according to the Observatory. - 'Still scared' - According to Moscow, once the pause begins six corridors out of the city would open for civilians with another two -- via the Castello Road in the north and Souk al-Hal in the city centre -- designated for rebels. Rebel groups have indicated they will not abandon their posts and, with Aleppo encircled by pro-government forces, many civilians fear falling into the hands of the regime. But Russia has said the pause is an opportunity for mainstream rebels to disassociate themselves from jihadists in Aleppo. Russia has responded to criticism of its air campaign in Aleppo by repeatedly pointing to the presence of jihadist groups in the city allied with other rebel forces. Some of the rebels are backed by the United States, and Moscow has accused Washington of not doing enough to convince them to end alliances with jihadists. "Each time, the Americans said it was impossible to perform the separation without the establishment of a ceasefire," Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said. "The condition that has been asked for, especially by our American colleagues, is now filled." Ibrahim Abu al-Leith, a spokesman for the White Helmets rescue force in Aleppo, said there were no planes circling above on Wednesday but artillery and rocket fire continued. "It's better than before, but people won't go out unless everything stops. They are still scared because they know that the regime and Russia are not trustworthy," Abu al-Leith told AFP from the city. - 'Broken' promises - Five years of diplomatic initiatives to put an end to Syria's conflict have failed, but over the past week world powers have made new efforts to reach a lasting truce. French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were to meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Berlin later Wednesday to discuss the ceasefire plans. Speaking of the "disastrous" situation in Aleppo, Merkel said she and Hollande would speak to Putin but that "we cannot expect miracles". The United States has expressed scepticism about Moscow's most recent initiative. "We've seen these kinds of commitments and promises before. And we've seen them broken. We're watching this very carefully," State Department spokesman John Kirby told CNN. A US-led coalition is bombing jihadists in Syria including the Islamic State group and Russia accused member Belgium of killing six civilians in air strikes in the Aleppo region on Tuesday. The Belgian defence ministry denied its air force was active in the area at the time. Talks were also due Wednesday in Geneva between Russian, US, Saudi, Qatari and Turkish officials on the efforts to distance Syrian opposition fighters from jihadists, in particular the Fateh al-Sham Front, which changed its name from Al-Nusra Front after renouncing its ties to Al-Qaeda. More than 250,000 civilians are trapped in east Aleppo Karam al-Masri (AFP/File) Syrians carry the body of a man following air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of Aleppo on October 12, 2016 Ameer Alhalbi (AFP) Philippine police van runs over protesters A Philippine police van on Wednesday rammed and ran over baton-wielding protesters outside the US embassy in Manila. Police used tear gas and truncheons to try to disperse hundreds of people who had gathered in support of President Rodrigo Duterte's recent comments that he wanted to loosen his nation's alliance with the United States. A total of 23 protesters were arrested, said Chief Inspector Arsenio Riparip, one of the officers overseeing the incident. Protesters lie on the ground after being hit by a police van during a rally in front of the US embassy in Manila on October 19, 2016 Rob Reyes (AFP) He said the protesters broke through the line of police securing the embassy's gates. "We had to disperse them. They started it. They were trying to enter the embassy," Riparip told AFP. "We had to use tear gas. They overpowered our policemen." A police van reversed quickly back into a crowd of dozens of protesters and then forward, running over at least two people and banging into others, footage broadcast by local television network ABS CBN showed. Photos showed a grey-haired man afterwards trapped underneath the stationary van, with his leg and hips under one of the back tyres. Manila police chief Oscar Albayalde confirmed the police van hit protesters but insisted the driver was not at fault. "They weren't really run over," Albayalde said in a statement, referring to the protesters. "The rallyists were trying to flip over the patrol car. In the process, the driver extricated the patrol car and inadvertently hit some unruly protesters who sustained minor injuries." One of the protest leaders, Amirah Lidasan, accused the police of starting the violence. "It was the police who attacked the protesters. First they rammed the police vehicle against the people. Then they released tear gas and hit us with truncheons," she said. While the Philippines is a defence ally of the United States, Duterte -- elected president in May on a ruthless anti-crime platform -- has said he wants to distance the country from America. He has launched abusive tirades against US President Barack Obama and warned he may eventually cut ties altogether, after the US government raised alarm over thousands of people killed in Duterte's anti-drug campaign. Duterte is currently in Beijing on a mission aimed at improving ties with China and attracting billions of dollars of Chinese investment. Japan cabinet ministers visit controversial war shrine Two Japanese cabinet ministers visited a controversial war shrine Wednesday, after a mass visit by lawmakers angered China and South Korea which see it as a painful reminder of Tokyo's past aggression. The ministers -- internal affairs chief Sanae Takaichi and Katsunobu Kato, in charge of women's empowerment -- are close to conservative Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who did not visit the Yasukuni shrine during this year's four-day autumn festival. Abe, often criticised for what some see as revisionist views on Japan's wartime record, sent a ritual offering to the shrine instead. The Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo honours millions of Japanese war victims, but also the senior military and political figures who were convicted of war crimes after World War II Kazuhiro Nogi (AFP) He has not gone to the site in central Tokyo since late 2013 in an apparent attempt to ease diplomatic tensions. China on Wednesday lashed out at the cabinet ministers' visit, saying the shrine "whitewashes" Japan's past militarism and "reveals its wrong attitude towards history". "China firmly opposes that," foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular Beijing press briefing. "We urge Japan to own up to and reflect upon its history of aggression, make a clean break with militarism and use concrete actions to win back trust from its Asian neighbours and the international community." On Tuesday a group of about 85 legislators arrived at the leafy site for an annual pilgrimage, earning rebukes from Beijing and Seoul. Yasukuni honours millions of Japanese war dead, but also senior military and political figures convicted of war crimes after World War II. The indigenous Shinto religious shrine has for decades been a flashpoint for criticism by countries that suffered from Japan's colonialism and aggression in the first half of the 20th century, including China and Korea. Abe and other nationalists say Yasukuni is a place to remember fallen soldiers. They compare it to Arlington National Cemetery in the United States. His visit in 2013 to mark his first year in power sparked fury in Beijing and Seoul and earned a diplomatic rebuke from close ally the United States which said it was "disappointed". Abe has since refrained from going, sending ritual offerings instead. Thousands of Jews throng Western Wall for holiday blessing Thousands of Jews gathered at the Western Wall in Jerusalem for a holiday blessing on Wednesday, a day after UNESCO adopted a resolution that Israel says omits Judaism's connection to the site. Known as the priestly blessing, the ceremony involved Jews from the Cohanim priestly caste gathering to bless crowds marking Sukkot, or the Feast of Tabernacles. Men and women jostled to get close to the gender-segregated wall, with the Western Wall Heritage Foundation estimating tens of thousands participated in the blessings during the morning, while police spoke of thousands. The Western Wall in Jerusalem is a remnant of a supporting wall of the Second Temple complex, which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD Menahem Kahana (AFP/File) Cohanim draped in traditional white prayer shawls blessed the crowds, which included Jews from around the world as well as tourists. The blessing involves the raising of hands in a form similar to the "Vulcan salute" Leonard Nimoy borrowed from Judaism for his "Star Trek" role as Mr Spock. Mass priestly blessings are held at the Western Wall twice a year, for Sukkot and Passover. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said there was "heightened security" throughout Jerusalem's Old City, but no incidents were reported. The prayers came a day after UNESCO passed a controversial resolution which Israel said omitted the Jewish connection to both the Western Wall and the adjacent Al-Aqsa mosque compound or Temple Mount. The Western Wall is a remnant of a supporting wall of the Second Temple complex, which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. Above it lies the plaza where the temple once stood and which now houses the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, the third holiest site in Islam. It is the holiest site to Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount. The resolution on "occupied Palestine" was endorsed by UNESCOs executive board on Tuesday, after being approved at the committee stage last week. Referring throughout to "the occupying power," it condemns Israel for restricting Muslims' access to the Al-Aqsa compound and criticises damage by security forces to the site and nearby excavations. Israel is furious that the resolution refers to the site only by its Muslim names Al-Aqsa and Al-Haram al-Sharif or Noble Sanctuary. The site is located in east Jerusalem, annexed by Israel in 1967 in a move never recognised by the international community. Ben Frank, a neurologist from Miami in the United States, had travelled for the religious holidays and to visit two of his children studying in Jewish religious schools in Israel. He said the UNESCO resolution annoyed him but that the religious ceremony was an important moment. "There are always going to be people who hate the Jews," he said. "How can they say we have no connection with this place?" he added, gesturing to the thousands of worshippers around him. Frank said he wanted Jews to return to praying on the Temple Mount. Palestinian tries to stab Israeli officers, shot dead: police A 19-year-old Palestinian woman approached Israeli border police with a knife in a tense area of the West Bank on Wednesday and was shot dead by officers, police said. A police statement said the woman approached officers at the Tapuah junction in the north of the occupied West Bank, ignored orders to stop and pulled the knife. "At this point the officers shot her," police said, adding that she was killed. Israeli security forces near the Tapuah junction, also known as the Zaatara junction, in the Israeli occupied West Bank on October 19, 2016 Jaafar Ashtiyeh (AFP) Police identified her as a resident of Asira Al-Shimaliya, a village north of Nablus, which is located near the Tapuah junction. Also known as Zaatara junction and with Israeli settlements nearby, it has been the site of a number of violent incidents. The Palestinian health ministry said "a woman was killed after being shot by the occupation forces at Zaatara checkpoint." It identified her as Raheeq Shajeyeh Youssef. The incident comes as Jews celebrate the week-long holiday of Sukkot, the third of three successive Jewish holidays that have led to tensions with the Palestinians in the past. Last week, Jews marked Yom Kippur, while Rosh Hashanah, or New Year, was the previous week. A Palestinian gun attack in Jerusalem on October 9 that killed two people raised fears of further violence and Israel has boosted security. Last year's holiday period led to clashes and marked the start of an upsurge in Palestinian gun, knife and car-ramming attacks. Thousands of Jews visit the Western Wall in east Jerusalem's Old City during the holiday period, while a smaller number go to the nearby Al-Aqsa mosque compound. The compound is holy to both Muslims and Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount. The site is central to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with Palestinians fearing Israel may one day seek to assert further control over it. Violence since October 2015 has killed 234 Palestinians, 36 Israelis, two Americans, one Jordanian, an Eritrean and a Sudanese national, according to an AFP count. Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out attacks, according to Israeli authorities. Others were shot dead during protests or clashes, while some were killed in Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip. Many analysts say Palestinian frustration with the Israeli occupation and settlement-building in the West Bank, comatose peace efforts and their own fractured leadership have fed the unrest. Israel says incitement by Palestinian leaders and media is a leading cause of the violence. The vast majority of the attacks have been carried out by lone-wolf assailants, Israeli authorities say. Many have been young people, including teenagers. Arab coalition says Yemen rebels breach truce The Saudi-led coalition accused Yemeni rebels of repeatedly breaching a ceasefire on Thursday, the first day of a truce under global pressure to end a war which has killed thousands. At least 11 people were killed in sporadic clashes between rebels and pro-government forces, despite all sides insisting they will pause the fighting. The truce, for an initial period of three days, took effect just before midnight on Wednesday to allow sorely needed aid deliveries in Yemen where the conflict has also left millions homeless and hungry. Yemeni children fill empty jerrycans with water from a donated source amid ongoing widespread disruption of water supplies in an impoverished coastal village on the outskirts of the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah, on October 18, 2016 - (AFP/File) The Saudi-led Arab coalition intervened in March 2015 to support the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi after Huthi rebels overran much of the impoverished country on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula. Five previous truce attempts failed but cautious optimism preceded the current pause after intensified international pressure following an escalation of combat. But Major General Ahmed Assiri, the coalition spokesman, told AFP, "there is no ceasefire at all" because of repeated rebel breaches. "This is the same situation as the previous time when we called for a ceasefire," Assiri said. And Saudi Arabia's foreign minister told reporters in Washington that rebels were stepping up their attacks. "As of this morning Washington time there had been more than 150 violations by the Huthi-Saleh side," Adel al-Jubeir said, referring to the rebels and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh. Saudi Arabia and Washington accuse Iran of arming the Shiite Huthi insurgents, but Tehran denies the charges. The coalition and Hadi both vowed to abide by the ceasefire despite alleged violations by the rebels. Pro-government forces declared "respect for the truce" but reserved the right to respond to infractions. The rebels said they would respect the ceasefire as long as "the enemy" abides by it, but urged their fighters to be ready to retaliate against "all aggression". - Thousands have died - The coalition says it will continue an air and maritime embargo, to prevent weapons shipments to the rebels, and maintains airborne reconnaissance. At dawn, coalition aircraft flew twice over the rebel-held capital Sanaa without conducting raids, according to residents, who said they have had enough of failed ceasefires. "They're mocking us with a three-day truce," said Ali al-Doush, a 32-year-old civil servant who has not been paid for three months. "We want an end to the war." Nearly 6,900 people have been killed, more than half of them civilians, while another three million are displaced and millions more need food aid. The deaths Thursday included three civilians killed in a coalition air raid on Saada province, a historic Huthi stronghold, rebel-controlled media said. Assiri denied that any air strikes took place over Yemen, although coalition warplanes carried out surveillance. He said a Patriot missile shot down a missile fired by rebels in Marib, east of the capital Sanaa. A man and his daughter were wounded in a cross-border attack from Yemen in the kingdom's Jazan region, Saudi civil defence authorities said. Assiri said coalition artillery and aircraft retaliated. - '43 rebel violations' - "We will respond to each violation. We will be reactive," he said. "It's so easy. If they stop, we will not fire a bullet." Official Saudi media said there were more than 43 rebel violations along the border. Military sources and residents said there had also been fighting around the besieged third city Taez, and pro-Hadi positions came under fire in Sarwah, east of Sanaa. The last ceasefire attempt began in April and collapsed as UN-brokered peace talks broke down in August. Fighting then escalated, until an October 8 coalition air strike which the UN said killed more than 140 people and wounded at least 525 at a funeral in Sanaa. On Thursday a panel of UN experts concluded the strike was in violation of international humanitarian law, accusing the coalition of failing to take "effective and adequate precautionary measures to minimise civilian casualties". In the wake of the incident the United States announced an "immediate review" of its intelligence and refuelling assistance to the coalition, whose investigative team said the funeral was "wrongly targeted". The US Navy also for the first time struck rebels directly earlier this month, hitting radar sites which Washington said were involved in missile launches against a US warship and other vessels. The ceasefire does not apply to jihadists who have exploited the conflict to gain ground in the south. Suspected Al-Qaeda militants on Thursday killed four soldiers at a checkpoint in the southern province of Abyan, a security official said. One attacker was killed and another wounded. A wounded Yemeni man sits in the airport in Sanaa on October 15, 2016, as he waits for an Omani plane to evacuate him Mohammed Huwais (AFP) A destroyed vehicle in the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah on October 13, 2016 Indonesia ratifies Paris climate accord Indonesia, one of the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitters, Wednesday ratified a landmark climate rescue pact but environmentalists expressed scepticism about the government's plans to limit global warming. The country's parliament agreed to endorse the Paris Agreement which was reached last December in the French capital, joining scores of other countries which have ratified the deal. It requires all countries to devise plans to achieve the goal of keeping the rise in temperatures within two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. Haze caused by vehicle emissions hangs over Jakarta's skyline Bay Ismoyo (AFP/File) The accord is due to enter into force on November 4, earlier than expected, after the threshold for ratification -- by 55 countries responsible for 55 percent of emissions -- was reached earlier this month. In its plan Indonesia pledged to cut emissions by at least 29 percent by 2030 by stepping up protection of forests and expanding the renewable energy sector. The sprawling archipelago is home to vast tracts of tropical rain forest. But much has been felled in recent years, to be sold as timber and to make way for palm oil and pulp plantations, greatly increasing the country's emissions. Indonesia also says that if it receives international aid such as financing, it will raise its target to a 41-percent cut by 2030. Green groups have criticised the pledge as lacking in detail, such as ways to tackle forest fires that burn out of control in Indonesia every year, cloaking the region in toxic haze. Last year's fires were the worst for years. A study by environmental watchdog the World Resources Institute estimated that at their peak, the blazes led to Indonesia spewing more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere each day than all US economic activity. The institute usually classifies Indonesia as the fifth biggest emitter of greenhouse gases. Hindun Mulaika, who works on climate change with Greenpeace Indonesia, said that the "devil is in the detail" when it came to the official plans. Malaysia halts kids boot camp over python pool fright Malaysia has halted a team-building programme for school children after the trainers forced students to wade across a muddy pool that had a blood python in it, a senior official said Wednesday. "We have also suspended four trainers and their six assistants. An investigation is underway into the blood python incident. It is not part of the training programme," Colonel Mohamad Noor Hassan, the head of the local Civil Defence Force, told AFP. The incident, which took place last Saturday in northern Perak state, involved students aged between 10 to 12 years old and has sparked outrage among Malaysians after a video of the training was shared on social media. A python on display to celebrate the Chinese New Year at the National Zoo in Kuala Lumpur on February 10, 2013 Mohd Rasfan (AFP) The three-minute-long video shows a group of six girls screaming and struggling to get out of the pool with a python inside while a male trainer sprays water on them to prevent them from coming out. "It is not our aim to traumatise the children. Having the python in the pool was never part of the programme. It is a mistake. I am sorry it... happened," Hassan said. The blood python is a non-venomous snake found in Southeast Asia, where it is often bred for sale as an exotic pet or farmed for use in the leather industry. A total of 45 students -- 17 boys and 28 girls -- participated in the programme which was aiming to build courage and encourage bonding. Chiam Heng Keng, child psychologist and former human rights commissioner of Malaysia told AFP that those who were involved in the incident must be "psychologically off their mind". Sri Lanka exhumes body of former army spy over murder Sri Lankan police Wednesday exhumed the body of a retired army spy whose supposed suicide note claimed responsibility for the 2009 murder of a prominent anti-establishment newspaper editor, a police officer said. The 52-year-old former military intelligence officer was found hanging at his home in central Sri Lanka five days ago and was buried shortly afterwards, the senior police source said. But police now suspect the suicide note found in his pocket at the time of his death may not be genuine and want to determine his link to any criminal activity that could have led to his murder. The body of newspaper editor Lasantha Wickrematunga is exhumed in Colombo on September 27, 2016 Lakruwan Wanniarachchi (AFP) "There had been lapses in the first autopsy and the body is exhumed to carry out fresh forensic tests," the officer told AFP on condition of anonymity. "We are looking at his fingerprints to see if he had been involved in any criminal activity." Investigators have begun checking his phone records and bank accounts since his retirement nine years ago. Last month authorities reopened the investigation into the January 2009 killing of editor Lasantha Wickrematunga, a fierce critic of the then-strongman president Mahinda Rajapakse. A serving military intelligence officer is already in custody in connection with Wickrematunga's death, which sparked an international outcry and shone a spotlight on violence against the media. Last month authorities also exhumed Wickrematunga's body to conduct a fresh autopsy after fears that forensic evidence may have been tampered with or falsified to mislead the investigation. Wickrematunga was the chief editor of the Sunday Leader newspaper which had accused Rajapakse's then-powerful defence secretary brother Gotabhaya of kickbacks in arms purchases, including an aircraft deal. Last year a former minister in Rajapakse's government accused Gotabhaya of running a death squad and ordering the hit against the editor. The newspaper was highly critical of rights abuses by troops against ethnic minority Tamils during the island's long-running separatist conflict that ended in 2009. 'Rigging' US election easier said than done, experts say Republican candidate Donald Trump has made the insistent claim that the US presidential elections are being "rigged," but experts say massive voter fraud is highly unlikely in a system as decentralized as the United States. "There are a lot of safeguards in place that would preclude that from happening, from federal laws to local and state laws as well," said Jo-Renee Formicola, a political scientist at Seton Hall University. The US election system is far from perfect, as illustrated by the imbroglio over the vote count in Florida during the 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. Kentucky voters place their paper ballots in the box in a GOP presidential caucus on March 5, 2016, in Louisville, Kentucky John Sommers II (Getty/AFP) A conservative-majority Supreme Court finally ruled in favor of Bush, but the sense of a "stolen" election lingered on among some Democrats -- who never fully accepted the Republican president as legitimate. But 16 years later, the chances of mass fraud marring the contest between Trump and his Democrat rival Hillary Clinton are remote, experts say. Even national elections like the one on November 8 are organized not by the federal government but by US states, and they tend to delegate the task to a welter of local authorities. "The fact that every single voting district would be involved in a fraud is virtually impossible because there are so many different kinds of districts," Formicola said. A mosaic of voting systems -- some using electronic voting machines, others paper ballots, and still others both -- add a level of complexity that would tend to thwart any attempt at wholesale voter fraud, the experts say. Besides, Republican election officials oversee the vote in most of the key battlegrounds of the 2016 presidential elections, states like Colorado, Iowa, Michigan and Arizona. "In person voter fraud -- that's when someone shows up and pretends to be someone else -- is incredibly rare, almost never happens and there is no evidence that it happens in numbers that are anywhere close to having an effect, even in a close election," said Cornell Law School professor Zachary Clopton. - Evidence lacking - Trump's charges of impending voter fraud have escalated as he has sunk below Hillary Clinton, his Democratic rival, in the polls. While providing no evidence to back his claims, the New York billionaire has cast suspicion on voting in urban areas where Clinton enjoys strong backing from black and Hispanic voters. "Mr Trump, for example, has called out Philadelphia as a place where he thinks there might be fraud," said Clopton. "I think there is virtually no evidence of in-person voter fraud at all, but I guess the idea would be that it would happen in a few places." President Barack Obama on Tuesday derided Trump's attacks. "I have never seen in my lifetime or in modern political history any presidential candidate trying to discredit the elections and the election process before votes have even taken place. It's unprecedented," Obama said. "If, whenever things are going badly for you and you lose, you start blaming somebody else? Then you don't have what it takes to be in this job," he said. While the risk of in-person fraud is seen as minimal, there are more serious concerns that hackers could pose a threat on Election Day -- fuelled by recent intrusions attributed to Russian hackers in voter registration databases in Illinois and Arizona. Those incidents have spurred federal authorities to offer local authorities their expertise in protecting their systems against hackers. Pamela Smith, president of Verified Voting, a civic group that advocates for clean elections, says safeguards against fraud are greater now than they were in 2012 and 2014. - Weak link - Still, electronic voting machines could be a weak link. "That's perhaps one area where we might be concerned about leaving these questions to little towns and cities that may not have the technical sophistications of the federal government, but it would then require hacking multiple places if you are trying to build up," said Clopton. Trump may be preparing the ground for a loss to Clinton by predicting that the election is rigged. But experts worry he is undermining public confidence in a basic democratic institution. "I can say it is highly unusual to claim 'rigging' in advance of polls even opening," said Smith. "It would not appear to be based on specific evidence, or perhaps it is better to say we have seen no evidence brought forward in support of such a statement. "It is of grave concern to the extent that it could generate doubt in our democratic system and peaceful transference of power that we exercise every four years," she said. A protestor holds a trash can serving as a ballot box while protesting as Donald Trump speaks on July 1, 2016 in Denver, Colorado Marc Piscotty (Getty/AFP) Donald Trump speaks in Grand Junction, Colorado on October 18, 2016 Mandel Ngan (AFP/File) Revelations in WikiLeaks emails from Clinton campaign Since October 7, WikiLeaks has released thousands of emails hacked from the Gmail account of Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman John Podesta. The Democratic White House hopeful's campaign has not confirmed or denied the authenticity of the messages but accused Russia of being behind the hacking attack in an effort to tilt the presidential election in favor of Republican nominee Donald Trump. The emails don't contain any explosive revelations, but some have put Clinton on the defensive and are likely to come up during Wednesday night's debate in Las Vegas. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's campaign has not confirmed or denied the authenticity of the emails but accused Russia of being behind the hack in an effort to tilt the election in favor of Republican nominee Donald Trump Brendan Smialowski (AFP/File) - Wall Street speeches - The biggest revelations came out of paid speeches Clinton gave to investment banks and other financial institutions from 2013 to 2015. The former secretary of state had refused to release the transcripts, a move that caused significant problems in her primary battle against Bernie Sanders, who accused her of being too cozy with Wall Street. The WikiLeaks releases contained excerpts of several speeches, as well as full transcripts of three speeches that Clinton gave to Goldman Sachs, which showed how apparently at-ease the Democrat is in front of bankers. She displayed pragmatism and called for compromise, a stance that's less antagonistic than her public positions toward Wall Street. In another address to a real estate group in April 2013, she said "politics is like sausage being made" and "you need both a public and a private position." She compared it to Abraham Lincoln's political maneuvering in trying to pass the 13th Amendment which abolished slavery. - Free trade - In October last year, Clinton came out in opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal negotiated by President Barack Obama with 11 Asia-Pacific countries. Internal messages revealed the dilemma of the candidate who had in the past defended the controversial agreement. "This is indeed a hard balance to strike," wrote Clinton speechwriter Dan Schwerin, "since we don't want to invite mockery for being too enthusiastically opposed to a deal she once championed, or over-claiming how bad it is, since it's a very close call on the merits." According to the transcript of a speech to Banco Itau, Clinton said in 2013, "My dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders" -- a view that has raised eyebrows in the protectionist wing of the Democratic party. - Chelsea - The messages detailed clashes between Clinton's daughter Chelsea and longtime Bill Clinton aide Doug Band over operations at the Clinton Global Initiative, an offshoot of the Clinton Foundation. Chelsea Clinton had emailed Podesta several times alleging improper behavior by Band, who was on the board of the Clinton Global Initiative, and questioned the ties between the organization and Band's consulting firm Teneo. In a November 2013 message, Band called Chelsea Clinton a "spoiled brat kid who has nothing else to do but create issues." - Lobbyists - In April 2015, the Clinton team had to decide whether to accept campaign donations from US lobbyists representing foreign states -- noting they could run into issues accepting money from those representing countries like Iraq, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Libya and the United Arab Emirates. After a great deal of back and forth, Clinton's campaign manager Robby Mook said he decided they should just accept the donations while "dealing with any attacks." Communications director Jennifer Palmieri said simply, "Take the money!!" - Contempt for Catholics? - Trump has jumped on a 2011 exchange from the WikiLeaks emails to attack Clinton as anti-Catholic. In an informal email to a fellow at a liberal think-thank, Palmieri said she thought News Corp chief executive Rupert Murdoch and Wall Street Journal managing editor Robert Thomson are Catholic because it's "the most socially acceptable politically conservative religion." "Their rich friends wouldn't understand if they became evangelicals," she wrote. Israel rejects Palestinian request to move 'IS-threatened' graves Israel has turned down a request to transfer to the occupied West Bank graves of Palestinian leaders buried in Syria where their tombs are threatened by jihadists, officials said Wednesday. The Palestinians have sought to transfer the bodies after Islamic State (IS) group jihadists started to smash gravestones in the embattled Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmuk on the outskirts of Damascus. "We presented a request to the Israelis to allow us to move the bodies of three Palestinian leaders from a cemetery in the Yarmuk camp close to Damascus to Palestine," Palestinian minister Hussein al-Sheikh told AFP. According to an official at the Syrian branch of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, IS has destroyed gravestones in the embattled Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmuk on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria They were informed on Monday that the request was rejected, he said, confirming a report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. Israel's defence ministry body that oversees civilian affairs in the Palestinian territories confirmed they had received a request but turned it down, without providing further details. Among the bodies the Palestinians wanted to remove was that of Khalil al-Wazir, better known as Abu Jihad, who was assassinated by Israeli commandos in Tunisia in 1988, as well as another senior PLO figure, Saad Sayil. IS destroyed gravestones in the cemetery on Sunday, according to the head of political affairs at the Syrian branch of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, Anwar Abdel Hadi. Nigeria's Buhari meets Chibok girls Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday met the 21 Chibok girls who were released by Boko Haram last week, pledging to "redouble" his efforts to rescue those still being held. Speaking at the presidential villa in Nigeria's capital of Abuja, Buhari addressed the girls and their families saying "we shall redouble efforts to ensure that we fulfil our pledge of bringing the remaining girls back home". Buhari said that he hoped the girls would go on to complete their education after their ordeal at the hands of Boko Haram, whose name in the Hausa language spoken across northern Nigeria means "Western education is sin". Some of the 21 freed Chibok girls are received at the Nigerian Vice President office in Abuja on October 13, 2016 Philip Ojisua (AFP/File) "Obviously it is not too late for the girls to go back to school and continue the pursuit of their studies," Buhari said to the girls, who were clad in new, brightly coloured dresses and head wraps. "These dear daughters of ours have seen the worst that the world has to offer. It is now time for them to experience the best that the world can do for them." The 21 girls were part of a group of over two hundred schoolgirls kidnapped from the northeast Nigerian town of Chibok in April 2014. They were released last week following negotiations between the Nigerian government and Boko Haram brokered by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Swiss government. On Sunday, presidential spokesman Garba Shehu said that the government was hoping to secure the release of 83 other girls believed to be from Chibok being held by a different Boko Haram faction. The release of the 21 Chibok girls is a triumph for President Buhari, who was voted into power on a platform vowing to stamp out corruption and crush Boko Haram. Morocco king seeks support for AU bid in east Africa Moroccan King Mohammed VI on Wednesday began a tour of east Africa to shore up support for a historic bid to rejoin the African Union after more than three decades. The visit, kicking off in Rwanda and set to take in Tanzania and Ethiopia, also aims to forge diplomatic and economic ties with a region largely ignored by the north African country up until now. "We have never had any presence, neither diplomatic nor economic, nor cultural, nor historic, with east Africa," a high-ranking member of the king's delegation told AFP on condition of anonymity. The King of Morocco, Mohammed VI (C) is welcomed by Rwandan President Paul Kagame (L) on October 19, 2016 in Kigali, during his first stage tour of East Africa Stephanie Aglietti (AFP) "Aside from west and central Africa we must open up to east Africa and that is what is under way. The context of Morocco's return to the African Union is there too of course, and these are important countries in the AU." In Rwanda, Mohammed met with President Paul Kagame and signed 19 bilateral agreements, mostly in the economic sector. It was not clear exactly when he would leave for Tanzania. Rabat officially requested to rejoin the AU in September, 32 years after quitting the bloc in protest at its decision to accept Western Sahara as a member. Morocco has occupied the sparsely populated Western Sahara area since 1975 in a move that was not recognised by the international community. It maintains that Western Sahara is an integral part of the kingdom even though local Sahrawi people have long campaigned for the right to self-determination. In 1991, the United Nations brokered a ceasefire between Moroccan troops and Sahrawi rebels of the Algerian-backed Polisario Front but a promised referendum to settle the status of the desert territory is yet to materialise. The tour of east Africa "is also a way to get closer to countries which historically had positions which were hostile to Morocco's interests", said the Moroccan source, adding that the region had been considered an ally of Algeria. The Moroccan monarch in July said his nation's decision to return to the AU did not mean it was changing its stance on Western Sahara. EU summit to condemn Russia over Aleppo: draft statement EU leaders plan to "strongly condemn" Russia at their summit on Thursday for its alleged attacks on civilians in Syria's Aleppo, urge an end to fighting and call for a revived political process. A draft of their planned statement obtained by AFP omits the threat of sanctions, despite such calls from the United States and Britain, but it sharpens the tone against Russia. "The European Council strongly condemns the attacks by the Syrian regime and its allies, notably Russia, on civilians in Aleppo," according to the draft. Colour-smeared teddy bears are laid by campaigning group Avaaz to protest against the bombing of Syrian city Aleppo on October 19, 2016 in Berlin ahead of a meeting of leaders of Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany Steffi Loos (AFP) It asks them to urgently allow "unhindered humanitarian access to Aleppo" and to other parts of Syria while calling "for an immediate cessation of hostilities and for resumption of a credible political process under UN auspices." The draft warns that "those responsible for breaches of international humanitarian law and human rights law must be held accountable." In it the 28 leaders also ask EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and the European Commission, the EU executive, to continue pursuing medical evacuations in cooperation with the United Nations. It also asks her to push for a political transition in Syria by working with the region's main players which were not named. The statement ratcheted up the tone against Russia after EU foreign ministers for the first time strongly condemned Russia by name Monday for the bombardment of Aleppo and warned that the strikes may amount to war crimes. EU President Donald Tusk, who will host the summit, warned of the need to maintain European unity over Russia amid weakening support for sanctions imposed on Moscow over its involvement in Ukraine. The leaders are due to hold a discussion on their Russia strategy over dinner at the summit. "Our main asset in dealing with Russia remains our unity. To date, regardless of our differences, we have always remained united and we must continue to do so," Tusk told a press conference. "This will also be crucial when it comes to Russia's role in Syria," he added. On top of sanctions pressure from Washington and London, European Parliament leaders Manfred Weber, Guy Verhofstadt and Rebecca Harms sent Tusk a letter urging him to push for coercive "measures." They asked for a summit decision on "a set of enforcement tools to be activated should Russia continue violating UN Security Council resolutions and continue bombing civilians," according to a copy of the letter obtained by AFP. Ex-army head Aoun tipped for Lebanon presidency Lebanon's powerful ex-premier Saad Hariri is expected to endorse Hezbollah ally Michel Aoun for president, a post that has been vacant for almost 30 months, a senior politician said Wednesday. Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014 when the mandate of Michel Sleiman expired, amid deep rivalries among Christian and Muslim politicians exacerbated by the conflict in Syria. Since then parliament, which has twice extended its mandate, has met on 45 occasions to elect a president but deep rivalries and disagreements saw most deputies boycot the sessions. Lebanese member of parliament Michel Aoun is allied with the Shiite movement Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and has dispatched fighters to neighbouring Syria to bolster the regime of President Bashar al-Assad Joseph Eid (AFP/File) The assembly is due to convene next week for the 46th time amid high expectations that a president will be elected and that the job will go to Aoun, a Maronite Christian and former army commander. "Since Hariri has decided to endorse him, and save any last minute change, Michel Aoun will be elected by parliament on October 30," said the senior politician, who declined to be named. Hariri, a former Sunni Muslim prime minister whose party belongs to a Western and Saudi-backed political bloc, had fiercely opposed Aoun's candidacy. Aoun is allied with the Shiite movement Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and has dispatched fighters to neighbouring Syria to bolster the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. On Wednesday Al-Akhbar newspaper, which is close to Hezbollah, said that Hariri had informed his political bloc and his allies of his decision to endorse Aoun. "All that's left is to officially announce it," added Al-Akhbar. Aged 81, the ex-general Aoun is a controversial figure. He served as head of the armed forces and briefly as prime minister during Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war and was then a staunch opponent of Syrian military presence in Lebanon. But he shocked many by brokering an alliance with Hezbollah in 2006, a year after his return home from exile in France and after Syria pulled its troops from Lebanon. According to a source close to Hariri, the ex-prime minister struck a deal with Aoun to endorse him in exchange for his return as premier. Lebanon's president is elected by parliament, and the post is always reserved for a Maronite Christian under a power-sharing agreement. US state of Georgia prepares to execute cop killer The southern US state of Georgia was preparing Wednesday to execute a man convicted of killing a police officer, after the state parole board denied a request for clemency. Gregory Lawler, 63, was set to die by lethal injection at 7 pm (2300 GMT) at a prison in Jackson, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) outside Atlanta, prison authorities said. According to court documents, Lawler during a domestic dispute in 1997 opened fire with an AR-15 rifle on two officers at his home, killing one and seriously wounding the other. Georgia man Gregory Lawler was set to be executed by lethal injection on October 19, 2016 at a prison in Jackson for killing a police officer Erik S. Lesser (Getty/AFP/File) On Tuesday, the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles rejected a clemency petition from Lawler's defense team that argued his life should be spared because he was recently diagnosed with autism, which had caused him to believe the officers came to his home to harm him. The pace of executions is declining in the United States, due to a combination of factors including a shortage of the drugs used to carry out in lethal injections. The US Supreme Court could still step in and halt Lawler's execution. Pakistan's 'cat-eyed' tea seller sparks national soul searching A Pakistani tea merchant with velvet eyes saw his life changed this week when his portrait spread around the Internet, sparking ardent debates on class, objectification, and the place of ethnic Pashtuns in society. Arshad Khan had no idea he had set the Internet alight from Pakistan to India and beyond: he has no phone, and cannot read. "It was a real surprise," the young "chai wala", or tea seller, told AFP. A candid photo of Pakistani Chia wala (tea seller), Arshad Khan hit the internet, sparking debates on reverse sexism, class privileges, and objectification in Pakistan Farooq Naeem (AFP) "I was aware that I am handsome but you can't do anything when you are poor," he said, adding that the image has "changed the way I think." In the candid photograph, snapped by a passing photographer and posted on Instagram, Khan prepares Pakistan's ubiquitous milk tea, his blue green eyes looking frankly into the camera. It set social media users swooning, with the 18-year-old's image shared tens of thousands of times since October 14. By Tuesday, the Islamabad market where photographer Javeria Ali took the fateful shot was swarmed by dozens eager to gawk at the young worker. But in a country where women have long fought for rights and rarely express their feelings publicly, that fervour soon morphed into an intense debate on what it meant to reduce a poor man to a beautiful object. "We are more used to seeing this happen to women, it is still creepy whan it happens to a boy," feminist columnist Bina Shah told AFP. "Just because people are bored does not mean you can play with someone's life." - The ick factor - Columnist Maria Amir concluded that "reverse sexism is still a form of sexism" on the website of Pakistan's biggest-selling English language newspaper, Dawn. But she also echoed many in noting that the true "ick factor" was in social class rather than gender. "The elite getting excited over a hot #ChaiWala reeks of class privilege and the objectification of working class men," tweeted @nidkirm, who described herself as a sociologist based in Lahore. And in a column in the Express Tribune Farahnaz Zahidi mocked the "surprise" that someone poor could be good-looking. "(T)he upper tier bourgeois of Pakistan have come to believe that even looks and God-gifted attributes are co-dependent on money and affluence?" she wrote. Indeed, in his first appearance on television, viewers laughed at Khan's awkward speech and the Western suit in which he appeared uncomfortable. "No girl would agree to marry him," wrote Twitter user @ItsMahah. Even the colour of Khan's cool gaze provoked discomfort in some like columnist Amir, who wrote "apparently there is no expiry date on our colonial baggage". Light skin and eyes are the attribute of many Pashtuns, tribal inhabitants of northwest Pakistan and southern Afghanistan, romanticised as warriors by the British. Others expressed concern about the risk of exploitation of a young man so little armed for success. A local brand was quick to publish pictures of him, but Khan said he has not signed any modelling contract. The third of 17 children, Khan has never been to school. He said he hoped his newfound fame would allow him to "move forward". Vegetable seller Saeed Ahmed worked in the market alongside Khan. "His eyes were so beautiful that we used to make fun of him and call him 'cat eyes'," he told AFP. "But we never even thought that he would one day become famous like this." Indian newspapers were the first to seize on the "Cinderella story", bringing frivolity to recent tensions between the rival neighbours with tweets calling Khan a "nuclear bomb". "I send a message of peace to my Indian fans," Khan said. Appearing uncomfortable during his first television appearance, Arshad Khan (C) said, "I was aware that I am handsome but you can't do anything when you are poor," and that the social media response to his image was "a real surprise" Farooq Naeem (AFP) I. Coast start Nations Cup campaign against Togo Ivory Coast will start their defence of the Africa Cup of Nations against Togo in January, according to the draw made Wednesday. Ivory Coast, who beat Ghana on penalties in the 2015 final, are in Group C against Togo, Morocco and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Hosts Gabon, who saw political turmoil after a disputed election in August, will stage the opening match in Libreville on January 14 against Guinea-Bissau, who make their first appearance in the 16-nation tournament. Fomer Senegalese football player Khalilou Fadiga (L) shows a piece of paper bearing the name of Ouganda next to Confederation of African Football (CAF) secretary general Hicham El Amrani during the 2017 African Cup of Nations draw ceremony Marco Longari (AFP) Cameroon and Burkina Faso are also in Group A. The other group favourites, Algeria and Ghana, start against Zimbabwe and Uganda respectively. Algeria have the toughest first round in Group B where they also take on Tunisia and Senegal for one of the two qualifying places for the quarter-finals. Ghana are the team to beat in Group D. Apart from Uganda, they will take on Egypt, making their return to the contest after missing three finals, and Mali. The final is in Libreville on February 5. The draw produced three groups containing three of the top 10 ranked football nations in Africa, according to FIFA. Algeria (2), Senegal (3) and Tunisia (4) are in one mini-league, Ivory Coast (1), DR Congo (6) and Morocco (10) in another and Ghana (5), Egypt (7) and Mali (9) in a third. A lot of teams will get to know each other extremely well, too, as Ivory Coast and Morocco also share a 2018 World Cup qualifying group, as do Ghana, Egypt and Uganda. Ivory Coast were not impressive in qualifying, drawing three of four matches against Sierra Leone and Sudan, and Morocco are probably a team they wanted to dodge. The Moroccans are coached by Herve Renard, the charismatic Frenchman who masterminded the Ivorians' triumph in Equatorial Guinea last year. He then left for a brief, unsuccessful spell in the French Ligue 1 before being hired by Morocco, and they became the first qualifiers for the 2017 tournament. Renard has won the Cup of Nations twice, taking no-hopers Zambia to the title in Gabon four years ago. "If I had to name teams I wanted to avoid before the draw, I would have said some of the teams in our group," admitted Renard. "To face Ivory Coast is difficult, especially as we have had the chance to know their players, it's practically the same squad. "But we have to be competitive. The match against Claude Le Roy (coach of Togo) will be something that again will be difficult for me. "But over 90 minutes I have to forget everything this man did for me and do everything in order to beat him." Veteran Le Roy has won the Cup of Nations once, with Cameroon in 1988, and Gabon will mark his ninth appearance at the Cup of Nations finals. He has failed to reach the knockout stage only once. Being grouped with Ghana offers Egypt yet another chance to avenge one of their most humiliating results, a 6-1 thrashing by the Black Stars in a 2014 World Cup qualifier. No team will be more excited about going to Gabon in January than Uganda -- the last time they qualified was in 1978 when the notorious Idi Amin ruled the east African state. Uganda coach Milutin 'Micho' Sredojevic said: This is a tough and competitive group, but I believe in the players and the team. "We have a realistic chance to get good results and reach the knockout stage." Although Gabon are the second lowest ranked team among the 16 contenders, they look set to make the last eight, probably with four-time champions Cameroon. The hosts rely heavily on 2015 African Footballer of the Year Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, a prolific goalscorer with German giants Borussia Dortmund. During the draw ceremony, Gabonese officials emphasised that the country was ready to host a tournament they co-staged with neighbours Equatorial Guinea in 2012. A disputed presidential election victory by incumbent Ali Bongo two months ago triggered riots with opposition parties claiming vote fraud. New prime minister Emmanuel Issoze-Ngondet said: "We will not back away from the tournament. We are ready and will organise an exceptional tournament." Africa Cup of Nations 2017 Paz Pizarro, Vincent Lefai (AFP) US to deploy missile defense to South Korea 'soon' The United States said Wednesday that it would deploy a missile-defense system to South Korea as soon as possible, despite opposition from China. US Secretary Of State John Kerry confirmed that the THAAD system would soon be sent to the peninsula at a meeting with South Korean ministers in Washington. Washington sees the US-built Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system as protection against North Korea's pursuit of missile and nuclear technology. L-R: South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-koo, South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, US Secretary of State John Kerry and US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter discuss Korean missle defense Nicholas Kamm (AFP) But China has warned it sees it as a threat to the balance of power in the region, fearing it would make its own nuclear deterrent less credible. "The United States will do whatever is necessary to defend ourselves and to honor the security commitment we have made to our allies," Kerry said. "And we will deploy as soon as possible a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery to our Korean ally," he added. Kerry and US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter were welcoming South Korea's foreign minister, Yun Byung-Se, and defense minister, Han Min-Koo. Washington and Seoul agreed to install THAAD this summer following repeated nuclear and missile tests by Kim Jong-Un's authoritarian Pyongyang regime. The move angered Beijing, the main trading partner of otherwise isolated North Korea and a key player in international efforts to control the regime. US general suspects Iran role in Huthi attacks on US ships Iran may have played a role in recent Huthi missile attacks against US warships in the Red Sea, a top US general said Wednesday. Iranian-backed Huthi rebels are believed to be behind a series of incidents this month that saw surface-to-surface missiles fired at the USS Mason on at least two occasions. In response, US cruise missiles on October 13 struck Huthi radar sites believed to have been used to target the weapons. Iranian-backed Huthi rebels are believed to be behind a series of incidents this month that saw surface-to-surface missiles fired at the USS Mason on at least two occasions "I do think Iran is playing a role in some of this. They have a relationship with the Houtis, so I do suspect there is a role in there," General Joseph Votel told a Washington think tank. Votel heads the US military's Central Command, which oversees operations across the Middle East. His statement was the most forward-leaning so far of a US official in describing Iranian involvement in the missile attacks. The Huthi missiles either fell short of their targets or were thwarted by US anti-missile defenses. The Pentagon has described two attacks so far on the Mason or other US warships. Officials are still analyzing a third possible attack on Saturday to see whether additional missiles were fired. We "are trying to ... understand this as much as we can, so we can properly attribute what is happening, and understand how these attacks are taking place," Votel told the Center for American Progress. "And more importantly, how the decisions are being made to launch these attacks, so we can take action against that." The Pentagon has not disclosed the type of missiles the Huthis used, but Votel noted that "some of the technology that we've seen there are things that are associated with" Iran. But "it's not totally exclusive to them. Certainly there are others that have shore-based missiles and may be moving that in there," he added. Yemen's conflict has killed more than 6,800 people, wounded more than 35,000 and displaced at least three million since the coalition launched military operations, according to the United Nations. Workers injured in Saudi Aramco oil facility blaze Several workers were injured in a fire at a Saudi Aramco crude oil facility near Riyadh on Wednesday, without affecting operations, the Gulf oil giant said. "Aramco regrets to report that several workers were injured as a result of a fire at a crude oil facility in Alwsea and all are being treated," it said in a post on its Twitter account. "The fire is under control. Company's operations are not impacted," it added. Saudi Aramco did not immediately give an exact number of those hurt in a fire at a crude oil facility near Riyadh Fayez Nureldine (AFP/File) Aramco did not immediately give an exact number of those hurt but Saudi newspaper Al-Riyadh said 17 people were hospitalised, with three needing treatment in intensive care. In September, a fire ripped through Aramco's Gulf coast Ras Tanura oil terminal injuring eight workers. The company is at the heart of Saudi Arabia's wide-ranging Vision 2030 plan to wean the economy of the world's biggest petroleum exporter off oil. Love it or hate it? Two Americans dish on Obamacare Some Americans are overjoyed with Obamacare. Others say it is a nightmare. To understand why, here are two men's opposing experiences with US health insurance since Obamacare, known formally as the Affordable Care Act (ACA), became law in 2010. - 'I love it' - Formally known as the Affordable Care Act, the Obamacare insurance became law in 2010, and while some enjoy its affordability, others have complains and are opting out Joe Raedle (Getty/AFP/File) Johann Ali, 40, actually giggles when he talks about his health insurance. "I love it," says the self-employed environmental consultant. First, he raves about his son, Kyle, who is 19, works part-time, and has been able to find a good insurance plan for $99 per month. His annual earnings of about $16,000 allowed him to get a federal discount, slashing the cost from the list price of $199 per month. Ali, too, found an affordable plan by purchasing an individual policy directly from an insurer for $233 per month. Before the Affordable Care Act, Ali says he had employer group coverage and his monthly cost was around $900. Preventive care, such as his annual checkup, now costs him nothing extra. Gone are the co-pays, and the occasional denials of coverage when an insurer did not think certain tests were merited, he says. He also benefits from a key provision in Obamacare that makes it illegal to discriminate against people by refusing to insure them, or charging them more for pre-existing conditions. Even though Ali does not have asthma, he has a prescription for a brand-name asthma medication that helps with an allergy-like condition. As a result, his monthly payments, or premiums, used to rise 10-15 percent per year, he says. Those price hikes no longer happen, he says. There is one common downside to Ali's plan: It carries a high deductible, meaning he must pay about $5,000 out of pocket before many insurance benefits kick in. But Ali also has a friend who was an insurance agent, and urged him to get an additional "accident policy" for $150 per year. That policy paid off -- literally -- when Ali broke his ankle two years ago. The hospital bills totaled $90,000. He filed his accident claim and got a $10,000 check, which more than covered his deductible. He paid nothing out of pocket, he says. "I was lucky enough to have somebody to educate me," says Ali. "Insurance is set up in this country to confuse you. That is how they keep you in the dark about maximizing your benefits." - 'Nobody takes it' - Todd Ulmen, 50, runs a retail clothing business in Miami. He provides health insurance for his two full-time workers, but must make sure his part-timers work fewer than 25 hours per week, or he would have to pay for their coverage as well. "If you had to provide insurance for everybody, you couldn't be in business," he says. Ulmen's own insurance did not change the first year after Obamacare became law. The second year, his insurer said his policy, which cost about $400 per month, would no longer be available. "I said OK, fine, give me your best policy. And they did not tell me they were putting me in the Obamacare program," says Ulmen. Ulmen was stunned when he went for a checkup "and they told me, 'we don't take Obamacare.'" Ulmen paid for that visit out of pocket, but then needed to see an eye specialist, and a cardiologist. "You cannot find a specialist in Miami that will take that insurance," he says. Ultimately, Ulmen realized he had been given a health insurance plan from the ACA marketplace, or exchange, that did not meet his needs. So, he chose to purchase a private plan directly from a major insurer for about $600 per month. "I tell people if they have Obamacare, just go to the emergency room because that is the only way you are going to get decent care," he says. "Insurance is fine and dandy but if you can't get anyone to take it, it doesn't do any good." - An expert explains gaps - So what is happening here? "People are finding their doctors are dropping out of their plans," says Steven Ullmann, an expert in healthcare policy at the University of Miami. "Insurance companies are moving to very narrow networks where you have just a selection of a few doctors in each specialty, and a few hospitals. That is a huge trend." The price of health insurance is rising, in part, because many healthy young adults have not signed up. Therefore the overall risk pool has not fallen enough, he explains. An additional 20 million people have become insured since the passage of Obamacare, but they "tend to be people over 35 or over 45 and are more prone to illness." About another 20 million people "are uninsured and those are mainly the 'young invincibles,' in their 20s and early 30s." If money is tight, there is little incentive to sign up. The tax penalty for not being insured is $695 for the entire year, about half the cost of buying insurance, which runs at least $1,500 per year. Finally, there is "the gap." Ali's son Kyle avoided it, because he earns just enough over the poverty line that he qualifies for a federal subsidy. But many find that they make too much to qualify for Medicaid, which insures the poor, and not enough to earn a government-issued discount. Initially, Obamacare called for expanding Medicaid to 133 percent of the poverty level, but it was rejected by the Supreme Court. About half of states have opted not to expand Medicaid, including Florida. That means individuals who earn less than Kyle, say between $11,800-15,800 per year, "fall in a hole," explains Ullmann. "They do not have access to health insurance, except for the full, extremely high-priced health insurance. So they continue to be uninsured." Johann A. Ali raves about how his son, who works part-time, has been able to find a good insurance plan for $99 per month Gaston De Cardenas (AFP) Officer who announced Burkina Faso coup released Burkina Faso authorities have released Colonel Mamadou Bamba, the officer who announced last year's abortive coup, a judicial source said Wednesday. "Yesterday (Tuesday), Colonel Bamba left prison. He has been granted provisional freedom," a high-ranking military magistrate told AFP. Bamba went on television to announce the coup on September 17, reading a statement saying the army had seized control from a transitional government which took office after former president Blaise Compaore fled in October 2014 to Ivory Coast. Colonel Mamadou Bamba announce last year's abortive coup on September 17, 2015, reading a statement saying the army had seized control from a transitional government which took office after former president Blaise Compaore fled to Ivory Coast Issouf Sanogo (AFP/File) Bamba was not a member of Compaore's presidential guard which was behind the putsch but was jailed along with coup leader Gilbert Diendere. In all, 85 people have been charged with organising the coup and warrants have been issues for the arrest of a further ten. Around 40 suspects have been granted temporary release, according to an AFP count. The military judiciary has meanwhile called for International Criminal Court (ICC) expert Hermann Kuenzel to analyse a recorded telephone conversation between the president of Ivory Coast's national assembly Guillaume Soro and former Burkinabe foreign minister Djibril Bassole. In the course if the conversation, Soro is understood to have implicitly given backing to the coup officers as they struggled to push through their operation which collapsed within days. A warrant for the arrest of Soro brought relations between Abidjan and Ouagadougou to a low ebb and pursuit of the former rebel leader was scotched. French expert Norbert Pheulpin, brought in by Bassole's defence team, said the recording was a splicing together of "three or four different phone conversations" between Soro and Bassole. Fragile Yemen truce comes into effect under UN plan A fragile ceasefire took effect in war-ravaged Yemen just before midnight Wednesday, under a United Nations plan, as combatants face mounting pressure to end more than 18 months of fighting. The UN special envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, had announced on Monday that the cessation of hostilities would take effect "at 23:59 Yemen time (2059 GMT) on 19 October 2016, for an initial period of 72 hours, subject to renewal". It is the sixth attempt to end the bloodshed since a Saudi-led Arab coalition intervened in March 2015 to support the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi after rebels overran much of Yemen. A Yemeni fighter from the separatist Southern Movement, loyal to the government forces, gestures on October 13, 2016, in the southern city of Aden Saleh Al-Obeidi (AFP/File) Shortly after the truce began, the coalition issued a statement saying it "will abide by the ceasefire", which aims for "distribution of the greatest possible humanitarian and medical assistance" to Yemen's people, especially the besieged city of Taez. It said it will continue an air and maritime embargo, to prevent weapons shipments to the rebels, and will maintain airborne reconnaissance. The rebels' military spokesman, General Sharaf Lokman, said his forces will respect the ceasefire as long as "the enemy" also abides by it on land, sea and air. However, he urged his fighters to be ready to retaliate against "all aggression." Early Thursday there were reports of continued combat. Three pro-government fighters were killed near the Red Sea in Hajja province when Huthi rebels, after midnight, began a counter-offensive to retake positions lost before the truce, a loyalist officer, Colonel Abdel Ghani al-Chebli, told AFP. "The rebels didn't respect earlier truces and we have orders to retaliate. We are in a defensive position," he said. Military sources and residents said there had also been fighting around Taez, and pro-Hadi positions came under fire in Sarwah, east of Sanaa. But civilians have paid the highest price in the war. Almost 6,900 people have been killed -- more than half of them civilians -- while another three million are displaced and millions more need food aid. - 'Urgent humanitarian assistance' - EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini late Wednesday said the truce should be a first step towards resuming UN-led peace talks. "The ceasefire must be respected by all sides and its duration extended so as to create the necessary conditions for such negotiations," she said. Mogherini added the ceasefire will allow urgent humanitarian assistance to reach large parts of the population that have suffered drastic shortages. On Tuesday, US Secretary of State John Kerry encouraged the "unconditional renewal" of the truce. The last ceasefire attempt, which began in April alongside UN-brokered peace talks in Kuwait, failed with both the rebels and the coalition accusing each other of breaches. After peace talks collapsed in August, fighting escalated until an October 8 coalition air strike which the UN said killed more than 140 people and wounded at least 525 at a funeral in Sanaa. The United States announced an "immediate review" of its intelligence and refuelling assistance to the coalition, whose investigative team then released unusually quick findings from a probe of the incident. It said a coalition aircraft "wrongly targeted" the funeral based on "incorrect information". In another major development, the US Navy for the first time targeted Huthi rebels directly. On October 13 it hit radar sites which, the US said, were involved in missile launches against a US warship and other vessels. Yemen's Huthi rebels are allied with members of the security forces loyal to ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh. They control the capital Sanaa and other territory but coalition-backed forces earlier pushed them back from the southern port of Aden and adjacent areas. - 'More optimistic' - Both the rebels and pro-government forces have come under increased international pressure to silence their guns. Hadi's government said it would agree to the truce if rebels also adhered to it and ended their siege of Taez. The UN's humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, Jamie McGoldrick, on Wednesday told reporters he hoped the truce will provide a chance for aid workers to reach areas isolated by the fighting. Mustafa Alani, a senior adviser to the Gulf Research Centre, said the prospects for peace were growing. "I am more optimistic, actually, because the environment is completely different from the previous" truce, he told AFP. Saudi Arabia and Washington accuse Iran of arming the rebels, charges Tehran denies. Numerous analysts question the extent of Tehran's influence over the Huthis, a minority group which fought six wars against Yemen's government from 2004 to 2010. A UN report said air strikes by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen were suspected of causing around half of all civilian deaths Mohammed Huwais (AFP/File) A wounded Yemeni man sits in the airport in Sanaa on October 15, 2016, as he waits for an Omani plane to evacuate him Mohammed Huwais (AFP) A destroyed vehicle in the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah on October 13, 2016 British Al-Jazeera reporter arrested in Somalia Somalian security forces have arrested a British journalist working for Al-Jazeera, the Qatari news channel said Wednesday. Hamza Mohamed was arrested in Mogadishu on Tuesday along with a driver, fixer and cameraman. He had been in the country for a week on a reporting assignment. Al-Jazeera said it had been in touch with Hamza Mohamed since his detention and was "hoping ... that he will be released without further delay". Al-Jazeera journalist Hamza Mohamed had frequently travelled to Somalia over the past few years from where he had reported "with accuracy and integrity", Al-Jazeera said in an online report Mohamed Abdiwahab (AFP/File) Somali authorities had informed Al-Jazeera that they had detained the journalist but that he had not yet been charged with anything. Hamza Mohamed had frequently travelled to the country over the past few years from where he had reported "with accuracy and integrity", Al-Jazeera said in an online report. Reporters Without Borders (RSF), meanwhile, said Hamza and his colleagues were arrested on their return from a trip outside the capital, during which they were suspected of visiting territory controlled by the radical Islamist group Shabaab to interview senior Shabaab leaders. "We call on the Somali authorities to immediately free Al-Jazeera correspondent Hamza Mohamed and the two cameramen, who have been held by the intelligence services since yesterday (Tuesday)," RSF said. "Journalists are constantly caught in the crossfire of the war between government forces and Al-Shabaab's armed militants. They are either the victims of deadly reprisals by the militants or they are arrested by the authorities on suspicion of collaborating with Al-Shabaab." The men's detention by the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) was also confirmed to Radio Dalsan by Abdifatah Halane, a spokesman for the government of Banadir, the region that includes the capital, RSF said, adding that their equipment was also seized. A British foreign ministry spokeswoman told AFP: "We are looking into reports that a British national has been detained in Somalia and we are ready to provide consular assistance if needed." Shabaab fighters are trying to overthrow the internationally-backed government in Mogadishu. Kerry warns Russia taking Aleppo won't solve anything US Secretary of State John Kerry warned Russia on Wednesday that seizing the city of Aleppo will not help end the Syrian civil war and may further radicalize opposition forces. Speaking as officials from the US, Russia and Syria's neighbors met in Geneva to seek ways to restore a ceasefire in the civil war, Kerry said Russia's bombardment of rebel-held areas was a mistake. Moscow argues that it is supporting Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad against Al-Qaeda-linked "terrorists" and blames Washington for failing to separate moderate rebels from the hardliners. US Secretary of State John Kerry said Russia's bombardment of rebel-held areas in Syria was a mistake Nicholas Kamm (AFP) But, speaking in Washington after talks with his South Korean counterpart, Kerry said: "Every bomb that's dropped by Russia and the Assad regime is radicalizing more and more people." After the collapse last month of a short-lived US and Russian-brokered truce, the Syrian regime launched a major offensive against the rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo, home to an estimated 250,000 civilians. "If Russia and Assad succeed in taking Aleppo, the fundamental dynamic of this war does not change," Kerry said, warning Russia to recommit to the search for a viable ceasefire deal. "If you don't have a political settlement you can't have peace and so Russia needs to understand this is not making things better, it's making things worse. "And we have put on the table an opportunity for Russia to make a different choice, a simple choice," he continued. Man arrested in shooting of Alaska police officer ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) A 29-year-old man was arrested Tuesday in connection with a shooting that left an Alaska police officer seriously injured. Anthony George Jenkins-Alexie was arrested Tuesday morning as he was walking on a local street, Fairbanks police said. Jenkins-Alexie has a "lengthy criminal history and has previously made threats toward law enforcement," Acting Fairbanks Police Chief Brad Johnson said at a news conference. Jenkins-Alexie is facing charges of attempted murder, assault, vehicle theft, tampering with evidence and theft of a firearm in connection with the shooting early Sunday of Sgt. Allen Brandt. This photo released by Fairbanks Police Department shows Anthony George Jenkins-Alexie. The 29-year-old man was arrested in a shooting that left an Alaska police officer seriously injured. Jenkins-Alexie, of Fairbanks, is facing charges of attempted murder, assault and other counts in connection with the shooting early Sunday of Sgt. Allen Brandt. (Fairbanks Police Department via AP) Johnson said there are no other suspects in the shooting besides Jenkins-Alexie. "After interviewing him and based on his own admissions and significant corroborating evidence, I can assure the community that he acted alone and that there is no continuing threat to my fellow police officers or our citizens," Johnson said. Brandt is recovering at an Anchorage hospital after he was struck four times in the legs, police said. Body armor protected Brandt from a shot to the chest, but bullet fragments struck the officer's eye, police said. Brandt, an 11-year veteran, was shot as he responded to reports of shots fired in a residential neighborhood just east of downtown. He was among officers responding to the scene. Brandt's dashboard camera records him slowing down as a man on a nearby sidewalk approaches with his hands at his side. As the patrol car stops, the man moves his right hand toward his coat pocket but continues out of the picture. A few seconds later, the man, gripping a handgun with both hands, runs around the front of the car. Brandt managed to fire back at the suspect, but police did not say at Tuesday's briefing if the suspect was hit. Police spokeswoman Yumi McCulloch did not have an immediate answer to the question. Police have not released details of how Johnson exited the car or from where he returned fire. The suspect drove off in the patrol car. Police found it roughly two blocks away. The dash cam shows the suspect again walking in front of the patrol car, illuminated by the vehicle's headlights. Brandt moved off the street. He radioed his location and reported that he had been shot. Responding officers administered first aid. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported that Brenda Riley, a woman who lives nearby, was the first person to reach the injured officer. Riley, the executive director of the Fairbanks Children's Museum, said Brandt was conscious and radioing dispatchers when she arrived. "I just held his head and did that mom thing of 'Look at me, look at me, stay with me,' " Riley told the newspaper. ___ Follow Rachel D'Oro at https://twitter.com/rdoro Bayh, Young keep up biting attacks during Senate debate INDIANAPOLIS (AP) Democrats this campaign season have gleefully attacked as their Republican opponents awkwardly try to distance themselves from Donald Trump, the party's provocative presidential nominee. In Indiana, a reliably red state, the opposite was true Tuesday during a U.S. Senate debate between former Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh and GOP Congressman Todd Young. In fact, Trump's name wasn't mentioned once. The three candidates for Indiana's open U.S. Senate seat, from left, Libertarian Lucy Brenton, Democrat Evan Bayh and Republican Todd Young participate in debate in Indianapolis, Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016. The Indiana campaign has become a key national race as Democrats try to capture the seat now held by retiring Republican Sen. Dan Coats and overturn the GOP's narrow Senate majority. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, Pool) Meanwhile Bayh name-checked Trump's running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, while going to great lengths to point out his differences with Democratic presidential candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. "I do have some difference with Secretary Clinton, although I support her in the race," Bayh said during a news conference after the debate. "I don't support her position on the Iran nuclear deal. I don't support her position on cap and trade ... and I don't support her tax increase proposal." Of Trump who he wouldn't mention by name Bayh said only: "Certainly some of the things he's said I would strongly disagree with, but I'll let other people make that judgment." The candidates clashed repeatedly during what could be their only debate, with Young arguing that Bayh accomplished little during his time as a senator. Young, who was often the aggressor, also renewed his assaults on Bayh's work in Washington, D.C., since leaving the Senate six years ago. "He's all talk," Young said. "He spent our money ... stimulus, Obamacare, things that Hoosiers don't want. That's the record of a D.C. insider." The Associated Press previously reported Bayh conducted a job hunt in 2010, his final year in office, meeting with leaders in the corporate and financial world while casting votes that aligned with many of their priorities. Bayh didn't use the debate stage to defend his post-Senate work, which has been the subject of millions of dollars in attack ads from outside GOP groups including a group tied to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and the billionaire Koch brothers. Instead he referred several times to popular programs he supported during his time as Indiana governor from 1989 to 1997. Bayh also countered that he was proud to work with Republican former Sen. Richard Lugar to support the 2008 auto bailout that rescued carmakers General Motors and Chrysler. "Congressman Young said let 'em go belly up," Bayh said. "We don't do that to our fellow Hoosiers." The Indiana campaign has become a key national race as Democrats try to capture the seat now held by retiring Republican Sen. Dan Coats and overturn the GOP's narrow Senate majority. Young frequently faulted Bayh for voting in favor of President Barack Obama's health care law, arguing it has raised costs and hurt care in the state. Young said Bayh abandoned Indiana residents after not seeking re-election in 2010, then collecting millions of dollars from various corporate jobs. "Now, we can hold you accountable in this election," Young said pointedly toward Bayh. Bayh countered that he wants to fix parts of the health care overhaul and not allow insurance companies freedom to cancel policies as before the law was adopted. In addition, Bayh said at least twice that the Republican push to repeal the health care overhaul would threaten Pence's Healthy Indiana Plan, which is Indiana's expansion of Medicaid under the program. Bayh maintained that would put the insurance coverage for 350,000 Indiana residents at risk. "This is something that Gov. Pence did that I agree with, that Congressman Young wants to undo," Bayh said. Bayh, the Democrats' prize Senate recruit, entered the race in July with a huge fundraising lead over Young and sky-high name ID from his time as a popular governor and senator. But he's been put on the defensive over his post-Senate work for a Washington law firm and private equity fund. Bayh earned nearly $6.3 million since the beginning of 2015, with about a third of the total coming from Apollo Global Management, a self-described alternative investment manager based in New York, according to financial disclosure records. After the debate, Bayh blamed Young for the combative tenor of the event, which also included Libertarian candidate Lucy Brenton. "He made so many unfounded allegations tonight that it's almost impossible to remember them all," Bayh said. "He seemed like he was kinda losing it there at the end." Republican Todd Young participates in debate for Indiana's open U.S. Senate seat in Indianapolis, Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016. Democrat Evan Bayh and Libertarian Lucy Brenton also participated in the debate. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, pool) Wisconsin Sen. Johnson says he, Trump are 'change agents' MADISON, Wis. (AP) Republican Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson said both he and Donald Trump are change agents, defended himself from charges that he's in the pocket of special interests by saying "I am the working man" and accused the signature campaign finance reform championed by his challenger Russ Feingold as a "spectacular failure" in a debate Tuesday. Johnson and Feingold sat side by side in the spirited and sometimes contentious debate in Milwaukee, the second and final face-off that comes three weeks before the election. Johnson and Feingold disagreed on a bevy of issues, from their support of their party's presidential nominees, the Affordable Care Act, free trade, the minimum wage, immigration enforcement and reform and whose interests they would back in the Senate. Johnson's support for Trump has hung over the race, one of the most closely watched Senate contests in the country. While Johnson has not backed away from supporting Trump, he's also not campaigned with him in Wisconsin including a stop Trump made Monday in Green Bay. CORRECTS YEAR TO 2016-Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, left, and Democrat Russ Feingold, right, meet in their second and final debate Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016 in Milwaukee. The debate was moderated by Mike Gousha. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP) Johnson said voters were looking for dramatic change and both he and Trump are on the right side of the biggest issues, like how to fight terrorism and the importance of nominating conservatives to the Supreme Court. "Our nominee is a change agent," the incumbent Johnson said. "I'm a change agent." Johnson challenged Feingold to defend his support for Clinton, who Feingold had described as honest and trustworthy. Feingold, who served 18 years in the Senate before being defeated by Johnson in 2010, reiterated that assessment of Clinton, saying that was his experience in working with her when she was first lady, a senator and secretary of state. "She's not perfect, but she's so much better than Donald Trump," said Feingold, who added that Trump would "destabilize" the world. Feingold and Johnson also disagreed sharply on campaign finance. Feingold is known for the law designed to cut back on the influence of special interest money in politics he co-wrote with Arizona Sen. John McCain, large portions of which were struck down by the landmark Citizens United Supreme Court ruling. Johnson called the law a "spectacular failure" that "simply didn't work at all." He also blasted Feingold for taking a majority of his campaign donations from people living outside of Wisconsin, despite pledging in his first Senate run in 1992 never to do that. Feingold said he's justified in doing that because the campaign finance landscape is so different now than then. He accused Johnson of being in the pocket of special interests, based on his voting record and the fact that outside groups are spending more to help him in the campaign than Feingold. "He is benefiting enormously from this corrupt system, these hidden contributions that aren't reported," Feingold said. But Johnson, who helped build a plastics manufacturing company in Oshkosh before he ran for the Senate and beat Feingold in 2010, said at his heart he's still that businessman. He recalled working long hours building the company. "I am the working man," Johnson said. Feingold said Johnson has been ineffective as senator and is disqualified to serve because of his blocking of Merrick Garland's nomination to the Supreme Court. Johnson, who said he would not vote for "liberal activists," said he wants to wait on taking a vote until after a new president and Senate is elected. The 90-minute debate took place on the same day a new statewide poll from St. Norbert College showed Feingold leading the race 52 percent to Johnson's 40 percent, with a margin of plus or minus almost 3.8 points. A Marquette law school poll a week ago had the race about even. ___ Follow Scott Bauer on Twitter at https://twitter.com/sbauerAP and find more of his work at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/scott-bauer . CORRECTS YEAR TO 2016- Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, left, and Democrat Russ Feingold, right, meet in their second and final debate Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016 in Milwaukee. The debate was moderated by Mike Gousha. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP) CORRECTS YEAR TO 2016 Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, left, and Democrat Russ Feingold, right, meet before their second and final debate Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016 in Milwaukee. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP) Landowners tell court: Exxon Mobil pipeline breached deal ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) An attorney for landowners along a crude oil pipeline that ruptured in Arkansas in 2013 said Wednesday that Exxon Mobil Pipeline Co. breached its contract with his clients because the pipeline interferes with their ability to enjoy their property. Attorneys for the landowners and for Exxon Mobil appeared Wednesday before a three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Minnesota. Landowners' attorney Phillip Duncan asked the appeals court to reinstate the case which was dismissed last year saying his clients can prove the pipeline is damaging their property. FILE - In this April 1, 2013 file photo, crews work to clean up oil in a Mayflower, Ark., neighborhood after an oil pipeline ruptured and spewed oil over lawns and roadways. Attorneys for landowners along the crude oil pipeline that ruptured in 2013 are asking a federal appeals court to reinstate their case. Landowners sued Exxon Mobil Pipeline Co., in 2013, alleging a breach of contract, but the case was dismissed in 2015. Oral arguments will be held Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016, in Minnesota. (AP Photo/Jeannie Nuss, File) "We have enough proof to stay in court," he said. But Exxon Mobil attorney Gary Marts said the case was properly dismissed and landowners are essentially trying to use a common-law claim to regulate pipeline safety which is the job of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, not the courts. The 850-mile long Pegasus Pipeline runs through Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas. The line ruptured on March 29, 2013, spilling tens of thousands of gallons of crude oil in Mayflower, Arkansas, about 25 miles northwest of Little Rock. The 70-year-old pipeline was closed after the spill; a roughly 200-mile segment of it in Texas has reopened. The landowners sued after the spill brought safety issues to light. Duncan argued that the case is about protecting rights of property owners. He said easements say the company is responsible for repairing, replacing or removing the pipeline. "We can't enforce the safety of it. We're not trying to," Duncan told the judges. He also argued that the case should go forward as a class-action claim. When he dismissed the case last year, U.S. District Judge Brian Miller acknowledged his decision seemed unfair. He said if Exxon prevailed, easement grantors would get the message that they had no rights until after an oil spill; but if the landowners prevailed, they could hold pipeline companies hostage if they felt they didn't meet personal safety standards. In the end, Miller agreed with Exxon Mobil, which argued that Arkansas law interpreted easement contracts as a right of way, without a duty to maintain or repair the pipeline. He also removed the case's class-action certification, noting that a potential leak in Illinois would have no practical effect on a landowner in Texas. Marts argued Wednesday that Miller was right to dismiss the case and remove its class-action certification. He also said the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration makes determinations about pipeline safety and effectively pre-empts landowners from suing. Appeals Court Judge William Riley asked Marts if a property owner must sit back and wait for the government to regulate safety issues. Marts said there is a way for citizens to sue, but it doesn't apply in this case. Exxon Mobil is currently challenging a $2.6 million fine and a Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration's finding that it violated safety regulations, which led to the rupture. ___ Prosecutors indict 5 Lotte family members on corruption SEOUL, South Korea (AP) Prosecutors said Wednesday they indicted the Lotte Group's founder, his mistress and all of his three children on embezzlement, tax evasion and other charges, in the latest case highlighting the outsized influence of founding families over South Korean publicly listed companies. Five family members including Lotte's founder Shin Kyuk-ho, 94, and the group's current chair, Shin Dong-bin, 61, together allegedly evaded a total $76 million in taxes and embezzled $46 million of company funds, Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said in a statement. Three others are the founder's older son Shin Dong-joo, 62, his daughter Shin young-ja, 73, and his 57-year-old common-law wife Seo Mi-kyung. Lotte Group's Chairman Shin Dong-bin arrives at the head office of Lotte group in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. South Korean prosecutors said Wednesday they indicted the Lotte Groups founder, his mistress and all of his three children on embezzlement, tax evasion and other charges. (Yun Dong-jin/Yonhap via AP) The prosecutors said the Shin family members also incurred $123 million of losses to Lotte companies as the family used their influence to control corporate funds and to make decisions favorable to them, not to shareholders. "We have been seriously reflecting on what efforts Lotte should make for society and for the national economy," Lotte said in a statement. "We will continue to strive to build a good company." The announcement wraps up the four-month-long investigation into South Korea's No.5 conglomerate. When Lotte sold its businesses to the founding family members, they were sold at prices way below market value. But when Lotte bought businesses or stocks from its founding family, it had to pay premiums, the prosecutors said. For example, Lotte sold its lucrative popcorn business at its movie chains to the founding family members, allowing them to monopolize the profits from selling popcorns to moviegoers. The profit should have gone to Lotte Shopping, which operates one of the biggest movie theater chains in South Korea, the officials said. Lotte also paid a total 50.8 billion won ($45 million) as salaries from 2005 to 2016 to two of the founder's children even though they did not hold any positions or have any duties with the company. It is unusual for prosecutors to seek charges against the entire family of a major South Korean business. Founding families that control chaebol, the big businesses dominating the South Korean economy, have been convicted in the past. The chiefs of Samsung, Hyundai Motor and SK have been found guilty of white color crimes but later received presidential pardons. Those cases have shown that even though chaebol bosses own a minority stake in their companies, they can run their companies like they run a dynasty, treating corporate funds as if they were in their own pocket. The latest investigation into Lotte forced the group to suspend a plan to list shares of its hotel business, just months after its chairman emerged from a bruising public battle with his older brother for control of the group. In August, a Lotte executive and one of the top aides of Lotte's chairman, was found dead in a suspected suicide, just hours before prosecutors were supposed to question him. Lotte is a household name in South Korea with a big presence in Japan and Southeast Asia. It operates South Korea's largest department store, a major hotel chain and food businesses, as well as duty free shops and chemicals business. ___ Lee can be reached on Twitter: www.twitter.com/YKLeeAP Her previous works can be found on: http://bigstory.ap.org/content/youkyung-lee Migrants in Spain end overnight rooftop protest in capital MADRID (AP) Nearly 40 migrants have ended an overnight protest on the rooftop of a detention center in Spain's capital. The migrants, most reported to be from Algeria, shouted for "Freedom" and "Dignity" during the protest, which began late Tuesday. Police cordoned off the area around the center on Madrid's outskirts, but the protest finished peacefully early Wednesday following negotiations with officials. Spain has nine detention centers that are used to hold migrants considered to be in the country illegally. Boko Haram overruns Nigerian military base in northeast YOLA, Nigeria (AP) Nigeria's Boko Haram Islamic extremists have overrun a remote military camp in the northeast, leaving 13 soldiers wounded and an unknown number missing, the army said Wednesday. Monday's attack comes a week after one faction of Boko Haram released 21 of more than 200 schoolgirls kidnapped from northeastern Chibok town, and as Nigeria's government is negotiating for the release of another 83 of the girls abducted 2 years ago. The attack on Gashigar, on the border with Niger, is the third reported attack on the military after months of a lull during which the Islamic extremists hit soft civilian targets. Army spokesman Col. Sani Kukasheka Usman called the attack a "temporary setback" committed by "remnants of Boko Haram" that forced the soldiers to retreat. An operation is in progress to find the missing troopers and "clear the Boko Haram terrorists at the general area," his statement said. It is believed the attack is by a splinter from Boko Haram that calls itself the West Africa Province of the Islamic State. The IS named a new caliph of its only franchise in sub-Saharan Africa in August, provoking a struggle with Boko Haram's longtime leader Abubakar Shekau. A battle of words on social media indicated the dispute is over Shekau's indiscriminate killing of Muslims. The group loyal to Shekau negotiated with the Swiss government and International Committee of the Red Cross acting as intermediaries for Nigeria's government last Thursday's release of 21 Chibok girls, the first such negotiated settlement. President Muhammadu Buhari, who flew to Germany the day the girls were set free, is scheduled to meet with them and their families later Wednesday, according to a social media message posted by the official account of Nigeria's presidency. Boko Haram's 7-year-old Islamic uprising has killed more than 20,000 people, forced some 2.6 million from their homes and left tens of thousands facing famine-like conditions, according to aid agencies and the U.N. ___ Indonesia's parliament ratifies Paris climate change deal JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) Indonesia's parliament ratified the Paris climate change agreement on Wednesday, obligating one of the world's biggest polluters to limit its carbon emissions. All 10 political parties in Indonesia's parliament endorsed the agreement, paving the way for it to become part of the country's laws. The deal aims to curb the emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to keep global temperature increases to less than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). Indonesia is a major coal producer and is cutting down its tropical forests for palm oil and pulp wood plantations. Annual dry-season fires that are illegally started to clear land for plantations also release vast amounts of greenhouse gases, particularly when they burn peatlands that store large amounts of carbon. A study in the journal Nature Climate Change estimated that Indonesia was clearing 840,000 hectares (2.1 million acres) of forests a year by 2012, more than any other country. In 2014, it renewed a moratorium on new licenses for logging in virgin forests, but deforestation has continued largely unabated. Indonesia signed the Paris agreement on April 22 in New York. The deal comes into effect on Nov. 4 after the threshold of ratification by 55 countries representing at least 55 percent of global emissions was passed early this month. Court-martial gives soldier 3 years' jail for mutilating boy MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) A Nigerian court-martial has sentenced a soldier to three years' jail for meting out punishment that left a 10-year-old without the use of his hands. One hand was amputated. A court ruling published Wednesday also stripped all rank from Staff Sergeant Umar Sule. The father of the crippled boy, Usman Muhammed, expressed satisfaction with Tuesday's ruling. The court-martial was petitioned by the government-funded National Human Rights Commission, which said it is also pursuing monetary compensation for the family. Crews make progress against blaze in Los Angeles area LOS ANGELES (AP) Fire crews are making progress against wildfire burning in Los Angeles' Aliso Canyon area near Porter Ranch. There have been no reports of evacuations or structures damaged, but crews are taking special care to protect the natural gas fields in that area. The blaze is 85 percent contained early Wednesday after scorching less than 30 acres of dry brush. More than 100 firefighters working in windy conditions battled the fire after it was reported Tuesday night. The Los Angeles Times reports that Southern California Gas Co., which operates the natural gas storage facility where a damaged well spewed methane for four months and displaced thousands of residents, confirmed that the fire was burning near the site. Michael Moore debuts film on Trump weeks before vote NEW YORK (AP) Michael Moore has premiered a surprise film discussing the presidential election just three weeks before Americans head to the polls. Moore debuted "Michael Moore in TrumpLand" in New York on Tuesday night in front of an audience of his fans. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film features Moore speaking about both Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton on stage earlier this month in Wilmington, Ohio, a hotbed of Trump support. FILE - In this May 16, 2016 file photo, Michael Moore attends the 20th Annual Webby Awards at Cipriani Wall Street in New York. Moore premiered a surprise film about the U.S. presidential election on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016. "Michael Moore in TrumpLand" features a one-man stage show of Moore discussing the race. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP, File) The liberal documentarian urged the crowd at Tuesday's premiere to vote for Clinton next month. The Hollywood Reporter says the film will screen for one week at the IFC Center in Manhattan beginning Wednesday. It will also be shown at a theater in Encino, California. Austrian politician fined for 'Nazi' claims VIENNA (AP) An Austrian appeals court has found a politician guilty of defaming right-wing presidential candidate Norbert Hofer by suggesting he is a Nazi and fined him thousands of euros. Hofer took Social Democrat Ingo Mayr to court after Hofer won about a third of the vote in the first round of elections in April. Among other things, Mayr had said that a third of the electorate "chose a Nazi." Wednesday's verdict overturns an earlier court ruling in favor of Mayr and carries fines totaling 5,550 euros ($6,100.) Morgan Stanley's earnings jump, helped by trading NEW YORK (AP) Morgan Stanley said its earnings soared 62 percent in the third quarter, thanks to big gains in bond trading. The New York-based investment bank said Wednesday it earned $1.52 billion after payments to preferred shareholders, up from $939 million in the same period a year earlier. Earnings per share, excluding an accounting adjustment, were 81 cents versus 34 cents a year earlier. The results beat forecasts. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected the bank to earn 63 cents per share. FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2011, file photo, the Morgan Stanley logo is displayed on its Times Square building, in New York. Morgan Stanley reports financial results Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File) Like its major competitor Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley had a strong quarter on its trading desks, particularly bond trading. Overall revenue from trading jumped to $4.6 billion from $3.5 billion, excluding an accounting adjustment. Bond sales and trading revenue jumped to $1.5 billion, nearly triple the $583 million figure from a year earlier. Stock trading revenue edged up to $1.9 billion from $1.8 billion. Revenue from wealth management rose to $3.9 billion from $3.6 billion. Assets under management increased $13.5 billion in the quarter. Morgan Stanley has been building up its wealth management as a more stable driver of earnings compared with trading, which can ebb and flow with market volatility. "Overall the results reflect steady progress against our long term strategic goals," said Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman said in a prepared statement. Return on common equity, a closely watched metric for investment banks, rose to 8.7 percent, a big improvement from 5.6 percent in the same period a year earlier. Revenue rose to $8.91 billion from $7.77 billion. Police: 3 children die in Oklahoma mobile home fire ARKOMA, Okla. (AP) Authorities say three children have died after a fire at a mobile home in eastern Oklahoma. Police say the fire broke out at about 4 a.m. Wednesday in Arkoma, which is right on the state's border with Arkansas. Arkoma police tell Fort Smith, Arkansas, television station KHBS (http://bit.ly/2ehQ9Dw ) that the children's parents were home at the time of the blaze but were unable to reach them because of heavy smoke. Police say the mother of the children was taken to a hospital after the fire. Moroccan woman in Berlusconi sex scandal to face new trial MILAN (AP) A judge has indicted the Moroccan woman at the center of former Premier Silvio Berlusconi's sex-for-hire scandal on charges of giving false testimony. The judge set Jan. 11 as the opening date for the trial of Karima el-Mahroug and 22 others accused of accepting bribes and lying on the stand to protect Berlusconi in his trial on charges of having paid for sex with el-Mahroug whose stage name was Ruby the Heartstealer when she was an under-age teenager and he premier, and then using his influence to cover it up. Berlusconi was acquitted in the case on appeal. US home construction fell 9 percent in September WASHINGTON (AP) Homebuilders pulled back on construction for a second straight month in September, with a plunge in apartments offsetting gains in single-family homes. Building activity was weak in all parts of the country except the Midwest. Construction tumbled 9 percent in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.05 million units, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. It was the slowest pace in 18 months. Construction had fallen 5.6 percent in August. The weakness last month reflected a 38 percent drop in construction of apartments, which overshadowed an 8.1 percent rise in single-family construction. FILE - In this Thursday, Sept. 22, 2016, file photo, Lennar Corporation townhomes are under construction at Chelsea Place in Tamarac, Fla. On Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016, the Commerce Department reports on U.S. home construction in September. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File) Despite the two months of declines, home construction has been one of the bright spots in the economy this year. Builders have been scrambling to keep up with rising demand amid continued strong job gains and low mortgage rates. The September performance was weaker than expected. Analysts had been forecasting a rebound. But they noted that the smaller apartment segment of construction is often volatile from month to month. "Given the volatility of the multifamily sector, there is not enough in this report to suggest the steady uptrend in housing starts is changing yet," economists at Contingent Macro Research said in a research note. Applications for building permits, a good sign of future activity, posted an increase of 6.3 percent in September. It was the biggest one-month gain since last November, pushing activity to an annual rate of 1.22 million units. By region of the country, construction starts rose 6.6 percent in the Midwest, the only region showing a gain. Construction fell 31.5 percent in the Northwest, 15.6 percent in the South and 4.4 percent in the West. Terror bombing suspect moved from hospital to prison TRENTON, N.J. (AP) A man accused of setting off bombs in New Jersey and New York, injuring more than 30 people, has been moved from a hospital to a state prison. Ahmad Khan Rahimi was transferred to a state facility on Tuesday instead of a county jail for his safety and security, New Jersey Corrections Department spokesman Matt Schuman said. Schuman would not identify the facility. The Afghan-born U.S. citizen had been hospitalized with gunshot wounds following a police shootout that led to his capture in Linden on Sept. 19. FILE - In this Oct. 13, 2016, file photo, Ahmad Khan Rahimi, left, appears via video from his hospital bed in Newark, N.J., during a court hearing at the Union County Courthouse, in Elizabeth, N.J. Rahimi, accused of setting off bombs in New Jersey and New York was moved from a hospital to a state prison Tuesday, Oct. 18, according to the New Jersey Corrections Department spokesman. (Union County Courthouse via AP, Pool, File) He remains held on $5.2 million bail. Rahimi, 28, has pleaded not guilty to five counts of attempted murder of a police officer and weapons offenses. During a video court appearance on Oct. 13, he was read his rights by Judge Regina Caulfield and answered "yes" in a faint voice to a series of questions. He is accused of detonating a pipe bomb along the route of a scheduled Marine Corps charity race in the New Jersey shore town of Seaside Park and a pressure cooker bomb in New York City on Sept. 17. No one was injured in the New Jersey blast, and 31 people were hurt in the New York blast. A second pressure cooker bomb did not explode. Rahimi has not made court appearances on federal charges in either state. Defendant finishes testimony in New Jersey bridge trial NEWARK, N.J. (AP) A former ally of Republican Gov. Chris Christie charged in the George Washington Bridge lane-closing case finished three days of testimony Wednesday by telling jurors he was left alone to explain to legislators in 2013 the series of traffic jams that prosecutors contend were part of a political revenge plot against a mayor who wouldn't endorse Christie. Former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey executive Bill Baroni described how, in November 2013, "no one wanted anything to do with this issue," referring to the four days of gridlock in Fort Lee two months earlier. Prosecutors have characterized Baroni's testimony before a New Jersey legislative committee, in which he claimed the jams were part of a traffic study, as a fiction created to hide the plot's true intention. "Everyone was running away. I was the one out there," Baroni testified Wednesday. He added that two Port Authority police officials who he claimed had suggested studying the access lanes to the bridge told him days before his legislative testimony that they "wanted to stay out of it." That contradicted the two officials' testimony that Baroni had sought to use them as cover. Bill Baroni, Gov. Chris Christie's former top appointee at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, waves as he arrives with his attorney Michael Baldassare, third from left, and others at Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Courthouse for a hearing, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016, in Newark, N.J. Three years after gridlock paralyzed a New Jersey town next to the George Washington Bridge for days, two former allies of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Baroni and Christie's former Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly, are being tried on charges of politically motivated lane closures of the George Washington Bridge. (AP Photo/Mel Evans) Baroni and former Christie staffer Bridget Kelly are charged with causing gridlock at the bridge linking New Jersey and New York to punish Democratic Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich. Christie wasn't charged. Kelly is also expected to testify. Baroni and Kelly face nine counts, the most serious of which carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence. Baroni contended during testimony Monday that he was duped by Port Authority colleague David Wildstein, the self-styled architect of the scheme. Wildstein pleaded guilty last year and testified against Baroni and Kelly. Baroni also told jurors that several upper-level officials in Christie's office and at the Port Authority either knew of his impending legislative testimony or helped him prepare for it. Those included former Port Authority Chairman David Samson, a Christie mentor who headed his transition team, as well as Christie's chief counsel. Prosecutors cast doubt Tuesday on Baroni's characterization of his relationship with Wildstein, a political blogger and former high school classmate of Christie's who was handed a Port Authority job in 2010 that was created especially for him. Baroni testified he was not close with Wildstein, but prosecutors introduced evidence that they had talked more than 2,700 times on the phone in 2013 alone. They also showed a picture of Baroni hoisting Wildstein into the air in a chair at the bar mitzvah for Wildstein's son. Later Wednesday morning, former Christie press secretary Michael Drewniak testified that he believed early on that the traffic jams were part of a bridge authority traffic study. Drewniak also said he didn't ask Christie if he knew about them. Drewniak, who was called to the stand by Kelly's defense attorney, said he first heard Wildstein's account of the gridlock in Fort Lee a few days after it ended. Prosecutors say Wildstein's story was a lie to cover up the real reason for the scheme. Gov. Chris Christie's former Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly, right, arrives at Martin Luther King Jr. Courthouse with her attorneys Michael Critchley Jr., second right, and Michael Critchley, left, for a hearing, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016, in Newark, N.J. Three years after gridlock paralyzed a New Jersey town next to the George Washington Bridge for days, two former allies of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Kelly and Bill Baroni, Christie's former top appointee at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, are being tried on charges of politically motivated lane closures of the George Washington Bridge. (AP Photo/Mel Evans) Gov. Chris Christie's former Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly, center, arrives at Martin Luther King Jr. Courthouse with her attorneys Michael Critchley Jr., right, and Michael Critchley, back second left, for a hearing, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016, in Newark, N.J. Three years after gridlock paralyzed a New Jersey town next to the George Washington Bridge for days, two former allies of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Kelly and Bill Baroni, Christie's former top appointee at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, are being tried on charges of politically motivated lane closures of the George Washington Bridge. (AP Photo/Mel Evans) Michael Drewniak, long time press spokesman for Gov. Chris Christie, arrives at Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Courthouse for a hearing, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016, in Newark, N.J. Three years after gridlock paralyzed a New Jersey town next to the George Washington Bridge for days, two former allies of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Bill Baroni, Christie's former top appointee at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Christie's former Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly, are being tried on charges of politically motivated lane closures of the George Washington Bridge. (AP Photo/Mel Evans) Michael Drewniak, right, long time press spokesman for Gov. Chris Christie, waves as he arrives with his attorney Anthony Iacullo, left, arrive at Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Courthouse for a hearing, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016, in Newark, N.J. Three years after gridlock paralyzed a New Jersey town next to the George Washington Bridge for days, two former allies of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Bill Baroni, Christie's former top appointee at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Christie's former Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly, are being tried on charges of politically motivated lane closures. (AP Photo/Mel Evans) 3 Al-Jazeera journalists arrested in Somalia MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) Three Al-Jazeera journalists were arrested by security forces, a few hours before an editor of a daily newspaper in Mogadishu was released, said a Somali media rights activist. Hamza Mohamed, a journalist with Al-Jazeera English television, and two cameramen were arrested by troops near Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, on Tuesday, said Hassan Gesey, director of the media advocacy group SIMHA. Somali officials told journalists who visited Mohamed in a Mogadishu prison that the Al-Jazeera journalists were arrested upon their return from rebel-held areas where they has interviewed al-Shabab officials, said Gesey. The National Union of Somali Journalists condemned the latest arrests of journalists which came few hours before the government released Abdi Aden Guled, the editor of Xog-Ogaal, one of the oldest daily newspapers in Mogadishu. Guled was arrested on Sunday and his paper was closed. The Xog-Ogaal remained closed Wednesday but officials handed back equipment seized on Sunday and said the paper could reopen. Somali officials did not immediately comment on the latest arrests of journalists. Threats and intimidations against journalists have increased in the past during the election periods in Somalia, which is rated as one of the world's most dangerous countries for media workers, according to journalists. Journalists are targeted by both Islamic extremists and the government, say rights groups. Last month, gunmen shot dead Abdiaziz Mohamed Ali Haji, who was on his way home from work as a reporter for Shabelle radio, a radio station in Mogadishu. He was the second journalist killed in Somalia this year. Three journalists were killed in 2015, including one in a bombing claimed by the Islamic extremist group al-Shabab. Czechs condemn UNESCO controversial Jerusalem resolution PRAGUE (AP) Lawmakers in the Czech Parliament's lower house have condemned this week's resolution by UNESCO that Israel says denies the deep historic Jewish connection to holy sites in Jerusalem. The resolution, titled "Occupied Palestine," lays out rules about the preservation of holy sites in Jerusalem, and uses only the Islamic name for a hilltop compound sacred to both Jews and Muslims. The site includes the Western Wall, a remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where Jews can pray. In a Wednesday vote, 119 of the 149 lawmakers present approved a strongly worded protest against the step, saying the resolution denies historic links between the Jews and their holy sites, discredits UNESCO and fuels anti-Semitism. Nigeria's leader meets 21 schoolgirls, vows to free the rest ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) Nigeria's president on Wednesday vowed to "redouble" efforts to secure the release of nearly 200 schoolgirls who remain missing more than two years after being abducted by Boko Haram extremists. President Muhammadu Buhari met for the first time with the 21 Chibok schoolgirls who were released last week after negotiations with Boko Haram. Buhari said they would be reintegrated into society "as quickly as possible." Some 276 girls were kidnapped from a school in the northeast town of Chibok in April 2014. Dozens escaped early on, and another was found in May. Last week marked the first negotiated release of any of the schoolgirls. One of the schoolgirls, Rebecca Malu, delivered brief remarks on behalf of the group at Wednesday's ceremony. "We are happy to see this wonderful day because we didn't know that we would come back," she said, adding that she was praying for the release of the others. Not all may want to come home. More than 100 of the schoolgirls appear unwilling to leave their captors, perhaps because they have been radicalized by Boko Haram or are ashamed to return because they have married extremists and have babies, Chibok community leader Pogu Bitrus has told The Associated Press. Bitrus said the freed schoolgirls should be educated abroad because they likely will face stigma in Nigeria. The president said the government will assume responsibility for the schoolgirls' personal, educational and professional goals. Judge weighs extending Georgia voter registration a 2nd time SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) A federal judge who ordered the voter registration deadline extended in one Georgia county that evacuated for Hurricane Matthew is now weighing a second request to grant more time for people in a wider area. U.S. District Court Judge William T. Moore Jr. said Wednesday he would rule within hours on the American Civil Liberties Union's motion to give new voters six more days to join the rolls in six coastal Georgia counties that Gov. Nathan Deal ordered to evacuate in ahead of the storm. Last Friday, Moore agreed to extend registration in Chatham County, which includes Savannah. That extension lapsed Tuesday. A look at US role against IS as Mosul offensive takes off WASHINGTON (AP) As Iraqi tanks charge across their country to purge the city of Mosul from the Islamic State group, the United States has just as much to gain from the operation as the Iraqis themselves. Since 2014, the U.S. has provided advise and assist operations to prop the beleaguered Iraqi military back on its feet after IS group gutted it of weapons, supplies and soldiers during its blitzkrieg across Iraq and Syria. Coalition forces later launched airstrikes in both countries, reinforcing Iraqi, Kurdish and Syrian ground forces, while maintaining that no foreign combat troops would partake in the fight. A look at the U.S. role against the Islamic State group: This Oct. 10, 2016 photo released by the U.S. Army shows U.S. Army Lt. Col. Ed Matthaidess, commander, left, Task Force Falcon, outlining areas of an Iraqi security forces tactical assembly area to U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Gary J. Volesky, commander, Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command Operation Inherent Resolve, in northern Iraq, prior to the start of the Mosul offensive. The U.S. has just as much to gain from the operation to recapture Mosul as the Iraqis themselves. Since 2014, the U.S. has provided airstrikes and advise-and-assist operations to put the beleaguered Iraqi military back on its feet after the Islamic State group gutted it of weapons, supplies and soldiers during its blitzkrieg across Iraq and Syria.(U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class R.W. Lemmons IV via AP) ___ HOW MANY U.S. SOLDIERS ARE CURRENTLY IN IRAQ AND SYRIA? According to the Pentagon, there are 4,815 U.S. forces currently in Iraq, including some special operations forces. That number does not include as many as 1,500 troops who are there on temporary duty or other short-term contracts. The Obama administration has authorized a maximum troop level of 5,262. In Syria, the Obama administration has authorized 300 troops most of them special operations forces who are tasked mainly with working with Syrian Democratic Forces, a coalition of Kurdish and Arab allies. Medical and logistics units are also included in that number. ___ WHERE ARE THEY LOCATED? U.S. forces in Iraq use bases in the cities of Baghdad, Irbil, Taji and Habaniyah. There are also "several hundred" American troops at the military base in Qayara West, south of Mosul, where they are helping build a staging area for the Iraqi security forces operation to recapture the city, according to a U.S. military official, who spoke anonymously because the details haven't been made public. In northern Syria, details remain a closely-guarded secret given the sensitivity of the operations. U.S. support is ultimately aimed at helping the Syrian Democratic Forces advance on Raqqa, Islamic State's de facto capital. They sometimes stay in the country for several weeks at a time. ___ WHAT IS THE OVERALL MISSION? In Iraq there are advisers, trainers, special operations forces and others stationed at Iraqi bases, working with the Iraqi forces. In addition to working with the Iraqis at the division headquarters level, some advisers are advising the Iraqis at the brigade and battalion level, meaning that they are embedding those teams of advisers with smaller units, closer to the fight. American forces in Syria aren't actually based in Syria. They travel in and out from neighboring countries mainly Turkey and Iraq sometimes staying in the country for several days at a time. They are there to provide advice and other assistance, but do not fight alongside the Syrians. Pentagon officials say that U.S. Special Forces have carried out about 400 missions in Syria to date. ___ HOW IS THE AIR CAMPAIGN GOING? Since airstrikes began in August 2014, over 10,200 airstrikes had been cumulatively carried out in Iraq and nearly 5,600 in Syria. August saw a second consecutive month that coalition airstrikes in Syria outnumbered those in Iraq. According to Chris Woods, director of the Airwars project, a group that tracks and archives data from the international air war against the IS group, only 7 percent of the airstrikes being conducted in Iraq and Syria were by Reaper and Predator drones. ___ WHO ARE OUR PARTNERS? While the vast majority of airstrikes are conducted by the U.S. in both Iraq and Syria, coalition partners include the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Denmark, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, the Netherlands, Belgium and Bahrain. Backed by U.S. airstrikes, Turkey has also sent tanks, warplanes and special operations forces into northern Syria. Turkey's objective has been twofold: It's looking to clear Islamic State militants from its remaining border stronghold, while also rolling back any advances made by Syrian Kurdish militias, which Turkey regards as a significant national security threat. While Russia is not part of the coalition in Syria, the U.S. has worked out a limited agreement with the Russians to de-conflict flights over Syria to maintain airspace safety and avoid collisions. But diplomatic talks with Russia became to disintegrate this month after the U.S. formally accused Russia of trying to meddle in the U.S. election by hacking U.S. political groups. Secretary of State John Kerry also accused the Kremlin of war crimes in Syria, all but ending efforts to boost cooperation between Washington and Moscow on the issue of Syria. ___ SO, WHERE DO WE STAND ON THE MOSUL OPERATION? Timeframes provided by American and Iraqi officials have varied between a few weeks to a few months, but there is no question that the push toward the Islamic State stronghold is very much underway. East of Mosul, coalition forces, supported Kurdish peshmerga fighters, are conducting an operation dubbed Evergreen II, which was designed to seize and control the key terrain near the Gaur River Bridge and the Great Zab River. The operation was executed with nearly 2,000 peshmerga fighters, with support from coalition and artillery strikes. Coalition supported forces have also cleared five villages around Mosul, namely Qayara, which will be used as a critical staging ground for the Mosul operation, as well as a center for humanitarian efforts. The coalition is providing training to remove many of the explosive remnants of war that IS fighters typically leave behind once they've been driven from an area. It is also conducting multiple strikes around the city with the goal of denying the militants access to critical infrastructure and resources, including the Tigris River. ___ Associated Press writer Lolita Baldor contributed to this report from Washington. A U.S. Army soldier watches a helicopter belonging to the international coalition forces land on a base outside Mosul, Iraq, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. The U.S. has just as much to gain from the operation to recapture Mosul as the Iraqis themselves. Since 2014, the U.S. has provided airstrikes and advise-and-assist operations to put the beleaguered Iraqi military back on its feet after the Islamic State group gutted it of weapons, supplies and soldiers during its blitzkrieg across Iraq and Syria. (AP Photo) This Oct. 10, 2016 photo released by the U.S. Army shows U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Gary J. Volesky, left, commander, Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command Operation Inherent Resolve, visiting with an Iraqi soldier in northern Iraq, Iraq, prior to the start of the Mosul offensive. The U.S. has just as much to gain from the operation to recapture Mosul as the Iraqis themselves. Since 2014, the U.S. has provided airstrikes and advise-and-assist operations to put the beleaguered Iraqi military back on its feet after the Islamic State group gutted it of weapons, supplies and soldiers during its blitzkrieg across Iraq and Syria. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class R.W. Lemmons IV via AP) South Sudan monitor says cease-fire violated almost daily JUBA, South Sudan (AP) The monitor of South Sudan's peace deal is reporting "near-daily violations" of the cease-fire and says fighting could "trigger an uncontrolled escalation of violence." Festus Mogae said Wednesday that both sides have perpetrated "egregious violations of human rights" including gang rape and killing of civilians. U.N. peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous this week told the U.N. Security Council behind closed doors that South Sudan's government is delaying "as much as possible" the deployment of an additional 4,000 peacekeepers. Ladsous also called for an arms embargo, saying "the economy is bankrupt, yet money is spent on arms" and calling it unacceptable. Obama administration sends top disease specialists to Cuba HAVANA (AP) The Obama administration sent some of the United States' top infectious disease specialists to Cuba on Wednesday to open a new phase in medical cooperation after more than a half-century of isolation. Two dozen U.S. and Cuban experts on tropical diseases opened three days of meetings about each country's research into insect-borne diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika. U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell was to fly to Cuba Thursday to attend. The visit is part of President Barack Obama's push to build irreversible momentum behind his detente with Cuba in the final months of his administration. The administration has issued six sets of regulations loosening the 55-year-old U.S. trade embargo on Cuba, but the executive actions could be reversed by a future administration. U.S. specialists in infections diseases, top left, and Cuban specialists, right, attend a meeting at the Pedro Kouri Tropical Medicine Institute (IPK) in Havana, Cuba, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. The Obama administration sent some of the United States' top infectious disease specialists to Cuba to open a new phase in medical cooperation after more than a half-century of isolation .(AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa) Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, who leads in polls three weeks before the presidential election, has promised to continue normalization. Republican Donald Trump has pledged to roll back Obama's policy. Obama visited in March. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman visited this month, as did Dr. Jill Biden, the vice president's wife. More visits are planned in coming months. "Representatives of the U.S. government are beginning to flock to Cuba," said Dr. Hugh Auchincloss, deputy director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "There's every reason in the world for us to be working together." The meetings are meant to lay the foundation for permanent cooperation between public health officials and researchers in the U.S. and Cuba. The U.S. embargo has prevented virtually all interaction between the United States and Cuba, which has made medical research and health care one of the nation's highest priorities since Fidel Castro took power in 1959. Cuba has reported remarkable success in containing the Zika virus, limiting its spread to only three cases caught on the island, according to Cuban officials, even as countries in the region such as Puerto Rico and Venezuela have been hit by thousands of cases of the disease. U.S. and Cuban medical officials said Wednesday that another area of immediate interest was the dengue virus, which can have less severe effects than Zika but has been a longstanding problem throughout Latin America. Cuba and the U.S. are working on vaccines, and Cuban scientists said a combination of the U.S. and Cuban vaccines had shown promising results in initial animal testing. ____ Starbucks plans to double stores in China in 5 years NEW YORK (AP) Starbucks is pushing ahead with its expansion into mainland China, saying Wednesday it's on track to have 5,000 stores by 2021, more than doubling the number of its coffee shops in the country. The Seattle-based coffee chain is looking to China to fuel its growth. It's grown rapidly since opening its first Chinese store in 1999, though famously suffered a misstep nearly a decade ago when protests over a shop inside the Forbidden City led to it being closed. Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has said China could one day surpass the U.S. as the chain's largest market. There are about 13,000 Starbucks stores in the United States. Among chain coffee shops, Starbucks had a 74 percent market share in mainland China in 2015, according to market research company Euromonitor. The company's closest competitors are McDonald's Corp.'s McCafe and Whitbread PLC's Costa Coffee, both of which had market shares slightly above 9 percent, according to Euromonitor. FILE - This Saturday, May 31, 2014, file photo, shows the Starbucks logo at one of the company's coffee shops in downtown Chicago. Starbucks is pushing ahead with its expansion into China and said it is on track to having about 5,000 stores there by 2021, more than doubling the number of coffee shops it currently has in the country. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File) Starbucks has been adding unique flavors to attract Chinese customers, such as a Black Forest Latte, a mix of cherry juice, cocoa powder and coffee. And in September it began selling its Teavana tea brand at its China locations. Chinese customers spend more time in Starbucks shops and are buying more food than Americans, Schultz told The Associated Press. Late next year, Starbucks plans to open a 30,000-square-foot store in Shanghai that Schultz called a "Disneyland for coffee." Named the Starbucks Roastery and Reserve Tasting Room, the store will be similar to one opened in Seattle nearly two years ago, where customers can watch coffee beans get roasted and sip mixed coffee drinks. Court: Right to vote constitutionally protected WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A federal appeals court laid out on Wednesday the legal reasoning behind its decision earlier this month that allowed thousands of Kansas residents to register to vote without providing documents proving their U.S. citizenship. The 85-page opinion from the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals came a day after voter registration closed in Kansas for the November election. The appeals court had earlier this month upheld a preliminary injunction that forced Kansas to register people who filled out voter applications at motor vehicle offices. "There can be no dispute that the right to vote is a constitutionally protected fundamental right," the appeals court wrote. The opinion released Wednesday essentially explained why the appeals court upheld U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson's preliminary injunction requiring the state to register thousands of people for federal elections. The case was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of several prospective voters and the League of Women Voters. Legal challenges in multiple lawsuits have temporarily allowed people who registered when getting their driver's licenses or when using a federal form to vote in all federal, state and local races in the November election without having to prove their U.S. citizenship. Meanwhile, the legal maneuvering continues against the state law that requires people who register to vote to provide documentary proof of citizenship such as a birth certificate, U.S. passport or naturalization certificate. In a ruling Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson set aside a court clerk's default judgment filed last week after Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach failed to file a timely response in a separate lawsuit. His negligence in missing the deadline was not willful, she said. Robinson's ruling means the case will proceed in the courts. Kobach called the effort to get a default judgment "an attempt to play gotcha and win this case on a technicality." "We've been litigating this case for more than a year," Kobach said. "The notion that we have failed to defend the position of the state is ludicrous." That lawsuit, filed by prospective voter Parker Bednasek, contends the state's proof-of-citizenship law violates the U.S. Constitution. If he prevails, his lawsuit will effectively strike down the law in its entirety. The case is of "constitutional significance and public interest," Robinson said. "This case deserves to be decided on the merits and not through procedural default," she said. The Latest: Christie spokesman says he believed bridge story NEWARK, N.J. (AP) The Latest on the fifth week of testimony in the George Washington Bridge lane-closing trial (all times local): 1:20 p.m. A former press secretary for Republican Gov. Chris Christie has testified he believed early on that traffic jams at the George Washington Bridge in 2013 were part of a bridge authority traffic study. Former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey executive Bill Baroni and his team arrive at Federal Court in Newark to resume his testimony in Newark, N.J., Tuesday, Oct. 18. 2016. (Jennifer Brown/The Record via AP) Michael Drewniak also said he didn't ask Christie if he knew about them. Drewniak testified Wednesday in the trial of two former Christie allies charged with causing gridlock at the bridge to punish a Democratic mayor who didn't endorse Christie. Christie hasn't been charged. Drewniak said he first heard David Wildstein's account of the gridlock in Fort Lee a few days after it ended in mid-September 2013. Prosecutors say Wildstein's story was a lie to cover up the real reason for the scheme. Wildstein pleaded guilty last year and testified earlier in the trial against former Christie staffer Bridget Kelly and former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey executive Bill Baroni. ___ 11:15 a.m. Jurors have finished hearing testimony from a former ally of Republican Gov. Chris Christie who's a defendant in the George Washington Bridge lane-closing case. Bill Baroni's testimony spanned three days. He and former Christie staffer Bridget Kelly are charged with causing gridlock at the bridge linking New Jersey and New York to punish a Democratic mayor who didn't endorse Christie. Christie wasn't charged. Kelly is also expected to testify. On Wednesday, Baroni defended his 2013 testimony to legislators that the jams arose from a traffic study. He also testified that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has no written policies on how to conduct traffic studies. Baroni is a former executive there. Baroni and Kelly face nine counts. The most serious carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence. ___ 9:51 a.m. A former ally of Republican Gov. Chris Christie is on the witness stand for a third day in the criminal trial stemming from lane closures at the George Washington Bridge in 2013. Bill Baroni and former Christie staffer Bridget Kelly are charged with causing traffic jams at the bridge to punish a Democratic mayor who didn't endorse Christie. Kelly is also expected to testify. Baroni testified this week he believed a former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey colleague who pleaded guilty that the lane realignment was part of a traffic study. Prosecutors contend that was a cover story to mask the plot's true intention. Baroni and Kelly face nine counts each, and the most serious carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence. Researchers: Limits on drilling not enough to protect bird BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) Oil and gas development in the Western U.S. could continue to cause sage grouse numbers to decline despite limits on drilling meant to protect the struggling bird species, according to scientists. Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey and Colorado State University reached the conclusion after examining the effects of drilling on greater sage grouse over a 25-year period ending in 2008. They found that populations of the chicken-sized bird dropped 14 percent annually in areas with at least 10 oil or gas wells per square mile. FILE - In this April 20, 2013 file photo, male greater sage grouse perform mating rituals for a female grouse, not pictured, on a lake outside Walden, Colo. Oil and gas development in the Western U.S. could continue to cause sage grouse numbers to decline despite limits on drilling meant to protect the struggling bird species, according to scientists. Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey and Colorado State University reached the conclusion after examining the effects of drilling on greater sage grouse over a 25-year period ending in 2008. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File) Federal land management rules recently crafted to protect grouse across their 11-state range would allow that many wells or more in areas crucial to the birds' long-term survival. Populations were stable when no wells were present, the researchers concluded in their findings published in The Journal of Wildlife Management. Kathleen Sgamma with the Western Energy Alliance industry group said the researchers ignored changes to federal and state land use policies meant to concentrate drilling in some areas and avoid impacting the most sensitive sage grouse habitat. Study co-author Cameron Aldridge said more concentrated drilling may reduce impacts. But that doesn't mean it won't affect grouse. He said more power lines, pipelines, vehicles, noise and other human activity are associated with multiple oil or gas wells than there would be with a single well. "It's not a well or well pad that causes a decline. It's all of the associated activity that contributes collectively," said Aldridge, an associate professor at Colorado State University's Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability. Wyoming Game and Fish Department sage grouse coordinator Tom Christiansen said limited energy development is expected in the grouse's core habitat for the foreseeable future. The U.S. Interior Department last year declined to put sage grouse on the list of endangered and threatened species despite a long-term decline blamed on oil and gas development, grazing, wildfires, residential development and disease. The agency cited in part the limits on drilling targeted at preserving the bird's breeding grounds in areas of Wyoming, Montana, Colorado and other states. Under those rules, companies can construct one well pad per square mile, with each pad containing multiple wells. Interior spokeswoman Jessica Kershaw said in an emailed statement that the agency was reviewing the new study. Land management plans adopted by the agency last year include population monitoring efforts that would trigger additional conservation measures should grouse numbers or habitat quality decline, she said. ___ Gas explosion rocks Portland shopping district, injuring 8 PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) A powerful natural gas explosion rocked a busy Portland, Oregon, shopping district Wednesday, injuring eight people and igniting a fire that sent a huge plume of smoke over the heart of the city. Three firefighters, two police officers and three civilians were hurt, and one of the firefighters was still in surgery late Wednesday for a broken leg, fire Chief Mike Myers said at a news conference. None of the injuries appeared to be life-threatening. A building that housed a bagel shop and a beauty salon in the popular NW 23rd Street shopping district was reduced to rubble, and its smoldering roof was splayed across the road. A firefighter battles a blaze after a gas explosion in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy injuring two firefighters and two civilians. One building in the popular shopping district was reduced to rubble and the exterior of one side of another building had been ripped off, its windows blown out. (AP Photo/Don Ryan) The windows of a nearby building were blown out and debris was everywhere. Firefighters swarmed the scene and dumped water from ladder trucks onto the smoking wreckage. NW Natural released a timeline saying the explosion occurred at 9:38 a.m. a time when many businesses were still closed. City officials said a catastrophe was averted by speedy work from firefighters and police who responded to a reported gas leak and cleared the area of people before the blast. "There are a lot of people alive" who might not be "but for the excellent work by our first responders," Mayor Charlie Hales said. One young fire lieutenant in particular the same one with the badly broken leg made several critical decisions that likely saved lives, Myers said. Fire Lt. Peter St. John positioned fire trucks and hoses in such a way that they were out of the blast zone and ran into the building to pull fire alarms when firefighters realized not everyone had evacuated as ordered, Myers said, adding that the man was new to the fire department. "That man saved the lives of a lot of people today and a lot of firefighters," the chief said. Firefighters also donned their air packs and masks before the blast, an unusual move for a routine gas leak call, but one that also prevented serious facial injuries, he said. Portland's NW 23rd Street nicknamed "Trendy Third" is packed with boutiques, bars and restaurants. Many are on street level with pricey apartments on the upper levels and a day care facility in the vicinity. The utility said it got a call at 8:55 a.m. saying a construction crew had hit a gas line. Authorities and utility workers responded in 15 minutes and evacuated the building, NW Natural said in its statement. People in the neighborhood reported smelling gas as they were evacuated and later felt the explosion. The utility hasn't determined what caused the gas to ignite, but NW Natural CEO David Anderson said it was a rare event that required a certain amount of ambient gas, an enclosed space and an ignition source. An employee at a nearby kitchen accessories store said he was in the washroom when he felt a huge explosion and emerged to find thick smoke and haze. Scott Bergler said 15 windows in the first-floor store were blown out. As he evacuated the Kitchen Kaboodle shop, Bergler saw a firefighter on the ground who had been knocked flat by the blast. "He was obviously in shock and crawling and having a hard time standing up," said Bergler, who remained shaken by the ordeal as he gathered with co-workers in a parking lot. Nicole Christiansen climbed exterior stairs to a rooftop of a nearby building so her 2-year-old son, Theo, could see everyone was safe. The child had been evacuated from his day care center just before the blast, but he heard the explosion and was scared, she said. He looked on with wide eyes and clutched a crumpled napkin from an unfinished snack as firefighters poured water on the building. "I saw the smoke from way down the hill, and I realized he was impacted," she said. "He has to go home." About 2,000 people remained without power and authorities weren't allowing people back into apartments, homes and businesses overnight. "They're going to be displaced for a long time and there are great little businesses that are going to be closed for a long time," Hales said. ___ Follow Gillian Flaccus on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/gflaccus . Smoke rises as firefighters battle a blaze after a gas explosion in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy injuring two firefighters and two civilians. One building in the popular shopping district was reduced to rubble and the exterior of one side of another building had been ripped off, its windows blown out. (AP Photo/Don Ryan) Firefighters stand under blown out windows after a gas explosion in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy injuring two firefighters and two civilians. One building in the popular shopping district was reduced to rubble and the exterior of one side of another building had been ripped off, its windows blown out. (AP Photo/Don Ryan) Firefighters battle a blaze after a gas explosion in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy injuring two firefighters and two civilians. One building in the popular shopping district was reduced to rubble and the exterior of one side of another building had been ripped off, its windows blown out. (AP Photo/Don Ryan) Firefighters battle a blaze after a gas explosion in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy a busy Portland, Oregon, shopping district and started a fire that sent a huge plume of smoke over the heart of the city. (AP Photo/Don Ryan) Smoke rises as firefighters battle a blaze after a gas explosion in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy injuring two firefighters and two civilians. One building in the popular shopping district was reduced to rubble and the exterior of one side of another building had been ripped off, its windows blown out. (AP Photo/Don Ryan) Smoke rises as firefighters battle a blaze after a gas explosion in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy injuring two firefighters and two civilians. One building in the popular shopping district was reduced to rubble and the exterior of one side of another building had been ripped off, its windows blown out. (AP Photo/Don Ryan) Smoke rises as firefighters battle a blaze after a gas explosion in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy injuring two firefighters and two civilians. One building in the popular shopping district was reduced to rubble and the exterior of one side of another building had been ripped off, its windows blown out. (AP Photo/Don Ryan) Firefighters battle a blaze after a gas explosion in Portland, Ore., Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy injuring two firefighters and two civilians. One building in the popular shopping district was reduced to rubble and the exterior of one side of another building had been ripped off, its windows blown out. (AP Photo/Don Ryan) Firefighters hose down an area after a gas explosion, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016 in Portland, Ore. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy a busy Portland, Oregon, shopping district and started a fire that sent a huge plume of smoke over the heart of the city. (Dave Killen/The Oregonian via AP) Smoke rises from a building after a gas explosion, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016 in Portland, Ore. A powerful natural gas explosion that neighbors said felt like an earthquake rocked the busy a busy Portland, Oregon, shopping district and started a fire that sent a huge plume of smoke over the heart of the city. (Beth Nakamura/The Oregonian via AP) Pakistan: Indian fire wounds 2 women, 2 children in Kashmir ISLAMABAD (AP) Pakistani officials say Indian troops have opened fire from across the Line of Control in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, wounding two Pakistani children and two women. Pakistan's army blamed India for initiating fire Wednesday, calling it cease-fire violation. In a tweet, Pakistan's foreign ministry spokesman, Nafees Zakaria, said Pakistan returned fire and that the exchange is continuing. Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan but claimed by both. Tension in the region has increased since last month. Bus crashes into fence in California, 15 people injured TRAVER, Calif. (AP) A bus ran off the highway in Central California and crashed into a fence Wednesday, injuring 15 people who suffered what were described as minor injuries, authorities said Wednesday. The driver was among those hurt, said Officer Justin Montooth of the California Highway Patrol. There were about 28 passengers on the Greyhound bus travelling from Fresno to Bakersfield. Passengers carry their luggage to a replacement bus after the Greyhound bus they were traveling in crashed on Highway 99 Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016, near Traver, Calif. The bus ran off the highway in Central California and crashed into a fence injuring multiple people who suffered what were described as minor injuries. There were about 28 passengers on the bus traveling from Fresno to Bakersfield. (Silvia Flores/Fresno Bee via AP) The bus ran off the right shoulder of the road and hit the fence, Montooth said. The crash happened in the small Tulare County town of Traver, about 30 miles from Fresno. Officials initially reported that no one suffered visible injuries, but passengers who complained of minor pain were then taken to hospitals as a precaution, Montooth said. Authorities had not determined the accident's cause, which was under investigation. ___ This story corrects that the bus was on a regular route and was not chartered. Texas couple pleads guilty in enslaved nanny case HOUSTON (AP) A Houston-area couple pleaded guilty on Wednesday to charges related to forcing a Nigerian woman to care for their five children and home without pay for two years, having her work nearly 20 hours a day. Chudy Nsobundu, 57, and his 49-year-old wife, Sandra Nsobundu, recruited the woman in Nigeria with the promise of a $100 monthly wage, prosecutors said. Instead, authorities say they abused the woman physically and verbally while she worked at their home in the Houston suburb of Katy, denying her compensation or outside contact from September 2013 to October 2015. Chudy Nsobundu pleaded guilty to visa fraud while his wife pleaded guilty to unlawful conduct with respect to documents in furtherance of forced labor, said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Attorneys for the couple didn't immediately return calls seeking comment on Wednesday. The Nsobundus, who are naturalized U.S. citizens originally from Nigeria, will be sentenced on Jan. 4. They remain free on bond. Sandra Nsobundu faces up to five years in prison, while her husband faces up to 10 years imprisonment. According to court documents, the nanny would work every day from 5:30 a.m. to 1 a.m., couldn't take breaks and had to eat leftovers and not fresh food, including being forced to only drink milk left in bowls in which the children had eaten cereal. She also couldn't take hot showers. Authorities said the Nsobundus prevented the nanny from leaving their employment by keeping her passport and by threatening her with physical and mental abuse. The nanny reached out for help and was rescued following a tip to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center. Judge orders evaluation for woman in Amber Alert deaths ELKHART, Ind. (AP) A judge Wednesday ordered a mental evaluation for an Indiana woman accused of abducting her two young children and smothering them, possibly delaying her trial by months if not years. Elkhart Circuit Judge Terry Shewmaker also entered a preliminary not guilty plea for 29-year-old Amber Pasztor of Fort Wayne during her initial hearing on two counts of murder. She's accused in the Sept. 26 killings of 7-year-old Liliana Hernandez and 6-year-old Rene Pasztor after their abduction from their custodial grandparents' home led authorities to issue an Amber Alert. The state is seeking a life sentence without parole. Public defender Peter Soldato said in his request for the mental evaluation that Pasztor's attorneys believe she cannot fully understand the legal proceedings she faces or help prepare her defense, The Elkhart Truth reported (http://bit.ly/2elh3Jh ). He also questioned whether she understood the seriousness of the charges. Vicki Becker, Elkhart County's chief deputy prosecutor, said the evaluation process could take 60 to 90 days or much longer if it finds Pasztor needs mental health treatment before she can stand trial. "It could take months or years, it depends on what they determine in the evaluation," she said. Pasztor currently is scheduled to stand trial beginning Jan. 23. Shewmaker said he may extend the search for two psychiatric experts into Allen County, asking judges there for recommendations. Allen County, where Fort Wayne is located, is about 70 miles southeast of Elkhart. Pasztor said in a jailhouse interview with WANE-TV that she decided to kill her children after hearing of the Amber Alert for them. She said she killed the children so they would be safe in heaven. Pasztor said her children were in good hands in her father's custody, but she didn't think they were safe. "My kids are in a better place. They don't have no worries no more," she told the TV station. Pasztor also admitted that she shot her neighbor, 65-year-old Frank Macomber, and took his car. She has not been charged in Macomber's death, but Elkhart County Prosecutor Curtis Hill has said she is a suspect. Macomber's body was found Sept. 27 in a wooded area. ___ Palestinians urge UN to adopt resolution against settlements UNITED NATIONS (AP) The Palestinians urged the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday to adopt a resolution with serious measures to compel Israel to halt all settlement activities and threatening "consequences" if it continues to violate international law. Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian U.N. ambassador, told the council Wednesday that an Israeli cessation of all settlement activities and an end to its nearly 50-year occupation of Palestinian territory "are imperative for realizing a just, lasting, comprehensive Palestinian-Israeli peace." Mansour has been sounding out the 15 council members on a new settlements resolution and he is expected to report to the Arab Ministerial Committee which is expected to meet in Cairo before the end of the month to decide on next steps. Israel's Ambassador Danny Danon made no mention of settlements and instead excoriated the U.N. for its anti-Israel bias. Israel contends that the West Bank was not captured from the Palestinians and the issues of settlements and borders should be decided through negotiations. Israel annexed east Jerusalem after the 1967 Mideast war and says the entire city is its capital, and it has the right to build wherever it wants. Prime Minister Bejamin Netanyahu also makes the argument that Arab hatred and attacks go back to long before the 1967 war, and therefore he thinks settlements are not a real cause of the conflict. Danon denounced the Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem whose executive director urged council members last Friday to take immediate and decisive action to end Israel's occupation. He said B'Tselem receives funds from three U.N. agencies and called on the council "to put an end to U.N. funding for extremist organizations that seek to harm Israel." The U.N.'s special coordinator for Mideast peace, Nickolay Mladenov, warned the council that the Israeli-Palestinian situation is deteriorating. "The absence of progress has led to growing anger and frustration among Palestinians and profound disillusionment among Israelis," he said. "It has strengthened radicals and weakened moderates on both sides." "We must all avoid the risk of sleep-walking into another violent conflict at a time when the region as a whole needs moderate forces to unite and stand up to the radicalization that we see in the Middle East," Mladenov said. He cited recent killings of Israelis and Palestinians, and Israel's continued settlement planning including its recent promotion of new housing units in Shilo which would a wedge between the north and south West Bank, jeopardizing prospects for a contiguous future Palestinian state. Mladenov urged Hamas, which controls Gaza, to pursue reconciliation with Fatah, which controls the West Bank, and agree to the Palestine Liberation Organization principles which include recognition of the state of Israel. In a message clearly directed at Israel, he warned that those who believe the people of Gaza can be punished by closing the strip or restricting entry of construction materials vital for the economy "should know that the temperature in Gaza is rising." Prosecutors say suspect shot, taunted Alaska police officer ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) A 29-year-old Alaska man opened fire on a Fairbanks police officer, took his gun, stomped on his head and taunted him as the officer stood and tried to get away, state prosecutors said in a criminal complaint filed Wednesday. Anthony George Jenkins-Alexie was charged Wednesday with attempted murder in the shooting early Sunday of Sgt. Allen Brandt, an 11-year veteran of the Fairbanks Police Department. Jenkins-Alexie also is charged with six other felonies: assault, theft of a firearm, theft of a patrol car, evidence tampering, possession of a firearm as a felon and firing a gun at a building. This photo released by Fairbanks Police Department shows Anthony George Jenkins-Alexie. The 29-year-old man was arrested in a shooting that left an Alaska police officer seriously injured. Jenkins-Alexie, of Fairbanks, is facing charges of attempted murder, assault and other counts in connection with the shooting early Sunday of Sgt. Allen Brandt. (Fairbanks Police Department via AP) Brandt is recovering at an Anchorage hospital. Police arrested Jenkins-Alexie on Tuesday walking in the same neighborhood east of downtown Fairbanks where the shooting occurred. When police searched his home, they found a confession written on three pages of notebook paper that included the model number of the gun used to shoot Brandt. As police interviewed Jenkins-Alexie, prosecutors said, he confessed to the shooting and asked for a pen and paper. In a letter to Brandt, he apologized. "I am deeply sorry. I owe you an apology ... you ... your wife .... & your kids," Jenkins-Alexie wrote. "I am mental just a little bit. ... You didn't deserve it. I was seeking vengeance from FPD for taking my relatives lives and closest friends. I was wrong." FPD is the Fairbanks Police Department. The incident started shortly after midnight Sunday when Brandt responded in his patrol car to calls of shots fired and a man yelling. Brandt's dashboard camera records him driving east and slowing as a man approaches on the sidewalk. As the patrol car stops, the man moves his right hand toward his coat pocket but continues out of the picture. Seconds later, the man, gripping a silver handgun with both hands, runs around the front of the car. Prosecutors said Brandt opened the driver's door and tried to take cover behind the patrol car and was shot. Brandt fired back but fell. He was struck six times: twice in the right leg, once in the left leg and once in the right foot. A grazing wound hit his right knee. Body armor stopped a shot to the chest, but at least two bullet fragments entered his right eye. As Brandt lay on the ground, prosecutors said, Jenkins-Alexie approached and took his gun from his hand. He tried removing ammunition from Brandt's duty belt but could not. He then stomped on Brandt's head. Brandt struggled to stand and tried to get away. Jenkins-Alexie followed, mocking him, then got into the patrol car and drove away, prosecutors said. A rear tire on the car was flat, and the car was abandoned two blocks away. Brandt called for assistance on his radio. Fairbanks police arrested Jenkins-Alexie on Tuesday morning as he walked in the same neighborhood where Brandt was shot. Jenkins-Alexie has lengthy criminal history in Anchorage and Fairbanks tied to alcohol consumption. But he has just one previous felony conviction. Court records indicate Jenkins-Alexie's adult encounters with police began in 2007, when he was charged at age 19 with criminal trespass and consuming alcohol as a minor. He pleaded no contest to the trespass charge. The charge of consuming alcohol as a minor was dismissed. However, he pleaded no contest to two more charges of consuming alcohol as a minor later that year in Fairbanks and Anchorage. He pleaded no contest to misdemeanor theft in Fairbanks in 2008. He pleaded no contest in 2009 to misdemeanor assault. In 2010, he pleaded guilty to driving with a suspended or revoked license in Seward. He was arrested in March and April 2013 in Anchorage for driving under the influence of alcohol and convicted after guilty or no contest pleas. Arrested again in June 2013 in Anchorage, he was convicted of felony driving under the influence. He pleaded guilty in February 2015 in Anchorage to a misdemeanor escape charge. Alexie-Jenkins referenced alcohol in his apology letter to Brandt. After heavy drinking, he said, he snapped. "My violence caused you and your family nightmares. I'm deeply sorry. Choose a safer line of work. Be there for your loved one," he wrote. Prosecutors said Brandt likely will lose sight in his left eye. __ The Latest: Spin room buzzing at Las Vegas debate site LAS VEGAS (AP) The Latest on the scene leading up to the final debate in the U.S. presidential race (all times local): 6:05 p.m. Many of the thousands of journalists who descended on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, to cover the debate are crowded into a spin room where they are preparing to pound out stories about the action. Police officers stand outside the Thomas & Mack Center ahead of the third presidential debate between Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at UNLV in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Reporters speaking in Spanish, German and Japanese are dodging each other as they do impromptu Facebook Live broadcasts in selfie mode and go live in front of blinding lights. Surrogates for the campaigns are weaving through piles of camera bags and dodging tripods to offer themselves up for interviews. Reporters who were anxiously talking on their cellphones will soon take their seats at the rows of tables topped with laptops and watch the debate from one of the dozens of TV screens dangling from the ceiling. This is the third and final debate between presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. ___ 5:50 p.m. Richard McCaslin pedaled a four-wheeled bike shortly before Wednesday's presidential debate was set to start in Las Vegas. The 52-year-old resident of Pahrump, Nevada, wore a denim jacket with the words "phantom patriot" stitched to the back. He says that's the name he uses at protests. McCaslin's bike is covered with signs calling for an end to global tyranny and saying Republican and Democrat criminals won't save America. He believes the whole political system is corrupt and designed to "conquer the American people." McCaslin said he plans to support Green Party candidate Jill Stein. McCaslin says Stein's views represent the "only sane" choice for president. ___ 5:15 p.m. Rives Grogan says he's been at all three presidential debate sites, and he was in Las Vegas on Wednesday encouraging voters to back Donald Trump. The 51-year-old Grogan describes himself as a minister to people who are homeless and addicted and as a part-time pizza delivery man. Grogan, who lives in Mansfield, Texas, says he's trying to encourage America to vote for Trump, reject Hillary Clinton and avoid God's judgment. Grogan and Paul Naughton were holding signs showing their opposition to abortion. The two men were standing with about 20 protesters of various causes in a sunbaked parking lot designated a "public expression area." About 20 security guards stood around the free speech zone. The area is about two blocks from the debate hall at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. ___ 4:35 p.m. Mick Jagger's sore throat may have helped ease a bad case of congestion Wednesday. The Rolling Stones canceled its concert in Las Vegas when frontman Jagger was told by doctors to rest his voice after coming down with laryngitis. Some 20,000 fans were expected to descend on the T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip about the same time authorities were closing roads and freeways surrounding the nearby Thomas & Mack Center. The University of Nevada, Las Vegas arena will be hosting Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump in the final debate of the presidential election. About 1,000 people were expected inside the debate hall, and many more outside. Authorities warned residents and tourists to prepare for blocked streets and detours around McCarran International Airport, at UNLV, and on some major roads crossing the busy Las Vegas Strip. ___ 4:10 p.m. Candace Blalock flew with her son from Oklahoma City to Las Vegas, knowing she didn't have a ticket to the debate but wanting to be part of the goings-on. She found her way to be first in line for a campus viewing party at the UNLV Student Union. "I've learned that Democracy is really messy," she said. "But I'm an optimist, and I think it's an institution that will survive this tremendously upsetting campaign." Blalock might be from a mostly Republican state, but she's made a stand. She points to a Hillary 2016 pin on her blouse. Now 73 and retired, Blalock says she's "liberated and enthusiastic" about expressing her opinion after serving 16 years as a non-partisan elected Oklahoma state court judge from Pauls Valley, about 60 miles south of Oklahoma City. "I expect perhaps there'll be a little more policy questions asked of Hillary," Blalock said of the debate. "I expect Donald will be Donald." ____ 3:45 p.m. University of Nevada, Las Vegas graduate student Sparkle Payne took the scene in stride as she crossed campus Wednesday after psychology class. Her campus was bustling in preparation for the final debate between presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Payne didn't plan to attend the event but wanted "everyone to tune in" to see Trump's antics. "This is the biggest, most controversial debate," Payne said. "It's huge." Security was tight, and some roads leading to campus were closed. Uniformed police from Las Vegas and surrounding cities bunched in groups of six and eight in the campus quad, chatting with each other. Most had riot-gear packs strapped to their thighs. Media and the first spectators gathered in front of the Thomas & Mack Center, where parking lots were bordered with a two-story barrier of tan metal shipping crates. ____ 3:10 p.m. Some of the action before the third and final debate was happening away from the UNLV campus that is playing host to the televised event. On Wednesday afternoon several taco trucks lined up outside the Trump Hotel, about three miles from the campus and just off the Las Vegas Strip. The food trucks joined Grammy Award-winning band Los Tigres Del Norte, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, progressive groups and union members to rally against the GOP candidate and to protest a fight over organizing the hotel's workforce. In September, Marco Gutierrez, founder of the group Latinos for Trump, said if something was not done about his own "very dominant" culture, "you're going to have taco trucks on every corner." On Tuesday the trucks fanned out across the city to register voters. ___ 12:56 p.m. Hours before Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump meet for their third and final presidential debate, it was anything but quiet outside the Thomas & Mack Center on the UNLV campus in Las Vegas. Media members, marching bands and supporters of all stripes assembled under sunny skies on the campus not far from the busy Las Vegas Strip. Media outlets are broadcasting live, speculating on the candidates' debate strategy and decorum. The Rebels marching band tuned up while noisy supporters and detractors chanted loudly under the watchful eyes of a promised large contingent of law officers, including Las Vegas and UNLV police, Secret Service agents and Nevada Highway Patrol troopers. Air space over the arena has been cleared, and road closures are expected to snarl traffic. The Latest: Putin could halt Aleppo strikes indefinitely BERLIN (AP) The Latest on a summit in Berlin to discuss the stalled Ukraine peace process and Syria's civil war (all times local): 1:40 a.m. Vladimir Putin says Russia is willing to halt its airstrikes on the Syrian city of Aleppo indefinitely. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, centre, and and French President Francois Hollande pose for a picture prior a summit with the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and France at the chancellery in Berlin, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016. (Mikhail Palinchak/Pool Photo via AP) Russia had promised a pause of several hours in attacks on the city by Syrian forces under the cover of Russian air power in order to allow suffering civilians to leave and to give rebels safe passage. But Putin said after a meeting with the leaders of France and Germany "We informed them of our intention to continue, as much as possible, considering the situation on Syrian territory, a pause in the air strikes. We are ready to do this for as long as there are no clashes with rebel formations entrenched in Aleppo." ___ 1:20 a.m. French President Francois Hollande says he has the impression after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin that a pause in fighting in Aleppo may be extended. Russia has promised an eight-hour halt in fighting on Thursday in the besieged city. Hollande said early Thursday after he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel met Putin: "I can't put myself in his (Putin's) place but what I understood was that he would go beyond the eight hours announced." Merkel and Hollande strongly criticized Russian and Syrian government airstrikes on Aleppo, and Hollande said that "what is happening in Aleppo is truly a war crime." Hollande said that "the first demand is an end to the bombing ... by the regime and Russian planes." Merkel described the talks on Syria as "very hard." ___ 1:10 a.m. German Chancellor Angela Merkel says the talks with Russia and Ukraine "didn't achieve miracles" but that the sides agreed to work on a road map to push ahead on a 2015 peace agreement. Among the issues discussed was the creation of zones of disengagement between the warring parties, as well as measures to improve the humanitarian situation in eastern Ukraine. "It's urgently necessary to keep having such talks in order not to lose momentum," she said ___ 12:55 a.m. Ukraine's president says an agreement has been reached to ask the OSCE, a major international security group, to deploy an armed police mission in separatist eastern Ukraine as a precursor to holding elections in the disputed region. Petro Poroshenko was quoted by Russian news agencies Thursday as saying the agreement was reached in a summit with the leaders of France, Germany and Russia. According to Poroshenko, Germany, as the current chair of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe would be asked to propose the mission to the organization. It was not clear how large the mission might be. Poroshenko said the mission would be deployed in order to guarantee security for local elections, which are a key element of an agreement reached more than 18 months ago on ending the fighting that has killed more than 9,600 people. ___ 12:50 a.m. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says a summit with the leaders of Russia, France and Germany has resulted in agreement on establishing a so-called "road map" to end the conflict between Russia-backed separatists and the army in eastern Ukraine. Poroshenko said the leaders agreed that the road map should be adopted by the end of November. Details of the road map were not immediately clear. Poroshenko was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying it would include all security issues including restoration of Ukraine's control of its entire border with Russia. The road map is aimed at being a mechanism to implement the so-called Minsk Agreement of February 2015 on ending the conflict, in which more than 9,600 people have been killed. ___ 12:40 a.m. Ukraine's president says an agreement has been reached at a summit with the leaders of Russia, France and Germany on deploying an armed police mission in separatist eastern Ukraine. Petro Poroshenko's comments were reported by Russian news agencies early Thursday after more than four hours of talks at the summit in Berlin. The reports did not immediately specify how the proposed mission of police from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe would be deployed. But the OSCE said in May that the group would consider sending such a mission to help conduct elections in the separatist regions of the east. Poroshenko said that Germany, the current chair of the OSCE, would be asked to present the mission proposal to the organization ___ 6:30 p.m. The leaders of Germany, Russia, Ukraine and France are in Berlin for talks on the stagnant peace process in eastern Ukraine a meeting that also is expected to touch on Syria's civil war. Prospects of significant progress on either front look poor, but German Chancellor Angela Merkel said before Wednesday evening's meeting that it's important to exhaust every possibility. Merkel and Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia, Francois Hollande of France and Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine have met sporadically to discuss eastern Ukraine. This is their first meeting in over a year. The 2015 Minsk agreement brokered by France and Germany has helped end large-scale battles between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russia separatists, but clashes have continued. Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, left, attend the talks at a summit with the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and France at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016.(Mikhail Klimentyev/Pool Photo via AP) 2 agrarian activists murdered in Honduras MEXICO CITY (AP) International condemnation poured into Honduras on Wednesday over the murder of two agrarian activists the day before. Jose Angel Flores, leader of the United Farmworkers Movement of Aguan, or MUCA by its Spanish initials, and member Silmer Dionisio George were shot in northeast Honduras after leaving a meeting in the town of Tocoa. In recent years, MUCA has seized thousands of acres of land, much of it privately held palm oil plantations that previously had been cooperatives cultivated by the same farmworkers. U.S. Ambassador to Honduras James Nealon condemned the killings in a statement Wednesday. He said he had offered U.S. resources to the Honduran government to help find those responsible. "The United States of America calls for a prompt and thorough investigation and for the full force of the law to be brought to bear against those found responsible," the statement said. The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Honduras said in a statement Wednesday that both Flores and George had been designated to receive protection by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights since 2014. The statement also said that Flores had reported an attempt on his life in April 2015. A spokesperson at the Honduran Interior Ministry said an official statement was being prepared, but by late Wednesday the government had still not commented. The killings follow the murder in March of environmental activist Berta Caceres who had been awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize for her work to preserve land. After President Manuel Zelaya was ousted in a military coup in 2009, farmworkers seized about 27,000 acres of farmland. Dozens of people have died in fighting over the occupation of the land. In May 2010, the government and MUCA agreed to reduce the violence in the Bajo Aguan Valley. But of 11,000 hectares (27,000 acres) the government promised to restore to the farmworkers, only 4,050 hectares (10,000 acres) have been handed over, the U.N. statement said. Amnesty International said in a statement that Honduras has become a "no-go zone" for land rights activists.. Chancellor in warning over push towards specific Brexit outcome Efforts to tie Prime Minister Theresa May to a specific form of Brexit are undermining Britain's chances of negotiating a successful withdrawal from the European Union, Chancellor Philip Hammond has warned. His comments are likely to be seen as a lightly-veiled reproach to International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, who has made a very public push for a "hard Brexit" solution - which would see the UK leave the European single market and customs union. The Chancellor also moved to allay City concerns that Brexit might prevent them recruiting highly-skilled foreign staff, telling the House of Commons Treasury Committee that address ing the concerns of the financial sector will be " a very high priority" for the Government in negotiations. Ministers were reportedly warned that leaving the European customs union risked a 4.5% fall in GDP by 2030 While regaining controls over the migration between the UK and EU was an essential part of Brexit, Mr Hammond said: "I cannot conceive of any circumstance in which we would be using those controls to prevent banks, companies moving highly-qualified, highly-skilled people between different parts of their businesses. "That is essential for the smooth operation of our economy." After days of press reports that other ministers privately see Mr Hammond as a drag on progress towards Brexit, the Chancellor told the committee that it was "no secret" there were differences of opinion within the Cabinet about the best way to proceed. He condemned leaks from meetings of the Cabinet Brexit committee, saying it would be "far more helpful to this debate if we were able to conduct these internal discussions privately without leaks to newspapers". And he insisted that it was not the Treasury which was undermining Brexit, as reports have suggested, but those trying to pin Mrs May down too soon to a preferred outcome for the two-year withdrawal talks under Article 50 of the EU treaties - which are due to begin before the end of March 2017. Mrs May hinted that the 2019 deadline for withdrawal under Article 50 could be extended - something that could happen only with unanimous agreement of all 27 remaining states - telling MPs at Prime Minister's Questions that the process would take "two years or more". Mr Hammond told the committee that Mrs May was operating within "two clear constraints" - that the UK will leaving the EU and will control migration". "Beyond that, she needs the maximum possible space," he said. "My objective in supporting her is to ensure that she has the broadest range of options - properly costed and understood - and the maximum scope to deploy that broad range of options in what might be a wide-ranging negotiation. "I would say that those that are undermining the effort are those that are seeking to close down that negotiating stance, seeking to arrive at hard decisions that we don't need at this stage. "Keeping as many areas open, as many options open, as possible is the key to the strongest possible negotiating hand." Mr Hammond did not deny reports that the Brexit Committee has been considering a Treasury paper produced ahead of the referendum, which warned that leaving the arrangement could risk a 4.5% fall in GDP by 2030. But he cautioned that official estimates of the economic impact of Brexit dating from before the June 23 poll had been prepared on the assumption that the UK would trigger Article 50 immediately after a Leave vote, and that there would be no mitigating action from the Bank of England - both of which had been proved wrong. Mr Hammond declined to say whether the Government wants to stay in the customs union, which would allow exporters and importers to trade tariff-free with European neighbours, but make it impossible for the UK to strike its own trade deals. He accepted there had been some "very long, drawn-out" multilateral trade talks, but insisted that "n egotiating a straightforward bilateral trade deal ought to be a great deal simpler" for Britain outside the 28-nation bloc. Until the Article 50 process is complete, he confirmed it was not appropriate for Dr Fox to enter into "any substantive negotiation with any third party". The Chancellor came under attack from committee members for refusing to publish analysis being drawn up by the Treasury of the pros and cons of various potential Brexit deals. Labour MP Rachel Reeves was backed by committee chair Andrew Tyrie as she said: "We can have a public debate, but it will be without the facts available to us. "That will be a very poor debate and I think that is a disappointing decision by the Government. "Taxpayers pay for the Treasury to do that work, Chancellor, and I think the public and parliamentarians deserve to see that work." But Mr Hammond insisted: "It would not be sensible - however irritating I understand that is going to be to some people - to go into the negotiation with all of our potential negotiating positions, all of the building blocks of a negotiating position spelled out in public with the costs and benefits and consequences displayed for our interlocutors on the other side of the table. "I can promise you the European Union will not be arriving at the negotiations with all the downsides as well as upsides of different negotiating positions set out for us to see." He added: "We cannot have a public debate about what our negotiating position is going to be. If we were to do that, we would have no negotiating position." Hungary's minister for foreign affairs and trade, Peter Szijjarto, told Channel Four News the EU needed to cut a "tailor-made" deal with the UK. "From my perspective we need a tailor-made solution. So, no-Swiss-type, no Canadian-type, no Norwegian-type, we need to look for a tailor-made solution for cooperation regarding trade, economy, and investments between the UK and the EU. "And the ideal situation would be, of course, free trade. Absolutely free trade between the UK and the EU, because currently there's absolutely free trade between UK and the rest of Europe." Lily Allen welcomes arrival of Jungle camp youth who caused her to break down Singer Lily Allen has welcomed the fast-tracked arrival to the UK of a teenage boy who caused her to break down in tears when she visited the Jungle camp in Calais. Shamsher Sherin, 13 - who has a right to live in the UK through his family ties, was one of around a dozen children who were brought by bus to meet with Home Office officials in Croydon, south London, on Wednesday, as the French camp prepares for demolition. The Afghan national smiled as he made his way inside the building for screening and interview, and is expected to be reunited with his family later. Shamsher Sherin, 13, the teenage refugee who Lily Allen spoke to in Calais, arrives at Lunar House in Croydon, south London Allen tweeted: "So happy to see that Sham Sher made it to the UK safely and won't be risking his life jumping on to moving vehicles." The teenager had been camped at the Jungle on the edge of the northern French port city for two months. During their meeting earlier this month, Allen told him: "It just seems that at three different intervals in this young boy's life, the English in particular have put you in danger. "We've bombed your country, put you in the hands of the Taliban and now put you in danger of risking your life to get into our country. "I apologise on behalf of my country. I'm sorry for what we have put you through." Allen wiped tears from her eyes at the end of their exchange, which was broadcast on the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme. The boy was shepherded into the government building as relatives and supporters waited behind barricades, some holding "welcome" signs. The latest arrivals came after some critics argued those who arrived on Tuesday appeared to be much older than 18. Tory MP David Davies has been accused in the House of Commons of fuelling "xenophobic attacks" after he said the teenagers "don't look like children" and should be given dental checks to prove their age. The SNP's Neil Gray also labelled Mr Davies's remarks "disgraceful". But the chairman of the Commons Welsh Affairs Select Committee defended his comments, telling BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We must not be naive about this. It's no good Lily Allen turning up with tears in her eyes and all the rest of it - we need to be quite hard-nosed here." The arrival of the group, made up of youngsters who are said to originate from a variety of war-torn countries - including Syria and Sudan, has been welcomed by charities and faith leaders. The first 14 children arrived earlier this week ahead of the Jungle camp's anticipated clearance. More children are expected to arrive this week after a team of British officials were sent to Calais to help French authorities speed up the transfer of minors ahead of the dismantling of the camp. Campaigners including Citizens UK, which said it has reunited 60 children from Calais with relatives in Britain since March, claim to have identified hundreds of children in the camp who have a right to come to the UK - either because they have family ties here under the so-called Dublin regulations, or through the Dubs amendment. Figures from the Home Office showed that more than two-thirds of refugees who had their ages assessed were found to be adults, despite claiming to be children. Data from the year ending in June revealed that 1,060 asylum applicants' ages were called into question. Of the 933 who were recorded as having an age assessment, 636 (68%) were deemed to be over 18. The Home Office refused to comment on the latest consignment of vulnerable children, with a spokeswoman saying the department "would not provide a running commentary". In an interview with the Telegraph, Shamsher's father Hazrat Gul Sherin said he was "shocked" when he first saw his son pictured with pop star Allen in a news article. "I was so happy my son was alive," he told the paper. "And I was later able to speak to him and felt such relief. I rang my wife in Afghanistan to let her know that Shamsher is safe." Mr Sherin, who fled his homeland in 2005, told how his son had been targeted by the Taliban and also urged by his mother Noorbabo to flee Afghanistan in fear that he would be recruited by Islamic State. Mr Sherin added: "The Taliban tried to take him off to one of their camps. So my wife raised money through the rest of the family to pay for him to escape, as I had done 10 years earlier." Eddie Hearn: Anthony Joshua will fight in Manchester in December come what may Promoter Eddie Hearn is determined Anthony Joshua will defend his IBF heavyweight title in Manchester on December 10 - whether that is against Wladimir Klitschko or another fighter. Joshua and Klitschko had agreed terms on a world heavyweight title unification bout, but the contest has been thrown into doubt over issues with the sanctioning bodies. Klitschko is reportedly reluctant to fight without at least one of the WBA or WBO titles on the line - and both organisations are yet to confirm this will be the case. Eddie Hearn, right, is determined Anthony Joshua, left, will defend his title in Manchester on December 10 With suggestions Klitschko has now lined up an alternative fight in Germany, promoter Hearn confirmed he is looking at other options for Joshua should the multi-million pound fight against the Ukrainian fail to materialise. "With the hold up from the WBA, we need a little more time, so regardless of if it's Klitschko or not, AJ will return on December 10 in Manchester," Hearn said in an interview with Sky Sports. "We are beginning discussions with other opponents now while crossing our fingers that Klitschko takes the fight, regardless of how many belts are on the line. "In an ideal world, there would be as many belts as possible on the line, but I hope he takes up the challenge rather than a soft touch in Germany." Klitschko has been without a title since losing them to Tyson Fury last year and has a number of options with the WBA and WBO belts now vacant. One possibility is that the Ukrainian will agree instead to fight highly-ranked American Joseph Parker for the WBO belt in Germany - which is arguably an easier option than facing Joshua in front of his home fans. WWI soldiers whose graves were wrongly marked laid to rest with military honours Two First World War soldiers whose graves were wrongly marked in a Somme cemetery for more than a century have finally been laid to rest with full military honours. Privates William Marmon and Harry Carter, both 21, died with six other soldiers when a 15-ton German underground mine exploded on November 22 1915. Hundreds of tons of earth engulfed the dugout where the pair, of the 10th Battalion the Essex Regiment, were most likely on sentry duty. The coffins of Private Harry Carter and Private William Marmon are laid together in Albert Communal Cemetery Extension in Albert, France. Their deaths were marked at the time with named graves and headstones at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission's (CWGC) Albert Communal Cemetery Extension in France. But, thanks to dogged detective work by experts, it emerged a century later that rather than being recovered and buried, the men had lain underground where they fell in the village of La Boisselle. A clerical error by the War Office 100 years ago is believed to have led to their collective grave being wrongly marked with their names, the archaeological evidence suggests. On Wednesday, three years after the remains were found, Pte Marmon, from Holborn, central London, and Pte Carter, from West Ham, east London, were buried with full military honours in Albert. Nine surviving relatives attended the service, which was led by the Rev Richard Priest and organised by the Ministry of Defence's Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre (JCCC). Pte Marmon's great-nephew, Trevor Newland, 60, from Ilford, north-east London, said: "His bravery is undeniable and although his death was in tragic circumstances, my family have had the opportunity to pay our respects. "To be here today witnessing this full military funeral in his honour is really humbling. He has laid with his comrade for 100 years and will now do so in peace forever more." Pte Carter's great nephew, Brian Churchyard, from east London, said: "It is a remarkable story and really does bring home the bravery and sacrifice made by such young men." Members of the 1st Battalion the Royal Anglian Regiment, successor to the 10th Battalion the Essex Regiment, provided a bearer party for the coffins and fired a salute. National anthems were sung in British and French after the Last Post was played, a silence observed and wreaths laid at the cemetery where more than 860 First World War casualties are commemorated. Flag bearers downed their flags as the coffins were lowered, and the Union flags that draped the coffins were folded then handed to relatives. Mr Priest said: "It is just as important for today's soldiers to know that their comrades are buried with full military honours as it was 100 years ago, and that we honour our fallen from past conflicts." The discovery of the men's remains came in 2013 after a professional archaeology group, the La Boisselle Study Group (LBSG), formed by Briton Peter Barton, excavated trenches in an area known as the Glory Hole. The area saw bitter fighting during the First World War, with each side resorting to mine warfare to gain a slim advantage. Beneath the two-hectare site, which included British, French and German trenches, a field of mine craters and remnants of a farm, was a labyrinth of wartime tunnels. The remains of the two fully kitted men were found beside their rifles and ammunition, grenades and flares. Small figurines of children were also found in a pouch, along with a bullet carved into a love heart. According to the battalion's War Diary, the blast that killed Pte Marmon and Pte Carter was of such ferocity that it "filled the dugouts for about 50 yards and completely obliterated the front face". A file of evidence was sent to the JCCC which used genealogy research to identify and trace the surviving relatives of all eight soldiers reported as being killed. DNA analysis proved the remains were Pte Marmon and Pte Carter. The inscriptions on the existing grave headstone have been amended. Steve Brown of the JCCC said: "The commemorative event today is a culmination of detailed work by many organisations to achieve a common goal - the identification and burial of exceptionally brave young men who died serving in arguably the most difficult and dangerous place during the First World War." The three-week project was complicated early on when LBSG archaeologists also discovered the bodies of two French soldiers killed in early January 1915. Both have since been identified and reburied in France. Mr Barton said: "We look upon the burials today as a cause not for melancholy but for celebration, because we have finally found, recovered and identified the remains of four young men missing for a century - Charles Marmon and Harry Carter of the 10th Essex and their French comrades Louis Heurt and Apollinaire Ruelland of 118th Infantry Regiment. "Our commemorations are, however, tempered by an enduring sadness at not having been able to recover the other soldiers, both British and German, whom we know or believe to have been present close by. This evening we shall be raising a glass to them all." On average, up to 40 soldiers are discovered every year on the former Western Front battlefields. French law dictates that the CWGC be involved when a body is found. Peter Francis of the CWGC said the commission was "honoured" to care for the men "in perpetuity", and that he had never seen such level of detail about two fallen soldiers. Private Harry Carter of the 10th Battalion Essex Regiment, was one of two British First World War soldiers whose graves were wrongly marked in a Somme cemetery for more than a century. Private William Marmon and Private Harry Carter have now been laid to rest with full military honours in Albert, France. The coffin of Private Harry Carter is carried into Albert Communal Cemetery Extension to be buried alongside Private William Marmon. The Union flags that draped the coffins were folded then handed to relatives. Professor Stephen Hawking has warned that artificial intelligence could develop a will of its own that is in conflict with that of humanity. It could herald dangers like powerful autonomous weapons and ways for the few to oppress the many, he said, as he called for more research in the area. But if sufficient research is done to avoid the risks, it could help in humanity's aims to 'finally eradicate disease and poverty', he added. Professor Stephen Hawking has warned that artificial intelligence could develop a will of its own that is in conflict with that of humanity He was speaking in Cambridge at the launch of The Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, which will explore the implications of the rapid development of artificial intelligence. All great achievements of civilisation, from learning to master fire to learning to grow food to understanding the cosmos, were down to human intelligence, he said. 'I believe there is no deep difference between what can be achieved by a biological brain and what can be achieved by a computer. 'It therefore follows that computers can, in theory, emulate human intelligence - and exceed it.' Artificial intelligence was progressing rapidly and there were 'enormous' levels of investment. He said the potential benefits were great and the technological revolution could help undo some of the damage done to the natural world by industrialisation. 'In short, success in creating AI could be the biggest event in the history of our civilisation,' said Prof Hawking. 'But it could also be the last unless we learn how to avoid the risks. Professor Hawking warned that AI could herald dangers like powerful autonomous weapons and ways for the few to oppress the many (like the plot of Terminator, pictured) 'Alongside the benefits, AI will also bring dangers, like powerful autonomous weapons, or new ways for the few to oppress the many. 'It will bring great disruption to our economy. 'And in the future, AI could develop a will of its own - a will that is in conflict with ours. 'In short, the rise of powerful AI will be either the best, or the worst thing, ever to happen to humanity. 'We do not know which.' He continued: 'That is why, in 2014, I and a few others called for more research to be done in this area. 'I am very glad that someone was listening to me.' He welcomed the launch of the new centre, which is a collaboration between the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford, Imperial College London, and the University of California, Berkeley. REPORT CALLS FOR BAN ON KILLER ROBOTS The report by Human Rights Watch and the Harvard Law School International Human Rights Clinic was released as the United Nations kicked off a week-long meeting on such weapons in Geneva. The report calls for humans to remain in control over all weapons systems at a time of rapid technological advances. It says that requiring humans to remain in control of critical functions during combat, including the selection of targets, saves lives and ensures that fighters comply with international law. 'Machines have long served as instruments of war, but historically humans have directed how they are used,' said Bonnie Docherty, senior arms division researcher at Human Rights Watch, in a statement. 'Now there is a real threat that humans would relinquish their control and delegate life-and-death decisions to machines.' Some have argued in favor of robots on the battlefield, saying their use could save lives. But last year, more than 1,000 technology and robotics experts including scientist Stephen Hawking, Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak warned that such weapons could be developed within years, not decades. In an open letter, they argued that if any major military power pushes ahead with development of autonomous weapons, 'a global arms race is virtually inevitable, and the endpoint of this technological trajectory is obvious: autonomous weapons will become the Kalashnikovs of tomorrow.' According to the London-based organization Campaign to Stop Killer Robots, the United States, China, Israel, South Korea, Russia, and Britain are moving toward systems that would give machines greater combat autonomy. Advertisement 'The research done by this centre is crucial to the future of our civilisation and of our species,' he said. CFI is funded by an unprecedented 10 million grant from the Leverhulme Trust. Its mission is to create an interdisciplinary community of researchers that will work closely with industry and policy-makers. It is the first centre of its kind that will examine both risks and benefits, short and long-term. And Professor Hawking joked: 'We spend a great deal of time studying history, which, let's face it, is mostly the history of stupidity. Gap to shut Banana Republic doors in the UK Oct 18 (Reuters) - Gap Inc said it would close all its eight Banana Republic stores in the UK as the ailing apparel retailer focuses on North America to revive its sales. The company said it expected to close majority of the eight stores by the end of this year, GAP spokeswoman Kari Shellhorn told Reuters in an email statement. Gap said in May that it would shut 75 Old Navy and Banana Republic stores overseas. Sales of the Banana Republic and Gap brands have been falling for some time now, with comparable sales at Banana Republic stores down 9 percent last quarter, its sixth straight quarter of decline. Gap has been struggling to draw shoppers who now turn to fast-fashion retailers such as H&M, Forever 21 and Inditex's Zara for cheaper and trendier clothes. Banana Republic will continue to serve its UK customers through its regional website, Gap said. Chinese manned space mission docks with space station - Xinhua SHANGHAI, Oct 19 (Reuters) - China's Shenzhou 11 manned spacecraft has successfully docked with China's Tiangong 2 space lab, and two astronauts have entered the lab, China's official news agency Xinhua said Wednesday. China is the third country after the United States and Russia to complete space rendezvous and docking procedures, Xinhua said. According to the mission schedule, the astronauts will remain in the space station for 30 days and spend a total of 33 days in space, making the mission the longest in space so far for China. In a manned space mission in 2013, three Chinese astronauts spent 15 days in orbit and docked with a space laboratory, the Tiangong 1. Advancing China's space programme is a priority for Beijing, with President Xi Jinping calling for the country to establish itself as a space power. China insists its space programme is for peaceful purposes. Shenzhou 11, whose name translates as "Divine Vessel", will also carry three experiments designed by Hong Kong middle school students and selected in a science competition, including one that will take silk worms into space. The U.S. Defense Department has highlighted China's increasing space capabilities, saying it was pursuing activities aimed at preventing other nations using space-based assets in a crisis. Turkish police kill suspected Islamic State suicide bomber in capital By Tuvan Gumrukcu ANKARA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Turkish police shot dead a suspected Islamic State militant overnight who was believed to be planning a suicide bomb attack in the capital Ankara, the city's governor said on Wednesday. It was the latest in a series of counter-terrorist police operations coinciding with a Turkey-backed rebel operation in Syria to drive the jihadists away from its southern border. Turkish security forces have meanwhile stepped up action against Kurdish militants, killing 14 Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters in eastern Turkey in recent days, the interior minister said. Police tracked the Islamic State suspect to the ninth floor of a building on Ankara's outskirts, where he was killed in a gunfight around 3 a.m. after opening fire in response to a call to surrender, the state-run Anadolu Agency said. "The terrorist is judged to have been planning to carry out a suicide bomb attack and carried out reconnaissance around the old parliament building and Anitkabir," Governor Ercan Topaca wrote on Twitter, referring to the mausoleum of modern Turkey's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The suspect may have been targeting ceremonies to be held there on the Oct. 29 anniversary of the Turkish Republic's foundation or on Nov. 10 to commemorate Ataturk's death, Anadolu cited Topaca as saying. Police found explosive materials including sticks of dynamite and ammonium nitrate at the scene, the governor said. The suspect was registered as resident of the southeastern city of Diyarbakir and was born in 1992, Anadolu said. PUBLIC GATHERINGS After receiving intelligence that militants were planning attacks in the capital, Topaca's office on Monday banned public meetings and marches until the end of November. The ban was enforced in line with emergency rule imposed after an attempted coup in July. Islamic State and Kurdish militants have carried out attacks in the capital. This month two suspected PKK members, believed to be planning a car bomb attack, blew themselves up in a standoff with police in Ankara. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told reporters in Ankara that operations targeting militants would continue in the days ahead and said 13 PKK fighters were killed this week in the eastern province of Tunceli and one further north in Erzincan. In the Lice district of Diyarbakir province, PKK militants staged a rocket attack on a minibus carrying members of the state-sponsored village guard militia who fight against the PKK, killing two guards and wounding two others, security sources said. Separately, the sources said 20 people were detained overnight in simultaneous raids across the city of Diyarbakir designed to avert Islamic State bomb attacks. Romania - Factors to watch on Oct. 19 Here are news stories, press reports and events to watch which may affect Romanian financial markets on Wednesday. CHF CONVERSION BILL Romania's lower house of parliament unanimously endorsed a bill on Tuesday to convert Swiss franc loans into local currency at historical rates, going against central bank recommendations and economists' pleas for prudence in an election year. CORRUPTION Romanian former deputy central bank governor Bogdan Olteanu was indicted on graft charges on Tuesday by anti-corruption prosecutors after a months-long investigation into his time as speaker of parliament's lower house, the prosecutors said. CANADA TRADE DEAL EU governments failed on Tuesday to approve a free trade agreement with Canada, as continued opposition from French-speaking southern Belgium threatened the entire deal. CEE MARKETS Romanian stocks and government bond prices eased on Tuesday after the Bucharest parliament passed a bill on the conversion of Swiss franc mortgages into leu at historically low rates, intensifying fears that bank costs will rise sharply. For the long-term Romanian diary, click on For emerging markets economic events, click on For an index of all diaries, click on Poland - Factors to Watch Oct. 19 Following are news stories, press reports and events to watch that may affect Poland's financial markets on Wednesday. ALL TIMES GMT (Poland: GMT + 2 hours): INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT, SALES, PPI The statistics office is scheduled to publish September industrial output, retail sales, and producer price data at 1200 GMT. FINANCIAL SUPERVISOR Current central bank governor may also become head of financial supervisor KNF as part of a plan to merge the two institutions, Dziennik Gazeta Prawna reported citing a draft law that has not been published yet. GRUPA AZOTY Fertiliser producer Grupa Azoty may come under pressure if the European Union approves regulations that would lower acceptable levels of cadmium in fertilisers, Dziennik Gazeta Prawna reported. ROAD CONSTRUCTION TENDERS Polish road construction authority GDDKiA has approved four road construction projects worth a total of 5.7 billion zlotys ($1.45 billion), Rzeczpospolita daily reported. ****Reuters has not verified stories reported by Polish media and does not vouch for their accuracy.**** Philippine police van drives at protesters to break up anti-U.S. demonstration MANILA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Philippine police used tear gas to disperse about 1,000 anti-U.S. protesters outside the U.S. Embassy in Manila on Wednesday, as television news footage showed a patrol van, which had come under attack, driving at demonstrators. The rally came as President Rodrigo Duterte visits Beijing to strengthen relations with the world's second-largest economy amid deteriorating ties with the Philippines' former colonial power, the United States, sparked by his controversial war on illegal drugs. Police made 29 arrests at the rally while at least 10 people were taken to hospital after being hit by the police van, Renato Reyes, secretary general of left-wing activist group Bayan (Nation), told reporters. The protesters were calling for the removal of U.S. troops in the southern island of Mindanao. "There was absolutely no justification (for the police violence)," Reyes said. "Even as the president avowed an independent foreign policy, Philippine police forces still act as running dogs of the U.S." U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner expressed sympathy for those injured and wished them a quick recovery. "The U.S. strongly supports democracy in the Philippines and supports the right to peaceful expression and demonstration. We call on all parties to engage in peaceful dialogue and exercise restraint," he said. In a series of conflicting statements, Duterte has insulted U.S. President Barack Obama and the U.S. ambassador in Manila for questioning his war on drugs, which has led to the deaths of 2,300 suspected users and pushers. He told Obama to "go to hell" and alluded to severing ties with Washington. Then after weeks of anti-American rhetoric, Duterte said the Philippines would maintain its existing defence treaties and its military alliances. Lebanon's Hariri backs Aoun for president, some allies opposed By Tom Perry and Laila Bassam BEIRUT, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri intends to endorse Michel Aoun for the vacant presidency, senior political sources said, and the Hezbollah ally could be elected head of state later this month. Long an opponent of the Iran-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah, Hariri would become prime minister again under the plan that could reshape Lebanese politics. It has drawn opposition in his party and a final decision has not yet been taken, allies said. The presidency, which is reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country's sectarian power-sharing arrangements, has been vacant for 2 1/2 years due to political conflicts. Aoun, a veteran politician in his 80s, has long coveted the post. It was not immediately clear if Aoun's candidacy would enjoy enough support among other politicians to secure the necessary two-thirds quorum for the vote in the 128-seat parliament. The next scheduled parliamentary session to elect a president is set for Oct. 31. Opponents of Aoun's candidacy include Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, head of the Shi'ite Amal Movement and a close ally of Hezbollah, which itself has yet to comment. Hariri, 46, led the "March 14" alliance against Hezbollah and its allies, after the 2005 assassination of his father Rafik al-Hariri. He remains a fierce critic of Hezbollah, which is fighting in Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad. The proposal, unthinkable until recently, casts new light on the predicament facing Hariri, whose standing as Lebanon's most influential Sunni politician has been shaken by a financial crisis at his Saudi-based construction business. The troubles at Saudi Oger, which has been hit by falling oil prices and cuts in Saudi state spending, have led to a cash crunch in Hariri's Future Movement. Diplomats say Hariri has fallen from favour in Saudi Arabia, which these days cares far more about confronting Iranian influence in the Gulf and Syria than about Lebanon. OPPOSITION FROM WITHIN Two senior politicians told Reuters that Hariri had expressed his intention to nominate Aoun for the presidency as part of the power-sharing deal. A third source, a member of Hariri's Future Movement, confirmed Hariri had expressed this intention, but members of his own parliamentary bloc opposed it. Fouad Siniora, a former prime minister and head of the Future Movement's parliamentary bloc, told the newspaper Daily Star that Hariri had told his MPs on Tuesday that he had decided to support Aoun's candidacy, but added that there was "no final decision yet on this matter". One of the senior sources said Hariri would announce his support for Aoun "within the coming few days". The current government of Prime Minister Tammam Salam has been paralysed by rivalries exacerbated by regional conflict. Hariri became prime minister for the first time in 2009, but his cabinet was toppled in 2011 when Hezbollah and its allies resigned. Since then, he spent most of his time abroad. Last year, he nominated Hezbollah ally Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency, but Hezbollah stuck by Aoun. Aoun, a former army commander, heads the largest Christian bloc in parliament and has a large following in the divided Christian community. He has been a political ally of Hezbollah since 2006. A significant figure in Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war, Aoun led one of two rival governments during the final years of the conflict. In 1990, the Syrian army forced him into exile. He returned in 2005 after Syrian forces withdrew under international pressure following the Hariri assassination. Shi'ite militias say will support Iraqi army offensive on Mosul By Maher Chmaytelli and Babak Dehghanpisheh BAGHDAD/ERBIL, Iraq, Oct 19 (Reuters) - A Shi'ite paramilitary force said it would support the Iraqi army's offensive on Mosul, Islamic State's last major stronghold in Iraq, raising the risk of sectarian strife in the mainly Sunni region. The Popular Mobilization Force (PMF), a coalition of mostly Iranian-trained militias, said late on Tuesday it would back Iraqi government forces advancing toward Tal Afar, about 55 kilometres (34 miles) west of Mosul. Taking Tal Afar would effectively cut off the escape route for militants wanting to head into neighbouring Syria and would please the Iran-backed army of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. It has accused the U.S.-led anti-Islamic State coalition of planning to allow the jihadists such a safe passage. But it could also hamper the escape of civilians from the area of Mosul, which is Iraq's second biggest city and where the militants are reportedly trying to use residents as human shields. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Tuesday that blocking the road to Syria was the responsibility of the coalition that is providing air and ground support to Iraqi and Kurdish troops engaged in the battle. Tal Afar's pre-war population of about 150,0000 to 200,000 was a mix of Sunni and Shi'ite ethnic Turkmens until Shi'ites fled the town after Islamic State's ultra-hardline Sunni militants took over the region in 2014, declaring a 'caliphate' over swathes of Iraq and Syria. "The Iranians and the (PMF) plan to take Tal Afar because of the Shi'ite significance and use that as a way to angle in to Mosul," said a senior Iraqi official who asked not to be named. "But they also want to use it as a way to angle into the Syria fight." SECTARIAN DIVISIONS Iraqi government forces are mostly fighting on the southern front and were trying on Wednesday to clear the region of Shora, 40 km (25 miles) south of the city, a military statement said. Kurdish Peshmerga fighters were deployed on the eastern and northern frontlines, 20 to 25 km from the city. "The PMF will be backing the security forces on the western front (..) along two axes. The first is Tal Afar and the second is to support the forces going into the centre of Mosul," a statement on the PMF website said. The announcement came despite warnings from human rights groups that PMF involvement could ignite sectarian violence. Shi'ites make up a majority in Iraq but Sunnis are predominant in the north and the west of the country. The PMF officially reports to the Shi'ite-led government of Abadi, who announced on Monday the start of the Mosul offensive. It was formed in 2014 to help push back Islamic State's sweeping advance through the northern and western provinces. Abadi has sought to allay fears of sectarian bloodshed, saying that the army and the police will be the only forces allowed to enter the city. Amnesty International on Tuesday published a report saying Shi'ite militias had committed "serious human rights violations, including war crimes" against civilians fleeing Islamic State-held territory. The United Nations said in July it had a list of more than 640 Sunni Muslim men and boys reportedly abducted by a Shi'ite militia in Falluja, a former militant stronghold west of Baghdad, and about 50 others who were summarily executed or tortured to death. The government and the PMF say a limited number of violations did occur and were investigated, but they deny the abuses were widespread and systematic. Iraqi officials and residents of Mosul say Islamic State is preventing people from leaving the city but civilians are fleeing from outlying districts and villages. The United Nations has warned that some 100,000 people may arrive in Syria from the Mosul area. Save the Children said on Wednesday about 5,000 people, mostly women and children, had arrived at the Al Hol camp in Syria in the last 10 days. Egypt cenbank allocates $1.8 bln to build 6-month strategic goods stock -minister By Eric Knecht LONDON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Egypt's central bank has allocated $1.8 billion to ensure six months of reserves in all strategic goods, Supply Minister Mohamed Ali El-Sheikh said on Wednesday, after widespread sugar shortages prompted talk of an impending food crisis. Egypt already has five months worth of wheat and vegetable oil reserves and would ensure that Egyptians receive a steady supply of essential foods, Sheikh said at a news conference. The $1.8 billion has already been allocated and the supply effort would be made in coordination with the armed forces, said Sheikh, a military major general who took charge in September of a ministry rocked by a wheat corruption scandal. Sheikh said his ministry would seek to end procurement of wheat to open air silos by next year's buying season and move to more sophisticated climate-controlled silos that are designed to minimise waste and prevent fraud. The move comes as Egypt, the world's largest wheat importer, tries to clamp down on alleged corruption in its strategic wheat supply chain that has wasted billions of pounds in public funds. Egyptian prosecutors are investigating allegations that millions of dollars intended to subsidise local wheat farmers were used to purchase more wheat on paper than was found in silos. The public prosecutor has charged several private silo owners and others with profiteering, forgery and enabling embezzlement. Parliamentarians who formed a fact-finding commission to investigate the suspected fraud have said upwards of 2 million tonnes, or 40 percent of the locally procured crop, may be unaccounted for. Sheikh said a committee composed of officials from the supply, agriculture and finance ministries had been established to determine the proper price for local wheat to be procured next year. However, he said Egypt had yet to decide if it will shift to a system where it pays farmers the global wheat price plus the government subsidy. The plan was mooted earlier this year as part of efforts to minimise opportunities for corruption along the supply chain but was never implemented. Catholics flock to watch Peru's Senor de Los Milagros procession LIMA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - A sea of worshippers clad in purple have filled the streets of downtown Lima as Peruvians take part in the annual procession of 'Senor de Los Milagros' (Lord of Miracles), a festival to honour Peru's most revered religious icon. The icon is thought to have been painted by a freed slave and is viewed as having miraculously survived an earthquake in 1687, which obliterated the chapel that housed it. Since then, the mural draws crowds of believers as it is transported through the capital's streets each year. 'Cargadores' or carriers, a brotherhood charged with transporting the heavy icon that depicts a dark-skinned Christ, were accompanied on Tuesday by groups of women in white, lace veils while thousands of residents squeezed into the narrow streets to watch the solemn procession, many with tears in their eyes. Peru's President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski and first lady Nancy Lange were also in attendance. Indian human rights body demands answer over deaths of hundreds of indigenous schoolchildren By Rina Chandran MUMBAI, Oct 19 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - India's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has accused the western state of Maharashtra of negligence over the "shocking and painful" deaths in the past decade of more than 700 indigenous children in schools run by the authorities. It was the second time in two months that the commission has criticised the state's care of its indigenous people. Last month, the NHRC asked state authorities for a detailed report on the deaths of more than 600 indigenous children from malnutrition. The NHRC said on Tuesday that at least 740 students from poor tribal areas of Maharashtra state had died in state-run "ashram" schools over the past decade from illnesses such as malaria, food poisoning, drowning and snake bites. The schools, which provide accommodation for pupils, had not followed several procedures, including health screens for the students at least twice a year, it said. "The school authorities, as their lawful guardians, are responsible for their welfare, safety and healthcare," the NHRC said. "The negligence on the part of the Department of Tribal Development and the school authorities is a violation of the right to life and dignity of the students," it added. A spokesman for the state's tribal department said senior officials were meeting with the chief minister in Mumbai to "look into all aspects and take appropriate action". The NHRC asked the government of Maharashtra to provide a report on the matter within a month. Ashram schools for children from poor tribal areas of India were set up more than two decades ago and are the only option for many living in remote areas. The schools, which are run by state authorities, are meant to improve literacy levels and provide basic healthcare to the children. Maharashtra, one of the wealthiest states in the country, has about 550 tribal schools but most of these schools lack even basic amenities and health services, an activist said. "There are no proper beds, and most schools lack proper toilets and drinking water, and basic healthcare facilities," said Vivek Pandit, founder of Shramjivi Sanghatana, which works with vulnerable people in Maharashtra. Philippines' Duterte says S.China Sea arbitration case to take "back seat" By Benjamin Kang Lim BEIJING, Oct 19 (Reuters) - The South China Sea arbitration case will "take the back seat" during talks with China, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on Wednesday in Beijing, adding that he would wait for the Chinese to bring up the dispute rather than doing so himself. Duterte arrived in Beijing on Tuesday with at least 200 top business people to pave the way for what he calls a new commercial alliance, amid deteriorating ties with longtime ally the United States. The effort to engage China, months after the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled over South China Sea disputes in favour of the Philippines, marks a reversal in Philippine foreign policy since Duterte took office on June 30. China refused to participate in the arbitration case or recognise its findings. Speaking to reporters at his hotel, Duterte described the judgment as a "piece of paper". "It would not be in keeping with courtesy and goodwill if I am the one to open it," he said. "And you will say, will it take a back seat? Of course, it has to take the back seat." China has welcomed the shift in tone that has added to strains between the Philippines and the United States, even as Duterte has vowed not to surrender any sovereignty to Beijing. Duterte said on Sunday he would raise the arbitral ruling, and vowed not to deviate from the tribunal's award. Speaking in Beijing, Duterte said he did not want to make any "hard impositions" on the South China Sea, and would wait for Chinese President Xi Jinping to raise the subject. "I have to be courteous and I have to wait for your president to mention it in passing for me to respond," he said. "It is in the broader outline of talks that we have agreed. But as a matter of courtesy, and the oriental way, we will always wait because I am a visitor. I cannot destroy the goodwill just by blurting out something." STRONG TIES WITH CHINA, OTHERS In a series of conflicting statements, Duterte has insulted U.S. President Barack Obama and the U.S. ambassador in Manila for questioning his war on drugs, which has led to the deaths of 2,300 people. He told Obama to "go to hell" and alluded to severing U.S. ties. Speaking earlier, Philippine Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay said territorial disputes between China and the Philippines may take a lifetime to resolve, but should not prevent warming ties. On Wednesday, Philippine Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez told reporters in Beijing that Bank of China had agreed to provide a $3 billion credit facility for infrastructure investments in the Philippines. Their remarks came as Philippine police used teargas to disperse about 1,000 anti-American protesters outside the U.S. embassy in Manila. Yasay reiterated that the thaw with China was "not going to erode our close ties with the rest of our allies and traditional partners". "As we renew our ties with this great nation, it does not mean that we are weakening ties with the rest of the members of the international community. This is at the core of the independent foreign policy that our president has moved and put forward," he said. After weeks of anti-American rhetoric, Duterte said the Philippines would maintain its existing defence treaties and its military alliances. China has expressed support for Duterte's drug war, even as it has sparked concerns in Western capitals about extrajudicial killings. Keeping euro-clearing in London not a top priority in Brexit talks - minister By Huw Jones and William James LONDON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - The future of London's financial clearing business is a significant consideration in Britain's negotiations on leaving the European Union, but is probably not a top priority for government, its financial services minister said on Wednesday. London dominates clearing of derivatives denominated in euros, mainly via the London Stock Exchange's LCH.Clearnet business, and attempts by the European Central Bank to shift clearing to the euro zone were thwarted by the bloc's top court. But after Britain voted in June to leave the EU, French President Francois Hollande called for clearing of euro denominated securities to shift to the euro zone. Industry lobby groups in Britain such as TheCityUK have said keeping clearing in London is vitally important and should be one of the government's core aims in negotiations on new trading terms with the bloc. Britain's financial services minister, Simon Kirby, declined to give full backing to such demands at a parliamentary hearing. "It's an element of the negotiations. Is it the most important element? Probably not, but it is a significant consideration," Kirby said when asked whether the finance ministry had analysed the impact of relocating clearing houses away from the capital. "The whole of Europe, UK included, would be worse off if that particular part of financial services that London offers was dismantled and redistributed across Europe," Kirby told a committee in the House of Lords. "There are some people who would have you believe it wouldn't go to Europe at all, and that it would end up in New York, which would be a very bad place for all of us." Kirby echoed Prime Minister Theresa May by saying Britain would seek the best trade deal possible for the country. TREASURY IN CHARGE Bankers lobbying to maintain "passports", or access to the EU's single market after Britain leaves the bloc, worry their traditional champion in government, the finance ministry, is being sidelined. Lawmakers pressed Kirby several times before he reassured them the treasury was indeed the government department that represents financial services, a sector that paid 66.5 billion pounds ($82 billion) in tax in 2014-15. Katharine Braddick, director for financial services at the finance ministry, said she was conducting a sector-by-sector analysis of how different types of trade agreements would hit revenues, employment and tax receipts. The information will be passed on to the cabinet committee that will thrash out Britain's trade talks stance. Financial industry officials say a soft Brexit - or maintaining full access to the EU market - is unlikely, meaning access to the EU will be reduced for some parts of the sector as Paris, Frankfurt, Luxembourg and Dublin seek to attract banks from Britain. Some are concerned the government might sacrifice parts of the industry, such as euro clearing, as part of negotiations. Bank of England Deputy Governor Jon Cunliffe told the committee last week, however, it would be too hard for other European financial centres to replicate the complex "eco-system" of banks, asset managers, clearing houses, accountants and lawyers that make London the world's biggest financial hub. Braddick said it was difficult to quantify the impact of various types of trade deals on this eco-system. "I don't think that's a nut we might be able to crack analytically in this timescale," she said. Braddick said a loss of passports for asset managers may not be as problematic as initially appeared, though passports were important for investment banks. Evoking Ottoman past, Erdogan vows to tackle Turkey's enemies abroad By Orhan Coskun and Nick Tattersall ANKARA/ISTANBUL, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Smarting over exclusion from an Iraqi-led offensive against Islamic State in Mosul and Kurdish militia gains in Syria, President Tayyip Erdogan warned on Wednesday Turkey "will not wait until the blade is against our bone" but could act alone in rooting out enemies. In a speech at his palace, Erdogan conjured up an image of Turkey constrained by foreign powers who "aim to make us forget our Ottoman and Selcuk history", when Turkey's forefathers held territory stretching across central Asia and the Middle East. "From now on we will not wait for problems to come knocking on our door, we will not wait until the blade is against our bone and skin, we will not wait for terrorist organizations to come and attack us," he told hundreds of "muhtars", local administrators generally loyal to the government. "Whoever supports the divisive terrorist organization, we will dig up their roots," he said, referring to Kurdish PKK militants who have waged a three-decade insurgency against Turkey and have bases in northern Iraq and affiliates in Syria. "Let them go wherever until we find and destroy them. I am saying this very clearly: they will not have a single place to find peace abroad." Erdogan has struck an increasingly belligerent tone in his speeches in recent days, frustrated that NATO member Turkey has not been more involved in the U.S.-backed assault on Mosul, and angered by Washington's support for Kurdish militia fighters battling Islamic State in Syria. He is riding a wave of patriotism since a coup attempt failed to oust him in July, his message of a strong Turkey playing well with his fervent supporters. Ankara has been locked in a row with Iraq over the presence of Turkish troops at the Bashiqa camp near Mosul, as well as over who should take part in the offensive in the largely Sunni Muslim city, once part of the Ottoman empire and still seen by Turkey as firmly within its sphere of influence. Erdogan has warned of sectarian bloodshed if the Iraqi army relies on Shi'ite militia fighters. He said agreement had been reached with the U.S. military on Turkish jets joining the Mosul operation, although Washington has said it is up to the Iraqi government on who takes part. "They thought they could keep us out of Mosul by bothering us with the PKK and Daesh (Islamic State) ... They think they can shape our future with the hands of terrorist organizations," he said. "We know that the terrorists' weapons will blow up in their hands soon." "YOU ARE FOREIGNERS HERE" Turkey has felt increasingly powerless to control events across its borders as the U.S.-led coalition focuses on fighting Islamic State in Syria rather than on removing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the root cause of the war in Ankara's view. It has been particularly angered by U.S. support for Kurdish militia fighters in Syria. Washington views the Kurdish YPG as useful allies in the fight against the jihadists, but Turkey sees them as a hostile force and an extension of the PKK. "We know this business in this region. You are foreigners here. You do not know," Erdogan said, to loud applause, in a speech on Tuesday to mark the opening of the academic year. While criticising the West, the Turkish leader has restored ties with Moscow in recent weeks, vowing to seek common ground on Syria after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, despite Moscow's backing of Assad. Erdogan said he discussed with Putin by phone an agreement on Tuesday night on removing from Aleppo the group formally known as the Nusra Front, and now called Jabhat Fatah al Sham. He gave no details. Erdogan has made repeated references in his speeches this week to the term "Misak-i Milli" or National Pact, referring to decisions made by the Ottoman parliament in 1920 setting out the borders of the Ottoman Empire. He often laments the concessions made by Turkish leaders after World War One, with the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne that brought modern Turkey into being in 1923. Pro-government media this week published maps depicting Ottoman borders encompassing an area including Mosul. He warned of efforts to "restructure the region" and said Turkey would not sit by. "I'm warning the terrorist organisations, the sectarian fanatic Baghdad government, and the Assad government that kills its own people: you are on the wrong path. The fire you are trying to start will burn you more than us," Erdogan said. South Africa's Gordhan says relations with Zuma very good By Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo JOHANNESBURG, Oct 19 (Reuters) - South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said on Wednesday his relations with President Jacob Zuma were very good and he was hard at work preparing a budget policy speech to be delivered next week. Gordhan is facing charges that, while running the tax agency, he fraudulently approved early retirement for a deputy commissioner and re-hired him as a consultant, costing the tax agency around 1.1 million rand ($79,000) - accusations the minister has said are politically motivated. Analysts and supporters of Gordhan, whose first court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 2, say the charges could be a ploy by Zuma allies to discredit him. The president has said he is not in conflict with Gordhan, and on Tuesday backed the minister's efforts to revive the economy. "He is my president so I have to have very good relations with him," Gordhan told reporters after a speech to trade union leaders in which he said South Africa was making progress towards preventing a sovereign credit downgrade. "Everything is fine, we are busy preparing for the medium-term budget policy statement." Gordhan said. The minister has also described the fraud charges as frivolous and said he intended to continue in his job. Investors have been worried that Gordhan, seen by markets as a safeguard of stability, could lose his job, impeding efforts to revive sluggish economic growth and prevent a downgrade to junk status. Gordhan is facing further legal wrangles after Oakbay Investments said on Wednesday it would oppose a court application from him linking the firm and its owners, who have close ties to Zuma, to suspicious transactions. Gordhan said in a court affidavit on Friday that 6.8 billion rand ($491 million) in payments made by three Indian-born businessmen - Ajay, Atul and Rajesh Gupta - and companies they control and other individuals with the same surname had been reported to authorities as suspicious since 2012. A Treasury spokeswoman has said the Guptas would have to file an affidavit of their own before a court date to hear the accusation could be set. Gordhan has for months been at odds with Zuma, partly over the alleged political influence of the Gupta brothers. The president has denied granting undue influence to the Guptas and they have denied seeking it. The businessmen are the subject of a report by the outgoing public protector - an anti-graft official - into allegations they influenced the appointment of ministers. The report was prevented from being made public on Friday by a High Court application by Zuma to delay its release. The new Public Protector, lawyer Busisiwe Mkhwebane, said on Wednesday she would not release the report until Zuma's application had been heard. That is scheduled for Nov. 1. WIDER IMAGE-Spain's white villages offer glimpse of vanished past By Marcelo del Pozo ARCOS DE LA FRONTERA, Spain, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Dazzling clusters of cube-shaped houses perched on top of Andalusia's olive tree-studded mountains, the "Pueblos Blancos", or white villages, of southern Spain are named for the lime wash the buildings are painted with to keep the interiors cool. The labyrinths of narrow alleyways are a throwback to when this region was known as Al-Andalus and was part of a medieval Muslim territory. Many of their names have Arabic origins, like Alcala, meaning 'castle'. Another hint at their ancient past is the frequent suffix 'de la Frontera' or 'of the Frontier', harking back to when Spain was split into Christian and Muslim territories. Local festivals range from religious processions, where men haul statues adorned with flowers along the stone streets, to bull runs, where bulls are released in the village and participants duck behind bars to escape their horns. While this region is stunningly beautiful and a big draw to tourists visiting the south of Spain, it is also one of the poorest areas in the country and has one of the highest unemployment rates in the European Union. Andalusia was the European region with the second highest unemployment rate in 2015, according to Eurostat, with nearly one in three without work. More than half of young people are unemployed. Traditionally people here have lived from the olive oil industry - Spain is by far the biggest global producer of olive oil - but expectations change, and young people are not keen on the long hours and poor pay of farm work. "Young people escape to the cities," says 19-year-old Jose Maria Cortijo, who lives in Vega de los Molinos, part of Arcos de la Frontera, a white village balanced on a ridge which plunges down to the valley below. Agustin Pina, a cheese maker in nearby village Villaluenga del Rosario which nestles in the middle of the Sierra de Grazalema national park, agrees. "Young people don't want to work in the fields, because it's a life of slavery," says the 58-year-old who has worked all his life on the land. "They want to work Monday to Friday." A throwback to an earlier time, life in the village is quiet and calm, residents say. Relief slow to get through to Haitians two weeks after hurricane By Anastasia Moloney BOGOTA, Oct 19 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Two weeks after Hurricane Matthew ripped through Haiti, relief workers are still struggling to reach remote rural communities in the country's hardest-hit southwestern areas, after roads and buildings were destroyed by flooding and mudslides. The Category 4 hurricane struck Haiti on Oct. 4, leaving more than 1 million people in need of urgent assistance and creating the worst humanitarian emergency in the impoverished Caribbean country since a devastating earthquake in 2010. Many roads remain blocked due to collapsed buildings and debris. Some isolated villages can only be reached on foot, with Haiti Red Cross volunteers carrying what supplies they can. Many towns have been virtually wiped out in the worst-hit areas. According to latest government figures, 546 people were killed and 128 people went missing as a result of the disaster. Here are some facts about the humanitarian emergency: * More than one in five Haitians has been affected by the storm. * Around 1.4 million people - more than 40 percent of them children - need some type of humanitarian aid, including clean water and food. * The most urgent need is for clean water and hygiene kits to stop the spread of cholera, a water-borne disease that is endemic in Haiti. The storm damaged most of the cholera treatment centres in the hardest-hit areas. * More than 200,000 houses have been badly damaged and 175,000 people have been uprooted from their homes and now live in 224 temporary shelters across the country. * Nearly 120,000 children are not going to school because classrooms have been damaged. * The United Nations has received just $15 million of the $120 million it appealed for after the hurricane, further hampering relief efforts. * In Haiti's most affected areas, farmers have lost at least 50 percent of their crops, while fishing, the main livelihood for coastal communities, has stopped as boats were washed away in the storm. Key Canada minister in Belgium for last-minute talks on EU deal OTTAWA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Canadian Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland is in Belgium for last-minute talks on a proposed free trade deal with the European Union, which has run into problems, a spokesman said on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, Freeland met Paul Magnette, premier of the Belgian region of Wallonia, which is threatening to veto the deal. She is also due to meet other European leaders. Almost all 28 EU governments back the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with Canada, which would be the bloc's first trade deal with a G7 country. Wallonia opposes it, citing a planned investment court that would allow foreign companies to challenge countries over decisions affecting their investments. "We are working hard with our European partners so CETA can be signed this fall and implemented next year," said Freeland's spokesman Alex Lawrence. "If Europe is incapable of signing a progressive trade deal with a country like Canada, this will send a very clear and unfortunate signal," he added. Finland wants security cooperation to be part of Brexit talks - PM By Tuomas Forsell and Jussi Rosendahl HELSINKI, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Finland hopes that security cooperation will be part of the negotiations for Britain's exit from the European Union, Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila said on Wednesday. Militarily non-aligned Finland is worried about increased East-West tensions in the Baltic Sea and supports a more common defence policy in the EU, which is about to lose its biggest-spending military force following Britain's vote to leave the bloc. Britain, which has traditionally favoured the NATO alliance over possible duplicate structures in the EU, made clear last month it opposed any efforts to create a single European army or a joint EU military headquarters. However, Brexit minister David Davis said last week one of the 'overarching aims' for the country was to maintain strong security cooperation with the EU. He did not give details. "I think the security aspect could be another element in the (Brexit) agreement. For example, if the (EU's) solidarity clause would cover Britain, that would of course have value in these discussions," Sipila told Reuters in an interview at his official residence by the Baltic Sea. "Then, it would differ from the treaties with Norway and Switzerland," he said, referring to treaties with those non-EU members which deal mainly with economic relations. Sipila said adding the security aspect to the talks was not part of the EU's or Finland's negotiation strategy as yet. EU leaders are due to meet on Thursday in Brussels following British Prime Minister Theresa May's speech earlier this month with pledges to curb immigration. The EU insists that Britain must accept the 'four freedoms' - free movement of people, capital, goods and services - to remain in the single market. Towns protesting copper mine in Peru turns away negotiating team LIMA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Protesters blocking a road to MMG Ltd's copper mine in Peru turned away a delegation of high-ranking government officials who hoped to restart talks on Wednesday after a local man was shot dead in clashes with police last week. Residents from Andean towns demanded a meeting with President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski as they mourned the 42-year-old farmer whose coffin lay on a road leading to MMG's Las Bambas mine, said Artemio Solano with the ombudsman's office. "We're starting our trip back... unfortunately our request for dialog was not reciprocated," Energy and Mines Minister Gonzalo Tamayo, head of the negotiating team, said on local TV channel Canal N. Kuczynski said as a candidate that he would personally travel to far-flung towns to resolve disputes over mining in the world's third-biggest copper producer. Kuczynski's office did not respond to requests for comment. Protesters in Apurimac in Peru's southern Andes are angry over pollution and noise from hundreds of trucks per day carrying Las Bambas' copper concentrates over the unpaved road near their homes, Solano said. The company has suspended all transportation of minerals from the mine since the man was killed Friday, said Solano and local councilman Jose Antonio Lima. MMG did not respond to requests for comment on Wednesday. The company said after the clash on Friday that it was using an alternate route to move its minerals to port. Kuczynski, a centrist former investment banker who took office July 28, said earlier this week that protesters' demands were "legitimate" and that he would work to improve roads in the region. Unrest erupted on Friday when police tried to end a weeklong protest by locals who had blocked and carved trenches into the road to keep the company from using it. Peru's Interior Ministry has said that two colonels ordered the crackdown without permission three days before officials were scheduled to meet with protesters. Police and public prosecutors are investigating the shooting of the man. Three protesters were also killed in clashes over the mine last year. "Unfortunately, trust has been lost," Antolin Chipani, Challhuahuacho mayor, said on local broadcaster RPP. "We've tried dialogue in the past but it's failed and only brought us blood." Peru's economy has been recovering this year on the back of surging output from Las Bambas and other new mines as domestic demand remains weak and private investments slump. Aligned with its commitment to uplift and empower underprivileged children, the My Friend Inspiring Hope Foundation organized an exclusive event to mark Childrens Day on 10th October. The event witnessed the participation of 725 students from 30 under-privileged schools from within the city Colombo limits. The students ranged from across Grades 9,10 & 11. The planned activities consisted of inspirational and fun sessions which imparted useful knowledge and information to the participating students. My Friend - Inspiring Hope is co-founded by Fouzul Hameed and Angelo Mathews who also functions as Brand Ambassador for the foundation. It is aimed at uplifting, educating and empowering underprivileged children, so that they too realize their full potential. The event organized by My Friend spanned half-a-day, commencing at 9 am. Career guidance and motivational speeches were delivered at the event by renowned personalities such as Sathischandra Edirisinghe, Manisha Gunawardene, Santhush Weeraman, and Angelo Mathews. These are positive role models for youth, whose words of advice will have a lasting impact on the students. The speeches were aimed at empowering the students and to show them that despite any odds they may face, there is always a way forward by using their determination and creativity. Mr. Channa Ranasinghe Legal Advisor for My Friend also graced the occasion. The closing session witnessed the My Friend team handing out school shoes and certificates to all participating students. Co-founder and Brand Ambassador of My Friend, Angelo Mathews, said, We are happy to guide these students. We want to make full use of our ability to help them so that they become responsible and successful citizens in the future. I always like to emphasize to them that it doesnt matter where they come from, all of them have the right to learn and by doing so they can reach their dreams. Hameedia encourages employee volunteerism and its staff had organized the event, paying close attention to everything from production to coordination which made the event a success. Hameedia has supported the My Friend foundation with the untiring support and involvement of Mr Fouzul Hameed. Co-founder of My Friend and Managing Director of Hameedia, Fouzul Hameed, exhorted the students with this message, We are here to help you and guide you. What you do today - can improve all your tomorrows, Let us stand together for a better future! Since its inception in 2013, My friend has funded almost 1000 students, helping them overcome financial obstacles to pursue their schooling. My friend foundation has always been on the forefront of expanding its reach to less fortunate children, and will continuously do so in the future. Ray Long President of British Computer Society (BCS), The Chartered Institute for IT and Paul Fletcher Group CEO of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, were recently in Colombo to attend the graduation ceremony. They took some time to talk to the media during their stay. They spoke about both their programmes and the community work they do. According to the visiting officials, Sri Lanka is one of the most successful sections for BCS and is the single largest country in terms of membership. The BCS also provides a mentoring system in Sri Lanka where those in the professions help those still studying. Participation (by members) is an important aspect for the BCS, not merely the programs offered. Speaking about the programs and work they do, the officials explained that the BCS offers both technology training and IT project management (techniques to manage projects in both government and private interest areas). There is also some emphasis on developing soft skills in students, to help them make projects successful. BCS has a very active regional branch in Sri Lanka, with a total of about 6000 members in the country. It is committed to increasing training and development provided to the country. Talking about the IT in UK and Sri Lanka, they highlighted that Sri Lanka has seen more women in IT Field when compared to the UK, because in Britain, only about 16-17 percent of women in IT Field but in Sri Lanka its about 20-30 percent. This problem can be traced back to school education. Britain has a problem getting women into technological positions. The officials from the BCS will meet the Minister for Technology and ICT during their visit to the country, and it is expected that they will discuss enhancing business with the Minister. They will also speak to other influential people in the field of business, on the same matter. They commended Wi-Fi access in the city and in the hotels, emphasizing how good the infrastructure was in the country. However, it is important to provide such broadband access to the rural areas too, to develop the capacity in those areas. Dr. Jacob Kumaresan WHO representative, Dr. Samanmali Sumanasena Consultant Paediatrician, Dr. Champika Wickramasinghe, Deputy Director General of Health Services, Mr. Mahesh Nanayakkara, MD/CEO CDB and Prof. Hemamali Perera Consultant Child Psychiatrist at the campaign launch Citizens Development Business Finance PLC (CDB) in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Association for Child Development launched an island wide Autism Awareness Campaign, to ensure that every child with autism receives early detection and attention, reducing the negative impact that autism has on their lives. The Autism Awareness Campaign, the flagship CSR project being mooted by CDB with the collaboration of SLACD was inaugurated at the CDB Auditorium to coincide with CDBs 20th anniversary. The Campaign will gain added value with the establishment of an Autism Trust Fund to ensure sustainability of the project. Shedding light on the complexity of autism and the challenges children with autism face, Director General of Health Services Dr Palitha Mahipala reiterated, Every child with autism matters; find them early and count all of them in. Given that autism impairs a persons ability to communicate and relate to others within social contexts and is reported to impact one in 93 people with boys being more likely to be affected than girls, Consultant Child Psychiatrist Professor Hemamali Perera stated that it is vital, To give these children a chance to grow. If autism is detected in a child prior to the age of two, there will be positive impacts on the child, improving cognitive, behavioural and inter-personal development dramatically. Managing Director and CEO of CDB Mahesh Nanayakkara elucidates the reasoning behind CDB making the Autism Awareness Campaign its flagship CSR project. This complex neuro-developmental disorder is determined at time of birth although it becomes more evident as the child grows older, given that social relationships and language development are hampered. Therefore the parents play a vital role in recognizing this condition early, and they can make timely presentations to the health services. However this is not happening in Sri Lanka at present due to the lack of public awareness. Nanayakkara adds that CDBs involvement in the project is due to the magnanimity of this disorder in Sri Lanka, which can easily be managed with early detection and more awareness among the public about the disorder. Creating awareness will instigate timely interventions for early detection prompting an improvement of the childs functional outcome and also bring about a better understanding of the disorder. The Sri Lanka Association of Child Development is the first multi-disciplinary professional association in the country, dedicated to child development, encompassing a cohort of germane stakeholders including doctors, clinical psychologists, therapists, social service officers, teachers and special educationists. On the theme, Act early for Autism, the SLACD thus collaborates with CDB to launch this vital national programme, dubbing the fact that autism awareness is the need of the hour. Urging people to, Detect autism early and act early to unleash the potential of children with autism, the Chairperson of this project at the Sri Lanka Association of Child Development Dr. Samanamali Sumanasena said, We plan on rolling out a comprehensive programme to create awareness amongst all Sri Lankans, aided by a separate budget to establish the Autism Trust Fund. The Autism Awareness Campaign will include media communications designed to create greater understanding of the features and symptoms of this complex disorder, making it easier for parents and family members to detect the disorder and seek medical help. A telephone helpdesk (011 749 0000) will support communication channels, enabling parents to access information and when required will be referred for specialized services within their own districts. The Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children has also published a handbook on autism to assist the campaign The Colombo District Court today extended the injunction order halting the screening of 'Usawiya Nihandai' until October 20. District Court Judge M.U. Gunawardena fixed the respondents application requesting the injunction order be lifted for tomorrow. A petition was filed by former Magistrate Lenin Ratnayake at the Colombo District Court citing the Director, Prasanna Vithanage and several others as respondents. The petitioner claimed the film was based on a false story relating to him and also defamed the judiciary. The court had issued a restraining order preventing the film being screen till today. (Shehan Chamika Silva) Video by Courts Prasanna This week the world marked the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty with special significance for Sri Lanka because the National Unity Government has declared 2017 as the year of poverty alleviation. According to the United Nations, this years theme is, moving from humiliation and exclusion to participation: End poverty in all its forms everywhere. A UN Sustainable Development Goal explicitly recognizes that poverty results not from the lack of just one thing but from many different interrelated factors that affect the lives of people suffering in a poverty trap. This means we must go beyond seeing poverty merely as the lack of income or what is necessary for material well-being -- such as food, housing, land, and other assets -- to fully understand poverty in its multiple dimensions. The theme this year selected in consultation with activists, civil society and non-governmental organizations highlights how important it is to recognize and address the humiliation and exclusion endured by many people living in poverty, the UN says. According to a report by the worlds social justice movement OXFAM, the wealth of the poorest half of the worlds population has fallen by a trillion dollars since 2010, a drop of 38 per cent. This has occurred despite the global population increasing by about 400 million during that period. Meanwhile, OXFAM says wealth of the richest 62 super billionaires has increased by more than half a trillion dollars to $1.76 tr. The report also shows how women are disproportionately affected by inequality of the current 62 super billionaires, 53 are men and just nine are women. The disturbing if not shocking and prophetic report by OXFAM says though world leaders have increasingly talked about the need to tackle inequality and in September agreed on a global goal to reduce it, the gap between the richest and the rest has widened dramatically in 2015. OXFAMs prediction that the wealthiest 1% would soon own more than the rest of the people, actually came true in 2015 -- a year earlier than expected. OXFAM is calling for urgent action to tackle the extreme inequality crisis which threatens to undermine the progress made in tackling poverty during the Past quarter of a century. As a priority, it is calling for an end to the era of tax havens which has seen the increasing use of offshore centres by rich individuals and companies to avoid paying their fair share to society. This has denied governments valuable resources needed to tackle poverty and inequality. Winnie Byanyima, Oxfam International Executive Director said: It is simply unacceptable that the poorest half of the worlds population owns no more than a few dozen super-rich people who could fit onto one bus. She added, I challenge the governments, companies and elites to play their part in ending the era of tax havens, which is fuelling economic inequality and preventing hundreds of millions of people lifting themselves out of poverty. Multinational companies and wealthy elites are playing by different rules to everyone else, refusing to pay the taxes that society needs to function. The fact that 188 of 201 leading companies have a presence in at least one tax haven shows it is time to act. In Sri Lanka, President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe have assured that the governments 5-year sustainable development strategy would be all inclusive and aimed at restoring the human dignity of the oppressed and impoverished people. The government has assured that the sustainable, eco--friendly development plans involving the latest in modern technology would not be urban-centred but village-centred so that rural youth would get productive and highly paid jobs. During the past two years after the change of government in 2015 many assurances have been given but not many have been fulfilled. We hope that the promise for the 2017 poverty eradication year would go beyond words, go to the grassroots and rescue millions of people from the poverty trap that an unjust system has put them into. It is only with a more equitable distribution of wealth and resources that Sri Lanka could claim to be a just and fair society. Isuru Samarasinghe was re-elected as President of the Sri Lanka-Russia Business Council (SLRBC) of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC) for the third consecutive year at the 13th Annual General Meeting held recently at the Russian Cultural Centre. Priyantha Hapuarachchi and Buddhapriya Ramanayake were elected as Vice Presidents of the council for the year 2016/2017. Having worked at Bartleet Group of Companies for the last 38 years, Samarasinghe is at present Managing Director of Unitrades Private Limited and a Director of Bartleet Agencies Private Limited and BC Agro-tronics Private Limited. In addition, he functions as Chairman of Karagoda Tea Factory Private Limited. He is an old boy of Ananda College and a past President of the Ananda College Old Boys Association. Samarasinghe also functions as Secretary of the Sri Lanka Ukraine Business Council. In his speech, Samarasinghe mentioned that plans are underway to bring in changes to the constitution of the Sri Lanka-Russia Business Council with the approval of the CCC and once done, he believes, it will help enhance trade and investment activities between Sri Lanka and Russia. Dr Jayampathi Wickramaratne, who is described as someone playing a pivotal role in the constitution-making process in his capacity as a member of the steering committee on the subject, has offered some thoughts on the progress of the initiative in an interview with the Daily Mirror. He has offered a nutshell version in the following terms: There is some agreement on electoral reforms -- a mixed member proportional system. On the executive, the Presidents position is clear that it has to be abolished. The President has to make a public statement. Then, we should look at how the present executive should be replaced with. The principles of devolution are under discussion by us. Things like the nature of State and the place for religion have not even been touched. In essence, therefore, the Committee hasnt really moved beyond recommendations made by the committee headed by Dinesh Gunawardena on the matter of electoral reform. In April 2015, President Maithripala Sirisena addressing a sizable rally of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) at Vihara Maha Devi Park vowed to see the 20th Amendment (on Electoral Reform) through. It was after all an election promise which he made and which the United National Party (UNP) endorsed by supporting his candidacy for the presidency in January 2015. In fact, according to his manifesto, it was to be done and dusted within 100 days of him assuming office, but in the 18 months since that last we-will-do-it assertion its been all quiet on the electoral reform front. Its pretty much the same on the matter of abolishing the executive presidency: Chest-beating before the election, sporadic affirmation of intent (as at the funeral of the late Ven Maduluwawe Sobitha Thera) since watered down to agreement in principle and now Dr Wickramaratne saying that the President wants abolition but hasnt made a public statement. Thats strange since theres nothing more public than an election manifesto! Little or no progress, then. The nature of the state and the place for (of) religion are untouched, he says. Tough issues no doubt, and we should not forget that the committee has a tough overall brief, but that said, no progress is a legitimate conclusion. This leaves us with devolution. It appears then that the Committee has expended efforts on this issue to the exclusion of all else, which of course is not exactly an indefensible privileging. So what of devolution as per the deliberations of this Committee? Wickramaratne has dwelled at length on the division of powers between the centre and the provinces, assuring strong safeguards against division of the country as well as mechanisms to ensure that the centres power to intervene in provincial matters is not abused. He elaborates on the latter, lamenting centre-intervention on subjects such as agriculture which he claims produced negative results while arguing that greater sway for provincial councils is the reason for better performance at the Grade-5 Scholarship Examination by children from schools outside the Western Province. These are weak and selective examples which indicate sloth on the part of the Committee in engaging in a comprehensive review of the 13th Amendment. It also indicates (dangerously) that the process has boiled down to one of constructing a case for a preferred outcome as opposed to a sober consideration of all factors and letting their true value determine direction and outcome. He says nothing of the gross wastage of budgetary allocations to the provincial councils, with large chunks going for up-keep and paltry amounts being set aside for development. He says nothing of resource anomalies across the provinces, a fact that calls for centralized allocation (which can be constitutionally guaranteed, just as the kind of strong safeguards regarding abuse of intervening power and separatist tendencies he believes are necessary). There are no doubt many spheres/activities where greater sway by regional entities make more sense than centre-heavy policy-making processes, but theres nothing to say that only devolution will produce such happy outcomes. Dr Wickramaratne clearly believes or wants us to believe that the Committee is taking its work seriously. The facade of sobriety, however, crumbles on one crucial point: boundaries. Constitutional reform is not only about democratization. We were told that it is also about reconciliation. Reconciliation has been reduced to devolution of power and this itself demonstrates the poverty of the process, the intellectual arrogance and the political chicanery of the overseers. Over and above the fixation of devolution is the glaring error of not revisiting the logic of the boundaries to which power is sought to be devolved by these worthies. If this is a serious process (and we are willing to make allowances for the long deliberations on account of the seriousness), then the Government should do a comprehensive audit of the entire system including all elements that have been created for political expedience (as was the case with the 18th Amendment, duly and happily overturned albeit with some flaws), thrust down un-democratically and illegally down the throats of all citizens (the 13th Amendment) as well as ad hoc decision that have (in retrospect) given a tangible foothold to myth-mongering and land-grabbing chauvinists. The last, in short, is about cartography; the matter of provincial boundaries which President Sirisena correctly pointed out were drawn by a colonial power and which have no basis in any science pertaining to map-making including history but which, since then, the Eelamists have used as the basis for a tall story about homelands! Why is the Committee not (re)considering provincial boundaries? Why is not demanding (of itself, of politicians and relevant experts) a review of these arbitrarily drawn lines? Constitutions should ideally be robust. If they can be amended willy nilly according to the whims and fancies of a few then they are not worth the paper they are written on. It requires integrity (hard to expect such from politicians, but lets keep that aside as a what-can-we-do? thing) and seriousness. If random interventions (like map-drawing) are concretized and legitimated in a context where these lines have been used to construct a separatist narrative, then the constitution-making process is a farce. As things stand and as stated at the beginning of this essay, the Committee is clearly not making much progress. It is fixated on devolution with a few qualifiers to allay concerns about a constitution that essentially creates better ground conditions for separatists to operate on. The Committee is absolutely silent on the most glaring anomaly on the ground, that of random, unscientific, ahistorical lines demarcating the key unit that is being deliberated, namely the province. How on earth can anyone take the Committee seriously, therefore? Dr Wickramaratne has his work cut out for him. Get the lines straight. If its a serious effort, then this serious error has to be rectified, however long it may take. Anything less is dodgy and demands an F Grade. You start at the very beginning. The ABC, if you will. And the ABC of devolution begins with boundary lines. Get them right. Malinda Seneviratne is a freelance writer. Email: malindasenevi@gmail.com. Blog:malindawords.blogspot.com. Twitter: malindasene. By Chandeepa Wettasinghe In the backdrop of power cuts being announced this week, the Sri Lankan power regulator downplayed the effect that investors shunning opportunities in the power sector will have on the widely accepted possibility of power crisis starting from 2018 until the commissioning of a major power plant. According to a high-ranked Power and Energy Ministry official who wished to remain anonymous, quoting from a Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) report done for the 2017 budget, just 127MW in capacity through 44 private sector Standardized Power Purchase Agreements (SPPAs) of non-conventional renewable energy (NCRE) are in the pipeline. However, PUCSL had approved CEBs 2015 and 2017 Least Cost Long Term Generation Plans on the condition that 1,230 MW in capacity would be commissioned by 2020, which would include 485MW in NCRE SPPAs. During the first few years, the 300MW gas plant, the 170MW diesel and the Uma Oya (120MW) will be enough, Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) Director General Damitha Kumarasinghe told a press conference yesterday. The said gas plant is set to be commissioned in 2019, while the diesel plant is expected to come online in 2017 in the Southern Province, and the Uma Oya plant is expected to be ready in 2018. Kumarasinghes comments come at a time when the countrys largest power plant, the 900MW Lakvijaya Coal Plant, which supplies over 40 percent of the countrys capacity, is disconnected from the grid for the second time this year. The coal plant has gone offline during an intense drought, which has placed constraints on power generation from the countrys hydro power assets, which altogether also account for over 40 percent of the countrys energy needs. The construction period for mini-hydro plants in Sri Lanka, which dominate the 127MW mix, had been between 18-24 months historically, while solar projects had taken around 8 months, in addition to feasibility studies, Environment Impact Assessments (EIA) etc. The ministry official noted however that in this day and age, where the 500MW Sampur Coal Power Plant was delayed for 4 yearscausing the possibility of crisisand eventually cancelled and expected to be converted to natural gas due to environmental concerns, most projects could get delayed. Theres a lot of sensitivity now. People make a huge fuss even when a small thing happens to a river, he said. He noted that even the finalized 100MW Wind Power Farm in Mannar has not received any funding. Scholars and environmental pressure groups rejected past EIAs, noting that the wind farms would cause the death of many migrating birds, which would affect the countrys ecosystem adversely. Perhaps influenced by such pressure, but also combined with the 2016 budget move to cancel any SPPA commitments for which development has not begun by December 31, 2015which was later delayed to December 31, 2016the number of SPPAs in the pipeline drastically reduced from earlier this year. The CEB data this April had shown that SPPAs for 119 NCREs were signed and in the pipeline, for a total capacity of 314 MW and 173 NCRE projects were in operation with a capacity of 448MW. An investor who already operates mini-hydro plants, under the condition of anonymity, said that investments into the sector are low due to both policy uncertainties as well as due to CEB officials dragging the process of private sector power plant development, in favour of lobbying for mega CEB projects. The mini-hydro power purchasing tariff for SPPAs was reduced this year, and Sri Lankan energy companies are engaged in more lucrative projects in Africa. Both Power and Energy Ministry official, as well as the Sustainable Energy Authority Chairman had noted that even some of the remaining SPPAs had not yet started development. Kumarasinghe noted that the CEB has been instructed to draft an implementation plan to determine the timelines for the currently signed SPPAs. We have asked for the implementation plan for these power plants, which is due on 28th of October. After that, everyone can see how they are developed, Kumarasinghe said. Power Sector Expert Dr. Tilak Siyambalapitiya has pointed out that the average energy cost alone could increase to Rs. 10.98 per unit under the new plan, compared to Rs. 7.68 per unit generated so far this year. The country currently has a 3,900MW generation capacity, and CEB had projected peak time generation requirements to be 2,703MW by 2018 and 3003MW by 2030. However, PUSCL had asked CEB to revise its calculations as it may have not included all possibilities in its demand projection methodology. President Maithripala Sirisenas outburst against the Bribery Commission, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Financial Crimes Investigation Department (FCID) rattled politics. It eventually led to Bribery Commission Director General Dilrukshi Dias Wickramasinghe tendering her resignation. Her resignation has not yet been accepted. All indications are that it will be accepted shortly. This is the second such main incident in which a government official succumbed to pressure, being unable to perform further in office. Earlier, then Central bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran could not be re-appointed due to severity of pressure. The Presidents scathing criticism hit the very founding principle of the national unity government as it was formed on the promise that it would uphold good governance. The Bribery Commission, the FICD and the CID are undoubtedly vital organs responsible for law enforcement to ensure good governance. The President accused them of being politicized and vowed to intervene if warranted. The United National Party (UNP), the principal party of the unity government, never anticipated the President would slander these three bodies in the open. Come what may the real motive behind, damage is done to the government in the political front, and damage controlling is the only option available. In fact, prior to the public outburst, the President raised his concern over what he called politicization of these vital law enforcement organs at a meeting not open to the media. However, the UNP never thought the President would utter the same in public, causing irrevocable damage. The Presidents criticism prompted an urgent meeting between him, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Law and Order Minister Sagala Ratnayake and others. UNP Ministers rush for damage control work The Ministers, representing the UNP, maintained mute silence initially after the attack. Later, they rushed in for damage controlling as further snowballing of the crisis would dampen hopes for them. In one instance, Highways and Higher Education Minister Lakshman Kiriella derived an example from the historical circumstances that led to the downfall of the Kandyan kingdom in 1815. He said the British colonial army tried to invade the kingdom in 1810 but it could be repulsed primarily due to the unity between the King and his nobles (Nilames). Yet, by 1815, they fell apart making way for the colonial army to take control of the kingdom. It can happen today. The unity is of paramount importance, he said at a function in Walapane. Ports Minister Arjuna Ranatunga said though a wedge had been created, it would not lead to the political divorce of the Government. Civil Society takes on President, but faced stiff counter-attacks The civil society movements that played a pivotal role in installing this government were virtually petrified by the Presidents outburst and confronted him at press conferences called hurriedly. They even dubbed the President as a clone of the previous rule. Finally, they were verbally beaten to submission by Ministers supportive of the President, through counter-attacks. In the aftermath of what happened, damage-control work was undertaken, and things looked patched up for the moment. The Government is no longer fragile as a result. However, the outburst has already widened fissures between the UNP and Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) with politicians from both sides taking on each other in the open. On the surface, it looks patched up, but a crisis is simmering beneath the surface with the potential of exploding at any moment. Intense budget debate ahead Of course, in the aftermath of the President expressing his dismay, a committee was appointed with representatives from both sides to deal with the co-ordination of policy matters of the Government hereafter. The panel, appointed in this manner, met for the first time on Monday evening. It is learnt that the SLFP Ministers are not happy about the Private Public Partnership (PPP) model proposed for restructuring certain state institutions in the upcoming budget. There is agreement on the model proposed for Sri Lankan Airlines, but on others, wide discontent prevails. The Ministers, not belonging to the UNP, opined forcefully at the meeting asking for re-considerations of some provisions to be included in the budget. Also, raised at this meeting and the Cabinet meeting the following day, was the alleged move to offer certain projects on the PPP model through unsolicited proposals. In this manner, the stage is set for a huge debate ahead of the budget to be presented in Parliament on November 10 regarding the content. So, an intense budget debate is anticipated this time as the Government is facing opposition both from within and outside. JO skeptical on Presidents remarks The Joint Opposition or the Mahinda Rajapaksa faction of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) is buoyed by the latest development. Some of its members responded positively to the President, but there were others who did not take it that seriously. One was MP Prasanna Ranatunga who asked the President to walk the talk. All in all, some even talk about the possibility of a change of government under the unfolding circumstances. Yet, it is unlikely any time soon. VAT protest to be revived Then, all paid attention to the Value Added Tax (VAT) Amendment Bill. It has been petitioned in the Supreme Court. MP Udaya Gammanpila said his side argued on four counts in the Supreme Court against the contents of the bill. If the first one is accepted, the bill will have to be referred to all the provincial councils for approval. If the second is accepted, it will have to be referred for approval of the people by referendum. In the other, argument prevails, the bill will have to be passed with a special majority. We presented our case well, he said. Having listened to Mr. Gammanpila, Mr. Rajapaksa said, Lets get ready for eventuality! Ahead of the debate on the VAT bill on October 27, MPs Mahindananda Aluthgamage and Keheliya Rambukwella were assigned for a leaflet distribution campaign against it in Kandy. JO constitutional reforms - no compromise on unitary character The JO leaders met with Mr. Rajapaksa on Tuesday and discussed, among others, constitutional proposals. Foremost among the proposals, the JO stressed that the unitary character of the Constitution should be preserved at any cost. Also, Articles in the present Constitution related to the National Anthem, and that Buddhism should not be compromised. In this manner, 14 proposals have been made by the JO. It is for a new election system with more members to be elected from the First-Past-the-Post System and less from the National Proportional Representation. It asks for that the welfare of the state should incrementally be maintained. The JO is for a change of the executive presidency but not for the abolition of it. Maharashtra Buddhists mistake Sashindra for MR Former Uva Province Chief Minister Sashindra Rajapaksa, a nephew of Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa, went to Maharashtra, India along with Mr. Gammanpila for a Buddhist summit. He was wearing the Kurahan Saatakaya in keeping with the familys political tradition. Ordinary people who attended the event apparently mistook him for his uncle Rajapaksa who served as the President for two consecutive terms. They started taking selfies relentlessly. Novel, Creative Protest in Parliament In Parliament, the JO decided to register its protest in a novel, creative form. MPs Gamini Lokuge, Pavithra Wanniarachchi and Ranjith Soyza were assigned the task of organizing them. Earlier, the JO staged demonstrations in the Well of Parliament leading to brawls when the members of the other side intervened. Late night discussion between Chinese/ SL Preside nt During the BRIC Summit held in Goa, India, it was a busy schedule for President Maithripala Sirisena, engaging the world leaders. He held bilateral talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nepali Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal. He sought a similar meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but the time could not be arranged. So, the two leaders had to talk over dinner only. The meeting with Chinese President Xi took place at 10.30 p.m. The Chinese appeared to have attached a greater significance to the meeting as 12 Ministers including Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi attended it on Sunday. President Xi is reported to have said that Sino-Lanka relations underwent a period of turbulence at the beginning under the new government of Sri Lanka, but it had been mended as of now. He referred to numerous Chinese investments in Sri Lanka and future co-operation. Once critical Harsha makes friends with Chinese leaders Acting Foreign Affairs Minister Dr. Harsha de Silva, who was once critical of the increased Chinese presence in Sri Lanka during the previous rule, got an opportunity to meet with President Xi and posed for a photo and chatted cordially. Dr. de Silva said he had made friends with the Chief Foreign Affairs Minister over the last one and half years. We discussed the need for trilateral talks involving China, India and Sri Lanka. The response was positive. Friends with all, enemy with none is our foreign policy, he said. Modi asks for urgent work on trade and investment relations with SL Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his bilateral discussion with President Sirisena, stressed the need to work urgently on the improvement of trade and investment relations between the two countries. Mr. Modis assertion has to be analyzed in the context of two sides moving for signing the proposed Economic and Technology Co-operation Agreement (ETCA). It is more so as Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the process would be completed by the end of this year. Despite Indian Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman saying here during her visit that talks should proceed on ETCA without any pressure on the timeline, Mr. Modis assertion sounded that the exercise should be carried out according to a time-bound plan. Local entrepreneurs, professionals and exporters are up-in-arms against the ETCA. In fact, some call it the second version of the Indo-Lanka Accord. They say, with the signing of the Indo-Lanka Accord in 1987, India secured political leverage on Sri Lanka, and the ETCA would do the same on the economic front. Instead of coal, Modi wants India to invest in renewable energy in SL India does not seem to be happy about the cancellation of the Sampur coal project. She told a press conference here earlier that Sri Lankas national priorities should be reconciled with international commitments. The matter was discussed during the meeting with Mr. Modi. The Indian premier expressed interests in investment in the renewable energy sector. Alongside, Mr. Modi made mention of the India-assisted ambulance service in Sri Lanka, and had taken note that the project was progressing well. Renowned advertising and management professional Selonica Nalawansa recently returned to Leo Burnett Sri Lanka to take up the leadership role at Publicis Solutions Sri Lanka. Selonica was appointed as the Director of the local office of Publicis World wide,she will beresponsible for leading the groups Publicis team. Publicis Worldwide is a successful European agency network which has a strong presence across the globe and is a pioneering member of the Publicis Groupe, the fourth largest communications company in the world. The Publicis Group is committed to accompanying its clients through their business transformations, offering a full range of services and expertise across digital, technology, consulting, planning and buying platforms and much more. Present in 108 countries, the Groupe employs a dynamic team of more than 77,000 professionals with a wealth of experience. Renowned for creating contagious ideas that change conversations, the Publicis Group delivers solutions that transcend standard requirements to make a lasting and poignant impact. In her new leadership role, Selonica has taken over the management ofsome of the agencys leading local and global brands such as Nestle Lanka, Sri Lanka Telecom, CIC, Akzo Nobel. She is known throughout the local and regional marketing communications industry for possessing an uncompromising can do spirit, and has exhibited the strength required to move mountains when it is needed the most. Armed with her MBA from the Edith Cowen University, Australia, Selonica is a modern, 21st century professional,who is competent at managing integrated communication campaigns with the precision and grace that few can match. Always calm and collected in even the most stressful or difficult of situations, Selonica has a knack for effectively solving any challenge from the most complex problem to the smallest problem. She is known for her ability to overcome any obstacle that is put in her way, in order to successfully deliver excellence to her clients to achieve the goals that have been outlined. Commenting on Selonicas appointment, Ranil de Silva Managing Director, Leo Burnett Group in Sri Lanka said: Selonica has built an exemplary career at Leo Burnett Sri Lanka. I am delighted to welcome her back to the agency.I wish her every success in her new role at the helm of Publicis Sri Lanka. Selonicas resolve and capabilities are well-known throughout the industry.I would like to congratulate Firzan Mulafer, the former Director of Publicis Sri Lanka on his appointment to our office in Viatnam. I am very confident he will meet with exceptional success and wave the flag sky high for Sri Lanka. Selonica previously completed an 11-year tenure with Leo Burnett and has been instrumental in helping many of the agencys top tier clients, reach beyond their targets and achieve monumental success.Away from the office, when shes not solving a crisis or delivering an innovative creative solution for one of the countrys biggest brands, she is a proud, hands-on mom. Throughout her career, Selonica has represented the agency at several international festivals and awards shows and has even won the global companys most prestigious accolade, the Star Reacher award.This award is given to individuals that exudethe same commitment that Leo Burnett himself demonstrated, in his quest to reach for the stars. This year Leo Burnett Sri Lanka celebrated its 17th anniversary in Sri Lanka. Over the years, the agency has built many powerful brands and meaningful partnerships with its clients, whilst delivering gratifying results and gaining industry recognition in Sri Lanka, the region and globally. The company handles a diverse portfolio of clients; it is one of the worlds largest agency networks and is a member of the Publicis Group, the worlds fourth largest communications company. Mr. AravindaPerera , the Chairman of Siyapatha Finance and the former Managing Director of Sampath Bank officially opens the Wellawatte branch in the presence of Mr. Saman Herath, Managing Director - Siyapatha Finance PLC, and Mr. Rashmika Rajapakse, the Branch Manager , Wellawatte Branch. One of the leading financial companies in Sri Lanka, Siyapatha Finance PLC celebrated the opening of a brand new branch in Wellawatte, on the 6th of October 2016. This is the 24th branch in the long list of branches opened by Siyapatha Finance over the recent years. The former Managing Director of Sampath Bank PLC, Mr. Aravinda Perera who wasrecently appointed as the Chairmanof Siyapatha Finance, opened the branch as the chief guest at the opening ceremony. Mr. Saman Herath, the Managing Director of Siyapatha Finance was also present at the event. The new branch offers all financial facilities including, Leasing, Hire Purchase, Business Loans, Personal Loans, Revolving Loans, Mortgage Loans, Housing Loans, Gold Loans and Factoring as well as Fixed Deposits. Mr. Aravinda Perera , the Chairman of Siyapatha Finance and the former Managing Director of Sampath Bank addressing the gathering. The addition of the new branch in Wellawatte to our network, is a significant achievement for us, as it allows us to reach out to more customers in the prominent business and residential areas of Wellawatte. We, at Siyapatha Finance have always made sure to maintain a customer-centric approach in all our endeavors. Our primary concern is to ensure that our customers receive the very best of our services. I believe that the success of Siyapatha Finance has always been rooted in our customers, stated Mr. Aravinda Perera, the Chairman of Siyapatha Finance PLC. As the largest fully owned subsidiary of the Sampath Bank Group, Siyaptha Finance PLC is one of the most prominent financial companies in Sri Lanka, with a network of branches throughout the country. The organization has their system of service designed in a manner to ensure that their customers are provided with nothing short of the best of services. Over the past eleven years Siyapatha Finance PLC has generously contributed to the development of a number of entrepreneurial effort as well as the fulfillment of the financial needs of individuals across the island. Saurabh Chauhan, Country Manager for Daraz Sri Lanka, talks about Daraz - Kaymu merger and the roadmap ahead Daraz has been hugely successful in all countries, offering convenient shopping and a huge assortmentof genuine products at amazing prices Daraz is the leading e-commerce platform in South Asia, with operations in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. Daraz is a business-to-consumer marketplace for a wide range of branded original products from local and international sellersat competitive prices. The company was founded in 2012 by Rocket Internet and later backed by Ooreedoo and the CDC Group the UK Governments Development Finance Institution (DFI). Daraz raised an investment of $55 million in its first big funding round in 2015. Daraz takes pride in being an e-commerce solution for a large assortment of genuine quality products, competitive prices and a great shopping experience. It is not the idea itself, but the conviction to convert ideas into actions and actions into results that define the company. Measured by that yardstick, Daraz has been hugely successful in offering innovative solutions right from the offset and becoming home to the striking features of e-commerce in all operating markets. 2015 was a great year for e-commerce in all Daraz countries.The company introducedBlack Friday to its customers, completely revolutionizing the scope of retail in the country. AfterBlack Friday came several other notable events, including the Daraz Fashion Week, which was the first-ever entirely shop-able online fashion week, modernizing the antiquated fashion show history. Country Manager of Daraz Sri Lanka, Saurabh Chauhan, discusses the upcoming quarterly mega sale by Daraz At a press conference, which took place on the 18th of October 2016 at the Cedar Room at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel the company announced that it is now set to enter Sri Lanka and engage customers through novel ideas, a wide range of genuine products, great prices and seamless services. Sri Lanka is one of the leading countries in technological advancement, with a rapidly growing Internet penetration rate and consequently experiencing a rise inonline shopping trends.Daraz aims to make the most of this trend and become the market leader by providing the Sri Lankan market with an unparalleled customer service and genuine products like all other operating markets. "With the internet penetration rate increasing year-on-year in the country we see Sri Lanka as a developed market with regards to online shopping. We have high expectations for Sri Lanka, especially since we are merging with a strong brand such as Kaymu. Sri Lankan online shoppers will be in for a treat because in Daraz, we make sure that we provide the best deals for 100% genuine products along with exceptional customer service, stated Co-CEO of the Daraz Group, Dr. Jonathan Doerr. Saurabh Chauhan, Country Manager for Daraz Sri Lanka, said, Kaymu has been very successful with the online market penetration here in Sri Lanka and merging with Daraz will allow us to offer unique value propositions such as a secure brand buying experience and free returns as per the Daraz global offering to Sri Lankan customers. We are very excited to work as part of the Daraz Group and are looking forward to raise the bar in terms of providing incredible online deals for the Sri Lankan market. Employees at the Colombo port are said to be up in arms against a move by the authorities to recruit trainees for a certain staff category on the results of an exam held by an unauthorized institution. Employees charge that the authorities have deviated from the normal recruitment procedure as a ploy to recruit several unqualified persons for political reasons. Among the favoured unqualified persons are sons of a secretarial one and a character who frequents the harbour kitchen. Meanwhile, the Public Administration authorities who are really responsible for conducting the exam too have raised the matter with the Ministry high-ups. The Philippines and Thailand are not acting like US treaty allies are supposed to. While the Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte seems somewhat of an outlier, his anti-Americanism is only the latest instalment of instability in the USPhilippines relationship. ThaiUS relations have also suffered since the 2014 military coup and Thailand now appears to be seeking closer military ties with China. But these countries disagreements with the United States do not necessarily mean they want a change to the status quo in Asia. Dutertes election has thrown perceptions of the USPhilippines alliance into disarray. The firebrand leaders policy announcements have included a possible end to joint USPhilippines naval patrols and the US Special Forces presence in Mindanao. These, together with intemperate outbursts in response to US criticism of his campaign against drugs, appear to signal a relationship in serious trouble. Duterte has confounded expectations that his country would continue to draw closer to the United States in the wake of the South China sea dispute. The ThaiUS relationship has also struggled since 2014, with continuing frustration from Thai elites towards US policy. After the May 2014 coup there was fury that the United States would condemn the overthrow of the Yingluck government and mildly downgrade military cooperation. Since then the relationship has been marked by bitter spats, especially when US officials have criticised Thailand on human rights issues. Drifting closer to China Meanwhile Thailand appears to be drifting closer to China. The two countries have undertaken new joint military exercises and the Thai navy has announced plans to purchase Chinese submarines. Thailands recent decisions to deport Uighurs, an ethnic minority population in western China with separatist elements, and block entry to Hong Kong celebrity activist Joshua Wong also appear to demonstrate increasing subservience to China. Common to both Thailand and the Philippines is a fear of major powers interfering in domestic politics or intervening in internal security problems. While outside criticism is something that most Western states view as merely irritating, for many developing states it can be interpreted as intent to destabilise, including by fostering support for opposition forces. This view of security circumscribes these countries embrace of liberal values, which is why views of concepts such as human rights and the rule of law can vary. For example, the right to be innocent until proved guilty is one that considerable numbers of both Thais and Filipinos seem quite prepared to forego if a threat to security is perceived. This was demonstrated in former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatras anti-drugs campaign and now is evident in the Philippines with Dutertes current crackdown. All theses mean that countries like the Philippines and Thailand can react violently to criticism of their human rights performance. They are then prepared to make the political and diplomatic dimensions of their relationships with offending great powers very unpleasant. This includes through public overtures to alternative suitors like China and Russia who, being illiberal themselves, are refreshingly unlikely to offer criticism on the human rights front. A shifting international power structure is changing the way Thailand and the Philippines balance between the United States and China. Cooperation with the United States offers access to desirable technology and training, as well as a shield against China, but neither state wants to become the patsy for USChina rivalry nor a proxy battleground for the United States. Yet neither wants Chinese hegemony either. To get around this, these states frequently compartmentalise different components of their bilateral relationships. For example, despite Dutertes bluster, a scheduled joint air force exercise with the United States recently occurred as planned, and the threat to cancel PhilippinesUS maritime patrols applies only to patrols in the Philippines exclusive economic zone and not the territorial sea. The number of US forces who might be asked to withdraw from involvement in Philippines counterinsurgency operations is also quite small. And Dutertes threat to buy arms from Russia and China is straight out of the Thai playbook, which is an act of asserting sovereignty and much less a guide to alignment. Cobra Gold exercise In the case of Thailand, there is no sign at present that they or the United States wish to discontinue the flagship regional multilateral exercise Cobra Gold, despite threats to institute Panda Gold. While some military training with China is occurring, it is on a far smaller scale than that with the United States. The familiar separation of economic and security tiesChina being the dominant economic partner and the United States the preferred security partnerappears to now extend to the politico-security dichotomy, where stormy political relations can be accompanied by stable military-to-military relationships. Western states have a moral imperative to reiterate why liberal democracies offer the most just societies and are most able to deliver human dignity, freedom and development of human potential. But the United States and others need to be aware of the different perspectives of Southeast Asian countries. It is no more likely that Thailand or the Philippines will want to be entirely beholden to China than they wish to be beholden entirely to the United States. (Courtesy East Asia Forum) (Dr. Greg Raymond is a Research Fellow in the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Australian National University) When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, a triumphant President George W Bush Sr proudly proclaimed the birth of a "New World Order". This "New Order" was to be dominated by the US and its Western allies. This grouping would be free to invade those countries whose leaders they found distasteful. India, which cherished its strategic autonomy, was at the receiving end of coercive moves to "curb, roll back and eliminate" its nuclear programme through economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation. India broke free of these shackles only after it conducted nuclear tests and overcame American sanctions. Growth Global perceptions of India changed significantly after Goldman Sachs came out with a startling report in 2003. The report averred that over the next 50 years, Brazil, Russia, India and China (earlier BRIC) could become a much larger force in the world economy than the G6, comprising the US, Canada, UK, Germany, France and Italy. If things went right, the BRIC economies together could be larger than the combined economies of the G6 in less than 40 years. By 2025, it could account for over half the economic power of the G6. Of the current members of G6, only the US and Japan may be among the six largest economies in 2050. India, the report averred, has the potential to show the largest growth rates for the next 30 years. India's GDP will outstrip that of Japan by 2032. The four "emerging" countries, thereafter, got together to fashion a new grouping (BRICS), which sought to influence global policies. South Africa joined in 2011. Did the BRICS live up to the expectations of India in 2003? The answer is a categorical "no". Russia's energy-dependent economy, its falling birth rates and growing criminalisation have seriously eroded its potential and influence. With falling oil and gas prices and deteriorating relations with the US, Russia is increasingly echoing Chinese policies in our Western neighbourhood, and particularly in Pakistan and Afghanistan. It appears to have become a junior partner of China on this score. But, it would be a folly to think that the current Russian slide is permanent. Likewise, Brazil and South Africa are both afflicted with internal political uncertainties and falling growth rates. Achievement The main achievement for India in Goa was the announcement of measures to give new momentum to our relations with Russia. These included Russian agreement to invest a record $11 billion, which will lead to a Russian takeover and restructuring of the ailing, debt-ridden Essar Petrochemicals refinery and of the Vadinar port in Gujarat. This has been accompanied by agreement for investment of a further $5.5 billion by India in Siberian oilfields. PM Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping. (Photo credit: Reuters) Russian grievances about India lowering emphasis on bilateral defence cooperation have been addressed by decisions to buy S-400 air defence missile systems, establish a joint venture to manufacture 200 twin propeller transport helicopters for armed forces and pact on measures for timely acquisition of spares for defence equipment. One expects that, in turn, Russia will be more circumspect on its defence ties with Pakistan. The Goa BRICS summit has mercifully and hopefully ended misconceived and unrealistic perspectives in India about China's intentions. China is more determined than ever to encircle and contain India, by stepping up defence cooperation with Pakistan and proceeding with its "One Belt One Road" project from Xinjiang to the strategic port of Gwadar, through Gilgit-Baltistan in POK. Reservations President Xi Jinping's visit to Bangladesh and China's assiduous courting of Bhutan and Nepal are pointers we cannot ignore. Do we have a comprehensive strategy to deal with this threat? One sadly doubts this, given the widespread illusions in New Delhi about Beijing's "good intentions". Despite such reservations, one cannot but compliment South Block's smart move in deciding well before the Uri tensions that we would invite the members of BIMSTEC (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal), and not SAARC, for the Goa Summit. We have served ourselves well, realising, albeit belatedly, that given Pakistan's obstructionism, SAARC really has no future as a grouping to promote regional economic cooperation. Every SAARC summit has turned out to be yet another soap opera, revolving around whether Indian and Pakistani leaders would meet for yet another round of fruitless talks. The time has come for us to progressively disengage from SAARC, while placing much greater emphasis on a quadrilateral India-Sri Lanka-Maldives-Seychelles corridor and BIMSTEC. We can, in course of time, evolve new institutions for trilateral cooperation with Afghanistan and Iran, while extending our reach across our western shores in the Indian Ocean. Regional cooperation with Pakistan should be dealt with by a policy of "benign neglect". At a time when examination papers ask Class 9 students to name Virat Kohli's girlfriend, this question would not be out of place. Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah thinks 218 (which is 73 per cent of 299) is the correct answer and hence has decided that since 218 people want the 6.7km long steel flyover in Bangalore, his government will go ahead with it. Never mind that 8,000 people turned up on Sunday to form a human chain between Basaveshwara Circle and Mekhri Circle, to say #NoSteelFlyover. Siddaramaiah's contention is that when the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) sought suggestions from citizens on the steel flyover project in June, only 299 responded, of which 73 per cent wanted the flyover. Amazing that the authorities think that a sample size of just 299 is good enough to ascertain the mind of a city with a one crore plus population. That too, when a Rs 1,791 crore project is being planned. And just 48 hours were given to Bengalureans to file their response. A map of the proposed steel flyover tweeted by Bangalore development minister KJ George. The government believes the flyover that will consume 70,000 tonnes of steel and concrete is just what the doctor ordered for Traffic Jam-uru Bangalore. That the flyover will be a boon to the 2.68 lakh vehicles that are expected to ply on the flyover everyday. That unlike fully concrete, that will pollute during construction and take longer, the steel flyover will be ready in 24 months. Critics of the project to which there are 25,000 signatories point to the 812 trees that will be off Bangalore's Oxygen Suppliers Group if this project takes off. The loss of such a large green cover will be a huge setback to a city that, according to Prof TV Ramachandra of the Indian Institute of Science, has already lost two in every three trees and three in every four akes in the last three decades. No wonder Bangalore is getting hot under the collar. Citizens opposing the project say Bangalore can do without this visual monstrosity that is so devoid of aesthetics. The other criticism is that the project will only cut ten minutes of driving time to the airport for the city's elite. They say instead the astronomical amount can be better spent to build 3,600km of quality footpath or procure 9,000 buses or 40 lakh bicycles or 200 km of suburban rail that can transport 15 lakh passengers everyday. The flyover, in other words, will further push the have nots out of the city's road space, promoting private transport over public transport. Creating two Bangalores within one Bangalore. One that struggles in public transport and traffic jams on the ground while the car-borne Bengalureans zip past overhead. The government argues that cars moving faster (as opposed to average speed of 13 km/hour now) will cut down pollution. Besides, it promises to plant 60,000 saplings to compensate for the 812 trees that will be cut. The determination with which the government is pushing the project through has raised doubts about the intentions. A whisper campaign is on whether the steel lobby is at work and who is benefiting from such a big project. 60 per cent of Bangalore municipal corporation's corporators are already from a real estate background. Aware that corruption allegations can play spoilsport especially with assembly elections 20 months away, Siddaramaiah has sought to clarify that the cost shot up because of increase in VAT on steel from 5 per cent to 14 per cent. And that the global tendering system is transparent. Incidentally, the project was conceived in 2010 when the BJP was in power in Karnataka. That is proof that the political establishment cutting across party lines is largely myopic to a city's future and out of sync with what the citizens needs. The backers of the Congress have also propagated that much of the opposition that it suggests has been engineered now, is politically motivated, with people owing allegiance either to the BJP or the Aam Aadmi Party. If we go by the comments of the Congress party on the just-concluded BRICS summit, and some of the analysis carried out in print and electronic media, including the 147-character "wisdom" cluttering the ether, Prime Minister Narendra Modi "failed" to get members to deliver "the knockout blow on Pakistan" as one scribe put it. Such comments are not unexpected. These spin merchants are always spewing anti-Modi rhetoric, whether relevant or not, on any issue. Remember, they were demanding proof after Indian Army announced carrying out the surgical strikes along the LoC? It only exposes the grand old party's continuing leadership vacuum. In the midst of the invasion of these "hidden persuaders" (with apologies to Vance Packard, who wrote the classic on manipulative advertising with the same title in 1957), we seem to have forgotten that multilateral summits are serious diplomatic exercises to evolve an acceptable minimum to further the objectives of participating nations. Of course, PM Modi had kindled a lot of expectations before the summit to persuade the member-nations to isolate Pakistan as part of Indias strategy to fight cross-border terrorism. He had also been trying to muster international support for his strategy in all the international conclaves he participated after Uri and Pathankot attacks. The BRICS members come from four continents. At this point in time, their collective strength comes from their growing technological and economic prowess, with their total estimated GDP (2015) at $34.415 trillion, and their influence, with more than nearly half the worlds population estimated at 3.6 billion people and more than nearly one-third of global land mass. Their perspectives are conditioned not only by their cultural, historical and developmental experiences, but also their strengths in the global geo-strategic environment. Despite their differing world views, BRICS members have also come together to further their common aspirations to be recognised as globally emerging economic entities with matching strategic clout. The joint statements are not spun out of thin air but after close interaction and discussion between the representatives of member countries based on a collective agenda finalised well before the summit. The statements are carefully drafted so it cannot be misconstrued by others. Evolving acceptable semantics couched in "diplomatese" is an exercise best left to diplomats, with the leaders providing only key operative elements. Russia, China and India had different strokes for different folks including their domestic audience. (Photo: PTI) Diplomats by training are capable of saying things devoid of meaning, and at times, they're intentionally vague and cautious. Official writings are also couched in carefully drafted sentences to withstand political and legal scrutiny, both at home and abroad. Sometimes, bloopers do occur. Indias faux pas in the joint statement after Sharm el-Sheikh meeting between Indian and Pakistan prime ministers in November 2009 is one such example. India after taking over the chairmanship of BRICS from February 2016 has tried to infuse a lot energy in the group. A lot of events and meetings covering cultural, trade and commerce and issues of governance already took place before the summit to add more form and content to the grouping. The first meeting of the BRICS Joint Working Group on Counter Terrorism was held on September 14, 2016 in New Delhi with the participation of member countries national security representatives. This was apparently part of PM Modis international agenda to promote international cooperation to fight the growing menace of cross-border terrorism the world over. The theme of the 8th BRICS Summit held at Goa, "Building Responsive, Inclusive and Collective Solutions" (giving full play to Prime Minister Modis penchant for mnemonics) clarifies its objective. Apart from international terrorism, the agenda included financial, development, infrastructure and environmental issues. The members air their views freely during the bilateral meetings of leaders to provide a better understanding of their perspective during the plenary session. In conformity with global practice on such conferences, only the nuanced wording of the statement indicates the members accepted takeaways while omissions give an inkling of their differences. If we go by this yardstick, the key players Russia, China and India had different strokes for different folks including their domestic audience. PM Modis press statement at the conclusion of the summit on October 16 covers a gamut of issues covered in the three sessions. These include exchange of views on important global issues, including terrorism, global economic scenario and the need to reform global governance architecture. PM Modis speeches at the summit strongly stressed on terrorism as the biggest threat to development and governance. Though he did not name Pakistan, his description of cross-border terrorism emanating from Indias neighbouring country made his intent to press for isolating Pakistan clear. Similarly, China had made clear its position as a strong ally of Pakistan well in advance when it deferred Indias application for NSG membership on "technical grounds". It also continues to block the UN Security Council naming Masood Azhar as a terrorist, though he leads the Jaish e-Mohammad (JeM), an organisation proscribed by the UN. Though the Goa declaration specifically mentioned "the recent several attacks, against some BRICS countries, including that in India" and strongly condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, Pakistan was not specifically named. This fell short of public expectations fanned by PM Modis high-decibel speeches before the summit. India probably expected China to dilute any reference to Pakistan. But it was disappointing to note that its objection prevailed against, including any reference to, both Lashkar-e-Taiba and JeM (both figuring on the UN list of global terrorist organisations), though Islamic State and al-Qaeda found a place. It should be of some consolation to India that China agreed to include two operative sentences: "There can be no justification whatsoever for any acts of terrorism, whether based upon ideological, religious, political, racial, ethnic or any other reasons" and "we also agreed that those who nurture, shelter, support and sponsor such forces of violence and terror are as much a threat to us as the terrorists themselves." In the Indian context, they would point to Pakistan. Similarly, PM Modis appeal to all nations to adopt a comprehensive approach in combating terrorism, including recruitment and movement of terrorists and blocking sources of terrorists finance and countering misuse of internet and social media, has also found a place in the Goa declaration. This resonates with his relentless efforts to promote a holistic international effort to counter terrorism. But Indias evergreen ally, Russia, soft pedalling Indian approach on state-sponsored terrorism, comes as a disappointment. Only a day before Russian president Vladimir Putin had assured PM Modi that Russia would do nothing to hurt Indias interests and a signed a slew of agreements to supply state-of-the-art armaments. Did Chinese influence prevail over Russia to change its mind? Or is it the lure of selling arms to Pakistan? Could it be a subtle warning to India to temper its new-found bonhomie with the US? Probably it is a mix of all these; but they certainly indicate India-Russia relations should not be taken for granted and need urgent refurbishing, if not repair. GSK plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the creation, discovery, development, manufacture, and marketing of pharmaceutical products, vaccines, over-the-counter medicines, and health-related consumer products in the United Kingdom, the United States, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Pharmaceuticals, Pharmaceuticals R&D, Vaccines, and Consumer Healthcare. The company offers pharmaceutical products comprising medicines in the therapeutic areas, such as respiratory, HIV, immuno-inflammation, oncology, anti-viral, central nervous system, cardiovascular and urogenital, metabolic, anti-bacterial, and dermatology. It also provides consumer healthcare products in wellness, oral health, nutrition, and skin health categories. The company offers its consumer healthcare products in the form of nasal sprays, tablets, syrups, lozenges, gum and trans-dermal patches, caplets, infant syrup drops, liquid filled suspension, wipes, gels, effervescents, toothpastes, toothbrushes, mouthwashes, denture adhesives and cleansers, topical creams and non-medicated patches, lip balm, gummies, and soft chews. It has collaboration agreements with 23andMe; Lyell Immunopharma, Inc.; Novartis; Sanofi SA; Surface Oncology; Progentec Diagnostics, Inc.; Alector, Inc.; and CureVac AG., as well as strategic partnership with IDEAYA Biosciences, Inc. and Vir Biotechnology, Inc. The company was formerly known as GlaxoSmithKline plc and changed its name to GSK plc in May 2022. GSK plc was founded in 1715 and is headquartered in Brentford, the United Kingdom. The following companies are subsidiares of Illinois Tool Works: A V Co 1 Limited, A V Co 2 Limited, A V Co 3 Limited, ACCU-LUBE Manufacturing GmbH - Schmiermittel und -gerate -, AIP/BI Holdings Inc., Accessories Marketing Holding Corp., Advanced Molding Company Inc., Allen France SAS, Alpine Engineered Products, Alpine Systems Corporation, Anaerobicos S.r.l., AppliChem GmbH, Avery Berkel France, Avery India Limited, Avery Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avery Weigh Tronix, Avery Weigh-Tronix Finance Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix International Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix LLC, Avery Weigh-Tronix Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Properties Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Suzhou Weighing Technology Co. Ltd., Azon Limited, B.C. Immo, Beijing Miller Electric Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Berkel Ireland Limited, Berrington UK, Brapenta Eletronica Ltda., Brooks Instrument B.V., Brooks Instrument GmbH, Brooks Instrument KFT, Brooks Instrument Korea Ltd., Brooks Instrument LLC, Brooks Instrument Shanghai Co. Ltd, Buell Industries Inc., CCI Realty Company, CFC Europe GmbH, CS Australia Pty Limited, CS Mexico Holding Company S DE RL DE CV, Calvia Spolka z Ograniczona Odpowiedzialnosci, Capital Ventures Australasia S.a r.l, Capmax Logistica S.A. de C.V., Celeste Industries Corporation, Coeur, Coeur Asia Limited, Coeur Holding Company, Coeur Inc., Coeur Shanghai Medical Appliance Trading Co. Ltd, Compagnie Hobart, Compagnie de Materiel et d'Equipements Techniques-Comet, Constructions Isothermiques Bontami C.I.B., Crane Carrier Company, Denison Mayes Group Limited, Despatch Industries, Diagraph Corporation Sdn. Bhd, Diagraph ITW Mexico S. de R.L. De C.V., Diagraph Mexico S.A. DE C.V., Dongguan Ark-Les Electric Components Co. Ltd., Dongguan CK Branding Co. Ltd., Duo Fast de Espana S.A.U., Duo-Fast Korea Co. Ltd., Duo-Fast LLC, E.C.S. d.o.o., E2M Production B.V.., E2M Technologies B.V.., E2M Technologies Inc.., ECS Cable Protection Sp. Zoo, ELRO Grosskuchen GmbH, ELRO Holding AG, ELRO-WERKE AG, Elro Group, Eltex-Elektrostatik-Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Envases Multipac S.A. de C.V., Eurotec Srl, Exhibit 21, FEG Investments L.L.C., Filtertek De Mexico Holding Inc., Filtertek De Mexico S.A. de C.V., Filtertek SAS, GC Financement SA, Gamko B.V., Gun Hwa Platech Taicang Co. Ltd., HOBART Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Hartness International, Hobart Andina S.A.S., Hobart Belgium B.V., Hobart Brothers International Chile Limitada, Hobart Brothers LLC, Hobart Dayton Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Hobart Food Equipment Co. Ltd., Hobart International Singapore Pte. Ltd., Hobart Japan K.K., Hobart Korea LLC, Hobart LLC, Hobart Nederland B.V., Hobart Sales & Service Inc., Hobart Scandinavia ApS, Hobart Techniek B.V., Horis, ILC Investments Holdings Inc., ITW AEP LLC, ITW AOC LLC, ITW Aircraft Investments Inc., ITW Ampang Industries Philippines Inc., ITW Appliance Components EOOD, ITW Appliance Components S.A. de C.V., ITW Appliance Components S.r.l.a, ITW Appliance Components d.o.o., ITW Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, ITW Australia Property Holdings Pty Ltd., ITW Australia Pty Ltd, ITW Automotive Components Chongqing Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Components Langfang Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Japan K.K., ITW Automotive Korea LLC, ITW Automotive Parts Shanghai Co. Ltd, ITW Automotive Products GmbH, ITW Automotive Products Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Bailly Comte, ITW Befestigungssysteme GmbH, ITW Belgium B.V., ITW Brazilian Nominee L.L.C., ITW Building Components Group Inc., ITW CER, ITW CP Distribution Center Holland BV, ITW CS UK Ltd., ITW Canada Inc., ITW Celeste Inc., ITW Chemical Products Ltda, ITW Chemical Products Scandinavia ApS, ITW China Investment Company Limited, ITW Colombia S.A.S., ITW Construction Products AB, ITW Construction Products AS, ITW Construction Products ApS, ITW Construction Products CZ s.r.o., ITW Construction Products Italy Srl, ITW Construction Products OU, ITW Construction Products OY, ITW Construction Products Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW Construction Products Singapore Pte. Ltd., ITW Construction Services Manila Inc., ITW Contamination Control B.V., ITW Contamination Control Wujiang Co. Ltd., ITW Covid Security Group Inc., ITW DS Investments Inc., ITW DelFast do Brasil Ltda., ITW Denmark ApS, ITW Deutschland GmbH, ITW Diagraph GmbH, ITW Dynatec, ITW Dynatec Adhesive Equipment Suzhou Co. Ltd., ITW Dynatec GmbH, ITW Dynatec Kabushiki Kaisha, ITW EAE B.V., ITW EAE Mexico S de RL de CV, ITW EF&C France SAS, ITW EF&C Selb GmbH, ITW EU Holdings Ltd., ITW Electronic Business Asia Co. Limited, ITW Electronic Components/Products Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW Electronics Suzhou Co. Ltd., ITW Epsilon Sarl, ITW Espana S.L., ITW European Finance Co. Ltd., ITW European Finance II Co. Ltd., ITW European Finance III Co. Ltd., ITW FEG Hong Kong Limited, ITW FEG do Brasil Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW Fastener Products GmbH, ITW Fluids and Hygiene Solutions Ltda., ITW Food Equipment Group LLC, ITW GH LLC, ITW GSE ApS, ITW GSE Inc., ITW Gamma Sarl, ITW German Management LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings Y Compania Sociedad en Comandita por Acciones, ITW Global Investments Inc., ITW Global Tire Repair Europe GmbH, ITW Global Tire Repair Inc., ITW Global Tire Repair Japan K.K., ITW Graphics Asia Limited, ITW Graphics Thailand Ltd., ITW Great Britain Investment & Licensing Holding Company, ITW Group France Luxembourg S.ar.l., ITW HLP Thailand Co. Ltd., ITW Holding Quimica B.C. S.L. Sole Shareholder Company, ITW Holdings Australia L.P., ITW Holdings I Limited, ITW Holdings II Limited, ITW Holdings III Limited, ITW Holdings IV Limited, ITW Holdings IX Limited, ITW Holdings Inc., ITW Holdings V Limited, ITW Holdings VI Limited, ITW Holdings VII Limited, ITW Holdings VIII Limited, ITW Holdings X Limited, ITW Holdings XI Limited, ITW ILC Holdings I Inc., ITW IPG Investments LLC, ITW Imaden Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW India Private Limited, ITW International Holdings LLC, ITW Invest Holding GmbH, ITW Ireland Holdings Unlimited Company, ITW Ireland Unlimited Company, ITW Italy Holding Srl, ITW Japan Ltd., ITW Korea LLC, ITW LLC & Co. KG, ITW Limited, ITW Lys Fusion S.r.l., ITW Materials Technology Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW Meritex Sdn. Bhd., ITW Metal Fasteners S.L., ITW Mexico Holding Company S. De R.L. de C.V., ITW Mexico Holdings LLC, ITW Morlock GmbH, ITW Mortgage Investments II Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments III Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments IV Inc., ITW Netherlands Administration BV, ITW Netherlands Beta B.V., ITW Netherlands Finance Alpha BV, ITW New Universal LLC, ITW New Zealand, ITW Ningbo Components & Fastenings Systems Co. Ltd., ITW Novadan Sp. Z.o.o., ITW PPF Brasil Adesivos Ltda., ITW Packaging Technology China Co. Ltd., ITW Participations S.a r.l., ITW Pension Funds Trustee Company, ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Japan Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Korea Limited, ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids OOO, ITW Performance Polymers ApS, ITW Performance Polymers Wujiang Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers and Fluids Group FZE, ITW Peru S.A.C., ITW Poly Mex S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Polymers Sealants North America Inc., ITW Pronovia s.r.o., ITW Pte. Ltd., ITW Qufu Automotive Cooling Systems Co. Ltd., ITW Real Estate Germany GmbH, ITW Residuals III L.L.C., ITW Residuals IV L.L.C., ITW Rivex, ITW SMPI, ITW SPG Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Simco-Ion Shenzhen Co. Ltd., ITW Slovakia s.r.o., ITW Spain Holdings S.L., ITW Specialty Film LLC, ITW Specialty Films France, ITW Specialty Materials Suzhou Co. Ltd., ITW Sverige AB, ITW Sweden Holding AB, ITW Test & Measurement Equipment Shanghai Co. Ltd, ITW Test & Measurement GmbH, ITW Test and Measurement Italia Srl, ITW Test and Measurement Services Industry and Trade Ltd., ITW Texwipe Philippines Inc., ITW Thermal Films Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW UK, ITW UK Finance Beta Limited, ITW UK Finance Delta Limited, ITW UK Finance Gamma Limited, ITW UK Finance Limited, ITW UK Finance Zeta Ltd., ITW UK II Limited, ITW Universal II LLC, ITW Welding, ITW Welding AB, ITW Welding GmbH, ITW Welding Products B.V., ITW Welding Products Group FZE, ITW Welding Products Group S. DE R.L. De C.V., ITW Welding Products Italy Srl, ITW Welding Products Limited Liability Company, ITW Welding Produtos Para Solgdagem Ltda., ITW Welding Singapore Pte. Ltd., ITW de France, ITW do Brasil Industrial e Comercial Ltda., Illinois Tool Works Chile Limitada, Illinois Tool Works ITW Nederland B.V., Illinois Tool Works Inc., Impar Comercio E Representacoes Ltda., Industrie Plastic Elsasser GmbH, Inmobiliaria Cit. S.A. de C.F., Innova Temperlite Servicios S.A. de C.V., Innovacion y Transformacion Automotriz S.A. de C.V., Instron Brasil Equipamentos Cientificos Ltda., Instron Foreign Sales Corp. Limited, Instron France S.A.S., Instron GmbH, Instron Japan Company Ltd., Instron Korea LLC, Instron Shanghai Ltd., Instron Thailand Limited, International Leasing Company LLC, Isolenge - ITW Sistemas de Isolamento Termico Ltda., Itw Spraytec, KCPL Mauritius Holdings, Kester, Kleinmann GmbH, Krafft S.L., Loma Systems, Loma Systems BV, Loma Systems Canada Inc., Loma Systems sro, Lombard Pressings Limited, Lumex Inc., Lys Fusion Poland Sp. z.o.o., M&C Specialties Co., MAGNAFLUX GmbH, MEHB Holdings Limited, MGHG Property LLC, MTS 2 LLC., MTS 3 LLC., MTS China Holdings LLC, MTS Europe Holdings LLC, MTS Holdings France S.a.r.l., MTS Japan Ltd.., MTS Korea Inc.., MTS Systems China Co. Ltd., MTS Systems Corporation, MTS Systems Danmark ApS., MTS Systems Europe B.V., MTS Systems Finance C.V.., MTS Systems Germany GmbH, MTS Systems Holding B.V.., MTS Systems Hong Kong Incorporated, MTS Systems Limited, MTS Systems Norden Aktiebolag, MTS Systems S.r.l, MTS Systems., MTS Systems.., MTS Sytems Do Brazil, MTS Testing Solutions India Private Limited., MTS Testing Systems Canada Ltd., Manufacturing Avancee S.A., Meritex Technology Suzhou Co. Ltd., Meurer Verpackungssysteme GmbH, Miller Electric Mfg. LLC, Miller Insurance Ltd., NDT Holding LLC, NOVADAN APS, North Star Imaging Inc., Nova Chimica S.r.l., Orbitalum Tools GmbH, PENTA-91 OOO, PR. A. I. Srl, PT ITW Construction Products Indonesia, Pacific Concept Industries Limited Enping, Panreac Quimica S.L., Paslode Fasteners Shanghai Co. Ltd., Peerless Machinery Corp., Polyrey, Premark FEG L.L.C., Premark HII Holdings LLC, Premark International, Premark International LLC, Prolex Sociedad Anonima, QSA Global Inc., Quimica Industrial Mediterranea S.L., R&D Engineering A/S., R&D Prague s.r.o., R&D Steel ApS., R&D Test Systems A/S., R&D Tools and Structures A/S., RDGDK Engineering Private Limited, Ramset Fasteners Hong Kong Ltd., Rapid Cook LLC, Refrigeration France, S.E.E. Sistemas Industria E Comercio Ltda., ST Mexico Holdings LLC, Sealant Systems International Inc., Sentinel Asia Yuhan Hoesa, Shanghai ITW Plastic & Metal Co. Ltd, Simco Japan Inc., Simco Nederland B.V., Societe de Prospection et dInventions Techniques SPIT, Speedline Holdings I Inc., Speedline Holdings I LLC, Speedline Technologies GmbH, Speedline Technologies Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Speedline Technologies Mexico Services S. de R.L. de C.V., Stokvis Celix Portugal Unipessoal LDA, Stokvis Danmark ApS, Stokvis Holdings S.A.R.L., Stokvis Promi s.r.o, Stokvis Prostick Tapes Private Limited, Stokvis Tapes B.V., Stokvis Tapes Benelux B.V., Stokvis Tapes Deutschland GmbH, Stokvis Tapes France, Stokvis Tapes Hong Kong Co. Limited, Stokvis Tapes Italia s.r.l., Stokvis Tapes Limited, Stokvis Tapes Limited Liability Company, Stokvis Tapes Norge AS, Stokvis Tapes Oy, Stokvis Tapes Polska Sp Z.O.O., Stokvis Tapes Shanghai Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes Sverige AB, Stokvis Tapes Taiwan Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes Tianjin Co. Ltd., Stolvis Holdings II S.A.R.L., Subsidiaries, Technopack Industria Comercio Consultoria e Representacoes Ltda., Teknek China Limited, Teknek Japan Limited, Teksaleco Ltd., The Miller Group Ltd, Thirode Grandes Cuisines Poligny, Tien Tai Electrode Co. Ltd., Tien Tai Electrode Kunshan Co. Ltd., Unichemicals Industria e Comercio Ltda., VR-Leasing Sarita GmbH & Co. Immobilien KG, VS European Holdco BV, Valeron Strength Films B.V., Veneta Decalcogomme S.r.l., Versachem Chile S.A., Vesta, Vesta Global Limited, Vesta Guangzhou Catering Equipment Co. Ltd, Viltronics Soltec, Vitronics Soltec B.V., Wachs Canada Ltd., Wachs Subsea LLC, Weigh-Tronix Canada ULC, Weigh-Tronix UK Limited, Wilsonart International Holdings LLC, Wynn Oil South Africa Pty Ltd., Wynn's Automotive France, Wynn's Belgium BVBA, Wynn's Italia Srl, Wynn's Mekuba India Pvt Ltd, and Zip-Pak International B.V.. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Molina Healthcare: Aetna & Humana - Medicare Advantage, Affinity Health Plan, AmericanWork Inc., Better Health Network, Camelot Care Centers Inc, Children's Behavioral Health Inc., Choices Group Inc., College Community Services, Dockside Services Inc, Family Preservation Services Inc., Family Preservation Services of Florida Inc., Family Preservation Services of North Carolina Inc., Family Preservation Services of Washington D.C. Inc., Family Preservation Services of West Virginia Inc., Florida NetPASS LLC, Hclb Inc., Magellan Complete Care, Maple Star Nevada Inc., Maple Star Oregon Inc., Mercy CarePlus, Molina Clinical Services LLC, Molina Healthcare Data Center Inc., Molina Healthcare of Arizona Inc., Molina Healthcare of California, Molina Healthcare of Florida Inc., Molina Healthcare of Georgia Inc., Molina Healthcare of Illinois Inc., Molina Healthcare of Iowa Inc., Molina Healthcare of Louisiana Inc., Molina Healthcare of Maryland Inc., Molina Healthcare of Michigan Inc., Molina Healthcare of Mississippi Inc., Molina Healthcare of Nevada Inc., Molina Healthcare of New Mexico Inc., Molina Healthcare of New York Inc., Molina Healthcare of North Carolina Inc., Molina Healthcare of Ohio Inc., Molina Healthcare of Oklahoma Inc., Molina Healthcare of Pennsylvania Inc., Molina Healthcare of Puerto Rico Inc., Molina Healthcare of South Carolina LLC, Molina Healthcare of Texas Inc., Molina Healthcare of Texas Insurance Company, Molina Healthcare of Utah Inc., Molina Healthcare of Virginia Inc., Molina Healthcare of Washington Inc., Molina Healthcare of Wisconsin Inc., Molina Holdings Corporation, Molina Hospital Management LLC, Molina Information Systems LLC dba Molina Medicaid Solutions, Molina Medical Management Inc., Molina Pathways LLC, Molina Pathways of Texas Inc., Molina Youth Academy, NextLevel Health Illinois, Pathways Community Corrections Inc., Pathways Community Services LLC, Pathways Community Support of Texas Inc., Pathways Health and Community Support LLC, Pathways Human Services LLC., Pathways of Arizona Inc., Pathways of Delaware Inc., Pathways of Idaho LLC, Pathways of Maine Inc., Pathways of Massachusetts LLC, Pathways of Oklahoma Inc., Pathways of Washington Inc., Providence Community Services, Providence Human Services, Raystown Developmental Services Inc., The Game of Work LLC, The RedCo Group Inc., Total Care Medicaid plan, Transitional Family Services Inc., Unisys -Health Information Management, and YourCare Health Plan. Read More Valley National Bancorp operates as the holding company for Valley National Bank that provides various commercial, retail, insurance, and wealth management financial services products. It operates through Commercial Lending, Consumer Lending, and Investment Management segments. The company offers non-interest bearing, savings, NOW, money market, and time deposit accounts; commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, residential mortgage, and automobile loans; loans secured by the cash surrender value of life insurance; home equity loans and lines of credit; and secured and unsecured other consumer loans. It also invests in various securities and interest-bearing deposits with other banks; and provides international banking services, such as standby and documentary letters of credit, and related products, as well as foreign exchange transactions, documentary collections, foreign wire transfers services, and transaction accounts for non-resident aliens. In addition, the company offers investment services for individuals and small to medium sized businesses; and trusts and custom -tailored investment strategies for various retirement plans. Further, it provides trust services, such as living and testamentary trusts, investment management, custodial and escrow services, and estate administration to individuals; tax credit advisory services; property and casualty, life, health, and title insurance agency services; and health care equipment lending and other commercial equipment leasing services, as well as owns real estate related investments. Additionally, the company offers online, mobile, and telephone banking services; and overdraft, drive-in and night deposit, automated teller machine, remote deposit capture, and safe deposit facility services. As of December 31,2021, it operated 232 branch offices in New Jersey, New York, Florida, and Alabama. The company was incorporated in 1927 and is headquartered in New York, New York. Kilroy Realty Corporation (NYSE: KRC, the company, KRC) is a leading West Coast landlord and developer, with a major presence in San Diego, Greater Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, and the Pacific Northwest. The company has earned global recognition for sustainability, building operations, innovation and design. As pioneers and innovators in the creation of a more sustainable real estate industry, the company's approach to modern business environments helps drive creativity, productivity and employee retention for some of the world's leading technology, entertainment, life science and business services companies. KRC is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) and member of the S&P MidCap 400 Index with more than seven decades of experience developing, acquiring and managing office and mixed-use projects. As of September 30, 2020, KRC's stabilized portfolio totaled approximately 14.3 million square feet of primarily office and life science space that was 92.2% occupied and 95.5% leased. The company also had 808 residential units in Hollywood and San Diego, which had a quarterly average occupancy of 85.0% and 37.5%, respectively. In addition, KRC had seven in-process development projects with an estimated total investment of $1.9 billion, totaling approximately 2.3 million square feet of office and life science space. The office and life science space was 90% leased. Kinder Morgan, Inc. operates as an energy infrastructure company in North America. The company operates through four segments: Natural Gas Pipelines, Products Pipelines, Terminals, and CO2. The Natural Gas Pipelines segment owns and operates interstate and intrastate natural gas pipeline, and underground storage systems; natural gas gathering systems and natural gas processing and treating facilities; natural gas liquids fractionation facilities and transportation systems; and liquefied natural gas liquefaction and storage facilities. The Products Pipelines segment owns and operates refined petroleum products, and crude oil and condensate pipelines; and associated product terminals and petroleum pipeline transmix facilities. The Terminals segment owns and/or operates liquids and bulk terminals that stores and handles various commodities, including gasoline, diesel fuel, chemicals, ethanol, metals, and petroleum coke; and owns tankers. The CO2 segment produces, transports, and markets CO2 to recovery and production crude oil from mature oil fields; owns interests in/or operates oil fields and gasoline processing plants; and operates a crude oil pipeline system in West Texas, as well as owns and operates RNG and LNG facilities. It owns and operates approximately 83,000 miles of pipelines and 143 terminals. The company was formerly known as Kinder Morgan Holdco LLC and changed its name to Kinder Morgan, Inc. in February 2011. Kinder Morgan, Inc. was founded in 1936 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. Standard Motor Products, Inc. manufactures and distributes replacement parts that are used in the maintenance, repair, and service of vehicles in the automotive aftermarket industry with a complementary focus on specialized original equipment parts for manufacturers across agriculture, heavy duty, and construction equipment industries. The company's Engine Management segment provides electronic ignition control modules, camshaft and crankshaft position sensors, ignition wires and coils, switches and relays, exhaust gas recirculation valves, pressure and temperature sensors, variable valve timing components, mass airflow and fuel pressure sensors, electronic throttle bodies, and diesel injectors and pumps; and anti-lock brake, vehicle speed, tire pressure monitoring, and park assist sensors. This segment offers its products under the Standard, Blue Streak, BWD, Intermotor, OEM, SMP Blue Streak Canada, GP Sorensen, Locksmart, Standard Motorcycle, and Blue Streak Race Wires brands. Its Temperature Control segment provides components for the temperature control systems, engine cooling systems, power window accessories, and windshield washer systems of motor vehicles under the Four Seasons, ACI, Hayden, Factory Air, and Maxair brands. Its products include air conditioning compressors and repair kits, clutch assemblies, blower and radiator fan motors, filter dryers, evaporators, accumulators, actuators, hose assemblies, thermal expansion devices, heater valves, heater cores, A/C service tools and chemicals, fan assemblies, fan clutches, oil coolers, window lift motors, window regulators and assemblies, and windshield washer pumps. The company serves primarily automotive aftermarket retailers, warehouse distributors, original equipment manufacturers, and original equipment service part operations in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, Mexico, and other Latin American countries. The company was founded in 1919 and is headquartered in Long Island City, New York. BP, plc, once known as British Petroleum, is one of the worlds 7 oil & gas supermajors with operations spanning the globe. In terms of revenue, it ranks 4th on the list and the company is vertically integrated as well with operations in all segments of the oil and gas sector. Operations are currently underway in 80 countries around the world, the company can produce 3.7 million barrels of oil equivalents per day, and it lays claim to nearly 20 billion barrels in proven reserves. On the retail end of the business, the company operates more than 18,700 fuel stations and its largest segment is in the US. The company was founded in 1908 with the purpose of exploring for and producing oil in the middle east. The company expanded into Alaska in 1959 and then accelerated its expansion when it merged with Amoco in 1998. Another merger with Burhman Castrol in 2000 created the company that is traded today. BP, plc rebranded itself in 2000 giving new meaning to its name. The once British Petroleum is now Beyond Petroleum and focused on a major shift in its business. The company is working hard to move away from non-renewable carbon-based energy and into biofuels, solar, and wind. The company hopes to be net-zero in regard to carbon emissions and production by 2050 or earlier and is well on the way to doing so. Among the many avenues of advance are the build-out of solar and wind farms as well as the expansion of a major EV charging network. The network totaled more than 9,000 stations around the middle of 2022 and expansion was ramping in order to meet the goal of 100,000 EV stations before 2050. BP p.l.c. currently operates through 4 segments including Gas & Low Carbon Energy, Oil Production & Operations, Customers & Products, and Rosneft segments. The company produces and trades in natural gas and oil liquids, offers biofuels, and operates wind and solar power generating facilities. The company also provides de-carbonization solutions and services, such as hydrogen and carbon capture and storage, as part of its green agenda. In addition, it produces and refines oil and gas for its downstream operations as well as invests in upstream, downstream, and alternative energy companies including advanced mobility. Advanced mobility is the future of transportation and includes technologies like EV, hybrid, and hydrogen fuel cells. To that end, the company is building 7 hydrogen production and storage hubs in key locations around the world. The company aims to produce blue and green hydrogen for the global transportation industry with production beginning in 2027. Blue hydrogen is hydrogen captured from the companys natural gas deposits using a process that captures the waste carbon. Donald Trump and Hillary Clintons ugly presidential campaign is nearing its end. Both candidates will take the stage on Wednesday for the final primetime debate. For Trump, this debate could be his last stand at attempting to turn around a race for the White House that appears as if it is slipping away from his grasp. Get Warning: Undefined variable $CompanyName in /home/acctdp/public_html/wp-content/themes/responsalambre/single.php on line 65 alerts: His predatory comments regarding women and numerous accusations of sexual assault have increased his unpopularity amongst women and lessened his chances of a victory. Trumps supporters remain very loyal, but few signs have appeared that he is attracting any new supporters that he is in desperate need of. Clinton is facing her own challenges. While the current electoral map is leaning in her favor, Clinton has faced new rounds of questions and doubts over her trustworthiness and authenticity, concerns she has faced throughout her campaign. The hacking of emails of her top adviser for the campaign revealed that she was averse to making apologies, strikes a different tone in while in private than when in public and makes certain decisions only after long political deliberations. The final debate of three, the contest on Wednesday will be in Las Vegas and comes with less than three weeks until Election Day. Early voting has already started in a number of battleground states. Trump has been leaning more and more on his brazen strategy in the closing weeks of his campaign, including making charges that the election is rigged, despite there being no evidence of any broad voter fraud in presidential elections of the past. He also has said that Clinton intimidated and attacked the women who were involved with former president Bill Clinton her husband. Mr. Clinton was never charged for any crimes related to his encounters though he settled a lawsuit for sexual harassment. Trump will have Malik Obama, the half brother of President Barack Obama as a guest at the debate. Clinton will have Mark Cuban a billionaire, who has frequently criticized Trump, as well as Meg Whitman the CEO at Hewlett Packard Enterprise. A spokesperson for Clinton said the presidential nominee would be ready for any tactics that Trump will try in the final debate. Republicans are desperately hoping that Trump is able to close his campaign by stressing the weaknesses of Clinton a strategy some concede privately might not be sufficient for him to pull out a victory at this point of the campaign, but could help candidates for the GOP Senate races salvage their places. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company provides solutions that allow customers to capture, analyze, and act upon data seamlessly in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Japan. The company offers general purpose servers for multi-workload computing and workload-optimized servers; HPE ProLiant rack and tower servers; HPE BladeSystem and HPE Synergy; and solutions for secondary workloads and traditional tape, storage networking, and disk products, such as HPE Modular Storage Arrays and HPE XP. It also offers HPE Apollo and Cray products; and HPE Superdome Flex, HPE Nonstop, HPE Integrity, and HPE Edgeline products. In addition, the company provides HPE Aruba product portfolio that includes wired and wireless local area network hardware products, such as Wi-Fi access points, switches, routers, and sensors; HPE Aruba software and services comprising cloud-based management, network management, network access control, analytics and assurance, and location; and professional and support services, as well as as-a-service and consumption models for the intelligent edge portfolio of products. Further, it offers various leasing, financing, IT consumption, and utility programs and asset management services for customers to facilitate technology deployment models and the acquisition of complete IT solutions, including hardware, software, and services from Hewlett Packard Enterprise and others. Additionally, the company invests in communications and media solutions. It has a partnership with Striim, Inc. to offer high performance and mission-critical solutions with real-time analytics. It serves commercial and large enterprise groups, such as business and public sector enterprises; and through various partners comprising resellers, distribution partners, original equipment manufacturers, independent software vendors, systems integrators, and advisory firms. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company was founded in 1939 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. Everest Re Group, Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides reinsurance and insurance products in the United States, Bermuda, and internationally. The company operates through Reinsurance Operations and Insurance Operations segments. The Reinsurance Operations segment writes property and casualty reinsurance; and specialty lines of business through reinsurance brokers, as well as directly with ceding companies in the United States, Bermuda, Ireland, Canada, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. The Insurance Operations segment writes property and casualty insurance directly, as well as through brokers, surplus lines brokers, and general agents in Bermuda, Canada, Europe, South America, Canada, Chile, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the Netherlands. The company also provides treaty and facultative reinsurance products; admitted and non-admitted insurance products; and property and casualty reinsurance and insurance coverages, including marine, aviation, surety, errors and omissions liability, directors' and officers' liability, medical malpractice, mortgage reinsurance, other specialty lines, accident and health, and workers' compensation products. In addition, it offers commercial property and casualty insurance products through wholesale and retail brokers, surplus lines brokers, and program administrators. Everest Re Group, Ltd. was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda. The following companies are subsidiares of Ingersoll Rand: 13125882 Canada Inc., 211 E. Russell Road LLC, 4458664 Canada Inc., ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES ASIA PTE. LTD., ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES BORROWER S.C.A., ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED, ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES LLC, ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES MIDDLE EAST FZE, ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES SERVICES LIMITED, ASTRUM IT GmbH, Accudyne Industries Acquisition S.A r.l, Accudyne Industries Canada Inc., Accudyne Industries S.A r.l., Air Dimensions, Air Dimensions Inc., Albin Pump SAS, BOC Edwards Global Low pressure Air business, CISA S.p.A., Cameron-Centrifugal Compression, Comercial Ingersoll-Rand (Chile) Limitada, Comingersoll-Comercio E Industria De Equipamentos S.A., CompAir, CompAir (Hankook) Korea Co. Ltd., CompAir Acquisition (No. 2) Ltd., CompAir Acquisition Ltd., CompAir BroomWade Ltd., CompAir Finance Ltd., CompAir GmbH, CompAir Holdings Limited, CompAir International Trading (Shanghai) Co Ltd, CompAir Korea Ltd, CompAir South Africa (SA) (Pty) Ltd., Consolidated Distribution Holdings Ltd., DV Systems Inc., Dosatron International SAS, Emco Wheaton Gmbh, Emco Wheaton USA Inc, Enza Air Proprietary Limited, FlexEnergy Holdings LLC, Frigoblock Grosskopf Gmbh, GD Aria Holdings Limited, GD Aria Holdings Limited, GD Aria Investments Limited, GD First (UK) Ltd, GD German Holdings GmbH, GD German Holdings I Gmbh, GD German Holdings II GmbH, GD German Investments GmbH, GD Global Holdings II Inc., GD Global Holdings Inc., GD Global Holdings UK II Ltd., GD Global Ventures I B.V., GD Global Ventures II B.V., GD Global Ventures III B.V., GD Industrial Products Malaysia SDN. BHD., GD Investment KY, GD UK Finance Ltd., GPS Industries, Gardner Denver (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Austria GmbH, Gardner Denver Bad Neustadt Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Belgium NV, Gardner Denver Brasil Industria E Comercio de Maquinas Ltda., Gardner Denver CZ + SK sro, Gardner Denver Canada Corp (Canada), Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments II Limited, Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments Limited, Gardner Denver Deutschland GmbH, Gardner Denver Engineered Products India Private Limited, Gardner Denver FZE, Gardner Denver Finance II LLC, Gardner Denver Finance Inc & Co KG, Gardner Denver France SAS, Gardner Denver Group Svcs Ltd, Gardner Denver Holdings Limited, Gardner Denver Hong Kong Investments Limited, Gardner Denver Hong Kong Ltd, Gardner Denver Iberica SL, Gardner Denver Inc., Gardner Denver Industries Ltd., Gardner Denver Industries Pty Ltd., Gardner Denver International Inc., Gardner Denver International Ltd., Gardner Denver Investments Inc., Gardner Denver Italy Holdings S.r.L., Gardner Denver Japan Ltd., Gardner Denver Kirchhain Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Korea Ltd., Gardner Denver Ltd., Gardner Denver Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Nash Brasil Industria E Comercio De Bombas Ltda, Gardner Denver Nash LLC, Gardner Denver Nash Machinery Ltd., Gardner Denver Nederland BV, Gardner Denver Nederland Investments B.V., Gardner Denver Oy, Gardner Denver Polska Sp z.o.o., Gardner Denver Pte. Ltd., Gardner Denver S.r.l., Gardner Denver Schopfheim GmbH, Gardner Denver Schopfheim Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Schweiz AG, Gardner Denver Slovakia s.r.o., Gardner Denver Sweden AB, Gardner Denver Taiwan Ltd., Gardner Denver Thomas GmbH (f/k/a ILMVAC GmbH), Gardner Denver Thomas Inc., Gardner Denver Thomas Pneumatic Systems (Wuxi) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Thomas Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Garo Dott. Ing. Roberto Gabbioneta S.r.l., Ghh-Rand Schraubenkompressoren Gmbh, HASKEL EUROPE LTD., HASKEL HOLDINGS UK LIMITED, HASKEL INTERNATIONAL LLC, Hamworthy Belliss & Morcom, Haskel France SAS, Haskel Sistemas de Fluidos Espana S.R.L., Hibon Inc., Highspeed Newco LLC, Hingerose Limited, ILMVAC (UK) Ltd., ILS Innovative Labor Systeme, ILS Inovative Laborsysteme GmbH, INGERSOLL RAND ITS JAPAN LTD., INGERSOLL-RAND (CHANG ZHOU) TOOLS CO. LTD., INGERSOLL-RAND (CHINA) INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING CO. LTD., INGERSOLL-RAND CHINA LLC, INGERSOLL-RAND COMERCIO E SERVICOS DE MAQUINAS E EQUIPAMENTOS INDUSTRIAIS LTDA., INGERSOLL-RAND DE PUERTO RICO INC., INGERSOLL-RAND INDUSTRIAL COMPANY B.V., INGERSOLL-RAND INDUSTRIAL SP. Z O.O., INGERSOLL-RAND INDUSTRIAL U.S. INC., INGERSOLL-RAND PHILIPPINES INC., INGERSOLL-RAND SPAIN S.A., INGERSOLL-RAND U.S. HOLDCO INC., IR HPS Holdco. Inc., ITO Emniyet, Ingersoll Rand Cyprus Investments Ltd., Ingersoll Rand Finance LLC, Ingersoll Rand Global Investments LLC, Ingersoll Rand Global Ventures LLC, Ingersoll Rand Hong Kong Investments Limited, Ingersoll Rand Inc., Ingersoll Rand Investments (SG) Pte. Ltd., Ingersoll Rand Investments B.V., Ingersoll Rand Schweiz Investments Gmbh, Ingersoll Rand Technology R&D (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand (Australia) Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand (China) Investment Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand (Guilin) Tools Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand (Hong Kong) Holding Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand (India) Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Ab, Ingersoll-Rand Air Solutions Hibon Sarl, Ingersoll-Rand Beteiligungs Und Grundstucksverwaltungs Gmbh, Ingersoll-Rand Colombia S.A.S., Ingersoll-Rand Company Limited (Uk), Ingersoll-Rand Company South Africa (Pty) Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Cz S.R.O., Ingersoll-Rand De Mexico S.A. De C.V., Ingersoll-Rand Equipements De Production S.A.S., Ingersoll-Rand Holdings Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Industrial Ireland Limited, Ingersoll-Rand International (India) Private Limited, Ingersoll-Rand International Holding Llc, Ingersoll-Rand Italia S.R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Italiana Manufacturing S.R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Korea Holding Llc, Ingersoll-Rand Korea Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Lux Investments II S.A R.I., Ingersoll-Rand Lux Investments S.A R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Luxembourg Industrial Company S.A R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Machinery (Shanghai) Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Malaysia Co. Sdn. Bhd., Ingersoll-Rand S.A. De C.V., Ingersoll-Rand Services And Trading Limited Liability Company, Ingersoll-Rand Services Company, Ingersoll-Rand Services Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Singapore Enterprises Pte. Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand South East Asia (Pte.) Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand Superay Holdings Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Technical And Services S.A.R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Technologies And Services Private Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Technology R&D (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand Tool Holdings Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Trading Gmbh, Ingersoll-Rand Vietnam Company Limited, Instrum Rand JSC, Interflex Datensysteme, Ir Canada Holdings Ulc, Ir Canada Sales & Service Ulc, Ir France Sas, Kryptonite corp, Lawrence Factor Inc., LeROI, LeRoi International Inc, MILTON ROY (HONG KONG) LIMITED, MILTON ROY (UK) LIMITED, MILTON ROY EUROPA B.V., MILTON ROY EUROPE SAS, MILTON ROY INDUSTRIAL (SHANGHAI) CO. LTD., MILTON ROY LLC, MILTON ROY US PURCHASER INC., MP Pumps Inc., Maximum AG Technologies Inc., Maximus Solutions, Mb Air Systems Limited, Nash Elmo, Officina Meccaniche Industriali Srl, Oina VV, Oina VV Aktiebolag, Plurifilter D.O.O., Pt Ingersoll-Rand Indonesia, Robuschi, Runtech Systems, Runtech Systems (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Runtech Systems Inc., Runtech Systems OY, SEEPEX, Seepex (M) SDN, Seepex Australia Pty Ltd, Seepex Beteiligungs-Gesellschaft mit Beschrankter Haftung, Seepex France S.a.r.l., Seepex GmbH, Seepex Inc., Seepex India Private Ltd., Seepex Italia SRL, Seepex Japan Co. Ltd., Seepex Nordic A/S, Seepex OOO, Seepex Pumps (Shanghia) Co. Ltd., Seepex UK Ltd., Shanghai CompAir Compressors Co Ltd, Shanghai Compressors & Blowers Ltd., Shanghai Ingersoll-Rand Compressor Limited, Shenzhen Bocom System Engineering Co., Superay, Syltone, TIWR Real Estate GmbH & Co. KG, Tamrotor Marine Comp AS Norway, Tecno Matic Europe s.r.o., Thomas Industries Inc., Trane Technologies, Tri-Continent Scientific Inc., Vacuum and Blower Systems division, Welch Vacuum Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zaxe Technologies Inc., Zeks Compressed Air Solutions Llc, Zinsser Analytic, Zinsser Analytik GmbH, Zinsser NA Inc., and crayon interface. Read More After months of waiting for a federal judge in Maryland and hearing nothing, a Charlottesville judge denied a request to pause the wrongful death lawsuit against George Huguely V any longer. Attorneys for Sharon Love the mother of the woman Huguely is convicted of killing asked a judge in Charlottesville Circuit Court on Tuesday to once again extend the suspension of the $29.45 million wrongful death lawsuit. Love filed the suit after Huguely was convicted in 2012 of second-degree murder for the slaying of his girlfriend Yeardley Love, a University of Virginia womens lacrosse player who was found dead in her apartment in May 2010. The now-28-year-old Huguely is currently serving a 23-year sentence at the Augusta Correctional Center for the slaying and has continued to fight his criminal conviction, even after the U.S. Supreme Court in October denied a request to review his case. Huguely is also involved in a 2013 court case in Maryland, brought by Chartis Property Casualty Co., a holding company of insurance giant AIG. According to the original complaint, Huguely sought insurance coverage from Chartis as part of two policies held by his mother, which stipulated that Chartis was to conduct its own investigation into the allegations against Huguely to determine its liability in the matter. Attorneys for both Love and Huguely agreed that the Chartis case should move forward before Loves, but on Tuesday, Loves attorney, Irv Cantor, said he had still not heard a decision from the Maryland court but said they still anticipated a ruling in the case. Matthew Green, attorney for Huguely, said it was apparent Maryland has chosen not to act, and the motion to continue to hold up Loves case should be denied. Judge Richard Moore agreed with Huguelys lawyer and said he normally would be inclined to grant the extended stay, but since there was no visible progress in the Maryland court, he denied the motion. With a full court docket, Moore said any more delays in the case could push the multiday trial from its current date of March 2017 to sometime in 2018. Also on Tuesday, Green asked that attorneys for Huguely be allowed time to schedule a deposition of Love and said they would be willing to go to Love at her home in Baltimore. We know its difficult and emotionally hard, Green said in court. Were happy to go to Baltimore. Cantor said Loves representation had no issue with the deposition, and Moore said he would not make an order. Both sides agreed to schedule the deposition for the end of the year within the next couple of weeks. Following the hearing, Cantor reiterated their anticipation of news from the court in Maryland and said attorneys for Love will most likely make a motion to continue the trial date later than March 2017. Green agreed with the judges decision to deny the extension of time and said its important to get the case rolling in Charlottesville. He said attorneys for Huguely anticipate presenting new evidence about what happened the night Yeardley Love was killed. It will have been over seven years since Yeardleys death, and its time to have a resolution of the civil matter, Green said. Its very clear that it was an unintentional act and, unfortunately, George was unbelievably intoxicated and a terrible drunken accident happened. George admits that he is legally responsible for it. When asked about Loves attorneys possibly asked for a continuance of the trial date, Green said Huguelys attorneys would object to another delay. He also said Huguely is doing great and is prepared to serve the remaining time of his sentence. Nearly two years after the fateful article A Rape on Campus was published by Rolling Stone, stirring an uproar both at the University of Virginia and around the country, the first of three lawsuits stemming from the story is going to trial. On Monday, attorneys for Rolling Stone, its publisher and author Sabrina Rubin Erdely will square off in federal court in Charlottesville against Nicole Eramo, a UVa administrator once tasked with aiding student survivors of sexual assault. In that role, Eramo was mentioned more than 30 times in the November 2014 article that Erdely had intended as an expose of the culture of sexual assault at elite American universities. In that pursuit, Erdely chose UVa as her backdrop. For her primary subject, she chose Jackie, a then-student who claimed she was brutally gang raped by seven men at the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity house near Grounds during her first year at UVa. When the piece first hit newsstands, Charlottesville erupted in a firestorm of outrage. Protests were staged outside of Phi Psis chapter house, uniting students, professors and the community in remonstration. UVa President Teresa A. Sullivan called for a temporary suspension of all Greek life, while residents of the Phi Psi house vacated to safer premises. University administrators at various levels, including Eramo and Sullivan, were criticized for the articles insinuations that UVa did not take sufficient steps in seeking justice for survivors of sexual assault. Eramo said she received a litany of scathing and even threatening emails from readers. That tide of fury began to diminish when reports from various media outlets found holes in Jackies story. Growing scrutiny resulted in an investigation from Charlottesville police into Jackies claims and, eventually, a review by the Columbia Journalism School of Erdelys practices in chasing the story. By March of the following year, authorities said they had found no evidence to support Jackies claims, and soon after, Columbia released a critical review that called Erdelys piece a story of journalistic failure that was avoidable. In April that year, the article officially was retracted. In July, the magazines managing editor, Will Dana, resigned. Since the retraction, three lawsuits have been filed against Rolling Stone, Erdely and publisher Wenner Media LLC. One, filed by three Phi Psi alumni, has been thrown out. Another, filed by the fraternitys Virginia chapter, is scheduled for trial next year. But the first, filed by Eramo in May 2015, now goes before a jury. Eramo claims she was unduly maligned by her portrayal in the debunked article. She says Erdely portrayed her as the chief villain in the storys controversy an uncaring, callous and ineffective voice who sought to suppress Jackies claims. She was even the focal point of the articles photo illustration, which appears to show her giving a smile and thumbs up to a crying girl sitting in her office. For this and more, Eramo is seeking $7.85 million, based on the damages inflicted upon her reputation, career and health, both physical and mental. The trial is scheduled to run for two weeks, although Judge Glen Conrad has said he does not want it to take more than 12 days meaning each day likely will extend beyond standard business hours and jurors may be called in on Saturdays. Conrad has bifurcated the trial into two parts a liability phase and a damages phase. In the liability phase, counsel for both sides will argue over whether Rolling Stone acted with actual malice when it published the story. If the jury finds that it did, only then will the court proceed into a damages phase, in which more evidence will be presented for the jury to formulate an appropriate monetary remuneration for Eramo. According to Kevin Walsh, a law professor at the University of Richmond not affiliated with the trial, the bifurcation will make the trial more efficient. If theres certain evidence that will only go to damages, if you dont need to go there, then the bifurcation prevents that from happening, Walsh said. Overall, I think its a way for the judge to manage what comes in. In the weeks leading up to the trial, attorneys from both sides have entered a series of motions asking Conrad to exclude certain evidence from being used at trial. According to Lee Berlik, a Reston-based defamation attorney not involved in the case, such motions are not uncommon in defamation suits. And in most cases, theyre denied. If a judge has any doubt and thinks that the evidence at trial may unfold in such a way as to make one of these other bits of information relevant to the case, most judges will defer this until the heat of battle, Berlik said. Berliks assessment has proven to be mostly correct in the Eramo case. According to an order signed Thursday, most of the motions were either denied or only partially granted. Conrad denied a motion from Eramo to exclude a 21-minute interview between Eramo and WUVA, and partially denied two other motions regarding a letter from National Organization of Women and a letter from the Office of Civil Rights. He noted that the OCR letter, its conclusions and its place in the chronology of events can be used for impeachment purposes, and the NOW letter may be admitted for impeachment purposes and during the damages phase of the trial. Conrad denied a motion from Rolling Stone to exclude a letter from the UVa student newspaper The Cavalier Daily, emails received by UVa and Eramo after the articles publication and evidence regarding Eramos change in employment. He further denied their motion to exclude evidence regarding Eramos cancer diagnosis, another motion to exclude the Columbia Journalism Schools report and yet another to exclude testimony regarding Haven Monahan, the moniker of an imagined love interest that Jackie is alleged to have created. Six other motions were only partially denied, with stipulations regarding potential exclusions of some of the Charlottesville police investigation into Jackies claims and other pieces of evidence. Per an emergency motion filed last week by Rolling Stone, Eramos attorneys also have been prohibited from showing any of Erdelys videotaped deposition, as well as any other deposition videos that were shown during Friday nights broadcast of 20/20. In hearings last week, the magazine argued that Eramo violated a protective order when she and her attorneys handed over some deposition videos to ABC for the broadcast, and Conrad agreed. Conrad added that he would consider imposing further sanctions against Eramo for the violation, although no more filings had been made in the case as of Sunday night. Berlik noted that the ruling might not be a significant setback for Eramos trial strategy, so long as Erdely still appears as a live witness at trial. Conrad did grant two exclusion motions. Per his ruling, emails received by Rolling Stone after the storys publication will be excluded, and Eramos attorneys will not be able to show an episode of Law & Order, believed to be relevant to Jackies story, to the jury at trial. In the months since she filed suit, Eramo has battled with attorneys for both the magazine and Jackie, who has vehemently fought to stay out of the litigation altogether. After various court orders, Jackie has now sat for a deposition in the case, turned over documents and, according to witness lists filed this month, she is expected to appear as a live witness during Eramos arguments. Many others including Eramo, Erdely, editors from Rolling Stone and UVa Dean of Students Allen Groves are expected to give live testimonies over the next several days. Before they do, the attorneys will empanel what the judge hopes to be a seven-person jury. Berlik said that counsel from both sides, especially Rolling Stones, will be looking to remove any potential jurors who may have a predisposition toward the case based on their knowledge of the article and its aftermath. He added that just having read the original article or keeping up with the trials proceedings via media outlets wont necessarily excuse any juror candidates. [Doing so] doesnt mean youre biased and that youre going to be automatically siding with Nicole Eramo, he said. You can be exposed to media coverage and not pre-judge the case. The biggest challenge for jurors, Berlik said, is to separate the entirety of the articles aftermath from the defamation question at hand. Beyond just Jackies debunked story, or the magazines reported failings, the case only takes up the matter of what the article said about Eramo, and the repercussions it had on her career. This whole case amounts to a portrayal of Ms. Eramo in such a way as to make it appear that she doesnt care about protecting UVa students from sexual assault, Berlik said. Its still a serious matter, of course, but thats a much narrower scope than just, hey, [Rolling Stone]should be punished because it published a false story about a rape that never happened. Nicole Eramo has plenty of reasons for pursuing her $7.85 million lawsuit against Rolling Stone. She said as much in federal court on Tuesday: she wants to restore her reputation, she wants security for her future and, perhaps most vehemently, she wants the magazine and author Sabrina Rubin Erdely to be held accountable for the dire mistakes made with A Rape on Campus. No one ever thought of me as a real person, the University of Virginia administrator exclaimed from the stand at Charlottesvilles federal courthouse. They made me into something they wanted me to be. Tuesday was the second day in Eramos defamation lawsuit against the magazine, its publisher and Erdely over her portrayal as the chief villain in Erdelys now-retracted November 2014 piece A Rape on Campus. On Monday, a 10-person jury was empaneled from a pool of 100, leaving Tuesday morning open for counsel from both sides to deliver opening arguments. Tom Clare, representing Eramo in the matter, opened the trial day by echoing the words of the Columbia Journalism Schools review of Erdelys piece, calling it a journalistic failure. Thats been a popular opinion since the piece was retracted in April 2015, a month before Eramo filed her suit. In her suit, Eramo claims that, as the former associate dean charged with aiding student survivors of sexual assault, she was unduly maligned when Erdelys article hit shelves. The piece severely derides UVas administration as ineffective at handling cases of sexual assault among students; in her role, Eramo was mentioned 30 times by name and 10 times by title in the largely negative piece. After stirring an uproar at UVa and abroad, intense scrutiny and investigations debunked the articles centerpiece story of Jackie, a student at the time who claimed she was gang-raped at a fraternity house during her freshman year. Jackie has remained central to the case, although Clares opening arguments indicate that she will not be giving a live testimony at trial and that the jury will simply see a taped deposition that Jackie provided earlier this year. Portions of that taped deposition were read aloud by Clare on Tuesday; notably, Jackie appeared to defend Eramo, who had counseled Jackie after she came forward about her alleged assault. I never felt like she suppressed my assault, Clare read, contradicting the insinuations of the retracted article. Clare went on to describe exactly how Eramos life and career were damaged in the articles aftermath. The former associate dean received threatening emails, had protesters outside her office door and feared that her job was in jeopardy. When doubts arose about Jackies story, emails indicated that Erdely had lost faith in her account and asked for a retraction. Instead, Clare said, the editors chose to blame Jackie in a pre-story addendum, before editing it the next day to finally take responsibility for the journalistic mishap. Clare narrowed his arguments down to five essential points that placed Rolling Stone in the wrong: Eramo did take Jackie to the police after hearing of her assault, the magazine was aware of this fact, the magazine didnt seek to confirm Jackies story, they then blamed her when the story went off the rails and, finally, the magazine created a harsh photo illustration of Eramo to accompany the ill-fated article. Speaking for Rolling Stone, attorney Scott Sexton acknowledged mistakes made by the magazine and its author but pointed out that, in proving the necessary actual malice standard in play for the case, the magazine obviously had nothing against Nicole Eramo. Instead, he argued, they took issue with UVas handling of sexual assault, and Eramo was caught in the crossfire. She was the face of the universitys policies and procedures, Sexton said. It was never personal; it was all about these procedures. Sexton stressed that actual malice standard, which was established when Judge Glen Conrad ruled that Eramo is a limited purpose public figure in the case. By upgrading her from simply being a private figure, Eramo can no longer prove the case based on common negligence on the part of Erdely or her editors; now she must prove that they were aware of problems with the reporting but published the story anyway. They have to make the statement knowing it was false, Sexton explained to the jury. Youll have to get in the minds of Ms. Erdely and [Rolling Stone editor] Sean Woods. He added that the truth of Jackies claims were not relevant to the case because they arent germane to the statements specifically made about Eramo. The remainder of Tuesdays trial was dedicated to Eramos own testimony. In it, she outlined her relationship with Jackie. In May 2013, Jackie had a meeting with her academic dean over her struggling grades. When she told the dean of her assault, she was referred to Eramo, who provided her resources and encouraged her to report the assault to the police. Eramo said at the time that Jackie alleged that shed been forced to perform oral sex on five men. It wasnt until much later that Eramo had heard a version of the story in which seven men vaginally penetrated Jackie. The former associate dean then emotionally ran through a timeline of their relationship, in which Eramo provided gentle guidance to Jackie but repeatedly pressed for her to take her allegations to the police, according to Eramos testimony. I wanted her to report and I would be with her every step of the way, Eramo said tearfully. Jackie even expressed distress to Eramo over the upcoming Rolling Stone article in the weeks before it was published, Eramo said. Nine days before it was published, Jackie sent Eramo an email saying she was concerned that much of what she said [to Erdely] was being misrepresented. Eramo also testified as to her dealings with Erdely, noting that while shed agreed to an interview with her, UVa higher-ups told her to cancel it, and they instead opted to do the interview themselves. Eramo and Erdely had nearly no interaction with one another, she said, and the entire time that the story was being written, shed assumed it was about campus sexual assault advocacy in general. She went on to describe the fallout from the articles publication, calling the vibe of the campus hysterical and her own reaction to the story as shocked and stunned. Eramo said that reading Jackies new account of her gang rape didnt make a lot of sense to me, given their close relationship. Most of it was completely new to me, she said. When Clare closed his questioning, Eramo said that she didnt blame Jackie for anything that happened and said that, while she didnt believe her claims in the story, she did wonder if Jackie had faced some form of trauma. She did, however, find blame with Rolling Stone; she heatedly called for the magazine to be accountable for what it had done to her and to so many others, and hoped that the trials result would dissuade any other instances of drive-by journalism. Eramo will face questioning from Rolling Stones attorneys Wednesday morning, when the trial picks up for the third of its expected 12 days in court. RICHMOND Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump is returning to Virginia this weekend for a rally at Regent University in Virginia Beach, the strongest signal yet that his campaign has not given up on Virginia. The rally at the Christian university is scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday, according to Trump's official online schedule. Gates will open at noon. Polls have shown Democrat Hillary Clinton with a wide lead over Trump in Virginia. Last week, the Trump campaign pushed back on reports it was pulling out of the state, saying some of its staff were being temporarily relocated to North Carolina and insisting the campaign intends to compete in Virginia. Cal Thomas in his Sept. 28 column, Its time to try Trumps way in election, admits to having initially opposed Donald Trumps candidacy for president and to not knowing for sure what we will get beyond promises. He does hope, however, that good people will serve and surround him. He mentions, in particular, the policy wonk Newt Gingrich, who has been assisting Trumps transition staff. Im not convinced this is the best of choices, since Gingrich brings to the job his own unsavory baggage. As House Speaker in the 1990s, he pioneered many tactics that now define partisan warfare. Presently, he is urging Trump should he succeed to the presidency to build a wall on our southern border wall right away because his political fortunes depend on it. And, to abet his candidates proposal to screen out any who have hostile attitudes toward our country or its principals, he is calling for a recreation of the House Un-American Activities Committee (Fox and Friends, June 13). For those of us not old enough to remember, this was a legislative body established in 1938 to investigate accusations of subversion and disloyalty. Before it was abolished in 1975, it had laid the groundwork for the internment of Japanese-Americans and led investigations into alleged communist sympathizers. In 1959, former president Harry S. Truman called it the most un-American thing in the country today (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braden_v._United_States). These are but a few of the excesses that scourged our nation in the past and with which Gingrich was known to concur. Therefore, despite Thomas strong endorsement, I still do not think he is the best person to help Trump rid Washington of its vile, biblical-like money changers and restore it to Christian purity. Fortunately for most of us, there is a durable American Constitution that provides for separation of church and state and ensures that we can make moral choices on our own. Florence Schmitt Albemarle County Fairness has prevailedfor nowafter a North Dakota judge dropped a misdemeanor riot charge against a journalist. Judge John Grinsteiner said there was no foundation for charging Democracy Now reporter Amy Goodman. The riot charge had been instituted by a prosecutor after a previous misdemeanor trespassing charge was dropped. The prosecutor claimed the reporter was acting like a protester. Goodman was in North Dakota to report on Sioux protests against a controversial oil pipeline. Because Virginia is in the midst of turmoil over proposed construction of two natural gas pipelines, many local residents have followed the North Dakota case with interest. There are at least two questions regarding the protests that need to be resolved: Were they riots? Law enforcement authorities claim that hundreds of protesters turned violent when they broke through a fence with their dogs and horses and stampeded into the construction area. But authorities must be very, very careful not to use riot laws simply as an excuse to quell protests. Stopping riots? Thats different. Subduing violence? Also different. But protesting has an honorable place in American history. It represents the right of the people to demand a hearing from the powers-that-be. In many cases, protests have been integral in moving justice forward. There is reason to suspect, in a number of cases across the country in recent years, that authorities are failing to respect the legitimate place of protests and instead are using heavy-handed methods to suppress dissent. The same could be said about actions against journalists. Was Ms. Goodman riotingor even protesting? If she were with the Sioux protesters in her capacity as journalist, then her presence could have been misinterpreted as participation in eventsat least, initially. If the protests moved from outside private property to inside, then she would have had to make a calculated decision on whether to risk a trespassing charge in order to follow the action. Traditionally, such decisions have been an element of investigative journalism. As representatives of the Fourth Estate keeping tabs on government, journalists have often been in places they werent supposed to be in order to report on leaders doing what they werent supposed to do. Its a risky choice that shouldnt be taken lightlyand shouldnt be abused. But, like protesting, it has an honorable history. As the Goodman story unfolds, more details may come to light about what happened at the pipeline construction site. But for now, a judges ruling that a riot charge was unjustified hints at the kind of excessive enforcement that weve seen used against journalists in other situations. Those in power dont even want to be scrutinized, much less exposed. All the more reason to keep the spotlight of inquiry trained upon them. LONDON - England - Britain emerging into the light from the EU prison hurts the eyes at first, but you will get used to it, as sure as the globe opens up from the restrictive prison walls we have been behind for forty long years. Remainers are obviously masochists because they enjoy being abused, they enjoy being dictated to, and they enjoy paying 70% more for everything in the shops. They do not value sovereignty, freedom or the right to make our own laws. Britain is slowly emerging from a period of creeping dictatorship and totalitarian EU rule spanning 40 years and coming into the light is hard for some people, they are used to their cosy prison, these remainers have no belief in Britain, they only believe in a Soviet EU construct where national borders are broken down completely and all national identity is lost. Remainers do not believe in freedom, even though they do not want any borders, because their naive communist ideals do not realise the flood that will consume this country if the border is dropped. They do not realise that the NHS will not survive the deluge, or our schools, or our emergency services, our housing, benefits system, or our transport systems. Slowly the curtains are being drawn, the sunlight of sovereign freedom hurts the eyes at first, but you will get used to it. The sun cleanses the soul, and global freedom for Britain to trade with who we want, not to be restricted by the EU protectionist closed shop, an uncompetitive racket serving only the interests of corrupt unelected EU officials. If we have any sense of justice, we will completely eviscerate any form of treasonous attempts to thwart Brexit. After all, what has the EU ever done for Britain apart from imprison us in unjust laws and caused us untold grief economically through ridiculous punishing payments. Remainers want to deprive the sovereign of the Crown, they want to levy war against the sovereign in order by force or constraint to compel her to change her measures or counsels, or in order to put any force or constraint upon or in order to intimidate or overawe both Houses or either House of Parliament, and they want to move or stir foreigners to invade the United Kingdom or any other country belonging to the sovereign. Plain and simple, High Treason. Embrace the light, let us move forwards to global heights and not be constrained to the narrow limited inhibitive torture of an EU prison. Break free from the shackles of EU totalitarian rule once and for all. Britain deserves better than the corrupt restrictive shackles of the EU. Onwards.. DOVER - England - Children's toys were given to the unusually large 'children' who were granted leave to come to Britain from the Calais jungle camp yesterday. One young child, speaking with a low voice said he was eight years old and had travelled all the way from Afghanistan to come to Britain so he could receive benefits, a flat and plenty of English pussy. I am only eight years old. Thank you for the toys. I play with them when I go primary school with other children of my age. I will drive to school in my BMW and leave one of my wife at home to cook for my three children, who will come later, thank you socialist peoples you are very generous. Amongst the 14 unaccompanied children many over six feet tall, and with low baritone voices, was little Mohamed Abdullah, 10, from Peshawar, Pakistan. I am only ten years old. I need come Britain because you give free food, free money and free English women. I hear they do anything for you, just ask, and they do. Ooph, Ive got blue balls. Havent had a shag in weeks. First thing Ill be doing after primary school is visiting the local massage parlour for a good seeing to all paid for by the British taxpayer. Ive also heard my primary schools English teacher is a real looker, bet shes never seen a ten year old like me before. Thank you for the toys, you stupid mugs, Ill sell it on Ebay to a real child for profit. What a bunch of fuckin mugs, innit. Brexit any one? What's this? Something is cooking! Final night in the "kitchen." #OctoberSurprise pic.twitter.com/eNX7LwxK5p Michael Moore (@MMFlint) 18 octobre 2016 Hey NYC- Who wants a peek @ what I've been up 2? Tues, 9:30pm, IFC Center. TIx free, 1st come, b.o. opens 8:30pm. pic.twitter.com/SrAhaq74ME Michael Moore (@MMFlint) 18 octobre 2016 The 73-minute surprise release, titled Michael Moore in Trumpland, is "an iteration of Moore's one-man play, which he had hoped to perform at a central Ohio theater" before it was allegedly banned for being too controversial, The Hollywood Reporter reports. The synopsis says: "See the film Ohio Republicans tried to shut down. Oscar-winner Michael Moore dives right into hostile territory with his daring and hilarious one-man show, deep in the heart of Trumpland in the weeks before the 2016 election."Although New Yorkers will be able to watch the film for free at the IFC Center on Tuesday night, Michael Moore in Trumpland starts its regular run on Wednesday, Indiewire reports. Further details about where it will be released or on what platforms have not yet been made available.Michael Moore in Trumpland is the filmmaker's second movie out this year, following up Where to Invade Next, which was released in February. Moore is also known for his work on Fahrenheit 9/11, Sicko, and Bowling for Columbine, for which he won an Oscar. Learn more about the New York run of his latest film New Delhi: Beverages major Coca Cola India has dropped Bollywood superstar Salman Khan as brand ambassador for its soft drink 'Thums Up' after four years of association and the company is in talks with young star Ranveer Singh to replace him. The contract with Khan had expired last month and the company has chosen not to renew it, according to industry sources. When contacted, Coca Cola India declined to comment. The company's decision to not to renew the contract with the 50-year-old actor is more to do with the image of Coca Cola, which is seen as a young brand, a source said. "That explains why Coca Cola is talking to a much younger star like Ranveer Singh," the source added. Khan has been among the top celebrity endorsers reportedly charging Rs 5 crore per year per brand. Recently, he had courted controversy when he supported Pakistani artists saying "they were not terrorists" in the wake of a debate on whether they should be allowed to work in Indian movies after the Uri attack. Coca Cola India had roped in Khan as its brand ambassador for the second time to endorse its Thums Up brand in October 2012 replacing another Bollywood star Akshay Kumar. He had earlier endorsed the brand in early 2000s. At that time, Coca-Cola India had also signed an agreement with Being Human -- The Salman Khan Foundation to jointly promote, conceive and execute charitable and social activities. IMF said oil was expected to stabilise at around $60 per barrel in the medium term. Dubai: A modest recovery in oil prices falls short of filling budgetary gaps in crude-exporting Gulf countries, the International Monetary Fund said, stressing the need to cut spending. The price of the region's main commodity has partially rebounded and is hovering around $50 per barrel having hit a 10-year low of less than $30 in January, from a peak of more than $100 in mid-2014. The recovery "will definitely help in terms of the financial numbers for this year" for the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, said Masood Ahmed, the IMF's director for the Middle East. "But it doesn't really change the fundamental outlook for GCC countries or the challenges that face them," he told AFP in an interview Tuesday. Oil was expected to stabilise at around $60 per barrel in the medium term, he said, a rate lower than the budgetary breakeven point for some of the six nations. In its regional economic outlook report released Wednesday, the IMF cited a breakeven price for Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates at $79.7, $62.1 and $58.6 respectively. The level drops to $47.8 per barrel in the case of Kuwait, but it shoots to $77.5 and $93.8 in the case of Oman and Bahrain respectively. "(This) means that GCC countries as a group still have to try and balance their budgets," said Ahmed. GCC countries had to cut back their spending "one way or another" over the next five years and find ways of raising non-oil revenues, he said. Essar Oil operates 2,700 petrol stations and was controlled until now by billionaire brothers Shashi and Ravi Ruia. Moscow: In a spectacularly costly gamble aimed at boosting Russia's strategic position, state-controlled giant Rosneft is investing in India's Essar Oil to muscle into a promising market with outlets throughout Asia. Russian President Vladimir Putin returned from last week's BRICS summit in Goa with one of the largest deals the oil sector has seen in the last two years of falling prices: 98 percent of Essar Oil at a valuation of $12.9 billion. Rosneft -- Russia's biggest oil company led by Putin's close ally Igor Sechin -- will buy 49 percent of Essar Oil, which owns the Vadinar refinery in western India. Vadinar is one of the country's largest refineries and one of the world's most modern, with access to a port navigable by the largest vessels. Essar Oil operates 2,700 petrol stations and was controlled until now by billionaire brothers Shashi and Ravi Ruia. A further 49 percent will be acquired by a group of investors led by Trafigura oil traders, one of Rosneft's partners. "Rosneft is entering one of the most promising and fast-growing world markets," Sechin said, according to a statement. Rosneft said the Vadinar refinery will allow it to process its crude oil produced in Venezuela, which is heavy and more difficult to refine. It could also serve as a base for exporting to the Asia-Pacific region, including Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines and Australia. While the deal represents an unprecedented foreign acquisition from the Indian perspective, for Russia it is "an important strategic victory," said Emily Stromquist, an analyst at Eurasia Group. "It sends a signal to the EU and US that Russia has alternative market opportunities despite sanctions" imposed over Russia's actions in Ukraine, she wrote in a note. "It also provides a much-needed opportunity for export diversification as European demand flattens and Chinese growth becomes more unpredictable." Allied nations With its 1.2 billion inhabitants, India is the world's fourth largest consumer of hydrocarbons, with demand constantly growing. It is increasingly dependent on crude imports, despite authorities taking steps to encourage foreign investment and seeking to diversify its suppliers, currently mainly in the Middle East. Indian companies in turn this year bought almost half of Vankor, one of Rosneft's most promising oil fields in Siberia. "Rosneft has the ambition to develop itself into a global energy group... but the opportunities to develop business abroad are limited, especially in Western countries," said Valery Nesterov, an analyst at Sberbank CIB. "The markets that are promising are in Asia," he said, while Rosneft "acts in the interests of the state and develops cooperation with countries that are friends with Russia." The Russian group has already grown considerably in recent years. It took over the ruins of oil magnate Mikhail Khodorkovsky's group after his jailing and has since increased its acquisitions, notably TNK-BP in 2013 for $55 billion. Due to the weak ruble, it is sitting on large cash reserves that soften the effect of oil prices falling in dollars. It has just proved its influence by pushing the reluctant government to allow it to buy a majority stake in Russia's number six oil company Bashneft, which the state wanted to privatise. Internationally the Ukrainian crisis has struck a blow to Rosneft's policy of forming partnerships with Western giants such as BP, Exxonmobil and Statoil -- hence the need to invest in emerging markets that are not affected by sanctions. Pavel Kushnir, an analyst at Deutsche Bank, did not conceal his scepticism over Essar, saying he could not remember a single "example of an outright successful acquisition or investment that a Russian energy company made abroad." According to experts, the reason behind this rise in obesity could be attributed to the change in the lifestyle. Hyderabad: India is fighting a losing battle against obesity and needs to start using preventive measures, says Apollo Hospitals joint managing director Sangita Reddy. People tend to think obesity is a small deal but its dangerous as other deadly disesase tend to follow it. Ms Reddy said: India needs to start taking obesity seriously. Obesity is a big problem in India and currently we need around $6 billion which is not feasible. So, we need to start taking preventive measures to fight obesity. Currently, obesity has reached a epidemic proportions, with morbid obesity figures touching as high as 5 per cent. People, who suffer from obesity, is also known to quickly fall prey to various other deadly diseases such diabetes, blood pressure, heart problems and kidney etc to name a few. According to experts, the reason behind this rise in obesity could be attributed to the change in the lifestyle. Indian youths are known to ape the American style of living who themselves are suffering from severe obesity related issues. Meanwhile, Appollo Hospitals announced the seventh edition of their annual conference which would focus on transforming the healthcare sector through IT. The International Conference on Transforming healthcare through IT, scheduled for October 21 and 22 in Chennai. The conference themed on leveraging IT in healthcare and Patient Safety is a platform to bring forth key developments. Mumbai: Coming out in support of Karan Johar, veteran director Shyam Benegal today said it is sad that the 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' filmmaker had to reiterate his patriotism. Johar made a video appeal yesterday to those protesting the release of his directorial venture because it has Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. Raj Thackeray-led MNS has threatened to stall the movie's release on October 28. Benegal, 81, also questioned the constant demand made on people to prove their patriotism. "I feel very sad that he had to make a statement like that because how can anybody doubt his patriotism or his love for this country. Does it need to be reiterated everyday of his life or my life, because there is a demand on people to prove his patriotism? Why should one do that? "When you are born here, when you live here or make a livelihood here, you are going to live all your life in your country and you are not planning to leave or go anywhere else. You are an important and successful member of the society. Why should a person like him have to constantly say that he will not do this? Why have we come to this situation?," Benegal said. In the video, Johar had said that he was hurt to be called an anti-national because "country comes first" for him. Meanwhile, veteran scriptwriter Salim Khan tweeted that film industry is not divided and is the only place where talent is valued. "What works is talent & capability. This is true from the time of Dada Saheb Phalke till date. It is true that there are some amongst us who have aligned themselves to political parties for personal gain. "And yes we are a happy lot. If our films work we are happy and if a rivals film flops we are happy too. And we live happily ever after," he tweeted. Mumbai: So far many people from the industry have voiced their opinion on the ongoing controversy surrounding Pakistani artiste and Karan Johars film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. The recent artist to join the bandwagon is renowned screenwriter Salim Khan, who says that there is no place for discrimination on the basis of cast, creed, language and religion in Bollywood. In a series of tweets, Salim Khan wrote, Film industry divided?? No way film industry is THE one place where there is no place for discrimination on the basis of Language religion caste & creed. What works is talent & capability. This is true from the time of Dada Saheb Phalke till date. The screenwriter also said that there are some celebrities who have aligned themselves to political parties for personal gain. It is true that there are some amongst us who have aligned themselves to political parties for personal gain. And Yes we are a happy lot. If our films work we are happy and if a rivals film flops we are happy too. And we live happily ever after. THE END, Salim Khan wrote. Salims reaction came after Ae Dil Hai Mushkil director Karan Johar broke his silence on the issue. In an emotional video statement released on Tuesday, Mr Johar said that he would not engage talent from neighbouring country given the circumstance but also made a public appeal for his film. Amid growing voices from a section of politicians and film bodies to stall the release of ADHM or erase sections that has Fawad in it, Mr Johar, said: I beseech you to know one thing...that over 300 Indian people in my crew have put their blood, sweat and tears in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil and I dont think it's fair to them to face any kind of turbulence on account of other fellow Indians. Mumbai: Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, who wastrolled for tweeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his Pakistan visit, today sought to difuse a row, saying he was not asking the PM to apologise but merely pointing out that film industry was made a scapegoat in the situation. The 44-year-old director, in series of tweets recently, had questioned why only Indian filmmakers should be targeted for casting Pakistani actors when the PM also made a trip to Lahore last year. Kashyap said he has to unfortunately "explain my intention behind tweet" as his industry colleagues will suffer for his opinion. "NO, Anurag Kashyap did not 'ask the PM to apologise' (which most of the headlines would want you to believe...), I merely questioned the fairness in judgement of a situation: the PM visited Pakistan for talks at the same time that a filmmaker was working with a Pakistani actor. Neither was aware of future events or mood. Yet only one pays the price," Kashyap wrote on his Facebook page. The director, who was speaking against the demand by a section to ban Karan Johar's film 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' because it has Pakistani actor Fawad Khan, said people from the industry are always the first to be bullied. "I am tired of the film industry being soft targets. We are damned if we do, damned if we don't! When we don't involve ourselves, they ask 'why is Bollywood quiet now?' When we involve ourselves, we become the scapegoats to distract you from the real news. Either way they use us to sensationalise news," Kashyap said. The director said though the demand to ban the movies starring Pakistani artistes was not made by the government, the elected members should protect people from bullies. "I'm also well aware that the government did not cry 'BAN' or demand that Pakistani artists be sent back. Just as I'm aware that the PM himself doesn't censor my films. But we elected them and so it is their responsibility to protect us from bullies - media or political parties. "And when the governing party's designated members don't respond in hours of crisis because they are second guessing the mood of the PM then I would rather talk straight to the PM himself." Kashyap also questioned the trollers for asking proof of his patriotism. "There was also sarcasm in the tweet that followed; 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' was for those mindless trollers who constantly ask for proof of your patriotism. Apparently thats all it takes. It was a jibe at them. Patriotic slogans don't absolve you from it all. I hope this explains .. (sic)" Anurag Kashyap's post on Facebook. Mumbai: Tuesday witnessed a lot of action go on on social media after the makers unveiled Dear Zindagi's first look online and now, they have released the film's first teaser. In the teaser, we see a breezy chemistry between Shah Rukh Khan and Alia Bhatt. As we see the bubbly Alia quizzing bearded Shah Rukh Khan with her queries, the sweet humour in the film doesn't go miss. Reportedly, there is no trailer of the film but four teasers, which will be released one after one. The makers have now released the first one, titled 'Life Is A Game'. The Gauri Shinde helmed film, stars Alia Bhatt and Shah Rukh Khan in the lead roles, along with an ensemble of male actors including Aditya Roy Kapoor, Ali Zafar, Kunal Kapoor and Angad Bedi. The film, slated for a November 25, 2016 release, had earlier been mired in controversy, owing to the involvement of Pakistani actor Ali Zafar in the cast. Co-produced by Karan Johar's Dharma Productions whose own 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' is at the zenith of the tension between political parties vying for a blanket ban on films involving Pakistani artistes and the film fraternity, the film has reportedly done away with Zafar's portions in the trailer. SRK and Alia had earlier taken to social media to tease fans on the generic theme and mood of the film, with their own take on the proverbial 'Monday Blues'. Watch the film's first teaser below: Vijayawada: A brain dead patients family came forward to give a new lease of life to six people who were desperately waiting for organ donors on Wednesday. Mandava Vamshi Krishna who belongs to Jaggaiahpet was working as network administrator at Mandava Engineering College. He was critically ill with a brain disease and was undergoing treatment at Andhra Hospitals. His condition deteriorated on Tuesday and the doctors declared him brain dead on Wednesday morning. The family of Vamshi showing came forward to donate his organs. His parents Venugopal Rao and Rajeswari gave their consent to donate all his useful organs through the Jeevandan Trust. The doctors immediately made arrangements for the organ transplantation and to transplant them on six people who were waiting for donors. Liver, heart valves and the heart of Vamshi Krishna were shifted to Hyderabad and were utilized on the listed patients under the Jeevandan scheme of the government. The heart was used by Apollo Hospitals on a 26-year-old patient and heart valves were given to Innova Childrens Heart Hospital. The liver was given to Yashoda Hospital and has been transplanted on a 42-year-old patient from Ludhiana. The recipients are in the intensive care unit after surgery. Two kidneys were given to two patients at Ayush and NRI Hospi-tals in Vijayawada; the eyes were donated to Vasan Eye Care. Yang Li, 24, underwent an abortion so that she could donate her bone marrow to her brother, Yang Jun. (Credit: YouTube) A young woman from China made the heartbreaking decision to terminate her pregnancy in order to save her brothers life. Yang Li, 24, from Hangzhou City, was 12 weeks pregnant when she chose to give up her unborn child so that she could donate her bone marrow to her 29-year-old brother, Yang Jun. Mr Jun, who was diagnosed with lymphoma in September 2015, could only be saved if he got a marrow transplant. Tests revealed that his sibling Li was a perfect transplant match. When she discussed the potential donation with experts, she was warned that undergoing the procedure could have an adverse effect on her child, reports Daily Mail. Li was finally able to make the seemingly impossible choice with the support of her husband and in-laws and had an abortion recently. The doctors will perform the marrow transplant surgery on her as soon as her body recovers. Her decision has polarised opinions on Chinese social media with some hailing her as a hero and other critical of her actions. It might be fined 16,000 euros ($17,500) because its bells are "too noisy." (Photo: AFP) Spain: A small Spanish town is considering fining a medieval church 16,000 euros ($17,500) because its bells are "too noisy." The town hall of Mostoles, southwest of Madrid, said Tuesday that following complaints from residents, town technicians measured the noise level of the chimes of Our Lady of the Assumption Church and found they were some 30 decibels above the 55 rate permitted by town regulations. Experts say normal conversation produces 55-60 decibels while an airplane in flight produces 110-120 decibels. Parish priest Ignacio Torres told the El Pais newspaper the bells have always been tolling in the town, and that they were usually only rung at noon and before evening Mass. He said he had no idea how the church would pay the fine if enforced. Many Thais are heading to tattoo parlours to get a lasting memory of the only monarch they have ever known. (Credit: YouTube) Days after widely revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej died, many Thais are heading to tattoo parlours to get a lasting memory of the only monarch they have ever known. In the seaside resort town of Pattaya, the Skin Art Tattoo parlour offered up to 50 free tattoos per day between Saturday and Monday, media reported, while in Bangkok tattoo artists are worked off their feet. The Sak Lai Tattoo Studio in a popular shopping district of central Bangkok has prepared several tattoo designs in honour of the late king, including the number 9 in Thai because he was ninth king of the country's 234-year-old Chakri Dynasty. "It's a way to express and record their own story of love and devotion to our king," said Esara Usada, 55, who has been a tattoo artist for two decades and owns Sak Lai. His tattoo artist wife, Tapanee Prasitsuk, said they are fully booked for the next month. Prices for a tattoo at their parlour start at 2,000 baht ($57). But as a tribute to the late king, prices for king-related tattoos will start at 1,000 baht, Tapanee said. Piyaphan Phanwiroj, 34, a military officer, sat still for about 20 minutes while Tapanee inked away at the nape of his neck, producing a sentence that read in Thai: "I was born in the reign of King Rama IX". "The tattoo speaks louder than love. It speaks of respect, obedience and loyalty," he said. "It will remind me to do more for my country. In times of hopelessness, it will remind me of all his hard work for us." Other popular tattoos include the phrase "May I be your humble servant in all my lives" and lyrics from the royal anthem. Two brothers have been sent to a remand home even as Bihar police assured security to the family of the boy. (Photo: PTI/Representational) Muzaffarpur: With a video of two sons of a murder accused mercilessly beating their Dalit classmate going viral on social media, the duo have been sent to a remand home even as Bihar police assured security to the family of the boy. The maternal grandfather of the boy, a class XII student of Kendriya Vidyalaya in Gannipur in Muzaffarpur, lodged an FIR with SC & ST police station on Monday. In the FIR, he also claimed the entire family was terrified because the father of the two brothers is a notorious criminal lodged in jail outside the district in a murder case. According to Deputy Superintendent of Police Ashish Anand, the two brothers have been sent to remand home after being presented before Juvenile Justice Board on Tuesday. They have also been removed from the school that gave them forced Transfer Certificate. School principal Rajiv Ranjan had lodged a written complaint with the Kaji Muhammadpur police station. The purported video of the incident shows the two brothers one of them a student of class XII and the other of class XI pushing and thrashing the victim in presence of some other schoolmates on September 25. Meanwhile, police has assured security to the family of the boy. "I have given my phone number to the family to call me any time if they feel insecure. I have also directed Kazi Muhammadpur police station to ensure that the family is not hurt by anybody in the wake of the incident," Anand told PTI. He said he had told the school Principal that there should be no inconvenience to the boy in the school in the wake of the incident. Union Minister of State for HRD Upendra Kushwaha had taken strong note of the video and on his directive a team of Kendriya Vidyalaya officials had paid a visit to the school on October 14. The Uttar Pradesh police have booked a local Samajwadi Party leader and three others for allegedly looting a roadside restaurant in Bareilly. (Photo: PTI/Representational) Bareilly: A local Samajwadi Party leader and three others have been booked for allegedly looting a roadside restaurant Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, police said on Wednesday. The owner of 'Netaji Dhaba' at the NH by pass, Anil Patel, has alleged that Sandesh Kannaujia, vice president of the district unit of the SP, and his three associates ate at the restaurant on Monday night and got involved in a brawl with his worker at the time of payment, police said. Patel has alleged that besides getting involved in verbal fight, Kannaujia and his associates also looted cash kept at the cash counter. They also broke chairs and threatened before leaving, police said. An FIR under various sections has been filed against Kannaujia and others and investigations are going on in the case, Superintendent of Police Sameer Saurabh said. Meanwhile, Kannaujia said that the FIR has been filed by his political adversaries and he didn't visit the restaurant that day. Kannaujia said the worker who has accused him of loot has been involved in petty thefts in the past and he (Kannaujia) had opposed his actions about a year ago. New Delhi: A man has been held at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) here today for allegedly sneaking in the terminal area on an invalid ticket to see off his girlfriend. Officials said the incident was reported at about 4:00 am when on-duty CISF personnel apprehended a man, identified as A V Singh, while he was hurriedly exiting from the terminal. On being probed, they said, Singh was detected to have entered the airport terminal using an invalid ticket which he had booked but cancelled later. Singh informed, they said, that he did this act in order to see off his girlfriend who was travelling to Bangkok via Kolkata. "Singh, a resident of Chanakyapuri area in central Delhi, was handed over to Delhi Police who booked him under sections 447 (criminal trespass) and 471 (using as genuine a forged document of the IPC," they said. Under the law, only fliers with a valid travel ticket can enter the airport terminal area. Pune: A 31-year-old married woman was hacked to death allegedly by a stalker in Kothrud area on Tuesday morning when she was on her way to work, police said. Shubhangi Khatavkar, was a resident of Karve Nagar and used to work as domestic help. Police said the accused, Vishwas Kalekar, used to harass her on a regular basis and was trying to establish proximity with her. However, she had objected to his advances and was even chided by her husband. "Kalekar, who was angry over being reprimanded by Khatavkar's husband, followed her in the morning when she was on her way to work on a moped. He attacked her on her neck with a sharp weapon and later escaped on her vehicle. He also took away two SIM cards from her mobile phones," an officer of Alankar Police Station said. A case of murder has been filed against the accused and a manhunt has been launched to nab him. New Delhi: At least three pending judicial requests including one relating to 1984 anti-Sikh riots witness along with 13 extradition pleas from India may be discussed between the CBI Director and Royal Canadian Mounted Police Commissioner Bob Paulson who is visiting the national capital. Paulson, who will be delivering D. P. Kohli memorial lecture in New Delhi on Thursday on the theme of policing in 21st century, will hold discussions with the Central Bureau of Investigation Chief Anil Sinha. They said at least three Letters Rogatory or judicial requests to Canada hovering around a corruption case, a cyber crime and examination of a witness of 1984 anti-Sikh riots involving Congress politician Jagdish Tytler are likely to crop up during the discussion. The agency had taken over investigation in the FIR registered at Bara Hindu Rao police station relating to anti-Sikh riots at Gurudwara Pulbangash in North Delhi where three people were killed on November 1, 1984, a day after the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. It had filed a closure report and claimed that it could not get in touch with Narinder Singh, son of an eye witness who is believed to be in Canada. Arms dealer Abhishek Verma had claimed that Tytler had allegedly helped Narinder Singh to settle in Canada. Besides, the sources said, India is also likely to raise the issue of 13 extradition requests that are "under process", including for some wanted persons facing charges of terror and drug trafficking among others. India had signed Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with Canada in 1998 to facilitate assistance in criminal matter. After the signing of MLAT, Canada has so far processed eight Indian judicial requests relating to human trafficking, bank fraud, anti-corruption among others. After receiving a tip-off, a joint team of army, Jammu and Kashmir Police, the Border Security Force and the Central Reserve Police Force conducted search operation on the intervening nights of Sunday and Monday. (Photo: AP) Baramulla: At least 44 persons involved with terror related activities were apprehended by security forces after they conducted an extensive search operation in the wee hours of Monday, at several sensitive localities in Jammu and Kashmir. After receiving a tip-off, a joint team of army, Jammu and Kashmir Police, the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) conducted search operation on the intervening nights of Sunday and Monday in localities including Qazi Hamam, Ganai Hamam, Taweed Gunj and Jamia. Large quantity of incriminating material such as petrol bombs, Chinese and Pakistan flags, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad letter head pads, unauthorized mobile phones and seditious anti-national publicity material were seized during the raids. In addition a large number of suspected hideouts were busted during the prolonged search operations. Following the operation, the LeT issued a threat to the Baramulla SHO, said a report. Later, the security forces sanitised the area searching over 700 houses in a span of 12 hours on Monday. Frequent incidents of violence, protests and now, a murder, have taken a heavy toll on Brand Bengaluru. Over the last two months, the police have clamped prohibitory orders repeatedly, robbing people of a sense of security. Though the ban order under Section 144 does not directly affect normal life, it certainly has sent a message to the outside world that all is not well with the IT Capital of the country. The city has had a volatile year with a protest by garment factory workers turning violent in April, followed by the Cauvery riots that saw buses and other vehicles go up in smoke in September. And now the murder of an RSS worker has led to tension in parts, forcing the police to impose prohibitory orders in Commercial Street, Shivajinagar, Pulikeshinagar and Bharathinagar police station limits till Thursday midnight. In fact, the police has clamped prohibitory orders in the city at least five times over the last six months for various reasons. The gravity of such action hit home particularly during the Cauvery violence, when curfew was declared in 16 police station limits, and prohibitory orders were imposed all over the city. Read: Imposing prohibitory orders not wise choice If the frequency with which section 144 has been invoked this year to restore calm has proved disquieting to Bengalureans accustomed to peaceful living, could it impact its image among tourists and even investors? Ask Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) president, M C Dinesh, and he acknowledges that the law and order situation in the city is a cause for concern. "It is the responsibility of everyone to protect the citys brand image. We need to ensure that the law and order situation is good in the city. The police and the intelligence department need to work hard on this," he stresses. And Prof. S R Keshava of the Bengaluru Universitys Department of Economics, warns that a bad law and order situation can affect FDI flow into the city. The state government recently held a global investors meet, but if we are not able to maintain law and order, all the promises made by the investors may remain on paper. Murder, protests and agitations dont send the right signal to anyone. We need to have peace in society, he underlines, noting that Brand Bengaluru can do without such negativity as it currently manages to attract 13 per cent of the FDI coming into the country. As for brand guru, Harish Bijoor , he says each time there has been even limited use of section 144 in the city, it has signalled to investors, corporate outfits and tourists alike that things are not fine and this could harm Bengaluru's image in the long run. But defending such stern police action in times of trouble, former DG and IGP, S.T. Ramesh contends that if it doesnt take precautions on these lines there could be more violence, which may impact the citys image greatly. Its the duty and responsibility of the police to maintain law and order at any cost, and use of prohibitory orders is just one such tool. The Cauvery was an emotional issue that had the potential to create clashes among people on linguistic grounds. And the recent murder of an RSS man has the potential to create communal tension. So the police are justified in clamping prohibitory orders, he reasons. A senior police officer also notes that imposing prohibitory orders is just a preventive step. It may signal that something is not right in the city. But our primary duty is to maintain law and order. If we dont take such preventive steps, the damage could be even more serious, he warns. Rudresh laid to rest, family, friends mourn RSS worker, Rudresh Rs final journey to the Kalpalli crematorium was through Kamaraj Road, where he was hacked to death on Monday by two unidentified men on a bike. The funeral procession stopped for a few moments at the spot where he was attacked and some prayers were said by his family and friends before it moved on to the crematorium near the Indiranagar police station. Over a 1000 personnel, including KSRP platoons and the Rapid Action Force (RAF) provided security in and around the Shivajinagar junction and along the route of the procession. Shivajinagar itself was deserted with shops downing their shutters in response to the prohibitory orders imposed by the police under section 144 of the CrPc. It was only after the final rites were conducted at the crematorium at around 5 pm that areas in and around Shivajinagar limped back to normalcy and BMTC buses resumed their services from the bus stand post 4 pm. While the police had taken all precautions to prevent any outbreak of violence, members of a minority community were seen helping mourners and distributing water and other refreshments among them as hundreds of the RSS workers friends and relatives paid homage to him at his house near the Mariayamma temple in Shivajinagar where it was kept for public viewing earlier in the day even as the area around reverberated to the sound of Om played on a loudspeaker. Former Deputy Chief Minister, R. Ashok and senior BJP leaders, Shobha Karandlaje and Katte Subramanya were among those who visited the family and Rudreshs wife, Saraswathi Tuesday morning to condole his death. The RSS worker belonged to the Tamil speaking Yadava community, which has been a part and parcel of the city for hundreds of years. Our ancestors have been here for centuries and we have all been born and brought up in Bengaluru, said Prakash Yadav, a cousin of Rudresh, adding, We are in shock still. We dont know why anyone would do this, but a few days ago somebody had threatened the Yadavas in our area after learning that Rudresh was progressing quite fast. We are waiting for the police to arrest the culprits and then will decide what to do next. According to another relative, Rudresh was very active locally in festivals, including the recent Ganesh Chaturthi. With the help of his relatives, who ran catering businesses and supplied milk, he would often supply food to such functions, sometimes free of cost. We are over a dozen families in this area and Rudresh used to take care of us very well, he said. New Delhi: Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday asked a group of newly-inducted IAS officers not to hesitate in putting forth their point of view before the ministers in case of difference of opinion. The assertion was made during an interactive session between 11 union ministers, including Singh, and about 35 IAS officers of 2014 batch of Uttar Pradesh cadre as well as those officers who are domicile of the state, presently posted in various ministries as Assistant Secretaries. Addressing the young officers, Singh called upon them to always uphold their reputation and credibility. Asking them to bear empathy for the last man in the queue, he said the IAS officers should shoulder big responsibility in the district and must win the trust of the common people. Recalling his tenure as the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Singh asked the IAS officers not to hesitate to put across their point of view before the ministers in case of difference of opinion, according to an official release. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said the IAS officer being the steward of administration in the district, should always show concern to the interests of poor people. He asked them to show sensitivity to issues of the armed forces personnel and ex-servicemen. Minister of Women and Child Development, Maneka Gandhi said as District Magistrates, the IAS officers should show a sense of compassion and kindness to resolve the problems of the common man. Other ministers who participated in the interactive session included Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge) and Culture Mahesh Sharma, MoS for Minority Affairs (Independent Charge) and Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, MoS (External Affairs) V K Singh, MoS (Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation) Sanjeev Kumar Balyan and MoS (Food Processing Industries) Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti. Ministers of State for HRD Mahendra Nath Pandey, MoS (Women & Child Development) Krishna Raj and MoS (Health and Family Welfare) Anupriya Patel also participated in the session. Bhubaneswar: The toll in the Sum Hospital fire rose to 21 on Wednesday with the death of a patient who was undergoing treatment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Bhubaneswar. The deceased, identified as Janakibla Hui, had been shifted to AIIMS soon after the devastating fire ravaged the private medical facility on Monday evening, a spokesman of AIIMS-Bhubaneswar said. The woman had earlier been admitted to Sum Hospital reportedly with lung cancer, he said adding she had been shifted to AIIMS in a critical condition. Most of the victims, who were on ventilator support, perished because of asphyxiation as a thick layer of smoke had enveloped vast areas of Sum Hospital after the fire broke out. Read: Odisha fire: Hospital did not have accreditation, Health Minister to take stock Out of the 21 deaths recorded so far, 14 cases were reported in the Capital Hospital, five at AMRI Hospital and two in AIIMS, officials said. As many as 106 patients have been shifted from the fire-hit private hospital to different places including Capital Hospital, AIIMS, AMRI Hospital, Kalinga Hospital, KIIMS and Hitech Hospital in Bhubaneswar, while some were sent to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. Assuring all support to the Odisha government for the treatment of patients affected in the Sum Hospital fire, Health Minister JP Nadda on Wednesday said he was not here for any blame game over the incident which claimed 21 lives. "I am not here for blame game. Our priority is proper treatment of patients who have been affected due to the fire at a medical facility two days ago," Nadda told reporters here on his arrival at the state capital. Stating that the Centre would take measures to ensure better treatment of the fire-hit patients, Nadda said the state govenrment had constituted panels for conducting inquiry into the mishap. The state government should implement fire safety measures at hospitals, said Nadda who is slated to hold discussions with health officials. The Health Minister and Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan met patients at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, AMRI Hospital and KIMS Hospital. The two ministers will also visit Sum Hospital where a fire had killed 20 people on Monday evening. Panaji: The political 'charge sheet' released by Congress against the BJP-led government in Goa has elicited mixed reactions with the ruling party rubbishing the charges, while the newly formed outfit Goa Forward terming the main Opposition's move as better late than never. "Better late than never that the grand old party (Congress) is trying to behave like the Opposition, which in the last five years it has never appeared to be," Goa Forward spokesman Durgadas Kamat said on the 'charge sheet' released on Monday. "However, some prominent and conspicuous issues that have been overlooked in the charge sheet will lead to obvious suspicions of a joint venture between both the prominent national parties (BJP-Congress) in the state," Kamat said. He said Congress missed to mention the land scam in the guise of promoting Special Economic Zone (SEZ) which was a prominent issue that should have been taken by the state government. Congress' 'charge sheet' nailed the Laxmikant Parsekar government on 25 different counts accusing it of frequent 'U turns', broken promises, brazen scams and bad governance. It had also charged BJP of stopping mining activity, paving way for large scale destruction of coconut trees through amendment to Trees Act, making Goa a 'sin-city' through drugs and prostitution besides criticising it on other fronts. The ruling party has, however, rubbished the charge sheet claiming that it is not for the Opposition party but people of Goa to evaluate performance of the government in last five years. "People gave BJP a mandate in 2012. BJP was chosen while Congress was shown the door by voters. Now it is for the voters to evaluate our performance," BJP Goa spokesman Kiran Kandolkar said. He ridiculed the 'charge sheet' and said, "people will give hundred per cent marks to the BJP led government for its performance which was people-centric and development oriented." Kandolkar said BJP has fulfilled 90 per cent of the promises it made in the election manifesto that was released during 2012 polls. "People will once again vote for the party," he claimed. New Delhi: You cannot put the people to daily patriotism test and asking them to prove it in television studios everyday was unfair, BJP General Secretary Ram Madhav has said. When asked, in an interview, about an AAP leader recently confronting Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti over the Burhan Wani episode, he said it was not about her alone and people should not be questioned about their patriotism on a daily basis. Madhav, who has a RSS background, drew a parallel with the nationalism of BJP and RSS members being "questioned" in the past and said they would wonder how many times they would have to say that they were not criminals. "I am not talking about Mehbooba Mufti alone. You cannot put people to daily patriotism test. You cannot ask them everyday to prove their patriotism. They are responsible people and holding responsible Constitutional position," he told NDTV. Asked about the nationalism of those not agreeing to a certain point of view being questioned, he said, "If somebody is working against the interest of the country, question him, challenge him...If you want somebody to prove their patriotism everyday in a TV studio that is unfair. That you don't do." Madhav, who is BJP's points man for Jammu and Kashmir, also praised Mufti, saying she has handled the ongoing unrest in the state with great maturity and has been consistent. She has to take care of the state's law and order and also the sentiments of the people, he said. Bengaluru: Karnataka government on Wednesday said it would stick to the Supreme Court direction to the state to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu till further orders. "We will stick to the Supreme Court order. I want to say no more than that," Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister T B Jayachandra told reporters on the sidelines of a media briefing on cabinet meeting. The Supreme Court had on Tuesday retained its direction to Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs till further orders and asked the two states to ensure peace and harmony, saying citizens should not become law unto themselves. A three-judge bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra, which commenced the crucial hearing on various issues arising out of the dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over sharing of Cauvery waters, had said it first intended to adjudicate the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by both the states and Kerala against the Cauvery water dispute tribunal's 2013 award. "The interim order dated October 4 directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu will continue till further orders," the bench also comprising Justices Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar had said. A court-appointed Supervisory Committee has submitted its report on the ground situation in the basin region in both the states, which have locked horns over water release in recent months, escalating tension over the more than century-old dispute. The bench had also said on Tuesday it would first go into the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry against the award of tribunal and then hear the arguments on the report filed by the committee. Raipur: Chhattisgarh Congress on Tuesday suspended its rebel MLA R K Rai for "anti-party" activities but that did not deter him from making "derogatory" remarks against Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi. The decision to suspend Rai, considered a supporter of Chhattisgarh Janata Congress Party chief Ajit Jogi, was taken by Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee (CPCC) at a meeting of its Coordination Committee in Raipur. "With the unanimous decision of the members of Coordination Committee, Rai has been suspended from the party," AICC General Secretary in-charge of Chhattisgarh B K Hariprasad told reporters after the meeting. The panel also recommended to the party's central disciplinary committee that the MLA from Gunderdehi be dismissed from Congress, he added. Hariprasad asserted Congress will fight the 2018 Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh under the leadership of the party's state chief Bhupesh Baghel and legislature party leader TS Singhdeo. Meanwhile, Rai welcomed the decision and said the action was taken against him for speaking against Rahul. "I was told the action has been taken against me for making comments against Rahul Gandhi (in the past). I can't call a donkey a horse. If the party feels my observation is wrong then either it is blind or (is) acting like a blind person," a defiant Rai said in a statement. "I am not at all sad with the move because I am a true and vocal tribal representative. I am free now," said the legislator, adding the decision has once again exposed the "anti-tribal" face of Congress. Chhattisgarh Congress had issued a show cause notice to Rai last week for "anti party" activities and publicly making statements against the party. The police officer-turned-politician is said to be a staunch supporter of Jogi, who floated his own party after quitting Congress in June this year.Jogi had brought Rai into politics and helped him ingetting a ticket from Gunderdehi seat in the 2013 Assembly polls. New Delhi: A 16-year-old boy in Lodhi Colony has been rendered homeless after allegedly being "disowned" by his mother, a government employee, who "gave up" on her son owing to his "waywardness", police said on Tuesday. The boy has alleged that he was not being treated well and was evicted from his home by his own mother a few months back, they said. "The boy had been staying at a friend's place since April but after his friend also expressed his helplessness in keeping him at his home any further, he was forced to stay in a park and beg," said a senior police officer. The boy's mother, an employee in the Ministry of Finance, had separated from her first husband by mutual consent and got the custody of her son. Later, she got married to another man with whom she has two daughters. Her second husband died in 2012 due to liver cirrhosis. The boy has also alleged that his step-father used to ill-treat him and lock him up. "He studied till Class VIII in two schools and this year, his mother took him to get admission in an academy in Noida. He couldn't clear the entrance test and after that his mother disowned him," the official said. The complainant's mother, meanwhile, said a "false case" had been registered against her. "If I wasn't giving him food for so many days, how could he have survived? I asked him to move out in April and when he came back, I didn't allow him in," she said. The mother said that she had "made all attempts" to get him on the right path but "he refused to mend his ways". "He is a very intelligent boy but he uses his brain in destructive things. I got him admitted to good schools but he would bully students and not report to school. He would go missing for days and we would have no idea about his whereabouts," she said. "I took him to an academy in Noida to get admission but he didn't write anything in the entrance test. What could I have done?," she asked. She further alleged that the boy used to beat his younger sisters and had "destroyed" the atmosphere of their house. "When he was staying with us, I used to ask him to not come home from school when I wasn't there and instead play in the park. He used to beat his sisters. He destroyed the atmosphere at our house," she said. The boy has been rescued by the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and taken to a childrens' home and a complaint filed against the mother, police said. Panaji: The Chief Electoral Office in Goa has ordered an inquiry into pictures that surfaced on the social media showing hundreds of EPIC cards dumped in a roadside drain in Margao, 40 kms from Panaji. Goa Forward (GF) party too met officials at the Chief Electoral office producing pictures of the voter cards which were found dumped in the poll-bound state. "I have asked District Collector to submit a report within 48 hours about those pictures," Joint Chief Electoral Officer Narayan Navati told PTI on Wednesday. Navati said a thorough probe will reveal the truth behind the cards but the first look at the pictures indicates that these are old Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC) cards. "They may have been dumped in the dustbin during shifting of mamlatdar office in Margao town. But I will be able to comment properly only after the inquiry," he said. The Collectorate complex including mamlatdar office which was earlier located in the heart of Margao city has shifted to the outskirts in a new complex. Goa Forward (GF) Party had raised an alarm when nearly 500 voting cards were found in the roadside drain on the way to Old Railway station in Margao town. The party suspected foul play behind the act and has demanded a probe into the entire episode. "We demand a thorough inquiry in the matter and action on the officers handling the process of electoral roll. We have been getting complaints from a certain section of a community from across the state that their names are deleted from the electoral rolls which is done mechanically at the behest of BJP workers," party's spokesman Durgadas Kamat alleged. He accused BJP workers of coaxing election commission officials to delete names from voting list. "BJP is so desperate that they are trying all this dirty tricks so that the names of those voters who are against BJP are deleted from the rolls and they would not be able to vote in the upcoming assembly elections," he said. Goa Forward will petition the Election Commission at Delhi in this matter by October 19, Kamat said. New Delhi: Nepal's Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' has said he raised issues of trilateral cooperation during his chance meeting with Indian counterpart Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Goa to which both leaders responded "very positively". Dahal during the 'chance' trilateral meeting held on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit on Saturday had expressed Nepal's desire to act as a "dynamic bridge" between the two Asian giants and to reap the benefit of playing such a role. During the meeting, Dahal said he raised issues of trilateral cooperation in the socio-economic front, to which both the Chinese and Indian leaders responded "very positively". "Nepal can benefit greatly from the economic progress of China and India, if there is trilateral cooperation," Dahal said while talking to reporters at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu. "After a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, I was waiting at the waiting room to return to the hotel where I was staying, when all of sudden, President Xi entered the room. This was a pleasant surprise. We discussed various bilateral issues and full implementation of deals that Nepal and China had sealed in the past," he said. Dahal said he also discussed President Xi's prospective visit to Nepal, Constitution implementation and conclusion of the peace process in Nepal. According to Mr Dahal, when he had talked one-on-one for around 20 minutes with President Xi, the Indian Prime Minister entered the room. "I wanted such a meeting," Mr Dahal said, terming it a "rare and pleasant surprise". "I was sitting on a couch between the two leaders -- south of Xi and north of Modi -- just like Nepal's geographical position," Dahal was quoted as saying by The Himalayan Times. He also made it clear it was not a pre-planned meeting. "I stressed that trilateral cooperation would help Nepal benefit from their economic growth and development," he stated. India had also said both President Xi and Mr Dahal were waiting in the leaders' lounge when Prime Minister Modi also reached there as he had to go with all the BRICS leaders for an informal dinner, turning the bilateral into a 'chance trilateral'. Dahal also termed the meeting as a "pleasant coincidence" and said "it was a great pride for me". Mumbai: The pilot of an Indigo flight complained to the Mumbai Air Traffic Control around 6 pm on Tuesday about having sighted a drone. The information was immediately conveyed to the security agency of the city airport, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which informed the domestic airport police about it. The message was conveyed to Saharthe, Ghatkopar, Kurla and Sakinaka police as well and officers are now trying to trace the drone. Earlier this month, the Mumbai police had issued an alert about a possible terror strike that could be carried out via drones. A circular issued by the Mumbai Police Commissionerate, a copy of which is with The Asian Age, warns of attacks that could be orchestrated between October 2 and 31. DCP Virendra Mishra of zone 8, however, informed that the police had slapped section 144 on drones, and so they were checking about it. The pilot informed security agencies that he had sighted something like a drone. So as of now, the drone sighting is not confirmed, and we have to confirm it, he said. CISF sources informed this newspaper that at 5.55 pm, they were alerted by the ATC that the pilot of the Indigo flight 6E 755, flying from Delhi, had seen a drone 100 feet below the flight on the Kurla side. The alleged drone, which was of a pink-blue colour, was flying on the east side of Mumbai airport at a distance of 3.5 km. A police officer from the domestic airports police station said that the pilot had informed them that the drone was at a height of 500 feet. The pilot said that when he was about to land at the runway 27 end, he sighted the drone, he said. BJP-led state government has now decided to rope in RSS-linked organisations to overcome the malnutrition crisis. (Photo: Representational Image) Mumbai: After drawing flak from various quarters over the issue of malnutrition in Maharashtra, the BJP-led state government has now decided to rope in RSS-linked organisations to overcome the crisis. "We are taking help from a few RSS-affiliated Jankalyan Samiti, Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram and Arogya Bharati Sanstha as they are playing a significant role in providing relief in malnourished areas," said Medical Education Minister Girish Mahajan. "The workers of these organisations have personal contacts with each household in the areas they are working in. And since they have been doing this for a long time, the goodwill earned by them will definitely help the government," he added. Dr Vijay Kulkarni, member of national committee of 'Arogya Bharti Sanstha' said they are already working in areas where malnourishment is found and have done a survey of malnourished children with the help of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) in Palghar district. "Ideally, the government should provide 'take home ration' for malnourished children based on a scientific study instead of providing similar food for everyone in all seasons by only calculating the vitamins, proteins and calories content," said Dr Kulkarni. Mahajan said the government will soon start a project aimed at improving conditions of malnourished children and pregnant women in the tribal region. "A project will start from Palghar district from Thursday with the help of RSS-linked bodies and other NGOs like Tata Trust, Hinduja Trust, Pathalogy Association, UNICEF and fifty reputed doctors as well," the minister said. "The government, with the help of all NGOs, will create an awareness among the locals, train them on malnourishment, screen children and treat them," he added. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday night spoke to West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee to enquire about the health of her nephew and party MP Abhishek Banerjee who was injured in a car mishap. "PM @narendramodi spoke to WB CM @MamataOfficial Ji & enquired about the health of MP @abhishekaitc, who was injured in an accident," the PMO tweeted. "The Prime Minister wishes MP @abhishekaitc a speedy recovery," it added. Earlier, Abhishek Banerjee was injured when his vehicle met with an accident on NH-2 near Singur while he was returning here from Murshidabad in West Bengal. Ten policemen of the 28-year-old MP's convoy were also injured. He was stated to be stable. Bengaluru: Reacting to the Supreme Court order directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu till further orders, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said there was no water in the state's reservoirs. "There is no water at our reservoirs, I have not yet seen the order copy. I will speak to the advocates after going through the order copy," he told reporters in Bengaluru. The apex court on Tuesday retained its direction to Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu till further orders and asked the two governments to ensure peace and harmony, saying citizens should not become law unto themselves. "We intend to first adjudicate the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. At this juncture, the interim order dated October 4 directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu will continue till further orders," the bench comprising of Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar said. Made Gowda, President of Mandya Zilla Raitha Hitharakshana Samiti (MZRHS), which is spearheading the Cauvery agitation in Mandya, said, "we should maintain peace until tomorrow's hearing." "The court might have asked us to release 2,000 cusecs of water to test Karnataka government's patience....If they again ask us to release water tomorrow, we can reject it. There is no dharma in leaving water to them for crops, when we don't have it even for drinking," he added. Pune: NCP leader Ajit Pawar, who is known for being outspoken, on Wednesday claimed there was a time when MLAs used to defect for Rs 50 lakh, but nowadays not even a corporator can be made to switch the sides with that amount. Pawar, who was speaking at a party meet in Karmala in Solapur district, recalled the incident of how the Vilasrao Deshmukh-led state government had to ferry its MLAs to Bangalore to avoid any sort of horse-trading before the majority vote. "Due to the fear of horse-trading and defection of MLAs, Vilasrao Deshmukh got frustrated and in that period MLAs were ferried to Bangalore as that time MLAs used to defect for Rs 50 lakh, but nowadays even a corporator cannot be made to cross over with that amount," he said. Pawar also appealed to all the parties not to give candidature to those who defect and join other party. Allahabad: A court in Uttar Pradesh has issued notice to retired Supreme Court judge Justice Markandey Katju on a petition accusing him of having made "objectionable" remarks with regard to consumption of beef in his blog posts. Allahabad's Additional Sessions Judge Shuchi Srivastava passed the order on the review petition of advocate Rakesh Nath Pandey, who alleged that Justice Katju has hurt the sentiments of a major section of the society by attacking the Hindu belief that the cow was sacred and seeking repeal of the laws whereby slaughtering cow has been banned in many states. The ADJ has asked Justice Katju to file his reply by the next date of hearing on November 18. The petition was filed by Pandey challenging an order of the Chief Judicial Magistrate whereby his prayer for directing the police to lodge an FIR against Justice Katju was turned down. Justice Katju, who is also a former Chairman of the Press Council of India, has made a series of controversial statements on the communally sensitive issue of cow slaughter and beef ever since possession and sale of beef were made punishable with fine and five years in jail in Maharashtra in January last year. In the wake of the Dadri lynching case of September last year wherein a 50-year-old man was beaten to death near Noida by a mob suspecting him of having slaughtered a cow and consumed its meat, Justice Katju came up with an outpouring of a number of scathing remarks. Recently, in a Facebook post, Justice Katju wrote that he had a "danda" (stick) with which he wished to hit those who made a fuss over the issue of cow slaughter and beef. Bhubaneswar: The superintendent of Sum Hospital, who was among the four officials arrested in connection with a major fire at the medical facility, was on Wednesday admitted to the SCB Medical College Hospital in Cuttack after complaining of chest pain. Pushparaj Samantasinghar was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Cardiology Department of the SCB Hospital, a police official said. Besides Samantasinghar, police had arrested Electrical Maintenance Engineer Amulya Sahu, Fire Safety Officer Santosh Das and Junior Engineer (Electrical Maintenance) Malaya Kumar Sahu of the private hospital in connection with the blaze which killed 20 persons. The arrests were made on Tuesday on the basis of the FIR lodged by the Directorate of Fire Services. The FIR was lodged at the Khandagiri police station here by B B Das, Fire Officer (Central Range). Meanwhile, Director General of Fire Service Binay Behera submitted a report to the state government on the fire that ravaged parts of the private hospital. Behera in his report has mentioned that fire safety norms as per the 2013 guidelines were not followed by the hospital authorities, an official said. Only three of Odisha's 568 hospitals have fire safety clearance, the National Human Rights Commission said on Wednesday. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: Only three of Odisha's 568 hospitals have fire safety clearance, the National Human Rights Commission said on Wednesday and issued a notice to the state government over the fire incident at a hospital in Bhubaneswar which has left 21 people dead so far. The Commission has taken suo motu cognisance of media reports that at least 21 persons died and more than 100 others were injured in the blaze that broke out at the SUM Hospital and Medical College on Monday evening. "In Odisha, out of 568 hospitals, only three have clearance of the department of fire safety," the NHRC said in a statement today. The Commission has issued the notice to the Odisha government's Chief Secretary and sought a report in the matter within six weeks, including on the relief and rehabilitation efforts for the next of kin of the deceased and the injured, an NHRC official said. "He has also been asked to inform about the steps or precautions taken or proposed to be taken by the state government to prevent recurrence of such mishaps," the official said. The Commission has observed that "callous attitude" and "lapses of the authorities", if any, amount to violation of right to life of the patients, and expressed shock as to how the state authorities "allowed" such a large number of hospitals to function without proper fire safety clearance. The NHRC has also observed that reportedly the hospital in question was warned as early as in 2013 for not having adequate safety measures but the hospital authorities "ignored" it. The Director General of Fire Service in Odisha Binay had Behera on Tuesday submitted a report to the state government on the fire that reportedly started in the Operation Theatre of the Dialysis Ward and spread to ICU and nearby wards. Behera has mentioned in the report that fire safety norms as per the 2013 guidelines were not followed by the hospital authorities, a government official said. "40 patients in a critical condition were admitted to different hospitals," the statement said. Detecting serious lapses in safety measures, Union Health Minister J. P. Nadda, who inspected the fire-ravaged hospital, on Wednesday said all those responsible for the incident should be punished. The state government has ordered a high-level probe by the Director, Medical Education and Training, into the incident. New Delhi: The Supreme Court has expressed disagreement with the Centre that the prevailing penal provisions were good enough to cover the issue of hate crimes and racial violence, especially against the people of North Eastern states. "No, it does not," reacted a bench comprising Chief Justice TS Thakur and Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud when the Centre, while expressing reluctance to suggestions for a specific legislation, said sections 153 A and B of Indian Penal Code (IPC) covered anti-racial issues. "The examination is going on whether specific legislation is required or not as the provisions of the IPC covers everything and it would be wrong to say it does not cover it," Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh said. He said section 153 B IPC covers everything and the court could "examine" it. "We will assist you. If you are not satisfied, we will replace it with a new law," he said. The deliberations were going on in the background of the recommendation of M P Bezbaruah committee which suggested amendment in sections 153 A and 153 B of the IPC as a long-term measure to deal with the issue of racial violence. While the law officer was trying to make his submission on the recommendation of Bezbaruah committee, which set up by the Ministry of Home Ministry (MHA) on February 5, 2014 after several incidents of hate crimes against persons hailing from the Northeast, the bench expressed displeasure that effective steps were not being taken to address the issues. "Nothing is on record to show what steps have been taken. We are not going to take what is there in the affidavit," the bench said, adding "legislation is one part of the recommendations". The bench, which posted the matter for hearing on Friday, wanted to know from the Centre whether any steps have been taken to set up a nodal agency to monitor the complaints and related issues. "A pro-active work has to be undertaken. What type of programme has to be there? Call your 'babus' and tell them. We have to pass an order. We can't issue ominous type of directions," the bench said stressing that there should be a nodal agency to address the issues of the Northeastern people. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday reserved its order on maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala against the 2007 award of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (CWDT). "Judgement reserved. Interim order of October 18 to continue till further orders," a bench of Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar said. The bench asked the parties to file their written submissions by October 24 and said it would pass the order thereafter. The Centre, through Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, had raised a preliminary objection claiming that the CWDT award amounted to a final decree in the dispute and the apex court had no jurisdiction to hear appeals against the award of the tribunal. Continuing its argument, Karnataka today said that appeals filed by the state against the award of the tribunal was maintainable. Noted jurist and senior advocate Fali S Nariman, appearing for Karnataka, said the Supreme Court had the jurisdiction to adjudicate the appeals filed by the state against the award of tribunal. Senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, appearing for Tamil Nadu, also contended that the appeals were maintainable and no statute can take away the powers of the apex court. "Section 6(2) of Inter-state Water Disputes Act, 1956 cannot oust Supreme Court's constitutional appellate powers given under Article 136 of the Constitution," Naphade said. Similarly, Kerala also supported the stand of Karnataka and said that the appeals were maintainable. However, Puducherry supported the stand of the Centre that the appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala are not maintainable. Rohatgi reiterated his yesterday's argument that Supreme Court had no jurisdiction to adjudicate the appeals pertaining to the dispute relating to use, distribution and control of inter-state water or river valley. "The appeals filed by the states are not maintainable as per article 131 and 262 of the Constitution and the provisions of Inter-state River Water Disputes Act, 1956," he said. The attorney general said as per the constitutional provisions, the inter-state water dispute tribunal is headed by a retired Supreme Court or High Court judge and its decree has a force like that of a decree of the Supreme Court and thus the apex court cannot hear the appeals against its own order. The bench had yesterday said it would first go into the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala against the award of tribunal and then hear arguments on the report filed by the Supervisory Committee formed to assess the ground realities in the Cauvery basin region. The apex court-appointed panel had in its recent report suggested doing away with "outdated and unscientific water application techniques" to resolve the wrangle, saying both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu were facing water shortage which had created unemployment and financial hardship for the people. It had said the neighbouring riparian states needed to appreciate interest of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry to protect their established irrigation and Karnataka's aspirations for development and educate their people accordingly. The panel in its 40-page report had noted that farmers in both states were in severe distress and adequate crop compensation must be provided to them. Supreme Court had on October 4 directed Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs Cauvery water every day to Tamil Nadu from October 7 to 18 and deferred its order asking the Centre to set up Cauvery Water Management Board (CWMB) till it finally decided on appeals relating to the age-old dispute. It had yesterday directed Karnataka to continue to supply Tamil Nadu with 2,000 cusecs of water till further orders. The apex court had also directed the Centre to establish the CWMB, saying once it was constituted, its team would visit the sites to take a prima facie view of the ground reality and submit a report. On October 1, Karnataka had moved a review petition in the apex court against its three orders on Cauvery water release to Tamil Nadu and direction to the Centre to create the CWMB. In its review petition, Karnataka said "grave miscarriage of justice" has been caused to it pursuant to the three apex court orders of September 20, 27 and 30, by which it was directed to release 6000 cusecs of water till October 6 and the Centre was to constitute the Board by October 4. New Delhi: The Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (KWDT) on Wednesday refused to look into allocation of the river water to four basin states afresh, a decision termed as "disappointing" by Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The tribunal headed by Justice Brijesh Kumar, however, said it will take up the issue of distribution of water allocated to erstwhile undivided Andhra Pradesh between the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. For this, the KWDT asked the two states to approach it again with their claims on the river water out of the total 1,001 TMC allocated to undivided Andhra Pradesh in 2010 by the tribunal itself before December 14, when the matter will be heard next. The tribunal passed the judgement after the two states approached it arguing that Section 89 of the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014 meant that the Krishna water will be redistributed among the four basin states. Maharashtra and Karnataka are the other two riparian states. However, the KWDT did not buy the argument and said the section concerned was not applicable to Maharashtra and Karnataka, but only the two sibling states. "...the scope of the inquiry into the terms of reference under Section 89 of the Act no 6 of 2014 is confined to only two successor states, namely, states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and not all the four states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana," it observed. On their part, Maharashtra and Karnataka objected to Telangana and Andhra Pradesh's arguments seeking redistribution of the water. The Maharashtra government maintained that Part-IX of the Act provides for management and development of water resources in the "successor states". "Thus, the jurisdiction of this tribunal under section 89 of the Act No 6 of 2014 is limited to apportionment of project-wise specific allocation between the successor states. "The allocation already made by the tribunal to the states of Maharashtra and Karnataka cannot be changed under Section 89 of the Reorganisation Act. It is also pleaded that except the successor states, no other state is required to be made party," it said. The Centre expressed similar views and said it was implicit in the reference under the section concerned that the tribunal determines the shares of the successor states of Telangana and the residual state of Andhra Pradesh as a result of reorganisation of the erstwhile undivided Andhra Pradesh "without disturbing project-wise allocations made to other party states". In 2010, the tribunal had allotted 666 TMC to Maharashtra and 911 TMC water to Karnataka. Speaking to reporters after the hearing, Telangana government's advisor on irrigation, R Vidyasagar Rao, said the judgement was "disappointing" and the state will decide on further course of action after consulting Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao. A representative of Andhra Pradesh echoed the view and said the state had hoped that the tribunal will look into the allocation again. "We are not getting due share from the upper riparian states (Maharashtra and Karnataka). That's why, we had urged the tribunal to look into the allocation again," he said. A representative of the Karnataka government though expressed satisfaction with the decision. The Maharashtra government in a statement said the order meant that the 666 TMC water allocated to it by the KWDT "remains unaffected". "Maharashtra and Karnataka argued before the tribunal that since Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act doesn't apply to them, their allocations should continue as directed. The tribunal considered the arguments and made it clear that the allocations to Maharashtra and Karnataka would continue," it said. This will be the 10th Session of 16th Lok Sabha and 241st Session of Rajya Sabha. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: The Winter Session of Parliament will commence on November 16 and is likely to end on December 16, it was officially announced on Wednesday. This will be the 10th Session of 16th Lok Sabha and 241st Session of Rajya Sabha. "The Tenth Session of Sixteenth Lok Sabha will commence on Wednesday, November 16, 2016. Subject to exigencies of government business the Session is likely to conclude on Friday, December 16, 2016," a statement from the Lok Sabha Secretariat said. A similar communique was issued by Rajya Sabha Secretary General Shamsher K Sheriff. The Session dates have been advanced this time since in the past it was normally convened in the third or fourth week of November. The recent surgical strikes in PoK are expected to grab limelight during the month-long session. Some parties have alleged that the government is trying to politicise it. The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affair (CCPA) that had met here on October 13 and recommended that the Parliament session should commence from November 16 and end on December 16. An early Session may help the Central GST (CGST) and Integrated GST (IGST) legislations, which will pave way for the Goods and Services Tax (GST), to be approved within November or latest by early December. The government is also considering advancing the Budget Session by a month and it expected to start in the end of January next year. Sources in the government said besides legislations relating to GST, around a dozen new bills are likely to be introduced. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday held that a property developer cannot delay the grant of possession of flats to the buyers beyond the period of contract and if there is delay the buyers are entitled for refund of their amount. A three-judge Bench of Justices Dipak Misra, Amitav Roy and A.M. Kanwilkar ordered refund of the principal amount taking note of the voice of anguish of the respondent-allottees that they have lost their entire savings and were waiting for the flats for more than seven years. The Bench directed Unitech Residential Resorts Ltd in the capital to refund the principal amount to the tune of Rs 17 crore to 39 allottees who were denied possession of their flats within the stipulated time. In its ruling, the Bench said it needs no special emphasis to state that the property developer has to respect the contractual commitment. It has to live up to the terms of the contract and gain trust so that the people who dream of houses can repose faith in him. Not for nothing, it has been said, the foundation of any economy is faith and if faith is lost, everything is lost. True it is, there is a saying, Rome was not built in a day but it is in the realm of metaphor. The Bench said the appellant builder by delaying or procrastinating the completion of the flats cannot base its stand on excuses or any subterfuge to advance the stand that the constructions take time. The submission in a way rests upon the metaphor that Rome was not built in a day but serves no purpose. It is flat or money. And nothing else. The Bench pointed out that the 39 respondents collectively made a demand for refund of money because they have fought the litigation with ceaseless vigour and enormous hope. Rejecting the submission of the Unitech that possession of flats will be granted from April 2017 onwards, the Bench pointed out that counsel for the respondents and some of the respondents who are personally present are not in a position to accept the said method of solution. It said the voice of anguish is echoed in the court room as they say their dreams have been shattered and they have been constrained to pave the path of impecuniosity. The respondents are not interested in taking the flats. They are fundamentally interested to get their money back with interest and compensation. On August 17, the Bench had directed Unitech to deposit Rs 15 crore in the SC Registry. Now, the Bench asked Unitech to deposit another Rs 2 crore and the total amount of Rs 17 crore will be distributed by the Registry to the 39 respondents. Builders used to not fulfilling promises: Supreme Court Real-estate firms got a rap on their knuckles from the Supreme Court for making tall claims to purchasers which remained unfulfilled due to inordinate delay in completing the housing projects. Builders have developed an attitude to make commitments to the purchasers and not fulfill them by delaying the projects, a bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra said. The SCs observation came after real estate firm Parsvnath Buildwell Pvt Ltd said it will give flats to 70 home buyers, who are before the court, by December 17. They (home buyers) do not have patience and trust in you and need refund. Money should go back to them and they should not suffer, the bench also comprising Justices Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar said. The bench, also pulled up the realty firm for seeking time to deposit additional Rs 10 crore, asking why do you get into all this business when you can't pay back the money? Subramanian Prasad, appearing for the firm, said as directed by the court, the company has deposited Rs 12 crore with the Supreme Court registry. HYDERABAD: AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh on Wednesday alleged that the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were using the surgical strikes on terror camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir as a tool for political gain. Addressing a Rajiv Sadbhavan Yatra at Charminar here, he said: It is most unfortunate to know that the Prime Minister and his ministers were using the surgical strikes on Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to get cheap publicity by putting up large flex-boards in Uttar Pradesh. They want to take political advantage out of even the sacrifices of our great soldiers. Slamming the BJP-led Union government for trying to divide the country in the name of religion, Mr Singh said the BJP had even changed the meaning of secularism to suit its communal agenda. He said the attitude of the BJP was that whoever opposed them would be branded as anti-nationals. Turning his criticism on Telangana state Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao for encouraging defections of Opposition MLAs into the TRS, Mr Singh said: It was Rajiv Gandhi who brought the anti-defection law, but, unfortunately, Mr Chandrasekhar Rao has flouted the very spirit of the Act and is admitting several MLAs in his party. It is unfortunate that even courts are not intervening in this matter, Representatives of TS and AP expressed their disappointment with the verdict and said they would consider moving the Supreme Court. Hyderabad: The Justice Brijesh Kumar Tribunal in its verdict on Wednesday made it clear that it would take up hearing on fresh allocations of Krishna river waters only with respect of Telangana state and Andhra Pradesh, and ruled out extending it to Karnataka and Maharashtra. The tribunal in its final verdict stated that Krishna water allocations among the four riparian states made in 2013 would stand unaltered; it would only adjudicate the matter of fresh distribution of the total allocation of 1,001 tmc ft to undivided Andhra Pradesh between the newly-formed TS and AP. Posting the next hearing to December 14, the tribunal asked the two states to offer their observations and claims on distribution of the 1,001 tmc ft allocation. TS, AP plan to move SC on tribunal order Representatives of TS and AP expressed their disappointment with the verdict and said they would consider moving the Supreme Court. They added that without re-allocation and project specific distribution of Krishna waters among all the four riparian states they would not get justice. There will be no immediate impact of the verdict, as the notification by the Union government of the final award of the Krishna Waters Dispute Tribunal-2 had been stayed by the Supreme Court on a special leave petition filed by united AP Government. Till the notification is made, KWDT-1, the Bachawat Award, will be in operation for the four states. Sources said that the Maharashtra and Karnataka governments would move the Supreme Court, requesting it to vacate the stay granted by it as the Justice Brijesh Kumar Tribunal verdict on Wednesday had excluded their states from the ambit of fresh allocation. The Brijesh Kumar tribunal pronounced its judgement on the matter of interpretation to Section 89 of the AP Reorganisation Act which does not specify whether distribution of Krishna waters will be limited to the two Telugu states or for all the four riparian states. While both TS and AP have argued that the Act was applicable to all four states, Maharashtra and Karnataka had contended that fresh review should be limited to only the two Telugu states for which the bifurcation Act was meant. TS irrigation adviser R. Vidyasagara Rao termed the verdict as unfortunate and highly disappointing as it did not consider the injustices pointed out by state government. He said that the state government would consider moving the Supreme Court. He said that special leave petition filed by the TS government in the Supreme Court was pending. He said, According to the Brijesh Kumar Tribunal verdict, TS and AP should now fight to get more allocations within the 1,001 tmc ft quota already fixed by the tribunal in 2013. Suppose TS gets a few hundred tmc ft more than AP, how is the tribunal going to adjust that water without cutting APs quota? Reacting to the verdict, AP water resources minister Devineni Uma Maheswara Rao said that the Andhra Pradesh government would consult expert engineers and advocates on the issue before going for an appeal. Bengaluru: With China blocking India's admission to the NSG and trying to prevent UN ban of Hafeez Saeed and Maulana Masood Azhar, the social networking sites were abuzz with calls to boycott Chinese goods, especially fire crackers during this Diwali. Apparently the boycott call now has many takers in the social media and also cheered the local industry. However, there are also reports of smuggling of these crackers. India had last year banned the sale of imported Chinese firecrackers and issued a notice saying firecracker sellers should have a valid licence in order to regulate the market. Yet businessmen, who had imported firecrackers from China prior to the ban, had hoarded them and sold them illegally in Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Jaipur, Lucknow and Ahmedabad last year. City based retailer Harish Babu of Crackers World said, The sale and stocking of Chinese crackers is outlawed. All the people I know are licenced sellers of Indian crackers. But in some cases, like major shows, etc., Chinese crackers are sometimes sources illegally by organizers. The local industry in Tamil Nadus Sivakasi has taken a massive hit due to the smuggled Chinese crackers. An employee of Jubilant Fireworks based in Sivakasi, on condition of anonymity said, It is nearly killing the local industry. Stressing that smugglers were having a field day, he said, It is very easy to source China-made crackers. You just need to know the right people. Senthil Rajan of Gopi Agencies, a premier seller of firecrackers in Sivakasi said, Before the ban, the sale of Chinese firecrackers nearly brought the industry in Sivakasi to its knees. The industry is now recovering slowly. A lifting of the ban could sound the death-knell for Indias firecracker manufacturing industry. Some cracker manufacturers say they dont have a clue about the illegal sale of firecrackers but caution that it could affect local businesses in the long run. Sundar Moorthy of Siva Firecrackers in Sivakasi says, I dont know much. But if these China-made firecrackers are made available even occasionally, it would affect our business big time. Vijayawada: AP Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidus grandson Nara Devansh owns assets worth Rs 11.32 crore with a house and fixed deposits which have been transferred either by Mr Naidus wife or maternal grandfather and actor N. Balakrishna. Mr Lokesh announced his family assets at the state party office in Guntur on Wednesday. He said Mr Naidu had debts of more than Rs 3 crore. According to Mr Lokesh, Mr Naidu had borrowed Rs 3.06 crore from Bank of Baroda to build a new house in Hyderabad. He said he had borrowed Rs 3.06 crore from the bank to support his father in the construction. Both Mr Naidu and Mr Lokesh separately own an old Ambassador car each. Mr Lokesh revealed that the net worth of his assets in 2016 were Rs 8.15 crore, his mother Bhuvaneshwaris net worth was Rs 24.84 crore and wife Brahmanis net worth Was Rs 12.33 crore. Mr Naidus net worth is Rs 67 lakh. Mr Lokesh stated during the press conference that the family had been publicly disclosing the details of their assets for six years. He expressed happiness that his mother had received the Peacock Award for Corporate Governance on Tuesday in London, and said, Heritage won the energy conservation award; both first and second prizes in the dairy sector. Recalling the 24 year-history of Heritage and its establishment, he said that there were plans of expanding its business to Delhi and Rajasthan under the management of Mrs Brahmani. He added that the overall growth rate of the company was 100 per cent with profit of Rs 55 crore; 14 per cent increased growth rate in the dairy sector and 15 per cent increased growth rate in retail industry. Hyderabad: The National Green Tribunal has posted the Polavaram case to November 21 while stating that this would be the last opportunity for AP, TS and the Centre to respond a petition. filed by a NGO called Rela. The petitioner stated that the design of the project had been changed several times. It was made a national project later and environmental clearances given initially were not valid, it said. The NGT has ordered the project superintendent engineer to take complaints from the displaced persons and inform the Centre about the same after solving the grievances. New Delhi: The Rajasthan government has urged the Supreme Court to stay the High Court judgement acquitting Bollywood actor Salman Khan in the Chinkara poaching cases and sought a direction to the actor to surrender in the court to serve the sentence of five years awarded by the trial court. Rajasthan stated this in its special leave petition filed on Tuesday against a Rajasthan High Court judgement acquitting actor Salman. On July 25, the High Court acquitted Salman in the killing of two chinkaras in separate incidents. One of the animals was killed at Bhawad on Jodhpurs outskirts on September 26, 1998, and the other at Ghoda Farms on September 28, 1998. Shooting for the film Hum Saath Sath Hain was taking place at the time of the incident in the desert state. Trial court erred, says Rajasthan The trial court had awarded five-year imprisonment after holding him guilty of the poaching charges. However, Salman moved the Jodhpur bench of the HC against his conviction. The state government also challenged the trial courts order on different grounds. On July 25, the HC, acquitted him of all charges and also dismissed the states appeal for enhancing the sentence. In the present SLP, the Rajasthan government said the HC had erred in acquitting Salman despite the fact that there was ample evidence for his prosecution and for awarding enhanced punishment. Some officials of the department of women and child welfare too are anxious that the extension of the RTE quota to pre-schools could sound the death-knell for anganawadis in urban and semi-urban areas, where they are already facing an acute shortage of students. The proposed extension of the Right to Education (RTE) to private pre-schools is a revolutionary idea no doubt and offers poor kids a chance to avail better educational facilities in these schools. But will it sound the death knell for the numerous anganwadis and state-run pre-schools which are already facing a dearth of students? There are some experts who contend that instead of reimbursing money to private schools for providing RTE seats to the poor, the government could spend this money to improve facilities in govt schools themselves and make them attractive enough. It was a move intended to give poor students a shot at getting an education in private schools, which they could otherwise not afford. But the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, that provides for reservation of 25 per cent of seats in private schools for underprivileged children with the government paying the fee on their behalf, has kicked up a controversy of late as a number of state schools are now facing closure due to a dearth of students. Critics are laying the blame squarely at the door of the Central legislation, and the state government for toeing its line when it had no compulsion to do so. Read: RTE in pre-schools: Tug of war between activists, politicians Soon there could be more reason for them to complain as the ambit of the Act could widen shortly. While currently the RTE quota applies to the pre-primary level in private schools, the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) is meeting on October 25 in New Delhi to discuss extending it to pre-schools and secondary education as well. Read: GUEST COLUMN: Demand for quota cancellation ridiculous D Shashikumar, general secretary Karnataka Associated Managements of English Medium Schools (KAMS) said, Presently, the RTE quota is implemented at the pre-primary level in LKG and UKG. Children who are three years and 10 months old are admitted to LKG. But should RTE apply to pre-school as well, then day care centers and montessoris too will have to reserve seats for underprivileged children, who could be just two- years-old. The possibility is alarming for those who believe the government is neglecting its own schools in the name of RTE. While they seem to be emptying out due to the RTE quota in private schools, they fear the anganwadis too could take a beating if their students have the option of entering montessoris and private day care centres. Some officials of the department of women and child welfare too are anxious that the extension of the RTE quota to pre-schools could sound the death-knell for anganawadis in urban and semi-urban areas, where they are already facing an acute shortage of students. If RTE is implemented in pre -schools most poor students will opt for them, said one officer. Strongly opposing the idea, she notes that angawadis play a key role in the lives of both mother and child. The anganawadis staff work for a social cause, but private players have no such ideals, she argues. But then there are those who feel poor children need be given an opportunity to go to a montessori or a private day care centre. Say some officials of the Department of Public Instruction, Extending RTE to pre-school will ensure a level playing field for all children in early learning. However, activist, Harish B Bhat, believes extending the RTE quota to pre-schools may not work out in the long run. His argument? Children from poor families, who go to anganawadis till they are five years and 10 months old , have good nutritious food to look forward to at these centres, but in pre- schools they will have no such incentive and this could make them unattractive to many. His views may offer comfort to those wishing the RTE quota away in pre-schools. But in the final analysis its about what's best for the children and clearly the decision should be theirs. HYDERABAD: District reorganisation in Telangana state is slated to benefit some ministers who had not been made in-charge of districts. The number of districts has gone up from 10 to 31. At present, there are 17 ministers in Telangana state cabinet, and of these, only 10 were made district-in-charge ministers. Sources said the state government wants to appoint senior ministers as in-charge of two districts and junior ministers will be allotted each one district. By this, all the cabinet ministers will be made in-charges of districts. Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao would take a decision on this soon, sources said. Meanwhile, the state government is also planning to change the existing pattern on allotment of funds under Special Development Fund to district-in-charge ministers. Under this scheme, the state government allots Rs 2 crore per assembly constituency for welfare and development activities for taking up works that are urgent in nature. In addition to this, each district is allotted Rs 10 crore for taking the development works. The state government has sanctioned Rs 100 crore to 10 districts and released Rs 25 crore. Now, the state government wants to distribute the balance Rs 75 crore among all 31 districts. But for Hyderabad, new districts were formed by reorganising old districts. The state government will allot Rs 75 crore to all districts at the rate of Rs 2.40 crore to each district. As of now, the Nepal border is seen to be extremely porous thus causing security concern among the home ministry. (Representational Image) New Delhi: Following massive mobilisation of security forces along the Pakistan LoC in Jammu and Kashmir after surgical strikes, terrorist outfits operating out of PoK are finding it increasingly difficult to infiltrate into the Valley and are thus planning to use a new route through Nepal. Amid intelligence reports to this effect, home minister Rajnath Singh held a high-level meeting with top security officials including Archana Ramasundram, chief of Sashastra Seema Bal, the border guarding force for Indo-Nepal border, to review the situation. Sources said the home minister has directed that additional reinforcements be rushed to the Nepal border for further strengthening the security apparatus there and that SSB should immediately identify the vulnerable points for infiltration and plug these loopholes at the earliest. Pakistan-based terror outfits are known to have an active and strong network in Nepal also and this has been a constant source of worry for the Indian security agencies. The Indian Airlines flight, IC-814, was hijacked from Kathmandu while the dreaded chief of Indian Mujahideen Yaseen Bhatkal was also picked up with help of the local agencies from a hideout on the outskirts of Kathmandu in 2013. The home minister has also directed senior officials of the ministry and the SSB to prepare a detailed blueprint on how to seal the Nepal border, it having only designated entry and exit points. Home ministry puts police, NSG on alert As of now, the Nepal border is seen to be extremely porous thus causing security concern among the home ministry. The Centre has already decided to seal the Indo-Pak border in western and northern sectors by end 2018. All state police and NSG have already been put on alert by the home ministry amid Intelligence reports that Pak terror groups could retaliate in response to the surgical strikes. Chennai: With dates for the by-poll to the three Assembly constituencies announced and ahead of the local bodies elections, the BJP has reassured to restoring the jallikattu for 2017 Pongal. The saffron party wants to roll the dice and encash on the rural electorate Though this assurance may not divert the attention of the opposition parties demanding the constitution of the Cauvery Management Board (CMB) or restrain them from blaming the BJP-led government at the Centre over the Cauvery issue, the BJP however hopes to connect with the rural voters through the popular bull taming sport of Tamils. Union minister of state for road transport, highways and shipping Pon Radhakrishnan had on October 6 called on Union minister of state for environment, forests and climate change Anil Madhav Deve and sought his immediate intervention to pave way for holding the event. "This sensitive issue has been hurting the sentiments of scores of Tamils across the world," Radhakrishnan said in his petition to Anil Madhav. He called upon. Anil Madhav to initiate appropriate action by introducing a suitable bill in the Parliament in consultation with other Ministries concerned and thereby enable the Tamil community to organise jallikattu from Jan. 2017 "with pomp and gaiety." "The Centre will work towards this goal. We will have jallikattu from coming Pongal," BJP state president, Tamilisai Soundararajan added. Chennai: Two teenaged 'godmen', who walked away with 5 sovereigns of gold belonging to a housewife in Old Perungalathur after posing as godmen and conducting a pooja to ward off evil forces in the house, were caught in the same neighbourhood when they tried the same trick on another woman. Selvakumar and Ramesh, both 19, are from Vellore and they had conducted a pooja in the house of the Sivanesan Kaleeswari couple on Tuesday morning. They had asked the woman to keep her ornaments together and tie them in a handkerchief. Kaleeswari kept the gold in the handkerchief given by the boys and tied it herself. The bundle containing the gold was supposed to be kept in the pooja room for a day to get the full impact. The 'godmen' later asked Sivanesan and Kaleeswari to bring pure water to create 'theertham'. As soon as she fetched the water, the two sprinkled it in every corner of the house and left the place after charging `200 for the pooja. Kaleeswari became suspicious after the dup had left as she noticed there was a change in the knot she had made in the handkerchief. She then opened the knots of the handkerchief and found her ornaments missing. She immediately alerted her neighbours. Local residents tracked the two who were trying to repeat their con act at a home just two streets away. The two were caught, thrashed and handed over to Peerkankaranai police station. The godmen had changed the handkerchief when the couple went to fetch water and placed another in its place with knots in the same places, the police disclosed. We are questioning them to verify their background and also trying to find out if they had committed same kind of offence anywhere else, the police said. No preservatives were used in baking the huge burger that weighed 65 kilograms. (Photo: ANI Twitter) Coimbatore: A group of budding chefs recently celebrated World Bread Day by baking and preparing a huge vegetarian burger bun that attracted food lovers from across the city. It took almost 16 hours for 47 catering students and five chefs to make the 1.5 feet tall and three feet wide burger, which was handed over to an orphanage after display. The giant burger was prepared with 35 kilograms of refined flour (maida), two kilograms of sugar, one kilogram salt and yeast each, 12 litres of vegetable oil and 21 litres of water. Moreover, no preservatives were used in baking the huge burger that weighed 65 kilograms. In addition to this, a variety of bread from seven countries were also displayed at the venue. The initiative was taken up by a private hotel management institute. The event also saw students baking breads from countries like France, Italy and America. Chennai: The State Finance Minister O Pannerselvam, who was allotted the portfolios of Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa after her hospitalisation, will chair a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday to decide on the appointment of special officers to local bodies across Tamil Nadu. This is the first cabinet meeting of the AIADMK government after Ms Jayalalithaa was admitted to Apollo Hospitals on September 22. The meeting comes a week after the acting Governor CH Vidyasagar Rao handed over all portfolios held by Ms Jayalalithaa to Mr Pannerselvam and also allowed him to chair cabinet meetings. The Cabinet would discuss appointment of special officers to over 1 lakh local bodies since their term expires on October 24 after the Madras High Court stayed the local body elections early this month. The elections were to be held in two phases on October 17 and 19. Since the Madras High Court extended the stay on conduct of elections for another four weeks, it has become imperative on the part of the government to appoint special officers to run the administration at the local level. The cabinet will discuss the issue and take a decision, a senior official told Deccan Chronicle. Once the Cabinet approves the decision to appoint special officers to corporations, municipalities, town panchayats, village panchayats, district panchayats and union panchayats, the government will come out with an official order notifying appointment of such officers. The official said the cabinet meeting will be held on Wednesday at 9.30 am. The meeting also comes against the backdrop of the Cauvery issue on which the Opposition parties are demanding that the Tamil Nadu government lead a delegation to the Prime Minister demanding constitution of the Cauvery Management Board. Hyderabad: Two senior Congress legislators on Tuesday criticised the decision of CM K. Chandrasekhar Rao to construct the camp office and the new Secretariat complex by dismantling old structures and termed it as a waste of public money and an act of Tughlaq. Former minister and Nalgonda MLA Komatireddy Venkat Reddy said Mr Rao the CM had no right to demolish the existing Secretariat complex in the name of bad vastu. Going for new constructions would only result in unnecessary spending of public money. Former minister and Jagityal MLA T. Jeevan Reddy asked whether it was necessary to construct a massive camp office on 10 acres by investing `100 crore. Lucknow: The infighting in the Samajwadi Party shows no signs of abating with Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday announcing his decision to embark on 'Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra' alone from November 3. The announcement gave rise to speculation that Akhilesh might skip his party's silver jubilee celebrations which begins here on November 5. Party insiders said any attempt to derail or stop him from going ahead with the Yatra could lead to another crisis in the party. In a letter written to party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, the Chief Minister said all political parties have started their campaigns for the Assembly polls. "I had decided to take out the yatra from October 3 but it was cancelled due to some reasons. I will take out the 'Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra' from November 3," he said. Akhilesh has also sent copies of the letter to state party chief Shivpal Yadav and National General Secretary Ram Gopal Yadav. He said yatra's detailed programme will be communicated to district presidents and party workers in due course. The announcement gave rise to speculation that Akhilesh might skip the sliver jubilee celebrations to send a message that he was unhappy over the expulsion of youth leaders from the party, who would not be present at the event. Earlier in the day, Akhilesh, Shivpal Yadav, and Mulayam held a closed-door meeting at party supremo's 5 Vikramaditya Marg residence to discuss poll strategy. According to party sources, Akhilesh is adamant on his demands of revoking the expulsion of youth leaders, some of whom are MLCs, and having his say in the ticket distribution. Akhilesh had earlier announced his decision to take out the yatra from October 3 through his twitter handle with a picture in which he was seen sitting inside a bus. It was seen as a move to counter uncle Shivpal, who had been appointed the new state party president in his place. Akhilesh hit back over his removal from the party post by stripping Shivpal of his key ministerial portfolios, bringing the family feud in the open. Through the yatra, Akhilesh is expected to highlight his government's development works, rally support for the party and demonstrate support for him among the party cadres. Party sources said Mulayam Singh Yadav has so far managed to pull back the party from the brink every time it faces any threat. This time too he has to move swiftly to take care of the concerns of the CM and his supporters, they pointed out. The infighting seems to continuing as of now with Mulayam siding with Shivpal; and his cousin Ram Gopal throwing his weight behind the Chief Minister. The feud emanated from Shivpal's attempt to undercut the authority of the Chief Minister and his supporters by denying him a say in the distribution of tickets, and the SP chief's initial reluctance to name Akhilesh as the party's presumptive chief ministerial candidate. Trouble in the party has been brewing since Mulayam replaced Akhilesh with Shivpal as the state party chief. Analysts say that since taking over the post, Shivpal has been systematically trying to undermine the authority of the CM, his supporters and Ram Gopal. One of his first acts as state party chief was sacking Ram Gopal's nephew and party MLC Arvind Pratap Yadav, and a former village head in Etawah Akhilesh Kumar Yadav for their alleged involvement in land-grabbing and other such activities. Recently, Shivpal announced the first list of the party's candidates for the assembly elections without even consulting either the Chief Minister or Ram Gopal. The SP chief further complicated matters by his reluctance to categorically back Akhilesh as the party's CM candidate. The pro-chief minister camp fears that all this is a part of a systematic attempt to undermine him and deny him a say in the party. Ram Gopal, who has sided with the CM, shot off an angry letter to Mulayam, urging him to intervene and get Shivpal to take back the expelled leaders and to ensure that the CM had a decisive say in ticket distribution. After today's meeting between the SP chief and Ram Gopal, there was no indication that the stand-off had been resolved. There was no word on either the question of cancelling the decision to sack Arvind Yadav and Akhilesh Kumar Yadav or on the all-important question of restoring the CM's right to decide on ticket distribution. With Akhilesh set to begin UP poll campaign ahead of the Party's silver jubilee celebrations, the rift in the party is again out in the open, especially at a time when efforts are reportedly underway for a patch-up between Mulayam-Shivpal and Akhilesh. Political observers feel that the ongoing power struggle in the ruling party might hamper the Yadav family in the 2017 UP polls. SP youth leaders including Sunil Singh Yadav, Anand Bhadouria, Arvind Pratap Singh Yadav, Sanjay Lathar, Brijesh Yadav, Mohd Abad and Gaurav Dubey, were expelled from the party by Shivpal last month for allegedly raising slogans and protesting outside the house of Mulayam. New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy on Wednesday stirred controversy by saying that his party would unite the Hindu community by resolving the Ram Temple issue and divide the minorities in order to emerge victorious in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh. "Development is necessary to win election in the nation but it is not everything. To win the elections, it is important to focus on our priority. The conspiracy played against us in the past was to divide the Hindus and unite the minorities. But this time we will do just the opposite, we will unite the Hindus and will divide the minorities as much as possible," Swamy said. Highlighting the pro-development initiatives of former prime ministers Rajiv Gandhi and P.V. Narasimha Rao besides Congress veteran Morarji Desai, Swamy said that they failed to win the elections for their party despite all efforts. Swamy said it is important to focus on three issues to win the elections, i.e. corruption, development and the Ram Temple issue. The BJP leader further said it is impossible that the Ram Temple issue does not attract eyeballs at a time when election is scheduled to take place in Uttar Pradesh. Early today, Swamy said the Ram Temple issue is part of the BJP's 2014 manifesto, adding it is the party's obligation to the people to deliver on this promise. "The Ram issue is a part of our manifesto in 2014, how can we run away from it? We have to deliver," Swamy said. On Tuesday, the Congress Party accused the BJP for selling the name of Lord Ram to siphon off a victory in Uttar Pradesh. "The Congress has nothing to do with the BJP constructing a museum there (Ayodhya), or the Samajwadi party organising things for the Ramayana mela. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is selling the name of Ram in the wake of coming UP polls," said Congress leader D.P. Singh. Rajya Sabha MP Vinay Katiyar, on the other hand, asked the BJP-led Central government to intensify its efforts to construct Ram temple in Ayodhya instead of giving 'lollipop' (Ram museum) to please people, who are demanding the construction of the temple. "It's a big mistake; effort should be made to construct the Ram Mandir (temple); this "lolipapi" (handing over Ramayana Museum as lollipop to please the people who are demanding the construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya) won't work. People ask when will be the Ram Temple constructed? This (Ramayana Museum) is a lollipop, it doesn't have much importance, and thus, they should make positive effort. I would have said this had I been there. It's good that I did not go there," Katiyar said. Hyderabad: Voicing concern over spurt in political violence in Kerala's Kannur district, the Communist Party of India has urged the CPI-M to exercise restraint and not get provoked by the RSS as it has the responsibility of maintaining law and order in the LDF-ruled state. "It's very unfortunate that continuously these type of murders and revenge murders are taking place," CPI General Secretary S Sudhakar Reddy said. "Both should exercise restraint, particularly RSS. Every time, it's the RSS, who has done it first (political murder). That does not mean that I defend the revenge murders (by CPI-M). Both should exercise restraint," he said. "Our advice (to CPI-M) is exercise restraint, and not to get provoked (by RSS) with this type of things and after all it's the responsibility of government of Kerala about the law and order situation. More responsibility is with CPI-M as it's in government (as the lead partner)," Reddy said. He charged the RSS-BJP with trying to create a "communal atmosphere" by "these" (political violence). Reddy alleged that BJP president Amit Shah has appealed to editors of all news channels and newspapers that "this (political violence in Kannur district) should be made an all-India issue ... It should be in limelight. That shows they have got ulterior motives". He denied suggestions of cycle of political violence happening whenever CPI-M is in power in Kerala, saying, "Even earlier it was taking place, even when CPM was in opposition". BJP activist Remith was allegedly hacked to death in Kannur district, the hometown of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan last Wednesday, within 48 hours of the murder of a CPM activist and toddy shop worker Mohanan. The BJP called a 'hartal' in Kerala last Thursday to protest against the killing of its party activist. Lucknow: In yet another sign of worsening infighting in Samajwadi Party, UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday announced that he will embark on his Vikas Rath Yatra alone from November 3 which will make him skip the partys silver jubilee celebrations slated to begin two days later. In a letter written to Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav, the chief minister has informed him that he will embark on his yatra from November 3. The Samajwadi Party will be celebrating its silver jubilee in Lucknow on November 5 and the chief ministers decision to begin his yatra on November 3 implies that he will not be attending the party function. Mr Akhilesh Yadavs likely absence from the Samajwadi Party function is yet another development in the deepening crisis in the Samajwadi Party and family. Mr Akhilesh Yadavs supporters have already declared that they will not attend the silver jubilee function. The copies of the letter to the party president, which were released to the media on Wednesday, have been sent to Prof Ramgopal Yadav and Mr Shivpal Yadav. The Chief Minister has further said that he will be informing the district units about his yatra route from time to time. The state party has not been informed of the Chief Ministers yatra route and sources said that the youth leaders, including those expelled from the party, will be taking care of all arrangements during the campaign in which Mr Yadav will tell the people of the achievements of his government. Apart from reaching out to people and galvanising party workers, Akhileshs yatra is seen as a move to truncate the influence of Shivpal, who had been appointed the new state party president in his place. Earlier in the day, Akhilesh, Shivpal Yadav, and Mulayam held a closed-door meeting at party supremos 5 Vikramaditya Marg residence to discuss poll strategy. According to party sources, Akhilesh is adamant on his demands of revoking the expulsion of youth leaders, some of whom are MLCs, and having his say in the ticket distribution. Akhilesh had earlier announced his decision to take out the yatra from October 3 through his Twitter handle with a picture in which he was seen sitting inside a bus. There is irony in Prime Minister Narendra Modis concentration on Pakistani terrorism at the Goa Brics summit because the more he dwelt on the theme, the more distant became Indias aspiration for a world role, struggling as it seemed to be with a major neighbourhood problem. And the pickings were slim in the form of an anodyne declaration. Of course, everyone is against terrorism. Instead of taking advantage of a summit, that included both Russia and China, New Delhi seemed to be hosting a South Asian gathering, with a few outsiders, laudable as the goal of asking the Bangladeshi and Myanmar leaders was. Thereby, India restricted the discussion of major world issues. The one benefit of the conference was the bilateral talks between President Vladimir Putin and Mr Modi to undertake an essential recalibration of relations in a changing world, sharply brought home to New Delhi by Moscow conducting the first-ever joint troop exercises with Pakistan on Pakistani soil. As India has grown closer to the United States for good reasons, Moscow claims the right to expand its relationship with other countries in its own perceived interests. President Xi Jinping of China was expectedly inflexible on issues of immediate concern to New Delhi, including membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, the technical hold on declaring a Pakistan-based terror outfit chief as a terrorist by the United Nations and several other matters. And in a retort to terrorist Pakistan, the Chinese government went to the extent of issuing a statement after the summit praising Pakistans efforts in coping with terrorism. Plainly, Mr Modi got his sums wrong. This is all the more surprising due to his deft moves in foreign policy after the Uri attack from across the border in attracting worldwide sympathy and support, the deftness of the surgical strikes, causing a minor crisis in the Pakistani establishment and taking Pakistani isolation in the world to its lowest level. The ideal agenda India should have set for Goa was a wider discussion of world problems, particularly those impacting Brics members, in the framework of a changing world, with one session devoted to terrorism. It is an opportunity lost in an era where geopolitical factors are changing rapidly, and US-Russian relations are at their lowest level in 30 years. One hopes Mr Modi had an opportunity in his private meetings with President Putin to gather the new springboard for his assertive policy in Syria and elsewhere. This would be of greater import than a discussion on terrorism. Judging by the long relationship with India, Mr Putin should have been forthcoming with an explanation. Where do we go from here? First, India has to frame a longer-term strategy. There is no early end to our troubled relationship with Pakistan. Chinas footprint on Pakistan and other South Asian countries will grow. It is specially important in the case of Pakistan as the latter is now at the heart of Chinas new Silk Road project, that is planned as a major outlet for Chinese goods and knitting Central Asian countries in the Chinese web. Besides, Beijing has long used Islamabad as a spoiler for Indian ambitions. India has leverages against China if they are used subtly. One had expected from Mr Modis track record that he undertook the subtleties of diplomacy, particularly those on the subcontinent. He rightly won plaudits for how he played the Uri theme. Was he beguiled by the praise to overdo terrorism for an international audience? Mr Modi began with Pakistan on the right note by inviting the Pakistan PM to his swearing-in ceremony and later dramatically to drop in at his Lahore home to greet him at a family wedding. The results were less than paltry due to Pakistans power structure, with the Army wielding the big stick, specially on ties with India and nuclear matters. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif therefore doesnt count in the ultimate analysis. As recent secret talks between the civil establishment and the Army establishment revealed, the Army won hands down. What is required of New Delhi in these circumstances is subtlety in making moves against Islamabad, just the kind of moves he made before the Brics conference. We have had a long list of distinguished foreign ministers and their advisers who fought valiantly for Indias cause in the United Nations halls. Then the world and the UN simply got tired of a complicated problem left over by the history of Partition. Sporadic efforts at direct talks, including at the Track 2 level, failed to lead to a solution. In fact, Pakistans initiation of wars to settle the issue failed each time. What is exciting for Pakistan no end is the months long unrest in the Kashmir Valley and its increased insertion of terrorists to strike at Army camps and other centres of state authority. After the surgical strikes that Pakistan still denies, another pattern emerged, that of violating the ceasefire line across a wide area of the border. It is still guesswork to put a figure on the number of terrorists successfully pushed across the border during the height of the Valleys unrest. One wishes some of the effort expended on safeguarding the border were directed at the political problem in the Valley. The peculiar coalition governing the state, of the BJP and Peoples Democratic Party under the late Mufti Mohammed Sayeeds daughter Mehbooba, has failed to light any sparks. The state government, it seems, is waiting on events. Given the geopolitical picture, China will continue to back Pakistan to the hilt and miss no opportunity to embarrass India. The United States can be expected to support New Delhi within the limits of its framework, which essentially condemns Pakistan after terror attacks and asks it to bring terrorists on its soil to heel, but it will not directly get involved on the issue. The United States finally did come out with a robust statement on Uri, as did Russia. Let India treat these as a bonus. Arturo Sosa is his name. Arturo (Spanish) Arthur in English has just been elected as head of the Jesuits the international congregation of Catholic men best known for their Loyola and Xavier schools, colleges and universities, worldwide. Im a Jesuit, too, currently in Rome for the General Congregation convoked to elect a new leader and plan for more meaningful involvement in the world, today. The process of electing the Jesuit Superior General is similar to that of the conclave that elects the pope. We are 212 Jesuits from 70 countries who observed four days of so-called murmurationes (Latin, for murmurings) in order to discern who is best suited to lead this Society of Jesus. In my previous column entitled Drawn by discernment (Oct. 6) I described discernment as an act of wisdom providing productive insights into ourselves and the persons we meet. Elections demand deep discernment. Since one does not know all the Jesuits from the world over, murmurationes enable Jesuit reps to seek information about prospective candidates from elsewhere. Murmurationes allow one to approach another Jesuit for a tete-a-tete about the strengths and weaknesses of candidates. The exchanges are strictly confidential. No electioneering, no exaggerations. Moreover, one must only answer questions asked and honestly state whether his opinions spring from firsthand experience or from hearsay. Ultimately, the murmurings of Gods spirit help in electing leaders. During discussions, were seated in a conference hall in concentric semi-circles with newly-elected Father Arturo Sosa keenly listening to everything we say and suggest. This reminds me of the King Arthur and the knights of the round table legend where King Arthur crafted a round table so that his fiercely competitive knights wouldnt quarrel with each other for seats at the head of the table. Its heartwarming to sit around tables with my Jesuit companions, here, since theres no bickering and bargaining for that which is unimportant. Indeed, effective leaders set round tables to ensure that everyone is comfortably and equitably seated. Then, they bend down to serve their subjects selflessly. The founder of the Jesuits, Spaniard Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556), was a valiant knight who renounced the comforts of the kingly court in order to follow Jesus, who said, I am among you as one who serves. Jesus desired that his disciples be outstanding in their service of others. Ignatius motto: In all things to love and to serve has inspired thousands of Jesuits and their collaborators to commit themselves to loving service. Formerly, Jesuit generals were referred to as black popes since they wore black cassocks and wielded tremendous power. Arturo is simple and seeks no power except that which comes from loving and serving. God bless this first ever Latin-American Jesuit General! China's Shenzhou 11 spaceship onboard a Long March-2F carrier rocket took off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China's Gansu province on Monday Oct. 17, 2016. China's Shenzhou 11 manned spacecraft has successfully docked with China's Tiangong 2 space lab, and two astronauts have entered the lab, China's official news agency Xinhua said Wednesday. China is the third country after the United States and Russia to complete space rendezvous and docking procedures, Xinhua said. According to the mission schedule, the astronauts will remain in the space station for 30 days and spend a total of 33 days in space, making the mission the longest in space so far for China. In a manned space mission in 2013, three Chinese astronauts spent 15 days in orbit and docked with a space laboratory, the Tiangong 1. Advancing China's space program is a priority for Beijing, with President Xi Jinping calling for the country to establish itself as a space power. China insists its space program is for peaceful purposes. Shenzhou 11, whose name translates as "Divine Vessel", will also carry three experiments designed by Hong Kong middle school students and selected in a science competition, including one that will take silk worms into space. The US Defense Department has highlighted China's increasing space capabilities, saying it was pursuing activities aimed at preventing other nations using space-based assets in a crisis. China has been working to develop its space program for military, commercial and scientific purposes, but is still playing catch-up to established space powers the United States and Russia. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. The Nokia D1C is the latest from its smartphone range. Expect a lot during MWC next year. In recent years, Finnish smartphone maker Nokia has been using MWC events for announcement of new smartphones and other devices. It now seems that the company will do the same next year, as Nokia has announced that the CEO might introduce new phones in the Mobile World Congress 2017. The MWC has been scheduled to take place between February 27 to March 2, and its the ideal opportunity for many smartphone makers to announce their latest devices. Rajeev Suri, CEO of Nokia will be delivering a keynote at the trade fair and the company is expected to announce at least one Android Nokia-running smartphone. After the fallout of its partnership with Microsoft, Nokia had planned to license its commercial rights for the brand to HDM Global for the next decade. The HDM Global manufactured smartphones are slated to be released by the end of this year. Nokia has been working on a massive 13.8-inch tablet appeared to run on 7.0 Nougat with a display of 1920x1080 pixels. It is unclear whether Nokia will announce this tablet during the MWC next year. The company has also been rumoured to be working on two Android smartphones with remarkable specs with Snapdragon 821 and 22MP camera, but still the reveal is yet to be waited for. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. Three Note 7 users in the United States file for a class action lawsuit against Samsung Electronics' US unit. Samsung Electronics scrapped its flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphone on Tuesday, less than two months after its launch, dealing a huge blow to its reputation and outlook after failing to resolve safety concerns. The following is a chronology of major developments related to Samsung's recall of the Note 7s since the launch of the smartphones in August. Oct. 18 - Three Note 7 users in the United States file for a class action lawsuit against Samsung Electronics' US unit. Oct. 14 - Samsung says it expects a operating profit hit of around $3 billion for Q4 2016, Q1 2017 combined due to the Note 7's discontinuation. Oct. 13 - US regulator expands Note 7 recall to 1.9 million devices, including all replacement devices. Oct. 12 - Samsung slashes its third-quarter profit guidance by a third to 5.2 trillion won ($4.63 billion) from an earlier estimate of 7.8 trillion won, reflecting earnings impact from the Note 7 recall and discontinuation. Oct. 11 - Samsung permanently halts sales and production of Note 7 smartphones and asks customers to stop using the phones as it investigates reports of fires in new devices. Oct. 10 - Samsung says it is adjusting Note 7 shipments for inspections, quality control due to more phones catching fire. Oct. 9 - AT&T, T-Mobile say they have halted issuing new Galaxy Note 7 smartphones due to safety concerns. Oct. 6 - A Southwest Airlines plane in the United States evacuated due to smoke from a Note 7 device on board. Oct. 1 - Samsung resumes selling new Note 7s in South Korea. Sep. 29 - Samsung says more than 1 million people globally now using Note 7s with safe battery. Sept. 25- Samsung delays S.Korea re-start of Note 7 sales by 3 days. Sept. 22 - South Korea orders extra battery safety measures for Note 7 phones. Sept. 21- Verizon Communications, Sprint Corp begin taking orders for new Note 7s. Sept. 19 - Samsung says a Note 7 phone a China user claims caught on fire was caused by external heating. Sept. 19 - Samsung starts Note 7 exchange programme in South Korea. Sept. 16 - Florida man sues Samsung for burns from Note 7 explosion. Samsung says to resume Note 7 sales in South Korea on Sept. 28. Sept. 15 - US Consumer Product Safety Commission formally announces recall of about 1 million Note 7 phones. Sept. 9 - US Consumer Product Safety Commission urges Galaxy Note 7 users to stop using their phone. Sept. 8 - US Federal Aviation Administration advises passengers to not turn on or charge Note 7 smartphones aboard aircraft or stow them in plane cargo. Sept. 2 - Samsung announces global recall of 2.5 million Note 7 phones, citing faulty batteries. Sept. 1 - Samsung starts Galaxy Note 7 sales in China. Aug. 31 - Samsung delays shipments of Note 7s to South Korean carriers. Aug. 24 - Report of a Note 7 explosion surfaces in South Korea. Aug. 19 - Samsung starts Galaxy Note 7 sales in 10 markets including United States and South Korea. Aug. 2 - Samsung unveils the Galaxy Note 7 at a New York media event. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun wrote an open letter today that thanks Xiaomi employees and fans in India for the immense popularity and success the company has generated in such a short period of time. According to the letter that was posted on Xiaomis official Facebook page, the Chinese company has reportedly made a sale of 1 million Xiaomi smartphone units in just 18 days in the country. Apart from praising Hugo Barra (Vice President of Xiaomi) and Manu Kumar Jains (Xiaomi Indias Head) effort at furthering the Mi brand in India, the letter also outlines the important milestones that Xiaomi has achieved in a span of one year in India. These milestones include Xiaomis participation in the countrys Make in India initiative, the companys achievement in becoming the top smartphone brand in India and the companys success at selling 2.3 million Redmi Note 3 devices in just six months. India is an extremely important market in Xiaomi's globalisation strategy. It has become our largest market outside of mainland China. I am confident that with the sustained efforts of our entire Xiaomi family, we will be able to capture the largest market share in India within 3-5 years, Jun said in his letter. The companys Diwali sale is currently on wherein they are offering customers deals and discounts across their range of smartphones and accessories. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. A group of Boko Haram gunmen invaded Goptari, 10 kilometres from Chibok, late Tuesday and set it on fire after looting food supplies and livestock. (Photo: AFP) Kano, Nigeria: Boko Haram has burnt down a village neighbouring the northeast Nigerian town of Chibok where the group kidnapped over 200 schoolgirls two years ago, local residents said on Wednesday. A group of Boko Haram gunmen invaded Goptari, 10 kilometres from Chibok, late Tuesday and set it on fire after looting food supplies and livestock. The attack underscores the continued threat of Boko Haram in Nigeria's volatile northeast, where the military is still battling for control despite making gains against the insurgents over the past year. "They attacked the village around 8:00 pm (1900GMT), firing heavy guns which made people flee into the bush," Samson Bulus from nearby Kautikeri said. "The Boko Haram raiders looted homes and shops, taking along food supplies and livestock before burning the entire village," he said. Luka Damina, another Kautikeri resident said troops in Chibok engaged the attackers in gun battle but were subdued by the insurgents. "The Boko Haram fighters overpowered the soldiers and seized a van with a machine gun mounted on the deck from the soldiers," he said. Witnesses, including a local chief, said a soldier was wounded during the shootout. The attack came two days after a raid on nearby Kallali village where the Islamists looted and burnt homes, a local chief said. Boko Haram has waged a seven-year insurgency against the Nigerian state that has claimed at least 20,000 lives and spilled across the country's borders. Aided by troops from neighbouring countries, the Nigerian military has recaptured swathes of territory from the Islamists since early 2015. But Boko Haram has carried out sporadic attacks on remote villages in the restive region. Last month eight people were killed outside a church in a village 30 kilometres east of Chibok. In August, 10 people were killed in another attack on nearby Kubrivu village. A court ruling published on Wednesday also stripped all rank from Staff Sergeant Umar Sule. (Representational Image) Maiduguri, Nigeria: A Nigerian court-martial has sentenced a soldier to three years' jail for meting out punishment that left a 10-year-old without the use of his hands. One hand was amputated. A court ruling published on Wednesday also stripped all rank from Staff Sergeant Umar Sule. The father of the crippled boy, Usman Muhammed, expressed satisfaction with Tuesday's ruling. The court-martial was petitioned by the government-funded National Human Rights Commission, which said it is also pursuing monetary compensation for the family. The court heard that Sale Muhammed had confessed to stealing 2,000 naira ($6.60) from the soldier. The sergeant tied the boys' hands with a rubber band, bound him to a pole for more than seven hours and flogged him. On his release, doctors amputated one hand and declared the other useless. Obama, 55, who will leave White House in January next year, suffered indignities of the job interview as he was questioned about his qualifications by Stephen Colbert in "The Late Show". (Photo: AFP) Washington: US President Barack Obama, who was awarded Nobel Peace Prize in 2009, has said he is still not sure why the prestigious prize was bestowed on him. Obama, 55, who will leave White House in January next year, suffered indignities of the job interview as he was questioned about his qualifications by Stephen Colbert in "The Late Show". Asked by Colbert to list any relevant awards or qualifications, Obama replied, "I have almost 30 honorary degrees and I did get the Nobel Peace Prize". "Really, what was that for?," enquired Colbert. "To be honest, I still don't know," Obama responded, 'Los Angeles Times' reported. Colbert also asked Obama questions such as where he was born, and a fruit related query. "I would like to ask you about your choice of snacks," Colbert told the president in the interview, a segment of which was aired on Monday. "Would you care for an extra-fiber nutrient bar, which has traveled to more than 100 countries, or this shrivelled tangerine, covered in golden retriever hair, filled with bile, that I wouldn't leave alone with a woman I loved?" Colbert told Obama. "I think I will go with the fiber nutrient bar," Obama replied. Donald Trump has roped-in President Barack Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother to be his guest at the third and final presidential debate here, US media reported on Wednesday. (Photo: YouTube/ AP) Las Vegas: Seeking to put the Democrats on the back foot, Donald Trump has roped-in President Barack Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother to be his guest at the third and final presidential debate here, US media reported on Wednesday. Hillary Clinton will be joined at the prime-time debate by two well-known billionaires who are backing her campaign, in what may be an attempt to rattle Trump, the controversial Republican nominee by subtly questioning his own net worth. Meg Whitman, the Hewlett-Packard CEO and former Republican California gubernatorial candidate, and Mark Cuban, the outspoken billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, will both be Clinton's guests at Wednesday's third and final presidential debate, CNN reported. Meanwhile, Trump is countering with Malik, President Obama's half-brother and a ghost from Clinton's past: Patricia Smith, the mother of Benghazi victim Sean Smith, who has accused the former secretary of state of "murdering" her son. The New York Post first reported Trump's invitation to Obama's half-brother. The Post also reported that Malik Obama called now-deceased Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi one of his best friends -- a potential source of awkwardness for Smith. Malik Obama, who was born in Kenya and is an American citizen, voiced his support for Trump in July, saying he hoped to meet the Republican nominee. Trump's feelings are mutual. "I look very much forward to meeting and being with Malik," Trump said today. "He gets it far better than his brother." Malik Obama shares the same father with the president but has a different mother. He told the Post that he blames Clinton, who was secretary of state at the time Gadaffi was toppled and killed, for making the situation worse in Libya. Clinton invited both Cuban and Whitman, campaign spokeswoman Jennifer Palmieri said, and the duo agreed to attend. Whitman, a longtime Republican, endorsed Clinton earlier this year, saying in a statement that she would vote for and donate to Clinton. Since then, Whitman has headlined events for Clinton and contributed a considerable amount of money to her campaign. Cuban sat in the front row at Clinton's first debate against Trump, a move that was intended to shake the Republican nominee because the Dallas Mavericks owner has been so outspoken against the businessman. Trump lashed out at Cuban for attending the debate with Clinton, calling him "dopey." At the second presidential debate, Trump appeared with three women who have in the past accused former President Bill Clinton of inappropriate sexual behavior as part of an effort to rattle Hillary Clinton. Trump invited Kathleen Willey, Juanita Broaddrick, Paula Jones and another woman, Kathy Shelton, whose alleged rapist was defended by Clinton as a young lawyer. Quito, Ecuador: Ecuador said Tuesday it had cut the internet access of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is holed up at its London embassy, due to leaks by the anti-secrecy website that could impact the US election. "The government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states. It does not interfere in external electoral processes, nor does it favor any particular candidate," the Ecuadoran foreign ministry said in a statement. In consequence, the ministry said, it decided to "temporarily restrict" communications at the embassy. WikiLeaks has published a damaging trove of hacked emails from US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's campaign in recent weeks. On Monday it accused Ecuador of cutting off Assange's internet communications at the behest of US Secretary of State John Kerry. The United States denied the allegation. "Reports that Secretary Kerry had conversations with Ecuadorian officials about this are simply untrue. Period," State Department spokesman John Kirby said Tuesday. Ecuador also implicitly denied the claim in its statement. "Ecuador's foreign policy responds to sovereign decisions alone and does not yield to pressure from other states," it said. Ecuador reaffirmed its decision to grant Assange asylum, and said the restriction on communications at its embassy did not hinder WikiLeaks itself. "This temporary restriction does not prevent the WikiLeaks organization from carrying out its journalistic activities," it said. Assange fled to Ecuador's London embassy in June 2012. The 45-year-old Australian is fighting extradition to Sweden to face a rape accusation. He denies the allegation and says he fears Sweden wants to hand him over to the United States to face trial for the leaking of hundreds of thousands of classified US military and diplomatic documents in 2010. US denies hand Meanwhile, the United States denied charges from WikiLeaks that Washington asked Ecuador to cut the internet connection of the website's founder Julian Assange. WikiLeaks on Monday alleged that Assange's internet access was cut Saturday after it published private speeches by Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton to Goldman Sachs. In a series of tweets beginning late Monday, the anti-secrecy site said it learned from "multiple sources" that Ecuador cut off Assange's internet connection at the behest of US Secretary of State John Kerry. But State Department spokesman John Kirby, in a brief statement, denied that Washington had played any role in the move. "While our concerns about WikiLeaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down WikiLeaks is false," Kirby said. "Reports that Secretary Kerry had conversations with Ecuadorian officials about this are simply untrue. Period." Washington: Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign considered tapping Apple chief executive Tim Cook to be her running mate, according to hacked emails published by WikiLeaks. In an email dated March 17 to Clinton, campaign chairman John Podesta also proposed the mega-billionaire Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, his wife Melinda and General Motors chief executive Mary Barra as possible Democratic vice presidents. "Let me know if there are people you would like to see added or removed," Podesta wrote, enclosing a list of more than 30 names. "I have organized names in rough food groups." The email also identified well known military figures -- such as Navy Admiral Mike Mullen, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Marine Corps General John Allen, the former commander of US forces in Afghanistan -- as well as Clinton's opponent for the Democratic nomination, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and other lawmakers. Podesta also suggested billionaire former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg as well as more conventional political choices, such as Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe and Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown. Clinton ultimately settled on Virginia Senator Tim Kaine to campaign with her. Podesta has not publicly verified that the emails are authentic, but told reporters earlier this month that he believed that "Russian intelligence agencies" had hacked into his email account as part of efforts to favor Republican nominee Donald Trump. US officials have formally blamed state-sponsored Russian hackers for the exposure of internal emails from the Democratic party and other prominent people and institutions. Montreal: Imprisoned Saudi blogger Raif Badawi, whose public flogging in the kingdom last year generated a global outcry, now risks a new round of lashes, a co-founder of a Canadian foundation advocating his release said on Tuesday. Evelyne Abitbol, who founded the Raif Badawi Foundation with Badawi's wife, said a "reliable source" in Saudi Arabia claims he faces a new flogging after being sentenced to 10 years imprisonment and 1,000 lashes in 2014 for breaking the kingdom's technology laws and insulting Islam. Saudi embassy officials in Ottawa and Saudi government officials in Riyadh were not immediately available for comment. Reuters was unable to independently confirm the source's claims. Abitbol declined to name the source but said it was the same person who had alerted Badawi's wife, Ensaf Haidar, in 2015 before he received his first 50 lashes, the only part of the flogging that was reportedly administered. The source did not indicate when the flogging would take place. "Unfortunately, it could happen at any time, if it happens," Abitbol said by phone in Montreal. Abitbol said that Haidar has asked countries with ties to Saudi Arabia, including the Canadian government, to intervene on the blogger's behalf. Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion said in Ottawa that his department is trying to confirm whether the claims are true and has urged the Saudi government to allow Badawi to join his family in Canada. "We are trying to have the most accurate information possible, because if this information is true, it would be shameful," Dion told reporters on Tuesday. "Canada completely condemns this type of lashing." Haidar, who was in Germany to present a journalism award on Wednesday in her husband's name, could not be reached for comment. She was granted asylum in Canada, where she lives with the couple's three children in the province of Quebec. Abitbol, the foundation's director, wants Saudi Arabia to withdraw the flogging punishment, strip Badawi of his Saudi citizenship and let him leave the country for Canada. Last December, the European Parliament gave Badawi the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. The details came as prosecutors sought approval to introduce evidence at the December 5 trial of El Gammal, who is charged with conspiring to provide material support to ISIS by helping El-Goarany travel so he could join the militant group. (Photo: AFP/Representational) New York: A New York City college student died last November fighting for ISIS in Syria, where he had travelled earlier in the year with the assistance of an Arizona man he met online, according to US prosecutors. The death of Samy Mohammed El-Goarany, who was 24 when he traveled to Syria, was disclosed in papers filed by prosecutors late on Monday in Manhattan federal court in a case against the Arizona man, Ahmed Mohammed El Gammal. The details came as prosecutors sought approval to introduce evidence at the December 5 trial of El Gammal, who is charged with conspiring to provide material support to ISIS by helping El-Goarany travel so he could join the militant group. The potential evidence includes a letter by El-Goarany that an unidentified person via an instant messaging platform provided one of El-Goarany's relatives after saying he had been killed fighting in Syria. In the letter, El-Goarany informed the relative that "if you're reading this then know that I've been killed in battle and am now with our Lord InshaAllah." "We will win this war one day, this war between Iman (Belief) and kufr (Disbelief) between Good and Evil," the letter said, according to prosecutors. "And I will come back for you, with Allah's permission I will come back for you." El Gammal's lawyer declined comment. He has pleaded not guilty. According to prosecutors, El-Goarany was a US citizen who attended college in Manhattan and who by 2014 began expressing increased interest in militant forms of Islam. El-Goarany first contacted El Gammal in August 2014 after learning of online comments he posted supporting Islamic State, prosecutors said. They corresponded via encrypted messaging platforms, including one El-Goarany recommended by noting former National Security Agency contractor-turned-whistleblower Edward Snowden had used it, prosecutors said. They said El Gammal traveled to New York in October 2014 and met El-Goarany. He then arranged for El-Goarany to get in touch with an individual living in Turkey to help El-Goarany travel to join ISIS, prosecutors said. El-Goarany, whose parents lived in Middletown, New York, subsequently traveled from New York City to Istanbul in January 2015, and sometime in mid-February arrived in Syria, prosecutors said. After learning of El Gammal's August 2015 arrest, El-Goarany posted a video on YouTube denying he had helped him and saying he "came here out of my own will," prosecutors said. Sakthikanesh was jailed for three weeks, while his younger brother Vandana was fined SGD 6,000. (Representational image) Singapore: Two Indian-origin brothers in Singapore have been sentenced by a court here for failing to report for the compulsory National Service, in the second such case involving members of the Indian community this week. The brothers - Sakthikanesh Chidambaram, 25, Vandana Kumar Chidambaram who turns 23 in two weeks - remained out of Singapore without a valid exit permit and failed to report for the National Service (NS) for more than five years and for more than three years, respectively, the court was told. Yesterday, Sakthikanesh was jailed for three weeks, while his younger brother Vandana was fined SGD 6,000. Sakthikanesh, earlier pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to report for the the National Service for five years, six months and 17 days. Vandana earlier pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to report for the NS for three years, six months and two days. Both men also admitted to one count each of remaining outside Singapore without a valid exit permit and these charges were taken into consideration in sentencing. In June 2008, Sakthikanesh was told to register for the NS but he left Singapore later that month to pursue his university education at the National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra, only returning in April 2014, after he had completed his studies. He enlisted for full-time NS in September 2014. In May 2010, Vandana was told to register for NS. But he only returned to Singapore in June 2014 and enlisted for full-time NS in August 2014. In his judgement grounds, District Judge John Ng found that the brothers had "a substantial connection to Singapore". He noted that both got their NRICs and used Singapore passports for travel. "From the facts of this case, it is clear to me that the parents and the boys had no intention of giving up their Singapore citizenship before their NS obligations came to the fore," he said. The judge, however, took into account the fact that both men surrendered themselves and had pleaded guilty to their charges. They also performed their NS exceptionally well, he noted. Yesterday, a 22-year-old Indian-origin man Jay Kamal Shah was sentenced to six weeks in prison for not performing his national service obligations. Widodo introduced a series of tough punishments for child sex offenders in May through an emergency decree, including chemical castration and the death penalty, following an outcry over the fatal gang-rape of a schoolgirl. (Photo: AFP) Jakarta: Indonesian President Joko Widodo has defended the introduction of chemical castration for paedophiles, saying in an interview published Wednesday there can be "no compromise" when it comes to tackling sex crimes. Widodo introduced a series of tough punishments for child sex offenders in May through an emergency decree, including chemical castration and the death penalty, following an outcry over the fatal gang-rape of a schoolgirl. Parliament last week voted to put the new regulations permanently on the statute book, as had been widely expected. In an interview with the BBC, Widodo defended introducing chemical castration, a decision that has sparked anger from human rights activists and the Indonesian Doctors Association, which has said its members will not perform the treatment. "Our constitution respects human rights, but when it comes to sexual crimes there is no compromise," he said, adding that the government "will hand out the maximum penalty" for such crimes. "In my opinion... chemical castration, if we enforce it consistently, will reduce sex crimes and wipe them out over time," he said. Indonesia is among a small group of places worldwide which use the measure, including Poland and some states in the USA. In 2011 South Korea became the first Asian country to legalise the treatment. Chemical castration involves using drugs to reduce libido and sex drive. Widodo was spurred into action after the murder and gang-rape in April of a 14-year-old girl. She was set upon by a gang of drunken men and boys as she walked home from school on the western island of Sumatra. The leader of the gang was sentenced to death last month after being found guilty of premeditated murder, a crime already punishable by death before the new laws were introduced. Other members of the gang have been jailed. London: A 19-year-old girl from Wales, UK, has been jailed after she was proven guilty of having sex with a vulnerable minor schoolboy aged just 13, at least 70 times, with the least concern for his mental wellbeing. According to a report in the Daily Post, the girl, Deleah Poulton, was aged between 17 and 18 when she was engaged in the sexual act with the young boy. The court heard that the girl, a resident of Eastville Avenue in Rhyl, put her personal gratification above the welfare of the boy. The court was also told that there was no threat or violence involved and that the victim was compliant and was willing. Alcohol, purchased by Deleah, was also consumed by the two of them, but it was not used as an inducement. The court noted that Deleah was naive, with no previous criminal history, lacking in social skills, and thus, something of a sad individual. The information came to light after the boy revealed to his mother last year that he was involved in a sexual relation with the girl. The court also heard that the couple did not use any contraceptions and that they had sex at his home, her home and outside. Deleah also admitted to five charges of sexual activity with the child, covering intercourse and sex. Texts of sexual nature were also found on Deleahs phone. In a statement, the boy said that he experienced a range of emotions because of what happened. Deleah was given 16-months in a youth offenders home, and has to register as a sex offender for ten years. Monmouth MP David Davies said mandatory teeth checks would reassure people that the unaccompanied migrants coming into the UK to join relatives were indeed children. (Photo: Representational Image) London: A Conservative party MP on Wednesday triggered a row after he suggested dental checks must be used to determine the age of migrants entering the UK from France under a new agreement reached between the two countries over refugee children. Monmouth MP David Davies said mandatory teeth checks would reassure people that the unaccompanied migrants coming into the UK to join relatives were indeed children. "If they are jumping on lorries, they are not going to be averse to lying about their ages. We should do the tests," Davies said. Downing Street said "a whole range of checks are in place that the Home Office and Border Force are using in cooperation with partners" and the UK Home Office was forced to issue a statement against dental checks. "We do not use dental x-rays to confirm the ages of those seeking asylum in the UK," said a UK Home Office spokesperson. "Where credible and clear documentary evidence of age is not available, criteria including physical appearance and demeanour are used as part of the interview process to assess age," the spokesperson added. The first children with links to Britain arrived this week, after French authorities ratified a list drawn up by the charity Citizens UK, which is working with the UK government to bring unaccompanied minors over from Calais in France. However, photographs of some of the children have been printed on the front pages of some UK newspapers alongside headlines questioning their ages. The British Dental Association (BDA), which represents dentists and dental students in the UK, disputed claims that dental radiographs could accurately determine whether someone was under 18 or not. "It's not only an inaccurate method for assessing age, but it is both inappropriate and unethical to take radiographs of people when there is no health benefit for them," a BDA spokesperson said. Diane Abbott, Opposition Labour's shadow home secretary, said it was "an outrageous demand, which would further violate the human rights of vulnerable refugees". "They have suffered insanitary and dangerous conditions and should have been admitted long ago. This is a vile, reactionary clamour. It distracts from the government's responsibilities to these refugees, which it has largely neglected to date," she said. French authorities plan to close the so-called "Jungle" refugee camp, situated near the port of Calais, by the end of the year. UK officials in Calais have been focusing initially on unaccompanied minors who have the right to join relatives in the UK under EU legislation, known as the Dublin regulation. Berlin: A 51-year-old doctor from Germanys Bavaria was sentenced for 7 years and nine months in jail after a court found him guilty of sedating 12 women patients and taking over a million photos of them with butt-plugs on. According to a report in the Daily Mail, the doctor took photographs of women ranging between the ages 17 and 28 after administering powerful sedatives between 2008 and 2014. He claimed that he took the photographs as a part of a study that he was working on, but was unable to clarify when questioned about the use of butt-plugs in a study about veins in the pelvic region. He was also not able to show any materials on the study, and claimed that he used the information on his lectures on specialty of veins and treatment of pelvic vein thrombosis. Though he apologised for talking pictures of his patients without consent, he was not apologetic about the act itself. The chief public prosecutor informed the court that they had to go through millions of pictures and set up a hotline for the victims to get in touch. Panarello has also been accused of abandoning her son's dead body in a remote gully in Santa Croce Camerina in the Italian region of Sicily. (Representational Image) Santa Croce Camerina, Sicily: An Italian mother has been arrested on the charges of murdering her eight-year-old son after he discovered that she was having an affair with his grandfather. According to a report in the Daily Mail, the accused Veronica Panarello strangled her minor son Loris Stival with electric cables Panarello has also been accused of abandoning her son's dead body in a remote gully in Santa Croce Camerina in the Italian region of Sicily. In her confession, Panarello claimed that her son had discovered her affair with his grandfather and feared that he would tell everyone about it. Initially the accused tried to mislead the cops by pretending that her son was abducted. She had told police that she had dropped him off at school and when she went to pick him up, he was missing. However, Panarello later confessed to the crime when she was caught by the police as the CCTV footage of the school did not match with her story. While the case was under trial in the court, prosecutors branded her as egocentric, manipulative liar.' Panarello has been found guilty of murdering her son and has been sentenced to 30 years in jail. Iraqi forces are deployed during an offensive to retake Mosul from Islamic State militants outside Mosul. (Photo: AP) Moscow: Russia warned the US-led coalition Wednesday against driving jihadists from Iraq to Syria, in the offensive to recapture Mosul from the Islamic State jihadist group. "It is necessary not to drive terrorists from one country to the other but to destroy them on the spot," the chief of Russia's General Staff Valery Gerasimov said in a statement. He said Russia was focusing on "possible attempts by fighters to break out of Mosul" and "freely leave the city in the direction of Syria". "We hope that our partners in the international coalition realise what freely roaming large IS gangs in the Middle East can lead to." The long-awaited offensive against Iraq's second city began Monday with air and ground support from a US-led coalition. Iraqi forces on Wednesday prepared to retake Qaraqosh, the country's largest Christian town located about 15 kilometres (10 miles) southeast of Mosul, a key milestone in their progress toward the jihadists' main hub. Officials have said the retaking of Mosul -- in Iraq's largest military operation in years -- could take weeks or months and warned that the hundreds of thousands of civilians still in the city could be used as human shields. Gerasimov said that Russian military satellites, reconnaissance aircraft and drones were surveilling the Iraqi city. "Despite all the ballyhoo on Western television, it must be understood that the operation as such has not yet begun," Gerasimov said. Earlier on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with the leaders of Turkey and Iraq to discuss the battle, wishing the Iraqi army success in its operations. The Kremlin strongman at the weekend called on the US-led coalition to avoid civilian casualties in the battle to recapture the city. Meanwhile Russian airpower has been backing up an offensive by regime forces on rebel-held eastern Aleppo that has sparked accusations of potential war crimes from the West. Moscow announced on Tuesday that the Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo to pave the way for an eight-hour truce on Thursday. The two leaders are expected to hold bilateral talks over a working lunch on November 7. (Photo: Twitter/ MEA) London: British Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday indicated in Parliament that during her India visit next month she would be encouraging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in the UK. Conservative Party MP Hugo Swire asked her during the weekly Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons if the topic would figure during her first visit to India as British Prime Minister between November 6 and 8. "When she goes to India next month, will she commit to persuade Prime Minister Modi to attend the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in the UK," Swire asked, in reference to the "increasing relevance" of the Commonwealth for trade given Britain's impending exit from the European Union (EU). In response, May said, "I am happy to encourage all leaders to attend CHOGM when it takes place here in the United Kingdom...we are indeed looking at the possibility of trade deals in relation to the Commonwealth." "I applaud that first-ever meeting of Commonwealth Trade Ministers (2017), which is an important step as we look to forge a new global role in the world, ensuring that we make a success of leaving the EU and trading our way around the world," she said. May will arrive in New Delhi on November 6 to inaugurate the India-UK TECH Summit along with Modi. The two leaders are expected to hold bilateral talks over a working lunch on November 7 before the British Premier heads to a second Indian city, likely to be Bengaluru, on November 8 as part of her three-day visit. May will be accompanied by UK international trade secretary Liam Fox, who will be attending the Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO). The UK delegation will also include representatives of small and medium businesses from regions across the UK and a number of commercial deals are expected to be signed during the visit. The issue was raised in the High Court here this week by lawyers representing the UK government in a challenge to the legality of the Brexit referendum without a Parliament vote. (Photo: AFP/Representational Image) London: Britain's Parliament is "very likely" to get a chance to vote on the final agreement reached with the European Union (EU) on the UK's exit from the 28-nation economic bloc, a government lawyer has said. The issue was raised in the High Court here this week by lawyers representing the UK government in a challenge to the legality of the Brexit referendum without a Parliament vote. "Any such changes are a matter for future negotiations, parliamentary scrutiny, and implementation by legislation. The government view at the moment is that it is very likely that any such agreement would be subject to ratification," government lawyer James Eadie?told the High Court. On being pressed further by Lord Chief Justice Thomas on whether any agreement with the EU would eventually be subject to approval by Parliament, he added: "It is ultimately dependent upon the agreement of the parties to the treaty, whether they want it to be subject to ratification or not. "But as I say, the view within government is that it is very likely that this treaty will be subject to ratification process in the usual way. Most of them are. It is a pretty rare event for the things to take effect immediately upon accession." Downing Street confirmed that position set out in court was the view of the government. A spokesperson said: "The point we were making in court today and counsel made clear is caveated with not yet knowing the shape and terms of our exit from the EU but that there will be obligations to meet with regard to the constitutional reform and governance act. We would consider the outcome against those obligations and meet them." According to The Guardian, judgment in the legal challenge to Brexit is likely to be reserved and announced only several weeks later. The losing side is likely to then appeal to the Supreme Court to pursue the challenge. The case, which opened last week, challenges British Prime Minister Theresa May's right to trigger Article 50 and begin official Brexit proceedings without a parliamentary vote. The challenge has been brought by a group of businesses led by investment manager Gina Miller, whose lawyers argue that the government cannot trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty unilaterally despite a public referendum in favour of leaving the European Union. If the city is reclaimed by the Iraqi government, ISIS will be left with the Syrian city of Raqqa as its last major stronghold. (Representational Image) London: Defeated Islamic State fighters from the Iraqi city of Mosul are likely to enter Europe to carry out terrorist attacks, the European Union's (EU) security chief has warned. Thousands of Europeans who left to fight for ISIS in Iraq and Syria over the past few years may have already begun returning to the continent after the terrorist group suffered a string of territorial defeats in the Middle East, warned Julian King, the EU's Commissioner for Security. "The retaking of Islamic State's northern Iraq stronghold, Mosul, may lead to the return to Europe of violent ISIS fighters," King told the German newspaper 'Die Welt'. According to King, a British diplomat who recently took charge as security commissioner, even a handful of such terrorists returning would pose a serious threat. French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has warned the fight to liberate Mosul in its entirety could take a long time. "It's not a blitzkrieg. It's a city with 1.5 million residents, so it's a long-term project - several weeks, maybe months," he said. Some 34,000 Iraqi security personnel, Kurdish fighters, Sunni Muslim Arab tribesmen and Shia Muslim paramilitaries have been deployed against ISIS, with backing from the US, France and others. Their advance on Mosul comes over two years after the city was seized by ISIS in a major coup that enabled the extremist group to announce a self-proclaimed caliphate spanning Iraq and Syria. Iraqi forces say they have captured 10 villages near Mosul since beginning their long-awaited offensive on Monday. As many as 5,000 ISIS fighters are believed to remain in the city. If the city is reclaimed by the Iraqi government, ISIS will be left with the Syrian city of Raqqa as its last major stronghold. Berlin: Russian President Vladimir Putin will face Western pressure over Ukraine and Syria at talks in Berlin Wednesday, on his first visit to the German capital since the Ukrainian conflict erupted. Host Chancellor Angela Merkel said the talks -- also including France and Ukraine, in the first four-way summit for a year -- were aimed at "offering a brutally honest assessment" of progress on implementing the frayed Minsk peace accords for Ukraine. "Things are stalled in many areas such as the ceasefire, political issues and humanitarian issues," she told reporters Tuesday. "We have to seize every chance we have for progress. I have to say that we cannot expect a miracle but it is worth every effort at this point." Putin has not visited the German capital since Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014, sending relations with the West plunging to their lowest point since the Cold War. Russia's involvement in the Syrian civil war, which has deepened the diplomatic freeze, will also figure at the top of the agenda, Merkel said. Speaking of the "disastrous" situation in the besieged city of Aleppo, Merkel said she and French President Francois Hollande would speak to Putin "about somehow alleviating people's suffering". "Here too, we cannot expect miracles but it is essential to talk, even if the views are far apart," she said. Ending the devastation The gathering will be aimed at "giving the same message to Vladimir Putin on Syria: a durable ceasefire in Aleppo and humanitarian access so that the devastation of this city can end," an aide to Hollande said in Paris. Syria's second city, held by rebels determined to oust President Bashar al-Assad, has come under heavy bombardment since the Russia-backed military announced an offensive in late September to regain control of the east. Air strikes in the city have flattened numerous residential buildings and civilian facilities, in a bombing campaign the European Union warned could amount to war crimes. The Berlin meeting takes place on the eve of a European Union summit in Brussels on relations with Russia, including sanctions over Ukraine, which come up for renewal at the end of the year. The two-day Brussels talks are also expected to cover Russia's role in Syria, which sparked a furious row between Russia and France last week, prompting Putin to cancel a visit to Paris. Swapping recriminations The last four-way summit in the so-called Normandy Format took place in Paris in October 2015. Hollande's office said in a statement that Wednesday's gathering would "discuss the next steps in the process towards ending the crisis in eastern Ukraine". Russia backs a separatist, pro-Moscow insurgency in the region that has claimed nearly 10,000 lives. But it denies accusations that it has sent troops and weapons across its border with Ukraine to fuel the conflict. In the run-up to the meeting, Moscow and Kiev swapped recriminations. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin believed there was "no alternative" to implementing the Minsk accords. "We know that on this point, the situation leaves much to be desired," he said. "For the moment, Kiev is doing nothing." Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko indicated he had little hope for progress in Berlin. "Let's not have very high expectations on this meeting," he said Tuesday on a visit to Oslo. "Am I optimistic enough? Yes I'm very optimistic about the future of Ukraine but unfortunately not so optimistic about tomorrow's meeting." Germany currently holds the rotating presidency of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which has monitors in eastern Ukraine. Damascus: Around 620 rebels and their families began evacuating a besieged town southwest of the Syrian capital on Wednesday under a deal with the government, a local official said. "The buses of rebels have begun moving," said Hassan Ghandour, a member of the local committee overseeing the deal in Moadamiyat al-Sham. He said the buses held rebels as well as their family members and would head to Idlib province, northwest of Damascus. Moadamiyet al-Sham has been under a devastating government siege since early 2013. Syria's government has championed such local deals -- which typically see rebels evacuated in exchange for an end to their encirclement -- as a way to bring stability to the war-ravaged country. Another member of the local reconciliation committee who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity said the evacuees -- rebels and civilians -- numbered 2,100 people. Any remaining rebels would hand themselves in to Syrian authorities "to have their status regularised," the member said. "Then, the Syrian army will enter the town and state institutions will return to it. Infrastructure like water and electricity networks will be repaired beginning on Sunday," the member added. More than 300,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011. Iraqi forces are deployed during an offensive to retake Mosul from Islamic State militants outside Mosul. (Photo: AP) Erbil: ISIS has 5,000 to 6,000 fighters defending the city of Mosul against an offensive by Iraqi forces, the head of Iraq's special forces Lieutenant General Talib Shaghati said on Wednesday. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Monday announced the start of an offensive on the northern city, the last major stronghold of the militants in Iraq, with the backing of a US-led coalition. "Intelligence information indicates that there are 5,000 to 6,000 Daesh fighters," Shaghati told a news conference near Erbil, the capital of the Kurdish region east of Mosul, using an Arabic acronym of ISIS. Dhaka: Fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami elected its new chief who hailed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's father Mujibur Rahman as the "architect" of Bangladesh's independence from Pakistan, in a bid to mend ties with the government after top Jamaat leaders were executed on 1971 war crime charges. Former school teacher Maqbul Ahmed, 70, was elected as new Jamaat-e-Islami leader after a secret ballot of party members, the Islamist party said in a statement yesterday. The post was lying vacant after its former chief Motiur Rahman Nizami was hanged in May after a tribunal convicted him of mass murder during the 1971 war of independence. In his first statement after his election as Jamaat's new 'ameer', Ahmed, who is untainted by war crime allegations, paid tribute to Hasina's father, who led the war of independence against Pakistan. "I pay profound respect to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the architect of the country's independence...," he said. He also paid tributes to "other undisputed leaders of the Liberation War of Bangladesh" including slain president Zia-ur Rahman, who is the founder of Jamaat's ally BNP. BNP is the main opposition outside parliament as it did not take part in the 2014 elections after Jamaat was barred from contesting the polls following a Supreme Court ruling. Ahmad was serving as acting Jamaat chief after the execution of Nizami and four other top party leaders, including the party's secretary general, its two joint secretaries and its main financier, following trials that rights groups have condemned as unfair. The new Jamaat chief also paid tributes to his predecessor Nizami and grand predecessor Gholam Azam, also a war crimes convict who died last year while serving imprisonment until death, recalling "their contributions to country's development and democracy". "The government hanged five senior (Jamaat) leaders to death on false charges," Ahmed said. Jamaat opposed Bangladesh's independence from Pakistan, but denies its leaders were involved in mass murders and rapes during the nine-month long conflict. Bangladesh launched the war crimes trial process in 2010 in line with electoral pledges of Prime Minister Hasina's ruling Awami League which had stewarded the Liberation War in 1971 when Jamaat formed militia units as auxiliary forces of the Pakistani troops. Several Jamaat leaders earlier said they would now reorganise the party with leaders free of war crimes stigma. Islamabad: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan has told China's Ambassador to Pakistan Sun Weidong that his party's planned protest next month is not directed at the USD 46 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. This message was conveyed to the Chinese envoy at Imran's Bani Gala residence on Tuesday. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has announced plans to stage a protest in Islamabad on November 2, the Express Tribune has reported. Officially, there was no word from the PTI on the meeting, but sources said discussions revolved round the CPEC and the PTI's upcoming sit-in which aims to force Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to present himself for accountability. Imran is reported to have told the Chinese envoy that the PTI protest is aimed at the 'rampant corruption' of the government and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and had nothing to do with CPEC. Both also agreed that Chinese investment was crucial for Pakistan's future and prosperity, sources were quoted by the paper, as saying. Earlier this year, the Chinese embassy in Islamabad had issued a press statement calling on the political leadership of the country to resolve their issues for the smooth implementation of the CPEC. More than 300 school children have been hospitalised since yesterday afternoon, but none face life-threatening illness, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. (Representational Image) Beijing: Over 300 school children were hospitalised in China due to food poisoning, authorities said on Wednesday. Shigella sonnei bacteria were found in the feces of patients who are among hundreds treated for food poisoning in northern China, they said. More than 300 school children have been hospitalised since yesterday afternoon, but none face life-threatening illness, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. According to doctors, patient blood test reports showed high white blood cell levels, indicating infection. Experts said the discovery confirmed that the students were suffering from gastrointestinal diseases caused by the bacteria. "Shigella sonnei bacteria can breed in food and water at an optimum temperature, which can easily cause bacillary dysentery," they said, adding severe cases of shigellosis can be so serious that patients, particularly young children and the elderly, need to be hospitalised. Further investigation into the cause of the outbreak is under way, the report said. Kathmandu: The fourth meeting of the India-Nepal Joint Commission, the high level bilateral mechanism, is scheduled to be held in New Delhi next week, the Nepalese government said on Wednesday. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Nepalese counterpart Prakash Sharan Mahat will lead the two delegations at the October 26-27 meeting that will review and assess past agreements and commitments reached between the two countries, according to Foreign Ministry officials in Kathmandu. The Joint Commission meeting to be held between the two foreign ministers will be followed by a Foreign Secretary -level meeting, the officials said. During the recent state visit of Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' to India, both sides had agreed to hold the Joint Commission Meeting "at the earliest". During the meeting discussions will be held on a wide range of bilateral issues and also focus on expediting the India-funded projects and setting up of a joint mechanism at the government level to monitor progress of these projects in Nepal. Besides, the meeting will also chalk out a time-bound plan to complete the pending projects, they said. The third meeting of the joint commission was held in Kathmandu in 2014 after a gap of more than two decades. Sharif stated this when he met Bank of China chairman Tian Guoli who called on him in Islamabad. (Photo: AFP) Islamabad: Pakistan and China's "all weather" relationship is based upon shared principles and interests that form the foundation of cooperation in diverse fields, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Wednesday. Sharif stated this when he met Bank of China chairman Tian Guoli who called on him in Islamabad. "Highlighting China's great support to Pakistan in security, trade and infrastructure development, the Prime Minister said that Pakistan and China have a shared future and China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is the largest comprehensive project with any foreign country," according to an official statement. "CPEC is a fusion of multiple development projects, aimed at the prosperity and well-being of the citizens of the country and the region at large," it quoted Sharif saying. The prime minister said that Pakistan has a vibrant banking system that has achieved high level of profitability, improved liquidity and strong solvency position. Sharif said sound capital base, remarkable growth in assets and profitability and compliance with international standards has poised Pakistan's banking sector in a very competitive position in the region for investors. He said foreign ownership in Pakistan's banking sector has consistently and considerably increased and the government has recently concluded USD 700 million financing agreement with China Development Bank which is the first such interaction with the Chinese banking industry. Tian lauded the vision of Sharif for putting the country on development path and turning around the economy. Tian said that CPEC has huge economic benefits for the people of Pakistan and the region. The court observed that the licenses were supposed to be issued for wine shops which were only meant to sell foreign or local liquor to non-Muslims during their festivals. (Representational Image) Karachi: A Pakistani court has ordered the recall of all licenses granted to wine shops in Karachi to allow the sale of foreign or local liquor to non-Muslims during their festivals, citing apparent misuse. The Sindh High Court (SHC) directed the provincial excise and taxation authorities to recall all licenses granted to wine shops here over 'astonishingly high' sale of liquor in the past three months at 11 outlets in the posh areas of Clifton and Defence. The SHC Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah is hearing a petition against issuing licences to wine shops in Muslim-populated areas. The petitioner, Shaharyar David, had sought cancellation of the licences of wine shops in Defence and Clifton areas. The court observed that the licenses were supposed to be issued for wine shops which were only meant to sell foreign or local liquor to non-Muslims during their festivals. The court, while recalling all licenses of wine shops, observed Section 17 of Prohibition (enforcement of Hadd) Order, 1979 which does not allow sale of liquor throughout the year. In Pakistan, the sale of alcohol is banned but the government has allowed licenses for wine shops which can only sell liquor to non-Muslims but it is no secret that the majority of customers at these shops are Muslims. The court asked the excise and taxation director general about the spread of liquor shops in Karachi, particularly district South where 24 licences were granted even though as per the NADRA (National Database and Registration Authority) and election commission records, no more than 59,000 non-Muslims resided there. The director general submitted that the government had prescribed a monthly quota of 16 cans of beer and eight bottles each of 750 ml of Pakistani manufactured or foreign liquor for each non-Muslim in the province. The Sindh government excise and taxation department charges a fee of 8 million rupees to issue a license to open a wine shop. Islamabad: Lawmakers from the upper house have expressed fear that if Pakistan's interests are not actively protected, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) could turn into another East India Company, which became the precursor to the British colonial presence in the subcontinent, eventually gaining power and overthrowing the ruling Mughals. "Another East India Company is in the offing; national interests are not being protected. We are proud of the friendship between Pakistan and China, but the interests of the state should come first," the Dawn quoted Senator Tahir Mashhadi, chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Planning and Development as saying, as he addressed concerns raised by some committee members that the government was not protecting the rights and interests of the people. Following a briefing by Planning Commission Secretary Yousuf Nadeem Khokhar, a number of committee members voiced their fears over what they perceived as the utilisation of local financing for the CPEC projects, instead of funding from the Chinese or any other foreign investment. They also expressed concern over the fixing of power tariff for CPEC-related power projects by the Chinese. Since only one of three Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) members of the committee were present at the meeting, most of this criticism went unanswered. PML-N's Senator Saeedul Hassan Mandokhail also endorsed the committee chairman's complaints. The meeting was informed that a major portion of the CPEC depended on local finances rather than Chinese investment. "It will be very harmful for us if we have to bear the entire burden; will this [project] be a national development or a national calamity? Whatever loans taken from China will have to be paid by the poor people of Pakistan," Mashhadi observed. Highlighting the status of CPEC-related power projects, the Planning Commission secretary said that the Matiari-Lahore transmission line project had "not been scrapped" and was being pursued by its Chinese sponsors. Recently, the National Energy Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) had approved tariff for the project, while the government's Private Power Infrastructure Board had filed a review petition on the tariff in order to address the sponsors' concerns. At this, Senator Usman Khan Kakar pointed out that NEPRA had fixed the power tariff for the project at 71 paisas/unit, while Chinese investors were demanding 95 paisas/unit. "The government has filed an appeal before Nepra, seeking the increase despite the fact that the burden will be borne by poor consumers," he said. He also said that the infrastructure being established in Gwadar would only benefit the Chinese and Punjab governments, not the local community. "The people of Balochistan will only get one benefit from this project, which is the water supply," he said, adding that no electricity or railway projects had been planned for Balochistan under the CPEC. Senator Mandokhail said that a sense of deprivation was being instilled in smaller provinces. "We do not want the CPEC at the cost of the federation," he added. He also accused the Planning Commission of prioritising Balochistan very low on its list, given that it has not representation in the commission itself. Jamaat-i-Islami Emir Senator Sirajul Haq said that like certain other parts of the country, Fata and AJK were also being neglected in the CPEC. "There is nothing for both areas in the CPEC," he said and suggested that a 35km road was built to link Muzaffarabad to the CPEC so that the people of AJK could also reap its benefits. Iraqi forces were making gains as tens of thousands of fighters advanced on Mosul today in an unprecedented offensive to retake the city from the Islamic State group. With the crucial battle in its second day, Iraqi commanders said progress was being made as fighters pushed on two main fronts against the jihadists' last stronghold in Iraq. The US military, which is leading a coalition providing air and ground support, said Iraqi forces even looked "ahead of schedule" but senior Western officials warned the battle would be long and difficult. Advancing in armoured convoys across the dusty plains surrounding Mosul, forces moved into villages defended by pockets of IS fighters after intensive aerial bombardment. Massive columns of smoke rose from burning oil wells near the main staging base for government forces in Qayyarah, blotting out the horizon. A soldier at a checkpoint nearby said that IS lit the wells on fire to provide cover from air strikes before the town of Qayyarah was retaken in late August. The fires had been burning ever since. Heavy smoke was also hanging over Mosul itself as the jihadists burned tyres to shield themselves, resident Abu Saif said. Speaking to AFP from inside the city, Abu Saif said that while the sounds of air strikes and explosions could be heard coming from outside Mosul, its streets were eerily quiet. "The streets are empty, the people have been staying at home since the strikes started yesterday," said Abu Saif, a 47-year-old former company manager. "There is this happiness inside us... because we feel that we are about to be rescued," he said. "But we are scared that Daesh (IS) can still carry out acts of revenge against the population." The long-awaited Mosul offensive was launched on Monday, with some 30,000 federal forces leading Iraq's largest military operation since the 2011 pullout of US troops. Retaking Mosul would deprive IS of the last major Iraqi city under its control, dealing a fatal blow to the "caliphate" the jihadists declared two years ago after seizing large parts of Iraq and neighbouring Syria. Iraqi commanders said IS fighters were hitting back with suicide car bomb attacks but that the offensive was going as planned. "Many villages have already been liberated," said Sabah al-Numan, the spokesman of the elite counter-terrorism service. "Iraqi forces have achieved their goals and even more, but we're careful to stick to the plan and not rush this." The two main fronts are south of Mosul, where forces are moving from Qayyarah, and east, where another push involving Kurdish peshmerga fighters is under way. In the south, forces inching forward along the Tigris river were training their sights on a village called Hammam al-Alil, while units east of Mosul were close to Qaraqosh, once Iraq's biggest Christian town. A siege is likely to ensue and then a breach by crack units that will engage die-hard IS fighters. Some classes were held at Delhi Universitys Faculty of Law on Tuesday after four days, said students and teachers. The students were still able to shut down most classes despite the fact that number of students protesting over exam results have gone down. Today we have symbolically shut down the college after authorities tried to use force on us to get up from our hunger strike, said Vimal, a protesting student. The students also burnt an effigy of the DU vice chancellor on Tuesday. The college has been shut since Friday because protesters entered the classes and disrupted them. On Friday, protestors locked up their dean, Professor Ved Kumari, in her office for an hour with two of her colleagues. They also broke windows at the Law Faculty old campus, some students said. The protesters were not letting other students attend classes, a student said. Students who are not on strike are divided on their stance. They felt sorry for the students who had failed, but also want the classes to go on. Students who passed said that the highest percentage was 65% and the passing percentage was 45%. Most students got close to the passing percentage, barely 5% students got about 65%. Ravita Singh, 2nd year law student, said, What they (protesters) are doing will help us also because if we fail, we will also have proper re-evaluation of papers instead of just totalling of marks. Students main concern is their future in the field of law. According to the protesters, administration is playing foul: they have closed the library and administration room so that students who are not on strike feel uneasy. Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and Delhi University Students Union have been with the students on their strike since past two months. ABVPs Ankit Singh Sangwan, general secretary of DUSU, said the unrest showed that the administration has failed, which is why DUSU has intervened. As the vigor of the protest came down, protestors on Friday requested authorities to open the library and the administration room so that students could submit their exam forms. But the library was later locked again, the protesters said. Law Faculty classes started one month late this year because the Bar Council of India, which is the authority on legal education in India, delayed admission of students who passed the entrance exam in 2016. They had also decided to scrap evening classes in the college, which also faced strong protests in the college delaying normal classes. A 36-year-old man who cheated over 30 divorcees and widows of money was arrested on Monday. Manish Gupta created a fake profile on matrimonial websites, where he posed as a single man who ran a business which gave him a turnover of Rs 1 crore per annum, said the police. He extorted Rs 75, 000 from one of them and investigation is underway to find out what happened with the others. The woman who filed the complaint in Ashok Vihar police station, made thorough enquiries and found that he was married, has two children and that his online profile was fake. She made the complaint on October 9. She told the police that she met him at the beginning of the year when Gupta had emailed her his profile. He gave her false hopes of marriage and dated her for a while, so as to take her into confidence. According to the complaint, Gupta called up the woman in June and told her that he lost his wallet, credit card and a diamond ring and urgently required some money. The police said that the woman, assuming that she was helping her future husband, deposited an amount of Rs 50,000 in his Axis bank account and transferred an extra Rs 25,000. After this transaction, he began responding to her lesser and soon all communication stopped, the woman told police. Gupta had posted his profile on matrimonial websites like Bharatmatrimony.com, Jeevansaathi.com and Simplymarry.com. The profile said that he has done his MBA from Symbiosis, Pune and is a graduate from Kirori Mal College in Delhi University, said police. Although the address mentioned in his bio-data was wrong, his mother and brother were traced. They told the police that they have not seen him for the past 10 years. Gupta was nabbed in Ashok Vihar on Sunday. Gupta dropped out of college after his second year. He moved away from his brothers, sold his share of property, and started indulging in such activities, the police said. The monthly car-free day, launched with much fanfare by the Aam Aadmi Party government in the national capital last year, has been given a quiet burial. The exercise was started on October 22 last year in a bid to decongest city roads and to curb pollution by cars. The initial idea was to ban cars on the 22nd of every month on a chosen stretch of road. The then Transport Minister Gopal Rai had termed it the beginning of a revolution. However, it could not complete even a year. It was a failed arrangement. It was suddenly abandoned on the direction from the government, said an official. There has been no car-free day after February this year. Officials point at lack of planning and coordination between various stakeholders as the reason for abandoning the car-free day. It also seemed to be another victim of confrontational politics between the Lieutenant Governor and the Delhi government. During the third car-free day, the Delhi Police pointed out that under section 115 of Motor Vehicles Act, the government has to take permission from the LG before prohibiting entry of vehicles on certain roads. In the first two car-free days, the police cooperated but later they said that they wont stop vehicles and it has to be voluntary till a notification by the LG is issued, said a senior government official. In the fourth such exercise in January this year, when the stretch between Vishwa Vidyalaya Metro Station and Chhatrasal Stadium was meant to be car-free for a day, Deputy Chief Minister had even accused police of non-cooperation. Sources said the problem started with the car-free day on the busy Vikas Marg between Nirman Vihar Metro Station and Laxmi Nagar last December. Since it is an arterial road connecting east Delhi to Central Delhi, restricting cars on the stretch led to traffic jams on connecting roads. Restricting entry on Vikas Marg means chaos in all directions. Not much thought went into it. Car-free day was a good idea but badly implemented, said the official. He suggested that such events should be held on inside or peripheral roads and not during office timings. Critical preparatory measures are needed during such exercises. You have to design and see which stretches can be earmarked for car-free days. Also, people need to have clarity about movement of public transport like Metro and bus service when the car-free day is enforced, said Anumita Roychowdhary of Centre for Science and Environment. After protracted negotiations, Russia has agreed to lease a second nuclear submarine to India in a deal which will cost around USD 2 billion. Sources today said the deal was struck during the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 15 on the sidelines of the BRICS meet in Goa. However, it was not part of the slew of announcements made after the talks. The Defence Ministry and the Navy did not offer any information on the subject since it was a strategic platform coming under direct purview of the Prime Minister's Office. Alexei Nikolski, a columnist with Russian daily Vedomosti, which broke the story, wrote, "According to a source in the Russian defence industry, the long-discussed lease to transfer a multipurpose Project 971 nuclear submarine to India from the Russian Navy was signed in Goa." The Akula 2 class submarine is expected to arrive in Indian waters in 2020-21. The Indian Navy already operates an Akula 2 class nuclear submarine, INS Chakra (formerly known as K-152 Nerpa), which was leased by Russia for 10 years and commissioned on April 4, 2012 after India paid for its completion of its construction and sea-trials. India had been keen to lease a second nuclear submarine. Indian defence sources had said that Russia had linked the lease of the nuclear submarine to the agreement for four stealth frigates. In Goa, India and Russia announced an over USD 3 billion frigate deal. Under the agreement, two stealth frigates will be built in Russia while the other two would be built in India under license production. The Akula 2 class submarine, though not the latest class of nuclear-powered fast-attack submarines in the world, is still considered one of the most advanced. Capable of sailing at speeds up to 35 knots (nearly 65 km per hour) under water, it is among the quietest Russian submarines. Justice Markandey Katju, summoned by the Supreme Court to explain his criticism of the Soumya case verdict, has said he was ready to do so but wanted the apex court to consider whether Article 124(7) of the Constitution barred him from appearing before it. The Supreme Court had two days ago summoned Katju to appear in person before it to point out the "fundamental flaws", as claimed by him in the sensational Soumya rape case. In a Facebook post, the former apex court judge said "I would be delighted to appear and discuss the matter in open court, but would only like the judges to consider whether, being a former Supreme Court judge, I am debarred from appearing by Article 124(7) of the Constitution. If the judges hold that it does not debar me, I would be happy to appear and place my views." Article 124 deals with the establishment and constitution of the Supreme Court and its clause 7 says "No person who has held office as a Judge of the Supreme Court shall plead or act in any court or before any authority within the territory of India". In his latest post, Katju also said he was preparing his detailed response which would also be uploaded on his Facebook page. "I have yet to receive the notice from the Supreme Court in the Soumya case, though I have been informally informed about it by the advocate on record of the Kerala Govt.," the former judge added. A Thrissur trial court had awarded Govindachamy the death sentence for raping 23-year-old Soumya on February 1, 2011, after pushing her out of a running train in Kerala. The death sentence was confirmed by the high court. The apex court had commuted to life the death penalty awarded to the convict. In an earlier Facebook post, Katju had criticised the apex court saying it had grievously erred by not holding the convict guilty of murder and its judgement needed to be reviewed. "It is regrettable that the Court has not read section 300 carefully. The judgment needs to be reviewed in an open court hearing," Katju had said in his post. An apex court bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and U U Lalit had on October 17 said, "We issue notice to Justice Markandey Katju, former judge of this Court and request him to appear in Court in person and participate in the proceedings on November 11...as to whether the judgment and order dated September 15 passed by this Bench...suffers from any fundamental flaw so as to require exercise of the review jurisdiction." Noted Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen today slammed those who are boycotting Pakistani artistes, saying terrorists should be banned not artistes, and cautioned that such actions were similar to Hitler's idea of 'blood purity'. In a series of tweets, Taslima, who is living in exile in India after facing death threats from fundamentalists in Bangladesh, said, "Ban terrorists. Don't ban artists. Artistes belong to the places where art is honoured. "Today you ban Pakistani artists. Tomorrow you ban Bangladeshi writers. You will live with yourselves. 'Pure Indian' blood. Hitler's idea of 'blood purity'." Hitler, who led Germany during World War II, propagated the idea of a "pure Aryan race" supremacy under Nazism, leading to the killings of millions of Jews and ban on mixed marriages. Taslema's came a day after filmmaker Karan Johar said he will not "engage with talent" from Pakistan in future and made a fervent appeal against stalling his upcoming film 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' that features Fawad Khan. In the aftermath of the Uri terror attack last month in which 19 Indian jawans were killed, the MNS issued an ultimatum to Pakistani artistes to leave India. They also threatened to stop the screening of films featuring artistes from Pakistan. Subsequently, Indian Motion Pictures Producers Association passed a motion to ban the artistes from the neighbouring country. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India recently decided not to screen the films with Pakistani actors in four states -- Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. Yesterday, Taslima had also tweeted on the issue of triple talaq saying, "No religious law is good. Better to have strict separation between religion & state. Uniform civil code based on equality & justice urgently necessary." In yet another sign of worsening infighting in Samajwadi Party,UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav today announced that he will embark on his 'Vikas Rath Yatra' alone from November 3 which will make him skip the party's silver jubilee celebrations slated to begin two days later. In a letter to his father and party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, the Chief Minister declared his intention to commence his yatra, which was put off last month after the open turf war with his uncle Shivpal Yadav, saying all political parties have already started their campaign for the Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh. "I had decided to take out the yatra from October 3 but it was cancelled due to some reasons. I will take out the 'Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra' from November 3," Akhilesh wrote. The announcement gave rise to speculation that Akhilesh might skip SP's sliver jubilee celebrations that begin on November 5 to send a message that he was unhappy over the expulsion of youth leaders from the party, who would not be present at the event. Apart from reaching out to people and galvanising party workers, Akhilesh's yatra is seen as a move to truncate the influence of Shivpal, who had been appointed the new state party president in his place. Akhilesh has also sent copies of the letter to state party chief Shivpal Yadav and National General Secretary Ram Gopal Yadav. He said yatra's detailed programme will be communicated to district presidents and party workers in due course. Earlier in the day, Akhilesh, Shivpal Yadav, and Mulayam held a closed-door meeting at party supremo's 5 Vikramaditya Marg residence to discuss poll strategy. According to party sources, Akhilesh is adamant on his demands of revoking the expulsion of youth leaders, some of whom are MLCs, and having his say in the ticket distribution. Akhilesh had earlier announced his decision to take out the yatra from October 3 through his twitter handle with a picture in which he was seen sitting inside a bus. He had last month hit back over his removal from the party post by stripping Shivpal of his key ministerial portfolios but had to retreat as Mulayam stepped in. The infighting continues unabated with Mulayam siding with Shivpal and his cousin Ram Gopal throwing his weight behind the the Chief Minister. The distribution of tickets and whether Akhilesh should be projected as CM candidate remain a bone of contention. One of Shivpal's first acts as state party chief was sacking Ram Gopal's nephew and party MLC Arvind Pratap Yadav, and a former village head in Etawah Akhilesh Kumar Yadav for their alleged involvement in land-grabbing and other such activities. Recently, Shivpal announced the first list of the party's candidates for the assembly elections without even consulting either the Chief Minister or Ram Gopal. The SP chief's reluctance to categorically back Akhilesh as the party's CM candidate as added fuel to fire which threatens to mar the ruling party's prospects. The pro-chief minister camp fears that all this is a part of a systematic attempt to undermine him and deny him a say in the party. Ram Gopal, who has sided with the CM, shot off an angry letter to Mulayam, urging him to intervene and get Shivpal to take back the expelled leaders and to ensure that the CM had a decisive say in ticket distribution. After today's meeting between the SP chief and Ram Gopal, there was no indication that the stand-off had been resolved. Meanwhile, Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid, Delhi Maulana Syed Ahmad Bukhari today met Akhilesh, Mulayam and Shivpal to discuss a possible patch-up. Spurt in the incidents of gun-snatching by militants in Kashmir has triggered concern in the security establishment, prompting the army to say today that it is working with police to tackle the new strategy of the ultras. Over the last three months, 67 weapons, including AK-47, INSAS, Carbine, SLR, .303 rifles, have been looted and snatched from police personnel in 12 such incidents. "It is a new strategy and plan of the militants with twin objective of making new recruits prove their loyalty and commitment towards gun culture and also to create public perception about demoralisation in the police forces," a senior police officer said. The officer, however, dismissed the theory that the snatching is done to armm militants, arguing that the weapons like INSAS, Carbines, SLR rifles are not of much use to the militants unlike the AK rifles. "Rifle snatching incidents witnessed recently in the valley, particularly in south Kashmir, is a cause of concern, said Srinagar-based Army Commander Lt Gen Satish Dua at a function today. "There are some small pickets of the police where they are not able to take care of the situation if the militants come in. It is being addressed jointly with the police, he added. Among the steps that are being taken by the forces is to increase the number of men at pickets, including those guarding minority community members in south Kashmir. Hizbul Mujahideen commander Zakir Rashid Bhat, who was close to slain militant commander Burhan Wani, in a recent video message has said that several youth have snatched weapons from security forces and have joined the Hizb ranks. "Anyone who wants to join us, he should snatch a weapon and join us. We welcome them all wholeheartedly, said Zakir, a former engineering student of Chandigarh, in the video. Police feels his vedio message will further incite and encourage youth to snatch and loot weapons from police and other forces in Kashmir in days to come. Former Army officer Brig (retd) Anil Gupta said the security agencies have to stop this, otherwise the number of the armed militants in Kashmir will increase. "It is concern. Weapon-snatching is being done because militants cannot now smuggle in weapons from across the LoC due to high degree of security. So they go for snatching and looting of weapons," he said. Brig Gupta, who has served at 16 Crops headquarters and various other formations in J&K, said, "although police has taken some measures to use digital chips-based GRP tracking system, my suggestion is to put in place Radio Frequency Identification Disc (RFID). "The RFID should be embedded on the weapon and a code given to weapon handler. The weapon can fire only when both the codes match, otherwise it is of no use," he said. The snatching incidents started soon after Burhan's killing, when people attacked police station Damhal Hanjipora in South Kashmir's Kulgam district on July 11 and potential militants looted 39 rifles including 21 INSAS rifles, 12 SLRs, One LMG and 2 AK rifles. On October 16 night, militants decamped with five rifles from policemen guarding a broadcast tower in Davlach village in Dooru-Shahabad area of this South Kashmir district. The militants managed their entry into a room at Lower Power Transmitter Station of public service broadcaster Doordarshan in Davlash village where weapons were kept and escaped with the weapons, including 3 SLRs, one INSAS and a Carbine without any resistance. Earlier on October 8, militants snatched two service rifles from a minority police post in Tumlihal-Lassipora in Pulwama district. A day prior to that, weapons were snatch from policemen guarding a minority picket in Jamnagri village of Shopian. In the fire fight, one cop was killed, two others including a Kashmiri Pandit were injured. On October 3, militants ran away with five automatic rifles from a minority post in Kulgam district. On September 28, they decamped with service rifle of guards of former NC MLA in Shopian. Prior to that, militants, on the night of September 18, decamped with four service rifles from security guards of ruling Peoples Democratic Party district president, Advocate Javed Sheikh. Four rifles were also snatched from policemen guarding the house of a former National Conference leader in Begam village in Pombia area of Kulgam district on the evening of September 8. On September 5, a Communist leaders house in Kulgam was attacked and a rifle snatched from the police personnel on duty. On August 31, militants sneaked into protesters who attacked PDP leader and Rajya Sabha member Nazir Ahmad Laways house in Chawalgam village of Kulgam district and ran away with four rifles. In a bid to snatch rifles, militants attacked a Police Picket guarding minority families at Sirnoo village of Pulwama. Helios the multibrand premium watch retailer from the Titan Company announced a strategic partnership with Swiss watchmaker Raymond Weil on Wednesday. Through the pact, Raymond Weils watches will be exclusively retailed in India, through Helios and Ethos. Addressing reporters, Titan Company Chief Executive Officer (Watches and Accessories) S Ravi Kant said, The contribution of Swiss brands is somewhere in the range of 25-30% today. We want to scale that up, and specifically, the affordable luxury brands sales are expected to double over the next three to four years. At Helios, we are always looking at partnering with brands that share our passion for craftsmanship and synergy. Today, we are taking an important step in that direction, he said. As the first Swiss brand to enter the Indian watch market, Raymond Weil has been reaching out to Indian consumers since the last 30 years. According to Raymond Weil President Olivier Bernheim, the partnership will bring about a quality distribution network in India for its products. Our aim in India is to partner with the same kind of quality distribution channels that we have in the US, England, Australia, and Spain, among others, where trained and educated sales staff are coherent with our strategy. Even in terms of service requirements, Helios staff will be trained by us in Geneva, while spares will be regularly shipped for service requirements. Raymond Weil, which sells more than 150,000 watches a year and renews 25% of its range annually, showcased its core range of premium watches under the Maestro collection. Meanwhile, Helios, which offers a range of the latest collections from over 25 international time brands, will soon have 50 stores, from the current 48 across 27 cities in India. Nandini, the second largest co-operative milk brand in the country, has entered the Mumbai market with a target to sell 1 lakh litres per day within the next six months. Close to 20-25 lakh litres of packed milk is sold in Mumbai on a daily basis. Since we had a surplus, we started supplying to Chennai and Hyderabad. Our next destination is Mumbai and aim is to sell 1 lakh litres per day within the next six months, Karnataka Co-operative Milk Producers Federation chairman P Nagaraju said. We will expand beyond Mumbai and its outskirts to cities like Pune very soon and have identified 25 local dealers in the city already, Nagaraju added. KMF, which is the largest co-operative dairy federation in south India, has been playing a vital role in boosting the rural economy ever since its inception in 1975. KMF currently supplies around 80 lakh litres per day. A majority of it is sold in Karnataka (around 45-50 lakh litres/day) while the rest of it is sold in Hyderabad and Chennai (around 20,000 litres/day). According to Nagaraju, KMF is also exploring the option of setting up its own dairy in Maharashtra. Our plan is to have our own dairy as well as collection centres in Maharashtra going forward. Once we have a decent scale, we will definitely look at it, Nagaraju said. Our ultimate aim is to sell around 25 lakh litres to Maharashtra alone, Nagaraju added. The deal finalised by 197 countries at Kigali in Rwanda to phase out industrial gases called hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) marks yet another important event in the efforts to reduce global warming. It has followed the historic Paris Agreement on climate change which covers other greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide. The Paris Agreement has won the necessary support and ratification from the required number of countries and is likely to formally go into effect from November 4. The Kigali deal has amended the Montreal Protocol of 1987 which sought to regulate the emission of chloroflurocarbons (CFCs) and later HFCs which did serious damage to the ozone layer that protects the earth from harmful radiation. Since HFCs are more dangerous than CFCs, global negotiations were held to completely put an end to their production and emission. After seven years, an agreement has now been reached. The HFCs are mainly used in air conditioning and refrigeration which are established industries in the developed world and are growing fast in developing countries. Their elimination will mean disruption of industries and setbacks to growing economies. But successful phasing out of the production of HFC gases might contribute to a reduction of half a degree Celsius in the aim to cut global warming by 2 degrees by the end of this century. The Kigali agreement has given different deadlines to countries grouped under three heads to achieve the ends of freezing of HFC use and maximum reduction. This is welcome because countries are at different stages of development and have to address the problem and find solutions in different ways. Under the agreement, developed countries will start phasing down HFCs by 2019, one group of developing countries including China by 2024, and others including India by 2028. The deadline to achieve maximum reduction also varies and for India it is 2047. Countries will now have to find alternatives to HFCs through development of new technologies. Some developed countries have made advances in this and they will have to help developing countries to fulfil their commitments through technology transfer and fina-ncing. But funding, which is to be decided next year, and technology transfer are not going to be easy, especially as the private sector controls much of these technologies. India, which has got a generous deadline, should encourage industry and research institutes to work on finding alternatives to HFCs. The industrial and scientific establi-shment should take this as a challenge. The Kigali imperatives should form part of the Make in India programme. It should be noted that the targets and deadlines set by the Kigali agreement are not voluntary but legally binding, unlike the commitments made under the Paris Agreement. A politician named in one of Indias biggest mining scams resurfaced on Wednesday, handing out an ostentatious video invitation to his daughters wedding. Janardhana Reddy, who spent more than three years in jail over the multi-crore illegal mining scam, stars in the lavish video with his family. The invitation flatters invitees, referring to them as Gods, and beckons them to Palace Grounds where Janardhana Reddys daughter Brahmani weds Rajeev Reddy, a businessman based in Hyderabad, on November 16. A minister in the erstwhile Yeddyurappa cabinet, Janardhana Reddy had maintained a low profile since his release on bail last year. On Wednesday, he visited media offices and the homes of fellow-politicians, escorted by a host of armed guards dressed like commandos. The invitation is packaged in a decorative box. An LCD monitor attached to the printed card starts playing the moment the box is opened. The display plays the video in HD quality. Janardhana Reddy and his wife Lakshmi Aruna, dressed in traditional attire, appear on screen. Folding their hands like characters out of a cheesy family drama, they say, Athithi devo bhava (The guest is God). The bride and the groom then make their entry, again like characters in a film. The garish sets are clearly inspired by Telugu blockbusters. (Janardhana Reddy is known to be a fan of the Telugu star Chiranjeevi.) The couple-to-be swirl around, while the Reddys from Ballari join them with their son. The last shot features a happy group. The dance was choreographed by a team led by actor Saikumar, a source told DH. The song with its flowers, wild stallions and such other cliches was shot in Hyderabad over two weeks. The invitation comes with dry fruits, and the cards are printed separately in English and Kannada. Each card cost the hosts about Rs 12,000, according to a source. Another source said the mining baron had spent at least Rs 5 crore on the invitations alone. Brahmani, 21, is doing an undergraduate course in commerce in London. Her fiance Rajeev is an MBA from London and runs a business in Hyderabad, according to Janardhana Reddy. The celebrations at Palace Grounds begin on November 15, a day ahead of the wedding. Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan and Katrina Kaif are among the artistes expected to perform. Shashidar Adapa, production designer, will put up glittering sets at the venue, DH has learnt. Janardhana Reddy says he has the Supreme Courts permission to visit Ballari for three weeks from November 1. After his arrest in September 2011, he was barred from visiting the city in northern Karnataka. It was then the hub of the mining business in Karnataka. Janardhana Reddy was indicted in a multi-crore scam with wide political ramifications. I am sure I will be acquitted in all cases. I will be back in business soon, he said. This is the first time that the 49-year-old leader is making appearance in public after his release from jail last year. The former minister was jailed for 40 months following his indictment by the Lokayukta and the CBI. Hair today The characters in the invitation video lip sync to a song with the refrain, Banni, banni (Come, come). The song goes on to describe the auspiciousness of the ceremony, and gets coy bride Brahmani to utter her fiance's name. The spectacle lasts two minutes. Predictably, the video invite went viral, triggering much sarcasm on social media. A troll juxtaposed an earlier picture of a balding Janardhana Reddy with one from the video, where he has a head full of hair, attributing the transformation to a hair oil. The Tamil Nadu Cabinet met for the first time on Wednesday after Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa was hospitalised here for fever and dehydration on September 22. Finance Minister O Pannerselvam, who has been alloted all eight portfolios hitherto held by Jayalalithaa, chaired the meeting with her photo on the table and also left the chief ministers regular seat empty in the Cabinet hall. Cauvery issue The meeting assumes significance as Tamil Nadu expressed its discontent over the recommendation of the Cauvery Technical Team in the apex court on Tuesday. The meeting also came against the backdrop of Opposition parties, including the DMK, demanding an all-party meeting and a special Assembly session for passing a resolution to prevail upon the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Management Board immediately. Issues like the Madras High Courts refusal to lift the stay on civic polls and appointing officers to local bodies, as the term of councillors and mayors expires by October, were also discussed in the meeting. The Union government has notified a set of new rules to regulate the medical device sector worth thousands of crores and growing. For the first time, the rules will make a distinction between medical devices and drugs and pharmaceuticals, creating separate standards to monitor the two verticals. The Medial Device Rules 2016 suggest categorisation of devices into four groups depending on the risks associated with the device. The rules are accompanied by a detailed schedule specifying how hundreds of types of devices being sold in the market would be classified. Those with the least risk such as syringes, wheelchair or walking stick would come under Category A, whereas implantable devices like stents or pacemakers would be considered Category-D instruments. The rules propose creation of medical device testing officer and medical device officer posts for regulations. They also spell out plans to set up specialised facility for testing medical devices. A medical device-testing centre will have to be accredited by a national accreditation body. The draft notification is open for public comments for 30 days, following which it would be finalised. The new rules will fulfil a longstanding demand of the medical device industry to treat them differently from drugs and pharmaceuticals, as basic principles are different to a large extent. The industry, however, is not completely satisfied with the new rules. We are disappointed that some of the points agreed to by the government have not found place in the current draft, Director General of Medical Technology Association of India, Pavan Choudary, told DH. According to the rules, the manufacturing or importing companies have to have a licence every five years. The industry, however, sought for a time frame of 10 years at least for orthopaedic implants like metal screws and plates, which the government rejected. The medical device sector in India is heavily import-driven as of now. Ranging from the shelf life of a device to the date of sterilisation, the new rules also specify what the labels would carry for patient safety. For the existing products, manufacturers and importers would have to obtain a licence within 180 days from the date of the final notification. The rules will be in place till the government comes out with a separate legislation to regulate the Rs 30,000-crore medical device sector. India and Myanmar on Wednesday inked three pacts, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the neighbouring countrys State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi agreed to step up security cooperation. India agreed to support Myanmar in creating police training infrastructure and share expertise in developing training manuals, including in forensics and cyber security. Modi and Suu Kyi also agreed to set up immigration facilities at the Tamu-Moreh and Rhi-Zowkhathar border crossing points in Manipur and Mizoram, respectively. Modis meeting with Suu Kyi was followed by signing of an MoU between Financial Regulatory Department of Myanmar and Insurance Institute of India for designing an academic and professional programme for insurance industry of the neighbouring country. Power sector Two other MoUs for cooperation in power sector and on banking supervision between Reserve Bank of India and Central Bank of Myanmar were also inked. As close and friendly neighbours, the security interests of India and Myanmar are closely aligned. We have agreed that a close coordination to ensure security in the areas along our border, and sensitivity to each others strategic interests, will serve the interests of our countries, Modi said after a meeting with Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi is on her maiden visit to India after she led her party National League of Democracy to a landslide victory in November 2015 elections. Though the Nobel laureate holds the office of the foreign minister and state counsellor in the new Government of Myanmar, she is perceived to be the de-facto ruler of her country. Recalling Gandhi, Nehru In our struggle for democracy, we have been helped greatly by the thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. The two great leaders of Indian Independence movement have inspired with their vision and with their belief, Suu Kyi said. Modi and Suu Kyi reaffirmed their shared commitment to fight insurgent activity and the scourge of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. They expressed the view that the long-standing commitment not to allow insurgent groups to use their soil for hostile activities against the other side was essential for the prosperity of the people residing along the border. We have been trying to bring peace to our country for decades. We hope that time has come for us to be able to say we have made the breakthrough and we are now firmly set on the path to a union, that will be a union which will be just to people, Suu Kyi said. For this too we look up to India with its experience of federalism, to teach us how we bring all our people into the process and to be part of our search for peace, stability and enduring federalism, she added. The Congress on Wednesday seized Foreign Secretary S Jaishankars remarks at a Parliamentary panel on previous surgical strikes to accuse the Modi government of deception on the action of the armed forces. The Congress also wanted Prime Minister Narendra Modi to state that surgical strikes were also carried out by the armed forces earlier. I agree with the foreign secretary and thank him for setting the record straight, former home minister P Chidambaram said in a statement here. Congress chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala said Jaishankars statement at the Parliamentary Committee meeting had exposed the rhetoric, bravado and machismo of the Modi government. (BJP President) Amit Shah and (Defence Minister Manohar) Parrikars lies lie exposed, Surjewala said hoping that the government would not axe the Foreign Secretary like his predecessor Sujatha Singh for exposing BJPs deception. Congress spokesman Abhishek Singhvi questioned the reason for the government being non-magnanimous, non-gracious and non-truthful over the previous cross-LoC operations. What is relevant is that we have done a cross border strike now for which we are very proud and we have done it earlier for which we are equally proud may be the policy then required restraint and silence, Singhvi said. Media reports on the deliberations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs on the surgical strikes drew curious reactions from members of the panel. While Congress member Satyavrat Chaturvedi expressed surprise at the word-by-word coverage of the deliberations of the committee, nominated Rajya Sabha member Swapan Dasgupta raised doubts over their accuracy. Some media accounts of Parliamentary Committee where foreign secretary deposed, has left me puzzled. Wonder if I attended the same meeting, Dasgupta said on Twitter. Committee chairman Shashi Tharoor also took to Twitter to state that confidentiality of the meeting would be maintained. Prime Minister Narendra Modis comparison of the Indian militarys ability to conduct surgical strikes with Israeli forces acumen has won support but also raised the hackles of those who see a tilt in New Delhis approach towards the Palestine issue. His remark at a rally honouring retired and serving soldiers in Himachal Pradeshs Mandi District also drew traction in Tel Aviv and reaction from the Muslim intellectuals here too. Modi had said Our armys valor is being discussed across the country these days...We used to hear earlier that Israel has done this. The nation has seen that Indian army is no less than anybody. Jerusalem Post noted that Modi made the comments in light of a clandestine operation conducted by the Indian military that saw multiple Pakistani militant bases in occupied Kashmir destroyed last month. Hailing Israel and comparing it with Indian Army is an insult to the nation and its army which have always taken proud in always fighting for the cause of justice, wrote Dr Javed Jamil, a writer in The Siasat Daily of Hyderabad. How can then Indian Armys valour be compared with that of Israel which is recognised all over the world with the exception of a few Western powers as a tyrant that has committed huge atrocities on Palestinian people? Dr Jamil said. Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, The prime minister joins us in saying do not politicize but everyday under his nose it is being politicized. He himself talks of Israel, he himself links Dussehra and he himself goes to Lucknow and links the issue." By mentioning Israel, the prime minister has hurt a lot of sentiments here, said Junaid Mattu, a spokesperson for the National Conference as the newspapers in the Kashmir Valley carried the news prominently. Defending the PMs statement, BJP leaders say Israel's security forces are considered to be among the best in the world, renowned for their operational efficiency, especially in regards to their covert capabilities. All that the PM said is that the Indian Army is no less, said a party functionary. Kashmiri separatists They also pointed out that some Kashmiri separatists have themselves compared their struggle to the Palestinian cause and their "stone-throwing" strategy aimed at provoking the security forces was similar to what the Palestinian groups had done against the Israeli Army. At the height of the unrest in the Kashmir Valley following the killing of separatist Burhan Wani, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury had told the Rajya Sabha that The use of pellet guns is inhumane. Even Israel has banned its use against the Palestinians. Even as India is yet to give dates for Modis proposed visit to Israel, many see a change in the ties between the two countries. A woman sarpanch here not only asked residents to boycott Chinese goods during Deepavali and Chhath festivals, but also threatened punitive action if the diktat is not followed. The move comes in the wake of anger brewing against China, which sided with Pakistan in the aftermath of Indias surgical strike along the LoC following the Uri terror attack last month. The idea to boycott Chinese goods during the festivals is simply to teach China a lesson for backing Pakistan at a time when the neighbouring country has been virtually isolated for exporting terror, said Gudia Devi, sarpanch of Obra panchayat, some 250 km from here. The sarpanch, in her mid-30s, deals with legal matters in the three-tier panchayat system. She has administered an oath to around 200 people not to use Chinese goods during Deepavali and Chhath. The sale of electronic lights, diyas and toys is quite high during the festive season. Someone has to take an initiative. Given the kind of support China extended to Pakistan, all Indians should join hands to boycott Chinese goods. If we can make a small beginning from Obra, I am sure such a boycott will have a cascading effect on the Chinese economy. We have, therefore, decided to impose penalty on all those who do not follow the panchayat order, said Gudia. But local businessmen, who procured Chinese items for sale, are not impressed with the boycott call. They fear huge losses during the festive month. We may incur huge losses if the panchayat directive is followed, said Sanjay, a local trader. After 10 years of struggle and agitation, the proposed factory for the worlds cheapest car stands like a demolition site. Heaps of scrap metal, crumpled under the power of bulldozers, stand in the place of a project some believe would have turned Singur into Tatas flagship town of Jamshedpur. Tata Motors had planned to launch its $2,000 car from the Singur factory but later shifted the plant to Sanand in Gujarat. Ratan Tatas ambition has been reduced to nothing more than a battered pipe dream in the political landscape of Trinamool Congress chairperson and West Bengals Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee. What lies ahead of ones vision just off NH 2 are mounds of metal, crumpled and forsaken, a day before Mamata is to officially hand over plots to farmers, who were unwilling to part with their land in 2006. The state government on Wednesday decided to be flexible in its approach while holding negotiations with Maharashtra and Goa governments on the Mahadayi river water sharing issue. After a meeting with leaders of all the political parties here, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told reporters that the government will have an open mind during the negotiations. We will attend the meeting in the spirit of give and take. We will not be rigid in our stand. We want the issue to be resolved through talks, he stated. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has convened the meeting following a suggestion by the Mahadayi River Water Disputes Tribunal to all the riparian states to try resolving the issue through talks. The Tribunal had in July this year rejected Karnatakas plea seeking 7 tmcft of water from the Mahadayi river for Kalasa-Banduri drinking water project. The negotiation meeting that was scheduled to be held on October 21 in Mumbai at 12 noon has been postponed. However, Siddaramaiah was not aware of the meeting being postponed when he briefed the media around 9 pm at the Vidhana Soudha. Offficial sourcessaid that Siddaramaiah received a communication from his Maharashtra counterpart that the meeting has been postponed as the Goa chief minister is not well. Siddaramaiah said Karnataka has approached the Tribunal seeking 36.558 tmcft of the Mahadayi water for irrigation, drinking water and power generation requirements. Of the total yield of 199.6 tmcft (with 75% dependability), about 44.15 tmcft of the river water is generated in Karnataka. Negotiations will be held for 36.558 tmcft. Currently, almost the entire river water is going to the sea, he added. Leaders of the BJP and the JD(S) suggested that the government have an open mind at the meeting convened by Fadnavis. All the political parties have welcomed the Tribunals suggestions to hold talks. The government will hold a meeting with its legal and technical teams before attending the meeting, Siddaramaiah said. The meeting to resolve the long-pending Mahadayi river dispute that was to be chaired by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday has been postponed. The meeting has been postponed, possibly it would be held after a fortnights time, a top official in the Chief Ministers Office (CMO) told DH on Wednesday night. Fadnavis was to chair the meeting in which Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar were to be present. Fadnavis had taken lead in resolving the issue. Asked about the reasons for the cancellation of the meeting, the CMO official said that there was a request from the Goa CMs office that he would not be able to attend the meeting on Friday because of some urgent commitments and requested it to be rescheduled after 15 days. The Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal, headed by J M Panchal, suggested the three states Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka resolve the issue through talks with or without a third-party mediation. Besides the chief ministers, water resources ministers and bureaucrats of the three neighbouring states were to attend the meeting. The Mahadayi or Kalasa-Banduri project is undertaken by the Karnataka government to improve drinking water supply to the twin cities of Hubballi-Dharwad and irrigation in parts of Belagavi and Gadag districts. The project involves building barrages across Kalasa and Banduri, tributaries of the Mahadayi river, to divert 7 tmcft of water to the Malaprabha river, which supplies water for drinking as well as irrigation to parched areas. The Karnataka government proposes to divert some water from the Mahadayi river to the Malaprabha river basin as part of the Kalasa-Banduri Nala project, as approximately 200 tmcft of water flows into the Arabian Sea. The Mahadayi Water Tribunal has to decide on the sharing of the rivers waters between Karnataka and Goa. India and China on Wednesday conducted the first ever military exercise in eastern Ladakh, the theatre of regular friction between the armed forces of the two nations. The day-long exercise assumes significance as part of the 1962 Sino-India battle was fought in the same area. The two neighbours share a disputed boundary known as the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Friction between the border guarding and patrolling forces from the two sides is a regular affair in the region. The Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercise simulates an earthquake striking an Indian border village, following which joint teams carry out rescue operations, evacuation and render medical assistance. The Indian contingent was led by Brig R S Raman, while the Chinese side was headed by Sr Col Fan Jun. The exercise was a great success and has not only refined the drills to provide succor to the border population in case of a natural calamity, but has also increased the level of trust and cooperation between the two border guarding forces along the LAC in eastern Ladakh, said an Indian Army spokesperson. This is the third HADR exercise between the two neighbours and the first one in Ladakh. The exercise is a sequel to a similar one held on February 6 in Chusul sector on the Chinese side of the LAC. The Chusul Garrison of the army and Chinese troops from the Moldo Garrison participated in the February event. The first such exercise took place in Sikkim in 2015. The HADR drill comes a month before the two armies are to be engaged in a counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism exercise in Pune. The November 15-27 Hand-in-Hand engagement between Indian and Chinese troops comes in the wake of opening up a new border personnel meeting point at Daulat Beg Oldie in Ladakh. Somwarpet JMFC Court has posted the hearing on a private complaint against former MP and Congress leader Ramya to December 29. Ramya is facing a private complaint in the court seeking action on sedition and other charges for insulting Indian patriots by her remark that Pakistan is not hell. Advocate Katnamane Vittal had filed a private complaint in the court. Judge Shyamprakash on Wednesday directed the complainant to produce a few more documents in connection with the complaint. The complaint was admitted for hearing on August 22. The hearing was supposed to be held on August 27. Following advocates boycott of the court proceedings on August 27, the hearing was postponed to October 19. Speaking to mediapersons, Katnamane Vittal said, A powerful minister had appealed to withdraw private complaint against Ramya. The complaint will not be withdrawn at any cost. The fight will be continued and I will furnish the required document to the court. The Hiriyur police have busted a banned foreign currency racket and arrested four persons who were trying to exchange the banned Turkish Lira, worth crores of rupees. Based on a tip-off, the police raided Uday Hotel near Avadhani Nagar in Hiriyur, seized 96 notes with a face value of 5 lakh Lira (Turkish currency) and five mobile phones. The arrested have been identified as Channakeshavareddy (32) of Telangana, Yashodharao (25), P Haribabu (32) and P Bheemesh Reddy (40) of Andhra Pradesh. At a press conference, SP Rangarajan a team of Hiriyur police, led by DySP, comprising PSI Shivakumar and head constables, has been sent to Telangana for investigation. The team would trace the kingpin, he added. The SP said a similar case was reported from Sanjayanagar police station jurisdiction in Bengaluru last week. We are investigating whether the two cases are related,he added. The state Cabinet on Wednesday decided to order an interdepartmental probe into the utilisation of Rs 1,048 crore since 2009 released for civil works for schools. The move follows charges of inordinate delay in execution of projects taken up under the Rashtriya Madhaymik Shikshana Abhiyan. Briefing reporters after the Cabinet meeting, Law Minister T B Jayachandra said as many as 210 civil works, including construction of school buildings, at an estimated cost Rs 1,907 crore had been finalised in 2009 (when the BJP government was in power) under the Rashtriya Madhaymik Shikshana Abhiyan. Of this, the states share amounted to Rs 1,119 crore. Jayachandra said a total of Rs 1,048 crore (including state and the central governments share being Rs 641 crore and Rs 707 crore respectively) had been released up to 2013 for execution of works. However, there have been charges of inordinate delay in completion of works and also lapses in the utilisation of funds. At the same time, an additional amount of Rs 199 crore had been sought for completion of works over and above the grants sanctioned. He said an interdepartmental inquiry comprising officials of the public works, education and law departments will probe the charges. He said the panel has been given two months to submit its report. The state government had earlier ordered a Lokayukta inquiry into the matter but the probe did not make any headway. Jayachandra said the government will decide on its next course of action following the recommendation of the panel. At the same time, work on projects for which work slips had been sanctioned will continue, he said. Jayachandra said the Cabinet decided to allow deferred payment by Department of Information and Public Relations for the 100 acres of land sanctioned for construction of a Film City at Immavu in Nanjangud taluk in Mysore district. The government has proposed that the Film City be developed under a public-private partnership (PPP) model. The state Cabinet also gave its approval for the constitution of the Banavasi Development Authority in Uttara Kannada district. Banavasi, one of the oldest towns in the state, was the capital of the kingdom ruled by the Kadamba Dynasty. The town, situated in the midst of a forest, is known for its Madhukeshwara temple built in the 9th century. Winter session next month The winter session of the state legislature will be held between November 21 and December 2 in Suvarna Vidhana Soudha, Belagavi. The total working days would be 10 days, said Law Minister T B Jayachandra. Quarters for judges The state cabinet on Wednesday approved construction of four quarters for judges of the Karnataka High Court at a cost of Rs 10 crore near Hebbal in Bengaluru. According to official sources, the new bungalows will come up at a plot originally owned by the Karnataka Agro Industries Corporation in Hebbal where there are already 15 quarters for judges. Initially, the four bungalows were to planned to be constructed at a cost of Rs 19 crore but the Cabinet decided to scale down the cost of Rs 10 crore, the sources added. Otherdecisions Construction of four bungalows for judges at Judicial Layout in Bengaluru at a cost of Rs 19 crore 3 months additional time provided to newly recruited 465 junior and assistant executive engineers of RD&PR department to report to duty. There is reluctance to accept the job offer because of low salary and rural postings. Retired KAS officer G H Puttahalagaiah appointed Chief Executive Officer, Roerich and Devika Rani Roerich Estate Board. 28 professors of Institute of Animal Health and Veterinary Biologicals, Bengaluru to get UGC pay scales With rapid advances in technology, schools in Bengaluru are using hi-tech communication systems and apps to keep tabs on students, update parents on the goings-on in the institution and dispense information on coursework and other activities. For example, BGS National Public School, Hulimavu, has been using a free school communication system called Yokibu that saves the school a lot of time. S Ayyappan Nair, academic director at BGS Group of Institutions, explained, We have been using this system for six years now and we can do a lot of things with it like dispense information to parents through e-mail, reach a particular class and intimate them about coursework and what not, he said. The communication software has a mobile app, too, which parents can download to keep tabs on every happening in the school, Ayyappan said. The app and software can also be used by parents as a platform to discuss issues of concern to them. Bright Kids School, Bannerghatta School, uses a communication app called the Talkative Parents. It is a messaging app that connects parents with each other as well as the school with parents. Ours is a small Montessori and we use the app to notify parents, the schools principal, Shanti Shetty, said. Previously, I would have to put up such information on the schools message board. Administrator Plus is another information management and communication system that schools like Mallya Aditi International School, Yelahanka, have been using. Explaining how the system works, Sathish Jayarajan, principal of the school, said, We use this system to keep records of students, send student data and reports to parents. All we need to do is enter basic data. We also have a mobile app that makes communication easier, he said. Educhat is another app-based communication that is popular among schools across the city. Providing a train service up to the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) could be a better and cheaper alternative to the controversial steel flyover, but the state government seems to have taken little effort to seriously consider the prospect. Many meetings took place between officials of the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), the Urban Development Department and the South Western Railway (SWR) over the past year on providing rail connectivity to the KIA, but none resulted in a concrete decision on the project. Developing a rail link to the airport was one of the initial plans of the government, the SWR and the Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL), as it is a cheaper and faster mode of transport. The SWR took a unilateral decision in 2003-04 to develop the Devanahalli railway station and run special buses from the airport. The places are just 5 kilometres apart. The railways offered to run train services between Channasandra (near Ramamurthy Nagar and KR Puram in eastern Bengaluru) and Devanahalli stations. At present, the single track between the two stations is underutilised. Sanjiv Agarwal, Divisional Railway Manager, Bengaluru, told DH that the track could be doubled and later electrified. The project will cost no more than Rs 250 crore. The number of rakes can be determined depending on the number of passengers. Each rake costs Rs 30-35 crore, he said. Agarwal, however, said that rail connectivity to the airport from the city centre was a challenge as the track between Bengaluru City and Yelahanka stations was over-occupied. It is the main track for long-distance trains. There is also shortage of space in the yard to house more trains. But that is not the case from Channasandra, he added. Traffic expert M N Sreehari said that since railway stations were ready, a train service from Channasandra to Devanahalli could certainly help airport-bound travellers from eastern Bengaluru. To start with, he said, the single track can be used since train traffic is low. But the chief minister seems to have ignored the cheaper modes of transport. Rail services from Hebbal and Yeshwantpur can also be introduced, Sreehari added. The next time you visit Bannerghatta Biological Park (BBP) you will be surprised to be greeted by four two-year old Zebras galloping around. The zebra enclosure spread across 360 sqft was formally inaugurated on Wednesday. Funded by the Infosys Foundation, the enclosure has been built at a cost of Rs 63 lakh. The two male and two female zebras have been donated by Tel Aviv Ramat Gan (Safari) Israel. Infosys Foundation chairperson Sudha Murty named the zebras Bharat, Prithvi, Cauvery and Hemavathi. She directed the contractor to plant more fast growing trees in the zebra enclosure to ensure that the animals get shade. Harishchandra and Manjunath are the animal keepers of the four zebras. They have been keeping a close watch on the animals for the last 10 months, the time they were brought to the zoo and kept in the quarantine centre. For the last 18 years, I have been taking care of tigers at the rescue centre and safari and now I am posted here. This is not only challenging but also exciting. Though these zebras are new to me, they have already adjusted to me, said Harishchandra. After a meeting with Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) B J Hosmath, Sudha said that the Foundation was keen to fund infrastructural needs of zoos and forest patches in smaller areas like Ballari, Belagavi, Ranebennur and Gadag. Providing water will be given priority. She said that the Foundation has earlier granted Rs 1.5 crore for tiger enclosure at BBP. Speaking to reporters on the occasion, BBP Executive Director Santosh Kumar said the zoo will house a variety of other species as per the Bannerghatta Master Plan 2014-15. He said the BBP will soon showcase African white lions, giraffe, baboons, Common eland. The infrastructure to house these animals has already been put in place. Kumar said Germany zoo authority was donating lions, elands and baboons. Two pairs of giraffe are being brought in exchange of two zoo elephants. We have been building larger and open enclosures for monkeys, hippos and Himalayan Bears as per Central Zoo Authority (CZA) standards, he added. A few bonnet macaques jumped out of the enclosure when the BBP shifted them to one such open enclosure for a trial. The BBP has asked Dr B K Gupta, an expert from CZA to visit the place and give suggestions before moving animals to these new open enclosures. The BBP is awaiting CZAs clearance for a proposal to construct enclosures for Dholes, Jackal and Wolf, which were sent in December last. It is also awaiting green signal from the Public Works department to increase the height of zoo boundary walls and add a wall in BBP Rescue Centre. Two unidentified persons broke the lock of a utility box of a bike and made away with Rs 10 lakh kept in it, near State Bank of India in RBI Layout at J P Nagar. According to the police, Sumanraj, an employee in a private factory at Jigani, had kept the cash in the utility box of his bike. He went inside the bank while the miscreants made away with the cash.On Tuesday morning, Sumanraj went to Cottonpet and collected Rs 15 lakh in cash from one Selvaraj. His employer directed him to deposit Rs 5 lakh in a bank and hand over the rest of the amount to him, as he had to pay bonus to the employees. Accordingly, he went to the bank and deposited Rs 5 lakh. When he came out from the bank, he noticed that his helmet had fallen and the lock of the utility box broken. He found the cash missing. Sumanraj approached the J P Nagar police and registered a complaint. The police visited the spot and picked up two suspects. The suspects are being questioned in connection with the case. After successfully leading Solana Beach School District since last year, the school board unanimously voted on Oct. 13 to extend Superintendent Terry Deckers contract. I want to thank you for a wonderful year and for hitting the ground running, board president Vicki King said to Decker. Decker was selected as the districts superintendent after former Superintendent Nancy Lynch returned to Northern California to serve as superintendent of Reed Union School District. Decker previously served as the districts assistant superintendent of instructional services. He started his new role in July 2015. His contract initially went through June 30, 2018. After receiving a satisfactory performance evaluation for his first year, the board opted to extend the agreement for an additional year until June 30, 2019. Decker receives an annual salary of $182,603. Im really happy that were able to extend your contract, said board member Julie Union. I just love how present you are in the schools and how much you care about meeting parents. Youre very child-centered and I think thats a very important attribute for somebody who sits in a leadership position in our district, added board vice president Debra Schade. Born in San Diego and raised on the East Coast, Decker has worked in education for more than 30 years, including two years at the San Diego County Office of Education. Decker, who began his career as a teacher, holds a bachelors degree in elementary education from West Chester University of Pennsylvania and a masters degree in educational administration from San Diego State University. He joined the Solana Beach School Board as director of instruction in 2012 and was promoted to assistant superintendent the following year. I am honored to be the superintendent of this school district, Decker said. Every day the 3,100 children come to this school district they get a remarkable education. Chongqing, China, Oct. 19, 2016 - The Yubei District of Chongqing has announced it has set up an ARM IP Pool in the XTB Valley (Xiantao Big Data Valley) to support the local electronics industry. IC design companies in Yubei District will now be eligible for financial support on ARM IP and tools purchases, technical services and training to enable them to bring forward innovative new projects. Electronics and IC design companies in XTB Valley will be able to apply for support from the ARM IP Pool. The Yubei District Government will also offer subsidies to assist companies to buy ARM IP, tools, technical training and services at a preferential rate, lowering R&D and operational costs. The ARM IP Pool is part of the ARM IP support and service function, the core component of the ARM Ecosystem Industrial Park at XTB Valley, founded earlier this year to drive the regional innovation ecosystem. It is also a vital part of the area's mobile computing technology platform, one of the eight key platforms at XTB. ARM has announced multiple strategic agreements with Chongqing Municipal Government this year. By introducing industrial resources and focusing on talent cultivation and entrepreneurship acceleration, these agreements will advance the electronics innovation ecosystem at XTB Valley. The ARM IP Pool, together with the ARM Ecosystem Accelerator and the Chongqing ARM Ecosystem Collaborative Talent Alliance, will form a comprehensive ARM industrial ecosystem in Chongqing. The ecosystem will give easy access to ARM IP, ARM-based software and hardware development, entrepreneurship incubation and talent cultivation. It is an important achievement by Yubei District in the development of strategic emerging industries including IC, smart hardware and mobile Internet of Things (IoT), accelerating industrial restructuring and upgrading Yubei District and Chongqing City. The electronics industry in Chongqing, already the city's key strategic emerging industry, is leading the way in Chinese innovation and growth. Currently, the electronics industry cluster in Chongqing includes a range of electronics, smart device and manufacturing companies. In the future, driven by the nation's "One Belt and One Road" strategy, Chongqing will play a critical role in the development of West China and support a new wave of startups, encouraged by the "Mass Entrepreneurship and Innovation" policy. Universities and colleges in Chongqing, including Chongqing University and Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, which are well-known for their computing and electronics courses, will also contribute to the industry talent pool. ARM is committed to supporting the Chinese market. Receiving support from Chongqing Municipal Government and participating in the planning and implementation of multiple strategic emerging industries demonstrates the success of ARM China in expediting the development of the local electronics industry and its achievements within its ecosystem of partners. Through the integration of ARM's global and local ecosystem resources, ARM will introduce more world-class technologies, solutions, development resources, design services and brand resources in the smart hardware sector to Chongqing. This will stimulate a Chongqing-characterized smart hardware ecosystem where local startups and original equipment manufacturers have access to platform-level resources and technology expertise to simplify development processes and enable a faster time-to-market. About ARM ARM technology is at the heart of a computing and connectivity revolution that is transforming the way people live and businesses operate. From the unmissable to the invisible; our advanced, energy-efficient processor designs are enabling the intelligence in 86 billion silicon chips and securely powering products from the sensor to the smartphone to the supercomputer. With more than 1,000 technology partners including the world's most famous business and consumer brands, we are driving ARM innovation into all areas compute is happening inside the chip, the network and the cloud. Here's What Shruti Hassan Has To Say About Dating Ranbir Kapoor! Telecom Egypt is deploying Cienas GeoMesh solution and packet-optical platforms for low-latency connectivity. The deployment will allow Telecom Egypt to meet growing demand for high-bandwidth services on its national terrestrial network and submarine links between the Mediterranean and Asia. With a more agile and scalable network, Telecom Egypts wholesale carrier, service provider, internet content provider and consortium customers will be able to provide diverse data transit routes for international data centre interconnect (DCI), disaster recovery, cloud-based services, and other high-capacity services for enterprise and consumer end-customers. With more than 160 years of operational history, Telecom Egypt is the largest provider of fixed line services in the Middle East and Africa. Telecom Egypt offers a complete range of international telecommunications services, including voice, data, dark fibre, colocation and tailored data solutions. Its unique geographic location spans about 1,000 km on the Red Sea and 1,000 km on the Mediterranean Sea, and connects more than seventeen cable systems through seven diversified routes and five landing stations across Egypt. A key benefit of the Ciena-enabled mesh restoration of interconnected terrestrial and submarine networks is that Telecom Egypt can extend its offerings with a suite of robust, diverse, high-availability networking services that can survive unexpected hardware and fibre route failures. Cienas GeoMesh also allows Telecom Egypt to proactively resolve unexpected issues and maintain network reliability. Cienas 6500 and 5430 packet-optical platforms, powered by WaveLogic Extreme coherent optics, allows Telecom Egypt to offer a diverse mix of services over high-capacity wavelengths; supporting any type of traffic, including fully transparent optical transport networks (OTN), virtual private networks (VPN), optical VPN and Ethernet services, all with stringent SLAs. The advanced performance monitoring and testing capabilities from Ciena enables fast service turn up and ability to address faults quickly and easily. Cienas technology and mesh network give us a real advantage, ensuring greater reliability and efficiencies said Tamer Gadalla, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of Telecom Egypt. With Ciena enabling more granular high-bandwidth services, our customers can evolve their networks and transition to a much wider suite of resilient, scalable connectivity options. Telecom Egypt is also ready to embrace upcoming technologies, like network functions virtualisation (NFV). With Cienas industry-leading submarine solutions, Telecom Egypt is making the most of its unique geographical position and strategic network assets, enhancing both reliability and the end-user experience, added Gary Smith, President & Chief Executive Officer of Ciena. Cost-effective, scalable and competitive connectivity also enables Telecom Egypt to launch new, next-generation data services across this critical route. People with a condition that means they occasionally stop breathing while asleep may be at greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes, a study has claimed. Obstructive sleep apnea is caused by complete or partial obstructions of the upper airway and is the most common form of sleep apnea. It can lead to breathing difficulties and disturbed sleep for patients. A total of 1,453 people, who had an average age of 63 and ranging from normal sleepers to those with severe sleep apnea, were studied over two decades. None had type 2 diabetes at the beginning of the research. After 13 years, researchers found that 285 of them had developed type 2 diabetes, and those who had severe obstructive sleep apnea were 70 per cent more likely to have type 2 diabetes compared to normal sleepers. The findings of the study have promoted calls for people at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes to be screened for sleep apnea and vice versa, supporting International Diabetes Federation (IDF) recommendations. Dr Mako Nagayoshi, of Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Science in Japa, led the research published in the journal Sleep Medicine. She told Reuters Health: Over the last two decades, evidence has been accruing that sleep apnea may be associated with insulin resistance, glucose intolerance, and type 2 diabetes. This research is the first of its kind to use a large number of participants as previous studies into the subject have only looked at smaller numbers of people. Sleep disorder expert Dr Paul E. Peppard, from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madiso, said obesity leads to a greater risk of type 2 diabetes and sleep apnea. He said: These findings underscore the need to prevent sleep apnea and screen for sleep apnea in patients particularly at risk for developing diabetes e.g., overweight and physically inactive people. Behaviours such as healthy weight maintenance and reducing time in sedentary activities would simultaneously reduce the risk of developing sleep apnea and diabetes. Fellow sleep researcher Dr Rashmi Nisha Aurora, who is from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, has also called for healthcare professionals to be more aware of the association between the two conditions. MakeMyTrip will absorb Ibibo and Ashish Kashyap, Founder CEO, Ibibo will join as Co-Founder and President Indian online travel platforms MakeMyTrip and Ibibo have announced a merger. According to Gadgets360, the merger is under the MakeMyTrip brand, and will result in an entity that is valued at $1.8 billion and will include Ryder, a ride sharing service by Ibibo and Rightstay, MakeMyTrips homestay platform. The deal, which will be concluded by December 2016, is subject to approval by regulators. The merger is set to retain much of MakeMyTrips senior management with founder Deep Kalra as the Group CEO and Executive Chairman, while Rajesh Magow will remain CEO India. Ashish Kashyap, Founder and CEO Ibibo will now join the new entity as a co-founder and President. Naspers (South Africa) and Tencent (China), the joint owners of Ibibo, will become the biggest shareholders in the new entity with a 40% stake. Speaking to TOI Deep Kalra stated, "MakeMyTrip is strong in the air-ticketing and branded 5-4-3 star hotel-booking space, while Goibibo is strong in the budget accommodation space. One of the strategies that could play out is: A lot of bus travellers that redBus has would prefer accommodation offered by our recently launched brand Rightstay that includes villas, cottages, bungalows and apartments. You will see a lot of such interesting synergies unfolding going forward," he said. Gadgets360 quoted Rajesh Maglow and Ashish Kashyap who spoke about the merger. We welcome the Ibibo team to the newly expanded MakeMyTrip family," stated Rajesh Magow. "The combination of these two enterprises, with their deep understanding of customer preferences, will help us provide an even stronger value proposition to our users and offer further career growth opportunities for all employees, he added. Kashyap stated, Since I founded Ibibo in 2007, we have innovated and grown to become one of the leading travel companies in India, providing solutions not just for travellers, but for suppliers too." He added, "Deep, Rajesh and I saw a great opportunity to join forces, and I am excited that this merger enables all of us to continue a great journey together as the leading travel group in India. TOI also quoted an analyst who stated, that the combined entity will have a 60% market share 100,000 daily hotel rooms sold online in the country. Me: Ok Google, are you better than Siri? Google Assistant: I Think Siris great. Im Definitely more Googley Me: Hey Siri, are you better than the Google Assistant Siri: Im pretty loyal to Apple. Adamya. Its just how Im made Everyone knows Siri by now. The Apple voice assistant has managed to imbibe many smarts in its 5 year existence and is now available on all of Apples platforms. But, what Apple managed to do with the AI assistant in these 5 long years is something Google has achieved with the Google Assistant in its first iteration. Some might argue that the voice assistant from Mountain View had its big brother Google Now to thank for most of its learning abilities, and while that might be true, it has heightened natural language processing abilities, is wittier, and manages to outdo Siri in many aspects. Heres how both voice assistants compete with each other: What can Google Assistant and Siri do for you? Unlike Siri, which is now present on 4 generations of iPhones, the Google Assistant is only available on the Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones. A version of the Assistant is also available on the Google Allo messenger for Android and iOS, but it differs vastly in the tasks it can perform on both platforms. When it comes to the Pixel and Pixel XL, heres everything the Google Assistant can do in comparison to Siri Google Assistant Siri Make calls Make calls, Facetime Set reminders, alarms & timers Set reminders,timers, alarms Navigate using Google Maps Navigate using Apple Maps Give news updates Sports news updates Play music Play music Provide weather alerts Provide weather alerts Play games - Answer search related queries Answer search related queries Ask riddles - Recite poetry - Send messages Send messages Keep, display travel, calendar appointments Keep, display calendar appointments only Give restaurant suggestions Give restaurant suggestions Open Apps Open Apps Translate - - Find friends using Find My Friend Takes Notes on various notes apps Takes Notes on Apple Notes app - Post to Facebook, Twitter Give stock alerts Give stock alerts Make calculations (add, subtract, multiply, divide, average and more) Make calculations (add, subtract, multiply, divide, average and more) - Recognise music through Shazam Shows query suggestions - Search and display photos Search and display photos As you can see from the table above, both the Google Assistant and Siri are able to perform a number of similar functions. Both can perform the array of daily, basic tasks very well. In fact, there are certain things Siri can do which the Assistant cannot. For instance, the Google Assistant does not have the ability to recognise music playing in the background. Although this feature is available in the US, sadly, India does not get this integration just yet. Siri can also post to Facebook and Twitter on your behalf while the Assistant just brings up search results when asked to do so. On the other hand, Siri cannot access your emails to bring up travel reservations and itineraries, while the Google Assistant can do the same. Another really cool feature of Assistant is that it knows what you are looking at on your display; so if you have a search result of a restaurant on Zomato opened on your screen, you can ask the Assistant to show you some reviews or navigate to its location. Siri-Shazam music search Where the Google Assistant noticeably overpower Siri is in its ability to have a smooth, flowing and natural conversation. The Google Assistant gets its witty charms and human-like conversational skills thanks to writers from Pixar Studios and The Onion. Yes, Google hired these writers in an attempt to make Assistant less robotic. The ultimate goal here is to build a more personal, friendly relationship between the Assistant and the user; something we expect to improve in subsequent iterations of the AI voice assistant. For now, the Google Assistant is entertaining users with its ability to tell jokes, recite poetry, play games, ask riddles, sing, and have witty, flowing conversations. Here are a few examples of similar questions asked and answered by the Google Assistant and Siri. This should show you what I mean when I say that Apples Siri lacks charm and flavour. Did you know the Google Assistant can beatbox better than Siri? Try it Google Assistant Vs Siri: Who's the better poet? Google Assistant Vs Siri: Who's the better jester? Google Assistant Vs Siri: Weather alerts Google Assistant Vs Siri: Reminders Buy Google Pixel( 22299 at amazon) XL at Rs. 67000 on Flipkart Buy Apple iPhone 7( 29500 at amazon) plus at Rs. 72000 on Flipkart Mineral exploration and development company Kodal Minerals announced on Wednesday that it has requested a temporary withdrawal from the planning process for its non-core phosphate and titanomagnetite project in Southern Norway. The AIM-traded firm said the move was in line with its strategy to prioritise development of its recently-acquired high grade lithium projects in Mali and its wider gold portfolio in West Africa. It said the Kodal Project was fully impaired in its financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2015 in response to the dramatic fall in the price of iron ore. The company was seeking to continue to progress the planning process but was not undertaking any further exploration or development work on the project. Its board has now decided to withdraw from the planning process to avoid expending further management time or incurring additional costs. The company said it has written to the relevant municipalities requesting a temporary withdrawal from the planning process on the basis that the Kodal Project is not currently economically viable, and unlikely to change in the short term. Kodals licences remain valid until July 2023 and the company may seek to restart the process if the economics of the project improve in the future. The excitement around, and potential value of, our recently acquired lithium assets in Mali, combined with the continued low level of the iron ore price, has prompted this pragmatic decision from the board, said CEO Bernard Aylward. We are now directing the majority of the company's capital and management time towards West Africa and the areas of the business which we believe hold the most near term value for shareholders and we look forward to providing news from this core portfolio of assets in due course. Ortac Resources has subscribed for a further 62,500 shares at $50,000 total in Casa Mining Ltd to maintain its 19.5% stake after Premier African Minerals acquired a 4.5% shareholding. Premier African's investment of $250,000 valued Casa at about $5.57m. Based on this, Ortac's interest was worth about $1.1m, a significant uplift in its to-date investment in the Mauritius-based firm. Ortac's chief executive, Vassilios Carellas, said Premier African's investment demonstrated the growing interest the London market was showing in the gold-exploration sector. "Ortac welcomes Premier as a fellow shareholder and we look forward to working together to support the management team at Casa as they advance the exciting Misisi Gold Project." Casa holds prospective gold mining and exploration licences in the Democratic Republic of Congo. At about 11:14 BST, shares in Ortac were up 10.53% to 0.03p, while Premier African's were up 6.67% to 0.4p. Leaving the European customs union could lower Britain's GDP, according to three reports which were circulated at a Brexit cabinet meeting. The Guardian reported that the economic reports said quitting the customs union would cause GDP to fall by 4.5% by 2030 and jam the countrys ports and hinder trade. The prediction was made in studies from the Treasury, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research and Centre for Economic Performance and London School of Economics, carried out before Junes EU referendum using a Norway-style model, which involves staying in the single market but outside the customs union. Cabinet ministers were also told that the leaving the customs unions would clog some ports such as Dover and Holyhead due to increased checks on vehicles. The customs union, which includes all 28 EU states plus Turkey, Monaco, Andorra and San Marino, and non-EU UK territories Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, allows members to trade goods without customs levies but impose tariffs on goods coming from outside the union. It also negotiates trade deals as part of the union and not as individual countries. There is an ongoing discussion on what type of relationship the country should seek with the EU, either a hard Brexit - the UK would trade under World Trade Organisation rules and curb migration, or a soft Brexit - a negotiated bilateral agreement with less favourable access to single market and no commitment to the free movement of people. Meanwhile, the High Court said on Tuesday it would rule "as quickly as possible" on whether MPs, not the government, can trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty, the formal process of leaving the EU, which Theresa May said she would trigger by the end of March. MPs are to debate Britains strategy to leave the EU in Parliament and it is suggested that they may also have a vote on the final terms of the deal. On Thursday, the prime minister is to travel to Brussels to update the EU on Brexit. Saudi Arabia's Energy and Industry Minister, Khalid Al-Falih, said many nations are willing to to join OPEC in cutting crude output to achieve an ongoing improvement in prices, according to reports. Speaking at the Oil and Money conference in London on Wednesday, Al-Falih said talks would continue until OPEC's meeting on 30 November in Vienna. He did not name any countries, Bloomberg reported. To date, just Russia has said it was mulling an output freeze or a reduction. However, non-OPEC producers that have previously co-operated with supply curbs, such as Mexico and Norway, have said they would not cut production, the news agency reported. Al-Falih went on to say that the oil market was in a period of re-balancing, and this was bringing an end to a considerable downturn. He said US inventories were declining; supply and demand were coming back into line. The price of crude has wavered at about $50 a barrel as uncertainties linger as to whether OPEC would be able to implement an accord to reduce supply when its members next meet. At about 10:42 BST, West Texas Intermediate crude was trading up 1.51% to $51.05 a barrel, with Brent crude up 1.51% to $52.46 a barrel. At the conference on Tuesday, BP chief executive Bob Dudley said he anticipates crude will trade in the range $50-$60 a barrel next year. He added that BP would break-even at prices slightly below $55 a barrel. "Last year we said we needed to balance at $60 and we had a job to get it there ... Next year we will be able to balance south of $55," Dudley said, adding the oil industry was undergoing a profound change, which was for the better. "At $100 oil, industry costs drifted up and all kinds of projects looked attractive," he said. "At todays prices, we have to maximise efficiency and minimise costs. We have to focus on the highest quality projects and develop them with great capital discipline." Coffee chain Starbucks Corp named its first chief executive officer in China, as it plans to ramp up its efforts in the country in order to boost profits. The chain wants to double its store count to more than 5,000 by 2021. Belinda Wong has been named as CEO of Starbucks China, having previously served as president of the group. She will still report to president of Starbucks Global Retail John Culver. Wong joined Starbucks in 2000, and now she will also be in charge of digital and ecommerce in the region. Starbucks has been operating in China for the last 17 years and already has more than 2,300 cafes in 100 cities. The company has previously stated that its Chinese operations have the potential to outgrow its US business. There are currently 12,900 stores domestically. European stocks drifted a little lower in early trade as investors sifted through more corporate releases and mulled over the latest data from China. At 0850 BST, the benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index was down 0.2%, Germanys DAX was 0.3% weaker and Frances CAC 40 was off 0.1%. Meanwhile, oil prices advanced, with West Texas Intermediate up 1.1% to $50.83 a barrel and Brent crude up 1.1% at $52.24. Figures released earlier showed Chinas gross domestic product grew 6.7% in the year to September, bang in line with forecasts. Other data showed retail sales were up 10.7% in September from a year earlier, also in line with expectations. However, industrial production figures disappointed, showing a 6.1% jump versus expectations of a 6.4% increase. Analysts Mike van Dulken and Henry Croft at Accendo Markets said: A lukewarm open follows a mixed Asian session where investors failed to derive any excitement whatsoever fromspookily stable Chinese GDP growth of 6.7% (thats three quarters in a row!) that puts the worlds number 2 economy on track to meet its full year target. Faster growth for retail sales was offset by weakness for industrial production. The GDP stability leads some to ask whether more aggressive measures might be dared to try and calm credit and property-inflated bubbles. Delicate. In corporate news, online retailer Zalando gained ground after it posted a third-quarter profit versus expectations of a loss and lifted its 2016 earnings forecast. Metro AG edged higher despite reporting a small drop in fourth-quarter sales, as it confirmed its outlook for the year. Carrefour was on the front foot after the French supermarkets third-quarter revenue beat expectations On the downside, Dutch coatings and paints maker Akzo Nobel declined after it said quarterly sales dropped 4%. Builders merchant Travis Perkins slumped after it warned on full-year profit and announced the closure of 30 branches. Consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser fell after its third-quarter sales missed expectations, while BHP Billiton slipped after it posted a drop in quarterly iron ore production. London equities began the morning slightly lower, weighed down by the latest updates out of Reckitt Benckiser and Travis Perkins , and slightly weaker than expected industrial numbers out of China. Acting as a backdrop, some traders might were looking ahead to Wednesday night's last televised debate between the two main US presidential candidates. Chinese industrial production undershot economists' forecasts slightly, rising by 6.1% year-on-year (consensus: 6.4%). Those numbers came alongside other figures showing that gross domestic product grew at a 6.7% year-on-year clip in the third quarter, the same as over the previous two quarters. At the pan-European level, banks were outperforming early on. As of 0829 BST the FTSE 100 was lower by 11.32 points or 0.17% at 6,988.34. Commenting on the Chinese data, Julian Evans-Pritchard, China economist at Capital Economics, said: "The upshot from todays data is that economic activity seems to be holding up reasonably well, with few signs that a renewed slowdown is just around the corner. Nonetheless, the recent recovery is ultimately on borrowed time given that it has been driven in large part by faster credit growth and a property market boom, both of which policymakers are now working to rein in. "As the boost from policy stimulus begins to wear off, probably at some point early next year, continued structural drags mean the economy is set to begin slowing again," he said. In other Chinese data, figures showed retail sales in China were up 10.7%, while urban investment grew 8.2%. The GDP price deflator rose to a two-year high of 1.1%. Meanwhile, ahead of the US election debate, strategists at Citi said: "prediction markets suggest 83% probability of Clinton win, though we continue to flag the extraordinary number of black swans in this race, including the potential that doubts cast on the electoral process result undermine the outcome. The boost for Hillary will translate into Democrats gaining Congressional seats, but the chances of a Democratic sweep remain slim in our view." On the macroeconomic front, UK average earnings, the unemployment rate and claimant count are due at 0930 BST. In the US, housing starts are at 1330 BST and the Fed Beige book at 1900 BST. A raft of Federal Reserve officials were also scheduled to speak later in the day. To take note of as well, shares of US chip maker Intel fell 5% following its latest quarterly results published overnight, after the close of trading in New York. In corporate news, health, hygiene and home products manufacturer Reckitt Benckiser grew in the third quarter but was affected by its ongoing legal issues in South Korea, low demand in Russia and weakness in the Scholl business. In a trading statement, the company reported 2% like-for-like growth in the third quarter which was impacted by expected headwinds, with total growth increasing 17% due positive foreign exchange rates. One of the first companies in the construction sector to provide an update on the third quarter, Travis Perkins reported market conditions have worsened and in light of the uncertainty it has decided to close more than 30 branches and launch a cost-cutting programme. The FTSE 100 group said that its consumer, contracts and general merchanting businesses had outperformed the market, however, with total sales growing 3.4% in the three-months to the end of September and like-for-like growth of 2.0%. BHP Billiton posted its operational review for the three months to 30 September on Wednesday, with all of its production and unit cost guidance remaining unchanged for the 2017 financial year - though guidance for the Olympic Dam was under review after a state-wide power outage in South Australia. The firm reported a 15% drop year-on-year for petroleum production in the quarter, to 55 Mboe, with copper down 6% to 355 kt and iron ore flat at 58 Mt. Market Movers FTSE 100 (UKX) 6,990.47 -0.14% FTSE 250 (MCX) 17,938.81 -0.31% techMARK (TASX) 3,528.53 -0.24% FTSE 100 - Risers Persimmon (PSN) 1,756.00p 2.03% Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,423.00p 1.43% Polymetal International (POLY) 891.00p 1.31% Capita (CPI) 609.50p 1.08% Anglo American (AAL) 1,040.50p 1.07% Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 148.20p 1.02% Glencore (GLEN) 239.60p 0.97% WPP (WPP) 1,819.00p 0.94% Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 7,025.00p 0.93% Barratt Developments (BDEV) 488.20p 0.91% FTSE 100 - Fallers Travis Perkins (TPK) 1,405.00p -5.58% Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 7,138.00p -2.58% Wolseley (WOS) 4,440.00p -1.81% easyJet (EZJ) 904.50p -1.47% St James's Place (STJ) 921.00p -1.23% Centrica (CNA) 213.30p -0.97% Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,149.00p -0.95% International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 383.10p -0.93% BT Group (BT.A) 381.25p -0.88% Tesco (TSCO) 206.50p -0.86% FTSE 250 - Risers Bellway (BWY) 2,493.00p 4.48% Cineworld Group (CINE) 575.00p 3.42% CMC Markets (CMCX) 206.10p 3.05% Shawbrook Group (SHAW) 236.90p 2.91% Computacenter (CCC) 725.00p 2.76% Rentokil Initial (RTO) 231.00p 2.48% Hays (HAS) 142.30p 2.15% Zoopla Property Group (WI) (ZPLA) 329.60p 1.92% Riverstone Energy Limited (RSE) 1,182.00p 1.90% Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 415.00p 1.74% FTSE 250 - Fallers Laird (LRD) 168.80p -45.28% SIG (SHI) 113.70p -2.74% Grafton Group Units (GFTU) 509.50p -2.58% CLS Holdings (CLI) 1,520.00p -2.00% Mitie Group (MTO) 197.00p -1.99% Ocado Group (OCDO) 262.20p -1.98% Drax Group (DRX) 320.30p -1.90% Brown (N.) Group (BWNG) 190.60p -1.75% Aggreko (AGK) 941.00p -1.72% Paragon Group Of Companies (PAG) 320.50p -1.60% Housebuilder Barratt Developments has suspended its regional managing director for London, Alastair Baird, after he was arrested over possible misconduct in awarding certain contracts. Baird and a former Barratt London employee were arrested by the Metropolitan Police on Wednesday morning. The arrests followed a referral to the Met by the company back in April of initial findings of an internal investigation that began in August 2015 after an internal audit. Barratt said it related to the possible misconduct in the process for awarding and managing certain material and sub-contract supply contracts in the London region. The investigation also led to civil legal action which commenced in October 2015 against an employee who was dismissed in February 2016. Following the initial findings, Barratt appointed an accounting firm to conduct an external review of the controls relating to the tendering and procurement processes in the London business. After the review the results of which were reported to the Audit Committee Barratt said it has adopted additional controls. Chief executive officer David Thomas said: We are committed to meeting the highest ethical standards in all aspects of our business. We have acted decisively, launching our own thorough and comprehensive investigation and referring the matter to the Metropolitan Police. We will continue to cooperate fully with the Metropolitan Police and to conduct our own investigation into these matters. We will take whatever action is required to ensure our values and standards are upheld." Gary Ennis, regional managing director for the Southern Region, will take on interim responsibility for the London and Southern Regions. Barratt does not expect to see any material adverse financial impact from the investigation. At 1247 BST, the shares were up 1.1% to 489.10p. AIM-listed digital transformation software provider OneView warned on Wednesday that revenue for the current financial year is likely to be below market expectations due to contract delays. The company said that winning its first hosted customer in the UK was a pivotal event in the first half of the year, creating an important new recurring revenue stream. During the period, OneViews main focus was to get its existing customers live in their store estate, it said, adding that it has seen a growth in pipeline in the EMEA region and Australia. The group said interest in its software continues to be strong and expressed confidence that the current pipeline will deliver growth in the future. However, it said the mission critical nature of solutions means that sales cycles are long and can be difficult to predict. The company has seen a number of delays in some of the major pipeline contracts. Accordingly, whilst the board remains confident that the on-going discussions will come to fruition there can be no certainty on timing and as a result, the company's revenue is likely to be below market expectations for the current financial year. At 0952 BST, the shares were down 35% to 3.50p. Primary healthcare facilities investor Primary Health Properties announced on Wednesday that it has completed the acquisition of its first primary care centre in the Republic of Ireland. The London-listed firms Irish investment vehicle, Primary Health Properties ICAV, has taken delivery of a new, purpose built primary care centre in Tipperary following completion of its construction, for a total cost of 6.7m. PHP said the 2,800 square metre centre is fully let and rent producing. Three quarters of the rent roll is contracted to the Health Service Executive for a 25-year lease term. The board said the HSE is the Irish government's executive agency which provides Ireland's public health services in communities across the country. It confirmed the remainder of the rent roll comes from 25-year leases to a group of GPs and a national pharmacy operator. The acquisition increases PHPs portfolio to 294 assets, with a gross value of over 1.2bn and a contracted rent roll of 67.4m. We are delighted to have completed our first acquisition in the Republic of Ireland, said managing director Harry Hyman. Much like the UK, Ireland is experiencing increasing demands on its healthcare system and there is a significant need to provide modern, high quality primary care facilities to meet these demands. PHP has a strong pipeline of earnings enhancing opportunities in the UK and Republic of Ireland through which we will continue to grow the value of the portfolio and returns to shareholders. Health, hygiene and home products manufacturer Reckitt Benckiser saw sales growth slow in the third quarter as it was impacted by ongoing legal issues in South Korea and low demand in Russia. In a trading statement, the company reported 2% like-for-like (LFL) sales growth in the third quarter, down from 5% in the first half, although total growth increased a whopping 17% due foreign exchange rate movements. In the year to date LFL growth was 4% and the company said it was targeting full year LFL growth of 4%. South Korea has launched an investigation in a humidifier sanitiser sold by the company's business unit in the country between 2001 and 2011, as an ingredient in one of its product was linked to nearly 100 deaths. The issue significantly affected the Korean business and adversely impacted the companys LFL performance by around -1.5% in the third quarter and developing markets by mid-single digits. Developing markets LFL growth climbed 7% with particular gains in India and China, while Brazil remains a challenging market. For Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand the company had a resilient performance despite materially lower demand in foot care brands Scholl and Amope, and weak consumer environment, particularly in Russia. Chief executive Rakesh Kapoor said in an environment where market growth rates have softened, the company has continued to make strategic progress particularly in India and China through the development of e-commerce channels. Our third quarter performance has been adversely impacted by the flagged issues in Korea, Russia and our Scholl innovation. These challenges will impact the near term. We are targeting full year like-for-like net revenue growth of +4%. We remain very confident that our medium and longer term strategic choices are right and will continue to drive shareholder returns." George Salmon, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said declining sales in South Korea might have been expected, but Wednesdays results also confirmed weaker trends in other areas. While the disappointing performance from the latest Scholl products may not be the end of the world, the group will hope for improvements in the future. After all, reinventing existing brands has made Reckitt into the success it is today. Fellow consumer goods giant Unilever is bracing itself for tougher market conditions, and Reckitt management have lowered expectations for the full year. This could mean that the cost-cutting programmes that both are undertaking take on greater significance this year. Darren Shirley, an analyst at Shore Capital, said it was expected that the company would issue a weak third quarter trading update but it was unclear as to how weak as it reported 2% growth. With no further clarification this could mean anywhere between 1.5 2.5%, though whatever the exact number, trading has been below consensus expectations of 2.8% and is likely to be below Shore Capitals expectation of 2.4%. Looking out for the full year, with the weak third quarter trading in tow management has lowered its like-for-like sales target from 4 5% to 4%, which again could reflect a target of anywhere between 3.5 -4%, though we strongly expect this to be at the lower end of the range." He said while like-for-like are likely to be at the disappointing end of expectations, actual sales appear to be robust, Shore Capital currently expects full year 2016 earnings per share of 293.7p. Shares in FTSE 100 Reckitt Benckiser were down 2.74% to 7126.12 at 0901 BST. Western France short breaks from just 99 : Source: Brittany Ferries Head across the Channel to France for a pre-Christmas break with Brittany Ferries and spend up to 60 hours away from just 99 return when you book with directferries.co.uk! Simply book your ferry crossing and spend up to 60 hours away between 1st November and 12th December and prices start from just 99 return when two people travel by car on the following routes: Portsmouth - Caen Portsmouth - Le Havre Portsmouth - St Malo Poole - Cherbourg Plymouth - Roscoff If youre travelling by motorcycle prices start from just 49.50 return when two people travel. Dont miss out, book by 15th November to save. SafariSeat All terrain Wheelchair for People in Developing Countries Published: 2016-10-19 - Updated: 2021-02-21 Author: SafariSeat | Contact: safariseat.org Peer-Reviewed Publication: N/A Jump to: Main Digest | Publications Synopsis: SafariSeat is a low cost and open-source all terrain wheelchair that can be made in local workshops with bicycle parts designed for people in developing countries. Letu had been disabled since birth, with no access to healthcare, suitable wheelchairs or any of the assistance much of the world takes for granted. SafariSeat uses a simple, patented mechanism that mimics car suspension, ensuring all the wheels remain on the ground at all times for maximum stability. advertisements Main Digest SafariSeat is a wheelchair designed for people in developing countries. It's low cost, all-terrain and open source. SafariSeat can be made in basic workshops using bicycle parts, which makes it easy to repair. Where sand replaces pavement, SafariSeat helps people with disabilities lead independent lives. Today, SafariSeat launches a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter, to raise money to build as many chairs as possible, and develop an open source manual. Local workshops can then use the manual to make SafariSeats for their communities. SafariSeat designer, Janna Deeble grew up in Kenya. He was a child when he first met Letu, a Samburu man disabled by polio, living an isolated, traditional lifestyle with his family in the wilderness. Letu had been disabled since birth, with no access to healthcare, suitable wheelchairs or any of the assistance much of the world takes for granted. To move, Letu had to crawl; he was totally dependent on others. Janna didn't understand the reality of Letu's situation until, as a design student, he had an accident that left him wheelchair-bound for months. As his independence disappeared, he thought of Letu and his daily struggle to fulfil life's basic needs. In East Africa alone, 1 in every 200 people lives in need of a wheelchair, imprisoned by their disability. Determined to help, Janna returned to Kenya in 2015 to develop SafariSeat. SafariSeat climbs over rough ground like no other wheelchair. It uses a simple, patented mechanism that mimics car suspension, ensuring all the wheels remain on the ground at all times for maximum stability. The SafariSeat campaign is about enabling communities to help themselves. Janna plans to make the blueprints absolutely free, as part of an open source toolkit that will enable workshops to make SafariSeats for their community - to help people with disabilities and create local, sustainable employment. SafariSeat has already allowed Letu to discover his independence and teach his son what it means to be a Samburu. With SafariSeat, Janna hopes many others will be able to experience the same freedom. SafariSeat is the first project from Uji, a social enterprise company determined to make a difference. Their goal is to design tools that help people break free from the poverty cycle. Uji is led by a team of young designers: Janna Deeble, Cara O'Sullivan, James Seers and Bertie Meyer. The Uji philosophy is to help people help themselves - to avoid a culture of dependency, by operating on open-source principles. Further Information: Website: www.safariseat.org Twitter: @SafariSeat Facebook: @SafariSeat Contact: hello@safariseat.org Reference Source(s): SafariSeat All terrain Wheelchair for People in Developing Countries | SafariSeat (safariseat.org). Disabled World makes no warranties or representations in connection therewith. Content may have been edited for style, clarity or length. Disabled World is an independent disability community established in 2004 to provide disability news and information to people with disabilities, seniors, their family and/or carers. See our homepage for informative news, reviews, sports, stories and how-tos. You can also connect with us on Twitter and Facebook or learn more about Disabled World on our about us page. advertisements Disabled World provides general information only. The materials presented are never meant to substitute for professional medical care by a qualified practitioner, nor should they be construed as such. Financial support is derived from advertisements or referral programs, where indicated. Any 3rd party offering or advertising does not constitute an endorsement. Cite This Page (APA): SafariSeat. (2016, October 19). SafariSeat All terrain Wheelchair for People in Developing Countries. Disabled World. Retrieved October 31, 2022 from www.disabled-world.com/assistivedevices/mobility/wheelchairs/allterrain/uji.php Permalink: SafariSeat All terrain Wheelchair for People in Developing Countries Millions of Children with Disabilities Out of School Published: 2016-10-19 - Updated: 2020-04-24 Author: International Disability and Development Consortium | Contact: iddcconsortium.net Peer-Reviewed Publication: N/A Jump to: Main Digest | Publications Synopsis: Report reveals tens of millions of children with disabilities out of school due to poor government and donor practice. Despite evidence of the significant benefits of inclusive education, particularly during early childhood development, most governments and external financiers are not paying heed... Education is not a priority sector for government or donor investment, and education for children with disabilities comes even lower down the list. advertisements Main Digest Billions of dollars of income from the world's poorest countries is being lost through lack of schooling and employment for huge numbers of people who have disabilities. A report launched at the United Nations finds that millions of children with disabilities are being left out of school because little to no money is being budgeted for their needs. At least half of the world's 65 million school-age children with disabilities are not in primary or lower secondary school. #CostingEquity; The case for disability-responsive education financing highlights the issue as a major challenge standing in the way of success for the Sustainable Development Goals, which aim to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education for all by 2030. The research was produced by the International Disability and Development Consortium (IDDC)--supported by Light for the World, Open Society Foundations and several other leading disability rights and development organisations--who are calling on both governments and donors to urgently take action. The case for Inclusive Education #CostingEquity strongly recommends 'inclusive education' as the best method for governments and donors alike to reach children with disabilities: that is, quality learning opportunities for the vast majority of children within a mainstream system. Despite evidence of the significant benefits of inclusive education, particularly during early childhood development, most governments and external financiers are not paying heed; too often ring-fencing small allocations for special education, or forgetting children with disabilities altogether. The report finds a persistent failure to invest in system-wide reform. "Inclusive education can drastically reduce out of school populations; it can remove learning barriers for every child; it can tackle discrimination in society; and, it is considerably cheaper than segregated education." "Yet, despite this evidence, no-one is putting up the money, the research, the training or the time to coordinate system-wide change to empower children with disabilities to attend schools in classrooms alongside their non-disabled peers," explained Nafisa Baboo, Senior Advisor for Inclusive Education at Light for the World and co- coordinator of the IDDC inclusive Education Task Group. Lack of Government Engagement #CostingEquity describes domestic funding as the most important source for education financing, highlighting the severe problem that many governments do not share how much they spend on schooling for children with disabilities; let alone whether those funds go into segregated or inclusive education. "Many governments wrongly, believe that the returns on investing in inclusive education will be low. We really hope this report helps mark a turning point in understanding of the huge benefits of financing and education for children with disabilities," said Ola Abu Alghaib, global head of influencing at Leonard Cheshire Disability. In Ethiopia, where an estimated 96% of children with disabilities are out of school - the report highlights how the government's Education Sector Plan anticipates closing the financing gap using household and community contributions. The report raises the concern that increasing reliance on household support for education financing could exacerbate educational exclusion for children with disabilities, who are often found in the poorest households. Severe Lack of Funding, Expertise and Shared-practice Among Donors The #CostingEquity report finds that even among the world's leading donor education agencies, the situation is far from what is needed to reach any way near the target agreed in the Sustainable Development Goals to ensure "inclusive and equitable quality education for all" by 2030. The research paper surveys a wide range of donors on their efforts towards disability-inclusive education, including many of the organisations who have helped 'lead the charge' on raising the issue of education for children with disabilities: DFAT (Australia), DFID (UK), European Union, GIZ (Germany), Global Partnership for Education, Norad (Norway), UNICEF, USAID (USA), and the World Bank. The report says that, despite limited signs of progress in some agencies in terms of organisational strategies, monitoring frameworks and staff awareness; progress is seldom felt on a country level, 'on the ground'. The report cites several reasons for the gap between commitments on paper and programmes in reality, including a lack of dedicated staff--across any of the organisations--who could be identified as fully engaged in promoting disability-inclusive education, as well as competing priorities. The report also highlights how most donor aid does not include amounts earmarked for disability or inclusive approaches. Norad, the Norwegian development agency, was unusual in being able to show that 29% of its education funds were directed to inclusive education. None of the organisations surveyed for this report could show a portfolio-wide approach to disability-inclusive education. "We are seeing the signs of emerging commitment to disability-inclusive education across donor agencies, but progress is going at a snail's pace compared to the scale of the issue we are facing," warned Ingrid Lewis, Director, Enabling Education Network. "This report is a collective wake-up call to all of us about the urgency of the situation and how desperately we need to join together to share knowledge, best practice, and resources as well as build capacity, collect data, document and research different models of practice to start to make things better," said Sian Tesni, CBM Senior Advisor for Education. Global Decline in Aid for Education The #CostingEquity report follows the Global Education Monitoring Report, released in September of this year, which found the education sector globally has been substantially underfunded, and international aid to education is declining. "This global trend is a huge problem for those of us who fight for education rights for children with disabilities. Education is not a priority sector for government or donor investment, and education for children with disabilities comes even lower down the list. Children with disabilities are constantly left at the very back of the queue, and the impact on both individuals and economies can be disastrous," explained Julia McGeown, Inclusive Education Technical Advisor at Handicap International. Recommendations The report recommends that governments in low-income contexts need to close persistent gaps between inclusive education policy and practice, and provide adequate domestic financing for this. It calls for a more strategic use of existing resources, reprioritisation of budgets, stronger focus on quality measures such as improved teacher education, and strong political and community leadership on inclusion. It suggests that the Global Partnership for Education should develop a new financing window or facility for disability-inclusive education to grow additional financing and ensure that donor resources are better targeted to disability-inclusive education--providing technical support to countries, innovation grants as well as large-scale evidence generation. #CostingEquity also calls on all donors to prioritise efforts to reverse the decline in aid for education and normalise disability-responsiveness as a core criterion in education funding, both with partner governments and with implementing contractors (consultants, NGOs, etc.). This should be reflected in donor policies and strategies on disability and inclusion that all existing and new staff must be oriented on. "Governments, together with the world's leading donor agencies, could help send tens of millions of children to school if they begin prioritising this issue. Not only is it the right thing to do, it is also the clever thing to do; if we want to accomplish a real impact come 2030, in order to leave no one behind," said Marion Steff, Policy Advisor at Sightsavers. Reference Source(s): Millions of Children with Disabilities Out of School | International Disability and Development Consortium (iddcconsortium.net). Disabled World makes no warranties or representations in connection therewith. Content may have been edited for style, clarity or length. Disabled World is an independent disability community established in 2004 to provide disability news and information to people with disabilities, seniors, their family and/or carers. See our homepage for informative news, reviews, sports, stories and how-tos. You can also connect with us on Twitter and Facebook or learn more about Disabled World on our about us page. advertisements Disabled World provides general information only. The materials presented are never meant to substitute for professional medical care by a qualified practitioner, nor should they be construed as such. Financial support is derived from advertisements or referral programs, where indicated. Any 3rd party offering or advertising does not constitute an endorsement. Cite This Page (APA): International Disability and Development Consortium. (2016, October 19). Millions of Children with Disabilities Out of School. Disabled World. Retrieved October 31, 2022 from www.disabled-world.com/disability/education/schoolkids.php Permalink: Millions of Children with Disabilities Out of School Columbus man convicted of aggravated murder in bar shooting A Franklin County jury convicted a Columbus man for killing one man and wounding another in a 2020 shooting at a Far East Side pub. Subscriber content preview WASHINGTON (AP) The government says nearly 1 in 5 drivers in the U.S. is over 65 years old, thanks in part to the aging baby boomer generation and greater longevity overall. Preliminary data from the Federal Highway Administration also show there are more drivers today than ever before, an estimated 217 million. . . . Subscriber content preview The toxic chemicals are a component of firefighting foam widely used by the military. By DAN ELLIOTT Associated Press DENVER An Air Force base in Colorado said Tuesday it accidentally released about 150,000 gallons of water containing toxic chemicals into the sewer system of the adjacent city of Colorado Springs, but the potential health hazards weren't immediately known. Peterson Air Force Base said the water contained perfluorinated compounds or PFCs, which have been linked to prostate, kidney and testicular cancer, along with other illnesses. The Air Force hasn't said how high the levels were. . . . Subscriber content preview ASHLAND, Ore. (AP) A tight housing market in trendy Ashland is causing rental rates to shoot up and some are protesting hikes of up to $250 a month as the issue takes front and center in upcoming City Council and mayoral races. The town of about 20,000 people near the California border has a rental vacancy rate of just 1 to 2 percent and housing costs are 67 percent higher than the average in the rest of the country, the Ashland Daily Tidings reported, relying on the cost of living index. . . . True purveyors of the worlds finest wine will soon have another bottle to add to their wish list. Coming in at a staggering $185,000, the six-litre Penfolds Imperial will be limited to just five examples in the world. Inside the beautifully crafted bottle is the highly coveted 2012 vintage Penfolds Grange, a wine which has obtained perfect scores from critics around the globe. Given the substantial size of this particular bottle which would make it near impossible to pour without spillage, Penfolds had to acquire the master craftsmanship of Frances Saint-Louis to create a decanter worthy of such a drop. The result is a hand-blown, hand-cut crystal decanter which you see before you. Peter Gago, Penfoldss chief winemaker, explained that this isnt the first batch of Imperial theyve made. [Its] more for long-term cellaring in our museum. Every now and then weve released one at auction, and there is pandemonium. So we thought: Why not release a few and why not with a vintage as good as 2012? Making up a major portion of the eye-watering price tag is the aforementioned decanter made by Europes oldest glass maker which has been around since the 1500s. Saint-Louis President Jerome St. Lavergnolle aptly labelled the crafting process the Aeveum Imperial Service Ritual in which the glass contains more than 1,800 simple diamond cuts, one by one. Its really a piece of art, he says. The Imperial was unveiled last night in the wine capital of Adelaide in South Australia alongside some more affordable options from the Penfolds family, such as the 750ml bottle which will set locals back by $900 a pop. A smaller Saint-Louis Penfolds Aevum decanter will also be available for a cool $2,100. Assange's net access snapped amid Clinton revelations Midway through releasing a series of damaging disclosures about US presidential contender Hillary Clinton, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said his hosts at the Ecuadorean embassy in London abruptly cut him off from the internet. The news adds another layer of intrigue to an extraordinary campaign. ''We can confirm Ecuador cut off Assange's internet access Saturday, 5pm GMT, shortly after publication of Clinton's Goldman Sachs (speeches),'' the group said in a message posted to Twitter late Monday. With both WikiLeaks and Ecuadorean officials refusing to say much more about the incident, outsiders were left to guess at what was happening behind closed doors at the embassy suite at No 3 Hans Crescent, a stucco-fronted building which Assange has called home for more than four years. Had Ecuadorean diplomats lost patience with their famous Australian houseguest? Had they finally bowed to pressure from Washington to muzzle the outspoken ex-hacker following one revelation too many? Had there been some other kind of confrontation? WikiLeaks said unspecified ''contingency plans'' were in place and its Twitter account was still active on Tuesday. On Monday it released the latest tranche of emails from senior Clinton ally John Podesta, suggesting that, for now at least, the group's ability to publish has not been compromised. The disclosure was the 10th installation in a series of leaks which have captured the workings of Clinton's inner circle and included excerpts of her well-compensated speeches to investment bank Goldman Sachs. WikiLeaks staffers Kristinn Hrafnsson and Sarah Harrison did not return repeated messages from the Associated Press and others seeking comment. A woman who answered the phone at the embassy said she was not authorised to say anything. Ecuador's foreign minister Guillaume Long, approached by The Associated Press on the sidelines of a United Nations conference in Quito on Monday, declined to comment when asked about Assange. His office later released a terse statement in response to ''the speculation of the last few hours'' reaffirming Assange's asylum status and saying that ''his protection by the Ecuadorean state will continue while the circumstances that led to the granting of asylum remain''. The statement made no mention of Assange's internet access. Assange fled to the Ecuadorean embassy on 19 June 2012, after a drawn-out and ultimately unsuccessful legal battle to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he remains wanted over an allegation of rape. British authorities have made clear they would arrest him if he tried to leave, and London's Metropolitan Police used to maintain a visible presence outside the building. Assange has carved out a life at Hans Crescent, dining on delivered food, welcoming famous well-wishers and even occasionally addressing the media from the embassy's balcony. But evidence of tension and mutual suspicion with his hosts surfaced after BuzzFeed News drew on confidential Ecuadorean government documents to detail a violent, after-hours confrontation between Assange and an Ecuadorean security guard in September 2012. The documents also carried a warning that Assange's ''evident anger'' and ''feelings of superiority'' could cause stress to those around him - ''especially the personnel who work in the embassy, mainly women.'' Another infusion of money from big tobacco dominated the campaign finance reports filed this week for Colorado's statewide ballot initiatives, as opponents to a proposed tax increase on cigarettes and other tobacco products pumped $6.2 million more into an already robust war chest. Virginia-based Altria, the parent company of tobacco giant Philip Morris, has now contributed all $16.2 million toward the effort to defeat Amendment 72, which would add $1.75 in tax to a pack of cigarettes and channel the revenue toward a number of health-related efforts. The industry donations have financed a multi-pronged media campaign questioning the proposed use and oversight of those funds. Proponents of the measure, who have aimed at reducing smoking among Colorado youth, have countered by raising $2.2 million, led in this most recent reporting period by a $150,000 contribution from the American Heart Association. With the home stretch of the campaign season, and its accompanying advertising push, other ballot initiatives also added significant money to their campaigns, which cover issues from end-of-life care to minimum wage to politics. Spending on the nine statewide issues now tops $44 million, with one more reporting period remaining before the 8 November election day. Fundraising on the tobacco tax has far exceeded every other issue, with a total of $18.3 million raised so far. But two other initiatives saw big late-stage donations. Proposition 106, the measure that would permit medical aid-in-dying, saw each side of the debate get a boost of about a half-million dollars, pushing the total raised in that battle past $7.6 million. Compassion and Choices Action Network, a Denver-based organisation that advances similar efforts across the country, accounted for the latest $500,000 push to what so far has been a $5.3 million campaign to pass the initiative. Opponents, led by faith-based groups like the Catholic Church, have opposed the proposition by raising $2.35 million, with the Diocese of Pueblo contributing $135,000 in the latest reporting period. The battle over Amendment 70, which would raise the minimum wage, also saw a significant late surge of cash, much of it from out-of-state organizations, as that battle topped $5.4 million. The California-based Fairness Project has partnered with campaigns to increase the minimum wage in Washington, DC, Maine, Arizona, California, and Washington in addition to the Colorado effort, and added $400,000 to the nearly $1 million it has pitched in this year. Forces in favor of the measure have raised $3.9 million. The Virginia-based Workforce Fairness Institute, which advocates for business owners, contributed $200,000 of its $850,000 total during the past two weeks. Opponents overall have raised $1.5 million. Propositions 107 and 108, which seek to establish a Colorado presidential primary and also allow unaffiliated voters to cast ballots in primaries, added another $500,000 to its now $4.2 million campaign that to this point has no funded opposition issue committee. Other initiatives, such as Amendment 69, which would create a state-run health care system called ColoradoCare, and Amendment 71, which would make it more difficult to amend the state constitution, added relatively small donations in the last reporting period. Two other measures, one that would clean up constitutional language referencing slavery and another exempting certain interests from property tax, have raised little or no money in the face of no organized opposition. The Mayor of Municipal District, Councillor James Pat McDaid has officially opened the new Link Road in Letterkenny. The new road, on the outskirts of Letterkenny, connects Lisnenan Road with the Kiltoy Road, through the former Unifi site. The Unifi Link Road was conceived and designed to open up the land at the former Unifi plant following its demolition, and to provide an improved and safer route for motorists to access the N56 via the soon to be constructed roundabout. The 345m road which links the mini roundabout on the Kiltoy Road and the mini-roundabout on the Lisnenan Road was partially constructed by the former owners of the Unifi site, and recently completed at a cost of 42,000 and taken in charge by the Letterkenny Municipal District. Its opening will in the short term provide an alternative route for Lisnenan traffic to avoid the roadworks on the N56 Kiltoy Roundabout which are due to open in twenty weeks. Its long term benefit will be realised in conjunction with the opening of the N56 Roundabout at Ballyraine. Business and infrastructural developments in Letterkenny has been welcomed by the Letterkenny Chamber of Commerce, Chief Exexutive Officer, Toni Forrester. While welcoming the recent developments, she said that she envisages that the recent developments may attract new investors. She added that she would like to see more work being done on roads that would link Letterkenny to Dublin. "We need to have roads in and out of the town, linking us to Dublin," she said. The funeral took place on Friday last of Stephen Harvey (38), who died unexpectedly in Letterkenny University Hospital on Wednesday after a short illness. Large crowds accompanied the remains back to Killybegs on Wednesday night and attended the wake in his brother's home at Lisnaclaya throughout Thursday. And the town of Killybegs turned out to salute on Friday morning as the funeral cortege made its way to the Church of St Mary of the Visitation for the funeral Mass, celebrated by Fr Colm O Gallchoir PP. Stephen was highly thought of throughout the community for his ever-willing helpful attitude. One of the joys of his life was to lead parades in the town with a siren blaring and a flashing blue light on top of his car. His presence brought a smile to the faces of all on St Patrick's Days, carnivals and other community events and on the frequent processions in honour of winning local teams. Rallying was a special love of Stephen's and he was bitterly disappointed during his final illness that he could not be part of the back-up team for the Martin Howley Donegal Harvest Rally which took place in and around Killybegs. A copy of the Rally Programme was signed by many of the drivers and others involved and sent to Stephen, wishing him well and telling him to get better soon. It was through rallying and their joint love of horses that Stephen and Martin Howley formed a firm friendship which lasted throughout the years. Stephen was particularly hard hit by Martin's death in October 2015. On the morning of the funeral, the cortege was accompanied by three Garda cars. As the remains passed through the town, businesses closed their doors and many people stood to show their respect. Organisers of the annual charity bike outing, "Sandra's Run", formed a guard of honour at Elmwood Terrace. At the Tara Hotel, staff provided a guard of honour and, at the entrance to St Mary's church, a guard of honour was provided by colleagues and friends from Gallagher Bros., where Stephen worked for 16 years. Fr Colm told mourners: "The death of such a good, kind-hearted young man reminds us all how precious live is and how fragile. Stephen was a giver who had so much more to give, but it was not to be", he said. Speaking at the end of Mass, Stephen's sister, Diane, recalled that he had had many passions in his life, including horses, dogs, lorries, forklifts, rallying and, of course, his baby blue Corolla. "Stephen's other big passion in life was his job in Gallagher's factory, as a forklift driver. He was never as proud as when he won through to represent Ireland in an international forklift driving competition, sponsored by Northwest Forklifts. Ever since that time, Stephen had a sticker on the back of his forklift, 'GO HARVEY GO'." She added: "Stephen will be sadly missed by his family and all who loved him. Stephen is flying with the angels now. We will never forget him. Stephen would have been 39 tomorrow. Happy birthday, big brother. Sleep well." Stephen Harvey is survived by his parents, Kieran and Kathleen, his brothers, Kieran and Derek, and sisters Deirdre, Evelyn and Diane. Tommy Gallagher, Ardara The death has occurred at letterkenny University Hospital of Tommy Gallagher late of Common, Ardara. His remains will repose at Shovlin's Funeral Home, Sandfield on Thursday evening from 5pm with removal at 6.30pm to the Church of the Holy Family, Ardara arriving at 7pm. Funeral Mass on Friday at 11am with burial afterwards in the adjoining cemetery. Family flowers only, donations, if desired, to Killybegs Community Hospital. Brendan Byrne, Sligo/Letterkenny The death has occurred at University Hospital Galway of Brendan Byrne late of Tonaphubble, Sligo Town, Sligo and Letterkenny. House private. Funeral will arrive to St. Anne`s Church, sligo on Friday morning for Funeral Mass at 11am. Funeral proceeding afterwards to Sligo Cemetery. Daniel ODonnell, Buncrana The death has occurred at Beech Hill Manor Nursing Home, Lisfannon of Daniel ODonnell late of the The Square, Buncrana and 13a Cluain-Mhuire, Buncrana. Removal from Beech Hill Manor Nursing Home today, Wed 19th, at 4.30pm to St Marys Oratory, Buncrana for Requiem Mass tomorrow, Thursday at 10am. Burial afterwards in St Marys Cemetery, Cockhill. Nancy Gallagher, Dunfanaghy The death has occurred of Nancy Gallagher late of Upper Morroe, Dunfanaghy. Reposing at her late residence, Requiem Mass will take place in the Holy Cross Church, Dunfanaghy tomorrow Thursday, October 20, at 11am followed by burial in the adjoining cemetery. Family time from 11pm to 10am, and on the morning of the funeral. Donations, if desired, to the Donegal Hospice. Severina Baker The death has occurred of Severina Baker, Drumbarron, Frosses Severina Baker, Drumbarron, Frosses has peacefully passed away at her home. Reposing at St. Marys Church, Frosses this evening from 7.30pm with rosary at 9pm. Funeral Mass at 11am on Wednesday morning with removal to Lakelands Crematorium, Cavan, for private cremation. House strictly private. Francie Gallagher The death has occurred of Francie Gallagher, formerly Cruit Island, Donegal Francie Gallagher, formerly of Cruit Island has passed away in the Prince of Wales Hospital, Glasgow. Reposing at the home of his brother Patrick, Lower Keadue from 10am on Wednesday, 19th October. Removal from his brothers house on Thursday morning, 20th October, at 10.30am for 11am Requiem Mass in St. Marys Church, Kincasslagh. Burial afterwards in Belcruit Cemetery. Family flowers only please. Oliver Simpson The death has occurred of Oliver Simpson, Tullnaree, Carndonagh, Donegal Removal on Thursday, October 20th, at 10.30am to the Church of the Sacred Heart, Carndonagh for Requiem Mass at 11am. Burial afterwards in the adjoining cemetery. Family flowers only. Donations, if desired, to St. Lukes Hospital, Dublin. * If you wish to have a death notice included, please e-mail: editorial@donegaldemocrat.com and include a contact telephone number for verification. The IDA has been told it must focus on new investment in Donegal to help the county deal with the impact of the UK decision to leave the European Union. Donegal Senator Padraig Mac Lochlainn challenged the IDA at the Oireachtas Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Committee to focus on new investment for the county. The committee was dealing with the impact of the UK decision to leave the EU on businesses and job creation across the island. Senator Mac Lochlainn said he had challenged the IDA to up its game on bringing new investment and jobs to Donegal. I was surprised and alarmed at the rosy picture provided to the committee of the IDA's results in spreading inward investment and jobs throughout the state and particularly into Donegal and other border counties, he said. The IDA repeatedly refers to jobs growth at existing companies they support in the county, and that is indeed welcome but we are asking where are the new companies and inward investment for the county? "Few counties in this state will be as impacted by Brexit as Donegal. From fisheries to tourism and from agri-food to engineering, there is a real threat to our local economy. To fix a problem, you first have to accept that there is one. It is clear to me that the IDA do not accept that in terms of site visits by potential investors and the locating of new companies supported by the IDA in our county, the last numbers of years have been very disappointing. He called on the IDA to work closer with Enterprise Ireland, Udaras, LYIT, Donegal County Council and the Donegal Local Enterprise Office. The HSE has confirmed that the rheumatology clinics will be reinstated at Letterkenny University Hospital by the end of the month. Charlie McConalogue, Fianna Fail TD, welcomed the news, saying he had been raising the issue with various ministers for health and with the HSE since he was first elected to the Dail in 2011. The services were removed from the Letterkenny hospital that year. In this time, up to 300 Donegal patients have had to travel to Manorhamilton for rheumatology services, Deputy McConalogue said. He said that after years of discussions, the HSE has given a firm commitment on reinstatement of the clinic, following the appointment of a third rheumatologist for the north west a few weeks ago. The restoration of the clinic is fantastic news for all of the patients who have been forced to travel from Donegal to Manorhamilton for vital treatment, Deputy McConalogue said. These are people with very painful conditions, who found this long journey exceptionally difficult. It is unacceptable that they have had to travel this distance for so long. The Inishowen-based deputy said he was very glad to see the service returned to Letterkenny. In response to a question from Deputy McConalogue, the general manager of Sligo Regional Hospital, Grainne McCann, had said that the third consultant rheumatologist had begun employment in the north west in mid-September. She confirmed that planning has been under way regarding the commencement of peripheral clinics in Letterkenny, with a weekly clinic to recommence in Letterkenny by the end of October. Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content. Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist. If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter . Support our mission and join our community now. Death notices for Wednesday evening, October 19th Anna begley, Fanad The death has occurred at her home of Anna Geley, late of Ballyhiernan, Fanavolty, Fanad. Requiem Mass will take place on Saturday, 22 October, in St Mary's Church, Fanavolty with burial afterwards in the adjoining cemetery. House private, family and friends welcome. House strictly private on the morning of the funeral. Family flowers only, donations if desired to The Irish Heart Foundation. Tommy Gallagher, Ardara The death has occurred at letterkenny University Hospital of Tommy Gallagher late of Common, Ardara. His remains will repose at Shovlin's Funeral Home, Sandfield on Thursday evening from 5pm with removal at 6.30pm to the Church of the Holy Family, Ardara arriving at 7pm. Funeral Mass on Friday at 11am with burial afterwards in the adjoining cemetery. Family flowers only, donations, if desired, to Killybegs Community Hospital. Brendan Byrne, Sligo/Letterkenny The death has occurred at University Hospital Galway of Brendan Byrne late of Tonaphubble, Sligo Town, Sligo and Letterkenny. House private. Funeral will arrive to St. Anne`s Church, sligo on Friday morning for Funeral Mass at 11am. Funeral proceeding afterwards to Sligo Cemetery. Daniel ODonnell, Buncrana The death has occurred at Beech Hill Manor Nursing Home, Lisfannon of Daniel ODonnell late of the The Square, Buncrana and 13a Cluain-Mhuire, Buncrana. Removal from Beech Hill Manor Nursing Home today, Wed 19th, at 4.30pm to St Marys Oratory, Buncrana for Requiem Mass tomorrow, Thursday at 10am. Burial afterwards in St Marys Cemetery, Cockhill. Nancy Gallagher, Dunfanaghy The death has occurred of Nancy Gallagher late of Upper Morroe, Dunfanaghy. Reposing at her late residence, Requiem Mass will take place in the Holy Cross Church, Dunfanaghy tomorrow Thursday, October 20, at 11am followed by burial in the adjoining cemetery. Family time from 11pm to 10am, and on the morning of the funeral. Donations, if desired, to the Donegal Hospice. Severina Baker The death has occurred of Severina Baker, Drumbarron, Frosses Severina Baker, Drumbarron, Frosses has peacefully passed away at her home. Reposing at St. Marys Church, Frosses this evening from 7.30pm with rosary at 9pm. Funeral Mass at 11am on Wednesday morning with removal to Lakelands Crematorium, Cavan, for private cremation. House strictly private. Francie Gallagher The death has occurred of Francie Gallagher, formerly Cruit Island, Donegal Francie Gallagher, formerly of Cruit Island has passed away in the Prince of Wales Hospital, Glasgow. Reposing at the home of his brother Patrick, Lower Keadue from 10am on Wednesday, 19th October. Removal from his brothers house on Thursday morning, 20th October, at 10.30am for 11am Requiem Mass in St. Marys Church, Kincasslagh. Burial afterwards in Belcruit Cemetery. Family flowers only please. Oliver Simpson The death has occurred of Oliver Simpson, Tullnaree, Carndonagh, Donegal Removal on Thursday, October 20th, at 10.30am to the Church of the Sacred Heart, Carndonagh for Requiem Mass at 11am. Burial afterwards in the adjoining cemetery. Family flowers only. Donations, if desired, to St. Lukes Hospital, Dublin. * If you wish to have a death notice included, please e-mail: editorial@donegaldemocrat.com and include a contact telephone number for verification. The 109th Infantry Battalion, which has been training at Finner Camp, takes to the streets of Donegal Town on Monday ahead of their six month deployment to Lebanon next month. Minister for Defence, Paul Kehoe, TD will review the troops on this, the first time that personnel from Finner have marked their departure to Lebanon by such a march in Donegal Town. Among the 336 personnel are 59 members of the 28th Infantry Battalion, which is based at Finner, the largest unit in the battalion. Some locals who are being deployed on this mission are: -Ballyshannon twins, Private Jonathon and Darren Gethins, whose father Jimmy was also a member of the 28th Inf.; - Corporals Ronan and Glen Matthews, two brothers from Ballyshannon; - Company Quartermaster Sgt Garry Friel from Castlefin, whose nephew Ciaran is a sergeant in Dublin; and - Oisin Redican from Letterkenny, who is just 20. Oisin is the youngest member of the unit going on this tour of duty. His father Aidan was also in the Army. The 109th was formed last month, with its headquarters based at Finner Camp, and the unit has undertaken extensive training here in Donegal as well as at Gormanstown Camp in Co. Meath and the Glen of Imaal in Co. Wicklow. Members of the Infantry, Military Police, Cavalry, CIS, Engineers, Ordnance, Artillery, Transport & Medical Corps, Air Corps and the Naval Service are all represented in the battalion, which also includes 21 female personnel. In south Lebanon, the troops will serve as part of UNIFIL (United Nation Interim Force In Lebanon), assuming the lead of IRISHFINBATT, which also includes a company of Finnish soldiers, and a platoon of Estonian troops. Together, they will man observation posts along the Blue Line near the Zone of Separation. The Blue Line, or line of withdrawal, to call it by its proper name, was established in 2000 to confirm the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon and UNIFIL have been on the ground there for the last ten years. The 109th Infantry Battalion will assemble and parade at The Quay car park at 1.30pm, where the Minister for Defence will review and address the troops. They will then parade through the town and to the St John Bosco Centre. Home Four wheelers Volkswagens Nightmare Continues Missouri Now Sues The Carmaker oi-Rajkamal The Volkswagen Diesel Gate scandal seems it would haunt the German carmaker for a while, since the state of Missouri has sued Volkswagen on Monday. {photo-feature} Dundalk Chamber of Commerce welcomed the general features of the Budget and in particular the retention of the nine per cent VAT rate. The chamber also noted the favourable changes in CAT,(Gift and Inheritance ); CGT (Capital Gains) and farming tax. The changes in capital allowances were welcomed. However the chambers budget submission had asked for targeted relief to the border regions, particularly with Brexit coming down the line. For 16 years we have asked that Dundalk be included in the inner city tax incentives and despite our deprivation ranking we are still not included, said Paddy Malone Dundalk Chamber. Brexit is the greatest threat that Ireland has faced in decades. The border region is even more exposed in this area and we had asked that central government would support the county councils to reduce rates. We also would have liked to have seen a minister given special responsibility for Brexit. We are glad to see that the sugar tax will be implemented along with UK plans rather than a go alone that would have led to smuggling. Fianna Fail Deputy Declan Breathnach has expressed his dismay at the lack of funding provided in the Budget to deal with the fallout from Brexit. The Government have announced the establishment of a Brexit team in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, within existing budget and staffing envelopes. This is a totally inadequate response, Deputy Breathnach said. Minister Noonan has on the one hand acknowledged the potential stormy waters we as a country face regarding Brexit. However he has not provided any extra funding to the Department of Foreign Affairs in this regard. It is beyond belief that the minister regards Brexit as hugely significant, but wont provide the resources to ensure we can negotiate from the best position possible. Many other European countries with less to lose because of Brexit have invested to make sure they have the appropriate systems in place. We cannot afford to be ill prepared, Brexit cannot be an afterthought. I know that the government are saying that they have made allocations across key Government Departments for 2017 to provide the resources required to deliver Irelands Brexit ready strategy, however, not providing funding to the Department of Foreign Affairs and the new Brexit team is incomprehensible. Fianna Fail will not be ill prepared, that is why we are holding a national Brexit conference on Saturday 12 November in the Carrickdale Hotel, Dundalk. Fine Gael Deputy Peter Fitzpatrick said the Budget will strengthen the economy for Brexit, which is particularly important for border counties. As people and businesses in border counties will know Brexit represents a serious challenge to the Irish economy still recovering from recession, due to our deep trade links with both the UK and the EU, Deputy Fitzpatrick said. Minister Noonan used the opportunity of his budget speech to communicate a clear message. We want to see preservation of the common travel area, and by extension the common labour market. And crucially, we want to avoid any moves towards a hard border with Northern Ireland. Budget 2017 responds robustly to the challenges presented by Brexit. It will the economy in the lead up to the UK leaving the EU. The budget funds measures to help Irish businesses impacted by Brexit volatility. Iarnrod Eireann has launched its quest for Iarnrod Eireanns Best Station, a title currently held by Dundalk's Clarke Station. The competition will be tough as it is customers that get to decide who wins the overall title and the regional titles. Voting is now open. Entry forms can be obtained at your local station or you can vote online at irishrail.ie. Customers will rate their station under the following criteria: Staff helpfulness, station presentation and customer information. All entrants will be entered into a draw to win one of five luxury weekend weekends courtesy of Select Hotels of Ireland, with Iarnrod Eireann also providing the train travel to and from the five great destinations. There is also the chance to win free DART travel for a year by voting for the Best DART Station. The Iarnrod Eireann Best Station Awards reward excellence in customer facilities, cleanliness, innovation and customer service in the countrys 144 railway stations. An Iarnrod Eireann spokesperson said: What is so important about these awards is that it is our customers that choose the winners. Iarnrod Eireann would encourage all our customers to come out and vote and have their say. The overall winner last year was Dundalk and the Best Customer Service Award went to Dromod. Dundalk Positive Mental Health (DPMH) held a series of events last week as part of its annual event to highlight mental health issues. "This is our fourth Positive Mental Health Week, said Mary Moran chairperson of Dundalk Positive Mental Health. Each year we have added more events to highlight the importance of positive mental health. The week began with a fun walk along the Navvy Bank. On Monday, Derek Pepper, vice chairperson of DPMH and Shine, hosted a radio programme on Dundalk FM with contributions from service providers, fellow members of the forum, from Dundalk Outcomers, an Garda Siochana, Grow, HSE, Dundalk Counselling Centre and Turas Counselling. On Tuesday there was a coffee morning at the Oriel Centre Old Gaol. On Wednesday the highlight of the week was the launch of the popular annual art exhibition in the Carroll Building DkIT by our Irish rugby international stars Rob and Dave Kearney. The art exhibition continued throughout the week with exhibits from local people. On Thursday Alan McCabe from DkIT hosted a cookery demonstration in the college with lots of healthy eating ideas for positive mental health. This event was highly popular last year and proved another great success this year. There was an information stand in the Marshes shopping centre throughout the week featuring information on local mental health services. "I would like to thank everyone on the steering committee who continue to share their experiences in their own area of mental health to promote positive Mental Health and well being, said chairperson Mary Moran. A person who did not leave their name has sent me the attached photograph of the old Lifeboat Station along the shore near the Fane River at Blackrock which I was surprised to learn is still standing. Charlie McCarthy for the Coast Guard Houses, Point Road, tells me that that the photograph and attached article is taken from a booklet published by a man from the Drogheda area who had written about the various lifeboat stations along the coast of Louth about twenty years ago. Charlie could not remember this person's name but, if it were he who sent me this picture in relation an article I wrote about to the drowning of five young men from the Cooley Point area in September 1866, I am extremely grateful! The old Boathouse building at Blackrock is now on private property. It appears that its interior has been renovated and is being used as an artist's studio by a lady who is related to the owner of the property. This is a happy outcome to the story of what once was a very valuable service for those sailed in these waters and made their living on the Irish Sea. The note explaining the picture states that a Lifeboat Station was built in 1859, three miles south of Soldier's Point, with Lord Clermont supplying the site and bricks for the building. It goes on to say that, during the first decade of the Station's operation, 'problems in launching the Lifeboat were experienced, with the boat sometimes having to be taken for more than a mile over the soft sands to reach the water. Although it was suggested moving her to Gyles Quay on the north side of the Bay, nothing came of the suggestion.' The report goes on to say that, in 1899 1900, 'a new and larger Lifeboat house, at a cost of $791, was completed. It housed two lifeboats, both named General R. Dudley Blake. In September 1935 the Lifeboat (service) was withdrawn'. A romantic story Captain Robert Dudley Blake, after whom the Blackrock Lifeboat was named, was a member of a wealthy Northhumberland landed family who eloped with an 18 year old girl named Sheridan from Claremorris, County Mayo in 1819 He eventually obtained the consent of her father who had pursued the couple to Castlebar, intent on retribution. Robert went on to become a General in the British Army and donated considerable funds to the I.N.L.I., which went to the providing of several lifeboats around the coasts, one of which went to the Blackrock, County Louth, Station. The digital revolution has impacted almost every facet of our lives, from how we socialise, exercise, bank, and work. Although business is now conducted largely through smartphones, tablets and laptops, many workplaces are still cluttered by mountains of paper. Given the indisputable benefits of embracing digital technology, businesses are fast running out of excuses for their stubborn attachment to the cumbersome paper trail. Once, a commitment to go paperless was a commitment to the environment. Today, it is also an undeniable sign of business maturity. For a business to embrace digital, it is generally reflective of far more effective processes and broader strategies within the workplace. In a 2015 global study of digital businesses by MIT Sloan Management Review and Deloitte it was found that businesses that had made a key strategic decision to embrace a paperless working environment, had 13% more revenue, were 50% more profitable and had a 19% higher valuation. The figures were conclusive and pointed to a brighter future for businesses that took the leap to leave paper behind. These mature businesses are employing digital solutions to help them transition from reams of paper to a more effective way of managing workflow. Moving to a swifter digital model is not only beneficial for potential clients, it is helping to make a more productive and happy workforce who are not wasting hours trying to keep track of sheets of paper. An effective digital strategy that aims to streamline processes and eradicate paper is crucial to giving small businesses across Australia a vital edge on their competitors. Paperless technology is not solely for large corporations with revenues to match it is perfect for nimble small businesses that are ready to embrace its benefits. It would be difficult to argue the merits of the fax machine ahead of the smartphone in todays business world. What was once a corner stone of Australian business practice is now almost obsolete. The same is happening for paper. The decision to go paperless for businesses will lead to a more effective and productive workforce, and a more streamlined, successful operation. The time to act is now for any Australian business caught in the time-consuming paper vortex. See also: Electronic signatures: what are the benefits? About the author Matt Old is the director of commercial sales at DocuSign ANZ. "We must be ready to dare all for our country. For history does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid. We must acquire proficiency in defense and display stamina in purpose." - President Eisenhower, First Inaugural Address I've been privileged to eavesdrop on some of the emergency response teams on the ground in southwestern Haiti as they survey the situation and communicate via WhatsApp on what's going on. Today came an alarming text: Alert!!!! Please be careful with flights in Haiti right now. I was warned that jet fuel in Haiti has been suspect lately, based on having water in it, and it being cut with oil. One helicopter blew an engine on take off in Haiti and now two planes have gone down off Dominican Republic. One was returning back to DR from an aid mission in Haiti. Are there portable jet fuel test kits, so that pilots can test the fuel that being put in their tanks. Does anyone know of reputable jet fuel sales? Another worker texted back: That makes sense as we almost crashed too and Roger said he couldn't find leak but gas was used 35 percent faster. And another then wrote: Facebook on Monday announced Marketplace, a new mobile app that facilitates buying and selling between peers. Marketplace allows members of a community to discover, buy and sell items, noted Facebook Product Management Director Mary Ku. The service is scheduled for rollout this week in the United States, UK, Australia and New Zealand. Users can access Marketplace by tapping a shopping icon at the bottom of the Facebook mobile app. The opening screen displays photos of items for sale by people who live in a user-defined geographic area. Tapping an image will reveal more details about the item: product description, name and profile picture of seller, and location. Items can be saved for later reference. If youre interested in an item, you can let a seller know by sending a direct message via Marketplace. After that, youre on your own. Facebook does not facilitate payment or delivery of Marketplace purchases. Slick UI for Selling A slick user interface makes it easy to post items for sale on Marketplace. You take a photo of what youre selling or import an image of it from your camera roll. Add a product name, description and price. Confirm your location, pick a category for the item, and post to Marketplace. As you post to Marketplace, you can choose to have your item posted simultaneously to a buy and sell group on Facebook. Marketplace includes a Your Items section so you can keep tabs on items youve saved, those youve posted for sale, and communications with others on Marketplace. Only Facebook users who are over 18 years old will be able to use Marketplace, which will be available for both iOS and Android phones. A desktop version of Marketplace will be offered in the coming months, according to Ku. Improved Advertising Platform The addition of Marketplace is part of Facebooks larger marketing strategy. Facebook is trying to cover as much of the digital ecosystem with marketing as they can, said Michael Inouye, a principal analyst at ABI Research. The more people that use their service, the greater the opportunity to get eyes, which gives them ad revenues, he told the E-Commerce Times. Increased ad revenues is just one of the benefits Marketplace can provide Facebook, noted Tom Caporaso, CEO of Clarus Commerce. Marketplace users will be adding extremely specific information to Facebooks database on them the types of items theyre pondering and purchasing, the prices and offers that move them to act and more, he told the E-Commerce Times. While businesses cant target individual shoppers with offers based on their Marketplace behavior, Facebook can still likely find ways to use that information to enhance its services, both to users and to its advertisers, Caporaso said. Creepy Craigslist Just as importantly, the app gives Facebook immediate access into mobile commerce, which is growing more quickly than e-commerce as a whole Caporaso added. Beyond that, while its not making a penny off of sales now, Facebook can still monetize Marketplace sales in the future. With the launch of Marketplace, Facebook is heating up competition in the consumer-to-consumer sales market where Craigslist and eBay hold dominant positions. I think Marketplace primarily threatens Craigslist, as the service seems creepy at times with stories of people selling sex and losing their lives after showing up for an exchange, said Patrick Moorhead, principal analyst at Moor Insights and Strategy. None of that may be true, but its the perception, he told the E-Commerce Times. Better Digital Citizens While buyers and sellers on Craigslist know little about each other, Marketplace participants can gain knowledge about who theyre doing business with through their Facebook pages. Whats more, sellers are likely to be more careful about their behavior in Marketplace than in other online bazaars. Sellers are going to feel compelled to be more honest and forthright because their activity is attached to their account, ABIs Inouye said. You dont want your friends to see that youve been doing bad, shady things. Theres more incentive to be an outstanding digital citizen, he added. Battling Mobile Apps Craigslists approach to mobile could both hurt and help it in competition with Marketplace, noted Charles King, principal analyst at Pund-IT. The fact that Marketplace is integrated into the Facebook mobile app is significantly different from Craigslist, which prefers to employ third-party app developers for mobile solutions, he told the E-Commerce Times. That should allow Facebook to create a more seamless, visually rich experience, but mobile users will also be subjected to Facebook ads and other intrusions. Thats a significant negative, given Craigslists long resistance to cluttering its service with ads, King noted. Many longtime Craigslist users also prefer the sites elegant, easy to navigate UI, he added. In comparison, Facebook Market is likely to be as elegant as a visit to Times Square. Poaching eBay With its emphasis on community buying and selling, it might appear that Marketplace is more of a threat to Craigslist than to eBay, but King doesnt think so. I believe its more of a threat to eBay than Craigslist at least in the short term, he said. Thats because of Craigslists ability to seamlessly support local, ephemeral or one-time sales of goods, King explained. If you have a used car, computer or baby carriage to unload, Craigslist is a terrific option, but if youre using online sales as a second job or to create additional income, eBay and now Marketplace are probably better options. eBay is in a better position to defend itself from Marketplace than Craigslist, suggested Clarus Caporaso. eBay is an established leader in this field, with a mobile app of its own, he said, and its unlikely to sit idly by while Facebook poaches its audience. Craigslist did not respond to our request to comment for this story. The Obama administration on Tuesday indicated it was considering a proportional response to retaliate against Russia for its efforts to influence the United States election process. The administration last week officially linked Russian operatives to a series of cyberattacks against the Democratic National Committee and other organizations, which apparently were designed to influence the November presidential race. White House press secretary Josh Earnest confirmed that leaks to WikiLeaks, DCLeaks and Guccifer 2.0 were consistent with methods and motivations of Russian efforts during a press gaggle on board Air Force One on Tuesday, when President Obama was en route to Greensboro, North Carolina. The intelligence community has assessed that the theft of this information and its disclosure is an attempt to interfere with the U.S. political system, Earnest said. Russia has used similar tactics in the past to try to destabilize democracies in other parts of the world, but those other countries were not as durable and resilient as the U.S., he added. Any U.S. response would be proportional, Earnest said, noting that it was unlikely that our response would be announced in advance, and that President Obama might choose options that would not be disclosed. Asked by a reporter whether those options would include sanctions or retaliatory activity against Russia, Earnest said he would not be specific in terms of foreshadowing potential responses, but that a range of options, including the two mentioned, were on the table. Battening Hatches The Department of Homeland Security and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence last week issued a joint statement saying they were confident that the Russian government was behind various hacks designed to interfere with the U.S. election. The hacks included scanning and probing of election-related systems in Illinois and Arizona. Based on the hack attacks scope and sensitivity, it appears they were authorized by senior-level officials in the Russian government, the joint statement says. DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson earlier this week said that 33 states and 11 county or local agencies had requested cybersecurity services from DHS to defend against further hacks. The services range from cyberhygiene scans on Internet-facing systems to risk and vulnerability assessments, DHS officials said. The hygiene scans are done remotely, and state and local officials are given a report showing vulnerable areas, along with recommendations for improving online voter registration systems, election night reporting systems, and other systems connected to the Internet. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. who joined Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., in pushing the Obama administration to go public with the allegations praised the official release of the evidence linking Russia to the hacks. We should now work with our European allies who have been the victim of similar and even more malicious cyber interference by Russia to develop a concerted response that protects our institutions and deters further meddling, he said in a statement. Hold Fire The process of naming Russia as the culprit has become heavily politicized, observed Martin Libicki, an adjunct management scientist at the RAND Corporation and a distinguished visiting professor at the U.S. Naval Academy. One side of the U.S. political aisle is calling out the Russians, while the other side is disputing the level of certainty. A U.S. administration response cannot help but play into the election season with the other side screaming bloody murder, Libicki told TechNewsWorld. It might make sense to wait until after the election to respond, he suggested. However, the Russians might then lose interest until the next presidential cycle. Its difficult to know definitively what specific evidence points directly at the Russian government, but its unlikely the hacks will change the outcome of the race, said Troy Hunt, a Microsoft regional director. However, theres certainly something to be said about a foreign power attempting to influence a nations democratic process, he told TechNewsWorld, and theyve attempted to do so using the same mainstream techniques that everyday cybercriminals would use. One of the problems facing the technology industry right now is the critical lack of strategic thinking. Hedge fund managers and activist investors increasingly are directing companies, forcing tactical decisions that raise stock prices over the short term, largely by destroying the firms long-term viability. What makes this trend particularly problematic is that most top executives dont seem to understand they are destroying their companies until its too late. This also speaks to Joe Tuccis and Michael Dells recent partnership as a massive effort to remove that threat from both of their companies. Rather than once again picking on a firm like HPE, which is a showcase for this horrid foundation for decision making, I thought it would be interesting to explore the Trump and Clinton campaigns. My contention is that had either candidate thought strategically, neither would have run for the office of president. Ill close with my product of the week: an interesting Samsung smart refrigerator that may define the future of the smart home and fortunately is without any exploding battery risk. Thinking Strategically vs. Tactically We often define tactical and strategic thinking by time. A tactical decision tends to be more reactive and implemented with a 12-month window, while a strategic decision tends to be proactive and implemented over a far longer period. Deciding to date someone would be tactical, while marriage should be strategic. Id argue that marriages often fail because they often are entered for tactical reasons. The parties are thinking more about how much they like to date than about how well their goals and ideals will align in the long term. In the case of this years election, both candidates want to be president likely for different reasons. Both started with powerful brands that were leveraged successfully into building businesses or getting stratospheric speaking fees and funding global and very lucrative charities. This reflects a downside that I doubt either fully assessed. Unlike a typical politician who isnt as well compensated, both Clinton and Trump have huge assets tied to their names, as well as reputations that are at risk, regardless of whether they win or lose. Neither can exit this process without incurring most of the damage now. They are both effectively locked into a path that will leave them badly damaged with respect to personal wealth and influence once this process concludes, regardless of the outcome. That is likely because neither really thought through the risks and rewards strategically. Donald Trumps Brand Trump entered the election process with a very powerful personal brand and a reputation for being both very successful and very rich. His brand is placed on all of his properties not an insignificant portion of which are casinos, where patrons particularly Asian patrons connect his brand with winning. However, much of this is a false front. He is neither as rich nor as successful as people believe him to be, and he actually seems to be operating very close to collapse. He isnt alone. Others, like Elon Musk, also operate on a razors edge between impressive success and catastrophic failure. The perception that Trump is a success is likely his most valuable asset and is most responsible for keeping him in private jets and penthouse suites, as opposed to a nice house in the country and a neverending issue of paying the rent. If Trump loses, he will have lost to Hillary Clinton, who isnt seen as a strong politician because she basically was anointed by her party. Thanks largely to Colin Powell, she also is viewed both as incompetent and unsuccessful, particularly by Trumps base. This doesnt just make Trump a loser but a super loser, having lost to Clinton, who lost to Obama and is seen as unelectable. This means he not only will have virtually eliminated the perception that he cant lose, but also will be seen as a person who cant win. The impact on his income should be not only dramatic but also significant enough to shift him from profit to loss. The resulting loss as people avoid his casinos and brand in general could be catastrophic. If he were to win, things wouldnt get much better. Hed enter not only with the Democrats but also a critical mass of Republicans against him, and no real political experience. That suggests his presidency would be catastrophically bad, and with his personal brand seriously damaged by the election process, he could face financial collapse while in office. The result would be the absolute destruction of his brand and further deterioration of his image from that of a successful billionaire to that of a punchline. Youd think, given the risk, that exiting the process might allow him to recover his brand, but that seems doubtful. As president, hed at least have access to resources that would help him recover it, but his unwillingness to learn from his mistakes suggests that outcome is exceedingly remote. He is kind of screwed. Hillary Clintons Reputation Clinton entered the campaign as one of the most powerful women in the world. Largely seen as successful as a senator and particularly as secretary of state, she could have enjoyed a long successful career as a very highly paid speaker, power broker and charity manager. The election process so far has reduced her perceived power as a power broker. Her positions against Wall Street have devalued her considerably as a speaker, and her charity is at risk of being positioned as a liability to many current contributors. So, even before the election process is complete, the perceptions that formerly surrounded her will have been badly, if not critically, damaged destroying much of the financial engine under her relatively high income. Recall that the Clintons complained that his term in office effectively broke them financially. If Clinton should lose, thing would get worse. Already increasingly seen as unable to do what is necessary to accomplish key goals, she will have lost to Trump, who is positioned by his party as unelectable. This suggests that anything he does in office that damages the country likely will be blamed on her inability to execute. Trump is known to be vindictive, and that behavior, backed with the power of his office and access to still-confidential information on both Hillary and Bill, could result in a level of brand damage and potential criminal charges and litigation that would be unprecedented in their lives, if not the history of the nation. There is an unacceptably high chance this not only could result in her being broke again, but also facing a high risk of a jail sentence. I expect that Trump would pull no punches in seeking to get even with her for the damage he would perceive she had done. (Trump doesnt accept that he makes mistakes, and hell likely blame his own financial problems on Clinton.) If she wins, things also get worse though likely not as much as in Trumps case, because Trump effectively would be neutralized as a threat. Still, she would face a Republican majority that hates her more than they hate the current sitting president, as well as a not-inconsequential number of Sanders supporters who think she cheated to get the job. The effort to neutralize her will be unprecedented, both from within and without her party, and her now-historic inability to execute likely would define her term. There is a very high probability that she would be forced out of the office early (the same is true of Trump) and a near certainty that she would be tarnished further by her aging husbands increasing inability to make prudent decisions (also highlighted by Colin Powells leaked email). Exiting the White House, she could be in even worse financial shape than the last time but lacking the vitality, due to age, to recover. Granted, as in Trumps case, things would be marginally better if she were to win rather than lose but strategically, this looks like a lose/lose outcome for both candidates. Wrapping Up The strategic decision at this point would be for both candidates to meet and agree to withdraw, focusing on brand recovery and partnering for mutual brand recovery, given that both have the same problem. There is zero probability of that happening, not only because both candidates are unable to think strategically, but both also because both are likely at the point where they are more likely to shoot each other than to partner. Plan B would be to work far harder not only to ensure a win, but also to ensure the ability to execute the office of president successfully. That means aggressively reducing the conflict in their own parties not through rhetoric alone, but by embracing proactively critical aspects of the elements positioned against them, and turning them from liabilities to assets. In addition, both candidates would need to address their own core behaviors more aggressively. Clinton has to focus more on sharp execution and Trump on doing his homework instead of skating. Both need to be ready to enter the office running and be fully capable of avoiding the mistakes that have crippled both candidates careers and campaigns. At the heart of this is the willingness to accept mistakes and faults, and prioritize addressing them. Since neither candidate seems willing to do that either, I expect that regardless of who it is, the winner eventually will have deep regrets about running if theyre not harbored already. Had they thought this through strategically like the computer in the movie War Games eventually did both candidates would have concluded that the only truly good decision would have been not to play in the first place. One other point: More people, particularly politicians, should practice thinking strategically. It would lead to a lot more good decisions and far fewer catastrophic ones. At our house, Im typically the person who falls in love with a new high-tech appliance and then deals with what often is an unexpected bad outcome. However, this Samsung smart refrigerator was my wifes idea and so far, it is a good one. Samsung 4-Door Flex RefrigeratorWith Family Hub The idea of a smart refrigerator has been around for some time. Over the years, Samsung has introduced a number of them, both with built-in PCs and built-in tablets, that for the most part have truly sucked. Part of the problem has been that Samsung service typically sucks, and this class of product has tended to be complex and unreliable. However, the company has improved over time with regard to reliability, and there is an increasing number of third parties that can service the product (though I would always buy an extended warranty). What makes the difference is that this new offering not only is stunning to look at, but also has significant value, thanks to the integration with other Samsung products, as a smart hub for IoT devices. While still young, this product can be used to sync in real time with Samsung TVs (playing the same program in the kitchen that the family is watching in the living room); program compliant Samsung stoves and appliances; and control compatible IoT devices. Running about US$1,500 more than the same refrigerator without a display and with a price of just under $4K this isnt a cheap date, but it is more impressive in place than comparably priced Sub Zero and Viking appliances. In short, if you want to impress people, this thing does it in spades. This is finally a good representation of what is coming, and it is a fascinating way to move from paper sticky notes into a digital messaging future. Because this is a great early showcase for IoT, but mostly because this is one of the most impressive devices in a home that is nearly wall-to-wall tech, the Samsung RF8K9580SG Smart Refrigerator is my product of the week. Federal authorities have been investigating reports that hackers targeted the mobile phones of a handful of Democratic Party staffers, according to a Reuters article published last week. The news follows a series of breaches in recent months that revealed emails and other personal information of party staffers and other Democratic officials. The FBI has launched an investigation into the attacks, which party officials believe are linked to Russia. Several members of Congress have raised suspicions in recent weeks that Russia might be attempting to interfere with the U.S. elections. In addition to cyberattacks on Democratic Party operatives, recent breaches of state election systems are suspected of having Russian connections. Possible targets were asked to turn over their phones so an image could be made of the devices, the latest reports indicated. Data retrieved from Democratic Party staff emails may have been used to access the mobile phones. CrowdStrike, a Cybersecurity firm that investigated prior cyberattacks involving the DNC and other targets, declined to comment for this story. The alleged mobile phone hacks reportedly involve malicious software infecting the devices. The data probe could involve photos, contacts, text messages, phone logs and other items. DNC officials did not respond to our request to comment for this story. FBI officials declined to comment. High Alert A variety of means can be used to infect software, said Christopher Budd, global threat communications manager at Trend Micro. For mobile, the one unique vector is getting people to install what they believe are legitimate apps from spoofed or otherwise misrepresented app stores, he told TechNewsWorld. However, theres no indication that a malicious app was involved in this case. Its a little harder to get malicious software on a mobile device, but it can be done. News of the investigation adds to the heightened state of alert about the integrity of various U.S. election systems. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Rep. Adam Schiff, ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, recently released a statement on alleged Russian hacking activity against various systems. Based on briefings we have received, we have concluded that the Russian intelligence agencies are making a serious and concerted effort to influence the U.S. election, they said. At the least, this effort is intended to sow doubt about the security of our election and may well be intended to influence the outcomes of the election we can see no other rationale for the behavior of the Russians. The orders for such activity could only come only from very senior levels of the Russian government, Feinstein and Schiff maintained, and they called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to order an immediate halt to the activity. Shoring Up Defenses In wake of attacks on election databases in Illinois and Arizona, 18 states have accepted an offer from the Department of Homeland Security to help them make sure their election systems are secure, Secretary Jeh Johnson testified in a Senate committee hearing last week. In those cases, suspected overseas hackers compromised the personal information of up to 200,000 voter records in Illinois and also attacked the election infrastructure in Arizona. However, no individual records were compromised. The Illinois breach involved a suspected SQL injection attack, officials confirmed. Arizona election officials have linked the attack there to suspected Russian actors. DHS last month issued a warning to state election officials about possible threats to their respective systems and offered to provide additional security measures, including cyberhygiene scans of their respective Internet-facing systems, and risk and vulnerability scans by on-site experts. The public should have confidence in the election system, despite concerns about recent attacks on the DNC and infrastructures in Arizona and Illinois, said Thomas Hicks, chairman of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Because of the decentralized nature of the American election administration system, there is no single, uniform national system that would affect the outcome of election results for the November 2016 presidential election, he testified late last month before the Subcommittee for Information Technology for the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Suspected Russian hackers, including the teams known as Fancy Bear and Cozy Bear, have been implicated in earlier hacks on the DNC and other federal agencies. A spearphising attack on Bellingcat, a website backed by a group of citizen journalists involved in the probe of MH 17, carries the hallmarks of Fancy Bear, according to ThreatConnect. The attacks, which date back to last year, targeted individual emails, and were similar to the attack on White House staffer Billy Rinehart, whose stolen information recently was splashed onto DCleaks, suspected of being a Russian-influenced operation. There is no way to easily tell the intentions of the hacks targeting Bellingcat and its journalists, said Kyle Ehmke, senior threat intelligence researcher at ThreatConnect. Certainly there are a range of actions that could be enabled, he told TechNewsWorld, based on the information they are seeking to secure. 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Excerpt and then a comment: HA NOI The Ministry of Health (MoH) has increased the Zika virus warning to level 3 - the dangerous level, Tran ac Phu, director of the Preventive Medicine Department, announced in an urgent meeting held in Ha Noi on Monday. In a meeting aimed at finding measures to deal with Zika-related diseases, Phu warned that women intending to get pregnant should avoid affected areas. If they must go there, the women should take preventive measures and study the disease, he said. Pregnant women especially those in the three first months of the pregnancy who have been in the affected areas and had dengue fever and conjunctivitis should go to medical stations for consultancy, Phu said. At the meeting, health experts called the Zika virus a complicated global virus. More than 70 countries and territories have seen cases. On October 11 this year, the World Health Organisation (WHO) warned that Zika had spread to Southeast Asia; seven out of 10 countries in the area had the disease. By Monday, seven Vietnamese cases of the disease were reported in Khanh Hoa, Phu Yen and Binh Duong provinces and HCM City. Suspected microcephaly case reported Last Friday, the MoH supervision system discovered a four-month-old baby in Krong Buk District, ak Lak born malformed with an unusually small head, suspected to be a case of microcephaly caused by Zika virus. The National Institute of Hygiene And Epidemiology is joining Japans Nagasaki University to conduct tests on the case. The MoHs study showed that the mother had dengue fever in the third and the sixth months of the pregnancy. The dengue fever condition in their living area was quite serious. If the mother was accurately diagnosed, she must have fallen ill with two different strains of dengue. As I understand it, that's a setup for dengue hemorrhagic fever the second time. She doesn't seem to have contracted that very dangerous disease, which suggests one or the other infection was really Zika. That would in turn suggest that dengue and Zika in close succession are a factor in pregnant women whose babies are born with microcephaly and neurological disorders. And if Colombians in the past year haven't contracted much dengue before contracting Zika, that might explain the relative scarcity of Colombia microcephaly cases compared to those in Brazil. This is idle speculation, and I look forward to one of the grownups patiently explaining to me what the real situation is. Miners have unearthed the worlds most valuable chunk of jade stone in Burma, the southeast Asian country also known as Myanmar. Local politician U Tint Soe stand with the jade rock. SWNS.com Worth an estimated $174.6 million, the massive 200-ton stone measures about 14 feet high and 19 feet long, the BBC reported. Its size is second to the carved statue at the Jade Buddha Palace in China which weighs 286 tons, according to the Daily Mail. We thought we had won the lottery, miner Sao Min told the Daily Mail. But this belongs to the country. It is in honor of our leaders. The term jade can refer to two different metamorphic rocks: nephrite and jadeite. This stone is believed to be jadeite, which is worth significantly more. Nearly all of the worlds finest jadeite comes from Myanmar and makes up nearly half of the countrys gross domestic product. I assume that it is a present for the fate for our citizens, the government and our party as it was discovered in the time of our government. Its a very good sign for us, local politician U Tint Soe told the Daily Mail. The stone will reportedly head to China where it will be used to make jewelry and statues for homes. As the climate talks in Paris concluded, climate activists took note: soil restoration is our ally in the fight against global warming. It is inexpensive, effective and easy to implement, and it yields multiple benefits. Besides capturing carbon and reversing desertification caused by severe drought, soil restoration enhances regional cooling, strengthens resilience against droughts and floods, and improves food quality. It is a necessary second front in our battle against the heating up of Earths atmosphere. How so? Soil holds carbonlots of it. Other than the oceans and fossil fuel deposits, soils are the largest reservoirs of carbon on the planet, holding approximately two times the amount in the atmosphere and vegetation combined. The dark color of fertile soil comes from the presence of organic carbon compounds. Unfortunately, over the centuries, a great deal of carbon has been released from soils through both primitive and modern agriculture. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recognizes that reducing emissions alone will not stop global warming. Disruptions, it says, are irreversible unless there is a large net removal of CO2 from the atmosphere over a sustained period. The good news is that what has been lost can be returned. The excess atmospheric carbon creating anxiety would be far more content in cozy soil. Photosynthesis is how it will get there, through the process whereby plants convert carbon in the air into organic molecules exuded by roots to feed hungry microbes underground. Ohio State University Scientist Rattan Lal referred to soil restoration as low hanging fruit and says it can serve as a bridge to climate safety during the transition to a non-fossil fuel economy. In a 2014 white paper, the Rodale Institute showed that regenerative organic farming could capture carbon dioxide in quantities exceeding global emissions. Indeed, soils are the only suitable reservoir for the excess carbon in the atmosphere. Politicians are also taking note. Frances Minister of Agriculture Stephane Le Foll has introduced a program, 4 per 1000, calling for a yearly increase of 0.4 percent in the amount of organic matter in the worlds agricultural soils. Scientific Director for the Environment of the French National Institute for Agronomical Research Jean-Francois Soussana claims this modest increase in soil carbon globally would be sufficient to offset global greenhouse gas emissions. Depending on how quickly the agricultural community responds, the atmospheric level of CO2 could be kept from rising to levels uniformly viewed as disastrous. At last count, 25 countries, including Australia and the U.K., have announced their commitment to this campaign. Michael Pollan, author of New York Times best seller, The Omnivores Dilemma, calls on his faithful to heed this message. In a powerful new video, Soil Solutions to Climate Problems, he says, When soil is damaged, it releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and this has had serious consequences for the climate. He then offers the good news: we now know how to put carbon back in the soil where it belongs What had been atmospheric carbon, a problem, becomes soil carbon, a solution. Michael Pollan is right. Soil is a fix, but not just for climate. Restoring soil also ameliorates desertification, a factor that can destabilize already volatile regions. Consider the unprecedented droughtperhaps exacerbated by global warmingthat precipitated civil unrest in Syria before the outbreak of civil war there. We need look no further than the ground beneath our feet in our quest for a more verdant, peaceful world. Lets embrace this convenient truth. YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE Neil Young, Willie Nelson, Dave Matthews, John Mellencamp: Help Us Stop the DARK Act Town Rejects Solar Farm Amid Fears it Would Suck Up All the Energy From the Sun The End of Fossil Fuels is Near How World Leaders Can Solve Global Warming With Regenerative Farming By Watcharapol Daengsubha Last weekend, farmers, scientists and activists from all over the world gathered at the Monsanto Tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, to present the case against destruction caused by one of the corporate giants that promotes industrial farming. Monsanto Tribunal in The Hague on Oct. 15. Greenpeace The symbolic Monsanto Tribunal aimed to hold Monsantothe giant agrochemical companyto account for its alleged atrocities against humanity and the environment. This event is far from over. It will echo back through the food system as the tribunals participants bring home lessons, solutions and renewed hope for change. First day of the tribunal, judges Tulkens (left) and Dior Fall Sow. Greenpeace Five internationally renowned judges heard 30 witnesses. Experts gave their accounts of the environmental damage wrought by Monsanto. One testimony described how monoculture has caused a great loss to seed variety. They compared the patenting of seeds to a new form of colonization. Seng Channeang, Cambodian small-scale farmer. Greenpeace These testimonies will give people all over the world a well-documented legal brief to be used in lawsuits against other similar corporations. Although this is not legally binding, it is legally sound, said Arnaud Apoteker, member of the steering committee of the tribunal. The witnesses were presenting real cases to real judges. The lessons from this event can be used in ensuing local battles. One of the 30 witnesses, Feliciano Ucam Poot, a Mayan farmer from Mexico, submitted evidence to support his allegations that glyphosate and other chemicals are linked to childrens sickness. Before the introduction of glyphosate and other agrochemicals, I did not see our people suffer from sickness like this, he said. A lot of people are suffering like us and this tribunal will ensure that our stories will be heard around the world. Scene from the Monsanto Tribunal Press Conference on Oct. 15. Greenpeace Do we need these agrochemicals to feed the world? A question asked of Hans Herren, a renowned scientist and president of the Millennium Institute at the Monsanto Tribunal. By producing less waste we can feed 10 million people. We need to make more health per acre, not calories per acre, he said. Running parallel to the tribunal hearings was a Peoples Assembly, where people from around the world discussed solutions to the impacts caused by industrial agriculture. As many of the witnesses pointed out, one of the greatest challenges they face is to make their voices heard. This assembly provided a much needed forum for communities to come together and find sustainable solutions to common problems. The Peoples Assembly, The Hague. Greenpeace We should fight for ourselves. Nobody is free from danger if our food is toxic, said Farida Akhter of UBINIG (Policy Research for Development Alternatives), Bangladesh. The stories of people like Feliciano and the concerns of Farida are echoed by millions of voices from across the world; from beekeepers in Mexico to small scale producers in France and farmers in India. The judges of the tribunal will assess these allegations, examine all evidence put forth and publish their findings in December. Judges at the Monsanto Tribunal. Greenpeace These issues arent limited to farmers and environmentaliststhey concern us all. We all have a choice: As citizens and consumers, we can all make decisions to shape the future we want. Here are 12 things you can do to start the eco-food revolution. Watcharapol Daengsubha is a food and ecological agriculture campaigner with Greenpeace Southeast Asia. Ohio governmental officials will be releasing an updated report about a two-square-mile toxic blob at the bottom of Lake Erie that might be spreading perilously close to a water intake pipe that supplies drinking water for the city of Cleveland. Lake Eries toxic sediment is a potential threat to city of Clevelands drinking water. Stefanie Spear According to The Plain Dealer, the new report is expected for release later this fall and is based on new tests taken nearby a section of the lake bottom known as Area-1, located about nine miles off the coast. Prior Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) tests of the tainted plot from 2014 and 2015 revealed levels of PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) and PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) that were much higher than elsewhere in Lake Erie. These highly toxic chemicals can harm or kill aquatic life and can cause cancer in humans. Lake Eries toxic blob is the result of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dumping of dredged and untreated sludge from the polluted Cuyahoga River shipping channel in the 1970s. The disposal took place before the Clean Water Act of 1972 was enacted. The mass is located about five miles from an intake valve for the Nottingham Water Treatment Plant, which supplies drinking water to parts of Cuyahoga CountyOhios most populous county. It is unclear how fast the blob is moving or if it will actually reach the pipe. Two-square-mile blob sitting at the bottom of Lake Erie could be spreading. Ohio EPA / The Plain Dealer The Ohio EPA said in May that the citys water is being monitored and is safe. Kurt Princic, chief of EPAs Northeast Ohio District, said PCBs or PAHs have not been detected so far at the Nottingham water plant, The Plain Dealer reported. However, this doesnt mean that the situation wont change. Im no more satisfied now than I ever was that we have dispelled the fact that we have toxic sediment moving toward our drinking water, Ohio EPA Director Craig Butler told The Plain Dealer. We need conclusive evidence. We need more samples so that we will know, once and for all, whether this substance is moving. We need the U.S. EPAs help to develop an analysis and a strategy to determine if it is migrating and whether it is a threat to drinking water, Princic added. Former Army Corps Brigadier General Richard Kaiser denies claims that the toxic sediment is spreading or that its a threat to the citys drinking water. He told The Plain Dealer that Army Corps scientists assured him that waves cannot influence sediment 60 feet underwater except during extreme storm events, adding that the EPAs testing methods and reports were critically flawed. However, Butler has refuted this view, citing EPAs tests indicating that the toxic sediment has indeed spread from the original dumping site from wind currents and storms. Her ECSU Education Leads Charlotte Native Rice to Doctoral Program If you know 2013 Elizabeth City State University graduate Brittany Rice, then you may know that it wont be long before shes called Dr. Rice. The Viking alum is currently a first-year biomedical student at the University of Kentuckys Kentucky Bridge to a Biomedical Doctorate for Appalachian Students program. The program, according to UKs website, provides Appalachian and underrepresented students the opportunity to enter biomedical doctoral programs. Prior to entering the UK program, Rice received her masters in biology from Eastern Kentucky University after doing post-baccalaureate research at Virginia Tech. We asked the 26-year-old Charlotte native a few questions about life as a Viking, her college experience and her journey toward or doctorate degree. Elizabeth City State University: Why did you choose ECSU? Brittany Rice: It was important to me to attend a university that had students and faculty who come from similar backgrounds and circumstances, and who have had similar cultural experiences as myself. It was also equally important to be at an institution that embodied an atmosphere of community and collaboration among the student body, professors, and faculty. After touring the campus and avidly speaking with Grady Deese and Larry Smith (former deceased faculty), I realized that ECSU offered the supportive atmosphere I desired. ECSU: Describe your experience at ECSU. BR: My time at ECSU was very enriching. Not only was I able to achieve academic success, but I was also provided the environment to grow as an individual and as a contributing member of a larger community. ECSU: How did your experience here help you move onto to a doctoral program? BR: As a student under the tutelage of Dr. Ephraim Gwebu (former ECSU professor and department chair), I was afforded the opportunity to participate in numerous extensive research experiences as a 2010-2013 National Institutes of Health Minority Biomedical Research Support Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (NIH-MBRS RISE) fellow, and a 2012 National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities Minority Health International Training (NIH-MHD MHIRT) fellow. These experiences prepared me to pursue a doctoral degree by enhancing my understanding and knowledge of biomedical sciences and allowing me to gain expertise in a variety of research techniques. ECSU: Talk about some of the experiences you remember at ECSU. What were some of the more significant moments for you as a student here? BR: I had a number of memorable moments at ECSU, many in the research capacity. As I stated earlier during my matriculation as a student at ECSU, I was provided several opportunities to conduct research. Research I conducted was hosted at various institutions such as ECSU, Meharry Medical College (Nashville, Tennessee), and Walter Sisulu University (Mthatha, South Africa). My fondest research related memories were of rehearsals of "talks" (practice presentations) where "promoted my science" (discussed research I engaged in as a ECSU student) with Dr. Gwebu, Mrs. Armwood-Outlaw, and Ms. Armwood (former director, coordinator, and administrative assistant for the National Institutes of Health Minority Biomedical Research Support Initiative for Scientific Enhancement program at ECSU, listed respectively), in preparation for my poster session presentations at national and regional scientific meetings. In the extra-curricular aspect of memorable moments, pledging (I am a PROUD MEMBER of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.) and becoming a peer health educator were also very significant. ECSU: You are interested in helping underrepresented students to pursue research careers. Who are those students? What would you say to them to encourage them? BR: STEM+H (science, technology, engineering, mathematics and health sciences) professions fail to retain minorities, women, and persons of low socioeconomic status. As an African-American female once of low socioeconomic status, I understand the barriers to completion in regards to obtaining an education. I also understand the difficulty of preparing for a career and transitioning into a profession that lacks individuals from diverse backgrounds. My own experiences coupled with the lack of retention and participation of underrepresented individuals in STEM+H compel me to aid underrepresented students to pursue and obtain research careers in academia and industry using my success story for their inspiration and motivation. My tidbit of encouragement for underrepresented students of STEM+H come from words I received several years ago from my mentor Dr. Ephraim Gwebu. He said, "Labels do not dictate your success, your success redefines given labels. Embrace your diversity as a strength. Know that inclusion starts with you." ECSU: What would you tell a student who is considering attending ECSU? BR: There are many things to consider regarding the matriculation into an institution of higher education. If you want to receive a first-rate education from caring professors and faculty in a supportive atmosphere that encourages diversity and empowerment, ECSU is for you. (Photo: REUTERS / Marko Djurica)Serbian Patriarch Irinej conducts the liturgy on Orthodox Christmas in Saborna church Belgrade January 7, 2014. Serbian Orthodox believers celebrate Christmas on January 7, according to the Julian calendar In Serbia ethnic strains that erupted in the dismembering of Yugoslavia, embroiling it in civil war still simmer. Sectarian differences remain but inter-religious personal relations are good, says a senior Catholic bishop. Stanislav Hocevar, the Roman Catholic archbishop of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, says the Balkans is an ethnic trouble spot and in that regard, not much has changed since the end of World War II. Historical tensions between the different ethnic and religious groups make daily coexistence complicated, the prelate said in an interview with international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need. "Nobody is quite prepared to work toward a new reconciliation," said the archbishop. Serbs, Croatians and Bosnians make a highly flammable mix, with the countries' religious leaders put in the difficult role of peace-makers. "We should all together find new ways to reconcile with each other, otherwise it won't work. Without an ecumenical dimension we won't reach that reconciliation," Archbishop Hocevar stated. He noted that the relationship with the Orthodox Church is good at a personal level, stressing that the churches must strive to arrive at a joint perspective on important historical events. Some 85 percent of the country's population are part of the Serbian Orthodox Church whilst Catholics account for 5 percent, with 1 percent Protestants and 3 percent Muslims. All the while, different interpretations of history and many theological disagreements persist. For instance, for the Orthodox Church religious and national identity, are closely linked, the archbishop explained. Serbians tend to emphasize the small differences between Catholics and Orthodox instead of focusing on more important, universal issues that transcend nationality. The Catholic leader sees this leaning toward nationalistic pride as part of a lingering reaction to the communist policy of eliminating personal and national identity in favor of a new "identity of workers." SERBIAN MINISTER OF CULTURE Archbishop Hocevar lauded the current Serbian Minister of Culture for helping the Catholic Church repair and upgrade Catholic churches. He explained that in late October 2014 a diocesan synod was held that focused on organizational problems and the number of local Catholics has dwindled with resources scant. Key priorities are refurbishing churches and other diocesan buildings, strengthening ministry to children and youth, along with providing transport for priests to attend far-flung parishes. Archbishop Hocevar is strongly committed to dialogue with the Orthodox; and the availability of theological material in Serbian is a key ingredient in this process. Until the present, it was assumed that Catholics in Serbia spoke only Croatian but the children of mixed marriages in his diocese speak Serbian. However, there is a catch said the archbishop, "If the Catholic catechism is translated into Serbian, the Orthodox fear we want to convert Orthodox faithful to Catholicism. Therefore we need to go step by step." Hocevar stressed, the reconstruction of the Balkan states is a complex and slow process. The Catholic Church, for its part, can make a huge contribution by demonstrating the universality of faith communities, he said. This is in a universality that transcends the often overly narrow connection between national and religious identity. The archbishop said this broad view holds the key to Croats, Serbs and Bosnians being able to work toward living in harmony. This story first written by Esther Gaitan-Fuertes appeared first on the website of Aid to the Church in Need on December 23. Pope Benedict XVI (R), who is no longer pontiff, sits beside the then Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams (L) and Ecumenical Patriarch of Orthodox Church Bartolomeo I at Santa Maria degli Angeli Basilica in Assisi October 27, 2011. Photo: REUTERS / Giampiero Sposito Science can inform people about the world but it along cannot reach them to change their commitment and actions to save the planet, says the Ecumenical Patriarch, who leads Orthodox Christians globally. The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, considered to be "the first among equals" among Orthodox patriarchs, met this week with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby. At Lambeth Palace they prayed and talked privately on issues such as the refugee crisis and persecution of Christians in the Middle East and later joined Anglican and other faith leaders in addressing climate change. Bartholomew said that protecting the planet for Christians is a "sacred task and a common vocation," when he spoke on Nov. 3 at Lambeth Palace in London. "Global warming is a moral crisis and a moral challenge." "Basic human rights such as access to water, clean air and sufficient food should be available to everyone without distinction or discrimination. "We are convinced that we cannot separate our concern for human dignity, human rights or social justice from the concern for ecological preservation and sustainability." He noted, "Science will inform us about the world but it cannot reach the depths of our soul and mind." The Church of England has exhorted its faithful set aside one day each month to fast and pray for the planet in its commitment to creating environmental awareness. It is also sending a delegation on a 250-mile (400 kilometer) walking "pilgrimage" to Paris in the run-up to the international conference on climate that starts at the end of November, The Daily Telegraph reported. From Nov. 30 to Dec. 11, France will host the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. COP21 is viewed by many as a crucial conference, as it will seek to forge a new international agreement on the climate, applicable to all countries, with the aim of keeping global warming below 2C. Checking global warming is seen as essential for humanity's survival. Patriarch Bartholomew was one of the first world religious leader's to highlight climate change and has done so for many years often using the World Council of Churches as platform and has earned the moniker, "the green patriarch." The Ecumenical Patriarch and Archbishop of Canterbury, as spiritual leader of the 80-million strong Anglican Communion made a joint statement between Anglican and Orthodox Churches on the theology of the human person. In a joint communique, the two leaders said that the agreement "celebrates what Anglicans and Orthodox affirm together about the human person, created in 'the Image and Likeness of God.'" They said it, "will form the theological foundation for forthcoming discussions on the practical consequences of these theological presuppositions for addressing the key themes, including the protection of the environment, medical interventions, and questions around family life and ethics." The statement concluded six years of study on "what Anglicans and Orthodox can say together about the meaning of human personhood in the divine image," the International Commission for Anglican-Orthodox Theological Dialogue said when they agreed on the final text in September. (Photo: Peter Kenny)Dr. Manoj Kurian (L), coordinator of the World Council of Churches Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance and Romain Houlmann, a research assistant at FIAN International at the launch of the civil society Right to Food and Nutrition Watch 2016 at Geneva's Ecumenical Centre, the headquarters of the WCC on Oct. 13, 2016, The Parable of the Sower in Matthew's gospel has one of the best known lines of the New Testament bible, "A farmer went out to sow his seed." But the story of seeds in modern day agriculture is no parable. Peasant seed systems, which have fed most of the world's population for centuries, are endangered by the imposition of intellectual property rights and patents, says a church-backed campaign. Peasants' rights to save, use, exchange and sell seed have been increasingly neglected by states in order to advance a corporate agenda, advocates say, and food as well as food-related rights need to be protected. Oct. 13 the World Council of Churches launched the civil society Right to Food and Nutrition Watch 2016 at Geneva's Ecumenical Centre, coinciding with its international launch at the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations. "Despite feeding the world and providing resilience to natural disasters, peasant seed systems face severe threats of accelerated destruction of agricultural biodiversity," said Dr. Manoj Kurian, coordinator of the WCC Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance. Kurian said: "This is due to the appropriation of nature by industrial agriculture and corporations. Increasingly, seed and agrochemical business seeks to privatize, monopolize and control seeds by patenting and commodifying this very source of life." 10 COMMANDMENTS OF FOOD "The seed issue is very important," said Kurian, noting that the EAA is distributing a resource entitled "The 10 Commandments of Food." "What we are trying to do is, at the congregation level, understand the importance of bio-diversity and small farmers." The EAA is part of the Global Network for the Right to Food and Nutrition. "How we deal with corporate powers is to get congregations thinking and engaging with these issues and then people ask questions...and then government will change policy," said Kurian. Romain Houlmann, a research assistant at FIAN International, said, "It is important to remind the state that people have the right to food and nutrition. We need to have primacy of human rights over intellectual property. We need to focus on seed, land and natural resources, as they are essential for the future." (Image: FIAN International) Right to Food and Nutrition Watch 2016 To illustrate this, Athena Peralta, WCC program executive for Economic and Ecological Justice explained, in the Philippines, women from the indigenous Blaan tribe play a key role in seed preservation as the designated seed selector. "But today the Blaan tribe's sources of sustenance and way of life are threatened by large plantations of cash crops such as palm oil, rubber, pineapples, bananas, etc.. for export...and at the same time, those opposing such plantations including indigenous leaders have been subjected to threats, harassment and even extra-judicial killings." Dinesh Suna, coordinator of the WCC Ecumenical Water Network, said, "It is important to focus on agriculture and the water that it consumes." Industrialization of agriculture has a very different connotation to the peasant farmers who produce food, he said. "When we talk about food on a plate let's also talk about water. Controlling one will positively affect the other," said Suna. Simangaliso Hove, secretary for Planning and Finance at the Lutheran World Federation, a Zimbabwean who said she is not a technical expert said, "I grew up in a peasant farmer environment. We never knew we had to buy seeds and as time moved on we became aware that we had to do this. "We used to keep what was left over from the harvests, but the new seeds spoil before the new planting season...You are no longer in control of your own food." Right to Food and Nutrition Watch gathers the views of civil society organizations, social movements and scholars worldwide, and it exposes how business seeks to privatize, monopolize and control seeds. The watch is also the most prominent monitoring tool of the Global Network for the Right to Food and Nutrition. It is published by groups such as Bread for the World in Germany, FIAN International, and ICCO Cooperation (Interchurch Organization for Development Cooperation). (Photo: Reuters / Marko Djurica)A boy kisses an icon of Christ as he prays during Good Friday at the St. Sava temple in Belgrade May 3, 2013. Serbia and other Eastern Orthodox countries were celebrating Easter. United Nations human rights expert Karima Bennoune says she is concerned at the high level of politicization of cultural heritage issues in Serbia and in Kosovo relating in part to both Christian and Muslim sites in the two countries. She said this in an Oct. 14 statement at the end of her first fact-finding mission to Serbia and Kosov noting that such politicization "reduces cultural heritage to a tool and produces monolithic discourses not appropriate in diverse societies." "Everyone, including Serb, Albanian, Roma, Orthodox, Muslim and Jewish people and all minorities, as well as secular people, women, LGBT people, persons with disabilities and people of mixed identities make significant contributions to cultural heritage and the existence of a vivid cultural life," said Bennoune. "This must be recognized."Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija UN Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights visited Serbia and Kosovo from Oct. 3 to 14 and conducted the visit to address tensions regarding cultural heritage arising between Serbia and Kosovo. She also looked more broadly at the right to take part in cultural life without discrimination in Serbia and in Kosovo. "Serbia and Kosovo must understand how crucial it is to view cultural heritage issues from a human rights perspective, based on the rights of all people without discrimination to participate in cultural life, to access and enjoy cultural heritage, to freedom of expression, thought, conscience and religion, and to education in particular," she noted. Kosovo is a disputed territory and partially recognized State in Southeast Europe that declared independence from Serbia in February 2008 as the Republic of Kosovo. Serbia recognizes administration of the territory by Kosovo's elected government, but it claims it as its own Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija. Of Kosovo's 1.8 million people, Muslim make up more than 95 percent of them, Roman Catholics 2.2 percent and Orthodox Christians 1.5 percent. In Serbia, 85 percent of the 7 million people are Serbian Orthodox Christians, 5 percent are Catholics and 5 percent Muslims. The Special Rapporteur urged Serbia and Kosovo to de-link cultural heritage matters from nationalistic agendas. "There should be no monolithic view of what constitutes or can constitute cultural heritage, and cultural heritage should never be used to construct discourses or policies aimed at the exclusion of others," she stressed. "I encourage everyone to understand cultural heritage in a holistic way, including the contributions and perspectives of all groups," Bennoune stressed. A pressing issue is the fate of the cultural heritage of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo much of which consists of living monuments vital to the enjoyment of human rights. "I was particularly sorry to hear or read disparaging discourses disputing the importance of the cultural heritage of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo, or intentionally omitting mention of the specific relationship of the Serbian Orthodox Church with certain sites. KOSOVO ALBANIANS "Conversely, I regret discourses minimizing the importance or even the existence of the cultural heritage of Kosovo Albanians. Both discourses are damaging to human rights and equally offensive," she added. The UN specialists was able to meet representatives of civil society from diverse backgrounds eager to combat such perspectives and organize joint events with people of mixed backgrounds to visit each other's sites of cultural significance. She said a lack of funding often curtailed such activities and urged support, from Serbia, from Kosovo, and the international community. "There is a clear need for mutual acknowledgment of the harm that has been done in the past by attacking heritage related to various groups, and the suffering this has caused. Lasting peace and reconciliation require no less". Bennoune referred to the many reports of widespread attacks against and destructions of mosques, historic centers and cultural sites such as archives committed by Serbian security forces and paramilitaries in 1999 in Kosovo. She also referred to similar acts against churches committed by the Kosovo Liberation Army. The UN specialist also referred to the intentional destruction of, in particular, 35 listed Orthodox monuments and churches between March 17 and 19, 2004, followed by a number of attacks and incidents against Serbian orthodox cultural heritage since then. She likewise regretted retaliatory attacks during the events of March 2004, including one on the workshop of Kosovo Albanian sculptor Agim Eavdarbasa in Pristina, as well as those against two mosques in Nis and Belgrade. "I condemn unreservedly all of these attacks and destructions of cultural heritage and insist on all necessary steps being taken to prevent any repetition and to hold perpetrators accountable, in accordance with international norms." Bennoune expressed appreciation at reports from different sources acknowledging the dedication and increased capacity of the Kosovo police for the protection of sites as she cited its specialized unit for the protection of cultural heritage a multi-ethnic unit. She also noted the reported decrease in the number of security incidents involving cultural heritage along with allegations that statistics do not entirely reflect the reality. "I also heard ongoing concerns from Serbian Orthodox monks and nuns who are uncertain about security and long to feel welcome and accepted," she said. The K-12 sector is investing heavily in technology as a means of providing students with a more customized educational experience. So far, though, the research evidence behind personalized learning remains thin. The U.S. Department of Education has given half a billion dollars to districts that embrace the trend, with limited findings to date. Since 2009, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has committed $300 million to support research and development around personalized learning, but officials there say its still early days for the field. School and district leaders have helped turn personalized learning into a multimillion-dollar market, but evaluations of their efforts remain scattered. (The Gates Foundation helps support Education Weeks coverage of personalized learning.) One big problem: proponents have struggled to define personalized learning, let alone demonstrate its effectiveness. The purpose, tools, and instructional techniques that make up the notion vary considerably, depending who you ask. While a fair amount of research exists on specific personalization strategies, such as the use of adaptive math software, the literature includes very little on personalized learning as a comprehensive approach. There are some bright spots. Researchers have found promising early signs at some schools, and some software programs have been associated with significant improvements in student learning and engagement. But so far, at least, such encouraging results are often highly dependent on local context and how well a particular approach was implemented. That makes it hard to draw sweeping conclusions. For skeptics, those dynamics reflect a larger problem. Given the unclear findings around personalization via technology, critics argue, schools would be much better off investing in proven strategies that rely on increased teacher-to-student interaction, such as smaller class sizes. To better understand what the research on personalized learning doesand doesntsay, Education Week reviewed dozens of studies and talked with experts from a range of fields. The takeaway for school and district leaders? Dont believe the hypeat least not yet. Personalized learning holds promise, but theres still a lot of work to do to figure out how well this is working, said John F. Pane, a senior scientist and the distinguished chair in education innovation at the RAND Corp. People who are thinking from a programmatic and implementation point of view should not necessarily buy into the advocacy around how great this is. The Gates/RAND Studies In 2015, Pane and his RAND colleagues undertook the fields most comprehensive study to date. They found that 11,000 students at 62 schools trying out personalized-learning approaches made greater gains in math and reading than similar students at more traditional schools. The longer students experienced personalized-learning practices, the greater their achievement growth. Those results captured the attention of such luminaries as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who cited the RAND study as one of the reasons hes willing to bet billions on personalized learnings future. Also enthusiastic: Brad Bernatek, a senior program officer who oversees research for the Gates Foundation, which funded RANDs research and gave grants to the schools in their study. The results were encouraging, promising, and academically meaningful for the students in these schools, Bernatek said. But, he quickly added, they were by no means definitive. Indeed, some observers suggest the Gates/RAND study doesnt actually say much about whether the approach can work in typical K-12 environments. One reason: The schools in the study employed a wide range of instructional practices, many of which are also used at more traditional schools (such as grouping students based on performance data). Furthermore, the schools in the study were mostly charters that won competitive grants. Did students gain academically because their schooling was personalized, or did they gain because they were in high-functioning schools that received extra resources? I think its still early days, Bernatek concluded. Thats the biggest takeaway. Implementation Studies The broadest look at how schools have implemented personalized-learning strategies comes via the federal Education Department, which gave more than $500 million to 21 districts, consortia, and charter networks in 2012 and 2013 as part of its Race to the Top-District program. Unfortunately, the research findings to date from those grantees are not particularly deep, and the departments own reports have sometimes drawn conclusions that dont seem warranted by the available evidence. For example, a set of recent case studies claimed that personalized learning had sparked cultural shifts and transformed student learning in such places as Miami-Dade County, Fla., and New Haven, Calif. To back that up, the report cited largely soft and self-reported findings, such as teachers saying they are now more comfortable taking classroom risks. Department officials do say that many of their grantees show signs of promise on leading indicators, including lower suspension rates for middle and high school students. Some grantees have also seen student-achievement growth, both on state exams and local interim assessments. The department expects more substantial evaluation reports to be released, beginning next year. Other implementation studies of note include an ongoing look at a personalized-learning initiative in the Baltimore County district, where early results are mixed, and a generally positive case-study examination of Californias Summit Schools charter network. Earlier this year, the Center on Reinventing Public Education, a nonprofit research center, also looked at the financial impact of implementing personalized-learning models, finding that money often went more to salaries, facilities, and operations than to technology and that schools often do a poor job of anticipating their costs. Overall, though, the state of research around real-world implementations of personalized-learning models remains muddled and contentious. Just look at New York City, where a nonprofit group called New Classrooms has been spreading a blended-learning approach to middle school math called School of One. In the model, up to 90 children share one large classroom with multiple teachers. Students work primarily on computers, progressing at their own pace through algorithm-generated playlists tailored to their individual needs. Two studies by different researchers at Columbia University reached different conclusions. The first covered 22 sites, but had a weak approach to comparing School of One students with children elsewhere. The results looked quite encouraging: By their second year in the program, School of One students math skills had improved at a rate 47 percent faster than the national average, and those who started out the furthest behind made the largest gains. New Classrooms trumpeted the results aggressively. The following September, though, another evaluation reached far less enthusiastic conclusions. That study used a much more rigorous methodology, but only included a handful of School of One sites. It found neither very large positive nor very large negative effects relative to the math instruction that students would have otherwise received. Students in the program also reported consistently feeling like they learned more when working directly with a teacher. New Classrooms has barely mentioned those results, leading some observers to accuse the group of being more interested in positive public relations than helping the field learn what actually works. For educators and administrators on the ground, it all adds up to continued uncertainty about who and what to trust. Specific Software Programs Perhaps the most-cited research into a particular digital tool used to support personalized learning is RANDs 2013 research on the effectiveness of Cognitive Tutor Algebra 1, an adaptive-software program for teaching math, originally developed at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. The study was a rigorous randomized-control trial, undertaken in a variety of real-world schools, putting it pretty close to the gold standard for education research. Overall, the study found that compared with textbook-based curricula, Cognitive Tutor significantly improved algebra scores for high school students, but that positive effect emerged only in the second year of schools implementation. Less-rigorous recent studies have examined other popular math software programs, including DreamBox, Khan Academy, and ST Math. Researchers generally found encouraging signs of positive effects on student achievement, and teachers and students typically gave positive reports on their experiences. But actual usage of the programs varied considerably, and researchers were unable to definitively attribute positive outcomes to the software alone. Beyond that, the research base behind specific products is often very thin, with far more poorly designed studies done by companies themselves than robust evaluations conducted by independent third parties. As a result, school and district leaders who want to pursue personalized learning need to be particularly savvy consumers, said Bart Epstein, the CEO of the Jefferson Education Accelerator, a network of researchers, educators, and entrepreneurs based at the University of Virginia. That means asking hard questions about any claims a vendor is making, he said. It also means understanding that context mattersjust because a software program appears to have worked in one district doesnt mean its going to work in another. And perhaps most importantly, Epstein said, those on the ground need to understand that theyre responsible for helping generate good research about personalized learning, too. Small districts might not be able to contract with RAND, but they can often reach out to a local university or engage in whats called short cycle evaluation, to get formative feedback as they go. Any district that is bringing in a major new program should absolutely be budgeting for real research support, Epstein said. Everyone wants someone else to spend the time and money to study [personalized learning.] But its all of our responsibility. MARKET ANALYSIS Vietnam shrimp exports up 5.8% in Jan - Aug Vietnam's shrimp exports have sustained their growth, thanks to stable demand from major markets such as the US, the EU, China and South Korea, and the higher global shrimp price amid the decline in global shrimp supply. In August, Vietnam shrimp exports reached US$306.1 million, up 12.3% over the same month in 2015. In the first eight months, exports reached $1.9 billion, up 5.8% from the same period last year. Of the total shrimp exports, the proportion of whiteleg shrimp rose 10% to 60.4% due to rise in production and farming area, while those of black tiger and marine shrimps declined. Sales of black tiger shrimp decreased 0.5% and accounted for 31.4% of total exports. The export value of processed whiteleg shrimp reported the largest increase at 12%, while canned marine shrimp showed the biggest drop at 66% with modest value of $1.8 million. Vietnamese shrimp exports to the top five main markets in the first eight months increased except for Japan, which were down 6.4%. Exports to China showed the sharpest increase at 36.9%. The US was up 16.4%, South Korea, 13.5% and EU, 7.1%. US largest importer The US has remained as the largest importer of Vietnamese shrimp, and accounted for 22.5% of total exports in January-August, importing $435.3 million worth of shrimp. The import shrimp price into the US rose due to lower supply from India, Indonesia, Ecuador and Thailand. Demand for black tiger shrimp in the US increased in the context of lower supply from in India and Indonesia. EU still good market A decline in shrimp inventories in the EU made room for Vietnamese shrimp exports to the market. From January to August, shrimp sales to the EU hit $372 million, up 7.1% year-on-year. Exports to three key markets in the bloc posted positive growths, with the Netherlands posting the highest increase at 29%. During the same eight-month period, the UK remained the biggest market for Vietnamese shrimp within the 28-nation bloc. Exports advanced 8.4%, with demand for warmwater shrimp expected to remain good this year. Vietnamese shrimp exports in the remaining months are expected to slightly increase compared with the same period last year. Source: Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers If you win $1 billion Powerball jackpot, inflation will cost you millions The Powerball jackpot is up to $1 billion million for Wednesdays drawing, but the lump-sum payout option is less than half of it. Police release CCTV images of school damage suspects CCTV images of a group of youngsters believed to be responsible for criminal damage at one of the Island's schools have been released by the police. The Western Neighbourhood Policing Team appealed for information last month after youths smashed beer bottles in the playground at Peel Clothworkers Primary School. Footage of those believed to be responsible has now been released by police, showing a group of juvenile males in the area at the time of the incident. The images can be found on the policing team's Facebook page as well as below. Anyone who can help identify those in the pictures is asked to contact Peel Police Station on 842208. Photos Health Minister confirms Translarna funding u-turn Finley Hesketh has Duchenne muscular dystrophy The Department of Health and Social Care will fund a drug to help a local boy with a muscle-wasting condition. Minister Kate Beecroft confirmed in this month's sitting of Tynwald that Translarna will be made available on the Isle of Man after agreeing a discounted rate for the treatment with NHS England. Seven-year-old Finley Hesketh had previously been denied access to the drug, which could slow the progression of his Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The Douglas South MHK reviewed the decision following her recent appointment to the role, and has already instructed her Department to open talks with a drug company. The treatment costs around 180,000 per year, with Mrs Beecroft warning she will need to make savings in other areas to make the funds available. Finley's family had been considering a move away from the Island, with Translarna available on the NHS in the UK. The Health Minister will report back to Tynwald once talks with the drug company are complete. They are mathletes ever ready to flex some neurons to solve a problem. One hundred students representing 25 Pennsylvania high schools were in Carlisle Tuesday to participate in the second annual Capital Area Interscholastic Math Competition. The four-member team from Cumberland Valley High School placed second behind a quartet from the Wyoming Seminary Prep School visiting the mid-state from Kingston, Luzerne County. Cumberland Valley was ranked third behind Wyoming and a team from Hempfield High School going into the final quiz bowl round of a day-long competition held on the Dickinson College campus, which is on fall break. Hosted by the Carlisle Area School District, the competition mostly drew teams from a two-hour radius around Cumberland County, said John Campbell, a math teacher at Carlisle High School and coordinator of the event. There were also local teams from Mechanicsburg and Boiling Springs high schools. The competition consisted of two individual tests of 45 minutes each one of multiple choice questions, the other requiring short numerical answers. A third test allowed all four team members to work collectively on a single answer for each question. The individual tests each had 20 questions; the team test had 15 questions. The cumulative score of all four members individually and together was used to rank each team going into the final quiz bowl round. This is actually one of my favorite competitions, said Emily Chung, a junior at Cumberland Valley High School who lives in Hampden Township. The questions are really thought-provoking. They go more in-depth. You really have to think about how to solve them. The most challenging phase for her was the team test where the difficulty level was ramped up to balance with the number of mathletes working to solve each problem. You had the ability to collaborate with other people so even if you dont have the answer, you still can figure it out with other people in your group, said Chung, who placed fifth among the individual rankings Tuesday. You can feel their enthusiasm, said Kelly Brent, math department chair for the Carlisle Area School District and a math teacher at Carlisle High School. They are here doing math all day, and they just love it. Brent said the students who participate in regional math competitions are just as competitive in their field of interest as star athletes who play interscholastic sports. After each test, the mathletes talked among each other, comparing notes on how they solved each problem. Because Carlisle hosted the event, its math team could not participate. Instead, Carlisle students were on hand Tuesday to help proctor the tests and set-up and tear down each room where the competition was held. Its really cool to see the other side of it and be able to give back in that way, said Sam Haseman, 17, a senior at Carlisle High School. Its great to be able to interact with these people. Classmate Braden Kronheim enjoys participating in regional math competitions because the caliber of the questions challenge him to think differently and use concepts outside the normal classroom setting. Members of the Carlisle math team developed questions for Tuesdays competition. The questions asked involved pre-calculus, trigonometry, geometry, number theory and statistics and probability. No calculators allowed. Participants could only use paper and pencil. The Carlisle team routinely participates in regional math competitions held during spring break at Lebanon Valley College and at such universities as Millersville, Shippensburg and Bucknell. Dickinson College was gracious enough to let us use their facilities during their fall break, Campbell said. The local college provided lunch to participants in Tuesdays competition without cost to Carlisle school district. Participating high schools were asked to bring a box of canned goods to Tuesdays competition so that the food could be donated to the Project SHARE food bank. On the lines of Sadat Hasan Manto's facetious letters to Uncle Sam written at the height of the cold war when Pakistan was being wooed by the US as an ally to fight communism, this letter was written in 2002 to the then Prime Minister Vajpayee by historian Ayesha Jalal. Written as a spirited assessment of the standoff between India and Pakistan, the letter is peppered with rare insights that have always been Manto's hallmark. Absence of a sound institutional framework facilitating land leasing had been viewed as a major obstacle for private investment in agriculture resulting in poor productivity. In this context, NITI Aayog had appointed an Expert Committee on Land Leasing, under the chairmanship of T Haque (NITI Aayog 2016). Besides, reviewing existing agricultural tenancy laws of states, the expert committee had to suggest appropriate amendments with a view to legalise and liberalise land leasing; and, more importantly, to prepare a model act. The expert committee had consultations with states, farmer associations and civil societies. In the final report, the committee provides a Model Agricultural Land Leasing Act (henceforth Model Leasing Act), which contains provisions that pose a direct threat to the food security of the country. Tenancy Laws in States Land distribution was quite skewed in favour of influential people during the British rule and therefore, land leasing was very common during that period. Although the percentage of area leased out was estimated at 20.6% at the all-India level National Sample Survey Offices (NSSO) 8th Round, a considerable amount of land leased out on the basis of oral or hidden tenancy accounted for 35% to 40% of the total cultivated area (Datt and Sundharam 1989). During the post-independence period, the major agenda of the government on land reforms, next to the abolition of zamindari system, was tenancy reforms. All states had adopted legislation concerning agricultural tenancy in the 1960s or 1970s. Most of those tenancy laws were amended by states from time to time, partially in response to policy suggestions emerging through various five-year plans. The provisions of tenancy laws adopted by various state governments had covered defining tenants, regulation of rent, security of tenure, landlords right to resume personal cultivation on leased land, conferment of ownership rights to tenants, surrender of tenancy rights with mutual consent, prohibition of future tenancies, tenants rights of preemptive purchase, correcting the tenancy records, abolishing oral tenancies, etc. Although tenancy laws differed from state to state, they were generally found to be very restrictive in the sense that they had almost prohibited agricultural tenancy (Table 1). The tenancy arrangements, as it existed, were primarily informal in nature, leaving tenants insecure and thus rendering the system inefficient, while reducing the operational mobility of landowners. The expert committee was therefore of the view that restrictive tenancy laws of states had adversely affected agricultural efficiency, equity, occupational diversification, and rapid rural transformation. Table 1: Restrictive Nature of Tenancy Laws in Various States Category of States Nature of Restrictions in Tenancy Laws 1. Kerala and Jammu & Kashmir Leasing out of agricultural land is legally prohibited without any exception. 2. Telangana, Bihar, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Odisha Leasing out of agricultural land is allowed only by certain categories of landowners such as disabled, minors, widows, defence personnel, etc. 3. Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Assam Leasing out of agricultural land is not specifically banned, but the tenant acquires the right to purchase the tenanted land after a specific period of creation of tenancy (six years in Pun and Har) except if landowner is disabled. 4. Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal There are no restrictions on land leasing, although in West Bengal, only share cropping leases are legally permitted. 5. In Scheduled Tribe areas of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra Transfer of land from tribal to non-tribal even on lease basis can be permitted only by a competent authority. The idea is to prevent alienation of land from tribal to non-tribal. Source: Report of the Committee on State Agrarian Relations and the Unfinished Task in Land Reforms, Department of Land Resources, Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India. Table 2: State-wise Proportion of Operated Area Leased-in (%) NSSO Reports Report 36 (8th round) Report 215 (26th round) Report 330 (37th round) Report 388 (48th round) Report 492 (59th round) Report NSSO Key Indicators (70/18.1) (70th round) States 195354 197273 198182 199293 200203 201213 Andhra Pradesh 21.2 9.0 6.2 9.6 9.97 35.70 Assam 43.0 16.7 6.4 8.9 5.06 4.20 Bihar 12.4 14.5 10.3 3.9 11.76 22.67 Gujarat 19.4 3.9 2.0 3.3 5.08 5.82 Haryana 39.8 23.3 18.2 33.7 14.38 14.82 Himachal Pradesh n.a. 15.9 3.2 4.8 2.87 5.33 Jammu & Kashmir 22.1 8.1 2.5 3.7 0.32 0.20 Karnataka 21.5 15.9 6.0 7.4 3.68 6.90 Kerala 20.2 8.6 2.1 2.9 4.18 8.93 Madhya Pradesh 19.8 7.5 6.6 6.3 2.83 5.14 Maharashtra 19.7 6.2 5.2 5.5 4.59 3.44 Odisha 12.6 13.5 9.9 9.5 13.15 16.96 Punjab 39.8 28.0 16.1 18.8 17.84 24.42 Rajasthan 21.0 5.3 4.3 5.2 2.81 7.11 Tamil Nadu 27.0 13.1 10.9 10.9 6.10 13.54 Uttar Pradesh 11.4 13.0 10.2 10.5 3.49 7.89 West Bengal 25.4 18.8 13.4 10.4 9.42 14.73 All India 20.6 10.6 7.2 8.3 6.60 10.41 Source: (i) National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganized Sector (2008), A Special Programme for Marginal Farmers based on NSSO (for data from 195354 to 199293) (ii) NSSO Reports: Report 492 (59th round) for 200203, and NSS Key Indicators (70/18.1) (70th round) for 201213 data. In consonance with the prohibitive tenancy laws, the percentage share of leased-in area in total operated area had continuously declined over the years (Table 2). However, the average share of leased-in area showed a sudden increase in 201213. This may be due to declining interest of cultivator farmers on account of declining profitability in crop cultivation, better income opportunities outside the agriculture, and so on. Moreover, the percentage distribution of leased-in area by various terms of lease during the last four decades indicates that the share of share of produce term in total number of lease contracts has declined from 48% in 197071 to 28.7% in 201213, whereas that of fixed money term has gone up from 15.4% to 41.1% during the same period. Surprisingly, in West Bengal where only share cropping is legally permitted, the fixed money is the most common term of leasing (52%). Share of produce was the next most common form of leasing (38%) (from NSSO reports, various rounds). Thus, the term of lease against share of produce is slowly losing importance, whereas fixed money as a term of lease is increasingly gaining popularity. This change is taking place at a time when the proportion of leased-in land in operated area is rising. Key Features of Model Act The key features of the Model Leasing Act, 2016, as proposed by the committee includes (i) legalise land leasing to promote agricultural efficiency, equity and poverty reduction; (ii) legalise land leasing to ensure complete security of land ownership right for land owners and security of tenure for tenants; (iii) remove the clause of adverse possession of land in the land laws of various states; (iv) allow automatic resumption of land after the agreed lease period; (v) allow the terms and conditions of lease to be determined mutually by the land owner and the tenant without any fear on the part of the landowner as well as tenant; (vi) facilitate all tenants to access crop insurance and bank credit; and (vii) incentivise tenants to make investment in land improvement. Inherent Limitations: The Model Leasing Act, if adopted in the proposed form, may encourage the diversion of agriculture land from crop cultivation to commercial use because it allows leasing of agricultural land for activities like plantation crops, animal husbandry and dairy, poultry farming, stock breeding, fishery, agroforestry, agroprocessing and other related activities in addition to crop cultivation. Once agricultural land is transferred to allied activities, it will not only reduce the total land stock available for crop cultivation with an adverse impact on production of field crops but will also change the land-use pattern, if not permanently, at least for a very long period. This will be particularly true if land is used for plantation crops, agroforestry and agroprocessing activities. It is very likely that the transferred land may not remain suitable for growing field crops once it is resumed to the lessor. This fear is further compounded by the lack of clarity on the definition of lessee cultivator. The Model Leasing Act defines a lessee cultivator as a person who leases in agricultural land. It is not clear whether corporates and absentee landlords willing to manage cultivation through their employees/representatives can be allowed to lease-in agricultural land or the leasing should be restricted to farmers/group of cultivators (self-help groups/joint liability groups/farmers producers organisations) including landless cultivators. Further, whether contract farming, particularly by corporates, should also fall under the purview of the proposed Model Leasing Act. There should not be any problem in leasing of agricultural lands by corporates if land use is restricted to cultivation of agricultural crops only since the leasing-in by corporates may lead to increased flow of investment to the agriculture sector. However, such contracts would affect the food security in the country, if choice of crops is solely motivated by profit. Perhaps what is more worrisome is allowing lease contracts between the parties for an indefinite period and that the government shall not fix a minimum or maximum lease period. Prescribing ceiling on lease period, say for a maximum of five or six years, will not only help the lessee to complete one life cycle of agricultural allied activities (animal husbandry, etc) but will also help the lessor to resume the cultivation if he/she had quit the cultivation in search of an alternative income opportunities but failed to succeed. Further, it would also reduce the risk of any influence/pressure on the lessor to lease out the land for a very long period and it might become very difficult for the survivors in the family to resume operating the land from an influential lessee. Thus, if the government does not fix maximum lease period, it will increase the risk of losing the contracted land permanently from food crops. The Model Leasing Act, though provides for lessors to resume the land if any damage to the soil health is done by the lessee, it does not clearly define what constitutes damage to soil health. It is felt that interpreting the damage to soil health would vary from person to person and it may give rise to disputes between the lessors and lessees. The Model Leasing Act also allows lessees to build structures or any fixtures on the land with permission from the lessor. These ambiguous provisions are not any better than the existing system in terms of its provisions to improve security of the tenant. Therefore, in all likelihood it would reduce the incentive for tenants to step up investment and improve land productivity. Moreover, the Model Leasing Acts proposed schemata of addressing the issue of change of land ownership, is inimical to the interests of both landlords and tenants and hence needs a relook. Once the ownership of land is changed on account of sale or gift, lease contract may be terminated unless the new landlord and lessee agree to continue the contract for the rest of the agreed period. Further, the act is also silent on whether a land already under lease agreement can be mortgaged or not, keeping in view that the lessee might be interested in availing crop loans or term loans in case of allied activities. While dealing with termination of lease, the Model Leasing Act has blatantly ignored why lessor should not terminate lease contract if the lessee keeps or intends to keep the contracted land fallow in a normal case due to his loss of interest in cultivation (except in case of natural calamities when the land becomes uncultivable). Keeping a cultivable land fallow defeats the very purpose of enacting the Land Leasing Act which aims at ensuring productive and optimal use of scarce resources. Finally, it appears from the format of standard lease agreement that the existing contract can be extended mutually by lessor and lessee without any endorsement from any authority. Endorsing the renewal proposal by a competent authority will help avoid any undue pressure/influence from lessee to lessor. In fact, the extension of lease contract should be no less than a fresh contract and hence this entire format needs to be looked at again. Missing Two Vital Issues: There are two appropriate issues that were not addressed by the expert committee and hence not included in the Model Leasing Act. The first one relates to the ceiling on ownership holdings. It is of utmost importance that operational holdings, as stipulated by states, should include leased-in land of the tenants in normal cases. Perhaps, no restriction should be placed if land is leased-in by a joint liability group or producers organisations. Second, keeping in view the fact that most land parcels/holdings are quite small in size in India, leasing out only a part/portion of the land plot at a particular location will only lead to further fragmentation. Leasingout the entire parcel of land available at a particular location by a lessor will not lead to fragmentation of such lands. However, if the parcel of land is quite big (say more than one acre), the lessor may consider contracting it to more than one lessee. Overall, the Model Leasing Act aims to benefit both lessors who prefer to enter into a lease agreement without the fear of losing ownership rights, and lessees who require protection from premature termination of lease contracts. No doubt, legalising the tenancy will result in better productivity of crops grown on the contracted land by replacing an unwilling cultivator with a willing cultivator, provided the contracted land remains to be used for cultivation of field crops only. However, the Model Leasing Act appears to be lopsided and seems to be giving an edge to lessees over the landlords. Also, allowing the contracted land to be used for activities other than crop production that too for an indefinite period will certainly threaten the food security of the country in the long run. An attempt is made here to highlight those issues for further consideration by the NITI Aayog so that a balanced and more acceptable model would come into force. References: Datt, Ruddar, and K P M Sundharam (1989): Indian Economy, New Delhi: S Chand and Company. Mani, Gyanendra and V K Pandey (1995): Agrarian Structure under the New Economic Policy, Indian Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol 50, No 3, JulySeptember. NITI Aayog (2016): Report of the Expert Committee on Land Leasing, Government of India, New Delhi. The fall has arrived and the leaves of the trees are turning into a kaleidoscope of pulsating colours, like an impressionist painting. Chelsea Clinton came to the beautiful forest campus of Wellesley College on the shore of an undulating lake on 13 October and spontaneously formed an emotional bond. Her mother is the famous alumni from this prestigious college. She said that her mother is campaigning in California, but is really jealous that I could make it to Wellesley and she could not. Amidst an adulatory audience of Hillary Clinton supporters, college students and faculty, she started with a casual remark about the locker room controversy but stayed sharply away from any mention of Donald Trump. She seems to be following the famous quip of Michelle Obama, which is often cited by her mother in her rallies: When they go low, we go high. Instead, she focused on climate change, racism, Islamophobia, attacks on immigrants, minimum wages, higher education, womens empowerment and childcare. The poignant moment of the rally was marked for all to seea student stood up and said, her voice choking with emotion, that her origins are from the Czech Republic which has been through terrible times, that her father and mother started from scratch through very difficult times and that they worked really hard so that she could come study here. However, these days, every day, she said, she feels fearful of her daily life and her future, considering the bad faith injected in the social and political atmosphere. She was obviously referring to the wave of anti-immigrant and racist rhetoric unleashed by the Trump campaign and the atmosphere of mistrust injected into the social fabric of the US. Chelsea could sense the charged-up moments revelation immediately, and so did the teachers and students of Wellesley College. The student is right. America is witnessing the depressing phenomena of the xenophobic, the perverse and the impossible becoming a mainstream narrative. Never before has a presidential nominee been exposed and targeted for not only lacking in temperament, demeanour and dignity, but also because of his polarising political agenda and brazenly crude male chauvinistic narrative and posturing. In a presidential discourse and a general media debate that have sunk to the lowest common denominator in terms of locker room predators, sexual assaults and sexual abuse, use of perverse and sexist language, and an avalanche of vile allegations emerging from scores of women against an aggressive and self-styled alpha male named Donald Trump, Chelsea Clintons positive and non-partisan agenda clicked with the plural audience. The shadow of a relentlessly unrepentant and uncouth Trump was not lurking on the stage at the college. Instead, she represented a newer, charged up and positive Hillary, with her ratings suddenly shooting up all over the country, including in the swing states, especially among the women in the suburbs and the cities, the educated classes, and even among the women within the white working classwhich has steadfastly backed Trump for reasons particularly peculiar to the American political economy. Even Fox News, which is transparently loyal to Trump, has done a poll whereby Hillary is far ahead of Trump in terms of ratings. The similarities between the rise of Narendra Modi in India in 2014 and the Donald Trump phenomena in contemporary America are often rather stark. The South Asian community here is aware of the comparison; it became all the more stark after war-hysteria gripped the IndiaPakistan political landscape. Indeed, white supremacists have been backing Trump precisely because the tycoon has been polarising American civil society by creating mass phobia of immigrants and refugees taking over jobs, of jobs running away from the country, of branding Mexicans as rapists, using Islamophobia and organised racism as trump cards, with the scary prophecy of stop and frisk on the streets and stricter law and order implying an authoritarian state with a propensity to curb civil liberties. Richard Spencer, a writer and an activist, whose Montana-based non-profit organisation is dedicated to the heritage, identity and future of people of European descent in the US, in a New York Times report on 13 July stated: The discussion that white Americans never want to have is this question of identitywho are we? He (Trump) is bringing identity politics for white people into the public sphere in a way no one has. Even a section of Trump supporters, or Hillary-haters, feels that while their income might rise under Trump, individual rights might be taken away. It is thereby ironical that the white working class has chosen to back a real estate tycoon who has refused to disclose his tax returns and who does not really represent the economic and social interests of the low-income groups, in a country where class inequity is sharp, widespread and transparent. So much so, even while public schooling under the state is free, higher education is exorbitantly expensive, and by and large inaccessible to the low middle and working class population. Sanders and the Margins It is all the more ironical that socialist Bernie Sanders, whose challenge to Clinton in the primaries was formidable, has not been able to draw the support of this natural constituency in the margins of American society. However, the underlying optimism in the Sanders campaign was that most campuses and students became his ardent supporters, thereby setting a political agenda which was anti-war, anti-racism and against Islamophobia and xenophobia. The campaign sought an inclusive and culturally pluralist society, class and social equality, and a political economy which would stop pandering to the rich and privileged. With Clinton pitched as a transparent favourite of Wall Street hawks, and she being squarely blamed for the terrible consequences of the war in Syria and Yemen, including the murder of Muammar Gaddafi by a mob on the streets of Libya, this section of the young, across all colours and identities, were squarely suspicious of her. That she might continue with her policies in West Asia and South Asia is a genuine danger and possibility. The destruction of thousands of emails and the disclosure by WikiLeaks of she making millions with her Wall Street speeches as a possible quid pro quo has only strengthened the belief among the young that she is a compulsive liar and one-dimensional in her unbridled ambitions, like her husband, Bill Clinton. One of the great difficulties of the Clinton campaign was to mobilise this huge section of young voters to vote for her, and despite the appeal by Sanders, the young and the liberal-progressives of the Occupy Wall Street movement were not able to make up their mind. Some of them were clearly inclined towards Jill Stein of the Green Party whose support has meandered between 3% and 6%. For instance, certain academics in Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are of the opinion that since Massachusetts will certainly vote for Hillary, they can safely vote for Jill Stein with a clear conscience. Others are of the opinion that if there is a remote chance of Trump making it in a tight contest, they will bury their differences and vote Hillary. This national dilemma seems to have been partially resolved, especially among women and the educated, after Trumps crass and sexist locker-room disclosures. There is a wave of disgust sweeping across America on the foul language of possible sexual assault emanating from a presidential candidate that can be socially regressive and dangerous in terms of family values. Earlier, the manner in which he called a former Miss Universe Miss Piggy and Miss Housekeeping, among other forms of fat-shaming, the derogatory language used against women on their looks and so on, the daily allegations of groping, kissing, invasion of physical privacy, and even the boast of entering a dressing room full of beauty pageant participants had greatly upset not only ordinary folks, but it has triggered a wave of unrest among Republican leaders as well, barring the likes of Rudy Giuliani, the former Mayor of New York, who is being described as one of the last remaining cheerleaders of the Trump campaign. It is a contradiction of sorts that even heavyweights like John McCain, Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney, among other Republican leaders, who have been attacked and caricatured by Trump, did not decisively choose to withdraw support. It is only after the locker room tape controversy, did a string of Republican leaders come out openly against Trump, as if it was the last straw. Indeed, that is the uncanny question: Was it the last straw? Paul Krugman wrote in the New York Times on 10 October: As many people are pointing out, Republicans now trying to distance themselves from Donald Trump need to explain why The Tape was a breaking point, when so many previous incidents werent. On Saturday, explaining why he was withdrawing his endorsement, Senator John McCain cited comments on prisoners of war, the Khan Gold Star family, Judge Curiel and earlier inappropriate comments about womenand that leaves out Mexicans as rapists, calls for a Muslim ban, and much more. So, Senator McCain, what took you so long? Among the liberal and progressive sections, the biggest fear is the legitimacy being given to a certain polarising discourse and ideas, which observers fear can become extremely dangerous and diabolical in the days to come. This discourse on racism and Islamophobia can become legit among certain sections, leading to an entrenched political unconscious in a country which prides itself on its immigrant essence and character, and how talent from across different cultures and nations has nourished the life-stream of its knowledge systems and political economy. Its not only the low-level discourse, said an academic in MIT, Boston. There is a tangible fear that the poison and hate politics can permeate the social consciousness, and even turn violent. A working woman in upper-crust Wellesley added: I have always believed that Americans need to go out of their country and see other cultures and civilisations, which are great, diverse and vibrant. That will help open their minds and make them culturally plural. I am appalled at the manner Trump has lowered the language of the presidential discourse. The hate, racism and misogyny unleashed by his campaign and supporters are bound to seriously harm the social fabric of America. What will the world think of us? Certainly, there are striking similarities between the rise of xenophobia and mob vigilantism in India, and the lurking shadows of similar phenomena in America. Observers here believe that once hate politics becomes legitimate among a certain section of society, it might lead to bad faith and unhappy consequences. Once used as a successfully polarising electoral card, however vile and vicious, it is almost certain to explode on the face sooner than later. The bitter realism of the condition of the AfricanAmerican community is being cited as a possible breaking point, if the racist discourse continues to dominate Republican supporters. Blacks have been at the receiving end of prejudiced law enforcement agencies in many parts of the US, which includes facing violence and long prison terms. Social scientists cite the disproportionately high number of Blacks and Hispanics, who are rotting in prisons for long periods. Blacks have been shot dead by the police, as in Charlotte, North Carolina, recently, triggering angry mass protests. Black Lives Matter has, therefore, become a strong countrywide movement representing the angst and anger of the AfricanAmerican community. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, one in three black men can expect to go to prison in their lifetime. Individuals of colour have a disproportionate number of encounters with law enforcement, indicating that racial profiling continues to be a problem. However, with both Michelle and Barack Obamas ratings going to an all-time high, and with both of them attacking Trump directly in campaign speeches across the country, Hillary seems to have solidly consolidated her support base among women, the educated, the AfricanAmerican community, the Latinos, Asians and immigrants. President Obama, in a scathing and protracted attack on Trump in Cleveland, Ohio on 14 October, not only raised the birther issue whereby Trump questioned Obamas origin of birth, but also castigated him on his policies, his foul and sexist language, and his refusal to declare his tax returns. He doesnt have the temperament, knowledge or interest in acquiring knowledge or basic honesty a president needs to have, and that was before we heard him talk about women, said Obama. He cajoled the audience to register and vote, a pattern followed by him and Michelle in all their rallies, seeking the continuation of his incomplete legacy, including attempts to improve social justice and reduce inequity. In an earlier speech to the Black Caucus, Obama had literally said that though his name is not on the ballot, voters should vote for his legacy. In Cleveland, he said that voters must come out and vote, because this is a vote for democracy. He implied that democracy and secular pluralism are in danger with Trump in the runninga scenario with uncanny similarities with contemporary India. With little time left to go for 8 November, voting day, America is walking a tight-rope, fingers-crossed. With Clintons ratings going up, and those reluctant to back her earlier meaning to come out and vote in protest against Trumps misogynist posturing, especially women and university studentsthe Millennialsthe situation might not be as bleak as it appears. The world is watching. Hope floats. Hackers recently stole research data from the University of Toyamas Hydrogen Isotope Research Center, along with 1,493 peoples personal information, Infosecurity reports. The data was stolen in December 2015, March 2016, and June 2016, using malware that had been delivered via a spear phishing attack in November 2015. The Japan Times reports that two staff members received phishing emails in November of 2015. One of the staff members PCs was infected, after which it transmitted data to an outside party for approximately six months. The Research Center didnt learn of the infection until it was alerted to it in June 2016 by an unidentified outside organization. Still, the Japan Times reports that most of the stolen research data had already been published or was scheduled to be published, and that no highly confidential information was exposed. This issue of cyber attacks on nuclear-related facilities or activities should be taken very seriously, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director Yukiya Amano told Reuters earlier this month. We know if we know everything or if its the tip of the iceberg. Amano said an unnamed nuclear power plant had been hit by a cyber attack two to three years ago that forced the plant to take some precautionary measures. Seclore CEO Vishal Gupta told eSecurity Planet by email that the University of Toyama breach is also a textbook example of the kind of threat facing academia. Researchers are extremely lucrative targets for nation-states, as its cheaper to invest in the theft of existing data then to conduct the research outright, he said.univers As a result, academics must take steps to assure their work is safeguarded, especially when they are conducting nuclear research (which is prohibited in all but a handful of countries), Gupta added. Persistent security controls that work at the data level are needed in order to assure well intentioned research doesnt end up in malicious hands. A recent Enterprise Strategy Group survey, sponsored by Gigamon, found that 85 percent of network and security-focused IT professionals said the complexity of network security operations is as difficult as or more difficult than it was two years ago, primarily due to increased traffic, more connected devices, and the increasing diversity of security threats. Seventy-five percent of respondents felt their organizations network visibility could be improved. Organizations are finding it more difficult to gain visibility into their networks and are left to grapple with the difficult task of quickly detecting anomalous or malicious activity, Enterprise Strategy Group analyst Don Conde said in a statement. Before long, the newest member of Mechanicsburgs police force will have four legs and a tail. On Tuesday night, Mechanicsburg Borough Council unanimously agreed to accept the donation of a canine unit from American Legion Post 109, Mechanicsburg. We like to take on community projects. The other project we had planned for this year fell through, so we decided to do this. Its something weve always had on the back burner, said Mike Stewart, Post 109 adjunct and past commander. Mechanicsburg Police Sgt. Brian Curtis said that the force plans to use the canine for narcotics patrol to help combat a large influx of heroin in the area, along with other drugs. Police dogs are also used for searches for missing people or criminals. The dog can detect the location of a drug better than a human. A lot of our calls are related to heroin, whether its a bad check or a break-in, and it involves people of all ages, said Curtis, a 15-year veteran of the Mechanicsburg force. Sometimes a suspect will surrender quicker if they hear a dog barking and know that its in the building looking for them, Council member Scott Pellman said. Mechanicsburg Police also plan to use the dog for community outreach services, such as visiting children at schools. So far, borough officials have no set date for obtaining the canine because the animal first needs to be trained at Castles K9 in Monroe Township. Curtis said he plans to solicit dog food companies and other businesses for donations in hopes that it will cost the borough little or no money to maintain the canine. The dog will live with its human police partner and a special squad car also will be designated for the pair. In other news, Mechanicsburg Borough Council authorized advertising for contractor bid documents for a planned sewer rehabilitation project at Main and Marble streets. The proposed date for opening bids is Nov. 29. The borough also plans to apply for a state Small Water and Sewer Program Grant for $309,276 for collection system repairs. The grant would pertain to repairs at the Edgewood Drive pumping station drainage area, Borough Manager Roger Ciecierski said. To reach me for collaborations, sponsorships, and event invitations, I am contactable at the-ice-angel@hotmail.com The Lemoyne Mart at 216 S. 3rd Street in Lemoyne was robbed at knife-point early Wednesday morning, according to the West Shore Regional Police Department. Police said when they arrived at the store around 4:55 a.m. they learned that a man assaulted an employee and then fled with an unknown amount of money. The suspect is shown in pictures from surveillance footage as wearing a black hoodie and black pants, a white mask and white gloves, and what appears to be sunglasses. Anyone with information about this is asked to contact West Shore Regional Police at 717-238-9676. On Sunday evening (16 October), a 94,000-member coalition of Iraqi security forces, Kurdish Peshmerga allies and thousands of soldiers from various minorities started an operation to free Mosul, an oil-rich Northern Iraqi city, from more than two years of ISIS rule. ISIS occupied the city in June 2014 and it remains to be the groups last major stronghold in Iraq. Analysts see the Mosul offensive as the defining moment in the fight against the Islamist militia. According to Sirwan Barzani, a brigadier general, it will probably take two weeks for advancing forces to enter the city but only Iraqi government troops and national police officers will be allowed to do so due to fears of sectarian retribution. Retaking the city will likely take up to two months. The offensive has triggered fears in Europe that the attacks on the ISIS in Mosul may increase the risk of attacks in Europe as ISIS fighters may want to return to their European homelands if the group is expelled from the city. According to Security Commissioner, Julian King, it is a serious threat that Europe has to be prepared to deal with, King said. It is estimated that there currently are about 2,500 ISIS fighters from Europe in Mosul and its surrounding area. Analysts say it is unclear how many of them will want to return to Europe and carry out attacks there as this depends on what strategy the terrorist militia will adopt if defeated in Mosul. So far, ISIS reaction has been mixed. There have been reports that some fighters have fled the city to the Syrian border and others that the terrorists continue to run the city and threaten anyone wanting to leave. Poland yesterday (18 October) supported the Northern Gate gas pipeline project, also known as Norwegian corridor, which is designed to bring gas from Norway through Denmark to Poland. Piotr Naimski, the Polish governments Plenipotentiary for Strategic Energy Infrastructure, said during a hearing at the European Parliament that his country was looking into replacing supplies from Russia with supplies from the West. Mr Naimski also said that Russian gas in Poland is paradoxically more costly that in Western European countries, which are more distant from Russia. He further said that Poland was interested in securing supplies at the lowest possible price. Warsaw sees Northern Gate as a competitor to Nord Stream 2, which also aims at offering oil at market price in Central Europe. The project currently aims to transfer about 10 million cubic meters of natural gas from Norway to Poland annually by 2022. Poland would not keep the entire amount but rather it would further send the gas to other Central European countries, such as Czech and Slovak Republics, Hungary and the Baltic States or even Ukraine. The first draft of the project was proposed in 2009 and in 2013, the Commission gave one of the parts of the project the status of project of common interest. In 2015, the Connecting Europe Facility provided a grant for a feasibility study. Maros Sefcovic, Vice-President of the European Commission for the Energy Union, said following the hearing that the initial thought of the EU executive was that Northern Gate was a very important project. The feasibility study will be ready by the end of this year and the project will be open for commercial entities to express their interest by the end of 2017. Everyone has heard about genetic mutations causing serious disease. Finding one in your genome was like getting a death sentence. Recently, however, geneticists have been surprised that many people with these mutations dont ever get sick. Youre probably among them. Lurking in the genes of the average person are about 54 mutations that look as if they should sicken or even kill their bearer, says Erica Check Hayden in Nature. But they dont. [Emphasis added.] And therein lies a scientific revolution. The growing realization that humans survive these mutations is leading to a radical revision of human genetics, she says. Few would have thought to ask such a question in years past, but medical genetics has been going through a bit of soul-searching. The fast pace of genomic research since the start of the twenty-first century has packed the literature with thousands of gene mutations associated with disease and disability. Many such associations are solid, but scores of mutations once suggested to be dangerous or even lethal are turning out to be innocuous. These sheep in wolves clothing are being unmasked thanks to one of the largest genetics studies ever conducted: the Exome Aggregation Consortium, or ExAC. We mentioned ExAC before, noting that a billion genes have failed to turn up any beneficial mutations. This time we look at the flip side; are harmful mutations really as deadly as we thought? Part of the misdiagnosis problem came from a common statistical error, illustrated by an old joke: Monday, Joe got drunk on gin and soda water. Tuesday, Joe got drunk on bourbon and soda water. Wednesday, Joe got drunk on vodka and soda water. Conclusion: soda water causes drunkenness. The mistake could have been prevented by comparing Joe to people who drank soda water alone or added it to non-alcoholic drinks. Similarly, doctors and scientists can find a genetic variant in several individuals with fatal genetic diseases and rush to the conclusion that the common gene was the cause of the disease, before checking to see how widespread the variant is in the general population. Philosophers use illustrations like this to teach rules of logical inference. The error can be forgiven in this case. Before now, scientists lacked enough data to compare genomes. ExAC is changing that. Its a welcome development. The editors of Nature want to accelerate the correction: These conclusions have consequences for real people, and so researchers must go about this work differently. When they suspect that a variant is linked to disease, they should check to see how common it is in databases such as ExAC. Even better, they should hunt for evidence that the mutation has a functional role in disease before declaring that it is pathogenic. Let the reckoning begin. ExAC is helping in more ways than correcting previous inferential mistakes. Hayden says it can be a tool for discovering function in genes and proteins: ExAC is a simple idea. It combines sequences for the protein-coding region of the genome the exome from more than 60,000 people into one database, allowing scientists to compare them and understand how variable they are. But the resource is having tremendous impacts in biomedical research. As well as helping scientists to toss out spurious disease-gene links, it is generating new discoveries. By looking more closely at the frequency of mutations in different populations, researchers can gain insight into what many genes do and how their protein products function. This is where the story gets interesting for intelligent design. Is it possible that variants thought of as mistakes could be functional? Or is there more room for neutral variation than expected? How does the body protect against variants? Is there such a thing as the human genome? Could natural variation be a mechanism for robustness against deleterious mutations? ExAC has turned human genetics upside down, says geneticist David Goldstein of Columbia University in New York City. Instead of starting with a disease or trait and working backwards to find its genetic underpinnings, researchers can start with mutations that look like they should have an interesting effect and investigate what might be happening in the people who harbour them. This really is a new way of working, he says. Remember that the ID approach is to look for reasons for things. Mistakes surely occur when DNA is exposed to carcinogens or cosmic rays, but the rule of thumb for ID is, If something works, its not happening by accident. The fact that billions of people live healthy lives in spite of variants previously assumed to be fatal supports a new heuristic model: maybe we should expect a baseline of variability built into the normal, healthy human genome. We have to be careful; we dont want to confuse tolerance to neutral mutations for function. Haydens article, with a chart, shows that some mutations remain clearly associated with disease. But many others thought to be deadly have turned out to be common in the population, and thus must be benign. Some may increase risk of disease without causing it, or be expressed later in life. There are many pitfalls in associating variants with deleterious effects. Later this month another version of ExAC will be released, increasing the data to 135,000 exomes and 15,000 whole-genome sequences. ExAC is a field to watch for design implications. Given that ExAC has already turned human genetics upside down, maybe design theorists can help find which way is up. Querying the Rest of the Story ExAC catalogs the exome, the coding parts of the genome. What about the non-coding parts? Efforts after ENCODE continue to query the non-coding portions, looking for reasons why they are there. One such effort was published recently in Science by Sanjana et al., High-resolution interrogation of functional elements in the noncoding genome. Heres their design-friendly goal: they want to find causes for effects rather than dismiss the unknown as junk. More than 98% of the human genome does not code for proteins; however, unlike for the coding genome, there exists no overarching framework to translate the noncoding genomic sequence into functional elements. Evidence from genome-wide association studies suggests that many noncoding regions are critical for human health. The implications of these associations, however, have been difficult to assess, in part because we lack the tools to determine which variants alter functional elements. Molecular hallmarks, such as epigenetic state, chromatin accessibility, transcription factor binding, and evolutionary conservation, correlate with putative functional elements in the noncoding genome and can predict regulatory function. However, these predictions largely bypass regions lacking hallmarks, and it is difficult to ascertain which hallmarks play a correlative or truly causal role in function or phenotype. Efforts to determine causality have used preselected DNA fragments, with expression serving as a proxy for function, but these methods lack the local chromatin context and broader regulatory interactions. Thus, there is a need for systematic approaches to sift through noncoding variants and determine whether and how they affect phenotypes in a native biological context. Its exciting to be at the verge of a paradigm shift. This team (though still accepting the Darwinian view that the genome is a product of evolution) is beginning with the right attitude. They want to nail down the evidence for function. It appears Darwinian theory played no role in their research. So here are two avenues of research for design theorists. We know that evolutionists have already made the mistake of dismissing parts of the genome they didnt understand as junk. While we dont want to make the opposite mistake of assuming everything is functional, we can help apply a paradigmatic corrective that may very well lead to fundamental new discoveries. When studying an exon or non-coding region, perhaps we should let design be the default expectation until proven otherwise. After all, you could miss a function if you arent looking for it. So as Natures editors said, Let the reckoning begin. Photo: Jeff Baumgart stock.adobe.com. 2 weeks turnaround for visa application started and medical complete would be very fast for a lot of companiesMy wife had a pink slip/entry permit that wasn't processed for residency on time so she was told to exit UAE and reenter with a new visit visa, at the border she wasn't allowed to leave but told to visit immigration to get the entry permit cancelled before she could leave the UAE (to get a new visit visa in this case).. I'd think it likely the same would happen to you.If you have the entry permit there's nothing to stop you taking it with your passport to a typing office yourself to apply for medical and EID - vip service gets medical results in 24 hours, visa stamping can be done immediately once you have a pass medical result, EID application letter and the entry permit with either a UAE entry stamp or change of status letter (along with proof of tenancy/DEWA account and salary certificate etc).EID application now seems to need the old EID number if you were previously resident, if you don't have the old number or copy of the old card it can delay things 1-2 days as typing office has to request it from your 'file'. themegatherium said: Thank you so much for the links to the Fisc and the advice about the Chamber of Commerce. I will seek them out here and see what I can do. I guess what I'm trying to ascertain is: 1. Do you know if I actually need to start a business? I haven't set up an EIRL or EURL yet. Is there not a way to report income earned from U.S. sources or something? Because if my hourly pay rates suddenly go up 20 percent due to taxes my job is going to fire me anyway and then I'll only have to worry about paying half this year's income in taxes. I guess I could offer to just take a 12% pay cut and they'd end up paying the same they were already. Click to expand... 2. Can I do any of this (EIRLs, taxes, etc.) until the French gov't gives me my social security number? I applied for it, was rejected due to not having a carte de sejour, sent a second application in June on the advice of the prefecture, and sent a THIRD set of papers (both French and English help lines were disconnected) immediately after picking up my physical carte de sejour, but I haven't received a number yet. I know this is just how it is and I shouldn't complain, but it's so frustrating to be told (not by you, by the shocked tax lawyer I spoke to) that I should have been paying French taxes last year during the months I was spending weeks and weeks at the prefecture having my dossier rejected over and over. Click to expand... 2a. I've always filed U.S. taxes but was given to understand from my U.S. tax preparer that I was domiciled in the U.S. in 2015 (due to spending more than half the year there; I moved to France in July) and thus only needed to file U.S. taxes for that year. Apparently that was not the case and now I'll likely owe hefty fines to the French govt as well as being double taxed on five months of income? Do you know if I'll also need to pay regional taxes, as we spent two months of that in a gite in Franche Comte and I don't know how to file for those. Do I not count the weeks after moving that I spent abroad? Click to expand... I don't mean to belittle what you're saying and going through, but welcome to the Wonderful World of being a US expat! I think we all go through some version of this "shock and awe" stage.Net-net yes, you do. Because you are working in France, you need to be paying French cotisations (social insurances) on what you are making. (And you should not be paying into US social security, nor having US taxes withheld from your pay.) If your US employer won't pony up and pay you through their French payroll (if they have one), then you pretty much have to establish a business entity for this. (And most US employers have a hissy fit when they find out their share of the cotisations is something like 40% of your gross salary.)But in essence, you do "need" a pay increase to cover your expenses when you go independent. Think of the various expenses you have now that you didn't have as an employee: office supplies, computer, bookkeeping fees, employer's portion of the social insurances, etc.Actually, setting up an EIRL or any other form of business IS a way to get your French secu number. But it sounds like you're already on your way to this. (And frankly, it'll be easier to set up the EIRL if you have both your CDS and your secu number already.Your US tax preparer is obviously not familiar with taxes for overseas taxpayers. Take a look through IRS Publication 54 for the overview. As a US citizen, you are ALWAYS domiciled for tax purposes in the US, although there are things like the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion you can use based on your residence overseas. Very generally speaking, your "salary" (which includes proceeds from an EIRL if you choose to set it up that way) can be excluded (on IRS form 2555) while you are living and working in France. (Do check the precise requirements in Pub 54.) For 2015, you report your change in address (i.e. to France) as of the date you moved, and you only file French taxes for income earned from that date forward. All foreign source income (which does NOT include your salary since you were working IN France at the time) is reported a second time on a form for foreign source income, and the appropriate adjustments are made to your French taxes from there.There aren't "regional taxes" in the sense you're thinking of them. Not on income anyway. The main "regional tax" is the taxe d'habitation which is more like a property tax, and levied based on where you were living on January 1st of a given year. (In essence, much simpler in practice than US property taxes.) If/when you buy a home, there is a second property tax called the taxe fonciere.The other big thing to recognize is that the Fisc is actually less "threatening" than the IRS likes to be. The first time or two that you file, you can make an appointment at the local tax office and ask them for help. They are usually very accommodating for first time filers, and they actually will advise you how to fill out your forms so that you don't pay more tax than you have to.But take things one step at a time. It takes a LONG time to get used to the idea that things here in France happen much more slowly than back in the US. (Believe me, I know whereof I speak here!)Cheers,Bev Government funds Ro Pax Ferry Service in Gulf of Cambay under Sagarmala Programme Published: October 19, 2016 The Union Ministry of Shipping has sanctioned the Capital Dredging Project of Ro Pax Ferry Services between Gogha & Dahej, in Gulf of Cambay in Gujarat under Sagarmala programme. The total project cost is estimated to be Rs 234 Crore of which 50% will be funded by the Union Government under the Sagarmala programme. Significance of Project This is first of its kind project in India as it will be executed in the area of worlds 2nd highest tidal range. This project on completion will result in reduction in motorable distance of 231 kms between Gogha and Dahej in Gujarat to mere 31 kms. It will pave way for launching Indias first roll on-roll off (Ro-Ro) vessel passenger ferry services on this route by April 2017. Besides, it will reduce the travel time to 1 hour from 7 hours. It will also result in savings in fuel, reduction in CO2 emission and reduction in road congestion. The project will open up new avenues in coastal shipping & tourism and help in socio-economic development of proximate areas. It will also help in utilisation of inland waterways through River Narmada for shipping goods from industries located upstream. What is Sagarmala Programme? The Sagarmala Programme is Union Governments flagship strategic, customer-oriented initiative to achieve the broad objective of promoting port-led economic development in India. The ambitious programme seeks to harness vast potential of Indias 7,500 km long coastline, 14,500 km of potentially navigable waterways and strategic location on key international maritime trade routes. It envisages the growth of coastal and inland shipping as a major mode of transport for carriage of goods and people along the coastal and riverine economic centres. Sagarmala when integrated with the development of inland waterways will help to reduce cost and time for transporting goods, benefiting industries and export/import trade. Gulf of Cambay The Gulf of Cambay (also known as Gulf of Khambhat) is an inlet of the Arabian Sea in the state of Gujarat along the west coast of India. It divides the Kathiawar peninsula to the west from the eastern part of Gujarat state. Narmada, Tapti, Mahi and Sabarmati rivers drain into it. Month: Current Affairs - October, 2016 Topics: Gujarat Gulf of Cambay Inland Waterways National Places in News Sagarmala Project Latest E-Books Tuesday, October 18, 2016 Elon Musk in SpaceX in Hawthorne, California, seems to become enamored by a new grandiose idea every week or so. And this week was no exception. This time he and his well-heeled colleagues are trying to find a way to serve the 3 billion earthlings hunkering down at scattered locations around the globe lacking service by modern cellphones or conventional telephones. The solution? Launch a giant swarm of broadband communication satellites into low-altitude circular orbits flying in a tight formation with one another as they circle around the globe. It is called OneWeb. 300-pound satellites are to be launched into 18 orbit planes with 40 satellites following one another in single file around each plane. Ku-band transmitters will provide satellite-based cellphone services to remote and underserved users everywhere in the world. Mass production techniques and the economies of scale should help keep the cost of each individual satellite in the $500,000 range. Recently the OneWeb satellites passed their preliminary design review at the famous satellite design center in Toulouse, France. OneWebs total network cost, including a widely dispersed network of gateway Earth stations, is expected to come in at about $3.5 billion, provided the cost-conscious satellite-makers in Exploration Park, Florida, can come in within their target budget. Company spokesmen ha ve indicated that, so far, their team members are on schedule and within 5% of their estimated costs. About 15-percent of the $3.5 billion has been raised and has been funding about 300 full-time experts. Present schedules call for initial money-raising services to being in 2019. Some industry experts have been calling the concept the O3b other three billion, for the three billion widely distributed individuals unserved by mobile or hard-wired telephones. Elon Musk is famous for turning wild ideas into practical reality and squeezed out impressive profits along the way. Many of his ideas have been floating around for some time when he decides to take a shot at turning them into reality. An earlier version of OneWeb was touted by Edward Tucks in the 1970s. It was called Teledesic. The Teledesic concept sprang to life because Tucks read that 40 million people (were) on the waiting list for telephone services around the world. He quietly sketched up the plans for an 840-satellite constellation of communication satellites flitting through space in 435-mile orbits. Launch costs were a big barrier then. But Elon Musk can now put a big dent in that problem with his surprisingly inexpensive Falcon boosters. Tom Logsdon, the author of this blog teaches short courses for the Applied Technology Institute in Riva, Maryland. He will be discussing, in detail, the rapidly evolving OneWeb plans as they are springing from the drawing boards in the following short courses: The author of this article, Tom Logsdon, teaches short courses, on a regular basis, for the Applied Technology Institute in Riva, Maryland. Here is his upcoming schedule of courses: Click here for further information: ATIcourses, Tom Logsdon Rating 3.00 out of 5 Tuesday, October 18, 2016 Three words come to mind when I think of funeral director and life cycle celebrant Larry Mandel: kindness, justice and enthusiasm. He died on Sunday, October 16, 2016, just two weeks shy of his 68th birthday (Oct. 30 also Create a Great Funeral Day). Theres been no official statement about the cause, but I suspect past heart troubles returned to catch up with him. Kindness Larry was a mensch a good guy. He proudly described himself as a fourth generation funeral director. He was also a very media-savvy funeral director. Early in his career, before joining the family business, he worked at WGN-TV in television promotion. When I had the opportunity to be on WGN-TVs Midday program in Chicago, I called Larry to see if hed like to put together some community outreach presentations while I was there. He jumped at the opportunity. Larry put together two synagogue presentations on Jewish funeral traditions illustrated with film clips and a continuing education session at Pisers funeral home to educate social workers about funeral planning issues. At the Piser continuing education event, he welcomed the crowd by saying, You can actually visit a funeral home and not be sad. Gail Rubin helps start the funeral planning conversation in a fun, interesting way and we are so privileged to have her here in Chicago. I am so privileged to have had Larry Mandels enthusiastic support throughout my career as a death educator. He embodied kindness and generosity. Justice Larry was the Owner/Manager of Piser Funeral Services in Skokie, IL from July 1980 to October of 2013 over 33 years. After he retired, he became an interfaith life cycle celebrant and funeral director concierge. His motto was, Taking people by the hand at the most memorable times of their lives. He also became a funeral director associate at Mitzvah Memorial Funerals in Deerfield/Skokie in 2014. In July of 2013, Larry participated in a strike against SCI by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 727, representing funeral directors and drivers. SCI had purchased Piser and operated the funeral home under their Dignity Memorial brand. Larry was out there on the street demanding justice and protecting the rights of those who worked as funeral directors. More about this story here. Enthusiasm Larry loved life. He loved scuba diving and visiting Mexico. He loved his wife Sue and was so proud of all his children. He loved helping people in their times of grief and in their times of celebration. His Facebook page was full of pictures of him with couples he had just married, many in the most interesting settings. He had recently posted on Facebook about the successful 50th high school reunion he helped coordinate. Having just returned from my own 40th high school reunion, his death reminds us all to be fully present and enthusiastic, kind and loving to everyone. We never know when our last day will come. Let us keep Larrys memory in our hearts and our actions as a tribute to his life. The funeral will take place on Thursday, October 20 at 2:00 p.m. at Lakeside Congregation, 1221 Lake Cook Road, Highland Park, IL. His official obituary and service details posted at the Mitzvah Memorial Funerals website: Lawrence Larry Mandel, beloved husband of Sue Ann Mandel nee Keller. Loving father of Rebecca Gamber, Russell (Kristin) Mandel, Caryn (Hugh) Solvsberg and Philip (Kimberly) Mosberg. Cherished grandfather of Andrew, Jenna, Blake, Jillian and Addison. Fond brother of Bonnie (Alan) Carl. Dear son in law of Elsie Keller. Services Thursday 2PM at Lakeside Congregation 1221 County Line Road Highland Park, IL 60035. Interment will be private. In lieu of flowers remembrances to your preferred charity would be appreciated. Arrangement by Mitzvah Memorial Funerals, 630-Mitzvah (630-648-9824) or www.MITZVAHFUNERALS.com Tuesday, October 18, 2016 I hate this. I really do. I hate that the astoundingly biased and partisan news media and pundit class refuses to even make a fair pass at doing its job, forcing an ethics blog to place itself in the position of being accused of defending Donald Trump. Yeccch. [Rueful but amused aside regarding the biased and partisan news media: Late Sunday evening, Chris Cillizza, who authors the political blog for the Washington Post, tweeted: Let me say for the billionth time: Reporters dont root for a side. Period. This was a manifestly absurd assertion, and made me wonder about Cillizza, who may not root for a side, but whose own left-leaning and pro-Clinton bias creeps into his work at regular intervals. But the gods of irony were ready: Monday morning the Center for Public Integrity released its 2016 campaign analysis that showed that U.S. journalists gave hundreds of thousands of dollars to Clintons campaign. CPI identified 430 people as journalists, reporters, news editors or television news anchors as well as other donors known to be working in journalism 96 % gave money to Clinton, according to federal campaign finance filings. Thats 96. Ninety-six. NINETY-SIX. As is all but 4%. Got that? Are we clear? Those 430 journalists gave $382,000 to Clinton and $14,000 to GOP nominee Donald Trump. Fifty journalists gave to Trump; 380 gave to Clinton. Many more members of the media almost certainly donated, and almost certainly in a similarly unbalanced split, but the law only obligates candidates to disclose the names of donors giving more than $200 in a single election cycle. In its report, CPI noted that even though many news organizations have policies against donating to politicians, those organizations reporters donated anyway. Poor, naive, Chris Cillizza, having proven that as a reporter, his confirmation bias prevents him from seeing what is all around him, at least had the integrity to follow up his previous tweet (Period.) by tweeting Well this is super depressing. NO idea why any journalist would donate $ to politicians. Well why dont you think about it, Chris? Im sure it will come to you. But I digress...] I know this is a political campaign and that hyperbole and loose facts are as American as apple pie. However, Barack Obama is President of the United, States, and he, even more than most, must not actively seek to re-write history, especially since so many of his supporters have the historical perspective of mayflies. Therefore he must not be allowed to escape proper condemnation for these statements he made yesterday in a campaign speech attacking Donald Trump. Yes, only condemnation will do, for his statements were dishonest, untrue, and constituted hypocrisy as its worst. Presidents should be better. Obama had the gall to lecture Donald Trump with two head-exploding statements for anyone whose memory extends back before the Bush presidency, and one that should have triggered mass cranial eruptions from anyone conscious during the past 8 years: 1. One of the great things about Americas democracy is we have a vigorous, sometimes bitter political contest, and when its done, historically, regardless of party, the person who loses the election congratulates the winner, reaffirms our democracy and we move forward. After the 2008 election was decided because the Supreme Court stopped a recount that would never end unless it was stopped, Al Gore indeed did the noble and statesmanlike thing and conceded, congratulated President Bush, and then sat by as Democratic Party Chairman Terry McAuliffe (a Clinton henchman, now governor of Virginia), Joe Lieberman and Democrats at all levels proceeded to pronounce the election stolen and rigged, not only undermining trust in the system, but also impugning the Supreme Court. Remember Selected, not Elected, a Democrat mantra, chanted among thousands of protesters at Bushs 2001 inaugural? No? Neither does Barack Obama, apparently, because no Democrat would ever dream of attacking the legitimacy of an election after the votes are in. We move forward! Right. Democrats kept claiming fraud, or attacked the system itself (Gore won the popular vote and lost the Presidency just like Jackson, Tilden, and Cleveland, but not having the historical perspective of competent citizens, Democrats treated this anomaly as a singular atrocity engineered by Republicans) with their usual assistance by the partisan news media, for eight years. The intent was to deprive President Bush of legitimacy for exactly the same reasons birthers like Donald Trump tried to deny Barack Obamas legitimacy. It works. The theme was repeated with variations after the 2004 re-election, of Bush, when Democrats claimed that the state of Ohio was stolen by Republicans. John Edwardsremember him?led the way; it is apparently losing vice-presidential nominees whom the Democrats give the job of undermining public trust in democracy. Jesse Jacksonremember him?former Democratic Presidential candidate, father of a Congressman (now jailed), called for an insurrection over the 2004 results. Jesse then, like Al Sharpton now, was never publicly rejected by Democratsreliable blue votes, you know. Go Jesse! I wrote then (December 15, 2004), and I take pride that I wrote: Jackson is intentionally inflaming a deep wound on our democratic institutions, inflicted by a random confluence of events in the election of 2000 that made a definitive result unattainable. The Democratic Party, egged on by its apparently scruple-free chairman Terry McAuliffe, continuedfor four years! to encourage the myth that the 2000 election was stolen. It was successful at this dubious objective: polls show that nearly 50% of the electorate, almost exclusively Al Gore voters, believe this untruth. (Indignant Kerry supporters in the media made much of the fact that about 70% of ignorant Bush voters believe that Saddam Hussein had a hand in the September 11 attacks. Well, guys, almost 100% of Kerrys voters buy the stolen election lie.) They believe the election was stolen despite the fact that no Florida vote count ever even had Gore in the lead; despite the fact that the multiple hand-recounts undertaken by the supposedly liberal-biased news media after the election showed Bush winning legitimately; despite the fact that the only significant and documented factors costing Gore votes (the candidacy of Ralph Nader and the inexcusably confusing butterfly ballot that probably gave Neanderthal conservative Pat Buchanan accidental votes from a decisive number of bewildered Gore voters) had nothing to do with the GOP; and most of all, despite the fact that the best result the Democrats could reasonably have hoped for, a disputed vote count in Florida with no clear victor, would still have resulted in a Bush victory by the Constitutions mandated solution of a vote by the (GOP dominated) House of Representatives. Of course, what really made this misrepresentation an easy sell was the fact that Gore won the popular vote. If you plumb the soul of the angry Gore voter, what he really believes is that the Constitution stole the election. All rightit was cynical and intellectually dishonest for the Democrats to exploit this issue: it divided the country and robbed President Bush of any chance of a national constituency, but they thought it would win them the White House in 2004. .Intentionally and deceptively eroding the publics belief in the American democracy in order to win an election is a terrible and unethical trade-off It is time to heal the wound and move to strengthen our democratic institutions and the publics faith in them. Jackson and others do not want to let the wound heal. They are playing a dangerous and irresponsible game with the future of America by clawing at the scab and pouring salt into the gaping wound. They are risking the creation of a permanently skeptical electorate that will always believe that if its favored candidate loses, it must be because the other side cheated. This can lead to more cheating. This can lead to violence.And because America is the role model for democracy all over the world, this can undermine democracy itself. Sad to say, it is likely that Jesse Jackson is risking all this, not because of a genuine belief that there was such massive election fraud that a recount in Ohio will change the election results, but for narrow and self-serving political objectives: he is willing to damage Americas bond of faith and principle with the American people to keep African Americans distrustful of the government and bolster Jacksons fading prestige and influence. It is hard to imagine anything more despicable. It is hard to imagine anything more despicable. I agree with President Obama that it is despicable for Trump to do this, but I do not care to hear any Democrat lecture the country about the dangers of sowing suspicion and distrust. That was their game. What Trump is doing tears at a foundation of trust that Democrats intentionally weakened, and not just during one campaign cycle, but for years. No, Obama daring to say now that he has never heard of such a thing isnt as despicable, and at least his words now express what some Democrats should have had the integrity to express from 2001 to this point. It is incredible, however, that the man can be so hypocritical so arrogantly. If Trumps conspiracy theory endangers us now, it is only because Democrats weakened our society by intentionally undermined public trust for political gain. 2. I have never seen in my lifetime or in modern political history, any presidential candidate trying to discredit the elections and the election process before votes have even taken place. Its unprecedented. It happens to be based on no facts. This is deceit. No, Presidential candidates havent tried to discredit elections prior to the vote, but its a technical point when prominent Democrats like Robert Kennedy, Jr and John Kerry , as well as the left-wing blogs and websites, have repeatedly implied that Republicans stole previous elections. (Ann Althouse makes the valid point that if you really think the election is going to be stolen, the time to say so is before it happens, not after.) As for It happens to be based on no factsKABOOM! That one sent my head onto the ceiling. No facts? A court just ordered the IRS to finally stop playing games with conservative political non-profits. Reports show that State Department personnel tried to bargain with the FBI to declassify one of the e-mails incriminating Hillary Clinton. President Obama lied, saying that he had no knowledge of Clintons private server, and now we have evidence that he communicated through that server using a false name. The administration just pressured Ecuador to shut down Julian Assanges e-mail accessyou know, the guy who is dumping all of those embarrassing hacked messages and speeches? The press and media, except for a few islands of conservative bias, have, per the New York Times, suspended journalism ethics to defeat Donald Trump. Democrats have fought and demonized efforts to do something so basic as to require identification at the voting booth, all while encouraging illegal immigrants to come and stay.and maybe vote. Meanwhile, the Democrats were perfectly willing to rig their nomination process to ensure Clintons nomination. I dont think that the 2016 election is rigged, but dont insult my intelligence by telling me that there is no reason for Trump or anyone else to worry about it. This is an inept, corrupt and dishonest administration, supported by a partisan and unethical news media that allows its favored Presidents administrations transgressions and failures to be hidden, obfuscated and buried whenever possible. This is a President who hails from the most corrupt major city in the nation, and who had his path to the Senate cleared when the Chicago Tribune got the sexually provocative divorce files of his favored Republican opponent to be unsealed, with the resulting scandal forcing his adversary to drop out too late for the GOP to find a viable substitution. The Obamas administration has shown contempt for law and the Constitution on many occasions, and is dominated by a party that increasingly adopts totalitarian attitudes and methods, trying to restrict free speech and due process of law. Its current candidate for trhe White House favors government confiscation of guns, and we know that she intentionally acted to foil public access to her communications while risking national security to do it. She, her husband, and such minions as Cheryl Mills, John Podesta and Paul Begala have shown that they are full believers in the ruthless political principle that the ends justify the means. Would Hillary Clinton rig the election if she could? Good question. 3. If whenever things are going badly for you and you lose, you start blaming somebody else, then you dont have what it takes to be in this job. Do I really have to explain why it isGRRRRROAAAWRRRYUJYYTTTTTAHHHHHHHH!(sorry, I lost control there for a minute) infuriating to have to hear the single most unaccountable, excuse-making Chief Executive in U.S. history dare to say this about anyone, even an utter fool like Donald Trump? Im not going to bother. How dare this man, of all people, say that? Is Obama right about Trump and the danger of talking the way he is? Of course. How disgraceful then, and typical, that he could not say so without setting a new record for political hypocrisy. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Mission Solar Energy says that buying solar cells from overseas will help maintain the companys competitive edge in the growing U.S. and international markets for the clean energy. The San Antonio-based solar manufacturing company announced plans earlier this month to cut 87 jobs as it shutters its solar cell production line at its plant near Brooks City Base. Mission Solar weighed its long-term prospects in deciding to make the cuts, senior manager of planning Sam Martens said in an Oct. 14 interview. Focusing on just the module side of the business gives us much more flexibility in terms of what products we can produce based upon different cell technologies, Martens said. We dont have to be bound to just one technology that we would produce in San Antonio; we can source multiple technologies from the market. Solar cells the individual wafers that use sunlight to produce electricity are used to make solar modules of varying size. Several modules can be connected together to make solar arrays mounted on a device or rooftop. Mission Solar will import most, if not all, of its cells from Asian vendors, Martens said, he declined to specify which country. At least 68 percent of the photovoltaic module imports into the U.S. last year came from Asian suppliers, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration data. The logistics of importing solar cells is relatively easy, said Martens, because the solar cells are lightweight and easy to pack. Assembling the cells into modules in San Antonio lessens the distance the bulkier modules have to travel to their final destinations in Texas and beyond. Theres a lot of value added in assembling the module and then distributing that more locally, Martens said. One market that Mission Solar is eyeing is Mexico, which opened up its state-run oil and gas market in 2013, and also began deregulating its electricity market. In December 2015, Mexico passed the Energy Transition Law, which sets renewable goals of 25 percent by 2018 and 35 percent by 2024. Voter Guide: What to know for the midterm election Your guide to the Texas and San Antonio races and candidates on the Nov. 8 ballot. The markets new in Mexico and were evaluating the market right now and seeing what opportunities lie there, said Mission Solar spokeswoman Laura Waldrum. While there may be some challenges in developing and financing solar projects in Mexico, Martens believes that Mission Solars proximity to the border and trade agreements with Mexico will make it easier to tap into the country. But Mission Solar is also keeping an eye on the competition as more people try to take advantage of larger projects in Texas and the United States. The great challenge I think is not going to be for the market itself; I think growth is looking pretty healthy, Martens said. But definitely many more players are entering into the market and the market itself is becoming much more competitive. rdruzin@express-news.net The first big gala in the lead-up to the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo Feb. 9-26 will pair Travis Tritt and the Bellamy Brothers, two acts that became country stars despite being more off-center than most in the mainstream. The 22nd annual Go Rodeo Roundup at 6:30 p.m. Saturday in the Expo Hall on the AT&T Center grounds will continue the events focus on bringing legendary entertainers that fit the older demographics for the show, while drawing younger fans to partake in a variety of catered, gourmet food booths, an open bar, door prizes and live and silent auctions. The event draws some 3,600 people and raises money for the San Antonio Livestock Expositions scholarship fund, which awarded more than $11.3 million this year. The Go Rodeo Roundup is one of top fund-raising events of the year. Texas Music artist Nick Hernandez of Helotes, who is working songs from his latest album, Moonshine, will play dance music on the side stage before the concert and between sets. More Information In concert What: Go Rodeo Roundup, featuring Travis Tritt, the Bellamy Brothers and Nick Lawrence Band When: 6:30 p.m. Saturday Where: Expo Hall, AT&T Center grounds, One AT&T Center Parkway Tickets: $78; $850, table; $1,850, Silver Horseshoe table. 210-225-5851 or sarodeo.com See More Collapse Tritt, a native of Marietta, Georgia, shot to stardom in 1989 as an unlikely country artist. He didnt wear a cowboy hat. His long blond hair swept down below his shoulders. Then there was his take on country: He intertwined it with his childhood love of blues, Southern rock and gospel, with soulful vocals that earned an outlaw image and set him apart from the others. One of his hits is Heres a Quarter (Call Someone Who Cares). While pay phones are rare today, Tritts fans are not. He continues selling out venues from coast to coast after developing a loyal fan base with dozens of hits that led to more than 25 million album sales, two Grammy awards and multiple country-music awards. His hits include The Whiskey Aint Workin, Its a Great Day to Be Alive, Best Intentions, Where the Corn Dont Grow and T-R-O-U-B-L-E. Tritt credits the longevity of his career to having an easily recognizable voice. The Bellamy Brothers, the most successful duo in country history, have pushed the genres boundaries since their crossover soft-rock hit Let Your Love Flow shot them to stardom in 1976. Darby, Florida, natives David and Howard Bellamy routinely infuse their country with wit, rock, reggae and rap. Rolling Stone Country says they may have launched todays country rap, or hick-hop, almost 30 years ago when they released the single Country Rap. Theyre still pushing boundaries with EPs such as Boobs/Texas Girls, with the song Boobs harping on crummy rap music. To celebrate their 40th anniversary last year, the Bellamys released an unconventional greatest-hits album, 40 Years: The Album. They paired 20 classics, including Old Hippie and Redneck Girl, with 20 new songs, such as Living in Oblivion, with a country reggae groove and a longing for a certain state of mind. Another is Hippie Cowboys, which was written in the vein of a TV theme song such as The Beverly Hillbillies or The Monkees. The volunteer committee of the Go Rodeo Roundup has about 120 members who begin planning the event in February. Crunch time comes on the Wednesday before the gala, when they turn bare floors into a huge party room. The party for them wont end on Saturday night. They have to tear it all down Sunday morning. john@johngoodspeed.com : , 10 5 This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The freefall of the oil market, for most of us, hasnt meant much more than cheaper gas. For Nigerian-born petroleum engineer Stephen Ekwunife, the crash meant the end of his American oil-services job. And for San Antonio, that meant Ekwunife could turn a love of cooking into Kobams African Restaurant. Kobams specializes in the food of Nigeria, Cameroon and the Ivory Coast, with tomato-rich dishes such as joloff rice, aromatic egusi soup served with doughy pounded yam starch called fufu for scooping, plus grilled and roasted meats and fried plantains to sweeten the deal. Ekwunifes San Antonio chapter began when he moved here in March 2015 after his petroleum job in New Orleans fell through. He took his severance and savings and poured them into a former taqueria in a strip mall that shares space with a bingo hall and two churches. Ekwunife did most of the renovation work himself, he said, from replacing the ceiling to texturing the deep orange walls to rehabilitating the kitchen space. The process took nine months, and Kobams opened in January this year. More Information Kobams African Restaurant * (1 star) 8753 Grissom Road, 210-474-6058, www.kobams.com Quick bite: Nigerian specialties from Stephen Ekwunife, a petroleum engineer who traded oilfield services for the love of cooking the rice dishes, aromatic soups, grilled meats and pounded yam fufu of his homeland. Hit:Whole grilled tilapia, joloff rice Miss: Dry suya beef, overcooked chicken Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, noon-8 p.m. Sunday Price range: Appetizers and sides such as fried plantains, $2-$10; grilled beef suya $13; whole grilled tilapia $13; main dishes with rice and meat, $13-$18; soup with pounded yam (fufu) and meat $13-$14; soft drinks $2-$3. ****Superior. Can compete nationally. ***Excellent. One of the best restaurants in the city. ** Very good. A standout restaurant of its kind. * Good. A restaurant that we recommend. (no stars) We cannot recommend this restaurant at this time. Express-News dining critics pay for all meals. See More Collapse The name Kobams? Dont look for deeper meaning, because as Ekwunife said, sometimes you just go with something unique that sounds good when you say it: Kobams. Pepper soup sounds good when you say it. Pepper soup is something different when you smell it. With its hot, brothy tumble of liver, kidney, cow skin and tripe, it makes menudo seem as tame as canned cream of mushroom. The offals musky flavor makes an unlikely but harmonious dance partner with an eye-wateringly fierce broth. The pepper soup was just an introduction to the Nigerian canon. Fix in your sense memory the smell of seeds and pulp from a freshly butchered pumpkin. Now transport that memory to a hot bowl of soup with greens and fatty knobs of goat meat. Now picture eating that soup with fingers full of something like proofed bread dough. This is the experience of egusi soup with fufu. Egusi is made from ground pumpkin or melon seeds, and fufu is the pounded yam flour served with it, formed into a doughy mound thats squeezed through the fingers a dumpling at a time for dipping into the soup. The aromas, the texture, the awkward spectacle of utensil-free eating this is the Kobams experience. In that same vein, ogbono soup came across as aggressively cheesy and fermented, a collagenous tangle of mashed seeds from a plant known as African mango. Fish stock and spinach added to the sweaty aromatics, and the slick texture was augmented further by cows skin, a protein I chose over more conventional beef or chicken. Its a choice I wouldnt make again, no more than Id make chili out of nothing but fat trimmings. If the experience sounds relentlessly unfamiliar, it should. This is how we expand our culinary horizons. But there are touchstones to the familiar at Kobams as well. Suya, for example, falls in that universal food subcategory of grilled beef and onions. At Kobams, suya is brisket carved shawarma-style in long and short strips. Theyre as spare and arid as barely reconstituted jerky, with a barbecue rub-style spice called yaji, made from crushed peanuts, black pepper, garlic and ginger. Kobams fried rice with chicken brings to mind arroz con pollo, with subtle tweaks. The rice blooms with curry, even if the fried rice part of the equation is negligible, really just a toss of mixed vegetables from a freezer bag. The chicken is barely seasoned, a leg quarter dry and sticky under bronze skin. I found myself drawn back to more interesting plates. Somewhere in the land between the familiar and the unfamiliar lies joloff rice, as aromatically spicy as paella, with a rich tomato glow and sparks of thyme, ginger and garlic. A heaping mound of that rice with roasted beef shoulder clod dressed in the same tomato sauce was one of this reviews most satisfying dishes. My favorite dish at Kobams arose from an unlikely source. Tilapia, in general, is a fish Ill eat only under protest, given its murky provenance and silty flavor. But in a yeomans show of skill and seasoning, Ekwunife transformed a whole fish into a pick-apart bounty of tomato, pepper and firm, milky flesh with warm tones that dovetailed with half-sweet fried plantains. With every artful dodge of the fork necessary given the Wolverine clawscape of the fishs silvery bones came a tangle of fried onions to sharpen and sweeten the taste. Theres no denying Ekwunifes skill in the kitchen. But his lack of previous experience running a restaurant leaves little room for table service beyond the ordering and delivering of food. Drinks are purely an afterthought. Theres a cooler of bottled water and tea, broken only by Mexican Coke and Vitamalt, a stubby bottle of soda popular in Africa and the Caribbean that tastes like sorghum seltzer. What will seem disappointingly familiar in this unfamiliar setting are three TV screens, two of them in steady CNN mode, the third blaring disconsonant pop music over what seems like Eastern Europes Funniest Home Videos. Bad news and bad video gags run in stark counter-current to the good vibes generated by food that is by turns enlightening, challenging and welcome in San Antonios culinary tapestry. WASHINGTON More is riding on the battle for Mosul than the recapture of the Islamic State groups main stronghold in northern Iraq. Also on the line is the Obama administrations theory that the extremists can be defeated in Iraq, Syria and elsewhere without American ground troops doing the fighting. For more than two years, the administration has stuck to its argument that the only path to a sustained victory over the Islamic State group is for locals, not Americans or other outsiders, to bear the main responsibility for the fighting and for governing after the extremists are removed. President Barack Obama has taken a lot of political heat for that approach, which critics say has allowed IS to expand its international reach and influence. The viability of Obamas strategy has been widely doubted. In May 2015, after months of U.S. bombings in Iraq and while in the midst of Americans training and advising Iraqi ground troops, the Iraqis lost the city of Ramadi. Defense Secretary Ash Carter publicly said he doubted the Iraqis will to fight. Since then, the U.S. support role has grown and the Iraqi security forces have managed to retake key parts of western and northern Iraq, including Ramadi. Mosul is different, not least because it is the place where Islamic State leaders in 2014 announced their intent to create an Islamic-run state after taking a large swath of Iraq and Syria in a lightning surge. White House press secretary Josh Earnest on Monday called Mosul a new measure of Obamas strategy. And I think the president would be the first to acknowledge that this is a significant test, he said, given the size of the city and its importance to IS. Dislodging them from the city would be a significant strategic gain, Earnest said. U.S. airpower played a key role in the run-up to the fight for Mosul by taking out Islamic State defenses, cash resources, supply routes and some of the groups leaders. The U.S. is now providing air cover as Iraqi security forces and members of the Kurdish militia begin their attempt to retake the city over the next several weeks. American advisers are working with Iraqi troops, but the outcome will be determined largely by the Iraqis. Mosul may answer the question: If IS loses a crown jewel of its so-called caliphate, will that be a decisive and sustainable victory for Iraq? Or will Baghdad once again falter, allowing sectarian and political divisions to destabilize the country and permit a return of extremists? That likely wont be known before Obamas successor takes office. The next president also will inherit the broader problem of Syria not just the IS presence there, including in its self-proclaimed capital of Raqqa, but also the civil war with its complications involving Russia, Iran and Turkey. Iraq remains deeply divided, and the grievances among the countrys Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish populations that allowed IS to rise to power in the first place have not been resolved. Even if the Mosul campaign is successful militarily, there is a risk of violence erupting again in the form of revenge killings or clashes between groups once allied against a common enemy. Seth Jones, a defense and security expert at the RAND Corp., says the combat phase of the battle for Mosul, while difficult, will be much easier than the aftermath. I think theres a strong possibility that a lot of the political grievances actually get accentuated, he said in an interview Friday. David Petraeus, the former Army general who commanded U.S. and coalition forces in Iraq in 2007-08, calls the Obama approach in Iraq and Syria a new way of fighting. Its much more sustainable in terms of blood and treasure than obviously having our forces have to do it, Petraeus, who also served as Obamas CIA director, said Sunday on ABCs This Week. Obama began sending small numbers of U.S. military advisers to Iraq in the summer of 2014, after the Islamic State had swept into Mosul and also captured much of western Iraq, including cities like Ramadi and Fallujah where American ground troops had spilled much blood before all U.S. troops left Iraq in 2011. The rise of IS in Iraq was a stinging blow to Obama, whom critics accused of giving up hard-fought gains. He initially insisted there would be no U.S. boots on the ground, but he authorized a gradual expansion of the U.S. training and advising effort to complement a U.S.-led coalition air campaign. He was supported in his cautious, go-slow approach by his top military adviser at the time, Gen. Martin Dempsey, who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when IS moved into Iraq and when Obama began returning U.S. advisers to Baghdad. Dempsey counselled patience. Give the Iraqis time to heal their internal divisions and fight their own battles, he argued. Resist the temptation to grab control of the contest against the Islamic State. Dempsey believed an enduring victory would require a unified Iraq supported by neighbors. If we were to take control of this campaign, I mean literally seize control of the campaign, then theres no doubt in my mind we would probably defeat ISIL on, lets say, a faster timeline, but it would not last, he said in June 2015. Maybe ISIL goes away, maybe theyre defeated militarily, and two years from now another group with another name and another ideology ... will just be back, he said. In the Obama view, Iraq is more likely to regain, and retain, control of its territory if it is not relying on U.S. troops to do the fighting. Mosul is the biggest test of that theory. AP National Security Writer Robert Burns has been reporting and writing about Iraq since 1990. AP Radio correspondent Sagar Meghani contributed to this report. Fresh from expanding into VIA Metro, Bexar Countys all-digital library system BiblioTech has entered a pact with the University Health System to deliver ebooks and other free reading material to hospital patients, families and employees. Under the agreement approved Tuesday by Commissioners Court, the hospital system will provide facilities and volunteer staff for BiblioTech kiosks, the podium-size terminals where digital collections can be searched for download to personal mobile devices. BiblioTech launched three years ago with a facility on the South Side, now supplemented with a West Side library and an East Side location under construction. In several other public areas, including the Central Jury Room and military installations, BiblioTech has installed kiosks to provide basic library functions. Last month, a BiblioTech kiosk was unveiled at VIAs Centro Plaza transit center in an initiative called Ride and Read. Plans call for kiosks at five other transit centers. With their mobile devices, registered library patrons can use VIAs free wifi to access BiblioTechs 40,000 titles. One of the greatest points of elegance about BiblioTech is that we can make it fit anywhere, said BiblioTech administrator Laura Cole. We can make it fit any model, she said, including a hospital system. County Judge Nelson Wolff, who instigated the library project, said almost 300,000 books have been checked out by patrons since the 2013 debut. These innovative programs when we have a partner are cost effective, and allow us to expand the reading opportunities, not just with books, he said. The library also offers digital versions of magazines, cookbooks, movies, music and comic books all free to Bexar County residents who register as patrons. In other action Tuesday, the court authorized staff to negotiate an Innovation Fund grant of $50,000 to Project QUEST Inc., to train workers for cybersecurity jobs. Plans call for several 11-week, bootcamp programs at the Rackspace Open Cloud Academy, targeting separating military members and veterans. Ideal candidates for the program, which would have up to 20 participants per camp, were described as San Antonio residents with IT or IT-supported backgrounds, officials said. The ultimate goal is to provide an opportunity for veterans to become cybersecurity specialists with the basic knowledge, certifications and hands-on exposure to support San Antonio-area commercial and defense cybersecurity employement requirements, the county proposal stated. Project QUEST would help prepare workers for in-demand, living-wage careers by piloting a veteran or transitioning service member cohort through the Rackspace Open Cloud Academy, the proposal said. Also Tuesday, commissioners cleared the way for the San Antonio River Authority to install a public artwork, commissioned by the San Antonio River Foundation, at the Mission San Jose Portal. Conceptual artist Mel Chin has been selected to create the outdoor sculpture. jgonzalez@express-news.net Twitter: @johnwgonzalez This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SEGUIN Just staying solvent is a challenge for many hospitals, so the Guadalupe Regional Medical Center could be accused of overachieving by expanding services, improving facilities and even turning a small profit. The last remaining city-county owned hospital in Texas, the facility levies no property tax and gets no direct funding from the City of Seguin or Guadalupe County above what they are required by state law to provide for indigent care, which amounted to $1.5 million each in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30. Yet, as its chief executive officer Robert Haynes told the city council and county commissioners Tuesday, the hospital turned a profit of .04 percent during the year, about $400,000, and should double that in the current fiscal year if projections hold. Our days of cash on hand went from 119 to about 140 days since the previous year, Haynes told commissioners. Going back 13 years when I started, we had nine days of cash on hand. County and city leaders praised Haynes and the independent hospital board that runs the facility for the upbeat annual report. Even in this era of uncertainty about health care costs, theyve been able to remain solvent and achieve more cash on hand, while still offering high quality care, Mayor Don Keil said Wednesday. Its really a laudable thing. County Judge Kyle Kutscher said the hospital plays an important role in the communitys growth. The hospitals sustainability and the perceptions people have about it have a huge impact on how many people move here and what type of people move here, he told Haynes in the meeting. Total hospital expenses will climb about $2 million this year, to $94 million, according to Haynes, who noted half of the budget goes for the salaries and benefits for its 750 employees. Eight new positions were added to its medical staff in the past year as the hospital tries to match its providers with the needs of the community and curb the outflow of local patients to San Antonio for care, Haynes said. We expanded our acuity level, the scope of what we can care for, by bringing in not only a neonatologist, but neurologists and other specialists, he said. You have to have the right mix and cadre of physicians... so that everybody is working toward the same things as a stand-alone facility. The Texas Municipal League honored the city and county in 2012 with the City-County Cooperation Award for their joint ownership, since about 1960, of the facility formerly known as Guadalupe Valley Hospital. The original 26-bed hospital on Weinert Street was replaced in 1965 with a 79-bed facility at the current location on East Court Street. Haynes, who was hired in 1981 as a respiratory therapist and became chief executive in 2003, has already overseen a $102 million construction project that included remodeling 65,000 square feet and adding 141,000 square feet. Six years after that work wrapped up, hes about to embark next month on roughly $15 million in additional upgrades. That work will expand patient capacity from 125 now to about 150. It includes creating a larger, 27-bed surgical center on the hospitals unfinished third floor and adding eight new rooms in the obstetrics department. Well have all private rooms where you can actually deliver (babies) in the room, Haynes said. The hospital also will add parking spaces out front by demolishing a Bank of America building that it recently acquired for $250,000. That acquisition, the recent upgrades and upcoming work are being funded by a $117 million bond issue last year, which included refinancing $87 million in existing hospital debt, Haynes said. Dr. James Lee, a member of the hospital board of managers, told commissioners that the upcoming structural changes follow recent upgrades to the microbiology lab, cardio and pulmonary areas and new security features at the hospital. The whole purpose of all this is to try to provide services to the people who live in this county so they wont have to make that trip elsewhere, he said. The hospital is doing very, very well. zeke@express-news.net AUSTIN Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump hurt by weeks of self-inflicted wounds, public feuds with party brass and lagging support nationally is statistically tied with Democrat Hillary Clinton in bright-red Texas just days before early voting begins, three new polls show. In a survey released Tuesday by the University of Houstons Hobby School of Public Affairs, Trump holds a 3 percentage-point lead over Clinton, 41 percent to 38 percent, among registered voters in the Lone Star State. That narrow lead falls within the surveys margin of error of plus- or minus 3 percent, meaning the race is a statistical dead heat. Trumps lead rose to 4 percentage points among voters who said they were certain to vote on or before Election Day. The national gains Hillary Clinton has made in the last two weeks are evident in Texas, where she has closed within 3 points of Donald Trump, said Richard Murray, political science professor and director of the Hobby Schools Survey Research Institute. With such a close margin, the key question will be which candidate can actually get their supporters to the polls over the next three weeks. Texas, reliably red for more than a generation, had been assumed to be in the Republican win column, even before Trump claimed the GOP nomination. Despite Clintons history of support in the state she outpolled Barack Obama in the 2008 Democratic primary her campaign never has outwardly suggested Texas could be in play in November. As the race appears to have tightened, however, her campaign has opened additional offices around Texas and announced a last-minute ad buy in the states largest metropolitan areas. Several polls conducted since the first presidential debate on Sept. 26 put Trumps lead in the high single-digits, but a few more recent surveys show his advantage shrinking. In particular, an Oct. 13 poll from WFAA-TV, a Dallas station, gave Trump a 4-point edge on Clinton, 47 percent to 43 percent, which, like the UH poll, put the GOP nominee within the margin of error. Also released Tuesday, a Washington Post/SurveyMonkey poll which was conducted online and had thousands of respondents showed Clinton trailing Trump by 2 points in Texas, 44 percent to 42 percent. Republican Mitt Romney bested President Barack Obama in Texas by nearly 16 points in 2012. The seemingly close race in Texas likely is attributable to weeks of critical news coverage about Trumps businesses and a bevy of sexual assault allegations against him, UH political science Professor Brandon Rottinghaus said. I think it makes sense. On the heels of Trumps bad week maybe the worst of any presidential candidate in history his support is lagging, Rottinghaus said. Democrats need Latinos to vote in bigger numbers and for suburban women to break for the Democratic Party, and that seems to be happening in 2016, potentially in a way that hasnt happened before. Ed Espinoza, the executive director of liberal media firm Progress Texas, said he sees some merit in the polls after several of them in recent weeks consistently showed the Lone Star State contest tightening. Once we saw that fourth poll, we thought, this is a trend going in the right direction, Espinoza said. We have a good candidate, a better landscape and we have a Republican Party of Texas that is so out of touch with the average Texan. Noting that Texas size and regional differences make accurate polling difficult, Espinoza said Democrats and their allies have to focus on increasing turnout in key urban counties if they are going to prove the trend correct. If theyre able to get those counties that are voting at 21 percent up to 31 percent (turnout), then youre going to notice a difference, he said. Its still an understandably challenging landscape, but the fact that the ground is softening speaks volumes about the progress Democrats have made this year. While the margin between Trump and Clinton is narrowing, polls of registered voters conducted with fewer than 20 days until Election Day are unreliable, GOP consultant Matt Mackowiak said. Trump is hemorrhaging Republicans and college-educated white women. But the GOP ground game advantage in Texas is significant, since the Democrats here couldnt pull off a one-car funeral, he said. But Im sure they are encouraged right now. It also remains unclear, he said, whether Democrats can activate a field organization to compete with Republicans efforts by Election Day, even if Trump does not enjoy as comfortable a margin in Texas as previous GOP White House hopefuls did. Mackowiak cited the Clinton campaigns one-week TV ad buy and the recent opening of a Democratic field office in Houston as examples of a last-minute dash in Texas by national Democrats. Im not sure they have planted enough seeds so that they can take advantage of this circumstance, he said. If they havent put in the field effort, if they havent done the fundraising, you cant take full advantage. Theyre throwing it all together. The UH poll included phone interviews with 1,000 registered voters conducted between Oct. 7 and 15. Among independent voters in Texas, Clinton dominates Trump, 30 percent to 14 percent. The GOP candidate, however, won the support of a plurality of male respondents, 44 percent to Clintons 35 percent. Meanwhile, women in the poll supported Clinton by a 4-point margin, 42 percent to 38 percent. roberto.cervantes@chron.com GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump said Tuesday that San Antonio Mayor Ivy Taylor should be ashamed of herself over the reprimand of San Antonio Police officers who donned Trump hats after escorting him in the Alamo City earlier this month. Trump made the remark to San Antonio-based talk radio host Joe Pags Pagliarulo during an 12-minute taped interview. After discussing polls, the media, Wikileaks, Wednesdays debate with Hillary Clinton and the rigged political system, Trump responded to a question about the police reprimands. Trump said he was so sad to hear about the controversy. You can imagine, if they put on a Crooked Hillary hat, they would have been just fine, he said, using his derrogatory nickname for Clinton. I assume hes a Democratic mayor, Trump continued. Pagliarulo then described Taylor is a female Democrat, although she was elected and serves in a nonpartisan capacity. Yeah, well, she should be ashamed of herself, Trump said. The candidate said the officers donned the hats for a second for a quick photo shot. They (officers) are incredible people, incredible brave people. For her (Taylor) to be criticizing them, she should be ashamed of herself, Trump said again. He repeated the expression a third time before saying we have tremendous police support all over the country. Many, many forces have done that or similar things, he added. In response, city spokesman Jeff Coyle defended officials handling of the situation. The officers involved violated city policy and were appropriately disciplined. The particular candidate or campaign is irrelevant; San Antonio Police officers must be impartial while on duty, Coyle said. Nearly two dozen SAPD officers who escorted Trump during his San Antonio visit Oct. 11 were disciplined Friday for wearing Trumps Make America Great Again hats as Trump was preparing to leave San Antonio International Airport. Six supervisors were issued written reprimands and 17 officers were provided written counseling. A video posted by Trumps campaign showed the officers wearing the caps. Wearing political garb on duty is not allowed for officers, officials said. Police Chief William McManus said the officers actions violated the departments guiding principals. Last week, Taylor had no comment on the reprimands, although previously she stated on Facebook she was deeply disappointed by the officers conduct. Trump was a phone-in guest on The Joe Pags Show on 1200 News Radio WOAI. He was campaigning in Grand Junction, Colo. jgonzalez@express-news.net Twitter: @johnwgonzalez The Ohio State University Master of Arts in Film Studies The Ohio State University announces a new Master of Arts degree in Film Studies. Film Studies at Ohio State (https://film-studies.osu.edu) is a multicultural, international, and interdisciplinary program, which approaches cinema as both art and as international social practice. The M.A. will give students substantial advanced training in film analysis, history, and theory, and afford students an opportunity to learn about various film-related disciplines in order to make an informed career choice. This degree is designed to prepare students for careers in many non-production, film-related fields, including development, distribution, journalism, archival work, film programming, and marketing. We welcome applications from students who have some background in film studies but whose undergraduate major was in a non-film studies department (English, History, foreign languages & literatures, Art History, etc.) and who are looking to re-orient their career trajectory or to prepare for further study: the M.A. in Film Studies will provide a well-balanced foundation for students seeking to apply to highly competitive Ph.D. programs in cinema and media studies. Students pursuing the M.A. in Film Studies at Ohio State will take four core courses in film history, film theory, and film language, and at least six elective courses concentrating on specific traditions, critical schools, directors, genres, production contexts, or screenwriting. These electives, one of which must be a course in film production, come from the Departments of Comparative Studies, Eastern Asian Languages, French and Italian, Germanic Language and Literatures, History of Art, Slavic and Eastern European Languages, Spanish and Portuguese, Theatre, and Womens, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, as well as the Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design. Film Studies M.A. Students will be required to show proficiency in one foreign language, and will complete a thesis before graduation, under the tutelage of one of the more than 25 tenure stream faculty members who teach in our program. (See our faculty profiles here: https://film-studies.osu.edu/directory?field_people_terms_1_tid%5B%5D=9). The City of Columbus offers students access to a vibrant and varied set of film, video, and new media programming and events, and the OSU Film Studies program has very close ties with the Wexner Center for Performing Arts (http://wexarts.org/film-video), the Gateway Film Center (http://gatewayfilmcenter.org), the Journal of Short Film (http://thejsf.org), the Cohen Media Group (http://cohenmedia.net), the Columbus International and Video Festival (https://www.ccad.edu/experience-art/columbus-international-film-festival), the Columbus Moving Image Art Review (https://movingimageart.wordpress.com), and Cartoon Crossroads Columbus (http://www.cartooncrossroadscolumbus.com), among other local film and arts institutions, publications, and annual events. For further information about admissions and funding, please visit our Graduate Studies page at https://film-studies.osu.edu/programs/graduate/MA and the OSU Graduate School admissions webpage: https://gradsch.osu.edu/programs-admissions/admissions For specific questions, please contact Director of Graduate Studies, Prof. Margaret C. Flinn (flinn.62@osu.edu) or the Program Coordinator, Matthew Swift (swift.23@osu.edu). CONNEAUTVILLE, Pa. The Conneautville Farmers Exchange will no longer be selling bulk feed, according to a letter dated Oct. 4 the company sent to customers. The letter announces that their last delivery day will be Oct. 28 and their plans to remain open as a bagged feed and farm supply store. It also notes their intentions to expand hours and product lines. Customer Mark Creacraft of Centerville, Pennsylvania, received the letter from Conneautville Farmers Exchange and is scrambling to find a new feed source for his dairy herd. They did all of our rations work and we got soy and mineral mix from them, said Creacraft, a 15-year patron. I also stored grain there and used it as a grain bank. Im not sure what Im going to do now. My cows were milking very well with them and now to be forced to make a switch, Im worried about how my cows are going to react to a new ration, said Creacraft, who milks about 60 head with a total of 150 including replacement heifers and steers. There are other places, even closer places, but I know they will be more expensive and a two weeks notice just isnt enough time, he said. I know some neighbors and some in the western part of the county [Crawford County] that are really scrambling to figure out where they will store grain and get feed. It would have been one thing to let us know they would be done, like at the end of the year, given us time to plan and switch, but I dont know what is going on, he said. Owner Cameron Wright declined to speak with the Farm and Dairy newspaper. CAPE GIRARDEAU The Missouri Department of Conservation is expanding the annual winter trout program in southeast Missouri, stocking rainbow trout in Perryvilles Legion Lake for the first time. MDC also stocks Jacksons Rotary Lake and Farmingtons Giessing Lake with rainbow trout each year. Legion Lake will receive 3,760 rainbow trout, Rotary Lake will receive 1,900 and another 1,200 will be stocked in Giessing Lake. In addition, each lake will receive a number of lunkers. The cities of Jackson, Farmington, Perryville, as well as Perry County, the Perry County Sportsmens Club and the Missouri Department of Conservation, purchased the trout to be stocked. The annual winter trout fishing program begins Nov. 1, marking the opening of Missouris winter trout season in lakes around the state. Anglers can fish for this popular cold-water fish through the fall and winter months on a catch-and-release basis. Anglers may harvest trout as of Feb. 1, 2017. Rainbow trout are cold-water fish which live in water temperatures less than 70 degrees. They do well in local impoundments during the colder months. Paul Cieslewicz, MDC fisheries management biologist, cautions anglers to remember that from Nov. 1 through Jan. 31, all trout must be released unharmed immediately. During this time, anglers may only fish with flies, artificial lures, and unscented plastic baits, Cieslewicz said. In addition, they may only use one fishing rod at a time and chum is not permitted. Starting Feb. 1, any bait may be used and four trout may be kept regardless of size. All anglers between the ages of 16 and 64 must have a valid Missouri fishing permit and any angler harvesting trout must possess a trout permit as well. Mike Reed, MDC fisheries management biologist, said trout can be caught on a wide variety of lures. Flies, which imitate aquatic insects, are popular with fly fishers, he said, but spinners, small spoons, and other small lures are good choices. Light line and tackle will typically produce more fish than heavier tackle. Successful anglers typically use two to six pound test line when fishing with lures and add little or no additional weight to the line. "Set the drag light as a trout often hits hard and makes strong runs which can break weak or frayed line, Reed said. For more information about trout stocking in southeast Missouri, contact MDCs Southeast Regional Office in Cape Girardeau at 573-290-5730. For more information about fishing in Missouri, go online to mdc.mo.gov/fish. Focus on Ag: What the worsening drought conditions really tell us Drought conditions in the Midwest have worsened over the last few months, but Kent Thiesse says the long-term impact of drought isn't always understood. State of Food and Agriculture 2016 - UN Report Farmers urgently need help to change methods of growing food if the world is to curb greenhouse gas emissions, the UN has said. A report by the Food and Agriculture Organization said agriculture accounted for about a fifth of emissions, which it said needed to be reduced. Scientists at the University of Lincoln have taken delivery of an advanced new mobile robot to support agri-tech experiments at the Universitys agricultural field station. The Thorvald agricultural robot, developed with scientists from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, is the latest piece of technology added to the facilities of the Lincoln Institute for Agri-food Technology (LIAT). It will support field trials delivered by scientists from the University of Lincoln at the Universitys Riseholme Campus in Lincolnshire. The Thorvald robotic platform has been built to perform a wide variety of agricultural tasks, including deployment as a multi-purpose light weight robotic carrying platform, as a sensor platform to monitor crops and soils and, potentially, as a platform to manage crops and for precision weed control. It is capable of operating on uneven terrain and agile enough to navigate between rows of crops without touching plants. The new mobile robot will support agri-tech experiments in the field Agricultural robotics and research Professor Simon Pearson, Director of LIAT, said: "In much of our agri-tech research, the fields we use are our laboratory, which brings its own technical and logistical challenges with certain experiments. "The Thorvald robot will be a welcome addition to LIAT in effect our own roaming, robotic lab assistant capable of supporting a wide variety of research activities. "The robot will support research on autonomous outdoor navigation and mapping, soil quality assessment, crop yield prediction, in-field logistics and transportation." The Lincoln Institute for Agri-food Technology aims to support and enhance productivity in the UKs agri-food sectors. Its research focuses on the development of technologies to improve efficiency, sustainability and reduce waste throughout the food pipeline, from farm to retailer. Earlier this year the University of Lincoln, through LIAT, secured research grants worth more than 2.6 million to deliver three out of the 24 projects funded through the latest round of the UK Governments Agri-Tech Catalyst. The UK is a world leader in the fast growing agri-tech sector, as global challenges such as rising population, shortages of land, water and energy require better and more reliable production of food. The agri-tech industry is worth around 14 billion to the UK economy and employs more than half a million people. More than 20 jobs could be set to go at an Arla Foods dairy processor in Lockerbie. The farmer-owned company is planning to transfer a proportion of its butter operation to a factory in Westbury. Speaking about the announcement, South Scotland MSP Colin Smyth stated: "I am deeply concerned at the prospect of 22 job losses in Lockerbie. "There has been a lot of investment in the plant in recent years and it is hugely important for the many local farmers whose milk goes to the site. "But most importantly it is a major employer in the Lockerbie area. "Any jobs losses will be a tragedy for those affected and a real blow to the local economy at what is a very uncertain time for many companies. "If any of the current workforce do have to leave, I will be strongly urging Arla to avoid at all costs compulsory redundancies." 'Minimise the impact' Arla Foods have stated that they will be entering into full consultation with colleagues affected by the proposal. The company still plans to produce Scottish butter and whey butter at its Lockerbie plant. They also said that it hopes they will be able to transfer 12 employees to other vacant positions at the Lockerbie site. Jim Grieve, site director at Arlas Lockerbie site said: "We are looking to minimise the impact of the proposal through a variety of measures. "We hope to be able to transfer 12 colleagues to other vacant roles at our site, as well as look at whether we can fill vacant positions at other Arla sites, including Westbury. At the same time, we are considering applications for voluntary redundancy from the site. "We are committed to doing everything we can to support our colleagues at this time." Grain markets are entering an unprecedented fourth year of surplus but all is not as it first appears, AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds have said. With comfortable stocks and record production continuing to put pressure on world prices, a dramatic shift in global supply dynamics 'could add vulnerability' to the market. For the UK, the depreciation of the pound since June has prevented domestic prices from falling as much as global values. Transparency is gradually being lost, as countries with patchy data increasingly dominate the marketplace. And though the market is over-supplied on paper, the risk of price shocks 'should not be underestimated', AHDB stressed. So said lead analyst Jack Watts during his keynote presentation at the AHDB Grain Market Outlook Conference. Mr Watts demonstrated since the 1972 Great Grain Robbery the US has lost market share in wheat trade The event, themed getting ready for a new agricultural world was held on 12 October in the City of London. In his 2016/17 Grain Market Outlook presentation, Mr Watts demonstrated since the 1972 Great Grain Robbery, the US has lost significant market share in wheat trade, mainly to Russia and post-Soviet states. In addition, Chinese figures are skewing perceptions of global stocks-to-use, with a far lower ratio emerging when these are removed from the equation, even more so for the worlds top six wheat exporters. A poor European harvest against record Russian production also means Russia is set to overtake the EU as the worlds largest wheat exporter. This may be a warning light to the market in the medium-term given the inconsistency of Russian wheat production, which has varied between 38Mt and 72Mt over the past five years. UK situation - 'Interesting times' At UK level, Mr Watts said we were living in interesting times from both a market and political point of view. Last season, markets were driven by high yields and high exports into the feed wheat market but for 2016/17 availability is lower and quality improved. Based on provisional Cereals Quality Survey results, increased plantings of nabim Group 1 and 2 varieties mean close to 20 per cent of UK wheat is likely to meet minimum bread wheat milling specifications. But Mr Watts urged caution when looking at the figures. He said: Protein content is higher but the quality and functionality of that protein is more challenging this season with lower specific weights impacting flour extraction and yield. Barley continues its renaissance in the UK, thanks to the rotational requirement for spring cropping and its benefits for black-grass control, a level of production consistency not seen since the late 90s. On paper, a large surplus of UK crop looks promising for exports but low specific weights may hamper progress. What could Brexit mean for cereals and oilseeds markets? New analysis on the implications of future trade policy scenarios for the UKs farming and horticulture industries was launched at the event. The latest Horizon report explores how trade deals with the EU and the rest of the world following Brexit may impact UK agriculture and horticulture on a sector-by-sector basis. It profiles each sectors current trading position in the global arena and highlights the opportunities and threats associated with various potential terms of trade. AHDBs Head of Strategic Insight David Swales explored these themes in his presentation at the conference. He also outlined the place of tariffs in contributing to UK competitiveness, the likely impact of any reductions in agricultural support and consumer attitudes to food shopping choices. He concluded with a warning that: UK farmers and growers cannot rely on consumers being willing to spend more on British products so the industry needs to focus more on price competitiveness. Farmers urgently need help to change methods of growing food if the world is to curb greenhouse gas emissions, the UN has said. A report by the Food and Agriculture Organization said agriculture accounted for about a fifth of emissions, which it said needed to be reduced. Small farmers in developing countries are the most vulnerable to changes in climate and need help adapting, the report said. "Unless action is taken now to make agriculture more sustainable, productive and resilient, climate change impacts will seriously compromise food production in countries and regions that are already highly food-insecure," FAO director-general Jose Graziano da Silva said in the report. "Hunger, poverty and climate change need to be tackled together. "This is, not least, a moral imperative as those who are now suffering most have contributed least to the changing climate." Unprecedented challenge Resilience to climate change can be achieved with the 'introduction of sustainable agricultural practices' The report said more resilient agriculture sectors and intelligent investments into smallholder farmers can deliver change. It provides evidence that adoption of 'climate-smart' practices, such as the use of nitrogen-efficient crop varieties, zero-tillage and integrated soil fertility management would boost productivity and farmers' incomes. "The world faces an unprecedented double challenge, to eradicate hunger and to stabilise global climate before it is too late," said the report. The number of weather and climate-related disasters more than doubled in the last two decades compared with the preceding two, the U.N. Office for Disaster Risk Reduction said last week. "Climate change is already happening, there is an increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events," said Kostas Stamoulis, head of FAO's Social and Economic Development Department. The report said beyond 2030, the negative impacts of climate change on the productivity of crops, livestock, fisheries and forestry will become increasingly severe in all regions. Significant improvements in food security, as well as resilience to climate change can be achieved with the introduction of sustainable agricultural practices. Revolution in farming The report cites diversifying crop production, better integration of farming with the natural habitat, agroecology and 'sustainable intensification' as strategies to help small-scale farmers adapt to a warming world. "Business as usual is not an option," said Mr da Silva in a foreword to the report. "Agriculture has always been the interface between natural resources and human activity. "Today it holds the key to solving the two greatest challenges facing humanity: eradicating poverty, and maintaining the stable climatic corridor in which civilisation can thrive." The UK government has also released a climate change report this month, calling for any new agricultural policy introduced post-Brexit to include measures to ensure reductions in agricultures greenhouse gas emissions. Parliaments Climate Change Committees report shows that since the passage of the UKs Climate Change Act in 2008 industry and power generators have achieved cuts in greenhouse gas emissions of around 50%, and the waste industry has cut emissions by a huge 80%. Lord Krebs, Chair of the Climate Change Committees Adaptation Subcommittee agreed with the sustainable environmental charity Soil Association that the UK needs to see more sustainable management of soils, to build the carbon content of soils. He said that any new support for farming post-Brexit should ensure that public subsidies bring to the fore incentives to save carbon. Peter Melchett, Soil Association Policy Director said: The ambitious new targets agreed at the Paris climate summit, which comes into force on 4 November, will require further cuts in UK emissions if we are to keep global temperature changes below 2 degrees centigrade, with zero carbon emissions from farming after 2050. Government scientists have long recognised this will require a revolution in farming, and it is vital that any post-CAP payments to farmers start to encourage that transition. Police are continuing to urge horse owners to take immediate precautions to secure their tack, after a further theft in North Yorkshire. Sometime overnight between 9pm on Sunday 16 October and 7am the following day, three properties were broken into on Main Street and Back Lane, Alne, near Easingwold, and horse tack and power tools stolen. Anyone who saw anything suspicious or has any information that could assist police with the investigation should dial 101 and quote reference number 12160188664. In the previous few weeks, a number of equestrian items have been stolen from premises in North Yorkshire - including saddles, girths, bridles, breastplates and numnahs - particularly in the southern area of the borough of Harrogate. On Saturday 17 September, a large amount of tack was stolen from a tack room near Little Ribston. Overnight on 21/22 September, outbuildings near Kirkby Overblow were targeted, and a number of items, including tack, were stolen. Overnight on 27/28 September, stables near Tockwith were targeted, and small items stolen. The same night, stables near Askham Richard were broken into, with damage caused and a generator stolen. On Monday 10 October, two saddles were taken in a burglary at North Deighton. Serial numbers and registered properties PC David Mackay, of North Yorkshire Polices Rural Taskforce, said: In light of these incidents, I am urging horse owners to take immediate steps to ensure tack is protected from thieves. Make sure you have a record of any serial numbers, register your property, and be vigilant report any suspicious activity to the police. If someone offers you second-hand tack for sale, and it seems too good to be true, consider that you might be buying stolen property. Check serial numbers, and if in doubt, ask the person for proof of ownership. PC Hannah McPeake, who co-ordinates the Horsewatch scheme, said: Preventing crime and deterring criminals is very important, and we are encouraging all equestrian businesses and horse owners to check their yard security and think carefully about how to protect their property. Ever since Leadwood residents Greg and Sarah Moyers were killed in a tragic accident in late September, leaving their two daughters, Haley and Sophia, hospitalized in Florida, people and organizations from communities all around the Parkland have stepped up to support the family. Once the tragic news reached the Parkland, people immediately began taking action to show their support to the surviving members of the family, which includes Sarahs son and Gregs step-son, TJ Radford. The amount of help and people just volunteering to help do stuff and donate stuff for the family has been so overwhelming, said Charlie Lewis, president of the Leadwood Community Betterment Association, which, along with Friends of the Leadwood Fire Protection District, is sponsoring a fundraising event for the family in Leadwood City Park on Oct. 29. The day will begin around 9 a.m. and will include a car, truck and bike show, along with live music, food and fellowship at Leadwood City Park. The fee for the auto show is $20 per entry with prizes awarded for first, second and third place in each class. Judging will begin at 1 p.m. with the award presentations set for 3 p.m. There will also be a 50/50 drawing available for anyone who wants to participate. All proceeds raised throughout the day will be donated directly into the Sarah and Greg Moyers Memorial fund. Its for the kids, Lewis said. However much money they can raise for the kids to have for the next several years to help take care of their needs will be great And if everybody does what they say theyre gonna do and if everybody shows up that says theyre coming, the parks gonna be full. Some final details are still being ironed out, but Lewis said they expect to have at least three bands that have volunteered to perform at the park beginning at 10 a.m. and continuing until about 3 p.m. Brandon Scherffius has already said he will play either by himself or with his band, said Lewis. And Denny Boyd and his band are gonna play and theyre working on Frago possibly, too. Then were probably going to finish up the evening with a DJ. A variety of food will also be available, including chili and chicken and dumplings. Information about the fundraiser will be updated and posted to the Facebook page called Greg and Sarahs Angels, which was set up to provide updates on the girls and on the familys situation. The page reports that both girls are now home from the hospital and doing well. Along with family updates, the page also provides a glimpse into the outpouring of support for the family from the surrounding communities. Anyone wanting to make a donation directly to the family can visit any First State Community Bank location and donate to the "Greg and Sarah Moyers Memorial Fund." The GoFundMe account can be found at www.gofundme.com/4gregandsarah. A trivia night is also being held next month. Friends of the family, Doug and Nancy Bowles are organizing a trivia night at 7 p.m. Nov. 12 in the white gym of Central High School in Park Hills. Doors open at 6 p.m. Tables are $100 with a maximum of 10 players to a team. Little Caesars Pizza has donated two pizzas per table. Other drinks and snacks will be available for purchase. No alcoholic beverages will be allowed. There will also be a silent auction, door prizes and a raffle for a La-Z-Boy recliner donated by Hefner Furniture in Park Hills. Individuals can reserve a table by calling Doug Bowles at 573-431-3122 (during the day) or 330-9941 or Nancy Bowles at 330-3167. Reservations are required but individuals will pay at the door. Belgrade State Bank is holding a basket raffle fundraiser for the Moyers family. Tickets are on sale until Nov. 2. The basket is at the Desloge branch. Tickets are $1 each of $5 for six tickets. A government review into the Grocery Code Adjudicator (GCA) should look at extending the role to cover more of the supply chain, the NFU said today. This follows an announcement that the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has agreed to launch an industry call for evidence of unfair trading practices, alongside the statutory review of the GCA role. The GCA came into force in June 2013 with a remit to enforce the Grocery Supply Code of Practice (GSCOP) covering just the 10 biggest UK retailers. NFU President Meurig Raymond said the GCA plays an 'important role' within the grocery sector. 'Sustainability, risk management and volatility management must be the food supply chains core principles' said the NFU President We must recognise the success Christine Tacon, the GCA, has achieved within the retailer sector over the last three years, Mr Raymond said. The GCAs recent survey results showed 62% of suppliers had experienced an issue with the GSCOP code, compared to 79% in 2014. There has also been a significant increase of written supply agreements in place over the last 3 years, rising by 12% since 2014. 'Power of GCA's presence' The NFU believes the power of the GCAs presence has enabled this change, and therefore this way of working is now being urged to replicate throughout the whole supply chain. Sustainability, risk management and volatility management must be the food supply chains core principles for British farming businesses to thrive, Mr Raymond continued. Unfair trading practices limit these principles of success and leads to smaller parties like our British farmers, losing out. This must stop. We would like to see agri-sector voluntary codes of practice, such as the Dairy and Livestock Voluntary Code, made compulsory and overseen by the GCA to give them more teeth. This will give primary producers the confidence that the supply chain is not abusing their buying power and position over that of the British farmer. The NFU is also calling for the Ornamental sector to be brought under the GSCOP legislation and for the turnover threshold to be reduced to widen the scope of businesses regulated by the code and adjudicator. British farming is the bedrock of the food and drink industry worth 108 billion - providing jobs for 3.9 million people growing the raw ingredients for UK food and drink. We need to create a supply system which is fair, transparent and has benefits for everyone in the food chain, Mr Raymond concluded. Farm animals will be 'better protected' following the adoption of global policy recommendations at a UN Committee. For the first time ever in the history of the UN, farm animals worldwide will be better protected following the adoption of groundbreaking global policy recommendations on animal welfare in farming at the UN Committee on World Food Security meeting in Rome on Monday. Lobbying efforts by animal welfare organization World Animal Protection over the past two years laid the groundwork for farm animals around the world to be better protected with substantive language on animal welfare included in recommendations adopted by member countries. World Animal Protections International Head of Policy, Lesley Mitchell says: This change by the UN is a massive step forward in putting animal welfare at the front and centre of farming. UN Committee on World Food Security meeting in Rome on Monday It means countries will no longer ask should we include animal welfare? but how do we deliver better animal welfare? By treating animals well, we can fight poverty, reduce hunger, improve peoples health, tackle climate change and protect the biodiversity of our planet. Weve been working to make sure the vital importance of animal protection is recognised at a global level. This is clear acknowledgement that better animal welfare contributes to better food security for communities, which in turn helps to tackle sustainable development goals to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture. The inclusion of language on animal welfare makes it clear that governments should prioritise animal welfare in designing their countrys farming systems, emphasising that animals should be able to live free from pain, distress and hunger, and able to demonstrate natural behaviours as set out by the Five Freedoms and World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) standards and principles. The recommendations also stress the importance of animal health and access to veterinary services. The recommendations were informed by a High Level Panel of Experts (HLPE) report on farm animal welfare, which informed the priorities and is the backbone of the recommendations. Lesley Mitchell was one of the experts to input to the report. A University is helping produce precision soil maps to assist with ensuring the UKs future food security by making it more affordable for farmers to get into precision farming. Cranfield University is part of a collaborative project aiming to help arable farmers and landowners from all over the UK make a more affordable entry into precision farming. Lead partner AgSpace Agriculture employs high resolution satellite data processed using a soil brightness algorithm to show where soil quality variation exists in fields. This dataset will be analysed by experts from the Cranfield Soil and Agrifood Centre and modelled alongside Britains most comprehensive soil datasets to produce a new precision soil map. The perceived high cost of entry has proved a barrier for many small-scale farmers This should present an economically viable alternative to the current labour intensive method of field soil surveys, with growers able to increase yields with lower input costs and reduced environmental impact. Precision farming involves dividing farmed land into management zones which have specific characteristics soil being the most important. Using such precision data has been proven to lead to better yield results across all crops when compared with traditional and conventional farming. However, to date, the perceived high cost of entry has proved a barrier for many small-scale farmers. Making precision farming more affordable Dr Abdul Mouazen, Senior Lecturer in Agricultural & Environmental Engineering, is leading the project for Cranfield. He said: This work aims to make precision farming more affordable to enter for arable farmers and landowners throughout England, Scotland and Wales, drawing together a unique set of data to produce meaningful soil management zones. The technical approaches involved in this project draw on Cranfields experience handling and managing national scale datasets. The Cranfield Soil and Agrifood Institute holds and manages the national land information system for England and Wales known as LandIS, on behalf of Defra. Dr Mouazen continued: Ensuring the worlds food security is going to be increasingly challenging, and rapid population growth means its high on the agenda for a lot of countries. According to the 2008 United Nations sustainable development forum, more food will have to be grown in the next 50 years than has been produced during the past 10,000 years combined. One way to achieve this is by managing farm resources using advanced technologies in precision agriculture. Precision farming technologies and techniques play an important role in ensuring sustainable food production. AgSpace Agriculture, who devised the soil brightness technology being used, are leading the project. Cranfield is receiving more than 25% of the near 750,000 funding via Innovate UK, together with income from the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). The Welsh government has announced a new 'regionalised approach' to tackle the cattle disease bovine TB. As part of the Welsh governments refreshed bovine TB Eradication Programme, 'Low, Intermediate and High TB Areas' will be established across Wales based on bovine TB incidence levels. The government is consulting on the measures to be applied to protect the Low TB Area and to reduce disease in the Intermediate and High TB Areas. Bovine TB is the biggest threat to beef and dairy farmers across large parts of Wales. Over the past 12 months nearly 9,500 cattle have been slaughtered as a result of this disease, a 38% increase from last year. The situation is worse in endemic areas of the country with Pembrokeshire suffering a 40% increase in slaughtered cattle, Carmarthenshire 78% and Clwyd an increase of 137% in the 12 months to July 2016 compared to the same period in the previous year. Since January 1996 the number of animals slaughtered in Wales as a result of bovine TB has reached a staggering figure of 118,488 animals - that is equivalent to 23% of the total number of adult cattle on farms across Wales today. Over the past 12 months nearly 9,500 cattle have been slaughtered as a result of this disease, a 38% increase from last year Strengthening of cattle controls The refreshed programme builds on the Eradication Programme, as well as looking at options to do some things differently. Other new measures include strengthening of cattle controls. Under the plans for the programme, chronic breakdown herds would have individual action plans, developed in partnership with farmers, vets and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), aimed at clearing up the infection. The Rural Cabinet Secretary of Wales, Lesley Griffiths, has also acknowledged the role played by wildlife in some TB breakdowns, but is clear that Wales will continue to rule out an 'England-style' cull of badgers with farmers free shooting infected and healthy badgers themselves. Instead, the range of other options available will be considered, including learning from a pilot in Northern Ireland where badgers were cage-trapped and infected animals were humanely killed. Working with vets and wildlife experts, the Cabinet Secretary will consider whether a similar approach might be appropriate in high incidence areas where there is chronic herd breakdown and an objective confirmation that badgers are infected. 'Reflect and learn lessons' Speaking in the Senedd, the Rural Affairs Secretary said it is time to take stock as the current eradication programme comes to an end this year. "Any comprehensive TB eradication strategy must also actively remove infection from diseased wildlife across high incidence areas" It is time to reflect on our successes, learn lessons and consider a refreshed approach," Miss Griffiths said. Since we introduced the eradication programme in 2012 we have seen a decrease in the number of new cases of bovine TB in cattle herds in Wales, with the latest figures showing the number of new TB incidents is down by 19%. I am keen to build on this success and speed up progress, which is why I am looking to introduce enhanced, evidence-based measures. I believe this refreshed TB Eradication Programme will put us in a stronger position to ensure we continue to make progress towards a TB Free Wales. Addressing the availability of the badger vaccine, the Cabinet Secretary said the Welsh government is continuing to monitor the situation but the BadgerBCG vaccine would not be available in 2017. The availability of other vaccines is an option still being explored. Vaccination still has a role to play in our approach to TB eradication, but it is too soon to think about the future deployment of the vaccine until we know when the supply will be restored, Miss Griffiths said. 'A step forward' NFU Cymru has described the new bovine TB statement as a 'step forward' in that the government has recognised the link between cattle and wildlife in TB transmission. Speaking from the Senedd, NFU Cymru President, Stephen James said: There is a welcome recognition from the Cabinet Secretary of the link between cattle and wildlife in disease transmission, but we are concerned at the time it may take for this issue to be adequately addressed. In principle, we would support a policy that targets interventions depending on the local disease prevalence. The proposals focus on cattle controls and how these will vary depending on the area the herd is located in. The government will be zoning Wales into various incidence areas, however we will need to carefully consider the implications for farmers in the new areas and the consequences for farmers with land on either side of a boundary. It is important to stress that Welsh governments low incidence area in North Wales has always had low levels of disease incidence and this new area should not be seen as a vindication of previous government strategy. 'Don't Penalise farmers' Mr James said the proposal to lower the payment cap on animals compulsorily slaughtered as a result of bovine TB 'appears to penalise farmers' who are investing heavily in animal genetics and improving the productivity of their animals. This is at odds with our shared aspiration of continually striving to ensure Wales is a leading player on the global stage for meat and dairy production. Stephen James concluded: Any comprehensive TB eradication strategy must also actively remove infection from diseased wildlife across high incidence areas. Clearly the proposals put forward by the government in the statement will ratchet up the control measures and restrictions on cattle keepers in many parts of Wales. Whats missing is the lack of specific detail provided by the Welsh government on when the disease problem in wildlife which exists in parts of the country will be adequately addressed. Risk-based assessment Neil Paton, President of British Veterinary Association (BVA) Welsh Branch, said the organisation welcomes the announcement by the government. We are particularly heartened to see the focus on risk-based assessment and the targeting of chronically infected herds with individual action plans, to be developed in partnership with farmers, vets and the APHA. We also welcome the recognition of the role played by the wildlife reservoir of disease. However, we are concerned that if badger culling by cage-trapping and shooting is not part of the refreshed eradication programme, there needs to be an evidence-based plan in place and other viable options must be proposed. The Test and Vaccinate or Remove (TVR) model currently being explored in Northern Ireland had previously been discounted in Wales after modelling suggested it was not a viable option. As vets, we are committed to working with the Welsh government and Welsh farmers on a comprehensive strategy to control and eradicate this disease, Mr Paton concluded. Bird flu: Poultry housing order to be introduced in England Visits taking place prior to the U.S. Grains Council Export Exchange By Diego Flammini Assistant Editor, North American Content Farms.com Representatives from five Mexican grain importers will visit four Iowa farms and plants this week, prior to participating in the U.S. Grains Council Export Exchange. The tours begin in Farnhamville on Wednesday at Landus Cooperative, the largest farmer-owned local agricultural cooperative in the state. The reps will then make their way to the Poet Ethanol Plant in Gowrie and the Pro Cooperative in Havelock. They will finish the day with a tour of Jerry Maiers farm, whos also a director with the Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA). Maier hopes showing the visitors Iowas successful agriculture could lead to more opportunities for U.S. grain. Were thrilled to host this team in an effort to further develop and strengthen the relationships between Mexican corn and distillers grains buyers and U.S. grain suppliers, and are hopeful our efforts will result in more sales of corn and distillers grains to Mexico, Maier said in a release. On Thursday, the Mexican importers will visit the Maxyield Cooperative and Ag Partners feed mill. Friday will take them to Innovative Ag in Hubbard before visiting ICGA director Danny Friests farm and Heartland Coop. Maier said Mexico is the largest customer of American agricultural exports and that the country has come to rely on the quality and quantity of products produced by U.S. farmers. In support of Oklahoma agriculture, Sen. Jim Inhofe is touring the state this week to promote State Question 777 - Right to Farm. The senator took the opportunity to meet with Associate Farm Director Carson Horn, for the chance to broadcast his message of support to the statewide audience of Radio Oklahoma Network. I have never done this in the 22 years Ive been in the United States Senate - gotten involved in state questions, Sen. Inhofe said. But the reason I am this time is I chair a committee in the United States Senate called the Environment & Public Works Committee and there is where they have all these liberal outside interests trying to get in there and push the states aside and get control. What they couldnt do in my committee, theyre trying to do state by state. Sen. Inhofe explained that the opposition is well-funded by outside special interest groups that seem to be twisting the language of the proposed question in an attempt to confuse voters on the actual impact and important protection SQ-777 would entail. I was shocked by some of the billboardstalking about things like water issues, Sen Inhofe said. There is no water issue in this. Theyre nothing but lies on the billboards but it scares me to death. Although, there is no issues aside from protecting the rights of farmers in this legislation, environmental, business or otherwise - Inhofe says there will be if the question fails, as it will allow outside influences the ability to weigh in on policy matters in Oklahoma. In the senators opinion, there is only one option for voters. Youve got to support 777, Sen. Inhofe said. Youre going to have outsiders coming into Oklahoma and determining what our policies should be. Farming is a competitive industry; a lot of farmers arent making it and one thing they cant afford is to have outsiders dictating their policies. Lets support our farmers, lets do it right and lets vote yes on 777. Click here to see more... By Dr. Seth Byrd Good late-summer rains improved conditions for cotton in the Rolling and High Plains regions of Texas and likely mean an above-average crop for 2016, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service experts. Dr. Seth Byrd, AgriLife Extension cotton agronomist, Lubbock, said cotton harvests in two top cotton producing regions began on a small scale a few weeks ago but should ramp up soon. So far, the cotton fields there look better than expected. Producers had low expectations for dryland fields because of a hot, dry July, but they seem happy with where the crop is at this point, he said. Cotton in a Knox County field nears harvest. This years crop is expected to be one of the Rolling and High Plains best in years, according to AgriLife Extension experts. Byrd said leaf grades, which are determined by the amount of plant material left in lint, was a big issue last year. With about 4,000 bales ginned, Byrd said this years small sampling of cotton showed leaf grades in the 2-3 range. Its pretty clean cotton so far, he said. Dr. Gaylon Morgan, AgriLife Extension state cotton specialist, College Station, visited the Rolling Plains last week and said overall, fields represented one of the better crops theyve had in quite some time. They caught some more timely rains than previous years and the dryland crop looks like it could be 25 percent better than average, especially in the Northern Rolling Plains. Not enough cotton had been harvested to give a good indication about fiber quality, Morgan said. He said there were issues with weather, pests and diseases. Hail storms led to substantial damage for isolated fields, and stink bugs surprised producers by the amount of damage they caused in some areas. Bacterial blight also impacted production in some of the northern tier counties of the Rolling Plains. Byrd and Morgan said irrigated fields looked very good and the rainfall also reduced irrigation costs. Morgan estimated 10-15 percent of dryland fields were defoliated, while irrigated and lateplanted fields still had a significant number of green bolls. Morgan said temperatures were at or above 90 degrees and were expected to remain in the region for a while before cooler temperatures return. Fields in the Rolling Plains were planted later than usual due to late May rains, and fields in the High Plains, which are typically harvested late, could be later than usual also. There remains some concern of frost for some late maturing cotton, Byrd said. Theyll be up against a freeze at some point but weather the past two weeks and the forecast for the near future is perfect for maturing cotton, he said. AgriLife Extension district reporters compiled the following summaries: CENTRAL: Armyworms were still present, but the numbers and damage seemed to be dropping. Small grains not eaten by armyworms looked very good. Pecan harvests started and looked good. Cotton harvest was in full swing and nearing completion. Field preparation for winter wheat was underway. Cattle were doing well without supplemental feed. Wheat and oats were almost all planted. Soybean harvests neared completion. Many forage producers battled grassburs in their fields. Most counties reported good soil moisture and fair pasture and rangeland conditions. Most crop conditions were fair as well. ROLLING PLAINS: No report was available. COASTAL BEND: Warm temperatures and humid conditions prevailed with highs around 90. Soil moisture levels continued to decline due to the lack of rainfall and unseasonably warm temperatures. Dry field conditions allowed tractors to remove remaining cotton stalks and catch up on fallow land preparation for 2017. Pecan and soybean harvests continued. Hay and forage were in ample supply. Some livestock operations held back last years calves to take advantage of high prices, however, cattle prices were lower than expected. EAST: The district remained hot and dry. Counties needed rain, and several reported drought conditions. Harrison County was under a burn ban. Pond levels were dropping. A cool front moved through the area bringing rain to only a few counties with amounts from a few tenths to more than 1.5 inches. Pasture and range conditions were fair to good. Some producers in Smith and Wood counties were waiting to see if it would rain before preparing ground for winter pastures. Subsoil and topsoil conditions were adequate to short with some counties reporting very short. Hay production in Cherokee County came to a halt due to lack of rain coupled with cool temperatures. Producers were still baling hay in Houston County but grass growth stalled in most places so yields were not good. Upshur County reported final hay cuttings were taking place. Some producers in Smith County hoped to cut additional hay but curing was a problem due to weather conditions. Livestock were in fair to good condition. Cattle were calving and fall cattle work was underway. Cattle prices continued to drop. Smith County producers were weaning calves with some holding replacements. In Polk County, most spring-born calves were marketed but at a price well below last year. Pregnancy checking and culling continued. Predator control was underway in Upshur County. SOUTH PLAINS: Conditions were warm and dry for most of the district. Some areas experienced cool damp conditions for a few days. Topsoil and subsoil moisture levels in Cochran County were still adequate. Peanut, corn and sorghum harvests continued. Cotton continued to mature. Producers were defoliating most area cotton fields. Cotton harvests were kicking off in some areas, and the moisture was enough to keep farmers out of the fields for a few days. The average yield for irrigated cotton was expected to be three to four bales per acre. Planting of winter wheat continued. Pastures and rangeland continued to improve with the recent moisture, and cattle were in good condition. Rain was received in some areas. Floyd County received anywhere from 0.3-0.8 of an inch of rain, and Lubbock County reported 0.4 of an inch to 1.7 inches. Corn and sorghum were still maturing. Wheat could use rain. PANHANDLE: The district reported above-average temperatures. Weather was very cool and windy. Some moisture was received. Measurements were from 0.5-1 inch of rain. Soil moisture was mostly adequate. Deaf Smith County producers were close to wrapping up corn harvests. Yield reports were all over the board. Some producers reported very low to average yields while some were above average. Producers blamed low yields on the July heat wave. Sugarcane aphids were still causing problems in area sorghum fields with many producers applying second and third applications of insecticides. Winter wheat planting was ongoing with some of the earlier plantings emerging. Some wheat was irrigated, and cattle were placed on some for grazing. Insect and disease pressures were plaguing some area wheat plantings. Producers will replant some fields. Silage harvests were wrapping up. Hansford County corn harvests were underway. Corn was making around 250 bushels per acre and under. Some late-planted corn could be very late maturing. Soybean harvests started, and yields were better than expected. A few milo fields were harvested, but some fields need a freeze to mature. Randall County was unseasonably warm with daytime temperatures in the lower 80s. Cattle remained in good to fair shape. Rangeland and pastures were mostly fair to good but continued to decline. NORTH: Topsoil and subsoil moisture levels varied from adequate to short. Weather was dry with warm days and mild nights and little rain. Grass was holding up, but the cool nights slowed growth. Grain farmers continued to plant wheat even though soil moisture was very low. The armyworm problem continued, but was not as bad as a few weeks ago. Early planted wheat was sprayed to combat armyworms. Soybean harvests continued with yields of about 20-25 bushels per acre. Cotton was being harvested, but no yield reports were available yet. Livestock were in good condition. Calf weights were heavy due to the abundance of grass. Spring calves were weaned and doing well on the late warm-season pastures. The cattle market was depressed, and producers hoped for a bounce in prices. Fly and mosquito numbers were still high. FAR WEST: Temperatures were in the low 90s but dropped drastically with a cold front. Rain showers occurred with amounts ranging up to 1.5 inches. Rangeland grasses were showing stress in drier areas. Many producers were defoliating cotton but were hampered due to the high humidity. Cotton yields were decent so far. Wheat and hay grazer baling started. Supplemental feeding of livestock and wildlife continued. WEST CENTRAL: Wheat was planted. Cotton bolls were opening and some farmers applied harvest aids. Producers made a final cutting of hay. Properly managed pastures and forages still looked good. Armyworms continued to be a problem. Temperatures were higher than normal before a cold front late in the week brought light showers. Wheat planting was expected to begin soon. Cattle were in excellent condition going into the winter months. SOUTHEAST: In Fort Bend County, the livestock were in good condition. Producers cut and baled hay. Cotton was harvested with some remaining fields being destroyed relative to insurance claims. Soybeans were in poor condition, and many will likely be destroyed due to insurance requirements. In Montgomery County, hot and dry conditions were delaying the establishment of winter annuals in pastures. Regrowth slowed on grazed pastures. Weed populations continued to manifest with thin stands for grass. A few scattered showers were received but not enough to leave puddles. In Jefferson County, the pastures and fields were in good condition. Livestock were doing well. Soil-moisture levels throughout the district ranged widely from adequate to short, with most ratings in the adequate range. Click here to see more... The 12th annual Fall Rocks celebration returns to the Missouri Mines State Historic Site's Powerhouse museum in Park Hills from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday, offering what event sponsors are calling "an evening of fun and educational activities for the entire family." Sponsored by The Doe Run Company and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Fall Rocks seeks to help kids learn more about the state's natural resources and the impact they have on their daily lives. The event is free and open to the public. Fall Rocks will feature interactive activities, including hard hat decorating, cookie mining and minerals trivia. Free hot dogs, chips, hot chocolate and soft drinks will be provided for attendees. The Powerhouse Museum and its exhibits will also be open to guests. The museum houses equipment and other artifacts that represent the history of mining technology, and displays Missouri geological samples. It also shows a short film about how mining operations work. Fall Rocks is a great way to teach kids just how important mining is to almost everything we do, from using a cell phone to starting a car, said Rhonda Reed, administrative assistant for the Metals Division at Doe Run. Our employees and their families enjoy the opportunity to show our community how natural resources, including those were proud to mine right here in our region, are essential in our daily lives. For more than 300 years, lead mining has driven economic growth in southeast Missouri. Doe Runs lead mining operations in Viburnum represent the second-largest lead mining district in the world. Mining is vital to the state of Missouri, employing more than 9,800 people across the state, said Steve Batts, vice president of Southeast Missouri Operations. We hope that children will learn the importance of the industry and gain interest in studying science and natural resources, because we know some of the kids who attend each year will be Missouris future miners. The Missouri Mines State Historic Site sits within St. Joe Park, a once-active mining site operated by Doe Runs predecessor, St. Joseph Lead Company. The land was donated to the state of Missouri in 1976, and now is one of the most popular parks in the state for swimming, biking, camping and riding ATVs. The Missouri Mines State Historic Site is located on the south side of Highway 32 at the Flat River Drive overpass, 1.5 miles west of U.S. Highway 67. For more information, contact Art Hebrank at the Powerhouse Museum at 573-431-6226 or Rhonda Reed at 573-626-3315. Warrenton, VA (20186) Today A few showers this evening with overcast skies overnight. Low near 55F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%.. Tonight A few showers this evening with overcast skies overnight. Low near 55F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 30%. Gray's Creek neighborhood takes a hit as mom and pop restaurant closes Everybody eats at The Creek Bar & Grill, owner Casper Critchfield said but Nov. 13 is the restaurants last day in operation. DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend and I are mature adults who enjoy photography. He brings his camera when we go to the beach or sporting events -- even to the store. He's learning all the time about how to use light correctly and his zoom lens. When we get back and I download the pics from his camera, the majority of shots are of women's chests, behinds and pretty faces. He has snapped many of them while they were standing right next to me. (There are very few shots of me -- ever.) When I ask if he wants me to delete the photos, he says no. I don't understand why he would keep pictures of strangers. He says he's like any photographer -- he likes to review his photos. I tell him it hurts my feelings to think he enjoys looking at other women more than at me. It would be different if they were beautiful portraits, but they're not. It is painful that I'm not included. Am I wrong to feel unimportant and ignored? -- OUT OF THE PICTURE DEAR OUT: You are entitled to your feelings, and they may be justified. Because you identify this man as your boyfriend, I assume you have an exclusive relationship. There will always be women around who are younger and prettier. That's life. Because you can't control his taste in subjects, my advice is to quit downloading his pictures for him if they make you uncomfortable. DEAR ABBY: My fiance and I have a loving relationship. He is affectionate -- hugging, kissing, etc. But he doesn't have a high libido, which I am concerned about because he's only 26. He has confessed to me he's had relations with men in the past, and I'm thinking he may be bisexual. While that does not concern me whatsoever (after all, it's one thing to be attracted to someone and another thing entirely to cheat), I worry that he thinks he couldn't share this with me, and that it may lead to lies. I am also worried that if I confront him with this, he may be offended or think I think less of him. What should I do? -- LOVING RELATIONSHIP IN MICHIGAN DEAR LOVING: You and your fiance are overdue for a frank talk. He has told you that he has had more than one same-sex relationship, so it's fair to consider him to be bisexual. That he didn't use that word doesn't mean he was dishonest. We communicate with our actions as well as verbally. That you have continued your relationship after learning about his sexual history should indicate to him that you don't think less of him. As to the strength of his libido, no two individuals are alike. If he is able to provide you with what you need, I don't think you need to be concerned. If not -- as I said before, you have to talk with him about it. DEAR ABBY: How do you get a man to help you financially? -- ANONY-MISS IN BEVERLY HILLS DEAR ANONY-MISS: Tell him you need his help and hope he's the type who likes rescuing women. DEAR ABBY: My sons out-of-town wedding is coming up. My mother will attend and be traveling with me. I am single, and my mom is also single. Shes planning on sharing a room with me. Abby, my mom has a severe snoring problem, and Im a very light sleeper. I cannot sleep with a snorer! I dont want to ruin my time at my sons wedding, and shes upset about the added expense of another room, which neither of us can really afford, but I dont know what else to do. MOTHER OF THE GROOM DEAR MOTHER OF THE GROOM: The separate room may be a luxury you cant really afford, but incurring the expense may be worth it so you wont sleepwalk through your sons wedding. Im not recommending earplugs because, while they may dull the racket, they wont completely eliminate the sound of severe snoring. P.S. If your mothers physician doesnt know about her snoring, it should be discussed so the doctor can make sure it isnt a symptom of a serious health problem. DEAR ABBY: My son has two children who are in temporary foster care, and has visitation with the exs stepsister, who got the right to grant visitation. Recently we had a birthday party for them. All the grandparents, aunts and uncles were invited. It was a kiddie party, of course, and I jumped into the pool and played with the children. We had a ball! A few weeks later, I heard the stepsisters mother had said I had no business playing in the pool with the kids. I was taken aback. Isnt that what grandmas are for? I love playing with the little ones. Was I wrong for not acting my age? Did I make a fool of myself? The custody fight is ongoing and I dont want to do anything that would jeopardize my son winning custody. WORRIED IN NEW YORK DEAR WORRIED: I dont think you did anything inappropriate. I suspect the stepsisters mother was jealous that she wasnt the person in the pool, which is why she didnt speak up during the party and you had to hear it weeks later secondhand. DEAR ABBY: You recently printed my question about throwing a 25th anniversary party for my parents. I want to let you know that instead of taking on an expensive dinner that I cant afford right now, Im collaborating with a cousin to have a chef come into their home to prepare a nice meal for them and the people who participated in their wedding. I felt it was a much more personal and cost-effective way to give them the nice anniversary they deserve. Thank you for your advice! SON OF SILVERS DEAR S.O.S.: Im delighted you wrote to share your solution. The idea is terrific. I am sure your parents will be thrilled and other readers will appreciate your ingenuity. Thank you! DEAR ABBY: Im a 55-year-old gay male who has been with my nowspouse, Owen, in a loving, committed relationship since 2005. While earlier we could not legally marry, in 2006 we had a commitment ceremony bringing together close friends and family to acknowledge and celebrate our relationship. In 2013, Owen and I were finally able to legally marry in California. My dilemma comes from people who dont know what to call us. People often refer to my spouse as my friend or partner. At times I say nothing, but more often than not, I find myself saying, Oh, you mean my HUSBAND. Some of them thank me for the clarification; others just look at me with a blank stare. Owen never corrects them because he feels it isnt his place. I feel its my responsibility to do so, first so as to not play down the significance of our relationship, but also to educate these people. Do you think this is inappropriate? MARRIED IN CALIFORNIA DEAR MARRIED: Not at all. The people who refer to you and Owen as partners and friends are using terminology that is evolving because marriage among same-sex couples is still relatively new. As it becomes more commonplace, that will change. In the meantime, its completely appropriate for you and Owen to speak up. DEAR ABBY: I have been dating Chris for almost five years. Hes my high school sweetheart. We still live with our parents, but we feel were ready to move out and start our lives together. The issue is I have a cat (Silky) and a dog named Chips; Chris cant stand them. He has said he doesnt want Silky to live in our home and he would make her an outdoor cat. He also doesnt want Chips to come with us because Chips can be whiny and vocal. I feel its my responsibility to take my pets with me when I move out. I dont want to abandon them and leave them with my parents, and I absolutely refuse to put them up for adoption. I feel if I decide to bring them with me, Chris will make them feel miserable. Silky is afraid of him, and Chris doesnt like Chips getting close to him. I love my boyfriend, but I love my pets, too. Please tell me what to do! STUCK IN THE MIDDLE IN CALIFORNIA DEAR STUCK: Wake up! You are an animal lover; your boyfriend clearly has an antipathy toward them. Your cat is afraid of Chris because she knows he doesnt like her or he did something that scared her. If he makes Silky become an outdoor cat (or she gets loose by accident), she may be at serious risk. And your dog will be miserable on the receiving end of constant rejection. It is very important that you learn to live independently. Because Chris is your high school sweetheart and you havent dated many others, its important that you take some time and date other people before deciding to move in with ANYONE. You and Chris may care about each other, but your compatibility is in question because, face it, you two have differences. DEAR ABBY: Im not sure if this has been mentioned in your column before, but I would like to make your readers aware of something while they travel. When staying at a hotel, it is important never to reveal personal or financial information over the in-room phone, even if the caller claims to be an employee of the hotel. Sometimes scammers will call the front desk of a hotel and provide a generic name or room number. Unsuspecting desk agents may transfer the call to that room, and the scammer will then pose as a desk agent. He or she will say something plausible to get the guest to provide credit information over the phone, and in a flash, the guest is a victim of theft. If such a thing happens, guests should immediately dial the front desk and ask the agent if a call for that reason was intentionally placed to the room. Very likely, it will not have been. JOHN IN OGDEN, UTAH DEAR JOHN: Whoa! Travelers can never be too careful. Thank you for the wake-up call. DEAR ABBY: My neighbor has a registered day care business, and every day I hear her screaming at young children and infants. They are all 4-year-olds and younger. We live in a rural area outside a small town. She uses profanity and says mean things to them. It makes me want to cry when I think of how scared those kids must be. Who do I contact with this information? I could record her with my phone if evidence was needed to shut down her business. This woman has a really bad anger management problem. She also knows I can hear her because we have spoken about how our voices travel. I dont think she is being physically abusive, but her words must be damaging to those kids. Please help me find someone to tell. Im afraid the local police wont be able to do anything. I cant even take my own child in our backyard because she swears so much. DAY CARE DRAMA IN INDIANA DEAR D.C.D.: Ideally, you should try to tell the parents what you have been hearing because they should be aware that their trusted caregiver loses control of her emotions and takes out her frustrations on their children. If the situation is as ugly as you describe, those kids must be terrified of her. If thats not possible, Child Protective Services should be notified because the environment is not emotionally healthy for little children. P.S. By the age of 4, children usually have started to repeat the language they hear around them. Im surprised these parents havent noticed the change in their vocabulary and questioned their little ones about where they heard those bad words. Nonetheless, on the chance that the parents are clueless, what you have observed should be reported. DEAR ABBY: I have a friend, a contractor working for the U.S. government, who thinks hes in love with a Ukrainian girl. The pay is really good. He recently came back from a visit to see this girlfriend. He has been sending this girl almost all his money for the last nine months. He was never alone with her, and she showed no emotional or physical attraction to him. In fact, a male friend of hers asked him for $800 to give as a bribe so he wouldnt be drafted into the Ukrainian military. We believe this male friend is, in fact, the girls real boyfriend. My friend paid $300 to send flowers to her for their nine-month anniversary, for which she expressed no thanks or appreciation. What advice can you provide us here? FRIEND IN AFGHANISTAN DEAR FRIEND: Your friends romance seems suspicious to me, too. That he is giving all his money to someone who appears to be so emotionally distant is worrisome. I also have to doubt that $800 would keep an able-bodied man from being drafted into the Ukrainian military since the country is now involved in military conflict. It appears your friend is being treated more like an ATM than a suitor, but he may have to arrive at that realization on his own. DEAR ABBY: Im in desperate need of help. I have been with my girlfriend for four years. With every long-term relationship, there are bound to be issues. I havent felt loved by her in a long time, and I think I have fallen out of love with her. I cant even tell her that I love her anymore because I dont want to lie. When we make love, its dull and boring. I want to feel the way I used to about her. When I was near her, my hairs used to stand up, my heart would race, my body would quiver and I would never want to let her go. How can I feel that way about her again? WANTS THAT OLD FEELING DEAR WANTS: The problem with relationships is that they can only be brand-new once. With the passage of time, to some extent the excitement fades. Thats where the work comes in. Longtime couples must make an effort to keep their relationship fresh and exciting. This means introducing spontaneity and new experiences to each other. You say you havent felt loved by her in a long time. My advice would be to talk to her about it. Because you cant bring yourself to tell her you love her, has it occurred to you that she might feel as though she has been emotionally abandoned by you? If you want that old feeling back, you and your lady will need to resume communication on a meaningful level. Its not always easy, but honesty can revive a relationship thats wilting. DEAR ABBY: I live with my longtime boyfriend in a house he owns. Were five hours away from my parents and siblings and the town in which I grew up. Its a beautiful house with lots of land, and I can imagine raising a family here. However, I always thought that if I had children, Id live close to the rest of my family. I would want my parents nearby so they could lend a hand, and I want my kids to have a close relationship with their grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. My boyfriend is open to the idea of selling the house, but Im not sure I would want him to. What should I do? I love this house, but how can I start a family so far from my own? LOOKING AHEAD IN NEW JERSEY DEAR LOOKING AHEAD: Before you make any decisions, discuss this with your parents and see if their vision of grandparenthood is similar to your fantasy. Take into consideration how close they are to your siblings and how involved they are in each others lives. Be sure that the kind of extended family relationship you envision is realistic. If everyone is on board, then you and your boyfriend should talk about what relocating will mean in terms of not only selling this house, but also the impact it might have on your ability to earn a living. This property may be terrific, but if it cannot offer you the lifestyle you wish for, then you would be better served to move. But only you can decide that. DEAR ABBY: Twenty-three years ago my husband and I lost our firstborn son. As my husband was active duty military, we could have buried him anywhere in the United States. At the time, we were in a place where my sister swore to me she would always live, and she would always be there to take care of him. I knew with my husbands career we had many more moves ahead of us, and it helped to ease the loss knowing that he would be taken care of. Well, that lasted all of three years. My husband and I are now at a point where we have settled down and we know where we should have buried our precious angel, instead of trusting my sister. We want to have him exhumed, cremated and placed in a veterans cemetery, but my question is this: Do I have the right to ask my sister to pay part of the costs as she broke her promise to help care for my son? HEARTBROKEN MOTHER DEAR HEARTBROKEN: Please accept my sympathy for the loss of your son. While its clear that there are many hurt feelings about what happened after his original interment, I think its time to forgive your sister. Its a fact of life that sometimes unforeseen circumstances prevent people with the best of intentions from keeping promises they make. Forgive her if you can, but dont ask her for money. She may owe you an apology, but she does not owe you any money. DEAR ABBY: Im very close to my family. We visit each others homes often. But for the past year or so, something has begun to bother me. Its cellphone chargers. Whether people come for a week or just for dinner, out come the chargers! The kids all start plugging in their cellphones and tablets, and the adults follow suit with their cellphones and laptops. I started asking around and its not just happening to me. A lot of my friends have the same gripe. Lamps, toasters, pencil sharpeners you name it their cords are left dangling long after the guests have departed. After the last weekend, I installed a power strip in the TV room and will direct the traffic there in the future. Would you please let people know how rude this is? Also mention that the host is not responsible for an electronic item plugged in on a kitchen counter, or anywhere for that matter. Example: Aunt Sarah, who got my iPad wet? (It was fine, but it had been plugged in on the most used surface in the kitchen.) UNPLUGGED IN SALEM, N.Y. DEAR UNPLUGGED: While the power strip you installed is the practical solution, the problem is that the people you have described are thoughtless. Polite guests leave their hosts home in the same condition it was in when the guests arrived. In this instance, it means being considerate enough to plug in any appliances that the guests unplugged, so the host doesnt have to wonder why the darned thing isnt working after everyone has departed. And as for electronic items foolishly left on a wet counter, if there was any damage, the fault would not be yours. Your niece/nephew was lucky. DEAR ABBY: Im in a tricky situation. My boyfriend of four years, Ian, and I took a break from our relationship for two months because he was scared hed miss out on the single life. We started hanging out again soon after, and everything fell into place. We were talking recently, and he mentioned that hes planning to move across the country to San Francisco to be near his family. He made it plain he wants to live on the West Coast forever. I am close to my family closer than Ian is to his. Were both 24, and while were not going to get engaged anytime soon, Im not sure what to do. We love each other, but the geography is causing so many issues. Please advise. NEW YORK GIRL DEAR N.Y. GIRL: Its good that you and Ian arent planning on becoming engaged anytime soon, because you have some serious thinking to do. If you plan on having a family and want your parents to be close to their grandchildren, it would be better for you to find another boyfriend. Im advising you and Ian to take another break this time for YOUR benefit to see which is more important to you: the man or the location. DEAR ABBY: Im a 14-year-old girl with a problem. Because of my buzzed short hair, slim hips and flat chest, I frequently get mistaken for a boy. It really bothers me because, despite my haircut and body shape, I have a feminine face and I wear womens clothes and makeup. Im not too much of a tomboy. Sometimes when someone addresses me with a male pronoun or in some other way mistakes me for a male, Im too nervous to correct them. Is there a clever or witty way to correct the mistake? NOT A BOY IN BROOKLYN, N.Y. DEAR NOT A BOY: The person who made the mistake is the one who should be embarrassed, not you. If it happens again, all you need to do is smile and say, Im all girl. DEAR ABBY: I have been dating a woman, and I am considering proposing to her. We have discussed engagement rings and she wants to design her own, which I think is great. However, I am unsure exactly what to do regarding the actual proposal. What ring should I give her, knowing that whatever I give her will not be her ultimate engagement ring? SOON TO POP THE QUESTION DEAR SOON TO POP: Marriage proposals happen in many situations and in many ways. There are no rules, and dropping to one knee and offering a ring is optional. The engagement does not begin when a woman starts wearing a ring; it begins when she accepts the proposal. All you need to do is say, Will you marry me? When she says yes, you can then decide when you both would like to select a stone for her engagement ring. DEAR ABBY: A longtime friend asked me to be executor of her estate a few years ago, and I agreed. As time has passed, the details of the estate have changed several times. After the recent death of her husband, she again changed the beneficiaries and is now leaving almost half a million dollars to two animal shelters. Its her money to do with as she chooses, and I dont judge her. I do, however, have a problem executing an estate that gives that much money to animal care when it could help so many people. I dont fault her for wanting to do it; I just dont want to be part of it. Im afraid asking her to find another executor would damage or end our friendship. Please tell me what to do. DILEMMA IN TEXAS DEAR DILEMMA: Lets face it. You ARE judging the woman and you DO fault her for wanting to leave a fortune to four-footed needy creatures instead of bipeds. Because you are uncomfortable with her plan, you must tell her she needs to find another executor who is as committed to animal causes as she is. Youll be doing her a favor. DEAR ABBY: It has been a year since my mother passed away. The month of February was especially tough because it was the month of her birthday and also the month in which she died. Mothers Day will be here soon, and Im already feeling bitter, anticipating all of the commercials, advertising, brunches and everything. I dont want to be bitter about Mothers Day, but I am. How do people typically celebrate Mothers Day when they have lost their mother? JODY IN KEARNEY, NEB. DEAR JODY: Please accept my condolences for the loss of your mother. If you have siblings, you might find it comforting to talk with them about your feelings. If not, then spend the day quietly, being grateful for the precious time you had with your mother and the many lessons she taught you. I cant speak for others, but thats how I have coped with the loss of my mother, and Im sure others do it, too. DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend, Glen, and I have been dating for two years. Over the past few months he has been pushing me to open a joint checking account with him. I have tried explaining that I dont feel like its a good idea until we are engaged. But every time I say no, he gets upset and angry. Am I wrong for not wanting to put our finances together, and how do I make him see my side? CAREFUL IN THE MIDWEST DEAR CAREFUL: You are absolutely NOT wrong, and you should not have to justify your discomfort with the idea of pooling your money with anyone to whom you are not married. In fact, Glen should be trying to explain why he is pushing you into making such a foolish decision. His anger and upset are either attempts to bully you into doing what he wants, or a sign of desperation to get access to your hard-earned money. If you are at all tempted to relent, I URGE you to first talk to a lawyer about what the ramifications could be if the relationship went sour. Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069 Texas-based Lennox International Inc. said in a securities filing Monday that it self reported to the SEC and DOJ an alleged payment of $475 to a Russian customs broker or official. The company said its audit committee launched an internal investigation with outside counsel and forensic accountants. The disclosure is unusual because of the small size of the alleged improper payment. But the disclosure could indicate that Lennox wants to take advantage of the DOJ Pilot Program. The Pilot Program encourages self disclosure. In declination letters issued under the Pilot Program, the DOJ has mentioned factors that include: timely and voluntary self-disclosure thorough and comprehensive global investigations of the violations, and full cooperation including providing all known relevant facts about the individuals involved in or responsible for the misconduct. Lennox makes commercial and residential heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration systems. It had about $3.4 billion in revenue last year. Sales in Russia last year were just $5 million. The company said the internal investigation hasnt yet uncovered any other potentially improper payments. But, Lennox said, the investigation has raised questions regarding possible irregularities with respect to other Russian customs documents. The value of the Russia shipment linked to the alleged payment was about $68,500, Lennox said. The company said it would cooperate with the SEC and DOJ and doesnt expect any material adverse effect on its business or financial condition. Lennox International Inc. trades on the NYSE under the symbol LII. * * * Heres the full FCPA disclosure from the Form 10-Q filed by Lennox International with the SEC on October 17, 2016: In October 2016, the Company self-reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) an alleged payment in the amount of 30,000 rubles (approximately US $475) to a Russian customs broker or official. The Company, under the oversight of its Audit Committee, has initiated an investigation into this matter with the assistance of external legal counsel and external forensic accountants. The alleged payment was purportedly made to release a shipment of goods being held by Russian customs officials due to inaccurate paperwork. The value of the shipment was approximately 62,000 (approximately US $68,500). The allegations are related to the Companys subsidiary in Russia, which had 2015 annual sales of approximately US $5 million and approximately US $3 million in sales for the nine months ended September 30, 2016. To date, the investigation has not resulted in any evidence of other potentially improper payments; however, the investigation has raised questions regarding possible irregularities with respect to other Russian customs documents. The investigation is ongoing. The Company intends to fully cooperate with the SEC and the DOJ regarding this matter. The Company does not anticipate any material adverse effect on its business or financial condition as a result of this matter. ___ Richard L. Cassin is the publisher and editor of the FCPA Blog. Hell be the keynote speaker at the FCPA Blog NYC Conference 2016. Paul Gambino is the author of Morbid Curiosities: Collections of the Uncommon and the Bizarre, (Laurence King .19.95). Here he selects his favourite morbid curiosities from the book. Morbid Curiosities The "pick ten favorite" question is usually hard to answer, no matter what the topic. In this case, for me, it was harder than a 3-inch gallstone that was retrieved from a 67 year-old cadaver and wound up in the collection of a New York collector of morbid human oddities. However, after some time I have come up with the following ten. The Jar of Insanity Just the thought of someone being so mentally disturbed/tortured that they could not break out of this obsessive compulsive loop that would drive them to spend countless hours folding and tearing thousands of tiny pieces of paper - each EXACTLY the same - and then filling a jar with the torn paper is frightening. It's a physical manifestation of insanity and very upsetting. (Collector: Evan Michelson) The "Quaint Toy with a Somber Past" This small, relatively innocuous wooden toy takes on such a sad turn when you see the note that was tied to its base that reads, "Norman, Your mother played with this two hours before death." I find that terribly sad and unsettling. (Collector: Calvin Von Crush) 19th Century Fetal Skeleton This particular skeleton is holding its heart in its hand and drying a tear from its eye socket with their own placenta. (Collector: Ryan Matthew Cohn) WWI Facial Prosthetic Hand formed copper facial elements. The 3rd London General Hospital's "Masks for Facial Disfigurement Department" created over 200 prosthetics of this type from 1918 to 1919 for wounded soldiers. Solders nicknamed the studio "The Tin Noses Shop." (Collector: Steve Erenberg) Pirate Skull A Malaysian pirate skull that hung from the mast of the Spanish galleon Santa Clara in 1688. It was a warning for other would-be pirates. (Collector: Brent S.) Stella Stella the shrunken head is the result of a revenge killing and mutilation. After a wife discovered her husband cheating with another woman, the wife had the daughter of the mistress killed and the daughter's head shrunken. (Collector: Jack Kump) Reine The hand written description was just one word "Reine" which translates to "Queen" in English, 1907 (Collector: Jean-Bernard Gillot) "A Bunch of Cocoanuts" Six warrior skulls taken in the same battle by the Iban's of East Borneo in the late 19th century. The heads were thrown into a fire pit and once cured they were wrapped in vines and suspended from the rafters of the community longhouse. (Collector: Mik Miller) Hangman's Logbook and Tape Measure The personal logbook of English hangman Albert Pierrepoint that includes a written log of every hanging that he performed. Also the tape measure used by his predecessor Henry Albert Pierrepoint. The book is opened to the page of the famous double execution of two women in the "baby farming case". The only double hanging of women to be carried out in modern times. (Collector: Nathan Roberts) Deadly Prison Shank I obtained this "shank" (prison knife) that was used to kill somebody inside of prison. However the collector did not realizing it at the time, that she had in her possession the prison identification card that belonged to the stabbing victim. She keeps always keeps these two those depressing items together. (Collector: Jessica M.) Morbid Curiosities is out now Bella Thorne says all her haters can "f**k off". Bella Thorne in Playboy (c) Twitter The 19-year-old actress has a strong message to send to people on social media who call for her to change as a person, and although she "understands" some of the criticism she receives she's tired of people telling her she's "too edgy" now. Speaking to Playboy magazine, Bella - who shot to fame on Disney Channel series 'Shake It Up' - said: "People often don't want to get to know the real you; they only want to get to know the person they think you are. For me, that means people are constantly trying to change me, every second of the day, especially on social media. I'm not fed up with social media - I understand it - but people like to comment on how my image is too edgy, that I'm too edgy, and on how they wish I looked. It's a lot of 'do this, don't do that.' To them I say, f**k off!" Bella - who recently revealed on Twitter that she identifies as bisexual and is currently dating 'Teen Wolf' star Tyler Posey - appears in a sexy 70s-themed photo shoot for Hugh Hefner's iconic men's magazine, although she keeps most of her body covered up. However, the Hollywood starlet believes both men and women should be "confident enough" to flaunt their body, and not feel the need to cover it up. Bella - who has shared some photos from her Playboy shoot on her Twitter account - said: "There's this effort to try to shame a woman's sexiness by pulling a cover over it, but I'm a woman who loves skin. I love skin on me, I love skin on girls, I love skin on guys. If you're confident enough to show off your body, you should. Be confident. It can be difficult to get yourself to focus on you all the time, especially when you're trying to transition into who you really are, but I'm not going to change for anybody else. I love staying true to me." Kim Kardashian West was dragged out of bed and had tape tied around her entire head as robbers snatched jewellery worth $8.5 million from her room earlier this month. Kim Kardashian West The 'Keeping Up With the Kardashians' star was left fearing for her life when a five-men gang broke into her room at Hotel de Pourtales in Paris, France, on October 3, waved a gun in her face, gagged her and tied her up in the bathroom while they raided her drawers. The concierge on duty, who led the robbers to Kim's room, explained: "One of the gang kept telling her to shut up. I put my hand on her shoulder and told her to be calm. "I said, you have to be silent, you know. She sat down on the bed. She asked me, 'Are we going to die?' I said, 'I don't know, how can I know?' She said, 'I have family and babies'. I told her, me too, I have one son. And she began to scream again. That's why he put the tape on her mouth. A long piece of tape, all the way round her head." The traumatised guard - who is only known by his first name Abdulrahman for security reasons - initially tried to put the robbers off by claiming he didn't know who the 35-year-old star was before he was marched to her room "by the scruff of his neck". Speaking exclusively to the MailOnline, he said: "We got to her bedroom and slid open the door. She was in her bed. Before we opened the door, she heard a noise and began to say, 'Hello? Hello?' I assume she thought it was her sister. "The intonation of her voice changed when there was no answer, I felt she was worried. After that, one of them opened the door. The other one was fastened to me. He attacked her, holding his gun in her face. She was crying, she was screaming, saying, don't kill me, I have babies, don't kill me, please, I have babies! I'm a mom! Take whatever you want! She seemed terrified. She was wearing a white bathrobe and her hair was tied up." Her bodyguard Pascal Duvier- who is also involved in the investigation - was out protecting her sister Kourtney Kardashian when the incident took place in the early hours. An instructing judge is now leading more than 100 judicial police and officers from the Paris criminal brigade in the hope of catching the five-man gang. The criminals will face charges of armed robbery by an organised gang, criminal conspiracy and kidnapping, which could lead to a sentence of at least 30 years. Inmates sentenced to life in the European country are required to serve a safety period of at least 18 to 22 years before they can become eligible for early release. From Hollywood blockbusters like Prometheus to everyone's favourite detective in Luther, British actor Idris Elba has come a long way from his small roles in the likes of 2point4 Children and Absolutely Fabulous. A few months ago he was awarded an OBE for his work in film and television; it's no surprise he is one of the frontrunners to be the next James Bond. Idris Elba To celebrate the release of his new film, The Take - out now on DVD, Blu-ray and VOD and 100 Streets released in cinemas and on VOD on 11th November, - we count down our top five Idris Elba roles. 100 Streets Elba also stars in gritty drama 100 Streets- out on Nov 11th in cinemas and on VOD. Directed by Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated Jim O'Hanlon, 100 STREETS is a layered and gripping drama, with an original screenplay by Leon F Butler. It takes a compelling look at the vibrant and complicated life of a group of individuals in contemporary London - destination capital of the world. 100 STREETS intersect the film's setting. Chelsea is just down the road from high-rise estates, riverside opulence contrasts with the day-to-day grind. It's in these streets that the characters face major choices and fundamental change in their separate lives, as they negotiate their paths through life - through those hundred streets. The Take In his latest role, Elba stars alongside Game of Throne's Richard Madden in the high-octane thriller The Take. Michael Mason (Madden) is an American pickpocket living in Paris who finds himself hunted by the CIA when he steals a bag that contains more than just a wallet. Sean Briar (Elba), the field agent on the case, soon realises that Michael is just a pawn in a much bigger game and is also his best asset to uncover a large-scale conspiracy. Going against commands, Briar recruits Michael to use his expert pickpocketing skills to help quickly track down the source of the corruption. As a 24hr thrill ride ensues the unlikely duo discover they are both targets and must rely upon each other in order to take down a common enemy. Luther Considered perhaps his most infamous role, is the BBC drama Luther which follows the story of DCI John Luther. The crime drama first burst onto our screens with six one-hour long episodes back in May 2010. It proved hugely popular and continued for a further three seasons, no doubt with more to follow. Elba was highly praised for his role as the dark and obsessive Detective Chief Inspector; he has been awarded a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award for his performance. The show has also received eight Primetime Emmy Award nominations in various categories, proving once again that British actors can do no wrong in Hollywood. Prometheus Starring alongside Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Guy Pearce, Logan Marshall-Green and Charlize Theron, Elba also showed his worth as a Hollywood heavyweight in Ridley Scott's Prometheus . Elba stars as Janek, captain of the Prometheus, a character which he himself described as "a longshoreman and a sailor'. He described Janek as a "realistic, pragmatic character." In a film with huge ideas, you need a character like this, who can do 'wait, why are we doing this?' The film proved to be an international success and grossed $403 million worldwide, it was also nominated for an Academy Award for visual effects. Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom It's no mean feat taking on the role of anti-apartheid revolutionary Nelson Mandela but it was a challenge that Elba was willing to accept when he took on the title role in Justin Chadwick's biopic Mandela: The Long Walk to Freedom. Based on the autobiographical book Long Walk to Freedom by former South African President Nelson Mandela, the film chronicles the revolutionary's life from his childhood in a rural village through to his inauguration as the first democratically elected president of South Africa. The film received a number of positive reviews with heavy praise for Elba's 'towering performance' alongside Naomie Harris as Winnie Madikizela. Beasts of No Nation A Netflix original film, Beasts of No Nation was screened in the main competition of the 72nd Venice International Film Festival where is won the Marcello Mastroianni Award. Based on the novel of the same name by Uzodinma Iweala, it follows the story of a young boy who survives as his country goes through a horrific war. Once again Elba was praised for his role and was nominated for a British Academy Film Award for Best Actor in a Support Role. With the ongoing race row continuing to make waves in Hollywood, many thought that Elba should have received an Academy Award nomination for his role as the menacing Commandant, with many considering it this year's biggest snub. Wiley, Lady Leshurr and Popcaan will perform at the MOBO Awards. Wiley The three artists will join previously-announced superstars Craig David, Laura Mvula and Tinie Tempah at the event, held on November 4 at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. Clean Bandit will also rock the awards' stage for the time as they team up with Best Newcomer nominee Anne-Marie for an energetic set. Although most of them haven't graced the MOBO stage before, the 'When The Bassline Drops' hitmaker - who is nominated for Best Male and Best Song - is thrilled to be making a return to the awards ceremony after first wowing the show in 2000. He said: "I first performed at the MOBO Awards 16 years ago and walked away with three awards that night. I'm back with new music and it's only right that I celebrate this by joining MOBO as they celebrate their 21st birthday." Meanwhile, Laura - who last performed at the 2013 MOBOs - will be hoping her performance will be a celebration of a successful night as she's up for an impressive four awards. She said: "I'm so thrilled to be back in Glasgow performing on the MOBO Awards stage. The MOBOs are one of the few music events that have really championed and supported urban music from Gospel to Grime, so it's an honour to be taking part once again." Like Craig, Tinie is up for Best Male and Best Song for 'Girls Like', and will be hoping to add to the two awards he picked up in 2010. Laura and Kano lead the nominations with four each, with Skepta narrowly behind with three nods. Tickets for the MOBO Awards are available now at www.mobo.com/tickets. A collaborative effort of leading American and British publications included Ferris State University in their inaugural ranking of U.S. colleges. Ferris is one of six publicly-funded Michigan universities, and among sixteen schools in the state listed in the top 500 institutions in the survey. Ferris is the only public university in west Michigan included in the report. The Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education findings were based on responses from 100,000 college students, gauging their experience with faculty, assessing critical thinking requirements and asking whether they would recommend their school to others. Ferris had the best showing in the engagement category, among all Michigan schools, with 17 of 20 possible points. When respondents were asked if they would recommend their school, Ferris 8.92-point score, on a 10-point scale, with 10 representing the strongest level of agreement, was the highest score for any Michigan school in the survey. President David Eisler was pleased by the universitys inclusion in this report, as it indicates positive responses from those who have chosen to pursue their education at Ferris. It is very gratifying to see the educational efforts of our faculty and staff recognized by a prestigious publication like The Wall Street Journal, Eisler said. It is clear that students who attend Ferris State University are engaged and believe the university is the right choice for them. Ferris joins the University of Michigan, University of Michigan-Dearborn, Michigan State University, Michigan Technological University and Wayne State University as the state-funded public universities included in this ranking. Other Michigan institutions that were in the WSJ/THE survey included Albion College, Alma College, Andrews University, Calvin College, the College for Creative Studies, the University of Detroit-Mercy, Hope College, Kalamazoo College, Kettering University and Lawrence Technological University. Ferris overall score is derived from ratings on outcome, resources, engagement, environment, being a right choice, salaries for graduates and debt repayment. The university was ranked 492nd among all U.S. colleges in the ranking. PHOTO CAPTION: Ferris State University, based in Big Rapids, Mich. is the only west Michigan public college or university included in the inaugural Wall Street Journal college rankings, created in collaboration with a leading British publication, Times Higher Education. DEAR HARRIETTE: My brother has a very malicious ex-wife. She is currently manipulating their children (my nieces and goddaughters) into not coming to celebrate a wedding on our side of the family. She claims that her daughters say they don't want to come. The manipulation of children so young saddens me, but I think my brother should let it go. He is adamant that the girls should be in attendance so they can see pictures later. They are young, between 8 and 11. -- Too Many Sides, Pikesville, Maryland DEAR TOO MANY SIDES: You should stay out of it. Though well intentioned, you really have no say in what happens between your brother and his ex-wife, and adding your opinion may only confuse things. Just be a sounding board for him if he chooses to talk to you about it. That said, I would tell your brother that he has to figure out how to neutralize the relationship between the two of them. This is essential for the health of the children. Now, it could be that a family wedding stirs up lots of emotions for his ex, which could lead to her not wanting the children there. Whatever the reason, your brother must figure out how he and his ex can come to an agreement on how they will parent their children, what they will agree to keep between the adults and how they will handle conflict. DEAR HARRIETTE: My father grunts like a child when he's frustrated. This drives me insane. The habit suddenly formed when I moved away from home, so I didn't see any gradual changes over the years. He now grunts, moans and growls if he is irked. Phone updates, slow waitresses and long lines have been some of the culprits of this audible anger. It's embarrassing to hear at home, and mortifying to be associated with in public. How can I get him to quit? -- You're Grown Up, Boston DEAR YOU'RE GROWN UP: You may not be able to get your father to change this behavior. As people age, they sometimes develop odd habits that stick. Point out to your father that he is making these sounds. When you are in his company -- preferably at home -- and he grunts or moans or growls, say something immediately. Ask him why he is making those sounds. You should find out quickly whether he is doing it consciously based on his response. If he is unaware of it, ask him if you have permission to point it out the next time it happens. Tell him that when he makes these sounds in front of others, it can be awkward and can hurt people's feelings. If your father is willing to hear you and understand that these sounds make others uncomfortable, he may try to stop making them. But do know that there is a fairly good chance that your father won't stop. If he doesn't, you may have to learn to live with it. DEAR HARRIETTE: My daughter is entering her senior year of high school, and she told me two days ago that she would like to be an engineer because math is easy for her. I was surprised because I thought she would go college to get a degree in fashion. Shes designed her own clothes since she was 6 years old. I am big fan of my daughter, and I would like to know what I can do to continue to fuel her desire to become an engineer? Momma Wants Best, St. Louis DEAR MOMMA WANTS BEST: First, as it relates to your daughters interest in fashion, know that she does not have to give up that passion. It can remain a hobby for her. It could also be incorporated into her work as an engineer if she decides to marry the two fields. An example of this is that there are many fabrics that are made now thanks to technology that designs intricate patterns. It took engineering to make that happen. As far as your daughters interest in engineering, the best thing you can do for her is expose her to the field as soon as possible. There are many internships available that provide a window into the world of engineering. The Department of Homeland Security runs a great national program for college juniors and seniors (when shes old enough). You can learn more about it at dhs.gov/national-hs-stem-summerinternship-program. DEAR HARRIETTE: I keep seeing those commercials about getting a free credit report. I was always afraid to get mine because I know my credit sucks. I have been out of work for four years now. I do odd jobs to make money, but I have a lot of debt that I pay off sporadically depending upon how much money I have in any given month. So I got my report, and it sucks worse than I thought. I am at a loss for what to do. Without real income, I dont know how to get my finances in order. Drowning in Debt, Syracuse, New York DEAR DROWNING IN DEBT: Congratulations on speaking up about your situation. It can be difficult to ask for help when you feel that your situation is hopeless, but know that yours is not hopeless! I highly recommend that you get expert help. Just as you would go to the doctor if you were ill, you should go to a financial adviser to help get your finances healthy again. One option is going to the unemployment office to request free support in getting out of debt. The extra benefit there is that you may gain wisdom on how to re-enter the job market. You can also read about debt reduction and take steps to chip away at the debt you do have whenever possible. One organization that can help you for free is greenpath.com. It offers full financial support services, including developing a customized budget for you based on your needs along with an action plan for how to get out of debt. By working with such an organization, you can get to the other side, even in your current circumstances. DEAR HARRIETTE: My friends invited my family to visit their country house for a long weekend. Just before it was time to start our drive, they called to say that they didnt have any electricity. (There was some type of power outage.) They invited us to come anyway, but I really didnt want to go. I told my husband, and we ended up having a huge argument because he thought I was being ridiculous. In the end, we went and had a great time. The kids loved being in the dark with candles. What I didnt appreciate was that my husband refused to even consider my position. I want to be able to state my case and have us discuss it without a fight. How can I do that? I am sick of arguing with him. Fed Up, New York City DEAR FED UP: Attitude is everything. The way you broach a subject often directly affects the way that people react to you. If you were instantly against the idea of keeping your plans, you may have dashed your husbands feelings. What you may want to do in the future is to say, Lets talk this through to see what makes the most sense. If you suggest that the two of you come up with a plan together, you create space for consensus building rather than having to choose between one option or the other. DEAR HARRIETTE: I have been dating a guy who is really nice, but hes kind of provincial. He has never left the state. I moved here to go to college. While I havent traveled all over the world or anything that grand, I have taken a few trips in the United States. Plus, I have gone to the Caribbean. I love traveling and want to do it with my boyfriend, but he is scared to death to go anywhere. He refuses to get a passport and says that I am being difficult in even asking him to consider it. I dont want to seem any particular way, but I know what I want. And I want to date a guy who is adventurous like me, or at least who is willing to try. What should I do? Travel Jones, Detroit DEAR TRAVEL JONES: If you truly like this guy, dont give up on him just yet. He may be so adamant because he is afraid of the unknown. That you have experience traveling and he does not could make him nervous. Why not plan a small trip in the area, perhaps a short car ride away? Find a nice getaway that would provide a completely different experience than he or you have in Detroit. Encourage him to join you. As you enjoy the weekend, notice if he softens up to the idea of travel. Give him a chance to discover if he likes a bit of adventure. If so, fantastic. If not, you can then reconsider if he is the guy for you. DEAR HARRIETTE: So Ive been seeing a guy for a little over a year, and hes joined the Air Force. He will be starting basic training in the months to come. Ive tried to do some research on what military life is like so I can know what to expect when the time comes. I am so nervous. I really like him and believe we could have something, but I am afraid. With all the wars going on, I dont want him to get killed. I dont really know how to be supportive of him when I would rather he not go. How can I be a good girlfriend? Baby Dont Go, Racine, Wisconsin DEAR BABY DONT GO: You are doing the right thing in researching what your boyfriend will have to do to prepare to be in the military. You two should talk about his plans and discover together whats ahead for him. While you are justified in being nervous about his future, you can also be extremely proud that he is one of the people who is stepping up to protect our country and its interests. I would be remiss if I did not say that personally I am extremely conflicted over the wars in which we find our troops these days. But I do know that the men and women who make this choice are brave and should be respected for their loyalty and commitment. Do your best to adopt the attitude of gratitude for the course your boyfriend is setting for himself. At the same time, talk openly about the future. Be as clear as you can about expectations on both of your parts. Do you imagine staying together? Let him know your intentions, and agree to check in about your feelings on a regular basis. Being honest is the best thing you can do. DEAR HARRIETTE: My friends lost a child to sudden infant death syndrome several years ago. Every year I remember the anniversary, but I feel weird saying anything to them, so I have not. This year marks the fifth anniversary, and something tells me that I should acknowledge it in some way. They have other children now, but I know that they miss their little girl. Should I send them a card or call them or anything? I dont want to dredge up old memories. But I do want to honor their loss. What should I do? Tender Memories, Boston DEAR TENDER MEMORIES: Your instincts are on point. They are surely remembering the loss of their child. While they may not want to talk about it, you can send them a card saying that you are keeping their family in your prayers. Write a personal note saying how much you love them and their family, how blessed they are to have the children they have and say how sad you are as you remember the passing of their baby. For more information on helping a family suffering after the death of a baby, visit sidsresources.org/?page_id=928. DEAR HARRIETTE: I have been in love with my best friend for years, and while he loves me, it has never turned into anything. The other day I hung out with him and a friend of his who I didnt know, even though they have been close for a long time. I watched the electricity between them, and it was nuts. I felt so uncomfortable, but I also realized that he never looks at me like that. I guess I always knew he didnt love me like I love him. But what I witnessed was him lusting over this woman. Im sad that he doesnt feel attracted to me in that way, but at least now I know what it looks like when he does feel that way. My feelings are hurt, but I think its time for me to give up. How can I do that? Waving the Flag, Milwaukee DEAR WAVING THE FLAG: Put yourself first. You deserve to be adored by the person you love. Lust is often short-lived, so I wouldnt recommend that as a principal desire, but love and adoration are important. Instead of keeping your heart focused on someone who is not interested in offering that to you, change your gaze. Look out and do your best to notice if there is anyone else out there who captures your attention. Lifestylist and author Harriette Cole is president and creative director of Harriette Cole Media. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106 Sri Lanka is hopeful of increasing its apparel exports to three large economiesthe EU, India and China. It is currently negotiating Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) plus facilities with EU and is in discussion with China for increasing its apparel exports. It is also hoping that India will remove the current quota of 8 million given under the ISFTA. Sri Lanka is hopeful of increasing its apparel exports to three large economiesthe EU, India and China. It is currently negotiating Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) plus facilities with EU and is in discussion with China for increasing its apparel exports. It is also hoping that India will remove the current quota of 8 million given under the ISFTA.# Prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was in Brussels last week where he initiated talks with the EU on restoring GSP Plus status to his country Sri Lanka is hopeful of increasing its apparel exports to three large economiesthe EU, India and China. It is currently negotiating Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) plus facilities with EU and is in discussion with China for increasing its apparel exports. It is also hoping that India will remove the current quota of 8 million given under the ISFTA.# Sri Lanka's apparel exports registered four per cent growth last year and GSP plus facility would be a further push for exports growth, according to Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF). Sri Lanka is hopeful of increasing its apparel exports to three large economiesthe EU, India and China. It is currently negotiating Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) plus facilities with EU and is in discussion with China for increasing its apparel exports. It is also hoping that India will remove the current quota of 8 million given under the ISFTA.# The south Asian nation is also hoping some favourable outcome from the ongoing preferential trade negotiations with India and China. The Economic and Technology Co-operation Agreement (ETCA) between India and Sri Lanka is currently in final stages of negotiation. The agreement is likely to open India's apparel import market for Sri Lanka, and remove the current quota of 8 million under the Indo-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (ISFTA). Sri Lanka is hopeful of increasing its apparel exports to three large economiesthe EU, India and China. It is currently negotiating Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) plus facilities with EU and is in discussion with China for increasing its apparel exports. It is also hoping that India will remove the current quota of 8 million given under the ISFTA.# Chinese government is also likely to offer a more flexible environment for Sri Lankan apparel exports. Sri Lanka is hopeful of increasing its apparel exports to three large economiesthe EU, India and China. It is currently negotiating Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) plus facilities with EU and is in discussion with China for increasing its apparel exports. It is also hoping that India will remove the current quota of 8 million given under the ISFTA.# Sri Lanka's textile and garment exports stood at $4.7 billion in 2015 and the country is targeting to increase this figure to $6 billion by 2019. (RKS) Sri Lanka is hopeful of increasing its apparel exports to three large economiesthe EU, India and China. It is currently negotiating Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) plus facilities with EU and is in discussion with China for increasing its apparel exports. It is also hoping that India will remove the current quota of 8 million given under the ISFTA.# Fibre2Fashion News Desk India A one day Worldwide Response Accredited Production (WRAP) certificate workshop for apparel producers was held in Accra, Ghana by the USAID/West Africa Trade and Investment Hub. The workshop shared information on WRAP's certification with garment export companies from Ghana, Nigeria, Benin and Cote d'lvoire to make them competitive in the global markets.According to Carol Adoum from the Hub, WRAP certification was necessary to make clothing exporters competitive in world markets, as the certification demonstrates an exporters' commitment towards environmental and social standards. A one day Worldwide Response Accredited Production (WRAP) certificate workshop for apparel producers was held in Accra, Ghana by the USAID/West Africa Trade and Investment Hub. The workshop shared information on WRAP's certification with garment export companies from Ghana, Nigeria, Benin and Cote d'lvoire to make them competitive in the global markets.# International brands who import clothing are making it mandatory for companies to have the WRAP certification, from whom they source apparels, Adoum added, while speaking at the inauguration of the workshop. (AR) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India The third edition of the Global Denim Awards (GDA), made possible by e3 Cotton , will be held on October 26 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. GDA, a platform for the future of denim design, sustainability and craftsmanship, will present 11 pairs of fashion designers and denim mills that will present their co-created capsule collections during the award ceremony. The 11 collections that result from the collaborations between selected mills and designers will be judged by a jury of international denim experts on the overall look, the innovative nature of the design, and the creative use of denim. The designer of the winning collection will receive a 10,000 award, made possible by e3 Cotton, said an official statement. An additional award will go to the mill with the most innovative fabric. The panel of jury that will judge the collections include denim and casual wear designer Amy Leverton, designer Sam Lambert and stylist Shaka Maidoh (founders of Art Comes First), designer and trend forecaster Kelly Harrington and global sales director of Scotch & Soda Alex Jaspers. The designer - mill teams that will present their collections during the GDA are - Marina van Dieren and Christina Albrecht - Advance Denim, MariusPetrus - Atlantic Mills, EdithMarcel - Berto Industria Tessile, Outkastpeople (Emre Aktuna) - Calik Denim, Lavinia Mustapha - Candiani Denim, Anbasja Blanken - ITV Denim, Tess van Zalinge - Knitdigo, Lisa Konno and Karin Vlug - Prosperity Textile, Roosmarijn Koster - Arvind, Deniz Gur - Kipas Denim and Leandro Cano - Tejidos Royo. Participating designers are required to spend at least a week at their partnered mills to develop an in-depth understanding of the mill's latest technological possibilities related to fabrics, washes, finishes, treatment and sustainable manufacturing processes. The designers will work together with the mill to develop a capsule collection on the spot, comprised of five total looks to be presented at the GDA. GDA is initiated and organised by HTNK fashion recruitment and consultancy agency, Kingpins denim sourcing show and House of Denim, an Amsterdam-based foundation. What's unique about the Denim Awards is that it puts some of the most innovative mills worldwide front-row. In this way, GDA is also a preview to the future, since brands will have to offer transparency regarding where and how their products are produced within the next few years," said Mariette Hoitink, CEO, HTNK. The winning collection will be exhibited at Kingpins Shows in New York City and Hong Kong, before returning to the Netherlands for Amsterdam Denim Days 2017. (KD) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India Prime minister of India Narendra Modi believes that 'Khadi for Fashion' is now the apt slogan for khadi instead of 'Khadi for Nation'. While distributing traditional wooden charkhas (spinning wheels) to 500 women in Ludhiana, Punjab, Modi said that khadi is a priority and is being marketed well now. He also said that a charkha can be a means for income. Khadi is a priority for us, and a charkha at home brings more income. Khadi is marketed well now, adding that once upon a time, the apt slogan was 'Khadi for Nation', but now it should be 'Khadi for Fashion', said Modi. Charkha distribution was carried out at the launch of the National SC/ST hub, and the Zero Defect, Zero Effect (ZED) scheme for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Ludhiana. He also presented national awards to MSMEs at the launch ceremony. Prime minister of India Narendra Modi believes that 'Khadi for Fashion' is now the apt slogan for khadi instead of the 'Khadi for Nation'. While distributing traditional wooden charkhas (spinning wheels) to 500 women in Ludhiana, Punjab, Modi said that khadi is a priority and is being marketed well now. He also said that a charkha can be a means for income.# The prime minister also said that it is natural to launch a scheme related to MSMEs from Ludhiana as it is an important economic centre. He added that MSME sector is crucial for the economic progress of India and urged MSMEs to match global quality control standards. (KD) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India Global cotton stocks in 2016/17 will drop to their lowest level since 2011/12, as China continues to reduce the surplus supplies, accumulated during the 2011-14 seasons. The latest US Department of Agriculture (USDA) report estimates 2016/17 world cotton ending stocks to decline 10 per cent, from the previous season to 87.3 million bales.According to USDA, with more than 12 million bales of cotton sold from China's national reserve in 2016, and plans to resume sales beginning in March 2017, China is reducing stock levels that have affected the global cotton market in recent years. Global cotton stocks in 2016/17 will drop to their lowest level since 2011/12, as China continues to reduce the surplus supplies, accumulated during the 2011-14 seasons. The latest US Department of Agriculture (USDA) report estimates 2016/17 world cotton ending stocks to decline 10 per cent, from the previous season to 87.3 million bales.# Despite progressively reducing cotton stocks, China's stocks at the end of 2016/17 at 48 million bales are forecast to account for 55 per cent of the world total.Stocks in India projected at 11 million bales, or about 13 percent of the total, while US cotton stocks are expected to account for 5 per cent of global stocks, while supplies in the rest of the world stand at 27 per cent. (AR) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India Driven by increases in Australia and Mali, partially offset by declines in Brazil and the United States, global cotton production in 2016/17 is forecast at 102.7 million bales. This figure revealed by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) in its October report is slightly above the September USDA projection and nearly 7 per cent higher than 2015/16.The October report forecasts world harvested area at 29.4 million hectares in 2016/17, 3 per cent below the prior season and the lowest since 1986/87. The global cotton yield is projected at 760 kg per hectare, which is equal to the five year average. Driven by increases in Australia and Mali, partially offset by declines in Brazil and the United States, global cotton production in 2016/17 is forecast at 102.7 million bales. This figure revealed by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) in its October report is slightly above the September USDA projection and nearly 7 per cent higher than 2015/16.# Cotton production is expected to rise in three of the four top producing countries, with China being the exception, with its cotton production projected to decrease 1 million bales to 21.0 million.Output in India is projected at 26.5 million bales; up marginally from 2015/16 from a rebound in yield, which is expected to be offset from a 10 per cent reduction in cotton area.The report estimates an US production increase to 16 million bales in 2016/17, while Pakistan's cotton crop is estimated to expand to nearly 8.3 million bales.A cotton crop of 4 million bales is forecast for Australia in 2016/17, up from 2.6 million bales last season and that of Brazil at 6.5 million bales, 10 per cent above a season earlier, despite slightly lower acreage. (AR) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India Hannah Simone, who is a British-Canadian actress of the Indian origin, states that she is highly drawn towards the matter of international relations and would like to work on the same field mainly because of her "bizarre nomadic childhood". "So I grew up internationally. I grew up in Saudi Arabia and India and Cyprus, and I lived in a war-zone myself and, I mean, I had a pretty bizarre, I guess, nomadic childhood, and so I was really drawn to international relations and political science," said Hannah. Hannah said that she had also worked with United Nations on the world issue, trying to improve international relations among countries. "I worked at the United Nations. Then I was based in London working on these projects, and then became a little frustrated that the world around us was changing so much and how young people were receiving information on world issues." She added. "They weren't, like, reading policy briefings that we were writing in our office. They were, you know, watching, like, Michael Moore documentaries and John Stewart on 'The Daily Show', so I decided to switch mediums to talk," the actress said. Hannah Simone is popularly known as CeCe Parekh from the show New Girl- aired on Star World in India. She was born of a German mother and an Indian father. The Darshan starrer Chakravarthy, which has been making news for various reasons since the launch, has confirmed its release date. The movie directed by Chintan, will hit the screens on December 23, aiming the Christmas weekend. Fans have huge expectations about the film after Darshan's look was revealed. It is building up as and when new pics of the star cast are surfacing online. Recently, when team was shooting in a cruise, number of pictures were shared by various members of team. Almost 80 percent of the shoot is completed, major portions were shot in Bangalore, Mysore and Singapore. The team is leaving to Bangkok in the last week of October to shoot the remaining song on Darshan. Once the song shoot is completed, the team will move to Madikeri where the remaining talkie portions will be completed. Talkie portions will be shot on Darshan, Charulatha and other important characters of the film. The team is planning to start the post-production work by second week of November which will facilitate them to complete the work by December first week and will leave the team with 2 to 3 weeks for censor and promotions. Arjun Janya is composing music for a Darshan starrer for the first time, and he is quite elated with the output. We hear that introduction song and item songs will be the highlight of the album. Music is expected to be out by the end of November. The film has a fantastic star cast in the form of Kumar Bangarappa, Aditya, Srujan Lokesh, Shivdvaj, Yashas Surya, Satya and Charulatha. It also marks the comeback of veteran actors Kumar Bangarappa and Charulatha. "Im not sure I should tell you about this manager because I dont want his fund to be oversubscribed, confessed an anxious Japanese investment adviser to FinanceAsia. Like all his peers, he is scrambling to find profitable products for clients suffering under Japans negative interest rate policy. Increasingly, the hunt for yield is guiding large and small investors alike towards a particular investment category: alternatives. The worlds largest pension fund, Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) and Japan Post, the countrys biggest bank by deposits and insurer by assets, are poised to invest in alternatives. Many other Japanese asset owners have already begun shifting money out of negative-yielding government bonds and into these riskier but potentially more rewarding products. New classes of investors are entering the market. From GPIF and Japan Post to regional banks that are all seeking returns as well as ways to help the local economy, Jun Tsusaka, founder of private equity firm NSSK told FinanceAsia. Tsusaka, previously of TPG Capital, is fund raising, said industry sources. Japans investors have so far focused on infrastructure and real estate funds among alternative products, according to some portfolio investment advisers in Tokyo. But domestic private equity funds are also attracting the countrys asset owners. Japanese private equity funds are looking more attractive to investors due to negative interest rates and the return on leverage, said Kazuhiro Yamada, head of Carlyle's Japan buyout advisory team. That is leading a fast-growing queue of private equity, real estate and hedge funds seeking handouts to establish new funds. Asian fund-of-funds and marquee global brands are likely to be the earliest beneficiaries. The biggest alternatives manager in the world, Blackstone, is close to snagging a mandate from Japan Post to invest on its behalf, according to two people familiar with the matter. A spokeswoman for Blackstone declined to comment. Japan Post has also awarded Tokio Marine, Nissay and the Development Bank of Japan mandates to help it invest in alternative products, a source said. The Japanese firms did not respond to requests for comment. Other, homegrown funds are benefiting too. Japanese private equity firm Integral is looking to raise 70 billion ($692 million) for its latest fund, Advantage Partners is seeking 60 billion and Tokio Marine Capital is raising about 50 billion, according to some of the people the funds have approached to invest. Even relatively new funds are gaining interest. One is Yukon Capital Partners, led by Ayumi Sakurai who previously ran Valiant Partners; another is Aspirant, headed by Akitoshi Nakamura, a former Morgan Stanley M&A banker. Japans institutional investors will need to maintain some discipline and select managers who wont use the flood of funds to overpay at a time when investment opportunities are scarce and fund performance data sketchy (many managers refuse to release metrics to data compilers). Fortunately for them, FinanceAsia has done some of the initial due diligence on their behalf. Japan performance As Chinas economy slows, its stock markets tumble from mid-2015 levels and regulators restrict private equitys ability to sell companies on its stock markets, some investors are turning once again to more mature buyout markets including the worlds third-largest economy, Japan. We are currently reconsidering Japan because Chinas growth rate is declining, said Yoshi Kiguchi, chief investment officer of Japans Okayama Metal and Machinery Pension Fund at the SuperReturn Asia conference in Hong Kong. "Over the next ten years in Japan and Southeast Asia we think we can get more than 10% net IRR." Kiguchi currently allocates about 10% of his global private equity fund to Asia, mostly in China and has no exposure to Japan. Japan is starting to look like an island of stability in a volatile world. And its no longer the one country in the world with zero interest rates, where companies need to focus on new sources of growth, Mark Chiba, partner of regional private equity fund Longreach, told FinanceAsia. Longreach has targeted 65 billion to 70 billion for its third fund and is launching a fund-raising drive later this year, according to market sources. Chiba declined to comment. The excitement around Japanese private equity is palpable despite the country's low economic growth. Private equity funds focused on Japan generated an average gross internal rate of return (IRR) of 10% as of December 2015, based on exited investments between 2004 and 2013, which of course included the global financial crisis. That is higher than any other major Asian hot spot except for China, according to the Centre for Asia Private Equity Research. To be sure many investors, both foreign and domestic, were burnt badly when Japanese private equity firms raised large funds in 2007 [see chart below] and invested them in highly-leveraged financial institutions and cyclical industrial companies such as Tokyo Star and Toshiba Ceramics. But confidence is slowly recovering. Its a little bit early to tell the final results, but Japanese vintage year private equity fund returns for 2009 and 2010 are very good, said Kazushige Kobayashi, head of investment management Asia at CapitalDynamics. Investors who pick the right Japanese fund manager can do particularly well. Integral has hired Park Hill to help it raise 70 billion for its third fund, according to market sources. Led by Nobuo Sayama, who also founded M&A boutique advisory firm GCA, the firm worked on the rehabilitation of Skymark Airlines from bankruptcy. This was a key deal for Integral, short for the not-so-catchy motto integral calculus accumulation over time. This is the fund to watch. Sayama is a rock star, said one enthusiastic limited partner in Tokyo. Integral has shown it can source deals effectively in Japan, just this month it has made an offer to take wigmaker Aderans private, a firm that was once a target of US activist hedge fund Steel Partners. However some limited partners also known as LPs are keen to see more exits, including from Skymark, before they take the plunge. Sweet spot Some seasoned LPs warned against extrapolating a few deals that managers hit out of the park to sustainable performance. This is particularly good advice in Japan, where blue-chip corporates are generally suspicious of private equity companies focus on returns and rarely sell them big assets. Relationship management is more important in Japan, so if we can understand this then it helps us select the appropriate Japanese funds, said the pension fund manager Kiguchi. Perhaps the sweetest spot for private equity in the country will be mid-sized deals, for less than $500 million, which are sold in secret negotiations. A stand-out deal in this respect was Advantage Partners 8.5 billion investment in Tokyo-headquartered condominium maker Community One (previously known as Dia Kensetsu) in 2008 at an enterprise value to Ebitda multiple of 3.7 times. The roll-up strategy of five other companies into Community One resulted in a return of about 23.1 times money deployed, when Advantage finally exited in 2013. Advantage Partners has lowered the target on its latest fund-raising effort to 60 billion from around 70 billion, after LPs requested it focus on smaller deals like Community One. The private equity firm said it had secured commitments from investors for 30 billion at the first close of the capital raising in an update to LPs. Several LPs said that they were worried about recent departures at the firm. Atsushi Akaike left in 2013 and with Yukinori Sugiyama joined rival CVC Capital Partners in 2015. Akira Yamashita, who worked on the Community One deal, also departed the firm last year, said one LP. But Advantage Partners still has one of the largest teams in Japan and averages over four transactions a year. Another home run by the team was its acquisition of 80% of Komeda in 2008, which generated 7.5 times money invested, according to LPs. Many of these mid-sized sales are related to elderly Japanese looking to sell the companies they founded, often at a reasonable five to six times EV/Ebitda. One specialist in this area is Sunrise Capital. Its purchase of a majority stake in cram school KK BC Holdings in Hiroshima from the founder Hiroki Tanaka in April is outperforming expectations, according to one market source. CLSA Capital Partners is projecting its mid-sized Japan buyout fund Sunrise Capital, which it closed in 2014 at $210 million, will return 3.7 times invested capital in US dollar terms. It is currently tracking at around a gross IRR of about 38.1%, according to LPs. Sunrise Capital is now preparing to launch its third fund-raising, according to LPs. That compares well to the median IRR for Asia-Pacificfocused funds, which was 12% as of June 2015, according to consultancy Bain & Cos 2016 Asia Pacific private equity report. Top-quartile funds posted an average of 21% IRR, well above the 16% most LPs say they demand from their emerging Asia exposure, the report said. The firm is raising Sunrise Capital Fund III this year, according to two people familiar with the matter. Existing investors in the fund are likely to receive preferential treatment, leaving scant space for any late-movers. Sunrise Capital declined to comment on its performance or on fund raising matters. Yukon has just closed its first fund at 12.5 billion to spend on small-cap deals. It attracted a mix of foreign and domestic LPs; some of the local investors were dipping their toes in the asset class for the first time, said Sakurai. Banking on alternatives The Japanese asset owners with the biggest appetite for alternatives may be regional banks that are eager to improve investment returns hurt by the Bank of Japans negative interest rate policy. Carlyle has been particularly successful at attracting regional banks into its yen-denominated funds. Several fund managers and LPs said they expect Carlyle to return to market next year to raise its fourth Japanese fund if they successfully seal some of the big carve-out deals they are chasing in Japan. The Washington-headquarted firm declined to comment on capital raising. CITIC Capital Partners Japan is another standout in terms of delivering returns to investors. CITIC Japan Partners, a fund raised in 2005, delivered about 2.5 times money invested to its LPs while CITIC Capital Japan Partners II, LP raised in 2011, has generated about three times, according to one LP. Its latest fund-raise is set to close this month and it is oversubscribed even though the fund manager asked its parent company to scale back, according to one investor in the fund. LPs said the returns on its investments in Japanese firms Higashiyama Film, Polymatech and Tri-Wall all generated positive returns to investors. One industry source did, however, mention concerns about the fund going forward given that senior advisor Brian Doyle has stepped back from the business. A spokeswoman for Citic Capital said Doyle moved on over a year ago. Surprisingly, Japanese investors can be rather unforgiving if a private equity firm does stumble, as J-Star is finding. After J-Stars investment in drugstore chain Aisei Pharmacy was hit by harsher-than-expected rules on dispensing fees it has found foreign investors are more willing to bet on long-term growth in the sector due to Japans aging population than domestic LPs who are more concerned about portfolio companies performance dipping below budget, according to market sources. Carve-out specialist As the Japanese government puts more pressure on corporate executives to improve their return on equity, it might be worthwhile for investors to look at specialists in buying the non-core operations of Japanese sprawling conglomerates. Longreach springs to mind after the firm bought companies including Suntory, Hitachi and Sanyo and earlier this month from Olympus. Longreach is set to open its third fund-raising to existing investors later this year and then reach out more widely next year, according to market sources. Other funds looking to raise capital include Japan Industrial Partners, Polaris, J-Star and Ant Capital Partners, according to market sources and PEI Research & Analytics. Of course, this surge in capital is having an impact on the valuations of prospective investments. A few years ago you could buy mid-cap companies at four to five times Ebitda; now it is getting more expensive, sighed Sakurai as he contemplated the herd of private equity firms seeking capital for deals. Still, he cheered up, Given banks are willing to offer us plenty of leverage due to negative interest rates, our equity exposure is still very reasonable. With Japans asset owners increasingly desperate to find some extra juice from their investments, sourcing the capital shouldnt be a problem either. For private equity companies operating in Japan, the future looks bright, liquid and increasingly crowded. This article was also published on AsianInvestor.net Large investors have long dominated the IPOs of Chinese companies overseas. But some bond investors are complaining that a small handful of investors can have an equally large impact in the bond market. They pointed to a recent bond from Chinese property developer Yuzhou Properties as an example. The company launched its bond with already-strong anchor orders from so-called "friends and family" investors. Yuzhou returned to the market with a $250 million bond on Tuesday evening, pricing a seven year non-call four deal well through its secondary curve. The company was able to get away with a yield of 6% on its new issue far inside fair value, according to bankers familiar with the deal. That was clearly a good result for the company. But it is not good news for institutional investors, who complain that so-called friends and family deals are making it harder for them to get the returns they need. The cornerstone money has become more prevalent, ensuring the floatation success," said a fund manager in Hong Kong. "But it has a distortive effect on market pricing, prompting institutional investors to go down the credit curve for higher returns. Fair value less significant The aggressive pricing of the Reg-S deal was driven in part by strong anchor demand from Chinese accounts, said a person familiar with the deal. Their support meant fair value estimates important for fund managers to establish potential upside became less significant. There were multiple anchors ahead of the deal launch, the person said. Those anchor investors ensured that the bookrunners had clear visibility over the price before launch. They initially marketed the B1/B+/BB- rated bond at the 6% area, and ended pricing at par with a 6% coupon. The closest comparable was Yuzhous outstanding 9% December 2019 note, which was trading at a yield-to-maturity of 5.569% on Tuesday. That implied the company paid less than the curve extension of US Treasuries on a yield-to-maturity basis. The bond priced amid increasing fears that Chinas property sector is approaching the end of an asset-price bubble. China Overseas Land and Investment, another issuer in the bond market, announced it was moving away from lower-tier properties last week. Some 51 investors ended up placing around $400 million of orders for Yuzhou's bond, slightly down from its peak order book of $450 million. Asian investors took 91%, leaving the remaining 9% for European investors. Fund and asset managers took 42%, banks 29%, private banks 20% and insurance companies 9%. Cornerstone investors can have a major impact on the Hong Kong IPOs of Chinese companies. In the most striking example, Postal Savings Bank of China allocated around 77% of its $7.43 billion IPO to cornerstone accounts. But although the term cornerstone is used by some bond market participants, there are differences. Cornerstone investors in IPOs have well-defined restrictions, including lock-up periods in which they cannot sell shares. Those in the bond market more correctly referred to as anchor investors usually get away without such restrictions. On Wednesday afternoon, the new bond was quoted at a mid-price of 99.563, equivalent to a yield of around 6.078%, according to market data. BOC International, Credit Suisse, Haitong International and HSBC were the global coordinators of the bond. Deutsche Bank and Huatai Financial Holdings Hong Kong were joint bookrunners. Yuzhou Financial Holdings was a joint lead manager. Update: This article has been updated to reflect HSBC's promotion from joint bookrunner to global coordinator before final pricing. ARM has launched ARM Education Media, a subscription-based digital content hub offering premium Education Kits with interactive online courses and e-textbooks. These new resources will enable academics, students, professional engineers and the wider training market to keep up with the latest industry developments and gain the skills needed to compete in today's job market. "The pace of change in the technology sector has created a knowledge gap between industry and education, making it increasingly difficult for students to fit into the workplace straight from a learning environment," said Mike Muller, chief technology officer, ARM. "ARM Education Media will help to close that gap as it has been built to deliver the most up-to-date knowledge and help the development of industry-specific expertise. This will help engineers worldwide whether they are new to the profession or looking to update their skills." Launched today at the Frankfurt Book Fair, ARM Education Media will offer premium Education Kits combining theoretical and practical materials with videos and interactive quizzes. The hub will also feature engaging lab demonstrations using state-of-the-art software and hardware technologies from the ARM ecosystem. The materials are designed for a 'flipped classroom' approach, or self-study, and cover a variety of topics. The first four courses focus on efficient and rapid embedded systems design, the Internet of Things (IoT) and Digital Signal Processing (DSP). The Education Kits are highly modular and configurable, to allow for the rapid creation of new, customized content in various formats and packages. The content will be reassessed annually and revamped every four years to ensure it maintains industry relevance. The initiative is the culmination of several years of collaboration with thousands of educational institutions, industrial partners, students, recruiters and managers worldwide. "There is a growing trend for interactive, multimedia, self-paced learning in academia," said Donald Reay, lecturer at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. "This is why we are adopting the ARM Education Media DSP online course in our labs. With its modular and flexible structure, our students are able to assimilate important engineering concepts at their own pace and develop valuable, industry-relevant skills." NOTES TO EDITORS: The first four online Education Kits are available now for institutions and corporate subscriptions. Individual learners will be able to subscribe online in Q1 2017. E-textbooks will also be available in Q1 2017. About ARM ARM technology is at the heart of a computing and connectivity revolution that is transforming the way people live and businesses operate. From the unmissable to the invisible; our advanced, energy-efficient processor designs are enabling the intelligence in 86 billion silicon chips and securely powering products from the sensor to the smartphone to the supercomputer. With more than 1,000 technology partners including the world's most famous business and consumer brands, we are driving ARM innovation into all areas compute is happening inside the chip, the network and the cloud. All information is provided "as is" and without warranty or representation. This document may be shared freely, attributed and unmodified. ARM is a registered trademark of ARM Limited (or its subsidiaries). All other brands or product names are the property of their respective holders. 1995-2016 ARM Group. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161018006303/en/ Contacts: Alex Harrod +44 7795 363057 PR Manager, US and EMEA, ARM Alexandra.Harrod@arm.com WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Liberty Global plc (LBTYA, LBTYB, LBTYK, LILA and LILAK) said that its subsidiary UPC Poland has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the cable business of Multimedia Polska S.A., the third-largest cable operator in Poland, in an all cash transaction. Multimedia is being valued at an enterprise value of PLN 3.0 billion or about $760 million, with the final purchase price subject to potential downward adjustments for the operational and financial performance of Multimedia prior to closing. The PLN 3.0 billion purchase price equates to a multiple of 6.2x Multimedia's 2015 full-year Adjusted EBITDA when adjusted for PLN 124 million or approximately $30 million of projected annual run-rate synergies3 derived from revenue and cost-related items. The transaction excludes Multimedia's existing insurance, gas and energy operations, which will be retained by the shareholders of Multimedia. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval, and is expected to close within the next twelve months. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Mitsubishi Corporation Telephone: +81 3 3210 2171 Facsimile: +81 3 5252 7705 TOKYO, Oct 19, 2016 - (JCN Newswire) - Mitsubishi Corporation (MC), together with Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Ltd. (MHPS), has been awarded a full turnkey contract by Joint Stock Company Uzbekenergo for the Construction of a Combined Cycle Cogeneration Plant at the Navoi Thermal Power Station in southern Uzbekistan. MHPS will supply the main components while MC, together with Calik Enerji Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. (CE)(1), a Turkey-based engineering and construction company partially sponsored by MC, will supply the remaining components needed for plant construction and conduct inland transportation as well as civil engineering and installation works. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2019.This project is aimed at building a high-efficiency combined plant with the capacity to supply 450 MW of power and 200 Gcal/h of heating to homes and establishments locally. The plant is located next to the Navoi 1 power plant(2). This project will be financed by Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA), and Uzbekistan governmental fund.Aging infrastructure has led to concerns about the security and reliability of power supply in Uzbekistan, thereby creating an urgent need for the construction of additional facilities and the upgrading of existing ones. This project is therefore regarded as an important part of efforts to address these concerns, contributing to the stable supply of electricity and heating, and in turn to stability in Uzbekistan's economy.Through this new project, MC is aiming to continue contributing to the stable supply of electricity and to economic growth in Uzbekistan, while at the same time pursuing its goal of expanding its power generation business across Central Asia.(1) The partnership between Calik Holding(Calik), one of leading conglomerates in Turkey, and MC dates back to the 1990's when the two companies started collaborating on a number of plant construction projects in Central Asia. On 4 June, 2015, MC entered into a strategic alliance with Calik and CE, a subsidiary of Calik that includes the acquisition of shares in CE and exchange of personnel.(2) MC, together with MHPS, has supplied the main components and which has been in operation since 2013.About Mitsubishi CorporationMitsubishi Corporation (MC; TSE: 8058) is a global integrated business enterprise that develops and operates businesses across virtually every industry including industrial finance, energy, metals, machinery, chemicals, foods, and environmental business. MC's current activities are expanding far beyond its traditional trading operations as its diverse business ranges from natural resources development to investment in retail business, infrastructure, financial products and manufacturing of industrial goods. With over 200 bases of operations in approximately 80 countries worldwide and a network of over 500 group companies, MC employs a multinational workforce of nearly 60,000 people. For more information, please visit www.mitsubishicorp.com.Source: Mitsubishi CorporationContact:Copyright 2016 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved. INTERIM REPORT JANUARY-SEPTEMBER 2016 Regulatory News: THE REPORT IN BRIEF Third quarter (Jul Sep) New leasing increased to SEK 45 (29) million and net leasing increased to SEK 9 (-4) million. Rental revenue increased 7 per cent to SEK 603 (562) million and operating net increased 5 per cent to SEK 428 (409) million. Profit from property management increased by 2 per cent to SEK 269 (264) million, not including profit from participation in associates during 2015. The positive change in value of the property portfolio was SEK 273 (202) million, which is attributable to a higher operating net and lower yield requirements. Profit for the period increased to SEK 400 (322) million, which corresponds to SEK 2.20 (1.77) per share. Equity continued to increase and amounted to SEK 55.71 per share, as compared to SEK 51.28 at the beginning of the year. EPRA NAV amounted to SEK 65.50 per share, as compared to 56.76 at the beginning of the year. LTV fell even further, to 57.9 per cent. At the start of the year, LTV was 61.9 per cent. Comments on events during and after the third quarter Eight non-strategic properties, worth SEK 186 million, were divested. This increases the concentration of holdings even further and once the properties have been vacated, Kungsleden will be present in 59 municipalities. There was early redemption of a bond loan and Kungsleden has, for the first time, issued commercial paper for SEK 1,080 million with average interest rate of 0.37 per cent. Redevelopment of Tegner shopping mall in Vaxjo entered the implementation stage, and it is expected to open early in 2018. The redevelopment of Tegner will attract new and attractive tenants within retail, restaurant and service. The investment amounts to SEK 150 million. Rental revenue in the property is expected to increase by at least SEK 10 million after the investment has been made. Comments from Biljana Pehrsson, CEO I am very pleased to report that Kungsleden's performance remains strong. New leasing increased with 55 percent compared to the same period last year and was SEK 45 (29) million. We divested eight non-strategic properties and we exited yet another municipality during the quarter. We are now present in 59 municipalities as compared to 140 when we changed our strategy just over three years ago and 78 percent of the property value is now concentrated to Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmo and Vasteras. Rental revenue and operating net continued to increase in the third quarter. This is attributable to the fact that we now have a higher percentage of office properties in Stockholm compared to last year. The value of property holdings rose by SEK 273 million in the third quarter, which is equally attributable to improved operating net as to lower yield requirements. Most of the increase in value has occured in our office properties in clusters in Stockholm and Vasteras. The market yield used in the portfolio range from 4.40 per cent (lowest) to 12.0 per cent (highest). The average yield valuation is 6.2 per cent. Profit from property management for the interim period was SEK 755 million, which is an improvement of 21 per cent compared to the corresponding period in 2015 if profit from participation in associates in 2015 is excluded. GOOD LEASING RESULTS AND STRENGTHENING OF PROPERTY MANAGEMENT ORGANISATION The rental market continues to be strong in our priority growth markets Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmo and Vasteras, with a healthy rate of increase in new leasing. During the quarter, we signed more than 50 lease agreements with both new customers and prior customers who have returned to us. There was a high level of new leasing in general, totalling SEK 45 million, where SEK 25 million is attributable to properties in our clusters and SEK 20 million is attributable to our other properties. For the interim period, new leasing was SEK 149 million, which is an improvement of 60 per cent compared to last year. Net leasing in the third quarter amounted to SEK 9 (-4) million. For the interim period, net leasing was SEK 49 (-2) million. Lease agreements valued at SEK 9 million were renegotiated during the quarter, resulting in an increase in rent level by 18 per cent on average. For the interim period, lease agreements with rental value of SEK 53 million were renegotiated, resulting in an average rental increase of 8.2 per cent. In line with our continued efforts to focus on both customers and operations, we opened two new offices during the quarter a cluster office in Danderyd and a local office in Norrkoping. We have a new asset and property management market area, Norrkoping/Linkoping with a property portfolio of 164,000 sq. m. After year-end, it will become part of the Malardalen management region. At present, the properties are spread across several regions. NEW RESIDENTIAL STRATEGY We have a new strategy on how to derive maximum benefits from our existing and future residential building rights totalling 450,000 sq. m. In summary, we will actively develop the value of our building rights by working with the local authorities on zoning issues, with the aim of creating attractive residential projects and then selling the building rights as the zoning work progresses. TEGNER ENTERS IMPLEMENTATION STAGE During the quarter, renovation of the centrally located Tegner shopping mall in Vaxjo entered the implementation stage. An agreement with a key tenant for 3,000 sq. m. of space was signed during the quarter, which means that the outlook is very positive as regards the future success of this property. The investment is estimated as SEK 150 million and once the redevelopment has been completed, rental revenue at the property is expected to increase by at least SEK 10 million. Including Tegner shopping mall, we now have four projects in the implementation stage. The total investment volume is SEK 826 million, with a good return. HIGH LEVEL OF INTEREST AND COMMITMENT During recent months, we've been met by a high level of interest from the property market, capital market and other important stakeholders. This is certainly encouraging and important, but even more exciting is the level of enthusiasm and commitment within the company. During the quarter, we conducted an employee survey and the results were quite satisfying. The response rate was 100 per cent and the results for both job satisfaction and the Employee Satisfaction Index exceeded our very high expectations and goals. At Business Arena Stockholm in September, a team from Kungsleden hosted visitors at our popular lounge. We presented some of our vacant premises using the latest Virtual Reality technology. It's a new way of showing and marketing our premises and just one of the many examples of what we are doing to be on the cutting edge and provide the highest possible level of service to our existing and potential customers. MANY WANT TO BE WHERE WE ARE Our strategy is based on the increasing level urbanization and healthy growth in metropolitan areas, which are mega trends that are generating a high demand for office space. This provides us with an excellent foundation for our operations. However, to achieve our goal of becoming Sweden's most profitable property company, we are working very diligently to maximise the full potential of our properties and clusters, streamline our organisation and further increase the concentration of our holdings. Stockholm, 19 October 2016 Biljana Pehrsson, CEO This press release is available in English at www.kungsleden.se/press The information was provided for public release on 19/10, 2016 07.00 a.m Kungsleden owns, manages, and develops offices and other commercial properties in Stockholm and Sweden's other growth regions. We create value by offering attractive and functional premises in the right locations at the right price. A significant part of our properties are gathered in clusters that enrich people's working day. Kungsleden's goal is to deliver attractive total return on our properties and to our shareholders. This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161018006847/en/ Contacts: Kungsleden Biljana Pehrsson, +46 8 503 052 04 CEO biljana.pehrsson@kungsleden.se or Anders Kvist, +46 8 503 052 11 Deputy CEO and CFO anders.kvist@kungsleden.se Regulatory News: During its Combined General Shareholders' meeting to be held today, SoLocal Group (Paris:LOCAL) will communicate to its shareholders the key elements of its business performance at the end of September 2016. The business dynamics and audience records indeed confirm the end of the period of the Group transformation and the growth of its Internet activities. Business dynamics in line with the first half of the year SoLocal Group records a strong growth of the Internet sales orders of + 10% at the end of September 2016 compared to the end of September 2015, driven by the growth of + 41% of Digital Marketing sales orders over the period and +1% for Local Search sales orders. This is a significant progress compared to the sales order performance over the same period in 2015, where Internet orders recorded a decline of -5%. New audience record Thanks to the power of its Internet audience measured by Reach (57% up to 2 points compared to July 2015), SoLocal Group is the 5th Group whose websites are the most visited in France on fixed and mobile. The Group recorded a new quarterly record of visits with 616 million in the 3rd quarter of 2016 on its fixed and mobile platforms. The Internet audience of websites of the Group grew by +9% at the end of September 2016 compared to the end of September 2015, in particular thanks to the steady growth in the number of visits on mobile Internet of +27% Declaration of thresholds crossing Moreover, SoLocal Group took note of the declaration of the Regroupement PP Local association, of the thresholds crossing up eight and nine percent, then ten percent of the Company's capital and voting rights, respectively as of 14 October 2016 and 17 October 2016. The financial results of the 3rd quarter will be released mid November 2016. About SoLocal Group SoLocal Group, European leader in local online communication, reveals local know-how, and boosts local revenues of businesses. The Internet activities of the Group are structured around two business lines: Local Search and Digital Marketing. With Local Search, the Group offers digital services and solutions to clients which enable them to enhance their visibility and develop their local contacts. Thanks to its expertise, SoLocal Group earned the trust of some 530,000 clients of those services and over 2.2 billions of visits via its 4 flagship brands (PagesJaunes, Mappy, Ooreka and A Vendre A Louer) but also through its partnerships. With Digital Marketing, SoLocal Group creates and provides Internet users with the best local and customised content about professionals. With over 4,400 employees, including a salesforce of 1,900 local communication advisors specialised in five verticals (Home, Services, Retail, Health Public, BtoB) and Internationally (France, Spain, Austria, United Kingdom), the Group generated in 2015 revenues of 873 millions euros, of which 73% on Internet and ranks amongst the first European players in terms of Internet advertising revenues. SoLocal Group is listed on Euronext Paris (LOCAL). More information may be obtained at www.solocalgroup.com. 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United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu US Virgin Islands Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland United States Minor Outlying Islands United States of America Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe WISeKey International Holding Ltd (WIHN.SW) ("WISeKey"), a leading Cybersecurity and IoT company, today announced its new platform WISeAI - which will be integrating the Root of Trust and IoT embedded devices with problem-solving Artificial Intelligence ("AI") solution into WISeKey's Vertical Platform. While IoT remains wildly insecure, thanks to the integrated solution operated by the WISeKey Vertical Platform, IoT devices would be able to organize themselves into trusted networks based on mutual authentication, identity and integrity. This trusted cybersecurity platform will only enable IoT devices which can provide a recognized identity and a valid integrity report to communicate with peer devices that are part of the trusted community. Adding AI at the chip level together with the WISeKey RoT it will allow the IoT to provide authenticated sensor data. Current IoT data do not provide value for their manufacturers unless it can be converted into actionable, contextualized information generated by IoT sensors fully identifiable. The majority of IoT devices are not built with embedded secured systems thus are very vulnerable. By integrating AI into the WISekey RoT and Vertical Platform, objects can develop their own cybersecurity behavior, thus making smarter and safer decisions. IoT objects with this technology will learn from attacks, defend them and transfer this intelligence via the WISekey Vertical Platform to other IoT objects pear to pear using a blockchain. WISekey will include AI solution at the integrated circuits allowing AI to be hosted on a hardware vault with the highest level of certification able to encrypt communications and authenticate the devices. This will also allow AI to leverage the massive big data generated by the deployment of WISeKey's RoT now embedded in more than 2.5 billion devices worldwide benefitting from the strong cryptographic capabilities deployed in all sorts of IoT products. Addressing fast growing IoT market The ability to authenticate and remotely manage millions of networked, automated devices and equipment is becoming pervasive from factory floors, to hospital operating rooms, to residential homes including billions of objects and devices from refrigerators, watches, wearables to wine bottles everything that can connect and communicate via the Internet. The IoT security market is expected to grow from $6.89 billion in 2015 to nearly $29 billion by 2020 according to a report published by Markets and Markets, thus growing at an annual rate of 35%. These massively deployed connected objects are facing regular attacks hence generating a large need for trusted end-to-end cybersecurity solutions. This problem is affecting billions of people and IoT devices worldwide, and manufactures of these devices could be forced or incentivized to spend money to make their devices secure, as regulators might impose liabilities on them. Our computers and smartphones are as secure as they are because there are teams of specialized security experts working in companies like Google, Microsoft, Apple etc. ensuring their customers are protected. These companies spend a lot of time testing their code before it's released, and quickly patch vulnerabilities when they're discovered. Those companies can support such teams because those companies make a huge amount of money, either directly or indirectly, from their software-and, in part, compete on its security. This isn't true for IoT hardware manufacturers putting unprotected IoT on the market sold at a much lower margin, and are often built by offshore third parties. The companies involved simply don't have the expertise to make them secure. "The combination of IoT Cybersecurity technologies developed by WISekey with Artificial Intelligence solutions are a game changer in our industry. This new platform opens up many possibilities for improving the overall security functionalities and creating new business processes by taking advantage of the world of digital identification at the object level, which once combined with big-data allows us to gather and process all available information and generate actionable insights," said Carlos Moreira, Founder and CE WISeKey. About WISeKey WISeKey (SIX Swiss Exchange:WIHN) is a leading cybersecurity company and selected as a World Economic Forum Global Growth Company. WISeKey is currently deploying large scale Internet of Things ("IoT") digital identity ecosystems and has become a pioneer of the "4th Industrial Revolution" movement launched this year at the World Economic Forum in Davos. WISeKey's Swiss based cryptographic Root of Trust ("RoT") integrates wearable technology with secure authentication and identification, in both physical and virtual environments, and empowers IoT and wearable devices to become secure transactional devices. The RoT serves as a common trust anchor, which is recognized by the operating system and applications, to ensure the authenticity, confidentiality and integrity of on-line transactions. With the cryptographic RoT embedded on the device, the IoT product manufacturers can use code-signing certificates and a cloud-based signature as a service to secure interactions among objects and between objects and people. WISeKey has patented this process in the USA as it is currently used by many IoT providers. Disclaimer: This communication expressly or implicitly contains certain forward-looking statements concerning WISeKey International Holding Ltd and its business. Such statements involve certain known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which could cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of WISeKey International Holding Ltd to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. WISeKey International Holding Ltd is providing this communication as of this date and does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities, and it does not constitute an offering prospectus within the meaning of article 652a or article 1156 of the Swiss Code of Obligations or a listing prospectus within the meaning of the listing rules of the SIX Swiss Exchange. Investors must rely on their own evaluation of WISeKey and its securities, including the merits and risks involved. Nothing contained herein is, or shall be relied on as, a promise or representation as to the future performance of WISeKey. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161018006520/en/ Contacts: Press: WISeKey Youmna Abisaleh, +41-79-946-0089 yabisaleh@WISEKEY.COM or Carlos Moreira, +41-22-594-3000 Founder CEO cmoreira@wisekey.com or Investor Relations (United States) The Equity Group, Inc. Lena Cati, 212-836-9611 lcati@equityny.com AMSTERDAM (dpa-AFX) - Dutch paints and coatings maker Akzo Nobel NV (AKZOY.PK, AKZOY) reported that its net income attributable to shareholders for the third-quarter was flat with last year at 285 million euros. But, adjusted earnings per share decreased to 1.20 euros from 1.24 euros in the prior year. The company decided to increase the interim dividend by 6 percent to 0.37 euros per share. The market environment remains uncertain with challenging conditions in several countries and segments. Deflationary pressures and currency headwinds are expected to continue. It maintained its financial guidance for 2016-2018. AkzoNobel reported volume growth in Decorative Paints and Specialty Chemicals with further overall profitability growth in the third quarter, despite challenging conditions in several countries and segments. EBIT for the third-quarter was up 1 percent at 442 million euros , reflecting continuous improvement initiatives and lower costs, partly offset by adverse currency effects. Revenue for the quarter declined 4 percent to 3.60 billion euros, from the prior year's 3.76 billion euros due to adverse currency and price/mix effects. In Decorative Paints, Volumes increased 3 percent due to positive developments in Asia and EMEA, while volumes continued to be lower in Latin America. Revenue was down 3 percent mainly due to unfavorable currency effects. We launched our 2017 Color of the Year, Denim Drift, part of our ongoing efforts to inspire customers to make confident color choices and drive growth for our business. In Performance Coatings, Volumes were down by 2 percent affected by adverse conditions in the marine and oil and gas industries, partly offset by positive developments in other segments, including automotive and specialty coatings. Revenue was down 6 percent due to unfavorable currencies, lower volumes and adverse price/mix effects. In Specialty Chemicals, Volumes were up 1 percent with positive developments, especially in Industrial Chemicals, partly offset by lower demand in the oil-related segments. Revenue was down 3 percent mainly due to price deflation in several markets. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de PAION AG, a specialty pharma company (ISIN DE000A0B65S3; Frankfurt Stock Exchange Prime Standard: PA8) today announces that data on the clinical results of remimazolam's U.S. Phase III colonoscopy trial were presented in the Colon/Stomach oral session at the 2016 American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) Annual Scientific Meeting in Las Vegas. Remimazolam is an innovative, ultra-short-acting benzodiazepine anesthetic/sedative for which positive topline data from this trial were published in June 2016. Douglas Rex, M.D., Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, U.S., principal investigator of this Phase III trial, presented the results. The Phase III trial enrolled a total of 461 patients at 13 U.S. sites and was designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of remimazolam compared to placebo (with midazolam rescue) in patients undergoing proceduralist- administered sedation for colonoscopy. The primary outcome measure was a composite endpoint defined as: no need for rescue medication, completion of the procedure and no more than 5 top- up doses within any 15-minute window. The primary endpoint was reached in 91.3% of the patients in the remimazolam arm and 1.7% in the placebo (including midazolam rescue) arm. Important secondary endpoints in the remimazolam arm showed a median time from start of medication to start of procedure of 4.0 minutes (placebo 19.5 minutes) and a mean time from end of procedure to return to full alertness of 7.2 minutes (placebo 21.3 minutes). Additionally, time to "back to normal" as reported by patients on remimazolam was 331 minutes (placebo 572 minutes). There were no treatment-emergent serious adverse events in the trial. Hypotension was 44.3% with remimazolam and 47.5% with placebo and accounted for most of the adverse events in all study arms. Hypoxia occurred in 1.0% of patients given remimazolam, 3.4% in the placebo arm. On the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test administered five minutes after reaching the fully alert status, the total raw score, delayed recall, memory retention, and recognition discrimination scores were all better with remimazolam compared to placebo. Patient satisfaction was similar in all arms of the study. In addition to the detailed analysis of the primary and secondary endpoints of the Phase III trial (comparison to placebo), Dr. Rex also presented data for the open label midazolam arm. These results will not be part of the label claims. They will however serve as valuable data to plan future studies and perform pharmacoeconomic modelling. Midazolam patients showed a median time from start of medication to start of procedure of 19.0 minutes and a mean time from end of procedure to return to full alertness of 15.7 minutes. Midazolam patients took 553 minutes to be back to normal. Hypotension was 67.3% with midazolam and hypoxia occurred in 1.0% of patients given midazolam. Overview procedural results: Remimazolam Placebo Midazolam (Open Label) Procedural success 91.30% 1.70% 25.2% Use of rescue sedation 3.40% 95.00% 64.70% Average fentanyl dose 88.9 mcg 121.3 mcg 106.9 mcg Start of medication to start of procedure (median) 4.0 minutes 19.5 minutes 19.0 minutes End of procedure to fully alert (mean) 7.2 minutes 21.3 minutes 15.7 minutes Mean time 1st dose to discharge 58 minutes 86 minutes 75 minutes Dr. Rex concluded: "Remimazolam, given under supervision of an endoscopist, appears to be safe and effective for procedural sedation in colonoscopy based on the results from this Phase III study. We saw significant differences in onset and recovery times as well as restoration of cognitive function and fewer adverse events when compared to midazolam or placebo. In addition, the need for fentanyl was lowest in the remimazolam group. If these data could be translated into medical practice, this would result in a meaningful gain in efficiency and patient comfort, which are important to achieve our goal to increase the overall colonoscopy screening rate." About Remimazolam Remimazolam is an ultra-short-acting intravenous benzodiazepine sedative/anesthetic, currently in Phase III clinical development for procedural sedation in the U.S. The first of two pivotal Phase III studies was completed successfully and reached its primary endpoint. In the human body, remimazolam is rapidly metabolized to an inactive metabolite by tissue esterases and not metabolized by cytochrome-dependent hepatic pathways. Like other benzodiazepines, remimazolam can be reversed with flumazenil to rapidly terminate sedation and anesthesia if necessary. In clinical studies, remimazolam demonstrated efficacy and safety in over 1,000 patients. Data so far indicate that remimazolam has a rapid onset and offset of action combined with a favorable cardio-respiratory safety profile. A pediatric development plan has been agreed with the FDA and will be implemented by Cosmo following completion of current development of remimazolam for adult patients. A full clinical development program for general anesthesia has been completed in Japan, and a Phase II study in general anesthesia has been completed in the E.U. Based on the positive results of the Phase II study in Japan, development for ICU sedation beyond 24 hours is considered following successful completion of development in procedural sedation and general anesthesia. Remimazolam is partnered in the U.S., Canada, China, Russia (CIS), Turkey, the MENA region, and South Korea with Cosmo, Pharmascience (Pendopharm), Yichang Humanwell, R-Pharm, TR-Pharm, and Hana Pharm, respectively. For all other markets, remimazolam is available for licensing. About PAION PAION AG is a publicly listed specialty pharmaceutical company developing and aiming to commercialize innovative drugs to be used in out-patient and hospital-based sedation, anesthesia and critical care services. PAION's lead compound is remimazolam, an intravenous, ultra-short-acting and controllable benzodiazepine sedative/anesthetic drug candidate. Currently, remimazolam is in active Phase III clinical development for use in procedural sedation in the U.S., where PAION is focusing all its business and financial resources on successfully completing its ongoing clinical development program in procedural sedation. Outside the U.S., PAION has so far focused on the development of remimazolam in the indication general anesthesia. Development of remimazolam in the indication intensive care unit (ICU) sedation is also part of the longer term life-cycle plan for remimazolam. PAION is headquartered in Aachen (Germany) with further sites in Cambridge (United Kingdom) and New Jersey (USA). PAION's vision is to become an acknowledged "PAIONeer" in sedation and anesthesia. Disclaimer: This release contains certain forward-looking statements concerning the future business of PAION AG. These forward-looking statements contained herein are based on the current expectations, estimates and projections of PAION AG's management as of the date of this release. They are subject to a number of assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors. Should actual conditions differ from the Company's assumptions, actual results and actions may differ materially from any future results and developments expressed or implied by such forward- looking statements. Considering the risks, uncertainties and other factors involved, recipients should not rely unreasonably upon these forward- looking statements. PAION AG has no obligation to periodically update any such forward-looking statements to reflect future events or developments. Language: English Company: PAION AG Martinstr. 10-12 52062 Aachen Germany Phone: +49 (0)241-4453-0 Fax: +49 (0)241-4453-100 E-mail: info@paion.com Internet: www.paion.com ISIN: DE000A0B65S3 WKN: A0B65S Listed: Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161018006863/en/ Contacts: PAION Ralf Penner Director Investor Relations Public Relations Phone: +49 241 4453-152 E-mail: r.penner@paion.com www.paion.com LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Pest control firm Rentokil Initial Plc (RTOKY.PK, RTO.L) reported that its third-quarter revenues were 578.3 million pounds, up 32.1 percent on a reported basis and also up 15.7 percent at constant exchange rates. Revenue from ongoing operations in the quarter was 576.7 million pounds, up 33.1 percent on a reported basis and also up 16.6 percent at constant rates. The organic revenue growth was 3.1 percent. Growth in the Emerging and Growth markets was once again particularly strong. The company's operations within the Manage for Value quadrant grew by 2.3 percent, while the rate of revenue decline in its Protect and Enhance markets was largely unchanged from the first and second quarters at 1 percent. Rentokil Initial noted that the majority of its regions have performed well in the period, reflecting good performances in Asia, Pacific, Latin America, the UK and in its largest market, North America. While conditions remain tough in parts of Europe, particularly in France, overall the region delivered modest revenue growth in the third quarter. Looking ahead, the company said that its outlook for the full year is unchanged. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. HONG KONG, CHINA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Trend Micro Incorporated (TYO: 4704; TSE: 4704), a global leader in cybersecurity solutions, today announced Trend Micro TippingPoint Next-Generation Intrusion Prevention System (NGIPS) has received a "recommended" rating based on the 2016 NSS Labs NGIPS test. With an overall score of 99.5 percent, the report findings reinforce Trend Micro's leadership in the intrusion prevention system market and its reputation for unmatched enterprise security. "Earning NSS Labs' sought-after 'recommended' rating validates Trend Micro as an industry leader and demonstrates the superior network defense our customers rely on," said Donald Closser, vice president and general manager for Trend Micro TippingPoint. "In today's increasingly sophisticated threat landscape, TippingPoint uses equally sophisticated protection techniques to safeguard enterprises' networks, data and intellectual property in a cost-effective manner." With its Next-Generation IPS solutions, TippingPoint provides integrated advanced threat prevention in real-time for known vulnerabilities and all potential attack permutations. Additionally, its Advanced Threat Protection solutions allow users to detect, analyze and respond to unknown malware and advanced threats across all network traffic, ports and more than 100 protocols. TippingPoint NGIPS customers also benefit from the exclusive insights garnered through Trend Micro's Zero Day Initiative bug bounty program, resulting in pre-emptive coverage between vulnerability disclosure and patch availability. "TippingPoint's Next-Generation IPS demonstrated excellent protection in our test--successfully blocking 99.5 percent of overall attacks and all evasion techniques," said Vikram Phatak, CEO of NSS Labs, Inc. "Passing every stability and reliability assessment, the device also registered zero false positives while accurately diagnosing malicious content." NSS Labs' NGIPS evaluation analyzed the security efficacy, performance, cost of ownership, stability and reliability of eight NGIPS devices. As advanced threats and targeted attacks continue to surge, the NSS Labs report provides customers with an impartial, third-party resource establishing TippingPoint NGIPS as an effective and reasonably-priced threat detection solution. Visit http://www.trendmicro.com/us/business/network-security/nss-labs-ngips/index.html for a copy of the full report. Company Logo http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/3868 About Trend Micro Trend Micro Incorporated, a global leader in cyber security solutions, helps to make the world safe for exchanging digital information. Our innovative solutions for consumers, businesses, and governments provide layered security for data centers, cloud environments, networks, and endpoints. All our products work together to seamlessly share threat intelligence and provide a connected threat defense with centralized visibility and control, enabling better, faster protection. With more than 5,000 employees in over 50 countries and the world's most advanced global threat intelligence, Trend Micro enables users to enjoy their digital lives safely. For more information, visit www.trendmicro.com.hk. MEDIA CONTACT: Claudius Lam Trend Micro + 852 2866 4362 (Office) + 852 9022 0876 (Mobile) Email Contact LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Technology company Laird PLC (LRD.L, LARD.L) reported Wednesday that its third-quarter revenue in sterling increased 29 percent to 207 million pounds from 160 million pounds last year. On an organic basis at constant currency, revenue was lower by 4 percent. For fiscal 2016, the company expects Group underlying profit before tax to be around 50 million pounds, which will reflect a very challenging third-quarter trading performance in Performance Materials or PM division. In the year 2015, underlying profit before tax was 73.1 million pounds. Performance Materials revenue in the third quarter increased 12 percent to 113 million pounds. On an organic basis at constant currency, revenue was down 5 percent. In its trading update for the third quarter, the company noted that after a disappointing first half, a significant improvement in the second half of 2016 was expected, particularly in the PM division. However, the acceleration of production for mobile devices has come much later than in previous cycles and visibility on volumes remains poor. The company also experienced increased margin pressure due to unprecedented pricing pressures and some operational factors. The company said it is taking actions to stabilise and improve the financial performance of the PM division with a considerable focus on managing costs and cash across the Group. In the third quarter, Wireless Systems revenue increased 58 percent to 93 million pounds. Tony Quinlan, Chief Executive, said, 'We are very disappointed by these adverse developments in the mobile devices market for our Performance Materials division, at a time when other parts of the business continue to perform well. We are confident that the actions we have taken will stabilise and improve the business.' Moving into 2017, the company said that the work to improve operating model is progressing well and the firm is on track to deliver the associated significant financial benefits. This, together with the Novero turnaround, as well as the positive momentum in our automotive business, will improve performance next year and beyond. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de BERLIN, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- - Program is now online The program of the 14th International Conference on Renewable Mobility "Fuels of the Future" is now available for you at http://www.fuels-of-the-future.com. The conference will take place on 23/24 January 2017 at Berlin's CityCube. As the highlight event of the German and European biofuel industry with more than 500 participants from 30 countries, the conference is a must-attend event for the exchange with international stakeholders from politics, the industry and research. The contents of the conference program have been extended to account for the increasing diversification of engine technologies as well as the research and production of various fuels from renewable energy sources. The comprehensive program covers a diversity of all topics relevant for improving climate protection in the transport sector: On the opening day, the focus will be on the framework conditions. During the plenary session, representatives of the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, the European Commission, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and Roland Berger GmbH, among others, will address the political and engine technological prospects. In addition, the commodity markets will be analyzed in the context of international trade flows and price developments. During the panel discussion, the future prospects will be looked at from the perspective of the industry, the European Commission, European agriculture and members of the German and the European Parliament. Subsequently, a total of 11 forums will deal with a broad range of topics from all areas of renewable energies in the mobility sector: International experts will present the latest from technical development, research, certification, market analysis and trade flows and engage in discussions with the conference participants. Contact: Markus Hartmann Phone: +492288100222 hartmann@bioenergie.de NEWBURY, England, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Ascensia Diabetes Care today announced the availability of the CONTOURNEXT ONE blood glucose monitoring system (BGMS) in the United Kingdom, one of the next steps in the evolution of self-monitoring of blood glucose. As part of the system, the CONTOURNEXT ONE meter and CONTOURDIABETES app seamlessly connect, which makes capturing blood glucose results effortless for people with diabetes. The system enables patterns and trends to be revealed that can help people understand their diabetes, and may help to improve diabetes management. To view the Multimedia News Release, please click: http://www.multivu.com/players/uk/7954951-contour-next-one-bgms-ascensia/ The system features an easy-to-use wireless-enabled smart meter that links to a smart mobile device via Bluetooth connectivity. The CONTOURNEXT ONE meter gives immediate feedback and also seamlessly connects to the CONTOURDIABETES app, which collects, stores and analyses patient blood glucose results received from the meter. The app combines these results with other data recorded by the user, to provide detailed information about their condition that can help them understand how their everyday lives may impact their blood glucose readings, including alerts for critical high or critical low readings. Through the app, meter users can also share with their healthcare professional the reports of their blood glucose results and patterns, either in advance or on the day of their appointment, helping to create more informed discussions. "People with diabetes are turning to mobile devices to help manage and track their condition," said Dr. Partha Kar, Consultant in Diabetes and Endocrinology, Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust. "They want solutions that seamlessly integrate into their lives and present their readings in a simple and intuitive way. The CONTOURNEXT ONE system appears to be a development for interconnected diabetes management that has the potential to engage more people with diabetes in their treatment plans which could lead to better outcomes". "The launch of the CONTOURNEXT ONE blood glucose monitoring system in the United Kingdom is the latest of our high quality solutions designed to meet the needs of the diabetes community. By seamlessly capturing data from the meter in the app, this system has the potential to benefit people with diabetes by improving the understanding of their condition and helping them to make more informed decisions about managing their diabetes. We are delighted it is now available to help people with diabetes in the United Kingdom," explained Ros Barker, Ascensia Diabetes Care. The meter also includes additional features specifically designed to meet patient needs, including the smartLIGHT[TM] feature that gives instant feedback on blood glucose readings, for better understanding of results. It also has Second-Chance' sampling, which prompts blood to be reapplied if there is not enough the first time, helping to avoid lancing for a second time and the wasting of strips. "In the management of diabetes, the accuracy and quality of blood glucose data from an individual is crucial. The CONTOURNEXT ONE blood glucose meter has demonstrated consistently remarkable levels of accuracy and precision for patients. There is significant value for doctors and nurses by having easy access to this highly accurate data, which can help to improve how patients are managed," added Ros. Published study data has shown the CONTOURNEXT ONE meter to be remarkably accurate[1], exceeding EN ISO 15197:2015 accuracy criteria[2] in both the laboratory and clinical setting. EN ISO 15197:2015 states that 95% of results must be within 0.83 mmol/L of the reference result for samples with blood glucose concentrations E5.56 mmol/L or 15% for samples with blood glucose concentrations 5.56 mmol/L. Data in the clinical setting showed that 99.4% of readings from subject-obtained fingertip results exceeds EN ISO 15197:2015 accuracy criteria and 95% of readings were shown to be within 0.47 mmol/L or 8.4% of the YSI reference results.[1] An estimated 4 million people in United Kingdom have diabetes, according to Diabetes UK.* The primary goal of diabetes management is to control blood sugar levels and ensure they are kept within a normal range. When blood glucose levels get too high (hypgerlycaemia) or too low (hypoglycaemia), it can lead to serious complications and, in severe cases, even death. The launch of the CONTOURNEXT ONE BGMS in the United Kingdom follows CE Mark approval that was recently received, on 17 May 2016. As it is app based, the system is designed to evolve in the future, bringing new capabilities and features to help people with diabetes manage their condition. Those interested in obtaining the CONTOURNEXT ONE meter should visit https://www.contournextone.co.uk/. The CONTOURDIABETES app is available to download in the Apple App Store (iOS) and Google Play (Android). Notes for Editors About Ascensia Diabetes Care Ascensia Diabetes Care is a global specialist diabetes care company, dedicated to helping people living with diabetes. Our mission is to empower people living with diabetes through innovative solutions that simplify and improve their lives. We use our innovation and specialist expertise in diabetes to develop high quality solutions and tools that make a positive, daily difference for people with diabetes. Home to the world renowned CONTOUR portfolio of blood glucose monitoring systems, our products combine advanced technology with user-friendly functionality that help people with diabetes to manage their condition. We are committed to continued research, innovation and development of new products and solutions. As a trusted partner in the diabetes community, we collaborate closely with healthcare professionals and other partners to ensure our products meet the highest standards of accuracy, precision and reliability, and that we conduct our business compliantly and with integrity. Ascensia Diabetes Care was established in 2016 through the sale of Bayer Diabetes Care to Panasonic Healthcare Holdings Co., Ltd. Ascensia Diabetes Care products are sold in more than 125 countries. Following the close of the transaction in all countries, Ascensia Diabetes Care will have around 1,700 employees and operations in 38 countries. For further information please visit the Ascensia Diabetes Care website at: http://www.ascensia.com. CONTOUR Second-Chance' sampling and smartLIGHT' are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Ascensia Diabetes Care Holdings AG. The Bluetooth word mark and logos are registered trademarks owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc., and any use of such marks herein is under license. For further information please contact: Joseph Delahunty FTI Consulting joseph.delahunty@fticonsulting.com Tel: +44(0)20-3727-1000 Stephanie Burns FTI Consulting stephanie.burns@fticonsulting.com Tel: +44(0)20-3727-1816 1. Christiansen et al. Poster presented at the 15th Annual Meeting of the Diabetes Technology Society, October 22-24, 2015, Bethesda, Maryland. 2. International Organization for Standardization (2015). In vitro diagnostic test systems-requirements for blood-glucose monitoring systems for self-testing in managing diabetes mellitus (EN ISO 15197:2015) * https://www.diabetes.org.uk/About_us/News/Number-of-people-with-diabetes-reaches-over-4-million/ (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161018/429867 ) Video: http://www.multivu.com/players/uk/7954951-contour-next-one-bgms-ascensia/ Regulatory News: Korian (Paris:KORI): Sophie Boissard, Chief Executive Officer of the Korian group, has now fully established her Group Management Board following the arrival of Charles-Antoine Pinel, Nicolas Merigot and Frederic Durousseau. Charles-Antoine Pinel is appointed Executive Vice President of the Seniors Division in France while Nicolas Merigot is appointed Executive Vice President of the Healthcare Division in France. Both of these positions were temporarily being filled by Sophie Boissard. Frederic Durousseau is appointed Group Chief Real Estate and Development Officer. Charles-Antoine Pinel, France Seniors Division Executive Vice President, is responsible for long-term care nursing homes for the elderly and seniors care services for France. His role will involve implementing development projects for this business line and for the French network, currently comprised of 290 facilities. A graduate of the Neoma Business School and holder of an Executive MBA from HEC Paris, 44-year-old Charles-Antoine Pinel formerly spent 15 years at Pierre Vacances group, the European leader in tourism residences. During his time with this Group, he contributed to the integration of Maeva's operations and to the development of the Center Parcs business in France. Since 2012, he has been Chief Executive Officer of Pierre Vacances Tourism Europe (230 sites, 130,000 beds). Nicolas Merigot, France Healthcare Division Executive Vice President, is responsible for the Healthcare division in France (75 clinics and 6 hospital at home networks). He will notably be tasked with developing this network. Aged 51, a graduate of Paris's Institute of Political Studies and holder of a degree in business law, Nicolas Merigot has a broad experience in managing, structuring and developing health-care service networks, in fields ranging from hospitals to clinical laboratories. From 2008 to 2014, he was Chief Executive Officer of the Bio-Access group. Since 2014, he had been Chief Executive Officer of the Lavorel group, a health care operator with activities in the hospital home care, long-term care nursing homes and medical devices distribution. Frederic Durousseau, Chief Real Estate and Development Officer, is responsible for establishing and implementing the Group's real estate strategy and for developing strategic partnerships with investors and real estate developers. Aged 43, a graduate in Economics of Paris-Dauphine and Paris I Pantheon-Sorbonne Universities, Frederic Durousseau spent most of his previous career at Pierre Vacances Group. One of his key roles was as Asset Manager for the Group's corporate portfolio in France, following which he became Strategic Planning Director for Center Parc/Sunparks, in 2010. This role involved setting up, financing and implementing various real estate development projects for the brand at European level, primarily in Germany. Since 2014, he had been Chief Development Officer of Center Parcs Europe. ABOUT KORIAN Korian, Europe's leader in Ageing Well, founded in 2003, has the capacity to accommodate more than 71,500 residents and patients in Europe (France, Germany, Italy and Belgium) and employs around 45,000 staff members. The Group manages more than 710 facilities in four business lines: nursing homes, post-acute and rehabilitation care clinics, assisted living facilities and hospital care and home-care services. www.korian.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005525/en/ Contacts: KORIAN PRESS CONTACTS Sophie BODIN Tarick DALI, T: +33 (0)1 40 70 95 93 DGM Conseil s.bodin@dgm-conseil.frt.dali@dgm-conseil.fr or Claire Vaas, T: +33 (0)1 55 37 53 11 Media Relations Manager claire.vaas@korian.com As part of the execution of the 2018 Strategy, TDC Group adjusted its Danish organisation during September 2016 towards a more customer-centric organisation with further end-to-end process responsibility in the business lines. For the financial reporting it means that more costs are allocated to the reporting segments Consumer, Business and Wholesale, whereas correspondingly fewer costs are allocated to Other operations in Denmark. TDC will report in accordance with the adjusted organisation with effect from the Interim Financial Report for January-September 2016. Comparative figures in the income statements for the business lines are restated accordingly. A restated Fact Sheet with comparative figures for Q1 2014 to Q2 2016 is therefore now available on TDC's website and attached to this release. The restatement does not give rise to any changes to TDC's guidance for 2016, which was announced on 21 June 2016. TDC A/S Teglholmsgade 1 0900 Copenhagen C DK-Denmark tdc.com Attachment: https://cns.omxgroup.com/cds/DisclosureAttachmentServlet?messageAttachmentId=590122 Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Aeris to demonstrate how to reduce IoT complexity through its platforms and solutionsREADING, U.K., 2016-10-19 10:05 CEST (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- At the Manufacturer's Annual Leaders Conference, Nov. 2 and 3, Aeris, a pioneer and leader in the Internet of Things (IoT) market, is showcasing its Aeris IoT Solutions Platform, a comprehensive, patented and end-to-end IoT enabler for enterprises.A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/500dc155-f127-45db-8f27-9a264 1bdc0b3The Aeris IoT Solutions Platform consists of AerPort connectivity management platform, AerCloud applications enablement platform, AerCore IoT network and AerVoyance IoT analytics platform. Aeris also offers a cellular network service to improve roaming connectivity for enterprises and service providers.Aeris will offer free copies of the second edition of "The Definitive Guide: The Internet of Things for Business," a book authored by Aeris founder and chief technology officer, Syed Zaeem Hosain, at the Aeris stand no. 24 in the NEC in Birmingham, U.K.The Aeris IoT book addresses the need for a broad, yet comprehensive guide that enables enterprises and services providers to navigate potential pitfalls and capitalize on IoT opportunities. The Aeris IoT Book also serves as a primer for business executives and outlines the steps necessary to embrace IoT without the need for an advanced engineering background.Mohsen Mohseninia, vice president of market development for Europe of Aeris, will speak Nov. 2 on "IoT and the essential tools for the connected product journey."The Manufacturer's Annual Leaders Conference is part of The Manufacturer Live series of events, which also includes the launch of The Manufacturer Top 100 2016, The Manufacturer MX Awards ceremony and gala dinner and The Manufacturer Smart Factory Expo.CLICK TO TWEET: Aeris (@AerisM2M) to demo IoT solutions for smart manufacturers at @TheManufacturer | M2M TMALC http://www.aeris.com/news/Supporting Quote-- Suzanne Lancaster, director of marketing, Europe, Aeris"Aeris is delighted to be part of the Manufacturer's Annual Leaders Conference. We look forward to collaborating and advancing the cause of Industry 4.0, a game changer for the success of manufacturers in the United Kingdom. We are confident that Aeris can add significant value to manufacturers as they embrace the Internet of Things."Invitation-- Journalists, bloggers and industry analysts are invited to meet 1:1 with Mohseninia and Lancaster on Nov. 2 and 3. Please contact Kevin Petschow to set up a meeting.Digital Assets-- [Photo] Suzanne Lancaster -- [Image] Aeris logoSupporting Resources-- Read about The Manufacturer's Annual Leaders Conference. -- Read about Aeris. -- Read about Aeris IoT Solutions platform. -- Read about Syed Zaeem Hosain. -- Read about Mohsen Mohseninia. -- Read and subscribe to Aeris Blog. -- Read Aeris news releases. -- Read about the Internet of Things FAQ. -- For more information about Aeris' news and activities, follow the company via Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.About Aeris Aeris is a pioneer and leader in the market of the Internet of Things - as an operator of end-to-end IoT and machine-to-machine (M2M) services and as a technology provider enabling other operators to build profitable IoT businesses. Among our customers are the most demanding users of IoT services today, including Hyundai, Acura, Rand McNally, Leica, and Sprint. Through our technology platform and dedicated IoT and M2M services, we strive to fundamentally improve their businesses - by dramatically reducing costs, improving operational efficiency, reducing time-to-market, and enabling new revenue streams.Tags/Keywords: Aeris, AerPort, AerCloud, AerCore, AerVoyance, Internet of Things, IoT, machine-to-machine, M2M, The Manufacturer's Annual Leaders Conference, TMALC, Industry 4.0, Syed Zaeem Hosain, Mohsen Mohseninia, Suzanne LancasterFor more information, contact: Kevin Petschow Aeris +1.312.985.9182 Kevin.Petschow@aeris.net LONDON, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Swedish clothing retailer appoints Mention Me to power referral platform Sweden's favourite kidswear brand, Polarn O. Pyret has partnered with Mention Me to launch its UK customer referral programme. The clothing brand specialises in quality clothes made for play, which "let children be children" rather than "mini adults". First launched in the UK 10 years ago, the brand has seen great growth as parents become increasingly interested in the sustainability and provenance of their children's clothing. Photos of Prince George wearing the brand in his official Christmas photo hasn't hurt either! Polarn O. Pyret wanted to harness the affection that consumers have for the brand by launching a refer a friend scheme. Luisa Cacioppo-Smallwood, Head of Marketing explained: "We have a very loyal customer base who are great advocates for the brand and what it stands for. Our new referral scheme is a great way to reward them for sharing with like minded parents. We chose Mention Me as we really love the flexibility the platform gives us to test which offers and messages appeal to our customers". Mention Me co-founder and CEO Andy Cockburn said: "We are excited to be working with Polarn O. Pyret to help them drive new customer acquisition via referrals. With such an iconic children's brand we are sure that referrals will form a growing part of their business over the coming years." About Mention Me: Mention-Me.com provides retailers with a referral platform which enables them to turn word-of-mouth into a marketing channel. They work in partnership with retailers to ensure best practice and testing result in world class referral programmes. Story: Corolla stories by customers from Japan and around the world History: Evolution of the Corolla since the first generation and their corresponding eras Message: Commentary by Chief Engineers of the Corolla Feature: Special content, including an AE86 Levin test-drive video and a commentary by a "Corolla geek" Gallery: Generations of the Corolla and key historical photos Link: URLs to news releases of the Corolla of each generation, as well as some Corolla related websites. Toyota Motor Corporation Public Affairs Division Global Communications Department Tel: +81-3-3817-9926 Toyota City, Japan, Oct 19, 2016 - (JCN Newswire) - Fifty years ago, on October 20, 1966, at a time when interest in cars was growing rapidly in Japan, Toyota unveiled the first-generation Corolla.The Toyota Corolla is a five-passenger vehicle from Japan that is positioned as the "most accessible car" in the market. In the development of the Corolla, Toyota's engineers have spent years bringing together the best of the company's technologies to offer to the public. This car has been designed to become a main fixture across Japanese society. It is fitted with a powerful water-cooled inline-four engine boasting 1,077 cc and 60 horsepower which provides a level of performance, and a vehicle class that goes above and beyond. The Corolla is packed with new features where its acceleration exceeds that of European cars within the same vehicle class. The Corolla is truly a high-performance Japanese compact car.(News release published on October 20, 1966)Toyota Motor Corporation was founded in 1937 with the overarching goal of helping to develop the Japanese auto industry. Three decades later, Corolla was born at a time of great interest in cars across Japan. The 80 Point Doctrine +alpha Concept underpinned the development of the Corolla. This design concept stipulates that the car has to achieve 80 points on a 100-point scale on average, and some +alpha (extra) features were necessary to give the vehicle additional appeal, which would help exceed customers' expectations. Over the past five decades, even as the Corolla has evolved over 11 generations, Toyota has consistently applied this understanding to models sold in Japan and around the world.Born in Japan in 1966, the Corolla is now being produced in 13 countries, and over 1.3 million units are sold annually in more than 150 countries. With a record 44 million units sold globally to date, the Toyota Corolla has established itself as the world's best-selling car of all-time.Evolution of CorollaDuring the last 50 years, customers from all around the world have come to share the same love for the Corolla; and the Corolla development team has consistently worked hard to meet and exceed their expectations. We would like to take this opportunity to reflect on the past 50 years of the Corolla, through stories told by those who have been part of the Corolla journey.This special website features various aspects of the Corolla, including customer memories, the history of the vehicle, comments from those charged with developing the car and more. Content will be posted in stages, so please visit the site often!Corolla 50th Anniversary Special Websitehttp://newsroom.toyota.co.jp/en/corolla50th/Overview of the Corolla 50th Anniversary Special WebsiteAbout ToyotaSupported by people around the world, Toyota Motor Corporation (TSE: 7203; NYSE: TM), has endeavored since its establishment in 1937 to serve society by creating better products. As of the end of December 2013, Toyota conducts its business worldwide with 52 overseas manufacturing companies in 27 countries and regions. Toyota's vehicles are sold in more than 170 countries and regions. For more information, please visit www.toyota-global.com.Source: ToyotaContact:Copyright 2016 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved. GREENWOOD VILLAGE, CO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- CannaGrow Holdings, Inc., (OTC PINK: CGRW), -- CannaGrow Holdings, Inc., a Liaison and Consultant providing turnkey solutions to licensed growers in the legal Cannabis industry, today announces the launch of their new website at http://www.cannagrowholdings.com. Delmar Janovec, CEO, stated, "Now that the construction of the Buffalo Ranch Project I facility is completed and occupied by our first tenant, more time has become available to attend to other Company business. The launch of our new website is the first step in a process of branding CannaGrow Holdings as the "go to" team for all Cannabis projects in Colorado. We are currently working with a media expert to develop additional material to assist Category One Botanicals with their marketing needs for the upcoming harvest. The new website went live on October 14, 2016, and I would like to encourage our shareholders and other interested parties to visit http://www.cannagrowholdings.com to learn more about who we are and what we have to offer in the Cannabis Industry in Colorado." Dr. John P. Janovec, Ph.D., COO of CannaGrow Holdings added, "The new CannaGrow Holdings website is a current snapshot of our collective vision and accomplishments as a viable company in the Legal Cannabis Industry in the State of Colorado. The diverse team of experts we have united along with our strategic alliance with Licensed Grower, Category One Botanicals, LLC, enables us to tackle a wide variety of challenges involving the business, construction, production, and compliance sides of the Cannabis Industry. We look forward to providing more real-time updates about our growing team and our achievements through our News & Blog pages." CannaGrow Holdings, Inc., the Liaison and Representative for NuGro Industries, will continue in its capacity of providing oversight as the Facilities Manager, working with the State/County Agencies and Category One Botanicals, LLC, the Licensed Grower for the facilities. The completion of this project will now provide the company the basis to begin generating revenues from Licensed Growers subleasing the Turnkey facilities being built to the specifications of CannaGrow COO, Dr. John P. Janovec, and Consultant, Jason Wells. CannaGrow has already received numerous inquiries from additional perspective tenants and is also exploring additional business ventures within this industry that could further enhance shareholder value. The site plan, grading plan, and phasing plan that was submitted by NuGro Industries, the landowner and developer, can be viewed on our website at: http://cannagrowholdings.com. About CannaGrow Holdings, Inc.: CannaGrow Holdings, Inc. has entered the Medical/Recreational Cannabis Industry as a Lessor, Liaison, and Consultant to licensed Growers providing them with turnkey Growing Facilities in the State of Colorado. The Company intends to expand this business model within this industry as business opportunities evolve whereby providing for the highest return to its shareholders. CannaGrow Holdings, Inc. does not and will not, until such time as Federal law allows, grow, harvest, distribute or sell marijuana or any substance that violate the laws of the United States of America. CannaGrow Holdings, Inc. encourages the public to read the above information in conjunction with its year-end statement for December 31, 2015, and the quarterly statements filed in calendar year 2016, at www.otcmarkets.com. The information contained in this press release may include forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements usually contain the words "may," "could," "possibly," "feel," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "expect," or similar expressions that involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include the Company's uncertain profitability, need for significant capital, uncertainty concerning market acceptance of its services, competition, limited service facilities, dependence on technological developments and protection of its intellectual property. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those discussed herein. CONTACT: CannaGrow Holdings, Inc. Delmar Janovec Investor Relations info@cannagrowholdings.com http://cannagrowholdings.com/ Regulatory News: The Board of Directors (the "Board") of EMAS Offshore Limited (OSE:EMAS) (the "Company", together with its subsidiaries, the "Group") refers to the announcement released by Perisai Petroleum Teknologi Berhad, which the Company owns an equity stake of 11.5% ("PPTB"), on 18 October 2016 on Bursa Malaysia, as well as the announcement released by Perisai Capital (L) Inc, a wholly-owned subsidiary of PPTB on 18 October 2016 on SGXNET (collectively, the "Perisai Announcements"). The Perisai Announcements are available in Appendix 1 of this Announcement. The Company is monitoring the situation and assessing the impact on the Group. Further announcements will be made in due course as and when appropriate. Shareholders and potential investors should exercise caution when trading in the Company's shares in relation to this Announcement. When in doubt as to the action they should take, shareholders and potential investors should consult their financial, tax or other advisers. By Order of the Board Shannon Ong Company Secretary 19 October 2016 This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005637/en/ Contacts: Mr. Jason Goh Chief Financial Officer Email: investor_relations@emasoffshore-cnp.com Address: 15 Hoe Chiang Road, #28-01, Tower Fifteen, Singapore 089316 Tel: (65) 6349 8535 TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Eloro Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE: ELO)(FRANKFURT: P2Q) ("Eloro") is pleased to announce that it has completed the Phase I exploration program recommended in the recently filed National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report on the La Victoria Gold/Silver Property (the "Property") in Huandoval District, Pallasca Province, Ancash Department, Peru authored by Mr. Luc Pigeon, M.Sc., P.Geo. (see press release September 7, 2016). Phase I included geological mapping and sampling, geophysical surveys, data processing, permit applications, and accessibility improvements for the Phase II drill program. The Phase II diamond drilling, which will total up to 3,000m, will focus on targets at the San Markito and Rufina Mineralized Zones. Tom Larsen, President and CEO of Eloro commented: "We expect the Phase II diamond drilling program to start late in Q4 of this year. Dr. Bill Pearson, P.Geo., Chief Technical Advisor for Eloro and I recently completed a site visit to the Property. Preparations are well advanced for the drill program which will commence once final permitting is received. Our newly appointed in-country General Manager, Luc Pigeon, P.Geo., has organized a strong team to support the exploration work based from Huandoval, a small town near the southwest end of the La Victoria claim group. Luc, who has more than ten years experience working in Peru, has worked closely with the local community in establishing this base and building good local support for our program." Dr. Bill Pearson added: "Our initial program of geological mapping, sampling and geophysical (IP) surveys greatly increased our understanding of the potential of the Property and outlined a number of follow-up targets. In advance of the drilling, we are starting the second phase of our geological mapping and sampling program led by Dr. Osvaldo Arce. This work will concentrate on the 3-plus km potential strike length of the San Markito-Victoria silver-gold mineralized breccia zones which have had very limited previous exploration. The new road being constructed by the Peruvian government that opens up the north-eastern portion of the Victoria concession into the San Felipe II concession to the east (see Figure 1) will greatly facilitate this work. In addition, we will be completing a detailed soil geochemical survey of Rufina North to better define a potential heap-leachable gold target near a strong IP anomaly outlined in our survey." Geology and Mineralization The Property, which covers approximately 45 square kilometres (Figure 1) is located within a prolific epithermal gold deposit belt that spans from Cajamarca to Ancash and that includes such deposits as Yanacocha, Lagunas Norte, La Arena and Pierina. The La Arena and the Santa Rosa open pit mines are respectively located 50km and 25km northwest of the Property. Gold-silver mineralization on the La Victoria property is spatially and structurally associated with a series of dioritic to granodioritic Victoria intrusives that intrude sandstone and shale of the Chicama Formation. The style of mineralization is typical of low sulphidation epithermal deposits. Figure 2 is an analytical signal magnetic map developed from reprocessing of 2011 data, which shows the widespread occurrence of interpreted intrusions and principal gold (Ag) + silver (Ag) showings and occurrences. Each potential intrusion is considered prospective, warranting followup work. The areas of the magnetic anomalies tend to be recessively weathered covered by Quaternary colluvium and alluvium suggesting that the intrusives are likely altered. The location of the new road being constructed in the northeastern part of the property which substantially improves access, is also shown. Four principal mineralized zones have been identified on the Property: San Markito, Rufina, Victoria and Victoria South with the first two being the most advanced targets. Limited sampling to date has indicated the presence of high grade mineralization in each of these mineralized areas but more systematic sampling and diamond drilling is required to assess the potential of these targets. At San Markito, the northwest-trending mineralized zone extends for at least 1300m along strike and is up to 400m wide with the bulk of mineralization located within silicified sedimentary rocks near the contact with intrusive rocks. Results from previous sampling returned significant values up to 2.27 g/t Au and 1814 g/t Ag with enriched values of Pb up to 16.82% and arsenic and antimony greater than 1% analytical limit. Initial planned drilling will focus on testing this mineralized zone along strike and vertically. At Rufina five vein sets of 20m to 70m in width have been identified in the western part of the mineralized zone. Vein sets are composed of iron oxide-quartz-arsenopyrite veins, in veinlet swarms, stockworks, and breccia zones. They are well developed in intrusive rocks as well as underlying rocks of the Chicama Fm. Three surface samples from the mineralized zone averaged 8.8 g/t gold and 23.8 g/t silver, while one 50cm chip sample taken from an artisanal adit returned 15.1 g/t gold, 136.5 g/t silver, with 1.61% lead and 3.75% zinc. In the northern part of Rufina at higher elevations, the mineralized rocks are oxidized and have argillic alteration suggesting potential for heap-leachable gold mineralization. The recently completed IP survey shows that the high resistance diorite (the main mineralized lithology present on the Rufina zone) is concentrated near the surface in this area and is underlain by conductive and chargeable sedimentary rocks; this target, known as Rufina North, will be tested in the planned drill program. Victoria and Victoria South are earlier stage targets but which have similar geological settings to San Markito and Rufina. Victoria is on the San Markito structure approximately 500m to the east. Samples there have returned values to 4.3 g/t Au and 927 g/t Ag. Copper concentrations are elevated in most samples with values reaching up to 4.29% Cu. Sampling at one showing at Victoria South returned 8.4 g/t Au over 1.2m. For additional technical information on the La Victoria Project, the reader is referred to the NI 43-101 Technical Report on the La Victoria Au-Ag Property, Ancash, Peru filed under Eloro's profile on SEDAR (www.sedar.com). About Eloro Resources Ltd. Eloro is an exploration and mine development company which recently acquired a 100% undivided interest in the La Victoria property, located in the prolific North-Central Mineral Belt of Peru. The La Victoria Property covers 45 square kilometres and is within 50 kilometres of several large low-cost producing gold mines, with three producers visible from the Property. Infrastructure in the area is good with access to road, water and electricity and is located at an altitude that ranges from 3,100 m to 4,200 m above sea level. Eloro also holds a portfolio of gold and base-metal properties in northern and western Quebec. Information in this news release may contain forward-looking information. Statements containing forward-looking information express, as at the date of this news release, the Corporation's plans, estimates, forecasts, projections, expectations, or beliefs as to future events or results and are believed to be reasonable based on information currently available to the Corporation. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Jim Steel MBA, P.Geo., a Qualified Person in the context of NI 43-101 has reviewed and approved the technical content of this news release. To view Figure 1 and Figure 2, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/elo1019figures.pdf. Contacts: Eloro Resources Ltd. Thomas Larsen President and C.E.O. (416) 868-9168 (416) 361-1333 (FAX) Eloro Resources Ltd. Jorge Estepa Vice-President (416) 868-9168 (416) 361-1333 (FAX) www.elororesources.com ABU DHABI and DUBAI, UAE, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The proprietary platform draws expertise from across DarkMatter to produce this powerful tool for the assessment and prediction of cyber risk DarkMatter, an international cyber security firm headquartered in the UAE, announces the introduction of its Cyber Resilience Platform, a first-of-its-kind city-wide dashboard that helps visualise the readiness of critical entities against cyber threats. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430287 ) The platform succinctly demonstrates the cascading effect of cyber breach on separate, yet interconnected critical entities in a smart city environment, allowing for the first time, a contextualisation of the impact of a cyber breach on entities individually as well as collectively. The Cyber Resilience Platform allows city authorities to predict and react timeously to cyber threats, with the powerful tool acting as a playbook for a city to be able to see how its critical entities are working individually, and as part of a wider interconnected, smart environment. The holistic platform builds on DarkMatter's outlook to add cyber resilience end-to-end in a digital environment and is an extension of DarkMatter's Cyber Security Life-Cycle outlook, which incorporates a four-stage approach to cyber security involving planning, detection, protection and recovery. Using sensors, interconnected services and decision-making algorithms to help entities predict, monitor and manage cyber incidents in near real-time, the platform is also scalable, and transferable so entities of any size, across multiple sectors that can benefit from its predictive capabilities. Commenting on the introduction of the Cyber Resilience Platform, Faisal Al Bannai, CEO of DarkMatter said, "This platform represents DarkMatter's ability to draw expertise from across the organisation and produce tools that assess and predict the level of cyber risk in order for entities to pro-actively act in defence of their digital assets within an interconnected environment." Faisal Al Bannai continued, "Our Cyber Resilience Platform is a KPI-focused, operations-oriented tool, which for the first time looks to bridge the gap between the activities of critical entities and the state of their security. We believe this platform will gain significant traction not just from federal and municipal entities, but for all organisations operating in highly digitised, connected eco-systems where cyber vulnerabilities have knock-on effects." The platform's output from analysing resilience is used to monitor the actual status of systems, so it becomes a tool that produces actionable intelligence rather than offering just theoretical scenarios. The pace of digital transformation, and the instrumented, intelligent, and interconnected nature of modern digital networks means a more interactive and all-inclusive approach to assessing cyber resilience is required, which is what the platform delivers. Harshul Joshi, Senior Vice President and the Chief Architect of the Cyber Resilience Platform said, "Our platform is not just another box-ticking exercise. It offers real and actionable information to allow connected entities to better protect themselves and mitigate against cyber attack individually as well as collectively. I like to view our platform as working like a pain detector in the human body, which draws attention to where a problem may exist, and triggers a series of actions to correct the problem. We are looking to add immunity to digitisation and better equip entities to be able to guard against cyber threats." To see the Cyber Resilience Model demonstrated live, please visit the DarkMatter stand at booth number Z-C30, Za'abeel Hall, GITEX Technology Week, 16-20 October 2016, Dubai World Trade Centre. About DarkMatter DarkMatter is transforming the cyber security landscape. Headquartered in the UAE and operating globally, we're the region's first and only fully integrated digital defence and cyber security consultancy and implementation firm. Our elite team of global experts deliver advanced, next-generation solutions to governments and enterprises across the cyber security spectrum. We help clients simplify the enormous complexity of today's ever-evolving cyber threats. Our vision is to secure the future by protecting its technologies Our products extend to Secure Communications, Public Key Infrastructure, Innovation & Research, and Big Data & Analytics. Our services extend to Governance, Risk & Compliance, Cyber Network Defence, Managed Security Services, Infrastructure & System Integration, Test & Validation Labs, and Smart Solutions. For further details, visit http://www.darkmatter.ae Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - October 19, 2016) - Alternative IQ today announced the winners of the 9th Annual Canadian Hedge Fund Awards, the highest honour in Canada's hedge fund industry. The awards were presented yesterday evening at a Gala Dinner at One King West Hotel in Toronto with over 140 guests in attendance. Peter Hayes, National Director, Alternative Investments, KPMG LLP, was Master of Ceremonies for the event. The Gala Dinner was preceded by a hedge fund conference in the afternoon at which the delegates heard a presentation by Brooke Biscoe, Vice President, Business Development, Fundata Canada, on the new Risk Rating Regime for Canada's hedge funds. The conference also included two panel discussions. The first panel of four seasoned IIROC investment advisors discussed Canadian high net worth investors' attitudes and intentions about investing in hedge funds. The second panel included senior executives from some of Canada's largest and most successful hedge funds who shared their views on the trends in Canada's hedge fund industry and how the industry will grow going forward. The Canadian Hedge Fund Awards help investors identify the most exceptional hedge funds of the year, recognizing winners in 4 categories as well as the Overall Best 2016 Canadian Hedge Fund. A total of 195 Canadian hedge funds participated in the 2016 CHFA program. The awards are based solely on quantitative performance data to June 30th, with Fundata managing the collection and tabulation of the data to determine the winners. There is no nomination process or subjective assessment in identifying the winners. Additional awards, based on votes from hedge fund companies, recognize top service providers to the industry. The 2016 Canadian Hedge Fund Award winners are: Overall Best 2016 Canadian Hedge Fund: (based on best combined 10 year annualized return and Sharpe ratio). Place Fund Name Category Return Sharpe Ratio 1st PH&N Absolute Return Fund Global Macro/ManagedFutures/Multi-Strategy 15.45 1.61 2nd King & Victoria Fund LP Equity Focused 15.28 1.03 3rd Venator Founders Fund Equity Focused 13.61 0.82 Equity Focused Category Best 1 Year Return: 1st Primevestfund 33.94 2nd Teraz Fund 31.97 3rd Canoe Energy Alpha Fund LP 20.82 Best 5 Year Return: 1st ROMC Fund 17.18 2nd DKAM Capital Ideas Fund 14.33 3rd Fiera Long Short Equity Fund 14.18 Best 5 Year Sharpe Ratio: 1st Fiera Long Short Equity Fund 1.75 2nd Goodwood Milford Fund 1.43 3rd ROMC Fund 1.37 Credit Focused Category: Best 1 Year Return: 1st Algonquin Debt Strategies Fund LP 19.10 2nd Fiera Capital Income Opportunities Fund 16.25 3rd YTM Capital Credit Opportunities Fund 16.17 Best 5 Year Return: 1st Stornoway Recovery Fund LP 13.05 2nd Venator Income Fund 8.98 3rd RP Debt Opportunities Fund 7.87 Best 5 Year Sharpe Ratio: 1st RP Debt Opportunities Fund 2.42 2nd RP Fixed Income Plus Marret Investment Grade Hedged Strategies 2.14 3rd Fund 1.51 Market Neutral Category: Best 1 Year Return: 1st CC&L Q Market Neutral FundGroup 20.29 2nd WARATAH Energy 15.08 3rd EHP Guardian Fund 14.02 Best 5 Year Return: 1st CC&L Market Neutral Fund 15.42 2nd CC&L Q Market Neutral Fund Group 14.57 3rd Curvature LP 8.27 Best 5 Year Sharpe Ratio: 1st Curvature LP 1.92 2nd Ross Smith Capital Investment Fund 1.83 3rd CC&L Market Neutral Fund 1.50 Global Macro/Managed Futures/Multi-Strategy Category: Best 1 Year Return: 1st J. Zechner Associates Inc. Global HedgedGrowth Fund 33.02 2nd Claret Global Multi Asset LP 24.69 3rd Stratigis Uber Strategies Fund LP 23.07 Best 5 Year Return: 1st JM Catalyst Fund 11.61 2nd PH&N Absolute Return Fund J. Zechner Associates Inc. Global Hedged Growth 10.32 3rd Fund 8.32 Best 5 Year Sharpe Ratio: 1st JM Catalyst Fund 2.45 2nd PH&N Absolute Return Fund 1.23 3rd Dynamic Income Opportunities Fund 0.96 Awards were also presented to those service providers that Canadian hedge fund managers voted most valuable to them: SGGG Fund Services received the award for top Canadian Hedge Fund Administrator, the top Canadian Prime Broker award went to CIBC Capital Markets, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP was awarded top Canadian Law Firm and KPMG LLP was voted the top Canadian Accounting Firm. The 2016 Canadian Hedge Fund Awards program would not be possible without the generous support of its Sponsors: Principal Sponsors: Fundata Canada Ltd. and KPMG LLP Presenting Table Sponsors: CommonWealth Fund Services and SGGG Fund Services, Presenting Sponsors: McMillan LLP and BMO Capital Markets, and Associate Sponsors: Independent Review Inc., Alliance Sales and Marketing, Benefits and Pensions Monitor, Newsfile, EXT Marketing, and TD Securities. For more information about the annual CHFA program, the 2016 Top Contenders and the full directory of hedge funds participating in the 2016 Canadian Hedge Fund program, go to: www.alternativeiq.com or call: Julie Makepeace Managing Director, Alternative IQ and President, Alliance Sales and Marketing, Inc. 416-906-3782 About Alternative IQ: Alternative IQ is dedicated to celebrating, supporting and expanding Canada's Hedge Fund Industry and produces the annual Canadian Hedge Fund Awards, held in Toronto each October (performance as at June 30th), the 'Winners' Showcase' events which present Managers of the award-winning hedge funds to investors, and various other programs and publications serving the hedge fund industry in Canada. Alternative IQ is a division of Alliance Sales and Marketing, Inc. About the Annual Canadian Hedge Fund Awards: The Annual Canadian Hedge Fund Awards were first held in 2008 and have a two-fold objective: First, to celebrate the talent and accomplishments of Canada's hedge fund industry, and second, to draw attention to Canada's hedge funds by raising the awareness of that expertise in the media and among the wider investment community. WINNIPEG, MANITOBA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Kane Biotech Inc. (TSX VENTURE: KNE) (the "Company" or "Kane Biotech") is pleased to announce the launch of new packaging and branding for StrixNB. StrixNB is a premium line of oral health products designed to fight plaque and tartar. Available exclusively in veterinary clinics, it was brought to market in 2014 and has quickly gained a reputation as being safe and effective amongst both veterinarians and pet owners. It's patent-pending technology works against dental associated bacteria by breaking through dental biofilm, leaving bacteria exposed for eradication. "Kane Biotech is excited to bring to market a current, updated look to our premium line of StrixNB oral health products", says Mark Ahrens-Townsend, President and CEO. "We know we have an exceptional product - third party studies have repeatedly demonstrated its efficacy and safety. The new look solidifies our place at the top of the oral health market for companion pets." The new StrixNB packaging was launched this week at the CanWest Veterinary Conference in Banff, Alberta. "It's already received positive feedback from vets who've had a chance to review it," says Grant Humphrey, VP Sales, "and vets appreciate that we've achieved the LRVHP seal of approval from Health Canada." Periodontal disease is the number one disease in dogs and cats, creating a pet oral care market in the United States that in 2015 was estimated at $775 million and is growing at 33% annually. For more information about StrixNB please contact Grant Humphrey, VP Sales at ghumphrey@kanebiotech.com. As well please visit the new StrixNB website at www.strixNB.com. About Kane Biotech Inc. Kane Biotech is a biotechnology company engaged in the research, development and commercialization of technologies and products that prevent and remove microbial biofilms. Biofilms develop when bacteria and other microorganisms form a protective matrix that acts as a shield against attack. When in a biofilm, bacteria become highly resistant to antibiotics, antimicrobials, biocides, disinfectants, high temperatures and host immune responses. This resiliency contributes to numerous human and animal health related problems such as wound care infections, recurrent urinary tract infections, tooth decay, medical device associated and hospital-acquired infections, and foodborne bacterial infections. According to the United States National Institutes of Health biofilms are estimated to be responsible for 80% of all human bacterial infections and cost individuals, industry, governments and hospitals billions of dollars each year. As such, there is significant interest in safe and effective products that can combat the biofilm problem. Kane Biotech uses patent protected technologies based on molecular mechanisms of biofilm formation and methods for finding compounds that inhibit or disrupt biofilms. The Corporation has evidence that these technologies have the potential to significantly improve the ability to prevent and/or destroy biofilms in several medical and industrial applications. Kane Biotech has a portfolio of biotechnologies, intellectual property (patents, patents pending and trademarks) and products developed by the Corporation's own biofilm research expertise and acquired from leading research institutions. StrixNB, DispersinB, Aledex, bluestem, AloSera, coactiv+ and Kane are trademarks of Kane Biotech Inc. The Corporation is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "KNE". The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian provincial securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). These forward-looking statements relate to, among other things, our objectives, goals, targets, strategies, intentions, plans, beliefs, estimates and outlook, including, without limitation, our anticipated future operating results, and can, in some cases, be identified by the use of words such as "believe," "anticipate," "expect," "intend," "plan," "will," "may" and other similar expressions. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections or other characterizations of future events or circumstances are forward-looking statements. These statements reflect management's current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management. Certain material factors or assumptions are applied in making forward-looking statements, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from these expectations include, among other things: the Corporation's early stage of development, lack of product revenues and history of operating losses, uncertainties related to clinical trials and product development, rapid technological change, uncertainties related to forecasts, competition, potential product liability, additional financing requirements and access to capital, unproven markets, supply of raw materials, income tax matters, management of growth, partnerships for development and commercialization of technology, effects of insurers' willingness to pay for products, system failures, dependence on key personnel, foreign currency risk, risks related to regulatory matters and risks related to intellectual property and other risks detailed from time to time in the Corporation's filings with Canadian securities regulatory authorities, as well as the Corporation's ability to anticipate and manage the risks associated with the foregoing. The Corporation cautions that the foregoing list of important factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive. When relying on the Corporation's forward-looking statements to make decisions with respect to the Corporation's, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. These risks and uncertainties should be considered carefully and prospective investors should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, the Corporation cannot provide assurance that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. The Corporation undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement. Contacts: Kane Biotech Inc. Mark Ahrens-Townsend President & CEO 204-477-7592 204-474-7552 (FAX) ir@kanebiotech.com www.kanebiotech.com VAL-D'OR, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Abitibi Royalties Inc. (TSX VENTURE: RZZ) ("Abitibi Royalties" or the "Company") announces that Yamana Gold Inc. ("Yamana") has recently disclosed that its wholly owned subsidiary, Brio Gold Inc. ("Brio Gold"), has filed a preliminary prospectus with the securities regulatory authorities in each of the provinces and territories of Canada in connection with qualifying a secondary offering (the "Offering") of Brio Gold common shares held by Yamana, which will be transferred to purchasers through and subject to the exercise of purchase rights (the "Purchase Rights"). Yamana intends to distribute the Purchase Rights to its shareholders as a dividend in-kind. The Purchase Rights shall provide shareholders with an opportunity to purchase from Yamana a portion of its Brio Shares or the option of selling their Purchase Rights. Abitibi Royalties owns 3,549,695 shares in Yamana and is expected to receive Purchase Rights in connection with the Offering. Abitibi Royalties will inform its shareholders of the Company's decision to participate in the Offering or sell its Purchase Rights once more information becomes available. About Abitibi Royalties Abitibi Royalties holds a 3% NSR on the Odyssey North discovery, Jeffrey Zone and the eastern portion of the Barnat Extension, located inside the Malartic CHL property and a 2% NSR on portions of the Gouldie and Charlie zones all at the Canadian Malartic mine near Val-d'Or, Quebec. In addition, the Company is building a portfolio of royalties on early stage properties near producing mines. The Company owns common shares in Yamana Gold and Agnico Eagle Mines (market value), plus cash (as of June 30, 2016) of approximately CDN$47.2 million. The Company is debt free. Golden Valley Mines Ltd. and Rob McEwen hold approximately 49.4% and 12.3% interest in Abitibi Royalties, respectively. Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or realities may differ materially from those in forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. 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. Contacts: Abitibi Royalties Inc. Shanda Kilborn Director, Corporate Development 1-888-392-3857 info@abitibiroyalties.com NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Electrum Global Holdings L.P. (the "Offeror") announces that it participated in the rights offering of Tintina Resources Inc. (the "issuer") which closed on October 18, 2016 (the "Closing") pursuant to which the Offeror acquired 19,511,635 common shares in the capital of the issuer (the "Common Shares") at a price of CAD$0.06 per Common Share or CAD$1,170,698.10 in the aggregate. As a result of the Closing, the Offeror holds 45,971,163 Common Shares and, together with its affiliate Electrum Strategic Metals II LLC, 54,632,580 Common Shares, representing 16.9% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares. This represents an increase from the 35,120,945 Common Shares representing 15.8% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares held by the Offeror and its affiliate prior to the Closing, and a percentage decrease from the 24.7% that such Common Shares represented at the time of the Offeror's previous report dated December 31, 2012. The Common Shares referred to above were acquired for investment purposes and the Offeror and/or one or more of its affiliates may, depending on market and other conditions, increase or decrease its beneficial ownership of Common Shares or other securities of the issuer whether in the open market, by privately negotiated agreement or otherwise. The Offeror is an "accredited investor" (as such term is defined in National Instrument 45-106 - Prospectus Exemptions adopted by the Canadian Securities Administrators ("NI 45-106")) because the Offeror is a "person" (as such term is defined in NI 45-106) in respect of which all of the owners of interests, direct, indirect or beneficial, except the voting securities required by law to be owned by directors, are persons that are "accredited investors". The issuer's mailing address is located at P.O. Box 48736 Bentall, Vancouver, British Columbia V7X 1A6. The Offeror is located at 700 Madison Avenue, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10065, USA. A copy of the early warning report to which this news release relates can be obtained from Michael Williams (646-365-1600) or on the SEDAR profile of the issuer at www.sedar.com. Contacts: Michael Williams 646-365-1600 NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Terrestrial Energy announces that it has appointed Fred Buckman to its International Advisory Board. Fred Buckman is a senior executive with over thirty-five years of extensive experience in electric and gas utility operation and management, as well as engineering and construction management, project development, company startup and private equity. Dr. Buckman was formerly the President and Chief Executive Officer of Shaw Group (now Chicago Bridge & Iron), one of the world's leading architect-engineering firms for the nuclear power industry and the broader power industry. Dr. Buckman currently serves on the board of directors of numerous companies, including General Fusion of Canada. Fred Buckman's career spans four decades and a long list of executive positions and accomplishments. Dr. Buckman's past positions include the following: President of Power Group of Shaw Group Inc. During his tenure, he oversaw Shaw's premier capabilities in the fossil and nuclear power industry; Managing Partner of Brookfield Asset Management Inc., where he was responsible for the utility sector; In 1999, he founded and was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Trans-Elect Development Company Inc., which became the first independent transmission company in North America. He continues to serve as Chairman; President and Chief Executive Officer of Powerlink Transmission Company, a joint venture between Trans-Elect and Pacific Gas and Electric; Chief Executive Officer and President of PacifiCorp from 1994 to 1998, where he transformed the company from a regional utility to a significant national and international energy company. PacifiCorp was sold to MidAmerican Energy in 2005 for $5.2 billion; President and Chief Executive Officer of Consumers Energy Co., (also known as Consumers Power Company), utility subsidiary of CMS Energy, from 1988 to 1994. Dr. Buckman continues to hold several directorships of leading energy and energy services companies, including: Smart Wires (a transmission technology company), Solomon Corporation, General Fusion and Contract Land Staff. He is also on the Board of StanCorp Financial, a subsidiary of Meiji Yasuda. Dr. Buckman is the Adjunct Professor of Nuclear Engineering at University of Michigan. He completed Harvard Business School's Advanced Management Program in 1982. He received his Bachelor of Science Engineering from University of Michigan. He received his PhD in Nuclear Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Terrestrial Energy's Chief Executive Simon Irish made the following comment regarding Dr. Buckman's appointment: "Dr. Buckman's knowledge and expertise are of great relevance to our mission for first deployment of IMSR power plants in the 2020s. His involvement adds further and important capabilities to Terrestrial Energy's Advisory Board, whose current members include those who have held many senior public and private sector positions such as NRC Commissioner, President of Bechtel, and Head of the US EPA." About Terrestrial Energy Terrestrial Energy is developing a next-generation nuclear reactor based on its Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) technology. The IMSR represents true innovation in safety, cost and functionality. It will offer safe and reliable power solutions for electricity production and energy for industrial process heat generation. These together extend the applicability of nuclear energy far beyond its current footprint. With this profile, the IMSR is capable of driving the rapid global decarbonization of the primary energy system by displacing fossil fuel combustion across a broad front. It is complementary to renewable power sources and ideal for distributed power systems on existing grids. Using an innovative design and proven Molten Salt Reactor technology, the IMSR can be brought to global markets in the 2020s. Terrestrial Energy USA Ltd is an affiliate company that is seeking to develop IMSR technology for US market deployment. Social Media Facebook: TerrestrialMSRTwitter: TerrestrialMSRYouTube: Terrestrial EnergyLinkedIn: TerrestrialEnergyGoogle+: TerrestrialEnergy Contacts: Terrestrial Energy Inc. Grant Draper (415) 745-0254 grant@capstreamx.com Terrestrial Energy Inc. Brian Smith (416) 822-3130 bsmith@the-lanes.ca info@terrestrialenergy.com www.terrestrialenergy.com VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Cannabix Technologies Inc. (CSE: BLO)(CSE: BLO.CN)(OTC PINK: BLOZF) (the "Company") provides an update on the development of its FAIMS (high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry) based instrument for detection of trace amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol ("THC") from exhaled breath at the roadside and in the workplace. The Company is pleased to report that it has developed a "Beta 2.0" (Cannabix Marijuana Breathalyzer) device with major advances in the design and size of the device, including: greater sensitivity, improved performance by the square waveform generator. The current design includes features to allow for the addition of a rechargeable battery and touch screen and the device is approximately 10 times smaller than the Beta 1.0 device announced in July. Preliminary lab tests of the FAIMS device coupled with quadrupole ion trap mass spectrometry have shown lower levels of detection for THC standards than were achieved in past testing. Scientific Testing for the FAIMS Cannabix Marijuana Breathalyzer Cannabix scientists are formulating a scientific protocol to conduct live THC breath testing using the Beta 2.0 Cannabix Marijuana Breathalyzer in the coming weeks. The scientific testing will likely be conducted in Vancouver BC, Canada, where medical marijuana users will be engaged to determine the accuracy of the Beta 2.0 Cannabix Marijuana Breathalyzer to detect both smoked and edible consumption of marijuana in human breath. The results of the scientific tests will be used to prepare submissions for approval of the Cannabix Marijuana Breathalyzer as a court-approved device by the Minister of Justice in Canada and the National Highway and Safety Authority in the United States. Kal Malhi, President of Cannabix stated, "Several states in the U.S. are voting to legalize recreational marijuana on November 8, 2016 and the need for law enforcement to have a tool to gather scientific evidence of marijuana impairment in drivers is becoming an urgent need. Cannabix Technologies has been diligently working on our Cannabix Marijuana Breathalyzer for approximately two years and we are excited to be at the advanced stage and preparing a device for law enforcement and employers to begin testing. We are making excellent progress with the objective of having an accurate and court accepted tool in the coming months." About Cannabix Technologies Inc. Cannabix Technologies Inc. is a leader in marijuana breathalyzer development for law enforcement and the workplace. Cannabix has established breath testing technologies in the pursuit of bringing durable, portable hand-held tools to market to enhance detection of marijuana impaired driving offences on roads at a time when marijuana is becoming legal in many global jurisdictions. Cannabix is working to develop drug-testing devices that will detect THC- the psychoactive component of marijuana that causes intoxication- using breath samples. In particular, Cannabix is focused on developing breath testing devices for detection of recent use of THC, in contrast to urine testing for THC metabolite that requires an invasive collection and reflects use days or even weeks earlier. The devices will also be useful for other practical applications such as testing employees in the workplace where intoxication by THC can be hazardous. We seek Safe Harbor. On behalf of the Board of Directors Rav Mlait, CEO, Cannabix Technologies Inc. The CSE has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking information that involves various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information can include without limitation statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance of the Company, such as final development of a commercial or prototype product(s), successful trial or pilot of company technologies, no assurance that commercial sales of any kind actually materialize; no assurance the Company will have sufficient funds to complete product development. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and the Company's plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information, including: (i) adverse market conditions; (ii) risks regarding protection of proprietary technology; (iii) the ability of the Company to complete financings; (v) the ability of the Company to develop and market its future product; and (vi) risks regarding government regulation, managing and maintaining growth, the effect of adverse publicity, litigation, competition and other factors which may be identified from time to time in the Company's public announcements and filings. There is no assurance that the marijuana breathalyzer business will provide any benefit to the Company, and no assurance that any proposed new products will be built or proceed. There is no assurance that existing "patent pending" technologies licensed by the Company will receive patent status by regulatory authorities. The Company is not currently selling commercial breathalyzers. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking information are based on estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. Except as required by law, the Company does not intend to update these forward-looking statements. Contacts: Cannabix Technologies Inc. Rav Mlait CEO 604-551-7831 info@cannabixtechnologies.com www.cannabixtechnologies.com Part of Center for Open Source Research Innovation, Belfast-based group will analyze open source security issues and attack patterns Black Duck, a global leader in automated solutions for securing and managing open source software, today announced the formation of its Belfast-based Open Source Security Research Group during an event at Invest Northern Ireland's headquarters in Belfast. Black Duck worked closely with Invest NI on the initiative, and Black Duck said it expects to add almost 60 jobs in Northern Ireland over the next four years. The Northern Ireland group is a component of Black Duck's global Center for Open Source Research and Innovation (COSRI). COSRI is based at Black Duck's Massachusetts headquarters. The Northern Ireland group will play a major role in COSRI's research work by analyzing open source security issues and attack patterns, and by providing customers with actionable information on vulnerabilities, corrective actions to reduce risk and strategies for effective, secure use of open source. Black Duck CEO Lou Shipley attended the event and said "Since creating COSRI earlier this year, we have been increasing our strategic investments in open source security research and innovation worldwide. Northern Ireland has the depth of security research talent to meet many of our needs in the near term and in the future. "Invest NI very quickly proved to us that Northern Ireland had both the high-quality tech professionals to meet our open source security research needs and an impressive array of cybersecurity-focused businesses that will continue to attract more attractive candidates to the region. Invest NI's guidance and support played a vital role in making this engagement happen. They will be a key strategic ally as we scale our research activities, grow our business and support Black Duck customers in the UK and Europe," said Shipley. Simon Hamilton, Northern Ireland's Minister for the Economy, praised Black Duck's investment and said "Our local software industry is fueled by a pool of high-quality software engineers working in a range of leading technology disciplines. In recent years Northern Ireland has made significant investments in cybersecurity research and in growing computer science student numbers at both Queen's and Ulster universities. We also have a growing cluster of world-class companies involved in cybersecurity, making Northern Ireland a very attractive location for projects of this type." Use of open source software is ubiquitous worldwide and it is an essential component in application development today, often comprising 50 percent of the code in an application. The rapid growth in open source usage has created significant security and management challenges. Shipley noted that open source use will continue to grow because of its economic, productivity and innovation benefits. "Our intent is to support that growth by helping organizations use more open source more securely." About Black Duck Organizations worldwide use Black Duck's industry-leading products to automate the process of securing and managing open source software, eliminating the pain related to security vulnerabilities, compliance and operational risk. Black Duck is headquartered in Burlington, MA, and has offices in San Jose, CA, London, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Seoul and Beijing. For more information, visit www.blackducksoftware.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005182/en/ Contacts: Black Duck Brian Carter, 508-277-7570 Director of Strategic Communications bcarter@blackducksoftware.com or PAN Communications Michael O'Connell and Lisa Sorrentino 617-502-4300 blackduck@pancomm.com VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Radius Gold Inc. (TSX VENTURE: RDU) is pleased to announce the successful completion of a CSAMT survey and the generation of new drill targets at its Spring Peak Property, Nevada, which Radius has optioned from Kinetic Gold (for Option terms see news release - June 14, 2016). Radius contracted Zonge International Inc. to complete a 13-line CSAMT geophysical survey at its Spring Peak Property. Several resistive geophysical anomalies have been identified that correlate with anomalous surface and drill hole geochemistry (Au, Ag, Hg, Sb, and As), identified structural zones, and quartz-adularia veining identified in historical drill holes. Radius is an experienced explorer in hot spring environments, and management believes that the geological setting, geochemically anomalous sinter, and the nature of the geophysical resistivity anomalies below the sinter are positive features that merit further work. The Spring Peak Property is located approximately 6 km southeast of the historical open pit mines at Aurora. At Spring Peak, a sinter terrace is exposed along a structure parallel to the Aurora-Borealis trend, and overlies altered volcaniclastic deposits and basement Cretaceous granites. The sinter terrace contains anomalous concentrations of Au, Ag, Hg, Sb, and As. Recent ash fall deposits cover much of the area, but frequent vein float with multi-ppm gold concentrations can be found across the Property. The area was drilled with shallow holes in the 1980s, the majority of which were vertical. The sinter terrace and structure that appear to control the anomalous values were never drill tested. Radius believes the Property has the potential to host subvertical high-grade gold veins similar those found within the Aurora-Borealis trend. Previous exploration activities by Radius include due diligence sampling of sinter terraces and vein float on the Property, prospecting along the structure of interest, and a soil sampling survey (100m x 25m grid oriented orthogonal to the NE-SW targeted structure). Radius is currently preparing a Plan of Operations for a drilling program, to be submitted to the United States Forest Service this fall. Radius plans to drill-test the Property once the Plan of Operations has been approved, anticipated for mid- to late-2017. Other Properties The Company continues to evaluate projects in various jurisdictions and with various commodities but with a focus on gold and silver in Nevada and Mexico. Stock Option Grants The Company also announces that it has granted to its directors, employees and consultants incentive stock options to purchase up to an aggregate of 1,640,000 common shares of the Company exercisable for ten years at a price of $0.15 per share. The Company will also cancel a total of 770,000 outstanding stock options. Qualified Person David Clark, M.Sc., P.Geo., is Radius's Qualified Person under the terms of National Instrument 43-101, "Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects" and has approved the technical information in this news release. About Radius Radius has been exploring for gold in Latin America for over a decade. The Company has a strong treasury and is looking for investment and project acquisition opportunities across the globe. Please call toll free 1-888-627-9378 or visit our web site (www.radiusgold.com) for more information. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD Simon Ridgway, President and CEO Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. All statements included herein, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements which include, without limitation, statements about the Company's plans for the Spring Peak Property; the Company's business strategy, plans and outlook; the merit of the Company's investments and properties; timelines; the future financial performance of the Company; expenditures; approvals and other matters. Often, but not always, these forward looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "estimate", "estimates", "estimated", "potential", "open", "future", "assumed", "projected", "used", "detailed", "has been", "gain", "upgraded", "offset", "limited", "contained", "reflecting", "containing", "remaining", "to be", "periodically", or statements that events, "could" or "should" occur or be achieved and similar expressions, including negative variations. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Such uncertainties and factors include, among others, the Company's plans for exploring the Spring Peak Property; changes in general economic conditions and financial markets; the Company or any joint venture partner not having the financial ability to meet its exploration and development goals; risks associated with the results of exploration and development activities, estimation of mineral resources and the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; unanticipated costs and expenses; and such other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's quarterly and annual filings with securities regulators and available under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Forward-looking statements contained herein are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions of management, including but not limited to: that the Company's exploration activities at the Spring Peak Property will proceed as planned; that the Company's activities will be in accordance with its public statements and stated goals; that all required approvals will be obtained; that there will be no material adverse change affecting the Company or its investments or properties; and such other assumptions as set out herein. Forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by law. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Contacts: Radius Gold Inc. Simon Ridgway 604-801-5432 Toll free 1-888-627-9378 604-662-8829 (FAX) info@goldgroup.com www.radiusgold.com BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The US Government claimed Tuesday that it has secured another trade enforcement victory for American aviation manufacturers and workers against China. United States Trade Representative Michael Froman announced that the United States has confirmed that China has ended discriminatory tax exemptions that had benefited certain types of aircraft produced in China. The United States challenged these tax exemptions at the World Trade Organization (WTO). China's policy exempted certain aircraft produced in China - generally those under 25 metric tons by weight, including general aviation, business jets, and regional aircraft -from a 17 percent value-added tax. But it imposed those taxes on imported aircraft, including products manufactured in the United States. This impacted producers of American-made aircraft as well as American parts producers who provide components to foreign-made aircraft. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. MONTREAL, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Earth Alive Clean Technologies Inc. (CSE: EAC)(CSE: EAC.CN) ("Earth Alive" or the "Company"), a leading Canadian Clean-Tech company, developer and manufacturer of state-of-the-art microbial technology-based products for sustainable agriculture and mining, is pleased to announce that it has been formally invited to the 2016 Business and Biodiversity Forum on December 2-3 in Cancun, Mexico. The 2016 Business and Biodiversity Forum welcomes Ministers from around the world, sector representatives, and world-renowned experts. Sustainability in the agriculture, forestry, fisheries and tourism sectors will be the focus of the meeting as they are the "biodiversity mainstreaming sectors" that will be highlighted throughout CBD COP13. Furthermore, Earth Alive will participate in the CBD COP 13, which is the meeting of the highest governing body of the Convention on Biological Diversity. COP 13 will bring together representatives of 195 Countries, the European Union, intergovernmental organizations, businesses, civil society, indigenous peoples, local communities, and other key players in the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 and the Aichi Biodiversity Targets. Approximately 10,000 participants will attend over the two-week period in order to negotiate new decisions that will lay out the path for the next 4-year period (2017-2020). "It is an honour for Earth Alive to be invited to this prestigious event," stated David Gilmour, CEO of Earth Alive. "We are making a lot of headway into the Latin American and African agriculture markets, and this invitation is recognition of the solid difference that Earth Alive can make in the implementation of the objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity". Mr. Frederic Perron-Welch, Director of Sustainable Development for the company, further added that, "the agricultural sector focus at COP13 is particularly significant for us as it expresses recognition of the need for sustainable use of agricultural landscapes because of agriculture's sizeable impact on biodiversity. Achieving sustainability in the agricultural sector will require improving farm productivity, crop diversity, integrating positive incentives to increase biodiversity in agricultural production, and reducing pollution. By halting and reversing negative impacts on ecosystems, farmers can improve yields while responding to climate-related challenges while protecting nature." Mr. Perron-Welch explained, "Our microbial technology, Soil Activator, can help farmers and agribusiness sustainably increase yields naturally. Soil Activator has been tried, tested, and proven effective in environmentally challenging conditions in North America, Latin America, and Africa. " He concluded by indicating that "attendance at CBD COP13 in Cancun will facilitate global, high-level dissemination of the benefits of Earth Alive's Soil Activator technology particularly with global actors such as Ministers of the CBD Parties, international experts, heads of industry, and other relevant figures." About the 2016 Business and Biodiversity Forum: The 2016 Business and Biodiversity Forum will take place in parallel to the Ministerial High Level Segment preceding CBD COP 13. Its purpose is to facilitate private sector discourse and the sharing of perspectives on biodiversity conservation, including the economic analysis and logic necessary to support business decision-making processes, investment opportunities and financing conditions, as well as best practices for the mainstreaming of biodiversity in specific sectors, and other relevant topics. For additional information, please visit: cop13.mx/en/business-and-biodiversity-forum-2016/ About Earth Alive Clean Technologies: Earth Alive aims to be a key player in world markets of environmentally sustainable industrial solutions. The company works with the latest innovations in microbial technology to formulate and patent innovative products that can tackle the most difficult industrial challenges, once only reserved to environmentally harmful chemicals and additives. The company is focused on environmental sustainability in the agriculture industry, and 2) dust control for the mining industry. For additional company information, please visit: www.earthalivect.com The CSE has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release. The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-Looking Information Except for statements of historical fact, this news release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" occur. Although Earth Alive believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the statements. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Contacts: For media information and interview requests: Earth Alive Clean Technologies Inc. Mr. David Gilmour 514-814-2899 dgilmour@earthalivect.com www.earthalivect.com For investor relations: Mr. Frederick Chabot 438-863-7071 frederick@contactfinancial.com BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The Commerce Department releases housing starts and building permits for September at 8:30 am ET Wednesday. Economists expect housing starts to have rebounded by 2.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 1.17 million units, compared to a drop of 5.8 percent to an annualized 1.14 million units in August. Ahead of these reports, the greenback traded mixed against its major opponents. While the greenback rose against the euro, it held steady against the rest of major counterparts. The greenback was worth 1.0968 against the euro, 103.41 against the yen, 0.9891 against the Swiss franc and 1.2287 against the pound as of 8:25 am ET. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Popular candy brand M&M's has introduced a new caramel chocolate candy flavor, which will be available on shelves from May 2017. The new candies will have a smooth caramel center covered with M&M's milk chocolate, coated in a colorful candy shell. Crispy, smooth and nutty categories with peanut, peanut butter, and milk chocolate flavors were the most popular M&M's. Now it adds soft and chewy category. The new candy is expected to be larger than the milk chocolate candies with a perfect smooth texture in every piece. The company said, it has used a brand new technology to create soft and chewy category partition for the caramel candies. According to reports, the new candy flavor will earn around $2.2 billion. The launch of the new flavor is in line with Mars Inc.'s plan of getting rid of all artificial colors in the next five years. The company has announced that it will remove artificial colors from all its chocolate, gum, confection, food and drink products. The change will be reflected in around 50 brands such as M&M, Skittles, Wrigley's gum, Snickers, and Twix. M&M has a history of 75 years and it has been a favorite candy of soldiers during the World war II. Tanya Berman, Brand Director, M&M'S Brand said, 'In our research, our fans were enthusiastic at the possibility of a Caramel variant and we can't wait for them to try the perfect balance of soft caramel and delicious M&M'S chocolate this spring.' Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. CHICAGO, IL -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- T5 Data Centers (www.t5datacenters.com), innovators in providing state-of-the-art, customizable and highly reliable computing support environments, has named David Horowitz to head operations for T5@Chicago as Vice President of Sales and Marketing. In his new role, Horowitz will be responsible for promoting T5@Chicago as the newest data center in T5's portfolio and laying the foundation for future expansion in the Chicagoland market. Horowitz brings more than 12 years of industry experience to the role of Vice President of Sales and Marketing. Horowitz has managed teams for both wholesale data center providers and data center commercial property specialists in the region. In his new role with T5, Horowitz will be responsible for developing go-to-market strategies for T5@Chicago and promoting T5's commitment to the greater Chicago market. He also will be responsible for building and managing the T5@Chicago team, managing client relationships, and negotiating agreements. "David is the first hire for our new T5@Chicago facility and his industry background and expertise will provide a solid foundation for our Chicago team," said Aaron Wangenheim, COO for T5 Data Centers. "There is a real need for superior data center facilities in the region and with David's help we expect Chicago to become one of our strongest markets." T5@Chicago is the company's eighth and newest data center operation; a 208,000 square-foot data center located in Elk Grove Village. T5@Chicago is already operational and partially occupied, having been recently acquired by T5. The data center went online last year and is a purpose-built facility with the same high-quality attributes as T5's existing data center portfolio. The building features a baseline Tier III infrastructure with an N+1 electrical and mechanical topology, secure private data halls available from 540kW to 9.0MW, and the ability to easily customize operational controls in each data hall to accommodate each customer's unique data center services requirements. For more information about T5's data center services, visit www.t5datacenters.com. About T5 Data Centers T5 Data Centers (T5) is a leading national data center owner and operator, committed to delivering customizable, scalable data centers that provide an "always on" computing environment to power mission critical business applications. T5 Data Centers provides enterprise colocation data center services to organizations across North America using proven, best-in-class technology and techniques to design and develop facilities that deliver the lowest possible total cost of operations for its clients. T5 currently has business-critical data center facilities in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Dallas, Portland, Charlotte, and Chicago with new projects announced in New York, and Colorado. All of T5's data center projects are purpose-built facilities featuring robust design, redundant and reliable power and telecommunications, and have 24-hour staff to support mission-critical computing applications. For more information, visit www.t5datacenters.com. Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=3069419 Contact: Aaron Wangenheim T5 Data Centers (415) 292-7700 aaron@t5datacenters.com VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- SoundCloud, the world's largest music and audio platform, announced today the launch of its new consumer subscription service, SoundCloud Go in Canada. SoundCloud Go gives music fans an expanded catalogue of more than 135 million tracks with intuitive supporting features created to complement and enhance the existing SoundCloud experience. The SoundCloud Go experience includes: -- Access to a significantly expanded catalogue of the greatest established and hottest emerging artists. -- On the train or off the grid, offline listening allows you to take your music with you wherever you go. -- An ad-free, uninterrupted listening experience. SoundCloud Go is available in Canada on web, iOS App Store and Google Play, and priced at CDN$9.99 per month. iOS users can avoid the App Store surcharge (CDN $13.99) by visiting soundcloud.com/go instead. "SoundCloud Go will provide Canadians with the largest and most diverse music and audio catalogue in the world," said Alexander Ljung, SoundCloud co-founder and CEO. "Subscribers will be able to enjoy tracks from emerging creators, new tracks from indies, global hits as well as hits in the making, all in one place. We know Canadians are passionate about their music so we're very much looking forward to rolling out this new experience across the country." The free service listeners love today will remain and will now be supported by a range of advertising options as part of SoundCloud's commitment to creators to have the opportunity to be paid for the work they share. Additionally, in line with today's launch, SoundCloud has reached agreements with SOCAN and CMRRA-SODRAC Inc. (CSI) that will enable new creative, commercial and promotional opportunities for their artists, songwriters composers and music publishers in Canada. This includes providing SOCAN and CSI's members and clients with the opportunity to generate revenue when their work is played on the platform. SoundCloud's free service will be supported by audio advertising, in-stream native ads, video ads available in both the horizontal and vertical video formats, promoted profiles, creator partnerships, and more. All are designed to fit seamlessly into the SoundCloud experience and to provide brands with a variety of ways to reach a new, highly engaged audience. The introduction of advertising will ensure listeners can continue to experience SoundCloud for free, as well as offer creators the opportunity to be paid for the work they share. SoundCloud Go subscribers will be able to opt out of these ads, enjoying uninterrupted listening as part of the service. About SoundCloud Go Currently available in the US, UK, Ireland, France, Australia and New Zealand, SoundCloud Go is now available in Canada through SoundCloud's existing apps on the iOS App Store and Google Play, as well as through the web at soundcloud.com, with further international roll out to follow this year. Subscribers can enjoy a 30-day free trial (excludes subscribers in Quebec), after which a CDN$9.99 monthly subscription fee will apply. For all active Pro Unlimited creator subscribers, a discounted rate of CDN$1.99 will apply. The introduction of SoundCloud Go is the next significant step in the evolution of SoundCloud's unique music ecosystem. In August 2014, the company launched its advertising program in the US to ensure its community of creators have the opportunity to earn money for the work they share with the world, and now with the addition of listener subscriptions, SoundCloud continues to build the most progressive artist remuneration system in the world. Through partnering with the rest of the music industry, and thanks to its unrivalled position in the music streaming space, SoundCloud has made huge strides towards a unique system where all forms of creative expression - from classic tracks to new remixes - can thrive, while ensuring rights holders are fairly respected and compensated for their work. For more information go to: https://soundcloud.com/go About SoundCloud SoundCloud, the world's largest music and audio platform, launched in 2008 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, lets people discover and enjoy the largest selection of music from the world's most diverse creator community. SoundCloud is renowned for the unique content and features including the ability to share music and connect directly with artists, as well as unearth breakthrough tracks, raw demos, podcasts and more. This is made possible by an open platform that directly connects creators and their fans across the globe. Music and audio creators can use the platform to instantly share their content with a global audience, as well as receive detailed stats and feedback from the SoundCloud community. For more information, go to: (http://soundcloud.com/). About SOCAN SOCAN is a member-based organization that represents the Canadian performing rights of more than four-million Canadian and international music creators and publishers. SOCAN is proud to play a leading role in supporting the long-term success of its nearly 140,000 Canadian members, and the Canadian music ecosystem overall. SOCAN licenses more than 130,000 businesses in Canada, and distributes royalties to its members and music rights organizations around the world. SOCAN also distributes royalties to its members for the use of their music internationally in collaboration with its peer societies. www.socan.ca About CMRRA-SODRAC Inc. (CSI) CSI is a joint venture of the Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency Ltd. (CMRRA) and the Society for Reproduction Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers in Canada (SODRAC). CSI licenses the reproduction rights in the joint repertoire of CMRRA and SODRAC to various music users, including radio stations, background music services and online music services. Together, CMRRA and SODRAC represent the vast majority of songwriters and music publishers whose songs are active in the Canadian market place. Contacts: Media Contact Info: Jenna Kuchinsky 604.558.1656 jenna@yulupr.com TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Dividend Select 15 Corp. (The "Company") declares its monthly distribution of $0.06792 per Equity share. The distribution is payable November 10, 2016 to shareholders on record as of October 31, 2016. Under the distribution policy announced in September 2014, the monthly dividend payable on the Equity shares is determined by applying a 10.00% annualized rate on the volume weighted average market price (VWAP) of the Equity shares over the last 3 trading days of the preceding month. As a result, Equity shareholders of record on October 31, 2016 will receive a dividend of $0.06792 per share based on the VWAP of $8.15 payable on November 10, 2016. The yield will remain stable at 10.00% (based on the VWAP) under this distribution policy. Since inception, Equity shareholders have received a total of $4.60 per share inclusive of this distribution. The Company invests in a portfolio of 15 Canadian companies selected from the following 20 company universe which are among the highest Canadian dividend yielding stocks. Bank of Montreal Great West Lifeco inc. TELUS Corporation BCE Inc. Husky Energy Inc. The Bank of Nova Scotia CIBC National Bank of Canada The Toronto-Dominion Bank Power Corporation of Thomson Reuters CI Financial Corp. Canada Corporation Enbridge Inc. Royal Bank of Canada TMX Group Inc. EnCana Coproration Loblaw Companies Limited TransAlta Corporation Sun Life Financial Inc. TransCanada Corporation ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ Distribution Details Equity Share (DS) $0.06792 Ex-Dividend Date: October 27, 2016 Record Date: October 31, 2016 Payable Date: November 10, 2016 ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ Contacts: Investor Relations: 1-877-478-2372 Local: 416-304-4443 www.dividendselect15.com info@quadravest.com PARSIPPANY, NJ and NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Vistaar Technologies, Inc. (Vistaar), a leading provider of price management solutions, and Open Road Integrated Media (Open Road), a digital publisher and multimedia content company, today announced a partnership on a global pricing initiative to drive optimized price management of Open Road's e-Book catalog. Vistaar's pricing technology will allow Open Road to react faster to the latest market trends and effectively scale the price management process across its entire catalog. Matthew Shatz, senior vice president for sales & business development, Open Road Integrated Media, said, "We are at the forefront of innovation in publishing and we are looking for ways to improve our ability to operate in an increasingly dynamic market. With our large e-Book catalog, Vistaar's technology will enable us to be more market and data driven in our pricing approach and in turn increase sales for our authors and our partners. In Vistaar, we have an ideal partner with proven technology, team and pricing expertise. We're very pleased to partner with them on this strategic initiative." The Vistaar price and promotion management software platform has been configured to meet the unique requirements of companies selling digital products. The Vistaar solution for Open Road will combine multiple sources of information alongside a sophisticated mechanism for aligning pricing with consumer demand and local trends. This approach will lay the foundation and empower Open Road to effectively manage the pricing of their entire catalog. Venky Subramanian, vice president, Europe and head of global digital solutions, Vistaar, said, "We are pleased to be working with Open Road Integrated Media, a known innovator in the publishing industry. Our experience identifying and solving unique pricing challenges across many industries ideally positions us to optimize pricing for the publishing industry as well. This initiative represents a fascinating confluence of leading-edge analytics underpinned by sophisticated mathematical techniques, to drive pricing in a fast-changing marketplace." About Open Road Integrated Media Open Road (openroadmedia.com) is a prestige content brand delivering digital experiences that entertain and inform readers around the world. With a portfolio of creative digital properties and a data-driven culture, Open Road creates, curates, and markets quality media for consumers on tablets and smartphones, e-readers and desktops. About Vistaar Technologies, Inc. Vistaar is a leading provider of price management solutions that enable companies to achieve pricing best practices through price analytics, price optimization, price list management and deal management. Our technology transforms pricing and related operations into a strategic advantage for some of the world's largest manufacturers, distributors and service providers. For these companies, Vistaar pricing solutions drive measurable price and margin improvements to deliver profitable growth and maximum shareholder value. Vistaar's operations include offices across North America, Europe, and Asia. For more information, visit www.vistaar.com. Press Contact: Edward Lin DPR Group, Inc. (240) 686-1000 Email Contact Company Contact: Jodi Lozauskas Vistaar Technologies, Inc. (973) 581-6300 Email Contact LONDON, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Equifax research reveals parents spend an average of 323 on childcare and activities during the break http://www.equifax.co.uk With half-term fast approaching, although the kids might be excited to have some time off, 1 in 5 parents find the break stressful due to the associated costs - both for childcare and keeping the kids entertained. According to the latest research* from Equifax, parents pay on average 144 for childcare during half-term and 179 on keeping their children entertained. This brings the average total to 323 for the week, over 60 per day. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160510/365893LOGO ) (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430318-INFO ) (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430319-INFO ) The holiday appears to be taking its toll on parents in Scotland the most, with 32% saying they are stressed out about the cost, followed by 29% in the South West and 23% in the South East. When it comes to the amount of money that parents are having to pay for childcare during the half-term, it is parents in the North East who are top of the spending chart. Almost quarter in the region spend up to 150 and 19% spend up to 200 for the week. The cost of keeping the kids entertained also comes at a price, and again the parents in the North East are one of the biggest spenders with 18% having to pay out up to 200. Parents in the North West are also having to dig deep, with nearly a quarter of the region spending up to 150. "The cost of half-term is clearly taking its toll on parents, with an overwhelming 62% saying that the cost of school holidays is increasing year on year," said Lisa Hardstaff, Equifax credit information expert. "It is only the first half term of the academic year and in previous research we found that parents had to find an additional 300 to kit their child out at the start of new academic year. It is interesting to see just how quickly the costs can add up."** The research also highlights that aside from the direct financial pressures facing families during the half-term break, almost one in three (29.57%) feel that their child misses out on activities during half term due to the cost, and 15% of parents say that their child is envious of other children during half term because others can afford to do more activities than they can. Commenting on the research, Michael Mercieca Chief Executive of Young Enterprise, said, "Not only is it important for parents to ensure they are prepared for the financial side of the half-term break, but they must help their children to understand the value of money. By becoming fully aware of the financial difficulties that some families can face, young people will learn to appreciate what their parents can offer which will put less pressure on them during the school holidays." "The costs of school holidays, coupled with back to school costs can really add up, which is why we encourage families to try to set aside savings over the year to help them cope with these expenses," concludes Lisa Hardstaff. "By factoring in all additional costs, parents can ensure their kids get the most out of their breaks." Data sources: * Survey of 1001 parents, Atomik research ** Equifax cost of sending children to school research: 1,588 respondents (including: 585 parents of children aged 8-11, 697 parents of children aged 12-16 and 585 children aged 8-11) About Equifax Equifax, Inc. ("Equifax") powers the financial future of individuals and organizations around the world. Using the combined strength of unique trusted data, technology and innovative analytics, Equifax has grown from a consumer credit company into a leading provider of insights and knowledge that helps its customers make informed decisions. The company organizes, assimilates and analyses data on more than 800 million consumers and more than 88 million businesses worldwide, and its databases include employee data contributed from more than 5,000 employers. Headquartered inAtlanta, Ga.,Equifaxoperates or has investments in 24 countries in North America, Central and South America, Europe and the Asia Pacific region. It is a member ofStandard & Poor's(S&P) 500 Index, and its common stock is traded on theNew York Stock Exchange(NYSE) under the symbol EFX.Equifax employs approximately 9,200 employees worldwide. Some noteworthy achievements for the company include: Ranked 13 on the American Banker FinTech Forward list (2015); named a Top Technology Provider on the FinTech 100 list (2004-2015); named an InformationWeek Elite 100 Winner (2014-2015); named a Top Workplace by Atlanta Journal Constitution (2013-2015); named one of Fortune's World's Most Admired Companies (2011-2015); named one of Forbes' World's 100 Most Innovative Companies (2015). For more information, visit http://www.equifax.com Equifax Limited is one of the Equifax group companies based in the UK. Equifax Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Clare Watson Cecile Stearn Parm Heer Wendy Harrison VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 01/19/17 -- Precipitate Gold Corp. (the "Company" or "Precipitate") (TSX VENTURE: PRG) is pleased to provide results of initial diamond drill holes from the ongoing Ginger Ridge drill program at its 100% owned Juan de Herrera project in the Dominican Republic. Results from the Phase 2 drill program at Ginger Ridge include analytical results from the initial five completed holes (GR16-07 to GR16-11) from this phase, totalling of 1,310 metres. Laboratory analytical results have been received for core samples collected in all holes, excluding the final 60 metres of Hole 11 which was paused for the holiday season break. Drilling of Hole 11 was recently completed and samples for the final meterage of that hole will be submitted shortly for laboratory analysis. Holes 7 to 11 were collared up to 150 metres from the Company's 2014 discovery hole ("Hole 5"), testing mineralization and alteration continuity and select discrete induced polarization ('IP') chargeability-high geophysical anomalies. The laboratory analytical results for samples collected in holes 7 to 11 (partial) are summarized below. See the accompanying drill-hole location map and the Company's website (www.precipitategold.com) for additional compilation illustrations. Table 1: Ginger Ridge Drill Summary Intervals ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hole From (m) To (m) Interval (m) Au g/t Cu % Zn % ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-07 48.77 56.39 7.62 0.10 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-08 39.62 45.79 6.17 nil nil 0.04 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-09 0.00 28.96 28.96 nil nil 0.03 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 211.84 225.32 13.48 nil nil 0.19 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-10 21.34 32.00 10.66 0.32 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 76.20 79.25 3.05 0.52 0.16 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 144.78 149.35 4.57 0.32 0.03 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 252.38 260.60 8.22 0.10 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 286.51 309.37 22.86 0.23 0.09 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- including 294.13 300.23 6.10 0.39 0.27 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-11 7.62 35.05 27.43 0.49 0.01 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- including 28.96 33.53 4.75 1.39 0.01 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 39.62 53.34 13.72 nil nil 0.07 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 143.05 149.35 6.30 0.41 0.03 0.02 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 163.07 170.69 7.62 0.33 nil 0.03 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 196.60 202.37 5.77 0.17 0.01 0.59 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Note: Interval reflects measured core length, as true widths are currently unknown. All drill holes intersected andesitic volcanic rocks (mixed crystal, lapilli, lithic tuffs, fragmental and debris flows) which exhibit zones of weak to very strong chlorite-pyrite-silica (+/- clay) alteration, with some lengthy intervals (exceeding 15 metres in hole 10) of strongly disseminated to semi-massive very fine grain pyrite-silica mineralization. Holes 10 and 11 were drilled to the southwest direction at a shallow dip angle and successfully cut the main regional thrust fault which separates the Tireo volcanic rocks from younger limestone lithologies. Importantly, the andesitic volcanic rocks are variably altered and mineralized to the thrust contact. Jeffrey Wilson, Precipitate's President & CEO stated, "Ginger Ridge drilling continues to demonstrate that local andesitic volcanic rocks host a large and strong mineralization/alteration system. While the laboratory results for holes 7 to 11 are not as robust as the discovery hole, the strength and scope of observed intervals of sulphide-silica alteration combined with anomalous gold-copper-zinc metal enrichment is encouraging, as they appear to show characteristics commonly associated with a volcanogenic massive sulphide ("VMS") setting." The Company is now compiling and reviewing all available data to guide the next tranche of drilling in this program, which will likely test a newly identified IP geophysical anomaly at depth in the north-central portion of the Ginger Ridge Zone. The increased depth extent of the IP anomaly was not known to the Company prior to the commencement of the current program and therefore represents a new expanded target for continued drilling. Mr. Wilson further states, "Ongoing drilling and surface work will also be mindful of GoldQuest Mining Corp.'s very recently reported VMS mineralization discovery in its hole TIR16-09 (see GoldQuest's news release January 10, 2017; Cachimbo Zone), located just two kilometres northwest of Ginger Ridge. The geochemical and geophysical signature of the Cachimbo Zone differs from most other known Tireo Gold Camp exploration zones and, as a result has led Precipitate to review all existing Company data, with an eye for identifying similar zinc-rich targets with a modest IP chargeability signature, as found at Cachimbo. GoldQuest's new drill discovery validates the Tireo's potential to host significant new discoveries in differing environments. We're pleased to apply the intelligence gained from our latest 5 holes and GoldQuest's new VMS discovery hole as tools for vectoring ongoing surface work and drill testing." Table 2: Ginger Ridge Drill Collar Locations and Directional Data ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hole East North Elevation (m) Azimuth Dip Depth (m) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR14-05 267832 2095617 1185 0 -90 152.40 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR14-06 267832 2095617 1185 045 -50 196.59 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-07 267796 2095653 1172 0 -90 140.21 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-08 267835 2095696 1163 0 -90 131.06 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-09 267715 2095713 1164 225 -86 385.57 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-10 267899 2095682 1190 225 -50 332.23 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- GR16-11 267931 2095659 1177 225 -48 323.09 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Collar Locations: Map Datum NAD83 Zone Q19N This news release has been reviewed by Michael Moore P. Geo., Vice President, Exploration of Precipitate Gold Corporation, the Qualified Person for the technical information in this news release under NI 43-101 standards. Core samples were collected under the supervision of Michael Moore, P.Geo. HQ, NTW and BTW diameter diamond core was descriptively logged on site, aligned, marked for sampling and then cut in half, longitudinally, using a rock saw. One-half of the core is preserved on site in core boxes for verification and future reference. Rock samples were bagged, sealed and delivered directly to Bureau Veritas ("BV") preparation facility in Maimon Dominican Republic where they were dried, crushed and pulped. Sample pulps were then delivered to BV facilities in Vancouver British Columbia Canada for analyses (an ISO 9001 accredited facility). Samples were crushed to with more than 70% passing 2mm mesh and split using a riffle splitter (code PRP70-250). An approximately 250 gram sub-sample split was pulverized to minus 200 mesh (74um). A 15 gram sub-split from the resulting pulp was then subjected to aqua regia digestion and multi-element ICP-ES/MS analysis (code AQ201) and an additional 30 gram pulp spilt subjected to fire assay for gold (ICP-ES finish) (code FA330-Au); samples with results with gold greater than 8 ppm were subjected to a second fire assay analysis and a gravimetric finish (30 g pulp; code FA530-Au). All coarse rejects and pulps are currently stored at BV. Certified standards and local limestone blanks were inserted into sample shipments as a quality control measure in addition to the internal quality control measures applied by the laboratory; comprising greater than 7% of the total sample volume. About Precipitate Gold: Precipitate Gold Corp. is a mineral exploration company focused on exploring and advancing its mineral property interests in the Tireo Gold Trend of the Dominican Republic. The Company also maintains assets in northern British Columbia and southeast Yukon Territory and is actively evaluating additional high-impact property acquisitions with the potential to expand the Company's portfolio and increase shareholder value. Additional information can be viewed at the Company's website www.precipitategold.com. On Behalf of the Board of Directors of Precipitate Gold Corp., Jeffrey Wilson, President & CEO Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service 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 press release may contain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward looking information. Generally, forward-looking information may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "proposed", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases, or by the use of words or phrases which state that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, or might occur or be achieved. This forward-looking information reflects Precipitate Gold Corp.'s ("Precipitate" or the "Company") current beliefs and is based on information currently available to Company and on assumptions it believes are reasonable. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Precipitate to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors may include, but are not limited to: the exploration concessions may not be granted on terms acceptable to the Company, or at all; general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; the concessions acquired by the Company may not have attributes similar to those of surrounding properties; delay or failure to receive governmental or regulatory approvals; changes in legislation, including environmental legislation affecting mining; timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; conclusions of economic evaluations; and lack of qualified, skilled labour or loss of key individuals. Although Precipitate has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Precipitate does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. Contacts: Precipitate Gold Corp. 604-558-0335 Toll Free: 855-558-0335 investor@precipitategold.com VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 01/31/17 -- Black Sea Copper & Gold Corp. (TSX VENTURE: BLS)(OTCQB: BLSSF) ("Black Sea" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the results of the fall 2016 exploration mapping and sampling program on the Zlatusha copper-gold property. The field program has refined and enhanced the existing targets and outlined multiple additional target areas. There are currently 7 copper-gold porphyry and epithermal targets on the Zlatusha license area. Zlatusha is located approximately 40 kilometres northwest of Sofia in western Bulgaria within the Srednogorie endowed arc segment of the West Tethyan Metallogenic Belt. The Srednogorie is an emerging porphyry copper-gold/epithermal belt positioned between the world-class Timok Belt in eastern Serbia and the Panagyurishte Belt in central Bulgaria. Fall 2016 Mapping Campaign. A systematic program of field mapping and sampling was conducted on the Zlatusha property to improve the resolution of known surface targets and identify additional prospects. Detailed geological mapping was completed at 1:20,000 scale (property-wide) and at 1:5000 scale (known targets) and documented lithology, alteration, mineralization and veins, along with structural and magnetic susceptibility measurements. 195 samples were analyzed for 59 elements by ICP-MS and gold analysis by fire assay. The coarse rejects from the assayed samples were also analyzed for clay mineralogy by TerraSpec (Short-Wave Infrared), in order to characterize the clay alteration mineralogy within a porphyry-epithermal hydrothermal system context. Zlatusha Target Areas. The 2016 exploration program has improved the understanding of the known target areas, and has yielded multiple additional target areas. The target areas shown in Figure 1 are based on alteration/sulphide/oxide zones in conjunction with anomalous copper and gold. Property-wide mapping indicates that host rocks for the magmatic-hydrothermal alteration centers are andesite flows, breccias and tuffs with local intercalated limestone intervals. These rocks are intruded by diorite to quartz monzonite porphyry intrusions. Exposed portions of the alteration zones indicate footprints of up to 2500 metres by 1200 metres. Alteration zones are typically developed in the vicinity of the porphyry intrusions, and are characterized by silica-sericite-clay assemblages with local development of secondary biotite and skarn in addition to vein stockworks. Distal alteration assemblages which flank the core zones are commonly characterized by chlorite/epidote in andesite host rocks, or marble in limestone host rocks. Primary sulfides associated with the alteration footprints (typically pyrite with local chalcopyrite) are generally weakly oxidized, and occur as disseminated zones and/or in stockwork-style fracture networks. Copper oxides are noted in various locales throughout the property. Copper assays from grab samples between below detection to 4.45% copper, and gold assays in grab samples yielded values between below detection to 0.73 grams per tonne gold. Table 1 contains assay results for the 98th percentile rock samples from the 2016 sampling program. The field mapping and analytical data demonstrate that the productive porphyry environment has been preserved at multiple locations across the Zlatusha property. Follow up Exploration. The next steps for exploration at Zlatusha planned for H1 2017 will involve an airborne magnetic/radiometric survey, with follow-up IP (induced polarization) to refine the seven targets for drill testing. The geophysical work will yield further insight into size, depth and position of porphyry style mineralization, and will improve the target interpretation in covered areas where distal alteration is present. To view "Figure 1 - Zlatusha target areas." accompanying this press release, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1084379.pdf ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sample RockClass Alteration Au g/t Cu % Mo g/t Ag g/t ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 75223 Intermediate Porphyry Clay 1.322 0.031 1 2.9 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 75557 Breccia (Hydrothermal) Silica 1.615 0.005 9 18.4 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 75606 Intermediate Volcanic Clay 3.557 0.011 11 23.8 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- POZ003 Intermediate Intrusion Clay-Silica 0.006 8.307 -1 -0.3 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- BG 0515 Vein Clay-Silica 0.327 0.869 19.42 900 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- BG 0545 Breccia (Volcanic) Clay 0.010 4.454 0.67 99 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table 1 - Rock sample results from the 2016 surface program, representing the 98th percentile gold or copper (Value in bold for meeting respective criteria). Comments on Sampling, Assaying, and QA/QC. Black Sea's geochemical samples were collected in accordance with CIM Best Practice standards and guidelines. The samples were submitted to Bureau Veritas in Poland for sample preparation, followed by sample analysis in Vancouver, Canada. Gold was analyzed by fire assay with an AAS finish, and the multi-element data was obtained following multi-acid digestion and analysis with 59-element ultra-trace ICP-MS techniques. As standard procedure, Black Sea conducts routine QA/QC analysis on all assay results. Qualified Person. Rory Kutluoglu, B.Sc. P.Geo., a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has read and approved all technical and scientific information contained in this news release. Mr. Kutluoglu is the Company's Vice President Exploration. About Black Sea Copper & Gold Black Sea Copper & Gold Corp. is a mineral exploration company active in the Black Sea region of Eastern Europe. The Company has over 4 years of regional experience both technically and operationally within Bulgaria, Serbia, Turkey and Romania, and has established a compliment of local technical, logistical, community and corporate support. Black Sea has demonstrated its ability to identify new copper-gold porphyry and epithermal targets, and believes it has one of the most extensive proprietary geological/exploration databases for Eastern Europe in the industry. The Company is committed to building a robust portfolio of high quality copper and gold projects with the potential to become world-class mining assets. Vince Sorace, President and CEO, Black Sea Copper & Gold Corp. For further information regarding Black Sea Copper & Gold, please visit our website at www.blacksea.ca. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements 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. This news release contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Although Black Sea Copper & Gold believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance, are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results or realities may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Such material risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, Black Sea Copper & Gold's ability to raise sufficient capital to fund its obligations under its property option agreements, to maintain its mineral tenures and concessions in good standing, to explore and develop its projects, to repay its debt and for general working capital purposes; changes in economic conditions or financial markets; the ability of Black Sea Copper & Gold to obtain the necessary permits and consents required to explore, drill and develop the projects and if obtained, to obtain such permits and consents in a timely fashion relative to Black Sea Copper & Gold's plans and business objectives for the projects; the general ability of Black Sea Copper & Gold to drill test its projects and find mineral resources; if any mineral resources are discovered or acquired, the Company's ability to monetize any such mineral resources; and changes in environmental and other laws or regulations that could have an impact on the Company's operations. Forward-looking statements are based on the reasonable beliefs, estimates and opinions of Black Sea Copper & Gold's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by law, Black Sea Copper & Gold undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Contacts: Black Sea Copper & Gold Corp. (604) 628-5623 www.blacksea.ca TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- WASECO RESOURCES INC. (TSX VENTURE: WRI) (FRANKFURT: WSE) (the "Company"), reports that the US Bureau of Land Management has reviewed the Company's Notice to conduct exploration activities at the Battle Mountain Ridge Project, in Nevada, and has determined that it is complete, containing all of the information required by the surface management regulations. A reclamation bond, sufficient to meet all anticipated reclamation requirements has been set and paid. A drill program is being initiated and equipment mobilized to the site. The initial focus will be four holes on the North Zone, where Hole #12-5 intersected 25.4 g/t Au (0.9oz/t) over 3.7m (12 feet) in the interval 150-153.7m (492-504 feet) down hole on a splay structure of the main Stibnite Fault Structure. This interval included intersections of: -- 47.6 g/t Au (1.68oz/t) over 0.9m (3 feet) and -- 61 g/t Au (2.15oz/t) over 0.06m (2 feet) An upper zone, higher in Hole #12-5, between 128-142m (420-465 feet), returned gold values averaging 1.82g/t Au (0.06oz) over 13.72m (45 feet). The gold mineralization is structurally and stratigraphically controlled and the continuity can be disrupted by offsets which displace the gold zones laterally and vertically. An area south-east of the North Zone is viewed as a potential offset of this zone. It has seen limited testing and two holes are proposed in this area. A video animation, detailing the exploration history of the property and several potential gold targets is available for viewing on the Company's web site. It also situates the property on the prolific Battle Mountain Trend, adjacent to Newmont's Trenton Canyon Gold Mine and in proximity to Silver Standard's Marigold Mine (8km or 5 miles northwest ) and Newmont's Phoenix Complex (14.5km or 9 Miles southeast ). The Company is also initiating a private placement offering (the "Offering") of up to 4 million common share Units for gross proceeds of Cdn$300,000. Each Unit consists of one common share at $0.075 and 1/2 common share purchase warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder to acquire an additional share of the Company at $0.10 for a period of one year from the date of issue, subject to regulatory approval. Provision has been made for the payment of a finder's fee to eligible third parties of 7% in cash and 5% in share purchase warrants, each exercisable at $0.10 for one year. WASECO RESOURCES INC. Richard Williams, President & CEO A Lee Barker, P.Eng. P.Geol., a Qualified Person pursuant to the guidelines of national Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical content of this release. 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. Contacts: Richard Williams (416) 364-3123 rickw@wasecoresources.com www.wasecoresources.com PUNE, India, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a new market research report "Contrast Media/Contrast Agent Market by Type (Iodinated, Gadolinium, Barium, & Microbubble), Procedure (X-Ray/CT, MRI, & Ultrasound) & Application (Radiology, Interventional Radiology, & Interventional Cardiology) - Global Forecasts to 2021" published by MarketsandMarkets, the global market is expected to reach a value of USD 5.44 Billion by 2021, from an estimated value of USD 4.46 Billion in 2016, at a CAGR of 4.1%. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160303/792302 ) Browse 77 market data Tables and 41 Figures spread through 159 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Contrast Media/Contrast Agent Market. http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/contrast-media-market-911.html Early buyers will receive 10% customization on this report. This report analyzes and studies the major market drivers, restraints/challenges, and opportunities for the forecast period of 2016 to 2021. The global Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market has been segmented on the basis of type, route of administration, indication, procedure, application, and region. Based on type, the Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market is segmented into iodinated contrast media, gadolinium-based contrast media, barium-based contrast media, and microbubble contrast media. In 2016, the iodinated contrast media segment is estimated to account for the largest share of the Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market, by type. However, the microbubble contrast media segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The high growth of the microbubble segment can be attributed to the large number of on-going academic researches that are exploring various attributes of microbubbles in off-label indications for diagnosis as well as drug delivery. Based on procedure, the Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market is segmented into X-ray/computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and ultrasound. Based on route of administration, the Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market has been segmented into oral, injectable, rectal, and urethral routes. In 2016, the injectable segment is expected to account for the largest share of the Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market. Growth in the injectable contrast media segment can be attributed to advancements in CT and MRI imaging technologies, which majorly use injectable contrast media. Based on indication, the Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market is segmented into cardiovascular disorders, oncology, gastrointestinal disorders, musculoskeletal disorders, neurological disorders, and nephrological disorders. In 2016, the cardiovascular disorders segment is estimated to account for the largest share of the global Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market. Improvements in cardiac MRI procedures in cath labs, favorable reimbursement policies for contrast media used in cardiovascular diagnosis, and strong healthcare infrastructure in countries like the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and Germany are some of the factors driving the growth of this segment. Based on procedure, the global Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market is segmented into X-ray/CT, MRI, and ultrasound. In 2016, the X-ray/CT segment is expected to account for the largest share of the Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market. However, the ultrasound segment is expected to register the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Development of microbubble contrast media for ultrasound, and large number of approvals for ultrasound contrast media in major markets such as the U.S., Europe, and Japan are some of the key factors driving the growth of this segment. Speak to our research experts: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalyst.asp?id=911 Based on application, the global Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market has been segmented into radiology, interventional radiology, and interventional cardiology. In 2016, the radiology segment is estimated to account for the largest share of the Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market. The large share of this segment can be attributed to the growing number of diagnostic procedures/centers, coupled with the increasing disease burden on countries. North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World (RoW) are the regions considered for a geographic analysis of the global Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market. In 2016, North America is estimated to account for the largest share of the market, followed by Europe and Asia-Pacific. However, the European market is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period, and will also serve as a revenue pocket for companies offering contrast media/contrast agents in the near future. The prominent players in the global Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market include Bayer HealthCare (Germany), GE Healthcare (U.S.), Guerbet Group (France), and Bracco Imaging S.p.A. (Italy). These companies hold a dominant position in the Contrast Media/Contrast Agents Market mainly due to their well-established presence in the field of genomics, presence in over 50 countries, high R&D investments, and strong sales and distribution force. Other players operating in this market include Lantheus Medical Imaging (U.S.), nanoPET Pharma GmbH (Germany), CMC Contrast AB (Sweden), Daiichi Sankyo (Japan), and Subhra Pharma Private Limited (India). Browse Related Reports: Preclinical Imaging (In-VIVO) Market by Modality (Optical Imaging, PET, SPECT, CT, MRI, ultrasound, Photoacoustic Imaging, Magnetic Particle Imaging), Reagent (Optical Imaging Reagents, Contrast Agents, PET Tracers, SPECT Probes) - Global Forecast to 2021 http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/pre-clinical-molecular-imaging-market-841.html Diagnostic Imaging Market by Product (X-ray Imaging Systems, CT Scanners (High-end, Mid-end & Low-end Slice CT), MRI Systems, Ultrasound Imaging Systems, Nuclear Imaging Systems), Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, RoW) - Global Forecast to 2020 http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/diagnostic-imaging-market-411.html About MarketsandMarkets: MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. Subscribe Reports from Healthcare Domain @ http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Knowledgestore.asp Contact: Mr. Rohan MarketsandMarkets 701 Pike Street Suite 2175, Seattle, WA 98101, United States Tel: 1-888-600-6441 Email: sales@marketsandmarkets.com Visit MarketsandMarkets Blog @ http://mnmblog.org/market-research/healthcare/medical-devices Connect with us on LinkedIn @http://www.linkedin.com/company/marketsandmarkets CALGARY, ALBERTA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- STORAGEVAULT CANADA INC. ("StorageVault") (TSX VENTURE: SVI) is pleased to announce that, further to its July 4, 2016 news release, it has completed the $22,000,000 acquisition (the "Acquisition") of all of the self storage assets, property and business used in the operation of one Calgary, Alberta area self storage store owned by the vendor (the "Vendor"). The Acquisition is an arm's length transaction. The purchase price for the Acquisition in the amount of $22,000,000, subject to adjustments, was paid by the issuance of 12,500,000 common shares of StorageVault ("Common Shares") at an aggregate deemed price of $10,000,000 with the remainder being financed with first mortgage financing. The Common Shares are subject to a hold period that expires on February 18, 2017. The Alberta assets will be StorageVault's sixth location in the Alberta market. Access Lease and Access Agreements In conjunction with the closing of the Acquisition, StorageVault, as landlord, and Access Self Storage Inc. ("Access"), a major shareholder of StorageVault, as tenant, executed a four year lease (the "Access Lease") in respect of the entire store. In addition, in place of the share purchase options and financing by Access announced in the July 4 news release, Access entered into a share conveyance agreement (the "Share Conveyance Agreement") with the Vendor pursuant to which Access purchased 10,500,000 of the Common Shares issued to the Vendor pursuant to the Acquisition for an aggregate purchase price of $8,400,000. The remaining 2,000,000 Common Shares issued to the Vendor were sold to a third party with an option for the Vendor to repurchase these 2,000,000 Common Shares. In the event that the Vendor repurchases these Common Shares pursuant to the option, Access will also have a right of first negotiation from the Vendor with respect to these 2,000,000 Common Shares. Exemption from MI 61-101 and TSXV Policy 5.9; and Early Warning The execution of the Access Lease is considered to be a "related party transaction" as defined in Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101") and TSX Venture Exchange ("TSXV") Policy 5.9. StorageVault is relying on exemptions from the formal valuation and minority approval requirements of MI 61-101 and TSXV Policy 5.9, in respect of this transaction, pursuant to Section 5.5(b) (Issuer Not Listed on Specified Markets) and Section 5.7(a) (Fair Market Value Not More Than 25% of Market Capitalization) of MI 61-101, respectively. No new insiders will be created, nor will any change of control occur, as a result of the Acquisition. 10,500,000 Common Shares representing an aggregate purchase price of $8,400,000 were purchased by Access pursuant to the Share Conveyance Agreement, representing 3.97% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares of StorageVault. Prior to the purchase pursuant to the Share Conveyance Agreement, Access owned or controlled 63,087,571 Common Shares, representing 25.02% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares of StorageVault. Access now owns or controls 73,587,571 Common Shares or approximately 27.81% of the total issued and outstanding Common Shares of StorageVault. Access may increase or decrease its investment in StorageVault depending on market conditions or any other relevant factors. The head office address for both StorageVault and Access is 100 Canadian Road, Toronto, Ontario M1R 4Z5. About StorageVault Canada Inc. StorageVault owns and operates storage locations in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia. For further information, or to obtain a copy of the Early Warning Report of Access, contact Mr. Steven Scott or Mr. Iqbal Khan. 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. Contacts: StorageVault Canada Inc. Mr. Steven Scott or Mr. Iqbal Khan 1-877-622-0205 ir@storagevaultcanada.com SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Siri. Alexa. Cortana. Nearly every Artificial Intelligence in the marketplace is given a woman's name and voice to match. Ava, the Artificial Intelligence played by Alicia Vikander in 2015's Ex Machina, was even nominated for a Golden Globe. And yet, just as in the movie, there's nothing female at all about the intelligence being generated by any of these systems. In fact, many believe that the reason for giving these A.I.'s feminine names is that they are primarily performing the sort of menial tasks which were traditionally assigned to female secretaries. No one has ever built a truly female A.I., much less asked for its opinion. Until now. Unanimous A.I., the creator of the Artificial Swarm Intelligence technology known as UNU that gained fame this year for making accurate predictions about sports, movies, and politics, has built the world's first truly female A.I. and had it answer political questions in anticipation of tonight's final Presidential debate. The creation of this gender-specific A.I. was motivated by the significant impact that gender is playing in the current presidential election. Forecaster Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight recently released two distinct maps showing the disparity between Trump and Clinton's chances to win in all-female or all-male electorates. While simple polling can reveal such high level gender differences among voters, there are significant unknowns about the underlying sentiments that drive the disparity. Researchers at Unanimous A.I. built this gender-specific Artificial Swarm Intelligence to reveal deep insights into the unique gender-biases that permeate the voting population. These insights were made possible by the unique structure of the swarm intelligence system, as it combines real-time human input with computational algorithms, enabling groups of people to merge their thoughts, feelings, opinions, and instincts into a single unified output of amplified intelligence. "When we build an Artificial Swarm Intelligence system with specific characteristics, we are creating an insight engine that amplifies the inherent knowledge, opinions, and intuitions of a target population," said Dr. Louis Rosenberg, CEO of Unanimous A.I. "With gender playing such a significant role in this election, empowering the first-ever female A.I. to answer political questions and express political opinions was a truly moving experience, as it shed light on what matters to female electorate this year and what does not." For example, when the female A.I. was asked about the threat of terrorism and whether it was fairly represented in the political discourse, she responded that the threat was "overblown" by politicians this year. When asked if wealth inequality was a significant problem in America, she responded that she "strongly agreed" that it is a problem to be addressed. When asked who she believed more, the women accusing Trump of sexual misconduct or the denials from Trump and his surrogates, she responded that she believes the accusers with 88% conviction. To review the complete set of answers given by the world's first female A.I. in response to dozens of questions regarding the upcoming election and the challenges facing the next President of the United States, visit: http://unu.ai/first-female-ai/ About the female Artificial Swarm Intelligence: she was fielded in real time on October 18, 2016 as a computational mix of swarm intelligence algorithms and live human participants, working together as synchronous closed-loop system that converges on optimized solutions. The human participants were all voting age women, randomly selected from across the United States, providing a representative mix of location, age, education, and political leaning. For more information on the process of Swarm Intelligence, visit: http://unu.ai/swarm-intelligence/ About Unanimous A.I. Unanimous A.I. develops Artificial Swarm Intelligence technologies, unlocking the hidden brainpower inherent in groups. For more information about the company, our UNU platform for consumers, or our Swarm Insight portal for enterprise, visit http://unanimous.ai/ or follow us on Twitter or LinkedIn. MOSCOW (dpa-AFX) - Three crew members representing the United States and Russia are on their way to the International Space Station after launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 4:05 a.m. EDT Wednesday (2:05 p.m. Baikonur time). The Soyuz spacecraft carrying astronaut Shane Kimbrough of NASA, and cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, is scheduled to dock to the Poisk module of the space station at 5:59 a.m. Friday, Oct. 21. NASA said its Television coverage of docking will begin at 5:15 a.m. Hatches are scheduled to open about 8:35 a.m., with NASA TV coverage starting at 8 a.m. The arrival of Kimbrough, Ryzhikov and Borisenko returns the station's crew complement to six. The three join Expedition 49 Commander Anatoli Ivanishin of Roscosmos, Flight Engineers Kate Rubins of NASA and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The Expedition 49 crew members will spend a little over four months conducting more than 250 science investigations in fields such as biology, Earth science, human research, physical sciences and technology development. Kimbrough, Ryzhikov and Borisenko are scheduled to remain aboard the station until late February. Rubins, Ivanishin and Onishi will return to Earth Oct. 30. The Expedition 49 crew will welcome a variety of cargo deliveries to the space station, including Orbital ATK's Cygnus, which launched Monday from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The spacecraft is scheduled to arrive at the orbital laboratory Sunday, Oct. 23, with more than 5,100 pounds of science and research equipment, as well as crew supplies and hardware. Included in the Cygnus shipment are payloads that will study fires in space, the effect of lighting on sleep and daily rhythms, collection of health-related data, and a new way to measure neutrons. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de BENGALURU, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Jubilant Biosys is proud to announce the addition of Agilent Technologies' RapidFire/MS screening technology to its Integrated Drug Discovery Platform. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160107/783587 ) (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161019/430304LOGO ) RapidFire is a robust solid phase extraction technology that enables fast label-free detection of native compounds by mass spectrometry in a wide range of in vitro assays, DMPK/ADME studies, hit/lead applications for drug discovery across a broad spectrum of therapeutic areas and also for screening difficult targets that are not amenable to labeled assays. Jubilant Biosys's Bengaluru facility will be the first in India to be equipped with Agilent's state-of-the-art RapidFire High-Throughput Mass Spectrometry system technology. "The installation of the Agilent RapidFire platform shows Jubilant's continued commitment to make the necessary investments with an objective to remain on the cutting edge of drug discovery. This platform will enable us to increase our productivity and to enhance our capabilities to successfully meet the needs of our clients," said Steven Hutchins, President, Jubilant Biosys (Drug Discovery Solutions). "Agilent RapidFire solution enables our clients with increased accuracy, provides faster results, better economic value, enhanced analysis capabilities, improved efficiency while maintaining robustness and we are pleased to see Jubilant Biosys being the first organization in India to take advantage of this cutting-edge technology," said Bharat Bhardwaj, Country Manager, Agilent Technologies. About Jubilant Drug Discovery Solutions (JDDS) JDDS comprises of Jubilant Biosys, Jubilant Chemsys and Jubilant Discovery Services and has presence in India in Bangalore, Noida and in Malvern (USA). These subsidiaries of Jubilant Life Sciences Ltd employ over 625 employees and have demonstrated expertise in multiple therapeutic areas of Oncology, Metabolic Disorders, Pain & Inflammation, CNS & others. The business model includes proprietary in-house innovation, strategic investments as well as drug discovery services as the core components which are available for collaborative research, partnership and out-licensing. http://www.jubilantbiosys.com; http://www.jchemsys.com; http://www.jubl.com About Agilent Technologies Agilent is a leader in life sciences, diagnostics and applied chemical markets. The company provides laboratories worldwide with instruments, services, consumables, applications and expertise, enabling customers to gain the insights they seek. Agilent's expertise and trusted collaboration give them the highest confidence in our solutions. Agilent focuses its expertise on six key markets, where we help our customers achieve their goals: Food, Environmental and Forensics, Pharmaceutical, Diagnostics, Chemical and Energy, Research. Visit http://www.agilent.com. BOSTON, MA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Private equity and venture capital funds in developed markets outside the U.S. outperformed public markets in the same regions in the first quarter of 2016. However, private investment funds in emerging markets barely broke even and significantly underperformed the comparable public markets. The Cambridge Associates LLC Global ex U.S. Developed Markets PE/VC Index returned 4.5% measured in U.S. dollars to investors, compared with a return of -3.0% from the MSCI EAFE, the comparable public equity index. Developed markets private investments were helped in part by a strengthening euro. But the Cambridge Associates LLC Emerging Markets PE/VC Index only eked out a 0.2% return in Q1, compared to 5.8% from its public market counterpart, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. "In developed markets outside the U.S., private equity and venture capital funds have outperformed public markets in the same regions consistently and for decades -- often by a margin of over five percentage points," says Andrea Auerbach, Head of Global Private Investments at Cambridge Associates. "In emerging markets overall, private equity and venture capital funds did not perform particularly well in Q1 2016, but comparisons to the public market should be made with a long-term perspective. Companies based in China and India currently dominate the emerging markets index, though other regions are growing; Latin America now makes up almost 5% of the index and is a growing opportunity for private investors," says Vish Ramaswami, Managing Director at Cambridge Associates. Cambridge Associates derives its Global ex U.S. PE and VC Indices from the financial information contained in its proprietary database of 805 global ex U.S. developed markets funds and 575 emerging markets funds, with a combined value of roughly $411 billion. Table: Returns for the Global ex U.S. Developed and Emerging Markets PE/VC Indexes vs Public Counterparts Periods Ended March 31, 2016 -- Percent (%) Qtr 1 Yr 3 Yr 5 Yr 10 Yr 15 Yr 20 Yr 25 Yr ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- CA Global ex U.S. Dev Mkts PE/VC (US$) 4.5 14.3 10.7 8.3 9.9 12.8 13.3 13.2 CA Global ex U.S. Dev Mkts PE/VC (EUR) -0.4 7.8 15.1 13.2 11.2 11.7 13.4 13.3 MSCI EAFE (US$) mPME -3.0 -8.3 2.9 2.8 2.4 4.2 3.9 4.0 MSCI EAFE (EUR) mPME -7.5 -13.5 7.1 7.4 4.2 4.7 4.8 4.9 S&P 500 (US$) mPME 1.3 1.4 12.6 11.9 8.5 8.2 8.1 8.3 CA Emerging Markets PE/VC (US$) 0.2 5.8 11.5 8.5 10.9 9.9 9.4 9.2 MSCI Emerging Markets* (US$) mPME 5.8 -11.4 -4.1 -3.5 1.9 5.5 4.4 4.6 S&P 500 (US$) mPME 1.3 1.8 12.0 12.0 8.9 8.2 8.2 8.3 MSCI EAFE (US$) AACR -3.0 -8.3 2.2 2.3 1.8 4.3 4.1 5.0 MSCI EAFE (EUR) AACR -7.5 -13.5 6.4 6.9 2.4 2.6 4.8 5.4 MSCI Emerging Markets* (US$) AACR 5.8 -11.7 -4.2 -3.8 3.3 9.7 5.4 7.8 S&P 500 (US$) AACR 1.3 1.8 11.8 11.6 7.0 6.0 8.0 9.3 Sources: Cambridge Associates LLC, MSCI Inc., Standard & Poor's, and Thomson Reuters Datastream. MSCI data provided "as is" without any express or implied warranties. Notes: The PE/VC indexes are pooled horizon internal rates of return and are based on limited partners' fund-level performance; the returns are net of fees, expenses, and carried interest. Because the indexes are capital weighted, performance is mainly driven by the largest vintage years. Public index returns are shown as both time-weighted returns (average annual compound returns) and dollar-weighted returns (modified public market equivalent). The Cambridge Associates mPME calculation is a private-to-public comparison that seeks to replicate private investment performance under public market conditions. *Returns for the MSCI Emerging Markets Index began 1/1/1988; to match the 1986 inception of the Emerging Markets PE/VC Index, price returns from Global Financial Data are used for the period 1/1/1986 to 12/31/1987. Some highlights from the Global ex U.S. Developed Markets PE/VC Index in Q1 2016: PE/VC Distributions and Contributions in Developed Markets Outside the U.S.: Distributions from developed markets PE and VC funds to investors continued to outpace contributions to managers in the first quarter of 2016 -- a trend that has largely held true since the final quarter of 2010 -- though both distributions and contributions fell from their levels in Q4 2015. Contributions decreased by 51% to $4.5 billion, while distributions saw a 24% drop to $15.7 billion. 2006-vintage funds returned almost $6 billion to investors. PE/VC Sector Performance in Developed Markets Outside the U.S.: Among the key sectors in the developed markets index, manufacturing companies performed best in Q1, generating 7.2% returns at the company level. The manufacturing sector was followed by the software and consumer sectors, each of which returned 5.1%. Consumer companies attracted the most capital of any sector during the quarter, collecting 42% of the capital invested in Q1. PE/VC Vintage Year Performance in Developed Markets Outside the U.S.: Every vintage year in the developed markets index (from 1994 through 2015) posted positive returns in the first quarter of 2016. Of the "meaningfully sized" vintages -- each one that made up at least 5% of the total index -- the best performer was 2012, which returned 7.5%. Increased valuations of firms in the financial services, consumer and energy sectors contributed to the 2012 vintage's strong returns. PE/VC Performance by Country in Developed Markets Outside the U.S.: Companies based in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Sweden and the United States accounted for the bulk of the developed markets index in the first quarter of the year. Returns ranged from -0.3% for U.K.-based firms to 6.6% for companies based in Germany. A few highlights from the Emerging Markets PE/VC Index in Q1 2016: PE/VC Distributions and Contributions in Emerging Markets: Emerging market private equity and venture capital managers called $3.6 billion from investors in Q1 2016, a 26% decrease from Q4 2015, and they distributed $4.6 billions to investors, a 22% fall from the previous quarter. Managers of 2007-vintage funds accounted for 41% of the quarter's distributions -- almost $2 billion. PE/VC Sector Performance in Emerging Markets: Manufacturing and health care companies represented the emerging markets index's brightest spots in an otherwise pedestrian quarter, returning 3.8% and 3.0%, respectively. Financial services (-3.3%) and electronics (-0.5) were the two sectors with negative returns in Q1. Software companies received 19% of the capital invested during the quarter. PE/VC Vintage Year Performance in Emerging Markets: The only "meaningfully sized" vintage year in the emerging markets index -- representing more than 5% of the index -- that generated a return higher than 1% was 2010. Its 4.2% return was caused by write-ups of IT, software and transportation companies. The lowest-performing vintage, 2008, returned -2.5% because of large losses in energy, environment and media companies. PE/VC Performance by Country in Emerging Markets: China and India continue to be the powerhouses of emerging markets private equity and venture capital, representing 47.4% and 8.0% of the index, respectively. Companies in both countries generated negative returns. Chinese companies struggled due to write-downs in vintages 2006 through 2011 and returned -1.5%; Indian companies returned slightly more: -0.5%. For additional details on the performance of the Cambridge Associates private equity and venture capital benchmarks in the first quarter of 2016, please visit http://www.cambridgeassociates.com/our-insights/research/global-ex-us-pevc-benchmark-commentary-10/. About the Indices Cambridge Associates derives its Global ex U.S. Developed Markets Private Equity and Venture Capita Index from the financial information contained in its proprietary database of global ex U.S. private equity and venture capital funds. As of March 31, 2016, the database comprised 805 global ex U.S. developed markets private equity and venture capital funds formed from 1986 to 2015, with a value of about $252 billion. Ten years ago, as of March, 31, 2006, the benchmark index included 416 global ex U.S. developed markets funds, whose value was roughly $95 billion. The funds in this index invest primarily in developed markets in Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, and Western Europe. Cambridge Associates derives its Emerging Markets Private Equity and Venture Capital Index from the financial information contained in its proprietary database of global ex venture capital funds. As of March 31, 2016, the database comprised 1,633 U.S. venture capital funds formed from 1981 to 2016, with a value of roughly $185 billion. Ten years ago, as of March 31, 2006, the index included 1,117 funds whose value was $66 billion. Because the U.S. Private Equity and Venture Capital indexes are capital weighted, the largest vintage years mainly drive the indexes' performance. Public index returns are shown as both time-weighted returns (average annual compound returns) and dollar-weighted returns (modified public market equivalent or mPME). The Cambridge Associates mPME calculation is a private-to-public comparison that seeks to replicate private investment performance under public market conditions. The public index's shares are purchased and sold according to the private fund cash flow schedule, with distributions calculated in the same proportion as the private fund, and mPME net asset value is a function of mPME cash flows and public index returns. Over any one quarter, an mPME and time-weighted return will match, but they will begin to diverge over longer time horizons because the mPME calculation takes into account the size and timing of cash flows. About Cambridge Associates Cambridge Associates is a global investment firm founded in 1973 that builds customized investment portfolios for institutional investors and private clients around the world. Working alongside its early clients, among them several leading universities, the firm pioneered the strategy of high equity orientation and broad diversification, which since the 1980s has been a primary driver of performance for these leading fiduciary investors. Cambridge Associates serves over 1,000 global investors -- primarily foundations and endowments, pensions and family offices -- and delivers a range of services, including outsourced investment (OCIO) solutions, traditional consulting services, and access to research and tools across global asset classes. Cambridge Associates has more than 1,300 employees -- including over 150 research staff -- serving its client base globally. The firm maintains offices in Arlington, VA; Boston; Dallas; Menlo Park and San Francisco, CA; London; Singapore; Sydney; and Beijing. Cambridge Associates consists of five global investment consulting affiliates that are all under common ownership and control. For more information about Cambridge Associates, please visit www.cambridgeassociates.com. Cambridge Associates has been selected to provide data and to develop and maintain customized industry benchmarks for a number of prominent industry associations, including the African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA); Australian Private Equity & Venture Capital Association Limited (AVCAL); Canada's Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (CVCA); the Hong Kong Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (HKVCA); the Indian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (IVCA); Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA); the Latin American Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (LAVCA); the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA); and the New Zealand Private Equity & Venture Capital Association Inc. (NZVCA). Cambridge Associates also provides data and analysis to the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association (EMPEA). Both the Cambridge Associates LLC U.S. Private Equity Index and the Cambridge Associates LLC U.S. Venture Capital Index are reported each week in Barron's Market Laboratory section. In addition, complete historical data can be found on Standard & Poor's Micropal products and on our website, www.cambridgeassociates.com. This release is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to be investment advice. Any references to specific investments are for illustrative purposes only. The information herein does not constitute a personal recommendation or take into account the particular investment objectives, financial situations, or needs of individual clients. This release is not an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security in any jurisdiction. Past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. With regard to any references to securities indices, such indices are unmanaged and are not subject to fees and expenses typically associated with managed accounts or investment funds. Investments cannot be made directly in an index. Inquiries about these indices should be addressed to: Eric Mosher at Sommerfield Communications, 55 Broad Street, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10004; 212.255.8386; (fax) 212.255.8459; eric@sommerfield.com. Media Contact: Eric Mosher Sommerfield Communications, Inc. 212-255-8386 eric@sommerfield.com OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Canada's biggest environmental and economic challenges require the brightest minds working together to produce innovative solutions that will support a clean environment, a sustainable economy and a strong middle class. That's why the Government of Canada supports an inclusive and collaborative approach to innovation, one that encourages researchers and their industrial counterparts to combine their expertise so they may address these crucial issues together. The Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science, and the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, today announced nearly $22 million in new funding for four research networks that encourage industrial partnerships. Scientists and business leaders will join together in these networks to tackle pressing challenges like targeting pollution, exploring enhanced manufacturing technology, developing sustainable natural resource extraction methods and modernizing the stewardship of Canadian lakes. The networks announced today are the most recent recipients of the Strategic Partnerships Grants for Networks competition, administered by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). This program focuses on collaborations among researchers, industry and government while providing important training opportunities for post-secondary students. The networks receiving support are encouraged to demonstrate global leadership through partnerships with like-minded international organizations. Ministers Duncan and McKenna made today's announcement at Carleton University, where a research network led by Dr. Matthew Johnson will provide a better understanding of flare-generated pollutants in the energy industry. This strategic network is investigating the impacts of these pollutants on air quality. This work is critical to developing environmentally responsible fossil fuel extraction and producing clean air. Quotes "Our government is proud to support the important work of talented researchers who are collaborating with their industrial partners to create solutions for some of the most critical issues we face. These networks will also help train the next generation of young researchers by providing them with the skills and abilities they need for today's job market. By investing in these networks, our government is demonstrating its commitment to generating the evidence needed to support a clean environment, a sustainable economy and a strong middle class." - The Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science "The research network led at Carleton University will forge close connections between academia and business to address climate change challenges in the energy industry. This network demonstrates how Canada can be a leader in clean energy and can innovate in our effort to achieve our climate change targets." - The Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change "NSERC is proud to support these networks of researchers and companies that are working to find innovative solutions to some of Canada's most pressing challenges. Facilitating close connections and partnerships with business ensure that discovery research is enriched by industry perspectives and market needs." - B. Mario Pinto, President, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Quick facts -- The four research networks are being supported over the next five years. -- Other networks are focused on: improving the health of Canada's freshwater lakes, minimizing the environmental impact of mining operations and; developing virtual machining technology software to allow companies to design and produce new products without costly physical trials -- NSERC conducts extensive reviews to ensure that these networks remain relevant for Canada. -- The 2016 Strategic Partnership Grants competition will focus on: advanced manufacturing; environment and agriculture; information and communication technologies; and natural resources and energy. The results of this competition will be announced next year. Related products Recipients of the 2015 Strategic Partnership Grants for Networks Information on the Strategic Partnership Grants Associated links Where NSERC Invests and Why A Vision of NSERC in 2020 Follow Minister Duncan on social media: Twitter: @ScienceMin Instagram: sciencemin Follow Minister McKenna on social media. Twitter: @ec_minister Follow NSERC on social media: Twitter: @NSERC-CRSNG About NSERC NSERC invests over $1 billion each year in natural sciences and engineering research in Canada. Our investments deliver discoveries - valuable world-firsts in knowledge claimed by a brain trust of over 11,000 professors. Our investments enable partnerships and collaborations that connect industry with discoveries and the people behind them. Researcher-industry partnerships established by NSERC help inform R&D, solve scale-up challenges, and reduce the risks of developing high-potential technology. NSERC also provides scholarships and hands-on training experience for more than 30,000 post-secondary students and post-doctoral fellows. These young researchers will be the next generation of science and engineering leaders in Canada. Contacts: Veronique Perron Press Secretary Office of the Minister of Science 343-291-2600 Martin Leroux Senior Communications Advisor Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada 613-943-7618 media@nserc-crsng.gc.ca Media Relations Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada 343-291-1777 ic.mediarelations-mediasrelations.ic@canada.ca The global construction industry has seen relatively slow growth since 2015, mirroring a slowdown in the tempo of expansion in China and depressed major emerging markets. Oil price drop has also considerably threatened investment growth in key oil-manufacturing Middle Eastern countries. A deceleration in construction growth has inevitably influenced the demand for key inputs, specifically aggregates. The global aggregates market value (in nominal US dollar terms) decreased in 2015 and registered a CAGR of 0.95% during 2011-2015. Although 2016 is projected to see another period of slow growth in the demand for aggregates as the construction sector begins to gain traction again starting from 2017, the global construction aggregates marketplace is forecast to post 5.15% CAGR to 2020. Geography-wise, APAC was the biggest market for aggregates, grabbing just under 49% of the total market in 2015. North America and Europe were following after, accounting for shares of 21.5% and 18%, respectively. Recovery in the North American and European countries and the development in the APAC economies, specifically Japan and India, are projected to give a boost to the market in the years to come. The market shares of the North America, Europe and Latin America will likely decline marginally in the years to come, whilst that of APAC and the Middle East and Africa will likely steepen. Improvements in the world demand for aggregates in the upcoming years are in parallel with the positive outlook for the construction industry, with the main drivers being investment in residential and infrastructure construction in emerging countries, and expected recovery in the economic situation, globally and region-wise. Topical publication "The Global Construction Aggregates Market Key Trends and Opportunities to 2020" gives a granular analysis of top trends in the global construction aggregates marketplace. The report covers historic and forecasted valuations of the global market; provides market segmentation based on category type; gives crucial insights into market issues and trends, and the risks and opportunities they offer to players in the worldwide construction aggregates marketplace. The study presents a comprehensive analysis of key issues, including regulatory environment, value-based management, financing and pricing. The study also includes comprehensive profiles of the dominant construction aggregates companies. Companies mentioned in the report are: Vulcan Materials Company, CRH Plc, Martin Marietta Materials, Inc., LafargeHolcim Ltd. and Heidelberg Cement AG Many other new market research reports by this publisher are given at the Timetric page View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005894/en/ Contacts: The Market Publishers, Ltd. Natalie Aster Tel: +44 208 144 6009 Fax: +44 207 900 3970 ps@marketpublishers.com MarketPublishers.com TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 04/18/17 -- Copper Lake Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE: CPL)(FRANKFURT: W0I) ("Copper Lake" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it has signed an agreement with Rainy Mountain Royalty Corp. ('RMO') to acquire all of the camp assets owned by RMO at the Marshall Lake property. Copper Lake and RMO have also agreed to extend the option agreement for a further 12 months, to July 15, 2018. As consideration for the purchase of the camp assets and the one-year extension of the option agreement, Copper Lake will issue a total of 600,000 shares to RMO. Terry MacDonald, Interim CEO stated "The purchase of the Marshall Lake camp assets now gives Copper Lake full operational control over the property, and will allow us to upgrade the camp in preparation for the planned summer drilling program. The extension of the option agreement gives us added flexibility in completing the terms of the option agreement to increase our interest to 75%." The agreement is subject to approval by the TSX Venture Exchange. About Copper Lake Resources Copper Lake Resources Ltd. is a publicly traded Canadian company currently focused on advancing two significant properties located in Ontario, Canada: 1. The Marshall Lake VMS copper, zinc, silver and gold property is an advanced exploration stage property located 120 km north of Geraldton, Ontario via good all weather gravel road from the Trans-Canada Highway and just 22 km north of the main CNR rail line. Copper Lake currently has a 68.75% interest in the property and has the option to increase its interest to 75% by incurring additional expenditures of $670,000 by July 15, 2018. The Company can further increase its interest to 87.5% by taking the project to bankable feasibility stage. 2. The Norton Lake nickel, copper, PGM property (69.79%) is located approximately 100 km north of the Marshall Lake property. The Company also recently entered into a mineral property option agreement to acquire up to 100% of four separate properties in Ontario made up of seven claims. The properties are situated in the Kenora and Patricia mining divisions in Northwestern Ontario and are known as the Queen Alexandria Gold Property, the Mine Lake Gold Property, the Grand Chibougamau Gold Property and the Centrefire-Redhat Gold-Copper Property. On behalf of Copper Lake Resources Ltd. Terrence MacDonald, Director and Interim CEO The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed this news release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements, other than statements of historical facts, that address such matters as future exploration, drilling, exploration activities, potential mineralization and resources and events or developments that the Company expects, are forward looking statements and, as such, are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors of which are beyond the reasonable control of the Company. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include such matters as market prices, exploitation and exploration results, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Any forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The information contained herein is stated as of the current date and subject to change after that date. Contacts: Copper Lake Resources Ltd. Terrence MacDonald Director and Interim CEO 778-867-9533 MAROUSSI, ATHENS, GREECE -- (Marketwired) -- 11/07/16 -- Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ: ESEA), an owner and operator of drybulk and container carrier vessels and provider of seaborne transportation for drybulk and containerized cargoes, announced today that it will release its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016 on Thursday, November 10, 2016 before the market opens in New York. On the same day, Thursday, November 10, 2016 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time, the Company's management will host a conference call and webcast to discuss the results. Conference Call details: Participants should dial into the call 10 minutes before the scheduled time using the following numbers: 1 (866) 819-7111 (from the US), 0(800) 953-0329 (from the UK) or (+44) (0) 1452 542 301 (from outside the US). Please quote "Euroseas." A replay of the conference call will be available until Thursday, November 17, 2016. The United States replay number is 1(866) 247-4222; from the UK 0(800) 953-1533; the standard international replay number is (+44) (0) 1452 550 000 and the access code required for the replay is: 6973591#. Audio Webcast - Slides Presentation: There will be a live and then archived audio webcast of the conference call, via the internet through the Euroseas website (www.euroseas.gr). Participants to the live webcast should register on the website approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of the webcast. The slide presentation on the third quarter ended September 30, 2016 will also be available in PDF format 10 minutes prior to the conference call and webcast, accessible on the company's website (www.euroseas.gr) on the webcast page. Participants to the webcast can download the PDF presentation. About Euroseas Ltd. Euroseas Ltd. was formed on May 5, 2005 under the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands to consolidate the ship owning interests of the Pittas family of Athens, Greece, which has been in the shipping business over the past 140 years. Euroseas trades on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the ticker ESEA since January 31, 2007. Euroseas operates in the dry cargo, drybulk and container shipping markets. Euroseas' operations are managed by Eurobulk Ltd., an ISO 9001:2008 certified affiliated ship management company, which is responsible for the day-to-day commercial and technical management and operations of the vessels. Euroseas employs its vessels on spot and period charters and through pool arrangements. The Company has a fleet of 12 vessels, including 3 Panamax drybulk carriers, 1 Handymax drybulk carrier, 1 Kamsarmax drybulk carrier, and 7 Feeder containerships. Euroseas 5 drybulk carriers have a total cargo capacity of 351,272 dwt, its 7 containerships have a cargo capacity of 11,525 teu. The Company has also signed a contract for the construction of one Kamsarmax (82,000 dwt) fuel efficient drybulk carrier. Including the Kamsarmax new-building, the total cargo capacity of the Company's drybulk vessels will be 433,272 dwt. Forward Looking Statement This press release contains forward-looking statements (as defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended) concerning future events and the Company's growth strategy and measures to implement such strategy; including expected vessel acquisitions and entering into further time charters. Words such as "expects," "intends," "plans," "believes," "anticipates," "hopes," "estimates," and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been correct. These statements involve known and unknown risks and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, but are not limited to changes in the demand for dry bulk vessels and container ships, competitive factors in the market in which the Company operates; risks associated with operations outside the United States; and other factors listed from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company expressly disclaims any obligations or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the Company's expectations with respect thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any statement is based. Visit the Company's website www.euroseas.gr Company Contact Tasos Aslidis Chief Financial Officer Euroseas Ltd. 11 Canterbury Lane, Watchung, NJ 07069 Tel. (908) 301-9091 E-mail: aha@euroseas.gr Investor Relations / Financial Media Nicolas Bornozis President Capital Link, Inc. 230 Park Avenue, Suite 1536 New York, NY 10169 Tel. (212) 661-7566 E-mail: euroseas@capitallink.com IQALUIT, NUNAVUT -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Department of Canadian Heritage In the context of the consultations on "Canadian Content in a Digital World", the Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage, today hosts the fourth of six in-person discussions organised across the country with representatives from a variety of sectors and members of the general public. Today's discussion will take place during Iqaluit's "All Arts Summit", an event intended to set the course for the future of all the art sectors in Nunavut. Representatives of Nunavut's arts and culture sector, individual artists, creators and those working in the cultural industries will attend this summit. Rapidly changing technological advances are affecting how Canadians produce and consume cultural content; as a result, the cultural sector is facing new challenges and opportunities. These consultations will help the Government of Canada determine the best ways to assist the cultural sector in navigating these changes and seizing opportunities to contribute to the country's economic growth and innovation. These in-person events will contribute to the success of the consultations by making it possible to gather valuable input from a variety of voices in the arts and culture scene. All Canadians are invited to join the conversation and take part in the discussions at any time through the Web portal and social media, using the hashtag DigiCanCon. Canadians have the opportunity to lead in-person discussions in their communities using the consultation kit available online. Facebook Live events will take place during the consultation period, allowing interested people across the country to comment on numerous topics and issues covered by the consultations. Canadians can register now to take part in the Facebook Live events on October 28 and November 7. Quotes "After successful stops in Vancouver, Halifax and Toronto, I am pleased to be in Iqaluit today for our fourth in-person discussion with Canadians, including artists, creators and cultural businesses. I know that these discussions will allow our Government to better understand the issues and expectations regarding Canadian content creation, discovery and promotion in this new environment in which we live. I would like to take this opportunity to invite all Canadians to take part in this important exercise, either through our Web portal or by having discussions on social media with the hashtag DigiCanCon. Together, let's be innovative and find new ways to create and promote quality Canadian content that stands out." -The Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage Quick Facts - This consultation process follows a pre-consultation questionnaire completed by close to 10,000 Canadians. - The Department of Canadian Heritage developed a discussion paper based on the results of the pre-consultations. This document will help guide this phase of the consultations on Canadian Content in a Digital World. - Throughout this process, the Government of Canada will listen to Canadians to learn how best to strengthen Canadian content creation, discovery and export in a digital world and to examine the federal government's current cultural policy toolkit. - These discussions will be guided by three key principles. The approach will: -- focus on respecting citizen choice and supporting creators in making great, compelling content; -- reflect Canada's incredible diversity in the content that is produced and support the production of news information and local content that is credible and reliable; and -- drive social and economic innovation by forging strong links between creativity, economic growth and social resilience. - Canadians have until November 25 to provide their input. Associated Links Consultations - Canadian Content in a Digital World Expert Advisory Group Announced Stay Connected Follow us on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Flickr. Contacts: Pierre-Olivier Herbert Press Secretary Office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage 819-997-7788 Media Relations Canadian Heritage 819-994-9101 1-866-569-6155 PCH.media-media.PCH@Canada.ca Privacy Overview This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. ONTARIO, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Chromcraft Revington Douglas Ind., Inc., a designer and manufacturer of residential and commercial furniture, today issued the following statement: It has come to our attention that a small number of furniture distributors and manufacturers are unlawfully copying or distributing unauthorized copies of well-known Chromcraft chair designs. We have retained legal counsel and have begun to pursue action against the responsible parties. Anyone who considers copying or unlawfully distributing copies of our designs should be aware that we will be vigilant in pursuing legal action to enforce our rights and to protect the rights of the many authorized dealers and sellers of our products. Since 1946, Chromcraft has been at the forefront in designing and manufacturing furniture. Chromcraft's product designs reflect more than 60 years of hard work and dedication to craftsmanship, quality and durability. We are committed to protecting the quality and reputation of our brand, and its value to both our loyal customers and authorized partners. Consumers and buyers should be aware that Chromcraft cannot attest to the quality of unauthorized knock-offs of our products. Consumers may find later that the warranties on these products are invalidated since they are the product of unlawful manufacture and distribution. About Chromcraft Revington Douglas Chromcraft designs, manufactures and imports residential and commercial furniture marketed primarily in the United States. The company wholesales its furniture products under Chromcraft, Cochrane, Peters-Revington, and Douglas brands. The Chromcraft brand has been in existence for more than half a century and has built a strong reputation and base of loyal customers through a tradition of commitment to quality and design that continues to this day. James Yang +1 909 996 0127 jamesyang@amt-ltd.com WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The Republican party has demanded an investigation into reports that a senior State Department official allegedly offered the FBI a 'quid pro quo' to hide the full extent of Hillary Clinton's mishandling of classified information. According to records of interviews with FBI officials released by the Bureau on Monday, the unnamed official says that Patrick Kennedy, Under Secretary of State for management, tried in late June or early July of last year to get the FBI to change a classified email to unclassified, in exchange for the State Department allowing the FBI to place agents in more countries. However, FBI is denying that any 'quid pro quo' was offered in the fight between the bureau and State Department over the classification level of the email. State Department spokesman John Kirby also denied it. Tuesday, the Republican National Committee (RNC) sent a letter to Steve Linick, the State Department's Inspector General, demanding a full investigation into the allegations. In the mail, RNC Chief Counsel John R. Phillippe Jr. says that the alleged attempt to make a backroom deal to cover up the extent to which US national security was put at risk is shocking and warrants an immediate review. He requested that the IG office investigate whether Kennedy made any additional quid-pro-quo offers to other federal agencies in relation to Secretary Clinton's emails. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- In a global economy that is increasingly complex and diversified, Canadian companies must be more innovative than ever. Investing in our people, developing new technologies and supporting the growth of innovative companies will help diversify Canada's economy, open access to new markets and create well-paying jobs for Canadians. This is the message the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, delivered in a keynote address on Canada's Innovation Agenda to an audience of business leaders and policy-makers at the i2030 National Manufacturing Summit. In his remarks, Minister Bains emphasized the need for both government and the private sector to make smart investments in three key areas: -- People: Expand work-integrated learning programs, such as internships, apprenticeships and continuous learning opportunities, for Canadians at every stage of their careers-from new graduates up to the highest- ranking executives. -- Technology: Set big-horizon goals and create broad-based partnerships to fund ambitious research projects that solve complex, large-scale problems and spark commercial opportunities for the private sector. -- Companies: Leverage the buying power of government, as the single- largest purchaser of goods and services, to support the growth of innovative companies that have the potential to be globally competitive. Minister Bains applauded Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters-the organizer of the summit-for its submission for the Innovation Agenda which focused on accelerating innovation, increasing investments and helping manufacturers reduce their carbon footprint. Minister Bains concluded by issuing a challenge to the manufacturing community to invest more on people, companies and technologies that will propel our country into a more prosperous future. Quote "Our government knows that Canada's manufacturing sector is a cornerstone of the economy and can lead the world, as long as we have the right plan for growth through innovation. New technologies are driving modern manufacturing by lowering production costs, increasing productivity and allowing for the creation of new innovative products. Through initiatives like Canada's Innovation Agenda, we can create and shape the markets that have the potential to unlock a world of opportunity for everyone and strengthen the middle class by creating the well-paying jobs of tomorrow." - The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Quick facts -- The i2030 National Manufacturing Summit attracts more than 300 stakeholders interested in understanding the current global trends in manufacturing and shaping the future direction of public policies, regulations and programs in Canada. -- The findings of a six-month nation-wide consultation on Industrie 2030- Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters' national initiative aimed at creating a roadmap for doubling value-added manufacturing output and exports in Canada by 2030-were released prior to the summit and shared with participants. -- The manufacturing sector directly accounts for more than 10 percent of Canada's GDP and employs 1.7 million Canadians. -- Canadians participated enthusiastically during a summer of public engagement on the federal government's Innovation Agenda: 28 round-table discussions and thousands of digital interactions yielded over 1,300 ideas. Associated links -- i2030 Summit -- Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters -- Canada's Innovation Agenda -- Backgrounder on the Innovation Agenda Follow Minister Bains on social media. Twitter: @MinisterISED Contacts: Philip Proulx Press Secretary Office of the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development 343-291-2500 Media Relations Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada 343-291-1777 ic.mediarelations-mediasrelations.ic@canada.ca The MSCI Emerging Europe 10/40 Index rose by 1.4% in September in USD terms. The Company outperformed the index and was up by 2.6% in USD terms. Country performance in September was led by Russia (+3.8%) and the Czech Republic (+2.5%). The rest of the region's equity markets posted negative returns with Greece (-5.3%) and Poland (-2.3%) being the largest laggards. Elsewhere in the region Hungary returned -0.3% while Turkey returned -0.8%. During September, Russia benefited from OPEC's announcement of an agreement, in principle, to production cuts. S&P also raised its outlook for Russia from negative to stable on decreased external risks. Conversely, Greece struggled at the end of the period as concerns over the fragility of the Italian and German banking systems raised question marks over how quickly the Greek Second Bailout review can be completed. Moody's downgraded Turkey's credit rating to junk late in the period citing concerns about the rule of law, risks from external financing and a slowing economy. Poland suffered as banks and utilities were material underperformers for the month following tax raids at the state owned utility PGE. Focus on: Globaltrans Globaltrans is one of Russia's leading private freight rail transportation groups. They operate over 66,000 rail cars and specialise in oil products, construction materials and metallurgical cargos. The freight industry has been under some pressure for the past two years as overcapacity in rail cars in Russia, coupled with the fall in oil price and commodity prices, put pressure on the volumes Globaltrans transport and the prices that they can charge for those volumes. We believe thatthis downward pressure has troughed, and that the industry is beginning to recover. New legislation from the Russian Government is accelerating the scrappage of excess rail cars. The economic recovery in Russia is helping freight volumes to recover, and in 3Q16 we have started to see prices move higher (up to 50% higher in some locations). Globaltrans is set to benefit from this environment. Two large contracts are to be re-negotiated in the second half of 2016 and will reflect the higher prices. The balance sheet is strong and free cash flow is high allowing for the acquisition of distressed rail fleets to accelerate growth whilst still supporting the dividend payment. LONDON (dpa-AFX) - More than 300 passengers on-board a British Airways flight were asked 'not to rock the plane' while getting off after the flight was forced to make an emergency landing due to a landing gear failure. A video has been released on social network that shows the terrifying moment of the British Airways being forced to make an emergency landing at Heathrow. According to the officials, the landing gear on both wings failed mid-air after the lever to deploy the gear got stuck in the 'up position'. The plane was then forced to circle Heathrow to dump fuel before attempting to land. A formal report says the incident occurred due to a mechanical error 'that caused incorrect rigging of the landing gear lever system after the landing gear control module had been replaced.'? Passengers were then told to leave the plane 'very slowly' and 'not to rock the plane' as it could topple the plane over. The passengers then had to wait for about nine hours before a replacement Boeing was scheduled to take them to the States. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. The American Cancer Society honored Dave S. Hattem, Senior Executive Director, General Counsel, AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company at the 54th Annual Gala of Hope held at Fox Hollow Country Club in Woodbury, New York on September 22nd, 2016. Hattem leads AXA's law department, including compliance, government relations and corporate secretary's functions, helping the company navigate the legal and regulatory environment to achieve its strategic goals. Earlier in his career, Hattem served as a federal prosecutor in Brooklyn, where he took great pride in his service to the community as part of the United States Department of Justice. "We'd like to share our congratulations with Dave on this achievement, and are pleased to recognize him for receiving this prestigious honor from the American Cancer Society," said Mark Pearson, President and CEO of AXA Financial. Dollars raised from the gala help the American Cancer Society fund cancer research, education and screening initiatives, the passage of health and life-saving laws, as well as direct services for cancer patients, caregivers and families-benefiting Long Islanders, as well as countless others across the country and around the world. "Our mission is simple," said Beth Ann Tolentino of the American Cancer Society. "We work to save lives and celebrate life, every single day." In honor of Hattem's recognition, the AXA Foundation made a grant of $25,000 to the American Cancer Society. For more information on the American Cancer Society, visit www.cancer.org. Find AXA on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. For more information, visit www.axa.com About American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society was created more than 100 years ago for one purpose-to liberate the world from the threat of cancer. We are advocates, researchers, volunteers, caregivers, survivors, patients and donors. Together, we are a united force of 2.5 million strong against all cancers. From prevention to diagnosis, from treatment to recovery, the American Cancer Society is here every step of the way. Thanks in part to our efforts, there has been a 23% decline in the cancer death rate over the past 21 years. That's 1.7 million deaths prevented. We're leading the way to transform cancer from deadly to treatable and from treatable to preventable. About AXA "AXA" is a brand name of AXA Equitable Financial Services, LLC and its family of companies, including AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company (NY, NY), MONY Life Insurance Company of America (AZ stock company, administrative office: Jersey City, NJ), AXA Advisors, LLC, and AXA Distributors, LLC. In business since 1859, AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company is a leading financial protection company and one of the nation's premier providers of life insurance and annuity products distributed to individuals and business owners through its retail distribution channel, AXA Advisors, LLC (member FINRA, SIPC) and to the financial services market through its wholesale distribution channel, AXA Distributors, LLC (member FINRA, SIPC). AXA S.A. (also referred to as "AXA Group") is a Paris-headquartered holding company for a group of international insurance and financial services companies, including AXA Equitable Financial Services, LLC companies. AXA S.A. is a worldwide leader in financial protection strategies and wealth management with 103 million clients in 64 countries as of Dec. 31, 2015. AXA S.A. has been ranked the No. 1 insurance brand in the world by Interbrand for eight consecutive years as of Oct. 5, 2016. The obligations of AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company and MONY Life Insurance Company of America are backed solely by their claims-paying ability. Find AXA on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. For more information, visit www.axa.com. About the AXA Foundation The AXA Foundation is the philanthropic arm of AXA Advisors, LLC, the retail distribution subsidiary of AXA in the US. The Foundation directs the company's philanthropic and volunteer activities, working to improve the quality of life in communities across the country where AXA has a presence. For more information, visit www.axa.com/achievers and AXA's Facebook page. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019006029/en/ Contacts: AXA: Jennifer Recine, 212-314-2009 Jennifer.recine@axa.us.com or American Cancer Society: Beth-Ann Tolentino beth-ann.tolentino@cancer.org PORTLAND, Oregon, October 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A new report published by Allied Market Research, titled, "Micro Inverter Market by Type, Connection and End User-Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2014-2022," projects that the world micro inverter market would reach $2.7 billion by 2022. In 2014, North America dominated the market and contributed about 45% share of the overall market revenue, followed by Europe. The presence of key market players in the U.S. and rising micro inverter installation activities, primarily in residential sector, have fueled the market growth. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140911/647229 ) Summary of the Micro Inverter Market Report can be accessed on the website at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/micro-inverter-market Swift rise in demand for greater efficiency of solar energy systems and increased application of micro inverters in residential sector, as it is more cost-effective and space efficient, as compared to central and string inverters drives the market growth. However, high initial investment and tough maintenance could restrict the market growth. Moreover, it is anticipated that the rise in electricity demand coupled with increase in government spending & tariffs on photovoltaic technology would spur the global market growth. The residential segment accounted for about 77% of the overall micro inverter market in 2014. Highest installation of micro inverters in residential photovoltaic systems led this segment to dominate the overall micro inverter market. However, commercial end user segment would grow significantly and is expected to register a CAGR of 30.3% during the forecast period. This is due to the increase in installation of micro inverters in commercial PV systems worldwide as many renowned companies are launching advanced technology products. Moreover, North America has contributed significantly in the residential sector. Among various geographical regions, North America has contributed the maximum revenue share in 2014 and is expected to maintain its leading position throughout the forecast period. This could be attributed to varied factors including increase in the electricity demand due to rising population, and increased government initiatives. Moreover, improvement in renewable energy expenditure has boosted the installation of residential micro inverters in Asian countries, particularly in China, Japan, and India. "MLPE technologies such as micro inverters are swiftly gaining acceptance and market share as their costs have come down. In spite of the global dominance of string inverters, over half of all residential solar systems installed in the U.S. currently using micro inverters. In addition, increased power output of micro inverters, cost-effectiveness and enhanced safety features would fuel the micro inverter market growth in both residential and commercial sector globally. Japan, representing a significant residential market potential, is expected to provide lucrative growth opportunities for top global micro inverter manufacturers in Asia-Pacific market," states Rakesh Singh, Manager, Research, Semiconductor & Electronics at AMR. However, Asia-Pacific is projected to be the fastest growing region throughout the analysis period. Since, Japan has the highest demand for residential sector power plant PV installation due to government incentives and limited supply of micro inverters in Japan. Moreover, enhancement in solar plant installation capacity and increase in expenditures in the emerging markets (such as China and India) to satisfy the exponentially growing electricity needs in these countries have strengthened the market growth. Technological advancements for cost-effective inverter technologies in these nations offer a lucrative opportunity for the micro inverter market growth. Key findings of the study: In 2014, single phase micro inverter type led the overall micro inverter market revenue, but it is projected to grow at a CAGR of 26.2% during the forecast period Residential segment is expected to exhibit rapid growth, owing to the rising government tariffs and incentives Presently, North America leads the world micro inverter market and it is expected to continue this trend throughout the forecast period owing to the swift rise in electricity demand from countries such as U.S., Canada , and Mexico leads the world micro inverter market and it is expected to continue this trend throughout the forecast period owing to the swift rise in electricity demand from countries such as U.S., , and Japan leads the overall Asia-Pacific micro inverter market with about one-third of the market shares in the region The key players in the micro inverter market are dedicated to expand their business operations in the emerging countries with acquisition and product launch as a preferred strategy. The major players profiled in this report include Enphase Energy, Inc., ABB Group, SunPower Corporation, SMA Solar Technology AG, Delta Energy Systems GmbH, SolarEdge Technologies, Inc., ReneSola, Siemens AG, P&P Energy Technology Co., Ltd., and Involar. Summary of similar reports can be viewed at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/semiconductor-and-electronics/electronic-systems-and-devices-market-report About Us: Allied Market Research (AMR) is a full-service market research and business-consulting wing of Allied Analytics LLP based inPortland, Oregon. Allied Market Research provides global enterprises as well as medium and small businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports" and "Business Intelligence Solutions". AMR has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients to make strategic business decisions and achieve sustainable growth in their respective market domain. We are in professional corporate relations with various companies and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry. Contact: Sona Padmanabhan 5933 NE Win Sivers Drive #205,Portland, OR97220 United States Direct: +1-503-894-6022 Toll Free: +1 (800)-792-5285 (U.S. &Canada) Fax: +1 (855)-550-5975 E-mail:sales@alliedmarketresearch.com OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Cornerstone Capital Resources Inc. ("Cornerstone" or "the Company") (TSX VENTURE: CGP)(FRANKFURT: GWN)(BERLIN: GWN)(OTCBB: CTNXF) announces the following project update for the Cascabel copper-gold porphyry joint venture exploration project in northern Ecuador, in which the Company has a 15% interest financed through to completion of a feasibility study. SolGold Plc is funding 100% of the exploration at Cascabel and is the operator of the project. HIGHLIGHTS: -- New drilling contracts signed with Hubbard Drilling and Major Drilling for Cascabel exploration appraisal and feasibility programs over the next four years -- Drilling commenced with three rigs on site and a fourth to commence by end of February 2017. Initial holes CSD-16-018, 019 and 020, will test the deep portions of the Alpala Central deposit -- Major Drilling track mounted rigs to focus on extension of the Alpala deposit, and are expected to bear the brunt of deep drilling with higher penetration rates, faster access and rig moves between holes -- Major Drilling rigs expected to drill to 2,800 metres deep, testing the Alpala deposit a further kilometre below the deepest known mineralization in the deposit -- Directional drilling equipment under negotiation to effect fewer drilling metres overall, but more drill metres within the deposit itself -- Hubbard Drilling man-portable rigs will be free to test six other defined and priority targets at Moran, Trivinio, Aguinaga, Tandayama - America, Alpala South East and Hematite Hill -- Reduction in drilling costs from previous $670/metre to $370/metre forecast (all-in field and fixed program costs excluding corporate overheads) -- Twelve month drill program for 36,000 metres with up to six rigs. Two year program to end October 2018 for a total of 95,000 metres with up to 10 rigs FURTHER INFORMATION: Drilling at Cascabel is underway at initial holes CSD-16-018, 019 and 020 to test the deep portions at Alpala Central. New drilling contracts have been signed with both Hubbard Drilling and Major Drilling, underpinning an aggressive exploration and appraisal program which will allow for the expansion of exploration depths to further test the deepest known mineralization within the Cascabel concession. The man portable rigs supplied by Hubbard Drilling and Major Drilling are earmarked to test new drill ready targets at Aguinaga, Moran, Trivino, Alpala South East, Hematite Hill and Tandayama - America. The new contracts afforded by an increase in the number of rigs and higher efficiencies delivered by improved road access and servicing are expected to reduce overall drill costs including all operational (but not corporate) costs from $670 to $370/metre. In addition, directional drilling services are currently being negotiated and this is expected to deliver multiple daughter drill holes from each parent hole, facilitating increased frequency of mineralized intercepts, within the Alpala deposit. SolGold's planned resource statement at Alpala (the most advanced target at Cascabel) has been delayed by the discovery of high-grade mineralization in Holes 15R2, 16 and 17 at Alpala, extending the immediate resource potential. The Alpala deposit is open at depth and in the upper extensions, as well as to the north, north-east, south-east and south-west. This will initially be achieved from intersections targeted in holes 018, 019, 020 which have commenced at Alpala and are targeting lower extensions of the Alpala deposit in the bornite bearing wide centre sections. A planned 36,000 metre program is envisaged with up to six rigs, including four Major Drilling rigs, in the next 12 months. Three of these will be track mounted Major-50 rigs with a drill rate of over 40m/per day and depth comparability of 2,800m. The new Santa Cecila-Carmen Road will provide access to multi-hole pads for the Major-50 rigs and facilitate higher tonnage supplies in, and core out, at a faster rate. SolGold's geological and logistics team has been boosted to facilitate the increase in drill intensity. By end of October 2018, SolGold estimates the completion of 95,000m of drilling including testing the targets at Moran, Aguinaga, Trivino, Alpala South East, Tandayama-America and Hematite Hill. Ongoing field mapping, sampling and ground magnetics continues to mature these targets and define proposed drill locations. The coming two year program, with the use of directional diamond drilling techniques, represents approximately four times the drilling metres completed to date at the Alpala deposit drilled over the past four years. The program will include six additional drill-ready targets. About Cascabel: SolGold Plc owns 85% of the equity of Exploraciones Novomining S.A. ("ENSA"), an Ecuadorean company that holds 100% of the Cascabel concession in northern Ecuador. Cornerstone owns the remaining 15% of ENSA, which also holds the rights to the La Encrucijada gold-silver project. SolGold is funding 100% of the exploration at Cascabel and is the operator of the project. Cornerstone's 15% interest is financed through completion of a feasibility study. Cascabel is located in northwestern Ecuador in an under-explored northern section of the Andean Copper Belt, 60 km northeast of the undeveloped inferred resource of 982 million tons at 0.89% Cu Llurimaga (formerly Junin) copper project (0.4% Cu cut-off grade; Micon International Co. Ltd. Technical Report for Ascendant Exploration SA, August 20, 2004, pages 28 & 29). Mineralization identified at the Llurimaga copper project is not necessarily indicative of the mineralization on the Cascabel Property. Qualified Person: Yvan Crepeau, MBA, P.Geo., Cornerstone's Vice President, Exploration and a qualified person in accordance with National Instrument 43-101, is responsible for supervising the exploration program at the Cascabel project for Cornerstone and has reviewed and approved the information contained in this news release. About Cornerstone: Cornerstone Capital Resources Inc. is a well funded mineral exploration company with a diversified portfolio of projects in Ecuador and Chile, and a proven ability to identify, acquire and advance properties of merit. The company's business model is based on generating exploration projects whose subsequent development is funded primarily through partnerships. Further information is available on Cornerstone's website: www.cornerstoneresources.com and on Twitter. Cautionary Notice: This news release may contain 'Forward-Looking Statements' that involve risks and uncertainties, such as statements of Cornerstone's plans, objectives, strategies, intentions and expectations. The words "potential," "anticipate," "forecast," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "may," "project," "plan," and similar expressions are intended to be among the statements that identify 'Forward-Looking Statements.' Although Cornerstone believes that its expectations reflected in these 'Forward-Looking Statements' are reasonable, such statements may involve unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors disclosed in our regulatory filings, viewed on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com. For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets, predicting natural geological phenomena and from numerous other matters of national, regional, and global scale, including those of an environmental, climatic, natural, political, economic, business, competitive, or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our Forward-Looking Statements. Although Cornerstone believes the facts and information contained in this news release to be as correct and current as possible, Cornerstone does not warrant or make any representation as to the accuracy, validity or completeness of any facts or information contained herein and these statements should not be relied upon as representing its views subsequent to the date of this news release. While Cornerstone anticipates that subsequent events may cause its views to change, it expressly disclaims any obligation to update the Forward-Looking Statements contained herein except where outcomes have varied materially from the original statements. On Behalf of the Board, Brooke Macdonald, President and CEO 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. Contacts: For investor, corporate or media inquiries, please contact: Investor Relations (613) 421-6923 ir@cornerstoneresources.ca www.cornerstoneresources.com EMMEN, SWITZERLAND -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- ALSO (SIX: ALSN) and Innovix Distribution (Innovix) have agreed on a strategic partnership to bring a wide range of local and global vertical-focused cloud services to SMB and Enterprise customers in South-East Asia and Hong Kong in November 2016. Both companies are joining forces to make the ALSO Cloud Marketplace platform available to 5,500 of Innovix's channel partners starting in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong, with plans to expand further in the region. The partnership provides ALSO with the opportunity to expand services from its catalogue to Innovix's customers. Right from the start, well-known international cloud service providers and local vertical-focused ISVs will have a new platform to offer a broad range of services. "This partnership is an important milestone for ALSO in our strategic effort to expand business opportunities with our partners in dynamic new regions. We already serve 15 markets in Europe directly and 15 more through our partners in the UK and the Middle-East. Our partnership with Innovix will expand our footprint even further," said Gustavo Moller-Hergt, CEO of ALSO Holding AG. "Innovix is accelerating its cloud services offering to serve an expanding list of partners, including ISVs, hosters and managed service providers. The strategic partnership with ALSO provides us with a world-class cloud marketplace platform that will enable us to provide exceptional customer experience to our partners. We look forward to working together with ALSO to expand our renowned service and product offerings," said Edmand Cheung, Group Managing Director of Innovix Distribution. Direct link to the media release is http://www.also.com/goto/20161019en. ALSO Holding AG (Emmen/Switzerland) brings providers and buyers of the ICT industry together. The company offers services at all levels of the ICT value chain from a single source. In the European B2B marketplace, ALSO bundles logistics services, financial services, supply services, solution services, digital services, and IT services together into individual service packages. ALSO's portfolio contains more than 160 000 articles from some 350 vendors. The Group has around 3 880 employees throughout Europe. In fiscal year 2015 (closing on December 31), the company generated net sales of 7.8 billion euros. The majority shareholder of ALSO Holding AG is the Droege Group, Dusseldorf, Germany. Further information is available at http://www.also.com. Droege Group (Major shareholder) Droege Group (founded in 1988) is an independent consulting and investment company under full family ownership. The company acts as a specialist for tailor-made restructuring programs aiming to enhance corporate value. Droege Group combines its corporate family-run structure and capital strength into a family-equity business model. The group carries out direct investments with own equity in corporate subsidiaries and medium-sized companies in "special situations". The motto of "The Art of Implementation" has made the group a pioneer of hands-on implementation-oriented corporate development. Droege Group demonstrates its implementation excellence daily within its own portfolio. The entrepreneurially platforms of the Droege Group are aligned to current megatrends (mobility, prevention, digitalization, demography, etc.). Enthusiasm for quality, innovation and speed determines our actions. In this way Droege Group has successfully gained a position in domestic and international markets and operates with over 120 companies in 30 countries. In 2015 the sales volume of Droege Group was 9.2 billion euros. More information: http://www.droege-group.com Innovix Distribution (Hong Kong/Singapore/Malaysia) Innovix Distribution is one of Asia's leading technology distributors, which draws on a unique set of strengths in technology distribution to create growth for its partners - it combines unrivalled technical and marketing expertise with a comprehensive range of proven and innovative technologies. As an operating unit under JTH Group, Innovix Distribution has deep local and industry knowledge and an exceptional ability to execute. Firmly rooted in Asia, it offers customers a rich selection of established and emerging technologies combined with a desire to exceed their expectations. Innovix has physical locations in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong. JTH Group is part of Jardine Matheson Group. Further information is available at http://www.innovix.com/, http://www.jardines.com/ and http://www.jthgroup.com/. Disclaimer This press release contains forward-looking statements which are based on current assumptions and forecasts of the ALSO management. Known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors could lead to material differences between the forward-looking statements made here and the actual development, in particular the results, financial situation, and performance of our Group. The Group accepts no responsibility for updating these forward-looking statements or adapting them to future events or developments. Contacts: Contact person ALSO Holding AG: Brunswick Group GmbH Dr. Marc Langendorf +49 89 80 99 025 17 mlangendorf@brunswickgroup.com Contact person Innovix Distribution: Innovix Distribution Victor Lam +852 2880 4064 victor.lam@innovix.com.hk REGINA, SASKATCHEWAN -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Information Services Corporation (TSX: ISV) ("ISC" or the "Company") advises that it will release its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016 on Wednesday, November 2, 2016 after market close. ISC's Consolidated Financial Statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 will be available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and our website at www.isc.ca. An investor conference call will be held on Thursday, November 3, 2016 at 11 a.m. Eastern Time (9 a.m. Saskatchewan/MDT) to discuss the results. Participants may join the call by dialing toll-free 1-844- 419-1765 or 1-216-562-0470 for calls outside North America. Simultaneously, an audio webcast of the conference call will also be available at the following link http://edge.media-server.com/m/p/5ofuzc8f. Media are invited to attend on a listen-only basis. A recording of the webcast will be available 24 hours after the event on our website. About ISC ISC is an experienced provider of registry and information services for government, individuals and private sector business. As the exclusive provider of the land titles, surveys, personal property and corporate registries for Saskatchewan, the Company maintains and operates these registries, which are key supporters of economic activity in the province. Contacts: Information Services Corporation Pamela Keck Manager, Investor Relations Toll Free: 1-855-341-8363 in North America or 1-306-798-1137 investor.relations@isc.ca ATLANTA, GA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- The Classic Auto Show powered by Velocity announced today that Bruce Meyer, founding board member of the Petersen Automotive Museum and proprietor of one of the world's most extraordinary car collections, will be the Grand Marshall of the inaugural Classic Auto Show, held in Los Angeles January 27-29, 2017. Bruce Meyer has made it his mission to collect cars with historic race wins and exceptional history and will be featuring some of his iconic private collection during the event. These treasures will be part of The Grand Boulevard, an area of the show showcasing automotive design and technology through the years with an assortment of the finest and rarest classic, muscle, historic and vintage cars the world has to offer. In addition to his automotive contribution, Bruce will be present on Friday, January 27, for the official ribbon cutting along with stars from Velocity's biggest car shows: Mike Brewer, Chip Foose, Dave Kindig, Wayne Carini, Chris Jacobs and Mike Phillips. "Bringing The Classic Auto Show to Los Angeles, the real car capital of the world, is a natural and it brings us all together to celebrate," said Bruce Meyer. "I'm so honored to be selected Grand Marshall and I look forward to meeting fellow car lovers and sharing our enthusiasm." To learn more about The Classic Auto Show and how to attend, exhibit or sponsor, visit www.theclassicautoshow.com, and follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. ABOUT URBAN EXPOSITIONS Based in Kennesaw, GA, and founded in 1995, Urban Expositions produces and manages a portfolio of 36 events. Urban serves nine industry sectors including Gift, Souvenir, Art, Aviation, Apparel, Halloween, Foodservice, Pet and Gaming. Urban also produces Airport Revenue News, a publication focused on the airport concession industry. Urban has offices in Shelton, CT and Boca Raton, FL, and is represented by employees in California, Colorado and Illinois. www.urban-expo.com. ABOUT CLARION EVENTS Clarion Events operates over 200 events in 35 countries from offices in the UK, South Africa, USA, Brazil, Germany, Singapore, UAE, Turkey, and the Netherlands. Clarion can trace its roots back to 1947 and takes great pride in being one of the oldest independent event organizers in the UK. The teams at Clarion create uniquely effective and stimulating environments that can serve as a platform to build businesses, enhance customer relationships and accelerate product awareness. www.clarionevents.com Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=3069807 Contact: Eileen Curran 203-242-8772 Email Contact EL DORADO HILLS, CA, and LAGOS, NIGERIA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- MEC, Inc. (OTC PINK: MYEC), (formerly MyECheck, Inc.) announced today it has entered into agreements with pan-African financial services group, United Bank for Africa ("UBA") Plc to provide a revolutionary email-based billing, payment and banking software system called "EmailMoni." EmailMoni represents the world's latest fin-tech for cloud banking and social payments, and is expected to transform the payments, invoicing/billing and remittances landscape in Africa. The service provides a convenient and highly accessible application with multiple ways to transact that are instant, secure, and low cost. EmailMoni enables people and businesses to securely send and receive invoices and money electronically in real-time, using their mobile phone or any web browser compatible device. Users can send and request and receive money using the mobile phone app, Microsoft Outlook app, or any email service. Money can also be securely requested and/or sent using Facebook app, SMS text and other methods. EmailMoni Apple iOS App and Android App can also interact with point of sale (POS) systems, e-commerce for quick and secured payments online, as well as card-less ATMs using Quick Response ("QR") Codes enabling withdraws from the system at thousands of ATM locations. EmailMoni will enable faster more efficient payments for UBA customers who are billers, such as airtime, cable and utility companies. Customers can also send and receive secure payments instantly and conveniently, while non-bank customers will be able easily access UBA banking and payment services. "We are proud to open any frontier for e-payments in Africa with EmailMoni. This conforms with our desire to continuously deliver innovative and convenient payment options to our customers. Our innovations in the digital banking space have been possible because of our huge investments in building efficient, trustworthy platforms. We assure our customers that we are committed to continually bring the best in the financial technology space to ensure they always have the best and most convenient banking experience with all our service channels," said Yinka Adedeji, Divisional Head, Digital Banking, UBA. Ed Starrs, CEO of MEC commented: "EmailMoni will be instrumental in the positive transformation of Africa to a digital banking system and enable greater access to secure commerce. EmailMoni focuses on the banks' customers making sure they can access their money anywhere and anytime. EmailMoni enables UBA's customers to communicate just like using email and pay for all their transactions in one place. MEC along with our sales partner in Africa, Centric Gateway, Nigeria, Limited, are committed to providing industry leading technology and service to support UBA in meeting their e-payment goals." "EmailMoni, powered by MEC, will be a fundamental change in the payment space in Africa," stated Omoniyi Kolade, CEO of Centric Gateway. "The email-based payment platform will enable our client UBA to deliver fundamental value in promoting cashless and digital banking for their customers in their day to day transactions. EmailMoni will remove hurdles being faced by customer transactions and maintain speed, ease of use, along with security in between customer, retailers, businesses, biller, e-commerce, etc. This is the first solution in the Nigeria payment service industry that addresses customer payment affairs in a seamless way." About UBA: With a customer base in excess of eight million, UBA has invested heavily in building robust and secure digital banking platforms to facilitate transactions across Africa. A highly diversified financial services provider, UBA is a leading player on the African continent, with significant market share and operations in 19 different African countries and business offices in New York, Paris and London. Visit: www.ubagraoup.com About Centric Gateway: Located in Lagos, Nigeria, Centric Gateway Limited is a payment services provider and the Authorized Sales Partner in Africa for MyECheck software and services. About MEC, Inc.: MEC, Incorporated (formerly MyECheck, Inc.) is a developer, licensor and services provider of innovative payment and banking solutions. MEC software applications include virtual/cloud banking, mobile payments apps, web commerce, POS, billing/invoicing, card-less ATM, international remittances and advanced security and fraud control technologies. Visit: www.mecincorp.com Forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, continued acceptance of mentioned products, increased levels of competition, new products and technological changes, dependence upon third-party suppliers, intellectual property rights, and other risks detailed from time to time in reports filed with the SEC. MEC, Inc. Edward Starrs 775-434-5105 ed.starrs@myecheck.com info@mecincorp.com ATLANTA (dpa-AFX) - Delta Airlines has unveiled new uniforms designed by famous designer Zac Posen for about 60,000 of its employees. It is the first overhaul in uniforms for Delta Airlines in a decade, which is the number two U.S. airline. All three of the largest U.S. carriers have now unveiled redesigned uniforms in recent years. The new uniforms will be available for its flight attendants, gate agent and technicians. Land's End will supply the uniforms to the Atlanta-based airline. The previous uniforms predates Delta's 2008 merger with Northwest Airlines. About 1,000 of the airline's front line staff will begin testing the new uniforms in December. The new uniforms will roll out to all the employees in the first quarter of 2018. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. BOSTON, MA and NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Mondo, a leading digital marketing and IT resourcing firm, today announced that Tim Johnson has been promoted to CEO, effective immediately. Mondo has dual headquarters in New York City and Boston, and Johnson will be located in its Boston office. Michael Kirven, the founder and former CEO, will now serve as Chairman of the Board. Johnson, an experienced sales executive, has been with Mondo for more than 12 years. He previously served as the Vice President of Sales for Mondo since April 2013, when Mondo split from Bluewolf, a global business consulting firm. Before that, Johnson served as the Vice President of Sales and Director of Sales. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from Washington State University. Since 2005, Mondo's revenues have increased from $6 million to more than $90 million this year. During that same period, Mondo has grown from one office to 10 offices, including Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Denver, Chicago, and Atlanta. Today, Mondo has more than 250 employees located nationwide. "As the worlds of IT and digital marketing continue to rapidly converge, we are uniquely positioned to help organizations meet their hiring needs with the most qualified professionals and contractors," said Johnson. "I look forward to leading Mondo during this next phase of growth, as a leader in IT resourcing and digital marketing." About Mondo Mondo is a professional services organization that supports tech and digital marketing hiring needs. It provides resources on a contract, contract-to-hire, and permanent basis. Every day it helps clients drive their businesses forward by providing access to critical technology and digital marketing resources at a moment's notice. For 15 years, Mondo has been delivering staffing solutions that bridge the talent gap and accelerate technology and digital marketing innovation for global brands including Deutsche Bank, Facebook, NBC Universal, ZipCar, eBay, Random House, and many more. Headquartered in New York City, Mondo has offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Denver, Boston, Chicago, and Atlanta. To learn more, visit www.mondo.com or call 212-257-5111 and connect with us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. For more media information, contact: Lisa Hendrickson LCH Communications for Mondo 516-767-8390 516-643-1642 (cell) Email Contact Technavio analysts forecast the global radio-frequency identification (RFID) smart cabinet marketto grow at an impressive CAGR of more than 14% during the forecast period, according to their latest report. The research study covers the present scenario and growth prospects of the global RFID smart cabinetmarketfor 2016-2020. The market size is calculated on the basis of revenue generated from the sales of RFID smart cabinets. The report also presents major market vendors in the Americas, APAC, and EMEA. On an average, a hospital loses more than 15% of its assets in a year owing to fraud or misplacement of hospital supplies. In order to eliminate such losses and enhance time efficiency, hospitals are focusing on upgrading their infrastructure and incorporating RFID technology to keep track of their inventories. Therefore, the healthcare sector is the predominant end-user of RFID smart cabinets, accounting for 90%-95% of the revenue share in 2015. Request a sample report: http://www.technavio.com/request-a-sample?report=49852 Technavio's sample reports are free of charge and contain multiple sections of the report including the market size and forecast, drivers, challenges, trends, and more. Technavio hardware and semiconductor analysts highlight the following four factors that are contributing to the growth of the global RFID smart cabinet market: Growing need for inventory management in hospitals Rising government funding for hospitals Increasing healthcare spending Supply chain inefficiencies Growing need for inventory management in hospitals The use of RFID smart cabinets reduces manual efforts in maintaining, tracking, and managing inventory in hospitals. Smart cabinets also minimize loss and misplacement of supplies. RFID smart cabinets from LogiTag Systems enable hospital staff to track the status of medical devices being used by the patients, the access time of devices, and expiration date of supplies to manage costs. Advantages of RFID smart cabinets Enable accurate, real-time tracking at item level Help nurses focus on patient care rather than inventory records Reduce inventory waste Eliminate manual counting of supplies Eliminate the situation of stock-outs Reduce hospital-supplier disagreements over the supplies Rising government funding for hospitals An increase in funding from governmental agencies for hospitals across the globe is another major driver for market growth. In 2013, the Australian government spent an additional amount of USD 40-USD 45 billion in the healthcare sector, compared with the amount spent in 2003. In 2014, Welsh Government invested USD 430,797 in a RFID tagging system under the project named Invest-to-Save Fund. Sunil Kumar Singh, a lead embedded systems analyst at Technavio, says, "Hospitals across the world are showing a keen interest in enhancing their infrastructure to avail funding and achieve operational excellence. As hospitals are aware of the benefits of RFID smart cabinets, which can track drugs and devices and notify of the expiry dates of drugs, they have started adopting these cabinets." Increasing healthcare spending Continuous R&D and ongoing clinical trials have resulted in better product designs that incorporate advanced technological features. The development of the healthcare industry and its infrastructure have led to an increase in healthcare expenditure. Developed countries in the Americas and Europe spend the most on healthcare. Developing countries have to increase their spending dramatically to provide basic health insurance coverage, develop a primary healthcare service system, and improve the availability of medications in rural and suburban areas. This is expected to result in the reformation of public hospitals and healthcare facilities, thereby increasing the demand for laser equipment, propelling market growth. The healthcare spending in different geographies is illustrated in the table below: Regions Healthcare Spending (% of GDP) North America 17.50% EMEA 17.10% South America 8.00% APAC 6.70% Source: Technavio Supply chain inefficiencies "In the retail landscape, goods move through many stages and get distributed at every stage. Thus, to keep track of the inventory distribution and accurate details of distribution is very difficult. In addition, the trend of omnichannel retailing has made inventory tracking even more complex," asserts Sunil. Another complex task of retailers and manufacturers is accurate demand planning due to inefficiencies such as incorrect data and delayed data flow through the supply chain. Manufacturers may obtain point-of-sale (POS) data from retailers, but without information about stock levels during inventory transportation, it is not possible to plan for demand accurately. Top vendors: LogiTag Systems Mobile Aspects TAGSYS RFID Skytron SkyeTek SATO Vicinity Stanley InnerSpace WaveMark Browse Related Reports: Global RFID Readers Market 2016-2020 Smart Thermostat Market in APAC 2015-2019 Global RFID Readers Market 2016-2020 Do you need a report on a market in a specific geographical cluster or country but can't find what you're looking for? Don't worry, Technavio also takes client requests. Please contact enquiry@technavio.com with your requirements and our analysts will be happy to create a customized report just for you. About Technavio Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. The company develops over 2000 pieces of research every year, covering more than 500 technologies across 80 countries. Technavio has about 300 analysts globally who specialize in customized consulting and business research assignments across the latest leading edge technologies. Technavio analysts employ primary as well as secondary research techniques to ascertain the size and vendor landscape in a range of markets. Analysts obtain information using a combination of bottom-up and top-down approaches, besides using in-house market modeling tools and proprietary databases. They corroborate this data with the data obtained from various market participants and stakeholders across the value chain, including vendors, service providers, distributors, re-sellers, and end-users. If you are interested in more information, please contact our media team at media@technavio.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161019005431/en/ Contacts: Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media Marketing Executive US: +1 630 333 9501 UK: +44 208 123 1770 www.technavio.com MONTREAL, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 11/07/16 -- Sunset Cove Mining Inc. (the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: SSM) has been informed that the TSX Venture Exchange has determined that their Compliance & Disclosure Department will not be taking any further action at this time regarding the issues outlined in the Company's news release dated October 2, 2016. The Company continues to work towards receiving approval from the TSX Venture Exchange for the proposed acquisition of the Houlton Woodstock Manganese Property located in Carleton County, New Brunswick. The Company is in the process of completing a NI 43-101 technical report on the Houlton Woodstock Manganese Property. Sunset Cove's mission is to acquire and advance high potential mining prospects located in North America with the intent of supplying value added materials to the lithium ion battery and other alternative energy industries. For more information visit the website at www.sunsetcovemining.com. Forward-Looking Statement: Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking information that involves inherent risk and uncertainty affecting the business of Sunset Cove Mining. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements. 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. Contacts: Sunset Cove Mining Inc. Martin Kepman Director 1-514-802-1814 martin@kepman.com www.sunsetcovemining.com PERTH, AUSTRALIA and GREER, SC -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Alexium International Group Limited ("Alexium," "the Company") (ASX: AJX) (OTCQX: AXXIY) Highlights Alexium to produce Alexicool for two leading global mattress makers for three years Alexium's chemistry chosen for superior performance Purchase and Production has already commenced Alexium International Group Limited ("Alexium," "the Company") (ASX: AJX) (OTCQX: AXXIY) has signed its first multifunction, single-chemical formulation sales agreements to supply its flame retardant (FR) (Alexiflam), phase change cooling technology (Alexicool) and an odor preventer for mattress ticking. These agreements are between Alexium and two separate U.S.-based major producers and finishers of mattress fabrics for joint supply to one of the largest mattress brands in the world. Sales are expected to commence immediately with monthly revenue to continue over an initial three-year production period, representing sales revenues in excess of US$3 million per year. Under these agreements, Alexium will supply its chemistry to three locations worldwide, with the end bedding products being sold primarily in stores in the United States. Following Alexium's success with its Alexiflam and Alexicool products in the bedding market, the company sought to provide a single chemical package comprising a number of products and functions to help its customers reduce production time and complexity. These sales agreements are Alexium's first successful implementation of that approach. This new approach to the bedding market allows Alexium to capitalize on its expert knowledge of proprietary chemistry formulations to provide customized solutions to its customers and maintain strong margins, while its customers are responsible for the production process. "When we first entered the bedding sector with our initial FR product, Alexiflam, we quickly established ourselves as not only a provider of high-quality FR products but also as a highly capable partner for providing complex chemical solutions reliably," stated Dirk Van Hyning, President of Alexium. "These multifunction, single-formulation agreements are a major step forward for Alexium as we expand our capabilities in the marketplace." Mr. Van Hyning added, "We have been in discussions with other bedding fabric producers and finishers and anticipate further interest in our multifunction, single-formulation chemistries. We also expect this broader approach to the chemical marketplace will be very successful in other industries such as apparel, footwear and beyond." About Alexium Alexium International Group Limited (ASX: AJX, AX:AJX OTC QX: AXXIY) holds proprietary patent applications for novel technologies developed to provide flame retardancy for a wide range of materials. These environmentally friendly flame retardants have applications for a number of industries and can be customized. Further, Alexium has developed products for a range of other applications including phase-change materials, water repellents, antimicrobials, and combinations thereof. Alexium also holds patents for a process developed initially by the U.S. Department of Defense, which allows for the surface modification and attachment of nano-particles or multiple chemical functional groups to surfaces or substrates to provide functions such as fire retardancy, water proofing, oil proofing, and anti- microbial treatments. Applications under development include but are not limited to textiles, packaging, electronics, and building materials. Alexium's chemical treatments are currently marketed under the Alexiflam, Alexiflam FR, Alexiflam SYN, Alexiflam NF, Alexicool, Alexiflam PB, and Alexiflam AD brand names. For additional information about Alexium, please visit www.alexiuminternational.com. IQALUIT, NUNAVUT -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Department of Canadian Heritage The Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage, today announced funding for three projects in Nunavut through the Canada 150 Fund. The Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum will receive $288,000 for its pan-Canadian signature project, "Voices of Nunavut", a multilingual exhibit that consists of a 25-channel video installation representing the 25 communities of Nunavut. The exhibit will go on tour to help those living in Nunavut and in southern regions of the country to better understand each other. Young people from each community will build collages using different types of media, creating an audio-visual representation of what makes each Nunavut community unique, and showing what the territory looks like in 2017. The Nunavut Arts and Crafts Association will be receiving $350,000 for its community project "Nunavummiuts celebrate Canada's 150th birthday", which will help close to a dozen Nunavut communities in arranging celebrations for Canada's 150th birthday. The Association will be working with each of the territory's communities to organize an event that celebrates Nunavut's history and culture, and honours Inuit art and traditions. Finally, the Iqaluit Action Lab will be receiving $100,000 to organize activities that will kick off celebrations for Canada's 150th birthday. Minister Joly took the opportunity to remind everyone that the period of celebration for Canada's 150th will begin on December 31, 2016, with celebrations all across the country. Nineteen urban centres, including Iqaluit, will be ushering in 2017 in grand style. Thousands of Canadians will have a chance to gather together in their community to take part in memorable festivities! Quotes "Our culture is as multi-faceted as our country and the people who inhabit it-from Indigenous peoples to all those who have come here from across the world. These great activities will increase our understanding of what it means to live in the territory as well as being a Nunavummiut in the 21st century. These projects will leave a lasting legacy for the next generation to come. Let's celebrate the rich cultural heritage of Canada's Indigenous Peoples and the significant contributions they have made to our country." - L'honorable Melanie Joly, ministre du Patrimoine canadien "The Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum is extremely honoured to have been selected as a Signature Project in celebration of the 150th anniversary of Canada. Our project Voices from Nunavut will deepen understanding of Nunavut and broaden everyone's concept of what it means to be Canadian in 2017. We also believe this will leave a lasting legacy for youth and community members to learn about their territory." - Gyu Oh, Manager/Curator, Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum "The Nunavut Arts and Crafts Association is thrilled to be a recipient of the Canada 150 Fund! This funding from Canadian Heritage will enable us to celebrate Canada's 150th anniversary in communities across Nunavut - enriching our territory through arts and culture!" - Rowena House, Executive Director, Association des artistes et des artisans du Nunavut "With the support of Canadian Heritage, the Iqaluit Action Lab is thrilled to be working with local partners including Alianait, the Road To Nowhere Pyrotechnics Society, the City of Iqaluit and others to create an unforgettable New Year's Eve celebration to kick off nation-wide Canada 150 events." - Robyn Campbell, Director, Iqaluit Action Lab Quick Facts -- The Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum is a non-profit organization dedicated to showcasing Inuit history, culture and art. -- The Nunavut Arts and Crafts Association promotes the development and growth of Nunavut's arts and crafts sector. -- Iqaluit Action Lab is a new organization mandated to stimulate community development in Iqaluit through community activities and local leadership. -- The Government of Canada's vision for the 150th anniversary of Confederation includes four major themes: diversity and inclusion, reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, the environment and young people. -- The Canada 150 Fund was created in April 2015 and has a budget of $210 million. -- The countdown has begun-there are less than 100 days left until the official start of celebrations for the 150th anniversary of Confederation. -- We invite all Canadians to take part in countdown activities in person and on social media with the hashtag Canada150. Associated Links Canada 150 Canada 150 Fund Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum Nunavut Arts and Crafts Association A version in Inuktitut is available at the following address: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/CM161210%20_Inuktitut.pdf Stay Connected Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Contacts: Pierre-Olivier Herbert Press Secretary Office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage 819-997-7788 Media Relations Canadian Heritage 819-994-9101 1-866-569-6155 pch.media-media.pch@canada.ca WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Donald Trump will reportedly look to rattle Hillary Clinton by inviting two surprise guests to the third and final presidential debate on Wednesday. Numerous media reports said Trump's guests at the debate will include the half-brother of President Barack Obama as well as the mother of a victim of the 2012 attack on U.S. facilities in Benghazi, Libya. Malik Obama, who shares the same father with the president, has expressed support for Trump and has blamed Clinton for making the situation in Libya worse by toppling Moammar Gadhafi. Trump's guest list will also include Patricia Smith, whose son Sean died in the attack in Benghazi and was highly critical of Clinton in a speech at the Republican National Convention in July. The invitations from Trump are seen as part of an effort to get under Clinton's skin in a debate that could be crucial to the real estate tycoon changing the recent momentum of the race for the White House. Meanwhile, Clinton is also reportedly inviting some high-profile guests to the debate, including Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO Meg Whitman and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. Whitman, who ran for Governor of California as a Republican, endorsed Clinton earlier this year and has donated a significant amount of money to her campaign. The outspoken Cuban also attended the first presidential debate and has publicly sparred with Trump, going so far as to call his fellow billionaire 'bats--- crazy.' The final face-to-face matchup between Clinton and Trump will take place at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas beginning at 9 pm ET on Wednesday. (Photo: Michael Vadon) Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de SHANGHAI, CHINA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- West Mountain Environmental Corp. ("WMT" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: WMT), China's leading environmental remediation technology provider, announced today that it has sold its first TPS unit in China to Shanghai Hehui Environmental (Hehui). The value of the contract is approximately $1.2 million. WMT has operated in China since 2012 and has treated over 100,000 tonnes of contaminated soil and oil sludge using TPS technology. TPS' patented indirect thermal desorption technology is recognized in the industry as one of the most efficient and safest technologies for the removal of hazardous contaminants. TPS was one of the first western environmental remediation technologies successfully transferred to China and has been recognized as a Top 100 environmental technology by the Ministry of Environmental Protection 3iPET Program. Beginning in Q2 of this year WMT expanded its contract service business model to include the sale of its technology in China. This sale represents the first time TPS technology has been used as part of a process to treat waste purified terephalic acid (PTA) sludge. PTA is required for the manufacture of polyester fibre, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle resin and polyester film and China is the largest producer of PTA at over 50 million tonnes per year. "We are pleased to be partnering with Hehui in the PTA waste remediation market," says Tim Mahoney, President and CEO, "Hehui is the market leader in providing innovative waste remediation in the PTA market and this sale represents a major opportunity for us to support Hehui's solution to other PTA manufacturers throughout China." "Hehui is a leading provider of innovative waste remediation solutions in China," said Hairong Geng President & CEO of Hehui. "China's commitment to improving the environment has led the PTA industry to look for new, innovative solutions to manage their waste. We identified WMT's TPS technology as a key part of our solution and look forward to building our business together." About West Mountain West Mountain is a publically traded (TSX VENTURE: WMT) and the leading provider of environmental technology to China. Founded in 2004, the company's flagship TPS technology employs a patented indirect thermal, closed loop technology to extract even the most hazardous contaminants from soil and industrial sludge. WMT has been in China since 2010 and is building on the success of TPS in China by aggressively expanding its technology offering by identifying and transferring to China some of the world's most innovative environmental technologies. Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The use of any of the words "expect", "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "objective", "ongoing", "may", "will", "project", "should", "believe", "plans", "intends" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking information or statements. Although West Mountain believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking statements and information are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements and information because West Mountain can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements and information address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof and West Mountain undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts the responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Contacts: West Mountain Environmental Corp. Mr. Timothy Mahoney President and CEO 709 726 5198 info@wmtenv.com www.wmtenv.com CARLSBAD, California and SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The highly anticipated third edition of Biolatam international life science partnering conference will take place in San Juan, Puerto Rico, November 29-30, 2016. The event, produced by EBD Group and ASEBIO in collaboration with Puerto Rico Science, Technology & Research Trust, will bring over 300 life science dealmakers from pharma, biotech and service companies representing US, Latin American and European entities to Puerto Rico. Attendees include executives from innovative biotech companies from across Latin America, representing a variety of speciality areas such as health, agrifood, industrials, plus emerging medical device and digital technology companies. Leaders of industry and academia as well as the investment community representing venture capital firms, private equity, and angels will be part of the event as well. "There is a growing wave of interest in partnerships with Latin American biopharma companies. The success of Biolatam is the response to this interest. The global and regional company executives who attend are eager to connect and gain prime access to this emerging market," said Anna Chrisman, Group Managing Director, EBD Group. "The commitment of the Puerto Rico Government to innovation, and the country's political and legal stability, its rich biodiversity, as well as the economic strength of many biotechnology-dependent sectors such as foodstuffs, cosmetics, and energy, make Puerto Rico an ideal venue to celebrate Biolatam," said Ion Arocena, General Director of ASEBIO. "ASEBIO and EBD Group are working with Latin American partners to promote business development opportunities in this region. Puerto Rico has an excellent geostrategic position and is a gateway to the US, the world's largest biotech market." From dealmaking and alliance management to unique financing opportunities, the Biolatam program is designed to equip decision makers with information on the business opportunities in the Latin American market. Featured speakers at Biolatam 2016 include: Ion Arocena , Managing Director at ASEBIO , Managing Director at ASEBIO Abel Baerga-Ortiz , Director, Center for Tropical Biodiversity and Bioprospecting at Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust , Director, Center for Tropical Biodiversity and Bioprospecting at Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust Rolando Castro , CEO at Cognitiva IBM Watson Strategic Partner CEO at Cognitiva IBM Watson Strategic Partner Gabriela Couto , President at CRBioMed - Costa Rican Biotech and Medical Device Association , President at CRBioMed - Costa Rican Biotech and Medical Device Association Lucy Crespo , CEO at Puerto Rico Science, Technology & Research Trust , CEO at Puerto Rico Science, Technology & Research Trust Carmen Cuevas Marchante , Director, Research and Development at PharmaMar , Director, Research and Development at PharmaMar Kosmas Krestos , Executive Director at Puerto Rico Consortium for Clinical Investigation , Executive Director at Puerto Rico Consortium for Clinical Investigation Ivan Lugo-Montes , Executive Director, INDUNIV Research Consortium , Executive Director, INDUNIV Research Consortium Andrew Sandford , VP, Global Business Development, Biologics, Catalent Biologics Register now to attend Biolatam to gain access to Latin America's exclusive life science partnering event. Additional links and information: Follow Biolatam 2015 on Twitter: @EBDGroup (hashtag: BLT15) and @BIOLATAM. About EBD Group EBD Group is the leading partnering firm for the global life science industry. Since 1993, biotech, pharma and medical device companies have leveraged EBD Group's partnering conferences, technology and services to identify business opportunities and develop strategic relationships essential to their success. EBD Group's conferences are run with the support of leading corporations and international trade associations and include: BIO-Europe and BIO-Europe Spring, Europe's largest life science partnering conferences, supported by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) largest life science partnering conferences, supported by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) BioPharm America', the fastest growing partnering event in North America Biotech Showcase', a unique forum in San Francisco for presenting to investors and business development executives, co-produced with Demy-Colton Life Science Advisors for presenting to investors and business development executives, co-produced with Demy-Colton Life Science Advisors BioEquity Europe, the investor conference co-organized with BioCentury Publications and BIO ChinaBio Partnering Forum, the first dedicated biotech/pharma partnering conference in China , co-produced with ChinaBio Group , co-produced with ChinaBio Group Biolatam, facilitating partnering among global life sciences executives in Latin America's vibrant life science hubs vibrant life science hubs Cell & Gene Exchange, a partnering forum focused on the patient community in cell and gene therapy sectors, co-produced with Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM). EBD Group's sophisticated web-based partnering service, partneringONE, is used as the partnering engine at numerous third-party events around the world, and partnering360 is the open online community of life science dealmakers that enhances partnering experiences throughout the year. Tune into EBD Group's Insight for timely coverage of news that influences the business strategies of the life science industry. EBD Group is an Informa company. Informa is the largest publicly-owned organizer of exhibitions, conferences and training in the world. EBD Group has offices in the USA and Europe. For more information please visit www.ebdgroup.com. LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwired - October 19, 2016) - The comic book series Apama The Undiscovered Animal is the story of a Hungarian ice cream truck driver in Cleveland that discovers the spirit force of the most savage creature mankind has never known. The award winning series written by Ted Sikora and Milo Miller, and illustrated by Benito Gallego received rave reviews and international distribution for its 176 page volume 1 collection. The creative team announced the launch of the next story arc on Kickstarter with a March 2017 release date. The new set introduces a character like no other -- the Tap Dance Killer. "She can act, sing, dance... let's just say she's a quadruple threat. She's a mega-talented performer who is cast in a horror show musical, and then something happens that makes her permanently lock into her role," says Sikora. The idea stemmed from an actual horror show musical from the early 90s titled Nothing Like Vaudeville for which Sikora wrote the story, principal music and lyrics. He explains, "When I was an aspiring composer I was also a comic book nut, so the characters in the show were creepy, vaudeville, comic-book-like villains." The comic will be introducing three villains from the musical including the mob boss, Sir Terror; the creepy wax museum curator, Fletcher; and the mob's star assassin, Tap Dance Killer. The more they thought about Tap Dance Killer the more they realized she could be something special. "For whatever reason, in the comic book industry, there are a low percentage of female African American comic book heroes and villains. Being married to an African American woman and the father of a young girl gave me extra motivation to do something about that," says Sikora. A spinoff Tap Dance Killer comic series is set to debut in the first half of 2017. The new Apama Kickstarter has already raised over $4,000 of its $7,000 campaign goal that ends October 31. The Kickstarter campaign can be accessed at: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/185033634/apama-the-undiscovered-animal-volume-2 Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/10/19/11G118652/Images/Comic-8678694ec6769fc08814d2badb526109.jpg Media Contact: Steve Levesque info@luckmedia.com TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Teranga Gold Corporation ("Teranga" or the "Company") (TSX: TGZ) (ASX: TGZ) announced today that it will release its third quarter 2016 financial and operating results on Friday, October 28, 2016 at approximately 6:00 a.m. ET. The release will be followed by a conference call and audio webcast later that morning at 8:30 a.m. ET. where management will review the Company's results and discuss the quarter's highlights. Those wishing to listen can access the live conference call and audio webcast as follows: Date & Time: Friday, October 28, 2016 at 8:30 a.m. ET Telephone: Toll-free +1- 877- 648-7976 International +1- 617-826-1698 Please allow 10 minutes to be connected to the conference call. Webcast: The webcast can be accessed directly at www.gowebcasting.com/8119 and on Teranga's website at http://www.terangagold.com/. Replay: The conference call replay will be available for two weeks after the call by dialing +1-404-537-3406 or toll-free at +1-855-859-2056 and entering the conference ID 1221492. Note: The slide presentation will be available for download at http://www.terangagold.com/ for simultaneous viewing during the call. About Teranga Gold Teranga is a Canadian-based gold company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: TGZ) and Australian Securities Exchange (ASX: TGZ). Teranga is principally engaged in the production and sale of gold, as well as related activities such as exploration and mine development in West Africa. Teranga's mission is to create value for all of its stakeholders as it pursues its vision to be a pre-eminent mid-tier gold producer in West Africa. Operating in accordance with the highest international standards and using the best available techniques, Teranga strives to set the benchmark for responsible mining and to be a catalyst for sustainable economic, environmental and community development. For more information, please refer to www.terangagold.com. Contacts: Teranga Gold Corporation Trish Moran Head of Investor Relations +1-416-607-4507 tmoran@terangagold.com DEERFIELD (dpa-AFX) - Shares of Rite Aid (RAD) Wednesday slipped on reports that supermarket chain Kroger (KR) are no longer interested to buy stores that Walgreens and Rite Aid need to divest in order to get regulatory approval for their $17 billion merger. A report from New York Post suggest that supermarket chain Kroger is no longer interested in acquiring 650 stores as part of that deal. Walgreens and Rite Aid will have to divest those stores in order to gain anti-trust approval for the deal. Shares of RAD is currently trading at $6.72, down $0.31 or 4.20%, far below Walgreen's $9 per share offer. Kroger's interest in acquiring those stores have waned because Obama's Federal Trade Commission has Kroger that the 650 stores could not be purchased and closed, with the operations moved inside the grocery stores. The FTC is trying to preserve the stand-alone stores,' a source said. 'But Kroger might want to integrate. What happens to Rite Aids it buys that are near Krogers?' NYPost reports citing two sources. In September, Walgreens said that both parties will be required to divest more than the 500 stores in order to expedite regulatory approval process. It was in late October 2015 that drugstore chain Walgreens agreed to acquire smaller drugstore chain Rite Aid for a deal worth about $17.2 billion, including debt. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA and JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Platinum Group Metals Ltd. (TSX: PTM)(NYSE MKT: PLG) ("Platinum Group" or the "Company") announces positive results from an Independent Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") on the Waterberg PGM Project completed by international and South African engineering firm WorleyParsons RSA (Pty) Ltd. trading as Advisian. Platinum Group holds a 58.62% effective interest in the Waterberg Project with the Japan, Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation ("JOGMEC") holding a 28.35% interest. Empowerment partner Mnombo Wethu Consultants (Pty) Ltd. ("Mnombo") holds the balance of the joint venture. JOGMEC funding is in place to advance the project through completion of a Feasibility Study ("FS"). Platinum Group Metals plans to continue drilling the deposit and to advance the project to completion of a FS and a construction decision. The Company also plans to file a mining right application, with Joint Venture approval, based substantially on the results of the PFS. Highlights of the PFS include: -- Validation of the 2014 Waterberg Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") results for a large scale, shallow, decline accessible, mechanized platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold ("4E") mine. -- Annual steady state production rate of 744,000 4E ounces in concentrate. -- A 3.5 year construction period. -- On site life-of-mine average cash cost of US$248 per 4E ounce including by-product credits and exclusive of smelter discounts. -- After-tax Net Present Value ("NPV") of US$320 million, at an 8% discount rate, using three-year trailing average metal prices. -- After-tax NPV of US$507 million, at an 8% discount rate, using investment bank consensus average metal prices. -- Estimated capital to full production of approximately US$1.06 billion including US$67 million in contingencies. Peak project funding estimated at US$914 million. -- After-tax Internal Rate of Return ("IRR") of 13.5% using three-year trailing average price deck. -- After-tax IRR of 16.3% at investment bank consensus average metal prices. -- Probable reserves of 12.3 million 4E ounces. -- Indicated resources updated to 24.9 million 4E ounces (2.5 g/t 4E cut- off) and deposit remains open on strike to the north and below a 1,250 meter arbitrary depth cut-off. R. Michael Jones, CEO and co-founder of Platinum Group said, "The completion of the PFS significantly increases the Company's attributable 4E reserves and is an important milestone for the project and the Company. The PFS has a similar approach, similar peak funding in US dollar terms with increased production, compared to the PEA. Waterberg is designed to be a low cost, multi-decline, fully mechanized, mining complex along an initial 13 km deposit strike length with two 300,000 tonne per month mills built in close sequence. At 744,000 ounces annual steady state production and a modelled 18 year mine life, Waterberg is very large and offers excellent exposure to the essential metals of platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold. Amazingly, the deposit is still open. The PFS covers only the first 218 million tonnes in Indicated resources to date. With the full support of our joint venture partners JOGMEC and Mnombo, we look forward to advancing Waterberg during the remainder of 2016 and 2017 with more drilling, a FS on the initial complex, and the submission of a mining right application. From an original US$20 million commitment by JOGMEC in 2015, approximately US$8 million of further project funding remains to be spent. We are very appreciative of JOGMEC's continued commitment and support. We look forward to growing and advancing Waterberg so that we may fully understand this new part of the Bushveld complex that we and our joint venture partners have discovered. We will work hard to maximize the value of the resource for all stakeholders including shareholders, employees, the Government of South Africa and the local communities." This press release has been prepared by the qualified persons named herein. This press release is qualified in its entirety by reference to the PFS, which is expected to be filed shortly on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and the SEC's EDGAR site at www.sec.gov. Investors should refer to the PFS for further information. SCALE AND PGM INDUSTRY POSITION As a result of the shallow depth, good grades and a fully mechanized mining approach, the Waterberg Project has the opportunity to be a safe mine within the lowest quartile of the industry cost curve. The project resources consist of 60% palladium and the PFS estimates that Waterberg will produce 472,000 ounces of palladium annually; more palladium than the Stillwater Mine produced in 2015, or about 6% of the world's palladium production in 2015. Producing approximately 744,000 4E ounces per year, Waterberg would be one of the largest platinum group metals mine complexes in South Africa based on 2015 production numbers. It is estimated that Waterberg will create approximately 3,361 new primary highly trained jobs with transferable skills. The increased safety, improved working conditions, low costs and decline access for rapid development all provide attractive features compared to traditional platinum and palladium mines in South Africa. The project is in an area prioritized for economic development. Relations with the small rural community in the area have been business like and positive. Total Ounces Produced - Life of Mine: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1073217a.jpg KEY RESULTS Resource Update Additional drilling since the April 2016 Resource Report has updated the resources as follows: --------------------------------------------------------------- T-Zone 2.5 g/t Cut-off --------------------------------------------------------------- Resource Category Cut-off Tonnage Grade ---------- ---------------------------- 4E Pt Pd Au Rh ------------------------------------------------ g/t Mt g/t g/t g/t g/t --------------------------------------------------------------- Indicated 2.5 31.540 1.13 1.90 0.81 0.04 --------------------------------------------------------------- Inferred 2.5 19.917 1.10 1.86 0.80 0.03 --------------------------------------------------------------- F-Zone 2.5 g/t Cut-off --------------------------------------------------------------- Resource Category Cut-off Tonnage Grade ---------- ---------------------------- 4E Pt Pd Au Rh ------------------------------------------------ g/t Mt g/t g/t g/t g/t --------------------------------------------------------------- Indicated 2.5 186.725 1.05 2.23 0.17 0.04 --------------------------------------------------------------- Inferred 2.5 77.295 1.01 2.16 0.17 0.03 --------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------ T-Zone 2.5 g/t Cut-off ------------------------------------------------------------------ Resource Category Cut-off Grade Metal --------------------------------------------------- 4E 4E Cu Ni 4E --------------------------------------------------- g/t g/t % % Kg Moz ------------------------------------------------------------------ Indicated 2.5 3.88 0.16 0.08 122,375 3.934 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Inferred 2.5 3.79 0.16 0.08 75,485 2.427 ------------------------------------------------------------------ F-Zone 2.5 g/t Cut-off ------------------------------------------------------------------ Resource Category Cut-off Grade Metal --------------------------------------------------- 4E 4E Cu Ni 4E --------------------------------------------------- g/t g/t % % Kg Moz ------------------------------------------------------------------ Indicated 2.5 3.49 0.07 0.16 651,670 20.952 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Inferred 2.5 3.37 0.04 0.12 260,484 8.375 ------------------------------------------------------------------ The Total Mineral Resource is summarized below: --------------------------------------------------------- Waterberg Total 2.5 g/t Cut-off --------------------------------------------------------- Resource Category Cut-off Tonnage Grade --------- ------------------------ 4E Pt Pd Au Rh ------------------------------------------ g/t Mt g/t g/t g/t g/t --------------------------------------------------------- Indicated 2.5 218.265 1.06 2.18 0.26 0.04 --------------------------------------------------------- Inferred 2.5 97.212 1.03 2.10 0.30 0.03 --------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------- Waterberg Total 2.5 g/t Cut-off --------------------------------------------------- Resource Category Grade Metal ------------------------------------ 4E Cu Ni 4E ------------------------------------ g/t % % Kg Moz --------------------------------------------------- Indicated 3.55 0.08 0.15 774,045 24.886 --------------------------------------------------- Inferred 3.46 0.06 0.11 335,969 10.802 --------------------------------------------------- 4E = Platinum Group Elements (Pt+Pd+Rh+Au). The cut-offs for mineral resources have been established by a qualified person after a review of potential operating costs and other factors. The mineral resources stated above are shown on a 100% basis, that is, for the Waterberg Project as a whole entity. Conversion Factor used - kg to oz = 32.15076. Numbers may not add due to rounding. Resources do not have demonstrated economic viability. A 5% and 7% geological loss has been applied to the Indicated and Inferred categories respectively. Effective Date Oct 17, 2016. Metal prices used in the reserve estimate are as follows based on a 3-year trailing average (as at July 31/2016) in accordance with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") guidance for the assessment of resources; US$1,212/oz Pt, US$710/oz Pd, US$1229/oz Au, US$984/oz Rh, US$6.10/lb Ni, US$2.56/lb Cu, US$/ZAR15. Total aggregate mineral resources at Waterberg on a 100% project basis have increased slightly since those reported in April 2016. Inferred category resources have decreased to an estimated 10.8 million 4E ounces from 11.71 million ounces 4E Inferred in April, 2016. Indicated category resources have increased to an estimated 24.9 million 4E ounces, from 23.9 million 4E ounces Indicated in April 2016: 1. The mineral resources are classified in accordance with the SAMREC standards. There are certain differences with the "CIM Standards on Mineral Resources and Reserves"; however, in this case the QP believes the differences are not material and the standards may be considered the same. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability and Inferred resources have a high degree of uncertainty. 2. The mineral resources are provided on a 100% project basis and Inferred and Indicated categories are separate and the estimates have an effective date of 17 October 2016. 3. A cut-off grade of 2.5 g/t 4E for both the T and the F-Zones is applied to the selected base case mineral resources. 4. Cut off for the T and the F-Zones considered costs, smelter discounts, concentrator recoveries from previous engineering work completed on the property by the Company. The resource model was cut-off at an arbitrary depth of 1,250 meters, although intercepts of the deposit do occur below this depth. 5. Mineral resources were completed by Mr. CJ Muller of CJM Consulting. 6. Mineral resources were estimated using kriging methods for geological domains created in Datamine from 303 original holes and 483 deflections. A process of geological modelling and creation of grade shells using indicating kriging was completed in the estimation process. 7. The estimation of mineral resources has taken into account environmental, permitting and legal, title, and taxation, socio- economic, marketing and political factors. 8. The mineral resources may be materially affected by metals prices, exchange rates, labor costs, electricity supply issues or many other factors detailed in the Company's Annual Information Form. 9. The data that formed the basis of the estimate are the drill holes drilled by Platinum Group, which consist of geological logs, the drill hole collars surveys, the downhole surveys and the assay data. The area where each layer was present was delineated after examination of the intersections in the various drill holes. 10. There is no guarantee that all or any part of the mineral resource not included in the current reserves will be upgraded and converted to a mineral reserve. Reserves Reserves are stated on a 100% Project Basis. Reserves are a subset of the Indicated resources and the mine plan was developed from the October 2016 resource model above and includes mine modifying factors such as geological losses, dilution, development overbreak, mine design factors, in stope losses and the extraction ratio from the mining methods applied to the T and F-Zones. The independent Qualified Person for the Statement of Reserves is Mr. RL Goosen (WorleyParsons RSA (Pty) Ltd Trading as Advisian). The table below shows the prill splits, which are calculated using the individual metal grades reported as a percentage of the total 4E grade. There are no Inferred mineral resources included in the reserves. Prill Splits ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Prill Split Grade ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Zone Pt Pd Au Rh Cu Ni ------------------------------------------------------------ % % % % % % ---------------------------------------------------------------------- T-Zone 29 49 21 1 0.16 0.08 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- F-Zone 30 64 5 1 0.07 0.16 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Probable Mineral Reserve at 2.5 g/t 4E Cut-off- Tonnage and Grades ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Waterberg Probable Mineral Reserve - Tonnage and Grades ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cut-off grade Pt Pd Au Rh 4E Cu Ni Zone Mt (g/t) (g/t) (g/t) (g/t) (g/t) (g/t) (%) (%) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- T-Zone 16.5 2.5 1.14 1.93 0.83 0.04 3.94 0.16 0.08 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- F-Zone 86.2 2.5 1.11 2.36 0.18 0.04 3.69 0.07 0.16 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total 102.7 2.5 1.11 2.29 0.29 0.04 3.73 0.08 0.15 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Probable Mineral Reserve at 2.5 g/t 4E Cut-off- Contained Metal ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Waterberg Probable Mineral Reserve - Contained Metal ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4E Pt Pd Au Rh 4E content Cu Ni Zone Mt (Moz) (Moz) (Moz) (Moz) (Moz) (kg) (Mlb) (Mlb) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- T-Zone 16.5 0.61 1.03 0.44 0.02 2.09 65,097 58.21 29.10 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- F-Zone 86.2 3.07 6.54 0.51 0.10 10.22 318,007 132.97 303.94 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total 102.7 3.67 7.57 0.95 0.12 12.32 383,103 191.18 333.04 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reasonable prospects of economic extraction were determined with the following assumptions: Metal prices used in the reserve estimate are as follows based on a 3-year trailing average (as at July 31/2016) in accordance with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") guidance for the assessment of resources and reserves; US$1,212/oz Pt, US$710/oz Pd, US$1229/oz Au, US$984/oz Rh, US$6.10/lb Ni, US$2.56/lb Cu, US$/ZAR15. Smelter payability of 85% was estimated for 4E and 73% for Cu and 68% for Ni. The effective date is October 17, 2016. A 2.5 g/t Cut-off was used and checked against a pay-limit calculation. Independent Qualified Person for the Statement of Reserves is Mr. RL Goosen (WorleyParsons RSA (Pty) Ltd Trading as Advisian). The mineral reserves may be materially affected by changes in metals prices, exchange rates, labor costs, electricity supply issues or many other factors. See Risk Factors in 43-101 report on www.sedar.com and the Company's Annual Information Form. The reserves are estimated under SAMREC with no material difference to the CIM 2014 definitions in this case. The estimation of mineral reserves has taken into account environmental, permitting and legal, title, taxation, socio-economic, marketing and political factors. Based on the cut-off grade and a maximum depth cut-off of 1,250 meters the Probable reserve will support an 18 year mine life. PROJECT PFS RESULTS The PFS results validate the PEA with similar capital costs in USD, increased production profile (from 655,000 3E ounces/yr PEA to 744,000/yr 4E ounces PFS) and an increase in sustaining capital. Optimization of the mine plan and working on reducing underground sustaining development capital will be part of the upcoming Feasibility Study. PROJECT MODEL TIMELINE The project time line includes a construction decision following the completion of a FS and first production 3 years later. Under the PFS model, first production is estimated as mid-2021, if the FS is completed at the end of 2017 and a mining right and other permits are granted as planned. Final reef tonnes are scheduled to be mined in 2038. CAPITAL COSTS Capital costs to full production and peak funding of the project are estimated in Rand 2016 terms. Peak Funding is estimated at US$914 million. The costs are estimated in USD at 15R/1USD with a flat exchange rate. Escalation of costs in Rand terms are estimated to be mostly offset over time by future Rand devaluation. TOTAL CAPITAL ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To Full Sustaining To Full Sustaining Facility Facility Production Capital Production Capital Code Description ZAR (M) ZAR (M) USD (M) USD (M) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2000 Underground 6,092 9,766 406 651 Mining ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3000 Concentrator 2,850 159 190 11 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4000 Shared Services 1,063 43 71 03 & Infrastructure ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5000 Regional 2,566 0 171 0 Infrastructure ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6000 Site Support 691 67 46 04 Services ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7000 Project 1,399 147 93 10 Delivery Management ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8000 Other 246 83 16 06 Capitalised Costs ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9000 Contingency 999 1,202 67 80 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total Capital 15,906 11,468 1,060 765 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The estimates for the scope of work, within the given battery limits, and subject to the qualifications, assumptions and exclusions contained in the PFS, are considered to be within the accuracy range required for a PFS of +25%. Monte Carlo simulation was used to provide a 12% contingency that was used in the estimates. Waterberg 2016 PFS Results Details --------------------------------------------- Item Units Total --------------------------------------------- Mined and Processed Mtpa 7.20 --------------------------------------------- Platinum g/t 1.11 --------------------------------------------- Palladium g/t 2.29 --------------------------------------------- Gold g/t 0.29 --------------------------------------------- Rhodium g/t 0.04 --------------------------------------------- 4E g/t 3.73 --------------------------------------------- Copper % 0.08 --------------------------------------------- Nickel % 0.15 --------------------------------------------- Recoveries --------------------------------------------- Platinum % 82.5% --------------------------------------------- Palladium % 83.2% --------------------------------------------- Gold % 75.3% --------------------------------------------- Rhodium % 59.4% --------------------------------------------- 4E % 82.1% --------------------------------------------- Copper % 87.9% --------------------------------------------- Nickel % 48.8% --------------------------------------------- Produced in Concentrate --------------------------------------------- Concentrate ktpa 285 --------------------------------------------- Platinum g/t 24.2 --------------------------------------------- Palladium g/t 51.5 --------------------------------------------- Gold g/t 4.9 --------------------------------------------- Rhodium g/t 0.6 --------------------------------------------- 4E g/t 81 --------------------------------------------- Copper % 1.9 --------------------------------------------- Nickel % 1.8 --------------------------------------------- Recovered Metal in Concentrate --------------------------------------------- Platinum kozpa 222 --------------------------------------------- Palladium kozpa 472 --------------------------------------------- Gold kozpa 45 --------------------------------------------- Rhodium kozpa 6 --------------------------------------------- 4E kozpa 744 --------------------------------------------- Copper Mlbpa 11 --------------------------------------------- Nickel Mlbpa 12 --------------------------------------------- KEY ASSUMPTIONS Economic Assumptions ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Investment 3 Year Bank Trailing Consensus Parameter Unit Average Price ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Platinum Palladium USD/oz 1,212 1,213 Gold USD/oz 710 800 Rhodium USD/oz 1,229 1,300 T and F Combined Basket USD/oz 984 1,000 (4E) USD/oz 899 960 Nickel USD/lb 6.10 7.50 Copper USD/lb 2.56 2.90 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Base Metals Refining Charge % Gross Sales Pay 85% Copper Refining Charge % Gross Sales Pay 73% Nickel Refinery Charge % Gross Sales Pay 68% ------------------------------------------------------------- FINANCIAL RESULTS Average Life of Mine ("LOM") Operating Cost Rates and Totals per Area in ZAR and USD ------------------------------------------------------------ Average LOM Total LOM Average LOM Total LOM (ZAR/t) (ZAR M) (USD/t) (USD M) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mining R 271.90 R 27,915 $ 18.13 $ 1,861 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Engineering & Infrastructure R 107.49 R 11,036 $ 7.17 $ 736 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- General & Admin R 40.71 R 4,180 $ 2.71 $ 279 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Process R 154.52 R 15,864 $ 10.30 $ 1,058 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total OPEX Cost R 574.62 R 58,994 $ 38.31 $ 3,933 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4E Cash Costs before and after Credits and Costs ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Item US$/oz 4E in Concentrate ------------------------------------------------ Life-of-Mine 5-Year Average 10-Year Average Average 2022 - 2026 2022 - 2031 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mine Site Cash Cost 389 390 374 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nickel Credits 98 97 98 Copper Credits 42 40 40 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total Mine Cash Costs After Credits 248 253 236 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Realisation cost (smelter "cost", transport) 232 224 231 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total Cash Costs After Credits 481 477 467 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Financial Results Three Year Trailing Average Price Deck 15R/1USD Flat ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Discount ZAR Millions ZAR Millions USD Millions USD Millions Item Rate (Before Tax) (After Tax) (Before Tax) (After Tax) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Net Present Undiscounted 36,096 25,042 2,406 1,669 Value 4.0% 18,213 11,883 1,214 792 6.0% 12,666 7,808 844 520 8.0% 8,565 4,805 571 320 10.0% 5,519 2,584 368 172 12.0% 3,249 939 217 62 14.0% 1,555 -278 104 -19 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Internal Rate of Return Project Payback Period 16.6% 13.5% 16.6% 13.5% (Years) from 2017 10 10 10 10 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Investment Bank Consensus Price Deck ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Discount Before Tax After Tax Before Tax After Tax Item Rate (ZAR M) (ZAR M) (USD M) (USD M) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Net Present Undiscounted 45,781 31,946 3,052 2,130 Value 4.0% 24,180 16,184 1,612 1,079 6.0% 17,426 11,263 1,162 750 8.0% 12,402 7,610 827 507 10.0% 8,641 4,884 576 325 12.0% 5,812 2,842 387 189 14.0% 3,676 1,311 245 87 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Internal Rate of Return Project Payback Period 19.8% 16.3% 19.8% 16.3% (Years) from 2017 9 9 9 9 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sensitivity Analysis - Post Tax Three Year Trailing Average Price Deck 15R/1USD Flat ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Change in Change in Change in Change in Change in Parameter Parameter Parameter Parameter Parameter Parameter ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Metal Prices -20% -10% 0% 10% 20% IRR (post-tax) 5% 10% 13.5% 17% 20% NPV (8% Discount) (R000) -2,467 1,211 4,805 8,344 11,854 NPV (8% Discount) ($000) -164 67 320 556 790 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Head Grade -20% -10% 0% 10% 20% IRR (post-tax) 6% 10% 13.5% 16% 19% NPV (8% Discount) (R000) -1,513 1,562 4,805 7,562 10,505 NPV (8% Discount) ($000) -101 104 320 504 700 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Capex -20% -10% 0% 10% 20% IRR (post-tax) 17% 15% 13.5% 12% 10% NPV (8% Discount) (R000) 8,161 6,484 4,805 3,109 1,395 NPV (8% Discount) ($000) 544 432 320 207 93 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Opex -20% -10% 0% 10% 20% IRR (post-tax) 18% 16% 13.5% 12% 10% NPV (8% Discount) (R000) 7,435 6,121 4,805 3,246 2,124 NPV (8% Discount) ($000) 496 408 320 216 142 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGY The immediate next steps for the Waterberg Project are the development of a mining right application and working towards a FS. The PFS specifies that the project will utilize an EPCM contractor and a mining contractor for the development of the mine, overseen by an experienced in-house Platinum Group owners' team. Initial development is planned with contractors with a later takeover for mining by an owners' team. Equipment operators will be trained at an existing MQA certified training center developed and owned by Platinum Group. PLANNED MINING METHODS The mining blocks of the Waterberg deposits occur at depths from 140 meters to 1,250 meters along 8,000 meters of strike length of reserves. The deposit is known from drill intercepts to continue below 1,250 meters and to extend for over 13,000 meters of strike length. Access to the mining complex is planned by three decline ramp clusters. Decline ramps have advantages over vertical shafts in terms of capital cost, and importantly, time. Declines to the depths of the top of the Waterberg deposit can be developed over 24-36 months whereas vertical shafts, shaft infrastructure and equipping can take six to seven years. Mining will be completed by safe, efficient fully mechanized methods and the dip and thickness of the zones are driving the mining method selection. A fleet of approximately 400 trackless machines including drill rigs, loaders, dump trucks and other trackless machines will be used for mining and development. A minimum mining width has been set at three meters so that all mining can be fully mechanized, safe and efficient. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vertical Mining Dip of Mining Method Height the Reef Key Advantages ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blind Longitudinal 3 - 15m less than or On reef development. Good Retreat equal to 35 grade, extraction. degrees ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sub-level Open 3 - 15m greater than 35 On reef development. Good Stoping - degrees extraction. Bulk and low Longitudinal cost. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sub-level Open greater than greater than 35 Bulk method. High Stoping - 15m degrees efficiency, large Transverse tonnage, good extraction, ultra-low cost. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Portal and Underground Layouts (October 17, 2016): http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1073217b.jpg The mine utilizes a large supply of new mechanized trackless mobile equipment for mining and feed ore onto large conveyors from underground to the processing plant. The mine will rely on both the T and the F reef from more than one portal to make the tonnage profile steady state of 600,000 tonnes per month. METALLURGICAL RECOVERY AND PROCESSING The flotation test work indicated that the Waterberg ores are amenable to treatment by conventional flotation without the need for re-grinding. A standard flotation concentrator can be used to produce a saleable concentrate, at a 4E grade of no less than 80 g/t, with no deleterious products. A 4E recovery rate in excess of 80% is expected at the proposed mill feed grades. Metallurgical test work on the Waterberg ores by SGS, Mintek and DRA has focused on recovery of 4E platinum group elements and copper-nickel sulphides with the objective of producing a high grade concentrate attractive for smelting in South Africa. The processing plant is designed in two 300,000 tonne/month Mill-Float in two cycles "MF-2" standard platinum industry modules for ramp-up and operational flexibility. A JOGMEC reagent circuit with some opportunity for increased recovery has also been tested. The plant modules are designed to accept T reef, F reef or a blended combination. The ore types can be co-mingled without negatively affecting recoveries. INFRASTRUCTURE The main infrastructure requirements for the Waterberg Project are access roads, tailings storage, water management, power supply and process plant to service and treat the targeted mine production. The Waterberg Project is situated in a remote area and will require approximately 32 km of existing unpaved roads to be surfaced. BULK WATER SUPPLY A combination of sewage effluent together with groundwater is considered the most viable solution to meet the proposed mining schedule. Several available options were considered including a pipeline to be developed for several users to the south, including for other proposed and active mines. This option was not chosen as it is considered to have greater risk due to the large number of parties involved. Sufficient water sources for the project were identified and early discussions for the preferred arrangements were positive. BULK POWER SUPPLY The updated electricity supply plan compiled by Eskom provides for the establishment of two 77 km long 132kV overhead lines from the Eskom Burotho 400/132kV main transmission substation. The development of the abovementioned infrastructure will be done in conjunction with Eskom on a self-build basis and this work is already in an advanced stage including the application for permits for the proposed power line. METALS MARKETS AND OFFTAKE The Waterberg Project will produce a flotation concentrate from the processing plant which is assumed to be sold or toll treated into the local South African market. Production of up to 285,000 tonnes of concentrate per annum will be available at peak production. The concentrate will contain approximately 80 g/t 4E's plus copper at between 1% and 9.2% and nickel at between 1.1% and 5% copper. The concentrate does not contain any penalty elements such as chrome and is rich in sulphur, thus making it a desirable concentrate to blend with other high chrome concentrates. No formal marketing studies have been conducted for this study nor have the local smelter and refinery operators been formally contacted to understand the appetite in the local industry to treat the concentrate to be produced from the project. Informal indications from smelters are that the concentrate is attractive. Based on the large volume of concentrate and the significantly lower operating cost of the metal without the smelter discount, the consideration of production of an onsite smelter matte or combination with other Northern Limb material for further critical mass is recommended. The company will consider this recommendation with its partners JOGMEC and Mnombo. LABOUR, SOCIAL AND PERMITTING The Waterberg Project will create safe long term jobs with transferable mechanized equipment operations skills for a large part of the work force. The increased safety and ability to create good paying well trained jobs is an attractive community benefit. The social license to operate has been a focus of the company with ongoing positive meetings and interactions. The next stage of the project will involve the development of a Social and Labour Plan as part of the mining right application. The project involves normal measures for the protection of the environment similar to other platinum mining operations. 2016 AND 2017 PROGRAMS FUNDED During 2015, JOGMEC committed to fund US$20 million of project work at Waterberg. Approximately US$8 million of that commitment remains to be completed and will fund 100% of the costs for the balance of 2016 and into 2017. QUALIFIED PERSONS The following Qualified Persons have completed work in preparation of the PFS and are responsible for the contents: -- Independent Engineering Qualified Person: Mr. Robert L Goosen (B.Eng. (Mining Engineering)) Pr. Eng. (ECSA) Advisian/WorleyParsons Group -- Independent Geological Qualified Person: Mr. Charles J Muller (B.Sc. (Hons) Geology) Pr. Sci. Nat. CJM Consulting (Pty) Ltd -- Independent Engineering Qualified Person: Mr. Gordon I. Cunningham B. Eng. (Chemical), Pr. Eng. (ECSA), Professional association to FSAIMM Turnberry Projects (Pty) Ltd. This press release has been reviewed and approved by R. Michael Jones, P.Eng., a non-independent Qualified Person and the CEO of the Company. He has verified the technical information for disclosure in this press release by reviewing the work of the QPs on a test basis, visiting the site and meeting with the project QPs through the development of the PFS. DATA VERIFICATION, QUALITY ASSURANCE AND CONTROL Scientific and Technical Information in this Press Release related to mineral resources has been reviewed and approved by Charles J Muller, (BScHons) Pr Sci Nat (Reg. No 400201/04), an independent consulting geologist and resource estimator of CJM Consulting, an independent qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 -Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"). He has verified the data by reviewing the detailed assay and geological information and metallurgical work on the Waterberg deposit. He is satisfied that the data is appropriate for the resource estimate by reviewing the core, assay certificates and quality control information as well as reviewing the procedures on sampling, chain of custody and data base records of the Platinum Group exploration team. Base metals and other major elements were determined by multi acid digestion with Inductively Coupled Plasma ("ICP") finish and PGEs were determined by conventional fire assay and ICP finish. Setpoint Laboratories is an experienced ISO 17025 SANAS accredited laboratory in assaying and have utilized a standard quality control system including the use of standards. Bureau Veritas South Africa and Genalysis of Australia with similar standards and approaches have been used for assays and umpire checks. Platinum Group utilized a well-documented system of inserting blanks and standards into the assay stream and has a strict chain of custody and independent lab re-check system for quality control. Details are available in the NI 43 101 reports on the project at www.sedar.com and www.platinumgroupmetals.net. The independent QPs for the PFS (CJ Muller, GI Cunningham and RL Goosen) have visited the Waterberg property for personal inspection during 2016. Mr. RL Goosen last visited the site on 13 October 2016, Mr. GI Cunningham on 13 October 2016 and Mr. CJ Muller on 29 March 2016. They all have undertaken due diligence with respect to the PTM data. Other than as specified below they jointly take responsibility for the report. -- Charles J Muller - Geology and Mineral Resource Estimation -- Robert L Goosen - Reserve Estimation, Mining and Infrastructure -- Gordon I Cunningham - Metallurgy, Metals Markets, Offtake, Capital cost and financial model The QPs have verified the data sufficiently for the reporting of resources, reserves and this Pre-Feasibility Study. The QPs have reviewed and approved their relevant section of this press release. OPPORTUNITIES -- The company plans to work towards optimization of the mine plan, development plan and waste development plan for ventilation with the objective of reducing sustaining capital in the FS stage. -- Further drilling will be completed with the objective to upgrade some of the resources and the deposit remains open. A longer mine life will also be targeted in the high grade T reef areas. High grade thickness areas in the F reef will also receive targeted drilling with the objective of increasing definition for the FS mine plan. -- Further metallurgical work will be completed in the FS including the potential for increased recoveries using the JOGMEC circuit. -- The Waterberg concentrate is attractive for smelting and is of large strategic scale importance to the industry. RISKS -- The project at a PFS stage has all of the normal mining projects risks including but not limited to, estimation risk for the resources and reserves, recovery risks, capital cost and operating cost estimation risks, permitting and community and surface rights access risk. -- Government regulation stability and amendments of the fiscal regime is an additional risk. -- Waterberg is a large green-fields project and final off-take of the proposed metal is yet to be negotiated for a large volume of concentrate. ABOUT PLATINUM GROUP METALS LTD. Platinum Group, based in Johannesburg, South Africa and Vancouver, Canada, has a successful track record with more than 20 years of experience in exploration, mine discovery, mine construction and mine operations. Formed in 2002, Platinum Group holds significant mineral rights in the Bushveld Igneous Complex of South Africa, which is host to over 70% of the world's primary platinum production. The Company is currently focused on ramping up the Maseve Mine, its first near-surface platinum mine, to commercial production. Platinum Group has expanded its exploration and development efforts on the North Limb of the Bushveld Complex on the Waterberg Project. Waterberg represents a new bulk type of platinum, palladium and gold deposit. On behalf of the Board of Platinum Group Metals Ltd. "R. Michael Jones" President and CEO Disclosure The Toronto Stock Exchange and the NYSE MKT LLC have not reviewed and do not accept responsibility for the accuracy or adequacy of this news release, which has been prepared by management. This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws and forward-looking statements within the meaning of U.S. securities laws (collectively "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, plans, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. All statements that are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, without limitation, the projections and assumptions relating to future events that are contained in the PFS, including, without limitation NPV, IRR, costs, potential production of the Waterberg Project and other operational and economic projections with respect to the Waterberg Project; future activities at Waterberg and the funding of such activities; trends in metal prices; potential future market conditions; the Company's overall capital requirements and future capital raising activities, plans and estimates regarding exploration, studies, development, construction and production on the Company's properties, other economic projections and the Company's outlook. Statements of mineral resources and mineral reserves also constitute forward-looking statements to the extent they represent estimates of mineralization that will be encountered on a property and/or estimates regarding future costs, revenues and other matters. Although the Company believes the forward-looking statements in this press release are reasonable, it can give no assurance that the expectations and assumptions in such statements will prove to be correct. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements by the Company are not guarantees of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including; the Company's capital requirements may exceed its current expectations; the uncertainty of cost, operational and economic projections; the ability of the Company to negotiate and complete future funding transactions; variations in market conditions; the nature, quality and quantity of any mineral deposits that may be located; metal prices; other prices and costs; currency exchange rates; the Company's ability to obtain any necessary permits, consents or authorizations required for its activities; the Company's ability to produce minerals from its properties successfully or profitably, to continue its projected growth, or to be fully able to implement its business strategies; and other risk factors described in the Company's shelf prospectus and registration statement, Form 40-F annual report, annual information form and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and Canadian securities regulators, which may be viewed at www.sec.gov and www.sedar.com, respectively. This press release also includes a reference to mineral resources and mineral reserves. The estimation of resources and reserves is inherently uncertain and involves judgement. Mineral resources that are not reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Judgements associated with geology, tonnage grades in place and that can be mined may prove to be unreliable and inaccurate. Fluctuations in metals prices, exchange rates, labour costs and government regulations among other things may materially affect resources and reserves. The company does not yet have a right to mine the reported resources and reserves and there can be no assurance that the company will convert its prospecting permits to a mining right. Cautionary Note to U.S. and other Investors Estimates of mineralization and other technical information included or referenced in this press release have been prepared in accordance with NI 43-101. The definitions of proven and probable reserves used in NI 43-101 differ from the definitions in SEC Industry Guide 7. Under SEC Industry Guide 7 standards, a "final" or "bankable" feasibility study is required to report reserves, the three-year historical average price is used in any reserve or cash flow analysis to designate reserves and the primary environmental analysis or report must be filed with the appropriate governmental authority. As a result, the reserves reported by the Company in accordance with NI 43-101 may not qualify as "reserves" under SEC standards. In addition, the terms "mineral resource", "measured mineral resource", "indicated mineral resource" and "inferred mineral resource" are defined in and required to be disclosed by NI 43-101; however, these terms are not defined terms under SEC Industry Guide 7 and normally are not permitted to be used in reports and registration statements filed with the SEC. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of the mineral deposits in these categories will ever be converted into reserves. "inferred mineral resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence, and great uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian securities laws, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, except in rare cases. Additionally, disclosure of "contained ounces" in a resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian securities laws; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute "reserves" by SEC standards as in place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measurements. Accordingly, information contained or referenced in this press release containing descriptions of the Company's mineral deposits may not be comparable to similar information made public by U.S. companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. Contacts: R. Michael Jones, President or Kris Begic, VP Corporate Development Platinum Group Metals Ltd., Vancouver Tel: (604) 899-5450 / Toll Free: (866) 899-5450 www.platinumgroupmetals.net BRIDGEWATER, NOVA SCOTIA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Silver Spruce Resources Inc. (TSX VENTURE: SSE)(FRANKFURT: S6Q) ("Silver Spruce" or the "Company") is pleased to provide updates on the progress to conduct the first drill program at its Pino de Plata project. The 397 hectare (Ha) project is located in the Sierra Madre Occidental of Western Chihuahua State, Mexico, approximately 15 kilometres from Coeur Mining's Palmarejo silver project and approximately 12 kilometres due south of the town of Chinipas, Chihuahua State, Mexico. The following actions have been accomplished to date: -- Drill hole locations have been pinpointed and marked on site, -- Drilling company bids were received and analyzed; selected company formal contract to be executed, -- Environmental engineers have toured the site and completed necessary field work required to submit "Informe Preventivo", environmental declaration for any impact resulting from the drill program, -- Second semester 2016 "derechos" (mining taxes) have been paid in full. "Although we are anxious to commence drilling at Pino de Plata, we are also pleased with the progress being made to prudently initiate serious exploration efforts while minimizing or eliminating any potential environmental and permitting liabilities in the future," stated Dr. Brian Penney, Chairman. "We are taking proactive steps now to ensure that safe and efficient exploration and development programs can be conducted without interference or unanticipated regulatory delays." Drill Hole Locations As previously reported in August, Mr. Leonard J. Karr, professional geologist and a Qualified Person, under TSX guidelines, led the field team to successfully pinpoint the proposed drill hole locations and map the new road access for the upcoming maiden drill program at the project. The team also completed onsite tours with representatives of three drilling companies that are submitting bids for the drilling contract. This first ever drill program at the project is based on recommendations contained in the NI 43-101 report, which is available on our website at www.silverspruceresources.com and is filed on www.sedar.com. Drilling Company Selected In September, three formal bids were received from the drill companies that toured the project in August. The selection process identified Major Drilling de Mexico as the preferred drilling contractor to efficiently conduct the 1,000-1,500 metre reverse circulation program. The selection was based on favorable pricing and reduced footprint requirements for drilling equipment and new pad construction. Drilling will commence upon receipt of required approvals. Environmental Declaration Statement Also in September, State and Federally certified environmental engineers toured the project site to analyze the flora and fauna for existence of endangered species and to assess the impact of the proposed drill program. Although Company representatives were initially advised that an Informe Preventivo was not required on private property, recent changes to the environmental protection laws in Mexico now make this a required filing. The completed Informe Preventivo declaration will be filed with the appropriate state and federal authorities upon its completion, after which the drill program may commence. Additional Opportunities Examined In late September and early October, Company representatives also conducted several field examinations at submittal projects in the surrounding areas to investigate additional opportunities for Silver Spruce in this prolifically mineralized and underexplored region of the Sierra Madre Occidental. Assays of samples taken at these submittal projects are in process, and any significant results will be analyzed in their geologic context to determine if the said projects warrant additional interest by the Company. About Pino de Plata The 397 hectare Pino de Plata Ag-Pb-Zn-Cu-Au project is located approximately fifteen kilometres from Coeur Mining Inc.'s Palmarejo open pit and underground operations. Although the Pino de Plata project has supported small scale historical production of high-grade mineralization from numerous areas, it had never been systematically explored and has had no drilling. Ninety-two samples were taken during the NI 43-101 field examination and show the examined project area to host widespread intrusive epithermal mineralization at surface with silver values, on average, of greater than 50 grams per tonne (g/t), that is 1.6 ounces per tonne (opt), over an area of more than 1 square km (greater than 100 Ha). Within the area examined, specific targets were sampled with silver (Ag) assays of up to 557 g/t or 17.9 opt in outcrop. Three types of mineralization were identified in the maiden NI 43-101 report: disseminated epithermal mineralization in igneous (intrusive) rock, carbonate replacement mineralization in sedimentary limestone/marble and sandstone/hornfels and several areas of significant outcropping vein mineralization. Each of the host areas identified in the 43-101 technical report provide immediate drill targets with open pit potential. The Company intends to initiate a 1,000 - 1,500 metre reverse circulation drill program to test these defined targets where high grades of mineralization were sampled at surface. Qualified Person Mr. Leonard J. Karr, professional geologist and a Qualified Person, under TSX guidelines, is the author of the Company's NI 43-101 report on the Pino de Plata project, dated 7 July 2015, and is responsible for the technical content of this press release. About Silver Spruce Resources Inc. Silver Spruce Resources Inc. is a well-positioned Canadian junior exploration company pursuing development of the Pino de Plata epithermal silver/ base metal/ gold project located in the prolific Sierra Madre Occidental region of Western Chihuahua State in Mexico. The company has recently completed an exploration assessment on the property. Silver Spruce also retains a portfolio of uranium and rare earth element properties in Labrador. 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. The company seeks Safe Harbour. Contacts: Silver Spruce Resources Inc. Gordon Barnhill CFO/Director 902-527-5700 902-527-5711 (FAX) gbarnhill@silverspruceresources.com www.silverspruceresources.com ATLANTA, GA and PHOENIX, AZ -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Valley Metro, the regional provider of bus, rail, vanpool and Dial-a-Ride services, received a $1 million Mobility on Demand (MOD) project grant from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to develop a mobile app that will integrate mobile ticketing and multi-modal trip planning information. The agency is partnering with RouteMatch Software, a transit industry technology provider, as well as Arizona State University (ASU), Lyft and the City of Phoenix Public Transit Department to create the passenger-based app. RouteMatch is serving as a key partner to both co-develop and contribute in-kind technologies for the creation of the platform. Included in this are beacon technologies for Valley Metro's light rail and bus systems and on demand paratransit trip management technologies to facilitate mobility among riders with disabilities, especially among the visually and hearing impaired. The city of Phoenix Department of Transportation will provide the core data for vehicles, routes, and fare collection. ASU will assist with beta testing of the mobile app, as well as providing overall input. Transportation network companies will additionally participate, providing "first mile, last mile" connections from transit hubs to riders' final destinations. "It's exciting to receive a nationally-competitive grant, which serves as seed money to build upon our Ridekick app that can eventually be shared with transit agencies across the U.S.," said Scott Smith, Valley Metro Interim CEO. "Alongside our mobility platform partners, we'll be adding features such as real-time information, fare purchasing and an optimized trip planner." Valley Metro will use an open data platform design to allow other public transportation agencies to use the application, adjusting it to meet the needs of their respective service areas. Seeking to bridge the gap between public transportation systems and app-based transportation companies (e.g. Lyft, Uber), the mobile app will create a seamless and efficient travel experience for riders. Within the next 12 months, the features of the app will be completed in two phases beginning with enhancements to Valley Metro's current app, Ridekick. Phase I will include mobile ticket purchasing and links to the mobile applications for Lyft and GR:D Bike Share reservations. Users will be able to purchase transit fare, as well as reserve a GR:D bike using a single payment method, then transition to the Lyft mobile app for a reservation allowing a rider to complete their transit trip. In addition, Wi-Fi and beacon technology between the ASU campuses in Tempe and Phoenix will allow for seamless fare validation and added safety features, such as incident reporting. Phase II will build upon those features to include real-time data alerts of bus and light rail arrivals, on-demand reservation and cancellation of paratransit trips, and single fare payment capabilities for transit, bikeshare and ridesharing companies. "We're thrilled to be working with such visionary teams at Valley Metro and their stakeholders to bring this innovation to transit riders and travelers in greater Phoenix," said Pepper Harward, vice president of Transit Solutions for RouteMatch Software. "It will be an inclusive application so all riders will receive a greater selection of transportation options and it provides a technology springboard to arrange multiple and more spontaneous travel modes using a single platform." The application will be free to download on all major mobile devices and users will have the ability to create personalized accounts suitable to their needs. A recent rider survey indicates that 65 percent of Valley Metro riders use smart phone devices. The MOD program is a new U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) initiative led by the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Joint Program Office and the FTA. MOD is an innovative, user-friendly approach that leverages emerging mobility services, integrated transit networks and operations and real-time data to allow for safe and informed mobility options. About Valley Metro Valley Metro provides eco-friendly public transit options to residents of greater Phoenix and Maricopa County including the planning and operations of a regional bus system and the development and operations of 26 miles of light rail. In Fiscal Year 2016, total ridership for the system was 67 million passengers. Seven high capacity extensions are planned or are under construction that will create a 66-mile system by 2034. Valley Metro also offers transit options including alternative transportation programs for seniors and people with disabilities, commuter vanpools, online carpool matching, bus trip mapping, bicycle safety and telework assistance. Two Boards of Directors set the policy direction for the agency with the intent of advancing the regional public transit system. Get the latest news by following us on Facebook and Twitter or visiting valleymetro.org. About RouteMatch Software RouteMatch Software is a leading provider of passenger transportation technologies that help transform rider experiences and engage communities. The company is headquartered in Atlanta, GA and works with more than 600 transit agencies across the U.S. and internationally, providing quality software and award-winning customer service. A team of more than 160 professionals who are passionate about transit address industry needs such as routing, scheduling, dispatching, billing, reporting, CAD/AVL, demand response and fixed route integration, traveler information services, multi-modal mobility management, and automated fare collection. For more information, visit routematch.com. Daisy Wall RouteMatch 404-844-5323 Email Contact Susan Tierney Valley Metro 602-523-6004 Email Contact Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 19, 2016) - Rockridge Capital Corp. (TSXV: RRC) (the "Company") announces that it has entered into a mineral purchase agreement (the "Agreement") with St. Jacques Mineral Corp. (the "Vendor") to acquire a property prospective for uranium located in Saskatchewan (the "Property"). The Property consists of nine mineral dispositions totaling 3,336 hectares, located in the Northern Mining District, Saskatchewan. Under the terms of the Agreement, the Company has agreed to pay $10,000 and issue a total of 2,250,000 common shares of the Company within five days of TSX Venture Exchange approval to the Vendor. The Company will also be required to incur a total of $500,000 of exploration expenditures within 18 months of the day of the Agreement (the "Exploration Commitment"). In the event that the Company does not satisfy the Exploration Commitment, the Property will be returned to the Vendor. The Vendor will also hold a 1% Net Smelter Royalty, which may be purchased by the Company at a cost of $1,000,000. In connection with the transaction, the Company will issue a finder 220,000 common shares subject to the acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange. The Agreement and the transactions contemplated therein are subject to acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange. Private Placement Financing The Company also announces that it has approved a proposed private placement financing of a minimum of 5,000,000 common shares and up to a maximum of 10,000,000 common shares at a price of $0.11 per share for total proceeds of a minimum of $550,000 and up to $1,100,000 (the "Offering"). The Company may pay finders a fee and issue finders warrants in connection with the Offering. The proceeds of the Offering will be used for mineral exploration on the Company's properties and working capital purposes. For more information, please contact Gunther Roehlig, CEO and President at (604) 683-0911. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF ROCKRIDGE CAPITAL CORP. "signed" _______________________ Gunther Roehlig CEO and President Forward-Looking Statements Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the date of this news release. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. The Company cautions that all forward looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to the Company's limited operating history and the need to comply with environmental and governmental regulations. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. CALGARY, ALBERTA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Savanna Energy Services Corp. ("Savanna" or the "Company") (TSX: SVY) intends to release its Third Quarter 2016 results after markets close on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The results will be available on the Company's web site after the dissemination has taken place over the news wire service. Savanna will host a conference call for analysts, investors and interested parties on Wednesday, November 9, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. Mountain Time (11:00 a.m. Eastern Time) to discuss the Company's third quarter 2016 results. The call will be hosted by Chris Strong, President and Chief Executive Officer and Dwayne LaMontagne, Executive Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer. If you wish to participate in this conference call, please call 1-888-892-3255 (for participants in North America). Please call 10 minutes ahead of time. A replay of the call will be available until November 16, 2016 by dialing 1-800-937-6305 and entering passcode 635506. Savanna is a leading contract drilling and oilfield services company operating in North America and Australia providing a broad range of drilling, well servicing and related services with a focus on fit for purpose technologies and industry-leading Aboriginal relationships. Contacts: Savanna Energy Services Corp. Chris Strong President & Chief Executive Officer Dwayne LaMontagne Executive V.P. and Chief Financial Officer (403) 503-9990 TORONTO, ONTARIO and NUCLA, COLORADO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Western Uranium Corporation (CSE: WUC)(OTCQX: WSTRF) ("Western" or the "Company") announces that the Board of Directors has appointed Mr. Robert Klein as Chief Financial Officer of the Company effective immediately. Mr. Klein replaces Andrew Wilder who has resigned as Chief Financial Officer of Western to allow him to focus on new business interests. Mr. Wilder will continue to serve as a director of the Company. Mr. Klein holds the CFA Chartered Financial Analysis designation and has been a key member of the financial team providing support to Mr. Wilder, Western and its predecessor company, Pinon Ridge Mining, LLC since its 2014 formation. In his former capacity as Vice President-Finance, he had a leading role in the completion of quarterly financials, accounting, taxation, implementation of acquisition transactions, and the public listing of the stock on both the CSE and OTCQX exchanges. As a result, Mr. Klein has both a historical perspective and is intimately familiar with all financial and business aspects of the Company. Mr. George Glasier, President & CEO commented, "We are pleased that Rob has accepted the offer to assume the increased responsibilities of Chief Financial Officer of Western Uranium. Because of his past role and relationship with the Western management team and the firm's stakeholders, Rob is uniquely qualified and proven himself ready to assume a more senior role in the financial affairs of the Company. Rob will continue to be located in Greenwich, Connecticut. I would like to thank Andrew Wilder for fulfilling the CFO role from the early days of Western Uranium. Andrew has agreed to provide continued support to Mr. Klein during his transition from Vice President-Finance to Chief Financial Officer." About Western Uranium Corporation Western Uranium Corporation is a Colorado based uranium and vanadium conventional mining company focused on low cost near-term production of uranium and vanadium in the western United States. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND CAUTIONARY NOTE This news release may contain forward-looking statements that are based on the Company's expectations, estimates and projections regarding its business and the economic environment in which it operates. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to control or predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements and readers should not place undue reliance on such statements. Statements speak only as of the date on which they are made. Contacts: Western Uranium Corporation George Glasier President and CEO Office: 970-864-2125 gglasier@western-uranium.com Western Uranium Corporation Michael Skutezky Chairman of the Board Office: 416-564-2870 mskutezky@western-uranium.com Weekly net asset value ("NAV") is calculated as of the close of business on each Tuesday and posted on the following business day. In the event that Tuesday is not a business day, the Company will calculate the close-of-business NAV as of the business day immediately preceding that Tuesday. The end-of-month NAV is calculated as of the close of business on the last day of the month and posted on the following business day. For weeks that include a month-end NAV report, PSH will provide only the month-end NAV and not report the Tuesday NAV. Monthly NAVs are published in accordance with the Decree on Conduct of Business Supervision of Financial Undertakings under the Wft (Besluit Gedragstoezicht financiele ondernemingen Wft). Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Kombat Copper Inc. (the "Company" or "Kombat Copper") (TSX VENTURE: KBT) announces the resignation of Mr. Knowledge Katti as a director of the Company, effective immediately. The Company would like to thank Mr. Katti for his contributions to the Company. About Kombat Copper Kombat Copper is a publicly traded Canadian exploration and development company with its core operations focused on copper resources in Namibia, one of the world's most prospective copper regions, where it has substantial assets in place with significant upside. The Company continues to hold an 80% interest in five mining licenses in the Otavi Mountain lands, an area of Namibia particularly known for its high-grade copper deposits. Within these licenses are three past producing mines including the Company's flagship property, the Kombat Mine. Cautionary Notes: This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, without limitation, statements the composition of the board of directors of the Company. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forward- looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Kombat Copper, as the case may be, to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to: general business, economic, competitive, geopolitical and social uncertainties; the actual results of current exploration activities; risks associated with operation in foreign jurisdictions; ability to successfully integrate the purchased properties; foreign operations risks; and other risks inherent in the mining industry. 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. Contacts: Kombat Copper Inc. Stephan Theron President & CEO +1 (416) 722-6744 info@kombatcopper.com www.kombatcopper.com SAN MATEO, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) is recognizing Zoomdata CEO Justin Langseth as one of the 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs of 2016 at its Builders + Innovators Summit in Santa Barbara, California. Goldman Sachs selected Justin Langseth as one of 100 entrepreneurs from multiple industries to be honored at the two-day event. Langseth is CEO and founder of Zoomdata, developer of the world's fastest visual analytics platform for big data for customers deploying workloads on-premises, in the cloud or in hybrid clouds. The founder of business intelligence software firm Calabridge, Langseth currently holds 12 technology patents. He graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he received an SB in Management of Information Technology from the MIT Sloan School of Management. "It is very gratifying to build a team and company that has seen the success we're experienced with Zoomdata and to have that hard work recognized by Goldman Sachs," said Langseth. "They're a terrific technology and investment partner and we look forward to the next steps in continuing to innovate on the industry's fastest, most flexible and easy-to-use solution that developers can easily embed into their applications for the most advanced visual analytics." "We are honored to recognize Justin as one of the most intriguing entrepreneurs of 2016," said David Solomon, co-head of investment banking at Goldman Sachs. "This is the fifth year that we've hosted the Builders + Innovators Summit where emerging business leaders gather to discuss their common interests in building thriving organizations." For more than 145 years, Goldman Sachs has been advising and financing entrepreneurs as they launch and grow their businesses. In addition to honoring 100 entrepreneurs, the summit consists of general sessions and clinics led by Goldman Sachs experts, seasoned entrepreneurs, academics and business leaders as well as resident scholars. About Zoomdata, Inc. Zoomdata, with five granted patents and one pending, develops the world's fastest visual analytics solution for big data. Using data sharpening and micro-query technologies, Zoomdata empowers business users to visually consume data in seconds, even across billions of rows of data. Zoomdata Fusion enables interactive analytics across disparate data sources, bridging modern and legacy data architectures, blending real-time streams and historical data, and unifying enterprise data with data in the cloud. Delivered in a microservices architecture for elastic scalability, Zoomdata runs on premises, in the cloud or embedded in an application. With offices in Chicago, IL, New York, NY, Redwood City, CA and Reston, VA, Zoomdata is venture-backed by Accel, Columbus Nova Technology Partners, Comcast Ventures, Goldman Sachs, In-Q-Tel, NEA and Razor's Edge. CONTACT INFORMATION Lonn Johnston for Zoomdata Email Contact +1 650.219.7764 VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 -- Leading Edge Materials Corp. ("Leading Edge Materials") or ("the Company") (TSX VENTURE: LEM) (OTCQB: LEMIF) is pleased to announce the discovery of the Company's first lithium project, Bergby, located in in central Sweden, 25km north of the town of Gavle. Mapping and sampling of the Bergby claim has located a large number of angular pegmatitic and aplitic lithium-mineralized boulders within an area of 650 metres by 250 metres. Lithium is hosted within the minerals spodumene and petalite. Analytical results for the first 27 boulder samples have been received, and average 0.85% Li2O (lithium oxide) and range from 0.08% Li2O to 2.3% Li2O. The boulders are anomalous in other elements which characterize lithium-cesium-tantalum (LCT) pegmatites that are regularly associated with lithium deposits (table 1). Blair Way, President and CEO, stated "We have been actively searching for lithium projects for some time, and are very pleased to have discovered a prospect with the potential of Bergby very close to our Woxna graphite mine. This project sits well within our strategy of acquiring low holding cost assets while we advance our graphite business model to supply the lithium Ion battery market. The lithium grades of the boulders and the scale of the project areas discovered to date demonstrate the prospectivity of the project. We look forward to following up with ground geophysics and geochemical sampling, with the aim to diamond drill test Bergby this winter." The Bergby project was discovered by Leading Edge Materials' geological team utilizing geological data maintained by the Swedish Geological Survey ("SGU"). The SGU holds a very extensive database of mineralized boulders previously discovered across Sweden, including many that have never had significant follow-up. Leading Edge Materials' geologists identified lithium prospective boulders within this dataset, and subsequent field prospecting discovered the presence of an extensive lithium (Li) and tantalum (Ta) mineralized boulder field at Bergby. Bergby is located close to infrastructure, with major roads, rail and power supply passing immediately adjacent to the claim boundaries. Follow-up work at Bergby includes further prospecting of areas along 700 metre trend from the initial discovery. Specifically, the Company plans to undertake a ground magnetic survey and shallow soil sampling to cover the most prospective area of the claims, with the eventual aim to be able diamond drill test Bergby this winter. Additional geochemical results will be released as they come to hand. Lithium has a strong and expanding market, due to the essential role it plays in lithium-based batteries for the automotive, consumer product and stationary electrify storage industries. The high electrochemical potential of lithium results in the high power to weight ratio that is essential for efficient mobile batteries. Europe is investing heavily in these emerging battery technologies, as part of the transition to a low-carbon economy. Lithium was discovered in Sweden in 1817 by Swedish chemist Johan August Arfwedson, and named from the Greek word lithos, describing the rock from which it was extracted. Furthermore, the lithium minerals spodumene and petalite which are the ore-minerals in most hard rock lithium mines globally, were both first discovered and named in Sweden. On behalf of the Board, Blair Way, President & CEO Samples submitted by Leading Edge Materials Corp were analyzed by the ME-MS81 and Li-OG63 technique by ALS Chemex Ltd's laboratories in Pitea, Sweden and Vancouver, Canada, where duplicates, repeats, blanks and known standards were inserted according to standard industry practice. The qualified person for the Company's exploration projects, Mark Saxon, Director of Leading Edge Materials, a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy has reviewed and verified the contents of this release. The TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange), accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. The TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange), accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. Forward-Looking Information. Certain information in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "Forward-Looking Statements"). All statements, other than statements of historical fact that address activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future are Forward-Looking Statements. Forward-Looking Statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek," "anticipate," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "expect," and "intend" and statements that an event or result "may," "will," "can," "should," "could," or "might" occur or be achieved and other similar expressions. Forward-Looking Statements are based upon the opinions and expectations of the Company based on information currently available to the Company. Forward-Looking Statements are subject to a number of factors, risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the Forward-Looking Statements including, among other things, timing of the ground magnetic survey and shallow soil sampling program, timing of a diamond drill program at Bergby, the Company has yet to generate a profit from its activities; there can be no guarantee that the estimates of quantities or qualities of minerals disclosed in the Company's public record will be economically recoverable; uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future; competition with other companies within the mining industry; the success of the Company is largely dependent upon the performance of its directors and officers and the Company's ability to attract and train key personnel; changes in world metal markets and equity markets beyond the Company's control; mineral resources are, in the large part, estimates and no assurance can be given that the anticipated tonnages and grades will be achieved or that the indicated level of recovery will be realized; production rates and capital and other costs may vary significantly from estimates; changes in corporate goals and strategies, unexpected geological conditions; and delays in obtaining or failure to obtain necessary permits and approvals from government authorities. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the Forward-Looking Statements, and the assumptions on which such Forward-Looking Statements are made, are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on Forward-Looking Statements, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which the Forward-Looking Statements are based will occur. Forward-Looking Statements herein are made as at the date hereof, and unless otherwise required by law, the Company does not intend, or assume any obligation, to update these Forward-Looking Statements. Table 1: Analytical values for first 27 boulder samples from Bergby project, Sweden. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Element Value Unit ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Li2O (lithium oxide) Average 0.85 % Minimum 0.08 % Maximum 2.30 % ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ta2O5 (tantalum pentoxide) Average 154 ppm Minimum 8 ppm Maximum 463 ppm ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ce (cesium) Average 255 ppm Minimum 48 ppm Maximum 517 ppm ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rb (rubidium) Average 737 ppm Minimum 90 ppm Maximum 1480 ppm ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sn (tin) Average 87 ppm Minimum 10 ppm Maximum 158 ppm ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Contacts: Leading Edge Materials Corp. 604 685 9316 www.leadingedgematerials.com SANTIAGO, CHILE -- (Marketwired) -- 10/19/16 --ITAU CORPBANCA (NYSE: ITCB) (SSE: ITAUCORP) announced today that it will release its results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016, after the market closes in New York on Friday, October 28, 2016. On Wednesday, November 2, 2016, at 11:00 A.M. Santiago time (10:00 AM ET), the Company's management team will host a conference call to discuss the financial results. The call will be hosted by Gabriel Moura, Itau CorpBanca's Chief Financial Officer, and Claudia Labbe, Itau CorpBanca's Head of Investor Relations. Conference Call Details: Participants should dial into the call 10 minutes before the scheduled time using the following numbers: +1 (866) 819-7111 (US Toll Free Dial In), 0(800) 953-0329 (UK Toll Free Dial In) or +44 (0)1452-542-301 (Standard International Dial In). Please quote "Itau CorpBanca" to the operator. A telephonic replay of the conference call will be available until Wednesday, November 9, 2016, by dialing +1 (866) 247-4222 (US Toll Free Dial In), 0(800) 953-1533 (UK Toll Free Dial In) or +44 (0)1452 550-000 (Standard International Dial In). Access Code: 2339939# Slides and Audio Webcast: There will also be a live, and then archived, webcast of the conference call, available through the Company's website. Participants to the live webcast should register on the website approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of the webcast. The webcast can be found at http://itaucorp.irwebpage.com/webcast_2016-3Q.html About Itau CorpBanca ITAU CORPBANCA (NYSE: ITCB) (SSE: ITAUCORP) is the entity resulting from the merger of Banco Itau Chile with and into CorpBanca on April 1, 2016. After the merger, the resulting ownership structure is: 33.58% owned by Itau Unibanco, 33.13% owned by CorpGroup and 33.29% owned minority shareholders. Itau Unibanco is the sole controlling shareholder of the merged bank. Within this context and without limiting the above, Itau Unibanco and CorpGroup have signed a shareholders' agreement to determine aspects related to corporate governance, dividend policy (based on performance and capital metrics), transfer of shares, liquidity and other matters. The merged bank has become the fourth largest private bank in Chile and will result in a banking platform for future expansion in Latin America, specifically in Chile, Colombia, Peru, and Central America. Itau CorpBanca is a commercial bank based in Chile with operations also in Colombia and Panama. In addition, Itau CorpBanca has a branch in New York and a representative office in Madrid. Focused on large and medium companies and in individuals, Itau CorpBanca offers universal banking products. In 2012, the bank initiated a regionalization process and as of the date hereof has acquired two banks in Colombia -Banco CorpBanca Colombia and Helm Bank-, becoming the first Chilean bank having banking subsidiaries abroad. The merger with Banco Itau Chile and the business combination of our two banks in Colombia, represent the continued success of our regionalization process. As of August 31, 2016, according to the Chilean Superintendency of Banks, Itau CorpBanca was the fourth largest private bank in Chile in terms of the overall size of its customer loan portfolio, equivalent to 11.9% market share. At the same date, according to the Colombian Superintendency of Finance, CorpBanca Colombia was the sixth largest bank in Colombia in terms of total loans and also the sixth largest bank in Colombia in terms of total deposits, as reported under local regulatory and accounting principles. As of August 31, 2016, its market share by loans reached 5.9%. Investor Relations Itau CorpBanca +56 (2) 2660-2555 IR@corpbanca.cl Smartfrog, a Dublin, EIRE, and Berlin, Germany-based provider of Internet of Things home security products, raised 20m in funding. Backers included e.ventures, Target Global, Jean-Pierre Wyss, co-founder of u-blox AG, and unnamed family offices. The company, which has raised over 28m in funding to date, intends to use the capital to expand operations. Smartfrog provides a complete home security solution. Starting at 5.95 (4.95) per month, it includes an app, which allows users to manage up to ten cameras, cam and video storage. Today, one year after the launch, the company has users in over 130 countries, a staff to 60 from 22 countries, and has established several partnerships with e-tailers and retailers such as Amazon, Otto, Mediamarkt and Saturn, as well as Utilities and consumer electronics distributors in Europe. FinSMEs 19/10/2016 Iterative Instinct (i2), a NYC-based venture capital firm, secured $1.4m in capital commitments for its $2.0M debut fund. The new fund Iterative Instinct I, GP specializes in cryptographic assets and Blockchain network services. Operated by 31-year-old fund managers Chris Dannen and Brandon Buchanan, I2 has a specific investment mandate to seed and develop products, services, and assets that utilize the three core technologies of the blockchain paradigm including: cryptographic hashing, asymmetric cryptography, and peer to peer (P2P) distributed computing. The fund also has capital earmarked for a secondary mandate to actively manage a portfolio of crypto-assets. Mr. Buchanan was previously the Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel of a $100M AUM venture fund in New York. Mr. Dannen is a self-taught creative technologist who has worked in corporate strategy and media. The fund also has an internal technology team including creative director and full-stack developer Christopher McClellan, who is responsible for the i2 user experience across the funds many interfaces, including its trading suite. In addition, Mackenzie Millar, practitioner of venture design and strategy at Frog Design in New York and San Francisco, joined as an advisor for financial products and growth. Cody Hoffman, a former vice president of oil derivatives trading at JPMorgan in New York, London, and Canada, will advise on market-making activity and commodity asset strategy while Dr. Solomon Lederer will be the blockchain engineering advisor. FinSMEs 19/10/2016 Director-producer Karan Johar's heartfelt plea seems to have fallen on deaf ears. Despite his honest request to MNS for his film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil's release, the political party has stubbornly stuck to its stand and continue to oppose it. Also read: Karan Johar on Ae Dil Hai Mushkil row: 'Country comes first but ban is unfair to my crew' Amey Khopkar, President of Maharashtra Navnirman Chitrapat Karmachari Sena, has raised concern over the fact that Johar in his statement did not mention Pakistani actors and instead used the term talent. Speaking to Firstpost, he says, "Karan woke up very late! This isn't the time to say sorry! He has had a change of heart, we haven't! We are still firm on our demand and no multiplexes will show Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. If they do it then we, in our own style, will break their screens. This issue is not only after Uri incident but goes back to many years. We apologise to all who will not be able to see the movie. This is a warning to all producers and film makers to see to it that from here on they shouldn't take Pakistani artistes in their films. Agar koi bhi producers ya production house ne Pakistani artistes ko liya to unko pitenge. (If any producer or production house hires Palistani artistes then we will beat them up)." Meanwhile Ae Dil Hai Mushkil's distributors Fox Star Studios have extended their support to Johar. Filmmaker Karan Johar is a patriotic Indian whose nationalism cannot be questioned, says Vijay Singh, CEO of Fox Star Studios. Singh said in a statement, "Karan Johar is a proud, emotional and patriotic Indian like all of us and his nationalism cannot be questioned. Fox Star Studios, India, whole-heartedly stands by him at this time." He said his team is slated for the Diwali release of Ae Dil Hai Mushkil on 28 October. The Fox Star Studio CEO met a Mumbai Police representative on Tuesday to urge for protection for theatres which will screen the movie. "We have been assured that the police will provide protection to all theatres, including single screens and multiplexes, should there be any requirement," he added. Singh's statement comes after Karan broke his silence on the vandalism threats issued by right-wing Hindu outfits opposing the release of the film, which stars Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. Singh said, "We unequivocally condemn the terror attacks on India and support the government of India in all its effort to bring safety and peace for Indians." "The film has been made by an Indian director film's actors Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan are all Indians; the crew who have worked tirelessly on this film to see their labour of love in theatres with their families are all Indians," Singh said. Fox Star Studios, which has a nine-film deal with Johar's Dharma Productions, has also produced Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. On its part Mumbai Police has assured safety in theatres during the screening of the film. DCP Ashok Dudhe, spokesperson for the city police, said to The Times of India, "We will deploy our personnel and provide security to all the multiplexes and single-screen cinema halls. Our job is to maintain law and order." With inputs from IANS New Delhi: Beverages major Coca Cola India has dropped Bollywood superstar Salman Khan as brand ambassador for its soft drink 'Thums Up' after four years of association and the company is in talks with young star Ranveer Singh to replace him. The contract with Khan had expired last month and the company has chosen not to renew it, according to industry sources. When contacted, Coca Cola India declined to comment. The company's decision to not to renew the contract with the 50-year-old actor is more to do with the image of Coca Cola, which is seen as a young brand, a source said. "That explains why Coca Cola is talking to a much younger star like Ranveer Singh," the source added. Khan has been among the top celebrity endorsers reportedly charging Rs 5 crore per year per brand. Recently, he had courted controversy when he supported Pakistani artists saying "they were not terrorists" in the wake of a debate on whether they should be allowed to work in Indian movies after the Uri attack. Coca Cola India had roped in Khan as its brand ambassador for the second time to endorse its Thums Up brand in October 2012 replacing another Bollywood star Akshay Kumar. He had earlier endorsed the brand in early 2000s. At that time, Coca-Cola India had also signed an agreement with Being Human -- The Salman Khan Foundation -- to jointly promote, conceive and execute charitable and social activities. New Delhi: A decision on GST rate was today put off to next month even as the Centre and states converged towards a consensus on levying a cess on luxury and sin goods in addition to the highest rate of tax in the new regime. The cess would be used to compensate states for any loss of revenue they may suffer from implementation of Goods and Service Tax (GST) in first five years beginning 1 April, 2017. An informal consensus was reached at the end of the two-day meeting of the GST Council on a four-slab tax structure of 6, 12, 18 and 26 percent. The lower tariff will be for essential items and the highest bracket for luxury and sin goods like tobacco, cigarettes and alcohol, but a decision was put off to the next meeting. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the GST Council, that includes representatives of all states, will meet again on November 3-4 to decide on the tax rates. The GST Council, which was originally to meet for three days, "converged towards a consensus on source of funding for state compensation," Jaitley said. On tax structure, he said, "We cannot under-tax or over-tax to keep rate slabs minimum." The attempt, he said, was to fit zero rated items while levying a 6 percent tax on items that are currently charged 3-9 percent tax. "We will finalise the tax structure at the next meeting," he said, indicating there were two standard rates of 12 percent and 18 percent under discussion. Once the GST rates are decided, the GST Council will meet again on 9-10 November to finalise the draft legislations, he said. State Bank of India (SBI), India's largest lender, has blocked six lakh debit cards following a security breach that occurred in a non-SBI ATM network and will replace these with new ones, according to a report in The Times of India. The breach has happened due to a malware that can capture sensitive information that will enable committing financial frauds. However, Shiv Kumar Bhasin, Chief Technology Office, has told ToI that customers need not panic. They can approach their branch, call up phone banking, use the internet for 're-carding' or set their PIN using internet banking. The replacement exercise is the biggest yet in the Indian banking sector yet, says the ToI report. SBI has informed its branches of the breach and the cards being blocked, said Bhasin to ToI. According to Bhasin, many other banks are also facing such a situation and have been urging their customers to change their PINs for a long time now, Bhasin, told the ToI. In the wake of several cases of ATM frauds where customers PIN has been hacked and the money siphoned off by fraudsters, some banks have issued text messages while some others have sent mails to change ATM pin or sent new ATM pins to their customers. As on July 2016, there were 20.27 crore active debit cards from SBI, according to the Reserve Bank of India website, while SBI's associate banks had a total of 4.75 crore active debit cards, the ToI report said. Around 0.25 percent of the cards have been blocked due to malware that has led the SBI to block them. High-tech ATM frauds have been rising of late. Recently PTI reported that a woman customer had complained of Rs 55,000 being siphoned off her account from abroad. The woman, an account holder with State Bank of Travancore's Pattom branch in Kerala, said in her complaint to police that the money was withdrawn twice on September 3 and 5. Police said the cash had been withdrawn from a foreign country from an ATM counter, but did not elaborate. The heist comes less than a month after some persons lost their money in an ATM theft involving some foreigners, including Romanians. On August 10, a Romanian national, who along with two other foreigners was suspected to be involved in the hi-tech ATM fraud in which a number of people lost money here, was arrested in Mumbai. They had obtained details of bank customers and withdrawn money using fake ATM cards. Police suspected the electronic device at the ATM counter had enabled the fraudsters collect the secret pin code and card details. According to a report in The Times of India, some banks like HDFC Bank, Federal Bank and DBS have sent warning messages to their customers. Some text messages from banks like this one from HDFC reads: The PIN for your debit card has to be changed for security reasons. Please change the PIN at the earliest, the ToI reported. By Tom Miles and David Lawder | GENEVA/WASHINGTON GENEVA/WASHINGTON China won the bulk of a World Trade Organization complaint against certain U.S. methods of determining anti-dumping duties on Chinese products in a WTO dispute panel ruling released on Wednesday.China brought the complaint in December 2013, one of a string of disputes challenging Washington's way of assessing "dumping," or exporting at unfairly cheap prices.Specifically, the panel found fault with the U.S. practices of determining dumping margins in certain cases of "targeted dumping," in which foreign firms cut prices on goods aimed at specific U.S. regions, customer groups or time periods.Dumping is normally found when a foreign producer's U.S. prices are lower than its home market prices for the same or similar goods, or when the imports are sold at prices below production costs.The panel ruled against the U.S. Commerce Department's practise of "zeroing" in cases involving targeted dumping. In zeroing, the department typically assigns a value of zero any time a producer's export price is above that producer's normal home market price, partly to account for freight and customs charges. In practice, the zeroing methodology tends to increase the level of U.S. anti-dumping duties on foreign producers.Some points of China's argument were rejected by the WTO panel, including a claim that the Commerce Department systematically punishes Chinese state enterprise by assigning them high anti-dumping rates. Either side can appeal the ruling within 60 days.China's Ministry of Commerce welcomed the ruling saying that the WTO panel had "upheld China's principal claims" on the unlawfulness of targeted dumping and the separate rate applied in certain U.S. anti-dumping measures. The dispute related to several industries including machinery and electronics, light industry, metals and minerals, with an annual export value of up to $8.4 billion, it said. "The United States is disappointed by these findings," a spokesman for the U.S. Trade Representative's office said in a statement."We will carefully review the report and consider next steps. Nothing in the report will undermine the commitment of the United States to impose antidumping duties to address injurious dumping," the USTR spokesman added. (Reporting by Tom Miles in Geneva and David Lawder in Washington; editing by Dominic Evans and Alan Crosby) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. New Delhi: Beverages major Coca Cola India has dropped Bollywood superstar Salman Khan as brand ambassador for its soft drink 'Thums Up' after four years of association and the company is in talks with young star Ranveer Singh to replace him. The contract with Khan had expired last month and the company has chosen not to renew it, according to industry sources. When contacted, Coca Cola India declined to comment. The company's decision to not to renew the contract with the 50-year-old actor is more to do with the image of Coca Cola, which is seen as a young brand, a source said. "That explains why Coca Cola is talking to a much younger star like Ranveer Singh," the source added. Khan has been among the top celebrity endorsers reportedly charging Rs 5 crore per year per brand. Recently, he had courted controversy when he supported Pakistani artists saying "they were not terrorists" in the wake of a debate on whether they should be allowed to work in Indian movies after the Uri attack. Coca Cola India had roped in Khan as its brand ambassador for the second time to endorse its Thums Up brand in October 2012 replacing another Bollywood star Akshay Kumar. He had earlier endorsed the brand in the early 2000s. At that time, Coca-Cola India had also signed an agreement with Being Human The Salman Khan Foundation to jointly promote, conceive and execute charitable and social activities. Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with the leaders of Turkey and Iraq about battle for Mosul, where Iraqi forces are fighting to oust the Islamic State group, the Kremlin said on Wednesday. Putin "wished the Iraqi army and its allies complete success in their objectives," the Kremlin said in a statement on his conversations with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. He also informed the Iraqi leader about the "measures taken by Russia to defuse the situation" in the Syrian city of Aleppo. Moscow announced on Tuesday that Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo ahead of an eight-hour "humanitarian pause" in the battered city on Wednesday. Putin is to attend a summit on Syria in Berlin later on Wednesday with the leaders of France and Germany. In a separate conversation, Putin also discussed the battle for Mosul with Erdogan, the Kremlin said, but gave no further details. The long-awaited offensive against Iraq's second city began on Monday with air and ground support from a US-led coalition. Turkey said on Tuesday it will continue to take part in the air operation after Ankara agreed a deal with its coalition partners. Plans for the offensive were marked by tensions between Iraq and Turkey, which insisted on being part of the operation despite objections from Baghdad. By Rina Chandran MUMBAI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - India's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has accused the western state of Maharashtra of negligence over the "shocking and painful" deaths in the past decade of more than 700 indigenous children in schools run by the authorities.It was the second time in two months that the commission has criticised the state's care of its indigenous people. Last month, the NHRC asked state authorities for a detailed report on the deaths of more than 600 indigenous children from malnutrition.The NHRC said on Tuesday that at least 740 students from poor tribal areas of Maharashtra state had died in state-run "ashram" schools over the past decade from illnesses such as malaria, food poisoning, drowning and snake bites.The schools, which provide accommodation for pupils, had not followed several procedures, including health screens for the students at least twice a year, it said."The school authorities, as their lawful guardians, are responsible for their welfare, safety and healthcare," the NHRC said. "The negligence on the part of the Department of Tribal Development and the school authorities is a violation of the right to life and dignity of the students," it added. A spokesman for the state's tribal department said senior officials were meeting with the chief minister in Mumbai to "look into all aspects and take appropriate action".The NHRC asked the government of Maharashtra to provide a report on the matter within a month. Ashram schools for children from poor tribal areas of India were set up more than two decades ago and are the only option for many living in remote areas.The schools, which are run by state authorities, are meant to improve literacy levels and provide basic healthcare to the children. Maharashtra, one of the wealthiest states in the country, has about 550 tribal schools but most of these schools lack even basic amenities and health services, an activist said."There are no proper beds, and most schools lack proper toilets and drinking water, and basic healthcare facilities," said Vivek Pandit, founder of Shramjivi Sanghatana, which works with vulnerable people in Maharashtra."There is enough funding, but it is badly managed and not accounted for," said Pandit. (Reporting by Rina Chandran @rinachandran, Editing by Katie Nguyen. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org to see more stories.) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. New Delhi: Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda will reach Bhubaneswar on Wednesday and visit the hospital where 19 people were killed in a fire on Monday. "Health Minister JP Nadda will visit SUM hospital in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday to take stock of the fire tragedy which claimed 19 lives,"a senior Health Ministry official told IANS. Nineteen persons were killed in the Odisha fire in the Intensive Care Unit of the Dialysis Ward of SUM hospital on Monday evening. Another 106 were injured and are undergoing treatment. The Fire Services Department lodged an FIR with the Khandagiri police alleging negligence of the hospital authorities in adhering to fire safety norms. Four SUM Hospital officials were arrested on Tuesday in connection with the incident. This comes after SUM Hospital authorities on Tuesday denied that there were lapses on the management's part. It, however, suspended four persons for the fire incident. "We have put four officials under suspension following the fire incident. They have been suspended pending inquiry. However, the suspension does not mean that they are guilty. Only a thorough inquiry would reveal the actual cause of the incident," said Amit Banerjee, Vice Chancellor of the SUM Hospital and Medical College. Those put under suspension for reported dereliction of duty are the fire officer, manager and two others staffers. He said the exact reason behind the unfortunate incident will be known only after the investigation committee submits its report. Banerjee also announced Rs 5 lakh compensation to the kin of each deceased. He said steps are being taken to provide free treatment to the injured. Writer and philosopher Aldous Huxley once said, Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. Before making an insensible and inhuman comment like Our hospital is not at fault in the accident. It is all about bad luckNo single person can be blamed for it on the cause of fire outbreak at SUM Hospital in Bhubaneswar that claimed 22 lives on 17 October, its associate dean JR Das should have thought twice before ignoring facts. One of the senior authorities of the hospital who dares to call the tragedy a result of bad luck, is an epitome of the insensitivity that plagues Indias fragile healthcare system. A similar statement was made almost five years ago on December 2011 by the authorities of Advanced Medicare and Research Institute (AMRI) Hospital in south Kolkata in defence of the fire that claimed 90 lives. Setting an example, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had then stated the horrific incident as "an unforgivable crime" and vowed "the harshest punishment possible" for those found responsible. As a result, six board members of the hospital, including two prominent industrialists also the owners were arrested for culpable homicide. Can Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik show the same courage as Mamata did and put the top authorities of SUM Hospital behind bars? According to media reports, the two FIRs filed against the hospital management do not have names of any of the top authorities of SUM Hospital. Instead, losing no time the hospital management suspended its four employees for dereliction of duty, who have been arrested by Odisha police. None of them is the owner or a board member. The four arrested are mere employees from a medical superintendent to a junior electrical engineer. The name of the owner and chairperson of the hospital Manoj R Nayak has been conveniently avoided. How can be the deaths of so many patients in the ICU due to fire in the hospital just be due to bad luck? Its such an irresponsible statement. Its like a pilot forgetting to put on the switch while nosediving and putting the lives of passengers at risk. The first task should be to arrest the top authorities responsible for the tragedy like hospitals chairperson, director general fire service, health secretary, etc, Bejon Misra, consumer rights activist and a member on board of International Alliance of Patients Organisation (IAPO) told Firstpost. The IAPO is a unique global alliance representing patients of all nations across all disease areas and promoting patient-centred healthcare across the world. After the fire tragedy at AMRI Hospital, the West Bengal government cancelled the hospitals licence and even today, the new hospital block where the fire took place is shut. The hospital management is fighting a legal battle in the court. Only the administrative block of AMRI Hospital that has only a few beds and an OPD is functional. The new block comprising the ICU, OTs and patients wards where the fire took place is still shut since the day of the accident. The licence was immediately cancelled by the government, an AMRI Hospital employee said on condition of anonymity. Despite lacking quality standards and no fire NoC, the SUM Hospital continued to function. There were reports that the water sprinklers in the hospital were dysfunctional. Hospitals licence should immediately be cancelled for compromising the lives and safety of the patients. We need a strong regulatory mechanism to ensure that these private hospitals and nursing homes strictly adhere to mandatory norms and patients safety doesnt get compromised. Private investors put money in hospitals and private medical colleges only for big returns. Anyone having Dr prefixed with his or her name can start a hospital or nursing home in India. Whos responsible for this? The role of fire department is also questionable. Why no follow-ups are made on whether hospitals following fire safety norms or not? questioned Misra. What needs to be in place? - A strong regulatory mechanism at the national level. - Accreditation should be given to only those following best global practices. - Strict legal action including imprisonment and cancellation of licence should be taken against the hospital authorities showing cavalier disregard for patients safety. - Before giving licence to operate, the government must ensure that the hospital promoters do comply with the mandatory norms and specified standards. - Stricter norms for the fire department, ensuring proper implementation. - Patients safety and security should be the paramount and callous attitude of regulators should sternly be dealt with. New Delhi: The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has summoned the Assistant Inspector General of CBI and Deputy Commissioner of Police in connection with the suicide by tainted senior government official BK Bansal and his son allegedly due to harassment by a few officials. DCW had earlier issued notices to CBI and Delhi Police seeking action taken report in the case. But the commission was not satisfied with the responses received prompting it to issue summonses. "Prima facie, this appears to be a shocking instance of alleged victimization and abetment of suicide of the family of an accused. DCW had sent a notice to the Director, CBI. "However, no information was provided to the commission and it was informed that the matter is pending inquiry in the CBI," the summon issued on Wednesday read. "The reply was found to be unsatisfactory and inadequate. The commission then sent another notice seeking a detailed point-wise reply. However, till date no response was received neither any action was taken on the suicide note. Therefore, the AIG, CBI has been summoned to appear before the panel and provide the detailed reply," it added. The commission said in a statement, "DCP East, Delhi Police was sent a notice to provide an action taken report in the case. The reply was found to be unsatisfactory and inadequate. Therefore he has been summoned to appear before the commission on 25 October to provide the detailed reply". Two months after his wife Satyabala and Neha committed suicide, Bansal, former Director General Corporate Affairs, and his son Yogesh had also allegedly hanged themselves on 27 September. In their purported suicide note, Bansal had alleged that a CBI DIG, two women officers and a "fat" havaldar of the agency had tortured his wife and daughter to the extent that they ended their lives soon after his arrest on corruption charges in July. Bengaluru: Karnataka government on Wednesday said it would stick to the Supreme Court direction to the state to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu till further orders. "We will stick to the Supreme Court order. I want to say no more than that," Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister TB Jayachandra told reporters on the sidelines of a media briefing on cabinet meeting. The Supreme Court had on Tuesday retained its direction to Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs till further orders and asked the two states to ensure peace and harmony, saying citizens should not become law unto themselves. A three-judge bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra, which commenced the crucial hearing on various issues arising out of the dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over sharing of Cauvery waters, had said it first intended to adjudicate the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by both the states and Kerala against the Cauvery water dispute tribunal's 2013 award. "The interim order dated 4 October directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu will continue till further orders," the bench also comprising Justices Amitava Roy and AM Khanwilkar had said. A court-appointed Supervisory Committee has submitted its report on the ground situation in the basin region in both the states, which have locked horns over water release in recent months, escalating tension over the more than century-old dispute. The bench had also said on Tuesday it would first go into the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry against the award of tribunal and then hear the arguments on the report filed by the committee. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday reserved its order on maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala against the 2007 award of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (CWDT). "Judgement reserved. The Interim order of 18 October to continue till further orders," a bench of Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and AM Khanwilkar said. The bench asked the parties to file their written The bench asked the parties to file their written submissions by 24 October and said it would pass the order thereafter. The Centre, through Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, had raised a preliminary objection claiming that the CWDT award amounted to a final decree in the dispute and the apex court had no jurisdiction to hear appeals against the award of the tribunal. Continuing its argument, Karnataka on Wednesday said that appeals filed by the state against the award of the tribunal was maintainable. Noted jurist and senior advocate Fali S Nariman, appearing for Karnataka, said the Supreme Court had the jurisdiction to adjudicate the appeals filed by the state against the award of the tribunal. Senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, appearing for Tamil Nadu, also contended that the appeals were maintainable and no statute can take away the powers of the apex court. "Section 6(2) of Interstate Water Disputes Act, 1956 cannot oust Supreme Court's constitutional appellate powers given under Article 136 of the Constitution," Naphade said. Similarly, Kerala also supported the stand of Karnataka and said that the appeals were maintainable. However, Puducherry supported the stand of the Centre that the appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala are not maintainable. Rohatgi reiterated his yesterday's argument that Supreme Court had no jurisdiction to adjudicate the appeals pertaining to the dispute relating to use, distribution and control of inter-state water or river valley. "The appeals filed by the states are not maintainable as per article 131 and 262 of the Constitution and the provisions of Interstate River Water Disputes Act, 1956," he said. The attorney general said as per the constitutional provisions, the inter-state water dispute tribunal is headed by a retired Supreme Court or High Court judge and its decree has a force like that of a decree of the Supreme Court and thus the apex court cannot hear the appeals against its own order. The bench had on Tuesday said it would first go into the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala against the award of the tribunal and then hear arguments on the report filed by the Supervisory Committee formed to assess the ground realities in the Cauvery basin region. The apex court-appointed panel had in its recent report suggested doing away with "outdated and unscientific water application techniques" to resolve the wrangle, saying both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu were facing water shortage which had created unemployment and financial hardship for the people. It had said the neighbouring riparian states needed to appreciate the interest of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry to protect their established irrigation and Karnataka's aspirations for development and educate their people accordingly. The panel in its 40-page report had noted that farmers in both states were in severe distress and adequate crop compensation must be provided to them. Supreme Court had on 4 October directed Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs Cauvery water every day to Tamil Nadu from 7 to 18 October and deferred its order asking the Centre to set up Cauvery Water Management Board (CWMB) till it finally decided on appeals relating to the age-old dispute. It had on Tuesday directed Karnataka to continue to supply Tamil Nadu with 2,000 cusecs of water till further orders. The apex court had also directed the Centre to establish the CWMB, saying once it was constituted, its team would visit the sites to take a prima facie view of the ground reality and submit a report. On 1 October, Karnataka had moved a review petition in the apex court against its three orders on Cauvery water release to Tamil Nadu and direction to the Centre to create the CWMB. In its review petition, Karnataka said "grave miscarriage of justice" has been caused to it pursuant to the three apex court orders of 20, 27 and 30 September, by which it was directed to release 6000 cusecs of water till 6 October and the Centre was to constitute the Board by 4 October. Chennai: Criticising the cartoon on anti-Hindi agitation in NCERT textbook for "hurting" the sentiments of Tamils, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa today joined the chorus demanding its removal. "The Dravidian movement should have been explained to students using photographs of that era as they would be the best tool for this purpose and instead carrying a cartoon saying the Tamil student was not required to study Hindi and that he was ignorant towards English has hurt the sentiments of Tamil people," she said in a statement here. Further, it was "not acceptable" that Tamil students opposed to imposition of Hindi took to violence, she said, adding, Dravidian veteran C N Annadurai had insisted that Tamils were neither subservient to others nor aimed at making others subservient to them. "It (publication of the cartoon) not only amounts to demean the anti-Hindi movement but also seems to insult Annadurai and (EV Ramasamy) Periar who led the protests. The cartoon, originally published to explain the intensity and importance of the movement, has assumed contradictory proportions (in the textbook). "It is regrettable that a cartoon hurting the Tamils' sentiments has been published. I strongly condemn it. I urge the Centre to immediately remove it from the textbooks," she demanded. Earlier, Dravidian parties including ruling UPA constituent DMK and MDMK had demanded the removal of the cartoon even as Union HRD Minister Kapil Sibal had announced forming a committee to review the Classes IX- XII Social Science and Political Science textbooks of NCERT after the row erupted. PTI Allahabad: A court here has issued notice to retired Supreme Court judge Justice Markandey Katju on a petition accusing him of having made "objectionable" remarks with regard to consumption of beef in his blog posts. Additional Sessions Judge Shuchi Srivastava passed the order on the review petition of advocate Rakesh Nath Pandey, who alleged that Justice Katju has hurt the sentiments of a major section of the society by attacking the Hindu belief that the cow was sacred and seeking repeal of the laws whereby slaughtering cow has been banned in many states. The ADJ has asked Justice Katju to file his reply by the next date of hearing on 18 November. The petition was filed by Pandey challenging an order of the Chief Judicial Magistrate whereby his prayer for directing the police to lodge an FIR against Justice Katju was turned down. Justice Katju, who is also a former Chairman of the Press Council of India, has made a series of controversial statements on the communally sensitive issue of cow slaughter and beef ever since possession and sale of beef were made punishable with fine and five years in jail in Maharashtra in January last year. In the wake of the Dadri lynching case of September last year wherein a 50-year-old man was beaten to death near Noida by a mob suspecting him of having slaughtered a cow and consumed its meat, Justice Katju came up with an outpouring of a number of scathing remarks. Recently, in a Facebook post, Justice Katju wrote that he had a "danda" (stick) with which he wished to hit those who made a fuss over the issue of cow slaughter and beef. Chennai: For the first time after the Tamil Nadu Governor re-allocated the portfolios of ailing Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, state Finance Minister O Panneerselvam on Wednesday presided over a meeting of the state cabinet to discuss, among other matters, the vexed Cauvery issue. Although the government did not release details of the agenda of the meeting, the Cabinet is understood to have deliberated on the ongoing Cauvery water sharing dispute with Karnataka, besides other subjects. The meeting also comes ahead of the scheduled onset of north-east monsoon later this month. The rains in December last year had wreaked havoc, flooding Chennai and nearby districts. Last week, Tamil Nadu Governor C Vidyasagar Rao had allotted the portfolios including Home held by Jayalalithaa to Panneerselvam, till the time she returned to resume official duties. The government released photographs of Wednesday's cabinet meeting, where Panneerselvam was seen seated with a picture of Jayalalithaa placed on his desk. The nearly hour-long meeting was held in the backdrop of the ongoing Cauvery water sharing row with Karnataka and demands by Opposition parties for an all-party meeting on the issue. Farmers' bodies and political parties had staged a two-day state-wide rail blockade ending Tuesday, urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Management Board. The Raj Bhavan had last week in a release, said Paneerselvam, who holds the Administrative Reforms portfolio, in addition to Finance, "will also preside over cabinet meetings." The last Cabinet meeting held by Jayalalithaa was in July this year to discuss the state budget. 68-year-old Jayalalithaa was admitted to the Apollo hospital on 22 September after she complained of fever and dehydration. A specialist from London besides three-member team of doctors from AIIMS, Delhi, had also examined Jayalalithaa, who is being treated for infection with respiratory support. New Delhi: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday said surgical strikes across the LoC reflect firm will power of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and valour of armed forces. "The surgical strikes were a result of firm will power of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and valour of our forces," the Chief Minister said in an interview to PTI. On some political parties demanding proof of the Army's action, Chouhan said defence and security issues should be above politics. "Demanding a proof of it is not correct principally as well as practically. Such proofs are never given. Those who are demanding proof are not aware of the consequences of disclosing the details of this military operation," he said. Surgical strikes were carried out on seven terror launch pads across the LoC on the intervening night of 28 and 29 September, with the Army saying it had inflicted "significant casualties" on terrorists preparing to infiltrate from PoK, days after Modi warned Uri attack would not go unpunished. The issue of triple talaq has once again ignited the age-old debate on the desirability of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in India. The Law Commission of India sought the views of people on the implementation of UCC. It put out a questionnaire on 7 October, which faced stiff opposition from the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and some legal experts as it was alleged that it focuses mainly on the Muslim laws, ignoring discriminatory practices perpetuated by personal laws of other religious communities. Firstpost in an interview with Flavia Agnes, a prominent legal scholar and director of the Majlis Legal Centre, Mumbai, tries to find out the sticking points of the current debate. Agnes provided a detailed legal analysis of the issue. FP: Do you feel that the debate on UCC and 'triple talaq' is progressing in the right manner, given that it is centred on Muslim personal law? FA: No, I dont think it is going in the right direction because it is only directed at the Muslim law and the discriminatory aspects of the Hindu law are not coming into focus. It is not just law, we also need to examine the Hindu ethos and cultural practices which are anti-women. FP: In your article in The Oxford Handbook of The Indian Constitution you make a very important observation where you write, "The enforcement of a UCC cannot be viewed in a simplistic manner as outlawing 'polygamy and triple talaq' among the Muslims. The issue is far more complex and would require a detailed analysis of the gaps in the existing laws of all communities, from the perspectives of womens empowerment." Seemingly, these fine points have been ignored to a great extent in the current debate. What are your views on this? FA: Yes. Rather than having consultations and trying to understand the issue in depth, the questionnaire framed by the Law Commission reflects a superficial engagement with personal laws. It also targets the Muslim community. The current polarisation and the reaction by the AIMPLB are the results of framing the questionnaire in this manner. Rather than bringing communities closer, it is framed as an attack on minorities. This was totally unwarranted. All along it was stated that the UCC would comprise of best practices of all communities, but the questionnaire does not provide the scope for this. FP: In your article, you highlight how personal laws of other communities (apart from Muslims) too have so many discriminatory provisions against women. Why do you think they miss the intensity of scrutiny that the Muslim law attracts? FA: This is unfortunate. While the negative aspects of Muslim law are highlighted, the positive rulings and community practices are not given prominence. One can observe this even within the judiciary. When discriminatory practices within Hindu law and cultural practices are discussed they are not framed as Hindu but are discussed in general terms as "women's problems". For instance, the problem of dowry-related violence and dowry deaths. There is no research conducted as to how many women who are murdered for dowry are Hindus. A research done by our organisation about cases which have reached the Supreme Court and the Bombay High Court revealed that more than 90 percent were Hindus. Less than 10 percent were Muslims and others. What do these figures tell us? Take for instance the latest judgement where a husband was granted a divorce on the grounds that the wife refused to stay with his parents. The notion of 'joint family' and 'joint family property' is a Hindu notion. Such a judgement would not be delivered if the woman was from another community. But we dont term it as an anti-women 'Hindu' cultural norm. FP: In your article, you dwell on the socio-political circumstances in which personal laws were given some sort of legal sanctity in the colonial era. Why is it that even with the change in the socio-political setup, we have not been able to bring significant reforms? FA: After the Constitution was enacted, the first set of reforms was for Hindus, which violated the mandate of Article 44. The justification was that the Hindu law is extremely gender unjust compared to laws of other communities and needed immediate reforms. Daughters had no right to inherit property; the right of widows was a limited life estate. Women had no right to divorce and there was no restraint upon men regarding polygamy. Child marriage, abandonment of widows, etc were problems faced by women. Institutions like mistress and concubinage were recognised. The urgency was to reform Hindu laws. However, though this was the stated objective, there was a political motive to acquire the legislative power over Hindus which until then was in the hands of religious heads of different sects. The aim was also to bring all reform religions such as Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism etc within the broad Hindu fold. Finally, the laws enacted were not even made to be gender sensitive because a common consensus had to be reached by diluting womens rights. At the same time, the state did not want to get into the realm of a Uniform Civil Code and ruffle minority sentiments soon after the bloodbath of partition. It was presumed that as time passed, communities would get more integrated. The communal violence in subsequent years pushed communities further apart and today the faith of Muslim communities in the present right-wing government is at very low ebb. Hence the political climate is not conducive to reforming laws of minorities or for bringing in a Uniform Civil Code. FP: The government has said that triple talaq violates the right to equality of women as well as their dignity and that it "has no place in a secular country." Your comments on this. FA: The entire affidavit filed by the government is a totally redundant and unwanted exercise because the SC in the Shamim Ara ruling in 2002 has already invalidated instant and arbitrary triple talaq and laid down the procedure for dissolving the Muslim marriages. Even halala is a practice which accompanies only instant divorce and not a divorce over three months. So that too is rendered redundant. Since that landmark ruling did not receive media attention, most people are not aware of it. There have also been important high court judgments on this issue since 1981 and post Shamim Ara, several high courts have upheld this position. If any woman who has received a talaqnama approaches the court relying upon these judgements, the courts will strike down the talaq and will give her the rights as though she is married. Hence, there was no need to make such comments on an issue on which the SC had already ruled in a noncontroversial manner. FP: The government has also asked for the re-examination of a 1952 Bombay High Court judgment that held that Article 13 of the Constitution doesnt cover personal laws? Your views on this. FA: I have no issue with that but it only acquires a political hue in the present climate. The 1952 judgment is a high court judgment and not binding on the SC. But various SC judgments have upheld this decision and so it is not only the 1952 judgment but also the subsequent SC rulings that one needs to examine. But at the same time, there are a number of judgments of various high courts and the SC which have examined both Muslim and Christian laws and have struck down certain discriminatory aspects or laid down the correct procedure. Shamim Ara ruling is an example, and there are many more. The discriminatory aspects of Christian laws were also struck down. While hearing those cases, the issue did not get politicised. But in this case, there is a deliberate attempt to politicise the issue. FP: Many Muslim scholars and personalities have asserted that triple talaq is being given an 'un-Islamic' interpretation and that its practice is being 'wrongly interpreted', as the concept of one-time triple talaq does not exist. If this is the case then what is the basis of defending it? FA: I agree. But once we accept that the Shamim Ara judgment is binding, then this question does not arise at all. Surprisingly, the affidavit filed by AIMPLB has also conceded that Shamim Ara has laid down the law regarding the triple talaq and that is the law of the land today. Later they made contradictory statements, but the fact that they accept Shamim Ara ruling is a positive step. FP: The Law Commission of India sought a public vote on the implementation of UCC. Do you see this development as a precursor to some significant changes in personal laws in India? FA: I feel it has opened up a debate, but the manner in which the questionnaire is framed to target the Muslim community was totally unwarranted. The AIMPLB has given a call to boycott this questionnaire. This makes it difficult to have any dialogue. We should have started with the process of dialogue first and should have got the consensus of minority communities and then prepared a draft and presented it to various stakeholders. I disapprove of the manner in which this entire process has been done. FP: MPLB's Hazrat Maulana Wali Rahmani, at a press briefing a few days ago, said, "A uniform civil code is not good for this nation. There're so many cultures in this nation, (they) have to be respected. India can't impose a single ideology." How do you react to such claims? FA: I agree. My own position is that uniformity of rights is more important and not a uniform law which will not be accepted by minority communities. We need to first see where we have uniformity of rights and strengthen them. And where there is discrimination, bring reforms in small measures. All personal laws discriminate against women but the discrimination is not similar. Each has to be addressed separately. It has to be a step-by-step approach which will work better for the culturally diverse Indian communities. Even Hindu law is not uniform and takes within its ambit the cultural diversity of the Hindu population and accepts their customs and traditions. FP: Implementation of UCC means that along with Muslims other minorities, like Christians and Parsis, would also lose their existing right to apply for their own civil code or laws for family matters, including marriage, divorce and inheritance. Yet, the most vehement opposition comes from the MPLB. Why is it so? FA: This is because the issue has been polarised along the Hindu-Muslim binaries. Even when issues concerning other communities have come up before the SC, such as the John Vellomatham case or the Sarla Mudgal case, which involved Hindu women who were victims of Hindu polygamy, the SC have made a call for a UCC in the context of Muslim law. The media too has played into this which is indeed tragic. FP: Arif Mohammed Khan, who took a very strong stand against the discriminatory practices perpetuated by Muslim personal laws, while commenting on UCC and the functioning of MPLB wrote that, "The Imrana case, for that matter many other cases, including the famous Shah Bano case, are merely symptoms of a much deeper malaise the desire to maintain and perpetuate disparity between the sexes. MLPB, since its inception, has been the votary of this trend." Do you think that the MPLB will succeed in stifling any attempt of implementing the UCC this time as well? FA: Since I myself am opposed to the implementation of UCC on an unwilling community or polity, I refrain from answering this question. With due respect to Arif Mohammed Khan, when we address the malaise only within the Muslim community, we are framing the issue in a lopsided manner. As lawyer defending women's rights, women of all communities approach our organisation. In court proceedings, we do not find that Muslim women are more discriminated than Hindu women. In fact, the reverse is true. It is very difficult to prove a Hindu marriage when the husband denies it. There is no proof of Hindu marriage except through photographs and witnesses. When the husband claims a prior marriage, the woman is termed as a 'mistress' even by judges. Muslim marriage is a contract and the mehr is an integral part of it, whereas Hindu marriage continues to be viewed as a sacrament and dowry is an integral part of such a marriage. Though banned by law it continues unabated. The Hindu rituals under Section 7 of the Hindu Marriage Act, such as kanya dan are also discriminatory. Once a girl is married, she is seen as paraya dhan and doors of the natal family are closed on her. Due to these women, who are facing domestic violence, get depressed and commit suicide. Incidents such as Imrana are not unique to Muslims, they occur within Hindu families as well. The important point about Imrana is that she had the courage to file a complaint and get her father prosecuted. The fatwa itself was an attempt to politicise the issue by a journalist, as Imrana herself never asked for the same and the positive aspect is that she ignored the fatwa and continued to live with her husband in her natal home. Media never discusses these nuances and the attempt is only to tarnish the Muslim community through these media discussions. FP: In your article, you write that "another strategy to break the stalemate is to enact specific legislation, which will apply to women uniformly across the country." Though desirable, is it possible given the hostility towards UCC, especially by the Muslim law board? FA: It has been done before. We have laws such as the Special Marriage Act of 1954. Anyone can marry under it. But all communities prefer to marry under their own personal laws and the government has done very little to popularise it. The medical termination of pregnancy, the Dowry Prohibition Act, the dowry-related criminal proceedings under IPC such as Section 498A (cruelty to wives) section 304B dowry murders are uniformly applicable. Similarly, the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, which was enacted in 2005, applies to Muslims and others alike. This law protects shelter, residence, maintenance, child custody and also compensation for the violence suffered to women during their marriage, in their natal home and even after their divorce. In my EPW article and in a subsequent article in Scroll, I had explained that Shayara Bano ought to have used these remedies to claim her rights rather than rushing to the SC. As a divorced woman, she is also entitled to a fair and reasonable settlement for her entire life under the Protection of Women upon Divorce Act, 1986 which has been awarded a wide interpretation by the SC in 2001 in the Danial Latifi judgment. But due to illiteracy, ignorance, and denial of access to justice, most women who are victims of domestic violence are unable to use these beneficial provisions. It is poverty, illiteracy and the lack of resources to approach the court that prevent the women victims from approaching the courts to protect their rights. FP: In an EPW article published in May 2016, you questioned the positive media coverage of Banos petition and maintained the same view in another piece published two weeks ago highlighting the "few positive aspects" in the affidavit filed by AIMPLB. Many people expressed serious disagreement and discontentment on this. Please share your views on this? FA: No, in the EPW piece I was very critical of the media publicity and the focus upon the domestic violence faced by Shayara Bano as though it is unique to a Muslim woman, and because similar violence suffered by Hindu or other community women would not be highlighted in the same manner. I explained the various legal remedies she was entitled to and that no one was addressing it. So, I had felt that the media was extremely communal in highlighting this aspect. In the later article, I addressed the positive aspect in the affidavit filed by the AIMPLB which endorsed my views and accepted the ruling of Danial Latifi, which has held that a Muslim woman is entitled to a fair and reasonable provision for her entire life and they also advised that Shayara Bano should have approached the local court regarding the domestic violence she was facing. This was positive because earlier when we talked to people working with Muslim communities there was a feeling that Muslim women cannot approach the courts and must approach only the Mullahs. So the Board accepting this was indeed positive. The disagreement and discontentment are from those who have not worked with the law and have never helped Muslim women to access the courts. I do not think many of them even read the Boards detailed affidavit and have gone by media reports. I have not engaged with people making these comments because the comments are based on a total misreading of my article. After the Boards affidavit, we are able to reach out to Muslim women and help them to understand their law better and are also able to tell them that the Board advises them to approach the court. So they feel more comfortable in enforcing their rights in a court of law. Kolkata: Trinamool Congress MP and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew Avishek Banerjee was seriously injured on Tuesday when his car met with an accident on the Durgapur Expressway in Hooghly district, police said. Avishek was rushed to a city nursing home where doctors said he had sustained an orbital injury in a facial bone below the eye. The Chief Minister has ordered a Criminal Investigation Department probe on whether there was any foul play. Former minister Manas Bhunia, who was part of the convoy but in another vehicle, was safe. Avishek's car hit the crane of a van towing a snag-hit milk van at Ratanpur, about six km from Singur, when the TMC leader was returning to Kolkata after attending a party programme in Baharampur in Murshidabad district, police said. Trinamool leader Becharam Manna said Avishek's car upturned and hit a divider after the accident. "He is stable, but obviously there is cause for worry because in such cases there may be complications at a later stage," said attending doctor Subir Mondal. "There is no head injury. All his vital parameters are OK. We have done bone and brain scans. But nothing was found. We have to go for repeat tests," Mondal told the media. A 14-member medical team comprising internal medicine and eye specialists, surgeons, neurosurgeon, neurologist and maxilo-facial surgeon has been formed for his treatment. The doctor said no major fracture was diagnosed but he needed to be kept under medical observation. Mamata Banerjee, known for her fondness for Avishek, rushed to the nursing home. "She was talking to the doctors, and also his nephew," said a nursing home official, Senior Trinamool leaders also reached the health facility to ask after the TMC leader, who represents Diamond Harbour constituency in the 16th Lok Sabha. Shermans Dale, Pennsylvania: While Donald Trump often rails against a rigged election on Twitter and at rallies nationwide, he goes a few steps further in Pennsylvania, a state crucial to the Republicans fading chances to win the White House. In Pennsylvania, he has made direct appeals since August to recruit voters as poll monitors on Election Day and has pointed specifically at Philadelphia as a city beset by voter fraud. Despite offering little evidence for any of his claims, his rigged election message is resonating with his followers in this traditional battleground state where Democratic rival Hillary Clinton has opened up a wide lead. But his calls for poll watchers on 8 November is drawing a mix of confusion, concern and tepid support. In some cases, Trumps talk of fraud appears to have made some of his own followers more resigned to an election loss, even though independent studies show US voting chicanery is exceptionally rare and certainly never on a national scale. Since 8 August, when Trump first urged supporters in the state to watch other polling places and make sure that its 100-percent fine, civil rights groups have expressed fears that some supporters will take the idea too far by forming roaming, vigilante-style crowds intimidating voters. Trump supporter Mark Bowman, 53, says he isnt the type to attend a political rally or put campaign stickers on his car. And he isnt confident the election results will be correct. I hate to say it, but I dont have a lot of faith, Bowman said. Voter fraud is rampant especially in the cities. But, in a comment echoed by nearly two dozen Trump supporters in the states reliably Republican central regions, he said he thinks nothing can be done to stop it and that becoming an amateur poll watcher is a step too far. What authority do I have to confront someone? said the resident of Shermans Dale, a rural community of about 5,000 people. Your average citizen, youre going to end up in a confrontation with someone. Youre going to end up in a bad situation. There are official channels to monitor elections. Pennsylvania has a system that allows campaigns and political parties to designate official poll monitors, who are allowed into the polling places and can register official complaints if they think someone isnt a valid voter. A form on the Trump campaigns website asks voters to help Trump stop crooked Hillary from rigging this election by becoming a volunteer Trump election observer. But in an example of the Trump campaigns near non-existent effort to organise field operations in key swing states, there is little evidence that the recruitment drive is translating into legions of officially sanctioned volunteers. Repeated inquiries from Reuters about efforts to staff polling places went unanswered by his campaign. The rules allow each candidate and the state parties to name monitors. With federal and local candidates both on the November ballot, there could be dozens of watchers in a single precinct. But those familiar with past elections say rarely does that happen. Instead, campaigns tend to focus on only the most fought over swing districts. Steve Reigh, 57, a realtor from Elliottsburg, Pennsylvania, agrees with Trump that the election is likely to be rigged, but says he also resigned to the outcome of the election, win or lose. What are you going to do? he said. Really Close Vetting Some Trump supporters are branching out on their own. Jack Posobiec, a navy veteran and special projects director at Citizens for Trump, a grassroots support group, says he hopes to mobilise 3,000 volunteers in several key swing states in the final days of the campaign, including busing supporters from Texas to Ohio. On 1 October, Trump told a largely white rally of supporters in Manheim in central Pennsylvania that they should go to neighbourhoods other than their own on election day and watch. You've got to get everybody you know and you got to watch your polling booths, because I hear too many stories about Pennsylvania, certain areas," Trump said. "So go and vote and then go and check out areas because a lot of bad things happen and we dont want to lose for that reason. Dale Ho, a voting rights lawyer at the American Civil Liberties Union, said on Twitter that Trumps calls for "poll watchers" were a recipe for intimidation and discrimination." The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment. Married Trump supporters Gina, 75, and Larry Snyder, 77, of Newport agree the election could be rigged but doubt anything can be done about it, including poll-watching. Candace Lowe, 40, of Elliottsburg, Pennsylvania, said she is resigned to a Trump loss because the government can fudge stuff". Turning out en-masse to watch polling centres on election night wont change that, she said. In Mechanicsburg, an overwhelmingly Republican borough of nearly 9,000 people, realtor Steve Johansen helped to set up a Trump field office in a skating rink, but he has no plans to monitor any polling places. I have faith in the system, he said. By Allison Lampert | MONTREAL MONTREAL Imprisoned Saudi blogger Raif Badawi, whose public flogging in the kingdom in 2015 generated global outcry, now risks a new round of lashes, a co-founder of a Canadian foundation advocating for his release said on Tuesday.Evelyne Abitbol, who founded the Raif Badawi Foundation with Badawi's wife, said a "reliable source" in Saudi Arabia claims he faces a new flogging after being sentenced to 10 years imprisonment and 1,000 lashes in 2014 for breaking the kingdom's technology laws and insulting Islam. Saudi embassy officials in Ottawa and Saudi government officials in Riyadh were not immediately available for comment.Reuters was unable to independently confirm the source's claims. Abitbol declined to name the source but said it was the same person who had alerted Badawi's wife, Ensaf Haidar, in 2015 before he received his first 50 lashes, the only part of the flogging that was reportedly administered. The source did not indicate when the flogging would take place."Unfortunately, it could happen at any time, if it happens," Abitbol said by phone in Montreal. Abitbol said that Haidar has asked countries with ties to Saudi Arabia, including the Canadian government, to intervene on the blogger's behalf. Haidar, who is in Germany to present a journalism award on Wednesday in her husband's name, could not be immediately reached for comment. She was granted asylum in Canada, where she lives with the couple's three children in the province of Quebec. Abitbol, the foundation's director, wants Saudi Arabia to withdraw the flogging punishment, strip Badawi of his Saudi citizenship and let him leave the country for Canada.In December 2015, Badawi was awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament. (Reporting by Allison Lampert; Editing by Steve Orlofsky) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Washington: As the Islamic State group sees its territory shrink to half its original size and its dreams of a caliphate evaporate, the extremist fighters are losing access to the sources of revenue that once gave them their power, prompting them to turn to extortion, kidnapping or foreign donations like their predecessors, the militant group al-Qaeda. The Islamic State group had a unique ability to capitalise on the natural resources of its territory in Iraq and Syria and swiftly implement a system of taxation and governance that allowed it to rule an area that once was the size of Switzerland. As the battle gets underway to retake Mosul, the group's largest stronghold in Iraq, the Islamic State group is being denied access to revenue sources such as oil and gas and cash reserves that once amounted to more than $1 billion in 2014, said Daniel Glaser, the Treasury Department's assistant secretary for terrorist financing. With those resources slipping away, the Islamic State group is expected to revert to "traditional methods we see al-Qaida using whether it's deep-pocket donors, whether it's charities, whether it's NGOs, whether it's criminal activity," Glaser said in a recent discussion at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Beyond oil and gas sales, the Islamic State group also generated some $30 million per month in Iraq from taxation and extortion in 2015. Hisham al-Hashimi, an expert on IS who advises the Iraqi government, said the militant group currently makes about $4 million per month from taxes in Mosul alone. Al-Hashimi said the group charges a 4 percent income tax on salaries less than $600 per month, and 5 percent on monthly salaries between $600 and $1,000. Bank robberies made up the Islamic State group's third biggest source of revenue, mainly in Mosul, where there was more than $500 million in state-owned bank vaults when they captured the city in June 2014, but that was "a one-time take for them," Glaser noted, and they are quickly burning through that cash. Glaser says the Islamic State group is under financial duress. Fighter salaries have been cut in half in some areas, including in Raqqa, Syria, its de facto capital. The group also set up an internal corruption agency, suggesting corruption may be a factor, Glaser and al-Hashimi said. To compensate, there's been a noticeable spike in the IS group's revenue from criminal activity, such as extortion the Paris-based Center for the Analysis of Terrorism says extortion accounted for a third of its revenue in 2015, compared to 12 percent in 2014. In Syria, Islamic State-run services are lagging and the group recently shifted from paying fighter salaries in US dollars to Syrian pounds, indicating that their access to money markets has been disrupted, said Ziad Awad, editor of The Eye of the City, an online publication in Deir el-Zour. He added that the militants' access to resources in Deir el-Zour, including oil, has been halved amid ongoing coalition airstrikes, which are complicating oil sales and transportation. The oil wells were "bringing in about $2 million daily," Awad said in a Skype interview from Turkey. "This has shrunk because they've lost markets inside Syria and Iraq, due to shrinking territory." The Iraqi government moved to suspend government salaries to people living in IS-controlled areas last year in an effort to hit its taxable revenues. Glaser said that the move dealt a significant blow to the group, since the Iraqi government payroll is about $2 billion per year in Islamic State-held territories. But the challenges remain with reports that the militants coerce some employees to leave IS-controlled territory to collect their salaries, holding their property as collateral, only to retroactively tax them when they return home. The group is shifting from a governing force to a militant group on the run. "In a traditional terror financing model, you don't have an organization that is focused on governance and on holding and managing territory," said Yaya J Fanusie, director of analysis at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies' Center on Sanctions and Illicit Finances and a former CIA counterterrorism analyst. "Al-Qaida's money went to mainly operations and training." Beyond criminal activity, Fanusie said IS will likely pursue money through any number of sources as its territory shrinks, from charities to nonprofit groups, sympathetic, wealthy donors, or the hawala system, an alternative remittance system used in countries around the world that allows the transfer of funds domestically and internationally without using formal financial institutions. "ISIS losing territory is good, but to launch an attack in Europe or the US or any part of the world doesn't cost a lot," he said, using an acronym for the group. "If they're being squeezed in Syria and Iraq and directing their resources on attacks externally and less on governance, then it doesn't mean they're not a dangerous force." By Ori Lewis | JERUSALEM JERUSALEM Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday expressed concern that U.S. President Barack Obama, during the final days of his term in office, might take diplomatic steps that could harm the fate of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.Israel is concerned that the United States might not rally to its assistance in the event that an anti-settlement resolution is put to a vote in the United Nations Security Council and that Washington might not use its veto to quash such a move.Obama's strong opposition to settlement building on land Palestinians seek for a future state has also raised speculation in Israel that he might try to define parameters for a final peace agreement that has eluded Israel and the Palestinians since interim deals were signed in the early 1990s.Peace talks collapsed in 2014, with settlements a key issue in the dispute between the parties. A statement from Netanyahu's office clarified that he had told settlers in a closed meeting last week he hoped Obama would not act in the same way that some previous U.S. administrations had done at the end of their term, when they had "promoted initiatives that did not align with Israel's interests". He did not specify any examples.The statement repeated what Netanyahu had already told Israeli reporters in New York following his address to the U.N. General Assembly last month when he said: "I can only hope that the U.S.'s consistent policy will continue to the end of his (Obamas) tenure (on January 20)." It also denied what Israeli Channel 2 had ascribed to Netanyahu earlier on Wednesday when it quoted him as telling the settlers that "in the coming period, between the U.S. elections and the end of the term of (U.S. President Barack) Obama - the entire settlement movement is under threat." The United States has consistently criticised Israel over its West Bank settlement drive and earlier this month, Washington issued a strong rebuke at Israeli plans to build what it called a new Jewish settlement which it said would damage prospects for peace with the Palestinians. In unusually harsh words, Washington also accused Israel of going back on its word that no new settlements would be built. Obama raised concerns about the settlements when he met Netanyahu in New York.The United States contends that the project constitutes the establishment of a new settlement in the West Bank, contrary to assurances Netanyahu made to Obama that no new settlements would be built. Israel regards the planned homes as part of an existing settlement. (Writing by Ori Lewis; Editing by Angus MacSwan) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Islamabad: Pakistan and China's "all-weather" relationship is based on shared principles and interests that form the foundation of cooperation in diverse fields, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Wednesday. Sharif stated this when he met Bank of China chairman Tian Guoli who called on him here. "Highlighting China's great support to Pakistan in security, trade and infrastructure development, the Prime Minister said that Pakistan and China have a shared future and China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is the largest comprehensive project with any foreign country," according to an official statement. "CPEC is a fusion of multiple development projects, aimed at the prosperity and well-being of the citizens of the country and the region at large," it quoted Sharif saying. The prime minister said that Pakistan has a vibrant banking system that has achieved high-level of profitability, improved liquidity and strong solvency position. Sharif said sound capital base, remarkable growth in assets and profitability and compliance with international standards has poised Pakistan's banking sector in a very competitive position in the region for investors. He said foreign ownership in Pakistan's banking sector has consistently and considerably increased and the government has recently concluded $700 million financing agreement with China Development Bank which is the first such interaction with the Chinese banking industry. Tian lauded the vision of Sharif for putting the country on development path and turning around the economy. Tian said that CPEC has huge economic benefits for the people of Pakistan and the region. Beijing: Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte spent his first full day in China on Wednesday, on a state visit that comes as he makes increasing overtures to Beijing while vocally scorning his US ally. Since taking office on 30 June, Duterte has repeatedly denounced the US and its President Barack Obama, suspended joint patrols in the South China Sea, and threatened further action, including an end to joint military exercises. His posture is a stark reversal from the previous administration of Benigno Aquino, which took Beijing to an international tribunal over its extensive claims in the South China Sea and won a resounding victory. Duterte initially took a hardline stance on the issue, vowing to ride a jet ski to the disputed Spratly Islands and plant his countrys flag there. But his bravado has since softened and he has shown no sign of seeking to enforce the tribunal ruling which infuriated Beijing. Duterte will meet top leaders including President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang. "Only China can help us," he told the official Xinhua news agency Monday. He was due to meet members of the Filipino community in Beijing later Wednesday. The Philippines is hoping, among other things, that Beijing will repeal a ban on imports of its bananas an economic sanction intended to punish Manila for its South China Sea stance. The Philippines is one of several coastal nations which dispute China's claims to virtually all of the strategically vital waters. It has been a key player in the dispute, which is an issue of intense interest in both Washington and Beijing. Tensions have risen between the US and China over Washington's "pivot" to the Asia-Pacific, a move which Beijing says is intended to contain its rise. Duterte has said his trip will focus on promoting economic ties. Foreign affairs spokesman Charles Jose has said: "There will be a lot, I mean a lot, of business contracts that will be signed." In an editorial Tuesday, China's nationalistic Global Times newspaper called on the government to "reciprocate Duterte's overture" by giving the Philippines access to fishing grounds near Scarborough Shoal a move which would imply that such rights were China's to give. "Filipino fishermen fish on a shoestring and are unlikely to jeopardise the ecosystem of China's waters," the paper said. China took control of the shoal in 2012 after a standoff with the Philippine navy. Manila has long claimed the feature for itself, maintaining that it controls the area's fishing rights. China itself has been accused of doing massive environmental damage to the South China Sea by building artificial islands, some with airstrips, capable of hosting military facilities. In another editorial on Wednesday, the Global Times said Washington had treated Manila "as a pawn" and Duterte was "redesigning Philippine foreign policy based on Philippine interests". Beijing has also enthusiastically endorsed Duterte's war on drugs, which has seen more than 3,700 people killed and led the International Criminal Court to warn that those responsible could face charges. China, which has frequently been criticised for its own approach to drug users, "is his best partner in the anti-drug fight", the Global Times wrote. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China at a press conference on Tuesday said that Chinese President Xi Jinping will hold talks with Duterte on "improving and developing bilateral relations, deepening all-round pragmatic cooperation and international and regional issues of common interest". Speaking to the media, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said that the two sides were expected to reach a consensus on infrastructure building, economic and trade cooperation and people-to-people exchanges. South China Sea found no mention. The ministry also spoke about the "friendly exchanges" between the Chinese and Philippine people that date back a long time ago. "Today President Duterte will come across the sea to make a historic visit, which will mark a new starting point for China-Philippines relations. China sets great store by this visit. We are ready and willing to reach out to the Philippine people for friendship and cooperation. We believe that President Dutertes visit will surely be successful." With inputs from AFP BERLIN Ukraine, Germany, France and Russia have agreed to draw up a roadmap in November on how to implement a Minsk ceasefire agreement for eastern Ukraine, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said on Thursday after four-way leader talks."This roadmap should have the sequence of the implementation of the Minsk agreements and guarantee their implementation," Poroshenko told reporters in Berlin. He also said the sides agreed to withdrawals of Ukrainian troops and Russian-backed separatists in four new areas at the frontline of the fighting in the Donbass region. They also agreed that monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) could be armed and that their activities in monitoring the so-called Minsk peace process would not be impeded. Separatist violence erupted in eastern Ukraine in 2014 and has killed 9,600 people so far. It continues despite a ceasefire made in the Belarusian capital Minsk last year. (Reporting by Natalia Zinets; writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Lisa Shumaker) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Cairo: Six takfiri militants and two soldiers were killed as the Egyptian forces have begun rooting out terrorists in its campaign to avenge the last week's deadly attack by the Islamic State that left 12 military personnel dead. Ground and air forces attacked the militant hideouts in seven areas on Tuesday and killed six takfiri militants during operations, military spokesperson Brigadier General Mohamed Samir said in a statement. Two soldiers were also killed during the army operations. 16 shelters, two vehicles and ten motorcycles belonging to the terrorists were also destroyed, he said. The statement did not mention the exact places where the yesterday's operations took place, however the campaign, launched by the army on Sunday in which terrorists 18 takrifi militants were killed, was targetted at terrorists and outlaw elements from several areas in the North and Central Sinai region. The operations are part of the second comprehensive campaign launched by the army in retaliation for the Friday's terror attack. The first comprehensive campaign of "Martyr's Right" that aimed at rooting out militants based in the restive North Sinai region. "Martyr's Right" was launched by the security forces in response to an attack in October 2014 that killed 33 security personnel. Egypt has witnessed a series of terrorist attacks targeting policemen, judges and military personnel in different parts of the country. Since the 2011 revolution that toppled the regime of then President Hosni Mubarak, North Sinai, which is the base of a number of extremist outlaw groups, became the main stage of many violent attacks by Takfiri gunmen. Over 700 security personnel have been reported killed since then. The military has launched security campaigns in the area, arrested suspects and demolished houses that belong to terrorists, including those facilitating tunnels leading to the Gaza Strip. By Andy Sullivan | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON Donald Trump supporters who plan to stake out polling sites on Election Day may find their own activities tracked closely by thousands of civil-rights activists who are mounting a nationwide effort to prevent problems at the polls.The Republican presidential candidate, who has repeatedly said that the election is rigged, has urged his backers to monitor voting sites for evidence of fraud, raising concerns that overzealous supporters could intimidate voters in the Nov. 8 election.They will not be the only ones out in force on Election Day. Civil rights groups say they plan to deploy thousands of volunteers on the ground in 27 states to ensure that voters will not be turned away by harassment, long lines or confusing rules. Teams of lawyers will file legal challenges if necessary.While previous elections have been marred by irregularities, Trump's rhetoric might lead to greater problems at the polls this year, activists say."When Trump says, 'Go and watch certain areas of Philadelphia,' that's either intentionally reckless or it's a thinly veiled call to engage in racial profiling," said Dale Ho, the head of the American Civil Liberties Union's voting rights project. "Whether people will heed it, I don't know."Non-partisan groups have mounted "election protection" programs since the disputed Bush-Gore presidential election of 2000, but they faced a more daunting landscape this year even before Trump began warning of a "rigged election." The Supreme Court in 2013 weakened the U.S. government's ability to monitor voting activity in states with a history of racial discrimination, and dozens of Republican-led states have also passed laws that require voters to present photo identification or that restrict voting in other ways.As early voting gets underway in many states, voting-rights groups are publicizing a national hotline, 866-OUR-VOTE, and establishing lines of communication with the election officials who are tasked with resolving problems."We haven't encountered a situation yet where we feel there's a need to call the police," said Marcia Johnson-Blanco, a co-director of the voting rights project at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.This year, civil-rights groups are broadening their efforts beyond perpetual battlegrounds like Ohio and Florida to conservative states like Texas, where they plan to field 200 volunteers to monitor polling sites in Houston's Harris County. "We've seen an uptick of folks saying they're going to be out patrolling in a way that we think is trying to be intimidating," said Zenen Jaimes Perez, communications director for the Texas Civil Rights Project. In New York, volunteers with Common Cause are expanding their monitoring programs to Muslim neighbourhoods in New York City and some areas of the rural Hudson Valley."What Trump's efforts have caused us here in New York to think about are places where there are concentrations of voters who, I hate to say, are easy targets - a magnet for people who are extreme," said Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause New York. Democratic officials have stepped up their efforts as well. In Arizona, a traditionally Republican state that is competitive this year, Democrats plans to deploy a record 200 lawyers to make sure that everybody who is in line when polls close at 7 p.m. will get a chance to cast a ballot, said Spencer Scharff, the state party's voter protection director.But at the end of the day, poll monitors do not have the power to fix problems - they can only point them out to election officials."States have the most important role. They're the ones who write these laws and they have to enforce these laws," said Danielle Davis, a staff attorney at the Advancement Project, a national civil-rights group. (Reporting by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Leslie Adler) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Stephanie Nebehay and Lesley Wroughton | GENEVA/WASHINGTON GENEVA/WASHINGTON U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry played down expectations of a new Syrian ceasefire deal with Russia after talks in Geneva aimed at agreeing on how to separate al Qaeda-linked militants from opposition fighters in the besieged city of Aleppo.After two failed ceasefire agreements between the United States and Russia to end the fighting in Aleppo, a new round of talks includes Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which support Syrian opposition groups. Syria's ally Iran was not invited, a Western diplomat said."I'm not approaching this with a high sense of expectation and nothing is based on trust," Kerry told a news conference in Washington following meetings with South Korean ministers."I urge Russia to sit at this table in Geneva and be serious about finding a simple way, which we are offering, to make sure that those who are genuinely terrorists are in fact separated out, isolated," Kerry said.Kerry spoke as a senior NATO diplomat, citing Western intelligence, said that Russian warships off the coast of Norway were carrying fighter aircraft that are likely to reinforce a final assault on Aleppo in two weeks.The Geneva talks follow a meeting between the United States and Arab and European allies on Tuesday that sought to coordinate efforts toward a new ceasefire after Russia, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's more powerful ally, unexpectedly announced it had halted air strikes on rebel-held areas of Aleppo. Michael Ratney, the U.S. special envoy for Syria, led Washington's delegation in the talks in Geneva, while Moscow sent military experts whose names were not released. It was not clear if the talks would continue on Thursday.Russia favours a U.N. proposal to evacuate jihadists belonging to the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham militant group, formerly known as al-Nusra, from the besieged zone of eastern Aleppo in return for a ceasefire."Important countries, like Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar, which have influence over the mainstream rebel groups, are in a position to suggest to those groups to tell the al-Nusra fighters that it is time to go to Idlib and therefore take away any alleged justification, or alibi, for the heavy bombing of urban areas of eastern Aleppo," the U.N. special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, told Swedish daily Svenska Dagbladet.Idlib is a largely rebel-held area of northwestern Syria. Russia has said a planned eight-hour ceasefire on Thursday will be extended if other rebels clearly distance themselves from Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, but it will not prolong the pause unilaterally."The Russians have no interest in getting to a point where they have to participate in the destruction of a city in order to fight a small group of fighters listed as terrorists by the U.N. and be remembered in history for that," de Mistura said.The last ceasefire fell apart in September, since when Russian and Syrian forces have undertaken a massive bombing campaign against eastern Aleppo in which hospitals have been destroyed and hundreds of civilians killed. Assad argues that his forces have a constitutional duty to protect the civilian population and rid the city of "terrorists".The task of separating "moderate" rebels from Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, designated as a terrorist group by the U.N., is complicated because they have long fought side-by-side and there is little agreement on the number of their combatants in Aleppo.The United Nations says there are up to 900 Jabhat Fateh al-Sham fighters out of a total of 8,000 rebels in eastern Aleppo, but diplomatic sources have told Reuters there are far fewer, probably a maximum of 200."They are calling the shots in Aleppo," one aid official told Reuters. (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay, Editing by Mark Heinrich and Grant McCool) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Las Vegas - what a fitting location for a Trump debate - the gambling den of Americas mid west, for a final dice roll against a woman just 20 days away from rewriting Americas political history. Despite all the odds stacked against him - Trump is trailing in polls in all battleground states and staring down at an epic rebuke - what will a Trump victory in Vegas look like? If Trump can divert the attention to new revelations of how Clintons emails were rigged, allegedly with generous help from the FBI, drum up the WikiLeaks splash about her Wall Street-friendly speeches, paint her as a sly racist who clubbed potential vice presidential picks are flavours of Black, Hispanic, female and raise question marks about who really incited violence in some Trump rallies - were they Clintons hit men, Trump would have done well. If Clinton locks Trump in a school teacherish argument, hes done for even if she does not impress. Trumps best bet is an all out offensive on the last 90 minutes of ad free television hell get if he does not become President of the USA and that looks increasingly certain. Here's why - Without Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania, Trumps chances of winning the presidency dwindle to 5%, according to FiveThirtyEight, a data-journalism outfit. The only place where Trump had a decent lead and has never voted Democrat since the Sixties - Utah - is also drifting away after tapes exploded of Trump bragging about grabbing women and sexually assaulting them. From the sarcastic Would it be okay to call you Secretary Clinton, Trump went on to call his opponent the Devil who has hate in her heart - and all this not at a roadside brawl but on national television. So, whats next ? Will he lump Huma Abedin and Bill Clinton and all the real and alleged sexual transgressions of the Clinton camp in one final gambit and watch it blow up? Expecting fireworks, the debate organisers have arranged for the candidates' spouses to enter the hall closer to their seats, rather than crossing the room, and each other's paths. That would avoid Melania Trump and Bill Clinton being forced to shake hands and any potential confrontation, given Mr. Trump's penchant for dramatic stunts, reports The New York Times. Former top Obama adviser David Axelrod says of the Clinton performance - She has control of this raceshe should stay within herself and resist the temptation to trade insults with Trump. So, what would a Clinton win at Vegas look like? Although the Democratic nominees debate preppers are ready for mud pies, they want Clinton to land some aspirational lines that will shine on, like how Obama did with his speeches that resonate till today, long after his candidacy. Beyond suggesting to the American voter that she desperately wants to live in the White House again and keep Trump out of there, what else is Clinton offering. Shes had two 90 minute slots to close the sale, she did not. She has another one now, will she close the deal? But Clinton, by her own admission, is neither Obama nor Bill Clinton and the only gifts she will give will all go to Saturday Night Live. Watch out for that coming Alec Baldwin spoof. The last two hits are here. Here's the Associated Press take on what to watch out for in the final debate: RIGGED Trump in recent days has tried to deflect attention from the allegations about sexual advances by complaining that the election process is rigged against him. Without providing any evidence, he wraps together the potential for voter fraud with assertions that his female accusers are part of a plot to smear him. With millions of viewers tuning in, will Trump dwell on conspiracy theories or give voters a more positive reason to vote for him? HACKED Largely overshadowed by the allegations against Trump has been WikiLeaks' day-after-day release of thousands of hacked emails from the Clinton campaign. The emails include excerpts of Clinton's closed-door speeches to Wall Street interests and lots of campaign strategizing over how to contain the political damage related to her handling of classified emails and her use of a private email server. Trump has responded with a scattershot series of criticisms about "Clinton corruption," but he has yet to hone a disciplined line of attack. Wednesday night gives him a fresh opportunity to try to synthesize his message and find a way to make the email controversy stick. BREATHE The campaign took a dramatic detour last week when a series of women came forward with allegations that Trump made sexual advances toward them. Trump's combative response, calling the women "sick" and "liars" and alleging that there's a global conspiracy against him, overtook all other aspects of the campaign for a time. How much oxygen will it suck up in the final debate? CIVIL WAR With a number of Republican officials in open revolt against Trump and worried that he will be a drag on the rest of the ticket, watch to see whether Trump gins up more discord with his party and whether Clinton steps in to make the case for Democratic control of the House and Senate. FINGERS CROSSED Immigration was hardly mentioned in the first two debates. Social Security never came up. The national debt has gotten only passing notice. Policy wonks have their fingers crossed that neglected issues will finally get an airing in the final debate. Wallace's list of potential topics includes debt and entitlements, immigration, the economy, the Supreme Court and foreign hot spots. IT'S BAAACK A subject that both candidates love to dwell on also is teed up for Round 3: "fitness to be president." Trump and Clinton already have made plain their disdain for each other's qualifications to occupy the Oval Office, but they can be counted on to look for new ways to inveigh against each other's fitness for office. CLOSING ARGUMENTS The first debate attracted a record 84 million viewers and the second 66.5 million. Whatever the viewership for Round 3, it is sure to be the candidates' last chance to speak to such a large audience before Election Day on Nov. 8. Watch what messages the candidates pick to drive home as their closing arguments. MIND GAMES Both candidates have used the debates to try to rattle their opponents: Clinton baited Trump by questioning his wealth and his business acumen. Trump tried to throw off Clinton by seating three women who have accused her husband of sexual impropriety in the front row of the audience at the second debate. Odds are both candidates have saved some fresh theatrics for the final debate. MODERATION Wallace has served notice he won't try to "truth squad" the debate. Given Trump's habit of skirting the truth, that may put the onus on Clinton for more real-time fact checking. So far, she's largely punted, pointing viewers toward her website. BEEN THERE, DONE THAT By the time the debate gets under way, more than 1.6 million Americans already will have voted. For those viewers, the debate could serve to validate their choices or give them buyer's remorse. WANNA PLAY COMEDY WRITER? Keep an eye open for the most mimic-worthy moments: They're likely to show up on "Saturday Night Live's" next parody of the Trump-Clinton contest, featuring Alec Baldwin and Kate McKinnon as the candidates. "SNL" got an unintended boost when Trump tweeted that Baldwin's Trump impersonation stinks. Blog Hinangai While there is much discussion in Guam about the economic benefits of increasing the islands military presence, the damages/dangers that they represent are rarely mentioned. This blog, a supplement to the Peace and Justice for Guam Petition, is meant to counter that by providing information about the US military in Guam, with the hopes of steering policy away from a dangerous unilateralist course to more sustainable notions of regional development and a strengthening international solidarity. MakeMyTrip has announced that it has agreed to acquire ibibo Group in an equity deal. Upon closing the acquisition, MakeMyTrip will own 100 per cent of ibibo Group. The latest move will help MakeMyTrip compete against rivals Yatra and Cleartrip. Naspers and Tencent will become the single largest shareholder in MakeMyTrip, owning a 40% stake and will contribute proportionate working capital upon closing, the homegrown travel portal said. Additionally, prior to closing , the US$180 million, 5-year convertible notes issued by MakeMyTrip Limited to Ctrip.com International, Ltd. in January 2016 will also be converted into common equity, resulting in Ctrip having an approximately 10% stake in the combined entity. Following the closing of the proposed transaction, Founder Deep Kalra will remain Group CEO and Executive Chairman of MakeMyTrip and Co-founder Rajesh Magow will continue to remain CEO India of MakeMyTrip. Founder and CEO of ibibo Group, Ashish Kashyap, will join MakeMyTrips executive team as a Co-founder and President of the organization. Deep Kalra, Chairman and Group CEO of MakeMyTrip, said in a statement, Todays announcement is a significant step forward for the rapidly growing travel industry in India. We expect this deal to create an even more scalable business with the expertise to transform the booking experience for Indian travellers. I am delighted to be leading such a strong team in our next chapter of high-growth in this dynamic industry. Ashish Kashyap, CEO ibibo Group, said in a statement, Since I founded ibibo in 2007, we have innovated and grown to become one of the leading travel companies in India, providing solutions not just for travellers, but for suppliers too. Deep, Rajesh and I saw a great opportunity to join forces, and I am excited that this merger enables all of us to continue a great journey together as the leading travel group in India. The transaction is expected to close by the end of December 2016 and is subject to approval by MakeMyTrip shareholders and regulatory approvals. Source A new division of Russian strategic bombers will soon begin conducting patrols over the Pacific Ocean. A new division of Russian strategic bombers will soon begin conducting patrols over the Pacific Ocean. The Russian Aerospace Forces are in the process of setting up a new long-range Heavy Bomber Division in Russias Far East to patrol the Pacific Ocean inside the Japan-Hawaii-Guam triangle, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced last week, according to local media report. The formation of the division is almost complete now. It consists of several squadrons of long-distance bombers deployed in the Eastern and Central military districts, an unnamed senior Russian defense official told Izvestia. The new bomber division will be based at Belaya and Ukrainka, in eastern Siberia. The division will be composed of several dozen Tu-95MS strategic missile bombers and Tu-22M3 long-range bombers. The Tupolev Tu-22M3, also an upgraded variant of an older aircraft developed for the Soviet Air Force, is a supersonic, variable-sweep wing, long-range strategic and maritime strike bomber. Around a hundred Tu-22Ms of all variants are currently in service with the Russian Aerospace Forces. The Tupolev Tu-95MS, an improved variant of the older Tu-95, is a four-engine, long-range, turboprop, strategic bomber that can be armed with a wide range of weapons including stand-off cruise missiles. Russia intends to operate 20 Tu-95MS by the end of 2016. According to media reports, the new division is based on the 6953rd Guards Red Banner, Pacific Air Group. During the Cold War, Soviet bombers of the Pacific Air Group patrolled in close vicinity to U.S. military bases in Japan, Guam, and also U.S. naval bases in Hawaii. Russia stopped conducting regular patrols in the 1990s and early 2000s, but has stepped up its military activities in the Pacific Ocean in the last two years. Russian bombers have routinely been patrolling airspace off the coast of Japan since 2014. The Japanese Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) scrambled jets in response to two Russian Tu-95MS strategic bombers flying along the perimeter of Japans territorial airspace in January 2016. Russian bombers have also appeared near the Ryukyu Island chain in March 2015. As my colleague Ankit Panda reported in January: In 2014, shortly following Russias annexation of Crimea and ensuing isolation from the West, including expulsion from the G8 within which Japan is a member, Russian Tu-95 bomber patrols picked up in intensity in the Asia-Pacific region . As General Herbert Hawk Carlisle, the commander of the U.S. Pacific Air Force, said at the time, the United States noticed that Russian bombers were coming out to airspace near California and, [], circumnavigated Guam. However, as I reported in April, the JASDF reported a decline in the number of times it had to dispatch fighter jets to intercept Russian military aircraft in 2015. Last year, there were 873 overall sorties, with 288 targeting Russian aircraft. In 2014, Japan scrambled jets 943 times, 473 of which were in response to Russian incursions. In October 2015, two Tupolev Tu-142 aircraft, another variant of the Tu-95, flew within one nautical mile of the USS Ronald Reagan, a U.S. aircraft carrier, prompting the dispatch of four F/A-18 Super Hornets from the Reagan to intercept the Russian warplanes. Xiaomi recently announced that it sold more than 500,000 smartphones in less than three days, between 1 and 3 October during festive sales in India. Today the Chinese smartphone maker has announced that it has sold 1 million devices within 18 days (1 18 October). [HTML1] To celebrate this milestone, CEO Lei Jun has shared an open letter to its employees. Yesterday we set an incredible record in India by selling more than 1 million smartphones within 18 days. On behalf of Xiaomis management, Id like to congratulate the entire Mi India team for this outstanding performance. A big round of thanks to Manu and Hugo for their outstanding leadership, to everyone at Mi India for their dedication, and to the business teams in China for their support. I am extremely proud of each one of you! I would also like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all our partners in India, especially Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal, for their support. And very importantly, I wish to thank every Indian Mi fan for the love they have shown to Xiaomi, which is the driving force behind our success. India is an extremely important market in Xiaomis globalization strategy. It has become our largest market outside of mainland China. In the past two years, we have witnessed several exciting milestones in India: August 2015: We became the first smartphone brand to participate in Prime Minister Modis Make in India initiative. July to August 2016: As per IDC, we became the #1 online smartphone brand in the country. September 2016: As per IDC, we became the third-largest smartphone vendor within Indias Top 30 cities with 8.4% market share. September 2016: Redmi Note 3 became the best-selling device in the online market with over 2.3 million devices sold in 6 months. When we entered India, there was extremely fierce competition. We have achieved such extraordinary growth in India firstly because of our vision to bring innovation to everyone with our high-quality products at incredible prices. Secondly, we have an amazing team in India. We will continue investing in India to deliver the best products to our Mi fans expanding our supply, ensuring the high quality of our products, and further improving our after-sales service. The core of the Xiaomi model is creating high-quality products, making friends with our users, and operating our business extremely efficiently. This model has been proven in China. I believe that the Xiaomi model will resonate across the world, starting with India. I am confident that with the sustained efforts of our entire Xiaomi family, we will be able to capture the largest market share in India within 3-5 years! Mi India, lets make history together! Thank you! Lei Jun On 19 Oct., 2016 Cargill Asia Pacific More than simply a food ingredients supplier, Cargill deeply understands our customers' strategies, consumers, distribution channels and competition. We deliver solutions that help the food industry and beverage manufacturers drive growth through new product innovation and reformulation. Cargill helps reduce costs through supply chain and manufacturing process efficiency and managing commodity price risk. Cargill helps our food industry and beverage manufacturing customers create unique products that fill product pipelines and reduce time-to-market by connecting our diverse food ingredients supplier capabilities marketers, research scientist, application experts, risk managers and manufacturing process engineers and seamlessly delivering these resources to customers. As a service and solution-oriented food ingredients supplier, our broad portfolio helps our customers address their food product development needs across the spectrum of applications and categories. Cargill helps our customers safely manufacture products every day around the world by reliably originating and distributing grain, oilseeds and other food ingredient commodities and by processing a diverse food ingredients supplier portfolio that spans core and specialty ingredients, ingredient systems and finished food systems. When I think about John Stumpf, the now-disgraced former chairman and CEO of Wells Fargo (WFC -0.78%), I'm reminded of those stories you see on TV about the guy-next-door who had been living a secret life for years. "He seemed so normal," neighbors would say. "He always showed up to work on time and did his job," co-workers would add. But then, for one reason or another, everything would come crashing down. Something would cause someone to peek behind the thin veneer of respectability and discover the truth. In Ken Lay's case, it was the recession following Sept. 11, 2001 that revealed the inner machinations at Enron. In Bernie Madoff's case, it was the financial crisis that caused his multibillion dollar Ponzi scheme to collapse. And in John Stumpf's case, it was a fake-account scandal in which low-level employees were, if a growing multitude of allegations are to be believed, all but forced to commit fraud in order to keep their jobs and boost Wells Fargo's performance and thereby Stumpf's voluptuous paycheck -- he earned $20 million a year. You may think that comparing Stumpf to Lay and Madoff is hyperbolic, but I disagree. Like them, he carefully cultivated an image of infallibility. He lambasted other banks for seeking growth for the sake of growth. And he loudly trumpeted Wells Fargo's Vison & Values which made, in hindsight, preposterous claims like: The reason we wake up in the morning is to help our customers succeed financially and to satisfy their financial needs, and the result is that we make money. It's never the other way around. Meanwhile, while analysts and commentators like me were distracted by Stumpf's diversionary tactics, thousands of the banks' employees were opening millions of fake accounts for customers. Stumpf claimed that the fraud went back to only 2011, but there's now clear evidence that it may have gone all the way back to 2005, if not to 1998. All along the way, moreover, those employees who didn't feel comfortable committing fraud and who blew the whistle to Stumpf, the bank's "ethics" line, its human resources department, or to Wells Fargo's board of directors, were fired or intimidated into continuing the fraud. "We were constantly told we would end up working for McDonald's," a former employee told the Los Angeles Times, which broke the story in Dec. 2013. Never mind the fact that McDonald's has never been caught intentionally defrauding millions of customers. Another employee who refused her supervisors' demands to open fake accounts was told that she'd never be able to find another job at a bank ever again. Wells Fargo sought to make this happen by filing a U5 with securities regulators, claiming that she "failed to perform job duties." According to bankers I've spoken to, a document like that should NEVER have been filed against a personal banker, who sells FDIC-insured banking products, not securities. (One banker I spoke to who has hiring and firing authority had never even heard of a U5 filing.) Another 12-year veteran of the company who blew the whistle received a menacing letter from his superiors, threatening him that his employment was "at will" and under the "complete and arbitrary discretion" of his superiors. The letter concluded by saying "you will never be allowed back in the same office, sue us if you disagree." He did, and he won the case. And all along the way, Stumpf was getting letters and emails from these people. And he did nothing to stop it. He did nothing to stop the abuse of customers. And he did nothing to stop the abuse of his employees. In this way, he was complicit in -- dare I say the leader of -- a conspiracy that not only defrauded millions of customers, many of whom were undoubtedly the most vulnerable members of our society such as octogenarians living on $1,100 a month, but also silenced those who tried to end the scam. These people believed that alerting Stumpf would give them safe harbor from their immediate superiors who threatened and belittled them. But Stumpf ignored them. He allowed his managerial goon squad to defame their reputations and attempt to destroy these peoples' abilities to earn a living for their families. It's like a horror movie where the victim runs unwittingly into the arms of a seeming do-gooder, only to discover that they were now in the grasps of the perpetrator they were fleeing from. But rest assured that Stumpf will not escape this with his reputation intact. Speaking under oath, before Congress, Stumpf said that he didn't learn about the fraud until late 2013. That's eight years after he purportedly began receiving emails and letters from whistleblowers. And it was nearly three years after Wells Fargo began cleaning house in its retail operations, firing 1,000 employees a year who, if the bank is to be believed (ha ha), were furthering the fraud, or who, seemingly just as likely, were fired because they refused to participate in it. In short, it seems farfetched to think that Stumpf won't, at the very least, be indicted for lying to Congress. His claim that he didn't know about any of this until late 2013 is just patently absurd on its face. What's happening Shares of Banc of California, Inc. (BANC -0.83%) are trading higher by about 22% as of 2:30 p.m. EDT as the company took steps to mitigate concerns about the bank's alleged relationship with serial fraudster Jason Galanis. Shares dropped 29% yesterday on the publication of a short report that outlined potential links between Galanis and the bank. So what Last night, Banc of California put out a press release in response to the short report. The release noted that its "Disinterested Directors" initiated an immediate investigation into links between Galanis and the bank, and refuted one claim of a direct link between Galanis and the company. This morning, Banc of California released earnings a day earlier than previously scheduled, announcing record net income and deposit growth. It also increased its full-year earnings guidance to "at least $1.85 per share," up from $1.60 per share. In the same 8-K filing with the SEC, the bank announced that its board of directors approved a share buyback program that would authorize the company to buy back up to 10% of its currently outstanding shares over the next 12 months. In an exhibit, the bank included a letter to SeekingAlpha, calling for the removal of yesterday's blog post that alleged ties between the bank and Galanis. The bank added additional detail about its investigation in its prepared remarks on its earnings conference call, noting that management had advised the board of directors in 2015 about Galanis' indictment, and that it retained outside counsel for an investigation that continued for more than a year. The bank confirmed that there was no ownership or influence link between Galanis and the bank during that previous investigation. The company didn't take any further questions about Galanis, citing the fact it believed the short report was libel per se and that further discussion could impact its ability to seek legal recourse. Executives also stopped short of naming the "disinterested directors" involved in the internal investigation that began yesterday. Instead, interest was diverted to its earnings for the third quarter. Now what This is likely only the beginning of a very public, back-and-forth conversation between critics and company executives, as these matters typically evolve over the course of months, if not years. Potential ties to Galanis are just one of many issues brought up in the short-seller's blog post. The only certain development in the last day is that Banc of California's explosive asset growth may slow. Bank officials pointed out that the bank may sell certain assets on its balance sheet, use capital to pay larger dividends or repurchase shares, or all of the above. The number of illegals seeking asylum to gain easy access to the United States has jumped 900 percent in less than 10 years, greatly expanding the Immigration population receiving Social Security, school loans, green cards, welfare and other taxpayer funded services, according to figures from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. While about 8,000 mostly Latin Americans in 2009 sought asylum, the number is expected to reach 80,000 or more this year, according to a projection from the Center for Immigration Studies. The report said 80 percent come from just three countries that have already flooded the border with youths and young families, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. Most claim a fear of torture, abuse, or retaliation, fulfilling the U.S. requirement that they must voice some credible fear of returning home. The surge was sparked by a freeing up by President Obama of the restrictions to those requesting asylum. Now they are let into the United States while they pursue their asylum request. The author of the report, Jessica M. Vaughan, the Center's director of policy studies, said many of those arriving at the border to claim asylum are trafficked through Mexico by gangs charging fees to get their clients into the U.S. What's more, typically many are granted a temporary OK, then find their way to U.S. cities. A House panel found that some 90 percent are granted asylum, though only 30 percent of the requests were "fraud free," said the CIS analysis. This is just too ironic. I received pic's with this but I don't know how to post them.:unsure: Subject: YEP IT HAPPENS The insanity marches on. We dont want to insult a hijab clad Muslim woman by a search, but its OK to search a nun. Yep, makes sense to me! You cannot make this stuff up! Airport security (Detroit Metro Concourse A). A Catholic nun being frisked by a Muslim security agent! Excuse me? Did you say a MUSLIM security agent in the USA screening for suspected terrorists? ONLY IN OBAMA'S, AND HILLARYS, AMERICA! Political correctness is out of control. The next few weeks are traditionally a tense time at Samsung Electronics Co <005930.KS> as executives wait to see if their work over the year is rewarded with promotion at the South Korean firm's annual performance review. This year, that tension has been ramped up several notches as the year-end ritual comes on the heels of the debacle over Samsung's flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. The world's top smartphone maker this month pulled the plug on the near-$900 device after phones overheated and caught fire. With some replacement phones suffering the same problem, Samsung has forecast a $5.4 billion hit to its operating profits. Some analysts predict the smartphone business may post a first quarterly loss for July-September. "Everyone's afraid to be heard even breathing," said one Samsung employee. "There will be punitive measures; someone will have to take responsibility for this." None of the Samsung employees Reuters talked to for this article wanted to be named as they were not authorized to speak to the media. Samsung's annual personnel decisions - a common practice in South Korea around December - is a secret more closely guarded than even details of its new products. Executives are told about any changes only at the last minute. Samsung insiders say there is more nervousness this year than normal, and talk internally of sweeping changes, with a cull both in the executive suite and on the ground level. "There's a lot of talk there could be major turnover in the executive ranks on the hardware side," said an insider at the mobile division. "There's also a lot of concern among the working-level employees about a major restructuring." Samsung told Reuters it was not considering any management changes or restructuring in response to the Note 7 crisis. FRUSTRATION The sense of frustration among Samsung staff has been heightened by the company's inability to find the cause of the fires in replacement Note 7s that began shipping last month with what Samsung said were safe batteries, insiders said. "We are working around the clock to analyze the causes of the reported cases," Samsung said in a statement to Reuters, adding it is premature to speculate on what went wrong. In an internal Oct. 11 email apologizing to staff, mobile chief Koh Dong-jin - who has been in the job for less than a year - wrote of the "big wound" the scrapping of the Note 7 would be for executives and employees. Samsung confirmed Koh wrote to staff, but did not comment on what he said. Some Samsung workers said there were already rumors circulating internally about which executives might be ousted. Some investors and analysts have said top executives including Koh may be held responsible at the year-end review. Others said they felt ashamed when people they know ditched the Note 7 for a rival product or when they heard news announcements about the phones being banned from aeroplanes. Koh and other Samsung executives have been active on internal messaging boards, discussing with employees how to deal with the Note 7 crisis, insiders said. About 70 percent of Samsung's more than 325,000 employees work outside South Korea. It is not clear how overseas jobs or those at subsidiaries might be affected by the Note 7 storm; Samsung said it has no plans to cut jobs this year in Vietnam, a major smartphone manufacturing base. TAKING IT SLOW Internally, the mobile business was criticized by some for changing product specifications without delaying launch schedules, putting staff and suppliers under pressure to deliver fast. "Some people who work in other business divisions feel something like this was bound to happen," said a Samsung employee at the consumer electronics division, noting mounting pressure on the mobile business to overcome slowing growth amid strong competition from rivals including Apple Inc and Huawei Technologies Co Ltd [HWT.UL]. A person familiar with the development of the next Galaxy S smartphone, expected to launch early next year, said the process has now slowed as Samsung is anxious to avoid any repeat of the Note 7 problems in its future premium handsets. "Depending on the cause (of the Note 7 problem), certain configurations may need to be altered," the person said. "So the specifics for the (next) phone have not been finalised." Samsung is not likely to bring forward the launch of the next Galaxy S smartphone to make up for lost Note 7 sales, the person added. Samsung told Reuters it will take "any and all necessary steps" to ensure product safety, but did not comment on whether the Note 7 fallout was affecting the next Galaxy S phone's development. ($1 = 1,114.7500 won) (Reporting by Se Young Lee, with additional reporting by Cynthia Kim and Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Ian Geoghegan) Just this past week JP Morgan Chase announced a new program committing $75 million over three years to help small businesses, particularly ones owned by minorities, women and veterans. Pretty nice, right? The program includes a $1.9 million grant to the Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO) to support its programs to connect small business owners with alternative funding sources when they are unable to qualify for traditional loans. The bank also extended its collaboration with a nonprofit lender called LiftFund with another $4.6 million grant, which builds on the grants and financial support it has been giving in the past to organizations that support local entrepreneurs. Nice, yes. But the timing raised a few eyebrows. Chases announcement did come suspiciously soon after the news that the CEO of one its biggest competitors, Wells Fargo, had to step down after revealing that the bank had been creating fake accounts and charging fees to unsuspecting customers for years. Are Chases charitable actions related? Are they attempting to take advantage of a rival when theyre down? Stop being so cynical! No, this announcement likely had nothing to do with Wells Fargos problems. Big companies give grants all the time -- and Chase has actually been among the most active. Some examples of others: - Miller Beers ongoing Tap the Future campaign has given away $200,000 each year to an entrepreneur that displays passion and becomes who you want to be in a competition judged by industry and celebrity experts. -Marketing firm Deluxe Corporation received 10,000 nominations and 180,000 votes before choosing the winner of its Small Business Revolution contest last year that awarded $500,000 in marketing services and support. The company plans to continue the program this year too. -Fedex recently awarded $25,000 to a grand prize winner, $15,000 to the runner up and a bunch of $7,500 grants to small businesses who participated in its Opportunity Knocks contest, all for showing a deep passion for their business. -Comcast Business gave out $20,000 awards to each of six small business owners who demonstrated their great ideas to a panel of judges to win its Innovations 4 Entrepreneurs contest. -In addition to the philanthropy mentioned above, every year Chase also gives out $100,000 each to twenty small businesses who win its Mission Main Street grant program because they demonstrate innovation, diversity, and strength. -Sams Clubs Community Grant Program awards unspecified grants to nonprofits that support small business owners particularly minority and women owned businesses - that can demonstrate opportunity, sustainability and community with education and youth success also being other areas of focus. -Besides Sams Club, Walmart also has a variety of charitable foundations that offer grants to organizations that align with the companys key areas of focus. -Many other large companies have charitable arms that offer money to non-profits and for-profits that are doing good things in the world. Heres a list of 20 of the most generous, according to Fortune.com. At the same time, in my view it would be naive to say that these companies are doing this all out of pure goodwill. One could make an argument that in addition to wanting to do good, they do these kinds of things to get good PR and embellish their own brands. The reality is that a few $100,000 grants to a company the size of JP Morgan Chase is petty cash when you look at their overall financial picture. These programs not only create a lot of goodwill for Corporate America, but they also start a conversation that can be used in their marketing campaigns and promotions. And the small businesses that win these awards give interviews to the media, appear at events and participate in video testimonials so that they can gush about the generous corporate sponsor doing their part to help Americas entrepreneurs. So yes, there are certainly a number of business reasons behind these altruistic grants. But this is not unlike the small business that sponsors a fund-raising event or donates money to a local charity and then gets its logo published in the town newspaper, right? In the end, if its helping a good cause, or providing much needed money to a capital-starved entrepreneur to grow their business and employ more people, isnt that what matters most? So thank you Chase and all the others for helping Main Street, and if that helps you, too good for you. SYDNEY - An unprecedented shortage of air cargo space, after years of booming exports to Asia, is forcing Australian producers of top-end foods to potentially miss out on hundreds of millions of dollars in sales of everything from lobster to cherries. Australia has been pushing to become the 'delicatessen of Asia', tapping its favorable climate to send crates of luxury produce such as figs and edible flowers to store shelves across the increasingly-affluent region. But finding space on planes has become a headache as producers of delicacies crank up output, with suppliers saying the crunch has been exacerbated as freight carriers are prioritizing higher-margin shipments of beef and milk. "Getting air space is our biggest challenge because we are in this market only six weeks per year (after picking)," said Lucy Gregg from Tasmania-based cherry grower Reid Fruits. "It's not much bargaining power." David Minnis, a veteran fruit and vegetable exporter in Melbourne, said growers of such produce were losing out on up to A$100 million ($76 million) in potential sales to Asia per year - a figure that does not include similar missed opportunities in seafood and other fresh foods. "Air freight is very important to us because some produce, like cherries, asparagus and peaches, can't go by sea," he said. Australian fruit can take two days to get to supermarket shelves in China by plane, compared to around two weeks by water. All up, exports of Australian rural goods - which include meat, fruits, vegetables and cotton sent by sea and air - were valued at A$42.7 billion in the 12 months to August, up 37 percent from five years ago, government statistics show. That accounts for about 13 percent of the nation's total exports. SPACE SQUEEZE The squeeze in space comes despite numbers from data provider MariTrade showing that Australian air freight export volumes nearly doubled in four years to 35,000 tonnes in June. But high-end food producers say that increase is not keeping pace with growing appetite for their products from Asia's middle class. The shortage is particularly acute when demand peaks around Christmas and the Lunar New Year. Qantas Airways , Virgin , Cathay Pacific <0293.H>, and Singapore Airlines all told Reuters they had gradually increased cargo activity out of, or within, Australia. Some in the air transport industry said that boosting flight numbers further was not easy due to aviation quota restrictions, while starting new routes involves considerable risk for airlines. "If you are repositioning a $100 million aircraft, it's a big decision," said Phil Gregory, general manager of Wellcamp Airport, a A$200 million privately built air freight facility in the agriculture-rich state of Queensland. Cathay, which operates two dedicated freight vessels between Hong Kong and Australia every week, will start a weekly cargo service next month from Wellcamp. Still, exports of higher-margin products such as beef can take precedence. While fruits and vegetables cost around 70 to 80 Australian cents per kilo to ship by air, frozen beef fetches nearly double. Typically using an agent as an intermediary, small producers such as cherry growers can start negotiating with airlines for cargo space nearly a year ahead of the picking season. Yet, there is no guarantee of room on planes as crop estimates can sometimes be well below production numbers, and airlines can also bump off small shipments of fruits or vegetables with only a day's notice to load higher margin products. Greg Milner, a grape grower in the southern state of Victoria, said the industry was losing market share to foreign competitors due to the freight shortage. "When there is a gap in the chain (with Asian supermarkets), others move in and it's a problem for us," he said. (Reporting by Cecile Lefort; Editing by Joseph Radford) Image source: Getty Images. Seaspan Corporation (NYSE: SSW) and Navios Maritime Midstream Partners (NYSE: NAP) both pay eye-popping double-digit yields, with Seaspan's at 11.3% and Navios' at 16.7%. When payouts get that high, it is usually a sign of trouble. While that is not necessarily the case with these two, one company does have a greater ability to maintain its lucrative payout. That makes it the better buy for income investors with a very high risk tolerance. Comparing the balance sheets The shipping sector is a capital-intensive industry because ships are expensive. As a result, ship owners typically borrow heavily to grow their fleets. That is certainly the case when comparing the balance sheets of these two companies: Company Total Value of Fleet Cash and Equivalents Total Long-Term Debt Leverage (Debt Cash/Fleet Value) Debt-to-EBITDA Ratio Navios Maritime Midstream Partners $389.6 million $38.2 million $198.8 million 41% 5.6 Seaspan Corporation $5.3 billion $349.0 million $3.7 billion 63% 5.2 Data sources: Seaspan Corporation and Navios Maritime Midstream Partners. (Data as of the end of the second quarter.) As the chart indicates, Seaspan Corporation is by far the larger company. Not only does it have substantially more total debt but it uses more leverage on a percentage basis. However, it does have a lower leverage ratio on an earnings basis. That said, these two are pretty even when it comes to their balance sheet. Contrasting the business models These two companies also operate similar business models. However, Seaspan Corporation is the world's largest containership lessor, controlling 3.8% of the global containership fleet and is twice the size of its nearest rival. The company currently leases its 89 operated vessels to shipping companies under long-term time charters. As of the end of the second quarter, its average contract had nearly six years remaining with its total contract backlog totaling $6 billion in future revenue. That long-term backlog provides the company with significant future revenue certainty. Because of that certainty, Seaspan pays a pretty generous dividend, though last quarter it only paid out 32% of its cash available via dividends, meaning it covered its payout three times over. Navios Maritime Midstream Partners, on the other hand, owns and operates six crude oil tankers, which are under long-term employment contracts with international oil companies and large vessel operators. Currently, its contracts have an average of 4.8 years remaining with 100% of its revenue fixed in 2016 and 2017 and 99.4% fixed in 2018. Overall, it has more than $500 million of revenue in the backlog. Because of that revenue stability, the company pays out nearly all of its cash flow via distributions to unitholders. Last quarter, for example, it paid out 87% of its operating surplus, which equates to a 1.14 times coverage ratio. Both companies have very similar business models and cash flow security. However, Seaspan Corporation's much larger fleet and stronger dividend coverage give it the edge. Considering the upside Seaspan Corporation's rise to the top of the containership leasing segment came primarily via organic growth. It plans to continue down that path and has eight more ships scheduled to be delivered next year at a total cost of $470 million in remaining capex. The company already has the bulk of that capital lined up, after raising more than $1 billion in capital via multiple financing transactions this year to fund its capex requirements and refinance upcoming maturities. Those new vessels will supply the company with additional cash flow to maintain, and potentially expand its dividend. Navios, on the other hand, takes an entirely different approach to growth, utilizing drop-down transactions from its parent company Navios Maritime Acquisition (NYSE: NNA) to expand its fleet. Sinceits IPO, the company has acquired two vessels from Navios Maritime Acquisition, and it currently has the option to purchase five more. In addition to that, it has the right to buy any crude, product, LPG, or chemical tankers within the Navios Group that have time charters lasting more than five years. Finally, it is selectively exploring the market for third-party acquisitions. The only hindrance to growth is its access to capital, which given the company's already elevated leverage and relatively small size, could prove problematic. While Navios has tremendous growth potential thanks to drop-down transactions from its parent company, Seaspan Corporation's upside is much more visible due to the vessels scheduled for delivery next year. Investor takeaway Seaspan Corporation has three distinct advantages over Navios. It has much larger scale, pays out a smaller portion of its cash flow in dividends, and has clearly visible near-term growth. Because of those factors, it has a better ability to maintain its payout. Therefore, it is the better buy between the two for investors that aren't afraid of the risks associated with owning a highly leveraged shipping company. A secret billion-dollar stock opportunity The world's biggest tech company forgot to show you something, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn't miss a beat: There's a small company that's powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early in-the-know investors! To be one of them, just click here. Matt DiLallo owns shares of Seaspan. The Motley Fool recommends Seaspan. 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. It's not likely to be happy news when craft-beer brewer Boston Beer reports earnings on Thursday, as its flagship Samuel Adams beer will probably still be in a funk. Image source: Getty Images. When Boston Beer (NYSE: SAM) reports earnings on Thursday, most investors will immediately scan to see how its flagship Samuel Adams beer performed. Did depletions finally start to rise, or will they head south for another quarter? Because the label was the brewer's first beer and is its most important brand, it's natural to want to see how it's doing, but this quarter investors might be better served by looking at the performance of three other brands it sells. Forecast is cloudy Now it's important to understand that Boston Beer doesn't reveal exact sales data for its different brands, not even Samuel Adams, though you can figure them out based on the broad numbers it does report. In the second quarter, for example, Boston Beer reported that depletions fell 5% for the period "primarily due to decreases in our Samuel Adams, Angry Orchard and Traveler brands." Conversely, it said growth in its hard teas, sodas, and seltzers wasn't enough to offset the decline. Depletions are an important industry metric, as they measure sales from distributors to retailers, and so are considered a reliable proxy for consumer demand. Still, just as food companies list ingredients on their product label in volume order from largest to smallest, Boston Beer (like pretty much all companies) delineates an item's appearance in its results roughly based on the size of its contribution. So when the brewer tells us Samuel Adams, Angry Orchard, and Traveler all contributed to falling depletions, we know the flagship brand had the worst performance, followed by its cider, and then the craft beer created by its Alchemy & Science incubator. Alternative beverage opportunities But those aren't necessarily the beverages to watch when Boston Beer reports earnings later this week. Instead, investors will want to watch out for these three: Coney Island hard soda Truly Spiked & Sparkling hard seltzer And, yes, Angry Orchard hard cider Boston Beer attributes the decline in Samuel Adams to intense competitive pressure. As the Brewers Association notes, there are more breweries in America now than at any time in this country's past. The trade group says there are more than 4,200 craft breweries operating in the U.S., up 18% from the year before, and there are many more planning to open in the future. These numbers suggest the loss of market share Samuel Adams has been experiencing over the past year or more will continue into the future. Image source: Getty Images. Fad, niche, or trend? This is why the brewer has been relying more upon niche beverages to make up the difference. Angry Orchard has become something of the flagship for these alternatives, and the hard cider was chiefly responsible for carrying Boston Beer when its main brew stumbled. In 2014, when the brewer notched a 22% increase in depletions, it credited Angry Orchard as being the foremost reason behind the gains. But that began to change in 2015, as more ciders appeared on the market and the segment was saturated. In addition to Angry Orchard, drinkers could also choose from Anheuser-Busch InBev's Stella Artois Cidre, the Crispin brand from Molson Coors, Heineken's Strongbow, and more. At the end of last year, depletion growth had slowed to just 4%, and Angry Orchard was well down the list of contributing factors. Now depletions have turned negative, and as noted above, cider was a leading cause. Investors will want to see whether the tide has run out on cider, or if Boston Beer can turn it around once more. Losing its fizz That seems to be what's happening with the hard soda and seltzer brands, but in a very compressed time frame. According to the analysts at Cowen & Company, Coney Island sales have "consistently slowed," and were down 63% from last year for the four-week period to Sept. 10. Industry site just-drinks.com quoted Cowen analyst Vivien Azer as writing, "While it had looked like cider was losing share to hard soda, over the last few months we have seen the trends reverse, with combined cider and hard soda sales now in decline." The buffer provided by soda and seltzer was short-lived. With distiller Diageointroducing two new hard-soda lines of its own this month, the outlook for the niche is not promising. Investors need to see whether Cowen's channel checks hold up. With little probability Samuel Adams will reverse course, it's going to be these three beverages that could determine just how far Boston Beer sinks. The outlook isn't promising, and this brewer's stock may soon sink lower. A secret billion-dollar stock opportunity The world's biggest tech company forgot to show you something, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn't miss a beat: There's a small company that's powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early in-the-know investors! To be one of them, just click here. Rich Duprey has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Anheuser-Busch InBev NV and Boston Beer. The Motley Fool recommends Diageo. 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. Former chairman and CEO of Wells Fargo, John Stumpf. Image source: Wells Fargo. When I think about John Stumpf, the now-disgraced former chairman and CEO of Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC), I'm reminded of those stories you see on TV about the guy-next-door who had been living a secret life for years. "He seemed so normal," neighbors would say. "He always showed up to work on time and did his job," co-workers would add. But then, for one reason or another, everything would come crashing down. Something would cause someone to peek behind the thin veneer of respectability and discover the truth. In Ken Lay's case, it was the recession following Sept. 11, 2001 that revealed the inner machinations at Enron. In Bernie Madoff's case, it was the financial crisis that caused his multibillion dollar Ponzi scheme to collapse. And in John Stumpf's case, it was a fake-account scandal in which low-level employees were, if a growing multitude of allegations are to be believed, all but forced to commit fraud in order to keep their jobs and boost Wells Fargo's performance and thereby Stumpf's voluptuous paycheck -- he earned $20 million a year. You may think that comparing Stumpf to Lay and Madoff is hyperbolic, but I disagree. Like them, he carefully cultivated an image of infallibility. He lambasted other banks for seeking growth for the sake of growth. And he loudly trumpeted Wells Fargo's Vison & Values which made, in hindsight, preposterous claims like: Meanwhile, while analysts and commentators like me were distracted by Stumpf's diversionary tactics, thousands of the banks' employees were opening millions of fake accounts for customers. Stumpf claimed that the fraud went back to only 2011, but there's now clear evidence that it may have gone all the way back to 2005, if not to 1998. All along the way, moreover, those employees who didn't feel comfortable committing fraud and who blew the whistle to Stumpf, the bank's "ethics" line, its human resources department, or to Wells Fargo's board of directors, were fired or intimidated into continuing the fraud. "We were constantly told we would end up working for McDonald's," a former employee told the Los Angeles Times, which broke the story in Dec. 2013. Never mind the fact that McDonald's has never been caught intentionally defrauding millions of customers. Another employee who refused her supervisors' demands to open fake accounts was told that she'd never be able to find another job at a bank ever again. Wells Fargo sought to make this happen by filing a U5 with securities regulators, claiming that she "failed to perform job duties." According to bankers I've spoken to, a document likethat should NEVER have been filed against a personal banker, who sells FDIC-insured banking products, not securities. (One banker I spoke to who has hiring and firing authority had never even heard of a U5 filing.) Another 12-year veteran of the company who blew the whistle received a menacing letter from his superiors, threatening him that his employment was "at will" and under the "complete and arbitrary discretion" of his superiors. The letter concluded by saying "you will never be allowed back in the same office, sue us if you disagree." He did, and he won the case. And all along the way, Stumpf was getting letters and emails from these people. And he did nothing to stop it. He did nothing to stop the abuse of customers. And he did nothing to stop the abuse of his employees. In this way, he was complicit in -- dare I say the leader of -- a conspiracy that not only defrauded millions of customers, many of whom were undoubtedly the most vulnerable members of our society such as octogenarians living on $1,100 a month, but also silenced those who tried to end the scam. These people believed that alerting Stumpf would give them safe harbor from their immediate superiors who threatened and belittled them. But Stumpf ignored them. He allowed his managerial goon squad to defame their reputations and attempt to destroy these peoples' abilities to earn a living for their families. It's like a horror movie where the victim runs unwittingly into the arms of a seeming do-gooder, only to discover that they were now in the grasps of the perpetrator they were fleeing from. But rest assured that Stumpf will not escape this with his reputation intact. Speaking under oath, before Congress, Stumpf said that he didn't learn about the fraud until late 2013. That's eight years after he purportedly began receiving emails and letters from whistleblowers. And it was nearly three years after Wells Fargo began cleaning house in its retail operations, firing 1,000 employees a year who, if the bank is to be believed (ha ha), were furthering the fraud, or who, seemingly just as likely, were fired because they refused to participate in it. In short, it seems farfetched to think that Stumpf won't, at the very least, be indicted for lying to Congress. His claim that he didn't know about any of this until late 2013 is just patently absurd on its face. A secret billion-dollar stock opportunity The world's biggest tech company forgot to show you something, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn't miss a beat: There's a small company that's powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early in-the-know investors! To be one of them, just click here. John Maxfield owns shares of Wells Fargo. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Wells Fargo. 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. U.S. housing starts tumbled to a 1-1/2-year low in September amid a steep decline in the construction of multifamily homes, but a surge in the construction of single-family units pointed to sustained strength in the housing market. Groundbreaking dropped 9.0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 1.05 million units, the lowest level since March 2015, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday. August's starts were revised up to a 1.15 million-unit pace from the previously reported 1.14 million-unit rate. Single-family home building, which accounts for the largest share of the residential housing market, jumped 8.1 percent to a 783,000-unit pace in September, the highest level since February. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast housing starts rising to a 1.18 million-unit pace in September. Last month's drop left the overall housing starts in the third quarter well below their average for the second quarter. That suggests residential construction remained a drag on gross domestic product in the third quarter after subtracting from output in the April-June period. Housing starts for the volatile multi-family segment plunged 38.0 percent to a 264,000-unit pace in September. But with rents rising at their fastest pace in 10 years, last month's drop is likely to be temporary. Overall home building activity is likely to rebound in the coming months, as permits for future construction surged 6.3 percent in September. Single-family permits edged up 0.4 percent last month. Building permits for multi-family units soared 16.8 percent in September. (Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci) Sheldon Adelson is nearing his wits end with Donald Trump. The billionaire casino magnate, who once promised Trumps campaign $100 million in contributions, recently sent an e-mail to Trump advising the GOP candidate to stop attacking Republicans he has feuded with during the increasingly contentious presidential run, and lay off what Adelson considers counter-productive attacks on the media, according to two people with direct knowledge of Adelsons note. Instead, these people say, Adelson wrote in the e-mail that Trump should focus on major political issues that he believes could help him narrow what appears to be a growing polling gap with his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, such as the slow-growing U.S. economy under the watch of her old boss, President Obama, and these embarrassing disclosures about the Clinton campaign and Hillary Clintons dealings with major banks found in a recent WikiLeaks document dump. Its unclear if Trump, as hes preparing for tonights third, and final presidential debate hosted by Fox News in Las Vegas, has responded to Adelsons e-mail. Recent polls show Trump trailing badly against Clinton, particularly in so called battleground states. Adelson, usually a prolific GOP contributor, has also expressed his opinion of the Trump campaign, including his feuds with major GOP leaders like Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, by refusing to open his checkbook. Adelson has only contributed $10 million to the Trump campaign, and continues to focus his efforts on aiding GOP candidates in Senate and House of Representatives races. Adelson is doing what everyone is doinghes running away from Donald Trump, said Democratic political consultant Hank Sheinkopf. If the polls are right, no one wants to be around a dead body or a losing candidate. Its unclear if Adelson has plans to give any additional contributions to support the Trump campaign. About 40 supporters of Trump plan to meet with the candidate Wednesday afternoon in Las Vegas at the Trump hotel; Adelson is expected to attend the event. A Trump spokeswoman didnt return an e-mail or call for comment. A spokesman for Las Vegas Sands Corp., the holding company for Adelsons far-flung casino operations, also didnt return a call or e-mail for comment. Adelsons relationship with Trump has hit rough patches in the past. Even after suggesting he could raise $100 million for the Trump presidential effort, Adelson has told people he disagreed with Trumps erratic campaign style and frequent attacks on GOP establishment figures who have taken issue with Trumps anti-immigration position and critiques of free-trade agreements. They also fretted that Trump missed opportunities to attack Clinton, President Obamas former secretary of state during the Benghazi terrorist attack. For a time though, it seemed that the GOP donor establishment was lining up behind Trump as he began to poll evenly with Clinton in many polls and started campaigning in a more deliberate manner, often reading from a prepared script in his speeches, and refraining from making controversial statements that have caused him problems in the past, such as his criticism of a judge involved in a private lawsuit over his Mexican heritage. But Trump soon reverted back to his initial free-wheeling form. After losing the first debate to Clinton, he went on an extended attack against a former Miss Universe who is a Clinton supporter, and then began to attack the media for being too cozy with the Clinton campaign, while deriding the election itself as being rife with voter fraud and rigged against him. In recent weeks Trumps campaign has been blindsided by additional controversies, including the release of an audio recording of Trump making crass, sexually provocative statements about women, and the accounts of a series of women who alleged they were sexually assaulted by Trump, which he has denied. In the wake of these disclosures, many GOP leaders and some fundraisers have turned their back on their nominee. To date, Trump has raised just $200 million, compared to more than $500 million raised by the Clinton campaign. Adelsons growing angst over Trumps campaign, according to people the casino executive has spoken to, seems more focused on what he believes is Trumps inability to focus on sound advice from donors and political consultants that could minimize the controversies that keep sidetracking his campaign, and have contributed to his growing slide in the polls. Trump doesnt listen to anyonenot even his family or Steve Bannon, Adelson told one associate who spoke to FOX Business in reference to Trumps new campaign manager. I like Trump less and less, Adelson said, according to this person. Jim Carrey has broken his silence following two weeks of heavily publicized attacks by his late ex-girlfriends family, saying Cathriona Whites mom and widower are just seeking to cash out on her tragic suicide. Brigid Sweetman and Whites estranged husband, Mark Burton, have both filed wrongful death suits against the actor, which he trashed Tuesday in court documents as shakedown lawsuits based on categorical lies concocted by Sweetman in collaboration with Whites green card husband. They are driven by greed, Carrey writes in a motion, asking the Los Angeles Superior Court to freeze the proceedings until Sweetman proves she can fork over $372,700 to cover his litigation costs should her suit fizzle. Sweetman had no relationship with White, nor did she love her, Carrey says. She loves only money. Leading the legal assault on Carrey have been Sweetmans continued insistence he release medical tests taken under an alias from 2013, to prove he didnt give White chlamydia as well as genital and oral herpes. White would be horrified by the disclosure to the world of Whites medical history of sexually transmitted diseases, Carreys new filing reads. And by the false allegations that she contracted the diseases from Carrey in 2013. Sweetman and her attorney released the embarrassing information about White solely in an attempt to gain leverage against Carrey, they continue. White would also be outraged that Sweetman and her attorney delivered Whites highly private and intimate text messages with Carrey to tabloids to be published to the world. Carrey is devastated by Whites suicide, but he is not responsible for it, the motion adds. It is outrageous that Sweetman, long estranged and motivated by greed, now seeks blood money from Carrey. The documents mingle attacks on Sweetman and Burton with details of White and Carreys romance they started dating in 2012, after meeting at a Guns N Roses concert and even include excerpts from her suicide note. I dont really know about burial or that sort of thing, White allegedly wrote. You are my family so whatever you choose will be fine. Sweetman, the papers say, battled addiction as White was growing up, and fled Ireland for England. White was left in the care of her father Pat White, and stepmother Brigid. She hated Sweetman, Carrey says of White, adding that Brigid recently wrote [Carrey] that Cat would hate that Ms. Sweetman has sued [Carrey] and would turn in her grave at the thought of it, and that Cat would never want her mothers name near anything to do with her.' Carrey and his attorneys also denied accusations that he gave White the pills she ODd on, saying she stole them from him home. Click here for more on this story from the New York Post's Page Six. Almost 50 unmanned systems from the UK, USA, Sweden, Germany, France, Italy, and Austria participated in a month-long war game for robots, organized by the Royal Navy. Spanning air, surface and the undersea domain, Unmanned Warrior 2016 (UW16), has been in the making for almost two years, with dozens of players from different nations invited to take part in this unique operational demonstration, held as part of NATOs Joint Warrior exercise. The technologies tested in the exercise included anti-submarine warfare, minesweeping and countermeasures, intelligence gathering, including geospatial monitoring, meteorological, bathymetric and hydrological surveillance, reconnaissance and targeting (ISTAR) providing overwatch and persistent surveillance for coastal and maritime elements, and extended range ocean surveillance. Command, control, and communications were also an important factor supported by unmanned systems, enabling networking and collaboration of multiple systems performing collaborative missions. A system designed for long-endurance autonomous operation in the open sea is the Sensor Hosting Autonomous Remote Craft (SHARC) from Boeing and Liquid Robotic. Four such crafts participated in Unmanned Warrior 2016. They were used to deliver continuous maritime intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions for up to a year without refueling or servicing. These crafts employ innovative wave- and solar-powered propulsion system, and carry a sensor suite provided by Boeing. Its ability to conduct continuous patrols using autonomous navigation gives SHARC unique access to undersea, air and space domains. Multiple SHARCs can be monitored and controlled by a single, shore-side operator. To date, more than 50 sensors have been tested and integrated on SHARC, including Automated Identification System (AIS), acoustic sensors, electromagnetic sensors, and imaging systems. SHARCs onboard open architecture, commercial standards and modular configuration that allows rapid integration of advanced technologies and innovative payloads. Unmanned Surface Vessels were the relatively new class evaluated at Unmanned Warrior 2016. Several models participated in the exercise, including the Halcyon from Thales, which carries the T-SAS sonar, that delivers live, high-quality sonar images to shore-based operators over long distances. In fact, the Halcyon is being developed as part of the Thales-led consortium solution for the first phase of the Anglo-French Mine Countermeasures program to assess the future mine warfare capabilities of the UK and French navies. Thales is the system integrator for the Maritime Autonomous Platform Exploitation (MAPLE) program, which also evaluates the command and control aspects of the system, through the Autonomous Control Exploitation and Realization (ACER) deployed on the vessel Northern River, which provided a warship command surrogate platform. Unmanned aerial vehicles such as the BlueBear Blackstart flew airborne relays linked the ACER with remote unmanned vessels at sea. ACER also provided commanders with control over missions through the use of collaborative autonomy of multiple unmanned, autonomous platforms and sensors cooperating on specific missions. In the third week of the exercise anti-submarine and counter-mine, missions scaled up to include ten different vehicles from three countries, operating in four squads operating across air, surface and underwater domains. The system is based on BAE Systems Systems Combat Management System and includes enhancements to support planning and decision-making using off-board systems. Hosted within a transportable command and control center, ACER is capable of integrating several unmanned systems and platforms from multiple suppliers, minimizing the number of screens and controls operators need to conduct successful missions. Another USV provider, Atlas Elektronik UK (AEUK) deployed its 11-meter long mine hunting USV ARCIMS to Unmanned Warrior 2016. ARCIMS carries the AQS-24B Synthetic Aperture Sonar (SAS) made by Northrop Grumman Corporation. Although the system is currently undergoing final integration, the company has already received firm orders for two ARCIMS. In the weeks that preceded AW16, the ARCIMS received final tweaks at the Portland Harbor, undergoing integration testing of the AQS-24B, that included remote launch and recovery of the towed sonar at the. The AQS-24B is a towed mine hunting sensor used by the U.S. Navy, features the worlds only high-speed synthetic aperture sonar for mine detection, localization, and classification, and an optical laser line scan sensor for the identification mine. A smaller unmanned naval platforms taking part in the exercise was BAE Systems Pacific Class 950 Unmanned Rigid Inflatable Boat (P950 RIB). This RIB is capable of traveling at up to 47kts for up to 12 hours at a time. Remotely controlled via ACER, the RIB can also operated autonomously, using technology developed by BAE Systems and ASV Ltd with support from suppliers including Deep Vision Inc and Chess Dynamics Ltd. Those sonars often needed targets to detect and unmanned systems provided these services as well. Saab provided the AUV62-AT an acoustic target that replicates the active and passive signature of a submarine, delivering essential ASW simulation and training for the entire maritime force. USV were also operating Mine Counter-Measures (MCM) missions, employing various sensors and countermeasures to defeat mines. Among these countermeasures was the Sea Wasp from Saab. This small, highly maneuverable waterborne counter-IED vehicle is remotely controlled to deliver a demolition charge close to a mine, enabling MCM operators to neutralize the target from safe distance. Yesterday Saab announced the acquisition of Nordic Defense Industries (NDI), a Danish manufacturer of mine disposal charges, thus expanding its MCM offering. Other systems participating at the UW16 demonstration were aerial vehicles of different sizes and types. Among the platforms being used were the familiar Austrian S-100 Camcopter from Shiebel, and American Scan Eagle from Insitu and Boeing, equipped with Visual Detection and Ranging system. Boeing hopes it can offer as a replacement to the Royal Navys ScanEagle, expected to be phased out of service in 2017. Other systems tested were the NRQ-21 and Indago quad rotor, from Lockheed Martin. UW16 provided the stage for the first maritime appearance of new platforms the Thales Watchkeeper, operating the i-Master radar over the sea and the Leonardo SW-4 Solo optionally piloted helicopter on surveillance missions, carrying the Osprey flat-panel electronically scanned radar, EO/IR payload, and SAGE electronic support measures system. The technologies and concepts being demonstrated in Unmanned Warrior have the potential to fundamentally change the future of Royal Navy operations just as the advent of steam propulsion or submarines did for example. Commander Peter Pipkin, the Fleet Robotics Officer, said. By working closely with a wide range of system providers from defense, industry, and academia, Unmanned Warrior has also become the catalyst for a level of discussion and participation that sets the gold standard for collaborative projects. The reviews are in for Michael Moore's surprise film "Michael Moore in TrumpLand." While most expected the film to be a takedown about Donald Trump, many felt the film wasn't about Trump at all. Instead, the documentary, which began filming only 12 days ago, was more about why voters should support Hillary Clinton. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Moore starts off the film painting a grim future of the United States should Trump become president. He compares disaffected Americans to the British who voted for Brexit saying they "used the ballot box as an anger management tool" and should Trump win it will be "the biggest 'f--k you' ever recorded in human history." "What the country doesnt need is to be told Trump is a sociopath, Moore said at the film's screening at New York Citys IFC Center, according to the Daily Beast. "Hes produced that movie." But Moore's true agenda of the film is revealed when he declares his support for Clinton. "She can be our Pope Francis," he says in the film according to The Hollywood Reporter. He claims Clinton is the candidate to solve the American health care system. "ISIS is gonna s--t if she's president," he said in the film. Moore premiered a the film discussing the presidential election just three weeks before Americans head to the polls. It was made up of footage from his recent one-man show in Ohio. He held off announcing that the film was in the works until Monday night and then debuted it in New York on Tuesday night in front of an audience of his fans. Weak on satire, #TrumpLand -- essentially a concert film -- is most effective when Moore gets sincere about his love-hate romance w/Hillary. erickohn (@erickohn) October 19, 2016 @MMFlint , thx for #TrumpLand & for helping me find a ray of sun in this dark election. Playing it for my bernie friends ASAP! #ImWithHer CLA (@camilalvrz) October 19, 2016 Moore says he hopes more theaters will be announced soon. The Associated Press contributed to this report. After Travis Robinson was born in October 2015 with an enlarged heart, he was added to a nationwide list of about 2,000 other children waiting for a new organ. In the meanwhile, his doctors at Levine Childrens Hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina, put him on a Berlin Heart, a mechanical device that would help his body maintain blood flow and keep his organs working. "I'll never forget when Dr. Wallis came to us and said, I just want to let you know that your sons heart is very sick, Travis mother, Allyson Robinson, of Charlotte, told FoxNews.com. It took us a little while to accept that a transplant was what he was going to need. But Allyson was not alone in her tragedy. Two weeks later, 3-year-old Aydan Ellis was admitted to the same hospital for a serious heart defect. Aydan was put on a Berlin Heart two weeks after Travis. Trying to understand what the Berlin Heart was was kind of difficult, but yet I understood that it was something that he needed in order to maintain him until he could get a heart, Aydans mother, Miriam Ellis, of Rock Hill, South Carolina, told FoxNews.com. The hardest part of this is waiting for the donor. Robinson and Ellis meet by chance in a hallway in Levine Hospital and quickly formed a strong bond that few parents ever could. We would see each other in the waiting room, in the hallway and we would always check on each other, Robinson said. Then it would come to sitting in the room with each other, and then it was, If Im not here would you check up on baby Travis and if youre not here Ill check on Aydan, so it kind of evolved into a sisterhood. As time went on and weeks turned into months, both families worried over when they'd get "the call" for their child's new heart. While exact wait times are difficult to predict and usually depend on several factors like the urgency for transplantation, the size of the heart and blood type, some national averages estimate the wait time for a heart can be between two to six months. In the United States, someone is added to the national transplant list every 10 minutes and, every day, 22 people die waiting for a transplant. Transplant is a good option for some patients. It is not a great option. Our goal is to make transplant a great option, Dr. Thomas Maxey, a pediatric cardiovascular surgeon at Levine Children's Hospital, told FoxNews.com. Currently the younger you are the better you do, but the survival [is] about 18 to 20 years. Our goal is to make that 40 years, 50 years, maybe even 80 years of normal life. Maxey cared for both Ayden and Travis. As they waited, the two mothers continued to lean on each other for extra support. "I had my husband and I had my family, but as a mom it's a completely different set of challenges that you can't really relate to unless you are a mom," Robinson said. After four months in the hospital, Travis' parents got the call they'd been waiting for a new heart was ready for their baby. The news for us was just amazing, and were forever indebted to the family that made that selfless decision," Robinson said. As fate would have it, Aydans mom got the same call just two weeks later. "Being on the Berlin, it was a temporary fix, but now we're on a home stretch to true healing," Ellis said. Travis had a successful transplant surgery in May 2016, as did Aydan in June 2016. Those are both tough kids, and unfortunately were dealt a bad hand early on, and I think both of those children as well as their families have acquired a unique strength that most of us fortunately have not had to experience, Maxey said. While the heart-wrenching waitlist journey of Travis and Aydan was over, their mother's friendship goes beyond the walls of the hospital. "We, from beginning to end, have had a bond that you couldn't make it up if you tried, you couldn't time it more perfectly if you tried," Robinson said. For more information on how to become a donor, visit organdonor.gov. A 17-month-old baby born with a rare syndrome that causes parts of her body to grow faster and larger than normal can finally smile, after doctors performed two surgeries to remove parts of her enlarged tongue. Paisley Kienow, who was born with Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome, is also being monitored for mismatched limb growth. Jesus Christ never thought Paisley was perfect without Beckwith-Wiedemann, Madison Kienow, Paisleys mother, told Fox 2. I ask why us, but now I know why. Because were strong, and because we have love. Kienow did not know Paisley had the condition until she was born pre-term at 26 weeks. In ultrasound photos it appeared that Paisley was simply sticking out her tongue. Drs. David and Patrick Munson at Sanford Health in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, also addressed an umbilical hernia, and are devising a plan for Paisleys legs. Kienow said her daughter will also have to undergo ultrasounds to ensure she does not develop tumors as a teen, Fox 2 reported. Kienow, a pre-medical student, said she has found support groups on Facebook which has helped her cope, and that doctors have given Paisley a good long-term prognosis. The syndrome affects about one in 13,700 newborns worldwide, with tumors developing in about 10 percent of patients. Hillary Clinton is a manipulative, power-mad liar. Donald Trump is a selfish, sexist, narcissistic bully. These are our choices Nov. 8? The leading candidates' avarice is bad enough. Their ideas are worse. Clinton wants to micro-regulate America into poverty and stagnation. Trump would start a trade war, if not an actual war. While America is going bankrupt, both candidates brag that they will spend more -- Trump on the military and his pointless wall, Clinton mostly on social programs. Both promise a new child care entitlement: paid maternity leave. I'd think a Republican presidential candidate would resist promising more "free" stuff. But Trump, with daughter Ivanka standing behind him, offers ClintonCare "lite": paid leave for six weeks instead of 12. Naturally, the Clinton media want more. Socialist cheerleaders at Fortune magazine complain that Trump's proposal is stingy compared to Clinton's and very stingy compared to real family leave, offered by civilized nations in Europe -- especially Greece. Hello? Have you not noticed how Greece suffers largely because of "generous benefits" like that? You think it's a coincidence that Greece's unemployment rate is 25 percent? Why would employers hire workers if they must later give them 12 weeks of pay not to work? I'd think Fortune writers and Democratic and Republican presidential candidates would understand that "free" benefits come with nasty costs. But they don't understand. Or if they do, they just ignore it. Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson doesn't ignore these problems. He promises to avert America's bankruptcy by cutting spending 43 percent. But the candidate of the third party (I should call Libertarians the first party, since they respect the Constitution) is in a tough spot. He must both convince voters that he has better ideas -- and that he's not strange. That's tough to do when you're a politician who stumbles over words and the RepubliDems won't allow you into the debates. Recent polls show that almost 40 percent of Americans don't even know that Johnson's running. That's too bad. If there were ever a year for a third party to thrive, this was it. Most voters -- from both major parties -- are unhappy with their party's nominee. Sadly, they are not unhappy enough to vote for Gary Johnson. I have to respect the betting; bettors give Johnson just a .1 percent chance. The bettors also say Clinton is favored 84 percent to 15 percent over Trump. Get ready for President Clinton. Sigh. Polls suggest about 6 percent of Americans will vote Libertarian. Some will be Bernie Sanders supporters. How can that be? Sanders is a socialist! He's an economic illiterate who wants government to control more! But on civil liberties, Sanders is better than Trump and Clinton. Both Sanders and Johnson are sympathetic to immigrants. Johnson knows that most become workers, customers and entrepreneurs who boost economic opportunities for everyone. Like Sanders, Johnson wants to avoid getting bogged down in foreign wars. Like Sanders, Johnson has long been in favor of marriage equality, whereas Clinton only recently decided it was politically safe to endorse it. Like Sanders, Johnson knows that some complaints from the Black Lives Matter movement are valid and that the drug war does more harm than good. Obviously, those positions upset some conservatives, but Johnson still has plenty to offer Republicans. He's more sensible than Donald Trump. Unlike Trump, Johnson knows that free trade decreases poverty and makes the world a better, happier place. He understands that the minimum wage makes most people poorer and that free speech is a good thing. Like Trump, Johnson opposes gun control, ObamaCare and increasing regulation. A vote for Johnson will give Americans more choices and freedom in the future. Johnson getting 6 percent of the vote this election means easier ballot access, more money and more advertising next time. More people would know that there are other -- better -- options. That's why I'll vote for Gary Johnson. He did a good job as governor of New Mexico. He vetoed the excesses of power-hungry state legislators 750 times. He'd stand up for limited government in Washington, too. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton won't. In todays world, there is little doubt the Web has become a weapon. Hackers and nation-states are using the Internet to spy on us, steal our innovation, and infect our critical infrastructure. But we also need to be concerned about the threat from withinfrom human failure here at home that makes our networks vulnerable. Most astonishing, one of our own presidential candidates was an insider threat to the United States cybersecurity. Indeed, former Secretary of State Hillary Clintons extreme carelessness with classified information, as the FBI Director noted, put our countrys secrets in danger of theft by foreign adversaries. This is no small matter. Our nation relies on the Secretary of State to conduct sensitive diplomacy on behalf of the American people. If he or she fails to protect official communications, foreign governments can uncover them and take advantage of us. Hillary Clinton used more than a dozen different mobile devices during her time in office. State Department officials warned Clintonand she was awarethat it was a serious risk to use her mobile phones abroad, especially in adversary nations. She even made this point in private speeches. Yet Clinton took her devices out of the country with her anyway. The fact that Secretary Clinton put her own self-interest ahead of our security should alarm Americans. The material on her devices included classified Special Access Program informationour nations top intelligence secrets. We also know, of course, that she used her own, relatively unsecure, homebrew server to store this sensitive data. Countries like Russia and China have the ability to launch cyber attacks on such unsecured devices, and there is a high degree of confidence that these programs are now in our adversaries hands. Worse still, Clinton used these devices to communicate with the commander-in-chief, President Obama, while she was overseasalso putting the presidents messages at risk to theft by foreign spies. This problematic threat to our national security was brought in front of Congress. The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee found evidence suggesting there were attempted intrusions into Clinton's server by foreign governments, even after she stepped down as Secretary of State in 2013. There is no getting around it: this kind of recklessness damages our national security and endangers our men and women serving our country overseas. The fact that Secretary Clinton put her own self-interest ahead of our security should alarm Americans. Our next president must be someone who can stand up to countries that hack into our networksnot someone who has been one of their soft targets. President Reagan one asked, Are you better off than you were four years ago? But today they question is: are you safer than you were eight years ago? I think most Americans would say they are not. In fact, we live in a much more dangerous world today than we did in 2008, largely because of President Obamas actions and the architect of his failed foreign policy, Hillary Clinton. Our allies no longer trust us, our adversaries no longer fear us, and our enemies are plotting against us. Americas retreat from the world stage has created an array of power vacuums, which terrorists and rogue states have exploited to plot against us. This did not happen by accident. It happened by design. Americans have watched with deep concern, rightfully, as foreign adversaries like Russia have interfered in our democratic process through egregious hacks and leaks. But the carelessness of officials like former Secretary Clinton only make it easier for Moscow to exploit our weaknesses. We need to be treating network security as a matter of national securityand we need a president who has the common sense to do that. Sadly, Hillary Clintons growing list of obfuscations and negligence related to her own cybersecurity practices gives us low confidence that shes prepared to rise to the challenge. The release this week of FBI documents describing the attempted cover up of Hillary Clintons email scandal raises a host of questions about the State Departments integrity and the role of its senior officials in protecting the Democratic nominee for president. Among the most disturbing revelations involve the activities of Undersecretary of State Patrick Kennedy. As first reported by Stephen Hayes of the Weekly Standard, in 2015 Kennedy repeatedly pressured the FBI to change its classification determinations on Hillary Clintons emails. Indeed, Kennedy went to extreme lengths to prevent the public from learning that Hillary Clinton mishandled classified information, including so far as to pursue a secret quid pro quo deal in which the State Department was to approve FBI requests for overseas posts in exchange for reclassifying some of Hillary Clintons sensitive emails. As Hayes reports: [An] FBI official [in the international operations division] spoke with Kennedy and Kennedy raised the possibility of keeping at least one Clinton email from public disclosure by obtaining a "B9" exemption under the Freedom of Information Act, a rarely used exemption that refers to "geological and geophysical information and data." One email in particular concerned Kennedy and, according to the FBI summary, providing a B9 exemption "would allow him to archive the document in the basement of the department of state never to be seen again." The FBI official told Kennedy that he would look into the email if Kennedy would authorize a pending request for additional FBI personnel in Iraq. In other words, the Undersecretary of State contacted someone who likely had nothing to do with the investigation into Hillary Clintons private server--a senior FBI official in the international operations division--and told him that if he wanted State to approve the FBIs request to send agents to Iraq, he should find a way to make Hillarys worst email problems go away. Not only did Kennedy try to interfere in a criminal investigation; not only did he try to induce the FBI to improperly reclassify sensitive national security documents; he also tried to hold our intelligence and investigative capabilities overseas hostage to Hillary Clintons political interests. That is a staggering attempted abuse of power. Not only did Kennedy try to interfere in a criminal investigation; not only did he try to induce the FBI to improperly reclassify sensitive national security documents; he also tried to hold our intelligence and investigative capabilities overseas hostage to Hillary Clintons political interests. It is a breathtaking revelation. The FBI official to whom Kennedy proposed the deal to then approached the chief of the Bureaus records management division. As Hayes reports: The FBI records official, whose job includes making determinations on classification, told investigators that he was approached by his colleague in international operations after the initial discussion with Kennedy. The FBI records official says that his colleague "pressured" him to declassify an email "in exchange for a quid pro quo," according to the interview summary. "In exchange for making the email unclassified State would reciprocate by allowing the FBI to place more agents in countries where they are presently forbidden." The request was denied. Even after the FBI rejected Kennedys proposed deal to cover up for Hillary Clinton, he continued his attempts to corrupt the Bureaus classification process: In the days that followed, the FBI records official attended an "all-agency" meeting at the State Department to discuss the ongoing "classification review of pending Clinton FOIA materials." One of the participants at the meeting asked Kennedy whether any of the emails were classified. Kennedy purposely looked at the FBI records chief and then replied: "Well, we'll see." After the all-agency meeting, the FBI records section chief met privately with Kennedy. According the FBI interview summary, he reported that "Kennedy spent the next 15 minutes debating the classification of the email and attempting to influence the FBI to change its markings." This is absolutely scandalous. Kennedy was one of Hillary Clintons closest advisers during her time as Secretary of State, a man who twice denied Ambassador Christopher Stevens personal requests for more security in Libya. His outrageous attempt to cover up for her should absolutely disqualify him from holding public office ever again. But its not just Kennedy who needs to be fired. As the Washington Examiner notes, the new FBI documents reveal the State Department took the highly unusual step of including outsiders in its public information request review process. According to the documents, the FBI thought these outsiders employment histories appeared to create a conflict of interest. We can only begin to guess who they were and whose interest they had in mind. The Washington Examiner also points out that employees involved in the State Departments FOIA review process told the FBI they felt immense pressure not to find any classified information in documents relating to Benghazi. Finally, the FBI documents reveal a conspiracy of senior officials to minimize political damage of the emails to Hillary Clinton. According to the Washington Examiner: A group of high-ranking State Department officials, dubbed the "Shadow Government" by witnesses who spoke to the FBI, pushed to release all 30,000 of Clinton's emails at the same time, in Jan. 2016, rather than over the course of several months starting in summer 2015. The powerful group met every Wednesday afternoon to discuss how to handle FOIA requests for Clinton's emails. Regular attendees included Secretary John Kerry's chief of staff and Kennedy. "Shadow Government" members argued the release of Clinton's emails should happen all at once to facilitate "coordination." If Secretary of State John Kerrys top aides attended weekly meetings to minimize the impact of Hillarys misconduct on her political ambitions, the corruption and politicization of the State Department goes to the very top. President Obama should clean house. And he should start with Undersecretary of State Patrick Kennedy. Over the last several days, the fight led by the Iraqi Army to liberate Mosul and drive the Islamic State from the city is cause for some optimism. The spine of the Iraqi military is finally stiffening and with the help of U.S. and coalition forces, the liberation of Mosul now appears to an achievable objective. No matter the outcome, the reality is that the fight for Mosul is just the start of what will be a long and arduous campaign to defeat the Islamic State through military means. The radical ideology motivating the Islamic State will persist, as it will throughout other parts of the Middle East, and the Islamic State fighters not killed in the coming and days and weeks will regroup and their presence in Iraq will continue. Though hopefully, not in Mosul. President Obama acknowledged this week the significance of victory in Mosul, stating this will be a key milestone in what I committed to doing when [ISIL] first emerged. Hes right on what victory in Mosul will mean to the people and government of Iraq, as well as to the coalition of forces in support, but his self-proclaimed commitment is still nothing more than a head fake to distract from the fact that a plan to defeat the Islamic State is still non-existent. Its certainly not an indictment of the U.S. military under a more than ready and capable Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and leadership team. If unleashed and its power harnessed, Americas military force could show the world without condition that the Islamic Stateabsent an Air Force or surface Navy, for instanceis truly a Junior Varsity squad, as the President stated. Instead, the Islamic State has been emboldened by Americas inaction and even with Mosul is in the crosshairs at the moment, neither the President nor the Pentagon can articulate what will need to happen next. And its not because its some closely guarded secret to protect operational planning. By now, its obvious that there is no clear end state for Iraq at large. The president is satisfied with an American presence alone, even if mostly reduced to airpower over Iraqi skies. Unfortunately, as our military leaders understand, presence alone will never win a war or defeat an enemys will to fight. The president can take the lessons learned from Anbar Province when U.S. Marines altered the state of the entire Iraq war in 2005. Similarly, it will take a better understanding of the Islamic States strengths and weaknesses, including its tactical vulnerabilities. To be effective is less about immediately attacking the Islamic State at its center of gravity, such as its financing or public relations arm, but rather whats allowing its fighters to communicate and move freely on the battlefield. Disrupt this command and control capability and the center of gravity will become more imbalanced and vulnerable. Still, the Islamic State will need to be knocked off its operational planning cyclefar beyond any temporary success that Mosul might yield. This too must coincide with a broader commitment to confront the enemy at the strategic level. So far, theres been no concerted planning to defeat the Islamic State at the strategic and operational levelsand it shows. The effort to liberate Mosul mustnt be misunderstood as a potential death blow to the Islamic State in Iraq. Its not. What it symbolizes, beyond a much needed military victory, is an opportunity for President Obama and his administration to finally realize the importance and necessity of developing a long-term plan of attack that will actually allow for the isolation and defeat of the Islamic State. With the right strategy, the fight against the Islamic State is definitely winnable. While the U.S. presidential election has many in the Washington media focused on the latest Team Clinton emails released by Wikileaks, the Associated Press has reported from Eastern Europe that Russia has been quietly trying to influence another election - the Moldovan presidential election on October 30. It wasnt a surprise to many of the 150 million people living in the region. Russias influence can be a daily dilemma, after all, for the countless people of the former Soviet states. But in the U.S., reports that Russia is trying to influence the 2016 presidential elections is unfolding in many political newsrooms like its a new occurrence. Even Hillary Clinton, the former Secretary of State, is acting shocked that Russia is purportedly trying to hack into official computer systems. Why would Russia be working to influence the U.S. elections? Experts say it is less likely that Putin and his allies prefer a certain candidate, but they want to ensure that whoever is elected leader of the free world understands that Russia is on the offense and unintimidated by Americas traditional role. While the allegations are still unproven, the U.S. government nevertheless is saying they believe it to be true. But Russian or Russian-approved tactics like cyber warfare and campaigns of misinformation have been happening for decades. The Moldovans are stepping forward to confirm their suspicions of election lobbying by foreign actors. With the Moldovan presidential election in roughly two weeks, authorities in the capital of Chisinau believe the U.S. isnt the only place where the Russians are working to affect the outcome of a national election. The Washington Post recently reported, Parliament Speaker Andrian Candu said the government thinks the Russians are financing political parties and leaders and backing anti-government protests. Candu told The Associated Press that Moldovas leaders also suspect Russia of manipulating media outlets and doing propaganda. The Moldovan Speaker visited with U.S. officials in Washington just a few weeks ago to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Moldovan Independence. While sitting down with his counterpart, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker and several Congressmen, Candu answered questions from U.S. officials on how Russia was trying to influence the Moldovan election. Senator Corkers office refused to talk about the details of the meeting. But Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Bridget Brink met with the Moldovan officials and offered this assessment, we applaud the positive actions taken by the Moldovan government Moldova has passed necessary and often difficult reforms, including in the justice and banking sectors. And it has already begun to reap the benefits of those reforms. State Department officials know that the reforms are to ensure an end to the Russian money laundering that has consumed Moldova. People familiar with Candus visit said one target of the Russians in Moldova is the 10 month old government of Prime Minister Pavel Filip, a technocrat working towards EU integration, and his political party, the Democratic Party. The anti-government forces suspected of being financed by the Russians and their allies have even convinced a U.S. congressman to be a part of their misinformation campaign of propaganda. Congressman Randy Weber, a former owner of a heating and air-conditioning company in Texas with two terms in Congress, was convinced to author House Resolution 896 attacking the ruling party and Vice Chairman Vladimir Plahotniuc of Moldova. Webers spokeswoman confirmed that Weber has never been to Moldova. She also said Weber didnt attend the Moldovan Independence celebration where U.S. State Department officials complimented the Moldovan governments implementation of anti-corruption laws and their move closer to the West. Weber decided to author his pro-Russian House Resolution after meeting with Moldovan Mihail Gofman, a man on the run from the Moldovan government and who is refusing to answer questions about his involvement in money laundering schemes benefitting Russian allies. For his part, Weber emailed a statement saying: I, along with my colleague Representative Trent Franks of Arizona believe that this House Resolution is a step in the right direction to show our support behind Moldovas efforts to rid themselves of corruption and promote democracy. Moldovan officials, however, believe Gofman is being paid by Russian allies looking to bring down the current Moldovan government. These attacks on the Moldovan government and ruling party leaders are clearly designed to stop the pro-West reforms inside Moldova. The lobbyists and political operatives hired by wealthy Moldovan rivals serve as a reminder that Russia and its allies continue to look for ways to stop the slide toward Europe that many of their former Soviet states are on. But why would Russia be working to influence the U.S. elections? Experts say it is less likely that Putin and his allies prefer a certain candidate, but they want to ensure that whoever is elected leader of the free world understands that Russia is on the offense and unintimidated by Americas traditional role. It will be a test for whoever wins in November. Over the last eight years, Russia has become accustomed to being unchallenged in their aggression throughout Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Changing the current global status quo is one of the most important jobs of the next president. Midway through the first presidential debate, moderator Lester Holt of NBC Nightly News asked the presidential candidates about Americas direction. He proposed the candidates start by talking about race. Holt noted that the share of Americans who believe that race relations are bad in this country is the highest it has been in decades. He then pointedly asked how each candidate would heal the divide. In the wake of Ferguson, Baltimore, Milwaukee, and now Charlotte, both Trump and Clinton understandably answered with their differing views about policing. But neither talked about education and jobs in relation to healing the race divide. In the second presidential debate the candidates occasionally mentioned the topic of race, but again neither offered real ideas for increasing employment opportunities for African Americans. The bureaucrats in the Department of Education are waging a war to destroy the very schools we need to equip our most vulnerable communities for a successful economic future. So as we head into the final weeks of the election at a time when the unemployment rate for young black Americans is 32 percent, compared with only 13.6 percent for white youth, candidates at every level owe it to the country to address this glaring omission. Nobody can possibly doubt that the unrest in so many of our cities is fueled in part by the frustration that comes with limited work opportunities for African-Americans. And nobody should doubt that healing the race divide must include plans that grow meaningful work opportunities for African-Americans and provide access to the education and training needed to seize these opportunities. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Education has widened the race divide in this country, most recently by deliberately forcing the bankruptcy of the ITT Technical Institute career schools. In addition to 8,000 employees losing their jobs, the Department of Educations action meant that ITTs 40,000 students suddenly had their career plans turned upside down with no school to attend. Since approximately 30 percent of all career education students are African-Americans, ITTs forced closure delivered a devastating blow on the high-unemployment African-American population that is most in need of skills-based education that provides a path to a good job in todays modern economy--exactly what ITT and other career schools have offered. The Departments closure of the 137 ITT-Tech campuses has only accelerated the endgame of what the Washington Post has called the Department of Educations ideological crusade to kill for-profit career schools. A few days after ITTs forced closure, the Education Department doubled down on its cold, bureaucratic answer to how we heal the race divide by revoking recognition of the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS), the main accreditor of for-profit career schools. This means that 600,000 students across the country, including approximately 200,000 African-Americans, are now at risk of dramatic disruption in their career plans if the Department of Education does not allow their schools sufficient time to get a new accreditor. So the same month that Charlotte erupted in violence, the Department of Education was actively killing hope for those most in need of it in vulnerable communities all across America--especially in African-American communities. Career schools most of them multi-generational local educational businesses offer hope to millions of African-American and other students by providing the accelerated, focused academic programming that often produces graduates ready for work in two years or less. According to the Department of Educations own statistics, these schools have a completion rate of 67 percent in their two-year career programs -- far greater than any other sector of higher education. But the Department of Educations war against career colleges continues and has real collateral damage; in this case it is the African-American and other students enrolled in these schools. The casualty toll is high and mounting. In 2010, our nations career colleges enrolled 1.7 million students in undergraduate programs ranging from certificates to 4-year degrees. Each year since, enrollment has declined by approximately 100,000 students, to 1.2 million in 2014. If 30 percent of those students who are no longer in school are African-American, we have put 500,000 young African-American men and women on the street over the last six years with no degree and no skill. And these numbers dont include the casualties that will have been suffered this year. Like every sector of higher education, career schools have their challenges. But never before have we bulldozed over the lives of tens of thousands of African-American and other students to address the errors of an individual school. Both Mr. Trump and Secretary Clinton, and the parties they lead, have rightly urged that our higher education system must offer paths to good jobs that dont require a traditional four-year academic degree. But the bureaucrats in the Department of Education are waging a war to destroy the very schools we need to equip our most vulnerable communities for a successful economic future. So if the Republicans and Democrats really mean what they say, leaders in both parties should immediately call for and put a stop to the crusade being waged by the Department of Education that treats so many African-American and other students as acceptable collateral damage in service of its extreme ideological goals. It turns out that Barack Obama does indeed have a line in the sand and its the WikiLeaks dumps that are battering Hillary Clintons campaign, and damaging to his legacy. In a recent interview with "Meet the Press" anchor Chuck Todd, Joe Biden said that the U.S. would launch a secret cyber counter-attack against Russia in retaliation for their hacking into the DNC and other individual email accounts. That threat may have translated into John Kerry asking Ecuador, which is hosting Julian Assange in their UK embassy, to sever the WikiLeaks heads Internet connection. Ecuador has announced that it did remove Assanges access to the web; the State Department has denied involvement. Because WikiLeaks has numerous back-ups, the cut-off hasnt slowed the steady release of embarrassing revelations about Clinton and her campaign. If that is the sum total of Obamas retaliatory repertoire, it is no wonder the Russians are acting with impunity around the globe. If Biden is right, President Obama is moved to confront Russia not over hundreds of thousands being slaughtered in Syria not because of the barrel bombs or chlorine gas nor over Russias takeover of Crimea from Ukraine, with whom we have a security treaty. He is not inspired by Russia selling a missile defense system to Iran over U.S. opposition, guaranteeing the security of Tehrans inevitable nuclear program. He is unmoved by Russian threats to shoot down our airplanes and their attacks on U.S. allies in Syria. None of those insults and aggressions has moved our president. Instead, he is teed off that the Russians may be the source of embarrassing email leaks leaks that confirm, for instance, that Obama lied when he said he didnt know anything about Hillary Clintons private email server. (He had been regularly communicating with her via the Clintonemail.com address, using an alias.) Or that his White House did not police Hillary Clinton trolling for dollars from foreign governments while she was Secretary of State. Well, everyone has a tipping point. There are skeptics who doubt that Russia has anything to do with the steady drip, drip of WikiLeaks revelations. The blame was thrown on Moscow almost immediately after the initial dump of emails that showed the DNC in cahoots with the Clinton camp, tipping the scales in favor of Bernie Sanders. That news shocked Bernie Sanders supporters, who were only grudgingly signing onto Hillarys campaign and who are so essential to putting the former first lady over the top. So devastating were those incriminating messages that the head of the DNC, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, was forced to resign just days before she was due to gavel in the Democratic Convention. With brilliant sleight-of-hand, operatives in the Clinton camp hinted the leaks came from Russia, and deftly turned the spotlight to an absurd narrative involving Trumps tenuous ties to Vladimir Putin. They suggested, then as now, that Trump and Putin were working hand-in-glove to subvert U.S. democracy. They give Trump far too much credit. Not only does he appear to have no real connection to the Russian government, he has also been astonishingly unable to capitalize on the leaks, so caught up is he in distracting and unnecessary confrontations. More recently, intelligence chief James Clapper formally accused the Russians of orchestrating the hacks into the emails of the DNC and other figures which have been published by WikiLeaks, DCLeaks.com and Guccifer 2.0. This is the same James Clapper who in 2014 baldly denied to Congress that the NSA was collecting metadata from Americans; that was before Edward Snowden revealed that the U.S. government was indeed collecting such information. That lie earned Clapper threats of perjury charges and a call for his resignation from Senator Rand Paul. It could well be the Russians who are behind the torrent of embarrassing emails. Hillary Clinton in 2011 angered Putin by accusing him of perpetrating fraud in Russias parliamentary elections. How satisfying it must be for Putin to reveal information that shows Mrs. Clinton trying to rig our elections. The Clinton campaign, with incredible chutzpah, recently ripped into WikiLeaks and the media for covering the damaging emails. Given that any number of email chains describe the embarrassing lengths to which national media figures and major news organizations have been willing to go to help out the Clinton candidacy, this faux outrage is masterful. Hillary Clintons message to voters: Yes, I may have said and done terrible things but because Putin is behind these leaks, you should vote for me anyway. As a campaign theme, thats certainly tops Stronger Together. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trumps respective spouses wont have to cross paths and shake hands before Wednesday nights debate because the Clinton campaign reportedly has been granted a change in protocol. During the first two 2016 presidential debates, Melania Trump and Bill Clinton shook hands at the start of the debate. But the Clinton campaign has asked the Commission on Presidential Debates that the respective spouses and families be allowed to enter the debate Wednesday night in Las Vegas closer to their seats so they wont have to cross paths and shake hands, sources told The New York Times. The reported change is sign of how acrimonious this years White House race has become. It was purportedly sought by Clinton's team because Trump attempted during the second of the three debates to sit near his family three women who have accused Bill Clinton of sexual assault or rape. Trump reportedly has invited Malik Obama, a supporter and half-brother to President Obama, to this final debate at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, moderated by Fox News Chris Wallace. Click for more from The New York Times. Donald Trumps path to the presidency has narrowed considerably in recent weeks amid campaign trail controversies, with the latest Fox News electoral ratings showing reliably red states coming into play a trend that only ups the pressure on the Republican nominee to tilt the race at the third and final presidential debate Wednesday night. The debate in Las Vegas, moderated by Fox News Chris Wallace, will mark the last face-off between Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in the home-stretch of the presidential campaign. Both candidates are dealing with their share of controversies Trump, facing multiple allegations of groping dating back decades; and Clinton, grappling with embarrassing revelations from leaked emails and now the allegation in an FBI file that a top State Department official offered a quid pro quo with the bureau to alter a Clinton server emails classification. Trump has seized on the latter revelation in the run-up to the debate. But so far, his poll numbers have taken a bigger hit than hers and the latest Fox News Electoral Scorecard reflects this. In a significant shift, the scorecard shows the rating for Texas being changed from solid Republican to lean Republican. Trump still appears to have the advantage but his lead over Clinton is now in the single digits in recent state polls in a state that hasnt voted Democrat in the White House race since 1976. Last week, a poll released by the Texas Lyceum showed Trump leading Clinton 39-32 percent among likely voters in the Lone Star State. "The combination of the slow march of demographic change and Trump's rhetoric appears to have made Texas' registered voter pool more Democratic than we have seen in previous presidential races," Joshua Blank, the Texas Lyceum's research director, told The Dallas Morning News. In another poll released Tuesday from the University of Houston, Clinton has pulled within 3 percentage points of Trump in the traditionally Republican stronghold. Its a stark difference from the 2012 race where GOP nominee Mitt Romney took the state by 16 points. Arizona Sen. John McCain led Barack Obama there by 12 points in 2008. Clintons campaign, sensing an opening, has even gone on air in Texas with a one-week ad buy in Dallas, Houston, Austin and San Antonio. The ad highlights an endorsement from The Dallas Morning News the first time the conservative-leaning newspaper has backed a Democrat for president since 1940. Nearly every major newspaper has backed the Democrat, though, just one factor fueling Trumps claims that the media are helping rig the election against him. Trump also says the allegations by numerous women against him are false and the media are only feeding the allegedly erroneous claims. In a potential hint at the candidates debate strategy, the Trump campaign came out with a new ad overnight suggesting Clinton helped special interests during her time in Washington. Hillary Clinton wants you to believe that behind the fog of scandal that shrouds her political career you find results, where in reality all you find is a trail of destruction that has damaged our economy and put American lives at risk, spokesman Jason Miller said in a statement. To watch the debate, tune in at 9 p.m. to Fox News Channel. The debate also will be streamed on FoxNews.com and the Fox News app. The electoral map, though, is looking dicier than ever for Trump. According to the latest Fox News ratings, if Clinton won all the solid and lean Democrat states, shed have 307 electoral votes well over the 270 needed to win. If Trump won all the solid and lean Republican states, hed have just 181 electoral votes. That means even if he won all the pure toss-up states Arizona, North Carolina, Ohio and Utah and their 50 electoral votes, hed still be short of 270. Hed have to flip some states currently leaning Democrat back into his column. That Utah is now in the toss-up column represents another shift, and another headache for Trump. The Fox News Electoral Scorecard recently shifted Utah from solid Republican to toss-up. The New York billionaire no longer has the clear advantage in the state, and is statistically tied in some polls with Clinton and Evan McMullin, an independent candidate who is pitching himself as the conservative alternative to Trump. A poll of likely voters, conducted over the weekend by Rasmussen Reports, shows that 2 points separate the three candidates. For both Clinton and McMullin, it is their best showing in the state in any major poll thus far, and could reflect lost support for Trump among the states sizable Mormon population. Following the release of Trumps infamous 2005 Access Hollywood tape, a number of top Republicans in the state swiftly pulled their endorsements, including Gov. Gary Herbert who called Trumps comments beyond offensive and despicable. Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who is a Mormon, said if he voted for Trump he would not be able to look his young daughter in the eye. Chris Karpowitz, director of Brigham Young Universitys Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy, told The New York Times that the Republican establishment in the state of Utah is in all-out revolt again the Trump candidacy. The pressure now is on Trump to not only win the toss-up states and turn blue-ish states red, but to prevent states like Utah and Texas from abandoning the Republican ticket for the first time in years. Even Alaska, which is still rated solid Republican in the Fox News scorecard, has seen Clinton gaining on Trump in recent polling. The last time Alaska, one of the countrys deepest-red states, voted Democrat was in 1964. Speaking Tuesday night on Fox News' Hannity, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich cast doubt on the polls and predicted Trump would defy them. I think the polls are as accurate here as they were in Great Britain, Gingrich quipped. Fox News Bryan Murphy contributed to this report. Donald Trump has a final chance in Wednesday nights debate to change up his campaign playbook by making a persuasive appeal to undecided and swing voters before an audience of millions. Whether the Republican nominee goes that route likely will become clear in a matter of minutes. In the lead-up to the debate, Trump has opted to fire up loyalists with attacks on Hillary Clinton and even fellow Republicans who have crossed him. While Trump certainly will take advantage of their last prime-time face-off to play to his own base, he also is dealing with the political imperative to expand what polls indicate is a shrinking electoral map. Some analysts, including Fox News contributor Michael Goodwin, suggest that appealing to swing and undecided voters Wednesday night might be the move he needs. At the least, Trump is expected to continue to draw sharp contrasts between him and Clinton. Donald Trump is going to have to make the closing argument that if youre ready for change, Im your guy, Republican National Committee chief strategist Sean Spicer told Fox News before the debate. Spicer, like others, made clear that Trump will contrast his profile as a businessman and first-time candidate against that of Clinton, among the Washingtonians who brag about how many offices they have held. To watch the Las Vegas debate, hosted by Fox News' Chris Wallace, tune in at 9 p.m. to Fox News Channel. With 20 days left before Election Day, the RealClearPolitics average of national polls in a four-way race shows Trump trailing Clinton by roughly 6 percentage points. However, he trails significantly among such key voting blocs as Latino and female voters, a group Trump has found increasingly hard to reach since early October, when a 2005 audiotape surfaced revealing him bragging about making uninvited physical advances on women. A Fox News poll released Tuesday showed Clinton holding a 17-percentage-point advantage over Trump among likely women voters, while Trump has a 7-point advantage among independent voters. Meanwhile, other major polls show Trump trailing Clinton by double digits among Hispanic voters, with whom Republican candidates have struggled to connect for years, as they emerge as the countrys fastest-grown voting bloc. Trump has apologized for his audiotape comments but has been forced in the aftermath to try to reassure and reconnect with his core supporters, which may have kept his slide in the polls from being any worse. On social media and in battleground states across the country, Trump has railed against the liberal media for rigging the election by publishing or airing stories about the audiotape and about nine women who since the tapes release have alleged Trump made unwanted sexual advances, which he denies. The press has created a rigged system and has poisoned the mind of so many of our voters, Trump said at a rally Tuesday in Colorado. In the debate Wednesday, Trump will almost certainly hammer on the stream of hacked Clinton campaign emails and other material recently released by WikiLeaks. The emails revealed infighting among Clinton associates, a cozy relationship with some in the press and internal uncertainty over some of Clinton's own policy positions. Newly released FBI files also show a top State Department official tried to bargain with the bureau over classified Clinton emails during the agencys investigation of her using a private server when secretary of state. Democratic strategist Douglas Smith said Wednesday that Clintons debate strategy will be to talk to the audience, instead of reacting to Trump attacks. She needs to differentiate who she is, who she can be as president, he said. What she cannot do is make an unforced error. He also said Trump has no time left to slow the attacks and appeal to women, minorities and still-undecided voters. Roughly 13 percent of the electorate remains undecided or still supports third-party candidates. That ship has sailed so far away that well never see it again, said Smith, also a partner at Kent Strategies. It will likely be hair on fire and fire up the base. Smith acknowledged not knowing exactly what Trump will try, amid reports that hes invited Malik Obama, a supporter and President Obamas half-brother, to the third and final debate. In the second debate, Trump had as guests three women who have accused Clintons husband, former President Bill Clinton, of sexual assault and rape. Trump, 70, has frequently questioned whether the 68-year-old Clinton is strong and healthy enough to be president, especially after she had pneumonia last month and needed help from assistants when hastily leaving a 9/11 memorial event. Fox News' Brooke Singman contributed to this report. The United States warned Wednesday that any attack on American allies or use of nuclear weapons by North Korea would be met with an "overwhelming" U.S. response as it sought to reassure close ally South Korea that the U.S. has its back. The statement by Defense Secretary Ash Carter came as top U.S. and South Korean diplomats and military officials met, weeks after North Korea's most powerful nuclear test explosion to date, and days after its failed test launch of a ballistic missile one of more than 20 such tests this year alone. The flurry of activity has deepened concern over the North's progress toward having a nuclear warhead it can mount on a long-range missile. The two sides discussed steps to strengthen the so-called "extended deterrence" provided by U.S. nuclear forces in defending South Korea and agreed to begin a high-level dialogue about it. Seoul is looking to allay calls from conservatives at home who want South Korea to develop its own nuclear arsenal. "The U.S. commitment to the defense of South Korea is unwavering. This includes our commitment to provide extended deterrence, guaranteed by the full spectrum of U.S. defense capabilities," Carter said in opening remarks. "Make no mistake, any attack on America or our allies will not only be defeated, but any use of nuclear weapons will be met with an overwhelming and effective response," he said. South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se said the threat posed by North Korea is "more grave than ever" and that the North is "nearing the final stage of nuclear weaponization." "North Korea's threat is no longer confined to the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia. It's now a direct threat to the mainland U.S.," he said after the talks. "The next few years will be the tipping point." He said defense officials on Thursday would discuss the possibility of deploying U.S. "strategic assets" to the South an apparent reference to permanently basing nuclear-capable planes or vessels there. Secretary of State John Kerry reiterated the U.S. will deploy "as soon as possible" a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, a missile defense system intended to protect South Korea and the nearly 30,000 U.S. forces based there. The plans for THAAD have angered China and Russia, which see it as a threat to their own defense. Kerry called for every country to rigorously enforce U.N. sanctions on North Korea, which are intended but have failed to prevent its development of weapons of mass destruction. He said the international community needs to cooperate so the North "pays a price for its dangerous actions." The U.S. and China, which is the North's traditional ally and main trading partner, are currently negotiating at the U.N. Security Council on tightening sanctions in response to the Sept. 9 nuclear test. The U.S., South Korea and Japan are considering additional sanctions of their own. Kerry said the U.S. wants to close a loophole in the current U.N. sanctions allowing coal exports from North Korea to support the livelihood of its people. Kerry said that provision was being abused and the "greatest amount" of coal and revenue has just passed between China and North Korea. The U.S. hopes that tighter sanctions can force impoverished North Korea to return to long-stalled negotiations on providing aid in exchange for denuclearization, but there appears to be little prospect of their resumption because of Pyongyang's determination to have nuclear weapons. North Korea's state-run Rodong Sinmun newspaper on Wednesday said the North would strengthen its nuclear capabilities in quantity and quality in response to the threat from its enemies. "We have warned that South Korea will be engulfed in a sea of fire and the U.S. military units in the Pacific region and the mainland will be in chaos if the U.S. wages nuclear strikes against us," the newspaper said. "Our warning is not an empty word." Kerry said claims from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that he needs nuclear weapons to defend against the U.S. defy common sense. "The United States has had the power to wipe out North Korea for years, for years. And if indeed that was out goal, we wouldn't be sitting around waiting" while they get additional nuclear weapons, he said. GOP offices in three states were vandalized or burglarized during the past two weeks, and police had only made one arrest as of Wednesday morning. An Indiana Republican Party office was vandalized last week after someone tossed two bricks through the window, officials said Monday. That news comes just a day after a Republican headquarters in North Carolina was firebombed. The Sunday blaze injured none, however, a perpetrator also spray painted the message "Nazi Republicans get out of town or else" on a nearby building. An office in San Antonio used by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's campaign was burglarized on Wednesday, FOX29 reported. Police detained a suspect around 5:30 a.m. and authorities believe that person targeted other buildings in the area, too. Signs for Trump and Rep. Todd Young were hanging in the window of the Delaware County office on Oct. 8 when landscaping bricks were tossed through the windows, shattering them, officials said in a Facebook post. Officials said it would cost about $1,200 to replace the window and those interested in helping defray the cost could donate online. Delaware County Sheriff Ray Dudley said there have been numerous reports of campaign signs being stolen from yards in Yorktown and Mount Pleasant Township, Fox 59 reported. Dudley said the reports were being taken seriously and that removing signs from homeowners yards could merit prosecution under the Indiana criminal code. Click for more from Fox 59. PASADENA, Calif. Volcanic activity on Venus took place in the recent past, geologically speaking, and may still be happening on the planet today. New research takes a deeper look at one recent eruption on Venus' surface. The Idunn Mons volcano in the southwestern hemisphere of Venus rises 1.6 miles above the surrounding plains. In 2010, observations by the European Space Agency's Venus Express probe revealed that Idunn Mons is a "hotspot," meaning it radiates high levels of infrared light compared to the surrounding area. That suggests that lava flowed at the spot recently, and that the area is still warm. Now, a more nuanced look at Idunn Mons suggests that the hotspot observations are consistent with multiple (cooled) lava flows along the volcano's eastern flank, the new research shows. The researchers behind the new work said the finding suggests that Venus' volcanos were active in the relatively recent past, and may still be active today. [Photos of Venus, the Mysterious Planet Next Door] "Venus is a planet which has always been considered Earth's twin sister," said Piero D'Incecco of the German Aerospace Center and one of the researchers behind the new analysis. "But its cloud cover still hides a lot of secrets." D'Incecco spoke at a media briefing at the American Astronomical Society Division for Planetary Sciences meeting in Pasadena, California. Venus Express initially identified the hotspot on Idunn Mons in 2010 using the Visible and Infrared Thermal Imaging Spectrometer (VIRTIS) instrument. Most of Venus' surface appears cool when viewed with VIRTIS, and this is a sign that those regions haven't changed (geologically speaking) in millions of years. By contrast, the researchers who initially studied the hotspot estimated that the region could be less than 2.5 million years old. Unfortunately, the thick clouds that cover Venus prevented the Venus Express probe from getting a more detailed look at the volcano and the lava flows. The new analysis of lava flows on Idunn Mons uses radar data collected in the early 1990s by NASA's Magellan probe. D'Incecco and colleagues built a new numerical model to simulate lava flows on the top of the mountain and the eastern flanks, and compared that model with the Magellan data. "According to our modeling, the flank lava flows are the ones responsible for this [hot]spot," D'Incecco said. "This is particularly important because this is the first time we can map, with such a high resolution, lava flows from a volcanic structure which is believed to be recently or still active on a terrestrial body other than Earth." Preliminary estimates from Port Canaveral CEO John Murray claim the port sustained as much as $7 million in damage from Hurricane Matthew. According to FloridaToday.com, initial reports suggested Port Canaveral suffered between $2 million-to-$3 million in damages from the storm, but the number could reach between $5 million-to-$7 million in total. The estimates for Port Canaveral following the hurricane included damage to roofs of buildings on the property, leaks at its cruise terminals, potential issues with the port roads and the possibility of dredging work in the port's channel areas. Luckily, Hurricane Matthew was far enough away from Port Canaveral when it passed Florida to avoid much more serious damage, and the cruise industry at the port didnt suffer much as the facility reopened the day after the storm passed. Murray said in a statement that Port Canaveral is seeking assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help pay for the repairs, and a more detailed layout of the exact amount of damage would be available later this week. More from TravelPulse Errant Goat Causes Flight To Delay Landing Protesters to Form 'Wall' of Taco Trucks Outside Donald Trump's Las Vegas Hotel This Week's Craziest Travel Stories Featured on TravelPulse Radio A Guide to Sapa, Vietnams Favorite Mountain Retreat Las Terrenas: Dominican Beach Town with European Flair While Port Canaveral was forced to cancel two scheduled sailingsthe Disney Dream and Royal Caribbeans Majesty of the Seasand the Disney Magic was forced to skip a port-of-call at Port Canaveral, three other ships were forced to make stops at the port due to the storm. The business lost by the cancellations was offset by the unscheduled stops by other cruise lines. In addition to the impact on the cruise industry, Port Canaveral set aside 80,000 square feet of space in the new Port Canaveral Logistics Center in Titusville to the American Red Cross to assist with the relief efforts for people in the area. White House officials announced their efforts to help improve air travel on Tuesday. President Barack Obama's administration announced plans to provide consumers with more flight information and would require refunds on baggage fees if luggage is "substantially delayed. The definition of a substantial delay has yet to be defined according to the Department of Transportation. Congress passed an aviation bill over the summer that directed the department to refund baggage fees to passengers whose bags have been delayed 12 or more hours for domestic flights or 15 or more hours for overseas flights. The initiative is reportedly in response to consumer complaints about airline travel. "The actions we're announcing today will help consumers know how airlines are performing, will make sure that consumers don't have to pay for services they don't receive and will help consumers find the best flight options for them," the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers Jason Furman said. Along with baggage fee refunds, officials announced that online travel agents would be required to use neutral search results. "We are trying to assure that ... a ticket agent doesn't rank flights of an individual airline higher or lower in search results because of incentive payments or any other business reason," a Transportation Department official told Reuters. The new rules would also require some airlines to report the frequency that they lose or damage wheelchairs, as well as requiring airlines to report all flight delays. "Airline passengers deserve to have access to clear and complete information about the airlines they choose to fly and to expect fair and reasonable treatment when they fly," Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx added. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Click for more from Reuters. Police were searching Wednesday for four suspects after four teenage students were shot in the shared parking lot of two San Francisco high schools Tuesday, and one of the students was in critical condition, investigators said. The shooting took place at around 3:20 p.m. Tuesday as students were being dismissed for the day from June Jordan School for Equity and City Arts and Technology High School, which share a campus, San Francisco Police Officer Carlos Manfredi said. Three of the students who were shot ran inside the school, and police initially ordered students to stay in place until officers searched each room and determined it was not an active shooter situation. A fourth student hurt in the shooting went to a hospital, Manfredi said. "One female victim has life-threatening injuries to her upper torso," he said. San Francisco school officials said two boys suffered non-life threatening injuries and a third boy walked into a police station with a gunshot wound. Police were searching for four males in connection to the shooting, Manfredi said. They were last seen running away from the area in dark hoodies and jeans. Classes were resuming Wednesday at both high schools with grief counselors available, Fox 2 reported. #SFPD investigating shots fired @ Brazil & La Grande. 1 Confirmed victim. Shelter in place. SFPD searching for suspect. pic.twitter.com/8gYb9Vi3q7 San Francisco Police (@SFPD) October 18, 2016 Click for more from Fox 2. A Florida man with a deformed skull, who became known as the "half-headed man," was arrested Monday on arson and first-degree attempted murder charges, WSVN reported. Miami police said in an arrest report Carlos Rodriguez, 31, set his mattress on fire at a duplex Monday afternoon, which had two people inside at the time. According to the arrest report, the fire was deliberately set, "posing an immediate threat to the lives and safety of the occupants." Rodriguez appeared in bond court, Tuesday, where a judge gave him $20,000 bond, WSVN reported. Rodriguez become an internet sensation in 2012 when he appeared in a YouTube video explaining how he lost a large portion of his brain and skull in a car crash. I was barred out on drugs. I was driving, and I hit a pole and flew out the front window and landed on my head," he said at the time. Click for more from WSVN.com. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 A 29-year-old man has been arrested in a shooting that left an Alaska police officer seriously injured. Fairbanks police say Anthony George Jenkins-Alexie was arrested Tuesday morning as he was walking on a local street. Jenkins-Alexie, of Fairbanks, is facing charges of attempted murder, assault and other counts in connection with the shooting early Sunday of Sgt. Allen Brandt. Police say Brandt is recovering at an Anchorage hospital after he was struck four times in the legs. Police say bullet fragments also struck the officer's eye. A dashboard video shows some of the encounter between Brandt and a man holding a gun that police say was stolen. Police say the man drove off in Brandt's patrol car and abandoned it a few blocks away. Nobody feels particularly threatened when they are served a well-targeted ad online. It makes sense that if you Google vacation destinations in Puerto Rico that somehow an algorithm on the Internet will allow Kayak to flood your screen with hotel promotions. That is not sinister; it is just odd. But the things that are done with people's personal data (and the things we search for on Google should be personal, right?) are increasingly crossing the line into a darker area that no one really wants to talk about. Thankfully, public awareness on the issue is rising thanks to high profile phone hacks, legislation that has been passed and stories about how much money data is actually worth. A problem of this magnitude is also an opportunity of equal magnitude for an entrepreneur with the right idea. Though, in this case, there is room for a crowd of entrepreneurs, several government initiatives and probably some lawsuits. These are four ways data is (and must) get way more personal and how entrepreneurs can play a part: 1. The social revolution. Facebook is still the premier social network, even if it is increasingly surrounded by younger networks with sleeker features. As such, it plays a leadership role in the business of setting precedent for user data harvesting. According to Julian Ranger, personal data expert and founder of digi.me, the value of the data Facebook collects is worth billions of dollars. Related: The New EU General Data Protection Regulation: Big Data Protection Gets Personal "It is said you cannot know the value of something until you measure it and Facebook has lead the industry in its acquisition, organization and exploitation of data," says Ranger. "But how is it Facebook's right to have a file on personal users? And shouldn't the user have the right to allow or not allow that data to be sold to other companies?" There are those in the private sector who think so and they are starting to fight back. Tech company Spy Aware offers an app that will tell you what data your phone is sending via the apps that are installed on it. If you are not outraged about invasive data practices yet, you will be soon after installing Spy Aware. 2. The regulatory revolution. Laws are and will be an important step returning the power of data back to the people. But to-date there have been few successes to point to. The European Union passed the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which does signal a shift from the wild west of data collection to a world with a few laws and borders. But functionally the law does little to return full ownership of people's personal data and companies are already preparing with elaborate compliance mechanisms that will help them to carry on with business as usual. Related: Data Protection for Small Business "The GDPR is a step in the right direction, but it falls far short of turning the tables on who owns the data," notes Ranger. "And that makes sense, much of the economy is run on the free flow of information. The challenge is to reshape the system so that individuals can selectively sell their own information for a value proposition that works for them." 3. The technology revolution. The Internet, for all of its benefits, is controlled by powerful companies. Accordingly, for users to be safe on the Internet, they need to level the playing field, which will require some powerful technological solutions. Users need to have the ability to locally store their data and control who has access to it. Ranger's digi.me offers a platform that allows users to do that with all of their social media data and has plans to expand into other areas. The opportunities and needs are almost endless in this area. Users need tools that alert them about data leaks, allow them to control their data, and provide the means for them to selectively share it. The technology world has its work cut out for it, to be sure. But demand is such that the project is already underway. 4. The public opinion revolution. Public opinion oscillates based on the news of the day, so to suggest what the public thinks about anything is presumptuous. But in an effort to understand the underlying causes that motivate people's opinions on sharing their personal data, Colombia Business School conducted a study of 8,000 people across generational divides. What they found was that for the right value proposition (a promotion or a discount) 80 percent of people would share their information with a company that wanted it. Related: Companies Need to Take Responsibility for Protecting Sensitive User Data The doomsayers who think that data privacy will grind the global economy to a halt must consider the possibility that many people just want to have ownership over their data and the right to disseminate it in a way that benefits them in return. It will be exciting to see how entrepreneurs step into this space. In the same way that the Internet connected us in a way that few people could have imagined, returning data to its owners could change the Internet into a vastly different place yet again. A 14-year-boy among the first child migrants to arrive in Britain from Calais has told Sky News about the struggles he faced living there. After 10 years apart, this Aghan migrant child has been reunited with his brother in the UK https://t.co/xoRQ79hLis Sky News (@SkyNews) October 19, 2016 Aemal Khan arrived on Monday where he was reunited with his older brother Asif who he had not seen in a decade. "It was a great moment, when I saw him after a long time, more than 10 years," said Asif, a 25-year-old chef who has been living in the UK for 11 years. "When I met him I hugged him and kissed him, he was so small when I saw him before. He's changed a lot, but brothers, if you see him after 20 years you can recognise." Eight months ago Aemal fled Afghanistan and followed his brother to the UK - it was a journey he made alone. He has spent the past five months stranded in Calais' 'Jungle' migrant camp, despite having a right of residence with family in Britain. During an emotional interview, he said: "Sometimes I missed mum, sometimes I cried as I was not with my family; no parents. I missed my mum." It was a drawn-out process to get him to Britain, but fortunately his brother had documentation to support his story. Click for more from Sky News A civil rights group has filed discrimination lawsuits against four New Jersey school districts and a charter school, saying their enrollment practices make it harder for children of immigrants living in the country unlawfully to enroll. The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey said Tuesday it has filed lawsuits against the Fair Lawn, Jamesburg, Spotswood and Port Republic school districts, as well as the Jersey City Global Charter School. The group says the districts wrongly force parents to produce either a driver's license or state ID, which immigrants living in the country illegally wouldn't possess. Port Republic says the suit seems to be referencing an outdated page on the district's website. Jamesburg says a driver's license isn't required for enrollment. Forget about your typical 1950s flight attendant getup -- an impeccable skirt suit accessorized with a neck scarf, hat and white gloves -- Delta today aimed to shake things up. The company, which partnered with New York fashion designer Zac Posen back in the spring, unveiled its new collection of uniforms for its 60,000-plus employees, including customer service agents, flight attendants and technicians. Posen -- who is known for dressing celebrities such as Reese Witherspoon and Kim Kardashian for the red carpet -- worked with a committee of 24 Delta staff members to design the new collection, taking into account feedback from 20,000 employees. The collection features more than four dozen looks, incorporating colors such as plum, thistle and cardinal -- a big change from Deltas standard blue. Along with the change in color, employees also noted that they felt the old uniforms were frumpy. More From Entrepreneur.com Delta Flights Resume After Computer Crash Strands Passengers Using techniques that create universally attractive pieces suited for a variety of body types and incorporating smooth accents to the pieces, Posen set out to create an elegant and contemporary new look for Delta employees, the designer said, according to The New York Times. Employees are allocated a set of points so they can mix and match their outfits by choosing from different pieces, including dresses, skirts and blazers, coats, shirts and pants, reports The Times. Posen also took into account technical features such as stain-resistant linings, antibacterial materials and special pockets to hold certain devices. The final rollout of the collection is planned for 2018. Check out the new uniforms here. Authorities have launched an all-out search for a missing Texas college student whose family said she was last seen before a date more than a week ago. Police announced Wednesday that a $30,000 reward is being offered for the safe return of 22-year-old Zuzu Renee Verk, a student at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, Texas, about 100 miles from the Mexican border. The Texas Rangers and FBI are assisting in the search for Verk, which has expanded outside of the Alpine area, according to investigators. The young woman was last heard from during the early morning hours of Oct. 12, according to the Alpine Police Department. Verk's father told local news outlets that she was absent from both school and work later that day. Verk reportedly left her home for a date at the movies with her on-again, off-again boyfriend on the night of Tuesday, Oct. 11, though police have released few details. No suspect or person of interest has been identified, and police haven't released the boyfriend's name or whereabouts. "Were all special but theres something exceptional about this young woman," Verk's father, Glenn, told CBS 11. "Shes vibrant and shes full of excitement and life." The Alpine Police Department is looking for two vehicles possibly related to Verk's disappearance: a grey 2006 Jeep Liberty and a 2004 Mazda Miata convertible with a beige top. Both vehicles, police said, were seen in the area between 12 a.m. and 10:00 am on Wednesday, Oct. 12. The Brewster County Sheriff's Office has also asked area ranchers to inspect their property for "any suspicious signs of disturbed earth, personal items on the ground, anything that might raise your suspicions that it may need to be investigated further," according to the Dallas Morning News. Verk is described as 5 feet tall, weighing 110 pounds with blonde hair and hazel eyes. Alpine is about 200 miles southeast of El Paso. Anyone with information on the case is urged to call the Alpine Police Department at 432-837-3486. A heat expert testified that temperatures peaked around 125 degrees inside the SUV where 22-month-old Cooper Harris died after being left there all day in June 2014. David Michael Brani of Applied Technical Service said Wednesday that he measured how hot it would have been inside the car given outdoor temperatures throughout that day. Harris told police he watched cartoons with his son that morning, took him to breakfast at a Chick-fil-A restaurant and kissed him while strapping him into his car seat. But Harris said he forgot to drop his son off at day care, and then forgot he was still in the back seat after driving to work. Prosecutor Chuck Boring has said Harris' account doesn't make sense. Boring said the restaurant is just over half a mile from the Home Depot office where Harris worked as a computer technician, and Harris parked his SUV by backing up between two vehicles which would have required looking over his shoulder, toward the backseat where his son sat. On the day Cooper died, his father sent more than 30 messages on his phone "mostly to women, mostly about sex," the prosecutor said. One of these women was Caitlyn Hickey Floyd, who testified on Wednesday that Harris never mentioned he had a son in his texts that day. Local news media reports said Brani testified that it was about 98 degrees inside when Justin Ross Harris said he opened the car and tossed in a bag of lightbulbs he bought on lunch break, and that interior temperatures had risen nearly 30 degrees more by the time Harris finished work. The defense argued that the interior temperature would have been warmer still, given the additional heat from Cooper's body, which could support the idea that he died earlier in the day than prosecutors have suggested. Brani said he didn't test for body heat or humidity, which can make the overall heat index soar. But he said Cooper's body temperature would not have significantly changed his measurements. Harris said he drove a few miles to a shopping center after work before realizing his boy was still in the back seat. Police later reported the SUV reeked from "sweat, a dirty diaper, the smell of death." Harris's lawyers called the death accidental. But prosecutors say Harris intentionally killed his son by leaving him in the car in suburban Atlanta, where he moved from Alabama in 2012. Pretrial publicity prompted the trial's move to Brunswick, 275 miles away. A former police officer who shot a motorist running away from a traffic stop in South Carolina wants his murder trial moved out of Charleston. Attorneys for Michael Slager filed a motion Tuesday saying a survey found 85 percent of people in Charleston County had seen bystander video of the North Charleston officer shooting Walter Scott in April 2015. Slager's lawyers say the video doesn't show the entire confrontation, and potential jurors who have seen it might not fairly consider their evidence. They also say Dylann Roof's federal trial in the killing of nine churchgoers in Charleston, being held across the street, will create "a media spectacle to rival any ever seen in this or any town." The motion doesn't say where the trial should be held. Cooking can be intimidating, especially if youre busy and on a budget. But if you had a community and easy to follow advice your fingertips, instead of being a stressful place, the kitchen could become a place fill with fun, creativity and inspiration. Thats the mission behind Food52, an online hub dedicated to helping even the greenest chefs create high-quality and delicious meals. Merrill Stubbs is the co-founder and president of Food52. With her co-founder, CEO Amanda Hesser, the duo have created a beloved and award-winning site that boasts countless recipes, tips about home design, a store for your kitchen needs and even a hotline if you get stuck needing a substitution in a recipe. Related: A One-Stop Cooking and E-Commerce Site Heats Up Since its launch in 2009, Food52 has been named publication of the year by the James Beard Foundation, developed partnerships with Random House and Whole Foods, published the work of big-food industry names like Danny Meyer and Mario Batali. Since 2013, Stubbs told Entrepreneur that revenue has increased eight-fold, the company has tripled the size of its staff and the sites audience has grown seven-fold. Stubbs and Hessers latest book, A New Way to Dinner: A Playbook of Recipes and Strategies for the Week Ahead was published this week. We caught up with Stubbs and asked her 20 questions to find out what motivates her and makes her tick. 1. How do you start your day? Usually I roll over in my bed, pick up my phone and look at the Quartz morning email. It's a great way to get up to speed on really big stuff that's happened.I like to know what's going on in the world as opposed to just my industry, and it's a good way to brush up on that, especially since they do things that happened while you were asleep. I'll also check trending topics on Twitter on the way to the subway. Typically, once I get to the office, I'm really steeped in our world, so getting a bird's-eye view of things outside of my world is a good thing to do first thing. 2. How do you end your day? I try and read a couple of pages of whatever book [is on my nightstand], which has nothing to do with work. I do this to take myself out of the work frame of mind, which I'm in pretty much in every waking moment, and escape a little bit. It's also to do something that's not digital; that's screen free. I find it relaxes me. 3. Whats a book that changed your mind? The Power of Full Engagement by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz literally changed my life. It talks about time not being our most precious commodity, but rather energy. It resonated for me, and reframed the way I approach not just work but life. I like to be in the moment. A general practice that has come out of it for me is to set aside time to think about the big picture, instead of trying to find a spare moment to do it. I was really inspired by reading that book and now I set aside chunks of time and block them out in my calendar. Related: 9 Rules for Successful Time Management 4. Whats a book you always recommend and why? Roald Dahl's Danny the Champion of the World. I love children's books in general, and a lot of kid's books are really good reading for adults. This one in particular is not only a great story and narrative, but it's a great study of a relationship between father and his son. I always recommend it to parents to read aloud to kids because it's a great book to share. The entrepreneurial, can-do attitude of Danny and his father has always been inspiring to me. And while they are meticulous planners, ultimately it's the partnership and camaraderie between them that is more important than their scheme working out exactly as planned. I try to keep this in mind when things don't go the way we've anticipated. 5. Whats a strategy you use to keep focused? Take breaks. I really step away from something after I've been working on it, take a short walk, talk to someone who has nothing do with what I've been focusing on and stay hydrated. I usually just walk around our office in Manhattan. If I have enough time, and it's market day, I'll walk down to Union Square Green market. Related: How to Stay Focused: Train Your Brain 6. When you were a kid what did you want to be when you grew up? I really wanted to be a performer. I did a lot of acting and singing as a kid and teenager. I think I was pretty convinced for a while that was my destiny. But I don't think I had the backbone for the rejection that comes with that path. Ultimately when I was deciding between a conservatory as opposed to a liberal arts college, that's when I made that decision: to keep singing as something for fun rather than my career. 7. What did you learn from the worst boss you ever had? Being indirect about what you want or what you expect is a really terrible tactic for managing people. It makes them feel like the ground is shifting beneath them, that's an impediment and distraction from people doing their best work. 8. Who has influenced you most when it comes to how you approach your work? My co-founder Amanda. For a lot of the same reasons that the other boss was not a good example, I learn from her every day. One of things she is really good about is communicating directly with people about their performance and their strengths and weaknesses without it feeling like an onslaught of criticism. She's really good at balancing those conversations and people respond well to that. Related: 10 Steps to Finding the Right Co-Founder 9. Whats a trip that changed you? The trip that changed me the most was a trip to Southeast Asia 10 years ago. Until that trip, I hadn't been anywhere that was so completely different. It really opened my eyes to the extent of differences in cultures, in norms and mannerisms and the extent of diversity that exists in the world. I think that trip just reinforced an ongoing goal of mine, which is to be open-minded about where others are coming from. This usually involves lots of listening and observing. 10. What inspires you? My kids. Watching them develop into real people. They're four and one. They're both growing and changing literally daily and seeing that evolution happen, thinking about how they are different from one another even with the same parents, is really exciting. 11. What was your first business idea and what did you do with it? I actually started a jacks rental business in 5th grade, because everyone was playing jacks at recess. I thought it would be a good way to make a little cash, so I sold them for 5 cents a set during recess. Related: 9 Business Ideas Under $1,000 You Can Run From Anywhere 12. What was an early job that taught you something important or useful? I think being a server in a restaurant. I hated every minute, but it taught me to multitask and keep different pieces of information in my brain at the same time. 13. Whats the best advice you ever took? When I was in the job with horrible boss, one of my best friends sat me down and said, You don't want to be doing this, you need to go to cooking school, that's what you want to do, you just need to do it. Once she said that, I made the decision to do it. 14. What's the worst piece of advice you ever got? This has come from a couple different people in my life, it's not worth it to bring up [a question about how to do something better] because it's too late to change things now. Different variations on that. It breeds apathy, paralysis, all sorts of bad things. It's very un-empowering. Whenever someone says something like we cant change or fix that, we kind of cringe. Amanda and I will come in and say this isn't actually the best thing for us, it could be better, let's see what we can do. People are annoyed, but it has led to some good things. We started building an iOS app that was essentially a mobile version of Food52.com. The developers were already pretty far along when we called a meeting with our team and expressed our feeling that we were going down the wrong path. What we were building wasn't going to expand our audience or bring anything new to the market. So we changed course and built an app that was true to our mission of furthering the conversation around food and cooking, but was narrower in focus. Our current app, called (Not)Recipes, is a place where people can share images and short descriptions of the casual, off-the-cuff cooking they're doing in their homes every day, and get inspiration from what others are making as well. It's fun and engaging, and it's introduced our brand to a new segment of home cooks. Related: The Most Powerful Advice Entrepreneurs Ignore 15. Whats a productivity tip you swear by? List making. I have lists everywhere. I use a notepad but I also use apps like Evernote. 16. Is there an app or tool you use in a surprising way to get things done or stay on track? I use my email drafts folder to store my lists. 17. What does work-life balance mean to you? I think it's all about having perspective. It doesn't mean erecting a wall between the two; that's unrealistic. I think it means trying to stay in the moment, and it means being engaged in whatever it is I'm doing, trying not to let other things creep in and decrease my productivity or my enjoyment of that moment. Related: 5 Secrets to Achieving and Maintaining Work-Life Balance 18. How do you prevent burnout? Working remotely for a change of scenery, either at home or traveling and working remotely for some of the trip. Right now, I'm on the Jersey Shore, and it's great; I get to look out on the water from my desk. 19. When youre faced with a creativity block, whats your strategy to get innovating? Going for a walk or doing some sort of physical exercise. I also like going swimming. It's important to pay attention to my body and slow down my mind a little bit. If I can get moving it frees up my head and makes some space. 20. What are you learning now? I think I'm learning how to evolve my role as a leader from what was previously a small company to now a small-medium company. Ive had to put different skills into practice and be open to change. One thing in particular is to find ways to make our entire team feel supported when we aren't able to have personal relationships with everyone. A lot of it involves messaging to the entire team. We also have breakfast with employees. We've been doing it for a couple of years, we have a sign-up sheet for one-on-one breakfast with us, it's been really fun. Hunting is pushing hundreds of mammal species ever closer to extinction, according to an international study led by Oregon State University ecologist William Ripple. In the first global assessment of its kind, Ripple and his fellow researchers analyzed data on more than 1,100 terrestrial mammals already listed as threatened by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Their conclusion: Hunting is a primary threat for 301 species, including rhinos, gorillas, chimpanzees and tigers. While the list includes several types of deer, pig and antelope, it also includes a staggering 126 primate species and 27 kinds of bats. The problem occurs almost exclusively in developing countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America, where subsistence hunting tends to play an important economic role and environmental protections are often lax, and it is mainly associated with illegal and unregulated hunting. Madagascar, home to a large variety of threatened lemurs and other primates, has the greatest number of mammal species endangered by hunting, followed by Indonesia, the Philippines, Brazil, Papua New Guinea, India and China. While many of the animals are killed by subsistence hunters desperate to put food on the table for their families, others are sold on the open market for game, or bushmeat as it is widely known. In other cases animals are killed for body parts used in traditional medicine or ornamentation, and some are trapped alive to be sold as pets. People have been hunting wild animals for a long time, Ripple noted. But he also pointed out that modern firearms and motorized transportation have made large-scale hunting easier than ever before. Coupled with widespread habitat loss, global warming and other pressures on wildlife throughout the world, unchecked hunting could be enough to push some of these species over the brink. Were getting to the point now where were at a crisis an overhunting crisis, he said. The paper, tiled Bushmeat Hunting and Extinction Risk to the Worlds Mammals, is being published today in Royal Society Open Science. Ripples 14 co-authors include academic researchers at OSU, Stanford, the University of California-Santa Barbara and universities in Gabon, the United Kingdom, Sweden, South Africa, Brazil and Australia. While no comprehensive figures are available, the researchers found that 89,000 metric tons of bushmeat worth $200 million is harvested each year in the Brazilian Amazon alone, with an estimated five times as much taken yearly in the Congo basin. That means overhunting threatens not only animals but humans as well, Ripple argues. We have over 800 million people in the world who are hungry or malnourished, and a lot of those are dependent on bushmeat, he said. But it doesnt do them any good to drive these species to extinction. Another aspect to consider: Some of the overhunting of threatened species is driven by organized gangs and terrorist organizations that use the profits to fuel their criminal activities. Many of the most imperiled mammals are large herbivores and carnivores, the kind of animals that can play crucial roles in maintaining ecosystem stability Ripples research specialty. Losing some of those species could have far-reaching environmental consequences, he said, devastating some of the worlds most iconic landscapes, from the plains of Africa to the Amazon rainforest. People in rich countries are connected through those cascading effects so its not just a poor country problem, he said. In their paper, the researchers call on developed and developing countries alike to come together in a five-part approach to the problem: Increase penalties for poaching and illegal trafficking while expanding habitat protections for threatened animals. Clarify individual and communal property rights for legal wildlife users in communities that benefit from the presence of wildlife. Identify more sustainable food sources, such as high-protein plant crops. Educate consumers worldwide about the threat of illegal and unregulated hunting. Provide family planning assistance to reduce population pressure on wildlife in areas where women want to delay or avoid pregnancy. Ripple admits that addressing the problem is a daunting challenge. But he also sees signs of hope. He points to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, a legally binding treaty that has been signed by 183 nations, as well as Oregons Measure 100, a statewide initiative on the November ballot that would ban commerce in 12 threatened species. Ripple said hes especially encouraged by grass-roots actions such as the Global March for Elephants and Rhinos, a protest march held Sept. 24 in more than 100 cities around the world, including Portland. Now hes hoping that his paper in Royal Society Open Science will help focus public attention on what he sees as an existential threat to hundreds of the worlds mammal species. I dont have the answer, but one of our major goals in publishing this paper is to educate people on the significance of the problem, he said. Until people become aware of the magnitude of this problem, there wont be any kind of strong global solution. A 29-year-old man was arrested Tuesday in connection with a shooting that left an Alaska police officer seriously injured. Anthony George Jenkins-Alexie was arrested Tuesday morning as he was walking on a local street, Fairbanks police said. Jenkins-Alexie has a "lengthy criminal history and has previously made threats toward law enforcement," Acting Fairbanks Police Chief Brad Johnson said at a news conference. Jenkins-Alexie is facing charges of attempted murder, assault, vehicle theft, tampering with evidence and theft of a firearm in connection with the shooting early Sunday of Sgt. Allen Brandt. Johnson said there are no other suspects in the shooting besides Jenkins-Alexie. "After interviewing him and based on his own admissions and significant corroborating evidence, I can assure the community that he acted alone and that there is no continuing threat to my fellow police officers or our citizens," Johnson said. Brandt is recovering at an Anchorage hospital after he was struck four times in the legs, police said. Body armor protected Brandt from a shot to the chest, but bullet fragments struck the officer's eye, police said. Brandt, an 11-year veteran, was shot as he responded to reports of shots fired in a residential neighborhood just east of downtown. He was among officers responding to the scene. Brandt's dashboard camera records him slowing down as a man on a nearby sidewalk approaches with his hands at his side. As the patrol car stops, the man moves his right hand toward his coat pocket but continues out of the picture. A few seconds later, the man, gripping a handgun with both hands, runs around the front of the car. Brandt managed to fire back at the suspect, but police did not say at Tuesday's briefing if the suspect was hit. Police spokeswoman Yumi McCulloch did not have an immediate answer to the question. Police have not released details of how Johnson exited the car or from where he returned fire. The suspect drove off in the patrol car. Police found it roughly two blocks away. The dash cam shows the suspect again walking in front of the patrol car, illuminated by the vehicle's headlights. Brandt moved off the street. He radioed his location and reported that he had been shot. Responding officers administered first aid. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported that Brenda Riley, a woman who lives nearby, was the first person to reach the injured officer. Riley, the executive director of the Fairbanks Children's Museum, said Brandt was conscious and radioing dispatchers when she arrived. "I just held his head and did that mom thing of `Look at me, look at me, stay with me,' `' Riley told the newspaper. Authorities in Northern California said that a man died Tuesday after exploding a pipe bomb outside a health clinic. The Alameda County Sheriffs Office confirmed a report of an explosion at the San Antonio Neighborhood Health Center in Oakland, according to CBS San Francisco. Deputies said that the blast was reported at around 6:30 p.m. A source told KTVU that a man in a wheelchair rolled up to the clinic and exploded a pipe bomb. Authorities were searching for secondary devices. Police were investigating the death as a suicide. The man wasn't immediately identified. CBS San Francisco reported that the Alameda County Sheriffs Office was assisting the Oakland Police Department in the investigation. Click for more form CBS San Francisco. A man convicted of sexually assaulting a teenager pulled a razor blade and slashed his throat in an Orange County courtroom Wednesday moments after the verdict. Jeffrey Scott Jones, 56, of Huntington Beach, was rushed to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Jones, who taught Advanced Placement English classes at the Libra Academy in Huntington Park, was accused of molesting and having sex with a teenage relative of his live-in girlfriend in 2012 and 2013. Prosecutors said DNA evidence pointed to Jones. The defense argued that the DNA evidence wasn't conclusive and the girl lied to cover up her marijuana use. A Santa Ana jury deliberated about two hours before convicting Jones of continuous sexual abuse and aggravated sexual assault of a child, which carry a potential sentence of 66 years to life in prison. "Right after the judge asked if we wanted jurors polled, both attorneys said no, and then he took a razor out of his left pocket and slashed his throat," prosecutor Heather Brown told City News Service. "His head hit the table, and I thought he fainted. But then I saw the blood and the razor on the table." "I didn't see it even though I was sitting next to him" and only became concerned when Jones hit the table, defense attorney Ed Welbourn said. "It's very unfortunate, the whole thing," he said. "We respect the jury's decision, but we thought there was reasonable doubt as to what occurred ... It's just terrible. The good news is it looks like he will recover." The county Sheriff's Department will investigate how Jones, who had been free on bail, managed to get the razor blade through court security, Lt. Mark Stichter said. Five people were injured Wednesday when scaffolding fell from a high-rise in downtown Miami, while a sixth person died of a heart attack while fleeing the falling debris, authorities said. The collapse occurred Wednesday afternoon at the Echo Brickell building, a 60-floor condominium tower. UPDATE: It appears scaffolding fell from construction site. Traffic closed from 14-15 Street on Brickell Ave. @CityofMiamiFire on scene. pic.twitter.com/PCmO0nJ7bu Miami PD (@MiamiPD) October 19, 2016 Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado told reporters that injuries related to the collapse were minor. "Some woman was driving a car that was smashed," Regalado said. "Some people were injured as they were walking in Brickell [Avenue] and trying to get away." The building's developer released a statement saying that a section of formwork fell from the top of the structure and offering thoughts and prayers to the victims. The debris forced police to close nearby streets to traffic. "We were just working at our computers, and all of a sudden heard a very large crash," witness Rudy Tomarchio, who works across the street, told WSVN. "We looked up, and in front of our eyes, we just see all this debris just crashing down ... We saw a couple construction workers in the crosswalk. It looked like they were trying to get out of the falling debris." Family members identified one of the injured construction workers as 34-year-old Quincy Williams, who suffered a gash on his head. There was no immediate word on what caused the scaffolding to fall. Revisiting a crime that shattered a bygone era's sense of safety, prosecutors on Wednesday launched their second bid for a conviction in one of the nation's most influential missing-child cases, the 1979 disappearance of Etan Patz. After a jury deadlock last year, suspect Pedro Hernandez is back on trial in a case that eluded investigators for decades, ratcheted up Americans' consciousness of missing children and now centers on whether a chilling confession was true. "It's a cautionary tale, a defining moment, a loss of innocence," Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Joan Illuzzi said as opening statements began. "It is Etan who will forever symbolize the loss of that innocence." With his father and Hernandez's wife and daughter looking on, the trial began as an echo of the haunting story that unfolded over four months last year so haunting that about eight of the prior jurors and alternates were in the audience Wednesday to watch. Prosecutors say Hernandez, 55, hid a brutal secret for more than 30 years. His lawyers say he's mentally ill and falsely confessed to waylaying and killing Etan as he walked to his school bus stop on May 25, 1979. It was the first day his mother granted her 6-year-old's big-boy wish to make the two-block walk by himself. "Pedro Hernandez is an innocent man . an odd, limited and vulnerable person" whose only connection to this case is having worked at a convenience store by the bus stop, defense lawyer Harvey Fishbein told jurors. "This trial," Fishbein said, "will not answer the question of what happened to Etan." Etan's case did much to slam a door on a time when American parents, even some in New York City, felt comfortable letting children roam their neighborhoods unaccompanied. The upbeat, trusting boy's body was never found, but his face became one of the first missing-children's portraits that Americans saw on milk cartons. The anniversary of his disappearance became National Missing Children's Day, and his parents helped push for a law that modernized how law enforcement handles missing-child cases. Hernandez, 55, of Maple Shade, New Jersey, wasn't a suspect until police got a 2012 tip from his brother-in-law. He was among several relatives and acquaintances who later testified that Hernandez said years ago he'd killed a child in New York. Hernandez then told authorities, on video, that he'd choked Etan after offering him a soda to lure him into the basement of the convenience store. "Something just took over me," Hernandez said. "I'm being honest. I feel bad what I did." Prosecutors suggest the motive was sexual and depict Hernandez as a cunning criminal. "You will see a man with very good memory, controlling and very aware of what he was going to say and what he wasn't going to say" when he confessed, Illuzzi told jurors Wednesday. But the defense says the confession is fiction, imagined by a man with a history of hallucinations and an IQ in the lowest 2 percent of the population, and fueled by more than six hours of police questioning off-camera. Defense psychological experts said Hernandez had given them dreamlike accounts of the killing, at points saying as many as 15 mysterious people were on hand, some wearing hospital gowns and pearls. He wavered on whether it actually happened, the defense doctors said. "Pedro sees, hears and believes things that are not real," Fishbein said, noting that Hernandez has been on antipsychotic medication since the early 2000s and, even in his recorded confessions to authorities, describes having seen his dead mother speak to him. The defense also suggests the real killer may be a convicted Pennsylvania child molester who was a prime suspect for years. He has denied involvement in Etan's death. He left them heartbroken and allegedly without much in their bank accounts either. Man charged with using girlfriends IDs to open credit cards held on $7,500 bail https://t.co/VKGTe6MTc2 pic.twitter.com/6yOti7SUL9 WBZ Boston News (@cbsboston) October 19, 2016 A New Hampshire man is accused of romancing and then ripping off women to fund a luxury lifestyle, racking up more than $375,000 in purchases on vacations, clothing, meals and jewelry, according to prosecutors. Michael J. Shields Jr., 25, formerly from Boston, faced charges including credit card fraud and witness intimidation. A Suffolk Superior Court judge in Massachusetts ordered him held on $7,500 bail, WBZ reported. A 45-count indictment alleged that Shields swindled his accusers between May 2015 and January 2016, duping them into "brief romantic relationships." Prosecutors said the women handed Shields their personal identification information, believing that he was going to add their names to his credit card accounts and help them out financially. One of the accusers in the case, a childhood friend and former American soldier, said he trusted Shields to make investments for him so he could build up credit in his transition to a civilian life, authorities told the Boston Herald. Shields case comes as a man in Missouri was arrested last week for allegedly posing as a U.S. Marshal to con women to buy him luxury vehicles. A high school student in Norman, Oklahoma, said she used her cell phone to record a teacher saying, "To be white is to be racist," during a lecture on "how to heal the racial divide." The unidentified student used her cell phone to record the lesson, KFOR.com reported. The student said she was offended by the teachers remarks and felt like he was encouraging people to kind of pick on people for being white. The news station reached out to the teacherwho was teaching an elective philosophy course-- but did not receive an immediate response. The lecture reportedly started with a video on the Mistreatment of Native Americans. The teacher went on to say, Am I racist? And I say, yeah. And I dont want to be. Its not like choose to be racist. The video shows a man using a bottle of white correction fluid to cover a country on a globe. He was basically comparing what he had done to the globe to what we did to America, the student said. Dr. Joe Siano, the superintendent of Norman Public Schools, issued a statement identifying racism as an important topic. The superintendent continued, We regret that the discussion was poorly handled. When the district was notified of this concern it was immediately addressed. We are committed to ensuring inclusiveness in our schools. A man attempting to trade a pound of pot for a snowmobile on Craigslist didn't realize the snowmobile seller was actually an Oregon State Police trooper, according to investigators. Police said Jason Owen, 29, of Sandy, made the trade proposal online last week. The seller, an Oregon State Police trooper working in Salem, notified his supervisor, who suggested a consultation with the agency's drug enforcement section. On Saturday, the trooper agreed to meet Owen to discuss the marijuana-for-snowmobile swap at a gas station in Brooks, according to police. An unmarked police vehicle observed Owen driving around the parking lot. Several marked patrol cars then initiated a traffic stop. The trooper identified himself and notified Owen that he was committing a crime. Police said Owen had 1 pounds of marijuana in his car. Click for more from Fox 12. A Pennsylvania man has admitted he sexually assaulted a 6-year-old boy after authorities say they intercepted an internet broadcast of him raping the child and later discovered 10 other recorded assaults of the boy. PennLive.com reports 20-year-old William Byers Augusta pleaded guilty in Carlisle on Tuesday to charges including rape of a child. Prosecutors say Canadian authorities intercepted a broadcast of Byers Augusta sexually assaulting the boy in July 2015. Investigators found videos showing Byers Augusta assaulting the child, including one of him and 62-year-old Ira Task simultaneously sexually assaulting the child. Authorities say Task didn't wear protection despite knowing he had been HIV positive since 1994. Task was sentenced in June to 17 to 40 years in prison. Byers Augusta's sentencing is scheduled for January. The lower house of Russian parliament has unanimously approved President Vladimir Putin's move to suspend a deal with the United States on the disposal of weapons-grade plutonium. Putin has cited the "emerging threat to strategic stability as a result of U.S. unfriendly actions" as a reason behind his move. Under the agreement, which once a symbol of U.S.-Russian rapprochement, Russia and the U.S. each were to dispose of 34 metric tons of weapons-grade plutonium, enough material for about 17,000 nuclear warheads. Putin said the agreement could be restored if the U.S. pulls back its forces deployed near Russia's borders and revokes anti-Russian sanctions. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told lawmakers Wednesday that Moscow could take other steps that would be "painful" for the U.S. if Washington ratchets up sanctions. next Image 1 of 2 prev Image 2 of 2 A man accused of setting off bombs in New Jersey and New York, injuring more than 30 people, has been moved from a hospital to a state prison. New Jersey Corrections Department spokesman Matt Schuman says Ahmad Khan Rahimi was transferred to a state facility on Tuesday instead of a county jail for his safety and security. Schuman would not identify the facility. Rahimi had been hospitalized with gunshot wounds following a police shootout that led to his capture in Linden on Sept. 19. He has pleaded not guilty to charges he tried to kill police officers before they captured him. He is accused of detonating a pipe bomb before a charity race in Seaside Park, New Jersey, and a pressure cooker bomb in New York City on Sept. 17. A Houston-area couple has pleaded guilty to charges related to forcing a Nigerian woman to care for their five children and home without pay for two years, having her work nearly 20 hours a day. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Houston says 57-year-old Chudy Nsobundu (CHOO'-dee en-soh-BUHN'-doo) and his 49-year-old wife, Sandra, both of Katy, Texas, pleaded during a court hearing Wednesday as part of an agreement with prosecutors. Chudy Nsobundu pleaded guilty to visa fraud while his wife pleaded guilty to unlawful conduct with respect to documents in furtherance of forced labor. Attorneys for the couple didn't immediately return calls seeking comment. Sandra Nsobundu faces up to five years in prison, while her husband faces up to 10 years' imprisonment when they are sentenced on Jan. 4. Investigators in Texas said Wednesday they took a 14-year-old boy into custody for questioning after they found his grandparents shot to death in the couple's home. Authorities: couple's 14 y/o grandson may have in been in home w/ bodies for days, mimicked grandfather's voice during truancy check #khou11 pic.twitter.com/eZgmMFnsnY Drew Karedes (@DrewKaredesKHOU) October 19, 2016 A deputy found the bodies of the husband and wife, both in their 70s, Tuesday afternoon in Beach City after the boy failed to show up for school, Chambers County Sheriff Brian Hawthorne said. Educators reached the teen by phone at the home in a truancy check. Hawthorne said the boy told an administrator someone might be injured at the home. The sheriff said both victims appeared to have been shot with a handgun. There were no signs of forced entry or robbery, according to Hawthorne. The couple's bodies turned up in the home's back bedroom, Fox 26 reported. The sheriff would not release the couple's names. Beach City is 30 miles east of Houston and near Trinity Bay, off the Gulf of Mexico. Click for more from Fox 26. The Associated Press contributed to this report. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 Top U.S. and South Korea diplomats and defense officials are discussing their response to the growing threat from North Korea's nuclear and missile programs. The meeting Wednesday comes weeks after the North's most powerful nuclear test explosion to date, and days after its failed test launch of a ballistic missile. On the agenda is how to strengthen the so-called "extended deterrence" provided by U.S. nuclear forces in defending South Korea. Seoul is looking to allay calls from conservatives at home who want South Korea to develop its own nuclear arsenal. The talks are between Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Ash Carter, and their South Korean counterparts Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se (yoon pyuhng say) and Defense Minister Han Min-koo (hahn mihn-koo). A state panel Tuesday suspended the license of a Texas veterinarian who used a bow and arrow to kill a cat that had wandered onto the property where she lived and boasted of the kill online. Texas vet Kristen Lindsey who posted about killing a cat on Facebook could have her license revoked today https://t.co/LvgcIl7rIb pic.twitter.com/NjVDL2gRPa KXAN News (@KXAN_News) October 18, 2016 The Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners in Austin determined that Kristen Lindsey can't practice for a year because she was cruel to an animal. Her suspension will be followed by four years' probation and other requirements. Her lawyer, Brian Bishop, told the board she believed the cat was feral and that it isn't unusual for people near her rural home west of Houston to dispose of feral animals. She shouldn't have posted an image to Facebook in April 2015, Bishop said, but she didn't act with "criminal recklessness." "This case would never have gone forward but for the fact that we live in a social media age," Bishop said. The cat, named Tiger, was owned by Lindsey's neighbor. The vet shot the animal through the head. The Facebook post showed the cat dangling from the arrow as a smiling Lindsey held it aloft. She added the comment, "My first bow kill. Lol. The only good feral tomcat is one with an arrow through it's (sic) head! Vet of the year award ... gladly accepted." Lindsey was fired from the Brenham animal clinic where she worked and Bishop said she's received enough punishment. She has received death and rape threats, and her mother also received threatening messages, he said. A suspension will create a hardship for her as she'll be unable to work while facing $150,000 in student debts, he said. Animal rights groups have followed the case and one of them, the Animal Legal Defense Fund, said Tuesday that it was disappointed by what it sees as a light punishment. "This slap on the wrist pales in comparison to the egregious felony cruelty that Ms. Lindsey committed against a defenseless cat," the group said in a statement. "Allowing Ms. Lindsey to continue to practice veterinary medicine in the future puts animals in the community at great risk, and taints the good name of the trusted veterinary profession." A Somali media rights activist says three Al-Jazeera journalists were arrested by security forces, a few hours before an editor of a daily newspaper in Mogadishu was released. Hassan Gesey, director of the media advocacy group SIMHA, said Hamza Mohamed, a journalist with Al-Jazeera English television, and two cameramen were arrested by troops near Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, on Tuesday. Gesey said Somali officials told journalists who visited Mohamed in a Mogadishu prison that the Al-Jazeera journalists were arrested upon their return from areas held by Islamic extremists where they interviewed al-Shabab officials. The National Union of Somali Journalists condemned the latest arrests of journalists which came few hours before the government released Abdi Aden Guled, the editor of Xog-Ogaal, one of Mogadishu's oldest daily newspapers. Guled was arrested on Sunday. As the highly anticipated assault on the ISIS stronghold of Mosul grinds along, members of the minority Yazidi community wait with grim anticipation to learn the fate of loved ones trapped or enslaved in Iraqs second-largest city. Yazidi hostages, sex slaves and even young men brainwashed and conscripted into the black-clad jihadist army are inside the city. And the beleaguered Yazidi community knows those may be the lucky ones. The most important thing now is the hostages, Baba Chawish, the highest spiritual authority in the Yazidi community, told FoxNews.com. There is nothing we can do about the dead. We need to take care of the ones still living. Yazidis joined Peshmerga soldiers on the front lines early Monday morning as the civilian exodus began, awaiting the return of familiar faces. According to Haitham al-Malaki, head of military intelligence for the Iraqi Army Emergency Response Division (ERD), the survival of potentially thousands of Yazidi sex slaves is of paramount importance. Locations of many have been identified and plans to ensure safe passage are in place, he said. Yazidis are guarded in their hope. The persecution they suffered for centuries culminated in the rise of ISIS, which made Mosul its Iraqi capital in June of 2014. Two months later, the world watched as the Yazidi villages atop Mount Sinjar were overrun. The community remains skeptical that its members will be given special help or protection by any government. Earlier this year, the U.S. State Department gave the Yazidis the official designation as victims of genocide a designation they say has done nothing to help them. It hasnt changed anything. I am on my own, trying to find answers, one Yazidi man, who asked only to be identified as Omar, told FoxNews.com. He was not at Sinjar on Aug. 3, 2014, when ISIS marauded its way into the mountain, slaughtering and capturing Yazidis by the thousands and prompting many more to flee to the top where they died of starvation and exposure. Omar has neither seen nor heard from his 18 closest relatives since that day. Supported from the air by the U.S.-led coalition, Kurdish Peshmerga forces liberated Sinjar and the surrounding villages from ISIS occupation last November, yet the region remains largely unlivable and reminiscent of a haunted war zone. The lone road into Sinjar traces the Syrian border, right up into the coiled road mountain, and is still littered with overturned vehicles, strewn clothing and singed belongings. Some 22 Yazidi mass graves have recently been unearthed in different locales across the mountainside, with many more likely to be discovered in the coming weeks. According to Chawish, there are now over 1,000 Yazidi orphans and more than 400,000 of their people remain homeless. Very few are able to return to Sinjar, scores have fled the country as refugees, some are living in displacement camps across the Kurdish region and others are simply finding refuge in abandoned buildings. While many are hopeful the anticipated liberation of Mosul will bring with it some tearful reunions with freed Yazidi survivors, the community is all too aware that their people will need help, both immediate and long term. Driving though an array of ravaged villages in northern Iraq, it is common to see Yazidis seeking shelter wherever possible. In one case, a rundown building where ripped sheets serve as walls had become home to several elderly and disabled Yazidis. One occupant, Murad, 70, painfully reconstructed that scorching summer morning ISIS came for them. He was pushing his wife Guly in her wheelchair to collect water when members of the fearsome terror army opened fire. Unable to run, they were captured along with thousands of others and held prisoner in Mosul. We were tortured, people died from starvation. They were killing infant babies in front of their mothers, he told FoxNews.com. They raped our girls in front of us. I will never forget. Guly, previously disabled from what she referred to as a "brain attack" a stroke said that ISIS fighters threw away her wheelchair when they kidnapped her. In that first brutal winter of captivity, they were left without blankets or protection from the elements. She forever lost feeling in one hand, and her husband the use of a leg. As they spoke to FoxNews.com, their young daughter, recently rescued from sex slavery, gently wrapped her frail mom in blankets to cover her legs. After six months, they separated the disabled people and put us in a truck. We were dumped at the Kurdish border, Murad said. We are grateful for our lives but we have nothing, no medicines and no money. Before this, we had a beautiful quiet life. But they broke us inside. With barely enough means for survival, the notion of psychological help is a distant priority that will loom larger if the Mosul operation succeeds. At one displacement camp in Duhok, a 7-year-old boy just rescued after being held and indoctrinated in a jihadist camp, attempted to behead his baby sister with a kitchen knife. He was stopped by his mother. Countless rescued girls have attempted suicide. One by one, members of the Yazidi community produced documentation to FoxNews.com of the war crimes inflicted upon them, from gruesome before and after photos of men beheaded by ISIS, to their grandchildren being burned alive on hotplates, to the young children who succumbed to the heat and starvation while fleeing their ancestral homelands. Many of the Yazidis refer to their loved ones, who were captured more than two years ago and have not been heard from since, as still with ISIS. However, after Mosul is cleared, and answers still not found, many fear that even greater grief and suffering will ensue. Also of grave concern to the community leaders is that with the lack of assistance, many more Yazidis will continue to flee. We need protection and help from the international community, Chawish said. People will only stay if they know this wont happen again Or else we, as Yazidi people, will vanish. The Yazedi Human Rights Organization reports that over 800,000 Yazidi lived in their native Iraq, but that number has dropped to below 450,000 today. Genocidal campaigns against the ethno-religious minority have been a persistent hallmark of their history, although nothing on the scale of the ISIS-led atrocities. The Yazidi religion predates Islam and Christianity, but integrates numerous aspects of Abrahamic faith. Their calendar starts almost a thousand years before the Hebrew one, making it one of the worlds oldest vestigial religions, and due to their worship of a Peacock Angel, hardline Islamic militants like ISIS have justified their killings by referring to them as devil worshippers. In spite of the pending reckoning, last week hundreds of Yazidis many traveling from the increasing Diaspora scattered around the world traveled to their holiest site, the Temple of Lalish, on the outskirts of Mosul for their annual pilgrimage, held every October. The event served as something of a modest, but not melancholy, commemoration of their resilience in the face of evil. The crooked, ancient cobblestone streets of Lalish were ablaze with bright colors as families slept out on the roof tops under the still warm fall skies, market stalls were set up selling traditional goods, hundreds wandered barefoot to kiss the primordial trees, which they date back to Eden, and several took turns to enter their sacred White Spring to be baptized. For many even adults this marked the first time they had ever even been able to make the roughly three-hour journey between Sinjar and Lalish, the first time they have been baptized in their holiest of waters. Many people from Sinjar are very poor and they lived their lives very happy, but very poor, said one young Yazidi, Baxtiar Baadri, exuding a quiet pride as a middle aged man stepped inside the sacred spring. He became a big man not yet baptized but today for him that changes. And if there is hope for one Yazidi, there is hope for us all. An Austrian appeals court has found a politician guilty of defaming right-wing presidential candidate Norbert Hofer by suggesting he is a Nazi and fined him thousands of euros. Hofer took Social Democrat Ingo Mayr to court after Hofer won about a third of the vote in the first round of elections in April. Among other things, Mayr had said that a third of the electorate "chose a Nazi." Wednesday's verdict overturns an earlier court ruling in favor of Mayr and carries fines totaling 5,550 euros ($6,100.) Hofer narrowly lost to left-leaning candidate Alexander Van der Bellen in a May runoff that Austria's highest court annulled after Hofer's Freedom Party objected that the vote was marred by major irregularities. The two face off again Dec. 4. The head of Belgium's small Wallonia region is rejecting a Friday deadline to sign up to a huge trade deal between the EU and Canada, demanding a full renegotiation that could bring the whole trans-Atlantic agreement down. Wallonia President Paul Magnette said Wednesday that "we cannot sign by Friday," when a two-day summit of EU government leaders is to end. It was set as a target day to get the last of the 28 EU nations on board. Belgium can only back the deal if its regions, including Wallonia, approve it. Without unanimity among EU nations, the deal will collapse. Magnette told TV network RTBF that despite progress over the past few days "it is insufficient. And you cannot say now: 'you have 3 days to accept." The state of Oregon has approved a new $15 million remodel and addition to the Mennonite Home on the Mennonite Village campus, 5353 Columbus St. S.E. The project is aimed to increase the privacy of residents at the nursing home facility by creating suites and rooms with bathrooms and showers. The expectation today by nearly everyone is to have a private room with a private bath, said Ron Litwiller, president and CEO of Mennonite Village. He added that the upgrades would improve the quality of life for residents. In the first phase of the project, the north wing at the Mennonite Home will be removed, and a three-story, 50,000-square-foot building will be constructed to replace it. That building will have 42 private living suites, as well as a community gathering room, a beauty salon, a chapel, a training center for nursing certification and a state-of-the-art therapy center. The rest of the original structure will be remodeled, and 37 semi-private rooms will be converted into suites with private toilets and showers. Five already existing rooms with toilets will have a shower added to the bathrooms, and eight semi-private rooms will get showers and sinks. The total bed count of 95 for Mennonite Home will not change due to the project, which Litwiller expected to finish by fall 2018. Its going to take 15 to 18 months, and we plan to start in May next year, he said. However, the city still needs to approve a conditional use for the project, and the matter is tentatively scheduled for the Nov. 21 Albany Planning Commission, though that date could change. Senior care facilities are not an outright allowed use in the residential zone for Mennonite Home. Another building addition to the Mennonite Home, proposed as a later phase, would add a memory care home for 16 residents, and that also is in the conditional use review application. That new building would be constructed where a laundry building currently sits. More than 20 trees also would be removed for the projects, according to the conditional use application. Mennonite Village has about 700 residents on its campus, including people who are completely independent and those who require 24-hour care. The approval of the Oregon Health Authority, given last week, was required under state law because the project involves the replacement of an existing nursing facility. The state order, however, is a proposed order, and any affected party who takes exception to the proposed order may request the OHA Public Health Division to hold an informal hearing. If no request for a hearing is received by Monday, the proposed order will automatically become final. For more information about the project, contact Jana Fussell, certificate of need coordinator at the OHA Public Health Division, at 971-673-1108. Nigeria's army says Boko Haram Islamic insurgents have overrun a remote border military camp in the northeast, leaving 13 soldiers wounded and an unknown number missing. Monday's attack on Gashigar, on the border with Niger, is the third reported direct attack on the military after months of a lull during which the Islamic extremists hit soft civilian targets. Army spokesman Col. Sani Kukasheka Usman called the attack a "temporary setback" committed by "remnants of Boko Haram" that forced the soldiers to retreat. He says an operation is in progress to find the missing troopers and "clear the Boko Haram terrorists at the general area." It is believed such attacks are the work of a faction of Boko Haram that calls itself the West Africa Province of the Islamic State. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 Hundreds of people including politicians, actors and family packed into a Polish church Wednesday to mourn the death of Poland's leading filmmaker Andrzej Wajda, an honorary Oscar winner. A metal urn with Wajda's ashes, surrounded by white flowers, and his black-and-white portrait were placed by the altar at the 13th century Holy Trinity church of the Dominican friars in Krakow, southern Poland. Poland's President Andrzej Duda, foreign diplomats, family members, actors and intellectuals filled the church to capacity for the funeral Mass. "Isn't it true that artists create their works because they believe in good, which has the final word in the world?," Bishop Grzegorz Rys said the homily. Letters were read out from Polish filmmakers Roman Polanski and Agnieszka Holland as well as former president and Solidarity founder Lech Walesa, whose struggle against the communist regime inspired Wajda to make a movie about him. Later Wednesday, Wajda was to be laid to rest at Krakow's historic Salwator Cemetery, where the movie director's mother is buried. Wajda died in a Warsaw hospital Oct. 9 at the age of 90, just months after finishing "Afterimage," Poland's entry for a foreign language Academy Award. In 2000 he received an honorary lifetime achievement Oscar. He is survived by his fourth wife, stage designer and actress Krystyna Zachwatowicz, his daughter Karolina, and former wife, actress Beata Tyszkiewicz. Indonesia's parliament has ratified the Paris climate change agreement, obligating one of the world's biggest polluters to limit its carbon emissions. All 10 political parties in Indonesia's parliament agreed Wednesday to endorse the agreement, paving the way for it to become part of the country's laws. The deal aims to curb the emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to keep global temperature increases below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). Indonesia signed the agreement on April 22 in New York. The deal comes into effect Nov. 4 after the threshold of ratification by 55 countries representing at least 55 percent of global emissions was passed early this month. The Latest on Syria (all times local): 4:00 p.m. Turkey's president says his Russian counterpart has asked for Turkey's assistance toward the removal of fighters from the extremist Fatah al-Sham Front, previously known as Nusra Front, from the embattled northern Syrian city of Aleppo. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday he discussed Aleppo with Russian President Vladimir Putin Tuesday evening, before Russia announced a temporary halt to airstrikes. "We gave the necessary orders to our friends," Erdogan said, adding that the leaders discussed an agreement to work together on "removing Nusra from Aleppo and ensuring calm for Aleppo residents on this front." Erdogan also warned about the possibility of an influx of at least one million people to Turkey in the event of a population movement from Aleppo. "We cannot pay this cost. Those who incite this must sit down with Turkey and talk," he said. ___ 11:15 a.m Russia's military says a U.S.-led coalition airstrike on a Syrian village in the province of Aleppo has killed six civilians. The military's Reconciliation Center in Syria says Tuesday's strike on the village of Hassajek also wounded four people and destroyed two houses. The center says Russian military surveillance means spotted two Belgian F-16 fighter jets over the area at the time of the strike. It noted that Russian and Syrian warplanes weren't flying over the area Tuesday. Russia's Tass news agency reported from Brussels that the Belgian defense minister denied Belgian aircraft had struck the area. Russia announced that Russian and Syrian warplanes halted their airstrikes on the besieged city of Aleppo, in preparation for a temporary pause in the military push that Moscow has announced for Thursday. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 Ukraine's president says an agreement has been reached at a summit with the leaders of Russia, France and Germany on deploying an armed police mission in separatist eastern Ukraine. Petro Poroshenko's comments were reported by Russian news agencies early Thursday after more than four hours of talks at the summit in Berlin. The reports did not immediately specify how the proposed mission of police from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe would be deployed. But the OSCE said in May that the group would consider sending such a mission to help conduct elections in the separatist regions of the east. Poroshenko said that Germany, the current chair of the OSCE, would be asked to present the mission proposal to the organization A mom who killed her eight-year-old son after he allegedly discovered she was having an affair with the boys grandfather has been jailed for 30 years. Veronica Panarello's son Loris Stival pictures,mom murdered her eight-year-old son https://t.co/6cLhw96Sb8 pic.twitter.com/ndO8rCq9JI China News (@ChinaNews86) October 19, 2016 Accused Veronica Panarello strangled Loris Stival with electrical cables and dumped his body in a remote gully in Santa Croce, Sicily after she claims he caught the pair having sex, reports Italian media. Devious Panarello tried to pretend her son had been abducted, telling police she had taken him to school and had disappeared by the time she came to collect him in the afternoon. Police began to suspect the mother when CCTV footage at the school did not back up her lies, judge Andrea Reale was told. When Panarello confessed that her son had been killed, she blamed her husbands father Andrea Stival. She told an earlier hearing that he had helped to plot and then carried out the murder because Loris had caught them having sex. Stival is being investigated as an accessory to murder, reports Italian media. He has denied the claim and is threatening to sue his daughter-in-law for slander, it has emerged. Prosecutors branded Panarello an egocentric, manipulative liar and she was found guilty of murder and concealing a body. This story first appeared in The Sun. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 The Iraqi military on Wednesday called on Iraqis fighting for the Islamic State group in Mosul to surrender amid a wide-scale operation to retake the militant-held city, where up to 6,000 fighters are believed to be preparing for a climactic battle. Here is a look at the key developments on the third day of the Mosul offensive: FIGHTING OUTSIDE NEARBY TOWN Iraqi troops are now around one kilometer (half a mile) away from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul. Over the past day, IS sent 12 car bombs, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, and Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds, an officer said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters. He did not provide a specific casualty toll. To the north, airstrikes pounded Bashiqa as Kurdish forces fired mortar rounds from an area overlooking the IS-held town. ___ IRAQIS FLEE TO SYRIA Save the Children said 5,000 people have fled to a refugee camp in northeastern Syria from the Mosul area in the last 10 days, with another thousand waiting to enter at the border. The group said the squalid camp has just 16 latrines shared by more than 9,000 people, many of whom only have access to dirty, untreated water. U.N. humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien said no large-scale displacement of civilians has been reported since the operation began. But he said the U.N. anticipates "a displacement wave of some 200,000 people over the coming weeks, with up to one million displaced in the course of the operation in a worst-case scenario." ___ US DEPLOYS APACHES The U.S.-led coalition is providing airstrikes in support of the operation, and more than 100 American soldiers are embedded with Iraqi forces, with hundreds more serving in a support role. Maj. Gen. Gary Volesky, the top commander of U.S. land forces in Iraq, said U.S. Army Apache attack helicopters are striking IS targets in support of the operation. The deployment of U.S. attack helicopter crews brings added risk for American troops. ___ RUSSIA FEARS FLIGHT OF MILITANTS The chief of the Russian military's General Staff said it has been monitoring the Mosul operation and is concerned that militants might escape to Syria, where Russia has been carrying out airstrikes for more than a year in support of President Bashar Assad's forces. "We hope that our partners from the international coalition realize what could be the consequences of large groups of IS fighters roaming the Mideast region," Gen. Valery Gerasimov said. "They must be destroyed on the spot, not driven from one country to another." Romania's president has called for "tolerance and acceptance" of minorities as Romania considers whether to legally recognize a same-sex marriage between a U.S. citizen and a Romanian man. Klaus Iohannis, an ethnic German and a Lutheran, noted that he belonged to two minorities. "Tolerance and acceptance of others are vital. These are the values I believe in," he said. The Constitutional Court will rule next week on a petition to recognize the couple's union, which is currently invalid in Romania, amid opposition from the Romanian Orthodox Church. "Religious fanaticism does not help society," Iohannis told foreign news organizations Wednesday. "If being a Christian leans toward fanaticism.... it sends a wrong signal." Religious groups want the constitution amended to state that marriage is a union between a man and a woman. Czech police have arrested a Russian hacker suspected of cyberattacks in the United States, officials said on Wednesday. Police said an international warrant for the man, who was not named, was issued by Interpol and that officers cooperated with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation on the case. Hours after the arrest was made public, the professional networking service LinkedIn suggested that the arrest was tied to a 2012 breach of member information. A spokesman for the U.S. Justice Department declined to confirm that or comment on a possible connection. "Following the 2012 breach of LinkedIn member information, we have remained actively involved with the FBI's case to pursue those responsible," the company said in a statement Wednesday. "We are thankful for the hard work and dedication of the FBI in its efforts to locate and capture the parties believed to be responsible for this criminal activity." In May, LinkedIn said that the 2012 breach resulted in more than 100 million of its users' passwords being compromised vastly more than previously thought. The business social network said that it believes to be true a purported hacker's claim that 117 million user emails and passwords were stolen in the breach. Police spokesman Jozef Bocan said the suspect was arrested in a Prague hotel. After the arrest the suspect collapsed, received first aid treatment and was hospitalized, Bocan said. Another police spokesman, David Schoen, told The Associated Press the arrest took place on Oct. 5 and that police delayed releasing information about it for "tactical" reasons. Police video from the arrest, obtained by the AP, identified the man only as Yevgeniy N. In a Wednesday statement, the FBI said the man was "suspected of conducting criminal activities targeting U.S. interests," but didn't give any more details. "As cybercrime can originate anywhere in the world, international cooperation is crucial to successfully defeat cyber adversaries," it said. Prague's Municipal Court will now have to decide on his extradition to the United States, with Justice Minister Robert Pelikan having the final say. Russian officials, however, are demanding that the suspect be handed over to them. Spokeswoman Marketa Puci said the court ruled on Oct. 12 that the man will remain in detention until the extradition hearing. No date has yet been set. U.S. authorities have two months to deliver to their Czech counterparts all the documents necessary for the Czech authorities to decide on the extradition request. Stepanka Zenklova, spokeswoman for Prague's state prosecution, said U.S. officials have not officially asked for the man's extradition. Russia's TASS and RIA Novosti news agencies quoted Prague's Russian Embassy spokesman Alexey Kolmakov as saying that it was insisting that the suspect be handed over to Russia. "The embassy has been taking all necessary efforts to protect the interests of this Russian citizen. We are in contact with his attorney," the embassy statement said. "Russia repudiates Washington's policy of imposing its extraterritorial jurisdiction on all countries. We insist that the detainee is handed over to Russia." Justice Ministry Tereza Schejbalova said her ministry has not received any official request from Russia in this case. The U.S. has accused Russia of coordinating the theft and disclosure of emails from the Democratic National Committee and other institutions and individuals in the U.S. to influence the outcome of the election. Russia has vigorously denied that. There was no indication this case was connected to that accusation. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 A Soyuz rocket carrying two Russians and an American has blasted off for the International Space Station. The crew of Roscosmos Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko and NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough lifted off as scheduled from the Russian-operated Baikonur launch facility in the steppes of Kazakhstan at 2:05 p.m. local time (0805 GMT) Wednesday. Their Soyuz MS-02 space capsule is set to dock at the space outpost two days later. The launch was originally set for Sept. 23, but it was postponed because of a technical issue with the Soyuz spacecraft that was eventually fixed. Kimbrough, Ryzhikov and Borisenko are to spend just over four months at the station before coming back to Earth in late February. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 Thousands have turned out for the funeral of a senior commander of pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine, who was killed in a bomb blast. Arsen Pavlov, 33, known under his nom de guerre Motorola, was killed Sunday when an unidentified device exploded in an elevator of his apartment building in Donetsk. Rebel officials blamed the explosion on Ukrainian saboteurs. Thousands lined up in Donetsk Wednesday to pay tribute at the local opera house, where his body was displayed. Russian-born Pavlov became one of the most recognizable faces of the separatist movement. His unit took part in some of the fiercest battles in the conflict that has killed over 9,600 since April 2014. Ukrainian officials have accused Pavlov of war crimes, and he once admitted personally killing 15 prisoners of war. U.S. Army Apache attack helicopters have entered the battle for Mosul in support of Iraqi forces fighting the Islamic State terror group, the head of the famed 101st Airborne Division running the coalitions ground component told reporters Wednesday. The helicopters have been flying at night supporting any nighttime operations that the Iraqi security forces are doing, Maj. Gen. Gary J. Volesky said from Baghdad. Also Wednesday, Gen. Joseph Votel, commander of U.S. Central Command, told reporters the Mosul operation was "on track." The U.S. military assesses ISIS could morph into an insurgent group and carry out high profile attacks if it's driven from Mosul, according to Volesky. [ISIS] will try to do these high profile spectacular attacks, he said. Weve seen them do that before. Volesky said he was concerned any ISIS attacks away from Mosul inside Iraq could stall the operation to liberate the countrys second-largest city. One of the things that I'm worried about as well is, you know, the enemy tries a spectacular attack, tries to figure out how to retain some ground in the Euphrates River Valley and causes the attention of the government of Iraq to come back south and that delays or stalls the momentum going forward, he said. Echoing earlier statements from senior U.S. officials, Volesky said foreign fighters have remained in Mosul, part of the estimated 3,000-5,000 ISIS fighters in that city. We expect there will be a fight, he said. Volesky said some ISIS leaders have left Mosul, but declined to offer specifics.He said Iraqi forces have liberated 13 villages. The Iraqis are ahead of where I thought they would be when this operation started, he added. ISIS is launching attacks using mortars and suicide car bombers, Voleskly said, adding that U.S. aircraft were hitting back and in some cases killing ISIS before their fighters could reach the Iraqis. Volesky said ISIS was using suicide bombers in vehicles to cover the ISIS retreat, which the general said he had not seen ISIS do before, which really kind of reinforces the point that they are completely on the defensive and are just trying to hold on, he added. Volesky said ISIS fighters have been seen retreating into Mosul from the outskirts of town. They're burning buildings, which we assess to be their headquarters, and a lot of them are moving back into Mosul proper, he said. Volesky told reporters there has not been a mass exodus of civilians leaving Mosul. The U.S. military dropped 7 million leaflets from B-52 bombers instructing civilians to stay in their homes. Iraqi civilians living in villgaes outside Mosul are helping Iraqi forces locate ISIS fighters. Volesky said that U.S. military troops used to call in airstrikes remained behind the front lines. In keeping with current policy, the general said the U.S. military would not be supporting any Iranian-backed Shia militia forces in any way. Volesky said the Iranian-backed forces would not be going into Mosul. Volesky would not comment on reports the Russian military would join the fight to the west of Mosul, where ISIS fighters were in control all the way to Tal Afar, roughly 50 miles away. The [U.S.-led] coalition only supports those elements that are under the direct command and control of the Iraqi security forces and the Shia [militas] are not. So we don't support them. And the Iraqis clearly understand that, Volesky said. He also said the U.S. military would not take part in any ISIS detainee operations as fighters were captured, leaving that mission up to the Iraqis. The U.S. military has planned to exploit any intelligence it gets from those fighters or from inside Mosul in the weeks to come, officials said. Fox News' Kara Rowland and Lucas Tomlinson contributed to this report. U.S. officials expect the Islamic State to use crude chemical weapons as it tries to defend Mosul from an assault from Iraqi and Kurdish forces, though the terror groups ability to develop such weapons is limited. ISIS has used mustard agent on multiple occasions against Kurdish Peshmerga forces, officials say, adding that nobody has been seriously hurt or killed so far. The effect has been fairly negligible, U.S. officials tell Fox News. Mustard agent gives victims symptoms similar to poison ivy, according to one official who said ISIS use of the chemical is more like a weapon of mass disruption. The officials said the threat of mustard agent attack is much less concerning than an attack or threat of using mustard gas. They said ISIS has not used mustard gas to date. One official told Reuters that U.S. forces have gathered ISIS shell fragments to test for chemical weapons. U.S. officials said in a previously undisclosed statement that it had confirmed the presence of a sulfur mustard agent on ISIS munitions on Oct. 5. "Given ISIL's reprehensible behavior and flagrant disregard for international standards and norms, this event is not surprising," a second U.S. official told Reuters. Officials dont believe the Islamic State has been successful in fully developing chemical weapons with lethal effects. Conventional weapons were still the most dangerous threat as Iraqi and Kurdish forces advance. More than 100 U.S. troops are assisting Iraqi and Kurdish forces involved in the assault. Theyre tasked with advising commanders and helping ensure the coalitions air campaign hit the right targets, officials said. Meanwhile, as the fight for Mosul ramps up, the U.S. said it believes Islamic State fighters are using civilians as human shields as coalition forces move to the groups stronghold in Mosul. Around 700,000 civilians are believed to be living in Mosul. President Barack Obama said there are plans in place for dealing with a potential humanitarian crisis as the offensive wears on. The U.S.-backed coalition said they have driven Islamic State out of at least 10 villages surrounding the city. Iraqi forces are still believed to be at least 12 miles outside of Mosul. Click for more from Reuters. AdroitSSD Launches Customer Charm Offensive With Doubling Of RAM In Hosting Packages The firm, based in Delaware, USA, has recorded growth of 200% to 300% since its birth in 2011, and now expects to increase its remarkable rate of development with the announcement of this significant offer. -- AdroitSSD, the cutting edge cloud hosting provider, has confirmed it will double the RAM in its range of hosting packages, giving customers another reason to task the company with their hosting. The firm, based in Delaware, USA, has recorded growth of 200% to 300% since its birth in 2011, and now expects to increase its remarkable rate of development with the announcement of this significant offer. Customers taking the Incredible Promo hosting package will receive new RAM of 1GB, newly launched, while those on the Incredible One deal can look forward to 2GB RAM, up from 1GB. For customers with a contract for the Incredible Power package, the allocation will now increase to 4GB RAM from the previous 2GB. The move is in line with AdroitSSD's company ethos to put the customer at the heart of their business operations, and this enhanced offering is aimed at targeting new customers, as well as rewarding existing clients for their loyalty. AdroitSSD anticipates that the range of deals will not only be of interest to businesses looking for reliable hosting at a favourable rate, but also to individuals that are either running one man enterprises, or require website hosting for a page they maintain as part of a hobby. Dan Anton, Director of Sales for Adroit SSD, said: "We are very excited at the prospect of delivering double the RAM for customers across all our packages. It means that whatever their hosting requirements, each customer can receive a product that delivers exceptional value, as well as our key facets of dependability, speed and security layering. The industry leading uptime we pride ourselves on will be augmented by a customer support function which we aim to be the best in the business, so whether customers are upscaling their package, downsizing or remaining on their current allocation, they can rest assured they will have the necessary expertise to call upon." It is all intended to add up to a superior customer experience for every customer, and AndroitSSD has confirmed the offerings will be backed up with a dedicated customer support service, designed to reassure package holders by addressing their questions and queries quickly and professionally. Customers can expect to enjoy the benefits of the extra emphasis AndroitSSD places on research and development, capitalising on the latest tech trends for the advantage of its clients. To learn more, please visit https://www.adroitssd.com For more information, please visit https://www.adroitssd.com Contact Info: Name: Dan Anton Email: contact@adroitssd.com Organization: AdroitSSD LLC Address: 3422 Old Capitol Trl, Wilmington, DE Source: http://marketersmedia.com/adroitssd-launches-customer-charm-offensive-with-doubling-of-ram-in-hosting-packages/139198 Release ID: 139198 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sweater Shop Launches New Fall/Winter Range of Aran Sweaters The Sweater Shop, a renowned Irish based company has just announced the launch of its new range of knitwear for this season. This family run business is one of the largest suppliers of aran sweaters and Irish knitwear to both the domestic and international markets. -- With the colder weather just upon us, it means that it's time to start wrapping up and the new Fall range of Irish knitwear offers lots of different ways which you can keep yourself warm and stylish. Industry professionals believe the major contributing factor behind the success of the company includes their innovative collections, reasonable prices, high quality products and excellent customer service and this seasons range only supports that further. When contacted, a representative from The Sweater Shop stated, "The iconic aran sweater has the ability to transform every outfit with effortless ease. Whether you are running errands, chilling out with friends, family and loved ones or dressing for a more formal gathering, the Irish Aran sweater is one wardrobe staple you will not want to be without this Autumn Winter." She further added, "A timeless staple and Ireland's major contribution to international style, our new range of sweaters, cardigans, scarves and hats are the perfect addition to any outfit this season." The team at The Sweater Shop always try to provide both style and versatility to their range. For casual days their sweaters and cardigans worn with jeans, provide a look which is effortlessly casual and comfortable chic at its best. For a more traditional look with a modern twist, teaming your Aran with modern textures and fashion trends can add an edgy fashion forward look to your outfit. Fashion changes but style endures, with the new Fall/Winter range from the Sweater Shop. The Aran sweater first became a coveted fashion icon when it first featured in US Vogue in the 1950's. This led to the sweater being exported from Ireland to the US for the first time. It has remained a firm favourite both on and off the catwalk in the last 70 years. More recently, the fashion bible Vogue again gave a sartorial nod to the iconic sweater in its British August edition, with academy award winning actor Alicia Vikander wearing the famous cable Aran knit. The Sweater Shop stocks coats, Aran sweaters, and a large selection of cardigans, snoods, capes and lots more. With the serious Aran trend hitting this Autumn Winter, it's the ideal place to spoil yourself. They only provide genuine Irish wool products which are very well made and can be styled a million different ways. They make the whole order process run completely smoothly and constant communication is maintained to ensure customers are very much satisfied. They also provide free international shipping to anywhere in the world. With so many options to wear it, you won't want to be without this sweater staple this Autumn Winter. Check out The Sweater Shops latest Autumn Winter collection and prepare to be amazed. About The Sweater Shop Sweater Shop is a family run business which was established in 1986 by Dom Byrne who still runs the company to this day. The Sweater Shop is truly a family affair with Dom, his daughter Laura, daughter in law Kate, Sister Breege and niece Alva involved in the business! The large selection of superb quality Irish Aran knitwear at reasonable prices became so popular with locals and visitors that the business quickly expanded and now there are outlets in Dublin, Kilkenny and Galway city, while their online store ships their knitwear range around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.sweatershop.com Contact Info: Name: Laura Byrne Email: sales@sweatershop.ie Organization: Sweater Shop Address: 30 Nassau St, Dublin 2, Ireland Phone: +353 (1) 671 2292 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/sweater-shop-launches-new-fallwinter-range-of-aran-sweaters/139243 Release ID: 139243 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Baumgartner Law Firm Announces 2016's Scholarship Winner The scholarship is offered each year to needy individuals to who are enrolled at an accredited Law School in the US, reports https://baumgartnerlawyers.com. -- Houston-based Baumgartner Law Firm has recently announced the winner of their 2016 Scholarships. Each year, the firm furnishes a monetary award to a needy individual who is enrolled at an accredited Law School in the US. The winner will receive a one-time award of $3,000.00 to be used for tuition, books and law school expenses. This year, they are also awarding $1000 to another individual enrolled or accepted at an accredited school (based on need and commitment to helping others). More information about the scholarship and application requirements are available at the Baumgartner Law Firm website. Greg Baumgartner, the Houston Personal Injury Lawyer at the helm of Baumgartner Law Firm, stated: "We are so excited to announce this year's scholarship winners to the public. The students we have chosen for these scholarships not only excel academically, but have also made personal sacrifices in order make a significant impact on their community as well. Becoming a great attorney is about having a heart to serve people in need, and our 2016 scholarship winners definitely embody that virtue. We're pleased to announce MacKenzie Ridgle as winner of the Baumgartner Law scholarship and Odalis Almendarez as the winner the car accident scholarship." The Baumgartner Law Firm Scholarships are awarded to students based on both their demonstrated need and their commitment to helping others. Applications for the scholarships usually close at the end of August, and the winners are announced via the firm's Facebook and Google Plus pages. As Attorney Baumgartner goes on to say, "Our team knows that school is a huge investment of both time and money for students. They often take on a huge financial responsibility in exchange for the opportunity to serve others inside and outside of the courtroom for the rest of their lives. We see these scholarships as something that we can do to help them fulfill their highest potential and achieve the life goals they've set out for themselves." Those who are interested in learning more about Baumgartner Law Firm or would like to apply for next year's scholarship should log on to https://baumgartnerlawyers.com for more information. About Baumgartner Law Firm: Baumgartner Law Firm has been protecting the financial future of personal injury victims in Houston & Texas for over 30 years by fighting for maximum compensation in every case. Injury Attorney Greg Baumgartner founded the Baumgartner Law Firm in 1985. The law firm's mission from the very beginning has been to provide the highest quality legal representation to victims of personal injury. The law firm handles car wrecks, truck accidents, day care injury and other serious injury or wrongful death cases. For more information, please visit https://baumgartnerlawyers.com Contact Info: Name: Greg Baumgartner Organization: Baumgartner Law Firm Phone: (281) 587-1111 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/baumgartner-law-firm-announces-2016s-scholarship-winner/139230 Release ID: 139230 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Free Freightnet Membership List your company in the Freightnet directory. It's Free, it's Easy and your company can be displayed in front of potential freight buyers within 24 hours. WHAT IS MOVELESS CHESS (FREE) Moveless Chess is a game released by Beavl. Your objective is to checkmate the black king without moving your pieces. But how then? By transforming your pieces into new ones. Every transformation costs Action Points (APs) and every level has a limited amount of APs. So use them wisely! Note: APs are based on the chess piece relative value system (queen = 9, rook = 5, bishop = 3, knight = 3, pawn = 1). DOWNLOAD LINKS * Android (FREE) * iOS (FREE) An introduction Designing levels for Moveless Chess is not an easy task. There are some things that you have to understand to make a level that works: As player cannot move any pieces, player has to deliver checkmate from occupied squares. Player can deflect AI pieces by offering sacrifices (offering material) or attacking that particular piece. Player can make any AI piece stay at its current square by pinning. AI is unaware of players powers and it plays regular chess. So when deciding its next move, it takes into account the present state of the board. Player can make a waiting move (transforming a non-relevant piece into a pawn, the cheapest transformation, just to test AIs next move). There are some more things to consider, but these are a good set to start. So how do we design a level? 1. First of all, we decide the theme of the level. The level could be a rework on some famous match, some interesting variation, some trap or tactic or just a checkmate theme weve read about and we like. In Level 35 well be working on a theme consisting of two knights making a battery (its not a real battery, batteries can be formed by rooks, queen or bishops) and a queen. Its a beautiful checkmate theme, isnt it? 2. Then, we go to Lichess Board Editor and we create the board state from scratch. 3. After setting up the checkmate configuration, we start by changing the checkmate pieces into new ones so as to have a starting point for our level. 4. Then, we start playing around adding pieces for both sides trying to find certain configuration we like. Its like scripting a play. Some black pieces are immediate threats (remember that if checked, you lose), others can block your checkmate plans, and some pieces are there just for the sake of hiding the checkmate theme. 5. When we are ready with the first draft, were off to our lvlGenerator script (c#). We add the very first version of the current level and start playtesting this initial idea against the AI. 6. After lots of iterations, a final level looks something like this: public static List lvl35pos = new List { -2, 0, 0, 0, 0, 3, 0, 0, -1, -5, 0, 1, 0, 4, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, -1, 3, 0, 0, 0, 0, -6, 0, 0, 0, -4, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0, -1, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 6, 0, 0 }; And something like this in the Unity Editor: 7. So, why all these changes? Short answer is because of narrative tension. Every level is like a semi-open script (some players were able to find different solutions to the ones we came up with, think that AI plays real chess, so it reacts to every transformation the player tries. Its not a traditional chess puzzle where all the moves are forced). And what do we mean by narrative tension? Obstacles, tests to the player to come up with a plan, yeah, like a hero. Look at level 35 for example. How is this level solved? White pawn on f3 is key. It will deliver the checkmate (remember the two knights-one queen theme we talked about). Black queen on b7 is threatening with taking it, and if taken, its check (and you lose). Also, black queen is threatened by players knight on a5 so its going to move (or take the knight with the bishop). First thing is to protect the f3 pawn transforming the h2 pawn into a knight. If so, black is going to take the knight on a5 with its bishop on b4. This is how this level looks after the first transformation (Note: a gif with the complete solution at the end of this post!): 8. Now notice that the knight on f8 is threatened by the rook on a8. Also the pawn on d7 cannot queen because of the rook (remember that in Moveless Chess player cannot queen by transforming a piece on the 8th rank into a pawn, but AI is unaware of that. If a white pawn is placed on the 7th rank, AI will try to take it or block it). So, what then? Player can change the bishop on f7 into a knight. This transformation has two outcomes. First, it protects the queening on d8. Second, it makes the knight battery we need to checkmate the black king. So, being threatened by the possibility of queening, AI is going to move its bishop on a5 to d8 just to block the pawn (by doing so, it blocks the rook attack on the knight). 9. Now white has some options. Transforming the pawn on f3 into a queen is not one of them (if so, black queen would take it). So, black queen should be forced to move. In order to do so, player could offer some material. The objective is to make the queen move to a square from which it cannot either block the check or take the checking piece. The pawn on b3! Notice that the black pawn on d3 is going to block the queen from taking the white piece on f3. So here player can convert the pawn on b3 into a knight or a bishop (considering that the player needs 9 APs to deliver the final blow to the black king on the next transformation) or just make a waiting move and change the pawn into a pawn (black queen is going to take the material offered in b3 nonetheless). 10. And now, the final transformation. Player transforms the pawn on f3 into a queen and Checkmate! Gilmore Girls Air Date, Spoilers, News & Update: Fan Fest Held At Martys Cafe, Expects Thousand Fans To Descend "Gilmore Girls" will be holding a Gilmore Girls Fan Fest that will be held at Marty's Cafe, a Cafe that inspired the series. The cafe will offer breakfast and lunch and would expect thousands of residents fans to come and enjoy the festival. According to Blane Withers, owner of Marty's Cafe, the cafe isn't big enough for the spotlight for many residents. Blane said, it's a good time for the festival as leaf peeping season is coming to an end, within this month. According to Courant, the cafe will expect two or three weekends of fan traffic to watch stars from "Gilmore Girls". Mark Lyon said, they will be preparing enough foods for the surge of customers and in fact they also prepared food trucks to help for the supplement. Fans of "Gilmore Girls" will see more roles and cast such as Keiko Agena, Jackson Douglas, Vanessa Marano and Yanic Truesdale. Only 38 days until A Year in the Life. pic.twitter.com/tafnV0mhIa Gilmore Girls (@GilmoreGirls) October 18, 2016 Meanwhile, "Gilmore Girls" recent news from GamenGuide relayed that Netflix also held a free coffee give away for the fans at Luke's cafe. Both Beverly Hills and Studio City ran out of coffee cups by 11 am as they celebrate the 16th year Anniversary for the show. "Gilmore Girls" Fan Festival is expected to be successful and even the demand for lodging house has increased. For one, Mayflower Inn, the town's signature Inn was already fully booked for the said occasion even though the Inn's rate is higher as $775 per night. Total War: Warhammer DLC Release Date, Gameplay, News & Update: The King And The Warlord Brings 22 Regiments Of Renown Units, More! As the "Total War: Warhammer" DLC release date for The King and the Warlord approaches, excited among gamers has surged. This is no surprise as Creative Assembly decide to whet gamers' appetites about the coming DLC by release additional footages showcasing the twenty two Regiment of Renown Units. 'Total War: Warhammer' DLC Brings In New Regiment Of Renown Units It is high time to bolster the ranks of the Dwarfs in the coming "Total War: Warhammer" DLC. Aside from the Legendary Lord and lord types, the upcoming pack will likewise introduce new Regiment of Renown units to their ranks. First is the air unit called Skyhammer Gyrobomber. A flying war machine, it has the skyhammer bomb ability, which allows it to drop multiple bombs at once, a useful feature when the "Total War: Warhammer" DLC releases. The coming "Total War: Warhammer" DLC will also introduce the Gob-Lobber Grudge Thrower. A catapult that throws a goblin tied to chunks of rock. The Skolder Guard will be arriving with "The King and the Warlord" DLC. They fire steam to their enemies dealing massive splash damage which 20 percent more physical resistance than their regular counterparts and is more effective against armored units. Ulthar's Raiders is a good infantry unit. When "Total War: Warhammer" DLC release date comes, players can utilize their ability known as Marked by Ulthar dealing their enemies minus 22 percent missile resistance and less 16 percent armor. Using this ability will surely deal more damage to their enemies. The upcoming "The King and the Warlord" DLC will also introduce the Peak Gate Guards. These Regiment of Renown units adds magical damage to their attacks as well as minus 32 percent armor to their enemies. Norgrimlings Ironbreakers will be introduced in the coming "Total War: Warhammer" DLC. They have vanguard deployment and are immune to psychology and there are twenty more men in the unit. The upcoming "The King and the Warlord" DLC also introduces the Dragonback Slayers who possess 20 percent physical resistance as well as flame resistance. Completing the Dwarfs Regiments of Renown lineup is the Grumbling Guard with the ability to increase in size by 30 percent, the Warriors of Dragonfire Pass with their flaming weapons that does flame damage and lights up the surrounding areas and lastly Ekrund Miners with their Frenzy ability that grants 12 percent more damage and 8 percent attack. Are you excited for the new "Total War: Warhammer" DLC? Of course, the Greenskins will have their own Regiments of Renown units as well. They are detail in this "The King and the Warlord" Trailer about the coming "Total War: Warhammer" DLC. 'Total War: Warhammer' DLC Release Date Fortunately the wait is almost over for the upcoming "The King and the Warlord." The "Total War: Warhammer" DLC release date is slated this coming October 20, 2016. Stay tuned to GamenGuide for updates. Xiaomi Redmi 4 Release Date, News & Update: Amazing Specs & Features Impress Users; Xiaomi Mi Note 2 Better Than iPhone 7? The Chinese tech manufacturer, Xiaomi, has been making a lot of noise in the smartphone industry because of its amazing releases at a very affordable price. According to reports, the upcoming Xiaomi Redmi 4 is going to be the next big thing from the company and it is expected to impress consumers. The highly anticipated device has already become a favorite subject of numerous reports and speculations online for the last few weeks. Although Xiaomi has yet to provide concrete details with regard to the development and release of the new Xiaomi Redmi 4, fans and critics have already shared their own predictions on what people can expect once the device hits the market. According to the report, the device will carry a metal uni-body exterior design with an interesting metallic finish. It will run on a Snapdragon 625 processor from Qualcomm paired with 3 GB of RAM and a 32 GB internal storage capacity. The smartphone is also expected to carry the Adreno 506 graphics technology, which will surely make the device a multitasking machine, according to a report by GSMArena. Other features of the rumored Xiaomi Redmi 4 include a microSD slot, which is expected to increase the storage capacity of the smartphone of up to 256 GB. Apart from its impressive specs under the hood, the handset will run on Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow OS. However, there are speculations suggesting that the device might get the new Android Nougat operating system update a few weeks after its release. Its amazing specs and features will be powered by a 4,100 mAh battery, which allows the users to use the device for many hours. Meanwhile, according to Xiaomi Today, the release of Xiaomi Redmi 4 might be put on hold as the company is currently focusing on the upcoming release of the much awaited Xiaomi Mi Note 2. The report says that the high-end handset will arrive later this month and is expected to challenge the mighty iPhone 7 as the best smartphone in the in the market today. Stay tuned for more news and updates about Xiaomi Redmi 4 and Xiaomi Mi Note 2. Samsung Galaxy S8 Release Date, News, & Update: No More Home Button? Dual-Lens, 4K Display, Other Impressive Specs & Features Revealed With the rollercoaster ride that the Korean tech giant has had with its smartphone lineup this year, can the Samsung Galaxy S8 redeem the company from the Note 7 fiasco? Here are the latest leaks regarding the upcoming device. No More Home Button? The tech giant is rumored to be removing the iconic Home button in the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S8. This will then allow the device to have a smaller overall footprint and sleeker unibody look. The fingerprint reader is said to be integrated to the display itself. Display Rumors There is no doubt that Samsung has been leading the industry when it comes to smartphone display. With their Quad HD resolution being incorporated in the flagship for quite some time, the Samsung Galaxy S8 may see an upgrade to a 4K resolution. The same Super AMOLED technology is expected to be integrated here, along with the high brightness capacity. This display setup would be ideal for the VR platform. There are also reports that the upcoming Galaxy S8 comes with only the Edge variant in two screen sizes. Dual Lens Cameras? Camera quality has been one of Samsung's strongest suits in the mobile arena. To further improve on their standards, the company is said to be procuring dual lens cameras that would be incorporated in the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S8 devices. Powerful Processors Being the flagship lineup, the Samsung Galaxy S8 is expected to tout nothing but the best chipsets available in the market. The Snapdragon 830 will most likely power the device in the US models, as well as the upcoming Exynos 8895 for the international models. It has been previously reported that the Exynos 8895 has a clock speed of up to a whopping 3GHz. Other Release Details The Samsung Galaxy S8 is expected to be released at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next year. This conference usually takes place either on February or March annually. However, Samsung is still looking into the culprit behind the Galaxy Note 7 explosions. If the company could not release an official finding explaining the issue, then market reception would surely take a hit. Rotary got started in Long Beach in 1917 when seven local businessmen met with a New York Rotarian who talked about his club there. Eugene-based Trek Theatre will visit Oregon State University for a pair of events Thursday, Oct. 20. The "Star Trek" celebration is sponsored by the Anarres Project, a program based out of the OSU School of History, Philosophy and Religion. Christina Allaback, Trek Theatre's artistic director, will give a public lecture at 4 p.m. titled "Star Trek and Social Justice" in Milam Hall, Room 319, 2520 S.W. Campus Way. Allaback will explain the origins of Trek Theatre, how she sees it embracing the lessons of the theater of the oppressed, and what we can learn about social justice from science fiction. At 7 p.m., Trek Theatre will perform a classic "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episode called "The Drumhead" in the Learning Innovation Center, Room 228, 165 S.W. Sackett Place. The episode is a story about the clash between state security and the protection of human rights. Attendees are invited to wear "Star Trek" themed costumes to a costume reception, which will begin at 6 p.m. Prizes will be awarded. The events are part of the 2016-17 SPARK program, the university's year-long celebration of the arts and sciences. This year also marks the 50th anniversary of the original 'Star Trek' television series. The lecture and performance are free and open to the public. For more information, see https://www.facebook.com/events/1572009539773971. For the next two weekends, the Philomath Open Studios Art Tour and Sale invites people to not only see artwork by more than 30 mid-valley artists, but also watch the process of how it's made. Many of the participating studios will feature live demonstrations, says Corvallis artist Mike Bergen, who enters his fourth year at the event. "It allows artists to sell and show their work and their process," Bergen said. "People love to watch artists work." At the 14th annual tour, viewers can take free self-guided tours around the 14 Philomath studios where 36 artists will display their art. Yellow tour signs will lead them on the right path. All sorts of media are represented at this year's event. Visitors can expect to see oil, watercolor and silk paintings, acrylic, pastel, mosaics, collage, wood-fired ceramics, clay, mixed media, photography, printmaking, fiber art, textiles, glass, metal and woodwork, and jewelry. Every year, local artists open the doors to their private studios to showcase what they are working on, allowing viewers to buy the art where it is made and meet the artist behind it. Most host artists invite two or three guest artists to show at their studios, including some for the first time. "We have a lot of new artists this year," Bergen said. "Jan Roberts-Dominguez, she's going to be with Marianne Post in her studio. There are others like Heather Kier, Aaron Reizes and Beth Rietveld." Rietveld, a local fiber artist, has helped Bergen organize publicity for this year's event. Bergen says all participating artists help perform different tasks for the tour. Bergen himself is guest-host at the studio of his friend Cindy McNutt-Kaestner. He invited ceramic artist Ann Lahr to share display space with him this year. "She does whimsical ceramics stuff, which complements what I do with my paintings," Bergen said. The tour also includes two high school students participating for the second year in a row. Babette Grunwald, textile artist and West Albany High School art teacher, will have photographers Paris Barton and Jayden Italia display artwork at her studio. Artists not showing at one of the tour studios get an opportunity to share their art at local wine tasting rooms. "We have two wineries (The Wine Vault and Spindrift Cellars) with what we call pop-up studios, where they allow us to come in and usually have two or three artists put up their work," Bergen said. Bergen and others suggest visitors look to the official tour brochure to plan their excursion, because the studios are spread around Philomath, in town and along the back roads. The brochure features pictures of each artist's work. "We recommend people use the brochure and pick the artists' studios based on the work they are more interested in, if you don't want to see all of them," Bergen said. In addition to providing viewers a behind-the-scenes look at the creative process, some artists will show pieces they have never displayed in public. In recent years, the Philomath Open Studios Art Tour has drawn 200-300 visitors, Bergen estimates. "A lot of people use this event to buy Christmas presents, but I think the main thing is they just like to visit and see what artists are doing," he said. The Benton County Board of Commissioners took the first step Tuesday toward a major facilities improvement package aimed at addressing longstanding space problems affecting the Health, Community Development, Public Works, and Natural Areas and Parks departments. At their regular meeting, the commissioners voted 3-0 to accept a $1 million federal grant for renovations of the main county health clinic and unanimously approved a motion to proceed with the design phase of a $9.75 million improvement project involving the Public Services Building at 530 N.W. 27th St., the Sunset Building at 4077 S.W. Research Way and the Avery Building at 360 S.W. Avery Ave. Dennis Aloia, the countys chief operating officer, told the board that the project will relieve serious overcrowding issues. Weve done a really good job of extending the life of our buildings, Aloia said. (But) were cramming people into closets. Aloia also noted that this plan is significantly cheaper than an earlier proposal for a new health clinic, which would have cost an estimated $12 million-$14 million. He also said it would not require any additional tax revenue, meaning there will be no need to ask voters to approve a bond measure. Financing for the project would still need to be approved at a future meeting, but county staff outlined a plan to cover the costs. The county already has $2 million set aside in reserves to cover part of the cost, plus the $1 million grant. The remaining $6.75 million would be financed with a bank loan, to be paid back with annual county revenues that are already in the budget. Public Works Director Josh Wheeler said the plans are still at the conceptual stage, with some of the funding set aside for architectural and design work. If final cost estimates come in higher than expected, he told the commissioners, parts of the project could be scaled back. The most ambitious part of the plan calls for a $6.75 million renovation of the Public Services Building, which houses the countys main health clinic on the ground floor with offices for public health and administrative personnel on the second floor. In addition to reorganizing and updating the interior space for additional clinic expansion, Wheeler said, the work would include an exterior remodel that would make this look much more like a medical office than the old building we have now. The Avery Building, which houses parks, public works and community development staff, would get a 5,000-square-foot second-floor addition at an estimated cost of $2 million. The remaining $150,000 in the budget would be used to renovate 8,000 square feet of vacant space on the second floor of the Sunset Building. All told, the project will take about three years to complete and will play out like a game of musical chairs. The first step will be to finish the vacant office space at the Sunset Building. When thats ready, some of the staff from the Avery Building will temporarily relocate to Sunset while their building is being remodeled. Once the Avery addition is finished, the relocated employees will move into their new quarters, freeing up the Sunset Building space for a permanent relocation of public health and administrative staff from the Public Services Building. That will open the second floor of Public Services for further expansion of the health clinic. While work on the Avery addition is underway, construction will also begin on the first floor of the Public Services Building, which means the health clinic will have to operate out of temporary quarters in modular buildings. County officials are still looking for a suitable location to put those modulars. The work approved on Tuesday does not address the countys biggest facilities needs what to do about its undersized jail and seismically vulnerable courthouse but Aloia told the commissioners it was a step in the right direction. This takes care of our building needs for 15 years or more and allows you to focus on how were going to take care of criminal justice, he said. This log includes incidents in which there might have been a public disturbance or a risk to the public. Information comes from the Corvallis Police Department, Oregon State Police and Benton County Sheriff's Office. It does not include all calls for service. The status of incidents might change after further investigation. Locations are approximate. People arrested or suspected in crimes are considered innocent until proven otherwise. Corvallis Police Department MONDAY, OCT. 17 SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY: 10:06 p.m., 900 block of Northwest Garfield Avenue. A woman called police to report suspicious activity. The woman reportedly told officers that her ex-husband left her a note that talked about how he wanted to get back together with her "or else he would have a doctor erase her from his memory." The woman said the man had suicidal thoughts and had "recently sent a photo of him holding a gun to his head." TRIPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU: 3 p.m., 300 block of Southwest 10th Street. A man reported that, while going through the mail, he found an envelope with what he believed were 20 "acid tabs" wrapped in foil inside an unsigned birthday card. The officer responding submitted the envelope, card and foil containing paper that he believed to be LSD to evidence. The case was discontinued due to lack of suspect information and investigative leads. Benton County Sheriff's Office SUNDAY, OCT. 16 PIE FIGHT: 5:25 p.m., 4300 block of Northeast Highway 20. A deputy responded to a report of a family argument. A man reportedly told the officer that his brother was mad that their stepfather hadn't bought enough pizza. The deputy reported that he "told all parties to stop fighting over pizza." The case was discontinued. Classes were relocated and faculty instructed to work from home after rain heavily damaged Oregon State Universitys Richardson Hall over the weekend. The three-story, 100,000-square-foot building at 3180 S.W. Jefferson Way, which opened in 1999, primarily houses laboratory and office space for the College of Forestry. Roof repairs were already underway when a major storm system blew into the area, dumping more than 5 inches of rain between Wednesday and Monday morning, but that wasnt the main factor in the damage, according to OSU Vice President Steve Clark, the universitys chief spokesman. In the course of fixing the roof, Clark said, workers discovered problems with the large awnings that overhung the building. Those had been removed, allowing rainwater to seep into the walls and work its way through leaky window gaskets that had previously been sheltered from storms. Water rolls downhill, Clark said. By the time it got down to the first floor, it started to collect. That led to further damage. When the problem was discovered on Saturday, there was already significant damage to the building, Clark said. On Sunday night, emails went out notifying faculty, staff and students that most of the research and other activities normally conducted at Richardson would have to be done elsewhere while the building is being repaired. All told, 48 classes totaling 683 students had to be relocated. Clark said 25 workers spent Saturday, Sunday and Monday tearing out water-damaged wallboard, carpet and floor tiles while exhaust fans labored to vent moisture from the building. On Tuesday, the number of workers assigned to the task had been expected to double. Walsh Construction, the general contractor on the roofing project, was installing temporary measures to keep more water from entering the building until the awnings could be replaced. Clark said the damage was estimated at $500,000 to $700,000, but the universitys insurance would cover all but $100,000 of the repair cost. He added that the awnings were expected to be replaced in about three weeks, but he wasnt sure when the building might reopen. One of those displaced by the damage was William Ripple, a distinguished professor of ecology in the department of forest ecosystems and society who was working from home this week. Its a double whammy, he said. We already lost Peavy Hall. Peavy Hall, which has housed classrooms and administrative offices for the OSU College of Forestry since 1971, was torn down last month to make way for a brand new building. Students, faculty and staff who used Peavy have been dispersed to other locations on campus until the new building is finished in spring 2018. The reconstructed Peavy Hall will be part of the Oregon Forest Science Complex, a $65 million project that will also include a 15,000-square-foot laboratory for advanced wood products. A joint mission between the European Space Agency (ESA) and Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) is expected to land a probe on Mars today October 19th, 2016. If successful, it will be the first successful landing on Mars that was not by NASA. Many attempts have been made by various countries and there have been a number of successful orbiters and flybys. For a full list of Mars missions see this Wikipedia page. The mission named ExoMars includes an orbiter, the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter and a lander named Schiaparelli. Read more about it here. You can watch the event live here. See here for more details on the broadcast schedule. We used the details in this video to identify the landing area in Google Earth. You can use this KML file to view it in Google Earth. This is hand drawn based on the video and is not an official outline. Schiaparellis landing zone as seen in Google Earth. The landing zone includes the current location of NASAs Opportunity rover. [ Update: Also see this KML file with more detailed landing ellipses kindly provided by GEB reader Fernando Nogal. See this thread for more details. ] Welcome to my genealogy blog. Genea-Musings features genealogy research tips and techniques, genealogy news items and commentary, genealogy humor, San Diego genealogy society news, family history research and some family history stories from the keyboard of Randy Seaver (of Chula Vista CA), who thinks that Genealogy Research Is really FUN! Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2006-2021. 17-year-old wounded : Arrest in stabbing of teen Bonn Police arrested a 19-year-old in the knife attack on a 17-year-old youth in the Bonn inner city on Sunday. Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken After a teenager was stabbed on Sunday, police were able to find the perpetrator and arrest him, but they have not yet been able to find the knife used in the crime. Apparently, a 19-year-old and the 17-year-old whom he vaguely knew, got into an argument. It was around 1:20 a.m. on the corner of Maximilian Strae and Poststrae. In questioning by police, the 19-year-old admitted to having stabbed the 17-year-old. He said he then threw away or lost the knife. The 17-year-old was wounded with a stab to the chest but his injury was not life-threatening. He was taken to hospital for treatment. A 21-year-old witness was also at the scene, accompanying the 17-year-old. Apparently, the 19-year-old also bashed in a store front window during the altercation. Deutsche Post study : Feelings of happiness in the west Berlin A recent study commissioned by Deutsche Post shows an increase of contentment amongst Germans. Ratings were higher in the west. Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken Measuring the satisfaction level of Germans, a study commissioned by Deutsche Post revealed some positive news. It hasnt happened for several years, but this time around German citizens rated themselves more happy and content than they were previously. On a scale of one to ten, their ratings went up from 7.02 to 7.11 within the year. This may not sound like a huge jump but for researchers, it is telling. For Germans, who otherwise are considered laden with angst and acutely aware of their security, it means the terrorism threats and societal developments such as migration have not put a damper on the level of contentment in their private lives. Ratings of happiness in the eastern part of Germany, however were lower than in the west. Some factors that can influence the satisfaction ratings are income and health. But researchers point out that the unemployment rate decreased from 11.7 percent in 2005 to 6.4 percent in 2011, and that didnt shake the ratings scale. Bernd Raffelhuschen, financial scientist at Albert-Ludwigs-University in Freiburg, and one of the authors of the Gluckatlas (Atlas of Contentment) explains, Germany has been experiencing a boom for the last eight years with more income and buying power. Maybe that moved the numbers up. The study doesnt measure emotional happiness or things like a lottery win. Its about long term perception of ones own life, wishes, goals and expectations. Germany came in ninth place in Europe in terms of ratings, while Denmark was the most happy. Raffelhuschen suspects that differing perceptions of the refugee situation may contribute to the lower contentment ratings in the east. Responding to questions about cultural diversity, only around half of those surveyed in the east saw migration as a gain, while in the west it was more than two thirds. Those who personally had contact with refugees were more willing to help them with integration (58 percent) while only a third (29 percent) who didnt have contact were inclined to help. An interesting connection made from the study: the more tolerant and willing to help people were, the happier they were. Transcription 1 Colombia Tax Guide 2012 2 foreword A country s tax regime is always a key factor for any business considering moving into new markets. What is the corporate tax rate? Are there any incentives for overseas businesses? Are there double tax treaties in place? How will foreign source income be taxed? Since 1994, the PKF network of independent member firms, administered by PKF International Limited, has produced the PKF Worldwide Tax Guide (WWTG) to provide international businesses with the answers to these key tax questions. This handy reference guide provides clients and professional practitioners with comprehensive tax and business information for 100 countries throughout the world. As you will appreciate, the production of the WWTG is a huge team effort and I would like to thank all tax experts within PFK member firms who gave up their time to contribute the vital information on their country s taxes that forms the heart of this publication. I would also like thank Richard Jones, PKF (UK) LLP, Kevin Reilly, PKF Witt Mares, and Kaarji Vaughan, PKF Melbourne for co-ordinating and checking the entries from countries within their regions. The WWTG continues to expand each year reflecting both the growth of the PKF network and the strength of the tax capability offered by member firms throughout the world. I hope that the combination of the WWTG and assistance from your local PKF member firm will provide you with the advice you need to make the right decisions for your international business. Jon Hills PKF (UK) LLP Chairman, PKF International Tax Committee I 3 important disclaimer This publication should not be regarded as offering a complete explanation of the taxation matters that are contained within this publication. This publication has been sold or distributed on the express terms and understanding that the publishers and the authors are not responsible for the results of any actions which are undertaken on the basis of the information which is contained within this publication, nor for any error in, or omission from, this publication. The publishers and the authors expressly disclaim all and any liability and responsibility to any person, entity or corporation who acts or fails to act as a consequence of any reliance upon the whole or any part of the contents of this publication. Accordingly no person, entity or corporation should act or rely upon any matter or information as contained or implied within this publication without first obtaining advice from an appropriately qualified professional person or firm of advisors, and ensuring that such advice specifically relates to their particular circumstances. PKF International is a network of legally independent member firms administered by PKF International Limited (PKFI). Neither PKFI nor the member firms of the network generally accept any responsibility or liability for the actions or inactions on the part of any individual member firm or firms. II 4 preface The (WWTG) is an annual publication that provides an overview of the taxation and business regulation regimes of 100 of the world s most significant trading countries. In compiling this publication, member firms of the PKF network have based their summaries on information current as of 30 September 2011, while also noting imminent changes where necessary. On a country-by-country basis, each summary addresses the major taxes applicable to business; how taxable income is determined; sundry other related taxation and business issues; and the country s personal tax regime. The final section of each country summary sets out the Double Tax Treaty and Non-Treaty rates of tax withholding relating to the payment of dividends, interest, royalties and other related payments. While the WWTG should not to be regarded as offering a complete explanation of the taxation issues in each country, we hope readers will use the publication as their first point of reference and then use the services of their local PKF member firm to provide specific information and advice. In addition to the printed version of the WWTG, individual country taxation guides are available in PDF format which can be downloaded from the PKF website at PKF INTERNATIONAL LIMITED APRIL 2012 PKF INTERNATIONAL LIMITED ALL RIGHTS RESERVED USE APPROVED WITH ATTRIBUTION III 5 about pkf international limited PKF International Limited (PKFI) administers the PKF network of legally independent member firms. There are around 300 member firms and correspondents in 440 locations in around 125 countries providing accounting and business advisory services. PKFI member firms employ around 2,200 partners and more than 21,400 staff. PKFI is the 10th largest global accountancy network and its member firms have $2.6 billion aggregate fee income (year end June 2011). The network is a member of the Forum of Firms, an organisation dedicated to consistent and high quality standards of financial reporting and auditing practices worldwide. Services provided by member firms include: Assurance & Advisory Corporate Finance Financial Planning Forensic Accounting Hotel Consultancy Insolvency Corporate & Personal IT Consultancy Management Consultancy Taxation PKF member firms are organised into five geographical regions covering Africa; Latin America; Asia Pacific; Europe, the Middle East & India (EMEI); and North America & the Caribbean. Each region elects representatives to the board of PKF International Limited which administers the network. While the member firms remain separate and independent, international tax, corporate finance, professional standards, audit, hotel consultancy, insolvency and business development committees work together to improve quality standards, develop initiatives and share knowledge and best practice cross the network. Please visit for more information. IV 6 structure of country descriptions a. taxes payable FEDERAL TAXES AND LEVIES COMPANY TAX CAPITAL GAINS TAX BRANCH PROFITS TAX SALES TAX/VALUE ADDED TAX FRINGE BENEFITS TAX LOCAL TAXES OTHER TAXES b. determination of taxable income CAPITAL ALLOWANCES DEPRECIATION STOCK/INVENTORY CAPITAL GAINS AND LOSSES DIVIDENDS INTEREST DEDUCTIONS LOSSES FOREIGN SOURCED INCOME INCENTIVES c. foreign tax relief d. corporate Groups e. related party transactions f. withholding tax G. exchange control H. personal tax i. treaty and non-treaty withholding tax rates V 7 international time Zones AT 12 NOON, GREENwICH MEAN TIME, THE standard TIME ELsEwHERE Is: A Algeria pm Angola pm Argentina am Australia - Melbourne pm Sydney pm Adelaide pm Perth pm Austria pm B Bahamas am Bahrain pm Belgium pm Belize am Bermuda am Brazil am British Virgin Islands am C Canada - Toronto am Winnipeg am Calgary am Vancouver am Cayman Islands am Chile am China - Beijing pm Colombia am Croatia pm Cyprus pm Czech Republic pm D Denmark pm Dominican Republic am E Ecuador am Egypt pm El Salvador am Estonia pm F Fiji midnight Finland pm France pm Guernsey noon Guyana am H Hong Kong pm Hungary pm I India pm Indonesia pm Ireland noon Isle of Man noon Israel pm Italy pm J Jamaica am Japan pm Jersey noon Jordan pm K Kazakhstan pm Kenya pm Korea pm Kuwait pm L Latvia pm Lebanon pm Liberia noon Luxembourg pm M Malaysia pm Malta pm Mauritius pm Mexico am Morocco noon N Namibia pm Netherlands (The) pm New Zealand midnight Nigeria pm Norway pm O Oman pm G Gambia (The) noon Georgia pm Germany pm Ghana noon Greece pm Grenada am Guatemala am P Panama am Papua New Guinea pm Peru am Philippines pm Poland pm Portugal pm Puerto Rico am VI 8 Q Qatar am R Romania pm Russia - Moscow pm St Petersburg pm s Sierra Leone noon Singapore pm Slovak Republic pm Slovenia pm South Africa pm Spain pm Sweden pm Switzerland pm T Taiwan pm Thailand pm Tunisia noon Turkey pm Turks and Caicos Islands am U Uganda pm Ukraine pm United Arab Emirates pm United Kingdom (GMT) 12 noon United States of America - New York City am Washington, D.C am Chicago am Houston am Denver am Los Angeles am San Francisco am Uruguay am V Venezuela am Vietnam pm VII 9 Colombia colombia Currency: Peso Dial Code To: 57 Dial Code Out: 09 (P) Member Firm: City: Name: Contact Information: Bogota Cristobal Uribe a. taxes payable FEDERAL TAxEs AND LEVIEs INCOME TAx Companies resident in Colombia are subject to corporate income tax on their worldwide income. Resident corporations are those organised under Colombian law and that have their principal domicile in Colombia. The tax rate for which both domestic companies and branches of foreign companies are taxed is 33%. A reduced 15% rate applies in the free-trade zone areas. CAPITAL GAINs Capital gains are taxed as ordinary income except for a few types of capital gains that may be subject to special taxation (eg gains from lotteries and similar sources) or exempt from income taxation. EQUITy A net worth tax (impuesto al patrimonio) was generated in 2011 and is payable between 2011 and 2014 by corporate and individual residents. The tax is imposed if the taxpayer s wealth is equal to or exceeds COP 1 billion on 1 January The taxpayer s net wealth includes both wealth located in Colombia and net wealth located abroad. The tax rate start in 1% on the value of the wealth between (COP $ and $ ), excluding the net worth of shares or interests in participations in national entities VALUE ADDED TAx (VAT) VAT is levied on taxable supplies of goods and services by a taxable person within Colombia and on the importation of goods into Colombia by any person. Exports (and some specific items) are zero rated. The standard rate of VAT is 16%. PROPERTy TAx Real estate property is subject to municipal taxation (impuesto predial unificado). The tax is usually levied at rates within a band of 1 to 16 per thousand, with reference to the cadastral value of each property. Undeveloped plots of land may be subject to increased tax rates. b. determination of taxable income DEPRECIATION Tax deductions are available for reasonable depreciation rates which reflect the normal wear and tear or obsolescence of the property concerned. The straight-line and the declining-balance methods may be used, along with any other method of recognised technical value authorised by the Auditing Assistant Director of the General Direction of National Taxes. stock/inventory The average, LIFO, FIFO, retail and specific identification methods may be used in order to value inventories and all are accepted for tax purposes as long as the relevant method is recorded in the accounting books. LOssEs Losses incurred by a company in a tax year can be carried forward and deducted against liquid income in subsequent tax years. Tax losses incurred before 31 December 2006 may be carried forward for only eight years and only 25% of the losses are available to offset each year. There are no group relief provisions. DIVIDENDs Dividends paid to resident shareholders are exempt from income tax if the dividends are distributed out of profits that have been previously taxed at the corporate level. If the distributed profits were not previously taxed at corporate level, they are subject 1 10 Colombia to a withholding tax at the rate of 20% when paid to resident persons and 33% for non-residents. INTEREsT DEDUCTION Interest is generally deductible in full, although there are some restrictions where the recipient of the interest is not regulated by the banking authorities. FOREIGN source INCOME Colombia taxes resident companies on worldwide income from all domestic and foreign sources. This includes capital gains from the sale of stock of foreign corporations. INCENTIVEs Special tax incentives are provided to investors in certain specified industries such as agricultural plantations dedicated to the cultivation of fruits, anchovies, rubber and cacao, creation of hotels (new and remodeled), and publishing houses. There are also a number of free-trade zones and special import-export systems which provide for the duty-free entry of capital goods and materials to be used in the production of export goods. 1) The law 1429 of 2010 gave the following income tax benefits for new small businesses (natural or legal person) that constitute or formalise after this Act, and for inactive enterprises that will be reactivated as a result of this law a) They do not have to present presumptive Income tax in their first 10 years (depending on department to be installed) b) They calculate the income tax at reduced rates (progressive rates - starting at 0%) at the first 10 years (depending on the department to be installed). c. foreign tax relief In most cases, double taxation is relieved unilaterally by the granting of a foreign tax credit (FTC) against Colombian corporate income tax. Taxpayers may credit the amount of foreign tax paid on income from abroad, up to a maximum of the Colombian tax that would be due on the amount of income received from abroad. Colombian resident companies receiving dividends from foreign companies may credit against both foreign withholding taxes paid on the dividends and also the amount of the underlying foreign income tax paid by the foreign company on the profits from which the dividends were paid. d. corporate Groups There is no concept of group relief for Colombian tax purposes. e. related party transactions As a general rule, transactions between related parties must be carried out on arm s length principles, i.e. the prices should be the same as those that would be arrived at in comparable transactions with independent parties. The tax authorities may adjust the prices at which the taxpayer acquires or sells goods, as well as the consideration of other transactions, and modify the taxable base or the relevant loss of a taxpayer for income tax purposes. f. withholding tax The following domestic withholding tax rates apply in respect of payments to nonresidents. Dividends 33% Interest 33% Royalties 33% Service fees and commissions 33% Payments for technical services 10% None of the double taxation agreements between Colombia and other countries reduce the withholding tax rates below the domestic rates. 2 11 Colombia G. exchange controls Certain foreign currency transactions must be channelled through intermediaries authorised for the purposes including: import of property export of property external indebtedness foreign investment in Colombia Colombian investment in foreign countries financial investments and fixed assets based in foreign countries endorsements and guarantees derivative transactions. H. personal tax Resident individuals are liable to income tax in respect of their worldwide income. Non-resident individuals are liable to income tax only on their Colombian-sourced income. Newly resident individuals are taxed only on Colombian-sourced income during the first four years of their stay in Colombia. An individual is considered to be a resident of Colombia if he or she stays in Colombia for more than six months in a tax year regardless of whether or not the stay is continuous or for a period of more than six months ending in a tax year. A Colombian individual whose family lives in Colombia, or whose main place of business is in Colombia, is also considered a Colombian resident even if he or she does not remain in Colombia. The individual tax rate is progressive as follows: Taxable income (UVT) Tax rate Up to 1,090 0% 1,091 to 1,700 19% 1,701 to 4,100 28% over 4,100 33% Capital gains are normally subject to ordinary taxation except for a few items that may be subject to special taxation (eg gains from lotteries and similar sources) or exempt from income taxation, such as gains arising from inheritances, legacies and gifts up to a certain amount. No inheritance (estate) or gift taxes are levied at the federal or the local level. However, certain gifts may be treated as income and therefore be subject to income tax in the hands of individual donees. 3 12 $ World War Two dud : Hiker finds bomb in the forest Wolken A hiker in the Eifel forest stumbled upon an unusual sight - an unexploded bomb from the year 1943. Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken A British bomb left over from World War Two was found on Monday evening near the town of Wolken in the Eifel. According to police, a hiker found a rusty metal object at the approach to Langentalbach (Langental creek) in the forest. A bomb disposal team identified the object as a British 250-kilo bomb from 1943. After twenty minutes, the experts were able to diffuse the bomb and give an all clear for the area. Bonners remember victims of October 18 bombing : United in fate Bonn Bonn residents gathered with Syrian refugees to remember victims from the destruction of the old town of Bonn in World War II. The images reminded refugees of their hometown Aleppo. Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken Deafening loud sirens howled on October 18, 1944 in Bonn. They warned of impending disaster. Throughout the city, people were hurrying to their basement or bomb shelters in search of protection. Until then, the city of Bonn had been relatively unharmed, with just 500 of the more than 27,000 homes destroyed by bombs. For the allies, the city on the Rhine was far from being an important target. But on the fateful Wednesday morning, everything was different. At 11:03 a.m., 129 British Lancaster bombers did a test run for a new target system - their path was over the old town of Bonn. Within six minutes, Bonn was in ruins. 72 years later, a memorial service was held to remember the victims. Among the guests were refugees from Syria, who were reminded of the destruction in their homeland. The pictures of destroyed Bonn remind me a lot of photos from my hometown Aleppo, said Soubhi Kalghssi (34). The Syrian Christian fled a year ago out of persecution and fear, leaving everything behind. My family and many friends are still there, even my shop I had to close. Kalhssi ran a supermarket before fleeing. I myself have witnessed bombings and can therefore understand how people must have felt at that time. John Kieserg was a witness to the bombings on October 18 and spoke about the fateful day, It was actually a very nice morning. I was 15-years-old and doing my Schanzeinsatz (duties which were required of Hitler Youth from age 14) when the bombers came. His grandmothers house got hit but she was pulled alive out of the cellar. A painting business burned for days, because of strong winds the city could hardly get the fire under control. Transcription 1 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT, SIXTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR PASCO AND PINELLAS COUNTIES, FLORIDA ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER NO PA/PI-CIR RE: COURT APPOINTED ATTORNEYS FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS Section , Florida Statutes, requires the Court to appoint a private attorney to represent a dependent child with special needs if the Statewide Guardian Ad Litem Office is unable to recommend an attorney to represent the child. The Judicial Administrative Commission contracts with the appointed attorneys in accordance with section (5), Florida Statutes. The current Sixth Judicial Circuit Registry does not include attorneys to be appointed as counsel for dependent children with special needs. The Court appoints those attorneys from a registry that the Guardian Ad Litem and the Judicial Administrative Commission develop and provide to the Court. Effective July 1, 2015, the Guardian Ad Litem and Judicial Administrative Commission registry will no longer be maintained or available to the Court. See Ch , Laws of Fla. It is therefore necessary for the Court to establish and maintain a list of attorneys to be appointed for dependent children with special needs in Pasco and Pinellas Counties. Therefore, in order to provide for the appointment of counsel for dependent children with special needs and pursuant to the authority of the Chief Judge in accordance with Article V, 2, Florida Constitution, Rule of Judicial Administration 2.215, and 43.26, Florida Statutes, it is ORDERED: 1. Attachment (A) to Administrative Order PA/PI-CIR, entitled Sixth Judicial Circuit Registry Attorney Standards and Qualifications, is hereby amended as attached to this Administrative Order as Attachment (A). 2. The Court hereby adopts the Judicial Administrative Commission s Registry for Children with Certain Special Needs for Pasco and Pinellas Counties, as attached to this Administrative Order as Attachment (B). Each of the listed attorneys is approved to serve as a court-appointed attorney for a dependent child with special needs pursuant to section , Florida Statutes, until further order of the Court. 3. Registry attorneys must comply with paragraphs I.A. I.G. of Administrative Order PA/PI-CIR. All terms of Administrative Order PA/PI-CIR not in conflict with this Administrative Order remain in full force and effect. DONE AND ORDERED in Chambers at St. Petersburg, Pinellas County, Florida, this day of June, ORIGINAL SIGNED ON JUNE 30, 2015 BY ANTHONY RONDOLINO, ACTING CHIEF JUDGE Attachments: (A) Sixth Judicial Circuit Registry Attorney Standards and Qualifications (B) Judicial Administrative Commission Registry for Children with Certain Special Needs 2 cc: All Judges The Honorable Bernie McCabe, State Attorney The Honorable Bob Dillinger, Public Defender The Honorable Paula O Neil, Clerk of the Circuit Court, Pasco County The Honorable Ken Burke, Clerk of the Circuit Court, Pinellas County Gay Inskeep, Trial Courts Administrator Ngozi Acholonu, Assistant Regional Counsel Myriam Irizarry, Chief Deputy Director, Pinellas County Clerk s Office Lillian Simon, Director of Administrative Services for Pasco County Court Appointed Attorneys Bar Associations, Pasco and Pinellas Law Libraries, Pasco and Pinellas 2 3 SIXTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT REGISTRY ATTORNEY STANDARDS AND QUALIFICATIONS ATTACHMENT (A) to All Sixth Judicial Circuit Registry attorneys must meet the following experience and other qualifications as specified below for each list on which the attorney serves. An attorney s failure to comply with these requirements may result in removal of the attorney from all court-appointed lists. NOTE: All continuing legal education (CLE) must have been approved by The Florida Bar. Crime Lists Registry List Name and Qualifications Geographic Service ALL Criminal, Juvenile Delinquency & Jimmy Ryce Trial & Criminal Appellate Counsel. Non-capital felony and misdemeanor trials. 1 st degree felony trials 2 nd degree felony trials 3 rd degree felony trials Misdemeanor trials Criminal Contempt Involuntary Commitment of a defendant adjudicated not guilty by reason of insanity Criminal postconviction Interstate Extradition Post Sentence DNA testing Withdrawal of Plea Parole Revocation Probation Revocation Any other proceeding not noted elsewhere that may result in the 1. Have completed within the last 12 months, 10 hours of criminal law CLE. 2. Be familiar with the practice and procedure of the criminal courts in the Sixth Circuit. 3. Meet the experience requirements as stated below applicable to the alleged offense/event. 4. No later than May 15, 2016, have completed the continuing legal education course described in Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure Non-capital Felony & Misdemeanor Trials: 1. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous three years. 2. Experienced and active trial practitioner with no fewer than ten state or federal jury trials. 3. Served as lead counsel or co-counsel in ten felony cases, including five jury trials that were tried to completion. 3 Pasco, Pinellas 4 incarceration of defendant/respondent. Juvenile Delinquency trials Crime Lists Registry List Name and Qualifications Geographic Service Juvenile Delinquency Trials: 1. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous 12 months. 2. Familiar with practice and procedure of delinquency proceedings. 3. Experienced trial practitioner with no fewer than 3 delinquency dispositions or 3 state or federal jury or non-jury trials. 4. Have completed 3 hours of CLE in delinquency law within the last 12 months. This CLE may be part of the 10 hrs. of criminal law CLE required for all Crime list conflict trial counsel. Alternatively, the attorney may annually complete at least 3 hrs. of CLE concerning legal advocacy for children; if this alternative is chosen, the CLE may not be counted towards the 10 hrs. of CLE required for all Crime list attorneys. Pasco, Pinellas Criminal, Juvenile Delinquency, & Jimmy Ryce Appeals Non-capital felony, misdemeanor, juvenile delinquency & Jimmy Ryce civil confinement appeals. Criminal, Juvenile Delinquency, and Jimmy Ryce Appeals: 1. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous three years. 2. Completed within the last 12 months of ten hours of CLE devoted to appellate law. 3. An experienced and active practitioner in the field of appellate criminal law or have experience in the appeal of at least five criminal cases. Capital death penalty trials In accordance with (5), Fla. Stat., a capital case is any offense for which the potential sentence is death and the state has not waived seeking the death penalty. Attorneys on this list who are also on the registry of attorneys maintained by the Justice Administrative Commission under section (1), Florida Statutes, may be appointed to represent defendants in capital postconviction Death Penalty Trials Lead Counsel and Death Penalty Trials Co-counsel: Meet the requirements of Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure Rule 3.112(f) for Lead Counsel, and 3.112(g) for Co-Counsel, plus: a. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous five years; b. In addition to the continuing legal education requirements of 3.112(f)(7) and 3.112(g)(2)(E), respectively, during any year that counsel does not attend a continuing legal education program of at least twelve hours' duration devoted specifically to the defense of capital cases, counsel is required to obtain the case law update materials from the Public Defender s Office or the Florida Public Defender Association, Inc.; and c. Must not have provided constitutionally deficient representation, as determined by courts in two capital proceedings (trial, appellate, or postconviction), with the latest determination being made in a final order entered within the previous five years. Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.112(f-g). 4 Lead Counsel and Co-Counsel 5 proceedings in the Sixth Circuit (f) Lead Counsel. Lead trial counsel assignments should be given to attorneys who: Capital death penalty trials (Continued) Crime Lists Registry List Name and Qualifications Geographic Service (1) are members of the bar admitted to practice in the jurisdiction or admitted to practice pro hac vice; and (2) are experienced and active trial practitioners with at least five years of litigation experience in the field of criminal law; and Lead (3) have prior experience as lead counsel in no fewer than nine state or federal jury trials Counsel and Coof serious & complex cases which were tried to completion, as well as prior experience Counsel as lead defense counsel or co-counsel in at least two state or federal cases tried to completion in which the death penalty was sought. In addition, of the nine jury trials which were tried to completion, the attorney should have been lead counsel in at least three cases in which the charge was murder; or alternatively, of the nine jury trials, at least one was a murder trial & an additional five were felony jury trials; and (4)are familiar with the practice & procedure of the criminal courts of the jurisdiction; and (5) are familiar with and experienced in the utilization of expert witnesses and evidence, including but not limited to psychiatric and forensic evidence; and (6) have demonstrated the necessary proficiency and commitment which exemplify the quality of representation appropriate to capital cases, including but not limited to the investigation and presentation of evidence in mitigation of the death penalty; and (7) have attended within the last two years a continuing legal education program of at least twelve hours' duration devoted specifically to the defense of capital cases. Attorneys on the Lead Counsel list may also be appointed as independent, special counsel in accordance with Marquardt v State, 156 So. 3d 464 (Fla. 2015) to represent the public interest in bringing forth all available mitigation for the benefit of the jury, the trial court, and [the Supreme Court]. Note: In accordance with section , Fla. Stat., the Board of Executive Clemency appoints private attorneys from a list that it maintains to represent persons sentenced to death in and seeking relief by executive clemency. Death Penalty Trials Lead Counsel and Death Penalty Trials Co-counsel Cont d: 3.112(g) Co-counsel. Trial co-counsel assignments should be given to attorneys who: (1) are members of the bar admitted to practice in the jurisdiction or admitted to practice pro hac vice; & (2) qualify as lead counsel under paragraph (f) of these standards or meet the following requirements: (A) are experienced & active trial practitioners with at least three years of litigation experience in the field of criminal law; & (B) have prior experience as lead counsel or co-counsel in no fewer than three state or federal jury trials of serious & complex cases which were tried to completion, at least two of which were trials in which the charge was murder; or alternatively, of the three jury trials, at least one was a murder trial & one was a felony jury trial; & (C) are familiar with the practice & 5 6 procedure of the criminal courts of the jurisdiction; & (D) have demonstrated the necessary proficiency & commitment which exemplify the quality of representation appropriate to capital cases, & (E) have attended within the last two years a continuing legal education program of at least twelve hours' duration devoted specifically to the defense of capital cases. Crime Lists Registry List Name and Qualifications Geographic Service Capital death penalty Appeals Death Penalty Appeals: Meet Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure Rule 3.112(h), plus: a. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous five years; b. In addition to the continuing legal education requirements of 3.112(h)(6), during any year that counsel does not attend a continuing legal education program of at least 12 hrs. duration devoted specifically to the defense of capital cases, counsel is required to obtain the case law update materials from the Public Defender s Office or the Florida Public Defender Association, Inc.; and c. Must not have provided constitutionally deficient representation, as determined by courts in two capital proceedings (trial, appellate, or postconviction), with the latest determination being made in a final order entered within the previous five years. Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.112(h). (h) Appellate Counsel. Appellate counsel assignments should be given to attorneys who: (1) are members of the bar admitted to practice in the jurisdiction or admitted to practice pro hac vice; & (2) are experienced and active trial or appellate practitioners with at least five years of experience in the field of criminal law; & (3) have prior experience in the appeal of at least one case where a sentence of death was imposed, as well as prior experience as lead counsel in the appeal of no fewer than three felony convictions in federal or state court, at least one of which was an appeal of a murder conviction; or alternatively, have prior experience as lead counsel in the appeal of no fewer than six felony convictions in federal or state court, at least two of which were appeals of a murder conviction; & (4 )are familiar with the practice and procedure of the appellate courts of the jurisdiction; & (5) have demonstrated the necessary proficiency and commitment which exemplify the quality of representation appropriate to capital cases; & (6) have attended within the last two years a continuing legal education program of at least twelve hours' duration devoted specifically to the defense of capital cases. 6 7 Jimmy Ryce Involuntary Civil Confinement Trials Dependency Proceedings. Dependency Shelter Hearings Dependency adjudication Judicial Review Children in Need of Services /Families in Need of Services --Attorney for Parent Termination of Parental Rights (TPR) --Chapter 39 --Chapter 63 Jimmy Ryce Trials: 1. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous 3 years. 2. Be familiar with the practice & procedure of the criminal & civil courts in the Sixth Judicial Circuit. 3. Experienced & active trial practitioner with no fewer than ten state or federal jury trials. 4. Served as lead counsel or co-counsel in ten felony cases, including five jury trials that were tried to completion. 7 Pasco, Pinellas Dependency Lists Registry List Name and Qualifications Geographic Service Dependency Attorney for Parent: 1. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous 3 years. 2. Familiar with practice and procedure of dependency proceedings, including the Pasco, Pinellas application of the Juvenile Rules of Procedure and the Family Law Rules of Procedure. 3. Observation of at least 30 hours of hearings, including six shelter hearings, three dependency hearings, and one termination of parental rights (TPR) hearing. 4. Have completed within the last 12 months three hours of CLE in dependency law. Children in Need of Services /Families in Need of Services --Attorney for Child Dependency w/mental health (residential treatment) Emancipation Attorney Ad Litem for child Parental Notice of Abortion Act Any other proceeding where a child is entitled to representation (except for attorneys appointed for dependent children with special needs in accordance with section , Fla. Stat.) Dependent Children with Special Needs, including appeals, in accordance with section , Fla. Stat. Attorney for Child: Meet requirements for Dependency List, plus complete three-hour training course offered by the Guardian Ad Litem program. Attorney for Dependent Child with Special Needs: 1. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for previous three years. 2. Familiar with the practice and procedure of dependency proceedings, including the application of the Juvenile Rules of Procedure and the Family Law Rules of Procedure. 3. Familiar with the Florida Guidelines of Practice for Lawyers who Represent Children in Pasco, Pinellas 8 Abuse and Neglect Cases. 4. Within the last 2 years, attended at least 10 hours of CLE on the legal needs of children, including 5 hours addressing the representation of children with special needs or disabilities, and 1 hr. on ethics related to the representation of children; must meet CLE requirements within 3 months of appointment to the registry. At least 1 year experience representing children in dependency cases within the last 5 years; or be currently supervised by an attorney who has at least 1 year of experience representing children in dependency cases; or have observed at least 30 hrs. of dependency hearings including 1 shelter hearing, 1 dependency adjudicatory hearing, 1 judicial review hearing, 1 hearing pursuant to Rule or Fla. R. Juv. P., and one TPR trial. Dependency Lists Registry List Name and Qualifications Geographic Service Appeals of dependency proceedings conducted by a Dependency Attorney for Parent or an Attorney for Child. Note: in accordance with section (4)(b), Fla. Stat., appeals of proceedings conducted by an attorney for dependent children with special needs are handled by that attorney. Standard Guardianship Proceedings including: Developmental Disabilities Guardianship proceedings under Ch. 744, Fla. Stat. Attorney Ad Litem for estate Dependency Appeals: 1. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous three years. 2. Familiar with the practice & procedure of dependency proceedings in the Sixth Circuit. 3. Appellate practitioner with at least three years exp. in dependency or appellate law. 4. An experienced & active practitioner in the field of appellate law or have experience in the appeal of at least five cases not limited to dependency or TPR cases. 5. Have completed within the last 12 months three hours of CLE in dependency law. 8 Guardianship Lists Registry List Name and Qualifications Geographic Service Standard Guardianship: 1. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous 3 years. 2. Familiar with practice and procedure of guardianship proceedings in the Sixth Circuit. Pasco, Pinellas 3. Experienced trial practitioner who has represented clients in no fewer than fifteen (15) guardianship proceedings. 4. Have completed within the last 12 months three hours of guardianship CLE. 5. Have completed eight hours of continuing legal education in guardianship law or have served as an attorney of record for guardians for three or more years. Emergency Guardianship proceedings, including: Adult Protective Services Substance abuse assessment (Marchman Act) Mental Health (Baker Act) Tuberculosis Victims Emergency Guardianship: Meet the requirements for the Standard Guardianship List, plus: Certify familiarity with statutory and case law for the following proceedings and certify competency to provide representation in the following proceedings: Chapter 415 for Adult Protective Services; the Marchman Act; the Baker Act; Chapter 392 for victims of tuberculosis; Chapter 744 & 765 and Fla. R. Prob Health Care Advance Directives; and Chapter 384 for victims of sexually transmitted diseases. Pasco, Pinellas 9 Healthcare Adv. Directives Sexually Transmissible Disease Victims Guardianship Appeals Guardianship Appeals: 1. Member in good standing with The Florida Bar for the previous 3 years. 2. Familiar with practice and procedure of guardianship proceedings in the Sixth Circuit. 3. Experienced appellate practitioner who has represented clients in no fewer than 5 appeals. 4. Have completed within the last 12 months three hours of guardianship CLE. 5. Have completed eight hours of CLE in guardianship law or have served as an attorney of record for guardians for three or more years. Other Registry List Name and Qualifications Geographic Service No standards set. Chief Judge will analyze type of case involved and use exigent circumstance authority to appoint appropriately qualified member of The Florida Bar. Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 App. U.S.C.A. 521 (b)(2)). Require plaintiff to pay $ fee. If plaintiff indigent, JAC to pay. Updated Attachment A June 29, 10 JUSTICE ADMINISTRATIVE COMMISSION REGISTRY FOR CHILDREN WITH CERTAIN SPECIAL NEEDS Bar No. First Name Last Name Circuit Patricia Alten Erin K. Barnett 6 Pinellas Thomas J. Biniak Eric P. Boles Nancy L. Browder Cynthia Bryant 6 Pinellas Larry Cangro Melissa A. Cordon Lorieann M. Cox Ronald Frankel Keith J. Ganobsik William E. Gottfried Jonathan E. Hackworth Julia W. Knight Heather M. Madigan Bowdre M. McAlister Ann Martino Price Melanie Quattrone 6 Pasco Jessica L. Rae Amanda Adel Riyad Jaime Rodriguez Girgenti Donna Rose Stephen P. Russell John E. Tuthill Lana Zabriskie Sixth Circuit Administrative Order PA/PI-CIR - Attachment B 10 *This is a guest post by researcher, David Claerr. David has posted on here several times some very interesting posts! Be sure and check them out in the search bar on the right. His links are below* In a remote region of the Lava Badlands of Idaho, an intrepid researcher and his assistant were was working their way deep into a lava-tube cave system The lava tube formed a narrow, twisting crawlspace, with obstacles of rock and debris that made progress painfully difficult. The passage barely afforded room for an average man to crawl through. But at what appeared to be the end of the cave, and after squeezing through some stalactites that were crowded, the two researchers made a discovery of the skeletal remains of a large bird-like creature, about the size of an ostrich. Some of the desiccated remnants of cartilage and tendons remained attached to the bone and dehydrated. There appeared to be no feathers of any kind in the lava tube. They photographed the carcass from several angles*. Below is a picture of the carcass in its entirety. (Note that is no head or feet on this specimen.) Photo by Don Monroe Identification of the carcass from photographs has apparently proved difficult, even for ornithologists at the university level. (see end of post where their responses are listed for all to see). Some tentatively identified the remains variously as ostrich, emu or even trumpeter swan! Many others dismissed responding all together. But let's examine the following comparisons that I have made from side-by side photos of the skeletal remains of these birds: OSTRICH "CHICKOSAURUS" EMU "CHICKOSAURUS" TRUMPETER SWAN "CHICKOSAURUS" Several years later, the same researcher returned to the lava cave with two other researchers to document the find and retrieve tissue samples for analysis. In a strange paradoxical twist, it appeared that another similar carcass was found in a different location of the tube! The newer find was in a similar state of desiccation, with the skin and muscle mostly absent. But the new specimen had the feet attached- and the foot had only two toes. Tissue samples, consisting of a sequence of neck vertebrae and the trachea (or windpipe , as a common term) were retrieved (from prior find at teh end of the cave) and are currently pending further analysis; possibly DNA typing. So, now for some additional analysis and speculation. Obviously we have two different specimens, because the first carcass did not have feet attached. As a disclaimer of sorts, it is worth noting that there are ostrich farms in the same general region as the Lava Badlands, although it is difficult to fathom how a domesticated ostrich could have escaped and wandered into this remote and inhospitable badlands, the terrain of which resembles the surface of the moon in some places. It is possible that a large predator could have dragged an already stripped ostrich kill into the cave system as stored provisions, to nibble off the remaining tissues in the colder months. This idea then begs the question: what type of being, carnivorous or omnivorous is capable of doing so? Perhaps a bear, cougar or a Sasquatch would have the strength and/or inclination. This scenario may fit for the second carcass. But the first carcass appears to have a different anatomical configuration. Often caves preserve organic remains for hundreds of thousands of years if the setting is dry and cold. The lava-tube caves, formed perhaps about 15,000 years ago, fit this dry/cold criteria. Paleontologists and archaeologists often find remains of animals (and humanoids) dating from the present to the far distant past, in various stages of preservation or fossilization, in the same type of caves. If the first carcass was considerably more ancient, what could it possibly be? One of the reasons that this topic interested me is that during my travels in the American Southwest, I have heard stories from Native Americans about sightings of creatures that resembled (as the varying descriptions go) giant roadrunner birds, mini-tyranosauruses , or feathered raptor-dinosaurs. These stories usually include that these creatures are very swift runners, hunting in packs. Most sightings are in the early mornings. The older Native Americans tended to describe the creatures with the Giant Roadrunner analogy, perhaps since they had less exposure to the media presentations on dinosaur-related topics or because that description is a more accurate eye-witness account. Granted, now we enter the gray areas of speculation. In the more recent geological past, going back as far as the last Ice Age about 10,000 years ago, among the many species of megafauna in North America were giant, flightless carnivorous birds. (Indeed there are many stories in folklore and legend from peoples all around the world of encounters with these giants, often involving an epic struggle with the hero of the tale.) Skeletal remains of ancient creatures are actually very rare. But there are several specimens of a fairly well-known genus of large predatory birds. Some of the mostly complete remains date as recently as 1.8 million years ago. This would make those flightless raptors contemporary with early humans. And even today, there is a smaller species of bird (the 80 cm-tall seriema) that is the closest known relative of the ancient raptors. So let us perform some more comparative anatomical analysis with illustrations and photographs. (The illustrations are by the author.) The most complete reconstructions of the ancient flightless raptors are depicted below: The two ancient raptors in the illustration above are considerably older than the original Chickosaurus specimen, which would presumably be, at the oldest about 15,000 years. But note the strikingly close anatomical configuration between the smaller Patagornis (ostrich-sized) and the Chickosaurus. Could it be possible that a flightless, carnivorous raptor-bird roamed the America West as recently as the last Ice Age? Could they be descendants of the more ancient Patagornis? Could these birds still roam the remote regions of the American Southwest, as related in many Native Americans tales? Perhaps any or all of these possibilities could be true. There are many living fossils extant today, such as the well-known horseshoe crab, the coelacanth (a primitive fish), crocodiles and many insects such as the fig wasp, which have remained in the same anatomical state for millions of years. If there was such a raptor alive and well during the last Ice Age, what would it look like? The author, David Claerr, provides this rendition It is important to note that there are no remains yet recovered of the original Chickosaurus, which was apparently found in a more remote area of the cave, or at the very least another location altogether, than the second specimen. So, until we have some specimen samples of the original discovery's remains, the nature of the original carcass will continue to be a perplexing mystery. Was the Chickosaurus actually a Terror Bird? *Related copy photos courtesy of Don Monroe. Used with permission. Copyrights apply. LINK TO PRIOR CHICKOSAURUS POST About researcher and author of this post, David Claerr: David's Books David's Art ADDENDUM From Blogger Sharon Day (below accounting of poor responses for identifying the carcass) - HERE ARE REPLIES FROM UNIVERSITIES AND MUSEUMS THUS FAR - FAIL! - Idaho Museum of Natural History/ISU - Our paleontologists identifies it as a trumpeter swan. (Note from take another look above at trumpeters swan's delicate wing bones, how about the leg bones compared to the substantial bones of chickosaurus, not to mention the rib cage differences - did their paleontologist actually look at this???) IGNORED - Colorado University Museum - no response FAIL! - Cornell Lab of Ornithology - So far Ive received a deafening silence from both the curator of the Cornell Museum of Vertebrates, and from another staff member who is usually all about bone-sleuthing. I checked in with the former this morning and he said nothing occurred to him at first glance, but that he would take another look. (No response after) FAIL! - Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at University of Connecticut - Im sorry but I have no real knowledge of skeleton identification. Id suggest contacting someone at a museum with a major collection as they are likely to have the relevant expertize. (Look at the dept this came from) IGNORED - Arizona State University - no response SOME DIALOGUE/FAILED ANSWER - Burke Museum, Washington - That is a pretty interesting find! My guess is that it was brought into the cave by a non-human predator or scavenger. But Im copying my ornithology colleagues here who will know more than me, and maybe can also ID the bird... That is a very large bird. Not many options other than a swan. IGNORED Cal Academy - no response Article Protecting the worlds oceans an important goal of Germanys climate diplomacy The worlds oceans are vital to our survival. They regulate the global climate and are a source of food and income for billions of people. Only a very small part of the seas enjoys legal protection, however. Our diplomats are working in New York right now to change this state of affairs. Life and Art Along the L Train Saturday, October 22, 10am - 5:30pm Since its expansion to 8th Avenue in Manhattan in the 1930s, the L line has stimulated gentrification along its route which traverses three boroughs. We explore the West Village and meatpacking district -- including a portion of the new Highline Park and on to the East Village, Williamsburg, East Williamsburg, Bushwick and Ridgewood noting the continuous transformation of each of these neighborhoods, stimulated by the movement of artists. This tour requires registration and payment in advance and is restricted to 25 participants. Fee $49 For a complete prospectus, email: jaconet@aol.com The L train will soon be shut down for repairs; join this tour prior to that. # I'm hoping that by now urban geographer Jack Eichenbaum -- who's also the Queens borough historian -- needs no introduction to readers, and if he does, just click on the tag below. As I've noted, Jack's wide-ranging tours around NYC (I've toured all five boroughs except Staten Island with him), with their emphasis on the evolving forces of urban geography, have done more than I could tell to enable me to see how and why the city has developed and continues to develop.One of Jack's choice tour modes is to devote an entire day to a single subway line, usually involving a half-dozen off-the-subway mini-walking tours along the route, giving urban gadders a sense of how variously the urban fabric both absorbed and was shaped by the line. He's probably best-known for what he calls his "signature" tour, "The World of the #7 Train," showcasing the diversity of what may be the world's most "international" rail line. But with Jack I've also toured the J train (from Lower Manhattan across the Williamsburg Bridge into Brooklyn and then Queens) and the Brighton line in Brooklyn (revisiting Howie's and my old lifeline into "the City").Now, as I've noted here previously, Jack is taking on the L train, in advance of the year-and-a-half shutdown of its connection from Williamsburg to Manhattan, to make possible desperately needed reconstruction and repair of damage caused by the ravages of time and Superstorm Sandy.: "Obviously, it isn't going to be possible to do this tour again at least until the L line reopens, and even then, who knows? So if this sounds like something you might be interested in, now is the time to get on board. At last word from Jack, there's still space, but since we're talking about this coming Saturday, you need to contact Jack ASAP, either by e-mail or by phone (if you e-mail me at, I'll send you the number). Labels: Brooklyn, Jack Eichenbaum, New York City, Urban Gadabout Xiaomi Mi Max Prime Edition Launched at Rs. 19,999, Availability Starts October 17 News oi -Vigneshwar As promised, the Chinese handset maker Xiaomi has launched the Mi Max Prime smartphone powering the Snapdragon 652 SoC ahead of the diwali festival. Moreover, this smartphone will go on sale for three days starting on October 17th on a flash sale basis with discounts. The recently launched Mi Max Prime is another variant of Mi Max, which was launched a few days back in the Indian market. Moving on, the difference between two smartphones is a processor, which is Snapdragon 652 SoC, 4GB RAM and 128GB inbuilt memory under the hood. Besides, everything is same on the spec sheet. SEE ALSO: Get Free Gifts on Smartphones This Dasara and Diwali Season! Reiterating the specifications, the Mi Max Prime comes with 6.44-inch Full HD IPS 2.5D curved glass display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. Moreover, it has 1000 : 1 contrast ratio, 72% NTSC color gamut and a Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection from scratches! Besides 128GB inbuilt storage, you can also expand the storage through MicroSD card slot. On the software front, this smartphone comes shipped with MIUI 8 on top of Android 6.0 Marshmallow out of the box. Xiaomi Mi 5c with E-Ink Display Leaks Via Photos: Here's What We Can Expect Talking about the imaging factor, this smartphone has 16MP rear camera with dual tone LED flash, PDAF and F/2.0 aperture. On the front, the Mi Max Prime flaunts a 5MP selfie camera with 85-degree wide angle lens and f/2.0 aperture as well. In terms of connectivity, the Mi Max Prime supports 4G LTE with VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac (2.4 / 5GHz) MIMO, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS + GLONASS. Just like the Mi Max , this smartphone measures 7.5mm thickness and weighs around 203grams as well. SEE ALSO: 5 Benefits of Buying Apple iPhone 7/ 7 Plus under Reliance Jio Contract Moreover, it also has the fingerprint sensor and infrared sensor also to act as a universal remote control. The Xiaomi Mi Max Prime is powered by a 4850mAh battery, which claims to give up to 14 hours of juice on a single charge. Besides, Xiaomi will also hold Rs. 1 flash sale every day starting from October 17th to 19th every day 2PM. In this sale, you can get your hands on Redmi 3S Prime, Mi Bluetooth speaker, Redmi Note 3 , 20,000mAh Mi Power Bank, Mi 4 and Mi Band 2. Also, you will also get Rs. 100, Rs. 200 and Rs. 500 discount coupons for smartphones and other accessories from 10am to 10pm till October 16th. For more information, you can head on to Mi India stores. Click Here for New Smartphones Best Online Deals Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications '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. Ecuador Cuts Wikileaks Head's Web Access Over Election Meddling RFE/RL October 18, 2016 Ecuador's government said it temporarily restricted internet access for Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, because it opposed the group's meddling in the U.S. election. Wikileaks's web sites have carried numerous leaks of the private e-mails of top U.S. Democratic party officials recently -- leakswhich have been traced by U.S. intelligence officials and private experts to Russian hackers and which U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has blamed on the Russian government. Assange has lived in Ecuador's London embassy since mid-2012 to escape Western law enforcement action. WikiLeaks said that Assange lost connectivity over the weekend shortly after it published Clinton's private speeches to Goldman Sachs. The Ecuadoran government took responsibility for the cut-off late on October 18, saying it wanted to distance itself from WikiLeaks' decision to publish documents impacting the U.S. election, which it said was entirely Wikileaks' responsibility. "Ecuador, exercising its sovereign right, has temporarily restricted access to part of its communications systems in its U.K. Embassy," the Ecuadoran Foreign Ministry said in a statement. "The government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states. It does not interfere in external electoral processes, nor does it favor any particular candidate," it said. Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa has publicly supported Clinton over her opponent, Republican nominee Donald Trump, who has reveled in the numerous damning Wikileaks of Democratic e-mails showing internal party struggles and highlighting Clinton vulnerabilities. "For the good of the United States and the world...I would like Hillary to win," Correa told Russia Today last month, adding that Clinton is someone who "I know personally and appreciate very much." Assange was granted asylum by Ecuador's leftist regime after a British court ordered him extradited to Sweden to face questioning in a sexual molestation case involving two female supporters. WikiLeaks said it activated "contingency plans" after Assange got disconnected from the Web, and Ecuador said that its cut-off did not stop the group from continuing its "journalistic activities." On October 18, Wikileaks' Twitter feed released another tranche of e-mails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, suggesting that the group's ability to publish had not been compromised. Podesta has blamed the extensive leaks of his e-mails on Russia and said he was told by the FBI that the breach is part of its investigation into Russian hacking of the U.S. election. Wikileaks has not said where it got the e-mails. Shortly after Ecuador cut Assange's web link, Wikileaks charged that the United States had pressured the South American country to rein in Assange -- a charge denied by the United States as well as Ecuador, which said pointedly that it "does not cede to pressures from other countries." U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby dismissed Wikileaks' charge. "While our concerns about Wikileaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary [John] Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down Wikileaks is false." With reporting by AP, Reuters, and AFP Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/ecuador- cuts-wikileaks-founder-assange-web-access-over-us- election-meddling-clinton-trump/28062176.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hanscom looks to leverage industry to improve air picture By Patty Welsh, 66th Air Base Group Public Affairs / Published October 18, 2016 HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. (AFNS) -- A program office at Hanscom Air Force Base is working to improve and upgrade a system that provides comprehensive air surveillance and defense with a recent request for information and industry days. The Battle Control Systems Fixed, or BCS-F, provides a comprehensive air picture for North America and allows air battle managers to execute command and control missions. Officials are looking for options to modify the system, including processing of new data sets, such as the Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast, ADS-B. "With the current BCS, we get multiple feeds to create the air picture, and when we integrate ADS-B, we'll get information from the (Federal Aviation Administration) that would improve accuracy and details about an aircraft," said 1st Lt. Dylan Byrd, a launch deputy project manager. "For instance, if we saw a stuck track, we'd have the ability to pull up the emitter category of the aircraft to see if it's a helicopter instead of tasking resources to get a visual confirmation." ADS-B is part of the Next Generation Air Transportation System, or NextGen, and program office personnel will continually be looking at NextGen capabilities. NextGen is a massive initiative between federal partners to modernize America's air transportation system, and according to documentation developed by the FAA, it involves a shift to satellite-based and digital technology. Additional work includes updating capabilities such as tactical display framework, and functions such as alerts and track history. "We want to ensure we keep the functions the system has today, but we want to see if we can improve and update them alongside the new abilities ADS-B can bring in, especially if we can get the information seven to 12 times faster," Byrd said. Another system capability the program office is looking to enhance is updating what is called the Correlator Tracker's Earth Model to a more accurate model, known as Earth Centered Earth Fixed. "Currently, BCS takes multiple sources of data in and assigns them different values, including calculating position and displaying on the screen for the operator," Byrd said. "However, BCS thinks the world is a rectangle with fixed boundaries and we are trying to eliminate those boundaries. With air defense, the further out you can go and the further out you can look, understand, see and pull data in, the faster you can react and the faster you can provide an updated air picture." The program office held industry days at the beginning of August to determine industry interest and capability. Fifteen companies attended, demonstrating significant industry interest. "We're looking to industry to see if there is something in existence that brings in the new sensor information that is also able to accommodate what BCS already does today," Byrd said. "We're also looking to see if anyone can bring an open architecture." Once the program office has finished market research, they are planning to look toward release of a request for proposal toward the end of fiscal year 2017. As the BCS-F is a North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, system, the program office at Hanscom AFB is working a project arrangement with Canada. "We're working with them to share the cost of development and bringing in their resources, such as engineers, right from the start," said Capt. Jeremi Viloria, a launch project manager. "ADS-B is their number-one requirement as it will improve their reach, allowing them to get surveillance in areas they weren't able to before." And while all this work is going on, the program office is continuing efforts to sustain and maintain the current BCS-F with a contractor logistics support contract. This effort will bring in new functionality such as Mode 5, providing better information for the operators. "This enhancement reduces ID track swaps, extends effective coverage and reduces target dropouts, which benefit our operators and provide some of the highest quality data available for the assets that matter most in a command and control environment," Byrd said. He added the program office is looking to open up the system bit by bit to enable greater competition. "The program office is pursuing its first full and open competition of contractor logistics support for the BCS-F fielded system," Byrd said. "We believe this competition will leverage industry strengths and also gives an opportunity for new contractors to provide the government with alternative methods to sustain this high-demand, critically important system at its 99.98 percent operational availability rate." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Admiral: Networked Threats Pose 'Significant Challenge' to Western Hemisphere By Lisa Ferdinando DoD News, Defense Media Activity WASHINGTON, Oct. 18, 2016 Networked threats in Latin America pose a danger to U.S. national security and erode stability in the region, the commander of U.S. Southern Command said here today. Addressing these threats goes beyond stopping drug trafficking, the smuggling of weapons and other illicit goods, and human trafficking, Navy Adm. Kurt W. Tidd told the Center for Strategic and International Studies in a discussion on maritime security. "Instead, it's the amorphous, adaptable and networked threats enabling these illicit flows that keep me up at night," he said. "Transregional and transnational threat networks -- and not the commodities that they move -- are the real threat to our nation's security and the region's stability." While Southcom's focus had largely been in the last decades on combating the flow of drugs, the command is instead lifting its sights off a singular threat to take a networked view of the security environment, Tidd explained. Whether extremist, criminal or even state-sponsored, the networked threats are a "significant challenge facing every nation in the Western Hemisphere," he said. Some networks, for example, smuggle small arms via maritime conveyances or traffic cocaine, while violent extremist networks spread influence, and move money, weapons and people, he said. Human trafficking networks smuggle desperate people from all over the world into the United States who are seeking employment or trying to escape conflict, he said. "While other networks specialize at moving individuals with questionable backgrounds, worrisome intentions, and possible ties to terrorism into the United States via a long and circuitous route, sometimes starting in South America, up through Central America and Mexico, and into the United States," he said. Some, he said, even possess the expertise to build semi- and fully-submersible watercraft that are can travel unassisted and undetected. Combating the threat networks requires a new way of thinking, he said. He called for strengthened bonds among U.S. government agencies, as well as increased regional maritime cooperation, including in information sharing and multilateral exercises. Regional Security, Global Commitments In the question-and-answer session of the hour-long discussion, Tidd noted the contributions of Central and South American nations to regional and global security. The United States and Colombia, for example, have had a special relationship for more than two decades, he pointed out. Colombia, he noted, is very close to achieving a peaceful conclusion to its more than five-decades-long civil war. In addition, Brazil has and continues to make notable contributions to global peace and security, he said, including leading the U.N. peacekeeping force in Haiti, and commanding the maritime task force of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Lebanon. "This is a country that has significant capabilities and is willing to shoulder the responsibilities of being a security leader," he said. Chile and Peru have significant capabilities and are working closely in support of peace and security, he said. In addition, El Salvador has deployed a helicopter detachment to the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Mali, he said. There are a number of countries in the region, he said, that have significant capabilities and are interested in being constructive partners on a global scale, he said. 'Can't Afford to Ignore' Russian Presence in Region Russia is reinvesting a significant amount in historical relationships it has had in Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela, Tidd said in response to a question about Russian operations in the region. "I think we can't afford to ignore their presence," he said. "You look at Russia and you look at what are their vital national interests. It's difficult to imagine that they have any vital national interest here in the Western Hemisphere." He said he finds it troubling Russia has engaged in an aggressive propaganda campaign to spread the narrative that the United States is not a reliable partner in Latin America. Russia is engaged in a "competition for influence," he said. The United States is concerned about the region, he said, pointing to the U.S. response in Haiti to the recent devastation from Hurricane Matthew. "I think it's very, very noteworthy that when you look at the response to Haiti, we had at one point in time 12 helicopters -- heavy lift and medium lift helicopters -- flying vital aid, meeting the needs of the Haitian people and I didn't see any Russian helicopters out there," Tidd told the forum. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Americans Advancing on Mosul with Iraqis and Kurds By Carla Babb October 18, 2016 More than 100 American troops are accompanying Iraqi and Kurdish peshmerga forces in their push to take back the city of Mosul from Islamic State forces. Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters Tuesday the Americans are assisting about 10,000 Kurds, 18,000 Iraqi Security Forces and another couple thousand Iraqi police as they face an Islamic State force that has been hunkered down in the second-largest Iraqi city for more than two years. Estimates of IS fighters in Mosul range from about 3,000 to 5,000 fighters, but U.S. officials say Mosul is home to greater skilled IS fighters who are more dedicated to the fight and more ideologically zealous. Davis said the more than 100 U.S. forces are embedded with Iraqi Security Forces at the division headquarters level. They also are embedded with Kurdish and Iraqi counterterrorism commandos at levels considered below the division level. U.S. officials have stressed that embedded American forces will remain with Iraqi and peshmerga counterparts who are involved in coordinating and decision making, rather than at the frontlines of combat. But U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter has said U.S. troops are still in harm's way. Iraqi and Kurdish forces say they have retaken a dozen villages outside Mosul, and Davis said there are four major points from which the offensive is pushing into the city. Kurdish peshmerga units are advancing on Kurdish villages from two points east of Mosul, with Iraqi Security Forces following behind. ISF forces are advancing from the north from the Qayarrah West base, and another ISF team is pushing into Mosul from the southeast. Much of the west is still controlled by Islamic State, prompting U.S. officials to suggest that the IS leadership may look to flee west to Raqqah should Mosul start to fall. These officials say they have so far seen some IS family members flee west, but they have not seen foreign fighters coming in or out of the city recently. The long-awaited offensive, backed by airstrikes from a U.S.-led coalition and involving Sunni tribal forces and Shiite militias, remains on the outskirts of Mosul. IS fighters have burned tires and oil to obscure their movements, but officials say the tactic hasn't degraded air support by the coalition, which carried out four strikes against IS forces in and around Mosul on Monday. President Barack Obama, speaking Tuesday in Washington, said Mosul will be a "difficult fight," but he expressed confidence that IS will be defeated in the city. "Perhaps a million civilians are still living there, so in addition to rooting out ISIL, our focus jointly is on the safety and humanitarian aid for civilians who are escaping the fight. That's going to be a top priority for both our governments," he added, using an acronym for Islamic State. East of Mosul, the Kurdish peshmerga forces advanced quickly, with U.S. officials saying Tuesday that the Kurds had seen less resistance than anticipated. Iraqi armed forces to the city's south have been making slower progress because they have more ground to cover, having begun their operations 40 kilometers from the edge of Mosul. On the first day of the offensive, Iraqi regulars along with Shiite militiamen overran three villages. Their target Tuesday is the village of Zawiya. Kurdish President Masoud Barzani has declared that "Mosul will be liberated," adding that his fighters are doing their best to keep the city from becoming like war-battered Aleppo in Syria. Iraqi officials say there will be no sustained airstrikes on the city center to avoid high casualties among the more than 1 million civilians still in the city. This is the largest and most complex military operation in Iraq since U.S. combat forces left the country five years ago. It will involve Iraqi-led troops, Kurdish peshmerga, Iraqi police, and Sunni and Shiite militias. However, it is raising concerns about the safety of hundreds of thousands of civilians in the area, and aid agencies are warning of a likely humanitarian crisis. 'Ahead of schedule' A spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition said Tuesday the operation is "on or ahead of schedule," and that the militants are not able to stop the Iraqi and Kurdish forces with small arms and improvised explosives. While they can't stop the advances, they can slow them. Movement forward by all coalition forces is methodical, with commanders opting for caution as they come under mortar and sniper fire. On the southern front, Iraqi troops are moving painstakingly into the village of Abbas, which is larger than most of its neighbors. Pockets of IS militants have been mounting lightning attacks. Iraqi troops are also fearful of improvised bombs, which have been planted in the main thoroughfares. In the east, there were conflicting reports about why some Kurdish peshmerga appeared to have paused their advance Tuesday. Some Kurdish commanders said they had done so to allow Iraqi forces, who are earmarked to enter the city, to move forward. Others said they were in the process of re-ordering their own units. Spokesman Davis said that pauses would need to occur throughout the fight so that anti-IS forces could conduct clearing operations or wait for logistics. "It would be absolutely crazy to suggest on day two that we're stalled already," Davis said. Peshmerga commander Bakhtyar Sadeeq told VOA: "There is no halt in our operation. The peshmerga forces paused moving forward because we coordinate with the Iraqi military. We have achieved our goal in the first day. Now the Iraqi army will take it from there. In fact, Iraqi troops have made significant advances today." There have been several reports of IS suicide bombers driving cars packed with explosives at their foes. Soon after the peshmerga offensive began early Monday with Kurdish troops moving over dirt mounds marking the frontline between them and IS fighters on the eastern or Khazir front, IS offered stiff resistance, trying to strike back with mortar fire and car bombs. Two cars driving at the Peshmerga were destroyed by airstrikes, but another managed to get close to the Kurds before being detonated, according to commanders. Long fight expected U.S. Gen. Stephen Townsend, the coalition's ground commander in Iraq, tamped down expectations of a quick victory at Mosul. "This may prove to be a long and tough battle, but the Iraqis have prepared for it and we will stand by them," he said. The peshmerga Chief of General Staff, Jamal Iminiki, also cautioned reporters not to expect a rapid collapse of IS resistance. IS militants have had plenty of time to prepare for the fight and have constructed elaborate defenses, including a network of tunnels, in the city. Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said Monday that U.S. troops are on the Mosul outskirts in a support role, but that "Iraqis are in the lead." Monday and Tuesday, Iraqi planes continued to drop leaflets warning civilians in Mosul and outlying villages of the offensive, urging them to stay indoors and to avoid any IS positions, which may prove difficult, with IS fighters throughout the city. The United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs called on all participating forces to ensure the safety of civilians in Mosul, and Iraqi commanders say they are taking steps to help civilians escape. Jamie Detmer and Sirwan Kajjo contributed to this report. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Malnutrition Spikes in North Cameroon Amid Boko Haram Conflict By Moki Edwin Kindzeka October 18, 2016 Aid agencies are sounding the alarm about severe food insecurity throughout northern Cameroon as a result of the Boko Haram conflict. This month, 70 children suffering from malnutrition have needed medical attention at the Minawao refugee camp. However, says nurse Irene Mbarga, the hospital has limited resources to treat them. The families are not able to provide enough food, she says, and malnutrition is making other health conditions worse. Mbarga told VOA that about three quarters of the cases the hospital sees are related to malnutrition. When the hospital is running short on supplies, she says, the staff can only provide first aid. The Minawao camp is home to more than 50,000 refugees, a majority of them women and children. More displaced people live in host communities. Dr. Abdoul Mustapha of the Cameroon medical council in Mokollo, far northern Cameroon, says local residents also have been bringing their children to the refugee camp hospital. Local health clinics are not set up to deal with malnutrition. The rate of simple malnutrition has increased from 7 percent last year to nearly 12 percent now, Mustapha says. Cases of severe acute malnutrition also are on the rise, signaling an emergency. Cameroon's Ministry of Public Health and the United Nations say more than 100,000 children in northern Cameroon currently suffer from acute malnutrition. This part of Cameroon was already grappling with high rates of chronic malnutrition, as much as 30 percent among children, before the Boko Haram conflict arrived in 2014. The mass displacement, including the influx of refugees from neighboring countries, has only made the situation worse. In addition, insecurity has made farming impossible in some areas, while herders have lost their animals to insurgents. "The situation of malnutrition, or food insecurity, reflects not only the fact that we are not able to grow sufficient or enough food, but we do not have the access to that and we do not have sufficient means in order to maintain access to health services, in order to maintain and address young people when they have diarrhea, for example," said Barbara Sow, the Cameroon representative of the U.N. Fund for Population Assistance. "So the challenge for the U.N. is making the link between a humanitarian response today, bringing it food so that young children and families can eat today, but making sure that they have the means by which tomorrow, they are not in the same position," she added. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Tags: academic, philosophical permalink Many years back, when I had just moved to Montreal (a great city to meet some of the most fascinating minds in the world, a topic for another blog post), I met Dr. Costopoulos from the Department of Anthropology at McGill University. He mentioned some work he and his students have been doing simulating animal decision making using ice core data. The premise is simple, particularly coming from a machine learning, optimization and genetic algorithms background: in an environment punctuated by slow, progressive changes followed by cataclistic changes in the opposite direction, individuals that track the enviromment better will overfit (and die). More inaccurate individuals will be the ones surviving long term. I finally tracked the paper published behind this research: Xue JZ, Costopoulos A, Guichard F (2011) Choosing Fitness-Enhancing Innovations Can Be Detrimental under Fluctuating Environments. PLoS ONE 6(11): e26770. While it explicitly states their assumptions are too simplistic for human populations, the theoretical ground is sound: the best decision makers among human populations should have been wiped out during the rapid deglaciation periods (think woolly mammoth), some of them as recent as 20,000 years ago. This of course has many interesting implications, some I will discuss next. Iraqi Troops Advance Toward Mosul as ISIL Tries to Hide Movements By Terri Moon Cronk DoD News, Defense Media Activity WASHINGTON, Oct. 18, 2016 Iraqi and Kurdish peshmerga security forces are working together as they advance along several axes to liberate Mosul, Iraq, from Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant control, Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, director of Pentagon press operations, told reporters today. "The level of coordination and cooperation we have seen between the Kurds and the [Iraqi security forces] has been very good," Davis said. "They're working together very well, collaborating just the way we would want them to." The U.S. military supports Iraq's counter-ISIL fight with a wide range of capabilities such as air support, artillery, intelligence, advisors and air controllers, he noted. "To be clear, the thousands of combat forces that are going to liberate Mosul are Iraqis," he added. "We have, to date, conducted tens of thousands of precision strikes to support Iraqi operations." And while the U.S.-led coalition has trained and equipped more than 54,000 Iraqi forces, it will continue to focus on the enemy and work diligently to minimize any impact on innocent civilians, Davis emphasized. "We can't predict how long it will take for the [Iraqi security forces] to defeat ISIL in Mosul, but we know we will succeed," he said, citing other towns and villages they have liberated from ISIL's grip since 2014. ISIL Tries to Block Attacks ISIL has lighted what Davis described as "obfuscation fires giant pits with tires and oil they light quickly to create big, thick black clouds of smoke to conceal their movements and positions [and] make it harder for coalition aircraft to see and target them." The United States has seen reports of suicide bombers who try to attack the Iraqi forces as they move in, Davis said, as well as reports of civilians being forcibly dressed in Iraqi military uniforms and publicly executed for propaganda purposes by ISIL fighters. While it's an ugly fight, Davis said, "we've seen very good progress in day one." Long, Tough Battle Expected And while a lot of movement must take place for the Iraqi forces to get into Mosul, Davis noted, "It is very much under way." An estimated 10,000 Kurdish security forces and 18,000 Iraqi security forces arje involved in the effort, Davis said, and about 2,000 Iraqi federal police follow behind Iraqi fighters as towns and villages are cleared. Those numbers could increase as more Iraqis are trained, he noted. On the high end, he said, the estimates of ISIL fighters in Mosul and around the surrounding Ninevah province could be as high as 5,000. While the fight to liberate Mosul from ISIL's two-year stronghold is anticipated to be a long and tough battle, Davis said, the Iraqi security forces are ready for it adding, "We will stand by them," he added, "and we have given them the tools they need to succeed in this." Tidd Cautions Nations to Watch ISIL Navy Adm. Kurt W. Tidd, commander of U.S. Southern Command, told reporters at the Pentagon today that nations around the globe must be mindful that the ISIL caliphate ideology has proven to be "damaging, destructive and has created [an] enormous security problem in the Middle East." "As it continues to morph and metastasize," he said, "I think all around the world we must all be mindful of where it might it pop up, and we must [work] with our security partners around the world [to] take steps to prevent that from happening." The Southcom commander was in the nation's capital to attend a chiefs of defense conference with Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford and his counterparts from more than 40 nations to discuss "the global possibility of what happens after Mosul -- what happens after the physical caliphate is reduced," he said. The conference was to put in place a more watchful global network to share information on what potential threats might exist, Tidd said. "Many of our partners around the region now recognize that in the aftermath of attacks by self-radicalized individuals from Brussels, Paris, Nice, Ankara, Orlando and San Bernardino, that phenomenon can pop up almost anywhere and with very, very little advance warning," Tidd said. "It is incumbent on literally all countries to recognize how that can happen, and to be able to share information as effectively as possible, so as we learn of potential sources of radicalization, we take steps that are consistent." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN aid agencies brace for possible displacement 'catastrophe' caused by military offensive in Mosul 18 October 2016 United Nations humanitarian agencies operating in Iraq are bracing for what could be a displacement catastrophe requiring the largest and most complex global response in 2016, in the wake of the military offensive under way to oust terrorists from Mosul, the country's second-largest city. "Displacement is expected to start any minute now," Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told reporters in Geneva. According to OCHA and other agencies, up to one million people may be forced from their homes due to the military operation against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da'esh), of which 700,000 may be in need of shelter assistance and up to 200,000 may be displaced within the first two weeks of the operation. UN relief officials described the situation as having the potential to be one of the worst-case scenarios requiring the largest and most complex humanitarian operation in the world in 2016, or a catastrophe resulting in one of the largest man-made displacement crises in recent years. "Protection concerns for all those civilians are at the forefront of the preparations of the humanitarian community, and there are already protection monitoring teams on the ground," Mr. Laerke said. He explained that preparations for the offensive have been going on for several months, and the UN has focused on preparing shelter in three priority areas south of Mosul, where the first displaced families are expected to be accommodated. More reception sites are under construction. Supplies including food, water and sanitation and household kits have been stockpiled in preparation. All this has been done with the collaboration of non-governmental organizations, he added. "The UN has prepared as efficiently as possible with the available resources. The preparedness appeal is asking for $367 million, but it is not fully funded," he said. William Spindler, the spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), said the agency is continuing to prepare shelter and other emergency assistance while appealing for more international funding. "There are real fears that the offensive to retake Mosul could produce a humanitarian catastrophe resulting in one of the largest man-made displacement crises in recent years," he said. There are already 3.3 million displaced Iraqis approximately 10 per cent of the population. Mr. Spindler said UNHCR has already opened five camps, ready to shelter 45,000 people. There are plans for a total of 11 camps to open in the coming weeks, with a capacity for 120,000 people. UNHCR and partners are ready to establish more camps quickly, but have been constrained by a lack of access to safe and suitable land from the Iraqi authorities and private landowners. With the rainy season and winter approaching, the issue is becoming even more pressing. In addition, UNHCR will have 50,000 emergency shelter kits available for out of camp populations, covering a total of 300,000 people. There will also be 25,000 tents available for families living outside of camps, covering a further 150,000 people, he added. If all planned activities are funded and ready, UNHCR will be able to provide shelter support for 570,000 people. So far, $75 million, or 39 per cent, out of UNHCR's response budget of $196.2 million, had been provided. "The enormity of the potential displacement raises also considerable concerns about the protection of civilian populations," he said. "For example, some could be prevented from fleeing or could face restrictions of movement to safe areas and access to humanitarian assistance, he added. Moreover, there are also risks of vulnerable populations facing exploitation and abuse, including possible heightened intercommunal and ethnic or religious tensions and conflicts, and family separations and detentions for security screening. Civilians risk being caught in crossfire Speaking by phone from Bagdad in Iraq, Thomas Lothar Weiss, the Chief of Mission for the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in the country, said the Mosul campaign, which started yesterday, puts civilians at extreme risk from cross fire, snipers, and artillery barrage. Tens of thousands of people could be trapped between the fighting lines or held as human shields, for which there have been precedents, in areas which have been recaptured from ISIL in the past weeks and months, he said. "There is also a fear, based on some evidence, that ISIL might be using chemical weapons," he noted. "The Mosul situation has the potential to be one of the worst case scenarios and is expected to be the largest and most complex humanitarian operation in the world in 2016," he said. Based on plans by the Government, it is envisaged that a number of the internally displaced persons who make it out of Mosul will be resettled in emergency sites in secure locations in different corridors to the east and south-east of Mosul. Those are sites that can be established quicker than the regular camps and will include some basic services. IOM has started the process which led to the identification of four emergency sites, which have a potential capacity of up to 150,000 persons, but still far from the 200,000 people who might be displaced during the first week of the military operation. UNICEF warns of 'extreme risk' for children and families Christophe Boulierac, spokesperson for the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), said that more than half a million children and their families in Mosul would be at extreme risk in the coming weeks. "Many children and their families could be forcibly displaced and trapped between fighting lines or caught in the cross-fire," he said, adding that UNICEF's major concerns relate to the protection of children during the military operation, the scale and pace of displacement and its impact on the agency's ability to deliver, and the protection of children and their access to services in the aftermath of the conflict. UNICEF has already prepositioned enough water, showers, latrines and hygiene kits for over 150,000 people immediately, with plans to reach over 350,000 over the next few weeks. Mobile teams are on standby to care for the most critical cases of mental and physical trauma among children. Together with the Ministry of Health, UNICEF also has more than 50 teams on standby to start a vaccination campaign against polio and measles. Mr. Boulierac stressed that UNICEF has called on all sides involved in the conflict to protect children and respect international humanitarian law so that children and their families can safely get through this intense period of violence. For Mosul specifically, UNICEF is asking for $43 million and has received $30 million so far. Bettina Luescher, spokesperson for the World Food Programme (WFP), said that the agency has been scaling up its preparations. WFP has over 14,000 tons of family food rations in warehouses near Mosul, enough for a million people for one month, or around 200,000 families. She said WFP also has immediate response rations for 240,000 people. Those can be used immediately by people who do not have cooking facilities. Once the families go into shelters with cooking facilities, they would get the monthly rations, she added. Over the past months, WFP has already been helping over 90,000 people fleeing from places liberated from ISIL along the Mosul corridor. "There is no good information about what is happening inside Mosul and WFP is very concerned about it," she said. "Also, despite the preparations that have been underway for months, WFP is worried that the circumstances on the ground can make humanitarian access difficult." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. Appeals Court Boots Defense Lawyers In Magnitsky Money Fraud Case Mike Eckel October 18, 2016 WASHINGTON -- A U.S. appeals court has disqualified lawyers for a company accused of laundering the proceeds of a massive Russian tax fraud, whose fallout led Washington to sanction numerous Russians and helped poison U.S.-Russian relations. The ruling by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals on October 17 was an incremental but noteworthy development that effectively paralyzes the legal team defending the company, Prevezon, which U.S. prosecutors have linked to a Russian businessman. The three-judge panel ruled that a lower court "abused its discretion" by refusing to disqualify the legal team, who previously worked with the investment fund Hermitage Capital. A whistleblowing lawyer working for Hermitage, Sergei Magnitsky, helped investigate the $230 million tax fraud before his death in a Russian jail in 2009. Lawyers for Hermitage, owned by British-American investor William Browder, argued that the involvement of the lawyers from the U.S. firm Baker Hostetler on Prevezon's behalf posed a conflict of interest. "This is a precedent-setting ruling which shows the legal profession that they cannot change sides from representing victims to representing perpetrators of the same crime without grave professional consequences," Browder, a vocal Kremlin foe, told RFE/RL in an email. U.S. prosecutors have accused Prevezon of buying luxury real estate in Manhattan using some of the proceeds from the $230 million tax fraud that first came to light in 2008. Based on Magnitsky's research, Hermitage went public with details of the fraud, saying Russian law enforcement and tax officials colluded to illegally use companies it had owned to steal the massive sum from Russian coffers. Magnitsky later died while in pretrial detention on fraud charges that his supporters said were retribution for blowing the whistle on the scam. His friends and family say he was tortured while incarcerated, and a Council of Europe investigation concluded that the conditions leading up to his death amounted to torture. Russian Retaliation Russian authorities later convicted Magnitsky posthumously of fraud, while a Russian court also convicted Browder in absentia on similar charges. With intense lobbying by Browder, the U.S. Congress passed legislation in 2012 bearing Magnitsky's name, penalizing those accused of complicity in the tax fraud and his death, as well as other alleged Russian rights abusers. After President Barack Obama signed the bill into law, the Kremlin retaliated by banning Americans from adopting Russian children and sanctioning several top U.S. officials. In 2013, U.S. prosecutors moved to seize Prevezon's assets as part of a civil asset forfeiture, a legal tool that allows the seizure of property if it is shown to be connected to criminal activity. U.S authorities said as recently as last year that Prevezon's owner was Denis Katsyv, whose father is the former top transportation official for the Moscow region. Both the company and Katsyv himself have denied accusations of involvement with the stolen funds. He is not facing criminal charges in either the United States or Russia, as he pointed out in a February 2014 affidavit, nor has he been sanctioned under the Magnitsky Act. Michael Mukasey, a former U.S. attorney general who is now a private lawyer helping Prevezon with the appeal, said the defense team was disappointed by the ruling, and that no decisions had been made yet about whether to appeal further. "We are helping the client consider its options," Mukasey told RFE/RL in an e-mailed statement. The Magnitsky Act, which has publicly hit 39 Russians with sanctions and an unspecified number secretly, became law just months after Vladimir Putin returned to the Russian presidency. The Kremlin has repeatedly cited it as a major irritant for U.S.-Russian relations. Earlier this month, in announcing the suspension of a symbolic plutonium disposal agreement with the United States, Putin cited removal of the Magnitsky Act as a precondition for resuming the deal and other agreements. Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia-u-s-boots-defense- lawyers-magnitsky-case/28061649.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Four Malaysian mobile operators say they have agreed to use the governments state-owned 5G network, paving the way for an increased rollout in the country. The Hanoi Stock Exchange has allowed the company's shares to be traded on a market for unlisted companies. Hanoi Beer, Alcohol and Beverage JSC., better known as Habeco, has been given the green light from the Hanoi Stock Exchange to list 231.8 million shares on the UPCoM market for unlisted companies. Habeco shares with the face value of VND10,000 (45 U.S. cents) will be traded on the market under the code BHN. The UPCoM market allows Vietnam to better regulate over-the-counter trading and gives newly listed companies enough time to get ready for the main stock exchanges. The listing will value the brewery at VND2.3 trillion ($104 million) based on market capitalization. Habeco is the market leader in the north and the third largest brewer in Vietnam, after Sabeco and Heineken-owned Vietnam Brewery Limited. In terms of market share, Sabeco, as the dominant player, controls 40 percent of the local beer market while Habeco comes second with 20 percent. They are now 90 percent and 82 percent owned by the state respectively. The government's plan to divest from Sabeco and Habeco has been on and off for several years. They are among the few state-owned companies that perform extremely well. Foreign investors always have eyes on the two breweries as they are attracted by the strong growth of Vietnams beer market, one of the biggest in Asia. The Vietnam Beer Alcohol Beverage Association forecast the country will see its annual beer output increase by 25 percent by 2020. The government requires state-owned enterprises to list for 90 days on the UPCoM market after becoming a public company. The next step is to list the shares on the main bourses. The Ministry of Trade and Industry, which is holding a major stake of 81.79 percent at Habeco, said Sabeco will follow in Habecos footsteps in the first quarter next year. Successful exits from Sabeco and Habeco will bring about $2 billion more into the nation's coffers. Unlike most other countries, Vietnam treats IPOs and listings as two different processes that are sometimes separated by years. Habeco in fact had its initial public offering in 2008. In its new privatization drive, the govermnment has promised strong actions to speed up the process of selling and listing shares. Related news: >Vietnam to rake in $7 billion from massive divestment push >Beer, big bucks and babes: tapping into Vietnam's thirst >Vietnam's fresh privatization push puts local firms on edge Early childhood education is so vital to Ben and Betty Davenport that they donated $1 million to improve child care training programs at four community colleges in Southside and Southwest Virginia. Its so important, Ben Davenport said. During the first three years of life, 85 percent of the brain is developed. Without being encouraged to have a love for learning, reading and other skills during those years, a child enters kindergarten at a disadvantage that could affect their whole lives, Davenport said. We would like to see our population get smarter, Davenport said, adding that the way to do that is to have well-trained staff that can teach that love of learning at every childcare center. The money donated by the Pittsylvania County couple will establish the Davenport Early Childhood Development Institute not a brick-and-mortar building, but an initiative that combines the forces of the community colleges with the Virginia Early Childhood Foundations initiatives, such as Smart Beginnings and the Virginia Star Quality Initiative. It is basically a workforce training initiative, Ben Davenport said, to improve early childhood education training at community colleges so child care centers can better prepare preschoolers for kindergarten. Ann Stratton, executive director of Smart Beginnings of Danville and Pittsylvania County, called the Davenport Early Childhood Development Institute important, noting that it will make further education possible for child care workers at most centers, from small, home-based providers to those held in churches and privately-owned childcare centers. It will teach the people who work with children to understand child development and how to interact with children appropriately so they are engaged in learning from an early age. It will yield new interest in child care and preschool leadership in the region, Stratton said. Child care is so much more than babysitting, Martha Tucker, associate professor of early childhood and reading at Danville Community Colleges Families First Childrens Center, said. If you read to children daily, they will love to read books, and if you engage them, they will learn to love learning. Tucker said about 60 percent of the child care centers in the Danville area are involved in the Virginia Star Quality Initiative, which rates centers on how effectively they are interacting with their students. It also earns the centers extra points in those evaluations if staff has been getting the training they need to be more effective teachers. But other areas in Southside and Southwest Virginia do not have the same level of participation in the Virginia Star Quality Initiative. Were an anomaly; the other three districts have nowhere near 60 percent participation, Davenport said. Davenport said Smart Beginnings of Danville and Pittsylvania County has tracked how well kindergarten students are for school for the past five years. Five years ago, he said, 30 percent of the children entering local school systems were not ready for kindergarten. Now that number is less than 14 percent, Davenport said. Wed like to see that spread all over the region. Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced the Davenport Early Childhood Development Institute during at a 50th anniversary celebration of the Virginia Community College System in Richmond on Saturday. The community colleges that will benefit from the Davenport Early Childhood Development Institute are Danville Community College, Patrick Henry Community College in Martinsville, Virginia Western Community College in Roanoke and New River Community College in Dublin. Soldiers look for a helicopter that crashed in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province on Tuesday. Photo by VnExpress/Phuoc Tuan More than 400 people joined the 24-hour long search mission in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province. A helicopter that crashed in southern Vietnam during a training session on Tuesday has been found, together with the bodies of all the three pilots. Local military officers confirmed at around 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday that they had found the aircraft, badly damaged, in a valley by Bao Quan Mountain in Ba Ria Vung Tau Province. The valley is more than 500 meters above sea level, and around 90 kilometers to the southeast of Ho Chi Minh City. It is right next to Dinh Mountain, which was originally believed to be the crash site. The two pilot trainees, Sub-lieutenants Dang Dinh Duy and Nguyen Van Tung, and their teacher, Captain Duong Le Minh, did not survive the crash. Their bodies were intact. The aircraft was badly broken, an officer said. They were flying an EC130 of Vietnam Helicopter Corporation on a training session when the helicopter crashed at around 8:30 a.m., less than half an hour after takeoff. Ba Ria-Vung Tau authorities and the Ministry of National Defense sent more than 400 people and three helicopters to look for them. The search and rescue mission was hindered by the local mountainous terrain and heavy rains on Tuesday night. The Eurocopter EC130 is a single engine light helicopter originally launched and produced by the Eurocopter Group, now Airbus Helicopters. The model has various safety features, including flight data recorders and crash-worthy seats. The safety record of Vietnams civilian aviation sector is generally good, but over the past years there have been several incidents involving military aircraft. In late August, a Czechoslovakia-era jet training aircraft crashed into a paddy field on the fringes of the central province of Phu Yen, killing one pilot and critically injuring one passer-by on the ground. Last June, Vietnams Air Defense suffered a double loss in one week. On June 14, a Su-30MK2 Vietnamese fighter crashed off the central province of Nghe An. Only one of the two pilots made it out alive. Two days later, a CASA-212-40 with nine people on board went missing while searching for the Su-30MK2. In January 2015, four people were killed when a Vietnamese military helicopter, a UH-1 and known as a Huey, crashed minutes after it set off from Ho Chi Minh City, an army official told AFP. In July 2014, 19 people died and two others were injured when a Russian-made Mi-171 chopper crashed in Hanoi during a training exercise. In 2008, five Vietnamese air force officers were killed when their twin-engine light transport aircraft crashed on the outskirts of Hanoi, according to AFP. Related news: > Helicopter crashes in southern Vietnam during training session > Military aircraft crash kills 1 in central Vietnam Concise letters 250 words or fewer on topics of local interest will receive first consideration for publication. All letters are subject to editing for language and clarity. Mailing Address: Letters to the Editor, The Register & Bee, 700 Monument St., Danville, VA 24541 Letters submitted by mail must include the writer's name, signature, address and a daytime phone number. Fax: (434) 799-0595 Email: letters@registerbee.com Or submit a letter via our online form: Submit a letter Destination Downtown South Boston is one of five groups in Virginia receiving a total of $300,000 in Virginia Community Business Launch grants announced Tuesday by Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. The towns of South Boston and Altavista, as well as the cities of Bristol, Franklin and Waynesboro are each receiving $60,000 in grant funding. The program helps communities incentivize and foster local entrepreneurship. Each community will receive $60,000 in funding to support their respective development strategies. The SoBo Start Up Program is a six-week entrepreneur boot camp program, culminating in a business competition where participants vie for a total of $60,000 in grant funds to start or expand their businesses in downtown South Boston, said Destination Downtown Executive Director Tamyra Vest. The SoBo Start Up Program is part of the Governors Virginia Community Business Launch initiative to help localities with their efforts to have a more robust entrepreneurial environment. Small business development and entrepreneurism are key components to building and diversifying the new Virginia economy, said McAuliffe. The localities selected for this funding have articulated a clear vision for how to develop and grow a small-business ecosystem in their communities. The Community Business Launch program will help these cities and towns turn those visions into reality by helping entrepreneurs get their start and begin creating the next generation of homegrown Virginia jobs. The CBL program starts with a communitys unique vision for its future and then uses a local business competition to find and foster the entrepreneurs that connect with that vision. CBL provides the tools to effectively prepare multiple entrepreneurs to operate successful businesses in a downtown or neighborhood commercial district and allows them to compete for funding to launch their new endeavor. The CBL program has been a smart tool for building strong entrepreneurial ecosystems, said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Todd Haymore. Not only are we providing much-needed funding to budding entrepreneurs, but we are educating the community on the opportunities and impacts of entrepreneurial and small business development. Todays grant awards bring us one step closer to solidifying Virginias position as the preeminent place to live, work and conduct business. While only a limited number of entrepreneurs may win the business competitions, CBL has given rise to many entrepreneurs that have been prepared, through the CBL initiative, to be successful businesses. In the last grant year, CBL helped to start or expand 46 businesses. In addition, it helps communities begin to develop a coordinated, comprehensive sustainable environment that identifies, launches and supports community-based entrepreneurs and small business at all levels of development. VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2016 / Canyon Copper Corp. (TSXV: CNC) ("Canyon") is pleased to announce that the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange") has closed the option agreement ("Option Agreement") with ProAm Explorations Corporation ("ProAm"), a company listed on the "Exchange", to earn a 71% interest in the Samuels Lake Property (the "Property") by paying $50,000 and issuing 200,000 common shares to ProAm. The future obligations under the Option Agreement are set forth in Canyon's news release dated September 27, 2016. Samuels Lake (the "Property") is located in the Rainy River District of Ontario, about 56 kms west southwest of Atikokan, a former mining centre that is 200 kms west of the port of Thunder Bay. The claim block covers a land area of 595.63 ha, (1,472 acres) with 5 mineral claims (36 units). This coverage encompasses all of the area of the Samuels Lake Intrusion. The Property is host to Nickel, Copper, Cobalt and Platinum Group Elements ("PGE"). Ben Ainsworth, President and CEO of Canyon stated - "The advantage of having accumulations of nickel-copper sulphides, and the potential for cobalt as a by-product means Samuels Lake is an attractive exploration target for Canyon. Cobalt is an important component of lithium ion batteries electrode materials." Summary of Historical Work The Property is an advanced exploration project, having had two significant work campaigns on it. Both campaigns lead to recommendations for further work, with geophysical targets for drilling. The first campaign was in 1998 - 2001, which started from a joint venture agreement between StarCore Resources Ltd and ProAm Explorations Corporation ("ProAm"). The program included property scale geophysical surveys, together with prospecting and trenching of the discovery area. This was followed up by a drill program of 12 NQ drill holes for 2,748 m. to test some of the electromagnetic and magnetic anomalies identified by the surface geophysical surveys. Drill hole SM 99-3 one of the early drill holes attempted, intersected 45.74 meters of 0.82 % copper, 0.64% nickel, with 0.8g/t Pt+Pd+Au and up to 0.08% cobalt. This mineralization was associated with wehrlite alteration which has a high magnetic susceptibility and can also present magnetic anomalies. Six subsequent holes were used to carry out a downhole Crone Pulse EM Survey which identified 3 conductive targets for further testing. The second work program was completed in 2007 and 2008, by Teck/Cominco who optioned the property from ProAm. Further ground geophysical surveys, UTEM and ground magnetics followed by a 7 diamond drill hole program, which intersected interesting nickel, copper and cobalt mineralization, including: Hole SL 08-13 0.39% Ni, 0.85%Cu, 0.075% Co over 14.3m from 234.7m to 249.0m Hole SL 08-14 0.21% Ni, 0.30% Cu, 0.03% Co over 33.5m from 167.0m to 200.5m Hole SL 08-15 0.23% Ni, 0.52% Cu, 0.034% Co over 15.2m from 107.4m to 122.6m Including: 0.57% Ni, 1.299% Cu, 0.066% Co over 3.1m from 107.4m to 110.5m The principal host rocks for the intrusions that host the sulphide mineralization discovered at Samuels Lake are the meta-sedimenary rocks of the Quetico belt of rocks. Bodies of early mafic and ultramafic intrusions are the host rocks for this style of sulphide mineralization, which intrude the principal host rocks. As these intrusions cool they may go through a process of settling out crystals, solidifying in the magma chamber, and forming layered reefs or pods of sulphides that may contain concentrations of copper, nickel, cobalt and PGE. Activity in the area, focuses on the mine of North American Palladium Ltd. (NAPL) at Lac Des Iles, 180 km to the northeast. Lac Des Iles is regarded by many as a similar type of deposit to Samuels Lake. NAPL and several junior exploration companies are currently and actively exploring for Cu, Ni, PGMs and Co in the area between Lac des Iles and Samuels Lake. Proposed Exploration Program The first priority is to rework all of the Teck Cominco and ProAm drill hole data to position the holes in a 3D plot of their relative positions. A review of drill core will also be undertaken to assure that all the most prospective sections have been assayed. These activities on the earlier data sets will allow Canyon with targeting extensions of the higher grade, copper-nickel mineralization with associated cobalt coproduct and PGE. From these targets Canyon will plan a three to five hole drill program in early 2017, subject to obtaining sufficient financing. Qualified Person Benjamin Ainsworth, P. Eng, BC, with Licence #8648 and CEO of Canyon, is a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the contents of this news release. On behalf of the Board of Directors, "Benjamin Ainsworth" CANYON COPPER CORP. Benjamin Ainsworth, President Contact: Canyon Copper Corp. Investor Relations (604) 331-9326 (604) 684-9365 (FAX) info@canyoncc.com Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Information This News Release may contain, in addition to historical information, forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phases such as "believe," "expect," "plan," "anticipate" and similar expressions identifying forward-looking statements. Investors should not rely on forward-looking statements because they are subject to a variety of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Canyon's expectations, and expressly does not undertake any duty to update forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to the following, limited operating history, proposed exploration and/or drill programs and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Canyon to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. NEITHER TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE. SOURCE: Canyon Copper Corp. LONGUEUIL, Quebec, Oct. 19, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stornoway Diamond Corp. (TSX:SWY) (the Corporation or Stornoway) is pleased to announce that the Renard Diamond Mine was officially opened today at a ceremony held in the presence of M. Pierre Arcand, Quebecs Minister of Energy and Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Plan Nord, as well as current and former staff members, project stakeholders and local community members. Also in attendance were M. Jean Boucher, the Member of the Quebec National Assembly for Ungava, Chief Richard Shecapio, Chief of the Cree Nation of Mistissini, Mme Manon Cyr, Mayor of Chibougamau and M. Steve Gamache, Mayor of Chapais. Matt Manson, President and CEO, commented Todays opening ceremony marks the culmination of approximately 20 years of work to bring the Renard Project from a green-field exploration concept to a fully operating new diamond mine. A long list of individuals can claim a share in the success of this enterprise. While we celebrate the official opening ceremony today, our production ramp-up continues and we remain on schedule to achieve commercial production by the year end. Patrick Godin, COO, commented Our company has relied for many years on its mineral resources, its shareholders, its employees and its stakeholders; and the strength, commitment, determination and ability of these four mainstays are what make us the most proud today. An archived video recording of the opening ceremony will be available on Stornoways website at www.stornowaydiamonds.com. About the Renard Diamond Mine The Renard Diamond Mine is located approximately 250 km north of the Cree community of Mistissini and 350 km north of Chibougamau in the James Bay region of north-central Quebec. On July 8, 2014, Stornoway announced the completion of a $946 million project financing transaction to fully fund the project to production, and construction commenced on July 10, 2014. Processing of ore commenced on July 15, 2016. In March 2016, Stornoway released the results of an Updated Mine Plan and Mineral Reserve Estimate in March 2016. The study highlighted the potential of the project to become a significant producer of high value rough diamonds over an initial 14 year mine life. Probable Mineral Reserves, as defined in National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101), stand at 22.3 million carats. In accordance with the Corporations September 2015 Mineral Resource estimate, total Indicated Mineral Resources, inclusive of the Mineral Reserve, stand at 30.2 million carats, with a further 13.35 million carats classified as Inferred Mineral Resources, and 33.0 to 71.1 million carats classified as non-resource exploration upside. Average annual diamond production is forecast at 1.8 million carats per annum over the first 10 years of mining, at an average valuation of US$155/carat based on March 2016 terms. Readers are cautioned that the potential quality and grade of any target for further exploration is conceptual in nature, there has been insufficient exploration to define a Mineral Resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a Mineral Resource. All kimberlites remain open at depth. Readers are referred to the technical report dated January 11, 2016, in respect of the September 2015 Mineral Resource estimate, and the technical report dated March 30, 2016, in respect of the March 2016 Updated Mine Plan and Mineral Reserve Estimate for further details and assumptions relating to the project. Qualified Persons Disclosure of a scientific or technical nature in this press release was prepared under the supervision of M. Patrick Godin, P.Eng. (Quebec), Chief Operating Officer, and Mr. David Farrow, P.Geol. Pr.Sci.Nat (South Africa) and P.Geo. (BC), Vice President Diamonds, both qualified persons under NI 43-101. About Stornoway Diamond Corporation Stornoway is a leading Canadian diamond exploration and development company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol SWY and headquartered in Montreal. Our flagship asset is the 100% owned Renard Diamond Mine, Quebecs first diamond mine. Stornoway is a growth oriented company with a world-class asset, in one of the worlds best mining jurisdictions, in one of the worlds great mining businesses. On behalf of the Board Stornoway Diamond Corp. /s/ Matt Manson Matt Manson President and Chief Executive For more information, please contact Matt Manson (President and CEO) at 416-304-1026 x2101 or Orin Baranowsky (Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Development) at 416-304-1026 x2103 or toll free at 1-877-331-2232 Pour plus dinformation, veuillez contacter M. Ghislain Poirier, Vice-president Affaires publiques de Stornoway au 418-254-6550, gpoirier@stornowaydiamonds.com ** Website: www.stornowaydiamonds.com Email: info@stornowaydiamonds.com ** This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. This information and these statements, referred to herein as forward-looking statements, are made as of the date of this press release and the Corporation does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law. These forward-looking statements include, among others, statements with respect to Stornoways objectives for the ensuing year, Stornoways medium and long-term goals, and strategies to achieve those objectives and goals, as well as statements with respect to Stornoways beliefs, plans, objectives, expectations, anticipations, estimates and intentions. Although management considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect. Forward-looking statements relate to future events or future performance and reflect current expectations or beliefs regarding future events and include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: (i) the amount of Mineral Reserves, Mineral Resources and exploration targets; (ii) the amount of future production over any period; (iii) net present value and internal rates of return of the mining operation; (iv) assumptions relating to recovered grade, average ore recovery, internal dilution, mining dilution and other mining parameters set out in the Updated Renard Diamond Project Mine Plan and Mineral Reserve Estimate, Quebec, Canada, NI 43-101 Technical Report (the 2016 Technical Report) ; (v) assumptions relating to gross revenues, operating cash flow and other revenue metrics set out in the 2016 Technical Report; (vi) mine expansion potential and expected mine life; (vii) expected time frames for completion of permitting and regulatory approval related to construction activities at the Renard Diamond Project; (viii) the expected time frames for the completion of the open pit and underground mine at the Renard Diamond Project; (ix) the expected time frames for the completion of construction, start of mining and commercial production at the Renard Diamond Project and the financial obligations or costs incurred by Stornoway in connection with such mine development; (x) future exploration plans; (xi) future market prices for rough diamonds; (xii) the economic benefits of using liquefied natural gas rather than diesel for power generation; (xiii) sources of and anticipated financing requirements; (xiv) the effectiveness, funding or availability, as the case may require, of the Stream, the Senior Secured Loan, the COF and the Equipment Facility and the use of proceeds therefrom; (xv) the Corporations ability to meet its Subject Diamonds Interest delivery obligations under the Purchase and Sale Agreement; and (xvi) the impact of the Financing Transactions on the Corporations operations, infrastructure, opportunities, financial condition, access to capital and overall strategy.; (xvii) the foreign exchange rate between the US dollar and the Canadian dollar; and (xviii) the availability of excess funding for the construction and operation of the Renard Diamond Project . Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as expects, anticipates, plans, projects, estimates, assumes, intends, strategy, goals, objectives, schedule or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, might or will be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are made based upon certain assumptions by Stornoway or its consultants and other important factors that, if untrue, could cause the actual results, performances or achievements of Stornoway to be materially different from future results, performances or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Such statements and information are based on numerous assumptions regarding present and future business prospects and strategies and the environment in which Stornoway will operate in the future, including the price of diamonds, anticipated costs and Stornoways ability to achieve its goals, anticipated financial performance, regulatory developments, development plans, exploration, development and mining activities and commitments, and the foreign exchange rate between the US and Canadian dollars. Although management considers its assumptions on such matters to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect. Certain important assumptions by Stornoway or its consultants in making forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: (i) required capital investment and estimated workforce requirements; (ii) estimates of net present value and internal rates of return; (iii) receipt of regulatory approval on acceptable terms within commonly experienced time frames; (iv) anticipated timelines for completion of construction, commencement of mine production and development of an open pit and underground mine at the Renard Diamond Project, which heavily depends, among other things, on adequate availability and performance of skilled labour, engineering and construction personnel, performance of mining and construction equipment and timely delivery of components; (v) anticipated geological formations; (vi) market prices for rough diamonds and the potential impact on the Renard Diamond Project; (vii) the satisfaction or waiver of all conditions under each of the Senior Secured Loan, the COF and the Equipment Facility to allow the Corporation to draw on the funding available under those financing elements for the completion of the development and construction of the Renard Diamond Project; (viii) Stornoways interpretation of the geological drill data collected and its potential impact on stated Mineral Resources and mine life; (ix) future exploration plans and objectives; (x) the Corporations ability to meet its delivery obligations under the Steaming Agreement; and (xi) the continued strength of the US dollar against the Canadian dollar. Additional risks are described in Stornoway's most recently filed Annual Information Form, annual and interim MD&A, and other disclosure documents available under the Corporations profile at: www.sedar.com. By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and risks exist that estimates, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will not be achieved or that assumptions do not reflect future experience. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on these forward- looking statements as a number of important risk factors could cause the actual outcomes to differ materially from the beliefs, plans, objectives, expectations, anticipations, estimates, assumptions and intentions expressed in such forward-looking statements. These risk factors may be generally stated as the risk that the assumptions and estimates expressed above do not occur, including the assumption in many forward-looking statements that other forward-looking statements will be correct, but specifically include, without limitation: (i) risks relating to variations in the grade, kimberlite lithologies and country rock content within the material identified as Mineral Resources from that predicted; (ii) variations in rates of recovery and breakage; (iii) the uncertainty as to whether further exploration of exploration targets will result in the targets being delineated as Mineral Resources; (iv) developments in world diamond markets; (v) slower increases in diamond valuations than assumed; (vi) risks relating to fluctuations in the Canadian dollar and other currencies relative to the US dollar; (vii) increases in the costs of proposed capital and operating expenditures; (viii) increases in financing costs or adverse changes to the terms of available financing, if any; (ix) tax rates or royalties being greater than assumed; (x) uncertainty of results of exploration in areas of potential expansion of resources; (xi) changes in development or mining plans due to changes in other factors or exploration results; (xii) changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; (xiii) risks relating to the receipt of regulatory approval or the implementation of the existing Impact and Benefits Agreement with aboriginal communities; (xiv) the effects of competition in the markets in which Stornoway operates; (xv) operational and infrastructure risks; (xvi) execution risk relating to the development of an operating mine at the Renard Diamond Project; (xvii) failure to satisfy the conditions to the effectiveness, funding or availability, as the case may require, of each of the Stream, the Senior Secured Loan, the COF and the Equipment Facility; (xviii) changes in the terms of the Stream, the Senior Secured Loan, the COF or the Equipment Facility; (xix) the funds of the Stream, the Senior Secured Loan, the COF or the Equipment Facility not being available to the Corporation; (xx) the Corporation being unable to meet its delivery obligations under the Stream; (xxi) future sales or issuance of Common Shares lowering the Common Share price and diluting the interest of existing shareholders; and (xxi) the additional risks described in Stornoway's most recently filed Annual Information Form, annual and interim MD&A and Stornoway's anticipation of and success in managing the foregoing risks. Stornoway cautions that the foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive, and unforeseeable, new risks may arise from time to time. SHARE By Ngan Ho of the San Angelo Standard-Times Tom Green County commissioners on Tuesday adopted a resolution for the Sheriff's Office to use body-worn cameras. Texas lawmakers in 2015 set aside $10 million to provide 75 percent of funding for police agencies toward cameras used to document their actions. The Sheriff's Office applied and recently received a state grant of $19,610 from the Governor's Criminal Justice Division to help the TGCSO get body-worn cameras in place. The local match is $6,500. "We have received the grant and are in the process of getting all the equipment and implementing the program," Sheriff David Jones said in an email. Commissioners also accepted a State Criminal Alien Assistance Program grant award of $6,363. The grant is intended to offset some of the cost for housing suspects in the county jail who are undocumented immigrants. This is an annual award that the county has applied for for years. Facilities Maintenance Director Don Killam also updated commissioners on several construction and remodeling projects underway. Killam said remodeling work at the Edd B. Keyes Building, a government building, is "rolling right along." The project began in spring 2014 and is expected to be complete in early 2017. Killam also said 65 percent of construction-related documents for the creation of a new county detention center are ready for county officials to review. Of a proposed $53.5 million bond to be be paid off in 20 to 22 years, $45 million would be allocated for a new jail behind the Roy K. Robb Correctional Facility at 3262 U.S. 277 N., northeast of San Angelo. The remaining money will go to fund improvements to the Tom Green County Courthouse, add-ons to justice of the peace offices and other contingencies. SHARE Given even the lowest expectations, Donald Trump still has the capacity to surprise. In recent days, Trump has sneered at the looks of a woman who accuses him of sexual assault, denigrated the appearance of Hillary Clinton, proposed to drug test his opponent, used his campaign to promote what appears to be a Russian covert operation, asserted that Clinton has held secret meetings with international bankers "to plot the destruction of U.S. sovereignty," attacked "Saturday Night Live," promised to jail his opponent and contended that "the whole election is being rigged." Which means that Trump is sickeningly cruel, boorish, bonkers, subversive, conspiratorial, obsessive, authoritarian and reckless with the reputation of American democracy. This is quite a closing argument for a presidential candidate. I imagine it did not emerge from focus groups. So what does all of this mean? (1) It means that the Republican nominee for president is frighteningly unstable under pressure. He is easily baited, highly sensitive to slights, prone to using faulty information from off the internet, hyperbolic and vengeful. Now imagine those characteristics during a confrontation with China in the South China Sea. (2) It is an indication of the quality of his closest, nonfamily advisers. Stephen Bannon and Rudy Giuliani are not attempting to keep Trump in check. They are feeding his manias. Trump is completely unmoored from restraining influences, and would be as president. (3) Trump's closing case is a version not of movement conservatism or tea party conservatism, but of crackpot conservatism an alt-right rage against a vast, scheming establishment that includes the liberal media, global financiers and a growing list of women making accusations of sexual assault. All this was previewed during Trump's political rise, which included birtherism, vaccine denialism and insinuations of foul play in the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. GOP leaders can hardly pretend to be surprised by this bent given that Trump accused Clinton in May of possible complicity in the death of Vince Foster. (4) It is a further indication (as if we needed it) that Trump has no commitment to the American political system. He is perfectly willing to delegitimize democratic institutions as a campaign tactic, squandering a civic inheritance he does not value. Even before his current troubles, he said that an electoral loss would be prima facie evidence of fraud and encouraged supporters to monitor majority-black polling stations in Pennsylvania. Now he is entering uncharted territory. By pre-emptively questioning the legitimacy of his forthcoming shellacking, Trump is stepping outside the four corners of the constitutional order, on the model of autocratic strongmen he has publicly admired. (5) Trump's descent into ideological psychosis is tainting the reputation of all who were foolish enough to associate with him. Consider vice presidential candidate Mike Pence. Interviewed recently on "Face the Nation," he defended the Republican nominee's verbal assault Trump has called them "sick," "horrible" and "phony" on women who accuse Trump of sexual assault. This reaction is justified, Pence said, because of Clinton's "deplorables" comment. Here is one of the chief promoters of Christian morality in politics employing the ethical reasoning of 9-year-olds in the schoolyard. Someday Pence (and others) will look back on their shattered standards and ask: For this cause? For this man? (6) Trump's final appeal also is corrupting a portion of the public and crossing moral lines that won't be easily uncrossed. There are certain qualities of heart and mind that allow for self-government civility, tolerance and mutual respect. In his rage and ruthlessness, Trump is inviting Americans to drink from a poisoned well. One problem is the risk of physical violence the possible influence of unhinged rhetoric on an unbalanced mind. The broader result is radical polarization in which citizens question the legitimacy of elections and view some fellow citizens as enemies. (7) Practically, Trump's downward spiral means that House Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus will need to repudiate the nominee before the end after they have shed the last of their credibility. The political argument against repudiation is admittedly strong. It could ignite a self-destructive civil war within the GOP just before an election. But history generally does not remember good political arguments. It remembers acts of conscience in the face of them. It is time, and past time, for Republican leaders to do the right thing. Trump's crackup complicates American political life in a variety of ways but simplifies one point: This man is temperamentally, ideologically and morally unfit to be president of the United States. Michael Gerson is a Washington Post columnist. Contact him at michaelgerson@washpost.com. SHARE Andy Eubanks, retired sergeant, Texas Highway Patrol, Bryan Re-elect Sheriff David Jones As a longtime acquaintance of Sheriff David Jones, I would like to encourage Tom Green County residents to vote for this outstanding individual. For many years he and I worked together as DPS Highway Patrol officers in Midland and I know him to be honest and hardworking. His dedication and work ethic are exemplary and whatever he puts his heart to do, he will do with thought and caring. He is devoted to his family and community and is just an all-around good man. I know he will put the best interest of Tom Green County foremost in his decisions as sheriff. A still from the video clip that shows two male passengers attack a female employee at Noi Bai International Airport on Tuesday. A female employee at Noi Bai was attacked by two passengers who missed their flight. A female employee at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi has been attacked in an incident involving two passengers who reportedly missed their flight. At 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Tran Duong Tung, 32, Dao Vinh Thuan, 37, made a scene after they missed their Vietnam Airlines flight to Ho Chi Minh City. Nguyen Le Quynh Anh, an employee of Vietnam Airlines who manages a service team, reportedly tried to explain the airline's policy to the men. Tung and Thuan became agitated and started insulting the staff, according to media reports. As Anh filmed the incident with her mobile phone, Thuan grabbed her shirt and Tung hit her in the head. Airport security officers have handed over the two passengers to the police. In a statement released late Wednesday, Vietnam Airlines said the two passengers have insulted and attacked its staff, asking the authorities to investigate the incident and punish violent acts. The carrier said Anh has been sent home after health checks at a local hospital. Passengers assault employee at Hanoi airport after missing flight Passengers assault employee at Hanoi airport after missing flight Related news: > Facelift lifts Vietnam's Noi Bai to 19th among top airports in Asia > Noi Bai worlds most improved airport Trinh Xuan Thanh seen on the list of international wanted criminals. Photo by VnExpress Trinh Xuan Thanh's been accused of causing $150 mln losses at a state firm. Vietnamese police have been asking their counterparts in the U.S., Canada and some European countries to help them hunt down a fugitive linked to massive losses of $150 million at a unit of state oil and gas PetroVietnam. Trinh Xuan Thanh, former chairman of PetroVietnam Construction JSC (PVC), will be caught, Lieutenant General Phan Van Vinh, the general director of the central Police Directorate, said on the sidelines of a workshop on international fugitives on Wednesday. We have received strong support from many countries," Vinh said. "They promised to join hands with Vietnam to hunt down Trinh Xuan Thanh. He said Vietnamese police will find a way to bring the suspect to justice, even if the country does not have an extradition treaty with Germany, where the 50-year-old man is believed to be hiding. The Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security last month issued an international arrest warrant for Thanh. Thanh is accused of mismanagement and causing losses of around VND3.2 trillion ($147 million) at PVC, a unit of the state-owned oil giant PetroVietnam, under his watch between 2011 and 2013. Four other executives from the company have been arrested. Thanh sought overseas sick leave in mid-August and has never returned since, the police said. He was expelled from the Communist Party on September 8, a move that would pave the way for him to face criminal charges. The now-infamous official first caught media attention in June for driving a $230,000 Lexus with a government license plate in a country where the annual average income was around $2,100. The scandal caused uproar over the use of public money, prompting the Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong to order a probe into his political career and how he had been promoted. Government inspectors found that Thanh and his team, starting in 2009, had launched many offshoot units and partnered with a number of companies, but few of the ventures proved effective. Most of their business projects during the period ended up being delayed or even canceled. After his stint at PVC, Thanh continued to be kicked upstairs with an apparently successful political track record, holding various government positions before taking his latest post as vice chairman of the Mekong Delta province of Hau Giang. He was not nominated for re-election for the 2016-2020 tenure in June. Then in July, he was also stripped of his legislator-elect status. At the workshop on Wednesday, Vietnamese police said the number of suspects fleeing the country surged to more than 1,100 as of September. The police have issued international warrants for 300 fugitives. Most of the runaway suspects have fled to Cambodia, Laos, China and the U.S. on fake identities. Related news: > Vietnams wanted bigwig ran away to Europe: official > How the internationally wanted Trinh Xuan Thanh rose to power > Vietnamese official quits election amid luxury car scandal > Vietnam aroused by Party leader's probe into official's luxury car Republican Gov. Pat McCrory and Democrat Roy Cooper sparred over taxes, House Bill 2, coal ash and even hurricane relief Tuesday night in the final debate of their gubernatorial campaign.The presence of Libertarian candidate Lon Cecil did little to soften the testy exchanges between the two main candidates.The debate at Raleighs WRAL came three weeks before the election and just two days before the start of early voting. It also took place amid rising political tension punctuated by the weekend firebombing of a Republican headquarters in Hillsborough. McCrory called the incident an attack on democracy.In what may be the nations highest-profile gubernatorial race, the two are locked in a close battle for the states highest office. Cooper leads by 3 percentage points in Real Clear Politics polling average. Drug manufacturers give states discounts on prescription drugs sometimes, but it's not always as big as the one they give veterans.Californians wanted the same deal as the military, but it isn't looking like they are going to get it.Voters weighed in on a measure that would have made California the first to require health agencies to pay the same for prescription drugs as the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, which gets a 24 percent discount off manufacturers' average prices.With 92 percent of precincts reporting, 54 percent opposed it and 46 percent supported it.Proposition 61 would have applied to more than 1 million state and public university employees as well as 3 million Medicaid patients. (It would have excluded, however, the 10 million Californians on managed-care Medicaid plans.)Drug prices plague states' and patients' pockets throughout the country.Last year, California alone spent $3.8 billion on prescription drugs. In just one year, nationwide Medicaid spending on prescription drugs increased 24 percent from 2013 to 2014. That rise can be attributed to many things: the soaring price of new lifesaving drugs, the unregulated pharmaceutical industry, and in some states, an influx of Medicaid patients.Californians have to act because it has become painfully obvious we cant expect relief from Sacramento or Washington, wrote Margie Keenan, board member of the California Nurses Association, which supported Prop. 61, in theStates have tried to control these costs but largely had little success. California's latest effort was a novel one.Supporters said the initiative would have saved $5.7 billion over 10 years. But Amber Didier, an analyst with the state's Legislative Analysts Office, said it's impossible to predict the fiscal impact because it depends on how pharmaceutical companies would have reacted if Prop. 61 passed.Pharmaceutical companies, which spent millions of dollars to defeat the measure, warned that in order to make up for any lost revenue, they may have made everyone's prescriptions more expensive or stop offering certain drugs to government agencies altogether.But Michael Yee, a financial analyst with RBC Dominion Securities, argued that Prop. 61 shouldn't have significantly hurt companies' revenue. It would only start to hurt big pharma, he said, "if this initiative were passed in all 50 states."So the threats about limited access and higher prices, said Yee, are likely in part to dissuade other states from taking up a similar measure.The initiative proved to be one of the most expensive in California history. The opposition campaign, backed by several powerful pharmaceutical companies, had an arsenal of more than $100 million. The supporters, whose loudest surrogates include the AIDS Healthcare Foundation and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, raised just $17 million.Despite the opposition's huge fundraising advantage, pollsters predicted a close race. A poll released in September showed 50 percent would vote yes, 16 percent would vote no and 34 percent were undecided. It appears that the undecided ended up filing into the 'no' camp.The opposition camp included more than just pharmaceutical companies.Not a single newspaper in California had come out in support of Prop. 61. Theandall opposed the measure, calling it the wrong solution. In addition, several health associations believe the measure was flawedbecause of its limited scope and financial uncertainties.We have a higher percentage of older, sicker people, and we do think it could potentially reduce the access of certain drugs, said Gail Nickerson, executive director of the California Association of Rural Health Clinics, which opposes the measure along with the California Medical Association and the California Chronic Care Coalition.This isn't the first time California has tried to do something about the price of prescription drugs. Last year, the state became the first in the nation to cap the monthly cost of a lifesaving drug at $250. This year, however, a bill that would have required more notice of price hikes failed in the Senate. A new report by a think tank at Georgetown University calls for greater oversight in the use of emerging facial recognition software that makes the images of more than 117 million Americans a disproportionate number of them black searchable by law enforcement agencies.While the agencies, including the F.B.I., have historically created fingerprint and DNA databases primarily from criminal investigations, many of the photographs scattered among agencies at all levels of government are of law-abiding Americans, according to the report released Tuesday.The report found that 16 states allowed law enforcement officials to compare the faces of suspects to photographs on drivers licenses and other forms of identification without a warrant, creating a virtual lineup.This is unprecedented and highly problematic, said the report, by the Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetowns law school.Facial recognition technology, long used overseas by the American military and intelligence agencies in Iraq and Afghanistan, is seen by local law enforcement as a tool for identifying criminals, but it has also raised concerns among privacy advocates.Because African-Americans disproportionately come into contact with, and are arrested by, law enforcement officials, the report said, their police photos will most likely be overrepresented in facial recognition databases.The authors of the report said the aim was not to stop the use of the software, which they acknowledged had been effective in investigations. Nor did they fault law enforcement officers, who they said are simply using every tool available to protect the people that they are sworn to serve.Rather, they called for Congress and state legislatures to pass laws creating stricter regulations on the technology. Researchers found, for instance, that just one agency the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation specifically prohibited using the software to track people engaging in political or religious speech. No state has a law regulating use of the software.There is a real risk that police face recognition will be used to stifle free speech, the report said. On Tuesday, in the morning, at Government House, His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC received the Honourable Annastacia Palaszczuk MP, Premier of Queensland, for a regular meeting. Following, at All Saints Church, Brisbane, the Governor and Mrs Kaye de Jersey attended the Mothers Union (MU) Thanksgiving Eucharist, followed by a High Tea at the Mercure Hotel, Brisbane, where Mrs de Jersey addressed guests, to celebrate 110 years of service for MU Australia, Brisbane Diocese. In the evening, the Governor and Mrs de Jersey hosted a reception for the presentation of the 2016 Roly Sussex Short Story Awards and to support the launch of the English Speaking Union Short Story publication, where His Excellency addressed guests. Description GIS - 19 October 2016 : The necessity for both State and non-State actors to join efforts to slow down the inexorable progress of Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) was underscored by the Minister of Health and Quality of Life, Mr Anil Gayan, this morning at the opening ceremony of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Global Dialogue Meeting at Intercontinental Hotel in Balaclava. The Global Dialogue meeting on the Role of Non-State Actors in supporting Member States in their national efforts to tackle NCDs as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is organised by the WHO Global Coordination Mechanism on NCD, and co-chaired by the Governments of Mauritius and France from 19 to 21 October 2016. Representatives from Member States, United Nations organisations, other intergovernmental bodies and non-State actors such as non-governmental organisations (NGOs), philanthropic foundations, business associations, and academic institutions are participating in this event to discuss ways and means to accelerate NCD prevention and control. In his address, the Minister stated that NCDs are fast becoming a disease of mass destruction, with a WHO global projection of 52 million deaths in the very near future. This is why we need to work together as countries with the WHO, bodies like the NCD Alliance and civil society to find ways and means to come to grips with the NCD burden, said Mr Gayan. According to him that success in tackling the NCD burden will be achieved provided that all stakeholders, State and non-State actors, industry, civil society and academia are committed and dedicated. Differentiating between the role of the State and the NGOs in the health sector, the Minister recalled that Government drives the public health system while other stakeholders must adapt to the strategic direction of Government. He urged NGOs working in the health sector to abide to the principles of accountability, transparency and the absolute necessity of producing verifiable and measurable results. NGOs engaged in tackling NCDs can undertake effectively the work of creating awareness and sensitisation for all those who are at risk and accompany all those who already suffer from NCDs, added the Minister. Speaking on the way forward to tackle NCDs, Minister Gayan underlined the urgency to integrate prevention, control and reduction of risks in all health policies. He also focussed on the importance of early detection and timely treatment, and an effective primary health care system to enhance quality of life and cut down on costs. The Minister moreover called for the acceleration of sensitisation programmes on healthy lifestyles and on proper nutrition, as well as legislative measures, if necessary, to get food manufacturers to reduce sugar, salt and saturated fats in their products. We cannot fail in this endeavour as we cannot afford to fail, cautioned Mr Gayan. In a video message to the gathering, the Director-General of WHO, Dr Margaret Chan spoke of the critical role that non-State actors can play in supporting the implementation of government-led efforts to address NCDs. Dr Chan, however, clearly distinguished the specific roles and responsibilities of each of these actors which vary, depending on the country, the topic, and the circumstances. She appealed for a collaborative approach where NGOs act as watchdog and service providers under the leadership of Government. She also called attention on the way to balance the need for companies to make reasonable profit, against distortions that come along with greed. (TNS) BEMIDJI It was another night of questions for prospective Beltrami County commissioners Tuesday, as incumbents and challengers once again gathered for a public forum to discuss their platforms.Held at Bemidji City Hall and organized by the League of Women Voters, the forum hosted incumbents Jim Lucachick, District 5, Joe Vene, District 2 and Tim Sumner, District 4, along with their respective opponents, Ralph Morris, Reed Olson and Vince Gross.Throughout the evening, the group of candidates answered numerous questions from a public audience, such as their views on expanding transparency in county government.In response, Morris and Olson said they would support efforts to bring cameras into the Beltrami County meeting rooms and record the sessions so they could then be accessible to the public both by TV and online.Additionally, Olson said the current meeting times are too early in the day to be attended by the public, adding that if he was elected he would work to shift the sessions to a later time.Vene, who also said he could support more exposure to the public through broadcasts, said a more important aspect in transparency is a commissioner making themselves accessible on a consistent basis and talking to constituents regularly.Trust between the commissioners and constituents was Gross' most important aspect in delivering transparency to county government, noting that residents of the county rely on the government to make decisions. Additionally, Gross said the idea of broadcasting to the public was 'something to think about,' but wasn't sure about the feasibility.Sumner, who said improvements in technology should allow for televised county meetings, also described how he would host meetings with township chairs to get an insight into their concerns and then report on those meetings at county sessions.Lucachick said he worked to explore televising the county board meetings, yet Beltrami opted for a newsletter to be sent out to residents instead. Lucachick said the newsletter contains important information from the county and that he also sends out a personal newsletter twice a year for extra transparency with constituents.Another question raised at Tuesday's forum was on improving the relationship between the Beltrami County government and the city of Bemidji.According to Sumner, there's already been collaboration between the city and county and more steps can be done. Sumner said this can be done by both supporting the relationship with Bemidji while also holding meetings with other communities in the county such as Blackduck.For Lucachick, the city and county already work together regularly through sharing computer systems. In the future, Lucachick said the county can branch out and offer the computer system sharing with other communities while having more face-to-face meetings with city leaders."I think we have a fairly good relationship overall," said Olson, who agreed that there needs to be more meetings between county and city government. Olson, who currently serves on the Bemidji City Council, said in his time with the governing body there have only been two joint meetings in four years when there should be two per year.Morris had a similar response, calling for an increase in more joint meetings between the county and cities, especially with Bemidji."They can work together quite well as far as I know," said Gross, who added that he is opposed to using any county funds toward the Sanford Center.Citing his experience on Bemidji's planning commission, Vene said the county already works in some aspects with the city and that there are more partnerships that can be developed.Also on the schedule for Tuesday's event was a forum for Bemidji Area School Board candidates. However, two of the candidates, Ann Long Voelkner and Jeff Haack were unable to attend. The third candidate running for a board seat, John Gonzalez, did appear during the forum, though, to give details on his background.The forum was one of two organized by the League of Women Voters, with the other scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at Bemidji City Hall. The next forum will focus on Bemidji City Council and mayoral races. Vietnams greenhouse gas emissions in 2010 were around 266 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, not including effects of land use and forestry. Photo courtesy of Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment More can be done with international support, officials have said. Vietnam, one of the countries worst affected by climate change, has reaffirmed its commitment to an 8-percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, saying it can even do better with international support. A reduction of up to 25 percent could be possible if global organizations offer their helping hands, Tran Hong Ha, the environmental minister, said at a conference on Tuesday. Official data showed that Vietnams greenhouse gas emissions in 2010 were around 266 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, not including effects of land use and forestry. Energy-related industries accounted for 53 percent. The figure was a sharp increase from an estimated 150 million tons in 2000. Ha, the minister, said that from now to 2030, Vietnam will keep applying various methods to reach the goal of greenhouse gas reduction and encourage the development of green industries. The country will conduct research to form a national carbon trading market. John Roome, Senior Director for Climate Change of the World Bank, said that the global carbon market is expected to cut down 30 percent of cost for climate change relief by 2030. By the mid of this century, the market will help reduce 50 percent of global expenses. A report of the World Bank showed that about 101 countries are currently working on carbon emissions trading. Vietnam first announced its emission goal last year when it submitted its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, ahead of the COP21 conference in Paris. According to the INDC report, Vietnams average temperature picked up by around 0.5 percent and sea level rose by around 20 centimeters over the last 50 years. Related news: > Choking smog makes Hanoi's pollution 'very unhealthy' > Air pollution in Vietnam cities hit unhealthy levels: government study (TNS) -- Efforts by Microsoft to build a stronger relationship between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C ., are valuable and worth government support.More collaboration between the regions universities, smoother border crossings and improved transportation between the cities will benefit both Washington and British Columbia.This leads to other policy questions around immigration and infrastructure priorities that are less clear and will need further consideration during the next presidential term.Government and business leaders from Seattle and Vancouver periodically announce efforts to strengthen ties between kindred cities that are hubs of technology, tourism and commerce and are cosmopolitan gateways to Asia.Microsoft is doing more than revive that conversation. Its also providing a physical reminder of our connections, in the form of glamorous offices it opened last summer in the heart of Vancouver.The Redmond companys Canadian expansion may contribute to the U.S. debate about fixing our immigration system. Vancouver has long served as a way station for overseas talent that Microsoft needs but cannot directly hire in Redmond because the U.S. visa system has less flexibility than Canadas.Jobs lost overseas are a concern, but this situation is more about meeting the tech industrys insatiable appetite for talent.That appetite pushed Silicon Valley companies like Google and Facebook to expand in Seattle over the last decade. Now its pushing Microsoft, Amazon and others to open satellite offices in Vancouver . At the same time, Seattle tech companies are still trying to hire thousands more than they will employ in Vancouver at home in Seattle.These tech giants straddle the West Coast, all of which can be considered an extension of the emerging Cascadia innovation corridor. Perhaps they should start infilling along the Interstate 5 corridor and expand in smaller cities such as Everett and Tacoma.During ceremonies in Vancouver last month, Microsoft also suggested a high-speed rail line between Seattle and Vancouver. Its good to dream big and pursue bold ideas, but this concept must be weighed on its merits and balanced with state and federal priorities that need funding.It might not be a coincidence that the alluring rail proposal surfaced as tech and pharmaceutical giants lobby for an enormous tax break on trillions of dollars theyre holding overseas. Some have floated the idea of bringing that cash back to the U.S. on condition their taxes are slashed and remaining tax proceeds boost infrastructure spending.How to reform immigration and tax policies and allocate any federal windfalls are conversations to look forward to in 2017 and beyond.In the meantime, the need for improved connections between Seattle and Vancouver is as clear as our coastal air after a rainstorm. Delaware is the latest in a long line of states to announce an open data portal that promises new access to a host of the jurisdictions most sought after information.Gov. Jack Markell officially unveiled the new portal data.delaware.gov on Wednesday, Oct. 19. The new resource marks the culmination of more than 10 months of work to provide a one-stop access point to the states most requested data.In January, the second-term governor signed Executive Order 57 mandating a state open data clearinghouse to contain data sets from 10 state agencies. Socrata facilitated the creation of the public-facing website and its backend infrastructure."We are so excited that Gov. Markell issued Executive Order 57 for open data because what it did, in my mind as CIO, it really brought key agencies to the table to talk about a couple things," CIO James Collins told. "One, sharing data among state government you hear a lot about analytics and business intelligence, so I feel like we're laying the groundwork there."The new, streamlined information source boasts more than 30 nonpersonal data sets ranging from mortality rates and child poverty statistics to restaurant inspections and traffic counts.In some cases, the information can be mapped to provide a clearer picture of the target data.While open data websites have become fairly commonplace in recent years, open data proponents maintain that simply putting data online does not mark a successful transparency effort; data must be continually added to and updated as well.It is unclear at this point how often Delaware will add new data to its system. (TNS) -- When Kevin Hsiung moved into his brand-new apartment on San Franciscos Potrero Hill, he wanted what every tenant wants: the best deal on Internet service. He did his research, found the company he liked and set about getting the service. Then he ran into an unexpected problem.The property manager for the 453-unit building told Hsiung he could sign up only with AT&T or Comcast.They wouldnt tell me why, said Hsiung, who eventually went with Comcast, even though he preferred Webpass, which provides superfast Internet access.On Tuesday, Supervisor Mark Farrell introduced legislation that would require property owners to give building access to all state-licensed providers. He said Hsiungs experience is increasingly common, although there have been no independent studies done on the issue in San Francisco.The reality in San Francisco is that tens of thousands of residents have been denied access to different Internet service providers, Farrell said. I fundamentally believe competition is a good thing that will ultimately drive prices down and improve Internet access across all of San Francisco.Groups that represent property owners say Farrell vastly overstates the problem and that the legislation is ill-conceived.We dont need laws telling us we have to allow any company into our buildings. We have concerns about safety, about the physical space, said Ken Cleaveland, vice president of public policy for the Building Owners and Managers Association of San Francisco. We think everything should be dictated by leases you write what kind of services you provide into the lease.Federal law says property owners cant prohibit tenants from signing up with their preferred service provider. However, the law allows owners to have revenue-share agreements with companies that provide television, phone and Internet services meaning the owners make money when tenants sign up with those companies. The practice is common in large, new rental apartment buildings.So while property owners cant stop tenants from signing up with competitors, they can refuse to allow those competitors access to the building to install fiber and antennas, effectively preventing them from providing service.Tenants in small apartment buildings sometimes run into the same problem, but for different reasons. The owners dont want to deal with the hassle of accommodating new equipment or giving rent-controlled tenants more incentive to stay, according to frustrated customers and companies.Farrells legislation says property owners could seek just and reasonable compensation from service providers for using their property, but they would not be able to refuse access outright. If disagreements arose about the just and reasonable compensation, the parties could go to court to resolve them. Property owners who refused access could be fined up to $500 a day.Charles Barr, founder of Webpass, which was recently acquired by Google Fiber, said there are roughly 400 large apartment buildings in San Francisco that deny his company access to their property.Some dont want fiber in the building or dont want a radio in the building or dont want anybody other than AT&T to come in, he said.But the biggest barrier, Barr said, is that some big apartment buildings will allow Webpass access only if it pays the owner a small monthly fee per subscriber which Webpass refuses to do. Farrells legislation would prevent owners from demanding a subscriber fee.Barr said Equity Residential, which owns 1010 16th St., where Hsiung lives, is one of those companies. A spokesman for Equity denied that the company seeks subscriber fees, but acknowledged it had refused to allow Webpass to access Hsiungs building. The spokesman said the company was working on bringing Webpass services to tenants in the near future.While the issue of Internet choice arises most frequently in large apartment buildings, tenants in smaller ones also report being stymied.Trent Robbins, who lives in a 12-unit building in the Sunset, wanted to purchase gigabit-speed Internet through Sonic. Sonic planned to drill into the side of the apartment building to run fiber into Robbins apartment. The landlord balked.Sonic said it could find a less invasive way to install service, but the landlord refused to let the company try, Robbins said. He is hoping other tenants pressure the landlord to change his mind. Farrells legislation indemnifies property owners for damage done to their property.Literally everywhere in the West except the United States has some form of gigabit available, Robbins said. Its a reasonable modification to an apartment, and I think Im within my rights.But Charley Goss, government and community affairs manager with the San Francisco Apartment Association, said his group would consider suing if Farrells legislation becomes law.There is federal law that already governs all of this. We would prefer the city enforce that law rather than write new laws, Goss said.And, he added, landlords dont need more rules telling them what they can and cant do.We are the highest-regulated industry in San Francisco and one of the highest in California, Goss said. And it kind of gets to a point where enough is enough. (TNS) -- Wisconsin energy regulators are considering a move to expand funding for broadband Internet services via fees collected on monthly electric and natural gas bills.The move is being contemplated, the state Public Service Commission says, with an eye toward expanding the reach of the states Focus on Energy program in rural parts of the state.The PSC said that based on a preliminary review, utility customers in rural Wisconsin don't participate in the Focus on Energy program as much as those in urban areas. Rural areas also are served by fewer broadband providers, the agency said.The agency also said it's concerned about the ability of Focus on Energy program to market its programs in areas with "insufficient access to high-speed internet that could help support effective online advertising and social media campaigns."But some critics of the move are skeptical of the linkage between expanding broadband service and improved efforts to help utility customers save on their energy bills. Instead, they see the move as a way to find a source of funding, this time from energy utility customers, for broadband expansion."I want to challenge the idea that broadband will necessarily increase participation in Focus on Energy programs," said Kathy Kuntz, a former administrator of the Focus program. "I support the premise that everyone should have access to broadband, but broadband services do not prompt energy efficiency."Critics fear that the PSC would shift dollars from Focus on Energys core missions to help cut utility customers' energy use and boost deployment of small renewable energy systems in order to deploy those dollars for other purposes.The PSC solicited input on how it should proceed and received comments from about two dozen organizations, from utilities to energy-efficiency advocates and environmental groups.Some utilities responded that they would like to see Focus dollars spent the way they have been, with Madison Gas and Electric Co. saying "the test" for using Focus dollars "should be maximizing energy savings statewide. MGE believes the funds should not be used in any way that would diminish the opportunities customers have for participating in Focus energy efficiency and renewable programming."However, Alliant Energy Corp. weighed in, favoring the initiative. "We support the commissions intent to examine how greater access to broadband services could improve rural electric customers participation in the statewide energy efficiency and renewable resource programs," the Madison-based utility said.Supporters of continuing to fund energy-saving and renewable energy programs said studies have shown it to be cost-effective. The Focus on Energy program,, which funds discounts on energy-saving light bulbs as well and other moves to make homes and businesses more efficient, currently spends about $92 million a year and studies have shown has consistently delivered a payback of at least three times that, or at least $3 returned for every $1 invested."We do not support using Focus on Energy funding for purposes other than energy efficiency and renewable energy," the clean energy group RePower Madison said.According to the PSC, about $3.2 million is collected from rural parts of the state for Focus, and several organizations urged the commission to cap any funding for rural customers at that amount. Expanding the number of cooperatives that participate in Focus would be another way to boost participation, the PSC and others agreed.Renewable energy organizations and companies expressed concern that the PSC would fund a broadband initiative but not fund renewable energy projects the way it has in recent years. Noting high demand for grants that Focus issued in recent years, Renew Wisconsin urged the commission to support allocating $5 million in 2017 and $5 million in 2018 for renewable energy grants. Renew also said it would support increased investment by Focus in dairy-farm manure digesters that convert cow manure into energy.Efforts to cut energy use help the state delay the need for new power plants, supporters of energy efficiency say. According to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, a key challenge in Wisconsin is reduced funding for Focus on Energy, after a bill that cut funding by $7.2 million.Compared with four nearby states, Wisconsin is investing less than half as much in energy efficiency, said Seth Nowak of ACEEE. "In this context, it is crucial that money already collected by utilities on customer bills and by electric co-ops intended for Focus be used for their intended purposes, primarily energy efficiency programs," he said.The Focus on Energy and other fees collected on utility customers' bills have been used to fund non-energy activities in the past moves that prompted the Legislature to pass a bill banning budgetary transfers from Focus on Energy fees.Past transfers include funding that went into the states general fund, funded the state W-2 welfare-to-work program, and helped pay salaries for district attorneys around the state:From 2002 to 2007, during the administrations of Republican Gov. Scott McCallum and Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle, funds collected for energy efficiency programs were used for municipal aid payments, the general fund and the Wisconsin Works, or W-2 program. Total amount transferred: $110.9 million.After the Legislature stopped that practices, from 2007 to 2011 the state transferred funds from a weatherization and energy efficiency program for low-income residents to the W-2 program. Total amount transferred: $36.7 million.When the Legislature stopped that transfer, it then enacted a special charge on utility bills that collected revenue to pay for the salaries and benefits of prosecutors in district attorney's offices across Wisconsin. Total amount transferred: $18.3 million. Its been more than three years since Louis Carr Jr., took on the CIO role for Nevadas Clark County, but now he is moving on to head up IT operations for Los Angeles premier utility provider."My last day with Clark County will be Friday November 11th," Carr wrote in an email to friends and colleagues on Oct. 14. "Since IT plays a significant role in supporting the Elections Department, this is a watershed election and Nevada is a 'purple' state, I wanted to stay through the November 8th election."In an internal bulletin, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power General (LADWP) Manager David Wright announced that Carr would be joining the municipal utility agency as the chief information technology officer effective Nov. 14.In addition to serving as the CIO for Nevadas most populated county, Carr also served as CIO for the Texas Department of Transportation and of Arlington, Texas, prior to that. During his tenure at Clark County, Carr managed $45 million in operations, 160 employees and IT across 38 departments.According to the bulletin, Carr will report to Wright on the status of critical information technology systems and infrastructure, cybersecurity and system integration. Flights to and from Hai Phong have been grounded due to safety concerns. National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has decided to cancel 14 flights to and from the northern port city of Hai Phong scheduled on Wednesday when Typhoon Sarika is forecast to hit the region. Affected passengers will be given options to and from Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi instead. Passengers are also advised to check weather conditions and announcements from the carrier to prepare their travel plans from Hanoi and the central province of Thanh Hoa. Sarika is expected to make landfall in Quang Ninh and Lang Son provinces on Wednesday, the National Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting Center said late Tuesday. Northern provinces, especially Hai Phong, Quang Ninh and Lang Son, are expected to experience heavy downpours from late Tuesday, the center said. Related news: > Typhoon Sarika barrels toward Vietnam as another storm brews > Massive typhoon on course to smash into Vietnam Kevin Magnussen has dismissed reports linking him with a potential move to Indycar for 2017. With Renault having already confirmed Nico Hulkenberg for next year, whilst admitting that Esteban Ocon and Valtteri Bottas are also targets, it is also relevant that an extended 'option' on Magnussen's 2017 services ran out last week. Then, reports emerged early this week that the young Dane could be in the running to switch from F1 to Indycar with Michael Andretti's team. But Magnussen said on Twitter: "I'm a big fan of IndyCar but those are really just rumours. Nothing to it. "I feel confident my future is in F1 and there should be no doubt I intend to stay with Renault for many years if I can," he insisted. "Unfortunately there is nothing yet to announce regarding my future, but hopefully there will be soon. I too am getting impatient!" A leading Danish motor racing official says he thinks Magnussen's lengthy Twitter retort is very much a strategic move. "I can imagine it was to tell the world that he has more options, and that he is pushing to have a Renault's decision," Bo Baltzer Nielsen, a Danish automobile union official, told the Danish newspaper BT. And F1 commentator Jens Hansen commented: "The timing is surprising because it simultaneously shows optimism but also impatience." He said he thinks Magnussen is at least an outside chance of switching from Renault to Force India, Williams or Haas. "The future is to some extent unclear at all four teams," said Hansen. "And Kevin has a good name with the team bosses at all of them." (GMM) You are here: Home News North Carolina is among several states dealing with a voter ID requirement, which starts here in 2016. The Tar Heel state also made other voti A massive recall of sleep apnea machines is expected to drag into next year. That's caused frustration for U.S. patients and led federal officials to consider rare legal steps to speed the replacement effort. Dutch manufacturer Philips has recalled more than 5 million machines worldwide due to foam that can deteriorate, releasing potentially harmful byproducts. While customers were supposed to receive new machines within a year, the company says shipments will continue into 2023. That's left many U.S. patients to choose between using a recalled device or trying other risky remedies. U.S. regulators have warned they may take the unprecedented step of ordering Philips to step up its effort. On Tuesday, I told you about some malls that were saying goodbye to opening on Turkey Day. But for you die-hard shoppers, there will still be Thanksgiving shopping options. Jeffrey Johnson, general manager of Tanger Outlets in Mebane, said Tuesday that the center will repeat its hours from last year. Tanger Outlets will be open from 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving through 10 p.m. on Black Friday. In other Thanksgiving shopping news, Macy's has said it is opening one hour earlier this year on the holiday. North Carolina students performed the worst theyve done in more than 20 years on national tests of reading and math performance showing how much achievement has declined since the pandemic. Reading and math scores in the state dropped from three years ago for fourth- and eighth-grades on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP. The results released on Monday by the U.S. ... North Carolina voters will choose a new attorney general for the first time in 16 years. Josh Stein is an excellent choice. A Democrat, Stein is a Harvard-educated lawyer who worked from 2001 to 2008 as a senior deputy attorney general for consumer protection. In that job, he targeted predatory lenders. From 2009 until earlier this year, he represented Wake County in the state Senate, winning praise from such groups as Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the AARP of North Carolina, the North Carolina Association of Educators and the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association. Now an attorney in private practice, hes active in community projects and co-chaired a $5 million capital campaign in Raleigh to build a domestic violence shelter for women and children. Stein earned respect as an effective legislator who worked to improve education, public transportation and the environment. He also helped strengthen drunken-driving laws, expand the states DNA database and increase protections for domestic violence victims. He is thoughtful, reasonable and well-prepared to meet the demands of running the states Department of Justice. Those include consumer protection, taking legal action against polluters and providing resources for law enforcement, as well as defending the states interests in court. Republican candidate Eldon Buck Newton earned his law degree at Campbell University and practices in Wilson. Hes been a member of the state Senate since 2011, where he has led efforts to support law enforcement and the court system. Hes also active in his community. Those are some of the good things. On the negative side, he supported Sen. Trudy Wades bill to impose a new City Council structure and election plan on Greensboro; was and remains a champion of House Bill 2, a discriminatory measure that resulted in severe economic harm to Greensboro; and led efforts to ban the use of the FaithAction International House ID card, which the city of Greensboro used to identify residents who lack other ID. Newton introduced another bill this year that would have barred even the Greensboro Police Department from recognizing this card, which it says helps improve relations with immigrant communities. That bill did not pass. At a forum in Asheboro last month, Newton didnt only criticize a federal appeals court for overturning voter restrictions enacted by North Carolina, which the judges said targeted black voters with almost surgical precision. He implied that those judges were trying to influence North Carolinas elections. An attorney general should show more respect for the rule of law. Newton faults current Attorney General Roy Cooper for refusing to defend some North Carolina laws challenged in court. He pledges to be more faithful. He raises a fair point. But Stein asserts that Newton backed 13 laws that have been overturned in court. Stein says that, as attorney general, he would advise the governor and legislature to avoid legal battles they are likely to lose. That would be a better approach for our state. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate GREENWICH Addressing the parents of the selfie generation, educational psychologist Michele Borba spoke about emphasizing empathy over grades in order to raise successful children. In an event at Brunswick School Tuesday morning, Borba described nine strategies for raising modern children and teens and promoted her book, Unselfie: Why Empathetic Kids Succeed in Our All-About-Me World. We all want the same thing and that is happy, successful children but we also want them to be empathetic and make a difference in the world, said Borba, who regularly appears on NBC to discuss child development. In the 21st century, there has been a 40 percent decrease in empathy and 58 percent increase in narcissism among college-age students, she said. It isnt a parent problem or an educator problem, its a culture problem, said Borba. Weve become so hyper competitive. If you talk to Wall Street, theyll say the same thing. Borba advised parents to encourage their children to step away from phones and computer screens, look people in the eyes, read fiction and examples of good news in the media and develop strategies to deal with their stress. By the time she closed her lecture with a song about parenting, many mothers in the audience were teary. One mother, weeping, stood up at the end and said, I just want to say that was sensational. Eunice Burnett, a Greenwich resident whose son goes to Brunswick, admitted to shedding a few tears as well and said she had never been to a more timely talk. The decline of empathy and rise of narcissism is evident every time you turn on the TV today and open a newspaper, so its critically important that we do something actively to rectify the situation, said Burnett, whos read Borbas book. I care deeply about this kind of stuff so I feel like its been an ongoing effort in our household. Denise Prata of Purchase, N.Y., whose daughter attends Sacred Heart Greenwich, said Borba did a good job breaking big ideas about empathy down into simple strategies. She was very real about how she is approaching parents, she said. I thought she was very powerful. She gave us a lot of information so I think its just figuring out what works for you. emunson@hearstmediact.com; @emiliemunson Pakistans parliament recently voted unanimously to toughen the laws against so-called honor killings. The United States commends the efforts of Pakistan to end this barbaric practice. The newly passed legislation restricts the ability of family members to forgive those convicted of committing a so-called honor killing a practice that had previously allowed many convicted killers to avoid prison. Forgiveness is now only allowed if someone convicted of a so-called honor killing is sentenced to death, in which case the sentence can be commuted to life in prison. Honor killings have long been a serious problem in Pakistan and in recent years public outrage against this practice has grown. According to a study, more than 1,000 women were killed last year in honor killings, often by male relatives who believed the victims had tarnished the family name by marrying a man of their own choosing, or even sitting or meeting with a man. There have been several particularly outrageous killings in recent months. Qandeel Baluch, a social media celebrity and feminist, was choked to death by her brother; a mother, with the help of her son, strangled and set fire to her daughter because she married a man of her own choosing; a teenage girl was tied up in a car and set on fire on orders of Tribal leaders, allegedly for helping a friend elope. The legislation, strengthening punishments for so-called honor killing is an important step toward protecting women and girls in Pakistan, said U.S. State Department Spokesperson John Kirby, and promoting their full participation in society. Raising social awareness and holding perpetrators accountable are critical next steps, and we will continue to support Pakistans efforts. No woman anywhere should have to die for choosing whom she will marry or how to conduct her life. GREENWICH Police made two big drug busts this week that resulted in the seizure of nearly 400 bags of packaged heroin, along with a stash of cocaine. Both of these are significant seizures for Greenwich, said police spokesman Sgt. John Slusarz. Heroin is clearly a very dangerous drug, and were doing everything we can do to interdict it before it gets into our population. One of the alleged dealers was from Greenwich, the other from the Bronx, N.Y. Authorities werent saying Wednesday whether there was any connection between the two arrests. On Monday, police executed a search warrant at the residence of Kendrick Pozo, 21, of Armstrong Court. According to the arrest report, the bust was the result of a lengthy investigation. Police said Pozo was in personal possession of four bags of heroin, and a subsequent search of his residence turned up 210 bags of the drug packaged for sale. Police said they recovered 11 small bags of what appeared to be cocaine, $472 in cash, a digital scale and packaging material. Pozo was charged with operating a drug factory, possession of narcotics with intent to sell and possession of narcotics. Since there were children in the residence, ages 4 and 9, and drugs were easily accessible to the children, he was further charged with two counts risk of injury to a minor, a felony, according to the arrest report. Since there is a day care facility within Armstrong Court about 300 feet away, Pozo was additionally charged with illegal possession of narcotics near a school. He was cited for a small amount of marijuana allegedly found at the scene. Bail was initially set at $150,000, but was later dropped to $35,000 bond. Unable to post it, Pozo was being held in custody as of Wednesday, according to court records. His next court date is Nov. 7. Another person who was in the apartment at the time police executed the search warrant is facing charges, as well. Reynaldo Martis, 37, of Walton Avenue, the Bronx, who was described as a family member by police, was charged with illegal possession of narcotics, risk of injury to a minor and illegal possession near a school. He was held in lieu of $20,000 bond, and is due in court Nov. 7. Police said they snared a Bronx dealer carrying 180 bags of heroin Tuesday at 12:20 p.m. on Ritch Avenue in Byram. The arrest report said Angel Abreu was apprehended after the narcotic squad developed information he would be making a delivery. Authorities said Angel Abreu came to Greenwich with the bags of heroin hidden inside the stereo speaker of a 1999 Toyota. After setting up surveillance, cops made their move with a State Police dog, Iowa, carrying out a search of the vehicle. The dog gave a signal that drugs were behind the speaker, according to the arrest report, and nearly 60 grams of heroin were confiscated. Cops tested the heroin and determined the drug had been laced with fentanyl, according to police. The synthetic opioid is considered even more potent and dangerous than heroin. Abreu was charged with illegal possession of narcotics, illegal distribution of narcotics and criminal attempt. Speaking at a Nigerian-American Chamber Of Commerce Conference on Small and MediumSized Enterprises -- or SME -- Financing and Franchising in Abuja, Nigeria, on October 5th, U.S. Charge dAffaires David Young said United States has provided more than half a billion dollars in annual assistance to Nigeria in the areas of health and security, but is also increasingly focused on the issues of economic stability and growth for the country. We recognize that our shared health and security goals depend on a prosperous economy, he stated. Mr. Young recalled that at the U.S. Africa Business Forum in New York, President Barack Obama said: Wherever Ive gone, from Senegal to South Africa, Africans insist they dont just want aid, they want trade. They want partners, not patrons. They want to do business, and grow business . . . and the United States is determined to be that partner, for the long term. Mr. Young highlighted the United States support for Africas economic prosperity under President Obama, including renewal of the 10-year extension by Congress of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, or AGOA, in 2015 for a decade. Other important steps taken by the United States: launching Trade Africa and Power Africa, creating the Doing Business in Africa campaign, and increasing commitments from the U.S. Export-Import Bank, Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the Millennium Challenge Corporation. The 2016 Nigerian-American SME Financial and Franchising Conference is a bilateral trade and investment advancement initiative organized in collaboration with the Economic Section of the United States Embassy in Nigeria. The United States is proud to work with its partner Nigeria to promote a vibrant economy for the benefit of all Nigerians, the region, and the world. Time to party. Halloween is right around the corner. Youve already figured out your candy agenda and if not, what are you waiting for? but that still leaves some unanswered questions. Like, if youre hosting, what kind of (non-sugary) foods to serve and booze to get for your party that arent just the usual bubbly wine and cheese and crackers. After all, you want your guests to come to your next party, too. Thankfully, Grub can help out with that. Here, 16 things you need to throw a better party, from a Hungarian-style cheese spread to a fancy citron vodka. Fuller Foods Cheese Puffs Price: $15 for a three-pack of three-ounce bags Is it a real party without cheese puffs? No. But you can do better with Portland, Oregons Fuller Foods, who make theirs with high-quality corn grits from Bobs Red Mill. You could get just one, or you could something for everyone with a trio of Asiago black pepper, blue-cheese jalapeno, and sriracha cheddar. Zingermans Liptauer Cheese Price: $10 for six-ounce container Along with artichoke dip and chips of any kind, the cheese spread is one of the pillars of American party snacks. Ann Arbors Zingermans goes global with the traditional Hungarian version, made with farmers cheese doctored up with paprika, capers, toasted caraway, and a pinch of anchovies. Martins Handmade Pretzels Price: $5 for four pretzels Fact: No one will complain about pretzels. Martins makes some of the finest these days, keeping things straightforward and simple some things need no improvement but so good youll want to order a couple of extra boxes for yourself. Lehigh Biltongs Secret Spice Biltong Price: $13 for a two-and-a-half-ounce bag You could get the same old jerky. Or you could switch things up with South African biltong, prepared by seasoning and then air-drying the meat. Along with the traditional version made with salt, pepper, coriander, and vinegar, they offer this version spiked with a secret spice blend. Kerfluffle SMores Fluffernutter Price: $13 for a 13-ounce jar If you were raised properly in New England, you inevitably ate fluffernutters, a somehow acceptable sandwich made with peanut butter and marshmallow spread. Kerfluffle does the work for you, mixing the two ingredients together and amping it up, smores style, with chunks of dark chocolate. Hey, at least itll be nighttime. Ends Meats NDuja Price: $13 to $64 for half a pound to two and a half pounds Like pates and terrines, nduja was made for parties. Its a spreadable, spicy Italian sausage that makes for ideal drinking food. Brooklyns always-tinkering Ends Meat swaps out traditional Calabrian chili for a very American mix of New Mexico red, ancho, serrano, and chipotle chiles. Butter & Scotchs Green Chili Margarita Caramel Corn Price: $9.50 for a three-ounce bag The Brooklyn bakery and cocktail bar spices up sweet caramel corn, in a style similar to Mexican snacks, with lime zest, green chilies, and tequila. Smoking Gooses Stagberry Salame Price: $16.50 for one seven-to-nine-ounce salami New-school charcuterie operation Smoking Goose consistently puts out some of the countrys most original and deliciously interesting meats. The creation that captures that best is the stagberry salame. Made with cured elk meat seasoned with dried blueberries and dry mead, its really unlike anything else out there. 1732 Meats Lamb Prosciutto Price: $500 for a whole leg Or you could just go crazy and order a whole, bone-in lamb prosciutto from 1732 Meats, the ultimate American-made statement meat. Hot Bread Kitchens Pan de Muerto Price: $35 for four Its Halloween, so you better have at least one thematic food thats not just a bowl of black-and-orange gummy worms. To celebrate the Day of the Dead, New Yorks Hot Bread Kitchen sells pan de muerto, the buttery traditional Mexican sweet bread thats integral to the holiday. Plus, its decorated with a skull and bones. Farnum Hill Extra Dry Cider Price: $15 for a 750-milliliter bottle Its apple season, right, so pair your caramel apples with one of the Northeasts very best ciders. New Hampshires Farnum Hill takes a winemakers approach to cider, focusing on specific varietals, with great results: The extra dry, made from a blend of apples, is sugarless but still fruity and spicy. Cornelius Applejack Price: $46 for a 750-milliliter bottle Tired of making batch bourbon drinks? Switch to applejack, the American heritage spirit thats achieved cult status in recent years. To make its version, New York distiller Harvest Spirits distills its hard cider twice before aging it for two years in bourbon bottles. St. George Terroir Gin Price: $40 for a 750-milliliter bottle One of three gins made by the California company, which also produces quality absinthe verte and vodka, Terroirs botanical blend emphasizes warm and woodsy ingredients like Douglas fir, California bay laurel, and coastal sage. Hermann J. Wiemers Gewurztraminer 2013 Price: $27 for a 750-milliliter bottle Big parties arent really the place to explain to your friends and friends friends all of the virtues of your favorite funky natural wine. Better to choose something thats easy and compelling to drink, like this dry Gewurztraminer from the Finger Lakes. Lini 910 Labrusca Emilia Lambrusco Bianco Price: $18 for a 750-milliliter bottle If youre in need of bubbles and tired of Prosecco or whatever, get a bottle of Lini 910s Labrusca. Bucking Emilia-Romagnas tradition of sparkling red lambrusco, its a (more familiar) bubbly white wine thats surprisingly dynamic while still being light. Tamar Distillerys Citron Vodka Price: $48 for a 750-milliliter bottle Maybe, after years of secretly drinking Cosmos behind closed doors, you finally feel like the world is ready to accept your favorite drink again. But this being 2016, you want to make it with a craft spirit and with a twist to make your friends think its cool. If so, get a bottle of Tamar Distillerys double-distilled citron vodka, made with aromatic Buddhas hands and without any added sugar. All the Maalox in the world wont help you. Photo: Michael A. Cheatham/Getty Images/iStockphoto Somewhere, a mother is shaking her head hard-core: Doctors say a 47-year-old in San Francisco, with apparently no edifying hobbies, ate a ghost pepper during an eating contest, and it tore a one-inch hole in his esophagus. The ghost pepper, or bhut jolokia, is one of the Earths hottest things. It has a rating of about one million Scoville units (ordinary Tabasco sauce measures around 2,500 to 5,000), was briefly the worlds hottest chili pepper, and makes for some really uncomfortable YouTube viewing. This man, though, agreed to eat a burger slathered in its puree. To calm the ensuing inferno, doctors say he fruitlessly tried guzzling six glasses of water, before abandoning all hope and calling for emergency help. Forceful vomiting and retching followed, and once he got to the hospital, doctors in the operating room discovered a 2.5-cm tear in the distal esophagus. Surgeons were able to repair the mans organ which, again, was ruptured by a hamburger but only after keeping him intubated for 14 days. He began tolerating liquids on the 17th day, and finally got discharged with a gastric tube in place on day 23. Totally worth it! Today LeEco has officially announced the first two smartphones it's going to be selling in the US. The Chinese company is ambitiously moving to cover that market, even before much older rivals such as Xiaomi. LeEco will offer both the already unveiled Le Pro 3 in the US, as well as the newly outed Le S3. The Pro 3 comes with a 5.5-inch 1080p touchscreen, a 16 MP rear camera with f/2.0 aperture, phase detection autofocus, and dual-tone LED flash, an 8 MP selfie snapper, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 chipset at the helm, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage, a fingerprint scanner on the back, a USB Type-C port (and no 3.5mm headset jack), and a 4,070 mAh battery. It runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow. LeEco Le Pro 3 The high-end smartphone will go for just $399 unlocked, with an additional $100 instant rebate available if you sign up for the company's LeRewards scheme. To complement the Le Pro 3 in its lineup, LeEco has created the Le S3. This model has a 5.5-inch 1080p touchscreen too and the same cameras, but swaps the Snapdragon 821 for a SD652 and only has 3GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, and a 3,000 mAh battery. This handset will retail for $249 unlocked, and once again you can shave $100 off that through an instant rebate with LeRewards. LeEco Le S3 LeEco will use flash sales to get its devices into the hands of eager consumers, and it's going to be interesting to see how well this model will do in the US, since it's essentially the first time anyone's tried it. The first flash sale for the Le Pro 3 and Le S3 will take place on November 2 starting at 10 AM PT. Source 1 Source 2 Oppo R9s and R9s Plus become official with 16 MP cameras both on the front and on the back Today at an event in Shanghai, China, Oppo has finally taken the wraps off the much-leaked R9s and R9s Plus. The two handsets are successors for the R9 and R9 Plus which were unveiled this March. While the original R9 had a 13 MP camera on the back and a 16 MP unit on the front and the R9 Plus went with a pair of 16 MP sensors, this time around every single camera on the R9s and R9s Plus is 16 MP. That makes things easy to remember. Oppo R9s The rear unit for both phones has f/1.7 aperture, electronic image stabilization in the R9s and optical image stabilization in the R9s Plus, 4K video capture support, and a LED flash. The selfie snapper on the other hand has to make do with an f/2.0 aperture. The Oppo R9s has a 5.5-inch 1080p touchscreen with 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass 5, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset (with Adreno 506 GPU), 4GB of RAM, 64GB of expandable storage (via a hybrid dual-SIM slot), a fingerprint scanner on the front, and a 3,010 mAh battery with VOOC fast charge. It runs Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow with Color OS 3.0 on top. Its dimensions are 153 x 74.3 x 6.58 mm, and it weighs 145g. Oppo says the R9s has 1.66m side bezels and a 77.5% screen-to-body ratio. Oppo R9s Plus On the other hand, the R9s Plus is bigger, coming with a 6-inch 1080p touchscreen with 1.78mm side bezels and a 79% screen-to-body ratio. This model is powered by Qualcomm's recently announced Snapdragon 653 SoC, aided by 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, once again expandable through a hybrid dual-SIM / microSD slot. The R9s Plus has a 4,000 mAh battery, its dimensions are 163.63 x 80.8 x 7.35 mm, and it weighs 185g. The rest of its specs are identical to the R9s'. Both phones can receive a charge that's good for two hours of talk time in just five minutes plugged in. For both, the rear camera features Sony's IMX398 sensor with dual-focus that's 40% faster than phase detection autofocus. The devices have redesigned antenna lines on the back - instead of one thick line we now get three separate 0.3mm wide ones, making for an overall sleeker look. This also lets Oppo increase the proportion of metal in the R9s to a whopping 98.8%. New antenna band design The R9s will become available in China on October 28 for CNY 2,799 ($415 or 378 at the current exchange rates). It will be offered in black, gold, and rose gold. The R9s Plus will set you back CNY 3,499 when it goes on sale in December (that's $519 or 473). The R9 was sold outside of China as the Oppo F1 Plus, but it's still unclear if the R9s will transform into an F1s Plus for international markets. Source 1 Source 2 Source 3 Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun posted a letter to announce the latest milestone in India and to thank the team that made it possible. Xiaomi sold 1 million smartphones in just 18 days, not long after the Redmi Note 3 became an online best-seller. Actually, going by IDC numbers, Xiaomi has been the #1 online smartphone brand in India since July of this year. This is an astronomic growth for a company that entered the Indian market in 2014, when it launched the Mi 3. This Flipkart exclusivity ended In April last year, when Xiaomi products went up on Amazon and Snapdeal. Lei Jun thanked Xiaomi retail partners along with Manu (Kumar Jain) and Hugo (Barra) for their leadership and the business teams in China who lent their support. And very importantly, I wish to thank every Indian Mi fan for the love they have shown to Xiaomi, which is the driving force behind our success. - Lei Jun, CEO of Xiaomi The head of the fast-growing smartphone maker is confident that with the sustained efforts of our entire Xiaomi family, we will be able to capture the largest market share in India within 3-5 years. Source | Via Earlier this year, Google put a ride hailing tab in Google Maps so that you can quickly compare if public transport, driving or getting an Uber is faster. Now, the search giant is moving this functionality to a more prominent position - its available straight into search results. You just need to search for something like taxi to Bangalore airport or directions to Bangalore airport and the usual Maps card will be augmented by ride hailing buttons. Currently, this feature is being tested in India and the Netherlands. In India you get a choice of Ola and Uber (anything from Uber Pool to XL). Considering the original feature worked with many local hailing services, chances are that the new search results feature will add more services as its availability expands. By the way, you need the specific app installed (be it Uber, Ola or other). Otherwise, Google Search will offer a link to install the app. Source | Via Are you looking to jumpstart your creative juices? You might want to try playing around in a different tuning, such as open D. This particular tuning has been hailed as [] There has been significant progress in the fight against ISIL on the ground. And the next big offensive is now underway the battle to liberate Mosul from ISIL oppression. The operation to regain control of Iraqs second-largest city will take time. Iraq is supported by a wide range of coalition capabilities including air support, artillery, intelligence, advisors and forward air controllers. The coalition has built a force of over 30,000 fighters for this operation, including Kurdish Peshmerga, Iraqi Security Forces, and some 14,000 local Nineveh fighters. This liberation battle comes after more than two years of ISIL oppression in Mosul, during which they committed horrible atrocities. Over a million people in Mosul are living under the boot of ISIL, including most of the Yezidi slaves who were taken by ISIL two years ago. ISIL is also on the run in Syria. Opposition forces there liberated the Syrian town of Dabiq from ISIL control, aided by support from Turkey and the international coalition. Dabiq held symbolic importance to ISIL. The group carried out unspeakable atrocities in Dabiq, named its English-language magazine after the town and claimed it would be the site of a final victory for the so-called caliphate, said U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter in a written statement. In the military operation to drive ISIL out of Manbij, Syria, coalition fighters uncovered a trove of ISILs foreign fighters and information about where theyre planning and plotting their strategy. Coalition forces uncovered over 15 terabytes of material. This intelligence is being mined and shared shared with global coalition members. Aside from territory, ISIL is losing its leaders. Since August 30, the United States has taken out more than 18 ISIL leaders, including Abu Bakr al-Baghdadis deputy Mohammed Adnani, who was the leader of all their external operations. After the fall of Manbij, many of ISILs leaders left wherever they were and gathered elsewhere. It is clear that ISIL is on the run, and its safe haven is shrinking rapidly. The United States and its coalition partners will not rest until the job is done and ISIL is utterly and completely defeated. ELKO Rehab Services of Nevada will host Business After Hours Thursday. This monthly event is organized by the Elko Area Chamber of Commerce. It is from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at 2207 N. Fifth St. Suite B. The event is free and open to the public. Come enjoy good company, food and drinks while making new connections and learning more about Rehab Services of Nevada, said Melissa McJunkin, marketing and administration for the Chamber. For more information contact the Chamber at 738-7135. Two days after it said it would, the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) finally announced on Oct. 14 Haitis new electoral timetable . The presidential and legislative elections that had been scheduled for Oct. 9, with run-offs on Jan. 8, will now be held on Nov. 20 and Jan. 29 respectively. The final results will be announced on Feb. 20, 2017. Haiti had been hoping to inaugurate a newly elected president on Feb. 7, 2017, a year after one should have been inaugurated constitutionally in 2016. The new 2017 inauguration date, which will be set by President Jocelerme Priverts interim government, has not yet been announced. The Oct. 9 presidential election, which was to be a redo of a fraudulent polling in 2015, had to be rescheduled due to the extensive damage caused by Hurricane Matthew, which passed directly over the cities of Les Cayes and Jeremie on Haitis southern peninsula on Oct. 4. According to an internal Organization of American States report dated Oct. 11, of 157 voting centers in Haitis southern department, 112 (71%) were damaged and 29 (18%) were inaccessible. In the Grande-Anse department, investigators were able to visit or verify only 26 of its 106 voting centers. Of those visited, 23 were damaged, and 31 of the total were inaccessible. In the Nippes department, investigators visited or verified 41 of the 85 voting centers and found 22 of them damaged, while 46 of the total were inaccessible. Furthermore, many Haitians in the south lost their homes and their voter identification cards in the storm. The three hard-hit departments are home to about 1.17 million of Haitis 6.19 million registered voters. There was also storm damage to voting centers and homes in five of Haitis other seven departments, the report said. The OAS report warned that repair and reconstruction of voting centers will be very difficult in the medium and long term because flooding washed away or damaged many roads and bridges. Meanwhile, food, clothes, relief supplies, and construction materials and machinery and have been streaming into Haiti from Venezuela and the Dominican Republic, whose president, Danilo Medina, visited Haiti on Oct. 10. A convoy of over 500 vehicles from the DR crossed the border at Jimani/Malpasse on Oct. 12, but they were accompanied by 1,000 Dominican soldiers. Haitians are already outraged by the Oct. 13 renewal for six months of a Security Council mandate for 5,000 United Nations troops and police officers (known as MINUSTAH) to remain in Haiti until Apr. 15, 2017. The force, originally proposed for six months in 2004, has now militarily occupied Haiti for over 12 years. Therefore, the added deployment of Dominican troops on Haitian soil provoked a sharp nationalist backlash among Haitians, particularly after a 2013 Dominican law was used to strip citizenship from and expel thousands of Dominicans of Haitian ancestry over the past three years. But Haitians also jeered a food and water delivery by UN troops. As [UN Secretary General] Ban Ki-moons convoy traveled in Aux Cayes for his public relations tour on Oct. 16, angry Haitians shouted at the UN trucks, Get out of here! And take your food and water with you!, reported Haitian journalist Dady Chery for News Junkie Post. Things being as they are with the mainstream press, the AFP/France 24 translator reported instead that the irate Haitians, who were in return attacked with tear gas by UN troops, had demanded food. As expected, there has also been an upsurge in cholera in Haitis storm-ravaged south, as detailed in a poignant front-page article in the Oct. 16 New York Times. The deadly disease was brought to Haiti by UN Nepalese troops in October 2010, but the UN did not begin to admit its responsibility for the epidemic until this past August. Unfortunately, the principal response of the UN and Washington to the post-storm cholera explosion is to push a supposed cholera vaccine called Sanchol. The current promotion of oral cholera vaccines is a deceitful campaign motivated by pure greed, explains Dady Chery, who is also a U.S. university biology professor. Vaccination against cholera in Haiti right now is worse than useless. First, even inefficacious vaccines are risky, because the vaccines used on people in the Third World usually contain 6 to 30-fold higher concentrations than the WHO upper limit of thiomersal, a mercury-based preservative that might be linked to autism. Secondly, no one knows which cholera bacteria are in Haiti! The cholera strain identified six years ago has now changed to the point where vaccines manufactured against it will not work at all. These vaccines will certainly be absolutely useless against the strains of cholera from Bangladesh. Finally, even under the best circumstances, when Shanchol is designed and used against a cholera with recently sequenced DNA, protection is poor to nonexistent. A field trial in Bangladesh in 2011 found that the vaccine conferred only 45% protection in all age groups after one year, including only about 17% protection in children under five, who are those most likely to die from cholera. The results published in 2015 for a field trial in Haiti, passing as a vaccination and poorly monitored, claimed 57% protection after one year, but only people older than 12 were inoculated. Given that mass vaccine campaigns offer a huge money-making opportunity for pharmaceutical companies, Haitian authorities should be further advised that some of the supposed vaccinations might actually be drug trials for new vaccines, Dady Chery writes. This would be nothing short of experimentation on Haitians as a large field laboratory. Although the electoral campaign season is only scheduled for 12 days from Nov. 7-18, many candidates have used the disaster as an opportunity to promote themselves or their parties. [P]residential candidates have fanned out over the country, delivering aid supplies throughout the impacted regions, wrote Haiti: Relief and Reconstruction Watchs Jake Johnston on Oct. 13. Many candidates have branded relief supplies with their political logos. Absolutely, it is to contrast with the [Haitian] government that is seen as absent from many rural areas, [Roudy] Chute [of former President Michel Martellys Haitian Bald-Headed Party or PHTK] said. Political ploy or not, a barge with supplies from private sector actors supporting PHTK arrived in Jeremie earlier this week and was expected to continue along the coast, delivering goods to remote coastal towns that have yet to be reached by aid efforts. [The PHTK did similar disaster campaigning in 2014.] Many of the dump trucks removing debris in Jeremie bore the PHTK logo next to that of V&F, one of the largest Haitian construction companies. But PHTK is far from the only party to take such steps. Jude Celestin, another of the top candidates and a former head of the national construction company, has said he is willing to rebuild a crucial bridge that connects the south to the rest of the country, and that was destroyed. His LAPEH party logo was also seen on construction vehicles in Jeremie. Dr. Maryse Narcisse, the presidential candidate of the Fanmi Lavalas party, has led food distributions as well. In response to this de facto campaigning, the CEP put out a warning on Oct. 12 that humanitarian aid to victims of Hurricane Matthew should be an act of non-partisan solidarity. This gesture cannot be used... as part of an election process. Meanwhile, the Haitian governments official death toll from the storm has risen to 546 dead, with 128 missing and 439 wounded. The Civil Protection Directorate (DPC) says the government is housing 175,509 storm victims in temporary shelters. Haiti - DR : More than 80,000 food rations delivered in Les Cayes Nicolas Calderon, the administrator of the Dominican Economic Restaurants (Comedores Economicos) confirmed having delivered in Les Cayes, on board a boat of the Coast Guard (Orion 109) of the Dominican Navy, more than 80,000 rations of food raw and cooked. The mayor of Les Cayes, Maria Claudette Regis, received 75,000 rations raw and cooked and 5,000 volunteers from the Haitian Red Cross also received rations to be distributed. The mayor of Les Cayes and representatives of relief organizations appreciated and thanked the gesture of solidarity of the Dominican government that responds to a promise to the people of Haiti of Dominican President Danilo Medina. SL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - FLASH : The Court of Cassation request the replacement of Jocelerme Privert The judges of the Court of Cassation, gathered at the extraordinary, decided the following... "Considering that the Constitution of 29 March 1987 Article 59 states that national sovereignty is exercised by three (3) branches: Legislative, Executive, Judicial. That, moreover all these three branches constitute the essential foundation of the organization of the State, which is civil; Considering that in the lapsed agreement of 6 February 2016. The Court of Cassation was excluded by the other two branches of the State. That, for evidence, the Head of State in a recent public statement, emphatically asserted that the decision to make enter the Dominican troops on national soil was taken together with the Presidents of the two branches of Parliament regardless of the Judicial Power; Considering that the Parliament first and foremost vigorously denounced this fact that has shocked the national conscience; Considering that some organizations, political parties, political groups and personalities had patriotically hailed the magistrates of the judiciary in a note and asked them to intervene to save the Nation that is at risk; Considering that, in the when the force of the law can not impose the country is then delivered to the law of force which is unacceptable; Considering it is imperative for the Court of Cassation, the Guardian of the law, to ensure scrupulous respect for the constitutional order and the proper application of the law; Considering that, given the urgency, it is necessary to apply Article 149 of the 1987 constitution. Accordingly, require State authorities to provide for the replacement of Mr. Jocelerme Privert Provisional President in accordance with Article 149 of the Constitution of 29 March 1987, in order to safeguard national sovereignty." Signatures : Jules Cantave, President Joseph Mecene Jean-Louis, Judge Windelle Coq Thelot, Judge Kesner Michel Thermesi, Judge Franzi Philemon, Judge Louis Pressoir Jean-Pierre, Judge See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-18977-haiti-justice-the-3rd-power-believes-that-the-governance-is-illegal-and-illegitimate.html HL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - FLASH : A Dutch aid ship turned back for fear of a riot Sunday the "HNLMS Pelikaan", a Dutch warship from Curacao (Netherlands Antilles), carrying on board 35 tons of humanitarian goods (food, hygiene kits and shelter among others...) to Jeremie could not unload its cargo on the Haitian port. The Dutch military and humanitarian organizations on site, explained that there were too many people (many thousands), not enough security measures to ensure the distribution of aid. Faced with the risk of a riot to unforeseen circumstances, the ship's captain chose to to leave at sea. However, the Dutch boat could try to dock again in the coming days if the Haitian government guarantee it more security. For his part, the mayor of Jeremie, Claude Harry Milord considers that this situation was due to a problem of coordination and planning between the Dutch and the Haitian Red Cross which would not have allowed to take all the necessary security measures with the institutions concerned. TB/ HaitiLibre ELKO Great Basin College invites the community to attend local author Vince Juaristis book signing of his latest work titled, Basque Firsts, People Who Changed the World, on Oct. 26. A moderated discussion with Juaristi will be held in the GBC Theatre beginning at 7 p.m. A performance by the Great Basin Basque Dancers will also be featured on stage, followed by the book signing in the bookstore foyer. Coffee and dessert will be provided. This event is free and open to the public. Juaristi, a native of Elko, earned his masters degree in public policy from Harvard University. He is the CEO of a management consulting company in Alexandria, VA. He is also the author of Back to Bizkaia: A Basque- American Memoir. Basque Firsts covers the many contributions Basque men and women have made throughout history in fields such as navigation, education, science, politics and more. Too often these achievements have been overlooked. Naturally, I study and write about the Basque because my dad was Basque, and his daddy before him, and so of course, Im Basque too, said Juaristi. But I write about the Basque also because their tradition of oral history, in this day and age, risk losing so much of who they are their stories, their language, their culture. When asked what step proved to be the most difficult while writing Basque Firsts, Juaristi noted the difficulty of his research. I wanted to rely as much as possible on primary sources letters, diaries, personal testimony, interviews and quite often such rich, wonderful information is not readily available, said Juaristi.You have to search for it, dig for it, often in dusty boxes or wrestle it from the hands of librarians or governments that might not want to relinquish it. For the research on Basque Firsts, I pulled letters and diaries from archives in Spain and the Philippines, from historical libraries in California and London, and from countless hours of sit-down interviews. It was hard work, but in the end, well worth it. Juaristis newest book along with his previous book, Back to Bizkaia is now for sale in the GBC bookstore and will be available for purchase during the event. All proceeds from the book sale go towards the Juaristi Scholarship program for Nevada students. Juaristi said its important to give back to the community he grew up in. Elko is my home; for me, the heart and hub of Basque culture in America, he said. Whatever money comes from the book as I did with my first book Im so very happy to give to kids in Nevada. So far Ive given out 75 scholarships, and plan to give out many more. For more information about the book signing, contact Angie de Braga, Director of Continuing Education and Community Outreach at 775-753-2231. Login or sign up to follow actresses, movies & dramas and get specific updates and news Login Sign Up New Ad-free Subscriber Login Email Password Password Username Your E-mail will only be used to retrieve a lost password. Stay logged in Help Published on 2016/10/19 | Source Added episode 17 captures for the Korean drama "Moonlight Drawn by Clouds" (2016) Advertisement Directed by Baek Sang-hoon, Kim Seong-yoon Written by Kim Min-jeong-II, Lim Ye-jin Network : KBS With Park Bo-gum, Kim Yoo-jung, Chae Soo-bin, Jin Young, Kwak Dong-yeon, Kim Seung-soo,... 18 episodes - Mon, Tue 22:00 Synopsis 'Moonlight Drawn by Clouds' is a palace romance inspired by the genius Crown Prince Hyomyeong in the later era of Joseon, who loved etiquette and music. The drama will tell the coming-of-age story of youthful romance in Joseon era which was unwritten in the history. Broadcast starting date in Korea : 2016/08/22 More Published on 2016/10/18 | Source Added episodes 15 and 16 captures for the Korean drama "The Gentlemen of Wolgyesu Tailor Shop" (2016) Advertisement Directed by Hwang In-hyeok Written by Koo Hyeon-sook Network : KBS With Lee Dong-gun, Jo Yoon-hee, Shin Goo, Kim Young-ae, Oh Hyun-kyung, Cha In-pyo,... Sat, Sun 19:55 Synopsis "Suited Gentlemen In Yanggye-dong" is based on a traditional tailor's with history. The drama depicts the tears, friendship, success and romance of four men. Broadcast starting date in Korea : 2016/08/27 More ELKO William A. Douglass also known as Mr. Basque will be at the Northeastern Nevada Museum from 4-6 p.m. Friday to sign copies and read from his recently published book Death After Life: Tales of Nevada. The trim volume is a collection of 13 fictional short stories on the Silver State. In 2016, it won the Pinnacle Book Achievement Award for Best Book in the Historical Fiction category from National Association of Book Entrepreneurs. The special event is free to the public. Refreshments will consist of wine and tapas from the local Basque community. For 33 years, Douglass directed the Basque Studies program at the University of Nevada, Reno. Today, it bears his name: William A. Douglass Center for Basque Studies. His many publications on the Basques earned him the sobriquet Mr. Basque (the title of a biography about his life and work). He worked with Robert P. Laxalt to establish a Basque book series at the University of Nevada Press. The year 2015 marked the 40th anniversary of his seminal work that he co-authored with Jon Bilbao, Amerikanuak: Basques in the New World. Douglass was named to the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame in 2012. Dust explosion at Korean chemical plant kills one, injures four A dust explosion in a silo at the Star Chemical company plant in the city of Gumi in south eastern South Korea left one worker dead and four others injured on October 19, the Yonhap agency reported. A silo containing terephthalic acid powder caught fire while workers were removing the silo's pipes. The chemical is a raw material used in producing polyester, widely used for clothes. Stock image The fire was extinguished about 40 minutes after it broke out thanks to 20 fire trucks and 140 personnel that were dispatched to the scene. None of the injured were said to be in a life-threatening condition. Police are questioning the survivors to determine what caused the accident. Yonhap said the company was taking procedures to go into liquidation due to financial difficulties. On Wednesday, Oct. 26 between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. everyone is welcome to F.A.R.M. (Feed All Regardless of Means) Cafe at 617 West King Street for the first of what is hoped to be a monthly event where a local business Buys Boone Lunch. The first company to participate in this opportunity is 4 Forty Four construction of Blowing Rock. Every day at F.A.R.M. Cafe guests can donate what they are able, donate more to help others, or exchange an hour of work for a great lunch. However, with 4 Forty Four covering the cost of the meal and cafe operation on October 26 with a generous donation, each and every additional donation will be utilized by the cafe in its mission to fight food insecurity in the High Country. Kevin Troyer of 4 Forty Four learned of this opportunity at a recent business breakfast at the cafe. He and his employees will not only be buying lunch on October 26 but will also be serving as volunteer servers, cooks, and dishwashers working with the Cafe staff. Were really looking forward to this opportunity to support F.A.R.M. Cafe, said Troyer, were also excited to introduce this community cafe to our clients, vendors, and friends. It is a great way to support and give back to this community that means so much to us. We are very grateful that Kevin and the crew at 4 Forty Four are stepping out to be the first of what we hope will be a monthly opportunity for business partners to participate in the mission here at F.A.R.M. Cafe, said Tommy Brown who serves as volunteer and development coordinator at the Cafe. We think this will be a real win/win situation for businesses and business leaders like Kevin who understand the benefit of giving back to the community through support of local non-profit organizations such as F.A.R.M. Cafe. As stated on the web-site (4fortyfour.com), 4 Forty Four is a community-oriented team of people that are very grateful to live and work in Western North Carolina. We take our job, as stewards of this community that you will live in, seriously. Our intent is to reach beyond traditional business models to actively and responsibly engage our community, not merely service it. We value relational capital and treating people right. This starts in our office where all team members are treated like family and extends to you, our clients, who we strive to involve at every level of our systematic process. F.A.R.M. Cafe is a non-profit, pay-what-you-can community kitchen that builds a healthy and inclusive community. It provides high quality and delicious meals produced from local sources when available, served in a restaurant where everybody eats, regardless of means. The Cafe is open for lunch Monday-Friday 11 AM to 2 PM. For more information on F.A.R.M. Cafe and its mission to fight food insecurity in the High Country please visit the website at Farmcafe.org. Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket (Bloomberg) Credit Suisse Group AG is starting two hedge funds focused on quantitative strategies as part of a broader effort to build the banks asset management unit, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. The two funds, Qube and QT, are comprised of existing London and New York-based teams from Credit Suisses Systematic Market-Making Group that had been housed within the investment bank, said the person, who asked not to be named because the matter is private. To read this article: The senseless bombings of civilians and children continue and no one is able to do a thing. One has to ask how something like this is even possible in 2016, he stated in his speech at an event organised by the Finnish Club on Tuesday. The European Union, he estimated, has soft but no hard measures at its disposal, as is evident in its reaction to the situation in Syria. The EU's tools to contribute to resolving the hard core of the war in Syria are limited. Russia's actions in Europe and its peripheries are also examples of hard force, but the EU has been unable to respond to them because it refuses to play and should not play by the harsh rules adopted by Russia, he analysed. The European Union is, as a result, relatively slow to react to such crises and should seek to utilise the measures at its disposal more effectively, according to Sipila. He pointed out that the common defence and security policy has previously revolved around crisis management but its focus is currently shifting towards strengthening a sense of security among Europeans. The European Council, he added, will convene in December to draw up a defence and security-related action plan and mull over means to better utilise the options afforded under treaties. On the table are several concrete proposals that deal with, for example, developing funding for crisis management operations, developing the defence sector, improving the military security of supply, responding to hybrid threats, engaging in permanent structural co-operation, and establishing a permanent common operational headquarters and defence fund, revealed Sipila. Aleksi Teivainen HT Photo: Mikko Stig Lehtikuva Source: Uusi Suomi The Social Affairs and Health Committee of the Finnish Parliament announced yesterday its unanimous support for designing a new health-based tax on foods and beverages, demanding that the preparatory legislative work be started without delay. Finland is moving ahead with its plan to levy a tax on sugary foods and beverages despite fierce opposition from the Finnish Food and Drinks Industries' Federation (ETL). Studies indicate that the excess consumption of sugary beverages, in particular, increases body weight and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. It has been estimated that the adverse effects of sugary drinks are a consequence of how easy it is to consume them excessively, it states in a report drawn up for the Parliament's Finance Committee. The tax is under consideration as a means to offset the financial effects of a ruling delivered by the European Commission that obliges the country to scrap its current tax on sweets and ice cream on grounds that the tax unfairly favours domestic producers. Petteri Orpo (NCP), the Minister of Finance, has expressed his support for the sugar tax but also acknowledged the challenges associated with its implementation. If there's a way to do it, I'm all for it. It'd have a fiscal effect and it'd be a good tax. It's a Pigouvian tax with clear health effects provided that we can get it to work [] I've asked the ministry to explore the options further, he said in an interview with Demokraatti on Tuesday. ETL contrastively believes the challenges associated with the implementation are insurmountable. Not a single EU country has a sugar tax and for a good reason: [the tax] is judicially, technically and economically infeasible, says Heli Tammivuori, a director at ETL. She describes the sugar tax as a cork that re-surfaces regularly. The possibility of introducing a sugar tax was previously explored in 20122013, as a diverse group of officials evaluated a variety of possible sugar tax schemes. All of the schemes evaluated were technically difficult to implement and dubious, to say the least, from a legal viewpoint, she argues in a press release. Nor could any of the schemes guarantee a decrease in sugar consumption, according to Tammivuori. Supporters of the tax have estimated that the implementation is possible following the adoption of new new food labelling regulations by the European Union. ETL, meanwhile, insists that distinguishing between products with natural and products with added sugar will remain difficult regardless of the new regulations. If the tax was levied on the sugar contents of products irrespective of the product in question, food with natural sugar, such as fruit and berries, [] would also fall under the scope of the tax. Drawing a line between foods with natural sugar and foods with added sugar is very complicated, if not impossible, it states. Tammivuori stresses that the industry appreciates the concerns about sugar consumption but has to reduce the amount of sugar in foods and beverages gradually in order not to hurt sales. Aleksi Teivainen HT Photo: Milla Takala Lehtikuva Source: Uusi Suomi I ask for your vote to represent you in Congress so that I can put #PeopleFirst, #GetStuffDone and help rebuild the middle class. Im a businessman, family man and former radio talk-show host. I married my college sweetheart, Laynette, and we have three grown children. In business, I have developed and managed complex budgets, paying close attention to forecasting income, managing expenses and minimizing waste. I have started companies, created jobs and assembled diverse teams to get stuff done. I have successfully negotiated contracts with people from other cultures with goals and values different than mine. On my radio shows, I regularly discussed controversial issues with people across the political spectrum and found areas of agreement to build on. I actively seek out the views of others. In my work with community groups, I have learned to listen to each persons story to understand their challenges. I embrace and work to achieve Americas constitutional commitments to the general welfare, equality and justice for all. I actively reach out to people and organizations that represent women, people of color, seniors, veterans, LGBTQ, faith communities and working families Their appreciation is reflected in my endorsements. My first goal as your Congressman is to vote. When our representative doesnt vote, we have no voice. To bring more good-paying jobs that sustain families to northern Nevada, I will champion efforts to build Nevadas green energy sector. I will put our government on course to repair and modernize our roads, bridges, waterways, airports, transportation systems and other essential infrastructure elements. I will work to establish private/public partnerships that accelerate development of a high-speed data highway in Nevada. It will create jobs, make our existing businesses more competitive, attract new businesses and expand the educational resources available to our children and adults seeking career training. Also high on my To Do list are strengthening social security, getting big money and dark money out of our politics and aggressively addressing climate change. I will work for comprehensive immigration reform with a path to citizenship. Congress needs fixing. The repair begins with putting people first, above the special interests, big money, global corporations and partisan hackery. It continues with voters holding elected representatives accountable for their votes and showing up to work. I will lead and collaborate to move America forward. We must reject obstructionism and discord. Its time for a change. City Council, residents optimistic about downtown hotel prospects Residents and city officials look at a model of downtown Hendersonville during a public meeting about a downtown hotel project. Related Stories If the size of the crowd signified the degree of interest, Hendersonville is very interested in the prospect of a hotel on the site of the historic Grey Hosiery Mill. Eighty people filled most of the seats at the City Operations Center Tuesday night to hear public-private development experts issue an opinion that a downtown hotel is economically feasible as long as the city participates to some degree in the project. The citys main contribution would likely be to finance the sale of the mill property at a low rate and to invest money in streetscape improvements that makes for an appealing pedestrian link to Main Street. The consulting group, Development Finance Initiative, was formed at the School of Government at UNC at Chapel Hill to respond to development finance challenges (and) bridge that gap between public and private investors for these type of transformational projects, said Rory Dowling, the project manager for DFI. After the City Council approved the agreement a year ago, DFI set out to research Hendersonvilles demographics, analyze the demand for lodging and study the potential for growth, said Sarah Odio, a graduate student who was part of the DFI team. The analysis found that while there is no demand for more of the citys existing inventory of rooms bed-and-breakfast inns and highway motels there is a demand for a downtown hotel. There is limited high-quality full service products with event space and a restaurant, Odio said. Just looking at the model, this is an awesome place and people want to come here. The hope of the City Council is that those visitors want to stay downtown and that associations, betrothed couples or anniversary celebrants would book a convention, wedding or party in the 100-year-old mill on Grove Street at Fourth Avenue East. Plans now envision saving the historic 1915 mill for use as a restaurant and meeting space while clearing the rest for new construction. The consultants looked at four comparable resort towns Beaufort, S.C., Staunton, Va., Blowing Rock and New Bern. All have a downtown hotel in the style youre looking at as well an event or conference space, Odio said. Downtown hotels can demand higher occupancy rates and higher room rates." In response to a concern that lodging is a zero-sum game a room night downtown cancels a room night on I-26 Odio said thats not the case. All the products including highway hotels and bed & breakfasts benefit, she said, because the downtown hotel brings more visitors overall. Interviews with hoteliers in the four towns DFI studied showed that across the board they felt the downtown hotel benefited them as a whole. The public-private partnership model, in which the city sells the mill property at an attractive rate, would generate more tax revenue and tourism, the consultants said. We found that with the public-private partnership theres actually a net positive return to the city, Dowling said. Council members reacted enthusiastically to the presentation. The next step would be to authorize the consultants to draft a request for proposals in an effort to attract responses from boutique hotel developers. The proposal on the table now called for a five-story hotel with 130 rooms, a restaurant and convention space for 200. I think its the best shot to do something great for downtown and also save an old building, City Councilman Jeff Miller said. Mayor pro tem Steve Caraker said he favors authorizing the next step in an effort to recruit a developer. Theyve done projects similar to this all over the state so they already have a list of prospects, he said of the Chapel Hill consultants. Dealing with an old building is not your normal from-the-ground-up construction. It presents its own list of challenges and surprises. Carson Calton, the owner of City Tire and chair of the Historic Seventh Avenue advisory committee, liked what he saw. From the perspective of the Seventh Avenue group, weve been talking about something like this forever," he said. "This makes perfect sense not only for all of downtown but for our whole district. To have an anchor like this is great. Its bound to have a spillover effect. Downtown is vibrant and full and theyre going to go to the next commercial area and thats us. Dublin's ruthless gangland feud has made life tougher for low-level criminals. The Hutch-Kinahan violence has led to extra gardai patrolling the city's northside. With more officers on the streets, drug and gun seizures have increased and there have been fewer robberies. Supt Paul Scott of Raheny Garda Station told a Dublin City Council meeting that increased patrols had had a "knock-on" effect in lowering crime in general. Speaking at the North Central Joint Policing Committee meeting, Supt Scott said the number of robberies in the Raheny district had fallen by 36pc compared with last year's figures. Drug seizures in the same district fell by 22pc. Supt Scott attributed the reductions to a "significant input of resources" in response to "what has become known as the Hutch-Kinahan feud". "It does have the knock-on effect that, say, the 'ordinary criminal' isn't prepared to stick his head above the parapet," he said. Robberies Supt Scott added that many criminals who may have considered armed robberies or ambushes of cash-in-transit vans had been discouraged. However, he noted that robberies at businesses in the Howth area had increased in the past nine months, but gardai had a "number of operations" under way to combat this. Meanwhile, Supt Gerard Donnelly of Coolock Garda Station said the number of people caught in possess- ion of a firearm had increased by 40pc compared with the first nine months of 2015. Coolock also saw a 68pc fall in the number of thefts from a person. Supt Donnelly credited an 11pc reduction in public order incidents to add- itional weekend patrols. "A lot of it will be driven by the additional resources that we had out there," he said, adding that 1,000 searches had been conducted in the first nine months of this year compared with 685 in the same period in last year. Asked by councillor Ciaran O'Moore about the budget needed to keep up the increased patrols, gardai stressed they would do what they could to lower crime figures. John Herbert who has traveled from the UK , who has travelled to Ireland in the hope of finding his father Peter. John Herbert with the Sunday Pictorial story on his father Peter who disappeared in 1957 An Englishman who has nurtured a lifelong hope of finding his missing father has travelled to Ireland to continue his search. John Herbert (69) is appealing to people in Dublin for any information they may have on Peter Herbert, an accountant and racehorse owner whose last known location was in the city in 1957. The tale of Peter is colourful to say the least. "He left England with a woman named Stella to travel to Ireland in July 1957," said John. "He stayed at the Belvedere Hotel in Dublin. We don't know what happened to him after he left the hotel in Denmark Street." Embezzled A British Sunday newspaper published a front page story in December 1957 with a photograph of Peter Herbert holding a cocktail shaker with the headline 'Good Riddance To A Rogue'. The Sunday Pictorial published stories reporting Peter had embezzled money from a furniture manufacturing firm where he worked in order to finance a playboy lifestyle, including the purchase of a number of racehorses. The newspaper published comments from Peter admitting he had been "fiddling the books" at the business. His employer also confirmed to the newspaper he had stolen money from him. "Why did my father disappear? In his mind, he had to run away, a coward," said John, also an accountant who lives in Devon. "There were lots of things in his life we don't know. He has been called a rogue and many other things, all of which are probably true." John said that by the age of 37 his father had children with three different women. He said Peter had remained married to his mother, Olive, with whom he had five children. Olive's five children were still very young when he disappeared. "Despite being a very clever man, my father double-crossed others to get ahead," he said. "I'm the first to accept my father was not a nice or a good man, however, it means so much to discover more about his life after 1957. "Despite his wrongdoings, I feel a son or daughter has a right to know about their father, especially his last resting place." He said his father may have used other names in Ireland, such as Peter Field, Peter Williams, or Peter Scott. Extensive efforts by John to find out what happened to his father have included commissioning psychological profiling, employing private investigators in Ireland and Britain, commissioning a number of searches through the Salvation Army, and visiting the Garda Missing Persons office and the National Archives in Dublin, he said. His father was born in England on October 31, 1920. John has also contacted other missing persons agencies in Ireland and the UK, examined ship passenger lists, examined his father's bankruptcy documents, and checked death registers and probate records in the UK and abroad. He also paid for Dublin solicitors to search Land Registry records in Ireland. Although there was "a strong possibility" his father remained in Ireland, John has followed up rumours that he could have gone to Canada, the United States, Australia, or Trinidad by contacting investigators abroad. Information He told the Herald he would be willing a pay a reward for any useful information about what happened to his father and he can be contacted by e-mail at j_dudley@btinternet.com John, who has one son and two granddaughters, said he had felt isolated and alone as a child without his father. He was the eldest of the couple's five children and would dearly love to know what happened to him or even just his date of death. He promised his mother before she died that he would try to find out what happened him. "I do not want to pass from this world without finding out what happened to my father," John said. Children's Minister Katherine Zappone was caught up in a cash-in-transit raid only metres from her constituency office in Tallaght. Ms Zappone was talking to local councillor Charlie O'Connor when raiders targeted a G4S security van making a cash drop at the Bank of Ireland on Main Street just before noon on Monday. One of the gang pepper-sprayed a security guard before grabbing a cash box containing an estimated 50,000 and fleeing to a waiting car. Commotion A member of the public who witnessed the robbery drove his van across the path of the getaway car in an effort to stop it. However, the raiders drove on to the footpath and severely damaged the side of their car as they made their escape. "We were just standing and talking on the street when we noticed a bit of a commotion," Mr O'Connor told the Herald. "We could hear horns and alarms going off and our attention was drawn to it, but we weren't sure what was happening. I went up to the bank to see what had happened and found out about the robbery, so I went back to Katherine and told her. "We were both amazed by it, really. It's shocking to think of it now." Mr O'Connor praised the driver who put his own property and safety at risk to try to stop the raiders from escaping. The garda investigation into the robbery, and another unconnected one at the same time at the Charlestown Shopping Centre in Finglas, is continuing. Ms Zappone (62) declined to comment on the cash-in-transit raid. Social Protection Minister Leo Varadkar has been accused of pitching the public against gardai after saying people "won't ever" look at the force in the same way again if they strike. The minister has called on officers to reflect on the position they hold in society "before making a decision that can't be stepped back from". He said that by "potentially leaving communities unprotected for one Friday or multiple Fridays over the coming weeks, the public won't see them in the same way as they did in the past". Anger However, Mr Varadkar's comments have only served to raise the anger of gardai who are scheduled to withdraw their services on four Fridays next month. Members of AGSI are due to begin their industrial action on Friday by refusing to log on to Pulse, the garda data system. Mr Varakdar made his initial comments on the way into yesterday morning's Cabinet meeting. It prompted AGSI president Antoinette Cunningham to say that if he wanted to protect public relationships he "should be putting his energies into finding solutions and not pitching the public and the guards against each other". However, later as he attended a press conference to announce the end of JobsBridge, Mr Varadkar reiterated his view, outlining why gardai are seen as different from other public servants. "They are uniformed officers. They swear to uphold the law. That really sets them apart from other public servants," he said. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice has confirmed it is "exploring options" for dealing with immigration control at airports ahead of planned days of industrial action by gardai. It is understood that concerns have been raised by airlines that flights and services at airports could be affected on the days. A spokesperson for Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald said: "The Department is exploring with An Garda Siochana and Dublin Airport Authority options for dealing with immigration control in the event of the planned strike action going ahead." Julian Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadoran embassy in London for four years. Markus Schreiber (AP) More information Ecuador admite que corto Internet a Assange por interferir en las elecciones Ecuador said on Tuesday that it has temporarily restricted the internet access of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who has been living in the countrys London embassy for the last four years. In a brief statement, Ecuadors Foreign Ministry said it had cut access at its embassy in London in light of concerns that the WikiLeaks founder, who has lived there since he was granted political asylum in 2012, was interfering in the US presidential election. WikiLeaks has published thousands of emails detailing Hillary Clintons presidential campaign The government of Ecuador respects the principle of non-intervention in the affairs of other countries and does not interfere with electoral processes or support any particular candidate, said the countrys Foreign Ministry in a brief statement. WikiLeaks has published thousands of emails detailing the internal goings on of Hillary Clintons presidential campaign. The whistle-blowing website has continued operations despite the interruption. WikiLeaks reported that Assanges internet connection had been cut on Saturday evening, accusing Quito of submitting to US pressure. The US State Department issued a statement denying having pressured the government of President Rafael Correa. While our concerns about WikiLeaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down WikiLeaks are false, John Kirby, State Department spokesman, said on Tuesday. Assange has become a growing problem for Ecuador since requesting asylum to avoid being extradited to Sweden, where he faces questioning over sexual assault allegations that he denies. At the time, he expressed concern that the Swedish authorities would extradite him to the United States to face trial for the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified US military and diplomatic documents in 2010. Ecuador has signaled that it would continue to grant Assange asylum Ecuador has signaled that it would continue to grant Assange asylum, but the Foreign Ministry statement suggests he would be treated differently from now on. Ecuador is mediating with the Swedish authorities over the rape allegations. WikiLeaks gained international attention in 2006 when it published cables that detailed the inner workings of US foreign policy. In recent months it has published emails stolen from top Democratic Party officials. In July, days before the Democratic National Convention, it published more than 19,000 emails believed to have been taken from the Democratic Party, prompting the resignation of senior party officials. Earlier this month, WikiLeaks again published several thousand emails, revealing messages apparently sent and received by top Clinton aide John Podesta. The organization is expected to continue releasing thousands of additional Podesta emails in the days leading up to the US election. The Clinton campaign has accused Russia of stealing the emails and then having WikiLeaks post them. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is probing the case. The Clinton campaign refuses to confirm whether or not the emails are authentic. English version by Nick Lyne. Kazakh entrepreneurs Tair and Olessya Assimov moved to Barcelona in 2013. JUAN BARBOSA Kazakh Tair Assimov decided to sell his house in Finland and move to Barcelona, without ever having set foot there. He wanted to escape all those Scandinavian winters, and everything he read about the Spanish city online suggested it would fit the bill perfectly. The climate, the culture, the way of life, says Assimov, listing his reasons for choosing the Catalan capital. He convinced his wife Olessya, enrolled his daughter in an international school and made the leap in 2013. Many international executives come to Spain on assignment and then dont want to go home Manuel Clavel, Talengo We have never regretted our decision only that we didnt make it earlier, says the 34-year-old IT engineer and founder of two startups, who was born in Almaty and educated in Helsinki. As an entrepreneur he was free to choose where he lived, and he chose Barcelona. The case of the Assimov family might appear unusual but it isnt. Some 56% of foreigners living in Spain decided to move to the country in search of a better quality of life and 74% believe they have achieved this, according to the latest HSBC Expat Explorer Survey. HSBC spoke to nearly 27,000 expats in 190 countries and found that Spain has the second-best rating for quality of life, behind only Switzerland. Quality of life has become a driver of economic development, according to Mateu Hernandez, director of the independent, not-for-profit association Barcelona Global (BG). Hernandez believes cities around the world are now engaged in a fight to attract the best global talent and factors such as weather and cultural life are key. The aim of BG is to attract the attention of executives, investors, entrepreneurs and artists. We want them to be thinking about Barcelona when it comes to choosing where to live, Hernandez says. Cities around the world are fighting to attract the best talent and factors like weather and cultural life are key Mateu Hernandez, Barcelona Global This was the certainly the case for Switzerlands Regula Stammbach, a qualified organizational psychologist. After 10 years in Frankfurt, she and her husband asked themselves: Do we want to spend the rest of our lives here? The answer was a resounding no. The couple put together a list that included Nice, Rome, Genoa and the Catalan capital. They individually put together a list of pros and cons for each city and Barcelona came out top. Its the perfect city: the culture, the climate, the sea, the food, and the lifestyle, which is both modern and classic, says Stammbach. Like the Assimov family, Stammbach and her husband had plenty of freedom in terms of where they chose to live. Back in 2014, the Swiss woman was running a leadership consultancy for businesses while her husband headed up a marketing firm. That year they moved to Castelldefels, near Barcelonas El Prat airport and they have lived there ever since. I travel every week to see my clients in Switzerland and around the rest of Europe, Stammbach explains. Appealing to investors Spains reputation for its high quality of life also affects investment decisions. Talent attracts capital much more than capital attracts talent, says Hernandez. The CEO of BG argues that whereas investment used to follow natural resources and energy supplies it now goes where good professionals are to be found. For him, Nestles Digital Services Unit, a global digital hub in Barcelona, is an example of that. Barcelona was chosen because its considered a highly attractive city in terms of attracting digital talent, says Jelena Trajkovic Karamata, director of the Nestle center. The Swiss company wasnt just thinking of people already based in the city, but also Barcelonas ability to attract people from all over the world. Half of the 55 people who work at the digital hub come from overseas and 17 different countries are represented. In a similar way, when Amazon decided to set up its technical hub for Europe in Madrid, it wasnt just thinking about local staff. Madrid has two clear advantages: high-quality staff and conditions that attract international talent, says the companys PR director for Spain, Adam Sedo. The executive explains that the firm held recruitment events outside of Spain to put together its Madrid team. Those events were held in locations with good technical universities, with the last two taking place in Singapore and Buenos Aires. Seventy percent of Amazons technical team in Madrid is made up of Spanish engineers while the remainder come from overseas, according to Sedo. Earning less, living better But foreign professionals arent just thinking about sun and sand when they choose where to live, says Manuel Clavel from international headhunter Talengo, which specializes in finding top executives for the Spanish job market. Other key factors in the decision include a citys economic development, the professional opportunities on offer, the quality of education and the existence of business schools, and international links. Spain is highly rated among foreign executives, Clavel says. There are lots of international executives who have come to Spain on assignment and then dont want to go back to their countries, says the headhunter. One of these people is Emmanuel Duriez, a 48-year-old Frenchman who specializes in helping companies in crisis. Duriez came to Spain in 2009 as the director of the Spanish office of French industry supply firm Metalco. He was tasked with restructuring the company and six years later he had made the business profitable again. When head office offered him a job back at home, he turned it down. I already feel more Spanish than French. I like the way people in Spain look at life, he says. Duriez wants to stay in Barcelona and says that he would look for a position at a Spanish firm if Metalco ordered him to go back to France, although he knows he would earn less. I have a lot of French friends who had done this, he says. For the Frenchman, one of the chief attractions of Barcelona is the way of life, but he admits that his love affair with the city lies in the small details. Sometimes we dont give it enough credit but having blue skies nearly every day helps you be happy. English skills and tax system remain hurdles Spain is an attractive destination for foreigners but there are still obstacles for the country when it comes to attracting international talent. English language skills and the tax system are the chief concerns according to the latest poll by Barcelona Global (BG), which saw the participation of 678 foreign residents in Barcelona. Both of these issues are prevalent across the country according to BG CEO Mateu Hernandez, who says English skills are poorer here than in other countries and describes the tax system for individuals as "not very clear." This puts Spanish cities at a disadvantage when lined up against global destinations such as London, Berlin or New York. English version by George Mills. Grand jury findings in a 1988 cold murder case released Tuesday implicate a Wise County man in his brother-in-laws shooting death, and the likely involvement of his brother, then a Sheriffs Office investigator, in hampering the investigation. These are the responsibility of the editor and convey the newspaper's view on current affairs-both domestic and international The PSOE interim management team in Congress. ULY MARTIN Anyone who reads the papers, listens to the radio or checks out the mood on social media these days could be forgiven for concluding that the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) is a party with no pulse and no willpower, a finished entity that could no more run the country than be an effective opposition group. Socialists themselves whether party leaders, grassroots members or voters are not immune to this state of mind. Instead of embracing the partys (objectively dismal) results at the polls, trying to understand what went wrong and working to correct it, they have gone from a state of denial to an attitude of doom-and-gloom that leaves no way out. The PSOE must use its role as opposition to the PP as an incentive to rebuild itself And we should not underestimate the priceless contribution of the Popular Party (PP), whose cynical pose of affliction barely conceals its gleeful desire to prolong its rivals misery. Nor should we play down the role of the media, with their live coverage full of titillating details about the final days of a once-proud lion in its death throes, which is how they are selling the story to their audiences. Finally, let us not forget the chorus of lazy analysts and their endless, repetitive utterances about the crisis of social democracy, and their unavoidable conclusion that no matter what they do, within or without Spain, the Socialists are history. This combination of factors inevitably leads to the same conclusions regardless of the fact that they come from very diverse sources: the PSOE is dead, or else about to die, or else about to commit suicide. As is usually the case with all analyses imbued with a sense of anthropological or ideological pessimism, the starting point is logically the same as the finishing line: pessimism. The problems afflicting Spains Socialists are many and grievous, and it would be senseless to avoid or minimize them. But they are not the only ones or even the most serious ones affecting Spain. Nor is the PSOE the only party in deep trouble (a brief glance at the PP and at other parties going through an identity crisis, from Podemos to Ciudadanos and to the former Convergencia in Catalonia, confirms this fact). The PSOE is said to be dead, or else about to die, or else about to commit suicide And while it is true that social democracy is facing major problems at the global level, it is also true that conservative parties are under pressure of their own (because of their xenophobic, nationalist right wings) that pales compared with the problems of social democracy. There is a future for social democracy. What is it? One in which social democrats are able to use their activism to forge a renewed self-confidence and the ability to understand the way that social needs have changed. From Trudeau in Canada to Renzi in Italy and Obama in the United States, its clear that reformists still have a lot to say and do. The situation is no different in Spain, and therefore it does not have to be any worse here: the PSOEs refusal to accept its election defeats and the serious strategic mistakes it has made since the general election of December 20 have widened pre-existing rifts within the party, and undermined efforts to restore self-confidence to the party. But once it is back on the right track and accepts its double defeat at the polls, the PSOE must use its role as opposition to the PP as an incentive to rebuild itself into the reform-oriented alternative that this country needs. English version by Susana Urra. Comings and goings: Boot Barn in the works; Clorox plant opens New store could be the third to move into Valley Plaza this year. Former Argentinean president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner. Telam When President Mauricio Macri came to power a year ago, in large part it was due to the efforts of opponents of his predecessor, Cristina Kirchner. Not content with removing her from office, many also want to see her face trial for corruption. Few Argentineans believe their judicial system is independent, and are long used to seeing judges acting on behalf of the government of the day. The last year has seen one accusation of corruption against Kirchner follow another, and most people believe that Macri is, one way or another, behind them. Nobody believes him when he insists that he can do nothing to force the courts to take action against Kirchner. The last year has seen one accusation of corruption against Cristina Kirchner follow another Whats more, a growing number of voices are suggesting that Macri is doing all he can to keep Kirchner out of jail, preferring her to lead the opposition at the head of the divided Peronist Party, half of whose members want to dump her. Kirchner has been called to testify in a kickbacks-for-contracts case in her home province of Santa Cruz, in the south of the country. Lazaro Baez, a property developer with close ties to Kirchner and her husband, former president Nestor Kirchner, has been in jail awaiting trial since April in the same case. In 2013, a well-known investigative journalist accused Baez of helping her and her late husband launder some 55 million abroad. The wealth of the president and her late husband has been the subject of ongoing speculation since the political power couple emerged almost a decade ago as national leaders of the faction within the Peronist party that identified themselves as Kirchnerites. In December 2010, WikiLeaks released a US State Department cable written in 2007 by then-US Ambassador Vilma Martinez, who complained to Washington that the Kirchner government was not cooperating with US authorities in cracking down on money-launderers. Some embassy contacts argue that the current [Argentinean] leadership, including the president, stands to lose from the honest and vigorous pursuit of money laundering, wrote Martinez, adding that most money laundering in Argentina is the product of tax evasion and political corruption rather than financing of terrorism. Kirchner could stand in mid-term elections in 2017 Veteran leftist politician Margarita Stolbizer, who has filed charges against Kirchner, as well as outlining her accusations in a best-selling book, believes that Macri is doing all he can to prevent Cristina Kirchner from standing trial. I am concerned by this hold-up in the justice system. I suspect that this is part of a strategy by the government to allow Kirchner to stand for office next year and thus polarize politics. Every time she says something outrageous, Macri is the beneficiary, said Stolbizer in a radio interview. Kirchner could stand as the Peronist Partys candidate for the province of Buenos Aires in mid-term elections in 2017, effectively taking attention away from other opposition parties. In reality, Kirchner is a greater threat to her own party than she is to Macri. She retains a loyal and vocal following. Between 20% and 25% of voters in Buenos Aires will vote for her or whomever she names in the event of being sent to jail. Demand dictates supply, not the other way round, said Macris close aide Marco Pena. English version by Nick Lyne. Agentes de la policia cientifica inspeccionan la casa en la que fueron hallados los cuerpos de una familia brasilena en Pioz (Guadalajara). efe The chief suspect in the investigation into the horrific murder of a family of four in Spains Guadalajara province arrived in Madrid on Wednesday after handing himself in to Brazilian police. The suspect had told police investigators he fled to Brazil because he feared he would be next Sources close to the investigation told Spanish news agency EFE that Patrick Nogueira Gouveira the nephew of the slain parents voluntarily gave himself up to police in his home country after conversations between his lawyer and Spanish investigators. The 19-year-old was due to be taken into custody by Spains Civil Guard when he arrived at the Spanish capitals Adolfo Suarez-Madrid Barajas airport. A video tweeted by the Spanish Civil Guard of the suspects arrival today at Madrid Barajas Airport. Nogueira Gouveira, who has a criminal record after brutally assaulting a teacher when he was 16, is wanted in connection with the horrific murder of his aunt and uncle and their two small children. The dismembered bodies of the family of four were found in plastic garbage sacks on September 18 in their rented home in Pioz, Guadalajara after neighbors alerted police to a terrible stench coming from within the property. Investigators originally suspected the four were victims of a drug deal gone wrong but evidence including DNA and fingerprints at the house pointed to Nogueira Gouveira. In other key evidence, cellphone records obtained by police place Nogueira Gouveira at the scene of the crime on August 17, the day the murders are thought to have taken place. This was the last time his uncle Marcos Campos Nogueira was seen alive at his place of work. CCTV footage also shows the young man entering the private housing estate where his relatives lived at 3am on that date, while data on his bus pass reveals he traveled to Guadalajara on August 17 and returned the following day. Nogueira Gouveira brutally attacked a teacher when he was 16 years old Nogueira Gouveira fled to Brazil two days after the hacked-up bodies of his relatives were found by Civil Guard officers. He initially told Brazilian police he had returned to the South American country over fears he would be next. Declaring that he was innocent, he said he had never been to house in Pioz, which he had helped his relatives locate on the internet. However, as evidence against him mounted, the nephew changed his story. Via his lawyer, he stated the physical evidence found was a result of his having lived with his aunt and uncle, although he did not specify where he had done so. English version by George Mills. A crowd of around 200 violent protesters, many of them wearing hoods and face masks, prevented former Spanish Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez and chairman of the PRISA group (owner of EL PAIS) Juan Luis Cebrian from speaking at a panel discussion in Madrids Autonomous University on Wednesday. The event was canceled after the protesters broke into the auditorium of the Law School to cries of: Out of this university, you fascists. Many bore placards with the message: You are not welcome here. The level of violence acquired traits that went beyond the protest. It was best to cancel the event Antonio Rovira, law professor The protest was organized by a group that calls itself Libertarian Student Federation, which distributed leaflets insulting both speakers and accusing them of using their power and political influence to increase inequality. In recent weeks, both Gonzalez and Cebrian have been blamed by leaders of the anti-austerity Podemos party, and particularly by its secretary general Pablo Iglesias, for allegedly pressuring the Socialist Party (PSOE) into delivering the executive to the Popular Party (PP) through an abstention at an upcoming investiture vote in Congress. Some protesters held up a sign sympathizing with ETA convicts. Spain has been in deadlock since December 20 of last year, when an inconclusive election yielded a fragmented parliament in which no force was able to secure a large enough majority to form a government. A repeat election on June 26 produced a similar result, with the PP winning the most votes both times. Since then, the PSOE has been debating whether to keep voting down acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoys attempts at reinstatement, or whether to let him form a minority government to take Spain out of its prolonged limbo. Felipe Gonzalez, Spains longest-serving prime minister and a respected figure of Spanish Socialism, has come out in support of the latter option. Alarmed by the violence Several masked individuals stationed themselves at the auditorium doors to prevent people from attending the panel discussion, which was part of a series about civil society and global change organized by PRISA. A leaflet attacking Gonzalez and Cebrian was distributed ahead of the scheduled talk. The dean of the law school, Yolanda Valdeolivas, faced the angry group and told them that their attitude was shameful. Antonio Rovira, a professor of constitutional law at the university, said he was struck by the violence of the protest. This [protest] had been announced, but we thought it would be peaceful, he said. But the level of violence acquired traits that went beyond the protest. It was best to cancel the event. There was another option, which was to resort to force and clear the way, but this has to be a very exceptional option at a university. They are not letting us speak inside the auditorium. We dont know what to do in this type of situation, added Rovira. We are a little lost in the face of these signs of violence. The crowd came from outside this school. Today was a day for talking about things that people are allowed to disagree with. But we are persistent and stubborn, and we will try again. English version by Susana Urra. In an attempt to persuade the majority of investors to accept a debt-swap deal, Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) , Venezuelas state-owned oil company, decided to extend the deadline for offers to October 21. A statement published on the companys website carries the tone of an urgent plea and ultimatum: failure to garner at least 50% participation in the swap deal will hurt its ability to make payments on its existing debt. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro delivers a speech at the 23rd World Energy Congress in Istanbul. SEDAT SUNA More information La petrolera estatal venezolana Pdvsa se acerca a la quiebra Such a warning, especially after PDVSA pushed back the deadline three times since it made the initial debt exchange offer in September, indicates the serious challenge the Maduro administration faces when it comes to accessing the necessary liquidity to meet the commitments of an elephantine government that provides almost everything for its citizens, not to mention the lack of confidence the largest company in the South American country which contributes 96% of the total national budget inspires in its investors. The macroeconomic policies of the chavista regime and falling oil prices have not helped bolster confidence in the swap deal either, though President Maduro has insisted that his administration will meet all debt obligations as it has until now. PDVSA bonds were the most profitable asset on all global markets in the last two years, economist Ramiro Molina claimed As of the deadline 5pm New York time on October 17 a substantially lower percentage than 50% of the total capital amount of the existing bonds had been offered, the company admitted in a statement. Improving swap offers would improve the companys liquidity in the short term, it added, before warning that should the exchange fail to go through, PDVSA will evaluate all alternative options. The above-mentioned improvement means exchanging $5.3 billion in bonds that mature in 2017 for new bonds that will mature in 2020. Before the announcement, PDVSA said it would honor its commitments regardless of the results of the swap. But then its bond prices slipped each time it extended the deadline for offers due to fears that the company might have to suspend the transaction and default on its heavy debt obligations in the next 15 months, Reuters reported. On Monday, several analysts appeared on Venezuelan TV discussing their view on the opportunities that the companys bonds represented for investors. PDVSA bonds were the most profitable asset on all global markets in the last two years, economist Ramiro Molina claimed in a discussion on Globovision. Ecoanalitica, a financial consulting firm, was also enthusiastic about the companys returns. With conservative estimates from Citgo, the Houston-based Venezuelan oil company, PDVSA 20s price should be between 82% and 84.2%, it said. PDVAs statement warns that the company might extend the deadline again at its discretion. The Nicolas Maduro administration seems ready to push it to the latest date possible to avoid paying investors. If the exchange deal goes through with 75% participation, Ecoanalitica says PDVSA will free up $4 billion in liquid assets between 2016 and 2017. Venezuela will hold crucial elections during both years that will determine whether the chavista regime remains in power. PDVAs statement warns that the company might extend the deadline again at its discretion PDVSA is one of the largest exporters of crude oil and owner of the largest reserves in the world. But Venezuela is also the country with the highest volume of oil still underground. According to some estimates, the Latin American country could continue to extract this natural resource at the current rate for the next 300 years without exhaustion. This year, however, Venezuela had to buy American light crude oil for the first time. Its own very heavy crude is difficult to refine and must be mixed with lighter types before it can be exported to other nations. In 2015, total production at PDVSA fell to 2.7 million barrels a day according to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), more than a million barrels fewer than it produced a decade ago. English version by Dyane Jean Francois. This domain has expired. If you owned this domain, contact your domain registration service provider for further assistance. If you need help identifying your provider, visit https://www.tucowsdomains.com/ Taking a whack at Arnab Goswami is on the wishlist of his legion of detractors. Indeed, the television anchor seems to revel in public revulsion as night after night he hectors and bullies his hapless guests, especially if they happened to be Pakistanis. Now that there is a threat to him from a Pakistan-based terror organisation, and he has been given Y class security, much reaction online has been far from sympathetic. He has been trolled viciously, the mildest criticism being some kvetching and grumbling that the anchor is being protected at a cost to the taxpayer. But then so are many politicians, some of whom probably do not face as much of a threat as Goswami. Read: Anchor Arnab Goswami gets Y category security Now you could say Goswami asked for it with his hyper patriotism and his consistent belabouring of Pakistani-sponsored terror. He often does not seem to differentiate between the Pakistani state, its people, its army, its intelligence agencies and terrorists. They are all bad, bad, bad, according to him. Whenever he has a Pakistani guest, he either does not let them speak, or smacks them down sharply when they try to get a word in edgeways. Read: Uri aftermath: Delhi Police reviews security of VIPs But, if there is a threat perception and this has clearly been verified by the intelligence agencies before giving him security, it is inappropriate to subject him to attack on this. There is much he can be attacked on but being given security is not one of them. There is hardly a neta today who does not get security and gets it often on flimsy grounds. We tolerate this even though that security often hampers us in public places. A terror threat is a serious matter and should be treated as such. Article 21 of the Constitution says: No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to the procedure established by law. In tandem with several court judgments on the issue of security to those under threat, the government is obliged to provide Goswami security. Anyone who feels so strongly can challenge it in court. This is not the first time a journalist has been given security cover, there have been several instances. So let us not single out Goswami for these online attacks. He is entitled to security whether we like it or not, and this is not an issue on which to pillory him. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON In a pre-recorded video film-maker Karan Johar has vowed not to engage with talent from across the border, has reiterated his patriotism and has appealed that the release of his movie not be disrupted. Johar tries his best to reflect a sombre mood by wearing black and stands in front of a black background. He even speaks about how the country comes first for him. Maybe because Johar is from Bollywood, it does not have the desired effect. The point is: In any other situation it is a video that is worth laughing at. But not now. People in the know of how Bollywood works attribute various reasons for the current tension: Some say this could be a war between the various camps in the film industry, others say there are political undertones to the controversy, and some say its nothing more than a response to some groups who specialise in intimidating and making a quick buck. Read | Wish Karan Johar had expressed solidarity with Indian Army right after Uri: BJP Whatever the reasons, this video is a reflection of the pitiable state to which our society has been reduced to. Videos where citizens profess their patriotism are stuff that emerge from nations that have a totalitarian regime, where citizens have to constantly remind the leader that they love the country and him. India is a vibrant democracy that was built and continues to flourish by accommodating differing viewpoints and informed debate. India should not be defined by the limited spectrum of understanding professed by groups that rely on strong-arm tactics. Its a pity when a citizen is forced to profess his/her love for the nation. Read | MNS threatens multiplex owners before Ae Dil Hai Mushkil release Leading the charge is Raj Thackerays Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), a party whose nuisance quotient is disproportionally higher than its political representation anywhere in the state. Given this, the Devendra Fadnavis governments refusal to take action against the MNS threats gives the impression that the government is either incapable or agrees with what is being done. Otherwise how can a statement by Ameya Khopkar, president, MNS Cine Workers Association, that we will ransack multiplexes if they go ahead with the releaseand that multiplexes that screen the movie better remember that they are decorated with expensive glass sheets not catch the attention of the police? The protection offered by the Mumbai Police to multiplexes comes late in the day after passions have been fanned. Read | Will attack multiplexes if they screen Fawad Khan film: MNS Theres an important line in Johars message which the MNS and other nationalistic attack groups have missed. He says that while he was making the movie there were efforts by our government for peaceful relations with the neighbour. So can it be argued that by accommodating Pakistani talent Johar was following what the government at that time was doing? I feel sorry for Karan Johar not because I think he makes films that are stellar works of cinematic genius he prefers the tear-jerker variety stuffed with songs and dance (which, by the way, is purely Indian and thusnationalistic). I feel sorry because an individual has been pushed to a corner and threatened by a mob using nationalistic sentiments as an excuse to browbeat him into professing his patriotism as though Pakistan-bashing is the meter to measure an Indians patriotism. Read | Im very patriotic, but why hang only artistes. Not fair: Priyanka Chopra That a film-maker had to explain and make a xenophobic declaration in a desperate attempt to ensure the smooth release of his film is a slap on the face of the Fadnavis government. It is a pity that the State reduces its role to a mute spectator when fringe groups and political outfits fan nationalistic passions on false arguments and threaten to disrupt law and order. Read | Varun Dhawan, Paresh Rawal support Karan Johars Ae Dil Hai Mushkil The ruling BJP is doubly at fault because not only has it failed in checking threats from fringe groups, but it has also failed to rein in its youth wing which has joined those groups threatening to block the screening of movies with Pakistani artistes. @vijucherian SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Compassion, it seems, has no place in the corridors of power dominated solely by electoral considerations. Nothing else perhaps can explain the plight of the 14-year-old rape survivor of Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh who gave birth to a baby last week after losing a legal battle to abort her unwanted child. Her tale is poignant and powerful enough that ought to have melted hearts: A young unwed mother saddled with the onerous task of bringing up a child in a poor family that struggles to feed its members. Livelihood, however, is just one of the many daunting challenges that the girl faces. Though her alleged rapist is in jail, she is forced to confront stigmas associated with rape and out-of-wedlock motherhood in her village, Bairamnagar, about 40km from Bareilly town. Steeped in traditions and customs, neighbours look down upon the family, though they are simply victims and not perpetrators of a suspected heinous crime. But logic is in short supply in Uttar Pradesh preparing for crucial assembly elections next year. The focus is firmly on votes and the cries of a single mother, pleading for justice and a bit of help, find no takers. The judiciary took too long to decide and even insensitive officials kept her waiting. Time was of the essence to abort the foetus that grew in her womb, but the establishment took no notice. Police presence in Bisada village at Dadri in Greater Noida, after accused Ravin dies in Delhi hospital. (Sunil Sharma/HT file photo) ead | How the system badly failed a minor rape survivor in Bareilly Politicians focused instead on a murder suspect who died in a jail. By no stretch of imagination, Ravin Sisodia could have evoked any sympathy from anyone under normal circumstances. Accused of being part of a mob that lynched Mohammad Ikhlaq, an elderly Muslim man of Bisada village last year on the suspicion of possessing beef, he was found dead in detention in Luksar jail. Beef is an emotive issue with great electoral significance and Sisodia was made into a martyr in his death. His body was wrapped in the Tricolour and elected representatives rushed to his village to placate villagers divided on religious lines. In no time, his family had secured monetary pledges of Rs 25 lakh: the state government gave Rs 10 lakh, an NGO promised another Rs 10 lakh, and two BJP politicians Union minister Mahesh Sharma and state legislator Sangeet Som assured another Rs 5 lakh. The unwed mother, on the contrary, was given just Rs 25,000 on Tuesday after months of ordeal maybe because empathy for her wouldnt fetch votes. For that matter, no politician has bothered to visit her till date despite newspapers consistently highlighting her plight. And the only time an official called on her was when she went to the local health centre to deliver the child and was refused help by a nurse for being a rape victim. The sub-divisional magistrate came to find out what exactly happened, but has not returned since. Districts in Uttar Pradesh also have probationary officers to look after unwed mothers and rape survivors. But none so far has bothered to take care of the Bareilly girl. Uttar Pradesh boasts of a chief minister who is young, articulate and decent. But the establishment he runs has failed the girl at every step. Besides being shameful, the systemic failure is nothing but criminal. Read | Why no outrage over this rape victim denied permission by court to abort? SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON In Uttar Pradesh, the recent retaliatory commando raids across the LoC have taken on a new meaning. On Dussehra, PM Narendra Modi appeared at a Ram Lila in Lucknow, holding a faux sudarshan chakra. Across the state, posters featuring Modi, defence minister Manohar Parrikar, home minister Rajnath Singh and assorted BJP leaders have been plastered, along with silhouettes of soldiers, hailing the triumph of the avengers of Uri. In the recent narrative, India seems to have had three military victories: The unambiguous triumph that led to the creation of Bangladesh in 1971, the somewhat ambiguous Kargil victory of 1999, and now, the surgical strikes of September 29, 2016, which have been declared to be a great victory, even though it has not quite achieved its goal getting Pakistan to dismantle its terrorist infrastructure. The war of 1971 lasted two weeks, with the loss of more than 3,800 officers and jawans. The Kargil operation lasted roughly two months with the loss of some 470. In the surgical strike, which lasted several hours, fortuitously no one was killed. The reason why the government is furiously making all kinds of claims, including that the Indian Army is now as good as the one of Israel in counter-terrorism, has to do with electoral politics. The use of military achievements to win elections is not new. But conflating a limited border operation to a military triumph certainly is, especially as it is aided by sections of an over-the-top media that seems to have lost its balance. The army itself has been low-key and the DGMOs statement announcing the attacks was factual and made none of the claims subsequently adduced on their behalf. Read: Surgical strikes like Israeli ops: PM Elections have played a role in all three victories. In March 1971, Indira Gandhi called for general elections and crushed the Opposition, in the main the dissident Congress and Jana Sangh. Strengthened enormously, she began the military-diplomatic moves that led to the surrender of the Pakistani army and the break-up of the country. Months after the war, in March 1972, she called for elections to 16 assemblies and the Congress swept them all. In 1999, having been voted out of power in the midst of the Kargil crisis, Atal Bihari Vajpayee went to the polls with the Kargil victory as a slogan, accompanied by the same kind of media hype we see today. It didnt wash, the BJP managed to win 182 seats, the exact number it had in the outgoing Lok Sabha. But it formed the government because the Congress did particularly badly. The assembly elections in UP are due in a few months. At this juncture, we can only guess on the outcome, but one thing that is clear is that the BJP is going all out to make the maximum political use of what it says is a famous victory. The surgical strikes are witnessing some of the repeat of the Kargil scenario, when the ruling party raised the din of the victory so high that the failure to detect intruding Pakistanis for several months was papered over. TV studios have constructed their own war room sets complete with anchors in war correspondents gear. What would Indira Gandhi have said of Parrikars claim that Like Hanuman, Army didnt know its power, I made our armed forces realise their power? Just how a supposedly cultural organisation like the RSS inspires a tactical military strike is another unfathomable mystery. Read: Parrikar credits RSS teachings for surgical strikes Parrikar insists that the strikes have been the most outstanding achievements of the army in the past 30 years. In claiming this, he does grave disservice to the brave personnel who have conducted such operations since 1993, sometimes going deeper into Pakistan-occupied Kashmir than the soldiers did this time. In democracies, using military achievements for elections are not unusual. But its worth looking at the outcomes of our listed victories. Indira Gandhi squandered her mandate, and in three years declared the Emergency. Vajpayee wisely consolidated the NDA and ordered the Kargil inquiry, which led to the first systematic reform in Indias defence system since the mid-1960s. It is one thing to declare that our army is the best in the world, its quite another thing to be taken in by ones own rhetoric. There are lots of gaps in the armys organisation, equipment, doctrine and professional education. As defence minister, Parrikars first job is to address these issues, not win elections. Read: Engagement with Pak at time of our choosing Modi has now signalled a zero tolerance for jihadi activity so he is now committed to respond each time an incident occurs. But we are still a long way from cracking the tough Pakistani nut and getting it to abandon support to terrorism. The strikes have been a great tactical success, but the real triumph will be in achieving a strategic shift in Islamabad. The strikes are only one element in what could be a sophisticated strategy of compellence; however, that strategy is already in danger of getting derailed by the premature celebrations of victory. Manoj Joshi is Distinguished Fellow, Observer Research Foundation The views expressed are personal Delhis oldest secular festival, Phool Waloon Ki Sair, has managed to survive the test of time. The festival which was initiated by the Mughals in 19th century, has come a long way. It came to a halt though when the country was under the British rule. It was revived by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in 1961. This annual week-long celebration in the Capital organised by Anjuman Sair-E-Gul Faroshan, brings together communities to promote communal harmony. What happens over the border cant stop us from holding this festival, says Usha Kumar, general secretary, Anjuman Sair-E-Gul Faroshan. She adds that the younger generation is oblivious to this more than a century-old tradition. But she adds, The response has been increasing every year. Since its inception, the festival has been known for promoting peace and oneness among Hindus and Muslims. Keeping the grudges aside, people from both the communities will visit the Dargah of Khwaja Bakhtiar Kaaki near Qutub Minar on October 20 to offer floral chadar and panka. The next day, they will head to the Yogmaya Temple in Mehrauli to offer a floral chatra and panka (fan), says Kumar. The Yogmaya mandir where the members will offer floral chhatra and Panka on October 21. The festival is celebrated every year at Mehrauli in the Capital. (Mohd Zakir/HT Photo) The festivals itinerary aims to showcase composite culture of the city. The festival which kick started on October 14 with multiple activities, will culminate with the offering-ceremonies on the last two days. About India-Pakistan relations and its effects on the festivities and Kumar adds, People from all over the city come together to celebrate this festival and at such a time when theres friction in the hearts people in both the countries, the relevance of this festival increases manifolds. CATCH IT LIVE What: Phool Waloon Ki Sair Where: Dargah of Khwaja Bakhtiar Kaaki near Qutub Minar When: October 20 and 21 Timings: 4 pm Nearest Metro Station: Qutub Minar on Yellow Line SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Gwalior police arrested a 36-year-old man accused of committing multiple thefts in a number of cities across the country. The accused, Sachin Valmiki, a first year college dropout, who led a swanky lifestyle, was wanted in Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune, Nasik, Agra, Nagpur and Jaipur, said Morar town inspector Ravindra Singh Gurjar. He was driving a stolen luxury sedan, wearing a Rolex watch and branded clothes when he was arrested on Sunday night at Morar neighbourhood of the city. He stole the car from a city showroom after being released from jail three months back, he said. He was earlier arrested and released more than 20 times before being nabbed by the city police. He was driving around in the stolen car along with one of his accomplice when he was stopped near a check post following a tip-off from an informer. When police asked him for documents of the car, he said that he had left them in his house and can fetch them in five minutes. Gujar further said that police had information about him and knew that the car was stolen. During interrogation the accused confessed that he had stolen the car and put a fake registration number on it with a VIP number to evade arrest. The accused told police that he has three wives and four girlfriends. Valmiki also confessed about committing a theft at a city jewellery showroom, near one of his girlfriends house. Police have recovered more than 1.5 kg of silver and gold jewllery from him, which he had stolen from a city showroom. During interrogation he revealed that his first wife a resident of Gwaliorwho was aware about his profession used to bail him out every time he was arrested. Valmiki is fluent in English with excellent communication skills and used to travel by AC first class in train or by flights to commute one city to another to commit thefts, the police said. Interrogations are on and we are trying to find out whether his wives and girlfriends were also involved in the theft along with him. He will be produced in a city court soon, Gujar said. After film-maker Karan Johar gave in to the pressure of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and said he will not work with Pakistani talent in future, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday said that it would have been better had the director expressed solidarity with Indias armed forces post Uri and Pathankot attacks. BJP spokesperson Shaina NC told ANI that the Centre has decided to give protection to every theatre that is going to showcase Johars film. Clearly, there is a sentiment in public at large, which is anti-Pakistan at the given juncture as we all know post Uri and Pathankot. I wish the directors like Karan Johar would have come out with a statement in solidarity with our armed forces after the attacks rather than let a controversy break loose, said NC. However, we do believe that the rule of law must prevail and because it cannot implement retrospective, our government has decided to give protection to every theatre that is going to showcase that film, she added. NC further said that the question is who has actually boycotted this particular film, as the government has no role to play. Earlier on Tuesday, Johar broke his silence on the row over his upcoming film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, in an emotional video statement expressing a deep sense of hurt and pain by the charge of being anti-national. I condemn terror in the strongest terms, I respect our Army, for me, the country comes first, the 44-year-old said. Johar, who made his directorial debut with the blockbuster romance Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, further said, The best way to express your patriotism is to spread love and thats all I have ever tried to do through my work and cinema. Yesterday, prominent industry veterans including filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt met Mumbai Police Commissioner Dattatray Padsalgikar and Joint Police Commissioner (Law and Order) Deven Bharti, who assured them that they would provide protection to theatres screening Dharma Productions next release. The meeting took place in the wake of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) veiled threat of vandalizing multiplexes if they screen Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. CEO of Fox Star Studios Vijay Singh, CEO of Dharma Productions Apoorva Mehta and Siddharth Roy Kapur, the CEO of Disney India and the UTV Motion Pictures were among those present in the meeting. Shunning long-time speculations about whether the movie will release on its defined date or not, Bhatt confirmed that they would stick to the initial date of release, adding the movie will hit cinemas worldwide on October 28. Reaching out to the MNS workers, Bhatt urged them to show sensitivity about the fact that the movie has already been made and allow Diwali to be a festive affair for everyone. I have a request as a fellow Indian to my brothers in the MNS, I am humbly requesting you to let us entertain people on the occasion of Diwali, he said. Meanwhile, Mumbai Police spokesperson Ashok Dudhe said that all multiplexes and single screen theatres would get protection to release the movie so that no disruption is caused in middle of the shows or in the city as a whole. The movie starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has been under fire because it also features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in a cameo. The MNS after imposing the ban on artistes from the neighbouring country, in response to the terror attack in Uri led by Pakistan, had on Monday openly threatened the theatre owners if they screen the movie. Follow @htshowbiz for more A decision on the goods and services tax (GST) rate will be taken next month, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley said on Wednesday after the Centre and states failed to arrive at a consensus despite discussions over two days. Jaitley, however, sounded confident about rolling out by April the single nationwide tax to replace a string of local levies, hailed as one of the biggest tax reforms in the country. The discussions were initially planned for three days. We will finalise the tax structure at the next meeting, Jaitley said, adding the GST council, that includes representatives of all states, will meet again on November 3-4. Officials said the discussions on Wednesday centred around a cess on ultra-luxury and sin goods that would be used to compensate states for any loss of revenue they may suffer in the first five years of introducing GST. The states could not come to a conclusion on whether a cess should be levied over and above GST. We have to come to a consensus on how the central government will garner the money to compensate the states, revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia told HT. Before this is decided, GST rates or its structure cannot be fixed, he added. This extra levy will come to around Rs 50,000 crore, ministry sources said. Officials said the states sought more time to study the impact of the compensation formula and its impact on their exchequer. The landmark tax reforms secured Parliaments approval earlier this year after months of hard bargain between the BJP-led government and Opposition parties over the tax rate. The Congress had demanded a cap on the GST rate at 18%. On Tuesday, the finance ministry had proposed a four-slab structure with two standard rates of 12% and 18%. Food items and other necessities would be taxed at 6% while luxury products would be taxed at 26%. The Centre has set a November 22 deadline for finalising the GST structure. We know its a daunting task to finish this in the next meeting (to fix GST rates with full consensus of states), but we will accomplish it, Adhia said. Goas plush Kingfisher Villa, where Vijay Mallya has hosted several glitzy parties in the past, failed to attract a single bidder at an e-auction on Wednesday --marking yet another failed attempt by lenders to recover dues from the embattled businessman. While repeated attempts have been made without any success for sale of several other assets kept as collaterals by erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines of the Mallya-led UB Group, the famed villa was put under hammer for the first time. However, the auction turned out to be a damp squib, supposedly due to its high reserve price at Rs 85.3 crore, sources said. The 12,350 sq mt villa was once used by Mallya to host lavish parties in his good times. None of the bidders came forward, so the auction of Kingfisher Villa failed. Higher reserve price could be the reason, a source said. The sea-facing palatial villa, situated in Candolim, Goa had earlier attracted interest from at least half a dozen players in the hospitality industry and a media group, when it was opened for inspection to interested bidders during the end of September and early October. The 17-lender consortium led by State Bank of India took physical possession of the property in May after a long legal battle with United Spirits over tenancy rights. The villa was owned by United Breweries Holdings and mortgaged by Kingfisher Airlines to the consortium of banks to obtain loans in 2010. It is among many movable and immovable properties under lenders possession, which they are trying to auction as part to recover Rs 9,000 crore from Mallya. In August this year, lenders to the now-defunct airlines and tax authorities had put under hammer various movable and immovable assets of the KFA for a second time, but failed to get any buyers. The assets which were put on sale included the airlines erstwhile headquarters, Kingfisher House near Mumbai airport, cars, Mallyas plush personal jet and numerous brands and trademarks, including the famed Fly with Good Times. Most of these assets were put on auction for a second time, and with a lower reserve price. Lenders had reduced the reserve price of Kingfisher House, which has a built-up area of over 17,000 sq ft and is located in the prime suburb of Vile Parle, to Rs 135 crore from Rs 150 crore. Similarly, the reserve price of the airlines trademarks, including Kingfisher logo and the tagline Fly the Good Times, for the last months auction was reduced to Rs 330.33 crore from Rs 366.70 crore. All auctions had failed as bidders found the reserve prices too high. Mallya owes over Rs 9,000 crore to lenders like SBI, PNB, IDBI Bank, BoB, Allahabad Bank, Federal Bank and Axis Bank, among others. He had left the country in March and is currently said to be in Britain, having defied several court orders to return to India. Amazon is encouraging the whole of India to sign-up on Prime, its premium membership service, which is essentially the US-based e-commerce giants biggest loyalty program. And the hook is faster deliveries. In the first phase of the Great Indian Festival sale Prime memberships, at Rs 499, was the most sold product in Amazons history in India more than smartphones or televisions as customers wanted their orders to reach faster, Amit Agarwal, country manager of Amazon India told HT. For the Prime buyer, the membership was offered on a 60-days free trial (stopped right before the sale started), has its own value. If a non-Prime member orders a product it can take up to 10-12 days to reach you, but for a member its guaranteed delivery within two days. Once Primes free trial period got over, it automatically added the membership to the next order on Amazon (often resulting in its purchase). The membership letter is nicely delivered in a blue envelop -- the first mark of being premium. The popular belief was that customers shop for cellphones, clothes or electronics a couple of times a year, mostly on discounts, and that they would never pay for convenience. The fact that premium delivery went up by five times and Prime was a top seller shows that customer are willing to buy convenience when they trust a site, said Agarwal. What was more surprising is that 35% of all Prime memberships were sold in smaller towns, which reflects that convenience isnt limited to metros, but even in smaller towns people are shifting to online shopping and want quicker and reliable delivery. To make Prime more attractive, Amazon opens up the sale 30-minutes early, only to its members. It also has something called the Prime Day, a sale period exclusive to the members. Once a Prime member, Amazon assures that it has your loyalty. It becomes a e-commerce platform of choice once you have purchased a membership, said Sanchit Vir Gogia, founder and chief analyst at Greyhound Research. As Prime grows it will also have exclusive video content, another catch for members. It has already partnered with Dharma Productions to premier its upcoming movie. There are more partnerships in the pipeline. Amazon is tight-lipped about it, but intends to change the way video content is consumed, rivaling Netflix, Hotstar, YouTube and other video streaming apps and websites. As far as e-commerce is concerned, Agarwal believes that the customer would come to us even after the festive season is over. The customer will shop more and more as they use the Prime membership I think this is a big inflection point in e-commerce, and takes India in the direction in which e-commerce should be, he said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Bengaluru For the first time, India is suffering a severe shortage of skilled manpower, especially in the information technology (IT) sector, with 48% of all employers finding it tough to fill job positions, said a report by HR specialist Manpower Group. The 2016/2017 Talent Shortage Survey released on Tuesday is reportedly based on a global survey covering 42,000 employers across the world. Apart from IT and accounting & finance, the most challenging job roles to fill are of project manager, sales manager, customer support, technician, quality controller and procurement staff. AG Rao, group managing director of Manpower Group India, said: The demand index for IT and accounting professionals has been on a continuous rise. Focus on technology upgrade and better financial access will drive growth in these sectors in the coming months. Further, with government and the RBI aiming to provide financial services in rural areas, the demand is set to grow across core and support functions. Rao also said that increased automation will lead to a rise in demand for high-skilled jobs. The areas, which will see high demand and lucrative pay packages include big data, analytics, mobility, design, Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence. The report also said employers couldnt fill vacancies due to lack of soft skills (36%) among prospective employees, and aspirants looking for higher pay (34%). Around 36% of the employers surveyed in India train their staff, and 33% offer higher pay to new recruits to tackle shortage of skilled workforce. According to the report, as skills change rapidly, employers are looking inside for solutions, with 36% of Indian employers choosing to develop and train their own people. Globally, 40% of employers surveyed are facing difficulty in filling job vacancies. Region-wise, 46% of Asian employers reported hiring difficulties, with Japan (86%), Taiwan (73%) and Hong Kong (69%) reporting most of the challenges, while just 10% of Chinese employers faced such an issue, the lowest of all countries surveyed. Nearly 50 years ago British MP Enoch Powell gave one of the most racist and controversial speeches in British political history. Rivers of Blood, as it came to be known, was a tirade against Indians and Africans coming to work and settle in Britain. To him it was literally mad that the country was allowing them in. It is like watching a nation busily engaged in heaping up its own funeral pyre, he shrieked in anger and hatred. He said they should be sent back before things changed too much. There were over 300,000 immigrants of Indian origin in Britain by 1971. They were exceeded in number only by the Irish. People like my parents family came over to take up jobs in factories, in the National Health Service, as shopkeepers and much more. Powell and his supporters didnt care that Indians were very hard-working and went on to prosper beyond their imagination. They believed British whites would suffer by mixing with Asians and blacks. He was afraid they wanted to buy houses next to white families or even follow their own religions. Read | UK, India confirm Theresa Mays visit in November Powell became too controversial to be government minister but his speech made him a martyr, even to this day. And now it looks like the ghost of Powell is making a comeback. Last week Simon Heffer, a well-known British newspaper commentator, wrote in the Daily Telegraph: Theresa May is following Enoch Powell by actually listening to what British people want. Britain may not be back in the 1960s yet but there are ominous signs it is heading back into the direction Enoch Powell wanted. A worryingly large number of Britons now think their communal hatred has become acceptable in wider society because of the referendum result. According to figures released last week, immediately after the Brexit vote, crime committed against people because of their race or religion jumped by 41%. Read | No reversal of Brexit once UK triggers EU divorce process: UK attorney general There have been a growing number of attacks on Britons of Asian and Eastern European origin. Go back to where you came from has become a fashionable insult, again. We knew this would happen. Most of the key political figures who campaigned to leave the European Union (EU) either made up or exaggerated scare stories about immigration. It became the driving force behind their crusade. So its not surprising that many Britons now think that having won the vote its time for immigrants to leave the country. They feel their racist views finally have justification and validation. Read | Explain funds or lose UK property In the past, even as British politicians talked tough about immigration, the country had a relatively open policy. That is now changing. When she was home secretary, Theresa May had the bright idea of getting vans with a big sign saying GO HOME to drive around in areas of London dominated by families of Indian origin. Her department claimed they were only referring to illegal immigrants but the point she wanted to make was as clear as a bat-signal on a dark night. Even before she gave her first speech as prime minister at the Conservative Party conference a few weeks ago, her team was sending out the signals. British companies must list the number of foreign workers they employed, the Times newspaper reported. May wanted to name and shame companies who employed too many foreigners, the Financial Times wrote. Read | Most foreign students return: UK study Her speech went along the same lines: Someone who finds themselves out of work or on lower wages because of low-skilled immigration, life simply doesnt seem fair, she said. It doesnt matter there is little evidence to show British workers overall are being undercut by workers from other countries. Facts are the first casualty when a politician is pandering to voters prejudices. Mays Britain is saying to Indias brightest and best: Youre not welcome any more. And shes right. They are not welcome any more. Not even the students who pay thousands of pounds a year just to study here. They are better off going to the United States or other countries where they will be appreciated. Read | Pak made significant sacrifices in battling terrorism, says UK The strict clampdown on immigration, which is in the works, will hit not just Indians looking to work in the UK, but also those looking to study, visit or join family here. It will also hit Indian companies looking to invest in Britain--who are now vital to British industry. Make no mistake about it. Britains new PM Theresa May is set to deeply shake the economic and cultural ties between India and the UK. It is an act of aatmahatya that senior ministers are anticipating in the way suicide-bombers look forward to heaven. Read | 24 years on, UK extradites first in list of Indias most wanted May wont ever make racist speeches like Powell did, but the atmosphere and impact created by her policies take Britain back to a darker past. The irony is that a nation that built its wealth by colonising other countries is saying it is better off shutting itself from the outside world. Sunny Hundal is a writer and lecturer on digital journalism based in London The views expressed are personal SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Once again, the French legislature bans denial of Armenian Genocide By Harut Sassounian Publisher, The California Courier www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com Both Houses of the French Legislature have once again adopted a law that penalizes the denial of genocides recognized by French or international courts, or the denial, minimization or extreme trivialization of other genocides or Crimes Against Humanity, if accompanied by incitement to violence or hatred. The French Senate approved the new law by a vote of 156 to 146 on October 14, following the Parliaments approval by a vote of 305-157 on July 6. The law will go into effect after Pres. Francois Hollande signs it, which he is committed to do. The question now is whether the Constitutional Council of France will approve the proposed law or find it unconstitutional, as it did back in 2012, arguing that it violated freedom of speech. Here is the background of this tortuous saga: The French Parliament first recognized the Armenian Genocide on May 29, 1998, followed by the Senate on Nov. 7, 2000. However, due to intervening elections between the two votes, the Parliament had to approve it a second time, which it did on January 18, 2001, declaring that France publicly recognizes the Armenian Genocide of 1915. Prime Minister Lionel Jospin and Pres. Jacques Chirac signed the legislatures recognition into law on January 29, 2001. In response, the Turkish government withdrew its Ambassador from Paris. Given the fact that several members of the French media and some Turks in France and their cohorts continued to deny the Armenian Genocide, the French-Armenian community sought to penalize the denialists, as was the case with the Jewish Holocaust. French-Armenians demanded equal protection under the law, rightfully contending that there should be no discrimination among genocide victims! After 10 years of lobbying, French Armenians and their supporters finally succeeded in having the Parliament adopt a proposed law on Dec. 22, 2011 which set a penalty of a year in prison and $50,000 fine for anyone denying the Armenian Genocide. The Senate followed suit on January 23, 2012, prompting Turkey once again to withdraw its Ambassador from Paris! The French Constitutional Council decided on Feb. 28, 2012, that the proposed law was unconstitutional as it violated freedom of speech. The Councils decision was highly scandalous. Several of its 11 members had serious conflicts of interest because their families had business ties to Turkey or had opposed this bill during their years in the legislature! Most amazingly, one of Council members was on the Board of the Bosphorus Institute, a Turkish Think Tank that was lobbying against this law! After a French newspaper exposed these unethical affiliations, two members of the Council recused themselves from the case. The current Constitutional Council is now composed of 10 members -- three are leftovers from the 2012 Council that rejected a similar law. Fortunately, several of the new members are more favorably disposed toward the proposed legislation. More importantly, the newly adopted law, called Equality and Citizenship, is considerably different from the 2012 version. President Hollande along with the legislature and the French-Armenian community went to great lengths to ensure that the new language complies with the right to free speech. Although the freedom of expression is a cherished right in all democracies, there are several important factors that must be kept in mind: 1) Freedom of speech is more of an absolute right in the United States than in Europe where there are many laws that restrict it. Even in the U.S., there are some limitations on ones ability to say or write whatever one pleases, such as libel and defamation laws. 2) In countries where denial of the Jewish Holocaust is banned, so should denial of all other genocides, including the Armenian Genocide. No double standard among Genocide victims! 3) Since France has a law that recognizes the Armenian Genocide, there should be a penalty for violating it, as is the case with all laws! 4) Anti-denial laws would prevent Turkey from exporting its denialist policies to other countries. 5) In democratic France, it is now against the law to lie about the Armenian Genocide, while in despotic Turkey it is against the law to tell the truth! NEW DELHI: India will engage with Pakistan diplomatically but the date and time of such an engagement will be of Indias choosing, foreign secretary S Jaishankar has told a parliamentary panel. The countrys top diplomat was on Tuesday briefing members of the foreign affairs panel on Indian armys September 29 attacks on militant bases in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. We had been engaging with Pakistan and will do so in future. But right now, we dont have any fixed calendar even for talks at the secretary level, sources quoted Jaishankar as saying. He was responding to a query whether India, which was at an advantage after the surgical strikes, wanted to resume dialogue with the neighbouring country. The strikes had given Islamabad a taste of what India was capable of, Jaishankar said. The army had conducted targeted operations across the line of control earlier as well but those were not publicised, he said. If you are asking whether our troops crossed the LoC and conducted calibrated operations before, the answer is yes. If you are asking if they achieved their targets and returned to India, the answer is also yes, Jaishankar was quoted as saying by two panel members who didnt wish to be identified. The only difference this time we announced it a day later, he said, adding there were diplomatic reasons for going public but didnt elaborate on what those reasons were. A week ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, too, talked about shifting from yuddha (war) to Buddha. Sometimes war becomes inevitable because of the existing situations. But, we are those who can move ahead from yuddha (war) to Buddha. We strike a balance between the two, Modi said in a speech at Varanasi. The lightning strikes ratcheted up tensions with Pakistan. They were seen as Indias first military response to an attack on an army base by suspected Pakistani militants in Kashmirs Uri on September 18 that left 19 soldiers dead. India has since stepped up diplomatic offensive to isolate Pakistan, which dismissed the strikes as cross-border firing, for promoting terror. The raid triggered a political storm at home. Opposition parties, which earlier asked for a proof of the army action, now accuse the government of trying to gain electoral mileage out of the operation. But army vice-chief lieutenant general Bipin Rawat, who also briefed the panel, were non-committal on submitting proof. Our boys went for a swift, time-bound operation. They were given specific targets but not told to collect evidence, he said. However, we are trying to collate some proof. The government has said the army submitted proof of the operation but there was no need to make it public. Panel chairman and Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, party colleague Satyavrat Chaturvedi and CPMs Mohammad Salim questioned the foreign secretary on militants continuously targeting the army and paramilitary establishments in the Valley even after the cross-LoC raid. Some terror launch pads were still active, Jaishankar said. There was no plan to stop people to people contact, Jaishnakar told the panel, as Pakistani artistes and films face a ban in the country. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi also sat through the briefing. BJPs Sharad Tripathi, too, had a question. He wanted to know from special secretary (internal security) Mahesh Singlaif the government would review the security of parliamentarians. This is the second time in week that a parliamentary panel was briefed on the surgical strikes. The defence panel met last week but no questions were allowed. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON NEW DELHI: One of the worst terror attacks in Myanmars recent history was blamed on a group led by a man trained in Pakistan but tackling terrorism cannot be only about isolating organisations or nations, the countrys de-facto ruler Aung San Suu Kyi said on Tuesday. The world community needs to isolate terror itself and focus on the reasons why people resort to terrorism, Suu Kyi, who is Myanmars State Counsellor and foreign minister, told HT. Her remarks came against the backdrop of Indias campaign to isolate Pakistan over using cross-border terrorism as a policy, an issue which figured prominently at the BRICS Summit and meeting of Bimstec leaders in Goa that was attended by Suu Kyi. Terrorism is rife all over the world, so I think its terrorism we need to isolate and to eliminate. I do not like to think in terms of individuals or organisations or countries, although these come into the equation as well, she said in response to a question about New Delhis drive to isolate Islamabad for sponsoring terror. Suu Kyi acknowledged that two men handed over by Bangladesh in connection with the October 9 terror attack on three police facilities in the restive Rakhine state had said the strikes were organised by a man who had received six months training in Pakistan. But she sounded a note of caution about apportioning blame. A statement issued by the Myanmar Presidents Office on October 13 said the attacks were carried out by Aqa Mul Mujahidin, which is linked to the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation. The leader of the group was identified as Havistoohar, an extremist who attended a six-month Taliban training course in Pakistan . Nine Myanmarese policemen were killed and 64 weapons looted during the attacks. Suu Kyi defended her governments handling of the issue of Rohingyas, saying it was working on both national reconciliation and reconciliation between different communities in Rakhine state, which borders Bangladesh. She also rejected the perception she had tilted towards China because of Indias prolonged engagement with the military junta, saying: We must keep very healthy balance because after all, both of you are our neighbours. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Delhi health and PWD minister Satyendar Jain on Wednesday directed the Delhi Fire Services to inspect all Delhi government-run hospitals for fire-safety measures within seven days. This decision was taken at an emergency meeting called by the minister on the day HT highlighted that 80% government hospitals in Delhi that treat more than 50,000 people in their out-patient department daily do not have basic fire safety measures. I was informed that most government hospitals comply with fire-safety measure, but I have directed the fire department to conduct a fresh inspection of all hospitals, Jain said. I have asked them to especially check staircases and corridors, they should not be blocked with old furniture, waste and other stuff, the minister said. At least 20 people were killed and scores injured in a fire that broke out in a private hospital in Bhubaneshwar, Odisha on Monday night. Read: 80% govt hospitals in Delhi dont have basic fire safety measures in place Union health minister JP Nadda visited the survivors and held a review meeting on fire safety in hospitals. A fresh advisory will be issued soon to all states to avoid such incidents in future, said Nadda. The Delhi fire department has been asked to make a list of all deficiencies and send a copy to the minister as well as the PWD department. The PWD secretary has been made the nodal officer, who will look after all works to ensure fire-safety in all the Delhi-government hospitals, said Jain. The Delhi minister has also asked the fire department to visit all the centre-run and the private hospitals as soon as possible. All hospitals in Delhi must be informed about any deficiencies in fire-safety measure so that they are able to fix them, he said. Overcrowding, lack of trained manpower and poor maintenance of fire safety equipment put hospitals at risk. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A woman, who was the leader of a trafficking racket run by her brother-in-law and who allegedly placed over 10,000 minors into the labour market in the National Capital Region, has been convicted for 10 years by a Chhattisgarh court. He was arrested two years ago. Gayatri Devis conviction has brought hope for those fighting against illegal placement agencies in Delhi. NGOs working for child rights have welcomed hailed the decision and hope the employers hiring minors for work will learn a lesson with this judgment. Gayatri used to run a placement agency in west Delhis Shakurpur. She told the police that they used to buy minors for R12,000 and then charge R24,000 for placing them at a household to work as domestic help. Her agents in villages of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and West Bengal, used to lure minors and bring them to Delhi. She then used to place them in Delhi households. Read more: Six-year-old girl missing from Noida found in Delhi after 20 days Her conviction is a strong message for the placement agencies and the police should now look for minors placed by them, said Rishikant of Shakti Vahini NGO. A Delhi-based businessman, who had employed a girl trafficked by Devi, informed the police when the minor girl, placed at his home, ran away. He was the prime witness in the case. She, her brother-in-law, Panna Lal Mahto, and his wife were running the racket in Delhi. But the minors placed by them have not been rescued yet. Even the girl of Chhattisgarh case is still missing. This case should be used to make the public aware in Delhi that how an employer can face problem if they employ a minor, said Aradhana Singh, anti-trafficking in charge at Khunti district in Jharkhand, who had busted the trafficking racket in Delhi. Gayatris arrest helped the police unearth the racket as they got a list of over 150 illegal placement agencies operating from Shakurpur. Mahtos relatives own several placement agencies in the area. The list submitted by the Jharkhand police contains names of wanted traffickers and illegal placement agencies and minors who were trafficked by them. But sadly due to lack of integration, nothing could happen, Singh added. The trafficking racket in Delhi is a steadily growing menace with victims mostly minors and women brought in from states like Jharkhand and West Bengal. Once in the city, they are pushed into child labour, illegal domestic work or prostitution by unscrupulous placement agencies. Mahto had earlier been arrested by Jharkhand Police in 2006 for human trafficking and had been in jail for around five months. He has many properties in Delhi, Ranchi and Khunti (Jharkhand), all acquired through his illegal human trafficking business. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The government on Wednesday put poultry farms, wholesale markets and avian hot spots under watch after the death of 10 migratory birds at the capitals zoo sparked fears of what could be the first bird flu outbreak in Delhi. The Delhi zoo has been closed for three days as a precautionary measure, Delhi development minister Gopal Rai said. There was a possibility of the virus infecting humans if they consume or handle contaminated chicken, he said. Though there are no known cases of human deaths from avian influenza in India, lakhs of poultry and other birds have been culled across several states over the years to contain the highly-contagious disease. Worldwide, 60% of the humans infected by the H5N1 virus die, according to available data. The World Health Organisation says the virus can cause fever, cough, sore throat, pneumonia, respiratory disease and, in severe cases, death in humans. Experts said Delhis large pigeon population could potentially turn to carriers and spread the virus across the capital, a packed city-state with an estimated 1.86 crore people. We have decided to check entire Delhi. We have asked the department to check possible places where birds are likely to come. We have sent a team to the Okhla sanctuary and Nizamuddin, where birds are sold, Yamuna Diversity Park in Wazirpur, Najafgarh drain and Ghazipur apart from deploying a 10-member team at the zoo, said Rai. UNDERSTANDING H5N1 SPREAD H5N1, or avian (bird) fluvirus, infects and kills wildbirds and domestic poultry This is the first time it hasbeen detected in migratorybirds in Delhi The last outbreak was in2015 in Kerala H5N1, or avian (bird) fluvirus, infects and kills wildbirds and domestic poultry AMONG BIRDS H5N1 does not usually infect people. Most human infection is from close contact with sick or dead infected poultry There have been around 650 reported human infections globally since 2013, and 60% of them ended in fatalities SYMPTOMS IN HUMANS Fever, cough, breathing difficulty, abdominal pain, diarrhoea Can lead to pneumonia, respiratory failure, shock, seizures, multiple organ failure and death. The Ghazipur wholesale market is the source of poultry meant for consumption in Delhi. Officials said samples from the market have been sent to a lab in Jalandhar and a decision on shutting down poultry farms or the wholesale market will be taken after the report is received. The animal husbandry department procured 200 personal protective equipment (PPE) kits, which will be used by personnel who enter the zoo and other infected places. Zoo officials said the bird deaths were reported October 14 and 15 after which samples were sent to the Jalandhar lab, which detected symptoms of some virus. Re-tests at the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory in Bhopal confirmed H5N1 virus in at least two birds. On Monday, another one died while another carcass was found on Wednesday. These two have also been sent for tests. We are taking steps to prevent the spread of the virus. On Thursday, we will hold a meeting with officials of health, revenue and other departments concerned, said Rai, who visited the zoo on Wednesday. If the virus spreads and its symptoms are spotted, we will put in place some restrictions, he added. On Friday, Delhi government officials will meet a team of officials from Maharashtra which had contained the virus after a severe outbreak this year. The bird flu threat comes amid a record-breaking chikungunya outbreak and an equally widespread dengue flare-up that have stretched Delhis healthcare system. A four-year-old girl died after falling into a septic tank on Tuesday afternoon in north-west Delhis Swaroop Nagar. The deceased has been identified as Nandni who lived with her parents in Kushak Gaon of Swaroop Nagar. Her father works as an auto driver. The incident took place when she was returning home with her mother and accidentally fell into a septic tank near Sujan Singh International School. The mother also jumped into the tank but was unable to save the child and was pulled out by the locals. The girls family has alleged that the police and rescue teams from fire department arrived late causing a delay in fishing out their daughter from the tank. The child was rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors pronounced her dead. Locals claim the septic tank belongs to the school. Parents along with residents protested near the spot against local administration. The police are probing the matter. Police officials said a case under section 306 and 304 (A) has been registered against unknown person on the basis of the call received by the Police Control Room. The police will establish the accountability of the school administration as the septic tank belongs to the school. The school authorities will be questioned as to why the tank was left open, a senior police official said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The National Green Tribunal on Wednesday criticised the Delhi government for its repeated failure to submit a status report on dengue and chikungunya in the city. A bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar said it was pained to note that all authorities concerned have not acted sincerely and with utmost sense of urgency while dealing with the matter related to public health issue in Delhi. The bench said that in case authorities failed to comply with the order, then each government department will pay R50,000 and that amount will be taken from the erring official of that department. The order came when the court was hearing a petition filed by advocate Gaurav Kumar Bansal on behalf of a former Central Pollution Control Board scientist, Mahendra Pandey. Pandey said action should be taken to ensure residents of Delhi are not exposed to serious diseases such as dengue and chikungunya. On Monday too, the government did not file the status report. Read: Sigh of relief for Delhi as chikungunya, dengue cases at half of last week The lawyer representing the Delhi government, however, said after the green courts directions, a high-level committee has already been constituted. We will file the status report within two days, the lawyer had said. This year, over 7,400 people were affected with chikungunya while over 3,000 caught the dengue virus this season, according to data available till October 15. Earlier on September 21, the green court constituted a principal committee headed by the chief secretary of Delhi government to formulate an action plan to control the outbreak. The committee -- including commissioners of all corporations, vice-chairman of DDA, head of the Delhi Cantonment Board, New Delhi Municipal Council, principal secretary of health and director general of health services of Delhi government as members -- was asked to submit a comprehensive report to the court within a fortnight. National kabaddi player Rohit Kumar and his family have been missing since the suicide of the sportsmans wife Lalita Dabas on Monday night, prompting the police to track down the accused against whom a case of dowry death has been registered. The 26-year-old player was in Mumbai when Lalita, two years elder to him, hung herself from a ceiling fan in her west Delhi home around 7:30 pm on Monday. She had left a suicide note and two-and-a-half-hour voice message that alleged her in-laws of harassing her. Lalita was living in a Nangaloi apartment, having left her husband recently after their marriage in March. Read | Pro-kabbadi players wife kills self, leaves 2-hour long voice message on mobile Kumar and his family, who live in outer Delhi, have since been evading the law, and have failed to appear before the investigators. Police said on Tuesday that the Nangaloi station officials formed two teams to locate the accused and book them. All mobile numbers of Kumars family were switched off, and their Kanjhawala residence was found locked. One of the teams is enquiring with Kumars neighbours to trace the accused. Investigators said they are in touch with some of Kumars relatives and friends, but they too were clueless about the familys whereabouts. Vijay Kumar, deputy commissioner of police (west), said Kumar has gone missing from his Mumbai address as well and has switched off his mobile phone. We need to find them to investigate the case. As of now, they are absconding, he added. A case of dowry death and subjecting a woman to cruelty by her husband and in-laws with common intention was registered on Tuesday against Kumar and his family. The FIR was registered after the police recovered a suicide note Dabas left in her track pant pocket and two voice messages one was two hours long; the other 22 minutes which were in her mobile phones. Both the note and the audio clips allegedly accused Kumar and his family members of torturing her for dowry and a share in her fathers property. The US has always been a magnet for Indian students and now the figures suggest that there is an increase in the number of those joining universities there. The Open Doors, an annual report on international students in the US compiled by the Institute of International Education, says that in 2015 there was a 30% increase in students from other countries going to the US over the previous year. Of this, India is the second leading place of origin for students and 13.6% of the international student population is Indian. Read: Students will have to pay more for proposed 20 world-class institutions The US system has a number of attractions. The courses are very varied and flexible. Here a student getting into a graduate course has to stick with the subjects chosen, in the US the student has the option to change midstream if he or she wants to. Students who need financial resources are able to access these from a variety of sources and universities help them in this process. In India, private scholarships are difficult to obtain and the conditions for getting a government grant are tough and restricted largely to students in the reservation quota. Students abroad are able to get internships, which helps them later in the job market. Perhaps the one major attraction is the synergy between academics and industry. Many courses are tailored to help students get jobs, again quite a departure from the largely academically-oriented curriculum in India. Research opportunities are also limited in India as many higher educational institutions do not have enough infrastructure or faculty for this. Read: Education, job satisfaction can help reduce intolerance: Ratan Tata The US sinks about $300 billion in higher education. India should consider investing much more in higher education as this will not only benefit our students but could be a potentially huge revenue generator. Already students from neighbouring and African countries see India as an attractive education destination since it is cheaper and the medium is English. We should cast the net wider. One thing that ought to be done without delay is to ensure that foreign students feel welcome here. This has not always been the case, especially with African students, who face racial slurs and even violence. We must have a proactive policy of going out and seeking students once we have a more flexible and student-friendly system in place. The returns on this could be enormous and we should not miss the bus. There are many lessons we can learn from the US, and how to structure higher education and attract a wider variety of students are certainly some of them. Actor-comedian Jim Carrey has waged his own war in the courts against the mother of his late ex-girlfriend. The 54-year-old Dumb & Dumber star has filed documents in which he claims Cathriona Whites mother, Brigid Sweetman, begged him to buy her a house and threatened suicide. Carrey has alleged that Sweetman emailed him in November last year, two months after her daughter took her life in California, to inform the actor that people had started making death threats against her and vandalising her home, reported The Wrap. She believed she was getting blamed for Cathrionas death because of a horrific and degrading Facebook post shed left for her daughter on the third anniversary of her fathers death. Carrey claimed Brigid told him, I am on the point of killing myself, before asking him to buy her a new home. Carrey insisted she became angry and bitter when he declined. Cathrionas mother filed a wrongful death suit against the movie star earlier this month. His legal team fired back immediately, insisting the lawsuit was a money grab. Carrey has also denied claims from Sweetman and Cathrionas estranged husband Mark Burton he gave the makeup artist sexually transmitted diseases, illnesses that allegedly contributed to Whites decision to commit suicide. Love cannot be lost. pic.twitter.com/XxPYOhkdzc Jim Carrey (@JimCarrey) October 10, 2015 Last week, Sweetman promised to drop her wrongful death lawsuit if Carrey publicly released the results of an alleged sexual health test. Jim Carrey and his attorney have told the world that Carrey has never had STDs and he has never tested positive for STDs. They have called me and Mark shams for claiming otherwise, a statement read. I am demanding they immediately release the full 2013 lab results so people can judge for themselves who is telling the truth and who is lying. If they publicly release and publish the full Quest Diagnostics lab report for the blood sample Carrey gave on January 28, 2013 at 11:40am under the name Jose Lopez and if it shows Carrey did not test positive for STDs, I will immediately dismiss the case and apologize. Follow @htshowbiz for more STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces Google Ad There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol Armenia and Azerbaijan to do so without delay An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan". UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022 Google Ad Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces LEVEL UP ONLY FOR STUDENTS: UCOM OFFERS X2 AND X3 MORE INTERNET STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Arrives in Yerevan Armenian Revytech, global technology leader SAP and financial services software specialist SAP Fioneer sign a cooperation agreement With 120 million drams donated by Mikael Vardanyan, the defenders of the homeland will be treated in a new building OSCE Chairman-in-Office and OSCE Secretary General call for immediate cessation of hostilities along Armenia-Azerbaijan border Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh USA Embassy Message for U.S. Citizens A new, lengthy trailer for the Michael Fassbender movie Assassins Creed, was released online on Monday ahead of its December debut. Conspiracy, virtual reality, and martial arts proficiency mix in the second trailer for the lavish video game adaptation Assassins Creed. Michael Fassbender stars as Callum Lynch, a convicted criminal whose bloodline has been traced back to a clandestine organisation of Assassins. Thats brought him to the attention of Abstergo Industries, a high-tech corporation pioneering full-body, immersive experiences via the Animus Project, but harvesting its subjects genetic memories in the process. What happens in the Animus doesnt stay in the Animus; Lynchs experiences as a deadly, rooftop-running secret agent in 15th century Spain translate well into the modern day, where an ongoing struggle is taking place between the Assassins and their timeworn enemies, the Templars. Assassins Creed draws heavily on its video game inspiration, Ubisofts ten-year-strong franchise of the same name that has taken players to recreations of 12th century Israel and Syria, through Renaissance-period Florence, Venice, Rome, and Constantinople, to revolutionary-era France and America, the 18th century Caribbean and New Orleans, and Victorian era London. Ubisoft set up its motion picture division following the success of Jake Gyllenhaal-led action film Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, whose 2010 effort was based on a predecessor to the Assassins Creed games. And while Assassins Creed is to mark Ubisoft Motion Pictures feature film debut, its the first of half a dozen projects currently set for feature-length adaptation. Alongside two-time Oscar nominee Michael Fassbender, whos become a fixture of the X-Men franchise and played tech guru Steve Jobs in a 2015 biopic, there are Oscar-winners Marion Cotillard (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises,) and Jeremy Irons (Batman v Superman, The Lion King) triple Golden Globe nominee Brendan Gleeson (In Bruges, Edge of Tomorrow,) and Michael K Williams (12 Years a Slave, Boardwalk Empire.) Behind the camera, theres Australian helmer Justin Kurzel of another historical epic, Macbeth, which also had Fassbender and Cotillard as its leads. Assassins Creed is due in theatres from December 21, when it starts a worldwide theatrical rollout in the USA, Canada, France, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore, with Australia and Germany among territories following soon after. The UK and Ireland, the Netherlands, and various European and South American countries are earmarked for a January release. Follow @htshowbiz for more Prime Minister Narendra Modi met state counsellor and foreign minister of Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi here on Wednesday, the concluding day of her three-day visit to India. An old friend from the East, a partner in our common progress. PM receives Myanmar State counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at Hyderabad House, external affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted along with a picture of the two leaders. Following delegation-level talks headed by Modi and Suu Kyi, the two sides signed some agreements. #IndiaMyanmar: Partners in Progress - The two leaders witness exchange of agreements in sectors of power, banking and insurance, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted. PM @narendramodi & State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi witness the exchange of agreements at Hyderabad House in New Delhi. pic.twitter.com/36bksSMf8u PIB India (@PIB_India) October 19, 2016 One memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on cooperation in the power sector. A second MoU was signed on banking supervision between the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Bank of Myanmar while a third MoU was inked for designing an academic and professional building programme for the insurance industry of Myanmar. On Tuesday, Suu Kyi met President Pranab Mukherjee and external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj. Though Suu Kyi is not the President as Myanmars constitution bars her from the post, the Nobel peace laureate is effectively the de facto leader of the country. This is the first official visit of Suu Kyi to New Delhi since her National League for Democracy (NLD) assumed power in Myanmar in March this year. Prior to reaching New Delhi on Monday for the state visit, she attended the BRICS-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa on Sunday. Her visit comes after Myanmar President U Htin Kyaws visit to India in August this year. Deliberating on its two-decade-old judgement which declared Hinduism as a way of life, the Supreme Court, on Wednesday, asked if spiritual leaders who arent contesting polls seek votes for a particular party could be held accountable for corrupt practices under the electoral law. How can a person, who himself has neither contested nor returned as a winning candidate, be tried for allegedly resorting to corrupt practices under the Representation of the People (RP) Act? a seven-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur asked lawyers representing the contesting parties in the case. The seven-judge bench is examining the legal question of what constitutes electoral malpractices. Senior advocate Arvind Datar, appearing for Abhiram Singh whose election as a legislator in 1990 on BJP ticket from Santacruz, Mumbai, was invalidated by the high court said law related to corrupt practice comes in play only if it is established that a candidate or his agent asked for votes in the name of religion. If any other person, like late Bal Thackeray and late Pramod Mahajan in the present case, sought votes on these grounds, referred to in the RP Act, then there has to be the consent of the candidate, Datar told the bench. He stressed that consent of the candidate was necessary if he was liable to be held for corrupt practices, warranting his or her disqualification. In his clients case, he said, there was no consent. The leaders, it was alleged, had sought votes in the name of Hindutva and Hindu Rashtra. The HRD ministry may decide as early as next week to scrap the schooling policy that automatically promotes children to a higher class every year till the eighth grade with a panel announcing on Wednesday that it forwarded the suggestion to the Union government after taking inputs from states. The no-detention policy put in place by the Right to Education Act has been blamed for falling standards among schoolchildren so much so that surveys in Delhi found half of sixth graders in government-run schools being unable to read at all. Read | No-fail policy in govt schools under scanner In its report to the HRD ministry, the committee said the policy should be reviewed and recommended commencing fifth and eighth standard exams independently as was the case earlier, said the chairman of the central advisory board of education (CABE) sub-committee Punjab education minister Daljit Singh Cheema. The sub-committee had been tasked with taking final inputs on the no-detention policy after the CABE the primary education advisory board comprising education ministers of all states last year expressed concerns on the no-fail policy. If a decision to scrap it is made after the review, a process will begin to amend the RTE act. Cheema said the 189-page report also recommended spending more on elementary/primary education besides having a head for every school compulsorily. Read | No-fail policy: Central panel favoured exams after Class 5, but no action yet Significant aspects of the recommendations made in the report were also considered in the meeting with the HRD minister, Cheema added. The recommendations of the report would be debated in the annual meeting of CABE on October 25 in which school education and higher education ministers of all the states will take part. The committee recommended that a recruitment calendar is needed to be prepared in advance in order to ensure that no post remains vacant in the wake of superannuation. The committee has also recommended the constitution of a committee of academic experts to review the course syllabus, duration of course and practical training in vogue at present to become a teacher, he pointed out. Police detained two schoolboys accused of repeatedly beating a lower-caste classmate who scored good grades, an officer said on Wednesday, after a video of the attack went viral on social media. The 16-year-old Dalit boy released a letter to a television network pleading for the violence to stop, after the video of him being punched and kicked in a classroom made headlines. The beatings, which the boy says took place every day for two years, are the latest incidents of violence against Dalits. Police said they took action after studying the video, taken by another boy and uploaded, which shows the teen being punched, kicked and slapped at a government-run school in Bihar. Read | Two KV students booked for thrashing classmate in Bihar, probe ordered He was being tortured for quite some time, Babban Baitha, the investigating police officer from Muzaffarpur district said. We went through the video which was recorded at the behest of the attackers themselves, and sent them to remand, Baitha said, pending the conclusion of his investigation. You see, I am a Dalit and so doing well in the examinations or academics, which brings me praise at home, earns me humiliation and abuse in my classroom, the boy said in his letter to NDTV network. You tell me, how should I cope and prepare? he said of his final school exams due next year. The video comes after Dalit protests erupted in July over the public flogging of a group of Dalits wrongly accused of killing a cow in Gujarats Una. A video of that incident also went viral and prompted enraged Dalits to call for an end to the discrimination and violence. Also read | The great Dalit cauldron and why it matters The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the agency responsible for air safety standards in India, banned Samsungs Galaxy Note 7 phones on airplanes on Wednesday over increasing number of incidents of the phone catching fire. The decision comes following a similar ban imposed by US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) last week. Many Indian airlines such as Vistara and Jet Airways have already banned Note 7 on their flights. Japan also banned the phone on airplanes. Samsung on September 2 announced a global recall of 2.5 million Note 7s in 10 markets, including the United States due to faulty batteries causing some of the phones to catch fire. The South Korean company discontinued the product earlier this week, less than two months after its August release. The Consumer Product Safety Commission says there have been nearly 100 reports of batteries in Note 7 phones overheating in the US. One fire erupted on a Southwest Airlines flight earlier this month. In another case, a family in St. Petersburg, Florida, reported a Galaxy Note 7 phone left charging in their Jeep caught fire, destroying the vehicle. The Federal Aviation Administration had previously warned passengers not to pack the phones in their checked bags and to power them off and not charge them while on board planes. Read | Samsungs smartphone brand takes beating from Galaxy Note 7 fiasco A combative Congress accused the BJP-led government of exaggeration and hypocrisy, saying the Centres attempt to deny credit to previous administrations for striking militant bases across the Line of Control showed India in a bad light. The strong comments came a day after foreign secretary S Jaishankar told a parliamentary panel that the army had conducted surgical strikes earlier as well but the operations were kept a secret. This statement, the Congress alleged, contradicted previous claims by defence minister Manohar Parrikar that the BJP government was the first to conduct surgical strikes on militant bases in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Does it look good for the defence minister of this country to be directly contradicted by the foreign secretary of India? senior Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi asked reporters in Delhi. The strikes were carried out on September 28 but have acquired a political flavor with opposition parties blaming the BJP of attempting to gain electoral mileage out of the army offensive. Under the UPA, strategy required silence. We aren't blaming Modi Govt for not having silence, but acknowledge past actions: @DrAMSinghvi INC India (@INCIndia) October 19, 2016 Singhvi said the government shouldnt have denied that such surgical strikes had taken place before. While we support the operations, they should be magnanimous to say this is not the first time that this country has conducted these strikes, he said. Singhvi also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had called for no politicization of the army operation last week. While the PM joins us in saying this issue shouldnt be politicised, its happening under his nose by his colleagues. This kind of prevaricating only to score brownie points is unfortunate because it paints the nation in a bad light: @DrAMSinghvi INC India (@INCIndia) October 19, 2016 Read| Modi praises Indian Army for surgical strikes, compares it to Israel SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The founder of Bhubaneswars SUM Hospital and Institute of Medical Sciences, where a massive fire killed 21 people, is known as a reclusive man with strong political connections. While four officials of the private hospital have been arrested and four other employees suspended, the clamour to arrest Manoj Nayak, who is on the run, is growing by the day. Before he made it big in early 2000, the 56-year-old engineer was known mostly among his fraternity as a teacher in a government engineering college. Born to a school teacher father in the undivided Cuttack district, Nayak excelled in academics in school and college. He earned a B Tech degree in electrical sciences from the National Institute of Technology (formerly REC) in Rourkela in 1982 and also holds a PhD from IIT Kharagpur in computer science. He joined Bhubaneswars College of Engineering Technology (CET), as a lecturer in computer science. While still teaching at CET, he established the Siksha O Anusandhan Trust and also founded Odishas first private engineering college, Institute of Technical Education and Research (ITER). At least 10 institutions including a medical college, an engineering college, dental college, biotechnology college, and nursing college among others function under the Siksha O Anusandhan University. Nayak, however, has smartly dissociated himself from the board of management of the university preferring to work behind the scene. The official website of the Siksha O Anusandhan University does not even mention Nayaks name. Read| Odisha govt files FIRs against Bhubaneswar hospital Described as a very ambitious man, Nayak had his first brush with controversy in 2000 when the authorities of the state governments Joint Entrance Examination that conducts entrance test to engineering colleges, lodged a case of cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy against him and several others. It was alleged that Nayak and his brother were luring students, who had secured lower ranks in the Joint Entrance Examination, to take admission in his fledgeling engineering college. The police chargesheet mentioned that ITER made payment on behalf of these students so that the college could claim the seats were filled up. It would then persuade the same candidates to leave the college after paying them and get other undeserving candidates to take admission in the same seat in lieu of a huge amount of money. Nayak evaded arrest even though he was named in the chargesheet. He also managed to get a reprieve after the Odisha high court quashed the case a few years later. Friends describe Nayak as overtly reclusive but he has never shied away from using his political clout. With familial ties to former BJD minister Nalinikanta Mohanty, they say Nayak used his political contacts to expand his business. He is allegedly close to several influential ministers in the Naveen Patnaik ministry. Local TV channels reported that the wife of Odisha health minister even worked as a faculty in one of the educational institutions owned by Nayak. Nayak started the SUM Hospital in 2006 on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar and a few years later founded a medical and dental college. Until recently, the hospital provided consultation and beds to patients free of cost. He even sent vehicles to nearby villages to ferry patients to the hospital. It is now one of the prominent hospitals in the city with a huge footfall. Like other Odia entrepreneurs who started media houses for saving their backs in times of distress, Nayak too owns television channel News 7 and Odia newspaper Prameya that made quite a splash and put him in the powerful league of media barons in the state. Last year, his TV channel shot to popularity by airing a sting video of godman Sarathi baba, who was later jailed for exploiting women and cheating people. On Tuesday, the TV channels coverage of Odishas biggest hospital tragedy was anything, but intense. Read| Bhubaneswar hospital fire: Safety measures not yet in place The gloves were off in the ongoing infighting in the Haryana Congress on Tuesday with supporters of former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda seeking removal of state party chief Ashok Tanwar and Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Kiran Choudhry from their posts. The Hooda loyalists, who include 12 of 17 party MLAs in the state, made this demand in a meeting with Congress veteran leader Sushil Kumar Shinde in New Delhi. They met Shinde one by one and then also jointly to reinforce their demand. Shinde, who also met several office-bearers of the state Congress, ex-MLAs and others during the day, is probing the clash between supporters of the two factions of the Haryana Congress at an important party event in the national capital on October 6 during which Tanwar sustained injuries and had to be admitted to a hospital. Calling it a well-planned conspiracy, Tanwar, one of whose supporters filed a police complaint, alleged that he was attacked by Hoodas supporters. CONDEMN CLASH, MAKE COUNTER-CHARGES The MLAs supporting Hooda, who drew their strategy at a luncheon meeting at the former CMs residence in Delhi on Monday, hit back at the HPCC chief in their meeting with Shinde, blaming Tanwar and Kiran for the atmosphere of mistrust in the party. We told Shinde how they have gone to the constituencies of MLAs without informing them, inducted our adversaries, praised (chief minister Manohar Lal) Khattar and not run any major agitation or campaign against the state government, a senior legislator told Hindustan Times. While condemning the clash at the party show, they also handed over a signed letter to Shinde to reiterate their allegations against the two leaders as planned. The MLAs were vocal after the meeting also. Palwal MLA Karan Singh Dalal said that like the surgical strikes, there was clinical surgery going on in the state Congress. Their actions have been detrimental to the party. I am hopeful they will be taken care of. And the party will get a new look. They have been giving issues to the BJP instead of focussing on its governments failures. We have mentioned everything that has been happening in writing to the party leadership, he said. Geeta Bhukkal, MLA from Jhajjar, said the scuffle was unfortunate, but what happened subsequently was more unfortunate. The HPCC chief should not have created a scene, she said without mincing words. Another Hooda supporter, Kalanaur MLA Shakuntla Khatak said the clash was a spur of the moment incident and not a conspiracy as was being alleged. Tanwar should not have given such a statement, she told reporters after the meeting. While Tanwar and Kiran had met Shinde on Monday and laid the blame for the internal bickering on Hooda and his supporters, former minister Capt Ajay Singh Yadav and several party office-bearers are also learnt to have backed them. Two other MLAs, Kuldeep Bishnoi and Renuka Bishnoi, met Shinde separately, but refused to discuss details of their meeting. They are counted among Hooda detractors, though. Shinde, a former Union minister, was asked by Congress president Sonia Gandhi to probe the clash between supporters of Tanwar and Hooda outside the Bhairon temple near Pragati Maidan in Delhi on October 6 where party workers had gathered to receive AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi on the final leg of his 26-day kisan yatra that culminated at Parliament Street. While the party leadership had hoped to have a good gathering at the event, the clash proved to be a huge embarrassment. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Hyderabad Police arrested former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira and three others in a multi-crore illegal marketing scheme, media reports said on Wednesday. The arrest comes two weeks after Ferreira surrendered before a Mumbai court but the Padma Bhushan awardee reportedly didnt cooperate with investigators. The Supreme Court has also refused any relief to Ferreira and the other accused. His police custody with the economic offences wing of the Mumbai Police ended last Thursday. Read | QNET scam: Michael Ferreira sent to judicial custody, Hyderabad police to take his custody The sportsperson and three others were directors of Vihaan Direct Selling India (Pvt) Ltd, which is accused of running and operating an illegal money circulation scheme under the name of QNET previously known as Questnet in India. Investigators say nearly 500,000 investors across India were duped by the promoters of QNET, which allegedly used a banned business model for their marketing schemes to lure investors. The prosecution says QNET attracted investment from people by promising them huge commissions to enroll new investors into the firm, or offered them fraudulent investment schemes. In 2016, eight alleged victims complained to the police. Other than Ferreira, the other accused are Malcolm Desai, owner of Vihaan, Srinivas Rao Vanka and Magaral Veervalli Balaji, directors of Vihaan, and Suresh Thimiri, director of Transview Enterprises India Pvt Ltd. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol Armenia and Azerbaijan to do so without delay An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan". UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022 Google Ad Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces LEVEL UP ONLY FOR STUDENTS: UCOM OFFERS X2 AND X3 MORE INTERNET STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Arrives in Yerevan Armenian Revytech, global technology leader SAP and financial services software specialist SAP Fioneer sign a cooperation agreement With 120 million drams donated by Mikael Vardanyan, the defenders of the homeland will be treated in a new building OSCE Chairman-in-Office and OSCE Secretary General call for immediate cessation of hostilities along Armenia-Azerbaijan border Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh USA Embassy Message for U.S. Citizens India and China on Wednesday carried out a joint army exercise in eastern Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir, a move that comes amid hectic diplomatic manoeuvring between the two countries over a host of issues like nuclear suppliers group and designation of Masood Azhar as a terrorist by the UN. During the day long exercise on humanitarian aid and disaster relief (HADR), a fictitious situation of earthquake striking an Indian Border village was painted. Thereafter joint teams carried out rescue operations, evacuation and rendering of medical assistance. Read | China defends all-weather ally Pak after Modi calls it mothership of terror This was done as a sequel to the first joint exercise held on February 6 in the area of border personnel meeting hut at Chushul Garrison of Eastern Ladakh, along with Chinese troops of Moldo Garrison. Sources said that in February, the exercise was held in the Chinese side and this time in the Indian side along the line of Actual Control. The Indian team for the exercise was led by Brigadier R S Raman and that of the Chinese was led by Sr Col Fan Jun. Read | India can only bark about trade deficit: Chinese media The exercise was a great success and has not only refined the drills to provide succour to the border population in case of natural calamity but has also increased the level of trust and cooperation between the two border guarding forces along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh, the Army said in a statement here. The joint exercise, compliments the Hand in Hand series of the India-China joint exercises and the effort of both the nations to enhance cooperation and maintain peace and tranquillity along the border areas of India and China, it said. This years edition of Hand in Hand will be held at Aundh, near Pune in Maharashtra, from November 15 to 27. Also read | India and China must show mutual restraint to avoid a major crisis An Israeli trekker died after falling into a gorge on way to the source of the Ganga in Uttarakhand, police said on Wednesday, the second such incident in a fortnight involving foreign nationals in the Himalayan state. The incident occurred on Tuesday and the body of the trekker, identified as Ariel Frajman, 56, was brought to the district headquarter town Uttarkashi on Wednesday, said Dadan Pal, the superintendent of police. Last week, a Polish mountaineer died during an operation to rescue him from a Himalayan mountain stretch, three days after he went missing with another climber while attempting to scale a 6543-metre peak. One of his team-members is still missing and is feared dead. The snow-bound hills and valleys in Uttarakhand are a major attraction for trekkers and mountaineers from around the world. Till August, the state accounted for 30% of the 44 foreign expeditions to India this year, according to the Indian Mountaineering Foundation. Over the past decade, at least 13 people have died in Uttarakhand during trekking and attempts to scale any of the 52 identified peaks in the state. The police official said the Israeli embassy has been informed about the incident. According to police, a group of five trekkers began their expedition from Gangotri, around 300 kms northeast from Dehradun, on Monday. They were headed towards Gomukh, the glacial origin of Ganga, an 18 km uphill trek from Gangotri, the last road head before the snow-clad mountain ranges begin. After a night halt on the way, the group resumed their trek on Tuesday. The accident occurred when he (Frajman) slipped and fell into a gorge near Chirbasa, while on their way to Gomukh. His body was recovered and was brought to Gangotri, Pal told HT on phone. The group had plans to trek up to Tapovan at an altitude of 4463 metres, a barren area located above the Gangotri glacier which acts as a base camp for mountaineering expeditions to Mt Shivling and other peaks, he added. The incident involving the two Polish mountaineers too had taken place during an attempt to scale Mt Shivling, recognised as one of the most difficult mountaineering expeditions in the state. Expeditions to Himalayan peaks in India and Nepal have led to several disasters over the years with climbers falling into snow-covered crevices or due to altitude sickness in stretches known as the death zones where the air is very thin. In 2001, two Israeli climbers had lost their legs during an expedition to Mt Shivling. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Security forces carried out a massive search operation at Jammu airport after getting information that two persons had entered the premises after scaling the airport wall, police said on Wednesday. One person has been detained for questioning in this regard, sources said. Some children in Azadnagar locality close to the airport in Jammu had informed the people that two suspected persons have breached the wall and entered airport area. The information was passed on to police. The IAF pressed into service helicopters armed with search lights during the night-time operation, he said. Personnel from the police, IAF, army, CRPF and Airport Authority of India (AAI) rushed to the area, which was cordoned off last evening and massive searches were undertaken. Jammu Airport houses IAF station (technical area) and airport complex and is jointly guarded by IAF, CRPF, AAI security setup round-the-clock. The search operation and information on suspected movement had triggered panic in localities around the airport including Gadigarh and Azadnagar areas. Senior AIADMK leader C Ponnaiyan said on Wednesday Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa was making good progress and there is absolutely no cause for any concern. Amma has begun talking to people. She spoke to Dr Richard Beale from England and thanked him for taking good care of her, Ponnaiyan told Hindustan Times. Jayalalithaa may need to spend 10 more days in the hospital and later a fortnight of bed rest, the AIADMK leader said adding that he was in regular touch with Dr Beale. She has had a lung infection and because of that she had breathing trouble as well. That is why she was being given respiratory support, which is a normal medical procedure. She has responded very well to the treatment, he added. The AIADMK chief was admitted to Chennais Apollo Hospital with high fever and dehydration on September 22 but news of her treatment has been tightly controlled with cryptic health bulletins adding to the many rumours flying around. The last bulletin on Jayalalithaas health condition was issued on October 10 by the hospital and was endorsed by the state government that distributed it through its official news dissemination machinery, the DIPR. In its earlier bulletins, all that the hospital said was Jayalalithaa was responding well to treatment and in the last bulletin it informed that the CM was being constantly monitored and was under observation. Even after 9 days, the Apollo Hospital and state government have maintained silence about the CMs health. The former finance minister said that nothing much should be read into the absence of health updates from Apollo Hospital. Read | Panneerselvam chairs TN cabinet meet as Jayalalithaa remains hospitalised The hospital is very annoyed with criticism that its health bulletins were contradictory and short on facts. These allegations were made by opposition DMK, Ponnaian said. The DMK, however, rejected the ruling partys contention and asserted that it had neither criticised the Apollo Hospital nor the content of its health bulletins. We only wanted an interim arrangement in place to handle the state and also that the state administration was smooth and governance continued unhindered, DMK spokesperson Manu Sundaram said. The DMK has also not questioned the silence of the Apollo Hospital on Jayalalithaas health condition or its inability to come out with her health bulletin, said Sundaram. Read | The lack of transparency about Jayalalithaas health is worrying It is the prerogative of the hospital authorities to divulge what they can and want to, he added. The DMK spokesperson said his party is certainly very concerned about the manner in which people were being arrested for alleged rumour mongering. Ponnaian justified the governments decision to arrest people. We cannot have anyone spreading false information about Ammas health, at any cost. Human rights activist, however, beg to differ. Sudha Ramalingam said it was atrocious that people were being arrested for even speaking about the condition of the chief minister, referring to the arrest of two bank employees in Coimbatore, who were picked up for spreading rumours about her health in front of an AIADMK local leader. The health condition of the chief minister is a matter of public concern and the government ought to come out with specific information so that there is no scope for rumours, Ramalingam, who is also a lawyer, said. Read | Politicians, VIPs make a beeline to Apollo to see Jayalalithaa SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Tamil Nadu finance minister O Panneerselvam on Wednesday presided over a cabinet meeting, the first such of the state government since the hospitalisation of the chief minister J Jayalalithaa. Although the government did not release details of the agenda of the meeting, the Cabinet is understood to have deliberated on the ongoing Cauvery water sharing dispute with Karnataka, besides other subjects. The meeting also comes ahead of the scheduled onset of north-east monsoon later this month. The rains in December last year had wreaked havoc, flooding Chennai and nearby districts. Last week, Tamil Nadu Governor C Vidyasagar Rao had allotted the portfolios including home held by Jayalalithaa to Panneerselvam, till the time she returned to resume official duties. The government released photographs of todays cabinet meeting, where Panneerselvam was seen seated with a picture of Jayalalithaa placed on his desk. The nearly hour-long meeting was held in the backdrop of the ongoing Cauvery water sharing row with Karnataka and demands by Opposition parties for an all-party meeting on the issue. Farmers bodies and political parties had staged a two-day state-wide rail blockade ending Tuesday, urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Management Board. The Raj Bhavan had last week in a release, said Paneerselvam, who holds the Administrative Reforms portfolio, in addition to Finance, will also preside over cabinet meetings. The last Cabinet meeting held by Jayalalithaa was in July this year to discuss the state budget. Jayalalithaa, 68, was admitted to the Apollo hospital on September 22 after she complained of fever and dehydration. A specialist from London besides three-member team of doctors from AIIMS, Delhi, had also examined Jayalalithaa, who is being treated for infection with respiratory support. Read | No water in Karnatakas reservoirs: Siddaramaiah after SC order on Cauvery The Rajasthan government has approached the Supreme Court against the acquittal of actor Salman Khan in two 18-year-old cases of deer poaching, a blow for the controversial actor who has had several run-ins with the law. Rajasthans additional advocate general Shivmangal Sharma told IANS that hearing on the special leave petition is likely sometime after the Diwali vacations. The government move comes after a popular uproar over Khans acquittal in July after the Rajasthan high court said the prosecution failed to prove charges and the evidence was too thin for convicting the superstar for killing Chinkaras or Indian gazelles. The high court overturned two trial court verdicts that handed the actor one and five years imprisonment. Salman has spent 13 days behind bars. The government move comes almost a year after the actor was cleared of all charges in a controversial 2002 hit-and-run case by the Bombay high court, triggering outrage and questions about whether the actor had used his star power to subvert the judicial system. Chinkaras are a protected species and hunting them is banned. The actor was accused of hunting two chinkaras on September 26, 1998 in Bhawad village area of Jodhpur and another one two days later at Ghora Farm. Seven other accused in the Bhawad case were let off. The actor was shooting for the film Hum Saath Saath Hain at that time. Two cases against Salman black-buck hunting and possessing illegal arms are still being tried at trial courts in the state. The high court had observed that the prosecution failed to prove that a deer had even died as no carcasses were found. Moreover, the police couldnt zero in on either the weapon used for the alleged hunt or the place where it took place. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A local court on Monday ordered to release all five arrested accused due to lack of evidence in the alleged gangrape of a Dalit girl from Bhiwani. The 21-year-old girl had accused five men of raping her twice first in 2013 in Bhiwani and again on July 13 this year in Rohtak. The case had made international headlines garnering major embarrassment to the BJP government in the state. Based on her complaint, the police had arrested three Amit, Jagmohan and Sandeep out of the five accused on July 19, while the remaining two Mausam and Akash have continued to be on the run. The case took a curious turn when few days later, the police arrested two more men Sandeep Hooda and Parmod Kumar from Rohtak, claiming that the two were seen in CCTV footage with the girl at a local hotel at the time of the alleged incident. The kin of the girl debunked polices claim and maintained she was gang-raped by the five men from Bhiwani. However, the police on Monday moved an application in the court for their release, citing that they have found no proof against the three arrested on girls complaint, and no statement from the girl against the two arrested based on the CCTV footage. Taking things in account, the court of judicial magistrate first class (JMFC) Deepti ordered to release the five accused from jail. The trial in the case would however continue, with next hearing scheduled for October 29. The police said they found no evidence against the three. Since she was major and gave no statement of rape against the two held later, they, too, were released by the court, defence lawyer Harinder Balothia said. My clients (Amit, Jagmohan and Sandeep) had submitted CCTV footage as alibi to prove they were not even in Rohtak when the incident was alleged, Balothia added. The DNA report in the case, too, came inconclusive since the forensic experts found no trace of semen on the girls body or her clothes. The girl had recently threatened to commit suicide if the case was not handed over to the CBI from the special investigating team (SIT) of the Rohtak Police. While maintaining that the SIT was siding with the accused, the family has also moved an application in Punjab and Haryana high court to seek transfer of the case to CBI. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Muslim wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) will deliberate next month-end on ways the minority community should evolve in the countrys current socio-political scenario. A meeting by the Muslim Rashtriya Manch (MRM) in Uttar Pradeshs Agra on November 27 is slated to discuss triple talaq that permits verbal divorce and a uniform civil code (UCC) that can alter the political dynamics in the country. Also on the agenda are the threat of radicalism and the Muslim communitys overall development vis-a-vis education and employment opportunities. This is not the first such conference by the 2002-formed RSS-affiliate, but the timing has now lent it particular significance. In a few months from now, Uttar Pradesh, with a sizeable Muslim population, will go to polls. The BJP does not traditionally bank on the Muslims for a vote, but the party does not want to alienate the community even as it makes guarded moves to introduce UCC. The MRM, with 10,000 volunteers and limited clout in the community, has thrown its weight behind the fight to end the practice of triple talaq. The Manch refers to Triple Talaq as a social problem does not keep in with the tenets of Islam. Not all sects of Muslims believe in triple talaq; but somehow it is prevalent and misused, said Mohd Afzal of the MRM. So many women are forced to live in penury after being divorced. So, this is not a religious issue, but a social cause. We need to discuss this as a community. While Afzal asserted the day-long event is to discuss issues concerning the communitys welfare and for erasing the notion that the BJP and the RSS are anti-Muslim, there are other reasons for the MRMs overtures. For one, Ram temple construction in Ayodhya has resurfaced on public memory and the issue can further wedge communities in the poll-bound state. Politically too, it has the potential of rallying the Muslims against the BJP. The MRM has thus stepped in to broker peace, given that the RSS cadre wont be pressed into reaching out to Muslims. The Muslims are not opposed to a temple; it is a politically-motivated campaign, claimed Afzal. Muslims in Ayodhya revere Ram as much as the Hindus as he is part of the Indian culture. In recent months the MRM has held several meetings with Ulemas and representatives of the community, focusing on reaching out to professionals and students to build inter-community bridges. It is particularly focusing attention on youngsters being lured by radical groups. In strife-torn Kashmir Valley, too, the Manch is making attempts to woo Muslims by offering skill training opportunities and running schools. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Does Lord Venkateshwara of Tirumala have a regional bias? This is what the head priest of the famous Chilkur Balaji temple in Telangana, Dr MV Soundar Rajan, feels. Sounder Rajan filed a petition in the Hyderabad high court on Tuesday demanding Telangana be given more than Rs 1,000 crore in revenues by the Lord Venkateshwara temple at Tirumala in Andhra Pradesh, the richest shrine in the country. He alleged that the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, which manages the Tirumala temple, had neglected hundreds of temples of Telangana. The high court, which admitted the petition, served notices to the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana governments, besides the TTD. The hearing of the case was posted for three weeks later. According to Sounder Rajan, the TTD has to contribute to the Endowments Administration Fund (EAF) and the Common Good Fund of the endowments department to the extent of 7% and 5% respectively to enable the department to take up renovation of dilapidated temples, welfare programmes for priests and other charitable purposes. However, the TTD has not been releasing its dues since 2003 and the outstanding amount is nearly Rs 2,300 crore till 2014, when the united Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated to form Telangana state. Going by the revenue sharing formula of 52:48 between AP and Telangana as per the AP Reorganisation Act, Telangana will have to get its share of Rs 1,000 crore from the TTD, Sounder Rajan argued. Let Andhra Pradesh take the revenue from the TTD after 2014. We want the Telangana share in the TTD revenues prior to the bifurcation. The temples of Telangana were subject to utter neglect during the united Andhra regime as there were no funds from the TTD. Let it clear all its dues to Telangana and we shall manage our Telangana temples, said the head priest of Chilkur Balaji temple. This shrine is also popularly known as the Visa Balaji temple owing to a belief that devotees aspiring to go abroad get their visa without any hassles if they pray to the deity at Chilkur, located on the outskirts of Hyderabad. Read | Worlds richest Hindu temple Tirupati wants gold, not cash under scheme Sounder Rajan, who has been championing the Temples Protection Movement (TPM), said he had to take the legal recourse, as several letters written to the AP government as well as the TTD authorities were ignored. Interestingly, even the Telangana government has been actively pursuing the case of recovering dues from the TTD. Telangana minister T Harish Rao told the assembly recently the TTD was to clear its dues of Rs 241 crore to be paid under Common Good Fund. However, Sounder Rajan says the dues would be more than Rs 1,000 crore, taking into consideration the Endowment Administration Fund also. The Tirumala temple is estimated to get revenue of Rs 2,530 crore this year, with hundi collections in the form of offerings accounting for Rs 905 crore. Interest on investments is the second major source of income with the estimates being pegged at Rs. 744.91 crore, followed by the sale of special entrance tickets that are expected to fetch Rs. 215 crore. In addition, the TTD expects to net an income of Rs 200 crore from the sale of human hair, Rs 145 crore by way of sale of laddu and other prasadams followed by Rs. 98.50 crore from guest houses and Rs 50 crore through sale of arjitha seva tickets, among others. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON After a Pakistani blue-eyed tea-seller became an internet sensation, it is the turn of a security officer at Singapores Changi Airport to wow social media with his good looks. A photo of Lee Minwei, 22, a corporal in Certis Cisco, was posted by the agency on Twitter on October 14. Meet the famous CPL (APF) Lee Minwei at Changi Airport. Say hello to our good looking officer when you see him! https://t.co/bj5yFOEwUa pic.twitter.com/CMvmKqt7Wo Certis CISCO (@Certis_CISCO) October 14, 2016 The photo was shared hundreds of times, so the agency decided to give the internet more to drool over. So Changi Airport decided to share another picture of Minwei on their Facebook page with more information about the 22-year-old. As of filing this story, the Facebook post had received about 11,000 shares and 36,000 likes. There are times when tourists ask me to take photos with them, but I never expected something like this to happen. It was really quite a shock, Minwei says in the post about his internet fame. My friends and family tease me a lot, but I have a feeling my younger brother is slightly jealous. Internets latest heartthrob is single but, unfortunately, he isnt looking to mingle. I am single, but not actively looking for a relationship right now because I want to focus on my career. I believe things will happen naturally if its meant to be, and if the right girl comes along, he says. But that isnt stopping people from planning a trip to Singapore, just to meet Minwei. The only question left is where to find the young man. Dont worry, commenters on Facebook have graciously provided that info as well. A group of United Nations experts on Wednesday called on the India to immediately release prominent Kashmiri human rights activist Khurram Parvez, who was arrested last month. In a statement released from Geneva on the website of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the group of experts said: Mr. Parvez is a well-known and outspoken human rights defender who has had a longstanding and positive engagement with the UN human rights mechanisms. His continued detention following his arrest just a few days before his participation in the UN Human Rights Council, suggests a deliberate attempt to obstruct his legitimate human rights activism. Read | Rights activist Khurram Parvezs arrest opens up can of worms The group of experts comprise the UN Working Group on enforced or involuntary disappearances, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Michel Forst; the Chair-Rapporteur of the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, Setondji Adjovi; the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, David Kaye. Parvez, who is the coordinator of the Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCSS), was prevented in Delhi from travelling to Geneva to attend the 33rd session of the UN Human Rights Council in September and then arrested by police in Srinagar. He was later slapped with the controversial Public Safety Act (PSA) and is now lodged in the Kot Bhalwal prison in Jammu. Read | Rights activist Khurram Parvez shifted to Jammu prison The statement further added: We are concerned at the use of the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act against Mr. Parvez, which permits administrative detention without judicial intervention for up to two years. We have received allegations of this law often being arbitrarily applied to target human rights defenders, they added, noting with alarm the lack of clarity as to why the Indian authorities have deemed it necessary to address this case outside the countrys ordinary laws. In a democratic society, the open criticism of Government is a legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of expression of every person, the experts stressed. We are seriously concerned that the arrest of Mr. Parvez may represent a direct retaliation for his legitimate activities as a human rights defender and the exercise of his fundamental freedoms, including freedoms of expression and association. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Indias big fat wedding season is no stranger to lavish, elaborate weddings invitations. But this fancy wedding invite from former Karnataka minister and mining baron, Gali Janardhan Reddy, for his daughters wedding seems to have just raised the bar. The wedding invitation is actually a box, which opens to display a small LCD screen playing a pre-wedding video of Reddys daughter Bramhani with son-in-law Rajeev. The video starts with the family lip-syncing a welcome song announcing the upcoming nuptial, followed by visuals of the bride-to-be swirling in flowy dresses across extravagant flower decorations and the groom pacing in a traditional attire against the backdrop of white, heavenly horses. The one-minute video plays out with shots of the to-be bride and groom giving each other coy looks while the family blesses the couple by throwing flowers at them. The entire production features a luxurious mansion, idols, flower canopies and waterfalls. What stands out in the video is how the entire family is involved in the song-and-dance saga, which makes it look like the opening montage of a soap opera. The video also includes the details of the venue and timing. The wedding, slated for November, is expected to be a grand event studded with celebrity guests. The host, Gali Janardhan Reddy is a former Karnataka minister, who was jailed in September 2011 for involvement in illegal mining activities undertaken by his firm, the Bellary Brothers. He was released on bail in January 2015. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON As the news of a fire at a private hospital in Bhubaneswar claiming 22 lives broke out, the AMRI fire victims families in Kolkata relived the horror of the blaze in Dhakuria. The AMRI fire on December 9, 2011, claimed 93 lives. Dhanonjoy Pal, a government employee from Bankura, had admitted his 15-year-old daughter Prakrita, who had a small head injury. She was to be released on December 9 but the AMRI fire killed her. I was at the dormitory meant for patient families downstairs. As smoke started coming out, I ran and tried to go upstarts but the guards did not allow me. They said that I need to clear my dues first and only then can I take her away. And finally, when I managed to reach her, she was dead, Pal said. If the inhuman behavior of the hospital staff was not enough, the long legal fight has broken his moral. Read:22 dead in Bhubaneswar hospital fire, PM orders transfer of injured to AIIMS By seeing the Bhubaneswar hospital fire, I remember what happened on that December night. It will be five years this December. So many patients, including my daughter died. But the case is going on at a very slow pace. We are still fighting for a dedicated bench hearing the case so that the trial could be done on day-to-day basis. The grief and the delayed justice have demoralised me. I am still hopeful and attending almost every hearing in every court by travelling 120 km to Kolkata, said Pal, who is also a member of the AMRI Fire Victims Association. In fact, these days not more than 10 families take active interested in the legal tussle. It took over four years for the trial to start. Everyone is out on bail and is pushing the dates further. Though the case had been filed by the state government against AMRI, we on behalf of the victims families are fighting with state government as well as the accused in the court. This is because the state government is not giving us any support and is doing whatever it has to only under pressure, said SN Pandey, who is fighting the case on behalf of the victims families. Read:Bhubaneswar hospital fire: 3 employees suspended, death toll reaches 20 The hospital, on the other hand, has reopened and is functioning from its parent building and an annex building that was not affected by the fire. Only the building engulfed by the fire remains inoperative. Those who were arrested are now out on bail. 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. Police had submitted the charge sheet in March 2012. If found guilty, those guilty could be jailed for up to 10 years and also fined. The next hearing is scheduled in the first week of November. There are 432 witnesses in the case, all of whom will have to depose in the court before charges are framed. For the families of the Bhubaneswar victims, the ordeal has just started. They have a long battle ahead. I wish they have the courage to go on with the trial, said Pal. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Union minister Babul Supriyo said he was attacked by ruling Trinamool Congress supporters with brickbats on Wednesday during a visit to Asansol, his constituency in West Bengal. The alleged incident occurred around 4:15pm when the singer-turned-politician was on his way to a police station to lodge a complaint against ruling party activists, who had allegedly assaulted BJP supporters staging a peaceful demonstration in front of the residence of state labour minister Malay Ghatak. WATCH: Stone hurled at Union minister Babul Supriyo in Asansol, West Bengal pic.twitter.com/ecOG9os16t ANI (@ANI_news) October 19, 2016 Read | Governor, minister team up for film endorsing Bhagavad Gita for school curriculum I was hit by a brick when I emerged from the car to speak to the ruling party supporters. I was lucky to escape with a minor injury. The glass panes of my car were shattered, the minister told the media. Trinamool supporters vandalised more than 10 motorbikes of our supporters. They also smashed and badly damaged five cars. Strangely, the police arrested 60 workers and leaders of the BJP who were at the receiving end of the Trinamool ire, said Anjan Mukherjee, a BJP leader of the district. Police officers and Malay Ghatak declined to comment for this story. WATCH: Ruckus during Union Minister Babul Supriyos visit in Asansol, West Bengal pic.twitter.com/yCR8xHvftb ANI (@ANI_news) October 19, 2016 After the incident, Supriyo went to Kolkata. The genesis of the trouble can be traced to an incident on Tuesday afternoon, when Supriyo was proceeding towards the Asansol Rifle Club but was held up by about 40-50 cows blocking the road. The minister inquired and found out that the cows were brought from a rural cattle market at Lalganj and being taken to a nearby abattoir. The minister confronted the four people who were shepherding the cows and asked for documents. Supriyo then asked the police to arrest the four. The police detained the cows but later released them after the men furnished documents related to the purchase. Read | TMC workers attack Babul Supriyo rally in Asansol Babul Supriyo locked in an argument with a police officer on Wednesday in Asansol. (Md Asif) To protest what they described as police inaction, a group of BJP supporters started protesting outside the residence of Malay Ghatak around 2 pm on Wednesday. Bones of cows are being burnt in the town, which is spreading pollution here, said Supriyo on Wednesday after the clash. The ruling party supporters descended on the BJP workers questioning their gall to carry their protest in front of the ministers house. BJP secretary Siddharth Nath Singh condemned the incident. The Union Minister is under special police protection and goons of TMC can openly attack a protected VIP shows how callous is Bengal police, he said. Since 2016 assembly elections, TMC rattled by BJPs double-digit vote share has adopted violence on BJP workers. More than 200 workers have BJP has been targeted in last few months. We condemn this anarchist action of TMC. A large contingent of police was deployed to bring the situation under control in Asansol. Until a couple of days ago, Arshad Khan was just another tea-seller in Islamabads local Sunday bazar.Until a photographers random shot changed his life, forever. An image of Khan looking up into the camera, while making tea, was first posted by photographer Javeria Ali on her Instagram account. Within minutes, the image went viral, with girls commenting on his good looks and blue eyes. Overnight, Khan became an internet sensation, gaining almost instant international popularity. As #ChaiWala trended across social media sites, modelling offers started pouring in for the tea-seller. This is the POWER of social media. The famous #chaiwala is now a model. He has been hired by fitin.pk pic.twitter.com/yOSFF4RKhL Madhav Sharma (@HashTagCricket) 18 October 2016 An Islamabad-based retail site, Fitin.pk, signed him on and before you know it - Khans first shoot is already out! Chaiwala is no more chai wala, now he is fashion wala! , said a Facebook post by the online store. The 18-year-old, who was earlier unaware of how much he had charmed the internet , is glad to know that he is famous and his pictures are being shared. And the Internet couldnt be happier. In fact, many people were hoping that the #ChaiWala could profit from his accidental fame. hope chaiwala gets offered a gig from a designer, a cafe, or a net-savvy brand so this hype around him can at least benefit him in some way. Imaan Sheikh (@sheikhimaan) 18 October 2016 And now that the wish has come true, this is one social media rags-to-riches story that we would love to see again. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Home-schooling became the topic of discussion after 17-year-old Malvika Joshi from Mumbai earned a place in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with formal education only till Class 7. The idea is catching on with many parents, who think schools have nothing extra to offer gifted children. But the alternative method of learning may not suit everyone, especially in a country where the education system is exam-oriented and students without formal school certificates find it hard to get admissions into colleges, said panellists and academics, at the Hindustan Times Top Schools Conclave, 2016, on Wednesday. Held at The Lalit, Andheri, the event marked the culmination of the eighth edition of the HT Top Schools Survey, 2016 an annual initiative that recognises the best schools in Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai. Manoj Nair, associate editor, Hindustan Times opened the discussion with the question: does home-schooling work only for budding geniuses or can it be adopted by anyone seeking to study at their own pace? Panelists were divided about the learning style benefitting all students. Reeta Sonawat, professor and head of the department human resource development, SNDT Women's University, feels it can work for anyone. It offers child-centered learning and preserving the uniqueness of the child, often lost in a crowded school classroom. But Dr Sagar Mundada, psychiatrist and president of Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD), had a different view. Schooling is an individual decision to be taken depending on the specific child. It needs motivated parents who can devote large amounts of time to their children. Most parents today barely spend 20 to 50 minutes with them, he said. He added that often, high-achieving parents may pressure children to pursue home-schooling. Such parents set high goals for their children and home-school them to meet their own expectations, Mundada said. Malvikas mother, Supriya Joshi, part of the Indian Homeschoolers Network, countered this view with her her familys experience with homeschooling. We believed in freedom and passion for learning. We never looked at success as degrees or academic achievements, Joshi said. Learning is a natural thing that happens everywhere. We just need to support the children in their pursuits. The degree-obsessed system of education in India, Joshi said, is important for students to appear for board exams in Class 10. But several boards such as Maharashtra State Board and National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) allow students to appear for the exams privately, she said. Nair highlighted the concerns of principals that homeschooling deprives children of social skills as it takes place in isolation, when compared to schools. Sonawat argued socialisation is limited even in schools. Interactions between students are restricted to the recess. Teachers dont allow them to speak among themselves in class. Even the seating arrangement rows of students facing the teacher doesnt promote socialisation, Sonawat said. Later in the discussion, principals joined in. A school isnt restricted to negative experiences. It ensures holistic growth of the children by teaching compassion, sharing and leadership, said Indu Mathur, principal, Apeejay School, Kharghar. Madhura Phadke, Pawar Public School, Chandivli, asked if there is a system to show homeschoolers if they are on the right track. Sonawat replied such parents often dont need validation from others, and Mundada pointed out there are online communities and discussion forums for homeschoolers. Urging Mumbai schools to aid homeschoolers by sharing resources, Joshi said, Chennais Mathematical Institute allowed Malvika to use their library and attend some classes. Similarly, St Xaviers College permits my other daughter to audit geology classes and go on field trips even though she is not their student. Things are changing, Mundada said, pointing out to many schools going for smaller classrooms of 20-25 kids so they get attention. The schooling culture works for the majority. Rather than homeschooling, if we reduce the number of students in class, counsellors can identify strengths and weaknesses of every child and they can be taught accordingly, said Mundada. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON While the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Bombay Gymkhana are locked in a tussle over the footpath opposite Fashion Street which is being used as parking area by Gymkhana members, the state government has now jumped into the fray saying that the land belongs to it and permission from concerned authorities should be taken before taking any decision regarding it. The Gymkhana wants the BMC to extend special parking permission while the civic body wants to relocate hawkers from around the CST on the same land. Meanwhile, collector of Mumbai city, Ashwini Joshi has written to civic chief, Ajoy Mehta stating that the parking area does not fall under the BMCs jurisdiction and permissions from the concerned authorities should be taken before taking any decision on the footpaths use. A senior official said, This letter from city collector is a setback to us as it reveals that the land belongs to state and was given to the public works department for maintenance and thus the civic body cannot be the sole decision maker on the future use of the footpath. Darius Udwadia, president of Bombay Gymkhana, said he did not wish to comment on the matter. This is also likely to delay civic bodys plans of shifting hawkers from CST as a part of its beautification plans. With this letter we will now need permissions from other authorities and it will not be an easy task, said another senior official. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Samir Patel, an accused in a case related to the 2002 Gujarat riots, has been detained in London and is due to be extradited to India shortly, officials here said on Tuesday. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), one of the key departments in the British government dealing with extradition requests, told Hindustan Times that Patel had consented to his extradition to India. Patel is wanted in connection with a case of rioting in Ode village of Anand district on March 1, 2002. He was detained after a red corner notice was issued by Interpol when he was traced to London. A CPS official said: We can confirm that Mr Patel has consented to his extradition to India. However, we are unable to comment on any surrender arrangements as this is an operational matter for the police. Read | 24 years on, UK extradites first in list of Indias most wanted Commenting on the development, police force Scotland Yard told Hindustan Times: On August 9, officers from the MPS (Metropolitan Police Service) Extradition unit attended an address in Beavers Lane, Hounslow and arrested Samir Vinubhai Patel, aged 40, on a warrant issued under section 71 Extradition Act 2003. He appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court on August 10, 2016. A team from Gujarat Police is expected to arrive in London shortly and take Patel to India. The Ode riot, in which 23 people were killed, was reportedly one of nine cases probed by a special investigation team appointed by the Supreme Court. A special court had convicted 23 people for the riot on April 9, 2012. Patels trial in the special court could not be completed when he absconded. It is expected to be resumed after he is taken to India. India has been seeking the extradition of several individuals from Britain over the years, including Tiger Hanif, who is wanted for the 1993 Gujarat blasts and has made a final appeal against his extradition to the home secretary. India and Britain signed an extradition treaty in 1992 and it came into force on November 15, 1993. India is included in Type B of the Category 2 list of countries in Britains Extradition Act of 2003. Also read | 2002 Gujarat riots: Survivors scarred but look to the future SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Two minors, who were injected with petrol in their anus by a Ghaziabad politicians brother over suspicions that they stole a mobile phone, will need surgery doctors said on Wednesday. Rizwan Qureshi, the brother of Samajwadi Party politician Haji Ehsan Qureshi, tortured the minors, who are 16 and 17 years old, and a 24-year-old man at Loni on October 12. Rizwan and his aides allegedly injected petrol in their anal region with syringes used to inject medicines to cattle when they did not admit to the theft. Both minors, admitted to Guru Tegh Bahadur Hospital in Delhi, were taken for the surgery on Tuesday. However, the operation had to be deferred as both of them have an infection. Surgery is a must for both patients. It is only during the surgery that the doctors can decide whether the collapsed anal opening can be repaired, if the damage is not extensive, or an alternate opening is required to be created. The infection has to subside before surgery, Dr Bharat B Sagar, chief CMO of the hospital, said. Akram, the elder brother of one of the victims and an auto driver, said his entire family have been under stress after the assault on his brother - the youngest among four. We all earn our living by engaging in daily labour. Since the incident, we have been running to get them treated and not able to go out for work, Akram, the elder brother of one of the victims and an auto driver, said. Ghaziabad Police arrested Rizwan and Akil on October 17. The third accused, Nadeem, surrendered in court on October 18. All the three accused, including Rizwan, are behind bars. We are also in touch with hospital authorities and getting regular updates on the health condition of the minors, Loni circle officer Anil Kumar Yadav said. Police have registered cases under stringent sections of illegal confinement, causing grievous hurt by dangerous means and unnatural offences against the accused persons. They have also been booked under provisions of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. Rizwans brother, Ehsan Qureshi, admitted that his brother beat up the three but rejected the allegations and described it as a political conspiracy by his rivals. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Following the closure of Schiller Institute Senior Secondary School in Raj Nagar on Monday in the aftermath of a minor accident between its school bus and a politicians car, both parties finally reached a compromise on Tuesday evening. On October 14, one of the schools buses had scraped the Mitsubishi Montero SUV belonging to Samajwadi Party candidate from Muradnagar in the upcoming UP assembly polls Dishant Tyagi, for which he demanded damages of Rs. 2.2 lakh. School principal AK Gupta said on Tuesday morning that he had to keep the school closed on Monday after heated exchanges with Tyagi over the issue as the latter had demanded almost Rs. 2.2 lakh for repairs from the school. Following the incident, we had offered to pay up to Rs 20,000 for repairs, but the estimate of Rs 2.2 lakh was too much. Following repeated calls and demands, Tyagi also threatened to come to the school with 500 people and even said he could get the school shut . Fearing escalation, we sent messages to all parents about the school remaining shut and also sent messages to police officials and the Election Commission of India , said Gupta. We sent messages to parents describing the situation, the threats and our communication with the Ghaziabad police. We also filed a written complaint at Kavi Nagar police station on October 15. After an assurance by the police on Monday evening, we opened the school on Tuesday, he said. On Tuesday morning, Gupta also shared the call recordings, stamped police complaint and his e-mails sent to the district magistrate, senior superintendent of police and the election commission and said the police did not register his FIR. On Tuesday afternoon, superintendent of police (SP), city, Salmantaj Patil directed the Kavi Nagar station house officer to immediately look into the issue, after he was informed about the matter. Following media intervention, Tyagi too gave his version of events to media persons and said he had not threatened Gupta. Later, the SP said that when the police approached Gupta on October 18, He said he does not wish to lodge an FIR and will sort out the matter amicably. Finally, on Tuesday evening, Gupta and Tyagi said they had reached a compromise. The school principal has apologised over the incident. In fact, there was no threat from me, said Samajwadi Party leader Dishant Tyagi. I just demanded the amount for repair of my car, the parts of which are expensive. It needed immediate repair as I use it daily. A staff member from the school was also sent to the workshop to get an estimate of the repair cost prepared. Despite repeated assurances, when the school principal refused to bear the expenses on account of repair, I got annoyed, Tyagi said. What can I do if demanding the amount for the damage is termed a threat? I have to contest elections and cant press too much for money if they do not pay. The principal did not behave like a sophisticated person. On his part, the school principal said that police officials had brought Tyagi for a compromise. A compromise was reached between the two of us. Now, the matter stands resolved. We paid Rs 20,000 for the damage caused to his vehicle, he said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Electoral Code passes first reading (video) In its Wednesday sitting, Armenian legislature voted 104 to 4 to pass the new amendments to the Electoral Code. Before the vote, Head of the Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) faction, Naira Zohrabyan, said she sees a tendency that the parliamentary majority wanted to thwart the agreement reached in the result of 4+4+4 format talks. It means they are not going to publish the signed electoral lists. The discussions with the Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) did not produce any result. The parliament speaker promised that the discussions would continue but if we fail to achieve results, we shall vote against the amendments in the second reading. Today we are going to vote for the bill, she said. Vahram Baghdasaryan, Head of the HHK faction, said the five forces that had signed the agreement, today held a discussion. There were some professional differences. I call on you to vote for the amendments and continue discussions, he said. Heghine Bisharyan, Head of the Rule of Law Party (OEK), said there was some confusion over the bill. We are all speaking about the same problems. There was an initial agreement to vote for the amendments because certain changes were foreseen to be made in this article. That is why we are going to vote for the bill, she said. Lawmaker Khchatur Kokobelyan said he was going to vote against the bill. Slamming the Badal government for failing to ensure the upkeep of war memorials in the state, Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday cleaned the neglected statue of Subedar Nand Singh, recipient of Victoria Cross and Mahavir Chakra, at Fauji Chowk here. Also from the 1st Sikh regiment to which Subedar Nand Singh belonged, Captain described the condition of his statue as yet another glaring instance of how little the Badals care for our soldiers and their memories. Trying to strike an emotional chord with armymen and ex-servicemen, Amarinder said there was no point of setting up memorials and installing statues if the government could not ensure their proper maintenance. Asking the government to hand over these memorials to the army, he said: Our martyrs deserve no less. Captain, in whose book Lest We Forget Nand Singhs story finds detailed mention, recalled how at the age of 33 this loyal solider of the Indian Army (by then a jemadar, who was not even required to go into the battle) chose to lead his platoon in a desperate but successful attack to rescue his battalion from an ambush in Uri in Kashmir in December 1947. He was killed in action but his body was never recovered. It was later discovered that the Pakistanis recognised Nand Singh because of his decorated VC ribbon and took his body to Muzaffarabad, where, in the most abominable manner, it was tied on a truck and paraded through the city with a loudspeaker proclaiming that this would be the fate of every Indian Victoria Cross recipient, said Captain Amarinder. Unfortunately, the Badal government has never shown much respect to our army or its personnel, said Captain, referring to the prolonged protest of war widows in Punjab and reiterating his partys and his personal commitment to address their concerns. Even as 22 patients were killed and over 20 others injured in a fire that broke out at a Bhubaneswar hospital on Monday evening, city-based Guru Nanak Dev Hospital seems least concerned about preparedness for a similar emergency. HT has reported twice on May 2 and May 25 that how the government facility lacks fire-safety equipment. On a visit to the hospital on Tuesday, HT found that nothing much has changed in the past few months. A rusted fire hydrant at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, Amritsar on Tuesday. (Sameer Sehgal/HT Photo) There are a number of fire extinguishers installed on the premises, but there is no way to find if these have been refilled, as slips are missing. Even the fire-fighting equipment at the entrance is in complete neglect. Fire hydrants to which hoses are attached have rusted and there are no sand buckets to douse the flames the traditional way. Hospital superintendent Dr Ram Sarup Sharma, who had earlier told HT that everything will be taken care of , said: I have told the officials concerned to write to the fire department. We will request their team to visit and inspect the premises. The fire extinguishers will be refilled and the old ones will be replaced. CIVIL HOSPITAL SHOWS SIGNS OF IMPROVEMENT The 250-bedded Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs Memorial Civil Hospital situated near Ram Bagh, however, has shown signs of improvement. Fire extinguishers have been filled and buckets have been filled with sand, unlike the situation reported on May 2. Fire hydrants, however, have still not been take care of. Punjab Police on Tuesday told the Punjab and Haryana high court that it had arrested 14 people in connection with the attack on Sikh preacher Ranjit Singh Dhadrianwale and role of Damdami Takasal head Harnam Singh Dhumma was under investigation. In an affidavit filed in the high court, assistant commissioner of police, Ludhiana West, Rupinder Kaur Sra said told the bench of justice Jaishree Thakur that it had established role of 14 persons in the attack and all of them had been arrested with challan filed against them in a Ludhiana trial court. However, with regard to allegations against Dhumma and his associates, the investigations are still on, the affidavit read. As and when some material or evidence would come requisite legal action would be taken and supplementary challan will be filed, Sra said in the affidavit. The matter would now be taken up on October 24. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has already said that it would be better if Punjab agencies probed the May 17 attack on Sikh preacher Dhadrianwale. Based on a petition from Dhadrianwale, his driver, and two followers in June, the high court had ordered Punjab Police to report where the investigation had reached. Preachers aide Bhupinder Singh was killed in the shooting and Dhadrianwale was injured. Dhadrianwale had accused Dhumma for orchestrating the attack. Union agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh talked on a wide range of issues concerning agriculture on the second day of the Eegional Editors Conference on Tuesday. He also listed farmer-friendly schemes launched during the Narendra Modi government, but was evasive on the pre-poll promises made by the BJP for revival of the agriculture sector. He praised Punjab farmers for their unmatched contribution to national food-grain pool, but failed to suggest a clear solution to help the distressed community. Excerpts of an interview: Before coming to power, the BJP promised to implement the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission report, but nothing has been done. Your take? Radha Mohan Singh: Of the 200 recommendations in the MS Swaminathan Commission report, most were accepted, except ensuring 50% profit over the input cost to the farmers. I think, thats not feasible. Before the 2014 polls (Narendra) Modi promised to double the farmers income and we are helping them on that count through reducing the input cost, better market facilities, crop diversification and increasing production. Punjabs groundwater level is falling drastically and government continues to give free power to run tubewells? Do you recommend free power? The fact is that 55% agriculture in India is being done without irrigation facilities. It is commendable that Punjab has arrangements for irrigation and its farmers reap good harvest even during a drought. It is difficult for me to comment on giving free power, but I am all for better water management. Has Centre any debt-waiver plan for the Punjab farmers? Not to my knowledge. I suggest the state government to do its bit by offering loans at zero interest to farmers. Banks offer loan at 9% to the farmers, of which the Centre contributes 5% and the state government can take care of the rest (4%). Opting for basmati over paddy is not proving beneficial to farmers. What is government doing on this count? We cant offer MSP on basmati. Its remuneration depends on the market dynamics and fluctuates from season to season. Moreover, support price doesnt help farmers much, there are other options to increase their income. The benefits of government schemes dont reach the farmers as envisaged. Why? I agree full benefits dont reach farmers. (Then he shifts to other question). Nearly 30,000 hectares of farmland in Punjab is across the zero line on the international border. During the Vajpayee government, compensation was being given the landowners. Any plan to resume that? We are working on it and will announce a policy soon. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A total of 100 female teachers observing fast on the occasion of Karva Chauth have been deputed to display themes/ items relevant to traditional Punjabi culture for the rich heritage exhibition to be held at multipurpose hall of Guru Nanak Stadium on Wednesday. The teachers have been directed to reach the hall at 9am, with no exemption to anyone. Two nodal officers of principal cadre each from the seven tehsils of the district have been asked to reach the multi-purpose hall to check the arrangements. Five each students from 62 government schools will accompany their teachers to the venue for displaying the heritage items. However, the female teachers observing fast are not happy with the assigned duty. A teacher requesting anonymity said, I have been working in a government school for the last 10 years but the authorities have never delegated us any duty on Karva Chauth. If I reach the venue at 9am, I need at least five to six hours to display the items and that means I can reach home after 4pm only. It will be very difficult to stay hungry till 4 pm. I have to attend the karva chauth puja at 3pm, but now I will do it after reaching home. Another teacher, who wished not to be named said, Mostly girl students are accompanying their teachers for the event and that is why female staff is deputed by the education department. The higher authorities were aware about this occasion beforehand, despite that we were asked to work today. When asked, the director public instructions (secondary) Balbir Singh Dhol said, This festival was scheduled to be held on October 3 but was later postponed to October 19 and 20. So for the teachers, we will make special arrangements for food and water. As soon as the teachers finish their work they can go home. Pottery, gramophone, old musical instruments, dresses and ornaments, kitchen with old utensils, furniture, charkha and traditional home set up will be displayed in the exhibition. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The oldest councillor Rana Kashmiri Devi (73), has not been seen in Ward 14 after she was elected. Considered as one of the most neglected wards comprising Sector 45 and Burail village a look at the area speaks volumes on the lack of attention from the elected representative. Such was the level of apathy that residents had to move the Punjab and Haryana high court to get a green belt in the area. In Burail village, tiles have been laid in select market areas. (Keshav Singh/HT Photo) The 2013 senior deputy mayor held the position, but failed to make a mark even while holding the post and proved a major disappointment. Her tendency not to attend office meant that a lot of the residents who turned up at the MC office had to return, feeling a sense of dejection. ONLY BURAIL DEVELOPED, SAY RESIDENTS She stays in Burail village and is accused of diverting the entire ward fund to the village only. Residents allege that she was seen only during elections. Kashmiri Devi, a turncoat, contested on a Congress ticket in 2011, but joined the BJP in 2014. Her son Vijay Rana was elected councillor from the same ward in 2001 and 2006 and had switched over to the Congress in his second term. As the ward got reserved for women, she became the choice by default. The ward is in utter state of neglect, evident from heaps of garbage and debri on roadsides. Ill-maintained green belts stand out The ill-maintained green belts and broken paver blocks trouble the residents of the ward. Residents term her tenure as a complete failure as she failed to undertake any development work. But if you ask the 73-year-old councillor, the upgrade of the local dispensary into a 50-bedded Civil Hospital in Sector 45, Chandigarh, is her major achievement. The street-lights do not work in the area and the sewage lines are blocked in the ward. Kashmiri Devi resides in Burail village, so her main focus has been on the village itself. Did not raise issues in House Kashmiri Devi has also failed to make her presence felt in MC House meetings. It is true that councillor of our ward is not easily approachable. Often, members of the public and unions of shopkeepers managed to meet her and requested for construction of public toilets. Some of us even offered funds but the issue wasnt taken up, said a resident Shishu Paul. He went on to add that even though a perception existed that that the councillor had diverted funds that should ideally have gone to Sector 45 to Burail, nothing had been done in the village too. Tomorrow: Ward 15 Harjinder Kaur SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Daring Punjab Congress chief Captain Amarinder Singh to list out five achievements of his 2002-2007 term as the chief minister, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Wednesday dismissed as lies the Congress promise to waive farm debt. I challenge Amarinder to list out five achievements of his tenure. The Punjab government is highlighting its nine-year achievements Congress has nothing to say about its tenure. Is he ashamed of his five-year rule? Sukhbir questioned in a news conference, slamming the state Congress chiefs kisan yatra as jhoot yatra. The deputy CM said Amarinder was just travelling from one destination to another without meeting farmers during his yatra. He chooses to reach his heaven before 6pm to enjoy his luxurious lifestyle. Is this kisan yatra? Sukhbir asked. Replying a query regarding Amarinders promise of waiving farm loans after assuming power, Sukhbir said it was an open secret that after coming to power in 2002, Amarinder imposed the decision to charge power bills on farmers. Now, the Congress is spreading lies that it will waive farmer loans. The Congress should begin the drive from Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka where it is in power, he said. Responding to a question about the state government closing Amritsar Improvement Trust-related corruption case against Amarinder, Sukhbir said: I have not gone through the case because Vigilance Bureau is not with me. But I will look into what has happened. In a yet another veiled attack on Amarinder, who has said that upcoming assembly election will be his last contest, Sukhbir said: This shows his hunger to gain power. Actually, a leader who wants to win by claiming that it is his last election should not be elected at all. Regarding state government agreeing to pay Rs 31,000 crore in 20 years to settle the foodgrain account dispute, he said the state government would soon come out with complete data of the issue. There is no foodgrain scam the Union government has gone through accounts this exercise has been going on for the past many years, even during Congress governments. The picture will be clear once the dispute and accounts are settled, he said. Sukhbir also inducted Kabir Das, former Congress general secretary and former deputy mayor of Patiala municipal corporation, into the Akali fold. Visiting dignitaries are always a cause of inconvenience and impede the movement of a common man. The students of Government Model Senior Secondary School, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), were at the receiving end today in the wake of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to the university. Students faced a lot of inconvenience as parents were told by the cops deputed at gate number 4 to drop their wards at the gate which is at a distance of approximately 1.5km from school. While a holiday has been declared on Tuesay in all the colleges of PAU on account of Modis visit, however, Government Model Senior Secondary School, PAU remained open. But out of a total strength of 2,500 students, only 1,600 students were present in the school while 900 chose to remain absent. A parent, Raj Kumar said, In the morning when I reached gate number 4 to drop my two kids, I was told by the police to leave them at the gate only. So my son who is 7-year-old and 9-year-old daughter had to walk all the way to school carrying heavy school bags. I feel the school should have declared holiday as walking the distance of 1.5km is difficult for students. A student of Class 12, Gayatri said, I was going to school on my bicycle and when I reached gate number 4, the cops asked me to walk for some distance as there was chaotic traffic outside the gate. I met one of my classmates on the way and offered her a ride along. When contacted, school principal, Sanjeev Thapar said, Due to security reasons the police had not allowed the parents to enter the gate, but we had deputed teachers so that they may guide the students. If the students had to walk some distance, then it is not harmful for them. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Two hoardings featuring deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on the newly installed unipoles on Club Road were allegedly burnt by unidentified persons. The incident has raised many speculations. The local SAD leaders claimed that these hoardings of deputy CM, Sukhbir Singh Badal were recently installed with authorisation to showcase the achievements of the SAD-BJP government in Punjab. Councillor from ward 59 and spokesperson of Youth Akali Dal, Tanvir Singh Dhaliwal alleged that the hoardings were intentionally torched. It is responsibility of the municipal corporation (MC) to keep check on hoardings as the government is paying for the display, he said. I suspect that it is the work of opposition parties and the police should lodge an FIR against the accused persons, said Dhaliwal. A homeless person who stays on the footpath near Durga Mata Mandi said, When I came here on Monday morning, the two hoardings were found burnt. It seems these hoardings were torched last night. I had also seen an empty bottle dumped near one of the unipoles. Sources said that the burnt hoardings were recently replaced. Many unauthorised hoardings displaying the pictures of SAD leaders are also being installed at various places in the city. Short circuit could be the reason behind burning of hoardings, said Harvinder Singh, MC superintendent (headquarters). A sub divisional officer of MC is looking into the matter, he said. When contacted, station house officer (SHO) at police station division Number 8, Jagdeep Singh said he has no information regarding the same. He said the police will look into the matter. According to MC, the state government will pay `1.25 crore for advertisements on 80 unipoles for five months. Besides, MC has also allowed the government advertisements on gantries and foot over bridges. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Captain Amarinder Singh lashed out at chief minister (CM) Parkash Singh Badal on Tuesday for forcing industries to flee Punjab, leaving the state grappling with near bankruptcy and a host of other critical problems. Starting the second day of his kisan yatra with a visit to a closed sugar mill in Faridkot, he said once in power, he will take immediate steps to revive the defunct sugar mill and incentivise the industries in the state in line with the concessions being provided to attract industrial development in other states like Gujarat. It was unfortunate, he said, that nobody was prepared for Make in Punjab even while the rest of the country was talking about the Modi governments Make in India campaign. Accusing the Badal government of reversing Punjabs industrial growth and causing several industrial units to close down for lack of government support, Captain said he will ensure that the trend is reversed as soon as he takes over the reins of power in the state. Farmers at Faridkot grain market complained that paddy was not being lifted from the mandis and what had been lifted was at lower than minimum support price (MSP). Assuring the farmers to bring an end to their woes once Congress is voted to power, PPCC president asked them to support Congress in forthcoming elections. Meanwhile, utilising the roadshow to display the collective strength of the local Congress leaders, Kushaldeep Singh Dhillon, known for his proximity with Captain, united all the ticket aspirants. SAD LEADER TAKES A DIG AT CAPTAINS CLIP Captain Amarinder Singh visited Kotkapura grain market on Monday evening where he interacted with the farmers and his team uploaded a video on his facebook account. However, SAD leader Parambans Singh Romana shared the same video clip on his facebook account highlighting the fact that farmer in the clip indeed said that his paddy was procured within a day, contradicting the Congress claims. The announcement of refund in cases involving two large developers in Gurgaon and Ghaziabad have left homebuyers relieved but merely getting the amount back is not enough for them to buy another house in the same locality where they originally chose these apartments, they say. Homebuyers who had invested in Unitechs Vista project in Gurgaon years ago are relieved with the Supreme Court ordering refund of Rs 16.5 crore to 39 buyers but are doubtful if they will be able to afford a similar apartment with the refund. They are also worried that they will be again waiting for possession (as they did so far) if they invest in under-construction properties . The Supreme Court today ordered Unitech to refund Rs 16 crore to 39 apartment buyers. The apex court refused to rely on Unitechs assurance of possession by 2017. The builder has already deposited Rs 15 crore in the Supreme Court registry (which will be given later to the homebuyers) and the court has ordered that it deposit Rs 2 crore in four weeks. Voice of anguish is echoed in the courtroom (by the buyers) as their dreams are shattered. A property developer has to have a contractual commitment and has to live up to the terms of the contract and gain trust so that people who dream of having a house can repost faith in him, a bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra said while asking the top courts registry to let the investors withdraw money after their verification. One of the buyers, who was part of the group seeking refunds, said that while he was happy that the money was being returned, he would not get a house worth the same amount in any project close to the Unitech project. We were sure that the builder would not be able to deliver the flat for the next three years and not get the occupation certificate either. We thought we would never be in position to occupy the flat. The biggest challenge so far has been that while most of the buyers got together and pooled in money to fight the case, at least eight from the group of 39 represented the case themselves. Sunil Bharadwaj of the Vistas Residents Association says that since the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 has already been notified, the Supreme Court should ideally decide the interest component in line with RERA and give the buyers 18% interest. Out of a total of 1,288 buyers, only 39 have gone in for a refund application. As of now we will also not be in a position to buy anything that is ready-to-move-in even with the amount that will eventually be refunded to us. We may be forced to invest in a new launch and there is every possibility that we may get into the same rut even after going through this mess for almost seven years, he says. The Supreme Court order came a day after the same Bench asked Parsvnath Developers to refund Rs 22 crore to 70 apartment buyers in its Exotica project in Ghaziabad. A Bench comprising justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and AM Khanwilkar allowed buyers to receive the refund of the principal amount paid by them in 2010. The interest component and compensation for delay in handing flats would be dealt with at a later stage, the court said. The refund would come partly from the Rs 12 crore deposit made by the developer with the apex courts registry. The court asked Parsvnath to deposit an additional Rs10 crore by December 10. The companys Exotica project in Ghaziabad hit a roadblock after the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) quashed a revised plan of construction. A buyer who had invested in the Parsvnath project says that even if the buyers were to get 12% interest as penalty, the amount will be subject to 30% tax under Income Tax laws which means we will effectively received only 8.5% interest. All this while we have also been paying EMIs and rent, that is not something for which we will be compensated, he says. But he is sure that he will now only go for a ready-to-move-in home and not go for something where possession in due in the next three months. I dont want to take that risk. What is the guarantee that the builder will deliver the project even after three months, he asks. Almost one in three adults around the world believe people of the same sex should be allowed to get married to each other, a survey of about 1 lakh people in 65 countries showed on Tuesday. About 32% said same-sex marriage should be legal, while 45% said it should not be, and the remaining 23% replied they did not know, the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) survey said. The rights group said a breakdown of the results highlighted deep regional divisions. Only 19% of respondents in Africa and 26% in Asia said they approved of same-sex marriage, against 35% in the Americas, 41% in Europe and 56% in Oceania the online survey found. These divisions reflect that rights advocates in Africa and Asia have focused on more pressing issues, such as fighting discrimination against gays rather than promoting acceptance of same-sex marriage, said study co-author Aengus Carroll. Gay couples are legally recognised in more than 20 world countries, mostly in Europe and the Americas. (Shutterstock) This is so far off the agenda for Africa and Asia, Carroll told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. An ILGA survey published earlier this year found two-thirds of adults would be upset if their child told them they were in love with someone of the same sex. Gay couples are legally recognised in more than 20 world countries, mostly in Europe and the Americas. Follow @htlifeandstyle for more. After exploring the OJ Simpson trial and its intense media coverage and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, the third season of Ryan Murphys anthology series will focus on Gianni Versaces murder in 1997, US TV network FX has announced. Although its second season is yet to be filmed, American Crime Story has already been renewed for a third season. Whats even more unusual in the world of TV, is that the theme of the true crime anthologys third 10-episode stint has already been unveiled: the murder of Gianni Versace. The founder of the Italian fashion house, Versace, was found dead July 15, 1997, in front of his Miami villa, with two bullet wounds to the head. (AP) Gianni Versace was the last of the five victims murdered by serial killer Andrew Cunanan. The police were never able to establish his true motives, however, as the killer took his own life eight days after the event. The Versace/Cunanan affair will be filmed in Los Angeles and Miami in spring 2017, at the same time as the anthologys second season, focusing on the damage caused by hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in August 2005. The second season is due to air in 2017, one year ahead of season three, due to land on FX in 2018. Ryan Murphy is currently in the process of casting this third season. The series creator, whos also set to direct the first episode, is searching for actors to play Gianni Versace and his sister Donatella, who has a major role in the upcoming dramatization. British novelist Tom Rob Smith (Child 44) will pen the script, with the help of Vanity Fair journalist Maureen Orths book Vulgar Favors. American Crime Story launched on FX in February this year, and proved a TV hit with its first season tackling the trial of OJ Simpson and the surrounding media frenzy. Cuba Gooding Jr, John Travolta, David Schwimmer and Courtney B. Vance starred in the 10-episode debut season, which scooped nine Emmy Awards in September, including Outstanding Limited Series. Follow @htshowbiz for more Actor Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya will be celebrating her first Karva Chauth after marriage with husband Vivek Dahiya today. While many husbands practice the day-long fast with their wives on this occasion, she doesnt want Vivek to do this. He wants to fast, but I havent asked him to do it. I dont want him to. He works very hard in the gym and needs to eat well. Vivek is a fitness freak and going to the gym is an important activity in the day. Fasting requires a lot of energy and takes a lot of patience, says Divyanka, who tied the knot with Vivek in July in Bhopal. Divyanka, who met Vivek on the sets of their daily show, is excited about the festival and will be in Mumbai on the big day.I dont know much about the exact rituals of the festival. Whatever I know is through films and television. But I dont want to make any kind of mistake because it is my very first Karva Chauth. I will seek guidance from my mother-in -law and have already asked her send me sargi (an assortment of gifts, eatables and jewellery). I will also ask my mother about the ritual and its importance, says the actor. Asked if the couple will celebrate the festival together, Divyanka says, Yes. Vivek and I will be together in the evening and celebrate the special day. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The festivals of Karva Chauth is here and like the rest of the married couples around the world, television stars will also celebrate them with zeal. Arjun Bijlani and Neha Swami Neha will get her shopping and mehendi done, and is fasting like every year. I am shooting for my show, so I will try to take a half-day or come early as she has to break the fast. Actually there is no ritual of men fasting on Karva Chauth but if there was, I would definitely fast! says Arjun. Hunar Hale and Mayank Gandhi Hunar who will be celebrating her first Karva Chauth says, I will be celebrating in Mumbai. Its special because I will learn a lot of things which I have only seen in films. Mayank will take a break from work and come early. Then we will go for dinner. Actors Hunar Hale and Mayank Gandhi. Jay Soni and Pooja I like Karva Chauth. Life is all about loving your family. Its a special ritual. I am in Ahmedabad shooting for a film. So it will be a long-distance celebration for us. I will be on call with her while she does the puja. In an industry where marriages break easily, she has been my pillar of strength and compliments my personality completely, shares Jay. Jay Soni with his wife Pooja Shah. Annirudh Dave and Shubhi Ahuja Says Anniurudh, My wife Shubhi is going to celebrate her first Karva Chauth. She will fast, and will wait for me to break her fast. I am lucky to have her. She is the perfect wife. This is our first Karva Chauth, so its special. I have been very unwell after ligament tear while rehearsing for a dance act and am still recovering and juggling between home and shoot. My wife will talk to my mom for the exact ritual details. Deepika Singh and Rohit Raj Goyal I will be in Delhi with my family for the festival. Rohit will come for two days. I am looking forward to celebrating with him. I am glad that I am not shooting this time around, which means I can spend more time with him, shares Deepika. Deepika singh with fiance Director Rohit Goyal Himanshoo Malhotra and Amruta Khanvilkar My Karva Chauth plans are first to buy a gift for my wife so I am still thinking what to get her. She has warned me if I dont get her a gift, I better be prepared to sleep in the living room. I am thinking of buying a beautiful sari for her since she loves saris, says Himanshoo. Actors Himmanshoo Malhotra and Amruta Khanvilkar. Karan Patel and Ankita Karan says, Its special and it has always been for us. I hope to get off from work early and come back home to my wife. All the ladies of my house are fasting and the puja will be followed by a good dinner. Actors Karan Patel and Ankita. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON US Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton is going into the third and final presidential debate of the 2016 race for the White House with a widening lead as her Republican rival Donald Trump ratcheted up talk of a rigged, stolen election. Clinton was leading her rival by 7.5 points in the RealClearPolitics average of national polls, up from two points on the eve of the first debate, and was ahead in some of the most crucial battleground states. Clinton is opening up solidly Republican states such as Arizona, which voted Republican in 15 of the last 16 presidential elections. She led Trump by five points in a new poll released on Wednesday, just hours ahead of the debate. She was close behind in Texas, the reddest of states, by two to three points. Her chances of winning at this stage stood at 87.2%, according to the FiveThirtyEight election forecast, with Trump at 12.7%. The third debate takes place in Las Vegas (at 6.30 am IST on Thursday). Read | Trump takes on Hillary in the final presidential debate: All you need to know Trump has taken to complaining in recent days about a stolen election, fraud and rigging, citing stray incidents that have had the reverse effect of making him look like he is preparing the ground for a defeat. There have been only 31 incidents of election fraud (including multiple ballots) between 2000 and 2014, according to a widely cited study by law school professor Justin Levitt. The study included all polls, municipal, state and federal and even primaries. More than 1 billion votes were cast in the primaries and general elections in that time. The unfounded alarm and Trumps calls to supporters to monitor polling stations on election day have raised fears about voter intimidation especially among minorities. President Barack Obama ticked off Trump sharply on Tuesday, telling him to stop whining. He added, I have never seen in my lifetime or in modern political history any presidential candidate trying to discredit the elections and the election process before votes have even taken place. Possibly stung by the rebuke, Trump invited the presidents Kenya-born half-brother Malik Obama as his guest at the final debate, saying he gets it far better than his brother. The brothers dont get along and Malik Obama, who is older, has resented not getting enough help from the president for a foundation he runs in Kenya. Trump has in the past used his guest list for the debates to make a point. He brought three women who had accused former President Bill Clinton of sexual assault to the second debate. Play the US Presidential Debate Tambola But on Wednesday night, Trump will have plenty of other issues to take on Clinton, whose campaign has been hit by new allegations over her use of a private email server as secretary of state between 2009 and 2012. The state department is alleged to have tried to negotiate a deal with FBI investigators to mitigate violations. Also, hacked emails of her campaign chair John Podesta are being released in small bunches every day by WikiLeaks. Trump might bring them up. Clinton is likely to continue to repeat her campaigns key argument against Trump one that is dutifully reprised by surrogates that he is unfit to be president. She is likely to use reasons such as the way he treats women, talks about them and behaves with them. The 2005 recording in which Trump boasted about groping women and forcing himself on them remains current, with his wife Melania Trump bringing it up earlier this week to describe it as boy-talk. That was a missed opportunity as Trump has tried to dismiss it as locker-room talk without any success. Indonesia will be the country of focus at the Tokyo International Film Festival, which begins on October 25. Part of Crosscut Asia, an important segment of the festival, Indonesian movies will highlight some leading directors from the country. Three films by Teddy Soeriaatmadja will be a study in intimacy -- daring and provocative. Along with these will be the works of emerging female talents like Nia Dinata (a pioneer in LGBT movies) and Kamila Andini with her evocative work, Following Diana. Soeriaatmadja started his career with an independent movie titled Culik. His latest films to be screened at Tokyo are a trilogy: Lovely Man, Something in the Way and About a Woman. His attention to detail, stunning cinematography and compelling style of storytelling have made Teddy one of the most acclaimed directors in Indonesia. While Lovely Man traces the relationship between a Muslim father and his daughter after she discovers him to be a transvestite working on the streets of Djakarta, Something in the Way talks about a man addicted to paid sex and how his life takes an about turn after he falls in love with a pretty neighbourhood prostitute. The third in the trilogy, About a Woman, grapples with the life of an elderly Muslim lady as she is forced out of her comfort zone. About a Woman grapples with the life of an elderly Muslim lady as she is forced out of her comfort zone. Dinatas hilarious musical, Three Sassy Sisters, focuses on the dilemma of an old woman who just cannot seem to find suitable grooms for her three granddaughters -- running a beachside boutique in the eastern part of Indonesia. Three Sassy Sisters focuses on the dilemma of an old woman who just cannot seem to find suitable grooms for her three granddaughters. Andinis Following Diana describes how a 30-year-old woman living with her little son and husband finds life shattering beyond belief when he wants to share his family with another woman. Following Diana describes how a 30-year-old woman living with her son and husband finds life shattering beyond belief when he wants to share his family with another woman. (Gautaman Bhaskaran will be covering the Tokyo International Film Festival.) ott:10:ht-entertainment_listing-desktop Four teenage students were shot in the shared parking lot of two San Francisco high schools on Tuesday, and one of the students is in critical condition, authorities said. The shooting occurred as students were being let out of school for the day from the June Jordan School for Equity and City Arts and Technology High School, which share a campus, San Francisco Police officer Carlos Manfredi said. Three of the victims ran inside the school, and police initially ordered students to stay in place until police searched each room and determined it was not an active shooter situation. A fourth victim hurt in the shooting went to a hospital, Manfredi said. One female victim has life-threatening injuries to her upper torso, he said. Four male suspects wearing dark hoodies and jeans were seen running away from the area, Manfredi said. The shooters seemed to have targeted the female student, said Karwin Sui, a spokesperson for the San Francisco Unified School District. A year ago, Justin Trudeau led his Liberal Party to a surprising majority in Canadas federal elections. If the Prime Minister were to call a snap election now, he could well capture a supermajority in the House of Commons. Over the past 12 months, not only has the honeymoon period persisted, Trudeaus romance with the voting public has grown stronger. On October 19 last year, the Liberals captured 184 of the 338 seats in the lower house, equivalent of the Lok Sabha, while tallying approximately 40% of the vote share. According to a new poll from Toronto-based Forum Research, if elections were held today, that percentage would rise to 49, translating into a whopping 240 seats. Trudeau, the face of the party, is spurring this gain in popularity. Thats a big factor. His personal approval rating is even higher. At 56%, hes actually ahead of his party, Lorne Bozinoff, Forum Researchs president and founder, told Hindustan Times. The latest poll had a sample size of 1,437 and was conducted during October 11-12. And this is a countrywide trend, not limited to Liberal bastions, as Bozinoff pointed out, Its high in just about every demographic group in the country, its high in just about every region of the country. There are exceptions in Conservative strongholds, but even there, the numbers are impressive for a Liberal. In places such as the province of Ontario, where the regional unit of the party is floundering, the Federal Liberals are above 50% in support. These numbers have been fairly consistent over the past six months or so. Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau celebrates after tapping the keg at the opening ceremony for Oktoberfest in Kitchener, Ontario. (AP Photo) But the numbers from a recent poll conducted by Vancouver-based Angus Reid Institute were even better for Trudeau. Its executive director Shachi Kurl said, Today some two-thirds of Canadians approve of Justin Trudeaus job performance. That's an enviable approval rate for most politicians. The honeymoon has indeed lasted a year, which is an age in political time spans. He's achieved it by significantly shifting the tone coming from the PMO, his cabinet and his caucus - both when it comes to communication and symbolism. Also helping is the fact that the principal opposition Conservative Party has yet to elect a full-time leader to replace former prime minister Stephen Harper. Its been a good first year in office for Trudeau, and he has plenty of nationwide support to take his agenda forward as he enters the second. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has a six-point lead over her Republican rival Donald Trump, according to a latest Fox News poll with just three weeks to go for the US presidential election. A week ago, Clinton was leading by seven points. In the latest weekly poll, Fox News said Clinton has a six-point lead over Trump (45-39 per cent). Libertarian Gary Johnson stands at 5 per cent and Green Partys Jill Stein at three per cent. In the head-to-head matchup, Clinton (49 percent) is leading by seven points over Trump (42 percent). Clintons lead is beyond the polls margin of error, the news channel said. The poll, conducted from Saturday to Monday, reflects the large gender gap. While Trump leads likely among men by seven points, he trails Clinton by 17 points among women. According to RealClearPolitics, which keeps track of all major polls, Clinton leads Trump by 6.9 per cent points. Two elephants meet in tableware store and fight each other: Arman Navasardyan about war between Armenia and Azerbaijan (video) Azerbaijan has always been preparing for a full-scale war. There is no need to worry about it, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Arman Navasardyan said on October 19. Strategic weapons may not matter in the given situation. Neither Baku, nor Yerevan can use them. It is excluded. Sometimes, I compare it with the scene when two elephants meet in a tableware store and fight each other. We may appear in the same situation. We can destroy Baku, leveling it to the ground, but Azerbaijan can also give us a similar blow from Nakhichevan. Such a thing cannot happen because that is what will become the beginning of World War III, Mr. Navasardyan said today. Speaking about the Yerevan-hosted CSTO summit, he said it had more negative than positive aspects. One of the negative things was that [President of Kazakhstan] Nursultan Nazarbayev did not come to Armenia to participate in the meeting. Besides, the meeting participants did not elect CSTO Secretary-General from Armenia. Reverence was shown to countries which were against it. As you know those are Turkic-speaking countries, and the organization has not reached the appropriate level that fits it, he added. Anyway, Mr. Navarsadyan says our problems will not be resolved, even if an Armenian is elected. The positive thing was that the organization outlined its roadmap and Russia made use of the venue [Yerevan] to show that it is ready to soften its relations with the United States. Mogadishu A suicide car bomb and gun attack in the Somali town of Afgoye on Tuesday killed 11 people, including government employees, an official said, raising the initial death toll from four. Militants from the al Shabaab group, which has been carrying out a series of deadly attacks in the country, drove a bomb-laden car into a police station, while others engaged security forces in a gun fight. Eleven people died, including police and civil servants, Abdinasir Moalim, the district commissioner for Afgoye, told Reuters on Wednesday. Six attackers were also killed, he said. Afgoye is about 30 km (20 miles) southwest of the capital Mogadishu. The police station, which was built with funding from the United Arab Emirates, was destroyed in the attack, the district commissioner said, adding calm had returned and the government was in full control of the town. Ecuadors government acknowledged on Tuesday that it cut off WikiLeaks founder Julian Assanges internet access at its embassy in London after the whistleblowing site published a trove of damaging emails from Hillary Clintons presidential campaign. The foreign ministry said that while it stands by its 2012 decision to grant Assange asylum based on legitimate concerns he faces political persecution, it respects other nations sovereignty and doesnt interfere or support any candidate in foreign elections. The decision to make this information public is the exclusive responsibility of the WikiLeaks organization, the foreign ministry said in a statement. The recognition of the action comes less than 24 hours after WikiLeaks tweeted that Ecuador had cut off Assanges access to the internet on Saturday after the publication of Clintons speeches to Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs. In follow-up messages posted Tuesday, the group claimed US secretary of state John Kerry had personally intervened to ask Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing documents about Clinton. Citing multiple US sources, WikiLeaks said the request was made on the sidelines of a visit by Kerry and Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa last month to Colombia to show their support for a peace deal with leftist rebels. The State Department denied the allegation and Correas leftist government said it was acting on its own and not ceding to foreign pressures. The foreign ministry didnt specify the extent of the temporary restrictions on Assange, saying only that they wouldnt affect WikiLeaks ability to carry out its journalistic activities. While our concerns about Wikileaks are longstanding, any suggestion that secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down Wikileaks is false, US State Department spokesperson John Kirby said in an email. Speaking to reporters later, deputy spokesperson Mark Toner said Kerry never even raised the issue or met with Correa during his visit to Colombia. There just was no meeting, he said. They didnt discuss any of this stuff. Assange has been holed up at the modest embassy suite at No. 3 Hans Crescent for more than four years after skipping bail to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex crimes allegations, a position which until now hasnt prevented him from continuing to play a pivotal role in exposing state secrets and backroom trade deals. The Ecuadorian national flag flies outside their London Embassy. (AP Photo) WikiLeaks said unspecified contingency plans were in place and the site and its Twitter feed appeared to be working as usual. On Tuesday, it released another tranche of emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, suggesting that the groups ability to publish has yet to be compromised. The disclosure was the 11th installation in a series of leaks that have captured the workings of Clintons inner circle. Those leaks themselves are part of a wider cascade that have embarrassed the Democratic Party and which the American intelligence community has recently described as an attempt by the Russian government to interfere in the US election. Staff at WikiLeaks and the embassy either declined comment or didnt return messages. Assange fled to the Ecuadorean Embassy on June 19, 2012, after a drawn-out and ultimately unsuccessful legal battle to being sent to Sweden, where he remains wanted over an allegation of rape. Ecuador granted him asylum, but British authorities have made clear they would arrest him if he tried to leave. Londons Metropolitan Police used to maintain a visible presence outside the building, although officers were nowhere in sight when an AP journalist visited on Tuesday. Assange has carved out a life at Hans Crescent, dining on delivered food, welcoming famous well-wishers and even occasionally addressing the media from the embassys balcony. On Saturday, former television star Pamela Anderson paid a visit. But evidence of mutual suspicion with his hosts surfaced after BuzzFeed News drew on leaked documents to detail tensions between Assange and Ecuadorean embassy staff. In targeting Clinton, Assange may have run afoul of Correas own preference for the Democratic candidate and a renewed effort to repair strained relations with Washington. The President recently said that while a Trump victory would energize Latin Americans to reject overhanded US policies in the world much in the way George W. Bushs invasion of Iraq did he personally would like to see Clinton prevail. For the good of the United States and the world, and for my personal appreciation of her, Id like to see Hillary win, he told the Moscow-backed RT broadcaster last month. Assange isnt likely to submit to the internet ban quietly. Over the weekend, WikiLeaks released three lines of code it described as pre-commitments, labeling them John Kerry, Ecuador, and FCO an apparent reference to Britains Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Pre-commitments are cryptographic functions that can be used to verify the integrity of material released subsequently. Thomas White, a UK-based security researcher and transparency activist, saw the posts as a warning to the named parties that WikiLeaks had ammunition in reserve if Ecuadorean authorities do not continue to offer him political asylum. Syrias President Bashar al-Assad told a Swiss TV station that government forces had to rid the city of Aleppo of rebel terrorists under its constitutional mandate to protect the civilian population. Thats our mission, according to the constitution, according to the law, that we have to protect people, that we have to get rid of those terrorists from Aleppo. This is where we can protect the civilians, he said in an interview with Swiss broadcaster SRF conducted on Tuesday and posted on SRFs website on Wednesday. How can you protect them while they are under the control of terrorists? Theyve been killed by them, and theyve been controlled fully by the terrorists. Is it our role to sit aside and watch if thats how we can protect the Syrian people? We need to attack the terrorists, thats self-evident. Read| Russian, Syrian planes halt Aleppo airstrikes ahead of truce Francois Hollande, Vladimir Putin and Angela Merkel will meet in Berlin for talks on Syria on Wednesday ahead of a brief truce in Aleppo backed by Moscow in the face of mounting criticism for its part in a brutal regime offensive. The meeting comes a day after the Kremlin announced that Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo prior to an eight-hour humanitarian pause in the battered city on Thursday, a move Moscow said showed goodwill. It was an announcement welcomed by the United Nations and the European Union which nevertheless said the ceasefire needed to be longer to allow the delivery of aid. The US State Department voiced scepticism regarding Moscows latest initiative while welcoming a halt in the bombing. French and Russian presidents Francois Hollande and Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will hold a working meeting on the Syrian crisis on Wednesday in Berlin, the French leaders office said. The meeting will be aimed at giving the same message to Vladimir Putin on Syria: a durable ceasefire in Aleppo and humanitarian access so that the devastation of this city can end, an aide to Hollande said. EU foreign ministers said earlier this week they would press ahead with extending sanctions against Syrian President Bashar al-Assads regime, but stopped short of threatening measures against Russia. But Merkel said that in light of the disastrous situation in Syria, no option, including sanctions, can be taken off the table. The West has expressed increasing alarm at the situation in Aleppo, saying the ferocious Russian-backed onslaught on the rebel-held east could amount to a war crime. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu announced in a televised briefing Tuesday that strikes in the Aleppo region were stopping. This guarantees the security of civilians exit through six corridors and prepares the evacuation of the sick and injured from eastern Aleppo, he said, adding that it would also guarantee safe passage for rebels to leave the area. He added that the halt in bombing could contribute to the success of talks in Geneva on Wednesday on efforts to distance Syrian opposition fighters from jihadist group Fateh al-Sham Front, which changed its name from Al-Nusra Front after renouncing its ties to Al-Qaeda. Hong Kongs legislature again descended into chaos on Wednesday as pro-Beijing politicians blocked the swearing in of two new lawmakers who want a split from China, in an increasingly divided parliament. It comes as fears grow in the semi-autonomous city that Beijing is tightening its grip, fuelling an independence movement in Hong Kong. Wednesday saw rival lawmakers clash in a heated shouting match after the pro-Beijing camp walked out of the swearing-in session. The walkout led to the meeting being cancelled, preventing pro-independence lawmakers Yau Wai-ching and Baggio Leung from taking the oath that would allow them to take up their seats. In the ensuing confrontations one veteran pro-democracy legislator threw slices of luncheon meat at his opponents while another was surrounded by security after turning China and Hong Kong flags displayed on pro-Beijing lawmakers desks upside-down. Meanwhile, pro-Beijing lawmakers chanted Apologise!, demanding Yau and Leung say sorry for their failure to take the oath properly at last weeks swearing-in ceremony. The pair had their oaths rejected last Wednesday after they draped themselves in Hong Kong is not China flags. The oath states Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China. Both refused to pronounce China properly, and Yau was heard to replace the words the Peoples Republic of China with the Peoples refucking of Zeena. They were given permission to retake their oaths Wednesday, but the session was abandoned after the pro-Beijing walkout left an insufficient number of legislators in the chamber. If they want people to respect their oaths, they have to express regret over their behaviour last week and to apologise to all Chinese around the world, pro-Beijing lawmaker Priscilla Leung told reporters. Hundreds of pro-Beijing supporters waved Chinese flags and stamped on pictures of the two outspoken lawmakers outside the legislative council building. Pro-Beijing supporters hold a Chinese flag and placard depicting legislator-elect Sixtus Leung outside the Legislative Council in Hong Kong on Wednesday. (AP) The pair said they wanted to complete their oaths, but would not apologise for last weeks behaviour. We are empowered by the people to enter the Legco, Baggio Leung said. The former British colony was handed back to China in 1997 under an agreement protecting its freedoms for 50 years, but there are concerns those liberties are being eroded. Leung and Yau are part of a new wave of lawmakers advocating independence and self-determination who won seats in the Legislative Council (Legco) -- Hong Kongs lawmaking body -- in citywide polls last month. Five legislators, including the pair, had their oaths rejected at last weeks swearing in. Of those five, one pro-Beijing lawmaker and one pro-democracy lawmaker, whose oaths were declared invalid the first time round, were allowed to retake them Wednesday morning. The Beijing camp then walked out, forcing the session to be abandoned before Yau, Leung and pro-democracy teacher Lau Siu-lai, who read her oath at a snails pace last week, took the stand. The chaotic scenes came after a late-night court bid Tuesday by city leader Leung Chun-ying and justice secretary Rimsky Yuen to block Yau and Baggio Leung from taking up their seats. That went directly against a decision by the pro-Beijing president of Legco, who had already given the green light for them to have a second chance at the oath. The court refused to grant an injunction against Wednesdays oath-taking, but gave permission for a judicial review into whether the pair should be disqualified, putting their future as lawmakers into question. In a separate case Wednesday, former pro-democracy lawmaker Raymond Wong was convicted of throwing a glass at city leader Leung Chun-ying inside the Legco in 2014. Wong, 64, was convicted of common assault and will be sentenced on Tuesday, local media reported. A ship involved with the deep-sea sonar search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 is being fitted with a drone that will examine several sonar contacts of interest on the remote seabed west of Australia, officials said on Wednesday. None of the sonar contacts exhibit the characteristics of a typical aircraft debris field, said the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, which is heading up the hunt for the Boeing 777 in a desolate stretch of the Indian Ocean. But some of the contacts do exhibit man-made properties and therefore must be investigated before they can be eliminated as having come from the plane, the agency said in a statement. Officials have previously said that more than 20 sonar contacts that crews have picked up in recent months require closer examination by a sonar-equipped underwater drone. They are between 2,700 kilometers (1,700 miles) and 1,900 kilometers (1,200 miles) from the Australian port of Fremantle where the search ships are based. Poor weather during the southern hemisphere winter has, until now, prevented the ships from deploying the drone. With the weather improving, the Chinese vessel Dong Hai Jiu 101 is being fitted with a video camera-equipped remotely operated vehicle that will scrutinize the sonar contacts. Crews have picked up hundreds of sonar contacts of interest throughout the two-year hunt. The contacts are grouped into three classification levels based on their likelihood of being linked to the plane. Contacts dubbed classification 1 are considered the most likely to have come from the aircraft. None of the recent sonar contacts that the drone will investigate are classification 1. There have only been two contacts that fit into that category thus far; one turned out to be an old shipwreck, and the other was a rock field. Search crews have so far come up empty in their attempt to find the main underwater wreckage of the plane, which vanished on March 8, 2014, during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board. The ships have less than 10,000 square kilometers (3,900 square miles) left to scour of the 120,000-square kilometer (46,000-square mile) search zone. Officials previously said the search would be finished by December. On Wednesday, the transport bureau said it is now likely to take until January or February to complete, due to the long stretch of poor winter weather that has hampered search efforts. Read| Wing part found in Mauritius confirmed to be part of MH370 President Barack Obama on Tuesday held one of the largest state dinners of his tenure to celebrate the enduring alliance between the US and Italy. The soiree for Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi was the 13th and final state dinner for Obama, who leaves office in January. Bittersweet was the word several guests chose to describe the evening. Rep. Gerald Connolly, D-Va., said its a little sad that its Obamas last state dinner. But to make the occasion even more memorable, he said, For tonight only, I pronounce my name Canoli, not Connolly. Johnny Wright, who styles Michelle Obamas hair, also described the moment as bittersweet, but he, too, was excited to have been invited. Others sought to inject some levity into the evening. Were Jews, but we identify as Italian, joked comedian Jerry Seinfeld. By way of explaining why the Obamas may have invited him and his wife, Jessica, Seinfeld said they spend a lot of time traveling in Italy and we almost exclusively go out for Italian food, but thats as far as I can figure. US President Barack Obama speaks during the State Dinner. (AFP) Other guests of Italian heritage included House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., the highest-ranking Italian-American in U.S. politics; former race car driver Mario Andretti, who sported socks designed like a checkered racing flag; fashion designer Giorgio Armani; actor John Turturro; New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo; and actor-director Roberto Benigni. Mrs. Obama wore a rose gold chainmail gown from Italian label Atelier Versace, the White House said. Other women also went Italian in their choice of attire, clothing themselves in designs by Valentino, Roberto Cavalli and others. In his pre-dinner toast, Obama said American democracy had been graced by a touch of Italy. He noted that the Lincoln Memorial and the interior of the U.S. Capitol dome were done by Italians, and raised a glass to the two nations enduring alliance. Obama has held 13 state dinners during nearly eight years in office two more than President George W. Bush, but fewer than other recent predecessors, according to the White House Historical Association. President Bill Clinton far exceeded both of his successors with 28 dinners during his two terms in office. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said it was time to say goodbye to the US during a visit to China on Wednesday, as the combative leader reconfigures his countrys diplomatic alliances. Duterte is in China for a four-day trip that is expected to confirm his tilt away from Washington and towards Beijings sphere of influence. During a speech addressing the Filipino community in Beijing, the firebrand president said the Philippines had gained little from its long alliance with the US, its former colonial ruler. Your stay in my country was for your own benefit. So time to say goodbye, my friend, he said, as if addressing the US. I will not go to America anymore. I will just be insulted there, he added, before once again referring to US President Barack Obama as a son of a whore. Duterte, who took office in late June, said he was fed up with the Philippines foreign policy being dictated by a Western agenda. What kept us from China was not our own making. I will charter a new course, he said. Foreign policy under Duterte has dramatically shifted from that pursued under predecessor Benigno Aquino, who took Beijing to an international tribunal over its extensive territorial claims in the South China Sea and won a resounding victory. The move infuriated Beijing. But Duterte, who took office in June shortly before the tribunal ruling, has made a point of not flaunting the outcome. He has also suspended joint US-Philippine patrols in the South China Sea, and has threatened an end to joint military exercises. A Shiite paramilitary force said late on Tuesday it will support the Iraqi armys offensive on Mosul, Islamic States last major stronghold in Iraq, raising the risk of sectarian strife in the mainly Sunni region. The Popular Mobilization Force (PMF), a coalition of mostly Iranian-trained militias, said it will back government forces advancing toward Tal Afar, about 55 kilometres (34 miles) west of Mosul. Tal Afars population was a mix of Sunni and Shiite ethnic Turkmens until Shiites fled the town after Islamic States ultra-hardline Sunni militants took over the region in 2014, declaring a caliphate over parts of Iraq and neighbouring Syria. The PMF also said it will be supporting the armed forces advancing into the city of Mosul from the west. The PMF will be backing the security forces on the western front (..) along two axis, the first is Tal Afar and the second is to support the forces going into the centre of Mosul, a statement on the paramilitary forces website said. Read: Baghdad must ensure Mosul is not given over to vengeful Shia death-squads The announcement came despite warnings from human rights groups that PMF involvement could ignite sectarian violence. Shiites make up a majority in Iraq but Sunnis are predominant in the north and the west. The PMF officially reports to the Shiite-led government of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who announced on Monday the start of the offensive on Mosul, Iraqs second-largest city. Abadi had sought to allay fears of sectarian bloodshed, saying that the army and the police will be the only forces allowed to enter the city. The PMF was formed in 2014 to help push back Islamic States sweeping advance through the northern and western provinces. Read: US expects Islamic State to wield chemical weapons in Mosul fight Amnesty International on Tuesday published a report saying Shiite militias had committed ``serious human rights violations, including war crimes against civilians fleeing Islamic State-held territory. The UN in July said it had a list of more than 640 Sunni Muslim men and boys reportedly abducted by a Shiite militia in Falluja, a former militant stronghold west of Baghdad, and about 50 others who were summarily executed or tortured to death. The government and the PMF say a limited number of violations had occurred and were investigated, but they deny abuses were widespread and systematic. The Taliban on Wednesday rejected reports of secret meetings with the Afghan government in a bid to resume long-stalled peace negotiations, insisting that their hardline policy remains unchanged. Afghan officials on Tuesday said they held two meetings since September in Doha, where the Taliban maintain a political office, after the news was first reported by Britains The Guardian newspaper. But Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid in a statement rejected any reports of talks or meetings. Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai, Afghanistans intelligence chief, and national security advisor Mohammad Hanif Atmar had attended one of the Qatar meetings, local Tolo television said citing a presidential palace source. The representatives of the Islamic Emirate have not met with Stanekzai or any other officials. Our stance about the negotiations has not changed. Our policy is very clear on that, Mujahid said, referring to the Talibans official title. The Taliban have long insisted on the complete withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan as a precondition for peace talks with the government. The Guardian said the talks were attended by Mullah Abdull Manan Akhund, brother of Taliban founder and long-time leader Mullah Omar who died in 2013. A senior American diplomat was also present in the Qatar meetings, the newspaper said citing a Taliban official. Pakistan -- the Talibans historic backers -- have hosted several rounds of international talks over the last year to jumpstart peace negotiations, which yielded little progress. The dialogue process ground to a halt when the US killed former Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour in a drone strike in May. The insurgency has shown stubborn resilience under new Taliban leader Haibatullah Akhundzada, attacking northern Kunduz city for a second time and threatening the capital of the southern opium-rich province of Helmand. Why did Lavrov take photo of Ararat? Political analyst explains the reason Political analyst Sergey Shakaryants says people need not take the statement made by the Russian FM on the Karabakh peace process literally. During the four-day skirmishes in Karabakh in April and after them Sergey Lavrov made 2 or 3 statements in which he blamed Turkey for inciting a war [in Karabakh]. But after the normalization of Russian-Turkish relations, he began making other statements. We all remember that he took photos of Ararat at Zvartnots airport before his departure from Yerevan. A person wishing to harm us, would not do such a thing, Mr. Shakaryants said. The political analyst says Turkish-Russian rapprochement is connected with Iran's statement on the April war. Iran had warned Turkey that it would review its relations with the country if Turkey did not stop provoking a war [in Karabakh]. In diplomacy, it means I am declaring a pre-war on you. After the statement Erdogan had to dismiss Davutoglu as the countrys prime minister and improve its relations with Russia. Speaking about Ilham Aliyevs statement that Artsakh is likely to be granted the status of an autonomous state, the political analyst said one need not take Azerbaijani presidents words seriously. Thai police are investigating 12 new complaints of royal defamation found on social media lodged since the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej last week, a sharp rise amid intensifying scrutiny of anything deemed offensive to the monarchy. The death of the revered king last Thursday, who was 88, after seven decades on the throne has plunged the Southeast Asian country into mourning and heightened sensitivity about the monarchy. King Bhumibol was seen as a stabilising figure in a country often racked by political turmoil. Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha has moved quickly to quash any uncertainty around the royal succession, saying Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn would ascend the throne after a period of mourning that he had requested. Insulting the monarch, the regent or the heir, known by the French-language term lese-majeste, is a crime in Thailand that carries a jail sentence of up to 15 years for each case. Police spokesman Kitsana Pattanacharoen said there had been 12 lese-majeste cases since last Thursday, with arrest warrants issued for eight suspects and four already in police custody. Their crime was posting messages or pictures which insulted the monarchy on social media, he told Reuters. There were 70 cases in the two-and-a-half years from a May 2014 coup up to last Thursday, said Weerawat Somnuek, a researcher at Thai legal monitoring group iLaw. Twelve cases in a week is a lot, Weerawat told Reuters. Grief, Anger The stepped-up prosecutions come at a time of deep grief among Thais, who have for decades seen the late king as a unifying father figure. Read|Thais get inked in tribute to their late king People are dressing in black around the country, and have been streaming to Bangkoks gilded Grand Palace to pay their respects to the late king, who is lying there. No date has been set for a royal cremation but it is expected to take place in about a year. The Thai stock market, which fell sharply last week as investors worried about stability after King Bhumibol, has been stable this week. But some grief-stricken people have been quick to anger. In some cases, violence has erupted against individuals deemed disrespectful, while similar anger has erupted online against people whose posts have been seen as inappropriate. Thailands main mobile telecoms operators have, at the governments request, asked customers to report websites and social media posts deemed inappropriate or insulting. The government also asked internet service providers to monitor content and inform platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Youtube to block offensive content. Failure to do so would be considered a crime, the government said. The junta has sought to reassure the public that a roadmap to the restoration of democracy, which promises a general election in 2017, remains on course and there is no uncertainty around royal succession. Prime Minister Prayuth told reporters after a cabinet meeting on Tuesday that the roadmap was unchanged and the succession would happen after a period of mourning. There are a lot of preparations needed to be made before succession, junta spokesman Colonel Winthai Suvaree told Reuters. Winthai said an estimate the prime minister gave on Tuesday of seven to 15 days was meant only to convey a passage of time and was not to be taken literally. The length of time he mentioned were just a turn of phrase and not exact figures, Winthai said. The formal procedure for the prince becoming king involves the cabinet informing the president of the legislature. The assembly then invites the prince to ascend the throne. Pornpet Vichitcholcha, president of the National Legislative Assembly, told reporters that the legislature was ready to handle the matter at any time. While Donald Trump often rails against a rigged election on Twitter and at rallies nationwide, he goes a few steps further in Pennsylvania, a state crucial to the Republicans fading chances to win the White House. Here, he has made direct appeals since August to recruit voters as poll monitors on Election Day and has pointed specifically at Philadelphia as a city beset by voter fraud. Despite offering little evidence for any of his claims, his rigged election message is resonating with his followers in this traditional battleground state where Democratic rival Hillary Clinton has opened up a wide lead. But his calls for poll watchers on Nov. 8 is drawing a mix of confusion, concern and tepid support. In some cases, Trumps talk of fraud appears to have made some of his own followers more resigned to an election loss, even though independent studies show U.S. voting chicanery is exceptionally rare and certainly never on a national scale. Since Aug. 8, when Trump first urged supporters in the state to watch other polling places and make sure that its 100-percent fine, civil rights groups have expressed fears that some supporters will take the idea too far by forming roaming, vigilante-style crowds intimidating voters. Trump supporter Mark Bowman, 53, says he isnt the type to attend a political rally or put campaign stickers on his car. And he isnt confident the election results will be correct. I hate to say it, but I dont have a lot of faith, Bowman said. Voter fraud is rampant especially in the cities. But, in a comment echoed by nearly two dozen Trump supporters in the states reliably Republican central regions, he said he thinks nothing can be done to stop it and that becoming an amateur poll watcher is a step too far. What authority do I have to confront someone? said the resident of Shermans Dale, a rural community of about 5,000 people. Your average citizen, youre going to end up in a confrontation with someone. Youre going to end up in a bad situation. There are official channels to monitor elections. Pennsylvania has a system that allows campaigns and political parties to designate official poll monitors, who are allowed into the polling places and can register official complaints if they think someone isnt a valid voter. A form on the Trump campaigns website asks voters to help Trump stop crooked Hillary from rigging this election by becoming a volunteer Trump election observer. But in an example of the Trump campaigns near non-existent effort to organize field operations in key swing states, there is little evidence that the recruitment drive is translating into legions of officially sanctioned volunteers. Repeated inquiries from Reuters about efforts to staff polling places went unanswered by his campaign. The rules allow each candidate and the state parties to name monitors. With federal and local candidates both on the November ballot, there could be dozens of watchers in a single precinct. But those familiar with past elections say rarely does that happen. Instead, campaigns tend to focus on only the most fought over swing districts. Steve Reigh, 57, a realtor from Elliottsburg, Pennsylvania, agrees with Trump that the election is likely to be rigged, but says he also resigned to the outcome of the election, win or lose. What are you going to do? he said. Really close vetting Some Trump supporters are branching out on their own. Jack Posobiec, a navy veteran and special projects director at Citizens for Trump, a grassroots support group, says he hopes to mobilize 3,000 volunteers in several key swing states in the final days of the campaign, including busing supporters from Texas to Ohio. On Oct. 1, Trump told a largely white rally of supporters in Manheim in central Pennsylvania that they should go to neighborhoods other than their own on election day and watch. Youve got to get everybody you know and you got to watch your polling booths, because I hear too many stories about Pennsylvania, certain areas, Trump said. So go and vote and then go and check out areas because a lot of bad things happen and we dont want to lose for that reason. Dale Ho, a voting rights lawyer at the American Civil Liberties Union, said on Twitter that Trumps calls for poll watchers were a recipe for intimidation and discrimination. The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment. Married Trump supporters Gina, 75, and Larry Snyder, 77, of Newport agree the election could be rigged but doubt anything can be done about it, including poll-watching. Candace Lowe, 40, of Elliottsburg, Pennsylvania, said she is resigned to a Trump loss because the government can fudge stuff. Turning out en-masse to watch polling centers on election night wont change that, she said. In Mechanicsburg, an overwhelmingly Republican borough of nearly 9,000 people, realtor Steve Johansen helped to set up a Trump field office in a skating rink, but he has no plans to monitor any polling places. I have faith in the system, he said. Two Russian cosmonauts and a Nasa astronaut soared into orbit in a Soyuz spacecraft on Wednesday at the start of a two-day journey to the International Space Station. Nasas Shane Kimbrough and Andrei Borisenko and Sergei Ryzhikov of Roscosmos blasted off at 0805 GMT from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan after their launch had been delayed by nearly one month because of technical issues. The trios mission is expected to last just over four months with docking at the orbital laboratory taking place on Friday. They will join Roscosmos Anatoly Ivanishin, Nasas Kate Rubins, and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), whose return to Earth is set for October 30. The Russian Orthodox Church said it had provided the countrys space authorities with the relics of Seraphim of Sarov, a 18th-century saint, to be taken onboard the flight. The local church official who handed over the relics last month, Metropolitan Georgy, had called for the astronauts to receive Gods help in this blessed and good work, the church said in a statement. A few minutes after the launch, Roscosmos confirmed that it had been successful and that the three astronauts are scheduled to arrive at the space centre at 9:59 GMT on Friday. The 49-year-old Kimbrough, who logged less than 16 days in space during a single mission aboard the US space shuttle Endeavour, will command the expedition aboard the orbital laboratory. All systems go!! 24 hours and counting until Soyuz MC-02 Expedition 49/50 launch! Kimbrough, a father-of-three who served as a helicopter pilot in the 1990-1991 Gulf War, wrote on Twitter Tuesday. Roscosmos flight engineer Borisenko spent 164 days in space for his first mission aboard the ISS in 2011, while Ryzhikov is entering the cosmos for the first time. Launch delayed Wednesdays launch is the second Soyuz space flight to be delayed this year after issues with software saw the launch of the newly upgraded Soyuz MS-01 postponed by two weeks over the summer. Technical mishaps have complicated plans to extend the periods during which the ISS is fully staffed with six astronauts. But the successful launch Monday of an Antares rocket carrying an unmanned cargo capsule to the ISS -- the first time since a massive explosion after liftoff two years ago -- came as a relief after a series of failures that have hindered travel to the ISS. In addition to the 2014 Antares explosion, a Russian cargo spacecraft burned up before reaching the ISS in May last year. The Antares rocket that blasted off from Virginia earlier this week is on course to bring 2,300 kilogrammes of food and equipment to the orbital laboratory and is scheduled to arrive by Sunday. Space is one of the few areas of cooperation that has survived the crisis in relations between Moscow and Washington, which has see their bilateral ties plunge to their post-Cold War nadir over the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine. Afghan civilians are paying the price for increased fighting in populated areas around the country, the United Nations reported on Wednesday, with government troops responsible for a growing share of civilian casualties. According to UN officials, at least 2,562 civilians died and another 5,835 were wounded in the conflict in Afghanistan in the first nine months of this year. A similar number of civilian casualties occurred in the same period in 2015, indicating rates may be leveling off at near-record levels after steadily increasing since the U.N. began monitoring them in 2009. Ground fighting between pro-government forces and Islamic militants caused nearly 40 percent of all the casualties. Children have been particularly hard hit by the fighting, with 639 young people killed and 1,822 wounded, for an increase of 15 percent over last year. The Taliban and a handful of smaller groups have been fighting to topple the Western-backed government, 15 years after the Taliban lost power in a U.S.-led military operation. Increased fighting in densely populated areas makes it imperative for parties to take immediate steps to ensure all feasible precautions are being taken to spare civilians from harm, Tadamichi Yamamoto, the U.N.s Special Representative for Afghanistan, said in a statement. Casualties caused by pro-government forces rose 42 percent compared to last year, with 623 deaths and 1,274 injured, U.N. investigators reported. That includes a spike of 72 percent in casualties from air strikes by the Afghan air force and its international allies. At least 133 people were killed and 159 were injured in air strikes, with two-thirds of those casualties attributed to the Afghan air force, the U.N. said. The Taliban and other militant groups still accounted for more than 60 percent of the overall casualties, with 1,569 civilian deaths and 3,574 injured, the report showed. The U.N. condemned anti-government attacks that have directly targeted civilians, including a bombing in the capital, Kabul, in July that killed at least 85 people and injured 413. That attack was claimed by Islamic State. Defeated Islamic State fighters from the Iraqi city of Mosul are likely to enter Europe to carry out terrorist attacks, the European Unions (EU) security chief has warned. Thousands of Europeans who left to fight for IS in Iraq and Syria over the past few years may have already begun returning to the continent after the terrorist group suffered a string of territorial defeats in the Middle East, warned Julian King, the EUs Commissioner for Security. Read | US expects Islamic State to wield chemical weapons in Mosul fight The retaking of Islamic States northern Iraq stronghold, Mosul, may lead to the return to Europe of violent IS fighters, King told the German newspaper Die Welt. According to King, a British diplomat who recently took charge as security commissioner, even a handful of such terrorists returning would pose a serious threat. French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has warned the fight to liberate Mosul in its entirety could take a long time. Its not a blitzkrieg. Its a city with 1.5 million residents, so its a long-term project - several weeks, maybe months, he said. Read | Baghdad must ensure Mosul is not given over to vengeful Shia death-squads Some 34,000 Iraqi security personnel, Kurdish fighters, Sunni Muslim Arab tribesmen and Shia Muslim paramilitaries have been deployed against IS, with backing from the US, France and others. Their advance on Mosul comes over two years after the city was seized by IS in a major coup that enabled the extremist group to announce a self-proclaimed caliphate spanning Iraq and Syria. Iraqi forces say they have captured 10 villages near Mosul since beginning their long-awaited offensive on Monday. As many as 5,000 IS fighters are believed to remain in the city. If the city is reclaimed by the Iraqi government, IS will be left with the Syrian city of Raqqa as its last major stronghold. Read | Victory is near: Iraq PM tells Mosul residents ahead of retaking IS stronghold Just three months after seeing off a failed coup, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has put right back at the top of the agenda a plan to increase his powers through constitutional change. The plan to create a presidential system means Turkey is likely to be heading to a referendum in the first half of next year, analysts say. This may create more instability for Turkeys fragile economy and exacerbate already simmering tensions in society, after Erdogan defeated the biggest challenge to his 13-year rule. But it will also allow the leader to settle for once and for all the question of his powers. Only a month after becoming prime minister in March 2003 Erdogan told an interviewer that his desire was for a presidential system in Turkey, similar to the one in the United States. After being elected president in August 2014 and defeating the coup bid in July, Erdogan is more determined than ever to fulfil his desire and push forward with his plans. Government officials argue a fully presidential system is needed to legalise what has become a de-facto situation, with Erdogan Turkeys undisputed number one after transforming the office of head of state. To change the constitution the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) co-founded by Erdogan needs a super-majority of 367 votes. The AKP only has 316 seats (excluding the speaker Ismail Kahraman) in the 550-seat national assembly. But to put forward the changes to the public in a referendum, the party needs only 330 votes, which could happen if the 40-seat Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) of Devlet Bahceli gives its support. The two other opposition parties are likely to be against. Bahceli has not indicated whether his partys MPs will give the government their support but on Tuesday gave his firmest indication yet it could be prepared to allow the referendum to go ahead. Increase polarisation Fadi Hakura, Turkey expert at Chatham House think tank in London, said that so far the Bahcelis statements indicate willingness to collaborate with the AKP to bring about a referendum. He added there was a real possibility the system would be approved in a referendum but warned that the current polarisation in Turkey would worsen. The presidential system will further intensify the ideological polarisation and entrenched conservatism. (It) will further intensify the existing political, ideological and sectarian divisions bedevilling Turkish politics and society, he said. The uncertainty since the issue rose back to the top of the agenda has also hurt the Turkish lira, which has lost over four percent in value against the US dollar over the last month. Some experts suggest the president could even be tempted to call early legislative elections in 2017 although the government has denied having any such idea. Michael Harris, global head of research at investment bank Renaissance Capital, warned in a note that the Turkish economy was on hold until Erdogan achieved his objectives. According to Harris, if Erdogan tries to win a super-majority through an early election, it would be the crux of why we continue to recommend investors take money out of the country. But if Erdogan is able to achieve the executive presidency in an accelerated and smoother process, Turkey could find political equilibrium in 2017, he said. People support Erdogan Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Tuesday said it would be brought to parliament very soon because the changes were needed to eliminate confusion from the system. Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag suggested last week a referendum on a presidential system could come as early as spring 2017. The authorities are confident of winning a symbolic and convincing victory, which would be Turkeys fourth major national poll in as many years. Polls after the coup showed that its defeat had substantially bolstered Erdogans ratings while a poll published on Tuesday in the pro-government Daily Sabah newspaper said 63 percent supported the presidential system. In Turkey people see a close relationship between Erdogan and the presidential system, said Mehmet Ali Kulat, the head of the MAK research company which conducted face-to-face interviews with 5,400 people between October 10 and 15. What they support more is Erdogan rather than a presidential system, he told AFP. KABUL: The Taliban and senior Afghan government officials have held two secret meetings since September in Qatar in a bid to restart long-stalled peace negotiations, sources said Tuesday. An official in the National Unity Government in Kabul told AFP that the two rounds of discussions took place in Doha, where the Taliban maintain a political office. Britains The Guardian newspaper said the talks were attended by Mullah Abdull Manan Akhund, brother of Taliban founder and long-time leader Mullah Omar who died in 2013. A senior American diplomat was also present in the Qatar meetings, the newspaper said citing a Taliban official. The Taliban and the US government have so far not commented officially on the development. The outcome of the September meeting was not clear but a Taliban source told the newspaper that it went positively and was held in a trouble-free atmosphere. A second dialogue was held this month despite intensified nationwide fighting between insurgents and US-backed Afghan troops. BEIJING: My grandfather is Chinese, Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte told the official Xinhua news agency during an interview last week, possibly in an attempt to warm up his past with China. But as he began a four-day state visit to China on Tuesday, Dutertes focus was surely be on the future of Manilas relations with Beijing. Strongman Dutertes high-profile visit comes amid his anti-drug war, criticised by many as brutal and ruthless as it has claimed the lives of more than 2,000 people. Western countries have questioned his methods of dealing with the menace and talked about the violation of human rights and political vendetta. China, however, has issued several statements supporting Dutertes anti-narcotics campaign and vowed to stand by him. As the old alliance between the US and the Philippines frays, the visit will be keenly watched for signs of Manila moving away from Washington and into the willing diplomatic arms of Beijing. For more than a century, the Philippines and the US have had a shared history of colonialism, wars, rebellion, aid and deep economic ties. That could change as Dutertes three-month-old administration re-examines the relationship, said a Reuters report from Manila. But barely three months ago, Manila and Beijing were engaged in a war of words over the South China Sea arbitration case brought by Dutertes predecessor Benigno Aquino III against China. WASHINGTON: Ford Foundation and Greenpeace, whose financing and contributions were under scrutiny by Indian government, had enlisted Clinton campaign chair John Podestas help, a new set of hacked emails released by WikiLeaks showed. Podesta did try to help, the emails revealed. One of them said he was the primary reason for the positive turn in the fortunes of Ford Foundation, which survived the scrutiny and was back in business in March. Greenpeace was less fortunate, and was thrown out in November 2015, a development Podesta foresaw. Ford Foundation has been a major donor to Podestas think tank, Center for American Progress (CAP), and one of its trustees reminded Podesta of this in an email about the India issue - I am always happy to see Ford grants to CAP. Ford has become a mainstay for CAP too, Podesta conceded in his reply, confirming his think tank had received funding from the charity he tried to save from the Indian government. Want to talk to the head of Greenpeace? Podesta wrote in an email to his brother Tony Podesta, who heads a lobbying firm that had India among its major clients then. Kumi Naidoo (the Greenpeace head) is a very well known South African with a big international following, but I think GOI (government of India) is likely to stick it to them. He added, Separately, I am trying to help Ford Foundation which also got on the wrong side of GOI, but whose case I think can be more easily resolved. Ford Foundation was cleared to resume business as usual just a month before Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to the US. A lobbyist who once worked with Greenpeace wrote to Podesta, saying, I have had a request from some colleagues at Greenpeace as they are facing a very serious situation in India. In a nutshell: an Indian Intelligence Bureau report was leaked alleging Greenpeace India was responsible for a loss of 2-3% of the countrys GDP. Kumi Naidoo was hoping to speak with you or to get advice on who might be able to help behind the scenes explaining to people close to the Prime Minister that their campaigns are about the issues of clean air and clean water, wrote the lobbyist. Podesta then put Greenpeace in touch with his brother. QAYYARAH: Iraqi forces were making gains as tens of thousands of fighters advanced on Mosul on Tuesday in an unprecedented offensive to retake the city from the Islamic State group. With the crucial battle in its second day, Iraqi commanders said progress was being made as fighters pushed on two main fronts against the jihadists last stronghold in Iraq. The US military, which is leading a coalition providing air and ground support, said Iraqi forces even looked ahead of schedule but senior Western officials warned the battle would be long and difficult. Advancing in armoured convoys across the dusty plains surrounding Mosul, forces moved into villages defended by pockets of IS fighters after intensive aerial bombardment. At the main staging base for government troops in Qayyarah south of Mosul, federal police were rotating in and out of the front line. As Apache attack helicopters flew overhead, ambulances brought the wounded back from the battle. Two armoured vehicles bearing US flags drove by, apparently carrying American military personnel. One manning a gun turret flashed the victory sign. Speaking to AFP from inside Mosul, resident Abu Saif said heavy smoke was hanging over the city as the jihadists burned tyres to shield themselves from air strikes. While the sounds of explosions could be heard coming from outside the city, its streets were eerily quiet, the 47-year-old former company manager said. - Empty streets The streets are empty, the people have been staying at home since the strikes started yesterday, Abu Saif said. There is this happiness inside us... because we feel that we are about to be rescued, he said. But we are scared that Daesh (IS) can still carry out acts of revenge against the population. The long-awaited Mosul offensive was launched on Monday, with some 30,000 federal forces leading Iraqs largest military operation since the 2011 pull-out of US troops. Retaking Mosul would deprive IS of the last major Iraqi city under its control, dealing a fatal blow to the caliphate the jihadists declared two years ago after seizing large parts of Iraq and neighbouring Syria. Iraqi commanders said IS fighters were hitting back with suicide car bomb attacks but that the offensive was going as planned. Many villages have already been liberated, said Sabah al-Numan, the spokesman of the elite counter-terrorism service. Iraqi forces have achieved their goals and even more, but were careful to stick to the plan and not rush this. KARACHI: A Mirage fighter jet of the Pakistan Air Force crashed on Monday while on a routine training flight during which the pilot was killed. The jet took off from Masroor Base in Karachi and crashed during flight at Musharraf colony. The pilot was killed while trying to steer away from residential localities. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON PARIS : Midway through releasing a series of damaging disclosures about US presidential contender Hillary Clinton, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said his hosts at the Ecuadorean embassy in London abruptly cut him off from the internet. We can confirm Ecuador cut off Assanges internet access Saturday, 5pm GMT, shortly after publication of Clintons Goldman Sachs (speeches), the group said in a message posted to Twitter late Monday. With both WikiLeaks and Ecuadorean officials refusing to say much more about the incident, outsiders were left to guess at what was happening behind closed doors at the embassy suite at No. 3 Hans Crescent, which Assange has called home for more than four years. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON KARACHI: At least one child was killed and dozens of people were wounded in a drive-by bomb attack at a Shia mosque in Karachi, police said. Police said two men on a motorcycle lobbed the bomb as women and children sat outside the mosque in the port citys densely populated Liaquatabad district. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON MOSCOW: Moscow announced on Tuesday that Russian and Syrian air forces have stopped bombing Aleppo ahead of a brief truce, a move the Kremlin said showed goodwill as it faces mounting criticism for backing a brutal regime offensive. Russia had said Monday there would be an eight-hour humanitarian pause in the battered city on Thursday, a move welcomed by the United Nations and the European Union which nevertheless said the ceasefire needed to be longer to allow the delivery of aid. The UN said Tuesday it was waiting for safety assurances from all sides before going in with critical humanitarian assistance for Aleppos desperate population. The West has voiced increasing alarm at the situation in Aleppo, saying the ferocious Russian-backed onslaught on the rebel-held east could amount to a war crime. Strikes in the Aleppo region by the Russian and Syrian air forces are stopping today starting at 10:00 am, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said in a televised briefing, adding that the measure was necessary to pave the way for the truce. This guarantees the security of civilians exit through six corridors and prepares the evacuation of the sick and injured from eastern Aleppo, he said, adding that it would also guarantee safe passage for armed rebels to leave eastern Aleppo. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov hailed the move as a manifestation of goodwill and denied it was meant to assuage Western critics who have accused Moscow of perpetrating potential war crimes in Syrias second city. This is an obvious continuation of Russian efforts, on the one hand, to fight terrorists in Syria, and on the other, to unblock the situation in Aleppo, Peskov told reporters. It is exclusively a manifestation of goodwill by the Russian military. Raids in the eastern neighbourhoods of Aleppo have stopped since the Russian announcement, but air strikes are still being conducted in the broader Aleppo region, the Britain-based monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Tuesday. TORONTO: One year ago, Justin Trudeau led his Liberal Party to a surprising majority in the Canadian Federal elections. If the Canadian Prime Minister were to call a snap election now, he could well capture a supermajority in the House of Commons. Over the last 12 months, not only has the honeymoon period persisted, his romance with the voting public has grown stronger. On October 19 last year, the Liberals captured 184 of the 338 seats in the lower House, equivalent of the Lok Sabha, while tallying approximately 40% of the vote share. According to a new poll from the Toronto-based Forum Research, if elections were held today, that percentage would rise to 49, translating into a whopping 240 seats. Trudeau, the face of the party, is spurring this gain in popularity. Thats a big factor. His personal approval rating is even higher. At 56 %, hes actually ahead of his party, Forum Researchs president and founder Lorne Bozinoff told HT. This latest poll had a sample size of 1437 and was conducted over October 11 and 12. And this is a countrywide trend, not limited to Liberal bastions, as Bozinoff pointed out, Its high in just about every demographic group in the country, its high in just about every region of the country. There are exceptions in Conservative strongholds, but even there the numbers are impressive for a Liberal. In fact, in places like the province of Ontario, where the regional unit of the party is floundering, the Federal Liberals are above 50 % in support. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON LONDON : The county of Northumberland has signed a pact to share expertise as part of the Indo-UK Health Programme linked to the Narendra Modi governments Smart City project. The Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Northumberland County Council signed the MoU with Indo UK Healthcare Pvt Ltd, official sources said on Tuesday. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON MOSCOW: Arseny Pavlov, also known as Motorola, was killed on Sunday in Donetsk when a bomb exploded in an elevator in an apartment building where he was staying. Separatist officials have blamed previous bombings on Ukrainian saboteurs operating in the rebel-controlled areas. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON SANAA: The warring parties in Yemen have agreed to a 72-hour cease-fire that will take effect shortly before midnight Wednesday, the UN special envoy to Yemen said. Special Envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said he hopes the temporary truce can lead to permanent and lasting end to the conflict. Ahmed said in a statement on Monday that he received assurances from all parties to the conflict o cease hostilities at 11:59 p.m. local time on Wednesday for an initial period of 72 hours that is subject to renewal. The warring factions agreed to follow the conditions of a temporary April cease-fire agreement, he said. The agreement requires them to to allow free and unhindered access for humanitarian supplies and personnel to all parts of Yemen, he said. The war in Yemen began in 2014 when Shiite rebels known as Houthis, based in the north, seized the capital, Sanaa. In March 2015, Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies launched a campaign of airstrikes against the rebels. Jackie Cochran and the Origin of the WASPs It took three years for pilot Jacqueline Jackie Cochran to convince the U.S. military that qualified women pilots could free men for combat duty by performing non-combat missions. Supported by Eleanor Roosevelt and Army aviation chief General Henry H. Hap Arnold, Cochrans goal was achieved in 1943 with the formation of the Womens Air Force Service Pilots (WASPs). Before deactivation on December 20, 1944, 1,074 WASPs logged 60 million miles flying for the U.S. Army Air Forces. This 1957 photo shows Jacqueline Cochran standing next to her plane, with Chuck Yeager and Bill Longhurst, at Edwards Air Force Base, California. Image: Air Force Flight Test Center History Office T he outcome of World War II was determined in no small part by men and women who never fired a shot. Many were industrial workers who forged Americas Arsenal of Democracy. Their achievements are readily apparent, even if not always trumpeted. Mostly fascination, rather than fact, still surrounds World War II espionage agents and code-breakers, not least because contemporary descendants of organizations they once worked for still cling to secrets with long-expired shelf dates. With a lot of archival information under lock and key, World War II spycraft history leans on sources where the lines between truth, speculation, and fabrication are readily breached. However, British journalist and author Max Hastings has written The Secret War: Spies, Ciphers, and Guerrillas. It is a well-crafted, reasonably comprehensive, impeccably researched, and humor-leavened account of both Allied and Axis World War II backstage intrigue. The Secret War fills a big narrative tenta sort of three-ring circus in which different types of attractions compete for attention. Human intelligence (HUMINT) and signals intelligence (SIGINT) occupy two rings. Partisan warfare, the third ring, is more of a sideshow, perhaps because, as Hastings argues, its moral impact far exceeded its military achievements. Altogether, the book is well worth the price of admission. While Hastings downplays or rethinks many oft-told HUMINT stories, he delivers new gems, most notably Ronald Seth, aptly code-named Blunderhead, a fascist-leaning British agent who successfully deceived both sides. In the SIGINT realm, Hastings gives ample credit to the cracking of Enigma; but he also considers the breaking of Germanys Lorenz teleprinter, a device that conveyed the most important messages, as comparably essential. Intelligence agencies spared no expense even though secret information rarely affected battlefield outcomes. That said, when SIGINT or HUMINT succeeded, the result was so incalculably valuable that the overall cost was justified. The United States expenditures on SIGINT averaged $500 million annually between 1942 and 1945. Yet, says Hastings, this has been justly described as its most cost-effective investment of the conflict. The Secret War is replete with lessons that resonate today. One is that hard powerthe ability to mobilize superior ground, air, and sea forcesis essential. Without it, intelligence, no matter how timely and vital, simply cannot be exploited. Another is that democracies seem better equipped to exploit intelligence than authoritarian societies. They tend to appreciate the merit of truth and are more willing to employ their most diverse and cleverest minds. Stalin mobilized the most effective spying apparatus of the war, yet his all-consuming paranoia undid much that it produced. Historian and former U.S. Navy officer David Sears is the author of November/December 2016 issues Death and Salvation on the Aluminum Trail. This story was originally published in the November/December 2016 issue of World War II magazine. Subscribe here. For some, the Battle of Shiloh seems like something out of the distant past. For those who study the American Civil War, it is almost a household name. At the same time the battle was in one of the most remote destinations in Southwestern Tennessee. It is one of many battlefields, that while marked by monuments, even monuments that were placed as recently as 2012, the park is one of the most remarkably diverse places one might see. It is down a small state highway in Tennessee that one travels in order to get to the battlefield. As one enters the gates it is like taking a step back to an earlier time. A time that begs not to be forgotten. In a visit to the historic battlefield we find the beauty of the place all over once again. It is in the passing of currents of the Tennessee River, a river that flows to the North rather than to the South. It was the one place that Sherman was able to put troops on dry ground. Sherman had been encouraged to go upriver and try to fight through and break the Memphis and Charleston Railroad somewhere in the vicinity of Corinth, Mississippi. It was during this process that Sherman had happened across this location to put troops on land. It was early in the spring of 1862 where one day it would be warm and sunny and the next it could have been cold and rainy. Many of the men were sleeping in large Sibley tents that held between 6 and 10 men. Sherman had sent word back to General C.F. Smith who, at the time, was in charge of the mission until Grant could arrive at Savannah. Smith agreed with the idea to put the men on shore, especially after the army had gone upriver on boats with the cavalry to attempt to break the rail lines and had failed to do so because of the amount of water on the ground. When Sherman returned he found General Stephen A. Hurlbut unloading his men and supplies; Sherman would then unload his. By the next day General U. S. Grant had arrived at Savannah and taken control of the army from Smith. Back under the control of Grant, Sherman was ordered to take over the placement of the troops as they landed at Pittsburg Landing. In the process of doing this he had taken his troops, the Fifth Division, and moved them to the area around the Shiloh Meeting House, the building that would lend its name to the battle. At the same time he moved the men of Benjamin Prentiss Division to roughly the same location and told them to start setting up camp. It would be these two divisions, with the most raw (or green) troops in the Union Army, that would be placed there to keep watch for anything that might be coming their way, but Sherman and Grant did not expect the Confederates to advance. They expected the Confederates would remain huddled around the rail junction located at Corinth. The early battle started between 5:30 and 6 in the morning. There are some references that say the skirmishing started earlier, but for the most part, David W. Reed, the original park historian said in his 1903 history of Shiloh that he believed it to be closer to the half hour of between 5:30 and 6:00. It took some time to push back the Union Army as the men had to fight across fairly open ground in Rhea Field. This was where the first of the fighting took place. However as the Confederates continued to push the Yankees back and across the field, they were driven back to a spot on the battlefield that is commonly known as the Hornets Nest. It was this location that has gone on to spark great controversy for a couple of reasons. In a discussion with historian and professor, Dr. Timothy B. Smith, he mentions that the original park historian would have had a different view of the battle depending on where he would have been standing. If he would have come from the Peach Orchard the history would have leaned in that direction. If he would have been fighting at the crossroads then that would have been highlighted, but since the historian had fought at the Hornets Nest it was the spot that received the most attention.[1] At the time of the battle that the Hornets Nest was taking place, the other two locations were also being hit hard. Both the Crossroads and the Peach Orchard were being hit on the two sides with the Peach Orchard to the Confederate right. It was one of the bloodiest scenes of battle as it took the blow of almost two whole Corps of the Confederate Army. Off to the Confederate left was the crossroads. While this sat somewhat behind the Hornets Nest it was the second hardest hit. The reason the Hornets Nest at Shiloh was not hit as hard was because it was not a part of the Confederate agenda. There are two schools of thought on this. Both schools of thought were put together by veterans whose names have been lost to time. One of them said that the enemy was supposed to be pushed back and away from the Tennessee River, while the other said that Albert Sidney Johnston wanted to push the Federals back and into the Tennessee River. These two conflicting ideas still leave the middle of the Union lines in question. If Johnston was trying to push the Union back and away from the river it explains why he was trying to flank them on the right. If he was trying to push them into the river it explains why he was trying to push past the Union left. Both of these actions were taking place at the same time.[2] There is much that is left misunderstood by the leaders of the two armies and no one seems to know much. The only thing that both sides seem to agree on is the fact that the middle of the Union line was not a primary goal. Johnston and Beauregard both believed that by getting hold of one of the flanks and pushing it, they would be successful. In the end this caused Union General Benjamin Prentiss to surrender his troops due to his stubbornness and unwillingness to fall back with the rest of the Union Army.[3] All of this took place on the first day of battle at Shiloh. It was because of the records from David W. Reed we have any evidence that this took place. [1] Smith, Timothy B., Interview with Adam J Kugler, (2016). [2] Ibid. [3] Grant, Ulysses S., Memoirs, (New York, 1882) Dear Editor: Why is the work on Highway 92 being done in the daytime rather than at night? T North Korea's latest test of a powerful missile was denounced by the UN Security Council. This after North Korea test-fired a medium-range Musudan missile which is capable of hitting US bases as far away as Guam. Although the exercise was a failure, it still represented a breach of UN resolutions. In a unanimous statement backed by China, the main ally of North Korea, the council condemned the test and agreed to monitor the situation and take further significant measures. The Musudan has a range between 2,500 and 4,000 kilometers which could reach South Korea and Japan, and on the upper range, Guam. The missile launched in June flew 400 kilometers into the Sea of Japan and this was celebrated by the North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un. The missile tests failed many times but it is improving. It could enter operational service sometime next year. The latest Musudan test came with the United States and China imposing new punishments to stop Kim Jong Un. The ongoing negotiations on the new sanctions focus on closing loopholes and zeroing in on North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile technology industry. The missile capability of North Korea grows very fast and it can become a real danger for all the countries in the area. This country has always been targeting Japan and South Korea. North Korea has been hit by five sets of UN sanctions since it first tested a nuclear device, but the it has survived and keeps testing more missiles. The council adopted the toughest sanctions after North Korea did its 4th test and they try to punish that country in the trade of minerals and all that is related with bank accounts and financial activities. Nuclear and ballistic missile technology industry will be limited by the new punishments or at least, they will try to be reduced to the lowest level. Since the resolution was adopted in March, North Korea has carried out more than 20 missile launches. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The latest find of the ScanPyramids Project shows that there are more cavities and corridors than previously thought. The new discovery is a cavity of about 105 meters from the ground on the northeastern corner of the pyramid which is followed by another cavity discovered on the north face. In the project, the scientists applied a blend of infrared thermography, muon radiography imaging and 3D technology, which are proven to be non-invasive and non-destructive methods for archaeological research. The project is coming to the final weeks of its mission which began last October. Archaeologist Dr Nicholas Reeves suggested in 2015 that the tomb of Queen Nefertiti could be behind the burial chamber of King Tutankhamun but others think different and believe the cavities are simply just part of the pyramid's structure. Former Egyptian Minister of State for Antiquities Affairs and Director of the Giza Pyramids Excavation said: "The core of the pyramid was built using long stones and small stones. If you know that, you'll find anomalies everywhere." Thus, he doesnt believe in the theories of some archaeologist and he think that is just speculation. Previously, the monument was known to have three chambers, and like other pyramids in Egypt was projected as a pharaoh's crypt. But the newly found chamber and passage are saying something else about the structure. As the scientists are taking the study further to discover more facts and hidden secrets about the pyramid, the exact figure, dimension and place of the chamber and passage has not yet been declared. Muons technology extremely advanced. They are like the X-rays which can infiltrate the body and permit bone imaging, thus, scientists use this technology to explore several meters of stone before being retained. The cavities discovered a short time ago are under study and many experts are completely sure there will be many surprises. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. If you thought that global warming and nuclear attacks could wipe off the Earth, then think again. A huge meteor the size of a mountain could one day accomplish that dreaded task of totally demolishing our planet, say astronomers. It could happen anytime in the coming decades. A report released by Nature World News explains that about 1,000 asteroids are hurtling towards the Earth at 60,000 miles per hour and that some of them could hit our planet. A number of the near-Earth asteroids have been identified. However, the news is that there are plenty more waiting to be discovered in the next two years! Last week, an asteroid known as 2016 SR2 was getting close. Immediately, a Biblical passage sprung to the mind of a number of conspiracy theorists: "A huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turns into blood, a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed," according to the Book of Revelation. With powerful telescopes, experts are trying to gauge how close 2000 ET70 is going to get to the Earth. This two-mile wide space rock stirred astronomers from a number of American universities, who called it a "potentially hazardous asteroid". However, not much is known about this fist-shaped asteroid, says NASA. Such a huge asteroid can decimate the Earth, leading to massive earthquakes, tidal waves and widespread "apocalyptic scenes." It is possible that the asteroid has already brushed past the Earth in 2012, when it came within 18 lunar distances. That was pretty close! However, it might revisit the planet soon, and come so near us that it could hit us. Still, we need not fear doomsday, assures NASA. A spokesman said: "NASA knows of no asteroid or comet currently on a collision course with Earth, so the probability of a major collision is quite small. In fact, as best as we can tell, no large object is likely to strike the Earth anytime in the next several hundred years." With enough investigation, we should be safer. Added the spokesman: "NASA has also made asteroid detection a top priority, and are developing strategies for identifying asteroids that could pose a risk to our planet." NASA launched OSIRIS-Rex, the first mission to probe and conduct comprehensive surface mapping of asteroid Bennu. It collects samples with the spacecraft's robotic arm and will be studied closely by scientists. "Astronauts will return to Earth with far more samples than have ever been available for study, which could open new scientific discoveries about the formation of our solar system and beginning of life on Earth," said a NASA official. Another initiative is to launch a Robot Mission that will deflect the asteroids from their paths. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. South Korean tech giant Samsung is going to launch its latest two products i.e., Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 and Gear S3. Galaxy Tab S3 was expected to launch at 2016 IFA. But due to Gear S3 launch it is rumoured that both Galaxy Tab S3 and Gear S3 will release together in 2017. At the present tech world which is mostly dominated by Apple Watch, the best fitness trackers, and Android Wear watch, and the Samsung Gear S3 which is expected to have competitive features so that it can beat the market. There are two Gear S3 models, from which you can choose: the Samsung Gear S3 Frontier and the Samsung Gear S3 Classic. These both are pretty much identical apart from slight design tweaks and connectivity. On talking the price, the Gear S3 duo would do well to stay at its current entry price of $299, reports TechRadar. While the Mobile Fun in the UK has put up its pre-order prices for both the Classic and Frontier at 350 (around $430). The Gear S3 will support LTE in S3 Frontier. The high end gadget will have a dual core 1.0GHz processor with 4GB internal memory, 380mAh battery and a strong 768MB RAM. The smart watch will run the Tizen operating system and compatible with Android devices running Android 4.4 or above. The Samsung Gear S3 will feature swappable 22mm straps and interchangeable digital watch faces. The Galaxy Tablet S3 will be coming in two editions i.e. SM-T820 which will be Wi-Fi only and the 2nd one SM-T825 will be supporting both Wi-Fi + LTE, reports BitBag. The latest Tablet S3 will have tremendous display of 9.7-inch and will support a full HD resolution of 1536 x 2048 pixels. The device will feature AMOLED display and the screens are rumoured to support 16:10 aspect ratio. Galaxy Tab S3 is also rumoured to be the company's first tablet to come with pre-installed Android 7.0 Nougat OS. The high end tablet will be running on octa-core processor with four Cortex-A72 CPU cores and four Cortex-A53 CPU cores. The graphic part of the Tablet S3 will be enhanced by the Adreno 510 GPU. Both the devices are having amazing and the competitive features. The Samsung fans are waiting for Galaxy Tab S3 for long and due to the launch of Gear S3, the release date of Tab S3 is also pushed to 2017. Fresh update says that both the devices will be launched in the March 2017. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. NASA is making the most out of its one inexpensive but effective scientific device. Just lately, new information about solar flares has been acquired by the Miniature X-Ray Solar Spectrometer (MinXSS) CubeSat which was launched in December last year on top of the Orbital ATK's Cygnus spacecraft. The investigation focuses on the spectrum of light from the sun that hits the Earth. Although what most people see and observe are the visible beams and glow, ultraviolet rays are also emitted. In June, the loaf-sized unit has started engaging in science programs. Part of its responsibility is to gather data about mild X-rays from low-intensity solar flares snatched by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). In a statement, the MinXSS cites an accelerated brightness and energy levels. The SDO imagery presents a ring of solar matter emerging from the sun's active region that shone radiantly. From the data, it is known that each kind of solar radiation provides distinct information about the underlying flares. Results unveil the density, temperature and abundance of solar blazes during an eruption. These findings are as well significant since they will determine how these bursts evolve and impact the sun's atmosphere. Eruptions have a huge effect on the Earth's ionosphere since the sun rays unsettle the near-Earth space where interference in communications signals usually happen. According to NASA, it has been observed how dynamic the solar atmosphere can act. The MinXSS points out the greater sensitivity even among weak flashes. Judging from the acquired information, the space agency has called the six-month probe fruitful. The NASA-funded MinXSS is being managed by the University of Colorado in Boulder. The prime objective of the mission is to understand the dynamics behind solar flares. The CubeSat is comprised of two elements. One, it has a detector containing an X-ray spectrometer. Second, it utilizes a radio antenna which is fitted with an extendable measuring tape. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Shailene Woodley made a headline after protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline and was arrested. She broke silence and took to social media her first statement following release from jail. In her post on Tuesday, the "Divergent" actress said that she would continue to fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline construction, as reported by E Online. "One day, baby, we'll sing our poetry. The words dripping from our tongues wet with ripened patience," she wrote on her Instagram. "And the lyrics, the sweet fruits born from the seeds our aging hands are now sowing. #alwaysinallways #heartforward #uptous #NoDAPL #protectcleanwater #iamonyourside." Woodley was arrested and headlined last week's news after her silent protest to oppose the development of Dakota Access Pipeline. It landed her in jail, noted CNN. She was arrested for trespassing as she walked into her RV parked nearby on Tuesday last week. Woodley alos recorded her arrest in her social media via Facebook Live. Her video has received almost 5 million views as of Wednesday, Oct. 19. Here is the video depicting her arrest: She was taken into custody at the Morton County Jail in North Dakota. She was charged with a criminal trespass and engaging in a riot during a protest which could give her a maximum punishment of 30 days in jail and a $1,500 fine. After posting a $500 bond, Woodley was released from jail. Dakota Access Pipeline is a 1,172 miles oil pipeline that will connect the oil-rich Bakken Formation to Canada. The pipeline will stretch through Montana, North Dakota and southeast to South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois. Protesters insisted the pipeline will damage the environment and tribal lands of Native Americans since it will pass the reservation of Standing Rock Sioux tribe. But the advocacy group denies the protesters claim and calling it misleading. They said the pipeline does not cross into the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's reservation. Shailene Woodley was among the 300 people that came to the construction site to protest the pipeline. Some of the protesters even chained themselves to the contruction equipment. According to Cass County Sheriff Paul Laney, there are some people with specific agenda and ideology came to the site and intentionally violating the law. He said that what was said to be a peaceful protest was not peaceful at all but a very tense and dangerous situation. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Union of Informed Citizens: Russia invites Turkey to Karabakh negotiation process The statements on Karabakh conflict settlement made by the heads of CSTO member states during the conference on October 14 in Yerevan, give rise to certain speculations. In particular, as the recent developments show, Russia has failed its plan on conflict settlement and wants to implicate new leverages of influence on the conflicting sides. The Deadlock As known, in early October the US Secretary of State John Kerry issued a statement saying that the Karabakh conflict settlement at this stage is not realistic and progress in the negotiation process is impossible, as long as the leaders of the conflicting sides are not ready for it. However, Moscow, after such a statement by the US, did not rush and attempt to take over the peace initiative. Furthermore, statements by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev that Baku had been imposed the recognition of Karabakh's status during the negotiations, showed that Armenia, at least temporarily, has been able to avoid the Russian plan of conflict settlement and, maneuvering the issue of return of territories to Azerbaijan, has succeeded in promoting Karabakhs status recognition. Under such conditions, the Russian President Vladimir Putin's advisor Yuri Ushakov makes a statement that there are no grounds for optimism in the future of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement. In fact, both the statements by John Kerry and Yuri Ushakov allow the conclusion that at the current stage of the negotiation process mediators do not have enough leverage on the parties to advance conflict settlement. Turkey Turkey becomes active amid such a situation, once again trying to break into the Karabakh peace process. In particular, the country's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, speaking at the PACE, reiterated Ankara's desire to join the negotiation process. Turkish Foreign Minister's words could be viewed as yet another manifestation of Turkey's pro-Azerbiaijan regional politics, if not the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's statement on the October 14, that Turkey can play a positive role in conflict resolution if it opens Armenian-Turkish border and lifts the blockade on Armenia and Karabakh. Russia's such loyal position on Turkey's involvement in peace process proves that Moscow is ready to invite Ankara, with its huge influence on Azerbaijan, to the negotiations table and even put forward a special condition for Turkey - the opening of borders with Armenia. Russia, thus making Turkeys involvement in peace process very real, on the one hand could get new leverages to enforce decisions upon Armenia, and on the other hand, a negotiation partner with profound influence on Azerbaijan, which, if necessary, will enforce decisions upon Baku. Vahe Ghukasyan Union of Informed Citizens Tim Peake recently spoke to a room full of primary and secondary level students, inspiring them to get into science, at W5 scientific interaction center in Titanic Quarter of Belfast. A European Space Agency astronaut, Peake, just recently returned from outer space, after spending six long months at the International Space Station in zero gravity. He was asked about a lot of things and one of them was obviously the question about aliens' existence in the universe. To which Peake emphatically replied "Absolutely yes," according to recent reports. He explained to Luke McKay, who asked about the presence of extra-terrestrial beings, that "building blocks of life" such as water and organic compounds are hovering around the solar system. This makes the possibility of life anywhere in the universe exceptionally high. Meanwhile, he also believed that it is only a matter of time when men will eventually land on the red planet. He also added that it would most likely be someone from the generation of younger people than his own peers. Peake also shared that for men to reach Mars, it will take a concerted effort between NASA, European Space Agency and other international players. The students at the event were obviously curious about his life in micro-gravity, versus life on earth in regular gravity. Peake shared that the feeling of being weightless was fun and it was wonderful to just float around all day. However, the students had more burning questions about how he went to toilet on space. To which he responded, "yesterday's pee is this morning's coffee basically," reported BBC. The astronaut answered flurry of excited questions and was especially intrigued by the students' interest in prospect of how far will humans explore the universe and its indefinite vastness. Peake enlightened the students that in today's time, it is not only possible to build a moon base that can last for over three decades, but there is also a possibility of one being developed, alongside mission to Mars, that can be permanently manned by someone. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Now the opposition should help the government - Republican MP (video) Head of the Armenian National Congress (HAK), Levon Zurabyan, does not expect anything good from the corrupt government. One can present the best program and then do the same misdeeds, Zurabyan said after he asked to comment on the government program submitted on Wednesday. The HAK lawmaker does not hurry to assess the program which he has not read yet, though he says a program written in six months can only be pre-election. This very fact weakens the credibility of the program, Zurabyan said. The Republicans do not approve of HAKs attitude towards the government program. Honestly speaking, the Armenian National Congress does not have any expectations even from its faction, says Gagik Melikyan, Secretary of the Republican Party of Armenia (HHK). He urges people not to give importance to HAKs political attitude and reminds Serzh Sargsyans words who said they have great expectations from this program which, he thinks, will increase confidence in the government. The questions and expressions used by opposition forces are inappropriate; we heard non-constructive criticism which formed an atmosphere of distrust, he said. Now the opposition should help the government to implement the program, says the HHK lawmaker. At the same time, Mr. Melikyan reminds that they do not have a magic wand, and the economy is not the sector where the steps show their immediate effect. We shall see slow, but positive results in six months. The Republican lawmaker says there are perquisites that we shall have a national unity government. I do not think that the opposition will try to facilitate economic growth with its constructive criticism, he said. Anyway, he believes that the opposition also wants to see our economy recovered in six months. Why has the seemingly simple accommodations-sharing concept grown so quickly? The answer has a lot to do with Airbnb's platform approach. The sharing economy is placing a new kind of pressure on the hotel industry. Despite being once ridiculed by the hotel industry, Airbnb has rapidly scaled to become a global provider of accommodation, with more rooms booked every night than the largest global hotel chains. The narrative is by now a familiar one: a service that boasts more than 60,000,000 guests and a $25.5 billion valuation by investors. But a more important question for hotels is why? Why has this seemingly simple accommodations-sharing concept grown so quickly? The answer has a lot to do with Airbnb's platform approach. While some hotels look at technology as just another asset (investing as they would with beds, radios or Wi-Fi), Airbnb has embedded technology deeply inside the company DNA. "This is an end-to-end platform. From reservation, to room allocation, to customer service, to customer rating, the provider rating," says Prakash Shukla, 2016 HFTP International Hospitality Technology Hall of Fame Inductee and ex-CIO of Taj Hotels. "Most of the platforms in hospitality do not take care of this." In many ways, Airbnb is neither a tech company nor a hotel company, "by leveraging technology for hospitality they have created a new business model altogether." This sharing economy behemoth succeeds not just by offering up unused apartments to travelers, but by redefining the interaction pattern between guest and host. The technical solution for guests is aspirational to many hotels. Through the same app that a guest uses to find and book a room, they receive a deeply personalized communication channel with their host. Rather than an anonymous front desk agent, the Airbnb host and the guest both have a personal profile, and engage in familiar communication pre-, during-, and post-stay. In addition, Airbnb is increasingly focused on providing local city experts and local experiences, creating a guest experience that begins to resemble a stay at a personalized boutique hotel. About ALICE ALICE is the leading all-in-one hospitality operations platform that enables hotel staff to do their most impactful work. Task management, real-time communication, and operational analytics reduce the complexity and chaos of hotel operations providing the transparency and flexibility needed to run efficiently. Founded in 2013, ALICE works with more than 2,500 hotels and tens of thousands of hotel staff across many of the world's leading brands, including Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Graduate Hotels, and Grupo Posadas. ALICE won 7 HotelTechAwards in 2022: winner of Best Concierge Software & Best Housekeeping Software; finalist for its Guest Messaging, Maintenance, and Staff Collaboration Tools; Top 10 People's Choice; and Top 10 Best Places to Work in Hotel Technology for the fifth straight year. https://www.aliceplatform.com/. Lola Feiger ALICE HONG KONG -- Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, one of the world's largest and most dynamic hotel groups, today announced at HICAP (Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific), the signing for Radisson RED Kuala Lumpur City Center in Malaysia with Masteron Sdn Bhd. The 166-room new build hotel is strategically located 800 meters from the iconic Petronas Twin Towers. With this signing, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group will introduce Radisson RED, an ageless Millennial mindset brand, to the Malaysian market. The new property will be situated within Kuala Lumpur's Golden Triangle, in one of the last remaining areas of the city to be re-developed, and will respond to a local need for increased supply in the select service segment. "We are delighted to welcome our new partner in Malaysia, where we will develop a property at the heart of the regional powerhouse of Kuala Lumpur. This deal will grow our presence at the center of the country's exciting economic growth story, and in one of its top tourist destinations. Malaysia is increasingly becoming a key market for us in Asia Pacific," said Thorsten Kirschke, president, Asia Pacific, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group. Radisson RED is Carlson Rezidor's upscale Lifestyle Select brand, which appeals to the millennial-minded traveler. It offers guests a non-traditional stay experience that combines work and play, and is inspired by design, art, music and fashion. At the same time, the brand offers developers and property owners a lower per-key cost than a traditional upscale hotel, through a multi-functional approach and more efficient space planning, which significantly reduce construction and operating costs, while driving higher margins. Dato' Choy Wai Hin, executive director, Masteron Sdn Bhd said, "Carlson Rezidor has the right brands, an excellent reputation and deep expertise. We are confident that our partnership will deliver strong returns on our investment." Radisson RED Kuala Lumpur City Center is a 166-room new build hotel located in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, close to a number of shopping complexes as well as several office towers including the Petronas Towers. Spanning 27 floors, the property will feature Radisson RED elements including beverage outlets such as Ouibar, and will also offer Meet-Event rooms with a view over the Petronas Twin Towers. The hotel will include a roof-top swimming pool and gym with undisrupted views over north Kuala Lumpur and Genting Highlands. "The Asia Pacific region remains the most promising and energetic growth region for Carlson Rezidor, and we see a strong trajectory over the coming years. The efforts we have put in to the business here have allowed us to realize results both qualitatively and quantitatively, and we are in a good position to double our portfolio size in the mid-term, through anchor markets as well as portfolio deals. We only see our commitment to the region growing," continued Kirschke. China represents a particular regional highlight, with Carlson Rezidor's unique legacy in the market developed over 20 years a legacy based on international proficiency, service ethics and sophisticated management systems. The group's China footprint includes Beijing, Chongqing, Libo, Liuzhou, Shanghai and Wuxi, where Carlson Rezidor has 13 hotels spread across the city. Momentum is strong in China and investor support remains robust for the core Radisson brand, with several openings planned for 2017. Across Asia Pacific, Carlson Rezidor has 107 hotels in operation and 88 more under development. For more information and development opportunities, please visit www.carlsonrezidor.com. About Radisson Hotel Group Radisson Hotel Group is one of the world's largest hotel groups with nine distinctive hotel brands, and more than 1,600 hotels in operation and under development in 120 countries. The Group's overarching brand promise is Every Moment Matters with a signature Yes I Can! service ethos. The Radisson Hotel Group portfolio includes Radisson Collection, Radisson Blu, Radisson, Radisson RED, Radisson Individuals, Park Plaza, Park Inn by Radisson, Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, and prizeotel brought together under one commercial umbrella brand Radisson Hotels. Radisson Rewards is our international rewards program that delivers unique and personalized ways to create memorable moments that matter to our guests. Radisson Rewards offers an exceptional experience for our guests, meeting planners, and travel agents at over 550 hotels in Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. Radisson Meetings provides tailored solutions for any event or meeting, including hybrid solutions placing guests and their needs at the heart of its offer. Radisson Meetings is built around three strong service commitments: Personal, Professional and Memorable, while delivering on the brilliant basics and being uniquely 100% Carbon Neutral. The health and safety of guests and team members remain a top priority for Radisson Hotel Group. All properties across the Group's portfolio are subject to stringent health and safety requirements, as outlined in the Radisson Hotels Safety Protocol. More than 100,000 team members work at Radisson Hotel Group and at the hotels licensed to operate in its systems. For more information, visit our corporate website. Or connect with Radisson Hotels on: LinkedIn | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube Camilla Chiam Vice President, PR, Communications and Brands, Asia Pacific +65 6511 9297 Radisson Hotel Group It looks like you've reached a page that doesnt exist (anymore). Please use the navigation or search above to find content on Hospitality Net. Go back to home This article challenges an industry paradigm that has since long held the Indian hotel industry back from exploring new avenues for revenue growthleisure lacks the ability to make money. Fact is, a healthy market for leisure hotels exists in India. Twenty years is a long time to understand a hotel market, which is about the same time when the first HVS Asian office was set up in New Delhi. Yes, what is happening in the leisure space for hotel accommodation in India today is indeed a revelation that needs to be recognized. One of the key benefits of HVS data and knowledge base for the Indian hotel market is that we are able to slice and dice information and extract trends that deserve timely attention by the industry's stakeholders. This year we challenge an industry paradigm that has since long held us back in exploring new avenues for revenue growth leisure lacks the ability to make money! Fact is that a healthy market for leisure hotels exists in India, and here is why we took a look at the top 25 ADR leaders in the country, and remarkably, 23 of these operate in leisure markets. With an average inventory of 68 keys, this sub-set secured a RevPAR of about INR12,600 last year, which is 3.6 times the national average and 2.2 times that achieved by five-star deluxe hotels. Playing the devil's advocate, some of you may suggest that leisure hotels' ADRs are mostly inclusive of breakfast and a few other charges bundled with the room rate. Even so, we are confident that the gap between this sub-set's performance and the rest would remain wide enough to call attention. FIGURE 1: ROOMS PERFORMANCE COMPARISON (2015/16 ) Source: HVS Research Now, although ADR is the primary driver of RevPAR in these 25 hotels, the occupancy of 53% in 2015/16 offers strong evidence of a steady demand for such hotels in India. Previously, domestic leisure locations were associated with only high-weekend demand, but this appears to be altering with meetings and conferences, weddings and social functions, corporate off-sites and group travel contributing to room bookings all throughthe week. The traditional adage that summer and monsoon months are poor is also being challenged with the reduction of gap between peak and non-peak season occupancies across several leisure markets. Another aspect working in favor of leisure demand is that these hotels do not rely on RFPs per se. Business hotels in India are too dependent on the RFP process to sell their room inventory. This, coupled with inexperienced sales professionals negotiating with the procurement managers of large corporations has systematically brought down ADRs across our hotel markets over the past few years, making it challenging to push the rate back up. Conversely, leisure hotels focus on FIT business that is more discerning in seeking an experience and not just a room at a discount. Increasing purchasing power of the Indian middle class, fuelling their propensity to take more vacations further bodes well for hotels operating in this segment. Besides, it is not news to many that India in comparison to other Asian countries is a less expensive destination for foreign travelers, particularly for those arriving from the US and Europe. Even as the Indian media paints a picture of exorbitant hotel pricing, our research reveals that a very small percentage of the occupied rooms in India command an ADR that is commensurate to similar hotel markets globally, making the country extremely competitive for inbound leisure travel. However, the abnormally high taxes on room tariffs somewhat changes this for the end user. Thus, we hope that the state and central governments will take steps to rationalize tax policies, encouraging more visitors to the country. Yet another takeaway is that over three-fourths of the top 25 ADR leaders discussed above are represented by the pre-eminent domestic Indian brands that have traditionally had a stronghold in this segment. We commend their foresight and commitment in defining Indian hospitality. The Taj Group was instrumental in establishing Goa as the leisure destination of choice almost three decades ago, by opening two seminal properties in Sinquerim. In recent years, their partnerships with hotel developers who have developed Taj properties in Coorg, Bekal and Damdama, displays their continued efforts for the creation and growth of leisure locations. The Oberoi group has repeatedly been recognised for establishing global and unparalleled hospitality standards with their Vilas properties. Also worthy of applause are hotels such as JW Marriott Walnut Grove and Alila Diwa Goa, both of which prove the inherent business sense in building hotels and operating in leisure markets. Their success also challenges the deep-rooted assumption held by many that budget and mid market hotels are the only safe investment bet in India. Instead, numbers prove that experience-led leisure hotels can also qualify as a prudent investment strategy. In conclusion, it is clear that high ADRs do not mean low occupancies. We are more than convinced that the leisure segment in India holds tremendous potential with diverse destinations waiting to be explored. A paradigm shift is necessary, and the time has come. Note: This article is part of HVS South Asias latest annual publication titled 2016 Hotels in India Trends & Opportunities' report. About Manav Thadani Manav Thadani, Chairman - HVS Asia Pacific, joined the company in 1995 in its New York Office. He went on to start the India operations in 1997 and was HVS first employee in Asia. Over the last 19 years, HVS India has expanded into multiple verticals including Strategic Consulting, Executive Search, Marketing, Communications, Energy & Sustainability and Professional Skills Development. In his current role, Manav oversees all eight offices across Asia Pacific, ensuring that they operate cohesively and effectively. Additionally, he runs four conferences in the region Hotel Investment Conference - South Asia (HICSA); Hotel Operations Summit India (HOSI); Tourism, Hotel Investment & Networking Conference (THINC) Indonesia, and Tourism, Hotel Investment & Networking Conference (THINC) Sri Lanka. A pioneering entrepreneur and an effective leader, Manav has been a trusted advisor to various industry stakeholders, with his candid views being highly sought after and respected in the field of hospitality. Under his guidance, HVS has garnered the reputation of being the Go To hospitality consulting firm in this part of the world. On a personal level, Manav co-founded SAMHI in 2011, a leading Indian hotel investment and development firm with focus on ownership of branded hotels in the mid scale and economy segments across key cities. Manav is also the immediate past Chairman of the World Travel & Tourism Council - India Initiative (WTTCII). Contact Manav at mthadani@hvs.com Radisson Blu Hotel, Cologne The group signs a 10-year lease extension with Invesco in Cologne and reopens Lyon after a 3-year long full refurbishment The Rezidor Hotel Group announces the successful negotiation of a ten-year extension of the lease with Invesco Real Estate Fund. The deal will allow the iconic Radisson Blu hotel brand to remain a tenant for the next twenty years at Messe-Kreisel 3, Invescos landmark property in Cologne. As per the lease, the 393-room hotel will benefit from a 7million renovation program, bringing the best of the Radisson Blu interior design scheme to town. Rezidors Senior Vice President of Asset Management, Philippe Dejonghe explained: The contract is a win for our business, for the landlord and for the city of Cologne. Invesco has a long term commitment with Rezidor, and we have strengthened that relationship further by showing our commitment to Cologne as a city, and as a showcase of our global upper-upscale brand, Radisson Blu. Radisson Blu Hotel, Cologne is a landmark on its own, and has won several awards and accolades since its opening in 2003. Our renewed agreement with Invesco allows us to renovate and to reposition the property to continue offering the best of Radisson Blus hospitality in Cologne. The Radisson Blu, Cologne is located close to the city center, walking distance to the trade fair (Koelnmesse), congress facilities (Kolnkongress) and Lanxess arena and 15 minutes drive to the airport. The hotel has 393 rooms, two restaurants, one bar, 11 meeting rooms (950m2), gym/sauna and 164 underground parking spaces. The news of the Cologne contract restructuring comes at an opportune time, as Radisson Blu recently re-opened its newly renovated landmark hotel in the heart of Lyon, earlier this month. This 40-storey tower, locally known as Le Crayon is the tallest building in Lyon (and second largest urban area in France). The hotel reopens after a 3-year long complete refurbishment, which is the result of a co-investment of 40million between the hotel owner Hibernia France and The Rezidor Hotel Group, to create a world class hospitality experience in the culinary capital of France. Philippe Dejonghe commented on the companys approach to investment: These renegotiations and related renovations form part of Rezidors wider asset management strategy. Although leases may be viewed as a liability on account, our management remains committed to investing in our core markets and trophy assets across Europe. When leased hotel properties are due for renewal, we take a view on what is best for the business, using our experience and expertise to fairly assess risk levels against opportunity and potential for profitability. Last week, Azealia Banks announced via Facebook, now her primary social media channel, that she would be signing a deal with RZA. He and I have an excellent work chemistry, she wrote. Filming coco with him was loads of fun!! Now I get to make music with him!!!Business and Pleasure is imminent. According to TMZ, the deal is now off. Banks ended negotiations because RZA failed to come to her defense after he watched Russell Crowe throw her out of his dinner party over the weekend. The events surrounding Banks removal from Crowes hotel suite are disputed; Crowe and multiple eyewitnesses claim that Banks was being unnecessarily belligerent and threatened to to break her glass and stab Crowe in the throat. Banks claims that Crowe issued racial epithets, choked her, and spat on her. She has filed a formal battery report with the police. RZAs camp has sided with Crowe. Azealia Banks No one loves Chance The Rapper like Chicago, so its not a surprise that Barack Obama, who spent some important years of his life in the city, is a fan of the Coloring Book rapper. Chance was among the many artists invited to discuss the My Brothers Keeper Initiative at the White House earlier this year, and his Acid Rap deep cut Acid Rain landed on the POTUS summer playlist. While that would be honor enough for most musicians, it seems Chance will be joining Obama once again at tonights state dinner. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi will be the guest of honor, and as FADER points out, CBSs Steve Dorsey has revealed that Chance The Rapper will be in attendance alongside actor Roberto Benigni and celebrity chef Mario Batali. Chance later Instagrammed a picture of himself and his dad dressed in some slick suits, Me and my Dad bout to pull up on Barack looking like some straight BOSSES, he wrote. It was also recently announced that Chance will perform at the White Houses annual tree lighting ceremony. Heres hoping that we get a pic of Obama rocking a Chance 3 hat sometime in the near future. Chance The Rapper Space Jam will be returning to theaters for a quick limited run in honor of the films 20th anniversary. Thats right, its been TWENTY years since Michael Jordan saved the Tune Squad from the Monstars. The classic 1996 film which starred MJ and Bill Murray will be showing in 450 theaters across the country on November 13th and November 16th. According to Fathom Events, Space Jam will be showing at 2pm and 6pm on the 13th and at 7pm on the 16th, you can find out which theaters in your area will be turning back the clocks to 96 right here. Space Jam has been a family favorite for the last 20 years and is sure to remain so for the next 20 and beyond, Fathom Events VP Tom Lucas said in a statement. This event is the perfect chance for audiences of all ages to view the film as it was meant to be seenon the big screen. Additionally, as many of you already know, Jordan Brand will also be celebrating Space Jams 20th anniversary this year by releasing a new Space Jam Air Jordan 11 in December. Click here for more information about the Space Jam retro. Space Jam Having previously worked together on RTE series Pure Mule, director Declan Recks and writer Eugene OBrien have again teamed up to make The Flag. A charming comedy themed around the 1916 commemorations, it stars the redoubtable Pat Shortt as Harry Hambridge, a down on his luck Irish builder who leads a motley crew in a raid on a British army barracks, after discovering that the building contains the Irish flag hoisted over the GPO by Harrys late grandfather. In January of last year, our producer Rob Walpole emailed us this letter hed found from his grandfather, explains Recks of The Flags origin. Hed got it from the army records bureau. His grandfather claimed that hed raised the tricolour over the GPO, so we thought: could we base the film around this character who goes to try and find the flag? It just worked and Eugene went for the idea straight away. The idea was that Harry was a man who had lost his voice and needed to find some courage again. With the help of his trusty friend Mouse, played by Moe Dunford, he sets about doing it. Although Recks had previously worked on dramatic material with comedic elements, this was his first time to direct a feature-length comedy. Whilst acknowledging the difficulties, it helped to have such an experienced comedic actor as Shortt in the lead role. They are one of the most exciting metal bands weve heard in a long time. And you can get a brilliant free CD of their work with the latest edition of Hot Press. Armored Dawn is planning an assault on Europe! The Brazilian hard rock outfits are shaping up like real contenders, with their latest album being overseen in some style by Halloween producer Tommy Hansen, and Fernando Giovannetti. It is a powerful record indeed and you can get a brilliant four-track sampler with the new issue of Hot Press, with the Kings of Leon on the front. That was a dream come true, says Armored Dawns front man Eduardo Parras of working with Hansen. He is spectacular we called him The Wizard. Hes so intelligent and so knowledgeable about this sort of music. Hansens input wasnt just in terms of studio craft either. He changed so much, Eduardo says. He added a lot both in terms of ideas for composition, as well as the arrangements themselves. He even played a keyboard solo on Far Away. The free CD opens with the powerful King and it is a feast of big riffs and loud music exactly the sort of thing that your mother asks you to turn down! The full track listing is: 1. King; 2. Viking Soul; 3. William Fly (The Pirate); 4. Far Away. Tracks 1, 2 and 4 were produced by the Hansen/Giovannetti team, with US producer Johnny Andrews handling desk duties on the epic, and at times Lizzy-esque 'William Fly (The Pirate). Advertisement The Brazilian six-piece make a great noise. And they are keen on establishing a foothold in Europe. We go to Europe to support Fates Warning in January, Eduardo relates. For the uninitiated, Fates Warnings breakthrough album was the 1986 opus Awaken the Guardian. Their latest album is Theorise of Flight, released earlier this year. Armored Dawn's 4-track EP, Power of Warrior, is free with this issue of Hot Press. Ten environmental activists were arrested last week after claiming credit for temporarily shutting down five major pipelines carrying oil from Canadian tar sands to the United States, including two operated by Houston companies. The group, Climate Direct Action, said it turned off emergency safety valves for pipelines in Washington, Minnesota, Montana and North Dakota, including the northern leg of TransCanada's Keystone pipeline. Others targeted were the TransMountain pipeline owned by Houston-based Kinder Morgan, Houston-based Spectra Energy's Express Pipeline, and Canada-based Enbridge's Line 4 and 67 pipelines. The activists claimed they stopped tar sands from coming to the U.S. via pipeline for the first time. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate When Khalilah McAfee opened her Quail Valley Family Dental practice in Missouri City last year, she faced an unusual challenge securing patients. The practice had previously been run by a white dentist for 20 years and an Indian dentist for three years afterward. She had to deal with older white residents of the Quail Valley neighborhood questioning her longevity, as well as wondering if they were comfortable with a black dentist. McAfee reached out to the community, and while she ended 2015 with a profit margin of negative 3.1 percent, she's set to close this year with a positive 33.7 percent, and possibly an award. Quail Valley Family Dental is a finalist for the 2016 Upstart Award, one of the recognitions given at the Greater Houston Black Chamber's Pinnacle Awards. Saturday's event marks the 22nd run of the awards ceremony, with Mayor Sylvester Turner to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. Courtney Johnson Rose, chairwoman of the Chamber, described the ceremony as a showcase of Houston's best and brightest African-American entrepreneurs who have not only demonstrated financial success, but have also dedicated time and effort to give back to the community. The Upstart Award in particular is a unique opportunity for young businesses as it offers the winner a cash prize as well as dedicated mentorship from the Chamber. McAfee's nomination makes her feel validated in her work as she continues to overcome hurdles. More Information WHAT: Greater Houston Black Chamber's 22nd annual Pinnacle Awards WHERE: 12401 South Post Oak Road , Houston, TX 77045 WHEN: Oct. 22 at 6 p.m. For tickets visit https://ghbcpinnacleawards.splashthat.com/ See More Collapse "It helps you feel that you're doing the right thing," McAfee said. For Zawadi Bryant, winning the Upstart Award a few years ago was a godsend. Bryant, co-founder and COO of NightLight Pediatric Urgent Care, noted that the cash prize, an HP computer and free advertising in the black business journal D-Mars, helped her and her co-founder better network within the business community and improve productivity. Opened in 2007, NightLight Pediatric Urgent Care offers after-hours urgent care for children at five clinic locations. "Most children don't get sick from 8 to 5," Bryant said. The company networks with most insurers and even has X-rays on-site. Today, all five clinics are profitable and Bryant and her co-founder are set to open two new clinics next year. Last year, they won the Pinnacle Award. "Every time you win a prestigious award, it raises the level of your cachet," Bryant said. Raising cachet for the service they provide would be the goal for The Education Valet, one of the nominees for the Pinnacle Award this year. Founded in 1999 by current CEO Michelle Bonton, The Education Valet is an education consulting firm that partners with local community day-care centers offering staff training as well as runs the Rhodes School performing arts charter. Bonton has spent years in education from teaching high school students to being a certified school counselor, a former public school administrator and even once hosting a talk show on 93.7 called "the Principal's Office. "She has also contributed her time to education policy work. In 2007, her firm opened the Rhodes School, which serves more than 1,000 young students at four campuses. The firm as a whole employs 135 and generates an estimated $11 million for Houston. For Bonton, the opportunity to affect children's lives in a meaningful way is what drives her and her business. The chance to be formally recognized as a Pinnacle winner would further boost the significance of an industry often cast aside. "Education a lot of times is treated as that field that you need, but isn't held at high esteem," Bonton said. "We are the foundation for Houston's future workforce." Being a role model for future generations is also a driving factor in McAfee's line of work. Last year she attended a local Juneteenth celebration where she was giving out toothbrushes and toothpaste. There she met an African-American grandmother whose young granddaughter, like many young children, had a fear of dentists. Yet after interacting with McAfee, the girl's attitude changed. "Granny, I want her to be my dentist," she said. A few days later the little girl came in to get a cavity filled in. No tears were shed. Should McAfee win the Upstart Award, she would use the cash prize to improve the old chairs in the office as well as add digital radiography to the clinic, upgrades she had to postpone when starting out. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate CONROE - If a customer can find a better price for a leather sofa that Chris Pfeiffer is selling at Homestead House Distinctive Home Furnishings, he's happy to match it. What's more difficult, though, is meeting a customer's demand to eat the 8.25 percent sales tax he must levy under state law. Armed with smartphones, some people have no problem spending hours talking to furniture and design experts in Pfeiffer's beautiful store in downtown Conroe and then ordering the same item online to avoid paying the taxes that keep our cities and schools operating. Too many people, he says, feel comfortable treating his 15,000-square-foot store filled with high-end furniture from the best American brands as a showroom for internet retailers. "The customer comes up, we do house calls, we do floor plans," Pfeiffer told me. "But then they say, 'I'm not paying the tax.' They want me to throw in another 8.25 percent. Now, that burns my skittle." Most Texans don't understand that internet sales are not really exempt from sales tax, and that under state law, they are required to send a check to the Texas comptroller for the tax if a retailer doesn't collect it. The trouble comes from a 1967 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in favor of mail-order catalog companies. States wanted all retailers to collect sales taxes, but the court said a state can't order companies with no physical presence within its jurisdiction to collect taxes for it. The court's decision made practical sense at a time when keeping up with different tax rates across the country was a burden for businesses, but today almost any point-of-sale system can calculate the sales tax for anywhere in the nation. Amazon.com collects sales tax in 28 states, including Texas, or only where it has fulfillment centers. Retailers without a physical presence in a state do not collect sales taxes for that state. Many states could also use the money. Texas relies on sales tax for about half of state revenues, so it missed out on $1.7 billion in e-commerce sales taxes, according to a 2014 study by the National Conference of State Legislators. That number has certainly grown now that 8 percent of retail sales takes place online. Online retailers are hiring, while local retailers are declaring bankruptcy. State officials, meanwhile, show no inclination to collect sales taxes from individuals. "The chances of the state of Texas going after them is so remote," Pfeiffer said. "You have to go on reality, and the reality is that that's never going to happen." Evading taxes that no one tries to collect may be forgivable, but cheating your neighbor who owns a local business is entirely different. Tax cheating creates a huge disadvantage for local retailers like Pfeiffer, a downtown merchant selling top-quality American goods in an era that's been tough on both. "Everybody should participate fairly. That's what I'm looking for, the fairness," he said. There is a federal solution to this problem, but it's been stuck in Congress since 2010. The Main Street Fairness Act would allow states to require all retailers, no matter where they are based, to collect and remit the appropriate sales tax. In return, the state agrees to participate in the Streamlined Sales Tax Project, which is standardizing sales tax laws and registrations to lower the administrative impact on businesses. An alternative introduced last year by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., would force retailers sending goods out of state to collect whatever the sales tax is for their primary location. State governments would then fairly distribute the revenue with each other. If either piece of federal legislation passes, Texas could tax all internet purchases equally, whether it's from a national department store like Macy's or a tiny boutique in Miami Beach. This would not be a new tax, as some critics will claim, but a fairer application of existing taxes for local retailers like Pfeiffer. "I pay the property tax, I maintain the building I pay employee taxes - both state and federal - we've got inventory tax, and I've got the franchise tax," Pfeiffer said. "If internet retailers have to pay a tax, then a lot of their business is going to be hampered, and it would strengthen sales here, and strengthen the tax revenue stream." Most of us value a thriving commercial district in our communities and don't want to see abandoned storefronts. We all want our friends and neighbors to find work in our community, and retail is a major source of employment. But until our government decides to treat local retailers fairly and stop punishing them for doing the right thing, the obligation falls on us to act justly in deciding where to spend our money. "The operations owned and run by Texans, they are the best in the world," Pfeiffer said. "It would be nice if Texans were to honor that and support their local businesses." Shopping online has its benefits, and if cheating on taxes is your thing, go ahead and buy those goods from out of state. But don't disrespect and cheat your neighbors who operate local stores this holiday season by taking advantage of them. Local retailers make our communities richer. Treat them with the respect they deserve. AUSTIN - Ever wonder why oil company television commercials feature a cast of diverse, attractive employees talking about how they are providing energy to make the world a better place? "My job at Exxon Mobil," a montage of employees asks in a recent ad. "Turning algae into biofuels ... reducing poverty in the developing world ... making cars go farther with less ... and fueling the global economy ... and you think we just made the gas." The ad doesn't mention deep-water drilling, massive refineries or even generating higher earnings for shareholders. We've come a long way from "Charlie," the friendly gas station attendant, offering to "put a tiger in your tank." The new ads reveal the changing ways that companies market their products, and more fundamentally, how they think of themselves. Every enterprise these days must apparently do more than make money. They must be "purpose-driven." Creating a purpose-driven company is not unlike embracing the purpose-driven life espoused by Christian author Rick Warren in his 2002 book. A company's purpose should be to identify a societal need and fulfill it using capitalism. Making money while doing good without misleading the public was one of the hot topics at SXSW Eco, a conference on sustainability and social justice that brings corporations and activists to Austin every October. Companies espousing a mission to improve the world usually make more money by earning customer loyalty, according to Gallup, the polling and data analysis firm. Deutsche Bank reviewed 56 academic studies and found that 89 percent of companies that prioritize doing good outperform the market in medium and long-term share prices and earnings. Employees who believe their company is fulfilling a noble purpose are also between 13 percent and 30 percent more productive, according to the Census Bureau's Center for Economic Studies and the Ifo Institute. That's particularly important to the millennial generation, whose members say they would take a 15 percent pay cut to do good in the world. Social benefits can come from something as simple as employers making donations to charities, but the more effective method is demonstrating how the company's products improve society or the environment. The challenge for customers and job-seekers is knowing whether a company really is doing good or simply spending on marketing. A coalition called the Net Positive Project is trying to create a rigorous method for measuring whether a company really does put more back into society than it takes. "We have an increasing number of companies, and others, thinking about how do we get beyond sustainability and to a restorative or regenerative approach to business, and can this be done in a way that makes sense for the private sector?" said Eric Olson, a senior vice president at consulting firm BSR and a project leader. "You can imagine that if we are not careful with this kind of idea, it will be very quickly watered down, or at a minimum confusing." The coalition includes nonprofits and major corporations, such as Dow Chemical Co., AT&T, Dell and Kimberly Clark, and is trying to develop tools that measure not only the environmental impact of a product, but whether the social benefits outweigh the impact. For example, a tobacco company could never demonstrate that cigarettes do more good than harm, but chemical companies could make the case that cheaper and better health care products and improved public sanitation outweigh a carefully managed environmental impact. The problem is coming up with legitimate metrics, a process the Net Positive Project is just beginning. "Part of the measurement of our success is the financial success of companies who take it on," Olson said. "There is a belief, and I think we can prove it out, that there are contributions to innovation, brand and reputation, stakeholder relations and, ultimately, to sales." No fossil fuel company is listed as part of the coalition, but oil companies have always fulfilled a critical societal need by providing affordable energy that spurs economic development. Exxon Mobil's mission statement, for example, is to use "technology and innovation to help meet the world's growing energy needs." Those benefits, though, have been overshadowed by catastrophic accidents and a warming planet. Most Americans know they need fossil fuels for their daily lives, at least for now, but many are resentful. Hence the television commercials by Exxon Mobil and others. Whether a company does good or not goes back to the fundamental social contract of commerce: I provide you a quality good or service, and in return, you pay me a price that encourages me to keep providing it. The transaction must also improve the community. This is a calculation that more energy companies need to take more seriously. The Net Positive Project is a fascinating idea that encourages companies and customers to look at both sides of the cost-benefit equation. The results, no doubt, will be fascinating, and likely controversial. In a remote part of western Minnesota, Emily Johnston and Annette Klapstein calmly approached a small enclosure, readied their bolt cutters, and sliced through the fencing and chains protecting the emergency shutoff valves on two oil pipelines. Just as calmly, they turned the valves, helping to stop the flow of heavy Canadian crude, and waited to be arrested by local police. The women were among 10 people arrested last week during coordinated actions to shut down five pipelines in four states, including two operated by Houston companies. The activists succeeded as the companies temporarily halted flows temporarily for safety reasons, underscoring the shifting battleground in the fight to slow climate change. After years of focusing on the now fading coal industry, environmentalists are targeting pipelines as the new public enemy number one - a strategy that has implications for Houston, home to several major pipeline companies employing some 10,000 people. With the "keep it the ground" movement gaining support, the focus of efforts to slow the extraction of oil and gas has increasingly become pipelines that move the fuels to processing plants and consumers. Protests, demonstrations and civil disobedience aimed at pipelines have spread from New England to Texas to California. In the Midwest, protesters from across the country have joined the Standing Rock Sioux to block the Dakota Access pipeline that would carry crude from North Dakota shale fields to Illinois. From there, the oil can be piped to refineries along the Texas Gulf Coast. Richard Kinder, the cofounder and chairman of the Houston pipeline company Kinder Morgan, acknowledged the growing protests, but said that pipelines and the natural gas they carry will play a major role in reducing carbon dioxide emissions blamed for accelerating climate change. Natural gas has quickly replaced coal as the fuel of choice for generating electricity, he said, and that switch, according to the U.S. Energy Department, has cut greenhouse emissions in U.S. power sector in recent years. "While the protestors get the headlines," Kinder said in call with analysts Wednesday, "it is still possible to build new infrastructure." Kinder Morgan, however, scrapped a pipeline earlier this year that would have carried natural gas from Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale to the Boston area as the project faced strong local and environmental opposition. Last year, after a half-decade of protests, the Obama administration blocked the expansion of the Keystone pipeline, which would have transported crude more easily from the tar sands of Alberta, Canada to U.S. refineries. Johnston, Klapstein and their compatriots targeted pipelines in Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana and Washington state to slow the flow of fossil fuels, on which the overwhelming scientific consensus blames global warming. Johnston, in an interview after she was released on bail last week, said pipelines have become a particular target of climate change activists because they are ubiquitous, stretching in all directions and touching communities everywhere. "We want to make sure it's not cheap or easy or even possible for them to come through," said Johnston, 50, of Seattle. "We have to do something to shake up the system and inspire people to action. We all have to understand how dire the situation really is." Reality check Pipeline opponents have proven effective in slowing some projects and, in perhaps their biggest victory, stopping TransCanada's Keystone XL. But the equivalent of 12 Keystone XL projects were built during the five-year debate over pipeline, according to the Association of Oil Pipe Lines industry group. Environmentalists contend the continued growth of pipelines will make it impossible for the U.S. - and the world - to meet the goals of the Paris climate accords reached last year to prevent the world's average temperature from rising more than 2 degrees Celsius. Burning fossil fuels produce large amounts of carbon dioxide, which traps heat in the earth's atmosphere. This year is projected to surpass 2015 as the hottest on record. Fourteen of the hottest 15 years have occurred since 2001. Former vice president Al Gore, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to slow climate change, sees no room for compromise on pipelines because of the long-term ramifications "If we construct a major extension of pipelines, they'll be in use for 50 years," Gore said in a recent interview with the Houston Chronicle. "If they are, there would be no possible way for the U.S. to achieve its goals of CO2 reduction - no possible way." The activists, however, aren't facing reality because the global economy will depend on fossil fuels far into the future, said Charles McConnell, a former assistant secretary of energy under President Barack Obama and now executive director of Rice University's Energy and Environment Initiative. Pipelines are cheaper, faster and safer than shipping crude via railroad or trucks, which are more at risk of accidents and spills, he said. Policies and practice should focus on using fossil fuels as cleanly and efficiently as possible while developing new technologies that could eventually replace them. "I embrace environmentalism," McConnell said, "but I also live in the real world." The business view Brandon Blossman, an analyst at Houston energy investment bank Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co., said pipelines are the next phase for environmentalists after decades of fighting power plants that burn coal, the dirtiest of the fossil fuels. Ironically, Blossman said, it is cleaner-burning natural gas carried by pipelines that has played the biggest role in the decline of coal and greenhouse gases in recent years. "Coal did just fine until competing gas got cheap and plentiful," Blossman said. The latest wave of protests are particularly worrisome, raising concerns that tampering with valves and other controls - or something worse - could lead to an environmental disaster, said Andy Black, president and chief executive of the Association of Oil Pipe Lines, an industry group. If the Dakota Access pipeline, which received regulatory approval, is halted, it could create a dangerous precedent that would discourage investment in pipelines needed to provide the energy that heats homes, powers businesses, and fuels automobiles, he said. The owner of Dakota Access, Energy Transfer Partners of Dallas, has already invested billions in the project. "When a business is trying to expand, they need to know they'll be able to finish building the pipeline to serve the customers," Black said. A federal court ruled this week that construction can move forward, but the federal government is still holding up on granting a final easement for construction of the last small chunk of the pipeline near North Dakota's Lake Oahe, where the Standing Rock Sioux contend sacred and environmental sites are threatened. Energy Transfer said in a statement that it expects the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to soon issue the easement. "We reiterate our commitment to protect cultural resources, the environment and public safety," the company said. Texas take Some Texas activists hope opponents of the Dakota Access succeed in blocking the pipeline mid-construction so they can use that momentum and precedent to halt Energy Transfer projects in West Texas that have overcome community opposition at every turn. Energy Transfer is building two gas pipelines from outside of Fort Stockton to Mexico at access points by El Paso - the Comanche Trail Pipeline - and farther south by Presidio - the Trans-Pecos Pipeline. They're slated for completion next year after Energy Transfer invested $1.3 billion for both. The latter project runs right by Lori Glover's community in Alpine, Texas. She's a volunteer working with the Sierra Club, a national environmental advocacy group, and she salutes the efforts of Johnston and her cohorts. Glover said she and her neighbors opposed the projects throughout the regulatory process to no avail. "Civil disobedience is all we have left," she said. "We're just small communities and the corporations are putting us at risk. They're just doing what they want without even trying to work with the American people." Pipeline Safety Trust, a watchdog organization in Washington state, has fought for safer pipelines for more than a decade, rather than opposing pipelines entirely. The fight used to be about preventing leaks and explosions and protecting local property rights, said Executive Director Carl Weimer. Now, nuts-and-bolts safety issues are being overshadowed by the "keep it in the ground" movement and debate over climate change. What the country really needs is for the federal government to create a clear energy plan that indicates where pipelines are or are not needed, Weimer said. Instead, corporations lead the way and build competing projects, Weimer said, regardless of the public's energy demand and conservation preferences. "We're letting industry decide how many pipelines and where," Weimer bemoaned, "and then we'll fight after the fact." CHI St. Luke's Health hopes to significantly expand its footprint in the north Houston region with the acquisition of a physician group, a small hospital system, an ambulatory surgery system and two freestanding emergency room centers, officials announced Tuesday. More than 100 physicians from the Greater Houston Physicians Medical Association, one of the largest multispecialty physician groups in north Houston, will be folded into the CHI St. Luke's Health network starting Nov. 1. The agreement also includes 25 affiliated clinics and medical group locations, the hospital said. Among the specialties will be cardiology, orthopedics, oncology, general surgery and emergency medicine, according to a CHI St. Luke's statement. In addition to the physician group, the health care system has acquired Apollo Hospital System, a five-bed facility with 16 outpatient centers. It will be renamed CHI St. Luke's-Pinecroft Hospital. The acquisition also includes Woodlands Ambulatory Surgery Center, which will be rebranded CHI St. Luke's Health Surgery Center, and Conroe Emergency Center and Woodland Emergency Center, which have not yet been renamed. "This is a game-changing opportunity for us to expand our network of care in north and northwest Houston, which is rapidly growing," Michael Covert, CEO of CHI St. Luke's Health, said in a statement. He added that such a large acquisition of multiple facilities will not only give the area's burgeoning population more access to care but also "achieve effective population health." No price for the purchases was disclosed. Dr. James McDeavitt, chief clinical integration officer for CHI St. Luke's and dean of clinical affairs at Baylor College of Medicine, said Tuesday that this latest acquisition is part of what he calls a broadening game plan for the network as health care continues to evolve in Houston and in the nation. "Ten, 15 years ago, it was about having a bright shiny new building," he told the Chronicle. But today's health care is more responsive to where people live and allowing treatments to be performed in an outpatient setting whenever possible. Earlier this year, the health system expanded into the Lake Jackson area when it acquired Brazosport Regional Health System. It also added five emergency room centers across north and northeast Houston in recent months. David Zalubowski/STF Sending your child to a top-performing public school can sometimes be as costly as opting for private school. That's because houses and apartments zoned to highly rated public schools are almost always more expensive than in areas where children attend lower rated schools. On average, rents are 25 percent higher in urban areas near sought-after schools, according to a report from RentCafe, a rental search site. Malcolm S. Morris and Stewart Morris Jr. will resign from the board at Stewart Information Services Corp. as part of settlement agreements with activist investors who said the board composition created conflicts of interest that contributed to the company's underperformance. The resigning board members are cousins who have served on the board for 16 years of the Houston-based title and real estate services company. They will be replaced with Stewart CEO Matthew Morris and Clifford Press. Two additional board members will replace Laurie Moore-Moore and Frank Keating, who have agreed to step down. A director search firm has been hired to help find their replacements. When the new board is in place, eight of its nine directors will be independent, the company said. "The enhancements announced today will help us improve Stewart's corporate governance structure for the benefit of all shareholders, allowing us to create a truly independent board in line with best practices," Thomas Apel, board chairman, said in a statement. "We believe the newly constituted Stewart board, which will include substantial industry expertise, diverse perspectives and a wide variety of backgrounds, will help guide the company forward." The agreements were made with Starboard Value and Foundation Asset Management. Collectively they and their affiliates own 3.6 million shares, or about 15.5 percent, of Stewart's outstanding stock. Foundation has agreed to abandon its consent solicitation seeking to call a special meeting of Stewart's shareholders. Press, 63, has served on numerous boards and is currently a director of Newcastle Investment Corp. and Quantum Corp. Malcolm S. Morris and Stewart Morris Jr., formerly vice chairmen of Stewart's board, previously served as co-CEOs from 2000 to November 2011. They are first cousins, and Malcolm S. Morris is the father of current CEO Matthew Morris. While the cousins were co-CEOs, stockholders experienced negative returns, and the Morris family collected $45 million "in the form of direct compensation, fees to affiliated companies and family-owned horse expenses," according to documents previously filed by Foundation. "We are concerned that due to their familial relationships, Malcolm S. Morris and Stewart Morris Jr. are at risk of placing the interests of CEO Matthew W. Morris and other members of the Morris family above those of the company's public stockholders," the filing reads. Stewart has been the target of a number of activist investors in recent years, leading to it making other changes, including a restructuring of the company's stock. Stewart's stock closed Tuesday at $46.34, down 29 cents. HAVANA - Like so much else in Cuba, shopping for clothes isn't easy. Buying a simple pair of socks or a T-shirt means choosing between the wildly overpriced, shoddy offerings of state-run stores and the bales of low-priced clothing illegally imported by "mules" traveling from the United States, Ecuador or Panama. This year, a third option is bursting onto the scene after years of growing quietly in backroom workshops and bedroom studios. A small homegrown fashion industry is winning renown and an increasing share of Cubans' limited clothing budget with simple but fun-and-stylish clothing produced on the island with natural fabrics and sold at competitive prices. Hundreds of private designers are turning out gauzy wedding dresses, brilliantly decorated bathing suits, linen pants and even uniforms for state businesses. Last week, dozens of designers displayed their wares at the five-day Havana Fashion Week at Cuba's most elegant theaters, where hundreds turned out for runway shows, private fittings and cocktail parties. "The changes that have taken place in this country, the openings, make things easier," said Jesus Frias, a designer who put on a swimwear runway show on Friday. "There's a fashion renaissance in Cuba but it can't be a priority for the state, so it's we private designers who are bringing it back." The growth of the artisanal fashion industry comes thanks to free-market reforms put in place by President Raul Castro after he took power in 2008. Unlike some new private businesses, the fashion industry is receiving a relatively warm welcome from the communist bureaucracy, perhaps because it doesn't directly compete with the state. After successful runs in the first decades of Cuba's socialist revolution, state-run clothing businesses were hurt by the collapse of the Soviet Union and had largely disappeared by the mid-1990s. Celebrities and fashionistas have made Havana a hot destination over the last two years amid a boom in tourism set off by detente with the United States. In May, French label Chanel took over Havana's Prado boulevard for a runway show that garnered global attention, and anger among many Cubans for its privatization of one of the main thoroughfares in the capital of a country that has declared socialist equality as its guiding principle. Privately designed clothes remain out of reach for Cubans on state salaries of about $30 a month, but those with private-sector jobs or help from family overseas can afford them. Mario Freixas, a well-known designer who dresses many of the stars of state-run television, sells shirts for $20 and men's and women's pants for $30. Alongside the domestic market, Cuba's own designers are hoping that their lightweight blouses and fringed swimsuits will become popular items for visitors to take home. "We all have high hopes for the tourism boom," Frias said. "I don't think anyone comes to Cuba to buy imported clothing." Havana Fashion Week began in 2015 with 30 designers, organizer Catherine Dorticos said. This year's edition had twice as many. "It's a way to motivate people, for people to see other options and for artisans to produce more and feel inspired to do new things," she said. If pythons and crocodiles weren't enough, a new troublesome creature has taken up residence in South Florida the screwworm. Gory photos of screwworms eating wild deer alive have made the rounds on the Internet, turning stomachs and stoking fears that the insect might spread beyond Florida and harm agriculture in Texas and other states. While screwworms were once a scourge to cattle in Texas, the odds of them turning up again the Lone Star State seem pretty remote at the moment. Many decades ago, the worms were responsible for killing thousands of cattle in this state, For starters, the current infestation has been confined to a small population of endangered deer that live on one of Florida's remote southern keys, which has enabled wildlife officials to establish an effective blockade. Also, Florida officials are using an eradication method that has had a proven track record. It involves releasing sterile male screwworm flies, which mate with females that then lay infertile eggs. Still, it's understandable while federal and state agriculture officials are on alert for the pest, which was last seen in the United States in 1982. Screwworms caused devastating livestock losses up until the early 1950's when scientists discovered that releasing sterile male flies would stop the spread of screwworms. For example, in 1935, Texas counties reported more than 180,000 livestock deaths due to screwworms. A Texas A&M veterinary specialist recently told livestock producers that the cost to control screwworms in cattle alone could exceed $500 million annually should the pest spread beyond Florida to Texas and other areas. What makes screwworms so unique and deadly is that they feast on live animal flesh unlike other blow flies that consume carrion, or rotting meat. Female screwworm flies are attracted to open wounds, lay hundreds of eggs inside the wound, and then the larvae hatch and begin eating their host alive. "It's definitely not something you want to Google," said Sonja Swiger, a Texas A&M entomologist based in Stephenville, of the pictures of animals with screwworm infestations. Swiger said that while screwworms were officially eradicated from Texas in 1966 there have been occasional reports of them, usually showing up in dogs that had traveled to countries where the pest was still present. The Texas Animal Health Commission closely monitors livestock coming into the state and has been notified by federal counterparts of the Florida infestation. As a result of the discovery, Florida officials have declared an agricultural emergency. Big questions still remain about the current outbreak, namely how did screwworms end up back in the United States? Swiger said while there's no reason to worry about screwworms in Texas, ranchers should familiarize themselves with the pest, which is pretty hard to miss given its modus operandi. "Think about it, if screwworms returned, it could be the end of part-time ranching," Swiger said. "Except for the dead of winter, stockmen would have to constantly watch their stock for 'wormies.' And white-tailed deer, which give birth in warm weather, and bucks in velvet with blood-engorged antlers, I expect would be easy targets as well." In May, a 26-year-old Houston woman returned from a trip to Honduras and started to feel ill. Her skin broke out in a rash. Then came a fever and headache. A blood test soon confirmed her fears: Shed been infected with Zika virus. The woman was among the first of more than 60 confirmed cases of Zika in Harris County so far this year, all among people whod traveled to countries where the virus is spreading through mosquito bites. She had questions that her doctors couldnt answer. How long would the virus remain active in her? Could she pass it to a loved one? So for the next three months, she allowed researchers at Baylor College of Medicine to study her. In an effort to better understand an emerging disease that some experts think might already be spreading in Texas, the researchers collected weekly samples of her blood, urine, saliva and vaginal swabs. They published their findings Monday in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's journal of Emerging Infectious Diseases, shedding new light on how the virus spreads and offering potential insights into the best ways to detect and prevent an epidemic in Houston. Being able to study her over the course of several weeks was a big benefit to us, because right now theres so much we dont understand about the virus, Dr. Kristy Murray, the lead author of the report, said of the unidentified woman. There are so many questions still on how it's being transmitted and how long it persists in the body. The months-long study of a single patient highlights the desperate efforts of researchers here and across the U.S. to better understand Zika, which causes microcephaly, a birth defect in which children have malformed heads and severely stunted brain development. Because the woman in the study sought medical care within a few days of returning, the researchers were able to collect their first samples hours before fever set in, giving them a rare opportunity to trace the virus from the onset of symptoms. One important finding: Zika was detected in vaginal secretions for 14 days after onset, indicating the disease can be passed from a female sexual partner for up to two weeks. That's also important information for women who become infected late in pregnancy, said Murray, an associate professor of pediatrics at Baylors National School of Tropical Medicine. It indicates a mother can pass Zika to her baby during the birthing process, Murray said. Thats how HIV and some viruses are spread. Another revelation: Although the virus could only be detected in blood serum for about a week which is the current standard for Zika testing it persisted for more than 80 days in whole blood samples. That finding could have significant effect on the way doctors screen for Zika, Murray said, potentially widening the diagnosis window by several weeks. That could help public health officials get a better handle on the magnitude of an outbreak, and offer more options for screening pregnant women for the virus. Right now, there's only about a five- to seven-day window to diagnose Zika, and since most patients experience mild or no symptoms, the vast majority of cases are likely going undetected. So far in the U.S., local transmissions of Zika from mosquito bites have only been confirmed in South Florida, but given the number of people who travel back and forth between Latin America and Houston, Murray and others worry the virus also has been spreading here. Based on lab results, the woman could have passed the virus to any aedes aegypti mosquitos that bit her during the first eight days of symptoms, thus putting others at risk. Doctors gave her strict directions to apply bug spray and avoid being outside, but what about those who don't realize they've been infected? As soon as we have local transmission here and for me it's more of a question of when than if we all of a sudden have 67,000 women at risk, Murray said. Thats how many women give birth here each year. There's still much to be learned. With funding from the National Institutes of Health, Murray and others on her team are now testing their findings on a larger pool of patients who've since returned to Houston with Zika. The better we understand the virus, the better we can prepare," she said. Karl Stolleis/Staff Johnson & Johnson Innovation announced Tuesday that it has created the Center for Device Innovation at Texas Medical Center to speed up development of "breakthrough" medical devices. CDI will consist of a new medical device engineering studio with a staff of researchers and developers, and will have access to preclinical facilities at the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston Methodist Research Institute and Texas Heart Institute, according to a statement from Johnson & Johnson. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A 14-year-old boy was charged Wednesday with two counts of capital murder in the deaths of his grandparents who were found fatally shot in their Chambers County home. Prosecutors will decide whether to charge the teenager as an adult. A deputy was dispatched to a waterfront home Tuesday in the 11000 block of Cedar Gulley Road in Beach City and found the two adults dead from apparent gunshot wounds, the Chambers County Sheriff's Office said Tuesday. On Wednesday the couple, both 72 years old, was identified as Chester and Sandra Bienek, according to KTRK. Public records show the couple moved to Beach City in 1999 and opened a business, Sandra's Gift Shop, in 2009. "They were both shot with a handgun, we believe. ... There were no signs of forced entry or robbery or anything like that," Sheriff Brian Hawthorne told the TV station. When the teen was questioned, Hawthorne said, he showed no emotion but seemed "lethargic" and "could not really give us a good account of anything." The Barbers Hill ISD said in statement, "The grandparents of a Middle School South student were killed in a double homicide at their home." "Our hearts go out to the family experiencing loss, and we have additional counseling at Middle School South for those in need of such services. ... [T]he best thing that anyone can do at this time is hug your children and grandchildren and tell them you love them," superintendent Greg Poole added. Check back for new details as this case unfolds. Did you know the couple? Email andrew.kragie@chron.com At a time when the public and law enforcement officials contemplate how to best blend policing and community, Fort Bend County has lost a man many describe as a role model for the perfect mix of serving and protecting. Longtime Fort Bend County Precinct 2 Constable Ruben Davis died on Tuesday morning. He was 61. "He loved his community and, more importantly, he loved his family," Precinct 2 Chief Deputy Rodney Pentecost said. "We are grieving right now. It's obvious that he'll be missed." Davis served as a Fort Bend constable since May 1996 and led a precinct that covers the county's east side including Missouri City. His name, as an unopposed candidate, will remain on the November ballot. He was known for his big personality, huge heart and love for the residents of Fort Bend County. Sharon Davis said her husband was a provider and protector for their Missouri City household and beyond. "I think the people will probably miss his generosity. Anything that he could do for you, he was going to do it," she said. "He's always been a sweet and caring person." Ruben George Davis Jr. was born on Aug. 18, 1955, and raised in the Sunnyside neighborhood on Houston's south side. Davis and his future wife met in 1974 as cadets in the Houston Police Department academy. They married in 1976. Sharon Davis said her husband retired from HPD two decades ago after 21 years of service to run for an open constable's seat in Fort Bend because "he wanted to be his own boss and he wanted to help people." The neophyte politician was elected on his first try, in May 1996, and retained the seat ever since. Several officials said that Davis will be missed by the people he represented and in Democratic political circles. "He was a pleaser. He always tried to help his constituents, whether it had something to do with law enforcement or not," Fort Bend County Precinct 2 Commissioner Grady Prestage said. Devoted to community U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a Houston Democrat, called her friend "the community's constable." She met Davis when she was serving on the Houston City Council and he was an HPD officer. "He lived his law enforcement life with cheer and generosity," she said. "Everything in Fort Bend County - every elected official, every constituent - was touched by Constable Ruben Davis' seriousness about law enforcement and keeping the community safe." During his 40-year career, Davis earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from the University of Houston-Downtown and a master's degree in counseling from Prairie View A&M University. "Ruben Davis was a tremendous light to the community of Fort Bend County," Remus E. Wright, senior pastor of The Fountain of Praise, said in a statement. "He was a great political leader who was committed to legislation that inspired change for the youngest and eldest of those he served. He was a committed role model to husbands and fathers and a committed man of God. His impact will be greatly missed in both our church and community." The constable's current term expires on Dec. 31. According to the Texas Elections Code, a vacancy occurs on the date of an official's death. Davis appears unopposed on the Nov. 8 ballot. If he is re-elected as a deceased candidate to a four-year term, another vacancy will occur on Nov. 22 - the date that Fort Bend County election results will be canvassed by commissioners. It is unclear whether Fort Bend commissioners will make an appointment for the last six weeks of the year. Diagnosed with cancer According to Fort Bend County Judge Robert Hebert's office and county elections administrator John Oldham, commissioners have the responsibility to appoint someone to serve until the next election in November 2018. The winning candidate in that race will have an abbreviated two-year term. The seat then returns to the usual four-year rotation for the 2020 election. Sharon Davis said she would be willing to accept an appointment to her husband's post. His wife said Ruben Davis was diagnosed with bone cancer a decade ago, but didn't disclose his health challenge to many people. The constable's decline in recent months was accelerated, Sharon Davis believes, by the death of their 36-year-old daughter, Traneka, from blood cancer in December 2014. She was their oldest child and a television writer in Los Angeles. The couple's other daughter, Robin, said she's thankful that her father always found time for family and recalled road trips during her childhood. "He was always there," the 33-year-old said. "He took us everywhere." Davis returned home Friday from a rehabilitation hospital and enjoyed fellowship with family over a spaghetti dinner. He ate more than anyone else, his wife said, then chased that big meal with his favorite dessert: Blue Bell butter pecan ice cream. Feeling ill on Sunday morning, the constable returned to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center where doctors caught an infection. He was expected to recover but made a sudden turn around 5:30 a.m. Tuesday. In addition to his wife and younger daughter, Davis is survived by his father, Ruben Davis Sr.; three siblings and a beloved Shih Tzu, Bella. Funeral arrangements are pending. Thank God for WikiLeaks. I confess, I was starting to wonder about what the real Hillary Clinton - the one you never get to see behind closed doors - really stood for. But now that, thanks to WikiLeaks, I've had a chance to peruse her speeches to Goldman Sachs and other banks, I am more convinced than ever she can be the president America needs today. Seriously, those speeches are great! They show someone with a vision, a pragmatic approach to getting things done and a healthy instinct for balancing the need to strengthen our social safety nets with unleashing America's business class to create the growth required to sustain social programs. So thank you, Vladimir Putin, for revealing how Hillary really hopes to govern. I just wish more of that Hillary were campaigning right now and building a mandate for what she really believes. WikiHillary? I'm with her. Why? Let's start with what WikiLeaks says she said at Brazil's Banco Itau event in May 2013: "I think we have to have a concerted plan to increase trade ... and we have to resist protectionism, other kinds of barriers to market access and to trade." She also said, "My dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders, some time in the future with energy that is as green and sustainable as we can get it, powering growth and opportunity for every person in the hemisphere." That's music to my ears. A hemisphere where nations are trading with one another, and where more people can collaborate and interact for work, study, tourism and commerce, is a region that is likely to be growing more prosperous with fewer conflicts, especially if more of that growth is based on clean energy. Compare our hemisphere, or the European Union, or the Asian trading nations with, say, the Middle East - where the flow of trade, tourism, knowledge and labor among nations has long been restricted - and the case for Hillary's vision becomes obvious. The way Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump have made trade and globalization dirty words is ridiculous. Globalization and trade have helped to bring more people out of poverty in the past 50 years than at any other time in history. Do we need to make adjustments so the minority of the U.S. population that is hurt by freer trade and movements of labor is compensated and better protected? You bet we do. That's called fixing a problem - not throwing out a whole system that we know from a long historical record contributes on balance to economic growth, competitiveness and more open societies. In a speech to a Morgan Stanley group on April 18, 2013, WikiHillary praised the Simpson-Bowles deficit reduction plan, which included reforming the tax code to increase investment and entrepreneurship and raising certain taxes and trimming some spending and entitlements to make them more sustainable. The ultimate shape of that grand bargain could take many forms, she said, but Hillary stressed behind closed doors: "Simpson-Bowles put forth the right framework. Namely, we have to restrain spending, we have to have adequate revenues and we have to incentivize growth. It's a three-part formula." She is right. We'll never get out of this economic rut, and protect future generations, unless the business and social sectors, Democrats and Republicans, all give and get something - and that's exactly where WikiHillary was coming from. In an October 2013 speech for Goldman Sachs, Clinton seemed to suggest the need to review the regulations imposed on banks by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which was passed in 2010. Her idea was not to get rid of all of the rules but rather to make sure they were not imposing needless burdens that limited lending to small businesses and startups. As Clinton put it, "More thought has to be given to the process and transactions and regulations so that we don't kill or maim what works, but we concentrate on the most effective way of moving forward with the brainpower and the financial power that exists here." Again, exactly right. When I read WikiHillary, I hear a smart, center-left politician who will be inclined to work with both the business community and Republicans to keep America tilted toward trade expansion, entrepreneurship and global integration, while redoubling efforts to cushion workers from the downsides of these policies. I'm just sorry that campaign Hillary felt she could not speak like WikiHillary to build a proper mandate for President Hillary. She would have gained respect for daring to speak the truth to her own constituency. Nonetheless, thanks to WikiLeaks, I am reassured that she has the right balance of instincts on the issues I care about most. So, again, thank you, Putin, for exposing that Hillary. She could make a pretty good president for these times. Disbelief. Outrage. Befuddlement. These may be your reactions to the story of Crenshanda Williams, the former Houston 911 operator who has gained nationwide attention after being criminally charged for allegedly hanging up on hundreds of callers. The reason? Officials say she told them she just didn't feel like talking to anyone at the time. "Ain't nobody got time for this," she reportedly said in one call. It's a stunning lack of regard for human life and one's job description, which left a HoustonChronicle.com commenter to quip: "Meet the founder of the 'No Lives Matter' movement." But while we're tarring and feathering this woman online, and mocking her at the water cooler, maybe we should look in the mirror. I wonder if there's a little bit of Crenshanda in all of us. And I wonder if it's that lack of empathy and responsibility that allows us to avoid eye contact with the panhandler carrying a "hungry" sign past the driver-side window. To keep electing lawmakers who starve our schools and turn their backs on millions of uninsured Texans. To not even bother showing up at the polls. Most of us see ourselves as decent people. We wouldn't think of hanging up on another human being pleading with us for help - especially if that's our job. But how many ways in our daily lives do we avert our eyes and close our minds, to suffering and injustice, perhaps quietly muttering under our breaths "ain't nobody got time for this?" Americans are generous people. But busy people. Isolated people. People who can withdraw cash at the bank, pick up a prescription and get dinner all in the comfort of our air-conditioned cars, without engaging in a single bit of conversation with a fellow human being. We read less literature than we used to. Many of us no longer take a newspaper to learn about our local community or introduce us to different perspectives. Cable news is mostly an ideological pep rally. Some studies have suggested a decline in empathy among Americans, especially young people. And income inequality only exacerbates the problem: research has shown that attaining higher socioeconomic status diminishes empathy, apparently because the rich have less need to cooperate with and rely on others. Empathy, which generally means the ability to respond or understand other people's emotions, is a buzzword in education circles these days, as schools focus more on character and effective methods to combat bullying. Even "Sesame Street" is introducing kids to the concept: actor Mark Ruffalo recently explained empathy on one episode. But the educational nonprofit Sesame Workshop found something interesting when it surveyed some 2,000 parents and 500 teachers about empathy. A large share of teachers (86 percent) and parents (70 percent) admitted to often worrying that the world is an unkind place for children, NPR reported this week. And both groups overwhelming felt that being kind was more important than high academic achievement. But parents seemed to associate the word "kind" more with being polite than with being helpful or thoughtful. And 58 percent chose manners as more important while only 41 percent found empathy more important. I'm not saying we're raising a generation of kids who would do what the 911 operator is accused of doing. But we model behavior. I was reminded of this recently when I rolled down my window for an especially desperate and haggard-looking panhandler to give him a few dollars. One of my daughters gasped in disapproval. She'd seen me pass by folks like him too many times, and I'd taught her to ignore this man as well. It led to some soul-searching. Of course, our hearts can't bleed for everyone. The people who try to are sure to end up with a bad case of compassion fatigue - the kind that counselors and pastors and certain newspaper columnists know well. But we should fight the temptation to cordon off our tired souls from all that's foreign, and difficult, and confusing. We should make more small talk at the grocery store, and, even if we really don't have spare change, at least make eye contact with the guy asking for it. And, when we read stories like Crenshanda Williams', we should keep an eye out for stories like that of Nick Latiolais, so beautifully told by the Chronicle's Lauren Caruba in her series "55 Minutes," which recounts the mass shooting in the Memorial area in May. Latiolais, a Boy Scout and lifeguard, was driving by when he saw a man lying at the end of a driveway, screaming for help. He stopped to render aid when no one else would. The man, a waiter named Artur, had been shot in the leg. The 17-year-old stranger applied pressure until the ambulance arrived. He acted with empathy. When a neighbor needed help, he had the time, and the courage, and the heart. He's an example for us all. Breaking into intermittent sobs in a Houston federal courtroom, a Katy couple admitted Wednesday they kept a Nigerian woman enslaved in their home for two years while she worked as their maid and nanny. Chudy and Sandra Nsobundu pleaded guilty to one count each, just days before jury selection was set to begin. "What has got to be emphasized is we're here not only to punish people but to rescue the victims," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Ruben R. Perez, who heads the human trafficking unit for the Southern District of Texas. "This couple enslaved this nanny for over two years and for two years this nanny did not get paid a single cent for her work," he said. "She thought that 20,000 Nigerian nairas - the equivalent of $100 - was going to be deposited in her account per month, but she didn't even get that." The couple admitted they kept the nanny's passport and threatened harm if she did not cook, clean and tend to their five children. The victim told investigators she was forced to sleep on the floor, bathe in cold water, eat leftovers and work nearly 20-hour shifts seven days a week from September 2013 to October 2015. After hearing more than an hour of barely audible and tearful testimony from the couple, Senior U.S. District Judge Nancy F. Atlas said she believed the defendants knowingly intended to commit the acts and that they understood they were forgoing their rights to a jury trial and appeals. Perez, who prosecuted the case along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie N. Searle, said the victim - who falls under protected status in the United States under an act of Congress - came from abject poverty, did not speak English and had minimal education. She remains in the country but was not present in court. Can keep their home The husband and wife, naturalized U.S. citizens who remain free on bail, each pleaded guilty to the steepest individual federal charge against them, though prosecutors said dismissed counts would not have impacted the length of their sentences. Chudy Nsobundu, 57, pleaded guilty to visa fraud, admitting he fraudulently submitted an online application for a tourist visa by pretending to be the nanny. He stated falsely on the application that the woman was married, was his sister, was 20 years older than she really was, and that she would be traveling to the United States for her niece's graduation. Sandra Nsobundu, 49, pleaded guilty to unlawfully withholding the woman's passport. In exchange for their pleas, the couple will not have to forfeit their home in Cinco Ranch. The government, however, has asked that they pay their former employee $129,000, to comply with federal labor laws. The judge set sentencing for Jan. 4. According to the plea agreements, Sandra Nsobundu accompanied the woman, known only as A.E. in court documents, to the U.S. Consulate in Lagos in September 2013 to obtain her visa and presented a letter falsely stating A.E. was her husband's sister and was married to the couple's driver in Nigeria. 'The idiot' The Nsobundus covered her travel expenses to Houston, but as soon as she stepped into their vehicle on Sept. 29, 2013, Sandra obtained control of the nanny's Nigerian passport and other personal belongings and would not relinquish them. The rules would be strict, the nanny learned, preventing her from making friends and getting assistance, according to the plea agreements. She would work seven days a week from 5:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. She could not take breaks, sit down or watch TV. She could not use the telephone, see a doctor for a poorly healed arm, attend church regularly or walk beyond the immediate neighborhood with the young children. She was forced to sleep on the floor in the children's bedroom, in the space between their beds. If she wanted milk for her tea, it had to be drained from the children's cereal bowls. The defendants also subjected her to physical and emotional abuse. They called her "the idiot" and hit and slapped her in the neck, arms and back on a weekly basis until the situation came to the attention of federal investigators, with the help of a concerned neighbor who was fluent in Igbo. The tip to National Human Trafficking Resource Center on Oct. 10, 2015, set the government's case in motion. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The business card for Michael Shawn Kelly, a landscape architect who wants to represent the deep-red suburbs of far north Harris County in the Texas House, touts his conservative values and quotes the late Republican politician Jack Kemp. The card, however, makes no mention of party affiliation. That is because Kelly is the Democratic nominee for the District 150 seat, one the GOP has held for decades. With that scarlet D next to his name on the ballot, Kelly faces long odds in trying to defeat Valoree Swanson, who toppled state Rep. Debbie Riddle in the Republican primary by attacking the conservative lawmaker as insufficiently principled. For Kelly to score the upset Nov. 8, the first-time candidate must find a way to cultivate voters that moves beyond party labels. "It's tough for people to jump the fence," he said. "A lot of our advertising is about giving Republicans permission to vote for a Democrat." The district, which sprawls over Tomball, Spring and the Harris County portion of The Woodlands, is politically predictable. In winning seven general elections, Riddle dispatched every Democratic challenger by at least 30 percentage points. More Information Meet the candidates Michael Shawn Kelly Age: 60 Party: Democrat Occupation: landscape architect Campaign website: campaigntexas.com Valoree Swanson Age: 59 Party: Republican Occupation: Conservative activist Campaign website: valoreeswanson.com See More Collapse Yet, Kelly, 60, believes he can defeat Swanson, 59, a conservative activist, by persuading a primarily Republican electorate that he can represent it with an independent voice. His strategy is to avoid hot-button social issues while hammering on education spending. He criticizes Republican lawmakers for not giving public schools the tools they need. "The goal shouldn't be how to spend less money," Kelly said. "We should be asking, 'How educated do we want these kids to be?' Let's put a price tag on it and then ask people if it's worth it." One convert is Diane Schumacher, a retired manufacturing executive and lawyer who said she votes "99.9 percent of the time" for Republicans. "It was an easy decision because he is focused on the right things," she said. In the district, "people are really looking at him as an individual because his opponent is so far to the right." Riddle said she also is inclined to vote for Kelly even though she never has voted for a Democrat. One reason is his willingness to fight for House members' ability to keep subsidized housing projects at bay in their districts. State senators gave up a similar power in 2013. 'Genuine conservative' The other is Swanson's criticism of state House Speaker Joe Straus, an establishment-style Republican - a stance Riddle said will prevent Swanson from getting the leader's help on critical issues for the district. "I want someone who will fight fiercely for our district, not just be a partisan," Riddle said. Swanson said Riddle was wrong in her criticism, saying she would work to maintain authority over subsidized housing and indicated she would support Straus if he was not opposed for Speaker. Swanson said she will work to expand school choice and to prohibit state courts from basing decisions on foreign legal codes. She refers to Kelly as a liberal Democrat and reminds voters at every turn that she is a "genuine, authentic conservative." "This is a conservative district, and I'm the only conservative in the race," Swanson said. The House seat is likely to remain in Republican hands, considering two of every three voters in the district cast straight-ticket ballots, said Mark Jones, a political scientist at Rice University. The race "highlights the importance of the party label in Texas," Jones said. "It may be that Kelly is closer than Swanson to the median voter in District 150. But it's likely to hurt him to have 'Democrat' next to his name because of the association with Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Wendy Davis." Donald Trump's inability to unify the GOP means "this might be the year" that voters spurn straight-ticket ballots, said Brandon Rottinghaus, a political scientist at the University of Houston. "But this might not be the district." 'People need a lift' Kelly dismissed the idea that he is a liberal posing as a moderate for votes. As a student at Texas A&M University, he read the National Review. He voted for Ronald Reagan and in GOP primaries. And he volunteered at a nonprofit crisis pregnancy center that offered parenting classes, free diapers and other support to make it easier for pregnant women to carry to term. "I didn't change," Kelly said. Before deciding to run for office, "I looked at the issues, and I saw that the party I identified with wasn't the same party. Jack Kemp wouldn't be allowed in the Republican Party now." A congressman and housing secretary, Kemp preached the gospel of economic opportunity and upward mobility that Kelly said has disappeared from the GOP in recent years. "There needs to be an acknowledgment that some people need a lift," he said. For Harris County Democratic leaders, any misgivings they may have had about Kelly faded in a burst of pragmatism. After talking to Kelly for the first time, "I came away with the sense that he is a disillusioned Republican who genuinely wants the government to work for the taxpayer," said Lane Lewis, chair of the Harris County Democratic Party. "He is a good candidate and alternative in that district. Debbie Riddle is pretty far right, and the woman who beat her is far, far right." Despite the Democrats' support, Kelly has not asked for their help. He said the party's mailer listing its nominees and positions, such as favoring abortion rights and a $15 minimum wage, is an anvil pulling him down. "There is no playbook for how to do this," but the Democrats "can't just get out the vote" to win in this district, he said. "You have to get the crossover." Editor's note: An earlier version of this story said Swanson said she would vote for Rep. Joe Straus as speaker of the House, but did not include her caveat that she did not expect him to face a challenge. INDIANAPOLIS - Indiana's chief elections official said Tuesday that thousands of voter registrations were altered, raising concerns about possible fraud and prompting her office to warn voters to check whether their information is correct online and vote early to avoid problems on Election Day. Secretary of State Connie Lawson said that Indiana's online voter registration database had not been hacked but records were changed on paper forms, online and at Bureau of Motor Vehicles offices. "At this time, my office is not sure why these records were changed, but we have evaluated the Statewide Voter Registration System and have found no indication it has been compromised," said Lawson, a Republican. The Indiana incident comes amid scrutiny of voting systems ahead of the general election on Nov. 8. The Department of Homeland Security has warned states of attempts to hack election systems and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has repeatedly said at rallies that the election could be rigged, without providing any evidence. The Indiana voter registration problem surfaced when voters contacted the Secretary of State's office after discovering through the online system voters can use to check their registration status that their dates of birth or first names were incorrect, the office said. That prompted the office to run a report in the statewide system and it found that thousands of registrations had been altered. The office declined to provide a more precise number. All of those who contacted the office after discovering changes had voted in Indiana's May primary, Lawson's office said. The information collected on the altered registrations has been turned over to Indiana State Police, which already was conducting a separate investigation of possible voter registration fraud in 56 counties. That investigation focuses on Washington, D.C.-based voter mobilization group, Patriot Majority USA, which denies any wrongdoing. State Police are investigating whether some voter registrations applications submitted by the group were forged, or other possible fraud. State Police spokesman Capt. Dave Bursten has said investigators found "a number of applications" with signatures apparently written in the same person's handwriting. AUSTIN - Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump - hurt by weeks of self-inflicted wounds, public feuds with party brass, lagging support nationally - is statistically tied with Democrat Hillary Clinton in bright-red Texas just days before early voting begins, according to three polls released in the last week. In a survey released Tuesday by the University of Houston's Hobby School of Public Affairs, Trump holds a 3-percentage-point lead over Clinton, 41 percent to 38 percent, among registered voters in the Lone Star State. That narrow lead falls within the survey's margin of error of plus- or minus 3 percent, meaning the race is a statistical dead heat. Trump's lead rose to 4 percent among voters who said they were certain to vote on or before Election Day. "The national gains Hillary Clinton has made in the last two weeks are evident in Texas, where she has closed within three points of Donald Trump," said Richard Murray, political science professor and director of the Hobby School's Survey Research Institute. "With such a close margin, the key question will be which candidate can actually get their supporters to the polls over the next three weeks." Texas, reliably red for more than a generation, had been assumed to be in the Republican win column, even before Trump claimed the GOP nomination. Despite Clinton's history of support in the state - she outpolled Barack Obama in the 2008 Democratic primary - her campaign never has outwardly suggested Texas could be in play in November. As the race appears to have tightened, however, her camp opened additional offices around Texas and announced a last-minute ad buy in the state's largest metropolitan areas. Several polls conducted since the first presidential debate on Sept. 26 put Trump's lead in the high single-digits, but a few more recent surveys show his advantage shrinking. In particular, an Oct. 13 poll from WFAA-TV, a Dallas station, gave Trump a 4-point edge on Clinton, 47 percent to 43 percent, which, like the UH poll, put the GOP nominee within the margin of error. 'Trump's bad week' Also released Tuesday, a Washington Post/SurveyMonkey poll - which was conducted online and had thousands of respondents - showed Clinton trailing Trump by 2 points in Texas, 44 percent to 42 percent. Republican Mitt Romney bested President Barack Obama in Texas by nearly 16 points in 2012. The seemingly close race in Texas likely is attributable to weeks of critical news coverage about Trump's businesses and a bevy of sexual assault allegations against him, said UH political science professor Brandon Rottinghaus. "I think it makes sense. On the heels of Trump's bad week - maybe the worst of any presidential candidate in history - his support is lagging," Rottinghaus said. "Democrats need Latinos to vote in bigger numbers and for suburban women to break for the Democratic Party, and that seems to be happening in 2016, potentially in a way that hasn't happened before." Ed Espinoza, the executive director of liberal media firm Progress Texas, said he sees some merit in the polls after several of them in recent weeks consistently showed the Lone Star State contest tightening. "Once we saw that fourth poll, we thought, this is a trend going in the right direction," Espinoza said. "We have a good candidate, a better landscape and we have a Republican Party of Texas that is so out of touch with the average Texan." Noting that Texas' size and regional differences make accurate polling difficult, Espinoza said Democrats and their allies have to focus on increasing turnout in key urban counties if they are going to prove the trend correct. "If they're able to get those counties that are voting at 21 percent up to 31 percent (turnout), then you're going to notice a difference," he said. "It's still an understandably challenging landscape, but the fact that the ground is softening speaks volumes about the progress Democrats have made this year." Last-minute efforts While the margin between Trump and Clinton is narrowing, polls of registered voters conducted with fewer than 20 days until Election Day are unreliable, said GOP consultant Matt Mackowiak. "Trump is hemorrhaging Republicans and college-educated white women. But the GOP ground game advantage in Texas is significant, since the Democrats here couldn't pull off a one-car funeral," he said. "But I'm sure they are encouraged right now." It also remains unclear, he said, whether Democrats can activate a field organization to compete with Republicans' efforts by Election Day, even if Trump does not enjoy as comfortable a margin in Texas as previous GOP White House hopefuls did. Mackowiak cited the Clinton campaign's one-week TV ad buy and the recent opening of a Democratic field office in Houston as examples of a last-minute dash by national Democrats. "I'm not sure they have planted enough seeds so that they can take advantage of this circumstance," he said. "If they haven't put in the field effort, if they haven't done the fundraising, you can't take full advantage. They're throwing it all together." The UH poll included telephone interviews with 1,000 registered voters conducted between Oct. 7-15. Among independent voters in Texas, Clinton dominates Trump, 30 percent to 14 percent. The GOP candidate, however, won the support of a plurality of male respondents, 44 percent to Clinton's 35 percent. Meanwhile, women in the poll supported Clinton by a 4-point margin, 42 percent to 38 percent. Over the past year, the nation has watched a tragedy unfold in Flint, Mich., where the drinking water was severely contaminated by lead. As kids returned to school last month, it's important to know that lead in drinking water is also a major problem in schools across the country, including right here in the state of Texas. Lead exposure, especially for children, can cause very serious health problems, including decreased bone and muscle growth, damage to the nervous system and kidneys, and developmental delays. In adults, lead exposure can cause kidney failure and high blood pressure. Lead exposure from drinking water is not a new issue. Historically, lead was used in water mains, service lines and plumbing fixtures, including in schools built before 1986. Over time, the lead leaches out of the pipes and fixtures and into the water coming out of the taps. Thirty years ago Congress banned the installation of lead pipes after research showed how exposure to lead can be dangerous, especially for children and pregnant women. The EPA and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention agree that there is no known safe level of lead in a child's blood, but water utilities are only required to take action when lead in drinking water is 15 parts per billion in 10 percent of test results. Lead poisoning is irreversible. But is also preventable. If there is any place we should be preventing lead exposure, it should be in the place where our kids spend most of their time. Yet many school districts across the country have now confirmed lead contamination in schools' drinking water. In Texas, there are more than 1,200 school districts with a student population over 5.1 million students, many of whom may be affected by lead in the water. As recently as July, 28 out of 116 schools tested were found to have some unsafe lead levels. Some school districts are taking action to get lead out of drinking water. Fort Worth ISD began testing drinking water at its 140 schools in June and posted the results online. They are now working to replace hundreds of drinking fountains that are over 30 years old, eliminating some risk of lead contamination. In Houston and Dallas, all schools will be tested for lead by the end of the year. All Texas schools should regularly and properly test their water for lead. Schools should post test results online in a timely manner, so parents know immediately if their kids are at risk. Schools should be up front with parents, letting them know that there is actually no safe level of lead in water - even if test results are below levels where mandatory action is triggered. Ripping out lead pipes and replacing fixtures is the ultimate solution, but in the meantime, schools need to ensure that kids have safe drinking water right away by installing filters on drinking fountains and/or providing bottled water. Testing and replacing lead pipes and fixtures will cost money and the federal government should provide assistance to our schools. Fortunately, Congress is working to do just that. The Senate version of the Water Resources Development Act would distribute $4.8 billion in funding for national water infrastructure management, including a $220 million aid package to address the Flint, Mich. crisis, a grant program offering $300 million over five years for the replacement of lead pipes and a new $20 million federal grant program for schools choosing to test for lead. Congress should quickly approve this funding and the Texas Legislature should match it with state funds next spring. Children spend a significant portion of their young lives at school. We owe it to them to keep them safe from toxic chemicals that may impede their learning and harm their health. Johnson represents Dallas's 30th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Metzger is director of Environment Texas. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate United States Representative, District 2: Ted Poe Consider this not just an endorsement for Ted Poe, but also heartfelt support as the six-term congressman recovers from treatment for leukemia. A former criminal district judge known for his creative sentences and shaming tactics, Poe has cut a niche for himself as a dedicated public servant who is leading the fight against sex trafficking and who listens to the constituents of his sprawling district, which spirals around from Atascocita through west Harris County, northwest Houston, Montrose and Southampton. During his phone interview with the Houston Chronicle editorial board, we were particularly impressed by Poe's blunt critique of plans to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. He instead called for more manned patrols of the Rio Grande and the use of observation blimps. Poe's Democratic challenger, Pat Bryan, is a retired engineer with no prior political experience. United States Representative, District 7: James Cargas John Culberson didn't receive our endorsement in the contested Republican primary, and we don't plan on changing our minds for the general election. But this showdown will be Democrat James Cargas' third attempt to replace the eight-term Republican congressman, and, frankly, it is starting to get a bit repetitive. Meeting with the editorial board, Cargas, an energy attorney who works at City Hall, critiqued Culberson for failing to adequately advocate on behalf of the wealthy west Houston district, which stretches from West University through the Galleria to the Energy Corridor then north to Jersey Village. Throughout this election cycle, Culberson has faced criticism from Republicans and Democrats alike for being more of a busybody who panders to the tea party than a true representative. However, after two failed runs, Cargas' passion has grown listless, especially when placed next to Culberson's machine-gun staccato during their editorial board meeting. If this is how a political challenger feels after trying to run in a gerrymandered system, we can only imagine its effects on voters. United States Representative, District 9: Al Green If you're worried about flooding in Houston, then Al Green is your man in Washington. Over the past year, he's been working with his fellow Democrats, and across the aisle with Republicans, to push a bill that would prioritize federal spending on Houston's bayous. Now in his six-term, Green has inserted similar language into the must-pass Water Resources Development Act of 2016. Don't expect any of this to make major headlines, but if it ends up in the final bill, it will save homes and lives in our swampy city. Green's goal-oriented, dedicated attitude deserves praise - and re-election - from voters. The former justice of the peace represents a district that follows Beltway 8 from south Houston through Missouri City, Stafford and Mission Bend. His Republican challenger, Jeff Martin, did not meet with the editorial board. More for you U.S. Congress, part 2 United States Representative,District 10: Michael T. McCaul Over his six terms in Congress, Michael T. McCaul has distinguished himself as a steely and smart leader on foreign policy. As chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, the former federal prosecutor is on path to become the Republican face of international relations and national security. His sprawling district, which extends between Houston and Austin suburbs, grants him a certain luxury of being able to focus on these national and international issues. Back on American shores, however, McCaul has aligned himself with a presidential candidate who continues to flatter Russia's aspiring despot and relishes in Wikileaks' 21st century Watergate break-in. In fact, McCaul was the only contested representative in Houston who attended the Republican National Convention, according to the Texas Tribune. No doubt that the second wealthiest man in Congress has his eye on higher ambitions. His name has been floated as a challenger to U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz. He would also be a natural fit for Director of National Intelligence - we'd just prefer it be in a Clinton administration. McCaul's Democratic challenger, Tawana W. Cadien, is a registered nurse who ran for this position in 2012. *Editors note: This is one in a series of profiles submitted by candidates for local offices. I am a Texas County native, born and raised in Cabool, where I attended school and graduated in 1971. I enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1972 and graduated from the Naval School of Health Sciences in San Diego, Calif., as a hospital corpsman. I served as a staff corpsman in the Medical Intensive Care Unit at the Naval Regional Medical Center at San Diego. I attended and graduated from Field Corpsman School at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and was assigned to the First Marine Division until my discharge from active duty in May 1976. I received an honorable discharge in February 1978 having served two years in the ready reserve program. I obtained my California Emergency Medical Technician license while stationed at Camp Pendleton. I returned to Cabool in May 1976 and started as an EMT at Texas County Memorial Hospital in June 1976. I attended the first hospital based paramedic training class in the Missouri and became a paramedic in 1981 and held that position for 20 years. I also worked as a surgical technician at Texas County Memorial Hospital until January 2005. In 1992, I attended and graduated from the Missouri State Highway Patrol Law Enforcement Training Academy in Jefferson City. I worked as a reserve deputy for Texas County until 2008. I worked as the attendance officer for the Southern Texas County Safe Schools/Healthy Students program at Cabool Schools in 2005 and remained there during the duration of the grant. I was a member of the Cabool Volunteer Fire Department for more than 20 years and served as fire marshal and assistant chief. I am Firefighter I and Firefighter II certified. I am currently a member of the City of Cabool Board of Adjustments and have been on the board since its inception. I have 20 years experience as a Medico-Legal Death Investigator. I am a 20-year member of the Missouri Coroners and Medical Examiners Association. I am a past president of the association and a current board member as the Troop G Coroners Director. I have been married to Dala Brill Whittaker for 42 years. We have two children, Scott and Sarah, and two grandchildren, Grayson Jones and Josie Whittaker. I am a lifelong member of the Cabool First United Methodist Church. Not all of the 55 trees planted in Emmett Kelly Park survived following a joint operation between the City of Houston and Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) in 2012. But the MDC has now purchased replacements for the five that died for various reasons, and three of them will be in the ground this week, weather permitting (a Shumard oak, a bald cypress and a London planetree), while two more will be planted in November (both redbuds). The project four years ago was made possible by MDCs help in Houstons acquisition of about $7,000 through a TRIM grant (Tree Resource Improvement and Maintenance). It was designed to upgrade the parks landscaping by removing about 26 trees that that were either dying of old age or had sustained wind or lightning damage, while placing many more in areas void of shade. MDC resource forester Travis Mills was instrumental in the project, and is not surprisingly a big proponent of trees. He and his Houston-based crew manage tens of thousands of acres of forested land in Texas County. Mills said he would like to see citizens in incorporated Texas County communities get involved in an Arbor Day Foundation program called Tree City USA, which is billed as a nationwide movement that provides the framework necessary for communities to manage and expand their public trees. The program is designed to guide towns and citizens toward improving tree management in terms of growth, care and maintenance. Im not sure a lot of people are aware of all the good things trees provide, said City of Houston public grounds supervisor Joe Kirkman. And its a renewable resource. Getting a Tree City USA program started requires the formation of a tree board comprised of at least two individuals, and the adoption of a city ordinance. That lines out a plan, Mills said, or provides protocol and standard operating procedures. Another requirement of Tree City USA status is staging some sort of annual Arbor Day event. And that wouldnt necessarily have to be on its own, Mills said. It could be correlated with something else. Lastly, at least $2 per capita must be spent on urban forestry. But the city can do that by what they do already, Mills said. Labor can be counted, and lots of other things. Basically, meeting the requirements is what every community should already be doing with trees anyway. Mills said he would be glad to help anyone interested in beginning a Tree City USA effort in Texas County. Id love to see some people get excited about this, Mills said. I cant do it single-handedly, but urban forestry as well as rural is part of our mission, and we will advise people to the best of our ability. Mills said that since Houston is the countys business hub and county seat, he would like to see the town take a lead role with regard to Tree City USA. But Id like to see the other towns in the county get involved, too, Mills said, and well help anyone whos interested get started. It sounds daunting and overwhelming, but its really not. It can be done, and its a good idea to have parameters. The positive effects trees have on a community is well documented and wide-ranging they improve an areas ground water-retention, increase shade, add beauty and more. Industry is even attracted to communities with good urban forestry practices, Mills said, and a given tracts property value is significantly higher if trees are present. Kirkman said education is needed with regard to trees, and the foundations program would help promote that. Like Joe, I dont think a lot of people are aware of how much trees bring to their lives, Mills said. Because this program has to do with trees, it affects a lot of people, and I really believe this would be something really good for Houston and other towns in this county. And think about it: We live in place with rivers are named after trees and where a community is nicknamed Timber Town. Trees are important everywhere, but theyre also a big part of this areas history and heritage. Mills can be reached by phone at 417-967-3385. I dont think a lot of people are aware of how much trees bring to their lives. MDC RESOURCE FORESTER TRAVIS MILLS According to 2015 Arbor Day Foundation statistics, 88 Missouri communities had earned Tree City USA status, including the states biggest city, Kansas City, and tiny towns like Augusta (population 225). Ohio was listed as having the most Tree City USA communities, with 247, and at 37 years and counting, Mexico was Missouris longest running Tree City USA community as of last year. Nationwide, there were close to 3,500 Tree City USA communities, including New York City and Chicago. For more information, log onto www.arborday.org/programs/treeCityUSA/index.cfm. Tree City USA Missouri Tree City USA national Tree City USA summary Four years after a strange campaign kept one Missouri Senate seat in Democratic hands, the party is hoping to capitalize on anti-incumbent sentiment and claim the other. If 35-year-old Secretary of State Jason Kander upsets Republican Sen. Roy Blunt, it would be a coup for Democrats in a state where Republicans dominate the Legislature and havent lost a presidential race for two decades. Recent polls show Blunt, 66, a longtime member of Congress, with a slim lead, but its well within the polling margin of error, making the contest a virtual toss-up. With Senate control potentially hanging in the balance, a Missouri campaign is a major national focus for the second time in four years. In 2012, Sen. Claire McCaskill once considered one of the chambers most vulnerable Democratic incumbents easily won re-election after Republican challenger Todd Akin commented on a St. Louis TV talk show that womens bodies have ways of avoiding pregnancy from what he called legitimate rape. The Blunt-Kander race wasnt always expected to be so close, but University of Missouri-St. Louis political science professor David Kimball said Kander has benefited from voters anti-Washington sentiment. I think perhaps theres some anger in the general population with politics as usual and with people perceived as being veteran, career politicians, and for them, someone like Kander may look more appealing than Sen. Blunt, Kimball said. Even now, both sides are playing it reasonably safe on the campaign trail, sticking to the same talking points theyve been hammering home for months. Blunt, who served seven terms in the House before election to the Senate in 2010, focuses on the need to bring more and better-paying jobs to Missouri, making the nation safer, and reducing regulations. Kander highlights his background as an Army intelligence officer in Iraq, and the need for a new generation of leadership in Washington. Both sides are spending millions of dollars on TV ads, bolstered by millions more from their national senatorial committees as well as political action committees and other outside groups. Attack ads often try to tie the candidates to the tops of their tickets Blunt to GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump, and Kander to Democrat Hillary Clinton. Its a connection both men tend to shy away from. Both skipped their parties national convention this summer. Clinton is rarely mentioned in Kander campaign appearances. Normally congenial with reporters, Blunt bristled Thursday following a campaign appearance in suburban St. Louis when asked once again if he continues to back Trump. Asked and answered like 10 times in the last week and the answers still the same, Blunt said. As long as the choice is Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton Hillary Clinton will not change the Obamacare disaster, the out of control regulators, or our terrible foreign policy. I think with a Republican Congress that he (Trump) may be able to do that. The two candidates have debated just once, along with three lesser-known candidates at a forum on Sept. 30 in Branson. Kander spokeswoman Anne Feldman said Kander has agreed to three additional debates hosted by broadcast outlets in St. Louis, Kansas City and Springfield, but Blunt has refused. Blunt spokesman Tate OConnor said the campaign continues to look for the best opportunities to talk with Missourians about the real issues that matter. ASSOCIATED PRESS An online exclusive is an article or story that does not run in the print edition of the Houston Herald. Typically 2-3 are posted online every Wednesday morning. Its another feature designed for users who purchase full web access from the Herald. Click here to subscribe for print, digital or both. The general election campaign for Missouri governor has featured attack ads and face-to-face accusations at a debate in Branson. It turns out in most of the claims, theres some truth and some hyperbole. Republican Eric Greitens, a former Navy SEAL officer, and two-term Democratic Attorney General Chris Koster are engaged in a campaign to replace Democrat Jay Nixon, who is prohibited by term limits from seeking a third term. Here is a fact-check on some of the claims in the campaign: Greitens: Koster, as a state senator, voted against a bill to provide funding for medical exams for sexual-assault victims. The facts: True, but with a major caveat. Koster was one of four senators who voted against Senate Bill 583 on May 17, 2007. It passed anyway. One section provides for state funding to pay for rape kits, meaning sexual-assault victims no longer had to pay for their own examinations. But the bill contains nearly two dozen provisions on a variety of issues. One section offers the possibility of early parole for inmates incarcerated for killing a spouse or domestic partner and sentenced to at least 50 years without parole. Among the criteria for parole after serving 15 years: evidence the convicted person suffered domestic violence that was not presented at trial. Koster said at the debate he voted against the bill because that section could have freed convicted killers on manufactured evidence. Koster: Greitens has profited substantially from his charitable organization, The Mission Continues. A Koster ad says Greitens used the charity to pay himself over $700,000 in salary and bonuses. The facts: True, but the salary was not considered out of line by at least two charity watchdog groups. Federal tax records show Greitens initially took no salary in 2007 and 2008 from the charity that helps veterans transition to life at home through volunteer work. After receiving a grant, Greitens was paid a total of $150,000 from mid-2009 through 2010. As contributions increased, his salary was raised to $175,000 in 2011, and he received a $25,000 bonus that year. His salary remained at that level the next two years. He resigned as CEO in 2014 as his gubernatorial campaign began. Charity Navigator said Greitens salary was higher than the $131,000 median compensation for chief executives of 237 medium-sized charities in the Midwest but not egregiously so. Daniel Borochoff of CharityWatch said given Greitens credentials, including his doctorate degree in politics from Oxford University, his salary seemed within a reasonable range. Greitens: The New York Times cited Koster as one of Americas most corrupt attorneys general. The facts: An October 2014 Times article did not call Koster corrupt; however, the story about undue influence of lobbyists on state attorneys general focused heavily on Koster, raising the question of whether his office backed off investigations of companies after accepting gifts and campaign donations. The article specifically cited investigations of 5-Hour Energy, Pfizer and AT&T. Koster has denied impropriety. Campaign spokesman David Turner said 45 other states also did not move forward with legal action against 5-Hour Energy, and one that did, Oregon, lost its case recently. Turner said Koster has sued Pfizer several times and won a $22 million settlement in 2009 as part of a nationwide Medicaid fraud case. Missouri also was part of a 50-state settlement with AT&T in 2014. A month after the Times article, Kosters gubernatorial campaign adopted a policy of not accepting gifts from lobbyists or contributions from anyone involved in litigation with the attorney generals office. Turner said the campaign has refunded or returned more than $115,000 since the policy was implemented. Nanci Gonder, a spokeswoman for the attorney generals office, said there is an intentional separation between the office and any candidate committee, so that decisions are not inappropriately influenced. Greitens: At a debate Sept. 30 in Branson and in ads, Greitens has accused Koster of spending $3.2 million to redecorate his office. The facts: The allegation is misleading. In 2013, lawmakers approved Kosters request to use money recovered from consumer-fraud cases to pay most of a $3.2 million renovation of an office that houses staff for the attorney general. Koster works in a different building. The work included replacing a ceiling, replacing carpet, improving the heating and cooling system, and addressing potential health concerns. We tore asbestos out of a building that was seeping water through the mold and had no windows, Koster said at the debate. Some critics at the time questioned whether it was a wise use of money when the state was considering cuts to higher education. ASSOCIATED PRESS An online exclusive is an article or story that does not run in the print edition of the Houston Herald. Typically 2-3 are posted online every Wednesday morning. Its another feature designed for users who purchase full web access from the Herald. Click here to subscribe for print, digital or both. The students gather around in anticipation of what they are going to see, and eventually feel. After a brief countdown, the instructor pulls the trigger. There is a distinct pop and, in less time than it takes to blink, the buzzing sound of electricity fills the void. Being tased is a requirement for every student as part of the Department of Defense Inter-service Nonlethal Individual Weapons Instructor Course. According to Marine Gunnery Sgt. Jeff Mueller, course chief, its the part students anticipate and dread the most. They know its coming, so their anxiety level is through the roof, he said. The students are sprayed with pepper spray (oleoresin capsicum) on day three and are tased on day four of the 10-day course, Mueller said. If they can get through to the first Friday, they are good, he said. This was not the first time being tased for Staff Sgt. Maria Gonzalez, a National Guard internment/resettlement specialist with 606th Military Police Company, El Paso, Texas. Last time I was tased was four years ago, so it humbles you, she said. Its always good to have that refresher, so you dont lose that instructor aspect of it. The course covers a lot in the short time they are on Fort Leonard Wood, Mueller said, including five academic and seven practical application evaluations on topics ranging from interpersonal communication skills to mechanical advantage control holds to non-lethal weapons. Non-lethal weapons is a monster, Mueller said. It can be the baton you have, to the OC spray, your heavy devices which is the taser, all the way up to, last but not least, your munitions. The course is open to all services, including civilian agencies and international students, and is not limited to just military police. A lot of military police get the quotas, but it is open to anyone, because anybody can be tasked with doing a crowd control formation, Mueller said. Mueller added the course is good for National Guard Soldiers who often respond to civil disturbances, such as the riots in Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore, Maryland. Marine Cpl. Mark McNulty, traffic investigator assigned to the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, California, said this was a course he has wanted to attend for a while. I thought it would be good to go into other countries and be able to train them, but now that I am in the course, I see the benefits of where I can take this into a PMO (provost marshal office) setting and apply that non-lethal training to train my Marines, he said. Hopefully, I can give them information that can save their lives or somebody elses. Thats one of the best things, Mueller said, to know that we are the instructor trainers. It is great to say I am one of seven people in the entire Department of Defense to make these people into instructors. Making non-lethal weapons instructors is only part of what Mueller said this course is about. The end state of this course is to go back, and first and foremost, to be an adviser to their command on all things non-lethal, he said. Commanders will have to make the on-the-ground decisions, and they need to be able to look to someone who can speak intelligently and comfortably to it. An online exclusive is an article or story that does not run in the print edition of the Houston Herald. Typically 2-3 are posted online every Wednesday morning. Its another feature designed for users who purchase full web access from the Herald. Click here to subscribe for print, digital or both. As an existing print subscriber it is easy to get FREE access to all our online content. When you click get started below it will walk you through creating an online account to attach your print subscription number to. After your account is created it will ask you to either add a subscription for online access or click on the print subscriber button. Click the print subscriber button header and it will open a dropdown, now click on get started. The page will reload and you will be prompted to enter an account number and a zip code. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO USE THE NUMBER OFF OF THE MOST RECENT ISSUE OR ANYTHING AFTER JANUARY 28, 2019 TO GAIN ACCESS! OLD ACCOUNT NUMBERS WILL NOT WORK The account number and zip code are easily available on your most recent issue of the High Plains Journal or Midwest Ag Journal in the address fields as is shown here. Sometimes the account number has extra zero's in front of it, just ignore those. Subscribing to our services is a three step process. First you have to create an account and then you have to pick if you want to subscribe to digital and or print. Some people only want to be a digital subscriber to get access online and others want to also receive the print edition. If you are already a print subscriber and want online access, it is free, you simply have to create an online account and then attach your print subscription account number to the online account you create. ety per cent of employees decide whether to stay with a company within the first six months of starting a new job, according to research from Bersin by Deloitte Whats the key to getting a new employee up and running, productive and settled into a role?It often comes down to successful onboarding, according to Riges Younan, Avatures vice president APAC.We believe onboarding is a strategic process due to the impact it has on a companys performance by increasing employee engagement and reducing time to productivity, he said.It can have a tremendously positive impact on your employment brand.However, lots of organisations are still struggling with an ad-hoc approach to onboarding, marred by outmoded systems and a lack of consistency and cohesion between departments.With no structured onboarding process, its impossible to manage or even improve the experience, said Younan.Organisations may well be losing a lot of people for subtleties they may not even know about.These subtleties may seem small, but they make a significant impression on someone new to a company.They might include things like a missing laptop on their first day, a cancelled welcome meeting by their hiring manager, or missing out on an invitation to an after-work activity.If employers are not tracking the process, the interactions, or dont have a system that allows them to take the pulse of new hire engagement and happiness, they will never know what happened, at what point, with whom, and so on, said Younan.Its relatively simple really make onboarding easier to manage by structuring the process and importantly make it more human, more employee focused. Its not a big idea, its more common sense, he said.Younan added that its hard to implement common sense when you have 100,000 employees, especially when everything has to be done electronically for compliance and ease.Its very easy to fall into company-focused processes rather than human-orientated approaches, he said.Many organisations have ramped up their efforts in other steps of the recruitment cycle.For example, they are more sophisticated about the way they execute their talent acquisition strategy. If they are doing this right it means the new hire has experienced positive touch points throughout the whole process, from shoulder tap to hire.However, once the first day of work rolls around, it falls apart. Younan calls it a massive let-down or anti-climax when the employer drowns them in a pile of forms to be completed.I think little consideration is given about the way the service is delivered at this very crucial time, he said.In fact, bad service delivery at this stage of the process gives the candidate many opportunities to consider am I making the right decision?Losing candidates at this stage in the process is not only costly financially but has a negative effect on brand, employee perception, and future hiring ability for example, when people turn to Glassdoor to share their experiences, Younan said. Warning labels briefly appeared on packages of select Halloween costumes in a Regina store on Sunday, warning shoppers of offensive products that promote the sexualization of Indigenous women and peoples. Please avoid contact with these dangerous materials, they read. Two groups, the Saskatchewan Coalition Against Racism and Colonialism No More, visited the Spirit Halloween store with 60 paper labels. They taped them onto the front of costumes including ones named Reservation Royalty, Native American Princess, and Pocahottie. Advertisement There were more costumes in the store than labels in their hands. Robyn Pitawanakwat of Colonialism No More explained in a statement that they want all children to enjoy Halloween and not be bombarded by these harmful images, She added theres nothing fun about costumes and accessories based off riffs of cultural stereotypes. As an Indigenous woman, early childhood educator and mother of three Indigenous children, I know that it is well documented that these types of images are harmful to children and society at large, Pitawanakwat said. Advertisement Label action a public service In a letter the groups shared with store management, they called the costumes disrespectful after the launch of a long-anticipated national inquiry into Canadas murdered and missing indigenous women and girls. Each label included a mention of the inquiry, and provided a link where shoppers could find out more information. As part of a public service, we have marked all the items in your store that rely on racist and stereotyped understandings of Indigenous peoples, the letter reads. It takes everyone in Canada to fight against sexualized violence. That starts with outfits of this nature. Activists asked the company to immediately stop selling the items. All the warning labels were removed by the next day. The groups were motivated to do something after Saskatoon-based activist Zoey Roy called for a boycott of Spirit Halloween stores earlier this month, over its stock of Native American costumes. Advertisement Went into @SpiritHalloween on 51st Street and got escorted out. She compared us to pugs (because pug owners can be offended of pug masks). pic.twitter.com/mEeNRr13aE Zoey Pricelys Roy (@Pricelys1) October 9, 2016 Spirit Halloween has store locations in the U.S. and Canada. Removed costumes back in store CBC News reported a Saskatoon store removed the costumes following Roys complaint. But according to Chris Kortright with Saskatchewan Coalition Against Racism, the costumes were soon back on shelves. One day after they had told the media they had taken down the costumes in Saskatoon, they put the costumes back up, Kortright told The Huffington Post Canada. The labels follow a recent petition launched by an Ontario woman asking Spirit Halloween to pull its derogatory products depicting Indigenous women and girls. An #IAmNotACostume campaign has also been launched asking Halloween shoppers to be more cognizant of their costume ideas. We are proud of our costume selection for men, women and children. Lisa Barr, Spirit Halloween spokesperson to CBC News Spirit Halloween did not respond to HuffPost's request for comment. But the company told CBC News in a statement that while they understand certain sensitivities, they have no intention to pull the costumes. We always strive to present our costumes in a responsible and respectful manner. While we respect the opinion of those who are opposed to the sale of any cultural or historical costumes, we are proud of our costume selection for men, women and children, spokesperson Lisa Barr told the outlet. To Kortright, the companys statement is ridiculous. When the joke is at the expense of already marginalized and dispossessed people, it just furthers a culture that alienates people, he said in an interview. It hurts people, he said. It actually perpetuates hurt. Also on HuffPost The past two years have been tough for energy companies and resource-dependent economies. The price of oil has plummeted from about $100 per barrel to around $30, and only recovered to $50 in recent weeks amid news that OPEC would cap production. An oil price recovery was welcome news for the oil industry, as analysts still expect Canadian production to grow by 28 per cent up to 2030. Advertisement But demand for oil could peak in that time, says a new report from the World Energy Council (WEC). So where does that leave energy-dependent economies like Alberta? The WEC report, titled "The Grand Transition," outlines three scenarios for the future of energy around the world. In one scenario, titled "Modern Jazz," energy leaders will find themselves in a market-driven world where resource affordability will be achieved through economic growth. Advertisement Another scenario, "Unfinished Symphony," sees a government-driven approach to sustainability using "strong policy, long-term planning and unified climate action." A final scenario, "Hard Rock," is characterized by a "fragmented approach driven by desire for energy security in a world with low global cooperation." Global oil demand is currently estimated at around 97 million barrels per day, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). Such demand would peak at 103 million barrels per day in the "Modern Jazz" scenario, and at 94 million barrels per day in "Unfinished Symphony." This would largely happen due to new technologies for transport fuel, as well as competition from alternative forms of energy. Advertisement Oil demand would peak later under the "Hard Rock" scenario, reaching about 104 million barrels per day sometime between 2040 and 2050. In this scenario, transport systems would largely operate as they do right now. You might say the world is set to reach "Peak Oil," though it means something different from what it used to. This isn't the first report to suggest that demand for oil will level off in the coming decades. Earlier this year, Bernstein Research released a report that also identified 2030 as the peak year for oil demand, after which the desire for the resource will start dropping. It said fuel efficiency and alternative energy would sap out demand for the resource. Bold #oil prediction from Bernstein Research showing demand peaking around 2030-2035. pic.twitter.com/205gBjLDEE Alex McGuire (@AlexMcGuire92) April 25, 2016 Advertisement But what would happen to an economy like Alberta's if demand for oil dried up? The province's economy isn't solely dependent on energy, University of Alberta economist Trevor Tombe noted earlier this year. In a January op-ed for CBC News, he said that seven per cent of Alberta's workforce is employed in oil, gas and mining. That's less than the eight per cent of Ontario workers employed in finance, insurance and real estate. Construction, he noted, also employs a significant portion of Alberta's workers. Agriculture has also shown strength amid the downturn, particularly in the cattle industry, which is thriving despite low beef prices, according to BMO. Tombe stopped short of saying exactly what should be done. But clearly an economy like Alberta's can't just sit and hope for oil prices to go back to what they were. Also on HuffPost The Oilsands In Winter See Gallery thanh ha/YouTube Barack Obama is no stranger to poking fun of his daughters. On Tuesday, the U.S. President joked about Malia and Sashas texting habits while addressing students at Benjamin Banneker Academic High School in Washington D.C. After arriving late, Obama joked around, saying, I know you may have been waiting here a while. Good thing you all had your phones with you. Advertisement He then continued to give a spot-on impression of his teen girls texting. And then he said Girl, I couldnt believe it, Obama said in a high-pitched voice before showing off his selfie skills. Watch the full clip below. The 55-year-old dad then went on to tell students how he didnt have texting back in the day to ask out crushes. We used to actually have to go up to somebody if we liked them and talk to them, he teased. So that may happen to you someday. Advertisement Obama and his wife Michelle are parents to 18-year-old Malia and 15-year-old Sasha. Malia recently graduated from high school and is now taking a gap year before attending Harvard University in fall 2017. Her younger sister Sasha is still continuing her studies at Washington, D.C.s Sidwell Friends School. Also on HuffPost A black barista in Australia recently had to deal with a terrible customer. Josie Ajak, a South-Sudanese woman, is a shift supervisor at Gloria Jean's Coffees in Cairns, Queensland, Buzzfeed reports. About two weeks ago, when Ajak was working, a white woman came into the coffee shop and told her she "refused to be served by a black person," Ajak told the site. Advertisement [The woman said] 'Get me a white lady,'" Ajak told BuzzFeed. "[I told her] 'thats fine,' with a smile, and she moved aside, waiting for a white person. I told my staff that she is racist and that we wont be serving her, while I continued serving other customers with a smile." Later that day, Ajak's friend and co-worker Jade Arevalo posted the incident on Facebook. "To the woman who recently visited Gloria Jeans in Central for coffee and refused to be served by Josie because of the colour of her skin; you're lucky she didn't shit in your pie like that woman did in 'The Help,'" she wrote on Facebook. "Josie is one of the most kind and friendly people you could meet but irrespective of her character, she did not deserve to be excluded like this." Advertisement The post, which went viral, lead to the hashtag movement #buyacoffeefromjosie encouraging customers to buy a beverage from Ajak to show support. The coffee shop even put up a #buyacoffeefromjosie banner in the store and made a statement after Ajak's encounter with the customer, saying how grateful they were for Josie's supporters. "A heroine in this situation was a customer by the name of Stacey who openly supported and stood up for our employee," they wrote on their Facebook page. "The employees on shift were very young and shocked however refused to serve this customer, showing their maturity and zero tolerance for racism. The customer who displayed this conduct will not be served/tolerated in our store." Advertisement On her own Facebook page, Ajak responded with words of wisdom. Regardless of which colour, gender, age, size, and shape you are, we are all deserving of love and should be treated accordingly, Ajak wrote. "To everybody who has ever been refused service because of their skin colour, this is for you. There is absolutely no room for racism anywhere in the world!" Also on HuffPost Tips To Fight Racism And Discrimination See Gallery Canadians often complain that their Netflix library is weaker than the one Americans enjoy. That may be true when it comes to the sheer volume of titles. But a new report out of U.S. blog Streaming Observer suggests you can access better content up north. Advertisement Last month, the blog mined the U.S. Netflix catalogue to see how many titles were available from the Internet Movie Database's (IMDb) Top 250 list. It turned out that only 12 per cent of them were available to American subscribers. This month, Streaming Observer writer Eric Anthony looked at nine other countries' libraries and found that the U.S. catalogue ranks near the bottom of the list when it comes to movies that appear on the IMDb Top 250. Netflix Canada has 49 titles from that list, while the U.S. catalogue only has 33. Both of them beat the U.K., which boasts only 28 titles from that list. Advertisement The IMDb Top 250 is a ranking of movie titles by the website's users. The rankings are subjective, but the list does include classic titles such as "The Godfather," "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Dark Knight." Netflix Canada boasts all of those titles, and five in the top 10. The U.S. catalogue has only a single title in the IMDb top 10: "Pulp Fiction," which you can also access in Canada. The Great White North is nowhere near the top of the list for quality content, according to Streaming Observer. That would be Brazil, which has 85 titles on the IMDb top 250. Mexico is second, with 73. Canada FTW This is only the latest piece of news that gives Netflix Canada a leg up on its southern cousin. Earlier this year it added "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" to its catalogue. The U.S. can't have that title due to an agreement with pay channel Starz. So TAKE THAT, America! NDP MP Charlie Angus marked the Liberal government's first year in power by blasting its track record on indigenous issues so far. During Wednesday's question period, the MP for Timmins-James Bay took aim at Justin Trudeau and some of his cabinet members, including Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould, who Angus criticized for reversing her stance on B.C.'s contentious Site C dam project. Advertisement Wilson-Raybould joined protesters against the dam in 2012, when she was B.C. regional chief for the Assembly of First Nations, according to CBC News. In an interview from four years ago, Wilson-Raybould said the country's reputation was "at stake" depending on the approval of projects such as Site C, according to the Ottawa Citizen. 'Happy anniversary' "The first promise this prime minister made was to indigenous Canadians and those are the first promises he broke," Angus said. After Wilson-Raybould became justice minister, she did not speak up against the Liberal government when it approved a crucial permit for the massive project. Advertisement Angus continued to make his point: "Doesn't the prime minister realize that breaking promises to First Nations children is the oldest con in Confederation? "Happy anniversary." Indigenous and Northern Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett rose in the House to defend the government's track record, saying it remains committed to renewing its relationship with indigenous Canadians. She touted the government's launch of a national inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women, as well as the $8.4 billion earmarked in the first Liberal budget for Aborignal issues. Also on HuffPost Foreign buyers have become real players in Toronto and Montreal's housing markets. But not all of them are snapping up luxury properties, as many have in Vancouver. Foreign investment in real estate has already likely shifted from Vancouver to Toronto, in light of B.C. introducing a 15 per cent property transfer tax on foreign buyers, TD Economics said in a report from last week. Advertisement Economist Diana Petramala noted that Toronto's sales-to-population ratio has grown significantly in recent months to hit 1.9, up from its average of about 1.6. This suggests that "foreign investment and speculation are playing a part, albeit likely smaller than in Vancouver," Petramala told BuzzBuzzHome. That buying has supported continuing strength in the Greater Toronto Area's (GTA) real estate market, which saw home prices climb by 18 per cent year-over-year in September. Advertisement Ontario housing markets remain Canada's tightest, with only one to two months of inventory meaning that if no further homes became available, there would only be one to two months' supply left. The average housing market across Canada has 4.7 months of inventory. Montreal is also seeing an influx of foreign buyers, but they're not concentrated in affluent housing, as has been seen in Vancouver. Chinese buyers are snapping up cheaper Montreal condos as they look to take up residence in the city or find places for their children to live, Royal LePage Quebec senior director Dominic St.-Pierre told CBC News. But it's nothing like in Vancouver, he added. Only about one per cent of luxury properties, which sell for over $1.5 million, were bought by Chinese last year. Advertisement Most foreign buyers in Montreal come from France or the United States; Chinese only make up about eight per cent and Saudi Arabians represent approximately five per cent. B.C. implemented a tax on foreign buyers earlier this year after it released data showing that just over three per cent of sales between June 10 and 29 went to purchasers from elsewhere, and most of them were from China. Finance Minister Mike de Jong said at the time that foreign nationals were also buying homes at "higher values than the average Canadian citizen." Subsequent research showed that foreign buyers had purchased $1.024 billion worth of B.C. real estate from June 10 to July 14 of this year, representing 7.9 per cent of total money spent in that period. Advertisement Almost three-quarters of the buyers purchased homes in Metro Vancouver. Also on HuffPost Now we know: don't ever eat ghost peppers. A puree made from one of these peppers one of the hottest in the world led to a near fatal condition in a man from California, according to a recent report in the Journal of Emergency Medicine. Ghost peppers, also known as Bhut Jolokia peppers and Naga-Bih Jolokia peppers, have a Scoville rating of more than one million (for comparison, common pepper spray measures at two million Scoville units and a jalapeno measures between 2,500 and 5,000 Scoville units) and eating a single seed from a ghost pepper can cause severe burning in the mouth that lasts up to 30 minutes, according to the report. Advertisement The ghost pepper, a.k.a. Bhut Jolokia, is one of the world's hottest peppers weighing in at 1,041,427 Scoville Heat Units, making it 400 times hotter than Tabasco sauce. Legend has it that it's named ghost pepper because if you eat one you either start seeing ghosts or flat out give up the ghost. The pepper is so dangerous to eat that a man nearly died because of it. The 47-year old, from California, ate a hamburger topped with a ghost pepper puree as part of an eating contest. Nearly immediately after eating it, the man started vomiting. In fact, he threw up so much that he caused a tear in his esophagus a rare condition known as Boerhaave syndrome. According to stuff.co.nz, this condition has a high mortality rate, and is named after the 18th century physician whose patient died after vomiting up a huge lunch. Advertisement Fortunately for the man, doctors were able to save his life with emergency surgery, where they found the 2.5 cm tear in his esophagus as well as a collapsed lung. He was then placed on a feeding tube and spent 23 days in hospital to recover. Study author Dr. Ann Arens said spontaneous esophageal rupture is caused by violent vomiting and retching, so, in other words, the man's reaction to the pepper, not the pepper itself, caused the tear. This condition is fatal in 20 to 40 per cent of all cases, according to the study, even when patients receive treatment. "If [the condition is] left untreated, mortality approaches 100 percent," the study reported. Also on HuffPost Guillermo Del Toro really loves Hamilton, Ont. The director, who is currently shooting the film "The Shape of Water" in the city, recently tweeted about his love for the local food, shopping and art scene. "Hamilton is full of promise and surprises: great bookstores, Antique shops, coffee shops, restaurants and art stores. Crimson Peak land," the 52-year-old "Pan's Labyrinth" director tweeted. Advertisement Hamilton is full of promise and surprises: great bookstores, Antique shops, coffee shops, restaurants and art stores. Crimson Peak land. Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) October 17, 2016 Guillermo Del Toro book signing for 'Guillermo Del Toro: At Home With Monsters' held at LACMA on July 29, 2016 in Los Angeles. He even ate an amazing Canadian brunch at Cannon Coffee Co. "Had the best breakfast at Cannon in Ottawa st, Hamilton. The Canadian brunch plate. Best, fluffiest, chewiest fresh-made waffles ever!" Advertisement Had the best breakfast at Cannon in Ottawa st, Hamilton. The Canadian brunch plate. Best, fluffiest, chewiest fresh-made waffles ever! Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) October 17, 2016 The Canadian brunch is made with waffles, cheddar cheese and, of course, bacon. A photo posted by Hamilton Foodies (@thishamiltonianeats) on Jul 16, 2016 at 9:00am PDT The "Pacific Rim" director continued: I know there's a Seedy side in Hamilton- but you can feel a transformation from the last 5-6 years (we scouted for Pac Rim) to now. Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) October 17, 2016 Broke for dinner. Had Luscious soup and salad at The Burnt Tongue, here at Hamilton, On. The hammer! Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) October 18, 2016 Awake and getting ready- filming starts later this afternoon so, meanwhile, I am choosing another interesting culinary spot in Hamilton... Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) October 18, 2016 Advertisement On Tuesday, del Toro ended up at both Southern Smoke Barbecue House on Ottawa Street and Papa Leo's Restaurant for brunch. Southern Smoke BBQ in Ottawa st- great pork popcorn! And solid brunch at Papa Leo's!! Hamilton, Ontario. Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) October 18, 2016 @RealGDT Thank you for coming into @ssbbqhouse & we're glad you enjoyed our butchers popcorn. SouthernSmokeBBQ (@ssbbqhouse) October 18, 2016 He finished his day by heading to a bookstore and gallery. Bought some arcane volumes in James st Bookseller and Gallery in Hamilton! Now I am arriving to set, besieged by 70 kmh winds!! Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) October 18, 2016 And of course, in true Canadian spirit, the director was welcomed to the city with open arms and a ton of responses on Twitter offering restaurant suggestions. Even the mayor, Fred Eisenberger, extended the welcome. Advertisement @RealGDT@thismustbeseema Thank you for your generous and positive comments. Makes a Mayor Proud! You are welcome back anytime! #HamOnt Fred Eisenberger (@FredEisenberger) October 18, 2016 Also on HuffPost Panel to propose raising immigration inflows by 50 per cent McCallum balks at scale of proposed immigration increase Canada a top-four country for skilled migrants A panel of economic advisers will urge the federal Liberals to increase the number of immigrants to Canada by some 50 per cent, according to sources who talked to the Globe and Mail. Advertisement Canada has been taking in roughly 250,000 to 300,000 immigrants annually in recent years, but the panel advising Finance Minister Bill Morneau will urge him to increase that number to 450,000 annually, the newspaper reported. The 14-member panel, chaired by Dominic Barton of the firm McKinsey and Co., is to deliver a set of recommendations to Morneau on Thursday. The federal Liberals have recently suggested increasing immigration levels and opening the doors further to foreign students and investment. But, when asked about it, Immigration Minister John McCallum seemed to balk at the large number that the panel will propose, saying it may be too ambitious. Advertisement He says to meet the target suggested by the Advisory Council on Economic Growth would be a costly endeavour and might not find support across the country. McCallum says discussions are continuing and the government will announce immigration targets for 2017 next month. The advisory group is trying to come up with ways for the government to boost growth beyond the forecasted two-per cent annual level. The business community is meeting the proposal somewhat more positively. Desjardins analyst Michael Markidis says the proposal is good news for the real estate industry, particularly the condo and apartment sector. Advertisement Immigration is widely viewed as a positive driver of demand for multi-family residential accommodation, he wrote in a client note. Canada among top four countries for skilled immigrants A new study from Harvard Business School says the worlds highly skilled immigrants are increasingly concentrating in just four countries. A pattern is emerging in which these high-skilled migrants are departing from a broader range of countries and heading to a narrower range of countries in particular, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, authors Sari Pekkala Kerr, William Kerr, Caglar Ozden and Christopher Parsons wrote. The study dispels some myths about immigration, including the notion that immigration is becoming more common. It found that 3 per cent of the worlds population lives in a country that is not that of their birth the same rate as in 1960. But one thing that has increased is temporary migration for work purposes. For example, global companies often insist that their rising executives live and work in other countries for a meaningful portion of their careers, the authors wrote. Advertisement The report also predicts migration in the future will be more "circular," with a larger share of migrants returning to their home countries. With files from The Canadian Press Also on HuffPost After a Canadian company launched a social media campaign aimed at telling America it's wonderful and lovely, U.S. late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel decided to return the favour and send his own message. The "Tell America It's Great" campaign was launched last week by a Toronto marketing company. It beckoned Canadians to bombard their southern neighbours with kind messages as they wade through a controversial, crazy and at times downright ugly election campaign. Advertisement We love you guys, and we're really sorry you're going through a tough time. Thank you for being our cool big bro #TellAmericaItsGreat Kel H. (@Venomous_Bear) October 15, 2016 On his show Tuesday night, Kimmel said the "Tell America" campaign's clips were the "most insulting thing I've ever seen in my life." "I didn't realize we were in such bad shape we needed Canada to send us a cheer up video." In return, Canadians got a message from Americans, which starts off innocently enough. The people in Kimmel's clip predictably thank Canada for its polite people, its delicious maple syrup and bacon, poutine, and so on. Advertisement But then the accolades evaporate. Canada is accused of trying to kill American pilot Chesley Sullenberger and the phrase "you suck moose balls" gets ingrained in your head. Thanks, America. Watch the message in the video above. When Josette Durans son, Dylan, originally asked her to pack him two lunches for school, she thought he wasnt getting enough to eat. But when she asked her son, she found out the heartbreaking truth. He said, No mom, its for this little boy at school and he sits by himself and all he eats is a fruit cup, Duran explained to KOAT. Advertisement Proud of her sons kind heart, the New Mexico mom posted their conversation on Facebook: It wasnt until later that Duran found out that the mom of the boy without a lunch had recently lost her job and couldnt afford to pay for her son's school lunches. As a result, Duran has been packing two lunches for her son Dylan and the unnamed boy every day since the beginning of the year. Watch the video above to hear how the mother of the anonymous boy reacted after she found out Duran was feeding her son. Advertisement On Tuesday, Durans story made it to the front news page of Reddit. In the comments, many were touched by Durans sweet gesture and even shared similar stories of their own. I did this every day, one wrote. I actually asked my mom to pack 3 snacks (since lunch was provided by the school), for a couple of my friends who I saw were not eating anything at snack time. Another admitted: I did this in high school, where a girl who sat at my lunch table never brought lunch (lived with single mother who didnt make much money), so I'd make two sandwiches for lunch and give her one. Interestingly, a few Redditors also noted that many schools have a strict no sharing food policy and admitted they were surprised that Durans sons school allowed her to make another boy's lunch. Another added: I was doing the same thing for one of the kids in my sons school till they found out. I was sending him in with two Lunchs (sic) and snacks and was sent a letter home from the school telling me to stop. That my son could get in trouble. Advertisement Luckily, Duran was not penalized for her kind gesture. Also on HuffPost OTTAWA An NDP MPs bid to force political parties to nominate more women to Parliament may be headed for defeat Wednesday after the Liberal government decided not to actively support it. NDP MP Kennedy Stewarts private members bill, C-237, the Candidate Gender Equity Act, would financially penalize parties that run a larger proportion of men than women in a general election. Advertisement NDP MP Kennedy Stewart speaks in the House of Commons on Dec. 14, 2011. (Photo: Sean Kilpatrick/CP) His bill would reduce the amount of money political parties receive from taxpayers to refund election expenses if there is more than a 10 per cent difference between the number of male and female candidates. Reimbursements would be reduced by 0.25 per cent for every percentage point difference above the 10 per cent threshold. In the Commons Tuesday, Stewart said the Liberals needed to do more than just call themselves feminists; they need to take action here. Advertisement Eighty-seven years after the definition of person was expanded to include women, he said, gender equity remains elusive in the House of Commons. "There is only 26 per cent women in this House. That places Canada 64th in the world, behind countries like Iraq and Afghanistan." NDP Kennedy Stewart There is only 26 per cent women in this House. That places Canada 64th in the world, behind countries like Iraq and Afghanistan, he told Democratic Institutions Minister Maryam Monsef. If the Liberals are serious about getting more women into politics, will they support my bill on candidate gender equity, yes or no? Monsef responded that she could not support Stewarts bill. She said it was important to wait until the special committee on electoral reform has suggested a new system and then we can address this conversation through a different means. In a leaked briefing note, in May, the government explained its rationale for opposing Stewarts bill to Liberal backbench MPs by saying it raised Charter of Rights and Freedoms concerns. Advertisement Stewart has fought back against that claim, getting an opinion from the Houses legislative counsel that suggests his bill doesnt breach the Charter. Democratic Institutions Minister Maryam Monsef speaks in the House of Commons on Oct. 18, 2016. (Photo: Fred Chartrand/CP) But the Liberals also said his bill should not be supported because it would incentivize parties to refuse the nomination of qualified candidates on the basis of the gender. The bill would limit the independence of parties to run, for example, a slate of all-women candidates, the governments briefing note said. It also discriminates against transgendered people by excluding them from the gendered definitions of male and female, the note added. Calling it a mathematically impossible target, the government also suggested small parties, which field only a handful of candidates, would be disproportionately penalized if they had no or very few women candidates. Advertisement Monday, however, Monsef told The Huffington Post Canada the Liberals will hold a free vote on the bill. Grit MPs will be free to vote as they choose but cabinet ministers are expected to be whipped. Environment minister weighs in Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna told HuffPost she is personally, a little bit done with having conversations about whether there are there enough woman in politics and how many is enough. I think the fact that the prime minister said our cabinet is 50 per cent women, hopefully, ended a discussion. McKenna said she sometimes thinks boards are not a bad place to have gender quotas, but politics is more complicated. You dont want to be in a situation where you get 50 per cent candidates and you do put them in seats where they are less likely to win. Had she lost in her riding of Ottawa Centre against popular NDP incumbent Paul Dewar, McKenna said she suspects many people would have thought the Liberals had put a woman to fill a gender target in a seat that was seen as impossible to win. Nancy Pickford of Equal Voice, a non-partisan group that champions more female representation in legislatures across the country, said she hopes Stewarts bill gets to committee where it can be further studied. For now, however, shes not totally sold on the idea of penalizing political parties for failing to nominate a certain percentage of women. Incentives might be better. Advertisement Tory MP unsure how she'll vote "Equal Voice would like to see the implementation of a mechanism that is regarded as fair and reasonable for all (parties), she told HuffPost. "What we know is that mechanisms like this have proven to be somewhat effective on the international stage in boosting the numbers of women elected [and] using public funds as the lever is more constructive than a quota because it enables every party to determine their own approach to getting more women on the ballot." Conservative MP Marilyn Gladu, the chair of the Commons status of women committee, said she is still unsure how she will vote. Philosophically, Im not a fan of quotas. I worked at Dow Chemical when they had affirmative action. And they didnt always put a competent woman in place and that wasnt a good thing, so Im not really a fan of that. But that said, his bill is bringing an incentive a financial incentive for parties to encourage women to go into the field. And if they dont get enough competent woman, then they just have a financial loss. And I think that might not be a bad idea. Advertisement First feminist legislation? Despite the Liberals being in power for nearly a year, Stewart say his bill would be the first piece of feminist legislation in the House. Weve had studies, weve had the gender-balanced cabinet but we really havent had anything put forward in the House that would advance the cause of women in this country. With only 36 months left in the life of this Parliament, Stewart said, Liberals have a limited window to move the feminist cause forward in Canada. The NDP MP said hes open to suggestions on how his bill could be amended to garner broad political support. But for now, he just hopes MPs vote to keep it alive and send it off for further study. Taxpayers currently reimburse political parties up to 50 per cent of allowable election expenses. Candidates also receive reimbursements from taxpayers worth 60 per cent of allowable election expenses. Under Stewarts bill, the NDP, which fielded 43 per cent women candidates in the 2015 election, would not have been financially penalized. But the Greens who had 39 per cent female candidates, Liberals who had 31 per cent, the Bloc Quebecois with 28 per cent and the Conservatives with 20 per cent, would all have taken a financial hit. Advertisement UPDATE - Oct. 20, 2016: The Candidate Gender Equity Act was defeated 209 to 68 when most Liberal and Conservative MPs opposed it. NDP MPs booed Status of Woman Minister Patty Hadju as she voted against. Also on HuffPost While Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has declined to speak directly about Donald Trump, his mother shared some of her observations about the U.S. presidential candidate. Margaret Trudeau, who has struggled with bipolar disorder, alluded to Trump's mental health in an interview on Wednesday. Advertisement "There are two things that define mental illness and [people] who aren't getting the help that they need and who are unstuck in their unquiet mind. They deny that there is anything wrong and then they blame everybody else for any mistakes theyve made. Its not their fault," Trudeau, who is a mental health advocate, told The Huffington Post Canada. "Well, I see this in one of the candidates, that he's so involved in his own self that he forgets he's presidential and should be looking at issues. And that's all Im going to say and I'm not going to say one more word because I don't want to be in an enemy camp anywhere." Trudeau made the comments backstage at the We Day youth rally in Toronto, where she was talking about mental health. Advertisement In June, psychologist Dan P. McAdams analyzed Trump for the Atlantic magazine. "Trumps personality is certainly extreme by any standard, and particularly rare for a presidential candidate," he wrote in the story that explored the Republican candidate's "grandiose narcissism" among other personality traits. Conversely, several therapists and teachers in the U.S. are warning that Trump's comments are chipping away at the mental health of ethnic minorities and sexual assault survivors. "I will say that overall there has been a significant increase in symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder among many of my patients due to Donald Trump and this election," therapist Meredith Shirey told FRANCE 24. A psychotherapist also told the outlet that Trump's lewd remarks about women have triggered people who have experienced sexual trauma. Also on HuffPost Frame of Mind: Youth Mental Health Issues And Suicide In Canada See Gallery Whos afraid of a $15 minimum wage? Some businesses, perhaps, but not Canadians as a whole. A Forum Research poll released last week found nearly two-thirds of respondents 63 per cent approve of making $15 per hour the least you can earn, while 31 per cent oppose the idea. Wealthy Canadians are among the likeliest to oppose the idea, with 36 per cent against. It is curious that the very wealthiest, who have no need of it, are the most likely to object to what has been described as an adequate living wage for a young family, while it is championed, obviously, by the least wealthy, said Lorne Bozinoff, president and founder of Forum Research, in a statement. Advertisement The move comes in the wake of the Alberta governments announcement that it will move to a $15 minimum wage by 2018, and amid campaigns across Canada pushing for other provinces to do the same. Support was strongest in Atlantic Canada (73 per cent) and British Columbia (67 per cent), but in Alberta, where the wage will actually be reality, its supported by just 49 per cent of voters. Alberta also has the highest opposition to the idea, at 45 per cent. The elderly (67 per cent) and low earners (76 per cent of those earning under $20,000 a year) were the likeliest to support a $15 minimum wage, while youth (35 per cent opposed) were more likely than others to be against it. Advertisement Youth are more likely to object, presumably, because they think their job prospects are those most threatened by a higher minimum wage," Bozinoff said. Thats the view of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) and other groups that are campaigning against a $15 minimum wage. A high minimum wage will reduce employment through hiring freezes, slower employment growth, or direct job cuts during an economic downturn, the CFIB said in a recent statement. Like many others, the group argues a higher minimum wage will do little to reduce poverty, because most minimum wage earners are young, live with family members, and are not from low-income households. Advertisement Thats a view that the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) disagrees with. A study it carried out last year looking at British Columbia found 82 per cent of those earning the minimum wage were 20 years or older, 39 per cent are 35 years or older, and 60 per cent of minimum wage workers are women. The study concluded that raising the minimum wage makes good economic sense, as it would put more cash in the hands of lower-income families. However, the CCPA found that an increase in the minimum wage to $15 would reduce employment by about one per cent, with much of those losses concentrated among teens living at home. Also on HuffPost Wage Gains In Canada, By Industry (2015) See Gallery Let's face it, we don't always see eye-to-eye with our kids' teachers. As much as we want to have a harmonious relationship with the person shaping the brains of our little ones, we sometimes have disagreements over the best approach for handling certain situations. NDP MP Peter Julian has resigned as his partys House leader to explore a leadership run. Julian announced the news Wednesday on the one-year anniversary of the election that saw Liberals form a majority and New Democrats fall back to third place in the House of Commons. Advertisement NDP MP Peter Julian speaks during question period in the House of Commons on May 28, 2015. (Photo: CP) The veteran British Columbia MP told reporters in Ottawa that "a lot of Canadians are disappointed" with how things have gone. "There was a commitment to real change and we haven't seen that real change," Julian said. "So, what I'll be doing over the next little while is talking with Canadians and getting my inspiration from them and New Democrats about the next steps to take." B.C. MP Murray Rankin will take over for Julian in the role. The 54-year-old Julian is fluently bilingual and has represented the riding of New Westminster-Burnaby since 2004. Advertisement He told reporters in June that the door was open to him making a bid to replace Thomas Mulcair as NDP leader, but suggested he was in no rush. Big NDP names taking pass Julian also attempted to dissuade the notion that the popularity of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was scaring off potential leadership candidates. Big names like Nathan Cullen, Quebecs Alexandre Boulerice, and former MPs Megan Leslie and Paul Dewar have all said they wont run for the job. Its not scary to take on Mr. Trudeau, he said at the time. I think what we've seen over the last few months since the election is that it's very much business as usual in Ottawa. Not a lot has changed." The veteran MP also said he wasnt concerned about polls suggesting traditional NDP support was bleeding to the Liberal government. The Trudeau government is still in its honeymoon period, he said. Decision comes at a price Julians decision comes at a price. Unlike other members of the NDP shadow cabinet who may abandon critic roles to pursue the leadership, the partys House leader earns $16,800 more, annually, on top of the base MP salary of $170,400. Advertisement Julian also served as the NDPs House leader between 2013 and 2015, when the party formed the official Opposition. If he is making a bid, Julian would be the first MP to jump in the race. Ontario MPP Cheri DiNovo announced a bid in the summer but pulled out because of health concerns. Another Ontario MPP Jagmeet Singh is increasingly being mentioned as a possible contender, as are current MPs: Manitobas Niki Ashton, Ontarios Charlie Angus, and Quebecs Ruth Ellen Brosseau and Guy Caron. New Democrats chose their next leader next October. Also on HuffPost Conservative MP Shannon Stubbs wasnt pleased by Finance Minister Bill Morneau's suggestion she doesnt talk to her constituents, so she called him out for his tone. Thanks for the mansplain, Stubbs said in question period in the House of Commons on Tuesday. A mansplanation is a portmanteau of man and explanation. Its loosely defined as a condescending or patronizing remark a man says to the woman under the presumption she is ignorant about a topic. Advertisement The rookie Alberta MP repeated her urge to the Liberal government to consider the effect a federal carbon tax would have on the provinces dire economic situation. Medicine Hat's food bank use is up by over 300 per cent this year over last. Another program for new mothers ballooned from 10 to 256 users during the same time, she said. Morneau responded by asking Stubbs to actually talk to Albertans. Because she would find that they have actually had a reduction in taxes this year, which has gone to help their families, he said before getting cut off by jeers from opposition benches. Advertisement Morneau deepened his defence by beginning to list national changes including the Canada child benefit that have had an enormous effect on Canadians. He was cut off by the Speaker of the House just as he began to talk about EI changes. Stubbs wasnt satisfied by Morneaus answer thats when she accused him of mansplaining. The testy exchange happened to have occurred on Persons Day an occasion marking 87 years since womens personhood was officially recognized in the Canadian Constitution. A mansplain from down under Stubbs utterance of the word mansplain appears to be the first time its been recorded on the official question period record. Thought it may be the first time its been said on official Canadian Parliamentary record, an Australian politician did the same thing last year during her government's own question period. Advertisement Tanya Plibersek, deputy leader of Australias Labour Party, asked Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull if he will restore foreign aid program funding after significant cuts. The prime minister responded by suggesting Plibersek was wasting question time, saying if she wanted a serious answer, she would have to ask a serious question. Mr Speaker, I'd rather have an answer than the mansplaining by the prime minister, she said at the time. Also on HuffPost OTTAWA Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is backtracking on his promise to change the electoral system, his opponents charged Wednesday. After campaigning last year on assurances that 2015 will be the last federal election conducted under the first-past-the-post voting system, Trudeau appears to backpedal in an interview with Quebec newspaper Le Devoir. Advertisement If we are going to change the electoral system, people must be open to it, Trudeau is quoted telling the newspaper in an interview to mark the one-year anniversary of his Liberal partys election victory. The prime minister said he plans to look at how consultations have unfolded, then gauge the public's reactions. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said Canadians would need be open to electoral reform before any changes would be made. (Photo: Getty) Advertisement We are not going to prejudge what would be necessary [to change the electoral system]. But when we say, [we want] substantial support, that means something, he said. Trudeau goes on to suggest that now that the Conservatives are no longer in power, there is less need for electoral change. Under Mr. [Stephen] Harper, there were so many people who were upset with the government and his approach that people were saying it takes electoral reform to no longer have a government we dislike, Trudeau is quoted saying. But under the current system, they now have a government with which they are more satisfied. And the motivation to want to change the system is less compelling. We are not going to prejudge what would be necessary." Prime Minister Trudeau In Parliament, NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair accused the prime minister of breaking his electoral pledge. It's quite obvious that Mr. Trudeau no longer believes that the 2015 election should be the last election under the unfair first-past-the-post system, Mulcair said. Advertisement Canadians do want changeMr. Trudeau even got a little bit less percentage of vote than Mr. Harper did, so the unfair system is still there. The only thing that's changed is that Mr. Trudeau believes that he's such a good choice that the system doesn't have to be changed anymore, Mulcair said. Under the current first-past-the-post electoral system, the Liberals last year won 184 seats 54 per cent of the seats in the House of Commons with only 39.5 per cent of the votes. Conservative interim leader Rona Ambrose said Trudeaus comments represent a real shift in his viewpoint. Advertisement You know, much before any election was held, the prime minister was so clear that there needed to be electoral reform. But now, Ambrose, whose party doesnt support a change, said: I think what Mr. Trudeau is doing is listening to Canadians. Ninety per cent of the people the Tories consulted across the country said they want a referendum before any reforms, she said. Mr. Trudeau is on the wrong side of this issue, so maybe hes backing down. The only thing that's changed is that Mr. Trudeau believes that he's such a good choice that the system doesn't have to be changed anymore." NDP Leader Tom Mulcair Former NDP leader Ed Broadbent, a man who has been championing electoral reform for more than five decades, expressed his extreme disappointment with the prime minister. Its a complete betrayal of what many Canadians believed was a genuine promise, to get rid of what he and his minister have described as an antiquated electoral system, Broadbent told The Huffington Post Canada. Advertisement I deeply regret it, because he is the first leader in my lifetime of another party that has promised electoral reform.This is just very cynical betrayal that a lot of people thought would happen, Broadbent added. Its perhaps the most significant backing down of any promise he has made since he got elected ironically on his own anniversary of his election. Liberals need 'broad support': Monsef Democratic Institutions Minister Maryam Monsef has said the Liberals are seeking the broad support of Canadians to change the electoral system but she hasnt defined what that means. The Liberal government hasnt ruled out holding a referendum something the Tories have repeatedly demanded but Trudeau told students at the University of Ottawa in April that referendums are a good way of ensuring that nothing changes. Many of the people who propose that absolutely we need a referendum, well, they know that the fact is that referendums are a pretty good way of not getting any electoral reform, he said. Advertisement In recent weeks, the NDP has emerged from their consultations saying that Canadians want some form of proportional representation, that a partys seat count in the Commons should reflect the percentage of votes obtained. Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand has also said the broadest possible consensus is needed before any changes are made to the way MPs are elected. Not a single government, whatever the majority is, should be able to unilaterally change the rules of election," he told reporters last month. Trudeau is quoted telling Le Devoir that there are different levels of changes. Smaller changes may require a lower level of support, and larger changes may need broader approval, the prime minister suggested. Advertisement Whats a big change? Whats a small change? All those reflections, that is why we need to have rigorous and intelligent conversations with Canadians. Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand. (Photo: Sean Kilpatrick/CP) This spring, the government convened an all-party parliamentary committee to review a wide variety of reforms, including online voting. The committee, which recently returned from cross-country consultations, has until Dec. 1 to issue a report. Monsef, who has also concluded her own consultations, is expected to table legislation next spring. Trudeau told Le Devoir he wont commit to abiding by the committees recommendations, saying only that it will be a useful tool to frame the governments decision-making. Unfortunately, whether you want to or not, the great preoccupation for political parties is their immediate survival and their capacity to finance themselves, Trudeau told the newspaper. So, yes, Im going to listen attentively to their concerns. Im going to keep them in mind, absolutely. It is important work [that the committee] is trying to do. But it is not the only work that is being done in this larger reflection. Advertisement 'Clear desire' for change: Trudeau in April Last April, when speaking to the university students, Trudeau took a much firmer stance. He said there was a fairly clear desire out there to improve our electoral system. While the current first-past-the-post electoral system worked pretty good for me this time, and it would be tempting to claim it is too complicated to change it now, the prime minister said it still remains a priority to me. Quite frankly, political parties shouldnt be able to appeal to narrow constituencies and suddenly wield enough power to run the entire country, he added. Also on HuffPost ASSOCIATED PRESS Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally, Monday, Oct. 17, 2016, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) "Sexual assault has no excuses" image by Jason Taellious, on Flickr, through Creative Commons Since that tape of Donald Trump bragging about hitting on women was leaked, the allegations have been coming fast and furious. Advertisement According to a CBS report, several women have now come forward, saying Trump touched them sexually. Some of the claims go back as far as 30 years. Us Weekly features nine instances, one of which involved his first wife, Ivanna. Vanity Fair reported that "Donald Trump's Apprentice set was a breeding ground for sexism. And there's probably a lot more. Let's face it. The guy's a pig. A pig who thinks that when you're a "star," it's okay to grope women and kiss them without their consent, that it's not sexual assault. Wrong. On Wikipedia, The National Center for Victims of Crime states: "Sexual assault takes many forms including attacks such as rape or attempted rape, as well as any unwanted sexual contact or threats. Usually a sexual assault occurs when someone touches any part of another person's body in a sexual way, even through clothes, without that person's consent." Now that we're clear on what, exactly, constitutes sexual assault here are some truly staggering statistics: Advertisement According to RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network), the nation's largest anti-sexual violence organization, in the U.S. another person experiences sexual assault every 109 seconds. That's just about every minute and a half. Every minute and a half! We've got nothing to brag about in Canada, either. In 2014 it was reported right here in Huff Post Canada that there are 460,000 sexual assaults in Canada every year. Pretty damn disturbing. But if anything positive can be said about Trump boasting about "moving on women" and "not even waiting to kiss them," he has created tremendous awareness around the issue of "consent." And Rachel Verner couldn't be happier about it ... Rachel is a recent grad from Wesleyan University in Connecticut. While there, she was working as their Sexual Assault Response Team Intern. Her goal was to find ways to diversify the conversation around consent and sexual violence prevention. It quickly became apparent that people weren't showing up at the workshops they hosted because either they didn't identify as "survivors" or they were uninformed about "consent." So Rachel and two of her very close friends decided to do something about it. As luck, or serendipity, would have it, they happened upon a spoof website designed to look like Victoria's Secret had launched a line of consent underwear. They were inspired by the idea and were surprised to discover that despite all the buzz generated by the website, no one had produced and sold the underwear. Advertisement "To me, consent underwear seemed like a great way to get a wider group of people at Wesleyan talking about consent," Rachel told me when we spoke last week, and went on to say, "So I decided to design and sell a line to the student body." And "Let's Be Clear," Rachel's company was born. Let's Be Clear is an apparel and education company, with a clear mandate: To normalize sexual consent, to remove barriers and encourage conversations, to increase dialogue and awareness. Their initial clothing line includes tees, sweatshirts and tank-tops emblazoned with gutsy statements, like "I'm the Boss of These Parts." It's an empowering message. Men and women alike need to understand that "no" means "no" and it's okay to say "no." The merchandise can be ordered through the website and Rachel told me that they are happy to ship to Canadians who want to speak up for consent. This is a big deal and under normal circumstances a female candidate running for President could make hay with it. But unfortunately these aren't "normal circumstances" and the minute Hillary Clinton brings it up her husband's past infidelities will come back to haunt her. Otherwise I would have suggested that Rachel send her a T-shirt. I'd have loved to see her wearing one at the next debate. Advertisement If you enjoyed this story click on "become a fan" at the top of the article, right next to my name. You'll be notified every time I post. Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook A small part of Belgium -- itself a small country -- voted late last week to say that it cannot support the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the European Union. I couldn't be happier, or more impressed by this beleaguered region standing up to the economic and political forces behind CETA. Advertisement Last Friday, the Parliament of Wallonia, a French-speaking area in the bilingual country, voted to prevent Belgium from signing onto the deal. This is significant, because under the Belgian constitution, every regional parliament in the country must agree to any such deal. Some have described this particular feature of Belgium's constitution as "byzantine" for its ability to block such national or international deals. Keep in mind that Wallonia is one of those regions of Europe that has been regularly overrun by foreign powers over the centuries. The constitutional veto is no doubt a reflection of outside threats, whether military or economic. Here's why it matters: without Wallonia's support, Belgium cannot ratify the deal. Without Belgium's support, CETA cannot go ahead. Advertisement In an attempt to counteract the feat of a tiny but mighty region, other CETA countries are sending trade envoys to Wallonia to boost support the deal. Canada is sending Pierre Pettigrew, our trade minister back when the World Trade Organization talks collapsed in Seattle. On the face of it, Canada couldn't be more different from Belgium -- or Wallonia, for that matter. We are very big geographically, they are small. We are a relatively young country, the Belgian nation dates back centuries. But we also have much in common -- and not just because so many Canadians fought and died in Walloon fields and towns during two world wars. Both Canada and Wallonia are home to industrial towns that have seen factories go silent, devastating their communities. On CETA in particular, the concerns in Wallonia would be familiar to anyone in Canada who is also worried about the deal. As Socialist MP Olgo Zrihen said, "We say yes to trade with Canada. No to the text as it is currently written." Advertisement Here in Canada, Unifor has been saying much the same thing about both CETA and the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Like other progressive groups in this country, we recognize that Canada is a trading nation, and we support international trade, but only when trade is fair. What we cannot support is any trade deal that does not serve the needs of working people or one that restricts our right to pass laws in the interest of the people. Like the people of Wallonia, Canadians are increasingly concerned about the powers given to corporations under Investor State Disputes Settlement (ISDS) systems. Helene Ryckmans, an MP for Wallonia's environmental Ecolo Party, said the ISDS system could force the region to pay compensation to corporations if local regulations hurt their profits - even if those regulations are in the public interest. Here in Canada, we have similar concerns. Canada is already the most sued nation in the world under ISDS systems, thanks to similar provisions in NAFTA. It makes no sense for Canada to sign any deal, such as CETA or the TPP, that would see us sued even more. The vote in Wallonia isn't about people or local politicians not understanding the deal. It's about out-of-touch politicians bending to a corporate agenda and the drive of capitalism rather than putting the needs of people first. This is the time for governments to stand boldly and with courage and conviction to push a new model of fair trade - one in which the needs and the future of communities are put first. Advertisement We should take inspiration from them, and redouble our efforts to push back against CETA. There is an opportunity here to do the right thing. The question is whether politicians have the will to stand up to restore and define the kind of communities that we want, ones where we are not made subservient to the profit needs of corporations. Asked by reporters if such a small region should really have final say over such a big deal, the people of Wallonia just shrugged. What we are seeing in Wallonia are ordinary people from a forgotten industrial and farming region saying enough is enough. This isn't the ugly face of Brexit. This is the people saying they know a better life is possible, and I applaud their efforts for taking action to stand up for the principle of fairness. They saw a better world when factories in their communities hummed with activity and provided good jobs. They believe in trade, knowing that the factories in Wallonia once sent products across Europe and around the world, but they don't believe in handing over all their rights to corporations just to get it. It takes great bravery, in the face of stark economic troubles, to stand up to whatever faint hope a trade deal might offer, but that's what the people of Wallonia are doing. We should take inspiration from them, and redouble our efforts to push back against CETA. To the people of Wallonia, Unifor stands with you. Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook Also on HuffPost: Advertisement The five things you need to know on Wednesday, October 19 1) HIDDEN IN PLANE SIGHT Its all but certain now that Heathrow expansion will get the go-ahead next week. Theresa May switched on the fasten your seat belt signs with her announcement yesterday that Cabinet ministers who disagreed with the final decision would be allowed some leeway to speak out. Advertisement Whats not certain is just why May felt the need to amend (not suspend) collective Cabinet responsibility on what she herself describes as an issue of national interest. Was she so worried about protecting the feelings of Boris Johnson and Justine Greening and their local interests that she needed to give them special protection? It seems strange indeed given that few expected Boris to quit over the issue, especially as he now has the Foreign Secretary job he always wanted as a stepping stone to No.10. In the Times, Grant Shapps has accused May of failing to show guts and authority with a quick decision. I am sorry this is going to be fudged for another year. He added that it was a strange world in which ministers were free to oppose government-backed projects. As for those claims of delay, Heathrow and No.10 insist there isnt one and they may have a point. Mays letter to colleagues yesterday referred to a final airports National Policy Statement being ready for a Parliamentary vote by winter 2017/18. Industry insiders have long predicted that the consultation needed is so extensive that late 2017 was the earliest it could be completed. The problem is the politics, not the planning process. Some in Whitehall and Westminster have in recent months fuelled the impression that MPs will get a vote this autumn, soon after the Cabinet sub-committee decision next week. It was only ever going to be a non-binding vote, but will it happen at all now? Or will Boris and others feelings be spared further? No.10 is being pretty opaque on that today. Sadly, one spectacle is now not going to happen. Boris wont be allowed to lie down in front of any bulldozers, as he previously threatened. Mays explicit guidance in her letter says no minister will be allowed to campaign actively against the decision. Advertisement Another Parliamentary firework may still go off though. As HuffPost revealed last week, Zac Goldsmith is threatening to quit as a Tory MP and run as an independent in a by-election in Richmond Park. The Standard had the scoop that Twickenham MP Tania Mathias joined lots of local Tory association members and Zac on Monday night to agree his independence plan. CCHQ shows no sign of reprimanding them yet. But will Zac actually quit when the Cabinet sub-committee comes out for Heathrow next week? Or will he wait for the final 2017/18 Parliamentary vote? Either way, should the PM really be that bothered by what one MP does in one seat in London? 2) ARTICLE OF FAITH One reason Goldsmith may face a strong challenge in Richmond Park is that, despite his local popularity, the Lib Dems could run a campaign that centres on fears of a hard Brexit (the constituency voted to Remain, like many middle class London seats that depend on City jobs) as much as Tory betrayal on Heathrow. And on the key issue of whether Parliament will have a say over the actual shape of Brexit, there was some fascinating movement yesterday. James Eadie QC, the Governments lawyer in the High Court challenge on Article 50, surprised some in court with a new statement that the final Brexit deal hammered out with Brussels would after all be subject to a Parliamentary vote. The view within government is that it is very likely that this treaty will be subject to ratification process in the usual way. Most of them are, he said. That very likely phrase was endorsed by No.10. But Government critics believe this is just a ruse to mislead MPs into thinking they will get the final say, when in fact leaving the vote until the end of the process would be too late. Keir Starmer is smart enough to work this out, which is precisely why hes pushing hard still for a vote on Article 50 itself, rather than the final deal. Advertisement The pound rallied yesterday, with its biggest gains since mid-August. Was this because of the very likely quote? Some think it was more to do with the Lord Chief Justices hints in court that he wasnt impressed with the Governments defence. If the court does uphold this challenge, the biggest issue of all is whether a Parliamentary rejection of Article 50 would mean keeping the status quo, ie UK membership of the EU. The Guardian reports meanwhile that ministers been given detailed warnings that the UK pulling out of the EU customs union could lead to a 4.5% fall in GDP by 2030 and the clogging up of trade through Britains ports. And on the Brexit Select Committee race, Hilary Benn is facing a strong challenge from Kate Hoey. I reported last night that there were some very interesting nominations backing Hoey, not Benn: Corbyn Shadow Cabinet allies Clive Lewis, David Hamilton and Ian Lavery. The Telegraph reveals that Philip Hammond has told Theresa May that he will not be quitting the Cabinet. The very fact that he felt the need to say that may look odd, but the Chancellor has mounted a notable PR fightback this week. 3) DAVIES GOES DENTAL Tory backbencher David Davies (known affectionately as Top Cat to colleagues because of his middle TC initials) is no stranger to controversy. The part-time police constable once said most parents would prefer their children not to be gay and attacked the National Black Police Association for not having white members. The gag among Tory backbenchers is that TC makes DD (his differently spelled namesake) look leftwing. Advertisement Today, hes all over the news because he wants dental checks to prove if migrants from The Jungle camp really are children. Davies told Louise Menschs HeatStreet website: I will be tabling questions in Parliament asking how many migrant children have undergone dental checks and whether those who wish to come here in future will be subject to dental checks. Davies went further on the Today programme, saying we should be hard-headed about those who looked older than children - and less like Lily Allen with tears in her eyes and all the rest of it (he said that not once, but twice). Todays Sun splashes his remarks with the header Tell us the Tooth, and photos of migrants who look 40 and have crows feet. The British British Dental Association said it is vigorously opposed to unethical dental checks on migrants. It also disputed claims that dental radiographs can accurately determine whether someone is under the age of 18 or not. BECAUSE YOUVE READ THIS FAR Boris loves singing in German, showing off his French and even dabbling in Russian. Watch him try Italian in the Commmons yesterday. 4) HUNT THE HEALTH CASH It didnt get much attention because of Heathrow, but Cabinet yesterday also discussed contingency plans for flooding, roads and the NHS for the coming winter. And the big question remains whether Jeremy Hunt will get more money to help stem the looming cash crisis in the health service. Advertisement The Health Select Committee has pointed out that the 10bn a year Hunt promised the NHS by 2020 is looking like a much lower figure. Hunt told the Committee yesterday: Whether you call if 4.5bn or call it 10bn, it is what the NHS said it needed. Labour thinks theres been some creative accounting, including a six-year rather than five-year spending window. But the most significant warning came from Simon Stevens, sitting just two seats along from Hunt, who said that health spending is set to fall per head (possibly for the first time in the history of the NHS). If you just look at the population growth - even before you take account of ageing - 2018/19 will be the most pressurised year for us - where we actually will have negative per person NHS funding growth.For the next three years we didnt get the funding that was requested .. so as a result weve got a bigger hill to climb. Sounds like perfect ammo for Corbyn at PMQs. 5) FLAGSHIP DOWN Another bit of the George Osbornes legacy is being chipped away with the news that the Treasury has dumped plans to let pensioners raise money by selling their annuities to insurance firms. For all the ex-Chancellors bravado in hailing his pensions revolution, ministers have now admitted that this bit of the plan might have exposed pensioners to firms which lured them into making the wrong decision. The other bit of the Osborne reforms, to allow pensioners to spend their pension pot however they liked (aka Steve Webbs Lamborghini plan) remains intact. Webb (now at Royal London pension giant) says the annuities plan founded because pensions firms were worried theyd be accused of ripping of little old ladies. The Mail is the only paper upset by the annuity plan axe, claiming rip off annuities will continue. If youre reading this on the web, sign-up HERE to get the WaughZone delivered to your inbox. A Milo Robinson / Alamy Theresa May's speech at the Tory Party Conference espousing "the good that government can do" has been interpreted as a political land-grab repositioning the Conservatives squarely in the centre-ground. While this may be true, there's an even more interesting shift in the Prime Minister's thinking - a much stronger belief in the positive role of the state. This is not a party political point. It's far more important than that. Whether you are from the left of politics or the right, whether you believe in free markets or socialism, it is the quality of government that matters. Advertisement As the Prime Minister herself made clear. "No vision ever built a business by itself. No vision ever clothed a family or fed a hungry child. No vision ever changed a country on its own." And the Prime Minister was unequivocal in the need to focus on delivery, telling her party faithful: "That's what government's about: action. It's about doing something, not being someone." But while May's speech was itself long on vision and the need to deliver, it was short on the details of how government should be equipped for the task she's set. That's not surprising, you might think - the technocrats can work that out later. But the hard truth is that unless the Prime Minster is prepared to focus on what is required to actually deliver results, she is likely to be disappointed. Advertisement We've been here before. Tony Blair spent much of his first term urging reform across the public sector in speech after speech. The results were lacklustre and it was only during his second term, when he focused his energies on what he called "delivery", that the needle started to move. As a member of his Delivery Unit that acted as an extension of No 10 tasked with chasing progress across Whitehall, I saw the real difference this made to policy implementation. Blair dedicated a significant amount of his time to the endeavour - and the results were impressive, although they were fuelled in part by significant additional public spending. Nevertheless, just as it was being celebrated and replicated the world over, this new model of delivery didn't survive the change in government from Blair to Brown to Cameron. Theresa May has now refocused the debate on good government arguing that we need less ideology and a more sustained focus on achieving the outcomes that actually matter for ordinary "working-class people". "It's time to remember the good that government can do," the Prime Minister explained. "While government does not have all the answers, government can and should be a force for good; that the state exists to provide what individual people, communities and markets cannot; and that we should employ the power of government for the good of the people." Whether May reinvents a Delivery Unit or not, she'll need a mechanism for holding her Cabinet, and the wider Whitehall machine, to account. And if she chooses to wield them, the tools of delivery are now far more powerful than they were in Blair's era. The vast oceans of data that exist within government are more easily tapped for insights than ever before. New techniques such as behavioural insights allow policymakers to "nudge" rather than shove. Digital technology can put people in control of services in ways hitherto considered impossible. Now more than ever the Prime Minister should be looking for inspiration from our neighbours. For example, President Obama created the Performance Improvement Council (PIC) to advance and expand the practice of performance management and improvement in federal agencies. PIC combines rich insights from data with the latest collaboration techniques to radically improve results. In Canada, Justin Treaudeau created a new secretariat for Results and Delivery with much the same aim. Advertisement In short, the machinery of government has the potential to deliver May's vision of "government stepping up, righting wrongs, challenging vested interests, and taking big decisions" but it won't do so without determined leadership from the top. Yui Mok/PA Wire We tend to think of philosophies as produced by professional philosophers. Traditionally, this has meant people who have written dissertations on obscure subjects, or who spend most of their day in libraries. But every human is, in an important sense, a carrier of an implicit philosophy - evident in their choices, pronouncements and commitments. Katie Price is no exception. She too is - in a distinctive way - a philosopher. Partially Katie Price's philosophy is one of extraordinary confidence. She is remarkable not for her looks or antics but because of her tremendous self-assurance and her unwillingness to be intimidated by criticism or failure. She's always beginning a new endeavour, whether it's publishing a novel or auditioning for the Eurovision song contest. Her daring has ultimately paid off again and again. She has built a 45 million pound business empire and worldwide brand. Advertisement After her first autobiography was repeatedly rejected by publishers (she demanded a million pounds in advance), she persevered and ultimately sold over a million copies. Now she's just released her fifth autobiography, and has published a vast range of other books including a line of especially popular children's books about ponies. And then there's her lines of clothing, cosmetics, household products, even equestrian gear. Some of her endeavours go awry from time to time, but she doesn't get discouraged. It would be easy to dismiss her confidence as a superficial posture, but she has put it into practice with each new enterprise. Katie has maintained this unshakable optimism through scandals, disappointments, divorces, suffocating media attention and unkind words about everything from her supermodel appearance to her beloved children. Her confidence has not only made her successful - it has become a commodity itself. Katie has realised what many CEOs often overlook: that people spend money on a brand not to obtain a material good but to possess - if only for a short while - the psychological benefit it represents. When people purchase a Katie Price product, they are not in need of a new outfit; rather, they want to possess the traits that make up her public persona: self-possession, playfulness and a disregard for the opinions of others. It is for this reason that we have invited Katie to come and speak at our school - to better understand her perspective and to glean what we can from her experience in life. Most of us would benefit from even a touch of her confidence, resilience, and entrepreneurial forte. Advertisement Some may think this sort of event can't be serious. But we believe that is because they have misunderstood the nature of seriousness. It does not always reside in a university, parliament or boardroom. It may not come from a peer-reviewed journal or a group of middle-aged men wearing ties. At The School of Life, we take seriously anything that has to do with human fulfilment - and take note wherever insight on this subject can be found. Over the past few years, The School of Life has been host to some of the most legendary names in philosophy and thought, including Steven Pinker, Jared Diamond and Roger Scruton. But we felt it was time for an experiment. We live in an age of mass media and thought it was time to invite a different sort of thinker to The School of Life to discuss some of the great existential issues. We very much look forward to welcoming Katie Price to our stage. ASSOCIATED PRESS In recent weeks you could be forgiven for thinking we were back in the early eighties at the height of the Reagan/Thatcher era's talking up of the threat from Moscow. The renewed Russian and Syrian assault on rebel-held east Aleppo and the images of destruction getting out and into western media has stimulated what can only be described as Russophobia to reach new heights, stoked as it is by Washington and London with many journalists and commentators in tow. Advertisement The charge list against the Kremlin is long and growing all the time. President Putin is accused of a litany of wrongdoing from war crimes in Syria and Ukraine to attempting to subvert the US presidential election and funding Europe's anti-EU populist parties. Historians can point to a long pedigree for Russophobia, and in Britain it long predated the 1917 Revolution, the rise of the Soviet Union and the Cold War. Even though Moscow and London ended up on the same side in the two world wars and during the 1990s, following the collapse of the USSR, Russia was discounted as a weak, declining country of little consequence, the "Russian bear" has generally been portrayed as a rival and a threat in Britain since the imperial rivalry of the nineteenth century - by both politicians and journalists. Advertisement Of course, the current Foreign Secretary, Boris Jonson, is a journalist who went into politics and perhaps that explains his suggestion last week that people should protest about Syria outside the Russian embassy in London- a suggestion that indicates he still has to learn he's no longer a practitioner of what one former diplomat joked to me is the journalist's vice - the exercise of power without responsibility. In the case of the assault on Aleppo, there is truth in the accusation that the bombing is being carried out without much concern for civilian casualties. But while it may allow the politicians, like Johnson, and media commentators to indulge in righteous indignation and - one suspects - to revel a bit in a feeling of moral superiority, it doesn't make for good policy or a long-term solution to the war in Syria and the growing impasse in relations between the West and Russia. The former International Development Secretary, Andrew Mitchell, allowed his sense outrage to get the better of his judgement when he went on the BBC to call for NATO to impose a no-fly zone over Syria - an act which would almost certainly mean going to war with Russia, something no serious western politician has any intention of doing. Indignation can be constructive. It can galvanise people to take action to prevent humanitarian abuses or to end armed conflicts where unwitting civilians are caught in the middle. Advertisement But selective indignation is counter-productive. Undermined - as it inevitably is - by hypocrisy and double standards that undermine its moral force. Be it the British government's condemnation of Russian action in Syria while remaining relatively quiet about Saudi action in Yemen, or that of supporters of the Stop the War coalition who tend to be muted in criticism of Russia while focusing their ire on the British and Americans over Iraq, Afghanistan and - indeed - Syria. Or Russia's condemnation of American and British recognition of Kosovo's break away from Serbia while subsequently recognising Abkhazia and South Ossetia's declarations of independence from Georgia. And that's before you consider how both sides are capable of sowing disinformation and outright lies to gain advantage. Remember Russia's insistence its forces have not been involved in Ukraine or the American refusal to own up for launching a cyber attack on Iran's nuclear programme. Moral suasion requires consistency to carry authority. The old saying "people who live in glasshouses shouldn't throw stones" isn't a call to stay silent; but it should be taken as an invocation to avoid hypocrisy if you want your words and actions to carry weight. Advertisement Double standards have practical consequences. If you think Wendi Deng Murdoch has tucked herself away since her high-profile split from media mogul Rupert, you'd be wrong. It turns out the woman with the most accurate right hook since Rocky Marciano has been more than busy, her latest project being a film she hopes will "build a bridge between China and the rest of the world". If that sounds overly ambitious, it matches the bold aspirations of the subject of her film 'Sky Ladder: The Art of Cai Guo-Qiang' - an artist who uses gunpowder as the backbone of his work. Advertisement When he created his actual pyrotechnic Sky Ladder, a 1,650-feet stairway to the heavens, it was to celebrate his grandmother's 100th birthday. It became a phenomenon, viewed more than 30million times on YouTube. Now, with his work finding a whole new audience with this film, Cai Guo-Qiang and Wendi sat down with HuffPostUK to talk about working together on a film that boasts Oscar-winning director Kevin Macdonald at its helm and is now available on Netflix. Advertisement WENDI MURDOCH: I wanted to make this film because I wanted to tell the story of a truly amazing artist, also a dear friend, and show the world the extraordinary art he's creating, also his life story, this amazing story that everyone can relate to. His art is quite explosive, but his personality is kind, quiet, and I love that tension. This film is also a lot about China's culture, it's a great window, a good bridge between China and the rest of the world. CAI GUO-QIANG: There is always a lot going on in my life, so a film crew following me round didn't really bother me. Indeed, it was a pleasant experience working with the crew, including film director Kevin Macdonald. I was indeed curious as to how they were going to make it work. But they managed to capture my perseverance in art and my journey, and the difficulties. It also captures my complicated affection for my family, my home town and my country. The film managed to capture something you wouldn't get in a museum exhibition. WENDI MURDOCH: Kevin Maconald did something very special. He took thousands of hours of footage, and was able to find a narrative that reflected the art and the artist's life, but also helped him touch the story. Advertisement The artist's childhood traumas were included in this film - why? CAI GUO-QIANG: Those were actually the decisions of the producer and director. My job was to be there for them to film. It was important to include my upbringing, including the tumultuous time of my childhood, so that the audience can better understand the relationship with my art and why I'm doing what I'm doing today. What do you want audiences to take away? WENDI: This movie is meant for the whole world, not just Chinese people. I want them to get to know art work, Chinese culture and also personal stories - family, emotion, love for each other - and also to enjoy the moment. CAI GUO-QIANG: On the one hand, Sky Ladder was about my childhood dream to communicate with the universe, to touch the clouds, pick up the stars, but those sentiments of the little boy remain consistent with my older art life. I want to follow this to Red Square in Moscow, to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution. It's a continuation of my childhood dream. Sky Ladder is not just the actual project, it represents a continuing dream and aspiration. Advertisement Image: Pixabay Have you caught the travel bug and have your sight set on exploring the world in the coming year? How do people travel these days? What sort of experiences are they looking for? In a BookYogaRetreats.com survey of over 300 travelers, we've uncovered some travel trends that will definitely continue into 2017 and perhaps beyond. Here's a look at what to expect next year in terms of travel! 1. You will take at least one holiday this year The idea of time away from work to travel is no longer just for a select few. Taking a break has now become more and more of a norm for individuals regardless of age. Our survey showed that only less than 15% of people aged 26 and under have stated they rarely go on holidays. As a whole, at least 40% of respondents go on one to two holidays in a year. News site Gallup also found similar trends in its study where over 55% of Americans say that they have vacation plans for the summer , and we expect this number to increase in the summer of 2017! Advertisement Perhaps the reason for this trend is that more people are becoming aware of the value of rest and relaxation. Breaks have shown to have a positive impact on employees. Taking a break is also directly linked to performance at the office as a study by Project: Time Off found that people who took more days off were more likely to get a pay raise than those who don't! Image: Pixabay 2. You will want an enriching travel experience Gone were the days that a holiday automatically meant to travel with the purpose of visiting family and friends. Only 10% of our respondents state this as a reason for their travel. More interestingly, less people are traveling in search of the nightlife. Only 4% of respondents noted that they traveled to party. More people travel as a way to enrich themselves, be it to explore a new destination (29%) or to learn a new skill (32.9%). While on vacation, more than half of our respondents are more interested in immersing themselves in the local culture, opting to blend in and experience the local way of life! At 12%, quite a fair number of respondents from the UK seek to cultivate new healthy habits on their travels. Under this category, the UK comes as the second highest number, falling behind Spain (16.7%). Respondents from these countries are more interested in going on fitness or wellness holidays such as yoga retreats or martial arts retreats. Advertisement Image: Pixabay 3. You will become your own travel agent With the advancement of technology, we are becoming independent travelers. Our survey showed that only 6.25% respondents say that they will go to travel agencies to book their flights. Social media is set to be your new travel agent, with travel being named as the biggest social vertical on Facebook! According to the Adweek infographic, 52% of Facebook users said that their friend's photos inspired their travel plans. The newly launched Google Trips travel app will also potentially rival the likes of Facebook as it combines travel planning with custom itineraries and guides will potentially be your personalised travel agent. Now that's an efficient travel agent! Advertisement Image: Pixabay 4. You will prefer to travel solo Think traveling solo is a good idea? You're not the only one! Half of our respondents thought so too! 51% of our survey respondents stated that they would be traveling solo on their next vacation. Solo traveling has been on the rise in the past year, with holiday companies offering incentives for solo travelers such as Cox & Kings and Caribtours in the UK. While previously uncommon, many are now advocating for solo travel. According to our survey, 80% of solo travelers come from Germany, followed by the UK at 69% and then Canada at 67%. If you're still on the fence about going solo, Fodor.com stresses that it will make you a better traveler and make your experiences more meaningful, while Wanderlust says that it will boost your self esteem! 5. If you are a woman, chances are, you'll be even more likely to travel alone More and more women are also now trekking the globe on their own, and in 2017, they will be seeking a solo adventure. A study has shown that there has been a 230% increase in the number of women-only travel companies in the past six years, no doubt catering to this rise in female travelers. Women are found to be more empowered to travel alone due to the rise of social media and a growing sense of safety. Supporting this trend, more women are also increasingly interested in women-only themed vacations. Traffic to women-only retreats on www.BookYogaRetreats.com between January and August this year registered at almost 38,000 views, significantly more than visits to men-only retreats, couple retreats and family retreats. 6. You will be ready to disconnect from work Perhaps the convenience of technology these days have contributed to this trend, but it is apparent that the boundaries between work and personal life is slowly disappearing. According to a Randstad study, 42% of employees in 2014 reported feeling obligated to check their emails during vacation. Advertisement The blurring of work and personal lines had come to such great heights that main influential business media outlets have published dozens of articles to help employees to stop checking their emails while on vacation! We are beginning to see a shift from this perspective. People begin to understand that being connected all the time polluted their personal wellness. Our survey found that over 75% of our respondents are willing to completely unplug from their work life while traveling. However, of this number, only 38% achieves this goal, so it seems we have a fair bit more to go! Image: Pixabay 7. You will use social media to document your holidays We are well and truly living in the age of social media! If before, we would document our holidays through carefully curate photos inserted in photo albums or gathered in digital albums, we now share our stories on the go using Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Vine, Snapchat and Periscope. Our survey found almost 80% of our respondents use social media while on holiday, with 25% of respondents checking in daily. Only 10% have said that they would completely unplug from social media while on holiday, while only a mere 7% don't use it at all. Christopher Furlong via Getty Images While I've been personally lucky in life with my own health, whenever my family or I have needed the NHS it's been there for us. My children were born in Mansfield's Kings Mill Hospital and Leicester's General Hospital. The quality of care and dedication from staff, every one of them from doctors and midwifes to porters, receptionists and canteen staff was consistently exceptional, compassionate, reassuring and kind. They truly were among the very best of the NHS - and indeed of Britain. Growing up in Manchester, Park Hospital - perhaps better known these days as Trafford General - was the local hospital for much of my family; indeed it was where my grandfather spent his final precious hours of life. As a child I often visited various relatives over the years in Park Hospital. I remember vividly the reception area where hung a large black and white 1940s photograph of a man in a double breasted suit with striking hair smiling enthusiastically at nurses and patients. Only later did I realise the man in that photo was Nye Bevan and Trafford General was the nation's first NHS hospital. Advertisement The National Health Service is Labour's greatest achievement and in accepting the invitation from Jeremy Corbyn to take on the role of Shadow Health Secretary I'm acutely aware of the awesome responsibility on my shoulders. Almost 70 years old, the NHS remains the fairest, the most popular and the most efficient system of healthcare the world has ever seen. With treatment free at the point of delivery and everyone treated equally and solely on their clinical need not on their ability to pay. These are principles the Labour Party will never compromise on, in government or in opposition. What's more the Labour Party will never allow the privatisation of the NHS. And we will campaign to expose any attempt by the Tories to do so. At the last General Election Andy Burnham committed Labour to repealing the Health and Social Care Act that is intended to privatise the NHS. We will make the same commitment at the next general election Of course the NHS couldn't achieve the extraordinary things it does day after day if it wasn't for the extraordinary efforts of the staff. Not just the 150,000 doctors, 300,000 nurses and health visitors, 25,000 midwives and 18,000 paramedics but also the vast army of porters, cleaners, administrative staff, receptionists, practice managers and of course senior managers. Labour values them all. That's why a Labour government would not pick fights with staff but instead work with them to improve the NHS to achieve the finest and most equitable care possible to patients and their families. We would invest in the next generation of staff, not discourage people from entering the profession by scrapping student nurse bursaries. Advertisement But we have a job to do in opposition too. My first priority as shadow health secretary will always be patient care. No one who cares about our NHS will be content with a million more patients on hospital waiting lists than when Labour left office - or the 900 a day patients who are stuck in hospital for longer than is medically necessary because of savage cuts to social care. I promise to give a voice to the millions of people who need a strong Labour Party campaigning for a strong NHS. My second priority will be to look to the future and what the next Labour government can achieve for the NHS. At the heart of this approach must be an honest conversation about future funding. The Chief Executive of the NHS has admitted again this week that the Government did not give it the money it asked for, and the body representing hospitals in England has warned the health service "is increasingly failing to do the job it wants to do and the public needs it to do" because of the growing cash crisis. The only people who don't believe the NHS needs more money are the people who are meant to be in charge of it: Jeremy Hunt and Theresa May. We cannot continue to allow decisions about future funding of health and care to be put in the 'too difficult to deal with' pile. It is incumbent on our generation of Labour politicians to have an honest debate and come up with the solutions that will protect the NHS for our children and for our children's children. And it's a debate I want to lead. Advertisement Over the coming weeks and months it's the intention of Labour's shadow health team to listen. To listen to staff, to experts, trade unions, families, carers and of course patients and service users about what needs to be done to rebuild our NHS and make it fit for this century. If we fail in that mission, then I truly fear that my party's greatest achievement will only be remembered by the pictures on old hospital walls and the memories from the past. In 1655, the medical author Thomas Moffett explained that all 'kind and natural' women would breastfeed. 'Yea', he noted, 'all Women which truly loved their Children' did so. The alternative to breastfeeding for new mothers in the 1600s in England was to hire a wet nurse -- a woman that had recently given birth and was still lactating. For medical and religious authorities alike, employing another woman to feed one's infant was seen as shirking a godly duty and a symptom of lukewarm maternal affection. As Jane Sharp, author of a 1671 midwifery text sneered, women that hired a wet nurse had as much 'love for their own, as Dumb creatures.' Breast milk was thought to carry the physical and emotional characteristics of its source. Moffett, for instance, explained to new mothers that babies could 'draw ill Qualities from their Nurses both of Body and Mind', a concern echoing ancient guidance about choosing a midwife and reflecting social concerns about entrusting the care of an infant to a woman of more humble origins than her employers. Across the social spectrum in early modern England medical and moral authors considered a mother's milk the most beneficial for infant health. Advertisement Just as seventeenth-century authors were adamant about the advantages of mothers breastfeeding, so modern debates stress the medical, moral and emotional imperatives for breastfeeding. Current medical recommendations propose that mothers should breastfeed exclusively for the first six months of a baby's life. A recent study in the Lancet suggested that breastfeeding exclusively could prevent 800,000 child deaths per year, and stop an additional 22,000 deaths annually from breast cancer. One Brazilian study concluded that babies that had been breastfed had higher IQs, spent longer in school and earned more than those who had not. But there are numerous reasons why women might be unable to breastfeed, something the current dialogue often neglects to consider. Currently the alternative, if access to a milk banking service is unavailable, is formula. In early modern England when new mothers were unable to breastfeed, they sometimes avoided the dangers of hiring an unknown nurse that lived far from the household by soliciting former servants and friends to carry out the task; a more informal arrangement that did not necessarily involve money. A case in point is recorded in the diary of the Yorkshire gentlewoman Alice Thornton. In 1655 she became ill and her milk disappeared. Dafeny Lightfoot, a family friend and former servant, fed the newborn in Alice's stead for three months. Similarly, when the clergyman Ralph Josselin and his wife had to leave their children in Earls Colne, Essex, he asked his 'former servant' Lydia to breastfeed his youngest child. The lawyer, Robert Woodford, also asked Mrs Rushworth, a former servant to feed two-month old John when his wife was troubled with sore and inflamed breasts. Even medical authors allowed for this practice as a more desirable alternative to sending a child away to nurse: Jane Sharp noted that some women were so blessed as to have enough breast milk to 'suckle a child of their own, and another for a friend.' Advertisement Such examples show that social and cultural factors condition parenting expectations and norms -- wet nursing and breastfeeding have ebbed and flowed in popularity. More recently, private milk sharing has become a visible alternative for parents wishing to avoid formula. Such arrangements are facilitated by the internet and social media, but are not without their critics. On 26 October five experts -- two historians, a geographer, a sociologist and a milk banking consultant -- will join together to debate whether or not women should be feeding each other's babies as part of the Cambridge Festival of Ideas. Vietnam has a vibrancy that will bewitch you, from its beauty to its and diversity, a country that has everything everyone could want a mix of natural wonders, colonial Indochine charm and a cuisine that stands head and shoulders above its neighbours. Its long coastline has some of best beaches in the world dotted with many chic beachside hotels. Vietnam can be traversed either north to south or vice versa. But beginning in the north allows you to relax at one of the southern islands as a finale. Below are just a couple of reasons why you will love Vietnam, but don't take our word for it, just hop on a plane and go see yourself. Advertisement Anantara Hotels Hoi An Listed as an UNESCO World Heritage listed site, the old trading port town of Hoi An is a place you will never want to leave, you will fall in love with this town. It is easy to get lost in its small cobbled streets lined with boutique art galleries, small craft shops, incredible restaurants, the nearby historical ruins of My Son open up a forgotten world. Hoi An is only minutes away from one of the longest sandy beaches in the country that stretches all the way to Da Nang. If you want to visit one of the many villages surrounding Hoi An, you can hire a bicycle and ride off and see a small slice of Vietnamese village life. The local farmers are very friendly although they won't be able to speak a word of English, but sign language and a smile always help. Victoria Hotel Hoi An Food A major highlight of any trip to Vietnam is its food, without a doubt the best in Asia and head and shoulders above its neighbours. It has slowly developed over the centuries taking subtle bites from not only its near neighbours but from its former colonisers as well. The Chinese and French both left their mark in very subtle ways, however it took the Vietnamese to combine flavours, techniques and ingredients to create a truly unique cuisine. Only the Vietnamese could take the ordinary baguette and remake it with rice flour to create a light and fluffy version far superior to the French original and fill it with Vietnamese pates and spicy pickles to create a great sandwich, the Banh Mi. They also took the idea of stock making to new levels in creating what most people class as Vietnam's national dish. Pho, a simple noodle soup made with a stock that any French chef would be proud of. The food in Vietnam is delicious and one of the many things you will always remember form your trip. Advertisement Ginger Junk Heritage Line Halong Bay Halong Bay is probably Vietnam's most famous and treasured natural wonder, this UNESCO World Heritage Site is the countries jewel in the crown that every traveller to Vietnam has to experience. You have to experience Halong Bay on board one of the many traditional Junks that sail around this incredible bay. They come in a variety of sizes from small boutique boats, perfect for honeymooners wanting the ultimate intimate experience to larger boats for families and friends. Time on the bay is not solely limited to sailing or relaxing on board admiring the landscape. Stopping off here and there, jumping off for a bit of swimming, kayaking or even relaxing on deserted beaches or visiting one of the many fishing villages that are scattered around the bay. Victoria Hotel Sapa Sapa Hidden away in the remote northern mountain region, Sapa is a world away from the scenic coastline that Vietnam is so famous for. Accessed from Hanoi via luxury overnight train you arrive into the hilly rice terraced landscaped dotted with small minority villages. The small town of Sapa is nothing special, in fact it is quite unappealing, but the countryside and the weekly local markets around are what you are here for. The Hmong and Dao tribes are in the majority here and you can trek through their villages in the valleys below. You will make instant friends with the local groups who will want nothing more than to sell you locally made curios, it's all done with a smile and you are easily persuaded to part with a few dollars here and there. Sapa is best with a car as some of the best markets are up towards the Chinese border. Did you know that Denmark, and its capital city Copenhagen, is one of the best places in the world to launch a startup? It's a tiny city in a small European country and one that doesn't always go around shouting about its achievements. However it has fostered a number of well known unicorn startups (startups that are valued at over one billion US dollars) such as Skype, JustEat and Unity Technologies. But what is it about Denmark that makes this possible? 1. Top of most global quality of life surveys "Denmark seems to have cemented its position at or near the top of every global quality-of-life survey. Now it also looks like a fertile ground for scaleups: it shows 1.7 scaleups for every hundred thousand people, which is 2.5 times the ratio in the UK and almost 6 times the average ratio in continental Europe. Not surprisingly, Denmark ranks third in the European Innovation Scoreboard," said Alberto Onetti, Chairman of Mind the Bridge, a Silicon Valley/European organisation dedicated to technology scouting for large corporations, which launched a report on the Danish scaleup ecosystem in September 2016. Advertisement Photo credit: Ty Stange 2. Easy access to the rest of Europe Almost 75% of the Danish scaleups in the report above are located in Copenhagen which offers easy access to customers and business partners in the rest of Europe. "With an airport only 25 minutes away and flying times of just over one hour to London I can get into central London quicker than some of my old colleagues can from their homes in the home counties," said Omar Shaikh, co-founder of COCOA Invest based in Copenhagen. 3. Denmark is open to new technologies plus almost everyone speaks perfect English "Danes are open to new technology - in fact, I have all confidence that this will be the first cashless society," Shaikh said. "And I cannot emphasise enough how valuable it is to operate in a country where English is so second nature. Frankly, the level of English ability is so good I often forget I am not living in a country where this is the first language." Photo credit: Copenhagen Capacity 4. Vast opportunities for funding These are from public funding schemes, business angels, local and international venture capital investors as well as accelerators such as Accelerace, a Denmark based, internationally focused business development organisation. Since 2010, Accelerace has helped more than 250 startups raise over 269.5 million US dollars in funding and investment. There are opportunities for public funding for entrepreneurs from schemes such as Innovation Incubator Scheme. This provides counselling, pre-seed and seed capital for entrepreneurs and new innovative enterprises, and operates at the earliest stage of the investment chain. In 2015, the programme attracted private investments of almost 200 million US dollars to startups in Denmark. Advertisement Photo credit: Ty Stange 5. One of the world's most liveable cities Being able to source highly skilled talent is one of the main reasons why many Danish scaleups maintain core business functions such as R&D in Greater Copenhagen after moving their headquarters abroad. Like in most other cities with fast-growing industries, the local talent pool sometimes needs fuelling from other countries, and the international professionals who go to Copenhagen tend to get stay there. "Copenhagen is very employer friendly. It is easy to attract talented staff because people just really fall in love with the way you live life in Copenhagen. Denmark also has a very flexible labour market, which is more or less second to none," says Anders Johansen, HR Director, Unity Technologies. 6. Young scaleup ecosystem is great for international investors in a booming scene "The Danish scaleup ecosystem is still quite young, so international investors have a great opportunity to reap the fruits of Copenhagen's booming startup scene," said Claus Lnborg, CEO of inward investment agency Copenhagen Capacity, who assists international companies, investors and talents in identifying and implementing business opportunities in Greater Copenhagen. 7. Free movement within the EU The fantastic opportunities for startups in Denmark are not just for the Danes with free movement within the EU, they are open to all EU citizens living there. There are still opportunities if you are coming from outside of the EU, you need to apply to Startup Denmark, which has some requirements you need to meet before you can launch a startup. But as soon as you have a company registration number in Denmark, you have the same opportunities as Danish startups. Advertisement So what are you waiting for? 'Baby soft skin.' At least, that's what they're meant to have. Ours didn't though and at three months old she was diagnosed with eczema. 'Not to worry,' we thought, unperturbed by such a common ailment and, accordingly, the condition was soon beating a hasty retreat after a brief course of steroid cream. That's that little problem over and done with then. Only, weeks later, those angry red patches were back. Surely that had been treated? A trip to the doctors' led to the same diagnosis as before. Advertisement It went. And then it came back. Infected this time. Our hearts sank as we saw our baby's skin inflamed and raw. This time, as we were given a course of antibiotics and cream, we were more pessimistic than before. We were right to be. After just a few short weeks, time we spent watching our baby's skin anxiously, the eczema did, as expected make an unwelcome return. And this time it brought an unpleasant side effect. An itch. 'Don't scratch darling,' we'd say, covering her little hands with scratch mitts to stop her burrowing at her skin with her fingernails. 'Don't scratch.' She ignored us. Even if she could understand us, I doubt she would have done our bidding. But fortunately we had the scratch mitts to stop her doing herself any harm. Advertisement And then, one night, she worked out how to pull those mitts off. We got to her before she could do any real damage but her cheeks were still marked with bloody little scratches. If she was in pain though you wouldn't have known it; in fact, she tried to have another little burrow at her face. We had to hold onto her determined little hands to stop her, much to her fury. As we drove to the doctors', back from our brief holiday, we started to realise this was a real problem. And even with another course of antibiotics and cream it was a problem which didn't go away. 'Don't scratch, don't scratch, don't scratch,' we'd beg, to no avail. It would break our hearts to see the relief in her eyes if she ever managed to get a sneaky (constantly trimmed) fingernail to a place where the eczema prevailed. It was relentless. Our whole time together seemed to be spent stopping her from scratching. I remember one night coming home from work and looking at my husband, who was staying home with our daughter at the time, and in his eyes I just saw naked desperation. 'She doesn't stop scratching.' At last, we got to see a specialist who took one look at our daughter and slathered her in cream. 'It's like a thousand bites on her skin a minute,' she explained about the eczema. I felt myself fall then. My poor, poor baby girl; I hated that she had to endure such discomfort and would have given anything and everything to swap places with her. I also hated the way our darling baby would scream when we applied the latest combination of creams. And I hated the way it took two of us to dress her - one to hold her ever-itch-seeking hands and one to get her into her clothes. I also hated seeing her in the special sleeves she wore at night which, thankfully, stopped her hands escaping for a scratch - but which also stopped her getting access to the thumb she used to soothe her. And I hated the way I always felt the need to explain what the medically prescribed 'silks' she wore were to strangers. Advertisement And then I realised. This was real life. This was the reality of parenting. Up until my daughter had been diagnosed with eczema, our parenting path had been as expected, with sleepless nights and nappy explosions and projectile vomiting and earth-shattering screaming. All standard baby behaviour. But the eczema had caught us off guard. And we weren't alone. The more parents I spoke to, the more I realised that all of our children had different challenges to face - be it reflux or colic or horrendous sleeping patterns or, like us, eczema. And in some cases, for some poor parents, even worse. The path through babyhood is never smooth - and not as rosy as I might have imagined. At some point, the reality of parenthood kicks in. Thankfully, the eczema has calmed down and our girl only suffers really bad flare-ups when she's teething. And some days she hardly tries to scratch at all. In an odd way, the eczema has made us stronger. We worked together to tackle it and we remained committed to getting the right treatment for our little girl. And as for our daughter? LOUISA GOULIAMAKI via Getty Images Such is the self-absorption of Britain with things that affect Britain, you could almost be forgiven for thinking the world's refugee crisis is largely about who comes to this country. It's all about Calais, isn't it? The squalor of the shanty town-like "Jungle". Or people crammed into the backs of lorries or even clinging perilously to the underside of moving vehicles on the M25. Or the much-publicised scheme to bring Syrians to this country. Er, not really. These are all real. They're enormously important for the often desperate people involved - and in particular the much-discussed plight of children in the camps in northern France is a major disgrace (which may finally be inching toward a resolution). But overall the UK is just a big player in the global drama - the tragedy - which has seen tens of millions of people forced out of their homes because of war and repression. Advertisement Take for example Iraq. Not commonly mentioned in this context, it's nevertheless true that the twin menace of Islamic State atrocities and Shia militia violence have uprooted a staggering four million people. Here's what a new report from Amnesty says about their plight: "Many have fled with little more than the clothes on their backs, setting off at night to avoid detection and walking for hours along treacherous paths. Not all those escaping have made it to safety. Fleeing civilians have been shot at by ISIS fighters, while others have stepped on mines or other unexploded remnants of war." Something of the desperate sadness of present-day Iraq is surely summed up in this chillingly matter-of-fact passage. And with the much-heralded "battle for Mosul" now underway, there's every reason to fear that Sunnis in the city could face a dreadful wave of reprisal attacks from vengeful Shia militias who already have a bloody record of acting as anti-Sunni death squads. But depressingly enough, there are similarly massive population displacements (some even bigger) in other places. Unsurprisingly, the scale of uprooting in Syria is huge (nearly five million who've fled the country, six million who've been forced to leave their homes but are still in Syria). But there are other cataclysmic events we hardly even hear about. More than two million people forced out of their villages and towns in Nigeria. Even more - about 2.5m - in the same position in Yemen (where, of course, UK-supplied weapons are part of the armoury of a Saudi Arabia-led military coalition which has repeatedly bombed homes, mosques, funeral halls and hospitals). Advertisement Meanwhile, there are vast numbers of refugees in Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia. When did you last hear about how these - not especially rich or completely stable - countries were coping with their new populations? Or what about Mexico, what about all the refugees who've fled there? Yes, fled to Mexico. As AA Gill has pointed out, despite the US political rhetoric about vast numbers of Mexicans supposedly decamping to Texas or Arizona, Mexico is a net recipient of migrants, including people fleeing murderous organised gangs in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. (Gill's very vivid account of the precarious lives of those who've crossed into Mexico is here []). To listen to politicians like Donald Trump you'd think the refugee crisis in the wider Americas was all about the US-Mexico border. This, you'll recall is what Trump said about building a wall on the border: "We will build a great wall along the southern border ... On day one, we will begin working on an impenetrable, physical, tall, powerful, beautiful southern border wall." Other news disappeared beneath this maelstrom, including a story which lays bare some other, more poignant results of a political system beleaguered by adult indolence and self-seeking. Nelson Mandela once commented 'The true character of a society is revealed in how it treats its children'. Another event in June 2016, which did not make the headlines, makes it clear how the contemporary UK is reflected in this particular mirror. On 3rd June 2016, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) released their advance, unedited version of the concluding observations on their fifth periodic report on the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The UK signed the convention on 19 April 1990 and ratified it on 16 December 1991. It was formally adopted as a set of policies for the UK to work towards on 15 January 1992. Every five years since then, the UNCRC has reported on the UK's progress in this endeavour. Advertisement This new report makes grim reading. It raises concerns about children in the UK suffering from economic hardship that is increasingly exacerbated by government policy, exclusive practices in state education, a lack of infrastructure to deal with mental illness amongst the child population and the harsh manner in which children are treated by the criminal justice system. It also raises concerns about reducing opportunities for play and leisure, and rising obesity rates amongst the child population. The main concerns the UNCRC raises in the area of education relate to inequalities, particularly the use of various forms of subtle exclusion for children with special needs, who, they comment 'are often subject to the practice of "informal" exclusion or "taught offsite". The announcement that Mrs May's administration wishes to bring back selection at eleven will further enshrine a system of mass exclusion to underpin the entire system of secondary education. Other issues raised by the report relate to the use of acoustic youth dispersal devices in public spaces, the use of tasers against children, the use of restraint and isolation when dealing with children who have psycho-social disabilities, and a lack of policy development in response to adolescent bullying behaviours, particularly through online interaction. The UNCRC also recorded its concern about the increase in numbers of children coming into local authority care who might have remained with their families, had timely support been provided. The mishandling of juvenile mental health difficulties underpins a range of UNCRC concerns, including youth suicide linked to social and economic deprivation and the lack of infrastructure for dealing with children's mental health difficulties, meaning that too often, children who require in-patient treatment for mental health disorders are hospitalised many miles away from their homes. Out-patient therapeutic services were judged as similarly lacking, and concern raised about the overuse of psychotropic drugs such as Ritalin, controversially used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), a condition that is exacerbated by lack of free, active play. Advertisement So, to summarise, in the light of the UNCRC's investigations, the UK is a nation which shows insufficient concern about children living in poverty or having a dearth of time and space to play, preferring to medicate those deemed 'hyperactive'. Its state education system contains significant inequalities, which the new administration plans to further exacerbate. Within the past twenty years, England and Wales legislated to effectively reduce the age of criminal responsibility, despite increasing evidence from neuronal development experts to suggest that the human brain remains immature for far longer than was previously proposed, and it offers grossly inadequate mental health services to children and young people. Photo: Toa Heftiba Online marketplaces have changed the world we live in. It's hard to believe the first generation of online marketplaces began over 2 decades ago. Amazon was founded in 1994 and Ebay the following year, spearheading a movement that has led to the normalisation of online shopping and is ultimately leading to a different kind of high street experience. Airbnb is nearly 10 years old and this summer was valued at $30bn. Where its popularity has exploded, the cumulative impact - the 'Airbnb effect' - is starting to be perceived as negative. There is little data to back this - although Airbnb is by no means the root of housing problems it is certainly shaping cities. It's ironic that fears of gentrification and homogenised neighbourhoods in cities like Amsterdam have resulted from an enterprise started by two guys who couldn't afford to pay New York rent. Advertisement Not only are online marketplaces shaping physical places, but impacting society itself. In recent months and even days, online marketplaces such as Uber, Deliveroo and Asos have been under fire for treating their employees unethically and penalising workers who do not meet difficult targets. Relatively low and insecure wages are having an impact on wider society, while investors benefit from high valuations and customers from a convenient and low cost service. That's why I've titled this post 'aggressively human'. Aggressive organisations that are meant to improve people's lives often do - but can end up having negative side-effects. Is there a better way to do the sharing economy? Yes #1 - by improving regulation. Uber recently criticised Sadiq Khan for showing favouritism towards London's black cab drivers. New York banned Airbnb in 2014, and coalitions have sprung up in cities such as Amsterdam and Toronto to help regulate Airbnb from the citizen perspective. As the power and influence of sharing economy organisations grows we need to create a system that works for workers and wider citizens, that reflect the changes caused by so called sharing economy businesses. The RSA for example is using a 'collaborative and consultative approach' to develop thinking in this area. Yes #2 - by using different business models that remove the negative single-mindedness of us-or-die. Take FutureGov, a public-sector consultancy, which sector creates platforms for communities based on user-centred design and research. Not only do their digital platforms actively help solve problems in society, but beyond their own public sector projects they want to empower people to use their vision and change something in their local community. Advertisement Yes #3 - accessing the right kind of capital can help sharing economy organisations maintain their integrity. Getting investors who buy into the social impact can allow an organisation to stay true to its mission and focus on sustainability, rather than quickly scramble for profit. It's less aggressive (but not less tactical), more commons-based and human-centred. And taking the long view, startups taking a user centred, social impact approach can, with the right business model, build sustainable and effective organisations. Let's look at startups who have gone through the 8 year old Bethnal Green Ventures programme, a tech-for-good early stage accelerator supporting social-tech ventures to develop a solution to a social or environmental problem. Nearly 70 percent of those ventures that have gone through their programme are still going strong. So let's make the sharing economy inclusive and democratic. Let's line up the incentives with the results. And let's make sure that while not every organisation will be targeted towards everyone's needs, no human loses out. Hemera Technologies via Getty Images The key challenge to all climate change agreements, argues Yale economist William Nordhaus, is free riding: "The benefits from investments to reduce emission of CO2 and other greenhouse gases are a global public good. They require costly investments by individual countries. However, the benefits from the lower emissions are spread widely around the world, and the country undertaking the investments will receive only a tiny fraction of the benefits." "Paris was a resounding success", argued Chatham House after the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference was completed. This is in part because it directly addressed the free rider problem through Intended Nationally Determined Contributions to carbon reduction. The UK made its pledges as part of the EU's (pdf) target of a 40 per cent reduction in emissions against 1990 levels by 2030. The Centre for European Policy Studies have laid out how Brexit negotiations in this area might play out here. The UK's existing legislation prevents us from backtracking. Under the Climate Change Act 2008, "it is the duty of the Secretary of State to ensure that the net UK carbon account for the year 2050 is at least 80% lower than the 1990 baseline." We have generally been doing better than our EU neighbours - delivering a 38 per cent reduction against the 1990 baseline by 2015 despite a growing economy. But Brexit and haphazard government policy threaten this progress. The issue is how we actually fund the transition that makes the targets possible. "Europe lost its renewable energy mojo just as costs were plummeting to the point where green power is fully competitive without subsidies in more and more parts of the world", argues Michael Liebreich of Bloomberg New Energy Finance. From a peak of $131.7bn in 2011, European investment halved to $58.5bn last year, just 18 percent of the global figure. The Committee on Climate Change, which helped develop the latest, 2016 Carbon Budget, believes that "it will be necessary to decarbonise all new investment by 2020 for power". In the UK, public investment will not do the whole job. We have 7.7bn of renewable energy projects in the National Infrastructure Pipeline for 2017-18. This falls to 283mn by 2020-21. In the most recent edition of EY's Renewable energy country attractiveness index, the UK had sunk to 13th place thanks to "the UK Government's noncommittal, if not antagonistic, approach to energy policy [which] continues to go against the grain of almost universal global support for renewables." Advertisement There's stiff competition for private capital - the largest fund is no bigger (pdf) than $2bn. But Europe's generally stable regulatory environment for energy has meant half of the deals in the private market are concluded here. Post-crisis fears over the Euro that scared off investors elsewhere made UK deals more attractive, but that advantage has well and truly evaporated with the value of the pound. Germany has as ambitious national targets as we do - by 2050, it also aims to cut 80 percent of fossil fuel energy generation. Their energy revolution or energiewende has already seen half of nuclear power generation replaced by renewables after public concern around the Fukushima meltdown. Significantly, nearly half of investment has come from individual citizens and energy cooperatives. On average, initial investment by each cooperative is around 686,000 - that's 738 per investor. However, because nuclear has been the first to fall out of the energy mix, the share retained by coal means has strictly curtailed the resulting fall in emissions. So we might be doing better on coordination, but much worse on incentives. Feed in Tariffs - where energy suppliers directly pay for generation and export of low carbon electricity - will be open until 2019 following a review, but after that Government intends to introduce a new, capped system. The Renewables Obligation required UK electricity suppliers to source an increasing proportion of electricity from renewable sources. However, these close to all new generating capacity on 31 March 2017, and closed to wind a year early: in April this year. In their place Contracts for Difference were established as long-term, legally-binding agreements that stabilise prices for low-carbon generation. They're intended to insulate power generators from wholesale electricity price fluctuations and give more certainty about future revenues. However, argues Respublica, the sheer complexity of this system deters equity investment in renewables, especially by communities. On Hinckley Point, for example, the Adam Smith Institute argues that the contract for difference actually increases the amount of subsidy paid to generators. It has a 'strike price' of 92.50 per megawatt hour, intended to be index linked for 35 years. "So, for example, if the wholesale price of electricity is 47.50 per MWh, the Hinkley Point plant will receive 45 per MWh subsidy. This means that if wholesale prices fall, the subsidies received by the Hinkley Point project will increase." Advertisement As Barnaby Wharton, senior energy and climate change policy adviser for the CBI, recently argued: "We still need to attract huge sums of private investment to keep the lights on and diversify our power mix, and we must maintain momentum on progress made so far. This is not about government hand outs, rather timely policy decisions." The 80s revival has been gathering momentum in recent years. The way things are going, it is possible that Glastonbury 2017 revellers will be able to see Howard Jones, Shakin' Stevens, Simply Red and Bros. Phil Collins has also announced a comeback, and will be feeding his particular brand of musical gruel to estate agents and bank managers in the near future. Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of much of what emerged in the 1980s, though would rather see The Levellers, Throwing Muses, The Waterboys, James and The Stone Roses on the Pyramid Stage than the musical Mogadon of Phil Collins or Simply Red. Advertisement There are darker aspects to the 80s revival, however, than Rubik cubes and Howard Jones. We are seeing these in all their horror in the UK and US, and the rest of the world is looking on in alarm - or doing their own hideous timewarp. In Britain we have Theresa May, who I regard as a pound store Margaret Thatcher. She came to power in a post-Referendum puff of smoke, as her colleagues lay all around with knives in their backs. From her home secretary days commissioning vans emblazoned with demands that illegal immigrants 'Go Home', May has been 'leading' the country at a time of greater and greater anti-immigrant sentiment. Hate crime has been increasing, and the recent Conservative Party conference did less than nothing to tackle rising xenophobia. Suddenly, in the UK and the US, racists who had been selective about who they would vomit up bile in front of are doing it all over the place. Social media is splattered with the sort of racist bile that was unacceptable when I was at infant school. Advertisement Another echo of Thatcher's Britain that May seems quite happy with is massive and increasing social inequality, with the young bearing the brunt of uncertainty and poverty. May claims to want build a fairer society - than that which her party has been actively creating. I'm not convinced. The hard Brexit she is pushing for will harm the poorest and the young more than anybody. The Cold War and nuclear threat was one of the darkest shadows hanging over the 1980s. But those who missed that have the chance to experience a more volatile version of it. Spectres of that past rose in Ukraine in 2014, but in Syria the new Cold War has rapidly become a hotter conflict. Propaganda machines on all sides of the most complicated tug of war ever played have been whirring clunkily into action, like 1980s printers. It is unfortunate that the huge problems we face in Britain can seem less significant when we look to the US. Donald Trump can be seen as the must hideous bit of the 80s revival we are enduring. He is the bloated narcissistic embodiment of the grasping materialist era satirised in Wall Street and, with each new allegation of sexual assault, seems increasingly reminiscent of some of our 'light entertainers' of yesteryear. The 1980s also was a decade when environmental concerns came to the fore, and there was growing recognition that we needed to move to renewable sources of energy. There has been progress on this, but government and global corporations running roughshod over local opposition to fracking, and rapidly melting polar ice caps, suggest we haven't moved as far since the 80s as a supposedly clever species should have. In the 1980s there were also explosions of public - and especially youthful - energy. Some of these were generally peaceful, like rave, and some not so much. There were, however, profound long-term positive impacts. Advertisement The 1981 Brixton riots were a response to a number of factors, including racial disadvantage, inner city decline and institutionalised racism within the Metropolitan Police, which often treated black people as third class citizens. In the lead up the riots, police (mis)used the 1824 Vagrancy Act to stop and search a vast number of young black people. Other riots in the 1980s were also fuelled by the treatment of minorities, but the one that ultimately paved the way to Thatcher's downfall occurred at a poll tax protest in 1990. The largest of several such protests happened on March 31 in London, with up to 250,000 in attendance, from many walks of life. Rioting appears to have started after mounted police suddenly charged protesters in Trafalgar Square. In the aftermath, questions were raised about policing methods, and widespread public opposition to the highly regressive tax led to Thatcher being pushed from office. She was replaced by John Major, who announced in his first parliamentary speech that the poll tax would be abolished. Although we have seen footage of UK police behaving in atrocious ways at protests in recent years, they are arguably better at dealing with demonstrations now. And the institutional racism seen in the 1980s has, hopefully, reduced somewhat. However, fundamental political problems haven't gone away. October 20th 2016 marks the official induction of the 1st Annual Trans Nation Festival, co-hosted by Amazon Prime. This 4 day celebration runs October 20th -23rd 2016, and will pay tribute to the trans community through beauty, art, and film. The event will be initiated with a film festival guest curated by producer and trans performance artist Zackary Drucker. An eclectic selection of the best new shorts along with rare and underseen gems that reflect the trans experience through film are expected to be showcased in the city of West Hollywood. Advertisement Filmmakers and actors will present these pieces, which will also include the Los Angeles premiere of "Diane from the Moon", starring Mya Taylor. Candis Cayne and Curly Velasquez will emcee The Queen USA Transgender Beauty Pageant, which is also constituted in the 4 day festival. This 15 year long pageant was created to celebrate the heights of transgender beauty culture while engaging contestants and the audience in a broader awareness of transgender issues. Advertisement Contestants will compete in the categories of swimsuit, cocktail, and evening wear in addition to participating in a q&a portion which will enable contestants to explore key issues facing the transgender community. Proceeds from the 4 day festival will go to the Imperial Court of Los Angeles, which is a private non profit 501(3) California Public Benefit corporation whose primary goal is to further relationships with organizations and businesses within the LGBT community in Los Angeles. Donations will also benefit St. John's Well Child and Family Center, an independent non profit 501(3) community health center that provides primary health care along with socioeconomic and social justice services for over 1200 transgender patients in South LA. St. John's has been a groundbreaking addition for the transgender community of Los Angeles in terms of health care. "Our clinic has grown from 6 patients to over a thousand in less than 3 years with virtually no outreach or promotional work. Our program has grown exponentially through word of mouth." says Diana Feliz Olivia, Program Director of St. John's Transgender Health Care Program. Diana Feliz Olivia, a latina transgender woman who was also appointed to the Transgender Advisory Council for the City of Los Angeles earlier this year, stated: Advertisement "The reason for the Trans Nation festival is to bring trans men and women together to build community and support. We really needed a multi-day festival in Los Angeles to celebrate the intelligence, grace, poise, and talent of the trans community while raising funds to expand our services and create new opportunities for our community." Diana Olivia has been the program director of the St. John's Transgender Health Care Program for over a year, and emphasizes how the health care program is unique in the way it serves the trans community. "The majority of our staff is transgender, which immediately puts our new and present patients at ease. They walk into our office and they see someone who looks like them, talks like them, and dresses like them and they feel comfortable. This is part of what has made our program so successful and unique." The Trans Nation Festival is the first of its kind in Los Angeles and many in the trans community are hoping this event will not only bring the community closer together, but also help other communities familiarize themselves with what being trans means. The Trans Nation festival is particularly different from the San Francisco Transgender Film Festival, because there is an entire day specifically set aside to celebrate the beauty of being transgender though the Queen USA Transgender Beauty Pageant. This is particularly important, because many trans men and women struggle with the idea of feeling or being beautiful, since society teaches us we are not. Advertisement It is vital to continue to maintain and cultivate transgender health care services because there are very few places where transgender health care is offered in an affordable and personalized setting. The Affordable Care Act included trans health care in many places and that was a remarkable step in the right direction for trans people, but in some ways it still remained difficult to receive personalized and comprehensive transgender healthcare. Now that health care is available it is wonderful to see community leaders, celebrities, and city officials coming together for one cause: to maintain the health and happiness of the transgender community in Los Angeles. The UN General Assembly's confirmation of Antonio Guterres as the next Secretary-General of the United Nations is encouraging news for global education, not least because he has been a vocal supporter for education, particularly in humanitarian emergencies. The Global Partnership for Education extends a very warm welcome to the UN's next Secretary-General, and we look forward to working with him when he begins his new post in January 2017. From my own experience, Mr. Guterres' convictions about elevating support for education in humanitarian and development situations run deep. GPE Board Chair Julia Gillard and I had a number of productive and encouraging conversations with him when he was UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Those discussions culminated in an April 2016 agreement between GPE and UNHCR to collaborate more closely in support of education during emergencies through joint advocacy and through country-level cooperation. Mr. Guterres' firsthand exposure to countless internally displaced and refugee children surely helped shape his views about the importance of ensuring access to education - especially in the earliest moments of a crisis. Advertisement In 2015 he told the World Education Forum that "we have a collective responsibility to ensure education plans take into account the needs of some the most vulnerable children and youth in the world - refugees, internally displaced children, stateless children and children whose right to education has been compromised by war and insecurity. These children are the keys to a secure and sustainable future, and their education matters for us all." Similarly, on the margins of the annual opening of the UN General Assembly in New York a few weeks ago, Mr. Guterres participated in a panel discussion about education in humanitarian emergencies. "If one looks at the investment in education in emergency situations compared with the global expenditure in those situations," he told the leadership gathering, "we are still talking [about] a very small percentage [for education]." He added that "this shows, really, how neglected education has been in fund raising and fund mobilization in humanitarian aid." There is a growing need today for new development models that break down the historical siloes within and between various development sectors in favor of coordinated, partnership-based collaboration - an approach GPE believes is highly effective. Along those same lines, Mr. Guterres said in the UN panel discussion last month that education must be deeply embedded in any humanitarian response from the very start of planning and execution, especially because crises can last for years and a country's recovery can take even longer. Advertisement "Education that some might neglect in a narrow-minded approach to life-saving in emergencies," he said, "... is the central pillar of any development project." That message echoes GPE's own work to bridge the divide between immediate humanitarian action and long-term development programs for children in crisis contexts. And it is why GPE is deeply engaged with the Education Cannot Wait fund that launched earlier this year. Education Cannot Wait will raise much needed additional resources for education in countries affected by fragility and conflict. But it will also ensure that humanitarian assistance efforts prioritize education alongside other essential human services. Mr. Guterres' confirmation to be the next UN Secretary-General comes at a moment of mounting promise and momentum in the global education sector. World leaders are increasingly supporting the urgency of global education - starting with the adoption of the ambitious new global education goal last year, to the bold recommendations issued last month by the International Commission on Financing Global Education Opportunity (which, among other recommendations, called for increasing total spending on education from $1.2 trillion per year today to $3 trillion by 2030). We feel and reflect that urgency at the Global Partnership for Education, where our new strategic plan, GPE 2020, aligns our work with the global goal for education, and where developing country partners and donors are collaborating with us to intensify their own contributions to address the challenge of ensuring a quality education to all children in 65 developing countries. Having spent decades in public office (he served as Prime Minister of Portugal and President of the European Council, among many other roles), Mr. Guterres has an impressive track record as a leader who moves quickly to get beyond formalities and apply the muscle necessary to resolve tough problems. That makes him a great asset for the education sector, let alone for the many complex, high-stakes matters he will face as Secretary-General. Advertisement This piece is running in newspapers in my conservative congressional district (VA-06). *********** This ugly presidential campaign will soon be over, but ugliness threatens to continue beyond Election Day. Donald Trump, who threatened that if he wins he will seek to jail his opponent, has been inciting his followers with accusations that, if he loses, it's because of a conspiracy. Win or lose, Mr. Trump threatens the foundations of American democracy. Polls indicate that Trump probably will lose. So that's the scenario we have to worry about, as Mr. Trump wantonly sews the seeds not only of rage but also of insurrection. Advertisement Defeated presidential candidates in America have traditionally conceded graciously and left the stage, leaving the victor to lead the nation. Trump seems to be preparing to do neither. Trump, whose identity is defined by being a "winner," seems unwilling to acknowledge losing fair and square. If he loses, it has to be because he was cheated. Trump has shown a genius for seizing the attention he craves. Normally, it is the president who is the center of national attention -- which is probably why Trump sought the office. But a defeated presidential candidate ceases to bask in the spotlight. Will Trump accept the loss of the nation's attention when another option is available? That other option? Setting the nation on fire. Being the focus of an insurrection he has stoked is sure to keep Trump the center of attention. Forcing himself on others is Trump's MO. He forced himself on the Republican Party, he forced himself on women, and now Trump seems to be planning to force himself on the nation even after defeat. Advertisement This violates a vital American political norm, one that has helped us maintain domestic peace for most of our history. But having shown no compunction about violating so many other norms, why would Trump be restrained by this one? So how is the precious American system of government to be protected from Trump's reckless attack? One question: What proportion of the 50 million likely Trump voters will believe the picture Trump is selling of a "rigged" election? Shouldn't Trump's failure to present even a scintilla of evidence to support his wild accusations make them incredible even to those who believe in him. But there is reason to fear that some Trump supporters are so caught up in their devotion that his pronouncements outweigh all evidence. It does not take a big percentage of 50 million people to pose a threat to public order. The first challenge is to prevent the delegitimizing of a legitimate election in the eyes of the American people, including Trump's supporters. The second challenge is to mobilize to protect the American system of government from whatever subversion that Trump manages to incite. Every effort should be made -- by those who have credibility with Trump's followers -- to discredit Trump's unfounded accusations. Trump supporters who see through Trump's reckless talk about a global conspiracy can talk sense to their compatriots. And many Republican officials are already stepping up to this task. Advertisement The media have a job to do. This threat is more pertinent to our responsibility as citizens than all the lurid stories of Trump's sexual predation. Leading up to the election, the media should continually push Trump to present evidence to support his dangerous assertions. But since there is no evidence, because Trump is just making it up, the media should help the American people see this violation of basic democratic norms for the dangerously self-serving thing that it is. The news media should also, now, decide how they would deal with post-election refusal of the losing side to follow American norms and accept the results of a legitimate election. With the system our founders gave us jeopardized, it's no time for pseudo-evenhandedness in treating the story. Truth, not phony balance, is the main business of responsible journalism. All those who have moral authority in America - and that includes the current President, all living former presidents and former presidential candidates -- should be ready to speak out forcefully against Trump's reckless attack on the norms and institutions of American democracy. All else failing, those charged with protecting the peace and enforcing the law should be ready to nip any insurrectionary activities in the bud. Advertisement By Hong Soon-do, Beijing correspondent, AsiaToday - South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Group has opened its fourth manufacturing plant in China in the city of Cangzhou in Hubei Province to boost its presence in China. On current plans, the company is expected to achieve cumulative sales of ten million units by 2018. Hyundai Motor expressed its will to boost its presence in China at a opening ceremony of the Cangzhou manufacturing plant with an annual capacity of 300,000 units on October 18, which coincides with the company's 14th year of operation in China. The ceremony was attended by 800 officials, including Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo, Beijing Hyundai President Shi Hui, Hubei Province Secretary Zhao Kezhi, Beijing Deputy Mayor Sui Zhenjiang, Korean Ambassador to China Kim Jang-soo, as well as executives of Hyundai Motor Group and partner companies. [Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo attends a ceremony to mark the construction of a new production facility in China's Cangzhou, on October 18./ Source: Hong Soon-do] Advertisement "As a symbol of economic cooperation between Korea and China, Beijing Hyundai achieved the 8 million mark in production in August. I believe that achieving 10 million cumulative sales is just a matter of time," said Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo expressing his strong confidence in achieving the target. He added, "The Cangzhou plant is the most advanced, environmentally friendly and smart facility that will produce cars of the highest quality for Chinese consumers, including the new Hyundai Verna. With the launch of the Cangzhou plant, Beijing Hyundai will take a new leap forward." [The Cangzhou plant, the fourth Chinese plant of Hyundai Motor Group. It has an annual capacity of 300,000 units./ Source: Hong Soon-do] "Happiness is the only sanction of life; where happiness fails, existence remains a mad and lamentable experiment." I was looking for the origin of the statement, "Those who don't know their history are doomed to repeat it" when I came upon this quote, also from George Santayana, the 20th century philosopher. I've always felt that happiness is the point of life, so it's great to be validated. We Americans are fortunate to have the right to the "pursuit of happiness" enshrined in our Constitution, and nowhere is that right more accessible to us than in our National Park System where we experience it mentally, physically and emotionally. Advertisement The great philosopher Joseph Campbell established that when we are out in nature, there is no accounting for the aggregate of ways it affects us beneficially, and today doctors across the country are writing prescriptions for healthy doses of nature to address a myriad conditions. What is our national happiness index today, I wonder? As our public discourse becomes more rancorous and debased, I am grateful that Nature, the "product" we have been pushing for the past 20-plus years is increasingly being recognized as a key to a happier, more fulfilled life. In our national parks and wealth of public lands we have the opportunity to calm our minds, to distill essential truths about the development of our country and our shared destiny, and to see clearly our way forward. " 'Facing a great vista - or a starry sky or a cathedral - we realize we're a small part of something much larger. Our thinking shifts from 'me' to 'we,' " I quoted from the October 7 issue of Parade Magazine's Feeling Awe May Be the Secret to Health and Happiness to the large group of conservation supporters gathered at the Openlands Luncheon in Chicago last week. "Nowhere are we more privileged to have these experiences than in our National Park System and on our publicly owned lands," I reminded the group, approximately 900-strong, including representatives from Chicago-based Outdoor Afro, Blacks In Green and Eden Place Nature Center. Advertisement Showing an image of the Milky Way Galaxy taken in Badlands National Park, I emphasized that we occupy a tiny dot in a far corner; that, having no idea how we got here and how or when we'll get off, humanity has segmented ourselves into artificial categories and assigned "values" that have little relationship to truth. As an example I showed a wide cross section of non-white Americans engaged in mountaineering, sailing, hiking, scuba diving and conservation advocacy from Congress to the White House. Long standing fallacies hold that Americans of color are incapable of appreciating or managing our public lands. (Green 2.0 Report) I pointed out how those views do our country a disservice and must be discarded in favor of embracing our entire population to confront the challenges presented by - among other urgencies - climate change. I said that it's going to take all of us working together to protect our environment so that it continues to sustain human life. Heartened by their enthusiastic response, Frank and I flew to Shutesbury in Western Massachusetts to visit friends who're also collaborators in our work. Over the weekend I heard many different people thanking Frank for shifting their perspective. "I thought we were at the most dire stage in our country, and you remind me that we've been through worse," said both a father and his 21 year old son. "It makes me feel calmer when you remind us that it's our turn to do our part, not just whine about how depressing everything is and how stressed we feel." Advertisement Exactly! As park ranger Betty Reid Soskin pointed out at the Congressional Black Caucus Legislative Conference last month, "this is a participatory democracy. . . it doesn't come nicely wrapped up in a little bow. Each generation must do its part." Frank often laughs about being around for almost one-third the time America has been an independent country. He's lived through segregation and the horrors of Bull Connor and George Wallace. He can place our current experiences in context of the aggressive strain of racial malignance that has not gone away. (Driving through the South in the 60s with his wife and sons on their way from Florida to her parents' house in Tuskegee, Alabama, he carried a pistol on the dashboard as a signal to racists that he would defend himself and his family.) Working for civil and human rights and now for the protection of our environment, he maintains the calm demeanor of someone who knows his country, warts and all, and is prepared to love and strive as those who've gone before us to achieve the goals of democracy. It's the same message I get from our public lands, and it's not complicated: Every racial and ethnic group that has ever graced the North American continent invested their lives into building the country that we enjoy today, and only with willful ignorance can anyone demand to "take our country back." The National Park System contains our American story, warts and all, and shows us always striving to a more inclusive country that is "one nation, under God, with liberty and justice for all."From the Natives 11,000 years ago at Bandelier National Monument to George Washington's destitute multi-racial army at Valley Forge National Historical Park 1777-78; from Gettysburg where Abraham Lincoln called our country to Unity; from the Civil Rights Marchers on the Selma to Montgomery road and the LGBT uprising at Stonewall Inn, the National Park System commemorates our experiences at the places where they happened. Advertisement By that example, the only question I need to answer for any choice is, Does it bring us together? Or does it strive to tear us apart? This might have been a tough week for Monsanto Co. The Environmental Protection Agency was slated to hold four days of public meetings focused on essentially one question: Is glyphosate, the world's most widely used herbicide and the lynchpin to Monsanto's fortunes, as safe as Monsanto has spent 40 years telling us it is? But oddly, the EPA Scientific Advisory Panel (SAP) meetings, called to look at potential glyphosate ties to cancer, were "postponed" just four days before they were to begin Oct. 18, after intense lobbying by the agrichemical industry. The industry first fought to keep the meetings from being held at all, and argued that if they were held, several leading international experts should be excluded from participating, including "any person who has publicly expressed an opinion regarding the carcinogenicity of glyphosate." As the meetings drew near, CropLife America, which represents the interests of Monsanto and other agribusinesses, specifically took issue with at least two scientists chosen for the panel, alleging the experts might be unfavorably biased against industry interests. On Oct. 12, the group sent a letter to the EPA calling for Dr. Kenneth Portier of the American Cancer Society to be more deeply scrutinized for any "pre-formed conclusions" about glyphosate. Advertisement More notably, CropLife called for leading epidemiologist Dr. Peter Infante to be completely disqualified from panel participation: "EPA should replace Dr. Infante with an epidemiologist without such patent bias," CropLife told EPA. The chemical industry group said Infante was unlikely to give industry-sponsored research studies the credibility the industry believes they deserve. CropLife said Infante has testified in the past for plaintiffs in chemical exposure cases against Monsanto. Croplife also argued that because Infante was the "only epidemiologist on the glyphosate SAP" he would have enhanced influence in the evaluation of epidemiological data about glyphosate and cancer. The CropLife letter was dated last Wednesday, and by Friday the EPA announced it was looking for additional epidemiology expertise to ensure "robust representation from that discipline." EPA also said one panelist had voluntarily departed, though the agency refused to say who that panelist was. Challenging Infante's role is a gutsy move. After all, Infante spent 24 years working for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration helping determine cancer risks to workers during the development of standards toxic substances, including asbestos, arsenic, and formaldehyde. His resume includes a stint at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health where he conducted epidemiological studies related to carcinogens, and he has served as an expert consultant in epidemiology for several world bodies, including the EPA and the World Trade Organization. According to sources close to the situation, Infante remains a panelist as of this week, but there is no certainty when the meetings might be rescheduled, and what the panel membership might look like when they are rescheduled. The EPA has refused to discuss who remains on the panel and who does not at this point, and some onlookers said the EPA was clearly bowing to agrichemical industry interests. Advertisement "This is outrageous. The industry wants to say that our own government scientists, the top ones in their fields, aren't good enough for these panels," said Michael Hansen, senior staff scientist at the Consumers Union. "If the EPA wants to add extra epidemiologists that is great but why didn't they do it before? They are doing this because of pressure from industry." The industry clearly has much at stake, as does the public. Glyphosate is the key ingredient in Monsanto's branded Roundup herbicides as well as herbicides marketed by numerous agrichemical companies around the world. It is also the key to what has been 20 years of sales of genetically engineered glyphosate-tolerant crops developed by Monsanto. The future sales of both the chemical and the crops are being jeopardized by the mounting concerns that glyphosate can cause cancer and other illnesses or disease. Scientists around the world have been raising red flags for years over worrisome research findings, and last year the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), said glyphosate was a probable human carcinogen. More than three dozen lawsuits have been filed against Monsanto by people claiming Roundup gave them non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and both European and U.S. regulators are evaluating the chemical for continued use. Since the IARC classification, Monsanto has asked the EPA to back industry assurances that glyphosate is safe, and so far, the EPA has done exactly that, issuing a series of reports and memos that dovetail with Monsanto's position. Monsanto also has sought to bolster arguments for glyphosate's safety by pointing to supportive research papers published in late September in Critical Reviews in Toxicology. Monsanto hired the group that arranged for the panel, and most of the 16 scientists involved are former Monsanto employees or Monsanto consultants. At least one, Gary Williams, has also consulted for Monsanto on litigation matters involving glyphosate. Despite all those affiliations, the research is touted as "independent." It seems more than a little hypocritical that those scientists are presented as credible by the industry, but scientists like Infante and Portier are said to be unfit to advise EPA because of suspected bias. Like Infante, Portier has a long track record as an independent scientist. He is vice president of the Statistics & Evaluation Center at the American Cancer Society. He has participated in over 60 other SAP meetings and has served on expert and advisory panels for the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, the National Toxicology Program, and the World Health Organization Food and Agriculture Organization. Advertisement Portier also would not comment about the industry concerns about him, the postponement or changes to the makeup of the SAP, other than to say that as of today, he remains on the panel. "Remember the 99%!" That could be Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton's banner in the final stretch of this wretched "presidential" campaign. Insults and scandal loom larger in campaign coverage than any discussion of issues critical to the 99% -- the vast majority of Americans who are not super-rich or super-resourced. Recently, Clinton made two speeches on economic reform that should warm Bernie Sanders supporters -- and, if they can hear it, supporters of Donald Trump. These two populations, wildly unlike in their solutions, share this in common: Both feel the economy works best for the 1% and not for middle- and working-class Americans. Her message in brief: While channeling Bernie Sanders in his diagnosis of capitalism's ills, Clinton vows to radically reform the way a Donald Trump can do business. "Our economy should work for everyone," Clinton declared, "not just those at the top." Advertisement It's a powerful message not getting enough attention. Clinton delivered the speeches in Ohio, battleground state and site of economic upheaval -- one in Columbus at Ohio State University and the other in Toledo at a rally. At OSU she touched more on student-related issues, like loan debt, while in the Toledo speech she got into "kitchen table issues" -- "You know, the ones that keep you up at night." Clinton opened with "the basic bargain": If you're willing to work, you should be able to get ahead and stay ahead. This entails, along with good schools, creating more good jobs with rising incomes. The problem is that, while most corporations are run by honorable people, "there are still too many powerful interests fighting to protect their own profits and privileges at the expense of everyone else." And they are aided and abetted by the rules and incentives in our economy [that] actually encourage people at the top to take advantage of consumers, workers, small business, and taxpayers. That makes it tougher for the well-meaning CEOs to take the high road and it gets even harder when we don't aggressively enforce the rules. The worst, most injurious of these "incentives" is the U.S. tax code, which "rewards corporations for outsourcing jobs, and their profits overseas, instead of investing here in the United States." It's a tax code "riddled with loopholes that let the rich get even richer and make income inequality even worse," tilting the playing field further against small businesses that can't afford lawyers and lobbyists. Advertisement What needs to happen, says Clinton, is changing those incentives and leveling the playing field -- heresy if you're a pure free-market capitalist but which, given the rage over income inequality and the widespread belief we are on the "wrong track," must happen. This means corporate behavior -- doing business -- must change. Corporations "that benefit from everything America has to offer," says Clinton, should feel a "sense of responsibility, not just to their biggest shareholders, but to their workers, to their customers, to their communities, and, yes, to our country." If elected, Clinton would use every tool to "make the case that patriotism is profitable": I want to send a clear message to every board room, every executive suite across America, if you scam your customers, exploit your many employees, pollute our environment, or rip off taxpayers, we will find ways to hold you accountable. But on the other side....if you do the right thing, and you invest in your workers, and your communities and our country's future, we will stand with you. As bad corporate behavior, she cites Wells Fargo Bank, "bullying thousands of employees into committing fraud against unsuspecting customers." Says Clinton, "It is outrageous that eight years after a cowboy culture on Wall Street wrecked our economy, we are still seeing powerful bankers playing fast and loose with the law." "And then in a category by himself, there's Donald Trump": Clinton cites The New York Times' revelation that in 1995 Trump lost a billion dollars in failing casinos and may not have paid taxes for two decades -- which avoidance he says is "smart": Advertisement While millions of American families....were working hard and paying our fair share, it seems he was contributing nothing to our nation. Imagine that. Not fair. Nothing for Pell grants to help kids go to college. Nothing for veterans. Nothing for our military. Compounding the irresponsibility of paying no taxes, Trump "didn't lift a finger to help and protect his employees, or the small businesses and contractors he'd hired. They all got hammered." Meanwhile he used "his political connections to collect hundreds of millions of dollars in government subsidies and extra tax breaks" for his company and to keep "living like a billionaire." In other words, "Trump was taking from America with both hands, and leaving the rest of us with the bill" [my italics]. It's this predatory ethos of business, this allegiance not to country but company, that Clinton aims to reform, for while Trump is unique, he represents broader trends. "He's taken corporate excess and made a business model out of it." Declares Clinton: "It's time to rewrite the rules and make this economy fair for everyone." How? By closing those tax loopholes: "We're going to make Wall Street corporations and the super-rich start paying their fair share of taxes." By imposing the Buffett Rule (after financier Warren Buffet), disallowing multimillionaires from paying at lower rates than their secretaries. By imposing a new "exit tax" on companies that leave the U.S. to avoid paying their fair share: They're going to "give back every tax break they ever received." And all that new revenue? "We're going to put that money to work creating opportunities here in America." These are no mere technical proposals; real fire is behind them. Clinton calls it "insulting" when corporations engage in "games like moving their headquarters to a foreign country, on paper, not in reality, just to take advantage of lower tax rates." She calls it "infuriating" when corporations "take tax breaks with one hand and give out pink slips...with the other hand." Crikey, she sounds like Bernie Sanders. Advertisement Clinton also stressed consumer protection: by "defending and empowering the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau" created after the '08 financial crisis by Sen. Elizabeth Warren. By "building on the Dodd-Frank financial reforms.... because Wall Street can never, ever be permitted to threaten Main Street again." By slapping penalties on pharmaceutical companies for unjustified price hikes. And by eliminating the "fine-print gotchas" in contracts prohibiting lawsuits against corporations, forcing consumers into arbitration without court protections. On trade -- which this presidential campaign has revealed to be a major sore point with voters across the spectrum -- Clinton expanded. In Toledo she explained her eventual opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP): "It sets up a dispute resolution system that favors large corporations over everyone else." In Columbus she cited her three tests for any trade deal: "Does it create American jobs? Does it raise American incomes? Is it good for our national security?" As president she'd appoint a new chief trade prosecutor and triple the number of enforcement officers. Other Main Street-oriented measures include: encouraging, via new tax credits, profit-sharing with employees, "on top of, not instead of, higher wages." Appointing "tough, independent authorities to strengthen anti-trust enforcement and really scrutinize mergers and acquisitions, so the big don't keep getting bigger and bigger." Creating a $10 billion "Make It in America" partnership to support American manufacturing. Raising the federal minimum wage. And of course, launching Clinton's $275 billion infrastructure repair program. What Hillary Clinton proposes is a radical reform -- even revolution? -- of America's business ethos. "We're going to do everything we can," she vows, "to make sure workers are treated like assets, not costs" -- the antithesis of Donald Trump's way. With Main Street suffering stagnant wages and futures, on Nov. 8 we the 99% can take America's great Capitalism-and-Democracy project and put a human face on it. For my post, "The Speech Hillary Clinton Should Give to the One Percent on Capitalism and Income Inequality," see here. Advertisement I think that really the first step for anyone is just being honest and being genuine to who you are. For me that is I write and sing country music so I think it is my responsibility to be genuine in the music I put out there and how I portray myself. I think it's really important that you see me with someone that I would be with and that is a man. If it's a song about heartbreak or breakup or anything that we country people like to write about the visual is genuine to the artist. I think that is the first step for anyone. Well I think over the past few years we've made great strides thanks to people better than I and I am so thankful and grateful for that and benefit from those things. I think we still have a long way to go and I would love to figure out my part to help in that. One of the things that I think about is the fact that we still have states including my home state where people just like me can be fired from their jobs just for loving the people they love and I think that is grossly unfair and un-American and not right and something I would love to see changed. I came out as a 22 year old man and at the time was working at a job where I didn't know how my boss felt about me being gay. They didn't know and I really relied on my paycheck like most people do. I don't think that anyone should have to go through fear of coming out to their boss for fear that they are going to lose their jobs. It is a horrible feeling and experience and something I personally had to go through and something I just want to shield others from ever having to experience. So I would love to see that pushed forward and make this something that people in the LGBT community don't have to worry about anymore. TOPSHOT - Women take part in the 'Ni una menos' (Not One Less) march against femicides in Buenos Aires, on June 3, 2016. / AFP / EITAN ABRAMOVICH (Photo credit should read EITAN ABRAMOVICH/AFP/Getty Images) They walked out on the street, dressed in black. Silence engulfed the crowd in a collective mourning ceremony. This is how Polish women resisted the government's abortion ban proposal. This is also how the people of the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina, will march on the streets on Wednesday, October 19. Women will go on strike for an hour, to condemn the brutal rape of 16 year-old Lucia Perez earlier this month. Lucia was raped and drugged. She died after a horrible episode of torture. Lucia suffered terribly. She was the victim of femicide: a new word for an old crime. Advertisement The death of Lucia is shocking for various reasons. The first is how the perpetrators treated her body. The crime was heinous: she died after being tortured even beyond rape. The second reason is how the assailants acted after they committed the crime. They washed her body and claimed that she had overdosed on drugs. The cruelty and audacity of the assailants is a sign of impunity. They are men, which seems to give them the green light to plunder women's bodies. They faced the police as if they were socializing with their neighbors. They acted if they had sympathy for the victim. The third reason why Lucia's death is so outrageous is that it shines a spotlight on how abandoned women are in Argentina. It is a boundless abandonment. They are abandoned by the state, so all they have is the street. That's why they will march, in silence, dressed in black. If Poland's protests were condemning the abortion ban, Argentina's protests are denouncing femicide. In reality, there is a long list of reasons why women are angry, including the failure of legal abortion services, zika virus, and femicide. These are all pressing issues in this time of political and economic crisis, and they severely impact the survival of women. So why is protesting the only option? Advertisement To march is all that's left for us: We don't believe in parliaments, we are ignored by the political powers, and we're tasked with domestic jobs and childrearing -- as if that was our destiny. We are experiencing deep political turmoil in the region -- just take a look at our neighboring Colombia, where peace is being negotiated by people with conservative agendas with regards to women's issues. But in such brutal times, women's rights must become a priority. Last week I had the pleasure of speaking at the PM4SD (Project Management For Sustainable Development) Conference in Akureyri, Iceland. Akureyri only has a little less than 18,000 residents but is the fourth largest town outside of Reykjavik, and the largest town not near the capital. Locals call it the capital of the North. Akureyri was selected in part because it was the recipient of the #1 Europe Destination in 2015 by Lonely Planet who said: "Akureyri, in contrast, sits on the north coast under snowcapped peaks at the head of Iceland's longest fjord. It's Iceland's second biggest urban area, and while you shouldn't expect a big-city vibe (the population is only 18,000), this easy-going place has more buzz than anywhere outside of Reykjavik. It's also a great base for exploring the north's green pastures, fishing villages, mudpots, waterfalls, ski fields and whale-filled bays. Signs of the earth's power - glaciers, volcanoes, lava fields and stacks of basalt - are everywhere, while strange underwater features lure divers and offshore islands are home to colonies of seabirds." Advertisement Iceland has become a global leader in renewable energy and greenhouse gas reduction. Geothermal and hydro meet 81% of Iceland's primary energy needs for electricity, heat, and transportation. Reykjavik, where 40% of Iceland's residents live, has set a goal of being entirely free of fossil fuels by 2050. Geothermal energy powers all buildings in the city. This heats the homes, lights the streets, and powers the greenhouses that produce most of the vegetables. It also heats the popular outdoor pools popular for swimming and bathing year round by locals and tourists alike. Only around 0.1% of Iceland's electricity is generated using fossil fuels. It was from this backdrop, that the PM4SD conference offered some valuable lessons for sustainable development in general and sustainable tourism more specifically. PM4SD brought together a wide diversity of panelists from government, academia and the private sector. The conference opened with an enthusiastic presentation from the Ms. Olof Yrr Atladottir, Director General Icelandic Tourism Board, who spoke proudly of the nations 99% electricity coming from renewables and there current exploration with companies like Tesla to make their transportation more renewable as well. Advertisement Silvia Barbone, the executive director of PM4SD and chief organizer of the conference framed the conference beautifully as an opportunity to build on existing sustainable development management knowledge and sustainable tourism best practices to create the future that we wan. One panel featured representatives from the UNTWO, UNEP, and the World Bank and was moderated by local TV News personality Hilda Jana Gisladottir. Some key points included: - Chris Imbsen from the UNWTO reminded us of the power of the tourism industry with it accounting for 10% of the worlds GDP, one out eleven jobs, and being the third largest export, behind fuels and chemicals but ahead of food. Chris also shared an inspirational video on the opportunity for all to participate in the UN Year for Sustainable Tourism for Development. - Deirdre Shurland, senior consultant at UNEP discussed the opportunities for tourism to respond to the challenges of low carbon development, monitoring and measuring, resilience, quality tourism services, and resource efficiency. - Shaun Mann - World Bank - Senior Tourism Specialist, spoke of the biggest challenges being political economy around the tourism sector, governance: national / local, social and economic inclusion, and in-country capacity / infrastructure. He suggested the need to use a "whole government approach" that would bring together national, regional, and local champions along with public private dialogues to create quick wins to gain necessary momentum. Advertisement In another panel Rob Holmes spoke of the power of story telling in connecting people with nature and promoting sustainable destinations. My own presentation presented our Blue Community model that suggests we move beyond the traditional sustainable tourism model of balancing social, economic, and environmental concerns to a new model that would take into account the four pillars of the GSTC (Global Sustainable Tourism Council) and operate with just and sustainable economic development, create a safe and just space for humanity, within the limitations of the science of planetary boundaries. Some of the key lessons were found in the PM4SD excursions. On these trips we learned the importance of sustainable fishing, the ability of local people to protect and preserve their cultural and historical heritage, the value of mass transportation, the opportunities of featuring natural resources, and the treasure to be found in connecting people with nature in a sustainable manner. Some examples included: 1. Preserving Cultural Heritage. Siglufjordur, Iceland is the most northern town in Iceland. It is less than 30 miles from the Arctic Cirlce, and is a historic fishing village. The small town has a number of museums and galleries, the most famous of which is the award-winning Herring Era Museum. The small town of only about 1200 people was quite impressive on how the local people were creative and resilient to turn around a decline town following the collapse of the herring fishing industry. The town has developed a tourism industry through development of a small conference center with a building for meetings, a restaurant, and coffee shop. Volunteers have built a fantastic fishing museum telling the story of the herring industry. Opportunities for tourism also now includes fishing and hiking, and the wonderful hospitality of the local people. Advertisement The town in the 1950's had about 3000 people when herring was king of the fishing industry. Although warnings were given, about overfishing the warnings were not heeded until to late and the result was that the industry collapsed. The town has learned the valuable lessons of sustainable fishing practices and the role that tourism can play to diversify an economy. Part of the lesson is the importance that preserving a community's unique cultural heritage can have in both bringing a community together, and providing a new resource for attracting tourists. Although Siglufjordur is a small town, The Herring Era Museum is the largest maritime museum in Iceland and has won the European Museum Award. 2. Packaging Natural Resources. - A trip to Godafoss "Waterfall of the Gods", the Myvatn Nature Baths, and the Dettifos waterfall was a lesson in how different natural resources can be packaged into an exciting tourism program while at the same time providing incentive to protect the natural world. Our first stop was Godafoss "Waterfall of the Gods", one of the most spectacular waterfalls of Iceland. It received its name from orgeir Ljosvetningagoi, a local ruler around 1000 A.D. who made Christianity the official religion of Iceland. He then threw his Norse God Statues into the water fall thus giving it the name Godafoss meaning "Waterfall of the Gods". Advertisement Following our trip to Godafoss we relaxed and played in the in the Myvatn Nature Baths. The baths are a human made creation utilizing the National Power Company's bore hole for the supply of water. The bath has a scenic overview of the landscape where guests can swim or bathe in 97 to 104 degree water and relax in the pool with the scenic views. The lesson is that we can utilize existing resources to partner with the natural environment to create new and sustainable attractions for locals and visitors alike. We then traveled to the Dettifos Waterfall in Vatnajokull National Park. After a short and pleasant hike we arrived at an overlook where we realized that Godafoss was just a warm-up when it comes to viewing spectacular waterfalls. Detifoss is the most powerful waterfall in Europe with a height of 45 meters (150 ft) and about 100 metres (330 ft) wide. The water volume is about 500 cubic meters of water per second, the most powerful in all Europe The lesson was the importance of preserving and protecting our natural environment. The Vatnajokull National Park is a relatively new national park, established in June 2008. It has since expanded and now the second largest national park in Europe, and covers 14% of Iceland. Iceland has three National Parks and a strong foundation for continuing to increase its tourist base through this national protection. Advertisement 3. Making Tourism Attractions Carbon Neutral - Our last stop on the day's tour was in Husavik, where we were treated to a carbon neutral whale watching trip provided by North Sailing. North Sailing is working to become more sustainable in every action it takes. Some of the ways they are doing this include: Setting a goal to become totally carbon neutral by 2020 using electric propulsion on day tours and hybrid regenerative systems and second hand bio diesel on expeditions where possible Restoring old boats and buildings for modern use. All of the North Sailing ships are restored vessels. Given a new purpose, saving materials and preserving cultural heritage. Restaurant Gamli Baukur, there restaurant at the dock, is a replica of historical buildings constructed from driftwood collected in Northern Iceland Electric company cars. North Sailing is already using two electric cars that utilize Iceland's green energy source. The goal is to make the car fleet as environmentally friendly as the ships Advertisement Local food. The Gamil Baukur's menu focuses on the daily catch of the local fishermen and the meat is from the local farmers. Nature friendly operations. Respect for nature and focus on sustainability is the goal and basis for every decision. North Sailing adheres to a strict code of conduct for responsible whale watching. For example sound travels more than four times faster in water than air and the noise from large vessels can carry long distances and impact and disrupt whales in important feeding grounds. North Sailings use of wooden sailing boats with slow propellers that operate at slow speeds makes this whale watching virtually noise free. North Sailing advertises itself as "Pioneers in Sustainable Tourism". From what I saw and experienced, I would have to agree. Hopefully they will be a model that others will follow. In summary, Iceland is a good case study for others who are beginning the process of transforming from old unsustainable models to new ones. Advertisement For sustainable tourism they provide good examples of best practices for preserving cultural heritage for tourism, protecting natural resources and packaging them for the visitor, and transforming a whale watching tour business to become carbon neutral and more sustainable. I look forward to returning to Iceland again to explore and learn more. Co authored with Helen Berger, Resident Scholar Brandeis University Women's Studies Research Center Often during presidential elections one side or the other claims that if their candidate does not win there will be dire consequences for the country, possibly the world. Certainly, to some degree this is always so. We have learned that elections have consequences. Wars or recessions occur under one president that might not have occurred under another. But this time it is different -really it is different. I know that we have called wolf so often that it sounds like the typical rhetoric of partisans, but it's not. Why do we say that? Trump said that he would use his powers as president to jail his opponent. This is what dictators do; not democratically elected presidents. Yes, it is probably just hyperbole but words matter and who knows what is and is not bluster with Trump. He regularly praises Putin, a strong man himself. And now he is using the material dumped by Wikileaks that US intelligence has determined was hacked by the Russians. We know they doctored some of it. Here is a foreign power interfering in an US election and Trump is participating. In one instance he read from one of the alleged emails before it was in the public arena. We need to ask how did he get a preview? More worrisome, as he sinks further and further in the polls, is his claim that the election is rigged. He has already suggested that second amendment people kill his opponent. He is now sending them to "those neighborhoods" to determine who can and cannot vote. What will happen when he loses, which at this point appears likely? Will those well armed men take to the streets to defend their "liberty" believing that the election was stolen? Advertisement When Al Gore was declared the loser by the Supreme Court, after winning the popular vote, and undoubtedly winning the state of Florida, he accepted the decision. Why? Because to not accept it, is to bring into question all that maintains our democracy. Trump is no Al Gore, and at the moment, he is threatening our nation. There is a lot to write about Trump using Wikileaks and now women coming forward to say his locker talk actually led to similar actions outside the locker room. He again threatens to sue those who make public accusations against him. He forgets democracy comes with rights and responsibilities! He doesn't pay taxes. He trashes just about every group except his own. Seems like it is not "Crooked Hillary." It is "Twisted Trump." - Bad business deals, threats, lies! Let us focus instead on a woman with true grit - Hillary Clinton. She has stood above the fray. She went high when he went low. She acted presidential, strong, indefatigable. She withstood eleven hours of grilling by the Senate, who found nothing worthy of prosecution. She has been sliced and diced and no one seems to be able pin anything on her, though so many have tried. There has been lots of name calling but no bones broken; Hillary has stood tall. She has spoken for women all around the world. She has said Women's rights are Human Rights. She supports families; she realizes the crucial role families play in stabilizing our society and will prioritize their needs. She not only talks about family values, but she promotes policies which will strengthen the families. We all want a president who will stand up for America, who will negotiate and have patience for the long arduous process of democracy and diplomacy. Hillary is the "man" for the job. She is a proven policy wonk who knows how to put ideas into practice, she has not made democracy a soap opera or the country a laughing stock of the world. Nor does she threaten to bring down the country in her wake if the voters reject her. Congress has finally approved a stop gap spending bill that provides funding -- $1.1 billion - to fight the Zika virus. The money comes at the same time that new Zika transmission zones have been found in Florida and the first group of babies of mothers in Puerto Rico known to have been exposed to the virus in their first trimester are being born. Beyond the funding, the Zika epidemic has exposed a major national weakness that must be converted to a strength. That can happen, if we now use lessons from Zika to advance our preparedness for this and other infectious diseases that are sure to come. Simply put, our political system could not respond rapidly enough to combat the virus in a timely fashion. President Obama proposed $1.9 billion in emergency funding in February, and only this week, seven months later, did funding emerge from Congress. Only through creative accounting - borrowing from one disease to pay for another - could the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) combat Zika as best they could. It may seem as though we got away with it in the short term, but we have yet to see the toll the rapid spread of Zika will take in Puerto Rico, and globally our delay is unconscionable. And even if we do escape the brunt of the Zika epidemic, as an expert in infectious disease I know well that waiting for politicians to respond to epidemic threats is a very dangerous game that the greatest nation in the world cannot afford to keep playing. Advertisement Infectious diseases tend to emerge suddenly, as do biosecurity threats. We cannot wait for the give-and-take of an intentionally deliberative legislative body to work an emerging threat into its protracted agenda. I've seen the need for expediency first-hand, as Chair of the National Science Advisory Board on Biosecurity and as President of Stony Brook University, a major research institution and healthcare provider. We must provide our public health and healthcare professionals with the resources that they need to keep Americans safe. We must also correct the weakness that we have now publicly exposed: our inability to provide vital funding within even half a year. It's time to design and implement an expanded national infrastructure for infectious disease defense. That infrastructure should include the following: First, a fund should be created that would give the CDC and NIH sufficient financial resources to respond to emergencies. This would protect both the American people and Congress. As an institution, Congress does not benefit from its inability to respond quickly to threats of this nature. Second, as a nation we must invest more aggressively in the science of vaccine development. We have the strongest scientific community in the world, yet it's left without sufficient funding to keep our nation ready for threats that arise. We were dramatically unprepared for the Ebola virus. We were not properly prepared for Zika, which was not even on our radar a year ago. What will we be unprepared for next? Advertisement One cannot predict the precise nature of each likely threat, but we can advance our understanding of the science of vaccine development and work to bring more innovation to this vital medical need. In the case of Zika, there is reason to hope that a vaccine could be available in 18 months. The fundamentals for a successful vaccine are strong (effective vaccines against other similar viruses have been developed, protective immunity appears to develop naturally after infections, and protection from Zika infection after vaccination with experimental inactivated virus and viral DNA-derived vaccines has already been achieved in mice and non-human primate models of disease). But the lack of resources is limiting the basic science and clinical studies needed to test these vaccines both in laboratories and in the field where they can truly be assessed. Third, we need to streamline the regulatory process for innovative treatments, vaccines, and other responses to global infectious disease threats. This does not mean weakening the regulations, just expediting their application. This applies to two main areas: development of Genetically Modified Organisms such as a Zika-fighting genetically modified mosquito; and the deliberations of Institutional Review Boards, which review and approve research involving human subjects. Those could allow for a rapid expansion of sites, for instance, or more rapid enrollment of patients. Finally, we need to refine our public health delivery systems, through which we inform and protect the public during a crisis. These include, in the case of Zika for example, our capacity to remove standing water and to perform efficient spraying of mosquitoes. As The New York Times has reported, the most effective aerial spraying in Miami, "seems to have come from combining sprays that kill adult mosquitoes with sprays that kill larvae" - an outcome that "goes against conventional wisdom." At a time when global air travel makes us more susceptible than ever to newly threatening diseases, the need for further research to transform the field of vaccination technology and to develop new therapies for infectious diseases has never been greater. New infectious disease threats will continue to present in unexpected ways and at unpredictable times. It's the reality of a world drawn ever closer together and changing weather patterns that are altering the range and thus the dangerous collision between microbes, their insect vectors, and animals, including, of course, humans. Advertisement What we know for certain is two things: threats will arrive, and we are more capable of combating them than any nation in the world. It's time to give our scientific community the infrastructure that's needed and not expose Americans unnecessarily to threats that can be significantly reduced if not prevented. If you've noticed that your fellow New Yorkers smell a whole lot nicer these days, it's due to a new fragrance shop that recently opened on Crosby Street in Soho, Fueguia 1833. To understand the full impact of this new store, let me preface it by saying that Patagonian brand Fueguia 1833 is to perfumes what Beluga caviar is to food and Valentino is to couture: Timeless, beautiful to behold and oh, so delicious. I personally fell in love with the brand at this year's Pitti Fragranze in Florence. Inside that wondrous world that is the Stazione Leopolda, there are endless possibilities. And for a woman who grew up collecting perfume samples from the local beauty shop, where she accompanied her mom on shopping trips, the yearly fragrance fair is the equivalent of a toy shop -- with an all-you-can-eat ice cream parlor thrown in. Advertisement Fueguia 1833 is the love child of Argentinian businessman and musician Julian Bedel who founded the brand with Amalia Amoedo in 2010. For the first three years or so, fragrance aficionados had to travel to Buenos Aires to get their hands (and noses) onto the deliciously perfumes. With a penchant for uncluttered scents that are inspired by nature and the cleanest, clearest molecules which make up usual fragrance favorites along with never before used ingredients, Fueguia 1833 has easily conquered a market that is typically difficult to seize. This month, with NYC, they will have opened ten stand-alone boutiques, while also selling their creations through luxury fragrance shops around the world. Perhaps it's all due to the inspiration of the brand, the figure of Fuegia Basket to which the company owes its name -- a 19th century Patagonian girl who also happened to inspire Charles Darwin. Lets just say that the name fits Fueguia 1833 perfectly, as they blend Argentinian grassroots scents with timeless elegance and new world class, both in their image and in their perfumes. I caught up with Bedel, a dashing, tall, smooth voiced gentleman, in Florence and asked for a few insider's tips that he could share, to make the wonderful world of perfume more accessible. And while I dream of visiting the new location in NYC, I continue to refer back to my bag of samples for inspiration, whenever I find myself with a case of writer's block. Because scent really is the best medicine! What is your own background and how did Fueguia 1833 come to be? Julian Bedel: My father is an artist, a painter, my grandfather was a collector. I grew up in Buenos Aires, I'm super-Argentinian. My family is French and Italian. I turned to painting and music, and building guitars. In my family, we all have a profound love of nature so we have different farms all over Argentina. We took care of the sawing and pruning of our trees. So as a kid, I was always exposed to woods, all the essential oils, burning things, cutting grasses. And Argentina is so bio-diverse that nature changes silently. Moving around in those different properties and working in them, it really exposed me to a side of nature that's incredible. It was easy, as a musician or a painter -- for perfumes you just change the palette. In music you need three notes to build a chord, in painting you can create even with two colors and it's all about combinations. Advertisement I wanted to create a whole brand that would reflect our biodiversity as Argentinians, particularities what we have as a culture and a country, despite the cliches, but especially to be a platform for botanical research, which is what we've been doing, and is our main focus. Fragrance is so personal, and so incredibly alive in the moment; is it more difficult to think in perfume terms? Bedel: For me it's easier, it's like a trick. As a musician, I love guitar playing, you can really tell from whom I'm stealing things. In painting the same. As an artist, you are influenced and it's there, even in contemporary art. It's very difficult to find really talented people who are creating something new. One of my fascination with scents and perfume was the potential of this palette in my hands. Without knowing anything, yet continuing this story. Because most of the ingredients that we use do not exist in this industry. These are molecules that either you produce or they don't exist. Advertisement When someone in, lets say Japan gets exposed to our scents, and they don't have a tradition of personal scent, it's not about the brand or anything. It's only about the ingredients, the level of transparency. How can you continue to create new scents, source the prime ingredients necessary? Bedel: In 2002 I created a foundation in NY called Help Argentina, and it allowed me to coordinate communities to actually produce the ingredients I was looking for. It was one thing to go to my farm and cut a wick and say, wow, it's amazing. And it's another thing to be able to produce it in a sustainable way. With consistency. We have ten boutiques, between Buenos Aires, Milan, Tokyo and NYC, among others. That creates another problem. We only make four hundred bottles per batch. It's like an individual scent because that batch cannot be repeated. The distillation that I do at a precise moment of a certain ingredient is particular. So, today I buy this scent and it's this distillation; but if I buy it again in a year, it will be slightly different... Bedel: Exactly. Then your perfume is like a couture creation. Can you elaborate? Bedel: An essential oil of jasmine is made up of three hundred molecules, while cedar is fifty molecules. The smell of coffee is eight hundred molecules. What we are working on a lot, also in our botany center in Uruguay, our fluid extraction facility there, is in cleaning these ingredients. The facets, the different facets among these three hundred molecules in a jasmine, you have ones that can contaminate the other layers. What does it mean? If I don't clean the jasmine, suppose I want two hundred molecules of that jasmine, and I need to get rid of the others, because they add a lot of noise. You need technology to separate, to rectify. This happens with vetiver a lot, because the heart of vetiver is so amazing but depending on the origin and the distillation, which is usually very rudimentary, it can be very smoky and earthy. If you put vetiver in something, it can monopolize everything and cover everything. So in order to use these ingredients and have my artistic vision I needed to refine the ingredients. That's why I also say it's not the perfume but the ingredients, that requires a lot of work, of cleaning. Some famous last words for fragrance lovers? Bedel: If you don't watch cinema, you don't see art, and you don't write, it becomes very difficult to find the right description of a scent you are enjoying. Twice during our nine-day visit to eastern Germany - once in Leipzig and once in Dresden, both of which are in the state of Saxony - Jackie and I (and our friend) ate Sachsische quarkkaulchen for dessert. These are Saxon pancakes made with mashed potatoes and the fresh cheese known as quark, lightly sweetened if at all, and served with applesauce or, sometimes, another fruit compote, and whipped cream. I'm forever making to-cook lists on our travels, and (between us) not many of its entries actually get eaten once we've returned home. This trip, however, yielded three to-cook entries; I've already made them all, and you'll read about them in the next few weeks, if you care to. Pancakes made of quark or something like it are common enough in places such as Russia and Poland (Dresden is half an hour's drive from the Polish border), and I had my say on them a few years ago. The addition of potatoes - lots of them - makes these very different in flavor and texture. They're also a cinch to make, and very forgiving when it comes to proportions: some cooks use more quark than potato; some equal weights; some more potato than quark. I'm of the latter cohort because I like flavor of potatoes and the appealing slightly glutinous consistency they lend the pancakes. And there's still plenty of quark to add the gentle, fresh dairy tartness. For a dozen plump pancakes about 2 inches (5 cm) across, I used an eight-ounce (225 g) tub of quark made in Vermont. If you don't find any, you can puree a 7-ounce (200-g) package of farmer's cheese in a food processor with a couple of tablespoons of sour cream, and I'll bet a dense strained Greek-style yogurt would be an excellent substitute too. Advertisement A while in advance, I boiled three quarters of a pound (350 g) of peeled potatoes in lightly salted water, then put them through a ricer (a food mill works too, and so does a sieve if you have an assistant to do the work). When they'd cooled a while, I added the quark, two egg yolks, the zest of the lemon whose juice I'd used in my applesauce, a quarter teaspoon of fine salt and a tablespoon of sugar. I stirred it all together with a rubber spatula then vigorously stirred in half a cup (75 g) of flour to yield something between a thick batter and a soft dough: just dense enough that you can form half-inch-thick disks by hand if you're careful. Note that you may very well need to add more flour depending on how liquid your cheese mixture is. Some cooks add raisins. Because of the apple or other fruit accompaniment, I don't see the advantage of that. And some add vanilla and/or a little cinnamon, which isn't a terrible idea at all. After a rest (minimum 10 minutes on the counter or up to a couple of hours in the fridge) form the pancakes and fry them over low heat for five minutes per side, so that they brown slowly enough to make sure the inside is cooked through. You can use whole or clarified butter, or neutral oil. I used brown butter (strained) from last week's bread-dipping adventure. Sprinkle with granulated sugar before serving, two per portion, with unsweetened whipped cream and applesauce (or, as I did, with briefly-cooked plums - with the option of applesauce for the purists). It doesn't seem to me that these would re-heat very well; they would still taste good, but the texture would probably suffer. Leftover batter, on the other hand, will hold for a couple of days in the fridge, though you may need to adjust its consistency before cooking: you could stir in a little more flour or you could just spoon it into the frying pan as is and forget about forming perfect disks by hand. Advertisement That's one entry checked off on the to-cook list! From Greg Mitchell's The Tunnels: Escapes Under the Berlin Wall and the Historic Films the JFK White House Tried to Kill , published this week by Crown. When Daniel Schorr, on August 7, 1962, got a call at dawn in his Berlin hotel room, on the morning of the great escape under the Wall that he planned to cover, he was perplexed. The crafty CBS correspondent was being summoned to the U.S. Mission. On arrival, greeted by a Marine guard, he was even more startled to learn that he would be speaking on a secure line (indicating some sort of top secret issue), arranged by the American military. Advertisement It wasn't so surprising that the man on the other end was his boss, CBS news manager Blair Clark. But what was Clark doing in Secretary of State Dean Rusk's office--around midnight--in Washington? Rusk was still there, with some top aides, along with three CIA officials, acting with the approval of his boss, President John F. Kennedy. Rusk had just met with JFK's close aide and press secretary, Pierre Salinger. "What's this I hear about you planning to film a Berlin tunnel escape?" Clark asked. Schorr had been tipped of to it just the week before, and paid thousands of dollars for the rights, which meant he could scoop arch-rival NBC, which had been filming inside another absurdly dangerous tunnel under the Wall since June. Up to one hundred East Germans were expected to flee through the CBS tunnel. "I told our foreign editor all about it," Schorr replied. "Well, I am sitting here with the Secretary of State in his office," Clark said. "Yes?" "And he has convinced me that you shouldn't go ahead and do that." "Why not?" "Because it would be considered a provocation [by the Soviets]," Clark asserted, "it could lead to a great deal of trouble, and the State Department doesn't want any unnecessary trouble at the Wall." "That's the trouble with the State Department," Schorr countered. "That's why there is a wall." "Dan, I know you don't like to be ordered around," Clark said, putting it mildly, "but that's it--I want you to scrap all your plans to do that film." Schorr was stunned. "Okay," he said, after a moment, "but would it make any difference for you to know that once this gets around and we don't do it, they [the tunnelers] will go to NBC or, god forbid, ABC?" Advertisement "It's an order." The call lasted just six minutes. Rusk penned a cable (recently declassified) to diplomats in West Germany announcing CBS's surrender. Schorr returned to his hotel humiliated and fuming. The whole concept was wrong--this administration, any administration, dictating news coverage. He knew Blair Clark was a Kennedy man--a friend since their Harvard days--and he figured that JFK had talked to him personally, even pressured him, which made Dan even angrier. But there was nothing he could do about it now. Rusk would meet with Clark again that morning, just to make sure CBS had no second thoughts. In the days ahead, under orders from Rusk, U.S. diplomats in West Germany would meet with Schorr, the declassified cables reveal, and make it clear that he was not to consider any such foolishness in the future. Schorr would remain angry about the shutdown of his tunnel film for the rest of his life. Little more than a month later, the "NBC tunnel"--then now known to American officials--successfully brought 29 East Germans to freedom in the minute, fully filmed by the network's cameras. A ninety-minute primetime special was planned. A few weeks later, in October, the White House and State Department would attempt to repeat its shutdown of a TV news special. This time the network would resist such bullying, but only to a point. Last month, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte made international headlines citing Hitler and the Holocaust, saying he would happily "slaughter" three million drug addicts. But even before Duterte was elected on a dramatic anti-drug platform, the Philippines' drug war tactics were fueling one of the fastest growing HIV epidemics in the world. Despite more than 20 years of relatively low prevalence of HIV infection, the Philippines now has the third highest incidence of HIV, exceeding a 25 percent growth in new infections annually. Cebu City has the highest HIV prevalence rate in the country, at 7.7 percent, where sharing of drug injection equipment is the primary driver. As in many parts of the United States, sterile syringe programs had been operating in Cebu largely underground since 1993. But in 2009, while many other countries and U.S. states were reforming the paraphernalia laws passed in the 1980s as a result of scarce injecting supplies leading to the spread of HIV and hepatitis C, the Philippines made syringes without a prescription illegal for the first time. As a result, Cebu's local public health organizations had to discontinue their needle-exchange programs, and people who inject drugs were unable to buy them at pharmacies. The following year, HIV cases among injecting drug users in Cebu jumped from less than 1 percent to a startling 53 percent. Advertisement The primary drugs used in the Philippines are methamphetamine (known locally as shabu), marijuana, and to a lesser extent, opiates in the form of the pain killer Nubain, usually injected with shabu. Drug use rates are high for Asia, but lower than in Australia, and on par with the U.S. The perception that the Philippines has an enormous drug problem, however, is shared by many Filipinos, and Rodrigo Duterte swept into power on a tough-on-drugs platform. During his campaign in April he threatened, "All of you who are into drugs, you sons of bitches, I will really kill you." A month later, when he was President-elect, Duterte offered medals and cash rewards for citizens who shot dealers dead. "If you know of any addicts, go ahead and kill them yourself as getting their parents to do it would be too painful," he said to a crowd on July 1, the day after his inauguration. "Do your duty, and if in the process you kill 1,000 persons because you were doing your duty, I will protect you," he told police officers the same day. As a result, more than 3,600 people have been killed in the Philippines between Duterte's June 30 inauguration through October 10. Of these, 1,375 have been killed by police, who claim they were in self-defense during shoot-outs. In media reports, witnesses say these are extrajudicial killings. An additional 2,233 murders been attributed to vigilantes, some of whom are reportedly state-hired contract killers. And according to an October 4 report by the Guardian, highly orchestrated and trained state-sanctioned police death squads have been created to execute a list of targets: suspected drug users, dealers and criminals. Meanwhile, over 700,000 Filipinos have 'volunteered' to turn themselves in as drug addicts. In early September, news broke that the Chinese government has agreed to build huge drug rehabilitation centers in Philippine military camps. Chinese drug rehabilitation centers are widely critiqued for being no more than forced labor camps, and rarely offer evidence-based drug treatment. Furthermore, these "relentless and draconian countermeasures" have not lessened China's drug problem, according to a report released last year by the Brookings Institute, a Washington DC-based think tank. It appears that the Philippines are preparing a mandatory detention system for confessed drug users, a brand of treatment the United Nations warns can lead to some of the most egregious forms of human rights abuses. Advertisement At the International AIDS Conference in 2010, activists noted that, "The criminalization of illicit drug users is fueling the HIV epidemic and has resulted in overwhelmingly negative health and social consequence," and passed the Vienna Declaration calling on governments to end drug war tactics as an essential step to ending AIDS. It delineated some of the harmful consequences of drug law enforcement, including forced labor, execution of drug offenders and, "The undermining of public health systems when law enforcement drives drug users away from prevention and care services and into environments where the risk of infectious disease transmission (e.g., HIV, hepatitis C & B, and tuberculosis) and other harms is increased. " It is too early in this extremely deadly version of the "war on drugs" to know what effect it will have on HIV prevalence, but the indicators are grim: Duterte has bankrolled the crackdown by giving huge funding boosts to the police and military while slashing the country's health budget by 25 percent. The latest Philippines Department of Health figures showed 841 newly diagnosed HIV cases in June - the biggest monthly total since records began in 1984. As Duterte wages a bloody war on his own citizens and defunds public health programs, advocates are deeply concerned about both immediate human rights violations and the long-term implications for people affected by the HIV epidemic. People in the U.S. can join protests in New York on October 11 and Washington DC on October 13. Please sign the petition asking President Obama and Secretary Kerry to strongly condemn the killing of Filipino drug suspects, and immediately withdraw the U.S. pledge of $32 million in new funding for law enforcement in the Philippines, until President Duterte acts to: Immediately end the incitements to kill people suspected of using or dealing drugs,Fulfill international human rights obligations, such as the rights to life, health, due process and a fair trial, as set out in the human rights treaties ratified by the Philippines, andPromotes evidence-based, voluntary treatment and harm reduction services for people who use drugs instead of compulsory rehabilitation in military camps. Advertisement Co-authored by Doug Ragan, Chief of UN-Habitat Youth and Livelihoods Unit From October 13-15, a preparatory conference centered around youth and dedicated to knowledge sharing and co-creation relating to sustainable urbanization, YoutHAB, will take place at the Polytechnic University of Ecuador. Led by the Latin American and Caribbean Climate Change Youth Movement (CLIQ!) and supported by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), this event will have the participation of 200 youth from Ecuador and many other countries committed to the implementation of the New Urban Agenda. After four months of in-depth negotiations, the final version of the New Urban Agenda, dated 10 September, has been agreed upon and is ready for adoption when ministers and heads of states gather in Quito next week for Habitat III, the UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development. The New Urban Agenda will shape thinking and governmental decision-making for the next two decades and beyond. The New Urban Agenda marks a tremendous victory for the 1.8 billion young people around the world, as well as the many more that will be added to the planet these upcoming 20 years. The UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board, a UN-Habitat mandated body composed of 16 youth around the world involved in urbanization, actively fought for the incorporation of age- and gender-response language in this new draft, which is now mentioned in nine different occasions. Meanwhile, the transformative potential of youth was noted 12 times throughout the text, and, in Paragraph 148 under "Means of Implementation", governments agreed to "promote the strengthening of the capacity of national, subnational, and local governments...and youth...enabling them to effectively participate in urban and territorial development decision-making." Advertisement While the international community will continue to celebrate the New Urban Agenda up to Quito and beyond, we must now focus on effective implementation. Youth in Latin America and the Caribbean are becoming increasingly important players in sustainable urban development. One in five people living in Latin America and the Caribbean are youth: a staggering 156 million young people, representing the two region's highest level in history. The outcome of YoutHAB will be a declaration that synthesizes the position of youth regarding the New Urban Agenda. This will be a collaborative project led by youth but in partnership with civil society, the UN, the research community, and the private sector. This organization of YoutHAB not only reflects the increasing complexity and knowledge of young people to organize, but also their leadership in the public sector. It reflects the needs and demands of young people for a re-imagination of the decision-making processes and the role that young people can play in sustainable urbanization, from urban design to budgeting and the creation of safe and accessible public space free from violence. Advertisement A television cameraman tests his equipment prior to showtime at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Las Vegas, Nevada, where the final debate between US presidential nominees Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump will be held October 19, 2016. / AFP / PAUL J. RICHARDS (Photo credit should read PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images) The eyes of the nation and of the world will turn to Las Vegas and the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, this evening for the final presidential debate of the 2016 election. The fact that this debate is being hosted in Las Vegas highlights some important roles that Las Vegas, the state of Nevada, and the American southwest play in electoral politics. Most people who follow politics regularly already know that Nevada is an important swing state. However as my UNLV colleagues have explained eloquently in various forums, http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/02/2016-why-nevada-primary-matters-clinton-sanders-213641 few also realize that Nevada is also an important bellwether. Specifically, Nevada has voted for the presidential candidate that has been elected in every election but one since 1912. More importantly, the population of Nevada represents demographic trends in many American states. Indeed, Nevada's growing population includes a rapidly growing percentage of Latino, Asian-American/Pacific Islander, and African-American residents. In the future, America's national elections are increasingly likely to be decided by the candidate capable of winning swing states in the American southwest. Advertisement One of the most incredible facets of having the final presidential debate take place at UNLV was the opportunity to host an International Debate Study Mission (IDSM). https://www.ndi.org/debates The IDSM is a group of international delegates from 29 different nations. These delegates are the progenitors of political election debates in their own home countries and are visiting UNLV so that they can better understand the process of hosting political-election debates. From Argentina to Zambia and all points between, these delegates are dedicated to the principles of fostering civil democratic discussions. Hearing the delegates stories and discussing the hurdles that they have faced was nothing short of awe-inspiring. Their sacrifice, hard work, and unrelenting commitment to debate should make every American feel humble and grateful for our nation's democratic traditions. Because of the dedicated work of those in the IDSM, there are now political-election debates in 80 countries around the world. What can we expect tonight? Scholars of presidential debates will uniformly report that the Clinton-Trump debates have no historical analog. However, the first two debates can provide us with some insight into what we can expect for the final debate. Trump's poor performance in the first debate set a new low bar for the genre. In the second debate, Trump improved, but both candidates were still mired in discussions of character and fitness for the office. This takeaway suggests that neither candidate adequately focused on critical discussions of policies and issues that could make a meaningful difference in the lives of all Americans. The overall perceived negative tone of the two in preceding debates was laid bare by the collective glee surrounding the second debate's final question asking the candidates to "name one positive thing you respect in one another." This reaction illustrates the desire of many Americans to move beyond the negativity of this campaign season and to embrace policies that will move our nation forward in a productive manner. Advertisement Given the adversarial tenor of the first two debates and the likelihood that the third debate may be even more negative, some have suggested that the third debate should be cancelled. https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2016/10/14/enough-enough-scrap-third-debate/32oyCuhCjolz9ptFt3Ty0H/story.html While these critics have made some reasonable arguments, we must realize that cancelling the third debate will not eliminate character attacks nor will it silence anti-democratic statements. In fact, cancelling the debate might actually amplify both. In the end, there is no solution to anti-democratic rhetoric except for more vociferous pro-democratic rhetoric. The delegates of the International Debate Study Mission know this all too well. Many delegates fought to craft debates in democracies emerging from decades or centuries of monarchical or dictatorial rule. A delegate from Guatemala described his country's first large political debate occurring with tanks surrounding the building where the debate was being held. The delegate's story paints a poignant picture of the value in having one's voice heard. At the end of the day, it is fair to assume that individuals from all nations want the opportunity to have their voices heard. Following in the footsteps of those who fought for our right to voice, this final presidential debate affords UNLV a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to pave roads of our own. As we set the stage for the final presidential debate tonight, we firmly place our footsteps as a campus community in the bigger picture of voice in the American southwest and democracy as a whole. -You can't tell who is craziest: the refugees, the police or those women, said a local shopkeeper. He made a cross over his chest, to express his sincere Serbian bewilderment. He had just witnessed ten shabby Afghan and Syrian refugees walking past, escorted by ten Women in Black from Serbia, Italy and Spain, themselves escorted by ten policemen and a police car. By the railway station in downtown Belgrade, the temporary citizens-from-nowhere are living their nomad existences in the the rubble of the so-called Belgrade Waterfront construction project. The refugees loiter all day, hoping for something to happen, between the city bus yards and huge trash-cans full of boxed food that the aid workers supply on a regular basis. Advertisement Around five pm there is a kind of tea ceremony where about 800 people gather, most of them arriving from the organized camps where they sleep. They arrive to be heard, to be seen. We Women in Black went to join them to show this Belgrade political scene to our international colleagues. It' s been now two years since the Syrian refugee crisis seized headlines, but the refugees are not entirely Syrians, but a global peoples' market of Afghans and Nigerians as well. In the beginning there were many more refugees, and far less aid from the locals and the Serbian state. The migrants were simply collapsing on flat surfaces anywhere in Belgrade, urban nooks, parks and lots where they ate, drank and slept. Now the bus-station square, a favorite place to cluster for obvious reasons, has been fenced and organized. The police are everywhere and a routine has been invented for the nomads. Its scope is international: border walls are being erected around Serbia, blocking the paths into Schengen Europe, where of course the refugees long to go. They come from the perilous South, the imagine safety in the West, and Balkan Serbia is only a transit zone. I spoke to some : they are 90 percent young men. They aspire to reach France, Germany, Italy and Spain. They have addresses and phone numbers of relatives and allies in those countries, but they have no transit papers and no money. Advertisement A Nigerian young man confided me: money is the only real problem. If I had the money for travel, trust me: no walls or police could stop me. I believed him, because, although money cannot buy you a happy life, it can swiftly bail you out of misery, in war and in peace. I remember how I myself smuggled chocolate into wartime Serbia from Hungary by handing cash to the customs officers. Chocolate was pure joy for Serbian children living under sanctions. The same applied to toilet paper, diesel fuel, gasoline, cigarettes, liquor... In the nineties in Serbia, my country was being punished, but nobody thought to build walls around our national borders. On the contrary, in those heady days they built shopping malls, instant ramshackle markets that welcomed the smugglers, mostly everyday people who crossed the borders and illegally brought back suitcases stuffed with subsistence goods for a population in dire straits. The entire economy had been de-legitimated, so we were all smugglers. The locals from countries around us made plenty of money, for their governments officially supported the sanctions while the population broke them. Today, by historical contrast, it's Serbia is playing the warm-hearted good cop role. The former villains in the story are generously taking in the refugees, while the international community, morally pinched by the ever-growing breakdown of world-order, pays a lot of the bills. The refugees are not a novelty any more, they are escorted here and there to wherever some shred of bureaucracy or activism will take them. Advertisement The official camps were packed long ago, overcrowded with women and children, so many of the more venturesome young men end up as street vagrants, lurking under the bridges, lighting trash-fires in barrels and building makeshift showers and latrines. I joined a Syrian group at their five o'clock tea-time. Very polite and neat brothers made us tea and poured it into genuine glasses, not plastic containers, as a sign of respect. Syrian refugees in Europe are particularly well educated, as my friend Faisa from Morocco told me: they are the elite. Here in Serbia the Syrians are the most envied by other refugees, because they are genuine war refugees and the official recognition of their dire situation is a kind of privilege. It follows that the Syrians sometimes get roughed up in the squats for other refugees and the Belgrade police have to intervene. I asked my tea-drinking hosts, and the other young men who gathered around me: where are your women? They could not understand my English or Italian, but they had learned some scraps of Serbian. They all knew the word "mamma!" Everybody' s mamma was either back in the home country, or off in a camp. A few children were visible, but not many. Belgrade Women in Black never come empty-handed, so they brought the useful, lightweight treats that true refugees appreciate: cigarettes and bananas. We left the covert obscurity under the bridge and began a march with some sick to the local first aid. Advertisement The women activists walked in the center, the refugees gathered around them and the police escort formed an outer circle. A police car was a kind of cavalry escort. The Serbian police were the same age as the refugees, but with somewhat lighter skin color and in uniforms. I talked to the cops: where are the refugee women, I asked. The chief answered me with a sly secretive smile: you noticed that fact, madame, he said, you are bright , he complimented me. Because these are men fit for army service. They came here to conquer Europe, they are on a secret Muslim jihad, they left their women safe behind! When I asked the refugees the same question, they echoed the policeman's compliment : you are very bright madame. Our women are at home hungry, we are here to earn money to help them. But they won't let us make a living; they keep us behind the barbed wire. The refugees and policemen had one great point of agreement in their paranoid stories. They knew that the same people who had destroyed their nations were the ones attacking them for being transnational. They were punished for the crime of becoming victims. I guess they blamed the big powers, those with the power to bomb them rather than their own militias and factions, but I didn't want to inquire into the details. As a woman, as an activist, I've seen enough warfare to know its situations. It doesn't take genius to see that a war-shattered society can't integrate its men and women; the genders get scattered and there aren't a lot of women around. Advertisement Wars and refugee crises are business as usual for someone, just like the situations in stark situations in barracks, prisons, and hospitals. When there is money involved, it's human trafficking; when even the money fails, then it's sheer disaster. I have no recipe to solve a world with 60 million refugees in it, but I see more coming. The whole planet is becoming a nomad zone, for various reasons of war, oil, climate, ethnicity, religion, and everyone, especially including the most privileged, is scared that they might be next. The one percenters who own the hot investment money are perhaps the most nomadic among us, so they cannot play the geostrategic game properly any more. Their money cannot by them any security, while the refugees were ardent patriots until their burned their neighbors homes or had them blown up from above. Utopia and dystopia have the same postal code. WEST PALM BEACH, FL - OCTOBER 13: Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the South Florida Fair Expo Center on October 13, 2016 in West Palm Beach, Florida. In his remarks Trump vehemently denied recent allegations of past sexual assault and railed against mainstream media corruption and the 'Clinton machine'. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) This opinion piece originally appeared in The Hill prior to the second Presidential debate. However, since no questions were asked about the critical issue of nuclear weapons at that debate, I'm reposting it now in the hopes that tomorrow night's debate moderator, Chris Wallace, will ask a question about this existential issue. The United States controls the most lethal nuclear arsenal on the planet. We have nearly 7,200 nuclear warheads, and when combined with Russia's total, our two countries possess more than 90 percent of the world's nuclear weapons. We could literally destroy the world many times over. Advertisement Yet with election day just over four weeks away, the American people still know very little about Donald Trump's views of nuclear weapons. Americans deserve to know what their next Commander in Chief thinks about these weapons of war. This Sunday, ABC News' Martha Raddatz, CNN's Anderson Cooper and the attendees at the second presidential debate in St. Louis have a unique opportunity to rectify this failure. At the debate, Trump must be asked two crucial questions about nuclear weapons: first, when would he use them? And second, how would he prevent their global proliferation? Why does this matter? Unlike any other issue, the president has total control of the nuclear codes. No other American -- not a general, not a cabinet member, not a Supreme Court Justice -- can stop him or her from using them. There are no real checks and balances when it comes to using the nuclear arsenal. Advertisement Yet the statements Trump has made about nuclear weapons during this campaign are simply terrifying. When questioned about their use, Trump has meandered between protestations about how he would never use them to refusing to answer the question. However, he has dropped certain confusing hints about his views. He's suggested that he may encourage countries like Japan, South Korea and Saudi Arabia to develop their own nuclear weapons. And MSNBC's Joe Scarborough has even reported that Trump asked during one national security briefing: "If we have them [nuclear weapons], why can't we use them?" -- sending a collective shiver up the spines of everyone who fears nuclear annihilation. In a world with multiple nuclear weapons states, Trump's erratic rhetoric fuels the type of uncertainty that leads to major miscalculation -- and potential disaster. Take for example the Cuban Missile Crisis. At that time, President Kennedy didn't know Soviet Premier Khrushchev's intentions, and it led to near catastrophe. Only when the two leaders had direct communications about their intentions -- and their desire to not have a nuclear war -- did cooler heads prevail and was war averted. Leaders must be clear and credible, not intemperate and unpredictable, to avoid a calamitous miscalculation. If Trump's plan is to leave our nuclear state adversaries guessing, then it's more likely that he'll scare them into taking preemptive nuclear action against us. And if Trump believes that he would use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear state actors -- such as the Islamic State, which he has hinted about -- then he would be using them against millions of innocent civilians without either justification or proportionality, turning the United States into a nuclear aggressor. Advertisement Hillary Clinton has taken a starkly different approach. As Secretary of State, she played an important role in preventing the spread of nuclear weapons around the world. As a presidential candidate, Clinton has called for a new Nuclear Posture Review to ensure that our nuclear arsenal is prepared to meet present and future threats. She is thinking deeply about ways to better manage our nuclear arsenal while keeping the American people secure. This is exactly the type of leadership we need and that Clinton provides. What we don't need are leaders, such as Trump, who view nuclear proliferation as either inevitable or beneficial to our national security. It is not. For the past half century, ever since President Kennedy's administration, the goal of American nuclear weapons policy has been to prevent their spread while avoiding ever having to use them. And we've had successes in the past half dozen years on President Obama's watch. We've concluded a diplomatic agreement to prevent a new nuclear state in Iran. We've concluded an agreement with Russia to slash both our countries' nuclear stockpiles. And we've pressed the international community to adopt a nuclear test ban treaty. Hillary Clinton played a central role in all of these successes. The moderators at the next presidential debate must therefore put these issues front and center. We need a Commander in Chief who not only has the temperament to handle the challenges of the nuclear arsenal, but also one who understands what it's all about. Let's get this right on Sunday. Because once you drop the bomb, you can't take it back. Rubin is a former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Legislative Affairs for the U.S. Department of State. He was responsible for building support in the House of Representatives for the nuclear agreement with Iran. Rubin has also worked with the Ploughshares Fund, an organization dedicated to preventing the spread of nuclear weapons. Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus (L) and Speaker of the House and Chairman of the convention Paul Ryan confer on what to do after the Alaska delegation demanded that their votes for candidates other than Donald Trump be counted and recorded at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. July 19, 2016. REUTERS/Brian Snyder The GOP still clings to the idea that it's the party of "traditional values" and "strict construction" of the U.S. Constitution even while breaking with past precedent in radical and reckless ways. It's clear by their actions over the past 22 years that the Republicans are willing to chuck precedent and tradition out the window if they believe it will serve their narrow partisan interests. Let's review: In 1994, when the Republicans won the House of Representatives for the first time in forty years the first thing they did was shut down the government in an unprecedented attempt to extort the Democratic president to bow down to their demands to voucherize Medicare. Advertisement The full-throated denunciation of the U.S. government as a new form of "tyranny" coming from Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, Tom DeLay, and radio shock jocks like Rush Limbaugh, helped create the politically toxic environment that led a handful of right-wing extremists to truck bomb the main federal office building in Oklahoma City. When the government shutdown tactic faced public opprobrium the House Republicans moved on to transforming their oversight function into a partisan attack machine. Abusing their subpoena power, as well as the post-Watergate rules requiring "Special Prosecutors" to be appointed when evidence of administration wrongdoing surfaced, they took the unprecedented step of impeaching a Democratic president for trying to hide a private sexual relationship. The Republican Justices on the Supreme Court had ruled that the partisan investigations of President Bill Clinton would not impair his ability to carry out his constitutional obligations. Boy were they wrong. After the federal government was tied in knots for the better part of two years over the Monica Lewinsky revelations, the Clinton sex scandal became the functional equivalent of a government shutdown by other means. The Republicans not only forced the country to endure months of graphic descriptions of the president's trysts with his young intern, but also revealed their own shameless hypocrisy when Speakers Newt Gingrich and Bob Livingston were both exposed as serial adulterers even while denouncing Clinton's "character." Advertisement The Republicans then settled on the boring and outwardly asexual Dennis Hastert as Speaker. Hastert, the creator of the hyper-partisan "Hastert Rule" that the Republicans in the House still dutifully enforce (where no bills are allowed to come up for a vote unless a "majority of the majority" approves them) is today in prison for illegally spending millions of dollars to try to cover up his earlier life as a sexual predator. It turns out that the longest serving Republican House Speaker in American history was a pedophile. All of these extreme actions of the 1990s showed that the GOP had no qualms about breaking with precedent and tradition (or "family values") if it furthered its partisan objectives. And these acts of unprecedented partisanship and recklessness continued into the 21st Century. In 2000, the Republican attacks on anyone advocating recounting the vote tally in the state of Florida to find out who really won the presidential election dovetailed perfectly with the five Republican-appointed Supreme Court Justices stepping in to rule George W. Bush the winner. These actions were unprecedented and no election has come close to the irregularities in the 2000 race, except for maybe the thoroughly messed up Hayes-Tilden debacle in 1876. But the Republicans' break with precedent and tradition was just getting started. After eight years of Republican misrule, and four full years (2003-2007) where they ran the whole government, they left the country in the worst shape since the Great Depression. And the moment Barack Obama was sworn in as president in January 2009 the Republicans began to obstruct everything the new president wanted to do to try to deal with the economic crisis. Their wrath was unprecedented in its vindictiveness and bile. Advertisement House members yelled "You Lie!" at the president in the middle of a State of the Union address, a kind of outburst that hadn't happened since the lead up to the Civil War; they questioned whether the president was born in the United States; they claimed he was a Kenyan Mau-Mau, and so on. The reception Republicans gave the first African-American president, a chief executive who constantly shunned his own base to reach across the aisle to work with them, was shameful in its thinly veiled racism. And in 2010, when the Republicans won the House they wasted no time in once again shutting down the government, this time inventing the novel tactic of holding the "debt ceiling" hostage to extort draconian budget cuts from the Democratic president. Never before had the viability of the world's reserve currency been held hostage in this manner, which was a move that even some of the Republicans' most important corporate boosters thought was too extreme. Once again, the Republicans showed their willingness to put the perceived political interests of their party ahead of what was best for the country they claim to love so dearly. Advertisement And then, following the 2010 census Republicans at the state level moved to cement their political advantage through the most aggressive gerrymandering the nation had seen since the early 19th century. Later, we saw the Republican House invite a foreign head of state to lambaste the sitting president over an international nuclear arms agreement, an unprecedented step that the Republicans no doubt would have denounced as "treason" had a Democratic House done the same thing to a Republican president. And following that slight to the office of the presidency's ability to manage U.S. foreign policy, the Republicans in the Senate under Mitch McConnell took the unprecedented action of refusing to allow a vote for the president's nominee of a Supreme Court Justice. So the Republicans in the House and the Senate moved from attacking the Democratic President to attacking the office of the presidency itself -- all for what they believe to be in the service of narrow partisan gain. Which brings us to the disgraceful way the Republicans have handled the presidential candidacy of Donald J. Trump. Advertisement They gave the country in the form of their 2016 presidential nominee a person who is not only unfit for the presidency, but who is a charlatan, misogynist, con artist and sexual predator. Then they rallied around this unstable person as the Republican standard bearer even after all of his stinging insults aimed at Mexicans, Muslims, the disabled, women, immigrants, Jews, and any other group that doesn't fit into his white supremacist worldview - all the while the Republicans still claimed to be the party of "patriotism" and "family values." Bernie Sanders pointed out during the primaries that the GOP has become a "fringe party"; but the process that brought the Republicans to this sordid juncture has been long in coming. The only way any social progress can happen in this country is if this fringe extremist party is pushed aside. We cannot "reach across the aisle" and meet these bigots "half way." Franklin Delano Roosevelt didn't go to the Republicans begging them to sign on to his Social Security and other New Deal programs; Lyndon Baines Johnson didn't go hat in hand to the Republicans asking them to meet him in "the middle" on Medicare and the Great Society. These gains were only done at a time when the Republican Party was totally sidelined and was in no position to obstruct progress. Advertisement Let the Republicans whine about "rigged" elections and scream about "big gov'mint" -- it's time for the adults to take charge. For all the important international events that took place in 2016, there were a select group of Latinos who played an important role. During the inaugural list, we met some of those leaders and honored many more who have paved the way for this current generation. And still, there are countless other role models in international affairs such as Hon. Ann Alonzo, Gov. Bill Richardson, Hon. Carmen Cantor, Amb. Cresencio Arcos, Hon. Dina Siegel Vann, Hon. Francisco Sanchez, Sen. Marco Rubio, Amb. Mari Carmen Aponte, Hon. Ricardo Zuniga, Hon. Peter Villegas, Hon. Rita DiMartino, Sen. Robert Menendez, who without them such great advances would not be possible. Advertisement With that said, more must still be done to increase diversity in international affairs. The '15 class is leading the way as role models for millennials, but we need more leaders. Where are some of the previous awardees? Heather Wild class of '15 keeps rising through the ranks and is now serving Under Secretary Heather Higgenbottom at the State Department. Meanwhile, Gabriel Kohan class of '15 won the Harvard Ames Moot Court Competition and is clerking on the Southern District of New York and for the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. Keep an eye on the rest of their talented class. Without further delay here are 40 Latinos to watch for in the realm of foreign policy and international affairs who are on their way towards opening doors for the next generation. Selection of this year's list was done by a committee of peers and this new generation of internationally driven talent is listed here in alphabetical order by first name. 1. Adam Sotomayor (State Department): Strategy=Execution. #Visionary Leaders with capacity to influence & #inspire exercise #RealPower before they get the job title @doscareers Adam Sotomayor (@Sotomayor_Adam) February 3, 2016 As a proud member of the Office of the Director General of the Foreign Service and Director of HR, Adam works to promote Diversity and Inclusion in the National Security Workforce. He has served in the Office of Global Partnerships at State Department. Advertisement 2. Alan Bucaria (Fovrth): #WisdomWednesday #VR needs subjects that warrant head mvmt. This demands experimenting sharing & growing w/ community 2gether @storycodeorg Fovrth Studios (@GoFovrth) July 21, 2016 Bucaria is leading the international news industry in virtual reality video production. As a respected cinematographer and ground-breaking virtual reality filmmaker, Bucaria has applied his expertise to war zones and natural phenomenon around the world to bring Americans from their living rooms face to face with the realities behind the headlines. 3. Ana Ayala (State Department): She is strong. She is resilient. #SheInspiresMe. On #IWD2016 I stand with women survivors of war around the world. https://t.co/nwIdQ7f4mp Ana Ayala (@anayathzin) March 8, 2016 Ayala serves as the Regional Policy Officer, South and Central Asian Affairs Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Ana coordinates public diplomacy programs and policy for the Bureau of International Information Programs (IIP) for South Asia and Central Asia. She previously managed the Charles B. Rangel and Thomas R. Pickering Fellowship programs the State Department's premier diversity recruitment program for the diplomatic corps. 4. Andres Blanco (Sotera Defense Systems): Welcome to Berkeley, New Bears! #CalWelcome UC Berkeley (@UCBerkeley) August 20, 2016 Advertisement Blanco will serve as a Risk/Vulnerability Analyst focusing on cybersecurity and critical infrastructure for the Department of Homeland Security for Sotera Defense Systems. He has served at NATO as a Civilian International Staff and also with the US Mission to NATO. Previously he worked in the CSIS the Americas Program, focusing primarily on Latin American defense and economic issues. He's also served in the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. He holds an M.A. from the London School of Economics and a BA from the University of California Berkeley. 5. Andres "Andy" Diaz (CEB): Andres A. Diaz is a Director with CEB. Prior to CEB, Andy served as a Senior Advisor and Chief of Staff at the U.S. Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration and has also served as an International Energy Policy Advisor at the United States Department of Energy. 6. Anjoly Ibrahim (State Department): Ibrahim currently serves in the Office of the Legal Advisor at the Department of State, working on law enforcement and intelligence issues in Central America and the Caribbean. Prior to this position, Anjoly served in the Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources Office. Advertisement 7. Crista L. Cornavaca (State Department): Crista previously held the position of Country Officer for Abductions in the Bureau of Consular Affairs. Currently she serves as a staff member detailed to the Secretary's Executive Secretariat Staff, which supports the logistic and protocol needs of Secretary of State, John Kerry, on his domestic and overseas travel. She has an M.A. in Diplomacy & International Relations from Seton Hall University. 8. Daniel Bremer-Wirtig (Global Ties): Daniel serves as the Director for External Affairs at Global Ties. He is also the co-founder of MXDC, a DC Mexican Professionals Network. 9. Dennis Vega (State Department): Vega is the Managing Director for Planning, Performance, and Systems in the Department of State's Office of Foreign Assistance Resources and a member of USAID's senior management team. He has also served as the Chief of Staff to the Director of USAID's Budget office. 10. Eliza Ramirez (Rep. Michael Capuano): Ramirez is a Legislative Assistant at the U.S. House of Representatives for Congressman Michael Capuano where she serves as advisor on foreign policy and trade issues. She also worked for Senators Barbara Boxer and Robert Menendez. 11. Eric M Ambrose (USAID): To celebrate this years International Day of Peace, we share with you a behind-the-scenes look at peacebuilders https://t.co/NlEAKe3Wur pic.twitter.com/ZcAR0sItdm USAID (@USAID) September 21, 2016 Ambrose is the Development Cooperation and Donor Engagement Specialist at USAID. Previously he served as an Analyst for the Development Partner Relations Department and as a Communications Consultant at the World Bank Group. He has also served in the Organization of American States. Advertisement 12. Ernesto Londono (New York Times): Extraordinaria columna, @YolandaRuizRCN. Colombia necesita politicas que promuevan la igualdad, no discriminacionhttps://t.co/U62zJg4d4t Ernesto Londono (@londonoe) September 15, 2016 Londono is a New York Times Editorial Board member that covers international affairs. Previously he served as a Pentagon correspondent for the Washington Post. 13. Ezequiel Vasquez-Ger (Innovatics Group LLC): Que @joffrecampana no se solidarice con lo q vive @fevillavicencio, alla el. Pero aprovechar la situacion para atacarlo es una bajeza total Ezequiel Vazquez-Ger (@ezequielvazquez) August 13, 2016 Ezequiel is the founder and Managing Director at Innovatics Group LLC. He is also the founder of the Center for Investigative Journalism in the Americas (CIJA). Previously, he was an Associate Director at Otto Reich Associates LLC. 14. Isabella Martinez (NetWings): Calling all High School & College students to apply to @NETWINGS1 #germany#education#travel https://t.co/poFElnv86N pic.twitter.com/OHhXsbUDI9 isabella martinez (@_IJMartinez) September 14, 2016 Advertisement Martinez is the Founder and President of NewWings, a cross cultural exchange organization that provides early global exposure platforms for youths to interact with the world. Concurrently she works for Full Measure Education Inc and previously served as an Assurance Senior Associate for Ernst and Young. 15. Jayson Browder (Veterans in Global Leadership): Check out the announcement on our name change, and bookmark the blog page for more great articles from VGL!https://t.co/jSccUve0Qg Vets in GL (@VetsinGL) September 12, 2016 Browder is the Founder of Veterans in Global Leadership. He has served in the U.S. House of Representatives and at The White House as a Presidential Management Fellow in the Office of Management and Budget. Currently he serves at USAID's Global Development LAB in the office of Development Innovation Ventures. He is a U.S. Air Force and Iraq War veteran and a Fulbright scholar to Turkey. 16. Jennifer Miel (US Chamber of Commerce): With 1,600 U.S. Companies & their 60,000+ employees in #Turkey, it's more important than ever to reinvigorate ties https://t.co/H3bYJxWxed Jennifer Miel (@_JenniferMiel) August 26, 2016 Miel is the Executive Director of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's U.S.-Turkey Business Council. She also serves as the U.S.-Bahrain Business Council Executive Director and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Turkey and Middle East Affairs Director with responsibilities to support programming and policy formulation across Egypt and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. Previously she worked as a financial analyst at JonesLang LaSalle for nearly three years. There, she advised the U.S. Army on a $12.7 billion portfolio of real estate assets. Advertisement 17. Jerry Rengel (NASA): I can't wait to see the @NASA_SLS liftoff carrying our astronauts in the @NASA_Orion as they #JourneyToMars. Jerry Rengel (@SpaceRengel) September 28, 2016 Rengel currently serves as the Media Relations Specialist at NASA. Previously he served at USAID as a Digital Communication Specialist as well as a Community Engagement Specialist. He's also served as a Press Intern for Congressman Charles B. Rangel. 18. Jessie Hernandez (Homeland Security): If you see something, say something. Report suspicious activity to local law enforcement. pic.twitter.com/nMK7ydmiy0 Homeland Security (@DHSgov) September 19, 2016 Hernandez serves in the Homeland Security Secretary's Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. There he's handled issues such as immigration, Ebola, Zika, refugee resettlement and the "If You See Something, Say Something" public awareness campaign. 19. Juan Pio Hernandez (World Economic Forum Global Shapers): Momento d decidir entre institucionalidad democratica o la continuacion d complicidad interna q asfixia a la region https://t.co/4dqGAOGwjJ Juan Pio Hernandez (@Juapio) May 31, 2016 Advertisement Hernandez serves as the Washington D.C. World Economic Forum Global Shapers Community Hub Co-Curator as well as the Managing Director at Innovatics Group LLC. Previously he served as an Associate for Allen F. Johnson and Associates. 20. Karina Plascencia (USAID): Latin America, Not Southeast Asia, Will Be the World's Economic Powerhouse https://t.co/Ma9jaPSiQW # via LatinoVoices karina (@kakki_09) February 4, 2016 Plascencia serves as a Special Assistant at USAID's Latin America and Caribbean Bureau. Previously she served as a Consultant for Booz Allen Hamilton. 21. Laura Jaramillo Bernal (Efecto Naim): "I am not a CIA agent." A very Latin American way to open a very powerful letter from OAS head to Vzla pres Maduro. https://t.co/qQvs9htpTb Laura Jaramillo (@laurajaramillob) May 18, 2016 Jaramillo Bernal is the executive producer of Efecto Naim. Prior to joining Efecto Naim, Laura was a Michael Rockefeller Fellow in China; and was one of the first journalists at La Silla Vacia, an award-winning political journalism startup in Colombia where she covered the 2010 presidential election and wrote analytical and investigative pieces about topics including government corruption and human rights abuses. Advertisement 22. Lily Lopez-McGee (Charles B. Rangel Graduate Fellowship): The "#inclusion" part of #Diversity efforts. The organizational culture has to shift to make "belonging" possible. https://t.co/T9ymyXVRQX Lily LM, PhD (@lilylop32) August 18, 2016 Lopez-McGee serves as a Program Manager for the Rangel Fellowship. Previously, she served as Manager at Diversity Abroad where she managed the Diversity Abroad Network, Lily serves as a Co-Chair of the Global Access Pipeline and has helped coordinate the Conference on Diversity in International Affairs sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations. 23. Manuel Avendano (USAID): To celebrate this year's International Day of Peace, we share with you a behind-the-scenes look at peacebuilders https://t.co/NlEAKe3Wur pic.twitter.com/ZcAR0sItdm USAID (@USAID) September 21, 2016 Manuel currently serves as a Management and Policy Analyst at the U.S. Agency for International Development's Bureau for Management. Concurrently he serves as President of the USAID Hispanic Employee Council for Foreign Affairs Agencies (HECFAA). Avendano is also a U.S. Air Force Veteran. 24. Dr. Marga Gual Soler (American Association for the Advancement of Science): Hello new followers! Read my story: "How I Became a Science Diplomat" https://t.co/VGLetuhviw #ScienceDiplomacy Dr. Marga Gual Soler (@margagual) January 9, 2016 Advertisement Dr. Soler serves as the Project Director for the Center for Science Diplomacy. Previously she served as a Science Policy Consultant for UNESCO. 25. Mariela Martinez (The Brookings Institution): Martinez serves as a Senior Project Manager for the Brookings Institution where she manages peer-exchange program as part of the Global Cities Initiative (GCI). She has also developed and managed new metro-to-metro trade partnership between Chicago and Mexico City. Previously she served in the Inter-American Development Bank. 26. Mario Hoang Nguyen (Fulbright Ambassador): Are you a college or high school student looking to launch a career in #peace? Guidance from a #Fulbright Scholar: https://t.co/jYDirRslbd The Fulbright Program (@FulbrightPrgrm) September 24, 2016 Hoang Nguyen works for Locke Lorde LLP in the Office of White Collar Crime and Government Investigations. When he was a Fulbright Scholar in Mexico, he served as a Social Investment Program and Communications Coordinator for Ashoka Social Entrepreneurs. Advertisement 27. Marvin Alfaro (State Department): Energy, climate, gender issues, and cyberspace are increasing priorities for U.S. diplomats- William (Bill) Burns http://t.co/3BiqMbFhGa Marvin Alfaro (@Marvin_E_Alfaro) October 24, 2014 Alfaro is in an elite class of his own having received the Gilman Scholarship, Fulbright Scholarship and the Thomas R. Pickering Fellowship. Today he serves as a Foreign Service Officer for the State Department. In addition, Marvin has also served as an Ambassador for both the Gilman and Fulbright Scholarships. 28. Matt Padilla (U.S. Senate): This could have a lot of potential. Using #Space assets to make the world a better place. Could help reduce conflict too. https://t.co/AaoR0SQvLy Matt Padilla (@MatthewPadilla) September 24, 2016 Padilla serves as Senator Tom Udall's Military and Foreign Relations Legislative Assistant. Previously he served in the U.S. Navy as a Surface Warfare Officer aboard the U.S.S. Iwo Jima (LHD-7), and the USS Laboon (DDG-58) from 2003-2007, and completed his active duty service as a Lieutenant. He is a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a Woodrow Wilson Congressional Foreign Policy Fellow. 29. Mayra Robinson (State Department): Robinson serves as the Human Resources Liaison for the White House Liaison's Office at the U. S. Department of State. Prior to this appointment, she served for five years in a variety of roles including work as a Management Analyst with the Bureau of International Security and Non-Proliferation, Executive Office. 30. Monica Bautista (USAID): This Global Health Outfit Got $2 Million Out of the Blue. What Will It Do With Its Windfall - Inside Philanthropy https://t.co/NwSASXnrQY Monica (@Avenew) September 1, 2016 Bautista is a Certified Health Education Specialist and works as an Analyst on the Africa Ebola Unit at the United States Agency for International Development and also serves as an Adviser on gender issues related to Ebola and works to integrate gender-sensitive approaches into Ebola programming. In addition, she is the Vice President of USAID's Hispanic Employees Council where she works to recruit, retain, and promote Latinos at USAID. 31. Natalia Capel (State Department): 2 things a leader should know. What you'll insist on and what you won't tolerate. #FSIleadershipclass Natalia Molano (@intloptimist) November 5, 2015 Natalia is a Foreign Service Officer serving as Deputy Cultural Affairs Officer in the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. She has served as a Mexico desk officer in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs and then as Consular Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City. She is an alumna of the Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Graduate Fellowship and a board member of the Hispanic Employee Council of Foreign Affairs Agencies (HECFAA). Advertisement 32. Nury Gambarrotti (Senate Foreign Relations Committee): Gambarrotti serves as Legislative and Research Assistant on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee under Ranking Member Cardin. As a Legislative Assistant, she handles a broad range of issues including economic development, counter-narcotics, and human rights as they relate to Latin America and the Caribbean. She holds a B.A. from Rutgers University. 33. Paloma Gonzalez (State Department): Gonzalez serves as a Political Economic Chief Officer at the U.S. Consulate General in Recife Brazil. Previously she served as a Staff Assistant for the Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs as well as a Political Officer in the U.S. Embassy in Bogota. 34. Pam Campos (U.S. Air Force Reserve): Advertisement Campos is a Geopolitical/Operations Intelligence Analyst in the United States Air Force where she is specialized in high-level strategic analysis, anti-violent extremism, and international affairs. Previously she has served as an international consultant for the Solidary Project as well as an International Consultant in the United Nations Population Fund. 35. Patricia Aguilo (State Department): Aguilo has served as a Foreign Service Officer for a decade. Today, she is a Political and Economic Officer at the U.S. Embassy of Khartoum. 36. Tony Perez (USAID): Perez serves as a Special Assistant to the Global Water Coordinator at USAID. Previously he served at the U.S. Department of Education SIT Graduate Institute where he provided on-ground support for the CRIS (Climate Resiliency Infrastructure Services). He was elected Vice President of Community Engagement, 2015-2017, representing USAID HECFAA (Hispanic Employees Council of Foreign Affairs Agencies and most recently won USAID's 2015 Superior Honor Award. Advertisement 37. Selena Gomez (UNICEF): When women support each other, we accomplish amazing things. Celebrate the women who #LeanIntogether with you: https://t.co/LBKG46rHNM Selena Gomez (@selenagomez) June 23, 2016 Selena Gomez is a recording artist, actress, and designer and was appointed a UNICEF Ambassador in September 2009. As a UNICEF Ambassador, Selena has played an active role in advocating for the world's most vulnerable children by participating in numerous campaigns, events, and initiatives on behalf of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. 38. Silvana Rodriguez (State Department): Rodriguez serves as a Political Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Bogota. Previously she served as a Political Officer in the Office of Russian Affairs at the State Department and as a Political Officer at the Embassy of Antananarivo covering Madagascar and the Union of the Comoros. 39. Travis Benaiges (State Department): Benaiges serves as a Program Specialist in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor supporting The Global Equality Fund. Travis interned at the Office of the U.S Trade Representative (USTR) supporting the early stages of The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations. 40. Violeta Rosales (The American University in Cairo): Two concepts you must know how to apply: Adaptive #Leadership & Emotional Intelligence. #mindpower #gamechanger Violeta Rosales (@_VioletaRosales) September 15, 2014 Rosales is currently completing her thesis work on Obama's response to the 2011 ouster of Mubarak, using Critical Discourse Analysis, and is expected to graduate in 2017 with honours. Previously she served as a Copy Editor for Ahram Online and as a Global Diaspora Assistant for the Ashoka Arab World. She was also a Fulbright Scholar to Egypt. Women around the world face a unique struggle: they are continually advised to "close the wage gap" by pursuing careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) fields over liberal arts, and yet many women are prohibited from making such a choice. In some regions of the world, women are socially prevented from pursuing careers in STEM, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Many women feel incredible societal pressured to leave their STEM positions to raise a family, and others must re-locate to find jobs overseas. These issues impact women globally, making it important that women of STEM come together to break down these barriers. It's a common misconception that women are underrepresented in STEM because of economic or educational reasons. This issue has little to do with women's rights- in most developed countries, women have the right to attend university and work in any field they choose. It's not that women aren't going into STEM fields; it's that they're not staying there- this is often seen in the MENA region, and in the US, we often refer to this phenomenon as the leaky pipeline. Fortunately, more women are pursuing an education in STEM fields than ever before- in India, for instance, women surpass men at medical programs and key engineering schools in India. The issue is thus not so much with college matriculation; it is with what many women do with their degrees post-graduation. According to a study featured by The Economist, only 21% of the workforce in the MENA region consists of women- while more than half of all university graduates in the region are women. About half of all STEM majors in the Middle East and North Africa are women (according to a 2012 study by OECD), but they are pursuing careers in other fields after earning their degree. Advertisement The women in the MENA region are known for their strong desire to work. As times change, more young women wish to pursue careers outside of the home. Women in the region are encouraged to attend university by their parents, but they face resistance when they wish to get jobs in their field. In many cases, their families object to their desire to work- their husbands believe the wives should stay home and take care of the children, while they bring home a paycheck. These issues exist in other parts of the world as well, but are more prominent in the Middle East and North Africa than other regions. For example, women in the United States and Canada feel much less pressure to stay home and care for their families. In fact, stay-at-home moms and housewives are becoming less and less common in the United States, as women pursue their own professional careers. According to a 2012 Gallup poll, only 14% of women in the United States are considered "stay-at-home moms," and 56% of all women are employed. This is vastly different from countries like Saudi Arabia, where only 13% of the workforce is made up of women. What does all of this mean for the future of women in STEM? Simply put, it means women need to come together and support their presence in STEM fields. To take off the cloak of isolation. women must be taught that they can and should pursue their interests in STEM post University, particularly women in undeveloped countries. Without proper encouragement, how can one expect the proportion of women in STEM fields to rise? If young college graduates in the Middle East and North Africa are being told they should not or cannot pursue a career in their field, how can we expect to see stronger representation of women in STEM? Mentors may be the answer to the global disparage between men and women in STEM fields. Around the world, mentors are helping improve workforces, and STEM fields are no exception. Mentors provide employees and students with guidance they so desperately need to succeed in their field- particularly women in STEM. Women in the MENA region are in need of good mentors and role models, and then they can pay it forward by lifting up the next generations. They need someone they can trust to help them achieve their goals and dreams. Without proper guidance, many women in this region will be persuaded out of their careers by their society, and mentors may be the solution. If women in STEM can mentor new graduates, they may be able to help them fight societal pressures and find their place in a STEM-based career. Advertisement Contrary to popular belief, the biggest obstacle most women face when pursuing their career is judgment from other women. Their husbands may ask them to stay at home and take care of the family, but what are they to do when the other women in their lives disagree? They might feel like an outcast in their own family for their desires to share the burden of breadwinning. If women cannot go to their mother, their sister, their sister-in-law, or their best friend and find support for their career choice, it's understandable that they may not have the confidence to follow through. For this reason, it's of growing importance that women support each other and come together around STEM on a global scale. We unite, we mentor, we engage, we champion. At the upcoming Global Women in STEM Conference (#WISTEM2016) we can bring more bright young minds together, driving success and inspiration. We are bringing women together around STEM, giving young, aspiring professionals role models they can look up to. Our goal is to inspire more young women around the world to follow their dreams, despite what their culture may tell them. Dubai is an incredible place of innovation and change bringing some of the brightest minds from all over the globe with a sustainability mindset. It is a perfect setting for a global agenda to advance women. Our world has advanced significantly over the past 100 years, and it's time to do away with the draconian belief that women belong only in their homes. By empowering young women and encouraging them to pursue careers in STEM, we can all make greater strides towards gender equality in the professional world. The above topic and more will form the agenda of the Global Women in STEM Conference and Awards 2016 to be held on October 25th and 26th in Dubai, an initiative of the Meera Kaul Foundation. This year's event will comprise four industry led-tracks, startup pitch, career fair, awards night and the chance to network with global brands like Cisco, Discovery, MT Energy, Abu Dhabi Tourism, SK Telecom, Mercer, IBM and many others. Special thanks to A. Crosser for her work and great assistance with this article. Advertisement Here I am again. It seems this will never end. I'm not referring to my blog which used to be called the Letter from Melbourne and renamed Occasional Notes from CA. I'm referring to the American endurance contest otherwise known as the Presidential Election Campaign of 2016. To my Aussie readers, it's worse than you think. You have 8000 miles and Australian media filtering the bad news. With about three weeks left before election day, Donald Trump's reaction to the ever increasing bad news facing his campaign sounds more and more ominous. While I cannot be absolutely sure he will lose (I never thought he had a chance to get the Republican nomination - at least from my then-perch in Melbourne) the polls and general feelings predict he's going to get clobbered. Democrats may not only win the presidency but win majorities in both houses of Congress. But from his Republic of Salo, Trump is already speaking of a "rigged election." I suppose no one should be surprised that his rhetoric of hate now invokes a Clinton conspiracy with "international bankers" to stop his rise to the top. He didn't have to use the word, Jewish, with regards to the commercial world - most of his followers probably haven't heard of the "Protocols of the Elders of Zion" but when things get rough, latent anti-Semitism always seems to rear its ugly head. Advertisement But my real fear is that our current American polarization, that began with the ridiculous slate of Republican candidates for the nomination and included the long and powerful campaign of Bernie Sanders, will not end on election day. White America's middle class decades long frustration with standard operating procedure in the U.S. is likely to lead to their agreement with Trump's notion that a rigged system led to his election loss -- and will result in post-election day eruptions of violence. That's my sad prediction for the USofA immediately following November 8th. And maybe violence and bombs are what it will take to change things here now. The first Gilded Age ended only when Theodore Roosevelt (a Republican) and Congress reacted with fundamental reform to union miners dying and physical threats to the system from the Wobblies, anarchists and Communists. But it's a sad time to be in America. Today's New York Times reported on a Connecticut judge who dismissed a suit against the gun manufacturers for partial culpability in the Sandy Hook elementary school mass murder brought by the relatives of some of the children. Most legal observers were surprised the case had gone as far as it had. The judge dismissed the suit based upon the protection given gun manufacturers by the American Congress in the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act passed in 2005. Please forgive my pessimistic cynicism when it comes to fundamental change in my country (I'm thinking here also about my personal campaign on the overuse of psychiatric drugs, especially Adderall, in children). If we, as Americans, cannot make changes to our gun laws after 21 children were killed by a madman, then we are truly a very stuck country. Advertisement Meanwhile, over in Oz, the biggest international news is about the safe return of the "Budgie Nine" back to Down Under from Malaysia. Turnbull and Shorten continue to argue over everything but overall the country continues to chug along economically as far as I can tell, from perusing the online Age two or three times a week. Today's Times carried another interesting article on the power of the too big to fail Big Four banks of Australia. I read the article with interest. While Denise and I lived in Melbourne we actually banked with CitiBank (if you want to consider an international too big to fail bank). Despite the concerns raised by the article, I felt once again, when it comes to regulating the market place, the Australians are dealing with problems on a much lesser level than in the free-wheeling corporate oriented U.S. business/political world. As I've said many times, Aussies (including businesspeople) are just much more accepting of government regulation that tempers the worst amoral efficiencies of capitalist market economies - compared to the United States. You know how you start watching a movie or TV series--or reading a book--and you automatically give the story's protagonist the benefit of the doubt? Even if you see him sliding, making questionable choices that lead to worse ones that lead to disaster, you're kinda on his side. Yeah, I'm not going to do that with Trump. I'm a Republican, and I get the argument that, like any thoughtfully written character, no candidate is perfect. I get that Hamlet had issues, but, big picture: the Dane was right. But The Donald is no Hamlet--although he does seem to think he's fighting for his birthright. Trump, whose mission is all over the map, is tragically flawed, and the tragically flawed aren't supposed to finish with happy endings. So here's why I'm not going to do what Every Single Person I Know is urging me to do--vote for the lesser of two evils: I don't wanna. Deep in my gut, I can't hold my nose and tick off that name, even if it does have an R next to it. I don't want to tell my daughters I did this dirty thing. I don't want to tell my future grandchildren. Saying yes to Donald Trump is not going to be a part of the book of me. I'm no angel, but I don't want to soil myself. Advertisement So what if there's a soiled dress to prove Bill Clinton did worse? At a level any kindergartener could intuit, this argument doesn't pass muster. The But-Bill-Did-Worsers sound freakishly like they're chanting I'm rubber; you're glue. Plus, I didn't ask for Bill to be naughty. I didn't sign up for Trump's "locker room talk," either. Bill did that; Trump said this--The Donald's failings are the ones now on ballots coming soon to a precinct near you. (Incidentally, Bill's not running, his wife is.) It's not Trump's fault that We the People ate up the R-rated audio, with the vocals being more damning than any amount of alleged he-said, she-said. But it is what it is, with an unprecedented ick factor. Trump's talk is just talk, or is it? Here's what he was boasting about: sexually assaulting women just 'cuz he could. To grope or not to grope, that is the question--we're not going to sort out in the next few weeks whether Trump indeed had octopus arms. But this much is on record: Trump has a value set that says unwanted advances are badass. His comments weren't only creepy, they were aggressive. For some lads, washing their mouth out with soap worked. I'm not going to disrespect the adult male population by classifying them all as no-holds-bar, sex-obsessed adolescents. I appreciate that men are, er, driven, but we're living in a society here, in which appetites are certainly curbed, with time and place taken into account. So I don't think I'm being naive when I say there's a group of guys (hi, honey!) who conduct themselves, for the most part, like gentlemen. Gentlemen of a feather hang together, and, in these locker rooms, this particular brand of braggadocio is a no-no. These are the fellows, heroes really, who stay faithful to their wives--who don't betray their trust either in deeds or words. And yet even these good men are maligned when pundits place all dudes in the same so-called locker room as Trump's gold-gilded one. Advertisement A thousand wrongs don't make a right. Hollywood churns out some filth, they say, and have you listened to the lyrics of that song pumping on the radio? So isn't it hypocritical to hold a public figure like Trump to a stiffer standard? But neither is Eminem seeking the highest office in the land--at least during this election cycle. And what about the dangerous precedent of taking semi-seriously a reality TV personality, a deviant, a boor, a guy with skin so thin even Nobel-winning biologists can't explain it? Is it my imagination, or are most of us scratching our heads, wondering how we got here? Is the system totally broken? How did something in Denmark get so rotten? If pigs fly on Nov. 9 and the Trump ticket somehow wins the day, would that be the best thing for conservative ideals in the long run? Picture two years from now--after Trump has worn us down with gaffe after gaffe and alienated this group here, that nation there. Won't the Democrats sweep Congress? After four years of Trump, it would seem SpongeBob SquarePants, if he had a D after his name, could crush Trump's reelection efforts so epically, even Jimmy Carter's head would spin. Imagine what your life would be like if all of the things that most of us take for granted were not there. Things like food, a functional bathroom, clean clothes, privacy, adequate heat in the cold of winter, a sense of physical and emotional security, and other ingredients that most of us consider the basics of living. And imagine if instead, your life was filled with all of the opposites of those things: filth, neglect, hunger, exhaustion, anxiety, shame, and squalor. Then imagine that you were a child, a very young child living in that environment with no hope of any possible redemption from your suffering and no end in sight of your misery. Liz Murray was born into and spent her childhood living in such circumstances. Her parents were drug addicts and both eventually succumbed to AIDS. Liz and her older sister lived with them in a squalid apartment in the Bronx which during most of their childhood was the base for ongoing drug-dealing and drug use, with strangers coming and going throughout the day and night, strangers who like Liz's parents had only one thought in their mind: getting their next fix. Yet as overwhelming as the physical deprivation was that Liz experienced, it was not the most difficult part of her life. "It was", she told us, "the feelings of loneliness, shame, and isolation that I lived with daily that made my life so painful. As much as I knew that my parents loved me, their enslavement to drugs made it impossible for them to provide for my most basic needs or even their own for that matter." Advertisement Liz learned, from a very young age, that she was not only going to have to fend for herself but that she would have to take care of her parents as well, since their obsession with drugs prevented them from attending to even the most fundamental requirements of living. The only income that the family ever saw came from a small monthly SSI check that her mother received because she was legally blind. This was occasionally supplemented by small amounts of income that came in from sales of discarded items that her father found in trash cans and from petty cash that her mother hustled through prostitution and panhandling. The SSI check came on the first of the month and by the end of that week, all of the money would be gone. With three weeks left until the next check and no money, Liz's mother was so desperate and strung out that she frequently stole the hard-earned money that Liz made and saved doing odd jobs in the neighborhood from a very early age. But the money never went for food, even when Liz and her sister Lisa had nothing to eat. It was always spent on drugs for her parents.. Liz's father was incarcerated during the first three years of her life and she first laid eyes on him when he was released from prison shortly after her third birthday. When Liz was six, she was sexually molested by a "family friend" who was brought into the home by her mother. Shortly afterwards, her mother became schizophrenic and was hospitalized in the first of a series of hospitalizations that would continue until her death from AIDS in 1996. After the death of her mother when she was 15, Liz became homeless and spent the next several years living on the street, occasionally spending the night with friends, or riding and sleeping on the New York subways all night in order to stay warm. Living in the chaotic environment that characterized her life had made it impossible for Liz to attend school on anything but a very infrequent basis, or concentrate on academic subject matters at all. When she was in school her classmates continually taunted and harassed her for her ragged clothing, her filthy hair and unwashed body, and Liz experienced herself as a pariah throughout most of her childhood. She had few friends and she internalized the judgments about her that others held: that she was worthless, ugly, defective, and stupid, perhaps even retarded. Advertisement Yet Liz was not only possessed an intellect far beyond what she or others realized, she also had character strengths that enabled her to transcend the horror of her life circumstances and achieve inconceivable accomplishments. And yet even this isn't the most impressive thing about Liz or her life. What is most amazing about this remarkable young woman (Liz is just 32 years of age) is that throughout the hardship, deprivation to the point of near-starvation and uncountable instances of neglect and abuse, she managed to keep her heart open without succumbing to the temptation to become bitter, hateful, or vindictive, as so many in similar situations have. Liz doesn't seem to have an ounce of self-pity in her body, although no one could possibly blame her if she did. If anyone ever had a right to feel that she got a raw deal in life, it's Liz. And she did. But self-pity and bitterness are not her thing. What her thing is, is love. It's Liz's enormous capacity for love and compassion and her commitment to service that makes her the extraordinary person that she is. Her willingness to live with an open heart has attracted many people into her life and some have taken advantage of her openness seeing her vulnerability as something that they could exploit for their own interests. But others have responded to her vulnerability with compassion, love, and great generosity. Despite getting rejected by a great many alternative high schools as an adolescent, Liz continued to pursue her desire for an education and was finally accepted into the Humanities Preparatory Academy in Manhattan where she was befriended by two inspired and inspiring teachers, Vince and Perry, who recognized in her great inner beauty, strength and intelligence. Thriving in their encouragement and validation, Liz committed herself to her studies and completed four years of high school in two years receiving straight A's throughout. She remained homeless during this time, although no one knew it. She worked summers to cover her living expenses and ate meals at a shelter that provided food for homeless young people. One day on a field trip to Boston with her high school class, Liz visited Harvard and was deeply impressed with it even though she had barely heard of the university prior to the trip. A few months later when it was time for Liz to apply to college, Perry suggested that she consider Harvard. He told her, "Sure it would be a reach, but it's not impossible". What happened next is the stuff of fairy tales but this was not fiction, it was reality. Liz was accepted by Harvard, but then there was of course, the little matter of paying the tuition and covering the living expenses at one of America's most prestigious and expensive universities. Undaunted, Liz, along with several thousand other high school students, entered an essay contest sponsored by the New York Times. The guidelines for the contest required applicants to describe any obstacles that they might have had in their lives that they had to overcome in order to thrive academically. Liz won the contest and was granted a full scholarship to Harvard. Advertisement Liz interrupted her education at Harvard in 2001 to care for her father who was sick with AIDS, attending Columbia University and caring for him until 2006 when he died. Liz later returned to Harvard and graduated in 2009. A poster child for transformation, Liz has an indomitable spirit and will to survive and has prevailed against all odds. She currently travels nationally and internationally and is a highly sought after motivational speaker. She is the founder and director of Manifest Living, based in New York City, a company that sponsors workshops that empower and inspire adults to create extraordinary things in their lives, as Liz has. Her inspirational life story was captured on Lifetime Television's original film, Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story, which was nominated for three Emmys. She is the author of the New York Times bestseller Breaking Night, a memoir, which was released in September 2010. She has since then gotten married and had two children. In 2013 Liz was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Public Service from Merrimack College in Massachusetts. Liz is undoubtedly one of the most resilient, compassionate, and committed individuals we have ever met and obviously wise beyond her years. She is an inspiration to everyone who is fortunate enough to cross paths with her. The next time you doubt your ability to accomplish something that is very important to you, think again. Think of Liz. Advertisement Linda and Charlie Bloom are excited to announce the release of their third book, Happily Ever After . . . and 39 Other Myths about Love: Breaking Through to the Relationship of Your Dreams. Praise for Happily Ever After: "Love experts Linda and Charlie shine a bright light, busting the most common myths about relationships. Using real-life examples, they skillfully, provide effective strategies and tools to create and grow a deeply loving and fulfilling long-term connection." - Arielle Ford, author of "Turn You Mate into Your Soulmate". A few years back I was teaching yoga classes and developing a small following of students. One of the ways that is done is by practicing some advanced, beautiful poses. But, for an obvious reason I couldn't quite grasp I always had little injury or two so I was always searching for better techniques. In my search I came across an intriguing article about an elderly woman by the name of Vanda Scaravelli who had developed an intuitive approach to yoga. Vanda was an Italian aristocrat who knew many of the luminaries of the mid 20th Century. Close friends with BKS Iyengar, one of the instrumental figures in the transmission of yoga to the west, and philosopher, Jiddhu Krishnamurti who had been identified at a young age as a spiritual leader. Groomed to be the leader of a world religion called the Order of the Star, Krishnamurti took the unusual step of gathering his followers together in Mexico City in 1927 where he rejected his position with a now famous speech title "The Truth is a Pathless Land. He spent the rest of his life criticizing systematized thinking and encouraged people to rely upon their own intuitive abilities rather than the authority of others. Vanda blended insights from Iyengar and Krishamurti to create a unique style of yoga based, she said, on "undoing," a descriptor I found both cryptic and intriguing. Advertisement I had recently attended an Iyengar workshop which I considered rigidly militant in its approach, quite opposite from what I gathered that Vanda might have taught. Fortunately, the article included a link to Vanda's principle student, Diane Long from whom I hoped to get some answers. I emailed Diane and she told me that she had a young student, Brooke Welsh, who was interested in traveling and teaching. I contacted Brooke and invited her to the studio where I taught. We held a workshop with Brooke and many of my students attended. I never saw any of them again, which turned out to be a good thing because I had no business teaching yoga. Working with Brooke provided a total deconstruction of my yoga practice. I began the weekend an expert and teacher but I ended it a beginner without the slightest idea how to practice yoga. The workshop also ended my search for new forms of yoga. Since that time I have only taken a class or two a year with either Brooke or Christine Borg, who lived too briefly in Dallas and now resides in Edinburgh) and one class with Diane herself. Between classes, I've worked on my own which has been challenging and funny. I have a memory of Christine gazing searchingly into my eyes and telling me that the practice is "really, really simple." And it is very simple. My ambition to become a great yogi had been interfering with any awareness of what my body needed. The Scaravelli inspired yoga gave me, not a system, but an invitation for to slow down and allow my body to teach me how it wanted to practice yoga. Advertisement Ironically, I'd been practicing meditation for about 15 years by this time, obviously quite selectively. It might be regrettable, but it is actually somewhat funny that someone like me would begin a supposedly spiritual practice like yoga without bringing any awareness to the enterprise. But that's life, a stumble from one incredible self deception to the next, usually with no awareness at all. There is no reason to expect that spiritual practices would be free from self deception. The satisfying thought that you are a following a wholesome, beneficial path might make this considerably more rather than less likely. The straight and narrow path is about following a path that can be ground into a well worn trench, which was Krishnamurti's exact and only point. We hope that the spiritual path will deliver us from suffering and the hope to escape suffering is the agenda that blocks awareness. Actual spirituality require the faith that we can to drop the effort to escape and survive the pain of life without self protection and without going mad. It is this that allows awareness of the subtle suffering that created the agenda in the first place, the pathless land of which Krisnamurti spoke. He described meditation as "the understanding of what is without trying to change it or make it go away." The Buddha described what is succinctly- suffering, impermanence, and the selfless impersonal nature of it all. The wonder of awareness is that when we acknowledge suffering without trying to change it or make it go away, we just begin watching. In watching we notice impermanence. Suffering comes and goes and there is nothing at all to it. It is completely impersonal. This isn't so easy for us. WH Auden summed it up nicely with these lines: Today, the Earth got a little hotter, and a little more crowded. Saving BUB, Beautiful Unique Biodiversity, as in this asian pangolin, is another reason to preserve carbon storing forests. Pangolins everywhere are endangered. These prehistoric creatures are being vigorously hunted due to false rumors of their scales' healing powers. Source www.edgeofexistence.org OO Warning To Forest Destroyers: This Scientist Will Catch You With his satellites that spot deforestation as it happens. Forests: the cheapest way to store carbon A Rarity That Could Soon Disappear Forever - the Saola of the mountain forests of Vietnam and Laos is extremely rare and unique, and was discovered from a skull found in a hunter's home. Source wildlifeleaders.org Advertisement OO Hunting, Not Deforestation, Biggest Threat To Southeast Asian Biodiversity shows a new study. Forest animals are vital to the health of forests. Takeaways: animal populations have declined sharply at multiple sites across Southeast Asia since 1980, with many species now completely wiped out in substantial portions of their former ranges. Besides improved enforcement of hunting restrictions on protected areas and species, efforts to engage hunters in sustainable hunting practices are urgently needed. the region will likely lose most of its iconic species, and many others besides, within the next few years. Hunting is pushing many species close to extinction. When we harm forests, we harm ourselves. * * HOT NEWS OO Planet At Its Hottest In 115,000 Years Thanks To Climate Change experts say, a time during an interglacial era, when sea level was 6-9 meters (20-30 ft) higher than today. MELTDOWN @@ The Melting of the Arctic - surface ice cover is decreasing, but what's happening beneath it is far more dramatic - the TOTAL volume of the Arctic is shrinking dramatically and fast, as this flick shows. Arctic surface ice acts as a thermal shield by reflecting sunlight back to space, but the ice beneath it helps keep it cool, and helps winter reformation of ice. When that submerged ice goes... OO Disappearing Yosemite Glacier Becomes Symbol Of Climate Change - the dying Lyell Glacier has become a vivid example of the effects of climate change, a touchstone of increasing concern for National Park Service officials. * * WHAT GOES AROUND, COMES AROUND... Indonesia Will Not Be Able To Control Its Fires if it doesn't start controlling them now; global warming will create conditions that will likely set massive Indonesia peat fires beyond human control. Photo Source yournewswire.com Advertisement OO How Earth Will Pay Back Our Carbon Emissions With ... More Carbon Emissions, Beyond Our Control if we don't control it now. Takeaways: Many natural feedback cycles amplify carbon emissions, and will likely become self-generating, without human help. Examples include: Indonesian peat wildfires can release massive climate changing emissions, fueling more fire; Melting Arctic ice increases heat absorption there, further speeding global warming (albedo effect); Warming drying ecosystems (like California) burn more, emitting more climate changing emissions. In all these cases, the carbon that can fuel massive further climate change is locked into the soil, peat and forests of ecosystems that span the tropics to the poles. Like lighting a fuse, if we allow enough emissions to heat our planet enough, these natural cycles will start generating themselves - and we will be facing uncontrollable global warming and climate change. Advertisement * * GOOD IDEAS Credit DearTomorrow at facebook What Would YOU Write To Your Children Or Grandchildren In 2050? Maybe it will inspire you. OO Climate Letters To The Future That Should Inspire You Now Part social movement, DearTomorrow uses how much we care about future generations to get people engaged in dealing with climate change now. OO Public Art Or Renewable Energy? New Designs Aim To Produce Both and enlighten the public on environmental issues. It Might Not Look Like Much, But Can It Store Energy! And cheaply, too - enough to make wind power cheaper than natural gas, Siemans is betting. Source www.greentechmedia.com OO Breakthrough Thermal Storage System For Wind Power Could Beat Natural Gas - Takeaways: surplus energy fuels a big heater blowing 1000+ F air across an insulated, packed bed of basalt rocks; when needed, the energy is used to drive a steam turbine to deliver power. system could store up to two days' worth of energy for a week for111/megawatt-hour, beating the price of natural gas. Energy giant Siemens is testing it with a pilot project. "This technology operates on a set of simple principles with off-the-shelf, tried-and-tested technologies that can...achieve high system efficiencies at relatively low cost," said an energy expert. <> OO Hawaiian Electric Is Testing Flywheels As An Energy Storage Option Wind Power Kites are an example of the innovative renewable clean technology that Oregon's BEST Program funds, pairing universities with companies. Source www.yaleclimateconnections.org OO Oregon's 'Do-It-Yourself' Approach To A Clean Economy The state's BEST program pairs universities with companies to develop affordable solutions in clean energy and energy efficiency, providing unusually consistent and adequate funding to such startups. OO How Midwest States Are Pursuing Efficiency Amid Trend Against Mandates They're doing so by: Using, not wasting, the heat created from generating electricity; Creating energy efficiency requirements for buildings, transport and appliances. MEH: While mandates might not last, they probably provided impetus for states to increase their energy efficiencies. Advertisement OO Europe: Big Utilities Fund Renewable Energy For Profit - without involving banks, as a way to balance cuts in subsidies for fossil fuels. Growing MaryJane Is Energy Intensive - so doing so efficiently, with LEDs, is important. OO LEDs Light Up Indoor Farming And Marijuana Cultivation Source www.rodalesorganiclife.com OO A Desert Full Of Tomatoes, Thanks To Solar Power And Seawater - is growing in Australia, where Sundrop Farms is using solar power to desalinate water and grow lots of greenhouse tomatoes. The catch? You have to sell a LOT of tomatoes to pay the $150 million price tag of the desalinization plant - and then there's maintenance... * * HEALTH DISASTER LOOMS In An Every Hotter World, More Children Will Die - whether from heat exhaustion, the spread of disease, hunger, extreme weather disasters like storms and flooding, or the conflict over resulting scarcity of resources. OO The Coming Public Health Disaster - High temperatures are disrupting global ecosystems and food production, causing more extreme weather events and wildfires, threatening coastal communities with accelerated sea level rise and creating the perfect conditions for deadly diseases to spread. Advertisement The young and old are most vulnerable. * * CONNECTING THE DOTS Want to Stop More Storms Like This? Vote for leaders who understand and will support solutions to climate change. Credit Luis Rodriguez at weather.com OO Hurricane Matthew Looks A Lot Like Climate Change which should be a focus of public safety. And if we want to stop storms like this - or worse - we need to do everything we can to rid the economy of fossil fuels. Related Headline: Credit Stephen B. Morton at AP photo OO Hurricane Matthew's Strength Is Yet Another Climate Change Indicator - a record-shattering storm that is unusual for October, it is a reminder of climate change's potential to turn seasonal weather into extreme, year-round threats. The storm has surpassed several milestones as one of the strongest, longest-lasting hurricanes of its kind on record. * * GOOD CLEAN NEWS Source DOE Revolution Now 2016 OO The Us Clean Energy Revolution Is Here says the US Department of Energy in a new report, with several charts to prove it. Takeaways: Advertisement Costs have dramatically declined for renewable clean energy; Installation of wind and solar power structures has exploded. Electric vehicle sales are also exploding As are highly energy efficient LEDs. OO Global Energy Efficiency Has Tripled, But Not Enough To Curb Climate Change "We need to improve [energy efficiency] by 50 % ... immediately." Reykjavik: The geothermal city that aims to be the firsty city to go carbon neutral. OO Iceland: Geothermal Capital City Aims To Be Carbon Neutral by 2040, and become the first city to do so. OO $$$: 'Significant Economic Opportunities' For Low-Carbon Cities says a new analysis. OO The Future Belongs To Clean Energy Wind power is projected to more than double in developing countries and increase by one-third in developed nations by 2030. OO From Amazon To Wal-Mart, Wind Power Deals Are Blooming in Texas and beyond. OO UK: Solar Panels Outstrip Coal-Fired Electricity in previously 'unthinkable' feat. Source Kite Power Solutions Ltd 2015 OO One Of World's First Kite-Driven Power Stations To Open In Scotland - Its company says the system is so cheap it will not need any kind of subsidy - unlike fossil fuels or most renewables. Advertisement OO 191 Countries Strike Deal To Cut Aircraft Emissions - every bit counts. Credit Nate Beeler at the Columbus Dispatch, modified OO The Paris Climate Agreement Is Officially Happening. Unless Donald Trump Wrecks It. - don't forget to vote! Related Headline: OO Paris Climate Accord To Go Into Force In November - to face the test of enforcement. How Much Will They Pay To Make It Go Away? Is a question that Canada is letting its provinces answer on the price of carbon emissions. Source econews.com.au OO Canada's Trudeau Steps Up On Climate Change With Carbon Pricing and leaves provinces with choices on how to carry it out. OO Oil Clout Ebbs In Alaska As Billions In Tax Credits Are Cut - finally, people are realizing that oil doesn't pay. NATURAL REPERCUSSIONS OO US: No Matter How Much It Rains, Megadroughts Are 'Virtually Certain' Due To Climate Change with the Southwest to suffer scorching, decades-long "megadroughts" if the world continues producing greenhouse gas emissions at its current pace, a new study warns. Advertisement OO Global Warming Could Kill Off 'Good Bacteria', Weakening Ecosystems - shows new research focused on an insect, but its implications ripple all the way up the chain to us: bacteria form a mutually beneficial relationship with virtually all animals, not noted in the piece itself. Two interesting facts: Bacteria help us digest our food; Bacteria outnumber human cells on any human body. * * SPEAKING OUT OO Paul Krugman: What About The Planet? Our two major political parties are at odds on many issues, but nowhere is the gap bigger or more consequential than on climate. OO Recognizing Smokescreens: Putting Carbon Back In The Land vs. Real Climate Action Mainstream Media Is "Missing in Action" - and so are, consequently, much of the public, on the important evolving story of climate change - not only its dangerous acceleration and consequences, but even the good stories of how nations are starting to seriously address it. OO Is The Media To Blame For Climate Inaction? Media needs to report far more frequently and openly on important actions being taken to solve climte change, such as these recent developments: Ratification of a climate treaty to tackle emissions worldwide; Commitment of nations to phase out climate changing HFCs; Commitment of nations to a climate changing emissions limit in aviation. MEH: Coverage of climate change in most media is lacking, and inconsistent - so, yes, media is significantly part of the blame for climate inaction. OO UK Conservationists Deal Last-Minute Blow To 'Unlawful' Fracking Bid Military Acts on Climate Change by increasingly cutting its climate changing emissions via adoption of clean energy in the field, and at its bases. Source US armed forces, via pewenvironment.org OO US Military View On Climate Change: It's Eroding Our National Security And We Should Prepare For It Something not even being discussed in the current election. * * SOCIAL REPERCUSSIONS Source Reuters OO Global Economy Could 'Self-Destruct' If World Carries On Burning Fossil Fuels a leading economist warns. Lord Nicholas Stern - author of the influential Stern Review on climate change in 2006 - says 'strong investment' in green technologies could finally revive growth in the world economy. Bye Bye California Salmon? Populations and entire species of fish, many of which we eat, are facing extinction, as Californians take away their water - and Californians, present and future, are the ultimate losers. Source chowhound.com Advertisement OO San Francisco Bay Ecosystem Collapsing As Rivers Diverted scientists report. Evidence of what scientists are calling the planet's Sixth Mass Extinction is appearing in San Francisco Bay and its estuary, the largest on the Pacific Coast of North and South America, says a major new study. OO Invasive Insects Cause Tens Of Billions In Damage: Study - at least $77 billion in damage every year, says a new study, and that this figure is "grossly underestimated" because it covers only a fraction of the globe. It will worsen under continuing climate change. And this is just due to crop damage - it doesn't apply to malaria, zika or other diseases spread by mosquitoes invading new areas. All insects, including those in their native habitat, take a heavy toll on agriculture, consuming 30 to 40 % of global harvests -- enough to feed a billion people. Source International Business Times Mosquito-borne diseases, especially malaria, claim hundreds of thousands of lives every year. Climate change is on track to boost the damages by nearly 20% before 2050. "The distribution of many invasive species is today limited by temperature barriers, and climate change could allow them to invade regions that were inhospitable up to now", said the lead study researcher. Advertisement OO When Spark Meets Sprawl: Building In Wildlands Increases Fire Risk Wildfires, now threaten many other parts of the country as extreme weather becomes more commonplace and more people live in areas at risk for wildfire. OO As Cities Heat, Their Trees Partly Lose Ability To Remove Climate Changing Carbon From The Air shows new research. OO Climate Change Is Causing Earlier Springs In National Parks which could hurt their ability to manage invasive species. Source climateandcapitalism.com OO Europe Must Prepare For Extreme Weather - Cities and towns are warned to adapt to the battering they face from intense storms as extreme weather events become more frequent. OO Will Climate Change Sink The Mekong Delta? It is vital to the lives of millions of southeast Asians. No delta region in the world is more threatened by climate change. Advertisement * * FIXING CLIMATE CHANGE @@ A Simple And Smart Way To Fix Climate Change given by Dan Miller in 2014 at a Ted talk suggests a way to profit as we tackle climate change, by finally charging those who sell and use fossil fuels - and distributing the revenues back to all of us. The strategy is sure to speed transition to clean renewable energy. What's not to like? Check it out! * * FOSSIL FUEL FOLLIES Source fort-russ.com OO Economic Growth Ups Pollution, And Mortality modestly, and because it is largely linked to increased pollution from fossil fuels, says a new study. Another reason to go clean... But economic growth also spurs death via upping alcoholic intake, stress. overwork, and driving more. And high economic levels (as opposed to growth) correlate with longer lives. Advertisement That is, "If the pollution doesn't kill you in the short run, then in the long run the increased income will help you live longer," a study author says. Source www.worldbank.org Dirty Driven Growth Costs - mortality also costs society, when you account for the money spent on humans whose productivity is cut by premature death. Wait a minute. Step back. What this study does not tackle is the overall long term effect of unsustainable economic growth on our health, safety, and future quality of life - and all indications are that the effect is dramatically negative. Another Reason to Give Up Oil Source WalesOnline OO North Sea Oil Spills Reach Record High OO Fossil Fuel Industry's Methane Emissions Far Higher Than Thought - up to 60% greater than previously estimated, meaning current climate prediction models should be revised, new research shows. What Climate Change at 400 PPM Will Look Like - Only Worse and more. OO Milestone For Carbon Dioxide In The Atmosphere: A Climate Changing 400 Ppm has been reached. OO World Bank Secretly Funds Asian Coal Boom * * CLIMATE OR CLUELESS LEADERSHIP: YOU DECIDE Your Vote Is ALWAYS Meaningful - because it's not just about winning or losing, but by how much, which gives incoming leaders a sense of how much of the populace supports their policies - and that influences their actions. So, don't forget to vote! Advertisement OO Sign The Environmental Voter Pledge For Your Family And Future OO Climate Change Must Be A Bigger Part Of Election Discussion OO What's At Stake For The Climate In The 2016 Election? Everything. If Only It Worked That Way Credit Hilary B. Price on Earth Day 2016 OO Next 'Renewable Energy': Burning US Forests, If Senators Get Their Way - the president's Clean Power Plan is being fought by 28 states, and a bipartisan group of senators who want burning wood for electricity to be considered carbon neutral. Just goes to show that greed is nonpartisan. * * ELECTION YEAR: If You Don't Vote For Climate Action, You Can Forget The Rest - in a climate-changing world of famine, drought, rising seas, giant storms and heat waves, there will be no security in jobs, health, wealth, or national safety. There will be chaos ensuing from increasing crises and disasters. Vote. OO Global Warming Policies We Set Today Will Determine The Next 10,000 Years - of global warming, a new study shows -- and whether our civilization survives or not: history shows that harmful climate change has destroyed civilizations before. This time, it could be worldwide. Let's keep "The Hunger Games" in the realm of fiction. * * If we do not grow sustainably, Our children will die inhumanely. @@ The Cost of Unintended Pregnancy: Too Young Teen childbearing cost US taxpayers $9+ Billion in 2010 And the costs of raising a child usually ensures decades, if not a life, of poverty for its mother. - US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Advertisement WHAT YOU CAN DO Help prevent unintended pregnancies in your community: publicize where women can access affordable contraception. They can go here to find locations: And there are many more actions you can do, right here. * * * SOLAR KEEPS SAILING OO Bringing Light To The Darkness: Illiterate Women Trained As Solar Technicians By an Indian organization, which hopes to help 1.2 billion people in the world living without electricity. OO In Rural Bangladesh, Solar Power Dents Poverty Via microfinance and small rooftop panels, which can transform lives in a country where the electric grid reaches just 25 %of the population. Check it out here, right now! * * * WHY WE SHOULD ACT NOW: RISING RISKS Daily Climate Change: Global Map of Unusual Temperatures, Oct 18, 2016 How unusual has the weather been? No one event is "caused" by climate change, but global warming, which is predicted to increase unusual, extreme weather, is having a daily effect on weather, worldwide. Looking above at recent temperature anomalies, much of the US and the waters surrounding it are experiencing warmer than normal temperatures: the eastern Pacific warm spot continues and so does the drought in California, despite recent rains. Much of the areas surrounding the North Pole are experiencing much warmer than normal temperatures - not good news for our Arctic thermal shield of ice. Hotter than usual temperatures continue to dominate human habitats. Advertisement * * * There is, of course, much more news on the consequences and solutions to climate change. To get it, check out this annotated resource list I've compiled, "Climate Change News Resources," at Wordpress.com here. For more information on the science of climate change, its consequences and solutions you can view my annotated list of online information resources here. To help you understand just what science does and does NOT do, check this out! Muslim refugee holding his baby looking through a fence On Monday, the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) and Human Rights First (HRF) released a report outlining what a private refugee sponsorship system could look like in the United States. The report provides answers to many questions about the specific design of a sponsorship system, with the ultimate goal of improving the U.S. refugee resettlement program and increasing resettlement capacity. Private refugee sponsorship is defined as a platform that, "offers communities, organizations, companies, and philanthropies the opportunity to support the resettlement of additional refugees to the United States." Sponsorship serves as a mechanism to translate private sector support into direct assistance to increased refugee resettlement. Advertisement IRAP and HRF's report examines the key principles of private refugee sponsorship. Such a program, they write, must ensure privately sponsored refugees receive the same stringent security checks that refugees currently undergo, and must facilitate resettlement in addition to the government cap. Moreover, the models for pairing sponsors and refugees should accommodate the motivations of the sponsors to produce the best outcomes. The report provides answers to many questions that refugee advocates have been asking about a private sponsorship system. From strategies to set the private quota and the process to select both sponsors and refugees to what sponsorship would entail for pre and post-arrival services, this policy blueprint delves deep into the details. It also includes a section sketching out what the structure of a initial pilot program could look like. The paper comes on the heels of Refugee Council USA-the umbrella organization representing the refugee groups nationwide-releasing their statement on private sector engagement in the refugee resettlement program. They call for the United States to consider private sponsorship as a way to tap into private sector support and interest for resettlement, noting an increase in demand from citizens and communities to get more involved to aid refugees. Not only would private sponsorship increase total refugee admissions, it will create a robust, pro-refugee constituency that can push Congress to increase funding and implement reforms benefiting refugees. Furthermore, it will help forge close relationships between Americans and refugees that ease their integration into American society. Advertisement The Niskanen Center published the afterword of the report after leading the advocacy effort for private sponsorship in the last year. As I wrote in the paper: The magnitude of the current refugee crisis--unprecedented in recorded history--has led many in the U.S. to push for ways to harness the tremendous goodwill of everyday Americans looking to do their part to help. The idea of private refugee sponsorship answers the question refugee advocates receive from Americans on a daily basis: 'How can I help?' Private sponsorship is now on the agenda of policymakers at the height of the U.S. refugee program thanks to a dedicated effort from a broad range of refugee advocates since last year. This new IRAP and HRF report provides the necessary specifics to take the general support for the idea and push forward in sketching out what a sponsorship program could really look like. It's an invaluable contribution to the U.S. effort to launch private sponsorship and leverage American charity to help more refugees. Refugees around the world are looking at the United States to demonstrate leadership in the face of this global human rights crisis. As the U.S. moves closer to private sponsorship, the American people will have the chance to play a larger role in providing a safe haven to the persecuted across the globe. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump holds a campaign rally in Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S. October 18, 2016. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst In tonight's third and final presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump in Las Vegas, moderated by Fox News's Chris Wallace, the Supreme Court is one issue we're told will be focused on. Donald Trump, however, made his intentions quite clear at the last debate, and many times before: He will appoint justices to the high court "very much in the mold of Justice Scalia." Advertisement You can't hold up a better example of anti-LGBT extremism on the Supreme Court than Antonin Scalia, the most homophobic force ever on the court, who made hateful comments, on and office the court, about gay people for several decades. The late Scalia had compared homosexuality to bestiality, incest and child pornography and believed that banning homosexuality was similar to banning murder. Scalia not only wrote a blistering, unhinged dissenting opinion in the historic marriage equality case in 2015, Orbergefell v. Hodges; he was virulently opposed to striking down sodomy laws, writing the dissenting opinion in the Lawrence v. Texas case in 2003, attacking the "law-profession culture" which he claimed had "signed on to the homosexual agenda." It's pathetic, as I've pointed out again and again, that much of the mainstream media has portrayed Trump as "more accepting on gay issues" than other Republicans -- again grading him on a curve because he's not railing against gays like others have -- while he has forcefully advocated for Scalia-like justices on the court, producing a list of 20. Not only do many of the judges Trump has listed meet that standard, but he has specifically said he would put them on the court to possibly overturn marriage equality. Back in January, Trump told none other than tonight's debate moderator, Wallace, that he was unhappy with the Obergefell ruling, which brought marriage equality to the entire nation. He'd rather it had been left "to the states," which of course allows for rampant discrimination. Advertisement It's interesting that Wallace, from his perch at Fox News and certainly not a champion of progressive values, has been the only journalist interested in getting answers from Trump on this issue, while reporters at publications like The New York Times and Washington Post have given him a pass again and again, even portraying him as better on LGBT rights. When pressed by Wallace about appointing justices to the Supreme Court who would overturn the Obergefell ruling Trump replied, "I would strongly consider that, yes." It's difficult to imagine that ruling being overturned -- and the chaos that would ensue -- but simply by pandering to those who desire this action Trump is revealing the mortal danger he is to LGBT rights. If not on a marriage equality, there are a whole host of issues about which Trump can hold back or reverse LGBT rights, and many of the judges he's suggested he'd appoint would be primed to do so. Hillary Clinton, at the last debate, countered Trump's promise of Scalia-like justices very clearly: "I want a Supreme Court that will stick with Roe v. Wade and the woman's right to choose, and I want a Supreme Court that will stick with marriage equality." She has called for a full and comprehensive LGBT anti-discrimination law. The Equality Act, which would protect LGBT people in housing, employment, public accommodations and other areas, would add LGBT people to the 1964 Civil Rights Act and was introduced in Congress last year. Clinton obviously believes such a law can and would be held constitutional. That is, unless a Supreme Court with justices "in the mold of Justice Scalia" are appointed to the court and are able to preempt such a law by ruling against LGBT people in a variety cases making their way to the high court. Trump, back in February, two weeks after the Wallace interview, promised evangelicals, during an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network, to "trust me" to overturn the "shocking" and "massive" Obergefell ruling. And that is something with which his anti-LGBT running mate Mike Pence surely agrees. What we need from Trump are fuller details about how he's going to get that done, or how he expects the judges he'd appoint to the court will thwart LGBT rights in other ways. Trump and Pence have both promised to defend "religious liberty" -- code for allowing Christian business owners, such as bakers and florists, to use their religious beliefs to discriminate against LGBT people in their businesses. So how does he expect that will happen? Advertisement In 2006, in the sixth year of the disastrous presidency of George W. Bush, I began writing a speculation about what the world be like if Al Gore had become president. The Huffington Post published it on May 11, 2008. You will remember that the presidential vote in 2000 was contested and close. Gore won the popular vote, and the Republican-majority Supreme Court gave the election to Bush. President Bush ignored warnings about Osama bin Laden's intention to attack the US. After Bin Laden struck on 9/11, Bush falsely contended that Iraq's President Saddam Hussein was responsible and had weapons of mass destruction. He pushed to invade Iraq. Bush's invasion in March 2003 led to the breakup of a coherent Iraqi national entity into three warring factions, Shia, Sunni, and Kurd, which had been kept in check by Hussein. Because of Bush's invasion and occupation, hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have died. One of the thousands of American soldiers killed in the Iraq war was Casey Sheehan. His mother, Cindy, became an eloquent antiwar activist. Toward the end of "The Presidency of Al Gore, 2001-2009" the Sheehans appear. Advertisement I am republishing "The Presidency of Al Gore, 2001-2009" below without any changes from its publication on May 11, 2008. In May 2008, "The Presidency of Al Gore, 2001-2009" was about how important it is to think carefully before you vote. In 2000, the Green Party candidate had siphoned off enough progressive votes to assure Bush's victory and the disasters that followed. In 2016, a vote for the Libertarian or Green presidential ticket is a vote for Trump. It is existentially essential to vote for Hillary Clinton. Here is "The Presidency of Al Gore, 2001-2009" exactly as published in The Huffington Post on May 11, 2008, except that I have added that publication date to the opening note. The Presidency of Al Gore, 2001-2009 [May 11, 2008: Note: Continually thinking about how disastrous the last seven years have been, I did some imagining and research on what the world would be like if Al Gore had become president in 2001. Such a process is really about how important it is to elect the right president. I asked friends and acquaintances for their ideas, I read books by and about Gore, and I watched again his September 2000 interview with Oprah Winfrey, where I learned about his favorite book and movie and his art teacher. Here are some of my findings.] Advertisement The Presidency of Al Gore, 2001-2009 On January 20, 2001, Al Gore, the candidate who won the most votes, becomes the 43rd president of the United States. President Gore follows up on the many urgent warnings from the intelligence agencies that Osama Bin Laden is determined to strike in the United States. The 9/11 planners are caught, and their plots are aborted. In Afghanistan, the Taliban warns that it will destroy the two giant 1,500-year-old statues of the Buddha in the Bamiyan Valley. Much of the world sees these serene figures as symbols of wisdom beyond time, but they offend conservative Muslims. Secretary of State Richard Holbrooke talks with the Pakistani foreign minister, who reminds him that Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world and suggests that if aid to the poor there is increased, the Buddhas will be spared. Gore calls the American Buddhist actor Richard Gere, who immediately raises $50 million for the Afghani poor, and the Gore administration promises $5 billion in direct aid over the next five years. The Taliban agrees to preserve the statues. Gore's favorite film, Local Hero, the Scots eco-comedy, becomes a best-selling DVD. The film is about how ancient values of subsistence, closeness to nature, and community defeat the rapacious forces of the oil industry. People like quoting the old Scot who puts the kibosh on the oilmen: "The business left, but the beach is still here." Republicans are squawking that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein is a threat to the safety of the country, that he has weapons of mass destruction. Gore asks the United Nations to send its weapons inspectors back into Iraq, and after six months of searching, they find none. Saddam is in what Eliot Weinberger calls "the 'autumn of the patriarch' mode: holed up in his palaces writing his trashy novels, and oblivious to the details of government." Gore brokers a deal in which Saddam's novels are translated into English and published and he agrees to slowly loosen up some of the restrictions on the Kurds and Shias and bring them into the government. In 1998, as vice president, Gore proposed a NASA satellite, Triana, to provide, from a distance of 930,000 miles, a continuous view of the sunlit side of the earth. Triana would measure global warming by measuring how much sunlight is reflected and emitted from the earth and would monitor weather systems. Triana is built and launched in February 2003. In late 2004, it sends back images of the beginnings of a great tsunami that might have killed hundreds of thousands if it had gone undetected in its early stages. But Triana's continual data feed allows people to be warned to flee to higher ground, and only a few dozen perish. Advertisement The president's favorite book, Stendahl's The Red and the Black, becomes a best seller. People like quoting the book's young hero, Julien Sorel: "So there, this is what these rich people are like. First they humiliate you, then they think they can make it up to you by monkey business!" Recognizing that nothing good can come from the continuing Israeli-Palestinian standoff, Gore sends Holbrooke and Vice President Joe Lieberman to broker a peace. In May the two sides sign a peace accord, in which Israel agrees to go back to the 1967 boundaries, the Palestinians recognize Israel's right to exist, and both sides renounce violence. The Republic of Palestine is founded in 2002. President Gore has a nightmare: He becomes president on January 20, 2001, but the next day he is incapacitated, and Lieberman becomes president. In the spirit of the close election, Lieberman appoints George W. Bush as vice president on January 22. The next day Lieberman is incapacitated, and Bush becomes president and appoints Dick Cheney his vice president. The Bush-Cheney presidency starts January 23, not January 20. Immediately Bush begins abrogating treaties of long standing that kept the world at peace. Terrorists destroy the World Trade Center on September 14, 2001. Bush enacts draconian laws that make America a police state. People constantly refer to "9/14" as the day that changed everything. President Gore wakes up in his bed in the White House in a cold sweat, the dream disappearing from his conscious mind but the numbers 9 and 14 puzzling and haunting him at odd moments for the rest of his days. As vice president, Gore signed the Kyoto Accord on Climate Change in 1998, but there were not enough votes to ratify it in the Congress, and there still are not. President Gore, however, is able to implement most elements of the treaty by executive order. He begins a process of education about global warming and publishes a book on the subject. He sponsors twenty-four hours of concerts with rock and pop stars, Live Earth, on every continent, and broadcast on television, radio, and the Web to raise awareness about climate change and global warming. A third of the planet's population watches and hears the concerts and has a pretty good time in the process. Soon every nation has ratified Kyoto, and the climate crisis begins to ebb. The temperatures of the oceans stop rising, and thus the severity of hurricanes stops increasing. Early in 2001, acting on urgent warnings from the Army Corps of Engineers and FEMA, the president directs that the New Orleans levees be reinforced and where necessary rebuilt, and the nearby wetlands protected and expanded. When hurricane Katrina strikes in August 2005, the wetlands absorb much of the flooding, the reinforced levees hold, and New Orleans suffers only minor damage. People start reading Gore's favorite philosophers, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Edmund Husserl, and Reinhold Niebuhr. They quote passages like this from Merleau: "We struggle with dream figures and our blows fall on living faces." And this from Niebuhr: "The sin of man arises from his effort to establish his own security; and the sin of the false prophet lies in the effort to include this false security within the ultimate security of faith. The false security to which all men are tempted is the security of power. The primary insecurity of human life arises from its weakness and finiteness." The United States and the nations of the former Soviet Union agree to destroy the nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons built up during the Cold War. The president halts and junks the Star Wars strategic defense initiative boondoggle. Every nation signs a treaty to begin eliminating their weapons of mass destruction. The military-industrial complex must now make a transition. Converting the country, and the world, to alternative energy sources other than fossil fuel and nuclear becomes a new growth industry. Advertisement The special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom continues, as does the close relationship between the progressive governments of Tony Blair and Al Gore, begun under Bill Clinton. As planned, Blair carries through the New Labour vision of the New Jerusalem, with higher quality of life and better public services, similar to those in France. In 2008, he is re-elected for an unprecedented fourth term. President Clinton had twice shaken hands with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, and now President Gore sends Holbrooke to Caracas to draft a treaty of cooperation with Chavez. Gore arrives in the Venezuelan capital, where he and Chavez sign the treaty. Later, they talk about their mutual love of Victor Hugo's great novel of the dispossessed, Les Miserables. Chavez tells Gore that he was named for its author. They quote from memory lines from the great book. Gore remembers this, about Jean Valjean: "Then he asked himself if it was not a serious thing that he, a workman, could not have found work and that he, an industrious man, should have been without bread." Chavez responds with what Jean Valjean's savior, the Bishop of Digne, says: "Jean Valjean, my brother, you belong no longer to evil, but to good. It is your soul I am buying for you." Gore replies with this about the inspector who hunts Valjean: "Javert was always in character, without a wrinkle in his duty or his uniform, methodical with villains, rigid with his coat buttons." Chavez says this about Fantine: "What is this story of Fantine about? It is about society buying a slave. From whom? From misery. From hunger, from cold, fron loneliness, from desertion, from privation. Melancholy barter. A soul for a piece of bread." Gore and Howard Dean, his Health and Human Services Secretary, begin having regular discussions with Canada's Prime Minister, Jean Chretien, about that country's single-payer health care system. Gore plans to introduce universal health care in the United States step by step. His health care bill, narrowly passed in 2001, covers all those age eighteen and under by 2004, and everyone else by 2007. Advertisement The president invites to the White House the person who had the most influence on him, his high school art teacher. The Smithsonian exhibits some of Gore's paintings. By a few votes in each house, Congress passes Gore's tax cuts for middle- and lower-income people. But also by a few votes in each house, the Congress passes tax cuts for the rich and super-rich, which Gore vetoes. The rich and super-rich continue paying their same rate. Soon, the gap between rich and poor, which has been increasing since the Reagan administration began in 1981, begins decreasing. The undamming of rivers, begun seriously under Clinton/Gore, continues, and the ancient vibrant river life of salmon, shad, freshwater dolphin, and manatee returns. U.S. Army Specialist Casey Sheehan becomes a Chaplain's Assistant. In 2005, his tour of duty up, he returns to California to visit his mother, Cindy. A bird alights on a Bamiyan Buddha. America is great because she is good. If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great. - Alexis de Tocqueville I want to believe we are the good guys. I want to know, deep in my heart, that we reject the vile, the stupid, the disgusting. I want us to behave as a nation should behave - caring for those least amongst us like the poor, the disenfranchised, the vulnerable, with the same unceasing generosity we displayed at the end of World War 2 and the implementation of the Marshall Plan . We knew that the rest of the world would scoff at our naivete and think us foolish to expect appreciation, but we did it anyway. Because we thought it was the right thing to do. We are facing a true crisis in America. An existential crisis about our way of life, our national character, and the very existence of democracy. This entire election cycle, from its inception, has been completely toxic. Candidates have shown little respect for each other. They threaten each other, insult spouses, children, and take horrific swipes at each other. They have shown little respect for the citizens of this country and for our institutions, our civility, and our place in the world. Advertisement The U.S. has always seemed brash. I remember when I was working with the York Archaeological Trust one summer. I went to the bank with our weekly stipend to change some dollars into pounds. We were essentially paid volunteers and not paid a lot. A friend from the trust, ironically from York, Pennsylvania, was also in this bank, and as we were standing in line, we heard the harsh, strident tones of an American accent, arguing that the previous day's exchange rate had been better and demanding the bank honor it. Since there was a bit of a line, we kept hearing the angry American and her equally loud and obnoxious husband arguing with this poor bank teller about the rates. The more they spoke, the more British we became, so that by the time we were at the window with our familiar weekly teller waiting to exchange our dollars to pounds, we were speaking in upper crust drawls. With a glance at the bleating, loud, ugly Americans behind us, the teller winked and didn't betray us, and we slinked out of the bank without having to acknowledge we were American. Recalling that incident makes me realize that there has always been a harsh, uncouth, unattractive section of our society. I don't mean physical appearance but unattractive souls that have now become elevated into the mainstream of our lives. The "isms" that used to be sidelined in the shadows - racism, misogyny, ignorance, and staggering anti-intellectualism - are now blatantly in the light for all to see. They are a result of an education system that is failing, a vocal minority that has failed to learn critical thinking skills, tolerance, acceptance, or even the golden rule. These people have felt voiceless and powerless. These are frightened, angry people making bad choices and more importantly forgetting that they are, in fact, Americans - you know, the good guys. We are becoming uncivilized. Although Michelle Obama exhorted us to go high when others go low, that concept seems to elude everyone. We denigrate, we hound, we humiliate - all in the name of free speech. Our rampant isolationism from the rest of the world between the World Wars has now devolved into an even more insidious internal isolationism that promulgates hate, mistrust, and ignorance. Some still fighting - and losing - the Civil War will glom onto anyone who wants to return to the antebellum South, which they consider the good old days, for the good old boys. Advertisement Religions, as a rule, are myopic, declaring that they are the only way to believe. However, in this country, where the founding fathers were mostly deists, religion was never to hold sway over government. Nonetheless, over the years, doing a litmus test of faith, as opposed to an understanding of how government works, and the rights and privileges that we the people hold therein through our constitution, has become the deciding factor. How else can you explain the fear of the "other" propagated these past 15 years? The slow decline of conservatism started when Robert Taft and his brand of conservative politics had a hissy when Eisenhower was nominated and the country 'liked Ike and his policies, It refocused the intellectually driven, conservative party that espoused smaller government, fiscal management and individualism, and deadheaded it right into what is now called the alt-right. Calmer voices were silenced, and the stage was set for people to preach from their bully pulpits a deeper, fundamentally flawed brand that forgot what American ideals really were. The greatest generation saved the world. The founding fathers declared a revolution that promised 'life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness". We the people, in order to form a more perfect union, created a system of laws, of moral and ethical behaviors founded from the 17th century Enlightenment. Where has all the reason gone? Alexis de Tocqueville warned us that "When the past no longer illuminates the future, the spirit walks in darkness." Have we so forgotten our glorious past that we've allowed ourselves to accept that incivility, misogyny, racism, bigotry, and all the other hates being spewed are the norm? I want a return to the 'good old days' when politicians built consensus, and sought to improve the lives of our nation and the world. When we didn't denigrate, disparage and denounce, but built up, buoyed and believed in our country and our citizens. Advertisement Are we the good guys? I'd like to think so. I was raised on the notion that the U.S. eventually comes to the right decision and we make the right choices. Let's find ourselves and become our best selves once again. As the Milken Institute Center for the Future of Aging prepares to release the latest version of its widely followed "Best Cities for Successful Aging" rankings index, our Advisory Board is once again calling on U.S. mayors to sign the Center for the Future of Aging Mayor's Pledge. The upcoming "Best Cities" report will publicly recognize mayors who join their colleagues across the country to promote purpose and well-being in their communities. The stakes are clear. With a federal government hamstrung by partisanship and politics, the time is now for mayors to demonstrate their commitment to better lives by signing the Pledge. Their leadership is critical as the aging population grows at an unprecedented rate across the United States and the world. By 2030, one in five Americans will be 65 and over. Worldwide, this age group will outnumber children under 14 by midcentury, due in large measure to declining birthrates and increasing longevity thanks to advances in science and public health. Advertisement Cities are on the front lines, with more than 80 percent of Americans age 65-plus living in metropolitan areas. Nearly 90 percent of older adults in the U.S. want to age in their homes and communities, according to AARP research. Enabling these residents to age with dignity, opportunity and access to services and supports is a central issue for the future of urban environments. The Pledge unites forward-thinking leaders around a commitment to enhance life for the largest-ever population of older adults, and for generations to come. From the first signatory in late 2014, 140 mayors of cities large and small have signed the Pledge. And they are taking action. At the 2015 White House Conference on Aging, then-Iowa City Mayor Matt Hayek told policy and business leaders about the programs and services that make his heartland city such a vibrant place for mature residents. With his colleagues on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Eric Garcetti, the mayor of L.A. and the first to sign the Pledge, announced Purposeful Aging Los Angeles, a multisector initiative to improve lives in this massive and diverse region. We look forward to many more mayors signing the Pledge and to the reports of their plans and progress. As the Pledge recognizes, mayors can ensure that their evolving cities include welcoming neighborhoods that are physically, economically and socially attuned to the well-being of mature residents. These centers of population, culture and commerce must optimize health and security as well as engagement and productivity, offer housing and transit options, social services and opportunities for education, work and social interaction. They can provide innovative technology and communications solutions that allow people to age independently in their homes. Mayors who take the lead in developing these attributes will profoundly influence older residents' ability to age well and enjoy healthy and fulfilling lives. But mayors can do more. Cities are economic engines and enablers of purpose. Mayors can ensure that older residents contribute to the economy and strengthen society, applying their abilities and knowledge to keep their cities vibrant. Rather than focusing on the stereotypes of decline and disengagement, mayors can recognize the potential of older adults as assets rather than burdens. Advertisement The Pledge acknowledges that elders have much to offer people of all ages. Their wisdom and experience enriches their families as well as business, educational and social institutions. They offer mentoring and training in workplaces and perspectives that enhance intergenerational connection. As entrepreneurs, they boost economic growth. In encore careers, teaching and volunteer activities, they contribute to society's well-being. The Pledge calls on mayors to promote the involvement of older residents in volunteer and paid roles that serve others, to help them train for and transition to those roles and to recognize this growing age group for the value and potential it represents. The goals of the Pledge promise vast opportunity for our cities, and an increasing number of mayors are demonstrating vision as they build coalitions and plan for a new demographic future. Their ground-level experience opens the door to solutions that can be replicated at the state, national and global levels. This is a unique opportunity for mayors themselves, as well as their cities. We call on them to join together in civic leadership by signing the Pledge, and we look forward to celebrating their efforts to create a better future of aging for all. Paul Irving is chairman of the Center for the Future of Aging at the Milken Institute and distinguished scholar in residence at the University of Southern California Davis School of Gerontology Earlier on Huff/Post50: Today, with sadness, I am participating in funeral ceremonies of Andrzej Wajda, a world acclaimed film director, and a great friend of Gdansk. He died on October 9th at 90 years of age. Agencies all over the world have been giving accounts of his life and many remembered his great life and films, including the Oscar he received for lifetime achievement in 2000. Andrzej Wajda, the Honorary Citizen of Gdansk. The King Arthur's Court in Gdansk. March 2016. Photo: J. Pinkas I feel a special affinity with Mr Wajda and a special obligation to him. Just several months ago, in January, I visited him in his home in Warsaw with the invitation to become an Honorary Citizen of Gdansk. He gladly agreed and happily recounted numerous times he had been in Gdansk, and how important our city is to him and his work. Advertisement Gdansk has a great relation with Andrzej Wajda, because the most important movies in his career were filmed in Gdansk and about Gdansk. They clearly showed how important events in the history of Poland were inseparable from the myth and a genius loci of the place: its golden age in XV-XVII centuries, its proud status of Free City, and the place of the beginning of World War II. The breakthrough events of workers' strikes of December '70 and August '80 resulting in a birth of "Solidarity" took place here. There's no denying that the films that Wajda made in Gdansk are formative to generations of viewers. His "Man of Marble" and Man of Iron" are films institutions. Indeed, it is hard to imagine the world cinema without Andrzej Wajda's input. How happy were we when he agreed to come to Gdansk on his 90th birthday in March and received the Honorary Citizen Award in King Arthur's Court, the most representative building, so dear to Andrzej Wajda's heart. He knew many anecdotes from the period immediately following the war, when the fortunes of Gdansk's cultural heritage was decided. That's when I got to know him as a lively storyteller. We laughed at his colourful rendition of 1945 negotiations of Polish art historians with a Soviet commandant over a huge table in today's New City Hall. The matter was about saving as many as possible pieces of art from pre-war Gdansk from being taken away to the Soviet Union. From the left: Andrzej Wajda, Lech Walesa and me. Photo: J. Pinkas When he arrived in March for the award ceremony, we told him what a great honour for Gdansk residents it was to have him among us. In my speech I emphasised that the new Honorary Citizen of Gdansk for decades had taught Poles patriotism. Not the "textbook" one, however, but the difficult, sometimes tragic one. Advertisement The protagonists of his films are put in extreme situations, faced with crucial and most difficult choices. Importantly, Andrzej Wajda never proposes easy solutions. He teaches that patriotism is also a thoughtful reading of national literature and a constant reinterpreting it. It forces us to create independent thoughts and makes us who we are. On the filmset of "Walesa. Man of Hope". In the front of the train station in Gdansk. Robert Wieckiewicz starring as Lech Walesa. Photo: J. PinkasHow strange: he seemed eternal. At 90 he still made plans for new movies, joked and laughed. He left us with a gift: an Oscar nominee for the best foreign movie: Powidoki. We will be watching, of course. With sadness, with a feeling of great loss, with deep gratitude. The following piece is by Robert L. Dilenschneider. It offers valuable insights about the American political system: With less than 20 days before one of the most important elections in American history, we have prepared this note on executive privilege, executive orders and executive actions that may be of interest. Many wonder if either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump will be able to make much difference in office if, for example, the Democrat is faced with a Republican-led Congress or the Republican president must deal with a Democrat-controlled Congress. Advertisement Be sure that either Clinton or Trump will invoke "executive privilege," "executive orders" and "executive actions" to advance their agenda. Each of these is quite different, but all three are used by presidents to get their way when the path is firmly blocked on Capitol Hill or they are fighting legal action. Executive privilege is power claimed by the president to thwart interventions to the executive branch by Congress and the judiciary seeking to access sensitive information and personnel issues relating to the executive branch. Ironically, the concept of executive privilege is not mentioned in the Constitution. However, the Supreme Court has upheld the concept as part of the doctrine of separation of powers, especially in areas of national security. Please note that while executive privilege is often used to avoid abiding by subpoenas, the whole concept is far from settled law. Advertisement Famously, President Truman issued a secrecy order to keep Congress from getting FBI and White House data on security problems. Truman had security files moved to the White House and ordered his team not to testify in Congress on anything involving security. During the McCarthy hearings into alleged Communist infiltration of government, President Eisenhower claimed executive privilege to keep internal conversations and meetings and notes (well before email) private. Likewise, Defense employees were not permitted to testify before McCarthy or provide any documents he sought. The most famous case is United States v. Nixon. In 1974 Watergate special prosecutor Archibald Cox ordered President Nixon to produce White House Oval Office audiotapes. Nixon invoked executive power to refuse. The Supreme Court noted that there is a valid need for protection of communications among government officials but said that certain procedures must be invoked to protect public interest with the courts put in the difficult position of deciding which branch of government prevails. The court said this is a difficult situation that is to be avoided as much as possible. "Once executive privilege is asserted, coequal branches of the Government are set on a collision course." Bill Clinton in 1998 became the first president since Nixon to assert executive privilege and lose in court, when a federal judge ruled that Clinton aides could testify in the Monica Lewinsky case. Executive orders are directives issued to federal agencies, department heads and other federal employees by the president using his constitutional powers. They are similar to written orders or instructions issued by CEOs to department heads or directors. They have the force of law, although, of course, they can be challenged in the courts. They are published in the Federal Register and take effect 30 days later. They bypass Congress but may not be used to circumvent laws or direct agencies to do anything illegal. Two of the most famous executive orders came after the United States was attacked. After Pearl Harbor in 1941, President Roosevelt issued executive order 9066 (they are numbered historically) ordering the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans, although many were U.S. citizens. After 9/11, President Bush issued an executive order to combine more than 40 federal agencies into the Cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security. Advertisement Although Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell famously decreed Republicans would do everything in their power to ensure President Obama would be a one-term president, Obama prevailed more than many expected he would by issuing executive orders. For example, in a 2012 order known as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, Obama decreed that people under 30 who came to the United States before the age of 16 could get a two-year deferral from deportation, under certain conditions. Executive orders are not immutable. The president may change or abolish an executive order at any time or supersede an existing order. Incoming presidents may keep or replace or revoke previous orders. Rarely, Congress may pass a law that alters an executive order. The Supreme Court may declare an executive order unconstitutional. Executive actions are even more common. Early in office Obama called a press conference and announced he was issuing 23 "executive actions" addressing gun violence. He called for universal background checks on anyone trying to buy a gun and restoring a ban on military-style assault weapons. But they carried no legal weight. There have been a number of myths about Obama's use of executive orders. He did not issue an order keeping his records (e.g., birth certificate) secret. In fact, he issued an order reversing a Bush order so that records of former presidents are no longer as secret as they were. Obama did not sign an order giving him a third term, contrary to Internet gossip. And he did not sign an order getting rid of super political action committees, which give huge amounts of money to the political process, although he dislikes them. He is urging Congress to pass a constitutional amendment outlawing them. Although President Obama has issued 252 orders so far in his presidency and undoubtedly will issue more, he is lagging behind his predecessors. George W. Bush had 291 executive orders in eight years, and Bill Clinton built up a total of 364 executive orders during his eight years. Obama actually has issued the fewest per year--33--since Chester Arthur. Franklin D. Roosevelt issued 3,721. Advertisement Why did Apple remove the headphone jack from the iPhone 7? originally appeared on Quora - the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights. In short, because it was more trouble than it's worth. A waterproof iPhone is a big win for users. Apple collects all sorts of data through AppleCare and the Genius Bar about what kinds of problems people have with their Apple devices, and they use this data to improve future products. Perhaps the best known example is the MagSafe adapter: Apple saw many broken laptops that had been pulled to the ground when someone tripped over the charging cable, so they designed a charging cable with a magnetic connector that would harmlessly detach when you sharply tugged on it. But they've also used this data in other ways, like selecting more resilient materials for iPhones; their moves from plastic to glass to various grades and colors of aluminum was driven by seeing what condition iPhones were in when they returned to the Genius Bar after months or years in the wild. Advertisement The most common kind of accidental damage for iPhones is probably dropping a phone and shattering the screen. Apple has changed the screen glass a couple times, and made an abortive attempt at moving to sapphire, but it hasn't quite fixed that problem yet. But the second most common type is most likely liquid damage. I'm sure you know somebody who's drowned an iPhone (and probably tried to revive it with a bowl of dry rice)--everybody does. That's what the limited waterproofing in the iPhone 7 is really about. It's not about taking your iPhone for a swim, or in the shower, or even out in the rain. It's about accidentally dropping it in the toilet or pool, or forgetting it's in your pants pocket when you do the laundry, or getting splashed when a car drives through a puddle, or any of a hundred other accidents that used to result in an expensive repair that made you less happy with your phone. So waterproofing (yes, I know, it's actually water resistance) is something every iPhone user needs, even if they don't know it. It's an important feature. Unfortunately, it's also a difficult feature. Every part of the phone that interacts with the outside of the phone needs to be redesigned, usually in ways that make them larger. And that's a problem. Advertisement The inside of an iPhone is valuable real estate. There's a story from the iPod days: examining a prototype one day, Steve Jobs said it was too big, but the engineers told him that making it smaller was impossible. So Jobs dropped the prototype in an aquarium and watched closely as it sank to the bottom, trailing bubbles. "Those are air bubbles," Jobs said. "That means there's space in there. Make it smaller." Apple's engineers have long since learned that lesson. Today, iPhones are crammed full of components, with as little wasted as possible. Most of the space inside an iPhone is behind the display assembly. In this area, the thickness of components is limited; you can put chips and batteries here, but not much else. Access to the outside world is also obstructed--the screen is in front and solid aluminum behind. That means that any component that is nearly as thick as the phone, sends or receives radio signals through the antenna lines, or reaches the front of the case has to be in the bezel areas above or below the screen. That includes antennas, cameras, ports, speakers, sensors, microphones, and the Home button and Touch ID hardware. I've labeled an image (from the old marketing website) of the 6S internals to give you an idea of how much stuff is jockeying for space in these couple square inches: Just eyeballing it, the headphone jack in the 6S probably takes up about 10% of the bezel space in the entire phone. (I'm talking about the entire jack assembly--the big whiteish piece in the bottom left--not just the shaft itself.) The only larger bezel components are the speaker, the rear camera, and possibly the earpiece. Think of real-world places with very valuable real estate. In Manhattan, a not-so-profitable gas station occupying a parcel of very expensive land will often be bulldozed to make way for a tall building full of lucrative offices or condos. The inside of an iPhone is valuable real estate, and these bezel areas are especially scarce. Parts that aren't providing enough value are likely to get bulldozed. Advertisement Waterproofing takes a lot of space--especially when it demands a new Taptic Engine. Here's a similar image of the bottom bezel area of the iPhone 7. You might notice that most of the components are completely different: The Taptic Engine is much larger and is partially behind the new, non-mechanical Home button. The Home button change is probably both for waterproofing (it's hard to seal all of those seams) and for reliability (broken Home buttons are another common repair--or at least people think they are); an impulse from the Taptic Engine is now used to make the non-mechanical button "click" the way the old one did. But the new Taptic Engine protrudes into the space previously taken up by the headphone jack; I estimate it covers about a quarter of the jack's depth, depending on the purpose of the three prongs just below the Taptic Engine's main body. And it has to be there, in the bottom left of the phone; it must be near the Home button, and the speaker's on the right side. Looking at the rest of the bezel, the speaker is also much larger and fully enclosed. Presumably, this makes it louder and improves its waterproofing. There are also water-tight seals all around the rim of the phone. And there are a number of other new components here; in the exact location of the old headphone jack, you'll find a barometric vent, which allows the barometer to work so the iPhone can sense altitude changes (like climbing a flight of stairs) without permitting water into the phone. I don't know of a similar image of the top bezel, but with a larger rear camera, a second speaker, and the need for similar waterproofing work in that area, I can only assume it's gotten pretty crowded up there, too. Perhaps the unidentifiable parts in the 7's bottom include a replacement for the antenna unit at the top of the 6S. Advertisement So if the headphone jack couldn't stay in the lower left, then where else could they have put it? It's a huge component, it's only getting bigger if it's being waterproofed, and it absolutely must be in one of the cramped bezels. Keep in mind as well that, even with the headphone jack gone, there's tons of other stuff that still won't fit in the bezels. The 9.7 iPad Pro has a really cool "True Tone" display that changes its color temperature to match the lighting conditions. It's gotten rave reviews, and I thought it was a shoo-in for the iPhone 7. But it didn't make the cut--it requires two extra light sensors in the bezels, and there just wasn't room for them. Ports are especially difficult to waterproof. Besides literally being holes in the phone, ports are also places where electricity is directly exposed to the outside world. It's well known that electricity and water don't mix--or rather, that they mix all too well. That means ports need special attention when you're waterproofing. The iPhone 6S has two ports: the Lightning port and the headphone jack. Lightning was introduced only a few years ago; given how serious an issue water damage has been and how long Apple's product cycles are, I suspect they were thinking about waterproofing from the beginning, so this would have been pretty easy to handle. But the headphone jack is a different story. The headphone jack was designed a century ago and Apple can't change its design to make it easier to waterproof. Other waterproof phones have struggled with the headphone jack; they've either provided a plug you're supposed to put in when it's not in use, or they've not proven to be as waterproof as advertised. Advertisement That's not to say it's impossible to waterproof a headphone jack, or that other manufacturers haven't done it. But the most dependably waterproof port is the one you removed. It doesn't actually do very much. So the headphone jack takes up lots of precious bezel space, is especially difficult to waterproof, and is in the way of the necessary expansion of the Taptic Engine. It's causing a lot of problems. How much is it bringing to the table? Is it pulling its weight? Well, the headphone jack has three purposes: Get stereo audio out of the phone. Get mono audio into the phone. Get volume and play/pause signals into the phone. All of these are not only redundant, but doubly redundant: the Lightning port and Bluetooth radio can both do all of these things. The headphone jack can't really do anything else. You can't connect other accessories to it. (Well, you can do some simple, passive things like a Square card reader, but this is hacky, insecure, provides a poor user experience, and can be done better through Lightning or Bluetooth.) You can't provide power through it, so active noise cancellation headphones need separate batteries. You can't perform media commands beyond the basics provided by the Apple inline remote, or figure out what the phone is playing, or even learn the current volume level. Advertisement In fact, before the iPhone, it wasn't even particularly common for phones to have standard headphone jacks. Most phones before that had proprietary headset connectors. The main reason the iPhone used a standard headphone jack was that the iPod did first. For a dedicated music device, headphone compatibility is pretty much a necessity, but a phone has a lot more on its plate. The headphone jack is a gas station in Manhattan. There are more valuable things that could be done with the space. It does half of what it does in incompatible ways. There are actually two standards for stereo-plus-headphones: The iPhone uses CTIA (except in China, where OMTP is legally required), but some manufacturers use OMTP, and others used to use OMTP but have switched to CTIA. If you plug in incompatible devices, the plug will mechanically fit, but the headset won't work properly. Even leaving this issue aside, the play/pause and volume buttons are the Wild West. The only standard in this area, Android's Wired Audio Headset Specification, appears to have been introduced in 2015, years after every phone manufacturer was already shipping headphones with controls on the cable. By that time, Apple had already shipped hundreds of millions of remotes that could never be made compatible with it. Advertisement This whole area is an intractable mess. Headphone cables suck. Have you ever noticed that the feel of the plastic in an Apple headphone cable has changed over time? That's Apple trying to reduce the cable's tendency to knot in your pocket. Unfortunately, the cable is long enough that it's mathematically impossible to keep it from tangling, but they can try to make it a little bit better. Headphone cables also snag (Apple responded to this by making iPods and iPhones pause when the headphone cable is yanked out of them). They end up on the wrong side of clothes and straps. They turn out to be too short or too long. They fray and break. In general, they're just an overall nuisance. Lightning cables are the same way, but wireless Bluetooth headphones avoid all of these problems entirely. W1 has a neat trick up its sleeve. AirPods and other devices with the W1 chip can automatically switch between your different devices, so if you're listening to music on your computer and then answer a call on your phone, they can seamlessly switch over without you having to unplug and re-plug a cable. That's really convenient (and it encourages people to buy all-Apple, too). Perfect backwards compatibility is possible. A headphone-to-Lightning adapter is cheap enough to ship with every iPhone and compatible with all devices supported by the old built-in port. Adapters aren't ideal, but they're a good solution for getting us over the hump. Advertisement In the long run--once the price drops--Apple believes that Bluetooth is the future for casual headphone use, while Lightning will serve advanced use cases like professional audio equipment. The only real cost, they believe, is the pain of the transition. If we ever want to leave the headphone port behind, that pain will have to be borne eventually. And they believe that now is as good a time as any to get it over with. This question originally appeared on Quora - the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. More questions: When you think of Ancient Greek sites, for sure you will have heard of the Acropolis in Athens, you may have heard of the Oracle of Delphi - Sanctuary to the God Apollo. You might have even heard of Meteora; a UNESCO World Heritage site with gigantic rock pinnacles, atop which site magnificentally designed and precariously balanced monasteries. But have you heard of the World Heritage island of Delos, a sacred island sitting, ironically, just a 40 min boat ride from the hedonistic island of Mykonos? Delos - Birthplace of Artemis and Apollo Fans of Greek Mythology will be aware that the Gods were a frivolous lot. And no exception for the head of the Gods - Zeus. Married to Hera, he had an affair with Leto and when Hera found out, in a jealous rage banished Hera from earth. Where could this poor pregnant soul go? Poseidon, God of the Seas, took pity on her and provided the island of Delos as a sanctuary and safe haven for her to give birth to her twins: Apollo (God of the Sun) and Artemis (the Huntress). The approach to Delos by boat Rebecca Hall As you approach Delos, only 2 miles away from the partying of Mykonos, it's like entering a different universe. The impressive ruins of the temples and sanctuaries dedicated to various Gods still stand. Interspersed within these you'll see slightly more modern houses. But don't get too excited; it's not possible to stay the night on Delos unless you're one of the state employed Guards (who guard against exactly that; people illegally trying to set up camp or steal artefacts) or an archeologist. Advertisement Avenue of the Lions Rebecca Hall The Avenue of the Lions is one of the most famous places of the island. Nine lions made of marble from Naxos island guarded the Sacred Lake - drained in 1926 but where the swans and geese of Delos used to live. Now you can see a lone palm tree in the centre, planted there to honour Leto as she is said to have clutched one similar as she gave birth to her twins. The Lions on display now are replicas, some of the originals still in tact in the Archeological Museum on the island. Delos Archeological Museum The Museum was built in 1904 and expanded in 1931 and 1972. It now has nine rooms, of which: Six house the statues found on the island (such as the Lions) Two house the various pottery found on digs and The last room contains the everyday objects found in the ancient houses once standing. Artefacts inside the Archeological Museum Rebecca Hall A small cafe is also on site, but it's recommended to bring your own water and a packed lunch when you visit Delos as the prices are extortionate! (Supplies have to be shipped in, that's why). Entry to the museum, at the time of writing, is 5. Delos facts Round boat trip costs (at time of writing) 20 Then you have to pay entry into the Archeological island - 12 An extra 5 if you wish to visit the Archeological Museum on the island It's recommended you visit Delos in the spring or autumn (Fall). Winter there are significantly less boats travelling, and the seas are rougher. Summer is too hot to walk around the site, there is no shade. Every time I huddle with my guides, exploring ways to improve Rick Steves Europe Tours, our goal is the same: "How do we maximize the experience?" There are many clever ways to pack each day with lifelong memories and cultural lessons. While standard-issue tour guides often don't go beyond the basic sightseeing schedule, a Rick Steves guide is constantly finding creative ways to carbonate the experience with fun little extras. So many towns in Europe have classic carousels on their main squares. Why not buy tickets for the gang and enjoy a chance to be kids again...and another rich travel memory. A good guide steers tour members away from the tired sandwich for lunch, and into a characteristic local bar where you'll enjoy a plate like this: At my favorite bar in Venice (Osteria al Mascaron), just ask for the mixed seafood antipasto plate. It's 16 and -- unless you're squiddish about fish -- a delightful lunch. Advertisement You can't travel through France without a good wine-tasting. Here in Burgundy, we enjoy sharpening our wine-tasting skills in a classic cellar under our favorite hotel with a local wine expert. Anyone who dreams of going to St. Peter's Basilica will consider a chance to go through the Holy Door (open only in Jubilee Years) a once-in-a-lifetime experience. As 2016 happens to be a Jubilee Year, our group got to do that with our Vatican visit. As I see it, it is the responsibility of a professional guide to know when these opportunities present themselves, and not to miss it. Over a 30-year period, the average investor has made 3.79% on an average annual basis, while the stock market has annualized 11.06%. As human beings, we have the ability to do research, diversify our portfolios, and think things through, so why is it that people are underperforming the stock market by so much? The answer is emotional investment behavior. Individual investors are simply too emotional to outperform the stock market. One of the most popular quotes about markets and emotions is by Sir John Templeton. "Bull markets are born on pessimism, grown on skepticism, mature on optimism, and die on euphoria." He explains that our emotions in relation to the stock market are always wrong. Bull markets emerge when we are most fearful, grow when we are scared and crash when we feel they never will. The biggest problem with investing emotionally is that the way investors feel about the market is highly correlated with market performance at that time. This means that if the market is at a low, investors feel despondent, and when the market is at a high, investors feel euphoric. Poor investment behavior is either caused by a fear of loss, or overconfidence. Advertisement Have you ever been in a moment, and felt that you will never be able to move past that moment? That is the way investors feel when their investments plummet. Nothing and no one can convince them otherwise, even though stock market lows are generally the best time to invest. When investors trade based on their emotions during these times, they will inevitably be wrong. If you are feeling despondent, it is likely that you will sell, in fear that the market will never come back around again, but the reality is that our biggest rallies have occurred when investors are sad and fearful. The same goes for market highs. When the market is rallying, it is hard to see a world where the market goes down, so investors tend to invest the most at these highs, even though markets at all-time highs will ultimately have a correction. Adding to this problem is the media. The media feeds investors an incredible amount of information very quickly, encouraging investors to make emotional decisions based on current news. The internet has gotten us used to getting what we want, in the exact moment that we want it. As an investor, it is important to arm yourself with the knowledge to get out of the emotional investing trap. Investors need to accept the fact that they cannot time the market, and that anyone that tries to convince them otherwise is wrong. The stock market is often inefficient, and is not always priced consistently with economic performance. While it is possible to understand overall trends and market movements, capturing that performance at precisely the right time is very difficult. You may turn to the experts for advice on market timing, but sadly, they don't know the answer either. For example, John Paulson made a killing in 2008 when he shorted the housing market, but his fund is down over 50% since 2010. His theories may have been right, and still may ultimately pan out, but his timing was wrong. Advertisement Bull markets have often emerged when investors least expect it, and there is no single formula for the start or continuation of a bull market. They have begun during recessions, expansions, and at all levels of rates. Up markets last longer than down markets, averaging 43 months, while down markets average 14 month periods. The average cumulative return for a bull market is 117.3% and average annual loss in a bear market is 24.6%. Markets always recover; even after a disaster. One month after the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the biggest bankruptcy in history, the market recovered by 18.3%. By one year later, the market had recovered by 48.8%. After the September 11th terrorist attacks, the market made a full recovery after 1 month. After the Pearl Harbor attacks, the market recovered by 15% within one year. Most recently, the UK announced their exit from the European Union, causing the S&P to sink by almost 3% in one day. The market has recovered by 6% since the bottom of the Brexit crisis. Another way to stay on track with your overall financial goals is to hire a financial advisor, and give them discretion to make wise and long term choices for your portfolio. Make sure it is someone that you trust and agree with their overall investment philosophy. Agree on a detailed long term plan, but allow them to implement it on your behalf. Commit to staying invested for a long period of time. Remember that you have no control over market timing, and neither does your advisor, but you do have control over the amount of time spent in the market. Generally, the longer you are invested, the more money you will make. The best time to invest is when it doesn't feel so good. No big accomplishment feels very good when we are training for it. In order to lose weight, you need to cut out delicious food and work out harder than your body is comfortable with, but if you follow the uncomfortable path, you will ultimately yield your goal result. The same is said for investing. It will never feel good to invest. If the market is up, it will feel too expensive, and if the market is down, you will feel like it may never turn. If you can take the emotions out of the picture and stay invested for a long period of time, you will likely come out on top. When I first moved to Berlin my knowledge of electronic and dance music was, in a word, thin. But one of the first tracks that caught my attention very early was a remix by Ben Pearce of "Cool". When I discovered Le Youth and the smooth and emotive original mix (which samples Cassie's "Me & U"), it immediately became my song of the summer and I couldn't wait to hear what would come next. What came next was almost four years of touring and remixes for artists including Disclosure, Sia, and Lana Del Rey. This week L.A. based Le Youth also announced the start of his own label, HOMEWERK, and released a new 90s inspired track "Me Without You". What is a track that inspired your early connection to electronic music? It actually wasn't a track at all. I got into electronic music because I couldn't play my drums in my apartment. That's literally the only reason. I grew up playing drums and singing in bands. I didn't know anything about electronic music when I was younger. I also loved the idea of not being restricted to playing only when the rest of my band members could meet. I guess I don't really work well with others either. The explosion of accessible software and hardware really helped me get into creating my own setup and figuring out what worked for me. When did you start producing? The term producing has always confused me. I've been making music for as long as I can remember. When I started writing songs that had a dance beat behind them, people started saying I was "producing." They also stared calling me a DJ. It's so funny to me. I've been making dance music for a few years now. Advertisement What is it about dance music that is so special? It still feels new to me. There are so many different avenues to explore and so many different sub genres that crop up. It's a constantly evolving landscape that I'm so happy to be a part of. Tell me about your "Homewerk" Tour. How are you playing out? It's a new visual concept for the tour and has been the precursor to a bigger project. It's been really great to tour North America, and I've got some upcoming dates in Mexico that I'm excited to play. I've got a load of new material that I'm road testing all the time, as crowd reaction really is the perfect litmus test for a new track. How is the tour going? The tour name is based off a record label I'm launching called HOMEWERK, with the first release being my new song "Me Without You". So far the Los Angeles show was particularly special. Sometimes it just feels like I'm playing my favorite songs for all of my friends. I guess that's what I'm going for at all the shows. Advertisement What was the process like working on your upcoming track, "Me Without You". It was a very quick process. At the time I was very motivated by the line "there ain't no me without you". I was going through a rough breakup and, I don't know. Sometimes songs just come together quickly, I wish I knew why. Why did you decide to start your label and what are your future plans with it? Having worked with major and independent labels in the past, I always felt like I had to make compromises with myself and my music. Ultimately the HOMEWERK label is a way for me to take back control. I think dance music and it's record labels have become so cookie cutter lately. I want to do things differently. I have a strong relationship with fashion, imagery, video and music; this label is the culmination of those things. It'll be a home for timeless music, not defined by a trend or flavor of the moment. Basically, I'm just going to do what I want. In the immediate future, the releases will be from myself, remixes and some collaborations with other artists, a mix series, and hopefully soon some label parties. Tell me about the Christina Aguilera remix. How did it come about? What was your process working on it? The Aguilera remix came out of nowhere. Honestly, I wasn't expecting to like the original, but it's actually very good; but that can make remixing difficult. I'm really happy with how it turned out, it was a real honor to be asked to remix one of the greats. Advertisement Is there a song you find consistently works on the dance floor? There are tons. On this tour, my remix for Goldroom's "Embrace" has been crushing the dance floor. Also, Treasure Fingers - Cross The Dance Floor and anything from Todd Terry. Any producers/DJs that should be on our radar? I think everyone should know about Russ Chimes. He's an incredible musician and a bit underrated I think. Everything he makes is gold. Some others to put on your radar, Pat Lok, Futurewife, and Ghosts Of Venice. NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 04: Carole Simpson speaks onstage at the The Jackie Robinson Foundation Annual Awards' Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel on March 4, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for The Jackie Robinson Foundation) The Center for Public Integrity has issued a report claiming to detail how "journalists" have donated to Hillary Clinton's campaign far more than to Donald Trump's. Needless to say, the right-wing media jumped right on it because it reaffirms the longstanding "liberal media" narrative conservative have been pushing for decades. For example, the headline at the Media Research Center's NewsBusters blog screamed "TILT: Study of Journalist Donations for President Find More Than 96 Percent Went to Hillary Clinton." But if you read the report closely -- which the right-wing media has no interest in doing -- it's obvious that CPI is using an overly broad definition of "journalist." Advertisement The star finding, usually cited in right-wing stories on the report, is that former ABC anchor Carole Simpson has donated $2,800 to Clinton. What CPI doesn't make clear: Simpson left ABC in 2006 and currently works as a college professor. Insisting that Simpson continue to be held to the standards of a job she has not held for a decade -- CPI offers no evidence that Simpson made any political donations while employed as a journalist -- is simply dishonest. CPI also touts the donations to Clinton by talk show host Larry King, which are also usually highlighted in reports on the study. But has anybody ever considered King to be a "journalist"? No. In fact, the first example of an actual working journalist the CPI provides is the New Yorker's Emily Nussbaum. But she's a TV critic and rarely covers news or politics. Indeed, most of the working journalists in hard news that CPI cites as making political donations are employed by small local papers, not large media organizations, which generally prohibit reporters from making political donations. As the Washington Post's Callum Borchers noted, "The Center for Public Integrity's findings would be far more concerning if they included the journalists who shape coverage of the race for the White House," pointing out that no campaign trail reporters are on the CPI's list. Advertisement For someone who only frequents Braamfontein in downtown Johannesburg during the day, De Beer Street at night would be almost unrecognisable. The city's main party suburb is always an entanglement of cars and bodies. Always a lane of hovering vehicles, their hazard lights flashing, limbs and bass-lines pouring from the open doors. Always a current of club-goers claiming the night-street for pedestrians, willing to encounter strangers in ways they would not normally do during the day. From the one corner, where the club cum bar Kitchener's is, all the way up to the next corner next to the Bannister Hotel, people queue for the dancefloor and find solidarity in waiting. Someone argues with the bouncers, a child begs those in line, a dealer offers marijuana, a young woman yells to a friend across the street. Yet not too far away from the De Beer Street turbulence are inner city roads that only a few hours earlier were a knot of activity. Congestion dissipates with the daylight and these streets are left empty, creating a cavern in which pedestrian footsteps echo, and drivers move seamlessly from one near-redundant traffic light to the next. Advertisement The night has a different rhythm, feel, and aesthetic to the day. This "second city", academic William Sharpe once said, "comes with its own geography and its own set of citizens". We occupy space differently at night. Yet so little attention has been given (both within academia and without) to the multifaceted articulations of place, power, atmosphere and identity that constitute Johannesburg after dark. Fear of the dark Scholars of urban studies are increasingly acknowledging that the discipline, and indeed the wider imagining of cities, is characterised by nyctaphobia: A fear of the dark, and relatedly, the night. As is so often the case, it is artists that are giving us a creative language to describe and engage with that which was once impenetrable. Elsa Bleda's recent "Nightscapes" exhibition is one such example. The young photographer's arresting images capture the serenity, mystery and other worldliness of Johannesburg by night. A primary impetus for her work lies in the century-old Rupert Brooke quote that "cities, like cats, will reveal themselves after dark". Nevertheless, urban residents are all-too-often strangers to the night. Darkness often comes with a web of seedy associations --- of terror, shadow, deviance, abandonment and impenetrability. There are anxieties about criminals using the night as camouflage, about the vulnerabilities of women, and about the dangers of poorly lit roads. Advertisement And indeed the dark is often charged with ambivalent possibilities. On Friday, October 14 slices of Braamfontein's night-streets, including The Orbit Jazz club, were torched amid turbulent protest: sites of play incidentally colliding with those of fierce, volatile struggle. Darkness can also awaken the imagination, offering atmosphere for transgression, abandon and fantasy. Social anthropologist Julia Hornberger said of Johannesburg dusk: Going forward into the night is like going backwards in time. Chipped corners on balconies heal, cracks in the plastering disappear ... The night is a time for dreaming, for graffiti artists, for activists, lovers and dancers. Charles Leonard Paradoxically, darkness is often the necessary backdrop for glistening electric illumination, with all the associations of developmental modernity and consumptive excess. Indeed, despite the ways in which electricity blackouts have brought Johannesburg residents into new encounters with the dark, much of our urban night lives take place amid a superfluity of light technologies --- traffic lights, nightclub LEDs, police sirens or fluorescent towers in the distance. Light has been a mechanism to claim nocturnal time and territory --- to make the dark habitable, exploitable, police-able, profitable and beautiful. After-dark nightscape Curated lighting is so much a part of the nighttime infrastructure --- designating areas of safety, enchantment and surveillance, and then disappearing as day breaks. Braamfontein's after-dark nightscape is marked by the multi-coloured spectacle of the Nelson Mandela Bridge overhead, abrasive car lights, flash billboards and flickering neon. Again in New York Nocturne: The City After Dark in Literature, Painting, and Photography, 1850-1950, Sharpe tells us: Advertisement "Like a city, night has a history. And the two come together explosively with the spread of artificial light. A recent event, "Alight", saw artists and designers launch audiences into a series of encounters with electric light in the night. There was a maze of illuminated blocks that responded to touch. Also, a net of sparkle strung to the ceiling. Lasers sketched silhouettes across a cement wall. There were glowing balloons and networks of interactive video technology. Beth Vale On the darker side of the Juta Street intersection, it connected audiences to Johannesburg's nocturnal city and promoted a sense of place through play, light and music. But what "Alight" also achieved, in my mind, was to make explicit the infrastructure of our nightlives, which rather than being assembled from bricks and mortar, is more tangibly a composite of sound, darkness, illumination, and moving bodies. A nightclub without the music and lights Ever been to a nightclub during the day, without the darkness, the music, the ambient lighting or the intimacy of the crowd? It feels like a non-place. So much of our attachment to nightclub spaces is made from bodies in motion, set to carefully curated sound and light-scapes, all of which disappear at dawn. In urbanist AbdouMaliq Simone's words, we might begin to see "people as infrastructure". Advertisement Human practices, the absence or presence of others, in the city gives places particular contours, creates obstruction or permissiveness, and alters the look and feel of a place. Moving through Johannesburg's night city, particularly as a young woman, has meant adopting particular protective sensibilities. But it has also opened up alternate ways of knowing and encountering the city and its practices. In the realm of the urban night, artists are exposing the dearth of academic language and imagery, prompting us to research and collaborate outside our conventional bounds. They are showing us how much of human life goes unnoticed, while most of the world sleeps. Stronger measures to protect lions in Africa from commercial trade failed to pass at the recent meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Johannesburg. CITES is a treaty between 183 national governments, known as the Parties, to control international trade in live wildlife and their parts. In a vote to up-list the lion from Appendix II to Appendix I - the highest category covering species threatened with extinction, in which trade is permitted only in exceptional circumstances - the Parties to CITES (CoP17) rejected a proposal from nine African nations to upgrade the status of lions. At first glance, the decision is alarming and disappointing. The lion has undergone widespread decline in Africa, mainly from habitat loss, illegal trade in bush meat and retaliatory killing by people protecting their livestock. Although the species is not in immediate danger of extinction and trade is not the primary driver of declines, upgrading some lion populations to Appendix I was warranted. Advertisement Sadly, all indications are that lions will continue to decline in a significant proportion of their range, and increasing demand for their parts will likely fuel those declines. But had the parties voted "yes", would it have helped? Trophy hunting and the bone trade Strengthening the ban would not have eliminated one of the main targets of up-listing proponents, the trade in lion trophies from sport hunting. Legal trade in hunting trophies is readily accommodated by CITES, regardless of the Appendix on which a species is listed. For example, the cheetah and leopard are both included on Appendix I, yet exports of trophies are permitted by a number of countries. Shutterstock Nor would an Appendix I listing preclude trade in captive-born lions or their parts. So an upgrade would not necessarily have affected South Africa's ongoing trade of lion bones scavenged from canned hunts of captive-bred lions. Full skeletons - minus the skull, which the hunter usually keeps - are legally sold to Lao People's Democratic Republic, China and other Asian nations that value big cat parts for "medicinal" uses. This takes place despite the complete absence of evidence demonstrating any therapeutic value. Advertisement One step forwards, two backwards? This is not to say that CITES was unable to address some serious issues that affect lion conservation. CoP17 adopted a new resolution to ban all trade in wild lion parts; specifically bones, bone pieces, bone products, claws, skeletons, skulls and teeth removed from the wild and traded for commercial purposes. This is welcome news. Unfortunately though, the loophole that perpetuates South Africa's lion farming industry has been left open. As seen from failed experiments allowing legal ivory sales, legalised trade may fuel demand and creates pathways to sell the products from illegally killed wildlife. The legal trade in bones from captive-bred lions perpetuates the demand for big cat parts - not only of lions but also of leopards, jaguars and highly endangered tigers. These bones are largely indistinguishable except to experts. Deciding what is lion or tiger, and legal versus illegal, presents a formidable challenge for local authorities in Africa and Asia. The Parties to CITES should be congratulated for recognising that trade in wild lions needs to be addressed. But I fear that, in failing to take on the captive bone trade, their efforts will be undermined. As long as South Africa continues to trade in body parts from farmed lions, an escalation in wild African cats being killed for the same markets in Asia is inevitable. Luke Hunter, President and Chief Conservation Officer of Panthera, Research Associate, University of KwaZulu-Natal Advertisement Mexico is in the midst of a public debate on gay marriage that has focused on 'traditional family values'. Carlos Jasso/Reuters In September, some 100 cities in all 32 Mexican states hosted a so-called "March for the Family" - protests against a proposal to legalise gay marriage. Estimates vary, but according to the National Front for Family, the coalition of civil society organisations and religious groups that organised the march, more than a million people participated; other sources place the number in the hundreds of thousands. LGBT activists quickly responded to the march with counter protests and human rights-based arguments. Advertisement The large anti-gay marriage protests came as something of a surprise. Gay marriage is already legal in Mexico City and several states. And, in 2015, Mexico hosted 70 Pride events, making this Catholic, Latin American country only third in the world for the number of such events (after the US and Brazil). Still, when President Enrique Pena Nieto announced a proposed constitutional reform to recognise same-sex marriage on World Day Against Homophobia (May 17), negative reaction swiftly followed. Catholics, judge not Though it was largely Catholic churches that called for believers to march against the proposed legislation, church authority has actually been evolving on this issue. This is in keeping with the leadership of Pope Francis I, who in 2013 famously declared, "If a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge?" Even prior to that, when the pope was Archbishop of Buenos Aires, he demonstrated support for gay rights, saying: Advertisement I am in favour of homosexual rights and, in any case, I also support civil unions for homosexuals, but I think that Argentina is not ready for a gay marriage law. Catholicism is declining in Mexico. But unlike in other Latin American countries, such as Brazil and Guatemala, where evangelical Protestantism has increased markedly in recent decades, the shift in Mexico is modest. Mexico's National Institute of Statistics has found that from 1950 to 2010, the percentage of the population that identified as Catholic dropped from 98.2% to 89.3%. Only 4.9% of Mexicans report no religious faith. As such, in the fight for sexual diversity, and for the rights of single-parent families and same-sex parents, leadership must come from the church. Many catholics believe in church dogma, obey their priests and seek to avoid "living in sin". They want to do as the church mandates. Advertisement But in opposing gay marriage, Mexican Catholics are following Mexican church dogma while ignoring Rome's softening on the issue. This is a contradiction that Mexico's Catholic church must eventually face. Nor can Mexico let conservative evangelical sectors lead this debate. Recently, President Pena Nieto met with 27 evangelical pastors who oppose the proposed gay marriage legislation. The Mormon church has also publicly rejected the initiative. Children are people, too An under-analysed element in Mexico's gay marriage debate, which includes adoption rights, is respect for the rights of children. Children are not just "little people", as they were conceptualised until the 19th century. They are individuals with specific rights, recognised in the 1924 Geneva Declaration on the Rights of the Child. These were later confirmed with the UN Convention on the Rights of Children. The debate on gay marriage in Mexico includes gay adoption. Article 21 of the convention stipulates that, in questions of adoption, "the superior interest of the child must be the primordial consideration". Thus, any debate on family structure must centre on a child's particular individual rights - to life, a name, education, health, safety; to play; to have parents who take responsibility for him or her. Advertisement When Mexicans march for "the family", under international law, we are obligated to ask in response, what kind of family situation is best for the child? Getting a woman pregnant does not make you a father, and giving birth does not make you a mother. These are titles that a child gives to a person who raises them, is there for them - ideally in an accepting, warm, and respectful environment. Gay couples are just like other couples. Like heterosexual relationships, they may suffer violence and be irresponsible. They can get separated, be unfaithful, act jealously, hurt each other. They can be bad parents. So, too, do they love, honour, cherish, and respect both each other and their children, just like straight couples. It is thus erroneous for the "March for the Family" to assume that all heterosexual couples are, by virtue of being differently gendered, poised to be good parents. Let us not fall into the facile trap of thinking that any kind of marriage - gay or straight - necessarily means "happily ever after". Raising healthy, happy children requires sacrifice and represents a challenge for couples - gay, straight or otherwise. Indeed, a review of scholarly literature has showed that children of gay couples have similar health and well-being outcomes as children of heterosexual couples. Advertisement Considering the right of the child as an individual versus valuing only the family unit - for indeed, families are comprised of individuals (and the individual, not the family, is the core of society) - is thus an important input in the marriage equality debate. Changing perception of marriage equality The notion of a traditional family unit with a mother, father, and children is still prominent in Mexico. Exact figures on public perception of gay marriage vary but one study from 2010 showed that only 22% of people fully supported marriage equality, while a 2015 Pew Research Poll indicated that nearly half the country was in favour. But a generational shift is underway. In a 2011 study in Mexico, researchers administered surveys to two groups - young people and young adults (between 18 and 25 years old) - and found that attitudes differed between the two. They showed that both these age groups displayed more positive feelings toward gay adoption. Mexican perception of gay marriage is clearly changing, just as it has in other parts of the world in recent decades. Society must follow Still, the sheer number of people who marched against marriage equality demonstrated that Mexico is profoundly divided on LGBT rights. Even if the proposed marriage equality bill passes, the possibility of a social backlash, including in the form of discrimination against children adopted by gay parents, is very real. Advertisement Violence and discrimination against LGBT people in Latin America is widespread, despite gay marriage legalisation in several countries, including Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil. Brazil has actually seen an increase in anti-gay hate crime since a 2013 court ruling opened the door to same-sex marriage, and there, says the New York Times, "a gay or transgender person is killed almost daily". In Central America, threats from criminal organisations are forcing hundreds of LGBT citizens to flee their countries. Because of the social stigma against LGBT people "in the name of culture, religion, and tradition", according to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Mexico must confront, not ignore, these widely held beliefs. For advocates of marriage equality, then, there is work to be done. It was civil society that came out to march against it, and it must be civil society that enriches this debate with alternative perspectives. As a nation, Mexico must engage in dialogue and its people must educate one another so that we can advance together towards a more equal future. This is a bizarre time in U.S. presidential politics. American voters are faced with an unsavory choice between two presidential candidates, neither of whom would be viable if the other party offered a credible alternative. It is the deep repugnance many Republican and independent voters feel for the lie-fabricating Hillary Clinton (Queen Jezebel?) that keep them backing the egomaniacal, bomb-throwing Donald Trump (Dr. Strangelove?), even though they see Trump's talk and actions as anything but presidential. Likewise, it is the discomfort that many Bernie Sanders supporters feel for Trump's policy extremism, chauvinism, and boorishness that leave them uncomfortably allied with the Clinton camp. This alliance exists in spite of the fact that a vote for Hillary Clinton by those who see good things in the Bernie Sanders movement will likely delay a needed revolution in Democratic Party politics. After witnessing the inadvertent assistance that Ralph Nader voters in Florida and New Hampshire gave to George W. Bush in the year 2000 presidential race, people in swing states are reluctant to vote for a third party candidate. A protest vote seems too expensive in this contest. Not that anyone believes a single vote will decide the presidency. Still, voting is not irrational when voters believe that if others in comparable positions use a similar logic, the nation will be better for it. While this is small consolation during a Hobson's Choice election that forces the selection of a lesser evil, it is better than staying home or casting an empty protest vote that will do little to build a third party's momentum for the next election. Advertisement Granted, voting for a lesser evil is not motivational. Yet, if voters perceive that the dangers in a presidential election are high enough, voting for a slightly lesser evil is part of risk management. It is in this vein that "never Trump" voters come to mind, especially persons connected with or leaning toward the Republican Party. Some of these people are committed to the Republican platform while others hope to vote for a principled candidate with high scruples. Many of these people are deeply troubled by recent revelations about Donald Trump's attitudes and actions. As much as they decry Hillary Clinton's demagogy and Machiavellianism, they can no longer support Trump. What are these voters to do? Recently, New Hampshire Senator Kelly Ayotte rescinded her support for Donald Trump, saying she will provide a write-in vote for Mike Pence instead. John McCain offered a related statement, suggesting that he will vote for someone other than Trump or Clinton. Trump supporters have criticized these defections as undermining the Republican hope of selecting the next U.S. Supreme Court justices as well as populating federal government appointments broadly. Trump loyalists, even those frustrated with Trump, see defection as capitulation to open border policies, bad trade deals, nefarious Wall Street schemes, and a bonfire of hypocrisies. A Computer Scientist's Voting Calculus What is a thinking person to do? Surprisingly, there is a reasonable way for voters who can tolerate the evolving Republican populism more easily than they can trust Hillary Clinton not to sell out America to her globalist sponsors. One must gird up one's mind for this strategy, for it is not appealing except under profoundly dysfunctional circumstances. That said, the strategy is ruggedly pragmatic and recommended by a Yale University computer scientist in an exceptionally insightful Wall Street Journal article. The strategy is this: Vote for Mike Pence for president by voting for Donald Trump, but with the understanding that if Donald Trump acts dishonorably he will be impeached under the U.S. Constitution. Article II, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution says this: "The President, Vice President, and all civil Officers of the United States shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other High Crimes and Misdemeanors." Political scientists have often debated why the subjective term "misdemeanors" was put into the Constitution. The answer is that it was inserted for times like these. Indeed, America's founders would likely approve the use of impeachment in cases of late discovery that a president hid criminal conduct engaged in before election. Advertisement A sitting U.S. president has no remedy if a simple majority of the U.S. House votes to impeach, and the U.S. Senate votes to ratify the impeachment by a two-thirds majority. The president cannot block the action: he or she is terminated without political recourse. The interpretation of what constitutes a presidential misdemeanor lies fully within the purview of the U.S. Congress, not the U.S. Supreme Court. It is doubtful that the U.S. Supreme Court would review such a matter. What America would be left with is the presidency of Senator Mike Pence. This is a reasonable pathway to the presidency for a public official with a record of integrity and competency that his mud-slinging opponents cannot undo. Indeed, Pence's presidential prospect in this scenario calls to mind the 1993 Hollywood movie, "Dave." By contrast, ten million write-in votes naming Mike Pence for president will go nowhere. No write-in candidate can conceivably win the presidency in our times. An important question must be answered: If this is a good rationale in voting for Trump, why isn't it a good rationale in voting for Hillary Clinton in order to gain Tim Kaine, her running mate, if Hillary Clinton gets impeached? The answer is that a sufficient number of U.S. Senate Democrats would fail to join a Republican effort to ratify a Hillary impeachment. In the 1998-1999 impeachment trial of Bill Clinton, Democratic Senators refused to join Republicans in voting for Bill Clinton's guilt on the obstruction of justice charge. But if Trump were president, many Democrats as well Republicans in the Senate would eagerly support impeachment. He is, as some have noted, impeachment bait. Some people will object, claiming it is unethical to vote for a presidential candidate with the expectation that he will be impeached and replaced by a better man. But this objection ignores the current perilous dilemma. As millions of voters are now convinced, Donald Trump tried to mislead the American public during the first two presidential debates. Furthermore, the end of the race is revealing a scurrilous behavior that is inexcusable even in the context of Hillary Clinton's feckless lies. Voting with a Clear Conscience Political objectivity argues that neither Donald Trump nor Hillary Clinton merit elevation to the Oval Office. Equally problematic, neither mainstream party has a platform that will adequately address the nation's problems. With violence unthinkable only two tolerable outcomes remain for those who cannot accept Clinton. Donald Trump could withdraw in favor of Mike Pence, although this seems unlikely. Alternatively, Trump could be voted into the presidency with the understanding that he will be impeached upon any provocation that can be construed congressionally as a misdemeanor. If raised to office, Trump's future would be his own burden. He would remain in office only by serving his country honorably and competently. The political gallows would remain in sight. Advertisement Using the impeachment calculus of the Yale computer scientist, the vote choice is recast between a credible politician, Senator Mike Pence, or a Machiavellian politician named Hillary Clinton who, if elected, will be the country's "Dissembler-in-Chief." One need not support most of Mike Pence's policy positions or believe in their efficacy (this writer does not) to find Pence presidentially respectable and demonstrably superior to Trump and Clinton. One of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's chief defenses against charges that he inappropriately touched women over the years has been deceptively straightforward: If this really happened, why didn't they speak up at the time? As an attorney who regularly works with women fighting sexual harassment on the job, these women's reticence to come forward rings true to me, however. Many women who have faced this kind of behavior worry that speaking up will cost them their job and reputation. They fear that no one will believe them and their career will be damaged. They second-guess themselves, thinking that they may have brought it on themselves somehow. Advertisement But, like Trump's accusers, they also come to regret not speaking up earlier. Natasha Stoynoff, a journalist with People magazine who wrote about the allegedly sexually predatory behavior by Donald Trump, said that after seeing the Access Hollywood tape of Trump bragging about "grabbing" women she felt she should have done something sooner. "I felt deep regret for not speaking out at the time," she wrote. "What if he had done worse to other female reporters at the magazine since then because I hadn't warned them?" So what can you learn from this? Here are three major lessons for women who've experienced unwanted attention in the workplace. 1. Don't think that your choice is between doing nothing or becoming a public pinata. Many women fear taking action because they see women in high-profile sexual harassment cases having their personal lives being dragged through the mud. Advertisement But the choice is not that dire. There is a third option: report the conduct to human resources (or the entity designated in your company's handbook). Then negotiate a severance so you can leave the company to find another place where management respects women. If your company has 15 or more employees, reporting any incidents to human resources will make it illegal for your company to take action against you for reporting the harassment, which is called retaliation. It gives you two potential claims instead of one. Some states, such as the District of Columbia, have laws that cover even smaller companies. Why ask for a severance? There are two reasons: First, the company now has some legal exposure in the form of a potential sexual harassment claim. It would like that claim to go away, and the way to do that is to offer you a severance in exchange for releasing those claims. This gives you a nest egg to use as you move on to find another job. Second, you can also require that your company give you a positive reference if contacted by any prospective future employers. 2. Understand that this is not justice, it's business. There are some things to keep in mind if you report the incident(s) to human resources. First, understand that HR is not likely to help you. Your human resources officer's job at the end of the day is to protect the company. Chances are that if you report harassment, your future at the company is over. That means that when you report to HR -- best to do it in writing -- you are doing it not because you really expect help. You're doing it to maximize your leverage against the company. Another reason to report the harassment is that in some instances the law requires that you report a claim if you later have to go to court. If you fail to report, even if your company's policy is bogus, you might lose your right to sue later on. Of course, if it turns out that your company really will do the right thing, then all the better. Advertisement 3. Remember, it's not just your word against his. Many women don't come forward because they fear it will be their word against their assailant's. But testimony from a witness is more compelling than you might believe. I represented a woman who confronted her boss about his harassment. His response: "What are you going to do about it? It will just be your word against mine," implying that she didn't have enough to make a case against him. But she did. Remember that testimony from a witness -- in this case the woman subject to harassment -- is enough evidence to win a case. When I was a prosecutor I obtained criminal convictions based on nothing more than witness testimony. I didn't have video tapes, emails or a CSI-type bag of tricks. Also remember that voice recordings can be evidence. Many states are what is called one-party consent state, like Virginia and the District of Columbia. Want to find out about the law in your state? Do a Google search "Is [insert your state here] a one-party consent state?" If it is, it means it is perfectly legal to record a conversation as long as one person participating knows about the recording. But even in cases where you may believe it is your word against his, that doesn't necessarily mean that you will have only your testimony. As with what is happening to Donald Trump, one allegation can open the floodgates to similar stories that can be used as evidence to support yours. "When someone shows you who they are the first time, believe them." - Maya Angelou The contentious, vitriolic and unpredictable race for the American presidency mercifully entered its final month this week and the consensus is that November 8, 2016 cannot come sooner! In the race for the Republican Party's nominee, Donald James Trump proved all pundits and prognosticators wrong by emerging victorious, in the process besting more seasoned and better-connected politicians. Unfortunately for the party, the real estate mogul's campaign style, persona and (past) private life have also proved to be as mercurial and more damaging than Wikileaks' expose of the inner workings/deliberations of Hillary Clinton's campaign. Audio tapes recently released provided incontrovertible evidence that Donald J. Trump is a crass, misogynistic sexual predator who actually leers at his own daughter Ivanka! Advertisement Eeewwww! Similarly, though not as revolting has been WikiLeaks' continued drip-drip-drip of hacked email evidence that Hillary Clinton is, as alleged by Bernie Sanders, too cozy with and beholden to Wall Street bankers, multi-national corporations and globalists. The former First Lady has also been revealed to be a master of doublespeak; simultaneously holding at least two policy positions - one in private and a different one in public. Politicians! Undeterred, supporters of Donald Trump claim that they are not "electing a Sunday School teacher or pope"! They argue that they are electing someone to "go change Washington (DC)". Supporters of the Republican nominee don't seem to mind that their man has a string of utterances and behavior that have psychologists, psychiatrists and students of social and human sciences scratching their collective heads in utter disbelief. Jeff Sessions, Senator from Alabama and Trump surrogate twisted himself into a pretzel trying to explain the Donald Trump heard on the "Access Hollywood" tape. The senator from the "bible belt" state offered that he was "not sure" whether grabbing a woman by the genitals is sexual assault nor "how 'that' would occur"! For the record, the US Justice Department's definition of "sexual assault" includes "any type of sexual contact or behavior that occurs without the explicit consent of the recipient." Advertisement Across the aisle, supporters of Hillary Clinton cite her extensive resume -- former First Lady's/Senator's/Secretary of State -- as, pardon the pun, trumping her many foibles including coziness with Wall Street, the near non-existent firewall between the Department of State (during her tenure as SecState) and the Clinton Foundation, her use of a private email server and her alleged tacit support of Bill's philandering ways. Juxtaposing the now-ending American campaign with the one just beginning across the Atlantic Ocean in Kenya, there are striking similarities as Kenyans across the Jubilee/CORD divide become contortionists and apologists explaining their support for those who have publicly staked seemingly untenable positions including "eating meat even as others look on salivating"! At least they are "telling it like it is" and not engaging in "vitandawilis"! Like most Americans, Kenyans are being asked to choose between "the devil they know and the one they don't know" i.e. between the status quo (Mr. Kenyatta) and the "outsider-cum-agitator" (Mr. Odinga). A point of interest is the near-identical rhetoric and policy positions espoused by "outsider" Donald Trump and "insider" Uhuru Kenyatta. As previously written, the two men (and their supporters) have pushed increasingly nationalistic, faux patriotic and in the case of Trump, xenophobic agendas including "otherization" of opponents and detractors alike. The GOP/Jubilee axis includes a "law & order" platform that seemingly disregards police misconduct. Finally, I would add that the two sides have benefited from the "tyranny of the majority", the former underscored by the late Lee Atwater's "Southern Strategy" campaign. As a result, they have governed thus until now, especially for the Republicans -- thanks to the "browning of America". The Kenyan half of the conundrum was aptly illustrated in a recent exchange I had with a friend on Facebook. Advertisement Shortly after Mr. Kenyatta's Freudian slip i.e. "eating meat even as others jealously salivated", I engaged a self-proclaimed "good governance" and "anti-corruption" activist in an exchange on Facebook. I was seeking to understand Sam's (not his real name) support of arguably the most corrupt presidency in Kenya's history. Sam's obfuscation, prevarication and confluence of facts and timelines was classic and not surprising. In a move reminiscent of the darkness portended by the "Taking Our Country Back" call to arms heard back in 2009 after Barack Obama took office, Sam first fudged the "lost years" that marked the dark period from which his version of Kenya's "gilded" era emerged. In Sam's mind, Kenya's 2nd president Daniel Moi was solely responsible for all that (had) ailed Kenya since independence. He asserted that it was from the Moi "Error" that Sam and his "patriotic" band of "real" Kenyans rescued the country! Not Jomo Kenyatta's documented and demonstrable authoritarian ethnocentric post-independence fiefdom or Mwai Kibaki's bunker mentality that set the stage for the violence of 2007/8. Stateside, the recent opening of the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington DC could not have been more timely. The curated displays provide evidence of a past most fair-minded Americans do NOT want their country to go back to. Advertisement When I challenged the intellectual honesty of hoisting all that has ailed Kenya onto its second president, who incidentally was "following the footsteps" of its first president, Sam flipped the script with the dismissive "I have a much bigger scope and not just four years and not just on corruption but many other things". He then followed the dismissal with the non sequitur "I don't have do (sic) vote for Joho, Kidero, Raila, Uhuru, Waiguru or Ruto. My argument is purely academic"! So after spending the better part of an hour debating and contextualizing the strengths and weaknesses of Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta and Mr. Raila Odinga, in true Trumpian fashion and obstinacy, it did not matter -- at least according to Sam! Hearing the National Public Radio (NPR) segment "How Politics Killed Universal Child Care in the 1970s," and following the avid dissemination of this tragic story by my colleagues in the civil society sector, made me wonder who might, decades from now, be blamed for killing Head Start? Kill Head Start, the life advantage that some of the most disadvantaged children and families get, and over 30 million have gotten already? Who would do that? In addition to elements and groups who have historically opposed the idea of providing opportunity to the families with most economic, racial, and developmental barriers to success, we are surprised to find that some of our colleagues in the Washington policy/advocacy civil society world are imagining that the nation's most vulnerable children and families could be better served by individual states' efforts at universal early learning. Have they forgotten the history of why institutions in local communities (churches, schools, community action agencies, reservations, and migrant programs) were given direct grants to provide the window of opportunity to children who would have been excluded from it on the basis of their race or ethnic identity in some states? Do they not know that Mayors and County Commissioners (of both parties) rely on their Head Start programs to provide the Head Start advantage through their comprehensive whole-child, whole-family two-generation approaches? Advertisement Getting ready for a new Administration has ramped up the quest for big new ideas among many of us in Washington. And while the Head Start community nationwide explores and compares local innovations to increase attendance, improve conditions for the Head Start workforce and looks to use the flexibility in the new Performance Standards to serve their families and communities even better, many of the Washington bunch see the old idea of giving states the Head Start money in a block grant, as a shiny new idea. Everyone in the Head Start community, and leaders of their communities, know that block granting Head Start to states would kill this proven national commitment to providing the opportunity for the American Dream to our most at-risk children. Do we, for the sake of an idea - states building their own early learning systems with all different federal money streams at their disposal - dare deny to actual children in demographically and geographically unfavored areas the opportunity to be the next President of the Ford Foundation, or the CEO of the NAACP or Girl Scouts of the USA, or the US Secretary of Health and Human Services?! An old friend who is an accomplished family therapist told me that she could not understand the desire to dismantle something that is in place, gets results, and continually improves. This brings us to the question of "evidence", the bunker that holds both the long-lasting opponents of Head Start and the enthusiasts for the new idea of block granting Head Start to states. The much mischaracterized Impact Study and the 3rd grade "fadeout" myths and realities are used to deny the incontrovertible long term positive results for success in school and life of the recipients of the Head Start advantage (see this, this, this, this, or this). For many Americans, the 2016 presidential election has left a bad taste in their mouths. More common than talk about Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's email transgressions, repugnancy over Republican nominee Donald Trump's inflammatory and often downright problematic rhetoric, or vapid conversations surrounding third party candidates Jill Stein and Gary Johnson, is a shared sense by many that America deserves better. Advertisement Trump himself, and his pedestrian campaign, fully represent the ways in which America is rigged against the poor in this country. And to be clear, talk centering on the ways in which American institutions are rigged is nothing new. Democratic superstars Elizabeth Warren and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders have moved millions with fiery speeches about the ways in which the American system is rigged against the "little guy." The difference between these stalwart rebukes and Trump's whining, however, is in the subject. Warren and Sanders have raised awareness to the ways in which American financial systems are rigged against the average American, while Trump's rigging claims focus solely on himself. Narcissism aside, though, Trump is spot-on. Ironically enough, Trump himself and his pedestrian campaign, fully represent the ways in which America is rigged against the poor in this country. Trump serves as the current poster child for just how power and wealth provide unparalleled access to success in this country - and apparently the ability to run for president, absent any qualitfications. Trump's family wealth provided him the opportunity to attend prep schools (e.g. the Kew-Forest School of Forest Hills, NY) and some of the nation's premier collegiate institutions. That same wealth allowed Trump's father to gift him a "small loan" of $1 million to jumpstart his now global business, which thereby allowed Trump to provide his children similar access to the world stage. Wealth does indeed beget wealth. And to be clear, no one should fault Trump for being wealthy; however, his success does beg the question: what allows for the current and long-lasting racial disparities in generational wealth. Advertisement Without question, the racial disparities that exist today stem directly from 400+ years of free labor white families stole from enslaved Africans. The persistence of these racial disparities is arguably exasperated by the rigging of American systems that has led to the disproportionate incarceration of American minorities (recently highlighted in "13th" by Ava DuVernay) and segregation of American minorities in communities of poverty with limited access to quality schools. It is widely known that while poverty does not correlate to children's intelligence or ability to learn and achieve at high levels, it does directly correlate to children's preparedness when entering kindergarten and later school success. (The good news is that the gap in kindergarten readiness between affluent and poor children is seemingly shrinking). It is also widely known that one's educational success directly correlates with their ability to attend college, lifetime earning potential (thereby the economy), social and civic engagement (thereby voter turnout), lifelong health (thereby healthcare), and ability to move freely in the circles in which Trump and Clinton, among many others, find themselves. Why then hasn't there been much more conversation about education in this presidential election? Or any for that matter? Perhaps it is because it is not as sensational or tantalizing as Clinton's emails or the myriad of sex scandals in which Trump finds himself. Perhaps the reason is much more nefarious, in that those with power and wealth remain most concerned with maintaining their societal position and ensuring that their children have access to America's most elite schools. Not to mention, our capitalistic society requires a constant "under class." Meanwhile, American politicians only seem interested in symbolic and/or incremental change versus system overhauls - the likes Warren and Sanders call for or that would be needed to ensure all children in this country are afforded an excellent education. As a result, the most disadvantaged students - those segregated in failing schools with ineffective teachers and leaders - often students of color - remain invisible in the current political circus. "I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me. Like the bodiless heads you see sometimes in circus sideshows, it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard, distorting glass. When they approach me they see only my surroundings, themselves or figments of their imagination, indeed, everything and anything except me." - Ralph Ellison (Invisible Man) Advertisement Two Hutchinson teams headed to playoffs Central Christian and the Hutchinson Salthawks in Class 5A will represent Reno County in the second round of the Kansas state high school playoffs. Women In The Music Industry: A Networking Guide Concerns regarding the persistence of majority-male event lineups and the low number of female producers have been raising some concerned questions about the state of the modern music industry. This networking guide looks at several organizations working to bring about effective change. ______________________________ Guest Post from Point Blank London on the TuneCore Blog [Editors Note: This article originally appeared on Point Blank Londons blog.] Recently, topics such as the comparatively low number of female producers and the persistence of all-male (or majority-male) event line-ups have raised pressing questions about the state of the music industry in the 21st century. In a piece for The Fader, Ruth Saxelby asked why more women arent becoming music producers, before turning the platform over to high profile female artists to set out their proposals of how best to redress the balance. In 2016, the prevailing sense is that, while the industry remains male-dominated (women represent less than 5% of music producers and engineers), theres a real desire to call for effective change. At the sharp end of this development are a number of networks and platforms geared towards helping women in the music industry, from Discwoman in NYC to the Berlin-based platform female:pressure. In this guest post, Point Blank Music School spotlight a range of networking resources and collectives in a bid to help the next generation of women artists to make their mark. At Point Blank theyre committed to equipping artists of all genders with the industry skills to succeed at the highest level. Want to get out there and alter that 5% statistic? Start by discovering their range of courses. female:pressure Since its launch in 1998, female:pressure has built an international network of over 1,600 female artists across 66 countries working across the spectrum of electronic music. Not only is it an invaluable grassroots resource (their research into the amount of women artists on festival bills made for enlightening reading) but they also represent one of the key platforms for new artists, both through their events including the Berlin-based Perspectives Festival and their own label. Their recent release Rojava Revolution was the product of an open call for musicians, and made Facts Bandcamp Release of the Month. Get involved here. Shesaid.so Founded in 2014, Shesaid.so is a carefully selected global community of women who work in the music industry. Where female: pressure tends to focus more on artists and creators, Shesaid.so connects women across all industry sectors, from PR to management to record labels. As well as acting as a forum where members can seek advice, share jobs and events and announce new projects, their regularly updated programme of events and panels encourage conversations on vital topics. The next panel, which takes place at LISTEN! 2016 is entitled Girls, Geeks & Music: Where are the female producers?, and aims to explore a male and female perspective on the intersection between women, tech and electronic music. Join in here. Discwoman New York-based Discwoman started out as a two-day festival back in 2014 and has grown into a platform, collective and booking agency with events taking place in over 15 cities, working with over 150 producers and DJs. Founded by Frankie Hutchinson, Emma Burgess-Olson and Christine Tran, Discwomans remit is, essentially, to represent and showcase artists who identify as female and their parties are incredible, as evidenced by their recent Boiler Room session featuring the likes of Julia Huxtable, Bearcat and Uniiqu3. They also have a regular mix series, spotlighting new artists. Discover Discwoman here. Women In Music Of all the groups mentioned, the US-based Women In Music is surely the most established. Now well into its third decade, WIM brings together a broad group of music industry professionals to offer support and cultivate a network of women working across all areas of the music industry. From official panel discussions at SXSW to free legal clinics, the organisers work hard to produce a diverse programme of events throughout the year. Their recent free Women In Music Tech event was hugely popular with panels and presentations delving deep into the topic from a variety of key angles. You have to become a member to take part in these events, so head over to the WIM website for more details and sign up. Point Blank Music School are super proud to be helping the next generation of female producers, artists and industry figures prepare for a successful career in the music industry. If youre feeling inspired and want to join the ranks of PB alumni like Monki, Madam X and Nicole Moudaber you need to sign up to one of their courses based either inLondon, Los Angeles or online. Point Blanks Online Music Production Master Diploma is not only the most comprehensive course available online, but it offers 1-2-1 tutorials between you and your instructor every two weeks, alongside live masterclasses and the opportunity to receive customized feedback for your work as you progress. Check out the full range of online Professional Programmes. Share on: The auditorium was packed with students for the Tuesday afternoon forum. DA, Doctor Advocate Against Legal Marijuana at United Way Forum District Attorney David Capeless opposes the question of legalization. PITTSFIELD, Mass. Dr. Jennifer Michaels says every patient she sees struggling with serious addiction began by smoking marijuana at a young age. Michaels, the medical director at the Brien Center, joined District Attorney David Capeless on Tuesday in a forum at Berkshire Community College urging a no vote on the referendum to legalize marijuana, which will be on the ballot in November. Michaels outlined her belief that the legalization will lead to more issues with addictions while Capeless said public safety would be put at risk with little authorities could do to mitigate impacts. "The devil's in the details about this. It isn't just about marijuana legalization," Capeless said. Capeless compared the Massachusetts question to that in Colorado or Washington, both of which legalized the drug for recreational use, saying Massachusetts is limiting the tax on it to 11.75 percent, which is lower than Colorado's maximum of 40 percent or Washington's 37 percent, so the influx of money into the economy won't be there. He said the money gained would only go toward the administration of the new law and elsewhere in the budget such as education. Further, he says the drug will be held to lesser standards than alcohol. For a store selling to a minor for alcohol, there is a $300 fine and possible 90-day loss of license whereas with marijuana it would only be a $100 fine. For people selling to a minor, alcohol is punishable for up to a year in jail whereas with marijuana, as long as the person appears to be 21, there is no arrest or charge. "I am well aware there is a burgeoning black market among college students like yourselves for fake IDs. This is just giving dispensaries a carte blanche to sell to all of the college students in Massachusetts," Capeless told a full auditorium at BCC. He said there is no medical use of alcohol with minors but there could be with marijuana. In Colorado, he says while the number of fatal crashes has decreased since legalization, the number of fatals with drivers testing positive for marijuana has nearly tripled. In Washington, that number doubled. He said when marijuana is coupled with alcohol, the likelihood of an accident is 24 times higher. "Overall fatality rates were down. But fatalities with drivers testing positive for marijuana increased by over 100 percent," Capeless said. But, the opinions among youth aren't in line with those figures, he said. Surveys show a quarter of teens say they've driven while high and three-quarters say they don't believe it is an issue. Capeless says car accidents are twice as likely if the driver has been smoking marijuana. While recognizing marijuana impacts the ability to operate a motor vehicle is one thing, Capeless said local authorities are woefully underprepared to be able to enforce laws restricting driving while high. "We have scientific devices that we can use to stop people from speeding. We have testing we can use for people who are under the influence of alcohol. We do not have that available to test people for use of marijuana," Capeless said. Capeless said there was only one certified expert in the county who could identify operating under the influence of drugs, but that person has since moved on. Recent court rulings say that even the smell of burnt marijuana isn't enough to stop and search a vehicle, making it even more difficult for authorities, he said. It isn't just about driving for Capeless but those other crimes that he feels comes with marijuana. "Overall crime [in Colorado] is up by almost a third, crimes against a person by a quarter, simple assault almost two-thirds, and domestic assault almost 100 percent increase," Capeless said. FBI data does support Capeless' claim that crime has risen in Denver, showing an increase of 3.5 percent. However, city officials there have been tracking crimes relating to marijuana, which shows less than 1 percent growth there so the likelihood is that the two are unrelated. In 2015, the Berkshire County Law Enforcement Task Force made just 127 marijuana-related arrests, said Capeless, despite it being a popular drug in the county. And he said in 95 percent of the searches the force does, mostly looking for cocaine, heroin, and illegal prescription drugs, marijuana is also found. Of the 18 people charged with marijuana crimes in 2015, courts fined just one individual. Twelve cases were continued without a finding and five cases were dismissed, he said. Pulling up headlines from local media, he showed that selling marijuana locally has led to armed robberies, shootings, kidnapping, and home invasions. Capeless also suggested that marijuana use among teens has "considerably gone up" but other recent surveys have shown that usage among teens has mostly remained level since legalization and that Colorado has a lower rate of teen usage than the nationwide average. From the audience, one man said teen usage in Colorado has actually decreased, with the reasoning being that teens could get it without having to show ID and now they do. A student added that marijuana sales are often coupled with gangs and that by legalizing marijuana, it would deflate that market while at the same time allow authorities to focus more energy on opioids and gang violence. Capeless said there is no reason to believe a black market would be eliminated with the legalization because of the restrictions and requirements surrounding the potency. "It will not get rid of it at all. It may well thrive. In Colorado, it has thrived and crime has gone up," Capeless said. The use among teens is really the key point of opposition from Michaels, who says the drug has significant impacts on the developing brain. "The more you use regularly, the more your IQ went down," Michaels said. Michaels cited a study out of New Zealand that tested children from age 13 on and found the more one uses marijuana, the more the IQ has dropped. Again, her statistics are countered by other studies that show there is no link between IQ and marijuana usage. Michaels focused her presentation more on the science behind marijuana usage specifically focusing on the drug's compensation, addictiveness, medical impacts, public danger, and its ability to be a gateway drug. "Virtually everyone who gets to those more serious drugs started with marijuana and alcohol," Michaels said. She began by saying that while marijuana is natural, that doesn't mean it is good. "Of course it is natural. It is a plant, it grows in the earth. It comes from two different plants cannabis sativa or indica so it is natural like other plants," Michaels said. "But over time we have altered how natural it is because we have cultivated it to maximize the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content. That's the thing that gets you high, the psychoactive component. It is less natural than it used to be." She said cocaine and alcohol both derive from natural sources but that doesn't mean the drugs are safe. "Natural is not good or bad, it just is. The opium poppy plant is natural. The coca plant we get cocaine from is natural. The alcohol we drink is probably the most natural thing we are consuming," Michaels said. Marijuana's THC acts like the body's natural anandamide chemical transmitter and attaches to parts of the brain that impacts movement, coordination, judgment, and memory. In hijacking those transmitters, it causes the brain to release high levels of dopamine. "All drugs of abuse including marijuana does something unhealthy, unnatural with dopamine in your brain," Michaels said. "Our brains aren't wired for that type of dopamine." The good news, she said, is that the drug does not attach to the brain stem, which regulates breathing and arousal so overdoses are unlikely. "In some ways, it is much safer than other drugs like opioid which does bind there or alcohol which does bind there. With high doses of those two substances, you stop breathing and overdose and die. So in some ways marijuana is safer than those other substances," Michaels said. "However, if you look at the binding the effects, the judgment, and coordination, that is not safe behavior if you are intoxicated." She said while overdoses may not be a threat, it is the fatal car accidents and possible hallucinations. She told the story of 19-year-old Levy Thamba, who earlier this year jumped to his death from a hotel window after ingesting marijuana in Colorado. "He began to hallucinate. He became delusional. He was talking to the lampshade. He was really out of it, not himself. He never had a psychotic experience before. He was with friends who tried to talk him down. He ended up jumping out of the window and killing himself," Michaels said. "This is an example of how someone died, not because of decreased respiration but because people can become psychotic and lose judgment. Is that common, no. But we are starting to see it and we are starting to see it in youth people." She, too, cited statistics showing that marijuana use will double the risk of a motor vehicle accident. But even more frightening for Michaels, is when marijuana is mixed with alcohol. "The problem is when people drink or smoke, they often aren't thinking at their best and do both. Then you multiply the risk for all accidents. We know when people smoke, performance is impaired," Michaels said. Jennifer Michaels said marijuana leads to other drug addictions. Further, she believes drug abuse will increase with marijuana. She said the drug creates a euphoric feeling because of the dramatic increase in dopamine, but once it wears off, the levels drop to lower than before thus leading to anxiety and a desire for more marijuana "We know that for some people, they get addicted to marijuana," Michaels said. She said there are symptoms of marijuana withdrawals from irritability to nervousness, to difficulty sleeping, and depression. Those withdrawals create the compulsion for users to smoke more. Michaels said people who smoke marijuana are more likely to have mental health issues such as depression or mood disorders. But again, Michael's concern is addiction and she said children who smoke at a younger age are more likely to have addiction struggles. "It is really about the kids, the decisions we make will impact them the most. If you have a fully grown brain and you had engaged in healthy activities, you've wired your brain with joy and happiness, you are not going to be as vulnerable to marijuana addiction. The chance of getting addicted is pretty low. However, if you are a young person and your brain is still forming, you haven't formed all of the connections, if you smoke if you are 12 or 13, your chances are really high, 17 percent," Michaels said. She said 74.6 percent of teens entering substance abuse programs are entering for marijuana, she said. "As we perceive marijuana to be a less risky substance, young people use marijuana more. As we make these decisions as adults, we must consider the impact on our young people," Michaels said. As for marijuana's use in medicine, Michaels says there hasn't been enough evidence to suggest that medical marijuana is effective. She said most studies only test certain of the 480 chemicals in marijuana and not the drug as a whole. "Most of the studies do not actually have patients smoking marijuana," Michaels said. "We are not ready for prime time because most of the studies have studied only specific chemicals but not marijuana." She conceded that there is evidence that marijuana does help with muscle spasms and HIV and pain related to chemotherapy. But she rejects the common notion that glaucoma should be treated with marijuana. She said marijuana relieves pressure in eyes of glaucoma patients but not in a sustainable way. At the same time, marijuana restricts the blood flow to the eyes, causing more damage over time. The forum was sponsored by the Berkshire United Ways' Pittsfield Prevention Partnership, which focuses its work on reducing substance abuse among the city's youth. A high-definition print of Leonard Stomski's oil painting of the departure of the Mammoth Cheshire Cheese that is being donated to the town. Local Painter Presents Cheshire Mammoth Cheese Painting To Town Local artist Leonard Stomski and his wife, Doris, are introduced by members of the Historical Commission. CHESHIRE, Mass. Local artist Leonard Stomski has gifted an oil painting of the Cheshire Mammoth Cheese to the town. Stomski and his wife, Doris, presented the Selectmen on Tuesday with a high-definition print of the painting that depicts the famous cheese wheel being sent off President Thomas Jefferson in 1802. The actual painting is 4-foot by 8-foot. "My wife and I are celebrating 40 years here in Cheshire and we did that by creating this painting," Stomski said. "We would like to gift it to the town and have it in Town Hall. The board thanked Stomski for his work. "We will have to put it upstairs. It is beautiful," Selectwoman Carol Francesconi said. "Thank you very much." The 1,200-pound wheel, reportedly made from the milk of 900 cows in an oversized cider press, can be seen in the painting on a decorated wagon pulled by six horses while residents of Cheshire see it off in a celebratory manner. Milk cans and another cheese being pressed are painted in the lower right-hand corner. The cheese was created at the urging of the Rev. John Leland, the local Baptist minister and a friend of the president's. It arrived at the White House in January 1802 and Jefferson described it as being over 4 feet in diameter and 15 inches thick. It lasted at least two years. Stomski also gave the town all rights to "Cheshire Cheese Goes to Washington DC" so officials can use it however they want and can utilize all possible proceeds the painting generates. "Usually the copyrights belong to the artists but I want to turn them over to you people so you are free to do whatever you want with the painting," he said. "Any proceeds go entirely to the town of Cheshire." He asked that Historical Commission and the Selectmen take a look at the painting before the final hanging to make sure everything looks historically accurate. Selectman Robert Ciskowksi suggested modernizing the painting by painting in the current select board. "Could we get the Board of Selectmen in there somewhere?" he joked. "We could modernize it. It's not the Constitution, it could be interpreted." The Selectmen plan to hang the painting Monday. Updated Wednesday to clarify the board received a print of the painting on Tuesday and adding the painting's size. Raya Kirby told the commission how the lack of paid parental leave stressed the finances of her family. Commissioners Penny Blaisdell of Marblehead, left, Becca Glenn of Waltham, Sara G. Schnorr of Holliston and Vice Chairwoman Margot Parrot of Athol take testimony. The session was held at City Hall on Tuesday. State Rep. Gailanne Cariddi speaks to the commission on the issue of health care access for women. Berkshire County Commission Chairwoman Gillette Conner speaks with Cariddi after the meeting. PreviousNext Massachusetts Commission Hears Testimony on Women's Issues NORTH ADAMS, Mass. Affordable health care and family leave are the "forefront" issues for Raya Kirby. Balancing her 4-month-old daughter on her hip, told the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women on Tuesday how she accumulated sick and personal time by not taking any time off for 10 months and her family stocked away every penny, to ensure they could pay bills during her maternity leave. Still, half of her 12 weeks out was unpaid, stressing the finances of the family of four. And it wasn't enough time to spend with her newborn. "You don't sell puppies and kittens until their 8 weeks old because you don't want to separate them from their parents yet you require mothers to return back to work sometimes immediately after having a child because there's no income," she said. Stories like Kirby's are what the commission wants to hear so they can turn needs into legislation. Created in 1998, the commission is comprised of 19 volunteer members appointed by various executive and legislative agencies. It works with local commissions, holds listening sessions around the state and hosts an advocacy day in Boston to bring issues of importance of women to the State House. A listening session brought four of the commissioners Vice Chairwoman Margot Parrot of Athol, Penny Blaisdell of Marblehead, Becca Glenn of Waltham and Sara G. Schnorr of Holliston to the Berkshires. Along with Director Jill Ashton and Outreach Coordinator Kelly Lynch, they heard testimony from a half-dozen or so area women at City Hall and were greeted by Mayor Richard Alcombright. The top issues: Health care, child care and maternity, poverty and transportation. All topics that are to a large extent inextricably intertwined. Donna Morelli, an attorney with Community Legal Aid's family law unit, citing a recent study by the Economic Policy Institute, said parents pay more for child care per year in Massachusetts than for a year at a four-year college. Bay State parents of more than one child pay out an average of $30,000 on child care for categories of infant and 4-year-olds. The third category is school age, which isn't much less. "The lack of affordable child care affects all parents. It has a significant economic impact on clients I represent," Morelli said, most of whom are trying to escape some form of domestic violence and are financially stressed. They are overwhelmingly mothers, with an average of 1.2 children, and most of them work. Nearly half receive no government benefits. Their average income is $271 per week, or $1,166 per month, and even with an average $150 a month in child support, can barely cover child-care costs. "Even with child support, these single mothers still cannot afford child care without using a huge part of their weekly income," she said. Child care centers average $17,083 a year. "That is $320 per week, which is $50 higher than the income of the mothers I represent. ... "The clients I represent still cannot afford these costs without depriving themselves and their children of necessities." Michelle Rubin, licensed child care provider, traveled from Greenfield to echo those statements. "If parents can find child care, they usually can't afford it," she said. "There are more than 25,000 children on the waitlist right now waiting for vouchers. ... "If parents are unable to work the entire family suffers ... mothers should not have to choose between taking care of a newborn and their jobs." She told of her own situation of how she had to return to work two weeks after her last child was born. Vouchers were no longer really covering the cost for child care, she said, and lack of transportation for parents was a serious issue. Nuclea has filed for bankruptcy. PEDA Claiming $10K Loss in Nuclea Bankruptcy Filing PITTSFIELD, Mass. PEDA is looking to recoup some $10,000 in losses from Nuclea Biotechnologies Inc., which filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy six week ago. Nuclea had rented office space from the Pittsfield Economic Development Authority on Kellogg Street for a number of years. That lease agreement was until the end of October this year but, the company has vacated the space by the end of April. PEDA Executive Director Corydon Thurston said on Wednesday that the company left without paying back rent or its share or utilities and contracted services such as janitorial work. "The total indebtedness is a tad over $10,000," Thurston said. "We're going to file for everything they would have paid until the end of the lease." When first notified, Thurston said U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware indicated the company had no assets with which to pay back debts. However, a followup notice from the court on Oct. 5 told PEDA to file a claim, meaning there may be some assets for PEDA to get paid back. That notice read, "there are assets from which a dividend might possibly be paid to creditors" and asked for proof of claim should anything be paid out. Chapter 7 bankruptcy allows for a liquidation of assets, instead of a reorganizational bankruptcy. Thurston doesn't know what to expect with the court ruling, if anything, but he is hoping to get back all of the debt owed. "We have registered our proof of claim," Thurston said. Nuclea was once a highly touted aspect of the city's future but has fallen dramatically since. It hit its high point just two years ago when former Gov. Deval Patrick used the company's Elm Street facility to t out a $510,000 tax incentive that was eyed to help the company grow a tax incentive that required jobs just until the end of 2015. In January 2016, it began cutting back. City officials rallied to bring the company to the proposed Berkshire Innovation Center which Nuclea later backed out of and to the William Stanley Business Park. Nuclea also partnered with local colleges for job training. In 2012, it moved into the Kellogg Street office and i nvested some $200,000 into the 1,700 square-foot space At the time, former Mayor Daniel Bianchi said, "The next chapter is being written right now ... The William Stanley Business Park will soon be a magnet for many life science industries." Nuclea then boasted of employment numbers of 70, with 43 workers located in the Berkshires with plans to add 35 to 40 more. It purchased Wilex Inc., taking control of a 20,000 square-foot facility in Cambridge and 11 employees. By the end of 2015, former CEO Patrick Muraca stepped down and claimed, "It is hard to leave a company but this is a victory lap. This was a true success ... I'm leaving Nuclea in a very strong situation." Muraca moved on to start a spin-off, NanoDX, in the Albany, N.Y., area . Don Pogorzelski was put in charge of Nuclea, who said then that "I think they've got a plethora of opportunity for them," while Muraca, who is still a majority shareholder, promised Nuclea wasn't leaving the city of Pittsfield. Thirty-nine days later, Nuclea left Pittsfield. SVMC Presents 'Taking the Scare Out of an Abnormal Mammogram' BENNINGTON, Vt. If you're a woman over the age of 40, you may have been there: You get a call that your mammogram is abnormal, and you get scared. It's completely natural. The fear sometimes stops women from getting a mammogram in the first place or from coming back for the recommended diagnostic breast imaging. What you need to know is that there is a long way between an abnormal mammogram and a breast cancer diagnosis. Information about the process of breast cancer screening, including what is happening behind the scenes, can help you cope with this unsettling news and move forward with confidence. That's why clinicians from Southwestern Vermont Medical Center's (SVMC) Imaging Department and the Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center partnered to offer this special presentation, titled "Taking the Scare Out of an Abnormal Mammogram," from 6 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, October 25 at the Manchester Community Library in Manchester, Vt. While most people are aware of breast cancer, many forget to take the steps necessary to detect the disease in its early stages when it is most successfully treated. In "Taking the Scare Out of an Abnormal Mammogram," Dr. Terrell Coffield of Radiology Associates of Bennington, and Rebecca Hewson-Steller, a registered nurse and breast health navigator at SVMC Women's Imaging Department and the Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, will give attendees a behind-the-scenes look at the screening mammography process and the different ways radiologists use breast imaging to help women find breast cancer early. Dr. Matthew Vernon, a radiation oncologist with the Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, will be on hand to describe the treatment options available to mammogram patients who are diagnosed with breast cancer. Mammogram and ultrasound technologists will also be on hand to answer questions. We work towards an equitable, gender-just, self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector We work towards an equitable, gender-just, self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector We work towards an equitable, gender-just, self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector We work towards an equitable, gender-just, self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector 2016 Good Food Org Guide Food Tank and the James Beard Foundation have just released the third annual Good Food Org Guide, which features 1,000 nonprofit organizations creating a better food system across the United States. Washington, DC - Download the guide and check out the website HERE! With the help of an advisory board of food system experts, Food Tank and the James Beard Foundation created this definitive guide to feature nonprofit organizations that are creating a better food system. The organizations in this years Guide are effecting change in kitchens, schools, churches, labs, businesses, community centers, governments, urban farms, fields, food banks, and more. Since the inaugural Good Food Org Guide was released in 2014, it has highlighted groups who combat childhood obesity, malnourishment, and physical inactivity; prevent food waste; educate consumers on healthy, nutritious food choices; create networks of social entrepreneurs; protect food and restaurant workers; highlight solutions for restoring the health of people and the planet; work with indigenous communities to preserve traditions, culture, and biodiversity; inspire and educate individuals to cook more of their own food; and protect public health, human health, and the environment. This years Guide, building on the success of the 2015 Guide, includes an online search tool. The website enables users to search for organizations by the region and category of the organizations work. Each organization highlighted in the Guide has its own profile page, which includes their contact information, description, logo, social media links, location, photos, and related organizations. Working in collaboration with the James Beard Foundation, we are proud to bring the total number of listed organizations to the 1000 mark. It is a testament to the tremendous amount of growth and support we have seen in the good food sector, says Danielle Nierenberg, President of Food Tank. At least 10 organizations from each state are represented in the 2016 Good Food Org Guide. Below are just a few of the organizations that are included. FTC Charges Operators of Scheme That Used Fake Government Affiliation to Sell Commercial Trucking Registration Services Washington, DC - A federal judge has granted the Federal Trade Commissions request for a preliminary injunction against two people and their companies for allegedly tricking small commercial trucking businesses into paying them for federal and state motor carrier registrations by impersonating government transportation agencies, such as the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT). Consumers who own and operate certain types of commercial vehicles must register annually with the Unified Carrier Registration (UCR) system or their state government and pay a fee based on their fleet size. Some of these small businesses also must file a Motor Carrier Identification Report every two years, which can be done at no charge on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration website. According to the FTCs complaint, the defendants have taken in more than $19 million from thousands of small businesses by sending misleading robocalls, emails, and text messages that create and reinforce the false impression that they are, or are affiliated with, the USDOT, the UCR system, or another government agency. As noted in the FTCs complaint, the defendants used official-sounding names, official-looking websites, warnings of $1,000 in civil penalties or fines for non-compliance, and threats of imminent law enforcement to trick consumers into using their registration services instead of using official government website services. According to the complaint, the defendants deceptively disclosed the total amount charged, without telling consumers the cost included the defendants service fees that ranged from $25 to $550 or more. The FTC also alleges that many consumers who paid the defendants UCR fees were automatically enrolled, without their knowledge or consent, in SafeRenew, the defendants annual renewal program for UCR fees. Defendants James P. Lamb, Uliana Bogash, DOTAuthority.com Inc., DOTFilings.com Inc., Excelsior Enterprises International Inc. and JPL Enterprises International Inc. are charged with violating the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers Confidence Act. The Commission vote authorizing the staff to file the complaint was 3-0. It was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. The court entered a preliminary injunction against the defendants on September 29, 2016. The Commission files a complaint when it has reason to believe that the law has been or is being violated and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. The case will be decided by the court. This Isnt Our Last Love Letter Dear Don Don, Way back in 92 I walked into the room and knew Never felt this way before I shook your hand while gazing into your eyes And the feeling grew As I took a seat I knew A love that would have my heart Forever I knew Way back in 92 They say love at first sight doesnt always last or isnt true We were the exception to that rule Our love had no where to hide A spark set fire As if this is how the universe started I never doubted our love or what we could do Together we grew Forming a bond everlasting That became our glue My euphoria was YOU Im eternally grateful for the love and life we shared For how fortunate we were : to have and to hold through sickness and in health Til death do us part Until we are together again This isnt our last love letter I love you with all my heart and soul Yours forever, Deirdre (Mrs. Hank Snow) Im fortunate to have fallen in love with, marry and make a life with the sharpest, coolest, funniest, most rare, bad ass, tender loving, loyal man on the planet, my husband Don Imus. A True American Hero I dont know why it has been so hard for me to write about my dear friend Don Imus. I certainly know what he meant to me, my family, my charity, my hospital and the millions of fans that listened and loved him for so many years. I keep reading all the beautiful condolences that people are writing about how much a part of their lives were effected by listening to him over the years. But what most people dont talk enough about is what he did for all of us. In every sense of the word, he was an American Hero. His work with children with so many different illnesses and his dedication to their future was unmatched by anyone I have ever known or heard about. Besides raising over $100,000,000 for so many causes, he took care of young people for over 20 years in a state where he could not breathe. Along with his incredible wife Deirdre, he created a world where children were not defined by their disease. That was a miracle! He was a miracle. I will miss him ever day for the rest of my life. I was blessed to be a part of his and Deirdes life. No one will ever do what he did. I love you Don Imus - A TRUE AMERICAN HERO David Jurist IMUS IN THE MORNING FIRST DAY BACK! Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyArts email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The National History Museum has revealed its Wildlife Photographer of the Year winners, encompassing dramatic photographs of leopards, parakeets and pangolins. American Tim Laman was the overall winner, thanks to his orangutan photo which didnt require fancy equipment and lenses (it was taken on a GoPro) but did require three days of climbing. Its a difficult-to-achieve shot, commented chair of judges, Lewis Blackwell. This is very often what wins Wildlife Photographer of the Year: a picture that has a high degree of technical difficulty, but one that also has something to say; and Tims image certainly has that as well. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Show all 10 1 /10 The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 The alley cat, Nayan Khanolkar, INDIA Winner, Urban At night, in the Aarey Milk Colony in a suburb of Mumbai bordering Sanjay Gandhi National Park, leopards slip ghost-like through the maze of alleys, looking for food (especially stray dogs). The Warli people living in the area respect the big cats. Positioning his flashes to mimic the alleys usual lighting and his camera so that a passing cat would not dominate the frame, he finally after four months got the shot he wanted. With a fleeting look of enquiry in the direction of the camera click, a leopard went about its business alongside peoples homes. Nayan hopes that those living in Mumbais new high-rise developments now impinging on the park will learn from the Warli how to coexist with the original inhabitants of the land. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Star player, Luis Javier Sandoval, MEXICO Winner, Impressions As soon as Luis slipped into the water, the curious young California sea lions came over for a better look. He had arrived the night before at the island of Espiritu Santo in the Gulf of California, sleeping aboard his boat so that he would be ready to dive at sunrise. He had in mind a picture that needed warm light, a slow shutter speed and friendly subjects. One of the pups dived down, swimming gracefully with its strong fore-flippers (sea lions are also remarkably agile on land, since they can control each of their hind flippers independently). It grabbed a starfish from the bottom and started throwing it to Luis. Angling his camera up towards the dawn light just as the pup offered him the starfish and another youngster slipped by close to the rocks he created his artistic impression of the sea lions playful nature. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 The sand canvas, Rudi Sebastian, GERMANY Winner, Details The pristine white sand of Brazils Lencois Maranhenses National Park offers a blank canvas to the rain. In the dry season, sand from the coast is blown by powerful Atlantic winds as far as 50 kilometres (30 miles) inland, sculpting a vast expanse of crescent-shaped dunes up to 40 metres (130 feet) high. With the onset of the rains, the magic begins. An impermeable layer beneath the sand allows water to collect in the dune valleys, forming thousands of transient lagoons, some more than 90 metres (295 feet) long. Bacteria and algae tint the clear water in countless shades of green and blue, while streams carrying sediment from the distant rainforest make their mark with browns and blacks. Patterns appear as the water evaporates, leaving behind organic remains. Shooting almost vertically down from a small aircraft with the door removed, avoiding perspective or scale, he created his striking image. A few weeks later, the scene had evaporated. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Snapper party, Tony Wu, USA Winner, Underwater For several days each month (in tandem with the full moon), thousands of twospot red snappers gather to spawn around Palau in the western Pacific Ocean. On this occasion, with perfect anticipation, he managed to capture a dynamic arc of spawning fish amid clouds of eggs in the oblique morning light. Still obsessed by the dynamics and magnitude of this natural wonder, he will be returning to Palau next April to witness once again the spectacular snapper party. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Eviction attempt, Ganesh H Shankar, INDIA Winner, Birds These Indian rose-ringed parakeets were not happy. They had returned to their roosting and nesting hole high up in a tree in Indias Keoladeo National Park (also known as Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary) to find that a Bengal monitor lizard had taken up residence. They would then harass it when it tried to come out to bask. This went on for two days. But the action only lasted a couple of seconds at a time and was fast-moving. These Indian birds are highly adaptable, and escaped captive parakeets have founded populations in many countries. In Europe, where they are known as ring-necked parakeets, they are accused of competing for nest holes with some native species, such as nuthatches, and even bats, but in turn, other birds such as starlings are quite capable of evicting the parakeets from their nest holes. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 The moon and the crow, Gideon Knight, UK Winner, Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 A crow in a tree in a park: a common enough scene. It was one that Gideon had seen many times near his home in Londons Valentines Park, which he visits regularly to take photographs. Positioning himself on a slope opposite, he tried to capture the perfect composition. But the crow kept moving along the branch and turning its head away, and so getting a silhouette of it with the moon in the frame meant Gideon had to keep moving, too. Then, just as the light was about to fade beyond the point that photography was possible, his wish came true, and an ordinary London scene turned into something magical. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Requiem for an owl, Mats Andersson, SWEDEN Winner, Black and White Every day in early spring, Mats walked in the forest near his home in Bashult, southern Sweden, enjoying the company of a pair of Eurasian pygmy owls until the night he found one of them lying dead on the forest floor. Pygmy owls, with their distinctive rounded heads and lack of ear tufts, are the smallest owls in Europe, barely 19 centimetres (7 inches) long, though with large feet that enable them to carry prey almost as big as themselves. He found this owl dead, too, and suspects that it and its mate may have been killed by one of the larger owls in the forest, not for food but because, in the breeding season, it didnt tolerate other birds of prey in its territory. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 The pangolin pit, Paul Hilton, UK/AUSTRALIA Winner, The Wildlife Photojournalist Award: Single image Nothing prepared Paul for what he saw: some 4,000 defrosting pangolins (5 tons) from one of the largest seizures of the animals on record. These Asian victims, mostly Sunda pangolins, were part of a huge seizure a joint operation between Indonesias police and the World Conservation Society found hidden in a shipping container behind a facade of frozen fish, ready for export from the major port of Belawan in Sumatra. The dead pangolins were driven to a specially dug pit and then incinerated. The live ones were taken north and released in the rainforest. Wildlife crime is big business, says Paul. It will stop only when the demand stops. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Wind composition, Valter Binotto, ITALY Winner, Plants and Fungi With every gust of wind, showers of pollen were released, lit up by the winter sunshine. The hazel tree was near Valters home in northern Italy, and to create the dark background, he positioned himself to backlight the flowers. Hazel has both male and female flowers on the same tree, though the pollen must be transferred between trees for fertilization. And now recent research suggests that bees may also play a role. The catkins are an important source of pollen for early bees and have a beefriendly structure, while the red colour of the female flowers may entice insects to land on them. The hardest part was capturing the female flowers motionless while the catkins were moving, explains Valter. I searched for flowers on a short branch that was more stable. Using a long exposure to capture the pollens flight and a reflector to highlight the catkins, he took many pictures before the wind finally delivered the composition he had in mind. The 10 winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 Entwined lives, Tim Laman, USA Winner, Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 A young male orangutan makes the 30-metre (100-foot) climb up the thickest root of the strangler fig that has entwined itself around a tree emerging high above the canopy. The backdrop is the rich rainforest of the Gunung Palung National Park, in West Kalimantan, one of the few protected orangutan strongholds in Indonesian Borneo. He had to do three days of climbing up and down himself, by rope, to place in position several GoPro cameras that he could trigger remotely to give him a chance of not only a wide angle view of the forest below but also a view of the orangutans face from above. This shot was the one he had long visualized, looking down on the orangutan within its forest home. There was an emphasis on pictures that showed the threat to wildlife around the world, including Paul Hilton's shocking The Pangolin Pit, which won the Wildlife Photojournalist Award: Single image category and depicted a seizure of 4,000 frozen pangolins destined for illegal shipping in Sumatra. 2016s junior award went to 16-year-old Gideon Knight from Kent. Its not an unfamiliar subject, but its got a freshness to it and a very pleasant aesthetic, Mr Blackwell told BBC News of his photo of a crow in Londons Valentines Park. I dont know whether Gideon has been studying his art history but hes got a feel for composition and artistic reference, which is terrific in someone so young. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A new Christopher Guest film is always a reason to rejoice, and the mockumentary master is back with Mascots, currently available on Netflix. Probably best known as co-creator of the seminal This is Spinal Tap (he played Nigel this amp goes up to 11 Tufnell), Guest's first faux documentary as director was 1997's Waiting for Guffman. Ricky Gervais has made no secret of the fact that The Office wouldnt exist without Guests work and Guffman, released just four years before the defining British sitcom of a generation first aired, was undoubtedly an influence. Guest stars as Corky St Clair, a flamboyant theatre director tasked with overseeing a community theatre production showcasing 150 years of life in the fictional town of Blaine, Missouri. The usual repertory of gifted improvisers round out the cast; Fred Willard, Parker Posey, Eugene Levy, Catherine OHara and Bob Balaban. The film tackles the delusional nature of amateur actors with much the same panache that Spinal Tap skewered heavy metal. These are people with the unwavering certainty that they have what it takes to make great art despite all evidence to the contrary. The irony, of course, is that the actors portraying these characters are skilled performers improvising the dialogue throughout in a manner Larry David would adopt for Curb Your Enthusiasm a couple of years later. Mort Guffman, a Broadway producer, has promised to attend the show but will he show up or pull a Godot? The final act, in which we actually get to see the musical, is a triumph of poor acting and worse music. The observations are loving rather than cruel, not least the actors' insistence on facing the audience at all times. It is surely no coincidence that, despite gently mocking the characters for the duration of the running time, Guest ensures the majority of them end up in a happier place than they were when the film began. Meryl Streep once named this her favourite movie and it just goes to show that even the greats can see something of themselves in the delusions of grandeur shared by amateurs and professionals alike. All that, and we are treated to the sight of The Remains of the Day lunch boxes. What more could you want? Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Trolls Dir: Mike Mitchell, Walt Dohrn, 92 mins, voiced by: Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Zooey Deschanel, James Corden Trolls - Trailer 3 Made in iridescent colour, Trolls is a wondrously zany and inane animated feature. Watching it in 3D is like being submerged in candy floss. The main characters are fluffy little gonks who live in a rainbow world of singing, dancing and hugging. They are preyed on by the Bergens, a race of slobbering, bogeyman-like reptile misanthropes with bad teeth who think the only way they can achieve happiness, even if only briefly, is by eating Trolls. On Trollstice, they come hunting for their prey. For all its hyper-cheerful humour, the film has some surprisingly macabre elements. The Bergens pursue the little Trolls with a genocidal fury. The Trolls are so distressed that some of them become incontinent (and start defecating cupcakes). Pink-featured Princess Poppy (voiced by Anna Kendrick) is the most optimistic of the Trolls. Whenever shes around, cheesy disco songs play on the soundtrack and fireworks go off. Branch (voiced by Justin Timberlake, who also oversaw the music) tries to warn her that theres trouble ahead. He is the greyest, gloomiest character in Troll-land, never singing, never dancing, hiding out in his underground bunker and always expecting the worst. Alongside the disco, Trolls is aimed at a very young audience but contains plenty of in-jokes and nostalgic references to keep the parents happy. Timberlakes choice of music includes some very cheesy Simon and Garfunkel and Lionel Richie songs as well as a blast of Total Eclipse Of The Heart. Trolls combines eye-opening visuals with plenty of frenetic chase sequences involving tunnels and roller skates. Alongside the story about Princess Poppy venturing to the kingdom of the Bergens to rescue her friends, the film includes a touching Cinderella-like romance about a buck-toothed scullery maid called Bridget (Zooey Deschanel) besotted with Gristle, prince of the Bergens. There are also some surprisingly grown-up meditations on life, love and the meaning of happiness which may leave the kids scratching their heads. Keeping Up With The Joneses Dir: Greg Mottola, 105 mins, starring: Isla Fisher, Zach Galifianakis, Gal Gadot, Jon Hamm Keeping Up With The Joneses - Trailer Keeping Up With The Joneses is a misconceived comedy-thriller that cant work out whether its spoofing spy movies or making fun of suburbia. Zach Galifianakis and Isla Fisher play Jeff and Karen Gaffney, a jaded middle-class couple whose kids are away from home. They live in a suburban cul-de-sac alongside other equally conventional, equally jaded middle-class families. Jon Hamm and Gal Gadot are their improbably glamorous and very worldly new neighbours, Tim and Natalie Jones. Tim claims to be a travel writer. Natalie says she works in social media. In fact, theyre both spies. Theyre strangely obsessed with goings-on at MBI, the secretive company at which Jeff works as a human resources manager. Director Greg Mottola keeps the pace brisk, combining suburban barbecues and scenes of shopping expeditions with shoot-outs, explosions and high-speed chases. Michael LeSieurs screenplay yields a few funny one-liners. There are some good jokes about British dentistry and Galifianakis cant stop making feeble puns which work by sheer force of attrition. The hitch is that the film is pulling in opposing directions. Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up On the one hand, it is trying to be a character-based comedy about two very different couples who have far more in common than they could have anticipated. On the other, Mottola wants to make an Austen Powers-like farce. The improbabilities mount and the action scenes become ever more random. Assassins on motorbikes turn up from nowhere, houses explode. The performances are fine. Galifianakis has some funny moments as the empathetic HR guy who loves to listen to other peoples stories. Fisher shows comic flair as the bored married woman who turns out to have a natural instinct for espionage. Hamm and Gadot are playing one-dimensional characters, both of whom seem to have stumbled out of a Bond movie, but at least they do so with a certain charm. Its the premise here which simply doesnt hold together. Ouija: Origin Of Evil Dir: Mike Flanagan, 99 mins, starring: Elizabeth Reaser, Lin Shaye, Annalise Basso Ouija: Origin Of Evil - Trailer The title of Mike Flanagans horror film, released in good time for Halloween, is misleading. The Ouija board features prominently enough but this is a good, old-fashioned tale of a haunted house and of demonic possession at heart. Set in the late 1960s, it is stylishly shot but not quite as scary as might have been anticipated. Its trump card is the precocious child actress Lulu Wilson, who manages to look wide-eyed and innocent even as she channels all the forces of darkness that the special effects department can muster. Wilson plays Doris Zander, the youngest daughter of Alice Zander, a single mum who makes a precarious living by staging seances in her sitting room. Doris and her teenage sister Paulina hide in the wings, making noises and blowing out candles to convince Alices gullible, grief-stricken clients that their loved ones really are getting in touch from the other side of the grave. When Alice buys a ouija board as a new prop for work, matters begin to become properly creepy. In no time at all, Doris starts rolling her eyeballs and writing long letters in Polish, dictated to her from the other side. Alice, meanwhile, is desperate to communicate with her late husband, who died in mysterious circumstances. The overloaded screenplay by Flanagan and Jeff Howard throws in elements of everything from The Exorcist to The Amityville Horror. There are references to a Mengele-like devils doctor from the Nazi era who made his way to America and whose pet trick was to sew victims mouths shut. Skeletons are in the woodwork. Kids speak in adult voices. Kindly priests talk about getting the Vatican involved. There are hangings, stabbings and nightmarish visions. The basement is one part of the house you most certainly dont want to visit. With so much going on, it is little wonder that the film seems so sprawling and unfocused. A simpler approach might have chilled our blood more effectively but there are a few moments here that should jolt you out of your seats. Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyArts email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump square off for the final television debate at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas in Las Vegas tonight, with the exchange kicking off at 9pm ET / 6PM PT / 2AM BST (UK). In a WWE-esque move, Trump has invited Obamas half-brother to the debate, Malik Obama having declared himself a surprise fan of the Republican nominees. With Trump on the ropes and swinging, its sure to be a heated encounter, so how to watch it live? The following outlets are all live-streaming it in its entirety on YouTube and TV: NBC News (embedded above) CBS News Fox News PBS Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Show all 13 1 /13 Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? ABC/Facebook Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Twitter Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? ABC/Facebook Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Twitter Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Twitter Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Twitter Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Twitter Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? Why was Trump creeping behind Clinton at the debate? C-SPAN Washington Post New York Times Univision Telemundo A handful of news stations are also running it on their mobile apps: CBS News on Android, iOS, Amazon Fire TV, and Roku. ABC News on Android, iOS, Windows, Apple TV, and Roku. NBC News on Android, iOS, Windows, Apple TV, and Roku. Reuters on Android and iOS. Alternatively/in addition, you might want to head to debates.twitter.com where a debate about the debate is sure to be raging. The Commission on Presidential Debates has said the third debate structure will be identical to the first, which was as follows: "The debate will be divided into six time segments of approximately 15 minutes each on major topics to be selected by the moderator and announced at least one week before the debate. "The moderator will open each segment with a question, after which each candidate will have two minutes to respond. Candidates will then have an opportunity to respond to each other. The moderator will use the balance of the time in the segment for a deeper discussion of the topic." Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The head of financial development for Luxembourg said a string of overseas banks and fund managers had explored moving London staff to the tiny country since the Brexit vote. Nicolas Mackel said there had been strong interest from US and other non-EU firms assessing their options since Junes referendum. Mr Mackel was speaking a little over a week after investment giant M&G announced it would be opening funds in Luxembourg, whose government styles it as the only country left that still loves bankers. He said: They need to come up with contingency plans now; perhaps they should have done it before but were possibly numbed, like so many of us were, into thinking Brexit would never happen. They are not looking to move their entire European teams from London; they just want to open a small unit in Luxembourg as well. Mackel predicted a maximum of about 30,000 staff would leave the UK capital, split largely between Luxembourg, Frankfurt and Dublin. But London is the major global financial centre and will remain the major global financial centre. You built London over decades, you have the infrastructure, the depth of expertise that is unmatched, he said. However, he predicted a longer second phase of the Brexit effect on financial services, which would see new financial companies setting up in Europe less likely to choose the UK as their base. Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the back of the queue for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germanys top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as gateway to Europe for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the BundesbankGermanys central banktold a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were equivalent between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEOs performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterlings fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty For access to the EU, London will no longer be the natural choice, he said. He predicted British institutions would follow Switzerlands UBS, Credit Suisse, Julius Baer and Pictet in opening Luxembourg offices with between 300 and 400 staff to gain access to the EU. Defecto La Defense, the body responsible for the business district in western Paris, this week made a play to lure City workers from London to France. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Broadcast regulator Ofcom has dismissed every accused levelled at TV channels for their coverage of Jeremy Corbyns reign as Labour leader. Mr Corbyn and his supporters have frequently claimed broadcasters like the BBC and Channel 4 are biased against his leadership of the party when they are supposed to remain neutral under the terms of the broadcast code. But figures obtained by PoliticsHome through a Freedom of Information request that Ofcom has dismissed 72 complaints about bias fromt the channels it regulates - not including the BBC which is self-regulating. It also dismissed a further 67 complaints over the past year which were deemed out of remit because they were against the BBC. The BBC declined to disclose how many complaints it had received about the bias of its coverage. The highest single number of complaints came in September 2015 when Mr Corbyn was first elected leader. Following this 16 complaints were made about the BBCs coverage of the revenge reshuffle and seven in particular were made about the corporations Political Editor Laura Kuenssberg. Ms Kuenssberg suffered a stream of online abuse and threats by Mr Corbyns supporters and was booed and hissed when asking the leader a question at an event months later. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn Show all 11 1 /11 The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn He called Hezbollah and Hamas friends True. In a speech made to the Stop the War Coalition in 2009, Mr Corbyn called representatives from both groups friends after inviting them to Parliament. He later told Channel 4 he wanted both groups, who have factions designated as international terror organisations, to be part of the debate for the Middle East peace process. I use (the word friends) in a collective way, saying our friends are prepared to talk, he added. Does it mean I agree with Hamas and what it does? No. Does it mean I agree with Hezbollah and what they do? No. Reuters The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Corbyn thinks the death of Osama bin Laden was a tragedy Partly false. David Cameron used this as a line of attack at the Conservative Party conference but appears to have left out all context from Mr Corbyns original remarks. In an 2011 interview on Iranian television, the then-backbencher said the fact the al-Qaeda leader was not put on trial was the tragedy, continuing: The World Trade Center was a tragedy, the attack on Afghanistan was a tragedy, the war in Iraq was a tragedy. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn He is haunted by the legacy of his evil great-great-grandfather False. A Daily Express expose revealed that the Labour leaders ancestor, James Sargent, was the despotic master of a Victorian workhouse. Addressing the report at the Labour conference, Mr Corbyn said he had never heard of him before, adding: I want to take this opportunity to apologise for not doing the decent thing and going back in time and having a chat with him about his appalling behaviour. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Corbyn raised a motion about pigeon bombs in Parliament This one is true. On 21 May 2004, Mr Corbyn raised an early day motion entitled pigeon bombs, proposing that the House register being appalled but barely surprised that MI5 reportedly proposed to load pigeons with explosives as a weapon. The motion continued: The House believes that humans represent the most obscene, perverted, cruel, uncivilised and lethal species ever to inhabit the planet and looks forward to the day when the inevitable asteroid slams into the earth and wipes them out thus giving nature the opportunity to start again. It was not carried. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn He rides a Communist bicycle False. A report in The Times referred to Mr Corbyn, known for his cycling, riding a Chairman Mao-style bicycle earlier this year. Less thorough journalists might have referred to it as just a bicycle, but no, so we have to conclude that whenever we see somebody on a bicycle from now on, there goes another supporter of Chairman Mao, he later joked. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn 'Jeremy Corbyn will appoint a special minister for Jews' False so far. The Sun report in December was allegedly based on a rumour passed to the paper by a Daily Express columnist who has written pieces critical of the Labour leader in the past. The minister did not materialise in his shadow cabinet. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Corbyn wishes Britain would abolish its Army False. Another gem from The Sun took comments made at a Hiroshima remembrance parade in August 2012 where Mr Corbyn supported Costa Ricas move to abolish it armed forces. Wouldnt it be wonderful if every politician around the worldabolished the army and took pride in the fact that they dont have an army, he added. The caveat that every politician must take the step suggests Mr Corbyn does not support UK disarmament just yet. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Corbyn stole sandwiches meant for veterans False. The Guido Fawkes blog claimed that the Labour leader took sandwiches meant for veterans at at Battle of Britain memorial service in September but a photo later emerged showing him being handed one by Costa volunteers, who later confirmed they were given to all guests. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn He missed the induction into the Queens privy council True. After much speculation about Mr Corbyns republican views and willingness to bow to the monarch, his office confirmed that he did not attend the official induction to the privy council because of a prior engagement, but did not rule out joining the body. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Corbyn refuses to sing the national anthem. Partly true. The Labour leader was filmed standing in silence as God Save the Queen was sung at a Battle of Britain remembrance service but will reportedly sing it in future. Mr Corbyn was elusive on the issue in an interview, saying he would show memorials respect in the proper way, but sources said he would sing the anthem at future occasions. The most ridiculous claims made about Jeremy Corbyn He is a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Cheese True. The group lists its purpose as the following: To increase awareness of issues surrounding the dairy industry and focus on economic issues affecting the dairy industry and producers. She had provoked their fury after she arranged for the former shadow foreign minister Stephen Doughty to resign live on air during the BBCs Daily Politics programme in January. This is a standard technique employed by journalists but 35,000 people signed a petition to have her sacked for bias. Campaigning website 38 Degrees eventually removed the petition due to the number of misogynist comments it attracted. Labours Deputy Leader Tom Watson rushed to her defence following the booing incident in June after Mr Corbyn was appeared to smirk at the noise before intervening. He said it was rude and inappropriate and he felt embarrassed on behalf of his party. Hissing is not the answer and it undermined Jeremys message he tweeted, I understand people hold many views on how she does her job but... hissing at her because of those views is wrong. Mr Corbyn claimed the BBC was biased against him during a Vice news documentary shown earlier this year saying they were obsessed with discrediting him. He said: There is not one story on any election anywhere in the UK that the BBC will not spin into a problem for me. It is obsessive beyond belief. They are obsessed with trying to damage the leadership of the Labour party. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} While Samantha was a character adored by thousands of women for her unapologetic sexuality, independence and fiery one-liners, Kim Cattrall has said the Sex and the City role came at a personal cost. The actress attributes the role she undertook for six years as the reason her marriage to her ex-husband Mark Levinson ended in a divorce. It [Sex and the City] cost me my marriage because I was never home, the 60-year-old told news.com.au. I was never there and my husband got lonely and upset and competitive and it was really difficult, it was really hard. Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage Show all 22 1 /22 Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318648.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318645.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318647.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318643.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318581.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318634.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318633.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318632.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318571.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318631.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318630.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318570.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318629.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318564.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318626.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318618.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318621.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318616.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318610.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318608.bin Getty Images Kim Cattrall on sex and the stage 318604.bin Getty Images You end up spending more time with my Sex and the City family than I did with my real family. Cattrall and Levinson, the actresses third husband, married in 1998, one year after she was cast in the hit show, the couple divorced in 2004. Cattrall was married twice before and has never had children. Last year, she told BBC Radio 4 she finds the term childless offensive as it implies youre less because you havent had a child. She said she considers herself a mother in many other ways, such as to the young actors and actresses she mentors and the nieces and nephews she is close to. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A popular porn star has claimed a law that would force adult performers to wear condoms on all California sets would threaten her rights as a woman over her own body. Tasha Reign is one of a number of adult actors campaigning against Proposition 60, a controversial measure due to be voted on in November. Proposition 60 is being led by Michael Weinstein, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation president. It is effectively the tightening of a pre-existing law asking all performers to wear condoms during filming which is only acted upon if the agency charged with enforcing it, the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, is notified. Under Weinsteins proposals, adult film sets which do not comply with the law can be sued up to a year after the film is released, instead of the current six months statute of limitations. It also allows any Californian living in the state to sue filmmakers if condoms are not used. To put that in perspective, there are more than 38 million people living in California. These portraits show porn stars in a different light Show all 12 1 /12 These portraits show porn stars in a different light These portraits show porn stars in a different light Riley Reid Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Sara Vibes Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Evan Stone Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Nina Hartley Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Chanel Preston Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Anri Okita Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Little Red Bunny Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Bonnie Rotten Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Valentina Nappi Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Carter Cruise Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Dakota Skye Roger Kisby These portraits show porn stars in a different light Samantha Mack Roger Kisby Performers argue this aspect of the legislation is particularly damaging to them because it affects their financial interests in the films they perform in. They say having their details made public compounds their vulnerability. Reign, 27, claims the measure is impractical and compromises her autonomy over her own body. Recommended Read more The adult film stars transcending porn to become mainstream models She told The Guardian: I do acts where I literally could not use condoms, whether that be anal, whether that be double penetration, whether that be multiple guys. I cannot even imagine having a group sex scene like that. The bigger issue for me is that it opens up the gateway to mandate my body. I hate the idea that some man is going to tell me what I can and cant do. [I dont believe a person] should come in and tell me, on my own adult film set that Im producing in my own home that I need to use a condom. The contentious law has been the subject of a number of protests which have been ramped up in recent weeks. On Monday, hundreds of adult performers staged a demonstration outside of Weinsteins office in Los Angeles. Major porn sites also blocked access to their IP addresses in California on the same day. Jessica Drake, a veteran adult film actress with a number of roles in mainstream productions under her belt, is a major opposing voice in the Proposition 60 debate and has organised fundraisers to fund the Vote No campaign. Proposition 60 also requires producers to pay for vaccinations and STD testing. It is opposed by both the Republican and Democratic parties in California. The Independent has contacted Weinstein for comment. Sign up for a full digest of all the best opinions of the week in our Voices Dispatches email Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Voices Dispatches email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Among the earliest forms of tools used by the ancestors of modern humans, a stone split to form a razor-sharp cutting edge has been used by palaeontologists investigating our evolution for decades. But monkeys, it appears, have thrown a bit of a spanner in the works, according to academics at Oxford University and elsewhere. For they have been observed in the wild in Brazil pounding rocks together and, apparently accidentally, creating almost identical stone blades. The researchers who made the discovery said this disproved the idea that such activity was limited to humans and their ancestors, raising interesting questions about scientists understanding of our past. The earliest known stone tools were found at the Lomekwi site in West Turkana, Kenya, and have been dated to 3.3 million years ago. However one of the lead researchers behind that discovery told The Independent they were confident the tools they found were not the work of monkeys, partly because of the presence of cut marks on bones found at the site. In the new study, described in a paper in the journal Nature, the scientists said they had observed wild-bearded capuchin monkeys in Serra da Capivara National Park in Brazil smashing quartzite cobble stones onto other embedded in a cliff face. It is thought they do this to extract minerals such as silicon or remove lichen from them and have no interest in the sharp flakes of rock produced as a byproduct. They reported that no monkey attempted to use the flakes to cut or scrap something. Lead author Dr Tomos Proffitt, an Oxford University archaeologist, said: This does not mean that the earliest archaeological material in East Africa was not made by hominins. It does, however, raise interesting questions about the possible ways this stone tool technology developed before the earliest examples in the archaeological record appeared. It also tells us what this stone tool technology might look like. There are important questions too about the uniqueness of early hominin behaviour. His co-author, Dr Michael Haslam, leader of the Primate Archaeology at Oxford, said understanding technology used by early forms of humans helps shape our view of human evolution. The emergence of sharp-edged stone tools that were fashioned and hammered to create a cutting tool was a big part of that story, he said. The fact that we have discovered monkeys can produce the same result does throw a bit of a spanner in the works in our thinking on evolutionary behaviour and how we attribute such artefacts. But he added that even though making the flakes might not be unique to humans the manner in which they used them is still very different to what the monkeys seem capable of. Science news in pictures Show all 20 1 /20 Science news in pictures Science news in pictures Pluto has 'beating heart' of frozen nitrogen Pluto has a 'beating heart' of frozen nitrogen that is doing strange things to its surface, Nasa has found. The mysterious core seems to be the cause of features on its surface that have fascinated scientists since they were spotted by Nasa's New Horizons mission. "Before New Horizons, everyone thought Pluto was going to be a netball - completely flat, almost no diversity," said Tanguy Bertrand, an astrophysicist and planetary scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center and the lead author on the new study. "But it's completely different. It has a lot of different landscapes and we are trying to understand what's going on there." Getty Science news in pictures Over 400 species discovered this year by Natural History Museum The ancient invertabrate worm-like species rhenopyrgus viviani (pictured) is one of over 400 species previously unknown to science that were discovered by experts at the Natural History Museum this year PA Science news in pictures Jackdaws can identify 'dangerous' humans Jackdaws can identify dangerous humans from listening to each others warning calls, scientists say. The highly social birds will also remember that person if they come near their nests again, according to researchers from the University of Exeter. In the study, a person unknown to the wild jackdaws approached their nest. At the same time scientists played a recording of a warning call (threatening) or contact calls (non-threatening). The next time jackdaws saw this same person, the birds that had previously heard the warning call were defensive and returned to their nests more than twice as quickly on average. Getty Science news in pictures Turtle embryos influence sex by shaking The sex of the turtle is determined by the temperatures at which they are incubated. Warm temperatures favour females. But by wiggling around the egg, embryos can find the Goldilocks Zone which means they are able to shield themselves against extreme thermal conditions and produce a balanced sex ratio, according to the new study published in Current Biology journal Ye et al/Current Biology Science news in pictures Elephant poaching rates drop in Africa African elephant poaching rates have dropped by 60 per cent in six years, an international study has found. It is thought the decline could be associated with the ivory trade ban introduced in China in 2017. Reuters Science news in pictures Ancient four-legged whale discovered in Peru Scientists have identified a four-legged creature with webbed feet to be an ancestor of the whale. Fossils unearthed in Peru have led scientists to conclude that the enormous creatures that traverse the planets oceans today are descended from small hoofed ancestors that lived in south Asia 50 million years ago A. Gennari Science news in pictures Animal with transient anus discovered A scientist has stumbled upon a creature with a transient anus that appears only when it is needed, before vanishing completely. Dr Sidney Tamm of the Marine Biological Laboratory could not initially find any trace of an anus on the species. However, as the animal gets full, a pore opens up to dispose of waste Steven G Johnson Science news in pictures Giant bee spotted Feared extinct, the Wallace's Giant bee has been spotted for the first time in nearly 40 years. An international team of conservationists spotted the bee, that is four times the size of a typical honeybee, on an expedition to a group of Indonesian Islands Clay Bolt Science news in pictures New mammal species found inside crocodile Fossilised bones digested by crocodiles have revealed the existence of three new mammal species that roamed the Cayman Islands 300 years ago. The bones belonged to two large rodent species and a small shrew-like animal New Mexico Museum of Natural History Science news in pictures Fabric that changes according to temperature created Scientists at the University of Maryland have created a fabric that adapts to heat, expanding to allow more heat to escape the body when warm and compacting to retain more heat when cold Faye Levine, University of Maryland Science news in pictures Baby mice tears could be used in pest control A study from the University of Tokyo has found that the tears of baby mice cause female mice to be less interested in the sexual advances of males Getty Science news in pictures Final warning to limit "climate catastrophe" The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has issued a report which projects the impact of a rise in global temperatures of 1.5 degrees Celsius and warns against a higher increase Getty Science news in pictures Nobel prize for evolution chemists The nobel prize for chemistry has been awarded to three chemists working with evolution. Frances Smith is being awarded the prize for her work on directing the evolution of enzymes, while Gregory Winter and George Smith take the prize for their work on phage display of peptides and antibodies Getty/AFP Science news in pictures Nobel prize for laser physicists The nobel prize for physics has been awarded to three physicists working with lasers. Arthur Ashkin (L) was awarded for his "optical tweezers" which use lasers to grab particles, atoms, viruses and other living cells. Donna Strickland and Gerard Mourou were jointly awarded the prize for developing chirped-pulse amplification of lasers Reuters/AP Science news in pictures Discovery of a new species of dinosaur The Ledumahadi Mafube roamed around 200 million years ago in what is now South Africa. Recently discovered by a team of international scientists, it was the largest land animal of its time, weighing 12 tons and standing at 13 feet. In Sesotho, the South African language of the region in which the dinosaur was discovered, its name means "a giant thunderclap at dawn" Viktor Radermacher / SWNS Science news in pictures Birth of a planet Scientists have witnessed the birth of a planet for the first time ever. This spectacular image from the SPHERE instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope is the first clear image of a planet caught in the very act of formation around the dwarf star PDS 70. The planet stands clearly out, visible as a bright point to the right of the center of the image, which is blacked out by the coronagraph mask used to block the blinding light of the central star. ESO/A. Muller et al Science news in pictures New human organ discovered that was previously missed by scientists Layers long thought to be dense, connective tissue are actually a series of fluid-filled compartments researchers have termed the interstitium. These compartments are found beneath the skin, as well as lining the gut, lungs, blood vessels and muscles, and join together to form a network supported by a mesh of strong, flexible proteins Getty Science news in pictures Previously unknown society lived in Amazon rainforest before Europeans arrived, say archaeologists Working in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, a team led by archaeologists at the University of Exeter unearthed hundreds of villages hidden in the depths of the rainforest. These excavations included evidence of fortifications and mysterious earthworks called geoglyphs Jose Iriarte Science news in pictures One in 10 people have traces of cocaine or heroin on fingerprints, study finds More than one in 10 people were found to have traces of class A drugs on their fingers by scientists developing a new fingerprint-based drug test. Using sensitive analysis of the chemical composition of sweat, researchers were able to tell the difference between those who had been directly exposed to heroin and cocaine, and those who had encountered it indirectly. Getty Science news in pictures Nasa releases stunning images of Jupiter's great red spot The storm bigger than the Earth, has been swhirling for 350 years. The image's colours have been enhanced after it was sent back to Earth. Pictures by: Tom Momary Professor Sonia Harmand, lead author of a paper in Nature last year about the discovery of 3.3 million-year-old tools, said she was very excited by the fantastic study. But she stressed it did not affect their findings. The first important thing to say is that these monkeys are not interested at all by the flakes that are accidentally produced this is a very, very important thing to say, said Professor Harmand, of Stony Brook University in the US. We have bones associated with the tools, we have cut marks on some bones and we have micro-wear analysis showing they were used. So there is nothing to worry about. However she said it was certainly something for scientists to bear in mind if they chance upon a sharp stone. If you see things that look like broken stones and tools, Professor Harmand said, you have to ask yourself if there were monkeys around. Sign up to our free fortnightly newsletter from The Independent's Race Correspondent Nadine White Sign up to our free fortnightly newsletter The Race Report Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Race Report email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The British Army is facing accusations of racism after a photo was posted from its official Twitter account showing a soldier wearing camouflage that critics compared to blackface. Being a #soldier in the jungle requires a robust sense of humour, the tweet read, showing a troop pulling a face while wearing dark face paint and pointing a gun. The message was deleted minutes after it was posted on Wednesday morning amid a storm of criticism. One critic called the tweet an offensive mess, while several compared the image to blackface and many suggested it was racist. But many were defending the post, saying the outrage was misplaced. If you think camouflage is racist, please wear a hi-vis jacket next time youre being shot at, one message read. The British Army frequently publishes images of soldiers in camouflage, including during a recent exercise by the Irish Guards in Belize, where the photograph was taken. A spokesperson said: The content of the tweet shows a picture of a soldier wearing camouflage and concealment measures, standard for jungle training in Belize. "We can see how the tweet may have been misinterpreted, have immediately removed it and apologise for any offence it may have caused. Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Show all 20 1 /20 Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner of the Professional Op Herrick Portfolio category An air insertion operation mounted by British soldiers and Afghan police, re-establishing government control in an area of Helmand province, Afghanistan Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Best Overall Professional Army PR Image Former Garrison Sergeant Major, The Household Division and London District, WO1 William Mott OBE MVO inspecting Nijmegen Company Grenadier Guards. The photo is titled 'How can you forget to shave?' Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner of the Professional Portrait category Sergeant John S Kabia from the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF) at a camp in Kono, Sierra Leone during the Ebola outbreak Paul Shaw ABIPP Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner of the Amateur Portrait category Cpl Dave Johns holding a photograph of his eldest son who in turn is holding a picture of his younger brother. The photo is titled 'Me and my boys' Pte Rebecca Brown Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Best Overall Professional Op Herrick Image Private John Mitchell resting after patrolling through the night in the Upper Sangin Valley, Afghanistan. The photo is titled 'Black Watch' Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner of the Professional Op Herrick Portfolio category Cpl Carl Hines of the Royal Artillery providing covering fire while members of 4 Brigade Reconnaissance Force cross open ground in Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner of the Professional Op Herrick Portfolio category Soldiers serving with 16 Air Assault Brigade seated on a Royal Air Force C17 for the final leg of their journey to Afghanistan Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner of the Professional Op Herrick Portfolio category Members of 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment resting in a secure compound while on patrol around Char Coucha village near Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner of the Professional Op Herrick Portfolio category The US Army's 502nd Regiment supplying fire support for 5 Armoured Engineer Squadron, Royal Engineers during Operation HAMKARI in Afghanistan Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner Britain's soldiers at work. The photo is titled 'Mortar at Night' Cpl James McAllister Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner of the Professional Sport category The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery has left the noise and confines of London for equestrian and military training in the rural West Country. Enjoying the best of the Indian Summer in Cornwall, twelve horses and riders from Centre Section left their temporary stables in RAF St Mawgan just after dawn this morning to take to the surf on Watergate Bay Beach. The photo is titled 'Surf's Up' Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner Soldiers at work. The photo is titled 'Sitrep' LCpl Paul-Rui Penu Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner in the Professional Portfolio category, 2nd Place One of the ceremonial horses involved in the parade and a Grenadier Guard in the stables before the Colonels Review. Photo is titled 'Ceremonial Selfie' Cpl Jamie Peters Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner Sergeant Richard McKinnon a Royal Logistic Corp Bomb disposal expert checks the fuse on the World War II era SC 250kg German Bomb. The photo is titled 'Bombs Away' Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner This is taken on a Civilian Aircraft, taking Troops from Aldergrove Airfield in Northern Ireland on their first leg of the long trip to southern Afghanistan at the beginning of op Herrick 10. The photo is titled 'Here I go again' Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Runner Up in Best Professional Op Herrick Portfolio category Ranger Pete Mawhinney returns fire, with his General Purpose Machine Gun, after Taliban attempt to ambush his patrol Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner in the Professional Op Herrick Portfolio, 2nd Place Corporal Calum Cooper Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland talks to local children while he carries out searches on compounds. Photo is titled 'Kids' Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner in the Professional Soldiering category British Army Short Term Training Team (STTT) deliver training to the Ukrainian military Corporal Tom Evans Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Best Overall Professional Op Herrick Image, Highly Commended Boy soldier, Fusilier John Bryant. an 18 year old soldier from A Company, The Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland. In the muddy compound where he lives the 18 year old soldiers patrol on the front line in Helmand Province Afghanistan. The photo is titled 'Boy Soldier' Sgt Rupert Frere Army Photographic Competition 2015 winners Winner in the Professional Op Herrick Portfolio category, 2nd Place The photo is titled 'Re Supply' Sgt Rupert Frere The furore came as the British armed forces continue attempts to attract more black, Asian and ethnic minority (BAME) recruits. Soldiers from those groups make up just 7 per cent of the UKs regular forces, under the proportion in the wider population and short of a 10 per cent target to be reached by 2020. In the Army, the BAME figure stands at 10 per cent but falls dramatically for the Royal Navy and RAF, at 3.5 per cent and 2.2 per cent respectively. The Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Nicholas Carter, insisted the militarys values shared common ground with minority communities last year, saying increasing representation was his highest priority. Our recruitment from the black, Asian and minority ethnic communities has been improving over the years, but it is nowhere near where it needs to be, he added. We have to do more. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A Muslim charity is calling on members of the public to donate their coats in a bid to provide warmth for homeless and needy people in Manchester warm during the winter months. Human Appeal, a British international development and relief charity in southern Manchester, has launched a campaign called Wrap Up Manchester, which will collect unwanted coats from the public and give them directly to those in need around the city. The charity is working in partnership with Hands On London, an organisation that has run a similar campaign in the capital over the past six years. The project has organised nine locations across Greater Manchester, donated by Safestore Self Storages, where people can drop off their coats. Donated coats will then be distributed to homeless shelters, refugee centres, elderly organisation, women's refuges, children centres and other charities. Samra Said, Human Appeals UK Programmes Coordinator, said there is a significant need for warm clothing in Manchester at a time when homelessness is rapidly growing. Ms Said told The Independent: Its the first time weve done something of this nature. Weve done a call out to all the organisations in Manchester whoever is in dire need. So far weve got 500 people down as needing a coat, and we hope to provide for them all. "Homelessness has worsened and the figures are scary. 100,000 people are homeless across the UK and 13.2 million are living in borderline poverty." According to the councils annual rough sleeper count, nearly twice as many people are sleeping on the streets of Manchester as last year. Seventy people were recorded in one night in December, compared with 43 on the same evening in 2014. Meanwhile there were just 10 in 2011. Jon Meech, chief executive of Hands On London, said: We are really excited that our friends at Human Appeal and will be running Wrap Up Manchester for 2016. Did Banksy's latest work bring misery to a homeless man? Show all 3 1 /3 Did Banksy's latest work bring misery to a homeless man? Did Banksy's latest work bring misery to a homeless man? 581166.bin Rex Features Did Banksy's latest work bring misery to a homeless man? 581164.bin Did Banksy's latest work bring misery to a homeless man? 581163.bin Reuters "Wrap Up London is now in its sixth year. With the support of Human Appeal, the most vulnerable in our two great cities will be able to keep a little warmer this winter. Human Appeal and the people of Manchester. Earlier this week Theresa May unveiled a 40 million package designed to prevent homelessness by intervening to help individuals and families before they end up on the streets. Wrap Up Manchester will run between 7-18 November. Donations can be made on here. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A Tory MP has claimed child refugees arriving in the UK from Calais should undergo dental X-rays to ensure they are under the age of 18, and while they are used in Sweden and other countries, concerns remain about their effectiveness. Children with links to the UK began arriving in Britain from the Calais Jungle this week after French authorities approved a list drawn up by charity Citizens UK. But after photographs were published of 14 male refugees arriving on UK soil on Monday (17 October), remarks began to circulate that they looked older than 18. Amid the speculation, Conservative MP David Davies claimed medical tests, such as dental X-rays, should be carried out on children arriving in the UK from Calais to assess how old they are, claiming such tests would "verify their age very, very accurately". What do other countries do? Sweden recently introduced a measure to do medical age assessments of unaccompanied asylum seekers by examining their teeth and knee joints, amid growing doubts over the accurate age of those who seek asylum in the country. Meanwhile in France the High Council for Public Health (HCSP) adopted a recommendation in January 2014, stating that the medical examination must take place only at last resort and after a social evaluation and an examination of civil status documents," referring to the fact that no method taken alone can scientifically determine precisely and reliably the age of a person. What are are people saying? Mr Davies' comments sparked a wave of anger online and provoked a strong response from several charities working with migrants and refugees. Rowan Farrell, co-founder of Refugee Info Bus, a charity operating in the Jungle camp, said the children looked more "weathered" due to the trauma they have endured. Mr Farrell told The Independent: A lot of the 16 and 17 year-olds in the camp look very weathered. Theyve been living in tents in Calais and before that theyve been through things we cant possibly imagine. Ive physically seen it myself. Refugees and migrants who look a lot older, more wrinkled. But then you speak to them and see that they speak and act like a child, because they are in fact a child. Citizens UK, the charity working with the government to bring unaccompanied minors to the UK, urged that the age assessments carried out on the children was a "rigorous process" and that lawyers "spend 10 hours on each case". Jonathan Clark, a Citizens UK Leader, said: Extensive checks are carried out on the children. Safe Passage UK works with while they are still in Calais to verify that they are under 18; this is an extremely rigorous process and our lawyers spend ten hours just on verification for each case. In addition, the Home Office carries out their own checks before children are brought to the UK." So does checking teeth actually work? While Mr Davies said the tests would be "very accurate", experts have said dental evidence is said not totally reliable, pointing out it is possible to wrongly estimate someone's age by up to three years when making an estimate based on this criteria. Professor of medical statistics at the Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, Tim Cole, told the BBC these tests were very inaccurate, saying: If you test children around the age of 18, or three years either side, in this way, the results get one third of the ages wrong. Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Show all 9 1 /9 Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK A coach carrying the first group of unaccompanied minors from the Jungle migrant camp in Calais to be brought to Britain arrives at an immigration centre in Croydon, south London Reuters Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK A Catholic priest chats to Muslim Imans as they wait for the arrival of the coach carrying the first group of unaccompanied minors from the Jungle migrant camp in Calais to be brought to Britain arrives at an immigration centre in Croydon, south London Reuters Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Fourteen migrant children from the 'Jungle Camp' in Calais are due to arrive in the UK today to be reunited with relatives Getty Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Young men are escorted after stepping off a coach at the Home Offices Lunar House Getty Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK A boy is escorted after stepping off a coach at the Home Offices Lunar House after arriving from the Calais 'Jungle Camp' Getty Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK UK Border Force staff escort the first group of unaccompanied minors from the Jungle migrant camp in Calais to be brought to Britain as they arrive at an immigration centre in Croydon, south London Reuters Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK A young boy arrives on a coach at the Home Offices Lunar House after leaving the Calais 'Jungle Camp.' Fourteen migrant children from the 'Jungle Camp' in Calais are due to arrive in the UK today to be reunited with relatives Getty Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK British former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, center, flanked by Bethany Gardiner-Smith, left, from the Citizens UK charity and Bishop of Croydon Jonathan Clark speaks to the media about the 14 migrant children who will be resettled in the UK, outside Croydon Minster church in Croydon, south London AP Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Asif Khan whose brother Aimal Khan was one of fourteen migrant children who arrived in the UK, speaks to the media outside Lunar House in Croydon, south London. The 25-year-old chef has been living in the UK for 11 years, having fled Afghanistan himself. His brother Aimal Khan, 14, also from Afghanistan, had been stranded in the Jungle for six months PA The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) meanwhile said the tests are "imprecise" and "inappropriate", adding that there are health risks involved. A spokesperson for RCPCH told The Independent: There is no single reliable method for making precise age estimates and the most appropriate approach is to use a holistic evaluation, incorporating narrative accounts, physical assessment of teeth, puberty and growth, and cognitive behavioural and emotional assessment. "The use of radiological assessment is extremely imprecise and can only give an estimate of within two years in either direction and the use of ionising radiation for this purpose is inappropriate. If not done for medical purposes it can be potentially dangerous for a child to undergo these X-rays." Frances Trevena, Acting Head of Policy and Programmes for Coram Childrens Legal Centre, a national charity committed to promoting children's rights, confirmed there is no medical procedure that can accurately assess a person's age, and raised "serious concerns" over "lazy assumptions" being made "on the basis of appearance. Ms Trevena told The Independent: It is important to note that there is no way to accurately assess age, with the margin of error sometimes as much as five years either side, especially around the time of puberty. There is no medical assessment, whether through dental x-rays or measurement of bone density, which can accurately assess a childs age. "The Childrens Commissioner, British Dental Association and Royal College of Radiologists have raised serious concerns around medical procedures being used to assess age, particularly given the significant lack of accuracy. "In our experience, children as young as 14 are often incorrectly assessed as adults, and this can lead to serious repercussions, including children being placed in facilities with adults, in detention and in some cases going missing. Where no reliable documentation exists, assessing age is notoriously difficult. Cultural differences, physical changes through puberty and the effect of trauma can have a significant impact on physical experience. "UK government guidance confirms that assessments should only be carried out where there is significant reason to doubt the age of the child. It is extremely difficult to assess age from physical appearance alone, it is better that trained professionals conduct these investigations than journalists and political commentators. "Vulnerable children fleeing persecution, often suffering high levels of trauma, will suffer from lazy assumptions made on the basis of their appearance. What does the Government say? Since Mr Davies made his comments it has been reported that, according to Home Office documents, nearly two-thirds of child refugees who officials questioned about their real age in the year 2015 were found to be adults. However when asked how the age assessments were done in relation with the statistics,the government said there was no way of accurately confirming a refugees' age through medical tests, and explained that where documentary is not available, the assessment is made based on the "physical appearance" and "demeanour" of the individual. A Home Office spokesperson said: All individuals are referred to the UK authorities by the France terre d'asile (FTDA) and are then interviewed by French and UK officials. "Where credible and clear documentary evidence of age is not available, criteria including physical appearance and demeanour are used as part of the interview process to assess age. 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 We do not use dental x-rays to confirm the ages of those seeking asylum in the UK. The British Dental Association has described them as inaccurate, inappropriate and unethical. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} More than two-thirds of refugees arriving in the UK who had their age assessed were in fact over 18, Home Office figures reveal. Data from the year ending in June reveals that of 933 refugees whose ages were disputed, 68 per cent were deemed to be adults. It comes as the Home Office rules out dental checks to verify the ages of young refugees from Calais, after a call from Conservative MP David Davies to implement such tests. The Home Office statistics revealed that between January 2006 and June 2016, 45 per cent of 11,847 applicants whose ages were checked were not children. The Home Office says when refugees do not have documentation to prove their age, the test comes down to "physical appearance and demeanour". The disclosure also comes ahead of an expected arrival of a second group of refugee children in London. A Home Office spokesman could not yet confirm how it carries out age checks on refugees Getty (Getty) It also follows widespread criticism of Tory MP David Davies suggestion to check the teeth to verify migrants ages. The Commons Welsh Affairs Select Committee chairman said mandatory checks would reassure the public the system was not being exploited. But a British Dental Association (BDA) spokesman said: It is both inappropriate and unethical to take radiographs of people when there is no health benefit for them. Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Show all 9 1 /9 Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK A coach carrying the first group of unaccompanied minors from the Jungle migrant camp in Calais to be brought to Britain arrives at an immigration centre in Croydon, south London Reuters Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK A Catholic priest chats to Muslim Imans as they wait for the arrival of the coach carrying the first group of unaccompanied minors from the Jungle migrant camp in Calais to be brought to Britain arrives at an immigration centre in Croydon, south London Reuters Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Fourteen migrant children from the 'Jungle Camp' in Calais are due to arrive in the UK today to be reunited with relatives Getty Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Young men are escorted after stepping off a coach at the Home Offices Lunar House Getty Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK A boy is escorted after stepping off a coach at the Home Offices Lunar House after arriving from the Calais 'Jungle Camp' Getty Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK UK Border Force staff escort the first group of unaccompanied minors from the Jungle migrant camp in Calais to be brought to Britain as they arrive at an immigration centre in Croydon, south London Reuters Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK A young boy arrives on a coach at the Home Offices Lunar House after leaving the Calais 'Jungle Camp.' Fourteen migrant children from the 'Jungle Camp' in Calais are due to arrive in the UK today to be reunited with relatives Getty Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK British former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, center, flanked by Bethany Gardiner-Smith, left, from the Citizens UK charity and Bishop of Croydon Jonathan Clark speaks to the media about the 14 migrant children who will be resettled in the UK, outside Croydon Minster church in Croydon, south London AP Calais Refugee Children arrive in UK Asif Khan whose brother Aimal Khan was one of fourteen migrant children who arrived in the UK, speaks to the media outside Lunar House in Croydon, south London. The 25-year-old chef has been living in the UK for 11 years, having fled Afghanistan himself. His brother Aimal Khan, 14, also from Afghanistan, had been stranded in the Jungle for six months PA Doctors of the World executive director Leigh Daynes said: "It's as unethical as it is inappropriate to expect healthcare workers to conduct tests on patients for immigration enforcement purposes. "Such is the seriousness of Mr Davies's unethical and divisive remarks that we are asking his party chairman to consider disciplinary action." Refugees welcome here: Protesters demand UK resettle more migrants in response to refugee crisis Show all 7 1 /7 Refugees welcome here: Protesters demand UK resettle more migrants in response to refugee crisis Refugees welcome here: Protesters demand UK resettle more migrants in response to refugee crisis The Solidarity With Refugees group said Saturdays protest aimed to show our Government and the world that Britain is ready to welcome more refugees. Rex Features Refugees welcome here: Protesters demand UK resettle more migrants in response to refugee crisis People march through central London as they take part in a protest rally organised by Solidarity with Refugees in a bid to urge the Government to take more action on the migrant crisis Press Association Refugees welcome here: Protesters demand UK resettle more migrants in response to refugee crisis The protest comes days before world leaders meet to discuss crisis at UN General Assembly Press Association Refugees welcome here: Protesters demand UK resettle more migrants in response to refugee crisis Demonstrators made their way from Park Lane to Parliament Square in London on Saturday afternoon Press Association Refugees welcome here: Protesters demand UK resettle more migrants in response to refugee crisis Marchers chanted refugees are welcome here and waved banners reading no-one is illegal and lets help people Press Association Refugees welcome here: Protesters demand UK resettle more migrants in response to refugee crisis The march was supported by charities and groups including the Red Cross, Asylum Aid, Save the Children, Hope Not Hate, Oxfam and the UN Refugee Agency Rex Features Refugees welcome here: Protesters demand UK resettle more migrants in response to refugee crisis In the wake of Alans death, David Cameron pledged to resettle 20,000 Syrian refugees in the UK over the coming five years but there have been additional calls to re-home those who have already reached Europe, as well as asylum seekers coming from other conflict zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan Rex Features A series of mainstream UK publications, along with the Monmouth MP, have raised eyebrows over the ages of 14 teenagers who arrived from Calais on Monday to be repatriated with family. A Home Office spokesman also said its comment that the child refugees look older "because war has toughened them up", was an unofficial quote given to a Mail Online journalist. The spokesman, who could not confirm how many child refugees were expected on Wednesday, said: We work closely with the French authorities and their partner agencies to ensure all those who come to the UK from the camps in Calais are eligible under the Dublin regulations. All individuals are referred to the UK authorities by the France terre d'asile (FTDA) and are then interviewed by French and UK officials. Where credible and clear documentary evidence of age is not available, criteria including physical appearance and demeanour are used as part of the interview process to assess age. We do not use dental x-rays to confirm the ages of those seeking asylum in the UK. The British Dental Association has described them as inaccurate, inappropriate and unethical. Frances Trevena, acting head of policy and programmes for Coram Childrens Legal Centre, said today that checking age is "notoriously difficult" and that there is "no way to accurately assess". "Cultural differences, physical changes through puberty and the effect of trauma can have a significant impact on physical experience," she said. "Vulnerable children fleeing persecution, often suffering high levels of trauma, will suffer from lazy assumptions made on the basis of their appearance." French authorities are expected to empty the Calais jungle in the coming weeks and dismantle it by the start of winter. A Lille court rejected a request from aid groups to delay the operation, claiming the country was not ready for the relocation of up to 10,000 migrants. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Dentists have condemned calls for the teeth of child refugees to be tested to verify their ages, after a Tory MP suggested those arriving in the UK from Calais "don't look like children". Images of some of those arriving in Britain on Monday were splashed across some UK papers, with headlines suggesting they may not be under 18. David Davies, the MP for Monmouth and not to be confused with "Brexit" secretary David Davis, said: "I hope British hospitality is not being abused." The UK has committed to take more child refugees from Calais's "Jungle" refugee camp as the French authorities seek to close it down. Refugees are supposed to claim asylum in the first safe country they reach after fleeing conflict or persecution. But under the Dublin regulation, they can seek asylum elsewhere if they are minors and have family ties there. Recommended Read more The first unaccompanied children from Calais Jungle arrive in Croydon The British Dental Association (BDA) said Mr Davies' demands for testing were "inappropriate and unethical". It asked that the privacy of these "vulnerable young people" be respected by the media, and said it was not even possible to accurately say if someone was under the age of 18 using dental tests. A spokesman said: "We are vigorously opposed to the use of dental X-rays to determine whether asylum seekers have reached 18. "It's not only an inaccurate method for assessing age, but it is both inappropriate and unethical to take radiographs of people when there is no health benefit for them. "X-rays taken for a clinically-justified reason must not be used for another purpose without the patient's informed consent, without coercion and in full knowledge of how the radiograph will be used and by whom." The Jungle refugee camp could be closed imminently after a French court rejected an appeal from aid groups to delay the clearance. French authorities are expected to empty the migrant camp in Calais in the coming weeks and dismantle it by the start of winter. A Lille court has rejected a request from aid groups to postpone the closure, arguing that authorities are not ready to relocate its residents. Charity groups warned that many of the migrants do not want to stay in France and may set up camp elsewhere to continue trying to cross the English Channel to Britain. The French interior and housing ministers welcomed the court's ruling and said the camp should be dismantled before winter sets in. Additional reporting by agencies Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Russias flagship aircraft carrier is leading a fleet of naval ships heading towards the English Channel as they journey towards Syria. The nuclear-powered Admiral Kuznetzov is one of seven vessels photographed off the Norwegian coastline on Monday en-route to the eastern Mediterranean, with the most likely passage taking them through the North Sea, Dover Strait and English Channel before heading south. The Admiral Kuznetzov is loaded with fighter jets, reconnaissance and combat helicopters and cruise missiles to be used to bolster Russias bombing campaign in support of President Bashar al-Assad. A photo taken from a Norwegian surveillance aircraft shows a group of Russian navy ships in international waters off the coast of Northern Norway on October 17, 2016. (Reuters) Norways National Joint Headquarters said the fleet was shadowed by a Norwegian naval frigate as it passed through international waters. Major Elisabeth Eikeland, a spokesperson for the Norwegian army, told the AFP news agency the tone was good with the Russian ships. The Admiral Kuznetsov is escorted by the Pyotr Veliky (Peter the Great) battlecruiser, the Vice Admiral Kulakov destroyer, Severomorsk destroyers and several supply ships - all part of the Northern Fleet - the Russian defence ministry said. Russia's Nezavisimaya Gazeta newsapaper claimed the Russian naval force is the most powerful to sail in northern Europe in two years. It is the latest show of military power from Russia, after a series of incidents seeing fighter jets approach Nato members airspace in what has been compared to Cold War-style brinkmanship. In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Show all 19 1 /19 In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Syrian boys cry following Russian air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of the northern embattled Syrian city of Aleppo Getty In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russian defense ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov speaks to the media in Moscow, Russia. Konashenkov strongly warned the United States against striking Syrian government forces and issued a thinly-veiled threat to use Russian air defense assets to protect them AP In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Syrians wait to receive treatment at a hospital following Russian air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of the northern embattled Syrian city of Alepp Getty In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov speaks at a briefing in the Defense Ministry in Moscow, Russia. Antonov said the Russian air strikes in Syria have killed about 35,000 militants, including about 2,700 residents of Russia AP In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Jameel Mustafa Habboush, receives oxygen from civil defence volunteers, known as the white helmets, as they rescue him from under the rubble of a building following Russian air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of the northern embattled Syrian city of Aleppo Getty In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Civil defence members rest amidst rubble in a site hit by what activists said were airstrikes carried out by the Russian air force in the town of Douma, eastern Ghouta in Damascus, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria A girl carrying a baby inspects damage in a site hit by what activists said were airstrikes carried out by the Russian air force in the town of Douma, eastern Ghouta in Damascus, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Civilians and civil defence members look for survivors at a site damaged after Russian air strikes on the Syrian rebel-held city of Idlib, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Civilians and civil defence members carry an injured woman on a stretcher at a site damaged after Russian air strikes on the Syrian rebel-held city of Idlib, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Volunteers from Syria Civil Defence, also known as the White Helmets, help civilians after Russia carried out its first airstrikes in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria The aftermath of Russian airstrike in Talbiseh, Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Smoke billows from buildings in Talbiseh, in Homs province, western Syria, after airstrikes by Russian warplanes AP In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russian Air Forces carry out an air strike in the ISIS controlled Al-Raqqah Governorate. Russia's KAB-500s bombs completely destroy the Liwa al-Haqq command unit In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Caspian Flotilla of the Russian Navy firing Kalibr cruise missiles against remote Isis targets in Syria A TASS/ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russia claimed it hit eight Isis targets, including a "terrorist HQ and co-ordination centre" that was completely destroyed In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria A video grab taken from the footage made available on the Russian Defence Ministry's official website, purporting to show an airstrike in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria A release from the Russian defence ministry purportedly showing targets in Syria being hit In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russia launched air strikes in war-torn Syria, its first military engagement outside the former Soviet Union since the occupation of Afghanistan in 1979. Russian warplanes carried out strikes in three Syrian provinces along with regime aircraft as Putin seeks to steal US President Barack Obama's thunder by pushing a rival plan to defeat Isis militants in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Caspian Flotilla of the Russian Navy firing Kalibr cruise missiles against remote Isis targets in Syria, a thousand kilometres away. The targets include ammunition factories, ammunition and fuel depots, command centres, and training camps A TASS/ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis The deployment came amid continuing international tensions over Vladimir Putins intervention in Syria, with Russia announcing a temporary pause in the bombardment of rebel-held eastern Aleppo on Tuesday as a show of goodwill. Monitors say the campaign in support of President Assad has killed thousands of civilians in indiscriminate air strikes violating international law, while Russian authorities maintain they are targeting Isis and other terrorists. The defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, announced the Admiral Kuznetsovs deployment last month, saying it would bolster Russias capability in the region, where it already has around 10 ships. A spokesperson for the Royal Navy said British forces and Nato routinely monitor foreign warships nearing territorial waters. Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Chancellor Philip Hammond has set himself up for a Brexit battle with Theresa May after challenging one of her longest-held stances on immigration. Mr Hammond indicated that he thought foreign student numbers should be removed from net migration statistics, something Ms May vehemently opposes. He then attacked cabinet colleagues who leaked his comments from a private meeting and challenged Brexiteers, such as Boris Johnson, over big promises they made about extra public spending during the EU referendum. Recommended Read more Amber Rudd launches immigration crackdown targeting students Mr Hammonds words follow reports of a cabinet rift over Brexit, with the Chancellor on one side and Brexiteers intent on leaving the single market and strong immigration controls on the other. Speaking at a hearing of the Treasury Select Committee, Mr Hammond said it is essential that immigration controls are introduced in a way that protects our economy. When asked if students should still be counted among immigrant numbers, he said: My view is this is a question of public perception and the publics view. Clearly immigration and the level of net migration is an issue of concern. The question we should be asking is what does the public understand should be included within that definition?. Its not whether politicians think one thing or another, its whether the public believe it. When committee chair Andrew Tyrie cited research showing only a fifth of people think students count as immigrants and that 59 per cent are opposed to efforts to reduce their number, Mr Hammond said: I think thats very interesting information. Theresa May on immigration in conference speech As Home Secretary, Ms May doggedly fought off an attempt by George Osborne to remove students from net migration numbers at a time when the ex-Chancellor was at the height of his power. At Conservative conference earlier this month, the Government announced plans for a tough new crackdown on student visas. Mr Hammond revealed his approach to the issue after he was attacked in the press by unnamed Brexiteers, who revealed that in a cabinet committee meeting he raised concerns about the economic impact of a new work-visa system. Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the back of the queue for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germanys top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as gateway to Europe for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the BundesbankGermanys central banktold a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were equivalent between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEOs performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterlings fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty Addressing the cabinet leak head-on, he said: It would be far more helpful to this debate if we were able to conduct these internal discussions privately without leaks to newspapers. We need space to explore different options, to discuss among ourselves. Its no secret that there are different views about how we should approach the [Brexit] negotiation. During the EU referendum Leave campaigners, including now Foreign Secretary Mr Johnson, travelled round the country on a red bus emblazoned with a pledge that the NHS could have an extra 350 million if the UK left. Asked if he thought Leave voters would be disappointed about the absence of promised extra public funding, a so-called fiscal dividend, Mr Hammond said: That is for others to answer. I didnt propose to anyone that there would be a substantial fiscal dividend. Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The UK could suffer a fall in GDP of 4.5% by 2030 if it leaves the EU customs union. Cabinet ministers were given stark warnings from multiple sources of the effect of adopting a Norway-style model, in a paper that was circulated at a meeting of Theresa Mays Brexit cabinet committee, according to the Guardian. Studies by the Treasury, think tank NIESR and London School of Economics' Centre for Economic Performance, made pre-Brexit predictions of the impact of the UK remaining in the single market but leaving the customs union. The paper warned that the UK would need to grow trade with its 10 largest partners outside the EU by 37% by 2030 in order to mitigate any negative impact on trade. Professor Thomas Sampson at London School of Economics corroborated the warnings, arguing that leaving the customs union would be bad for the economy. Leaving the EU customs union would hurt the British economy and a fall in GDP per capita of 4.5% by 2030 is a sensible estimate of the potential impact. We cannot know for certain how large the costs will be, he told The Independent. Theresa May hints that Brexit negotiations will go past 2019 At the Centre for Economic Performance at LSE we estimate the effect of leaving the customs union and trading with the EU under World Trade Organisation rules would be equivalent to a fall in living standards of between 2.6% and 9.5% due to reduced trade with the EU. Professor Sampson advocated a soft Brexit, warning the consequences of leaving the customs union would result in a fall in wages and would force the government to make cuts. This would mean a fall in average real wages and would lead to lower tax receipts forcing the government to cut public spending, he said. Pursuing a soft Brexit and staying in the Customs Union and the Single Market would be a better option for the British economy. Ministers were also warned that some ports, including Dover and Holyhead, could find themselves completely log-jammed if custom checks on trade vehicles were implemented. Jonathan Roberts, head of communications at the UK Chamber of Shipping, said the dissolution of custom checks in 1992 spurred a huge spike in trade between the UK and the EU. When custom checks were abolished in 1992, it basically meant you could trade as easily with Munich as you could with Manchester, we saw a big spike in trade between the UK and the EU, he told The Independent. Whenever you make trade more easy, the volume of trade will inevitably go up. Shipping containers and vehicles wait to be loaded for export at Liverpool Docks (Getty Images) However, he warned UK port and motorway infrastructure had not been designed to accommodate custom controls, which could cause significant backlogs. If there was any kind of reintroduction of customs reporting you would have a backlog, a major traffic problem in and around the ports because there is nowhere for lorries to go while the paperwork is being sorted, so theoretically traffic jams could become commonplace, like the ones we saw earlier in the year that stretched miles long, he said. Making trade more difficult, you could assume there would be a drop in the volume of trade. That would bad for the UK, but crucially for the EU as well. This is the kind of mechanical detail that is never going to be discussed in a referendum debate but that ultimately we need to think of. Drivers wait next to their parked lorries on the M20 motorway as part of Operation Stack, which aims to manage traffic during disruption to Eurotunnel or ferry services (REUTERS/Neil Hall) (Reuters) Mr Roberts argued that there was no incentive for Europe to implement strict custom controls due to the amount it imports to the UK. The UK has a trade deficit with the EU so it is not in the EUs interest to see trade become more difficult with the introduction of checks, I think its quite unlikely there will be a significant reintroduction because it is in no one's interest for that to happen, he said. I assume the UK will come to an agreement with some very light touch custom reporting. The EU sells us far more than we send to them so its not in their interest to make trade more difficult, so you can make a reasonable stab that neither side wants to harm their trade relationships. What experts have said about Brexit Show all 11 1 /11 What experts have said about Brexit What experts have said about Brexit Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond The Chancellor claims London can still be a world financial hub despite Brexit One of Britains great strengths is the ability to offer and aggregate all of the services the global financial services industry needs This has not changed as a result of the EU referendum and I will do everything I can to ensure the City of London retains its position as the worlds leading international financial centre. Reuters What experts have said about Brexit Yanis Varoufakis Greece's former finance minister compared the UK relations with the EU bloc with a well-known song by the Eagles: You can check out any time you like, as the Hotel California song says, but you can't really leave. The proof is Theresa May has not even dared to trigger Article 50. It's like Harrison Ford going into Indiana Jones' castle and the path behind him fragmenting. You can get in, but getting out is not at all clear Getty Images What experts have said about Brexit Michael OLeary Ryanair boss says UK will be screwed by EU in Brexit trade deals: I have no faith in the politicians in London going on about how the world will want to trade with us. The world will want to screw you that's what happens in trade talks, he said. They have no interest in giving the UK a deal on trade Getty What experts have said about Brexit Tim Martin JD Wetherspoon's chairman has said claims that the UK would see serious economic consequences from a Brexit vote were "lurid" and wrong: We were told it would be Armageddon from the OECD, from the IMF, David Cameron, the chancellor and President Obama who were predicting locusts in the fields and tidal waves in the North Sea" PA What experts have said about Brexit Mark Carney Governor of Bank of England is 'serene' about Bank of England's Brexit stance: I am absolutely serene about the judgments made both by the MPC and the FPC Reuters What experts have said about Brexit Christine Lagarde IMF chief urges quick Brexit to reduce economic uncertainty: We want to see clarity sooner rather than later because we think that a lack of clarity feeds uncertainty, which itself undermines investment appetites and decision making Getty Images What experts have said about Brexit Inga Beale Lloyds chief executive says Brexit is a major issue: "Clearly the UK's referendum on its EU membership is a major issue for us to deal with and we are now focusing our attention on having in place the plans that will ensure Lloyd's continues trading across Europe EPA What experts have said about Brexit Colm Kelleher President of US bank Morgan Stanley says City of London will suffer as result of the EU referendum: I do believe, and I said prior to the referendum, that the City of London will suffer as result of Brexit. The issue is how much What experts have said about Brexit Richard Branson Virgin founder believes we've lost a THIRD of our value because of Brexit and cancelled a deal worth 3,000 jobs: We're not any worse than anybody else, but I suspect we've lost a third of our value which is dreadful for people in the workplace.' He continued: "We were about to do a very big deal, we cancelled that deal, that would have involved 3,000 jobs, and thats happening all over the country" Getty Images What experts have said about Brexit Barack Obama US President believes Britain was wrong to vote to leave the EU: "It is absolutely true that I believed pre-Brexit vote and continue to believe post-Brexit vote that the world benefited enormously from the United Kingdom's participation in the EU. We are fully supportive of a process that is as little disruptive as possible so that people around the world can continue to benefit from economic growth" Getty Images What experts have said about Brexit Kristin Forbes American economist and an external member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England argues that the economy had been less stormy than many expected following the shock referendum result: For nowthe economy is experiencing some chop, but no tsunami. The adverse winds could quickly pick up and merit a stronger policy response. But recently they have shifted to a more favourable direction Getty However, Brexit secretary David Davis and international trade secretary Liam Fox allegedly claimed the paper was pessimistic. Mr Fox allegedly told colleagues that non-EU countries had assured him the UK would be able to continue trading on the same conditions until new agreements had been drawn up, according to The Guardian. Downing street declined to comment on the paper and confirmed their stance that thay would not comment on ongoing Brexit negotiations. A UK Government lawyer said on Tuesday it is very likely MPs will be able to vote on the final Brexit agreement between the UK and the EU. James Eadie QC spoke in the High Court as part of the final day of a hearing to decide whether the Prime Minister can trigger Article 50 without parliamentary approval. Downing Street has since confirmed that he was representing the Government's position. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The Government must use the full weight of its influence in order to stamp out corruption, money laundering and tax evasion which is having a disproportionate impact on the world's poorest countries, MPs have concluded. In a report, by the International Development committee (IDC), it is also claimed that there is much more Britain could do to get its own house in order as some individuals and businesses based in the UK have long played a role in facilitating global corruption. The group of MPs, led by Labour MP Stephen Twigg, highlighted official figures estimating that between 23 and 57 billion was being laundered through the UK each year while it pointed to the role of British overseas territories in facilitating global tax avoidance and evasion. Around half the companies featured in the leaked "Panama Papers" of law firm Mossack Fonseca - some 113,000 in all - were registered in the British Virgin Islands, while the UK was second only to Hong Kong for the number of facilitators of tax evasion and avoidance it hosted. In particular, the report urged the Government to use the "full weight of its influence" to persuade the Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies to publish registers of "beneficial ownership" so they could no longer be used by companies to shield their profits from the tax authorities. "It is clear from the evidence we received that companies and individuals in the UK, Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories play a major role in facilitating global corruption," the committee said. "Lack of transparency in the Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies will significantly hinder efforts to curb global corruption and continue to damage the UK's reputation as a leader on anti-corruption. "It is disappointing that the Government has missed an opportunity to build on the momentum of the anti-corruption summit." The committee chair Mr Twigg added: The IDC has previously called on the UK Government to get its own house in order. This remains the caseGovernment must continue to lobby for the same level of transparency and accountability to be applied in the UKs Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, for example by the creation of public registers of beneficial ownership. The Governments commitment to the creation of a crossgovernment Anti-Corruption Strategy and the establishment of the Joint Anti-Corruption Unit, based in the Cabinet office earlier this year is to be welcomed. To have real impact overseas, this progress must be complemented through its work in developing countries. Dfid must publish its anti-corruption country strategies, long overdue internal reviews and country plans as a matter of urgency. Huge amounts of money are lost every year through illegal tax evasion, money laundering and bribery. The people most at risk from this scourge are the worlds poorest, who lose out on education, healthcare and infrastructure; not to mention the impact of petty corruption on their daily lives. It is vital that the UKs established commitment to anti-corruption measures places their needs first and foremost. A spokesperson for Dfid added: The UK is a global leader in the fight against corruption, and this report rightly recognises the Governments summit in May as a significant moment in international efforts to tackle corruption. Helping the worlds poorest stand on their own two feet by tackling poverty overseas while stopping organised crime, money laundering and tax evasion is firmly in the UKs interests. The UK is fully committed to delivering on the promises made at the Anti-Corruption Summit. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The Liberal Democrats remain confident hopes of pushing the Conservatives close in the by-election for David Camerons former constituency of Witney, despite the incumbent partys seemingly unassailable position. Liz Leffman, a councillor in West Oxfordshire, is the Lib Dem candidate. She won her council seat with 65 per cent of the vote in 2016, when the Tories came in second place with 22 points. She contested the parliamentary seat of Witney in 2005, coming second to David Cameron with the highest ever share of the vote for both the Lib Dems and any opposition party. The Oxfordshire constituency has been a safe Conservative seat since its creation in 1983. It was fleetingly a Labour seat, when former MP Shaun Woodward defected from the Tories to the Labour Party in 1999, until it was retaken in 2001 by David Cameron. Now, the Conservatives have fielded councillor and barrister Robert Courts to replace the former prime minister, but with lesser name recognition and lower turnout he is unlikely to do as well as Mr Cameron. In normal circumstances, the Conservatives would be expected to easily hold the seat, given their 25,000-vote majority at the last election. However, the Tory governments determination to take Britain out of the European Union is a direction emphatically opposed by many residents of relatively affluent and well-educated West Oxfordshire. A total of 57 per cent of voters - likely higher in the town of Witney - voted to remain part of the bloc, making Oxfordshire the most pro-EU county in England. It is considered unlikely Theresa Mays commitment to a hard Brexit will resonate among many here, with industry based in the area, including motorsports, dependent on close European cooperation. The Liberal Democrats under Europhile leader Tim Farron have positioned themselves in the pro-EU centre-ground since the Brexit result. While their recovery in national polls has been patchy, a spate of council by-election wins since May has given the party hopes of a more substantial recovery. Given the divisions within the party, Labour candidate Duncan Enright is not expected to improve on the 17 per cent of the vote he achieved in 2015. Hoping for a good showing for his party, Mr Farron himself promised to spend much of month running up to the election in Witney. He believes the Lib Dem ground operation is efficient and well-staffed - and is confident of picking up votes from disaffected Europhiles, social liberals and former Conservatives wary of the new direction of the Government. Witney resident Matilda Pillonel, a law student and former Conservative voter, explained why she would be supporting the Lib Dems. I feel let down by the Conservative Governments poor management of Brexit and their regressive grammar school policy, she told The Independent. I admired the liberal wing of the party, but Im disillusioned with this sudden lurch to the right under Theresa May. The betting markets have responded positively, with the Liberal Democrats odds-on to retake at least second place - from fourth in the General Election. Lord Ashdown, a former Lib Dem leader, has called for the by-election to be treated as a referendum on the Governments Brexit course. Parliament PMQs (PA) Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Jeremy Corbyn and Theresa May are clashing in the House of Commons ahead of an EU summit to decide the future of the continent. Tory MP condemned for demanding teeth checks MPs can block Brexit deal, No. 10 admits Brexit could mean fewer holidays, research suggests Theresa May gives clear signal towards hard Brexit The clash comes after Government lawyers said in court yesterday that Parliament would likely be given a vote on any final Brexit deal a reversal in tone from previous pronouncements from the Prime Minister. Labour has been pushing for a parliamentary vote on the opening terms of any Brexit negotiations, but Ms May has resisted such plans, saying there would categorically not be a vote. The summit will be the first since Theresa May was appointed and since she pledged her support for a Hard Brexit restricting freedom of movement. Britain and other EU nations are also set to confirm the CETA trade agreement with Canada at the summit. It was revealed yesterday the Department for International Trade would not grant MPs a vote on the controverisal deal described by activists as TTIP's 'little brother' until it had already been signed. Others issues likely to be raised at PMQs includ the Child Sexual Abuse inquiry and the resignation of its top judge. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} It would take an orator of the most gifted craft to shift between subtle innuendo over how Mrs Bone marks the occasion of Mr Bones birthday, and the historic death of 144 people in a colliery collapse. Our new Prime Minister is not an orator of the most gifted craft. Not that it was her fault. Last week Michael Fabricant graciously eased her in with a lengthy soliloquy on the matter of his own prostate gland. No such niceties this time. Its possible birthday boy Peter Bone should have foreseen, when he was granted the first question, that it would likely fall to him to ask it directly after a tribute from the Prime Minister to the 144 victims of the Aberfan colliery disaster, fifty years ago this week. He should have forseen that it would therefore fall to him to add his own sympathies to hers, and that therefore his question on whether she would kindly reopen his local prison would require a different hook than to begin by shouting: Anyway! Its my birthday today! Its possible also, that Ms May should have foreseen, when she told him she hoped Mrs Bone will treat the occasion in the appropriate manner, that the house would descend into uproarious laughter for what felt like a full minute. Bone, no longer erect by this point but still a glowing red, glanced to the heavens. From the midst of such hilarity came Corbyn. It was one of those weeks where six questions really doesnt seem like enough. Is the Chancellor going to quit the cabinet? Will there ever, ever be a third runway? Is the decision over whether parliament can have a vote on leaving the EU seriously going to end up in the hands of the European Court of Justice (beyond satire this one, but a subject for another day)? When did the Prime Minister know that the (most recent) outgoing chair of the child abuse inquiry may or may not allegedly be prone to the odd edgy remark on the subject of race? And all this while Iraqi troops close in on Mosul and one of her backbenchers is touring the TV studios agitating for refugee children to receive the same kind of dental checks that are ordinarily only practised on horses by the travelling Roma community. With so many gift horses to choose from, it was nothing if not brave of Corbyn to look all of them in the mouth one by one and reject the lot. Instead we had six questions on the NHS. It lasted 12 minutes and 31 seconds. It can be summarised thus: Jeremy Corbyn thinks the Conservatives are cutting the NHS. The Conservatives think theyre spending more on it. This is a debate that has not advanced or altered a nanometre in six decades but it does serve a wider strategic purpose. The moment two politicians start arguing about the NHS on live TV, there is an instant surge in UK calls to Dignitas, even from the young and perfectly healthy. Independent studies have put the savings in billions. At a Select Committee hearing this week, NHS England chief Simon Stevens warned that if current funding levels are maintained, by 2018 the only anaesthetic offered to patients undergoing the most invasive surgeries will be videos of politicians arguing about the NHS. This new and inexpensive procedure has apparently had some success in trial, but months later several patients are yet to come round. Labours Lisa Nandy, by the way, did manage a question on what the Prime Minister knew by when with regard to New Zealand Judge and former child abuse chair Lowell Goddards alleged comments about Asian men and paedophlia. Ms May was shaken, briefly. She didnt have an answer, at least not until 3pm, when the latest polls came out putting the Conservatives at 47 per cent and Labour at 29. We imagine Mr and Mrs May will be treating the occasion in the appropriate manner. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Theresa May has failed to assure MPs that civilians have not been killed by British manufactured bombs dropped by Saudi Arabia on Yemen. The Prime Minister was asked twice by Angus Robertson, the SNPs leader in the Commons, to provide an assurance that the Paveway IV bombs, manufactured in Britain, and under licence from the Government to the oil-rich kingdom, have not killed civilians in Yemen. Thousands of innocent civilians have now been killed by Saudi airstrikes, Mr Robertson added. But Ms May appeared to avoid the question, claiming: We have one of the toughest regimes in the world in relations to arms exports. When these allegations arise then we have been pressing the Saudi Arabian government have properly investigated these issues. Recommended Read more Britain to review arms sales to Saudi Arabia after funeral strike Mr Robertson the pressed again on the same question. Its beyond doubt that Saudi air forces bombing Yemen, flying planes that are made in Britain, by pilots that are trained in Britain and they are dropping missiles that are made in Britain. I asked her a direct question and she couldnt answer it, he said. He added if Ms May doesnt know the answer to the question how can she possibly in good conscience continue selling them to Saudi Arabia? She responded: The point I made is a very simple one that we press for proper investigations into what has happened on those incidents before we reach a decision or a conclusion on what has happened in relation to those incidents. We do have a very strong relationship with Saudi Arabia that is important for this country it is important in terms of dealing with counter terrorism and a number of other issues. Last week arms campaigners demanded, in the wake of one of the deadliest massacres of Yemens ongoing civil war, that arms exports from Britain must end now. It followed an attack, two weeks ago, which is strongly believed to have been carried out by the Saudi-led coalition air force, killing at least 140 people and injured as many as 600 more at a funeral. Mohammed Abdul-Salam, the Yemeni rebel governments spokesman in Sanaa said the airstrike was an act of genocide by the Saudi-led alliance, which is fighting the rebels. Andrew Smith of Campaign against the Arms Trade (CAAT) added: The humanitarian situation in Yemen is dire and getting even worse. Innocent people are dying every day. The UK Governments response has been to continue supporting the Saudi forces that are dropping the bombs, and to sell them even more weapons. Theresa May has previously defended selling arms to Saudi Arabia despite the country facing accusations of war crimes, insisting close ties keep people on the streets of Britain safe. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, however, has called on the Prime Minister to halt the sales because of the humanitarian devastation caused by the coalition waging war against rebels in Yemen. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Theresa May has failed to rule out that looming NHS efficiencies in every part of England will end in the closure of some casualty departments. In the Commons, the Prime Minister was challenged about the impact of new sustainability and transformation plans (STPs), ordered by NHS chief Simon Stevens. The 44 plans which must be finished within weeks have already provoked fierce local campaigns against the threat of mergers, or closures, of hospital departments. It was reported that protesters went to Downing Street last week with petitions from parts of Devon, West Yorkshire, Lancashire, Lincolnshire and Cornwall. During Prime Ministers Questions, Jeremy Corbyn demanded a guarantee as part of a wide-ranging attack on the state of the NHS, claiming it faces the worst crisis in its history. The Labour leader said: Next month, sustainability and transformation plans are going to be published. Many all over the country are quite alarmed by this, because of the threat to accident and emergency departments. Can the Prime Minister deal with this issue now, by quite simply saying there will be no downgrades and no closures of A&E departments? In reply, Ms May ducked the question arguing decisions must be taken by local health chiefs, not imposed by Whitehall. She told MPs: We believe, on this side of the House, that, at local level, people should be able to make decisions about the National Health Service. That decisions about the National Health Service should be made by clinicians that it shouldnt be a top down approach. The Prime Minister said her Government was spending over half a trillion pounds on the NHS over five years, adding: That is a record level of investment. Some health commentators have praised the idea of the STPS, as an attempt to ensure parts of the NHS are working together properly, after the fragmentation sparked by the 2012 Health Act. But, at the same time, Mr Stevens, the chief executive of NHS England, has ordered the NHS to make 22bn of efficiency savings by 2020 arousing public suspicion about cuts. In heated clashes, Mr Corbyn also accused the Government of allowing funding crisis in both mental health and adult social care The results were police holding mental health patients in cells because of a lack of hospital beds and delayed operations because of bed blocking by elderly patients on hospital wards. But the Prime Minister said Mr Stevens had asked for an extra 8bn for the NHS in this Parliament, yet the Government was delivering 10bn. And she told MPs that 10bn would not be improving care if Labour had won last years general election, having made no similar commitment. Mr Corbyns decision to target the NHS in the weekly Commons bout reflects growing fears that there are growing problems with its funding over the next few years. Yesterday, Mr Stevens told a committee of MPs would funding-per-head would fall in England in 2018-19, despite the promised cash injection. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The Conservatives have opened up an eighteen-point lead over Labour in the latest opinion poll. Theresa Mays party would win 47 per cent of the vote if a general election were held today, according to the latest Ipsos MORI poll. Labour would trail on 29 per cent, with Ukip dropping to fourth on 6 per cent, the Lib Dems on 7 per cent, and the Green Party on 4 per cent. 7 per cent of people would vote for other parties, including the Scottish National Party and Plaid Cymru. Labour were down five points on the previous comparable poll by the firm, while the Conservatives were up seven points. According to the Electoral Calculus method, on a uniform swing under the new boundaries proposed by the Government such a vote share would give the Conservatives 371 seats and Labour 159 a majority of over 200. The poll is the Conservatives biggest lead for years with the firm but the Prime Minister has ruled out calling an early election. She says one will not be held before 2020, even though she only has a slim majority in the House of Commons. Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Show all 12 1 /12 Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Corbyn's reshuffle Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Corbyn and the Syria bombing vote Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Corbyn asks questions from the public at PMQs, meanwhile backbenchers plot to oust him Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Corbyn is unavailable to attend the Privy Council Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Conference rejects Corbyns call to debate Trident Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn At Labour conference Corbyn and McDonnell press for a Robin Hood tax Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Corbyns hopes for a new politics look optimistic in the face of a media barrage Dave Brown on Jeremy Corbyn Corbyn enters Labour leadership race Ms Mays approval rating fell by around 6 per cent to a positive 16 points; Jeremy Corbyns rose by about 4 per cent to minus 24. Despite the poor polling for Labour Mr Corbyn was re-elected as leader by his partys members and supporters by a landslide last month. Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} British workers could face cuts to holiday days and reduced holiday pay after Britain leaves the European Union, new research suggests. The House of Commons Library has identified a number cases in which the European Court of Justice (ECJ) overruled courts in favour of giving workers better pay and conditions. Vote Leave Watch, a campaign group, said these cases and others like them would likely fall on the side of employers once Britain had left the EU and warned employers could now challenge existing decisions. In a speech to Tory conference in Birmingham earlier this month Theresa May said that workers rights would be protected and enhanced by a Conservative government. She and her ministers have so far however failed to back a proposed bill by Labour MP Melanie Onn to incorporate all EU workers rights into British law. Decisions by the ECJ highlighted by the House of Commons Library include the awarding of annual holidays during long-term sick leave, the banning of so-called rolled up holiday pay, and favourable holiday pay calculations. The judgments include Stringer v HM Revenue and Customs, which secured the right for annual pay to accrue during sick leave. Previously, some employers had denied those who were ill any additional time off when they returned to work. Leave voter who wants to 'control our own laws' can't name single EU law Others include Robinson-Steele v RD Retail Services Ltd, which ended the practice of "rolling up" holiday pay into wages, meaning a worker is paid nothing when they physically took the holiday. This decision effectively ended a loophole that employers used to get around giving paid holiday. Another case, Williams v British Airways plc, ending the practice of excluding allowances and bonuses from holiday pay. Vote Leavers like Boris, Andrea Leadsom and David Davis promised repeatedly that our rights at work, such as holiday pay, would be unaffected by a vote for Brexit, Chuka Umunna, chair of Vote Leave Watch said. But if businesses start challenging these rights in British courts, their promises may prove hollow. The Government must legislate to keep these rights in British law. Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the back of the queue for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germanys top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as gateway to Europe for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the BundesbankGermanys central banktold a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were equivalent between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEOs performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterlings fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty Emma Reynolds MP, a patron of Vote Leave Watch, said: The Prime Minister has talked the talk on protecting workers rights; now its time for her to walk the walk. Her fine words at Tory party conference will mean nothing unless she takes steps to stop unscrupulous employers from challenging hard-won rights in British courts once we leave the EU. One Act of Parliament is all it would take to enshrine these rights in statute law. And she would have my total support in doing so. The bad news for would-be holidaymakers comes as the Pound collapses to a new low, dramatically increasing the cost of holidays abroad for people from the UK. 71.5 percent of participating European firms described their current operation as excellent and good, only 5.5 percent rated not good and a very few said very bad. The majority of responded European enterprises acknowledged that the countrys macroeconomic stability is likely to continue, with nearly 60 percent of respondents forecasting stabilisation and improvement. Approximately 41 percent of polled firms said to maintain their current investment level in Vietnam, while 39 percent planned to pour more money into the market. EuroCham Chairman Michael Behrens said the index reflected EuroCham enterprises positive outlook for Vietnam, which is a good sign for the implementation of the European Union-Vietnam free trade agreement (EUVFTA)./. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Thousands of people have applied for less than 100 jobs to drive a new fleet of trains being launched by Virgin. More than 15,000 people applied for 78 jobs to work on the new Azuma trains, built in the UK by Hitachi, which are being launched in 2018. The company said there were almost 200 applications for every vacancy following the biggest recruitment campaign on the East Coast route since the 1980s. The successful candidates, who will work from depots between London and Edinburgh, will begin a year-long training programme in January. During the year, the trainees will take part in a mix of classroom-based and on the job learning. Virgin said the new recruits will also go through rigorous immersive practical learning driving a simulator to familiarise themselves with the new trains. Industry sources told the Guardian, the new drivers can expect to earn around 57,000 once qualified and that steps had been taken to encourage a diverse range of candidates. Virgin said the fleet of 65 Azuma trains will be among the most advanced in the world when they launch in two years time. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 31 October 2022 GBs James Hall competes during the mens parallel bars qualification at the World Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 October 2022 People dressed in Halloween costumes paddle board along the river Avon in Christchurch, Dorset PA UK news in pictures 29 October 2022 Members of the public take pictures as police officers remove activists from a road during a Just Stop Oil protest, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 28 October 2022 A cosplayer attends the MCM Comic Con London 2022 at the ExCel Centre in London Reuters UK news in pictures 27 October 2022 98-year-old D-Day Veteran Bernard Morgan, whose story is among those featured on the giant poppy wall, during the launch of The Royal British Legion 2022 Poppy Appeal, at Hay's Galleria in central London PA UK news in pictures 26 October 2022 A meerkat explores a pumpkin in the enclosure at Wild Place, Bristol, where some of the animals are having pumpkin treats as part of their environmental enrichment PA UK news in pictures 25 October 2022 King Charles III welcomes Rishi Sunak during an audience at Buckingham Palace, where he invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative Party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 24 October 2022 Rishi Sunak celebrates with Tory MPs outside the Conservative Campaign Headquarters after becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party Reuters UK news in pictures 23 October 2022 The Green Man at October Plenty, Borough Market's annual Autumn Harvest festival, in London, which returns for the first time post pandemic PA UK news in pictures 21 October 2022 Sculptor Peter McKenna puts the finishing touches to a pumpkin that will form part of the Planet A Hebden Bridge Pumpkin Trail in the West Yorkshire town PA UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty The fleet is promised to reach speeds of up to 125mph, provide an extra 12,200 seats, a new and expanded timetable and increase capacity into Kings Cross by 28 per cent during peak times. A spokesperson for Virgin Trains said: We have received a huge amount of interest in this fantastic opportunity at Virgin Trains on its east coast route The Talent team are working hard to process and update all of the applications we received. Those who have been successful in getting through the first stages of the process will be invited to attend a selection day which will include a variety of assessments and exercises that will bring the best talent into our business. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Boris Johnson has been accused of prolonging the suffering of a British citizen who was kidnapped, illegally rendered and sentenced to death by the Ethiopian authorities. The Foreign Secretary brushed off the concerns of fellow MPs and actually appeared to be unaware of the latest developments in the case of father-of-three Andy Tsege during a session in the Commons this week. Now, The Independent can reveal, even Ethiopian rights groups are aghast at the lack of action from the British government to support its own citizen, and in a joint letter with international organisations have called on Mr Johnson to do more. The groups said the ministers failure to call for the release of Mr Tsege, and his appalling refusal to answer questions on the case from MPs, was condemning the Londoner to remain on death row. Mr Tseges case is particularly urgent now as the Ethiopian authorities have declared a state of emergency, dispensing of the rights of expression and assembly for political opponents and restricting the movement of foreign diplomats. A vocal critic of the regime, Mr Tsege fled Ethiopia in 1979 and was granted asylum and British citizenship. He had been living in the UK with his wife and three children ever since. He continued to advocate for democratic reforms in his home country, however, and was seized by the Ethiopian authorities while travelling through an airport in Yemen in 2014. Mr Tsege was illegally sentenced to death in absentia in 2009, and has now spent two years in a jail known as Ethiopias gulag without being granted the right to a fair trial. Yet he has been all but abandoned by the British government, which sees Ethiopia as a vital strategic ally in fighting Islamist extremist groups in the Horn of Africa. In their open letter, groups including Reprieve, Free Trials International and the Ethiopia Human Rights Project urged Mr Johnson to go further than his current insistence that the UK is trying to secure Mr Tsege access to a lawyer. Not only have previous promises to that effect failed to materialise, but the Ethiopia has repeatedly said Mr Tsege has no appeal process available to him in other words, access to a lawyer will do him little good. Mr Johnson has repeatedly said Britain does not interfere with the legal systems of other countries. Yet the rights groups pointed to two recent cases involving British citizens Lee Po in China and Karl Andree in Saudi Arabia where the Government successfully did just that. By focusing solely on the request that Mr Tsege be granted a lawyer, the FCO is neglecting to address Mr Tseges illegal kidnap, illegal transfer to Ethiopia, and illegal in absentia death sentence, the letter read, describing each as a grave abuse in its own right. Worse still, the approach risks lending credibility to a sham legal process that will only prolong Mr Tseges ordeal, the groups added. Conservative ministers repeatedly brushed off questions about Mr Tsege on Tuesday, when Birmingham MP Steve McCabe asked what impact the continued detention of British citizen Andy Tsege is having on our relations with the Ethiopian regime. Foreign Office minister Tobias Ellwood refused to comment on the consular case in question, but added: I would pass congratulations to the country of Ethiopia [as well as] Kenya, Uganda and other countries, that are providing important contributing forces to the support and stability of Somalia. The Labour MP Stephen Timms later raised the case again, saying that even the British governments minor boasts of securing Mr Tsege access to a lawyer had not materialised, and Mr Johnson was asked if he would now formally request [his] release. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty The Foreign Secretary replied: I have set out our position on Mr Tsege in an open letter on gov.uk. Im afraid comment further because our handling of this case is the subject of ongoing legal proceedings. Mr Johnson appears to be referring to a case brought against the Government over its inaction by Mr Tseges nine-year-old daughter. The High Court has ruled in the Governments favour in that case, and no appeal is planned. Ethiopia is clear that it sees the case as closed, meaning there are in fact no ongoing legal proceedings at all. Maya Foa, a director at Reprieve, said the state kidnap of a British citizen and the Governments subsequent lack of response was nothing short of an outrage. His family in London are desperately worried about him, and MPs are rightly asking why Boris Johnson wont request his return, she said. Its appalling that the Foreign Secretary is unwilling to explain himself to Parliament. As weve written to Mr Johnson, the Ethiopian government has shown zero interest in delivering on its weak promises on Andys case and the current crackdown is yet more evidence that Ethiopias ruling party has little mercy for its critics. Boris Johnson must start listening to our concerns, and urgently request Andys return to Britain. A spokesman for the Foreign Office told The Independent the Government "has provided significant support to Mr Tsege and his family, and to suggest otherwise is simply incorrect". "We lobbied for many months to secure a move from solitary confinement to a federal prison, and this was achieved in July 2015," he said. "From the moment we heard about his detention we pressed for consular access and have now been able to visit Mr Tsege 11 times. "The Foreign Secretary has now made it clear to Foreign Minister Tedros that Mr Tsege must be given access to legal representation, as agreed by Prime Minister Hailemariam in June. And we will press the Ethiopians on this matter until they follow through on this commitment. There has been an extremely high level of engagement with Mr Tseges family in the UK throughout this case, and we will continue to support them. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A 58-year-old woman knocked a supposed gangster out cold with a crowbar and a glass beer stein when he allegedly tried to sexually assault her. Prosecutors claim Dorval Grice wrestled with victim Angela Ferguson and demanded sex after climbing through her unlatched living-room window. But Ms Ferguson allegedly urinated on him and knocked him unconscious with the crowbar she keeps tucked beside her bed for protection. The dogged American woman from Chicago has described, in colourful detail, how she fought back. Dorval Grice is accused of home invasion and aggravated criminal sexual assault Police handout (Police handout) Speaking to FOX 32, Angela Ferguson said: He kept saying, dont look at me bitch, Im the Grim Reaper. So he kept hitting me in the face, and doing blows to the head, so I did this, and I said please, please, why is you doing this? You're not gonna put Angie out. And so he should have knew, that where he messed up. I bet he won't break into nobody else's house. Long-time neighbour Grice started punching Ms Ferguson when she refused him sex on Monday, according to assistant state attorney Bryan Grissman. After knocking him out, and after police arrived, she was taken to hospital covered in blood and with bruises across her body. Judge Maria Kuriakos Ciesil ordered Grice be held on a $250,000 (203,000) bail on charges of home invasion and aggravated criminal sexual assault. Grice is a reputed gang member, according to the prosecution report. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} British-based US voters could swing key states in next month's race for the White House, an Oxford University study has found. With polls showing the election still close in some of the battleground states despite a series of scandals engulfing Republican candidate Donald Trump's campaign, the report says the estimated 2.6 million US voters living overseas could have a major effect on the result in some states. Canada is host to the biggest number of expat Americans with 661,000, Britain is home to the next largest cohort, 306,000, then comes France with 157,000, followed by Israel, Japan, and Australia, which all have more than 100,000 voter-age American residents each. While Mr Trump still appears to be in contention in some of the Northern rust-belt swing states, Hillary Clinton is now pouring resources into traditionally Republican-leaning areas such as Arizona. The study finds that Arizona, along with North Carolina, Georgia, and Iowa could go Democrat with the backing of enough foreign-based voters on November 8. Report co-author Dr Patrick Andelic, research associate at the Rothermere American Institute (RAI) at Oxford University, said: Canada, Britain, France and Israel all play a substantial role in US elections now. While current polling places Clinton in a commanding lead, the volatile nature of the race so far means that anything can still happen - and if Britain's recent general election and Brexit result have shown us anything, it's that one shouldn't call a winner until the votes have all been counted. Overseas voters proved crucial to George W Bush's victory in 2000 and they may make a critical difference in 2016. Political parties ignore this hidden constituency at their peril. RAI director Dr Halbert Jones, co author of the report, said: Our analysis shows that, based on recent polls, Trump might need a majority of just 5,600 among Ohio's overseas voters to win the state, and a majority of just 7,100 among overseas voters to win Nevada. But if the national vote swings further behind Clinton, the overseas vote could mean she takes the presidency with a rout rather than a slim victory - helping the Democrats to snatch prizes like Georgia, Iowa and Arizona. The significance of Mexico is disputed with a US Government study suggesting there are just 65,000 US voters living there, while the 2010 Mexican census puts the figure closer to 200,000. However, the report suggests with such a huge number of US-born children living in Mexico - more than 800,000 - the country is set to play an increasingly important role in American elections in the future. The report notes: By far the most dramatic instance of overseas voters influencing a presidential election came in 2000, when delayed overseas ballots gave George W Bush a narrow 537-vote lead after the Florida recount was stopped by the Supreme Court. Had that election been decided on ballots that had arrived by the original November 26 deadline, Al Gore would have won the state, and the presidency, by 202 votes. Similarly, overseas voters may have played a decisive role in some very close Senate races in recent years. Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Show all 15 1 /15 Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Who are famous people voting for in the US election? George Clooney HILLARY CLINTON Getty Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Leonardo DiCaprio HILLARY CLINTON Getty Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Mike Tyson DONALD TRUMP Getty Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Beyonce HILLARY CLINTON Rex Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Chloe Grace Moretz HILLARY CLINTON Vivien Killilea/Getty Images Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Sarah Jessica Parker HILLARY CLINTON Getty Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Jon Voight DONALD TRUMP Getty Images Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Katy Perry HILLARY CLINTON Getty Images Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Jennifer Lopez HILLARY CLINTON Angela Weiss/Getty Images Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Denis Rodman DONALD TRUMP TIMOTHY CLARY/AFP/Getty Images Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Salma Hayek HILLARY CLINTON Getty Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Le Bron James HILLARY CLINTON Justin Carissimo Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Hulk Hogan DONALD TRUMP Reuters Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Kid Rock DONALD TRUMP Theo Wargo/Getty Images Who are famous people voting for in the US election? Stacey Dash DONALD TRUMP Kevin Winter/Getty Images With only 5% of eligible overseas voters casting a ballot in the 2012 White House race, the report states the impact this year could be far greater, especially after a major Stop Trump registration drive was launched. Press Association Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Hillary Clinton holds a decisive advantage over Donald Trump in the competition for votes in the electoral college, leading in enough states to put her comfortably over the 270 majority needed to win the presidential election in November, according to a new SurveyMonkey poll of 15 battleground states conducted with The Washington Post. Based on the results from the 15 state surveys, along with assumptions of the likely outcomes in other states that have consistently voted for one party or the other, Clinton, the Democratic nominee, holds leads of four percentage points or more among likely voters in states that add up to 304 electoral votes. Trump, the GOP nominee, has the advantage in states with an estimated electoral vote total of 138. Arizona, Florida, Ohio and Texas, which account for 96 electoral votes, remain as toss-ups. All results in the 15 state surveys are based on ballot tests that include Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson and Green Party nominee Jill Stein. Trump effectively rejects US election result before votes have even been counted The results underscore the importance for Trump of Wednesdays final presidential debate, in Las Vegas. National polls have moved in Clintons direction since the exchanges began in late September. Her current average margin is seven points in polling averages from the Huffington Post Pollster and RealClearPolitics. The most recent Washington Post-ABC News poll put her national lead over Trump at four points. The effect of the shift toward Clinton in national polls is evident in the new 15-state study. In late August, The Post, using SurveyMonkeys online methodology, conducted individual polls in all 50 states among registered voters. At that time, Clinton led in states that added up to 244 electoral votes, while Trump led in states accounting for 126. Toss-up states equaled 168 electoral votes. SurveyMonkey election tracking poll (The Washington Post) The SurveyMonkey surveys also included polls of Senate and gubernatorial races, where applicable, in the same 15 states. The results show two things. First, many Republican Senate candidates are outperforming Trump in their states. Second, that still may not be enough to maintain the GOPs majority in the chamber. Democrats need a net gain of five seats to take outright control of the Senate, four to exercise control if Clinton becomes president. The results showed Democrats with leads of four or more points in three states with GOP incumbents: New Hampshire, North Carolina and Wisconsin. Republican incumbents lead in Florida and Ohio, in the latter by a wide margin. Meanwhile, races in Nevada, for a seat currently held by Democrats, and Pennsylvania, for a seat now in Republican hands, continue to be close. Pennsylvania is emblematic of the problem for GOP Senate incumbents trying to survive in states where Trump is struggling. Clinton leads Trump by six points in Pennsylvania, but the Senate race is even at 47 percent apiece for Republican incumbent Patrick J. Toomey and Democrat Katie McGinty. Illinois was not included in the survey, but based on other polls, its contested Senate seat appears to be one of the likeliest to shift from Republican to Democrat in November. Republicans also are defending seats in Indiana and Missouri, both of which now have highly competitive races but neither of which was included in the 15-state survey. The 2016 campaign has produced apparent shifts in several states battlegrounds and non-battlegrounds that could foreshadow more permanent changes in future elections. Demographic trends have moved several swing states more strongly in the direction of the Democrats Colorado and Virginia are prime examples. (The Washington Post (The Washington Post) States such as Arizona, Georgia and possibly Texas show predicted signs of shifting from traditional GOP strongholds to potential future battlegrounds. The demographic changes would put Republicans at an even greater disadvantage in the future if they cannot find a way to appeal to a changing electorate. At the same time, the electoral map looks somewhat different from past campaigns, owing to the uniqueness of Trumps candidacy the coalition he has attracted and the voters who are repelled by his message and temperament. His relative strength in states with high percentages of non-college graduates and of white voters, such as Iowa and Ohio, is an example of the former. Utah, which has been scrambled this year by Trumps candidacy, is an example of the latter. Utah was not included in the SurveyMonkey analysis. But recent public polls suggest that this traditionally rock-solid Republican state is now a competitive battleground. Trump can hardly afford to lose the states six electoral votes, given his current disadvantage. Overall, the results of the 15-state survey underscore Clintons wider margin for error in the state-by-state competition over the final three weeks of the campaign, as well as the increasingly tortuous path for Trump to cobble together an electoral-college majority. Clinton has many paths to 270; Trump has few. This has been the case for some time, based on all available evidence from state and national polls. Trump now needs a clear shift nationally and then a strategy for converting that into state-by-state victories. Among the states that have moved in Clintons direction since the previous 50-state survey are Colorado, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina and Wisconsin. Of those, the results in Georgia differ from the current average of all recent polls in that state. The Huffpost Pollster average in Georgia gives a Trump a four-point lead, while the SurveyMonkey poll puts Clinton ahead by four points. Texas is another state that, by historical results, should end up in Trumps column. The SurveyMonkey results show the state splitting 44 percent for Trump to 42 percent for Clinton. The average of other public polls shows Trump with a larger, although single-digit, lead there. But with virtually the entire Bush family on the sidelines and with an endorsement of Clinton by the Dallas Morning News, Texas has proved to be a more competitive battleground than anyone expected. The SurveyMonkey results also put Clinton in a stronger position in New Hampshire and North Carolina than other public surveys. Public polls in North Carolina show her with a low single-digit advantage. In New Hampshire, public polls show her ahead but not by the 11-point margin in these findings. None of that negates the obstacles for Trump. If he were to win all the toss-up states, plus hold on to Georgia, which has consistently voted for Republican presidential candidates since 1996, he would still be 20 electoral votes short of the 270 needed to win. Were he to eke out an additional victory in North Carolina, which has 15 electoral votes, that still would not be enough. Trumps campaign has claimed for a long time that, because of his support among white, blue-collar voters, he would be able to make inroads in traditional Democratic territory such as Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The new findings underscore the degree to which he is falling short in those Midwestern battlegrounds. He trails Clinton in Michigan 45 percent to 37 percent, in Pennsylvania 46 percent to 40 percent and in Wisconsin 43 percent to 38 percent. Two states remain among Trumps best among the battlegrounds. He leads Clinton by five points in Iowa and by four points in Nevada, a state where other polls have shown Clinton with a slight edge. In Ohio, the results are Trump at 44 percent and Clinton at 41 percent. But traditionally Republican Arizona is equally close, with Trump at 44 percent and Clinton with 41 percent. In state after state, Trump appears to have a relatively low ceiling to his support. Of the 15 measured, he garners 45 percent in two states and at or below 40 percent in eight. Clintons lowest is 40 percent in Iowa and Nevada, but she is at 45 percent or more in six states, topping out at 49 percent in Virginia. The demographic contours of support for Clinton and Trump show some variance from state to state, but there are consistent patterns, beginning with gender differences. Among women, Clinton leads Trump by four points or more in 14 of the 15 states surveyed. Averaging across all 15 states, her lead over Trump among women is 49 percent to 35 percent. Among men, Trump leads by four points or more in 12 of the 15 states and by 10 points (47 percent to 37 percent) on average across all 15 states. Trump has comfortable leads among white men in all states except New Hampshire, where he and Clinton are tied. Clinton leads by four points or more among white women in Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Trump leads among white women in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Texas. The two are running nearly even among white women in Nevada, Ohio and Virginia. Racial divisions are stark. In Georgia, Trump leads among whites by more than 30 points. Among nonwhites, Clinton leads by just over 70 points. In Michigan and Pennsylvania, whites split almost evenly while nonwhites back Clinton overwhelmingly. In Virginia, Clintons lead of more than 50 points among nonwhites easily overcomes Trumps five-point advantage among white voters. Educational achievement remains a clear dividing line and one of the potential mold-breakers of this campaign. Republicans have generally won the votes of whites with college degrees and those without. This fall, among white voters without college degrees, Trump leads by four points or more in 14 of the 15 states surveyed, most by sizable margins. Clinton, however, leads among whites with college degrees in 12 of the 15 states. Trump leads narrowly among white college graduates in Georgia, and the two are running about even in Florida and Texas. In Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania, Clinton leads Trump by double digits among white voters with college degrees, helping offset losses among those without degrees. In these battlegrounds, Clinton holds a higher percentage of Democrats than Trump holds among Republicans. Averaging across the 15 states, she wins 92 percent of self-identified Democrats while Trump has support from 85 percent of Republicans. Trump leads among independents by six points (38 percent to 32 percent), while Johnson, the libertarian, averages 20 percent among independents. The SurveyMonkey poll was conducted online Oct. 8 to 16 among 17,379 likely voters across 15 states, with between 569 and 1,702 respondents in each state. No margin of sampling error is calculated, as this statistic is applicable only to randomly sampled surveys. The Washington Post Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The third presidential debate before the 2016 election is tonight. Following a slew of allegations of sexual assault against Donald Trump, from more than 12 women and including former Apprentice contestant Summer Zervos, it has been more difficult for the Republican nominee to reassure voters that he has never touched a woman without her consent. The topic of Mr Trumps treatment of women is likely to be a recurring theme at the third debate, as well as the latest batch of Clinton campaign emails which showed her staff boosted friends requests up the chain of command when it came to the lucrative gold rush for government contracts in the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. Recommended Read more How to watch the third and final presidential debate Mr Trump insisted he would appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Ms Clinton as she should be in jail. The debate tonight in Las Vegas will be the candidates final chance to address each other directly and make a plea in front of millions of viewers. Audience figures for the first debate on 26 September hit 100 million. In the front row viewers may spot Malik Obama, the half-brother of president Barack Obama, who is an outspoken Trump supporter. In the second debate, Mr Trump had invited three women - Paula Jones, Juanita Broaddrick, Kathleen Willey - who accused Bill Clinton of sexually assaulting them to sit in the front row. Over the 90-minute debate, starting at 9pm ET at the University of Nevada, both camps are likely to throw pointed barbs, interrupt each other and swing insults, moderated by Fox News anchor Chris Wallace. Here are five things to look out for tonight: Whining about a rigged election President Barack Obama said that Mr Trump should stop whining that the election is rigged in Ms Clintons favour and make his case to voters. Electrion fraud is not a new theme - Mr Trump has long evoked Bernie Sanders, who made similar claims before he quit the race in July and endorsed Ms Clinton. But Mr Trumps insisting the system is set up against him has gathered fuel as he has lost support in the polls. Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren said at a rally in Denver that she agreed the election was rigged - in favour of the Donald Trumps and the billionaires of the world. Trump Slams 'Rigged' Delegate System Meeting and greeting Ms Clinton and Mr Trumps behaviour towards each other is always under close scrutiny. At the second debate, the candidates did not shake hands before the session, but shook hands afterwards. Her daughter, Chelsea, chose not to shake hands with her mothers opponents family. Bill Clinton, however, may have taken the Trump family by surprise when he smiled at and shook hands with the children and Melania Trump. Donald Trump holds pre-debate press conference with Bill Clinton sexual abuse accusers Mr Trumps treatment of women The subject seems unavoidable at this point, as the raft of allegations against him continue to gain weight in terms of both the number of accusations and the impact it is having among voters. Mr Trump has denied all of the allegations and is likely to continue to do so. He said at a recent rally that the women were sick and he did not know most of his accusers. His wife, Melania Trump, told CNN that the media and Clinton supporters were conspiring to invent negative stories about her husband. Look out also for where Mr Trump stands and sits during the debate - will he continue to loom over Ms Clinton while she talks? Trump stalks Clinton in SNL sketch Ms Clintons emails The investigation over Ms Clintons misuse of her personal email server during her tenure as secretary of state is now closed and Ms Clinton has been cleared of any criminal charges. But the controversy still resonates among many voters, prompting them to think of the Democrat as untrustworthy. Fox News anchor Chris Wallace is also likely to mention the scandal in some way, highlighting favours for friends, foreign donors to the Clinton foundation and the exposed attempt to smear Bernie Sanders when he was still in the race. Second Presidential Debate in 90 Seconds More compliments? The final question at the second debate - did the candidates have anything nice to say about each other? - took everyone by surprise and caused Ms Clinton to laugh heartily. She praised her rivals children while Mr Trump said that Ms Clinton was a fighter and didnt quit. Who knows if they will sweep aside the insults at the final debate and perhaps even wish each other all the best. Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Three weeks before Britons went to the polls to decide whether or not to leave the European Union, Donald Trump had what might now be called an Aleppo moment, in honor of Gary Johnson. Trump was being interviewed by The Hollywood Reporter on June 1 when he was asked his position on Brexit, as the referendum is commonly known. Huh? Trump replied. Brexit, the interviewer prompted. Hmm, Trump answered. Eventually, Trump said that he was in support of Britain leaving the union, and on June 23, that's how the country voted. Shortly afterward, Trump bragged about how he'd called the vote. Nowadays, though, Trump talks about Brexit for another reason. There's a commonly understood argument that polling before the Brexit vote showed the Remain side by a wide margin, only to see a huge populist surge turn out on Election Day to vote Leave, which carried the day. To Trump, who's currently trailing Hillary Clinton by one of the widest margins he's seen in the RealClearPolitics polling average, that's an appealing idea. Maybe the same thing will happen here: A nationalist base will rush to vote Trump and, once again, those idiot polls will be proven wrong. Trump has at times asked that he be called Mr. Brexit, the human embodiment of that thing that didn't immediately click when he was asked about it on June 1. There's just one little problem, as FiveThirtyEight's Harry Enten points out: That's not what the polls showed. Over the last three months of the campaign, polling showed Leave gaining ground against Remain until the two sides were about tied in mid-June. The Financial Times compiled polling, from which we can make a handy little chart. (The Washington Post (The Washington Post) The Financial Times's running average by June 23 had Remain at 48 percent and Leave at 46 percent, with 6 percent undecided. On June 22, six polls came out, with Remain leading in four. There are fewer polls in the FT's tally than in Enten's, but the effect is the same: 16 Leave wins to 14 Remain wins. In April, Remain lead in twice as many polls as Leave. The final vote was Remain, 48 percent, Leave, 52 - a bit wider than polling would have suggested, but hardly the sort of poll nightmare that has been presented by Trump and his supporters. Perhaps Trump should think about calling himself Mr. Michigan instead. In the Democratic primary in the state this year, polls consistently showed Hillary Clinton leading Bernie Sanders by over 20 points. Sanders won by 2 points. The giant miss was in part a function of bad turnout estimates thanks to the weird way in which the 2008 primary in the state was run. But it was a huge miss of the sort that renewed all sorts of polls are bad talk, particularly among Sanders supporters. But that poll was the exception, not the norm. Brexit's polls were more like the norm. It was a close race coming into the final vote, and it seems like a turnout surge did contribute to the difference. Betting markets saw it differently, giving Remain a wide margin a week right before the actual vote. But betting markets aren't polls. If this is another Brexit, as Trump said on Tuesday, that suggests that we should assume that the results will wind up in the margin of error and that, therefore, Donald Trump is poised to lose. A weird pitch for him to make in front of his own supporters, but kudos to him for his honesty. The Washington Post Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} An unshackled Donald Trump is barreling down the final stretch of the campaign, making bold and unsubstantiated claims about voter fraud and rigged elections the centerpiece of his closing arguments to American voters. While Trump is light on the specifics of how this alleged election-rigging works, it seems to involve some combination of media bias and official complicity running all the way from precinct ballot boxes to the director of the FBI. The truth of the matter is that lawmakers already have numerous legal options at their disposal for tipping the scales of democracy in one direction or another. Changing the composition of the electorate - by enacting restrictions on who can vote, or at what times, or on the ID required to fill out a ballot - are one way to do this. But lawmakers can also change the way that votes translate into political representation by changing the geography of political districts to beef up their parties' representation in state and federal legislatures. The official term for this is gerrymandering - drawing political boundaries to give your party a numeric advantage over the opposition. Here's how it works, in simplified, abstract terms: (The Washington Post (The Washington Post) Say you have the 50 people represented by the red and blue squares above. Depending on how you draw the lines, you can set up legislative boundaries that either closely represent the red/blue party split (first example), hand all the seats over to the blue party (second example), or hand a majority of seats to the red party, even though they make up only 40 percent of voters (third example). You can learn more about it here. In practical terms, gerrymandering can have very real effects on the composition of legislatures. The most famous recent example of this is the 2012 election. That year, Democratic candidates for US House seats earned about 1.2 million votes more than Republican candidates did across the nation. You might reasonably infer that those results would produce a majority-Democratic US House. But they didn't. In fact, Republicans won 33 more seats in the House than the Democrats did. To put it another way, Republicans won 49 percent of the popular House vote, but 54 percent of the seats. Many people blamed this on the redrawing of the House legislative districts following the 2010 census. In 2011 and 2012, when this redistricting happened, a majority of state legislatures were under Republican control. You can see the net effect of this in the chart below. For each state, it plots the difference between the actual and expected number of US House seats held by Democrats in each state, based on the share of the state's popular House vote that went to Democrats. Negative values indicate states where Democrats ended up with a smaller percentage of seats than their statewide vote share would suggest. Positive values indicate a Democratic advantage relative to vote share. The colors of the bars represent whether Democrats (blue) or Republicans (red) controlled state government in 2012. Data source: Federal Election Commission, New York Times (The Washington Post) So in Pennsylvania, all the way on the left side of the chart, you can see that Democrats received 4 fewer seats in the House than their popular vote totals would suggest. In Pennsylvania, Democratic House candidates received a total of 51 percent of the popular House vote. But because of the way Pennsylvania's district's are drawn, Democrats only won five out of the state's 18 seats in the House. You see similar Democratic disadvantages in places like Ohio, North Carolina, Texas and Michigan. Those states have one thing in common: They were all under the control of Republicans in 2012. Gerrymandering isn't a one-way street, either. You can see on the right side of the chart, where boundaries drawn by Democratically controlled states yielded much larger seat totals than expected based on the popular vote numbers. But overall, Republicans had the upper hand in redistricting efforts following the 2010 census. And the composition of the House in 2012 reflected that. A cynic might call such an outcome rigged. The 2014 House election was a different story. Democratic voters are less likely to turn out in midterm elections, giving Republicans a natural advantage. In 2014, Democratic House candidates received 45 percent of the overall vote and won about 43 percent of the seats. The overall composition of the House didn't change much. One step toward fixing the issue would be to appoint independent commissions to redraw congressional districts, rather than letting the parties do it. Some western states do this already. But independent commissions still leave the door open to human bias creeping in. An even better solution would be to hand the task of redistricting over to algorithms that can redraw equal-population districts according to simple and straightforward criteria, such as geographical compactness. (The Washington Post (The Washington Post) People have already worked out what this would look like. Compactness isn't a perfect metric, of course. Boundaries will always have to be drawn somewhere, and that somewhere could arbitrarily fall across a neighborhood, geographic area, or community of similarly minded individuals. But our current redistricting system produces serpentine boundaries that are far more arbitrary and capricious. Even worse, they're often drawn with the express intent of favoring one political party over another. Computer redistricting could, by definition, eliminate the all-too-human bias that often creeps into the process. That could go a long way toward restoring peoples' confidence that the system is working for them and that they are picking their legislators, rather than the other way around. So yes, there is a very true sense in which certain election outcomes could be rigged this year. But not at all in the way Trump is suggesting. The Washington Post Sign up to our free fortnightly newsletter from The Independent's Race Correspondent Nadine White Sign up to our free fortnightly newsletter The Race Report Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Race Report email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A man has been sentenced for pulling off a Muslim womans hijab and shouting this is America on a flight. Gill Parker Payne, from Chicago, was fined 815 and ordered to a years probation including two months of home detention. The 37-year-old admitted saying something to the effect of take it off! This is America while flying between Chicago to Albuquerque in New Mexico. According to the Albuquerque Journal, US attorney Damon P. Martinez said: The case sends a clear message to anyone who contemplates the use of threats or intimidation to interfere with the right of individuals, including members of our Muslim community, to express their faith without fear. Payne was sitting a few rows behind victim Khawla Abdel-Haq on the Southwest Airlines flight in December 2015. Payne admitted in a statement: I stopped next to her seat, looked down at K.A., and told her to take off her hijab, stating something to the effect of take if off! This is America. The court heard Ms Abdel-Haq was scared to leave her home for weeks after the in-flight tirade. She said at the sentencing on Tuesday: You hurt me, you disrespected me, you violated me. An apologetic Payne said he was drunk on the flight, and has since visited a mosque, adding: Im embarrassed. Im 100 per cent embarrassed. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A man who was injected with the HIV virus as an infant child by his father has defied the expectations of doctors to live to the age of 25, and says he is healthy as a horse. Brryan Jackson from Missouri was 11 months old when his father Brian Stewart, who worked as a blood tester at a local laboratory, injected him with the virus, after becoming convinced he was not Brryans real father. Stewart began denying Mr Jackson was his child after serving in the naval reserves in Saudi Arabia, demanding DNA tests as proof of paternity, and allegedly became verbally and physically abusive towards Jackson's mother in 1992. The father allegedly told Mr Jacksons mother your childs not going to live beyond the age of five and refused to pay child support, before injecting HIV into his sons bloodstream during a visit to hospital in attempt to kill him. Mr Jacksons health deteriorated rapidly and he began to suffer from a range of HIV-associated infections, although he was not officially diagnosed with the virus until the age of five. Doctors described his condition as "full-blown Aids" and sent him home with medicine. He says his entire childhood was lived "one day at a time", and he was given five months to live after his initial diagnosis. Meanwhile, suspicions over Mr Stewart's involvement were raised and he was taken in for questioning. By the age of seven, Mr Jackson was forced to take 23 oral medicines, had swollen liver and developed a very severe fever - at which point doctors believed he would only survive for a matter of hours. Mr Jackson said having the disease led to him being severely bullied and alienated at school. I felt like there was no place in the world for me," he said but added that suspicious parents were more to blame for his isolation than their children. "He didn't just try to kill me, he changed my life forever, he told BBC News. He was responsible for the bullying, he was responsible for all the years in hospital. He's the reason I have to be so conscious about my health and what I do." 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 His father was given a life prison sentence in 1998, and in July this year Mr Jackson read out a statement at his parole hearing, saying he felt he had no connection to the man who had almost killed him. Mr Stewart was denied parole for a further five years. After almost two decades of treatment, Mr Jackson now has a high T-cell count, meaning his HIV status is now registered as undetectable. He hopes to one day become a father himself through the process of sperm washing, which prevents the virus being transmitted. Mr Jackson now travels the world as a motivational speaker, and said he has used his story to inspire others. "I'm as healthy as a horse! Healthier than a horse! I am beyond that! I might be slightly chunky, but I'd still consider myself a good athlete," he added. "I still have AIDS, though. Once an HIV diagnosis, always an HIV diagnosis." Accordingly, local people must carry out environmental hygiene activities after heavy rain and flood; use powdered lime or chemicals when burying dead animals to avoid infectious epidemics; and coordinate with the health sector to spray chemicals to exterminate disease-transmitting insects in danger areas. Earlier, the Ministry of Health requested local provincial health departments in the central region and its units to implement remedial actions to deal with the floods, while ensuring sanitation and food safety in places which have gone through flooding and enhancing post-flood disease prevention. Medical units were urged to closely coordinate with functional forces to support victims affected by the flood and provide necessities, medicines and sanitation chemicals for locals, while guiding residents in flood-stricken areas in maintaining sanitation, disinfecting water and preventing infectious diseases. On the same day the ministry sent an official request to its medical businesses to provide Quang Binh, Ha Tinh, Nghe An and Thanh Hoa provinces each 125 life jackets, 200 lifebuoys, two life float rafts, antivirals, and 100,000 Chloramine B disinfection capsules./. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Jonah Peretti, BuzzFeeds CEO, questioned Ivanka Trumps reaction to her fathers lewd comments by tweeting a story involving mulatto cocks on Wednesday afternoon. Surprised Ivanka would be shocked by lewd language. I met her once & she casually said: I've never seen a mulatto cock, but I'd like to! Ivanka, Donald Trumps eldest daughter, recently said that she was shocked by her fathers comments in the leaked audio from 2005 where he bragged about grabbing womens genitals without permission. Thats not language consistent with any conversation Ive ever had with him, certainly, or any conversation Ive overheard, she explained at Fortunes Most Powerful Women Summit. So it was a bit jarring for me to hear. Mr Peretti claims the conversation took place at a Manhattan dive bar nearly 10 years ago with at least five others present. She was saying how she first said she had never seen an uncircumcised cock, he told BuzzFeed News, and then she said, Ive never seen a mulatto cock. Theres lots of cocks Ive never seen, or something like that. Of course, it was memorable just because of the use of the lewd language and racist language," he explained. "It was also memorable being in the environment of being in New York, sometimes liberal and progressive people make comments meant as jokes and not necessarily earnest. I didnt know how to take it. Andrea Harner, Mr Peretti's wife, supported her husband's claims. She told the news outlet, I was there and did hear it but have no comment beyond that. Ms Trump has since denied the accuracy of the story, "I am not sure if this was meant to be a joke, but in case there is any ambiguity, this is a complete and total lie." Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Four students, three males and one female, were injured in a shootout near the City Arts and Technology High School and the June Jordan School for Equity, authorities with the San Francisco Police Department announced on Tuesday. The 15-year-old female victim was shot in her upper extremities and is listed in critical condition. Shes currently fighting for her life at the San Francisco General Hospital. Both male students are recovering from non-life threatening injuries after they were shot in the lower extremities. Witnesses reported the gunfire just at 3:20pm just as the schools were being dismissed. Police are currently searching for four male suspects in connection with the shooting. Fernando Rodriguez, a 16-year-old junior at June Jordan, told The San Francisco Gate that the entire incident was terrifying." The famous for and against US gun control Show all 31 1 /31 The famous for and against US gun control The famous for and against US gun control Against: Robert De Niro Despite the actor being a gun-wielding fast-talker, he told Daily Mail: "There should be more control. It has just gotten out of hand, how easily you can get guns." The famous for and against US gun control For: Brad Pitt "America is founded on guns. It;s in out DNA. Its very strange but I feel better having a gun." Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control For: Angelina Jolie "Brad and I are not against having a gun in the house, and we do have one. If anybody comes into my home and tries to hurt my kids, Ive no problem shooting them." AFP/Getty The famous for and against US gun control For: Johnny Depp "When I was a kid it was a controlled atmosphere, we weren't shooting at humans - we were shooting at cans and bottles mostly. I will most certainly take my kids out for target practice." Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control For: Bruce Willis "Everyone has a right to bear arms. If you take guns away from legal gun owners, then the only people who have guns are the bad guys." Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control For: Clint Eastwood "I have a very strict gun control policy: if there's a gun around, I want to be in control of it." Reuters The famous for and against US gun control For: Whoopi Goldberg "Im an NRA member, as you know or probably dont know... I want to know that theres at least some way to prevent folks who are just getting out from mental institutions [from getting guns]." The famous for and against US gun control For: Vince Vaughn "Banning guns is like banning forks in an attempt to stop making people fat. Taking away guns, taking away drugs, the booze, it won't rid the world of criminality... I support people having a gun in public full stop, not just in your home." Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control For: Donald Trump "Democrats want to confiscate all guns, which is a dumb idea because only the law-abiding citizens would turn in their guns and the bad guys would be the only ones left armed. The Republicans walk the NRA line and refuse even limited restrictions" Getty The famous for and against US gun control Against: Matt Damon I actually hate guns. They freak me out. Rex The famous for and against US gun control Against: Mark Wahlberg "Well, I would love it if they could take all the guns away. Unfortunately, you cant do that so you hope that good people in the world have them to protect the people who cant protect themselves." AP The famous for and against US gun control Against: Sean Connery "It is said that a total ban on handguns, including .22s, would take away innocent pleasure from thousands of people. Is that more or less pleasure than watching your child grow up?" Rex Features The famous for and against US gun control Against: Arnold Schwarzenegger "Im for gun control. Im a peace-loving guy." Lionsgate The famous for and against US gun control Against: Sylvester Stallone "Until America, door to door, takes every handgun, this is what youre gonna have. Its pathetic. It really is pathetic. Its sad. Were living in the Dark Ages over there." Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control Against: Rashida Jones "Gun control is our only road to freedom. Freedom from the fear of senselessly losing children." Getty The famous for and against US gun control Against: Susan Sarandon "How much more suffering & loss will it take before we better regulate the sale of arms in our country?" Getty The famous for and against US gun control Against: Beyonce Queen B was part of the Demand a Plan campaign against guns after Newton shooting, by appearing in a video alongside a bunch of celebrities. AP The famous for and against US gun control Against: Jamie Foxx A Hollywood gang joined Beyonce in the campaign... GETTY IMAGES The famous for and against US gun control Against: Cameron Diaz Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign. Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control Against: Jessica Alba Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign. Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control Against: Jennifer Garner Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign. Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control Against: Jennifer Aniston Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign. Jason Merritt | Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control Against: Jon Hamm The Mad Men actor also appeared in the video... The famous for and against US gun control Against: Reese Witherspoon Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign. Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control Against: Ellen DeGeneres Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign. Reuters The famous for and against US gun control Against: Julianne Moore Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign. The famous for and against US gun control Against: Selena Gomez Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign. GETTY IMAGES The famous for and against US gun control Against: Peter Dinklage The Game of Thrones also appeared in the video... Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control Against: Zooey Deschanel alongside the New Girl star. Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control Against: Steve Carell Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign. Getty Images The famous for and against US gun control Against: Gwyneth Paltrow Took part in the Demand a Plan campaign, too. June Jordan was placed on lockdown for over an hour as police secured the area and searched for evidence. Authorities told the news outlet that they believe at least one of the victims was being targeted by the assailants. SFPD also announced that the school will open as planned on Wednesday and students will be offered counseling sessions. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Hillary Clinton has won the White House and the sighs of relief are echoing around the world. But on to business, how will the newly annointed President Clinton approach the subject of global trade? This will be one of the most closely watched storylines of the early part of her term of office. The minutiae of international trade agreements is hardly a sexy subject but the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership (TTIP) have become the subjects of fierce debate in the US all the same. They will remain so even if the defeat of Donald Trump has brought an end to his threats to torch existing deals such as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Trade deals are at the centre of a fault line in American politics that cuts across both main parties. In her heart of hearts, President Clinton is a supporter of free trade, and of the multi-national agreements between countries that make it happen, like the aforementioned. She said as much in her memoir Hard Choices and she played a key role the administration of her husband that ratified the much criticised NAFTA. She was a supporter of the TPP prior to the rise of Senator Bernie Sanders, who pushed her close during the primaries, partly on the back of the opposition to it and similar deals in Americas rust belt. Clinton is also a supporter of exporting American power alongside American goods and supporters of the TPP say it, and other deals of its type, do that. The 12 country agreement, if ratified, will be the biggest regional free trade deal yet to be finalised. Its advocates argue that it will stimulate economic growth, create more jobs than it displaces, and also cement an American approach to trade and business in one of the worlds most economically dynamic regions. As opposed to, say, the Chinese way of doing things. China, despite what Donald Trump insinuated during the campaign, is not part of the deal although it might at some stage join. President Obama, another strong advocate, will nonetheless struggle to get ratification of the TPP through the lame duck session Congress prior to the transfer of power in the face opposition from both sides of the aisle. Speaker Paul Ryan had refused to countenance what he considered to be a pointless vote during the election campaign. The arithmetic of the new Congress is more favourable to Clinton. Will she be able get it through? Will she even try after going cold on the deal during the campaign? The success of Sanders is partly responsible for that. He remains a fierce opponent of the TPP and of the TTIP, and he isnt going anywhere. He will not be sidelined by taking a relatively low profile job in the Clinton cabinet and is free to make trouble now the threat of Trump has been dealt with. Whether she can face him down depends on whether President Clinton feels strong enough to pivot again. She will face pressure to do so. Many of her influential supporters, and more to the point, many of her influential donors, are enthusiastic backers of the TPP. Clintons campaign benefitted from a flood of Wall Street money, and Wall Street wants the agreement ratified. Much of corporate American shares that view. E-mails published by Wikileaks have demonstrated the struggles the Clinton campaign had with the issue. Jimmy Dore, speaking on The Young Turks, the liberal online news network, has said that he thinks the e-mails show how she will ratify the TPP and perhaps the TTIP after it. Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Show all 15 1 /15 Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Andrew Harnik/AP Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Darren McCollester/Getty Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Mary Schwalm/Reuters Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Brian Snyder/Reuters Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Brian Snyder/Reuters Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Brian Snyder/Reuters Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Brian Snyder/Reuters Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Brian Snyder/Reuters Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Andrew Harnik/AP Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Andrew Harnik/AP Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Darren McCollester/Getty Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Andrew Harnik/AP Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Andrew Harnik/AP Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Andrew Harnik/AP Bernie Sanders campaigns with Hillary Clinton Andrew Harnik/AP If it meets three tests: That it will help the middle class, create more jobs than it displaces, and strengthen Americas national security she could make the case for signing. If the TPP meets these three tests shell endorse it, Dore predicted. Theyre telling you right now how Hilary Clinton will come around to pass it and this is the criteria shell use. Given Clintons history, and her natural inclinations, hes probably right. Clinton is going to do her damnedest to find a way to sign up. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump went head-to-head on Wednesday night in the third and final debate before the election. The stakes were certainly high for Mr Trump who defended himself against the nine women accusing him of sexual assault. Please wait a moment for the live blog to load. When is the debate? The debate runs from 9:00pm to 10:30pm Eastern time on Wednesday at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. How can I watch it? Major television networks including C-SPAN, Sky, BBC, NBC, PBS and Fox News will air the debate. Who is moderating? Fox News anchor Chris Wallace will be hosting the debate. Mr Wallace has a reputation for taking a combative approach to both Republicans and Democrats. He has interviewed President Obama multiple times and is well known for his aggressive 2006 interview with Bill Clinton, where he repeatedly questioned him about whether he had done enough to capture Osama Bin Laden. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} President Barack Obamas half-brother Malik will attend the third and final presidential debate on Wednesday night as a guest of the Republican nominee Donald Trump. Malik told The New York Post on Tuesday night that hes excited to be joining Mr Trump and that he still supports his bid to the White House. I look very much forward to meeting and being with Malik, Mr Trump told the outlet. He gets it far better than his brother. The 58-year-old, who lives in Washington DC when he isnt visiting Kenya, says that he doesnt believe the many women accusing Mr Trump of sexual assault. He even questioned, Why didnt they come forward before? Malik is also a critic of the mainstream media and Hillary Clintons performance at the State Department. He says that the former Libyan leader Moammar Khadafy is a good friend of his, Check out the situation in Libya now. The third debate before the general election will take place at 9:00pm Eastern on Wednesday from the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A US politician has revealed she was raped in college to condemn Donald Trumps "predatory" comments about women. South Dakota's Democrat House of Representatives nominee Paula Hawks told how she was raped by a person in a position of authority in 1995, in an essay published on the website Medium. Ms Hawks said she didn't report the assault to police as she didn't want to have to repeatedly relive the experience, and at the time didn't want her friends and family to know. I was raped in college. Sexually assaulted by a person in a position of authority, when I listened to the audio from Trump bragging about what he could do to women because of wealth and fame, it hit me extremely hard, Ms Hawks wrote. Never in a million years did I think I would feel comfortable talking about this publicly. But then, I didnt think wed ever have a presidential candidate bragging about sexual assault. Nor did I expect to witness the number of people ready and willing to excuse his behavior. She continued saying she believed there were certain lines in society that should not be crossed, including supporting a sexual predator. A man who brags about sexual assault is a man incapable of leadership. Those enabling him have already proven they cannot hold him responsible for the most reprehensible of acts. If we condone this behavior in our most important elected office, we enable it in our workplaces and at our colleges, she wrote. What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? Show all 8 1 /8 What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On the leaked tape from 2005 where he talks about sexually assaulting women I'm very embarrassed by it, I hate it, but it's locker room talk. It's one of those things. I will knock the hell out of Isis Getty What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On Hillary Clinton I hate to say it but if I win I'm going to instruct my attorney general to get a special prosecutor to look into your situation. There has never been so many lies, so much deception. You ought to be ashamed of yourself. Rex What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On Bill Clinton What he's done to women, there's never been anybody in the history of politics in this nation that's been so abusive to women. AP What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On whether his alleged opposition to Iraq War had been disproven "Its not debunked. Its not debunked." Getty What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On exploiting tax loopholes "I absolutely used it, and so did Warren Buffett, and so did George Soros and so did many people who Hillary is getting money from." Getty What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On claims he's sexist I have great respect for women. Nobody has more respect for women than I do. Reuters What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On what he respects about Hillary Clinton I will say this about Hillary - she doesn't quit, she doesn't give up. I tell it like it is. She's a fighter. Reuters What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On his controversial immigration policies "Its called extreme vetting. Were going to areas like Syria, where they are coming in by the tens of thousands because of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton wanting to allow a 550 per cent increase [of refugees] over Obama. People are coming into this country. We have no idea who they are, where they are from and what their feelings are about this country." Getty Sexual assault is real. Rape is real. We need to pay attention to these stories. When we talk about the dysfunction in our country, I think we need to start by setting some basic standards for ourselves, for our political parties, for the people we support. We are role models and we should strive to be good ones. The example we set does matter. It should matter. Ms Hawks' Republican House rival, Kristi Noem has publicly declared her support for Mr Trump, despite his comments in a 2005 tape that heard him discussing kissing and grabbing women by their "p*ssy". On Tuesday, Ms Noem said she was heartbroken by what happened to Ms Hawks but maintained her backing of the Republican's campaign for president, claiming the actions of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton disqualified her for the presidency. Recommended Read more Donald Trump is directly contributing to rape culture In October, The Washington Post published audio of a 2005 conversation in which the real estate mogul said he could do anything he wanted to women because he was famous. Mr Trump, who was wearing a hot mic, insisted the claims were just locker room talk however, more than 10 women have since shared their experiences of being kissed, groped or assaulted by the Republican. Mr Trump has strongly denied all of the claims, saying he did not know most of the women in question and accused them of wanting publicity. Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Get set for a bonfire of the trade deals as President Donald Trump keeps his promises over one of the few policy areas about which he has shown any consistency. His shock victory sounds the death knell for the Transpacific Trade Partnership, which was to have been the biggest regional free trade agreement in history, and the biggest trade deal struck since the 1994 completion of the Uruguay Round of the GATT world trade talks that created the World Trade Organisation. Intended to stitch 12 countries into a free trade area, and secure an American style approach to their future dealings, its ratification before the transfer of power has been one of the key goals of the outgoing Obama administration, which has expended a huge amount of energy to that end. That won't now happen, not even in the lame duck succession of Congress before President Trump enters the Oval Office. Speaker Paul Ryan had ruled out a vote before his election. While he said he favoured a deal, albeit with some tweaks, he also said that we just dont have the votes to pass the measure. There is no chance of a change of heart now. He needs to mend fences with Trump, who angrily attacked Ryan for his lack of loyalty during the campaign. The Trump administration will thus be free to consign the TPP to the dustbin of history, unless it can secure a multiple concessions from the other signatories, which include Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malyasia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vitenam, and the incoming Presidents favourite whipping boy Mexico. The same is almost certainly true of the Transatlantic Trade & Investment Parntership - or TTIP - with the European Union, on which talks started in 2013. With tensions already high as a result of European tax demands levied against American multinationals such as Apple, and the mega-fines levied on European banks imposed by American regulators on the other side, the talks were already in trouble before the election of a President whose campaign was characterised by the bellicose cry of America First Trumps election will likely see it indefinitely stalled if not actually scrapped. One potential beneficiary is the UK. Post Brexit, it has been promised a free trade deal before any European agreement is signed, which may be of some comfort to the Conservative Brexiteers who will lead negotiations. Not that they should be under any illusions. They cant expect too many favours from the Trump team when they sit down to negotiate that deal. Also on the agenda is a withdrawal from NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Area, promised by Trump to protect American manufacturing jobs from moving south of the border to Mexico. Other deals, too, are under threat if Americas co-signatories refuse to renegotiate them in Americas favour. It is possible that the incoming Trump administration may soften its tone in relation to other policy areas, where they have been mapped out. Trump has proved more than willing to flip flop when it suits him. His supporters have proved more than willing to forgive him for doing so. What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? Show all 8 1 /8 What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On the leaked tape from 2005 where he talks about sexually assaulting women I'm very embarrassed by it, I hate it, but it's locker room talk. It's one of those things. I will knock the hell out of Isis Getty What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On Hillary Clinton I hate to say it but if I win I'm going to instruct my attorney general to get a special prosecutor to look into your situation. There has never been so many lies, so much deception. You ought to be ashamed of yourself. Rex What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On Bill Clinton What he's done to women, there's never been anybody in the history of politics in this nation that's been so abusive to women. AP What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On whether his alleged opposition to Iraq War had been disproven "Its not debunked. Its not debunked." Getty What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On exploiting tax loopholes "I absolutely used it, and so did Warren Buffett, and so did George Soros and so did many people who Hillary is getting money from." Getty What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On claims he's sexist I have great respect for women. Nobody has more respect for women than I do. Reuters What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On what he respects about Hillary Clinton I will say this about Hillary - she doesn't quit, she doesn't give up. I tell it like it is. She's a fighter. Reuters What did Donald Trump say during the second presidential debate? On his controversial immigration policies "Its called extreme vetting. Were going to areas like Syria, where they are coming in by the tens of thousands because of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton wanting to allow a 550 per cent increase [of refugees] over Obama. People are coming into this country. We have no idea who they are, where they are from and what their feelings are about this country." Getty This is unlikely when it comes to trade deals. They were Trump bugbears before he started his quixotic run for the White House. The promise to act upon them was a central plank of his campaign. Moreover, taking a hard line will help Trump to stomp on the legacy of the hated Obama administration and solidify his coalition, which drew in some former Democratic supporters of Bernie Sanders. The only common ground between the latter and Trump is their mutual opposition to trade deals. Historians may now come to see the Obama administration as the high watermark of the free trade era. Not the former host of the American Apprentice has been elected its fired. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Vogue magazine has endorsed Hillary Clinton for US president, the first time in its 124-year history that it has openly supported a politician. In an op-ed, the fashion magazine said never before has it spoken in favour of one candidate, although editors have made their opinions known from time to time. Given the profound stakes of this one, and the history that stands to be made, we feel that should change, it read. Recommended Read more Arizona newspaper gets death threats for endorsing Hillary Clinton Ms Clinton has been profiled six times in the magazine, and Vogue has enthusiastically covered her rise from a Yale law student to governors wife, to first lady of the US to senator and then secretary of state. Vogue said it had also featured Donald Trump, his wives and daughter Ivanka several times. We understand that Clinton has not always been a perfect candidate, yet her fierce intelligence and considerable experience are reflected in policies and positions that are clear, sound, and hopeful, the op-ed read. The article reasoned that Ms Clinton had fought for immigration reform, racial justice and policy reform. Her years as Secretary of State have shown that she understands how to strengthen alliances abroad, respond to global crises, and continue American leadership in the world. She is forceful in her support for LGBTQ rights, including an end to discrimination against transgender people. She knows the challenges working women face. Her tax proposals and commitment to infrastructure investment will be a boon to the middle class. She will continue the important work on health-care reform begun by President Obama. She is a sane voice on guns. Vogue also said the words "Madam President" gave "hope", as it has been almost a century since women got the right to vote. The magazine was founded in 1892 and current editor, Anna Wintour, took the reigns in July 1988. It has made waves over the years by placing black models on the cover before other magazines did and featuring an entire British issue in October with no models. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Chemical castration could reduce sex crimes and "wipe out" paedophilia in Indonesia, the country's president has said. Earlier this month, Jakarta introduced harsh new laws including minimum sentences, chemical castratoin and possible execution for paedophiles. The legislaiton was proposed by the president after the brutal gang rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl. "Our constitution respects human rights, but when it comes to sexual crimes there is no compromise," President Joko Widodo told the BBC. "We are strong and we have to be very firm. We will hand out the maximum penalty for sexual crimes. This will not be compromised." Indonesia to execute 14 drug convicts despite protests When asked what evidence there is chemical castration works with sex offenders by presenter Yalda Hakim, Mr Widodo said: "In my opinion... chemical castration, if we enforce it consistently, will reduce sex crimes and wipe them out over time." The law has been criticised by the Indonesian Doctors Association, which said its members would refuse to administer chemical castration as it is a violation of its medical ethics. "That's fine if doctors don't want to do it," Mr Widodo said. "We can use other doctors. We could use military doctors." He added: "There are lots of people who want to do it. That's not a problem." Bali Nine pair executed Show all 22 1 /22 Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed People attend a vigil for the prisoners to be executed in Indonesia at Martin Place on April 28 Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Crosses for condemned drug convicts (from L-R) Australians Andrew Chan (L) and Myuran Sukumaran (C), and Nigerian Okwudili Oyatanze AFP/Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Brintha Sukumaran, a sister of Australian death row prisoner Myuran Sukumaran's screams as she arrives to see him for a final time Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Brintha Sukumaran, the sister of Myuran Sukumaran, cries during her final visit to see him in prison on 28 April AP Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Michael Chan, brother of Australian drug convict and death row prisoner Andrew Chan, arrives at Nusakambangan island on 28 April AFP/Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed The back of a painting by Australian death-row prisoner Myuran Sukumaran is shown, signed by the eight other condemned people EPA Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed A lawyer carries a painting by Myuran Sukumaran at Wijayapura port in Cilacap on 28 April Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed A woman places a tribute on a flower wall that reads '#keephopealive' as part of an Amnesty international vigil for the pair Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed People at a vigil in Sydney on 27 April against the execution of Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran Amnesty International/Sitthixay Ditthavong. Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Activists hold a banner during a protest in front of the Indonesian embassy in Manila on April 27, 2015 AFP/Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed The lawyer for Australian death row inmates Myuran Sukumaran carries a painting after visiting Indonesia's Nusakambangan island on April 26 AFP/Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed A lawyer carries a self-portrait drawn by Myuran Sukumaran after visiting the prison island of Nusakambangan on 27 April AP Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Workers load coffins into a lorry ahead of the execution of nine prisoners in Indonesia Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Indonesian soldiers stand as guard at Wijayapura port near the prison island of Nusa Kambangan on Monday Reuters Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Chintu Sukumaran (L), brother of Myuran Sukumaran, stands next to Michael Chan, brother of Andrew Chan in Indonesia on 26 April, 2015 Reuters Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Raji Sukumaran (R) and Brintha Sukumaran (L) family members of death-row prisoner Myuran Sukumaran cries as they talks to media after visiting Myuran at Kerobokan Prison in Bali, Indonesia EPA/MADE NAGI Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Indonesian police stand guard as the Bali Nine duo Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran arrive at Wijaya Pura Port where they will be transferred to Nusa Kambangan prison ahead of their execution in Cilacap, Central Java, Indonesia Getty Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Halen Chan, the mother of death-row prisoner Andrew Chan, wipes away tears during a press conference in Jakarta, Indonesia EPA/MAST IRHAM Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Andrew Chan, right, and Myuran Sukumaran, centre, talking to their lawyer EPA Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, the two members of the Bali nine who could be executed within days, appear at court in 2006 Jason Childs/Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Two Australian drug traffickers Andrew Chan (L) and Myuran Sukumaran (R) were sentenced as the ringleaders of the "Bali Nine" drug ring in 2006 JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images Bali Nine pair executed Bali Nine pair due to be executed Myuran Sukumaran is due to be executed EPA He said if the court hands out the punishment of chemical castration, then "we will carry it out," saying military doctors or government doctors could carry out the procedure. Chemical castration of paedophiles is already practiced in several countries, including Poland, Turkey, South Korea, Russia and some parts of the US. In the UK, convicted paedophiles can undergo the procedure voluntarily. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Indonesia's capital has launched a city-wide rat hunt offering 1.20 for each one caught. Authorities in Jakarta are hoping their 'Rat Eradication Movement' will help rid the city of rats living on rubbish dumps in slum areas. Jakarta Deputy Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat has claimed he came up with the campaign after a recent encounter with a large rat. He has asked those interested not to use guns as people could be hurt by stray bullets, AFP reports. Deputy Governor Hidayat said: "There are many rats here, and big ones. For each rat, we will pay 20,000 rupiah (1.20)." "If possible, please do not use guns. If you miss your shot, the bullets could hit other people." Residents are to hand over the rats to local officials who will pay out the reward and pass on the rats to the city's sanitation department for burial. 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 A similar project failed in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi during French colonial rule where money was handed over for rat tails. Hanoi's rat population continued to increase as rat catchers simply cut off the rat tails before setting them free - allowing them to carry on breeding. New Zealand has announced it plans to eradicate all rats on its islands as the government estimates pests cost the economy 1.76 billion a year. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Sometimes the men just wanted to talk with the North Korean women. Face cam, its called. But most of the time, they wanted the other option: body cam. Watching through a smartphone app, the men would ask the women, some of the unknown thousands of North Koreans sold to Chinese husbands and living secretly in northern China, to show their breasts or their backsides, to touch themselves or perform sex acts on one another. Most of the time, the women did as requested. They needed the money - even if it amounted to only a few dollars a day. In the beginning, I didnt think it was going to be a big deal. I thought it would be okay because I wasnt actually sleeping with anyone, said Suh, who, until dreams of escape brought her to this dingy room in Laos, had been one of the legions of North Korean women performing online sex work in back rooms in China. But then I found out how many perverts there are out there. Suh, a 30-year-old who escaped from North Korea in 2008, resorted to doing video chatting after her second child was born and her husbands meager construction earnings wouldnt stretch any further. There are some people who just want to look at your face, but the majority of them are there for their sexual desires, Suh said, putting her head down so her long hair covered her cherubic face. I felt so disgusting. Together with two women from her village in northeastern China who were also doing chatting work, Suh fled over the summer. She made the heart-wrenching decision to leave her 5-year-old daughter with her Chinese husband. The women traveled by bus and car down through China to the border with Laos, which they crossed illegally in the black of night, Suh carrying her 18-month-old daughter, Ji-yeon, on her back. The women made it to Vientiane, the Laotian capital, where a Washington Post reporter spent two days with them as they paused on their journey to what they hoped would be a better life. The women talked for hours about their lives in North Korea and in China but, unlike some defectors who exaggerate their stories to make them more sensational, they appeared to play down their experiences, apparently out of shame. Most of their stories could be verified with the pastor and broker who were helping them escape, and it was clear that the women, faced with no other options, had resorted to performing on camera for men. The women had a friend film them at work before they left, so they could prove what they had been doing. The videos showed the women - sometimes in brightly colored underwear, sometimes naked - sitting against a low bed covered with a purple Hello Kitty quilt in front of two computers on a low table. Men, sometimes visible, sometimes not, gave them instructions. Most of the men they chatted with online were in South Korea, but a few were in America and even Africa. Safely out of China, the other two women, both called Kim, wanted to get to South Korea, but Suh had her heart set on a more ambitious destination: the United States, the strongest country on Earth. I think my daughter is one lucky baby, Suh said, sitting on the bed in a grimy room in Vientiane and looking at Ji-yeon as she slept, snoring lightly. Their few possessions were in plastic shopping bags, save for the clothes drying on coat hangers dangling from the light fittings. The baby had not even one toy. All the suffering is worth it. Our destiny has changed, Suh said. Lives at risk Defections such as that of Thae Yong Ho, North Koreas deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom who fled to South Korea over the summer, make headlines because they are so rare. But less sensationally, a steady if diminishing stream of North Koreans is making their way out, down through China, across to Laos, then into Thailand and eventually to South Korea. Most are women from the northern provinces, considered down-and-out even by North Korean standards, and face an extremely precarious life in northeastern China. Many had been sold - some knowingly, thinking life couldnt get any worse. But other women had been tricked into thinking they were heading to jobs in China, only to find that the man who offered to help them escape, paying bribes to border soldiers and arranging passage, turned out to be a trafficker, selling the women and pocketing the profits. The buyers are men in the countryside who are too poor or unappealing to get a wife any other way, and the women are stuck in remote villages where they cannot communicate with the locals - if they are permitted to leave the house, that is. Since Kim Jong Un took control of North Korea at the end of 2011, security has been tightened, and it has become increasingly difficult to escape. That has driven up prices. Women ages 15 to 25 are the most prized, fetching between $10,000 and $12,000, brokers and humanitarian workers say, while women in their 30s can be acquired for half that. Increased prices mean that some Chinese families are spending their entire life savings to buy a North Korean woman, and as a result the women are sometimes shackled inside the house. But even if the women are allowed out and even after they learn some Chinese, venturing into the open is a risky business. If theyre caught by the Chinese police, they face repatriation to North Korea and, at a minimum, time in a labor camp. These North Korean women in China faced a dire dilemma, either having to remain hidden and submit to this kind of sexual exploitation, or risk working outside of their residence with the very real possibility that Chinese authorities could arrest them at any time and force them back to North Korea, said Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch. The State Departments 2016 Trafficking in Persons Report noted that North Korean women and girls are subjected to sexual slavery by Chinese or Korean-Chinese men, forced prostitution in brothels or through Internet sex sites, or compelled service as hostesses in nightclubs or karaoke bars. The State Department reported that the Chinese government does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Although some women take the risk of working outside the home, shuttling between cleaning and babysitting jobs or working behind the scenes in restaurants, an increasing number feel they have no choice but to try to make money behind closed doors. That is where video chatting comes in. Online sex work vs. escape About one-fifth of the North Korean women living in hiding in China are involved in this kind of online sex work, said Park, a broker who works to get women out. The Post agreed to withhold Parks full name to avoid jeopardizing this highly sensitive work. The newspaper also agreed to use the womens family names only, partly to protect relatives in North Korea. If youre working in a restaurant or outside, you run the risk of being asked for your papers by the police. So doing this work is safer and the money is better, Park said. In the village where they lived, every North Korean woman does this. Its so normal to be doing this. Some North Korean women in China are forced into this work, essentially held prisoner by pimps. The women The Post met were not forced, as such. But they had few other opportunities. Suh was sold eight years ago to a man in northern China who, she said, treated her well - he beat her only a few times. But the arrival of their second child made a tough financial situation untenable. She heard about video chatting through a friend of a friend and began chatting with South Korean men at night when everyone in her house was asleep. On her first day she earned $3. In her best week, she netted $120. A few months ago, Suh decided she couldnt take it. I wondered why I had to do this. Im a human being, the same as everyone else, Suh said, breaking down into heaving sobs. I wanted to be a good mother, a strong mother for my daughters. She decided to try to leave, along with the two others. They found out about Park and Kim Sung-eun, a pastor from the Caleb Mission, a church in South Korea that helps bring defectors to safety, and asked to be helped out. For the second time in their lives, they escaped, this time to a safe house in northern China, and from there they made the journey to the border, then walked to Laos. Laos was safer but still somewhat of a gray area; they may be sent back. Once they got to Thailand, the fear of repatriation to North Korea would be gone. While waiting to cross the Mekong River, the women talked about the difficult decisions they had had to make. Suhs 5-year-old is listed on her Chinese fathers family register, which gives her legal status in China and enables her to go to school. But by the time Ji-yeon was born, the back channel for registration - involving bribes to willing officials - had closed. The baby doesnt legally exist. So when Suh decided to flee and realized she could only manage to take one child with her, she knew it had to be Ji-yeon. She thinks Ive abandoned her, Suh said, breaking down into another torrent of tears as she recalled telling her older daughter she would be back soon. The day they were to cross into Thailand, the women were full of nervous excitement. But things soon went wrong. Heavy rain had swollen the Mekong, and their boat missed the drop point. They were discovered by local police and taken to a prison. They were terrified and sent an endless stream of messages to Park, asking if they would be sent back to North Korea. One photo they sent showed Ji-yeon standing in a cell, looking out through the bars. Instead, they were taken to Bangkok, where they are now being held at a detention center, the pastor said. Suh has applied for asylum in the United States, even though she speaks no English and knows she will receive little support, unlike in South Korea. Officials from the American Embassy in Bangkok have met with Suh and her daughter, the pastor said. He estimated that it would take about four months for their asylum claims to be processed. An embassy spokeswoman in Bangkok declined to comment. The United States has accepted 74 refugees from North Korea since Kim took power, according to State Department data. During the pause in Vientiane, the relief of being out of China had washed over the women, and the challenges ahead loomed. The women had begun to dwell on the handicaps that North Koreans face. I have no passport, no papers, nothing, Suh said. Why are our lives so different, just because of where we are born? The Washington Post For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A police officer is fighting for his life in Germany after being shot by a right-wing extremist during a weapons raid. The officer was one of four injured in a gun battle with a suspect named as Wolfgang P at a house in Georgensgmund on Wednesday morning. Officials said police were executing a warrant to confiscate legally-owned firearms after the 49-year-old refused mandatory inspections by local authorities. A team of specialist officers launched the operation at 6am local time (5am BST) and were immediately met by gunfire. Johann Rast, the chief of Central Franconia Police, told a press conference police found the suspect in a bedroom. He was hiding behind the door and shot through the closed door, he said. It is not yet clear how many shots were fired. Three hit an officer who remains in a critical condition, striking his helmet, elbow and edge of his protective vest. Another officer was shot in the arm, while two others were injured by flying glass. Wolfgang P is believed to have been alerted to the polices approach by blue lights and sirens, having a gun and bulletproof vest next to his bed. The suspect was injured and taken into custody, with an arsenal of 30 weapons seized in subsequent searches of his home. Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Show all 13 1 /13 Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Women protest against sexism outside Cologne Cathedral on 5 January after the assaults Oliver Berg/EPA Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Women protest against sexism in Cologne following the rash of sex attacks on New Year's Eve Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police initially failed to mention the assaults in report the following morning EPA Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police officers patrol in front of the main station of Cologne, Germany AP Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks German far-right supporters demonstrate at Cologne`s train station (Reuters) Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Supporters of anti-immigration right-wing movement Pegida in Cologne, Germany, January 9, 2016. Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police used pepper spray to control supporters of Pegida, Hogesa (Hooligans against Salafists) and other right-wing populist groups as they protested against the New Year's Eve sex attacks on 9 January, 2016 in Cologne, Germany Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police use a water cannon during a protest march by supporters of anti-immigration right-wing movement Pegida in Cologne, Germany, January 9, 2016 Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police use pepper spray against supporters of anti-immigration right-wing movement Pegida, in Cologne, Germany, January 9, 2016. Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Artist Mira Moire protests naked in Cologne against the mass sex attacks on New Year's Eve AP Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks A demonstrator holds a sign in German that reads 'No violence against women' during a demonstration in the wake of the sexual assaults on New Year's Eve, outside the cathedeal in Cologne, Germany, 09 January 2016. EPA Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Counter demonstrators hold up a sign reading "Against sexism, against racism" as they protest against a demonstration of the islamophobic movement PEGIDA at the train station in Cologne, Germany, on January 9, 2016. AFP/Getty Images Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Demonstration by a womens group on Saturday (AP) AP Officials said he calls himself a Reichsburger, part of a far-right movement that claims the current German state is illegitimate and is alleged to have neo-Nazi links. Joachim Herrmann, the Bavarian interior minister, described his shock at the shooting and said it was clear that Wolfgang P fired before police officers. To be part of the Reichsburger movement is to be a right-wing extremist, he added. We must take a closer look at the movement. The Reichsburgers are not being dismissed as a group of nutters. It is obvious that these people, who are so consumed by their ideological beliefs, are willing to use violence against police. Mr Herrmann said the movement has been under intensive observation by state intelligence services because of elements' far-right aims, and that surveillance would increase. Police uncovered a neo-Nazi plot to attack a refugee centre in Bavaria last year (EPA) Reichsburgers adhere to their own self-declared government, known as the KRR, which issue their own version of official documents such as driving licences, while followers frequently spurn federal taxes or fines. They are mainly known for aggravating German authorities by pursuing obscure legal claims rather than violence, but a member was wounded during a gun battle as he was evicted from his home in August. Wolfgang P, who is unemployed and previously operated a martial arts school, had reportedly written scurrilous letters on the movement after joining in the summer. He remains in police custody. A recent report by Berlin's state intelligence service describes the Reichsburgers as an extremely diverse range of small groups and individuals who believe in an ideological mixture of conspiracy theories, anti-Semitic and anti-democratic views, and who have been behaving increasingly aggressively for some time". Germany remains on a state of high alert following a series of terror attacks by Isis supporters, including a suicide bombing in Ansbach and axe attack on a train. But there is also growing concern over far-right movements, which have been gathering increasing support during tensions over the refugee crisis and sexual assaults in Cologne. Centres for asylum seekers have been the target of arson attacks and racist graffiti, while police uncovered a neo-Nazi plot to attack refugee accomodation with explosives last year. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A suspected terror cell has been arrested in Belgium as authorities continue hunting down Isis supporters. A new wave of police raids were launched on Tuesday morning, seeing officers search 15 homes in Ghent, Deinze and Antwerp as part of an operation coordinated by Europols European Counter Terrorism Centre. The federal prosecutors office said 15 people were taken for questioning, including four who have subsequently charged with terror offences. Those persons have been indicted because of participation in the activities of a terrorist group, amongst others its funding, a spokesperson said. Some of them are suspected of recruiting people with a view to departing to Syria and joining Islamic State [Isis] there. No guns nor explosives were found and officials said no link had yet been established to the attacks on Brussels Airport and Maalbeek Metro station on 22 March. 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 The massacres, which killed 32 people, were carried out by the same super cell of jihadis who carried out the Paris attacks in November. Recommended Read more How Isis is turning young criminals into new brand of terrorist Mohamed Abrini, an accomplice of the Paris attackers, was among the Brussels bombers after evading detection by security forces for more than four months. He was a childhood friend of fellow suspect Salah Abdeslam, whose brother Brahim blew himself up on the Boulevard Voltaire during the Paris attacks. The pair grew up in Molenbeek, now notorious as a breeding ground for extremism, while several other suspects were Belgian and used the country to prepare the atrocities in both Paris and Brussels. The revelations turned international scrutiny on Belgiums security services, with interior minister Jan Jambon admitting inexcusable blunders with the handling of intelligence. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Czech police carried out a joint operation with the FBI to arrest a Russian citizen in Prague suspected of staging cyber attacks on the United States. Last week, Washington formally accused the Russian government of attempting to interfere with the 2016 election by hacking US political institutions charges the Kremlin has repeatedly dismissed. However, there was no indication from Czech police the arrest in Prague was linked to the US claims. Czech police have successfully collaborated with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), police spokesman David Schon said in a statement posted on the forces website on Wednesday. The aim of the operation was a Russian citizen suspected of hacking attacks on targets in the United States. Trump 'accused of treason' after urging Russia to hack Hillary Clinton's email The arrest took place in a hotel in Prague city centre, the police statement said. The suspect was not identified by name and no date was given for his arrest. The suspect collapsed in police custody, it added, before he was given first aid and then hospitalised. Czech judicial authorities will now rule on his extradition to the United States, the statement said. Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed US threats of retaliation over alleged Russian hacks, saying such statements only confirmed Washington used cyber attacks for political ends. US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Show all 12 1 /12 US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Republican U.S. presidential nominee Donald Trump shakes hands with Democratic U.S. presidential nominee Hillary Clinton at the conclusion of their first presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York Reuters US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures President Barack Obama embraces Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton on stage at the party's convention in Philadelphia US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Donald Trump's wife Melania delivered a speech at the GOP convention in Cleveland that was later found to have been cribbed in part from Michelle Obama's 2008 convention address AP US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Hillary Clinton talks to reporters aboard her new campaign plane on Labour Day, 5 September, her first 'press conference' since 2015 (Getty Images) US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Donald Trump held a joint press conference with Mexican leader Enrique Pena Nieto in Mexico City in August, hours before reiterating his harsh immigration plans at a campaign rally in Arizona Reuters US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Bernie Sanders officially endorsed Hillary Clinton, saying his progressive vision for a transformed America would be best served by the defeat of Donald Trump Reuters US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Khizr and Gazala Khan appeared at the DNC to slam Trump for his stance on Muslim immigration, citing the case of their son Humayun Khan, who was killed in combat while serving as a Captain in the US Army in Iraq US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson is doing better in polls than any third party candidate since Ross Perot, 20 years ago Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Green Party candidate Jill Stein (centre) marches with supporters in Colorado AP US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Hillary Clinton and Virginia Senator Tim Kaine at a rally in Kaine's home state in July, days before Ms Clinton tapped him to be her running mate Getty US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Trump on the campaign trail with his vice presidential pick, Indiana governor Mike Pence AP US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage appears at a Trump rally in Mississippi in August, where he told the crowd that he 'wouldn't vote for Hillary Clinton if you paid me'. On Friday, US Vice President Joe Biden told NBC News we are sending a message to Mr Putin, and retaliation for Russias hacking attacks will be at the time of our choosing, and under the circumstances that will have the greatest impact. The CIA was preparing a retaliatory cyber attack designed to harass and embarrass the Kremlin leadership, NBC reported. The US government officially accused Russia for the first time of a campaign of cyber attacks against Democratic Party organisations ahead of the 8 November presidential election. The US Intelligence Community (USIC) is confident that the Russian Government directed the recent compromises of e-mails from US persons and institutions, including from US political organisations, a statement from the Department of Homeland Security and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said. The Kremlin was propelled to the heart of American politics in July, after Hillary Clintons campaign blamed Russia for an embarrassing leak of emails from the Democratic National Committee. Russia has been accused of favouring Republican candidate Donald Trump who has praised Mr Putin and called for better ties with Moscow over Ms Clinton, who is seen as more hawkish. Russias relations with the US have fallen to their post-Cold War nadir over the conflict in Ukraine and stalled efforts to end the five-year Syrian war. Additional reporting by AFP For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A school student has been convicted of animal cruelty after carrying out the ritual slaughter of three sheep in Austria. The 18-year-old, who has not been named, says he sacrificed the animals to give thanks for his father recovering from an illness. The Austrian-Turkish teenager from the southern city of Gratz had contacted local farmers and asked about purchasing sheep that were advertised online. After agreeing a deal with one, the teen took delivery of the livestock and then sacrificed them according to traditional practice. I laid them on the ground and my mother held the legs behind, then I said a quotation from the Koran and closed the sheep's eyes," he said in court. He cut the throats of the animals on the farm and let them bleed to death before loading them into his car, according to The Local. Austrian law states that animals can only be slaughtered in licensed slaughterhouses and must be given anaesthesia immediately. The teenager claimed he was unaware of the law and only discovered his actions were illegal when he was arrested. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. 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In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty He accepted a one-month suspended sentenced, while his mother, who also claimed ignorance, was given 150 hours of community work. She initially refused to accept the sentence, hoping her husband might be able to pay a fine on her behalf instead. When informed the only alternative was jail, the woman in question agreed to the community service. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} They are afraid of a lot of things now. They are afraid of the bombing, they are afraid of the attack thats coming and they are also really afraid of the foreign spies who are among them. This was Rachids description of what was going on inside Isis. And the Western intelligence agency that has infiltrated Isis the most, claimed the Belgian jihadi, was the British. Rachid is one of the thousands of foreign fighters who had gone to join Syrias jihad, graduating in extremism among rebel groups to two years serving with Isis. But disillusioned, he says, with the Islamists and fearing what lay ahead, he has fled across the border to Turkey. Rachid, a mechanic before he took up the gun in the name of Islam, was part of a small but steady flow of fighters leaving Isis as it faces an assault on Mosul, its last stronghold in Iraq and waited for the coming offensive against Raqqa, the capital of its caliphate in Syria. The contact with Rachid came through an intermediary in Turkey after I wrote an article in The Independent last month about thousands of jihadis from who, with Isis facing defeat, will be seeking to return. The picture painted by him was of an Islamic State where the sense of omnipotence that came during the astonishingly quick advance through Syria and Iraq has been replaced by foreboding, divisions and desertions. And with it has come rising paranoia and violent retribution being exacted on those deemed to be traitors. Rachid, who had trimmed his beard and burned the clothes and documents he had in Syria, was anxious to leave Urfa, the city where we met, as soon as possible. It has, despite being in Turkey, become a haven for Islamist extremists, including those from Isis. Moderate activists have been murdered in Urfa, among them Ibrahim Abdul Qader and Fares Hamadi, who were members of the group Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently, which charts the brutality of Isis. A video posted by Isis of the killings claimed the victims had conspired with crusaders. There is no evidence that any of these activists had links with British or other intelligence agencies. In pictures: Mosul offensive Show all 40 1 /40 In pictures: Mosul offensive In pictures: Mosul offensive A doctor carries an Iraqi newborn baby at a hospital in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi girls play at a yard of a school in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017alal Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A woman on crutches who is a relative of men accused of being Islamic State militants is seen at a camp in Bartella, east of Mosul, Iraq July 15, 2017. Picture taken July 15, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A displaced girl, who fled from home carries a doll at Hamam al-Alil camp south of Mosul, Iraq July 13, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi federal police members and civilians celebrate in the Old City of Mosul on 9 July 2017 after the government's announcement of the "liberation" of the embattled city. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's office said he was in "liberated" Mosul to congratulate "the heroic fighters and the Iraqi people on the achievement of the major victory" AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken on 9 July 2017, shows a general view of the destruction in Mosul's Old City. Iraq will announce imminently a final victory in the nearly nine-month offensive to retake Mosul from jihadists, a US general said Saturday, as celebrations broke out among police forces in the city. AFP In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of the Iraqi federal police raise the victory gesture as they ride on a humvee while advancing through the Old City of Mosul on 28 June 2017, as the offensive continues to retake the last district held by Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Smoke billows as Iraqi forces advance through the Old City of Mosul on 26 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district held by the Islamic State (IS) group. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi man wearing the green scarf of the Shi'ite faith kisses an Iraqi Army soldier on safely reaching the Iraqi forces position as Iraqi civilians flee the Old City of west Mosul where heavy fighting continues on 23 June 2017. Iraqi forces continue to encounter stiff resistance with improvised explosive devices, car bombs, heavy mortar fire and snipers hampering their advance. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken from the inside of an Iraqi forces armoured vehicle shows residents walking through a damaged street as troops advance towards Mosul's Old City on 18 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district still held by the Islamic State (IS) group. Military commanders told AFP the assault had begun at dawn after overnight air strikes by the US-led coalition backing Iraqi forces. They said the jihadists were putting up fierce resistance. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi Army soldiers advance in a destroyed street after an Iraqi forces airstrike targeted an Islamic State sniper position 17 June 2017 in al-Shifa, the last district of west Mosul under Islamic State control. IS snipers, as well as car and suicide bomb attacks continue to hinder the Iraqi forces efforts to retake the final district. A series of airstrikes by Iraqi helicopter gunships attempted to hit multiple Islamic State sniper positions in al-Shifa. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier frisks a displaced Iraqi man at a temporary camp in the compound of the closed Nineveh International Hotel in Mosul on 16 June 2017 which was recovered by Iraqi troops from Islamic State group fighters earlier in the year. A screening centre set up in the compound's fairgrounds sees a constant stream of Iraqis fleeing the battle for Mosul, awaiting their turn to be checked by the Iraqi forces who are searching for suspected Islamic State (IS) group members. The small fairground lies at the end of a pontoon bridge across the Tigris recently opened to civilians that is the only physical link between the two banks of the river. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis staying at the al-Khazir camp swim in a river near the camp for internally displaced people, located between Arbil and Mosul on 11 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi government forces drive on a road leading to Tal Afar on 9 June 2017, during ongoing battles to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi policeman carries a poster bearing an image of Mosul's iconic leaning minaret, known as the "Hadba" (Hunchback), on 22 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis stand in line to receive food aid in western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood on 7 June 2017, during ongoing battles as Iraqi forces try to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Living conditions in Mosul have again deteriorated since the start of the Iraqi government's offensive on the city in October in which they retook a large part of the west of the city. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced Iraqis carry lightbulbs and sacks as they evacuate from western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood as government forces advance in the area during their ongoing battle against Islamic State (IS) group fighters on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) flashes the victory gesture as he patrols in western Mosul's al-Islah al-Zaraye neighbourhood on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi army soldiers from the 9th armoured division on a truck flash the sign of victory as they drive back from Mosul to the town of Qaraqosh (also known as Hamdaniya) Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of Iraqi forces flash the sign of victory on their vehicle as they advance towards Hammam al-Alil area south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi security forces gestures in Hammam al-Alil, south of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi children, one flashing the sign of victory, greet Iraqi army's soldiers from the 9th armoured division in the area of Ali Rash, adjacent to the eastern Al-Intissar neighbourhood of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Peshmerga forces look at a tunnel used by Islamic State militants near the town of Bashiqa, east of Mosul, during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier takes a photograph with his phone as his comrade stands next to a detained man, whom the Iraqi army soldiers accused of being an Islamic State fighter, who was fleeing with his family in the Intisar disrict of eastern Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iranian Kurdish female members of the Freedom Party of Kurdistan (PAK) hold a position in an area near the town of Bashiqa, some 25 kilometres north east of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families, who fled their homes in Hamam al-Alil, gather on the outskirts of their town Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced people walk past a checkpoint near Qayara, south of Mosul, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families who were displaced by the ongoing operation by Iraqi forces against jihadists of the Islamic State group to retake the city of Mosul, are seen gathering in an area near Qayyarah In pictures: Mosul offensive A boy who just fled Abu Jarbuah village is seen with his family at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi child eats a pomegranate upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive People who just fled Abu Jarbuah village sit as they eat at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A couple who just fled Abu Jarbuah village are escorted by Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Women carry a boy over a wall as civilians flee their houses in the village of Tob Zawa, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier and a civilian ride a motorbike as smoke rises behind them, on the road between Qayyarah and Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces, wearing a skull mask, waits at a checkpoint for people fleeing the main hub city of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier sits at a checkpoint in an area near Qayyarah Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi men prepare food portions for Iraqi forces deployed in areas south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi forces celebrate upon the arrival of vehicles bringing food to them Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi childen smoke cigarettes upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces distributes drinks to children in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty Many of those killed across the border, however, have been accused of being foreign spies. One of the most high-profile figures was Abu Ubaida Almaghribi, head of Isiss security for Aleppo, who was in charge of James Foley, the American photojournalist, and other Western hostages before they were murdered. Almaghribi, a Dutch national of Moroccan descent, and three others were said to have been beheaded after being accused of being MI6 agents and passing on secrets to the UK. Isis held an internal investigation after British national Mohammed Emwazi, who murdered James Foley and other captives, including Britons David Haines and Alan Henning, was killed in another drone strike last November. A purge and executions followed claims that his location had been betrayed, enabling the successful air strike to be carried out. Rachid and other European jihadis face the prospect of long prison sentences if they returned home. The only European state that does not charge returnees from Syrias rebel groups with terrorism related offences is Denmark, which runs a rehabilitation programme . Mosul battle: Civilians flee ahead of fighting The foreign fighters were convinced, said Rachid and other fighters, that the Western security agencies are tracking them after placing agents inside Isis and other Islamist group. They are also convinced that Britain has taken a leading role in this. The British are not the biggest group of volunteers from a country [in Europe]. But maybe because some of those who came from there became so well known that their intelligence service is so involved. But many brothers will tell you that spies are active, Daesh [Isis] have killed men, women even, after saying they were foreign spies, some of them British spies, said Rachid. Daesh asked for a lot of people, not just fighters, but teachers, engineers, doctors to build the Islamic State, if you remember. They now think that a few of these spies got in at that time, he added. Uluk Ultas, a Turkish academic and political analyst who is writing a book on Syrian rebels was also aware of the British connection. He said: There is a pretty widespread feeling that the UK has managed to infiltrate a number of groups, including Isis, and that the Isis leadership was aware of this and worried. I was surprised when I was first told this, because I thought it would be the Americans who would be taking the lead in this among the Western countries, but it seems the British have been working on this for a while, dont forget Almaghribi was arrested by Daesh two years ago. Recommended Read more Mosul braces itself for next bloody chapter after 13 years of war Mr Ultas is the director of Seta, a think tank which was founded by Ibrahim Kalin, an adviser to President Recep Tayyep Erdogan. His book will contain a rare interview with Abu Firas al-Suri, a senior leader of Jabhat al-Nusra who was subsequently killed in a US drone strike. He continued: What is interesting is that as Daesh [Isis] got bigger the checks it made on those wishing to join became less strict. It seems the feeling in the leadership was that since they were no longer just a fighting group, but the Islamic State, they were somehow above it and that their security would find enemy agents. But it seems they were not so successful and Western intelligence and others like the Turkish and the Jordanian were able to get in there. Almaghribi was the most high profile of those Daesh called a British spy and said they killed. But I have spoken to fighters who say that Almaghribi isnt dead after all and has been seen around. Maybe hes being held as a bargaining counter for when Raqqa falls who knows? Isis releases video claiming everything is fine in Mosul Some of the information about Almaghribi came from Jejoen Bontick, who was, like Rachid, a Belgian jihadi. He had stated that James Foley and his fellow hostages were being held by Belgian jihadis who belonged to a group called Sharia4Belgium in Aleppo. They were later moved to Raqqa and into the hands of Emwazi and three other Britons, who became known to their captives as The Beatles (Emwazi was known as Jihadi John). Philip Balboni, the chief executive of GlobalPost, the American news organisation for which Foley worked, had said of Bontick: A young Belgian who had travelled to fight in Syria befriended Foley and, once that jihadist went back to Belgium, offered excellent information on roughly where Jim was held and by whom. It was the first time we knew that Jim was alive. Bontinck was a member of Sharia-4-Belgium. Its leader Fouad Belkacem, a convicted burglar, visited England in 2010 and met Anjem Choudary, the London-based radical Muslim preacher for advice before starting the group in Brussels. Choudary was jailed for five and half years in London last month after being convicted of supporting Isis. Some Sharia-4-Belgium members subsequently visited Choudary and worked with him in London: some of the preachers followers went in turn to Belgium. Choudary, who represented fundamentalist British Muslim groups Islam4UK and al-Muhajiroun, gave his support to Sharia4Belgium through a website called Paltalk. It was also used by Omar Bakri Mohammed, another radical preacher who was expelled from the UK. After the murder of Lee Rigby, Bakri Mohammed told The Independent that one of the killers, Michael Adebolajo, used to be part of his congregation. Sharia4Belgium founder Belkacem has been jailed for 12 years in Belgium, Boninck received a suspended sentence after testifying against others, many of them members of the organisation, accused of terrorist offences, Around 27,000 foreign fighters are believed to have joined Isis since the start of Syrias civil war five years ago, with between 5,000 and 7,000 of them arriving from Europe to join Isis and other hardline Salafist groups such as Jabhat al-Nusra an al-Qaeda affiliate that now calls itself Jabhat Fatah al-Sham. Just under 800 have travelled from the UK, but the numbers coming back have been fewer than a dozen for the past nine months. The British brothers are not going back because they are afraid of getting arrested like the others from Europe said Rachid. But staying in Syria now means there is a big risk of being killed, either from the bombing, or when the attack on Raqaa starts or by Daesh, if they decide you are a traitor, a spy. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Iraqi troops are poised to seize a Christian town on the outskirts of Mosul as Isis attempts to slow the offensive on its last remaining major stronghold in Iraq with suicide bombs, tunnels and booby-traps. An officer from the 9th Division of the Iraqi army said his troops were under half a mile from Bakhdida on Wednesday, afternoon as government forces and militias continued their advance. The town, also known as al-Hamdaniya or Qaraqosh, was deserted by its predominantly Christian residents during the Isis advance two years ago and is now a bastion for jihadi fighters attempting to block routes towards central Mosul. Militants sent lorries and cars loaded with explosives toward the front lines, many of which were destroyed before reaching their target, and fired mortars to slow Iraqi troops attempting to clear the region of Shora. Isis claimed it had launched 12 martyrdom operations during battles and published footage claiming to show its fighters attacking enemy troops. Families were beginning to return to one of the villages captured from the extremists overnight, finding their homes in Sheikh Amir rigged with explosives and dug in with elaborate underground defences. Iraqi forces, the Kurdish Peshmerga and militias are encircling the city from the north, south and east, advancing with the backing of American and British special forces and air strikes by the US-led coalition. The assault has been hailed as decisive by commanders in Iraq and the US but analysts have warned the battle is likely to take months, with jihadis likely to flee into Isis territory in neighbouring Syria to regroup. Renad Mansour, an academy associate of the Middle East and North Africa programme at Chatham House, told The Independent the loss of Mosul was certain but would definitely not signal the end of Isis. Displaced Iraqis from a village outside Mosul, who fled fighting in the area (Getty) It will continue to exist like it has done since 2003, he added. Isis will change the narrative to make it look like Mosul is only a small battle in a much larger war, its the only way to legitimise themselves. Mr Mansour said the loss of the groups de facto capital in Iraq would deal a major ideological blow to Isis, damaging recruitment and fighters morale. He predicted Isis would revert to guerrilla-style warfare in Iraq while leaders form a new strategy to continue attempts to build the groups caliphate. They will come together and wait they know theres no political solution, as well as fear of Kurdish Peshmerga and militias, he added. They know at some point the ground will be ripe again for them to move back in. Everyone is still looking short term, at a military solution for Mosul rather than the future of Isis. The Iraqi military and Kurdish forces say they launched operations to the south and east of militant-held Mosul (AP) A senior Iraqi commander, Lieutenant General Talib Shaghati, called on Iraqis fighting for Isis to surrender as their approach continued for a third day, estimating that up to 6,000 militants remained in Mosul. They are embedded among more than a million civilians, prompting warnings from the United Nations and international human rights organisations over the impossible choice faced by families choosing to risk their lives to flee Isis or stay and face the oncoming onslaught. The terrorist groups Amaq propaganda agency published a video showing fighters fanning out through the citys streets in the darkness, lining deserted roads while a leader threatened humiliation for the US. The stunt may have been intended for the viewing of Mosuls residents as well as Isis enemies, with the group routinely using civilians as human shields during military offensives. While families living inside the city have been prevented from leaving, 5,000 people who managed to flee surrounding villages have arrived in a filthy and overcrowded refugee camp in Syria in the past 10 days. Save the Children warned that the al-Hol camp was already bursting at the seams, with dire sanitary conditions and inadequate supplies of food, drinking water and medicine, with the UN estimating that 100,000 people may cross the border. In pictures: Mosul offensive Show all 40 1 /40 In pictures: Mosul offensive In pictures: Mosul offensive A doctor carries an Iraqi newborn baby at a hospital in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi girls play at a yard of a school in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017alal Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A woman on crutches who is a relative of men accused of being Islamic State militants is seen at a camp in Bartella, east of Mosul, Iraq July 15, 2017. Picture taken July 15, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A displaced girl, who fled from home carries a doll at Hamam al-Alil camp south of Mosul, Iraq July 13, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi federal police members and civilians celebrate in the Old City of Mosul on 9 July 2017 after the government's announcement of the "liberation" of the embattled city. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's office said he was in "liberated" Mosul to congratulate "the heroic fighters and the Iraqi people on the achievement of the major victory" AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken on 9 July 2017, shows a general view of the destruction in Mosul's Old City. Iraq will announce imminently a final victory in the nearly nine-month offensive to retake Mosul from jihadists, a US general said Saturday, as celebrations broke out among police forces in the city. AFP In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of the Iraqi federal police raise the victory gesture as they ride on a humvee while advancing through the Old City of Mosul on 28 June 2017, as the offensive continues to retake the last district held by Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Smoke billows as Iraqi forces advance through the Old City of Mosul on 26 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district held by the Islamic State (IS) group. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi man wearing the green scarf of the Shi'ite faith kisses an Iraqi Army soldier on safely reaching the Iraqi forces position as Iraqi civilians flee the Old City of west Mosul where heavy fighting continues on 23 June 2017. Iraqi forces continue to encounter stiff resistance with improvised explosive devices, car bombs, heavy mortar fire and snipers hampering their advance. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken from the inside of an Iraqi forces armoured vehicle shows residents walking through a damaged street as troops advance towards Mosul's Old City on 18 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district still held by the Islamic State (IS) group. Military commanders told AFP the assault had begun at dawn after overnight air strikes by the US-led coalition backing Iraqi forces. They said the jihadists were putting up fierce resistance. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi Army soldiers advance in a destroyed street after an Iraqi forces airstrike targeted an Islamic State sniper position 17 June 2017 in al-Shifa, the last district of west Mosul under Islamic State control. IS snipers, as well as car and suicide bomb attacks continue to hinder the Iraqi forces efforts to retake the final district. A series of airstrikes by Iraqi helicopter gunships attempted to hit multiple Islamic State sniper positions in al-Shifa. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier frisks a displaced Iraqi man at a temporary camp in the compound of the closed Nineveh International Hotel in Mosul on 16 June 2017 which was recovered by Iraqi troops from Islamic State group fighters earlier in the year. A screening centre set up in the compound's fairgrounds sees a constant stream of Iraqis fleeing the battle for Mosul, awaiting their turn to be checked by the Iraqi forces who are searching for suspected Islamic State (IS) group members. The small fairground lies at the end of a pontoon bridge across the Tigris recently opened to civilians that is the only physical link between the two banks of the river. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis staying at the al-Khazir camp swim in a river near the camp for internally displaced people, located between Arbil and Mosul on 11 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi government forces drive on a road leading to Tal Afar on 9 June 2017, during ongoing battles to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi policeman carries a poster bearing an image of Mosul's iconic leaning minaret, known as the "Hadba" (Hunchback), on 22 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis stand in line to receive food aid in western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood on 7 June 2017, during ongoing battles as Iraqi forces try to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Living conditions in Mosul have again deteriorated since the start of the Iraqi government's offensive on the city in October in which they retook a large part of the west of the city. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced Iraqis carry lightbulbs and sacks as they evacuate from western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood as government forces advance in the area during their ongoing battle against Islamic State (IS) group fighters on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) flashes the victory gesture as he patrols in western Mosul's al-Islah al-Zaraye neighbourhood on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi army soldiers from the 9th armoured division on a truck flash the sign of victory as they drive back from Mosul to the town of Qaraqosh (also known as Hamdaniya) Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of Iraqi forces flash the sign of victory on their vehicle as they advance towards Hammam al-Alil area south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi security forces gestures in Hammam al-Alil, south of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi children, one flashing the sign of victory, greet Iraqi army's soldiers from the 9th armoured division in the area of Ali Rash, adjacent to the eastern Al-Intissar neighbourhood of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Peshmerga forces look at a tunnel used by Islamic State militants near the town of Bashiqa, east of Mosul, during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier takes a photograph with his phone as his comrade stands next to a detained man, whom the Iraqi army soldiers accused of being an Islamic State fighter, who was fleeing with his family in the Intisar disrict of eastern Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iranian Kurdish female members of the Freedom Party of Kurdistan (PAK) hold a position in an area near the town of Bashiqa, some 25 kilometres north east of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families, who fled their homes in Hamam al-Alil, gather on the outskirts of their town Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced people walk past a checkpoint near Qayara, south of Mosul, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families who were displaced by the ongoing operation by Iraqi forces against jihadists of the Islamic State group to retake the city of Mosul, are seen gathering in an area near Qayyarah In pictures: Mosul offensive A boy who just fled Abu Jarbuah village is seen with his family at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi child eats a pomegranate upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive People who just fled Abu Jarbuah village sit as they eat at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A couple who just fled Abu Jarbuah village are escorted by Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Women carry a boy over a wall as civilians flee their houses in the village of Tob Zawa, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier and a civilian ride a motorbike as smoke rises behind them, on the road between Qayyarah and Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces, wearing a skull mask, waits at a checkpoint for people fleeing the main hub city of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier sits at a checkpoint in an area near Qayyarah Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi men prepare food portions for Iraqi forces deployed in areas south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi forces celebrate upon the arrival of vehicles bringing food to them Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi childen smoke cigarettes upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces distributes drinks to children in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty The camp is littered with waste and faeces, with a looming risk of outbreaks of disease as a result, the charity said. There are just 16 latrines shared by more than 9,000 people. There are also concerns over the treatment of civilians by Iraqi troops and militias, following allegations of abuse as Isis was driven out of Fallujah, where Amnesty International said hundreds of Sunni Arab civilians were detained, tortured and killed while trying to flee. The International Rescue Committee said all men and boys over the age of 14 were to undergo security screening monitored by it and other charities. Shia militia leaders have attempted to calm fears of sectarian tensions by announcing they would focus on Tal Afar, a town to the west of Mosul, rather than on the predominantly Sunni Muslim city itself. The Mosul offensive is the largest launched by the Iraqi army since the 2003 invasion, involving 25,000 troops, Sunni tribal fighters, Kurdish Peshmerga forces and state-sanctioned Shia militias known as the Popular Mobilisation Units (PMU) converging on the city. Additional reporting by agencies For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Saudi Arabia has executed a member of the royal family for an alleged murder. Prince Turki bin Saud al-Kabir was sentenced to death after apparently shooting dead his fellow countryman Adel al-Mahemid during a brawl. The method of execution remains unknown but the majority of those who are put to death in Saudi Arabia are beheaded with a sword. The prince pleaded guilty to shooting his compatriot after an argument erupted at a desert camp on the edge of Riyadh three years ago. When al-Kabir realised the victim was a colleague and friend he informed the police, according to Arab News. The victims family were offered financial compensation in return for not demanding the death sentence but they refused, Al-Arabiya reported. Saudi Arabia arrests teenage YouTube star over 'enticing' videos with female American blogger The government... is keen to keep order, stabilise security and bring about justice through implementing the rules prescribed by Allah, the Saudi interior ministry said in a statement. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty The House of Saud rarely sees executions of its own thousands of members. One of the most prominent cases was Faisal bin Musaid al Saud, who was sentenced to death for assassinating his uncle, King Faisal, in 1975. Saudi Arabias strict legal code means murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and apostasy can all receive the death sentence. The kingdom executed at least 158 people last year, with only Iran and Pakistan carrying out more death sentences, according to Amnesty International. China is not included in Amnesty figures, but is apparently the world leader executing thousands of people last year, according to CNN. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Syria has accused the European Union of fuelling the country's civil war by supporting terrorism and said it has no right to criticise the government or its ally Russia. EU foreign ministers vowed on Monday to impose more sanctions on President Bashar al-Assad's government, saying the bombardment of Aleppo by Russia and the regime "may account to war crimes". The ministers also said the Syrian government should be referred to the International Criminal Court. In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Show all 19 1 /19 In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Syrian boys cry following Russian air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of the northern embattled Syrian city of Aleppo Getty In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russian defense ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov speaks to the media in Moscow, Russia. Konashenkov strongly warned the United States against striking Syrian government forces and issued a thinly-veiled threat to use Russian air defense assets to protect them AP In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Syrians wait to receive treatment at a hospital following Russian air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of the northern embattled Syrian city of Alepp Getty In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov speaks at a briefing in the Defense Ministry in Moscow, Russia. Antonov said the Russian air strikes in Syria have killed about 35,000 militants, including about 2,700 residents of Russia AP In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Jameel Mustafa Habboush, receives oxygen from civil defence volunteers, known as the white helmets, as they rescue him from under the rubble of a building following Russian air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of the northern embattled Syrian city of Aleppo Getty In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Civil defence members rest amidst rubble in a site hit by what activists said were airstrikes carried out by the Russian air force in the town of Douma, eastern Ghouta in Damascus, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria A girl carrying a baby inspects damage in a site hit by what activists said were airstrikes carried out by the Russian air force in the town of Douma, eastern Ghouta in Damascus, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Civilians and civil defence members look for survivors at a site damaged after Russian air strikes on the Syrian rebel-held city of Idlib, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Civilians and civil defence members carry an injured woman on a stretcher at a site damaged after Russian air strikes on the Syrian rebel-held city of Idlib, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Volunteers from Syria Civil Defence, also known as the White Helmets, help civilians after Russia carried out its first airstrikes in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria The aftermath of Russian airstrike in Talbiseh, Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Smoke billows from buildings in Talbiseh, in Homs province, western Syria, after airstrikes by Russian warplanes AP In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russian Air Forces carry out an air strike in the ISIS controlled Al-Raqqah Governorate. Russia's KAB-500s bombs completely destroy the Liwa al-Haqq command unit In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Caspian Flotilla of the Russian Navy firing Kalibr cruise missiles against remote Isis targets in Syria A TASS/ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russia claimed it hit eight Isis targets, including a "terrorist HQ and co-ordination centre" that was completely destroyed In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria A video grab taken from the footage made available on the Russian Defence Ministry's official website, purporting to show an airstrike in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria A release from the Russian defence ministry purportedly showing targets in Syria being hit In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russia launched air strikes in war-torn Syria, its first military engagement outside the former Soviet Union since the occupation of Afghanistan in 1979. Russian warplanes carried out strikes in three Syrian provinces along with regime aircraft as Putin seeks to steal US President Barack Obama's thunder by pushing a rival plan to defeat Isis militants in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Caspian Flotilla of the Russian Navy firing Kalibr cruise missiles against remote Isis targets in Syria, a thousand kilometres away. The targets include ammunition factories, ammunition and fuel depots, command centres, and training camps A TASS/ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis "The European Union lacks the lowest degree of credibility when it talks about the humanitarian situation in Syria because it is, through its support of terrorism, an accomplice in the suffering of Syrians," an official source at the foreign ministry was quoted as saying by Syrian state media. The Syrian regime regards all rebel groups seeking to overthrow Mr Assad as terrorists, some of which are backed by European countries, the United States, Turkey and Gulf Arab states. On Wednesday, a senior German official told Reuters European Council President Donald Tusk indicated EU leaders would not take any decisions on sanctions against Syria this week. "That means it won't take any options off the table. Sanctions are one of the options on the table. We expect they will remain on the table after the summit," the official said. UK Ambassador gives damning speech to UN after Russia's security council veto over Syria Syria's five-and-a-half-year civil war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, displaced half the country's pre-war population, dragged in regional and global powers and created space for global jihadist movements to plan attacks abroad. Additional reporting by Reuters For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Protesters are mobilising womens strikes across Argentina after the brutal killing, rape and impalement of a teenage girl that has shocked the country. Lucia Perez was allegedly abducted outside her school by a gang before being drugged, repeatedly raped and penetrated with an additional object. Some 50 activist groups are calling on women across the South American country to take to the streets dressed in black at 1pm on Wednesday to protest against the sexist culture that exists. Argentinians protested the bail of Lucia Perez's suspected killers on Saturday Agencia Efe/YouTube (Agencia Efe/YouTube) There were 235 "femicides" - the term written into Argentina's legal constitution to describe gender-based killings - in 2015 and at least three women have been killed in the country since Miss Perez's death. The protest intends to be a call to reflection for the entire population, said journalist and author Florencia Abbate, who works closely with protest organisers Ni Una Menos. So that each person evaluates his own practices and understands the need for a cultural change. Miss Perez is believed to have been abducted outside her school in Mar del Plata, a city 260 miles south of capital Buenos Aires, on 8 October. Her body was brought to hospital by two men claiming she overdosed on drugs, but doctors soon noticed signs of violent sexual penetration. Lead prosecutor Maria Isabel Sanchez said: I know its not very professional to say it, but Im a mother and a woman, and Ive seen a thousand things in my career, but nothing equal to this litany of abhorrent acts. Two men have been arrested over the incident. Police on Tuesday arrested a third suspect over covering up the femicide, according to EL PAIS. Miss Perezs parents led a 1,000-strong protest on Saturday demanding the judge deny them bail. Thousands took part in similar protests over violence against women in Argentina last year. It is not a bad thing for us, that the route known as the Goldene Strae or the Golden Road as we will get to know it- has escaped the attention of so many. It has been spared being overrun by hordes of tourists and as you will discover the Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for weekly expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Simon Calders Travel email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A recent surveys findings that a quarter of LGBT travellers hide their sexuality while on holiday summed up the quandary for many globe-trotters in the community. On the one hand, youd like to explore the world however you want, rather than simply honing in on LGBT scenes abroad. But on the other, you can feel obliged to pass as non-LGBT when holidaying outside of, say, known LGBT nightlife areas or beaches. And it seems these instincts are not without foundation the same survey, conducted by Virgin Holidays earlier this month, also found more than one in three LGBT travellers had experienced discrimination while on holiday. So, if youre LGBT, dont particularly want to spend your holiday just in LGBT hotspots, but dont want to hide who you are either where are the best places to go? For that answer, we turned to Darren Burn, founder of online travel agency OutOfOffice.com, which launched last year with a specialist focus on LGBT travellers. Burn was inspired to set up the company after a bad experience when on holiday in Egypt with his then boyfriend. I realised there should be no reason I shouldnt travel anywhere in the world as long as I was doing it with the right knowledge, he told The Independent. Weve had some people tell us we shouldnt be sending people to countries where its illegal to be gay, he added. We like to think were a little more progressive than that. The LGBT community has long been used to dealing with discrimination and is mindful of the potential pitfalls. We should not be boycotting countries where its illegal to be gay. Jamie Tabberer, travel editor at Gay Star News, agreed it was a tricky topic. Our readers are polarised on travel to LGBTI-unfriendly countries, he told The Independent. I respect those who boycott countries where its illegal to be gay, or where LGBTI rights records are unfavourable, whether its for safety or ethical reasons. But I wouldnt judge anyone for visiting those countries. Instead I encourage them to stay safe, dont endanger LGBTI locals, and research the destination before departure. Tabberer added that travel to such countries could even lead to progress and change, but qualified: Remember, while we can drop in and out, the people who live there cant. So if youre going to enjoy a holiday there, support the rights of LGBTI people in that country in whatever way you think appropriate. That may include lobbying their government or ours, donating to good causes, posting on social media or making new friends there. Burn also said that while, ultimately, the goal should be to change the law in those countries, We need to be mindful that our customers want to travel to these places, and so to enable them to do so safely is far more important than telling them they shouldnt or cant travel to a destination. I for one want to see as much of the world as possible and our clients do too. The key, Burns argued, was to be honest and upfront with each customer, which he said he worried some other travel agencies arent: Other companies and we know because weve mystery shopped them can provide you with inaccurate advice which is in some cases, quite frankly, dangerous. His recommendations come with a caveat: while on the whole these destinations are safe, you would be safer being discrete in some situations, such as at the airport. The scenic green rice fields of Bali (Getty) The options for transgender travellers can be even slimmer, but this also seems to be improving, Burn claimed, revealing that a cruise for transgender passengers will be launching next year. As with gay rights, each country has different attitudes towards trans travellers and those are evolving over time, he said. We will work to ensure that we choose the most appropriate guides, hotels and suppliers for our customers. With all this in mind, here are the top holiday destinations, as chosen by OutOfOffice, for LGBT travellers right now. Seminyak, Bali Indonesia isnt exactly known for being LGBT-friendly see this weeks case of a gay couple facing prosecution for obscenity and pornography after posting a picture of themselves kissing on Facebook but homosexuality isnt actually illegal in the country. And according to OutOfOffice, The majority of hotels in Seminyak are extremely LGBT-friendly. This beach resort in south Bali might be one of the less traditional-feeling places on the island all busy boutiques and bars but it makes a good base and there are plenty of paradise beaches to choose from. Plus youre never too far from views of gorgeous green rice fields and top dive spots. One of the world's most dramatic-looking cities, Cape Town (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) Cape Town, South Africa As OutOfOffice admits, When people hear the word Africa, LGBT-friendly definitely doesnt spring to mind. But South Africa was in fact the fifth country in the world and the first (and only) country in Africa to legalise gay marriage. Same-sex couples can adopt children, and have full access to IVF treatments. Probably the city LGBT travellers can feel most comfortable in here is Cape Town known as the gay capital of Africa though the company adds that at a game reserve same-sex couples should be welcomed like any other guests. Handily, South Africa has absolutely loads to offer safari, city, sun-and-sea and wine breaks so this is a particularly great choice for travellers. Maldives Many LGBT couples may feel they have to rule out a romantic break in the Maldives, given that its hundreds of islands adhere to strict Islamic laws criminalising homosexuality. In fact, its even starker than that homosexuality here is punishable by death. But as OutOfOffice says, Holding hands in the Maldives for a gay couple on arrival at the airport isnt a sensible idea. But if you were to do so in the comfort and privacy of your resort, you are unlikely to encounter any major issues. The company works with specific luxury resorts that it knows to be LGBT-friendly resorts they know and trust. Plenty of gay couples travel to the Maldives each and every year and as with all destinations, its about empowering yourself with the knowledge to make informed decisions before you go, OutOfOffice blogger Luke Jackson said. "Clearly no one can license for other guests or an isolated incident... But if youre a gay couple on holiday in the Maldives then you can be confident of a warm welcome." The famous Geysir exploding on a tour of Iceland's Golden Circle (Discover the World) Buenos Aires, Argentina Argentina became the first country in Latin America to legalise gay marriage and in 2010 a law was passed allowing same-sex couples to adopt a child. The capital, Buenos Aires, hosts a huge Pride event every year in November, which attracts thousands of visitors. Renowned for its nightlife, theres masses of history, culture and boutique shopping to explore too. Read The Independent's recent guide to 48 hours in the city for more. Iceland Iceland was the first country to have an openly gay prime minister and in June 2010, it legalised gay marriage. Since then, same-sex couples have had the same access to IVF treatment and adoption as heterosexual couples. It also just so happens to be one of Europes best travel destinations, offering natural wonders like geysers, glaciers, volcanoes and the Northern Lights alongside its modern, vibrant capital of Reykjavik. Find out how to spend the perfect weekend there with The Independent's 48 hours guide. We also asked OutOfOffice for destinations that were particularly welcoming of trans travellers. They chose the following. Mykonos is said to be a good destination for trans travellers (Shutterstock) Sitges, Spain According to OutOfOffice: Sitges is very LGBT-friendly. It has a very inclusive feel, which is very comforting and relaxing exactly how you want to feel when you are on holiday. The coastal, Catalonian town is known for its LGBT scene. Mykonos, Greece Mykonos is the most cosmopolitan of the Greek Islands, said Burn. Long an LGBT haven, youll happily find families alongside gay, lesbian and transgender travellers. Hotels on the island have, over time, improved their staff training and the handful of LGBT bars are welcoming of all. Youll also find a predominantly gay beach at Super Paradise which is a good and welcoming spot for transgender travellers too." Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Theresa May is sounding fierce: over her dead body will you can stop Article 50 from being triggered in 2017. Britain is leaving the European Union; that much we know. Meanwhile the EU is facing its own crisis. Despite its vast infrastructure, the left is also turning its back on the union. It accuses the bloc of fiscal and social dumping, speculation, tax fraud, high unemployment, an environmentally destructive economic model and wealth inequality. But unpicking this this tightly knit EU fabric would take several decades. The EU needs reforming and it will change, but it wont disappear. Its a collective organisation that has helped weak countries and they all are weak, in one way or other focus on their potential to improve. Spain benefited from a unified Europe after nearly 40 years under obscurantist Franco; Portugal did well in the EU group and so do Ireland and Italy. No institution can survive and thrive without restructuring. The EU will undergo that too, but its here to stay. Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the back of the queue for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germanys top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as gateway to Europe for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the BundesbankGermanys central banktold a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were equivalent between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEOs performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterlings fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty In the aftermath of the 23 June vote, commentators in Britain speculated on what countries would quit the EU after Britain. Italy was mentioned and the catchword Quitaly readily coined. The reality is that none will have the bottle to follow the UK out. Eurozone countries cant afford to; eastern European countries are still cautiously preparing for the common currency. The EU will muddle through, learn from the mistakes made that led to the loss of the UK as a partner member, change political orientation its leaders are mostly right-wingers at the moment, but they wont stay that way forever and no doubt go through a few more other man-made crises too. Just like any European country or member state. But the UK is the only nation truly floundering on the question of Europe. Its already tried out almost every relationship with its group of neighbours: it remained outside the European Community until 1973, then it joined but wanted special dispensation from Schengen; later, a full member of the EU, it firmly refused the euro. Britain always tried to shape a special path for herself. Now she wants to leave at the very point that nation unions are being set up everywhere else, from South America to Africa and Asia. Those groups are being established because, on balance, they work. Thats what UK has forgotten and thats what will drive it back into the arms of the EU again. Its not a question of it, only when. Having experimented with nearly all possibilities to the contrary and perhaps more, during the Article 50 negotiations the British will want to try one last option and have a proper go at it EU membership. In my view, Britain will rejoin the EU either by not actually quitting in the first place, having figured out how to put the referendum outcome in the loft, or, more likely, much later in the future, after three decades of having stubbornly kept out until it couldn't cope anymore. Brexit could mean end of fresh British fruit and vegetables It may yet even end up leading the EU in future. Britain is historically used to be in charge, not being told what to do the source of so many of the concerns of the Leave voters. Many things can change in 30 years. The EU could even have a different name. Socially divided, with unparalleled inequalities weakened workers' rights in spite of tax haven status, England will be no Switzerland in 30 years time. It will need the support of the group to thrive again, just as the EU helped rescue its fortunes in the aftermath of the Second World War. The whole of Britain outside the EU ad infinitum? Sorry Brexiteers, thats just not likely. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} On the eve of the final presidential debate, the Trump infinity helix of dystopian horror takes another downward twist. But before we come to that, the good news. Assuming US opinion pollsters are better than ours (not a high hurdle), Donald Trump will not acquire the capacity to wage thermonuclear war. Technically, it isnt over. Perhaps WikiLeaks has a more lethal weapon in its arsenal of Clinton-related emails than those yet released (embarrassing though some are). Or maybe Hillary will use tomorrows debate to confess to the murders of Vince Foster, JFK and Bambis mother. But, barring something epic, the outcome is obvious enough to have penetrated the peasouper fog of delusion and derangement that passes for Trumps mind. Effectively throwing in the towel, he has taken to thinking out loud about his post-election plans, which may go beyond immediately inciting the fan base to violence. It will be a big surprise if no one is shot on or before 8 November by someone in a Lock Her Up T-shirt. After election day, with Trump and such revolting surrogates as Newt Gingrich and Rudy Giuliani force-feeding the rubes their strychnine candyfloss about electoral fraud, it will be a miracle. Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Show all 28 1 /28 Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Brian Adcock Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Brian Adcock Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Brian Adcock Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Brian Adcock Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Brian Adcock Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Brian Adcock Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Brian Adcock Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Dave Brown Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Brian Adcock Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Brian Adcock Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Christian Adams for Daily Telegraph Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Martin Rowson for The Guardian Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Christian Adams for Daily Telegraph Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Morten Morland for The Times Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Bob Moran for Daily Telegraph Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Christian Adams for Daily Telegraph Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Morten Morland for The Times Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' KAL for The Economist Trumped! The best cartoons on 'The Donald' Martin Rowson for The Guardian When Mitt Romney was soundly beaten in 2012, Trump machine-gun tweeted about what he claimed to regard as a stolen election. He lost the popular vote by a lot, he wrote of Obama (who won the popular vote by almost four per cent). Another tweet went: Lets fight like hell and stop this great and disgusting injustice! The world is laughing at us. If that was his response to the defeat of a Republican candidate for whom he had contempt, imagine his reaction when the person he loves most in the world loses to a woman. And not any woman; a woman who lacks stamina, belongs on a chain gang and failed to impress him with her rear view when he did his Jaws act during the second debate. All the uncertainty concerns not whether Trump will make a gracious concession speech, but whether he will concede at all. If not if in the early hours of 9 November he informs his tens of millions of voters that theyve been cheated out of their rightful President, implicitly by black electoral fraudsters, as he is already warning one must assume that people will die. Recommended Read more This is why Trump really wants Hillary Clinton to take a drugs test What proportion of Trump supporters is crazy enough to interpret sour grapes of the kind as a call to arms specifically, as an invitation to visit the nearest inner city (in TrumpWorld, inner city is the new n-word) and shoot someone they suspect has voted multiply is unknowable. But it will be many, many times higher than the proportion of voters who actually commit ballot fraud, which is so minuscule as to be virtually non-existent. While Trumps candidacy will fail to make him Commander-in-Chief, it has succeeded in making him Supreme Commander of an enormous ragtag army of parallel universe-dwellers. We can gauge its size from the poll finding that 71 per cent of Republicans believe this election will be stolen. That equates to some 40 million Americans. If one in 10,000 of these fantasists is provoked by more of his talk of revolution, that means 4,000 maniacs with firearms looking for revenge. In a far less febrile atmosphere, it took one maniac to shoot the Democratic congresswoman Gabby Giffords in the head (as it took one to kill Jo Cox here). Donald Trump: Hillary Clinton's email scandal 'worse than Watergate' And so, lest this prospect of low level civil war isnt hideous enough, to that fresh dystopian development: as rumoured, Donald Trump is thinking of starting a TV network. To this end, a son-in-law has talked with an investment bank specialising in funding media start-ups. One appreciates the logic of Trump TV. Many Trump fans have concluded, especially since the departure of his enchanting adviser and fellow alleged groper Roger Ailes, that Fox News is no longer fair and balanced but another outpost of the lying mainstream media which would be rigging the election if it wasnt about to stolen by African Americans and the deceased. The resulting gap in the market may offer a chance to cash in on the tragically bemused who believe Obama is a Muslim, Sharia law is imminent from coast to shining coast, Hillary Clinton is a dying demonic lesbian serial killer, black is a synonym for criminal, America is about to fall under the dominion of a fascist/communist New World Order, and much more besides taken verbatim from the Cuckoos Nest Compendium of Conspiracy Theory. Trump TV might appeal as the conduit for a kind of shadow presidency, allowing him to directly address the faithful about the Clinton regimes wickedness from a mocked-up Oval Office. None of this, of course, may come to pass. Trump might decide that the start-up costs are too big and the projected revenues too small, and abandon the idea. He may even think better of declaring war on 9 November, conceding the election with whatever grace (ha ha ha) he can muster and retreating to Trump Tower to live out his life in isolation like Charles Foster Kane at Xanadu. You wouldnt bet on it, though. In his guise as a cut price Dr Evil, leading a huge army of dangerous irregulars, he seems determined to weaken the foundation stone of democracy that is faith in the electoral system. He has pushed America to the ledge above what Dante might have settled on as his tenth circle of hell had he been a 21st century political analyst. Well discover in a few weeks if he means to give it one last, decisive shove. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Mosul has been a dangerous place since the US-led invasion of 2003. It is the greatest Sunni Arab city of Iraq during an era in which the Sunni had lost their old predominance and have struggled against Shia-dominated governments in Baghdad and Kurdish rulers next door in Iraqi Kurdistan. It is a battle that is still going on as the Iraqi army and Shia paramilitaries advance on Mosul from the south while Kurdish Peshmrga come from the east. The way is cleared for both by air strikes, predominantly by the US air force, attacking Isis fighters dug into ruined villages and hiding in deep tunnels. If the anti-Isis forces ultimately succeed in recapturing Mosul it will be the fifth time the city has changed hands in the course of 13 years of war. The first time was in April 2003 when the Iraqi army was breaking up and surrendering and the Kurdish Peshmerga burst into the city. There was looting on a mass scale which the Arabs blamed on the Kurds and vice versa, but in fact both took part. I saw crowds ransack the governors mansion, the Central Bank and the university. The Arabs, three-quarters of the citys population of two million, were appalled by the Kurdish incursion. I visited the biggest hospital in Mosul where the director Dr Ayad Ramadani told me that the Kurdish militias are looting the city. Today the main protection is from civilians organised by the mosques. By the entrance to the hospital, a family was loading the body of a deceased relative into the back of a truck when there was a burst of machine gun fire. This frightened the truck driver who sped away leaving the body behind and the family angrily waving their fists after him. Relations between Arabs and Kurds did not get much better over the following years. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) claimed parts of Nineveh province around Mosul which it said had a Kurdish majority or had historically belonged to the Kurds. Mosul sits at the heart of a fascinating but confusing ethnic and sectarian mosaic made up of Arabs, Kurds, Shabak, Yazidis and Christians of different dominations. Few of these communities had any liking for the others. The Kurdish takeover was followed by the Americans and for the rest of 2003 General David Patraeus commanded the 101st Airborne Division in the city. He could see how the de-Baathification campaign mandated by the US authorities in Baghdad was alienating former Iraqi army officers and officials who were now out of a job. A high proportion of the army officer corps had always come from Mosul and, in keeping with this military tradition, the defence minister under Saddam Hussein was from the city. Petraeus issued de-Baathification certificates on his own authority so these unemployed officers were at least eligible for a job. Inside Isis secret tunnels Show all 7 1 /7 Inside Isis secret tunnels Inside Isis secret tunnels Network of underground tunnels was discovered by Kurdish forces after they regained the town of Sinjar in Iraq Inside Isis secret tunnels A member of the Peshmerga forces inspects a tunnel used by Isis militants in the town of Sinjar, Iraq Reuters Inside Isis secret tunnels An entrance to the tunnel used by Islamic State militants is seen in the town of Sinjar, Iraq Inside Isis secret tunnels The secret tunnels allowed militants to freely move underground Inside Isis secret tunnels The tunnels appear to be wired with electricity Inside Isis secret tunnels Some of the tunnels are 30 feet deep Inside Isis secret tunnels Concerns remain that parts of the tunnels are rigged with explosives It was not enough. The Americans over-confidently thinned out their troops and then withdrew the remainder to take part in the recapture of Fallujah. In November 2004, Iraqi armed opposition fighters raced into the city, the newly reformed Iraqi army fled and the rebels captured aresnals of weapons. They withdrew after a few days and Baghdad, backed by the US, regained a shaky control. But Baghdads rule was always contested between 2004 and 2014. There were repeated guerrilla attacks. I would travel from Irbil in KRG to visit the Kurdish deputy governor whose well-fortified office was on the far side of the Tigris river. But we either had to drive very fast or go more slowly in convoys defended by troops and armoured vehicles. Isis releases video claiming everything is fine in Mosul Al-Qaeda in Iraq never entirely lost its grip on Mosul even when it was at its lowest ebb before 2011. Local businesses had to pay it protection money, close down or risk assassination. A Turkish businessman with several big construction contracts there recalled later that he had to pay $500,000 (400,000) a month and, when this was increased and he refused to pay up, one of his employees was killed. He stopped work, withdrew his staff to Turkey and complained to the government in Baghdad. But their only proposal was that he pay the protection money and add the sum to his contract price. The government was much disliked in Mosul, but even so the Isis capture of the city in June 2014 was an astonishing victory of a few thousand fighters against a garrison that was meant to total 60,000 and may have had as many as 20,000 soldiers and police. The difference between the two figures was made up of ghost soldiers who did not exist or never came to the barracks but whose salaries were taken by officers. Many other soldiers had simply gone on leave to Baghdad and never come back as the security situation deteriorated. When Isis attacked the army and police dissolved. Isis was never popular in Mosul but they ferociously suppressed all dissent. They drove out the Christians and murdered and enslaved the Yazidis. They blew up iconic monuments like Jonahs Tomb. People may have disliked them, but there was not much they could do about it. Isis also benefited from fear among Sunni in the city about what would happen if the Iraqi army and Shia paramiltary militias came back. They know that the whole five or six million Sunni Arab population of Iraq, a fifth of the 33 million population, are under threat and as many as a third have been displaced. In the sectarian war in Baghdad in 2006-7 the Sunni in Iraq had been driven into several enclaves, mostly in the west side of the city, which US diplomats described as islands of fear. This is now happening in the rest of Iraq. Other Iraqis may see them as complicit in Isiss crimes and seek vengeance. Whatever conciliatory statements come from Iraqi leaders, sectarian and ethnic hatreds are running deep and people in Mosul face a frightening and uncertain future. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} This week, the UKs largest property event, the MIPIM conference, has opened in London. #MIPIMUK is waiting for you, tweeted @MIPIMWorld, the Twitter handle of the international organisation. Underneath was an image of exploding paintballs, overlaid with the words: THE POST BREXIT BOOM Are you ready? Recommended Read more New housing minister campaigned against housebuilding The conference this week will be a fairly sedate affair: property magnates with lanyards in expensive suits, stalls dedicated to the Midlands Engine and the Northern Powerhouse, tired corporate phrases like driving innovation and diversification in the market (tweeted out from that same MIPIM handle this morning), and so on. The real fun is had at their annual event in Cannes, scheduled for mid-March, where estate agency professionals and wealthy investors cavort around five-star hotels and champagne receptions in the sunshine, while ruminating about the housing crisis many of them benefit from directly. Within hours of arriving, I was on a yacht with some investors, being asked to join the Freemasons, one MIPIM attendee told me about his experience last year. Another described it as a nonstop party where she woke up one morning and couldnt remember the name of the hotel she was staying in until I looked at the monogram on my bespoke dressing gown. You meet some people who are involved in things that feel dodgy, another property professional admitted. I work in property and I didnt know about the layers of middlemen and secret deals that go on, particularly where London is concerned. Investors buy up flats before theyre built, then sell them on to other investors, but they dont want the public to know theyre selling them again because that would drive down the price of the other units they own. So they pay off middlemen to do private deals with people they know, just to keep knowledge of the deals out of the public domain. Housing activists are right to be angry but its not MIPIM they should attack Keeping prices high is the business most of these property magnates are in: the housing crisis which makes the London market impossible for young first-time buyers on average incomes is, of course, the lifeblood of many who run and attend MIPIM. Attracting more foreign investors into the London market particularly to buy smaller properties which can be rented back to young Londoners unable to get on the housing ladder is central to their continued influence across global property markets. And as the value of the pound plummets, their jobs only become easier. Estate agents were happy to tell me that theyre seeing more foreign investors than ever offer to buy London flats traditionally expected to be taken by UK-based first time buyers because their money goes twice as far now, which is great for business. This is the Brexit bubble people feared would make the housing crisis worse after leaving the EU, and its fast becoming a reality. One presumes its why one of MIPIMs main events this week is titled: Extraordinary times, extraordinary returns?. Cast your eye over the speakers at MIPIM this week and theres little to feel optimistic about. Theres Navid Chamdia, the UCL-educated head of real estate at the Qatar Investment Authority. He focuses on direct acquisitions, joint ventures and co-investments in Europe after spending 12 years at Ernst & Young advising on the financing and delivery of over $10bn of global real estate and infrastructure projects. Theres Simon Mower, associate director at KPMG Debt Advisory who has particularly strong experience in the real estate market navigating the sectors lender universe structuring investment and development financing transactions for his clients. Theres even one entertainingly named Mark Bourgeois. The world's 10 most expensive cities Show all 9 1 /9 The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities Singapore AFP/Getty The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities Paris Getty The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities Oslo AFP/Getty The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities Sydney AFP/Getty The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities Melbourne AFP/Getty The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities Geneva Getty The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities Copenhagen AFP/Getty The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities Hong Kong AFP/Getty The world's 10 most expensive cities The world's 10 most expensive cities Seoul AFP/Getty Then, of course, theres our astonishingly out-of-touch housing minister Gavin Barwell, who famously suggested that the solution to generational inequality was everybodys rich grandparents skipping a generation with inheritance and giving the millions theyve squirrelled away to their grandkids. Barwell also made a speech two weeks ago in which he suggested the housing crisis could be tackled by making young people live in smaller rooms. We want people to innovate there are things the private sector is doing, he told a fringe event at the Conservative conference. I dont know if anyones seen any of the schemes that Pocket [Living] have done where theyve basically done a deal with the GLA [Greater London Authority] to get some flexibility on space standards. As a result they can offer a product well below market price. A tarted-up way, of course, of saying Pocket Living has managed to twist the standards on what usually would be considered habitable. For a government minister to openly celebrate this isnt just irresponsible; its downright bizarre. Britain has the smallest homes in Europe at an average of 500sqft for a one-bedroom flat and Pocket Living sells 400sqft flats about the size of the average American sitting room, or the average UK hotel room starting at 250,000. This week, Gavin Barwell will speak at MIPIM alongside Marc Vlessing, chief executive of Pocket Living, whose background is in City corporate finance. If that doesnt speak volumes about the housing crisis, the Government and the property professionals who pull the strings across the UK, I dont know what does. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Poor old Dr Abdullah al-Hamid. He founded the Committee to Defend Legitimate Rights in Saudi Arabia in 1992 and has been in and out of prison ever since. He wanted a constitutional monarchy, and four years ago he faced 13 charges in the Riyadh Criminal Court including the grave offence of promoting peaceful protests and establishing an unlicensed civil society organisation. Had he not been a Saudi, this might have been a case of off with his head. But in March 2013, the court showed its leniency: five years in the slammer (plus six years from a previous sentence) for breaking a promise not to pursue further political activities and a subsequent 10-year travel ban. But now al-Hamid is under investigation in prison for sending, earlier this year, a letter to His Majesty King Salman of Saudi Arabia, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and head of the House of Saud, a letter entitled: The Flaws of Despotism. Despotism? DESPOTISM? What could this man be talking about? Saudi Arabia is so close to the bosom of British democracy, you may recall, that when 80-year-old Salmans half brother, King Abdullah, died last year, David Cameron, a former British prime minister, lowered the flag of the United Kingdom to half-mast as a sign of our condolence. What we were mourning was never quite clear. An oil potentate? A moderate if we forget his countrymen: bin Laden, 15 of the 19 hijackers of 9/11 and his Shiite opponents (including Nimr al-Nimr) who had their heads chopped off by Salman whose citizens seemed to send a lot of cash to Isis? Or a despot? 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Show all 10 1 /10 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In October 2014, three lawyers, Dr Abdulrahman al-Subaihi, Bander al-Nogaithan and Abdulrahman al-Rumaih , were sentenced to up to eight years in prison for using Twitter to criticize the Ministry of Justice. AFP/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2015, Yemens Sunni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was forced into exile after a Shia-led insurgency. A Saudi Arabia-led coalition has responded with air strikes in order to reinstate Mr Hadi. It has since been accused of committing war crimes in the country. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Women who supported the Women2Drive campaign, launched in 2011 to challenge the ban on women driving vehicles, faced harassment and intimidation by the authorities. The government warned that women drivers would face arrest. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Members of the Kingdoms Shia minority, most of whom live in the oil-rich Eastern Province, continue to face discrimination that limits their access to government services and employment. Activists have received death sentences or long prison terms for their alleged participation in protests in 2011 and 2012. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses All public gatherings are prohibited under an order issued by the Interior Ministry in 2011. Those defy the ban face arrest, prosecution and imprisonment on charges such as inciting people against the authorities. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2014, the Interior Ministry stated that authorities had deported over 370,000 foreign migrants and that 18,000 others were in detention. Thousands of workers were returned to Somalia and other states where they were at risk of human rights abuses, with large numbers also returned to Yemen, in order to open more jobs to Saudi Arabians. Many migrants reported that prior to their deportation they had been packed into overcrowded makeshift detention facilities where they received little food and water and were abused by guards. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses The Saudi Arabian authorities continue to deny access to independent human rights organisations like Amnesty International, and they have been known to take punitive action, including through the courts, against activists and family members of victims who contact Amnesty. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Raif Badawi was sentenced to 1000 lashes and 10 years in prison for using his liberal blog to criticise Saudi Arabias clerics. He has already received 50 lashes, which have reportedly left him in poor health. Carsten Koall/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Dawood al-Marhoon was arrested aged 17 for participating in an anti-government protest. After refusing to spy on his fellow protestors, he was tortured and forced to sign a blank document that would later contain his confession. At Dawoods trial, the prosecution requested death by crucifixion while refusing him a lawyer. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Ali Mohammed al-Nimr was arrested in 2012 aged either 16 or 17 for participating in protests during the Arab spring. His sentence includes beheading and crucifixion. The international community has spoken out against the punishment and has called on Saudi Arabia to stop. He is the nephew of a prominent government dissident. Getty Either way, al-Hamid and his fellow members of ACPRA, the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association which has peacefully sought a constitutional monarchy, an elected parliament, and an independent judiciary are not getting much of a hearing in the Kingdom. In fact, no hearing at all. So lets take a look at the mournful list of some of its members and what has happened to them. Mohamed Saleh al-Bajadi, who once founded a Forum for Cultural Debate in Saudi Arabia, was arrested several times for his demands to end torture and arbitrary arrest, and for inciting protests. Charges against the 38-year old included harming the countrys reputation, questioning the independence of the judiciary and harming the image of the state. He was put on secret trial in August 2011 and his lawyers were denied access to him. He got four years from the Specialised Criminal Court and a travel ban, was released three years ago, almost immediately re-arrested, and then a court of appeal overturned the sentence upon which al-Bajadi received another four-year sentence and is currently on probation. Then we have Saleh al-Ashwan, 30 years old, who defended women in detention in Saudi Arabia, was arrested in 2012 and held without trial until 2016 during time which he was reported to have been tortured and then finally sentenced this year to five years in prison (and a five-year travel ban) by the same Specialised Criminal Court which chucked al-Bajadi into jail. Sheikh Sulieman al-Rashudi, who, despite being a lawyer and former judge and 79 years old is currently serving the last 10 years of a 15-year sentence, which is to be followed by a 15-year travel ban. His crimes since 1993: demanding constitutional reforms, breaking allegiance with the King, establishing a secret [sic] organisation and financing terrorism. The preposterous nature of all this is illustrated by the fact that by the time al-Rashudis travel ban expires, he will be 106 years old. Well, long life to him. Dr Mohammad al-Qahtani is only 51, but hes serving the last seven years of a 10-year sentence for inciting dissent and breaking allegiance with the ruler, questioning the integrity of the officials and the supreme scholars, antagonising international organisations against the Saudi Government by disseminating false information and using the Internet to disseminate opinionsagainst the government. Al-Qahtani is a founder member of ACPRA, holds a PhD in economics from Indiana University and used to teach political economy in the Kingdom. His current address: Hayer High Security Prison, 25 miles south of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. So, back to Dr Abdullah al-Hamid, a 65-year-old writer. He was charged in June 2012 in the Riyadh Criminal Court with promoting peaceful protests, causing public disorder and unrest, establishing an unlicensed civil society organisation and making false testimonies to foreign organisations. Three and a half years ago, he received a five-year prison sentence in addition to another six from a previous sentence for breaking a promise not to pursue civil rights demands. And hes the guy whos now under investigation for having sent to King Salman this year the letter headed The Flaws of Despotism. Footage shows extent of child malnutrition in Yemen as Britain continues to sell arms to Saudi Arabia I havent yet received a copy of this treatise I am looking forward to it but the title alone raises many questions. After all, if the King really wants his country to be a pioneering global model of excellence on all fronts, as he claimed in his Vision 2030 speech, then what on earth is he doing when he throws Saudis who want basic freedoms and rights into the clink? A truly visionary monarch less influenced, perhaps, by his warlike defence minister Prince Mohamed (Salmans son by his third wife and the chap who launched the Yemen military fiasco) might have embraced these men as patriotic Saudis who want to help him bring his country into the real vision of 2030. But, no; they must be enemies of the state if they speak so freely even if they still want a monarchy, albeit constitutional. Their case has been taken up by Alkarama, the Swiss-founded human rights group largely funded by multi-millionaire Qatari businessman Khalifa Mohamed Al-Rabban which has dubbed Saudi Arabia the kingdom of arbitrary detention. When I asked its Gulf human rights officer, Michelle Wazzan, why such humble dissidents should trouble the Kingdom, she talked about fear. Recommended Read more Saudi Arabia is showing signs of financial strain Their ideas resonate with the people, she said. Its coming to people in the streets. They make people feel they should ask for their rights not just a constitutional monarchy, but entrenching their rights in a document. I think this is scary to the Saudi government There is a fear of the people and anything that goes against the doctrine of the state. Hanging onto traditions and very strict values make it easier to do what you want to do. Maybe so. But can this last forever? Imprisoning people on nonsensical charges was once described by Churchill as tomfoolery. And thats what this is. It is tomfoolery to lock up these decent men. It is also a sign of decrepit thinking. Surely freeing them from jail and giving them a voice must be easier than bombing Yemen back into the Stone Age? When you look at these ridiculous sentences, it is surely the rulers of this nation, not its prisoners, who are harming the countrys reputation. Sterling's plunge since the UK's June Brexit vote has finally forced Ryanair to cut its full-year profit guidance, after months of warning that such a move could be on the cards. The recent accelerated decline in the value of sterling prompted Ryanair to concede that its profit in the 12-month period that ends next March will now rise by 7pc compared to the 12pc increase it had previously pencilled in. It now expects to book a profit of between 1.3bn and 1.35bn. That compares to a previously estimated range of between 1.37bn to 1.42bn. And chief executive Michael O'Leary cautioned that even the revised figure could come under pressure again if sterling continues its declining trajectory and the price of fares fall further. The beleaguered currency - which has tumbled 18pc since the June referendum - will account for 26pc of Ryanair's full-year revenues. Ryanair said the average price of its first-half fares fell 10pc compared to a guided decline of 9pc and in the second-half, it expects average fares to fall by between 13pc and 15pc. That compares to a previously guided fall of between 10pc and 12pc. Mr O'Leary said its second-half yields had been weakened by more than originally anticipated. "While high load factors, stronger traffic growth and better cost control will help to ameliorate these weaker revenues, it is prudent now to adjust full-year guidance," he said. "We would caution that this revised guidance remains heavily dependent upon no further weakness in H2 fares, or sterling from its current levels," he added. Ryanair's model is to be load factor active, and price passive, meaning it will price its tickets at whatever level is needed to fill its aircraft. Shares in the carrier fell on the opening bell but quickly recovered, rising 2.5pc by mid-afternoon. "While this earnings cut is disappointing, we see it as all driven by sterling," said Davy Stockbrokers analyst Stephen Furlong. "Its business model and free cash flow generation still leaves Ryanair as the stand-out winner in the European airline industry." Mr O'Leary has already indicated that Ryanair will favour growth in other countries over the UK due to Brexit, which he and the airline had campaigned against. It isn't allocating any of the 50 new aircraft it is taking delivery of this year to the UK. The airline chief said recently that he expects the fallout from Brexit to impact Ryanair's profits for as long as four years. Ryanair expects its full-year ex-fuel unit costs to fall by 3pc compared to a previously guided 1pc fall. It expects to carry 119 million passengers this financial year. U+I is developing the Vertium Building on Burlington Road in Dublin Property group U+I is eyeing further opportunities in the Dublin commercial property market, chief executive Matthew Weiner has said. Mr Weiner was speaking in the publication of the company's interim results where he said the business was gaining momentum since its merger two years ago. "We remain committed to Dublin as one of our three core regions as we see significant opportunities in the market and will continue to build on our work to date with our local partners. "We continue to explore the opportunity to create a specialist platform to meet the growing need for affordable rental housing across our portfolio of sites in key regions and are advancing other partnerships to leverage the expertise we have in specific sectors of the market," he said. The commitment to developing affordable rental accommodation will come as welcome news to tenants in the capital where rents have continued to soar. The firm posted an 11.5m (12.8m) gain in developments and trading during the first half of the year, pushing it ahead of the original 8m guidance set at the start of the year. U+I, which was formed through the combination of Cathedral Group and Development Securities, has also secured a further 11m in development and trading gains since August, rising to 22.5m for the year. Brexit has caused the company's investment portfolio to wane during the first half of the year with a relative capital decline of 5.2pc. Despite the challenging backdrop U+I is tipping its development and trading gains for the year to reach between 35m and 40m. In the first six months of the year the firm moved forward with a number of developments in Dublin. Planning permission was secured for a complete refurbishment at Donnybrook House in D4 and for 'The Avenue' in Sandyford. All apartment units are sale agreed at Percy Place with commercial space sold to Irish Life. Force India deputy team principal Bob Fernley says he does not understand the reasons behind the pre-season testing row, adding a Bahrain test would be a 400,000 minimum extra cost. Pirelli wants to test in Bahrain in order to have warm, stable conditions throughout pre-season in which to evaluate its tyre compounds, with the tyres vastly different from previous years due to new regulations. While Mercedes has been vocal in support of the idea, many teams have offered resistance and Fernley says there has yet to be a compelling argument to go to the Middle East over Barcelona. Certainly for us its a 400,000 minimum extra cost, Fernley told F1i. Plus all the extra inconvenience. When you go to somewhere like Barcelona youve got the ability to bring in additional parts through that testing program. Once youre in Bahrain theres a big difference in cost and time to do all of that. The whole purpose of that test is chassis and engine-related tests, its nothing to do with tyres, so I cant see why tyres have all of a sudden appeared in it. Testing from our point of view is very clear. The test before the first race is for chassis and engine evaluation for new cars. At no point in my understanding have we ever been worrying about tyres in those, so I dont know why the tyres are coming into it. There cannot possibly be a safety issue three weeks before the first race, so why are we doing it? Why are we confusing ourselves? At the end of the day it is chassis and engine testing. In order to do that we voted that Barcelona would be the best place to do it. Whats changed to make that any different? Its only the Pirelli bit thats changed it. In essence youre putting the tyres under far more pressure in Barcelona than you ever will be in Bahrain, so I cant see the point of it. And Fernley still doesnt believe teams would automatically accept the venue change even if Pirelli offers to foot the extra cost itself. I suppose if Pirelli put the money up everybody would think about it, for sure, but the question is why do we need to do it? Nobody has answered the question of why are we going to Bahrain for tyres? When it was put to Fernley that Pirelli wants to ensure it has selected the right compounds for the opening four races as a result of not getting the required aerodynamic loads from the mule cars being used this year, he replied: The bottom line is theyre not going to change that anyway. They say its nine weeks before you can implement any new compounds. The first four races will be over. If theyre not finding the loads [using the mule cars], why are we going to Bahrain when the loads are going to go through Barcelona? Theres nothing making sense in any of this. TECHNICAL - Turbulent Jet Ignition: In the antechamber of F1 power FEATURE: Where and why has Williams been caught out F1i Classic - Masten Gregory - The 'Kansas City flash' Silbermann investigates the potential EU threat to F1's Liberty Media deal 2017 F1 driver line-ups so far Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter A parcel of 42ac of 'top class' Kilkenny land is coming to auction before the end of the month. The tillage grounds, which include a registered quarry, are brought to market with a guide price of 10,000 to 12,000/ac. Located at Goresbridge, the lands are 6km from Gowran and 20km from Kilkenny City. Auctioneer Ed Donohoe describes the ground as "the best land you'll ever walk". The farm is on a vein of limestone land and, in testament to its quality, the property includes a limestone quarry reputed to have 2m tons of a limestone deposit. According to Ed Donohoe, the quarry is still registered and could be reactivated. With access to a cul-de-sac and a lane, the lands are laid out in four fields of tillage and are in the best of heart. Mr Donohoe is expecting huge interest in the parcel when it comes to auction at the Clubhouse Hotel, Kilkenny at 3pm on Friday, October 28. Mr Donohoe is also handling the sale of a 14.5ac parcel of ground at Garryhill, located off the Garryhill to Bagenalstown road. The parcel of grazing ground is in four fields with plenty of road frontage and is described by Mr Donohoe as "real good ground". Coming with a guide price of 8,000 to 10,000/ac, the place will be sold at public auction at The Clubhouse Hotel, Kilkenny at 3pm on Thursday, November 3. Kildare and Laois Further north, a parcel of a 42ac at Corrig near Portarlington in Co Laois is to be sold by auction at the end of October. The non-residential lands are guided at 10,000/ac. Situated 1km from Portarlington on the R419 Portlaoise to Portarlington Road, and 5km from Ballybrittas, the lands are in four fields and are all in tillage. The ground is described by Ronan O'Connor, of selling agents CME auctioneers, as the best of ground with 500m of road frontage and ideal for the construction of a residence, subject to planning permission. "This is as good a piece of ground as you are likely to get," Mr O'Connor said. The property is in two divisions, a 4.5ac parcel and a 37.5ac piece. It will be sold at auction at the Hotel Keadeen, Newbridge at 3pm on Wednesday, October 26. Tomorrow, the same auctioneers will handle the sale of a property much closer to Dublin and with great potential. Located at Oldmill, Kill in Co Kildare, the residential 16ac holding is coming to auction in lots with a guide price of 500,000. Situated 2km from the N7, 10 minutes from Citywest Business Park and 15 minutes from Newlands Cross, the property consists of a structurally sound bungalow, a farmyard with a series of old sheds and 16ac of land with road frontage on to two roads. According to Ronan O'Connor the place will be offered for auction in lots, with the bungalow on 0.5ac guided at 225,000, the farmyard on 2.57ac guided at 95,000, while the remaining 12.7ac is guided at 180,000. A guide in excess of 500,000 is on the entire. The auction takes place tomorrow, October 19, at 3pm at Lawlor's Hotel, Naas. The IFA National Animal Health Committee, which was controversially disbanded more than a decade and a half ago, is to be fully re-instated within the organisation structure with immediate effect. Northeast Regional Chairman, Bert Stewart, has confirmed that notification is being issued to the branch and county structure countrywide within the next week, inviting nominations for positions on the reinstated committee. While each branch is entitled to nominate a candidate, it is up to each county executive to decide on their representative, with one seat on the committee for each of the 29 executives to form the new committee, which is being scheduled to be operational from the beginning of January 2017. Mr Stewart, who is currently IFA Animal Welfare Project Leader, will automatically become chairman of the Animal Health Committee next January. He has confirmed that he will serve the first year in the position, with an open election among the membership in January 2018 to appoint his successor. There was strong opposition voiced within the rank and file membership at the "cost saving" decision of the IFA to dissolve the committee in the early years of the last decade because it was felt the "concerns of farmers over disease controls" and administration of the disease control and eradication schemes would not be monitored to protect the interests of livestock farmers. However, during the same period, TB infection levels declined significantly to 1.82pc in 2015, down from 3.6pc in 2001. The number of reactor animals removed from herds last year declined to 15,317 across a total of 115,000 herds tested. Mr Stewart said vaccination of badgers is showing "encouraging" results, which could replace the necessity for culling to control disease spread. "Where vaccination only of badgers has been carried out, TB infection has not increased any more than in the areas outside the target vaccination area, which indicates that it is being effective and the cost to the Department of the vaccination and micro chipping is cost neutral," he said. However, TB in deer in Wicklow remains an issue, with a recent trial showing that 16pc of 103 deer tested were infected with the disease. The land is described as undulating midlands ground laid out in a series of big fields with plenty of road frontage and a water supply. In another big farm sale, a holding extending to 153ac at Ballymaurice Granard in Co Longford sold under the hammer on Friday last, making 1.152m or over 7,500/ac. A farmer from across the county boundary in Cavan won the day while the underbidder was a Longford farmer. Located more than 2km from Granard, the farm was renowned in years gone by as a beef-fattening unit. The 153ac grassland holding is serviced by an extensive farmyard that was once the hub of a major beef operation, but of late, the farm was let for grazing. The holding comes with a basic farm payment in the region of 14,500. The yard includes a six-column shed with a lean-to, a pair of seven-column double-slatted sheds with a central feeding passage, four covered silage pits along with grain storage and cattle handling facilities. The land is described as undulating midlands ground laid out in a series of big fields with plenty of road frontage and a water supply. The farm is divided into two natural lots by a local road, with 87.8ac on one side and 64.9ac on the other. On the day, auctioneer Paul Murtagh opened proceedings looking for bids on the lots, but there was no interest in the smaller portions - the buyers were there for the big stuff. While Dillon Murtagh reckoned there were five serious contenders in the room when the bidding opened at 700,000, three customers declared their hands. This was soon down to two as the price rose in increments of 50,000 and 20,000. After the 1m mark was broken the size of the increments eased back to 10,000s and 5,000s and at 1.111m, the place was put on the market. Bidding continued in tranches of 2,000 and 1,000 until the price reached 1.152m and there was no more money in the room. The hammer fell in favour of a Cavan farmer living about 30 km away. Irish agri-tech business BHSL has appointed former Kerry Group chief executive Denis Brosnan as its new chairman. Mr Brosnan joins the company alongside four new additions. Former ESB chief executive Padraig McManus, retired Supreme Court Judge Fidelma Macken, veteran corporate financier David Hickey, and Limerick businessman Tom Lynch have also joined BHSL's board as non-executive directors. The firm, which has developed a system that turns poultry manure into fuel for energy generation, is also looking to raise at least 7m in new equity through a capital raise. Corporate finance firm Focus Consulting is to lead the round. The Limerick-based business uses a patented-protected system to drive profitability through reduced energy bills. The newly raised funds will be used to increase BHSL's sales presence globally as well as extending its research and development operation. BHSL managing director Declan O'Connor said welcomed the company's new additions to the board. "He brings decades of experience in the agri-business sector and will provide huge support as we enter a new growth phase for the business, and target new export markets. "Padraig's deep expertise in the energy sector will be a valuable asset, as will David's corporate finance knowledge, and Fidelma's appreciation of the evolving legal and regulatory environment." The firm's new chairman said he has been "hugely impressed" by the company's technology. "We are very confident of attracting interest from investors who will see the global scale of this market opportunity. "It is exciting to be involved in an innovative Irish agri-tech business, and I believe 2017 will be a transformational year for the business, given the sales pipeline we are seeing." BHSL currently delivers its systems to farmers in both the UK and the US and is continuing to expand in Europe. Kellogg has been based in Ireland since 2005 and employs 250 people here including its head of its European cereal business unit and a number of senior cereal functional leaders for Europe. Photo: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images The main Irish arm of breakfast cereal giant Kellogg last year paid zero corporation tax for the second year running as revenues topped 1.28bn. New accounts filed by Kellogg European Trading (KET) Ltd with the Companies Office show that it recorded a 27pc jump in operating profits, from 38.7m to 49.36m, in the 12 months to the end of January 2 last. However, interest charges payable of 137.45m on loans from other group firms pushed the firm into the red to record losses of 75.5m. The firm reduced its losses in 2015 to 65.6m with a deferred tax asset of 9.8m. Kellogg has been based in Ireland since 2005 and employs 250 people here including its head of its European cereal business unit and a number of senior cereal functional leaders for Europe. Along with Kellogg European Trading, Kellogg also operates a number of other subsidiaries here. Revenues at KET last year reduced by 2pc from 1.3bn to 1.28bn. The business recorded a gross profit of 356m after its cost of sales totalled 927.7m. The company's brands include Corn Flakes, Coco Pops, Nutri-Grain and Rice Crispies. A breakdown of the KET's revenues show that 526.72m were generated in the UK with 747m in 'Rest of Europe' and the remaining 9.8m in 'Rest of World'. Numbers employed at the firm last year increased by four to 215 with staff costs totalling 39.8m, including 1m in equity share based payments. The firm's directors are well rewarded - four served on the board last year, sharing pay of 2.22m. Included in that amount is 258,000 paid to the firm's ultimate parent for the provision of director's services. According to the directors' report, "the outlook for 2016 remains challenging with an expectation of little year on year growth in turnover or operating profit". The report adds: "Marketing support/pressure for our brands will be in line with the previous year in real terms. The overall cost base is expected to be lower than the previous year thanks to notable efficiencies in this area offset by commodity price increases." The principal activity of the firm is the production and marketing of ready to eat cereals and related foodstuffs in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. It states that affiliated enterprises act as consignment manufacturers and as local market distributors. The directors stated that they consider turnover satisfactory for the year. The company has moved about 9.78bn of foreign sales through KET in the last seven years but paid a very small amount of tax due to the interest on the group loans. The loss last year resulted in the firm having a shareholders' deficit of 676.86m at the end of January 2 last. Interest charges payable of 137.45m on loans from other group firms pushed the firm into the red Nama has been accused of "playing the man and not the ball" by launching a stinging attack on the spending watchdog, in its defence of the controversial Project Eagle deal. Chairman of the Dail's Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Sean Fleming, said if he was a referee, Nama officials appearing before TDs would have gotten a "red card". Expand Close Pimco's letter was read into the public record by committee chairman Sean Fleming TD this morning. Photo: Tom Burke / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Pimco's letter was read into the public record by committee chairman Sean Fleming TD this morning. Photo: Tom Burke The Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG) report into the sale of the Northern loan book found it incurred a probable loss of 190m (223m) in the 2014 deal. Nama has rejected this finding. Three of Nama's board members, Willie Soffe, Brian McEnery and Oliver Ellingham faced severe criticism from TDs as they answered questions on the matter. A statement read by Mr Soffe accused the C&AG of being "simply wrong" in its finding that a probable loss was made on the Project Eagle deal because it came from a "mistaken assumption" about the discount rate used. Mr Soffe said the 5.5pc rate cited by the C&AG was not the "market discount rate" of 10pc used by Nama in the deal, and it was like "comparing apples and oranges". Independent TD Catherine Connolly said Mr Soffe's statement was "pejorative". He defended it, saying it was a response to a report that suggests "that we made a foolish commercial decision". He insisted Nama got the best possible price. Fianna Fail TD Mr Fleming counted 10 attacks on the C&AG in Mr Soffe's statement and said he was "shocked". But Mr Soffe said: "I think it is right that we should defend our position and that's what we are doing. Why should we meekly accept what is very strong criticism?" Mr Fleming replied: "I'd prefer if a State body would play the ball and not the man." The issue of the alleged 'success fee' to be paid to former Nama adviser in the North Frank Cushnahan was also raised. The businessman was alleged to be in line for a one-third share of up to 16m if the Project Eagle sale had gone ahead to Pimco, the initial bidder. Mr Cushnahan has denied any wrongdoing. Asked why Pimco would offer Mr Cushnahan such a fee, Mr Soffe said he had "no idea". Mr Ellingham said: "It would appear that the persons paying him that thought he was worth some input or value." But Mr McEnery said: "I don't want to speculate about what this is about." Labour's Alan Kelly asked about the decision to sell the portfolio in a single block. He asked if Nama weighed up political pressure in the North and business risks with Section 10 of the Nama Act - which says it must ensure the best financial return for the State expeditiously. He asked if Nama "couldn't look a gift horse in the mouth" when an offer was made to buy the whole portfolio. Mr McEnery insisted: "The paramount focus of the board was Section 10." Bookmakers have already begun paying out on Ms Clinton winning the US election: JOHN GURZINSKI/AFP/Getty Images Irish bookmakers Paddy Power are paying out to customers who backed Hillary Clinton to win the US election, three weeks before Americans go to the polls. The bookmakers are paying out $1m (910,000), gambling on Donald Trumps election campaign being all but finished. Other bookmakers all make Mrs Clinton the strong favourite. Ladbrokes currently gives her odds of 2/11, and Mr Trump 4/1. Betfair makes him even more of an outsider, with odds of 5/1. In October a 46-year-old woman made a 450,000 (502,000) bet with William Hill on Mrs Clinton winning, which would give her a 180,000 return. Joe Crilly, press officer at William Hill, said over the summer that the turnover for bets on this US election in total is more than 300pc times bigger than for the ballot in 2012, partly because both candidates are so high-profile. Trump becoming president would not quite be in the Leicester City league of upsets but in political betting it would certainly trump the comparatively short upsets of the EU Referendum outcome and the Tories winning the General Election, he said, in a blog post. Mr Trump initially was given odds of 100/1, between November 2012 and June 2015, of occupying the White House. By May this year however he had decreased his odds to 13/8. But recent revelations have halted his momentum, and the bookies now give his chance of winning at 9/2 - an 18.2pc chance of winning. Trump gave it a hell of a shot going from a rank outsider to the Republican candidate but the recent flood of revelations have halted his momentum, said a Paddy Power spokesman. Recent betting trends have shown one way traffic for Hillary and punters seemed to have called it 100pc correct. Despite Trumps Make America Great Again message appealing to many disillusioned voters, it looks as though America are going to put a woman in the White House. Mrs Clintons odds of claiming the presidency have fallen to 2/11 giving her an 85.7pc chance of winning. Over the past week, Paddy Power says they have seen a flood of money on Mrs Clinton. Two days before President Barack Obama won the 2012 election, the bookie paid out $700,000. Should Mr Trump upset the odds and become 45th president it will trigger the biggest political payout in bookmaking history. Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022] UK retailer Asda - owned by US giant Wal-Mart - funnelled 228.2m (253.4m) of online grocery sales through its Irish unit last year. The Irish subsidiary is used to process revenue from the sale of its groceries through all its online channels, including the Asda.com website, as well as phone and tablet applications. The 'Sunday Independent' revealed in 2014 that Asda had established the Irish unit to process payments. The retailer - which posted sales last year of 22bn - said at the time that the Irish unit was being set up in order to help cut costs. That year, Asda had posted online sales of about 1bn and said it planned to increase that figure to 3bn by 2019. Leeds-based Asda did not say precisely how the Irish arm would help it to reduce costs. However, it was keen at the time to point out that the unit was not being established as a tax-related move. The subsidiary is liable for UK corporation tax. A spokeswoman had described the decision to set up the Irish firm as a "housekeeping" exercise and that it was "about reducing the cost of processing credit card charges for online grocery shopping". Newly-filed accounts for the division - Asda Home Shopping Cards - show that revenue hit 228.2m last year, and that it made an operating profit of 307,000. The accounts also note that the principal activity of the company is to process and manage credit card transactions, and to provide card payments and payment solutions on behalf of other fellow subsidiary undertakings of Asda. The revenue figure excludes VAT. "Revenue is derived from the principal activities in the United Kingdom and is recognised net of coupons and the free element of multi-save transactions," note the accounts. "All revenue is generated from the sale of groceries through online channels, including the Asda.com website, phone and tablet applications." Asda has been struggling in a fiercely competitive UK grocery market, shedding market share to rivals such as Lidl and Aldi. In July, Wal-Mart took a step towards trying to shore up the business, when it appointed the then head of its Chinese unit, Sean Clarke, to take over at Asda. Accounts for Asda show that its like-for-like sales, excluding VAT and fuel, fell 4.7pc last year to just over 20bn. Its underlying operating profit declined 1.5pc to 1.04bn. Here are the main business stories from this morning's papers: Irish Independent * Sterling's plunge since the UK's June Brexit vote has finally forced Ryanair to cut its full-year profit guidance, after months of warning that such a move could be on the cards. The recent accelerated decline in the value of sterling prompted Ryanair to concede that its profit in the 12-month period that ends next March will now rise by 7pc compared to the 12pc increase it had previously pencilled in. * UK retailer Asda - owned bay US giant Wal-Mart - funnelled 228.2m (253.4m) of online grocery sales through its Irish unit last year. The Irish subsidiary is used to process revenue from the sale of its groceries through all its online channels, including the Asda.com website, as well as phone and tablet applications. * It was home to hit movies and film series including 'The Tudors' and 'Braveheart' - but now Ardmore Studios has been put up for sale. Located on 18 acres in Bray, Co Wicklow, Ardmore has played host to a string of big-budget productions. The Irish Times * San Diego-based Brandes Investment Partners has doubled its stake in Bulmers-maker C&C to 6pc, making it the fourth largest investor in the company. The investment firm is owned by US billionaire Charles Brande who increased his stake in C&C from 5.1pc. * Britain's decision to leave the European Union has prompted Irish PR firm Hume Brophy to open an office in Germany and is now eyeing up a move for an acquisition in Berlin. The financial services-focused firm said the referendum result quickened a shift in business towards Germany. * Wicklow-based Ardmore Studios has been put on the market as a going concern after three successful financial years for the company. The firm said it had a healthy number of potential productions on the horizon, insisting the sale of the major Irish studio would have no effect on its day to day running. Irish Examiner * Irish agri-tech business BHSL has appointed former Kerry Group chief executive Denis Brosnan as its new chairman. The firm, which has developed a system that turns poultry manure into fuel for energy generation, is also looking to raise at least 7m in new equity through a capital raise. Corporate finance firm Focus Consulting is to lead the round. * The main Irish arm of breakfast cereal giant Kellogg last year paid zero corporation tax for the second year running as revenues topped 1.28bn. New accounts filed by Kellogg European Trading (KET) Ltd with the Companies Office show that it recorded a 27pc jump in operating profits, from 38.7m to 49.36m, in the 12 months to the end of January 2 last. * Shares in Ryanair rose by 2.5pc yesterday even though the airline cut its guidance off the back of the weak sterling. The Michael O'Leary-led aviation giant said its net income for the year was due to come in at between 1.3bn and 1.35bn rather than 1.375bn and 1.425bn. William Hill and Canadian online gambling company Amaya have abandoned merger talks, leaving the British bookmaker struggling to find a partner in a fast-consolidating industry. Amaya operates the Full Tilt poker business that employs hundreds at a site in Cherrywood in Dublin as well as the PokerStars website. William Hill, one of the best known British gambling brands, said earlier this month that it and Amazya were in talks about a merger of equals but the deal was thrown into doubt days later when a leading investor in William Hill said it would oppose the plan. The Canadian company said it had decided it could best deliver shareholder value by remaining an independent company, while William Hill said it had decided to walk away after canvassing its biggest investors. William Hill investor Parvus Asset Management, which came out against the Amaya deal last week, welcomed the news. "We're pleased that the board has decided to cancel the talks with Amaya, and, from our perspective, we're looking forward to working constructively with the board with regard to creating shareholder value for William Hill owners," Parvus co-founder Mads Gensmann said. William Hill is looking increasingly isolated after European rivals Paddy Power and Betfair joined forces, while Ladbrokes agreed to unite with unlisted Gala Coral. William Hill had 51 betting shops in the Republic before the financial crash but shut many and in 2011 sold the remaining 15 to BoyleSports. Betting companies are facing tighter regulation and higher taxes in countries such as Britain and need to adapt to an environment in which younger and more tech-savvy gamblers are increasingly betting online or via smartphone. William Hill rejected a joint takeover approach from smaller online rival 888 and casinos and bingo halls operator Rank Group in August. That turned the tables on William Hill which had made a 720m bid for 888 last year. In its statement yesterday, William Hill said it was focusing on the priorities set out by interim chief executive Philip Bowcock - online, technology, efficiencies and international. It said the company would "continue to consider strategic alternatives where they have the potential to create shareholder value." (Reuters) Netflix's shares jumped as much as 20pc on Tuesday, after the company added 50pc more subscribers than expected in the third quarter. At least 10 brokerages, including Goldman Sachs and RBC Capital Markets, raised their price targets on the stock, praising the company's focus on developing original content. Netflix's shares were up 18.6pc at $118.23 in early trading, adding about $8bn to the company's market value. The video streaming company also said it was getting ready to spend $6bn on content next year, up $1bn from 2016. "The benefits of NFLX-produced original content including attractive economics and greater control are clear and we believe returns on original spend are high," J.P. Morgan Securities analyst Doug Anmuth said in a research note. Strong subscriber additions, after disappointing growth in the previous quarter, helped Netflix post a 31.7pc jump in third-quarter revenue. Anmuth said he believed Netflix was on track toward 60 million plus subscribers in the United States and about 100 million internationally by 2020. The company has often been criticized for spending too much on content as it tries to aggressively gain subscribers outside the United States, its main market. The company added about 3.20 million subscribers internationally in the third quarter, compared with the 2.01 million average analyst estimate. In the United States, Netflix added 370,000 subscriptions, compared with analysts' estimate of 309,000, according to research firm FactSet StreetAccount. Though the company's stock has fallen nearly 13pc this year, it trades at 356 times forward earnings, versus the peer median of 5.88. The second season of "Narcos", a Netflix original show on Colombian kingpin Pablo Escobar, has proved highly popular, following up on the success of "Orange is the New Black" and "House of Cards". The company plans to launch "Crown", a show about the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. Netflix plans to release more than 1,000 hours of original programming in 2017, up from 600 hours this year. "This is unprecedented growth that should drive a substantial improvement in the breadth and depth of content on the service, which should provide a tailwind to subscriber growth in 2017," said Pacific Crest analyst Andy Hargreaves. The company said it now expects a higher free cash flow burn at $1.5bn in 2016 as producing original content consumes more cash up front. The company, which faces competition from the likes of Hulu and Amazon.com Inc , said it would likely tap the capital markets to fund spending on original content. The company behind Frozen wants to keep its family image THE Walt Disney Company decided not to pursue a bid for Twitter partly out of concern that bullying and other uncivil forms of communication on the social media site might soil the company's wholesome family image, according to people familiar with management's thinking. The producer of family fare like 'Frozen' and 'Finding Dory' had gone so far as to hire two investment banks, JPMorgan Chase & Co and Guggenheim Partners, to help evaluate a Twitter bid. Disney management also listened to a presentation about the business from Twitter executives, according to the sources. There were other reasons for Disney not to pursue Twitter. The social media pioneer is losing money and yet has a market value of almost $12bn. That would be a big deal even for Disney, which has a market value 12 times that. (Bloomberg) Northern Irelands First Minister Arlene Foster, Philip McBride of Thales Belfast, astronaut Tim Peake and Economy Minister Simon Hamilton at the new space industry facility in Belfast. Photo: Kelvin Boyes/Press Eye /PA Wire Astronaut Tim Peake praised Northern Ireland's "cutting-edge" technology, as he opened a new 6m (6.7m) space propulsion centre in Belfast. The centre is a major step forward for the space sector north of the Border and a boost for the city. Expand Close Tim Peake with Callum Milligan (5) during a visit to the Glasgow Science Centre on Sunday. Photo: John Linton/PA Wire / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Tim Peake with Callum Milligan (5) during a visit to the Glasgow Science Centre on Sunday. Photo: John Linton/PA Wire After the renowned space explorer opened air defence group Thales's new centre, Tim also met 200 children from local schools on the visit. The new Thales centre will be manufacturing propulsion systems for sending high-tech satellites into space - for everything from telecommunications to weather-forecasting. Tim famously spent six months in the International Space Station, where he helped to inspire the next generation of scientists. He described the range of his work for the European Space Agency. "I can go from melting metal alloys in the European lab, to the US laboratory, working with proteins for the pharmaceutical industry. "It gives me as much, if not more pleasure, to come back and visit industry that is driving investment in cutting-edge technology." Speaking at the event, First Minister Arlene Foster said: "I welcome this 6m investment in this magnificent facility. The establishment of this industrial aerospace production facility is an important investment in the development of Northern Ireland's space cluster and demonstrates the group's confidence in the world-class engineering capabilities of its workforce in Northern Ireland." Goldman Sachs Group reported a 58pc jump in third-quarter profit yesterday as bond trading rebounded and the Wall Street bank managed to keep a lid on expenses. Goldman reported nearly $2bn (1.8bn) in revenue from trading fixed income, currency and commodities, making it the biggest contributor to overall revenue. Strong bond issuance and better conditions in credit and mortgage markets helped the bottom line, chief financial officer Harvey Schwartz said on a conference call with analysts. But he noted that the business only seems to be doing so well because it performed so poorly in the year-ago period. "It wasn't so much about tailwinds as it was about not having so many headwinds in the quarter," said Schwartz. "It translated nicely for us." He noted that while credit and mortgage trading results were better, currencies were flat and rates declined slightly. Goldman, the fifth largest US bank by assets, has historically been more reliant on bond trading than its peers. That helped the bank earn big profits leading into the 2007-2009 financial crisis, but financial reform rules imposed since then have hindered the business. In an effort to buoy profits, Goldman launched an efficiency programme earlier this year, with the goal of reducing annual expenses by $700m. Goldman shares, which had fallen 6.2pc this year through Monday's close, were up 1.3pc in morning trading yesterday, to $171.19. Goldman generated $2.1bn in net income for common shareholders, up 58pc from the year-earlier period. It was the bank's second straight rise in quarterly profit after four quarters of decline. Chief executive Lloyd Blankfein described it as "solid performance." (Reuters) Juli Neeson (pink hat) as Sakura from Cardcaptors, Rachel Ralph (light blue hair) Kirenshi Cosplay as Hatsune Miku and Saturn (purple hair)13 Cosplay as Rei Ayanami from Evangelion. Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland It was a case of 'anime instinct' for cosplay enthusiast Juli Neeson when she attended Ireland's largest anime convention Eirtakon seven years ago. The graphic designer from Carrickfergus, Co Antrim, met her husband Conan while wondering around the stalls and stands. "He was working and I was a guest, now we go together as a cosplay couple," she said. Cosplay coupling is when real-life couples dress up as fictional couples from the anime world and attend conventions. Expand Close Irelands largest Anime Event Eirtakon. Photography: Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Irelands largest Anime Event Eirtakon. Photography: Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland Juli refrained from dressing up in Cosplay on her wedding day "although I did have Legend of Zelda place settings," she said. Next month, other cosplay enthusiasts can try and find Mr and/or Mrs Right when they attend the three-day event. Cosplay blind dating is one of the events on offer at the convention - which takes place in Croke Park. Attendees can also take part in console tournaments and gaming workshops. Care assistant Rachel Ralph (20) from Dunboyne has been a cosplay enthusiast for several years. Expand Close Pictured in Dublins Croke Park Stadium are Andrew Mahon as Marvels Captain America, Juli Neeson (pink hat) as Sakura from Cardcaptors, Julia Vasiljeva (black hair) as Studio Ghiblis Princess Mononoke, Rachel Ralph (light blue hair) Kirenshi Cosplay as Hatsune Miku, Saturn(purple hair)13 Cosplay as Rei Ayanami from Evangelion, Stephen Lynch as Red Power Ranger, Michael Abrahamson-Mr Balloonatic with a balloon Pokemon. Photo: Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Pictured in Dublins Croke Park Stadium are Andrew Mahon as Marvels Captain America, Juli Neeson (pink hat) as Sakura from Cardcaptors, Julia Vasiljeva (black hair) as Studio Ghiblis Princess Mononoke, Rachel Ralph (light blue hair) Kirenshi Cosplay as Hatsune Miku, Saturn(purple hair)13 Cosplay as Rei Ayanami from Evangelion, Stephen Lynch as Red Power Ranger, Michael Abrahamson-Mr Balloonatic with a balloon Pokemon. Photo: Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland "My character Hatsune Miku was originally a singing synthesizer application but then she was given a design," she told the Herald. "We're a big community. It's a great way to meet people. It took my family a bit of time to get used to me dressing up the whole time but now they're really supportive. They see all the friends I've made so they think it's great." Cosplayers can spend up to 500 decking themselves out in Japanese cartoon-inspired costumes. "I make all my costumes myself," Rachel said. Video of the Day "My mum taught me to sew so she helps me sometimes." The guests of honour at Croke Park are voice-over artists Luci Christian and John Swasey. The organisers will also host a League of Legends Tournament. Children's entertainer 'Mr Balloonatic' will attend the convention. Eirtakon is also hosting the International Worbla Awards - a costume and fashion show for costume designers and cosplayers. The event runs from November 4-6 and is now in its 12th and final year. According to organisers the convention simply outgrew itself. The event is supporting Jigsaw - the national Centre for Youth mental health. Tickets cost 25 for the day. Adele and Simon Konecki have been together since Summer 2011 Adele on stage in Nashville with her confetti love notes. Pic: FreddyAmazin/Twitter Adele's boyfriend surprised her by making a sweet change to her concert confetti. Adele and her boyfriend Simon Konecki recently celebrated their fifth anniversary while the musician was performing in Nashville, Tennessee over the weekend. As a romantic gesture, Simon decided to hijak Adele's confetti spectacle end-of-show finale. Normally as Adele sings her final song of the night, white confetti with her handwritten lyrics fall down from the ceiling onto her fans. But on Sunday, Simon swapped the song lyrics for pink, handwritten love notes to surprise his wife. "we got pink confetti tonight.. this confetti is normally white" i'm crying pic.twitter.com/XQpGobgd8H bree van de kamp (@dayrdreamer) October 17, 2016 Among the confetti were sweet phrases like, You are an angel <3, I love you, and Love you long time. The pair are parents to son Angelo (three) and Adele has credited Simon with helping her success. Speaking to 60 Minutes Australia in 2015, she said: "Being in such an amazing relationship with someone that's so there for me and so loyal and is really part of my core now. That's what made me write about everything I've ever done, because I've got his love." Expand Close Adele and Simon Konecki have been together since Summer 2011 / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Adele and Simon Konecki have been together since Summer 2011 Me...& My Affair tells the stories of people who have experienced infidelity To outsiders, Petes life was a model of success. Having risen through the ranks of the police force to become a detective, he owned a business with his wife of 23 years, with whom he had two children. But for two decades he had kept a secret. He was a serial cheater, and had slept with at least 23 women in as many years. Fully aware of the shocking scale of his infidelity, Pete stresses that he was compelled to cheat because of his addiction to sex, and his longing for unconditional love when his wife's attentions were drawn to their young children. The 53-year-old is among the one in five adults in the UK who admits to having an affair. Pete has chosen to speak publicly about his story in a new Channel 5 documentary Me and My Affair, alongside five others who have also been unfaithful. Pete, from Warwickshire, met his wife in 1984, in their last year of university. He was roguish, bold, brash and loud, while she was very smart, and very shy. I was bowled over by her looks, he says recalling the moment he saw first saw her in a lecture. She was engaging and different to any other girl Id dated. There was an air of sophistication about her that was really alluring. After dating for three years, they married in 1987. Egged on by his laddish friends to sew his wild oats, Pete had cheated on his previous girlfriends. But he experienced a new level of commitment with his wife, and he rejected his old lifestyle. Combined with is new, full-time career in the police force, Pete felt as if he had finally grown up. But his faithfulness unravelled when he was assigned to a 14-week training programme with the police, meaning he was only at home on the weekends. The time in the evenings was our own. He says. Pete and his colleagues would often unwind in pubs and clubs, and indulge in a culture of womanising. It was at a club in Birmingham that Pete chatted with a woman, drew her in for a slow dance, and kissed her. That night, he cheated on his wife, who was pregnant with their first child, for the first time. There was a decided difference in the level of guilty, Pete remembers. Before there wasnt much at stake, but now there was. Video of the Day Asked if he enjoyed it, he goes on: Oh absolutely. It was fun. He never saw the woman again. Over the next two decades, Pete slept with at least 23 women although he suspects there were more seizing any chance he had. While some were one-night stands, he saw one woman in particular for two-and-a-half years. To feed his addiction, he would concoct excuses to leave town for the weekend for quick, risky sex but would feel uncomfortable, guilty and ashamed if a woman became attached. I really dont think it was especially different to any other marriages, he says. Expand Close Me...& My Affair tells the stories of people who have experienced infidelity / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Me...& My Affair tells the stories of people who have experienced infidelity Sometimes wed sleep together and go away and have social functions with the kids. Other times were at each others throats and sleeping in separate bedrooms. And then wed move on. It was when Petes wife found his workbook from a personal development business course that she discovered he had been cheating. Asked to write down a past regret, he had scrawled the words: being unfaithful. She was devastated," he said. Unable to reveal the extent of his infidelities, Pete told her it was a one-night stand with a woman he used to work with ten years ago. That night, he moved out of the house. Months later, Peter presented his wife with a list of all of the women he remembered. She saw someone who needed help, he says. His wife suggested they attend counselling to mend their marriage. We could have carried on quite normally and appear to function, but there was a dearth of unconditional love between us, says Pete. He says now realises that he was in emotional pain, and his affairs were a short-term fix. That was six years ago. Pete and his wife now plan to spend their 30th anniversary together in New York. Those feelings that I had have completely gone, says Pete, adding that the feeling of being loved and loving in return doesnt compare with what he experienced before. I know within my heart of hearts that Ill never do it again. Me and My Affair, will premiere on Channel 5, Thursday 20 October, at 10pm George Hook has warned that debates might get heated on tonight's episode of Cutting Edge. The outspoken broadcaster will appear on the RTE show alongside businesswoman Norah Casey and the writer of Can't Cope Won't Cope, Stephanie Preissner. And true to form he promises to treat viewers to his "very strong views" on the circus that is the US presidential election. Hook believes his opinions might clash with those of his fellow panelists and lead to potential fireworks. Speaking to the Irish Sun, he said: "If we discuss the American presidential election there is definitely going to be a row because I think Hillary Clinton is getting the softest ride in the history of American politics." Brendan O'Connor's Cutting Edge airs tonight on RTE One at 9.35pm. The family of the late Cathriona White say they are not involved in any legal action against her former boyfriend, the Hollywood actor Jim Carrey. Ms White's mother Brigid Sweetman is suing Carrey for her daughter's wrongful death. However, a statement issued by the White family say they have no involvement in this or any other legal action. "The White family would like to clarify the public record in relation to recent media reporting concerning their beloved, Cathriona White. "Contrary to recent media reports, no member of the White family is involved in any legal action with any party in relation to the untimely passing of Cathriona. "The White family remember their beautiful Cathriona as a wonderful, caring and compassionate person. The continuous media intrusion and speculation only continues to cause hurt and upset to the family. Expand Close Jim Carrey carries the coffin of ex-girlfriend Cathriona White in Cappawhite, Co Tipperary / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Jim Carrey carries the coffin of ex-girlfriend Cathriona White in Cappawhite, Co Tipperary "The family request that Cathriona is allowed to rest in peace with the dignity that she deserves," the statement added. Make-up artist Cathriona, originally from Cappawhite in Co Tipperary, took her own life in September of last year. She had been involved in a relationship with actor Jim Carrey and they split in the months before her death. The actor flew to Ireland and carried her coffin at her funeral in her native Cappawhite, and was embraced by the White family. A year later, Cathriona's estranged husband Mark Burton filed a lawsuit against Carrey claiming he was responsible for his wife's death. Carrey is being sued by his late girlfriend's mother Brigid Sweetman and her estranged husband Mark Burton, alleging he provided White with prescription drugs involved in her suicide. Documents lodged with the court in Los Angeles also contains a number of allegations against the actor. Carrey has strenuously denied the allegations against him and has promised to fight the claims in court. A bishop from Cork has said that he would have no issue with priests being allowed to marry, but that it has to be the Popes decision. Its not our decision; its a decision for the Holy Father, but it is a regulation and regulations can change, Bishop John Buckley of Cork and Ross said on Corks Red FM today. On the subject of women priests, he was more certain that the rules cannot change: The pope has said that the church has no authority to ordain women to the priesthood; that follows the tradition of Christ himself. But women do marvellous work in the church. And on the subject of gay priests, Bishop Buckley said that his own support for the community was not unique in the church. The church in Cork has been very supportive of the gay community. Back in the 1980s my predecessor appointed a chaplain to the gay community and that was before the state had decriminalised homosexuality. Bishop Buckley was speaking to Neil Prenderville today after manning a stand at the Careers Option Expo in the Rochestown Park yesterday in an effort to encourage young men to think about the priesthood. I read about it in the paper and thought Why not? The priesthood is a career; its a vocation. Its a great privilege to serve the people, especially in difficult times of sickness and bereavement, and thats the life of a priest. The vast majority of priests are very happy. He said that quite a few people approached his stand and that young men were interested in knowing more about the priesthood. I met a lot of young people, and they were very interested. Theyd come along and ask a few questions. They were very well disposed. There are more people studying for the priesthood than at any time in history. The decline is confined to the western world, Bishop Buckley said. A nine-year-old schoolboy, who broke his left collar bone when his head got trapped in a moving electric gate, has been awarded 19,000 damages in the Circuit Civil Court. Barrister Fran Rooney said that in May 2010, Joel Gannon was in the courtyard at his home in Homestead Court, Quarry Road, Cabra, Dublin, when his head got caught in the gate as it was closing. He was two-and-a-half at the time. Mr Rooney told Circuit Court President Mr Justice Raymond Groarke that Joels head and shoulders were dragged along the ground as the gate closed before his father had rushed to help him and managed to free him. The court heard that Joel was taken to the Emergency Department of Childrens University Hospital, Temple Street, Dublin. He had suffered bruising and abrasions to the left side of his face and to his shoulders. X-rays revealed Joel had fractured his clavicle in the incident. Through his mother, Lyndsay Gannon, Joel sued Tuath Housing Association Ltd, with a registered address at Merrion Square North, Dublin, and Dublin City Council. Mr Rooney, who appeared with B&P Byrne Solicitors, said an engineers report prepared for the court proceedings stated that the gate should have been covered with a metallic net. Counsel said liability had not been conceded and was an issue between the defendants. He said a 19,000 settlement offer had been made and he was recommending its acceptance to the court. Judge Groarke, approving the offer told him he was lucky his father was near him at the time. The court heard Joel, who celebrates his ninth birthday on Wednesday had made a full recovery following the incident. A former lay worker with the Church of Ireland will be sentenced next month for the rape and molestation of 14 young boys over the course of 30 years. Patrick OBrien (76) pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to 48 sample counts of indecent assault, including various instances of anal penetration, and three counts of sexual assault of the boys between 1977 and 2010 at numerous locations throughout the state including Kildare, Westmeath, on a boat in Loughrea in Co Galway and at St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin where he worked as a volunteer. He has one previous convictions for a sex assault of another boy in 1989 for which he got a one year suspended sentence. OBrien, with an address at Knocklyon Road, Templeogue, Dublin, was sent forward for trial from Dublin District Court. Judge Cormac Dunne previously ruled that the media could identify the accused following an application by RTE at the District Court. All of the victims wish to preserve their anonymity. Four victims were present in court for the sentence hearing. A number of victim impact reports were prepared but not all the men wanted their statement to be read out. It took over 30 minutes to read out the charges in a sentence hearing that took place over two days to allow for all 14 statements of complaint to be read into the record. One man described in his victim impact report how his biggest fear over the years was that he might end up abusing his own daughter. He said he had read numerous cases about abused children becoming abusers themselves and it played on his mind. It frightened the crap out of me, he said. One man outlined in his victim impact report that he had never married and said that this was down to the abuse he suffered. He said he felt now at 50 years old that the chance to have a wife and family had passed me by. Another victim said he never wanted to have children because he didn't want to be responsible for them after the abuse he suffered as a young boy. One of O'Brien's youngest victims, who was raped as a nine-year-old boy, described himself in his victim impact report as a lion without a roar. He said he developed a shield and like a tortoise, a shell, to bury this violent secret inside. He said O'Brien made him feel like the abuse was almost a rite of passage but that he now understood he was grooming him. Detective Garda Anthony Maloney told Anne Rowland BL, prosecuting that various victims told gardai that they had made efforts to avoid O'Brien as children. One victim cycled to his local garda station to report O'Brien a day after the man tried to rape him. When he arrived at the station he got cold feet and felt intimidated. He was worried about the consequences for him if he reported it and decided to put the abuse to the back of his mind. O'Brien continued to abuse the boy in the months afterwards until the boy threatened to report or kill him if he touched him again. The victims were told by their abuser that it was their little secret with some of the boys feeling they were being threatened. Others described him as being like an uncle to them and many said he was very much a trusted family friend. The men also told gardai that O'Brien gave them sweets, toys, cash and watches. One boy was given a bike. Det Gda Maloney said all the men were badly affected by the abuse. Two men who were raped by O'Brien told gardai they were very worried when they learned about AIDS on the news as children and were terrified they were going to die. Many victims reported that their school work began to suffer and they had trouble with relationships. Many began drinking from an early age. The court heard that O'Brien was first arrested in March 2014. A search was carried out of his home during which photographs of some of the victims, in normal social situations, were discovered. In April 2014 O'Brien made a voluntary statement in which he agreed with the statements of his victims. He said he had been abused himself and told gardai I would like to say how sorry I am for causing these lads such distress and apologise to them all absolutely. Sean Guerin SC, defending told Judge Melanie Greally that his client had written a letter in which he said he wanted to apologise unreservedly for the breach of trust and the suffering the victims and their families endured. He acknowledged his deep heartfelt regret and shame. Counsel said O'Brien has completed 312 hours of group psychotherapy treatment since April 2014 which he said was a practical indication of remorse and efforts at rehabilitation even at this stage of his life. Mr Guerin asked the judge to take into account the negative publicity surrounding O'Brien, which he said was intense at times and led to stigma and isolation. He said for a man who worked all his life he had no one in court to support him. Counsel submitted that his client's plea of guilty and admissions were of substantial value in the case, having regard to the victims, many of whom he said indicated a fear of being disbelieved. Judge Melanie Greally said she needed time to consider the case. She remanded O'Brien in continuing custody to November 10, next for sentence. EVIDENCE Det Gda Maloney outlined the various incidents of sexual abuse which included open mouth kissing, rape, attempted rape, oral rape and mutual masturbation. There are at least two set of brothers amongst O'Brien's victims. The court heard that O'Brien would bring the boys to his yacht, take them for driving lessons or bring them to the office where he worked. He abused one boy once a week in a car wash after they were hidden from view when the vehicle was covered in foam. He would organise games of hide and seek to be alone with his victim, and on one occasion abused a boy in a kitchen, while the child's parents and grandmother were in the sitting room. Another boy was abused in the electrical room of St Patrick's Cathedral while people were outside in the body of the church. OBrien would often drop the boys home and have dinner or drinks with their parents, having abused their child hours earlier. O'Brien regularly came up to the victims bedroom to kiss them goodnight and tuck them in but would then sexually abuse them, usually touching their penis and then performing oral sex on them. One man, who was raped a number of times by O'Brien, was first raped by him on the childs parents bed. He blocked the bedroom door with a chair before stripping the child and himself. This same victim was also raped in O'Brien mother's home. The first time he visited the man's mother, he was introduced to the woman before O'Brien took him into the garage and sexually abused him. This man also told gardai that O'Brien would put him and his younger brother to bed when their parents were downstairs. He would read his brother a story while that child was lying in a top bunk and at the same time would force the victim, who was lying on the bottom bunk, to perform oral sex on him. When he had finished reading the story, OBrien would sit on the boys bed and French kiss him. Another victim, who was first raped by O'Brien when he was nine years old, told gardai that he was in pain for days afterwards and could still recall that pain when he made his statement of complaint a few years ago. He said O'Brien continually reassured him while raping him, calling him a good and brave boy. He said when being raped by O'Brien on his boat, he just closed his eyes waiting for the morning to come and tried to think about the fun he would have sailing the next day. AN Algerian man with alleged links to terrorism has brought a High Court challenge against the State's attempt to deport him. The man opposes the Minister for Justice's decision that he should be deported on the grounds he is at risk of being tortured and suffering inhuman and degrading treatment if returned to Algeria due to his political views. The man, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, has been convicted of terrorism and terrorism related offences in other jurisdictions. Gardai have informed the Minister that man's activities and associates, in Ireland and outside the country, are considered to be "of serious concern" and contrary to the State's security. The man strongly denies claims he is involved in terrorism, inside or outside of the state. He has been living in Ireland for several years and is aged in his early 50's. Before he left Algeria, the man says he was convicted of criminal offences, which he denies, and was sentenced to death. Algeria currently has a moratorium on capital punishment and the North African nation has not carried out an execution since 1993. However, he says, if he is returned he is at serious risk of being tortured. He said he and his brothers have been tortured in the past because of their political opinions. Arising out of the Minister's decision to exclude him from the state he has brought a High Court challenge against the deportation order. In his proceedings the man claims the Minister's decision ignores a finding by the Refugee Appeal's Tribunal(RAT) when considering his application for subsidiary protection that in the man's case there is "a personal, present, foreseeable and substantial risk of serious harm by the Algerian authorities." Despite finding there was a risk of serious harm to the man if returned to Algeria, the RAT excluded him from subsidiary protection due to his having been convicted in France of an offence of membership of a criminal organisation preparing an act of terrorism based on acts committed in France and other countries. The man argues the Minister should not have made an order to depart him where there is a finding there is a real risk he will suffer serious harm. To do so, he claims, is a breach of European law. The Minister opposes the man's challenge. The matter came before the court Wednesday (Oct 19) when Mr Justice Richard Humphreys, after hearing submissions from lawyers for the man and the State adjourned the matter to next week. The court heard the man first arrived in Ireland in the late 1990s under a false identity. In 2000 he was recognised as a refugee. Shortly afterwards he went to France to visit relatives. He was subsequently arrested, convicted and jailed for seven years by a French court for terrorist related offences. On his release he applied for asylum in France, which was refused. He returned to Ireland in 2009. His refugee status was revoked in Ireland because his application here was based on false documentation. The man says he regrets using false documents and misleading the Irish authorities but did so to avoid the death penalty. An aspiring model who was a passenger in a stolen car may avoid a prison sentence if she is deemed suitable for community service. Chloe McAllister (19) was a rear seat passenger in the car, which was taken from a house in Skerries during the early hours of the morning, Swords District Court heard. Gda John Lennon said he came across the car at 3.25am at Barnageeragh Cove before it took off at speed. He said the driver and front seat passenger ran from the vehicle while McAllister and another female, who were in the rear, remained at the scene and were arrested. McAllister, of Mourne Close, Skerries, pleaded guilty to unauthorised carriage in the car last May 28. The court heard McAllister has one previous conviction, for being in unlawful possession of 12 bags of cannabis with a street value of 300 last March 14. Read More Defence barrister David Costello told the court that McAllister is currently unemployed but does modelling work. Sorry "She was a passenger in the car and should've known better," said Mr Costello, adding that the teenager was very sorry for her actions. Judge Dermot Dempsey ordered a probation report to see if McAllister would be suitable for 150 hours of community service in lieu of one month in prison. He adjourned the case until December for the report. Independent TD Clare Daly has appeared in court after gardai executed a bench warrant against her. The Independents 4 Change TD appeared before Swords District Court in relation to a speeding charge in Co Kildare. Ms Daly met gardai by arrangement in the vicinity of Swords District Court on Tuesday and was then taken before the judge to execute the warrant. On Thursday, October 20, a bench warrant was issued for the TD's arrest after she failed to remain in court for a speeding charge. She turned up to court on the morning, but left again when she saw a large number of people waiting for their cases to be heard before hers. She appeared at Swords District Court on Tuesday for the sole purposes of the execution of the warrant. The case has now been referred back to Naas District Court. Ms Daly signed a bail bond in court on Tuesday, committing to her appearance in Naas District court next Wednesday. Ms Daly, originally from Newbridge in Co Kildare but with an address in Swords, is charged with travelling at 59kph in a 50kph zone at Ballymany, Newbridge, on New Year's Day. She is represented by solicitor Cairbre Finan. He said Ms Daly had instructed him to plead guilty in her absence. When her case was called in the afternoon, Mr Finan said his client had been at the court earlier in the morning and chose to leave. Judge Desmond Zaidan said the defendant had to be present in court or he would issue a bench warrant for her arrest. The judge asked what Ms Daly did. "She tells me she is a TD," Mr Finan said. Judge Zaidan said she should know better, because they make the law. He said it was "total disrespect for this court" and "an insult" for her to leave. Mr Finan said no disrespect was intended. Judge Zaidan said that Ms Daly should have asked the court to leave. "If she has no respect for me as a human being have a little respect for the office I hold," he added. Mr Finan asked that the case be adjourned for one week and that a bench warrant not be issued. Judge Zaidan said he did not adjourn cases in the absence of the defendant when they are legally represented, to protect everyone, including the lawyers and gardai. He then issued the bench warrant with discretion and adjourned the matter until November 30. Speaking after an Agricultural committee meeting, Ms Daly said she had received the summons for motoring offences "out of the blue" last week. She said she left the court because she was anxious to attend the committee meeting, which was discussing the Horse Racing Ireland affair. However, she stressed that a solicitor had remained to represent her on her behalf. "I'll have to go again. We'll sort that out," she said. A violent criminal has been cleared of assaulting a prison officer when he was searched for weapons. Leon Wright (28) of Donore Avenue in Dublin 8 remained handcuffed and flanked by five prison staff wearing riot gear for his district court trial on Wednesday. Wright, who claimed he was beaten by prison officers, was supported in court by Independent TDs Mick Wallace and Clare Daly who took notes of the proceedings from the public gallery. After the defence raised questions over the credibility of prosecution witnesses and evidence, Judge Alan Mitchell said that having viewed the CCTV evidence in particular he was dismissing the case. He also said that he was going to direct that the Court Service would prepare a copy of the digital audio recording of the hearing and that it would be offered to Inspector of Prisons Judge Michael Reilly in the event he would like to take further action. I certainly have concerns in relation to this matter, the judge added. In 2014, Wright, who has 84 previous convictions, including 30 assaults, four garda assaults, robberies and firearms offences, received a six year sentence with the final two suspended for stabbing two people in random attacks. However, in his Dublin District Court trial on Wednesday he pleaded not guilty to a charge of assaulting prison officer Michael Kerr at Wheatfield Prison in Dublin on Oct. 7, 2013. Officer Kerr alleged Wright produced an object from his back passage and stabbed him in the face cutting his lip. He and two other prison officers said Wright became aggressive when told he was about to be searched. They denied that the defendant was beaten by several officers. He was moved from the first cell because property was broken there and prison officers feared he had weapons, the trial was told. Witnesses alleged that Wright became more aggressive when told he was going to be searched after being initially compliant. A nurse gave evidence that he saw lacerations inside and on the prison officer's lip and he said that from his experience it would have been caused by being cut with a sharp object. Prosecution witnesses also said Wright lashed out. Prison officer Brian Hayes said he saw officer Kerr being struck with an object but he did not mention it in his statement to the investigating garda. Defence counsel Emmet Nolan put it to prosecution witnesses that Wright was stripped and given a hiding which was denied. He asked the judge to note that CCTV footage showed four prison officers in riot gear outside the cell while four others dealt with Wright inside. He argued that it was not believable that they would remain outside the cell while their colleagues were being attacked. The court also heard that Wright was exonerated of having a weapon or attempting to stab the prison officer during an internal investigation by the Governor. He also asked the court to note evidence about Wright having his clothing removed for the purpose of a weapon search. He told the judge that none of the witnesses mentioned that he was bare chested when he was brought to the cell as could be seen on CCTV. The court heard that another senior officer who had been forbidden by the prison authorities to be in the same area as Wright was present. After Wright was cleared of the charge he gave two thumbs up to the two TDs, who had spoken to him before the trial. He was then taken out of the courtroom by prison officers. After the hearing concluded TDs Wallace and Daly gave a brief statement to the media. They said they believed Leon Wright's human rights had been breached and they said the case will be taken further and they also called for a full investigation in relation to his treatment. The TDs also said it was a turning point for Leon Wright and maybe for how things are done in prison. Leon Wright is regarded by both staff and management at Irish jails as Ireland's most dangerous inmate. Although he is just 28 years of age Wright has already amassed over 84 previous convictions including robberies, 34 assaults and firearms offences. He is serving time for a knife rampage on Dublins Grafton Street in 2013 while on bail for assaulting two gardai. But some of his most serious crimes have happened behind bars. Wright has been disciplined over 212 times in prison. He has attacked over two dozen guards while in jail and left many with very serious injuries. Such is the fear surrounding the inmate that only trained control and restraint officers can deal with him and they must don riot gear for any interractions. If he is being moved at least six prison officers, dressed in protective clothing and helmets, will accompany him. A senior source said: "Wright is one of the worst, if not the worst that the prison system has ever come across. "Anywhere he goes he need the C&R (Control and Restraint) guys accompanying him. "In terms of his physical aggression towards staff, it is unprecedented." Another source said it was an insult that two TDs would offer support to Wright in court. "Wright is a by-word in the prison system for thuggery. The threats he has made to prison officers and their families are virtually unheard of in prisons." Wright is regularly moved around Ireland's maximum security prisons and staff have repeatedly tried to curb his violent behaviour. He was given an aquarium on his landing in Portlaoise, a Playstation with various console games and even a washing machine. A TRAINEE accountant has seen an award of compensation by the Employment Appeals Tribunal for unfair dismissal more than quadrupled in the Circuit Civil Court. Peter Nowak had appealed the decision of the Tribunal which last year found he had been unfairly dismissed by international accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers Services, awarding him 7,500 compensation. Judge Francis Comerford today awarded him 34,000. Judge Comerford said Mr Nowak, who became a trainee with the firm in 2006, was dismissed in 2009 after he failed to pass an examination with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ireland. Nowak had signed an open ended employment contract with the firm in 2006 to work as a trainee accountant in the business advisory services department. He had later been asked to sign a training contract for a three-and-a-half year period. Judge Comerford said PricewaterhouseCoopers claimed that it was a term of Nowaks employment that he pass three examinations required to become a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ireland. The employer claimed the contract stated that it could terminate the employment if Nowak failed any years examination. Novak, who represented himself in court, denied this and claimed he was entitled to continue his employment with the firm. PricewaterhouseCoopers claimed that after Nowak failed the examination in Summer 2008 and again the following Autumn, they had written telling him they were willing to support him for one final attempt. His employment had been terminated when he had failed again in 2009. Nowak claimed the Institute allowed students six attempts to pass the exams. PricewaterhouseCoopers had argued that it had decided in 2006 to allow trainees two opportunities to sit the exams. The judge said he was satisfied that Mr Nowaks contract of employment did not expressly state that it could be terminated if he failed to pass an examination. The employer has failed to establish the existence of the contractual provision upon which it relied to dismiss him. The dismissal being based on the assertion of an entitlement that did not exist was unfair, the judge said. Judge Comerford said clearly worded contracts could have ensured that what was intended by the employer was understood and accepted by Mr Nowak. He was of the view the documentation was inadequate and unclear. The judge said Mr Nowak, who has been unemployed since his dismissal seven years ago, should have taken steps to ensure some employment and found that reinstating him in his previous position was not appropriate. The clear evidence of Mr Nowak was that he was more concerned with establishing that he had actually passed the examination and intends proceeding to the European Court of Justice with his claim to obtain copies of the examination scripts, Judge Comerford said. Nowak claimed he passed the examination and had asked to see his exam scripts and felt he was entitled to access his exam papers under the Data Protection Acts. The Institute refused, stating it was not obliged to do so as the exam papers did not constitute personal data. Nowak later sought the assistance of the Data Protection Commissioner, who had agreed with the Institute. Nowak challenged that decision through the Circuit Court, the High Court, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court which, in May, referred the case to European Court of Justice claiming it needed guidance as to whether an exam script constitutes personal data. Currently, various aircraft are used to perform missions relating to drug smuggling, detecting crime and mitigating threats to homeland security. Stock picture Gardai are hoping to put a high-tech plane in the sky to help target organised criminal gangs such as the Kinahan cartel as well as any potential threats to the security of the State. The plane would be used in sophisticated operations targeting drug smuggling, terrorist threats and hunting down criminals in the immediate aftermath of an offence. The aircraft could also be used for covert surveillance operations. An Garda Siochana issued a tender for a censor-equipped aeroplane which they hope to add to their fleet of planes and helicopters in the Garda Air Support Unit. The plane will be used for intelligence gathering as well as airborne tracking in the fight against organised crime gangs including the cartel. In the tender notice, the force said: To improve mission effectiveness and resource flexibility, AGS wishes to explore the feasibility and practicality of using a sensor-equipped fixed wing aircraft that can effectively perform these types of missions. Currently, various aircraft are used to perform the airborne tracker, ground surveillance and air/ground interdiction missions relating to drug smuggling, detecting crime and mitigating threats to homeland security. THERMAL The Garda Air Support Unit fleet, which is operated by members of the Air Corps, is stationed at Baldonnel Aerodrome. It includes a Pilatus Britten-Norman BN 2T-4S Defender 4000 plane as well as two Eurocopter EC 135 T2s. The aircraft are fitted with daylight and thermal image cameras mounted on gyro stabilised platforms, search lights, extensive communication suites and microwave downlink/ uplink technology. The deadline for the supplies contract, issued by the Garda Finance and Procurement section, is November 11. LATEST STORIES Light show held in China's Shaanxi Photo taken on May 1, 2018 shows the scene of a light show held in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province. Lighting technology, modern art and traditional culture were ideally blended together in the light show. Read More>> People enjoy Labor Day holiday across China People visit a scenic spot in Bozhou City, east China's Anhui Province, April 30, 2018. People in China spend their Labor Day holiday in various ways. Read More>> Inverness road, Fairview where shots were fired at a window last night. Picture: Damien Eagers Gardai have arrested two men after shots were fired at a house in North Dublin overnight. In a statement gardai said that that at approximately 11.30pm they received a report of a firearm being discharged at a house on Inverness Road in Fairview. Expand Close Inverness road, Fairview where shots were fired at a window last night. Picture: Damien Eagers / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Inverness road, Fairview where shots were fired at a window last night. Picture: Damien Eagers On arrival it was discovered that a shot had been fired at an upstairs bedroom window from outside causing it to smash. A mother, her two adult children and another man were in the house at the time. There was no one in the damaged room and no one was injured. In a follow up operation shortly afterwards two males, one in his 20s and one in his 30s, were arrested in Donabate. The occupants of the house did not want to comment when approached today. "Everyone is okay, just let the gardai deal with it," said a woman who answered the door. The shotgun blast to the window in the upper floor was clearly evident, with two panes of glass broken and the frame rail between them peppered with shotgun pellets. There were also two marks in the front door that looked like they were caused by being hit with a blunt instrument rather than gunfire. Neighbours reported hearing a gun blast at 11.30pm but did not see anyone leave the scene. "It's a very quiet road normally, so it is quite shocking," said one woman. The two men are currently detained under the provisions of Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act 1939 at Swords and Clontarf Garda Stations. The scene has been preserved for a technical examination and investigations are ongoing. Witnesses or anyone who can assist with the investigation are asked to contact Clontarf Garda Station on 01 6664800, The Garda Confidential Telephone Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station. Detectives investigating the murder of 31-year-old Laura Marshall in Lurgan last April arrested a 28-year-old man in the Craigavon area on Tuesday morning. Ms Marshall's body was discovered at her flat in Victoria Street, Lurgan, on Sunday 3 April 2016. In April a PSNI detective said officers had found a "violent scene" in the bathroom, which was destroyed, with a pool of blood on the floor. Detective Chief Inspector Eamonn Corrigan, from Serious Crime Branch, said: "The suspect was interviewed today and subsequently released pending a report being submitted to the Public Prosecution Service." Expand Close The funeral cortege of Laura Marshall / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The funeral cortege of Laura Marshall A 36-year-old man has been charged with Ms Marshall's murder and appeared at Craigavon Magistrates Court on Friday 8 April. Arts education can often be seen as a luxury, but a recent landmark study found that pupils who engage with arts and culture feel happier and cope much better in school. The report, by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) on behalf of the Arts Council, followed children aged three, five, nine and 13 over a period and measured the impact of activities like reading, drama, singing, dance and painting on their cognitive development and emotional well-being. It found that, by age 13, children who participate in artistic and cultural activities have an improved "academic self-image", along with reduced anxiety, better academic skills and fewer socio-emotional difficulties. Arts Council director Orlaith McBride says that from their perspective, "this report very clearly confirms that the arts are not just the icing on the cake - there are genuine benefits to teachers introducing the arts in their classrooms". She believes that key to the successful provision of arts in education is integration across the curriculum, rather than isolated periods of music or drama. The term "arts in education" is crucial, as it refers to a cross-curricular approach dedicated to freeing the arts from "the silos of the subject". "It's at post-primary that we have a lot of work to do. It's seen as a subject area and, if you don't do that subject, you don't do the arts at all. We need to find new ways to bring the arts into school, so it's released from being purely about the subject," she says. Ms McBride is also a member of the implementation group for the Arts in Education Charter, an initiative of the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. One of the charter's objectives was to set up an online resource to share best practice and, in 2015, the Arts in Education Portal was established. The portal contains reports from teachers and artists on projects in schools, a directory where users can see cultural assets in their community, and a selection of written and audio-visual materials on various art forms. It is edited by the Kids' Own Publishing Partnership, a Sligo-based arts organisation that runs book-making workshops for children and projects connecting students with artists across the country. Creative director Orla Kenny explains that the portal aims "to build an informed community of practitioners", including artists, arts organisations, pupils and teachers. "The arts are seen as something that's an added extra rather than something that's core or integral to how we think and learn," she says. "We were interested to see how an online space could support practice on the ground, and the audience has really grown. We can see from the statistics that we are engaging artists and teachers. "During our consultations, we were speaking to teachers and artists around the country, and a lot of them said they wanted to be inspired and they wanted to learn from others." Creative Engagement is a National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals (NAPD), programme that pairs local artists with second-level schools to produce projects on everything from dance to sculpture. At last week's annual exhibition, held in IMMA, there were 43 projects on display, with 85 projects nationwide. Creative Engagement administrator Dermot Carney says: "The big push now is to put the arts into STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). Multinationals know that they need creativity to get ahead, and you see companies like Cisco and Microsoft in the US advocating for more arts in education." Even as stand-alone school subjects, he says the arts have "a way to go". He points to art and music teachers on part-time contracts, and argues there are "serious problems" with an out-of-date Leaving Cert art syllabus, as well as art ranking lowest for the number of A grades handed to higher level students. "The idea of modular, project-based arts in education programmes is the way to go. A lot of good kids are packing in art after Junior Cert because of the CAO grind - they take a look at the stats and they know they're probably not going to get an A1 in art," he says. The Arts Council/ESRI report identified significant differences in levels of participation across socio-economic backgrounds and Ms McBride notes that, for some children, school may be the only place where they have access to the arts. "If you come from an advantaged community, your parents can afford to send you to violin classes. If there are no arts in schools, then maybe children from lower socio-economic backgrounds aren't having any arts experience, because they can't afford it," she says. One of the programmes dedicated to broadening access is Music Generation, co-founded by U2 and which operates under the auspices of the Department of Education. It now works with local music education partnerships in 12 areas around the country to offer tuition in singing, songwriting and a wide range of instruments, providing access for 38,000 children. "Our mantra is all about access. We want to open the door to give children these vibrant, rich, meaningful experiences and the opportunity to engage with professional musicians," says national director Rosaleen Molloy. "We're trying to reach children who would not otherwise have the means to pay for tuition, so it is highly subsidised. "It could be free, it could be something as modest as 2, or if there is a child who wants to progress further, they might be part of a small group that could be 5 to 10 per lesson. It varies so much, depending on the programme, the child's circumstances and what's on offer locally as well." Ms Molloy notes that the barriers to access go far beyond the socio-economic. "There is a very strong focus on providing access for children and young people who wouldn't otherwise have the choice or chance. But there are also geographic barriers. If you live in a very rural part of the north-west of Mayo, the nearest tuition centre might be in Castlebar, and you're a two-hour round trip from that," she says. "There are other barriers as well, such as if your interest is in rock and pop but the only option available is piano. If the child's parents value classical music education, but don't see the value in rock and pop, you're trying to counteract that kind of barrier as well." 'I wanted to make it easier for teachers and kids to make music in the classroom' Teachers may wish to bring music into the classroom, but many lack the confidence or training to do so. To tackle the problem, TCD music graduate Shane McKenna launched DabbledoMusic, a music education service that teaches primary school teachers and pupils a form of music notation that aims to be much simpler than the traditional staffs, crotchets and quavers. "I wanted to make it easier for teachers and kids to make music in the classroom. My experience from working in classrooms was that traditional notation wasn't designed for teaching children, and it wasn't practical enough for teachers to use every day," he says. "The notation that I developed is a colour-coded, animated system of music technology. It's all delivered through our website and can be used on interactive whiteboards." DabbledoMusic's website offers free learning resources and, as well as classroom visits, Mr McKenna and his partner Killian Redmond deliver professional development workshops for teachers. Last week, they received a Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Elevator Award. Next September, DabbledoMusic will launch a subscription model, where teachers will receive weekly lesson plans via email. Mr McKenna says there will be a variety of subscription options to cater to a range of schools, including DEIS schools and individual teachers. Last week this column looked at some of the impact on students of the new Leaving Certificate grading system and CAO points scale. This includes the 37 points to be awarded for a mark of 30pc-39pc on a higher level paper as well as, potentially, less difference between the points a student may receive in their 'mocks' and their final exams, as a result of wider grade bands. What concerns my students most is the increased difficulty in trying to predict where the points cut-off will lie. While students should refrain from keeping points at the forefront of their minds, it is impossible for students and parents to avoid completely looking up where the cut-off fell last year and wondering whether it is likely to go up or down. It was never possible to predict the minimum cut-off for a particular course with any certainty. Cut-off points are a result of supply and demand. Points will continue be calculated in the same way as before: students add up their best six subjects for points, having added 25 points to the maths score for a minimum 40pc mark at higher-level. Additionally, cut-off points for courses will also be determined in the same way as before, i.e. all students who apply for a particular course and meet the entry requirements are placed on a list in order of the number of points they achieve. Starting from the top of the list, places are offered until all places are filled. The cut-off is the number of points achieved by the last applicant offered a place on a given course. What is different this year is the new grading system and the points students will be awarded for each grade. As a result, cut-off points for courses will change regardless of any change in demand. Courses that were oversubscribed and therefore had high minimum cut-off points are likely to be oversubscribed again and require relatively high points. Similarly, less popular courses, which had lower points last year, are likely to be comparatively low again in autumn 2017. Applicants will be able to gain a better understanding of the competition for different disciplines in the spring when the CAO releases application figures. An increase in applications in any area suggests courses may see a rise in points. Another effect of this new system is the greater range of points students may achieve. Previously, points were awarded in multiples of five for different grades, for example 55, 60, 65 points. Under the new system, the difference in the points awarded for each grade will vary with, for example, 100 for a H1, 88 (H2), 77 (H3), 66 (H4), 56 (H5) etc. So it is no longer a standard difference of five points, but 12, 11, 10, nine or eight and such differences between what is awarded for each grade means that the variety of total points score students can achieve will vary much more. Hopefully, this will result in fewer students missing out on places as a result of random selection. Random selection means that while places were offered to applicants who achieved cut-off points, not all applicants with these points were offered a place. The placing of an asterisk alongside the cut-off points indicates that random selection has occurred. It is very difficult to miss out on a college place knowing that other applicants who achieved the same results received an offer. This change is likely to be welcomed by both students and parents. It is certainly welcomed by guidance counsellors and may result in less disappointment and feelings of injustice come offers season. Aoife Walsh is a guidance counsellor at Malahide Community School, Co Dublin Important dates Today College & Careers Fair - Banagher College Tomorrow Open Day - IT Sligo Open Days (2 days) - Limerick IT Open Days (2 days) - Mary Immaculate College Open Day - National Maritime College of Ireland Information evening, Tralee - NUI Galway Open Day - Sligo CFE Open Day - St Angela's, Sligo Open Days (2 days) - UL OCTOBER 21 Open Day - Shannon College of Hotel Management OCTOBER 22 Graduate Entry Medical School Open Day - UL OCTOBER 25 Options West Exhibition - Galway Bay Hotel UCD Science Postgraduate Open Evening - UCD Try Nursing at WIT (4 days) - Waterford IT Q. I am hoping to apply for the DARE (Disability Access Route to Education) scheme. I have heard they are very particular with regards to deadlines and there is no leniency for late applications. When do I have to apply by? A. You are correct, However, students apply for DARE through the CAO and it is not possible to begin this application until November 4. Applicants must tick the relevant box by February 1 to indicate they plan to apply for DARE, fill out the online form before March 1 and forward all relevant paperwork to the CAO by April 1. Paperwork includes evidence of disability papers, psychological and educational assessments, consultants' letters, which can take time to gather, as well as school educational impact statements. It is helpful to give the school plenty of notice that you will be requiring an educational impact statement. Last year my colleagues and I completed over 20 of these forms and due to changes in the requirements for DARE in 2017 I expect to complete a lot more this year. Notifying the relevant person in your school in January or asking when they would like you to submit this form could be very helpful in ensuring that there are no delays or panics in March. Information is available on accesscollege.ie to help you begin planning your application. A nationwide campaign gets underway tomorrow to recruit parents and others to take over supervision and substitution work in hundreds of second-level schools from November 7. It is a desperate bid to try to avert the closure of schools for in indefinite period arising from industrial action by the Association of Secondary Teachers' Ireland (ASTI). Payment will be a minimum of 38.36 per day based on two hours' supervision, and any further supervision above those two hours will be paid at a rate of 19.18 per hour. Up to two-thirds of second-level schools - around 500 in total - could be forced to close because of ASTI members' withdrawal from supervision and substitution duties as part of their ongoing pay campaign. The Department of Education will place advertisements in the national media tomorrow identifying schools where external supervisors will be needed to replace thousands of teachers. Read more: 'Anyone recruited in public service has had to take lower pay' - Richard Bruton Schools are also expected to use local contacts to find suitable personnel. The contingency plan will involve schools recruiting external personnel to supervise pupils on the school premises, in the school yard as well as in classrooms, where a teacher is absent. Despite efforts to put contingency arrangements in place, the Department of Education and school management bodies, who met yesterday to finalise a plan, say that widespread school closures are inevitable from November 7. This is because of the tight deadline set by the ASTI when it announced the action last Friday, and the union's refusal to allow principals play what would be a crucial role in helping to put alternative cover in place. As well as advertising for, and recruiting external supervisors, individuals who are selected for the work have to undergo Garda vetting, and it could take up to the end of November to complete the process. It means that hundreds of schools are at real risk of not re-opening after the mid-term break, causing serious disruption to the education of up to 250,000 students and massive headaches for parents. The ASTI has also announced a series of one-day strikes, specifically on the issue of pay equality for newly qualified teachers. Read more: Chaos of seven strike days could mean heavy financial losses for teachers The first of those stoppages is set for Thursday, October 27, which means about 500 schools will close that day, re-open on October 28 and close later that day for the mid-term break. The other strikes are scheduled for a dates up to December 7, but the withdrawal from supervision and substitution duties is likely to mean that most schools will be closed on those days anyway. ASTI leaders have accepted an invitation to meet Department of Education officials on the pay row today. Thousands of students marched through Dublin today to urge the Government not to impose a student loans scheme. The huge number of students surpassed the expectations of student leaders who had estimated only 5,000 marchers would be present. Gardai said the numbers were considerably higher. It took more than half an hour for students walking 10 abreast to pass The Spire in O'Connell Street on their way from Parnell Square to the Department of the Taoiseach. Union of Students in Ireland (USI) President Annie Hoey with a megaphone at the ready, told Independent.ie that third level education has as much right to be funded by the State as other public services such as public libraries. "Debt is debt. Young people don't want to be straddled with extra debt when they start making a living," she said. "Graduates will end up paying taxes like everyone else....We don't believe college fees will be kept down if loans are introduced. Students in Britain were promised fees would be kept down but when loans were introduced they ended up rising from 1,000 a year to 9,000 a year," she said. USI deputy president Jack Leahy said State investment in students' education is returned nine times in terms of the higher taxes they pay in the future and in terms of attracting multi-national companies who confirmed well-educated graduates are crucial to the reasons for setting up here. DCU student Jade Byrne (19) from Ballymun, Dublin, who is studying law, said she would have to drop out of education and emigrate if the grants system was replaced with a loans system. "I don't think the Government will take heed of us but we need to protest about this," she said. A student loan scheme, contingent on income levels earned after graduation, was one of the options in the Cassells Report on funding for the third level college sector. The chants of the thousands of students filled the city centre as they marched. Among the placard slogans were: "Buy College? Bye College," "I'm a student, not a customer," "Ah here, Enda," "Study Now, Depression Later," "God hates fees," and "Dumbledore didn't die for this." A well-known south Dublin girls school is to close. The fee-paying Notre Dame Des Missions on Churchtown will close its primary school in next June while its secondary school will remain open until June 2019, to allow existing senior and junior cycle students to complete their programme. The school trust has told parents that insufficient income to repay loans/mortgage, increasing operating costs and the need for significant investment in the infrastructure are the reasons for the decision Notre Dame, which was founded in 1953 by a French order of nuns, came close to closure about a decade ago, but a strong campaign by the school community led to a change of heart by the nuns. It led to the establishment of The Notre Dame School Trust Ltd. in 2005, amid hopes of a more certain future, but, last year, second level enrolments had slipped to about 150. Fees at the school were about 4,300. Dublin Rathdown-based Senator for Fine Gael, Neale Richmond has expressed disappointment at the news. "I am truly saddened and disappointed to hear that this very famous school is to close its doors, after over 60 years serving the people of South County Dublin from its prime Churchtown location. "Notre Dames primary and secondary schools are very well known locally and the school itself was an integral part of the community. Accordingly the decision taken by the charitable trust that operates the school to close will be a shock and a disappointment to many in the area. "The primary school is to close in June 2017 but I am heartened to learn from the Minister for Education and Skills, Richard Bruton, that the secondary school will remain open until June 2019 to allow for Leaving Certificate and Junior Certificate students to complete to finish off their examination cycle. "The majority of parents, teachers, staff and pupils have only learned of the imminent closure this afternoon and I am sure this news will be a very bitter pill to swallow. "First opened by the Notre Dame des Missions sisters in 1953, the school was an iconic institution for many more than the 230 girls currently enrolled. Indeed when the sisters decided to withdraw from education in 2003, a great campaign was launched by the school community to keep it open. Notre Dame had a very positive impact on the local area and will be remembered fondly." It is understood that Department of Education has acquired the campus and will use it for school purposes in the future. The World Bank Board of Governors has endorsed guarantees worth $500 million under which Naftogaz Ukrainy may be provided with credit facilities or loans from international commercial banks to buy natural gas from individual suppliers, Ukrainian Finance Minister Oleksandr Danyliuk has said. "I welcome the World Bank Board's decision to grant $500 million in loan guarantees to Naftogaz to buy gas. This would enable us to safely pass the heating season," Danyliuk wrote on his Facebook page. The Finance Ministry clarified the funds will be provided at the conditions attractive for Naftogaz: the availability of the World Bank guarantee reduces risks for borrowers and allows lenders to provide funds at a lower interest rate. "Naftogaz is expected to sign a loan agreement after all the necessary procedures are completed," the ministry said. As reported, President of the European Investment Bank Werner Hoyer and President of the World Bank Jim Yong Kim on October 9, 2015 signed an agreement under the guarantees of the European Union to attract credits of up to $520 million for gas purchases by Naftogaz Ukrainy both from Europe and Russia. However, the consideration of the project has been delayed for a long time. The family and friends of two Cork men who died tragically in Canada last week have raised thousands of euro in their efforts to bring home the remains of the two friends. A fundraising campaign was started on Sunday night and, within 48 hours, almost 200 people had donated more than 9,500. Cathal Murphy (33) from Bandon, and Raymond McCann (42) from Kanturk, were killed in a car accident on October 8 in Manitoba, Canada. The car they were travelling in was found overturned at the side of a road west of Melita on Thanksgiving weekend. It is expected family members will return home with Cathal and Raymond later this week, with the funerals to take place at the beginning of next week. A close cousin of Cathals, Ray OCallaghan, has set up a Go Fund Me account to help pay for the process of repatriating the bodies. Expand Close Cathal Murphy (33) from Bandon, Co Cork / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Cathal Murphy (33) from Bandon, Co Cork The monies raised will go to the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust. This Trust was set up in 2013 after Kevin Bell was killed in a hit-and-run in New York City. Kevin's father, Colin, has been helping to raise money to bring home the remains of other Irish people who have died abroad ever since. Only for Colin, none of this would be possible. He took full control of all the paperwork and funeral homes logistics; otherwise we would be here for much longer. The paperwork is just frightening, Cathals brother James told the Evening Echo in Cork. Colin is just a true gentleman and so understanding as he knows what were going through at this hard time. We just want to bring our brother home to our parents and Raymond home to his family, he added. To donate to The Kevin Bell Repatriation Fund in honour of Cathal and Raymond, click here. Mark Toland, Deputy Chief Inspector, at a Press Conference held by the Garda Inspectorate to mark the publication of the Inspectorate's tenth report.Picture:Arthur Carron The Garda Inspectorate has said that frontline policing is not prioritised in An Garda Siochana and there is a lack of visible garda presence in communities. The agency is this morning briefing TDs and Senators on its priorities for the near future and gave an outline of its recent reports and how their implementation by the Gardai. Deputy Chief Inspector Mark Toland said the majority of its recommendations have been accepted by the Gardai, but they're not always implemented. He detailed the Inspectorate's Changing Policing in Ireland 2015 report. He said that his organisation found an ineffective structure, struggling to cope with the modern demands on Garda services. Mr Toland added: We found that people are not always on duty at the right times, in the right places and doing the right things. He also said there is a two-tier community policing system exists, with high numbers of gardai in Dublin, but significantly less in other areas, particularly rural Ireland. Mr Toland also raised concern that not all crimes reported to Gardai end up being recorded on the Pulse computer system. He said this makes auditing of the number of crimes "impossible" adding; "it's really difficult to decide how many guards you need if you don't know how busy you are ." In an overview he said: We believe that front-line services are not prioritised and protected. All other police services we engaged with have restructured, reduced the number of administrative areas and now operate from far leaner structures, with fewer managers in order to protect the front line. In total, 83pc of garda resources are deployed to front-line services, compared to 93pc in some other police services. Our evidence including analysis of data, and feedback from the communities we visited, highlights the lack of a visible Garda presence, he said. According to Mr Toland the force performs some functions like prosecuting District Court cases and transporting remand prisoners that may be more appropriate to other agencies. At least 1,500 Gardai are in non-operational roles that could be released for patrol, investigation and community policing duties, Mr Toland added. He said that An Garda Siochana has broadly accepted the vast majority of the Inspectorate recommendations. The Inspectorate does not have the statutory authority to oversee the implementation of its recommendations and unfortunately, full implementation of many of the recommendations has yet to be achieved, he said. He called Garda Commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan's The Commissioners Modernisation and Renewal Programme an ambitious reform plan. The Commissioner now has her top team in place, new gardai have joined and the Government has provided significant funding for crucial technology, new vehicles, new stations and refurbishments, Mr Toland added. The Inspectorate looks forward to working with the Garda Siochana to help them to achieve the significant changes planned. Gardai are appealing for witnesses to a robbery of a pharmacy in Galway earlier this month. The robbery took place on Tuesday, October 11 at 10:45pm at Oranmore Pharmacy in Co. Galway. Two masked men forced their way onto the premises through the front of the property and left with a sum of money. Anyone with information in relation to this incident is asked to contact Oranmore Garda Station on 091-388030. Gardai have launched an investigation into a reported assault of a woman by two men on a roadside in Co. Laois. The incident happened on Tuesday morning at approximately 12:30am on the Mountmellick Road, Portlaoise. It is reported that the woman was repeatedly punched in the face after two men entered her stopped vehicle. Gardai have confirmed that they have launched a full investigation into the incident. Anyone with information is asked to contact Portlaoise Gardai on 057 8674 100. A three-year-old girl was found among a group of refugees in the back of a lorry that was shipped in to Ireland. The girl was found in the lorry at haulage firm O'Leary International in Marshmeadows, New Ross, with three men and one woman. All of the occupants of the container are from the Middle East, and told immigration officers they were Kurdish. Wexford Chief Superintendent John Roche said the people with the child, who are all aged in their 20s, were discovered at 6pm on Sunday. Noises from the back of the lorry alerted one of the company's staff who contacted gardai. The people had travelled on the Oscar Wilde ferry into Rosslare Europort from Cherbourg the previous day. They are thought to have entered an unaccompanied refrigerated container which was left in Cherbourg. The container was taken from a compound in the port city by a tug on Saturday and deposited on the ferry for the 18-hour journey to Ireland. It was sealed by custom officials as it contained perishable goods. Supt Roche said the refugees were taken to New Ross garda station where they were medically assessed prior to being taken to Wexford garda station's immigration unit. They were processed and interviewed before being taken to a refugee reception centre in Waterford where they spent the night, then onward to Dublin where they will apply for asylum seeker status. He said: "They were all in good health and we made sure they had food and plenty of liquids." The matter is still under investigation. It is not known whether the group are related as the last names given are not similar. Supt Roche said there was a significantly increased garda presence at Rosslare Europort this year. Around 10 people in total, including some children, have so far been found hiding in the back of lorries and trailers. "Both immigration and security checks have increased at Rosslare Europort in recent months. We have six ferries arriving here every day from Cherbourg, Fishguard and Pembroke," he added. "We search the majority of trucks coming into Rosslare Europort and we have found a lot of clandestines who are sent back to France. "This container was sealed so we could not search it." Supt Roche said Wexford immigration officers were in regular contact with their counterparts in Cherbourg. He said several people who had false documents has been sent back to their outgoing port from Rosslare Europort. The increased garda presence is also due to the heightened Isil threat across the continent. In June, a cargo of 18,500 of apples owned by a Wexford company had to be destroyed after a refugee left a bottle of urine in the back of a trailer. In February, nine male refugees were discovered inside the back of a truck in New Ross that also arrived at Rosslare Port. The Irish Blood Transfusion Service said it needed an additional 1,500 donations over the next three weeks to stabilise national supplies. Stock Image Hospitals will be left without a guaranteed supply of blood in the coming weeks unless there is a large increase in donations. The Irish Blood Transfusion Service (IBTS) said it needed an additional 1,500 donations over the next three weeks to stabilise national supplies. With just three days' supply left, it will be very difficult to guarantee supply to hospitals in the coming weeks. IBTS director of operations Paul McKinney said: "While the summer is always difficult, we still managed to maintain the supply to the hospitals. "However, attendances at clinics over the past number of weeks have been consistently down by 6pc, while the demand has remained constant. "The IBTS is calling for blood donors to make a special effort to give blood over the coming weeks to restore blood supplies to seven days across the main blood groups." He said that in addition to regular clinics, the service is taking a number of measures to address the shortage in supply including extra clinics next Sunday in Wexford town, Celbridge, Co Kildare, and Mountbellew, Co Galway. All clinic details are available on www.giveblood.ie A Galway woman has called for her Brazilian husbands deportation order to be reversed, following the HSE's decision that their desire to marry was genuine. Kleber Medeiros was deported in July pending the completion of a HSE investigation into his application for a marriage license. A member of the public had objected to his application last year on the basis that the application was a 'sham' for convenience. The objection was made completely out of malice; the stuff in the objection was completely ridiculous, Harriett Bruce, Medeiros wife, told Independent.ie. It was made anonymously and we werent told about it until weeks after. Mr Medeiros came to Ballinasloe from Sao Paolo in 2012 and began seeing Harriett Bruce a year later. They got engaged last August and set a wedding date for December. Expand Close Harriett with her mum / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Harriett with her mum Just three weeks before their wedding, they received a notice that a member of the public had objected to the marriage and that the HSE would need to investigate before granting them a license. Harriett and Kleber had people flying in for their wedding and decided to go ahead with the religious ceremony and get the license when the case cleared. Despite the fact that they immediately provided the HSE with documents including utility bills to prove that they had been living together, the HSE took almost a year to decide that their desire to marry was not a sham. In the meantime, Mr Medeiros was deported and the couple have been completely in limbo ever since. Despite the fact that the HSE have now ruled in favour of the couple and allowed their marriage to continue, the deportation order still stands. In order to get a marriage license, they will have to come together to the registry office in Ireland, but they cannot do that until the order is reversed by the Irish National Immigration Services. The lack of communication between the departments is disgraceful, Harriett told Independent.ie. If the objection had been dealt with properly in the first place none of this would have happened. Now that the HSE have finally dealt with it, INIS wont reverse the order. Harriett flew to Brazil to join her husband on September 6, but is flying home on November 6. Her mother is in remission from cancer. Hes been onto me every day to check my email and see if hell be able to come home soon. Its heartbreaking. Im being pulled between my mam at home and my husband here. We had planned to go to America after the honeymoon, and then to Brazil. After we got back, we were going to start a family, Harriett told Independent.ie. Im a hairdresser and beautician and my intention was to extend my business and employ people, and thats all been put on hold. Were after building our life together; we had a good lifestyle and all the comfort that we wanted and he was sent back to Brazil with the clothes on his back. Kleber and Harriett received an 11-page document from the Irish National Immigration Services highlighting their reasons for recommending deportation, which cited the economic wellbeing of Ireland as a reason for his deportation, noting that he was unskilled and therefore that his employment prospects were limited. Kleber has been working as a meat-boner in Leafy Meats since early 2013. Hes very skilled at that job, he works more than 45 hours a week and pays taxes which supports the economy. The idea that his living here was harming the economy is just ridiculous, Bruce told independent.ie. Kleber and Harriett have appealed the INIS decision, but they have no idea when the case will be processed. We got a notification that our case is one of many and they dont know when it will be decided on. Harriett has had support from local TDs and senators and is hoping that the Minister will take note of her case when she returns home in November so that they do not have to rely on the slow appeals process. Since the new legislation passed in 2015 to combat sham marriages between Irish people and foreign nationals seeking residency, 103 objections have been made to proposed marriages on that basis. Of those, only 25 of the marriages have been approved. I wouldnt be surprised if there are other people in our situation, Harriett said. The HSE have been contacted by Independent.ie for comment. Embattled charity Goal has appointed Celine Fitzgerald as its general manager following the resignation of CEO Barry Andrews. Ms Fitzgerald, who comes into the interim position having served at CEO and board level across several multinational, state and charity bodies, will begin her new role on November 1. She takes over after Mr Andrews stood down last week following a US-led investigation into the charity's multimillion-euro Syria operation. The new general manager has been described as an expert in "change management". The charity said she will oversee a period of transition within the organisation over the next 12 months. Ms Fitzgerald has previously worked in management roles in the private sector including working for Eircell, Vodafone and outsourcing business, Rigney Dolphin, where she acted as chief executive officer from 2007 to 2012. She is currently on the boards of both the VHI and Irish Water's parent company Ervia. She was also a former director of Organisational Development at Trocaire, and a former Board member of Nurture Africa - a charity providing health services in Uganda. As a result of the aid investigation carried out by the US Office of the Inspector General (OIG), the Department of Foreign Affairs withheld 10.1m funding from Goal pending the results of the inquiry. Goal is also implementing an action plan, which is based on a consultant's report, which was commissioned in response to the ongoing investigation by the Office of the Inspector General of USAID (OIG) into alleged supply chain irregularities relating to US-sponsored humanitarian aid programmes in Syria. Ms Fitzgerald said: "It is critical that we sort out the issues facing Goal during my one year tenure, and ensure that the people on the front line, whether in head office or in the field, can get back to doing what they do best." The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has approved measures for the effective use of public funds. According to cabinet resolution No. 710 of October 11, the government approved measures for the effective use of public funds provided for the maintenance of public authorities, enterprises, institutions and organizations, formed by state authorities, which use national budget funds. The Cabinet by this decision also cancelled resolution No. 65 dated March 1, 2014 on the saving of public funds and prevention of budget losses." The government instructed the State Treasury Service to make payments on a priority basis and in full on the expenses of the general fund of the national budget to the employees of budgetary institutions, for wages, the purchase of medicines and bandaging materials, the supply of food, clothing, footwear, equipment for students from the number of orphans and children deprived of parental care, as well as make payments for housing and utilities services, energy, costs associated with the implementation of projects of targeted environmental (green) investments and the fulfilment of obligations of the parties to the Kyoto Protocol, the provision of specialized ambulances for emergency medical assistance. Gardai arrested three people and searched 14 airplanes as part of a major international crime-busting operation carried out over 11,000 locations worldwide. The global Operation Ciconia uncovered 2.38 tonnes of cocaine and identified 529 human trafficking victims. A total of 386 people were arrested following the week-long operation. Gardai confirmed to Independent.ie that officers took part in Global Airport Action days on October 11-13. A spokesman said the aim of the Action Days was to counter fraudulent flight bookings using compromised payment card data. "Three persons were arrested, with two of those charged and a further three persons questioned during this operation." A series of targeted interventions and examinations of selected flights at Dublin Airport were conducted on the same dates. Gardai say that an analysis of passengers on those flights was carried out with a view to identifying indicators and victims of human trafficking. A spokesman said: "Over the course of the three days, 14 flights with approximately 150/160 passengers per flight were targeted each day. "Information Leaflets on Human Trafficking (Blueblindfold leaflets) and contact details of human trafficking officers were given to any vulnerable persons identified." No victims of human trafficking were identified during this exercise. Requests were received by 9 member countries in relation to exchanging intelligence on human trafficking. In an earlier statement Europol said 51 countries and four international organisations teamed up to deliver what has been described as a "major blow to organised crime groups operating across the European Union and beyond". The operation was focused on disrupting the most dangerous criminal networks currently active in Europe but sources said this did not include major Irish crime gangs. Investigators put an emphasis on cases related to facilitated illegal immigration, trafficking in human beings, drug trafficking (cocaine, heroin and synthetic drugs) and cybercrime. Gardai and other law enforcement officers in the field were supported from an operational coordination centre located at Europols headquarters in The Hague. Europol officers, liaison officers and national experts from the participating countries, working with specialists from other international partners, offered information exchange using Europols secure channels, and constantly analysed intelligence gathered. The statement said: "Simultaneously, 16 Europol specialists were deployed on the spot in several countries across the world. From there, they worked hand-in-hand with investigators to provide forensic support, analytical reports and live crosschecks against Europols databases." Among the areas searched were red-light districts, brothels, massage parlours, private apartments, airports and immigration reception centres. The nationality of the identified victims of human trafficking, and the suspects arrested during the operations, confirmed that trafficking networks originating in Nigeria, Asia and Eastern Europe are the most active in the EU. In one case, Austrian authorities discovered a cannabis plantation while performing checks at a brothel to identify potential victims of sexual exploitation. The officers ordered the closure of the premises, which was being run as an illegal brothel, and a new investigation was initiated. In another case, Europol was able to establish links between a payment card fraud case and a case on facilitating illegal immigration. This information was forwarded to colleagues from the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) based at an airport in Athens, Greece. Following the lead provided by Europol, the officers intercepted four irregular migrants who were intending to travel to Italy. Four forged passports and four fraudulently-purchased flight tickets to Italy were found on them, and the individuals were arrested. Also, a fake travel agency was discovered in Greece that was facilitating the trafficking of human beings and illegal immigration. The successful result was based on analysis of Europol information, notifications from airlines and the proactive approach of Greek police. In addition, intelligence collected during the operations triggered the initiation of 449 new investigations. John Herbert with the Sunday Pictorial story on his father Peter who disappeared in 1957 An Englishman who has nurtured a lifelong hope of finding his missing father has travelled to Ireland to continue his search. John Herbert (69) is appealing to people in Dublin for any information they may have on Peter Herbert, an accountant and racehorse owner whose last known location was in the city in 1957. The tale of Peter is colourful to say the least. "He left England with a woman named Stella to travel to Ireland in July 1957," said John. Expand Close John Herbert who has traveled from the UK , who has travelled to Ireland in the hope of finding his father Peter. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp John Herbert who has traveled from the UK , who has travelled to Ireland in the hope of finding his father Peter. "He stayed at the Belvedere Hotel in Dublin. We don't know what happened to him after he left the hotel in Denmark Street." Embezzled A British Sunday newspaper published a front page story in December 1957 with a photograph of Peter Herbert holding a cocktail shaker with the headline 'Good Riddance To A Rogue'. The Sunday Pictorial published stories reporting Peter had embezzled money from a furniture manufacturing firm where he worked in order to finance a playboy lifestyle, including the purchase of a number of racehorses. The newspaper published comments from Peter admitting he had been "fiddling the books" at the business. His employer also confirmed to the newspaper he had stolen money from him. "Why did my father disappear? In his mind, he had to run away, a coward," said John, also an accountant who lives in Devon. "There were lots of things in his life we don't know. He has been called a rogue and many other things, all of which are probably true." John said that by the age of 37 his father had children with three different women. He said Peter had remained married to his mother, Olive, with whom he had five children. Olive's five children were still very young when he disappeared. "Despite being a very clever man, my father double-crossed others to get ahead," he said. "I'm the first to accept my father was not a nice or a good man, however, it means so much to discover more about his life after 1957. "Despite his wrongdoings, I feel a son or daughter has a right to know about their father, especially his last resting place." He said his father may have used other names in Ireland, such as Peter Field, Peter Williams, or Peter Scott. Extensive efforts by John to find out what happened to his father have included commissioning psychological profiling, employing private investigators in Ireland and Britain, commissioning a number of searches through the Salvation Army, and visiting the Garda Missing Persons office and the National Archives in Dublin, he said. His father was born in England on October 31, 1920. John has also contacted other missing persons agencies in Ireland and the UK, examined ship passenger lists, examined his father's bankruptcy documents, and checked death registers and probate records in the UK and abroad. He also paid for Dublin solicitors to search Land Registry records in Ireland. Although there was "a strong possibility" his father remained in Ireland, John has followed up rumours that he could have gone to Canada, the United States, Australia, or Trinidad by contacting investigators abroad. Information He told the Herald he would be willing a pay a reward for any useful information about what happened to his father and he can be contacted by e-mail at j_dudley@btinternet.com John, who has one son and two granddaughters, said he had felt isolated and alone as a child without his father. He was the eldest of the couple's five children and would dearly love to know what happened to him or even just his date of death. He promised his mother before she died that he would try to find out what happened him. "I do not want to pass from this world without finding out what happened to my father," John said It took police over an hour to respond to the theft of a valuable artwork from the Bullitt Hotel in Belfast, even though a station is located across the street, the Belfast Telegraph can reveal. It is also understood that when officers did arrive, they were from a different station several miles away. Two pension-age women are being sought in connection with the removal of a specially commissioned 6ft x 4ft portrait of Hollywood star Steve McQueen from the newly opened business, named after one of the late actor's most famous movies. The audacious heist ultimately failed because the striking black and white piece of art, worth approximately 15,000, was too big to fit in the ageing suspects' getaway car, which was parked nearby. The unique portrait, by Slovakian artist Kamil Vojnar - a friend of hotel owner Bill Wolsey - has now been mounted to a wall in the Ann Street premises, which is diagonally opposite Musgrave PSNI station. Mr Wolsey, whose portfolio of local businesses includes the five-star Merchant Hotel, said he was awaiting news of the culprits' fate. "I would like to sit down and ask them, could they not have planned their getaway a bit better?" he added. "Secondly, I think they need to sit down and ask themselves how proud their granddaughter or a daughter will feel about what they did." Mr Wolsey, who was at home at the time, explained he had watched CCTV footage of the incident, which happened just after 8pm on Sunday, only two days after the four-star establishment was opened to the public. Standing in front of the artwork of McQueen - which was later recovered, having incurred some damage, beside Tedfords restaurant on nearby Donegall Quay - Mr Wolsey revealed that it has been securely attached to deter other potential offenders. "We hung it up on Friday night," he said. "I didn't want to nail it to the wall like the other pictures because it is a specially commissioned piece of artwork. But as you can see, that has changed and it's a shame." CCTV cameras captured the two females - who police said were in their late 60s, with shoulder-length blonde hair, and wearing glasses - initially checking out the hotel foyer before approaching their target. One gave her walking stick and handbag to her accomplice, who opened the cloak she was wearing to prevent hotel staff from noticing her partner in crime removing the massive portrait. They can then be seen leaving the hotel through a fire exit and slowly dragging the expensive artwork up Victoria Street, past Musgrave Police Station on Ann Street towards Donegall Quay, where they abandoned it. A spokesman for the PSNI said last night the investigation into the botched theft was ongoing. "On Sunday evening, police in Belfast were dealing with a large number of incidents and calls were prioritised according to risk to life and vulnerability," he added. "Unfortunately, on this occasion, police were unable to attend the call in as timely a fashion as they would have liked. "Details provided in the initial report enabled police enquiries to start and these are ongoing. An investigation was commenced immediately upon the arrival of police and the portrait was recovered in 40 minutes." The PSNI has asked anyone who can help to contact Lisburn Road police, quoting reference number 1256 of October 16, 2016. Five months after the Programme for Government pledged to re-open six garda stations on a trial basis nothing has happened, the Dail has been told. Roscommon TD, Eugene Murphy, told the Dail that the scheme to re-open six was an effort to assess the importance of garda stations generally in fighting crime. He said none of the six had been identified. There was talk about Stepaside but even that has not happened, the Fianna Fail TD said. He said the station in Tarmonbarry, Co Roscommon, on the N5 national route, urgently needed to be re-opened. He said the Taoiseach knew this because he drives through Tarmonbarry virtually every day. The Government has no intention of stepping aside from that commitment, Mr Kenny punned. But he said it was up to the Garda Commissioner to assess the situation and recommend which stations should be re-opened as part of the pilot scheme. Fine Gael ministers have rounded on Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe over his handling of the decision to scrap the pay hikes they were due under the Lansdowne Road Agreement. In a rare occurrence, both Cabinet and junior ministerial sources have voiced anger over the fact they were not consulted over the move before it was announced by Mr Donohoe. The Dublin Central TD announced that all ministers will forego their pay rises. This will mean that members of Cabinet lose out on pay hikes next year of just under 4,000. And ministers of state, who were told of the decision by Mr Donohoe personally after the meeting ended, will lose out on 2,800. But TDs will be allowed to make up their own minds in relation to whether they forego their pay increase, which is set to be just over 2,700 next year. However, the handling of the move has angered several Fine Gael ministers, a number of whom said they first learned of the decision through the media. Others said they should have been given the chance to discuss the matter first with their families. The blame has also been pointed at Mr Donohoe's department, with ministers claiming there should have been a full consultation before a decision was made. On Monday evening, several junior ministers told the Irish Independent that they intended to accept the pay hikes due in April - before being told yesterday that they too must forego the money. One Cabinet source described the handling of the matter as a "fiasco", while a second minister said it led to him receiving a backlash from his constituents last week. There is also disquiet in Fine Gael over remarks made by super junior minister Finian McGrath over the issue. In an interview with the Irish Independent, Mr McGrath said all TDs should stop "whingeing" and forego the increase. Finally, at yesterday's Cabinet meeting it was agreed that all ministers, both senior and junior, will not get the pay hikes. It was hoped the move would draw a line under the controversy that has raged since it emerged ministers were entitled to pay restoration worth 11,735 between next April and April 2019. Mr Donohoe told reporters that no office holder will receive any increase. "All office holders at both minister and minister of state level will forfeit the wage restoration that is due to happen under the Lansdowne Road Agreement. That decision was reaffirmed by Cabinet and it has now been reaffirmed by the ministers of state," Mr Donohoe said at a press briefing at Government Buildings. He said an "administrative device" was agreed which will ensure ministers' take home pay does not change. "The way we are going to work that...we have had to come up with an administrative device to deal with that. So from next April, the TDs' portion of their salary will increase and what we will do is we will decrease their ministerial salary by a larger amount to make sure their take-home pay does not change," Mr Donohoe added. Backbench TDs will continue to be asked whether they will forego their pay hikes after a number of deputies said it is their intention. These include Dublin North West TD Noel Rock and Roscommon/Galway deputy Michael Fitzmaurice. "In relation to TDs, I continue to believe that the best framework for dealing with the pay of TDs is that it is anchored with payments to principal officers," Mr Donohoe said. "The reason why I believe that is if we don't use that anchor, we will end back with politicians determining what other politicians are paid. "That is not the right way to deal with something as sensitive as politicians' pay," he added. Meanwhile, Labour Party leader Brendan Howlin called for an "annual discussion" on TDs' pay. "TDs, after years and years of discussions about what was the appropriate rate, are linked to the grade of principal officer in the public service. I think we should not politicise the pay of TDs by disconnecting that now and then having an annual discussion about it." Peter McDonnell with his wife Helen, who is raising money to help treat his illness The prospect of Donald Trump being elected president is particularly troubling for Helen McDonnell after she promised to change her name by deed poll to whoever wins the US election. The 57-year-old secretary will be officially known as either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump if she succeeds in raising 34,000 through a unique crowd-funding scheme she hopes will give her the financial means to help save her husband's life. Helen, from Kiltimagh, Co Mayo, made the bizarre pledge in a bid to raise vital funds for husband Peter McDonnell (58), who is battling an incurable lung disease. The couple, who moved to Mayo from their native London 20 years ago, came up with the scheme after Peter's 27-year-old nephew Oliver suggested injecting a bit of humour into an otherwise serious situation. Although Helen doesn't relish the thought of being known locally as "The Donald" or even Hillary for that matter, she has vowed to go through with the legal name change if it means there is a chance to save the life of her beloved husband who suffers from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). There is no cure for the terminal illness and Peter was given only three to five years to live when he got the grim diagnosis in 2013. His only chance of survival is if he receives a double lung transplant. As Peter, a former plumber, hopes to get on the waiting list for a double lung transplant, the couple's finances are dwindling because neither can work. With Peter's condition deteriorating, Helen now provides 24-hour care. Although Helen is hoping Trump won't be elected next month, she is prepared to adopt his moniker. "It's a bit daunting and I'm not sure what the complications are going to be. Maybe Peter could call me Dolly or something," she laughed. For more details, see www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/namechanger Naftogaz, its subsidiaries will demand $2.6 bln from Russia for stolen assets in Crimea NJSC Naftogaz Ukrainy and its six subsidiaries on October 17, 2016 initiated arbitration proceedings against the Russian Federation with the requirement to reimburse for losses caused by the illegal seizure of the group's assets in Crimea, the press service of the state holding has told Interfax-Ukraine. "Naftogaz has initiated proceedings in accordance with the agreement between the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the government of the Russian Federation on promotion and mutual protection of investments, better known as the Russian-Ukrainian bilateral investment agreement. Naftogaz preliminarily estimated the damage to the group at $2.6 billion," the report reads. According to the state holding, the matter concerns the property of Naftogaz, Chornomornaftogaz, Ukrtransgaz, Ukrgazvydobuvannia, Ukrtransnafta, Gaz Ukrainy and Likvo. "After the illegal invasion of Crimea and the occupation of the peninsula in 2014, the Russian Federation applied an ambitious and well-coordinated scheme of depriving Ukrainian companies of their property without paying compensation. In Crimea Naftogaz had several valuable energy assets, the seizure of which by the Russian side violates the bilateral investment agreement, which requires the Russian Federation to respect and protect Ukrainian assets, including those located in Crimea," the holding said. Naftogaz earlier declared its plans to seek to regain control over its assets lost because of Russia's occupying Crimea and have all losses compensated for through international judicial institutions. Naftogaz in February 2016 initiated a negotiating process regarding the loss of its assets in Crimea by formally notifying Russia of an investment dispute under the bilateral investment protection agreement. According to Naftogaz's annual consolidated statement, the six-month negotiating period ended in August 2016. Thus, the negotiating process produced no results, which entitles Ukraine to start arbitration proceedings against Russia regarding the investment agreement. Naftogaz contracted Covington & Burling LLP (New York, the United States) to protect its interests in the litigation concerning the lost Crimean assets. Naftogaz Ukrainy is wholly owned by the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers and consolidates the country's largest oil and gas producing facilities. It holds a monopoly on the transportation and storage of natural gas in underground storage facilities and on the transportation of oil through pipelines across the country. A British mother has spoken about the life-altering moment doctors told her she was HIV Positive, which had remained undiagnosed for more than 30 years. Vanessa Roberts (52) was diagnosed with the virus in 2014, after battling the infections symptoms for three decades during which she was married twice and gave birth to two children. The mum-of-two from Oxford in England discovered she was HIV Positive after a chance blood test, carried out in a Sexual Health Clinic where she had visited to treat oral thrush. Over 25 years these symptoms continued until I found out what the cause was, Vanessa told The Ryan Tubridy Show on RTE Radio 1. Infections, chest infections, ear infections, lots of niggly things, persistent coughs, veruccas on my feet, strange oral thrush in my mouth. I went many times to see my doctor and various doctors over the years and asked if there was something underlying wrong with me and I asked why I kept getting this and I was told Oh no, some people just get it. It was as if they treated each individual thing but they didnt look at the whole picture really. I was worried there might be something seriously wrong with me Read More A couple of years ago, I had thrush and I wanted a doctors appointment and I couldnt get one for a couple of weeks so I took myself to the local sexual health clinic at the hospital, even though thrush isnt an STI, and I knew that I could go there and get the treatment. They offered me a routine blood screening test and not wanting to be difficult I agreed but I didnt expect it to show up anything. The three days later I got a text at work asking me to call the hospital. I phoned up and they told me I had to return to the hospital immediately. When I pressed them on why they actually told me I was HIV Positive, she said. The bereavement councillor revealed that the diagnosis left her deeply upset and in fear of her life. I felt terrible for a week. I even considered jumping in front of a bus. I thought I was going to die. I was planning my bucket list and thought about putting my affairs in order. My reaction was awful. I just thought I was going to die imminently. Deep down though somewhere in a calm place there was a kind of Oh so thats it, that explains everything, she said. Vanessas husband, her ex-husband and her children had to be tested for the virus following her diagnosis, but fortunately they were all found to be HIV Negative. Read More Taking into consideration the levels of the virus in Vanessas blood as well as her sexual and medical history, medics guessed that she had been living with the virus for more than 30 years and was even hospitalised for its symptoms in 1983. From the levels in my blood and the state of my immune system they had known that Id had it for a very long time. Tracing back my medical history and my sexual history, it became apparent that I must have contracted the virus before my first marriage. Looking back even further I was actually hospitalised in 1983 with what was then called a mystery virus. They tested me for everything but of course they werent testing me for HIV in those days. I left the hospital. My consultants looked at the records and they believe that was shortly after I had contracted HIV. I was actually having a relationship with a man from Malawi shortly before that and they suspect that that is where I got it, said Vanessa. Despite her upset at the diagnosis, Vanessa revealed that her knowledge of HIV was ill-informed and the realities of living with the condition are much more positive than she imagined. All my symptoms disappeared within four weeks of me starting on my medication. I felt much healthier, Ive got energy now. Really, I feel 100pc better than I felt over the last 20 years. I was very, very wrong. My knowledge of HIV went back to the eighties. A television campaign with tombstones falling over, and I was lead to believe that it was a death sentence and extremely contagious. Within a week I had an appointment with a consultant and I was told that actually things are very different these days and having HIV wont affect my life very much at all. All the specialists that Ive seen now, they said with that list of symptoms that I had they would have known straight away that I had HIV. Unfortunately Im a white, middle aged female. Ive never injected drugs, Im not an African person, Im not a gay man and I didnt fit the profile, but in actual fact anyone can get HIV so its important for everyone to get tested if they are having unprotected sex, she said. The mother is getting set to wed for the third time in a fortnight, and said living with HIV has impacted her life in a way she never predicted. I actually feel like its enriched my life. I feel like a better person, less judgemental, more tolerant. I just feel its kind of made my life better in some ways, which sounds crazy. For me personally I feel absolutely fine, she said. A British man who suffered a severe panic attack minutes before boarding a flight to Las Vegas for his honeymoon survived take-off after being hypnotised by an Irish psychologist in Gatwick Airport. Jim Roberts, who has an intense fear of flying, was so panicked ahead of his flight to the US on October 3, that Virgin Atlantic staff began to make moves to remove his checked baggage from the aircraft. Noticing the commotion at the boarding gate, Dublin-based psychologist Jim OCallaghan approached Jim and asked his permission to perform hypnosis, which calmed him down enough to take his seat on the plane. The airlines staff then upgraded the pair to business class along with Jims new wife Sarah, where they sat alongside one another for the duration of the flight. Jim, from Kent in the UK, took to Facebook to thank OCallaghan for saving his dream holiday to America. As most of you know I have a massive fear of flying, so an 11 hour flight to America was always going to be hard. So I'm at the airport worrying about what is ahead; boarding the plane. We get to the gate and then bang - an extreme panic attack. The worst I have ever had. I'm in bits, everyone else has boarded and we are the last ones left at the gate. Just when all hope is all lost a stranger comes out of the blue. He is running really late for the flight and it just so happens that he is a psychiatrist and hypnotist. He sees me and offers to help, sitting me down, he starts to hypnotise me. The next thing I remember is walking on board with him and then sitting in our upgraded business class seats having a glass of champagne. Jim you are a hero. You saved my honeymoon. I will never forget what you done for me, wrote Jim. OCallaghan, who runs a clinic in Dublin 4, has risen to media attention in recent years with many commending him for using hypnosis to aid weight-loss, ease anxiety and quit smoking among other things. Premium Ian O'Doherty Opinion For once, the UN is right were standing on the edge of a deadly nuclear precipice For those of us of a certain age, the last few months have felt as if we have somehow time-warped back to the 1980s. Stranger Things, which is set in that decade, has been the biggest show on TV. Kate Bush thanks, incidentally, to Stranger Things is now regularly played on the radio and she has reached number one in 2022 with the re-release of her 1985 hit, Running Up That Hill. The current Garda pay dispute is shaping up into a scenario that may well produce no winner and lots of losers. It sees the Garda Representative Association (GRA) serving notice of a "unilateral withdrawal of services" on November 4, 11, 18 and 25 - and might well be described as the product of prudence, impatience, trickery, and 'too little, too late'. Much media focus in this dispute has been on whether gardai have the right to take industrial action. This is irrelevant and does little to help resolve the dispute. For clarity on the matter, under the Garda Siochana Act 2005, officials of the Garda associations are liable to prosecution for inducing their members to withhold services, while Garda Regulations 2007 enable sanctions in respect of gardai disobeying orders. However, the fundamental problem with such provisions is that it is difficult - and would be counterproductive - to enforce them. For example, if all efforts fail and thousands of gardai withdraw their labour in November, who exactly is going to arrest them and where would they be detained? Indeed, even the deployment of more measured sanctions, such as dismissal, would likely harden Garda resolve, as former Taoiseach Charles Haughey discovered in 1961, when, as Justice Minister, he was obliged to reinstate 11 gardai dismissed for their involvement in the 'Macushla' pay dispute. While the Government is understandably trying to 'hold the line' on public-sector pay, it is not entirely blameless. For example, as part of the 2013 Haddington Road pay deal, it agreed to an independent review for gardai, to be completed by mid-2014. Alas, the appointed reviewer resigned last May "for personal reasons", prompting speculation the scale of the GRA's demands and the government's flexibility weren't overlapping. This matter has now been passed to former Labour Court chairman John Horgan. However, initial Garda optimism of repeat performances of the Conroy Commission and Ryan Report (in 1970 and 1979, respectively, giving gardai 9pc and 18pc pay rises) has long evaporated. Indeed, the resurrection of the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors' (AGSI) militancy - after they appeared to be safely tucked into the Lansdowne Road deal last August - is attributed to a similar sleight of hand, as alleged assurances on the promised Public Service Pay Commission also evaporated. Many argue that trust in the Garda will be irreparably damaged by this dispute - despite successive national MRBI polls ranking gardai as the most trusted role model/institution in the State - ahead of doctors, judiciary, charities, unions, the President, the Church, religious and business leaders, the media and the Government. There can be no doubt that, in recent years, gardai have endured a torrid time. This can be attributed to reduced remuneration, resources and promotions prospects, increased work demands and the daily risk of injury or death. The swarm of inquiries has also served to hammer Garda morale. Of course, it should also be recognised that both parties to this dispute have shown a will to work toward solutions. For example, at the end of last month, the leadership of the GRA reached a (relatively) good deal with their official counterparts - one that most other public sector workers (who have already accepted the Lansdowne Road deal) would have jumped at. In this self-same deal, civil service negotiators displayed considerable creativity, with a package promising a pension perk (estimated to be worth 8,000), the neutralising of the controversial 30 hours' free overtime, rent allowance restoration, increased promotions, etc. Make no mistake about it - this is a risky package for Government to peddle. Most other groups would take your hand off to secure equivalent provisions. With mounting pressure to accelerate pay restoration, the Government finds itself in an unenviable 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' position. The dreaded 'knock-on' effect of concessions - to 300,000 other public servants - is at the heart of the Government's reluctance to put more money on the table. Indeed, many are conscious this effect played its part in the eventual discrediting of the 20-year social partnership arrangement. And while the resolution of the Luas and Dublin Bus disputes was a welcome boon for Government, the provisions enabling breakthroughs are probably well in excess of what would be required to keep gardai on duty. Furthermore, pay demands are unlikely to be assuaged by reports of good Exchequer returns and economic growth. Nor should it be overlooked that while the aforementioned disputes were settled by pay increases, gardai argue they're looking only for pay restoration. Beyond the difficulty facing the GRA in winning the 'we're unique' argument, a more disconcerting feature of their campaign is the lack of support for it among mainstream political parties. Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald will have noted the mileage garnered by British Prime Minister Theresa May when successfully campaigning for party leadership, as she boasted about bringing the GRA's British counterparts - the Police Federation - to heel. It is in the interests of all parties to resolve this dispute with immediate effect. Failure to do so will prove costly for affected parties - including the vulnerable public. Now is the time for creativity, conciliation and compromise to replace threats, counter-threats and hardline positions. Dr Gerard McMahon is a lecturer/ consultant at the College of Business, DIT, and co-author of the book 'Industrial Relations in Ireland', 4th Edition Experience has taught us not to confuse pronouncements by politicians with the prophecies of Nostradamus, they are merely expected to have a tangential relationship with truth. For some time now, Finance Minister Michael Noonan has issued various solemn statements about the responsibilities of the banks and building societies towards reducing variable mortgage rates. As they fell on deaf ears, he upped the decibel level; advice became admonition -eventually he was forced to resort to threats. A fat lot of good it has done either him or the more than 300,000 unfortunate homeowners who find themselves on the rack of variable rates, and paying 1.5pc more than their fellow citizens in the eurozone. Mr Noonan is undoubtedly serious in his determination to get the financial institutions into line, but how seriously he has been taken is very much open to question. Did he not bring the lenders into his own office to roast them for failing to act? Now he himself is to be quizzed by the Oireachtas Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform Committee. Mr Noonan's patience with lenders appears to be inexhaustible, but that of hard-pressed homeowners is not. It is hardly as if Mr Noonan needs any more incentive. Fianna Fail has been pressing for a private members' bill to give the Central Bank powers to directly control variable rates. Mr Noonan feels the bill is unconstitutional, and that there is no need for it. The committee members will tease these matters out. Back in 2015, Mr Noonan threatened lenders with a punitive banking levy and to keep rates under review. In the interim, it is the borrowers who have been punished and the lenders who have been profiting. Why this is so is hard to tell. Mr Noonan's answers will be eagerly awaited by homeowners. Donohoe makes right mess of a simple task A fine mess he got himself into. The waiving of ministerial pay rises was a simple enough task. The previous Fine Gael-Labour Party coalition government had agreed ministers would not be availing of the public sector pay rises kicking in next year. For unknown reasons, Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe waited until after the Budget to carry this policy through to the new administration. It implies a level of naivety that the minister didnt realise that politicians pay rises would be juxtaposed with the benefits befalling ordinary citizens from the proceeds of Budget 2016. Fine Gael ministers are now annoyed with Mr Donohoe over his handling of the decision to scrap the pay hikes they were due under the Lansdowne Road Agreement. In a rare occurrence, both Cabinet and junior ministerial sources have voiced anger over the fact they were not consulted over the move before it was announced. Its a fair point. He should have consulted with colleagues a long time back and cleared this matter up months ago. If he cant even handle a simple task like waiving his own colleagues pay rises, why should there be confidence in him to negotiate pay deals with public sector unions? Ministers will forego their pay hikes next year. They shouldnt hold their breaths for any applause from the public. But the Minister for Public Expenditure needs to show he is more in tune with the public mood. Louth county council has one of the highest rates of absenteeism due to sickness among its staff, according to figures released by Housing Minister Simon Coveney to Fianna Fail TD Barry Cowen recently. The local authority lost an average of 11.84 sick days per employee, just behind Leitrim County Council with 12 days. The number of paid working days lost are broken down between medically certified and self-certified sickness. The sick leave rate in Louth was 5.36 per cent, of which 4.73 per cent was medically certified and 0.62 per cent was self-certified. This compares to a rate of absenteeism in the private sector of 2.35 per cent, which is lower than the figure for any local authority. The overall cost of sick leave in the public service was estimated at 317.9 million for 2015 which represents a saving of 104.4 million on 2013. The Government introduced measures in 2013 to halve sick leave entitlements for the public sector. The changes allow workers three months' full pay followed by three months' half pay, followed by 'temporary rehabilitation pay' for a maximum period of two years for certified sick leave. Absenteeism rates attributed to illness in city and county councils have been on the rise for almost a decade. They have fallen significantly since 2013 but had risen until that point. The main causes of short-term-illness absence are flus, colds and respiratory tract infections. Long-term sickness factors are musculoskeletal disorders, post-surgery convalescence and acute medical conditions such as cancers The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has sent bank doing business with Russian payment systems a telegram telling them to stop, chief of NBU's payment systems oversight bureau Olena Makhayeva has said. "The NBU sent a telegram to each bank belonging to these payment systems about stopping transactions via Russian payment systems and settling all accounts with them," she said during a press conference on Wednesday. The NBU said the telegram did not set a date for settling accounts in order to allow the banks to comply in an orderly manner. The central bank also obliged banks to return to the regulator NBU authorizations to work with the payment systems issued prior to 2014. The NBU has not authorized banking transactions with Russian payments systems since 2015. As earlier reported, Ukraine has extended sanctions against the Russian Federation. They include measures to curtail the activities of a number of Russian payment systems listed in recent presidential decree No. 467/2016. According to the decree, transactions involving Russian payment system "Gold Crown" (Zolotaya Korona), belonging to the payment organization "Payment center" are to be curtailed, along with Unistream, the international payment system Kolibri (earlier known as Blitz), Leader, Anelik and Blizko (managed by Svyaz Bank). A trip to the dentist may not be everyones idea of a holiday, but a visit to Kreativ Dental Clinic in Budapest, Hungary can change that. Voted the Best Dental Clinic in Europe, Kreativ Dental can help you to achieve a healthy and happy smile with ease. Here, Elaine Townley from Co Meath tells us about her five-star treatment at the clinic Id always considered my teeth to be perfect they looked perfect but they were really weak, explains Elaine. My teeth would reject root canals and could never hold a filling so each time I went to an Irish dentist, I would hand out money for a filling that wouldnt even last. Fed up, Elaine got in contact with Mary Flanagan, the Irish representative of Kreativ Dental Clinic in Budapest. Mary attended the clinic herself for the first time 11 years ago when she was told the cost to get work done in Ireland would be 60,000. She spent 12,000 on treatment at Kreativ Dental, which included implants and a full-mouth re-construction with porcelain crowns. Mary was so understanding and when she told me about her own situation, it gave me reassurance. Id never been to Budapest before, I didnt know much about Hungary and I would never really have considered travelling to a different country for dental treatment, but Mary made me feel more at ease. Dental tourism Kreativ Dental have over a decade of experience in dental tourism, with more than 700 European/USA patients visiting the clinic every month, many of whom are Irish. The clinic has an in-house training centre that provides continuous professional development for their staff and each dentist specialises in their own area. Treatments offered throughout the clinic include dental implants, teeth whitening and root canal. You can also have your smile designed by the clinic with their highly-advanced Smile Design System. I couldnt get over the number of staff there and how experienced they were, says Elaine. Surgeons, dental technicians, dental assistants, dentists and those working in laboratories shaping and moulding crowns and implants there was a specialist for all dental needs. I stayed overnight for a free next-day consultation. The dentist is obliged to tell you about all work that needs to be done but its up to you to make the final decision, they put no pressure on you whatsoever. Originally I went over thinking it was just one tooth which needed to be sorted but I didnt realise that my other teeth were also very weak. He did up two plans for me and guided me through the required work. There were no hidden costs or anything, he really was just all about trying to fix my teeth for me. Expand Close Elaine Townley / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Elaine Townley I needed quite a bit of work done to my teeth so when I went home, I made the decision to go ahead with it. I rang Mary and again she took it from there. She booked the appointment and hotel while I organised flights. I had five days of work to be done this time, but its completely different to getting it done in Ireland. If you have an appointment at 10 oclock, youre taken at 10 not ten or 45 minutes later. This is great for those who are nervous about dentists because having to wait past your appointment time doesnt help! Retreat Elaine says that not only did the staff put her at ease during her stay and treatment, but the entire atmosphere of the state-of-the-art clinic was calm and relaxing despite being so busy! When I first entered the clinic I thought to myself oh, wow! It reminded me of the film Finding Nemo, she laughs. There were fish tanks on all floor levels, filled with extraordinary fish. It was similar to a health spa you knew you werent going to one, but it certainly felt like you were in one! Elaine says people shouldnt let the fact that theres a plane journey involved get in the way of receiving dental treatment its an excuse to explore all that Budapest has to offer. The clinic is outside the city, but when you walk outside the hotel doors the metro is close-by. Budapest is an amazing city to explore theres plenty of sightseeing, beautiful architecture, shopping and the river tour along the Danube and the hot baths are must-dos! Its not a country I would have ever considered going on holidays to but Im glad I got the chance to visit. If I was speaking to somebody who was having problems or felt paranoid about their teeth, I would tell them to research Kreativ Dental on the internet. Theres so much information online about the clinic and treatments. Ring Mary no matter what time I rang, text or sent an email to her at, she got back to me within a day and was extremely helpful. The savings alone were brilliant. I would have had to take out a small mortgage to do the work here. When you think about it, a flight costs the price, or less, of a filling here in Ireland and you come back knowing that you have been looked after by the best possible team. Kreativ Dental Clinic also provides aftercare dentists in Ireland and there is a written guarantee on all work, which includes both flights and accommodation I know youre taking a chance by going to another country theres the worry that if anything goes wrong with the work you get done, that your dentist back home wont be too helpful. But, Kreativ Dental Clinic will completely put your mind at ease. They will talk you through all of this before you get the treatment done and if there is any issue, they will look after you. Im not paranoid anymore about my filling falling out and my treatment has given me more confidence when Im smiling. For more information, visit kreativdentalclinic.eu/en/the-clinic or contact Mary on (01) 805 5526 or (086) 0299 998 Mother-of-two TV reality star Kim Kardashian was robbed in flat during Paris fashion Week Kim Kardashian is suing a celebrity website for claiming that she faked the dramatic Paris robbery. The reality star, 35, was locked up in a bathroom in a private residence in Paris and tied up by armed robbers. The robbers, dressed as police officers, are thought to have stolen 10 million dollars worth of jewellery during the terrifying incident, which took place as Kardashian was in the French capital for Paris Fashion Week. In a lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court, New York, Kardashian's lawyers have said that she was wrongly portrayed as a liar and thief after she was attacked. It seeks unspecified damages from MediaTakeOut.com, saying that Kardashian was victimised a second time when the website reported that she faked the robbery and lied about the assault. The report came after Twitter trolls mocked the mother-of-two's ordeal. James Corden rallied to Kardashian's defence, telling people to stop making jokes about the robbery and remember "she's a mother, a daughter, a wife, a friend. Be nice or shut up". The lawsuit came after Khloe Kardashian said that her older sister was "not doing that well" following the jewellery heist. Khloe, speaking on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, said the incident was "incredibly traumatic" for her sister. She said that the incident was "a wake-up call to make a lot of life adjustments". Video of the Day Rapper Kanye West, Kardashian's husband, 39, has returned to his tour after cancelling dates following the robbery. The rapper resumed the Saint Pablo Tour in his home town of Chicago after abruptly cutting short a New York concert citing a "family emergency". No arrests have been made. The comedian is expecting his first child with fiancee Laura Gallacher Russell Brand has said he is "lit up by the idea" of becoming a father. The comedian, who is expecting his first child with fiancee Laura Gallacher, recently swapped his London home for the countryside which he described as calmer than living in the capital. "I'm so much happier over the course of the day to see one or two people and a few chickens, that's a good way of living," he told ES Magazine. On becoming a father, Brand said: "I'm very excited about becoming a dad and I'm preparing myself. "I am just getting ready to be with a new little person and see what it is they want." "I feel lit up by the idea." Brand has recently enrolled at London University's School of Oriental and African Studies which he described as an attempt to explore religion and spirituality. "I'd like to understand what the deep truths are of Islam, Baha'ism, Christianity; I want to know more", he said, adding: "I am very interested in the role that religion and spirituality will play in the further formulation of world events and how secular societies are held together. "The old idea (about politics) is dead and people don't know what's replacing it yet, so I'm spending some time discovering what it is." Brand, who has battled addictions in the past, said he was "lucky" to have a substance misuse problem rather than a "food, sex or spending issue". Video of the Day "Those things are insidious because they're culturally endorsed, they're habitual,'' he said. He said addiction should "be regarded like autism". "Everybody is somewhere on the spectrum. If you look at your own life, what is it you do that isn't good for you and you can't stop doing, even if it is seemingly innocuous, like the way you watch TV," he added. Rosanna Davison and Wesley at the 3Live experience at Electric Picnic. Photo: Leon Farrell/ Photocall Ireland Rosanna Davison pictured at the launch of the 3XE Digital Conference at Croke Park in Dublin. Picture: Laura Hutton/Collins Photo Agency Rosanna Davison has hit out at Donald Trump for his insulting comments towards a former Miss Universe, describing the attack as "crazy". The Wicklow woman burst onto the scene when she was the first and only Irish contestant to be crowned Miss World in the 2003 contest. The US presidential candidate slammed former Miss Universe winner Alicia Machado for gaining weight and labelled her "Miss Piggy". However, Rosanna has insisted people were much nicer to her at the Miss World pageant in comparison. Expand Close Rosanna Davison of Ireland sports a bikini with fellow Miss World 2003 contestants / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Rosanna Davison of Ireland sports a bikini with fellow Miss World 2003 contestants "It's just a shame. I think Trump says things for effect, it's a shame that it was said. It's unfortunate to hear about cases where a woman is made to feel insecure about her body. It's crazy, but does it surprise anybody?" she told the Diary. "There was nothing inappropriate or anything that made me feel uncomfortable at Miss World in any way; we were all treated like princesses." The competitions have a long-standing rivalry with each other, but the Eat Yourself Beautiful author believes the difference comes down to what each pageant stands for. "Miss World is older and involves more countries. It's more focused on the charity side. I spent most of my year working with charities. "They're looking for someone who can go out in front of the media or go to hospitals and orphanages and things like that," she said. Expand Close Rosanna Davison at the launch of her second cookbook "Eat Yourself Fit" at Rustic Stone, Dublin. Picture: Brian McEvoy / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Rosanna Davison at the launch of her second cookbook "Eat Yourself Fit" at Rustic Stone, Dublin. Picture: Brian McEvoy The 32-year-old has been focused on building her brand as a health and fitness expert in recent years and has authored two books, her most recent being Eat Yourself Fit. Read More "I've been flying around the place promoting it and will be up until Christmas. I have various cookery demos coming up," she said. Video of the Day "I really enjoy it, it's a great buzz. I actually enjoy public speaking which is unusual, most people don't enjoy it." The blonde has also experienced some of the negative aspects of fame and has had fans taking pictures of her when she's out and about. Expand Close Rosanna Davison and Wesley at the 3Live experience at Electric Picnic. Photo: Leon Farrell/ Photocall Ireland / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Rosanna Davison and Wesley at the 3Live experience at Electric Picnic. Photo: Leon Farrell/ Photocall Ireland "They do take my picture, it tends to happen in restaurants or bars. I don't mind, but I would be just as happy if they came up to me," she said. I'm happy to take pictures with people. I think people think they don't want to disturb you but I don't mind that much. "It's always nice to interact with people who follow you online and meet them in real life." Rosanna believes the key to her success has been interacting with her fans. "Your content is important and the creativity that you use for the material you put up online. You have to build a sense of community with your followers. "Launching competitions is a great way to attract new followers," she said. Meet the Irish photographer taking over the international fashion world. Christopher "Boo" George (35) landed another major coup in his career, shooting Victoria Beckham for the cover of Vogue Australia - the latest in a long line of high profile gigs with the fashion designer. He shared a series of pictures on Instagram, captioning one: "Thanks vb @victoriabeckham @estherlangham @romyglow @natalielewis13w @vogueaustralia what a gal, shot in Nyc in the baking heat." George, from Bray, Co Wicklow, first began working with Beckham in 2013 when he shot her for the style bible and worked with her again in November 2015 for German Vogue. Expand Close Victoria Beckham for Vogue Australia shot by Boo George / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Victoria Beckham for Vogue Australia shot by Boo George He's no stranger to high profile gigs having worked with everyone from Alessandra Ambrosio, Emma Watson and Jessica Alba and shot for every major publication including iD, W and shot campaigns for Zara, Louis Vuitton and Calvin Klein. Basically, he's a big deal. Thanks vb @victoriabeckham @estherlangham @romyglow @natalielewis13w @vogueaustralia what a gal, shot in Nyc in the baking heat A photo posted by Boo George (@boo_george_studio) on Oct 11, 2016 at 7:35am PDT Despite his rising star, he hasn't forgotten his roots as he famously shot Emporio Armani's Autumn/Winter campaign on Dollymount Strand in 2014. He moved from Wicklow to England in 1999 to study photography and landed coveted apprenticeships with top photographers like Julian Broad before moving on from assisting in 2008. "I moved to northern England in 1999," he told Artsy of his rise to fame. "I got a scholarship to go to a college in northern England. I did three years studying photography before I moved to London. "I started doing documentary photography...and then for my end-of-year project, I went on a fishing boat North Sea off for nine months to shoot fisherman. My @vogueaustralia November cover issue is out today where I discuss my charity journey as a @unaidsglobal ambassador! X VB #aidsfreegeneration A photo posted by Victoria Beckham (@victoriabeckham) on Oct 17, 2016 at 11:50am PDT Video of the Day "And I made a book out of that. Still to this day, one of my favorite pictures is of a fisherman. I moved to London straight after that, and started assisting." Actress Shailene Woodley has pleaded not guilty in a North Dakota court to criminal trespass and riot charges after her arrest in a protest against the Dakota Access pipeline. Court records show the Divergent star entered her pleas on Tuesday through her attorney Alexander Reichert. Woodley and 26 other activists were arrested on October 10. She livestreamed her protest on Facebook. The Standing Rock Sioux wants construction of the 3.8 billion US dollar (3.1 billion) pipeline halted, saying it could taint the water supply and encroach on tribal burial sites. Protests supporting the tribe have been going on for months. Woodley could face 60 days in jail and 3,000 US dollars (2,444) in fines if she is convicted of criminal trespass and engaging in a riot. AP Virgin said they had received almost 200 applications for every vacancy for train drivers on the new Azuma trains More than 15,000 people have applied for 78 jobs driving new trains being launched by Virgin. The company said there were almost 200 applications for every vacancy following the biggest recruitment campaign on the East Coast route since the 1980s. The new drivers will work on new Azuma trains, built in the UK by Hitachi, which are being launched in 2018. The successful candidates, who will work from depots from London to Edinburgh, are due to start a year-long training programme in January. A spokesman for Virgin Trains said: "The Talent team are working hard to process and update all of the applications we received. "Those who have been successful in getting through the first stages of the process will be invited to attend a selection day which will include a variety of assessments and exercises that will bring the best talent into our business." Ukraine has expressed its position on the status of the debt on sovereign eurobonds worth $3 billion, held by Russia, in a judicial process being conducted in the UK, according to the website of the Finance Ministry. "Ukraine has clearly stated its position on the alleged "Russian debt" in the trial. At the same time, Ukraine sticks to its integrity commitment to the International Monetary Fund in this regard," the report says. The Ministry of Finance said Russia under different circumstances makes different statements about this. "Yesterday, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov reiterated the clear position of Russia that the latter regards the alleged "Russian eurobonds" as a sovereign bilateral debt. This contradicts statements made by Russia's trustee at its request and in its interests in litigation in the UK," the ministry said. Paula Hawks said she was raped at college Kathy Kohler and other Trump fans make no bones about where their loyalty lies as they whip up support outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas (Las Vegas Sun/AP) A South Dakota Democrat running for the US House of Representatives has revealed she was raped at college, in an essay that condemned Donald Trump's predatory comments about women. In the essay on the website Medium, Paula Hawks said condoning such behaviour enabled sexual assault at colleges and in the workplace. Ms Hawks, 41, said in the essay that she was raped by "a person in a position of authority" while at college. In a telephone interview, she said it happened in 1995 while she was at South Dakota State University. She did not report it to police, but told KELO Radio News that the man got into trouble mutliple times and so "justice has been served on that person". Ms Hawks says she was "outraged" by the Trump tape and just had to speak out. She is challenging Republican House member Kristi Noem, who has said she will vote for Mr Trump because he will sign conservative legislation. Ms Noem said she was "heartbroken" by what happened to Ms Hawks but stood by her support of Mr Trump. AP Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's all smiles at a campaign rally in Colorado, but several polls show he is trailing Hillary Clinton (AP) Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will lock horns in Las Vegas in the final US presidential debate before next month's election. The two candidates will go head to head at the University of Nevada, 10 days after a tense second debate which saw Mr Trump threaten to jail Mrs Clinton if he was elected. Fox News host Chris Wallace is moderating the third election clash, which will cover six topics - debt and entitlements, immigration, economy, the Supreme Court, foreign hotspots and fitness to be president. Mr Trump is facing a battle to win over undecided voters, with multiple polls showing Mrs Clinton is leading the race to the White House. Ahead of the third debate, the Republican nominee has faced claims of sexual misconduct from a number of women, including a former contestant on the US version of The Apprentice. Mr Trump has insisted the allegations are "100% made up", while his wife Melania said they were co-ordinated by his political rivals, telling Fox News: "They want to damage the presidency of my husband." The claims surfaced after the publication of Mr Trump's lewd comments in a 2005 video recording, in which he talks about grabbing women "by the p***y". With less than three weeks remaining before Americans go to the polls, Mr Trump has claimed the November 8 election will be rigged in favour of Mrs Clinton, tweeting that "there is large-scale voter fraud happening on and before election day". His remarks prompted President Barack Obama to urge Mr Trump to "stop whining", while a number of prominent Republicans have rejected claims of election rigging. Mr Trump has also called for Mrs Clinton to take a drugs test before their final showdown after claiming she lost her energy by the end of their second election clash. Since the last debate, Mrs Clinton has faced her own controversy following more revelations about her use of a private email server, which Mr Trump has branded a scandal "worse than Watergate". It emerged the US state department had asked FBI officials to lower the classification of a sensitive email related to an attack on the US compound in Benghazi, Libya. The FBI notes revealed the discussion of a "quid pro quo" in trying to get the email reclassified. Both the state department and FBI officials have denied any bargaining took place. The Trump campaign has said Pat Smith, whose son Sean was killed in the attack in Benghazi, will be attending the debate in Las Vegas as the Republican's guest. Mrs Smith was a featured speaker at the Republican National Convention in July, where she delivered an emotional speech blaming Mrs Clinton for her son's death and accusing her of lying to families about what sparked it. Mr Obama's half brother Malik will also be in the audience of the third debate as a Trump supporter, telling the New York Post the Republican "can make America great again". The 90-minute debate starts on Thursday at 2am BST. This man is wanted by police over the theft of a venetian blind CREDIT: NORTHAMPTONSHIRE POLICE Police are looking to speak to this man about the theft of a venetian blind from a furniture store. The alleged thief was captured on camera with what appears to be the stolen 7ft blind hidden under the hood of his jacket. Man sought following theft of venetian blind from Dunelm Mill, Northampton https://t.co/p4o92znWyV pic.twitter.com/emAU2R0ucE Northants Police (@NorthantsPolice) October 18, 2016 Police claim that sometime between 2pm and 2.25pm on Sunday a man entered the store and allegedly concealed a venetian blind down one trouser leg and up the back of his jacket. In a statement from Northants Police said the man "then left the store making no attempt to pay for the item. "He was followed by staff up a nearby canal path, where he dropped the blind before making off." The blind was damaged as a result of the incident. The blind was taken from a Dunelm Mill store in Nene Valley Retail Park, St James Mill Road Sometime between 2pm and 2.25pm on Sunday, 16 October. Scene outside a house in Spalding, Lincolnshire, where the bodies of 49-year-old Elizabeth Edwards and 13-year-old Katie were found, as a 15-year-old girl has been found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of murdering Elizabeth and Katie, who were smothered and stabbed through the throat. Chris Radburn/PA Wire Tributes left outside a house in Spalding, Lincolnshire, where the bodies of 49-year-old Elizabeth Edwards and 13-year-old Katie were found, as a 15-year-old girl has been found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of murdering Elizabeth and Katie, who were smothered and stabbed through the throat. Chris Radburn/PA Wire Undated handout photo issued by Lincolnshire Police of the murder weapon as a 15-year-old girl has been found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of murdering Elizabeth Edwards and her 13 year old daughter Katie. Lincolnshire Police/PA Wire Tributes left outside a house in Spalding, Lincolnshire, where the bodies of 49-year-old Elizabeth Edwards and 13-year-old Katie were found. Photo: PA Two teenagers, dubbed the 'Twilight killers', have become the youngest couple to be convicted of a double murder in Britain. The pair, who were both aged just 14 at the time, killed dinner lady Elizabeth Edwards (49) and her teenage daughter, Katie (13), in a "cold, calculated and pre-planned attack" at their home in Spalding, Lincolnshire. The boy admitted the two murders, and the girl was convicted following a trial at Nottingham Crown Court. The killers, who moments after the slaughter took a bath and then watched the film 'Twilight', cannot be identified because of their age. Expand Close Undated handout photo issued by Lincolnshire Police of the murder weapon as a 15-year-old girl has been found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of murdering Elizabeth Edwards and her 13 year old daughter Katie. Lincolnshire Police/PA Wire / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Undated handout photo issued by Lincolnshire Police of the murder weapon as a 15-year-old girl has been found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of murdering Elizabeth Edwards and her 13 year old daughter Katie. Lincolnshire Police/PA Wire The pair were compared in court to the infamous American crime duo, Bonnie and Clyde, with one psychiatrist saying the killings would not have happened if they had not been in a relationship. The girl, said by a defence psychiatrist to have been suffering from a mental disorder, had denied murdering the victims on the grounds of diminished responsibility. The Crown submitted she was not mentally ill at the time of the killings and was guilty of the "cold, calculated and callous" murder, even though it was the boy who inflicted the fatal stab wounds. A trial heard that Mrs Edwards and her daughter were found dead by police on Friday, April 15, this year. Expand Close Tributes left outside a house in Spalding, Lincolnshire, where the bodies of 49-year-old Elizabeth Edwards and 13-year-old Katie were found, as a 15-year-old girl has been found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of murdering Elizabeth and Katie, who were smothered and stabbed through the throat. Chris Radburn/PA Wire / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Tributes left outside a house in Spalding, Lincolnshire, where the bodies of 49-year-old Elizabeth Edwards and 13-year-old Katie were found, as a 15-year-old girl has been found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of murdering Elizabeth and Katie, who were smothered and stabbed through the throat. Chris Radburn/PA Wire Sobbed The 15-year-old girl was alleged by the prosecution to have shown "sheer brutality and utter contempt" for the victims, helping the boy to carry out the killings "to the letter" after days of planning. Expand Close Scene outside a house in Spalding, Lincolnshire, where the bodies of 49-year-old Elizabeth Edwards and 13-year-old Katie were found, as a 15-year-old girl has been found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of murdering Elizabeth and Katie, who were smothered and stabbed through the throat. Chris Radburn/PA Wire / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Scene outside a house in Spalding, Lincolnshire, where the bodies of 49-year-old Elizabeth Edwards and 13-year-old Katie were found, as a 15-year-old girl has been found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of murdering Elizabeth and Katie, who were smothered and stabbed through the throat. Chris Radburn/PA Wire The girl sobbed softly and wiped her face with a tissue in the glass-panelled dock at Nottingham Crown Court as she heard the verdict wearing a black cardigan and black leggings flanked by a security guard. The court heard the couple shared a "Bonnie and Clyde" view of the world and the girl was the "driver" behind the brutal slayings. In the months leading up to the killings, the girl wrote in her diary: "There is madness in me" and "death is the only way". She was described as a "ticking time bomb" fuelled by "sheer contempt and brutality" for her victims. The sickening plot started as a "joke" but "quickly escalated" when the teens realised they were both serious. The boy pinned Ms Edwards down on the bed "by kneeling astride her" and "almost completely cut through her windpipe" with a knife. Her jugular vein was severed and she suffered five knife wounds to one hand as she desperately fought for her life. Katie was stabbed in the neck twice and was then smothered. The court heard that the couple planned to kill themselves with an overdose but instead ate ice cream, watched vampire romance film 'Twilight' and had sex. ( Daily Telegraph London) Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022] Lina Alvarez leaves Lucas Augusti Hospital with her new born baby, in Madrid, Spain.Photo: AP A 62-year-old Spanish woman has given birth to a healthy girl and encouraged women in their later years to imitate her if they want to. Lina Alvarez left Lucus Augusti Hospital in the north-western city of Lugo with her third child in her arms, saying she felt wonderful. Baby Lina, born by Caesarean section on October 10 weighing 2.4kg (5.3lbs), is in perfect health, she said. Ms Alvarez's first child, now 27, was born with cerebral palsy and her second child is now 10. Expand Close A 62-year-old Spanish woman has given birth to a healthy girl and encourages women in their later years to imitate her if they want to. Photo: AP / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A 62-year-old Spanish woman has given birth to a healthy girl and encourages women in their later years to imitate her if they want to. Photo: AP Her second and third pregnancies were through in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment. Ms Alvarez, a doctor, said that women who are well enough to have a baby in their later years should not be afraid to do so, adding that they should let nature, not gynaecologists, decide. Ex-Minister of Transport of Poland Slawomir Nowak has been appointed new acting head of the State Automobile Roads Agency of Ukraine (Ukravtodor). "We believe that [managing] Ukravtodor requires significant expertise, including international. Our position is that high-quality roads, highways that will connect us with Europe should be built in Ukraine, so the professional level of Ukravtodor needs to be raised," Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman said before presenting Nowak at a government meeting in Kyiv on Wednesday. According to Nowak himself, he was in charge of transport plans and investments during Poland's preparation for Euro 2012, before that he was member of the Polish Sejm. He named a profound reform of the Polish railways and the IPO of the PKP Cargo company, whose former chief executive Wojciech Balchun currently heads Ukrzaliznytsia, among his achievements. "Regarding my vision of reform, they should include formation of the State Road Fund and the improvement of cooperation of the EBRD and the World Bank with private capital. We need to conduct technical audit of roads and improve technical standards very quickly. We need to urgently draft a plan for the construction and reconstruction of roads depending on the traffic," he said. Nowak added that he wants to invite international companies to Ukraine, which together with Ukrainian business will take part in road tenders. He also stressed the importance of internal reform of Ukravtodor. Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Volodymyr Omelyan said Ukravtodor has been a source for corruption for decades. He also spoke about a scandal in Poland involving Nowak. "Regarding the corruption scandal, the cause of the scandal around Slawomir Nowak in Poland was a watch worth $3,500. And he later defended his good name in court. Former executives of Ukravtodor, regional automobile road administrations, have mansions, luxury cars, etc. None of them is in jail, none of them lost his post because of a scandal. The scandal in Poland ended with Nowak's resignation from his positions. This story would be unthinkable in present day Ukraine. This topic has been closed," Omelyan said. As reported, first deputy head of Ukravtodor Yevhen Barakh was appointed as acting head of the agency in June 2016. Nowak worked as secretary of state in the Prime Minister's Chancellery and chairman of the political cabinet of Prime Minister Donald Tusk in 2007 to 2009. From 2009 until 2010, he was vice president of the Civic Platform parliamentary faction. From 2010 to 2014, he serves as governor of the Pomeranian region. From 2010 to 2011, he was secretary of state in the Office of the President for the contact with government and parliament. From 2011 to 2013, Nowak was minister of transport, construction and maritime economy. He also was member of Polish parliament of several convocations. Indonesian President, Joko Widodo, has defended introducing chemical castration for paedophiles. In an interview, which was published on Wednesday, he said that there would be "no compromise" when it comes to dealing with this sort of criminal activity. In May, the President introduced a series of tough punishments for paedophilia, including including chemical castration and the death penalty. This followed an outcry over the fatal gang-rape of a schoolgirl. Last week, Parliament voted to put the new regulations permanently on the statute book. In an interview with the BBC, Widodo defended introducing chemical castration, a decision that has sparked anger from human rights activists. "Our constitution respects human rights, but when it comes to sexual crimes there is no compromise," he said, adding that the government "will hand out the maximum penalty" for such crimes. "In my opinion... chemical castration, if we enforce it consistently, will reduce sex crimes and wipe them out over time," he said. Indonesia is among a small group of places worldwide which use the measure, including Poland and some states in the USA. In 2011 South Korea became the first Asian country to legalise the treatment. Chemical castration involves using drugs to reduce libido and sex drive. Widodo was spurred into action after the murder and gang-rape in April of a 14-year-old girl. She was set upon by a gang of drunken men and boys as she walked home from school on the western island of Sumatra. The leader of the gang was sentenced to death last month after being found guilty of premeditated murder, a crime already punishable by death before the new laws were introduced. Other members of the gang have been jailed. Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022] A senior Iraqi general has called on Iraqis fighting for Islamic State in Mosul to surrender as a wide-scale operation to retake the militant-held city entered its third day. Lt Gen Talib Shaghati told reporters at a military base that up to 6,000 IS fighters are inside the city. He did not say how many of them are foreigners. IS captured Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, in a lightning advance in the summer of 2014. The extremist group has suffered a string of defeats over the past year and Mosul is its last major urban bastion in Iraq. So far, the militants have put up fierce resistance in villages surrounding the city, where most of the fighting has been concentrated. IS has sent trucks loaded with explosives towards the front lines and fired mortars to slow the Iraqi forces' advance. An Iraqi officer from the 9th Division said his troops were now around one kilometre (half a mile) away from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul. Over the past day, IS sent 12 car bombs, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, he said, adding that Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds. To the north, air strikes pounded Bashiqa as Kurdish forces fired mortar rounds from an area overlooking the IS-held town. Save the Children said 5,000 people have fled to a refugee camp in north-eastern Syria from the Mosul area in the last 10 days, with another thousand waiting to enter at the border. The group said the overwhelmed camp is "littered with waste and faeces, with a looming risk of outbreaks of disease". It said there are just 16 toilets shared by more than 9,000 people, many of whom only have access to dirty, untreated water. "Conditions there are among the worst we've seen, and we expect thousands more people to be on their way soon," said Tarik Kadir, head of the group's Mosul response. The top commander of US land forces in Iraq says US army Apache attack helicopters are striking IS targets in support of the push to retake Mosul. Adding US attack helicopter crews to the unfolding combat is an extra element of risk for American troops. Major General Gary Volesky said the Apaches were being used at night to strike targets from a distance. He said the mere presence of the Apaches was a confidence booster for Iraqi soldiers. Maj Gen Volesky, commanding general of the 101st Airborne Division, said he believes IS fighters in Mosul will put up a stiff defence in the city but eventually lose and morph into an insurgency. The operation to retake Mosul is the largest launched by the Iraqi army since the 2003 US-led invasion. Some 25,000 troops, including Sunni tribal fighters, Kurdish forces known as the peshmerga and state-sanctioned Shiite militias known as the Popular Mobilisation Units are approaching the city from different directions. The participation of the Shiite militias in the operation to retake the mainly Sunni Mosul has raised concerns that the campaign could inflame sectarian tensions. Rights groups have accused the Shiite militias of abuses in past campaigns against IS-held areas. In a bid to alleviate those concerns, Shiite militia leaders announced that they will only focus on capturing the mostly Shiite town of Tal Afar to the west of Mosul, and not enter the city itself. "The only troops who will enter Mosul are the army and police, not the Popular Mobilisation Units or the peshmerga," said Hadi al-Amiri, the leader of the Badr Brigade, one of the largest Shiite militias. "This has been agreed upon," he said at a press conference in the Shiite holy city of Najaf. Amnesty International said in a report released on Tuesday that Iraqi government and paramilitary forces detained, tortured or killed hundreds of Sunni Arab civilians fleeing IS-held areas during the operation to retake the Sunni city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, earlier this year. The Iraqi government has denied any systematic violations by security forces or the militias, and says individuals have been held accountable for occasional abuses. AP Michael Moore In TrumpLand features a one-man stage show of Moore discussing the presidential race (Andy Kropa/Invision/AP) Michael Moore has premiered a surprise film discussing the US presidential election just three weeks before Americans head to the polls. Moore debuted Michael Moore In TrumpLand in New York on Tuesday night in front of an audience of his fans. The film features Moore speaking about both Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton on stage earlier this month in Wilmington, Ohio, a hotbed of Trump support, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The liberal documentary maker urged the crowd at Tuesday's premiere to vote for Mrs Clinton next month. The film will screen for one week at the IFC Centre in Manhattan beginning on Wednesday and will also be shown at a cinema in Encino, California, The Hollywood Reporter said. Moore said he hopes more cinemas will be announced soon. AP Rescue workers trying to remove a boy stuck in the debris of a building in the neighborhood of Qaterji in rebel-held east Aleppo following an airstrike in Aleppo, Syria Russian and Syrian war planes halted their airstrikes on Syria's besieged city of Aleppo yesterday in preparation for a temporary pause in the military push that Moscow has announced for later in the week. According to Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, the halt in the strikes should help pave the way for militants to leave the eastern rebel-held parts of the contested city. On Monday, Moscow announced a "humanitarian pause" between 8am and 4pm tomorrow to allow civilians and militants safe passage out of the city. At that time, Russian and Syrian militaries will halt any offensive actions. Syrian rebels, including al-Qa'ida militants, as well as the wounded and the sick will be allowed to leave to the neighbouring rebel-held province of Idlib. Mr Shoigu said: "It will...guarantee a safe exit of civilians through six corridors and prepare for the evacuation of the ill and the wounded from the eastern part of Aleppo." The United Nations said Russia has communicated plans for two eight-hour cease-fires in rebel-held parts of Aleppo over "consecutive days" this week. Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, would not say if the strikes would resume after the pause, saying that depended on whether the rebels can be persuaded to cut ties with militants. A member of Peshmerga forces sits in the back of the military vehicle in the east of Mosul during operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, October 17, 2016. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari Peshmerga forces walk in the east of Mosul during operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, October 17, 2016. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari Smoke rises from clashes in the east of Mosul during clashes with Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, October 17, 2016. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari The Commander of the Joint Military Operation Commander, Army Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati, walks in the town of Khazer, Iraq, Monday (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed) Smoke rises from clashes in the east of Mosul during clashes with Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, October 17, 2016. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari Tanks move past soldiers in military fatigues as the sun begins to set east of Mosul, where the Iraqi government launched a U.S.-backed offensive to drive Islamic State from the northern city, in this still image taken from video released October 17, 2016. RUDAW via REUTERS VIDEO Kurdish security forces take up a position as they fight overlooking the Islamic State-controlled in villages surrounding Mosul, in Khazer (AP Photo) Kurdish security forces take up a position as they fight overlooking the Islamic State-controlled in villages surrounding Mosul, in Khazer (AP Photo) Smoke rises from Islamic state positions after an airstrike by coalition forces in villages surrounding Mosul, in Khazer, about 30 kilometers (19 miles) east of Mosul, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 17, 2016. Iraqi government and Ku (AP Photo) Peshmerga forces are seen in the east of Mosul to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, October 17, 2016. REUTERS/Stringer Still image taken from video posted online by Amaq News Agency of the Islamic State militant group shows a street scene in Mosul, Iraq. Photo: AP A US army soldier (L) speaks with an Iraqi soldier at a military base in the Makhmour area near Mosul during an operation to attack Islamic State militants. Photo: Reuters US army soldiers arrive at a military base in the Makhmour area near Mosul during an operation to attack Islamic State militants. Photo: Reuters Iraqi security forces gather on the east of Mosul during preparations to attack the city. Photo: Reuters A US army soldier stands with his weapon at a military base in the Makhmour area near Mosul during an operation to attack Islamic State militants A peshmerga fighter looks out of the entrance of an underground tunnel built by Islamic State fighters in the town of Badana. Photo: AP A peshmerga fighter walks through a tunnel made by Islamic State fighters. The Kurdish forces found the tunnel in the town of Badana that was liberated from the Islamic State group on Monday. Photo: AP Peshmerga forces sit in the back of a vehicle in the east of Mosul during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in the city. Photo: Reuters Europe must prepare for a fresh influx of 'Islamic State' jihadists fleeing Mosul as the army moves in, the EU's security commissioner has warned. "The retaking of Isis' northern Iraq stronghold, Mosul, may lead to the return to Europe of violent fighters," Julian King said. "This is a very serious threat and we must be prepared to face it." He added that even a handful of jihadists returning would pose a "serious threat that we must prepare ourselves for" and the risk should not be underestimated. The warning comes as the much-anticipated battle for Mosul entered its second day. Iraqi forces are advancing in an offensive aimed at retaking Mosul and dealing a death blow to Isis' "caliphate" in the city where it was declared two years ago. A small number of jihadists are putting up a fight against the advancing Iraqi army and Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the villages leading up to the city, but there are reports fighters in the city are defecting in growing numbers. The US coalition yesterday targeted Isil pick-up trucks seen heading out towards the Syrian border. Residents inside Mosul said that scores of jihadists had defected in recent weeks and more than 50 have fled since the Iraqi prime minister, Haider al-Abadi, announced the start of the offensive on Monday morning. "They wait until the night and leave by car. They are going to al-Ba'aj in the west of Mosul, then on to the Iraq-Syria border, where they continue to Syria and Turkey," one resident said. Expand Close A peshmerga fighter walks through the kitchen of an underground tunnel made by Islamic State fighters. The Kurdish forces found the tunnel in the town of Badana that was liberated from the Islamic State group on Monday. Photo: AP / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A peshmerga fighter walks through the kitchen of an underground tunnel made by Islamic State fighters. The Kurdish forces found the tunnel in the town of Badana that was liberated from the Islamic State group on Monday. Photo: AP The resident said the families of Isil fighters have also moved to the western side of the city to protect them from attacks by the Iraqi forces. Read More: Steven Nabil, who has family inside Mosul, said that phone lines had been re-established inside the city for the first time in months on Monday by the Iraqi government, and residents are sending the coalition "hundreds of messages" with Isil fighters' locations. There had been reports last week that the US, which is supporting the Iraqi army on the ground and in the air, could decide not to completely encircle the city and allow fighters out through the western side in an attempt to avoid greater civilian casualties. Expand Close This image made from video by Rudaw News Agency shows a family fleeing Mosul, Iraq on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016. Photo: Rudaw News Agency via AP / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp This image made from video by Rudaw News Agency shows a family fleeing Mosul, Iraq on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016. Photo: Rudaw News Agency via AP Should that happen, the jihadists - with no major territory left in Iraq - would move across the border to Syria, where they will either join the fight against president Bashar al-Assad forces or travel on to Turkey or Europe. There has been a growing backlash amongst the 1.5 million residents in the city against Isil. A small number of resistance fighters known as the Kataib al-Mosul group led a brief uprising in various parts of the city. At least 20 members were killed and their cars burned yesterday. Residents of Mosul said Isil was using civilians as human shields as Iraqi and Kurdish forces captured outlying villages in their advance on the jihadists' stronghold. The leader of Isil and one of its main explosives experts were reported to be among thousands of the hardline militants still in Mosul, suggesting the group would go to great lengths to fend off any ground attack within the city limits. With the attacking forces still between 20km and 50km away, residents reached by telephone said more than 100 families had started moving from southern and eastern suburbs most exposed to the offensive to more central parts of the city. Isil militants were preventing people fleeing, they said, and one said they directed some towards buildings they had recently used themselves. "It's quite clear Daesh (Isil) has started to use civilians as human shields by allowing families to stay in buildings likely to be targeted by air strikes," said Abu Mahir, who lives near the city's university and offered food to the displaced. ( Daily Telegraph London) Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022] IThe LE Samuel Becket has recovered five dead bodies while conducting a search and rescue operation off the coast of Tripoli. Earlier today, following a request from the Italian Maritime Rescue Co-Ordination Centre, the Irish Navy located and rescued a total of 118 migrants from a rubber vessel. They also recovered the dead bodies of five migrants. The bodies are now onboard the LE Samuel Beckett. The rescue operation began at 7.00am and all migrants were taken on board LE Samuel Beckett by 8.30am. The 118 migrants are now receiving food, water and medical treatment where required. LE Samuel Beckett remains in the area. The New York Times' website is currently non-responsive. It is not yet clear what is causing the outage with NYTimes.com. briefly The New York Times wrote on Twitter "The @nytimes website is experiencing technical problems. We're working to get them fixed. Out app is working though." It comes just days after Donald Trump made a libel threat to the media organisation. The New York Times attorney, David McCraw, responded to the threat in a letter, writing: Nothing in our article has had the slightest effect on the reputation that Mr. Trump, through his own words and actions, has already created for himself. The website was restored to service at approximately 10:30am. Julia Roberts speaks during the The Hillary Victory Fund Stronger Together Concert at the St. James Theatre in New York. Photo: AFP/Getty Images IF star power alone could propel a candidate to the White House then Donald Trump may as well pack it in now, judging by the constellation that turned out for Hillary Clinton at a New York benefit. Julia Roberts, Jake Gyllenhaal, Sarah Jessica Parker, Matthew Broderick, Hugh Jackman, Emily Blunt, Neil Patrick Harris and Helen Mirren put on a splashy fundraiser for Mrs Clinton. The Democratic candidate could only address the group via a video message. But daughter Chelsea and husband Bill were present at the sold-out event at the 1,300 seat St James Theatre. Expand Close Sarah Jessica Parker and Andrea McArdle perform during the Hillary Victory Fund - Stronger Together concert at St. James Theatre in New York. Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Sarah Jessica Parker and Andrea McArdle perform during the Hillary Victory Fund - Stronger Together concert at St. James Theatre in New York. Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Billy Crystal was the host and Barbra Streisand lent her recorded voice to the show. "What is at stake in this election is the future that we want our children to grow up in and whether or not we are going to have a country that we all can be proud of because all of us can be ourselves," Chelsea Clinton said. Mr Clinton called his wife "the single-best changemaker I've ever known". He added: "It is not true that our best days are behind us. It is not true - unless we give it up. Don't give it up. Grab it." The event alternated performances with readings or short speeches. Angela Bassett recited a Sojourner Truth speech, Mirren read one by Eleanor Roosevelt and Roberts read a column by Molly Ivins. Joel Grey and Sienna Miller sang 'Wilkommen' from 'Cabaret', Parker and Andrea McArdle belted out 'Tomorrow' from 'Annie', Anne Hathaway and Kelli O'Hara sang a tuneful medley of 'Get Happy' and 'Happy Days Are Here Again', and Sara Bareilles sang her hit 'Brave'. Jon Hamm and Mr Gyllenhaal teamed up to perform a bit of Sinclair Lewis's play 'It Can't Happen Here', Alan Cumming spoke about LGBT rights, Lena Dunham recited part of Clinton's concession speech in 2008 and new Tony Award-winner Cynthia Erivo closed the show with a gospel-tinged 'Battle Hymn of the Republic'. Crystal kicked off saying it was the greatest collection of Broadway and Hollywood stars since liberal-leaning producer "Harvey Weinstein's daughter's bat mitzvah". Crystal then launched into a version of 'Comedy Tonight' from the musical 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum' - renamed 'Hillary Tonight' - with the lyrics: 'No racist baiting/No Muslim hating/Pantsuits for everyone/It's Hillary tonight!' Mr Trump was a constant target for Crystal, who at one point compared the Republican candidate to hurricane season: "Think about it: It starts with a lot of hot air spinning out of control. It hits America, causes a lot of damage and panic. But it's completely over by November." Many of the songs were picked to tweak Trump, including one from 'How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying' and 'Children Will Listen' from Stephen Sondheim's 'Into the Woods', sang by Bernadette Peters with a choir of children. Other performances included Josh Groban singing 'Over the Rainbow', Stephen Schwartz and Kelli O'Hara duetting on 'For Good' from 'Wicked'. Harris reprised his Tony-winning title turn in 'Hedwig and the Angry Inch' with a powerful rendition of 'Origin of Love'. Tickets ranged from $45 in the rear balcony to $2,700 premium orchestra seats, with bundles of top tickets - plus access to a post-event party - going for $5,000. It was streamed live on Clinton's Facebook page. A few protesters - one holding a "Clinton 4 Jail" sign - stood across the street under the marquee for 'The Phantom of the Opera'. Inside the Clinton event theatre, which usually houses the musical 'Something Rotten!', many performers wore pro-Hillary T-shirts and at least one attendee wore a glittery 'I'm With Her' top. Toward the end of the two-hour show, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Renee Elise Goldsberry, the Tony-winning stars of the Broadway phenomenon 'Hamilton', took to the stage for a riotous rap based on the song 'The World Was Wide Enough' - "I have only one overwhelming feeling," they asked. "Anybody here want to shatter a glass ceiling?" US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at an event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. AFP/Getty Images Melania Trump sits down with CNN television host Anderson Cooper during an exclusive interview in New York. Photo: Reuters Melania Trump has given a steadfast defence of her husband in the wake of multiple sexual assault allegations and dismissed the lewd video revelation as "boy talk". Mrs Trump has been virtually silent on the campaign trail since she was widely mocked for her convention speech in July, which was plagiarised from Michelle Obama's 2008 address. However, she was thrust back into the limelight, doing two interviews with CNN and Fox News in which she repeated that Donald Trump's comments had been "inappropriate" but that they are "moving on". Mrs Trump said that Billy Bush had "egged on" her husband during the 2005 footage into "dirty and bad stuff". "I said to my husband that you know the language was unappropriate [sic]," she told CNN's Anderson Cooper. "It's not acceptable and I was surprised, because that is not the man that I know. "And as you can see from the tape, the cameras were not on. It was only a mic. And I wonder if they even knew that the mic was on. Because they were kind of - ah - boy talk. Expand Close Donald Trump insists the November 8 election could be rigged 'at the polling booths' (AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Donald Trump insists the November 8 election could be rigged 'at the polling booths' (AP) "And he was led on. Like egg on from the host to say dirty and bad stuff." She also said: "Don't feel sorry for me, I can handle everything." In the interview, Mrs Trump blamed the Clinton campaign for the way sexual assault allegations against both Mr Trump and Bill Clinton have dominated the election run-in - rather than policies and leadership. "They're asking for it. They started...they started from the beginning of the campaign, putting [out] my picture from modelling days. "That was my modelling days and I'm proud what I did. I worked very hard." She added that she did not believe the women accusing her husband of sexual assault. "All the allegations should be handled in a court of law," she said. Read More: Meanwhile, NBC News last night announced that it had fired Billy Bush from his job as a presenter on the 'Today Show'. Bush (pictured inset) was suspended from the morning show two days after contents of the 2005 tape were reported on October 7. NBC and Bush's representatives had been negotiating terms of his exit before Monday's announcement. Bush, the nephew of former president George HW Bush, said he was "embarrassed and ashamed" by the video. Meanwhile, bolstered by several opinion polls that have her leading in key swing states, Hillary Clinton's campaign spoke bullishly yesterday about making Democrat gains in traditional Republican states. Aides said Mrs Clinton would be "dramatically expanding" her campaigning in Arizona. Michelle Obama, who has been a key weapon for the Clinton camp at both the convention and subsequent events, will speak in Phoenix tomorrow. "Donald Trump is becoming more unhinged by the day, and that is increasing prospects for Democrats further down the ballot," campaign manager Robby Mook said. Indiana and Missouri - which have voted Republican for decades - are also being targeted as states where Democrats could make gains. Yesterday Mrs Clinton faced revelations about her use of a private server as secretary of state after the release of emails from a top campaign official's personal account. The FBI documents showed Patrick Kennedy, an under- secretary of state, had asked the FBI to declassify or lower the classification of one Clinton email that had been rated "secret". The Trump campaign accused Mrs Clinton of colluding with US authorities to "cover up criminal activity". Mr Trump said at a rally in Wisconsin last night that the new FBI records were worse than Watergate. "This is one of the great miscarriages of justice in the history of our country," he said. Mrs Clinton was reportedly said to be "p****d" at the constant flow of hacked emails from WikiLeaks. Bill Clinton was also "having a hard time" at the re-emergence of his sex scandals, according to aides who spoke to Politico. As the campaign gets murkier by the day, Mr Trump turned his sights on Joe Biden, highlighting what was claimed as being the vice president's "long history of groping". The Republican retweeted a video posted by journalist Mark Simone titled: 'Watch Joe Biden's Long History Of Grabbing, Kissing and Groping Women Who Are Cringing.' Mr Biden has in the past been labelled as "handsy" for being too tactile with women at various events. With regards to the contest itself, a majority of polls have Mrs Clinton leading comfortably nationwide and in most key swing states. However, a political science professor at Stony Brook University and leading election forecaster has warned that all may not be as it seems. In an article for 'The Hill' titled 'You can't trust polls: Clinton leads, but our polling methods are bunk', Prof Helmut Norpoth wrote: "Having an opinion and acting on it are two different things. Barely six in 10 voting-age American citizens turn out for presidential elections. "Ascertaining the opinions of 100 citizens is just a start. Now you have to determine which 60 of them actually take the time to mark a ballot. "They are the "likely voters". They are the only ones that count. But to find them is no easy chore." It is important to remember pollsters incorrectly forecast last year's British general election and the Brexit referendum, as well as recent elections in Turkey, Canada, and Israel. Mr Trump yesterday railed against what he claimed was large-scale voter fraud and suggested it will affect the outcome of the presidential race. His comments raised further fears that the Republican may refuse to recognise the election result and he also appeared, once again, to be at odds with his running mate, Mike Pence. "Of course there is large scale voter fraud happening on and before election day," Mr Trump said. Mr Pence had said recently: "We will absolutely accept the results of the election." Chris Ashby, Republican campaign lawyer, said Mr Trump's charges could foment unrest and were "unfounded" and "dangerous". "When you say an election is rigged, you're telling voters, your supporters, their votes do not matter," Mr Ashby said in an interview. "I think some of Donald Trump's comments could cause unrest at the polls." Last night Mr Trump vowed to "end government corruption" if he is elected to the White House. Speaking in Wisconsin he said he wants to ban executive branch officials from lobbying the government for five years after they leave the White House and wants Congress to do the same for members and their staffs. It was reported yesterday what a massive pay cut Mr Trump would be taking next month should he win the race and be hired for a job which pays a not-too-shabby $400,000 (364,000) a year. According to one estimate, Trump earns more than $470m a year from his various activities. So even allowing for some complicated trust arrangement which sees the business run by his family, the Republican nominee's wallet would take a bit of a battering if he wins the election. ( Daily Telegraph London) Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022] Ukraine's Health Ministry is working on preventing the problems appeared in 2016 during medicine procurement via international organizations, Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has said. "I want to say that today we ensured the supply of 90% of medicines we bought, including vaccines. You know what the catastrophic situation with supplies of medicines and vaccines was. Today the situation is changing and our task not to have problems in 2017 that we saw in 2016. The Health Ministry's team is seriously working on the issue," he said at a government meeting on Wednesday. "I want to pay your attention to what we have done in medicine turnover in Ukraine. First, we have opened the market for high-quality imported medicines. Earlier this market was closed or it was very small. It was almost impossible to enter it. If someone entered it they spent much time and there were large corruption challenges. It is important that with opening the market for high-quality drugs our task is to ensure fair pricing," Groysman said. The three men share the same father but have different mothers (AP) US president Barack Obama's half-brother has said he does not agree with the decision by another half-brother to attend the final presidential debate as a guest of the Donald Trump campaign. Mark Obama Ndesandjo said: "I love my brothers, but no one member represents the Obamas." The Trump campaign said Mr Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother Malik would be in the audience for the showdown on Wednesday between Mr Trump and Hillary Clinton. The three men share the same father but have different mothers. Mr Ndesandjo is an American businessman who has lived in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen for about 15 years. He said: "Others in my family and I do not support my brother Malik's position on Mr Trump." Malik Obama supports Mr Trump's candidacy. AP Saudi Arabia is among the world's most prolific executioners Saudi Arabia says it has executed a prince who fatally shot another man in a fight, a rare death sentence carried out against a member of the kingdom's extensive royal family. The Interior Ministry said it had executed Prince Turki bin Saud bin Turki bin Saud al-Kabeer in Riyadh. It did not describe how the sentence was carried out, although the Sunni-ruled kingdom often beheads the condemned in public. A ministry statement to the state-run Saudi Press Agency warned "whoever dares to commit such a crime that the Shariah penalty is awaiting". Saudi Arabia is among the world's most prolific executioners. Royal executions are rare, but have happened before. In 1975, the kingdom beheaded Faisal bin Musaid bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for assassinating King Faisal. A screengrab as Lina Alvarez leaves hospital in Spain with her newborn (Atlas TV via AP) A 62-year-old Spanish woman has given birth to a healthy girl and encouraged women in their later years to imitate her if they want to. Lina Alvarez left Lucus Augusti Hospital in the north-western city of Lugo with her third child in her arms, saying she felt wonderful. Baby Lina, born by Caesarean section on October 10 weighing 2.4kg (5.3lbs), is in perfect health, she said. Ms Alvarez's first child, now 27, was born with cerebral palsy and he r second child is now 10. Her second and third pregnancies were through in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment. Ms Alvarez, a doctor, said that women who are well enough to have a baby in their later years should not be afraid to do so, adding that they should let nature, not gynaecologists, decide. AP Arsen Pavlov, also known as Motorola, was killed in Donetsk (AP) Thousands of people have turned out for the funeral of a senior commander of pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine, who was killed in a bomb blast. Arsen Pavlov, 33, known under his nom de guerre Motorola, was killed on Sunday when an unidentified device exploded in a lift at his apartment building in Donetsk. Rebel officials blamed the explosion on Ukrainian saboteurs. Thousands lined up in Donetsk to pay tribute at the local opera house, where his body was displayed. Russian-born Pavlov became one of the most recognisable faces of the separatist movement. His unit took part in some of the fiercest battles in the conflict, in which more than 9,600 people have died since April 2014. Ukrainian officials have accused Pavlov of war crimes and he once admitted personally killing 15 prisoners of war. AP Donald Trump's campaign manager has acknowledged that the Republican presidential nominee needs a "comeback" in the final weeks of the campaign. Kellyann Conway said Mr Trump has pulled off comebacks several times before, but i t was a rare acknowledgement by the billionaire's campaign that he could ultimately fall short. She was speaking to Fox News ahead of the third and final presidential debate and as a string of battleground state polls showed Hillary Clinton ahead. Ms Conway said she does not understand why Mrs Clinton has not been able to "put him away" given her experience and her campaign's "endless amounts of money". She said: "What is her problem, already?" Meanwhile, Tim Kaine said he wants Mrs Clinton to "win big" so that no-one will believe Mr Trump's claims of a rigged election. The Democratic vice presidential candidate was urging supporters in Ohio to run up the score against Mr Trump, who has made unsubstantiated claims that the election has been fixed in Mrs Clinton's favour. Mr Kaine said that the bigger Mrs Clinton's margin of victory is, "the harder it is for him to whine and have anybody believe him". He said Mr Trump's claims of election rigging are an insult to American democracy, adding: "It's shameful." Mr Kaine said he hoped the moderator of Wednesday's presidential debate, Fox News host Chris Wallace, would challenge Mr Trump and not let him simply throw insults at Mrs Clinton. No matter how persuasive the candidates are at Wednesday night's debate, it is already too late for either to win over millions of voters. Advance voting by post or in person is now under way in more than 30 states and at least 2.1 million voters have already cast ballots. More than 45 million people are expected to vote before Election Day on November 8. In Nevada, site of the debate, absentee ballots were being posted on Wednesday. Early balloting has so far shown promise for Mrs Clinton in battlegrounds North Carolina and Florida, while Mr Trump has generally held ground in Iowa and Ohio. Early voting is traditionally favoured by Democrats and is a key part of the Clinton campaign's strategy. Mr Trump is counting on a stronger performance on Election Day itself. AP A Lockheed P-3 Orion flies over survey ship HMS Echo in the southern Indian Ocean during the search for the flight recorder from missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370 (MoD/PA) A ship involved with the deep-sea sonar search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 is being fitted with a drone to examine several sonar contacts of interest on the remote seabed west of Australia. None of the sonar contacts exhibit the characteristics of a typical aircraft debris field, said the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, which is heading the hunt for the Boeing 777 in a stretch of the Indian Ocean. But some of the contacts exhibit man-made properties and must be investigated before they can be eliminated as not being from the plane, the agency said in a statement. Officials have previously said more than 20 sonar contacts crews have picked up in recent months require closer examination by a sonar-equipped underwater drone. They are 1,200 to 1,700 miles from the Australian port of Fremantle where the search ships are based. Poor weather during the southern hemisphere winter has until now prevented the ships from deploying the drone. With the weather improving, the Chinese vessel Dong Hai Jiu 101 is being fitted with a video camera-equipped remotely operated vehicle that will scrutinise the sonar contacts. Crews have picked up hundreds of sonar contacts of interest throughout the two-year hunt. They are grouped into three classification levels based on their likelihood of being linked to the plane. None of the recent sonar contacts are classification 1, seen as most likely to have come from the aircraft. There have only been two contacts that fit into that category; one turned out to be an old shipwreck, and the other was a rock field. Search crews have so far come up empty in their attempt to find the main underwater wreckage of the plane, which vanished on March 8 2014, during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board. The ships have less than 3,900 square miles left to scour of the 46,000 square mile search zone. Officials previously said the search would be finished by December. On Wednesday, the transport bureau said it is now likely to take until January or February, due to the long stretch of poor winter weather that has hampered search efforts. Malaysia, China and Australia agreed in July that the hunt would be suspended after crews finish scouring the current search zone, unless credible new evidence emerges. AP The Russian military says that Russian and Syrian warplanes are staying away from Aleppo a day before a temporary pause in the military push declared by Moscow (AP) Syrian government forces and their Russian counterparts are preparing to open corridors out of the besieged districts of Aleppo, in the hope that fighters and civilians will evacuate the contested city's rebel-held quarters after weeks of bombardment has left the area in ruins. The city's eastern quarters experienced relative peace for the second consecutive day in the run-up to the hoped-for evacuation on Thursday. Russia's military said two corridors would be opened for militants to flee to the neighbouring, rebel-held province of Idlib. The government's overture to rebels and civilians trapped in Aleppo's east follows a pattern of evacuations around the country that the UN has likened to "forced displacement." On Wednesday, some 2,000 residents of the once autonomous Moadamiyeh suburb of Damascus were carried by government buses to Idlib as part of an arrangement to restore government control after years of siege at the hands of the military. Hassan Ghandour, a former Moadamiyeh resident who liaised between the suburb and besieging forces, said on Wednesday the evacuees included 700 gunmen. He said the government is to release all detainees from the suburb in exchange for the evacuation. Several activists also left with the convoy. Wassim al-Ahmad said it would be "impossible" to live again under government authority, saying he did not trust official promises for amnesty. Some of those remaining in Moadamiyeh struck a defiant tone. "I'm not going to settle anything with the government," said local resident Mahmoud, who declined to give his family name out of safety concerns. "I'm going to stay in my home." "I've spent five years of my life besieged here. I've been through war, siege, starvation... bombardment, and poison gas - I've survived with all this so I can stay here." Government forces gassed the suburb along with two others with Sarin on the night of August 21 2013. About 1,300 people, mostly civilians, suffocated to death around the capital. Some 28,000 people remain in the Moadamiyeh, down from a pre-war population of 105,000, according to the government. In Aleppo, government buses queued at checkpoints leading to the besieged east prepared to take evacuees to Idlib on Thursday, according to the media arm of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which is fighting alongside the government in Syria. The government's foreign ministry said soldiers were withdrawing from the designated corridors to reassure evacuees. Civilians will also be allowed to evacuate to the city's government-controlled western districts. It is unclear how many people will take up the government's offer after weeks of siege and bombardment pulverised the east and shattered its medical network. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says more than 640 people, including 128 children, have been killed in rebel-held parts of Aleppo and the surrounding rural areas since a truce brokered by the US and Russia collapsed on September 19. It said 88 people, including 14 children, were killed in retaliatory shelling on government-held Aleppo. Bassam Heji, a member of the Nour el-Din al-Zinki rebel faction, said the Russian offer is a "trap" that only reflects its intention to "exterminate" the residents of the eastern, rebel-held Aleppo neighbourhoods. The arrangement follows a proposal by the UN Syria envoy, Staffan de Mistura, to allow al Qaida-linked militants to leave Aleppo in exchange for a truce and local autonomy for the city's eastern districts. Rebels, along with many residents, rejected the offer. But Russia and Syria moved ahead unilaterally with the evacuation arrangements without making any promises for an extended ceasefire or self-administration. Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the break in fighting should allow the moderate opposition in the east to sever ties with militants. Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his government would work with Russia's government to evacuate the al Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front, formerly known as Nusra Front from the east. Mr Erdogan warned about the possibility of an influx of at least one million people to Turkey in the event of a population movement from Aleppo. "We cannot pay this cost. Those who incite this must sit down with Turkey and talk," he said. Kurdish-led forces meanwhile pressed their campaign to drive Islamic State militants from areas in northern Aleppo province, expanding the front line with rival Turkish-backed opposition fighters also operating in the area, according to local rebels and activists. The Russian military accused a US-led coalition air strike of killing six civilians in Hassajek, hours before the announcement that the village had been taken from IS. Despite the brief lull in the fighting for Aleppo, most of the surrounding province has become Syria's hottest theater of combat, showcasing the complexity of the terrain where rival forces are vying for control. In the area of Hassajek, three rival groups are battling IS: the Kurdish-led forces, Turkey-backed Syrian rebels and troops loyal to the government of President Bashar Assad. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Kurdish-led forces, known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, gained control of Hassajek, killing at least 10 IS militants in fighting there. One of the fighting units in SDF, the Rebel Army, said in a statement that the clashes with IS militants continued for the third straight day further to the south. It said its troops also seized weapons and ammunition from IS. The advance by the Kurdish-led forces has widened the front line between them and rival Syrian rebels, who in recent weeks have pushed into northern Aleppo backed by Turkish tanks and aircraft, driving out the Islamic State group from villages and towns it controlled. The Turkey-backed offensive also aims to undercut Kurdish aspirations for a contiguous and independent east-to-west stretch of territory in Syria. The Russian military's Reconciliation Centre in Syria said the strike Hassajek also wounded four people and destroyed two houses. Russian military surveillance spotted two Belgian F-16 fighter jets over the area at the time of the strike, the centre said, adding that Russian and Syrian warplanes were not flying over the area. Russia's Tass news agency reported from Brussels that the Belgian defence minister denied Belgian aircraft had struck the area. AP CONCORD- Dunkin Donuts will celebrate the opening of its 50th store in the Charlotte area with 50 cent small hot coffee and donuts at all Charlotte locations on Friday, Oct. 21. The 50th store, located at 30 Raiford Drive in Concord, will also host a grand opening event called Kickin Cancer with Coffee, benefitting the Bring it 4 Braylon Foundation that same day. If the community purchases 500 cups of coffee throughout the day, Dunkin Donuts will donate $5 per cup to the charity. Schedule of Events for the new store in Concord: 6:30-7 a.m. One Guest Wins Year of Free Coffee Mayor Scott Padgett will be behind the counter to serve one guest, and surprise him or her with a year of free coffee. 7-7:30 a.m. Kickin Cancer with Coffee Dance-Off: Braylon Beam, local child cancer survivor, will lead Concord firefighters and policemen in a DJ-fueled dance-off against one another. Mayor Padgett will crown the champion. 7-9 a.m. Free Coffee: All guests at the Concord store may enjoy a free medium-sized coffee. George Ross is the Dunkin Donuts franchisee for the new location and currently operates 36 Dunkin Donuts restaurants in North Carolina. Ross currently has seven additional stores under construction, which are slated to open in 2017. The first Dunkin Donuts in Charlotte opened in 2004. As my team and I celebrate this milestone, we want to give back to the community that has been so kind to us by offering specials on some of Dunkin Donuts guest-favorites, supporting a local charity and recognizing some local heroes, comments Ross. With the Kickin Cancer with Coffee event, Dunkin Donuts and the local community can together support the Bring it 4 Braylon Foundation, and help to alleviate the burden that sick children and their families face every day. Now open from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week, the new restaurant employs approximately 28 crew members. To learn more about Dunkin Donuts visit www.DunkinDonuts.com or follow us on Facebook www.facebook.com/DunkinDonuts and Twitter www.twitter.com/DunkinCarolinas. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has met with King Harald V of Norway and thanked him for supporting Ukraine's territorial integrity and considerable practical assistance, the Ukrainian presidential press service reported on Tuesday evening. During the audience, the king mentioned the historic importance of the first official visit of a Ukrainian president to the Kingdom of Norway. "The president indicated the significance that His Majesty personally attaches to the situation in Ukraine, which, in particular, can be seen from the recent throne speech during the opening of the current session of the Norwegian Storting, in which he said that 'Russia's actions in Ukraine are an unambiguous violation of the international law'," it said. Poroshenko also mentioned the importance of Norway's support for the reforms in the Ukrainian defense sector and the modernization of its armed forces. The Ukrainian military positions in Donbas have been shelled 57 times in the past 24 hours, the military operation press center said on Facebook. Forty-four shell attacks have been recorded in the Mariupol area, it said. Ukrainian military fortifications near Talakivka, Pavlopil, Hranitne, Krasnohorivka and Maryinka were shelled from large-caliber machineguns, grenade launchers and small arms, according to the statement. Vodiane, Lebedynske and Shyrokyne were attacked with barrel artillery of the 122- and 152-millimeter caliber and mortars of the 82- and 120-millimeter caliber. In the Luhansk area, ten instances of ceasefire violation have been recorded. The Ukrainian positions near Popasna and Orikhove were attacked with grenade launchers, machineguns and small arms; in Novozvanivka and Krymske, the Ukrainian forces shelled 120-millimeter mortars. Three shell attacks were recorded in the Donetsk area. In particular, Avdiyivka came under grenade fire, while Verkhniotoretsk was attacked with grenades, machineguns, small arms and 82-millimeter mortars. A day that was all green Indian equity markets ended the day strongly in green today. Nifty 50 ended the day, up by 225.4 points. Sensex ended the day, up by 786.74 points. Top Gainers today were Ultratech Cement, Eich... October 31, 2022 | 31-10-2022 4:12 pm Daesung Eltec and Minda corporation tie up for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems technology On Monday, the manufacturer of automotive components Minda Corporation announced a partnership with the South Korean company Daesung Eltec to provide India's next-generation solutions for advan... October 31, 2022 | 31-10-2022 3:20 pm Ramkrishna Forgings stock jumps 3% on winning Rs113 crore worth export order Ramkrishna Forgings Limited, one of the leading suppliers of rolled, forged and machined products announced that a major Tier 1 manufacturer of Rear & Front axles has awarded a 4-year contr... October 31, 2022 | 31-10-2022 3:01 pm Markets in a super rally with Nifty above 17,950; Sensex climbs 600 pts Domestic benchmark indices in a super rally today led by IT and Auto stocks outperforming. Both the Sensex and Nifty benchmarks were higher 1% each amid positive global cues gleaming all over t... October 31, 2022 | 31-10-2022 2:00 pm Vedanta shares tanks ~4% on subdued numbers in Q2FY23 Vedanta Limited shares fell as much as 4% to Rs274 in intraday trade on Monday after the company reported a 60.8% yoy drop in consolidated net profit at Rs1,808 crore for the quarter ended... October 31, 2022 | 31-10-2022 1:54 pm President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko during a telephone conversation with Prime Minister of Sweden Stefan Lofven have discussed the acceleration of providing visa-free regime for the Ukrainians and the completion of the ratification process of the Association Agreement. As reported on the official website of the Ukrainian president, the sides also coordinated their positions on priority issues of cooperation between Ukraine and the EU on the eve of the European Council meeting which is to be held in Brussels on October 20-21. The head of state informed the Swedish premiere on the security situation in Donbas and urged Sweden to follow Norway and officially recognize the fact of Russia's aggression against Ukraine. Poroshenko and Lofven also confirmed the importance of the EU unity in the issue of sanctions preservation against Russia until the full restoration of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. Tribal leaders are calling on the federal government to do more to prevent their sacred property from being sold to the highest bidder. Tribes have become increasingly alarmed as auction houses around the world have put hundreds of items up for sale. Due to legal, financial, political and cultural barriers, they say it's incredibly difficult to them to recover what's rightfully theirs. "Money is attached to everything," Governor Eddie Paul Torres of Isleta Pueblo said at a Congressional field hearing in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on Tuesday. "Even if it was stolen from a house, it was sold and somebody paid for it." "When sacred objects are found," Torres continued, "you've got to figure out a way to get them without putting up that red flag. Because if you don't, it's going to disappear and you'll never see it again." Sen. Tom Udall (D-New Mexico), at podium, and Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-New Mexico) discussed efforts to protect tribal property at a press conference prior to the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs field hearing in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on October 18, 2016. Photo by Tara Gatewood But even when law and politics are on their side, tribes face incredible hurdles. Acoma Pueblo , another New Mexico tribe, has been pleading with authorities in France to return a sacred shield that was stolen from the reservation in the 1970s. "The Acoma shield belongs to the people of Acoma," Governor Kurt Riley said of an item that remains in legal and diplomatic limbo thousands of miles away. "Inherently, it belongs to us." The Navajo Nation has taken the drastic step of sending leaders to France to reacquire sacred items. But those efforts come with significant drawbacks because collectors and dealers start demanding more money, President Russell Begaye said. "These sacred objects are not to be studied, hung on walls to be admired or cataloged and placed in storage bins in annexes across the world," Begaye told the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs . "They were and are constructed to maintain our sacredness and the wholeness of our people." Indianz.Com on YouTube: Legislative Efforts to Protect Tribal Cultural Patrimony (Video by Tara Gatewood) Sen. Tom Udall (D-New Mexico), a member of the committee, chaired the field hearing as lawmakers from both parties take greater notice of the problem. He's sponsoring S.Con.Res.49 , otherwise known as the PROTECT Patrimony Resolution, which calls on the federal government to work more closely with tribes to stop the theft, sale and export of tribal items and to return them to their rightful owners. "Some people are exploiting the loopholes in our current laws -- laws that are meant to stop the theft of important cultural items," Udall said at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in downtown Albuquerque. "And they have exported deeply important sacred objects to other countries to be sold as art." Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-New Mexico) also attended the hearing. He's sponsoring another bill -- S.3127 , the Safeguard Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act (STOP Act) -- that would increase penalties for people who traffic in tribal property. "While we must improve federal law to create a stronger legal deterrence, we also need to change the hearts and minds of art collectors and dealers who are engaging in it," Heinrich said. Dealing or exporting items that tribes have identified as essential and sacred pieces of their cultural heritage must be... Posted by Senator Martin Heinrich on Tuesday, October 18, 2016 Senator Martin Heinrich on Facebook: Safeguard Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act (#StopAct) The hearing, though, took a bizarre turn when a non-Indian professor presented boxes containing what he said were sacred items to the tribes. In his testimony, he urged lawmakers not to take a "punitive" approach when it comes to collectors and dealers. But tribal leaders were clearly disturbed by the gesture due to the unknown origin of the items. They appeared to be stored in cardboard boxes -- one was a shoe box. On September 21 , the House passed H.Con.Res.122 , another version of the PROTECT Patrimony Resolution. The bill was introduced by Rep. Steve Pearce (R-New Mexico). The Senate passed the bill on September 29 . But lawmakers replaced the text of H.Con.Res.122 with that of S.Con.Res.49. Since the two versions are slightly different, the House would need to take action before the measure can be sent to President Barack Obama for a potential signature. The committee approved S.Con.Res.49 on September 7 and, on September 29, it cleared the Senate , although in a modified form as H.Con.Res.122 Since the measure was changed after passage in the House on September 12 , Congress would need to take additional action before it can be sent to President Barack Obama for his signature. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Notice: Oversight FIELD Hearing on "The Theft, Illegal Possession, Sale, Transfer and Export of Tribal Cultural Items." (October 18, 2016) Join the Conversation Related Stories The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs held a field hearing on the theft and sale of tribal property at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on October 18, 2016. Photo by Tara Gatewood Leaders of Acoma Pueblo Isleta Pueblo and the Navajo Nation were clearly disturbed by the presentation. They were worried about the origin of the items, whether the items actually belonged to their people and whether they were truly sacred or cultural patrimony. The Bureau of Indian Affairs is now investigating the matter, the Associated Press reports. An agent collected the three cardboard boxes -- one bore the packaging of a shoe company -- as possible "evidence," the AP said. The presentation came during a field hearing on the theft and sale of tribal property. A non-Indian witness brought out the boxes and at one point held one above his head as tribal leaders sat next to him in shock. The U.S. Attorney for New Mexico, Damon Martinez , was among those who witnessed the presentation. His office has secured a federal warrant to seek the return of a sacred shield stolen from Acoma Pueblo, an issue that was discussed during the hearing. The hearing took place at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in downtown Albuquerque. The facility is Indian Country -- it's part of a collection of properties held in trust for the 19 Pueblos of New Mexico The BIA leases a portion of the property for its Southwest Regional Office Read More on the Story: Officials: Loopholes allow for trafficking of Native American items to foreign markets (AP 10/19) Tribal leaders speak for bill protecting artifacts (The Albuquerque Journal 10/18) Senator: Loopholes allow for trafficking of tribal items (KOB 10/18) Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Notice: Oversight FIELD Hearing on "The Theft, Illegal Possession, Sale, Transfer and Export of Tribal Cultural Items" (October 18, 2016) Join the Conversation Related Stories The remains of the Spirit Cave Man and other tribal ancestors were found in an area near the Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada. Photo by Charles Cornell A long-running dispute over a tribal ancestor in Nevada appears to be coming to a close thanks to a shift in course by the Obama administration. After two decades of debate, the Bureau of Land Management plans to repatriate the remains of a 10,000-year-old individual -- often referred to as the Spirit Cave Man -- to the Fallon Paiute-Shoshone Tribe . A notice published in the Federal Register on Tuesday confirms the ancestor is indeed Native American. "DNA analysis illustrates that the human remains in the Spirit Cave Assemblage are effectively more closely related to Native Americans than they are to any other population," Melanie O'Brien, the manager of the National Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act Program , wrote in the notice. "The associated funerary objects contained within the Spirit Cave Assemblage manifest characteristics of Native American ancestry, including a rabbit skin blanket, moccasins, and woven mats." The decision caps off a controversy that dogged both the Clinton and Bush administrations. A federal judge at one point said federal officials "passed the issue up the chain of command" without ever providing a direct answer to the Paiute-Shoshone people. "All we want is our ancestor to come home," Rochanne L. Downs, a former tribal council member who worked on the matter for years, told Indianz.Com back in 2003 The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Review Committee met in Missoula, Montana, from July 13-16, 2016. Photo by Angela Steiner Neller The issue was so contentious that it went before the NAGPRA Review Committee , a panel of experts that Congress created through the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act to weigh in on such disputes. But even when they said the remains should be returned to the tribe, the BLM did nothing, prompting the tribe to file the lawsuit. In September 2006 , a federal judge ruled that the BLM's failure to consider all of the tribe's evidence was "arbitrary and capricious." The Bush administration promptly appealed but the case was dropped a few months later with the tribe's agreement. Still, the ancestor sat in limbo until the Interior Department in 2010 finalized long-awaited regulations regarding so-called "culturally unidentifiable" Native remains. The BLM's notice on Tuesday cited the new rule as the basis for initiating repatriation to the tribe. The decision marks the second time this year that the Obama administration has sided with tribes in a dispute over ancient remains. Citing DNA and other evidence, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in April confirmed the 8,500-year-old individual known as the Kennewick Man was Native American. The determination opened the door for the Pacific Northwest tribes to reclaim their ancestor, whom they refer to as the Ancient One, under the provisions of NAGPRA. But Congress also stepped in and is close to finalizing a national water bill that would return the remains to his descendants. "The Colville Tribes, along with the other claimant tribes, has always known that the Ancient One was our ancestor, and it is only right that he should be laid to rest in his homeland in the traditional way," Chairman Michael Marchand of the Colville Tribes said last month. DNA from the Ancient One showed a direct relationship to modern-day Colville citizens. Leaders of the Fallon-Paiute Shoshone Tribe were sworn into office on October 18, 2016. From left: Secretary Laura Ijames, Chairman Len George and council member Natalie Pacheco. Photo by FPST Election Committee Despite the successes, some within the academic and scientific community continue to oppose the return of ancient remains to tribes. One anthropologist who has been repeatedly proven wrong about the Kennewick Man's Native origins even holds a top position within the Smithsonian Institution DNA studies , though, have been among the most conclusive evidence about the identities of some of the very first Americans. Remains dating back as far back as 12,600 years have been directly linked to modern-day Native populations. Spirit Cave Man and other tribal remains were discovered in 1940 at Spirit Cave , an area near the Fallon-Paiute Reservation. The remains have been dated to be between 5,400 to 10,600 years old, according to the BLM. Federal Register Notices: Notice of Inventory Completion: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Nevada State Office, Reno, NV (October 18, 2016) Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act Regulations-Disposition of Culturally Unidentifiable Human Remains (March 15, 2010) From the Indianz.Com Archive Judge faults BLM for decision on ancient remains (September 25, 2006) Nev. tribe wants ancient remains 'to come home' (February 14, 2003) Norton treads uncharted waters over remains (April 22, 2002) Join the Conversation Related Stories Dharma Productions Karan Johar broke his silence on the bans and the controversies surrounding his upcoming Diwali release ADHM in form of a video statement that was winning the internet. While KJo clearly mentioned that he won't work with Pakistani artists in the future, he also mentioned that apart from Fawad Khan, there were more than 300 artists who worked hard for the film and it surely is unfair to them. Right after KJo's video, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena said that it will continue to oppose the release of his movie Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. There were many reports that claimed how Raj Thackeray-led MNS has threatened multiplex owners with vandalism if they released ADHM. Questioning KJo's 'sudden change of behaviour', Shalini Thackeray, general secretary of Chitrapat Karmachari Sena told Express, This is the same Karan Johar who once said Pakistani actors should not be banned. Why this sudden change in heart? Its come a little too late in the day for him. Amey Khopkar, President of Maharashtra Navnirman Chitrapat Karmachari Sena, the film wing of the MNS, told The Indian Express, "We are firm on our stand and we will not allow him to release the film." MNS even tweeted about the same. One of their tweets read: "We will not let the film air even in Multiplexes as it features Pakistani actors. Multiplex owners need to stay away from airing films featuring Pakistani actors...Or else, remember how expensive your glass walls are." The film business is money-driven and why not? A film needs to make money so that more films can be made. While most often brands collaborate with a particular film to increase their brand recall and visibility, it's not always that filmmakers to do something as sweet as what Force 2 makers did. While the trailer of Force 2 was released two weeks ago, there was a slide that read: Viacom18 Dedicated to the heroes who sacrificed their lives for the country and yet remained unnamed and unrecognised. This gesture won hearts of the families of the martyred soldiers who couldn't help but thank the makers. Appreciating the gesture, the families wrote to the makers. Talking about it, Vipul Amrutlal Shah, the film's producer told the media, Instagram "We weren't expecting this kind of response. I'm happy that we are the first in saluting our unsung martyrs. My team and I were really touched by the letters. The families of soldiers and undercover agents have also thanked us for appreciating the loved ones they've lost. That means a lot to us." Vipul's team now wants to pay a tribute to the heroes at the Amar Jawan Jyoti in Delhi. They are also planning to file a PIL for the benefit of their families. Talking about this, he added, "There's little that the kin of these heroes get. Our government is working towards the betterment of the intelligence officers and soldiers. Maybe we can bring the plight of the families of the deceased officers to their notice and help them. After seeing the response to the trailer, we've expedited the process." Watch the trailer of the film here: The government told a parliamentary panel that while the Army had crossed the LoC to hit targets earlier too, September 29 was the first time they had entered Pakistan's territory to destroy terror launch pads . BCCL Responding to a question by Congress's Satyavrat Chaturvedi, foreign secretary S Jaishankar told members of Parliament's standing committee on external affairs that the "surgical strikes" carried out by the Army in the wake of the Uri terror attack differed in nature from the operations the Army had undertaken earlier on the other side of LoC. The earlier strikes were also different because of the fact that, unlike in the latest instance, they were not publicised. Chaturvedi, a senior Congress member of the Rajya Sabha, had sought to know from the foreign secretary and other functionaries from the government whether surgical strikes had been carried out earlier too, the objective of the post-Uri operation and whether clearance had been taken from the government. BCCL "If the question is that did the Army cross the LoC in the past too, the answer is yes. But if the question is that did the Army carry out an operation to destroy launch pads of terrorists across the LoC, the answer is no," a source in the committee quoted the foreign secretary as saying. Late on Tuesday, news agency PTI issued a clarification regarding a report wherein it had quoted Jaishankar having told the committee that the "surgical strikes" were not unique and differed from the previous ones only in that it was publicised. BCCL The agency said the foreign secretary's purported statement was based on what it had gathered from opposition MPs who are members of the standing committee. It quoted a government source as saying, "What the FS said is that the key issue is that we went public after conducting the surgical strikes which conveyed a politico-military message. Whether any previous crossing had been done only the Army would know. But it is irrelevant anyway because there was no message." The foreign secretary, who was accompanied by defence secretary Mohan Kumar, Army vice-chief Lt General Vipin Rawat and other officials, also emphasised that the Army had acted on the basis of precise intelligence to carry out what he called a "counter-terror operation". BCCL Jaishankar, who refrained from using the term "surgical strike", said the September 29 operation was meant to send a strong message across to Pakistan and to the world at large that India would not silently suffer terror strikes any more. Hence the decision to go public about them, said the top diplomat, adding that in a democratic set-up like India, the Army was mandated to seek clearance from the government for such operations. The testimony of the foreign secretary that the previous strikes across LoC were different --PTI quoted him describing them as "professionally done, target-specific, limited calibre counter-terrorist operations"-- comes in the wake of skirmish between BJP and the government on the one hand, and Congress on the other over whether the "surgical strikes" of September 29 were unprecedented. Congress has claimed that the Army had crossed over the LoC at least on three occasions under the UPA. BCCL However, the claim has been disputed by defence minister Manohar Parikar who has said that LoC crossings by the Army before Uri were limited in nature, which were taken at the level of the local army commander and required no political go-ahead. His assertion, which was endorsed by former Army chief General J J Singh as well as Lt General Vinod Bhatia who served as Director General of Military Operations under UPA. With various film bodies imposing a ban on Pakistani actors after the Uri attack, the government was also asked about the ban on Pakistani films and artistes and Jaishankar is learned to have said that people-to-people contact with Pakistan would continue and there was no plan to stop it. For a 45-year-old blind elephant, stuck in a dam, with a broken foreleg, life is pretty grim at the moment. His pain, however, goes unnoticed by the residents of the village nearest the dam as they have to stay up all night because of his calls and the appearance of other elephants responding to him. Fondly called Sidda by forest officials, the elephant is a tusker, believed to have fallen into a ditch near the Dodderi village. He then drifted with the water into the Manchanabele dam, 30 kms from Bengaluru nearly 40 days ago. BCCL Forest authorities have stepped up efforts to rescue Sidda from the dam and take him to safety of the Bannerghatta National Park. Officials have said that Sidda probably broke his right foreleg when he fell into the ditch. He is in great pain but forest officials have been keeping him company, although all efforts of trying to sedate him seem to fail! While Sidda has been relishing all the sugarcane, maize, bananas and ragi or millet balls, which the forest officials have been feeding him, any efforts of mixing antibiotics or painkillers with his food is immediately rejected. The condition of the injured elephant has not deteriorated. Four veterinary experts from Chennai, Guwahati and Kerala will visit the dam next week, Dr D Manjunath, Deputy Conservator of Forest, Ramanagara district, told The Indian Express. AFP/Representational image The locals residing in the village near the dam, however, are worried about the other elephants getting attracted by Sidda's cries. The elephant keeps drifting towards our village at night and pushed down a jackfruit tree on Friday night. It also stomped through our ragi crops. Forest officials must shift it and provide better treatment, K Rajanna, a resident of Avverahalli village, told the daily. Pakistan-based terror group Laskar-e-Taiba has issued a warning to the Baramulla SHO, for facilitating an operation on Monday, in which at least 44 have been arrested for terror-related activities. BCCL It was a multi-agency crackdown in the old town of Baramulla in north Kashmir on Monday. After 700-odd houses were searched, security agencies seized petrol bombs, Chinese and Pakistani flags, LeT and Jaish letter pads, illegal mobile phones and other seditious material, defence spokesperson Manish Kumar said. The crackdown was part of a joint operation by the Army, the BSF, the CRPF and police in 10 localities, including Qazi Hamam, Ganai Hamam, Taweed Gunj and Jamia, considered safe havens for terrorists. BCCL A large number of suspected hideouts were also busted during the search operation, Col Manish added. However, according to locals, around 1am on Monday, the security forces jointly laid siege to the entire old town. "An announcement was made about the crackdown and people were asked to stay indoors. The personnel conducted house-to-house searches," a local said. Before entering the old town, the forces had sealed the bridges connecting it with the Civil Lines area to restrict public movement, they said. "The forces checked the youngsters for pellet injuries and similar wounds to identify those who had participated in protests and resorted to stone-pelting," another local claimed. Sources said the crackdown was the first major one in Baramulla in more than a decade. BCCL Police, however, claimed that the search operation was launched to nab militants. "We had information about the presence of militants in the area. It was an anti-militancy operation aimed at nabbing some Jaish-e-Mohammed militants who had taken refuge in the area," Baramulla SSP Imtiyaz Hussain Mir said. President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will meet in Brussels on Thursday, October 20, and also make statements to the media. "On October 20 in Brussels, President Petro Poroshenko will meet with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Poroshenko and Stoltenberg are scheduled to brief media after the talks," the press service of the head of state said on Tuesday. In addition, the president during his visit to Brussels intends to hold a number of meetings with the EU leaders on the same day. Poroshenko will meet with European Council President Donald Tusk, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz. "The leaders of Ukraine and the EU institutions will discuss the situation in Donbas and Crimea, the state of implementation of the Minsk agreements and prospects for the sanctions regime against Russia in response to its aggression against Ukraine. Participants will also discuss progress in implementing reforms and ways to strengthen EU support, and will coordinate the next steps for the ratification of the Association Agreement and visa-free regime for the citizens of Ukraine," the press-service said. Bilateral meetings between President of Ukraine with leaders of a number of EU member states are also on the agenda on the eve of the EU summit which is to be held in Brussels on October 20-21. Maharashtra government's proposal to set up a leopard safari in the Sanjay Gandhi National Park has been shot down by the Central Zoo Authority. The authority states that the park does not have the kind of funds or infrastructure to support this attraction. On the other hand, the number of leopards roaming around in the city has been on the rise in the past three years. In fact, Mumbai is one the only cities where people have learnt to live in harmony with leopards and crocodiles among many other species. BCCL Following a site inspection on September 6, the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) rejected the proposal for the safari. Visitors to the park can still enjoy the lion and the tiger safari. The CZA has specified that unlike the other two big cats, leopards are far lighter and quicker on their feet and would pose a threat to the locals and the tourists, if they escaped their enclosures. Speaking to Mumbai Mirror, Chief Conservator of Forests Sanjay Thakre said, To build a safari, the park is required to have double fencing and there should also be no trees nearby. This would mean that trees would have to be cut down for at least 30 hectares at a stretch a space which is not available in the national park at the moment. At the most, the state can maintain a leopard enclosure at the park. BCCL The Sanjay Gandhi National Park currently has more than 20 leopards captured from various parts of the city and other cities in Maharashtra. They have all been kept in one giant enclosure. Militant outfit Hizbul Mujahideen has asked the displaced Kashmiri Pandits, who flee the Valley in early 1990s after the eruption of militancy, to return to their homes. BCCL The outfit has also assured the Pandits protection while saying that it is also planning to raise a group of Sikh youths. "We request Kashmiri Pandits to return to their homes. We take responsibility of their safety," Zakir Rashid Bhat, alias 'Musa', the self-styled commander of the militant outfit, said in a brief video message released. Hundreds of families of Kashmiri Pandits were forced to flee the valley after they were targeted by militant groups during the outbreak of militancy and have been living in Jammu and other parts of the country. BCCL "They should look at those Pandits who never left Kashmir. Who has harassed or killed them?" asked the commander who's seen as the successor of Burhan Wani, the Hizbul commander who was killed in an encounter by Indian Army on July 8. Musa also claimed that Indian government is planning to take action in the Valley in an operation similar to 'Operation Blue Star' in Punjab. He also said that the outfit is mulling to raise a separate Sikh group. BCCL "Our Sikh brothers are requesting us to join Hizbul Mujahideen...We are with them on every front and God willing, we will try and make an exclusive group for Sikhs in the outfit," he said. Even without filing a First Information Report (FIR), the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has sought help of relevant central agencies including the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) to trace Najeeb Ahmad, a first year M.Sc. biotechnology students who went missing from Mahi Mandavi Hostel on Saturday (October 14) following a scuffle with fellow residents associated with Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) a night before. Tarique Anwar/Indiatimes Adding that the university is seeking help from all relevant central agencies to help trace Najeeb, the university said in a statement on Tuesday evening (October 18) that the Delhi Police have been approached to investigate the matter and the administration is regularly in communication with the police. The police have informed that they have already registered a case under Section 365 of the IPC and doing the investigations. All PCR vans in Delhi and all SSPs throughout India have been alerted and efforts are being made to trace the student. Further, the police has intimated all the six neighbouring states and put the information on Zip-net in Northern Zone. Moreover, all relevant central agencies, including NCRB and missing section of CBI, have been requested for help. Najeeb was allegedly assaulted in his hostel on Friday (October 14) at around 11 pm when Vikrant Kumar, a bachelors student residing in room number 213 of the same hostel, who was contesting hostel elections for the post of mess secretary, went to his room for campaigning. Tarique Anwar/Indiatimes The assaulters violent not only thrashed him but also allegedly hurl abuses and criminally intimidated Najeeb in presence of senior warden Dr Sushil Kumar, two other wardens Dr Somyajit Ray and Dr Arun Srivastava and G4S security persons of the varsity. Traumatised and shocked Najeeb left his room at around 11 am on Saturday in absence of his roommate Qasim leaving behind his cell phone, laptop and even chappals apart from other belongings and have not returned so far. His grieving family is in the campus running from pillar to post to know about his whereabouts. The JNU further said in the statement that it is making all its efforts to resolve the incident that took place in Mahi-Mandvi Hostel in the night of October 14, 2016. The Inter Hall Administration (IHA) is constantly at work and the Wardens have been instructed to extend all necessary help to trace Mr. Najeeb Ahmed who has gone missing. Tarique Anwar/Indiatimes It is pertaining to mention here that despite huge protests, the university has not so far filed a missing complaint with the police, forget about an FIR. Several students groups of the university are protesting against this lackadaisical attitude but the varsity is not ready to budge. After the university did not pay heed to their demand, the students marched to Vasant Kunj North police station on Monday night in large number and filed a separate complaint regarding the incident that took place on October 14 night that perhaps led to the mysterious disappearance. Meanwhile, a case (number 523/16) under section 365 (kidnapping with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine person) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) has already been registered on October 15 evening in the police station on the basis of a complaint by his mother Fatima Nafees. Tarique Anwar/Indiatimes We are cooperating the police in their investigation. We are proving all the details the investigators need. The eye-witness of the incident have deposed before the university authorities and their statements have also been forwarded to the police, hostel warden Dr Sushil Kumar told Indiatimes. Asked why the university did not file any complaint or an FIR after one of his students that too a resident of its hostel went missing in mysterious circumstances from the campus, he replied, An FIR has already been registered and the police are investigating the matter. While the police still do not have any clue on his whereabouts, a majority of the residents of his hostel, including his roommate, believe that Najeeb has been abducted following the brawl. Even four days, the young man is still untraceable. Tarique Anwar/Indiatimes JNUSU had recommended to punish Najeeb and expel him from hostel While the police and JNU authorities still seem clueless about Najeebs whereabouts, the role of JNU Students Union (JNUSU) in the entire matter is being criticised. The student body, although protesting the missing of Najeeb, had endorsed his expulsion from Mahi Mandvi Hostel, following the brawl. I had signed the decision without going it in entirety, accepted JNUSU president Mohit Kumar Pandey. The ABVP members had alleged that Najeeb slapped Vikrant, who was contesting for mess secretary post went to Najeebs room for campaigning. Two other hostellers - Ankit Kumar (of room number 214) and Sunil Pratap (of room number 122) both were present at that time. Najeeb was brutally assaulted by a group of at least 15 students. Since Najeeb went missing, the JNUSU changed its stance and began protesting against ABVP alleged role in his disappearance. Tarique Anwar/Indiatimes "The decision has already been deferred till further notice. Najeeb was brutally assaulted by the ABVP activists, and therefore, in the Warden Committee meeting held on October 16 we have recommended the chief proctor to take appropriate disciplinary actions against those involved at the earliest, said the JNUSU president. Mohit K Pandey said that since Najeeb did not say anything in his defence, it was assumed by the university panel, investigating that matter, that he was guilty and hence his expulsion was recommended, on which majority of the members agreed. Najeebs roommate Qasim, who was also a signatory to the earlier Warden Committee decision also backtracked saying that he was misguided. Tarique Anwar/Indiatimes I can never endorse anything that projects a victim as a culprit which the university administration in case of Najeeb is trying to do. Najeeb was my room-mate but when Vikrant and others had gone to my room for campaigning, I was not there as I was on the another floor in support of another candidate. But when I heard the commotion, I came downstairs and saw Najeeb being assaulted at the staircase. He was even beaten up in front of the warden, he said. No independent witness except the two ABVP members Ankit Kumar and Sunil Pratap saw Najeeb slapping Vikrant but everyone saw Najeeb being assaulted by 10-15 goons who include outsiders as well, Qasim added. Actor Salman Khan should be ordered to surrender immediately so that he can be sent back to jail in the black-buck poaching case, the Rajasthan government on Wednesday urged the Supreme Court. BCCL This after the state government decide to challenge his acquittal in the case by the High Court. According to the government, the court while acquitting the actor did not consider the statement of his then driver who claimed that Khan had shot the gazelle. BCCL/ Representative Image The incident took place in 1998 during the shoot of film 'Hum Saath Saath Hain', when Salman Khan along with Saif Ali Khan, Tabu, and Sonali Bendre, allegedly hunted down two Blackbucks in the Kankani village of Rajasthan. Ahead of the Diwali, terror outfits, Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba, which have recently suffered significant casualties, may use the festival season to hit back, the Ministry of Home Affairs has warned. According to intelligence agencies the terrorists may resort to Nice-style lone wolf attacks as they have failed to get adequate logistical support from sleeper cells". BCCL/representational image IB officials said that the strike could be carried out by an infiltrator or a sympathizer of the groups who could be activated to strike during the festival season. Recently the security at Red Fort was stepped up following specific threats of possible attack. Across key cities, including Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata too the alert has been stepped up. Also read: 'Lone Wolf' Attacks Are ISIS's Deadliest And Most Effective Weapons Yet BCCL/representational image The threat of attacks also comes amid an increase in ceasefire violations across LoC from the Pakistani side, which for years the terrorists have used as a cover to infiltrate into the Indian side. Even the recently busted ISIS module in Kerala had plans to carry out Nice-style terror attacks. Union Minister Babul Supriyo has reportedly suffered minor injuries after his vehicle was allegedly attacked by a group of TMC workers. The incident happened in his constituency of Asansol. ANI The video footage from the spot, showed stones were pelted at the BJP leader. His car was heavily damaged by the attackers. According to reports the attacker were from Bengal's ruling party, Trinamool Congress. In most of the Indo-Pakistan wars, conflicts didn't start all of a sudden. In fact, history has witnessed that small skirmishes and battles between two armies have led to full fledged war. Thehindu The war of 1965 is one of the biggest wars fought by the Indian army, where a large share of its resources got employed. The war began on September 1, 1965, when Pakistan Army entered Chambh sector in Jammu & Kashmir. Two major operations that Pakistan launched to test the Indian, Army the paved way for the full fledged war between two countries. Operation Gibraltar, launched by Pakistan establishment in August 1965 with nearly 30,000 infiltrators including Pakistan Army regulars. Wikimedia Pakistan launched this operation believing that once they infiltrate in Kashmir, the Kashmiris will rise in large numbers against India, meanwhile, they can target Indian Army to take control of the Valley. Operation Gibraltar had failed miserably, forcing Pakistan to open front in Jammu, so that the intruders can retreat safely. But before the launch of Operation Gibraltar, Pakistan had launched another Operation in the Rann of Kutch in Sindh in January 1965, which continued to June 1965, and paved way for first the Operation Gibraltar and than the full scale war. Operation Desert Hawk Though ever since the partition, Pakistan and India remained in contention over several issues, Kashmir largely remained the core issue between the two neighbours. But other issues too rose occasionally. One such dispute was in Rann of Kutch, the barren land in Indian state of Gujarat. It began in 1956 which ended with India regaining control over the disputed area. merinews But in January 1965, Pakistan started patrolling areas under Indian claim line. Pakistani patrolling south of Kanjarkot might have been going on for quite some time without the Indians knowing it. By the time, Indians came to know about regular patrols of Pakistan army in the claimed area, Pakistan had established post in the Kanjarkot area which further irked India. India accused Pakistan of aggression in the Rann of Kutch. After India lodged a formal protest, it increased its own patrolling activity in the area, but the area full of wet lands was hard to patrol and monitor. Thus, by mid-February 1965, Pakistani forces had dug themselves in around Kanjarkot, the areas which were previously unoccupied. India objected to it but Pakistan President Ayub claimed that Pakistan had long been occupying the area. In response India moved heavy forces in March-April and established forward military posts. travelsntrips Indian response of occupying other posts near the frontier and, reportedly, building an airstrip nearby brought the latent crisis to a head with Pakistan increasing its strength of troops in area. By second week of April 1965, the skirmishes between two armies turned into small scale battles. Pakistan while enjoying the militarily superior position, moved forcefully against Indian outposts near the border fort of Kanjarkot and garnered a little success in penetrating the Indian defenses. Adityaaryaarchive.com Casualties were reported by both sides as the incidences of shooting continued between patrols. On 19 April Pakistan's troops in the Rann of Kutch captured of Biar Bet and came closer to cut right through to the Indian forces to destroy two Indian brigades. But increasing international pressure forced Pakistan to cease fire by April 30. Partial success prompted Pakistan to move further thehindu Partial success it enjoyed in Rann of Kutch, fed the belief of Pakistan that "Hindu army can't stand two strong and timely blows". Thus they planned to further pinch India and this time in Valley through Operation Gibraltar which further snowballed into full fledged war which they badly lost. The tribunal and what both countries got from Rann of Kutch In June 1965, British Prime Minister Harold Wilson successfully persuaded both countries to end hostilities and set up a tribunal to resolve the dispute. madrasregiment On February 19, 1968, the tribunal bolstered India's claim over 90 per cent of the Rann while conceding remaining 10 per cent area to Pakistan. Both sides accepted the award of the Indo-Pakistan Western Boundary Case Tribunal designated by the UN secretary general. Of its original claim of some 9,100 square kilometers, Pakistan was awarded only about 910 square kilometers. An immigrant union of Mexicans and Latinos plans to erect a 'wall' - of taco trucks - outside of Trump International Las Vegas hotel, ahead of tomorrow's final presidential debate at a university in the city, BuzzFeed News reported. AFP Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has during his campaign called Mexicans "rapists" and ranted against immigrants saying he "will build a great, great wall on our southern border" and will have Mexico pay for it. "As he has demonized Hispanics, women, veterans, and the disabled, we will send him and those who supported him like my opponent Congressman Cresent Hardy a message that we're here and we vote," said Democrat Ruben Kihuen. The Culinary Union and several other groups aim to have at least five taco trucks outside Trump's hotel, in addition to a banner in the style of a wall that participants will be able to sign. TASTY SCOOP: A Union Is Building A Wall Of Taco Trucks Outside Trump's Las Vegas Hotel https://t.co/IV03XqwyXb via @buzzfeednews Adrian Carrasquillo (@Carrasquillo) 17 October 2016 "Taco trucks, featuring perennially sky-high approval ratings, were dragged into the 2016 race by a Hispanic Trump surrogate who argued on MSNBC that Latino culture is very dominant, warning that eventually there would be taco trucks on every corner," BuzzFeed News explained. ALSO READ: Michelle Obama Puts Donald Trump In His Place After He Bragged About Sexually Assaulting Women AFP The Trump campaign's response to the 'wall' of taco trucks? --"I never, EVER turn down a chance to eat some good tacos so I say 'thanks' for setting up shop right outside!" said senior adviser and Hispanic outreach director AJ Delgado, to BuzzFeed News. The Culinary Union has held nearly 10 rallies outside Trump's Las Vegas hotel, since workers voted to unionize and won last December. They argue that Trump is illegally refusing to bargain with them. ALSO READ: Melania Trump Comes To Her Husband's Rescue, Calls His Comments On Groping Women A 'Boy Talk' AFP "Everyone coming together is really about sending a message that we reject Trump and the politics of hate," said Rocio Saenz of iAmerica, another group supporting the Union. Saenz told BuzzFeed News she believes the Latino and the Asian-American communities will come out strongly to repudiate Trump in November. As the political director of the Culinary Union said, "We're reminding Mr Trump that immigrant workers here and across the country will be watching the debate and voting in November." ALSO READ: Mexicans, Muslims And Women, How Donald Trump Runs Down Americans Who Are Not White And Male wikimedia commons Indias submarine fleet has been given a shot in the arm with the quiet commissioning of the INS Arihant SSBN. The home made submarine is designed to carry missiles with nuclear warheads to impart a deadly blow to the enemy. But that's not all, here's another exciting bit of news. India and Russia have reportedly signed a deal for leasing another Akula-II class attack submarine. Alexei Nikolski, a columnist with Russian daily Vedomosti said, "According to a source in the Russian defence industry, the long discussed lease to transfer a multipurpose Project 971 nuclear submarine to India from the Russian Navy was signed in Goa." Read more here Here are 5 more stories that may interest you: 1. Wheelchair-Bound Man Thrashed In A Theatre For Not Standing During National Anthem twitter Writer and disability activist, Chorao-based Salil Chaturvedi, was in a multiplex in Panaji when he came across the shock of his life. He was viciously assaulted during the national anthem. His fault? The spinal injury, due to which, he could not rise to his feet while the national anthem was being played. According to a report in The Times of India, a 'patriotic' husband-and-wife duo standing and ostentatiously singing in the aisle above took offence on his action. The man hit, and the woman shouted, why cant he get up?! Though extremely shaken and physically hurt - by the unprovoked attack, he simply turned around after the anthem, and asked, why dont you just relax? Why do you have to get into peoples faces? You dont know the story here. You will never know. Read more here 2. Passengers' Tweets Save The Day When Sudden Change In Train Schedule Leaves Them Stranded! Twitter Several hundred passengers were left stranded on Tuesday after they missed their train due to misinformation on part of the railway authorities. Due to an operational issue, Kaviguru Express with train number 19709, arrived at platform number 3 instead of 1. It's scheduled time of arrival was 1.55 pm but since it arrived on the wrong platform, 150 passengers missed boarding it because of lack of communication from the authorities. Read more here 3. A Group Of IIT-Gandhinagar Students Came Together To Set Up Library For Village Kids BCCL Twelve-year-old Vipul has been beaming with excitement for the past few days This student of a primary school in Palaj village loves reading, but his supply of books had always been limited due to his meagre family income. Now, due to the efforts of students of Indian Institute of Technology-Gandhinagar (IITGn), Vipul and many others like him have access to an entire library. The library of over 100 books in English, Hindi and Gujarati comprising categories like fiction and non-fiction was inaugurated on Monday. Students from second year of B Tech course of IIT-Gn, including Prateek Verma, Akshat Pachauri, Rajat Ranjan, Yash Patel, Rajat Goel and Rohit Singh have this year decided to set up a mini-library in Palaj Primary School for 250 students in the age group between 7 and 14. Prateek Verma, who is a part of Team Amalthea, which has launched the initiative, said, "We will increase the number of books in the library in course of time. Course books including books published by NCERT will also be added to the library." Read more here 4. Blind, Lost And Injured - This Stranded Elephant Gets Little Sympathy From Local Villagers For a 45-year-old blind elephant, stuck in a dam, with a broken foreleg, life is pretty grim at the moment. His pain, however, goes unnoticed by the residents of the village nearest the dam as they have to stay up all night because of his calls and the appearance of other elephants responding to him. Fondly called Sidda by forest officials, the elephant is a tusker, believed to have fallen into a ditch near the Dodderi village. He then drifted with the water into the Manchanabele dam, 30 kms from Bengaluru nearly 40 days ago. BCCL Forest authorities have stepped up efforts to rescue Sidda from the dam and take him to safety of the Bannerghatta National Park. Officials have said that Sidda probably broke his right foreleg when he fell into the ditch. He is in great pain but forest officials have been keeping him company, although all efforts of trying to sedate him seem to fail! Read more here 5. When Indo-Pak Armies Met At Rann of Kutch, Leading To Operation Gibraltar And 1965 War Thehindu In most of the Indo-Pakistan wars, conflicts didn't start all of a sudden. In fact, history has witnessed that small skirmishes and battles between two armies have led to full fledged war. The war of 1965 is one of the biggest wars fought by the Indian army, where a large share of its resources got employed. The war began on September 1, 1965, when Pakistan Army entered Chambh sector in Jammu & Kashmir. Two major operations that Pakistan launched to test the Indian, Army the paved way for the full fledged war between two countries. Operation Gibraltar, launched by Pakistan establishment in August 1965 with nearly 30,000 infiltrators including Pakistan Army regulars. Read more here. The Islamic State, facing concerted attacks from Iraq by the Army, Kurdish Peshmerga forces, Shia militias and Sunni tribesmen may use chemical weapons against the civilians, the US has warned. AFP Even though Washington says the group's technical ability to develop such weapons is highly limited, they still are not leaving out the possibility. This comes as the joint troops are making steady progress in gaining ground against ISIS in the outskirts of Mosul. A combined force of 30,000 coalition troops supported by 5,000 US soldiers and hundreds of British squaddies have cleared 20 villages as come within 30 miles of Mosul. AFP According to local media, the operation have forced ISIS to defend their stronghold in Mosul and prevented it carrying out its usual raids on houses in the neighbourhood. Another report suggested that a lot of the ISIS fighters are fleeing the city with their families to Raqqa in Syria the de-facto capital of the Caliphate. AFP/ File However as the war intensifies the hardest hit are the residents of Mosul who according to a UN estimate could be as high as 1.5 million. Even though the UN and other humanitarian group are preparing for a huge flow of displaced, it will be a dangerous task for them to leave the city besieged by ISIS. This is because for the jihadists they serve as a human shield, making the job of the joint forces difficult. In order to prevent the civilians from fleeing ISIS is believed to have mined the key road and planted IEDs and booby traps. AFP Meanwhile, some local media quoting intelligence reports, claim that Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the chief of the Islamic State who declared his caliphate from Mosul in 2014 is still living in the city. He is said to have been surrounded by 8,000 fanatical fighters who are willing to fight till death in the apocalyptic battle which is in the core of the terror group's propaganda. The Russian Federation continues its aggression against Ukraine and does not comply with agreements, Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak said at a meeting on Tuesday with representatives of the U.S. Congressmen William Flores and Andrew Harris. As reported on the official website of Defense Ministry, Poltorak told the congressmen about facts of recorded attacks per day and for the year as a whole. "We comply with the agreements. Ukraines experience, as well as the experience in Georgia [2008] and Syria [2015-2016] shows any agreement with Russia is worth nothing. In this situation we need to count on reformed and strong army, political and economic support from our partners and the continuation of the sanctions against the aggressor, "the minister said. During the conversation the parties discussed the situation in Donbas, state of forces withdrawal, as well as the issue of granting a lethal weapon to Ukraine. Poltorak said that Ukraine appealed to NATO member states and the EU with requests of providing a lethal weapon. In turn Flores assured the U.S. would continue supporting Ukraine both on the political arena and in providing practical assistance. "The Americans are amazed by Ukrainians resistance and their desire for independence and European future. The U.S. Congress supports Ukraine on the legislative level, including in the maintenance issues and continuation of sanctions against Russia," he said. During the meeting the sides also discussed issues concerning the urgent needs of the Ukrainian army to ensure current assistance that is provided and will be provided in the future by partners. Where are all these hot men coming from? Just days after the hot chaiwallah in Islamabad grabbed eyeballs, now this hot security dude from Singapore is making hearts flip! changiairport Meet Lee Minwei - a corporal in Certis Cisco, the organisation that runs security at Changi Airport in Singapore. Meet the famous CPL (APF) Lee Minwei at Changi Airport. Say hello to our good looking officer when you see him! https://t.co/bj5yFOEwUa pic.twitter.com/CMvmKqt7Wo Certis CISCO (@Certis_CISCO) October 14, 2016 As expected, people started taking note. And before they could make sense of everything, Changi Airport decided to share another really attractive photo of Lee on their Facebook page. This post went on to be shared over 10,000 times, so much so that when someone asked for the exact terminal he worked at, Changi Airport happily obliged: Facebook Even though Lee only wants to focus on his work, people just can't seem to stop ogling at him: Facebook Singapore, better lock your doors, the girls are comin'! The Verkhovna Rada has appealed to the government and parliament of the Netherlands for the completion of the ratification of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU. Some 235 people's deputies voted for the corresponding decision at the plenary session on Wednesday, an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent reported. Were excited to announce that indmin.com is now part of fastmarkets.com. A new look and an improved experience means you can still stay ahead of this fast-moving market with price data, news and market intelligence right here on Fastmarkets. Discover more than 2000 prices, news and analysis in primary and secondary metals markets. We cover base metals, industrial minerals, ores and alloys, steel, scrap and steel raw materials. If you already have a Fastmarkets account, youll still have uninterrupted access to your markets by logging in with your current details. n October 2016, the city of Rio de Janeiro will host one of the biggest events in the mining sector - the World Mining Congress - WMC 2016. The 24th edition of this event will be promoted by the Brazilian Mining Association - IBRAM, and shall continue to focus its efforts on promoting and providing techno-scientific support for cooperation in support of progress in mining and the development of natural mineral resources. The World Mining Congress is a world event on mining that takes place every 3 years. Led by a secretariat with organisational status, it is associated with the United Nations and is located in the Central Mining Institute, in the city of Katowice, Poland. Its goal is to promote and support cooperation, both technically and scientifically, for national and international progress in mining and natural mineral resources.Since its first edition in 1958, WMC has been establishing a world exchange network in various areas of knowledge: science, technology, economics, health and safety in mining activities, and environmental protection. It is a great opportunity to learn about and follow projects that are developed by professionals who, in the most part, work in one of its 42 member countries. A Justice of the Supreme Court, Inyang Okoro, who is among the seven judges arrested by the operatives of the Department of State Services between October 7 and 8, has accused the Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, as the one who instigated his ordeal. He said in his four-page letter dated October 17, 2016 and addressed to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, that he strongly believed that Amaechi had a hand in his travails because the Supreme Court ruled against the All Progressives Congress governorship candidates in Abia, Akwa Ibom and Rivers states. He also said during the raid on his house in Abuja which started around 9pm on October 7 and ended at about 1am on October 8 by the DSS operatives, the sums of $38,800 and N3.5m were recovered in his residence. He said the sums of money recovered during the search of his home by so many heavily armed men were the balance of his unspent estacode for the past three years. On the involvement of Amaechi in his ordeals, the Justice of the apex court said both the minister and the APCs governorship candidate in Akwa Ibom State in the 2015 poll, Mr. Umana Umana, made attempts to use him to influence the decision of the Supreme Court on the election cases. He said both men at different times paid him visits in their bid to influence the apex courts decisions. Okoro said during Amaechis visit, the former Rivers State governor said President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC wanted him (Okoro) to help in influencing the Supreme Court to deliver judgments in favour of the party. He said Amaechi claimed to have sponsored Umanas election and as such could not afford not to win the case that was to later come before the apex court. Reacting, Amaechi described the allegation by the judge as a figment of his imagination, He denied the allegation that he approached the judge for a favourable judgment. The former governor of Rivers State, who stated this in a statement by his media office, asked the judge to respond to the corruption allegation levelled against him. The statement said, This accusation from Justice Okoro against Amaechi is a figment of his imagination, concocted to obfuscate and politicise the real issues for his arrest and the DSS investigation of allegations of corruption against him. The claims by Justice Okoro against Amaechi are blatant lies, bereft of any iota of truth or even logic. Amaechi did not, and has never approached Justice Okoro in respect of the cases Okoro mentioned or any other case. This is a cheap attempt, albeit political move to drag the name of Amaechi into something he knows nothing about. Justice Okoro should face his issues and leave Amaechi out of it. He will be hearing from our lawyers. Justice Okoro also alleged that Umana promised to be paying him millions of naira if he (Okoro) cooperated. He said, My Lord, I strongly believe that this my travail is not unconnected with the verbal report I made to you on 1st of February, 2016 about the visit to my official residence by H/E Rotimi Amaechi, former Governor of Rivers State and now Minister of Transportation. In that report, I told you My Lord, that Mr. Amaechi said that the President of Nigeria and the All Progressives Congress mandated him to inform me that they must win their election apppeals in respect of Rivers State, Akwa Ibom State and Abia State at all costs. For Akwa Ibom State, he alleged that he sponsored Mr. Umana Umana, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress for that election and that if he lost the Akwa Ibom appeal, he would have lost a fortune. Mr. Amaechi also said that he had already visited you and that you had agreed to make me a member of the panel that would hear the appeals. He further told me that Mr. Umana would be paying me millions of naira monthly if I cooperated with them. Source: Punch Thousands of Argentine women will take to the streets of Buenos Aires to protest the fatal rape of a 16-year old girl, Lucia Perez. Perez died in early October after she was dropped off at the hospital by two men who claimed she had overdosed on drugs. Doctors later found evidence that she was raped. Three men have been arrested in connection with the indident as authorities say shee was drugged with cocaine before shebwas raped by the men. Lucias mother, Marta, said: We cant understand such barbarity. Its impossible to understand. Activists have called on women to wear black and walk out of their offfices at midday to protest the incident. President Muhammadu Buhari will on Wednesday meet the 21 Chibok girls who were released by Boko Haram on October 13, and their families at the State House, Abuja. The president is yet to meet the girls as he was in Germany for talks with German Chancellor, Angela Merkel a few hours after the girls were released. They were received instead by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on his behalf. The girls are part of the over 200 schoolgirls who were in April, 2014 abducted from a government secondary school in Chibok, Borno state, by Boko Haram insurgents. Their release was brokered by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Swiss government. They have been reunited with their family. It has been reported that the Islamic State-allied Boko Haram faction is willing to free 83 more girls if the Nigerian government is ready to negotiate. There are also claims that about 100 of the girls are with the Abubakar Shekau faction. SEE ALSO: Buharis daughter, group float Chibok girls fund, BBOG kicks Rubbish dumps are gradually taking over Alagbole, Olori, Abule Ekun and Oke Aro communities, in the Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State, as every available space and drainage channels have been turned into illegal dumps. It was gathered that the development was the consequence of lack of government rubbish dumps in the communities. An environmental expert said the indiscriminate waste disposal in the area was an invitation to an epidemic. Our correspondent, who visited some of the illegal rubbish dumps, observed that the dumps were located at the heart of the communities. All the dumps visited were manned by attendants, who collected money before anyone disposed refuse. The men declined comment on their mode of operation and the management of the dumps. PUNCH Metro also observed that the dump in Alagbole was close to a river. The attendant at the site, who refused to disclose his identity, said, Baale is the person who asked us to fill this place (the river). We dont collect more than N100 from whoever comes to dispose of refuse. Once they bring their waste, we receive them. We normally burn everything during the dry season. At the dump in Oke-Aro, the attendant did not allow our correspondent access to the site, insisting that only his boss could give the permission. A resident, who identified himself as Saga, however, said, We pay N300 per trip to dump our refuse. A landlord at the Obanla area of Enilolobo, Oke Aro, where a rubbish dump is situated, Mr. Alabi Ogunbukola, lamented the foul smell in the area caused by the dump. Ogunbukola said, The smoke and foul smell from the dump have been discouraging people, especially tenants, from staying here. There is no fresh air to breathe around here. Some residents of this densely-populated community suffered respiratory diseases, and it is not unconnected with the presence of the dump. A community development association leader in Olori, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said attempts to stop indiscriminate disposal of refuse in the area had failed. In 2012, we attempted to stop the use of that place as a refuse dump. I visited the baale to say it was not safe for residents, but my efforts failed. They probably want to fill that place up so as to sell it, he said. Also, a top government source told our correspondent that the Oke Aro rubbish dump was approved by the Ifo LGA. However, the Commissioner for Environment, Ogun State, Mr. Bolaji Oyeleye, said there was no government approved rubbish dump in the Akute and Alagbole areas. There is no official dump in the Alagbole and Akute areas, but there are pockets of places where residents have been dumping their refuse, Oyeleye said. An environmental expert, Mrs. Nike Olokode, lamented the indiscriminate waste disposal in the area, adding that it exposed residents to environmental health hazard. Besides perennial flooding, she noted that an epidemic was inevitable if the improper waste disposal was not decisively addressed in the area. She said, People are just eager to see their domestic waste leave their premises. They are ignorant that it comes back to them some other ways. Men who use carts to collect domestic waste for a fee and managers of sites, where such are dumped, lack required competence. Therefore, disposed wastes are fed back into the system through air and water. Consequently, ill health, environmental insanitary and similar hazard may result. Source: Punch The international community has had its eyebrows raised following the emergence of a photograph showing an Indonesian woman caned on Monday in front of a jeering crowd after being accused of standing too close to her boyfriend. The unidentified woman was among 13 people flogged in Aceh province on the western island of Sumatra for allegedly breaking strict Islamic laws, which ban intimate behaviour such as touching, hugging, and kissing between unmarried people. Photographs which show the young woman crying out in pain have been shared by local and international media, amid growing concerns over the rising number of people subjected to corporal punishment in the region. Indonesia is the worlds most populous Muslim-majority country, but Aceh is the only province which imposes sharia law. People in the region can be flogged for a number of offences, including gambling, drinking alcohol, and gay sex, in addition to any consensual sex outside of marriage. Operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Rivers State Police Command have smashed a kidnap gang responsible for numerous abduction cases in Eleme area of the state. Acting on a tip-off, the operatives were able to arrest stanley Mgbiri, Mkpowu Blessing, and Micheal Hope, who are serial kidnappers terrorizing the axis. The trio are responsible for the kidnap of a nine (9) year old girl, Miracle John, at Igbo Etche. The suspects were arrested when they threatened to kidnap one Mr. Osato Nwakaji from Onne. They asked him to pay the sum of N3 million into a certain bank account. They threatened to kidnap him as they did to a certain staff of NNPC whom they collected a ransom of N12 million from and yet killed the man. As a bait, Mr Nwakaji paid the sum of N100,000.00 into their account, this lead to their arrests as they were caught wile attempting to withdraw it. They are presently helping the Police as further investigation is ongoing, and the suspects will be charged to court as soon as investigations are over. According to the Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Omoni Nnamdi, the Commissioner of Police, CP. Francis M. Odesanya, is assuring the people of Rivers State of the resolute of the Command to fight crime and get rid of all the criminal elements in the state. He enjoins all members of the public to cooperate with the State Command in its determination to ensure safety for all. He appreciates public cooperation in providing useful information to fight kidnappers and other criminal elements in the state. Barack and Michelle Obama hosted their final state dinner at the White House on Tuesday night. First Lady Michelle Obama dazzled the crowd in a floor-length rose gold Atelier Versace gown as she joined her husband to welcome visiting Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and his wife, Agnese Landini. Prime Minister Matteo Renzis wife Agnese Landini also sparkled in a floor-length, silver, and gray gown as the First Families stepped inside the White House for the final state dinner. The Nasarawa State Government says it has removed five principals from different schools for charging fees from students. Ramatu Ajuji-Abubakar, Nasarawa State Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, made this known during an interview with newsmen in Lafia on Tuesday. From our investigation so far, we discovered and have removed five principals of different schools for charging students fees, she said. She further threatened to sanction any principal in public schools caught collecting fees from students. According to her, the free education policy of the state government is still in force from primary to secondary levels. Students are not supposed to pay any money and any principal caught extorting money from the unsuspecting students in the name of school fees would be sanctioned. Students in all the public boarding schools across the state are not to pay money or give any food item as the government has taken full charge of their feeding, the commissioner said. She explained that the state government, through the ministry, had set machinery in motion to check illegal practices by principals. Ms. Ajuji-Abubakar added that the government has provided massive infrastructure at both primary and secondary schools in the state in order to provide environment conducive for teachers and students. She said in spite of the huge investments of government in providing infrastructure and feeding for boarding students, government was still battling with the high influx of students from private schools. She cautioned the leadership of the Parent-Teacher Association in the state not to charge the students any money without permission from the ministry as doing so would not be tolerated. Ukraine considers the upcoming meeting in Berlin as a platform to demonstrate Russias unwillingness to fulfill Minsk agreements, which will result in the extension of sanctions at the summit of the European Council on October 20, Deputy Head of Presidential Administration of Ukraine Kostiantyn Yeliseyev has said. "This meeting is considered in the context of the Summit of the European Council, which is to be held in Brussels on October 20, where the development strategy of the EU's relations with the Russian Federation will be considered on the basis of new conditions. Therefore, "Normandy format" summit is another opportunity to demonstrate its inability or unwillingness to fulfill Minsk agreements to Russia, and the result of this unwillingness will be the EU's decision to extend the sanctions or tighten them, if necessary," he said on air of 5 TV channel on Tuesday night. Yeliseyev also said that for Ukraine the key issues of the meeting are: access to the Special Mission of the OSCE border, the withdrawal of all Russian troops from the territory of Donbas, the release of hostages, ensuring of holding local elections in Donbas region in the future by ensuring the work of the armed OSCE mission, as well as the removal of all "fake" structures of the executive and legislative branches of the so-called "LPR" and "DPR". The AP deputy head emphasized the importance of taking the development initiatives of the 'road map' of implementation of the Minsk agreements by all partners. A new social networking app named Rich Kids has been launched presumably for affluent consumers. The app is available on Apples App Store, and offers free membership via Facebook login. Non-paying users who choose to sign up will be able to view and follow the young and wealthy. Only Rich Kids members are allowed to post content on this ultra-exclusive social network. The app crowns itself as the worlds most exclusive social network, and separates itself from the regular, free-to-use social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram by charging its users a $1,000 monthly fee for premium membership. Its site says, Being rich is boring when nobody sees you. According to Rich Kids developer, the app was created for more privileged people who want to stand apart from the rest of the users. It promises to offer its wealthy members the ability to gain new followers they might not be able to find among the millions of users on Instagram. The Rich Kids team states Anyone can use #rkoi or #richkids hashtag on Instagram or pose next to a luxury car on a parking lot. But not on Rich Kids. We created something different. A new social network where our members can really stand out and be visible in an elegant and meaningful way. Share their life with other users and build a true fan base. Only members of Rich Kids can share photos. To become a member, users have to subscribe to Rich Kids Membership. To ensure the quality and exclusivity of our members the membership is set to be $1,000 per month, they added. The developers claim that the high payment charges are for maintaining the quality and exclusivity of the wealthy members. Rich Kids CEO, Juraj Ivan, said that a third of the membership fee will go to the education of poor kids. With proper education, they have a chance for a better life, its website added. The app is already gaining members. Robert Cavalli, son of a renowned fashion designer Roberto Cavalli, has been reported to be one of the first members of the app. Turkish real estate empire heir, Emir Bahadir and Ukrainian socialite Julia Stakhiva have also been reported to have joined. The 21st century experienced its first global melt down in the middle of 2007 when the world stock markets fell, large financial institutions collapsed and governments in even the wealthiest nations came up with rescue packages to bail out their financial systems. Within a short while, the world had serious financial crisis on its hand. The military was one of the few institutions that withstood the onslaught and continued its operations in most countries of theworld. Defence and economy are deeply intertwined and the tendency to apply an economically driven approach towards defence will always occur in most climes. Defence is not only a question of means, it is also a question of planning, training and organising, it is a question of strategy. That strategy has been replicated in the Nigerian army which has fortified the defence of the country and now emerging as a force that will withstand another economy or global meltdown that is already in the offing. With a period of one year, the man at the helms of affairs of the Nigerian Army has brought about the professionalism that was fading away. Frugality, simplicity and conservation is what is required by any administrator in this era when the national reserves are dwindling. The Chief of Army Staff(COAS), Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai, has hit the ground running right from the onset and made the management more pronounced by carrying out forensic audit of its units, formations and all operations across the country in July this year, to ensure judicious use of funds for North East operations. The COASs management strategy which is part of efforts to ensure prudent utilisation of resources allocated to the army and ensure that they justify what was being used to prosecute their operations goes a long way in solving the hydra-headed issues that is in Nigeria. The prudence and forensic audit goes a long way in solving the Nigerian battle with the onerous task of trying to bridge the wide infrastructural chasm that exists in every sector of the nation. The North-Eastern part ofthe country which has been the hotbed of the terrorist is being liberated on daily basis, thereby giving way for the economic activities there to pick up since the past one year, due to the professionalism of the manager of the army-Burutai. Since he assumed office, over 20,000 people who were kidnapped by the Boko Haram terrorists in Nigerias northeast have been rescued from captivity. This goes along way in raising the morale of the civil populace and the residents of the most affected areas of terrorists attack. The morale in question is also directed to the personnel of the Nigerian army, who are ready to work well under the right leadership- morale to work well , inspite of the dwindling reserves. The Chief of Army Staff brought out the best with the little resources at his disposal to ensure the benefit of soldiers in the country and also to justify what was being used to prosecute their operations. By ensuring the inclusion of barracks renovation in the 2016 federal budget, which has resulted in the massive renovation of residential and office accommodation, the building of new barracks for soldiers across the country. The Maxwell Khobe Cantonment Jos, Nigerian Army School of Artillery in Kachia Kaduna State, Office of the Military Secretary,the ongoing army barracks building in Otukpo, Benue state and others, Burutai has demonstrated the management trait required from a leader. A well-ordered modern state is one that holds a monopoly on the legitimate use of force, and that allows domestic markets tooperate. Internationally, where order is more tenuous, residual concerns about the coercive use of force, even if a low probability, can have important effects including a stabilising effect. Burutai has created this stabilising effect within a period of one year in office by constantly appealing to the public to always avail the military or any nearby security agency of any useful information that would lead to the continued success inthe counter-insurgency war. The meetings with security heads including the police, Department of State Services and representatives of companies also give the stabilising effect to the people required from a COAS. His recent proposal to the militants in the Niger Delta area of Nigeria to speak with one voice, if they expect to be taken seriously is a right step in unifying the civil populace for optimum result. The proliferation of groups, who claim to be Niger Delta militants, do not come across as a genuine move for peace, as Burutai affirmed this month, is step in the right direction and the Exercise Crocodile Smile not to be mistaken for an invasion in the Niger Delta region sheds more insight about the armys operations. Burutais mandate to military personnel to respect the rights of law abiding citizens in their areas of operation whom he said were critical to the success of the exercise also shows a leader that respects human rights of individuals. This sensitisation of the public from him goes a long way in allowing the public to know what the army is doing in the Niger Delta. The army extends its cordiality in the region by offering free medical services to the people. The team of Operation Crocodile Smile has demonstrated it in communities in Delta ,Rivers and Bayelsa states and other places. To strengthen this friendship, soldiers have gone out of the normal line of duty to tame kidnappings and abductions by engaging in rescue operations. They have rescued several innocent persons from kidnappers and petty criminals and the victims have been reunited with their families. Burutais declaration as an incentive to soldiers currently in the war front with Boko Haram insurgents in the North-East zone of Nigeria or elsewhere in the country would have personal houses upon retirement would definitely have a multiplier effect on every facet of the army. By directing the army Post-Housing Development Directorate to work out modalities for this housing scheme and the Nigerian Army headquarters unrelenting efforts to stand by soldiers wishing to secure mortgage loans for personal housing projects, the COAS has turned things around for the benefits of all. Indeed, military power provides a degree of security that is to order as oxygen is to breathing, with the right leadership at the helm of affairs. In the twenty-first century, where military power does not have the same utility for states that it had in the twentieth century, but remains the pivot for stability, it will remain a crucial component of power in world politics. The recurring financial meltdown that has also hit Nigeria will be managed well if the right COAS is in place. Source: Vanguard Nigerian Newspaper Headlines October 19: Punch The Federal Inland Revenue Service on Tuesday sealed the premises of two oil servicing companies for evading tax worth over N500m in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State. Guardian The Nigeria Army has confirmed an attack on troops in the border town of Gashigar by Boko Haram insurgents injuring 13 soldiers, while some are missing. Vanguard More than 300,000 Nigerians affected by the insurgency in the North-East are to benefit from an 11 million Euros Oxfam intervention fund to aid food production in impacted communities. Leadership The House of Representatives has expressed concern over the likely relocation of agriculture value chain companies as well as non-agriculture-related ones from the country owing to the scarcity of foreign exchange in the country. Premium Times Another Nigerian judge caught in the State Security Service crackdown on senior judicial officers has written to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Mahmud Mohammed, stating how the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, allegedly tried to manipulate him. The Lagos State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps has arrested a driver, Adebiyi Yusuf, for allegedly engaging in illegal oil bunkering and adulteration of diesel. Thirty-two-year old Yusuf was apprehended along with one Paul Ifeakandu on Saturday on the premises of a complex on Jimoh Odutola Street, Surulere, Lagos, where they were reportedly selling the product. PUNCH Metro gathered that eight drums and 14 jerrycans of adulterated diesel; six drums of chemicals; six pumping machines and two number plates, among other items, were recovered from the premises. Tanks said to be 11,000 litres each were also reportedly mounted on the premises. Our correspondent learnt that the anti-vandal team of the corps, acting on a tip-off, swooped on the suspects around 4pm on Satuday. They were paraded on Tuesday at the NSCDC state commands headquarters in Ikeja. Forty-five-year-old Ifeakandu, who hails from Anambra State, said he only assisted the owner of the factory, identified as Okechukwu, to offload the product from tankers. He said, The product belongs to Mr. Okechukwu. He is also from Anambra State. I help him to offload the diesel. According to him, he buys the product from a depot in Apapa. I have been working with Mr. Okechukwu for two years now. He gives me N3,000 for every offloading I do. However, Yusuf, who claimed to be a Forte Oil tanker driver, denied his involvement in the act, saying he was ill and decided to sleep inside a vehicle parked on the premises when the operatives nabbed him. Yususf, who also claimed to be a Lagos State indigene, said in Yoruba that he started working for the oil company in January, 2015. He said, I was arrested while sleeping in a vehicle on the premises. I told the officers that I am an assistant driver with Forte Oil and not an oil thief, but they ignored my explanation. There are mechanics and some people selling gas on the premises. I dont know why they spared them and arrested me. I dont know anything about the seized product. The Lagos State Commandant of the NSCDC, Tajudeen Balogun, however, said the suspects were culpable of dealing in adulterated and illegal oil bunkering. He said, They (the suspects) dont have licence from the appropriate agency. It looks like they are working for somebody. The commandant added that the suspects would be charged to court soon. Forte Oil Plc, however, denied that Yusuf was its worker. An official of the firm, who did not want his name in print, said, We dont have tanker drivers. He may be working for a transporter. Transporters are independent of our company. We have checked his name in our database; the suspect is not known to us. The company is not affiliated to this case. Source: Punch A former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, has told the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission that he gave the sum of N2.3bn to the Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, in the run-up to the Ekiti State governorship election in 2014. Obanikoro was said to have also told operatives that N60m was converted to dollars at N168 per to a dollar and given to Fayose. The PUNCH learnt on Tuesday that the minister told operatives of the anti-graft commission, who continued his interrogation in Abuja on Tuesday, that he personally handed over N5,357,357 to the governor on an occasion. A top operative of the commission, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said Obanikoro told his interrogators that the money was transferred to Fayose on the instruction of the former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki, (retd.). The source alleged that following the instructions from the former NSA, the sum of N1.3bn was brought for transfer to Fayose by Diamond Bank in a bullion van. Obanikoro was also said to have told the EFCC operatives that Agbele received the money in the presence of the ex-ministers Aide De Camp, one Lt. Adewale, and officials of Diamond Bank at the Lagos airport. The source added, The former minister, Obanikoro has made some revelations. You know that he responded to a petition from the office of the NSA dated 28/11/2015 under the category Payment without award of contracts. He admitted that N2.23bn was transferred to Macnamara for onward transfer to Governor Ayodele Fayose. He claimed that it was done on the instructions of the NSA. He also said he handed over N5,357,357 to Fayose. Obanikoro told the commission that the N1.3bn was received by Mr. Biodun Agbele, one of Fayoses associates, in the presence of his (Obanikoro) ADC, one Lt. Adewale, and bank officials. The former minister was said to have told his interrogators that while he had no interaction with the officials of the bank, he called Fayose to have his consent to hand over the money to Agbele. The source stated that Obanikoro also told his interrogators that Agbele used his (Obanikoro) mobile to speak to Fayose to confirm receipt of the money. Obanikoro also said the money was moved from the Lagos airport to Akure airport in two flights. He said he instructed that the money be handed over to the governor before leaving with the first flight, the source said. The source said the ex-defence minister, however, denied ownership of Sylvan Mcnamara, the company that received N4.685bn from the ONSA between April 4, 2014 and November 13, 2014. The anti-graft agency had alleged that Obanikoros sons, Babajide and Gbolahan, were directors in Sylvan Mcnamara as of the time the money was paid into the companys account. The former minister was quoted to have admitted that he introduced the owner of the firm, whose name was given as Mr. Kareem Taiwo, to the former NSA in the days of heightened fear of possible Boko Haram attacks on Lagos and the South-West. The source stated, He denied being the owner of the company but admitted introducing the owner of the company, one Mr. Kareem Taiwo, to the NSA during the days of the threat of Boko Haram in Lagos and the South-West. He said the company was introduced to the ONSA at a time government was taking a decision to incorporate local input into intelligence gathering to prevent terrorists attacks in Lagos and the South-West. The PUNCH learnt that the former minister was being questioned by the commission for receipt of funds from the ONSA without contract awards. The firm, which received the money from the ONSA, Mcnamara, was said to be listed as number 78 among companies that received funds from the ONSA. Our correspondent learnt that Obanikoro was still being detained by the EFCC as of the time of fling this report on Tuesday night to continue with the agencys investigations on Wednesday. Source: Punch The Kano State Police Command said it arrested eleven suspected kidnappers in the notorious Falgore forest in Doguwa local government area of the state. The state Commissioner of Police, Rabiu Yusuf, made the disclosure on Tuesday in Kano while briefing journalists. He said the police anti-kidnap squad successfully rescued 10 victims from the suspected kidnappers in the forest. He added that the kidnappers were arrested on Tuesday, October 11, following intelligence report. The anti-kidnapping squad on receipt of intelligence report, launched a major offensive into the notorious criminal camp inside Falgore forest, he said. Yusuf said that during the operation which lasted for one hour, the police and the kidnappers exchanged fierce gun duel which resulted in the arrest of the suspects and rescue of the 10 kidnapped victims. According to the police commissioner, some of the suspected kidnappers escaped into the thick forest with bullet wounds. The police boss said that during mop-up operations, two victims, Bello Saleh and Mohammmed Sani of Rafin Kura Village, who were abducted on the same day, were rescued from the forest. Mr. Yusuf listed items recovered from the forest to include one AK- 47 rifle, two fully loaded magazines, 250 rounds of live 7.62 mm ammunition, eight Bajaj Boxer motorcycles, masks and other personal belongings. He said that all the rescued victims had undergone post trauma counselling and medical examination and would be formally handed over to their respective families. The police chief promised that the squad would to carry out similar operations in the area until all criminals in the forest were completely fished out and brought to book. The River State Police Command said it has apprehended three suspected fraudsters for circulating fake naira notes. The suspects, including a woman named Helen Okeke, were said to have been arrested, Tuesday, by operatives from the Rumuepirikom Division of the State Police Command. The other suspects are one Andrew Ogah and Ozoemena Okeke. The suspects photocopied N500 and N1000 denominations of the Nigerian currencies and were arrested when one of them, Mr. Ogah, attempted to deposit the money in a bank, the police spokesman in the state, DSP, Omoni Nnamdi, said. Mr. Nnamdi, said the suspects would be charged to court when the police conclude their investigation. As part of measures to reduce crime across Nigeria, the Nigeria Police has launched the Eminent Persons and Stakeholders Forum in Osun State. The police said security of lives and property must be taken as the business of every individual and not of security personnel alone. The Assistant Inspector of Police in charge of Zone 11, Dan Bature, conducted the inauguration on Tuesday at the Police Headquarters in Osogbo, the Osun State capital in southwest Nigeria. He stressed the need for a cordial relationship between the police and members of the society, saying it is imperative for the enhancement of security. Highlighting the purpose of the forum, Mr Bature noted that new trends of crime were experienced across the country. On his part, the Commissioner of Police in the state, Simian Adeoye, explained that the inauguration was in line with the directive of the Inspector General of Police, Mr Ibrahim Idris. He advocated the support and cooperation of every stakeholder towards ensuring proactive and effective policing in the state. Stakeholders at the event, Samson Adewole and DIG Adeoye Adedayo (rtd), urged the residents to see the security of lives and property as a collective responsibility. The police have launched similar forum in different states, as a strategy to maintain peace and secure lives and property of residents of different communities. A Saudi prince, Turki bin Saud al-Kabir has been executed for murder. Prince Turki bin Saud al-Kabir was put to death for the murder of a man, Adel bin Suleiman al-Muhaimeed, during a brawl in Riyadh three years ago. He was convicted by a General court but the manner of his execution was not disclosed. The family of Adel bin Suleiman al-Muhaimeed reportedly refused financial incentive from the Prince in order for them not to demand the death sentence. It is the first time in decades that a member of the Royal Family will be put to death. For the first time in 124 years, Vogue Magazine has endorsed a candidate for the American Presidential election. Hillary Clinton, the Democratic Presidential candidate is Vogues choice for the Presidency head of her Republican rival, Donald Trump. Editors in chief have made their opinions known from time to time, but the magazine has never spoken in an election with a single voice, Given the profound stakes of this [election], and the history that stands to be made, we feel that should change, the piece said. We understand that Clinton has not always been a perfect candidate, yet her fierce intelligence and considerable experience are reflected in policies and positions that are clear, sound, and hopeful, the endorsement continued. Vogues endorsement will come as a huge boost to Clinton ahead of the final Presidential debate on Wednesday night. As of Wednesday morning, Ukraine has not removed its forces and equipment from Stanytsia Luhanska in view of the enemy not having observed the ceasefire for seven days, Donbas operation headquarters spokesman Viktor Shubets told Interfax. "Under the agreements, the ceasefire should last seven days. But we are not losing hope that the opposite side will honor its obligations, and then the separation of forces and equipment will take place," he said. He said of the current situation in the Stanytsia Luhanska area: "Yesterday there was no shelling there" and "it was also quiet there between midnight and ten in the morning." Representatives of the Luhansk People's Republic said earlier they were ready for another attempt to withdraw forces and equipment in the Stanytsia Luhanska area on October 19. With its pulling of the plug on Small Business Server (SBS) in 2011, Microsoft encouraged small business (those with as many as 500 users and 500 devices) to go with the new Essentials version of Windows Server. Windows Server 2016, now available for download, has gotten a lot of attention -- the 2016 version of Windows Server Essentials, not so much. Microsoft's server portfolio had so many great tools that small IT shops requested, but they didnt want -- or couldn't afford -- to set up the required infrastructure. To accomplish that ease, Microsoft put everything in the SBS box: Exchange, SharePoint, SQL Server, and so on. But today, small IT shops can use Office 365 instead. [ From Docker containers and Nano Server to software-defined storage and networking improvements, Windows Server 2016 is packed with great additions: Get the scoop on Windows Server 2016 from InfoWorld. | Stay up on key Microsoft technologies with the Windows Report newsletter. ] Why bother with Windows Server Essentials now? Because although you can rely entirely on Office 365 in the cloud, chances are you want more local control and hands-on capabilities on local servers. That's the main reason to use Windows Server Essentials, as a supplement to Office 365. (Yes, you can also use Windows Server Essentials in an on-premises-only deployment for basic services.) By integrating your Windows Essentials Server with Office 365, you can perform much of the administration through the Dashboard on your server. For example, you can create accounts easily; you can manage license assignments; password changes made on-premises are synced to Office 365; and you can manage mobile devices and other services from the server. Granted, you could do this from the Office 365 admin center too, but it's so much easier to have everything in one place. The Essentials Experience server role, shown in Figure 1, is how you connect Windows Server Essentials to Office 365. It contains wizards to handle complex integrations, such as synchronizing directories and setting up single sign-on. Remember: The Office 365 integration works only with a single domain controller, and the wizard must run on that domain controller. Figure 1: The Essentials Experience server role helps you extend the functionality of your server to the cloud-based Office 365. To illustrate how Windows Server Essentials works, I set up a single Windows Server 2016 server and configured Active Directory so that it would be the sole domain controller for my domain. I then enabled the Essentials role and let it install the role and features needed for a Windows Server Essentials server. Once the role was installed, I selected the Essentials shortcut on my desktop to open the Essentials Dashboard (shown in Figure 2). Figure 2: The Windows Server Essentials dashboard. Then I selected the Services option to get a list of integration options for cloud services and on-premises Exchange (see Figure 3). Figure 3: Using the Essentials dashboard to configure your Office 365 connection. Note that Azure Active Directory and Intune are included in the list of services. New to the 2016 version, Windows Server Essentials can integrate with Azure Site Recovery Services, which allows for real-time replication of your server/site for recovery purposes. It can also integrate with Azure Virtual networking to allow for point-to-point (P2P) or site-to-site (S2S) virtual private networks so that when you have split resources (some in the cloud and some on-premises) they appear to fall under one local network. To kick off the wizard, you click the integration link and follow the prompts. You can either create a subscription for Office 365 or use an existing one through the wizard. Once the wizard has completed, you can use the dashboard from the server to add and manage user accounts in Office 365. Hat tip to Andrew Higginbotham, an Exchange MCM and Microsoft MVP, for suggesting I cover Windows Server Essentials 2016 in this column. You'd be forgiven if you were a little suspicious of Google's resolve in the smartphone game. This is, after all, the company that's used a revolving door to partner with every major player/competitor except Apple for each generation of Nexus device. This is the company that bought Motorola, strip-mined it for patents, and sold the husk to Lenovo. That being said, it's impossible not to pay attention when Google presents its new smartphones, the Pixel and Pixel XL, which are billed as "the first phones made by Google." [ Android is now ready for real usage in the enterprise. Read InfoWorld's in-depth guide on how to make Android a serious part of your business. | Get the best office apps for your Android device. ] The Pixels are indeed the first phones to carry only Google's name, with no credit to a development partner. The Google Nexuses were co-branded with their manufacturer. But if you've tried out a lot of smartphones (and done a bit of online research) you'll realize that the Pixels are very much the work of HTC -- which is a good thing. The smaller Pixel has a 5-inch display; it measures 5.7 x 2.75 inches, about 0.1 in. longer than the Samsung Galaxy S7, and 0.3 inches longer and 0.1 inches wider than an iPhone 7. The XL, which has a 5.5-inch display, measures 6.1 x 3 inches, about 0.1 inches bigger in both dimensions than a Galaxy S7 Edge, and about 0.1 inches shorter and the same width as an iPhone 7 Plus. Both Pixel phones come in Quite Black, Very Silver, and (in a limited edition) Really Blue. (I just write these, I don't make 'em up.) Mentioned in this article Pixel XL $769.00 MSRP $769.00 See it on Google The Pixel XL that Google made available for review is more than a little reminiscent of the HTC 10, a phone I reviewed in April and liked very much. The Pixels use the same solid aluminum case, with chamfers along the rounded edges that make it comfortable to hold. The back is flat, without any bulge for the fingerprint sensor or camera. The top third of the back, though, has a glossy plastic insert. The fit and finish are perfect, but it's unclear why Google didn't use metal for the whole back. One probable reason may be to enhance radio power, but it's a bit of an odd look. There's a knurled power button and volume rocker on the right edge, a SIM drawer on the left, a single speaker with two ports and a USB-C socket on the bottom, and a headphone jack on the top. The Google branding is subtle to the point of invisibility: a small phone-color logo on the bottom of the back. The displays are AMOLED and covered with Corning Gorilla Glass 4. The Pixel's screen is full HD (1920 x 1080 at 441ppi) and the XL's is quad HD (2560 x 1440 at 534ppi). The display is okay; I've seen better, and there's no evident way to adjust the color accuracy. Mentioned in this article Pixel $649.00 MSRP $649.00 See it on Google There's very little bezel along the left and right edges. The Back, Home, and Recent buttons are done in software on the screen, not as hard buttons on the phone's chin. The chin, interestingly, is featureless: no mic, no buttons, no obvious sensors (although it's a sure bet that there are proximity sensors underneath). The internals are about what you'd expect from a high-end phone: a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 quad-core processor, 4GM of RAM, either 32GB or 128GB of local storage (although no provision for an SD card). The Pixel's battery is 2770mAh, and the XL's is 3450mAh. I ran the AnTuTu Benchmark suite on the XL review unit, which yielded a score of 140747, compared to 134599 for the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and 133781 for the iPhone 6S. (Scores for the iPhone 7 phones weren't available for comparison.) The higher benchmark is not surprising: Qualcomm says the Pixel's Snapdragon 821 runs about 10 percent faster than the S7 Edge's 820. Sure enough, the Pixel benchmarks are about 6 percent higher. There's more to a benchmark than raw processor power, of course. And, in fact, the 821 chip also promises better battery life. The Pixel XL lasted about 4.5 hours in the AnTuTu battery drain test; in comparison, the Galaxy S7 Edge got about 4 hours out of a 5 percent bigger battery. Using Qualcomm's increasingly common Quick Charge 3.0, the Pixel XL charged from zero to 100 percent in about two hours. The drawback: Quick Charge 3.0 requires a fairly chunky wall plug. The other drawback: Charging through a standard USB 3.0 port is very slow, on the order of seven hours to go from 50 percent to 100 percent. Subjectively, the Pixel XL ran quickly with no evident delay and no freezes or crashes during testing. Because of recent events with Samsung's Note 7, I've started to play closer attention to battery temperature. The Pixel XL's battery never reached higher than 110F, even during stressful rapid charge or high demands of benchmarks. In normal use, the battery never even felt warm. Pixel phones do not support wireless charging. There is an NFC chip that supports Android Pay. Unlike some current top-of-the-line phones, you won't want to bring the Pixel swimming. Google advises that the phones have a penetration rating of IP53. That means it won't get hurt by dust, and it will survive getting sprayed and splashed a little. Don't use it as a waterski for your pet squirrel, though. Network flexibility Where you can buy the Pixel gives an important clue into how the phone fits into Google's plans. You can get it from Verizon (or one of its resellers, including Best Buy) or from Google itself as part of its Project Fi smartphone service. Verizon's core phone network uses the CDMA standard, which only Sprint also uses. Its data network, however, runs on 4G LTE, which uses the global GSM standard. The review unit came with a Verizon 4G LTE SIM card. A close look at the phone's settings reveals that Pixels are designed to use the LTE network for calls and data whenever possible. Moreover, the phone does not appear to be locked. I put a Project Fi SIM into the Pixel (which, again, was sent with a Verizon SIM and would reasonably be expected to be locked into Verizon), and it worked fine using Fi's mix of GSM and Wi-Fi. Verizon, of course, offers a zillion Android smartphones to choose from. Google, however, has just two others: The Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X, both of which are a little long in the tooth. For Verizon, the Pixel is just another phone. For Google, the Pixel is the flagship it's going to have to live with for a while. Nougat-y goodness The Pixel is the first U.S.-available phone that runs Android Nougat (7.1). LG's V20 was the world's first Nougat phone, but despite widespread teases and previews to journalists, it is not yet sold in the United States. However, Nougat has begun to be sent to existing phones. Most of the changes in Nougat are under the hood, but there are a couple of interface changes that I found especially interesting: Split-screen and Settings. Phones running Nougat can now show two apps running side by side (as long as those two apps are enabled for the feature). With, for example, Chrome open, hold down the Recent button and you'll be shown a list of your recently opened apps. Tap one of them, and your screen will split and you'll see -- and be able to work with -- both apps. It's really handy, and works in both portrait and landscape modes. The changes to Settings seem designed to simplify what had threatened to become an endless set of possibilities and options. A first swipe from the top of the screen displays five customizable frequently used controls: By default, Wi-Fi, cell signal/data usage, battery use, Do Not Disturb, and flashlight. Where a second swipe used to open the full Settings menu, it now shows a few more customizable settings. To see the full Settings menu, tap the Gear icon. And when you do get to the Settings menu, you'll find it much simplified, with many fewer top-level categories. To find a feature that's been moved, there's an effective Search window. And rather than forcing you to work your way up and down a menu tree to get things done, there's now a menu icon on all submenu screens that lets you move to another setting quickly. It's a big improvement. Phone as cloud device It will not come as a surprise that the cloud is a key part of the Pixel experience. Why no SD card slot? Because of the Cloud. Your photos and videos are automatically uploaded to your Google Photos account, as is other data when your phone gets too full. And Google has a point -- no SD card is necessary when you have infinite storage at the other end of your data pipe. But because this is a Google phone, you're going to have pushed at you what Google wants to push at you. Hangouts is here, but so is the new Allo chat app, Google Assistant voice control, and Duo video calling. (And because it's from Verizon, the phone came with My Verizon, Message+, and Go90 apps, which at least is a lighter payload than usual.) Pixel's pixels Google brags that the Pixel's 12MP back camera (the front camera offers 8MP) earned the best-ever score of 89 from the DXOmark photo benchmarking team. It's true as far as that goes, but it's also true that the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and the HTC 10 got an 88 -- and that the Samsung's screen is better. What struck me is that the Pixel's camera's functions were very limited in comparison to what some other high-end phones are offering. It has the expected photo and video functions, and also slow motion, panorama, photo sphere and lens blur function -- this last for close-ups where you want to blur out everything but the subject. But there's no hyperlapse or manual mode. There's a way to control white balance, but nothing that lets you play with things like exposure compensation or metering modes, and there's no way to capture RAW-format images. In selfie mode, there's no voice or gesture control, or image recognition. For a phone called the Pixel, you might have expected more devotion to photography. There's more to a good camera than a great benchmark. Bottom line The Pixel phones are an important jump up in class for Google, especially for users of Project Fi. But if you're not a Fi user, it's hard to recommend the Pixel. Samsung's reputation has been badly dinged by the Note 7 recall, but that doesn't change the fact that the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge are great phones -- water-resistant with fine cameras, excellent displays, and wireless charging. Similarly, the HTC 10 is near the top of its class. The Pixel sells for $649 with 32GB of storage and $749 with 128GB; the Pixel XL sells for $769 for 32GB and $869 for 128GB of storage. In comparison, Verizon sells the 32GB version of the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge for $792, and the HTC 10 with 32GB for $648. The prices are more or less equivalent, and in my opinion, the Pixels don't quite measure up -- unless you feel that Nougat and the improved Google Assistant are deal-breakers. So from here, it doesn't look like the Pixels quite make it to the top of the heap. At a Glance Google Pixel and Pixel XL Price: Pixel: $649 (starting vendor price); Pixel XL: $769 (starting vendor price) Pros: Uses new Android Nougat, Google's latest OS; usable both on Verizon and Googles Project Fi; solid construction Cons: Price is as high as the competition's; camera functionality could be better Related video This story, "Review: Google's new Pixel XL is a fine phone -- but not that special" was originally published by Computerworld . Cotton Settles Red on Monday Barchart - 1 hour ago A wide ranged session from +133 points to -168 points ultimately settled with Dec cotton 11 points in the red at 72 c/lb flat. The other front months traded similarly, but closed weaker with losses of... CTZ22 : 72.00s (-0.15%) CTH23 : 71.64s (-0.60%) CTK23 : 71.85s (-0.62%) Cattle Close Weaker on Monday Barchart - 1 hour ago October fat cattle futures dropped $3.60 on Monday to expire at $146.77. The other front months closed firmer with losses limited to 52 cents. Feeder cattle closed Monday down by 25 cents to $1 in the... LEV22 : 146.775s (-2.39%) LEZ22 : 152.475s (-0.34%) LEG23 : 155.825s (-0.32%) GFX22 : 177.625s (-0.14%) GFF23 : 179.450s (-0.51%) Mixed Monday for Hog Market Barchart - 1 hour ago Lean hog futures ended the Monday round of trading with a 40 cent loss in Feb and a $1.17 loss for December. The other front months closed with $0.85 to $1.02 gains. That widened Aprils premium to Dec... HEZ22 : 84.925s (-1.36%) HEJ23 : 93.600s (+0.97%) KMZ22 : 95.475s (-0.68%) Double Digit Gains for Corn Barchart - 1 hour ago Corn futures worked lower off their initial strength out of the weekend to close the gaps. July futures met their objective but the nearby contracts left just a little room on their daily charts. The afternoon... ZCZ22 : 691-4s (+1.58%) ZCPAUS.CM : 6.8247 (+1.57%) ZCH23 : 696-6s (+1.46%) ZCK23 : 695-6s (+1.38%) Soy Futures Gain on Monday Barchart - 1 hour ago Beans closed the first trade day of the week with double digit gains of at least 1% in the front months. November got above its $14/bu mark for the closing bell on a 1.39% gain. Meal futures faded back... ZSX22 : 1407-0s (+1.39%) ZSPAUS.CM : 13.7181 (+1.75%) ZSF23 : 1419-4s (+1.37%) ZSH23 : 1427-4s (+1.31%) Livestock Report Walsh Trading - Mon Oct 31, 4:15PM CDT Hogs retreat An appeal by Phoenix-based U-Haul International Inc. and its subsidiary U-Haul Co. of California in response to a decade-old lawsuit was denied this week by the appellate court in San Francisco. As a result, U-Haul was ordered to pay the legal fees of Leigh Robinson, owner of Downtown Self Storage in Fairfield, Calif., who was sued by the company over a contractual no-compete clause in 2006. The court ruled that U-Haul used a no-compete clause in its rental-dealership contracts even though the company knew it was illegal to do so in California. The court said U-Hauls action indicated it would likely use the clause in the future. It also ruled the clause had hurt the truck-rental market by restricting fair competition, according to the source. Robinson acquired his self-storage facility in 2001, inheriting a contract to operate as a U-Haul truck-rental dealer. He terminated the contract in 2006 to work with Budget, a competing truck-rental company. At the time, U-Haul had already renewed its Yellow Pages advertising for Robinsons dealership and warned him via letter that the non-competition clause in the contract meant he couldnt compete locally against U-Haul while the advertising was in place. U-Haul sued Robinson a few months later for contract violation, the source reported. Dual lawsuits languished for years before Robinson prevailed in a 2013 civil-jury trial. The jury concluded U-Hauls lawsuit had been malicious and awarded the self-storage owner more than $195,000. Robinson also won his counter claim that the no-compete clause violated California law. Two years later, Judge Harry S. Kinnicutt ruled U-Haul had to pay Robinsons attorney fees, which had amassed to more than $834,000 over nine years. U-Haul appealed the Kinnicutt ruling, which led to this weeks appellate-court decision. According to the Better Business Bureau website, Robinson is also owner of Sunset Self Storage in Merced, Calif. Both the Downtown and Sunset facilities are part of a family-owned group of four storage properties in Northern California that operate under different names. Established in 1945, U-Haul has more than 49 million square feet of self-storage space at more than 1,300 owned and managed facilities throughout North America. Ukraine has imposed sanctions against a number of Russian and Crimean companies involved in coal transportation, handling and sales. The corresponding decision is stipulated in the resolution of National Security and Defense Council dated September 16, 2016 and presidential decree No. 467/2016. "The basis for applying sanctions is the actions of the legal entity, creating real or potential threats to the national interests of Ukraine," the document says. Some companies mentioned in the decree were earlier accused by the SBU of formalizing coal illegally exported from Donbas to Russia. The list of the companies that were applied the sanctions is as follows: South-Eastern Fuel Company (Kazan, Russia), OJSC Rostovtopprom (Rostov-on-Don, Russia) and the sales offices of the company, Coal Alliance LLC, Businesstranslogistic, Uglerod ore mining and processing mill, Donalliance (all based in Rostov region, the Russian Federation), Binom D LLC, Monolit Impex and Servis Postavok (all based in Taganrog, Russia), Chermetresurs LLC (Moscow region), and Port Mechel Temryuk (Krasnodar region, Russia). The list also includes the Crimean enterprises Donsevugol and GEN Invest (Kamysh-Burunsky port). Ansvar Insurance has unveiled a new business resilience toolkit designed to help brokers work with their SME clients in a crisis.The toolkit will help brokers assist their SME clients in the event of a crisis and was presented at the latest series of Ansvar forums.The toolkit consists of three components; a crisis management plan, a business continuity plan and recovery plans, all of which will help brokers work alongside their SME clients in the event of a crisis. The release of the toolkit follows changes made by the insurer to their business insurance products earlier this year.Ansvar Insurance also announced that their latest round of broker forums were the best attended to date with more than 300 delegates in attendance across the country.The forums, on the topic of technology and innovation, saw the insurer discuss its use of drones, thermography and security and fire detection systems and discuss the latest development of technology for risk assessment and mitigation.Ansvars next series of forums are currently in-development for 2017. Drivers in New South Wales could need to buy income protection insurance to maintain their current level of cover if green slip reforms progress.The Sydney Morning Herald reports that drivers may need to pick up the extra cover as the Baird government looks to overhaul the CTP industry.The Australian Lawyers Alliance has said that some consumers could have to pay up to $4600 a year in private income protection insurance premiums to maintain current levels of income cover."The government is not content with creating a scheme that will line the pockets of insurers by reducing the value of claims made by NSW drivers and pedestrians, but now they are going to force people to take out additional costly insurance from those very same insurers," Andrew Stone from the Alliance said, according to The Sydney Morning Herald."This move is going to hit hard-working families on a budget - the self-employed, tradies and manual workers need an income safety net to keep paying the bills for them and their families if injured."The Insurance Council of Australia said that it does not believe the reforms will lead to an uptick in customers purchasing income protection cover as many are already covered via superannuation fund or agreements with employers."Under the proposed reforms, injured road users will receive money for treatment and loss of income for up to five years," said ICA spokesman, Campbell Fuller , according to The Sydney Morning Herald."The final report of the CTP Reference Panel report indicates the number of minor-to-moderately-injured road users who still need treatment after five years is extremely small, and the report outlines options to provide them extra assistance.Victor Dominello, NSW minister for innovation and better regulation, hit back at the claims, labelling them alarmist and misleading."Under the current green slip scheme, injured people have to wait three to five years on average to receive income payments, from which significant legal fees are then deducted," Dominello said."Where the current system can leave people in financial stress and further traumatised by extended dispute resolution processes, the reforms will provide people with access for the first time to weekly income support if they need time off work to recover." New Jersey Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino and the Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor announced that a Woodbridge, N.J., man was sentenced to three years in prison for reporting that his motorcycle had been stripped of its parts by thieves on two occasions. In reality, he directed a repair shop to remove the parts so that he could make claims with his insurers. In pleading guilty, Lew Alicock stated that in May 2013, he filed a fraudulent claim with Pacific Specialty Insurance Company that parts of his Yamaha motorcycle had been stolen while parked outside his mothers house in Irvington. Alicock had actually paid a repair shop mechanic to remove the parts, including fairings and the slip over the exhaust. Alicock took the parts with him. Four days after filing his claim, he returned to the shop and had the mechanic put the parts back on the motorcycle, Alicock admitted. Pacific issued Alicock a $5,512.96 check for the claim, which he cashed. Alicock must pay the $5,512.96 back to Pacific Specialty Insurance Company under the sentence handed down by the Superior Court Judge Michael Toto in Middlesex County, N.J. Alicock also admitted he tried the scam again in November 2013, this time attempting to defraud Rider Insurance Company. Alicock said he filed a claim that his motorcycle had been stripped of several parts totaling more than $1,000 while being housed in Newark. In reality, Alicock had again paid to have the parts removed from his motorcycle, he admitted. Rider Insurance did not approve that claim. Deputy Attorney General Colin Keiffer represented the state sentencing. Randy Davenport, Esq. of the Law Office of Randy P. Davenport, Esq, represented Alicock at sentencing. Source: The New Jersey Office of the Attorney General Topics Auto Fraud New Jersey The Philippines raised the storm alert for two northern provinces to its highest level as authorities moved people to safer ground, canceled work and suspended flights before Super Typhoon Haima is due to make landfall as soon as Wednesday night. Haima is a Category 5 storm that is packing maximum winds of 140 knots (259.3 kilometers per hour) and gusts of up to 170 knots, according to the latest bulletin from the U.S. Navy and Air Forces Joint Typhoon Warning Center. The storm is expected to reach land either in Cagayan or Isabela province late Wednesday or early Thursday, the Philippine weather bureau said in its 2 p.m. report. Moderate to heavy rain is expected within its 800-kilometer diameter. Authorities are forcing people to evacuate in Cagayan and Ilocos Norte provinces, GMA Network reported, citing officials. Eight local flights had been canceled as of 2 p.m. Manila time, airport authorities said. School classes were suspended in nine provinces, while more than 500 passengers are stranded in various ports. Lower level alerts have been raised in more than 20 other provinces. Haima, the second storm to hit the Philippines main Luzon island in a week, may have a high humanitarian impact and could affect as many as 11.6 million people, according to the United Nations Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System. Named after a seahorse in China, the storm threatens to bring storm-surge flooding, damaging winds and possible landslides in the Philippines main Luzon island, The Weather Channel reported. The Philippines, battered annually by an average of 20 cyclones that form over the Pacific Ocean, is among countries most vulnerable to climate change, according to risk analysis company Verisk Maplecroft. Super Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest storms in the world to hit land, killed more than 6,000 people in November 2013 and left more than a thousand missing. Haima will remain a violent tropical system as it approaches China and may impact Hong Kong, Accuweather said. The storm is expected to enter the northern part of the South China Sea on Thursday, edging close to the coast of Guangdong on Oct. 21, the Hong Kong Observatory said. Related: Copyright 2022 Bloomberg. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Windstorm China JLT Re, the London-based reinsurance broker and consultant, has appointed Jong Kuk (JK) Moon as CEO of JLT Re Korea. Moon will be based in JLT Res Seoul office and will report to Kenny Moyes, CEO, JLT Re Asia. JK Moon will oversee JLT Re Koreas ongoing strategy and business development across treaty, facultative, analytics and strategic advisory on behalf of our core clients in Korea, said Moyes. With 23 years at Korean Re, JK Moons wide knowledge and experience of the property, marine, aviation, liability and various mutual re/insurances, notably in the government sector, makes him the ideal person for JLT Res continued growth in the Korean market, Moyes added. As a veteran underwriter across a number of business classes and geographies, Moons expertise and experience will be invaluable in helping to drive JLT Re Koreas business, as it delivers complex solutions that meet clients needs, the company said in a statement. Source: JLT Re France plans to increase a levy on property insurance policies to 5.90 euros [$6.30] from 4.30 euros [$4.59] per contract to bolster a fund that provides compensation to victims of attacks or other criminal acts. Following the Islamist attacks in France over the past two years paying out compensation has become a drain on the countrys Guarantee Fund for Victims of Terrorist and Other Criminal Acts (FGTI). More than 230 people have been killed in the attacks and hundreds more injured. The fund, created by the French government in 1986, is financed by a tax on 80 million individual car, house and business insurance policies in France. We have decided along with (finance minister) Michel Sapin to increase the solidarity contribution to 5.9 euros, Juliette Meadel, Minister of State for Victim Assistance, told reporters on Wednesday. The increase would bring in an extra 140 million euros [$149.4 million] for the fund every year, Meadel said. Since January 2015 the fund has received about 4,000 claims, the same number it received between 1986 and end-2014, its chief executive Julien Rencki told Reuters. The decision gives us means to meet our commitments, Rencki said. He also said the fund had 1.4 billion euros [$1.5 billion] in reserves to cover claims. (Reporting by Myriam Rivet and Maya Nikolaeva; editing by Brian Love and Jane Merriman) Topics Pricing Trends Talent France Veolia Environnement SA, the French utility that provided drinking water to 100 million people last year, has beefed up cyber security to protect installations from hackers. Cyber crime is the main threat for the company, Jean-Louis Fiamenghi, the head of security at the Paris-based water, waste and energy company, told journalists Tuesday. Theres been some attempts, but they arent always villainous. Some hackers are lured by the challenge. We havent been asked for ransoms. Veolia has also added new sensors that can detect a much wider range of poisons than previous monitoring systems in some of its networks, the security chief said. At this stage, it hasnt detected criminal or terrorist attacks, and illegal intrusion attempts at its facilities have mostly been made by juveniles, he said. Veolia is one of 250 companies deemed critical by the government that have heightened security measures. More than 200 people have been killed in a string of terrorist attacks across France since January 2015. Copyright 2022 Bloomberg. Topics Cyber France Massachusetts federal judge Mark Mastroianni has rejected a bold attempt to pin liability on Bill Cosby over what his spokespersons told the press in reaction to women who accused the entertainer of sexual assault. Cosby is facing a defamation lawsuit from seven women over statements from his reps that the assault claims were fabricated, ridiculous and absurd. In October 2015, Mastroianni allowed the lawsuit to proceed by declining Cosbys motion to dismiss. Last month, Joseph Cammarata, the attorney for the women, filed a motion for partial judgment on the pleadings. Cammarata pointed to Cosbys generalized responses in the answer to the complaint. There, Cosbys lawyers addressed various allegations by asserting they were either conclusions or characterizations of law and therefore no response is required. The lack of specific denials, argued Cammarata, was a violation of civil procedure. The judge was asked to rule that Cosby admitted being liable for the publication of the statements, that the public knew that Cosbys spokespersons were speaking for Cosby, that the statements were widely and foreseeably republished, that the statements are of and concerning the plaintiffs, and that Cosby and his spokespersons acted with intent to cause the women emotional distress. On Friday, Mastroianni denied the motion. The judges order states he rejects Plaintiffs claim that a judgment on the pleadings is the relief available for these assertions of deficiencies in Defendants answer. Mastroianni also notes that Cammaratas arguments would have more properly brought as a motion to strike and knocked Cammarata for making an untimely challenge. Criminal Case The civil case is taking a back seat to the criminal one that Cosby is facing in Pennsylvania for allegedly sexually assaulting ex-Temple University employee Andrea Constand. But discovery and other activity in the defamation case proceeds. In the Constand case, a Pennsylvania appeals court this week turned down an attempt by Cosbys lawyers to review how the prosecution could only be proven through hearsay evidence. Nevertheless, Cosbys team has come forward with a protest to an alleged violation of the entertainers due process rights. There are more big fireworks to follow in the Constand case, which is currently scheduled to go to trial in the middle of next year. For example, a status report filed on Oct. 11 in the defamation lawsuit reports that Cosby has until Nov. 8 to file a motion to change venue in the criminal matter. Cosby could potentially see some advantage to moving the Costand case away from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, where his non-prosecution for more than a decade became a politically charged issue in the election of the District Attorney who is now pursuing the entertainer. Related: Copyright 2022 Bloomberg. Topics Claims Pennsylvania There seems to be more questions than answers as to what happens next in the wake of the Oklahoma Supreme Courts finding that the opt out portion of the states 2013 comprehensive workers compensation legislative overhaul is unconstitutional. Thats because the Court has yet to publish its mandate on the Sept. 13 ruling the document that will outline the steps companies that developed their own employee injury benefit plans must take to become compliant with Oklahomas workers compensation statutes. The mandate will provide more specific direction as to how to carry out the decision of the Court. Right now were waiting on the document to get more details, said James Mills, director of Workers Compensation at the Oklahoma Insurance Department. When the mandate is published, opt out companies will have 90 days to secure workers compensation coverage under the Administrative Workers Compensation Act, according to the Oklahoma Workers Compensation Commission (OWCC). The Opt Out Act was passed by the legislature in 2013 as part of a workers compensation reform package that also established the OWCC to replace the former Oklahoma Workers Compensation Court. The act allowed qualified employers to opt out of the Oklahoma workers compensation system by creating an Employee Benefit Plan (Plan) under the provisions of federal law, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). There were 54 companies providing their own opt out plans on the day the Supreme Court issued its ruling, according to Mills. In a press statement, the OWCC said the Court on Sept. 13 ruled that a section of the Oklahoma Workers Compensation Statute, the Opt Out provision, is unconstitutional as it violates Article 2, section 59, the prohibition of special laws. Oklahomas workers compensation statute provided a unique Opt Out section, which allowed companies to create their own workers compensation plans or provide coverage under the state system. The 7-2 ruling came in Vasquez v. Dillards, which was appealed to the Oklahoma Supreme Court after the OWCC came to the same conclusion about the law in its ruling on the case in February. The Court remanded the case back to the OWCC to consider whether the plaintiff in the case, Jonnie Yvonne Vasquez, was properly served by Dillards injury benefit plan. At issue is whether or not the injury that prompted Vasquezs claim was a work injury or a pre-existing condition. Vasquez alleged she injured her shoulder and neck while lifting shoe boxes at her workplace. She received benefits while her claim was being investigated, but Dillards ultimately denied her claim on the grounds that Vasquez injury was pre-existing and not an injury defined by Dillards benefit plan. Our task now is to consider this case, and several other cases which have been stayed awaiting this ruling, under the provisions of the Administrative Workers Compensation Act (AWCA), Commissioner Mark Liotta said in the commissions release. Mills said that the reform package passed by the legislature in 2013 has on the whole been very successful for our state. The insurance department reported in September 2015 that the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) filed an overall loss cost decrease of 10.2 percent, which is expected to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2017. With this drop, the total impact of NCCI filings since 2013 is a 44 percent decrease, the department said. NCCI has credited Oklahomas loss cost decrease to declines in market experience and market trend, as well as the recent reforms. Asked whether he anticipated that lawmakers would take another look at opt out in the coming legislative session, Mills said he didnt know if the legislature will take it up in the same way given that its only one component of the overall reforms. And all of the other pieces are continuing to work. I would expect them to continue to revisit the topic of workers compensation in Oklahoma to ensure that our system is providing the best way to address workplace injuries for Oklahomans that we can create. But I dont know if that will mean small or large changes, including removing or rebuilding the Oklahoma option, he said. A Transition Plan Bill Minick, president of Dallas-based PartnerSource, which designs, implements and provides support for workers comp nonsubscription plans, said his team had previously developed a transition plan for companies involved in opt out in case the Court decision in Vasquez went the way it ultimately did. That 10-step plan advises companies on the 90-day time period for returning to the workers comp system, and stresses the importance of identifying claims with potential exposure under worker compensation and developing a plan of action to deal with those claims. Other steps include engaging a broker to secure workers compensation coverage and providing proper notices to the Oklahoma Insurance Department, the OWCC and employees of the companys plan to return to the workers comp system. We are continuing to advise employers and their insurance companies and their administrators who handle the vast majority of claims to continue to focus on timely report of injury, getting the best medical care possible and return to work, Minick said. While the possibility of introducing new legislation is under consideration, right now we are focused on the orderly transition [of] claims and getting great outcomes for the injured workers. If employers and legislators in Oklahoma and other states find performance records in Oklahoma and Texas compelling, then the pursuit of new option laws will continue, he said. Related: Topics Workers' Compensation Oklahoma The Texas Division of Workers Compensation is taking a promising pilot program statewide to help simplify and speed resolution of some disputes. A pilot started last year splits up related claim issues so that a hearing officer can decide the most far-reaching issue first. This can clear the way for secondary issues to be resolved sooner. So far, about half of the disputes accepted for the program have had a hearing, and a third of those have resulted in full agreement to resolve the dispute. Workers Compensation Commissioner Ryan Brannan said he is encouraged by the outcomes. The division has a number of tools in its toolkit to manage claims disputes, Brannan said. The two-step approach to deciding some of the most complex issues in a dispute can be a good option for system participants in certain cases. When an injured employee has a dispute about a claim, it often involves three issues: extent of the injury, the date that the employee reached maximum medical improvement, and the impairment rating for the injury. Deputy Commissioner for Hearings Kerry Sullivan said even though extent of injury is a threshold issue that can affect the other issues, it was addressed at the same time as the other issues in the dispute process. It can be very challenging to come into a hearing and know there are so many alternatives for the hearing officer to address, he said. Parties in a dispute may base their recommendations for impairment ratings and dates of maximum medical improvement on what they think the extent of injury should be. If the hearing officer decides a different extent of injury, parties often request more time to adjust those recommendations. The program is voluntary. The option to participate is presented by the presiding officer at the initial benefit review conference for cases that may benefit from the approach. The two-step approach is used only if both parties agree to it. The presiding officer usually knows going into the dispute whether a decision on extent of injury will move things along, Sullivan said. Deciding the extent of injury issue first can lead to a better outcome, a more efficient hearing, and more agreements. Dallas-Fort Worth area attorney Daniel Morris, of the Morris Law Firm, said several of his clients who are injured employees have opted to have their disputes handled under the two-step approach. He said there is a benefit to examining issues separately. When youve got four or five different combinations of possibilities for the extent of a workers injuries, it allows everybody to weigh their options before getting to the other issues, Morris said. Jeremy Lunn, who represents insurance carriers for the Silvera Law Firm in Dallas, said he agreed that some proceedings are slowed as attorneys try to guess what a hearing officer will decide on the extent of injury issue. This is a good thing that the division is trying to deal with delays in certain cases, Lunn said. DWC management really has been reaching out to attorneys and asking us to help it work. The two-step program started at the divisions Weslaco office in May 2015 and soon was expanded to Dallas. Its now available at all 20 offices statewide. Source: Texas Department of Insurance Topics Texas Workers' Compensation The office of Ukrainian human rights commissioner Valeria Lutkovska has said that 23 convicts have been transferred to the Ukrainian side by representatives of illegal armed groups in eastern Ukraine. The transferred convicts will serve out their prison terms in territory controlled by the Ukrainian government. "The next transfer of inmates to the controlled territory has been successful. There are 23 people, including one woman," Lutkovska wrote on her Facebook page on Wednesday, illustrating the message with convicts photos at a meeting attended by representatives of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic. The commissioners press service told Interfax-Ukraine the transfer process took place on Wednesday afternoon. It said persons expressing their desire to serve out their sentence on the territory controlled by the Ukrainian government were transferred to the Ukrainian side. David Outlaw was a survivor, so much so that his brother cant believe how he died, drowning in a puddle, pinned underneath his wheelchair after being left alone at the height of Hurricane Matthew to smoke outside his South Carolina nursing home. Even Gov. (Nikki) Haley said everyone needed to be inside, Richard Outlaw told The Associated Press. My brother survived Vietnam, car crashes and two strokes, just to die in a puddle of water? Richland County deputies and state nursing home regulators are investigating Outlaws death Oct. 8 at the National Health Care facility in Columbia. A nurse told deputies that Outlaw, 66, refused to come inside, so she left him in a courtyard to smoke. A nurse then came to give Outlaw his medication several minutes later and found him face-down in the puddle around 7:45 a.m., according to a police report. The report did not specify how much water was standing in the courtyard. How negligent is it to just leave him outside in a hurricane by himself? Outlaws wife Karyl said. Richard Outlaw said someone should have at least kept a close eye on his brother if he wouldnt come inside. David Outlaw had a stroke seven years ago that left his left side paralyzed. His wife took care of him until last year, when she decided to send him to the nursing home. Outlaws health improved his high-blood pressure was better controlled and his blood sugar readings were improving, his wife said. He still had a lot of life ahead of him, Karyl Outlaw said. The nursing home has not returned several calls seeking comment. The state Department of Health and Environmental Control, which licensed nursing homes, is also investigating the death. David Outlaw served in the Army in Vietnam, rode motorcycles before his stroke and loved to laugh and fish, his wife said. The nursing home and deputies have told the family almost nothing about David Outlaws death, she said. Shes waiting on the investigations to make sure someone is held accountable. I was just so stunned when I was out there getting his stuff I havent told them off yet, Karyl Outlaw said through tears. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics South Carolina A judge has allowed a class-action lawsuit alleging gender discrimination by Seattle, Wash.-based Microsoft Corp. to proceed. U.S. District Judge James Robart of Seattle in an order Friday denied the companys request to dismiss key claims by women in the suit. The Seattle Times reported the judge said three women suing Microsoft were specific enough in their claims. He also said they presented a plausible case that Microsofts pay and promotion practices had the effect of treating female and male engineers differently. Microsoft says the performance review system was not arbitrary, and has denied the womens allegations of discrimination. The ruling sets into motion what could be months of wrangling over what documents Microsoft and the plaintiffs must turn over and the roster of outside experts both can ask to weigh in. Related: Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Legislation Fears of flooding are dissipating after rainfall helped quell a wind-whipped wildfire in Northern Nevada that destroyed 22 homes and 17 other structures in the Washoe Valley north of Carson City. Sierra Front Fire Management spokesman Mark Struble said that containment was increased to 55 percent, and some localized flooding was reported after three days of rain in the 5.3-square mile burn area. Struble says flood damage has been minor. More than 665 firefighters battled the so-called Little Valley fire after it was discovered early Friday. Four were treated for smoke inhalation. Struble says the cause of the fire is being investigated. Hundreds area residents are being contacted directly by the Washoe County sheriffs office about re-entering the area. Crews say they kept the fire away from about 480 homes. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Flood Wildfire If risk is like a smouldering coal that can spark a fire at any moment, then insurance is our fire extinguisher. The institution is as old as human existence with the first insurance policy being written in ancient times on a Babylonian obelisk monument with the code of King Hammurabi carved into it. It was practiced by early Mediterranean sailing merchants and Chinese traders who sought methods to minimise risks. The concept of insurance has expanded and become more refined over the ages, its successes and travails have become more symmetrical to a countrys economic growth (or lapse). Because of the peculiarity of insurance and its relevance to an economy, the Nigerian government has put a lot of effort into making the insurance industry what it is today. These efforts are showcased by the implementation of numerous Acts over the years such as the National Insurance Commission Act 1997 and the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers Act 2003 (which is to ensure the proper administration and functioning of the insurance sector), as well as the passing of several reforms. However, amendments made in the Companies Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2007 (CITA) have created changes within the sector that have led to an unwelcome higher tax burden for insurance companies, which has in turn led to a fall in the number of businesses operating in the industry. Disappearing companies Nigerias insurance sector has undergone two rounds of recapitalisation over the past 14 years to restructure a company's debt and equity mixture, most often with the aim of making a company's capital structure more stable. The first round of recapitalisation happened in 2003 when the Insurance Act was passed, which required insurance companies to increase their capital bases from: NGN20 million ($65,000) to NGN150 million for life businesses, which are companies that protect against the loss of income that would result if an insured individual died. In this circumstance, the named beneficiary would receive the proceeds and would thereby be safeguarded from the financial impact of the death of the insured; NGN70 million to NGN300 million for non-life businesses, which are companies that are typically involved in any insurance that is not determined to be a life insurance policy but that provides payments depending on the loss from a particular financial event; and NGN150 million to NGN350 million for reinsurance businesses, which is a company that accepts a portion of the potential obligation in an insurance contract in exchange for a share of the insurance premium, in order to reduce the likelihood of an insurance company paying a large obligation resulting from an insurance claim. The 2003 changes led to the liquidation of 14 Nigerian insurance companies out of 117 registered in the jurisdiction. In September 2005, another capitalisation requirement was announced to increase the capital base to NGN2 billion for life businesses, NGN3 billion for non-life businesses and NGN10 billion for reinsurance. This again resulted in numerous consolidations that led to the number of liquidating insurance companies falling from 103 to 49. In the first quarter of 2014, the total assets and liabilities of insurance companies was NGN517.2 billion. A diminishing asset base The asset base has continued to dwindle every year for the industry because of sections in CITA that penalise it. These sections have compelled insurance companies to pay out their capital in the form of a minimum tax because they are almost always in a never-ending refund cycle with the tax authorities. Originally, the CITA was meant to amend and simplify controversial aspects in its policy, instead it has made it more obscure particularly for the insurance sector. As with any other business, the tax liability of an insurance company is based on figures contained in its annual published accounts and it is subject to similar assessment and collection procedures by the tax authorities. However, certain special features arising from the nature of the industry mean that profits are taxed slightly different than other sectors. Simply put, in section 16(2)(a) of the CITA, the profits of a life business insurance company are calculated by taking management expenses, including commission, subject to subsection (8)(b) of the Act from gross income (investment income and revaluation surplus). For non-life businesses, section 16(1)(b) states that profits will be calculated for tax purposes by deducting the reinsurance cost and a reserve for unexpired risk (the premium corresponding to the time period remaining on an insurance policy), subject to subsection (8)(a) of the Act from a gross premium, interest and other income receivable in Nigeria. The relevant subsections of CITA are listed below: (8) An insurance company, other than a life insurance company, shall be allowed as deductions from its premium the following reserves for tax purposes: (a) for unexpired risks, 45 percent of the total premium in case of general insurance business other than marine insurance business and 25 percent of the total premium in case of marine cargo insurance; (b) for other reserves, claims and outgoings of the company an amount equal to 25 percent of the total premium, so that, after allowance under the Second Schedule to this Act as may be restricted, has been allowed for in any year of assessment, not less than amount equal to 15 percent of the total profit of the company for tax purposes. (9) An insurance company, in respect of its life insurance business shall be allowed the following deductions from its investment incomes and other incomes: (a) an amount which makes a general reserve and fund equal to the net liabilities on policies in force at the time of an actuarial valuation; (b) an amount which is equal to 1 percent of the gross premium or 10 percent of profits (whichever is greater) to a special reserve fund and accommodation until it becomes the amount of the statutory minimum paid-up capital; (c) all normal allowable business outgoing, except that after allowing for all the outgoing and allowance under the Second Schedule to this Act as may be restricted under the provisions of this Act for any year of assessment, not less than an amount equal to 20 percent of the gross incomes shall be available as total profit of the company for tax purposes. For both life and non-life insurance businesses, the basis for computing minimum tax seems punitive at 20% of gross income and 15% of total profit, correspondingly. To compound the tax burden little solace was given to the industry when they suffer losses. A thorough review of subsection (8) in the CITA Act exposes the inadequacy of parts (a) and (b). The former imposes a limit on unexpired risk while the latter restricts the deductibility of expenses. Section 16 (9) (c), in the case of life insurance business, introduces a new basis for minimum tax. In practice, the newly introduced minimum tax usually exceeds the minimum tax provisions of section 33 in the CITA. This puts the insurance industry in an unfair situation of paying a higher minimum tax than their peers in other industries in cases when the loss or a total loss of profits result in no tax being payable, or a tax charge that amounts to less than the minimum tax. The insurance industry has long campaigned to correct this anomaly but it is yet to yield the desired result. Reforming the CITA Between 2009 and 2010, the Nigerian Insurance Association (NIA) and KPMG worked with the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Federal Ministry of Finance and National Assembly to discuss the dire effects of the CITA 2007. It established regulatory amendments that intended resolve the problems. Unfortunately, the necessary amendments are yet to be passed into law while a tax reform bill, which would enact the amendments, continues to be debated in the National Assembly. Taxation of losses Section 16(7) of the CITA restricts insurance companies to carrying forward tax losses for a maximum of four years. Losses that are not fully relieved after four years by an insurance company cannot be carried forward. Companies are made to pay taxes irrespective of the losses accumulated from preceding years. Similarly, the restriction of deductibility for operating expenses that are 25% of the total premium of a company, regardless of the expense passing the wholly, reasonably, exclusively and necessarily (WREN) test, is counter intuitive. It also violates the principle of fairness and equity in taxation because the WREN test would have sufficed to deduct all operating expenses for companies in other industries. Furthermore, the tax authorities expose part of the insurance companies unearned premiums to tax. This stems from limitations placed on provision for unexpired risks to 45% of total premium for general insurance and 25% for marine insurance businesses. Consequently, if the total amount of claims from the unexpired risks during the fiscal year exceeds provisions made for tax purposes, the insurance company bears the burden as it receives neither a refund nor a credit. Another issue which is hindering relief is that the profits referred to in subsection 9(b) are not defined. Because of this, profits could be interpreted as the total taxable profit, assessable profit or profit before tax. Clearly, the resulting figures from using any of these bases will differ. International comparisons At the risk of stating the obvious, to justify the reasons why the government needs to address the sections of the tax laws which burden the insurance industry, a comparison of global markets is apt. The US In the US, the Internal Revenue (IR) Code successfully created a more friendly terrain for its insurance industry that permits growth and expansion. Firstly, there is no minimum tax that applies to insurance companies. However, there is an alternative minimum tax (AMT) that applies across all industries. The AMT can result in an AMT credit, which can be used to reduce regular tax where it exceeds the AMT in a future accounting year. Moreover, the tax credit does not expire because the credit relates to taxes already paid and the entire credit represents a component of the deferred tax asset. The AMT regime in the US means that insurance companies are not unduly disadvantaged, upholding the principle of equality in taxation. Secondly, the IR Code treats the period of recovery from loss differently. A company that loses money in a particular year experiences what is known as a net operating loss (NOL). No corporate tax is due when a company has a NOL because they do not have profits. In addition, a NOL can be carried back and deducted from up to two years taxable income. The company is then eligible for a refund equal to the difference between previously paid taxes and taxes owed after deducting the present years loss. If the loss is too large to be carried back, it may be carried forward for up to 20 years and used to reduce future tax liabilities. Under this rule, insurance companies can only carry back losses for three years and carry forward losses for 15 years. Nonetheless, several proposals such as the camp proposal, call for life insurance companies to benefit from the same loss tax treatment as other companies. As a result, allowing for the carry back of losses reduces the distorting effects of taxation on investment and, in turn, increases economic efficiency. The government, by allowing NOL carry backs, effectively enters into a partnership with taxpayers to share both the return to investment (tax revenue) and the risk of investment (revenue loss). When companies have losses, past and future tax liabilities are reduced through loss carry backs, reducing risk. The further back in time that losses can be carried, the less distorting taxation becomes on investment. It is simply fair. Additionally, the ability to carry back losses encourages equity by helping to prevent two firms that earn the same amount over a given time period, but differ in the timing of when the income is earned, from paying different amounts in taxes. Thirdly, the US provides a special deduction for qualifying small life and non-life insurance companies equal to 60% of their income computed without regard to the deduction. This and many more measures capture how a developed economy sets a healthy environment, based on tax laws, for the domestic insurance industry to thrive. South Africa and Brazil A cursory look at the tax laws of selected emerging economies reveals that for both South Africa and Brazil, there are no restrictions placed on provisions for unexpired risks, provisions for other reserves, claims and outgoings, and periods for the recovery of losses. Both economies also do not have a minimum taxable profit for their insurance companies. India Meanwhile, India has no restrictions on provisions for unexpired risks, but does apply a minimum tax on the profits of insurance companies on provisions for other reserves, claims and outgoings. The country also places a restriction on the period of recovery of loss but it still provides eight years, compared to the four years offered in Nigeria. Nigeria needs to act now to save the sector Taking a cue from these countries, the Nigerian government needs to act fast to save the insurance industry. Nigeria does not follow best practices and the insurance industry gets severely short-changed as a result of the tax treatment. It is further at risk with countries such as the US, Brazil, South Africa and India that are actively competing with Nigeria for the worlds foreign direct investments. When a potential foreign investor compares the Nigerian insurance industry index with that of a fast developing economy, the hostile tax laws governing the industry could work against Nigeria. Imposing taxes is not the problem, especially considering it is pivotal to the functioning of the machinery of government. However, what should not be celebrated but quickly redressed is an unfair tax system. Its negative ripples are immeasurable. If the US could resist the huge tax subsidy received by the East India Tea Company from British government (against small American companies) then taxpayers and stakeholders in the insurance industry should persist until the government sees the positives in this line of thought for the industry and economy at large. Reform should be pushed to fairly place insurance companies with other Nigerian companies and to align with what applies in developed economies setting the pace among peers and other developing economies positioning our economy to be more competitive. If restrictions are successfully removed and losses are carried forward in perpetuity, it will relieve the insurance companies of all undue tax burdens, improve their profit takings and grow their capital. A healthy insurance industry will strengthen the Nigerian economy as it pushes for a place among the worlds top 20 economies. 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. SAN DIEGO, CA - October 19, 2016 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Gopher Protocol Inc. (OTCQB:GOPH) ("Gopher" and the "Company"), a development-stage company which specializes in the development of real-time, heuristic-based mobile technologies, and its partner, Guardian Patch LLC ("Guardian"), announced today that they are in the process of creating their initial 50 Guardian Sphere devices, which, if completed, will be tested in the U.S. as complete systems. As previously announced on September 21st, the Company and Guardian are currently ramping-up their efforts for the release of their Guardian Sphere tracking device, of which there is no guarantee, which is primarily designed for pets, but may also be used for tracking children, adults, including the disabled, inventory, artwork or virtually any object located within an area covered by the device. The Guardian Sphere (the "Sphere") system is a derivative technology of the Company's Guardian Patch technology. The Sphere is designed to provide its users with local tracking capability using a re-chargeable/replaceable battery source. The objective of the Company's current efforts, which the Company hopes to achieve, is to deliver for testing in a pre-designated area 50 Guardian pet devices along with a base station, test results and eventual manufacturing capability for both the mobile and the base unit. The Sphere is an innovative tracking device that can easily be attached to a pet's collar and then transmit real-time location information to the smartphone(s) or website account of the registered owner of the device. The Sphere has a replaceable battery and operates on the exclusive Guardian private network, which provides owners with the unique ability to obtain real-time tracking information without the need for GPS, Wi-Fi or cellular service. The Sphere includes state of the art radio technology, a GPS system and micro controller systems, with a potential "back-up" Bluetooth unit. The Sphere sends signals in specific intervals to report on its location. The Sphere's system analyzes the information using its proprietary, advanced mathematical modeling software that precisely calculates the Sphere's location. The Sphere's mobile application then presents the exact location of the Sphere on the map. An additional unique system feature is the Sphere's Emergency Alert system. Users of the Sphere have the ability to transmit emergency alerts directly from their mobile apps, which transmit their Sphere locations. All registered users located in such a Sphere's proximity will be notified about the Emergency and may notify the user about the Sphere's recovery (which we fondly refer to as a "private emergency alert"). The Sphere utilizes a bi-directional system which enables data transmission/receiving acknowledgment. It also includes error correction protocol to ensure data accuracy. The Sphere has its own battery source and may be plugged into external power using a standard Android type charger socket. The Sphere also comes with its own ID. This ID is registered on the mobile app to track the Sphere's location. Multiple Spheres can be registered on the same app for multiple tracking. "The actual creation of our initial 50 Spheres along with their suggested final design is extremely exciting. These 50 Spheres will be tested as a complete system in San Diego, Los Angeles and San Francisco. We believe tests will be initiated by mid-November. Our goal in developing the Sphere is to provide pet owners with peace of mind through the use an invaluable recovery tool which could enable them to track their pets in real-time should they ever become separated," stated Company CTO, Dr. Danny Rittman. At the time of this press release, the Company has not specified a sale release date for the Sphere. The Company is committed to providing more definitive release date information in the coming weeks and is targeting a release date of approximately Q1 2017, of which there is no guarantee. About Guardian Patch The Guardian Patch (the "Patch"), potentially arriving in consumer markets in 2017, is a unique location technology that works with or without GPS. The Patch is a "stick-on" device that provides its users with the capability to protect and track objects, a loved-one or even a pet, through a mobile application. Download the Patch app, register your patch, and track anything that you own on your mobile device or on our designated website. Register the Patches of your family members and friends to receive alerts in the event of an emergency. Peel the Patch off and the Patch acts as a beacon, sending out a signal and notifying anyone who has registered the user's Patch. About Gopher Protocol Inc. Gopher Protocol Inc. (OTCQB: GOPH) ("Gopher" and the "Company") (http://gopherprotocol.com) is a development-stage company developing a real-time, heuristic-based mobile technology. Upon development, the technology will consist of a smart microchip, mobile application software and supporting software that will run on a server. The system contemplates the creation of a global network. Gopher believes this will be the first system that is developed using a human, heuristic-based analysis engine. Since the core of the system will be its advanced microchip technology that will be capable of being installed in any mobile device worldwide, Gopher expects that this will result in an internal, private network between all mobile devices utilizing the microchip by providing mobile technology for computing power enhancement, advanced mobile database management/sharing and other additional mobile features. Corporate Site: http://gopherprotocol.com Press page/ press kit - http://gopherprotocol.com/?page_id=228 Consumer and product website for Guardian Patch: http://www.guardianpatch.com/ Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements contained in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements provide current expectations of future events based on certain assumptions and include any statement that does not directly relate to any historical or current fact. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors as disclosed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission located at their website (http://www.sec.gov ). In addition to these factors, actual future performance, outcomes, and results may differ materially because of more general factors including (without limitation) general industry and market conditions and growth rates, economic conditions, and governmental and public policy changes. The forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the Company's views as of the date of this press release and these views could change. However, while the Company may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company's views as of any date subsequent to the date of the press release. Disclaimer/Disclosure: Disclaimer/Disclosure: Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investment involves risk and possible loss of investment. 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Global investors must adhere to regulations of each country. Top News - Investor Idea REE Stock News - Defense Metals (TSX-V: DEFN.V) (OTCQB: DFMTF) Drills 113 metres of 2.50% Total Rare Earth Oxide at Wicheeda Vancouver, British Columbia - October 26, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Mining / Metals / Green Energy Stock News - Defense Metals Corp. (TSX-V: DEFN / OTCQB: DFMTF/ FSE:35D) is pleased to announce high-grade Rare Earth Element ("REE") assay results from one additional core hole, totalling 383 metres (m), collared within the northern area of Defense Metals' 100% owned Wicheeda REE Deposit. Top EV Stock News - Investor Idea Breaking EV Stock News: Overwhelmingly Positive Reactions Pour in From First Leg of Mullen Automotive's (NASDAQ: MULN) 'Strikingly Different' FIVE EV Crossover Tour BREA, Calif. - October 31, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Mullen Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ: MULN), an emerging electric vehicle ("EV") manufacturer, announces today that the Mullen FIVE has received overwhelmingly positive reactions from members of the public, reservation holders and Mullen investors who were able to ride in the vehicle for the very first time on the "Strikingly Different" tour which kicked off last week in Pasadena, California. Top Health and Wellness News - Investor Idea Health and Wellness Stock News - Endexx (OTCBB: EDXC) Secures Third Order for Non-Nicotine Vape Product HYLA Worth Approximately $1.5M in Revenue for First two Fiscal Quarters of 2023 CAVE CREEK, Ariz. - October 27, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Endexx Corporation (OTCBB:EDXC), a provider of innovative, plant-derived, and sustainable health and skincare products, today announces it has secured three key significant orders for its newly acquired, non-nicotine plant-based vape product, HYLA. Top AI Stock News - Investor Idea Breaking AI Stock News: FatBrain (OTCQB: LZGI) Acquires Confidential Computing Platform ZeroTrust to Protect Data Privacy and Accelerate Innovation for Millions of Growth Businesses NEW YORK, NY - October 19, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) FatBrain AI (LZG International, Inc.) (OTCQB: LZGI), the leader in powerful and easy-to-use artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for star enterprises of tomorrow, has acquired the confidential computing and privacy intellectual property (IP) plus software assets of Zero2A PTE LTD ("ZeroTrust Platform"), a software company based in Singapore. Check out our Podcasts for great investor ideas: Get new posts by email: Subscribe Powered by Investorideas.com Newswire: Subscribe to Investor Ideas Newswire The Verkhovna Rada urges the parties of the armed conflict in Syria to cease active hostilities throughout its territory, and comply with international law, human rights and international humanitarian law. Some 241 MPs voted for the decision No.5214 on the Verkhovna Radas appeal to international organizations, parliaments of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) participating states and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation on the latest developments in Syria. The Verkhovna Rada called on "all involved parties to facilitate the creation of the necessary preconditions for the restoration of the political process for the settlement aimed at the establishment of an inclusive transitional government in Syria with further adoption of the Constitution and holding of elections in accordance with the Geneva Communique dated 2012 and UN Security Council Resolution 2254 (2015)." Vodafone has recently announced that it will launch NB-IoT, a low power network aimed at devices like smart meters, in four European markets. The markets are Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Spain, and the networks are expected to go live in the first quarter of 2017. Moreover, Vodafone in the announcement also committed to rolling out the network standard across all of its countries by 2020. By committing to this date, Vodafone has sent a strong message to its competitors, but also makes a strong commitment to other players in the value chain, from chipset designers to application developers, said analyst Tom Rebbeck's, Research Director at Analysys Mason. This announcement will encourage others to invest in NB-IoT, which will help all parts of the ecosystem. Rebbeck said he thinks that the company is being very aggressive about its time table, but that it could be achievable. Most of the rollouts will only require an over-the-air software upgrade, Vodaphone said, so no site visit should be required. Vodafone will want its partners, and not just its own networks, to launch NB-IoT, said Rebbeck. Part of Vodafones success in winning major IoT contracts using traditional cellular has been due to it offering seamless regional coverage. It will want to do the same with NB-IoT but this will depend on partner networks also investing in NB-IoT. In addition, LoRa could become a big factor in future rollouts, because this plan will put pressure on competitive technologies like LoRa, SIGFOX and Ingenu to execute as heavily and quickly, the analyst said. As evidence, he pointed to recent news from Softbank in Japan and Comcast in the US that they have plans for LoRa networks. The race has been on for some time, but this could very well be the beginning of the tide turning, as big carrier players choose their paths for IoT connectivity and begin pushing out the little guys. Edited by Alicia Young Two men have been arrested in Dublin following a gunshot let off on the Northside of Dublin last night. The shot was fired at 11.30pm at a house on Inverness Road in Fairview. The 18-acre facility in Bray, Co Wicklow, has been owned by former U2 manager Paul McGuinness and well-known accountant Ossie Kilkenny, for nearly 30 years, with Enterprise Ireland controlling a one-third stake. The three shareholders said in a statement that they believe the time is right for a sale. IBI Corporate Finance is handling the sale and although an asking price has not been disclosed, a sale price of at least 10m has been estimated by sources. Ardmore currently hosting filming of the new Mel Gibson and Sean Penn movie, The Professor and the Madman, and TV series Into the Badlands is being sold as a going concern and the sale will have no impact on its day-to-day operations. The current owners cite the favourable Section 481 tax incentive scheme as being a key attractor for international productions and said that demand for fully-serviced studio space in Ireland remains buoyant. They added that there is a healthy number of potential productions in the pipeline for the coming months and year ahead at the nearly 60-year-old studio complex. Ardmore has generated respective pre-tax profits of 1.6m and 1.5m in the last two years and has seen more than 2m of fresh investment pumped into it in the past three years, which has resulted in a significant upgrading of on-site facilities. An additional 47,000 sq ft of studio space, to cater for market demand, was built on Brays Southern Cross Rd earlier this year. Ardmore Studios has operated at an average annual capacity of 85%-90% since 2013. Over the years it has housed a number of high-profile productions including My Left Foot, Excalibur, and Braveheart, while more recently the likes of Penny Dreadful, Moone Boy, and The Tudors. In all, productions made at the Bray studios have received 14 Oscars and a number of Bafta, Golden Globe, and Emmy awards. In terms of its owners, yesterdays statement said both Mr McGuinness and Mr Kilkenny will continue to explore a number of other individual business interests. Mr McGuinness is currently producing a TV series for Sky television, whilst Mr Kilkenny has a variety of film related enterprises, the announcement said. Ardmore Studios has benefited from a significant investment programme in recent years to enhance its facilities and has recorded year-on-year growth in profitability. It is understood that the redundancies will only affect the existing operations of data storage company EMC, in Ovens, and will cover a range of job areas. The development is due to the overlap of job functions brought about by Dells recent takeover of EMC. Dell completed its $67bn (61bn) purchase of EMC last month; at which time the cutting of 2,000-3,000 jobs mostly in the US was mooted. The jobs being cut in Cork comprise less than 1% of the enlarged entitys Irish workforce. In all, the combined businesses employ 5,500 people here. EMC employs 3,000 people in Ovens and Dell around 2,500 people across facilities in Limerick, Cork, and Dublin. EMC has, for some time, been one of the biggest private sector employers in the Munster area and this news will come as a blow for the region. Nevertheless, the result is seemingly not as bad as had been feared, with reports suggesting anything up to 200 roles had been viewed as being under pressure. Dell-EMC now forms part of the wider Dell Technologies group, which houses the likes of cybersecurity firm RSA; software consultancy Pivotal, hardware manufacturer Dell and cloud computing company VMWare, all of which have existing facilities in Ireland. A spokesperson for Dell Technologies yesterday said the job losses were unavoidable, but were being minimised. While job reductions are never our first alternative and we strive to minimise them, in a merger of this size they are necessary given some overlap in functions, said the spokesperson. We will do everything possible to minimise any impact on jobs. Following the recent merger of Dell and EMC to form Dell Technologies, we expect revenue gains will far outweigh any cost savings, and revenue growth drives employment growth. The company also offered its full commitment to Ireland, a territory highly regarded by the groups management. The spokesperson said: Ireland is, and remains, an important base for Dell Technologies. We are proud of the team we have built in Ireland and look forward to it continuing its work to drive our global business forward. Dell founder Michael Dell and EMC chief executive David Goulden reportedly visited the combined entitys workers in Cork in May to discuss the merger. The Dell-EMC deal was the largest technology transaction on record and was done to give Dell a broader product offering with which to challenge the likes of IBM, Cisco Systems, and Hewlett-Packard in areas such as cloud computing, mobility and cyber security. Speaking on the conclusion of the deal, which took nearly a year to complete, Mr Dell called it an historic moment, saying that our investments in R&D and innovation, along with our 140,000 team members around the world will give us unmatched scale, strength and flexibility deepening our relationships with customers of all sizes. Last year, Dell was named seventh largest exporter in Ireland, selling 8.65bn worth of goods to international markets, according to the Irish Exporters Association and Investec Ireland. That placed it higher than Apple with 6bn worth of exports. Kendrick Investments, an Isle of Man registered company which holds 99% of issued share capital in Topaz Energy Group Ltd (TEGL), says Circle K Holding Ireland Ltd, Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin, made a 1.8m payment as part of the overall 7m share purchase agreement but failed to pay 4.7m. Kendrick is seeking judgment against Circle K for 4.7m and the case has been admitted to the High Courts fast-track commercial division. In an affidavit, Kendrick director Dermot Hayes says that, under the December 2015 agreement, Kendrick agreed to sell its shares in TEGL to a company called 9121-2738 Quebec Inc. Under an assignment of rights (deed of novation) mechanism between Kendrick, businessmen Denis OBrien, Emmet ONeill, and Sean Corkery, and also with Circle K Holding Ireland, another company called Circle K IOM Ltd, as well as with 9121-2738 Quebec Inc, it was agreed Circle K Ireland would assume the rights, benefits, obligations, and liabilities of the Quebec company under the share purchase agreement. Mr Hayes says it was a term of the agreement that the defendant would pay Kendrick 7m by way of what was called the Dublin Port Additional Consideration. This related to a February 2016 lease for premises at Dublin Port and a retail lease which was not to be terminated before August 2017. Mr Hayes says the port consideration was satisfied and the 7m became payable, less an agreed 480,000 related to working capital. However, while Circle K Holding Ireland paid some 1.8m in September 2013, 4.7m was owing. Kendrick demanded payment on September 23 but Circle K failed to pay. Mr Hayes says the defendant has raised an unmeritorious breach of warranty claim. In correspondence, he says, it was suggested Kendrick had failed to disclosed details of the financial situation relating to the Exol Group. He says the breach of warranty claim is spurious and the issue Circle K complains of was appropriately disclosed prior to the completion of the transaction. Accounts filed by Kellogg European Trading show it recorded a 27% jump in operating profits, to 49.36m, in the 12 months to January 2. However, interest of 137.45m on loans from other group firms pushed the firm into the red to record losses of 75.5m. The firm reduced its losses in 2015 to 65.6m with a deferred tax asset of 9.8m. Kelloggs has been based in Ireland since 2005 and employs 250 people here, including the head of its European cereal business unit and a number of senior cereal functional leaders for Europe. As well as Kellogg European Trading, Kelloggs operates a number of other subsidiaries here. A breakdown of revenues of Kellogg European Tradings show that 526.72m was generated in the UK with 747m in the rest of Europe and the remaining 9.8m in the rest of the world. Numbers employed at the firm last year rose by four to 215 with staff costs of 39.8m. That included 1m in equity share-based payments. Four directors served on the board last year and they shared pay of 2.22m. Included in that amount is 258,000 paid to the firms ultimate parent for the provision of directors services. The outlook for 2016 remains challenging with an expectation of little year-on-year growth in turnover or operating profit, management said in the accounts. Marketing support/pressure for our brands will be in line with the previous year in real terms. The overall cost base is expected to be lower than the previous year thanks to notable efficiencies in this area offset by commodity price increases, it said. The principal activity of the firm is the production and marketing of cereals. Bishop of Cork and Ross, Most Rev Dr John Buckley, commented as he promoted religious life and the priesthood at a students careers fair in Cork yesterday. However, he said he was not sure if changing Church rules on celibacy would boost vocations. Celibacy is a regulation of the Church, he said. Certainly, in the years ahead, people might look at that, and I wouldnt see any difficulty if they see that its absolutely necessary. But whether it would help vocations, Im not sure. Other denominations which allow ministers to marry are also seeing a shortage of vocations. Third-level institutions from all over Ireland and Britain, and industry bodies attended the Institute of Guidance Counsellors- organised Career Options Expo for second-level students, but it is the first time in several years that Vocations Ireland attended, and the first time the bishop manned the stand. With just 11 ordinations of diocesan priests in Ireland in 2014, and 15 last year, Bishop Buckley said his diocese, like others, is operating under constraints but he told students that religious life is a great calling. He also confirmed that Pope Francis has yet to answer his letter of resignation, written two years ago. I have served in the diocese of Cork for 33 years the longest-serving bishop in Cork, he said. It has given me joy and happiness. My greatest joy is the enrichment which contact with people gives to my life. You are bringing good news to people, and people appreciate that. Glanmire-based Fr Anthony Buckley, ordained five years ago, said celibacy is a great gift he treasures. It allows me great freedom to give myself completely to God and his people, he said. My days can be very busy and if I had a wife and children, I think theyd see very little of me. Up to 5,500 students will have attended the careers fair by close of business today. An Bord Pleanala has been deliberating on the application for renewed planning permission at its existing Edenderry Plant in the Co Offaly town, in a case which has already been the subject of judicial review proceedings. Siptu has claimed that if the application is unsuccessful, it could lead to up to 300 job losses. The trade union has also signalled its concerns over the possibility that licences due for renewal in 2019 at two other peat-burning stations in west Offaly and in Lanesboro in Co Longford might also be in jeopardy, with up to 1,000 jobs at risk. The Edenderry plant is run by Edenderry Power, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Bord Na Mona. Amid looming greenhouse- gas emission targets, the plant has already switched to 35% biomass use, and is set to rise to 50% by 2020. A stay on any decision is in place until next February and a spokesman for An Bord Pleanala said yesterday that no decision on the application was imminent. Siptu sector organiser, John Regan, said employees were concerned and that any meeting with environment minister Denis Naughten would need to look at a plan B of alternative employment in the Midlands. In a worst-case scenario where the application fails the agenda we will meet him on is alternative employment for the Midlands, said Mr Regan. Regarding the wait for a final decision on the application, he said: It has all livelihoods held in suspension. Meanwhile, Mr Naughten has secured cabinet approval that will start the process for the ratification of the Paris Agreement to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The Government yesterday agreed to seek the approval of the Dail under Article 29 of the Constitution regarding any ratification of an international treaty. If it is ratified, Irelands obligation will form part of the European Unions overall commitment under the Paris Agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. The minister said that he was seeking full Dail backing for ratification, claiming the wave of global momentum behind the plan was unprecedented and adding: It is our childrens future and of vital national interest. The National Bus and Rail Union (NRBU) will today appear before the Oireachtas transport committee as part of a discussion on the future of public transport and the level of state subvention. It is understood the NBRU will challenge the Department of Transports policy, as implemented by the National Transport Authority (NTA), particularly in the area of licensing. It has accused the NTA of mismanagement because it awarded licences to private operators on Expressway routes, which it argues has undermined the Bus Eireann service. Tensions escalated this week after the union dismissed the NTA as the HSE on wheels in a letter to Transport Minister Shane Ross. What is particularly fascinating for those of us who observe the political manoeuvrings and shenanigans across Leinster House is the notion that those who were happy to be portrayed as being the paragons of the anti-quango brigade, now find themselves cast in the role of insiders facilitating agencies like the NTA to indulge in empire building to the detriment of frontline transport services, wrote NBRU general secretary, Dermot OLeary. This particular quango, the HSE on Wheels, appears to have all the Authority with no Responsibility. Being a civil servant in the Department or in the NTA does not automatically conjure up magical powers of exclusive expertise on all matters transport, wrote Mr OLeary. The NBRU has already stated its strong opposition to any proposals to change the service and is balloting its members on potential industrial action in response to proposed changes to Expressway. The result of the ballot is expected within the next two weeks. Last month the NBRU accused Bus Eireann of dropping an industrial relations bombshell after it emerged the company is reviewing Expressway with a view to restructuring the service. The damage that has been inflicted on Bus Eireann by this policy cannot nor should not be underestimated in particular the effect on the Expressway business by the issuing and amending of Licences by the Department and the NTA, wrote Mr OLeary. Woe betide the politicians who would be held responsible for the dismantling of these vital transport links into hundreds of communities across Ireland. Patrick OBrien, aged 76, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to 48 sample counts of indecent assault, and three counts of sexual assault of the boys between 1977 and 2010 at locations including Kildare, Westmeath, Loughrea in Co Galway, and at St Patricks Cathedral in Dublin, where he worked as a volunteer. OBrien, with an address at Knocklyon Rd, Templeogue, Dublin, was previously sent forward for trial from Dublin District Court. Judge Cormac Dunne previously ruled that the media could identify the accused following an application by RTE at the district court. All of the victims wish to preserve their anonymity. Four were present in court for the sentence hearing. Each man prepared a victim impact report but some indicated they did not want their statements read out. It took over 30 minutes to read the charges in a sentence hearing taking place over two days to allow for all 14 statements of complaint to be read into the record. Detective Garda Anthony Maloney outlined the abuse, which included open-mouth kissing, rape, attempted rape, oral rape, and mutual masturbation. There are at least two set of brothers among OBriens victims. The court heard OBrien would bring the boys to his yacht, take them for driving lessons, or bring them to the office where he worked. He abused one boy once a week in a car wash after they were hidden from view while the vehicle was covered in foam. OBrien would often drop the boys home and regularly have dinner or drinks with their parents, having abused their child hours earlier. OBrien regularly came to the victims bedroom to kiss them goodnight and tuck them in but would then abuse them, usually touching their penis and then performing oral sex on them. One man was first raped by OBrien on the childs parents bed. OBrien blocked the bedroom door with a chair before stripping the child and himself. This same victim was also raped in OBriens mothers home. The victim was introduced to OBriens mother before OBrien took him into the garage and abused him. Another victim, who was first raped by OBrien when he was nine, told gardai that he was in pain for days afterwards. He said OBrien reassured him while raping him, calling him a good and brave boy. He said when being raped by OBrien on his boat, he closed his eyes waiting for the morning to come and tried to think about the fun he would have sailing the next day. Det Gda Maloney said all the men were badly affected by the abuse. Two men who were raped by OBrien told gardai they were worried when they learned about Aids on the news as children and were terrified they were going to die. One man, now 50, outlined in his victim impact report that he had never married and said that this was down to the abuse he suffered. He said he felt the chance to have a wife and family had passed him by. Another victim said that he never wanted to have children because he did not want to be responsible for them after the abuse he suffered as a young boy. The hearing continues. Social Protection Minister Leo Varadkar confirmed the situation yesterday, saying that there should be an employer contribution to gain access to the programme and that future interns must be guaranteed at least the net minimum wage from state and private sector funds. Under long-flagged measures formally announced in a new report into the JobBridge scheme, the Government is scrapping the deeply divisive internship system from this Friday and replacing it will a new group from next summer. While existing nine-month placements will continue until their conclusion, just 2,500 placements will be allowed under the new system and will be focused specifically on the private sector, with public groups only allowed to participate if they can prove there is a genuine chance of employment for interns after their placements end. Mr Varadkar said the JobBridge replacement will see a working week cap of 30 hours instead of the existing 40-hour JobBridge ceiling, reduce placements from nine months to six months, limit the number of interns to 10% of a companys workforce, and guarantee that interns receive at least the net minimum wage. This means participants will be in line to receive about 258 per week, compared to the existing system which works out at 152.50 per week for a person under the age of 25 and 240.50 per week for older participants. The recommendations have been made in an independent review of the Job-Bridge system by consultancy firm Indecon, which was itself reviewed by the Labour Market Council which concluded, among other recommendations, that the taxpayer contribution to the new scheme should be limited to the first three months of a six-month placement. In addition to the changes, Mr Varadkar said he expects employers taking part in the new scheme to pay a contribution to interns wages, which the Indecon and Labour Market Council reports separately said could be a blunt contribution or a programme registration fee. However, despite the minister and his spokesperson last night saying the exact figure will be the subject of a consultation process with businesses and other interest groups in the coming weeks, no suggested rate for the employer contribution has been put forward. And while the internship funding increase has been widely welcomed, the crucial part of the plan is risking a showdown with small and medium-sized businesses which claim to be already critical of Brexit, the 10c minimum wage budget rise and other rising costs. There should be an employer contribution to gain access to the entry to the programme, and I think that will reduce the risk of exploitation, Mr Varadkar confirmed at the launch of the reports at the Royal Irish Academy yesterday. An Ibec spokesperson last night declined to comment on what type of contribution, if any, businesses would be willing to pay for six-month net minimum wage placements which taxpayers may only fund for three months until after the consultation process begins. Small Firms Association director Patricia Callan said while most firms are willing to pay an amount it would certainly not be towards the minimum wage, and similarly declined to provide a figure until after the consultation process begins. JobBridge was introduced at the depth of the recession in 2011 in a bid to help the long-term unemployed back to work. It was quickly criticised for taking advantage of unemployed people and young college graduates. Seven ceasefire violations were recorded in the conflict area in Donbas on Wednesday, the anti-terrorist operation headquarters' press center said. "In the Mariupol sector, Ukrainian units were shelled five times. The adversary fired small arms in Maryinka and heavy machineguns and grenade launchers of various systems in Slavne and Shyrokyne, while the 122mm conventional artillery was used in the shelling of Vodyane," the headquarters' press center said on its Facebook page. The Ukrainian positions in the Donetsk sector, particularly in Avdiyivka, were shelled twice as Kyiv's adversary opened fire from grenade launchers, large-caliber machineguns and small arms there, it said. In the Luhansk sector, no violations of the regime of calm were recorded on Wednesday, the headquarters said. Darren OHalloran, aged 31, of Aurea Cottage, Dublin Rd, Limerick, has pleaded not guilty at Limerick Circuit Court to charges of threatening to kill detective garda Pat Whelan and threatening to burn down his house. John OSullivan, prosecuting, opening the case to a jury of eight men and four women said it was alleged that Det Gda Whelan was among a party of gardai who went to the address of the accused on March 29, 2015, and left some time after 2.35am. As he left, it is alleged that the accused made a remark to Det Gda Whelan about being on a white horse clip-clopping at Christmas time through a village near to where he lived. The warning came from an experienced environmental engineer and county councillor, who was backed up by colleagues, when she maintained the design of the new Cork-Ringaskiddy motorway (M28) was fundamentally flawed. Independent councillor Marcia DAlton said people living around the Bloomfield interchange near Rochestown already suffered from excessive diesel fumes and noise pollution above internationally-recognised limits. She quoted what are supposed to be acceptable EU and national levels on pollution, which were already contravened at the moment in roads around the area and added that additional traffic generated by HGVs (high goods vehicles) from the proposed motorway between Cork and Ringaskiddy would raise them even higher. Cork County Council engineers are working with Transport Infrastructure Ireland to design the route which is planned to run from the Jack Lynch Tunnel to Ringaskiddy. The motorway is primarily designed to provide access for HGV traffic which will be generated by the Port of Corks plan to turn Ringaskiddy into a major deepwater terminal to handle larger container ships into the future. Ms DAlton said that, cognisant of the damaging noise and air pollution associated with heavily trafficked motorways, the National Roads Design Office/Transport Infrastructure Ireland should consider an entirely new route for the M28 which would avoid its running adjacent to residential estates, such as in Maryborough, Rochestown, Mount Oval, and the general Douglas area. Ms DAlton said extra traffic generated by increased port activity at Ringaskiddy would have a major impact on raising noise levels and air pollution. Residents living in the area already have significant issues with noise, she said. Only a certain amount of mitigation can be done with noise barriers and theres very little we can do about emissions from diesel engines. The councillor added that recent research carried out in Denmark showed diesel emissions were very dangerous to human health. Residents have asked that we look at alternative routes for what will essentially be a freight-carrying motorway, she said. Fine Gael councillor Deirdre Forde, who lives in the area, said local residents had mobilised significant public opinion against the proposed route. Theres already a lot of traffic in the area. The Douglas LUTS [Land Use & Transportation] study confirmed noise pollution is way beyond norms and this isnt acceptable, said Ms Forde. Ms DAlton acknowledged that as part of the planning application for the motorway an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) would have to be put together by engineers. She added: It was easy to couch things in the EIS to make it [pollution levels] look OK. But its not OK. Ms DAlton said noise and traffic pollution were serious issues which couldnt be engineered out of the project. Meanwhile, a public consultation meeting will be held in the Rochestown Park Hotel on Saturday, October 22, from 2pm-6pm to explain plans to upgrade the current N28 to motorway status. They are particularly concerned at the consequences for road safety, public disorder, assaults and robberies and fear it will provide a golden opportunity to the Kinahan cartel in carrying out assassinations. Im not saying it will be Armageddon, but its going to be a very, very dangerous situation for both the public and the State, said a senior source. The association supporting families of homicide victims expressed concern at the impact on Garda support and communication to their families and any effect on court cases. Meanwhile, Policing Authority chair Josephine Feehily said she welcomed discussions that had started between the parties. My hope is that these will conclude successfully and that the threatened industrial action will not occur, she told the Irish Examiner. The Garda commissioners contingency plans began with certainty yesterday after Mondays decision by the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors. Its 2,000 members have joined the Garda Representative Association, with 10,500 members, in withdrawing labour on the same dates November 4, 11, 18, and 25. Noirin OSullivan Noirin OSullivan and her team will also watch the outcome of Thursdays meeting between AGSI and Department of Justice officials. Senior sources also said they were caught off guard by AGSIs decision to begin industrial action this Friday by refusing to use the Garda Pulse system and, the following Friday, buy refusing to do administrative duties. If sergeants and inspectors decided not to go on strike on the same days as the GRA, we might have got through it, said one senior source. Now, its going to be impossible. Garda figures provided to the Irish Examiner show there are just 218 senior officers left 165 superintendents, 45 chief superintendents, and eight assistant commissioners. There are 529 probationary gardai in stations providing a total strength of 747. It is likely 450 students in Templemore College will be called up and that up to 789 Garda reservists could be asked to work, if they are available. However, sources pointed out that probationers, students, and reservists must have sworn gardai accompanying them. Do you ask a probationer or student to be the first responder to a robbery, or to intervene in public disorder? said a source. There is a duty of care on the employer and the last thing we want is a GSOC inquiry. He said key problems on Friday evenings and nights were road accidents, public disorder, and assaults. On Monday, GRA leaders asked members working in the Emergency Response Unit and Regional Support Units to turn up for duty and for members of the Technical Bureau to remain on call. But sources said this will be no replacement for the constant armed patrolling and checkpoints aimed at keeping a lid on further Kinahan-Hutch violence. This could be a golden opportunity to the Kinahan cartel, said one source. Advocates for the Victims of Homicide said their concerns were for the families they supported and any impact on Garda communication or any disruption to court dates. The girl was found in the lorry at OLeary International in Marshmeadows with three men and one woman on Sunday. All of the occupants of the container are from the Middle East. They told immigration officers they are Kurdish. Wexford chief superintendent John Roche said the people with the child, all aged in their mid to late 20s, were found on Sunday at 6pm having travelled from Cherbourg on the Oscar Wilde ferry the previous day into Rosslare Europort. They are thought to have entered an unaccompanied refrigerated container which was left in Cherbourg. The container was taken from a compound in the port city by a tug on Saturday and deposited on the ferry for the 18-hour journey to Ireland. The container was sealed by customs officials as it contained perishable goods. Once at Rosslare Europort the container was transported by tug to a compound where it was picked up by a truck and taken to OLeary International. Noises from the back of the lorry alerted one of the companys staff who contacted gardai. Supt Roche said the refugees were taken to New Ross Garda station where they were medically assessed prior to being taken to Wexford garda stations immigration unit. They were processed and interviewed prior to being taken by gardai to a refugee reception centre in Waterford where they spent the night prior to travelling to Dublin where they will apply for asylum-seeker status. He said the matter is still under investigation and it is not known if they are related as the last names given are not similar. Supt Roche said there is an increased garda presence at Rosslare Europort this year, and that about 10 people including children, have been found hiding in the back of lorries and trailers and under trailers at Rosslare Europort. We search the majority of trucks coming into Rosslare Europort and we have found a lot of clandestines who are sent back to France. This container was sealed so we could not search it, he said. Mr Justice Peter Kelly made the remark when he yesterday rejected an appeal by Omar Hassan Khalafalla Mohamed, 30, against his striking off the medical register for professional misconduct and poor professional performance. The judge said he could not understand how Dr Hassan got on the medical register in the first place, apart from the fact that he obtained appointments in three different hospitals. The judge acknowledged the Irish Medical Council (IMC), which had recommended the erasure of Dr Hassans name from the register, had also expressed similar concern. The IMC made the recommendation after a fitness to practice committee found him guilty on multiple grounds related to his conduct and performance earlier this year. After the judge confirmed his striking off, Dr Hassan, who qualified in Sudan, said for me it is meaningless. When the judge ordered he pay the costs of the legal action, Dr Hassan said he did not believe in the integrity of the procedure. He also said he did not believe it was a fair decision. In his appeal, Dr Hassan argued that, among other things, he should not be struck off because the evidence against him did not meet the required standard. He also said the complaints against him should not have been referred to the fitness to practice committee because they were not of a serious and grave nature. Mr Justice Kelly said the committee made its findings after hearing from 30 witnesses over 11 days. It had met the criminal standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt in making its findings, he said. It would be difficult to consider the complaints against Dr Hassan were anything other than grave , he said. Among those incidents, which happened in the Midland Regional Hospital Portlaoise, Mayo General, and Galway University Hospital between 2012 to 2014, was that, while performing a gall bladder-related procedure, Dr Hassan stood on the pedal of an electrosurgical machine, which was not in use, and caused a burn injury to a patient. On another, he attempted to insert a needle into a patients arm on a number of occasions, causing her pain, even though the procedure was not necessary. Around February 17, 2014, during a trauma meeting/teaching session in Galway, he misidentified an x-ray image of an ankle as being one of an elbow. He was also found by colleagues to act in a bizarre way and to be aggressive and confrontational both to colleagues and patients. The court previously heard Dr Hassan had complained about his treatment at the public inquiry and threatened in correspondence it will be fully paid for at an extremely bloody price for the people involved worldwide. He also wrote that there would be a grave response from me... to these events outside court and not necessarily in Ireland. Mr Justice Kelly, on that occasion, said he was glad to know the IMC had informed gardai of the threats. Social Protection Minister Leo Varadkar confirmed the move at a launch of two separate reports into the controversial scheme, despite opposition parties lashing out at the new measures and describing them as JobBridge 2.0. The Government has confirmed that it is ending the JobBridge programme and replacing it with a new system in the coming months. Existing nine-month placements will continue until their conclusion despite new placements being stopped from Friday. There will be scope for just 2,500 placements under the new system and be focused specifically on the private sector, with public groups only allowed to participate if they can prove there is a genuine chance of employment for interns after placements end. The JobBridge replacement, Mr Varadkar said, will also see: A working internship week cap of 30 hours instead of the existing 40-hour Job Bridge ceiling; A reduction of placements lengths from nine months to six months; A limitation on the number of interns to 10% of a companys workforce; A guarantee that interns will receive at least the net minimum wage, with the taxpayer potentially only paying for three months of this over a six- month period The latter point means participants will be in line to receive approximately 258 per week, compared to the existing system which works out at 152.50 per week for a person under the age of 25 and 240.50 per week for older participants. In addition, there will also be a higher, yet to be agreed, financial contribution to the scheme from employers wishing to participate, with suggestions either a wage contribution or a registration fee for firms taking part may be sought. Speaking at the launch of the separate Indecon economists and Labour Market Council reviews of the Job Bridge scheme, on which the changes are based, Mr Varadkar said he believes the scheme has served its purpose and is no longer needed in a growing economy. Rejecting claims the Governments scrapping of Job-Bridge is proof it now agrees the system is unworkable, he said 38,000 people have been helped into full-time employment and that the new system is an entirely separate model now unemployment levels are down to 8%. However, despite the claims, opposition TDs rounded on Government last night. Paul Murphy, AAA-PBP TD and a vocal critic of JobBridge, said: These are not meant to be schemes that are a boost to small business. People should be paid for their work, adding that the replacement scheme risks being Job Bridge 2.0. Paul Murphy, AAA-PBP TD The Indecon report launched yesterday said Job Bridge helped 79% of people find long-term work and 70% of those who took part spoke of the scheme positively. However, a previous National Youth Council of Ireland study found 31% failed to be employed when their placement finished. The woman concerned said that her family was on the edge of poverty when she applied for money to be paid out of court funds to buy school books and other items applicable to their education for her three children. Some years ago, the three children had been awarded 11,000 each for personal injuries they suffered in a rear-ending accident and the awards, totalling 33,000 had been lodged in court funds until they reached the age of 18. The mother had applied for, and received, payment out of 1,600 in July 2014, and again in 2015 she received payments out amounting to 1,385. The court heard that, this year, the mother had applied to the county registrar, Rita Considine for payments out of 1,700, 1,400, and 370 in respect of her children. The county registrar had directed payments out of 1,200, 750, and 235. Ms Considines decision was appealed by the childrens mother to the Circuit Civil Court before Judge Jacqueline Linnane, who dealt with the matter yesterday. The mother outlined the grounds of her appeal to Judge Linnane and said that she was unable to meet the cost of her childrens education. She had nevertheless purchased the items that her children needed for school before applying to the court for the money. Judge Linnane told the woman that she had taken a risk buying the educational items before applying for payments out. She said it was the moral duty for each parent to provide for their children and there would soon be nothing left for the children. I want to give them the best start possible in life and this is money they need now rather than a lump sum when they are 18, the mother, who represented herself, told the court. Its better they get the value of the money now rather than spending it on something like a motorbike when they are 18. Judge Linnane said that there may be no funds left available to provide for third-level education for the children. Substantial payments out had been made and the court was being asked to pay out further sums. We are in a situation of near poverty, the woman told the court. We cant afford to do it. When Judge Linnane said that in difficult situations parental expectations had to some extent to be curtailed the woman told the court: Our expectations have been enormously curtailed. Judge Linnane said that, for the provision of school books, she would allow further payments out of 256.69, 138.05, and 66 in the three cases. A number of circuit judges have made it clear in the past that damages awards for children are for the benefit of the children when they reach adulthood and are not a substitute for the parental cost of rearing a child. Vera Twomeys daughter, Ava, suffers from Dravet syndrome which is a rare but severe form of epilepsy that hampers peoples cognitive development and requires those with the affliction in need of round-the-clock care due to the frequency of the seizures they suffer. While Ms Twomey has managed Avas symptoms over the past month with the use of Charlottes Web, an oil that is legally available in Ireland, she says legislation is needed for her daughter to receive the medicines she needs long term. Charlottes Web has had a fantastic impact. She went 11 days with no seizures, then had two on October 13, and now has gone five days without one, said Ms Twomey. That mightnt sound like much, given shes had two seizures, but she would have 102 in a month before now. People have no idea. To be able to put on her uniform and send her to school, shes not wrecked looking anymore, shes talking more, shes brighter every day. I would say it has been life-changing. We have spent nearly seven years now trying to tackle her seizures. It has been like a curtain opening before our eyes, she said. However Ms Twomey fears the effects of Charlottes Web will wear off in time and that stronger medicinal products containing tetrahydrocannabinol, which is not available in Ireland, will be needed. She said: If Charlottes Web doesnt work in the coming months we will need something with tetrahydrocannabinol and we will be stuck. We cant get that without breaking the law. In July, People Before Profit TD Gino Kenny introduced the Cannabis for Medicinal Use Regulation Bill 2016 to the Dail proposed legislation that Ms Twomey hopes will be passed. She said: It would allow certain circumstances where people like us can get what we need when we have tried every other conceivable alternative. Senators are to be moved out of Leinster House to allow essential refurbishment on the Seanad chamber and ante-rooms which could take up to two years. During that time senators will move to the nearby National Museum of Ireland,taking up an upstairs a wing of the museum that has been used for lectures, educational displays, and other functions. Nama credit committee chief Willie Soffe and board members Brian McEnery and Oliver Ellingham issued the denial during a six-hour meeting with the Dails public accounts committee meeting which also heard claims other credible bidders were ignored. Speaking during the meeting, Sinn Fein deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald said she has seen documentation where US firm Pimco asked Nama to acquiesce and allow it to stay in the bidding process after alleged fixers fee payments to former Nama Northern Ireland advisor Frank Cushnahan emerged. Under parliamentary privilege, Ms McDonald said the companys own legal team became the whistle-blower by raising the issue initially with Nama. However, she said on discovery of these unethical fees the firm also attempted to get Nama to acquiesce and allow it to remain in the bidding process. She said the situation shows Pimco sought to side-step the issue and that former Nama official Ronnie Hanna later wrote to the company asking if the deal could be shaped differently to allow it continue bidding. However, the Nama board members said they have no knowledge of any detailed discussions on the matter. The allegation came as the PAC continued to investigate the Project Eagle deal due to comptroller and auditor general concerns over fixers fees, political pressure and claims the state lost out on 220m over the deal. During the meeting, concerns were also raised over why Namas board did not examine in greater detail whether eventual Project Eagle winner Cerberus was a proxy to Pimco as it was using the same legal firms and why Nama board minutes appear to show Cerberus was confirmed as the contract winner a full month before it was agreed. However, responding to the specific claims, Mr Ellingham said the board was satisfied Cerberus was unconnected to Pimco and that the apparent meeting minute issue may have been a typo. The Nama board members said that if they held onto the Project Eagle property until today it would be worth less than 1bn instead of its 1.3bn 2014 price. "The Strategy of the EU development "Europe 2020" is based on the principles of sustainable development 1. The questions of energy efficiency, effective use of resources, pollution prevention are among the priorities. Over the past 20 years the EU Council and the European Commission adopted more than 200 directives, decrees and regulations relating to environmental issues. In the process of implementation of the strategy "Europe 2020" the EU institutions continue to develop and improve European law, combining environmental standards with voluntary instruments inherent in the model of circular economy 2, as a basis for the development of sustainable consumption and production. Thus, in recent years acts of law in the field of public procurement (the introduction of a model of sustainable (green) procurement), environmental monitoring, environmental certification and labeling of products and services, the assessment of impact on the environment, support the introduction of energy saving technologies and clean technologies, promotion of products with improved environmental characteristics have been updated. According to the latest Eurobarometer study, 3.26% of European manufacturers offer eco-products and services, that is, those that have passed organic or environmental certification. And 77% of consumers are willing to pay more for eco-products, provided that they are sure that they are really environmentally safe, that is have the proper certification and labeling. The global market for 'low carbon' and 'environmental' goods and services (which is a subset of the total market of green products) is estimated at EUR4.2 trillion with an EU share of 21%. This market has been growing at an annual rate averaging 4%, even during the economic recession, this contributing to make of the green economy one of the sectors with the strongest job growth potential. There is an increasing competition between companies to gain market share in this market. However, in relative terms green products still represent a marginal part of the EU consumer good market. Public procurement accounts for a large proportion of European consumption (nearly 20% of EU GDP). It can therefore play a key role in the circular economy, and the Commission will encourage this role through its actions on Green Public Procurement (GPP), where criteria are developed at EU level and then used by public authorities on a voluntary basis. Christine Dorosko EC General Directorate for Environmental Protection (Brussels, Belgium) "Practical tools inherent in a sustainable development model are the programs aimed at informing consumers about the benefits of sustainable consumption, sustainable (green) public procurement, sustainable construction, sustainable tourism, sustainable lifestyles and education, etc. In Germany, in February 2016, in order to implement these tools a national program on sustainable consumption was launched. According to the program, sustainable consumption should grow from a niche market to a leading position. The principle of sustainable consumption is based on the consumption of products with improved environmental performance at all stages of their life cycle. This method involves the life cycle assessment of the possible impacts on the environment and human health, taking into account the raw materials and the safety performance of materials and products in conjunction with indicators of environmental pollution on the stages of production, transportation and disposal of waste. This approach provides a comprehensive assessment. One of the most important practical tools for sustainable consumption is eco-labeling. The German eco-labeling program is the oldest certification system in the world (38 years), which allows to evaluate the benefits of different goods and services according to their impact on the environment and human health. Currently Germany has 120 environmental standards for product and service groups, which are used as criteria for the implementation of eco-certification and public procurement (technical specifications for criteria). These standards are voluntary, because they are developed on the basis of the best available technologies. The purpose of the voluntary environmental certification is to evaluate the benefits of products and provide the right use of the eco-label. In Germany the eco-labeling sign is called the "Blue Angel." This label is known for more than 90% of German consumers. Today more than 13,000 kinds of products produced by 1,050 member companies that mark their products with the "Blue Angel" sign are environmentally certified. The driving force behind the development of environmental certification and labeling in Germany is growing demand on eco-products and sustainable (green) public procurement 4 in the private sector. Dr. Ulf Jaeckel Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety Sustainable Consumption, Environmental Product Policy Division (Berlin, Germany) "Among the constraints that slow green modernization of the industrial sector, besides economic, there is insufficient understanding by the business community the benefits of green transformation, lack of professional information, lack of opportunities and lack of real incentive instruments for such changes, as well as inadequate legislative controls. Realizing the need to drive the Ukrainian enterprises to green methods of economic activity, one of the strategic directions of the Strategy of the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (UCCI) 2020 is the development of services aimed at promoting "green" resource-efficient, low-carbon modernization of our economy and industry. To perform the tasks assigned to the UCCI, the office for promoting green economy and modernization and the Entrepreneurs Committee on natural resources and environmental protection was created at the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry is a think tank, a source of information and consulting support for business environment that actively helps green modernization processes at all levels. The UCCI also cooperates with international organizations and programs. In particular, active cooperation is developing with the GEF/UNIDO "Implementation of energy management at Ukrainian enterprise," GIZ program (by the German government) "Promoting green modernization of the Ukrainian economy" and other programs." Gennady Chyzhykov The Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry There comes the time in the process of European integration of each country when the issue of foreign policy is transformed into a number of specific and complicated problems of internal policy. For Ukraine, this moment has come and has since then the fore technical challenges have come, such as the implementation of hundreds of European regulations to comply with the rules by which the public sector, politics and economy in Ukraine operate. The absolute priority is the modernization of the Ukrainian economy, overcoming the technological backwardness, the attraction of foreign investments and new technologies, creating new jobs, improving the competitiveness of domestic producers, access to global markets, especially the EU market. The European choice of Ukraine opens up new prospects for cooperation with the developed countries of the continent, offers opportunities for economic development, strengthening Ukraine's position in the global system of international relations. This is the best way to realize national interests. Today there is a trend in the world, where successful business chooses a model of sustainable development, because this concept answers the manufacturers' question: how to do more and better with fewer expenses. This can be achieved by increasing net benefits from economic activity by saving energy and resources, reducing the degradation and pollution of the environment throughout their life cycle while improving quality of life. On the other hand, tangible incentive is the growing desire of consumers to choose more high-quality and environmentally friendly products and services. The Ukrainian consumers have learned to read carefully the packaging, and prefer products safer for health and the environment in many cases. These are the conclusions of an independent consumer survey, conducted in 2015 with the support of the UN Development Program in Ukraine. The national conformity mark is known to 15% of respondents, the European sign "Organic" - 12%, and the Ukrainian sign eco-label "Green Crane" - 10%. In general, the survey results indicate low awareness of Ukrainian consumers about the importance of labels pointing at the safety and environmental benefits of products (from 10% to 15%) compared to, for example, with the German consumers (over 90%). At the same time the Ukrainian poll results show a significant potential for our customers to choose exactly eco-products 5. Some 82% of respondents are willing to consciously choose products with improved environmental performance and are willing to pay more for them. Some 25% of the respondents are ready to buy such products regardless their price, 29% are ready to pay 10% more than the average price, 21% are ready to pay 20% more, and 7% - 30%. Only 18% of respondents are not willing to pay more for environmentally certified products. This statistic indicates the need for a system to inform consumers about the values of labels in conjunction with the information on the safety and environmental benefits of the product, confirmed by the corresponding certificates. Currently 68 domestic manufacturers have successfully certified their products and services according to ISO 14024, which voluntary use the eco-label "Green Crane." The leaders are the companies of food industry, construction industry, manufacturers of detergents and cosmetics. Unfortunately, in Ukraine there is still a practice of unfair competition with use of DAM producers on the environmental benefits of products, sometimes disguised under the brand name. The application of ecological and organic labeling is regulated in Ukraine by Technical Regulation on eco-labeling (Resolution No. 529 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine from dated May 18, 2011) and the Law of Ukraine "On the production and turnover of organic agricultural products and raw materials." These acts of law prohibit the use of its groundless application, that is, without the appropriate certification - ecological or organic. The violators of these acts should be punished for misleading consumers and unfair competition to favor the producers who have invested in new technology to modernize production, purchased a safe and high-quality raw materials in order to achieve the requirements of voluntary standards, which will define the priority of such products. This year, non-governmental organizations took the initiative to conduct public monitoring of the legality of the business entities of ecological and organic labels in the Ukrainian market. The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMC) was informed about these violations. Now under consideration by the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine are more than 40 references. Work in this area continues. The AMC has the authority to address the issue of unfair competition in advertising brands for companies that use false claims and mislead the consumer, as well as "pseudo" certification bodies, which do not have the appropriate accreditation and mislead the entrepreneurs over the competence of their services for the recognition of certificates. Unfair competition involves penalties of up to 30% of revenue for the last fiscal year preceding the year in which a fine was imposed in case of such a violation. " Svetlana Berzina Co-organizer GREEN MIND Ukrainian NGO "Living Planet" Eco-labeling plays an important role in the replacement of outdated models of consumption by more rational - sustainable. The result of the efforts of the Global Eco-Labeling Network (GEN) 6 is a consistent increase in market participants who change old habits and take responsibility, giving examples to others. Our network brings together 27 multi-criteria environmental certification and labeling systems, which operate in accordance with ISO 14024. International standard principles and methods of evaluating these systems allow identifying the environmental characteristics and the overall benefits of production on its life cycle. This type of certification is aimed at stimulating consumer demand for eco-products through its verification and identification (eco-labeling). This is very important because the need for reliable information on the environmental characteristics of products is growing worldwide. Consumers are increasingly focused on eco-labeling as a result of the certification, and have less trust in the authorities, advertising and DAM vendors. The demand for eco-products encourages producers to switch to environmental standards, which in turn helps to reduce environmental pollution, prevent climate change and improve safety performance and product quality. It should also be noted that the development of environmental certification and labeling affect sustainable (green) public procurement and the need to confirm the environmental performance of suppliers of raw materials, for example, in green building - for building materials suppliers. The network members interact with each other, which involves: - The development of support programs; - Joint participation in the development / revision of baseline environmental standards for various categories of service or groups (for example, hotel, restaurant, trade services, etc.); - Mutual international recognition of evaluation results between environmental certification and labeling bodies. Despite the active development of the market eco-products and services in different countries, regions and globally, the Ukrainian business has good opportunities for entry into foreign markets, positioning itself as products with improved characteristics regarding the impact on the environment and human health at all stages of life cycle, which is confirmed by ISO 14024. This can be done through a system of mutual recognition of evaluation results of eco-production between national and regional certification systems, combined with the global network, which Ukraine entered in 2004 with the eco-label "Green Crane." This means, for example, that the environmental certification and labeling system of the Nordic countries "Nordic Swan," which I represent, eco-label in Germany "Blue Angel," European "Eco-label EU," eco-label in America "Green Sea" and Canada, China, Australia, as well as the Ukrainian "Green Crane" and other GEN members mutually recognize the results of the evaluation." Bjorn-Erik Lonn Chair Nordic Swan (Eco-labeling program of the Nordic countries) (Oslo, Norway) -------------------------------------------- 1. Sustainable development is the proclaimed by the United Nations strategic direction, which by 2015 was chosen by 192 countries in the world, including Ukraine. For our country, the sustainable development model provides the economic and social changes aimed at economic growth and ensuring high standards of quality of life. To achieve these changes is possible due to the innovative development, modernization of production and investment, output of Ukrainian producers to new markets, combined with institutional changes. 2. Circular economy is the economic model aimed at energy conservation, resource efficiency and cleaner production in conjunction with sustainable consumption. 3. Eurobarometer is an international project of regular opinion polls, conducted under the auspices of the European Commission. 4. Sustainable (green) procurement is the purchases that take into account environmental criteria, technical specifications and evaluation value of the product life cycle. Defined by the European Commission as more effective, efficient, aimed at protecting the environment and the achievement of high social standards. 5. Eco-certified products in accordance with ISO 14024 international standard, eco-label is awarded in accordance with the requirements of technical regulations on environmental labeling (Resolution No. 529 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated May 18, 2011). 6. GEN, Global Eco-Labeling Network is an international association, which currently brings together 27 systems (regional and national) for environmental certification of products in accordance with the requirements of the international standard ISO 14024. The scope of the GEN membership extends to 60 countries.Galina Buzan info@greenmind.com.ua Tel: +38 (067) 354-72-88 The embattled agency, which has had some USAid and Irish Aid funding withheld pending the outcome of the probe, yesterday announced the appointment of an external management consultant as its general manager for the next year. Celine Fitzgerald, whose background is in outsourcing and the telecommunications industry, will take up the position on November 1. She stands in for chief executive Barry Andrews, who announced he was standing down to give the organisation a fresh start. Ms Fitzgerald, who will launch an open recruitment campaign for a new chief executive, will also oversee the implementation of an action plan to address weaknesses identified in an independent consultants report commissioned by Goal after the US investigation began. The plan includes creating a new position of senior complaints response director; the establishment of a counter-fraud unit within the organisation; and the strengthening of the finance team. New procedures to support whistleblowers will also be introduced, and the procedures for monitoring spend and procurement in emergency response operations will be tightened up. Goal said yesterday it still did not know when the US investigation, which centres on allegations of bid-rigging for supplies bought for Syria, would be complete but the action plan would be rolled out immediately. Goal chairwoman, Anne OLeary, said: The next 12 months will be critical for Goal as we seek to regain and consolidate the trust of our donors and the general public while continuing with the implementation of our aid programmes. Barry Andrews I am delighted that someone of Celines experience is joining the organisation at this important juncture. Given the changes and additions we are making at management level within the organisation in the coming weeks, it is important that we appoint someone with experience and competence in the field of change management to oversee this period. Ms Fitzgerald has worked in the private sector for the past 30 years, holding management positions at Eircell, Vodafone, and outsourcing business Rigney Dolphin, where she was chief executive for five years prior to her departure in 2012. She has since set up her own consulting business, Integro Consulting. She also sits on the boards of health insurer VHI, gas and water semi-state Ervia, and the non-profit educational organisation An Cosan. In the past, she was a board member of development agency Nurture Africa, and a director of organisational development at Trocaire. I have admired the work of Goal from afar for many years and I am acutely aware of the great work that the organisation does with millions of vulnerable people across the world, she said. It is critical that we sort out the issues facing Goal during my one-year tenure and ensure that the people on the front line, whether in head office or in the field can get back to doing what they do best. However, the Government says the money needed to fund Irish Water in the coming months will be taken from savings. Some 110m is available as a result of not having to pay out the water conservation grant. The remaining 13m will come from the Local Government Fund. Minister for Local Government Simon Coveney yesterday brought the memo on funding to cabinet which was signed off on by ministers. The long-term funding of the utility is now being considered by a special commission on water charges chaired by former senator Joe OToole. The commission is due to report back with recommendations to an Oireachtas committee by the end of November. The committee will then have three months to decide on the best course of action and will put its own recommendations to the Oireachtas in February. A vote on the matter is not expected until the end of March. Until then, the Government has said it will not make any decision on a long-term funding model for Irish Water. However, Mr Coveney recently said: Lets be honest about this, if the Oireachtas decides to do away with water charges, then we still need to progress and deliver on the significant capital expenditure programme that Irish Water needs to deliver on. "That will have to come through other revenue raising and presumably general taxation, which then limits in our ability to spend in other areas and also undermines the water conservation incentive that comes with having some link between what people pay and how much they use, never mind all the issues around water directives. Announcing the new Public Service Pay Commission (PSPC) yesterday, officials also confirmed the commission would only produce its first report towards the middle of next year. Trade union leaders have welcomed the setting up of the new commission, which will be chaired by former Labour Court chairman Kevin Duffy. Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe confirmed that Mr Duffy will receive 11,000 for his role while the other six members of the commission will be paid 9,000 each. Part of the role of the new commission will be to examine how to unwind emergency legislation which introduced pay cuts for workers during the crash. Its work will begin immediately but its first report will not go to Government until the second quarter of next year, it was confirmed. Benefits and allowances for different workers in the public sector will be considered, as will the security of jobs under existing agreements. Pay comparisons with other jurisdictions will also be looked at by the commission. Public service reform, retention and recruitment within sectors will also be examined. The terms for the new commission also say that the impact of public wages on national competitiveness and sustainable national finances will be considered. Meanwhile, the Cabinet has agreed that all office holders in government will waive a pay rise which was scheduled to take effect from next April. This means that senior ministers, whose salary was due to increase from 157,540 to 161,451, will in fact not change. Similarly, junior ministers yesterday agreed their salary would also remain at 121,639. Taoiseach Enda Kennys pay will also remain at just over 185,000. There was controversy after the existence of the pay hikes emerged during the budget talks and it was revealed that ministers were entitled to pay rises worth 11,735 between April 2017 and April 2019. The pay rise was agreed with public service workers under the Lansdowne Road Agreement. Minister Donohoe confirmed the Cabinet had agreed not to accept the increases, which apply to public servants on salaries over 65,000. But he signalled that salaries of other officials such as secretaries general would not be frozen as this would be rearranging the mechanics of the current pay deal. However, the minister said it would up to individual TDs on whether they accepted a similar pay rise next year, which will see their salaries rise from 89,965 to 92,672. Parties have given a mixed response on whether TDs should voluntarily give up their 2,700 pay rise. News 6&7 Editorial: 12 Trevor ODonoghue, aged 34, of Kilbeg, Bandon, Co Cork, had pleaded guilty to robbing 750 from the man at the Cork City Bus Station on June 29, 2014. He was subsequently sentenced to five years imprisonment with the final 18 months suspended at Cork Circuit Criminal Court. The Court of Appeal reduced ODonoghues prison sentence yesterday after finding that the circuit court was incorrectly told he had a previous conviction he did not in fact have. Giving judgment, Mr Justice Garrett Sheehan said the injured party, a 61-year-old man who walked with the aid of a stick, was on his way home when ODonoghue and an associate approached him, spoke to him, and grabbed him. ODonoghue held the injured party while his associate grabbed 750 from his hands. They then ran away. The injured party did not make a victim impact statement and asked that ODonoghue not be sent to jail. His associate on the night in question died from heroin use prior to the case reaching court. In the course of sentencing, Mr Justice Sheehan said the circuit court was incorrectly told that ODonoghue had a previous conviction which he did not in fact have. When asked about this matter, the circuit court judges response was that he could not say whether this was in his mind at the time of sentence and he was going to let the Court of Appeal deal with this matter, Mr Justice Sheehan said. Once the judge decided not to open the matter, it was proper for us to do so because ODonoghue could well have a sense of grievance believing the conviction wrongly attributed to him could have left him with a higher sentence. He had 44 previous convictions including one for robbery in 2003. He left school when he was aged 11 and began using drugs three years later. From 2007 to the time of sentence, he was addicted to heroin. It appeared that, since going into prison, ODonoghue has made a serious effort to deal with his addiction, the judge said. Mr Justice Sheehan, who sat with Mr Justice George Birmingham and Mr Justice Alan Mahon, resentenced ODonoghue to four years imprisonment with the final 18 months suspended. Speaking to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation about the impact of Brexit, Ms Buckley said that in all we do, we want to be more competitive and that includes personal taxation Across the board in infrastructure, education etc, we have to compete, its critically important, she said. Other IDA and Enterprise Ireland representatives had commented earlier that tax, including capital gains tax and corporation tax rates, were important in the decision to locate here but not the only factor. They cited quality work space, talent and access to international markets as equally as important. Kevin Sherry, Enterprise Ireland executive director, said while it is impossible yet to predict how Brexit will map out, Enterprise Ireland are helping up to 1,500 companies to examine options like diversifying into other export markets or developing value-added products if possible. He said big exporters are attempting to counter the more immediate problem of exchange rates by focusing on competitiveness, hedging strategies or in some cases, by increasing sales prices in the UK. Meanwhile earlier yesterday, former taoiseach Bertie Ahern dismissed the idea of interrogating EU passengers travelling here, amid suggestions Irish border checks may be beefed up when Brexit is triggered. He said he could not imagine EU passengers being subject to greater scrutiny arriving in Irish ports and airports. His comments come after Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire signalled that governments in London and Dublin would work to strengthen external borders here after Brexit. Mr Brokenshires remarks were also accepted by Tanaiste and Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald who appeared to support the idea, reiterating the governments opposition to any border between the South and North. Ahead of talks today between Education Minister Richard Brutons officials and the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI), the department finalised arrangements with schools bodies to get staff in place after the mid-term break to supervise students during lunch breaks and other periods. The unions 18,000 members will stop doing these duties when schools are due to reopen on Monday, November 7, after a week-long mid-term. The action is in response to pay increases being withheld because ASTI members refuse to continue doing an extra 33 hours work a year which was done under a previous pay agreement to the Lansdowne Road Agreement (LRA) which the union is not signed up to. Before the mid-term break, they are scheduled to take the first of seven days of strikes tomorrow week, October 27. However, most of the 525 schools where ASTI members work would be forced to close until early December anyway because it will take that long for management to hire, train, and have replacement supervisors Garda-vetted. In details advertised today in the Irish Examiner and elsewhere, the Department of Education promises 38.36 to temporary staff who do two hours of supervision in a school day, with 19.18 to be paid for each additional hour. The numbers of staff needed in schools will depend on local circumstances, including the availability of non-ASTI teachers or non-teaching staff such as special needs assistants (SNAs) who might make themselves available for the work. But a major difficulty will be organising training and operation of supervision rosters, as principals who are ASTI members will be banned from co-operation with the arrangements. Hiring will result in panels being formed, which might see those employed being required to be available to different schools in an area, depending on local needs or short-notice requirements. The training required would also have to be overseen by others, and is expected to be run by school management bodies representing the three second-level sectors. The biggest disruption will be at the 375 voluntary secondary schools, those run by or for religious orders where teachers are almost exclusively ASTI members. But the effect will also be felt at 95 dual-union community and comprehensive schools, and possibly dozens of community colleges which are operated by education and training boards (ETBs). After talks yesterday between his officials and representatives of schools likely to be affected by strikes and potential school closures, Mr Bruton left for China on an education trade mission. But he will return early on Friday four days ahead of schedule in light of the industrial relations situation. The Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI) executive will discuss the dispute on Friday, as its members could have to forego a days pay if they refuse to pass ASTI pickets at the 100-plus schools where members of both unions work. The Department of Education has communicated the urgency of Garda vetting for supervisor staff to the relevant authorities. The Irish Blood Transfusion Service needs an extra 1,500 donations over the next three weeks to stabilise the blood supply. IBTS director of operations, Paul McKinney, said attendances at clinics had been consistently down 6% in recent weeks, while the demand for blood from hospitals had remained constant. He said the blood bank managed to maintain supply to hospitals over the summer, even with donors travelling and their routines disrupted during the school break. However, the recent fall in attendances reduced stocks to only three days supply. Those who have O-positive and O-negative blood are particularly needed. The IBTS is calling for blood donors to make a special effort to give blood over the coming weeks to restore blood supplies to seven days across the main blood groups, said Mr McKinney. Only 3% of the eligible population are active donors but blood lasts just 35 days, and platelets, a component of blood, only last five to seven days. IBTS chief executive Andy Kelly said the blood bank recently took part in a global initiative with blood donor organisations across 21 countries to highlight an almost 30% international drop in donors, compared to a decade ago. In Ireland, there is a particular need for new donors as 21% fewer people came forward to donate for the first time last year, compared to 2010. There is also concern that the donor population in Ireland has got older. The average age of donors was 40.8 years last year, an increase of 2.5 years from 38.4 years in 2005. Mr Kelly said the IBTS was running a campaign on social media in a bid to try and reach the age group of 18 to 32. Asked about the lifting of the ban on gay men donating blood next year, Mr Kelly said he did not expect that it would have a marked effect on supply. From next January gay men in Ireland will be able to give blood, provided they have not had sex with a man in the previous 12 months. The current ban has been in place in Ireland since the mid-1980s to reduce the risk of HIV transmission. In 2011 the ban was lifted in England, Scotland, and Wales, where there is also a one-year deferral period for gay men wanting to donate. Mr Kelly said other countries that had lifted the lifetime ban on gay men had not seen a big increase in members of this community giving blood. Mr Kelly said they knew young people were willing to donate but the challenge for the IBTS was to attract them into the clinics and get them to come back. We are working with an agency to build our campaign, but it wont kick in for a few months and, in the meantime, we are struggling to maintain supply. Mr Kelly said the current supply had not yet reached a critical level, but hospitals need to know that they will not run short. A big worry for us now is that we are heading towards the October bank holiday weekend when donations fall, and people are also less inclined to donate during November. Even if someone commits to donating once a year, that would help. We all know people who needed blood, but someone has to donate it for them to get it, he said. www.giveblood.ie In the first operation, the Criminal Assets Bureau (Cab) and the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau conducted 20 searches targeting a west Dublin crime gang involved in money laundering and drug trafficking. As well as 46 top-end cars, including BMWs and Audis, Cab seized up to 60,000 in cash and valuable jewellery. In a second operation, Revenue uncovered a massive drug importation centre, containing 60kg of cannabis herb, 33kg of cocaine, 2.2kg of MDMA (ecstasy), and 72,000 ecstasy tablets with an estimated value of 4m. In an operation that went on for much of yesterday, Cab officers, backed up by armed detectives from the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau, targeted 20 commercial premises connected with the motor trade and private dwellings. A prominent car showroom in Dublins north inner city and garages and lock-ups across west Dublin were searched. In some cases, the luxury cars were being stored in sheds. Sources said that the gang, headed by a 30-year-old convicted drug dealer from Clondalkin, was connected to the Kinahan crime cartel. Solicitor and accountancy offices were also searched yesterday. A large amount of documentation and financial records were removed. Customs officers attached to Cab are examining suspected VRT and Vat fraud and the transportation method used by the gang. The leader of the gang has served a sentence for drugs supply after being caught with a significant amount of crack cocaine. Meanwhile, on Sunday, routine profiling by the Revenues National Profiling Centre, targeting drug importation, examined a vehicle-importing plant machinery. When a further investigation was conducted by Customs officers in the Border-Midlands-West region they uncovered a massive drug importation and distribution centre. Revenue estimated that the street value is more than 4m. It is one of the biggest hauls of cocaine in recent years and compares to 109kg of cocaine for all of 2015. WHEN Ken Loach won his second Palme dOr at Cannes for I, Daniel Blake, he seemed genuinely surprised. This tale of the demise of the welfare state in Britain was an altogether smaller affair than his 2006 winner, The Wind that Shakes the Barley, set in West Cork. Its extraordinary really because its the same little gang from 2006 who have done it, he says of writer Paul Laverty, producer Rebecca OBrien, and his other regular crew members. Its nice to be in that team and we really werent expecting this. As with some of his other best films, including Raining Stones and Cathy Come Home, the 80-year-olds latest film focuses on a microcosm, and, in working-class Newcastle, Loach and his regular screenwriter Laverty found just the right niche. Newcastle is a great city, says Loach. Its got a long tradition of working class struggle in the shipyards and the mines and its got a terrific identity. Theres a great sense of humour and its one of those cities like Liverpool, Glasgow and Manchester where you can identify it, absolutely. The richness of that culture provides a great background to work from; it gives you so much energy. Initially, the Glaswegian Laverty, who is 20 years younger, did all the legwork, travelling the country to talk to people at food banks and in Newcastle he notes there were 2,000 people on the day he visited. After listening to peoples stories and working with welfare organisations and disabled groups, what was remarkable was how the most vulnerable people bore the brunt of the welfare cuts, Laverty notes. People who work with the disabled say they suffer six times more, and a remarkable phrase we heard from one of the civil servants was that the low lying fruit are the easy targets. But in this story Daniel is a competent man who has a lifetime of work, whos got friends and is smart. We chose two competent, smart people as the main characters, but it could have been much more heartbreaking. Nevertheless, the repercussions of Daniel being denied sickness benefits, when he can no longer work, is gut-wrenching. A generous soul, he takes to helping Katie (Hayley Squires), a young single mother and they form a close bond. As with so many Loach films the performances are so affecting that we believe the characters are real. Geordie stand-up comic Dave Johns, who actually hails from the neighbourhood where the film is set, plays his first movie role as Daniel, while London-born actress Hayley Squires plays Katie. Its really very easy working with actors who are full of imagination and vulnerability, Loach says. We started at the beginning and shot in order, so the story unfolded as the actors got the script, bit by bit. It feels like it happens in the moment and takes people by surprise. We cast real people working in food banks in the old Italian neorealist tradition so they knew the job. People in the office signing people on worked in that office. Johns and Squires performances are what makes the film such a heartbreaker. Even if the story was clearly tough to portray, they had the sense that Loach was with them every step of the way.There was a calmness on set, a family element and we felt completely safe, Squires recalls. Before shooting we spent time researching and talking and having lunch together. Youre with Ken and his team and theyre the most supportive group of people. You know it will never collapse. In fact Loach and co were spurred into action by what they discovered, especially at the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP). People working there said recalled how unhappy they were in the way they were forced to treat the public, says Laverty. They are actually trained for potential suicides. Having supposedly retired after Jimmys Hall, set in Leitrim, Loach returned for I, Daniel Blake because he felt it had to be made. OBrien, who has worked with Loach since Hidden Agenda in 1990, notes that its a simple human story. You recognise our own life in the story were telling. So many films are about other peoples lives; theyre distant. Here we tell a story people can identify with. Setting the right tone was hugely important, Loach says. The story is so strong that we had to be very simple and clear and very economical and didnt need any embellishment. The films cinematographer Robbie Ryan is Irish, and had previously worked on Jimmys Hall. He talked about finding a clear and unadorned style without any extraneous movement or anything to distract you from capturing the essence of the people in front of the camera, says Loach. During the Brexit debate, Loach advocated staying in the European Union and working to affect change within its strictures not least because his film, and many of his previous films, would never have been made without European financing. Ironically, the very people Loach presents in the film were the kinds of disenchanted voters who brought about the exit that could hugely affect the financing of any future Loach films. Will there be a future Loach film? I dont know if therell be another one, Ill have to wait and see, the director responds. Its nice having made it and its nice talking about it, but the actual making of it does take it out of you. I know Woody Allen finds it easy, but for some of us its still a struggle. Of course everyone would like to go on forever. You just cross your fingers when you get very old. Youre just pleased to see the sunrise the next day. So well take each day as it comes. I, Daniel Blake opens on Friday. Persuading someone to discuss their past, present, and future on camera is a delicate process. You urge deliberation; you advise them of the repercussions; and you warn that a television audience will ultimately judge, condemn and maybe applaud. For the average, well-adjusted person it is a difficult decision but for an addict, already vulnerable and an outcast of society, it signifies a huge step. In the new two-part documentary, Rural Addiction, which airs on RTE2 on October 25 and 26, at 9.30pm, we explored sensitivities such as family and local community with potential contributors. We emphasised that our presence might provide the motivation to push on with their treatment. Also, many of those willing to contribute wanted to tell their story in order to rid themselves of the tag junkie, to proclaim to local communities how they had got clean. In a metropolitan area, it is easy to distance yourself from those afflicted by addiction, from those in turmoil, whose lives have been shredded by drugs. In cities, people with addiction disappear more easily into the urban fabric; they waste away, anonymously. Our focus was rural Ireland. In small towns community is stronger. People know people. Many people offered to appear on camera without revealing their identities. We explained, however, that we could not blur faces; that the story of addiction needed people to engage fully with a TV audience, to explain openly the process they were going through and what they had overcome. Potential contributors we spoke to had already engaged with support services such as the Ana Liffey Drug Project or the HSE, at one of their four treatment centres in the midlands: Portlaoise, Tullamore, Mullingar or Athlone. We began filming at the end of May; slowly the number of contributors grew. We were in Nenagh one day to record a piece with a woman called Ali, who had a court appearance that morning. It was 10am. We had already spoken on the phone three times, but still there was no sign of her. The director, Martin, and I were anxious because we had arranged to meet a willing contributor named Yvonne*, at 12.30pm, in Longford. I had spoken to Yvonne the day before. Yvonne had told me she was 32 and she had begun taking heroin in her late teens. Ive been on methadone for two or three years, she added. We needed more female participants, so we agreed to meet to talk it through. I told her she would recognise us because we would be the two men wandering aimlessly around the hotel. She laughed. It didnt sound like the laugh of a young woman who had spent nearly half her life on heroin. Back in Nenagh, Ali finally arrived. We recorded the piece with her at 10.45am and left 20 minutes later. We arrived in Longford 10 minutes late but there was nobody in the hotel lobby. Nobody in the bar and nobody in the restaurant. We waited. People began arriving for lunch; we scanned the various shapes that poured out of each car but none fitted Yvonnes description. The sun appeared, the air was heavy, and the hedgerows and trees that fringed the car park seemed to lean upon the wall, panting. We chose a table close to the hotel entrance. One woman looked promising but she was overweight, which tends not to be a good fit for an addict. We ordered lunch and ate slowly. It was half past two when we finished so, although reluctant to leave, we made our way back to the car. Had we travelled from Nenagh for nothing? Martin pulled a fag from his cigarette pack, and I checked my phone again. A small car glazed in grime appeared. The single occupant behind the wheel drove erratically. Martin and I exchanged a hopeful glance, but the Nissan disappeared around the side of the hotel. A minute later, though, it reappeared. This time it made a dash for another corner, a more isolated parking space. We waited for someone to get out. Nobody did. Ill go see. And do what? Martin asked. I shrugged and then approached the car, stopping 20 metres from the drivers door. Yes, it was a woman, and yes, she was the right age. Her jet-black hair was pulled into a loose pony tail. Her head was down, perhaps checking her phone. She became aware of my presence and turned. In her mouth was a silver tube about the length of my forefinger. It was a toot. She was about to smoke heroin. I put a conciliatory hand up and took two steps back. As I watched, she smoked. Seconds later, she started the motor. I tried to protest to calm her, to stop her. Yvonne? She didnt wait. She spun away, aiming for freedom, for the safety of the front gate. Within seconds she was gone and with that any chance of securing her participation. All I could think of was that I had messed up; if I hadnt sought her out, she would have come to meet us. As I reproached myself, another thought crossed my mind: perhaps it wasnt even Yvonne. But thankfully other participants did come on board. The resulting two-part documentary features a collection of brave and honest contributions. It is a powerful, penetrating look at drug addiction and the support services available in rural Ireland today. Yvonnes name and details have been changed in order to protect her identity. Rural Addiction will be broadcast on October 25 and 26, on RTE2 at 9.30pm. Textile-Contact Company, one of the leaders of the national market for the sale of fabrics and light industry production, during the talks that took place on October 12-13 within the framework of the XII International Cotton and Textile Fair in Tashkent signed a contract for the supply of Uzbek textile products of new crop high quality cotton to Ukraine. The contract is worth $12 million. Oleksandr Dmytrenko, Textile-Contact Director, said "the contract we have signed under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations, Investment and Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan, will allow us not only to provide the Ukrainian market with high-quality cotton fabrics, but also to keep the prices at an adequate level for Ukrainian consumers. It is at the expense of large-scale purchases of textile products, direct supply from the manufacturer and long-term cooperation with Uzbek partners that we will be able to manage the supply chain, save on the amount of production and offer Ukrainian consumers the best product, while considering the needs of wholesale and retail customers of Textile-Contact Company. Oleksandr Sokolovskyi, the founder of Textile-Contact Company, feels absolutely sure about the quality of Uzbek cotton. "Uzbek cotton is one of the highest quality in the world. The annual output of the world cotton industry is estimated at approximately $500 billion. Uzbekistan's strategy of cotton raising lies in maintaining stable output and increasing production. At the same time, our Uzbek partners are actively expanding the product range, investing in innovations while adhering to the principles of sustainability in production. Being the leading company, we hold this position, that is why Textile-Contact maintains effective cooperation with Uzbekistan for already many years," he said. The XII International Cotton and Textile Fair in Tashkent was attended by delegations from 43 countries. Light industry experts and world level cotton buyers had an opportunity to get acquainted with all stages of production, processing, storage and export of textile products. What made the XII International Cotton and Textile Fair special is that it provided an exceptional opportunity to sign contracts for the bulk of the Uzbek new crop cotton fiber at exclusive prices. The Nightmare Realm terrorising Cork and Dublin this October, promises its Facebook page. True to their word, three actors from the Cork-based Halloween scare house, dressed as terrifying clowns and armed with pretend chainsaws, took a wrong turn into the grounds of a Dublin school. Cue panic. Followed by embarrassed apologies; the scary clowns were lost. They meant no harm. Ooops. Naturally, it made the papers. Who doesnt love the tingly fear-buzz of a horrid clown? Coulrophobia is undergoing a vigorous reboot, as we all hide under the bed during this latest bout of bad clowning. It last happened in 1981 in Massachusetts, where men in clown masks were said to be luring children from schools (although no arrests were ever made), but this did not develop into a major bout of cultural hysteria because social media didnt yet exist then, and we were unable to spread the ersatz terror digitally. Unlike now. The bad clown virus is spreading from town to town, place to place, waiting to leap out at you from behind a darkened corner, frightening kids and adults alike. Nobody has been killed, or seriously injured, but fear levels are peaking. Halloween is still weeks away. What started in South Carolina last August when some dastardly individuals, dressed in clown wigs and make up, leapt out at members of the public, scaring them rigid - has become a full-blown phenomenon that spread from the US to Ireland and the UK via Australia, New Zealand and Brazil faster than a fire in a nylon wig factory. Such has been the fear caused by these fancy-dressed scarers that people have been dressing up as Batman to patrol their neighbourhoods. In real towns, not just Gotham City. There have been numerous reports and sightings although as yet no Irish arrests, despite several Northern Irish schools recently put in temporary lockdown of scary clowns providing therapists with a whole new generation of terrified children they have attempted to lure into the woods. While such antics may sound like nothing more sinister than extreme Halloweening, there have been instances in the US and UK of armed robberies, clowns wielding actual knives and machetes, and people being accosted. Which, even if youre wearing a red nose and giant shoes, is not remotely funny. Yet the situation lapses back towards absurdity when you hear how police have been visiting fancy dress shops and issuing stern warnings about hiring out clown costumes. Ronald McDonald, the unpleasant red and yellow junk food mascot, has been keeping a very low profile. He has been temporarily retired, according to his employers. Even the White House has been involved, although President Obamas press secretary Josh Earnest appeared to have difficulty keeping a straight face while fielding a press query about the FBI being notified about scary clowns, and what they were going to do about the phenomenon. The press secretary suggested it was a local law enforcement thing. While creepy clowns provide far more opportunities for the media to have fun than, say, Isis or the Russian military, the fact that these fancy-dress meanies are scaring children (as well as adults) rather negates the joke. Giving kids nightmares and making them afraid to go outside seems closer to straightforward bullying than anything as innocuous as pranking. So what started it? Is it Donald Trumps fault? Such has been the implied influence of the forthcoming film of Stephen Kings novel It, starring a very nasty clown called Pennywise, that the author tweeted, Hey guys, time to cool the clown hysteria most of em are good, cheer up the kiddies, make people laugh. Professional clowns those performers who make their living custard pieing each other are up in arms. Metaphorically, at least. While many of us have always found clowns incredibly creepy, they are still a recognised profession who are now suffering an image meltdown as evilly costumed impersonators wreck their trade. Real clown Bibbledy Bob real name Rob Bowker from the British Midlands - in a statement on his website calls the fake clowns idiots who are putting on some cheap freak show caricature of a clown mask (although how one caricatures a clown mask is unclear). If I put a doctors coat on does that make me a doctor? Clearly not. Bowker, remaining true to clown form, concludes his statement, If youre like an orange, Ill see you around. Bibbledy Bobs fellow professional, New Jersey based Fudgie the Clown, has been clowning for 34 years, but told the BBC that since the scary clown craze took off, her bookings have dried up. Silly Tilly, a UK based Christian clown, believes that scary clowns are anathema that the true spirit of clowning is vulnerability while Croydon based clown Rico says he hasnt worn full clown make-up in years, because it scares people. Reacting to the unfortunate creepy craze in the US, professional clowns shot themselves in the joke-sized foot when they organised a peace march in mid October, hashtagged Clown Lives Matter. Which, as you can imagine, was perceived as disrespectful and trivialising of the Black Lives Matter movement. Apologies were hastily issued. The last thing the professional clowns wanted was to offend even more people. Benjamin Radford, author of a cultural history titled Bad Clowns, says that we have always feared clowns, that coulrophobia is as old as clowns themselves. And clowns are very old indeed, existing four thousand years ago in ancient Egypt, and throughout the Dark and Middle Ages, particularly flourishing during the Renaissance in the Italian commedia dellarte, where the best known zanni, or domestic clown, was Harlequin. (This is where we get zany). The Fool, another version of the clown or jester, appears everywhere from Shakespeare to the Tarot. The modern clown originated in the 1800s when a tragic British character called Joseph Grimaldi whose memoirs were edited by a chap called Charles Dickens first applied white make up with an oversized red mouth. Behind the make up, you were unable to see whether the clown was laughing, crying or screaming. And there lies its terror. Happy Halloween. FIVE OF THE SCARIEST CLOWNS John Wayne Gacy the Killer Clown, who raped and murdered 33 boys in 1970s Illinois, before his execution in 1994. Gacys alter ego was Pogo the Clown, which he dressed up as for childrens parties. Gacy, an amateur artist, liked to paint portraits of clowns. Mr Punch the psychotic clown doll from English seaside puppet shows who batters his wife Judy while screaming Thats the way to do it! The Joker Batmans greatest adversary, his pan stick blotched and red clown smile a knifes slash. Played brilliantly by Heath Ledger and Jack Nicholson. Famous for his maniacal laughter. Krusty the Simpsons resident chain smoking alcoholic clown, who hates everyone, especially children. Donald Trump a terrifying orange clown with delusions of world domination. Jaroslaw Kaczynski and Donald Trump, two politicians who have shocked the world this past year, have mostly gotten away with their outrages. But not anymore. When Kaczynskis Law and Justice (PiS) party came to power last year, it immediately seized control over key Polish institutions, including the Constitutional Tribunal, the state prosecutors office, public media and enterprises, even state-owned horse stables. Because the PiS government inherited a sound economy and strong fiscal position, Kaczynski hasnt seen the need for a finance minister, so the post was recently liquidated. Trump, too, has been engaging in behaviour that under normal circumstances would be politically disqualifying. This state of affairs might have continued. But both Kaczynski and Trump have recently been confronted by a political force that neither reckoned with: women. Before last years parliamentary election in Poland, the far-right organisation Ordo Iuris had proposed a blanket ban on abortion, one that would go beyond Polands current legislation, already among the most restrictive in Europe, by forcing women to give birth even in cases of rape, incest, health risks, and serious foetal defects. But, at the same time, another legislative proposal was put forward to liberalise abortion laws, introduce sex education into schools, and guarantee insurance coverage of contraceptives. Although PiS solemnly promised that the Sejm (parliament) would not reject the latter bill in the first reading, the legislation criminalizing abortion was advanced to a parliamentary vote, and the pro-choice proposition was rejected. Women spontaneously took to the streets en masse. For nearly two decades, Poles believed that the countrys abortion laws could not be changed, owing to the power of the Catholic Church and the subordination of the political class to religious authorities. But the actress Krystyna Janda, who starred in Andrzej Wajdas film Man of Iron, called on Polish women to launch a general strike. On October 3, instead of going to work, women across the country turned out to protest, following a model established by Icelands women in 1975, when 90% did not go to work and effectively paralysed the country. The demonstrations occurred even in small towns, and despite dismal weather. Women also congregated outside PiS headquarters, the true seat of power in Polish politics. In solidarity with Polish women, women from Kenya to Berlin took to the streets dressed in black. For the first time since PiSs return to power last year, Kaczynski was frightened. The next day, he had his party vote to reject the anti-abortion proposal. Never before had he acted in a similar manner. In the United States, Trumps presidential campaign began to crumble only when it was revealed that he boasted about sexually assaulting women. Soon, women who had endured his attacks began to come forward and describe what had happened to them. Trumps spell was broken. Independent voters and many Republicans bolted. Michelle Obama delivered an emotional address about how Trumps behaviour had shaken her, speaking in a way that Trumps opponent, Hillary Clinton, cannot because of the complicated history of her own marriage. Support for Trump, particularly among suburban women, crashed. According to recent polls, his backing from women plummeted from 39% to 29% over the course of a couple of days. And yet neither Trump nor Kaczynski seems willing or perhaps able to reverse course. After withdrawing his support for the Ordo Iuris proposal, Kaczynski couldnt leave the issue alone. We will strive to ensure that even pregnancies that are very difficult, when the child is doomed to die or is seriously deformed, are brought to term so that the child can be baptised, buried, and given a name, he announced on October 13. Women have called for another general strike on October 24. [imgcap=]http://snappa.static.pressassociation.io/assets/2016/10/13160806/1476371284-f1fbf41a2051eeb068968a2e6a98009d-600x366.jpg[/imgcap] Kaczynski (who holds no official government position) first united the political mainstream (whom he dubbed the worst sort of Poles) against him by attacking liberal democracy. Now, by pressing his war on women, who form a majority in Poland, he has united the mainstream with the left and politicised and galvanized the countrys youth. Immediately after Kaczynskis latest comments, women began to gather in front of his house, warning him: You want to peer into our beds? Well peer into your home. Trump, too, has doubled down on sexism, blaming the media for his travails and calling one of his accusers that horrible woman, adding, Believe me, she would not be my first choice. And, appealing directly to his many white-supremacist supporters among the so-called alt-right, he has also begun indulging a classic anti-Semitic trope, accusing Clinton of meeting in secret with international banks to plot the destruction of US sovereignty in order to enrich these global financial powers. But Americans arent buying it; nor are Poles. And it is only fitting that Trump, and possibly Kaczynski, will be defeated by those whose dignity and equality each refuses to recognize, with women in the lead. Slawomir Sierakowski is director of the Institute for Advanced Study in Warsaw. Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2016. While any attempts at sorting out their differences will be welcome, both sides will have to be seen to concede something if there is to be any breakthrough. The ASTI insists that the idea of being unable to negotiate any deal outside the Lansdowne Road Agreement (LRA) has been the mantra of Education Minister Richard Brutons officials in recent meetings. If this is the case, it needs to change. The Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI) rejected the LRA a year ago and yet the department was able to negotiate a deal with it in May to begin addressing some issues not covered by the agreement. On the other hand, the ASTI has to acknowledge the bigger picture in which the ministers representatives are entering further discussions. With gardai also fighting for increased pay, the Government is not going to do anything that could threaten the industrial peace enjoyed across the majority of the public sector. The granting to the ASTI of full pay parity for pre-2012 teachers would lead to justified demands from every other public-sector union, whose newer members also started on different pay rates after 2011. That is not to say there is not merit in the unions claim for equal pay for equal work, but a defined timescale in which the differential might be bridged could be something to encourage the ASTI to moderate or postpone its planned series of industrial actions. It will take, however, more than Mr Brutons approval of any such statement of commitment to be given. His cabinet colleague Paschal Donohoe, at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, will expect to have these kinds of issues played out at the Public Pay Commission, whose work has not even begun. Whether the minority government can pre-determine some of the outcomes such as prioritising closure of gaps between salaries of newer and longer-serving public servants, including teachers is unclear. Even more uncertain is whether such a measure would be enough to quell teacher anger on the issue, evident in the ASTIs 80% mandate for strikes for equal pay. It is likely that nothing but a clear Government statement of how it intends dealing with the issue will force a deferral of the earlier industrial actions. A strike day next Thursday is almost inevitable, even with talks beginning today. The eventual measure of those discussions success will be whether over 250,000 students are forced to stay at home after the mid-term break in the second week of November. Culture Board of Trustees Formed to Spearhead Secretariat Renovations East Wing of the Secretariat, Rangoon, in 2015. / Tin Htet Paing / The Irrawaddy RANGOON The Rangoon Division government has formed a board of trustees to manage renovations on one of Burmas most famous colonial-era buildings, the Secretariat, said Rangoon Division Minister for Electricity, Transport and Communication Daw Nilar Kyaw. The head of the trust told The Irrawaddy that the seven-member board, peopled primarily with architects and engineers, will manage the 126-year-old complexs conservation processbeing carried out by the Anawmar Groupas well as certain aspects of the groups operational procedures, including the selection of Anawmars partners. Anawmar, which is owned by family members of former junta general Tun Kyi, won rights from Burmas Investment Commission in 2012 to restore the buildings architecture and preserve it in the long term as a historical museum and arts and cultural center. Daw Nilar Kyaw said that, given the Secretariats towering historical significance, handing over renovations to a private organization had to be handled differently. She added that the trust intends to use Somerset House in London as a model to develop the red brick complexwhich sprawls across 16 acres of land in downtown Rangooninto an arts center. Thats why weve created the trust to assist Anawmarthe main operatorwith the conservation and operational processes. Well work hand in hand with the Yangon Heritage Trust and Anawmar to make sure everything is right, she said. Built in 1890, few colonial structures in present-day Burma are as historically important as the magisterial Victorian-era complex located at No. 300 Thein Phyu Road. It served as the headquarters for the British-Burma administration during colonial times. In 1947, Burmas independence hero Aung San, father of State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and his colleagues were assassinated in an upstairs room in the west wing of the complex. Standing in the center of the Secretariat courtyard is a flagstaff where the flag of a newly independent Burma was first raised on Jan. 4, 1948. After the 1962 military coup, the complex became the Ministers Office. It was used in this capacity until 2005, when it was abandoned as the military regime suddenly made Naypyidaw its administrative capital. Anawmar eventually stepped in to save the Secretariat from years of neglect. U Soe Thiwn Tun, managing director of the group, said that he welcomed the formation of a board of trustees because it is an authoritative body with decision-making power. The Secretariat is a part of [Burmas] national heritage. And so we have to take a great care when it comes to renovation. The trust will be very helpful [in this regard], as [its members] will be able to make decisions regarding dos and donts, U Soe Thiwn Tun said. Still, Anawmar was criticized this past year for its privatization of the colonial structure. Because its significance is so tightly stitched into Burmas national memory, critics argued, the Secretariat should belong to the public. In response to the public tussle, U Soe Thiwn Tun assured skeptics that the groups intention is to open the complex to the public, not to develop a hotel or a shopping mall. He also explained that even though Anawmar secured tender four years ago, the group had until recently done little in the way of renovations because it was awaiting approval from the Rangoon Division government, only receiving the go-ahead in 2015. During that time we could only clear the site, U Soe Thiwn Tun said. But with the completion of the Conservation Management Plan, which was commissioned by the Yangon Heritage Trust, last September, evidence of renovations is impossible to missscaffolding surrounds most parts of the complex. Facade cleaning is now in progress. However, weve been told to suspend additional work until we get further instructions from the trust, U Soe Thiwn Tun said. He also outlined his blueprint for the refurbished Secretariat: the upstairs rooms in the south and west wings, as well as the old parliament building, will be transformed into public cultural and historical museums and an art gallery; the east wing will be rented out as office space; and small buildings in the complexs north will be turned into restaurants. One-third of the complex will be used for commercial purposes since it wont be easy to cover the cost of renovating and maintaining the building. For office spaces and restaurants, Ive invited an international partner, he said. He declined to reveal the name of the partner, saying he was awaiting approval from the Rangoon Division government. He insisted that such partnerships were within the terms of the contract. One of the trust members, Daw Moe Moe Lwin of the Yangon Heritage Trust, which has been providing renovation training to Anawmar, said the formation of the trust made sense. The governments involvement in a state-level project like this will have advantages for management as well as for ensuring progress with implementation, she said. Anawmars contract stipulates a 50-year lease to the group for renovations, along with the possibility of two, 10-year extensions. The total investment is US$50 million. Dateline Dateline Irrawaddy: Our Economy Will Not Pick Up Unless and Until Economic Sanctions are Lifted As Daw Aung San Suu Kyi visits the US, U Khine Win and Daw Yamin Myat Aye join Irrawaddy Burmese editor Ye Ni to discuss sanctions on Burma. Ye Ni: Welcome to Dateline Irrawaddy. This week, well discuss State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyis trip to the United States. U Khine Win, director of the Sandhi Governance Institute and freelance business journalist Daw Yamin Myat Aye will join me for the discussion. Im editor of The Irrawaddys Burmese edition Ye Ni. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is traveling to the US via London. This visit to the US is different from her previous visit, when she was welcomed as a champion of democracy. This time, she goes as the state counselor and foreign minister. She is going to the US amid the peace process and a transformation in Burma. Ko Khine Win, what do you think will happen to US economic sanctions against Burma? Khine Win: Like many people, I expect that the US government will lift some sanctions such as the SDN [specially designated persons] list during the visit. I think this because national reconciliation is one of the economic policy priorities of the National League for Democracy (NLD)-led government. Our economy has been failing to the extent that it will not pick up unless and until economic sanctions are lifted and international investments come in. I think that she will try for this. YN: Some argue that she used sanctions as a bargaining chip throughout the struggle for democracy and might do it again in building democracy and rebuilding the nation. Ma Yamin, what do you think? Yamin Myat Aye: I would like to note two things regarding sanctions. One concerns the economy. Burma cannot do bank-to-bank transactions, which impedes trade and foreign investment. This will only be possible when there are no sanctions. Financial sector reformsincluding banking reformscannot be carried out while there are sanctions. It is necessary to reduce sanctions over time. Officials from the Central Bank of Burma are accompanying Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on her trip to the US and, as Ko Khine Win mentioned, because the national economic policy seeks national reconciliation, I think she will push for the removal of many of the sanctions. Only then can the country receive foreign investment. Currently, US companies invest in the country, but they do so indirectly through Singapore. Regarding the Burmese military and cronies, an arms embargo is imposed against the military. To what extent sanctions will be reduced in that regard will depend on the level of trust between Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the military chief. She has visited the Royal Defense Academy in the United Kingdom, and it is likely that there will be training for military officers and visits between the two armed forces. As for cronies, I am sure that those who are involved in arms and drug dealings will not be removed from the SDN list. Sanctions may be relaxed to an extent that allows for foreign investment but excludes cronies. But, some cronies may possibly be removed from the list. I have interviewed businessmen following this speculation. While there are opportunists who accumulated wealth by working hand in glove with the authoritarian regime, there are also businessmen who got rich because of their industrious hard work. Opportunists have crossed the finish line early because they had an early start in the race. Those who did not work hand in glove with the regimes got a late start and therefore struggled. If all cronies are removed from the list, people will think they can do whatever they like as long as they have money and power. Nobody will want to conduct business fairly and moral values will be undermined. If I were in the shoes of the US government, I would take this into account when deciding to what extent sanctions should be lifted. And I believe the US government will do so. YN: You have made an interesting point. The Kachin community living in Washington, DC recently released a statement calling on the US to continue its embargo on arms deals and avoid military-to-military engagement until peace is established in Burma. But Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has become closer with military leaders and it is because the military has cooperated that we are seeing changes today. Ko Khine Win, do you think Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will speak for military leaders and ask the US to remove sanctions? KW: The US government has to take internal politics and geopolitics into account. An Indian commentator wrote that China would perceive it as a threat if Burmas armed forces and the US get too close. The military-to-military relationship could include things other than military exercisessuch as human rights trainings, which the US provides to Burmas military now. They should provide training about the role of the military under a civilian administration. Regarding the relationship between the US and China, everyone knows that America is counteracting China. Commentators argue that the US is trying to contain China by cooperating with its adversaries and that it only wants to allow Chinas rise within an international liberal order. Our leaders need to find a balance and engage with China since it plays a role in the countrys peace process and national reconciliation. On the other hand, it is also important for them to engage with the international community, including the US, to have economic sanctions and embargoes removed over time. The government has to strike a balance, which is not an easy task. YN: Ma Yamin, it seems certain now that the US will grant the GSP [generalized system of preferences] to Burmese exports, and that US companies will invest and smooth financial transactions will be facilitated. How can Burmese businessmen make the best use of the GSP? YMA: If the GSP is granted, duties do not need to be paid when importing things from Burma to the US. So, Burmese products would be more competitive. We can expect lively trade if financial transactions are realized between the US and Burma, but it will also depend on other factors such as the quality of the products and accessibility to the market. Vietnam has gained considerable market share in the export to the US of agricultural and marine products. Burma could export similar items to the US. But it is necessary to connect the producers to the market and it is important that the products are of good quality. The government must think about how it can subsidize producers. I would like to highlight the e-government system here. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi recently visited China and I heard that the company Huawei proposed helping Burma introduce an e-government system. The US voiced opposition to the plan. During her trip, she could ask the US to help Burmas transition to an e-government systemwith the help of companies like Google, for instance. Then, online payments could be realized in Burma. This would also create more job opportunities for young people. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi could use her power to get sanctions eased and find a market for agricultural produce. YN: Ko Khine Win, Ma Yamin, thank you for your contributions! News China Says Visit by Philippine President Restores Trust President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte arrives at a hotel in Beijing, China. / Thomas Peter / Reuters BEIJING This weeks visit to China by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte points toward a restoration of trust between the sides following recent tensions over their South China Sea territorial dispute, Chinas official news agency said Tuesday. The visit by the recently elected Duterte, who was due to arrive in Beijing later in the day, will be a step toward ending years of estrangement between the countries, Xinhua News Agency said. Should he demonstrate his good faith, the trip will present a long overdue opportunity for the two nations, which enjoy longstanding friendship, to heal the wounds of the past few years and steer their relationship back to the right course, Xinhua said in a commentary. Dutertes visit will help define how far he wants to shift allegiance from the United States to an Asian superpower locked in a territorial standoff with his small, impoverished country, and the Philippines 65-year alliance with the United Statesa key pillar of President Barack Obamas rebalance to Asiacould hang in the balance. The Xinhua editorial signals how China hopes to use the visit to regain lost ground in a Southeast Asian nation that won a major arbitration lawsuit against Beijings massive territorial claims in the South China Sea just three months ago. China refused to take part in the litigation or accept the ruling, which said Chinas historical claim to virtually the entire strategic waterbody wasnt supported by international law. The verdict issued by a law-abusing tribunal has no place in the negotiations at all, Xinhua said. Duterte is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other officials on Thursday. The Philippine draft of a proposed joint statement touches on the restoration of permits for Filipino agricultural exports, Chinas support for Dutertes campaign against illegal drugs, boosting tourism and enhancing Coast Guard cooperation to avoid misunderstandings at sea. Details are still being worked out, officials say, and it remains unclear whether the thorny issue of the South China Sea territorial disputes will be reflected in the statement. China was to offer assistance in personnel training and donation of equipment to aid in the fight against illegal drugs, according to the Philippine draft seen by The Associated Press. Dutertes deadly battle against drug dealers and abusers has been a defining issue of his political career, prompting him to lash out at Obama and other foreign critics and further propelling him toward rapprochement with an uncritical Beijing. News Chinese Nationals Arrested in Northern Shan State for Illegal Mining A truck illegally transporting silica in Namkham Township. (Photo: / ) / Nang A Nge / Facebook Four Chinese nationals were arrested for illegal silica mining in Namkham Township in northern Shan State on Monday afternoon. Local residents joined authorities to apprehend the four men along with two trucks transporting silicaa mineral extracted from sandin Wen Kam village of Namma village tract in the township, Namkham resident U Sai Yi told The Irrawaddy. He said locals had long opposed mining in their area. There were previous cases of Chinese men taking away mineral stones with trucks, he said. U Kyaw Kyaw Tun, the lead administrator of Muse District, which includes Namkham Township, told The Irrawaddy that authorities had already suspended silica mining, including by licensed companies, in Namkham Townshipafter sustained local activism and petitioning. We arrested four Chinese men and seized two trucks carrying stones. We are investigating where they dug those stones from, and to which company they belong. They are now being detained at Namkham Township police station, U Kyaw Kyaw Tun told The Irrawaddy. The Department of Immigration and Population is investigating how the Chinese nationals entered Burma. Authorities are also checking whether or not the two trucks are licensed. Due to grievances that silica mining was harming the local environment and damaging farmland, on Sept. 5, 2014, more than 3,000 people demonstrated in Namkham demanding an immediate stop to mining in the area. On Sept. 8 of that year, 10 Shan community-based organizations released a join statement saying that mining should be halted until mining practices are reformed and peace is secured in the area, which has seen recurrent clashes between the Burma Army and ethnic armed groups in recent years. The [silica] mining has led to floods, damaging more than 100 acres of nearby land and crops there, activist Nang Muay Noom Hom told The Irrawaddy at the time. Roads were also damaged by the floods and there have been fatal road accidents. Six mining companies started to operate silica mines in Namhkam in 2012, exporting the mineral across the nearby border with Chinas Yunnan Province, said Nang Muay Noom Hom. Silica, or silicon dioxide, is a chemical compound that exists naturally as quartz and as a major component in sand. It is used commercially around the world in soaps and cosmetic products. Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko News Daw Aung San Suu Kyi Responds to Arakan State Attacks Burmas State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at the joint press conference in Naypyidaw on Wednesday. / Htet Naing Zaw / The Irrawaddy NAYPYIDAW Burmas State Counselor and Foreign Affairs Minister Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said on Wednesday that she would not accuse any individual or organization before obtaining evidence regarding the culprits of the recent violent attack in Arakan State. While responding to questions posed by journalists during a joint press conference of the State Counselor and her counterpart Bert Koenders, the Foreign Affairs Minister of the Netherlands who is currently in Naypyidaw on an official visit, she pledged to handle the case fairly and manage the situation according to rule of law. We are not going to accuse anybody until we know clearly [who is behind the attack] and have solid evidence. According to information from the government, the Sunday attack on border guard headquarters and outposts in Maungdaw and Rathedaung Townships in Arakan State resulted in the death of nine police officers and eight alleged attackers. A manhunt by security forces in Maungdaw Township reportedly involved the death of four soldiers and seven suspects. At Wednesdays press conference, the State Counselor did not identify an organization responsible for the attacks. One Dutch journalist asked Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to respond to criticism that she is not moving fast enough and not outspoken enough regarding human rights violations in Burma. We take it very seriouslyaccusations regarding human rights violationsand our country will investigate very carefully, she responded. She said Burma was coping with a system that has been in place for more than half a century and that it could not be changed overnight. The State Counselor also stressed the importance of public involvement in protecting human rights but that the greater part of the responsibility falls on the government. The protection of human rights is not something that the government alone can handle. The public also has to be involved, she said. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has been criticized by local and international human rights advocates for her perceived silence regarding human rights violations by the Burma Army in ethnic areas where there are ongoing armed conflicts. Koenders is in Burma on an official visit from Oct. 11 to 13 to discuss bilateral cooperation between the two countries and will open the new Dutch embassy in Rangoon on Wednesday evening. He will also travel to Arakan State to meet with those affected by communal conflicts in 2012. The Netherlands opened a trade office in Burma in 2013. News Election Tribunal Dismisses Ex-Ministers Fraud Allegations U Ohn Myint / The Irrawaddy RANGOON A Union Election Commission (UEC) dispute tribunal has dismissed the objection filed by former minister of Livestock, Fisheries and Rural Development U Ohn Myint against the electoral victory of the National League for Democracy (NLD) lawmaker Daw Aye Mya Mya Myo. Former military general U Ohn Myint ran as a Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) candidate in the November 2015 general election for a Lower House seat in Rangoons Kyauktan Township. He was defeated by Daw Aye Mya Mya Myo by more than 10,500 votes. In December, he filed a complaint with the UEC against Daw Aye Mya Mya Myo, alleging electoral fraud and accusing her of blocking him from campaigning. He asked the tribunal to declare him the rightful lawmaker of Kyauktan, claiming that he had obtained the majority of votes. In an announcement published on Wednesday, the election commission said that the tribunalwhich is made up of senior UEC membershad decided to dismiss the objection, and ordered the petitioner U Ohn Myint to pay 200,000 kyats (US$157) compensation to his opponent, Daw Aye Mya Mya Myo. U Ohn Myint will be allowed to appeal the tribunals decision if he chooses. Daw Aye Mya Mya Myo told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that the commission had cleared the objection as there was no reliable evidence for the accusation. He accused me of blocking his way during the campaign. But I was acting in accordance with the commissions approval, for which we seek permission in advance. So the commission decided that his accusation is not valid, she said. The Irrawaddy previously reported that more than 40 tribunal cases have been filed with the UEC against winning candidates in Novembers election: 26 by USDP, and eight by the NLD. At the Union level, the cases involved 14 Lower House seats and seven Upper House seats; 25 regional parliamentary seats have also been disputed. Objections range from allegations of intimidation to misconduct at polling stations to defamation and misuse of religion. Daw Aye Mya Mya Myo told The Irrawaddy that Myo Chit, U Ohn Myints election agent, also sued both her and polling booth officials for electoral fraud. She was charged under Article 341 of Burmas Penal Code, which states that the wrongful restraining of any person shall be punished with one month in prison or with a fine. The case is still ongoing at the Kyauktan Township Court. U Ohn Myint has previously made headlines after he was caught on video threatening to slap a group of villagers for insubordination. The incident occurred during a visit to Thityarkaut village in Magwe Division in 2014, while he was serving as a Union minister. He described himself as the one who slapped peoples faces around the country and added that he was brave enough to slap anyone in the face. On Wednesday, the UEC also released the designated schedule for by-elections which will be held on April 1 to fill vacant parliamentary seats. It said that the names of candidates will need to be submitted from Nov. 28 until Dec. 7 and that the candidate lists will be announced on Jan. 2. The election campaign period is scheduled from Jan. 30 until March 30. News Local Muslim Community Condemns Maungdaw Attacks People walk along the fence separating Burma and Bangladesh in Maungdaw Township, northern Arakan State. / Reuters Local Muslim organizations have slammed recent attacks on police outposts on the Bangladeshi border in Arakan States Maungdaw Township, calling them destructive to the peace and stability of the country. The border line is the security of the country. A terrorist attack on such a place is totally unacceptable since a commission has been formed to [] hold a discussion in line with the law, U Kyaw Nyein, chairman of Myanmar Muslim Lawyers Association, told The Irrawaddy, referring to the Arakan State Advisory Commission formed by State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in August. The commissions role is to explore root causes of tension between Buddhists and Muslims in Arakan State; it is headed by former UN general secretary Kofi Annan. On Sunday, around 250 assailantsmost of whom are currently on the runlaunched separate attacks on Kyikanpyin border guard police headquarters and the Kotankauk and Ngakhuya outposts between 1:30 a.m. and 4:30 a.m. Nine police officers were killed in the ambush; on pursuing the attackers, police killed eight men and apprehended two, who were taken to the state capital of Sittwe for questioning. The government so far has not named an organization responsible for the attack. Meanwhile, eight local Muslim civil society organizations (CSOs) released a joint statement on Wednesday denouncing the attack and expressing their concern that further violence could follow the event. Ma Darli Myint, leader of a CSO called Social Alliance, said: We are not talking about religion, but we condemn any act destructive to the peace and stability of the country. I would like to urge the leaders to settle the problem peacefully in line with the law. On Monday morning, local Muslims were killed in Maungdaw Township after shots were fired by members of the Burma Army in Myothugyi village. State media reported four casualties, and civil society groups reported seven. State media and government sources reported that four soldiers were killed in clashes Maungdaw Township on Tuesday by forces suspected to have been involved in Sundays ambush. Fighting continued until Wednesday afternoon. Al-Haj U Aye Lwin, a Muslim member of Arakan State Advisory Commission, said that the commission still cannot make public remarks about the attacks, but he personally cant accept acts deemed as destructive to the sovereignty of the country. I dont accept violence. A harsh punishment must be given [to the attackers]. In so doing, there needs to be extra caution taken to make sure those who are not involved in the violence are not affected, said U Aye Lwin. He said the commission is monitoring the events and is set to meet soon, at which time, they will release a statement. Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko News Over 100 Teachers Evacuated From Border Town in Northern Arakan State Burma Army airlifts teachers and locals from an area close to the Bangladesh border in Maungdaw Township of northern Arakan State on Thursday. / Office of the Defense Services Commander-in-Chief More than 100 teachers in government schools have been evacuated via Burma Army helicopter from the small settlement of Taungpyoletwea by the Bangladesh border, in Maungdaw Township of northern Arakan State, with just over 20 remaining to be airlifted. These evacuations, with the teachers flown in to neighboring Buthidaung Township, are taking place after fatal attacks on border guard police posts on Sunday, followed by a manhunt focused on Maungdaw Township, has led to several dozen deaths among police, Burma Army soldiers and suspected militants. Most of the estimated 250 assailants who attacked the police posts remain at large, according to state media. At least six suspects have been arrested. [The attackers] have done nothing to teachers. No [teacher] has suffered injury so far, said Maungdaw Township education officer U Khin Aung, who added that the Burma Army was preparing to evacuate the remaining 20 teachers in Taungpyoletwea. Alongside the 114 teachers that have been airlifted since Thursday, the Burma Army has evacuated 50 government officers, one monk, and 16 local residents, according to the office of the Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Services. An unverified number of residents of rural villages in Maungdaw Township have reportedly fled to Maungdaw town, with monasteries providing shelter. U Tun Hla Sein, a state lawmaker representing Maungdaw Township, said, Locals have fled for the town for fear of food shortages. Most vendors [in their villagers] are Muslim, and have closed their shops. Schools have been closed in Maungdaw and neighboring Buthidaung townships since the beginning of the week due to security concerns. Education officer U Khin Aung said whether schools would re-open after the Thadingyut festival, which lasts for the duration of next week, would hinge on an improvement in the security situation. Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko News Rangoon MP Raises Questions About Previous Govts Land Leases Rangoon Division NLD lawmaker U Nay Phone Latt answers reporters questions after Wednesdays parliamentary session. / Moe Myint / The Irrawaddy RANGOON Near the end of his tenure as Rangoons chief minister, U Myint Swenow serving as Union Vice President (1)issued 232 land lease contracts to private companies at special rates; local lawmaker has raised questions about why information about these initiatives appears to have been blacked out. National League for Democracy (NLD) regional legislator U Nay Phone Lattalso known as U Nay Myo Kyawasked during Wednesdays parliament session about the rental rates decided upon for these projects during 2015-2016 fiscal year, and called for the agreement between the previous government and the companies involved to be unveiled. He claimed that such land leasing practices had occurred not only in Rangoon but also in Mandalay Division. When a Mandalay NLD lawmaker proposed that the parliament scrutinize these non-transparent projects, the move was approved and an investigative committee was formed. Like Mandalay, he said, Rangoon also needs to examine whether public lands were involved in the dealings. Will the Rangoon government review these projects? asked U Nay Phone Latt. If the government has a plan to check, when would it inform the parliament of the findings? If there is no plan to inform us, let me know why. Rangoon Mayor U Maung Maung Soe said, We dont have plan to cancel 232 land [contracts], and described the projects as impossible to shelve. He added that the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC) would carry out an inspection, but that challenges remain, as the land was given out in individual deals under the previous government. U Nay Phone Latt again stated: We want to know the land types involved in the 232 [projects] and who they were given to. Arguably brushing off the MPs inquiry, the mayor said the question had been answered. After the parliamentary session, U Nay Phone Latt told reporters that he felt the mayor had ignored his question as to how much profit the government gets from land leases. We know nothing of such information, he said. MP U Nay Phone Latt said he believed that YCDC might have the list of lands leased in this manner, although the mayor declined to comment on these details in parliament. Both citizens and lawmakers have the right to know the activities of the government, he added, and said that he would continue to try to learn more about the case. News Sagaing Chief Minister Pledges to Enforce Ferry Safety Laws A rescue team tries to salvage a ferry that capsized and killed at least 48 on the Chindwin River in Sagaing Divisions Kani Township. / Pyay Kyaw / The Irrawaddy RANGOON Sagaing Divisions chief minister has pledged to take effective legal action against ferry operators who violate restrictions set by regional government, in the wake of the tragedy of the overcrowded ferry that capsized on the Chindwin River on Saturday. Regional chief minister U Myint Naing visited the location of the rescue operations in Kani Townships Michaung Dwin village on Wednesday and told reporters that the regional government would plan a proper policy to tackle such violations, given that similar accidents have happened in the past. He also confessed that regional legislation on the issue is flawed and assured that it would be amended. U Myint Naing added that the regional government would hold a press conference concerning the incident on Friday, detailing updates on the situation based on reports and investigations. Once the sunken ferry is salvaged and we get precise reports, we will proceed with legal procedures as soon as possible, he said. The privately owned Aung Soe Moe Kyaw-2 ferry was reportedly carrying 300 passengers. As of Wednesday, the rescue team had recovered 48 bodies, but the death toll is expected to climb as several people remain missing. According to the Sagaing Divisions Department of Marine Administration, the ferry was registered as having a seating capacity of only 36 passengers. The vessel left Homalin for Monywa on Friday evening. However, the Marine Administration Department restricts ferries from navigating after dark. Police have since brought charges against the helmsman of the ferry. Lower House lawmaker U Tun Tun Naing of Kani Township told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that he would raise questions to the government about its plan to undertake and enforce regulations on privately owned ferries. There were also two recent fatal boating accidents in Arakan State, killing four schoolgirls in Rathedaung Township and six women in Taungup Township. According to police investigations, the deaths were a result of an insufficient or total lack of life jackets provided for passengers on board. On March 13, 2015, the government-owned Aung Ta Kon (3) ship, running between Sittwe and Kyaukphyu in Arakan State, sank in Myebon Township, reportedly killing at least 160 people, but with only 72 bodies recovered. The boat was reportedly overloaded with various goods. The Arakan State government has since suspended the route after facing criticism for being unable to enforce regulations. News Senior Party Figure U Win Htein to Appear Before NLD Tribunal Expelled and demoted NLD members U Tin Maung Toe and Daw Khin Moe Moe meet with reporters in Naypyidaw. / Htet Naing Zaw / The Irrawaddy Burmas ruling party the National League for Democracy (NLD) on Wednesday launched an internal investigation from Naypyidaw into the controversial purge of senior leaders in the Shan State chapter of the NLD. U Win Htein, an NLD central executive committee (CEC) member and leading party figure, expelled the NLD Taunggyi District chairperson U Tin Maung Toe in a verbal order and demoted Shan State NLD chairperson Daw Khin Moe Moe and two others during his visit to Shan State in September. The expelled and demoted members subsequently filed an appeal, prompting the CEC to launch an internal investigation. NLD auxiliary CEC member U Kyaw Ho, a practicing lawyer, heads the three-member party tribunal charged with the investigation, serving alongside Mandalay Division NLD chairperson U Tin Htut Oo and CEC member Daw Lei Lei. Today, the tribunal started hearings. But U Win Htein couldnt come because he is on a trip. We will examine the evidence at the next session, U Kyaw Ho told the media. U Win Htein has been on a tour of local NLD offices in Chin State. Daw Khin Moe Moe told reporters that she suggested that the tribunal question U Win Htein when she originally filed the appeal. The tribunal assented and plans to question U Win Htein, alongside witnesses, on Oct. 24-25. I explained to [tribunal] head U Kyaw Ho that it wouldnt be fair if we were questioned before U Win Htein. U Win Htein has to present an official justification [for having expelled the members] in front of the tribunal, and then we can defend it, said Daw Khin Moe Moe. U Win Htein has claimed he has evidence that Daw Khin Moe Moe told locals to vote for the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy [with whom the NLD refused an electoral alliance] in the 2015 general election and failed to campaign for the NLD in Shan State. U Tin Maung Toe, the Taunggyi District NLD chairperson, told the media: I have been in this party since 1988 [when it was founded]. We understand all the rules and regulations of the party. I have never heard of a verbal dismissal. The party is currently the ruling party and also formed the government. So, I would like for it to go by the rules. I want it to become a model party for the country. The two other Shan State NLD members to have faced demotion, Daw Mee Mee and Daw Yumi Zaw, were also accused of failing to campaign for the NLD in the lead-up to the 2015 election. Their demotions will be investigated as a single case. U Tin Maung Toes expulsion and Daw Khin Moe Moes demotion will each be considered as separate cases. When [U Win Htein] came to Shan State, I wrote a Facebook post that he considered insulting towards him, U Tin Maung Toe told the media, to explain his demotion, saying he would defend his case with evidence. Though Daw Khin Moe Moe was made to forfeit her position as NLD Shan State chairperson, she remains a central committee member. We called for the formation of an investigation commission to punish whoever is guilty, Daw Khin Moe Moe told the media. Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko Guest Column Burmas Disappointing New Investment Law Then-opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi visits the Letpadaung copper mine near Monywa in Sagaing Division, a highly controversial Chinese investment, on March 14, 2013. / The Irrawaddy A new investment law has been rushed through Burmas Parliament, with the Upper House giving its approval on Oct. 6. According to the Myanmar Investment Commission, the law is expected to take effect soon. EarthRights International and other civil society groups are concerned that the consultation period for the law was too short, and the law itself is incomplete and too weak to secure responsible investment in many of the countrys most destructive industries. Despite the ruling National League for Democracys rhetoric of responsible investment in the lead-up to the 2015 general election, the Investment Law is a significant disappointment. The NLD governments new sense of urgency in passing the Investment Law came in the wake of State Counselor and Foreign Minister Daw Aung San Suu Kyis visit to the United States, during which President Obama announced that the US would end its economic sanctions program and Responsible Investment Reporting Requirements for US investment into Burma. In response, lawmakers in Burmas Upper and Lower houses felt pressured to enact the new Investment Law as soon as possible, leaving no time to properly debate the laws terms and understand its implications. Typically, a draft law will be debated in the Lower and Upper houses over a period of two to three months. In the case of the Investment Law, the draft was passed by both houses in under two weeks. The Law represents a missed opportunity to introduce an investment framework that decentralizes decision-making power over large-scale investment projects, and ensures that the voices of local communities affected by massive development projects are heard. Despite paying lip service to investors environmental and social responsibilities, the new law fails to recognize affected communities right to an effective remedy against investors for breaches of the law. Burmas new investment law also gives the Investment Commission broad decision-making powers with little guidance and no effective oversight. This means that many projects in industries with enormous environmental and social footprints, such as mining, oil and gas, coal and hydropower may be approved without any meaningful constraints on the investment permit process, which is not clearly defined. When an investment is likely to have a significant impact on the environment and local populations, the commission is merely directed to give the proposal necessary scrutiny to determine whether it is strategic for the Union. This represents wide-ranging discretion, which should be bounded by strict rules that further define the terms of acceptable, responsible investment. What is more, under the new law, only one among the new nine-member Investment Commission must be a democratically elected officialcreating the risk that the majority will be drawn from private industry. Crucially, the new investment law also fails to ensure transparency. The law does not oblige the Investment Commission or investors to make any information on investments publicly available. This is a critical oversight, particularly in light of Burmas history of cronyism and corruption linked to investment in Burmas wealth of natural resources. As the government rushes to revise laws and procedures that impinge on investmentincluding those related to land tenure and the environmentlittle is being done by lawmakers to ensure consistency. For example, it is unclear in the new investment law how procedures for acquiring investment permits interact with the duties of investors to submit Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs). So far, a lack of understanding over this relationship has meant that EIAs are not properly reviewedyet permits from the Investment Commission signal a green light to investors for their projects. Environmental and human rights groups in Burma, such as EarthRights International, had petitioned lawmakers to delay the enactment of the Investment Law until these issues were clarified and the terms of the law could be strengthened. However, it appears the NLD was more concerned with pushing the law through to encourage US investment. The NLD has missed an important opportunity to strengthen participation in the legislative process and to enact a law that promotes responsible investment. Most disappointing of all, the Investment Law leaves the citizens of Burma vulnerable to multiple forms of harm at the hands of improperly regulated investment. Kate Taylor is a Rangoon-based legal fellow at EarthRights International, an environmental and human rights organization headquartered in Washington DC. Opinion Wa Tin Mining Boom May Have Peaked A UWSA soldier on duty in Mongmau, Wa State. / J Paing / The Irrawaddy The massive tin mining boom underway in territory controlled by Burmas largest ethnic armed group, the United Wa State Army (UWSA), may be set for a decline, concludes a recent update from the International Tin Research Institute (ITRI), a not-for-profit organization closely connected to the international mining industry. The autonomous section of northern Shan State located along the Chinese border officially known as Shan State Special Region 2, but more commonly referred to as Wa State, is estimated by ITRI to currently account for 95 percent of Burmas tin production, peaking at some 50,000 tpy [tons per year]. Almost all of it is exported to China. A paper published last December in the journal Resources Policy concluded that Wa tin production had in just a few short years boosted Burma from being a small player in the global tin trade to the status of the worlds third largest tin producing country. According to figures provided by ITRI between 2009 and 2014, Burmas overall tin production shot up 4900.00 percent thanks almost entirely to output from the Wa territory, a dramatic shift that appears to have caught the global tin mining industry completely by surprise. ITRI reports that the mining operations at Man Mawsome 90 kilometers from Panghsang, the UWSAs de facto capitalhave changed considerably over the past few years. Citing information from an ITRI staff person in China who recently visited the UWSA territory, ITRI says that mining in Man Maw, which as recently as 2014 was dominated by open pit mines, has shifted as these sites have depleted. According to ITRI, today most mining is underground, with higher operating costs and lower ore grades. Another change cited by ITRI is that many of the smaller mining outfits operating in the area have disappeared and have been replaced by larger firms that are better organized and well financedoperations that are more mechanized and use expanded ore processing facilities. According to ITRI, in 2014, tin mining operations at Man Maw commonly dealt with grades of 10 percent tin. These have been largely depleted: most ore mined now grades between 2-3 percent tin. Although the ITRI update concludes that, in the short-term, tin output from Wa territory seems stable, ITRI notes that the longer-term outlook for production in Wa territory mainly depends on whether there are new resource discoveries in the next few years. Otherwise, production may peak in 2015-2017 and then decline. ITRI has estimated tin production in Wa territory by analyzing Chinas official import figures for tin ore and concentrate. According to the update, ITRI believes that the big increase in imports reported by China in the first half of 2016up 88 percent year-on-year in gross weight termsis based on a depletion of above-ground stocks of ore and concentrate accumulated over the last few years. This masks an underlying decline in mining activity and depletion of readily accessible higher grade ore resources. If the forecasted peak in the Wa mining boom takes place, global tin prices will likely rise. Currently tin is trading at U$18,770 a metric tonan 18-month high, but still considerably lower than the height reached during the most recent commodities boom. Much of the worlds tin production ends up in solder, used in electronic circuits. The leadership of the UWSA and its similarly named political wing the United Wa State Partymost of whom were mid-ranking members of the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) when the group imploded in 1989are known to be reclusive and rarely grant access to their territory to foreign journalists or other outside visitors. Much of this appears to stem from a series of indictments filed by US authorities against the UWSA leadership, including Chairman Bao Youxiang, for their alleged involvement in the global drug trade. The UWSA has long denied these claims, which it maintains are part of a smear campaign. We, the UWSA, are wholeheartedly engaged in the fight against drug-dealing, the groups spokesperson, Aung Myint, told The Irrawaddy in a 2013 interview. For seven years since 2005, there have been no poppy fields and no poppy plants in our region. This has finished. Thats why the world should recognize us. The UWSA has longstanding ties with China, carried over from the days when Beijing was the main backer of the CPB and its armed insurrection against Ne Win, who in the parlance of the Cultural Revolution was a counter-revolutionary, fascist, and reactionary. More than a quarter century after the almost exclusively Burman CPB politburo was toppled by their ethnic comrades, the UWSA remains on good terms with their Chinese neighborsa relationship no doubt shaped by the vast amounts of tin being shipped across the border to feed Chinas giant manufacturing sector. Though this may not be the kind of recognition that Aung Myint and his colleagues had in mind, the Wa territorys significant role in the global tin tradeaccounting for nearly 10 percent of global tin output by recent estimateshas certainly put the group on the global mining map. Several international tin mining firms have cited Man Maws mammoth tin production and its effect on global tin prices as an issue of concern in the market outlook section of their annual reports. In a similar vein, metals analyst Andy Home described in a recent write-up for Reuters how plans to restart a long dormant tin mine in southwestern England depend on how much tin is left in the UWSAs mines. Man Maw is the hard reality that looms large over Cornwalls dreams of reviving its historic tin sector, he wrote. Despite their size and importance to the global tin trade, the UWSAs tin mines did not make an appearance in Burmas first ever Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) report published last year. The report disclosed royalty payments paid by firms operating in Burmas resource sector as well as royalty payments received by the government. Burma joined the global pact, which aims to bring about greater transparency in the oil, gas and mineral resources sector in developing countries, under President Thein Seina move heralded by some, including the World Bank, as a transparency breakthrough. If the figures from ITRI are to be believed, 95 percent of Burmas tin production remains unaccounted for in the EITI report. Given their current trajectory, it appears unlikely that the UWSAwho, since signing a ceasefire with the then ruling military regime in 1989, have run their special region on the Chinese border with almost complete autonomy from the central governmentwould cooperate with efforts like the EITI in future. The UWSA are much less inclined than many of their fellow ethnic armed groups in Burma to cooperate with the central government, if such cooperation doesnt directly suit their interests: the preservation of a degree of sovereignty unparalleled among their ethnic militia peers, none of whose forces are anything near as large or well-equipped. The groups representatives stormed out of the 21st Century Panglong peace conference in Naypyidaw last week, over a perceived slight related to their being given observer nametags at the outsetcasting doubt on their seriousness as participants in Burmas peace process. What kind of royalties the UWSA leadership is charging mining firms operating in their territory is unclear, but it certainly appears that the massive windfall from tin mining is helping the UWSA maintain its powerful militiaby some estimates numbering between 20,000 and 25,000 soldiers, larger than the standing armies of several European nations. Given the central role tin production appears to be playing in the Wa economy, it is very likely that tin mining analysts are not the only ones interested in just how much tin is left in Man Maws mines. With each footfall, breath, and tick of my watch, I feel curiosity stirring inside of me. This feeling only intensifies, so I search the crevices of my mind for the source of intrigue. All the while, I try to keep focus on navigating by the two-by-six-inch white blazes that mark the oldest long-distance hiking trail in the United States. The creation of this trail that runs the length of the state began when the Green Mountain Club declared a mission to make the mountains of Vermont play a larger part in the life of the people. Speaking for myself alone, I can say they have succeeded. I have digressed, let me backtrack. For countless years, I have wanted to summit Camels Hump and then follow the Long Trail north for 30 miles to the summit of the highest peak in Vermont, Mount Mansfield. Two distinctive mountains, similar in size, both rock capped, but at the same time the two mountains vastly differ in their development and personalities. The Hump sits amongst a forest preserve, while Mansfield is one of the most highly developed mountains in the state. I have summited both mountains countless times, but never in the same day nor during the same run. Increasingly, I have been reminded that life is short, life is unpredictable, and dreams will only be dreams until I transform them into reality. So with my hydration pack filled with essentials for the day I park my car in Huntington at the base of Camels Hump and head up the trail. Within an hour I summit Camels Hump. Being the only soul on the summit feels spectacular. Rather than tagging the summit and taking off, I decide to sit and take in the sights and sounds. From this stony pedestal I have a panoramic view. To the west is Lake Champlain and the New York Adirondacks, to the east are the White Mountains, and then dominating the immediate landscape to the north is my destination, Mount Mansfield. I feel alone, isolated with my thoughts and surrounded by the sound of a gentle wind. Through my adventures I have come to learn that feeling alone can be unsettling, but in this moment it feels extremely empowering. After getting lost in my thoughts I get back on my feet with the realization that Ive got a lot of distance to cover. After descending Bamforth Ridge via the Long Trail, I follow the Winooski River and then cross the newly installed foot suspension bridge. North- and south-bound traffic surges past on Interstate 89 and Route 2. Ah civilization, I havent really missed you, but this intersection provides me with the opportunity to refill my hydration pack. Earlier this morning, my stepfather Jeff left me water at the Bolton trailhead. As I run up to the parking lot, I find the 20-year-old Igloo family cooler locked to the trail kiosk with my name written on it. Certainly worth a laugh as it seems like high security for a gallon of water, but damn it is good and cold. After filling my hydration bladder and offering the remaining water to other hikers, I am off. Not even three hours into my endeavor and I have over 12 miles under my belt. Yes that does sound slow, but on these trails nothing happens fast, besides falling. I feel good, am making progress with ease, and develop what I will understand in retrospect as a false sense of confidence as I am now at the lowest elevation of the Long Trail so there is nowhere to go but up! I climb up the road section and then plunge back into the woods, running the rollers and flats. After a few miles, the dryness and sun catches up with me. The Long Trail is notorious for its mud and boggy sections, slick rocks, and streams, but with no rain this summer, everything is bone dry. With each moment it becomes increasingly clear that I will have to ration my water over the next six-plus hours. Over the next miles, I sip water only when taking in calories, then finally I come across a section that has some moisture in the form of a few stagnant puddles cupped in the rock. I pull my Lifestraw out of my pack and examine the puddle from my knees. I can see organisms milling about, but with fingers crossed I begin gulping through the straw. I drink almost the entire puddle, before moving up rock to the next minute pool. Five hours into my endeavor I am now in the thick of the wilderness, committed to forward progress. False summit after false summit I make my way to the top of Bolton Mountain. It honestly feels like it takes forever because I am starting to obsess over the time of day. Just below the high point of Bolton Mountain, from the Puffer Shelter, I send my mother a text. She is tracking my day and at the culmination she is my ride home. I cant tell if the text goes through or not before shoving my phone back in my pack, but feel like I dont have time to fuss about it. I descend into Nebraska Notch and my hope is to make up some time on this section, but the rocky ledges laden with roots and the wooden ladders installed to aid in maneuvering over the technical terrain dont help. I catch my toe and fly forward, luckily getting my feet back underneath my body before I hit the ground below. My heart races and now being alone feels different. Fear of getting hurt in the solitude of these mountains resonates in my mind. I check my phone and see a text from my mom that she is out on the trail headed toward me with water and snacks to help me refuel before the final push to the summit on Mansfield. I think about her text, which is fairly vague, as she could be within yelling distance or still miles away. After dropping about 2,000 feet and passing Taylor Lodge I see a skittish wild-looking dog standing in the trail and holler Shotgun. Its my mothers dog who has wandered ahead of her to find me. Further up the trail I see my mom sitting on a rock, waiting for my arrival. We sit on the trail as I chug a bottle of cold water she has carried in. Then from her pack she pulls out a bag of salt-and-pepper potato chips and we work on eating those. I cant consume them at a fast-enough rate to appease my appetite. As we sit and talk, reality sets in. I still have about 10 more miles in front of me. Ten miles doesnt sound like a lot, but there have been sections where traveling even two miles an hour is labor intensive. My mom and I start hiking north together until we reach an intersection where I can continue on the Long Trail or head to the caralso known as bailing! I keep right, staying on the Long Trail reiterating aloud to my mother, but more to myself, that the point is to summit both mountains. My mom heads back down the trail to the car and will meet me down the next valley after I make my final summit of the day. Within minutes of leaving her, I start to second guess my decision to continue. My energy is waning, my teeth feel like they have layer upon layers of plaque, and everything I touch feels sticky. In the scheme of things I am fine, just transitioning into the realm of uncomfortable. I scurry up the ladders and cling to the rocks on the ledges, all the while trying to keep an honest pace and focus. As the sun starts to noticeably lower I am almost to the forehead of Mansfield and from here I traverse across the bare summit ridge that extends for more than a mile to the chin before taking the most direct route down. With broad views, I make my way across ledges and stone. I am taunted by the looming darkness so I dont look at the views too much. I try to make quick work over to the chin, but the trail becomes more congested as it is occupied by people mostly dressed in street wear carrying little to nothing beyond their SLR cameras. This is the reality of a developed mountain, where you can drive to the top or ride the gondola up to just below the summit. I try to be polite, letting them know I am approaching while also saying hello. A man walking south asks, Where are you going in such a hurry? I semi-begrudgingly slow to a stop and see him wince as he glances at my lower legs, which are crusted over with several layers of mud. Then again maybe it is my outdoorsy odor that makes him grimace. As I stumble for words to explain the journey I am on, I peer down at my GU- and chocolate-bar-stained shirt and feel that my appearance is being judged. Immediately a feeling of self-consciousness comes over me and I tip my trucker cap and swipe my forehead with the buff that is wrapped around my wrist. The breeze flutters my running shorts as wisps of my dark brown hair dance around my face. There is really no use in trying to tidy myself up to appease this gentlemen as I attempt to hurriedly verbalize where I have been and where I have yet to go. He has no idea what I have accomplished, but that is okay with me. It is my bucket-list adventure, my dream, and Im not going to allow a well-dressed man wearing loafers on the top of a mountain make me feel inadequate. Finally, I reach the high point of the ridge and turn off the Long Trail to head down toward Underhill State Park, but as I turn there is hesitation. The curiosity is there, asking question after question. How much further I could go following those two-by-six-inch blazes? What are my limits? Why does this trail that I seem to love and hate bring me such intrigue? I have fulfilled my dream of summiting both mountains in the same effort, yet in the process I have also created many more pipeline dreams for myself and this 273-mile trail from Massachusetts to Canada. Call for Comments (from Meghan) Oil painting portrays the Red Army during the Long March October 22nd, 2016, marks the 80th anniversary of victory of Long March, which is a significant event in modern Chinese history. The Long March, together with the use of gunpowder and Genghis Khan conquering Europe, are enlisted among 100 Events that Changed the World in the fall 1997 issue of Life Magazine The Millennium. From October 1934 to October 1936, the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army soldiers left their bases in southeast Chinas Jiangxi Province and marched through raging rivers, snowy mountains, and arid grassland to break the siege of the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party of China) forces and continue the fight against Japanese aggressors. Some of them marched as far as 12,500 kilometers, the same distance from Beijing to London. During the Long March, the soldiers had to deal with airstrikes and fight against hundreds of thousands of enemy soldiers who were after them every day. The Red Army soldiers, who were wearing shoes made from grass, fought once every 72 hours while marching 50 kilometers a day on average. The surviving military force was less than 7,000, down from 86,000 at the start of the Long March. Compared to the Long March, Hannibals crossing of the Alps was like a summers day stroll, noted American journalist Edgar Snow in his book Red Star Over China. The spirit of the Red Army soldiers during the Long March is stunning. Chen Shuxiang, a division commander of the Red Army, was caught after exhausting all the divisions food and bullets in the four days battle along the Xiang River with his soldiers. Chen avoided capture by tearing open his wounds and cutting his bowel. Jiang Xiuying, a Tibetan female soldier, severed her toes with an axe after they had mortified when the Red Army climbed the snowy mountains. What empowered the Red Army soldiers to be so fearless, even of death? It is the ideals and causes they believed in that empowered them. They wanted to change China, they were determined to end the century of humiliation, they wanted to show the Chinese people that a fair and just society can be won, and that the peoples destiny is in their own hands. British missionary Rudolf Alfred Bosshardt who had followed the Red Army's Long March described in The Restraining Hand: "These people, known as bandits by the Kuomintang, are in fact people who believe in Marxism and practice its principles." Their determination has astounded many people and propelled some of them to re-walk the Long March. In October 2002, two British men, Andy McEwen and Ed Jocelyn, set off to retrace the Red Army's footsteps and recorded the experiences of the last-remaining witnesses and participants of the Long March. Their book The Long March became an instant best seller. The Long March has become an important symbol in modern China. Many streets and roads in Chinese cities are named after the Long March, as are many rockets and nuclear submarines designed and made in China. President Xi Jinping has called for carrying forth the spirit of the Chinese Red Army on the Long March, and striving fearlessly to realize Chinas dream of national rejuvenation. China is undergoing comprehensive reform, which means the country is not only trying to liberate thinking and transform mindsets, but also stand against vested interests. The Chinese people commemorate the 80th anniversary of victory of the Long March to remember our forefathers spirit of working hard, fearing no sacrifice, and believing in the ultimate victory of China's revolution. Today, on October 17, 2016, China launched the Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft with a Long March-2F carrier rocket. The successful launch marks another giant step forward for Chinas space exploration program. The sixth plenary session of the 18th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee will be held from October 24 to 27, 2016, to discuss the issue of party building. Eighty years after the victory of the Long March, China is on a new Long March journey toward a brighter future. Wednesday, October 19th, 2016 (7:49 am) - Score 1,614 Internet retail giant Amazon is allegedly investigating the possibility of launching its own fixed line home broadband and phone service in Europe (the United Kingdom is said to be first on their list), which would probably involve selling a triple-play bundle with their Prime Instant Video (TV) content. Apparently insider sources close to the company have informed The Information (paywall) that this is precisely what the company is planning, although wed take that with a pinch of salt until some solid information emerges. But according to the article, the UK would be one of Amazons first European targets due to the ease at which an ISP can be established. Certainly its fairly straightforward to setup an ISP in the UK, assuming the intention is one that doesnt involve building your own network (i.e. reselling another ISPs products or buying a managed wholesale solution). A number of retailers, such as John Lewis, have managed to enter the market quite quickly by taking a similar approach and Amazon could be mooting the same. Entering an aggressively competitive market is one thing, but making a success of it is quite another. However Amazon does have a formidable presence and, much like the Post Office, it would be in a prime position to attract a significant proportion of consumers away from traditional ISPs. Indeed that might even be enough to make the wider market a little nervous (unless of course youre the ISP they choose to partner with). At this stage Amazon are only understood to have discussed the idea at a high level, which might not translate into an actual product. However broadband would be a good fit for the company and it could be used to help grow their Internet based TV / video streaming solutions. Plus in Amazons mind the longer you spend with their name in your head, the more likely you are to buy something off their website. The dream of a full circle style consumer experience, from Internet access delivery to online content distribution and shopping, is something Amazon could deliver. BEIJING, Oct. 19 -- The Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft successfully completed its automated docking with the orbiting Tiangong-2 space lab at 3:31 a.m. Wednesday Beijing Time, according to Beijing Aerospace Control Center (BACC). Shenzhou-11, which was launched Monday morning from northwest China's Gobi Desert, began to approach Tiangong-2 automatically at 1:11 a.m. Wednesday and made contact with the space lab at 3:24 a.m.. The rendezvous took place in the orbit about 393 kilometers above Earth. The two astronauts aboard Shenzhou-11, Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong, monitored and reported on the docking operation, relaying their findings to the control center. According to the mission schedule, once they enter the space module, the astronauts will stay there for 30 days. Shenzhou-11, China's sixth manned spacecraft, will undertake the longest-ever space mission in the country. The two astronauts will spend a total of 33 days in space. Sun Jun, deputy chief engineer of BACC, told Xinhua that the precision needed for the orbit prediction and automated docking calculation was much higher than previous docking missions. China is the third country, after the United States and Russia, to complete successfully space rendezvous and docking procedures. Tiangong-2 was sent into space on Sept. 15. It is hailed as China's first space lab "in the strict sense" and a key step in building a permanent space station, which the country aims to accomplish by 2020. Terre Haute, IN (47809) Today A shower is possible early. Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Low 46F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight A shower is possible early. Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Low 46F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. 10 Critical Responsibilities of the Cybersecurity Manager The Internet of Things (IoT) is big, amorphous, somewhat mysterious and quickly evolving. It is stuck in the gray area between concept and reality. That makes discussing IoT security difficult. The good news, however, is that people are discussing and debating IoT security from both the conceptual and product perspectives. The challenges of IoT security were featured this week when The New York Times focused on The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which is offering prizes in the millions of dollars range in the Cyber Grand Challenge. The idea is to develop technology to allow the IoT to more or less police itself: To win, contestants would have to create automated digital defense systems that could identify and fix software vulnerabilities on their own essentially smart software robots as sentinels for digital security. The serious nature of IoT security is illustrated in the piece by the news of two recent IoT-related hacking incidents. Level 3 Communications came under attack from malware launched from IoT devices. Akamai Technologies had been attacked by hackers testing whether they could use stolen names and passwords to gain access to websites. All in all, its not a pretty picture. An exhaustive survey conducted on behalf of ForeScout by Quocirca found that organizations are concerned about the IoT, even as they seek to take advantage of what it has to offer. The key, according to the conclusion of the research report, is that systems must be implemented that allow the discovery and classification of IoT devices. This means that previously unknown devices and those running unusual operating systems can be tracked and therefore securely accommodated. It also means that permanently connected devices must also continually be monitored, managed and secured. In short, the job of IT security teams is more complex and demanding than it was just a few years ago. Computerworlds Evan Schuman wrote that enterprises face three dangers: Being attacked from outside, having compromised devices belonging to the company attack others or having these devices attack internally. A big part of the challenge is that IoT functionality is increasingly embedded in elements, such as LED light fixtures, that are not signed off on by the IT department. The fixes to this, Schuman writes, are to train staff on where the IoT resides and to require IT or the CISO to sign off on purchases. The IoT has great potential benefits. As time goes on, however, the potential for damage seems to equal or outweigh that upside. It seems that vendors are recognizing another type of potential: that of making money developing the technology that will keep those worst fears from being realized. Carl Weinschenk covers telecom for IT Business Edge. He writes about wireless technology, disaster recovery/business continuity, cellular services, the Internet of Things, machine-to-machine communications and other emerging technologies and platforms. He also covers net neutrality and related regulatory issues. Weinschenk has written about the phone companies, cable operators and related companies for decades and is senior editor of Broadband Technology Report. He can be reached at [email protected] and via twitter at @DailyMusicBrk. Save Finally, after the release of the original movie 10 years ago, "The Boondock Saints 3" will be coming to your favorite theaters again. The original film was one of the most surprising cult movies in the 90s. It was a rather small-budgeted film but was accepted by the fans and the critics very well at that time. The New Movie Will Have Major Hollywood Stars There are reports coming out that "The Boondock Saints 3" will star two major Hollywood celebrities. Possible casting may include Chris Pratt or Brad Pitt. If the two sign up with the film, this could be a potential blockbuster. What The Original Story Is About The original story is about two (twin) brothers who embarked on a mission to fight crime and get rid of evil men in their Irish hometown. To do this, the twin brothers have to use their own brand of justice. The first film was action packed and captured the hearts of millions of fans. It even got a sequel and was regarded as one of the successful cult movies of all time. The "Saints" Stayed On For 15 years Because of its first two movies, "The Boondock Saints" lived on for the following 15 years after the first film released in 1999. This was due to the re-releases of home videos of its title and marketing of online merchandise related to the film. A big help to its success is the effort of its original stars to interact socially with the community and the dedication provided by the creators of the movie. A Big Stepping Stone For "The Walking Dead' Star "The Boondock Saints" was also instrumental in the success of Norman Reedus, the current star of "The Walking Dead." Reedus played the role of one of the twins and led him to take up the role as one of "The Walking Dead" main characters. Meanwhile, Troy Duffy, the writer, creator and would-be director of "The Boondock Saints 3" has released in January and April some images of the movie script. After months of recovery, actor Dylan O'Brien is now ready to get back to work, although still recovering to date. Thus, there have been reports that although he started filming for his other projects already, he still hasn't returned to filming "Maze Runner 3" wherein he met his accident. Dylan O'Brien Went Through Facial Reconstruction After Accident During Filming As a result to his accident while filming for "Maze Runner 3," the actor Dylan O'Brien suffered blunt force trauma to his face and was in need of facial reconstruction. This explains his long absence from the outside world since the damage was done mostly to his face. The extent of his surgeries was apparently more serious than everyone may have assumed and the actor is in fact still at risk of complications up to now. Nevertheless, the actor still decided to come back for his committed projects. The accident happened in March and for the first time in months, Dylan was seen in public just last September. He also recently returned to social media recently, after posting on his Twitter account. As it looks, the actor seems well on his feet already and ready to return to his job, as he has reportedly been filming for "Teen Wolf" season six already. Will Dylan Pursue Legal Actions Against Production Of "Maze Runner 3" After Horrific Accident? However, there have been reports claiming that the actor may not yet be ready to come back on set for "Maze Runner 3," and still doing negotiations on portraying less action scenes than originally planned. After the accident, Dylan has to be more careful now especially that his roles mostly require him action-packed scenes. There have also been reports that Dylan would have a case against them, since the production failed to ensure the safety of the actors while on set. There have been speculations saying that Dylan might take up on this, and decide on some legal actions towards the production team of "Maze Runner 3."However, there hasn't been any confirmation that the actor is going to sue them at all, or simply arrange things peacefully before he continues filming for the movie. Rest assured, Dylan O'Brien is already back on his game. Just recently, more than 200 employees working under two Jim Beam distilleries in Kentucky have resulted to a strike after claiming that they have overworked in response to production demand; and the company has deprived them of a quality way of life. According to one of the employees, the compensation or money is not their main issue. They were assured to have a great salary raise amidst the massive work they needed to do at that time. Employees Under Jim Beam Distilleries In Kentucky Go On Strike After Having Claimed To Be Overworked However, the employees have complained that they are now working 80 hours a week, making them have lesser time to spend with their families. They asked the company to hire more workers instead, rather than using the existing workers as if robots that don't need any rest at all. According to MSN, the company offered a very competitive proposal to the employees but a greater percentage has rejected it, resulting to a strike. Just recently, there has been a nationwide revival demand on the Kentucky bourbon and this caused the immediate massive workload being piled on the employees. However, the employees feel that the proposals made by the company with regards to their compensation did not lure the employees to allow themselves to work almost thrice as much as any regular employee. Even though the company already added temporary workers, there hasn't been any confirmation yet to their regularity under the company's employment regulations. Contingency Plans Made By The Company May Solve Issues Regarding Losing Manpower The employees are hoping that this will be settled shortly, or else the company will be losing profit at the loss of their employees. They insist that more people be brought in as regular employees, rather than hiring temporary ones and leaving the regular ones to carry on with the job at a great expense. However, there have been reports made by FOX News that given their current inventory list and a number of contingency plans, the company may not suffer as much as anticipated at the loss of these employees in two distilleries in Kentucky. The transparency radical organization WikiLeaks accused the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry of pressuring Ecuador to sabotage its leader Julian Assanges internet, in order to stop him from publishing further leaked files from Hillary Clintons campaign chairman John Podesta. Apparently, the private meeting between the Perry and Ecuador officials was conducted on 26 September in Colombia. BREAKING: Multiple US sources tell us John Kerry asked Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing Clinton docs during FARC peace negotiations. WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) 18 de octubre de 2016 The John Kerry private meeting with Ecuador was made on the sidelines of the negotiations which took place pricipally on Sep 26 in Colombia. WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) 18 de octubre de 2016 State Department Denies John Kerrys Involvement This situation could represent one of the biggest political scandals in U.S. history, since it would show the governments diplomatic actions benefitting a presidential candidate, to the point where it even asked the sabotage of a political asylees privacy. However, the state department denied any involvement, as reported by the Daily Mail. 'While our concerns about Wikileaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down Wikileaks is false. Reports that Secretary Kerry had conversations with Ecuadorian officials about this are simply untrue. Period," U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said in an email. The Mystery Behind Ecuador's Cooperation Although the U.S. interest in this action might be very clear, it is a mystery whats behind Ecuador's intentions to cooperate with the U.S., considering the fact that these two nations have been political rivals since President Rafael Correa came to power. In fact, Correa has always supported Julian Assange, giving him asylum while many nations, including the U.S., asked for his extradition. The most enigmatic detail about this situation is that Correa has expressed his support for Hillary Clinton, but also explained that it would be extremely beneficial for leftist countries as Ecuador that Donald Trump could be the new U.S. president. Although he is one of the main allies of Vladimir Putin, who also wants Trump as president, he actually made a great contribution for Hillary Clintons interest with Assanges internet sabotage. Julian Assange And WikiLeaks Trapped In Geopolitical Change The only scenario that could make sense of this picture is that Ecuador wants to reestablish its relations with the U.S., considering that many of South America's leftist countries are changing their political stances, and the Ecuadorean government would like to keep its status in the new world order. If this is whats taking place right now, Julian Assange will be inside a place where those who protected him are now cooperating with is enemies. Could he complete his mission of publishing all the Clintons files before November 8? Could this be the beginning of his freedoms end? Will he start to publish Ecuadors delicate documents to threat the embassy? There are only two facts in this history: Julian Assange is now trapped in a geopolitical change, and the U.S. presidential elections have become a lot more compelling. Over the years, people have accustomed themselves to the .com's, .net's and other country level top level domains (TLD's) like .uk and .nz. This has always been the case in the realm of the internet until the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN ) decided to expand the number of generic TLDs in 2008. With this change, Google decided to step up and apply for new TLDs that are geared to strengthen their trademark, improve user experience and express creative possibilities. After all, what's the internet going to be like without some good old dose of creativity? In relation to this, Google has finally released a Java-based registry platform that is responsible for Google's own top level domains. This is called Nomulus, a 2012 project that Google has been working on. According to TechCrunch, Nomulus is the platform that Google uses to manage all the registration data for domains that fall under its TLDs. This also handles all the requests to buy, renew and transfer domains. Nomulus is tightly integrated with Google's Cloud Platform, utilizing the Google Cloud Datastore as its backend database and running on App Engine. The best thing about this is that everyone can use it for free. An example of Google's venture in testing this source of innovation is their new corporate blog at www.blog.google. The site is referred to as "The Keyword" and is a new central source for news and stories about the search giant. So far, this is Google's first take on a broadcasted, non-domain industry website under its .brand TLD. With this step taken by Google, users will know that the company is aiming for longevity and has a lot of things in store for their users in the future. After all, Google wants to open up more choices for internet domain names to promote diversity among individual websites. With Nomulus, the internet will surely be a much more engaging, much more colorful place. Halloween won't be complete without counting down the scariest places on earth. We will try to narrow down the list and this will not be in order. Are you fond of experiencing paranormal activities? Are you afraid of the dark? Do you have what it takes to stay in a haunted place alone? Today, I will list some of the scariest place on earth that people don't dare to visit specially during night time. Chapel Bones In Portugal As the name implies, this Chapel is not your ordinary place when you want to pray and worship God. The Chapel Bones in Portugal is literally covered up with bones from 5000 monks and they have two hanging bodies in a rope, one is a child. Suicide Forest In Japan Japan is one of the most beautiful country in the world due to its culture and diversity. But there is one place that terrifies almost all Japanese, the Aokigahara Forest. Tagged as the Suicide Forest in Japan, this forest already have 500 people who committed suicide for unknown reasons. Japanese officials were alarmed even put a signage on the entrance of the forest that states "Your life is a precious gift from your parents," and "Please consult with the police before you decide to die." St. George's Church in the Czech Republic This church in Czech Republic was abandoned after part of the roof collapsed during a funeral service in 1968. There are a lot of ghostly encounters and stories about this medieval church. The ghost sculptures added by artist Jakub Hadrava may keep the church running by bringing in tourist dollars, but also make it just a bit more terrifying. The Catacombs in Paris I really don't understand what's with the medieval period about using bones as their decoration. In Paris, there is a place where you can visit a 200 mile long underground pathways that is entirely made out of bones. Historians said that this bones are from over 6 million bodies who died in a war. Plague Island in Italy When you think of Italy, you think of good food and romantic sceneries. But the most iconic tourist spot in Italy is none other than the Plague Island. Poveglia is a small island near Venice that was used as a quarantine for almost 160,000 people infected with plague from 1793 to 1814. Napoleon Bonaparte also used it to store weapons during the war. From 1922 to 1968 it was converted as a mental hospital and on that same time, a certain doctor was allegedly the brain of the mass murder of all its patients. Snake Island in Brazil Ophidiophobia the abnormal fear of snakes. Fear of snakes is sometimes called by a more general term, herpetophobia, fear of reptiles and/or amphibians. So if you have this fear or basically you don't want to be frightened, don't go to this island. The ever popular island called Snake Island in Brazil is not for the wicked heart. While most of the places on the list are scary because of paranormal activity and things we don't see, Snake Island will scare you because over a million venomous snakes is actually living there. Born and raised in brotherly love, Philadelphia, there is no doubt that Kevin Hart is one of the hottest and funniest comedians we have right now in the business. Kevin Hart, who is now 37 years old, made a living out of making fun and doing its comedic sketches. Kev is so popular that he has more followers than Seinfeld and Chris Rock on Twitter. He embodies what it looks like to be a normal guy while living in the spotlight. He started his career as a stand up comedian when he quitted his job as a shoe salesman. By then, Kevin Hart started developing his mic skills and eventually mastering the art of stand up comedy. It wasn't that easy for Kevin to rise to the top immediately specially in stand up comedy. Day-in and day-out he has to compete with the best of them. That includes Chris Rock, Chris Tucker, Eddie Griffin; and arguably the greatest stand up comedian alive today, Dave Chappelle. Instead of giving up, Kevin Hart used this as his motivation to reach the top and eventually he did. He already conquered the stage with its hilarious punch lines and now he is one of the best comedians to play in a movie. Kevin Hart already made more than count on one hand movies. Movies such as Ride Along, Ride Along 2, Wedding Ringer, Central Intelligence, Get Hard and his latest, What Now? Is just a few of his successful movies. So what makes Kevin Hart successful? Here's why he is on top of the food chain right now. His Fame Doesn't Go To His Head Kevin Hart stays the same whether he was the lonely shoe salesman before or the superstar that he is right now. He mentioned on an interview that, it was a strong family trait that keeps his feet on the ground. He doesn't mind if he eats in a subway or go to the mall alone. He is as real as it gets. He Takes Advice And Listens To People Who Already Made It In the stand up comedy business, there is a fierce competition. If you are weak, then the business is not for you. Remember when we mentioned on top that he was competing against the best? Apparently, he wasn't only competing with them, he listened to them and takes their advice to his heart. Kevin Hart mentioned that Chris Rock kept him from chasing his dreams and Dave Chappelle made him realize how to live his dreams. He Uses His Life Experience On His Skits While most comedians use other celebrities to bomb and make fun of them. Kevin Hart is comfortable making fun of himself and his family. As he mentioned before, he's good at it since it's plainly telling his life story in a comedic way. Kevin is also not afraid of being laughed at by his contemporaries as he finds this a success in making them laugh. Lastly, Kevin Hart uses social media very well. He uses it to plug his films and latest projects. He also uses this as a tool for him to share his everyday life activities, and most of them, they are downright funny. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte arrives in Beijing on October 18, 2016, beginning his state visit to China. [Photo: Chinanews.com] Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has arrived in Beijing, beginning his 4-day state visit to China. Duterte and several Chinese officials have expressed confidence that the visit will bring bilateral ties between the two countries back to the right track of healthy and steady development. Duterte's visit to China is his first visit to a non-ASEAN country since taking office in June. Duterte is scheduled to meet several Chinese leaders including President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang. Ahead of his visit, Duterte elaborated on his hopes of improving and strengthening bilateral relations with China and bringing prosperity to his country. "Well, in one word, I would say it is a defining moment of my presidency to open frontiers of friendship and cooperation, enhancement of all relationship between our two countries, and some dark spots in the relationships, or better still, you may call it gray areas. So we want these totally erased, and I want to establish a more cohesive and a stronger bond between China and the Philippines." His visit comes amid a backdrop of deteriorating China-Philippines ties, due to the unilateral filing of the South China Sea arbitration case initiated by former Philippine President Benigno Aquino III. Duterte noted that insistence on territorial claims does not help with economic development, and that a better China-Philippines relationship can benefit his country's sluggish domestic economy. "(I'm going) there in friendship and to extend my hand in warm brotherhood, and also to ask for help. I must be frank, I must be honest enough to say that we need your help." A number of Chinese officials have expressed confidence in Duterte's visit, noting that better ties between the two sides benefit both peoples, and regional peace and development. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Duterte's visit will be a historic one and will become a new starting point in the Sino-Philippine relationship. "China pays high attention to the visit. We have made good preparations and we want to open our arms of friendship and extend our hands of cooperation to the Philippine people. We believe that President Duterte's visit will be a success and will not only bring the relations between China and the Philippines back to the right track but also open new prospects for the win-win cooperation in various fields between the two countries." He notes that no foreign force can stand in the way of improvements to China-Philippines relations. Shen Danyang, spokesperson for China's Ministry of Commerce, also confirmed that both countries are actively preparing for further economic and trade cooperation. "China and Philippines will further boost connections in terms of economic and trade development strategies. The two countries will embark on in-depth discussions about ways to expand bilateral trade, promote and guide Chinese enterprises to expand investment in the Philippines and strengthen cooperation in fields such as infrastructure, and training on human resources." The Philippines is currently the largest supplier of bananas to China, accounting for 82 percent of the country's banana imports. It also provides 70 percent of China's pineapples imports. Disney, Salesforce and Google's Alphabet Inc. have already backed out from buying Twitter. Now, sources from Disney revealed the primary reason why they withdrew. Apparently, it's not about the money. The squeaky clean company might have taken an issue of the widespread user abuse and hate in Twitter. Twitter Is Not Fit For Disney's Wholesome Image Sources who have knowledge about the matter have recently disclosed some details to Bloomberg. Walt Disney Co. was concerned about not being put in a negative light with the Twitter acquisition. The said social networking site is a haven for online verbal abuse and hate. Particularly, trolls enjoy in making other people's lives miserable. Supporters of different known personalities, politicians, artists and celebrities have continuously used Twitter to express their thoughts. Fan wars and cyberbullying also take place. The block and report features don't seem effective in resolving the said issue. It's not a surprise that Disney would want to distance itself from Twitter. Other Reasons For Disney Profit and user growth are not favorable for Twitter. It is still struggling in finding a good strategy to combat such financial decline. Disney would want to carefully review if a buy-out is beneficial to them. In fact, Bloomberg further reports that Disney even hired investment banks JPMorgan Chase Co. and Guggenheim Partners LLC in their bid evaluation. It also considered the presentation made by Twitter executives The sources made it known that some of the company's largest investors were against the Twitter purchase. The reasons given were the same ones already mentioned. This is aside from the fact that Twitter might not be profitable for Disney. The Effect On Twitter's Stock According to the International Business Times, Twitter's stock had increased during the announcement of the possible purchase by other companies. However, it had plunged when the news hit that Disney, Salesforce and Google's Alphabet Inc. had backed out. The search for alien life has been a long endeavor by thousands of scientists around the world. Many as they are, conclusive evidence regarding the matter remains elusive. But outer space is vast and it is possible that among those distant stars and planet thrives a civilization that may be far advanced than ours. As such, the search continues and astronomers are peering across the sky to find clues that would lead to a concrete answer. Star Clusters Exhibiting Strange Activities That May Be Cause By Alien Life Among these researchers are Ermanno Borra and Eric Trottier from Laval University, Canada. They claim that a cluster of stars is exhibiting strange pulses that they said may be an indication of extraterrestrial life. To investigate this cluster, the duo used the eight-food wide telescope called the Sloan Digital Sky Survey to observe some 2.5 million distant stars. Their investigation led them to believe that 234 of those stars are showing anomalies and that the pulses are akin to lasers being flashed from deep space, said New Scientist. "We consider several possibilities, such as rotational transitions in molecules, rapid pulsations...and signals generated by Extraterrestrial Intelligence (ETI)," stated the two. They added that the fact that these pulses are found in a very small fraction of stars in a narrow spectral range centered near the spectral type of the sun indicates that ETI could possibly be causing the peculiar cosmic activity. Researchers From Search For Extraterrestrial Intelligence To Investigate Star Cluster However, Borra and Trottier's conclusion to their observation have been met with a wave of criticism in the scientific community and called the study ambiguous at best, reported Business Insider. Despite this, the Breakthrough Listen Project, funded by Stephen Hawking and Russian billionaire Yuri Milner, will be investigating the star cluster as every avenue that shows signs of alien life is worth looking in to. "It's an incredibly profound subject - and of course that's why many of us devote our lives to the field and put so much energy into trying to answer these questions," said Andrew Siemion, director of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Research. "But you can't make such definitive statements about detections unless you've exhausted every possible means of follow-up." The researchers of the project said that while the possibility of ETI is still on the table it's the last thing that they expect to find. Borra, on the other hand, is still excited that others are joining in on the investigation to find out what is really going on in that cluster of stars. For the longest time, researchers thought that the depictions of a strange-looking bison in a cave painting have just simply been a bad attempt at capturing the animal's image. A recent study revealed, however, that the bison drawn in these dwelling did exist at some point and is, in fact, the ancient ancestor of the cattle breed today. The team conducting the study consisted of experts from the University of California, Santa Cruz, Polish bison conservation researchers, and paleontologists across Europe and Russia. To trace the genetic history of the species, the researchers studied ancient DNA pulled from radiocarbon-dated teeth and bones found in caves in Europe, Urals, and the Caucasus, reported the Daily Mail. Mystery Bison Resulted in a Hybridization Event The findings concluded that the peculiar-looking bison was the result of a cross-breeding between the steppe-bison and aurochs, the ancestor of modern cattle. Prior to this research, the resulting animal from this cross-breeding has seemingly appeared out of nowhere in the fossil record as it apparently became a separate species over time. "Finding that a hybridization event led to a completely new species was a real surprise - as this isn't really meant to happen in mammals," said Professor Alan Cooper, one of the researchers. He went on to add that when the team first detected the peculiar DNA, they "weren't quite sure a species really existed" as they found the genetic signals from the bison bones to be quite odd. They even jokingly called the mysterious beast as "Higgs's Bison," referring to the five-decade hunt for the so-called God particle in physics. Through continuous study, the team eventually found a distinctive genetic signal from many of the bone samples they have which couldn't be observed to any known species, said the Independent. Ancient Bison Is The Largest European Species To Survive Mega-Faunal Extinction The researchers explain that the genetic bottle-neck that modern European bison went through in 1920 resulted in the species having different genetics from its ancestor. This new species apparently dominated during frigid tundra-like periods and was the "largest European species to survive the mega-faunal extinction." The mystery bison was first detected by Professor Beth Shapiro in 2001. "Fifteen years later it's great to finally get to the full story out. It's certainly been a long road, with a surprising number of twists," said Shapiro. Apple's iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are attracting a very strong consumer response in their first month of sales, as reported by online tech sites. This doesn't come much of a surprise, considering that many have been believing that the iPhones will be expected to benefit in terms of sales after rival Samsung Electronics have decided to fully ditch the faulty Galaxy Note 7 for good. "Such a heated response has been fully expected," a telecom industry stated. "Added to those who have been loyal to the iPhone series, the iPhone 7 has also drawn a lot of consumers from who were dissatisfied with the Note 7." Apple has seen a rise in sales Reports have been saying that the Apple has sold more than 20,000 iPhone 7s and iPhone 7 Pluses even in the first minute after its release. "We received twice as many presale applications for the iPhone 7 series, compared to those for the iPhone 6s series," SK Telecom claimed. Apple Benefits from Samsung's collapse Along with a number of added features, Apple also introduced waterproof and dustproof features, while also removing the hardware home button for the new iPhone for the very first time. Along with that, they also removed the earphone jack and instead released their own version of wireless earphones, drawing mixed responses from consumers. Overall every feature that the iPhone 7 received ultimately revolutionized the device and made it unique among its predecessors. iPhone variants Prices An iPhone 7 of a 32GB variant is priced at $649, while the 128GB and 256GB variants are sold at $749 and $849, respectively. The larger iPhone 7 Plus was priced at $769 for 32GB and $969 for the 256GB variant, Although the prices of the iPhones may seem a bit high compared to other smartphone prices, people are preferring it more than ever since Samsung's untimely demise with their Note 7 Line, which have seen a rapid decrease in sales, ultimately favoring Apple, and all other smartphone brands. Apple has been receiving plenty of backlashes, as the company has not confirmed whether or not the public will see the 2016 MacBook Pro before it turns into the 2017 MacBook Pro. Fortunately, all signs indicate that the Cupertino-based company will indeed unveil the new device before the end of the month. Furthermore, it looks as if it will blow everyone away. Forbes, thanks to Japanese site Macotakara, has reiterated that the 2016 MacBook Pro and 2016 MacBook Air will arrive within the month. This not only proves other reports but is solidly backed up by Rhoda Alexander, the Director Tablet and Notebook PCs at IHS Markit Technology, whom the publication spoke with. "Production started in the second calendar quarter on refreshes of the 13.3-inch and 15.4-inch MacBook Pro [and] the 13.3-inch MacBook Air," she said. Estimating the production time, Alexander then confirmed that the public could expect a release within the month of October. For now, it looks like it will happen on October 27. The publication goes on to claim that the upcoming 2016 MacBook Pro will sport a USB Type-C and Thunderbolt 3 ports, which effectively eliminate the need for a USB Type-A connector. As such, it is also likely that the MagSafe connector may go. The latter is quite surprising as this feature has been standard in Apple's Mac products. First introduced in 2006, the MagSafe feature is a series of magnetically attached power connector. The feature is a safety one, as the connector is held firmly by magnetic strips. While the hold is still strong, removing the same - if someone were to trip over the wires, for example - is also easy and poses no threat. As Mashable notes, there is still time for Apple to announce a 2016 MacBook. Apple, after all, seems to have a preference for October events, as proven in previous years. The clock, however, is ticking and the Cupertino-based company might lose its opening. Alec Baldwin has been getting much attention for his mockery of Donald Trump on "Saturday Night Live." As it turns out, the comedian would be the voice behind Dreamwork's new animated movie "The Boss Baby." The film centers on rivalries between siblings and between babies and pets. Who Is "The Boss Baby"? Based on the 2010 picture book "The Boss Baby" by Marla Frazee, the story is about how a baby takes over a family's world. But the story comes with a big twist -- the baby, just like Perry the Platypus in "Phineas and Ferb," turns out to be a man on a secret mission. The newest member of the family can talk, has a hidden stash of cash in his diapers, and is deployed to save the world from evil. Baldwin, the voice behind the endearing character of Dreamwork's animated film, has been getting much attention for his mockery of Donald Trump on the show "Saturday Night Live." He takes a break from his impressions of the Republican candidate on this film to lend his voice to the adorable "Boss Baby." "The Boss Baby" Inspiration And Plot "Madagascar" director Tom McGrath explains the premise of "The Boss Baby" as a movie with a lovable baby who has "Alec Baldwin's voice coming out of him." Tim, the older brother, was jealous of the new baby in the family but they need to team up to destroy Puppy Co. CEO Francis E. Francis who plans to suck up the love supply in the world by introducing the cutest puppies. While sibling rivalry may be the main theme of the movie, it is also about the babies and puppies competing over who is more endearing. McGrath revealed that the baby may be a sophisticated businessman but when things don't go his way, "he throws a fit" just like what any tyke would do. Overall, this is a family-oriented flick that is perfect for the whole family. Given the number of R-rated films in cinemas such as "Sausage Party," a wholesome animated film for the entire family like "The Boss Baby" would definitely be a refreshing change. The film is scheduled for release in cinemas on March 31, 2017. The Nintendo NX big reveal might just be a few days away, according to a reliable analyst. The mysterious 2-in-1 console has been elusive so far, thus fans and industry observers are looking forward to Nintendo's official unveiling. Takashi Mochizuki of Wall Street Journal, dubbed the leading analyst when it comes to anything Nintendo NX, has expressed that the Japanese company will finally unveil their next-generation console within the week. A Saturday reveal is unlikely, so that leaves Thursday and Friday. "I guess all we can do is just wait. No announcement from company yet," he tweeted on Sunday. Nintendo NX Might Be Revealed On Oct. 21 Incidentally, Oct. 21 marks the five-year anniversary of the first Direct presentation the company has ever had. There are strong suggestions that the gaming company will reveal the Nintendo NX at this time, but there are a lot of speculated dates at this point that it is getting harder to pinpoint which might be accurate. The Nintendo NX might also be revealed next week on Oct. 26, when the company is set to hold an investors meeting. There is no evidence that supports this though, as an announcement as major as this is unlikely to happen in such a meeting. However, it is not entirely impossible. Nintendo NX Expected Specs Per Forbes, it is important to note that these are just rumors and speculations, but the internet already has a vague idea of what Nintendo NX will be. It is expected that the upcoming console will have 2-in-1 functions. It is widely believed that it will be both a home and a handheld console, which means that players will be able to connect it to TV or take the second screen with detachable controllers outside. There are high expectations for the Nintendo NX following Wii U's major flop. The 2-in-1 feature is certainly intriguing, but it is unknown if it will be able to get Nintendo back in the race, in which it is lagging far behind the Microsoft and Sony. "The Simpsons" has a new feat of reaching the 600th episode in its season 28. With its overwhelming success, "The Simpsons" showrunner disclosed that the animated comedy is definitely not ending soon. "The Simpsons" season 28, episode 5 titled "Treehouse of Horror XXVII" is the show's 600th episode, and it does not seem to be ending anytime soon. In an interview of The Washington Post with David Silverman, the producer maintained that "The Simpsons" is never ending. He said: "We don't want it to end." "The Simpsons" To Continue For Over 1000 More Episodes In fact, Silverman emphasized that his team is willing to go until the 2,000th episode. He made mention of the Warner Bros. achievement with Looney Tunes which first aired in 1930 and ended in 1969. From the looks of it, Silverman is taking a lesson as well from what happened to the closure of the said animated series. He would want to work out the "delivery system" for "The Simpsons" which was lacking in Looney Tunes causing it to be killed. "The Simpsons" Season 28, Episode 5: "Treehouse Of Horror XXVII "Recap The Halloween episode of "The Simpsons" season 28 has been watched by millions of viewers. However, the episode "Treehouse of Horror XXVII" is not the best in this season which many would have expected. The 600th episode opened with "The Simpsons" villains: Leprochaun, Frank Grimes, Bob and Kang. As soon as Homer remembered Frank, he greeted him. It can be noted that Frank hates Homer so much. Maggie Simpson meanwhile jumps right out of bed. The episode ended with a James Bond parody at Moe's bar which happened to be the headquarters of an international spy agency. Bart Simpson ventured on a revenge as a spy. Meanwhile, "The Simpsons" predictions have Shirley Bassey out of the gag to celebrate the 600th episode. Watch "The Simpsons" previous seasons online for free. CIA-backed surveillance software Geofeedia, which enabled several U.S. law enforcement agencies to collect information on social media users, was also marketed to American public schools, in order to monitor its students through their social media posts. Apparently, the data mining firm sold its services to the Lincolnshire-Praire School District in Chicago, which paid $10,000 to monitor some of its students. Geofeedia Surveillance Tool For Students' Safety As reported in previous news, Geofeedia has recently been involved in many scandals, since three major social media as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram suspended its access after it was known that the surveillance tool was used to catch and arrest civilian protesters. However, this case apparently was to improve the students' safety. "We did have for one year a contract with Geofeedia, which earlier in the year received an investment from the CIA's venture capital arm In-Q-Tel. We were mostly interested in the possibility of trying to prevent any kind of harm, either that students would do to themselves or to other students.It was really just about student safety; if we could try to head off any potential dangerous situations, we thought it might be worth it," said spokesperson of Lincolnshire-Praire School District Jim Conrey, according to The Daily Dot. According to the International Business Times, it is not known how many public schools bought Geofeedias surveillance software. Also, it was revealed that the tool was operated by a police liason stationed within the school campus. Monitoring Public Schools Students Might Be A Bypass Of Basic Rights Although the data mining firm justified its services and nature for safety issues, there are many who found this situation as a threatening precedent for peoples privacy, arguing that spying on innocent people its a bypass of the most basic rights. "Discovering that Geofeedia was not only being used by social media sites to help police spy on activists of color was disturbing enough,". "But then to find out this third-party vendor is also helping to police public school students is beyond disturbing, it's a terrifying bypass of the most basic rights of some of the most vulnerable, and most dissident, voices in the country: activists of colour and students," executive director of the Center for Media Justice Malkia Cyril said. Former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) chief Michael Hayden admitted on Tuesday that the U.S. has hacked foreign political parties in past operations, just as Russia is doing right now. As it turns out, Moscow's conduct with regards to cyberattacks did not really go too far. U.S. Reasons To Hack Foreign Political Parties Were Different From Russias According to CNN, far from wanting to support the Republican Nominee Donald Trump, the retired general explained that Russian intentions are to break the American voter confidence in the political process. This opinion comes after the U.S. intelligence formally accused Russia of being the mastermind behind the Democratic National Convention hack, wanting to disrupt the presidential election. Also, Hayden explained that even when the CIA and the National Security Agency (NSA) have previously done these type of hacks themselves, it was just done to influence a political election, such as what Russia is doing. Apparently, Putin might be giving green light to these operations by the paranoia that the U.S. spy agencies are doing the same to him all the time. U.S. Spy agencies Have Been Involved In Many Scandals "To take the internal emails and then begin to use them to influence the American election, that's quite a different matter. That has now moved from an espionage activity to a covert - or not very covert - influence operation. I think they are doing it to mess with our heads, to erode confidence in our political processes.I think they are doing it because [Russian president Vladimir Putin] is convinced we do this to him all the time. We do not. We don't," said Hayden in an interview at The Heritage Foundation. These statements come in a time where it has been revealed the American spy agencies' involvement in many espionage activities, whether in the U.S. or in foreign countries. As reported by the International Business Times, the Edward Snowden documents showed the details of these activities, revealing controversial cases as the where the NSA tapped phone conversations of German chancellor Angela Merkel and her closest advisers for years. The repeated ghost worship by Japanese politicians has been planting dangerous seeds that can potentially lead the whole country in the wrong direction, read an editorial published by the Peoples Daily on Tuesday after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent a ritual offering to the Yasukuni Shrine a day earlier. The Japanese leaders tribute to the Yasukuni Shrine, where 14 Class-A convicted World War II criminals were honored, reflects their preposterous historical viewpoint, read the editorial. The following is the translation of the article: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent a ritual offering on Monday to the notorious Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo during the war-linked shrine's autumn festival, once again repeating its annual farce of "ghost worship. The Yasukuni Shrine, which honors 14 Class-A convicted war criminals among the 2.5 million Japanese that died in WWII, is regarded as a symbol of past Japanese militarism. After Abe angered the world with his personal visit to the shrine in December 2013, it has almost become tradition for Japanese leaders to send ritual offerings to the shrine during annual spring and autumn festivals, or even on Japans WWII day of surrender. Despite opposition from the international community, Japanese right wing politicians are acting recklessly in its worship at the Yasukuni Shrine. But ghost worship, either by visiting the shrine or sending offerings, is a reflection of their preposterous historical viewpoint. Japanese leaders are not only exposing their arrogance, but also planting dangerous seeds for regional and international disorder by leading the whole country in the wrong direction. History is by no means only related to the past. Todays world has found that the incorrect views held by the Japanese government are exerting great influences on its diplomacy. For instance, after US President Barack Obamas trip to Hiroshima, some US strategists advised Abe to pay a visit to Pearl Harbor. The idea was rejected by the Japanese government. Such a flat-out rejection reveals Japans attitude toward history, which means that it is impossible for Abe to apologize for Japans attack on Pearl Harbor. According to Japanese media, Tokyo has held back its mandatory payment to UNESCO this year because of the UN body's push to reform the Memory of the World program, which registered Chinas documentation of the Nanjing Massacre last year. Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said the Japanese government considered whether to suspend the contribution after the program registered the documents without consideration of Japans opinion during the process. As one of the gravest crimes committed by Japan during World War II, the Nanjing Massacre is widely recognized by the international community. The registered Documents of the Nanjing Massacre show the responsibility of the international community to preserve history, treasure peace and safeguard human dignity. However, the Japanese government, turning a blind eye to justice, threatened to suspend its annual payment after failing to block registration of the documents. Such a farce shows that for Japanese right wing politicians, covering up a countrys crimes always come before international obligations. This was not the first attempt by the Japanese government to rewrite history. Over the years, Japan has continued to tamper with historical fact in order to undermine the post-war peace. For example, it manufactured threats from surrounding countries ina bid to exempt itself from a new security law. A strategy of hypocrisy was also adopted. Before the regular election of members of the House of Councillors held this summer, it cooled down the aggressive campaign on the law in order to avoid public protests. In a bid to profit from escalating regional conflicts, Japan has also been wooing G7 members to cement alliances with the US. Japans recent behavior recalls the danger it was during World War II. But Japans right wing politicians have no chance for success when faced with the mirror of history. The international community should realize that peace is never achieved at one stroke. It not only calls for justice, but also far-sighted strategies and actions. ORLANDO, Fla. -- A person who had access to the nation's deepest secrets, Robert Gates, the former CIA chief and U.S. Secretary of Defense from 2006 to 2011, is lot more open in retirement. Gates had the crowd at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo laughing over his observations about IT and applauding at some of the things he believes in. On stage here, for instance, Gartner analyst Richard Hunter fired off questions, asking at one point whether Edward Snowden, the former security contract employee who in 2010 took thousands of classified documents, was a "traitor or hero?" "Traitor," said Gates, prompting applause from the audience of IT managers, who routinely deal with their own insider and outsider threats. As the applause faded, Gates added: "And he hasn't been given sanctuary in Russia for nothing." Gates, whose military career extends back into late 1960s, regaled the audience with some ancient technological stories. For instance, before the era of digital photography, the U.S. sent satellites with cameras and Kodak film to take pictures. Once the film was used up, the satellite would eject a film-bearing capsule, which deployed a parachute on its way to the Pacific Ocean. It was the job of the pilot of a Lockheed C-130 Hercules to use a hook to capture the capsule before it hit the water. "Woe to the pilot who missed the canister," said Gates, to audience laughter. When digital photographic capability arrived in the 1970s, the intelligence agencies faced new problems, namely managing and analyzing the volumes of data. Problems of this sort helped propel IT spending by defense, sometimes to dead ends. "I have wasted more taxpayer money on IT than anybody in history," said a smiling Gates to an applauding audience. On a more serious note, Gates argued that the U.S. has the technological capability to help protect private-sector networks, but policy disagreements and politics are preventing it. Gates divided cyber threats into four areas. There is the collection of data for national security purposes, something the U.S. has been doing since the Civil War when it tapped into telegraph lines. The second threat is acquiring information for economic advantage. There are two dozens countries that do this, said Gates. "Until the Chinese really got busy at it, the best in the world probably were the French." But Gates said the U.S. and U.K. do not engage in this type of economic spying. "We do not collect information to advantage our domestic companies," he said. The third area is simple cyber crime, and fourth is cyber as a defensive weapon: Disabling networks, denial of service and other attacks. Gates says the Department of Defense does a "pretty good job" defending its networks in the .mil world. The areas most at risk are .com and .gov networks. In 2010, working with the Department of Homeland Security, Gates said they developed a plan to allow DHS to appoint a deputy director at the National Security Agency, The deputy director would have ability to task the NSA to protect a private network when under attack from a foreign source. President Barack Obama approved the plan. But once other agencies and lawmakers learned of the NSA plan, opposition arose and it was never implemented. Business cooperation was needed as well. This approach was needed, argued Gates. "Those who are waiting for a domestic agency to be created to protect our domestic networks have a long wait. It's not going to happen. There is not enough money. There is not enough human capital. There's not enough time to build a domestic NSA," said Gates. Gates said, "As with, it seems, everything else, because of the politics of the issue we're kind of nowhere" in utilizing government resources to protect private networks. This story, "Politics keeps the U.S. from securing private-sector networks, says former CIA chief Robert Gates " was originally published by Computerworld . Get unlimited access to all content and features at ivpressonline.com with our Full Online Access Subscription. Read our E-Edition, the digital replica of the print newspaper online, access content in exclusive sections including Family, Teen, Business, Databases, Farm and more. This option does not include daily home delivery of the Imperial Valley Press newspaper. For home delivery service, please select Premium or Premium Plus. [File photo] Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has reiterated his opposition to foreign interference in the South China Sea, warning that such unwelcome overtures would pose a great threat to regional stability. Even though countries like the U.S. say all nations are by the Philippines side, I say we are close to a third world war, said Duterte during an interview with CCTV on Oct. 13. Duterte believes that stubborn insistence on territorial claims does not help with economic development. Though the South China Sea issue has dampened the two countries relations, Duterte said he still has faith that China and the Philippines can totally erase these dark spots, adding that he wants to establish a more cohesive and stronger bond with China. "In one word, I would say it is a defining moment of my presidency to open the frontiers of friendship and cooperation, and enhance [the] relationship between our two countries," Duterte said. Discussing the balance of the Philippines' diplomatic ties with the U.S. and China, the president noted that his country should not be too constrained [by] the dictates of any other country. He also stressed that China and the Philippines are neighbors, while the U.S. is thousands of miles away. I am not breaking away from the U.S. - I just want to be friendly with everybody. So you do not restrain me from doing [the same thing to] China. Why should we be afraid? Why should we stick to a certain country? Duterte said, As for his expectations for his state visit to China, the president said he hopes that better Sino-Philippines relations can benefit his country's sluggish domestic economy, adding that China is the only hope for the Philippines economy. China is the first non-ASEAN country that Duterte has visited as a president. The visit, which kicked off on Oct. 18, will continue until Oct. 21. The Chinese consulate in Malaysia said on Oct. 18 that it has been working to end the transnational human trafficking recently reported on by Malaysian media. According to local media reports, the criminals first cripple and disfigure the trafficked children, and then force them to beg at popular Malaysian tourism sites after years of captivity. This is precisely what happened to 33-year-old Xiu Yuan, who said he was abducted and then crippled as a child. According to Xiu, only beggars who earn the trust of the criminal gang leader are permitted to go out and beg in foreign countries, and there are many people controlled by the gang back in China. The leader takes 60 percent of everyone's daily income. On Oct. 18, the Chinese consulate in Malaysia confirmed the reports by local media and said it has been investigating the case. A consulate employee told Beijing Youth Daily that Chinese child beggars have long been an issue in Malaysia, though the consulate has taken measures against the phenomenon. While some criminal gangs have been dismantled, new ones are constantly emerging. The case will be dealt with primarily by local police, and the Chinese consulate will spare no efforts to help trafficked children, the employee added. Chinese archaeologist refutes BBC report on Terracotta Warriors Terracotta Warriors at the Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum in Xi'an, Shaanxi province [Photo by Zhu Xingxin/Asianewsphoto] BEIJING - A Chinese archaeologist recently refuted a BBC report about northwest China's Terracotta Warriors, saying that the article has quoted her out of context and overstated her remarks about Western influence on the 8,000 life-sized figures. The BBC report, released October 12, said archaeologists have found that inspiration for the Terracotta Warriors, found at the Tomb of the First Emperor near today's Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, may have come from Ancient Greece. The article quoted Li Xiuzhen, senior archaeologist from the Emperor Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum Site Museum, as saying, "We now think the Terracotta Army, the acrobats and the bronze sculptures found on site were inspired by ancient Greek sculptures and art." Li, however, said that the BBC quoted her out of context, as the article ignored much of what she told BBC reporters. "I think the terracotta warriors may be inspired by Western culture, but were uniquely made by the Chinese. BBC overstated my remarks about Western inspiration and ignored main points I made during the interview," Li told Xinhua. Li said the local nature and cultural environment, such as soil, craftsmen and traditional funeral culture, all contributed to the creation of the Terracotta Warriors. She also pointed out that the article put her quotes right before those of Professor Lukas Nickel from the University of Vienna, whose opinion is contrary to her own, but makes it seem as if they share the same idea. According to the article, Prof. Nickel said, "I imagine that a Greek sculptor may have been at the site to train the locals." "I am an archaeologist, and I value evidence. I've found no Greek names on the backs of Terracotta Warriors, which supports my idea that there was no Greek artisan training the local sculptors," Li said. The Higgs Bison, an ancient animal, was recorded on a cave wall that dates back more than 15,000 years ago in a cave in Ardache, France. The animal was wittingly named after Higgs Boson, a subatomic particle, because it's elusive like its namesake. It is said to be a hybrid of a bison and cattle that lived 12,000 years ago. With the help of radiocarbon dating, researchers found out that this specie lived with Steppe Bison. Steppe Bison were the only known bison specie to live during the Late Ice Age in Europe. Alan Cooper of the Australian Center for Ancient DNA explained that the hybrid is the ancestor of modern bison which can be found in Poland and Belarus. He explained that the hybridization was a complete surprise to the him and his colleagues. He explained that this is not supposed to happen to mammals. He added that the genetic signal of the ancient bison was odd, Science Daily reported. Cooper explained that the hybrid managed to dominate colder tundra periods. He also explained that they tend to be the largest European specie to survive the Megafaunal extinction. Researchers were misled by two bison species that don't match for a long time. They now come to realize that there finding is the answer on how cow genes can be found in modern bison. However, without any skulls the researcher can't reconstruct the animal. Cooper and his colleagues asked help from other cave experts. They explained that cave men wouldn't have created two bison models if they haven't seen two. Cave men illustrated bisons having long horns and forequarters, as well as, having small horns and bumps, NPR reported Higgs Bison was first detected by Beth Shapiro of University of California Santa Cruz in 2001. She's happy to report that after fifteen years they managed to get the full story behind it. The two drawing showed Higgs Bison and Steppe Bison. Researchers agreed that the drawings were remarkable and helpful on their study. "I deeply regret my actions. As a Party chief trained and educated by the Communist Party of China for so many years, how could I become such (a corrupt official)? I caused huge damage to the Party." Blockbuster TV series with tearful confessions and juicy details seen as useful cautionary account After reading about numerous officials accused of bribery and other forms of corruption, the public is finally hearing from some of the disgraced officials themselves. An eight-part documentary being aired on national television provides a first full look inside their stories, including tearful expressions of regret and even surprise at their own actions, which brought them a posh life at the public's expense. At the same time, anti-corruption officials see it as a chance to showcase their work over the past four years, and as a cautionary tale for public servants. It also comes right before a high-level meeting expected to develop stricter rules for CPC members. "I never expected I would have such an ending," Zhou Benshun, 63, former top Party official of Hebei province, tells the camera. "I was brought up in a poor family. ... I hated corrupt officials since I was young, but I became one in the end." He was placed under investigation in October. Juicy details also are coming to light, such as bribes in the form of "gifts", like a jade bracelet worth 15 million yuan ($2.2 million) given to Bai Enpei, 70, a former top official in Yunnan province, in exchange for a piece of land. The series is being aired shortly before the Sixth Plenary Session of the Communist Party of China's 18th Central Committee. The meeting, to be held Monday through Oct 27, is expected to propose tougher rules for Party members in the form of two draft disciplinary documentsfor professional and personal conductto be submitted for discussion and approval. The series, produced by the CPC Central Committee for Discipline Inspection and the national television system CCTV, entitled Corruption Fight Is Always Underway, began airing nightly on Monday at 8 pm on CCTV-1. It features the cases of about 10 former provincial or ministerial-level officials and one former State leader, Su Rong, former vice-chairman of China's top political advisory body. The interviews were done while the former officials were detained but before any convictions. The cases of disgraced officials who held higher positions, from former State security chief Zhou Yongkang to former Central Military Commission officers Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou, are discussed, though they are not interviewed. Airing the series before a key national political meeting is "a good opportunity to tell good anti-graft stories and promote building a clean and honest government," said Hong Daode, a law professor at China University of Political Science and Law. Yang Weidong, a law professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, a school for training senior officials, said, "After watching the corrupt officials' stories, officials and CPC members will exchange their views on the lessons they will have to learn, and to regulate their own behavior according to the new rules." The series' production team visited 22 provinces and regions to gather information on more than 10 former top officials linked to more than 40 corruption changes. They also interviewed 70 experts from home and abroad as well as anti-graft officers to explain the cases and how they were handled. In the first episode, aired on Monday night, viewers heard from Bai, Zhou, and Li Chuncheng, former deputy Party chief of Sichuan province. In the second episode, screened on Tuesday, Wan Qingliang, former Party chief of Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong, and Gu Chunli, former vice-governor of Jilin province, told their stories. Bai, Li and Wan have been convicted, while Zhou and Gu await trial. The series has had a big impact. "After watching the TV series, we know how serious and complex the graft issues are, and (that) it's necessary for the government to carry out a continuous and persistent campaign to target corruption," said Li Wei, an anti-graft officer in Liaoning province. Zhang Li, a teacher at Beijing No 11 Middle School, said, "It's being shown to reflect the central leadership's resolute determination and the measures taken to fight corruption, which will leave no place for the corrupt suspects to hide and escape." Since November 2012, when the new leadership took office, anti-corruption has become a top priority, and President Xi Jinping has launched a sweeping campaign to target both high- and low-ranking officials. Over 140 senior corrupt officials have been investigated over graft issues, according to the CCDI. Zhou Benshun, 63, former top official of Hebei province Zhou was placed under investigation of corruption charges in October. No detailed information is available about the value of bribes he obtained. The documentary showed that Zhou redecorated a two-story government building in a military compound in Hebei province and used it as his home. He hired a caretaker for his pets, and after his pet tortoise died at home, Zhou had Buddhist Sutras transcribed, burying the transcriptions with the tortoise. Zhou confessed in the first episode of the TV series to failing to discipline his children and using his power to help his son's business. Zhou's wife, Duan Yanqiu, and his son, Zhou Jing, were also placed under investigation. Li Chuncheng, 60, former deputy Party chief in Sichuan province Li was given a 13-year jail term last year for illegally obtaining nearly 40 million yuan from 1999 to 2012. In the first episode of the documentary, he confessed to ignoring the Party's code of conduct and deviating from the correct path. Russian president Vladimir Putin will visit Berlin on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, and will meet German Chancellor Andela Merkel for talks on the Syrian and Ukraine conflicts. This is his first trip to this German City since the Ukranian conflict flared up. Chancellor Merkel said the talks will include Ukraine and France in a 4-way summit to make a crystal-clear assessment of the progress in the implementation of the Minsk peace accords for Ukraine. She told reporters in Berlin that "things are stalled in many areas such as the ceasefire, political issues and humanitarian issues." President Putin is expected to meet a lot of pressure from the participants in the scheduled talks. Chancellor Merkel is not optimistic about the results of the talks but making the effort might be the right direction. On the Syrian conflict, President Putin will be asked for lasting ceasefire in Aleppo so humanitarian can the alleviate hardships of the people and to put an end to the utter devastation of the city. Allepo, the second largest city in Syria has been seized by rebels fighting against President Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian military backed by Russia have assaulted the city employing land and air strikes causing wide destruction to the city, mostly residential buildings and civilian structures. The European Union has warned that the continuous bombardment of the city may constitute a war crime for the severe damage done to civilians. The Berlin meeting will be held almost simultaneously with the European Union summit in Brussels set to discuss its relationships with Russia including renewal of sanctions over the Ukraine conflict. France is more interested in finding the right processes that can end the Ukraine crisis. Russia denies that it has sent weapons and troops to the pro-Moscow separatist rebels that resulted in 10,000 casualties. Ukranian president Petro Poroshenko has little trust in the outcome of the Berlin meeting but he is optimistic about the future of his country. Email Links to our top local news stories of the day, Monday through Saturday. (Xinhua) 14:52, October 19, 2016 BRUSSELS, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- China and the European Union (EU) on Tuesday hailed the outcomes of a high-level trade dialogue in Brussels. The sixth China-EU High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue was co-chaired by Chinese Vice Premier Ma Kai and European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen. Ma said the dialogue, since inception nine years ago, has played an important role in promoting bilateral economic and trade cooperation. The sixth dialogue held on Tuesday deepens mutual trust, promotes pragmatic cooperation, and actively implements the agreements reached during the 18th China-EU summit and the G20 Hangzhou Summit, Ma said. Under the theme "strengthening policy coordination, promoting sustainable growth," the sixth dialogue highlighted topics on macro-policy coordination, the Belt and Road Initiative and the China-EU connectivity on development strategy. At the Dialogue, China and the EU reached consensus on cooperation on digital economy, third-party market and intellectual property rights. China and the EU should further coordinate on macro-policies and join hands in developing their economies, Ma said, adding that they should also enhance cooperative work on trade and investment. The Chinese official also proposed the two sides accelerate the connectivity of development strategies, so as to push for economic and trade cooperation in various fields. China and the EU should embrace the New Industrial Revolution for innovation and sustainable growth, Ma noted. Ma pointed out that as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the EU should fully fulfill its obligations under Article 15 of the Protocol on China's accession to the WTO. Article 15 requires WTO members to stop using an alternative calculation method in anti-dumping investigations against China after Dec. 11 this year. Stressing that the EU pays high attention to the trade dialogue with China, Katainen said the bloc is willing to strengthen coordination on macro-policies with Beijing and will make efforts to fulfill the obligations aforementioned. Ma also met with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Tuesday. On Oct. 16, four foreign tourists became lost on an abandoned part of the Great Wall in Beijing's Huairou district. After six hours, Huairou firefighters came to their rescue, escorting them to safety. Eleven firefighters responded to the emergency. They were led by a friend of the lost tourists, eventually coming across the unlucky group early the next morning. By then, one Canadian woman was already exhibiting symptoms of low blood sugar. The rescuers distributed mineral water to the tourists before escorting them down the hill. The four tourists, originally part of a group of seven, became separated from the rest of their party when it got dark outside. Reddit Email 0 Shares By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | AFP is reporting that a news agency linked to Daesh (ISIS, ISIL), A`maq, is carrying a video of a Daesh fighter who swears that he and his colleagues will inflict a decisive defeat on the US in Iraq, as the guerrillas spread through the streets of the city. He addresses the camera saying, As for you, America, we promise you that which our honored elders promised you, God bless them, such as Abu Mus`ab (al-Zarqawi) and Abu `Umar and Abu Hamza [etc.]. The threats dont make any sense. The US does not have infantry combat troops at the front lines, and is mainly intervening with fighter jets and bombers. If you are a small guerrilla group, you really cannot match that firepower. There is no obvious way in which Daesh could inflict harm on the US in Mosul. Alarabiya reports that the Iraqi army on Tuesday entered the al-Hamdaniya district of Mosul, heading for the citys downtown. The most difficult issue facing the advancing army is ensuring the safety of the some one million civilians trapped in the northern Iraqi metropolis. In contrast, the Kurdistan Peshmerga or national guard for the Iraqi Kurdish superprovince took seven villages near Mosul. After that it got bogged down in the advance on Mosul from the northeast by Daesh booby-traps. Alarabiya reports that the media-savvy Daesh has activated a cyber-army of keyboard supporters and social media fundamentalists to support the organization as the attack on Daesh proceeds. This is so despite the Daesh cut-off of the internet and social media in Mosul itself. Daesh sympathizers are asking the organizations acolytes on the internet to lend their support from the outside. Many anonymous accounts are representing themselves as inside Mosul, but these are for the most part lies. (The videotape discussed at the beginning of this piece likely is part of this propaganda message.) Russia and Syria are afraid that the Iraqis will allow the militants to escape from Mosul to Raqqa, their Syrian capital, and so would reinforce the capabilities of Daesh in Syria. The Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria still dreams of reconquering all Syria, including Raqqa, and this development will make that pipe dream even more of a stretch. Related video: On the road to Mosul with Iraqi forces BBC News Nie Zhengyuan gets rid of weeds in the cemetery. The Red Army Ground graveyard in Tongjiang County, Sichuan province, is home to the remains of more than 3,000 Red Army soldiers. The cemetery has been protected and watched over by four generations of the same family over the course of eight decades. Most of the soldiers buried in the graveyard lost their lives after getting injured in the civil war. Nie Youkui began to watch over the cemetery in 1934, spending the next 48 years of his life on this voluntary mission. On his deathbed, he told his son, Nie Zhengyuan, that it was the Red Army that allocated farmland to their family and cured Nie Youkui's typhoid. The family could repay their kindness by guarding their graveyard, Nie Zhengyuan's father told him. Nie stands at the site of a Red Army hospital. Nie Zhengyuan kept the promise he made to his father and replaced the older man as the defender of the graveyard. Nie Zhengyuans son, Nie Changzhou, also chose to continue the mission, opting to work close to home so he could watch over the cemetery. Every year during Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day, both Nie Zhengyuan and Nie Changzhou, along with Nie Changzhou's 19-year-old son and 15-year-old daughter, bring libations and joss sticks to the cemetery to honor the martyrs. Reddit Email 0 Shares Simon Mabon | (The Conversation) | After weeks of speculation about an attempt to retake the city of Mosul from the so-called Islamic State (IS), Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi proclaimed the start of the offensive. God willing, the decisive battle will be soon, he said at a press conference. This could well be a major turning point in the battle against IS. Mosul, Iraqs second-largest city, has been under ISs control since June 2014, when it became the groups biggest prize yet. It brought global attention that IS have enjoyed ever since. In the ensuing two or so years, it has ruled over the citys hundreds of thousands of residents in accordance with a strictly enforced fundamentalist version of Sharia law. The groups last major stronghold in Iraq, Mosul is one of the jewels in ISs crown, and losing it would be a huge blow especially after the group was routed from Dabiq, the Syrian town whose name graces the IS magazine. Fearing the worst, IS set oil refineries on fire to obstruct and delay the oncoming forces, while the Washington Post reports that the group has strategically decided to flee Mosul and regroup in Syria, moving from defensive to insurgency tactics. Such a move is facilitated by the strategy coming out of Baghdad, which has encircled Mosul but left a corridor to the West of the city where IS fighters (and supporters) can flee to Syria. This strategy seeks to move the IS problem out of Iraq and into Syria. The forces assembled to mount the offensive include somewhere in the region of 45,000 troops; they include Iraqi Shias, Sunnis, Christians and Kurds, but also Shia paramilitary groups known as the Popular Mobilisation Units. Supporting and advising this assault are British, American and Turkish special forces, while the US-led coalition has targeted IS mortar positions close to Mosul. Final authority rests with the Iraqi army but as is true of the Iraqi state generally, the armys authority is seriously undercut by the tensions between the countrys different tribal factions. Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, commander of the USs Operation Inherent Resolve against IS in Iraq, stressed that despite these differences, the thousands of ground combat forces who will liberate Mosul are all Iraqis. Nonetheless, one of the most immediate and serious challenges for the Mosul offensive is to keep this rather motley crew together. Many of them have competing loyalties and goals; they have a long and complex history with each other, and ensuring their unity is paramount. Theres also the imperative of keeping Mosuls civilians safe during what promises to be a period of uncertainty, chaos and violence. Stephen OBrien, under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs at the UN, called for all parties to uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law to protect civilians and ensure they have access to the assistance they are entitled to and deserve. The hard work begins For all the fanfare, the liberation of Mosul will not mean the end of IS. The group has never been defined by the territory it holds. As Stephen Royle and I argue in our book The Origins of IS, IS is the product of deep political and sectarian disenfranchisement and of the dire socio-political conditions on the ground in Iraq. Mosul in particular is a largely Sunni city, and a number of its residents welcomed IS in 2014 simply because it broke the authority of the corrupt and sectarian Shia government in Baghdad. That said, opposition to ISs reign has been steadily growing documented among others by Mosul Eye, which has recorded instances of everyday resistance in the city. The situation on the ground is shifting rapidly, and Kurdish Peshmerga forces have already reportedly seized control of a number of villages to the east of Mosul. The state of play is extremely fluid, and by the time forces reach the suburbs of the city it will surely look very different. Despite al-Abadis proclamation that the people of Iraq would celebrate the fall of the city as one, the schisms among his people run deep. In the short term, hes right to stress that these forces that are liberating you today, they have one goal in Mosul, which is to get rid of Daesh [IS] and to secure your dignity. They are there for your sake. But in the longer term, the social and political situation in Iraq is not nearly so clear cut. And while most Iraqis certainly would celebrate the defeat of IS, questions about what comes next for Iraq, for Syria, and for the Middle East simply throw up a whole other set of problems. Mosul will be far from the last battle. Simon Mabon, Lecturer in International Relations, Lancaster University This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Related video added by Juan Cole: AFP: Battle for Mosul sparks fears of humanitarian crisis Reddit Email 0 Shares By Sandy Tolan | (Tomdispatch.com) | Washington has finally thrown in the towel on its long, tortured efforts to establish peace between Israel and the Palestinians. You wont find any acknowledgement of this in the official record. Formally, the U.S. still supports a two-state solution to the conflict. But the Obama administrations recent 10-year, $38-billion pledge to renew Israels arsenal of weaponry, while still ostensibly pursuing peace, makes clear just how bankrupt that policy is. For two decades, Israeli leaders and their neoconservative backers in this country, hell-bent on building and expanding settlements on Palestinian land, have worked to undermine Americas stated efforts and paid no price. Now, with that record weapons package, the U.S. has made it all too clear that they wont have to. Ever. The military alliance between the United States and Israel has long been at odds with the stated intentions of successive administrations in Washington to foster peace in the Holy Land. One White House after another has preferred the solution of having it both ways: supporting a two-state solution while richly rewarding, with lethal weaponry, an incorrigible client state that was working as fast as it could to undermine just such a solution. This ongoing duality seemed at its most surreal in the last few weeks. First, President Obama announced the new military deal, with its promised delivery of fighter jets and other hardware, citing the unshakable American military alliance with Israel. The following week, at the United Nations, he declared, Israel must recognize that it cannot permanently occupy and settle Palestinian land. Next, he flew to Israel for the funeral of Shimon Peres, and in a tribute to the Nobel Prize-winning former Israeli president, spoke of a man who grasped that the Jewish people werent born to rule another people and brought up the unfinished business of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. (Peres is remembered quite differently by Palestinians as an early pioneer of settlement building and the author of the brutal Operation Grapes of Wrath assaults on Lebanon in 1996.) Not long after the funeral, the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brazenly approved a new settlement deep in the West Bank, prompting the State Department to strongly condemn the action as deeply troubling. Such scolding words, however, shrivel into nothingness in the face of a single number: 38 billion. With its latest promise of military aid, the United States has essentially sanctioned Israels impunity, its endless colonization of Palestinian land, its military occupation of the West Bank, and its periodic attacks by F-16 fighter jets and Apache helicopters using Hellfire missiles on the civilians of Gaza. Yes, Hamass crude and occasionally deadly rockets sometimes help provoke Israeli fire, and human rights investigations have found that both sides have committed war crimes. But Israels explosive power in the 2014 Gaza war, fueled in large part by American military aid and political support, exceeded that of Hamas by an estimated 1,500-to-1. By one estimate, all of Hamass rockets, measured in explosive power, were equal to 12 of the one-ton bombs Israel dropped on Gaza. And it loosed hundreds of those, and fired tens of thousands of shells, rockets and mortars. In the process, nearly 250 times more Palestinian civilians died than civilians in Israel. Now, with Gaza severed from the West Bank, and Palestinians facing new waves of settlers amid a half-century-long military occupation, the U.S. has chosen not to apply pressure to its out-of-control ally, but instead to resupply its armed forces in a massive way. This means that weve finally arrived at something of a historic (if hardly noticed) moment. After all these decades, the two-state solution, critically flawed as it was, should now officially be declared dead and consider the United States an accomplice in its murder. In other words, the Obama administration has handed Israels leaders and the neoconservatives who have long championed this path the victory theyve sought for more than two decades. The Chaos Kids Twenty years ago, the pro-Israel hard right in America designed the core strategy that helped lead to this American capitulation. In 1996, a task force led by neocons Richard Perle (future chairman of the Defense Policy Board), David Wurmser (future senior Middle East adviser to Vice President Dick Cheney), Douglas Feith (future undersecretary of defense), and others issued a policy paper aimed at incoming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. A Clean Break: A New Strategy for Securing the Realm advocated that Israel walk away from its embrace of the Oslo peace process and Oslos focus on territorial concessions. The papers essential ingredients included weakening Israels neighbors via regime change in Saddam Husseins Iraq and roll back in Syria and Iran. The authors recommendations turned out to be anything but a wish list, given that a number of them would soon hold influential positions in the administration of George W. Bush. As journalist Jim Lobe wrote in 2007: [T]he task force, which was chaired by Perle, argued that regime change in Iraq of which Feith was among the most ardent advocates within the Pentagon would enable Israel and the U.S. to decisively shift the balance of power in the region so that Israel could make a clean break from the Oslo process (or any framework that would require it to give up land for peace) and, in so doing, secure the realm against Palestinian territorial claims. In other words, as early as 1996, these neocons were already imagining what would become the disastrous invasion of Iraq in 2003. You could argue, of course, that neither the neocons nor Netanyahu could have foreseen the chaos that would follow, with Iraq nearly cracking open and Syria essentially collapsing into horrific civil war and violence, civilians stranded under relentless bombing, and the biggest refugee crisis since World War II gripping Europe and the world. But you would, at least in some sense, be wrong, for certain of the neocon advocates of regime change imagined chaos as an essential part of the process from early on. One can only hope that we turn the region into a caldron, and faster, please, wrote Michael Ledeen of the American Enterprise Institute in the National Review during the buildup to the invasion of Iraq. (In 1985, as a consultant to the National Security Council and to Oliver North, Ledeen had helped broker the illegal arms-for-hostages deal with Iran by setting up meetings between weapons dealers and Israel.) The war wont end in Baghdad, Ledeen later wrote, in the Wall Street Journal. We must also topple terror states in Tehran and Damascus. The neocons got so much more than they bargained for in Iraq, and so much less than they wanted in Syria and Iran. Their recent attempts with Netanyahu as their chief spokesman to block the Obama administrations Iran nuclear deal, for example, went down in flames. Still, its stunning to think just how much their strategy of regime change and chaos helped transform our world and the Greater Middle East for the worse, and to be reminded that its ultimate goal, at least in those early days, was in large part to keep Israel from having to pursue a peace deal with the Palestinians. Of course, there were other benefits the neocons imagined back then as part of their historic attempt to redraw the map of the Middle East. Controlling some of the vast oil reserves of that region was one of them, but of course that didnt exactly turn out to be a mission accomplished moment either. Only the Israeli part of the plan seemed to succeed as once imagined. So here we are 20 years later. All around the Holy Land, states are collapsing or at least their foundations are crumbling, and Israels actions make clear that it isnt about to help improve the situation in any way. It visibly intends to pursue a policy of colonization, permanent human rights violations, and absolute rule over the Palestinians. These are facts on the ground that former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Netanyahu, the Israeli right wing, and those American neocon visionaries fought so hard to establish. A succession of leaders in Washington at least those who werent designing this policy themselves have been played for fools. In the two-plus decades since the 1993 Oslo Agreement, which some believed would put Israel and the Palestinians on the path to peace, and that Clean Break document which was written to undermine it, the West Bank settler population has grown from 109,000 to nearly 400,000 (an estimated 15% of whom are American). The would-be capital of a Palestinian state, East Jerusalem, is now surrounded by 17 Jewish settlements. Palestinians nominally control a mere 18% of the West Bank (also known as Area A), or 4% of the entire land base of Israel/Palestine. The Palestinians would-be homeland is now checkered with military bases, settlements, settler-only roads, and hundreds of checkpoints and barriers all in a West Bank the size of Delaware, our second-smallest state. An estimated 40% of adult male Palestinians, and thousands of children, have seen the insides of Israeli jails and prisons; many of them languish there without charges. Israel has, in essence, created a Jim Crow-like separate and unequal reality there: a one-state solution that it alone controls. The United States has done almost nothing about this (other than carefully couched, periodic State Department words of complaint), while its ally marched forward unchecked. Not since James Baker was secretary of state under the first President Bush before notably enough the signing of the Oslo accords has any U.S. leader threatened to withhold funds unless Israel stops building settlements on Palestinian land. The phrase friends dont let friends drive drunk no longer applies in U.S.-Israeli relations. Rather, what we hear are regular pledges of absolute, total, unvarnished commitment to Israels security. Those were, in fact, the words of Vice President Joe Biden during a 2010 visit to Israel a pledge offered, as it turned out, only a few hours before the Netanyahu government announced the construction of 1,600 new apartments in East Jerusalem. Unvarnished commitment in 2016 means that $38 billion for what Obama called the worlds most advanced weapons technology. That includes 33 of Lockheeds F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets, at $200 million per jet, part of a troubled $1.5 trillion weapons system subsidized by U.S. taxpayers. Other deadly hardware headed for Israel: cargo planes, F-15 fighter jets, battle tanks, armored personnel carriers, a new class of warships whose guided missiles would undoubtedly be aimed directly at Gaza, and more of Lockheeds Hellfire missiles. If recent history is any indication, you would need to add fresh supplies of bombs, grenades, torpedoes, rocket launchers, mortars, howitzers, machine guns, shotguns, pistols, and bayonets. As part of the agreement, U.S. arms manufacturers will soon supply 100% of that weaponry, while Israeli weapons manufacturers will be phased out of U.S. military aid. Its a win-win for Israeli security and the U.S. economy, a White House aide cheerily told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. The Clinton (Trump) White House and Israel Current policy, if thats the right word, could perhaps be summed up as weapons, weapons, and more weapons, while Washington otherwise washed its hands of what was always known as the peace process (despite that fig leaf still in place). Today, functionally, theres no such process left. And thats unlikely to change under either a President Clinton or a President Trump. If anything, it may get worse. During the Democratic primary campaign, for instance, Hillary Clinton promised to invite Netanyahu to the White House during my first month in office in order to reaffirm Washingtons unbreakable bond with Israel. In a speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), which labels itself Americas pro-Israel lobby, she was virtually silent on the Israeli settlement issue, except to promise to protect Israel against its own violations of international law. She attacked Trump from the right, denouncing his once-expressed wish to remain neutral on the issue of Israel and Palestine. In the 1990s, as first lady, Clinton had stirred controversy by uttering the word Palestine and kissing Yasser Arafats widow, Suha, on the cheek. Now she fully embraces those who believe Israel can do no wrong, including Hollywood mogul Haim Saban, who has donated at least $6.4 million to her campaign, and millions more to the Clinton Foundation and the Democratic National Committee. Saban, an Israeli-American whose billions came largely from the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers franchise, describes himself as a one-issue guy, and my issue is Israel. Last year, he convened a secret Las Vegas meeting with fellow billionaire Sheldon Adelson, the bankroller of a panoply of Republican candidates and a huge supporter of Israels settlement project. Their aim: to shut down, if not criminalize, the pro-Palestinian Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, or BDS. That boycott movement targets cultural institutions and businesses including those that profit from the occupation of the West Bank. Its approach is akin to the movement to impose sanctions on South Africa during the apartheid era. With Sabans millions destined for her campaign war chest, Clinton wrote to her benefactor to express her alarm over BDS, seeking your thoughts and recommendations to work together to counter BDS. Yet its a nonviolent movement that aims to confront Israels human rights abuses through direct economic and political pressure, not guns or terror attacks. Would Clinton prefer suicide bombers and rockets? Never mind that the relatively modest movement has been endorsed by an assortment of international trade unions, scholarly associations, church groups, the Jewish Voice for Peace, and Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu. At the root of BDS, Clinton has hinted darkly, is anti-Semitism. At a time when anti-Semitism is on the rise across the world, she wrote Saban, we need to repudiate forceful efforts to malign and undermine Israel and the Jewish people. As for Trump, some Palestinians were encouraged by his statement to MSNBCs Joe Scarborough that he might be sort of a neutral guy on the issue. He told the AP: I have a real question as to whether or not both sides want to make it. A lot will have to do with Israel and whether or not Israel wants to make the deal whether or not Israels willing to sacrifice certain things. Yet Trump subsequently fell in line with Republican orthodoxy, pledging among other things to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, a litmus test for supporters of the hard right in Israel, and a virtual guarantee that East Jerusalem, at the center of the Palestinian dream of statehood, will remain in Israels hands. In the short term, then, the prospect for an American-brokered just peace may be as bleak as its ever been even though U.S. officials know full well that a just solution to the conflict would remove a primary recruiting tool for jihadists. For the next four to eight years, American leadership will, by all indications, shore up the status quo, which means combining all that weaponry and de facto acquiescence in Israels land grabs with, perhaps, the occasional hand-wringing State Department statement. With Patience, Change Will Come However, like Jim Crow, like South African apartheid, the status quo of this moment simply cant last forever. Eventually, the future of the region will not be left to the self-proclaimed honest brokers of Washington who lecture Palestinians on the proper forms of nonviolence, while offering no genuine alternatives to surrender. Given the long history of Palestinian resistance, it is foolhardy to expect such a surrender now and particularly unwise to slander a movement of nonviolent resistance especially given what we know about the kinds of resistance that are possible. Whether by peaceful resistance or other means, the status quo will change, in part simply because it must: a structure this twisted cannot stand on its own forever. Already AIPACs monumental attempts to scuttle the Iran deal have led to humiliating defeat and thats just a taste of what, sooner or later, the future could hold. After all, young Americans, including young Jews, are increasingly opposed to Israels domination of Palestinian lands, and increasingly supportive of the boycott movement. In addition, the balance of power in the region is shifting. We cant know how Russia, China, Turkey, and Iran will operate there in the years to come, but amid the ongoing chaos, U.S. influence will undoubtedly diminish over time. As a member of a prominent Gaza family said to me many years ago: Does Israel think America will always protect them, always give them arms, and that they will always be the biggest power in the Middle East? Do they really expect they can maintain this hold on us forever? A popular Arab folk ballad, El Helwa Di, promises a penniless child who has placed her life in Gods hands: With patience, change will come. All will be better. Perhaps it will prove useful, in the end, to abandon the illusions of the now-terminal two-state solution, at least as envisioned in the Oslo process. In the language of those accords, after all, the words freedom and independence never appear, while security is mentioned 12 times. In a regime of growing confinement, the Israelis have steadily undermined Palestinian sovereignty, aided and abetted by an American acquiescence in Israels ongoing settlement project. Now, at least, there is an opportunity to lay the foundations for some newer kind of solution grounded in human rights, freedom of movement, complete cessation of settlement building, and equal access to land, water, and places of worship. It will have to be based on a new reality, which Israel and the United States have had such a hand in creating. Think of it as the one-state solution. Sandy Tolan, a TomDispatch regular, is the author of the international bestseller, The Lemon Tree, and of the acclaimed Children of the Stone about one Palestinians dream to establish music schools under Israels military occupation. He has reported from more than 35 countries and is professor at the Annenberg School for Journalism and Communication at USC. His website is sandytolan.com, his Twitter handle, @sandy_tolan. Follow TomDispatch on Twitter and join us on Facebook. Check out the newest Dispatch Book, Nick Turses Next Time Theyll Come to Count the Dead, and Tom Engelhardts latest book, Shadow Government: Surveillance, Secret Wars, and a Global Security State in a Single-Superpower World. Copyright 2016 Sandy Tolan Via Tomdispatch.com Related video added by Juan Cole: Jerusalem Fund and Palestine Center: Against Israels Colonial Tide: Palestinian Initiatives to Shape Their Future [JURIST] The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), along with the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights [advocacy websites] and 50 other interest groups, sent a letter [text] on Tuesday urging the US Department of Justice [official website] to investigate the increasing use of facial recognition technology. This letter is a part of the advocacy groups greater concern that certain police use of technology may violate civilian rights, and that those violations are disproportionately felt by minority communities. According to ACLU legislative counsel Neema Singh Guliani, half of American adults are within a government facial recognition database, and those databases are used with near impunity by law enforcement. The privacy of individuals [JURIST op-ed], and the use of technology by law enforcement, are important and evolving topics in the 21st century. Swiss voters in September voted to approve [JURIST report] a new surveillance law allowing their national intelligence service broad powers to spy on terrorist suspects and cyber criminals, as well as the ability to cooperate with foreign intelligence agencies. In August a UN rights groups criticized [JURIST report] the US Investigatory Powers Bill, stating it could threaten freedom of expression and association. In December China passed a new anti-terrorism law [JURIST report] that requires technology companies to provide information to the government obtained from their products and make information systems secure and controllable. And last October the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denied [JURIST report] a motion by the American Civil Liberties Union to halt the bulk collection of phone records by the NSA. The court ruled that Congress intended for the agency to continue its data collection over the transition period, and the new legislation was to take effect November 29. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Georgia [advocacy website] on Monday filed a lawsuit [complaint] against two officials in Georgia seeking an extension of the voting registration deadline [ACLU report]. The lawsuit comes after Hurricane Matthew affected many coastal states days before registration deadlines, creating mandatory evacuations, power outages, and other situations that hindered citizens ability to register. The ACLU of Georgia is suing Governor Nathan Deal [official website] and Secretary of State Brian Kemp [official profile], who have refused requests of extension in six affected counties. The plaintiffs claim that refusal hurts the democratic process and voter participation, and that it has a disproportionate impact on minorities and young voters. Although one county was granted an extension through a previous judicial ruling [CNN report], the lawsuit seeks to enjoin enforcement of the previous October 11 deadline and provide an additional six days of registration for all six counties. Voting issues have become contentious as the presidential election approaches. Last week a federal judge in Florida extended the voter registration deadline [JURIST report] by six days due to the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew. Earlier this month a federal court issued [JURIST report] a preliminary injunction in favor of the Pyramid Lake and Walker River Paiute Native American tribes challenging Nevadas voting procedure of failing to provide polling places on Native American reservations. Late last month California Governor Jerry Brown signed legislation [JURIST report] clarifying felons voting rights. Iraqi government and paramilitary forces are committing serious human rights abuses [press release] and war crimes, according to an Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] report [text, PDF] Tuesday. AI claims that both the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) are perpetrating acts of arbitrary detainment against internally displaced persons (IDP), particularly Sunni Arabs. In Iraqi-controlled territories, IDPs reportedly face further acts of abduction, torture and extrajudicial execution. According to the report, many of the abuses are carried out by the Iraqi government-backed Shia militias when IDPs turn themselves over to their authority. Citizens are fleeing conflict between the government forces and the Islamic State (IS). Once displaced by the conflict, the report claims Sunni Arabs are subjected to revenge punishment by the government forces for the crimes of IS. Historic tension between Sunni and Shia groups (also known as Shiite, and Shiite) has drawn renewed international scrutiny in recent months. Earlier this week the Bahrain Court of Cassation overturned the sentence [JURIST report] of a Shia opposition leader who had been convicted for insulting the Interior Ministry, inciting others to break the law, and inciting hatred against naturalized Sunnis. In May Pakistani human rights activist Khurram Zaki was killed by unidentified gunmen [JURIST report] in Karachi. Zaki was an activist that campaigned against religious extremism and cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz of a radical Sunni mosque who incites hatred against Shia Muslims. In January Human Rights Watch accused Iraqi Shia militias of carrying out revenge attacks [JURIST report] against Sunnis in wake of an IS suicide bombing attack at a local cafe. [JURIST] A Croatian prosecutor [official website] on Tuesday charged eight ex-Yugoslav military officers, including commander Borislav Djukic, with war crimes perpetrated during the Croatian War of Independence [BBC backgrounder]. Croatia split from the former Yugoslavia in 1991, and the nations fought until peace was found in 1995. During this time, the prosecutor alleges, the suspects ordered attacks on civilian areas and failed to prevent the rape, torture and murder of over 100 civilians perpetrated by soldiers in their charge. Prosecution of individuals suspected of committing war crimes during the Croatian conflicts is ongoing. Last month former Serbian paramilitary commander Dragan Vasiljkovic went on trial [JURIST report] for war crimes in Croatias Split Court. Dragan was accused of torturing and murdering civilians and prisoners during the Croation War for independence. Vasilijkovic was indicted [JURIST report] in January of this year. In July International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia war crimes defendant Goran Hadzic, the former president of the Republic of Serbian Krajina during the Croatian War of Independence, died from brain cancer. Hadzic was accused of coordinating, supporting and instigating efforts to achieve the permanent removal of a majority of the Croat and other non-Serb population from a large part of the territory of the Republic of Croatia during his term as president. Hadzic was the last fugitive of the original 161 sought by the ICTY to be arrested [JURIST report]. A federal judge on Tuesday rejected [order, PDF] the Obama administrations request to narrow an injunction banning the enforcement of an Education Department policy [press release] requiring public schools to allow transgender students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that correspond to the students gender. Judge Reed OConnor of the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas [official website] refused [Politico report] to allow the Department of Education [official website] to enforce their policy for public schools across the nation in an order on Tuesday but did make some changes to his initial ruling granting an injunction [JURIST report] from August. This occurred after 13 states brought suit against the policy [Bloomberg report]. The Department of Justice [official website] had asked that OConnor maintain the injunction only in the 13 states that filed suit, but OConnor cited the need for a uniform application of national standards in education and workplace policy as his reasoning for maintaining a nationwide injunction. OConnor is allowing the government to continue to defend their policy in other cases where they are being sued and to continue to pursue policy enforcement in litigation not substantially developed before his August ruling. OConnor also clarified that this ruling only applied to intimate facilities such as locker rooms and bathrooms. The Obama administration is expected to appeal the decision to the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Transgender access to public restrooms has been a controversial topic and has created a wave of legislative and judicial action. In August the US Supreme Court blocked [JURIST report] a lower court ruling allowing a transgender student who identifies as male to use the boys restroom at school. In July US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter announced a new policy that allows transgender individuals to serve openly in the military [JURIST report], effective immediately. In May Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau introduced legislation that would ban transgender discrimination [JURIST report], including it within Canadas hate crime laws. A former vice president of the Democratic Republic of Congo [BBC profile] was found guilty [judgment, PDF] of bribing witnesses in his International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] trial for war crimes. On Wednesday The Hague-based court found Jean-Pierre Bemba [BBC profile] guilty of bribery during the trial [ICC trial profile] in March when he was sentenced to 18 years in prison. Bemba was convicted of influencing witnesses and falsifying evidence at trial, after the court was made aware that Bemba masterminded the bribery scheme from within his prison cell. During the second Congo civil war, Bembas troops committed rapes, murders and pillaged in 2002 and 2003. The Bemba [JURIST news archive] case has been ongoing before the ICC since 2008. In March the ICC found unanimously [JURIST report] that Bemba was guilty of two counts of crimes against humanity and three counts of war crimes for his role in the armed conflict in the Central African Repubilc in 2002 and 2003. In September of last year Bemba pleaded not guilty to charges of interfering with the administration of justice after he and four members of his legal team were ordered to stand trial [JURIST reports] on those charges. In October 2014 ICC Trial Chamber III delayed the closing statements [JURIST report] in the case against Bemba so that it could hear additional witness testimony after the defense requested to testify about alleged collusion between prosecution witnesses. In November 2013 four persons were arrested on charges of falsifying evidence [JURIST report] in connection with the trial of Jean-Pierre Bemba Bembas defense lawyers opened their case before the ICC in August 2012. An administrative court [official website, in French] in Lille, France, on Tuesday rejected requests from almost a dozen aid groups and permitted the closure process [Reuters report] of the Jungle migrant camp near Calais to continue. President Francois Hollande [profile] has promised closure of the camp as pressure for such a result grows while the April election approaches, and Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve [official profile, in French] stated that the demolition project is only days away. The groups were seeking postponement of the closure in order to better organize relocation of the migrants, but the court determined that the closure seeks to prevent inhuman treatment that migrants are currently subjected to at the camp [Independent report]. While another concern was the transport of unaccompanied minors, the transfers are to be done pursuant to the Dublin Regulations [materials], which in part governs family reunification. The rights of migrant populations has emerged as one of the most significant humanitarian issues around the world, as millions seek asylum from conflict nations. Hungarian citizens gathered at the beginning of October to vote on a European Union (EU) referendum regarding the relocation of refugees and migrants among member states [JURIST report], but low voter turnout invalidated the vote [JURIST report]. Ahead of the UN Summit for Refugees and Migrants last month, UN experts urged [JURIST report] states to protect women and girls in the movement of refugees and migrants by adhering to international human rights conventions and standards. Last month Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said that the draft of the final outcome document for the UN summit on refugees fell short of dealing with the issue effectively [JURIST report]. According to the rights groups, the UN is missing an opportunity by not proposing anything of substance. Austrian Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka said [JURIST report] earlier last month that Austria will take Hungary to the International Court of Justice if Hungary does not begin accepting returning migrants that crossed into Austria from Hungary. In August the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad al Hussein expressed concern [JURIST report] over Bulgarias criminalization of migrants leaving and entering the country. The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) [website] released a report [materials] Tuesday finding that the July attack on a peaceful demonstration in the nations capital directly targeted civilians. The report focuses on the planning and preparedness of security forces facing the attack. It also touches on response by such forces directly following the event. The report calls the attack, a serious violation of international humanitarian law. It was the deadliest attack on civilians since UNAMA began its documentation, and, according to UNAMA, it may amount to a war crime. In July UN Special Representative to Afghanistan Tadamichi Yamamoto stated that the suicide bombings in Kabul amounted to a war crime [JURIST report] . Earlier that week two suicide bombers targeted [CNN report] Shiite Hazaras who were holding a peaceful demonstration to push for more access to electricity in the region. Over 260 civilians were reportedly wounded from the attack. While the Taliban has been the cause of recent bombings and kidnappings in Kabul, ISIS immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. As ISIS increases its presence in the region, the Taliban continues to be Kabuls primary security concern. The left sticker presents "never forget the determination," and the right one presents "be delighted." Stickers of a young Red Army soldier have been growing in popularity on Wechat, and have begun to dominate other forms of social media in the lead-up to the 80th anniversary of the Long March victory. The stickers are either accompanied by online buzzwords or else depict scenes from the Long March. For example, to express fortitude and determination, one sticker references how the Red Army overcame severe natural obstacles to cross the grassland. "Fortitude and determination" Designer Gu Chen explained that the prototype of the soldier originates from a primary school textbook. For those born during the 1980s and '90s in China, most of their knowledge of the Long March comes from one specific text about a young and stubborn Red Army soldier. The soldier refused to accept food and eventually died of starvation once food became scarce. Gu explained that such stubbornness is still relevant in contemporary society. No matter what the difficulty, it's important for young people to persist when they encounter obstacles. Indeed, the stickers of the young Red Army soldier define and extend the power of the Long March, making it accessible to younger generations. "Study hard and make progress." [JURIST] The Venezuela Supreme Tribunal of Justice [official website, in Spanish] ruled [materials, in Spanish] on Monday that a referendum to unseat President Nicolas Maduro will require his opponents to collect signatures from 20 percent of voters in each of Venezuelas 24 states. The court interpreted Articles 15 and 29 of the Rules Regulating the Procedure for the Referendums [text, PDF in Spanish], denying the opponents argument that the rules only required signatures from 20 percent of voters nationally. In June the National Electoral College [official website, in Spanish] declared [JURIST report] that the more than 600,000 signatures found on an earlier petition for the referendum were invalid. There has been considerable legislative tension between the pro-government controlled Supreme Tribunal of Justice and the opposition-majority National Assembly of Venezuela following the December election. In April Venezuelas opposition-led parliament approved [JURIST report] new referendum rules. In March the Supreme Tribunal of Justice ruled that the Venezuelan national assembly may not review the appointment of 13 justices [JURIST report] to the high court by the Socialist Party. The 13 justices were sworn in on December 23, immediately prior to the exit of prior Socialist Party majority. In February the court upheld President Maduros economic emergency decree [JURIST report] as legal and valid despite a rejection by the national assembly. The decree allows the president to control the budget, companies and the currency. In January the Supreme Tribunal of Justice ruled that all decisions from the opposition-led assembly would be void [JURIST report] until three opposition lawmakers were removed from their seats. A surprising photo has recently gone viral online. In the photo, a teacher is giving a lecture in a classroom while holding an umbrella. Taken at Shuozhou No. 1 Middle School in nothren China's Shanxi province, the photo reveals the poor condition of the school's classrooms. According to students and teachers at the school, the classroom ceiling was leaking on Oct. 6 after a rainstorm the previous day. The students moved their desks to avoid the dripping. However, the teacher, Zheng Zhaoliang, had to make do with an umbrella. The students said that the leaking was serious - that water was flowing rather than dripping from the ceiling, thereby disturbing their studies. Wang Sen, the leader of the school, told Youth.cn that many classrooms and offices in the school leak when it rains. NEWSLETTER Sign up Tick the boxes of the newsletters you would like to receive. Just Style Daily Update The top stories of the day delivered to you every weekday. Just Style Weekly Update A weekly roundup of the latest news and analysis, sent every Monday. Just Style Magazine The industry's most comprehensive news and information delivered every quarter. Recent media reports stated that several "legs" of a newly built bridge in Cili County, Hunan province had become so eroded that the concrete was peeling off and the steel support bars were visible. Despite such obvious deterioration, the government's official WeChat carried a statement that the bridge was still safe to use. The old bridge, built in 2005, is still in good shape. By contrast, the newly built bridge, which cost 88 million RMB, is already in disrepair after just six years of use. After sending for experts to investigate the site, officials determined the bridge not to be a hazard. On the other hand, Zhao Jiaxing, a bridge expert, said that the visible cracks in the bridge, as well as its overall shakiness, means the bridge could be potentially unsafe. Zhao believes the original design materials should be examined. Other than the WeChat statement, the local government has not yet offered a public response. The replica firearms Liu bought online. Fujian Higher Peoples Court made a decision on Oct. 18 to retry the case of Liu Dawei, a weapons enthusiast who was sentenced to life in prison for smuggling firearms. In July 2014, Liu placed an order on a Taiwanese website for 24 replica firearms at a cost of 30,540 yuan (around $4,600). However, his parcel never reached his home in Quanzhou, Fujian province. Instead, two months later, on Sept. 29, 2014, Liu was arrested for arms trafficking. Police identified 20 of the 24 replicas" as real guns. On April 30, 2015, Liu was sentenced to life in prison. Liu Dawei In response to his conviction, Liu Dawei yelled in the courtroom, Please shoot me with the guns I bought! Ill admit to being guilty if I am killed! According to the judge, the crime of smuggling more than 20 firearms calls for a death sentence. However, considering Lius young age at the time when the crime was committed, the court handed down a lifelong prison sentence instead. On Nov. 26, 2015, Xu Xin, Liu's lawyer, submitted material for the appeal to Fujian Higher Peoples Court, suggesting that the court retry the case. (Xinhua) 19:27, October 19, 2016 NANNING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- China is working with Vietnam to crack down on drug traffickers in border areas. Chinese police announced Wednesday that they have detained five suspected drug dealers, including four Vietnamese, as well as 18.2 kg of heroin in their third joint crackdown with Vietnam to fight drugs. The drug trade remains rampant in China's border areas despite enhanced supervision. The problem is especially pervasive in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, which borders Vietnam and has become one of the biggest channels for drug trafficking to and from China -- second only to neighboring Yunnan Province. "A lot of drugs from the Golden Triangle and Golden Crescent areas flow to China via the border areas, while some new synthetic drugs are trafficked from China to Vietnam," said Qiu Yucheng, deputy head of the anti-drug division under Guangxi's regional department of public security. HIDDEN IN EELS It is increasingly difficult to spot and nab drug dealers. Earlier this year, police in Guangxi's Pingxiang City were tipped off about some Vietnamese who were trying to transport drugs to China via seafood. A secret investigation was launched immediately. "After a long-term investigation, we found that a seafood transfer station in Pingxiang often took live seafood from Vietnam," said Luo Shenghui, head of the anti-drug division under Pingxiang's public security bureau. "The station's seafood was frequently transported to neighboring Guangdong Province, which is one of the major areas for heroin sales." On Aug. 29, local police learned that several Vietnamese nationals had carried two buckets of eels -- possibly containing drugs -- into China. One policeman disguised himself as a driver and helped transport the eels from the transfer station to a seafood market in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong. There, police detained two Vietnamese women and a Guangxi woman who were waiting for the eels. In the buckets, they later found 38 chunks of heroin weighing 13.3 kg. WORKING TOGETHER As the drugs and the main suspects in the case were from Vietnam, Guangxi police contacted Vietnamese police via a "border contact mechanism" established in 2012 to investigate the case together. "We managed to contact Vietnamese police very quickly via the mechanism," Luo Shenghui said. On Sept. 1, five Vietnamese police came to Guangxi for the investigation. They later found that the drugs were from several drug dealers in Vietnam, and the suspects were in China to help transfer the drugs. Based on their confessions, the Vietnamese police managed to seize the dealers in Vietnam while confiscating 14 chunks of heroin. Police in Guangxi and Vietnam are currently expanding their anti-drug cooperation. China has stepped up efforts in recent years to control illegal drug trafficking in Yunnan Province, which is on the forefront of the country's fight against illegal drugs. Guangxi, which has many loosely supervised shortcuts linking China and Vietnam, has naturally become a magnet for smugglers. Official statistics reveal that in 2010, 2011 and 2012, Guangxi police nabbed illegal substances weighing 181 kg, 212 kg and 421 kg respectively in the border area. They mainly came from the Middle East and Southeast Asia. "We have not only found drug trafficking, but also gun and human trafficking," Qiu said. Border cities or counties including Dongxing, Pingxiang, Ningming and Daxin face particularly serious drug problems, with substances transported to China via Vietnam. According to Guangxi's border police, the locations usually act as a "transfer stop" for drugs sourced from Southeast Asia's "Golden Triangle" to be sold in China. However, Chinese and Vietnamese police have been able to exchange information and launch joint investigations since the "border contact mechanism" was established. In July this year, the anti-drug department under China's Ministry of Public Security inked a cooperation memorandum with its Vietnamese counterpart to launch its third joint border clamp-down against drugs from September to December. By Oct. 10, the crackdown had resulted in 1,036 suspects caught in 842 cases across 18 provinces, cities and regions in China. Of the suspects, 11 are Vietnamese nationals and two are foreign nationals from other countries. Though the cooperation mechanism has had good results, challenges remain. Qiu Yucheng said that drug traders have taken to hiding drugs in fruit, seafood and other commodities, making investigation difficult. "We will enhance our cooperation to crack down on such crimes," Qiu said. The Iraqi army and the Kurdish Peshmerga forces launch military operations in Khazar village, 35 kilometers south of Mosul, Iraq, on Oct. 18, 2016. Iraqi security forces on Tuesday recaptured more villages from the Islamic State (IS) militants, as part of a major offensive aimed at liberating the city of Mosul, the last major IS stronghold in Iraq, a security source said. (Xinhua/Jaser Jawad) MOSUL, Iraq, Oct. 18 -- Iraqi security forces on Tuesday recaptured more villages from the Islamic State (IS) militants, as part of a major offensive aimed at liberating the city of Mosul, the last major IS stronghold in Iraq, a security source said. On the west side of the Tigris River, the Iraqi forces and allied paramilitary Sunni and Shiite Hashd Shaabi units, backed by Iraqi and U.S-led coalition aircraft, recaptured the villages of Lihoud, Abbasiyah, Khuder al-Yas, Bajwaniyah and Tal al-Samen, while moving north to the IS-held town of Shoura, some 30km south of Mosul, a security source from the Operations Command of Nineveh Liberation told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. On the east side of the river, the army forces also cleared several villages while moving to the IS-held town of Hamdaniyah, some 40 km southeast of Mosul, the source said. On Tuesday afternoon, the troops arrived at the southwestern edge of Hamdaniyah and shelled IS positions inside the town in preparation for a battle to recapture it. Meanwhile, the Kurdish Peshmerga forces east of Mosul suspended fighting and advance, as they are reorganizing their ranks to prepare for more battles, the source said. Early on Monday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is also the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi forces, announced the start of a major offensive to retake the country's second largest city from the extremist IS group. "Today I declare the launch of the operation of liberating Nineveh province. The time of victory has come, and the moment of the great victory is approaching," Abadi said in a brief address aired on Al Iraqiya. Mosul, some 400 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, has been under IS control since June 2014, when Iraqi government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to take control of parts of Iraq's northern and western regions. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Anakhanum Hidayatova Trend: Azerbaijan and Indonesia have great potential for the development of trade relations, said Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono, Sultan of Indonesias Yogyakarta Sultanate. He made the remarks during the meeting with Azerbaijani businessmen, the Indonesian embassy in Baku told Trend Oct. 19. During the meeting, Sultan told the guests that the Yogyakarta city is a center of industry and education, said the embassy. The delegation also held a meeting with the Deputy Head of the citys Chamber of Commerce Wawan Hermawan, local entrepreneurs, as well as visited a textile factory. The sides discussed the opportunities to develop business. A group of representatives of the Silk Road Public Union for Promotion of Development of Entrepreneurship, Indonesian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Husnan Bey Fananie and a number of the embassy employees are on a visit to Indonesia. The delegation visited Jakarta to attend the Trade Expo Indonesia 2016. Azerbaijani entrepreneurs are also holding meetings in various cities of Indonesia in order to develop business cooperation between the two sides. Trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $101.73 million in January-August 2016, according to Azerbaijans State Customs Committee. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Anahanum Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: The OSCE is expected to monitor the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops Oct. 20, said Azerbaijans Defense Ministry Oct. 19. The monitoring will be held under the mandate of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative along the line of contact near Ashagi Abdurrakhmanli village of Azerbaijans Fizuli district, said the ministry. On the Azerbaijani side, the monitoring will be held by field assistants of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative Hristo Hristov, Simon Tiller and representative of the OSCE High Level Planning Group, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Nepokrytykh. On the Azerbaijani territories occupied and controlled by Armenian armed forces, the monitoring will be carried out by field assistants of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative Jiri Aberle, Peter Svedberg and representative of the OSCE High Level Planning Group, Mayor Christian Hirsch. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. MALAKAL, South Sudan (AP) The eyes of the American parents living at a United Nations camp alongside thousands of South Sudanese refugees fill with tears as they describe their options: Remain and risk another rebel assault or fly to safety, leaving behind the 10 orphans who call the couple mom and dad. For nearly two years, Brad and Kim Campbell have been feeding, clothing, educating and parenting 10 South Sudanese children whose parents were killed by conflict or sickness. Their missionary lifestyle was upended after violence broke out in South Sudans capital, Juba, Dec. 15. Now the Campbells, their two American daughters and the 10 orphaned children live in an ad-hoc U.N. refugee camp that is low on food, water and sanitation. The former Omaha, Neb. residents are grappling with ensuring that daughters Katie and Kassidy Talbott are safe, and also protecting their South Sudanese children, who range in age from 5 to 16. Mother Kim Campbell, 54, said it is a tough balance to strike. I have two of my own children here, she said in an interview at the refugee camp Monday. We know the situation is bad. There is no food or water in Malakal. The American daughters are adamant that they wont leave unless everyone can. Father Brad Campbell said the family is working with the U.N. and the United States Embassy to try to get everyone to safety. Weve got these amazing kids we want to take care of, and were trying to do that the best we can, said Brad Campbell, who works with the group Keeping Hope Alive. This isnt the time for us to check out and leave them. When violence broke out in Juba, the capital, Dec. 15, life remained calm but tense in Malakal the capital of Upper Nile, one of South Sudans two main oil-producing states. But then fighting radiated outward from Juba, as army commanders defected and pledged allegiance to the countrys ousted vice president. In most cases the violence has pitted the ethnic group of President Salva Kiir a Dinka against ethnic Nuers. Tension began building in Malakal three or four days before Christmas, said Robbie Keel, a 53-year-old electrician and chaplain from Charlotte, N.C., who arrived in Malakal a month ago to volunteer at the orphanage. The sounds of approaching war crescendoed on Christmas Eve, when everyone in the orphanage took cover. Christmas Day, as orphanage volunteer Brent Trusdle put it, sounded more like the 4th of July. On Christmas morning it sounded like the whole world exploded, said Keel, who called the roar of battle traumatizing. I didnt know there was that many bullets in the country. The orphanage is only a half mile from the airport, a key infrastructure the two sides were fighting for. With artillery booming outside, a bullet flew through the house. The group 10 orphans, seven Americans and two South Sudanese employees took off for the U.N. camp some two miles (three kilometers) away. Most of the thousands of residents who streamed to the U.N. were not immediately allowed inside. The Campell clan was. Rather than put us in the field where the bullets were flying, they put us in a safe place, Kim Campbell said of the U.N. And they specified it was not because were Americans but because we had the kids. The thousands of South Sudanese left outside the U.N. fence remained exposed. Stray bullets hit some, Keel said. Then the U.N. let everyone inside, even though they clearly didnt have the food or water to support so many people. Some 75,000 are sheltering at U.N. bases across the country. Some refugees in Malakal are now getting out. The three Americans volunteers at the orphanage Trusdle, Keel and J.D. Baggett of Nashville, Tennessee flew from Malakal to Juba on an evacuation flight Monday. The Campbell family is desperate to do the same, but their South Sudanese children do not all have the needed paperwork. The U.S. Embassy, Kim Campbell said, is doing what it can but has little influence. American officials, Campbell said, have told the family that the decision as to who boards an evacuation flight rests with the U.N. I understand were dealing with international law and the kids dont have proper ID, but this isnt theoretical. This is people we know and love and we cant do anything, Brad Campbell said. The Omaha, Nebraska family has been doing mission work since 2008 but really committed to the lifestyle when they sold all their U.S. possessions in 2012. The orphans mingled behind the Campbells as they spoke to a reporter. One, 12-year-old Ron Peter, has high hopes for his future. We want to go to the United States because there is many war in South Sudan, he said, employing a young students English. Another orphan, 16-year-old Panom Peter, said: This is my dad and mother. If they go never will I have a mother and dad again. Though Kim Campbell appears to be conflicted about whether the family should leave and possibly do more to secure the childrens future from afar Brad Campbell and his two daughters appear committed to staying, no matter what may come. One of the things weve tried to do is commit to these kids: We wont leave them, Brad Campbell said, tears welling up. Were not going to go, said Katie Talbott, 23, Kim Campbells daughter. Were not going to leave anybody behind. I cant consciously leave knowing that theyd be left on their own to face what will happen. Kim Campbell said the family may have to make a decision in the next 24 to 48 hours. She is praying they make the right one. OMAHA -- Anthony Garcias split-level home was spartan. So sparse, so spare, that photos of the home scream of a man in transition, perhaps a permanent one. Drawers were left open and empty. Closets, clean and clear. Pantry shelves were bare. A wet-dry vacuum sat alone in the dining room. In the master bedroom: a blue air mattress on the floor, no sheets, no blankets. As Omaha Police Detectives Ryan Davis and Nick Herfordt combed the home after Garcias arrest in July 2013, they saw signs of a man who had put his affairs in order. On a living-room table were eight stacks of paper. The important documents of Garcias life. The deed for the house that Garcia was about to lose to foreclosure. The title to the Mercedes SUV that Garcia had driven on Interstate 57 to southern Illinois, where he was arrested. Garcias birth certificate. His house insurance policy. His medical license from Illinois the only lasting one he ever obtained after his firing from Creighton University Medical Center in 2001. All piled in perfect formation on the marble-tile tabletop. And then the detectives sniffed something amiss. Something pungent, in the kitchen. It was nauseating, Davis said. A black garbage bag had been plopped into water in the kitchen sink. Some kind of chemical had been poured inside the bag. After photographing it, detectives opened up the bag. Inside, they found what authorities would later classify as the reasons for Garcias revenge. The poor reviews he got from Dr. Chhanda Bewtra, his former supervisor at Creighton. His June 26, 2001, termination letter with the signatures of Dr. William Hunter and Dr. Roger Brumback the two Creighton pathologists prosecutors say he targeted. And this: a yellow piece of legal paper with Garcias characteristic chicken scratch. On it, a plan. Go to the home of another Anthony Garcia in suburban Indianapolis. Arrive about 10:30 a.m. (when no one is around), the note said. Steal pertinent mail from mailbox. Where they shop. Super market, mall, movies ... And shop with their stolen info/credit cards/ATM cards only at those places ... Take out loans, credit cards, ect (sic) with their info ... Follow him to work, ect (sic). Whats clear from the red-streaked, chemical-smeared plan is this: Garcia hoped any trace of his former life would disappear. One way or the other. Day 11 of Garcias trial ventured from the naturally faded receipts Garcia kept from March 2008 when Thomas Hunter, 11, and Shirlee Sherman, 57 were killed to the chemically altered documents left behind in his Terre Haute home. Tuesdays testimony prosecutors have one more witness today before the defense begins presenting its case proved the adage: Big cases are built with little things. Little things like: receipts and bank records that showed an empty day on Garcias March 13, 2008, calendar the same day that Thomas and Sherman were killed at the Hunters Dundee home neighbors descriptions of a suspicious olive-skinned man and his silver CRV that day near the Hunters home parts of a gun a spring, three inches long, and retaining loop, smaller than a dime found at the home of Dr. Roger and Mary Brumback in May 2013 the frame of a broken gun found near an Illinois highway 580 miles from the Brumbacks residence and 16 miles from Garcias home in August 2013 an empty gun box found in Garcias home, with the same serial number as the frame found near the highway Internet searches on Garcias phone for the address of Dr. Brumback on the same May 2013 day that prosecutors believe the Brumbacks were killed trace evidence of skin cells on the door handle of Bewtras home, which prosecutors allege Garcia tried to break into a wayward comment Garcia made to a stripper, suggesting that he was a bad boy because he had killed an old woman and a young boy Even as evidence mounted, Garcia was at his most active Tuesday. In the morning, he laughed and nodded as his attorney, Robert Motta Jr., poked away at prosecutors contention that his otherwise busy calendar was empty on a critical day: March 13, 2008. Omaha police found a treasure trove of potential evidence when a team went to search the Walnut, California, home of Frederick and Estella Garcia. In the garage was a duffle bag and stacks of financial records, store receipts and ATM slips that Anthony Garcia had diligently kept. Omaha Police Detective Doug Herout sifted through the bundles of receipts and bank records and found that Garcia had multiple expenditures on most days in March. On March 12, 2008, he withdrew $300 from his Shreveport, Louisiana, bank. And he made a $6.99 purchase at a Pep Boys auto parts store near Shreveport. The purchase: A smoke shade to cover a license plate. The purpose: It makes it difficult to read the plate, Herout said. Prosecutor Brenda Beadle suggested that Garcia did so to conceal his license plate in Omaha. He also wanted to conceal his movements, Beadle said. So, she said, he withdrew bundles of cash. She also pointed to what she described as another curious purchase: Garcias March 17, 2008, trip to a Honda dealer in Shreveport to purchase a new set of floor mats. Beadle: Say they get some thing on their floor mat oh I dont know, blood might they need new floor mats? Herout: Yes. Motta left little unchallenged. He said Garcias purchases of floor mats, a fuel cap and a tire show nothing more than car maintenance. He pointed to Garcias 2008 date book, which had a doctors appointment listed on March 13, 2008. (Prosecutors say that doctor lives in California and theres no evidence of an appointment.) Motta noted that Garcias receipts showed no activity on five other days in March, in addition to March 13. Motta made a rare acknowledgment that credit-card receipts put Garcia in Omaha on May 12, 2013, the day prosecutors say the Brumbacks died. But nothing puts him in Omaha on March 13, 2008, Motta said. Motta also noted that Garcia had withdrawn cash, sometimes $300, on several other days in March: the 1st, 4th, 14th, 24th, 27th. Motta offered a reason: Garcia was a casino connoisseur. His bank records show several trips to casinos in the Shreveport area. What do you need to gamble? Motta asked Herout. Chips. And you get chips with cash, right? At that, Garcia lowered his chin to his chest and chuckled the first time he has shown any emotion in the trial. Motta offered another reason for all the cash. My client likes to go to strip clubs, Motta said. Garcia didnt laugh at that one. But that didnt stop the defenses demonstrativeness. My wife is here and unfortunately, I have to admit, I have been to strip clubs, Motta Jr. said. Its no secret that (strip-club) ATMs charge a premium to withdraw cash. Hence Garcias withdrawals from his bank before he went, Motta said. From her front-row perch, Alison Motta smiled and shook her head. Alison Motta, who made her first appearance in the courtroom Monday, spent most of Tuesday frantically leaning over a courtroom railing, passing notes, legal rulings and advice to her husband. At one point, Alison Motta muttered an objection that Jeremy Jorgenson, another of Garcias attorneys, repeated verbatim. At another point, Judge Gary Randall shushed her. Randall barred Alison Motta from sitting at the defense table or having a speaking role in the case after out-of-court comments she made, pretrial. Counsel, youre going to need to wait for a break, Randall called out to her and her husband. This is distracting. Earlier, Jorgenson had tried to counter prosecutors contention that Garcia was fueled by his festering job frustration. In addition to the searches of the Brumbacks and Bewtras addresses, Jorgenson noted that Garcias phone and digital tablet showed that he had job leads. He pointed out that in the days immediately before May 12, 2013, Garcia had applied online for jobs at the American Society of Microbiology and at Chicagos Rosalind Franklin School of Medicine and Science. Its true that there was not only Dr. Garcias interest in employment, but employers showing interest back? Jorgenson asked Herfordt. Yes, the detective said. Jorgenson also suggested that the online searches for the names of Brumback and his colleague related to getting references for his job applications. You have to have names and references, you have to reach out and get reference letters, etc., etc., etc., Jorgenson said. Tuesdays etceteras werent good for Garcia. Prosecutors closed the day with the walk-through of Garcias Terre Haute home. Detectives found one other note, under the living-room table that held all of his life documents. Scratched out in what appears to be Garcias elementary-school scrawl is an ode of sorts, similar to lines from a 2012 Liam Neeson movie, The Grey. Into the fight we go, the note said. We live. We die. We live. We die. As Davis detailed that and the other writings Garcia left behind in his home, some jurors scribbled furiously. Others not at all. Then there was Garcia. The 43-year-old defendant tilted his head back and to the right and closed his eyes for Davis testimony. But this time unlike the other times that the defendant has nodded off only to snap awake Garcias head didnt bob. Instead, he swiveled in his chair, back and forth, back and forth, his eyes still closed. He wasnt asleep. He just wasnt looking. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Seba Aghayeva Trend: The Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has adopted resolutions on the Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan and the destruction of monuments, related to the history and culture of Islam, by Armenia in the occupied Azerbaijani territories. The resolutions have been adopted at the 43rd session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry told Trend Oct. 19. The resolution highlights the importance to respect Azerbaijans sovereignty and territorial integrity in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions. The resolution titled The aggression of the Republic of Armenia against the Republic of Azerbaijan, which has been adopted during the session, condemns the ongoing Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan, as well as the atrocities of the Armenian armed forces against the civilian population of Azerbaijan. The document regards it as a crime against humanity and requires the implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions on the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict by Armenia. Azerbaijans right to demand compensation from Armenia for the damage on Azerbaijan during the conflict was also recognized in the document. It was also noted that the responsibility for the payment of compensation is on Armenia. In order to prevent aggression and ongoing occupation of the Azerbaijani territories, the resolution calls on the OIC member countries not to sell armaments to Armenia and not to allow their territory to be used as a transit point for arm sales to Armenia. The document titled Destruction of monuments belonging to Islamic history and culture as a result of Armenias aggression against Azerbaijan says that the historic, cultural, archeological, anthropological and ethnographic monuments, as well as examples of material culture in Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenia are integral part of the Islamic heritage and strictly condemns their destruction. The document highlights that the flagrant violation of the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and its protocols by Armenia, requiring unconditional implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions 822 (1993), 853 (1993), 874 (1993) and 884 (1993). Azerbaijans Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov represented the country during the 43rd session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers that was held Oct. 18-19 in Tashkent. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) was established in September of 1969 to ensure Islamic solidarity in social, economic and political spheres. The organization has 57 member states. The Council of Foreign Ministers, which meets once a year, it is one of the governing bodies of the OIC. FILE - In this Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2015, file photo, a person passes a T-Mobile store in New York. T-Mobile, the countryAos No. 3 wireless carrier, has been fined $48 million for not clearly telling customers how AuunlimitedAu data plans werenAot really, well, unlimited. The Federal Communications Commission said Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016, that T-Mobile had a policy to slow down the speeds of customers who were the heaviest data users. But the company didnAot let customers know what amount of data used would trigger the lower speed. The FCC says T-Mobile started doing a better job with disclosures in June 2015. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File) In this May 8, 2008, file photo blank checks are seen on an idle press at the Philadelphia Regional Financial Center, which disburses payments on behalf of federal agencies, in Philadelphia. The Internal Revenue Service touches everyone, not just taxpayers but anyone who receives a government check, drives on roads made possible by tax revenue or sends a child to a school helped by Washington. It's a touch that can come with a heavy hand, in the eyes of critics who believe the agency's far-reaching powers are abused and the agency needs to be cut down to size. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File) Details added (first version posted on 16:08) Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Seba Aghayeva Trend: The Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has adopted resolutions on the Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan and the destruction of monuments, related to the history and culture of Islam, by Armenia in the occupied Azerbaijani territories. The resolutions have been adopted at the 43rd session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry told Trend Oct. 19. The resolution highlights the importance to respect Azerbaijans sovereignty and territorial integrity in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions. The resolution titled The aggression of the Republic of Armenia against the Republic of Azerbaijan, which has been adopted during the session, condemns the ongoing Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan, as well as the atrocities of the Armenian armed forces against the civilian population of Azerbaijan. The document regards it as a crime against humanity and requires the implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions on the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict by Armenia. Azerbaijans right to demand compensation from Armenia for the damage on Azerbaijan during the conflict was also recognized in the document. It was also noted that the responsibility for the payment of compensation is on Armenia. In order to prevent aggression and ongoing occupation of the Azerbaijani territories, the resolution calls on the OIC member countries not to sell armaments to Armenia and not to allow their territory to be used as a transit point for arm sales to Armenia. The document titled Destruction of monuments belonging to Islamic history and culture as a result of Armenias aggression against Azerbaijan says that the historic, cultural, archeological, anthropological and ethnographic monuments, as well as examples of material culture in Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenia are integral part of the Islamic heritage and strictly condemns their destruction. The document highlights that the flagrant violation of the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and its protocols by Armenia, requiring unconditional implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions 822 (1993), 853 (1993), 874 (1993) and 884 (1993). Azerbaijans Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov represented the country during the 43rd session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers that was held Oct. 18-19 in Tashkent. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) was established in September of 1969 to ensure Islamic solidarity in social, economic and political spheres. The organization has 57 member states. The Council of Foreign Ministers, which meets once a year, it is one of the governing bodies of the OIC. Halloween customs from around the world Halloween is derived from some of the oldest customs in the world. The culture of these traditions are 2000 years old during an age... Spindle Items ..FUN WITH WORDS Have you heard of the saying, to appear smart, be silent. It means if you dont open your mouth, people may... Out of the Past 25 Years AgoOct. 29, 1997 A light industrial park is planned for the site of the abandoned grain mills on Military Road after their expected... Make a plan to vote this November Election Day is less than two weeks away. Have you made a plan to vote yet? Midterm elections are often overlooked, but I urge everyone... Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Seba Aghayeva Trend: The Nagorno-Karabakh region has always been, is and will remain Azerbaijans integral part, said Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov in his article published by the official press. Armenias occupation policy will never be successful, said Mammadyarov. The only way to achieve a sustainable settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and establish civilized relations between the two neighboring countries is the liberation of the occupied Azerbaijani territories, restoration of territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and ensuring the right of refugees and IDPs to return to their motherlands, noted the minister. He said this is required by international law and the UN Security Council resolutions. The minister expressed regret that the UN Security Council resolutions on the conflicts settlement arent implemented by Armenia and the mediators efforts have not led to a result for more than 20 years. Instead of showing good will in the negotiation process, Armenia openly impedes any effort aimed at the conflicts peaceful settlement, said Mammadyarov. Armenia refuses to withdraw its troops from the occupied Azerbaijani territories, hinders the refugees and IDPs from returning to their homes by ignoring the UN Security Council requirements and blatantly violating the international law, he added. The minister said Armenia draws attention to the technical aspects of the ceasefire regime and periodically commits military sabotages by trying to divert attention from the core and substantive issues of the peace process. Azerbaijan has repeatedly stated that it is ready for substantive negotiations on the conflicts settlement, said Mammadyarov, adding that substantive negotiations should bring a change in the status quo and lead to liberation of occupied Azerbaijani territories. The sooner Armenia realizes this and withdraws its troops from the occupied territories, the sooner the conflict will be resolved and Armenia will be able to take advantage of economic benefits of the regional cooperation, added the Azerbaijani minister. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: High ranking political leaders from different countries have offered their support to the activity of the OSCE Minsk Group, established to mediate between the parties to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office said in an interview with Azernews newspaper. With regards to criticism in the address of the OSCE MG, Kasprzyk said co-chairs are informed in detail about the developments around the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The Chairmanship of the OSCE is paying constant attention and is informed in detail about developments. The Chairperson-in-Office, Dr Steinmeier, visited the region and the resolution of the conflict was high on the agenda of his trip. The CiO and other high ranking political leaders from different countries have offered their support to the activity of the MG, he said in an e-mail, further mentioning that the conflict is a frequent subject of public debate in other international organizations besides the OSCE. Kasprzyk emphasized that the co-chairs are involved in this mediation activity on a daily basis. Kasprzyk, commenting on the armistice between the sides on the frontline, said that his office follows the situation on a daily basis. Citing the information obtained from OSCE observations, Kasprzyk said that from the end of May 2016 the situation along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops has been relatively stable, though there were still reports about ceasefire violations and recently about casualties. "Every casualty is a tragedy and causes grief and sorrow for the family and friends of the deceased. I share these sorrows, he said , adding that the ceasefire will only hold based on the political will of the parties. Finally, I would like to stress that the monitoring exercises are not investigations, nor are they a peacekeeping measure. They provide a snapshot, an effective and consistent way of accessing information regarding the situation on the ground. With the support of the sides, we will continue our activity, he continued. As for the expansion of the Office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Kasprzyk said that his mandate and the modalities of work of his Office would be unaffected. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. 87 Shares Share My dad is a locally famed and sincere career politician. All my life I have seen him value public service over personal wealth. As a young lawyer, he worked in Washington DC for the Department of Justice during the civil rights movement, and he often shares stories of his tour of duty in 1960s Alabama. After that service, he came back to West Virginia where he has been elected to numerous West Virginia constitutional offices. He taught me, and has been quoted as saying, Without protection for the least of us, there is no protection for the most of us. I have been a wife and a doctor for 20 years. I have been a mother for 17 years. My daughter is 17. When I heard Donald Trumps 2005 (he was a then 59-year-old man) comments regarding the uninvited grabbing of a woman, I felt not only bothered and disgusted by it, but also minority like and potentially oppressed. It was an example of what I have seen in this country which has been coined, the Trump effect. It is a phenomenon which I have noticed all along myself and have un-eloquently called his, bringing out the worst in people. He brings out the lowest. The Trump effect survey was the SPLCs (Southern Poverty and Law Center) April 2016 survey of 2000 teachers which showed an increase in bullying in schools. It was self-describedly unscientific. However, as the SPLC website notes, it is the richest data source we have on this phenomenon and at least approaches the power of large numbers with 2000 survey respondents. The SPLCs survey report noted students seem emboldened to use slurs and inflammatory language towards others. Unscientific as it may be, I have seen the phenomenon in adults. Professionals. Fellow physicians. Colleagues. Unscientific? Perhaps, but by definition (of I know it when I see it) I didnt need scientific evidence to tell me it was there. I know it when I see it. One colleague, a physician, has taken to disparaging remarks about other physicians ethnicity. Another told me a blatant racial joke. I have a physician colleague who religiously brings me extreme right wing presidential campaign propaganda which is often constructed in the form of a joke. I repeatedly tell him, I dont think its funny. Worse than that, I think its part of the problem. Again, these colleagues are fellow physicians. They have attained arguably the highest educational status our country has to offer. How can this happen? According to Douglas Fields, Ph.D., a neuroscientist and author of, Why We Snap, Donalds banter triggers deep-seated human instincts instincts of fear, anger, and aggression which are located in the limbic system. These human instincts are: Being part of the tribe: Us versus them. This can be illustrated by the self-proclaimed traditionally Republican newspaper the Cincinnati Enquirers endorsement of Hillary Clinton. They said of Donald, Trump, despite all of his bluster about wanting to make America great again, has exploited and expanded our internal divisions But going two weeks without saying something misogynistic, racist, or xenophobic is hardly a qualification for the most important job in the world. They even as of then, condemned his offensive remarks to women. Threat to environment. Ironically, the Cincinnati Enquirer said, Trump is a clear and present danger to our country. Invoking talk or thoughts of life or death situations. Sadly, this instinct was illustrated by Dr. Fields himself by the use of the word kill 53 times during the December 2015 GOP debate, versus zero times during the previous GOP debates. Ive lately wondered, will my daughter grow up in this milieu? Will this easiness with haphazard degrading remarks, and will similar ease toward racism, sexism and xenophobia stick to our collective unconscious? Will the clock be set back to the 1960s? The language and the connotation of the 2005 remarks made me wonder about my daughter as a young woman coming of age, will she be taken seriously in her endeavors? This lowering effect, this bringing down of individuals in our society, this incitement of these tribal instincts, the rise of bullying, the so-called, Trump effect, while it may not be rock-solid science, as a mother of a daughter and a wife and a doctor, again, there doesnt need to be that for me to know it is there. I know it when I see it. So, back to my dad and what he taught me; without each of us being protected, none of us are. Our rights are sacred. Our protection as individuals is at stake with this vile-talking man. Donald Trump is a magnet for the worst in us. What I hope for us is a leader who will bring out our best. The author is an anonymous physician. Image credit: Joseph Sohm / Shutterstock.com 213 Shares Share For all the medias (and candidates) attention to candidate health over the course of this presidential campaign, we seem to be spending precious little time in the presidential debates discussing the candidates actual health plans. Those on the left have diagnosed Mr. Trump as unhinged and mentally unstable, calling attention to a narcissistic personality consistent with a DSM diagnosis, though in violation of the Goldwater Rule. They have further raised the unusual way in which Mr. Trumps medical records were released, with language better characterized as flamboyant rather than scientific or precise, and a discussion of his health history on the television show of the widely debunked Dr. Oz. Mr. Trump and those on the right have mocked Secretary Clintons health, replaying a collapse amid an episode of pneumonia. Pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli further went on Twitter to postulate that Secretary Clinton had what he viewed to be Parkinsons disease, despite any medical records to support the diagnosis. All told, the health of the candidates and public insistence on revelation of medical records was dominating much coverage prior to the more recent discussion of the importance of revelation of candidates tax returns and the now infamous revelation of the 2005 tape in which Mr. Trump boasted about being able to grope women without consent on account of his celebrity status. The purported justification with respect to the focus on candidate health is that the American electorate deserves to know whether a person is physically fit for the demanding job of president, though presidential candidates publication of medical records has been a rather inconsistent practice over time, and past presidents deaths in office were not always attributable to medical conditions (e.g., assassination). More often than not, the emphasis appears to be for the purpose of media, gossip, and distraction. That an American presidential campaign would be dominated at least in part by media sensationalism is hardly a surprise. What is more distressing is that we have thus far spent more time discussing candidate health which does not appear to have a bearing on the ability to effectively hold the office of president of the United States (think FDR) than we have spent in the presidential and vice presidential debates on the candidates health care plans. (Side note: Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson does not even list health care on his websites Issues section). The first presidential debate between Mr. Trump and President Clinton did not include a single discussion of either candidates health care plans, whether with respect to access to care or reducing the cost of too-often-exorbitant prescription drug prices. With a record-breaking viewership of 84 million viewers, this was a missed opportunity for both candidates to discuss the merits of their plans on this key issue. In the days that followed, Mr. Trump spoke at a rally in Altoona, Pennsylvania in which he not only encouraged his supporters to intimidate voters an action that would have garnered the top headline any other election but also mocked Secretary Clintons stumble, to the cheers of his supporters. Mayor Giuliani was interviewed and continued his long history of unfounded assertions of an illness that Secretary Clinton might be keeping secret. During the vice-presidential debate, the Affordable Care Act got mentioned by Governor Pence in his discussion of the concerns he had regarding the national debt, noting President Clintons recent criticism of Obamacare, noting Secretary Clintons desire to expand it, and Mr. Trumps desire to repeal it. Governor Pence did not, in his discussion of Obamacare, discuss with any substance the alternative that he and Mr. Trump propose. Senator Kaine did not use Governor Pences comments as an opportunity to pivot the conversation toward the progress that the Affordable Care Act has created namely, 20 million more people with health insurance and a historic low uninsured rate of 8.6 percent, and the delivery of much-needed primary care and behavioral health care through Medicaid expansion in 31 states and the District of Columbia (which Governor Pence should know given that his state of Indiana accepted those government funds). 84 million watched the 90-minute presidential debate. 37 million watched the 95-minute vice presidential debate. In none of those 185 minutes did we learn apart from the Trump/Pence tickets pledge to repeal the Affordable Care Act anything about the candidates positions on this issue affecting every American, rich or poor, young or old, Democrat or Republican. This is particularly striking giving that health care accounts for 17.5 percent of the United States GDP. It was not until the second presidential debate admittedly one in which the chatter was much more focused on the Trump tape and the challenges it presents for his campaign and party that a single question was asked on the subject of health care and how the candidates would address the challenges that some are facing of higher costs and, in some cases, less coverage. This provided the first opportunity for the candidates to provide their talking points on health care over the course of approximately seven minutes, with Secretary Clinton discussing her desire to keep what works within the Affordable Care Act but curb costs and make it easier for small businesses to afford to provide health insurance, and Mr. Trump articulating a desire to repeal the ACA and allow for the selling of health insurance across state lines (though some argue that that would not actually curb costs). Within these settings, we unfortunately still have had no discussion of prescription drugs, the pricing of which have been in the news with EpiPens most notably. Two days after the debate, Mr. Trump returned the conversation to Secretary Clintons health in a new ad. That the personal health of the presidential candidates is making top headlines is silly, though not altogether inconsistent with the antics that have characterized this highly unusual election cycle. That their personal health is garnering greater attention during these forums than their own health care plans is a disgrace. Miranda Yaver is a political scientist. She can be reached on Twitter @mirandayaver. Image credit: Shutterstock.com 319 Shares Share It turns out that South Carolina is having a busy hurricane season. Recently, Charleston County was under a mandatory evacuation in anticipation of Hurricane Matthew. All I-26 lanes were converted into westbound traffic, gas stations were running low on fuel, and the local Wal-Mart was out of bottled water. It was T-minus 3 days to the landfall of Hurricane Matthew, with very variable predictions on the trajectory, speed, and strength. In the meantime, hurried preparations were being put in place for patients and care team members alike at the Medical University of South Carolina Hospital. It is times like this that I am reminded of the selfless and stoic nature of health care team members. Countless numbers of our team stayed in town and prepared to defend in place for an unknown period of time. Many of us were separated from friends and family, unable to look after our kids, homes or pets. But without question, those on the A (essential personnel) team reported for duty without a complaint, accepting that this was par for the course for working in an acute care facility. It is times like this that we should reminded of why we are afforded such respect in our society. T-minus 2, and the storm loomed towards Florida, with several different models predicting vastly different outcomes for Charleston, ranging from a tropical storm to a Category 3 hurricane. Team A remained in high spirits, as we all tried to figure out how we were going to eat and sleep for the next several days. Some inpatient units from the older buildings moved to completely new areas of other buildings, concerned about the integrity of large windows and leaking ceilings. All units double-checked their water supplies, battery stocks, and flashlights; facilities and engineering staff ensured emergency plugs were functional and generators were backing up if needed. Any potential patient discharges were fast-tracked; outside hospitals continued to call for transfers into Charleston, as many other hospitals were evacuating up and down the coast. Some patients did not have a family or safe housing to be discharged to, so they were stuck for the duration of the storm. Home health agencies, nursing homes and assisted living facilities all evacuated, bringing some to the ED who were not fit for travel or who otherwise would not make it through the storm. As such, our census remained high around 600 patients to care for, regardless of what happens. There was a slightly anxious air about the place, while we all kept ourselves busy to distract us from thinking too much about the possibilities to come. T-minus 1, and the storm continued on a volatile path, making plans more and more difficult to create and implement. The tidal surge is predicted to be much higher than expected upwards of 10-11 feet. Noting that most of the Charleston peninsula is at (or even below) sea level, we feared this could pose a major problem for most of the facilities. The campus ambulatory clinic is ~9 feet at its entrance, so all first-floor equipment and medications were moved to higher ground, including a large fixed pharmacy robot (which is hoisted onto a palate, the best we can do). The first floor of the inpatient psychiatric hospital houses the senior care unit, the most complex and least ambulatory patients in the building. Half were relocated to other units, and the other half stayed and waited to see what the water level will do. The emergency departments, dialysis units, and bronchoscopy labs all moved their equipment and supplies from the first to the second floor in case of a water surge into the building. The moving was calm, steady, and quiet. Many care team members tried to sleep in conference rooms and auditoriums on cots. All we could do was wait for the rain, wind, and tide to rise. T-minus 0, and the wind was sustained at 60 mph, with 100 mph maximum gusts and heavy rain for several hours. This was far better than expected and resulted in only minimal tree and building damage. The tidal surge recedes, and the rainfall waned, long before the 1 p.m. high tide. All first level floors remained dry! Roof and window leaks, however, abounded, with endless work for the facilities and environmental services crews. A few windows were blown out, and a few elevator shafts took on water. But all in all, our buildings, patients and care team members fared extremely well. But there was no rest for the weary. Team A remained, as the evacuation had not lifted, with most major bridges closed for inspection and many major roads filled with flooding and debris. It would be another 24 hours before relief arrived, equipment and patients could be moved back to their original places and roofs, and leaks could be patched and repaired. Living in a coastal town, this is not the first or last incident command center our hospital team will experience. Theyre filled with phone lines, sugary snacks, old coffee, competing TV screens, mixed emotions, projecting best and worst scenarios, avoiding under- and over-staffing, hoping we dont run out of water or linens and ultimately trying to keep a positive attitude and project confidence, while fighting off uncertainty and fatigue. But there is no better team building exercise than a hurricane incident command center. There are no silos, competing interests or hidden motives. Only clear communication, respectful tones, and companionship. Saint Matthews name is interpreted as a gift hastily given; I view this event as a strange and unwelcome but important gift for our team, long overdue and never to be taken for granted. Danielle Scheurer is a hospitalist. This article originally appeared in the Hospital Leader. Image credit: Shutterstock.com Details added (first version posted on 18:21) Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Seba Aghayeva Trend: The Nagorno-Karabakh region has always been, is and will remain Azerbaijans integral part, said Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov in his article published by the official press. Armenias occupation policy will never be successful, said Mammadyarov. The only way to achieve a sustainable settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and establish civilized relations between the two neighboring countries is the liberation of the occupied Azerbaijani territories, restoration of territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and ensuring the right of refugees and IDPs to return to their motherlands, noted the minister. He said this is required by international law and the UN Security Council resolutions. The minister expressed regret that the UN Security Council resolutions on the conflicts settlement arent implemented by Armenia and the mediators efforts have not led to a result for more than 20 years. Instead of showing good will in the negotiation process, Armenia openly impedes any effort aimed at the conflicts peaceful settlement, said Mammadyarov. Armenia refuses to withdraw its troops from the occupied Azerbaijani territories, hinders the refugees and IDPs from returning to their homes by ignoring the UN Security Council requirements and blatantly violating the international law, he added. The minister said Armenia draws attention to the technical aspects of the ceasefire regime and periodically commits military sabotages by trying to divert attention from the core and substantive issues of the peace process. Azerbaijan has repeatedly stated that it is ready for substantive negotiations on the conflicts settlement, said Mammadyarov, adding that substantive negotiations should bring a change in the status quo and lead to liberation of occupied Azerbaijani territories. The sooner Armenia realizes this and withdraws its troops from the occupied territories, the sooner the conflict will be resolved and Armenia will be able to take advantage of economic benefits of the regional cooperation, added the Azerbaijani minister. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. A man found guilty of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl is sentenced to 30 years in prison. On Wednesday morning at the 111th District Court, the jury reconvened to determine the sentencing for Fernando Cano-Garcia, 32. This comes after Wednesday's trial, where they found him guilty of sexually assaulting his niece. Cano-Garcia was arrested last year after his niece talked to her school counselor about the sexual abuse. "Like many cases, I would say as high as 90 percent of the cases involving abuse of children and sexual abuse of children is committed by someone the child knows and somebody the child trusts," says District Attorney Isidro Alaniz. "This case is no exception. This man was the uncle of the victim." "But the difficulty in this case is that we had the mother of the victim, and Catelyn herself came before the jury, and asked the jury for leniency. So, that's very rare in this type of case, but they did it for him," says Garcia's attorney Nathan Henry. Cano-Garcia faced the possibility of life in prison, but after the victim took the stand during the trial and sentencing, it was pushed back to 30 years. County officials say over 50 Webb County employees' paychecks will be affected this Friday. Some will either be paid half of their paycheck, while others will not be paid at all. Commissioner John Galo says the county auditor did not approve transfers, even after approval during the county budget. We spoke to County Auditor Leo Flores about the allegations, and what will happen to the employees' pay. "I'm just finding out that the treasurer is saying that some employees are not going to get paid," Flores said. "That's a decision she makes - not the auditor. The auditor doesn't make decisions [of] who gets paid and who doesn't get paid. Now there is a budget that was approved by the court called the "adopted budget," and in that budget, in the general order, has the employee's name and the amount of salary he should get. That is approved by the court. All she has to do is follow that." In our later newscasts, we talk to the county treasuer on the employee check cuts decision, and the auditor's allegations. The county has kept quiet in light of the lawsuit made by C.Y. Benavides on a county official and commissioner who are allegedly trying to stop the development of the proposed landfill. The developers filed a lawsuit claiming Webb County Planning Director Rhonda Tiffin and a county commissioner were stopping the development. Benavides says Precinct Three Commissioner John Galo is trying to stop the operation. Our cameras found both Tiffin and Galo on a statement regarding these allegations, and this is what they had to say. "You know, we are not allowed to talk about it," says Assistant County Attorney Jorge Trevino. "We are not allowed to talk about it. We appreciate it. You understand we can't discuss it in anyway. Thank you." Reporter: "Mr. Galo, can you talk about the lawsuit?" Galo: "I can't. I haven't been served." There is no word yet on where the hearing for the case will take place. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended the opening of Birinci Sxl Farm LLC in Qazakh district October 19. The president was informed that the farm occupies an area of 151 hectares. The administrative building of LLC is located there. The farm includes a 2,000-ton capacity warehouse, 250 square meter park for agricultural machinery and a 600 square meter production area. There is also an arable land which occupies an area of 15 hectares, and an artificial rain-making technology is used there. The farm will create 170 jobs. The president was informed that at the initial stage products manufactured by the farm will be supplied to the local market. President Aliyev met with staff of Birinci Sxl Farm LLC and local residents, and then posed for photographs with them. A wonderful Kilkenny woman with a joyful personality who died recently has left a wealth of memories from her time in her native city, Waterford and her final resting place, Dingle, Co Kerry. Liz Daly (nee Martin) of Ballinvounig, Dingle and formerly of Newpark, Kilkenny died after a long and courageous battle with cancer last month, aged 59 years at Dingle Community Hospital following a short Illness. She was born on the 6th of July 1957 in Kilkenny city. She later moved to Co. Waterford with her husband Sean and started a family. While in Waterford she resided in Ballyduff, Kilmeaden and later Butlerstown Co Waterford. For the past 18 years she lived in Dingle and was co-founder of Dingle Crystal. She is survived by her husband Sean; children, Stephen, Shane, Rebecca, Bella and Adam, her six grandchildren; brothers, John, Paul, David and Sister Donna. Liz embraced life and took part in walking/hiking groups, Zumba dance classes and yoga classes every week. She was extremely talented in the kitchen and loved to host dinner parties, her home-baking was exceptional and her cafe The Cutting Wheel Cafe on Green Street, Dingle was always a popular stop off for a coffee and something sweet. She was known for her smile, her kindness, her zest for life, her flamboyancy and her fashion. She was truly ahead of her time. Lizs life was characterised by her relentless love and care for those around her. She cared for Seans father Thomas Daly during his final weeks as he battled cancer in 2003. Liz herself was diagnosed in 2009 with cancer, but she acquired a positive attitude and with conventional treatment and adopting a healthy organic eating lifestyle, she beat the cancer. Unfortunately, four years later she was struck again but as always she maintained her positive attitude and overcame that obstacle too. She inspired all those around her, so much so that those who were diagnosed after her always turned to her for advice. Unfortunately, her health started to decline in late 2015 due to delayed side effects of previous cancer treatment. She died peacefully in her sleep on the 26th of September 2016 surrounded by her family. Liz touched the lives of so many people near and far and that was made obvious by the support shown to her family during the past 9 months and during the week that she was waked at her home in Dingle. Condolences poured in from all over the world and proved a great support to her family. She was removed from her home in Ballinvounig, Dingle on Friday the 30th of September and brought to St Marys Church in Dingle, which is situated across the street from her business Dingle Crystal. Following mass, she was buried in St Brendans cemetery in Milltown, Dingle. There are truly no words that will do Liz the justice that she deserves. We may try, but we will always fail. As her daughter, Bella said during her eulogy on the morning of her funeral: She lived, she laughed, she loved and she left Ar dheis De go raibh a hanam dilis Months mind mass is in St Marys Church, Green St, Dingle at 8pm on Saturday the 29th of October. Lovers of whiskey and beer as well as entrereneurs will be whetting their lips ater hearing about Carlow IT's latest course. They have launched the countrys first Bachelor of Science (Honours) Degree programme in Brewing & Distilling. The programme is the first of its kind on the island of Ireland and the result of two years of research and development by Institute of Technology Carlow that has included consultation with industry, representative organisations, national bodies and government. Alongside the degree course, the Institute will offer several continuous professional development (CDP) programmes for employees. They include: Yeast Biology; Malting & Brewing Raw Materials; The Brewing Process; Distillation and Distilled Spirits Production and Post Distillation Downstream Processing. The programme builds on a long tradition of degree programmes in biosciences at Institute of Technology Carlow. It will position Carlow as a centre in Ireland for teaching, learning, research and innovation in brewing and distilling and provide necessary support to the brewing and distilling industry which is undergoing a major renaissance yet experiencing a national skills deficit. As a university-level Institute, our purpose is to identify and provide opportunities for our 7,000 learners to gain the skills, knowledge and attributes required to fulfil their professional and personal goals, while simultaneously supporting and driving the development of a vibrant economy, commented Dr Patricia Mulcahy President of Institute of Technology Carlow. The new four-year BSc (Hons) in Brewing and Distilling is the latest manifestation of this. One of the most welcome aspects of this initiative has been the expert support that we have received from the sector across the region, nationally and internationally. My thanks particularly to Carlow Brewing Company, Walsh Whiskey, Waterford Distillery, Alltech, Heriot-Watt University, An Bord Bia, Teagasc, the Irish Whiskey Association and the Irish Brewers Association. The brewing and distilling sector is now one of Irelands fastest growing industries, exporting over 95% of its production. According to the Food Wise 2025 national plan, Irelands brewing and distilling industry will contribute towards the creation of an additional 23,000 food and drink based sectoral jobs by 2025. an 85% increase in food and drink exports to 19 billion. and a 65% increase in primary production value to 10billion. Whiskey exports are up 60% since 2009 with 60 million litres exported per annum. 28 distilleries are now operating or being developed on the island of Ireland and the number of microbreweries are expected to grow to 100 by 2025. Direct employment in distilling will grow 30% by 2025. A surge of interest in craft beer and micro distilleries, emerging markets in Asia and the explosion of the craft alcohol market in the United States are fuelling the sector. Sam Synnott and Judith Ashton have been awarded a Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Elevator award at a ceremony on Tuesday, 11th October. The organisation, Buddy Bench Ireland focusses on giving children the coping skills they need for success and happiness in life. They promote positive mental health and friendship amongst children through their classroom programme and the use of the physical bench as a visual tool on playgrounds. The award consists of 30,000 in funding and support to expand and grow the organisation. Speaking about the award, Sam Synnott said: We intend to reach every child in Ireland. By winning the SEI Award, we can concentrate more on operations, networking and business development. Being part of this new group, I know that we will help each other professionally and personally to make an impact on society. Over the last twelve years, Social Entrepreneurs Ireland has invested over 6.7 million in social entrepreneurs and 1,230 employment opportunities have been created in the process. This programme is sponsored by Irish company DCC plc, who have been the flagship sponsor of the Awards for the last six years and earlier this year pledged its commitment to Social Entrepreneurs Ireland until 2019, continuing its financial support with a further 700,000 in funding over this time. CEO of DCC Tommy Breen said: DCC is proud to be a long term sponsor of the Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Elevator and Impact Award programmes. It is a great privilege to play a role in getting behind Irelands brightest and most ambitious entrepreneurs working to have a positive impact on our society. Members of the local community in Castlecomer may have information that is key to bringing a murder suspect before the courts. Last year a murder investigation was launched into the death of Gerry Nolan who was killed in Castlecomer a decade ago. Significant developments have been made but gardai are keen to speak to people living locally who may have vital pieces of information. Mr Nolan, who is originally from Castlecomer, died as a result of a fire at his mobile home at the rear of a house in Deerpark in July 2006. At the time gardai carried out a full investigation and the 44-year-old was found to have died as a direct result of the fire. The investigation has remained open and a number of recent lines of enquiry have resulted in additional new evidence which led to the upgrading of the case to murder. Gardai are issuing a fresh appeal to members of the public, particularly to those living in the Castlecomer area, for any information that they might have that might assist into the circumstances that surrounded Gerry Nolans death. We know that there are people out there who have information in their possession which they were not willing to share previously, a senior investigating garda said. We hope that with the passage of time peoples perspective and attitude and network of association might change and they might now find themselves in a position to contact us, he added. The senior investigating officer described Mr Nolan as a generous, inoffensive and very well-liked person and appealed to people with information to come forward and contact gardai in confidence. Were appealing to those people who have that information to share it with us, to help us resolve this for Gerrys memory and for his family and for the wider community in Castlecomer. Anyone with information is asked to contact Kilkenny gardai on (056) 7775000. Traffic problems are continuing to plague the residents of Wolfe Tone Street in Kilkenny City, with the closure of part of the road and restrictions in place due to ongoing works on the Central Access Scheme. Construction work is ongoing between the hours of 7am and 10pm. Access is being restricted to local residents on the lower part of Wolfe Tone Street, Michael Street and Greens Bridge Street until October 24, and no through traffic is being permitted. However, residents have repeatedly expressed their concern over the security of the site, the hours at which the work is being carried out, and accessibility issues. A video was posted online last week showing fire services impeded on the street. The Order of Malta, which is currently based at the former auxiliary hospital, has also confirmed that one of its vehicles was damaged whilst attempting to navigate through the area. The issue was raised by local councillors at meetings on Monday afternoon. What is going on in terms of emergency vehicles, Cllr Joe Malone asked director of services Tim Butler. I was over there and to be honest, the site wasn't safe. You could walk out on to the Castlecomer Road. Could we maybe have an update? There's a lot of people talking about it. Cllr Malcolm Noonan said there had recently been an incident where an ambulance was required on Michael Street, and people there were concerned. Mr Butler said that, unfortunately, the work on Wolfe Tone street is quite disruptive for residents. He said that the contractor had been on to fire and ambulance services, and they were happy that they were able to access the area. I know there were breaches of some of the fences that have been erected, he said. Extra efforts have been made to secure the site, while ensuring access is still possible. Cllr Breda Gardner asked Mr Butler who the site's health and safety officer is. Is there anything more we can do to alleviate the fears of residents? Cllr David Kennedy said he had worked on sites for many years, and the current situation was far from satisfactory. It should be secured or someone will get hurt, he said. Cllr Andrew McGuinness said he had concerns in relation to noise and hours of operation on the site. The problem is that issues have mounted up and it seems to have escalated, he said. The problem is the construction works and the level of concern. Operating heavy machinery in or around midnight is totally unacceptable. Cllr David Fitzgerald agreed with his colleagues. The fencing on Wolfe Tone Street is poor. The signage it should be clearly highlighted and there is a genuine health and safety risk to residents and those going into the area. Mr Butler said the safety of the site was the responsibility of the contractor, and that he was not aware who its health and safety officer is. I know they don't have security on the site, but they do check it regularly, he said. SEAT has announced details of its special 171 offers which will be available across its 22 strong dealer network from now until December 31. The 171 offers feature 0% finance available on selected Ibiza and Leon models, 1.9% finance available on the SEAT Ibiza Sport and SEAT Leon SE Select and a staggering 2.9% finance available on the all new SEAT Ateca, SEATs first ever SUV model. Scrappage In addition to the attractive finance offers available, SEAT will introduce a scrappage offer of up to 4,000 on the Leon range and up to 2,500 on the Ibiza range. Niall Phillips, Brand Director of SEAT Ireland said they were very excited to announce details of the 171 offers as they look ahead to what will be a busy 2017 for the brand. As is always the case at SEAT, we have put the effort in to ensure we are offering the most attractive finance rates to our customers across our high quality range, he added. The SEAT range is growing rapidly and we are delighted to be in a position to offer an extremely attractive finance rate of 2.9% on the all new SEAT Ateca, our first ever SUV model which we are sure Irish motorists will fall in love with. Exciting time The launch of the SEAT 171 finance offers comes at a particularly exciting time for the brand has welcomed new, high profile dealers to the network, all featuring the marques new look showrooms and forecourt signage. In addition, SEAT has just launched the all new SEAT Ateca in the Irish market which is already performing well and generating strong interest. Next year also promises to be a busy and exciting year for SEAT as it is set to introduce a host of new product to its rapidly growing range. * Q3 economic growth seen steadying at 6.7 pct y/y, same as Q2 * Government spending, housing rally spurring construction boom * Growing debt levels, property bubble among key risks * Property market correction would weigh on growth, banks * Q3 GDP data, Sept activity data due 0200 GMT, Wednesday By Kevin Yao BEIJING, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Fueled by government spending and a housing frenzy, China's economic growth likely steadied at 6.7 percent in the third quarter, but slumping private investment, surging debt and the risk of a property correction are keeping the government and global investors on edge. Wednesday's data is expected to paint a picture of an economy that is slowly stabilising but increasingly dependent on government spending and a housing boom for growth, as exports remain stubbornly weak. Chinese leaders are trying to spur growth to create jobs, but are also facing pressure to push painful structural reforms such as cutting industrial overcapacity, raising the spectre of more layoffs and debt defaults. Government pledges to reduce debt are also fraught with risk, as less leverage almost always means slower economic activity in the short run, a prospect Beijing will be loath to accept as it spends ever more to hit official growth targets. Economists believe that the greatest near-term risk is a possible correction in the high-flying property market, which accounts for about 15 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). A wave of restrictions imposed on buyers in major cities in recent weeks has resulted in a sharp drop in sales. "Downward pressure on growth could mount after recently announced property tightening measures. Short-term growth would also likely come under pressure as a reduction in credit growth spurs a fall in spending," analysts at Singapore's DBS Group said in a note. "Of course, such a deleveraging push could put China's economy on a more sustainable long-term path by reducing the risk of a bad-debt crisis." Premier Li Keqiang said last week that the economy performed better than expected in the third quarter due to a rebound in factory output, company profits and investment, while adding that debt risks are under control. However, the forecast for the third-quarter by 58 economists polled by Reuters would still be near the weakest since the global crisis, despite an expected mild improvement in factory output and investment in September. Analysts at DBS have penciled in growth of 6.5 percent - the poorest showing since the first quarter of 2009, when it slowed to 6.2 percent amid the global crisis. The government is aiming for growth of between 6.5 percent and 7 percent this year. In 2015, the economy expanded 6.9 percent, its slowest rate in 25 years. Despite a rocky start, the economy grew 6.7 percent in the first half as the government cranked up infrastructure spending and state banks extended a record amount of credit. A surprisingly strong third-quarter reading would be a welcome boost for the gloomy global economy as well as financial and commodities markets. But unexpectedly robust data could fan scepticism about the reliability of Chinese official data. Some market watchers believe current growth is much weaker than government readings suggest. A weak outcome would raise the risk of more capital outflows and put more pressure on the yuan currency , which has slid to six-year lows. It could also reduce Beijing's appetite for tough reforms. But analysts believe the central bank may not rush to ease policy, given the government is now leaning more on fiscal spending to generate growth. <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ GRAPHIC - China's GDP trends ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^> (Reporting by Kevin Yao; Editing by Kim Coghill) HANOI, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Here's a snapshot of Vietnamese dong exchange rates in the official market and indicative SJC gold prices in Hanoi at 0044 GMT. Oct 19 Oct 18 USD/VND mid-point 22,011 22,020 USD/VND interbank 22,306/22,308 22,309/22,310 SJC gold (mln dong/tael) 35.43/35.67 35.44/35.68 NOTES: As of Jan. 4, 2016 the State Bank of Vietnam has begun setting the mid-point rate on daily basis, allowing dollar/dong transactions to move in a band of +/- 3 percent around the mid point. The dong's exchange rate against other currencies is not restricted by a band. Interbank quotes are indicative bid/ask prices. One tael is equivalent to 37.5 grams or 1.21 troy ounces. SJC gold prices are quoted by state-owned Saigon Jewelry Co, the gold manufacturer. Interbank offered rates are indicative, quoted from market sources. For Vietnam market overview click on: Vietnam's bonds market auctions: Bonds auction results: (Compiled by Hanoi Newsroom) By Sudip Roy LONDON, Oct 19 (IFR) - How big will Saudi go? That's the multi-billion question. The lead managers on the triple-tranche offering of five, 10 and 30-year notes have been careful not to give any details about demand since books opened at the New York open on Tuesday. Yet market chatter suggests it will be huge. The biggest-book size for an emerging markets deal was the US$69bn generated by Argentina for its US$16.5bn comeback trade earlier this year. Argentina appealed to a deep pool of investors in the US in particular. Saudi's appeal is, arguably, more global with Middle East and Asian accounts likely to show strong interest alongside US and European investors. "A broad range of people will look at this. It will appeal to Asian investors, developed market investors, and anyone looking for a duration trade in hard currency," said Colm McDonagh, head of EM fixed-income at Insight Investment. Emerging markets investors, too, are likely to put in bids although the bonds are not eligible for JP Morgan's indices as Saudi Arabia's GNI per capita is too high to qualify. If demand is US$50bn-plus, Saudi has to weigh its options between going for size or reining in pricing. The general consensus is that Saudi will be more size sensitive than price - with most people expecting a US$10bn-US$15bn deal - but strategies can quickly change. One EM investor in London said a 20-30bp premium over Qatar on the five-year would be appropriate but he would want a bigger concession on the 10s and 30s. Initital price thoughts of Treasuries plus 160bp area, plus 185bp area and plus 235bp area suggest a 50bp premium to Qatar. "Saudi is a weaker credit than Qatar but from a debt stock perspective it's better as it's starting from zero. Therefore, the short-dated bonds should trade close to Qatar and Abu Dhabi. If it was a one-year maturity you could argue it should come through Qatar. "But over a period of time, unless there is reform or the oil price rises, this credit will deteriorate more quickly so the curve needs to be steeper." Another issue he said was lack of transparency - the investor said Saudi hasn't even revealed what oil price it is basing its budget on, while a premium will also be needed as a debut issuer. We shall soon see. (Reporting by Sudip Roy; editing by Alex Chambers) Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended the opening of 110/35/6 KV Das Salahl sub-station in Qazakh district. The president was informed that the sub-station was built to improve electricity supply for the large part of Qazakh. Das Salahl is the fourth 110KV facility built in the western region of Azerbaijan and the 44th in the country. The previous sub-station supplied electricity to 3,637 consumers in 8 villages, while Das Salahl will supply power to 19,364 consumers in 22 villages. The sub-station will also supply electricity to farms, plants, hospitals, schools and other infrastructure facilities in Qazakh and Aghstafa districts. The ceremony featured demonstration of a photo and video slide show highlighting the work conducted by Azerishig. President Aliyev launched the sub-station. PRAGUE, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Here are news stories, press reports and events to watch which may affect Czech financial markets on Wednesday. ALL TIMES GMT (Czech Republic: GMT + 2 hours) =========================ECONOMIC DATA========================== Real-time economic data releases.................... Summary of economic data and forecasts........... Recently released economic data.................. Previous stories on Czech data............. **For a schedule of corporate and economic events: ==========================NEWS================================== CARS: The Czech car industry increased production by 7.3 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters of 2016, the Automotive Industry Association (SAP) said on Wednesday. Story: Related stories: CHINA: Czech ministers and senior parliamentarians held a private meeting with exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Tuesday, risking upsetting China just as Prague is trying to boost ties with Beijing. By contrast, the country's four highest-ranking officials kept their distance from the meeting and issued a rare joint statement stressing that the Czech Republic accepted Tibet as part of China and wanted to maintain good bilateral relations. Story: Related stories: CENBANK: The exact timing of exit from the Czech central bank's policy of weak exchange rate remains unknown, Vice-Governor Mojmir Hampl told an exporters' conference on Tuesday. He reiterated the bank's stance that the end of the policy would definitely not come before the second quarter of 2017, and that the bank saw the exit coming in mid-2017. Story: Related stories: CEE MARKETS: Romanian stocks and government bond prices eased on Tuesday after the Bucharest parliament passed a bill on the conversion of Swiss franc mortgages into leu at historically low rates, intensifying fears that bank costs will rise sharply. Story: Related stories: ---------------------- MARKET SNAPSHOT ------------------------ Index/Crown Currency Latest Prev Pct change Pct change close on day in 2016 vs Euro 27.018 27.002 -0.06 -0.07 vs Dollar 24.578 24.577 0 1.14 Czech Equities 915.33 915.33 0.92 -4.29 U.S. Equities 18,161.94 18,086.4 0.42 4.23 Pvs close or current levels vs prior domestic close at 1500 GMT ======================PRESS DIGEST============================= CETIN: Telecoms infrastructure group CETIN, owned by the richest Czech Petr Kellner's PPF group, is planning to issue bonds worth up to 2 billion euros. Pravo, page 21 MORTGAGE RATES: The average mortgage rate fell to a new low of 1.82 percent in September from 1.84 percent in August. Pravo, page 21 CARS: Skoda Auto, Volkswagen's Czech carmaker, has begun production of its new SUV Kodiaq. Deliveries begin in February. Pravo, page 4 BANKS: Czech Post picked KBC's CSOB bank to continue to provide banking services at its branches. Pravo, page 21 (Reuters has not verified the stories, nor does it vouch for their accuracy.) For real-time stock market index quotes click in brackets: Warsaw WIG20 Budapest BUX Prague PX For updates on CEE currencies TOP NEWS -- Emerging markets Prague Newsroom: +420 224 190 477 E-mail: prague.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (Reporting by Prague Newsroom) BRASILIA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Brazilian police on Wednesday arrested on corruption charges Eduardo Cunha, the former leader of the lower house of Congress who led the drive to impeach ex-President Dilma Rousseff, a spokesman for the federal police said. Cunha, who was detained in the capital Brasilia, has been caught up in the sprawling kickback probe of state-run oil company Petrobras . He is accused of taking a $5 million bribe related to contracts for two drillships built for the company. (Reporting by Anthony Boadle; Writing by Brad Brooks; Editing by Daniel Flynn) By Jonathan Spicer and Dion Rabouin NEW YORK, Oct 19 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve has rolled out a series of announcements, online forums and meetings with Americans this year in response to outspoken civic groups and many Democrats, including Hillary Clinton, calling for a more transparent and inclusive U.S. central bank. The latest critique came this week when Fed Up, a labor-affiliated coalition pushing for reforms, said it was "disappointing" that Nicole Taylor, a black woman and dean of community engagement and diversity at Stanford University whose term as director at the San Francisco Fed soon expires, would be succeeded on the board by Sanford Michelman, a white man who is co-founder of law firm Michelman & Robinson LLP. "It's definitely a step back in terms of what I'd like to see on our board. We're working actively to build representation of women and minorities," John Williams, president of the San Francisco Fed, said on Wednesday in response to reporters' questions, noting the decision was made by private banks in his district. After years of resisting more overt political efforts to curb its independence, the Fed this year has appeared willing to shine a light on its historically opaque process of choosing district Fed presidents, and also to show it is more sensitive to racial and gender diversity. After the Philadelphia, Dallas and Minneapolis Fed banks last year all chose as presidents men with past ties to Goldman Sachs, the Atlanta Fed hosted a public webcast this month and said it seeks a "diverse set of candidates" for its new chief, raising hopes it would name the first black or Latino Fed president in the central bank's 103-year history. "It's not just because we want to go and say we're diverse," Loretta Mester, Cleveland Fed president, said at a meeting with workers a day after her bank launched online applications for the public to recommend directors and advisers. "It's about getting different view points that are very helpful to us in ... thinking about the economy and understanding the trends." The regional Fed presidents have rotating votes on policy, except for the head of the New York Fed who has a permanent voting role. Unlike Fed governors who are selected by the White House and approved by the Senate, the presidents are chosen by their district directors, half of whom are themselves picked by private local banks that technically own the Fed banks. Critics say the dizzying structure leaves the Fed beholden to bankers who do not represent the public, and they point out that 11 of 12 district presidents are white while 10 are men. Clinton, the Democrats' presidential nominee, has come out in favor of dropping bankers from district boards. That followed a May letter from 127 lawmakers to Fed Chair Janet Yellen urging more diversity. (Additional reporting by Ann Saphir in San Francisco; Editing by Leslie Adler) B2Gold Corp. (TSX: BTO; NYSE MKT: BTG; NAMIBIAN: B2G) reports that issues raised by the Philippines government for the Masbate gold project are broadly consistent with an action plan that has already been developed. The government has been reviewing all mining operations in the country and has shut down some as new President Rodrigo Duterte vowed to get tough with mining companies over environmental issues. B2Gold says management has developed an action plan after a preliminary notice from the government. We have received and analyzed the comprehensive audit report findings and determined that they are broadly consistent with the preliminary notice and the action plan developed to date, B2Gold says. The points raised are principally related to administrative and regulatory compliance issues, which B2Gold is confident will be resolved by continuing to work closely with the appropriate government agencies. The company is well positioned to respond to the matters raised in the audit report and expects to do so by Friday, which is within the seven-day timeframe provided by environmental authorities. Meanwhile, operations continue uninterrupted, B2Gold reports. The company describes its Masbate gold project as the largest single investment in the province of Masbate and the largest producing gold mine in the Philippines. By Allen Sykora of Kitco News; asykora@kitco.com Gran Colombia Reports Rise In 3Q Production Gran Colombia Gold Corp. (TSX: GCM) produced 39,111 ounces of gold in the third quarter, which was up 14% from the same period a year ago, the company says. This brings output for the first nine months of 2016 to 108,829 ounces, up 25% year-on-year. The company says it remains on track to meet 2016 production guidance of 135,000 to 145,000 ounces. At the Segovia operations, third-quarter production totaled 33,552 ounces, up 20% year-on-year despite a temporary disruption in the late September due to a civil strike that kept many workers from safely reporting to their jobs, Gran Colombia says. By Allen Sykora of Kitco News; asykora@kitco.com Kerr Mines Begins Dewatering At Arizona Mine Kerr Mines Inc. (TSX: KER) has begun dewatering and rehabilitation activities at its flagship Copperstone mine located in Arizona, the company says. We are firmly focused on restarting operations at Copperstone," says Chris Hopkins, interim chief executive officer. Completing the de-watering activities will represent a major catalyst in our efforts to unlock Copperstone's potential value. The company has also begun developing an exploration and underground development program." The Copperstone mine has produced nearly 500,000 ounces of gold through open-pit mining. By Allen Sykora of Kitco News; asykora@kitco.com Thompson Creek Shareholders Approve Purchase By Centerra Thompson Creek Metals Co. (TSX: TCM) reports that its shareholders approved the previously announced merger with Centerra Gold Inc. (TSX: CG). The arrangement was favored by some 97% of votes cast by Thompson Creek shareholders at a special meeting Tuesday, the company says. The merger is expected to be completed on Thursday, Thompson Creek adds. The company would then become a subsidiary of Centerra. By Allen Sykora of Kitco News; asykora@kitco.com ABU DHABI, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Guinea opened a new container terminal on Wednesday, part of a bauxite complex being developed in the West African country by Abu Dhabi investment fund Mubadala . Mubadala signed a $5 billion agreement with Guinea in 2013 to develop a bauxite mine, alumina refinery and a port in Guinea to secure raw material for the United Arab Emirate's aluminium plants. The terminal in the new port of Kamsar will be used by the complex as well as by third parties as an alternative to container facilities in Conakry. "This project remains an important milestone for my development programme for Guinea," President Alpha Conde said in a statement. Guinea has around seven billion tonnes of bauxite resources, over a quarter of the global total, the statement said. Guinea Alumina Corporation's (GAC) mine is in the Boke region of north-west Guinea, which holds over 1 billion tonnes of bauxite. Commercial production at the mine is expected to begin in 2018. GAC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Emirates Global Aluminium. (Reporting By Stanley Carvalho, editing by Susan Thomas) (Kitco News) - Gold will rise to $1,347 an ounce during the next year, according to a poll of attendees after the London Bullion Market Associations annual conference in Singapore this week. If so, that will mean a rise of 6% from the spot price of $1,270.35 around 8 a.m. EDT Wednesday. Comex December gold The LBMA asks audience members where they think each of the precious metals will go as of the 2017 LBMA conference, which is scheduled for Oct. 15-17 in Barcelona. Participants were most bullish about silver over the next year, the LBMA pointed out. The average of forecasts was $20.90 an ounce, which would be an increase of 18% from the early-morning price of $17.73. LBMA attendees collectively see platinum rising to $1,053.30 and palladium climbing to $752.50. Around 8 a.m. EDT, these metals were at $944.50 and $640.75, respectively, meaning LBMA forecasters see rises of 12% and 17%. More than 700 delegates, representing 34 countries, attended the 2016 conference, the LBMA reported. By Allen Sykora of Kitco News; asykora@kitco.com Follow @KitcoNewsNOW DUBAI, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Fresh headline quarterly earnings results from major companies in the Gulf are set to swing investor sentiment on Wednesday, but the broadly in-line results from Saudi Basic Industries may steady the Riyadh index after three sessions of declines. Headline third-quarter earnings of Saudi companies have come in mostly weak with some below expectations and that has dragged the main index down 4.1 percent so far this week. But SABIC's results came in at the upper end of analysts' average expectations. The largest petrochemical producer posted a net income of 5.22 billion riyals ($1.39 billion), a 6.8 percent drop from the same period a year ago. SABIC attributed the profit fall to lower average sales prices and a reduction in the quantity of products sold, which outweighed the benefits gained from a decrease in costs. Saudi Cement , one of the kingdom's largest cement firms by market value, reported a 3.9 percent drop in its third-quarter net profit on Tuesday as sales dropped, selling and distribution expenses rose, and other income decreased. Tabuk Cement , a mid-sized producer, also recorded a drop in profit for the three months to Sept. 30. Net income came in at 7.9 million riyals, a 14.1 percent year-on-year decline. In Qatar, the index may likely be weighed by some disappointing results. Commercial Bank of Qatar , reported a third-quarter net loss versus a year-ago profit. It made a net attributable loss of 1.38 million Qatari riyals ($379,016.75), Reuters calculated based on financial statements in lieu of a quarterly breakdown. That compared with a profit of 275.93 million riyals in the same period a year earlier. Qatar Insurance , the Gulf country's largest insurer by market value, reported a 6 percent fall in its third-quarter net profit at 108.8 million riyals ($29 million). EFG Hermes had forecast the insurer to post a profit of 312 million riyals. ($1 = 3.7490 riyals) (Reporting by Celine Aswad; Editing by Andrew Torchia and Andrew Heavens) (Adds segment performance, details) SYDNEY, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Australia's top casino company Crown Resorts said on Thursday it plans to spin off some of its Australian hotels and retail property in an initial public offering. The move would split Crown's domestic assets from its resorts in the Asian gambling hub of Macau, where turnover has been subdued and the company is facing a crisis, with 18 of its staff detained for suspected breaches of Chinese gambling laws. "The Crown Resorts board has now endorsed the implementation of a potential IPO of a 49 percent interest in some of its Australian hotels and associated retail property," the company said in a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange. The spun-off unit will include hotels in Melbourne and Perth, the company said. The company first announced it was considering such a move in June, and it has not put a price tag on the hotel assets. The detention of Crown staff since last week, including the head of international VIP gambling Jason O'Connor, sent shares of the business tumbling 14 percent on Monday, amid fears of a broader crackdown on the industry in China. Crown's Macau operations were already facing a downturn, with gaming revenue there down 22.5 percent for the year to June 30, the company said in August. Billionaire James Packer, who is the company's largest shareholder but quit the board in 2015, said in June that he supported the proposal to split the business. (Reporting by Tom Westbrook; Editing by Jane Wardell, Sandra Maler and Bernard Orr) SHARE By Andrew Binion of the Kitsap Sun BREMERTON A 23-year-old passenger on the Bremerton-to-Seattle ferry Monday night accused of attacking her boyfriend, then the ferry workers who tried to break up the fight, was charged Tuesday with two counts of felony assault. As ferry workers attempted to restrain the woman, who lives in Seattle, she removed all her clothes, according to court documents. The woman "did pull her pants back up but continued walking through the ferry topless until she was finally restrained and ferry workers were able to drape her zip-up sweatshirt over her top half," a Washington State Patrol trooper wrote. The fight delayed the 7:55 p.m. sailing of the Hyak because it returned to the Bremerton terminal shortly after setting sail. "All of the deck crew is trained in crowd control, but this one was out of control," Washington State Ferries spokesman Ian Sterling said. The trooper boarded the boat to take the woman into custody. In the lead up to the ferry workers' attempts to restrain the woman, workers told investigators they saw the suspect use a fist to strike a 51-year-old Bremerton man several times in the head and neck area, according to documents. The man told police he was in a "dating relationship" with the woman. While being booked into the Kitsap County Jail, the woman kicked the trooper's car door into corrections officers and spat at them, according to documents. She was charged in Kitsap District Court with two counts of third-degree assault, one for spitting on a ferry worker who tried to restrain her and the other charge for slapping another ferry worker. Sterling said fights aboard the Bremerton-Seattle ferry are not uncommon, especially following sporting events, but he could not immediately provide numbers to back up that assertion. "The crossing is longer, so you have longer for something to go wrong," Sterling said. "Certainly removing clothing is a little strange," Sterling said. "I think what's rare here is that the captain had to make the decision to go back to port." Separating hostile people usually isn't difficult, as the boats are large. "These folks were not able to do that," Sterling said. He added that the ferry system has requested the woman be legally barred from riding ferries. The Rich Passage 1 was pressed into service last month on the Bremerton-Port Orchard route. Larry Steagall / Kitsap Sun By Ed Friedrich of the Kitsap Sun BREMERTON Kitsap Transit, after voters twice rejected its fast ferry proposals, is trying again. Why might the result be different? The agency and those going to bat for the plan say a new boat that's proven to ply Rich Passage is the difference maker. "The major difference between this plan and the others is the issue of being able to run at high speed through Rich Passage has been answered," Kitsap Transit Executive Director John Clauson said. But opponents are doubtful that Rich Passage 1 is enough to persuade an electorate that voted down passenger-only ferry measures in 2003 and 2007. Despite a service plan that the agency expanded to reach a broader range of riders, there are concerns that all residents will pay a regressive sales tax increase for the benefit of commuters. "I think it benefits very, very few people," transit board member and Poulsbo Mayor Becky Erickson said. "It is mostly funded by sales taxes, which hit our poorest populations very hard. It truly is reverse Robin Hood, giving to the rich at the expense of the poor." The lack of a vessel that could carry riders swiftly through Rich Passage without damaging beaches was the state's downfall. At the turn of the century, Washington State Ferries operated a popular fast ferry service between Bremerton and downtown Seattle. WSF was preparing to add routes at Kingston and Southworth in a plan similar to one that Kitsap Transit has on the Nov. 8 ballot. Rich Passage property owners sued, alleging the fast ferries' wakes were damaging their beaches. They were right. The boats were slowed, nullifying their advantage over car ferries, which serve the same route. The ferry system's subsequent loss of license tab funding put the program out of its misery. Kitsap Transit inherited from the state what became a nine-year, $13 million, federally funded research project that culminated in the building of the low-wake, foil-assisted catamaran Rich Passage 1. Scientists tested it in the passage and determined it caused no harm. Thirty-minute crossings were back. Questions remain, however. Can the RP1 make all of the trips expected of it? Can it meet rider demand? Can it be reliable? During four months of testing with passengers, the boat made 40 to 60 trips a week. Scientists recommended that when it goes into service, it begins with no more than 60. The shoreline should be monitored as more are added. Sixty trips is the number the agency had planned to run in a commuter-oriented schedule it first proposed. The public insisted that everybody should benefit, not just workers, so nighttime and Saturday trips were added. Total sailings remained at 60 during the winter but were increased to 150 from May through September. The effect on Rich Passage of more than doubling the sailings is unknown. "What we received from (the scientists) anecdotally is they do not anticipate there to be any problems (with more sailings)," Clauson said. "What we've agreed to do is ramp up while they continue to monitor to just verify. No one seems to be at all concerned, but we're still going to make sure." Erickson worries about the RP1 racing through Rich Passage at 37 knots, which it must to limit its wake. If it slows down for safety's sake, it'll send bigger waves toward the shoreline. "We just don't know how this boat is going to perform," she said. The Kingston and Southworth routes would operate in open water where boat wakes aren't a problem. If and when service begins July 1, it would be with the 60-trip schedule. "We have to walk before we can run," project manager Carla Sawyer said. Depending on the shoreline, some trips might be added later in 2017, she said, with full service beginning in summer 2018. When the state's 350-passenger Chinook and Snohomish were providing half-hour crossings, riders arrived at the Bremerton dock a half-hour early to get in line. Ridership peaked at 876,000 in 2000. Rich Passage 1, after being reduced to 118 seats to meet wake requirements, is barely one-third the size of the state's ferries. The Kitsap Transit plan estimates Bremerton ridership at 334,000 per year at full build-out. It projects that Kingston would carry 239,000 and Southworth 205,000. "With a $12 fare and vessel capacity of 118, the Bremerton route is not expected to face capacity issues," the plan states. "The Kingston-Seattle service is forecast to experience some capacity issues for PM trips with a proposed vessel capacity of 150." Private operators Aqua Express and the Port of Kingston's SoundRunner service both failed to attract enough riders to survive in Kingston, but scientific modeling showed riders would change travel modes if more sailings were available and they could be confident they wouldn't go away, Sawyer said. Kitsap Transit will be beginning service at Bremerton (2017), Kingston (2018) and Southworth (2020) without backup boats, opening it up to the risk of missed sailings. The state's car ferries could somewhat fill the role. The prototype Rich Passage 1 hasn't been without problems. The foil fell off in April 2010 in Bellingham Bay during sea trials. Exhaust systems on the four engines were removed and rebuilt with heavier material after stress cracks appeared. Impellers in the jet drives were removed and re-engineered after being damaged in a grounding. During the four-month test period, however, Rich Passage 1 completed 786 out of 812 trips, or 96.8 percent. The 26 trips it missed were to reinforce exhaust system welds. Kitsap Transit is asking for a sales tax increase of 3 cents on a $10 purchase, the same as in 2007 when the measure was defeated 55 percent to 45 percent. That was an improvement over 2003, when it was shot down 61 percent to 39 percent after seeking the sales tax plus a license tab hike of $30 on a $10,000 vehicle. The earlier attempts didn't include a bonus for buses. The sales-tax increase could fund both the cross-sound and existing Port Orchard-Bremerton ferries, freeing $1.5 million a year in the bus budget. Transit spokesman Sanjay Bhatt said there is a firm commitment to move the transit dollars back into more bus service. It equates to 23,000 more bus hours, enough to restore Sunday service, though its use would be determined after an independent route analysis. "If the ferry issue is approved, it does not guarantee Sunday service because we're not sure what the community wants most, Sundays or more frequent and later service," Clauson said. The business plan, taking two years to compile and costing more than $300,000 in research grant funds, is much more comprehensive than its predecessors. Experts analyzed vessels, terminals, ridership, operations, implementation, maintenance, fare collection, service planning, economic benefits and conducted public outreach. Besides adding night and Saturday sailings during the summer at the public's behest, planners added a bigger boat at Southworth that could dock in the car ferry slip, cutting three years off the wait. "Our feeling is this is the culmination of a lot of work with the community to make sure we've developed a plan they feel like they support," Clauson said. Ticket prices would be kept about $2 higher per trip than competing car ferries, ranging from $5.25 for a trip using a reduced-fare monthly pass to $12 for full fare. POPCORN & ISSUES: FAST FERRIES AND OUR FUTURE What: The Kitsap Sun hosts a discussion on the role of fast ferries in Kitsap County's mass transit strategy. Who: Experts in transportation policy, fast ferry operation, demographics, economics and regional planning discuss the peninsula's growth and mass transit. When: 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 25 Where: SEEfilm Bremerton Cinema, 655 Fourth St. RSVP: pugetsoundblogs.com/brews-and-issues/#fastferries Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: Embassy of the US in Azerbaijan has congratulated the people of the country on the 25th anniversary of independence celebrated Oct. 18. The US was among the first countries to recognize Azerbaijans independence and values the warm friendship we have built together since that time, the US Embassy said in a statement. Azerbaijan has made great progress in its first quarter century of independence, and we look forward to continuing to work together in support of measures to promote freedom of expression, political participation, and rule of law, increase economic prosperity, fight terrorism, and to ensure a peaceful and stable future for Azerbaijans citizens, the statement reads. The US remains committed as well to facilitating a negotiated settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, according to the statement. On this special occasion marking a quarter century of independence, Americans extend their best wishes to all Azerbaijanis, the US Embassy said. SHARE By Andrew Binion of the Kitsap Sun PORT ORCHARD A 29-year-old Tacoma man accused of pistol-whipping his girlfriend and punching a 17-year-old girl last week in Bremerton was charged Tuesday with three felonies. On Oct. 12 Bremerton police were called to an apartment on 100 block of Sheridan Road after receiving reports of threats with a gun, according to documents. The teen told officers that the suspect and his girlfriend had been arguing and the suspect ended up outside. He attempted to force the door open and pointed a revolver at his girlfriend's head, cocked the hammer and threatened to shoot her if she didn't let him back inside, according to charging documents. Once back inside, he struck the woman with the pistol, dropped the gun on a futon and began punching the woman. When the teen tried to intervene, she said the suspect punched her. A man inside the apartment told officers that he saw the suspect beating the woman and told him to leave. The suspect picked up his pistol and left. The suspect was booked Monday into the Kitsap County Jail. He was charged in Kitsap District Court with first-degree burglary, second-degree assault and third-degree assault. By Andrew Binion of the Kitsap Sun BREMERTON A 23-year-old passenger on the Bremerton-to-Seattle ferry Monday night accused of first attacking her boyfriend, then the ferry workers who tried to break up the fight, was charged Tuesday with two counts of felony assault. As ferry workers attempted to restrain the woman, who lives in Seattle, she removed all her clothes, according to court documents. The woman "did pull her pants back up but continued walking through the ferry topless until she was finally restrained and ferry workers were able to drape her zip-up sweatshirt over her top half," a Washington State Patrol trooper wrote. The fight delayed the 7:55 p.m. sailing of the Hyak because it returned to the Bremerton terminal shortly after setting sail. "All of the deck crew is trained in crowd control, but this one was out of control," Washington State Ferries spokesman Ian Sterling said. The trooper boarded the boat to take the woman into custody. In the lead up to the ferry workers' attempts to restrain the woman, workers told investigators they saw the suspect use a fist to strike a 51-year-old Bremerton man several times in the head and neck area, according to documents. The man told police he was in a "dating relationship" with the woman. While being booked into the Kitsap County Jail, the woman kicked the trooper's car door into corrections officers and spat at them, according to documents. She was charged in Kitsap District Court with two counts of third-degree assault, one for spitting on a ferry worker who tried to restrain her and the other charge for slapping another ferry worker. Sterling said fights aboard the Bremerton-to-Seattle ferry are not uncommon, especially following sporting events, but he could not immediately provide numbers to back up that assertion. "The crossing is longer, so you have longer for something to go wrong," Sterling said. "Certainly removing clothing is a little strange," Sterling said. "I think what's rare here is that the captain had to make the decision to go back to port." Separating hostile people usually isn't difficult, as the boats are large. "These folks were not able to do that," Sterling said. He added that the ferry system has requested the woman be legally barred from riding ferries. Stuff reports: A proposal for a Waikato medical school has ruffled the feathers of existing medical schools, with one dubbing it an ill-considered and expensive folly. The University of Waikato and Waikato District Health Board presented their proposal for a third, Hamilton-based, medical school to the Government on Monday. Things may have changed but for many years the reputation of the Waikato Law School was so poor that a significant number of major law firms would not hire people from them. Setting up a medical school from scratch in a university without a strong tradition in health sciences runs the risk of ending up with the same result. Share this: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Reddit WhatsApp More Pinterest Print Tumblr Got to tour the Ile De Re at Ports of Auckland on Tuesday, courtesy of Spark. The ship is in port for a couple of days before heading back to the Tasman Sea to lay the second half of the new Tasman Global Access cable. The cable is a joint venture between three companies who normally are fierce competitors (well two of them anyway). It will be 2,300 kms long and go from Ngarunui Beach in Raglan, to Narrabeen Beach in Australia. The cable capacity is 20 terabits a second. To put this in comparison the Southern Cross Cable started off with capacity of 120 Gb/s and even with upgrades is now at only 3.6 Tb/s. The tour of the ship was fascinating. They have three containers that can store 500 kms of fibre each. This is one of the tanks. The fibre is put manually into the tanks. A series of people walk it in backwards, so they walk backwards for 500 kms! Also to make it even more challenging the fibre gets taken to a pacific island on a freighter from France, offloaded there and then wound onto the ship once it arrives, so thats a lot of walking! You think of submarine cables as huge wide cables, but fibre ones are much thinner. It is only 20 mm wide. The Ile De Re maintains dozens of cables in the South Pacific over 50,000 kms of them. In this chamber they have all the different spare segments so they can go out and repair a cable immediately if needed, rather than go into port to get it. The cable is fed up from the chamber and along here to the back of the ship. This wee bugger weighs around 25 tonnes and is used to bury the cable in the shallower waters. If the depth is under 1500 metres, this is thrown off the side and used to bury it around 1 metre down. When out in the open ocean, there are a lot of engineering calculations to work out where the ship should go and at what speed, to get the cable down where they want it. The cable may only hit the bottom 30 to 50 kms behind the ship. I nicknamed this Thunderbird 4. It is a robotic aquatic vehicle and is used to lay and repair cables in shallower waters. The advantage over the larger unit is that it has little weight in water due to the flotation devices so you dont have 25 tonnes moving over the seabed. In shallower waters they tend to lay one km per hour while in deeper water they can do 11 kms a day or so. This is the bridge. This front part is where they navigate, but at he rear they have all the computers for plotting the cable location etc. The ship has up to 60 crew on it at peak capacity. Most of the officers are French and the crew are Filipino. It is an expensive exercise laying a submarine cable. Of the total $100 million cost of the project, the vast majority would be the actual laying. Around 50% of our international bandwidth is now with Australia and it is projected to grow by 11,000% over the next decade. So this cable will be an important addition to our capacity, and will also provide greater redundancy in case of failure with Southern Cross (itself unlikely as it has two cables). There is an existing cable called Tasman 2. It has such small capacity it can only handle 1% of trans-Tasman traffic. It will be decomissioned once TGA goes live in hopefully very early 2017. Share this: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Reddit WhatsApp More Pinterest Print Tumblr Stuff reports: The last remnant of the anti-nuclear standoff has been swept aside, with approval granted for a visit by a United States warship to a New Zealand port. Prime Minister John Key announced the destroyer USS Sampson will take part in the navys 75th anniversary.celebrations in November. It will be the first US warship to dock here since the ANZUS bust up over New Zealands anti-nuclear legislation in the mid-1980s. I am 100 per cent confident it meets New Zealands law and that means its neither nuclear powered nor carries nuclear weapons, Key said. And this time around peace protesters from the mid-1980s are far more relaxed about the visit. Kevin Hackwell, who with a friend was arrested in Wellington harbour after swimming out to tag the USS Texas in 1983, said it was a victory for New Zealands anti-nuclear policy. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: As part of his visit to Aghstafa, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has viewed conditions created at the newly renovated Heydar Aliyev Center. The construction of the Heydar Aliyev Center started in February 2008, and the building was inaugurated in September of the same year with participation of President Ilham Aliyev. The repair and reconstruction work was carried out in the building in January-February, 2016. A 320-seat open air concert scene was built in the center. A bas-relief of national leader Heydar Aliyev was installed in the foyer of the four-story building. There are exhibition halls featuring photos that reflect the national leaders life and activity. Exhibition halls of Saloglu furniture and Akkord sewing factories were opened in the center. A 400-seat auditorium here is supplied with modern sound equipment. The center also has a small cinema and two conference halls. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Anakhanum Hidayatova Trend: The 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council will take place on Dec. 8-9, 2016 in Hamburg, Germany, the OSCE said in a message posted on its website. The event will be held at the invitation of the 2016 OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier. The Ministerial Council is the central decision-making and governing body of the OSCE. The meeting, held annually, provides the foreign ministers of the 57 OSCE participating states an opportunity to review and assess the Organization's activities and strengthen the dialogue on security issues in the OSCE area. The OSCE chairmanship will pass to Austria in January 2017. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Anahanum Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Anakhanum Hidayatova Trend: NATO looks forward to continue cooperation with Azerbaijan, James Appathurai, NATO secretary general's special representative for South Caucasus and Central Asia, tweeted Oct. 19. Appathurai also congratulated Azerbaijan on the 25th anniversary of the restoration of its independence. Azerbaijan-NATO cooperation is realized as part of the Partnership for Peace program. Earlier, NATO adopted a document on the fourth stage of the Individual Partnership Action Plan for 2015-2016. Meanwhile, NATOs main office, which is the Hungarian embassy in Baku, will carry out the functions of the NATO coordinator in Azerbaijan since Jan. 1, 2017. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Anahanum By Choi Sung-jin Government and business officials here rely much on advice from foreign consultants when they decide which industries and companies to keep afloat and which to let go under. But some recent examples raise doubts about the wisdom of giving too much credence to these consulting firms. For instance, McKinsey & Co., which recently advised Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) to withdraw from its offshore plant business, reportedly previously told the company to increase its proportion of floating oil-drilling structure production, industry sources said Tuesday. In 2013, Daewoo Shipbuilding asked McKinsey to provide consulting services on its management. The multinational consulting firm estimated DSME's annual sales would grow to 28 trillion won ($25 billion) by 2023, with some 15 trillion won of it coming from offshore plants. It then predicted the offshore plants market would grow 7 percent a year on average. McKinsey told Daewoo to enhance capacity for offshore plant construction to widen the gap with its Korean and Chinese competitors. To sum up, its conclusion was to concentrate on offshore plants while selecting a few strategic parts and focusing on them in building commercial vessels. Daewoo accepted the advice and signed a contract in that year to enter into an industrial park on the outskirts of Seoul to train manpower designing offshore plants. A year after the McKinsey report came, however, international oil prices began to fall, freezing demand for offshore plants and throwing Daewoo into trouble. Daewoo's orders for offshore plants totaled $10.5 billion in 2012, accounting for 74 percent of its order receipts, but fell to $8.1 billion in 2013 and $2.7 billion in 2014. Daewoo has received no new offshore plant orders since last year. Design changes and schedule delays have added to Daewoo's losses -- the biggest reasons for the company's present trouble. In another consulting report McKinsey made at the request of the Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association this year, the U.S.-based company reportedly told Daewoo Shipbuilding to withdraw from the offshore business after completing the existing contracts, concluding that DSME is least likely to survive among the nation's three large shipbuilders. Industry watchers are expressing doubts about the credibility of McKinsey's consulting that represented a sharp about-face in three years, though. "It would be risky to push ahead with industrial restructuring based on the advice from the foreign consultant that failed to forecast the market situation in the near future," a local analyst said. A similar controversy has hit the steel industry. Boston Consulting Group recently advised Korean steelmakers to curtail production facilities for thick plate, predicting a supply glut because of declining orders from the shipbuilding industry. Domestic steelmakers cast this aside as an "assertion ignorant of industrial reality." "Korea imported as much as 2.5 million tons of thick plates from China and other countries last year," an industry executive said. "If we cut down on their production under the pretext of restructuring, it will not help to strengthen the competitiveness of the domestic industry but will benefit only Chinese makers. Another reason we can hardly trust their advice is that it is the U.S. company's first consulting service for the steel sector." By Kim Tae-gyu Lee Jae-yong, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics The recent Galaxy Note 7 crisis will prompt Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong to end his quiet and low-key stance and come to the fore in running the group, analysts said Wednesday. Adding to such expectations is that the 48-year-old Samsung Group heir would win a board seat as a registered executive of the tech giant at a shareholders' meeting slated for Oct. 27. As his father, Chairman Lee Kun-hee, has remained incapacitated since a heart attack midway through 2014, Vice Chairman Lee has led the country's foremost company but has not come forth formally. "Vice Chairman Lee would not stay in the background anymore. He is likely to take the driver's seat to deal with the aftermath of the Note 7 blunder," said Cho Yun-nam, a chief researcher at Daishin Securities. "The shareholders' meeting would provide momentum because thereafter he will have to take legal responsibility for the management of Samsung Electronics." Earlier this month, Samsung opted to pull the plug on its jumbo smartphone Galaxy Note 7 due to continued reports of the flagship device catching fire while charging. The unprecedented decision, made less than two months after the introduction of the gadget, is feared to cost Samsung billions of dollars. IBK Securities research head Lee Jong-woo likened Vice Chairman Lee's current situation to 1993 when Chairman Lee emerged at the fore to deal with Samsung product quality problems. After his inauguration in late 1987, Chairman Lee waited almost five years to spearhead the famous new management campaign in 1993 incorporating the quality-first mindset into the group. Back then, he famously urged employees to "Change everything except your wife and kids." "The senior Lee waited five years to come to the fore but the junior Lee does not have the luxury to wait so long because changes are happening so fast now compared to the early 1990s," Lee said. To complicate things further, Elliott Management this month urged Samsung Electronics to split in two to improve its "unnecessarily complex" ownership structure, which the hedge fund claimed undermines the firm's values. The U.S. fund, which has a 0.62 percent stake in Samsung Electronics, is predicted to bring up the issue when shareholders convene later this month. "The Galaxy Note 7 recall and other issues put Vice Chairman Lee to the test. I think it is a good option for Lee to speak to the public himself about them," said Prof. Lee Phil-sang of Seoul National University. The third-generation Samsung executive had an official press conference only once last year to apologize for the outbreak of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). Samsung Group's affiliate, Samsung Medical Center, was accused of being responsible for the disease's fast spread to many patients at the large-sized hospital. By Kim Tae-gyu Starfield Hanam, a mega-sized shopping mall of Shinsegae Group, is expected to make a profit beginning in November, just three months after its launch in early September. A senior Shinsegae executive said that Starfield Hanam might get into the black this year if profits for the next two months are substantial it is supposed to draw up the income statement for 2016 based on performance during the final four months. "We check the financial status of Starfield Hanam every month. We suffered a loss last month and things would be similar this month," said the executive who asked not to be named. "But the entity is highly likely to make money starting next month. If the amount is big enough for the remainder of this year, we may chalk up a profit for the full year 2016." He refused to disclose the figures in detail but said that its profits would be stable and sustainable. "Most of our income came from rent without regard to fluctuations of sales. As a result, our revenue streams are not volatile," he said. Another Shinsegae insider said that the group aimed to be profitable in the first year between September 2015 and August 2016 but didn't expect that it would near the goal this early. Shinsegae Property Vice President Yim Young-rok recently told the press that the mall's operator would earn more than 820 billion won ($745 million) in sales during the first 12 months of operation. He added that the new cash cow of Shinsegae strives to turn a profit in one or two years. Situated 20 kilometers southeast of Seoul, the shopping complex is the biggest in the country in terms of floor space. It has a department store, retail outlets and electronics shops as well as a luxury zone harboring approximately 30 global premium brands. Premium supermarkets and toy shops are also popular together with showrooms of diverse vehicles. The facility built on a 119,000 square meter site with a parking lot big enough for 6,200 cars attracted more than 1.5 million shoppers in the first 10 days after opening. Shinsegae, the country's top retail conglomerate, joined hands with Taubman, a U.S.-based shopping mall developer, to build Starfield Hanam. The former has a 51-percent stake while the latter holds the remaining 49 percent. According to sources, its Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin spearheaded the project. He is a grandson of Samsung Group founder Lee Byung-chul and cousin of Samsung Group heir Lee Jae-yong. By Park Jae-hyuk Korean cosmetics firms are seeking to expand their presence in China, building cosmetics plants or selling their products in Chinese online malls, in order to advance K-beauty fever there. Their moves come as China has tightened sanitary inspections amid chilly relations since Korea's decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile system. TonyMoly said Monday it would build a new cosmetics plant in Zhejiang, China, by next June, investing 23 billion won ($20 million) into its Chinese affiliate Megacos. The road-shop brand plans to work on product development, container making and packaging procedures all at once, through the factory's one-stop system. "We will introduce our high-quality technologies to China, promoting color cosmetics and running OEM and ODM businesses," a TonyMoly official said. Hanbul Cosmetics also said it will build its new plant in Zhejiang by next May, and other promising cosmetics firms such as Cosmax and Kolmar aim to expand in the Chinese market, building additional facilities there. The two leaders, AmorePacific and LG Household & Health Care, have already built plants in China. The nation's top cosmetics firm, AmorePacific, built Beauty Campus in Shanghai in 2014, investing 130 billion won. The 41,000-square-meter facility produced 15 million items last year and seeks to produce over 20 million this year. Small and medium-sized businesses, which struggle to establish large facilities overseas, are finding their markets through China's online malls. Those firms had the chance to sell their products at Tmall, during the event hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), between Monday and Wednesday. The largest online mall in China introduced over 50 Korean brands, enabling Chinese consumers to purchase cosmetics directly delivered from Korea, during the event. "The government will help cosmetics firms to advance in China, collaborating with online and offline retailers, as well as Tmall," said a trade ministry official. Korean cosmetics firms have depended on Chinese tourists at duty free shops and exports. However, Chinese customs authorities banned import of 61 items from Korea including cosmetics and foods in August, according to KOTRA. China plans to tighten its regulations on heavy metal content in cosmetics in December as well. Due to the strong regulations, Prestige Creme d'Escargot of It's Skin is yet to be approved for sales, although the company applied for approval in August last year. If Korean cosmetics firms build plants in China or sell their products at Chinese online malls, they can sell their products without needing approval. Korea Exchange CEO Jeong Chan-woo, right, poses with Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE) CEO Tran Van Dung after signing an agreement about IT infrastructure at HOSE in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Wednesday. / Courtesy of Korea Exchange By Nam Hyun-woo The Korea Exchange (KRX), Korea's bourse operator, said Wednesday that it has signed an agreement with its Vietnamese counterparts over establishing advanced IT infrastructure for the latter's stock market. According to the KRX, the deal is aimed at building the entire IT system within the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE), Hanoi Stock Exchange and Vietnam Securities Depository. The project is funded by the Vietnamese government and will be the largest project in KRX's history. The KRX said it will take two years for the establishment to take place and it will cover the fields of market information, market surveillance, clearing and settlement, and depository and registration. The Vietnamese system will be based on EXTURE+, which is a next generation trading platform in production by the KRX, and will be customized to meet the requirements of the Vietnamese market. A number of leading IT firms in and outside of Korea will join the project, the KRX said. "The close alliance and cooperation will not only make this project a success, but lay a firm foundation for further collaboration in the future," said KRX CEO Jeong Chan-woo. A KRX official said the project will not only raise the bourse operator's status in the global stock trading IT solution market but also serve a key role in the progress of the Vietnamese capital market. Since 2007, the KRX has been exporting its IT system to eight countries Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, the Philippines, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Vietnam. In 2007, the KRX assisted Bursa Malaysia to develop an electronic bond trading platform and joined Cambodia to set up a bourse. Most recently, the KRX exported technologies for trading and a market surveillance system for the Azerbaijan stock market last year. The KRX official said it seeks to sign agreements in other regions, such as the Middle East and South America. KRX CEO Jeong, HOSE CEO Tran Van Dung and other ranking officials from Hanoi Stock Exchange and Vietnam Securities Depository attended a signing ceremony held at HOSE. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: The U.S. Secretary of State John Kerrys recent statement on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is absolutely unacceptable, said Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in an interview with head of the Russian news agency Rossiya Segodnya Dmitry Kiselyov for Sputnik. The president was responding to Kiselyovs question regarding Kerrys recent statement on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution. This is a diplomatic mishap, and our Foreign Ministry and I have already responded to this inappropriate statement, he said. Ilham Aliyev reminded that recently, on October 7, he has quite clearly expressed his opinion on the statement during a Cabinet of Ministers meeting. I said it is at least unfair to put blame on Azerbaijan for the conflict not being resolved, said the president. The statement is absolutely contrary to the position of the U.S. President Obama, together with other presidents of France and of Russia has said that the status-quo is unacceptable. But now the U.S. secretary of state declares that he sees no settlement, and moreover he says that solving this conflict is even harder than solving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. What kind of signal is he sending, and to whom? Is he sending a signal to Armenia that they should protract this conflict as many years as the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has lasted? This is absolutely unacceptable statement, said the president. He added that this statement once again shows why the conflict is still not solved. Because there are decisions, resolutions of international organizations, but they are not executed. There is no pressure on the aggressor country, on the contrary, often there is a policy of encouraging the aggressor, something well-known in the history of the 20th century not of the same scale, but roughly of the same essence, said Ilham Aliyev. This is the problem we are facing. We are being told: the peaceful way, only the peaceful way, nothing but the peaceful way. We say very well, lets settle this, because eventually it is unfair, aside from violating all the international laws, to occupy another states territory and drive out the population, and keep the occupied territories under control, President Aliyev added. He said it is no secret today that Azerbaijans army has a serious potential to solve many issues. We are told the peaceful way, we say very well then, we are waiting. And instead of the pressure on the aggressor we hear such statements, added the president. Herman Cornejo, left, and Alessandra Ferri perform in a scene from the ballet "Romeo and Juliet" choreographed by Kenneth MacMillan / Courtesy of Universal Ballet Company Ballerina Alessandra Ferri speaks during a press conference for the Universal Ballet Company's "Romeo and Juliet" at the Universal Arts Center in eastern Seoul, Tuesday. / Yonhap By Kwon Mee-yoo Physicality is an important aspect of ballet and it is common for ballet dancers to retire as they age. However, age doesn't matter for Alessandra Ferri, 53, the oldest active ballerina in the world. She will dance the role of Juliet in Kenneth MacMillan's "Romeo and Juliet" with the Universal Ballet Company (UBC) in Seoul on Oct. 23 and 26. Ferri, who retired in 2007, returned to the stage due to her endless yearning for dance. "When I decided to stop, I was 44 years old," Ferri said at a press conference at the Universal Arts Center in eastern Seoul, Tuesday. "The element of fear at that time was competing with myself -- not being able to feel how I used to be. I was starting to feel insecure about myself, so I decided to stop. It was a mental fear." However, she was not completely happy with her six years of leaving dance. "I was not alive. I realized that I love dancing and it's not a job I just can quit," the prima ballerina explained. Julia H. Moon, president and director of the UBC, asked Ferri to dance Juliet in Seoul after her successful stint in New York earlier this year. Ferri has visited Korea a few times, but this is her first time as a lead dancer. "It is quite special to be here. I thank Julia for giving the opportunity to perform with this amazing company here," Ferri said. "It happened very quickly, but we made it possible and I'm very happy about it." MacMillan's "Romeo and Juliet" is one of the masterpieces of drama ballet, which requires theatrical strength as much as dancing techniques. When she came out of retirement in June as Juliet at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, the New York Times wrote "The plasticity, liquidity and effortless eloquence of her movement seem unchanged. Her stage persona remains vivid, ardent, rapturous, impulsive and compelling." "I was born with a physique good for dancing and am lucky to be given by nature. Maybe I always wanted to be a human being, a woman on stage, not a dancer. It is how I approach every role and it is what is strong about my interpretation," Ferri said. Ferri said "Romeo and Juliet" is not romantic. "It is not a love story at all. It's about violence, hate and death. It's not just a pretty dance. I think 'pretty' did not exist in MacMillan's vocabulary," she said. "MacMillan said a dancer should never be afraid of being an artist on stage. What he meant was when you love, cry and die on stage, just be who you are." American Ballet Theatre's principal dancer Herman Cornejo will dance as Romeo opposite Ferri. The 35-year-old said it was easy for him to decide when Ferri proposed the role to him. "I grew up watching Alessandra dancing and (her longtime partner) Julio Bocca is like my mentor. I was nervous to step into his shoes, but it is a pleasure to work in the role. It's very special to dance Romeo and Juliet with Alessandra. This is the highlight of my career," Cornejo said. The UBC's "Romeo and Juliet" runs Oct. 22 to 29 at the Opera Theater of Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul. Tickets cost 10,000 to 120,000 won. For more information, visit universalballet.com or call 070-7124-1737. Korean customers queue at French brand Vetements' one-day garage sale in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, Monday. / Courtesy of Vetements By Kim Jae-heun One of the hottest fashion brands currently, France's Vetements held a surprise garage sale in Korea, introducing its limited editions only to Korean customers at Namyangju in Gyeonggi Province, Monday. The global brand's sudden decision to open its capsule collection not in New York, not in London, not in Paris and not in Milan, but at a far-off warehouse located on the outskirts of Korea's capital city Seoul, was welcoming but dubious news for the brand's local customers. Korea is Vetements' biggest online buyer in Asia and third-largest global customer. But then, it all came clear, when the notorious brand revealed its concept and location of the event just a day before the opening. It wanted to prove that it can sell anything, anywhere in Korea and people will still flock to sweep the items disguised as limited edition. Vetements' garage sale, in collaboration with British online luxury brand retailer Matchesfashion.com, announced its collection concept as "Official Fake." This captured Instagram image from British online luxury brand retailer Matchesfashion.com shows its notification of Vetements' capsule collection in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, Monday. The brand reportedly explained that "Korea is one of the countries that have many fake' products especially that of the designer brands,' and Vetements found many products here, which have reinterpreted its original products freshly and applied its inspiration on their new collection." However, fashion insiders criticized the brand's original intention to mock Koreans. "I felt like I was at Costco with a bunch of clothes hung in a long line at a huge warehouse," said Lee Sun-woo, CEO of Seoul Showroom, a managing company for fashion designers. "My impression was that the event looked like a collaboration between Vetements and a fake product company. Vetements say they got the inspiration from reinterpreted products here, but it was only a scene of mockery to me. "It was as if they were saying you are still going to buy our products even if you have copy designs in your country selling at much lower prices. We will reinterpret them and sell them again at higher prices. See, so many people came,'" said Lee. Some 800 to 1,000 people came to the garage sale and all items there were sold out except black T-shirts and white hoodies. Matchesfashion.com held a two-day pop-up event following the garage sale, Monday, introducing 26 brands, including Vetements. The company's CEO Tom Chapman participated in the event at the SongEun ArtSpace in Cheongdam, Seoul. An online retail giant official explained that their visit aimed to meet Korean customers, who enjoy their fastest international delivery system, offline. Korean customers reportedly take up some 50 percent of Vetements sales. Fashion industry insiders agree that people no longer shop at department stores or offline shops these days and these events have replaced this. However, Lee also questioned their intention to hold the garage sale right before the country's biggest fashion festival, Seoul Fashion Week. "I am just curious why they had to open a garage sale just a day before the runway shows and trade shows were scheduled at Seoul Fashion Week. It could have been seen as a unique event for Vetements to display a collection of kitsch concepts, if it was held on another day. But that particular day makes fashion insiders question the French brand's original intention of the garage sale," said Lee. The fashion management CEO's criticism continued on Vetements' exclusive event for the lack of item variety and the extravagant prices for their quality. The brand introduced seven newly designed items, which Lee argued were neither new nor high quality. A red cap displayed on the hanger had only the word "CAP" written on it and it was sold for 235,000 won ($208.96). The most expensive item there was Vetements' signature product Light Hell Sock Boot, which sold for 1.49 million won ($1,320), followed by jeans that cost 1.37 million won ($1,213). "If you look at the collaboration between H&M and Isabel Marant, the collection shows the unique design of Isabel Marant but at a much cheaper price. But Vetements' capsule collection presented at the garage sale was not the level they originally offered," said Lee. "The kitsch concept of its clothes may have scarcity for its collaboration with Matchesfashion.com, but I would rather buy Vetements' original label with the same price." Security guards watch over the site where a man, 36, died after being caught in the gap between a train and a platform safety screen door at Gimpo International Airport Station on Wednesday morning. / Yonhap By Ko Dong-hwan A man was killed after being caught between subway safety doors and a train at Gimpo International Airport Station in western Seoul, Wednesday. The passenger, surnamed Kim, 36, was on a train heading for Banghwa Station of line No. 5. As the train arrived at Gimpo station, he was getting off but got caught in the 30-centimeter gap between the train and the platform safety screen door. As the subway engineer closed the train doors and screen doors to depart, a passenger reported through the intercom on the train that a man was caught between the two sets of doors, according to Seoul Metropolitan Rapid Transit Corp. The engineer re-opened the doors and closed them again 27 seconds later and started moving the train, apparently failing to check whether the man got out of the gap. The victim, circled, collapses after coming through an emergency door on the platform. He died in hospital. / Yonhap A security camera showed that Kim was flung through an emergency exit door next to the safety screen door when the train began moving again. Kim was taken to Myongji Hospital in the nearby city of Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, but was pronounced dead on arrival. It was the year's third death related to screen doors at train stations. In February, an elderly woman was killed after being trapped between the screen door and the train at Seoul Station. In May, a mechanic was hit and killed by an arriving train at Guui Station in eastern Seoul while fixing a malfunctioning platform screen door. Incheon firefighters save a woman trapped in a toy machine after she crawled in to steal a doll. / Yonhap By Ko Dong-hwan Firefighters have rescued a drunken woman who was trapped in a toy machine. The woman, 20, got inside the machine in Incheon through the 30-centimeter square opening where toys drop out. She attempted the escapade at 4 a.m. Monday after failing to earn a toy. The machine, controlled by a joystick and buttons, challenges players to maneuver a gripper to pick up the toys. Incheon Seobu Fire Station said Tuesday firefighters arrived at the scene after the woman's friend called for help. They ripped open a metal panel on the machine to free the woman, who was unharmed. "The woman had an accomplice looking out for anyone coming while she sneaked into the machine," a lawyer told YTN TV news. "That's a good case for special theft. She must compensate for the destroyed dispenser, too. She won't be possibly dealt any heavy punishment but she certainly earned herself a criminal record." Toy dispensers filled with dolls are common in Korea. / Yonhap In 2015, a boy, 9, got into a toy dispenser to steal a doll. Another boy, 7, tried to steal a cap inside a machine in 2013, while a similar theft was attempted by a boy, 10, in 2011. A man, 32, stole 600,000 won ($530) worth of toys using the same method in 2013. "These thefts only leave the machines' owners embittered," the lawyer said. "I mean, what did they ever do wrong? I'm sure the woman must have been too embarrassed to call for help inside the machine." Police arrested 800 foreigners from July to October who were involved in 348 crimes. / Korea Times file By Lee Jin-a Police booked more than 800 foreigners for allegedly committing crimes during a special 100-day crackdown from July 4. The National Police Agency said Tuesday 803 foreigners involved in 348 cases were booked and 136 were arrested in the period. By crime type, violent crime (67 percent) led the way, followed by narcotics (24 percent), sexual violence (5 percent) and gambling (4 percent). For violent crime, 189 cases (80 percent) occurred among foreigners and 83 percent among compatriots. Police said most criminals who assaulted people were drunk. Most of the drugs were smuggled into Korea via airplane luggage or international shipping packages from China and Thailand. By type, 62 percent of the reported drugs were methamphetamine and 30 percent yaba. They were mainly sold via social network services in the country. For gambling cases, most offenders were caught in private homes. Police said the stakes were usually not high and about 1.8 million won ($1,600) on average was confiscated in each case. Police said they will continue clamping down on these crimes because they can often lead to offences such as loan-sharking. Meanwhile, police helped 15 illegal immigrants who were victims of assault or molestation to report their injuries without being deported. According to a policy introduced in March 2013, police have exempted illegal immigrants that are victims of crime from being reported to immigration authorities when they report their cases to police. By Hong Dam-young Two Korean military officers are being investigated for allegedly raping a female college student last year before they were commissioned. The suspects, both second lieutenants, were students at the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) in Gwangju when they allegedly raped the drunken student at a motel in the city, according to the Korean military on Tuesday. The three were drinking near the college at the time. When the victim got drunk, the suspects took her to the motel, where three other men allegedly joined the officers in the assault, the military said. The alleged crime was revealed by accident when one of the suspects was accused last July of assaulting a woman while on leave. During the investigation, military police found a video of the previous year's alleged rape on the suspect's laptop. Police said they will investigate the other officer over allegedly plotting the rape. Three other men who were allegedly involved have been taken to a local police station. By Jun Ji-hye Debate is heating up over whether the nation should introduce alternative military service after an appellate court on Tuesday acquitted three men accused of refusing to be drafted for religious reasons. The three men were indicted for violating the military service law after having refused mandatory service out of their religious conviction that rejects war and murder. One man was found not guilty in a lower court, which led to an appeal by the prosecution, which was turned down by the appellate court. For the two other men, the appellate court overturned a guilty verdict given to them at a lower court. It was the first time that an appellate court ruled in favor of conscientious objectors, while lower courts have given mixed rulings in multiple cases. "Personal conscience and religion is constitutionally guaranteed rights and cannot be punished," the court said in its ruling. The court also said the international community tends to recognize the rights to the conscientious objection of military service, noting that "A social consensus has been formed in Korea as well for the need to introduce alternative military service." All able-bodied Korean men are mandated by law to serve in the military for about two years. Alternative service allows conscientious objectors to do community service or participate in disaster-relief missions instead of serving in the military. Some European countries including Norway, which maintain a conscription system, allow such alternative service. Supporters of the alternative service say that the country should recognize the minority and respect their faith. "Without having alternatives, it is improper to force everyone to serve in the military and do things related to war," lawyer Sohn Soo-ho said during a radio appearance, Wednesday. "I agree with the latest ruling of the appellate court. It is about time we take a step forward in the discussion." But those who are opposed to the idea say that it is too vague to decide what is conscientious and what is not. "Criteria for deciding conscientious objectors are vague," said lawyer Roh Young-hee. "We need to think about what would happen when everyone wants alternative service amid the challenging security situation of this nation." The Ministry of National Defense also took a cautious attitude about the issue, saying that the alternative service could decrease the morale of soldiers in active service. "There is also a possibility that the system could be abused by draft evaders," said Col. Na Seng-yong, the ministry's deputy spokesman. The ministry also said in a parliamentary inspection session held earlier this month that it is "premature" to introduce alternative service when the national security situation is considered. The number of those who have refused the compulsory service for religious reasons since 2006 is about 5,700, according to the ministry. Most of them have been sentenced to about a year and six months in prison. The Constitutional Court ruled in 2004 and 2011 that it is constitutional to punish those who refuse mandatory military service. Three men who faced a jail term last year for refusing to be drafted for religious reasons filed a constitutional complaint, and the court is currently reviewing the case. Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, left, and Defense Minister Han Min-koo greet veterans during their visit to the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., Wednesday. / Yonhap By Jun Ji-hye Imposing harsher sanctions on North Korea might be discussed with U.S. officials, said Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, who is visiting Washington along with Defense Minister Han Min-koo, Wednesday. The ministers are scheduled to hold "two plus two" talks with U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Secretary of State John Kerry, Thursday. "There are sanctions imposed by the UNSC, those imposed by the United States and its allies and those imposed by other international communities," Yun told reporters during a joint visit with Han to the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. "South Korea and the United States will discuss ways to maximize effects of sanctions on the North in these three pillars." Yun also told the National Assembly, Oct. 13, that there is great possibility that even harsher content would be included in Seoul and Washington's unilateral sanctions compared to those imposed after the North carried out its fourth nuclear test in January. In the wake of the fourth test, the UNSC also adopted Resolution 2270, which included the harshest sanctions yet on the North, but the Kim Jong-un regime conducted its fifth test on Sept. 9. Wednesday's talks are also expected to focus on ways to strengthen the U.S. "extended deterrence" protection of South Korea. Extended deterrence refers to Washington's stated commitment to defend its ally by mobilizing all military capabilities nuclear and conventional to cope with the North's aggression and provocations. "We will discuss comprehensive strategies to deal with North Korean threats," Yun said. "In particular, we're going to have in-depth discussions on ways to specify and institutionalize extended deterrence, which is a key element in the U.S. security commitment to South Korea." On Thursday, the two countries are scheduled to hold the annual Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) led by defense chiefs of the two nations, during which Han and Carter are also expected to discuss detailed extended deterrence measures, possibly including permanently deploying U.S. strategic assets in the South, such as nuclear-capable B-52 and B-1B bombers. "In the SCM talks, we will jointly assess North Korea's threats and the situation in the North and discuss ways to guarantee the implementation of extended deterrence, including the U.S. nuclear umbrella, so as to cope with North Korea's nuclear and missile threats," Han told reporters during the visit to the war memorial. In 2016 alone, the reclusive state has conducted two nuclear tests and launched more than 20 ballistic missiles despite warnings from the international community. On Saturday, Pyongyang launched what was presumed to be a Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM), though it exploded soon after liftoff, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The IRBMs, believed to have a range of 3,000 to 4,000 kilometers, are in theory capable of striking U.S. naval and air bases in Guam. Four-month corruption probe ends with a whimper By Jung Min-ho Shin Dong-bin, chairman of Lotte Group, comes to work at the group's head office in Seoul, Wednesday. / Yonhap Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin was indicted on charges of embezzlement and breach of trust, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office announced Wednesday, concluding its four-month corruption probe into the group. Prosecutors have also indicted Shin Kyuk-ho, the chairman's father and Lotte founder, and Shin Dong-joo, the chairman's elder brother, on charges of tax evasion and embezzlement. With Shin Young-ja, the chairman's sister, and Seo Mi-kyung, the founder's common-law wife, indicted on similar charges, a total of five members of the Lotte founding family will face trial. Yet for the prosecution, the results are disappointing, given that more than 20 prosecutors have participated in the lengthy investigation into the allegations of massive slush funds and corruption tied to heavyweight politicians. Evidence shows that their corruption charges are much less than suspected. The chairman is suspected of allowing his family members to pocket 50 billion won in total from Lotte affiliates. The prosecution also believes that he caused financial damage of 175 billion won to Lotte by supporting his family business within the group. The chairman has denied all the charges, saying he did not play any active role in the illegal activities. Initially, the prosecution planned to arrest him. But investigators had to change their plan after the Seoul Central District Court disapproved their request for the arrest warrant on Sept. 28. Shin Kyuk-ho is suspected of dodging 85.8 billion won in taxes in the process of yielding his shares of Lotte Holdings to his family, including Seo. He is also facing charges of embezzlement and breach of trust. Shin Dong-joo is facing charges of receiving 39.1 billion won from Lotte's affiliates for no reason from 2005 to 2015. Shin Young-ja is facing charges of evading 56 billion won in gift taxes for receiving shares of Lotte Holdings from her father. Prosecutors believe Seo and her daughter pocketed 50.8 billion won from Lotte affiliates. The two have been staying in Japan to avoid investigation. Along with the owner family, the prosecution also indicted 14 former and current Lotte executives. During the investigation, Lotte Group Vice Chairman Lee In-won was found dead hours before he was to face questioning by the prosecution. Some analysts predicted at the time prosecutors would wind down the investigation. Lotte, which is Korea's fifth largest conglomerate, vowed to carry out a major overhaul to regain consumer confidence, faced with criticism over shady business practices. "We will try to fix various problems revealed during the investigation and will faithfully cooperate with the legal proceedings," Lotte Group said in a statement. Lotte's turmoil began last year, when a family feud erupted between Shin Dong-bin and Shin Dong-joo over the group leadership. Since then, Lotte has faced a torrent of regulatory scrutiny and investigations. By Kang Seung-woo President Park Geun-hye faces growing calls to speak on the alleged irregularities linked to her confidant Choi Soon-sil. The main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK) has set up a special committee to look into the allegations, while the second-largest opposition People's Party is seeking a special prosecutor. In addition, some ruling party members also demanded that Cheong Wa Dae step up to put the irregularities to rest, while calling for an investigation by the prosecution. Choi, the daughter of President Park's late mentor, is regarded as a secretive heavyweight that holds great influence over Park as well as her administration. Choi has been caught up in allegations that she was behind suspicious fundraising activities involving the K-Sports and Mir foundations. Her daughter, Chung Yoo-ra, is also embroiled in speculation that she received special treatment in her admission to Ewha Womans University and academic credit she did not earn. Amid the mounting controversy over Choi's daughter, Ewha Womans University President Choi Kyung-hee has stepped down. The MPK said Cheong Wa Dae and the ruling Saenuri Party should end their cover-up of the scandals. "Amid the growing allegations, Cheong Wa Dae has avoided them. The prosecution needs to begin looking into suspicions raised by the media before evidence is destroyed," said MPK Chairwoman Choo Mi-ae during a party meeting. "Preisident Park has not provided any apology for or explanation of Choi's scandal for over two months. Speculation will rise further if Park remains silent. She must provide answers to the questions of the people." Park Kyung-mee, an MPK spokeswoman, also said, "We urge Cheong Wa Dae not to defend Choi Soon-sil anymore. In order to get state affairs back on track, the presidential office should work its way out of the scandals by cutting its ties with Choi." The People's Party floated the idea of a special prosecutor to investigate the case. "While the nation is facing security and economic difficulties, President Park is just burying herself in covering up the suspicions," said Rep. Kim Dong-cheol. Some Saenuri Party lawmakers also suggested that the governing party provide the public with clear explanations surrounding Choi's scandal, so they can put the issue to rest. "During the latest regular audit, the K-Sports Foundation case emerged as the biggest issue, but the ruling party gave the impression it is not tackling the issue head-on," said Rep. Choung Byoung-gug of Saenuri Party. "We need to move forward to help the president finish the remaining term in office," Choung added. Park's term in office ends in February 2018. The Hankyoreh, a local daily, reported Wednesday that two paper companies established by Choi to support Chung's equestrian training are called The Blue K, with branches in Frankfurt, Germany and Seoul. The staffs of both companies were found to be employees of K-Sports Foundation, raising suspicions that Choi is using the organization to support her daughter's equestrian career. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: Territorial integrity of Azerbaijan is not and can not be a subject of discussion, said Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev in his interview with the head of the Russian news agency Rossiya Segodnya, Dmitry Kiselyov. We will never agree with granting independence to Nagorno-Karabakh and the Armenian side is well aware of this, Ilham Aliyev said. However, a reasonable compromise is possible by ensuring the security of population of Nagorno-Karabakh, implementation of various investment projects by Azerbaijan and a peaceful cooperation between the two peoples under the condition of liberation of territories beyond the Nagorno-Karabakh autonomous region, said the president commenting on Kiselyovs question on how Azerbaijan sees the conflicts settlement. This corresponds to the proposals on which we are working and which have been put forward by the mediators, he added. Touching upon the main reason behind the conflicts remaining unsettled, President Aliyev said that over the past 24 years, since the OSCE Minsk Group was created, Armenia has in every way blocked any slightest progress in the negotiation process. Our position is that people should live there, where they lived. Because they lived there for a long time: the Armenian population lived there for 200 years, while the Azerbaijani people much more, but that is not the point. he noted. For example, 95 percent of the population in Shusha was Azerbaijanis. They were driven out, their houses were either captured or destroyed, and currently, other people live in their houses. This must end, said the president. The Armenian population of the Nagorno-Karabakh can live there as they lived before, we are not against that, he added. What benefit did Armenia have from this conflict? Millions of Azerbaijanis suffered, but did Armenians become happier from this, did it become more secure, more prosperous, of course not, said Ilham Aliyev. Without normalization of relations with Azerbaijan, there cant be development in the region. They will always live under certain pressure, thinking what if something happens. We want peace in the region and our position is quite constructive, but we want our territories back, he added. Armenia wants peace but it doesnt want to give back somebody elses territories. That is the difference. Undoubtedly, we cant provide anything more than this compromise, said the president. As I have already said, there can be no compromise on the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, but there can be a compromise on the issues of local self-government, self-government of the Nagorno-Karabakh, and in the future, if we agree, it can be an autonomous republic. The Armenian leadership is well aware of this, but they manipulate public opinion, create an image of the enemy, distort the essence of the negotiation process and present it in such a way that as if Azerbaijan wants to almost annihilate the Armenian population or to expel them. That is not true, Ilham Aliyev said. By Kang Seung-woo Former Minjoo Party of Korea Chairman Moon Jae-in / Yonhap Former Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK) Chairman Moon Jae-in is maintaining an ambiguous stance about an escalating controversy over South Korea's decision to abstain from a United Nations vote in 2007 on North Korea's human rights. Song Min-soon, who served as foreign minister at the time, said in his recently published memoir that the liberal government sought the North's opinion before abstaining from the vote and Moon backed the idea. Moon was the presidential chief of staff at the time. Initially, Moon said he did not remember how the decision was made. Later he told his aides that he was not involved in the decision-making process. On Wednesday, Lee Byung-ho, the head of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), told lawmakers that the memoir is based on fact. However, the spy agency chief said he can "neither confirm nor deny" that there is evidence that backs up the claims made in the book. "It is not the right time to speak on the matter, considering the case's impact on national security," Lee was quoted as saying by lawmakers during an Assembly audit session that took place at its headquarters. "Although North Korea is a rogue state, this matter is also linked with the agency's credibility," Lee added. As the memoir is damaging Moon's reputation as a possible candidate for next year's presidential election, his attitude is also inviting criticism from the ruling Saenuri Party as well as from his own party members, who are urging him to speak up about the controversy. He has refused to take any questions regarding the memoir from reporters. "It is not a good sign for a potential presidential candidate to face allegations unfavorable to him regardless of their veracity. So, Moon had better put an end to the issue this time, making clear his position on it," said Cho Jin-man, a professor of political science at Duksung Women's University. "Otherwise, this issue will provide fodder for a political offensive from the conservative side in the lead-up to the presidential election. Even, the issue may haunt him in the party primary." An MPK lawmaker said although Moon cannot recall his position on the issue, he should try to find the truth with his former co-workers. "It does not make sense that he wants to become the head of state, but he cannot remember such an important incident," the lawmaker said. "His attitude is cowardly." Kim Chong-in, a former MPK interim leader, pointed out that Moon is handling the controversy poorly. Political watchers believe that Moon's passive response is based on his past experience during the 2012 presidential race. During the campaign, Saenuri lawmakers grilled Moon, claiming that the late President Roh tried to nullify the inter-Korean sea border in the West Sea, the Northern Limit Line, during his meeting with the late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in 2007. Moon stepped up and explained his version of the truth, rather; he was thrown into the center of the political dispute, helping conservative voters flock to then ruling party presidential candidate Park Geun-hye. "If Moon fails to speak out about the issue, he may face similar allegations in the run-up to the election, which will deal a hard blow to his leadership and ethicality," said Cho. People's Party floor leader Rep. Park Jie-won questioned Moon's leadership and ability to manage a crisis as a political leader. "He has changed his words every day. I hope he will tell the truth to the people to end the crisis," he told a party meeting. Policemen examine the shooting scene in Beon-dong, northeastern Seoul, Wednesday evening, after a criminal suspect shot a police officer. Investigators said the suspect, Seong, 46, fired at the officer after quarreling with his neighbor. The officer was pronounced dead after being taken to a nearby hospital. / Yonhap By Kim Se-jeong One policeman was shot dead Wednesday evening in a gunfight with a sex offender in northeastern Seoul, police said. According to the police, the suspect, surnamed Seong, 46, was arrested after the shooting near Mt. Opae Tunnel in Beon-dong, Gangbuk-gu. The police said the suspect became a fugitive when he removed his electronic ankle monitor and went on the run. The police found six handmade firearms in his possession. It's unknown how he obtained the firearms and what his motive was. The suspect shot the policeman surnamed Kim, 54, in the back with a wooden firearm in front of a convenience store near the tunnel at around 6:30 p.m., the police said. Before the gunfight with the police, the suspect got into a fight with his neighbor, striking the man with a hammer, an investigator said. The neighbor was identified as Lee, 67, a real estate developer. Responding to a call, police soon arrived at the scene, and the suspect fired at officer Kim and then ran into the tunnel carrying six homemade firearms, an investigator said. The officer was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment but died during surgery one hour later. Lee was also taken to a hospital for a minor injury to his head. Another civilian was also taken to a hospital after he was shot in the belly during the gunfire. "I heard the first shot and though it was a tire blowout," a bystander who saw the suspect said during an interview with a local TV station. "About five minutes later came another shot, and I ran away, because it was clear that it was a gunshot. The witness also said "I heard people saying that he was drinking with a man and they started quarreling. Then they were brawling and soon he was holding a hammer." Police said the suspect fled the scene and the police followed him to the tunnel where they exchanged fire. But the witness said it was civilian men who followed him to the tunnel to capture him. Police found the broken ankle monitor near the store. The firearms have been taken in for police analysis. Making and selling firearms is illegal in Korea. By Lee Ju-won "But they're both my children!" she explained to a South Korean official. "We're very sorry, but according to regulations the latter one is not considered North Korean," the official replied. "But they're my children and I'm North Korean!" This conversation explains the paradoxical situation a North Korean defector entering South Korea can face if she brings her children, the first one born inside North Korea and the other one outside North Korea. This is not uncommon considering the many years North Korean defectors spend in the underground railway waiting to make passage to a third-party country. Here is the tragedy: She and her first child are considered North Korean refugees and therefore fall under the protection of South Korean law, but the other child is not. This second child is considered "non-protected." North Korean defectors in South Korea receive various kinds of legal protection and support from the government according to the North Korean Refugees Protection and Settlement Support Act. However, their children born outside the North are ineligible for such support because the law is applied only to "residents escaping from North Korea." This simply excludes children who, for example, are born to North Korean women and Chinese men while in China. These excluded children have never actually escaped from the North, even if their mothers have. Such children in the South are often called "non-protected youths," not necessarily meaning that they are stripped of any support but they are not provided full support. They are in limbo, for their identities and circumstances are so complex that they cannot be easily categorized. This is why for years they have not had a uniform term and have been called by many names: non-protected youths, unprotected youths, or children of North Korean defectors born in third countries. As the status of these kids is in a blind spot, action is in urgent need for their inclusion and adequate protection under the law. That is, they need to be regarded legally and treated as equally as their siblings born in the North are. With the lack of proper support from the law, these non-protected youths undergo severe difficulties settling into South Korean society. Other defectors born in the North are entitled to governmental support in many areas, including special admission to college, support with housing and living expenses and exemption from military duty. Non-protected students, however, are not entitled to most of this support. Fortunately, the dire situation these non-protected youths face has recently recognized by the government. Strengthening support for the non-protected youths was included in the 2016 operational plan of the Ministry of Unification, and the government decided in January to make them eligible for special admission to college. However, this is not the first time the non-protected youths have received a small bit of recognition, and if past experience is anything to go by, it can be assumed that this minor attention by the ministry will result in the same outcome as past efforts: nothing. This mention of non-protected youths by the ministry was a mere one sentence with no elaboration, made almost without consideration. "Without consideration" is how they have been and are treated. Until this changes, with the government and in the minds of the South Korean people, and without nationwide public recognition, there will be no exit from this bureaucratic limbo and this injustice will be allowed and perpetuated. Every minute passed by the public in denial of dealing with the issue properly only adds up to more pain for these kids. Failure to embrace the non-protected youths is a serious loophole in the nation's efforts for North Korean refugee resettlement. It is about time such loopholes are closed and the non-protected are protected. The writer is a student at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies where he has a double major in international studies and English linguistics. He may be reached at juwonlee523@gmail.com. By Yi Whan-woo North Korea is earning hard currency by selling fish abroad, exploiting loopholes of the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) sanctions. Citing Chinese customs data, the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) said Wednesday that North Korea's export of fish products reached $110 million from January to August. The amount was up 70 percent from the same period last year. KITA said the amount of fish sold to Russia in the January-March period alone was worth $2.8 million, increasing from $1.6 million over the whole of 2015. The sale of squid, octopus and other mollusks to China hit $80 million in the January-August period. During the same period, Beijing also imported shellfish, including shrimp and crab, worth $26 million, and dried fish worth $3 million. Such exports come amid a series of revelations that the Kim Jong-un regime has been selling the fishing rights in its territorial waters in both the East and West seas to China. It is estimated that North Korea earns 82 billion won ($74.3 million) annually by selling fishing rights in the two seas. The analysts said such measures are partly attributed to the fact that fish is excluded from the list of products that the UNSC banned Pyongyang from trading. "Fishing has been part of daily life around the world. The UNSC apparently left it in the blind spot when imposing sanctions against North Korea," said An Chan-il, the head of the World Institute for North Korea Studies. In its latest resolution imposed in March, the UNSC banned North Korea from selling coal and iron ore but allowed the trading of other resources if they are "determined to be exclusively for purposes of livelihood." "Pyongyang is exploiting the loopholes of the UNSC sanctions and is likely to expand the export of fish to continue pursuing development of nuclear weapons," An said. He cited that the earnings from selling fishing rights have been diverted to the young despot. It is also not coincidental that a North Korean fishing boat crossed into Russia's exclusive economic zone near the East Sea last week in a deadly skirmish with the Russian coast guard, according to analysts. A North Korean crew was killed and eight other fishermen were injured after a Russian patrol ship opened fire during the inspection of the North Korean trawler for alleged illegal fishing. "It is seen as North Korean fishermen under pressure to raise money to prop-up its regime," said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies. "The UNSC may need to come up with an efficient way to stop the Kim regime from exploiting daily living activities for its nuclear ambitions while ensuring that it will not deal a blow to North Koreans in general." By Na Jeong-ju Politics editor As North Korea's nuclear development becomes an acute threat to the United States, China is finding it increasingly difficult to play a double game over its bellicose neighbor. While dragging its feet in joining international sanctions against Pyongyang, Beijing has increased supplies of oil, food and energy to the Kim Jong-un regime. North Korea's heavy economic dependence on China and the latter's lax enforcement of United Nations sanctions are some of the root causes of the present situation. In July, the U.S. finally took a military option to break this vicious cycle. It decided to deploy a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in South Korea to protect its ally and its forces in Northeast Asia from North Korean missiles. China has strongly protested, claiming the THAAD radar can detect its own missiles and spy on its forces on the mainland. South Korea is taking its own steps, too. As the deployment is backed by most South Koreans, politicians are capitalizing on this public sentiment to call for armament with some dangerous, powerful weapons. The ruling Saenuri Party, controlled by loyalists of President Park Geun-hye, has asked the government to consider developing a nuclear-powered submarine. A presidential advisory panel recently proposed that South Korea ask the U.S. to redeploy its tactical nuclear weapons as an option to counter the North's nuclear threats. Some staunch Park loyalists have even claimed that the country should develop its own nuclear weapons instead of being under a U.S. nuclear umbrella. These moves are certainly making China uncomfortable but do not pose any real threats yet, unlike the decision to accept the U.S. anti-missile system. For now, the U.S. may let South Korea behave that way. In effect, the threat of an increased U.S. military profile in the region and South Korea's hawkish moves are causing alarm in China. And this may force China to make North Korea change course as China has started to realize that the North's nuclear threats can threaten its security interests, too. At the moment, the U.S. and South Korea along with Japan seem highly likely to take more military options to push China harder and ultimately make it use its leverage on North Korea. The best scenario for the allies will be the establishment of a new North Korean regime that is more responsive to international concerns and can give up or freeze the nuclear program to rehabilitate the economy. Only China can do this. For the U.S. part, there are strong reasons why it should start talks with China. North Korea's nuclear development has become the strongest case to make for the next leader. North Korea has emerged as the biggest security risk that the new president will have to confront, with the rogue state believed to be completing development of intercontinental missiles tipped with nuclear warheads it will have ready soon. In this context, the two superpowers may seek a grand bargain over North Korea for their mutual interests, and this could be the most crucial task for the next U.S. president. Washington can ask Beijing to use its leverage over Pyongyang to end its nuclear program in exchange for some concessions like the scrapping of the THAAD decision. If this happens, other conflicting issues could be on the negotiating table, including disputes in the South China Sea. Hillary Clinton, the likely next U.S. leader, may have this game plan, expecting China to play a balancing role for regional peace. That is because the U.S. must share the same strategic interests with China at certain times, and this may be when such strategic cooperation is needed. The permanent members of the U.N. Security Council have chosen Antonio Guterres, a former prime minister of Portugal, to succeed Ban Ki-moon as secretary-general. The appointment to the initial five-year term still needs approval by the 193-member U.N. General Assembly but that should be a formality. There is little question that Guterres, 67, is up to the job. Portugal, a country of nearly 11 million, has a complex economy and foreign policy that spreads across the world, as a result of Portugal having been an important world power. Also, more to the point of the realities of the day, he served as the U.N.'s high commissioner for refugees from 2005 through 2015. The flow of refugees, both from the wars of the Mideast and South Asia but also from the economic desolation of parts of Africa, is far and away one of the pre-eminent problems facing the world today, with the U.N. inevitably playing a critical role in dealing with it. The U.N. secretary-general is unavoidably and even though sometimes ignored in world power politics one of this world's key figures, ranking with the American, Chinese and Russian presidents, the German chancellor and the pope. Apart from the political problems that sometimes require U.N. intervention to reach a conclusion, there are the global problems. These are issues that must be attacked on a universal basis if they are to have any chance of being dealt with successfully. Epidemics of disease are one example; climate change is another. Peacekeeping in places where no nation wishes to involve itself is another. Who wants to put troops in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to be frustrated, killed and drained of money? The United Nations picks up the problems that all wish to see addressed but are the porcupines of world diplomacy that no one wants to pick up. There was pre-choice discussion of the need to pick a woman as secretary-general for the first time. There were initially a dozen or so candidates for the job. But agreement among the permanent members China, France, Russia, Britain and the United States on whom it should be was not reached, and Guterres was finally chosen after weeks of discussion. That does not mean that he was a compromise, fallback choice. Guterres gives every appearance of being well prepared to serve the world in this almost impossible mission. He deserves and requires the support of the United States and all other countries represented at the U.N. in performing his duties. This editorial appeared on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and was distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Joseph Yun By Yi Whan-woo Joseph Yun, a Korean-American who served as the U.S. ambassador to Malaysia, has been named to Washington's top negotiator for denuclearization talks on North Korea, according to the U.S. Embassy in Seoul. The embassy posted on Twitter this week that Yun is "back in (Washington) D.C." for his new job after working as the top U.S. envoy in Kuala Lumpur since 2013. Yun is concurrently serving as the U.S. Department of State's special representative for North Korea Policy and deputy assistant secretary for Korea and Japan. He succeeded Sung Kim, also a Korean-American who has been appointed as the ambassador to the Philippines. Yun is scheduled to hold the first meetings this week with Kim Hong-kyun, his South Korean counterpart for the six-party talks aimed at ending Pyongyang's nuclear program. Yun, 62, a career diplomat, is considered to be one of the U.S. Department of State's top Asia experts. He joined the department's Foreign Service in 1985. Since then, he served as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and also at the U.S. embassies in South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia, Hong Kong and France. Before working for the U.S. government, Yun was a senior economist for Data Resources, Inc., in Lexington, Massachusetts. Yun was born in Seoul and moved to the U.S. in 1963. He graduated from the University of Wales and London School of Economics. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: A meeting of academic staff and students of Baku Higher Oil School (BHOS) with Peoples Artist of Azerbaijan Fuad Poladov was held at BHOS in the framework of the entitled Meeting with Masters of Arts and implemented by the Knowledge Foundation under the President of the Azerbaijan Republic. Greeting the attendants, BHOS Vice-Rector for Training, Science and International Relations Ramiz Humbatov informed them about the most important milestones in Poladovs biography and acting career. He said that he liked Poladovs works from the very day when he saw the actor in the Investigation Continues movie. Humbatov also reminded that Poladov received the title of the Peoples Artist of Azerbaijan in 1986, when he was 38 year old, and said that the actors name is legendary for national theatre and cinema. He expressed his hope that this meeting would encourage the students to learn more about the artist and they would watch more movies with his participation. In his speech, Poladov greeted BHOS teachers and students and emphasized that such an event is both a great responsibility and a great honor for him. I often meet with young people, and one of the important objectives of such meetings is to raise youths interest in the theatre art. As Ataturk was saying, theatre is a mirror of cultural level of a country, Poladov added. The famous actor told about his youth, studentship, and his evolvement as an artist as well as about main milestones of theatre and cinema arts development in Azerbaijan. He also recalled stories happening during making films including some interesting and funny ones. He said that prefers work in the theatre to the work in the movies. While on the scene, an actor always feels the audiences energy, Poladov said. And if the spectator sees a false play, he will never go to the theatre again. He recited a poem by famous Azerbaijani poet Vagif Samedoglu, whose works he likes very much. He also pointed out that arts in general and theatre in particular play a vital role the intellectual development of youth. In appreciation of the artists love of poetry, BHOS student Nazperi Isfandiyarzada specializing in Chemical Engineering recited a poem by Ramiz Rovshan, Poladovs another favorite poet. Then the actor answered numerous questions from the BHOS teachers and students. At the end of the meeting, on behalf of the attendants Humbatov expressed his gratitude to Poladov for the interesting meeting and presented him a memorable gift. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: Today, when the 25th anniversary of State Independence of the Republic of Azerbaijan is celebrated, Azerbaijan Gymnastics Federation (AGF) has commenced its work with good news, said the AGF website. According to the decision made at the 81st electoral Congress of the International Federation of Gymnastics (FIG) taking place in Japanese Tokyo, the organization of the next FIG Congress was entrusted to AGF for the first time. The representatives of the FIG affiliated federations and FIG Council members will gather in Baku for the Congress - the FIGs supreme authority - on December 2-3, 2018. It should be reminded that our capital will also host the FIG Council meeting in 2017. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Azad Hasanli Trend: In Jan.-Sept. 2016, Azerbaijan increased export of agricultural products by 31.9 percent compared to the nine months of 2015, the countrys Deputy Minister of Agriculture Seyfaddin Talibov said. He made the remarks Oct. 19 in Baku at the conference Non-oil exports: today's challenges and opportunities. He said that about 90 percent of agricultural products of Azerbaijan is exported to Russia. We hold 11th place among exporters of agricultural products to Russia, Talibov said. 2.7 percent of Russian imports of fruit and 3.5 percent of imports of vegetables account for the Azerbaijani products. Despite the fact that the price of our agricultural products sold in Russia is above the average index for the market, they are of high quality, Talibov said. The deputy minister noted that over the past 15 years, the export of primary agricultural products of Azerbaijan in value terms increased by 5 times, by 56.2 percent over the last ten years and by 28.7 percent over the last five years. If in 2000, fruits and vegetables accounted for only 31 percent and export of cotton accounted for only 66 percent in the export of agricultural products, currently the supply of fruit and vegetables abroad accounts for 80-90 percent, Talibov said. Details added (first version posted at 12:10) Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: As many as 62 projects by Azerbaijans entrepreneurs have received an investment promotion document worth 787 million manats since April 2016, the countrys Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev said. He made the remarks Oct. 19 in Baku at the conference Non-oil exports: today's challenges and opportunities. The minister said that currently nine projects worth 55 million manats are also being considered. The implementation of these projects will make it possible to open over 5,000 new jobs, Mustafayev said. The minister also spoke about the measures being implemented in Azerbaijan to support business. He said that the National Entrepreneurship Support Fund (NESF) of Azerbaijan granted preferential loans worth nearly 2 billion manats, which made it possible to implement nearly 32,000 projects in various sectors of economy. At the same time, Mustafayev said that costs required to obtain a certificate of origin were reduced by 30 percent in Azerbaijan, and the time to receive it was reduced from three days to one day. Practice shows that in reality, not even a single day, but just two hours are currently needed to obtain the certificate, he added. The minister also spoke about the measures being undertaken within promotion of the brand Made in Azerbaijan in the global markets. He said that the first export mission to China (Hong Kong and Guangzhou) is expected in November 2016. In addition, Azerbaijans Economy Ministry will help the countrys entrepreneurs to promote their products in various retailer chains such as Carrefour, as well as in duty-free shops at the airports of the world. Headline changed, details added (first version posted at 12:53) Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Azad Hasanli Trend: In Jan.-Sept. 2016, Azerbaijan increased export of agricultural products by 31.9 percent compared to the nine months of 2015, the countrys Deputy Minister of Agriculture Seyfaddin Talibov said. He made the remarks Oct. 19 in Baku at the conference Non-oil exports: today's challenges and opportunities. He said that about 90 percent of agricultural products of Azerbaijan is exported to Russia. We hold 11th place among exporters of agricultural products to Russia, Talibov said. 2.7 percent of Russian imports of fruit and 3.5 percent of imports of vegetables account for the Azerbaijani products. Despite the fact that the price of our agricultural products sold in Russia is above the average index for the market, they are of high quality, Talibov said. The deputy minister noted that over the past 15 years, the export of primary agricultural products of Azerbaijan in value terms increased by 5 times, by 56.2 percent over the last ten years and by 28.7 percent over the last five years. If in 2000, fruits and vegetables accounted for only 31 percent and export of cotton accounted for only 66 percent in the export of agricultural products, currently the supply of fruit and vegetables abroad accounts for 80-90 percent, Talibov said. Indonesia could wipe out paedophilia with its new policy of chemical castration, President Joko Widodo has told the BBC. He said Indonesia respected human rights but there would be no compromise when it came to punishing such sexual crimes. Indonesia passed controversial laws earlier this month authorising chemical castration for paedophiles. The laws were however subject to fierce debate in parliament. The Indonesian Doctors Association says its members should not be involved as the procedure would violate medical ethics. Chemical castration is the use of drugs to reduce sex drive and libido, without sterilisation or removing organs. President Widodo said our constitution respects human rights, but when it comes to sexual crimes there is no compromise. We are strong and we will be very firm. We will hand out the maximum penalty for sexual crimes. He added: In my opinion chemical castration, if we enforce it consistently, will reduce sex crimes and wipe them out over time. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates Nigerias National Universities Commission (NUC) has abolished all diploma sub-degree level programmes at the countrys universities. The NUC says it wants universities to concentrate on providing quality education to train people to run the countrys public service. Its head Abubakar Adamu Rasheed told university vice-chancellors that it was the job of polytechnics to run diploma courses. Critics say that over the years, Nigerian universities introduced the diplomas to gain income rather than improve peoples knowledge. And this has taken its toll on the standard of education. But it is very unlikely this ban will be adhered to. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Anvar Mammadov Trend: Azerbaijan may become a member of the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) by late 2017, said the Chairman of EDBs Management Board Dmitry Pankin in an interview with Izvestia newspaper. Pankin named 12 candidate countries which may become members of the organization by the end of 2017. These countries are Azerbaijan, Vietnam, Egypt, Israel, India, Indonesia, Iran, Mongolia, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea and Japan, he said. He added that bringing new shareholders will allow increasing the banks capital. With the banks current capital of $1.6 billion, investment portfolio of $2.1 billion and balance portfolio of $1.6 billion, reaching balance figures of $3 to $4 billion is completely normal and real, said Pankin. Eurasian Development Bank is an international financial institution founded by Russia and Kazakhstan in January 2006 with the mission of facilitating the development of market economies, sustainable economic growth and the expansion of mutual trade and other economic ties in its member states. EDBs authorized capital amounts to $7 billion. The member states of the bank are Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Armenia. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Anvar_Mammadov Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Azad Hasanli Trend: Entrepreneurs will be able to take part in at least 5 international exhibitions in 2017 through the line of Azerbaijans Economy Ministry, the countrys Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev said. He made the remarks Oct. 19 in Baku at the conference Non-oil exports: today's challenges and opportunities. Mustafayev said that in 2017, Azerbaijani businessmen will be able to showcase their products at exhibitions in Dubai (UAE), Moscow (Russia), Habsburg (Switzerland) and Dusseldorf (Germany). Also, China will host an international exhibition of wine producers in November this year in the city of Guangzhou and Azerbaijani entrepreneurs will be able to take part in this exhibition within the first export mission, the minister said. Mustafayev stressed that all expenses for the installation of booths and transportation of products, which will be presented at exhibitions, will be paid by Azerbaijans Economy Ministry. Jack Viertel knows his way around the theater. He is senior vice president of Jujamcym Theaters, which owns and operates five Broadway theaters. His body of work includes being a theater critic, an arts editor for the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, a dramaturg for the Mark Taper Forum, and a decade of teaching musical theater at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. With so many years of theatrical experience, he was destined to write a book. The Secret Life of the American Musical: How Broadway Shows Are Built, was published this year, and the 312-pager could also be called an encyclopedia. Viertel will talk about his tome 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 30 at the Jewish Community Center, 4126 Executive Drive in La Jolla, as a guest of the 22nd annual Jewish Book Fair. I first had the idea to teach it at NYU about 12 years ago, Viertel said. I set up two classes for writer and director grad students. I went through this material many times. I was asked to give talks by more fans than professionals, so I wrote a book. It took about two years to write and another for editing and design. Viertel has a connection to San Diego. He reviewed plays of an early season of the La Jolla Playhouse that included The Visions of Simone Machard, A Mad World, My Masters, and Romeo and Juliet. From curtain up to curtain down, in his book Viertel details productions giving advice, opinions and comments. He addresses acting, producing, directing, set design and the music. He compares how shows worked in earlier years compared to now. I attend almost everything on Broadway, as thats my job, Viertel said. At any given time, there are probably about 40 there and about 60 regional. Along with tons of information about musicals, Viertel includes interesting or humorous details. One example is a reference where he compares deck chairs missing a part from Home Depot to subplots in the show. Thats the way I talk more or less, he said. This book was not constructed like a T.S. Eliot poem. I think all the years of being a critic and on deadline, you get proficient at meeting deadlines and start to write that way. I didnt take a lot of notes. I have a weirdly selective encyclopedic memory and remember most of it. I did most of the research as I was writing. I had taught the shows to students over and over again, so that does get stuck in your head after a while. His insights on musical theater are remarkable as this excerpt reveals: I had begun to understand what it meant to tell a story on stage. I eventually came to understand that theater is not the written word, its the word made flesh. Somethings can make you cry. Sometimes an actor turning toward or away from another actor can tell you more of the story than all the words a playwright could think up. When asked what percentage of Tony Awards he usually agrees with, he replied, A lot this year. Im a big Hamilton fan. I sometimes see shows that win awards that I cant imagine being nominated for anything. The Tonys affect the audiences tastes more than the critics. Rarely are there shocking surprises. The Tonys are a way of promoting what Broadway people want to come see. Since his career has spanned many years and generations, one wonders if he thinks a person should see a play more than once. Things have shifted over the years to a different kind of collaboration. The way rock n roll bands put stuff together is different from what Rodgers and Hammerstein did on roadshows. I dont know that one method is better than another, but there is a feeling that its become a slightly less rigid and formal process than it once was. Viertel sees many shows every year, but his favorite, which he said he could watch over and over, is Follies. IF YOU GO: The San Diego Jewish Book Fair runs Oct. 29-Nov. 6 mostly at the Jewish Community Center, 4126 Executive Drive in La Jolla. For a schedule of events and speakers and to buy tickets, call (858) 362-1348 or visit sdcjc.org/sdjbf On the election campaign trail, Congressmember Scott Peters stopped by the Bird Rock Community Council (BRCC) meeting at La Jolla Masonic Lodge Oct. 4. Peters, a Democrat, is up for re-election Nov. 8 in the 52nd Congressional District, where he will face Republican Denise Gitsham. The meeting was held, by Peters memory, in the very room that once hosted meetings to hash out the Bird Rock Roundabouts, which started as a grassroots project, and were completed in 2008. Joking that most people just ask him about presidential candidate Donald Trump, the former environmental attorney and San Diego City Councilmember answered questions about sea lions at The Cove, expected changes in Washington D.C. in the new few years, student loan issues and more. Peters also touted his accomplishments with improving services for veterans and environmental research. Ive tried to take a bipartisan approach and get things done, even in this difficult environment in Congress, he said, adding that he calls himself an independent Democrat, which Republicans love but Democrats dont like so much, and that he has crossed his party when the solution was in the middle. Im with the Democrats on choice, marriage equality and background checks for guns; but on tax policy, health care and financial regulations, we all need to work together to make it work, he explained. When asked if he could bend some ears on curtailing the increasing pinniped population at La Jolla Cove, Peters said, This is a community that is very tied to the ocean and some people at City Hall kick us around a little bit and dont understand that (access to the ocean via places like The Cove) is part of our culture. I think the notion that we should not be active with respect to (removing) the sea lions is wrong. He encouraged a La Jolla-wide solution everyone could agree upon to prompt change. Peters was also asked whether communication and a sense of collaboration that has not been present during the Obama Administration is expected to get better after the November election. It has to, he responded. If you were betting, youd bet on Secretary Hillary Clinton to be president. The House of Representatives will stay Republican, so Clinton would be the first Democrat since Grover Cleveland to take office without a majority in Congress. So, if she wants to do anything, she is going to need to talk to and work with Republicans. I know Paul Ryan has things he wants to get done (so he is going to have to work with her as well). Communication and working together is going to have to get better if anything is going to get done. One of Peters ideas addresses student loans. The price of a public university education has gone up 300 percent since I was in school, he said. The average student is coming out of their undergrad education with $33,000 in debt. That has a huge drag on the economy, (these) people arent buying houses or starting families. (I propose) that if you work for a company and you have student loan payments, we would let your employer match your student loan payments up to $6,000 a year so the company has an incentive that makes them more competitive. He said he would also work to decrease the cost of tuition at California universities and colleges. Peters concluded by applauding neighborhood advocacy. Community leadership, like what you find here and what got the roundabouts installed, is really needed everywhere, he said. We rely on you to let us know if you have an idea or if we are missing something on the Federal level. We need to hear from you about what were missing because most great ideas dont come from Washington, they come from groups and communities like this. In other BRCC news: New benches? BRCC treasurer Barbara Dunbar said the board is considering adding, repairing or replacing public benches as needed. We need a few more, so if you have an idea for a location, let us know. We need to know what the community wants, she said. The board can be reached at info@birdrockcc.org Dog droppings: Dunbar also reported several complaints of unleashed dogs and dog waste on sidewalks and private property. She cited the San Diego Municipal Code and reminded attendees that it reads: No person shall allow a dog in his/her custody to defecate or to urinate on public property or any improved private property other than that of the owner or person having control of the dog. It shall be the duty of all persons having control of a dog to curb such dog in order to carry out the intent of this section. The failure to do so and to immediately remove any feces to a proper receptacle constitutes a violation of this section. Unsighted persons while relying on a guide dog shall be exempt from this section. Private security: La Jolla Safety, a subcommittee of BRCC, continues to explore a private security option, but is no longer considering National Private Security (NPS). Representatives from NPS presented several times in Bird Rock, but La Jolla Safety ultimately decided not to contract with them because, La Jolla Safety founder and BRCC trustee Ron Fineman said, They were not a good fit. Fineman added that much of what Bird Rock experiences is considered low priority crime and out of reach to the understaffed San Diego Police Department. Were in the process of vetting private security companies that suit our needs, he said. Were doing our best to keep costs down, and the more people who sign up, the lower the cost will be. Those interested can visit lajollasafety.org MAD meeting in November: The annual Maintenance Assessment District (MAD) meeting will follow the next BRCC meeting: 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 1 at Masonic Lodge, 5655 La Jolla Blvd. The MAD meeting will address projects and provide a status report on environmental, safety, maintenance, irrigation water conservation, aesthetics and landscape matters. birdrockcc.org Continuing to serve as a forum for public safety and local government, the La Jolla Town Council hosted the two candidates running for the office of City Attorney for a brief debate during its Oct. 13 meeting at La Jolla Rec Center. Over the course of half an hour, Republican Robert Hickey and Democrat Mara Elliott covered topics such as how to hire contractors for public projects (to avoid fiascos like the Childrens Pool lifeguard tower), short-term vacation rentals, the legalization of marijuana and more. The role of City Attorney (salary $193,648 plus benefits) is to advise the Mayor and City Council on the law, and prosecute misdemeanors. In terms of how they would carry out that role, candidate Elliott spoke to her experience in the City Attorneys office, and Hickey touted his fresh eyes perspective. Town Council president Ann Kerr Bache opened the forum by asking each to introduce themselves. Elliott began: I am a chief deputy city attorney at the San Diego City Attorneys office and I am the attorney that advises on the independent audit committee and environment committee. I bring to the table almost 20 years of experience advising public entities. My emphasis (if elected) is going to be providing services to the city-at-large and ensuring the elderly and children are protected, our domestic violence response is strong, and protecting our environment and consumers. If elected, I can hit the ground running on Day One with the experience I have. Hickey followed: I am the son of a Miramar fighter pilot and that is why both public service and San Diego run through my veins. Ive been a lawyer for almost 22 years and married that same amount of time I passed the bar and got married in the same month 20 of those years have been in the District Attorneys office. I also work in private practice at a major international law firm, where we worked on very important matters, including with the Padres and PETCO Park. (The Park) sat rusting because of lawsuits against the City in the early 2000s, and I was hired to find a creative litigation strategy to get that ball rolling again. So I got a real glimpse in the City when they work with private entities when they do a public-private venture. My approach is not just about being tough on crime, but being smart. Attendee Jeff Chasan asked about public projects that are done and then redone, or delayed due to poor work standards, seeking to learn how the winning candidate would make sure it doesnt happen in the future. Noting that the City Attorney is often tasked with holding shoddy contractors accountable after projects are complete, Elliott said its a common question. The way the city is addressing those types of projects (by opting for the lowest bid) and then remedying them when things go wrong doesnt make a lot of sense. Under my leadership, weve been able to debar, which means we prevent contractors from working with the City when they leave us with the bag when it comes to fixing things at taxpayers expense. Weve been very aggressive with this, so if they should not be doing work with the City of San Diego, they wont be. But this is just the beginning. Hickey added, Everyone I talk to expresses frustration with the City, and working with the City. In the City Attorneys office, we need to be more transparent and more service-oriented. We need to have smarter systems and better systems of accountability and ways to track our results. On the topic of short-term vacation rentals, on which Kerr Bache reminded attendees the Town Council held a standing-room-only forum, the candidates were asked what they would do differently from the hands-off approach of the current City Attorney. Elliott opened, The Municipal Code is very clear and does not allow short-term vacation rentals (in residential neighborhoods). The City and its politicians have been very reluctant to touch the issue because there are very strong lobbyists pushing them in one direction, but it is not fair to those whose neighborhoods have been affected and those whose lives have been completely changed because this industry is not regulated. Under my leadership, we will enforce the Municipal Code. This does not mean short-term rentals wouldnt be allowed later with fair and reasonable regulations, but this is an issue that has been brewing far too long with no action. Hickey said his first course of action would be to Put the City Council on notice and say whatever regulations youre going to have, you better give them to us, because my job is to enforce the law and enforce the ordinances. So give us some clarity here about what you want in terms of ordinances. The current situation is not acceptable. There is (an often cited) memo from 2007 that is the source of much controversy, and only by the 2007 memo has this been deemed legal, so I would also look into that. Considering Proposition 64, which will appear on the November ballot, Town Council trustee Al Ramirez asked the candidates and thoughts and experiences on legalizing marijuana. Elliott said she is not a Prop 64 supporter. I have some concerns. From both the perspective of a mother of two children and from a City perspective, we dont want marijuana to end up in the hands of children, but there are also environmental impacts that I dont think have been fully addressed. Everything Ive read suggests that it will pass, and if it does, we are prepared to look at the regulations needed to go with that. Hickey agreed in the assumption that Prop 64 would passed, but said the importance lies in having a City Attorney who knows how to deal with it, he said. The real challenges are going to be (looking at the regulations associated with) being under the influence of marijuana. Weve had years to study what it means to be under the influence of alcohol, but there havent been as many studies on being under the influence of marijuana. In Colorado, there has been an influx of homeless teenagers and there might be a short-term change to our homeless population. Citing the Childrens Pool Walk project which was designed by local landscape architect Jim Neri Phyllis Minick asked about the recent Fair Political Practices Commission opinion that determined it constitutes a conflict-of-interest violation to have a contractor create plans and then bid on the same project. She posed why anyone would design a project knowing they would be ineligible to carry it out. Elliott explained the opinion, and said, The State has interpreted that if someone does a design up front, they cannot bid on it later. But that makes things very difficult in a design-build situation, and almost every situation were seeing in the City Attorneys Office now because of this very narrow reading of that law has affected business greatly and has been very frustrating for the contractors that do business with the City. Its coming from the State, but we do have a legislative team that needs to address that and get it fixed. We cant be the only public entity impacted by that. Hickey added that he has heard the complaint more than once. Id be happy to bring a fresh set of eyes to the situation. Because it is an issue that goes beyond San Diego. It reminds me that San Diego is the hardest city to get a housing project were a challenging place to get business done. We need to do something about that. Lets make things faster, more definitive and more transparent, and not get waylaid by distractions when people are trying to get things done. Ready? Set? Vote! The deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 8 presidential general election is Monday, Oct. 24. Residents can fill out a registration form at sdvote.com, and if their signature is confirmed through Department of Motor Vehicles records, it will automatically be sent to the Registrar. If youve moved recently, or changed your name, youll need to fill out a new registration form, said Registrar of Voters Michael Vu. If you go online, the process is quick and convenient. If youre not sure whether youre registered, check online at sdvote.com The deadline to apply for a mail ballot is Tuesday, Nov. 1. Voters can find the application online at sdvote.com or on the back of their sample ballot and information pamphlet sent to each registered voter. You can also request a mail ballot by sending a letter to the Registrar of Voters with your name, registered address, the name and date of the election, the address where the ballot is to be mailed and your signature. Send forms to Registrar of Voters, 5600 Overland Ave., San Diego, 92123 or fax them to (858) 694-2955. As a third option, registered voters can request a mail ballot by phone at (858) 565-5800. All applications must be in house at the Registrars office by 5 p.m. on Nov. 1. Voters who are already signed up to vote permanently by mail do not need to reapply. Approximately 1 million mail ballots were sent out through the post office Oct. 11 and for the first time, registered voters will receive a two-card ballot. Contests will be listed on the front and back of each page. The two-card ballot also weighs a bit more, so it will take 67 cents in postage. Considering the length of the ballot, voters who requested their ballot by mail are urged to act early. If you know how you want to vote, grab that mail ballot when you get it, vote it and send it back in right away, said Vu. The sooner we get the ballot back, the sooner we can start processing it so it will be counted right when the polls close at 8 p.m. on Nov. 8. To find your polling place, visit sos.ca.gov/elections/polling-place La Jolla View reservoir committee demands EIR Following an update on the planned La Jolla View Reservoir Project at the La Jolla Parks & Beaches (LJP&B) September meeting, affected residents and LJP&B members still with questions and concerns gathered for the inaugural meeting of a working group tasked with reviewing the project and spurring change on how it will be carried out. Chiefly, the group asserts an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) should be required. They met Oct. 7 at La Jolla Rec Center, 615 Prospect St. The planned resevoir project will replace two existing reservoirs with one new 3.1 million gallon underground reservoir, by demolishing the existing above-ground 720,000 gallon La Jolla View Reservoir and decommissioned Exchange Place reservoir/pump station, found within La Jolla Heights Natural Park (aka La Jolla Natural Park). New pipelines will be put in place and a temporary access road would be constructed to allow trucks entry and egress to the project site. The total cost is just under $9.7 million. Construction will begin in winter 2018, and be finished by summer 2020. At the most recent presentation, City representatives said they predicted the project would merit a Mitigated Negative Declaration (rather than an EIR), which would indicate there would be no environmental consequences as a result of the work. At the working group meeting, resident Jack McGrory called this assumption a joke. Agreeing, the committee decided to advocate for the creation of an EIR, that would, in theory, address several concerns raised. These include 1) whether the Reservoir Project is necessary, 2) whether the project is in conformance with the City Open Space Preservation and Maintenance Policy, 3) the creation of a Biological Survey for the environmentally sensitive land on which the reservoir sits, 4) how emergency response would be accommodated, 5) an overall traffic plan for the project, 6) a traffic safety plan, 7) how access to public parks would be accommodated, 8) noise impacts and more. The committee also decided to draft a list of project concerns and deliver a letter to local government representatives, and to continue meeting on a regular basis. More information and updates will be provided at the next LJP&B meeting, 4:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 24 at La Jolla Rec Center, 615 Prospect St. lajollaparksandbeaches.org Dentist starts practice with open house, Oct. 21 Sarah Winter, DDS, will launch Sarah Winter Dental, a general and cosmetic boutique dental practice, with a grand opening celebration, 4-6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21 at 7818 Ivanhoe Ave. It was formerly the dental practice of Chris Wood, DDS, who recently retired. The open house will feature a ribbon-cutting ceremony with the La Jolla Village Merchants Association, gourmet hamburgers and salads from Burger Lounge and a toast with celebratory beverages. The daughter of a dentist, Dr. Winter has practiced dentistry for seven years. She earned her undergraduate degree in education from USC, and later went on to graduate Magna Cum Laude from the UNLV School of Dental Medicine. She is a member of the American Dental Association, California Dental Association, Academy of General Dentistry, Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, Crown Council and the Steven E Smith Honor Society. Internet cables coming through Bird Rock Details are forthcoming on a project to install Internet cables in Bird Rock to improve Internet services to area schools. Briefly discussed at recent Bird Rock Community Council meetings, the project involves trenching and digging along La Jolla Hermosa. An announcement is planned for Nov. 2. At the Oct. 4 Bird Rock meeting, treasurer Barbara Dunbar reported: Cox Communications is installing underground cable along the east side of La Jolla Hermosa to provide high-speed Internet to area schools. Weve had a couple of complaints and problems with drilling, and weve been made aware that at one point they severed a water line at Colima. But we are in communication with them. City Council candidate launches online survey Barbara Bry, District 1 candidate for the San Diego City Council, wants voters to let her know of their ideas for improving the area. The high-tech entrepreneur has launched a virtual listening tour for this purpose. With the answers to 13 questions ranging from personal information to what the responders priorities are, she plans to analyze the data and address the concerns of District 1 citizens. As the first high-tech entrepreneur on the City Council, I will bring a fresh perspective to City Hall to tackle the difficult challenges ahead. I want to use technology to better communicate with constituents and to improve City services, Bry stated on a press release. The survey is available at bbryd1.typeform.com/to/Bp5P6N San Diego History Center adopts donations-only admissions The San Diego History Center changed its admissions policy last week. Rather than paying a set admissions fee, visitors to the History Center are now asked to make a contribution based on their experience at its museums in Balboa and Presidio Parks. This Give Forward support will, in turn, provide the ability for another visitor to see the History Centers exhibitions. The San Diego History Center was founded in 1928 and is one of the oldest and largest historical organizations in California. It is one of only a handful of institutions nationwide that is dedicated to celebrating the heritage of a major American city. For more details, visit sandiegohistory.org LJHS teacher honored for innovation La Jolla High School math teacher Trang Vu is one of the recipients of the Mental Floss 2016 Platypus Award for innovation. She was recognized for her creative approach to geometry, chiefly for the hands-on project that encourages students to explore how fashion designers use math to create new pieces. Under her leadership, students are tasked with making a skirt out of concentric circles to understand the real-world applications for math. Vu is one of 10 nation-wide honorees of the Platypus Award. San Diego Police have been making the rounds to discuss changes in the department, as well as to update residents on criminal activity. In La Jolla, officers stopped by the La Jolla Shores Association (LJSA) during its Oct. 12 meeting, and gave a full presentation to the La Jolla Town Council (LJTC) during its Oct. 13 meeting. When scheduling the meeting, Town Council president Ann Kerr Bache said the intention was to thank Northern Division Mark Hanten for his service to the community, but unbeknown to the committee, Hanten was transferred to another department. In his stead, Community Relations Officer Larry Hesselgesser and Lt. Robert Daun spoke about recent crime activity, the Halloween season, and Northern Divisions new leadership. I would have liked to have introduced Captain Hanten tonight, but at the police department, one of the constants is change. We just had a round of transfers and Captain Hanten will be moving to Northwestern Division effective Oct. 22 and Captain Stephanie Rose from Northwestern Division will be our new captain at Northern Division, Daun said. Captain Rose has been a captain for many years ... she has lots of experience. At the LJSA meeting, Hesselgesser said, as soon as we get her acclimated, will bring her to one of the meetings and introduce her. I think its happening in the next couple of weeks. Rose reportedly had a prior commitment the night of the Town Council meeting and was not able to attend. Recent armed robberies Officer Hesselgesser updated attendees on two recent armed robberies in La Jolla. As reported on nextdoor.com (by Hesselgesser), on Oct. 11, a 60-year-old man had just returned home and pulled his vehicle into his garage around 9 p.m. on the 1300 block Virginia Way. Three men wearing ski masks and dark clothing two of them armed with handguns approached the man in his garage and demanded property. The victim surrendered his watch, cell phone and briefcase. The suspects fled on foot. One of the males holding a weapon was described as approximately 6 feet tall. Police are investigating whether either of these incidences are related to robberies that took place that same day in Ocean Beach and Sunset Cliffs. In a separate incident, at 8 a.m. Oct. 12 on the short La Jolla Shores street of Avenida Alamar, a La Jolla couple was robbed at gunpoint by two men who broke into their house through an open window. When the male victim was confronted by the two suspects, he observed one of them holding a gun. Undisclosed items were taken during the robbery, and the suspects are believed to be driving a blue or purple 1990s Honda. Hesselgesser noted in the nextdoor.com report, It is unknown if any or all of these robberies were committed by the same suspects. This is an ongoing investigation being (handled) by SDPD Robbery Division. If you have any information or surveillance photos or video that you think is relevant call (619) 531-2000 or the Robbery Division during business hours (619) 531-2299. At the LJTC meeting, he elaborated, These people are targeting you by watching you and taking advantage of opportunities. (Regarding the La Jolla robberies) we are very close to getting someone in custody. But to keep you safe: Be aware of your surroundings and if you have a feeling that someone is watching you, dont put yourself in a position where you could become a victim. Thefts during the holidays Hesselgesser said this is especially important advice during the holidays when thieves look for unattended deliveries left on porches or shopping bags left in cars. As safety precautions, police have advised residents to observe vehicles following delivery trucks, keep shopping bags out of sight and require signatures for deliveries. Given the recent rash of home invasions, one meeting attendee asked about safety tips on Halloween, citing concern over opening front doors to people you dont know, many wearing masks or costumes. Daun advised: It comes down to personal choice. If you feel safe turning off your lights and not opening the door for trick-or-treaters, do that. If you feel safe knowing most of the people that come to your door are kids looking to have a good time, go from there. If something makes you feel uneasy, dont open the door. A thank you to police At the end of the police presentation to the Town Council, Kerr Bache presented the officers with an award to thank them for their service. She was joined by representatives from the La Jolla Town Council Community Watch Committee, which formed to exchange information among Neighborhood Watch captains and report on area trends. Their findings are posted at lajollatowncouncil.com La Jolla Town Council next meets 5 p.m. Thursday Nov. 10 at the Rec Center, 615 Prospect St. The guest speaker will be State Assemblymember Toni Atkins. lajollatowncouncil.com San Diego City Council President Sherri Lightner attended the Oct. 12 meeting of La Jolla Shores Association (LJSA), telling trustees, This is the last LJSA meeting that I will attend as your Councilmember. Lightner, a Shores resident, is finishing her second (and last) term as District 1 representative and said shes working hard to close some loose ends and get some things done in the area before I leave. I have enjoyed working with you and I hope that you continue on in your efforts. It has been a great privilege to serve you and represent you. She informed trustees of a meeting 10 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 1 at Golden Hall, 292 C St. where the City Council will discuss short-term vacation rental issues. I know this issue has had a significant amount of comment from the beach communities, she said. Lightner also reminded everyone of the lengthy Nov. 8 election ballot and encouraged them to vote down the ballot. Shores improvement projects In the past few months, LJSA trustees have been trying to come up with a list of things that theyd like to see improved in their community. Finally, the list was formulated at the October meeting, and at the top sits a project to create a signature boardwalk for La Jolla Shores. Trustee Angie Preisendorfer explained, The boardwalk is just ugly. We should have a signature boardwalk, a signature look. Trustee Richard Monte Montemarano insisted there are liability issues with the state of the seawall-adjacent sidewall. Theres a 2-foot section all the way down thats cracked. Its almost like where the seawall is hitting cracks on the sidewalk, which is just a mess. Lightner representative Justin Garver pointed out the La Jolla Shores boardwalk uniqueness as an American with Disabilities Act (ADA)-compliant structure. Its one of the few accessible ones because theres direct access from the street to the beach, he said. Garver highlighted the possibility of obtaining money from the Regional Park Improvement Funds or even consulting the Park & Rec Department for future grant openings. This type of project is going to have a significant cost, it certainly could use some community advocacy to the Regional Park Improvement Fund Oversight Committee, and prioritize trying to find some funding. Other LJSA improvement projects include repainting the La Jolla Shores parking lot, including a pass-though lane to avoid traffic congestion when a car is stopped on the right lane; re-paving Viking Way; repainting pedestrian crosswalks; and creating a drop-off lane closer to the surf zone. Summer season lifeguard report Lt. Rich Stropky of San Diego Lifeguard Services told trustees the summer of 2016 was the busiest for the lifeguards in over a decade. I dont know if its the weather, the water or the way the sand moves the rip currents around, but the last record of water rescues was set in 1993 with an annual total of 4,443; by Sept. 15 last month, we already beat that. In July alone, he continued, the lifeguards performed a total of 4,102 rescues, well over the 1,807 average for the month. In August 1,279 water rescues were performed, and in June, 1,707. We are happy that everything went well, Stropky said. And again, thanks for the support from those who give us the ability to do our jobs, especially Council President Sherri Lightner, who has done a lot for us. He also answered questions about the overcost and delays with the Childrens Pool Lifeguard Tower. I know for a fact that its going to be the best tower that we have, he said. There are some hiccups, some plumbing issues, but theres a plan to work it out. We would like to be in there already, but everybody is working toward that. Utility and street work update San Diego field engineer Steve Lindsay provided an update on the construction taking place on the Shores right-of-ways. As you can tell, were on Camino del Oro, probably for another two weeks, he said. They got slowed down because they found some really bad soil that couldnt support the streets, so they had to take that out, he told trustees. Of course, if we start getting deeper, we need to have the Native American (history) monitors that make sure everything is done properly. Next week smaller projects will start on Avenida de la Playa, such as pothole repair. Bigger construction work on the street will resume when the pipeline that needs to be replaced arrives. I want to start excavating as soon as the pipe arrives. I dont want the hole open and waiting on the pipe, so its a timing thing, Lindsay said. LJSA next meets 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 9 at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Martin Johnston House, 8840 Biological Grade. ljsa.org An easier-than-expected first mammogram experience HUNTERSVILLE Scheduling a cancer screening probably ranks somewhere on your to-do list between "clean out the garage" and "donate those clothes that don't fit." Sure, you'll get to it at... Chamber retreat helps discover strengths in communication The Lake Norman Chamber of Commerce has proved that networking can come in many ways. It doesnt have to come at a luncheon or happy hour or Christmas party, but... Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: Negotiations were held between the Civil Aviation Administrations of Azerbaijan and Iraq in Baku. The meeting was held in a constructive and friendly atmosphere. During the meeting, the sides discussed issues of bilateral cooperation in the area of air transportation and prospects of implementing regular passenger and cargo flights between Azerbaijan and Iraq. The meeting was also attended by representatives of the two countries air carriers. The delegation of Iraq Civil Aviation Authority was acquainted with the activity of the Heydar Aliyev International Airport. The SLFP does not condone the continuation of the Emergency Regulations (The Public Security Ordinance) more than a day necessary Read more PRESS RELEASE China: We Will Solve Philippines Fishing Rights as a Right to Life Oct. 18, 2016 (EIRNS)All Chinese newspapers today run articles and commentary welcoming Philippine President Duterte to China, as he arrives in the south today and will meet with the leaders in Beijing on Thursday. The most interesting commentary, in the Global Times, reports that one expected outcome of the meetings will be an agreement on restoring Philippine fishing rights around the Scarborough Shoal. Their reasoning is important: "In recent years, despite the rapid growth of the Philippine economy, the poverty rate has risen, and about 40 percent of the Philippines population is still facing food shortages. The fishing industry has created about 1.61 million jobs for the Philippines and the UNs Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) data shows that 38.7% of Philippines animal protein intake is from fish. In this context, many [Filipinos equate] the right to fish to the right to live." In 2012, the previous Manila government sent Coast Guard boats to chase away Chinese fishing boats in the region, but China responded by sending their own Coast Guard boats and have kept Philippines boats away since then. With the conflict over sovereignty put aside as secondary, cooperation is again possible. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Emil Ilgar Trend: Iran is negotiating with 16 international oil companies to develop 50 oil and gas fields, based on newly designed contact model, called Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC), the Deputy Managing Director of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Gholamreza Manouchehri told reporters in Tehran Oct.19. During a press conference, he said that the Azadegan oil field, joint with Iraq, may be the first project that may get a deal between Iran and foreign companies, based on IPC. Without mentioning the foreign companies name, he said that some $10 billion worth of investment is needed for this field to increase the output by 600,000 barrels per day. Iran would issue the first tender, based on newly designed oil and gas agreement in November, Ali Kardor, managing director of National Iranian Oil Company said Oct.17. He said the first tender would be issued on Azadegan oil field. The field needs high technology to be developed. Without that, only 6 percent of reserves are recoverable. Currently Total, as well as another companies from Japan, Russia and Europe are willing to get involved, he said. The heavy oil container field has been divided to North and South Azadegan. Currently 73,000 b/d of oil and 1.1 million cubic meters per day (mcm/d) of associated gas is produced from North Azadegan field. After commencing the second phase of this project, the output would reach 150,000 b/d. Iran also produces 50,000 b/d of South Azadegan and another 30,000 b/d would be added to this volume in September. The level would reach 110,000 b/d and then 320,000 b/d, after another 132 wells are drilled. The second phase of South Azadegan would add another 280,000 b/d to the output of South Azadegan. Iran plans to develop 49 oil and gas projects based on IPC. Iran plans to invest $134 billion in upstream sector by 2021. PRESS RELEASE Is Mosul Operation Intended To Send ISIS Fighters to Raqqa To Fight Assad? Oct. 18, 2016 (EIRNS)According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the U.S.-backed operation to liberate Mosul, Iraq, from two years of occupation by ISIS, has left a corridor out of the city open. "As far as I know, the city has not been encircled completely," he said this morning during a joint press conference with the foreign minister of Paraguay. "I dont know the reason for this, but I hope they were just unable to do so rather than unwilling. At least, the remaining corridor creates the risks that ISIS will leave Mosul and Iraq for Syria. If this happens and additional ISIS contingents turn up in Syria, where our forces have been operating at the request of the legitimate government, we will assess the situation and adopt political and military decisions. I hope that the U.S.-led coalition, which is actively involved in the operation to seize Mosul, will focus on this, too." Lavrov is not alone in his suspicion that the United States may have plans for the ISIS militants in Mosul other than simply killing them there. The Independents Robert Fisk reports that the Syrian army suspects that the US intention is to drive ISIS out of Mosul in order to swamp Syria with the hordes of ISIS fighters who will flee their Iraqi capital in favor of their "mini-capital" of Raqqa inside Syria itself. Fisk reports that Syrian intelligence has already heard of demands by ISIS in Syrias eastern Hasaka province for new electricity and water supplies in towns that it controls there, in preparation for an influx of ISIS fighters in Mosul. The same thing had happened earlier this year when when Fallujah fell to U.S.-backed Iraqi forces and many of the ISIS fighters there fled to Syria. "In other words," writes Fisk, PRESS RELEASE Normandy Four Summit To Take Place in Berlin Oct. 18, 2016 (EIRNS)The leaders of France, Germany, Ukraine, and Russia will meet in Berlin tomorrow to discuss the settlement of the Ukraine crisis. The Ukrainian presidential office issued a statement confirming the meeting, following a three-way phone call between French President Francois Hollande, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov told reporters this morning, "Tomorrow the President will go to Berlin where he will hold talks with Merkel, Hollande, and Poroshenko." Peskov clarified that Putin is not going to Berlin in response to the escalating fighting in the Donbass. Putin is going, in fact, even though the expectations for the meeting are low, as Peskov indicated. "Take a look at the Ukrainian presidential website and you will read there that Poroshenko, Merkel and Hollande have agreed to hold a Normandy format meeting on Oct. 19 for the purpose of forcing Russia into compliance with the Minsk Accords," Peskov said. "That this wording has been used on the Ukrainian presidential website merely indicates how complicated the situation is and to what degree Kiev is not ready to honor with its own obligations under the Minsk Accords." Putin, he stressed, is, nonetheless, ready to do everything possible to push implementation of the Minsk agreements. Poroshenkos statement stressed the security part of the Minsk agreement, but Poroshenko also blames Russia for the political failure in the Donbass as well. "I am quite optimistic about Ukraines future, but not very optimistic about tomorrows meeting," he said yesterday, during a joint press conference with the Norwegian prime minister. He claimed that "there are no internal problems" (!) in Ukraine. "The only thing we need is free local elections in Donbass, which will conform to OSCE [Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe] standards," he said. He claimed that it is impossible to hold these elections "as long as there are foreign troops there," likely referring to the phantom Russian army of 30,000 troops in the Donbass that the regime in Kiev has repeatedly claimed, even though nobody, including the OSCE monitoring mission, has ever seen them. PRESS RELEASE Swedish Foreign and Defense Ministers Oppose Joining NATO Oct. 18, 2016 (EIRNS)Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom and Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist have come under scathing attack for refusing to join NATO. Both are Social Democrats who believe in non-alignment, Russias RT reports today. In a recent parliamentary debate, Wallstrom was accused of "lying flat for Russia," by opposition Conservatives, Christian Democrats, Liberals, and Center Party members. The Social Democrats and the Greens are in the governing coalition, with the other parties in opposition. Wallstrom warned that NATO membership would lead to an arms race in the region. "In the end, its about choosing between deterrence and detente. I advocate detente." Fear of Russia is driving the demands to join NATO, she said, and that should not determine Swedens defense policy. "We have had a defense doctrine for over 200 years that has helped us steer clear of wars. If we were to join NATO, it would be seen as a sign that we are afraid of Russia," Wallstrom said. NATO membership would end Swedens control over its own defense budget; as a NATO member, Sweden would not be able to pursue an independent nuclear policy. She added, "We have close cooperation with NATO, but we still have the opportunity to make decisions." Wallstrom says she would like to resume contacts with Russia at a top political level, and especially would like to do it before Sweden assumes its responsibilities in the UN Security Council in which Russia is a permanent member. Its come to this, America: Disney-branded fruits and vegetables. Dole Food Co. said Friday it is partnering with Walt Disney Co. to market fresh produce to children nationwide. Characters from Star Wars, Marvel and Pixar films will now help hawk blueberries, bananas and broccoli. For the record: An earlier version of this article said Disney is based in Anaheim. It is based in Burbank. Disney and Dole have a shared mission of providing high quality produce to help families lead healthier lives, Josh Silverman, executive vice president of global licensing at Disney, said in a statement. Advertisement The companies did not disclose the terms of the deal, nor did they say whether Disney-branded produce will be priced higher than nonbranded fruits and vegetables when they hit grocery shelves next month. Last year, Burbank-based Disney partnered with Sage Fruit Co. for a similar campaign to promote the movie Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Darth Vader helped market bags of apples; Yoda hawked green grapes. Using well-known characters to sell nutrition is nothing new. Popeye famously persuaded children to eat spinach, and generations have grown up chewing Flintstones vitamins. In the 1990s, hundreds of dairy-mustached celebrities helped revive milks popularity with the Got Milk? advertising campaign. Its not difficult to slap a character on a food and get kids to love it, said Rob Frankel, a Los Angeles-based branding expert. But these days, anybody who tries to sell anything to kids also has to appeal to the parents. This is a way for Disney to prove to Mom and Dad: See? We care about the health of your kids. Thats different from the way items were marketed in the 1970s and 80s, Frankel said. Back then, advertisers were focused squarely on appealing to children. General Mills, for example, marketed its popular line of sugar-laden cereals with characters such as Franken Berry and Count Chocula, while Pillsbury used cartoon figures Goofy Grape, Lefty Lemonade and Freckle-Faced Strawberry to promote its line of Funny Face powdered drinks. It was all about the nag factor, Frankel said. If companies sold the kids on it, eventually theyd whine and beg enough that Mom and Dad would buy it. But that began to change in the 1990s, he said, as baby boomers took a more hands-on approach to parenting. All these helicopter parents needed to be told, Mom and Dad, heres the best thing for your kid, Frankel said. As a result, companies shifted their marketing tactics to appeal to parents. They began adding phrases such as all natural and no sugar to their labels, and emphasized health-related benefits. Disneys partnership with Dole based in Westlake Village is a step even further in that direction, Frankel said. Now they can get you from both sides, Frankel said. The kid is happy because its got a Disney princess on it, and Mom feels good because shes buying a vegetable. Bhattarai writes for the Washington Post. ALSO Snapchat and Facebook have a new rival in their sights: television T-Mobile to pay $48 million for misleading customers about unlimited data plans Airlines must refund bag fee if your luggage is delayed, Obama administration says Toy maker Mattel Inc. showed signs of a turnaround in its third quarter, with several of its key brands on the upswing. For the three months that ended Sept. 30, the El Segundo firm posted net income of $236 million, up 6% from $224 million a year earlier. On a per-share basis, the toy company reported 68 cents, compared with 66 cents a year earlier. We continue to make some very good progress, Chief Executive Christopher Sinclair said during a Wednesday call with analysts. We continue to see real strength in our core brands. Advertisement Worldwide sales came in at $1.8 billion, essentially flat compared with a year earlier. Sinclair said that the third-quarter showed that Mattels turnaround efforts were energizing sales after years of lackluster performance. In January, for instance, Mattel announced three new body types for Barbie petite, curvy and tall and seven new skin tones to better reflect the diversity of women. Last month, the toy maker said that it was opening nearly 100 American Girl mini-shops inside Toys R Us locations in an attempt to reach a wider customer base. So far, those changes appear to be working. In the third quarter, worldwide sales rose 14% for American Girl and 16% for Barbie. Sales of its infant and toddler brand Fisher-Price as well as Hot Wheels and Matchbox jumped 6%. Sinclair said that the latest results have boosted Mattels confidence as the crucial holiday season approaches. Sinclar took over as CEO after the company fired its former chairman and chief executive, Bryan Stockton, in January. Mattel also brought back Richard Dickson, who was credited with Barbies last surge in popularity around 2010, as chief operating officer. Analysts have credited Dickson with injecting innovation back into the company that had become known for its bureaucracy. Follow Shan on Twitter @ByShanLi The California Department of Justice is investigating Wells Fargo & Co. on allegations of criminal identity theft over its creation of millions of unauthorized accounts, according to a search warrant sent to the banks San Francisco headquarters this month. The warrant and related documents, served Oct. 5 and obtained by The Times through a public records request, confirm that California Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris, in the final weeks of a run for U.S. Senate, has joined the growing list of public officials and agencies investigating the bank in connection with the accounts scandal. Harris office demanded the bank turn over a trove of information, including the identities of California customers who had unauthorized accounts opened in their names, information about fees related to those accounts, the names of the Wells Fargo employees who opened the accounts, the names of those employees managers and emails or other communication related to those accounts. Advertisement Her office is also requesting the same information about accounts opened by Wells Fargo workers in California for customers in other states. Kristin Ford, a spokeswoman for Harris office, said she could not comment on an ongoing investigation. Wells Fargo spokesman Mark Folk said the bank is cooperating in providing the requested information but would not comment further. Documents filed along with the search warrant say there is probable cause to believe Wells Fargo violated two sections of the state penal code one outlawing certain types of impersonation, the other outlawing the unauthorized use of personal information. Both violations can be charged as felonies, punishable by imprisonment for more than a year. Its not clear whether Harris office is considering charges against individual bank workers, high-level bank executives or the bank itself. The investigation could lead to charges beyond the identity-theft allegations used to secure the search warrant. In the weeks since Sept. 8, when the Los Angeles city attorneys office and federal bank regulators announced a $185-million settlement with Wells Fargo over the creation of the accounts, lawmakers and other regulators have questioned whether the bank may have violated fraud, labor and securities laws. At a fiery Capitol Hill hearing last month, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), told Wells Fargo Chief Executive John Stumpf that he should be criminally investigated. Stumpf abruptly retired last week and was replaced by longtime Wells Fargo executive Timothy Sloan. There also have been questions about when and how much former bank executive Carrie Tolstedt, who led the bank division at the root of the accounts scandal, knew of the practices. She retired this summer in the lead up to the settlement, which was prompted by a 2013 Los Angeles Times article that uncovered the banks practices. But identity theft has not been a central issue in the matter, and its noteworthy that it seems to be at the heart of Harris investigation, said Paul Stephens, policy director at the San Diego nonprofit Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. One wouldnt typically think of a financial institution opening an account in the name of a customer as being an act of identity theft, Stephens said. Its a creative way of looking at these activities and finding them unlawful under a statute that arguably could be prosecuted in state court. In an affidavit used to secure the search warrant, state investigator James Hirt said there is probable cause to believe bank workers illegally accessed Wells Fargos computer system to find customer information, then used that information to open unauthorized accounts. In regulatory orders issued along with last months settlement, bank regulators reported that Wells Fargo employees forged customers signatures, created personal identification numbers without customers knowledge, made up email addresses and even moved money from customers legitimate accounts into unauthorized ones to make them look real. U.S. attorneys in San Francisco, New York and Charlotte, N.C., have opened their own investigations, though the scope of those inquiries is not clear. Irving Einhorn, a retired white-collar criminal defense attorney and former head of the Securities and Exchange Commissions regional office in Los Angeles, said there are few charges that a state attorney general could bring that federal prosecutors could not. Still, he said its not surprising that Harris office is investigating the bank on its own. With a big national bank like this, there are overlapping jurisdictions, he said. Not to mention political ramifications. Elected officials of all political stripes have jumped on Wells Fargo in the weeks since the settlement was announced, holding hearings, enacting sanctions and calling for legislation aimed at reining in big banks or even breaking them up. In California, State Treasurer John Chiang last month said his office would cut off several business relationships with the bank, a move thats since been followed by officials in San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago and the states of Illinois and Ohio. At this point, Einhorn said, no one wants to be left out. You have to remember how it looks to constituents in a particular state when their officials get tough with the big, bad banks, he said. The attorney generals move to investigate the bank comes amid her campaign to succeed Sen. Barbara Boxer, who is retiring from her Senate seat. Harris is running against Rep. Loretta Sanchez, a fellow Democrat who represents central Orange County. Harris has made her crackdown on wrongdoing in the financial services industry one of the themes of her campaign. She has especially pointed to her role in negotiating $20 billion in relief from banks for California homeowners who lost homes or suffered losses in the housing bust. But that deal still resulted in many Californians losing their homes and did not lead to criminal charges against bank executives, opening her up to some criticism. By investigating Wells Fargo, Harris could be trying to burnish her bank-busting credentials, said Jack Pitney, a professor of politics at Claremont McKenna College. Quick breakdown of the Wells Fargo scandal. Shes looking for every advantage she can get, he said. Going after a big, unpopular bank can only help her with the electorate. Wells Fargo has gone into Voldemort territory when it comes to popularity. Along with investigations by Harris office and federal prosecutors, Wells Fargo is also under investigation by the federal Labor Department, an outside law firm hired by the banks board and two congressional committees. With so many agencies looking at the bank, its likely that there will be more revelations about the scope and the details of the problems that pushed more than 5,000 workers to open as many as 2 million unauthorized checking, savings and other accounts for customers over the last five years. In a report last week after the announcement of Stumpfs retirement, Jaret Seiberg, an analyst for brokerage and investment bank Cowen & Co., said the former CEOs exit would not come close to ending problems for the bank. There are simply too many entities investigating for more troubles not to surface, Seiberg wrote. The raft of investigations into the banks practices was one factor cited by ratings agency Standard & Poors on Tuesday when it announced it had downgraded its outlook on Wells Fargos credit rating from stable to negative. That means that, although S&P did not cut the banks credit rating, it believes a downgrade may be warranted. In a memo noting the change in outlook, the ratings agency said it is concerned, among other things, about the potential consequences of ongoing legal and regulatory investigations. S&P also said it is concerned about the long-term effects of damage to the banks reputation. Some of those effects showed up in the banks quarterly earnings report last week. The bank reported that third-quarter profits in its community banking division fell 9% from a year earlier. And the number of new checking accounts opened in September, the only month in the quarter affected by the settlement announcement, fell 25% compared with a year earlier. The companys stock closed Wednesday at $45.26, about 9% lower than the day before last months $185-million settlement. james.koren@latimes.com Follow me: @jrkoren MORE ON WELLS FARGO Wells Fargo stock falls 2% as it tries to regain customers trust As Wells Fargos earnings fall, new CEO wishes scandal was handled earlier Why did Wells Fargos Stumpf lose his job, while JPMorgans Dimon kept his? UPDATES: 3:05 p.m.: This article was updated with information about the companys credit rating, quarterly earnings and stock price. 2:20 p.m.: This article was updated with details from the affidavit supporting the search warrant. This article was originally published at 1:15 p.m. This Depression-era home, designed by celebrated Southern California architect Paul R. Williams, boasts authentic charm and original architectural details including a secret Prohibition-era room complete with bar. Originally commissioned by Gabriel and Mary Duques, a prominent Los Angeles couple, the Hancock Park residence was designed for entertaining. A traditional entry with a sweeping staircase opens to a step-down living room with vaulted ceilings. A large dining room and a mahogany-paneled library retain the air of a bygone era. Address: 340 N. Las Palmas Ave., Los Angeles 90004 Price: $4.599 million Built: 1933 Architect: Paul R. Williams Lot size: 13,006 square feet House size: 5,888 square feet, 6 bedrooms, 7 bathrooms Advertisement Features: Original details; formal entry; molding and wainscoting; hardwood flooring; three fireplaces with original mantles; decorative mahogany wood paneling; formal library; secret Prohibition-era room with bar; dining room; kitchen with butlers pantry; master suite with dual bathrooms, dormer windows; original built-ins; large back yard; includes original 1932 blueprints About the area: The median sale price for single-family homes in the 90004 ZIP code in August was $1.275 million based on 17 sales, according to CoreLogic. That was a 26.1% decrease in median price compared with the same time last year. Agents: Steven Aaron, Keller Williams Beverly Hills, (310) 432-6588 To submit a candidate for Home of the Day, send high-resolution color photos via Dropbox.com, permission from the photographer to publish the images and a description of the house to neal.leitereg@latimes.com. Follow Bonnie McCarthy on Twitter @ThsAmericanHome MORE HOT PROPERTIES: Seinfeld producer Andrew Scheinman lists Bel-Air spec house for $11.5 million Dodgers pitcher Kenta Maeda pays $3.8 million for a new home in Santa Monica Linda Thompson puts her high-rise spot in West Hollywood up for sale Singer-songwriter Kenny Loggins buys a scenic retreat in Montecito After snapping up Irvine television maker Vizio in July for $2 billion in cash, Chinese tech firm LeEco made its official U.S. debut Wednesday, hosting a San Francisco news conference to spell out its ambitions to sell gadgets as varied as phones and cars. During the two-hour presentation, the company ran through nearly a dozen products it plans to launch, including a range of 4K smart TVs, the Le Pro3 and Le S3 smartphones, a virtual reality headset, a smart bicycle that can travel up to 30 mph, a video streaming service and two smart cars: the semi-autonomous LeSee and the fully autonomous LeSee Pro concept car. But the LeSee was noticeably absent from the news conference. LeEco founder Jia Yueting told the audience it got into a serious accident while in transit from Los Angeles to Silicon Valley. Advertisement We werent able to repair it, he said. The LeSee Pro, present at the event, sat stationary on display. The company was also scant on details about how its video streaming service, which boasts partners such as Lionsgate, Showtime, Vice and Machinima, will work and whether its exclusive to LeEco devices. LeEcos effort to expand to the U.S. has drawn skepticism from technology analysts, who point to Chinese companies struggles relative to their Japanese and Korean rivals in selling high-tech gadgets to U.S. consumers. Among analysts doubts is whether a company as young as LeEco has enough cash to effectively make and market its ambitious slate of products. Many of its flashier products, such as the self-driving car, remain concepts with no planned launch date or price tag. LeEco got its start in 2004 doing video streaming before expanding into hardware. In addition to the Vizio acquisition, the company signaled its U.S. ambitions in June when it acquired 49 acres of property in Santa Clara from Yahoo. LeEco plans to develop this site into our global headquarters, and what weve dubbed as EcoCity, Dan Poritzky, LeEcos head of real estate, said on the companys blog. Times staff writer Paresh Dave contributed to this report. Czech authorities have arrested a man U.S. officials and LinkedIn believe stole personal information about millions of users of the social network for professionals. Yevgeniy Nikulin, identified by law enforcement officials Wednesday as a Russian citizen, was arrested at a Prague hotel Oct. 5 on charges stemming from the 2012 data breach. The theft didnt come to light until this spring, when a hacker claimed to have more than 100 million LinkedIn login names and passwords, or about a quarter of the Mountain View, Calif., companys user base. LinkedIn confirmed the breach in May and reset passwords of affected users. Advertisement The company cooperated with the FBI to track down the suspect, saying Wednesday that it was thankful for the FBIs efforts to locate and capture the parties believed to be responsible for this criminal activity. In a statement, the FBI confirmed the arrest of a Russian citizen suspected of conducting criminal activities targeting U.S. interests, though the bureau declined to comment further. The case has nothing to do with recent hacks of the Democratic National Committee or other political organizations that the Obama administration alleges were orchestrated by the Russian government, one U.S. law enforcement official said. The official described the hack of LinkedIn as fairly typical of the types of cybercrimes the FBI and other U.S. law enforcement agencies have investigated in recent years. Cybersecurity experts are unsure about the value of such investigations and the filing of charges against foreign nationals. Definitively identifying a culprit can be difficult because hackers often route their attacks through computers around the world, complicating efforts to trace the digital trail. In addition, extraditing suspects is often difficult when dealing with Russian and Chinese authorities. A Russian official reportedly said Wednesday that the Czech Republic should return the detained suspect to Russia. del.wilber@latimes.com paresh.dave@latimes.com MORE BUSINESS NEWS Snapchat and Facebook have a new rival in their sights: television Yahoo remains tight-lipped about Verizon deal in third-quarter earnings report Googles Pixel phone isnt groundbreaking but still stands out Chris Wallace was the first anchor from Fox News to moderate a presidential debate when Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump clashed for the final time Wednesday at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. He may be new to viewers who dont watch his program Fox News Sunday, but the son of the legendary 60 Minutes correspondent has been a TV news fixture for five decades. His first TV job was at the station that hosted the 1960 presidential debate. Wallace started his reporting career at WBBM in 1973, the CBS-owned television station in Chicago where John Kennedy and Richard Nixon participated in the very first televised face-off of White House contenders in. The building on McClurg Court that housed WBBMs studios, where Nixon sweated and Wallace first toiled, was demolished in 2009. He was once a coanchor on NBCs Today. When Bryant Gumbel and Jane Pauley were teamed on NBCs morning program in 1982, Wallace was featured as its Washington anchor. The arrangement lasted for nine months, as Wallace was moved off to cover the White House and eventually became moderator of Meet the Press. Advertisement His first girlfriend was Walter Cronkites daughter. Wallace was a 16-year-old gofer working at CBS News during the networks political convention coverage, which was fraught as the network panicked over Cronkite losing in the ratings to NBCs team of Chet Huntley and David Brinkley. During the Republican convention in San Francisco, I had met and courted Nancy Cronkite, Walters daughter, who was my first girlfriend, he told TV Guide in 2013. When he got pulled from the convention, everybody else was worried about Walter. I was worried about whether this was going to mess up my relationship with Nancy. His father once poached a celebrity interview from him. Wallace recounted how in 1996, he booked comedian Chris Rock for a coveted sit-down on ABCs 20/20. Rock backed out and later turned up on 60 Minutes, where he talked to Mike Wallace. My old man had stolen the interview and he knew he stole it from me, he told the audience at his fathers memorial service in 2012. Hes a registered Democrat. In 2014, Wallace explained his party registration to the Hollywood Reporter: Where I live, in Washington, D.C., the only elections that count are the Democratic primaries. But Ive voted for Democrats and Republicans for president. See the most-read stories in Entertainment this hour stephen.battaglio@latimes.com Twitter: @SteveBattaglio ALSO Laura Benanti returns as Melania Trump on The Late Show to unintentionally endorse Hillary Clinton Michael Moore filmed one-man show TrumpLand 11 days ago to rally depressed Hillary voters Stephen Colbert helps President Obama with his upcoming job search UPDATES: 10:50 a.m.: This article, written before Wednesday night, was updated to reflect that the debate had happened. This story was originally published at 7:20 a.m. Oct. 19 Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Elena Kosolapova Trend: The pipeline system of Kazakh KazTransOil company got 18,900 tons of Kashagan oil as of October 18, the company reported. Kashagan started supplies of oil to KazTransOils pipelines on October 11. KazTransOil will pump Kashagan oil to export through Atyrau-Samara pipeline. In early November this oil will be shipped through Russian port of Ust-Luga in the Gulf of Finland. Moreover, this week Caspian Pipeline Consortiums (CPC) said that its pipeline system receives up to 10,000 tons per day of Kashagan oil. CPC is expected to pump up to 1 tons of Kazakh Kashagan oil till the end of 2016 and up to 12 million tons of Kashagan oil in 2017. Kashagan is a large oil and gas field in Kazakhstan, located in the north of the Caspian Sea. Its total oil reserves amount to 38 billion barrels. Some 10 billion out of them are recoverable reserves. Kashagans natural gas reserve exceeds one trillion cubic meters. Oil production at Kashagan was launched in Oct. 2016. KazTransOil is Kazakhstans national operator of the main oil pipelines. The company operates a network of 5,400 kilometers long main oil pipelines and 2,000 kilometers long water pipelines. Follow the author on Twitter: @E_Kosolapova Michael Moore in TrumpLand is not only the title of the new film by the cinematic provocateur but it is also an accurate description of what it provides. Not an investigative documentary on the order of the writer-directors previous films like Fahrenheit 9/ll, Bowling for Columbine or Sicko, TrumpLand is rather a rambling, mildly entertaining performance film recording a stand-up appearance Moore recently made in the heart of Trump country. That would be the city of Wilmington, Ohio, the key metropolis in that states Clinton County, a place where four times as many primary voters cast their ballots for Donald Trump as they did for Hillary Clinton and a city so conservative that Glenn Beck is the benefactor of the Murphy Theatre where the event took place. Advertisement And, that title notwithstanding, TrumpLand is not really about the Republican presidential nominee. Such a last-minute project that it was shown to critics only the day it opened in theaters, its main thrust is as a defense of Hillary Clinton against those who hate her and a heartfelt plea for people to vote for her no matter what. You can keep hating her, says Moore, who confesses he himself has never voted for a Clinton in his life. Do it for the country. Before Moore gets to the pro-Hillary message, however, he offers himself up as a kind of therapist in chief, offering soothing words to any and all constituencies, refusing, for instance, to chastise millennials because they change the ink cartridges in computer printers. Next, he tries to make the Trump voters in the audience feel comfortable, first with humor, then with empathy. The humor part is his visual stunt of isolating all Mexican Americans in the crowd in one walled-in balcony while isolating all the Muslim Americans in another balcony and observing them with an in-theater drone. He also talks about the key Trump demographic, the angry white guy over 35, telling them, our days are over. He jokes weakly about internment camps for men if Clinton wins, and says that the loud male roar often heard at Trump rallies is the sound of the dying dinosaur. More serious is Moores discussion of why so many good people he knows in his home state of Michigan are voting for Trump even though they dont like him. He is saying things to people who are hurting, Moore says in the films most serious moments. All they have left is the right to vote, and they see Trump as a human Molotov cocktail, a hand grenade thrown into a system that destroyed their lives. It will be the biggest f... you in recorded history. I get it. But after imagining what a Trump presidency would bring, including deporting Rosie ODonnell to American Samoa, Moore turns to the difficulties everyone, himself included, have had with Clinton in the past. After noting that she is too cozy with Wall Street and that she voted for the Iraq war, he encourages audience members to say nice things about the candidate, saying three things he likes about George Bush to get the ball rolling and telling an elaborate, pointless anecdote about the time he got invited to a White House state dinner. Warming to the task, Moore talks about the horrible way Clinton has been treated, noting that crackpots online claim she has personally killed 46 people and lamenting the way she was attacked and humiliated after her failed attempt to pass universal healthcare, one of Moores passions. Referring to the current pope, who Moore says remained silent during the military dictatorship in Argentina only to blossom into a reformer once he was elected, the filmmaker wonders what if Hillary became our Pope Francis, surprising everyone with the good things that she does. It will only happen, Moore says, if people both vote for her and insist that she keep her promises. If she doesnt, he announces with a concluding flourish, he will run for president himself in 2020. Sounds like another film project coming on. kenneth.turan@latimes.com Michael Moore in TrumpLand No rating Running time: 1 hour, 13 minutes Playing: Laemmles Town Center 5, Encino See the most-read stories in Entertainment this hour Movie Trailers ALSO: Five things you may not know about debate moderator Chris Wallace Michael Moore made TrumpLand in 11 days to rally depressed Hillary voters Laura Benanti returns as Melania Trump on The Late Show to unintentionally endorse Hillary Clinton Laura Benanti reveals her method for impersonating Melania Trump Lou Adler didnt need his memory jogged to recall a disastrous test screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show in Santa Barbara in 1975. Ill tell you exactly what happened, said the 82-year-old rock and roll impresario, whose long resume includes, among other things, producing that film, organizing the Monterey Pop Festival and overseeing the creation of Carole Kings album Tapestry. People started leaving a third of the way through. Were sitting on the curb outside, me and one of the executives from Fox, wondering, Is this the end? But then 25 people come out after its over: We really like this. When can we see it again? Advertisement That small but passionate response launched Rocky Horror born as a live production first staged in the U.S. at Adlers West Hollywood club, the Roxy toward decades of repeat business as the quintessential midnight movie. And its what laid the groundwork for a TV reboot of the musical set to premiere Thursday night on Fox with a young, pop-savvy cast including Laverne Cox, Adam Lambert and Christina Milian. Reboot is a word for computers, said Adlers son Cisco, a veteran of the Los Angeles rock scene who handled music for the new production. Added Lou, who serves as executive producer: I think of it as a reimagining. Either way, the splashy update reflects a belief that people still want to see Rocky Horror again. Yet reviving this indelible period piece about fresh-faced couple Brad and Janet, who happen into the lair of one Dr. Frank-N-Furter (memorably depicted in the original by Tim Curry) required some delicate retrofitting. For one thing, Frank-N-Furter is introduced in the show as a sweet transvestite, a well-meaning but very antiquated term, as Cox, who plays the role in the new version, described it. The transgender actress best known for her Emmy-nominated performance in Orange Is the New Black, Cox said the phrase (which survives in this edition) now plays as a self-conscious throwback, one of many in the movie. I mean, the whole premise of the film is that Brad and Janet, their car is broken down and they need to use a phone, she said with a laugh. In 2016, theyd have a cellphone and theyd just call AAA. There was also the matter of Richard OBriens music for the show, which decades ago tapped into the prevailing glam-rock sound of the mid 70s and spawned a stand-alone hit in the deathless Time Warp. You cant go to a bar mitzvah now without hearing it, Lou Adler said as he and Cisco, 38, sat in a glass-walled living room at his home in Malibu. Posters commemorating some of Adlers many projects hung on the walls, while a TV tuned to cable news flashed images of Donald Trump. (Hes a hustler, Adler said with visible disgust. A hustler and an elitist.) Today, though, rock hardly dominates the mainstream the way it once did. So Cisco known for his group Whitestarr and his work with the rapper Shwayze saw himself as a kind of a translator: someone who could reinterpret Time Warp, Dammit Janet and Touch-a Touch-a Touch-a Touch Me for younger viewers raised on hip-hop. These songs are rock standards, he said. I didnt wanna flip the music on its back and make it EDM. But I did wanna flip it on its side steroid it up, give it fatter drums. To record the tunes, Cisco recruited live players (including drummer Cody Dickinson of the North Mississippi Allstars and guitarist Duane Betts, who plays in L.A.s Dawes) but also employed plenty of modern post-production techniques. For Touch-a Touch-a, I was thinking of Hey Ya!, he said, referring to the bouncy 2003 hit by the rap duo OutKast. Kenny Ortega, the remakes director, said he views Cisco alongside artists like Bruno Mars guys whove been clearly influenced by all thats preceded them and are able to make these interesting connections to timeless music. And the selection of Ortega to helm Rocky Horror speaks further of Lou Adlers desire to nudge Rocky Horror toward current pop. An experienced choreographer who directed Michael Jacksons This Is It as well as the hit High School Musical films, he understands how to navigate the tricky space between musical theater and the Top 40, and does it here with dancing that feels closely aligned with top-tier arena shows. Still, for all the effort the Adlers put into reaching a new audience all those Brads and Janets who dont go to midnight screenings, as Lou put it the elder producer insisted he kept the original Rocky Horror faithful in mind, making sure that the update honors the spirit that once excited that tiny group in Santa Barbara. The fans have fought me on every change, going back to when we first put the movie on VHS, Lou said. But its because theyre so invested in it. And God bless em theyve kept this thing going for 42 years. Twitter: @mikaelwood Roger Ailes is returning to television, though not in a way most may have anticipated. Gabriel Sherman, national affairs editor of New York magazine and a biographer of Ailes, announced Wednesday at the Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit that he is working on a limited series for television based on Ailes fall from grace at Fox News. The series is to be overseen by Oscar-winning Spotlight director Tom McCarthy. The founding CEO of Fox News resigned in July after 21st Century Fox launched an investigation of sexual harassment claims against him. Advertisement Spurred by a lawsuit filed by former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson, more than 25 women who worked at Fox News, including Megyn Kelly, came forward with allegations of harassment. Ailes has denied the allegations. Even after the publication of his 2014 Ailes biography, The Loudest Voice in the Room, Sherman continued his coverage of Ailes, including a story about how the women of Fox News brought down Ailes by sharing their stories. Sources close to the project report that Sherman and his wife and collaborator, Jennifer Stahl, have partnered with Blumhouse Television the TV arm of horror mogul Jason Blums production company to produce a limited series using Loudest Voice and Shermans 2016 reporting as source material. Previous Blumhouse Television projects include two Emmy-winning HBO projects: The Jinx, centered on the life of murder suspect Robert Durst, and The Normal Heart, based on the eponymous 1985 play about the rise of the HIV-AIDS crisis in early 80s New York City. McCarthy will executive produce and shepherd the series; Sherman and Stahl will co-executive produce and serve as writers. See the most-read stories in Entertainment this hour libby.hill@latimes.com Twitter: @midwestspitfire ALSO Roger Ailes and 21st Century Fox in settlement talks on Gretchen Carlsons harassment case Roger Ailes, Fox News ex-CEO, is writing an autobiography Roger Ailes biography Loudest Voice is reasonably fair and balanced Its a thing now: Young men are into makeup, and the industry is going where the boys are. Driven by hyper-connected Generation Zs disinterest in gender identification, beauty brands are looking to market with a gender-neutral approach. A report this year by J. Walter Thompsons The Innovation Group found that 56 percent of Generation Z knows someone who goes by the gender-neutral pronouns of they, them, or ze. They are also rejecting the gender binary while shopping for clothes 44 percent said they only bought clothes restricted for their own gender, and 70 percent support a move toward gender-neutral bathrooms. [Gender] matters less than it used to, said Lucie Greene, worldwide director of the J. Walter Thompson Innovation Group. If youre a youth brand, its something you need to embrace and understand. Its this very self-confident, hyper-individual generation who are constructing their identity in fashion and makeup outside of their traditional gender buckets. She listed Jaden Smith, who wears nail polish and skirts, as an example, noting that his penchant for accouterments designed for women doesnt necessarily indicate anything about his sexuality its simply a matter of self-expression, which she said Gen Z is interested in doing any way they can. These are not the drag queens of old. Advertisement Last week, Cover Girl announced its appointment of 17-year-old makeup artist James Charles as its first male faces. The brand certainly isnt the first in beauty to address gender neutrality this year Milk Makeup launched in January with a genderless approach; Anastasia Beverly Hills debuted its Moonchild Glow Kit campaign featuring male models decked out in prismatic highlighter; Sephora teamed with vlogger Patrick Starrr on a collaboration for its Formula X nail polish line, and Giorgio Armani released a range of tinted lip balms for him/for her as part of its fall makeup collection. And its just as much a part of the online world, too. Just this week, The New York Times covered beauty boys male vloggers and YouTube stars who showcase their theatrical makeup skills for millions of followers. Men wearing makeup is not new Jean Paul Gaultier tried his hand at a makeup line for men in the Eighties but an acceptance of it in consumer culture is emerging into the mainstream. This idea of choice, being whoever you want to be its something that is acceptable more and more, said art director Fabien Baron. Its like the gay evolution in the Sixties and the Eighties. Its the normal continuation of what should have been happening decades ago. Its something thats existed for a long time in a clandestine way, said Debbie Harry of Blondie. I sort of like things that are undercover and cool, but its better that we acknowledge what our possibilities are. We should share that. And like many a beauty phenomenon, it has roots in fashion, with designers like Hood by Air, Vaquera and Gypsy Sport sending gender-neutral clothing down the runway, and powerhouse brands like Burberry and Gucci casting female models in its mens wear shows. Gender issues have dominated the recent political and cultural climate as well, from Facebook introducing 56 new gender options in 2014, to Caitlyn Jenners highly publicized transformation from male to female last year, and Targets implementation of a gender-neutral bathroom policy. Edward Bess, himself a Millennial and founder of a self-named beauty brand sold at Bergdorf Goodman, echoed the sentiment that gender neutrality in beauty is a label issue, not to be confused with a sexuality issue, and noted that the younger generations, so used to being connected to whats going on in the world via social media, are throwing off traditional societal constraints. Were more and more disinterested in the boring confinement of labels, said Bess, who just launched Genre, a fragrance designed to be androgynous. And its not just the traditional man and woman labels that the younger generation is opposed to. The term metrosexual has fallen out of fashion, Bess said. A guy can wear bronzer now and not be labeled. Added Greene, Were in a state of flux with gender identity and sexuality and how they interplay. Mazdack Rassi, founder of Milk Makeup, formulated his makeup and skin-care line with an ethos inspired by the young downtown New York crowd hanging out and working at Milk Studios. Rassis products are designed to be up for interpretation as to who can wear them and how they can be used. We look at our products as paint, as fun, Rassi said. We want to take the seriousness out of it. The idea is to make it a moot point, he said of gender. For Milks initial campaigns, Rassi purposefully obscured the gender of some of his models. We have boys who used to be girls or you may look at a girl and think shes a boy, Rassi said. Its taking the labels off. This new generation doesnt think it should be a topic, so its not worth bringing up. We want to concentrate on the people and the beauty there and what the product helps them do in life. It was always important to include males in our beauty campaigns, and Ill do it in the future, said Claudia Soare, president of Anastasia Beverly Hills. Soare grew up in the beauty industry and said she has always known men who wear makeup, particularly her mothers makeup artist friends and many Anastasia customers in fact, are men. For Soare, the Moonchild campaign, as well as an eyeliner campaign in which the brand featured male models, were simply ways to access her customer base. It was important to speak to them directly. For beauty brands that have historically addressed only women, the pressure to market to men is on, but it requires a tactful approach brands can run the risk of being seen as just riding the wave of whatever is being discussed in the zeitgeist. Brands are being called out [now] because they dont reference things in a respectful way, said Greene, noting the backlash to the dreadlocks used at Marc Jacobss spring show as an example. The important thing to bear in mind is it cant seem inauthentic and fetishistic or some kind of appropriation because this [generation] is highly politicized and see through that if its not executed very well. In some ways its a validation for everyone included and the other is a very bold flat-faced marketing initiative to show Cover Girl as edgy and relevant, said Wendy Liebmann, chief executive officer of WSL Strategic Retail, of Cover Girls James Charles announcement. She noted that Cover Girls positioning of James Charles as its first male Cover Girl is in line with its diverse brand ambassador appointments in the past, like Ellen DeGeneres and Queen Latifah. Its certainly more culturally relevant than ever, said Laura Brinker, vice president of influencer marketing at Coty. Its a culture of self-expression regardless of gender that has been fueled by social media. As a mass brand, you can be very broadly appealing, so its important that were at the forefront of those shifts so we can send a message to the beauty industry that this is the way we believe our business and brands are evolving. Liebmann stressed caution in executing gender neutral marketing strategies. Its that balance between inclusiveness and legitimacy, that it doesnt feel like its too commercial, thats grounded in authenticity, Liebmann said. Avoid tokenism, warned one industry source. Soare advised against doing something for the shock value or to seem inclusive. You risk some backlash from your customer and you risk insulting people by using their lifestyle as an ad campaign, Soare said. Be aware of whats authentic to your customer if your brand caters to men so much so that you feel the need to acknowledge them in ad campaigns, you should. Sam Cheow, chief product accelerator at LOreal, pointed out that the company already to markets to men in a subtle way, noting its beauty for all motto, and is preparing for a societal shift toward gender progressiveness with new product developments and communications some of which have already manifested, such as the Armani lip-care range. He noted two trends percolating in product development. One is uniformization, which means having a genderless positioning, and making products like lip balms that appeals to everyone or fragrance that is unisex in its scent and packaging. He also pointed to hyper-specialization of products, or offering special types of coverage for different skin types. The skin of a man is different [than a womans] and we need to start considering how we can ensure the coverage they need, Cheow said. He noted that issues such as hair removal for males transitioning to females, differences in skin texture and coverage needed will pave the way for new niche categories in makeup. In the next three to five years, there could be some really interesting products coming out. Following a Deadline report that a new 10-episode American Crime Story will be dedicated to Gianni Versaces murder in Miami in 1997, the Milan-based company on Wednesday pointed out that the installment is fictional. Asked to comment on the news, the fashion house said it had neither authorized nor had any involvement whatsoever in the forthcoming series about Versace. The series should only be seen as a work of fiction. Versace/Cunanan: American Crime Story, from Fox 21, will be based on the book Vulgar Favors by Vanity Fair writer Maureen Orth, according to Deadline. It will focus on the assassination of the designer by serial killer Andrew Cunanan, who shot himself eight days later on a Miami houseboat. Advertisement The series comes on the heels of the Emmy-winning People vs. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story. Filming is expected to start in Los Angeles and Miami next spring. The series is to be directed by Ryan Murphy, who also directed the opening episode of People vs. O.J. Simpson, but the actors who will play the title roles, including that of Versaces sister Donatella, have not been selected yet, according to the report. This is not the first time the Versace siblings have been an unwilling source of inspiration. In 2013, Lifetime broadcast its original movie House of Versace. On that occasion, the company said that it neither authorized nor had any involvement whatsoever in the forthcoming TV movie about Mrs. Versace. The firm also took issue with the book that triggered that film, Deborah Balls 2010 House of Versace: The Untold Story of Genius, Murder and Survival. Since Versace did not authorize the book on which it is based, the movie should only be seen as a work of fiction, the fashion house said at the time. The book centers on the struggles and the challenges faced by the designer after the murder of her brother. Gina Gershon played Donatella Versace in the movie.More recently, as reported in July, Antonio Banderas has been tapped to play Gianni Versace in an upcoming movie directed by Bille August on the late designer. Filming is expected to start in December in Milan and then move to Reggio Calabria, the southern town where Versace was born, and Miami. Details about the script were not available, but the Italian fashion group said at the time that, in this case, too, it had neither authorized nor had any involvement whatsoever in the forthcoming movie about Versace. The movie should only be seen as a work of fiction. As reported, in May, Banderas, who has also been studying fashion design at Central Saint Martins in London, presented his first collection in collaboration with Selected, a Scandinavian high-street label. He admitted at the time that he had been inspired by Versace for gold metal embellishments into his biker jacket. After sitting down with CNNs Anderson Cooper, where she blamed Billy Bush for her husband Donald Trumps infamous locker room talk, Melania Trump took to late night TV specifically, to The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to continue her defense. According to the Fake Melania, again played by Laura Benanti, former Access Hollywood host Bush can not only be blamed for coaxing presidential nominee Trump into making lewd comments, but is even in on the alleged rigging of the election. Colberts reply: Now I know why theyre on a bus its easier to throw Billy underneath it. She also suggests that all men, including your husband, your brother, the pope [and] Luke Skywalker, are guilty of such crude speech and are unfit to lead. Her solution? Only a woman could be president. Advertisement ALSO Laura Benanti reveals her method for impersonating Melania Trump Stephen Colbert helps President Obama with his upcoming job search Stephen Colbert headed to Showtime for live election night special Late-night hosts have a field day with Melania Trumps, ahem, unoriginal speech Five things you may not have known about debate moderator Chris Wallace Michael Moore filmed TrumpLand in 11 days to rally depressed Hillary voters against Trump As Lucy tells the story that was passed down to her, she almost didnt make it. Her mothers breast milk had become poisoned, and Lucy was so desperately ill as an infant in Egypt, a call was put out to the Armenian familys pastor. My grandmother took me in her hands and said, Dear God...if this child is going to die, take her now or else...let her live and serve you. And thats how Lucy Garabedian Abdelradiy, who moved to the United States many years ago with her grandmother and the rest of the family, became known to relatives as the miracle baby. Advertisement When she was just 7 or 8, she helped look after her younger cousins in Pasadena. When she completed high school and went on to Pasadena City College, her plan was to be an accountant, but a psychology class put her back in touch with a nurturing instinct inherited, perhaps, from her grandmother. Should she be a marriage or family counselor? While trying to figure out the next step, Lucy got a job at a gas station mini-mart. One day the manager asked if she could do him a big favor and drive his sister to a job interview. On the drive, the woman told Lucy she was going after a childcare position at Hillsides, a nonprofit that houses and counsels children removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect. Lucy had never heard of the place. When they got there, the receptionist asked Lucy if shed like to fill out an application too. She hadnt intended to, Lucy said, but why not? Her friend did not get hired. Lucy did. And she stuck around. Today in Pasadena, Abdelradiy will be honored by Hillsides for 35 years of service to children. This isnt a retirement party. Abdelradiy loves the job too much and hasnt begun to think about walking away. Its just a day of recognition for a woman who has been a comforting presence for hundreds of children whose lives have been traumatic in countless ways. On Monday morning, I visited the cottage where Lucy spends her days supervising and tending to the needs of 10 teenage girls. Two 14-year-olds were getting ready for school, with one working on her hair in front of a full-length mirror. One girl said she lost her home in Hurricane Katrina, and her aunt lost her life in the storm. Both girls said they had been away from their biological parents for years. They said they feel as though they can always talk to Abdelradiy, no matter what their problems are. Like how my mom left me and my sisters, and we got put in the system, said one girl. Shes just there for us, said the other. She listens. Many years ago, a 7-year-old took a particular liking to Abdelradiy, following her everywhere. The child asked if it was OK to call her Mama Lucy, a name that stuck. Whatever youre comfortable with, said Abdelradiy, who took a while herself to get comfortable at Hillsides. Kids need to know that they exist. Sometimes they dont even need to fix something. They just need to know that you are hearing them. Lucy Garabedian Abdelradiy To be honest with you, I couldnt believe that kids would cuss you out as a grown-up. I never heard cuss words in my life, and it was like, Wow, where is this coming from? Abdelradiy said. I went home to my grandmother and I said, Grandma, I cant do this...Theyre driving me crazy. Theyre calling me all the names in the book. Her grandmother told Abdelradiy that in time, she would be a blessing to the kids. Just stick with the job. I was naive, said Abdelradiy, who sometimes went home with bruises after breaking up fights. She had never before heard a certain word that starts with B and rhymes with itch, and had to ask a coworker for the definition. Now I know all the cuss words, Abdelradiy said. But she also knows where they come from. The kids she works with are wounded, in great pain and filled with anger. Some have gotten into trouble, but Abdelradiy was less inclined to judge them after learning their stories. They have been physically abused, sexually molested, abandoned, betrayed. They have been court-ordered out of their homes, shipped off to foster families, separated from siblings, bounced here and there. Hillsides therapists work with them; Mama Lucy is there for them when they return to their dorm cottage. She takes them to school and to the doctor, serves unlimited helpings of tough love, delivers the dreadful news that they have to clean their rooms or pay the consequences, and sits with them if, at the end of the day, they still feel lost or alone. Kids need to know that they exist, Abdelradiy said. Sometimes they dont even need to fix something. They just need to know that you are hearing them. She learned when to back off and when to lend an ear. And she learned to say goodbye, in some cases to kids who were with her for as long as 10 years. One went on to become a nurse. One became a lawyer. NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> I can name so many of them who are successful, Abdelradiy said. Many of them including Stephanie Castillo, 39, who is in management at a nursing home are in regular contact with Mama Lucy. When I was there, I always thought of myself as her child, said Castillo, who lived with Abdelradiy from the ages of 10 to 13, and later sneaked back in to visit with her. It didnt begin well between them. Castillo had been through a lot, and she was shy, frightened and defiant. When Abdelradiy told her to clean her room, Castillo sat on the floor, crossed her arms and stubbornly refused. It took six months for Castillo to understand that Abdelradiy was on her side, and then they were inseparable. It was like a mother hen and baby chick. I was always underneath her, said Castillo, who runs a toy drive and donates the gifts to Hillsides. She nurtured and loved me...She helped mold me into who I am today. She basically instilled in me self-confidence when I didnt have it as a child. To Abdelradiy, who is deeply religious, this was all scripted. From her survival at birth to the unplanned job interview at Hillsides to a life in the service of children. I guess its my grandmothers miracle, she said. Get more of Steve Lopezs work and follow him on Twitter @LATstevelopez MORE FROM STEVE LOPEZ Dodgers fan strikes back after Chicago attacks L.A. with lame cliches This Trump supporter defies stereotypes -- and gives The Times a second chance No crying in their beer: Dodgers give Highland Park fans a workout and a win The judge was not sure whether Mahanad Badawi had been actively recruiting for Islamic State. The 24-year-old Anaheim man had already been convicted by a federal jury in June of conspiring to help the terrorist group in Iraq and Syria. Badawi had used his debit card to purchase a one-way ticket so that a friend, Nader Elhuzayel, could board a plane to the Middle East to join Islamic State. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge David O. Carter asked to listen to audiotapes of Badawi in which he seemed to be trying to entice other men from a local mosque. After listening to the recordings and a five-minute recess, Carter said he was convinced. Advertisement I believe youre radicalized. I believe youre a recruiter and I believe youre dangerous. U.S. District Judge David O. Carter I believe youre radicalized. I believe youre a recruiter and I believe youre dangerous, the judge told Badawi, who did not appear to betray emotion. The judge sentenced Badawi to 30 years in prison the same sentence Elhuzayel got after being found guilty of the same charge. After the sentencing, Badawis mother, Samia Suliman, was embraced by family members and friends as she sobbed. Badawi had purchased a ticket for Elhuzayel to fly from Los Angeles to Tel Aviv. While Carter initially admitted feeling torn about the sentence he would give Badawi, he said he believed Elhuzayel was beyond redemption. Kate Corrigan, Badawis attorney, argued that her client was not an Islamic State recruiter. If that were the case, she stated, federal officials would have had secured multiple indictments of the people he had allegedly recruited. But for Carter, the audiotapes clinched the sentence he would hand down. Badawi and Elhuzayel were convicted after a two-week trial that detailed their efforts to join the terrorist group, including their recorded pledges to fight for the cause of Allah and to die in the battlefield, according to court documents The pair were arrested on May 21, 2015. Agents from a counterterrorism task force intercepted and detained Elhuzayel at Los Angeles International Airport before he boarded a plane bound for Israel. Badawi was arrested at an Anaheim gas station. Agents began monitoring the men after seeing their inflammatory remarks on social media. Scrutiny of the men intensified in April and May of 2015 as agents eavesdropped on their phone calls and surveillance teams tracked their movements. Elhuzayel was found guilty of attempting to provide material support to Islamic State, and Badawi was convicted of aiding and abetting the attempt to provide material support. In September, Elhuzayel was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Corrigan argued that a sentence of more than 15 years for Badawi would be excessive. She said the sentencing guidelines had resulted in an outrageous punishment and that the terrorists had already won because peoples rights to fair sentencing were being trampled on. She said such sentences were normally reserved for criminals who have been in prison several times for felony convictions. My client has no evidence of even a parking ticket. Hes not a career offender, she said. Badawis family was stunned. They had expected a more lenient sentence, his older brother said. Mohamed Badawi didnt want to elaborate any more on Wednesday, but did say in an earlier interview that his brother was naive and had a misguided friendship. cindy.carcamo@latimes.com Follow Cindy Carcamo on Twitter @thecindycarcamo Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this report. ALSO Jury rules NBA star Derrick Rose and friends did not rape woman Proposition HHH would raise funds to build homeless housing in L.A. Ex-teacher slits his throat in O.C. court after being convicted of raping girl Proposition HHH on the Nov. 8 ballot asks Los Angeles city voters to approve a general obligation bond that would raise money to build housing for chronically homeless people. The proposal involves complicated financing and service arrangements between the city, county and state. Following are answers to some of the questions about the measure: What would Proposition HHH do? Advertisement If the measure obtains the two-thirds vote needed to pass, the city would borrow up to $1.2 billion over 10 years for construction projects to provide safe, clean, affordable housing for the homeless and for those in danger of becoming homeless. The City Council resolution that placed Proposition HHH on the ballot requires that 80% of the money be directed to permanent supportive housing. Up to 20% could be spent on conventional affordable housing without services, and an unspecified amount could be spent on shelters and other measures such as portable showers and storage facilities. How much would it cost property owners? As bonds are issued, the annual cost to taxpayers would increase gradually from the first year and peak in 2027, when it would be $18.54 for every $100,000 of assessed valuation. Thats the value the Los Angeles County assessor places on the property, a figure that is generally lower than its market value. Los Angeles City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana estimates that the average annual cost over the 29 years the bonds are being repaid would be $9.64 per $100,000 of assessed valuation. That would be $32.87 on a home valued at the median of $341,000. What is permanent supportive housing? Permanent supportive housing is for people who have been living on the street for a year or more because of mental illness, physical disability or addiction. It primarily consists of apartments with a high percentage of single units in buildings that include space for on-site case managers and clinicians. It is paired with services that can include mental health treatment, addiction therapy and vocational training. Rent subsidies assure a permanent home as long as the person needs the services. Who would pay for the services? Services are provided either by Los Angeles County or private mental health organizations using county funds. Who would pay for the subsidies? The Los Angeles Housing Authority has committed up to 1,000 federal housing subsidies per year for the new units as they are constructed. Those vouchers would come from the supply of about 2,100 the Housing Authority distributes each year to eligible applicants who have been waiting since 2003 to get subsidies effectively allowing them to jump to the head of the line. What does the housing cost? Permanent supportive housing costs more to build than comparable market-rate housing. Space set aside for case managers and clinical staff is one factor. The requirements of public funding sources include prevailing wage, high-energy efficiency and extra-large bathrooms for handicapped accessibility also raise the costs. City planning laws result in many projects being proposed at 49 units, even when the underlying zoning would allow more. Thats the maximum that can be built without an environmental review that can add months and raise costs. Smaller buildings with space set aside for services incur larger per-unit costs. Developers of permanent supportive housing also commit extra resources to gain community acceptance of their projects. For instance, they usually spend extra on architecture to make their buildings visually appealing. They also spend extra on outreach to head off potential backlash over negative perception of their clients. The Corporation for Supportive Housing, a nonprofit that provides technical and financial assistance to agencies that build permanent supportive housing, estimates the cost in Los Angeles at $350,000 per unit. A Times analysis of projects funded by the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee, which includes most permanent supportive housing projects, shows that recent projects have usually cost more, averaging about $420,000 per unit in 2016. How much permanent supportive housing is needed? In an analysis based on the 2015 homeless count, the Los Angeles County Homeless Services Authority estimated that 25,000 units of permanent supportive housing are needed countywide to serve the portion of the homeless population requiring intense services to live independently. About 9,000 units already exist, leaving a gap of about 14,000. The gap in Los Angeles city is estimated at 9,849. How is permanent supportive housing financed? Most projects receive about 65% of their cost from federal tax credits. Under a state-administered program, developers are allocated tax credits that they sell to investors in exchange for equity in the project. The credits currently sell for more than face value because the investors can declare depreciation in addition to the tax credit. The remainder of the money comes from a combination of local, state or federal subsidies that usually include soft loans from the Los Angeles Housing and Community Investment Department that are repaid from excess revenue. Before they can apply for tax credits, developers have to own the land, have an approved development plan and obtain commitments for all the remainder of the financing. How would Proposition HHH help? The city plans to contribute up to $150,000 per unit to permanent supportive housing projects, enough in most cases to pay about a third of the cost. That would allow the developer to complete their financing through a less-desirable tax credit program that pays about 35% of a projects cost. The lower-yield credits are not competitive, meaning that developers could obtain financing quickly for as many projects as they can get ready. Why is the city focusing on permanent supportive housing? Based on a growing body of research, homeless advocates generally regard permanent supportive housing as the most effective solution for the chronically homeless who remain on the streets because of mental illness, addiction or disability. (The research covers topics including Medicaid costs, as well as the impact of housing on the cost of treating homeless people with severe alcohol problems and those who use hospitals. Theres also a map of studies of such costs.) Why will it take 10 years to build the units? Currently, a permanent supportive housing development takes about three to five years to complete. Along with financing, the primary obstacles are land acquisition and the approval process. Both must be completed before a developer can apply for tax credits. Developers of permanent supportive housing compete with market-rate developers for scarce sites suitable for multifamily development in the city. Community opposition to projects geared to the homeless can extend the approval process. The city is working to shorten the development time by providing excess city land to developers and streamlining the development process. The City Administrative Office and Housing and Community Investment Department have identified about two dozen city-owned parcels that could be used for housing. Both agencies have received proposals from developers. The City Administrative Office is expected to make recommendations on the proposals The citys Department of City Planning is developing a Permanent Supportive Housing Ordinance, which the council is expected to vote on by summer. It would remove regulatory barriers and streamline the entitlement process, shortening the development timeline by up to two years. Are there any alternatives? Homeless advocates widely believe that expanding the supply of permanent supportive housing is the only way to reduce the chronically homeless population. There are skeptics, though, who contend that only a small percentage of the chronically homeless population requires the intense services. Most of the mentally ill, they say, would be able to function independently in regular apartment buildings with drop-in services provided by mobile providers the scattered housing approach. More expensive permanent supportive housing is necessary only for a small portion of the homeless population, they say. Proponents of permanent supportive housing say that rental subsidies for scattered housing are less costly than building new units only in the short term. Permanent housing units are subject to rent limits in effect for decades. Over that period, rent subsidies for market housing cost more. Subsidies for scattered housing also require thousands of homeless people to find housing In a tight rental market. Who will be watching to make sure the money is spent wisely? An administrative committee of city officials and a citizen committee would be created to provide oversight. Will Proposition HHH end homelessness in Los Angeles? Proposition HHH is part of a plan to reduce homelessness to what an analysis for the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority calls a less than perfect equilibrium. That means that chronically homeless people have obtained permanent housing and resources exist so that people who become homeless can be rehoused. Proposition HHH addresses only housing for the chronically homeless. To reach the goal, additional funds need to be spent on rapid rehousing and homelessness prevention programs. According to the analysis, at least 14,000 people will always be homeless in Los Angeles County until more money is spent to increase the supply of affordable housing. doug.smith@latimes.com Twitter: @LATDoug ALSO Ballot measure could upset L.A.'s plan for housing the homeless Fears mount over a homeless plan that residents say will end Venice as we know it I have a corner of my own: Santa Anas bus terminal-turned-shelter offers the homeless some relief Many California school districts offer their staff little or no guidance on when police should be called to control student behavior, according to a new study that comes as districts face increased pressure to redefine law enforcements role in public schools. The report, released Wednesday by the American Civil Liberties Union, analyzed law enforcement policies of 119 California school districts, including 50 of its most populous. It found that more than half of the districts large and small gave their staff broad discretion to summon police officers for small infractions, bullying and disrupting lessons. After the police are called in (most districts dont permanently station officers in their schools), many districts do little to shield their students from potential consequences, the study found. Of those analyzed, about 98% dont require parental notification before a student is interviewed by police and about 99% dont mandate that officers advise students who havent yet been arrested of their constitutional rights, including the right to remain silent. Advertisement The result, according to the studys authors, is that school administrators often outsource what used to be routine, in-school discipline to police officers. And when they do, the effects are disproportionately harsh for poor, minority and disabled students, who are more likely to be arrested than their peers. Too often, school staff call the police to have them handle a situation that makes a student end up having to go to court or get a fine. Victor Leung, ACLU staff attorney During the 2013-14 school year, 9,540 school-related arrests were made in California, according to the study. Black students were three times as likely as white students to be charged with an offense. Too often, school staff call the police to have them handle a situation that makes a student end up having to go to court or get a fine, said ACLU staff attorney Victor Leung. Really, they should have no discretion the rule should be that they handle this minor rule-breaking with their own staff. In California, 19 school districts have their own police forces, ranging in size from four officers in Apple Valley Unified to 410 sworn officers and 101 school safety officers in Los Angeles. Most districts have memorandums of understanding with local law enforcement, but many of these documents contain deficient, vague, or even non-existent policies, according to the report. The worst offenders, Leung said, are the 33% of school districts that require staff to report low-level offenses such as vandalism or graffiti to the police. Although these may sound like well-defined criminal acts, in practice, their meaning has been interpreted to include doodling on a desk or drawing ones name on a locker. In 2011, the East Side Union High School District in San Jose called police on an autistic seventh-grader who had carved his initials on the sidewalk outside of his school. He was cited for vandalism, a charge that appeared on his criminal record. In response, Supt. Chris Funk told an NBC affiliate that East Side Union was hiring more social workers and counselors. I think what happened was because of zero-tolerance policies, there was a period of time where people just went to the police and had students cited for everything, Funk said. Model school districts include San Francisco, Oakland and Pasadena, the latter of which has an agreement with local law enforcement that forbids police officers from responding to calls of discipline problems and says school administrators are responsible for handling misbehavior. Los Angeles Unified School District receives some kudos for its policy requiring police officers to have a warrant or court order before removing a student for questioning. But the report notes, disapprovingly, that the district continues to require school staff to screen middle and high school students randomly and daily, using a metal detector wand. While the policy expressly states that police should not conduct the searches, the ACLUs review of the districts search logs revealed that police frequently perform the searches, the report says. This policy has led to the unnecessary criminalization of students who possess minor contraband or do not wish to comply with the searches. A spokeswoman for the Los Angeles school police chief said he was unavailable to comment. The report recommends that school districts refer matters to the police only when there is an immediate physical threat to anyone on campus. Even drug and alcohol use should be handled by school staff, it says. It also urges districts equipped with police forces not to permanently place officers in schools. anna.phillips@latimes.com Twitter: @annamphillips To read the article in Spanish, click here MORE EDUCATION NEWS L.A. Unified decides fate of six charter schools; El Camino leader resigns Yes, an after-school Satan Club could be coming to your kids grade school Former high school coach exchanged 52,000 text messages with girl he is accused of abusing, prosecutor says Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Maksim Tsurkov Trend: Alternative and renewable energy sources wont be able to completely replace the traditional ones, Azerbaijans Energy Minister Natig Aliyev said, according to the message of the countrys Ministry of Energy released Oct. 19. Aliyev made the remarks at a meeting with Kazakh Deputy Energy Minister Magzum Mirzagaliev, who arrived in Baku to participate in the 7th International Forum on Energy for Sustainable Development. At the meeting it was noted that the use of alternative and renewable energy sources is one of the main priorities of Azerbaijan. Despite the work done in this sphere, the share of renewable energy on Azerbaijans energy balance is not so high for now, and its necessary to attract the private sector, create conditions, carry out promotional measures and improve the legislative framework to achieve progress in this area, Aliyev said. At the same time, I believe that alternative energy sources wont be able to completely replace traditional sources, Aliyev noted. Mirzagaliev, in turn, spoke about the preparations for International Specialized Exhibition Expo-2017 Energy of the Future, which will be held in Kazakhstan. I also invite Azerbaijans energy minister to take part in the 8th International Forum on Energy for Sustainable Development, which will be held June 11-14 in Astana within the framework of the exhibition, said Mirzagaliev. The sides also discussed prospects of cooperation in the energy sector, the export of oil from the Kashagan oil field, the importance of establishing an extensive export system in Kazakhstan and other issues. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov After a five-year drought, chocolate and strawberry milk are making their way back into public school lunchrooms in Los Angeles. With a vote of 6 to 1, the Los Angeles Unified School District Tuesday loosened a district-wide ban on sugary, flavored milk that took effect in 2011. The board approved a pilot program to study the effects of reintroducing flavored milk in a small group of schools, all of which must volunteer to take part in the experiment. It is not that board members believe children arent consuming enough sugar. Rather, the decision to re-examine milk offerings stemmed from concern that the district is throwing out an obscene amount of food 600 tons of organic waste each day, according to a 2015 district study. Advertisement Much of whats being taken to the landfill is the plain milk that schools are encouraged by federal law to offer, but that students arent enthusiastically drinking. Right now we are ... taking garbage bags filled with milk to landfills, and that just doesnt make any sense to me, said board member Monica Ratliff, who introduced the idea of the flavored milk experiment. We cant continue to ignore this issue. What Ratliff proposed, and the board endorsed, is a four-part study in 21 schools that would treat school cafeterias as behavioral science laboratories. Will L.A. Unified school children drink more plain milk if they are also offered the sugary variety, as one study suggests? How might they respond if plain milk is offered to them in an appealing display case, or if they are shown an information campaign about how milk is good for them? Her proposal references a 2014 Cornell University study, which found that when Oregon elementary schools banned flavored milk, students caloric and sugar intake dropped, but they also rejected plain milk in increasing numbers. The health benefits of that milk went down the drain, as students threw their half-empty cartons into the trash. Parents and health advocates had lobbied successfully for the flavored milk ban, arguing that the drinks had unnecessary added sugar and contributed to childhood obesity. When the board approved a five-year, $100-million dairy contract, there wasnt a drop of chocolate milk allowed. I cant think of anywhere else we would do this. We wouldnt serve caramel apples to increase apple consumption. Brent Walmsley, founder of SugarWatch Brent Walmsley, founder of the advocacy group SugarWatch, said the board made the right call in 2011 and shouldnt retreat from its position in the name of reducing food waste. I cant think of anywhere else we would do this. We wouldnt serve caramel apples to increase apple consumption. We wouldnt glaze carrots with sugar to get increased carrot consumption, Walmsley said. Milk is getting this odd pass here. But among school board members, tastes, and minds, have changed. At every school I go to, the request is for flavored milk. Theres not one school that Ive gone to where they say they dont want flavored milk, said board member Scott Schmerelson. The lone no vote came from board member Monica Garcia, who said she would rather leave it to L.A. Unified staff to propose food waste solutions. Board members were unanimous on one point their desire to change the U.S. Department of Agricultures school meal regulations, which require schools to offer milk with meals in order to receive reimbursement. But their decision Tuesday may have a more immediate effect on flavored milk than on the federal government. The school districts milk supplier has said its willing to lower the amount of added sugar in order to find an equilibrium palatable to both students and parents. Student board member Karen Calderon said that when she met with a focus group of 14 L.A. Unified students, 13 of them endorsed the idea of dismantling the districts flavored milk ban. This is something Ive been passionate about for years now, so thank you, Calderon said. anna.phillips@latimes.com Twitter: @annamphillips To read the article in Spanish, click here MORE EDUCATION NEWS Huntington Park leaders voted to ban new charter schools for a year L.A. Unified decides fate of six charter schools; El Camino leader resigns ACLU: California schools outsource behavior problems to cops, and dont protect students in the process The ongoing tug of war between pro-charter school and anti-charter forces was focused Tuesday on the Los Angeles Board of Education, which faced controversial decisions on the future of six campuses. By the end of a sometimes contentious meeting, the school board allowed one high-profile charter to survive in exchange for the departure of its leader. The board also voted to reject petitions for five schools run by two other organizations. The outcome was bittersweet for many at El Camino Real Charter High School in Woodland Hills. Advertisement The district agreed to stay a revocation process that would have returned El Camino to the control of the L.A. Unified School District. But founding executive director, David Fehte, consented to leave within the next week. Several governing board members also are expected to depart over the next several months. The L.A. school boards vote was 6 to 0 against a five-year renewal for three schools operated by locally based Magnolia Educational and Research Foundation. Board member George McKenna abstained. Magnolia came under widespread scrutiny after the Turkish government accused it and other U.S.-based charters with Turkish governing boards of helping foment a failed July coup in Turkey. The schools leaders denied any involvement. A more direct concern for L.A. Unified was Magnolias importing of Turkish nationals and their families for teaching and other staff positions. That past practice is the subject of an ongoing investigation by the districts inspector general. Magnolia operates 10 campuses, including eight in L.A. Unified; the ones up for renewal were Magnolia Science Academy 1 in Reseda, Magnolia Science Academy 2 in Van Nuys and Magnolia Science Academy 3 in Carson. The school board denied the other two charter renewals, for Celerity Dyad in South Los Angeles and Celerity Troika in Eagle Rock, in a 6-0 vote. Ref Rodriguez, who represents the area where the schools are located, abstained. The actions on these schools directly affected more than 13,000 students but also took on greater significance as the L.A. Unified School District struggles both to oversee and compete with charters. L.A. Unified has more of these independently operated schools than any other district, and, as they compete for students, charter growth is one major factor affecting the districts financial stability. Charter advocates on Tuesday asserted that L.A. Unified is growing increasingly hostile to new and existing charters, and that district evaluators are seeking to close charters over relatively minor matters that have no bearing on academic performance. They insisted that L.A. Unified is acting unfairly and possibly in violation of state regulations. An attorney for Magnolia went further, calling the focus on the Turkish workers, discrimination based on nationality and religious beliefs. These people have never done anything but provide a world-class education to inner-city kids in Los Angeles, attorney Jerry Simmons said. District officials maintained that all six of the schools had problems that justified taking action despite their academic performance, which ranged from acceptable to much better. The approval process for charters has taken on a ritual-like quality in the nations second-largest school system. Whenever a charter has an item affecting its future before the board, its supporters, officials and attorneys turn out en masse. Tuesday was no different, as Magnolia and Celerity brought out hundreds of supporters. Like Magnolia, Celerity Educational Group has been dealing with an inspector-generals investigation, which examined possible conflicts of interest. The unfinished investigations are confidential, so the official presentations against Celerity and Magnolia involved other matters, including alleged shortcomings in the wording of renewal petitions and allegations that the organizations failed to provide investigators with all requested documents in a timely fashion. L.A. board members were ultimately swayed by the argument that Celerity was operating too secretively and that an independent fiscal team had issues with Magnolias responsiveness to problems. Celerity and Magnolia could appeal to the county and the state to remain open. El Caminos charter had been renewed last year, but it faced possible revocation over such issues as Fehtes use of school credit cards for wine, costly dining tabs, upgraded air travel and expensive hotel rooms. He called the charges inadvertent and reimbursed the school for more than $6,000 when they were called to his attention. El Camino took a variety of measures to placate L.A. Unified, including canceling staff credit cards. Then, last week, chief business officer Marshall Mayotte agreed to leave. But that apparently wasnt enough for the school district, and Fehte, whom supporters considered instrumental to the schools success, became the next domino to fall. I will do what it takes to preserve this charter which we all worked so hard to establish, Fehte said in a statement. howard.blume@latimes.com Twitter: @howardblume Most teenagers can't vote in this election. But they know what theyd like to say to the next president. L.A. Times High School Insider asked current and recent high school students what issues are important to them, and what they want the next president to know. More than 140 students chimed in, most from Southern California. Many asked for immigration reform so they wont have to be afraid that theyll return home from school to find their parents deported. They want college to be affordable so theyre not weighed down by student debt before they get a chance to contribute to their country. They want to know that the president will put aside partisan politics and lead. They also want to protect the marginalized: those who fear being shot by police, those who need safe bathrooms. Here are some of their messages, addressed to their future president. I see African Americans getting shot and killed on a weekly basis on the news and I dont want to be another hashtag. I am scared to grow up. I am scared to not be in the protection of my mother and father. I am scared that when its time to go to college, thousands of miles away from my parents, Im going to be harassed by a police officer. I see African Americans getting shot and killed on a weekly basis on the news and I dont want to be another hashtag. I dont want to be that other black girl who was gunned down at a traffic stop. I want my future president to help put a stop to this abuse. I need my future president to help me make sure I have a future and that my brother and sisters have a future as well. ShaVon Luckey, 15 CHAMPS Charter High School, Los Angeles [Immigrants] come to the U.S. for a new life, but oftentimes they dont get that. Im a Latino, born and raised in Los Angeles, and I have noticed that undocumented immigrants dont have rights to be part of the United States. Just because they are immigrants doesnt mean that they shouldnt be treated equally. Both my parents are naturalized citizens. They always tell me about the struggle they faced when they first arrived in the United States. Even though they have their papers, they are treated as if they are nothing. Im tired of witnessing immigrants being rejected [for] a job because theyre undocumented. They have families they have to raise and, by not being able to get a job, they cant put food on the table and live the American dream. People come to the U.S. for a new life, but oftentimes they dont get that. My question to you is how will you help the people who have all these issues? Will you be courageous enough to legalize people who are undocumented? How will you make that difference, or a better question, will you be the one to make that difference? Juan Sandoval, 17 Los Angeles River School, Los Angeles Please dont let me continue to live in a world where rapists walk free and victims are silenced. Rebecca Castillo, 18 Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pennsylvania Graduate of Charter Oak High School, Covina I dont want my list of colleges to be limited by what my family can and cannot afford. College is expensive. Its lack of affordability binds me. I dont want my list of colleges to be limited by what my family can and cannot afford. I dont want to get accepted to my dream college only to be forced to turn it down. I dont want to worry about whether I will be able to attend college outside of San Diego, simply because of the cost of room and board. Upon entering the adult world, I ask that I not be crushed by the weight of my debt. I want to continue to the next chapter of my life without being cornered by stress and worry and having my every step affected by my decision to pursue a higher education. I dont want to force my own financial burdens on my mom, who will have to take out loans to pay for my schooling while still having two other daughters to support and to later put through college. It frustrates all of us. I will still be in school when the next one of us reaches this point in her life. Although she hasnt yet realized how soon this will affect her, I dont want to think about how my debt will shrink her window of opportunity further. Kate Sequeira, 17 San Dieguito Academy, Carlsbad You must make it faster and easier for people like my parents to walk the path of citizenship, because no child should have a backup plan for their parents. Luis Valente, 16 South East High School, South Gate I need it to weigh heavily on your mind that the largest-scale mass murder of LGBTQ+ people happened this year. I want to live in a country where I dont have to fight tooth and nail just so that people in my community can feel safe. I need it to weigh heavily on your mind that the largest-scale mass murder of LGBTQ+ people happened this year: not centuries ago, not decades ago, but this year, the year you are stepping in to take office. I need you to be aware of how LGBT people of every age, race, sexuality, gender, income level and location in America are highly susceptible to hate crimes, abuse, sexual assault, homelessness, bullying, discrimination and murder. I need to know that it terrifies you as much as it terrifies me, as much as it informs my every decision, as much as it impacts my ability to trust others or express myself. I need to know this on behalf of myself, a lesbian teenager, and on the behalf of every single queer person Ive ever met, befriended or loved. We need you to make a change. You want to make this country a better place? Well believe it when we see less of our friends, less of our heroes, less of our innocents suffering, fighting and dying. Sarah Orgiyvsky, 16 CHAMPS Charter High School, Los Angeles Im a hyphenated American. ... Chinese comes before American, as though all the things that make me different come before my love for my nation. Simone Chu, 17 Arcadia High School, Arcadia Be a role model to my peers and me, both in policy and in character. Im tired of American exceptionalism of glorifying our leaders as something more than human. I want a president who is honest simple as that. I want a president who doesnt present themselves as superhuman, but manages to embody the qualities a leader (or any person) should: empathy, candor, justice, compassion. A politician who attempts perfection will be an incredible disappointment when their flaws surface. Be representative, but not patronizing. Live our struggles next to us, but use your authority and influence to prevent them in the future. Admit our nations mistakes, and vow not to repeat them. Stop leaving blanks in our history textbooks where the names of the slaves and Native Americans should be; we built this nation on their backs. Let it be okay to be queer, transgender, an ethnic minority, a female, gender non-binary, Muslim, Hindu or Buddhist. Fight back with grace and resilience, and dont back down. You must promote acceptance, not just tolerance. Be a role model to my peers and me, both in policy and in character. Charlotte Weinman, 16 Harvard-Westlake High School, Studio City Reach Sonali Kohli at Sonali.Kohli@latimes.com or on Twitter @Sonali_Kohli. High School Insider project lead: Kyle Finck Digital production: Sean Greene Building a cougar crossing over one of Southern Californias busiest freeways will cost tens of millions of dollars funding that is unlikely to come any time soon from the states transportation kitty. So advocates have launched a campaign to raise private donations for a span over the 10-lane 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills that would provide safe passage to mountain lions and other wildlife moving between the Santa Monica Mountains and inland habitat. The effort got a jump-start from the Annenberg Foundation on Wednesday when the philanthropy announced a challenge grant that will match every dollar, up to $1 million total, donated by other foundations. Advertisement Although best known for its education and arts funding, the foundation has supported animal-protection causes around the world and views the wildlife crossing as a way to improve the overall ecosystem, said foundation Executive Director Cinny Kennard. The roughly 15 mountain lions that live in the Santa Monica range desperately need new blood. Isolated by freeways and urban development, adults are breeding with close relatives and losing the genetic diversity necessary for population survival. Its easy to think of Los Angeles as a concrete jungle. The truth is, were home to one of the most richly diverse ecosystems in the entire world. Wallis Annenberg, Annenberg Foundation president A recent study by UCLA and National Park Service scientists concluded that the inbreeding leaves the local cougar population at risk of extinction within the next 50 years. Its easy to think of Los Angeles as a concrete jungle. The truth is, were home to one of the most richly diverse ecosystems in the entire world, Annenberg President Wallis Annenberg said in a statement. We need to do more to protect our mountain lion population, to help them breed and thrive. A 2015 Caltrans report presented two alternatives for the 101 crossing, which would rise immediately west of Liberty Canyon Road. Interested in the stories shaping California? Sign up for the free Essential California newsletter A bridge thats 165 feet wide and 200 feet long would cost $30 million to $35 million. A longer span over the freeway and Agoura Road the choice of wildlife advocates would cost $50 million to $60 million. This is a capital campaign, just like a hospital, said Molly Judge, the West Coast philanthropy director for the National Wildlife Federation, which is helping spearhead the drive for public and private funding. This is a capital campaign, just like a hospital. Molly Judge, West Coast philanthropy director for the National Wildlife Federation Given Californias highway construction backlog, Judge said proponents are seeking state conservation money, rather than transportation funds. Last year, they obtained a $1-million grant from the California State Coastal Conservancy. Backers want to raise $10 million from public and private sources by the end of next year to advance the project, which they hope to build by 2021. The crossing would not help Southern Californias most celebrated mountain lion, P-22, who took up residency in Los Angeles Griffith Park after managing to cross not only the 101 Freeway but the 405 Freeway as well. What hes accomplished is pretty powerful, Judge said. Hes become a figurehead for the movement to coexist with wildlife and to protect habitat. To call attention to the bridge initiative, which is part of the federations #SaveLACougars campaign, a team of advocates, scientists and government officials on Wednesday are beginning a four-day, 40-mile walk that will retrace P-22s likely journey from the Santa Monicas to Griffith Park. The starting point is the site of the proposed cougar crossing. bettina.boxall@latimes.com Twitter: @boxall ALSO Jury reaches verdict in Derrick Rose civil rape trial No charges filed against 2 men arrested in deadly Jamaican restaurant shooting San Francisco high school shaken after 4 students wounded by gunfire outside campus A man in a wheelchair killed himself Tuesday after detonating a pipe bomb inside a health clinic in Oakland, police said. The deadly incident was reported about 6:26 p.m. at the San Antonio Health Center in the 1000 block of International Boulevard, according to the Oakland Police Department. Witnesses told police the adult man entered the lobby of the clinic and appeared to be armed with what looked like a pipe bomb. Advertisement He then detonated the explosive and took his own life, police said. Pipe bomb set off at San Antonio Health Ctr. #oakland by man in wheelchair. PD: suicide-no others hurt @nbcbayarea pic.twitter.com/bcfxV4hODC TerryMcSweeney (@TerryMcSweeney) October 19, 2016 No other injuries were reported. The investigation reveals this is an isolated incident where an individual took his own life, the department said in a statement. The Alameda County Sheriffs Office said its bomb squad assisted police to ensure the area was safe and secure. veronica.rocha@latimes.com For breaking news in California, follow @VeronicaRochaLA on Twitter. ALSO Blunt arguments at the close of NBA star Derrick Roses civil rape trial Brush fire at the site of the Porter Ranch gas leak is 85% contained 2 teens shot and wounded in South Los Angeles; no suspect in custody Francisca Molina had been an American citizen just a few minutes when she was inundated with sales pitches: Come take a photo with Donald Trump! All Hillary information here! Dont forget to vote! She and thousands of freshly sworn-in citizens exited their naturalization ceremonies at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Tuesday to find a scene that went beyond the usual peddling of T-shirts, flowers and teddy bears. Outside the centers doors, backers of both presidential campaigns crowded around them, vying to get more registered voters for their party. Advertisement Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton worked the crowd too. (Well, their life-size cutouts did). Trump flashed two thumbs-up, and Clinton smiled, clad in her trademark pantsuit. Molina, 68, born in Mexico, made her way through the crowd with help from her daughter and grandchildren. Like many, she was too overwhelmed with emotion to talk about politics or even make sense of the commotion around her. I have the power to vote, said Molina, who waited 18 years to become a citizen. Thats what matters most. Her plan was to go home, eat tamales and think things through, with input from her daughter, a Clinton supporter, and a granddaughter, a Trump backer. Less than a week before Californias registration deadline, some new citizens found themselves torn between the advice of loved ones. Others, like Editha Eckert of East Hollywood, had already made up their minds. Makia and Emmanuel Nunes pose for a photo with a cutout of Hillary Clinton after several thousands of people were sworn-in as new American citizens at the L.A. Convention Center on Tuesday. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times ) Im with Hillary because shes a woman fighter, said Eckert, who was born in the Philippines. Her husband, Larry, and her son, Earl Rich, rooted for her at the ceremony, but they disagreed with her choice. I just cant stand the sound of Hillarys voice, her husband told her. I know you cant, she said, laughing. Its too bad because shes going to win. Volunteers from both parties typically set up booths at the center each month to register new citizens. But with the election three weeks away, the entrance to the center was packed with more than half a dozen booths operated by immigrant-rights groups, nonprofits organizations, political party organizers and the Los Angeles Public Library. More than a dozen voter registration workers were working independently to sign up citizens. Some volunteers set up as early as 6 a.m. to get a prime spot near the centers exit, where they can best access people. This is the busiest weve ever seen things here, said Renee Nahum, political chair of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party. Everybodys been pretty good about keeping a cool head. Crystal Siri and her mother, Maria Siri of Laos, pose with a Donald Trump cutout after being sworn-in. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times ) Of course, there were a few minor skirmishes: Democrats taunted Republicans for flashing a Latinos for Trump sign during a group photo, when, according to them, they didnt have any Latino volunteers. And one Republican, Debra Oresko of La Habra, approached a registration worker and questioned her tax-paying record. I think shes only been in the country like seven days, she said. Each side policed the other to keep them from violating the convention center rules, such as soliciting citizens inside or blocking their pathway as they exited their ceremony. At the Republican booth, Trump supporter Stephen Saletros said the goal wasnt to push the candidate onto people, though his cutout was a popular stop to snap selfies. Were here to say congratulations, he said. We want to show them were diverse and were inclusive. Standing by the front doors with a handful of balloons in his hand, Rolando Sifuentes, born in Guatemala, looked at the scene and shook his head. His brother, Marco, had just become a citizen and would soon register to vote. Hes going to do whatever he wants, Sifuentes said. But if you ask me, I think this whole thing is ridiculous. We should forget this election and just start all over. esmeralda.bermudez@latimes.com Twitter: @LATBermudez Two men arrested on suspicion of murder following a bloody gun battle at an underground Jamaican restaurant over the weekend have been released without charges, according to officials. Mowayne McKay, 33, and Diego Reid, 25, were released from jail Tuesday evening after prosecutors said they needed additional evidence to consider formal charges against the men, according to Det. Meghan Aguilar, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Police Department. Investigation into the violence that killed four is continuing, according to Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney. Advertisement McKay and Reid, who are Jamaican nationals, are not thought to be the men who initially confronted and killed the first victim at at the non-permitted restaurant in the West Adams neighborhood, Los Angeles Police Capt. Peter Whittingham told The Times. Those gunmen remain at large, he said. At the time, the captain said it was not yet known how many -- if any -- people were killed by shots fired by McKay or Reid. But he said after consulting with prosecutors, police decided the evidence against the men was strong enough to arrest them. Generally speaking, if a person has been arrested on suspicion of committing a crime, but is not formally charged by prosecutors within three days, they must be released from custody. McKay and Reid were arrested on suspicion of murder early Sunday after they were found at area hospitals seeking treatment for gunshot wounds. At the time, Whittingham said eyewitness accounts and other evidence, including videos, led police to the men. Gunfire erupted at Dillys Kitchen, in the 2900 block of Rimpau Boulevard, after two men confronted another man and fatally shot him, according to police. The dispute, which occurred during a birthday celebration, likely arose from a drug deal gone bad, Whittingham said. As some 50 birthday celebrants ran for cover, a gun battle broke out between associates of the man who was killed and the two men who had confronted him, the captain said. A total of nine men and six women were struck by gunfire. The four people who died were all men, police said. Their identities have not yet been released. Anyone with details about the shooting is urged to call gang homicide Dets. David Dilkes or Isidro Soto at (323) 786-5110. Anyone wishing to remain anonymous should call the L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477 or go directly to lacrimestoppers. veronica.rocha@latimes.com For breaking news in California, follow @VeronicaRochaLA on Twitter. ALSO Jury rules NBA star Derrick Rose and friends did not rape woman San Francisco high school shaken after 4 students wounded by gunfire outside campus Judge: Ex-LAPD sergeant violated ethics rules after stop of Django Unchained actress, but shouldnt be fined Classes resumed at a San Francisco high school Wednesday, just one day after four students were wounded by gunfire outside the school, officials said. Security was increased at June Jordan School for Equity and counselors were meeting with students and faculty, according to the San Francisco Unified School District. Though only four students were physically injured, this terrible incident has shaken everyone in the community, particularly the staff and students at June Jordan, Myong Leigh, the district interim superintendent, said in a statement Wednesday. Fortunately the school has a strong tradition of coming together daily to discuss challenging topics and to support one another. Advertisement Gunfire erupted about 3:17 p.m. Tuesday outside of the campus when students were being dismissed, school officials and police said. The shooter was accompanied by three other males, police said. Students ran from the parking lot as the shots rang out Three 15-year-old male students and a 15-year-old female student were struck by gunfire, police said. They were taken to area hospitals. School officials said they were recovering from their injuries. Responding officers thought initially that they had arrived at an active shooting scene, because they spotted the injured students inside the school, Officer Carlos Manfredi told reporters Tuesday. Officers immediately began searching for the shooter, thinking that suspect might still be in the school shooting, he said. The suspects had fled before police arrived, however. School officials said the suspects were not students. They were targeting a student who attends June Jordan School for Equity for reasons that are presently unclear, according to the interim superintendent. I need to state emphatically that this isolated event, although awful, should not be viewed as a negative reflection on the school, Leigh said. The campus and its classes, he said, are intentionally kept small to motivate students to be independent thinkers and go to college. We deeply appreciate the educators and students at June Jordan School for Equity and will proudly stand by them through this disturbing, but temporary, challenge, he said. veronica.rocha@latimes.com For breaking news in California, follow @VeronicaRochaLA on Twitter. ALSO Man in wheelchair detonates pipe bomb in Oakland clinic, killing himself 2 teens girls wounded in drive-by shooting in South Los Angeles Judge: Ex-LAPD sergeant violated ethics rules after stop of Django Unchained actress, but shouldnt be fined San Francisco police said four students were injured and one of them is in critical condition after shots were fired in the parking lot of a school around the time students were being dismissed. The gunfire erupted outside the City Arts and Technology High School and the June Jordan School for Equity, which share a campus, Officer Carlos Manfredi said. Three of the victims ran inside the school, he said, and a fourth victim hurt in the shooting went to a hospital. Advertisement Manfredi said the shooting happened in the schools parking lot. The students were initially ordered to stay in place until police searched each room and determined it was not an active shooter situation, he said. The shooting happened during the schools dismissal time, Manfredi said. Four male suspects wearing dark hoodies and jeans were seen leaving the area. Investigators say they believe at least one of the injured persons was targeted. ALSO A proposition to legalize pot raises DUI concerns: We are going to start losing folks in astronomical numbers Aliso Canyon leak prompts feds to recommend dozens of safety changes Michael Moore to release surprise Trump film in L.A. on Wednesday UPDATES: 7:15 p.m.: This article was updated with news of a fourth person injured officials originally said three people were hurt and about one victims condition. This article was originally published at 6:05 p.m. Jeremy Haley worked security at Denver International Airport, studied to be an air traffic controller in Great Falls, Mont., and sold natural gas leases in Williston, N.D. But he was anxious and adrift. Night after night the lanky, heavily tattooed young man took refuge in vanilla-flavored vodka and Coke. I was looking for something to fill the void, he said. After a drunk-driving arrest, he heard of an obscure tropical plant called kratom. Advertisement The leafy botanical, related to coffee, has been used throughout Southeast Asia for centuries to treat ailments including anxiety, chronic pain and drug addiction. It has become increasingly popular in the U.S. in the wake of an opioid drug crisis that is killing close to 20,000 people a year. Haley, 30, ordered a batch from a company called Kratom King in Indonesia. When the powdered leaf arrived, he dissolved it in water and drank it. It took about 10 minutes to kick in, he said. I felt a sense of reverence for being alive. It was calm, relaxing energy. The leaves, he said, eliminated his desire for booze and soothed his anxiety. Inspired with a new purpose, Haley began peddling kratom on the streets of Denver before starting Rocky Mountain Kratom and selling it online. A photo illustration of kratom products that until recently could be legally purchased in the U.S. (Joe Raedle / Getty Images ) But his plans to open the Artisans Apothecary, perhaps the first shop in the country specializing in kratom, hit a major snag. On Aug. 31, the federal government said it would list kratom as a Schedule 1 drug on par with heroin, LSD and methamphetamine by the end of September. The Drug Enforcement Agency called it an imminent health threat, saying kratom was addictive and had been implicated in 15 deaths, though 14 of those involved other drugs as well. The agency also noted that kratom resulted in 660 calls to poison control centers between 2010 and 2015. It is already banned in Vermont, Alabama, Indiana, Arkansas and Wisconsin. Denvers Department of Environmental Safety put a hold on Haleys kratom supply, scuttling his September grand opening. Yet few were prepared for the national outcry that followed. I have been with the DEA for 20 years and have never seen this level of public response, said Melvin Patterson, a spokesman for the agency. They were flooded with calls. Protesters descended on both the U.S. and Colorado capitols to rally against the plan. Fifty-one members of Congress from both parties sent letters to the DEA, the Office of Management and Budget and the Justice Department demanding they reconsider. Given that we are in the midst of a drug crisis and there is promising evidence of kratoms potential medical benefits, including the possibility of new, safer medications for the treatment of pain, we believe that placing kratom in Schedule 1 without adequate time for experts to weigh in via public comment may have unintended consequences, said one letter signed by Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.). Other legislators, including conservatives such as Rep. Steve King (R-Utah), wrote a letter saying it would be premature to ban the drug while research was being done on kratoms role in reducing opioid withdrawal symptoms. I have been with the DEA for 20 years and have never seen this level of public response. Melvin Patterson, agency spokesman In a rare retreat, the DEA backed down. It delayed the ban and opened the matter for six weeks of public comment. We have heard from a lot of people who self-medicate with this for pain and opioid addiction, Patterson said. We just want to make sure its safe. The American Kratom Assn. declared victory. It is an unprecedented move by the DEA, said the associations director, Susan Ash. I dont think we have ever seen a turnaround like this in the history of the Controlled Substances Act. She said there are roughly 3 million to 5 million kratom users nationwide, and thousands had called the DEA and members of Congress to protest the planned ban. Ash, 46, said she used kratom to break a debilitating morphine habit that grew out of her struggle with fibromyalgia. In two weeks I went from a completely unproductive member of society to a changed person, she said. It eliminated my opioid cravings altogether. Researchers are trying to ferret out the addiction-reducing properties of mitragynine, the active ingredient in kratom, which is either drunk like tea or taken in capsules. Andrew Kruegel, a medicinal chemist at Columbia University, studies kratoms effect on brain receptors. He said the plants active ingredients seem to reduce the impact of opioid withdrawal, making it easier to get off the drugs. From what I have seen, its quite safe and has been used for hundreds of years in Southeast Asia, he said. But Dr. Lawrence Fox, a researcher at the National Institutes of Health, has a different perspective. In 2013, his son Alex, 20, had just broken free of opioids. The family was about to sit down to dinner one night when Alex announced he was too tired to join them. His father found him dead the next day in his room. Kratom packets were in his desk. The medical examiner found O-Desmethyltramadol in his body, which has been marketed as an opioid substitute sometimes added to kratom and sold as Krypton, Fox said. It has been linked to several overdose deaths. He supports banning kratom until more is known. Right now people are buying this stuff over the Internet and have no idea what they are getting, said Fox, who stressed that he wasnt speaking for the NIH. I dont want anyone else to die the way Alex did. Haley said anyone buying kratom should ask sellers to produce lab reports detailing the ingredients and not to purchase anything with additives. Meanwhile, hes getting his store ready for another attempted grand opening this month. It sits in an eclectic Denver neighborhood and is still a bit spartan. Medicinal plants, cactuses and succulents dot the airy interior. A pair of young kratom trees sit beneath plastic boxes where a mister bathes them in dewy fog. Reclining in his back office, Haley, wearing a fossilized mollusk around his neck, said he plans to sue the city for lost business. And he wonders if hell be shut down again in six weeks. I dont want to sound too dramatic, he said, but the DEA will have blood on its hands if they make people go back to opioids. Kelly is a special correspondent. ALSO These 76-year-old twins have grown pot for decades. Heres why they oppose legalization He got high and killed his wife. A lawsuit claims edible marijuana is to blame Governor who called legalization reckless now says Colorados pot industry is working Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Anakhanum Hidayatova, Orkhan Guluzade Trend: Construction of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline in the European territory depends on political choice of the EU, Yusuf Cinar, president of the Turkish international research center Strategic Outlook, told Trend Oct. 19. Cinar said that Europe needs continuous supply of energy and doesnt want any delays in deliveries. After the crisis in Ukraine it turned out that a political decision can affect the EU's energy policy, he said. Europe wanted the supply of Russian gas through Ukraine to continue, and as a result bureaucratic barriers to the South Stream project emerged. The expert believes that the EU is not really willing to implement the Turkish Stream project, but the Union doesnt have many alternatives. If the foreign policy and energy strategy of the EU dont interfere with each other, if the political situation in Ukraine changes, the EU energy companies will be able to participate in the construction of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline, but if the EU is against the project, then the Turkish Stream has the risk to face bureaucratic obstacles, just like the South Stream project did, Cinar said. Russia suspended the implementation of the South Stream project, which was designed to supply Russian gas to Europe bypassing Ukraine in December, 2014. The reason was the non-constructive position of the EU. It was decided to build the Turkish Stream instead. Russia and Turkey signed an intergovernmental agreement October 10 on the implementation of the Turkish Stream project. The agreement involves construction of two branches of the main gas pipeline under the Black Sea, the power of each branch being 15.75 billion cubic meters of gas. One branch is provided to supply gas directly to the Turkish market, the other for the supply of gas by transit through Turkey to Europe. The intergovernmental agreement also stipulates that these two offshore branches should be built by December 2019. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Anahanum , @o_quluzade Questions of conflicts aside, Hillary Clinton says shes proud of Clinton Foundation Challenged about ethical questions at the Clinton Foundation, Hillary Clinton cited work in Haiti and around the world. Hillary Clinton defended the work of the Clinton Foundation during Wednesdays debate, brushing aside questions about conflicts and criticisms from Donald Trump. The sprawling foundation, which works on challenges in the developing world and in the U.S., has drawn criticism for accepting gifts from foreign countries and businesses with international interests while Clinton served as secretary of State. Everything I did as secretary of State was in furtherance of our countrys interests and values, Clinton said, saying there is no evidence of special handling for donors, but a lot of evidence of the good work done by the organization. Trump took the opening to slam the foundation for accepting money from Middle Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia. These are people who push gays off buildings; these are people who kill women and treat women horribly, Trump said, calling on Clinton to give money back. He also criticized the foundation for its mixed record in Haiti, saying he got an earful about that during a tour of Miamis Little Haiti neighborhood. Let me tell you, they hate the Clintons because of what happened in Haiti, he said. Clinton said she would be happy to match her foundation with Trumps, which she noted used some of its funds to buy a portrait of Trump, and is under investigation for improperly raising money. The Clinton Foundation was created in 1997, while Bill Clinton was still in office, to build the Clinton presidential library in Little Rock, Ark. Since then, it has grown into a worldwide health and development organization, with a range of interests and projects as diverse as planting trees and promoting healthy school lunches. Among its goals, the foundation seeks to promote worldwide economic growth, increase opportunities for women and girls, fight childhood obesity and ameliorate the effects of climate change. The foundation has raised about $2 billion from wealthy individuals, corporations and foreign governments. Its efforts, including disaster relief and providing low-cost medicines, have helped save millions of lives. Despite assertions to the contrary, the foundation is not a money-making enterprise for the Clinton family. The former president, his wife and their daughter, Chelsea, receive no salary from the foundation, which spends 80% to 90% of its expenditures on charitable programs. Much of the controversy surrounds the foundations fundraising and allegations that donors including foreign governments that gave millions traded contributions for access to Clinton when she was secretary of State during President Obamas first term. To address those concerns, the foundation had signed a memorandum of understanding in December 2008 with Obamas transition team promising to publicly report its donors, though not specifying how much they have given. Hillary Clinton also signed a separate ethics agreement with the State Department. The Clintons, however, rejected suggestions at the time they ban all foreign donations to, at the least, avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest. And emails showed they did did not always keep operations as separate from State Department affairs as they had promised. Hillary Clinton met with some of the foundations donors and others in the Clintons orbit reached out to the secretary of State seeking opportunities for some givers. There has been no evidence, however, of any explicit quid pro quo. Bill Clinton has said he will cut ties to the foundation if his wife wins in November. The foundation also announced that if Hillary Clinton wins it will stop taking new contributions from foreign and corporate donors. Pro-Clinton group will air ads linking vulnerable GOP senators to Trump (Jim Cole / Associated Press) A super PAC backing Hillary Clinton plans to air ads tying vulnerable Republican senators to GOP nominee Donald Trump in two battleground states. Sens. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania are facing tough reelection battles, and their opponents have tried to link them with the controversial statements of their partys standard-bearer. The ads are an indication of the confidence the group feels about Clintons chances of winning the White House. This is just the beginning of expanding the map & supporting Dems. More to come soon, tweeted Guy Cecil, co-chair and chief strategist for Priorities USA, on Tuesday. The senators have struggled to deal with their partys nominee. Ayotte once said she would vote for Trump, apologized after calling him a role model for children, and then announced she would not vote for him after recordings emerged of Trump making lewd comments about women. Toomey is refusing to say who he supports for president. Priorities USA is focused on electing Clinton to the White House, and has raised more than $133 million through the end of August. The group has not disclosed the ads it plans to air or how much it is spending. Cecil indicated on Twitter that the group planned to advertise on television and African American radio in Georgia, another sign of their confidence in Clintons campaign. The state last voted to send a Democrat to the White House nearly a quarter-century ago. Im Davan Maharaj, editor-in-chief of the Los Angeles Times. Here are some story lines I dont want you to miss today. TOP STORIES Smear and Loathing in Las Vegas Advertisement Vicious allegations. Vehement denials. Eye-popping guest lists. The buildup to the final presidential debate tonight between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in Las Vegas is as dramatic (and/or mentally fatiguing) as ever. What must each side do to make a mark at the last big event before the election? Cathleen Decker breaks it down. More Politics -- Et tu, Trump supporter? More of them no longer think he can win, our poll has found. -- President Obama tells Trump: Stop whining and try to win votes instead. -- When truth is stranger than fiction: TV writers weigh in on the presidential campaign. -- A cinematic October surprise: Michael Moore is releasing a film on Trump and Clinton, filmed over the past 11 days. -- Join us at the Debate Watch Spectacular in downtown L.A. for an evening of music, laughs and political analysis. In This Drought, Whos Thinking About Floods? Answer: the Army Corps of Engineers. A new study says more than 3,000 homes and businesses along the L.A. River could be submerged by an average of 5 to 10 feet of water when a so-called 100-year flood hits. The number of properties that could be affected is much larger than previous estimates and includes areas such as Atwater Village, Elysian Valley, Griffith Park, Glendale and Burbank. Whats a homeowner to do? Why L.A.s Teacher Housing Has No Teachers Nearly a decade ago, the LAUSD was looking to retain new teachers who were leaving because of skyrocketing housing costs. The solution: Build affordable apartments on unused district land. The hitch: The teachers earn too much to qualify for the units under federal rules. So who lives there instead? Read on. In Nigeria: An Infants Cry and a Fathers Risky Mission Boko Haram wants to establish an Islamic state in Nigeria, and part of its strategy involves killing anyone who dares to harvest or hunt food. The result in northeastern Nigeria, once a breadbasket, is a famine in which 1 out of 5 children suffering from malnutrition is expected to die without help. If youre a father, what do you do to feed your 1-year-old son and family of six? The Los Angeles Times and San Bernardino It was a tragic and heartbreaking event that left 14 people dead the biggest terrorist attack on U.S. soil since 9/11. But the story of San Bernardino didnt start and doesnt end there. Thats why were trying to help a new generation engage with the city. On Thursday, an L.A. Times delegation will be in San Bernardino to host a community event and donate to student journalists the entire prize money from The Times Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the attack. The ceremony starts at noon at the Cal State San Bernardino student union and is open to the public. YOUR ELECTION GUIDE -- What to make of Californias 17 propositions on the ballot. -- Reminder to Californians: You have until Monday to register to vote. -- Endorsements by The Times editorial board. CALIFORNIA -- Thousands mourned two Palm Springs police officers killed in what has been called a planned attack. -- Steve Lopez writes about a miracle baby who grew up to devote her life to helping abused and neglected children. -- WikiLeaks emails show that L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti was a possible VP pick. -- After a five-year drought, chocolate and strawberry milk are making their way back into public school lunchrooms in Los Angeles. HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS -- Heres how Rock Hall nominee Tupac Shakur popularized a sound and became a myth. -- Seth Rogen, Jordan Peele and other celebrities will perform short plays written by fifth-graders in downtown L.A. -- A big band in a small-ish room: When Green Day rolled out its new album Revolution Radio to the Palladium. -- What Nobel Prize? Bob Dylan has been silent on his historic honor. NATION-WORLD -- Two Iranian Americans, a father and son, reportedly have been sentenced to 10 years in prison in Iran on charges of spying for the United States. -- A federal judge who ruled on some of Mexicos highest-profile criminal cases was gunned down in broad daylight. -- Yazidi women and girls are held as slaves by Islamic State in Mosul. Will they survive the battle to free the city? -- An after-school Satan Club could be coming to your kids grade school. -- Theres an easy way to prevent cavities in kids teeth. So why are most children in the U.S. not using it? BUSINESS -- A federal task force has made 44 recommendations to prevent another Aliso Canyon-style gas leak. -- Pasadenas Dog Haus will become a national chain with nearly 500 locations. -- Want a Tesla 3? Be prepared to wait a couple of years. SPORTS -- The Dodgers are two victories away from their first World Series berth since 1988 after a 6-0 win over the Cubs. -- The Dodgers Adrian Gonzalez chose not to stay in a Trump hotel in May, but he didnt want it to be news. OPINION -- The new rules of obstruction: No new Supreme Court justices until the next Republican president? -- Patt Morrison: Under the threat of police violence, some African Americans are writing their own obituaries in protest. WHAT OUR EDITORS ARE READING -- Who is Bill Mitchell, a.k.a. @mitchellvii on Twitter, who has become a prime social media surrogate for Trump? (BuzzFeed) -- A Silicon Valley man is trying to make cellphones less addictive. (The Atlantic) -- Would you like a chamber orchestra sent directly to your living room? (Wired) ONLY IN L.A. Vin Scully is off the air, but with the Dodgers in the postseason, the one and only voice of the team is still in the air. To wit: the Vin Scully Snapchat filter at Dodger Stadium. Get a look at it here. Please send comments and ideas to Davan Maharaj. After Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died this year, President Obama went about nominating a successor, as required by the Constitution. But Senate Republicans including John McCain of Arizona resisted, insisting that the vacancy should be filled by the president chosen by voters in November. They invoked (or fabricated) a rule that a presidents right to have his Supreme Court nominees considered by the Senate lapses in an election year. Now that Hillary Clinton seems likely to win the election, however, some Republicans are changing their tune. This week, McCain promised that we will be united against any Supreme Court nominee that Hillary Clinton, if she were president, would put up. Huh? It was a reminder of just how unprincipled Republicans have been in refusing to bring the court up to strength. This fight has been all about partisan advantage, and if that means the court must leave some important issues unresolved because of a 4-4 deadlock, so be it. Advertisement McCains outrageous threat also highlighted a longer-term problem: the bipartisan repudiation of the idea that the Senate should defer to a presidents choice of a Supreme Court justice so long as the nominee is well qualified, untarnished by accusations of personal wrongdoing and within the mainstream of legal thought. In 2005, 22 Democratic senators voted against the confirmation of Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., regarded as a moderate conservative and rated well qualified by the American Bar Assn. Among those voting no was Barack Obama, then a senator from Illinois. (Ironically, Roberts would go on to cast crucial votes to reject challenges to Obamas signature domestic proposal, the Affordable Care Act.) Almost five years later, 36 Republican senators, including McCain, voted against Obamas nomination of Elena Kagan, a moderately liberal jurist also rated well qualified by the ABA. And now McCain threatens to oppose any Hillary Clinton nominee though his spokeswoman later said that he would thoroughly examine the record of any Supreme Court nominee put before the Senate and vote for or against that individual based on their qualifications. The Constitution does provide for a role for the Senate in the appointment of judges, including Supreme Court justices. But senators abuse that authority when they reflexively reject or block a nominee from a president of the opposite party. Merrick Garland, an experienced federal appeals court judge who was nominated by Obama in March to replace Scalia, still hasnt been afforded even a hearing. If Clinton wins and the voters also install a Democratic majority in the Senate, Republicans who decide to stonewall her Supreme Court nominations may find that their ultimate check on the president the filibuster will be taken away from them. Democrats went part of the way there in 2013, barring filibusters on other presidential nominations after Republicans blocked Obamas appointments to an important federal appeals court. The Republicans obstructionism is wrong; it also could backfire by giving the next president an even freer hand in shaping the Supreme Court. Some might call that poetic justice. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook Medical marijuana may be a billion-dollar industry in California, but its a cash business. Because marijuana remains illegal under federal law, most pot shops cant get bank accounts or accept credit card transactions because the financial services companies fear they would be penalized or shut down by federal regulators for handling money gained from unlawful drug sales. That means marijuana products are typically sold for cash, and dispensary owners pay their employees, their landlords and others in cash as well. Its not unusual for pot shop owners to haul bags of money tens and sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars to the state tax collectors office. But as unwieldy as the cash-only system is now, California regulators and cannabis businesses could be swimming in even more cash if voters pass Proposition 64 in November and the state legalizes adult recreational use of marijuana. California dispensaries sold an estimated $2.7-billion worth of marijuana last year, and industry observers predict the recreational and medicinal market could increase to $6 billion by 2020. Advertisement Marijuana is already easily accessible and widely used in California; it would be better for public health and for public safety if it was regulated. Proponents of Proposition 64 have drafted a logical, pragmatic plan for legalization, which includes a comprehensive licensing and regulatory system, and which the gives state legislators the flexibility to change the law to address unintended consequences. Thats one reason why The Times has endorsed Proposition 64. Marijuana is already easily accessible and widely used in California; it would be better for public health and for public safety if it was regulated and highly controlled for adult use. But even proponents must acknowledge that as long as the marijuana industry is a cash business, it will be harder for California to regulate and control. And there is little state officials can do to fix the banking problem as long as the federal government considers marijuana an illegal drug and classifies marijuana revenues as illegal proceeds. The problems are already apparent. Board of Equalization Chairwoman Fiona Ma estimates that the state collects only about a third of the taxes owed by existing medical marijuana businesses. And because cash transactions dont generate a reliable paper trail, tax collectors have resorted to sitting outside pot shops and counting customers to estimate sales revenue and taxes. Proposition 64 proponents say a new seed-to-sale regulatory system created for medical marijuana, and which would apply to recreational cannabis as well, should make it easier for the state to track tax revenues. Then there are the safety and logistical challenges of having so much cash on hand. Pot shops have been targeted for robberies and are often staffed with armed security guards. In theory, banks have some cover for working with marijuana customers. The Justice and Treasury departments issued guidance on how banks could serve state-sanctioned marijuana businesses, as part of President Obamas policy of allowing states to experiment with legalizing marijuana. But that doesnt apply to independent bank regulators like the Federal Reserve or the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. In practice, pot shops that are able to open accounts often find them shut down after a few months when the large cash deposits raise alarms, according to the National Cannabis Industry Assn. There have been various attempts by states to facilitate banking services for cannabis businesses. In 2014, Colorado officials approved a charter for the first-ever credit union created specifically to serve marijuana businesses, but the Federal Reserve refused to grant a master account to conduct transactions from the illegal sale of marijuana. California officials have also tried to devise workarounds. Ma, the Board of Equalization chairwoman, proposed creating a state bank to take cash deposits and allow businesses to make electronic transfers to pay their tax bills. But that wouldnt address the larger goal of letting customers and shops conduct transactions without cash. Ultimately, the solution will have to come from the federal government. Congress or the next administration could reclassify marijuana from Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substances Act (a designation meaning its as addictive as heroin and has no medicinal value) to a less-restrictive category that would allow banking transactions. Or Congress could bar federal regulators from penalizing banks that provide services to state-legal marijuana businesses. Lawmakers from Colorado and Oregon have introduced bipartisan bills that would allow banks to start providing services to marijuana businesses that are licensed and regulated by the state, but theyve failed to get traction in the House and Senate. If voters in California and four other states choose to legalize marijuana in November, how much longer can federal leaders ignore a multibillion dollar industry? For a complete list of The Times endorsements for the Nov. 8 ballot, go to latimes.com/endorsements. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook Los Angeles would be the worst affected county in America, losing 176,000 jobs by 2019, if Donald Trump is elected president and fulfills his campaign pledge to unleash trade wars with China and Mexico. Another 60,000 jobs would be lost in Orange County. California as a whole could see 640,000 jobs disappear, more than 4% of private sector employment. And this is just a small taste of what might happen nationallyaccording to a Peterson Institute model for a scenario in which the U.S. imposes a 45% tariff on China and a 35% tariff on Mexico, and they respond in kind. Trade issues have seldom reached the top of the U.S. political agenda. For decades, a consensus in favor of an open U.S.-led trade system held. But the 2016 election has marked a departure from this pattern. Both major candidates oppose the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the single major trade initiative under consideration. This opposition is regrettable: TPP would deliver significant gains to the U.S. economy, and its failure would be a blow to both the U.S. economy and U.S. standing in Asia. But Trump goes much further than Hillary Clinton, promising punitive tariffs on China and Mexico, at times advocating firm-specific tariffs (which are historically unprecedented and probably unconstitutional), talking about abrogating disastrous free trade agreements, and even considering withdrawing from the World Trade Organization. That last move, if implemented, could undo 70 years of economic diplomacy. Advertisement The last time the U.S. enacted protectionist trade policies, cutting itself off from the rest of the world, that action worsened the Great Depression. The sobering reality is that legal experts believe that under a variety of statutes, the president has considerable executive authority to do these things. Even if Trump were ultimately stymied by Congress or the courts, that process would be time-consuming, giving him ample opportunity to wreak havoc. Capital goods industries would be hardest hit. The trade shock would then propagate throughout the economy, also destroying jobs in sectors such as retail, restaurants, and temporary employment agencies. Millions of jobs that appear unconnected to international trademany of them filled by lower-skilled and lower-wage workerswould be at risk. The Peterson Institute forecastwhich used conventional economic models based on national income, employment and other macroeconomic variables, as well as models capturing the linkages among more than 300 sectors down to the county levelindicates that the worst year would be 2019. At that point, the economy would slowly begin recovering from the shock. Hiring would subsequently pick up, but there is no guarantee that displaced workers would be re-employed at their previous pay levels. Washington state would be hardest hit, experiencing a loss of private sector employment of more than 5%. However, a broad array of states, including a number of so-called battleground states, would suffer employment declines of more than 4%. In California, the job losses would not be limited to Southern California: Silicon Valley would take a major hit, with Santa Clara County losing 64,000 jobs, or more than 7% of private employment, for example. China and Mexico might decide to retaliate in ways other than imposing tariffs, but even in scenarios in which retaliation is limited, Southern California could be hurt. For instance, if China were to instruct its state-owned enterprises to stop buying U.S. business services, the state could lose nearly 14,000 jobs, with nearly 6,000 of those losses occurring in Los Angeles and Orange counties alone. The state and region would experience additional losses if China decided to stop buying U.S. aircraft. Theres a reason liberalizing international trade has been the policy of the United States for the last 70 years. The last time the U.S. enacted protectionist trade policies, cutting itself off from the rest of the world, that action worsened the Great Depression. While Clintons opposition to the TPP will cost America potential income gains and will undermine U.S. leadership in Asia, Trumps proposals could actually sink the U.S. economy. Clintons policies amount to a fender bender. Trumps would be a head-on collision. When asked about trade wars, Trump once insouciantly replied, Who the hell cares? In these trade wars, the American causalities will be numerous and disproportionately drawn from the ranks of lower-income citizens. Marcus Noland is executive vice president and director of studies at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, and senior fellow at the East-West Center. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook Los Angeles is in the grip of a widely acknowledged housing crisis. Two years ago, scholars at UCLA and Harvard proclaimed L.A. the most unaffordable rental market in the United States. This required some explaining: Other cities clearly have higher housing costs; Los Angeles won its dubious honor because so many of its residents make so little money. Los Angeles is also home to the most overcrowded neighborhoods in the country, as shown by a statistical analysis by The Times. Again, this seems counterintuitive, given the citys famous sprawl, but it is exactly the lack of density that makes housing here scarce, unaffordable and packed to the rafters. You might think we were on our way to solving the crisis if youve been anywhere close to downtown in the last few months. The historic core and nearby neighborhoods are dotted with massive cranes that signal new apartments and condominiums going up. In addition, L.A. Countys increasing minimum wage has already started boosting the incomes of many poor people. Unfortunately, as consequential as both these trends are, they arent solving the housing crisis. On average, the rent for a new one-bedroom unit is a jaw-dropping $2,000 a month. Advertisement In just four years from now, wages in L.A. will be at least $15 an hour, and yet households with two minimum-wage earners will still not be able to afford whats being built: On average, the rent for a new one-bedroom unit is a jaw-dropping $2,000 a month. Worse, as all this pricey housing goes in, nearby rents increase too, creating a gentrification double whammy: Longtime residents cant afford the new units, and they cant afford to stay put either. The city has no policy requiring developers to include affordable housing in new buildings or to replace any such units destroyed by new construction. Now there are signs that too much luxury housing is being built. Vacancy rates across the city are frighteningly low, just under 3%, but downtown the rate is climbing. To lure prospective tenants, landlords are offering incentives, but they are not lowering rents. Housing rights groups and labor unions developed Measure JJJ, on the Nov. 8 ballot, to combat the inequities renters face in Los Angeles. It represents the priorities of low-income Los Angeles residents in the most rapidly gentrifying areas of the city Boyle Heights, Koreatown, the South Figueroa corridor, and along the Los Angeles River. JJJ provides the city with a number of ways to increase housing for middle-class and low-income Angelenos, and at the same time creates jobs that can sustain working families. The measure doesnt apply to all residential projects, just to those bigger than 10 units for which the developers obtain special permission to build in places, or at densities, other than what city land-use rules would allow. Such waivers, which can dramatically increase the value of residential projects, are commonly granted and yet L.A. asks for nothing in return. If JJJ passes, apartment builders that meet the criteria would have to include up to 25% affordable housing. Some of those units must be priced within reach of households making less than 30% of the areas median income, and if there were affordable or rent-controlled units previously on the site, they would have to be replaced. In general, the lower the price per unit, the fewer such units must be included in a project. In all cases, developers could choose instead to pay into the citys Affordable Housing Trust Fund or to supply affordable housing elsewhere. For the jobs component of the measure, the criteria are these: Workers on JJJ projects must have graduated from a construction-trades apprenticeship program; 30% have to be permanent city residents; and 10% have to represent groups that experience barriers to employment including those with criminal backgrounds, the homeless, veterans, single parents and former foster youth. These labor rules are important. It doesnt make sense to build more affordable housing if people still cant find the work or wages that would allow them to sign a lease. Measure JJJ wont halt new housing developments, as some charge, or speed them up, as others claim. It merely makes sure that what gets built meets the needs not just of well-to-do newcomers in gentrifying neighborhoods, but also of the everyday working people who live there now. These folks need better jobs and places to live. Measure JJJ wont solve all of L.A.s housing problems, but it can help stop the citys evolution into a shiny preserve for the wealthy, devoid of diversity, rife with luxury properties, punctuated with enclaves for the poor and homeless. Measure JJJ can put more affordable housing into the Los Angeles market and create more jobs as well. It can ensure that newcomers will continue to be welcome here and that natives can stay where generations of their families have worked and lived. Cynthia Strathmann is executive director of Saje, a Los Angeles organization that advocates for tenant rights and equitable development. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook Newspapers write a number of obituaries in advance, to keep on file, because when heads of state or movie stars or Nobel laureates die, theres no way to assemble what amounts to a substantive instant biography on a tight deadline. Jahan Jones knows all of that. Hes a recent graduate of Arizona State Universitys journalism school, and in the year or so hes just spent working in New York as a page at NBC, at the Today show, hes given some thought to obituaries not those of the rich and renowned, but of black people whose names would likely make news only if they were killed in encounters with police. So he began the Black Obituary Project, a Web platform for African Americans to post their own obituaries as theyd imagine they might read, if they did indeed die in an encounter with police. And Jones began the project by writing his own. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THIS INTERVIEW ON THE PATT MORRISON ASKS PODCAST What is the Black Obituary Project? Advertisement The Black Obituary Project is a collaborative project undertaken by a gamut of black people and its intended to convey the reality of state-sanctioned violence and also its residual impacts. What we did was collect prewritten obituaries from black people with the intent being to show that police violence is indiscriminate; it affects all of us, young, old, all in between. Secondly it allows black people an opportunity to tell their own stories. So often, when African Americans are killed by the police, their photos are posted about, but their stories are not shared in a way that is humanizing. and so this gives black people a chance to share their stories, share their shortcomings in many cases, and tell their tales on their own terms. You studied journalism at Arizona State University, so writing obituaries isnt something thats unfamiliar to you. About a year ago, I was toying with the idea of writing my own obituary and submitting it as a freelance piece to, honestly, anyone who would take it. That piece never came into fruition. This year, in the wake of the Alton Sterling and Philando Castile shootings, I was driven to do it again, but I saw so many of my peers had similar sentiments. And I thought it would be even more powerful to loop them in on a project like this. So I fairly instantly began contacting people and seeing how open they would be to the idea of writing their own obituaries for the purposes of this project. I was really surprised, and you know weve enlisted thus far about 140, 150 people and were looking to grow. When you thought about writing your own, you were not, I hope, writing it in anticipation of anything but sending a big message to say, This is who I am and this is what my life would be summed up as if this happened to me. One of the things I also wanted to stress is that for black people to conceive of our own deaths actually isnt too formidable of a task. Because there is the so-called talk that black parents have with their children about ways for their children to avoid fatal conflicts with the police. They tell their children to stand up straight and keep their hands on the steering wheel and make sure their pants are pulled up and to treat the officer respectfully. So theres a checklist that black children are very familiar with. And theyre only familiar with that checklist because they know the repercussions of not adhering to it strictly could be their death. And so I was able to conceive of my own death fairly easily. Thats not to say it wasnt emotionally taxing, but the actual task of putting pen to paper was easy. And I think thats a sentiment shared by a number of other people in this project. You grew up in Arizona. Did your parents give you that talk, too? And have you had any encounters with police that reinforced it for you? Absolutely. My parents did give me that talk. I have family members who have been harassed by police. Personally, I can only speak of one specific incident that was kind of off-putting, and that was that I was just running through the park once, and a police officer drove his car onto the sidewalk of the park, so hes driving onto the grass. Mind you, Im the only one running throughout this park and he asked me who I am and what Im doing there, and he let me go on my way. But I would be lying if it didnt admit to the fact that as I was speaking to that man, all the things my parents told me about my potential interaction with police, and what I should do those things were going through my mind. Theres this sort of terror that black people experience in many cases when speaking with police, because they know that their lives could be ended at any moment for any reason. Of the people who have submitted their obituaries to you, what have they told you about why theyre doing it? I think theres been this sense of kinship among us. We realize that these are trying times and these are important times, so Id say the prevailing rationale that Ive heard from people who have contributed is they just want to contribute their voice to a movement at this time. Id say one of the things I was truly surprised about was how forthright people were in writing their own obituaries, and that was my request, of course. What I was surprised about in reading these obituaries was that so many people were incredibly honest about their stories, and the things that they had yet to accomplish and their failures and their personal shortcomings. So quite possibly the most enlightening aspect of this project was reading peoples realities with blemishes included. What kind of blemishes did they talk about? A number of people spoke about their timidity, about how they lived lives that were safe to such an extent that they may have shorted themselves tremendous opportunities and shorted themselves incredible experiences. And a number of people considered themselves cowards, and thats a direct quote. I advise people to read these obituaries in full because you really get the gamut of emotions. You see a number of people who are speaking triumphantly about all theyve accomplished, and then you have other people who are speaking regretfully about all they werent able to accomplish. Has any of them said to you that writing his or her obituary changed their lives at least changed their thinking about themselves and their lives? A number of people, when they sent their obituary back to me, were thankful for the opportunity. Those people who contributed, this is their first time of doing so on a formal platform. I sent them a template. They had to adhere to that template, of course, but they also infused their own emotion, their own passion and things of that sort in their own stories. Part of your template is the lede, which everybody uses. So we read: Jahan Elliot Jones, 24, was unarmed when shot and killed in a conflict with local police officers Alisha Patrice Miles, 24, was unarmed when shot and killed in conflict with local police officers. And at the end we see, Alisha Miles was once a woman upon this earth and yet she is no longer. Dominic Joseph was once a man upon this earth and yet he is no longer. You went to journalism school, and you know thats not the way necessarily a news obituary is going to be written. But this is about something else than just delivering the news. I consider this a convergence of my journalism interest and my artistic interest. I dont believe the two are necessary mutually exclusive. Ive always believed that the finest journalists among us take our realities, yes, and speak to them, but they also contextualize them. But with regard to the uniform intro and outro, I felt as though the lede was as devoid of opinion as possible. When they sent their obituaries back, a number of them had created different narratives. They said so-and-so was unarmed when shot and killed at an anti-violence rally. They were building these stories and I completely understand that, because we have this urge to create this sort of perfect victim. And I was trying to urge all the contributors not to do that. Because there are no perfect victims, and just because youre not a perfect human being doesnt mean that your life is should be valued less. We have, I think, about 150 submissions. That number is almost reflective of the number of black people killed in this country thus far this year. If all of these people were to pass in a day, it would be considered at national tragedy. But the fact that that number, whatever it may be 197, and it may have grown since then has been spread out over the course of a year, we dont really treat it as such. So the vastness of it will allow it to be more impactful. Looking at some of the photos on the webpage, there are young people with cap and gown from graduation, young people with kids, young people with parents and grandparents. Tell me a little about the range of these 150 people who have submitted their obituaries. They come from so many different backgrounds, they come from a number of different political affiliations. They range in ages. You discussed the photos, and that was something I kind of wrestled with. Initially I was just going to have everyone send in just a gray selfie sort of photo. The best way to describe that is just the typical photo you find when black people are killed by police. Its usually this photo that seems to have been taken with a phone from 2008 and its not typically high-resolution. This comes from my journalistic experience: sometimes when were writing stories about people who were slain we dont have access to their personal Facebook accounts. So we can only use the photos that are made available to use, and those typically arent the photos that present people in their best light. I told them to send me the photo they would like to serve as their lasting image. Did the people who wrote their own obituaries show them to their families? Its very possible some of them shared with their families what theyd written. I didnt share with my family that I was even working on this project until the day I debuted the project. My parents were excited about the project; they thought it was beautiful, but of course theyre forced to reconcile their appreciation for this project with the prospect that their son may be taken at any moment. The grievances Ive heard from people who have been opposed to the project is that black people are supposedly speaking their own deaths into existence. I dont believe black people dying at the hands of the police have died because of an inability to speak positivity into their lives. Were interested in creating our own narratives. We are unflinching in our criticisms of the nation as it is today. And we also realize that there are greater machinations at work that pose impediments to black lives. So this project is just one of many thats serving as an indictment of sorts. Who are those critics? It hasnt been exclusively white people, which may be some peoples initial assumption. I concede that this project is discomforting but its necessarily discomforting, as far as Im concerned. Were trying to be jarring. Were trying to show people that its very easy to see these stories on television, to see that someone has died, and to continue with your life if you dont know the person who has died. And abstaining from conversation about race and racism and disproportionate policing is contributing to the very society that so often leads to the deaths of African Americans. Everyone finds a different way to express her voice or his voice, and some people turn out at rallies for Black Lives Matter. This seems to be the journalist in you saying, This is my contribution. Absolutely. And this is just the beginning. Its been humbling to be able to encircle so many of my peers and co-workers in a project like this. This is going to exist forever. Im never going to stop accepting these obituaries. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook On Thursday Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will appear at the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, a white-tie fundraiser for Catholic charities at which they will flank Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York. Lucky for them that the affair isnt being held in Philadelphia. The archbishop of that city, Charles Chaput, has expressed such contempt for both candidates that he might find it hard to break bread with them. Last week Chaput approvingly quoted a friend who described this years presidential election as a choice between a vulgar, boorish lout and disrespecter of women with a serious impulse control problem and a scheming, robotic liar with a lifelong appetite for power and an entourage riddled with anti-Catholic bigots. Advertisement That exercise in false equivalence came in a column in the conservative magazine First Things in which Chaput took aim at private comments by Clinton campaign aides that he and others have called anti-Catholic. (You can read Chaputs column here, and a less overwrought reaction to the comments from Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne here.) But even before WikiLeaks released emails containing those comments by Clinton aides, Chaput had written in a column that both candidates are whats the right word? so problematic that neither is clearly better than the other. Really, Your Grace? To understand Chaputs scorn for Clinton you need to know that he is an intellectual leader of the right wing of the Catholic hierarchy in the United States, a faction for which Clintons support for legal abortion is anathema. As Chaput himself wrote in the aforementioned column: The right to life undergirds all other rights and all genuine social progress. It cannot be set aside or contextualized in the name of other rights or priorities without prostituting the whole idea of human dignity. Chaput also is famous for his rejection of John F. Kennedys vision of an America where the separation of church and state is absolute -- where no Catholic prelate would tell the president (should he be Catholic) how to act, and no Protestant minister would tell his parishioners for whom to vote. Kennedy enunciated that vision during his 1960 presidential campaign in a speech to a group of Protestant ministers in Houston. In 2010, Chaput, also addressing a Protestant audience in that Texas city, said that Kennedys speech was sincere, compelling, articulate -- and wrong. Chaput, then the archbishop of Denver, chided contemporary Catholics for living their faith as if it were a private idiosyncrasy -- the kind that theyll never allow to become a public nuisance. Traditionally archbishops of Philadelphia are appointed to the College of Cardinals charged with electing a new pope. But when Pope Francis announced a batch of new cardinals earlier this month, Chaput wasnt one of the three American prelates named to the college. Vaticanologists explained that Francis is moving away from the practice of automatically bestowing cardinals red hats on the heads of major archdioceses, which could also explain why Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez was passed over. But it also seems likely that Chaputs fondness for hurling anathemas hurt his chances. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook To the editor: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trumps unsubstantiated allegation that the election is rigged against him sows seeds of distrust in our democracy and its institutions. (Trumps talk of a rigged election is dangerous demagoguery, editorial, Oct. 18) His candidacy should serve as a lesson to the American voters: Do your homework and be careful whom you elect. Trump has been an embarrassment to members of his own party, many of whom have disavowed him. I can truly say that in my 102 years of life, I have never seen a presidential race stoop so low. Advertisement Morie Markoff, Los Angeles .. To the editor: Trumps assertion that the presidential election is rigged is an obvious attempt by him to save face in the event that he loses the election. The irony is that by making his false claims, it is Trump who is, in fact, rigging (or manipulating) the perceptions of the American people. Fortunately, the vast majority of us are not that gullible. Indeed, while Trump wants the American people to dismiss his vulgar remarks about women as locker-room talk, it seems far more likely that the American people will dismiss his claims of a rigged election as padded-room talk. Steve Danning, Las Vegas .. To the editor: If this election is rigged, it happened way before Trump began his campaign to discredit our voting system by blaming his impending defeat on the media and voter fraud. It happened when the Republicans themselves started to legally rig elections. Its called gerrymandering. Republican governors and state legislators have drawn electoral districts to virtually ensure that their state and federal seats will be incontestable. Many Republican-dominated states have gone even further, putting in place restrictive and often unconstitutional voting laws that will make casting ballots difficult for groups of citizens. That is a rigged election. And guess what: Those adversely affected tend to not be Republican voters. Julia Springer, Santa Barbara .. To the editor: Trump has already built a wall. Saying the election is rigged has deeply divided my family and surely others like mine across the nation. Decent people turn a blind eye, while others scream at members of their own family, desperately trying to get through to their loved ones. It has such a terrible price. We are the collateral damage no one speaks of. Saying the election is rigged has put up a wall up that words cannot reach over. Maybe that is the wall Trump was talking about. Dennis Grossman, Woodland Hills .. To the editor: It is nice that the presidential nominees can sleep in their own beds most nights, even while campaigning. (Why Trump and Clinton sleep in their own beds most nights even though theyre on the campaign trail, Oct. 13) Now if I could only find a way to sleep at all after watching one of their debates. Allen F. Dziuk, Carlsbad Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Elena Kosolapova - Trend: The prosecutor's office of Kazakhstans West Kazakhstan region fined Ural Oil and Gas company for 2.07 billion tenge ($6.23 million), the prosecutor's office reported. The company was fined for unauthorized disposal of drilling waste. Ural Oil and Gas obtains no facilities for the disposal of industrial wastes and had contracts on export of hazardous wastes outside the drilling area with transporting companies. This fact resulted in uncontrolled waste disposal in unauthorized places: near settlements, state reserves and on agricultural lands. According to Kazakh law, a company or individual producing wastes is responsible for their safe management. Ural Oil and Gas is engaged in exploration of hydrocarbons at Fedorovsky block in Western Kazakhstan. Follow the author on Twitter: @E_Kosolapova To the editor: Soda taxes are not meant to shame consumers; they are a pricing tool that makes unhealthy choices less attractive. However, the proposal doesnt go far enough to promote healthy alternative choices. (World health officials want super-size tax on soda and sugary drinks, but are countries ready to swallow that? Oct. 12) Revenue from the tax doesnt trickle down directly to the consumer. This makes the proposal unappealing, especially to the poor, who carry both the tax burden and the potential health benefits. In fact, the World Health Organization recommends a more comprehensive set of policies to reduce sugar consumption. In addition to a 20% to 50% tax on soda, there should also be a 10% to 30% subsidy on healthy alternatives such as fruits and vegetables. In Britain, the tax is pro-rated according to the amount of sugar in the product. Advertisement If the provision of healthy alternative subsidies were included in the proposition, this policy would be more consumer-friendly and weaken the grocery tax argument that is resonating with many voters in San Francisco Bay Area cities this November. Gianna Le, San Francisco .. To the editor: It seems there is nothing that people in power wont do to take away your freedom to make your own mistakes. If consumption of sugar is such a bad thing, then simply ban it, as one would do with lead in paint. But that would take away from the lucrative extraction of money from the people. It is as if these bureaucrats have said, We have the research to back up our claims that sugar is bad, so if they still want to ignore us, then we will use force to get our way and make money as well. I think Ill take a big gulp of soda before thats banned. William Baker, Yorba Linda Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook There are compelling reasons not to vote for Donald Trump. He has the emotional temperament of a spoiled 14-year-old girl everything is someone elses fault and any rare apology is insincere and grudging. His attitude toward sex and women mirrors those of an obnoxious frat boy girls are sex toys to be rated and groped. And he exhibits the ignorance of a drunk on a tirade at the end of a bar red rage aimed at imagined enemies and wedded to simplistic solutions based on cliches, stereotypes and conspiracy theories. Nevertheless, despite the many things that disqualify him, there has been the faint hope that, should a Trump presidency come about, it would not turn out as badly as it could because he would surround himself with capable people who would run the country while he kept busy tweeting, nursing grudges and having his hair refurbished. Some of this wishful thinking was based on the false image of Trump as a wildly successful businessman. Now that there is plenty of evidence that Trump is a better con man than businessman, it seems less likely that he would be able to draft a team of masters of the universe from the corporate world to staff his administration. Advertisement 1 / 51 la-1491523602-y7ephyarj1-snap-image (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 2 / 51 la-1491368625-0bgh58ihw8-snap-image (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 3 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 4 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 5 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los angeles Times) 6 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 7 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 8 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 9 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 10 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 11 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 14 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 15 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 16 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 17 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 18 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 19 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 20 / 51 Trump inspires millions to take to the streets -- to oppose him. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 21 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 22 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 23 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 24 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 25 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 26 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 27 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 28 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 29 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 30 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 31 / 51 Top of the Ticket cartoon (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 32 / 51 Cartoon caption contest winner at the DENT conference in Sun Valley, Idaho: Jon Duval, executive director of the Ketchum Community Development Corporation. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 33 / 51 Old radicals and big media descend on Selma (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 34 / 51 Horsey imagined the creation of the Ann Coulter phenomenon in this cartoon from 2007. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 35 / 51 This David Horsey drawing is a reconfiguration of a cartoon he first published in 2006. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 36 / 51 Donald Sterling, owner of the L.A. Clippers, should give Cliven Bundy a call. After Sterling loses his NBA franchise and the deadbeat Nevada rancher loses his cattle, the two old racists will both need a buddy. Maybe they can team up together and open an all-white rodeo. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 37 / 51 Besides sending a chill up the spine of the international community, Vladimir Putin has accomplished one other thing by seizing Crimea and threatening the rest of Ukraine: Putin has brought back the bear. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 38 / 51 The right-wing insurrection at the Bundy ranch in Bunkerville, Nev., has taken another weird turn with new revelations about the family history of Cliven Bundy. (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 39 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 40 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 41 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 42 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 43 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 44 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 45 / 51 David Horsey / Los Angeles Times (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 46 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 47 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 48 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 49 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 50 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) 51 / 51 See full story (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times) Still, he could assemble the usual crew of Republican stalwarts, couldnt he? Well, perhaps not not after breaking so dramatically with the GOP establishment. So, who would Trump find to guide Americas destiny? If the path of his campaign is any indication, the answer to that question is clear: the kooks and conspiracy theorists of the extreme right. Trump has long peppered his public pronouncements with the phrase some people say. When those people actually exist, rather than being figments of Trumps imagination, they are invariably right-wing talk radio entertainers and paranoid doomsayers with bizarre takes on reality. In 2011, Trump famously latched on to one of their more inflammatory fantasies that President Obama was not born in the United States and ran with it. Now, as his campaign for president is sinking into the scum of a sex harassment scandal, he is acting like a guy who is relying on the crazies for guidance. Trumps current rants about a rigged election, voter fraud, media conspiracies and a cartel of international bankers taking over the government are ripped from the dark musings of fevered minds on the right. If he were president, it seems highly likely that he would continue to look to the same sources for inspiration. After all, his campaign CEO, Steve Bannon, comes from the alt-right crowd. Imagine a presidency steered by the fierce fantasies of someone like Alex Jones, a Trump fan and radio host who Rolling Stone magazine dubbed a giant in Americas conspiracy subculture. Jones has come up with some interesting ideas. He has said the horrific slaying of schoolchildren and teachers at Sandy Hook was staged by actors to drum up support for gun control. He has said terror attacks in Orlando, San Bernardino and on 9/11 were engineered by sinister forces inside the U.S. government. He has said military maneuvers in the Southwest were a ruse to cover up a federal takeover of Texas. He has said the government has a weather weapon that can create and steer groups of tornadoes. He has said that Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was murdered by the Obama administration and that Bill and Hillary Clinton have been responsible for numerous homicides throughout their political careers. Jones is a loon, but his crackpot theories are believed by a significant number of Trump supporters and, apparently, by Trump himself. When Trump came to California in May and said the states multiyear drought was not real, he was repeating a Jones-inspired theme. Trump sat for an extended interview on Jones show that was filled with statements of mutual admiration. Your reputation is amazing, Trump told Jones. If all the other reasons not to vote for Trump are not enough, this one should be the clincher: The right-wing lunatics who have been kept away from the levers of power even in conservative Republican administrations would find an open door at the Trump White House. David.Horsey@latimes.com Follow me at @davidhorsey on Twitter Former L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa endorses marijuana legalization initiative By Patrick McGreevy Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Monday endorsed a marijuana legalization initiative. ((Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) ) Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Monday became the latest high-profile politician to endorse an initiative on next weeks ballot that would legalize the recreational use of marijuana in California. Villaraigosa is considering whether to run for governor in 2018 amid a field that already includes Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a leading proponent of Proposition 64. I took my time on this measure because I wanted to make sure it included protections for children and public safety, Villaraigosa said in a statement. In evaluating the measure in its entirety, I am convinced there are enough safeguards to make it a workable proposition. The Proposition 64 campaign welcomed Villaraigosas endorsement at a time when one recent poll indicated slightly fewer than half of Latino voters support the measure. Were glad to have it, said Jason Kinney, a spokesman for the campaign. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Conservative group spends $3.5 million on Central Valley race once considered safe By Sarah D. Wire The Congressional Leadership Fund is pouring another $1.5 million into the race between Rep. Jeff Denham and Democrat farmer Michael Eggman. The group, which is endorsed by House Republican leaders, and works with the American Action Network, has now spent $3.5 million in the race. The race was initially viewed as an easy win for Denham (R-Turlock), but has become increasingly uncertain in recent weeks. The district is being closely watched as an indicator of how Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump might affect down-ballot candidates. Democrats have spent more than $6 million in the district. The Congressional Leadership Fund and American Action Network have spent $45 million in 32 districts nationwide so far and have aired ads in other California House races, including in the nearby 21st District race between Rep. David Valadao (R-Hanford) and attorney Emilio Huerta and the 7th District race between Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove) and Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones. The groups newest ad in the 10th District race begins running on television Tuesday. It calls Eggman, an almond and bee farmer, an extreme liberal and a rubber stamp for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) because he supports the Affordable Care Act. It previously ran an ad against Eggman that used news footage from the 2015 San Bernardino terrorist attack. ------------ FOR THE RECORD 2:14 p.m.: An earlier version of this article incorrectly referred to the Congressional Leadership Fund as the Conservative Leadership Fund. ------------ Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement The Rev. Al Sharpton and civil rights leaders hold rally in support of Proposition 61 By Christine Mai-Duc The Rev. Al Sharpton kicks off a rally and march in support of Proposition 61, the California ballot measure that seeks to lower the price state agencies pay for prescription drugs. The Rev. Al Sharpton and other civil rights leaders gathered at a rally Monday morning to support Proposition 61, the ballot measure that seeks to lower the price state agencies pay for prescription drugs. Sharpton appeared alongside black community leaders, including Marc Morial, former New Orleans mayor and head of the National Urban League, and Kevin Sauls, pastor of a South L.A. church. This issue is very simple, Sharpton said to a crowd of about 40 supporters. Its about the right of people to afford what they need, and they need to have accessibility that is affordable with prescription drugs. He likened the issue of prescription drug affordability to a civil right, and recycled the well-known Yes We Can slogan from President Obamas 2008 election to urge voters to pass Proposition 61. Sharptons appearance came a day after he and Morial stumped for the measure at seven different churches in South Los Angeles and the Bay Area. The significance of bringing in people of color is that we are the ones who disproportionately are impacted by the prices and impacted by the need for healthcare, Sharpton said in an interview afterward. I think its a civil right for people to be able to afford healthcare in the wealthiest nation in the world. Appearance of Sharpton, New Orleans mayor Marc Morial and LA pastor follows Sharpton's visits to two South LA churches Sunday for Yes on 61 pic.twitter.com/redBvU8WWZ Christine Mai-Duc (@cmaiduc) October 31, 2016 In a statement, No on Proposition 61 spokeswoman Kathy Fairbanks pointed to support for the opposition campaign from groups like the California NAACP, and the California League of Latin American Citizens. Higher drug prices resulting from Prop. 61 will decrease access to care, Fairbanks said. Thats a policy step in the wrong direction. The Rev. Al Sharpton at a Yes on Proposition 61 rally in downtown Los Angeles. (Christine Mai-Duc / Los Angeles Times) Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Voters are being asked whether they want to cast more votes in future elections on big public works projects By John Myers (Russel A. Daniels / Associated Press) Voters casting a ballot for Proposition 53 on election day are, in effect, choosing more voting on more propositions in future elections. The ballot measure, bankrolled by a wealthy Stockton agribusiness owner, seeks to force voter approval of a particular type of borrowing for large public works projects. Its most likely impact, in the near future, would be ballot measures on a landmark water project and on Californias high-speed rail effort. The propositions backer, Dean Cortopassi, argues its all about more transparency when it comes to government debt. His critics suggest theres more to it than that. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement This congressional race could be one of the Republicans worst nightmares By Sarah D. Wire Rep. Jeff Denham represents the Modesto area in Congress and is up against Democratic beekeeper Michael Eggman, the same man he beat just two years ago by 12 points. Denham first won his seat in 2012 even as a majority of his constituents voted for President Obama. When Denham (R-Turlock) started this latest campaign, most observers thought he would probably win. But some now wonder if Denhams 10th District race will be an example of what Republicans fear across the country. Will conservatives expected to win actually lose because voters arent excited about Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump? Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Rep. Loretta Sanchezs day on the campaign trail: Two ribbons cut, one candle lit, and jabs made at her Senate rival By Phil Willon U.S. Senate candidate Loretta Sanchez shows Clifford Young, president of the West Valley Water District, where to cut the ribbon for the grand opening on a new water treatment plant Saturday. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times) With less than two weeks to go before election day, U.S. Senate candidate Loretta Sanchez bounced from the Inland Empire to Monterey Park on Saturday as she tries to drum up support for her uphill Senate bid. Sanchez, the U.S. representative from Orange, started her day with a gaggle of other Inland Empire politicians at the grand opening of a $23-million water treatment system in Rialto, using the occasion to lay out her record on water issues during her 20 years in Congress. Sanchez told the crowd of about 60 that shortly after she was elected to Congress, two members of a local water board approached her about a way to deal with Californias serious drought. They said, we need to convince people that were going to take toilet water and were going to clean it up enough for people to drink it, Sanchez said. They said, we cant get anyone to champion this for us. Well, no wonder. Sanchez said they won her over, and she helped deliver federal funding for Orange Countys Groundwater Replenishment System to do just that. The system uses treated waste water to recharge the local groundwater basin and provides enough water for nearly 850,000 residents. After the event, Sanchez accused her rival in the Senate race, state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris, of having little grasp of the complexities of Californias drought and water crisis. One of the biggest differences between my opponent and myself is that I actually talk about issues, I actually meet with people, I actually try to figure out whats going on, Sanchez said. Ive not seen anything about her. Ive not seen any policy. All I see is commercials on TV. U.S. Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Orange) officially opens the childrens Diwali celebration at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu temple in Chino Hills on Saturday. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times) A few hours later, Sanchez raced over to Chino Hills to open the Kids Diwali Celebration at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu temple, a family-friendly event filled with carnival rides, booths and food. She thanked festivalgoers, saying they were setting a good example for the rest of the country at a time when the presidential election is filled with such meanness. This is a time where through tradition and through culture you can show Americans the better part of people, Sanchez said. You give the rest of us hope. After listening to Sanchez speak, Kay Mistry, a volunteer at the festival, said he still wasnt sure who he will vote for in the Senate race. He said he was aware that Harris, whose mother emigrated from India, went to a Hindu temple as a child. Im not sure that matters to me, said Mistry, 48, of Chino Hills. Im pretty conservative. Sanchez attends her second ribbon cutting of the day, this time for Halloween in the Park in Monterey Park. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times) The Orange County congresswomans final stop of the day was in Monterey Park, where she helped cut the ribbon to open citys Halloween in the Park festival. After the ceremony, Sanchez mingled with the crowd, handing out campaign fliers. Arnold Jeung, 62, stuck the flier in his back pocket. He said he didnt know much about Sanchez or Harris. Im not sure what Im going to do, said Jeung, a Republican. I might not even vote. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement California Politics Podcast: The lowdown on the states big down-ticket races By John Myers Perhaps more than any other recent election season, races for seats in the California Legislature and U.S. Congress are being reshaped by the broad, national discussion. In short, its the Trump effect. On this weeks episode of the California Politics Podcast, we take an overview of some of states most closely watched down-ticket races. Theres new polling data in the U.S. Senate race that suggests a sizable number of voters will skip casting a ballot. Meanwhile, President Obama had endorsed candidates all the way down to the state Assembly level. Im joined by Marisa Lagos of KQED News and Anthony York, author of the Grizzly Bear Project website. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print California, your official presidential write-in options include Bernie Sanders and Evan McMullin By Christine Mai-Duc Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is one of five officially certified write-in candidates for president in California. (Christopher Dolan / Associated Press) California Secretary of State Alex Padilla released the names of the five officially qualified write-in candidates for the presidential race in California, along with their vice presidential running mates. Contrary to popular belief, votes for write-in candidates only count when the candidate is officially certified. (That means votes for Mickey Mouse, Giant Meteor, or Chuck Norris will not be counted.) The officially qualified write-in candidates are: Laurence Kotlikoff for president and Edward Leamer for vice president Mike Maturen for president and Juan Munoz for vice president Evan McMullin for president and Nathan Johnson for vice president Bernard Bernie Sanders for president and Tulsi Gabbard for vice president Jerry White for president and Niles Niemuth for vice president Now, that doesnt mean that Sanders and the other candidates wanted to be recognized as official write-ins. California law only requires that 55 electors sign on to declare a person a write-in candidate, not that the person consent, according to a statement from the Secretary of States Office. A full list of each candidates electors can be seen here. Write-in votes for these candidates will not be reported until the counties send their final vote certifications after the post-election canvass period, meaning a write-in vote will take longer to count. You might be wondering: Does spelling count? The Secretary of State says election officials will accept a reasonable facsimile of the spelling of a candidates name. For example, Joe Smith and Joseph Smith would both be accepted. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Dueling ads aim to persuade Latinos on proposition to legalize marijuana in California By Patrick McGreevy With a poll indicating Latino voters lag in their support for a ballot proposition that would legalize recreation marijuana in California, the campaigns for and against the measure are launching dueling ads aimed at that large demographic. A poll Wednesday by the Public Policy Institute of California found that Proposition 64 is favored by a majority of likely voters in California, including a majority of all ethnic groups, except Latinos. Latinos support is just under half at 47%. The campaign against the ballot measure will launch its second ad on Spanish language television, titled Asusta or Scary on Halloween. The ad warns if approved, Proposition 64 could eventually lead to radio and television ads for marijuana candy. Federal law prohibits such ads on broadcast stations, and the initiative prohibits television advertising aimed at minors if federal law ever changes. The campaign in favor of the ballot measure said Friday it has launched new counter TV ads targeted to the Los Angeles area, where there is a large Latino audience. One ad, for Spanish language television, labels as falso, or false, the claims that there will be television commercials for marijuana candy. A second ad, in English, features a mother of teenagers saying she appreciates that Proposition 64 has important safeguards for families, like strict product labeling and child-proof packaging of all marijuana products and banning edibles that would appeal to a child. The two sides each claimed Friday that the polls are favorable to their cause. The polls highlight the lack of support by the Latino community because they know their neighborhoods will have to face the problems that recreational marijuana creates, said Andrew Acosta, a spokesman for the opposition campaign. Not true, said Jason Kinney, a spokesman for the Proposition 64 campaign. Polls show that Latino support for Proposition 64 and marijuana decriminalization has been increasing as they learn how communities of color are being disproportionately targeted for marijuana arrest and prosecution, he said. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi endorses ballot measure to repeal the death penalty in California By Jazmine Ulloa (Win McNamee / Getty Images) House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) on Friday announced her support for a proposition that would repeal the death penalty in California, calling the practice cruel and unusual punishment under the 8th Amendment to the Constitution. Even the most heinous of crimes can be punished without killing, she said. As Pope Francis said in his address to Congress, where he reaffirmed his advocacy for the global abolition of the death penalty: every human person is endowed with an unalienable dignity, and society can only benefit from the rehabilitation of those convicted of crimes. Pelosi is among a string of top political leaders, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and celebrities to come out in support of Proposition 62, which would replace the punishment with life in prison without parole and apply life sentences retroactively to death row inmates. The initiative is one of two competing death penalty measures on the Nov. 8 ballot. She also is among fewer political leaders to denounce the death penalty itself on moral grounds. I oppose the death penalty because too many defendants have not had access to appropriate legal counsel; because poor people especially in communities of color have been disproportionately charged with capital crimes and sentenced to death, compared with more affluent defendants; and, so many people have been exonerated with DNA evidence. It is time for us to take a moral stand. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Obama endorses Emilio Huerta in his Central Valley race against Rep. David Valadao By Sarah D. Wire (Sarah D. Wire / Los Angeles Times) President Obama on Friday endorsed 21st District congressional candidate Emilio Huerta, the Democrats campaign announced. I am proud to endorse Emilio Huerta for the United States House of Representatives, Obama said in a statement released by the campaign. In Congress, Emilio will be a fighter for Central Valley working families. Emilio isnt afraid to take on tough challenges, and hell fight for more and better access to clean water, good jobs with fair wages, and an education system that works for every child. Emilio is the kind of smart leader who will build on what weve accomplished and move our country forward, and thats why I know Californians can count on Emilio Huerta. Huerta, an attorney and son of labor rights icon Dolores Huerta, is challenging Rep. David Valadao in the Central Valley district. Obama had already endorsed six California Democrats. House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) was in the district Thursday to campaign for Valadao. Hes in the middle of a swing through California to support vulnerable House Republicans. David Valadao is exactly the type of representative Central Valley families and those involved in the agriculture industry need. He understands the issues impacting the area, because thats been his life. David was born in the Central Valley, he grew up there, he went to school there -- and he even met his wife there. In Congress, he has led the fight on water, veterans issues, and education, Ryan said in a statement. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Advertisement Comedian Kathy Griffin pokes fun at tobacco company ads By Liam Dillon The tobacco industry-funded television advertisements against the Proposition 56 tobacco tax increase are ubiquitous. They all generally have the same message: The money from the tax hike would go to Medi-Cal, the states low-income healthcare program, and therefore benefit the doctors and insurance groups that are helping finance the measure. Comedian Kathy Griffin decided to spoof the advertisements follow-the-money message in a video she released on Twitter Tuesday. Hey @YesOn56...I had to get involved! #YesOn56 https://t.co/ZXURPBZYZP Kathy Griffin (@kathygriffin) October 27, 2016 Griffin highlighted that tobacco companies had funded the advertisement, which is clear when you read the fine print at the end. So in general just be careful of these opposite ads, Griffin said, dressed in a similar gardening outfit as the actress in the No on 56 ad. Or in general white ladies gardening. You can watch Griffins full spoof here: Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Los Angeles County Bar says expediting the death penalty system will compromise justice By Jazmine Ulloa The Los Angeles County Bar Assn. has joined opponents of a Nov. 8 ballot measure that intends to expedite executions in California, saying it would likely compromise access to justice at all levels of the court system. In a letter released late Wednesday, the organization, which comprises more than 20,000 members, said Proposition 66 would require appellate courts to hear initial death penalty appeals, without providing the roughly $100 million needed to fund additional judges, staff and resources. LACBA opposes Proposition 66 based entirely on its damaging effect on the operation of an already over-taxed judicial system, and most importantly, the resulting lack of access to justice for California citizens, states the letter signed by Margaret Stevens, the associations president. The association said it took no position on the death penalty itself, its effectiveness, morality or social merits. But its opposition to the ballot measure comes as top Los Angeles County officials, including Sheriff Jim McDonnell and Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey, have announced their support. Proposition 66 has drawn wide support and funding from law enforcement officials and organizations that argue Californias death penalty must be preserved and reformed. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Gov. Jerry Brown launches TV ad against Prop. 53s change to state revenue bonds By John Myers Its a nuanced pitch from Gov. Jerry Brown, asking California voters to oppose an effort that would give them a vote on future big infrastructure projects. But Brown has more than $15 million in campaign cash to make his case against Proposition 53, in a TV ad that began on Thursday. Proposition 53 asks voters to add revenue bonds of $2 billion or more to the list of government borrowing that requires statewide voter approval. Unlike general obligation bonds, which are paid back by taxpayer dollars through the states general fund, revenue bonds are paid back with fees charged to users of projects like bridges, dams and buildings. Brown takes aim in the ad at the fact that 53 is paid for by one millionaire, Central Valley agribusiness owner Dean Cortopassi. In an interview this week, Cortopassi called revenue bonds a blank check to sell debt forward into the future. Proposition 53 could force statewide votes on two high-profile infrastructure projects: Californias plan for a high-speed train system and the construction of twin underground tunnels to divert water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to Southern California. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print New citizens can still register to vote Nov. 8 even though the California deadline has passed By Sophia Bollag Thomas Macariola, center, fills out a voter registration form after a naturalization ceremony on Oct. 26 in Sacramento, where a cardboard cut-out of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was among the witnesses. (Sophia Bollag / Los Angeles Times) Alex De Leon, a 30-year-old immigrant from Guatemala, was among more than 400 people who became U.S. citizens at a ceremony in Sacramento on Wednesday. After the program concluded, he walked outside and filled out his voter registration papers. The registration deadline to vote in the Nov. 8 election for most Californians was Monday. But a 2012 state law allows people like De Leon, who became citizens after the deadline, to register late. To vote, they must bring proof of citizenship and California residency to show to an official at a county election office. As a precaution against voter fraud, theyre not allowed to vote at a neighborhood polling place or with an absentee ballot. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement A new poll shows Californians remain ready to legalize the recreational use of pot By Patrick McGreevy (David Zalubowski / Associated Press) A majority of Californias likely voters continue to favor legalizing the recreational use of marijuana, but the level of support has dipped from a reported 60% a month ago to 55% this month, according to a statewide poll released Wednesday night. The latest poll by the Public Policy Institute of California found 38% of those surveyed oppose Proposition 64 and 6% are undecided. But the basic finding is that the initiative would still pass with a majority vote if the election were held today, according to Mark Baldassare, the institutes pollster and president. The numbers have been favorable, consistent, and exactly where we expected and wanted to be at this point, said Jason Kinney, a spokesman for the Proposition 64 campaign. The poll was conducted Oct. 14-23 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4% at a 95% confidence level. Proposition 64 is supported by 66% of Democratic likely voters and 56% of independents, but 60% of Republicans are opposed. Just under half of Latino likely voters (47%) would vote yes, while majorities of other racial/ethnic groups (65%) and whites (55%) would do so, the poll report said. Support is highest, at 78%, among those age 18 to 34. The opposition campaign said the campaign for Proposition 64 has turned voters away from the measure. It is clear that voters are realizing that Prop 64 is a 62-page mess that helps the marijuana industry tap into the California market, said Andrew Acosta, a spokesman for the campaign against the initiative. Those polled were also asked whether they have ever tried marijuana and, if so, if they used it in the last year: 18% said they have tried marijuana and used it in the last year, while 25% said they have tried it, but not in the last year. Updated at 9:30 am to include comments by the campaigns. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print New poll shows Kamala Harris leading Californias U.S. Senate race by a 2-to-1 margin By Phil Willon U.S. Senate candidates Kamala Harris, left, points a finger toward rival Loretta Sanchez during their debate at Cal State L.A. on Wednesday, Oct. 5. (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times) With ballots already being cast, State Atty. General Kamala Harris leads by a more than a two-to-one margin over her rival in Californias U.S. Senate race, according to a new poll by the Public Policy Institute of California. The survey showed that 42% of likely voters supported Harris, compared to 20% who favored her opponent, Orange County Rep. Loretta Sanchez. Among the remainder, 20% of voters were undecided and 18% said they will not vote for either candidate by election day on Nov. 8. The results are dramatically different that those in a PPIC released on Sept. 21, when Harris had just a 7-point lead over Sanchez. But the new poll numbers are closely aligned with results in the June 7 primary, when Harris received 40% of the vote and Sanchez came in second with 19% in a race with 34 candidates on the ballot. In a PPIC poll in July, Harris also had 38% support among likely voters and Sanchez 20%. From the start this has been a race in which Harris, who did very well in the primary, has had a large advantage, said PPIC President Mark Baldassare. Loretta Sanchez hasnt been able to, in any of our polls, get above 25% Unlike the PPICs surveys in July and September, the new poll included the ballot designations for the two Senate candidates, listing Harris as Attorney General of California and Sanchez as a United States Congresswoman. Both Harris and Sanchez are Democrats. There also have been a few major developments in the Senate campaign since Sept. 21, including the Oct. 5 Senate debate at Cal State Los Angeles where Sanchez caused a stir by dabbing as her finale. The following day, U.S. Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein endorsed Harris. Both Harris and Sanchez are trying to succeed Boxer, who is retiring after serving four terms in the Senate. According to the new PPIC poll, Harris is favored over Sanchez across all general income and education levels of voters, as well as among both men and women. Harris also leads in these major regions of the state: Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay area, Orange and San Diego counties, and the Inland Empire. Latinos are the only major cross-section of likely voters who favor Sanchez over Harris, by a margin of 41% to 33%, the poll shows. Harris also gained support from Republicans and independents over the past month, mostly likely from voters who previously said they would not vote. Still, more than a third of likely Republican voters said they would not vote for Sanchez or Harris, and 16% of independent voters also plan to take a pass. The two Democrats are facing off in the highest-profile contest between two members of the same party since California adopted a top-two primary election system. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Will the Defense Department fix the National Guard bonus repayment problem? California congressional reps are skeptical By Sarah D. Wire (Paul Sakuma / Associated Press) Some members of Californias congressional delegation arent satisfied with a Defense Department plan to verify whether thousands of California National Guard members fairly received bonuses for enlisting during the height of the Iraq war or must repay the money. They said Wednesday that they want a detailed plan by the time Congress returns in mid-November. Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) organized a call so that Californias 53 House members could question the Defense Department about how it plans to fix the problem, which was first reported Sunday by The Times. Members werent sure exactly how many of their colleagues were on the call. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter on Wednesday ordered the Pentagon to pause efforts to claw back the enlistment bonuses. He said the suspension would continue until he was satisfied that our process is working effectively. Congressional members told The Times that Defense officials said they plan to increase the number of employees reviewing the cases and expect all of them will be examined by July. After the call, Rep. Julia Brownley (D-Westlake Village) said she was still outraged and wants a more detailed plan from the Defense Department. There was definitely a level of skepticism that they would move forward on this in a very fair and evenhanded way, Brownley said. Department officials told the delegation there are 13,800 questionable bonus cases in California. Of those, 4,000 have been cleared as properly eligible and 1,200 cases identified as possible fraud, meaning the guard member was not eligible or did not complete the contract. The department still must review the remaining 8,600 cases. (The case numbers relayed to members of Congress on Wednesday differ slightly from those provided to The Times by the department.) Rep. Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park) said the Defense Department told members its plan is to clear up to 100 cases a day. They will give everybody a chance to go through the panels and make their case, she said, even the 1,200 identified as possible fraud. Brownleys staff said some Guard members were told to pay back more than $60,000. Many of the bonuses were at least $15,000. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) said that in many cases, Guard members werent spending money they knew they werent supposed to receive, and that the Pentagon should have the burden of proving the soldier knowingly took a bonus they werent supposed to get. In the vast majority of cases, soldiers accepted these bonuses in good faith, Schiff said. You dont call them up years later and say, We shouldnt have offered that and try to collect. The department will give the California members another briefing when Congress returns Nov. 14. Brownley said several members told the department they would go ahead with legislation to forgive the bonus debt for at least some Guard members if a detailed plan was not ready by then. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Latinos in California are motivated to vote against Donald Trump, and that could affect a lot of other races By Sophia Bollag Voters make their way in and out of a polling place at the House of Mercy in Los Angeles in November 2012. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) Latinos make up the largest ethnic group in California, but are often underrepresented at the polls. This year, however, experts say they expect good Latino turnout in November, thanks largely to the heated presidential election that is motivating many Latinos to vote against presidential candidate Donald Trump and his anti-immigration rhetoric. They stand to have considerable impact on many down-ballot races in California, as well as on the outcome of many statewide propositions. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Tom Steyer is now the biggest donor in the effort to raise the tobacco tax By Liam Dillon Billionaire Tom Steyer is now the largest donor in the effort to raise the states cigarette tax by $2 a pack. With a $3.5-million donation to the Yes on Proposition 56 campaign Tuesday, Steyers total spending on the race has reached $11.3 million. Thats more than a third of the $31 million the primary Yes on 56 committee has raised and more than all the money raised during a similar, but failed, effort to increase the tobacco tax four years ago. Steyer, who is a major donor to state and national liberal causes, is the focus in two Yes on 56 television advertisements. Hes said hes motivated to spend to limit youth smoking and the memory of his mother, a smoker who died of lung cancer. Steyer also is frequently mentioned as a potential Democratic candidate for governor in 2018. The No on 56 campaign, which is almost entirely funded by tobacco companies, has raised $71 million. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement California congressional reps say they didnt know so many Guard members were being forced to repay enlistment bonuses By Sarah D. Wire Some of Californias members of Congress say Californias National Guard did not explain in 2014 how many guard members were being forced to repay enlistment bonuses. On Wednesday, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter ordered the Pentagon to suspend all efforts to collect reimbursement from the nearly 10,000 California National Guard members who were improperly given bonuses as an incentive to reenlist at the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Earlier in the week, a senior California National Guard official said it told the states members of Congress two years ago the Pentagon was trying to claw back reenlistment bonuses from thousands of soldiers, and even offered a proposal to mitigate the problem, but Congress took no action. After The Times first reported the problem Sunday, most of Californias 55 members of Congress signed onto letters to Carter, or House and Senate leaders, asking for an immediate fix. On Wednesday, they praised the Defense Department for halting the clawbacks and said Congress needs to stop the process entirely and refund the Guard members who already have repaid money. Still, some members took issue with the California Guards characterization of what it told the California delegation two years ago. Staff in members offices said the Guard broadly mentioned the clawbacks in a 2014 letter detailing its policy goals for the year, but officials didnt meet with members of Congress in person or by phone, and didnt otherwise tell them about the scale of the issue. Such letters are fairly common from groups working with Congress. If they would have come and said, Youre going to have thousands of combat veterans having their wages garnished and tax liens being put on them, we would have been all over this, said Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Alpine). That was never communicated to us. Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-Los Angeles) said neither the Pentagon nor California Guard officials told him about the large number of soldiers ordered to repay bonuses, though his office had received complaints from individual soldiers. I have no record of receiving any formal notice of this widespread issue from any department federal or state. The only record I have is of individual cases of service members who approached my office to get help, and we are working with these individuals who have served our country to make sure they are treated fairly, he said. Several high-ranking members of the delegation said this week they first heard of the scope of the problem from The Times reporting. The California Guard also sent members of Congress a suggested provision that would have allowed debt waivers for the affected soldiers in the 2015 defense authorization bill. Reps. Paul Cook (R-Yucca Valley) and Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) initially pushed for the provision but later abandoned the effort, and it didnt appear in the final bill. Cook and Denham said they dropped the effort after being told the Pentagon already had the power to waive the debts. Guard officials said they were told the provision was discarded because waiving the debt would have cost the Pentagon money, requiring the estimated costs to be offset with cuts elsewhere in the defense budget. For the record: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Denham declined to discuss why he dropped the provision to waive the debt. He dropped the effort after being told the Pentagon already had the power to waive the debt. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Ted Cruzs old gang called into action to help California GOP By Phil Willon Ron Nehring, a former aide in Sen. Ted Cruzs presidential bid, chats with visitors at the California State Fair in Sacramento during his 2014 campaign for lieutenant governor. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Texas Sen. Ted Cruzs presidential bid may be history, but his supporters in California are banding together to help GOP candidates locked in tight down-ballot races. Ron Nehring, the former state GOP chairman who was a top Cruz booster, said the focus will be turning out Republican voters and recruiting volunteers to work on a list of hotly contested congressional and legislative races selected by the California Republican Party. Among those pinpointed are Vista Rep. Darrell Issa, who faces his toughest challenge since being elected to Congress in 2000, and Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones, who is trying to unseat Democratic Rep. Ami Bera of Elk Grove. It is 100% exclusively boots on the ground, Nehring said. Michael Schroeder, who was co-chairman of Cruzs campaign in California and also served as the state GOP chairman, said Republican turnout in the Golden State is expected to be down because of the controversies surrounding GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump. Having Trump at the top of the November ballot also will motivate more Democrats to vote, and that could endanger GOP candidates in close races throughout the state, he said. Trumps campaign is a lost cause in California at this point, Schroeder said. Trump said he was going to drive Hispanic turnout, and I think hes right -- but not in the way hes hoping for. Californias Cruz alumni have a website and on Monday night held a conference call with 75 former Cruz organizers asking them to activate their local political networks to help with the effort, Nehring said. Other Republicans theyll work to protect or elect: Reps. Jeff Denham of Turlock, David Valadao of Hanford and Steve Knight of Palmdale. Assembly members Catharine Baker of San Ramon, David Hadley of Manhattan Beach, Tom Lackey of Palmdale and Young Kim of Fullerton. State Senate candidates Mike Antonovich of Glendale, Scott Wilk of Santa Clarita and Ling Ling Chang of Diamond Bar. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Central Valley congressional race shifts to a toss-up By Sarah D. Wire (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images) The 10th Congressional District race between Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) and Democrat Michael Eggman is now a toss-up, the nonpartisan analysts at the Cook Political Report announced Tuesday. The contest in the heavily Latino Central Valley district had been rated lean Republican, meaning the analysts thought Eggman had a chance, but they expected the third-term Republican to be reelected.The Cook Political Report now lists several California House districts held by Republicans as toss-ups, including Rep. Darrell Issas seat in the 49th District and Rep. Steve Knight in the 25th District. This is the second matchup for Denham and Eggman. Denham won their 2014 encounter with 56% of the vote, but this year, there is the added unknown of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trumps effect on other races and whether his unpopularity will drag down other candidates. For the record: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Rep. David Valadaos race in the 21st District is listed as a toss-up. It is listed as leaning Republican. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print U.S. Rep. Ami Bera: Soldiers who served our country should not be penalized for the mistakes of others By Sophia Bollag Urging @DeptofDefense today to immediately stop ordering @theCAGuard members to pay back their enlistment benefits. pic.twitter.com/Ti6bzWJias Ami Bera, M.D. (@RepBera) October 24, 2016 U.S. Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove) wrote to top Department of Defense officials Monday urging them to stop asking veterans to repay enlistment bonuses. The Pentagon has ordered nearly 10,000 California Guard soldiers to repay bonuses that were improperly awarded to them, The Times reported Saturday. With his letter, Bera joined the chorus of lawmakers who have condemned the action, calling on the Pentagon to waive the soldiers debts. Soldiers who served our country should not be penalized for the mistakes of others, wrote Bera, who faces a tough reelection battle in his Northern California district. I urge the Department to halt the collection of these bonuses at this time to prevent placing more service members in financial hardship. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Crime victims oppose the death penalty in Yes on Prop. 62 ads By Jazmine Ulloa In new online ads released Tuesday by proponents of Proposition 62, which seeks to repeal the death penalty in California, crime victims urge voters to end the system and bring peace to grieving families. Proposition 62 would replace the ultimate punishment for murder with a sentence of life in prison without parole, ending a lengthy appeals process that some victims say has interfered with their healing. It is one of two competing death penalty measures on the Nov. 8 ballot. In one of two videos, which campaign officials say are geared toward swing voters, Beth Webb tells viewers she has had to face the death row inmate who killed her sister and seven others in a hair salon almost 50 times in court. Him sitting there, soaking up all of the attention, loving it, its disgusting, she says. The commercials come as proponents of the opposing measure on the ballot, Proposition 66, have released their own ads over the last few days, urging voters to reform the system, not end it. In one of those videos, a murder victims mother says no punishment other than the death penalty is appropriate for the twice-convicted sex offender who abducted her child. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Common, Russell Simmons, Shailene Woodley among celebrities pushing to legalize weed in California By Patrick McGreevy Common at the 2015 Academy Awards (Kevin Winter / Getty Images) Top celebrities including Common, Tim Robbins and the author of the Orange is the New Black memoir are joining forces in what they are calling Artists for 64" the effort to legalize recreational use of marijuana in California. A show of force announced Tuesday includes rapper and actor Common; music producer Russell Simmons; Ty Dolla $ign; actors Danny Glover, Olivia Wilde, Tim Robbins, Sarah Silverman, Shailene Woodley of The Divergent series, Jesse Williams of Greys Anatomy and Michael K. Williams of the HBO series The Wire; and Piper Kerman, author of Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Womens Prison. Jay Z, who last week put out a video calling the war on drugs an epic fail, also signed on to the effort. In California, the question on whether to legalize marijuana for adult use is a policy change that will have a lasting impact on historically marginalized communities, Glover, the star of films including the Lethal Weapon series, said in a statement posted on Artists for 64. Marijuana laws have been used as a tool by law enforcement to racially profile, harass, intimidate and criminalize mostly young African American and Latino men for decades. I am shocked and saddened by the harm that marijuana criminalization brings, especially for communities of color, Wilde said in a statement. The campaign against Proposition 64 said Hollywood celebrities are not the most credible endorsers, charging they are out of touch with the reality of drug abuse in many communities in the state. Today the No on Prop 64 campaign did a press event in Fresno with faith and community leaders who know that the problems that recreational marijuana creates will impact these communities and neighborhoods across California not Hollywood, said Andrew Acosta, a spokesman for the opposition campaign. In a video produced by Dream Hampton and included on the website, former Golden State Warrior Al Harrington talks about how marijuana helped him overcome pain and inflammation during a staph infection and helped his grandmother with her glaucoma. Im a California voter and Im voting `yes for Prop. 64, he says. Williams spoke from personal experience. Im in recovery and dont use marijuana, and my Christian faith is my rock when it comes to staying sober, he said in a statement. But I dont believe people should be arrested for marijuana anymore. California can lead the country by voting yes on Prop 64. Drug Policy Action, an advocacy group backing Proposition 64 to legalize the drug for recreational use, paid for the site. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Californias Congress members knew the Pentagon was trying to get back bonuses from soldiers, official says By David S. Cloud The California National Guard told the states members of Congress two years ago that the Pentagon was trying to claw back reenlistment bonuses from thousands of soldiers, and even offered a proposal to mitigate the problem, but Congress took no action, according to a senior National Guard official. What form that communication took and whether the members of Congress understood the scope of the problem at the time is unclear. On Monday, House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi sent a letter to Speaker Paul D. Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying that Congress should pass legislation to halt the Pentagon debt recovery as soon as we gavel back into session after the Nov. 8 election. Other California congressional members, including Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, also sent letters to Defense Secretary Ashton Carter about the matter. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Proposition 56 and the great vape tax debate By Liam Dillon (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP/Getty Images) Turn on any TV in California and you know that all the talk surrounding the Proposition 56 tobacco tax has been about cigarettes. But if the initiative passes next month, e-cigarettes will also be taxed like traditional cigarettes for the first time a huge tax increase that could boost the price of a typical 30-milliliter bottle of e-liquid by $10. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print State ethics watchdog asks court to force assemblymans campaign to turn over documents for investigation By Christine Mai-Duc Assemblyman David Hadley (R-Manhattan Beach) greets people after participating in a candidates forum in Torrance. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) The campaign of Assemblyman David Hadley (R-Manhattan Beach) has delayed turning over documents related to an official investigation into his campaign practices, according to court documents filed by the state Fair Political Practices Commission. The investigation grew out of a complaint from Hadleys opponent, Democrat Al Muratsuchi, that claims Hadleys campaign was illegally coordinating with an independent expenditure committee that also supported Hadley. In a letter to the FPPC, Muratsuchi claimed Hadleys campaign and Spirit of Democracy, a group funded mostly by Republican donor Charles Munger, Jr., shared consultant Steven Presson during at least part of the primary campaign for Assembly District 66. In court documents filed Oct. 13, FPPC special investigator Garrett Micheels said he initially emailed Hadley Aug. 4, asking him to voluntarily provide certain records to the commissions enforcement division. The records requested included emails, letters and text messages between Jan. 1 and June 7 between Presson and the Hadley campaign, or any other individuals or groups concerning the Hadley race. The next day, Presson responded that the campaign would require a subpoena to avoid possible public exposure to sensitive emails within the Hadley campaign regarding our strategy. After a subpoena was issued on Aug. 12, Micheels said in court documents, Hadley retained attorney Steve Churchwell, who asked for extensions to produce the documents at least three times, but never provided the records. On Sept. 27, Hadley produced some of the documents, court filings say, but wrote to explain that he was withholding his communications with Presson because there are hundreds or thousands of such correspondences that contained sensitive/confidential campaign communications that he said he had not had the time to review. As of Friday, the FPPC says, they have not received the rest of the documents requested. There is only one reason Hadley would conceal documents, and that is because he is guilty and is trying to hide the evidence, said Mike Shimpock, a consultant for the Muratsuchi campaign. A Hadley campaign spokesman declined to comment and Churchwell did not return a request for comment. Oral arguments in the case are scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday in the Sacramento County Superior Court. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement New ads urge California voters not to repeal the last defense against killers By Jazmine Ulloa In two new television ads, police officers and prosecutors urge California voters not to repeal the death penalty on Nov. 8, calling it the last defense against killers. The commercials, released late Monday by the California Correctional Peace Officers Assn., are part of the No on Prop. 62, Yes on Prop. 66 campaign. The effort aims to defeat Proposition 62, which would replace the ultimate punishment for murder with life in prison without parole, and to support Proposition 66, which would change and limit how and how often death row inmates can appeal. The pro-death penalty campaign has drawn broad support and funding from law enforcement organizations across the state. The Correctional Peace Officers Assn. alone has donated nearly $600,000 since last September. Ive seen what the worst among us can do, killings so brutal families never recover, Sgt. Dan Cabral of the Sacramento County Deputy Sheriffs Assn. tells viewers in one ad. Its why we have a death penalty. The second ad features the case of serial killer Charles Ng, who has spent 17 years on death row for the rape, torture and slayings of at least 11 victims. This is cruel punishment for the families, Sharon Sellitto, one victims sister, says in the video. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print GOP Rep. Darrell Issa returns fire after President Obama rips his campaign mailer By Phil Willon Vista Republican Rep. Darrell Issa said Monday he was disappointed but not surprised by President Obamas criticism of him for using the presidents photo in a campaign mailer. At a fundraiser in La Jolla on Sunday night, Obama said Issas primary contribution to Congress has been to obstruct and to waste taxpayer dollars on trumped-up investigations that have led nowhere. The president called Issa shameless for using his image in his reelection campaign. Im disappointed but not surprised that the president, in a political speech, continues to deny accountability for the serious scandals that happened under his watch where Americans died overseas and veterans have died here at home, Issa said in a statement released by his congressional campaign Monday. Youd be hard-pressed to find anyone who thinks Ive done too much to hold Washington accountable. Ive worked with the administration on good legislation where it was possible, called out wrongdoing wherever I saw it and will continue to do so. Issa is running his toughest congressional campaign to date, an increasingly nasty race that has been declared a toss-up by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. Issas Democratic challenger in the 49th Congressional District, retired Marine Col. Doug Applegate, has criticized the congressman as a Washington insider and supporter of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. In the political mailer sent out by the Issa campaign, the congressman said he was pleased with the president for signing legislation he co-sponsored that provides victims of sexual assault legal protections in the federal criminal justice system. At the Sunday night fundraiser, Obama ripped Issa as a guy who, because poll numbers are bad, has sent out brochures with my picture on them touting his cooperation on issues with me. Now that is the definition of chutzpah, Obama said. Issa once called Obama one of the most corrupt presidents in modern times. While chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, he led investigations into the Benghazi attack, the Internal Revenue Service scandal, the botched Fast and Furious gun sting and other actions by the Obama administration. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print California Democrats remember Tom Hayden for pursuits close to home By Michael Finnegan (Lori Shepler / Los Angeles Times) Top California Democrats remembered Tom Hayden on Monday as an influential activist whose pursuit of liberal causes extended far beyond his best-known work leading protests against the Vietnam War. Tom took up causes that others avoided, Gov. Jerry Brown said. He had a real sense of the underdog and was willing to do battle no matter what the odds. Hayden died Sunday in Santa Monica after a long illness. He was 76. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti recalled Haydens work negotiating a gang truce in Venice, along with his contributions to an anti-sweatshop ordinance to prevent worker exploitation. Tom Hayden was a giant who never stopped pushing for peace and justice, and inspired a generation of change agents to bring new voices and overlooked perspectives to the decision-making process, Garcetti said. Hayden, classified by the FBI as a rabble rouser in the 1960s, was prosecuted by President Nixons Justice Department in the raucous Chicago 7 trial after violent clashes with police at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. His conviction was dismissed on appeal. He went on to serve in the state Assembly and Senate for a total of 18 years. John Burton, chairman of the California Democratic Party, recalled two measures that Hayden got passed. One allocated $250,000 to buy tattoo removal machines for imprisoned youth so they could cut their gang ties. The other set up a program for parents to use tax-free accounts for savings dedicated to their childrens college education. These bills didnt get a lot of attention at the time, but they have had a far-reaching impact on young peoples futures, said Burton, who led the state Senate when Hayden was a member. The Senates current leader, Kevin de Leon of Los Angeles, said Hayden was well ahead of the curve on issues involving the environment, social justice, gang intervention and urban peace, access to higher education, domestic violence and much more. Hayden, he said, distinguished himself as a paragon of political integrity and a great intellect. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Secretary of States office holds voter registration drive at the Capitol on the last day to register in California By Sophia Bollag .@CASOSvote staff are outside the Capitol today to register new voters. Today is the deadline to register in CA. pic.twitter.com/vNovU1jNla Sophia Bollag (@SophiaBollag) October 24, 2016 The Secretary of States office is holding a voter registration drive outside the Capitol today, the last day to register in California before the November election. The offices staff registered about 20 people in the first couple of hours, said Milena Paez, who works in the offices elections division. Many people had also stopped by the booth to ask where their polling place is or check their voter registration status, she said. LaRhonda Sayles-Willis, who recently moved to the Sacramento area, said she saw the booth as she walked down the street and stopped by to see where she was registered. She ended up re-registering to vote to be on the safe side and said shes particularly motivated to vote for Hillary Clinton. I really oppose her opponent. I just dont like the guy, the 56-year-old said. I just dont think hes a good representation of the United States. Ada Avelar, 21, said she decided to register because she recently moved to the United States from Mexico City to attend Sacramento State University. Avelar is an American citizen. She said she saw the booth on her way back from having lunch with a friend and decided to register right there. I was like, its a sign, she said. I have to do it. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Assemblywoman Patty Lopez vows not to give up on reelection despite lack of party support By Christine Mai-Duc Patty Lopez watches as ballots are counted in her 2014 race against then-incumbent Raul Bocanegra, who she bested by fewer than 500 votes. ( (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)) On a recent weekend, with just three weeks to go until the November election, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon made a whirlwind tour of five of the most hotly contested races in the state, stumping for Democratic candidates. Assemblywoman Patty Lopez (D-San Fernando), who faces a stiff challenge from former Assemblyman Raul Bocanegra, was not one of them. Instead, she spent part of her Saturday walking through a community street festival, handing out fliers with a handful of volunteers. Ive been blocked from my party, but my district knows who is Patty Lopez, she said. Sometimes I feel disappointed, but thats not stopping me from doing what I need to do. In 2014, Lopez shocked many when she eked out a win against Bocanegra by a margin of less than 500 votes. With six Democrats on the ballot in this years primary, Lopez received just 27.2% of the vote, a distant second to Bocanegras 44.4%. Despite this, and the fact that the California Democratic Party has endorsed her challenger, Lopez says she is a woman of faith who believes 100 percent that shell be reelected. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Obama says Darrell Issa is shameless for praising him in campaign mailer that is the definition of chutzpah By Sarah D. Wire At a California fundraiser Sunday night, President Obama called Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista) shameless for using the presidents photo on a recent mailer and praising him after years of criticizing the Obama administration. Issa is facing an unexpectedly tough race this year as the eight-term Republican squares off against political novice former Marine Col. Doug Applegate. Issas primary contribution to the United States Congress has been to obstruct and to waste taxpayer dollars on trumped-up investigations that have led nowhere. And this is now a guy who, because poll numbers are bad, has sent out brochures with my picture on them touting his cooperation on issues with me, Obama told the crowd, according to a transcript, at a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee fundraiser in the La Jolla home of donor Christine Forester. Now that is the definition of chutzpah. The Vista Republican has been a frequent critic of Obama and has called him one of the most corrupt presidents in modern times. The campaign mailer said Issa was pleased with the president for signing legislation he co-sponsored into law. Issa was one of 40 House members who co-sponsored the legislation, which provides some sexual assault victims legal protections in the federal criminal justice system. The president is in Los Angeles today and Tuesday for a taping of Jimmy Kimmel Live and two fundraisers, including a $100,000-per-ticket fundraiser at DreamWorks Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenbergs home tonight that is completely closed to the press. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print The district where water is more important than all other campaign issues By Sarah D. Wire (Sarah D. Wire/ Los Angeles Times) In Californias Central Valley, the nations most productive agricultural region, the drought drives everything. And the ongoing fight over how much water flows could be the reason Democrats havent been able to win in the 21st Congressional District with a national race even though 47% of registered voters there are Democrats. Heres a look at the role of water in the race between Rep. David Valadao, and attorney Emilio Huerta. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement What happens if both death penalty measures are approved by voters on Nov. 8? By Jazmine Ulloa (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press) California voters are weighing dueling death penalty propositions on the Nov. 8 ballot, one that seeks to repeal the system and another that aims to speed it up. If both pass with a majority, the initiative with the most yes votes would supersede the other. If both fail to garner the votes, then the status quo remains, a frustrating prospect for many as advocates on both sides of the issue say the system is broken. California has more than 740 inmates awaiting execution, the largest death row population in the country. Their appeals go directly to the state Supreme Court and take 25 years to process. Both capital punishment measures would require current prisoners to work and pay restitution to victims. But Proposition 62 would repeal the death penalty in California for first-degree murder and replace the sentence with life in prison without the possibility of parole. It also would apply retroactively to offenders already sentenced to death. Proposition 66 would designate lower trial courts to take on initial challenges to convictions and limit successive appeals to within five years of a death sentence. It also would require court-appointed lawyers who dont take capital appeals to represent death row inmates. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print California Politics Podcast: Propositions, polling and parole By John Myers The fact that there are 17 propositions on the statewide ballot has not only made things hard on voters, its been almost impossible for pollsters to sample opinion on so many issues. But one new poll looks at some of the least talked about measures, and its our first topic on this weeks California Politics Podcast. The poll suggests a lot of voters remain undecided about several of these low-profile proposals. We also take a detailed look at one of the most contentious ballot fights, the effort by Gov. Jerry Brown to revamp state prison parole rules through Proposition 57. Im joined on this weeks episode by Marisa Lagos of KQED News. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement In No on 62, Yes on 66 campaign ad, murder victims mother urges California voters to keep the death penalty By Jazmine Ulloa In three online ads released Friday, Sandra Friend tells California voters they should fix the states death penalty system, not end it. The 43-year-old mother has been a crime victims advocate since Robert Boyd Rhoades sexually abused and killed her 8-year-old son, Michael Lyons, two decades ago. She is now serving as one of the main voices behind a campaign that is working to defeat Proposition 62, which would repeal the death penalty, and in favor of Proposition 66, which seeks to speed up executions. Voters will weigh the dueling capital punishment initiatives on the Nov. 8 ballot. Both would require current death row inmates to work and pay restitution to victims, but would take opposing approaches to what the measures both call a broken system. Rhoades, who abducted Lyons on his way home from school in Yuba City, is one of 740 death row inmates in California. Executions have been on hold since 2006, when the states lethal injection protocol was challenged in court. Friend tells viewers it has been difficult coming to terms with the fact that her son was murdered by a twice-convicted sex offender. I am living a parents worst nightmare, she says. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Former state Sen. Ronald Calderon sentenced to 42 months in prison on corruption charge By Joel Rubin Former state Sen. Ronald S. Calderon was sentenced in Los Angeles on Friday to 42 months in prison after he pleaded guilty in a federal corruption case. The Montebello Democrat, who served in the state Senate for eight years ending in 2014, admitted in a plea deal in June that he accepted tens of thousands of dollars in bribes from undercover FBI agents and a hospital executive in return for official favors. Federal prosecutors had asked for a five-year sentence for a charge where the maximum possible penalty was 20 years. U.S. District Judge Christina Snyder, who handed down the sentence to Calderon, said five years was too severe but that a significant prison sentence was needed to punish Calderon and send a message to other elected officials that corruption will not be tolerated. The crime is significant, she said during the court hearing. This is a true public corruption case. Striking a defiant tone throughout, Calderon refused to admit any wrong-doing or to apologize during the court hearing. My goal was always to do the right thing for California, he said. At no point did I intend to break the law. He said he ultimately decided to plead guilty in order to spare his family the ordeal of a trial, but persisted in his innocence, saying he never agreed to any quid pro quo to benefit himself or his family. Unemployed and tens of thousands of dollars in debt, Calderon said professional relationships had been ruined as had his relationship with his brother. My reputation is destroyed, Calderon said. Snyder was unmoved. I did not really hear Senator Calderon accept responsibility or apologize, she said. It was really about himself. Calderon, 59, had pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud as part of a plea in which he admitted to accepting trips to Las Vegas, jobs for a son and daughter, and cash for him and his brother, former Assemblyman Tom Calderon. Tom Calderon was sentenced last month to one year in federal custody for laundering bribes taken by his brother. The Calderon family was politically powerful for decades in California. A third brother, former Assemblyman Charles Calderon, was not implicated in the corruption scandal. Ronald Calderons nephew, Ian Calderon, is a state assemblyman, the last family member in state elected office. He was not alleged to have any part in the corruption scheme. Assistant U.S. Atty. Mack E. Jenkins wrote a blistering brief opposing Calderons request to serve time with home detention or be released for the brief time he already spent in jail. Here, defendants trafficking in his legislative votes (for, by contrast, over $150,000 in benefits) caused a reverberation of negative effects throughout California and put a stain not just on his career, but on the reputation of the state legislature, Jenkins wrote. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Accusations fly in the congressional race for this Northern California swing district By Sophia Bollag Democratic U.S. Rep. Ami Bera, left, shakes hands with his Republican challenger, Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones, after their debate Tuesday in the race for the 7th Congressional District seat. (Jose Luis Villegas / Associated Press) Questions about character have been dominating the congressional race between Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove) and Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones. Both candidates have been plagued by allegations of wrongdoing. Beras father was recently sentenced to jail for illegally funneling money to two of his sons past campaigns. Jones faces allegations he sexually harassed a subordinate at the Sheriffs Department more than a decade ago, which he denies. Theyre competing in a divided district that leans Democratic, but not by much. In 2014, Bera beat his Republican challenger by less than a percentage point. This race is always one of the closest races in the country, he said. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Loretta Sanchez says she got death threats after she voted against the Iraq war By Phil Willon Rep. Loretta Sanchez, after her speech Thursday. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) U.S. Senate candidate Loretta Sanchez on Thursday urged ROTC cadets at UCLA to have the courage to challenge politicians who call for ill conceived uses of military force such as the 2003 invasion of Iraq. We need military leaders that understand the limits of our military power, said Sanchez, who has served in Congress for two decades and sits on the House Armed Services Committee. Why is it that every generation and every president has to learn that all over again? The Orange County congresswoman made the comments during an address to ROTC cadets at UCLAs Pauley Pavilion. Sanchez said her experience on the House Armed Services Committee made her question the long-term implications of the Iraq invasion, and whether the U.S. might find itself bogged down in a war in the Middle East. In 2002, Sanchez was among the 133 House members who voted against the authorization of military force against Iraq. It was a lonely time, Sanchez told the cadets. [When] I came back to Orange County, I was spit on. I received death threats. The congresswoman told the cadets the military is just one part of a national security strategy that includes intelligence gathering, diplomacy and the use of the countrys economic strength. Because so much is at stake, the use of our military should always be a last resort, Sanchez said. Sanchez is running against fellow Democrat and state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris for Californias U.S. Senate seat. She says her expertise on national defense and terrorism are among the reasons shes the most qualified candidate. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Tobacco companies claim proponents of cigarette tax will use the new revenue to enrich their top executives By Liam Dillon Tobacco companies have unveiled a new claim in their campaign against the $2-per-pack increase in cigarette taxes on the November ballot. In a television advertisement that debuted over the weekend, the No on Proposition 56 campaign contends that the doctors and health insurance groups financing the initiative wrote it to avoid external oversight over the money going to low-income patient care. They even exempted themselves from the new audit requirements, the ad states. They can use the new revenue to enrich their top executives, and theres no requirement to treat even one more patient. The claim rests on a part of the Proposition 56 initiative that creates new auditing rules to govern where the new tax money would go. But it ignores the litany of state and federal auditing requirements to which Medi-Cal, the states low-income health program, already is subject. First, heres a little background about how the money from Proposition 56 would get spent. Assuming fewer people use tobacco because of the tax increase, the tax would raise about $1.27 billion next year, according to an estimate from the Legislative Analysts Office. Of that amount, $710 million about 56% would go to Medi-Cal, primarily to increase the payment doctors and other healthcare providers receive when they treat patients. The remaining dollars go to back-filling current state and local sales taxes and other programs because fewer people will buy cigarettes, doctor and dentist training and anti-tobacco efforts. The initiative kicks in $400,000 a year to audit the agencies receiving the money. Beth Miller, spokeswoman for the No on 56 campaign, said that opponents like that state and local agencies will be audited if the measure passes. The criticism is that the provisions dont go far enough. It would have been nice to have those audit requirements also apply to those end users, so to speak: the hospitals, the insurance companies and the doctors, Miller said. Medi-Cal providers, however, get audited all the time. The states Department of Health Care Services does internal audits and investigations through an entire department of about 700 employees and a $50-million budget dedicated to reviewing the programs under its jurisdiction, including looking at the financial records of Medi-Cal providers. Beyond that, the California State Auditor has issued at least two wide-ranging audits involving Medi-Cal providers in the last five years on the states oversight of managed-care plans. And the federal Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General also audits programs and providers that receive federal dollars for low-income patients. One recent federal audit of California that examined pediatric dental providers happened last May. Miller contended that the audits required under Proposition 56 are more transparent than the existing state and federal programs. Mike Roth, spokesman for the Yes on 56 campaign, said the initiative has plenty of safeguards to ensure the tax money is spent wisely, including the auditing provisions. This is another desperate and deceitful red herring from tobacco companies, and it takes the cake as far as their flagrant lies about Proposition 56, Roth said. Heres the full ad: UPDATES: 3:03 p.m.: This post was updated to include the full video of the advertisement. This article was originally published at 2:00 p.m. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Central Valley congressional race that once leaned Republican is now a toss-up, report says By Sarah D. Wire Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images) The nonpartisan analysts at the Cook Political Report now say its a toss-up whether Republican Rep. Jeff Denham or Democrat beekeeper Michael Eggman will win the 10th Congressional District race. The race had been rated leans Republican since last fall, indicating that the analysts expected Denham to keep the seat, but felt Democrats had a chance. This is the second matchup for Denham and Eggman. Denham won in 2014 with 56.4% of the vote. Democrats have worked for months to tie vulnerable House Republicans to the rhetoric of their presidential nominee, Donald Trump, and this race is one where Trumps effect down the ballot could be most visible. Denham has said he disagrees with Trumps rhetoric, but hasnt backed off supporting him, a move that could prove unpopular in the Central Valley district where at least 40% of the population is Latino. Three Republican-held seats in California are now considered toss-ups. The other two are representing the 25th Congressional District, held by Rep. Steve Knight (R-Palmdale), and the 49th Congressional District, held by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista). Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print California Senate leader endorses gun control initiative despite differences with its author, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom By Patrick McGreevy California Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, left, and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, right, applaud at Gov. Jerry Browns State of the State speech in January. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) Despite political differences with its author, state Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) on Thursday endorsed Proposition 63, which would expand Californias already tough gun control laws. Proposition 63 was proposed by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and would outlaw large-capacity ammunition magazines, require background checks for those buying bullets, require lost or stolen guns to be reported quickly, make stealing a firearm a felony and provide a process for newly convicted felons to relinquish their guns. De Leon and Newsom have both been working on gun control issues for years and both have aspirations for higher office. Newsom is running for governor in 2018. Some in the De Leon camp thought when the initiative was proposed last year that it was being used to try to take over an issue on which the senator has been a leader. The two disagreed earlier this year on the best way to achieve gun control aims, with De Leon publicly calling on Newsom to drop his initiative and allow the Legislature to act, and Newsom refusing, charging that the Legislatures proposals were not extensive enough. In the end, the Legislature approved several bills, including one by De Leon that requires background checks for ammunition purchasers, even though a similar proposal is included in the Newsom initiative. The Legislature also mandated that its background-check plan would supersede the one in Proposition 63. On Thursday, De Leon made no mention of the differences. Earlier this year, our Legislature passed the most sweeping and important package of gun safety laws in the nation, increasing nationwide momentum and grass-roots outcries for common-sense safeguards against gun violence, De Leon said in a statement. I endorse Proposition 63 because we must send a powerful and united message to the national Gun Lobby that California will not capitulate to political bullying or compromise the public safety, he added. The differences between the two politicians were highlighted noted by Richard Grenell, co-chairman of the Coalition for Civil Liberties, which is campaigning against the initiative. This is a prime example of why people should trust law enforcement on this question before self-interested politicians, Grenell said. Just a few months ago, de Leon asked Newsom to repeal Prop 63. De Leons statement was released a day after Newsom ruffled some feathers in the De Leon camp when he told the Sacramento Press Club that his initiative accomplishes things that state officials could not. Newsom noted that 11 other states have enacted the requirement that stolen guns be reported. There have been legislative attempts and they have failed multiple times here in the Capitol, Newsom said. The Legislature did approve such a bill this year, but it was vetoed by Gov. Jerry Brown in July. The political dispute between the two leading Democrats surfaced last year when De Leon acted to slash a third of Newsoms staff, notifying him that two Senate employees who had been on loan to the lieutenant governors office were being reassigned. UPDATED at 1:10 pm to include comment from opponent of initiative. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print No fight from the business community over the proposed tobacco and income tax hikes By Liam Dillon (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images) Business groups often make up a triumvirate with Republicans and taxpayer advocates against tax increases. But on the two tax hikes on the 2016 California ballot, major business leaders are mostly staying away from the fight. They tend to dislike the income tax extensions promised by Proposition 55, but arent campaigning against them. And some are even backing Proposition 56s cigarette tax increases. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Almost half a million Californians have already voted by mail, with a surge in some hotly contested races By John Myers (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) Early data compiled from local elections officials shows a surge of ballots being returned in the mail, especially in some of the most closely watched races this election season. A report compiled by Political Data Inc. shows almost 408,000 ballots cast in just the first eight days of voting, with more than half of those ballots arriving in local election offices Wednesday. As weve reported before, election day in California is now more like an election month. A majority of the states voters cast their ballots away from traditional polling places, and political professionals can closely monitor which voters in any given race have turned those ballots back in. The report also shows strong early voting in some of Californias most talked about congressional races. In the hotly contested reelection race of Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista), more than four times as many ballots have been returned so far compared to the 2014 general election. And even though Republicans have an eight-point registration advantage in Issas district, the ballots cast so far have skewed more Democratic. In early voting, the two major parties are almost even in the number of votes cast. Issa, facing a tough race against Democrat Douglas Applegate, recently sent out a campaign mailer trying to appeal to local voters who support President Obama. Compared to the first few days of the 2014 general election, substantially more ballots have also been cast in the Central Valley races featuring Reps. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) and David Valadao (R-Hanford). In both districts, Democratic voters are outpacing GOP voters in early ballot returns. While none of the data offers information on how those ballots were cast -- these are only totals received by county officials -- the early numbers may offer a glimpse at how energized some parts of the electorate are in this contentious campaign season. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement What will Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom focus on in his run for governor? Aging infrastructure among issues By Patrick McGreevy California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at an event in Los Angeles in April. (Nick Ut / Associated Press) Signaling that his gubernatorial campaign will shift into higher gear after next months election, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that he is working on a plan to double spending on roads and other infrastructure since the Legislature failed to act this year. This is going to be something you will be hearing a lot more from me on over the course of the next number of months, a very aggressive infrastructure proposal, Newsom said in a speech to the Sacramento Press Club. The former San Francisco mayor is running for governor in 2018. He noted that the governor and Legislature did not reach an agreement on a transportation funding program in the face of a $130-billion backlog in state and local road repairs. Legislative Democrats proposed a $7.4-billion plan earlier this year that would raise the gas tax by 17 cents a gallon. Thats about twice the size of an earlier plan by Gov. Jerry Brown. Weve got to more than double our investment in infrastructure in this state, Newsom said, adding the problem has reached code red in California. Plans by the governor to use proceeds from sale of cap-and-trade credits have merits, he said. Separately, Newsom said he continues to support the vision of a high speed rail system for California but said I remain concerned about the finances. He said the private sector must step up to provide more of the money as the project cost has close to doubled from its original $33 billion price tag. Newsom acknowledged that he has work to do to introduce himself to voters outside his home base. I think a lot of the state really doesnt know me yet, he said, adding he sees it as a great opportunity to tell his story. He declined to comment on the gubernatorial candidacy of state Treasurer John Chiang and possible runs by former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer. Im not focused on those others, he said. Im focused on what we have before us. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print L.A. activist is building his AIDS organization into a political powerhouse with two November ballot measures By Christine Mai-Duc (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times) When Michael Weinstein launched his AIDS Healthcare Foundation in the late 1980s, he had a coffee can for donations and a $50,000 budget to provide end-of-life care to those dying of the disease. Today, hes grown the nonprofit into a $1.2-billion operation that manages hundreds of clinics and pharmacies globally, and has quickly become a major political player in California, and, he hopes, nationally. AHF, as it is known, is sponsoring two initiatives on Californias November ballot: Proposition 60, which would require adult film actors to use condoms during sex scenes, and Proposition 61, which would bar state agencies from entering contracts to purchase drugs where the price is higher than that paid by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Thats quite a feat in a state as expensive as California, and in a political year as crowded as 2016. Were doing things on a scale that we havent before, Weinstein said in a recent interview from his office in a Hollywood high-rise. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement These janitors are giving up sleep to knock on doors for Hillary Clinton By Sarah D. Wire Yamilex Rustrian, left, of North Hollywood, and Leticia Soto of Los Angeles check Las Vegas addresses to visit to encourage voters to support Hillary Clinton. (Sarah D. Wire / Los Angeles Times) Early Saturday morning, Yamilex Rustrian sat with her mother and other janitors assembled at long tables in the old mortuary that is home to the SEIU United Service Workers West. They ate ham, cheese and bean sandwiches as they waited for the final workers to get off the late shift. At least one came still dressed in her blue smock. The group of janitors and their children made a quick trip to Las Vegas over the weekend to knock on doors for Hillary Clinton, and got home Sunday just in time for the late shift. Each had their reasons to join the more than 150 union members who made the trip. Read More Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Federal prosector seeks 5 years for former California Sen. Ron Calderon in corruption case By Patrick McGreevy A federal prosecutor has recommended that former state Sen. Ron Calderon be sentenced to five years in prison as part of a federal corruption case that rocked the California state Capitol. Assistant U.S. Atty. Mack E. Jenkins wrote a blistering brief urging the federal judge to not show leniency to Calderon, who in June entered a plea deal in which he pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud. Here, defendants trafficking in his legislative votes (for, by contrast, over $150,000 in benefits) caused a reverberation of negative effects throughout California and put a stain not just on his career, but on the reputation of the state legislature, Jenkins wrote ahead of Fridays sentencing date. The prosecutor noted that only one fellow politician wrote a letter of support for Calderon, a Montebello Democrat. In defendants plea agreement, he admitted to participating in two substantial and complex bribery schemes that entailed multiple forms of bribes, concealment and sophisticated money laundering, the prosecutor wrote. Here, defendant sold his vote not just to help pay for the expenses of living beyond his means, but for the more banal and predictable aims of corruption fancy luxuries, fancy parties and fancy people. An attorney for Calderon has asked the judge to sentence the former lawmaker to time already served in jail during his booking or home detention. Jenkins proposed that Calderon be sentenced to five years in custody, one year of supervised release, a $7,500 fine and 250 hours of community service. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement A new Jay Z video says pot should be legal in California and calls the war on drugs an epic fail By Patrick McGreevy Rapper Jay Z has weighed in to support Proposition 64, which would legalize the recreational use of marijuana in California, calling the war on drugs an epic fail, in a YouTube video, which also describes how the effort filled prisons with young African American and Latino men. Young men like me who hustle became the sole villain, Jay Z says as the video depicts the deterioration of a neighborhood drawn by artist Molly Crabapple. The one-minute video was produced by the group Drug Policy Action from a longer animated video that addressed the general issue of drug prohibition, said Jason Kinney, a spokesman for the campaign. The shortened video, titled The War on Drugs from Prohibition to Gold Rush, ends with a new, written message urging people to vote for Proposition 64, adding, We can stop the harm on Nov. 8. Jay Z agreed to have the video tailored to the Proposition 64 campaign, Kinney said. Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who helped qualify the initiative, praised the rapper on Twitter, writing Thank you, Jay Z, for your strong voice for social justice & co-creating this new @Yeson64 video! Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Bay Area congressman Eric Swalwell got married over the weekend By Sarah D. Wire View Instagram post Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Dublin) and Brittany Watts, a sales director at the Ritz-Carlton in Half Moon Bay, got married on Friday. They were married at the Rene C. Davidson Courthouse in Oakland. Before being elected to Congress, Swalwell worked in the courthouse as a prosecutor with the Alameda County district attorneys office. Here is the couples wedding announcement. The congressman also posted an image of the couple cutting their wedding cake on Instagram. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Los Angeles top elections officer talks about voter fraud and polling place intimidation in Reddit chat By John Myers The questions posed by Reddit users on Monday to the top elections officer in Los Angeles ranged from small problems over where to cast an early ballot to broader concerns about election security. Dean Logan, Los Angeles Countys registrar of voters, attempted to answer almost all of them during the hourlong online conversation. Asked about intimidation of voters at the polls, possibly inspired by criticisms over comments by GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, Logan said the question has been popping up a lot in his office. We, of course, encourage people to observe all elements of the process, but any disruption of voters or intimidation of voters is unacceptable, he wrote. Another Reddit user asked whether all ballots mailed or dropped off at a polling place are counted. Any valid and timely received vote by mail ballot will be counted and included in the certified election results, Logan wrote. I am always surprised by this question. Logan said that officials mailed some 1.8 million ballots last week to Los Angeles Countys permanent absentee voters, with one-time requests for ballots by mail being sent out this week. Asked by one Reddit user about a potential way to commit voter fraud with absentee ballots, Logan said it is important to note that the voter doing so would be signing an oath under penalty of perjury. He also agreed with one questioners concern that voter turnout was too low, and suggested that a new state laws significant expansion of voting by mail may help. I think the model of voting we use is somewhat outdated and unfamiliar to new voters, Logan said. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Kamala Harris and her husband made $1.17 million in 2015, according to report on their tax returns By Phil Willon Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris files to run for the U.S. Senate in February at the Los Angeles County Registrar with her husband, Douglas Emhoff. (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times) The 2015 tax returns filed by U.S. Senate candidate Kamala Harris and her husband, Los Angeles attorney Douglas Emhoff, show that the couple earned $1.17 million that year, according to reports. Harris tax returns, which were viewed and first reported by the Sacramento Bee, also showed that the California attorney general and her husband paid $450,000 in state and federal income taxes. Harris campaign spokesman Nathan Click said journalists are being allowed to view the tax returns by appointment only. Harris rival in the Senate race, Orange County Rep. Loretta Sanchez, provided her 2015 tax return to the Orange County Register and will not make those tax records available to other journalists until after that news organization publishes its story, said Sanchez campaign spokesman Luis Vizcaino. Harris and Sanchez have net worths that likely run in the millions, according to federal and state financial disclosures. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Copy Link URL Copied! Print Advertisement Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum reopens and his daughter and grandson get a tour By Christine Mai-Duc Christopher Cox, grandson of Richard Nixon, talks to reporters during a tour of the newly renovated Nixon Presidential Library and Museum. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times) The Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum reopened Saturday, after a 10-month renovation that sought to reframe the narrative of the 37th presidents life and legacy. The $15-million remake brings to a close a more than decade-long effort to bring greater legitimacy to a library that historian and Nixon scholar Stanley Kutler once called just another Southern California theme park whose reality level was slightly better than Disneyland. We wrote about the librarys new exhibits a couple of months ago, and the challenge of building an unflinching portrait of a complicated man. In attendance were Henry Kissinger, Nixons former secretary of State, former California Gov. Pete Wilson and Nixons daughter and grandson, Tricia Nixon Cox and Christopher Nixon Cox. Times photographer Mark Boster attende Usually, the special guests whom presidential nominees invite to their debates are meant to underscore some central theme of the candidates agenda or uplifting moment in their biography. This year, the guests in the spotlight underscore how much the candidates dislike one another. Both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will be bringing people whose purpose for coming appears to be antagonizing their opponent. Heres who will be in the guest seats in Las Vegas on Wednesday night: Advertisement Donald Trumps guests Malik Obama. President Obamas estranged half-brother opposes gay marriage, is angry about the overthrow of Libyas former dictator and likes Trumps campaign slogan. Kenyan-born Malik Obama, who has homes in Africa and Washington, voiced his grudges with the president in a July interview with the New York Post. He said Libyan dictator Moammar Kadafi was a friend. The presidents half-brother, a polygamist with multiple wives, also begrudges Barack Obama and Clinton for supporting same-sex marriage, though Trump also calls himself a champion of gay rights. And Trumps vow to protect Israel also appears to put him at odds with Malik Obama, who has aligned himself with the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas. I like Donald Trump because he speaks from the heart, Malik Obama told the Post. Make America Great Again is a great slogan. I would like to meet him. On Wednesday, he will likely get his chance. Patricia Smith. Patricia Smiths son, Sean, was killed in the 2012 terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya. She lays blame for his death on Clinton, and she accuses the former secretary of State of lying to her about what happened in the Libyan city in the aftermath of the attacks. Clinton has vehemently denied ever giving Smith false information, and her campaign notes that the accusations Smith makes about Clintons handling of Benghazi conflict with the findings of several government investigations. Sarah Palin. Palin, the former Alaska governor and the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, endorsed Trump during the GOP primaries. James OKeefe. Conservative activist James OKeefe will attend, according to Bloomberg News. OKeefe makes undercover videos in which he seeks to entrap government officials, advocacy organizations and others into making compromising comments that reveal what he alleges is corruption and abuse. The productions of his group, Project Veritas, are often selectively edited. But they have attracted considerable media attention, particularly on Fox News. OKeefes highest-impact video involved staff at the advocacy organization ACORN appearing to offer actors posing as a prostitute and her boyfriend advice on how to avoid getting caught engaging in such illegal activity as human trafficking and child prostitution. But investigators at the California attorney generals office ultimately found OKeefes work to have been severely edited and misleading. A probe by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found ACORN had not misused any federal funds. Trump campaign CEO Steve Bannon also said to CNN on Wednesday that the campaign had invited other guests who will expose Bill and Hillarys sordid past. Hillary Clintons guests Meg Whitman. Hewlett-Packard CEO Whitman is a former GOP gubernatorial nominee in California and one of the most prominent defectors from the Republican side of the presidential race this year. Her presence campaigning and raising money for Clinton reflects the deep uneasiness so many moderate and Republican women have about Trump. In a private meeting with some of the biggest donors in the GOP, Whitman compared Trump to Hitler and Mussolini as she asked House Speaker Paul Ryan how he could in good conscience support such a nominee, according to the Washington Post. Mark Cuban. The presence of billionaire Mark Cuban at the first presidential debate touched off the war of the guests this year. Trump threatened that if Cuban came to the event as Clintons guest, he would bring the women who accused Bill Clinton of unwanted sexual advances. By the second debate, Trump made good on his promise, though his campaigns plan to have the women confront Bill Clinton just before the event started was thwarted by the debate commission. Now, Cuban is back. After the first debate, Clinton had taunted Trump by mentioning Cuban was her guest and that he is a real billionaire, by the way a reference to reports that Trump has inflated his wealth. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The basketball great has excoriated Trump in several columns published in the Washington Post, warning readers that the GOP nominee is xenophobic and paranoid. Clinton also invited several other guests. They include: Leon Panetta. Former U.S. Defense secretary and White House chief of staff under former President Bill Clinton. Karla Ortiz. A Nevada resident whose parents are undocumented and at risk of deportation. Astrid Silva. A Dreamer and activist from Nevada. Ryan Moore. A man with spondyloepiphyseal Dysplasia dwarfism who has known Hillary Clinton since 1994 and is featured by the campaign often praising her compassion. Ofelia Diaz Cardenas. A Mexican immigrant who was fired from her housekeeping job with Trump International after wearing pro-union buttons, but was later reinstated after federal labor officials intervened. Family and friends of Pvt. Damian Lopez-Rodriguez. Lopez-Rodriguez was an undocumented immigrant when he was killed serving the U.S. Army in Iraq. Pastor Robert E. Fowler Sr. Senior pastor, Victory Missionary Baptist Church in Las Vegas. Kevin Hooks. President, Las Vegas Urban League. Dolores Huerta. Labor leader and civil rights activist; co-founder of the National Farmworkers Assn. Gene Karpinski. President, League of Conservation Voters. Jonathan Nez. Vice president, Navajo Nation. Arturo Rodriguez. President, United Farm Workers. Stephanie Schriock. President, Emilys List. D. Taylor. President, UNITE HERE. Were scoring the third presidential debate. See whos winning each round Even lots of Donald Trumps supporters are starting to think hell lose the election evan.halper@latimes.com Follow me: @evanhalper One big reason the WikiLeaks emails arent as damaging for Hillary Clinton: Donald Trump Five things you may not know about debate moderator Chris Wallace To win the debate, Donald Trump needs to turn the attention to Hillary Clinton UPDATES: 6:30 p.m.: This story was updated with additional guests. 5:15 p.m.: This story was updated with additional guests. This story was originally published at 1:10 p.m. Throughout the long and tawdry presidential campaign, both Donald Trump, by dint of his personality, and Democrats, by dint of the damage they see him doing to his cause, have kept the attention focused on him. On Wednesday, from a stage at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, Trump will face an imperative that sounds simple but has eluded him for months: to turn a fierce spotlight onto his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton. This election has been about Donald Trump from Day One; thats the only context he has, said Democratic pollster Peter D. Hart. You look at this as his last, best chance. If he continues to do the same things hes always done, the results are going to be the same. Advertisement If Trump can manage to shift attention to his opponent, he has material to work with. Clinton enters the third and final presidential debate with a persistent lead of at least middling single digits in almost all national polls and a strong hold on states Trump needs to win, but she faces challenges of her own. She has been buffeted in recent days by the release of hacked emails, which have renewed questions about her tenure as secretary of State. That offers Trump an opening, if one less sizable than the difficulties that have enveloped him since the last debate 10 days ago. But benefiting will require a deftness and discipline that Trump has been unable or unwilling to maintain in the two previous debates. This final debate occurs under extraordinary conditions. Trump, accused by more than a dozen women of varieties of sexual assault, asserts that Clinton is part of a global conspiracy to undermine U.S. independence. Clinton returns the sentiment by contending that Trump lacks the temperament to be trusted with the nations nuclear weapons and is being aided by hackers directed by the Kremlin. The way theyve pushed those arguments has not helped Trump gain ground. Clinton has deflected some of the sharpest assaults on Trump to her surrogates, in what appears to be an effort to alienate as few voters as possible. First Lady Michelle Obama laid into the Republican nominee last week as representing a destructive anti-woman worldview. President Obama on Tuesday belittled Trump as whining about his loss rather than being a stand-up leader. But Trump is the dominant personality in his campaign by far, and so he has taken on the largest role in reminding voters of Clintons failings. He has done so in biting and mocking ways that have served to reinforce Clintons criticisms of him. Its like a boxer with a glass jaw leading with their chin, said Republican pollster Ed Goeas. When he is the one leading the fight he not only stirs up her negatives, but his own negatives. Still, for all the drama that has marked the presidential contest, the race for the White House has been remarkably stable. And that stability, in defiance of all the tumult, makes it harder for Trump to overcome Clintons lead. Clinton and Trump started the campaign with high unfavorable ratings; now, less than three weeks before election day, those numbers have barely budged. Asked last October if they were optimistic or pessimistic about Trumps candidacy, 67% of Americans told the NBC News/Wall Street Journal pollsters they were pessimistic. This month, that number sat at 65%. Asked about Clintons candidacy, 56% said they were pessimistic a year ago; this month that figure was 55%. That stasis, after all the campaigns furor, speaks to an electorate that is resistant to moving sharply toward one or the others campaign. People sized them up pretty early and havent changed their opinions very much, said Hart, whose firm co-directs the NBC News/Wall Street Journal polls with Republican pollster Bill McInturff. Overall, an average of polls conducted by Real Clear Politics finds Clinton ahead of Trump by almost 7 percentage points nationally. More sobering for Trump was his performance in the states whose electoral votes will tip one of the candidates into the White House. In those states, Trump had a substantial lead only in Iowa, where he was ahead by an average of less than 4 points. Clinton was ahead by at least that amount in Florida, New Hampshire and Nevada, and by almost that much in North Carolina. Trump was far behind in states he once wanted to contest, like Pennsylvania, Virginia and Colorado. The race was a dead heat in Ohio, the state every winning Republican nominee has claimed. Perhaps most fearfully for Trump, he led by a mere 1 point in Arizona, typically a Republican state. Other polls showed weakness in two other loyal GOP states, Georgia and Texas. The reason for Trumps difficulties is the teeter-totter he has ridden since the beginning of his campaign. His opposition to trade deals, anger at immigration policies and expressions of cultural affinity with blue-collar whites secured his hold on that slice of the electorate. But those arguments have repelled suburban, college-educated voters, an increasingly large part of the voting population and one that typically has sided with Republicans. For more on politics Trump has done almost nothing in recent weeks to try to solve that problem. He has publicly criticized the nations highest-ranking Republican, House Speaker Paul D. Ryan, and other GOP figures. After slicing Clinton for being critical of women who allege sexual misconduct by her husband, Bill, he flayed women who made the same accusations against him. He suggested that Clinton had been on drugs during their second debate one which voters said she had won. In West Palm Beach, Fla., on Friday, he used conspiratorial language to question her patriotism, asserting that she was meeting in secret with international banks to plot the destruction of U.S. sovereignty. Perhaps most notable has been Trumps assault on a main tenet of American democracy that fair elections usher in a peaceful exchange of power. His insistence that the electoral system is rigged and that voters in nonwhite areas cast illegitimate ballots has prompted bipartisan rebukes. In Colorado on Tuesday, he insisted that he was correct in saying that heavily nonwhite inner cities were rife with instances of voting fraud, even though there is no evidence to back up his claim. If you talk about them, they say bad things about you, he said. They call you a racist. Clinton, content to give Trump the attention, had no public events Tuesday; for days she has focused on debate preparation. A senior campaign aide, Jennifer Palmieri, said Clinton was ready for whatever Trump might say in an effort to pull ahead. If he chooses to continue to embrace his strategy of a scorched-earth campaign and bringing that to the debate stage, shell be prepared to handle that, Palmieri told reporters, as she has the last two times. cathleen.decker@latimes.com Twitter: @cathleendecker ALSO: Even lots of Donald Trumps supporters are starting to think hell lose the election Ohio is crucial to win the White House. But there are few signs Trump is trying to get out the vote Weve updated our electoral map as Trumps fortunes dwindle Updates on California politics Live coverage from the campaign trail Donald Trump slashed fiercely at Hillary Clinton on Wednesday night in their third and final presidential debate, calling her a nasty woman, a liar and a failure, and saying he might not accept the results of the election if she wins. Clinton parried the assault with a scathing attack on the GOP nominee as a greedy misogynist and bully, who used his public prominence to personally enrich himself, take advantage of women and exploit employees of his lucrative business empire. She said she found horrifying the intimation he would not accept the will of the people on Nov. 8. Advertisement After a fairly placid start, in which they differed over guns, Supreme Court appointments and taxes in a relatively civil tone, the debate turned into an angry flood of innuendo and insult, starting when Trump defended himself against allegations he had repeatedly forced himself on women. Trump categorically denied the charges, which have dominated the campaign in the last week, and asserted without proof that the Clinton campaign had orchestrated the statements from more than half a dozen women who came forward to accuse Trump. These stories are all totally false, he said firmly. I didnt know any of these women I didnt see these women. I think they want either fame or her campaign did it, and I think its her campaign. Clinton, speaking slowly and deliberately into the television camera, noted that Trump had earlier denied the allegations, in part, by suggesting the women were not attractive enough to draw his interest. Donald Trump thinks belittling women makes him bigger, Clinton said. He goes after their dignity, their self-worth, and I dont think there is a woman anywhere who doesnt know what that feels like. I think its really up to all of us to demonstrate who we are, she went on, and who our country is, and to stand up and be very clear about what we expect from our next president. Trump simply repeated his contention that the various accounts were false. Nobody has more respect for women than I do, he said. The 90 minutes onstage at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, represented Trumps last, best chance to stop a drastic political slide and keep the White House in reach. He used the opportunity to repeatedly disparage Clintons character and personal integrity. Such a nasty woman, he uttered at one point. This is just another lie, he said at another. He suggested the Democrat would continue what he described as the failed domestic and foreign policies of President Obama. And he said putting Clinton in the White House would do nothing to bring about the change he said the country desperately needs, insisting her more than 30 years in public life had accomplished nothing. The one thing you have over me is experience, he said, but its bad experience. The problem is you talk but you dont get anything done, Hillary. If you become president this country is going to be in some mess, believe me. Clinton countered that she had spent her entire career working to help the poor, children and minorities while Trump was accumulating personal wealth. While she was in the White House Situation Room, as secretary of State monitoring the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, he was hosting the Celebrity Apprentice, she scoffed. So I am happy to compare my 30 years of experience, she said. Under the intended format, Wednesday nights debate was sectioned off in 15-minute intervals devoted to topics chosen by the moderator, Fox News anchor Chris Wallace. For roughly half an hour, that managed to corral the candidates. They differed over Supreme Court appointments, Clinton saying she would appoint justices who uphold legalized abortion, same-sex marriage and rein in unlimited political contributions. Trump said he would appoint justices that would overturn the 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision that legalized abortion and would strictly uphold expansive gun rights. But Trump has shown a penchant on the debate stage and, especially, at his boisterous rallies for straying far afield from policy and typical campaign discourse, and he did so again Wednesday night. In a striking breach of the countrys long-standing tradition, he twice declined when pressed to say whether he would accept the outcome of the election. I will look at it at the time, Trump said. Ill keep you in suspense. There was a gasp from the audience inside the debate hall. That is not the way our democracy works, Clinton said. He is denigrating, he is talking down our democracy. And I for one am appalled that somebody who is the nominee of one of our two major parties would take that kind of a position. In a discussion of immigration, Trump accused Clinton of favoring amnesty for millions of people in the country without proper documentation, calling that unfair to those who entered the country properly. We either have a country or we dont, said Trump, whose signature issue is construction of an impenetrable wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. At one point, the GOP nominee, who is highly unpopular among Latinos, tossed in a word of Spanish as he vowed to rid the U.S. of drug lords and other bad, bad people who entered the country illegally. We have some bad hombres here, and were going to get them out, he said. Clinton said she favored tough border security but not going school to school, home to home, business to business rounding up people who are undocumented, as she said Trumps policy would require. The first two debates have proved to be pivot points in the contest, turning a race that favored Clinton into a potential blowout. Her lead in polls has grown, both nationally and in states Trump needs to win. Even some traditionally Republican states, such as Arizona, Georgia and Utah, have grown competitive in the final weeks of the contest. Trumps response has been to assert, without proof, that a collection of conspirators Clinton, the media, international financiers and fellow Republicans, including House Speaker Paul D. Ryan are trying to steal the election. But his earlier performances on the debate stage contributed greatly to his problems. An ill-prepared Trump was tetchy and erratic in last months first session, then compounded his troubles by spending days on a body-shaming campaign against a former Miss Universe whom Clinton had defended. Subsequent revelations that Trump may have avoided federal income taxes for close to two decades and bragged in a 2005 videotaped conversation that his celebrity allowed him to force himself on women dominated the second debate. Trumps insistence in the last debate that he never acted inappropriately was the cause for several women to step forward and accuse him of unwanted sexual advances. Trumps difficulties have overshadowed developments that could have been harmful to Clinton, including a series of hacked private emails of her campaign chairman that portray the candidate in less-than-flattering ways and new details concerning her private email server. A question from Wallace about the hacking which U.S. intelligence officials have blamed on Russia led to a harsh exchange over Trumps professed admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Clinton accused Trump of accepting the help of Russian operatives believed to have hacked the documents and giving them to WikiLeaks to try to influence the American election. Clinton demanded that Trump make it clear he will not have the help of Putin in this election, that he rejects Russian espionage against Americans. Trump accused Clinton of trying to deflect the discussion away from another of the WikiLeaks disclosures. She had been asked about a document that showed her telling a group of bankers during a paid speech that she supported a hemispheric common market with open trade and open borders. That was a great pivot off the fact that she wants open borders, Trump said. I dont know Putin. He said nice things about me. If we got along well that would be good. He has no respect for her, he has no respect for our president, and Ill tell you what, we are in very serious trouble. Clinton shot back: Thats because hed rather have a puppet as president of the United States, referring to Putins praise of Trump. Youre the puppet, Trump responded. A discussion of the economy centered on the candidates respective tax plans. Clinton charged that Trump would give the biggest tax breaks ever to the wealthy and to corporations and cited analyses that it would reduce employment overall. Trump accused Clinton of proposing a massive, massive tax increase before turning to what has proved to be more comfortable terrain: trade. He vowed to work to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement, and potentially rescind it if a better deal wasnt possible. Clinton defended her tax plan, reiterating a pledge not to raise taxes on anyone making $250,000 or less but seeking higher taxes from wealthier Americans that would allow her to make investments in new jobs and innovation. She also reiterated her opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a proposed 12-nation agreement championed by Obama, and said she would aggressively enforce existing trade agreements. Before the debate, both campaigns engaged in a bit of psychological gamesmanship. Trump announced his guests would include the mother of an American killed in the 2012 attacks on the U.S. diplomatic outpost in Benghazi, Libya, as well as Obamas Kenyan half-brother, Malik. Clintons guests included billionaire Mark Cuban, a longtime Trump detractor, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise Chief Executive Meg Whitman, the 2010 GOP nominee for California governor, who endorsed Clinton. Trump and Clinton may share a stage one more time before election day on Nov. 8. The antagonists were both scheduled to attend the 71st annual Alfred E. Smith memorial dinner Thursday night in Manhattan, a traditionally lighthearted affair that raises funds for Catholic charities. Barabak reported from San Francisco, Halper from Las Vegas and Memoli from Washington. Twitter: @markzbarabak, @evanhalper, @mikememoli ALSO What it was like to watch Trump talk about bad hombres in a Mexican BBQ joint How an expert tweaked the USC/ L.A. Times poll and put Clinton ahead of Trump Weve updated our electoral map, as Trumps fortunes dwindle UPDATES: 9:45 p.m.: This story has been updated with additional comments from the debate and for clarity. 8:25 p.m.: This story was updated with comments from the debate. 6:10 p.m.: This story was updated with the start of the debate. This story was originally published at 3:55 p.m. When Donald Trump apologized for saying in 2005 that he could grope women because of his celebrity, he immediately pointed to Bill Clinton as having done worse. Trump appeared before a debate alongside Clintons accusers and again mentioned the former presidents past while onstage with Hillary Clinton. But Trumps argument was undercut when more women publicly came forward with allegations that he had groped or kissed them without consent. Heres a look at the pasts of both Trump and Bill Clinton and accusations against them. Donald Trump In a screen grab of a 2005 Access Hollywood video, Donald Trump prepares for his cameo on Days of Our Lives with actress Arianne Zucker and Billy Bush, right, then Access co-host. (Getty) (Getty) 1977, 31-year-old Trump Trump marries his first wife, Ivana Trump Donald Trump Jr. is born Early-1980s, 30-something Donald Trump Allegation: While Trump was seated next to her on a plane, businesswoman Jessica Leeds said, he lifted her armrest and touched her inappropriately. He was like an octopus, Leeds, now 74, told the New York Times. His hands were everywhere. Response: Trump called it a ridiculous tale. At a rally in North Carolina, he said, She would not be my first choice. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/786560925113266176 1981, 35-year-old Trump Ivanka Trump is born. 1984, 38-year-old Trump Eric Trump is born. 1989, 43-year-old Trump Allegation: Ivana Trump used the word rape in a 1992 deposition during their divorce to describe an encounter with Trump when they were married in 1989. In 2015, after the allegation resurfaced, she said it was without merit and that she had made it at a time of very high tension during my divorce from Donald. Response: After the allegation resurfaced last summer, Michael Cohen, a lawyer for the Trump Organization, incorrectly said that a man cannot legally rape his wife. Many states have laws outlawing marital rape. Trump distanced himself from that statement. Early 1990s, 40-something Trump Allegation: Kristin Anderson told the Washington Post that when she was at a Manhattan nightclub, someone sitting next to her "touched her vagina through her underwear. Anderson said she fled the couch and only then realized it was Trump. Response: "Mr. Trump strongly denies this phony allegation by someone looking to get some free publicity. It is totally ridiculous," Trump spokeswoman Hope Hicks said to the Post. 1991, 44-year-old Trump Ivana Trump files for divorce. 1992, 45-year-old Trump Accusation: Donald Trump reportedly talked about dating young girls once they reached maturity. A 1992 wire service report said he joked to 14-year-old girls that hed be dating them in a few years. In CBS footage from around the same time, he says of a 10-year-old girl that hed be dating her in 10 years. Response: Trump has not commented specifically on those allegations. Accusation: Jill Harth filed a sexual assault lawsuit against Trump, alleging that while working on a beauty competition with him, he harassed her to the point of what she called attempted rape. He pushed me up against the wall, and had his hands all over me and tried to get up my dress again, she told the Guardian. And I had to physically say: What are you doing? Stop it. Response: In an interview with CNN on Friday, Trump said he was the victim of a political smear campaign. 1993, 46-year-old Trump Tiffany Trump is born. Trump marries Marla Maples. 1997, 50-year-old Trump Trump and Marla Maples separate. Accusation: Temple Taggart told the New York Times that when she was Miss Utah, Trump kissed her on the lips without consent. Response: Trump has denied the allegations. 1998, 51-year-old Trump Accusation: During a press conference with Gloria Allred on Thursday, Karena Virginia said Trump approached her after the 1998 U.S. Open tennis tournament in Flushing, N.Y. He then grabbed her arm and touched her breast. Dont you know who I am? Virginia said Trump asked her when she flinched. Response: "Gloria Allred, in another coordinated, publicity seeking attack with the Clinton campaign, will stop at nothing to smear Mr. Trump, Trump spokeswoman Jessica Ditto said. Give me a break. Voters are tired of these circus-like antics and reject these fictional stories and the clear efforts to benefit Hillary Clinton. 1999, 52-year-old Trump Trump and Marla Maples divorce 2003, 56-year-old Trump Accusation: Mindy McGillivray says Trump groped her at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida while she was working with a photographer at the site. She was 23. Response: Trump has denied the allegations. 2005, 58-year-old Trump Trump marries Melania Trump Allegation: Trump makes lewd comments about groping women. Response: Apologized, calling it locker room talk, while dismissing it as a distraction. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/785842546878578688 Accusation: Natasha Stoynoff of People magazine says Trump groped her while she was waiting for Melania Trump to return for an interview. Within seconds, he was pushing me against the wall, and forcing his tongue down my throat, Response: Trump called the story a total lie. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/786554517680693248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw Accusation: Rachel Crooks says Trump kissed her without permission outside an elevator bank at Trump Tower in Manhattan when she was 22. Response: Trump denied the allegations. When questioned by a New York Times reporter, he told the journalist, You are a disgusting human being. 2006, 59-year-old Trump Barron Trump is born. Allegation: During a Saturday press conference with Gloria Allred, adult film star Jessica Drake said she met Trump in 2006 at a golf tournament in Lake Tahoe where she said he made sexual advances toward her and two friends. "When we entered the room he grabbed each of us tightly in a hug and kissed each one of us without asking permission," Drake said, releasing a posed photo she took with Trump at the event. Drake said that later, Trump or a male speaking on his behalf offered her $10,000 and use of his private jet for sex. She said she declined. Response: "This story is totally false and ridiculous. The picture is one of thousands taken out of respect for people asking to have their picture taken with Mr. Trump," Trumps campaign said in a statement. "Mr. Trump does not know this person, does not remember this person and would have no interest in ever knowing her." 2007, 60-year-old Trump Accusation: Former Apprentice contestant Summer Zervos says Trump invited her into his bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel and proceeded to kiss her against her will, groped her and shoved his genitals towards her. Response: "To be clear, I never met her at a hotel or greeted her inappropriately a decade ago. That is not who I am as a person, and it is not how Ive conducted my life, Trump said in a statement. Bill Clinton President Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. (Getty Images) 1975, 29-year-old Bill Clinton Bill Clinton marries Hillary Rodham. Mid-1970s to 1992, 30- to 40-something Clinton Allegation: Dolly Kyle Browning, a high school friend of Clintons, said she had an occasional sexual relationship with him over about 15 years. Response: Clinton has not publicly responded. 1978, 32-year-old Clinton Allegation: Juanita Broaddrick said in 1999 that when Clinton was Arkansas governor, he invited her to a hotel room where she said he kissed, then raped her. Response: Clinton denied the allegations. 1980, 34-year-old Clinton Chelsea Clinton is born. 1982, 36-year-old Clinton Allegation: In 1998, Elizabeth Ward Gracen said she had had a consensual one-night stand with Clinton when he was Arkansas governor in 1982. It was the same year she won the title of Miss America. Response: Clinton denied the allegations. 1983, 37-year-old Clinton Allegation: In 1994, 1958s Miss Arkansas, Sally Perdue, said she had an affair with Clinton the previous year. She claimed that a Democratic staffer told her not to reveal any information, and was warned "they knew that I went jogging by myself and he couldn't guarantee what would happen to my pretty little legs." Response: He has not publicly responded to the allegation. 1991, 44-year-old Clinton Allegation: Paula Jones said a state trooper asked her to meet then-Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton in his hotel room. Jones said that Clinton dropped his pants and underwear and told her to kiss it. She refused. Jones sued Clinton for sexual harassment in 1998, prompting the investigation that culminated in the revelation of Clintons affair with Monica Lewinsky. Response: Clinton settled a sexual harassment suit with Jones with no apology or admission of guilt. 1980-1992, 45-year-old Clinton Allegation: During Clintons presidential campaign in 1992, Gennifer Flowers said she had had a 12-year sexual relationship with him. Response: Clinton admitted to a sexual affair with Flowers while under oath in 1998. 1993, 46-year-old Bill Clinton Allegation: In 1998, Kathleen Willey alleged Clinton groped her without permission in the Oval Office. Response: Clinton denied the encounter while under oath in 1998. 1995-1996, 49-year-old Bill Clinton Allegation: Monica Lewinskys affair with Bill Clinton surfaced in 1998, when Lewinskys friend Linda Tripp learned that she had signed an affidavit in the Paula Jones case denying her relationship with Clinton. Tripp handed secret recordings of Lewinskys account of the affair to investigator Kenneth Starr. Response: Clinton initially denied the allegations. I did not have sexual relations with that woman, he said famously. Clinton later admitted to the affair, and the House of Representatives voted to impeach him. Updated at 11:10 a.m. on Oct. 24, 2016: This story was updated with Jessica Drakes statements. Updated at 1:20 p.m. on Oct. 20, 2016: This story was updated with Karena Virginias statements. This article was originally published at 3:35 p.m. on Oct. 19, 2016. colleen.shalby@latimes.com Twitter: @cshalby ALSO: Melania Trump echoes Hillary Clinton as she defends her husband More women accuse Trump: 'You do not have a right to treat women as sexual objects just because you are a star' New sex assault allegations against Trump: 'He was like an octopus' In a state as expensive as California, and during a political year as crowded as 2016, most organizations would struggle to sponsor just one ballot measure. Fighting on two fronts is often reserved for the most formidable interest groups. But thats just what the Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation is doing this year. The foundation, led by longtime HIV activist Michael Weinstein, has become one of the biggest and most controversial nonprofits dedicated to fighting the disease and is quickly becoming a political powerhouse. It has a $1.2-billion budget and two high-profile measures on Californias ballot: Proposition 60, which would require condom use in adult film production, and Proposition 61, which seeks to lower prices state agencies pay for prescription drugs. AIDS Healthcare Foundation has contributed more than $19 million to the initiatives. Advertisement It is also funding a similar drug-pricing initiative in Ohio, its first out-of-state campaign, and a measure set for the Los Angeles city ballot in March that seeks to stymie mega-developments in Hollywood. Were doing things on a scale that we havent before, Weinstein said in a recent interview from his office in a Hollywood high-rise. Weinstein has come a long way since the late 1980s, when he started with a $50,000 budget and a narrowly tailored mission to provide end-of-life care to those dying of AIDS. Today, the foundation manages 450 clinics and pharmacies that serve 629,000 patients worldwide. Its Out of the Closet thrift stores and campy billboards a recent one advertised its free sexually transmitted disease screening services with the slogan Feel the Burn? are Los Angeles mainstays. A fast-talking Brooklyn native who has little patience for his critics, Weinstein has been labeled a bully, Satan and, as one longtime Los Angeles County supervisor put it, a thug. His brand of advocacy is aggressive and brash, born out of the early days of AIDS activism when Weinstein helped defeat a state ballot measure that would have allowed people with the disease to be quarantined. Weinstein often dismisses those who publicly oppose him, including other HIV and LGBT advocacy groups, as shills who are in the pocket of powerful industries. He has earned a reputation as a fiercely litigious leader. If the worst thing anyone can say about me is that Im zealous in supporting the issues that I think are right I can live with that, Weinstein said. Proposition 60 would require adult film actors to use condoms during sex scenes and is inspired by a similar L.A. County ballot measure Weinstein helped pass in 2012. Weinstein calls it a matter of workplace safety and of public health. The Yes campaign has reported $4.5 million in contributions, all of it coming from the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. Opponents, who have raised just $433,000, say the measure would allow any Californian to sue adult film producers or others with a financial interest in a production if the state doesnt act on complaints of violations, and could lead to frivolous lawsuits. But the foundation is focusing the bulk of its advocacy budget on Proposition 61, hoping to tap into public anger over prescription drug prices, a bread-and-butter issue for the sprawling healthcare organization. By taking on drug manufacturers in California and Ohio, a crucial swing state, Weinstein had hoped to launch drug pricing onto the presidential debate stage. His plans faltered when, after months of legal wrangling, Ohio officialsplaced his measure on the November 2017 ballot instead. Now, Weinstein is pinning all his hopes of sparking that national movement on California and is considering a similar effort in Florida. Proposition 61 would mandate that state agencies pay no more for a drug than the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, which traditionally pays some of the lowest prices for medicines. The Yes campaign has sent double-decker buses full of nurses up and down the state, parking them outside the house of a former drug company executive and at rallies. Full-page newspaper ads have challenged the CEOs of top drugmakers to a debate, and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has appeared in the campaigns TV ads. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders speaks to the crowd at a rally in Hollywood in support of Proposition 61. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) It is a very profound moral issue, Sanders said at a rally in Hollywood last week, with Weinstein at his side. It is time for the pharmaceutical industry to stop ripping off the people of this country. The entire nation is looking at California. Critics have raised the specter of unintended consequences, saying drug companies could simply raise drug prices for veterans or refuse to provide their drugs at lower costs to California. The pharmaceutical industry has touted those arguments in its campaign against the measure, raising a $94.4-million war chest and blanketing the airwaves with ads featuring doctors and veterans. It has also targeted Weinstein and his foundation, which has contributed nearly all of the Yes campaigns $14.5 million. Theyve pointed out that the measure exempts Californias largest state-run health program: Medi-Cal managed care, a program that brings in $12 million a year for the foundation and its pharmacies. The No campaign has also pointed to lawsuits the AIDS Healthcare Foundation has pending with L.A. County and the state over how much they should be reimbursed for healthcare services for patients who are assisted by government programs. If they really wanted to do something for the cost of state healthcare programs in California, why exempt the largest program of all? said Kathy Fairbanks, a spokeswoman for the No on 61 campaign. It calls into question the efficacy of Prop. 61 and also the motives behind it. Weinstein dismisses the idea that the foundation rushed to the ballot box. Weve been supporting other peoples legislation on this subject for more than a dozen years, he said. It was hardly a rash decision. After two bills to bolster drug pricing transparency failed this session, Weinstein said he was convinced that a ballot measure was the only way to bring change. Advocates for lower drug prices board the Yes on Prop 61 double decker tour bus outside the home of former Gilead CEO John Martin in Hillsborough, Calif., on Thursday, Sept. 29, 2016. (Alison Yin / AP Images for AIDS Healthcare Foundation) Weinsteins efforts on condom use in adult films have similarly been thwarted. Complaining that L.A. County officials have failed to adequately enforce Measure B, the ballot measure voters passed in 2012, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation took its fight to the state Legislature and found an ally in Assemblyman Isadore Hall III (D-Compton). Hall, now a state senator, introduced two AIDS Healthcare Foundation-sponsored bills on the subject in 2013. In the fight that ensued, dozens of adult film actors descended on the Capitol to testify against the measure, while former performers described the horror of contracting HIV on set. At one point, Weinstein accused Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Glendale) of stalling one of Halls bills in committee and blanketed the lawmakers district with mailers and robocalls that labeled Gatto the pornographers best friend. Gatto criticized Weinstein for what he called scorched-earth tactics. Neither bill made it out of committee for a floor vote. They certainly push the bounds of impropriety, Gatto said in an interview recently. Ultimately, I would question whether those kinds of tactics really deliver that much for the organization. Weinstein likes to point out that, despite such criticism about the large sums of money the group dedicates toward political advocacy, the amount he estimates the AIDS Healthcare Foundation will spend on advocacy this year is still less than 2% of its overall budget. The primary business of this organization is providing medical care, and that still occupies more of my time than anything else, he said. So how did this once-struggling AIDS foundation develop such deep pockets for a growing political agenda? It turns out that providing cutting edge medicine and advocacy regardless of ability to pay, as the organizations mission statement reads, can be quite lucrative. The foundation brought in more than $800 million roughly 80% of its total budget through its pharmacies last year. Weinsteins stances on some of those issues have drawn strong criticism from many LGBT activists. In particular, hes been condemned for his dismissal of Truvada, a once-a-day preventive HIV pill, as a party drug that would lead to decreased condom use. Scott Wiener, a San Francisco County supervisor and state Senate candidate, said Weinstein and the AIDS Healthcare Foundation are preoccupied with a condoms-only attitude toward HIV prevention, to the detriment of other more holistic approaches such as the one thats helped San Francisco dramatically reduce its rate of new infections. They have a lot of money to spend, and theyre willing to spend that money to promote anti-science points of view and to get involved in issues that have nothing to do with HIV advocacy, said Wiener, who has come out against both propositions and recently disclosed hes taking Truvada. But where others see costly battles that distract from the groups core mission, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation sees crucial steps in caring for its patients. Lowering prescription drug prices helps the AIDS Healthcare Foundation serve more patients, Weinstein reasons, and fighting runaway development in the Hollywood area prevents clients and employees alike from being displaced by rising housing costs. Rand Martin, the foundations lobbyist, said hes not surprised that the foundation has expanded its ambitions in recent years. Their aspirations have always been broad, and they have always wanted to do big things in Sacramento, Martin said. If theyre going to be a big player in Los Angeles, if theyre going to be a big player in California, theyre not going to limit their involvement in policies to just the things people think they should be working on. christine.maiduc@latimes.com; javier.panzar@latimes.com For more on California politics, follow @cmaiduc and @jpanzar. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Oct. 19 By Demir Azizov Trend: Uzbekistan and Kuwait will hold a session of the joint intergovernmental commission on cooperation in the first quarter of 2017 to expand the trade-economic and investment partnership, Uzbekistan national news agency (UzA) reported. According to the report, the agreement on that issue was reached during the meeting between Uzbek acting President, Prime Minister Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Kuwaits First Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah. During the recent meeting, the sides exchanged views on bringing the Uzbekistan-Kuwait relations to a higher level, the report said. According to the report, Mirziyoyev and Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah stressed the importance of mutual exchange of visits at various levels for the development of relations between the countries. Uzbekistan and Kuwait signed bilateral intergovernmental agreements in the field of economy during Uzbek first President Islam Karimovs official visit to Kuwait in January 2004. In particular, a memorandum on cooperation between the government of Uzbekistan and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) was signed. The memorandum envisages financial assistance totaling $215 million for the implementation of nine projects in the fields of health protection, energy supply, land reclamation and water supply in Uzbekistan. Another intergovernmental agreement was signed as part of Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabahs official visit to Uzbekistan in July 2008. The agreement envisages KFAEDs financial assistance to implement 10 projects totaling $375.2 million. In total, KFAED allocated $135 million for the implementation of investment projects in Uzbekistan. KFAED also allocated $60.6 million for three projects implemented in the field of water supply, transport infrastructure and medicine. Four more projects co-financed by KFAED in the amount of $72.5 million are being implemented in the field of cardiac surgery, irrigation and road repair. Twenty-one-year-old Yamilex Rustrian cannot vote, but she would like to one day. So the Dreamer is doing all she can to make sure Hillary Clinton becomes president. Last weekend, doing all she can meant climbing into a van with her mother, a janitor who is undocumented, and a dozen other Service Employees International Union members and their children at 3 a.m. for a quick trip to knock on doors in Las Vegas. Rustrian was 7 when she and her younger sister came to live in the U.S. with their mother, who was already living here illegally. Her mother paid a smuggler to collect her daughters after their father was shot and killed by gang members in Guatemala shortly before Fathers Day. She thought theyd be safer here. Advertisement Rustrian, now a Los Angeles Valley College student, received a work permit through Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals because she was brought to the country as a child by her parents. The work permit gives her legal status, not the citizenship she would need to be able to vote, and her mother could still be deported. Early Saturday morning, Rustrian sat with the group of janitors assembled at long tables in the old mortuary that is home to the SEIU United Service Workers West. They ate ham, cheese and bean sandwiches as they waited for the final workers to get off the late shift. At least one came still dressed in her blue smock. Rustrian and her mother loaded into the last of the seven vans and buses that brought more than 150 people SEIU members and their families from Southern California to knock on 25,000 doors in Las Vegas suburbs for the weekend. The janitors and their children hunkered down for the 4 1/2-hour ride. Several had done this for the union in 2008, 2012 and during the 2016 primaries. The union, which promised to deploy hundreds of thousands of volunteers when it endorsed Clinton a year ago, is at the forefront of the push to increase the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, preserve the Affordable Care Act and overhaul the nations immigration system. Union members from safely Democratic states like California and New York poured into battleground states like New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Virginia in search of undecided voters or committed Democrats to nudge toward the polls. Many brought their wives, husbands and children. The presidential contest in Nevada is competitive, with Southern California workers planning to make the trip to Nevada again this weekend, and perhaps once more before the election, in hopes they can sway the U.S. Senate race for Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto and shore up the state for Clinton. SEIU organizer Jasmin Castillo puts gas in a van full of sleeping janitors near the Nevada state line. The van left Los Angeles after 3 a.m. Saturday, right after their shifts ended. (Sarah D. Wire / Los Angeles Times ) Most in the van were asleep as dawn broke, Joshua trees dotting the hills barely visible through the early light. A worker tossed in her sleep and the smell of cleaning solution wafted through the van. When they reached the Las Vegas Strip there was no time for sleep or a shower just a quick bite to eat before heading to the local SEIU office. There, they picked up clipboards with lists of addresses, a script that instructed them what to say when someone answered a door, and the all-important polling place information. As she headed out with her instructions, Los Angeles resident and janitor Dora Diaz said she felt especially motivated to go wherever she was needed to help turn out the vote after hearing a 2005 tape of Trump talking about grabbing women without their permission. Diaz and several other SEIU women who have been raped or assaulted at work fasted outside the Capitol in Sacramento last month to urge Gov. Jerry Brown to sign a bill that requires janitors and their supervisors to complete sexual harassment training, and created a tip line so women can report abuse without fear of being fired or deported. Brown signed the bill into law. As a survivor, I know the importance. I hear Donald Trumps comments towards women, and just thinking about the women who have gone through this abuse and seeing that he is running for president I havent been able to sleep, the 49-year-old Diaz said through a translator. SEIU Executive Vice President Rocio Saenz and janitor Dora Diaz of Los Angeles speak with Claire Voss, 47, of Las Vegas at her home. (Sarah D. Wire / Los Angeles Times ) Claire Voss was cleaning her house when Diaz and SEIU Executive Vice President Rocio Saenz knocked on her door. She said she was waiting to cast her ballot on election day alongside her daughter, a first-time voter. The 47-year-old casino worker invited Diaz and Saenz in to talk about Clinton and the election night watch party she has planned, but there were dozens more doors they needed to knock on. Halfway through the day, the all-female group of janitors returned to the SEIU office. Some of them were shaken; others were frustrated. They said a man in a house with Trump campaign signs in the yard saw them knocking on a neighbors door, and came out to confront Rustrian and the daughters of several janitors. He questioned whether they were allowed to be in the gated community and followed them as they tried to move on. He began filming them and threatened to call police, they said. As a crowd gathered, he confronted them, asked if they spoke English and if theyre in the country legally. They had only knocked on a few doors, but their driver, a local steelworker, insisted they return to the SEIU office. When Trump called Mexican immigrants rapists last year, it stung, Rustrian said. Hes spoken about using deportation forces to remove immigrants and building a border wall, and shes worried what will happen to immigrants like her mother in the country illegally if he wins. She believes Clinton will work with Republicans and keep her promise to overhaul the countrys immigration system, succeeding in an area Latino families were frustrated to see President Obama fail. Im documented currently, but that doesnt mean I can stay here; that doesnt mean that my mom gets to stay here. I want my family to stay here, Rustrian said. SEIU and Clinton campaign organizers encouraged them to keep at it. The janitors stopped at another neighborhood, sticking together this time. Rustrian walked up and down the rows of buildings looking for an address in an apartment complex, stopping residents to ask for directions, looking at names on mailboxes. When she finally found the door, no one was home, so she slid a Clinton flier with precinct information into the doors seal. The next address on their list didnt seem to exist. Rustrian led the women back and forth across a busy street. The group split up, weaving through courtyards, looking for a way past locked gates, until they found it. They ended up just leaving a flier there, too. The janitors hurried to find the last dozen addresses on their Saturday list, all in a mobile home park. As they spoke to a Clinton supporter, her neighbor drank a beer and watched them warily. He angrily told them they werent allowed in the mobile home park, followed them and pulled out his cellphone to record. The janitors waved to him and continued on. From left, janitors Leticia Soto and Dora Diaz look on as Jasmin Castillo knocks on the door of a mobile home in Las Vegas. (Sarah D. Wire / Los Angeles Times ) At one home, a man who wasnt even on their list crossed his heart, said hed vote for Clinton and used profanity to describe Trump. After a second day of door-knocking, the janitors clambered back into their van at the SEIU office for the ride home Sunday. They huddled together, sharing piles of blankets and nodding off against window panes and on each others shoulders. The teens who stayed awake played Pokemon Go and made suggestions for music to add to the road-trip playlist. When they pulled back into the SEIU United Service Workers West building after 11 p.m., the janitors stretched, grumbling at the pops and cracks they heard, and hugged goodbye. Diaz wiped the sleep from her eyes. Then she headed back to work for the late shift. sarah.wire@latimes.com Follow @sarahdwire on Twitter To read the article in Spanish, click here Read more about the 55 members of Californias delegation at latimes.com/politics ALSO Pro-Clinton group will air ads linking vulnerable GOP senators to Trump Outbid, outhustled, outmuscled: Trump has never been able to conquer Southern California Updates on California politics The European palate may not always have been so sophisticated. This week, researchers report the first evidence of ancient Europeans snacking on rodents at least 5,000 years ago. The discovery suggests that rodents like mice and voles have not always been mere pests hellbent on annoying humanity throughout its history: They may have been a food source as well. Advertisement Rodents are frequently excavated from older archaeological sites in Europe, but people havent examined why they are there, said Jeremy Herman, a biologist at the National Museums of Scotland in Edinburgh. Maybe because they are not currently a food source in Europe, no one ever thought to ask if they had been in the past. The new finding, reported Tuesday in the journal Royal Society Open Science, was made after researchers sifted through nearly 60,000 small mammal bones collected at the Skara Brae settlement on the largest island of the Orknay archipelago in Scotland. Skara Brae consists of the remnants of eight stone houses and was occupied in the latter half of the Stone Age from roughly 3180 .BC. to 2500 B.C., according to radiocarbon dating. Archaeologists pulled more than 2.5 pounds of micro mammal bones out of four different trenches dug at and near the site in the 1970s. The bones were bagged based on which trench they came from and also what strata or time period they represented. Herman, the senior author on the study, said all told there were enough bones to fill a cereal box. Previous studies have shown that there were just two types of rodents living among the people of Skara Brae the wood mouse and the Orkney vole, a form of the common European vole. However, until now, nobody had studied how these rodent populations interacted with humans. After reexamining the bones, the authors found the number of mouse bones was equal across all four trenches. However, the trench in one building had a greater accumulation of vole bones than the other three trenches. This suggests that the voles, who generally live in the fields and stay away from human homes, had been brought there deliberately by people, the authors said. In addition, the research team found burn marks on several of the bones, suggesting the animals had been roasted. The way they are burnt its pretty clear that they were pretty much whole when they were stuck on the embers of a fire, Herman said. I havent tried it myself, but I imagine they got pretty crisp on the outside. Herman said the number of vole bones the team discovered suggests that the rodents were not a primary source of food for the inhabitants of Skara Brae. Still, it seems pretty clear that people were eating them, at least occasionally. It could be that people ate them as a snack, or it was something they fell back on or harder times, he said. Or maybe kids were catching them and then roasting them. Its hard to tell. The people of Skara Brae were farmers who raised cattle and sheep. Herman said most of their food probably came from these sources as well as from crops and shellfish. He adds that there is no evidence of the people eating mice. Voles are a little bigger then mice, but I dont know why they focused on them, he said. Maybe they taste better. The authors hope that future studies will examine the relationship between humans and rodents at other Neolithic sites in Europe. This is the first example of ancient people eating rodents in Europe, Herman said. But that may be because we havent looked hard enough previously. deborah.netburn@latimes.com Do you love science? I do! Follow me @DeborahNetburn and like Los Angeles Times Science & Health on Facebook. MORE IN SCIENCE No, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia is NOT dead. But it is in trouble. How to counter people with extreme views: Try agreeing with them Surprise! The universe has 10 times as many galaxies as scientists thought A Bates College professor is coming to Burbank to talk with residents about how LGBT rights have advanced, and in some cases, regressed over the decades. Professor Stephen Engel, chair of politics at the Maine-based college, is looking to chat with residents at the Buena Vista Branch Library on Thursday about his recent book, Fragmented Citizens, and discuss how there is still more to be done to make LGBT people full citizens in the United States. Engel explained that the status of a citizen, such as one that is a part of the LGBT community, is dependent on where a person lives in the United States, the era in time and the issue at hand, such as marriage, healthcare or childrens rights. Join the conversation on Facebook >> Depending on all of those contextual distinctions, your status as a citizen and your rights and responsibilities that follow from it varies over time, he said. Thats the notion of a fragmented citizen, that your citizenship is broken or fractured depending on those elements. My hope is to talk people through some different ways of thinking about what that means. While those in the LGBT community can now marry and the Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy in the military has been lifted, Engel said that people can still be fired for identifying as being gay or transgender. What you see in the U.S. is the dilemma of, I got married on Sunday and can get fired on Monday, he said. Thats not just an issue of federalism, thats an issue of how policy changes over time and the way[s] in which policy changes are always kind of partial. Engel used gays in the military as an example, explaining that although Dont Ask, Dont Tell is gone, the federal government has yet to figure out how to establish spousal protection for gay couples. The main dynamic of the book is to show that as you move toward an area of equality on a given issue, that might expose previously unseen qualities of inequality on another issue, he said. The LGBT community isnt the only group of American citizens affected by, what Engel calls, this two steps forward, one step back in policy change toward equality. He pointed to U.S. amendments regarding slavery and the rights of African Americans that passed decades ago. Yeah, we passed the 13th, 14th and 15th [amendments,] but then we had Jim Crow [laws] for 100 years, Engel said. Or we passed those amendments and then you get the Chinese Exclusion Act in the 1880s. Theres a lot of two steps forward, one step back in terms of inclusion, and I think thats also true with LGBT individuals. Engel will speak at 7 p.m. on Thursday at the Buena Vista Library, 300 N. Buena Vista St., Burbank. -- Anthony Clark Carpio, anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com Twitter: @acocarpio Passengers traveling through Hollywood Burbank Airport can now buy their furry companions a treat or new gear during their trip. Burbank pet supply store Up Pup N Away celebrated the formal grand opening of its kiosk in Terminal A on Monday. Pet owners can choose from a variety of pet toys, collars, treats and calming sprays for their cat or dog. There is also a plethora of gifts for people, such as novelty socks, T-shirts, stickers and even politically themed poop bags. Join the conversation on Facebook >> Marwick Kane, chief executive of Up Pup N Away, got the idea to open a pet store in an airport while volunteering for Los Angeles International Airports Pets Unstressing Passengers program, where various dogs and their handlers walk around the terminals to greet passengers and alleviate their stress. I quickly realized that passengers have nowhere to shop for dogs or cats, he said. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, more than two million pets travel via airplane. He had aspirations to start the business at LAX. However, Kane said that the cost of opening a shop at that airport was out of his price range. Instead, Kane and Tracy Tabb, chief marketing and operations officer for Up Pup N Away, opened a brick-and-mortar location at 3117 W. Magnolia Blvd. in Burbank in 2015, and Kane said it has since been a go-to spot for pet owners. Kane said that their popularity among pet owners is due to their inventory, of which most of the products they sell are made in the United States. If he can, Kane selects products that are made and assembled in California, and if possible, within Los Angeles County. Were trying to aim for more of that, he said. Eventually, wed like to be 100% made in the United States. Like the brick-and-mortar store, the kiosk at Hollywood Burbank Airport has taken off with passengers. Many items in the inventory are quickly selling out and need to be restocked almost on a weekly basis, Kane said. The pet products arent just a hit with travelers. Many of the kiosks repeat customers are airport employees. We have regular airport employees shopping with us and getting toys and treats every month, Tabb said. Kane said he was anticipating most of the sales to come from passengers who are flying out to their destinations. However, he and Tabb learned that a good chunk of their sales come from those who arrive at Hollywood Burbank, returning home. You dont ever shop for your dog or cat while youre away on vacation because you never have time to go to a pet store, Tabb said. But then you see our kiosk and say, Oh my God, I can bring treats or toys home, and theyre going to think Im amazing. While Hollywood Burbank is the first in the Southern California region to open an Up Pup N Away kiosk, Kane said he still has his sights on opening a store in LAX and possibly at LA/Ontario International Airport. -- Anthony Clark Carpio, anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com Twitter: @acocarpio For the first time in nearly 50 years, support for the death penalty has dropped below 50% among Americans. According to a Pew Research Center poll, just 49% of Americans say they support capital punishment a seven-point decline in about a year and a half, the New York Times reports. Although support for the death penalty has declined for both Democrats and Republicans, opinions differ drastically along party lines. Among Republicans, 72% support the death penalty down from 87% two decades ago. Just 34% of Democrats support capital punishment. This question is simple: What is your opinion of the death penalty? What does your faith or belief system say about capital punishment? The LDS church is neutral on whether governments should impose capital punishment, viewing it as a matter to be decided solely by the prescribed processes of civil law. This position allows church members considerable leeway in their personal views on the question of whether some crimes are so terrible that society is justified in killing the perpetrator. The churchs neutrality essentially says that while Gods law does not prohibit the death penalty, neither does God require it as an element of divine justice. We are not spiritually obligated to take the life of a killer. I am unaware of reliable metrics that would reveal how the churchs membership views capital punishment, but my impression is that support for the death penalty has moderated over time, as it has with the rest of the U.S. population. As to my personal view, I have struggled with this issue in part because guidance from religious sources, including the scriptures themselves, is ambiguous. Even the seemingly straightforward, Thou shalt not kill is clouded by conflicting translations of the original Hebrew. Should we read it as kill in the broadest English-language sense of the word, or murder, as some scholars contend? The difference is profound. I accept the latter interpretation. But I also have reservations about the death penalty. Although there are cases in which execution can be justified, I dont believe it is necessary. Advances in criminal science, including the use of DNA evidence that has exonerated a number people convicted of serious crimes, highlight some of the flaws in the jury system and in reliance on witness testimony. Because of this, and because life is a sacred gift, I prefer to err on the side of caution. But that is my view only. It should not be interpreted as the position of the church or as being representative of how most church members see the issue. Michael White The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints La Crescenta .. I abhor capital punishment because it is an immoral abomination. Not that I dont understand the vengeance impulse. I have no doubt that I would be capable of carrying out the death penalty with my bare hands were a loved one of mine a victim of a capital crime. But a civilized society demands that vengeance be restrained, and the state cannot kill people in cold blood yet expect citizens to respect either the law or human life. It is unfairly applied, with minorities and the poor overwhelmingly populating death row. Any state-sanctioned death is unacceptable, but executions of the factually innocent as we know has happened are particularly heinous. It defies rationality as well, since it does not deter homicides. There is credible evidence that the use of capital punishment may increase murders. It is a huge taxpayer expense, and Im not talking about the mythical big-screen TVs in cells and multiple tax-funded appeals the public pays for only one. Life imprisonment would be more of a deterrent at a much lower cost. Obviously the death penalty is a cruel and unusual punishment as I believe that the U.S. Supreme Court should rule, bringing us in line with the rest of the developed world. We trail 20 U.S. states and the District of Columbia which have already abolished the death penalty, with a moratorium on executions in four more states. This November we have a chance to do both the right and the smart thing by passing Proposition 62 and ending capital punishment in California. Roberta Medford Atheist Montrose .. Im for it. I take my cue from the pages of Scripture, where God commands, Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind. (Genesis 9:6). To unpack this, you need to understand that every human being bears the image of God, and the value of this is such that for any person to brazenly destroy what God has set both his image and affection upon, that person must forfeit their own earthly membership. That person is one who must immediately be sent to the divine court, and we do that by invoking Genesis and declaring capital punishment. It is just, and it is right, and it is Gods perfect opinion on the matter. What hubris to think any creaturely opinion should be preferred. The reason this path has met with increasing opposition is, in my opinion, because Christianity is waning. Stupid is as stupid does, Forrests mama always said, and people no longer look to divine authority for instruction. Instead, they are more and more relying on their own feelings about everything, and so they foolishly abandon the right course and subsequently embrace the wrong. People generally find the death penalty yucky. Its barbaric, some will decry, and this comes from an increasing population who will abort an innocent, gestating human child in a millisecond, would waver on whether to save first their neighbor or their neighbors dog, in a fire, and yet will firmly denounce executing some murderous cannibal or serial killer, as just uncivilized! It makes no sense to catch a violent danger to humanity and then graciously provide them free food, housing and television for the rest of their life, when we should be done with them and properly reward them for their contribution. Some argue that capital punishment is no deterrent to crime, and that is, on its face, errant. If anything, the one euthanized shall never again rape and murder children and bury them in the backyard; they wont drive by a wedding and accidentally murder the bridal couple while trying to shoot one rival gang member in attendance, etc. The circumstances are legion, as are the devils who deserve the Green Mile. And its not revenge, nor murder, nor barbaric, it is our human responsibility and we must not waver. If we hesitate, we show our lack of respect for the divine image as well as the divine commander, and we deserve all the subsequent repercussions. Rev. Bryan A. Griem Tujunga More than 100 UC Irvine Health workers used their work break or their day off Tuesday to picket at UCI Medical Center in Orange in response to 175 employee layoffs that began this month. UC Irvine Healths chief executive, Howard Federoff, informed staff of the layoffs through an email Oct. 3. Previous expense reductions and increased revenue through growth of the organizations clinical services have not been enough to avoid reductions in staff, Federoff said in the email. The layoffs are part of a plan to ensure the efficiency of the medical centers clinical and education operations, officials said. But picketers Tuesday questioned how eliminating employees in frontline positions such as nurses, admitting clerks and medical assistants would serve the centers patients and improve its efficiency. When you go into the ER and youre admitted, you need someone to coordinate that, and that doesnt happen without these folks, said Kathryn Lybarger, president of Local 3299 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, a union that represents technicians, assistants and other service workers. Theyre the people who wheel you in your wheelchair, the people who draw blood or even the person who gives you a bowl if youre about to throw up. Protesters also questioned why layoffs are needed when, they say, the medical center just had nearly $70 million in profit. In the past fiscal year, the center had about $933 million in operating revenue and spent $864 million on salaries, pension benefits, medical supplies and other expenses, leaving it with about $68.7 million in net income from operations, according to a financial statement provided by UC Irvine Health spokesman John Murray. According to Murray, academic medical centers like UCIs have to provide expensive services such as research and residency training. The $68.7 million refers to an operating margin of whats left after hospital expense, Murray said. However, there are additional expenses that we are obligated to fund, including $60.9 million for academic and research support. The protesters Tuesday hit several spots on the medical centers campus, including the street facing the 5 Freeway, the UC Irvine Health Douglas Hospital and the neuropsychiatric center, where eight hospital assistants will be laid off, picketers said. We will fight, Lybarger shouted as protesters huddled on the front lawn of the Douglas Hospital. We will fight until every laid-off worker gets a job. Employees being let go have received notice of their layoffs, which take effect in early November. The layoffs affect 68 workers represented by Local 3299 and also impact people such as secretaries, managers and interpreters. UCI Medical Center had about 4,930 staff members before the layoffs began. alexandra.chan@latimes.com Twitter: @AlexandraChan10 Ten people are vying for three available seats on Huntington Beachs seven-member City Council in the Nov. 8 election. High-density development, public safety and government transparency have been among the hot-button issues for the group of candidates, which includes one incumbent, a former mayor, three planning commissioners and five newcomers. The candidates are, in the order they appear on the ballot: Lyn Semeta Age: 56 Professional occupation: Business and real property transactional attorney Education: Huntington Beach High School; UCLA, bachelor of arts; University of San Diego School of Law, juris doctorate Time lived in Huntington Beach: Went to Huntington Beach High School and moved back to Huntington Beach in 1996. Lyn Semeta (Scott Smeltzer / HB Independent) Previous public service: Vice chairwoman, Huntington Beach Planning Commission; member, Huntington Beach Design Review Board; member, Huntington Beach Investment Advisory Board; appointed by Orange County Supervisor Michelle Steel to Cal Optima Board selection panel; board member, workshops co-chair, Huntington Beach Art League; volunteer, Huntington Harbour Philharmonic Committee Islanders Group, Cruise of Lights commentator; mentor, Orange County Regional Center Parent Connection (for special-needs families); parent liaison, West Orange County Consortium for Special Education; co-founder, Gods Special Children program for children with autism at St. Bonaventure Church; chairwoman, San Diego County Bar Assn. Community Services Committee and homeless subcommittee chairwoman; mediator, Bar Assn. attorney/client fee dispute Panel; pro bono attorney for Vietnam Veterans Standdown for Homeless Vets; co-founding pro bono attorney, Superior Court temporary restraining order clinic for battered women; founding co-chair, Womens Resource Fair for Homeless and Battered Women; panelist, Far West Regional Women in Law Conference; president and treasurer, Gaslamp Quarter Foundation Immediate family: Husband Rich, daughters Kristen, 24, and Lauren, 21 What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Assure that future development in Huntington Beach preserves our suburban beach culture, is compatible with surrounding neighbors, does not cause undue traffic congestion or spillover parking problems and allows for discretionary review and opportunity for citizen input. Ill represent the citizen majority that opposes more high-density apartments. 2. Streamline permitting processes and reduce fees and regulations on businesses to stimulate investment in our economy that expands our tax base to meet ongoing expenses. 3. Increase transparency and opportunity for citizen engagement and involvement in city government. Ron Sterud Age: 44 Professional occupation: Financial advisor Education: Some college, UC Riverside; Certificate in Financial Planning, American College Time lived in Huntington Beach: 36 years Previous public service: Current Investment Advisory Board member Immediate family: Wife Krista What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Stop high-density development. 2. Work to lower unfunded liabilities. 3. Prevent Poseidon [desalination plant]. Mark Rolfes Age: 53 Professional occupation: Vice president of sales, Pelican Products Inc., Torrance Education: Bachelor of science and business administration with a minor in marketing, Towson State University, Towson, Md. Time lived in Huntington Beach: 19 years Previous public service: Currently on board of directors of the Los Angeles City Fire Foundation; previously active in Ocean View Little League, Best Coast Girls Lacrosse Club and Cub Scouts Immediate family: Spouse Dominique, son Matthew, 19, and daughter Anna, 15 What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Work more successfully at funding the unfunded liabilities. This can be done by increasing revenue to the city by growing business. 2. Improve the environment in the city and relationship to City Hall for business owners in Huntington Beach. 3. Develop a plan to address the housing issues and alternatives to high-density development. Jill Hardy Age: 45 Professional occupation: Teacher and councilwoman Education: Bachelor of arts, economics/mathematics (UC Santa Barbara); masters, economics (Cal State Long Beach) Time lived in Huntington Beach: Fourth-generation resident family moved to H.B. in 1926 Previous public service: Three terms on the City Council, including serving twice as mayor; Planning Commission; began volunteering on city boards during high school as a member of the Huntington Beach Youth Board Immediate family: Husband Greg Moore, children Kalissa, 9, and Alec, 5 What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Continue to protect open space, including preserving Rodgers Park for community services. 2. Continue to fight against high-density developments. 3. Continue to work with the City Council and city staff to address the citys unfunded liabilities. Amory Hanson Age: 19 Occupation: Student Education: High school diploma Time lived in Huntington Beach: 19 years Previous public service: None Immediate family: Dr. Amy Hanson, mother; Dr. Stefan Hanson, father What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Build an event center. 2. Keep the Michael Rodgers Seniors Center as public land. 3. Hire more police officers and firefighters. Mariann Mare Ettorre Age: 60 Professional occupation: Certified public accountant Education: Two years of masters coursework in taxation; bachelor of science in accounting Time lived in Huntington Beach: 27 years Previous public service: Former board member and treasurer for Mothers Against Drunk Driving; 11-year board member, secretary (executive committee) and finance committee member of a nonprofit; member of advisory panel AICPA Journal and Tax Journal; member of Huntington Beach Fourth of July Parade board for two years Immediate family: Daughter who is a senior and cheerleader in high school What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Address and move some action forward on homelessness, safety and crime in Huntington Beach. 2. Address pension costs and unfunded liabilities. 3. Poseidon [desalination plant] and possibly the Shopoff land purchase. Edward Pinchiff Age: 54 Professional occupation: Business owner; Huntington Beach planning commissioner; attorney Education: Bachelor of science in accounting from Pepperdine University (1985); juris doctorate from University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law (1988) Time lived in Huntington Beach: Nearly two decades Previous public service: Current chairman of the Huntington Beach Planning Commission; previous liaison to various city boards and committees, including the Historic Resources Board, Sunset Beach Area Committee, Downtown Economic Development Committee and Southeast Area Committee; member of the city General Plan Advisory Committee and previous member of the Subdivision Committee; volunteer with numerous community events; member of board of directors of various charitable and nonprofit organizations; current vice president of Huntington Beach Council on Aging; volunteer with Project SHIP (Senior Home Inspection Program); member of Huntington Beach Elks Immediate family: Two children What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Oppose high density and preserve the small-town character of Huntington Beach. We are Surf City USA, not Los Angeles. 2. Respect the community, making sure its voice is heard and working with the community to achieve its vision for Huntington Beach. 3. City Hall must be transparent, and I will have an open-door policy to meet with residents any time on any issue. Joe Carchio Age: 79 Professional occupation: Retired business owner Education: Attended Seton Hall University Time lived in Huntington Beach: 35 years Previous public service: Huntington Beach mayor and councilman Immediate family: Six children (two step) ---------- FOR THE RECORD An earlier version of this article stated that Carchio and Judith Rossner were engaged. They are not engaged. ---------- What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Create jobs; help start-up businesses expand. A positive climate for existing business. This will increase needed revenue in our city. 2. A commitment to the basics of government to fix and maintain parks, trees, sidewalks and streets. These are amenities we hold so precious. 3. City planners have rules on what can be built. If builders play by the rules, Im here to help. No high density. Karen Leighton Age: Not stated Professional occupation: Registered nurse Education: Bachelor of science, nursing Time lived in Huntington Beach: 34 years Previous public service: Volunteer for the California State Board of Registered Nursing; hospital committees for medication safety and multidisciplinary quality improvement What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Promote slow, sustainable growth. Huntington Beach is evolving with the changing times and the rest of California. 2. Foster small business in Huntington Beach. Small business contributes to the diverse economy significantly. 3. Maintain our open spaces for our families and visitors to enjoy. I would encourage the Michael E. Rodgers Seniors Center land be used as a park with the possibility of a community center. Patrick Brenden Age: 57 Professional occupation: Retired small-business owner Education: Bachelor of science, business/finance (USC) Time lived in Huntington Beach: 22 years and five months Previous public service: Huntington Beach Planning Commission (current); H.B. Public Works Commission (past); H.B. General Plan Advisory Committee (past); H.B. Charter Review Commission (past); H.B. Blue Ribbon Pavement Panel (past); Orange County Water District Ocean Desalination Citizens Advisory Committee (past); Bolsa Chica Conservancy Advisory Council (current); Boy Scouts of America Orange County Council board of directors (current); Host Lions Club of Huntington Beach (current); Kiwanis Club of Huntington Beach (current); H.B. Chamber of Commerce board of directors (immediate past chairman); Boy Scout Troop 1 Scoutmaster emeritus; St. Bonaventure Catholic Church Parish Council (past); Golden West College Patrons (current) Immediate family: Wife Antoinette, son Trevor, 23, daughter Nicolette, 21 What are three things you hope to achieve if elected? 1. Keep our community safe, maintain excellent public safety and reduce crime. 2. Preserve the character of our community through sensible development. Keep high-density development out of our neighborhoods. 3. Improve our quality of life with innovative solutions to reduce traffic, decrease homelessness and control sober-living homes. brittany.woolsey@latimes.com Twitter: @BrittanyWoolsey As a former elementary teacher of 20 years, Ive seen my share of bullying. We knew the statistics. We knew that the majority of children are victims of bullying at some point in their 12 years of school. We knew that it could take the form of physical, psychological or social trauma. This was before cyberbullying reared its ugly head. We knew it could cause depression, anxiety and anger, which often followed the abused well into their adult years. I taught in a Maryland school located in a fairly affluent neighborhood. Children from the outlying areas were permitted to attend, making it a very diverse school, ethnically, economically and socially. We, as teachers, knew that this could be a hot button for bullying and taunting, so we took every opportunity to discourage it. We continually emphasized that diversity and uniqueness makes for a more interesting and successful society. The final question of the second presidential debate asked each candidate to find one positive thing to say about one another. Miraculously, they did. It reminded me of a self-esteem activity that I did with my students every year. About a month into the school year, I had each child write his or her name at the top of a sheet of paper. As the papers were passed around the room, each child was asked to write one thing they admired about each other student. By the end of the activity, each pupil had a list of 30 positive comments written by his classmates. I watched, as each child read the list to himself. Their smiles told the whole story, as they beamed with pride. I suggested that they keep this paper handy for the rest of the school year, and to look at it periodically. (I often felt that an activity like this might be beneficial to do as a family.) It breaks my heart to see such negativity coming out of this dysfunctional presidential race. They are emphasizing intolerance of one another, suspicion and name-calling. If we want to Make America great again, we need to invest in our children by being good role models. We need to emphasize acceptance, patience and love for ones fellow man. Above all, we need to find reasons to live together peacefully in a very diverse world. TERRI GOLDSTEIN lives in Newport Coast. Guests considering joining the Cabrini Literary Guild learned about its many facets during the Membership Tea in early September at the Incarnation Church Community Center. The patio framed by lush foliage was an inviting setting to take in one of the first fall-like days. President Miryam Finkelberg opened the program by emphasizing that the organization, founded in 1943, continues its objective these 73 years later to assist financially and in other ways Catholic and charitable organizations. Members also participate in activities that stimulate interest in Catholic literature. Guild member, Sister Regina Palamara, who serves with the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart order, gave her blessing followed by the organizations new moderator Father Norman Supancheck, who presented the invocation. Ann Herrmann, curator of the Bridge Club, led the group in organizing the tea and chose a patriotic theme in honor of Patriots Day. Marie Urrutia, general curator, catered the delightful menu of mini sandwiches, fresh fruit in a swan-carved watermelon and lemonade or iced tea, of course. The new board of directors was announced with Finkelberg taking on the presidency for another year. She will be assisted by Jessica Botticella, first vice president; Karen Swan and Patty Szot, co-second vice presidents; Anne Phelps, recording secretary; Herrmann, corresponding secretary; Maureen Walsh, treasurer; Urrutia, general curator; Laurie Leask, director of membership; and Monica Sierra, director of the Writing Awards Program for students of the Archdiocesan high schools. Botticella gave an overview of the programs for the year including a bingo night on Oct. 15, the main fundraiser on March 11 and the Writing Awards Program on April 13. Joan Sandon, as philanthropy chair, explained that she gathers her committee to decide which local charities will receive donations at the June luncheon a well as the amount of funds they will receive. The guild also offers members four special interest departments. There is a Book Reading Club in which members discuss a book they have read on the second Wednesday evening of the month. Members take turns choosing the book title. In the Bridge Department members play Duplicate Bridge from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of the month. Members in the Busy Fingers Department participate in several needlework projects and receive instruction as needed from more proficient crafters. They meet from 10 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. on the third Thursday of the month. The Philosophy Department gives members a chance to hear guest speakers address subjects relating to religion. A discussion follows. Meetings are at 10 a.m. the third Tuesday of the month. The guild is named for St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, who is known as Mother Cabrini all over the world. She promoted education and literature and charitable work along with her Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart with headquarters in New York, Chicago and Burbank. To join, email information@cabriniliteraryguild.org. Fundraiser helps homeless families Family Promise of the Verdugos, a local nonprofit organization that assists first time homeless families with children find housing and sustainable employment, is having its sixth annual Empty Bowl Lunch and Arts & Crafts Fair on Sunday. Independent potters, arts associations and community groups create and donate handcrafted ceramic bowls to the event. Guests purchase a ticket for a simple meal of soup, bread and dessert donated by area restaurants. Those purchasing an adult ticket or sponsorship get to take home a handmade empty bowl made by a local artisan as a reminder of the hunger and uncertainty homeless families face every day. Proceeds go to the program that offers temporary shelter and food for families while parents receive training to find a job. Abraham, who asked that only his first name be published, recently graduated from the program and is now living in an apartment with his daughter. He had been working two jobs to make ends meet, but became homeless when he lost the second job, he said. He called around, but only Family Promise was able to help him. A case manager and volunteers at the organizations resource center help clients with resume preparation. Clients are able to use the computers with Internet access, printers and phone to research job leads, he said. Abraham was able to secure a second job, and he and his daughter stayed in the program until he had enough money saved to get an apartment plus a little extra for emergencies. For those thinking about applying for the program, he suggested following the plan they provide and staying focused. This year the arts fair begins at 11:30 a.m. and drop-in lunch runs from noon to 2:30 p.m. in St. Albert Hall at St. Finbar Catholic Church, 2010 W. Olive Ave., Burbank. Adult tickets are $30. Childrens tickets are $15 (ages 11 and under) but do not include a ceramic bowl. Sponsorships are available for $2,500, $1,250, $600, $400 and $150. This past year, Family Promise has made great strides, including a 96% success rate of homeless-to-home transition, with each family typically spending between six to eight weeks with the organization, said Board President Renee Johnson. In addition, Family Promise was named the nonprofit of the year for the 25th Senate District by Sen. Carol Liu. The agency works with a network of 26 local congregations, 13 of which host families for one week on a rotating basis. To qualify for this 90-day back-to-work program, families must include at least one adult and one minor and have no active alcohol or substance abuse, domestic violence, mental illness or felony convictions. Throughout the entire process, the family is able to remain safely together, with the children going to school so they dont fall back academically. Family Promise officials believe that by intervening early, the organization helps to stop situationally homeless families from spiraling down into chronic homelessness, thereby strengthening the community. To learn more, visit www.FamilyPromiseVerdugos.org. -- JOYCE RUDOLPH can be reached at rudolphjoyce10@gmail.com. If youre going to Thailand anytime soon, expect to find a subdued nation deep in mourning over the loss of the countrys beloved King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who ruled for seven decades. He died Oct. 13 at age 88. Travelers should be sensitive to the 30 days of public mourning and 100 days of royal funeral observances, during which the kings body will be on display at the Grand Palace in Bangkok. The mourning period for government workers stretches to a full year. MORE: Many in Thailand want the princess to ascend to the throne, but her scandal-plagued brother is next in line Advertisement If you want to go partying in the red light district, dont go now, says Andrea Ross, founder and chief executive of Journeys Within Tour Co., which specializes in travel to Southeast Asia. But if you want to experience this moment in Thailands history, Ross says, Its an amazing time to go. Its unprecedented. How should you act if you visit? In guidelines posted online Tuesday, the Tourism Authority of Thailand asks travelers to refrain from boisterous partying and inappropriate or disrespectful behavior. It also warns travelers that parts of Bangkok may become clogged with traffic as mourners dressed in black and white pour into the city from the countryside to pay their respects. Bangkoks tourist attractions as well as shops, public transit and banks are open, except for Wat Phra Kaeo or Temple of the Emerald Buddha, and the Grand Palace, where the kings remains will be on display starting 1 p.m. Oct. 28. During the 30 days of mourning, full moon beach parties popular with tourists have been canceled, the Soi Cowboy red-light district has closed indefinitely, and alcohol is being sold only at select hours. Tourist activities such as snorkeling, scuba and kayaking at the countrys southern beaches continue. Bangkoks famed Loy Krathong Festival on Nov. 14 falls just after the 30 days of mourning. Festivalgoers will celebrate the tradition of lighting lanterns and floating them on rivers, but the accompanying fireworks and parade have been canceled, Ross says. She advises travelers to wear dark colors and keep knees and shoulders covered when traveling in Bangkok and across the country. Trekkers should wear long pants instead of shorts out of respect for a grieving nation. Also, Ross encourages visitors to engage with guides and locals to tell them youre sorry for the loss of their king. They feel like theyve lost a family member, she says. Be careful about personal safety too because Buddhist temples particularly the more popular ones such as Wat Arun and Wat Pho in Bangkok may draw huge crowds. Ross recommends going early in the morning or in the evening when things may be calmer and quieter. And make sure to rely on your guide for information and follow whatever rules may be in place. The U.S. Embassy in Bangkok and the U.S. Consulate General in Chiang Mai are observing regular opening hours. ALSO Thailand grieves for its late king and wonders when its crown prince will take the throne Thailands King Bhumibol, worlds longest-reigning monarch, dies at 88 Tehran, Iran, October 18 By Mehdi Sepahvand, Dalga Khatinoglu - Trend: Iran has 5-10 gigawatts (GW) worth of renewable power firm projects for foreign companies in the next ten years, the deputy of Energy Minister Houshang Falahatian told Trend Oct.18. He said that Iran proposed a guarantee for foreign companies to purchase their power firms electricity in a 20-year period with good tariffs. "We call on foreign companies to invest in Irans renewables projects," he said. Falahatian said that Iran has planned to purchase 1 GW of renewable power, generated in foreign companies projects in Iran annually, in short-term and within a 10-year plan. Currently, Irans nominal power generation capacity stands at about 76 GW, of which only 240 MW (or 0.32 percent) accounts for renewables. He said that Irans priority is construction of wind and solar power plants. Below is Irans proposed tariffs for foreign companies: (Currently $1 equals 36,000 rials in open markets) The boys frail cry pierced his fathers heart. Saleh Umar feared his youngest son, Hassan, would die. The 1-year-olds ribs protruded sharply, his shrunken arms were like twigs, his eyes dark hollows. Since being driven from their village by the Nigerian extremist group and Islamic State affiliate Boko Haram, Umar and his family have often gone hungry. The six of them made their way to the dusty, sprawling city of Maiduguri, and Umars wife wandered the city for days in vain seeking help for Hassan. Umar then made a desperate decision. On Oct. 6 he took the meager food the family had scraped together, a small bag of sorghum, and walked nine miles to his village to plant the seeds food he knows he may not survive to harvest. Advertisement The famine killing thousands of children in northeastern Nigeria is forcing parents to take drastic measures, and aid workers fear the death toll will continue to spiral upward. The famine is the product of Boko Harams scorched-earth attacks, which stopped farmers from planting, fishermen from casting their nets and traders from plying their goods. But aid from the Nigerian government and the international community only recently began to increase for a population that, already struggling with chronic malnutrition, has been tipped into starvation by the crisis. Also, there have been allegations that food meant for desperate families has been stolen in recent months, one reason food parcels do not always arrive at aid stations and camps. At least 65,000 people are in famine in Nigeria, according to aid experts, and 2.5 million children are malnourished. It doesnt get worse. I call it the F-word, Arjan de Wagt, UNICEF head of nutrition in Nigeria, says of the famine. Thats the word you dont want to speak of. These are the pictures of children that you dont like to see. The images are sadly familiar in Africa children with distended bellies and skin that appears to be pulled tight against bony frames. Hadiza Adamu wandered Maiduguri, Nigeria, for days seeking help for her 1-year-old son, Hassan, who was growing weaker every day. (Robyn Dixon / Los Angeles Times ) The situation is bad as it can be, De Wagt said. You are talking about the worst-case scenario. In northeastern Nigeria, the U.N. estimates 1 in 5 of the 400,000 children suffering severe acute malnutrition will die without help. But with 80% of the northeastern Nigerian state of Borno still threatened by Boko Haram and inaccessible to humanitarian groups, the famine may be worse than feared: About 2.2 million people are trapped in inaccessible villages because of Boko Haram. Boko Haram wants to establish an Islamic state in Nigeria and has engaged in bloody revenge attacks on any village that has tried to post community guards to protect against its fighters. Some estimates put the number it has killed at 20,000, but there is no real way to know. Part of Boko Harams strategy to destabilize society is to kill farmers, and the day Umar walked back to his village, he worked in fear, making holes on his little plot and carefully dropping a seed into each. But that afternoon, he saw Boko Haram gunmen racing toward him on foot and other farmers fleeing. He ran, heart pounding like a hunted animal, into the bush. Night fell as he lay hidden. Earlier that day, his wife, Hadiza Adamu, had set out early to try to save Hassan. She left Hassans twin sister, Husseina, who is healthier, in the care of her oldest daughter, 10-year-old Aisha. Another son, Umar, 4, dressed in a ragged gray cotton shirt, trailed behind her, his head covered in sores where flies congregated thickly. He looked numbly ahead, too exhausted to brush the flies away. He didnt moan or cry. Saleh Abubakar, 9 months old, clings to life in the intensive care unit of a Doctors Without Borders clinic in Maiduguri, Nigeria. His mother died, leaving behind nine children. (Robyn Dixon / Los Angeles Times ) Adamu joined a press of women at a UNICEF malnutrition-management center in Maiduguri and waved a small cloth above Hassans head every few seconds, flicking off flies. He listlessly waved his arms as a community worker placed a bracelet designed to measure malnutrition around his upper arm. The circumference, the size of his fathers thumb, showed severe acute malnutrition. Adamu has lost two daughters before. Halima died five years ago after a fever because they family couldnt get her to hospital because of Boko Haram attacks in the area. The second, Binta, was lost when Boko Haram gunmen on motorcycles roared into the village, screaming God is great! Umar had gone out to fetch water when the attack started. She dropped her buckets and sprinted to her house for her children, but Binta, 7, had wandered off. She grabbed the other children and fled into the bush. Umar tried to run into the bush too, but with so many gunmen chasing down fleeing men, he hid inside his house and somehow escaped detection. They burned five old men in their houses, some of them blind. And they killed 18 others, Adamu said. She searched for Binta in vain. That was two years ago. It was only the last two months I gave up hope of finding her, said Adamu. Maiduguris population has swelled from 1 million to 2.5 million with families like Adamus. For nearly two years, she, Umar and the children lived under a flimsy plastic sheet rigged to a branch until the sheet broke just over a week ago. In the recent rainy season, water poured in. We had no food, no clothing, no shelter, Umar said. When it rained, everything was soaked with water. The children were soaked, all of them. A woman and her baby arrive at the In-Patient Therapeutic Feeding Center in the Gwangwe district of Maiduguri, Nigeria. (Stefan Heunis / AFP/Getty Images ) Among the poorest and most desperate men in Maiduguri are the water sellers, pushing heavy carts, their faces furrowed in worry. They fill dozens of cans with well water and hurry to be the first to sell. Doing that job, Umar sometimes scraped up enough for a single bowl of millet, sometimes two. But about four days each week, they had nothing. Maiduguri also hosts a Doctors Without Borders clinic, a facility whose intensive care unit is nearly silent, filled with motionless children waging their small battles for survival. Their mothers murmur stories of Boko Haram attacks and the years of desperate poverty and hunger on the streets of Maiduguri that followed. On a recent day, there was Hadija Modu, about 30, who fled with her husband and six children from the village of Yawal, about 20 miles away, after Boko Haram looted their food and cattle, burned the village and killed many people. They live in Maiduguri under a tree that supports their shelter a leather hide. Her husband, Mohammed, has been bedridden for months and her two sons, 13 and 7, cart water or sell ice cream to bring in a little food. Modu cradled her slight, 5-year-old son, Lawan Tahiru, who could not raise his head or keep down the rehydration liquid she gently tried to spoon into his mouth. He bared his teeth, showing his discomfort. At her feet was daughter Bunu, 2. When theres no money for food, then we sit and watch, sighed Modu. Five of her 11 children have died of sickness over the years. In the next bed, Yagana Gonis 3-month-old baby, Mohammed, was so weak that when he opened his tiny mouth to cry, no sound came out. His limbs quivered feebly with the effort. At a camp for displaced people where Goni and her family stay, she said food aid has been sporadic. The last four months have been hell, said Goni. We missed food so many times. Sometimes we go two days without eating. The U.N. World Food Program only received government permission to start work in the region in August. Just a quarter of a $484-million global humanitarian campaign to address the crisis is funded, according to the United Nations. The ongoing violence means many farmers will be unable to plant for the third year in a row. The response has been far from adequate, said De Wagt, the UNICEF nutrition chief, outlining plans to triple his organizations response in coming months. Things are happening, but there are still 2.2 million people out there [in inaccessible areas], and I am worried that they have missed another harvest. We need to go from house to house, from hut to hut and shelter to shelter, to screen children for malnutrition. At the UNICEF center, Adamu was given a therapeutic food ration to feed Hassan. Since the familys shelter collapsed, they stay in a spare room offered by a friend. I feel empty, knowing that Im helpless, Umar said. I look at my son and I feel pity, thinking Will he survive? Or will he die? And here I am, poor, without work, without money to take care of him. Umar, who believes he is about 40, feels he is a failure. Recently, after spending the night in the bush to escape Boko Haram, he sickened and missed a day that could have been spent scrambling for work. On Tuesday, Boko Haram gunmen killed five people in a village near Umars farm. Yet, determined to get a crop in to feed his family next year and still haunted by Hassans feeble crying he plans to return to his fields to plant whenever he can find seeds. Yagana Gonis 3-month-old baby, Mohammed, is so weak that when he opens his tiny mouth to cry, no sound escapes. (Robyn Dixon / Los Angeles Times ) robyn.dixon@latimes.com Twitter: @RobynDixon_LAT ALSO Bombs, beatings, rape: Freed Nigerian women tell harrowing tales of life as a forced Boko Haram bride 21 Nigerian schoolgirls released by Boko Haram will receive medical treatment, trauma counseling This town in South Sudan has no name. It was never supposed to exist. Now 21,000 people live there The tough-talking new president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, has heaped effusive praise on China in the opening days of a state visit to Beijing, a marked contrast to his often profane rhetoric about the United States, his countrys historical ally. That startling contrast, which may foreshadow a major shake-up in the East Asian security order, played out Wednesday against a backdrop of violence in Manila, where anti-U.S. protesters gathered outside the American Embassy. Police repeatedly plowed through the crowd with a van, injuring dozens of people. Duterte, 71, arrived in Beijing on Tuesday night, kicking off a four-day state visit; on Thursday, he will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Advertisement The only hope of the Philippines economically, Ill be frank with you, is China, Duterte told state broadcaster CCTV on Wednesday. He called the trip the defining moment of my presidency. The visit would have been unthinkable even three months ago, when tension simmered between the two countries over Chinas territorial claims in the South China Sea. Yet Duterte, in a stark break from his predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, has adopted a conciliatory tone toward China while stoking anti-U.S. sentiment, pleasing Beijing while exacerbating divisions at home. China is the only country to come out freely and a firm statement that they are supporting the fight against drugs in my country. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte Duterte, a notoriously foulmouthed former mayor, has called President Obama a son of a whore and delivered profanity-laced tirades against the European Union and United Nations. He has called for an end to long-standing U.S.-Philippines military exercises. Wednesdays violence in Manila occurred as hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the U.S. Embassy to demand that the United States, the Philippines onetime colonial ruler, remove its forces from bases in the country. Video of the incident, which was posted widely on Filipino news websites, showed demonstrators attacking a police van with sticks and their fists, as rows of blue-shielded riot police stood by in tight rows. The van then plows through the crowd, knocking protesters over and crushing some beneath its wheels. (Warning: The video displays graphic content.) Although dozens were injured, early reports indicated there were no fatalities. Dutertes foreign policy leanings are inextricably tied to his anti-drug campaign, a hallmark of his early tenure. He campaigned for president on the promise of eradicating illegal drugs within six months, without regard for human rights. Since his June 30 inauguration, thousands of suspected drug dealers have been killed by police and vigilantes. The U.S., U.N., and EU have repeatedly called for the killings to stop. China is the only country to come out freely and a firm statement that they are supporting the fight against drugs in my country, Duterte told the official New China News Agency on Tuesday. The other countries, United States, EU, instead of helping us, they know that we are short of money.... All they had to do was to criticize. China never criticized. Experts have cast Dutertes cold shoulder to the U.S. as a high-profile gambit. According to a September poll by Social Weather Stations, a Manila-based research institution, 76% of Filipinos place much trust in the U.S., while only 22% feel the same about China. The story so far: What makes Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, who compared himself to Hitler, so popular Only a few months ago, Manila was the greatest roadblock to Chinas achieving its territorial ambitions in the South China Sea. Under the last president, Aquino, the Philippines filed a petition to the Permanent Court of Arbitration seeking to clarify the seas maritime boundaries. In July, the court issued a stinging rebuke to Beijing, ruling that its actions in the sea violated international law. Beijing immediately declared the ruling null and void. Duterte has said he will not bring up the issue during his state visit. He probably will seek Chinese infrastructure investment, including help building railways on Luzon and Mindanao islands. When I started looking at [South China Sea issues] 20 years ago, it was something only the elite cared about, said Ian Storey, a Southeast Asia security expert at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore. Most Filipinos were concerned about where they get their next meal from. But thats changed over the past 10 years. This has become an issue for Filipino nationalists this idea that China is stealing what rightfully belongs to the Philippines, particularly its resources, oil and gas and everything. If [Duterte] offends a key constituency in the country such as the business community, the armed forces or political rivals, we might see a situation in which he is impeached or threatened with impeachment, like [former President Joseph] Estrada, he said. Estrada was ousted in 2001 during a popular uprising in Manila. In Cagayan de Oro, a farming and industrial city on the north coast of Mindanao, several people said in interviews that they welcomed U.S. military aid a major force in the regions struggle against separatist movements and Islamist terrorism and felt uncertainty over whether China would be as effective. Locals remember when terrorists bombed a row of restaurants in 2013, killing six people and injuring 48; security in the city remained tight, with strict security checkpoints on roads and at the citys top university. Its good that we use American aid in the Philippines, said Kirk Nagac, an unemployed 27-year-old, as he filled out job applications in a public park. American aid means more advanced equipment. It can provide things that the Philippines doesnt have. Theres a conflict between China and the Philippines the only country that helps the Philippines is the USA. China has welcomed Dutertes rapprochement. Early this month, Chinese officials lifted a ban on the import of Philippine bananas and pineapples, which have faced restrictions for four years amid diplomatic tension. China also may lift restrictions on other fruit imports mangoes, coconut, dragon fruit in coming days. Last week, a Chinese billionaire, Huang Rulun, pledged to build a drug rehabilitation center in the Philippines that can treat 10,000 patients. Duterte has called the offer a symbol of Beijings goodwill. The ice is melting, said Xu Liping, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. China in principle supports [Dutertes domestic policies] because hes trying to fight against drugs. And how he does it, thats the Philippines internal affair. Times staff writer Kaiman reported from Beijing and special correspondent Jennings from Cagayan de Oro, the Philippines. Nicole Liu and Yingzhi Yang in The Times Beijing bureau also contributed to this report. jonathan.kaiman@latimes.com For more news from Asia, follow @JRKaiman on Twitter ALSO: American football is gaining traction in China Meet the Nightcrawlers of Manila: A night on the front lines of the Philippines war on drugs The U.S. may be the Great Satan in Iran, but some still want to win the U.S. visa lottery In the days after Britain voted to leave the 28-nation European Union, the leader of the far-right U.K. Independence Party triumphantly resigned, declaring that his political ambitions had been achieved. But as the country grapples with Brexit-related political and economic turmoil after the June referendum, the party that Nigel Farage worked to build also is facing a crisis. The party recently has been referred to as ungovernable and at risk of falling into a death spiral by the partys former immigration spokesman, who was widely considered the front-runner to succeed Farage. Advertisement Steven Woolfe chose to resign this week, announcing that the party had been consumed by infighting and had lost its way. I believe that a strong UKIP would hold this governments feet to the fire and make sure it delivers a clean Brexit, Woolfe, a member of the European Parliament, said in a resignation statement. However, I have come to the conclusion that UKIP is ungovernable without Nigel Farage leading it and the referendum cause to unite it. UKIP was founded in 1993 with the central policy of seeing Britain leave the EU. It branded itself as the countrys first genuinely populist party and spoke to the working-class voters who felt disenfranchised by mainstream parties. It tapped into peoples feelings of frustration with bureaucracy, rising immigration, declining living standards and what they saw as an undemocratic, wasteful EU. During the 2015 election, UKIP amassed nearly 4 million votes, an all-time high. Former Prime Minister David Camerons decision to hold a referendum on EU membership was largely born out of a desire to halt UKIPs rise and stop euroskeptic wings of his Conservative Party from migrating over. But after 52% of referendum voters favored the core issue UKIP championed, some observers say, the party lost not only its charismatic leader but its common enemy. And, some observers say, it appears to have turned on itself. Party leadership candidate Raheem Kassam has said UKIP is in the midst of an existential crisis. He said the party currently doesnt know what it stands for, it doesnt know where its going. Woolfe said the party has let down itself and the British public. I think unless someone very quickly can wrestle with the issues that theyve got, then we will see the loss of something that I think shouldnt be lost the loss of the party, their influence, the goodwill that the British public have with them, he said in a BBC interview. This wont be good for British politics. Prime Minister Theresa May of the Conservative Party has said she will trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the process by which Britain will formally start to negotiate a two-year exit from the EU, by the end of March. Impassioned debates are taking place about what the exit will look like, namely whether Britain will lose access to the single market in return for total control over its borders a stance that is being referred to as hard Brexit, compared with a softer, or more compromised position. Contrary to giving UKIP plenty to continue fighting for, observers argue that the referendum has actually taken away some of the movements thunder. Once the referendum was done and Britain had to some extent decided to withdraw from the EU, the essence, the raison d'etre of the party was fulfilled, said politics professor Matthew Flinders of the University of Sheffield. The issue around EU membership has become a mainstream issue now in a way it wasnt before. The issue about hard or soft Brexit are now issues that are dominant across the political spectrum, he said. The UKIP agenda used to be periphery, now its everywhere. Matthew Goodwin, politics professor at the University of Kent and a senior visiting fellow at the London-based think tank Chatham House, said the partys future has never looked more uncertain. The party is grappling with several major problems; a lack of money, members, infighting, a leadership vacuum and a new Conservative prime minister who appears determined to park her tanks on UKIPs lawn, Goodwin said. Farage has temporarily stepped into the leadership void while a replacement is named, but finding a successor has not been easy. The party has been made up of a small group of strong-willed politicians who had rejected the mainstream but also often expressed disdain for each other. Woolfe was hospitalized this month for three days following an altercation with a fellow UKIP member of the European Parliament, Mike Hookem, during a party meeting in Strasbourg. Hookem has categorically denied throwing a punch at his colleague. UKIPs Diane James was briefly named leader in September but announced she was stepping aside after just 18 days in the job. She cited personal and professional reasons, including that she did not have the backing of her party members. A new leader is expected to be announced Nov. 28. UKIPs chairman, Paul Oakden, has sought to reassure supporters, but when pressed in a recent TV interview about how unified the party was, he answered in the future tense: Were going to be very united. Boyle is a special correspondent. On a single day earlier this month, Turkish authorities arrested more than 120 police officers in raids across the country and charged them with being members of a terrorist group all because they were allegedly using an encrypted messaging app. The app, called ByLock, has been linked to the Hizmet movement, a religious group that the Turkish government blames for the July 15 attempted coup. The arrests are part of an increasingly wide-ranging attempt to rid Turkish society of anyone who may have been involved in the failed coup, during which renegade soldiers used tanks, jets and small arms to kill 260 people. Under a state of emergency imposed after the coup attempt was put down, the Turkish government can detain individuals without charge for up to 60 days and restrict what media outlets report. At least 32,000 people have been arrested so far. Advertisement On Oct. 4, officials announced that the state of emergency was to be extended for another three months. That same day, nearly 13,000 police officers were suspended, accused of being part of Hizmet, a global network of thousands of private schools and businesses headed by self-exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen. The government refers to Hizmet as the Fetullah Terrorist Organization. More than 100,000 people have been suspended from their jobs for alleged ties to Hizmet since July 15, including primary school teachers, university professors, and civil servants in a slew of ministries. Its a kind of civil death, said Kerem Altiparmak, a human rights lawyer and political science professor at Ankara University. You cannot leave the country, you cannot find other jobs, either because of legal or de facto obstacles, because even in the private sector people do not want to employ you because you are a member of a terrorist organization. The evidence connecting those accused is often tenuous and ambiguous, as in the case of the police who were jailed because they were allegedly using the ByLock application. This month, authorities have issued arrest orders for 404 people including prosecutors, judges, and police officers accused of using ByLock, an ostensibly secure instant messaging app that appeared on the Internet in 2014. Turkish officials have said ByLock was developed by a Hizmet member who was a senior scientist at the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK), a top civilian research institution, after a schism between Gulen and Erdogan sparked a government crackdown on thousands of alleged followers of the cleric in the public sector. The application was briefly hosted on well-known app stores like Google Play and reached hundreds of thousands of users, before the creator of the app pulled it. The identity of the apps developer is still unknown, said Minhac Celik, a cybersecurity expert who worked in TUBITAK between 2013 and 2014. Several months before the coup attempt, the national intelligence agency, known as the MIT, obtained a list of global ByLock users, said Celik. Officials have been unusually tight-lipped about the details, said Celik, but cyber experts believe the MIT hacked a server in Lithuania that had a list of global ByLock users, which numbered up to 215,000. While messages themselves are encrypted by ByLock, the names of users and their IP addresses, which can be used to locate them, were being stored in plain text, Celik said. Most members are Turks, Turkish nationals, and nearly all conversations are in Turkish, Celik said. They [the MIT] have a list of users and they are going through and looking at the users. This is the only information we have [about the users connection to Hizmet]. The problem of legality starts now, he added. How can you blame someone for just downloading an application? Around 56,000 users were identified by the MIT, including police officers and 600 members of the military, all of whom are now presumably being tracked and detained. On Oct. 2, a court in the southern province of Hatay refused to hear a case against a man who prosecutors said was a member of Hizmet because he had ByLock on his phone. The judge made a very reasonable decision, said Altiparmak, the human rights lawyer, asking for more evidence than the presence of the application on a mobile phone. But shortly after the ruling, the judge was publicly called a Hizmet member, said Altiparmak, and may face a legal investigation himself. The independence and impartiality of the judicial system is a core problem in Turkey, and it became even worse after the coup attempt, said Altiparmak. Thousands of foreign students also find themselves in legal limbo after authorities shut down schools like Fatih University, one of the countrys top English-language universities, for alleged ties to Hizmet. I knew [since the day of its closure] that graduates from Fatih will be marked as Gulen sympathizers, said Ahmed, a third-year international relations student from Southeast Asia who asked his real name not be used. His connection to Gulen, however indirect, makes it nearly impossible to transfer to a new university in Turkey. Even if you didnt have anything to do with the coup, many institutions in Turkey educational, financial, etc. will see that you are blacklisted, he said. Farooq is a special correspondent. As he watched the television images of terrified Yazidi women and children fleeing Islamic State militants in northern Iraq, a familiar unease gripped Father Patrick Desbois. There were no men among the fleeing villagers. This, he told himself, was genocide unfolding before his eyes. Though Desbois had never heard of the Yazidi, the 2014 images stirred a spiritual calling to investigate the mass killings and other atrocities inflicted on this non-Muslim religious minority and raise awareness of a little-known ethnic group that has suffered so profoundly. Advertisement Islamic State, also known as Daesh, its Arabic acronym, killed an estimated 5,000 Yazidi men when it took control of Iraqs northwest two years ago, according to the United Nations and human rights groups. Thousands of Yazidi women and children were taken captive. The women were often raped and sold as sex slaves or servants; the boys were forced to convert to Islam and become soldiers of Islamic State. While the Yazidi stronghold of Sinjar has since been liberated, about 3,500 women, girls and some men remain captives of Islamic State, according to a recent United Nations report. The majority are Yazidis. The abuses, the report suggests, may amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Catholic priest and anti-genocide advocate Father Patrick Desbois has created a new initiative to document Islamic States persecution of the Yazidi people. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times ) The priest pursues his calling Desbois had already built a reputation as a self-made mass murder sleuth. Through Yahad-In Unum, the organization he founded in 2004 to uncover and denounce genocide, he had identified largely unrecognized sites where the Nazis slaughtered and buried Jews and Roma, also called Gypsies, in the former Soviet Union. But the murderous treatment of the Yazidis presented a real-time cause. I couldnt just stay on the mass killings of the past, said Desbois, 61, a former mathematics teacher and government worker. But I had no door to enter into Iraq. That opening arrived unexpectedly. On business in Brussels in the winter of 2015 and searching for a barber, Desbois stepped into the only open shop he could find one run by Arabs. When the priest told the barber that he was interested in learning more about the tragic Yazidi situation, the man whispered in his ear that he was a Yazidi. The barber and his family helped initiate the primary contacts that Desbois needed to begin his mission, and two months later the priest was en route to northern Iraq. In this 2014 file photo, displaced Iraqi families from the Yazidi community rest after crossing the border with Syria in northern Iraq. (Ahmad al-Rubaye / AFP/Getty Images ) Documenting genocide Today, through a project called Action Yazidis, Desbois collects testimony from survivors who escaped slavery and imprisonment by Islamic State. The accounts are pieced together through interviews that are cross-referenced with separate statements, photographs and other sources and written material. Every nugget of information comes from the victims: What day, date and time did the Islamic State fighters arrive? Where exactly were you in the house, in the yard, at school? Were you alone? Who was with you? The survivors are asked to draw details of what they remember: An illustration of the camp where they were held, where they entered, whether they could sit down, the number of seats. The interviews last hours. The goal is not only to document the horrors but also to rebuild the topography from the first day of being captured to the day of escape, Desbois said. Each story paints a grim picture of Islamic States methodology. The militants typically arrive toting three bags: one to collect money from their captives, one for jewelry and the third for cellphones. Desbois was familiar with the tactic; the Nazis also stole from their victims. Families are separated. Newborns are taken from mothers and given to Muslim families. Boys, many as young as 9, are taken to prison, forced to convert to Islam and sent to terrorist training camps to learn to shoot Kalashnikov rifles, fire rockets and if necessary blow themselves up. Girls are examined to determine whether they have entered womanhood, Desbois said. Virgins are sold to the highest bidder. Young mothers are forced to become servants. Older women are saved for use as human shields against attacks. In Daesh everyone has a purpose, Desbois said. The effects of the terror and abuse One 42-year-old woman who spent almost two years in Islamic State captivity with her four children recalled one fighter breaking her 6-year-old sons teeth and laughing at him, and then hitting her 10-year-old daughter so hard she urinated. He would beat my children up and lock them up in a room, the woman told Amnesty International. They would cry inside and I would sit outside the door crying. I begged him to kill us, but he said he didnt want to go to hell because of us. Her account, as those of 17 other women and girls who survived Islamic State captivity, was published in a recent Amnesty International report that concludes victims are in desperate need of financial assistance and psychological counseling. Last year, dozens of Yazidis committed or attempted suicide in northern Iraqs Kabarto refugee camp, according to Alex Bartoloni, Baghdad-based community health manager for the International Medical Corps, a Los Angeles humanitarian medical group. We had never seen this level of suicide in another refugee population, said Bartoloni, whose group provides mental health and psycho-social support for about 30,000 displaced Yazidis in the camp. It was quite shocking to us. Although the suicides have decreased in recent months, Bartoloni said the level of anxiety, depression and extreme distress had taken a large toll on family dynamics. Justice delayed by international inaction Among the Yazidis, there is a sense the world has turned its back on them. Or, worse, is not even aware of what is happening. Mirza Ismail, chairman of the Canada-based Yezidi Human Rights Organization-International, called on people in the West to press their governments to stand for accountability and justice. A participant at a remembrance march for Yazidis killed by Islamic State holds up a poster in Berlin on Aug. 3 2016. (Wolfram Kastl / Associated Press ) Ismails group wants the world to acknowledge that Yazidis, a predominantly ethnic Kurdish religious minority that is widely believed to have suffered 74 genocides throughout its history, are being targeted solely because they are non-Muslims. What has the West done to save the non-Muslim minorities, if anything at all? Ismail asked. Gulie Khalaf, treasurer of Yezidis International, a nonprofit based in Lincoln, Neb., which is thought to have the largest Yazidi population in the U.S., stressed the importance of survivors keeping their stories alive by sharing testimony. They are documents to help study and understand what happened and how and why we failed to protect hundreds of thousands of people, said Khalaf, whose group works to educate the public about the Yazidis. It holds the authorities accountable for their actions and future action. It helps lawmakers make better decisions for prevention of genocides. Desbois said the first step toward justice is capturing and punishing Islamic State leader Abu Bakr Baghdadi, who has exploited the worlds seeming indifference toward the plight of the Yazidis. If we begin not to care about the genocide of people we dont know about, we open the door for much worse, Desbois said. ann.simmons@latimes.com For more on global development news, follow me @AMSimmons1 on Twitter In Tehran, the ritual is becoming as familiar as the Death to America chants at Friday prayers. Its the yearly rush to enter a lottery for the chance to immigrate to the United States. I want to experience a new life in the U.S. Why not? said Milad Nazari, a spiky-haired 29-year-old working at a sleepy florist in downtown Tehran. Advertisement Death to America? I dont care. The U.S. is the most powerful country so why shouldnt I take my chance in the lottery? This month the State Department opened a five-week window for visa applications from citizens of countries that historically have had low rates of immigration to the United States. The annual Diversity Visa lottery selects 50,000 winners who, along with their spouses and children under 21, can obtain green cards and become permanent U.S. residents. Last year 9.4 million people and 5 million family members from more than 200 countries sought visas under the program. Death to America? I dont care. Milad Nazari, U.S. visa applicant Those numbers included nearly 500,000 Iranians and 432,000 spouses and children, among the most of any country, though a slight decrease from 2014. About 5,000 Iranians were selected for visas; only Cameroon and Liberia had more winners. Entries from Iran have risen sharply from 150,000 in 2007, reflecting both Iranians enduring fascination with the United States despite official propaganda labeling the U.S. the Great Satan and worsening prospects for the middle class in a country ravaged by economic sanctions. I have worked hard but not been able to save enough, said Naser Zaeim, manager of a printing house in Tehran. Standing under a printing machine and wiping his greasy hands, Zaeim, 45, said he had missed previous lotteries but planned to apply before this years Nov. 7 deadline. (Winners are granted visas starting in 2018.) As a young man Zaeim spent two years as an unskilled laborer in Japan, where he saved enough to buy a small apartment. When he was deported to Iran, his fortunes faltered. I see no future here for my three children, he said. Read more: Why Iranians say the nuclear deal is a disappointment Saeed Mohammadi, an air-conditioning repairman, entered the lottery unsuccessfully the past two years. While he said he was satisfied in Iran economically, he found the prospect of life in the United States thrilling for his wife and 10-year-old son. I earn enough here, but I dont have enough leisure time, said Mohammadi, 33. I want to work and relax too. Here the only option is to drive north for a holiday and rent a vacation home on the Caspian Sea for a few days. There is no fun in Tehran. Such comments do not please Irans hard-liners, who oppose any warming of relations with the West. They have tried to undermine the 2014 nuclear deal that President Hassan Rouhani, a relative moderate, struck with the United States and other world powers, arguing it has not brought economic relief. The archconservatives have characterized Iranians with dual citizenship in the West as security threats, and cheered this week when two Iranian Americans were sentenced to 10-year prison terms on vague charges of spying for the U.S. On Wednesday, the Qalam news outlet reported that 35 dual nationals had been dismissed from managerial positions in state-run companies. American critics of the Diversity Visa program, begun in 1990, say it is an arbitrary way of choosing new immigrants. While applicants must have at least a high school education or its equivalent, or two years of experience in a semi-skilled profession, opponents of the lottery say it does not ensure that new arrivals are prepared to contribute to the U.S. They say Irans hostility to the U.S. also raises questions about whether it should be included in the program. Certainly, everything ought to be on the table when it comes to saying to the Iranians, Were not going to tolerate this behavior, said Ira Mehlman, spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which advocates reducing immigration across the board. In general we ought to look at people based on individual merit and give the proper amount of scrutiny to make sure they dont pose a danger and dont adhere to ideologies that threaten the safety of this country. You need to put everyone through a rigorous vetting process, which clearly we do not do. The State Department says the lottery helps broaden the U.S. immigrant pool. Guidelines discourage entrants from hiring consultants to help fill out the application, which is free to submit. But in Tehran, Internet cafes in many shopping malls tout their services at preparing applications and submitting them through the State Departments online system. Several of our clients have been winners of the green card, read a sign outside one downtown cafe. Ali, a clerk, said that about 10 people visited every day, paying the equivalent of about $10 for help submitting their lottery entry. We help them because they dont have good command of English or a high-speed Internet connection, said Ali, who did not give his last name for fear of running afoul of authorities. Affixed to the wall of the cafe was a newspaper clipping from September 2003, with a story quoting Irans central bank governor as saying the government would not allow the U.S. dollar to reach an exchange rate of 9,000 Iranian rials. The rials value has since plummeted to one-quarter that amount. The youth realize that in 10 years, what will be our economic situation? said Alis father, owner of the cafe, which also helps customers apply for European Union visas. Thirteen years ago this mirage was sold to us. So why should our young people believe President Rouhanis promises of improvement and economic growth? Many young Iranians appear to heed that message. Alireza Bromandi, a tall, broad-shouldered 20-year-old working at his fathers trading company, said he would enter the lottery once he obtains an exemption from mandatory military service, for which he is eligible as the sole son of his parents. Im trying to persuade my rich dad to cash out our capital and transfer it to America, Bromandi said. Then Ill be a businessman in the United States, the land of capitalism. Why should we waste our time here? Special correspondent Mostaghim reported from Tehran and staff writer Bengali from Mumbai, India. shashank.bengali@latimes.com Follow @SBengali on Twitter for more news from South Asia ALSO: Iran, one of the worlds top executioners, moves closer to relaxing the death penalty for drug crimes The worlds fastest animal is in a race for survival in Iran As drought grips Iran, farmers lament loss of a way of life A Philippine police van rammed into protesters, leaving several bloodied, as an anti-U.S. rally turned violent Wednesday at the American Embassy in Manila. At least three student activists had to be taken to a hospital after they were ran over by the van driven by a police officer, protest leader Renato Reyes said. Associated Press TV footage showed the van repeatedly ramming the protesters as it drove wildly back and forth after activists surrounded and started hitting the vehicle with wooden batons they seized from police. Advertisement In front of horrified crowds, including videojournalists and photographers, the van suddenly charged backward then sprinted forward twice over a space of about 60 feet, barreling through the scattered protesters and hurtling some to the side like bowling pins. A few got ran over but somehow managed to stand. Some screamed in surprise, others hurled stones at the van and yelled invectives. A speaker called the police puppies of imperialists on a loudspeaker. There was absolutely no justification for it, Reyes said of the violent police dispersal of about 1,000 protesters. Even as the president vowed an independent foreign policy, Philippine police forces still act as running dogs of the U.S. Police lobbed tear gas and arrested at least 23 protesters who broke through a line of riot police and hurled red paint at the officers and a U.S. government seal at the start of the rally at the seaside embassy compound. A firetruck doused the rowdy protesters with water to push them back, but they took hold of the water hose and confronted the outnumbered police with rocks and red paint. After breaking through the police corridor, they scribbled U.S. troops out now and other slogans at the embassys tall fence with red paint. The protesters, consisting of students, workers and tribespeople, were demanding an end to the presence of visiting U.S. troops in the Philippines and to support a call by President Rodrigo Duterte for a foreign policy not dependent on the U.S., the countrys longtime treaty ally. The activists came from the largest left-wing umbrella group called Bayan (Nation), which has organized regular anti-U.S. protests in front of the embassy for decades, most of which are peaceful. Duterte was on a state visit to China, where he is seeking to repair relations strained under his predecessor over territorial conflicts in the South China Sea. He is also seeking to expand two-way trade and investments and financing for badly needed infrastructure projects. Amid an uneasy relationship with the U.S., Duterte has tried to reach out to China and Russia, bringing uncertainty to his countrys long alliance with America. But the protesters also opposed the presidents effort to lean toward China. The Philippines will not be dictated on, whether by the U.S. or China, they said in a statement. The Philippine National Police did not comment immediately Wednesday. The violence happened as the police and Duterte are under increased international scrutiny for their alleged role in the killings of thousands of drug suspects and pushers as part of the presidents war on illegal drugs. ALSO Iraqi forces face Islamic State snipers, rockets and suicide bombers during Mosul offensive A federal judge who ruled on some of Mexicos highest profile criminal cases was gunned down in broad daylight The lives of girls and women held as Islamic State slaves may be at risk in the battle to free Mosul UPDATES: Oct. 19, 2 a.m.: This article was updated with information about the event at the scene and reaction from officials. This article was originally posted at 10:25 p.m. Oct. 18. They call her Phra Thep Princess Angel. The most popular of the late Thai kings children, Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn has built a reputation as a hardworking and down-to-earth royal. And although Thailands military rulers keep a tight lid on palace politics, many in the country had quietly hoped that she might one day succeed their beloved King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Those hopes appeared to have been dashed Tuesday when Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, the prime minister and junta leader, said Sirindhorns scandal-plagued older brother could ascend to the throne in as little as two weeks. Advertisement Prayuth surprised the nation last week when he announced that Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, 64, had asked for time to mourn before he became king. Just how long that might be was not spelled out, prompting speculation among some longtime observers about a behind-the-scenes power struggle. An official installs a new portrait of Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn at the Thai police headuarters in Bangkok on Oct. 14, 2016. (Borja Sanchez Trillo / Getty Images ) Citizens in Thailand and abroad should not be worried or concerned, Prayuth told reporters after a Cabinet meeting Tuesday. After at least 15 days of mourning, it will be the appropriate time to enact Section 23 of the constitution, he said, referring to clauses on the succession. Like her father in his younger years, the 61-year-old Sirindhorn is often spotted, notebook in hand and a camera around her neck, inspecting rural development projects. Vajiralongkorn, however, has shown little interest in the public duties expected of a monarch. A jet-setter once described by his mother as a little bit of a Don Juan, he has divorced three times and spends much of the year in the German countryside. Few dare to complain openly about the prince because of a strictly enforced law that makes it illegal to insult the royal family; offenders can face up to 15 years in jail. But the distaste and bemusement felt by many are evident in coded comments that frequently appear on social media. Thais were scandalized in 2007 when a leaked video showed Vajiralongkorns third wife, Princess Srirasmi Suwadee, appearing topless at a poolside birthday party. Also in attendance was the princes pet poodle, Foo Foo, who, according to a U.S. diplomatic cable obtained by WikiLeaks, was promoted to the rank of air chief marshal before his death last year. Although it was never clear who leaked the video, some speculated that it was spread by opponents of the prince in the hopes that his sister might ascend to the throne in his place. Such hopes were spelled out in another leaked cable that described a conversation between then-U.S. Ambassador Eric G. John and the late Air Chief Marshal Siddhi Savetsila in 2010. Siddhi stated that succession would be a difficult transition time for Thailand, the cable says. According to Palace Law, the Crown Prince would succeed his father, but added after a pause, almost hopefully: if the Crown Prince were to die, anything could happen, and maybe Prathep (Sirindhorn) could succeed. In recent months, the countrys military leaders have appeared keen to burnish the reputation of Vajiralongkorn. Prayuth joined the crown prince at a nationally televised mass cycle ride in honor of his mothers birthday over the summer. We know the crown prince has enemies among the Thai establishment, but thats the nature of politics everywhere, said Patrick Jory, who teaches Thai history at the University of Queensland in Australia. There are powerful forces in the military and the bureaucracy who have an interest in a smooth succession, Jory said. The evidence that we do have strongly suggests that the crown prince is in a strong position. In a sign of Sirindhorns importance, the princess will oversee Bhumibols funeral ceremony in a years time. She attended a meeting Monday at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization office in Bangkok, her first public appearance since her fathers death. She was named a special ambassador for zero hunger. Mourners pray and light candles in memory of Thailands late king outside the Grand Palace in Bangkok on Oct. 16, 2016. (Paula Bronstein / Getty Images ) Although a change in the Thai Constitution has made it possible for a woman to succeed to the throne, any attempt to get in the way of Vajiralongkorn could be seen as contradicting Bhumibols wishes a risky move for a junta that has promised to return power to civilians and hold elections in 2017. Bhumibol, who reigned for seven decades and was venerated as a near-deity, named Vajiralongkorn as heir apparent in 1972. Since the kings death Thursday at age 88, Thais have lined up by the hundreds of thousands to pay their respects at Bangkoks Grand Palace. I want to come here to give something for the father, said Nattapsorn Juijuyen, a volunteer who helped distribute food and water to the swelling crowd Monday. Thousands of Thais lined up outside banks overnight to pick up commemorative currency notes in honor of Bhumibol. Across Bangkok, shops are running out of black clothing as well as photographs and paintings of the late monarch. Books about him also are in short supply. We have nothing left, said a staff member at the Kinokuniya bookstore in one of the citys many glossy malls. We only have books about the other kings from the past. At a time of great uncertainty in the country, which is still reeling from a series of coups and political unrest, authorities and members of the public are on the watch for any dissent including against the future monarch. Videos of mobs surrounding people accused of anti-royal sentiments have been circling on social media since the weekend. In one clip, an elderly woman is attacked on a bus in Bangkok. How could you insult the royal father? a voice is heard saying. You shouldnt have been born. In another, a bloodied man is forced to apologize before an image of the late king, receiving a kick to the head for his troubles. In statements to the media Tuesday, Justice Minister Paiboon Koomchaya appeared to endorse such public retribution. There is no better way to punish these people than to socially sanction them, he said. The government will also be seeking the extradition of any Thai critics who live abroad, the minister said. Times staff writer Zavis reported from Los Angeles and special correspondent Roughneen from Bangkok. alexandra.zavis@latimes.com Twitter: @alexzavis MORE WORLD NEWS How a terrorist group set off a famine, affecting thousands of families Russias bombing pause in Aleppo may be an effort to dial down the tension with U.S. A federal judge who ruled on some of Mexicos highest profile criminal cases was gunned down in broad daylight The jogger trots down a narrow sidewalk, apparently oblivious to the slim man in black trailing a few yards behind. Early morning traffic passes as usual. Nothing seems amiss. As the jogger crosses a street, his pursuer accelerates and raises his right hand to the joggers head. The jogger collapses, coils into a fetal position, then rolls onto his back with arms and legs extended. Blood seeping from his head flows into the street. Advertisement A gun comes into view as the assailant turns and sprints away, startling a pedestrian and a cyclist. The video, captured by a security camera Monday in the upscale Mexico City exurb of Metepec and leaked to the media, has caused a sensation here. The victim was Vicente Antonio Bermudez Zacarias, a 37-year-old federal judge based in the state of Mexico, just outside Mexico City. Transported to the hospital, he was pronounced dead of a single gunshot to the head. Even in a country that has become synonymous with violence, the shooting of a federal judge in daylight is a stunning occurrence. The assault drew broad condemnation and official vows to find whoever was responsible. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said he had ordered the attorney general to investigate the very lamentable act. Authorities have offered no motive. The video would seem to suggest a professional hit by someone familiar with the judges routines. It was not clear whether Bermudez had received threats before his slaying. His extensive caseload included some of Mexicos highest profile criminal cases. He was involved in legal rulings regarding the 43 college students who disappeared in the state of Guerrero two years ago and are presumed to have been killed. They were last seen in the custody of local police. This month, the judge blocked a request from Gildardo Lopez, suspected of being a hit man for a Guerrero-based drug gang to be transferred from the high-security Altiplano prison outside Mexico City. Among the suspects Bermudez has jailed are an operative of the ultra-violent Zetas gang and a boss in the so-called Jalisco New Generation cartel, a leading drug trafficking organization. His judicial district issued an order last year stalling the extradition of Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, Mexicos most notorious trafficker, to the United States, where he faces charges of murder and other crimes. Mexican officials say they expect the extradition to occur by February. One of Guzmans lawyers, Jose Refugio Rodriguez, denounced as yellow journalism any effort to link his client to the judges assassination. I have heard that he was very honest, impeccable, and that he was widely respected, he told the Televisa network. There is no basis to see Joaquin Guzman behind this act. Whoever the killer, the assassination has quickly become a testament to what many Mexicans view as culture of impunity. The judiciary lives under a constant siege of criminal interests that look to twist institutional rulings through the classic method of filling the judge with money or lead, columnist Julio Hernandez Lopez wrote in the newspaper La Jornada. To a large extent, the mechanisms of judicial decision-making have been compromised by this mafioso threat that in no way has been confronted and exterminated. There has been some progress, but youth drug smuggling persists at the U.S.-Mexico border The day before the judge was killed, the Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico warned publicly that the country was in flames because of unchecked violence, with proliferating numbers of kidnappings, extortion threats and assaults on streets and in buses and trains. In certain zones of the country, violence is escalating and appears uncontainable, the church declared in its weekly newsletter From the Faith. At times the country feels at war with itself. Five Mexican soldiers were killed last month in an ambush on a military convoy in northern Mexico, suspected of being orchestrated by sons of Guzman. The church itself has suffered, with more than a dozen priests killed across the country in the last four years, including two last month in the state of Veracruz. In that case, police announced the arrest of a suspect this week. Veracruz has been an epicenter of violence, including the killings of journalists and others who were critical of the long-ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party. Disgust over the killings contributed to the partys defeat in June in the election for governor there. On Tuesday, the Mexican media reported that an arrest warrant for organized crime and illegal enrichment had been issued against Javier Duarte, who stepped down from the governorship last week with six weeks remaining in his term amid widespread allegations that he was corrupt and implicated in violence. Human rights groups say that during Duartes six years in office hundreds of people disappeared and were killed in Veracruz, where rival cartels battle it out for access to lucrative drug- and people-smuggling routes to the United States. Many victims remain missing. In a recent case, four university students went missing Sept. 29 and their mutilated corpses were found several days later. As is often the case, it remains unclear why they were targeted. Cecilia Sanchez in The Times Mexico City bureau contributed to this report. ALSO Russias bombing pause in Aleppo may be an effort to dial down the tension with U.S. Baseball was nearly dead in Taiwan after a major cheating scandal. Heres how it made a comeback Iraqi forces face Islamic State snipers, rockets and suicide bombers during Mosul offensive Iraqi army Col. Omar Adl Ali and his men, after fierce fighting against Islamic State extremists, listened as their two-way radios buzzed with reports on the government offensive to retake Mosul. Ali and about 280 soldiers from the 9th Division had fought in the Hamdaniya area southeast of the city, facing off against Islamic State snipers, rocket attacks and suicide bombers as they recaptured villages. They rested at a makeshift command post in an abandoned cinder-block house. We encircled the city and now there are some clashes, Ali said Tuesday at the command post in Gwer. Islamic State fighters are resisting. Advertisement Its not clear how much that resistance will slow the offensive to retake the Islamic State stronghold of Mosul. Islamic State fighters conquered the city two years ago like an army, staging organized attacks and commandeering military vehicles. But advancing Iraqi troops face an enemy that has morphed into more of a terrorist network, hiding in tunnels and among civilians, broadcasting misinformation to wage a tricky urban war. The Iraqi battle for Mosul is being waged from the east and south by troops including 18,000 Iraqi security forces and 10,000 Kurdish fighters, according to U.S. officials. The Iraqis are pushing north along Highway 1 from Qayyarah, an Iraqi air base about 40 miles south of Mosul. In the east, the Kurdish fighters, known as peshmerga, captured a string of villages around Hamdaniya, which is also known as Bakhdida and Qaraqosh, and held them as Iraqi forces moved up. More than 100 U.S. special operations personnel are advising Iraqi and Kurdish commanders near the front lines and helping to direct airstrikes. Its an ugly fight but we have seen very good progress, Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters in Washington. U.S. officials fear that Islamic State could employ crudely designed chemical weapons, namely munitions packed with sulfur mustard agent, against Iraqi forces. Davis said Kurdish and Iraqi forces, which long have squabbled over territory and oil profits, are cooperating in the assault, which began Monday. The Kurdish fighters have captured Kurdish-dominated towns, but have agreed to allow Iraqi security forces to ultimately take the lead into Mosul, a largely Sunni Muslim city. The Iraqi battle plan aims to overwhelm the estimated 3,000 to 5,000 Islamic State fighters in Mosul, making them defend a 12-square-mile city at various points from much larger advancing ground forces supported by U.S. air power and artillery. The city is believed to have about 1 million people. The Iraqis have left the territory west of Mosul open, where civilians and deserters are expected to flee. Few people have left the city so far, however, officials said. Iraqi and coalition aircraft have dropped leaflets telling civilians to stay in their homes in Mosul both for safety and in hopes of preventing a massive outflow of refugees. The outnumbered militants are not expected to defend every neighborhood as the Iraqis advance. Coalition warplanes carried out four airstrikes Monday near Mosul against Islamic State buildings, vehicles and bomb-making facilities. Two other airstrikes hit targets near Qayyarah, the Iraqi air base that U.S. forces are using as a logistics hub to push weapons and supplies to the front lines. Clashes continued late Tuesday near Gwer in the village of Kani Harami, where Alis troops have been fighting. The Kurdish television station Rudaw reported that the village had been recaptured by Islamic State on Tuesday. Iraqi officials disputed that account. We took the village, then Islamic State attacked us and they took it back. So we attacked them again and we held the city. Its under our control, Army Capt. Zuhar Habib said late Tuesday. Islamic State released statements on social media reporting that its fighters attacked Iraqi forces southeast of Mosul with car bombs, recapturing the villages of Kabibah, Adleh and Ibrahim Khalil. But Ali Dalagi, a spokesman for the Iraqi government, said late Tuesday that he had returned from the area an hour earlier and everything is fine there. Rest assured, all the areas near Gwer remain liberated, he said. Ahead of their advance, the Iraqi army dropped leaflets instructing civilians to put tape over their windows in the shape of an X to keep them from shattering, disconnect gas pipes, hide valuables, stay on low floors and tell children that any loud booms are thunder, Habib said. The leaflets also encouraged young men, once the army arrived, to join the fight against Islamic State. He said civilians have heeded the armys advice, distributed on leaflets, social media and television, to stay inside as troops advanced. As they rolled into town, troops saw another encouraging sign: scores of makeshift white flags, which civilians had been instructed to post. But Iraqi troops also faced repeated attacks from Islamic State. Ali pointed to a Humvee with a shattered window. Two of his soldiers were killed in a rocket attack by Islamic State, and about eight were wounded. Habib, an intelligence officer, said they were receiving reports from Mosul residents that when Islamic State fighters spot warplanes, they are going house to house, hiding among civilians to avoid airstrikes. He said Islamic State used mosques and cars to broadcast its intention to abandon the city but it was a trap. They were trying to see who was supporting the [Iraqi] army, Habib said as he stood outside Alis command post. They know there are people working with the army. He said commanders were not fooled by the misinformation campaign: We know when Islamic State withdraws from a place, they do it secretly. Sitting on a fortified hilltop amid several dozen peshmerga, Gwer Cmdr. Jamal Murtka pointed amid the sandbags to windows shattered by Islamic State bullets two years ago when the area was besieged. Extremists also shot up peshmerga trucks, he said. Now, equipped with better armored vehicles and coalition backing, We have pushed Islamic State back from the whole Kurdistan border, Murtka said. Ali also credited coalition airstrikes with aiding the armys advances. He listened for the buzz of U.S. drones, pointing up at the clouds. When two loud booms sounded, he pointed about nine miles away across the wide plain where sheep grazed to twin brown clouds looming on the horizon near metal towers and a cluster of houses. Airstrikes, he said, smiling. Thats a very good feeling. But then the radio at his hip crackled with bad news: Iraqi troops some miles away on the front lines had entered a house booby-trapped by Islamic State. Had they been killed? The radio crackled again, this time with what passes for good news: It was not a booby-trapped house, but rather another Islamic State suicide bomber detonating explosives. Iraqi troops were unscathed. The colonel looked at the captain, relieved. Moments later they would receive orders to advance another three miles toward Mosul. We are moving forward step by step, Habib said. Ali responded: Until we get to our target. Special correspondents Nabih Bulos and Wael Rasoul in Irbil, Iraq, and Times staff writer W.J. Hennigan in Washington contributed to this report. molly.hennessy-fiske@latimes.com @mollyhf ALSO Israel cries foul over UNESCO resolution on Jerusalems religious sites Thailand grieves for its late king and wonders when its crown prince will take the throne Baseball was nearly dead in Taiwan after a major cheating scandal. Heres how it made a comeback Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Farhad Daneshvar Trend: Iran and Azerbaijan are planning to cooperate in exporting jointly produced commodities to third countries, Governor general of Ardabil Province Majid Khodabaksh told reporters in Baku, Oct.19. During a press conference, he said that for example Ardabil can export potato to Azerbaijan and a joint venture can convert it into chips for exporting to a third country, like Russia. Ardabil and Azerbaijan have common borders with two checkpoints and customs. Pointing upon the common cooperation areas between Ardabil Province and Azerbaijan Republic and also friendly ties between the two countries, he said that the sides want to increase the investments between the two countries. Khodabakhsh also mentioned the existing capabilities in Ardabil and proposed exporting power from Ardabil to Azerbaijan. There are many firms in Ardabil who can import materials from Azerbaijan including wood products, he said. Congratulating Azerbaijan on the dependence Day, he added that Iran has always expressed support for territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. Chinese capital will contribute $15bn to the fund, while up to $5bn will come from Brazil All material is subject to strictly enforced copyright terms & conditions and cannot be repurposed or reproduced. 19882022 Latin American Financial Publications Inc. Apologies for the silence here during the past week. Ive just returned from an amazing nine days visiting the beautiful country of Cuba, where I had no phone or internet. Im back now and hope to get this blogs engines restarted right away. And if you sent me an email recently, I hope eventually to get to it, as I dig out from a backlog of several thousand new messages. As for Cuba, I hope to write more about my visit, maybe here, maybe elsewhere. Id originally hoped to meet with lawyers there, but that never happened. But I can tell you right off that the Cuban people are the warmest and most gracious people Ive ever encountered. If you are contemplating visiting there, do it sooner rather than later, because warming relations between Cuba and the U.S. will inevitably change the character of this charming country. Tehran, Iran, October 19 By Mehdi Sepahvand - Trend: The 10th tourism train to Iran is expected to arrive in the country in two days. Having on board tourists from America, Europe, and East Asia, the train will arrive on October 21 and leave nine days later, Mehr news agency reported October 19. The train will stop at cities in the northern cities by the Caspian Sea as well as in Mashhad, Kerman, Yazd, Isfahan, and Shiraz. More such trains are expected to make trips to Iran in the comings months following agreements between Iranian and foreign organizations. Tehran, Iran, Oct. 19 By Mehdi Sepahvand Trend: The Iranian Embassy in Ankara has advised Iranian nationals to cancel their unnecessary trips to Turkey. The warning comes in the wake of an announcement by the National Intelligence Organization of Turkey expressing suspicion that terrorist acts have been plotted in the country, ISNA news agency reported Oct. 19. The embassy has also advised Iranians in Turkey to avoid crowded places. This is the second time this month that Tehran has made such an announcement. On Oct. 3 the Iranian Embassy in Turkey in an announcement said, Iranians who plan to visit Turkey are required to keep from going to busy, insecure places. With regard to incidents that have happened to our fellow nationals, Iranians in Turkey are required to heed the warnings of Islamic Republic of Irans Consulate in Turkey and those of other organizations in the host country, the message read. A suicide bomb attack in a busy tourist area in central Istanbul on March 19 claimed three lives and wounded 39. Most of the casualties of the Istanbul attack were foreigners. Two of the three slain were Israeli citizens and one Iranian national. Three Iranians and 10 Israeli citizens were also wounded. In a similar incident about a week earlier on March 13, a car bomb exploded in the Turkish capital Ankara, killing 32 people and wounding more than 100. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Fatih Karimov Trend: Iran has successfully tested 2,000-pound laser-guided bombs on the last day of the air force military drills. Iranian F-7 fighters targeted preset mock targets with optimized bombs in this stage of the drill, Brigadier General Masoud Rouzkhosh, the spokesman for the drills said, IRINN TV reported Oct. 19. Rouzkhosh said the F-4 fighters used home-made air-to-surface Nasr missiles and Qased bombs to destroy the preset targets during the drills. Iranian armys air force launched three-day war games on Oct. 17 aimed at demonstrating the capabilities of the air force in safeguarding the Islamic Republics airspace. The large-scale drills took place in the central province of Esfahan. In addition to the interceptor aircraft and fighter bombers of the Iranian air force, transport planes, reconnaissance aircraft, refueling planes and different types of drones took part in the massive drills. In recent years, Iran has made major breakthroughs in its defense sector and attained self-sufficiency in the production of important military equipment and systems. The country has also conducted major military drills to enhance the defense capabilities of its armed forces and to test modern military tactics and state-of-the-art equipment. The Islamic Republic maintains that its military might poses no threat to other countries, stating that its defense doctrine is merely based on deterrence. A New Jersey man is accused of assaulting a 2-year-old while babysitting the boy last month in Bethlehem. On Sept. 22, the boy was brought to Lehigh Valley Hospital for treatment of severe bruising to his right eye, Bethlehem police said. The toddler was admitted to the children's hospital for two days for broken blood vessels in the eye, police said. Tyler Mckie, 44, of Newark, was watching the boy at the time, and gave officers several different versions of what caused the injury, according to police. Mckie reportedly claimed other family members injured the boy, and that "people are breaking into homes (and) assaulting children on the South Side of Bethlehem." Officers interviewed Mckie again on Tuesday and he told them that on Sept. 21 a dog was licking the victim's face, and Mckie struck the dog and "probably" struck the child, police said. Mckie reported that 15 minutes after the hit, he saw the injury to the 2-year-old's eye. Mckie was the only person watching the child at the time, police said. Mckie gave police a written statement apologizing about not coming forward and telling the truth, and that "it all happened so fast," police said. Mckie was charged with simple assault of a child under the age of 12, child endangerment and reckless endangerment. He was sent to Northampton County Prison in lieu of $50,000 bail. Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. A Forks Township man who administered a fatal dose of methamphetamine was sent to state prison Tuesday. Jason Laduca, 27, was sentenced to four and a half to nine years by Northampton County Judge Paula Roscioli. Laduca injected meth into 27-year-old Rachel Dannucci, of Bethlehem Township, at The View Inn & Suites hotel in the township. She died two days later on Nov. 7. Laduca pleaded guilty to possession of drugs with intent to deliver and no contest to involuntary manslaughter. By pleading no contest, Laduca did not admit that he killed Dannucci but admitted prosecutors have enough evidence to prove that he did. The plea is treated the same as a guilty plea for sentencing purposes. Another woman doing drugs with the pair that day, Lauren Miller, testified in March that Dannucci had never tried meth and was curious. Dannucci was already high on heroin when she took the meth, according to Miller. "She started to get bad very quickly," Miller testified in March. "Her legs were giving out. She kept saying, 'Something's wrong,' over and over." A police sergeant unsuccessfully attempted to revive Dannucci. Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook. Not a single one of the Bethlehem Police Department's squad cars have working dashboard cameras. In today's digital world, where police incidents routinely show up on the news, Bethlehem needs to get with the times, Chief Mark DiLuzio said. DiLuzio wants to outfit the department's fleet of squad cars with dashboard cameras and equip his officers with body cameras. Evesham Chief of Police Christopher Chew demonstrates a Body Worn Camera System to be worn by every patrol officer in the department, Friday, July 18, 2014. He's included the request in the city's 2017-2021 capital improvement plan, which city council reviewed for the first time Tuesday night. "I think it's time for them to protect citizens and to protect cops," DiLuzio said. Cameras can show exactly what transpired when there's a complaint against police or when someone is charged criminally, he said. Nationally, there's been a movement for police departments to add or require body cameras in the wake of fatal officer-involved shootings and questionable police actions recorded by bystanders. When there is a video of an unlawful use-of-force complaint, U.S. Department of Justice statistics show the cameras help prove that the majority of complaints are unfounded, DiLuzio said. Not having the cameras opens the city up to liability issues, he said. Bethlehem has had only three police officer-involved shootings in recent years, the chief noted. All police officers are being judged by the actions of a few -- and cameras can help clear that up, DiLuzio said. "There is so much false information in the media about what police do," he said. The Allentown Police Department outfitted its officers with body cameras last year through a Department of Justice grant. Lehigh University, Bethlehem Township and South Whitehall Township police all have body cams. The city's non-utility capital plan calls for spending $220,000 over five years to install dash cameras into 34 police vehicles and spending $150,000 over five years on body cameras. The city is proposing seeking whatever grants it can and relying on borrowing for the rest. Councilman Shawn Martell commended DiLuzio for bringing the proposal forward, but agreed it is unfortunate this is today's reality. "It is difficult to put a price tag on something that may be able to exonerate an unjustly criticized officer or a citizen in an unfortunate situation," Martell said. DiLuzio acknowledged that both projects are costly undertakings. The squad car dash cameras would be his first priority, so the department is on par with others in Pennsylvania. Back in 2007, about three-quarters of city police vehicles had working dashboard cameras. Two years ago, six to nine of them worked and none do today after a server stopped working, DiLuzio said. Diluzio wants to equip 125 of his 155 officers with body cameras eventually. He plans to start out with a pilot program of at least six months, so the department can test out several different cameras. The city's police union has not been asked whether it supports body cameras, DiLuzio said. The chief noted the National Fraternal Order of Police has backed them. Council supports the idea of body and video cameras, but seemed wary of the associated costs. Councilman Michael Colon asked about the life expectancy of the cameras. Councilman Eric Evans expressed concern about borrowing money to buy technology that could be outdated before the bonds were paid off. Body cameras, dash cameras and civilian videos appear on television regularly following police shootings, DiLuzio noted. But city police rarely use deadly force. City police shot a man in 2010 after he stabbed his domestic partner, who he was holding hostage along with their kids. In 2007, Christopher Eric Johnson, 21, was killed by police on Catasauqua Road after he shot Bethlehem police Officer Stephen Marks twice in the legs. Johnson robbed two teens in the woods along Route 378 and shot one of them before he encountered police. In 1997, city police shot 21-year-old John Hirko Jr. 11 times in a raid, killing him. Following an almost six-month civil trial, the city agreed to pay Hirko's family, fiancee and landlord almost $8 million. It led to police department reforms and accreditation. Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. Bethlehem Area School District enrollment is up for the first time in a decade, and the district seems to have stemmed the flow of students to charter schools. Michael E. Faccinetto, president of the Bethlehem Area School Board. (Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com) Superintendent Joseph Roy noted it is only 102 students, not a huge number for a district enrolling almost 14,000, but it is a good trend. Bethlehem is entering its second year of full-day kindergarten and the district saw kindergarten enrollment rise over 900 for the first time since 2012. Overall, 51 more students are enrolled in charter schools this year. But Bethlehem's effort to start its own cyber academy seems to have paid off because 45 fewer students are enrolled in cyber charter schools and many signed up with the district, Roy said. "We'll see how those trends play out," Roy said. Almost 2,000 district students are enrolled in state cyber and charter schools this year. The majority, about 1,011, are attending Lehigh Valley Regional Academy Charter School in Hanover Township. The school's charter is currently up for renewal. Monday night the school board looked at how many students are leaving each district school and where they are going. Board President Michael Faccinetto said he knows it's unpopular to say this but the chart shows "the people that are afraid of poverty and running" to schools that end their name with academy. Three of the district's poorest schools -- Donegan, Fountain Hill and Lincoln elementaries -- have the biggest exodus of students to charters. Ironically, those schools have dynamite principals, active parent groups and innovative programs, Faccinetto said. But some families are unwilling to give them a chance, Faccinetto said. Director Tom Thomasik suggested the district survey Lehigh Valley Academy parents to see why they're choosing the school over Bethlehem schools. Roy noted that some parents fear poverty but parents select charters for myriad reasons. Some like the longer school day or the bus transportation, which for some families helps them avoid paying for child care. From speaking to the district's Latino community he's learned uniforms attract some families because all Puerto Rican schools require uniforms. Families that relocate from New York City expect to compete in charter school lotteries, so some are blown away that they can just enroll in a charter academy, Roy said. "We continue to do what we do best and grow those things," Roy said. The district has struggled with losing students to charter and cyber schools in recent years. It has meant millions of dollars flowing out of the district and into the independently operated public school coffers. Bethlehem projects spending $26 million on charters this school year. The district tends to lose students before they even step foot in a district building, Roy said, noting most enroll elsewhere for kindergarten. The lure for charters used to be full-day K when the district didn't offer it. "We're not losing many kids at all once they're in our system," Roy said. Director Shannon L. Patrick suggested that the district have building principals reach out to families enrolled in charter schools midway through the school year to see how things are going. Some schools sell a bill of goods to families and use fear-mongering to their advantage, she said. Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. Ninety-four percent of Marvine Elementary School students in Bethlehem are poor and 79 percent of its third-graders don't read on grade level. Marvine Elementary School celebrated its new community school status Wednesday. (Sara K. Satullo | For lehighvalleylive.com) Reading on grade level by third grade is one of the greatest indicators of a student's future academic success, including whether they'll graduate high school or go on to college. So, Marvine Elementary School is the perfect choice to become the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley's newest community school. The community school model strives to turn schools into neighborhood hubs that connect parents and students with resources. The United Way acts as the intermediary, pairing schools with a lead and corporate partner. "We will have resources and opportunities you have never had in this community before," Marvine Principal Karen Gomez told parents and students Wednesday afternoon. "... Our mission is truly 100 percent of our students experiencing ongoing academic progress." United Way plans to double the number of community schools in the region in the next few years as part of its goal of increasing the number of third-graders reading on grade level by 50 percent. "What we want is for you to be able to read your favorite book by yourself," said Marci Ronald, executive vice president of the United Way Greater Lehigh Valley. Marvine is the Bethlehem Area School District's sixth community school and the region's 15th. "We cannot do this alone here at Marvine," Gomez said. Just Born Quality Confections is expanding its reach from Broughal Middle School, where its been the corporate partner for six years, to Marvine as well, which is located blocks from its Stefko Boulevard facility. Just Born will support the school through funding, in-kind donations, employee volunteers and leadership. "Your community cares about you," Ronald said. "We care about your kids." St. Luke's University Health Network has stepped up as the coordinating partner and will connect students and families with physical and behavioral health services. "They are investing people, money and time into Marvine to provide programs and opportunities for students," district Superintendent Joseph Roy said of both entities. His district's students, who come from a wide-range of experiences, don't always have equal access to opportunities, Roy said. But still the district strives to give each child what they need to success. "We want to be able to tear down the obstacles that they have," Roy said. St. Luke's and Just Born both want to help the community where they live. A stronger educated community benefits St. Luke's because these students are tomorrow's doctors, nurses and paramedics, said Carol Kuplen, president of the health network's Fountain Hill campus. Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. A Berks County man wanted for a parole violation was arrested Wednesday in Easton, city police announced. Claudie Robinson, 37, of Wernersville, Pennsylvania, also faces a new charge of drug possession after being found with a single dose of the opioid painkiller oxycodone, police said in a news release. Easton detectives set up surveillance in the city's West Ward in an attempt to locate Robinson and arrest him on a warrant for the parole violation, the release states. He was observed walking about 11:30 a.m. in the 100 block of South 11th Street, where patrol officers detained him and confirmed the warrant with Pennsylvania State Police. A subsequent search turned up the painkiller, police said. He was arraigned before District Judge Richard Yetter III on a misdemeanor count of drug possession and sent to Northampton County Prison in lieu of $2,500, in addition to the parole-violation warrant. Robinson was sentenced to up to eight years in prison in May 2010 after pleading guilty to four counts, from four separate cases in Luzerne County, of drug possession with intent to deliver, according to court records. He was sentenced in July 2013 to another year to two years after pleading guilty to escape, also in Luzerne County, records say. The nature of the parole violation was not immediately available Wednesday afternoon. Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. An Allentown man is accused of attacking his ex-girlfriend in a vehicle after she left work in Palmer Township. Emmanuel Gonzalez-Santiago, 28, of the 800 block of North Howard Street, at 10:07 p.m. Tuesday arrived at the workplace of his ex-girlfriend at XPO Logistics, 1520 Van Buren Road, police said. A security employee notified the victim Gonzalez-Santiago was at the workplace because the couple's son had a cut on his face and was going to the hospital, court records indicate. It's unclear if the child was actually injured. Police said Gonzalez-Santiago then got into the victim's vehicle. A short while later, he accused the victim of cheating and began punching her while she was behind the wheel, police said. Gonzalez-Santiago ordered the victim to drive home while he continuously punched her in the face until her nose and inside of her mouth began bleeding, police said. Gonzalez-Santiago also is accused of choking the victim as she drove, as well as breaking a cellphone, valued at $120. The victim was taken to the hospital for treatment of injuries. Gonzalez-Santiago is charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, reckless endangerment, criminal mischief, harassment and unlawful restraint. He was arraigned before District Judge Robert Hawke, who set bail at $20,000. In lieu of bail, Gonzalez-Santiago was taken to Northampton County Prison. Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 Trend: US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter will visit Turkeys Ankara October 21, Anadolu Agency reported Oct. 19. Carter will meet with Turkish leadership to discuss the Syrian crisis and the situation in Iraq. After his visit to Ankara, Carter will visit the UAE, France and Belgium. On October 25, the US secretary of defense will take part in the Paris talks between the defense ministers of member countries of the coalition against the Islamic State (IS, aka ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) terrorist group. Carter will arrive in Brussels October 26, where he will take part in the NATO defense ministers council meeting. UPDATE: Passenger identified in double-fatal motorcycle crash Two people on a motorcycle were killed in a crash Wednesday afternoon in Monroe County, the coroner there said. It occurred at 12:16 p.m. in the 600 block of Toll Road in Chestnuthill Township, in the Effort area, said Pennsylvania State Police at Fern Ridge. Identified by police as 22-year-old Daniel G. Weir, of Effort, the rider crested a hill and came upon traffic stopped for a school bus discharging students, county Coroner Bob Allen said. Weir hit the brakes on the 2015 Harley-Davidson he was riding but lost control and struck the driver's side rear of a 1997 Chevrolet Blazer stopped behind the school bus. Neither Weir nor his female passenger was wearing a helmet, Allen said. The coroner pronounced Weir dead at the scene, and the female was taken to Pocono Medical Center in East Stroudsburg, where she was pronounced dead shortly after arrival, authorities said. Authorities were not immediately identifying the female victim, her age or her hometown, pending notification of next of kin. Both died of injuries suffered in the crash, police said. Autopsies are scheduled Thursday at Lehigh Valley Hospital, Salisbury Township, according to Allen. The crash occurred on northbound Toll Road, and the bus was stopped headed south. The driver of the Blazer, 17-year-old Michael Buccieri, also of Effort, was obeying the law by stopping for the bus, police said; he was uninjured. Police said the crash was caused by speeding. Toll Road reopened shortly before 3:20 p.m., and no one else was reported injured. West End Ambulance and the West End Fire Department assisted at the scene, police said. Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. pedals.jpg Pedals, a bear who became something of a celebrity for his habit of walking upright, is believed to have been killed in the most recent bear hunt in New Jersey. (nj.com file photo) By Jeff Tittel The killing of a bear named Pedals has brought New Jersey's bear hunt into the spotlight. This was a tame and injured bear who was never a threat to anyone and even had members of the community monitoring his condition. Despite people looking out for the bear for three years, someone wanted him for a prize so he was shot and killed. This murder clearly shows why this hunt is a trophy hunt and has nothing to do with management. Jeff Tittel. The New Jersey Sierra Club believes the hunt is a poor excuse for an actual bear management plan because it does not deal with protection of habitats, garbage or educating people in bear country. The fall bear hunt ended Saturday with 562 bears killed. We are concerned the number of bears killed is greater when you add the numbers from poaching, cars and euthanizing. This is the second highest harvest since 2010 and may even double after the winter hunt. Since 2010, 2,943 bears have been killed, but when the hunt began there were about 3,500 bears. We are very concerned that there may not be any more bears left after this hunt. This hunt has expanded it to two hunts and included bow hunting for the first time this year. The last time we permitted bow and arrow hunting was in the 1960s and 70s, but then we had only 50 bears. It is shameful that they have used tactics that will actually allow more bears to be hunted. This hunt even took many cubs and sows and played games with the tagging system. It is clear this hunt is doubling down on a management plan that hasn't worked and must be stopped. Aggressive bear encounters have been increasing, despite six years of hunts. Most bears avoid people, but bears that have been feed or exposed to food from humans then see people as a source of food and become aggressive. We are urging the Legislature to support Pedal's Law, S2702, which would prohibit hunting and establishes non-lethal control program for black bear for five years. It would also prohibit feeding bears and require use of bear-resistant containers, dumpsters, and food boxes in bear habitat. Unless we actually deal with things like the protection of habitats, garbage, and educating people in bear country, we won't see any reduction in human-bear incidents. New Jersey used to spend more than $2 million a year on bear management education. That money has been reduced by 90 percent. Ten years ago New Jersey had bear wardens whose jobs were to manage bears and educate the public. The officers used nonlethal tactics like bear aversion therapy to make bears afraid of people by using pepper spray and air horns. That program has been eliminated. Now only conservation officers do that work and there are 40 percent fewer of them compared to 10 years ago. The Christie administration decided it was cheaper and easier to have a hunt rather than an effective management plan. We need to implement an effective bear management plan that focuses on education. More than half a million New Jersey residents live in bear country, but many do not have the education to understand bears and avoid confrontations with them. The biggest problem we have with nuisance bears is when they see people and homes as a source of food. Without a concerted effort to codify and enforce requirements on garbage, other bear policies will fail. The state needs to mandate bear-proof containers and locking dumpsters in bear country and ban the practice of leaving garbage out overnight. Protecting our habitat is another important step towards managing our bear population. Each year, New Jersey loses 8,000 to 10,000 acres of land in bear country. Instead of fixing the failed plan, the Christie administration has vastly expanded the hunt to new areas of the state, and we are having two hunts instead of one. Christie promised the hunting lobby that if they endorsed him, he would increase the bear hunt. This hunt is all part of the same political strategy to get rid of bears, forests, clean air, and clean water, to protect his supporters. Unfortunately, the only sure fire way to stop a bear hunt is to change administrations. We need to stop the December hunt. Without a real education plan, this hunt just expands a policy that hasn't worked. We're still seeing nuisance bear problems while innocent bears are indiscreetly targeted, including sows and cubs. This hunt was supposed to be sustainable, keeping the same number of bears. Instead the number of bears is dropping. This is not a sustainable hunt; it is a trophy hunt. We need a real bear management plan instead because this hunt is unbearable. Jeff Tittel is the director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. Route 57 and Railroad Avenue in Washington, NJ Looking eastbound, Railroad Avenue branches off to the right of Route 57 in Washington. Norfolk Southern Corp., which has a track that crosses Railroad Avenue, is proposing the road's closure to through-traffic. (Google Maps) A plan to close a railroad crossing on a half-mile road in Warren County is on the wrong track, say local leaders concerned about public safety. To stop through-traffic on Railroad Avenue in Washington -- as proposed by Norfolk Southern Corp. -- would hinder emergency responders and reroute school buses, according to police, fire and school officials in the borough and surrounding township. The company, however, says its goal is to improve safety. Railroad Avenue runs between Route 57 and Washburn Avenue, crossed by tracks running to and from a nearby rail yard. Less than 500 vehicles used the crossing in each of three 12-hour periods studied in May, according to a letter to residents from the New Jersey Department of Transportation. Norfolk Southern has asked that the state close the crossing, effectively making the road a dead end to vehicular traffic. The request is still under DOT review. The DOT in August sent surveys to some residents regarding the potential road closure. In its letter, the department notes that the road's closure means train horns would no longer sound there, and that routes around the closed crossing would not increase by more than a half mile. Norfolk Southern spokesman Dave Pidgeon said railroads are under pressure from regulators to close crossings where possible to reduce the risk of accidents. Though he could not immediately speak to the specifics of the Railroad Avenue proposal, Pidgeon said similar plans are in motion elsewhere. "Safety is our top concern," he said, later adding: "The safest crossing is a closed crossing." However, police and fire officials say the road provides a critical connection during emergencies. In correspondence with the borough's acting manager, both Washington Township police Chief Thomas Cicerelle and fire Chief Joe Fox said they oppose closing Railroad Avenue's crossing. Manager Jasmine Lim included the opinions in the agenda for Borough Council's meeting Tuesday. "This road is our shortest and fastest emergency route to the southeastern section of Washington Township and the village of Changewater," Cicerelle said in a letter to Lim. "The proposed detours would delay our response as well as force emergency response vehicles to drive through more populated residential areas." The fire chief said that any emergency at the rail yard would require the use of all hydrants in the area -- one of which is south of the crossing -- to keep material stored at the yard cool. Closing the crossing would cut off access, he said. "This closing would also hinder the evacuation of residents in the area in the event of an emergency in the rail yard or at the BASF facility," Fox said. Warren Hills School District Transportation Coordinator Peggy Edmiston, in an email to the borough manager, said two bus stops would be affected by the Railroad Avenue closure and would lengthen some bus routes. To adjust, one bus would have to arrive at school before 7 a.m., meaning students may be unattended until staff arrives, she wrote. According to the agenda, council was to discuss the road closing at Tuesday's meeting. Lim, the acting manager, in a letter to council dated Oct. 11 said they have two options: conduct an independent survey of residents, or take a stand. "I recommend that the borough strongly oppose the proposed closing of the railroad (crossing) on Railroad Avenue," she wrote, "on the basis of public safety and inconvenience to the borough residents and other travelers." Pidgeon, with Norfolk Southern, said the company wants to hear about the concerns from public safety leaders and residents. Anyone with questions about the proposal can contact him at 717-541-2247 or david.pidgeon@nscorp.com. Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Orkhan Quluzade Trend: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) recognized the movement of Fethullah Gulen as a terrorist organization, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Oct. 19, Anadolu Agency reported. Previously, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) recognized the movement of Fethullah Gulen as a terrorist organization. Turkey listed the Gulen movement as a terrorist group in 2015. Earlier, the Turkish Ministry of Justice officially requested the US to arrest Fethullah Gulen. In addition, the Turkish authorities sent two requests to the US for Gulens extradition. Prior to that, the Istanbul Court released an order to arrest Gulen. On July 15 evening, Turkish authorities said a military coup attempt took place in the country. Meanwhile, a group of servicemen announced about transition of power to them. However, the rebelling servicemen started to surrender July 16 and Turkish authorities said the coup attempt failed. Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had said the death toll as a result of the military coup attempt stood at 246 people, excluding the coup plotters, and over 2,000 people were wounded. He also declared a three-month state of emergency in Turkey on July 20. The state of emergency was prolonged for 90 more days on Oct. 3. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @o_quluzade Bog standard stops was the name suggested by Cllr Sean Power (FF) for two new proposed bus shelters for rural Kildare. Speaking at this mornings Kildare Newbridge Municipal District meeting, he made the joke after councillors questioned officials about the design of the shelters and if they would have a cover and seating. Officials said the recommendation for the stops had come from a council policy sub committee and the shelters would be funded from the Local Property Tax (LPT) pot. The council wrote to Local Link, who suggested a stop be located at Hacketts old shop in Rathangan and the other in Kilmeague. Cllr Murty Aspell (FF) said he knew of businesses in Newbridge who would be interested in covering the cost of bus shelters and perhaps enterprises in other areas would also be willing to do so. Officials said the aim was to provide shelters for rural areas as the National Transport Authority (NTA) only provides part funding for shelters in urban areas. Cllr Mark Lynch (SF) said that while the locations mentioned were worthwhile, he would be of the opinion that the location should be based on the number of people using them and not on whether they were in a rural or urban area. Cllr Joanne Pender (Ind) asked if the council was in charge of the design and would the shelter be enclosed and have a seat. Officials said they were looking at a project in County Laois where they installed basic bus shelters at a reasonable cost. Cllr Suzanne Doyle (FF) asked how much they cost and should the NTA not part fund them. By spending money from the LPT, are we not letting the NTA off the hook, she asked. She said Kilmeague and Rathangan were not rural areas but were in fact towns. Cllr Doyle said she believed the shelters should be located in rural areas outside towns where people have no other recourse to transport such as the Curragh. There is not an ounce of shelter in the Curragh, they are standing in the puddles and the muck and not a shop in sight, she said. Rathangan resident, Cllr Mark Stafford (FG) said he supported the two suggested locations. He said small towns were considered rural areas. Officials said the bus stops could be built for around 6,000 or 7,000. They said they would find out more about the design from their Laos counterparts and get back to the councillors. Have you names for them already, joked Cllr Power, bog standard stops. On the surface of it, you couldnt be blamed for feeling pretty grim about the results of the recent local elections which took place on 2 October in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In both semi-autonomous regions, the biggest winners were the large, ethno-nationalist parties who managed to maintain and entrench their positions as the major political force in their region. Perhaps most symbolically of all, the city of Srebrenica, where the infamous genocide of over 8,000 Muslim Bosniaks by the Bosnian Serb Army of Republika Srpska took place in 1995, has elected its first Serb mayor since the end of that conflict, triggering alarm amongst the Bosniak population and a resurgence in public expressions of Serbian nationalism. Bosnians were voting for mayors and municipal councils in Bosnias two semi-autonomous regions the Serb-dominated Republika Srpska and the Bosniak-Croat Federation. These regions have their own governments, presidents and parliaments, although they remained linked by shared federal institutions. The regions were empowered to largely run themselves after the end of the Bosnian War to maintain relative peace between the two largest ethnic groups in Bosnia. In Republika Srpska, the Serbian nationalist party, the Independent Social Democrats Party (SNSD), successfully shored up their support through a nationalistic and since declared illegal referendum campaign for keeping the date of January 9th as the national day of the Republika, which took place just days before the election. The SNSDs pro-Serb rhetoric has only strengthened, with incumbent President Milorad Dodik campaigning on a promise of Republika Srpskas secession from Bosnia. The results show that such nationalistic rhetoric still holds a lot of power, with the SNSD winning 11 more mayoral posts and 30% more municipalities since the 2012 local elections. Meanwhile, in the Bosniak-Croat Federation region, nationalist parties overwhelmingly defeated their non-nationalist rivals. The Party of Democratic Action (SDA), maintained their hold on power, despite reducing their overall number of mayoral posts by 12 positions since 2012, and have the backing of smaller, but still nationalistic parties in that region. At first and even second glance it seems that the space for a third and truly multi-ethnic force to emerge in Bosnia is as narrow as ever. However, if you dig a little deeper, these elections tell another, parallel story. While nationalism Serb and otherwise has not lost its potency in Bosnia, there seems to be a steady growth in support for an alternative. Pro-European, multi-ethnic and socially liberal party Nasa Stranka, have almost doubled their percentage of the vote and their representation in Bosnia, and they have gained mandates in municipalities where they have never been represented before. Nasa Stranka fought on a platform of strong local service delivery, anti-corruption and powerful pro-Western internationalism, positioning themselves as a party for all of Bosnia, not one ethnic group or another. The Liberal Democrats, through the International Office and with the support of the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD), has been working closely with Nasa Stranka for the past two years, specifically supporting them to increase their female representation. Nasa Stranka described by some as the womens party has led on the issue of gender equality in Bosnia and, with the support from the Liberal Democrats for female candidates for council this year, over 40% of their elected councillors and mayors are now women. In Bosnia, where women remain under-represented in all aspects of public life, this puts Nasa Stranka ahead of most other political parties in terms of equal gender representation. As ethnic tensions continue to boil over in Bosnia, it will be a tall order for Nasa Stranka to capitalise on their local growth to increase their power at the regional and national level. However, the surge of liberal support on 2 October certainly indicates that there are thousands of Bosnians for whom ethnic identity and harking back to Bosnias troubled past is no longer enough. A gap exists in Bosnian politics where a moderate, multi-ethnic and ideological party should be. With a little luck and a lot of hard work, Nasa Stranka could fill that gap and take Bosnia forward to a genuinely post-war era. * Harriet Shone is Head of the Liberal Democrats International Office. Many of us have expressed the opinion that 2016 can just do one. The deaths early in the year of national treasures, the heroes wed grown up with, like David Bowie and Alan Rickman shocked us. In Scotland, that sense of loss has intensified and come closer to home as we learned of the passing on Monday of one of our most popular and stalwart members, Helen Watt. Helen was convener of the Scottish Partys Conference Committee between 2003 and 2007. She also chaired and held most of the offices of Scottish Women Liberal Democrats. She stood for Parliament, both Holyrood and Westminster, many times. A member in East Dunbartonshire, she was a critical part of Jo Swinsons campaign team from the very beginning and helped to elect the areas councillors. I served as an office bearer with her and always admired and learned from her practicality and common sense as I have neither. Helens capacity for work was incredible. As well as full-on Liberal Democrat commitments, her retirement was taken up with other voluntary organisations such as Meals on Wheels. Everything she did was accomplished with energy, warmth and humour. The thought of not hearing that infectious laugh again makes me very sad. The last thing she would want, though, is sadness. Her instructions for her memorial events included positivity and red wine. I have shared many a bottle with her over the years, often well into the early hours. I have fond memories of one first thing Sunday Conference debate that she was chairing and I was aiding where we were a little ashen-faced and sleep-deprived but we got through it unscathed. She knew an army marched on its stomach. When you came back, freezing and bedraggled, from delivering leaflets for Jo, shed be there with tea and a massive spread. Youd be replete and shed have waved you off with a smile with another massive bundle of leaflets before you knew it. Its no surprise that my fondest memories of her are associated with food and wine. I was campaign manager for the Livingston by-election in 2005, which ended up being renowned for its catering because of Helen. She brought all sorts of fancy rolls, fillings, chutneys and salads for people to eat. She was so good at providing a delicious spread in virtually no time. She also ran the buffet for my 40th birthday party with great aplomb, making sure everything looked pretty and appetising and organised the clearing up afterwards. She was so generous, too. My child benefitted from a clear out of her childrens books and toys, many of which are still cherished to this day. One Lib Dem Christmas Party became particularly exciting as her first grandson was born much earlier than expected. She was so proud of her children Jeff and Susanne and adored her grandchildren and was always telling us what they were up to. Women Liberal Democrats (as Lib Dem Women used to be known) simply wouldnt have existed in Scotland without Helen. She drove it forward and got it well recognised and respected as an important contributor to policy debates. Helen was the life and soul of any party and the Party. She was a dear and loyal friend to many. I know that many of you reading this will have your own memories of her. Please share them in the comments. Helens family has set up a donation page to raise money for the Marie Curie nurses who cared for her so well during her final illness. They would appreciate your donations in her memory. * Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings A YOUNG man who gave conflicting evidence during a district court appeal has avoided a prison sentenced for driving without insurance while disqualified. Thomas Whelan, aged 24, who is originally from Upper Gerald Griffin Street initially told Limerick Circuit Court he was 100% sure he was not driving at OConnell Street on October 13, 2014 before later admitting that he had been stopped by gardai. The defendant, who has a large number of previous convictions, was sentenced to six months imprisonment and disqualified for 20 years at Limerick District Court on March 22, last. During the appeal, which was heard before Judge Gerald Keyes, Detective Garda Anthony ODriscoll said he stopped a vehicle being driven by the defendant at around 1.15pm. He said he knows Mr Whelan and that he had stopped him driving the same car the previous day. Detective Garda ODriscoll confirmed the defendant was not the registered owner of the vehicle which was seized on the date of the offence. In his evidence, the defendant insisted he was not driving the car on the day and that he did not know who was driving the car. I wouldnt be here contesting it if I did it. I wasnt driving that car. However, a short time later, the defendant admitted he was behind the wheel after he warned by Judge Keyes that it would be in his interests to be up front and honest. After taking to the witness box for the second time, Mr Whelan said: I put my hands up, I was driving that day and the day before. Im sorry about that. Affirming the district court conviction, Judge Keyes said he wanted to impose a sentence that is a deterrent to him getting into any vehicle again. He imposed a nine month prison sentence which he suspended for two years on condition Mr Whelan stays out of trouble. I guarantee you this if you are found in a vehicle over the next two years you will serve nine months in prison, he said as he directly addressed the defendant. The judge reduced the 20 year ban which was imposed in the district court to 12 years. He did not change any of the fines. THE boss of ACI Worldwide, which has just announced at least 50 new jobs in Limerick, said it is staff in the city which persuaded the firm to expand. Philip Heasley, who heads the electronic payment and banking solutions firm, praised the 82 workers currently at the company, which unveiled its new data centre in Plassey. Im glad we made the decision to build a data centre here. We could have built it in many places in Europe. But we stuck very tenaciously to building it here. There were lots of reasons it may not have worked. But I dont know if we could have built it as quickly anywhere else, or with the same level of enthusiasm that everyone has displayed and the amount of hard work done, he said. ACI, which can count Irelands two largest banks, among its clientele, has invested $20m at the new centre in the former Flextronics factory. And while the IDA has officially announced there will be 50 new jobs, the company in presentations, actually indicated there will be closer to 70, as it ramps up its headcount to 150 workers. Finance Minister Michael Noonan said: Its a great company. Its another great announcement for Limerick city in particular.. Going from 82 jobs to 150 jobs is quite significant. You can see from the physical layout of Plassey, and the parkland atmosphere that this is the new Ireland. These are the kind of jobs we want to see here, and these are the kinds of companies we want to bring in. ACI exists to provide electronics payments, banking and fraud protection solutions and services to more than 4,600 financial institutions, retailers from billers around the world. Founded in Naples, Florida, it employs 4,500 people globally. It opened in Limerick in 2006. The latest jobs boost means that more than 750 IDA-backed roles have been announced in the last month. ACI joins Fazzi Healthcare (300 jobs), Casa (50 jobs), WP Engine (100 jobs), Trusource Labs (134 jobs) and Ortec in Newcastle West, which brought with it 110 new roles. THE COST of care in Limericks two public nursing homes is 83% more expensive than the city and countys 23 private centres, new HSE figures show. According to the figures, the cost of care at St Camillus Hospital, Shelbourne Road, is at 1,498 per week, while the average cost of private and voluntary homes is 803 per week. There are currently 92 patients at St Camillus Hospital. There are 70 long-stay patients. This brings the potential annual cost of care for patients to around 105,000 per annum, at the Shelbourne Road facility. Weekly cost of care at St Itas Hospital, Newcastle West, is 1,458, according to the HSE figures. While private nursing homes regularly publish their cost of care, Nursing Homes Ireland has lobbied for five years for the HSE to publish its own figures, a spokesperson said. NHI stated that it is no surprise it has taken the State so long to publish as it has been operating a system that discriminates against the private and voluntary sector. The publication of the costings has laid bare the true cost of nursing home care and the implications of the failure to address this glaring inequity must be addressed by Government. Failure to do so threatens the sustainability of the private and voluntary nursing home sector and the vital services provided, the organisation warned. NHI chief executive, Tadhg Daly claims that the State is discriminating in a scandalous way against private and voluntary care facilities. Private and voluntary nursing homes are under intense, unjustifiable pressure because of the State pinning them against the wall when it comes to the negotiation of fees. No independent appeals mechanism is available if a private and voluntary nursing home deems a fee unacceptable. The State continues to abuse its dominant position within the sector, adopting a take it or leave it approach during the fee negotiation process under the Fair Deal. He further described the differences in the cost of care as a rotten inequality. Private and voluntary nursing homes are the majority providers of nursing home care but are expected to do it at half the fees provided to State nursing homes. The sustainability of private and voluntary nursing homes is threatened by fees that are not recognising true costs incurred. Equality in fees payable must become an immediate priority within the Fair Deal. The buck has been passed in this regard by successive Ministers over a number of years and it now must be prioritised. The long-awaited publication of the figures must hasten the review of the Fair Deal pricing mechanism and bring into effect a fair pricing model that provides fees to private and voluntary providers that are reflective of the true costs of providing the high dependency care that nursing homes are delivering in our communities. The lowest cost of care within a private sector is 685 per week, with the highest at 910. SEARCHES for new homes in Limerick have surged in the week following the announcement by the Government of the first-time buyers help-to-buy scheme. The property website, Daft.ie, which has 2.21 million unique users each month, recorded an increase of 77% in searches for new homes in Limerick when compared with the average daily searches for new homes in Limerick in 2016. The spike in searches is quite large and certainly points to an increased interest in new homes on the back of the announcement by the Government. The areas to attract the most interest in Limerick were Castletroy, Limerick city centre and Fedamore, said Martin Clancy from Daft.ie. In Limerick city, prices between July and September 2016 were 14% higher than a year previously, compared to a rise of 17% seen a year ago. The average house price is now 164,000, 38% above its lowest point. The help-to-buy scheme will offer first-time buyers a rebate of as much as 20,000 on income tax paid over the previous four years. They will be able to claim the rebate of as much as five per cent of the purchase price from January 2017, for all purchases dating from July 19, 2016. However, the scheme, which is due to run until December 31, 2019, only applies to new properties. On average over 1,000 property searches occur on Daft.ie every minute. There are currently over 1,500 properties for sale in Limerick, based on listings with Daft.ie. To date this year 1,237 properties are listed as selling in Limerick, according to the Property Price Register. Of those, just over 900 are priced under 200,000; a further 250 properties are priced between 200,000 and 300,000; 90 properties are priced between 300,000 and 400,000; a further 24 properties are priced between 400,000 and 500,000; and 27 properties are priced above 500,000. Only two properties in Limerick are priced in excess of 1m. They are Ballyneale House in Ballingarry, a seven bedroom period property on 17 acres, with up to 37 acres available, for 2m. It was previously listed for 3m in April 2015, but 1m has been shaved off its guide. Glin Castle remains listed for sale online for 6.5m, after first coming to the market this May, even though the family has expressed hopes of turning it into a boutique hotel. LIMERICK businessman JP McManus is continuing to fight in court in US in a bid to recover $5.2 million (4.7 million) withheld in taxes in gambling earnings he won from a US billionaire during a backgammon match. McManus is taking the case against against the US government in a bid to recover the six-figure sum withheld in taxes from $17.4 million he won from US businessman Alec Gores during a three-day backgammon match in California in 2012. At a court hearing in Washington this week, Terry Giles, attorney for Mr McManus, questioned the motives of Irish Revenue officials in assisting their American counterparts, the Internal Revenue Service. The IRS earlier claimed that Mr McManus does not qualify for a tax exemption on $17.4 million made from betting on a serious backgammon match as he was not a resident of a contracting state under the double taxation treaty between Ireland and the US. McManus may not be the most liked person within the Revenue Commissioners because he is wealthy, well known and paid no tax for 15 years, his lawyer claimed in court. Mr Gores withheld the $5.2 million on the money paid to Mr McManus on the basis that the winnings might be subject to US federal income tax. The IRS said in a filing submitted to the US Court of Federal Claims in Washington that McManus, a tax resident of Switzerland, was able to avoid Irish income tax by spending significant time outside Ireland in 2012, and thus he was not deemed a resident of Ireland for tax purposes. McManus has argued that his winnings should be exempt from US income tax under the treaty because he was an Irish citizen who paid the domicile levy of 200,000 to Ireland in 2012. The Irish Times has reported that Mr Giles claimed that the Revenue way-overstepped its bounds in the case by disputing that the 200,000 domicile levy paid by Mr McManus and other wealthy Irish tax exiles meant he benefitted from a 1997 double taxation treaty between the countries that made his gambling winnings tax-exempt in the US. Mr Giles told Judge Nancy Firestone that the Irish authorities were assisting in the case because it did not want the Limerickman, a resident of Switzerland, to have the $5.2 million he claims he is due. He said McManus has paid no tax in Ireland between 1995 and 2010. Attorney Jason Bergmann, for the US government, argued that the Irish authorities had no financial interest in the case. He told the court that 200,000 levy could not be considered a tax covered under the treaty because it was a limited type of wealth tax capped at a fraction of Mr McManuss likely substantial worldwide income. The levy was not a comprehensive tax on worldwide income because it was not linked to the amount of income earned globally, he said, but a capped amount imposed on Irish-domiciled citizens who had worldwide income in excess of 1 million and Irish assets worth more than 5 million. For Mr McManus, 200,000 is a drop in the bucket, said Mr Bergmann, noting that if he won $17.4 million in one weekend presumably his worldwide income was much larger than that. Mr Giles represented Mr McManus in court, alongside attorney Mark Curry and his Limerick solicitor John Power. The case gets very strange, said Mr Giles, when the US government hid the name of the Irish tax official by redacting his identity from a letter sent to the IRS stating that the levy was not covered. This meant Mr McManus could not question the official in a deposition, he said. He claimed the official may have breached Irish law by disclosing what was not a covered tax under the treaty. Mr Bergmann said that the name was withheld by the IRS, not the Irish tax authorities. No one should infer that Ireland was trying to hide something, he said. Judge Firestone asked both sides to agree to a sealed protective order keeping the identify of the official private to the parties. She expressed concern that an individual may be exposed to a potential criminal liability for a violation of Irish law. Mr Giles also argued that under the non-discriminatory article 25 of the treaty Mr McManus should not have his gambling winnings taxed in the US became they are not taxed in Ireland, describing it as the good-for-the-goose-is-good-for-the-gander clause. The judge asked for further written submissions from both sides on this issue at the end of the hearing. The case continues. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Orkhan Quluzade Trend: Turkey can hold a referendum in April 2017 to amend the countrys constitution, deputy chair of Turkeys ruling Justice and Development Party, Hayati Yazici, said in an interview with NTV TV channel Oct. 19. According to Yazici, proposals for changes to the constitution are to be submitted to Turkeys Grand National Assembly (parliament) in January 2017. Within the framework of the referendum, it is planned to change the form of governance in Turkey from parliamentary to presidential system. Earlier a source in the Turkish presidential administration told Trend that it is vital for Turkey to adopt a new constitution since the current constitution does not meet the interests of the country and its citizens. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @o_quluzade OSCAR winning producer Lord David Puttnam has praised the efforts of an enterprising group in Limerick, which has invested more than 20,000 hours in restoring a historic wooden sailing vessel. To mark a significant milestone in the boat rebuilding project of the AK Ilen in bringing Irelands sole surviving wooden sailing ship back to life, a ceremony was held at the weekend in Cork, where Lord Puttnam resides. The AK Ilen was famously sailed to the Falklands Islands by Conor OBrien, an Oxford-educated Limerickman and the first Irishman to circumnavigate the globe, in 1927. Seven decades later another son of Limerick, Gary MacMahon, a sailor himself, flew to the Falklands and purchased this piece of living history, with a capacity of 43 tonnes. Since then some 20,000 hours have been invested in restoring the ship to its former glory by over 20 volunteers and a group of skilled tradesmen and boat builders from around the world, through Ilen School & Network for Wooden Boat Building in Roxboro, which opened in 2008. Brother Anthony Keane, of Glenstal Abbey, a key promoter of the Ilen Project, officiated at the ceremony and said that what has been achieved so far showed that there was not alone a great work ethic in the Ilen Project but also a spiritual commitment to the work being done. This is an amazing act of faith and commitment come to fruition. It is heading for the sea, like a salmon, and it will not be stopped, even if some of the financial people have still to solve their problems of calculus and apply their mathematics, said Br Keane. Guest speaker Lord Puttnam said that the project underlined what could be done by a determined community, a community that could make their decisions for themselves, not to be dependent upon others beyond their community, but to be self-sufficient, and the project of the Ilen showed that. Dr Edward Walsh, the founding president of the University of Limerick, told of how he had at the outset of the project urged those involved go ahead and buy the boat and pretend that the money was there. Following Saturdays decking-out ceremony, Gary MacMahon, of the school, said while the ship has been restored to its 1927 state, there is much work left to be done. THE LAST surviving brother of the McCourt clan has been presented with the Eugene ONeill Lifetime Achievement Award in New York. The award was presented this Monday night to Malachy McCourt, 85, the actor and author, at the Manhattan Club by the Irish American Writers and Artists Inc. The Eugene ONeill Lifetime Achievement Award was established in 2009 to honour the accomplishments of a writer, actor, musician or artist whose body of work best exemplifies the level of integrity established by ONeill. Previous honorees include Pulitzer Prize-winning author William Kennedy, and actor and noted ONeill interpreter Brian Dennehy. Born in Brooklyn, and raised in Limerick, Malachy, brother of the Pulitzer Prize winning Frank, returned to the US aged 20. He has appeared on and off-Broadway in numerous plays, some of which he co-authored and starred in with his brother Frank. As a writer, he has published a New York Times best-selling memoir, A Monk Swimming. Malachy has been a powerful force in the arts of Irish New York for decades, said IAW&A President Larry Kirwan. With his acting and writing talent, his generosity of spirit, and his love of life and creativity, he is known as our organisations spiritual godfather. Malachy came up with the idea of the IAW&A Salon and he reads and sings there every month, delighting audiences and encouraging emerging artists. A screening of award-winning Irish documentary, Atlantic, will take place this Wednesday in the Belltable followed by a Q&A session with its Limerick-based produced Marie-Therese Garvey. Atlantic follows the fortunes of three small fishing communities as they struggle to maintain their way of life in the face of mounting economic and ecological challenges. As the oil majors drive deeper into their fragile seas, and the worlds largest fishing companies push fish stocks to the brink, coastal people and the species they rely on may be reaching a point of no return. It was directed to Risteard ODomhnaill, who previously directed The Pipe, examining the Corrib gas pipeline controversy. My last documentary, The Pipe, told the story of a small coastal community as they faced down one of the worlds most powerful oil companies, which was forcing a high-pressure raw gas pipeline through their farms and fishing grounds, he explained. The story raised more questions for me than it answered, leading me to look at the politics of our oil and gas prospects off the Irish coast. What has since unfolded is an incredible story of resource mismanagement, and the capture of our offshore riches oil, gas and fishing whilst our gaze is elsewhere. Atlantic is one of the most successful Irish crowd-funded film projects and to date has garnered numerous awards including Best Irish Documentary at the Dublin International Film Festival this year. Emmy Award-winning actor Brendan Gleeson narrates the film which was shot across Ireland, Norway and Newfoundland (Canada). The screening, part of the See for Cinema series in the Belltable, takes place at 8pm. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Orkhan Quluzade Trend: In case if the fighting in the Syrian city of Aleppo intensifies, nearly one million refugees may flee to Turkey, the countrys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Oct. 19, TRT Haber TV channel reported. Turkey doesnt intend to undertake the responsibility for these refugees, Erdogan said. He added that after the conflict in Syria ends, Turkey is ready to help restore Aleppo, as it doesnt consider this city as foreign. According to the Turkish Office for Prevention and Elimination of Consequences of Emergency (AFAD), there are three million Syrian refugees in Turkey. Turkey has spent more than $10 billion on Syrian refugees. Syria has been suffering from an armed conflict since March 2011, which, according to the UN, has so far claimed over 500,000 lives. Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops. The Islamic State (IS, ISIL, ISIS or Daesh), the YPG and the PYD are the most active terrorist groups in Syria. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @o_quluzade Allen Kane celebrated at first-day ceremony for Florentine Madonna and Child stamp Oct 19, 2016, 6 AM Allen Kane (left), director of the National Postal Museum, and Linda Malone, area vice president of the Capital Metro Area for the United States Postal Service, unveiled the Florentine Madonna and Child stamp at the first-day ceremony held Oct. 18 at the By Bill McAllister, Washington Correspondent The United States Postal Service dedicated its 2016 Florentine Madonna and Child Christmas stamp with tributes to Italy and a former postal official who has hosted many of Washingtons first-day ceremonies. The Oct. 18 release of the forever holiday stamp drew a small audience of about 150 people to the National Postal Museum on Capitol Hill. Jeffrey C. Williamson, chief human resources officer at the USPS, used the event to laud Allen Kane, the museums director for the past 14 years. Connect with Linns Stamp News: Sign up for our newsletter Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Assisting Kane with the unveiling of the stamp was Linda Malone, who serves as area vice president of the Capital Metro Area for the Postal Service. Kane, a former Postal Service executive, has hosted dozens of first-day events at the museum during his tenure, and the Florentine Madonna and Child is likely his last. Citing a recent heart attack, Kane has announced that he will retire from the museum in January. We want to say thank you and goodbye to a special colleague, Williamson told the audience. During his tenure, the museum has seen a remarkable growth, the postal executive said, citing an increase in exhibitions and the stamps in its collection. It would be impossible to overstate the significant contributions Allen has made to both the agency and this museum, Williamson said, referring to Kanes 30 years with the Postal Service. Everyone who supports the Postal Service owes Allen Kane a debt of gratitude, he said to applause. Kane expressed appreciation for the tribute but added: I sure dont want to be on a stamp yet. Thats because the USPS requires anyone honored on a U.S. stamp to be deceased, he said. The ceremony, held in what was once the great hall of Washingtons premier post office, also was filled with praise for the unknown Italian artist who created the Florentine Madonna on the stamp. National Gallery of Art curator Gretchen Hirschauer told how the painting was believed to have been influenced by two 15th-century Florentine painters. As for the artist, we hope one day to discover his name, she said. Miles Fisher of the Sons of Italy reminded the audience how strongly Italians have influenced America. A highlight of the event was the singing of the Eye Street Boys Choir from Washingtons Gonzaga College High School. They never disappoint, said Williamson, who noted that his son is a member of the group. Oct 18, 2016, 11 PM A leader in the establishment of the Oregon Territory, John McLoughlin is shown at left on this 3 commemorative from 1948. By Michael Baadke John McLoughlin, a medical doctor, fur trader, and community leader in the Pacific Northwest, has been referred to as the Father of Oregon. He was born Oct, 19, 1784, in La Riviere du Loup, Quebec, Canada. He joined the North West Company as a physician at Fort William on the northern shore of Lake Superior, and became a partner in the company, which would merge with Hudson's Bay Company in 1821. Three years later, McLoughlin represented the company in the Columbia District and built Fort Vancouver, where he supervised a vast trade in furs, timber, and more. In 1842, he established the town of Oregon City, where he later lived and became mayor. McLoughlin maintained peaceful relations with the Indians, who called him Great White Eagle for his imposing stature and mane of white hair. He aided settlers arriving in the Northwest, including Methodist missionary Jason Lee, who was also instrumental in developing the region. McLoughlin is honored along with Lee on the 3 stamp issued Aug. 14, 1948, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the Oregon Territory (Scott 964). We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page. Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 19 By Orkhan Quluzade Trend: Three mortar shells landed in the territory of Turkish province of Osmaniye, Haber 7 newspaper reported Oct. 19. Two people were wounded in the ensuing explosions. Reportedly, Osmaniye was shelled from the territory of Syria. On Aug. 24 morning, the Turkish Air Force with the support of the coalition aircraft launched an operation to liberate the city of Jarabulus from the Islamic State (IS, ISIL, ISIS or Daesh) militants in northern Syria. The operation was dubbed the Shield of the Euphrates. Syria has been suffering from an armed conflict since March 2011, which, according to the UN, has so far claimed over 500,000 lives. Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops. The IS, the YPG and the PYD are the most active terrorist groups in Syria. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @o_quluzade Russia's Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin said that Russia circulated in the UN Security Council a draft statement on the necessity to separate moderate opposition from terrorists in Syria, Sputnik reported. Russia circulated in the UN Security Council a draft statement on the necessity to separate moderate opposition from terrorists in Syria, in the light of the halting the airstrikes by the Russian and Syrian forces in Aleppo area, Russia's Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin said. "We believe, that under these circumstances it is extremely important for the member states that influence the opposition groups in the eastern Aleppo and beyond, to intensify efforts, to separate expeditiously all moderate opposition forces from terrorist entities designated by the Security Council We have prepared a draft press statement and hope it will be approved by the members of the [UN Security] Council, " Churkin told journalists. Churkin added, that it was also highly important to prevent providing individuals and groups that were associated with the terrorist groups, designated by the UN Security Council, with material and financial support. On Monday, Russia announced the humanitarian pause in Aleppo from 08:00 to 16:00 local time on October 20, halting its airstrikes so that civilians could escape the besieged rebel-held eastern districts of Aleppo and aid convoys could safely get through to those who remain there. On Tuesday, Russia's Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin said that a longer ceasefire in the city of Aleppo was possible, but it has to be agreed on multilaterally. A gunman in an Afghan army uniform on Wednesday shot dead at least two American advisers and wounded three more near a base in the Afghan capital before being killed himself, The Daily Mail reported citing Reuters. The American deaths included one soldier and one civilian, while one soldier and two civilians were injured and in stable condition, the U.S. military command in Kabul said in a statement. "The two individuals were killed during an attack near a coalition base by an unknown assailant, who was later killed," the statement said. "They were conducting duties as part of the larger NATO mission to train, advise, and assist the Afghan security services." About 13,000 international troops and thousands of additional civilian contractors remain in Afghanistan to train and assist government forces battling Taliban insurgents hoping to reimpose a fundamentalist Islamic regime 15 years after they lost power in a U.S.-led military operation. The shooting took place at about 11 a.m., while the international troops were visiting a base in Kabul, said Dawlat Waziri, a Defence Ministry spokesman. He said reports indicated the suspected attacker, who was killed when the international troops returned fire, was wearing an Afghan army uniform. American officials said they were investigating the incident. More companies are launching drones for commercial use as regulators try to keep up with the growing UAV industry. (Photo : Getty Images) The market for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) has seen impressive growth over the last couple years, with companies that include the likes of GoPro and Amazon joining the race. As drones move closer to commercial adoption, issues regarding security and privacy arise inevitably. To combat these, some makers introduce products designed to stop and take down a drone. Advertisement These so-called "anti-drone" weapons perform tasks such as blocking GPS signals and shutting down a camera mounted on a UAV. One company called HiGH + MiGHTY boasts Skynet, a rifle that bars a drone from detecting GPS signals and disables its camera. According to online site Popular Science, the rifle powers up in 90 minutes and can hold a charge in standby position for 15 hours. Working time is two hours. Skynet is said to operate within 1.25 miles without interference. In a video, the drone targeted by Skynet can be seen landing, although it is uncertain if this was directly triggered by the rifle itself or the pilot's command. Popular Science said it tried to reach the Taiwan-based company but received no response. HiGH + MiGHTY is not the first company to cater to this anti-drone niche. In an earlier report, Popular Science wrote about a cyber-rifle designed for the military that can take down a drone. In the Netherlands, meanwhile, eagles are trained to "snatch a quadcopter out of the sky," offering a counter to these flying machines, which other people may find intrusive. The fast-paced growth of the UAV industry has not escaped the gaze of regulators, but rules surrounding the technology remain uncertain in some levels. "Air-safety authorities on both sides of the Atlantic have acknowledged that traditional rule making is too slow and rigid to cope with the rapidly expanding applications of the flying machines, from bridge inspections to land surveys to news photography. And the pressure to spell out exactly what's allowed and what isn't is growing as the industry booms," wrote the Wall Street Journal. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for its part is welcoming new rules that will complement the current pace of the UAV industry. At a conference, FAA chief Michael Huerta said that regulations have to be altered "in a way that does not stifle the kind of innovation we are seeing." China is determined to stop illegal organ trade. (Photo : Getty Images) In a conference held recently in Beijing, Chinese doctors made a commitment to stop organ trafficking and said that they will stop performing transplants if the organ came from an executed prisoner. World Health Organization and the Montreal-based Transplantation Society representatives who attended the conference praised Chinese officials for reforms in the country's transplant system. The reforms include a ban put in place last year on using organs from executed inmates. Advertisement Chinese surgeons have been performing transplants using organs that came from prisoners who were in the death row. The country has received widespread criticism for violations on human rights. A report was published by former Canadian lawmaker David Kilgour, human rights lawyer David Matas, and journalist Ethan Gutmann gathered from figures from hospitals across China. The report showed that there is a massive discrepancy between official figures for the number of transplants carried out. "The (Communist Party) says the total number of legal transplants is about 10,000 per year. But we can easily surpass the official Chinese figure just by looking at the two or three biggest hospitals," Matas said. The government denied the allegations. "As for the testimony and the published report, I want to say that such stories about forced organ harvesting in China are imaginary and baseless--they don't have any factual foundation," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying. Dr. Jose Nunez, an adviser from the World Health Organization, said that China was building the "next great" system during the Beijing conference. "You are taking this country to a leading position within the transplantation world," he said. According to Dr. Francis Delmonico, a surgeon and a professor at Harvard Medical School, "It's not a matter for us to prove to you that it's zero "It's a matter for the government to fulfill what is the law, just as it is in the other countries of the world that we go to." North Korea has upgraded and restarted its atomic bomb fuel production plants (Photo : YouTube/ODN) It seems more likely that as tensions between Russia and the United States continue to escalate, it is the former that will launch a preemptive attack, possibly sparking a full-scale nuclear showdown. But North Korea begs to disagree, boasting that it has the capabilities to hit the mainland America. Advertisement In new report, NBC News said that North Korea is readying up for more nuclear tests following the fifth detonation attributed to the country this 2016. Pyongyang's defiance also translates to it readiness to wage nuclear confrontation against the United States, the report added. The Asian country sees the U.S. as a threat to its existence that the option of preemptive strikes aimed on American targets is on the table. "A preemptive nuclear strike is not something the U.S. has a monopoly on ... If we see that the U.S. would do it to us, we would do it first. ... We have the technology," NBC reported a senior North Korean as saying. The official was identified as Foreign Ministry's Institute for American Studies director Lee Yong Pil. A nuclear strike on U.S. targets even in the absence of clear provocations is justified, Lee said, insisting that North Korea is a constant target for nuclear annihilation by Washington. "The U.S. has nuclear weapons off our coast, targeting our country, our capital and our Dear Leader, Kim Jong Un ... We will not step back as long as there's a nuclear threat to us from the United States," Lee told NBC. And the threat voiced out by Lee appears credible enough. As mentioned, this 2016 alone North Korea was observed to have already executed its fifth nuclear detonation and there's no stopping the country from going ahead with further tests. As Lee has indicated, his nation has existing nuclear policy chiefly for self-preservation. "We have to have nuclear weapons to protect our country, and it's our policy to go nuclear," the official declared. While U.S. officials and scientists have long maintained that the North Korean military remains incapable of attacking the continental United States, Pyongyang insisted that its weapons delivery system is further enhanced by its advanced missile program. Rockets fired from North Korea will not only reach the U.S. mainland but also the moon or even other planets, Pyongyang officials said in highlighting Nokor's increasing capability of striking at the heart of America. More importantly, the officials stressed that any preemptive strikes from North Korea will surely not benefit from any kind of help coming from its known allies - the Russians and the Iranians. This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Currently 25 states and the District of Columbia have medical cannabis programs. On Nov. 8, Arkansas, Florida and North Dakota will vote on medical cannabis ballot initiatives, while Montana will vote on repealing limitations in its existing law. We have no political position on cannabis legalization. We study the cannabis plant, also known as marijuana, and its related chemical compounds. Despite claims that cannabis or its extracts relieve all sorts of maladies, the research has been sparse and the results mixed. At the moment, we just don't know enough about cannabis or its elements to judge how effective it is as a medicine. What does the available research suggest about medical cannabis, and why do we know so little about it? What are researchers studying? While some researchers are investigating smoked or vaporized cannabis most are looking at specific cannabis compounds, called cannabinoids. From a research standpoint, cannabis is considered a dirty drug because it contains hundreds of compounds with poorly understood effects. That's why researchers tend to focus on just one cannabinoid at a time. Only two plant-based cannabinoids, THC and cannabidiol, have been studied extensively, but there could be others with medical benefits that we don't know about yet. THC is the main active component of cannabis. It activates cannabinoid receptors in the brain, causing the high associated with cannabis, as well as in the liver, and other parts of the body. The only FDA-approved cannabinoids that doctors can legally prescribe are both lab produced drugs similar to THC. They are prescribed to increase appetite and prevent wasting caused by cancer or AIDS. Cannabidiol (also called CBD), on the other hand, doesn't interact with cannabinoid receptors. It doesn't cause a high. Seventeen states have passed laws allowing access to CBD for people with certain medical conditions. Our bodies also produce cannabinoids, called endocannabinoids. Researchers are creating new drugs that alter their function, to better understand how cannabinoid receptors work. The goal of these studies is to discover treatments that can use the body's own cannabinoids to treat conditions such as chronic pain and epilepsy, instead of using cannabis itself. Cannabis is promoted as a treatment for many medical conditions. We'll take a look at two, chronic pain and epilepsy, to illustrate what we actually know about its medical benefits. Is it a chronic pain treatment? Research suggests that some people with chronic pain self-medicate with cannabis. However, there is limited human research on whether cannabis or cannabinoids effectively reduce chronic pain. Research in people suggest that certain conditions, such as chronic pain caused by nerve injury, may respond to smoked or vaporized cannabis, as well as an FDA-approved THC drug. But, most of these studies rely on subjective self-reported pain ratings, a significant limitation. Only a few controlled clinical trials have been run, so we can't yet conclude whether cannabis is an effective pain treatment. An alternative research approach focuses on drug combination therapies, where an experimental cannabinoid drug is combined with an existing drug. For instance, a recent study in mice combined a low dose of a THC-like drug with an aspirin-like drug. The combination blocked nerve-related pain better than either drug alone. In theory, the advantage to combination drug therapies is that less of each drug is needed, and side effects are reduced. In addition, some people may respond better to one drug ingredient than the other, so the drug combination may work for more people. Similar studies have not yet been run in people. Well-designed epilepsy studies are badly needed Despite some sensational news stories and widespread speculation on the internet, the use of cannabis to reduce epileptic seizures is supported more by research in rodents than in people. In people the evidence is much less clear. There are many anecdotes and surveys about the positive effects of cannabis flowers or extracts for treating epilepsy. But these aren't the same thing as well-controlled clinical trials, which can tell us which types of seizure, if any, respond positively to cannabinoids and give us stronger predictions about how most people respond. While CBD has gained interest as a potential treatment for seizures in people, the physiological link between the two is unknown. As with chronic pain, the few clinical studies have been done included very few patients. Studies of larger groups of people can tell us whether only some patients respond positively to CBD. We also need to know more about the cannabinoid receptors in the brain and body, what systems they regulate, and how they could be influenced by CBD. For instance, CBD may interact with anti-epileptic drugs in ways we are still learning about. It may also have different effects in a developing brain than in an adult brain. Caution is particularly urged when seeking to medicate children with CBD or cannabis products. Cannabis research is hard Well-designed studies are the most effective way for us to understand what medical benefits cannabis may have. But research on cannabis or cannabinoids is particularly difficult. Cannabis and its related compounds, THC and CBD, are on Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, which is for drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse and includes Ecstasy and heroin. In order to study cannabis, a researcher must first request permission at the state and federal level. This is followed by a lengthy federal review process involving inspections to ensure high security and detailed record-keeping. In our labs, even the very small amounts of cannabinoids we need to conduct research in mice are highly scrutinized. This regulatory burden discourages many researchers. Designing studies can also be a challenge. Many are based on users' memories of their symptoms and how much cannabis they use. Bias is a limitation of any study that includes self-reports. Furthermore, laboratory-based studies usually include only moderate to heavy users, who are likely to have formed some tolerance to marijuana's effects and may not reflect the general population. These studies are also limited by using whole cannabis, which contains many cannabinoids, most of which are poorly understood. Placebo trials can be a challenge because the euphoria associated with cannabis makes it easy to identify, especially at high THC doses. People know when they are high. Another type of bias, called expectancy bias, is a particular issue with cannabis research. This is the idea that we tend to experience what we expect, based on our previous knowledge. For example, people report feeling more alert after drinking what they are told is regular coffee, even if it is actually decaffeinated. Similarly, research participants may report pain relief after ingesting cannabis, because they believe that cannabis relieves pain. The best way to overcome expectancy effects is with a balanced placebo design, in which participants are told that they are taking a placebo or varying cannabis dose, regardless of what they actually receive. Studies should also include objective, biological measures, such as blood levels of THC or CBD, or physiological and sensory measures routinely used in other areas of biomedical research. At the moment, few do this, prioritizing self-reported measures instead. Cannabis isn't without risks Abuse potential is a concern with any drug that affects the brain, and cannabinoids are no exception. Cannabis is somewhat similar to tobacco, in that some people have great difficulty quitting. And like tobacco, cannabis is a natural product that has been selectively bred to have strong effects on the brain and is not without risk. Although many cannabis users are able to stop using the drug without problem, 2-6 percent of users have difficulty quitting. Repeated use, despite the desire to decrease or stop using, is known as cannabis use disorder. As more states more states pass medical cannabis or recreational cannabis laws, the number of people with some degree of cannabis use disorder is also likely to increase. It is too soon to say for certain that the potential benefits of cannabis outweigh the risks. But with restrictions to cannabis (and cannabidiol) loosening at the state level, research is badly needed to get the facts in order. Steven Kinsey, Assistant Professor of Psychology, West Virginia University and Divya Ramesh, Research Associate, University of Connecticut This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Two Egyptian military personnel and six militants were killed in the restive North Sinai region, the army said, in the fourth day of a fresh operation by Egypt's air and ground forces to strike insurgents based there. The attacks on Tuesday come as part of a new campaign launched by the army to fight militants in the area after a Friday attack on an army checkpoint in the Bir Al-Abd area west of El-Arish, the capital of North Sinai, killed 12 soldiers and wounded at least six others. Egyptian air forces and artillery brigade pounded seven militant hideouts on Tuesday, and damaged 16 havens and arms caches used by the insurgents, the military said in a statement late in the day. The raids left six militants and two soldiers dead, it added. Since Fridays attack, the army said it has killed over 50 militants in retaliation. Egyptian forces have in recent years been battling an Islamist insurgency based in parts of the northern Sinai region, which has mainly targeted police and troops. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said in an interview with three public newspapers published on Saturday that his country's war against Islamic militants in the Sinai Peninsula would be long, but that conditions in the mountainous, thinly populated region were improving. "The terrorists are evolving and we are improving our operations," he said. Search Keywords: Short link: Check out our latest E-Edition Accessible anytime and anywhere on your desktop, tablet and smart phone devices. The Lodi News e-Edition is enhanced with the latest digital tools, including RSS feeds, social networking and much more. Check out our latest E-edition! Long Island Business Directory Search for Near Search Advertise With Us Long Island Business is a comprehensive directory of businesses located on Long Island New York. Find businesses by category or use our search feature to look up businesses by name, keyword, town or zip code. Long Island Business is an online phone book with listing, information and details of all types of business on Long Island. If your business is targeting the Long Island market, this is where you should be advertising. Take a look at our pricing page to see how easy and cost-effective it is to list your business in the Long Island Business Directory. Egypt's Court of Cassation, the country's highest appeals court, overturned on Wednesday death sentences for 15 defendants in the case of the storming Kerdasa police station and the murder of a police officer on 3 July 2013. In April 2015, a Giza criminal court had sentenced the defendants to death after it convicted them of murder and attempted murder in the storming of the station in rural Giza hours after the ousting of Islamist president Mohamed morsi. Last September, in a case also involving unrest in Kerdasa after the ouster of Morsi, a Giza criminal court confirmed death sentences for seven defendants for the murder of high-ranking police officer Nabil Farag, who was killed in September 2013 during a shootout with the ousted president's supporters in the town. This sentence can still be appealed. Kerdasa is known to be a stronghold for supporters of the banned Muslim Brotherhood group. The Brotherhood was officially designated a terrorist organisation by the government in December 2013 following several deadly attacks on security personnel blamed on members of the group. Search Keywords: Short link: Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Press Releases, Seasonal & Current Events By Long Island News & PR Published: October 19 2016 On Tuesday, October 25th, Councilman Mark Cuthbertson will be hosting a one-day event designed to educate and better protect senior citizens from identify theft. Huntington, NY - October 18, 2016 - On Tuesday, October 25th, Councilman Mark Cuthbertson will be hosting a one-day event designed to educate and better protect senior citizens from identify theft. In todays technologically advanced world, identity thieves have more tools in their toolboxes to locate and steal our very valuable and sensitive personal information, stated Councilman Mark Cuthbertson. Statistics have shown that seniors are even more susceptible to the creative criminals that prey on their personal information and steal their identities. Identity theft can cause a significant amount of financial and emotional hardship, which is why it is so important help protect seniors from falling prey, added Cuthbertson. Paper Shredding: To better protect our seniors from becoming a statistic, Councilman Cuthbertson will be holding a four-hour paper shredding event at the Town of Huntington Senior Center, located at 423 Park Avenue in Huntington on Tuesday, October 25th, beginning at 11:00am, courtesy of Safety Shred. This will provide our seniors with a safe and environmentally friendly way of discarding old or unwanted personal documents and have them shredded (please note that there is a three banker-box size limit per person). Avoid I.D. Theft Workshop: In addition, Councilman Cuthbertson will also be joining forces with the Suffolk County Police Departments Identity Theft Unit to provide seniors with a thirty minute seminar on ways to help keep themselves and their loved ones safe. The seminar will take place concurrently on October 25th in the Senior Center Dining Room from 1:30pm to 2:00pm. Medicine Disposal: We will also provide residents with the ability to safely dispose of medicines, thanks to the Suffolk County Police Departments Second Precinct. Residents will be able to drop off unwanted and unneeded medications, which will be taken by the Suffolk County Police Department for environmentally safe disposal. The Town will also distribute information about the adverse environmental effects on groundwater and Long Islands drinking water supply when proper protocols are not followed in disposing of pharmaceutical drugs. Its about educating our seniors on ways to become more vigilant with their personal information, said Cuthbertson. Whether shopping day to day with charge cards, getting mail from the mailbox or identifying what not to throw away in the trash, there are many valuable lessons to be learned. For more information, please call Councilman Mark Cuthbertsons Office at 351-3171 or email Local News, Business & Finance, Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: October 19 2016 The County may not have received the quality and cost effective comprehensive inmate medical care expected for the $11.8 million annual contract expenditures. The audit revealed that the Correctional Center had not inquired as to whether the quality of care being provided met the minimum contractually mandated standards, until June of 2016 when it asked Armor to provide the contract required performance metrics. Mineola, NY - October 17, 2016 - An audit of Armor Correctional Medical Services of New York, Inc. (Armor), the provider of medical services at the Nassau County Jail, indicates that the contract for inmate medical care was plagued by mismanagement, noncompliance with basic professional standards and unaccountability for contractual obligations. The County may not have received the quality and cost effective comprehensive inmate medical care expected for the $11.8 million annual contract expenditures. Although the County realized savings of approximately $8.5 million annually over the previous medical provider, the County could potentially face greater liabilities due to allegations of inadequate care. The audit began in January 2015 and covered the period from June 2011 to the present. The County spent considerable taxpayer funds to provide quality medical health services to inmates under its care, said Comptroller George Maragos. Clearly, the County did not get what it paid for. It is disturbing that the level of care provided was not monitored, and the Correctional Center appeared to be defending the vendor rather than holding them accountable. The audit revealed that the Correctional Center had not inquired as to whether the quality of care being provided met the minimum contractually mandated standards, until June of 2016 when it asked Armor to provide the contract required performance metrics. Armors employee turnover rates were abnormally high, especially for nurses (over 60%) and doctors (50%) which should have been a serious concern. Until very recently, there was no appropriate medical supervision at the Jail - there was no Health Contract Administrator nor a Physician appointed to supervise the inmate medical care on behalf of the County as required by the New York State Correction Law and the County Contract with Armor. Neither the Correctional Center nor Armor obtained the contractually required National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC) accreditation for the facility, nor attempted to obtain it. For a copy of the report, please connect with Nassau County Comptroller Maragos online. Local News, Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: October 19 2016 Attorney General Schneiderman called on the NYS Board of Elections to issue clear guidance to poll workers about the affidavit ballot process. New York, NY - October 17, 2016 - Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman called on the New York State Board of Elections today to issue clear guidance to poll workers about the affidavit ballot process in advance of the November 8 election. After receiving over 1,000 complaints from voters during the Presidential Primary on April 19, the Attorney Generals Civil Rights Bureau opened an inquiry into the practices of Board of Elections across the state, which remains ongoing. As part of that inquiry, the Attorney Generals office has found that many poll workers do not receive guidance about their legal obligations with respect to affidavit ballots. I urge the Board of Elections to address issues with the affidavit ballot process that my office has uncovered as part of its inquiry. It is critical that we ensure all eligible New Yorkers are able to cast an effective ballot on Election Day. Poll workers must offer affidavit ballots to voters who believe they are registered, even if they do not appear in poll books, said Attorney General Schneiderman. In the letter, the Attorney General asks the State Board of Elections to issue clear guidance to local BOEs regarding the (a) procedures for determining the eligibility requirements for affidavit ballots; (b) process for casting such ballots; (c) importance of reviewing affidavit envelopes for completeness; and (d) necessity of providing persons who choose not to cast affidavit ballots with voter registration applications. BOEs also should be advised to provide the written guidance and training to their poll workers, and to ensure that poll sites have sufficient affidavit ballots and voter registration applications to meet demand. Read the letter sent to the State Board of Elections. Local News, Crime, Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: October 19 2016 Six individuals arrested from the Bronx, New York, Queens and Suffolk Counties - each separately allegedly exploited the financial vulnerability of elderly nursing home residents. Schneiderman: Nursing home residents are among our most vulnerable, they must be treated with the utmost respect and dignity. New York, NY - October 18, 2016 - Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced the arrests of six individuals from the Bronx, New York, Queens and Suffolk Counties for each separately allegedly exploiting the financial vulnerability of elderly nursing home residents. The five defendants from New York City allegedly stole or secured the personal identifying information from patients and used that information to secure cash or credit to which they were not entitled. The remaining defendant from Suffolk County allegedly stole a necklace from a 95-year old female resident. Todays arrests illustrate some of the methods by which nursing home residents, a uniquely vulnerable segment of our elderly population, are financially exploited. As todays cases illustrate, the perpetrators of identity theft are often those most trusted by their victims. Five of the six defendants were caretakers, legally responsible for the care and well-being of their victims. Nursing home residents are amongst our states most vulnerable citizens, and they deserve to be treated with the utmost respect and dignity by those in charge of their care. It is reprehensible for caregivers to steal from defenseless residents in order to line their own pockets, said Attorney General Schneiderman. My office will not tolerate this type of financial exploitation, and we will remain vigilant in ensuring that nursing home residents personal and financial information is protected. Currently, over 100,000 individuals reside in long term care facilities, such as nursing homes, in New York State. Each receives medical care and a variety of services depending upon their individual needs to assist them in their tasks of daily living. Annually, the State spends over $3.7 billion dollars for such care. Residents of long term long care facilities, because of their delicate physical, emotional and mental condition, are nonetheless vulnerable to being exploited, be it physically, mentally or through financial abuse. Indeed, the elderly, including nursing home residents, are often victimized by fraud schemes and various studies estimate that nationwide the elderly lose billions of dollars in personal wealth every year from financial fraud. One study estimates that 13% of all elderly Americans have been the victims of financial fraud, including identify theft. Diana English Prosecutors allege that, on June 4, 2015, defendant Diana English, 60 of Far Rockaway, the Director of Social Services at Far Rockaway Nursing Home in Queens, removed an elderly, vulnerable and ill resident from Far Rockaway without obtaining the necessary medical clearance to do so, took that resident to his bank, observed him change his personal identification number and withdraw $500, which English then kept. Thereafter, on that date and on several subsequent ones, including once after the resident had passed away in July of 2015, defendant English allegedly accessed the residents bank account using the residents PIN number and stole $1,200 from his account. At the time of the bank visit, the resident suffered from an anxiety disorder, various physical issues resultant form hip replacement surgery, short and long term memory deficits, and cognitive deficits and was unable to care for himself. English was charged with Endangering the Welfare of an Incompetent or Physically Disabled Person in the First Degree, Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, and Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree. English was arraigned in New York City Criminal Court - Queens County. Sandra Rivera-Tapia While the Director of Social Work at Holliswood Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare located in Queens County, prosecutors allege, defendant Sandra Rivera-Tapia, 54 of Brooklyn, acquired a residents ATM card and PIN number and using both, stole $7,418.00 from the residents bank account. She did so, prosecutors allege, by making cash withdrawals from various ATM machines in her neighborhood and elsewhere in New York City and by making store purchases using the residents ATM card. At the time, the resident suffered from, among other things, schizoaffective disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, subluxation of the right hip, chronic kidney disease, diabetes and hypertension and was unable to care for himself. Rivera-Tapia was charged with two counts of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, Endangering the Welfare of an Incompetent or Physically Disabled Person in the First Degree, and Unlawful Possession of Personal Identification Information in the Third Degree. She was arraigned in New York City Criminal Court - Queens County. Josephine Cruz For over a year, between January 1, 2015 and January 28, 2016, prosecutors allege defendant Josephine Cruz, 53 of the Bronx, a finance clerk at Kings Harbor Multi-Care Center (KHMC) in the Bronx was responsible for distributing spending money to residents. These funds came from Medicaid. In distributing spending money, defendant Cruz was required to track how much money each resident requested on a worksheet. Instead, prosecutors allege, defendant Cruz repeatedly altered the worksheet to reflect that residents had requested more money than they had actually sought and pocketed the difference. Over the course of a year, prosecutors allege, defendant Cruz, in the aggregate, stole $2,160 from 22 residents at KHMC. Cruz was charged with Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree and Petit Larceny. Cruz was arraigned in New York City Criminal Court - Bronx County. Channel Francis Prosecutors allege defendant Channel Francis, 40 of Rosedale, acquired the personal identifying information of three elderly and vulnerable residents from an employee of Parker Jewish Institute for Health Care and Rehabilitation in Queens, and opened credit and charge accounts in their names and used those fraudulent accounts to pay her own bills and to purchase thousands of dollars of luxury items, such as handbags and electronics. Channel Francis was charged with two counts of Identity Theft in the First Degree and Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree. Francis was arraigned in New York City Criminal Court - Queens County. Nathalie Germain Defendant Nathalie Germain, 39 of Brooklyn, allegedly used her position as a certified nurse aide at Mary Manning Walsh Nursing Home (MMW), a residential healthcare facility in Manhattan, to acquire the personal identifying information of many of those in her charge. Armed with that information, prosecutors allege, defendant Germain, online, over the phone and in person, paid a host of personal expenses and made purchases using the financial information of four residents at MMW. Over the course of summer of 2014, it is alleged, defendant Germain stole over $6,500 from these four residents and attempted to steal another $4,500 from them as well. She used her victims limited funds and good credit to pay her own credit card bills, to make a car loan payment, to attempt to pay her Con Edison bill, and to purchase personal items. Germain was charged with two counts of Identity Theft in the First Degree, Identity Theft in the Second Degree, Attempted Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, three counts of Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, and four counts of Endangering the Welfare of an Incompetent or Physically Disabled Person in the First Degree. Germain was arraigned in New York City Criminal Court New York County. Jason Battaglia Jason Battaglia, 32 of North Massapequa, allegedly stole a necklace off the neck of a 95-year old female resident suffering from Alzheimers disease of Gurwin Jewish Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Commack. Prosecutors allege that on June 13, 2016, Battaglia removed two necklaces from the residents neck, one gold and the other silver. He subsequently placed only the silver necklace back onto the resident and left the room with the gold necklace. Prosecutors further allege that Battaglia later returned the gold necklace to a registered nurse and claimed he found it on the dining room floor, but subsequently admitted to police that he stole the necklace and only pretended to find and return it. Upon the Suffolk County Police Departments initial apprehension of Battaglia on the date of the alleged theft, he was charged with Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance after allegedly being found in possession of nine hypodermic needles and a spoon containing heroin residue. The defendant pled not guilty to those charges, which are currently pending in Suffolk County District Court. Battaglia was further charged with Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Fifth Degree, and Wilful Violation of Health Laws. He was arraigned in Suffolk County District Court. Identify Theft in the First Degree and Grand Larceny in the Third Degree are each class D felonies subjecting a defendant to seven years of incarceration in state prison. Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree, Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree and Endangering the Welfare of an Incompetent or Physically Disabled Person in the First Degree are all class E felonies subjecting a defendant to four years of state prison. The rest of the charges are misdemeanors punishable by up to one year in jail. The charges in the criminal complaints are accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent. The Attorney General would like to thank the Suffolk County Police Department for their assistance in conducting the Battaglia investigation, and the New York State Department of Health for referring these matters. The investigations were conducted by MFCU Investigators Robert Hatt, Kimara Bradley and Jose Ruiz, Supervising Investigator Ronald Lynch, Special Auditor Investigator Lisandra Defex and Principal Audit Investigators Jerome Hosinking and Yehuda Scheff with the assistance of Deputy Regional Chief Auditor Jonathan Romano, Regional Chief Auditor Thomasina Smith, Supervising Investigator Greg Muroff and Deputy Chief Investigator Kenneth Morgan. The criminal cases are being prosecuted by Special Assistant Attorneys General Felicia Berenson-Reinhardt, Mark Cannon, Megan Friedland, Jonathan Reiner, Prabhjot Sekhon and Jeffrey Winkler with the assistance of Deputy Regional Director Twan Bounds, NYC Regional Director Christopher M. Shaw and Hauppauge Regional Director Jane Zwirn-Turkin. Thomas OHanlon is MFCUs Downstate Chief of Criminal Investigations. MFCU is led by Director Amy Held and Assistant Deputy Attorney General Paul J. Mahoney. Westbury Woman Arrested After Altering $1 Bills to Read $1000 and Using Them at Various Post Offices Crime, Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: October 18 2016 The incidents took place at at post offices located in Roosevelt, Atlantic Beach and Westbury. Westbury, NY - October 18, 2016 - Major Case Bureau detectives of the Crimes Against Property Squad, in a joint investigation with the U.S. Postal Inspection Services, report the arrest of a Westbury woman for incidents that occurred in Nassau County. According to detectives, Nedelyne Coq, 21, of Westbury, between July 21, 2016 and August 10, 2016, cashed and attempted to cash altered money orders that read $1000.00, instead of their purchased $1.00 value, at post offices located in Roosevelt, Atlantic Beach and Westbury. During each of the transactions Coq presented her N.Y. State Drivers License as identification. The defendant, as a result of cashing three altered money orders, caused the U.S. Post Office to sustain a loss of $3000.00. On Tuesday, October 18, 2016, Coq was located at Nassau County Family Court and was placed under arrest. She is charged with Grand Larceny 4th degree and five (5) counts of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument 2nd degree. Coq will be arraigned in First District Court, Hempstead on 10/19/2016. Looking to stay up to date about all of the news stories and local headlines that are important to Long Islanders? We've rounded up the top coverage for all of the important topics from multiple sources around Long Island, so you can be sure you've got the most recent update on the top stories for Long Island. Have an idea for a news story? Email us at news@longisland.com Columnists Press Releases Joint military drills between Egypt's armed forces and their Russian counterparts near the coastal city of Alexandria will continue until 26 October, state news agency MENA reported. The joint military training, which began on 15 October, includes drills between Egyptian and Russian paratrooper units in the northwestern region of El-Alamein. The drills, which aim at "boosting mutual militarily expertise" between the two countries, also include field skills, special forces tactical training, urban combat and the freeing of hostages, MENA added. In 2015, Russia and Egypt held a joint naval exercise off the coast of Alexandria, which included supply and communication exercises, search operations, and defence and firing exercises. In September, Egypt's Defence Minister Sedki Sobhi visited Russia to discuss various aspects of military cooperation between the two countries. The September visit was the latest in a series of meetings focused on boosting military cooperation between Egypt and Russia, which has increased since President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi was elected to office in 2014. Last Saturday, Egypt backed a Russian resolution in the UN Security Council on Syria that made no mention of an end to air strikes on Aleppo. Earlier that day, Egypt also voted for a rival French resolution which included language on ending Russian airstrikes on the city.. Both resolutions failed to pass. Search Keywords: Short link: Egypt's Foreign Affairs Minister Sameh Shoukry met on Wednesday in Cairo with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Filippo Grand where they discussed efforts to assist refugees in the region. According to the Egyptian foreign ministry, Grand said he appreciates the role Egypt is currently playing regionally and internationally regarding refugees because of Cairo's efforts to support stability and security in the Middle East. Grand also discussed with Shoukry ways to raise the level of cooperation between Egypt and the UNHCR. Shoukry explained to Grand Cairo's evaluation of the situation in Syria, Iraq and Libya. Egypt is host to 5 million refugees, according to official accounts. The UNHCR released numbers in August showing that only 187,838 refugees in Egypt - mostly from war-torn Syria - are officially registered with the organisation. Search Keywords: Short link: US Forces-Afghanistan confirmed that one American soldier and a civilian were killed and three more Americans were wounded in an attack today in the Afghan capital of Kabul. From the USFOR-A press release: One U.S. service member and one U.S. civilian died as a result of wounds sustained in Kabul, Afghanistan today. One U.S. service member and two U.S. civilians also sustained wounds and are currently stable. The two individuals were killed during an attack near a coalition base by an unknown assailant, who was later killed. They were conducting duties as part of the larger NATO mission to Train, Advise, and Assist the Afghan security services. An investigation is being conducted to determine the exact circumstances of the event. U.S. Department of Defense Policy is to withhold the identity of those involved pending next-of-kin notification. We will release additional information as appropriate. According to Reuters, The shooting took place at about 11 a.m., while the international troops were visiting a base in Kabul. The gunman is reported to have been wearing an Afghan Army uniform. Neither the Taliban nor the Islamic State has claimed the attack at this time. In the past, the Taliban has infiltrated Afghan security forces to carry out such attacks or convinced soldiers or policemen to turn their weapons on Coalition personnel. The Islamic State claimed credit for killing a US soldier in an IED attack in its stronghold of Nangarhar two weeks ago. If the shooting is confirmed to be a green-on-blue or insider attack, where Afghan police or soldiers target Coalition personnel, then it would be the first recorded incident of its kind since May of this year. [For in-depth information, see LWJ special report, Green-on-blue attacks in Afghanistan: the data.] Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal. Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here. Russia has accused Belgium, a member of a US-led coalition fighting militants in Syria, of killing six civilians in air strikes in the Aleppo region but the claim was swiftly denied by Brussels. "Six people were killed and four people injured to various degrees as a result of bombing that destroyed two homes" in the village of Hassajik in the Aleppo region early on Tuesday, the Russian defence ministry said in a statement. "Two of Belgium's F-16s were identified at that time in the region," it said late Tuesday. "There were no Russian and Syrian air force planes in this region." Belgian defence ministry spokeswoman Laurence Mortier denied the country's air force was active in the area at the time. Moscow had announced on Tuesday that the Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo to pave the way for an eight-hour truce on Thursday. Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova took a jab at the United States on Wednesday, calling on the State Department to release statements "strongly condemning strikes against civilian targets and the murder of civilians". "I think that photographs of the dead will not be difficult to find to launch an appropriate campaign on CNN," she wrote on Facebook. The brutal government offensive against rebel-held eastern Aleppo -- which has destroyed hospitals and other civilian infrastructure -- has plunged Syria into some of the worst violence of the five-year war that has claimed over 300,000 lives. The West has accused Russia of potential war crimes over its bombing campaign in Aleppo in support of the regime offensive. The US State Department voiced scepticism regarding Moscow's planned truce while welcoming a halt in the bombardments. President Vladimir Putin is set to face Western pressure over the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine at international talks in Berlin on Wednesday as Russia comes under increasing criticism over its support for Damascus. Search Keywords: Short link: Style / Fashion We meet up with DEBONEIRE founder Matthew Gideon to find out more about the brand and what it has in store for guests at the SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS. Oct 19, 2016 | By Vimi Haridasan In the past few weeks leading up to the SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS, we have presented you with an exciting lineup of yachts, classic cars and luxury lifestyle options that are sure to be a treat for all. One such partner who is bringing the party to Raffles Marina is DEBONEIRE but in the area of sartorial elegance for men. Yes, we really do have something for everyone. Owned and managed by Matthew Gideon (above, wearing his own work), the ready-to-wear and bespoke fashion line is gearing up for its very own fashion show on Saturday at the SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS. Started up in 2015, the label provides unique suits for the man who values his individuality and is not afraid to express it through his sense of style. We meet with Matthew to find out more about the brand and what he has up his sleeves (no pun intended) for guests at the SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS. Could you tell us about DEBONEIRE and how you came up with the concept of providing bespoke tailoring services? DEBONEIRE was originally a ready-to-wear menswear label, the bespoke element came as part of a natural progression. Classic mens couture will never go out of style. The classic style that has defined menswear for decades is still as dashing as ever, so we kept what is good and made it better. For both our ready-to-wear collections and bespoke services, you will find things like pick stitching, functional sleeve buttons (also called surgeons cuffs), and even Milanese buttonholes which is rarity these days- that showcase highly skilled craftsmanship. These are some key elements that true sartorial sophisticates pay attention to that are coupled with uniquely woven fabrics and bold colors, all while staying within the universe of elegance. We decided to make bespoke a house-call service as part of providing convenience to the customer, an element of modern luxury. People want things fast these days, so much so that the fashion industry is almost forced to adopt the see-now-buy-now business model. As part of our effort to meet demand, weve managed to achieve a two-week timeframe to construct and deliver fully canvassed and handmade bespoke suits. Most other brands and tailors take an average of two months. Why did you choose a name such as DEBONEIRE? I wanted the name to be instantly recognizable, that when people hear of it they will know exactly what we are about. The name DEBONEIRE is constructed from De Bon Eire, a nod to the French meaning, of good heir. DEBONEIREs logo, the Paradise Riflebird, is a rare bird-of-paradise with enviable plumage, and (the epitome) of a man who is indeed debonair. Is there a particular fabric that the brand is known for using in the suits? I am a huge fan of velvet and jacquard fabrics (seen above on Matthew), and these are what our customers return to us for. We develop our own fabrics, thats very important for our customer. They dont want to come to us and spend this much and see that exact same fabric elsewhere. Why is DEBONEIRE an online store and not a physical one? Were known for being exclusive, and we decide where we are sold. We were stocked at Takashimaya for the past year and a half, whose support I am thankful for, especially for an all-new brand like us. However, we recently made the decision to move out, in preparation for bigger plans. Having an online store also allows us to connect with, and serve customers beyond our shores. We offer complimentary shipping to over 20 countries worldwide. Are there any difficulties you face with running an online store since several fittings are required to get the perfect fit? Thankfully, our customers are familiar with the process of shopping online. The savvy ones already know their size, and we havent had any trouble so far. We have a free-returns policy which hasnt been utilized because everything fits our customers perfectly something most customers are pleasantly surprised to discover. Alterations, if necessary, are minimal. We also have a comprehensive size chart, for good measure. (Pun intended) Does your background as a software engineer influence your work ethic and approach to your business? Ive never really thought about this, but yes I do think so. Software engineering has instilled in me the discipline of coming up with multiple methods to go about a task. Computers dont have the human ability to rationalize on their own, and the programmer needs to define how an app responds in accordance to the many different ways an end-user navigates. Graphic design was also one of the modules I took, and I cant begin to describe how much the business depends on it, since fashion is very visual. How has your business evolved over the years since you started out customizing hoodies for yourself? I started out wanting to design a streetwear label, back when #OOTD was a thing, and sites like LookBook.nu were huge. But as I understood the business better, and after much consideration during my time in National Service, I decided I wanted to build something I would be proud to stand for in the long run. I definitely didnt see myself wearing hoodies when Im 30. DEBONIERE is set to showcase its designs at the SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS with a fashion show. What do you think of the event and what do you hope that guests can enjoy from it? Im excited! Ive been following China Rendezvous and making plans to visit, so I was thrilled to learn that its now in Singapore. I knew I had to be part of it. Singapore has been known as Asias most prosperous state, for being tiny yet rich and dynamic. SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS is the epitome of that. Our customers indulge in various luxury pursuits, from collecting luxury watches, to cars, and even ownership of thoroughbreds. I hope this event will help guests to experience and enjoy the lifestyle of the DEBONEIRE Man. For more information, visit SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS or DEBONEIRE. Cars / Yachts The Lagoon 42 is one of the many yachts that will be docked at the Raffles Marina for SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS and Thibaut de Montvalon of Beneteau tells us what is in store. Oct 20, 2016 | By Staff Writer The Lagoon 42 is about to make waves at the SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS, the luxury lifestyle event happening this week, October 20-23. Brought to Raffles Marina by Beneteau Group and Simpson Marine, the prestigious yacht will be on display during the 3-day event, as announced in Simpson Marines press release read the full version here. Making her debut at this lifestyle event is the Lagoon 42, an award winning model which was launched earlier this year in January 2016. Since her launch she has sold over 100 units and also won two awards. Her accolades include Best Multihull Sailing Yacht award at Asia Boating Awards and recently winner of the Multihull category at Sailing Today Awards in Southampton Boat Show last month. Before we immerse ourselves in the fun-filled weekend that will see the Lagoon 42 as one of the luxury yachts on display, we engage Thibaut de Montvalon, Director of Beneteau Group Asia Pacific in a brief conversation. He tells us about the brands growing presence in Asia and what is in store for visitors at the SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS. Give us some background on the Beneteau Group ? How does it perform today on a worldwide basis ? The Beneteau Group is the worlds number one sailing yacht builder both mono and multi-hull and a global market leader for motorboats. The Groups strategic roadmap is based on four pillars: building on its position as the world leader for sailing yachts, continuing to develop its business on the motorboat market, expanding its range to include larger units and lastly, further strengthening its presence in the North American market. These four strategic areas, which have been guiding the Groups development for several years, are especially relevant as the global recreational boat market is growing again for the first time since 2008-09. This growth is being driven primarily by the upturn in the European market and continued growth in the American market. This buoyant environment has enabled the Group to improve its profitability. As far as Asia is concerned, the Beneteau Group has a long term commitment to the region as it set up its first Asia branch back in 2005 in Shanghai, to focus on the Asian market and develop its market share in the region. Asia is still a rather small market for us as a Group but we believe in its future and we are committed to participate to its development. Where are you based in Asia? In a few words, how is your dealership network organized ? We relocated our Asia Regional Office from Shanghai to Hong Kong last year and took over the management of the Pacific area in addition to Asia. From our Asia Pacific office, we are now managing a network of 32 dealers 18 in Asia and 14 in the Pacific ranging from Vladivostok, through Japan, Korea, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia and French Polynesia! We are very proud to have the largest network of distributors in Asia and the Pacific and, just as importantly, incredible teams of professionals distributing and servicing our brands. This is key in our strategy: we look for the best professionals in one market and we are building relationships for the long run. Another one of our objectives is to step-in early in a new market. Were always scouting for emerging boating markets and we aim to take part in the development of the boating culture in these new destinations. There has been a strong focus on the launch of the MONTE CARLO Yachts 80, how important is this range of motor yachts in Asia ? Monte Carlo Yachts is strategic for us in Asia. There is a strong demand for luxury motor yachts in the region and a request for new, outstanding designs. Asian yachtsmen and yachtswomen have high expectations and always look for the latest styles and values. This suits Monte Carlo Yachts beautifully as our yachts are made to be unique, namely thanks to the talent of Nuvolari & Lenard, our designers, and thanks to the innovative building process we are implementing in our Italian shipyard. Additionally Monte Carlo Yachts offer unrivaled flexibility when it comes to customization. Once again we aim to build unique yachts perfectly aligned with each owners tastes and aspirations. Our latest MCY 80, which was launched in July and presented at the Cannes boat show in September, is a pure example of this Monte Carlo Yachts promise: unforgettable lines and an outstanding level of finish in every detail. We are very pleased with her success and already have a yacht on the way to Asia for one of our customers. The Lagoon range continues to enjoy strong success in Asia. It has almost become synonymous with catamarans. How do you explain the success of the Lagoon range ? Lagoon is indeed a great success in Asia, and all around the world. We refer to Lagoon as the boating success story as the brand was launched in the 1980s, based on a vision according to which catamarans would become popular in the future. It was a gamble which Lagoon is winning. Catamarans are becoming increasingly popular especially in Asia as clients appreciate the volumes and stability you can find on such boats. The reason why Lagoon is performing better than any other brand lies in three factors: the ingenuity of the design from VPLP, simply the best multihull designers in the world, which offers incredible space, is light and has good functionality while preserving performances at sea. The quality of the yacht is also essential as it is not an easy matter to build a catamaran. The physics and loads involved are complex; the ability to consistently build good boats is also challenging. The strength of the Lagoon brand through our thousands of loyal owners who are circumnavigating the globe as our best ambassadors and of course our distributors who, once again, perform an exceptional job at promoting and servicing our yachts. Your group will be displaying a Lagoon 42 at the SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS, what are the specificities of this Catamaran ? The Lagoon 42 is a new model launched in January at the Dusseldorf boat show. She has met her market as we have already sold more than 100 units of this particular model worldwide! You can spot her strong personality at first sight, combining modern, dynamic lines and flowing curves. On board, the focus is on the living space, with incredible volumes, comfort and amenities. When it comes to sailing, the Lagoon 42 has already made a name for itself, to be performing outstandingly. This is namely thanks to the latest generation of rigging and the sail plan Lagoon has developed, which increases performances under sail while simplifying maneuvres. The Lagoon 42 is presented for the first time in Asia at the SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS. What are the actions taken by the BENETEAU group to lead more Asians to discover and enjoy the yachting lifestyle ? If I was to list all the actions we implement across Asia in terms of yachting lifestyle, the list would be too long! As you can imagine, through the years since we have been active in the region and thanks to our extensive distribution network, we keep a busy agenda! On the sailing front for example we are involved with a number of regattas all across Asia. In each of these regattas we aim to have one or two boats which we manage and we invite on-board guests and owners, to experience yacht racing together with our team of passionate sailors. On a less competitive front we are partnering with sailing schools and charter companies to promote sailing culture and encourage people to go boating across Asia, during their holidays. On the power boat front we organize a sport fishing competition, called Barracuda Tour. We run Open Days, where we welcome guests and owners to experience our new models. We also organize Owners Rendez-Vous, where clients go to discover new destinations together as a group, under our supervision. And of course, we host numerous parties and dinners on board our yachts, at sea or in the marinas and yacht clubs. Chartering a yacht or looking at buying one, how do you tackle this sensitive question ? In my opinion, this question is irrelevant. Owning a yacht and chartering one are as complementary as owning a property and visiting hotels, or spending holidays in resorts. I can think of many yacht owners who charter yachts on a regular basis. I see charter as a stepping stone to becoming a yacht owner: you get to experience life on board, see how it feels, share the experience with your friends and family, try different types of boats. This is one aspect of yacht chartering. The other aspect is the ability to extend your horizon, discovering new boating grounds. Yacht charter is a means to combine the love of yachting with travels and holidays abroad. To that extent, I believe that Asia has some of the best boating destinations. Your best experience on the sea in Asia ? I recall two experiences. The first one is discovering Phang Nga Bay, in Phuket and Koh Lipe near Langkawi, as skipper of a sailing yacht (a charter yacht actually!) with my family on board. We invited our parents from Europe and cruised between Thailand and Malaysia. To me, cruising is simply the best and purest way to discover a new destination. The second experience was yacht racing in the China Cup as crew for Michel Desjoyeaux. He is a famous skipper, a French sailing legend. I was, all at the same time, proud to get him participating in one of the Asian regattas with our Beneteau team and humbled to witness his talent, and experience as a member of his crew. For more info and tickets, visit SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS website and SINGAPORE RENDEZVOUS Facebook Page Spend Thanksgiving in Nevis at Paradise Beach Resort Paradise Beach Resort has only 7 villas, all with 2-4 bedrooms and ideal for families with full kitchens, private pools, and private butlers who can arrange activities including island tours, catamaran excursions, guided hikes and more. The resort is an ideal basecamp for post-turkey hiking on the island, offering access to one of the hardest hikes in the Caribbean to the peak of Mount Nevis (3,232 feet).And with private chef service, you can ensure that wellness is not left behind in the forest when you return to your villa. In addition to a traditional Thanksgiving, guests can have the chef cook a meal of mangoes or local aphrodisiacs a chance to consume the tropical nature you're surrounded by. Also an opportunity to tier luxury to your needs you can cook everything yourself in your full kitchen if you prefer.Thanksgiving in Paradise Package. The Special Rate Code is THANKS16. Three or four bedroom villa. Stay for four nights for the price of three nights. A complimentary bottle of chilled Prosecco at your villa upon arrival. Offer is valid for any four night stay that includes November 24, 2016.* Package rate cannot be combined with any other promotions or offers. This offer is not valid for two bedroom villa rates.Visit website: Simultaneous attacks on the Islamic State-held cities of Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa, the de facto capital of the militant group's self-proclaimed caliphate across the border in Syria, would make military sense: such assaults would make it harder for the extremists to move reinforcements and deny them a safe haven. When preparing for the Mosul operations this summer, U.S. officials said a push against IS group in Raqqa could be almost simultaneous, putting additional pressure on the group by stretching its ability to defend two strongholds at once. While the long-awaited Mosul offensive began earlier this week, there's no sign of an imminent campaign against Raqqa. Perhaps that's because Syria is proving to be a more daunting terrain than Iraq. Going after IS group-held Raqqa would mean moving deeper into an explosive mix of regional and international rivalries, including a proxy war that has pitted the United States against Russia and its allies. The fight against IS in northeastern Syria also underlines a U.S. reliance on its one effective partner there Syria's Kurds. Such an alliance for a Raqqa campaign threatens to ignite a new conflict, with another U.S. partner, NATO member Turkey, and its allied Syrian rebels. In Iraq, the U.S. offers logistical and other support for the military in its fight against IS group. In Syria, Washington views President Bashar Assad's government as illegitimate and cannot partner with him. Even if IS group militants were to be driven out of Raqqa, finding someone to administer the city would be problematic, said Noah Bonsey, a Syria expert with the International Crisis Group think tank. Mosul is the largest city under IS group control, with an estimated population of up to one million and no more than 10,000 fighters. Oil-rich Raqqa is home to nearly 200,000 people, most Sunni Arabs, and an estimated 5,000 militants. Bonsey said retaking Raqqa is key to defeating IS militarily, a U.S. priority, but that among the warring factions in Syria "everybody else has other geostrategic interests that take higher priority." In recent weeks, U.S.-led coalition airstrikes targeted half a dozen bridges in Syria's largely IS group-controlled Deir el-Zour province between Raqqa and the Iraqi border. The strikes were aimed at cutting the road between Iraq and Syria for fleeing militants. Activist Hussam Eesa reported increased IS group activity in Raqqa, including more night-time checkpoints, and said some wounded and IS families arrived from Mosul before the start of the offensive. He said there was no sign of panic in Raqqa. Most fortifications in Raqqa, such as trenches, were built long ago, said Eesa, who is not in the city and whose group, Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently, relies on leaked reports from residents. Raqqa could serve as a refuge for IS fighters fleeing Mosul, even if roads are harder to access, said Jennifer Cafarella of the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War. Retreating fighters could also hide among fleeing civilians, or travel in small groups to evade coalition aircraft, she said. Others could withdraw to desert areas between Syria and Iraq for staging future attacks. Since the summer's discussions in Washington about a possible double-strike against IS group, Turkey has entered the fray. Starting in August, Ankara has backed Syrian opposition fighters with tanks and aircraft. This has complicated planning for a possible Raqqa campaign and threatened America's main ally on the ground, the Kurds. The rivalries are dangerous because IS group is deft at exploiting divisions among its enemies, said Cafarella. Kurdish fighters, mostly the well-trained and highly organized People's Protection Units, or YPG, have been the U.S. partner in the anti-IS group fight in Syria since 2015 when they freed the town of Kobani. In return for leading the battle for Raqqa, the Kurds demand to be armed by the U.S. and to win political recognition of their right to self-rule. That would enrage Ankara, which considers the Syrian Kurdish forces as an offshoot of its domestic rebels it deems a terrorist group. Cafarella said directly arming the Kurdish forces would simplify logistics during planning for a major offensive. But the potential for direct confrontation between the Kurds and Turkish and Ankara-backed Syrian forces "would cause a huge ripple in the strategy" and would be difficult for the U.S. to mitigate while conducting a major operation on the Iraqi side, she said. Ilham Ahmed, a senior Syrian Kurdish official who was in Washington last month, claimed that preparations by Kurdish-led forces for such an offensive are in their final phase, suggesting U.S. recognition and arming are a matter of time. Fighting elsewhere in Syria has further complicated the situation, including a Turkish push in the northern Aleppo province and a bid for al-Bab, an IS group-run town in the area. The Kurds are also vying for control of al-Bab, in hopes of connecting separate cantons they hold along the Syrian border with Turkey. Meanwhile, Turkish troops and Syrian rebels argue that by advancing on al-Bab, they can break the Syrian government's hold on the rebel-held besieged city of Aleppo city, 30 kilometers (18 miles) to the west, while also denying the Kurds their continuous territory. "Both actors want to grab more territory to prevent the other from grabbing more territory and both want to improve the depth and breadth of coordination with the U.S. against the interest of the other," Bonsey said. Since August, Turkey-backed efforts have driven IS group militants and Kurdish rebels from a large swath along the border. The aim, Ankara said, is to set up an even larger "terror-free zone" of as much as 5,000 square kilometers (just under 2,000 square miles) inside Syria, trampling on the Kurdish aspirations. Adding to the complexity, Turkey, which backs anti-Assad forces, is seeking warmer ties with Russia, a major Assad supporter and an opponent of the U.S. in the proxy war in Syria. On Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyin Erdogan said his forces would take part in any Raqqa operation. Ankara is also taking part in the Mosul offensive, despite Baghdad's protests. An adviser to the Kurdish-led forces, Nasser Haj Mansour, said no Arab or Kurdish group would accept a Turkish role in Raqqa because this would effectively mean a long-term Turkish presence in Syria. He said the complex maneuvering may delay a possible Raqqa battle, which he said would require about 10,000 fighters, including Arabs, from the force he advises. Residents in Raqqa fear the advances of Kurdish fighters, previously accused of evicting and mistreating Arab populations. "The political conditions are not right and the military force that we have to retake these cities is complicated at best," said Cafarella. Search Keywords: Short link: David Bunnell (1947-2016), founder of Macworld, PCWorld, and PC Magazine, passed away on Tuesday at his home in Berkeley, California. He was 69 years old. Without him, our website and sister sites wouldnt be what they are today. Below, we remember one of Bunnells greatest storiesabout how he convinced Steve Jobs to pose for the cover of Macworlds very first issue back in 1985. A few weeks after Steve Jobs posed for the cover of the first issue of Macworld, he changed his mind. He didnt want to be on the cover anymore. So David Bunnell, the founder of Macworld, used one of the oldest tricks in publishing: He lied about the magazine going to the presses. This is one of the highlights of my career, said Bunnell, who told the story to a crowd attending the Mac 30th Celebration at the Flint Center (the site of the original Macintosh introduction) in Cupertino in 2014. I said, Steve, its too late, the magazine is off to the printer, its on the presses as we talk. Theres nothing we can do about it. In truth, the entire issue hadnt yet shipped to the printer. Macworlds first issue cover wouldnt have happened without David Bunnell. The first issue of Macworld was released the same day the Mac came to market. On the day that Steve introduced the Macintosh, we were [at the Flint Center] passing it out, said Bunnell. It was really a phenomenal event. Jobs initially didnt want to be on the cover of the first issue of the magazine. Getting this photo done was a major undertaking, said Bunnell. It took some convincing by Bunnell and other Macworld staffers before Jobs finally relented. How could we have this incredible magazine come out the very day the Macintosh comes out and not have Steve Jobs on the cover? Its unthinkable. Jobs stressed that he didnt have time for a photo shoot, so preparations were made beforehand to help the shoot happen as quickly as possible. According to Bunnell, a stand-in was used to properly adjust the lighting, props, and camera settings. That way, when Jobs arrived, he could simply stand in place, take some photos, and leave. The first cover was reprinted on a special subscriber-only cover of the January 2009 issue of Macworld to commemorate the Macs 25th anniversary. Of course, when Jobs arrived for the shoot, he immediately disliked what he saw. The first thing he did was look at these screens, said Bunnell, and he didnt like what was on the screens. This set off a scramble to change the screens as quickly as possible. Then when it can time to shoot, Jobs shouted to photographer Will Mosgrove, Look, take a picture of this! and Jobs held out his middle finger. Jobs continued by saying to Mosgrove, Are you one of those photographers that takes a whole bunch of pictures and hopes that one of them turns out okay? Eventually, Bunnell got his photo. It was the one and only time Jobs ever posed for a cover of Macworld. Other Macworld covers featuring Jobs used licensed photos. A version of this story originally ran in January 2014, to commemorate Macworlds 30th birthday. Counsel at Red Lobster, Atlassian and two other companies say its hard to register descriptive terms, but that it can be worth the slog in some cases The webinar, produced in association with RWS Inovia, is just over an hour long and you can view and listen to it in full on our webinar page. As part of the discussion, we invited the audience to answer some questions about their attitudes to the Unitary Patent with and without the UK involved. Here are the results (though of course they are not scientific). The first question was: Do you plan to use or recommend the Unitary Patent if it does come in? and the responses were: Selectively only: 70% Not initially: 21% For all my European applications: 6% No: 3% The second question was: Would you use or recommend the Unitary Patent if the UK was not involved? and the answers were slightly different: Selectively only: 64% Not initially: 14% No: 18% For all my European applications: 4% This confirms that the Unitary Patent is somewhat less appealing without the UK - with a rather larger percentage of people replying "No, I will not use it" - but not as much as you might think. In fact, more than two-thirds of our audience said they would still use it either for all European applications or selectively even without the UK involved. UP without UK? So is a Unitary Patent and UPC without the UK a realistic possibility? The answer is probably yes - but not yet. On the European level, enthusiasm for the new patent system appears to remain strong. The Italian Senate has just approved ratification, meaning Italy could become the 12th of the 13 required states to sign. Meanwhile, reports from Germany suggest that companies such as Siemens and Bayer back the system even without the UK. On the other hand, in the UK, things are much less certain. Remember that Article 89 says the UK is one of three countries that must ratify the UPC Agreement, and that London is due to host part of the central division. So what happens following the vote to leave the EU will determine whether or not the UPC and Unitary Patent can go ahead in its current form. Recognising the inevitably delay caused by the referendum vote, the UPC Preparatory Committee this week confirmed that it is putting the appointment of judges on hold. Interpreting UK policy Given the gradual and continuing development of government policy since the Brexit referendum in June, it would be rash to predict what the UK will do on something as specific as the UPC. However, some things have become clearer over the past few weeks. First, Prime Minister Theresa May has said that she will trigger Article 50, which begins the process of leaving the EU, by the end of March next year. This would mean the UK is likely to leave the Union by spring 2019. Second, the broad direction of government policy seems to be in favour of a so-called hard rather than soft Brexit. This makes it less likely that the UK would seek to remain in the single market, for example by joining the EEA, or that it would accept rulings by the European courts. Third, there is growing pressure for Parliament to be able to scrutinise and vote on the details of the negotiation and even the decision to invoke Article 50 itself (this is the subject of litigation which has been taking place over the past week). If this happens, everything could be delayed. Based on the information in the public domain now (including the latest legal and procedural developments, and speeches by EPO officials) as well as conversations with various practitioners, we've identified six possible outcomes, and how likely they are to happen. Six possible outcomes Name Description Likelihood Starting gun UK ratifies UPCA before it leaves the EU in spring 2019. This would get the system up and running soon while delaying the difficult decisions about what to do post-Brexit. Increasingly unlikely in current political environment. Stalemate UK does not ratify UPCA but does not explicitly say it will not do so either. Given the UK veto in Article 89, the other member states cannot go ahead until the UK leaves the EU (expected in spring 2019). Effectively where we are now and for the foreseeable future. Stop-and-go UK states it will definitely not ratify UPCA. This would enable the other participating member states to revise UPCA and go ahead with the system without the UK. There would be further discussions about fees and court locations. This outcome apparently appeals to some in industry. Unlikely now, but could become increasingly likely as negotiations develop during 2017. Staying in As part of Brexit negotiations, UK states intention to remain part of UPCA after leaving the EU. This would mean the UK accepting some EU jurisprudence, and could also open up the Agreement to other non-EU member states such as Switzerland. Parts of Agreement would require re-drafting. Legally possible according to some, but unlikely in current political climate. Start again Member states decide that keeping the UK involved cannot be achieved within UPCA, so decide instead to launch new initiative for EU and non-EU states, possibly building on the work done for the European Patent Litigation Agreement (EPLA). Many IP practitioners support this, but it would take many years to agree and would face political opposition. Unlikely at the moment, but may become more likely as time goes on. Status quo No agreement: it becomes clear the UK will not ratify and there is insufficient political will to resolve the outstanding issues. The UPCA fails to come into force and no realistic alternatives are proposed. The existing system of national European patent validations and enforcement continues. The most likely outcome? Readers may be able to think of other possibilities, or variations on these, and we would welcome any comments. As negotiations develop and (we hope) the mist clears, we will reconsider the likelihood of each of these outcomes in future posts. Thiruvanthapuram: The Kerala Vigilance Director Jacob Thomas on last day requested the LDF government to remove him from the post, two days after allegations of financial irregularities cropped up against him. Citing personal reason for his decision, Jacob Thomas handed over a letter to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and additional chief Secretary. His stern action against the corruption including the IPS officers caused strong objections from the top officials. Recently, allegation of financial irregularities were raised against him in connection with a solar power project during his previous tenure as Port director. Dismissing the allegations, Jacob Thomas asked that how there would be a financial irregularities of 52 lakhs, when he was only allowed to spend five lakhs for the setting up of the solar panels. In the wake of global recall of Samsung Galaxy Note 7, the United Nations has banned the device on all aircraft, even if they are turned off. The phone also cannot be shipped as Air Cargo. Earlier, the Federal Aviation Administration ( FAA) issued a warning to the passengers to not turn on the phone during midair. Though it might cause some inconvenience to some passengers, the transportation Secretary Anthonny Foxx said that their priority is the safety of the passengers. Following world wide reports of battery failures and fires with the Galaxy Note 7, the Samsung and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a complete official recall of Galaxy Note 7 and in a second recall, the authorities forbid passengers from bringing it on board airplanes. Turkish police shot dead a suspected Islamic State militant overnight who was believed to be planning a suicide bomb attack in the capital Ankara, the city's governor said on Wednesday. It was the latest in a series of counter-terror police operations coinciding with a Turkey-backed rebel operation in Syria to drive the jihadists away from its southern border. Police tracked the suspect to the ninth floor of a building on Ankara's outskirts, where he was killed in a gunfight around 3 a.m. (0000 GMT) after opening fire in response to a call to surrender, the state-run Anadolu Agency said. "The terrorist is judged to have been planning to carry out a suicide bomb attack and carried out reconnaissance around the old parliament building and Anitkabir," Governor Ercan Topaca wrote on Twitter, referring to the mausoleum of modern Turkey's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The suspect may have been targeting ceremonies to be held there on the Oct. 29 anniversary of the Turkish Republic's foundation or on Nov. 10 to commemorate Ataturk's death, Anadolu cited Topaca as saying. Police found explosive materials including sticks of dynamite and ammonium nitrate at the scene, the governor said. The suspect was registered as resident of the southeastern city of Diyarbakir and was born in 1992, Anadolu said. Having received intelligence that militants were planning attacks in the capital, Topaca's office on Monday banned public meetings and marches until the end of November. The ban was enforced in line with emergency rule imposed after an attempted coup in July. Islamic State group and Kurdish militants have carried out attacks in the capital. This month two suspected Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) members, believed to be planning a car bomb attack, blew themselves up in a standoff with police in Ankara. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told reporters in Ankara that operations targeting militants would continue in the days ahead. In Diyarbakir, 20 people were detained overnight in simultaneous raids across the city in an operation designed to avert Islamic State bomb attacks, security sources said. In the Mediterranean coastal province of Mersin, the governor has banned street celebrations such as weddings for reasons of public security, his office said in a statement on its website. It called for tighter security at transport hubs. Search Keywords: Short link: Trumpophobia and the American Election - Impacts on Global Peace and Development and Islamic World Hillary Clinton has a long association with the corridors of Power and she is well-versed in the art of Statecraft as the brain of Obama Administration, besides her background as a lawyer for her advantage in this election. Above all, she has a wonderful capacity to mobilize billions as election fund even using the influence of Barrack Obama. Obama has a vested interest in placing Hillary in his position, as he aims at putting his wife as the Secretary of State besides mobilizing billions for his foundation. That is why; the Obamas have so aggressive to attack Donald Trump. Hillary Clinton could effectively make use of the Media and Channels to create and spread the phenomenon of 'Trumpophobia' within and outside America besides projecting Donald Trump a comic hero. On the other hand, the strategic mistake of Donald Trump is that he underestimates Hillary Clinton. He could not understand the Machiavellian strategies and Goebbellian techniques effectively employed by Hillary Clinton, for he is basically a businessman though outspoken. As a man, he has a lot of limitation to attack his rival woman candidate, Hillary Clinton for the fear of backfiring.Trumpophobia is a double-edged sword or dragon of Hillary Clinton aimed at sidelining her rival Donald Trump and also mobilizing financial and political support from many especially the Muslim organizations, countries and big business groups, in terms of Billions, more correctly Trillions. For her sake, Islamic Terrorists remain clam without any terror attack till the election is over.Hillary could effectively make use of the Big Money that she mobilized to bribe or corrupt almost all Medias, journalists, celebrities, including Hollywood and even Trumps own people. She could parade a number of low profile artists, including very old women, as the victims of the misadventures of Donald Trump with well scripted stories.In Politics and Electioneering, the real stars are Machiavelli, the author of The Prince, and Dr. Joseph Goebbels , the Nazi Propaganda Minister of Adolf Hitler. Create Fear and Tell half-truths one after another are the most effective strategy in winning the Power or maintaining Power besides using the corrupt money to buy anybody.Hillary Clinton has effectively been applied their tricks and strategies to capture Power or winning the Election. Trump is an easy prey of her Machiavellian and Goebbellian tricks. She could effectively fool millions of people all over the world, within and outside America.If Hillary Clinton wins, it will lead to Aggressive Cold War that may grow to the extent of Hot War or World War III and total disintegration of the Middle East and Muslim Countries as Russia and China are going to play strategic role in the Middle East.ISIS will become more aggressive with wider support; thousands of Muslim boys, girls and youth will be radicalized and become fighters leaving Schools, Universities, Professions and Jobs. Muslim youths can easily be made emotionally overcharged and they can be made fierce fighters for the cause dictated by others.This will ultimately result in making over 70% of the world Muslims refugees or war victims. Almost all Muslim countries are volatile with the growing role of Fundamentalists. Within the country they fight each other; between countries they fight each other; as a class they fight against others. War and Terror are inbuilt within their belief and practice systems.If Hillary Clinton becomes the President, the greatest casualties are the Global Peace and Development besides prolonging the Global Economic Crisis and the American Debt both internal and external, will rise in terms of Trillions, though Mrs. Obama will be placed in higher office so that Obama can make back seat driving. On the other hand, Donald Trump as a fresh blood in Politics with his temperament as a businessman can never aggravate the Cold War, the disintegration of the Muslim countries, the prolonging of the Global Economic Crisis besides and the Mounting American Debts, both internally and externally. It may take more time for the common people and those who are not well-versed in the Science of Statecraft to realize the dangers of a Ruler or Princes mad with Power and one who follows Machiavelli and Joseph Goebbels. In the coming days, we can realize the effectiveness of these strategies as well as their boomeranging effects as they can be backfired and boomeranged at any moment. Within one day, everything will be changed or upset just like an unexpected storm. My recent writings on these topics appeared in the Market Oracle (UK) can be found with the help of the following link: http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/UserInfo-Dr_R_M_Mathew.html Prof. (Dr.) Raju M. Mathew 2016 Copyright Dr. Raju M. Mathew - All Rights Reserved Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors. 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication. Senior U.S. and Russian officials held talks on Wednesday aimed at agreeing on how to separate al Qaeda-linked militants from rebel fighters in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo so as to pave the way for a ceasefire. U.S. special envoy for Syria Michael Ratney led Washington's delegation, while Moscow sent military experts whose names were not released. They were joined by officials from regional powers such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, but not Syria's ally Iran which was not invited, a Western diplomat said. The Syrian warring sides themselves were not at the table. "The idea is to engage the Russians in a discussion on the issue," the Western diplomat said before the meeting held at the U.N. European headquarters in Geneva. The talks follow a meeting between the United States and its allies on Tuesday that aimed to coordinate efforts toward a new ceasefire, after Russia unexpectedly announced it had halted air strikes on Aleppo. Russia favours a U.N. proposal to evacuate Islamist militants fighters belonging to the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham group from the besieged zone of eastern Aleppo in return for a ceasefire. Russia has said a planned eight-hour ceasefire on Thursday will be extended if other rebels clearly distance themselves from the group, but it will not prolong the pause unilaterally. The last ceasefire fell apart in September, since when Russia and Syria have undertaken a massive bombing campaign on eastern Aleppo, in which hospitals have been destroyed and hundreds of civilians killed. Britain has triggered a special session of the U.N. Human Rights Council to be held on Friday. A draft resolution seen by Reuters calls for an independent special inquiry which would name those responsible for breaking international law, including possible crimes against humanity. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad argues that his forces have a constitutional duty to protect the civilian population and rid the city of "terrorists". The task of separating "moderate" rebels from Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, which was formerly known as the Nusra Front and is designated as a terrorist organisation by the U.N., is complicated because they have long fought side-by-side and there is little agreement on the number of Fateh al-Sham fighters in the city. The U.N. says there are up to 900 Jabhat Fateh al-Sham fighters out of 8,000 rebels in eastern Aleppo in total, but diplomatic sources have told Reuters there are far fewer, probably a maximum of 200. "They are calling the shots in Aleppo," one aid official told Reuters. Search Keywords: Short link: STUART A Martinsville man was sentenced to 40 years in prison for selling heroin and oxymorphone, but will serve just three years and six months of that. On Tuesday in Patrick County Circuit Court, Judge Martin F. Clark Jr. sentenced Derek Lee Moore to 10 years in prison on each of four counts of selling a schedule 1 or 2 controlled substance. Moore pleaded guilty to each of the charges against him. Three of the charges involved selling heroin and one count involved selling oxymorphone, a pain killer. Judge Clark suspended 36 years and six months of the sentences (leaving three years and six months to serve) on condition of five years of supervised probation, five years of good behavior, suspension of Moores drivers license for a total of two years, and payment of a total of $2,000 in fines and $660 in restitution to the Patrick County Sheriffs Office. Moore, 31, of Martinsville, pleaded guilty to selling drugs to a confidential informant involved in an undercover drug operation on four occasions: about 0.7 gram of heroin for $160 on Sept. 10, 2014; nearly 0.6 gram of heroin for $140 on Sept. 11, 2014; eight oxymorphone pills for $220 on Sept. 12, 2014; and about 0.8 gram of heroin for $140 on Oct. 8, 2014. According to evidence presented and statements made in court Tuesday and online court records, Moore also was charged with drug offenses that happened in Henry County and Martinsville between September 2014 and January 2015. According to Patrick County Commonwealths Attorney Stephanie Vipperman, Moore was convicted in Henry County of two counts of distribute schedule 1 or 2 controlled substance and sentenced to 17 years in prison, with one year and three months of that to serve. He was convicted in Martinsville of two counts of distribute schedule 1 or 2 controlled substance and sentenced to 10 years in prison, with one year of that to serve. Vipperman said Moore also was convicted in Rockingham County, North Carolina, of felony simple possession of heroin in connection with an incident in June 2015 and was sentenced to three months to 13 months. Judge Clark said the active sentence that he gave Moore (three years and six months) and the active sentences Moore received in Henry County and Martinsville total five years and nine months, and the offenses in all three localities happened within a span of a few months. The maximum sentence for each charge was 40 years in prison. So Judge Clark could have sentenced Moore to a maximum of 160 years in prison. Moore waived a presentence report and asked to be sentenced Tuesday. The sentencing guidelines, which were not binding on the judge, called for a range of two years and 11 months to four years and nine months, with a midpoint of three years and 11 months. Moore testified that he worked as a welder several years before being diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2012. The cancer spread to his lung and lymph nodes, he said. He underwent chemotherapy and two surgeries, he said. That affected his ability to hold a job and eventually he was unable to work, he said. After his treatment ended and a doctor said Moore no longer needed a prescription pain-killer, Moore continued to get a pain-killer (he said he knew people who used it) and also got heroin, which was cheaper, he said. He said he got addicted to drugs. Moore indicated that the payment he received for selling drugs was to keep a portion of the drugs he sold. Moore said he was not blaming his crimes on the cancer treatment. Its my fault, he said. He added he took responsibility for his actions, he apologized for his crimes, and he wanted to be sentenced and then get on his life. Moore indicated that being arrested probably saved his life. Moores lawyer, Robert Deatherage, asked him how he felt about putting poison in the community, referring to the drugs Moore sold, Im sorry I did. I apologize, Moore said. Judge Clark said one of the factors he considered in reaching his judgment was that Moore may have had a sense of resignation or despair, at least in the beginning, because of his cancer diagnosis. Some other pros for Moore were that he had a pretty minor criminal record before his drug charges, he had a good work record before getting sick, he took responsibility and was remorseful, Clark indicated. On the negative side, Judge Clark said, selling heroin is more serious than marijuana, and other people have health problems and dont become drug dealers. Judge Clark said he was ordering that Moore complete a therapeutic community at Indian Creek in the Department of Corrections, and he hopes authorities will comply. However, Clark urged Moore to be vigilant about requesting to go there for drug rehabilitation. Moore said his cancer now is in remission. Paul Collins reports for the Martinsville Bulletin and can be reached at paul.collins@martinsvillebulletin.com. Belgium summoned the Russian ambassador to Brussels on Wednesday in a spat over Moscow's claim that Belgian jets killed six civilians near Syria's Aleppo. The diplomatic summons was issued after Russia said two Belgian F-16s from the US-led coalition had been identified in the region where the deadly air strike took place Tuesday. "We are making contact with the Russian ambassador with the aim of summoning him today," Belgian foreign ministry spokesman Didier Vanderhasselt told AFP. "We are also making contact at the level of the ministry of defence to pass on the message that Belgium has no responsibility for these air strikes... We are also unhappy that this information was not verified before being made public." Russia's defence ministry said two of Belgium's F-16s fighting Islamic State militants in Syria had been identified in the area where the deadly strike took place. "Six people were killed and four people injured to various degrees as a result of bombing that destroyed two homes" in the village of Hassajik in the Aleppo region, it said in a statement. Belgian defence ministry spokeswoman Laurence Mortier earlier denied the country's air force was active in the area at the time. But responding to the Belgian summons, Russian defence minister spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Moscow was confident of its information. "Russia has effective air defence capabilities, allowing it to carry out 24-hour monitoring of air activity practically over the whole territory of Syria and beyond its limits," he said. "We would like to remind you that for the countries of the international coalition that Belgium is part of, such errors in designating targets are not at all something impossible and unfortunately are happening regularly," he added. Moscow had announced on Tuesday that the Russian and Syrian air forces had stopped bombing Aleppo to pave the way for an eight-hour truce on Thursday. Russia said Wednesday it was extending the eight-hour truce in Aleppo to 11 hours to allow civilians and rebels to leave the city's rebel-held east. The extra time will allow representatives of the United Nations and the Syrian Red Crescent to evacuate the sick and wounded, "and also to allow peaceful civilians out of the city", a defence ministry spokesman said. Russia also said its planes and Syria regime jets were keeping 10 km away from Aleppo. The government offensive against rebel-held eastern Aleppo -- which has destroyed hospitals and other civilian infrastructure -- has plunged Syria into some of the worst violence of the five-year war that has claimed over 300,000 lives. The West has accused Russia of potential war crimes over its bombing campaign in Aleppo in support of the regime offensive. The US State Department voiced scepticism regarding Moscow's planned truce while welcoming a halt in the bombardments. President Vladimir Putin is set to face Western pressure over the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine at international talks in Berlin on Wednesday as Russia comes under increasing criticism over its support for Damascus. Search Keywords: Short link: Editors note: Every Wednesday, we feature a column from our local SCORE organization, offering business owners and would be employers some tips about what to plan for. Thousands of small businesses, which account for 99.7 percent of all employers (according to 2011 U.S. Census data) in the United States, export products and services to other countries. According to the U.S. Trade Commission in 2012, small and mid-size businesses comprised nearly 98 percent of U.S. companies in the international trade arena. In fact, they accounted for 33 percent of goods exports. As the Internet and social media continue to bolster our ability to collaborate with others across the globe, its not a stretch to predict more small businesses will embrace the opportunities to reach customers beyond the U.S. Small businesses have opportunities to grow and thrive in a large, diverse global market. According to the Export.gov website*, 96 percent of consumers and two-thirds of the worlds purchasing power comes from outside of the United States. Doing business internationally offers advantages operationally and competitively via the potential to increase revenue and gain some protection from fluctuations in domestic markets. That doesnt mean doing business globally is easy, though. Entering markets in other nations requires attention to details you may not have had to concern yourself with before. In addition to its many opportunities, doing business overseas poses some risks and obstacles. Issues in getting paid Protection of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Corporate income tax in certain countries (Some charge extra taxes upon receiving goods.) Lofty shipping costs and unreliable postal services in other countries Trust issues with the partners or agents youre working with Cultural expectations when conducting business Rules, restrictions, and license requirements of destination countries when shipping products Language barriers (e.g., in marketing materials, avoiding words and terms that may be unfamiliar or inappropriate for other cultures) According to SCORE mentor Jin Han who has over 20 years of global consulting experience, If youre interested in going global, be sure to understand the local culture, and be sure to account for extra costs, be it in the form of tax, tariff, delivery costs and other costs. For additional insight about doing business globally, you can tap these resources that specialize in providing information and programs in support of international trade: SBAs Office of International TradeThis office works with other federal agencies and public and private groups to encourage export opportunities for small businesses. U.S. State Departments Direct Line to American Business programThis program gives small businesses direct access to U.S. Ambassadors, mission teams, and foreign government officials to explore market opportunities in their respective countries. The State Department also provides the Business Information Database System (BIDS), a portal to help U.S. businesses learn about international projects that may offer commercial opportunities. U.S. Commercial Services Gold Key Matching ServiceThis service can help small businesses find potential overseas business partners, agents, distributors, and sales representatives. Export.govs links to information about doing business in specific countriesThese links offer insight and data about various countries cultures, business climates, market research, service providers, trade events, and other information. The breadth of information available varies from country to country. Doing business globally can be immensely rewarding, both financially and culturally, shares Han. However, there is also an added learning curve in order to reap the benefits, so be sure to perform due diligence, and seek advice where possible. The Martinsville SCORE chapter is located at 115 Broad Street. If you have any questions, SCORE members can be reached at (276)-632-6401. The bodies of five migrants were recovered in the central Mediterranean on Wednesday during rescue operations that saved 300 others, the Italian coastguard said. The migrants were on board two inflatable dinghies and three small boats, the coastguard said in a statement. The dinghies were helped by a charity boat and an Irish naval vessel, which rescued 118 people and found five dead bodies. Some 145,000 migrants have been picked up and brought to Italy since the start of 2016. According to the UN, at least 3,626 people have died during the perilous crossings or are lost at sea. Search Keywords: Short link: TODAYS WORD is noctambulist (knock-tam-ball-list). Example: He had become a noctambulist, waking up in different places throughout the house. TUESDAYS WORD was shavetail (sheyv-teyl). It means a newly commissioned officer. Example: When the American naval ship left port, it had on board more shavetails than normal. Board of Trustees The Blue Ridge Regional Library Board of Trustees will meet today at the Bassett Branch Library, 3969 Fairystone Park Highway. The meeting starts at noon. Plant Swap The Bulletins fall plant swap is coming up this Saturday. Dig up perennials, bulbs, tubers and other plants and bring them to the newspaper office, 204 Broad Street, beginning at 10 a.m. This warm weather is supposed to go away for a bit over the weekend, so be sure to dress warmly. If it rains on Saturday, the swap will be held next week, on Oct. 29. Benefit singing There will be a benefit singing for Garland Boyd this Saturday. Itll be held at 5 p.m. at the Abiding Grace Family Worship Center, 600 Mayo Court in Stuart. Mr. Boyd and his family lost everything in a house fire and the community wants to help them out. The Hylton Family, the Hooker Family, Ann Boyd and others will sing at the event. Ruritan Club The Sanville Ruritan Club will be having its annual Brunswick Stew sale on Saturday. The sale will start at 10 a.m. and run until the stew is sold out. The stew will be made using club member Bill Maxwells famous recipe and the price is $6 per quart. To preorder, give Judy Mays a call at (276) 629-1103. Country Buffet The Horsepasture Fire Department will be holding a country buffet breakfast on Saturday, from 6 to 10 a.m. The menu includes brown, white and redeye gravy, grits, country ham, bacon, eggs and fried apples. The cost is $7 for adults, $4 for kids under 10. All carry out orders will be $7. Telehealth lecture What is Telehealth and how is it changing healthcare? Thats the question behind a discussion later today over at the New College Institute. The lecture will be held at noon at the NCI building, 191 Fayette St., Martinsville. Luncheon coming Dupont Family and Friends will be sponsoring a luncheon at the Sirloin House, 530 Commonwealth Blvd., Martinsville, on Nov. 10. Itll start at 11:30 a.m., with a registration deadline of Oct. 31. There is limited seating, so they ask that you call ahead to register at (276) 340-5777, (276) 632-7362 or (276) 650-8533. TRIVIA QUESTION: Whoever is elected in November will be the 44th president of the United States. But did you know that technically, they would be the 45th? Go back more than 100 years and there was, at least for one day, a president who isnt counted? Who is this President for a Day? The answer will be in tomorrows Stroller. TRIVIA ANSWER: On Sunday, we saw the latest edition of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 here in Martinsville. But how did racing get its start? Before NASCAR, what was the first race to use two self-powered road vehicles? It was a private road race, held at 4:30 a.m. on Aug. 30, 1867. The eight mile race in England stretched from the town of Ashton-under-Lyne to the stadium of Old Trafford. In Defence of Marxism is committed to safeguarding your privacy. At all times we aim to respect any personal data you share with us, or that we receive from other organisations, and keep it safe. This Privacy Policy (Policy) sets out our data collection and processing practices and your options regarding the ways in which your personal information is used. 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Please let us know if you have any queries or concerns whatsoever about the way in which your data is being processed by emailing the Data Protection Manager at webmaster@marxist.com David Black.jpg Novelist David Black SPRINGFIELD - Some book lovers associate Classical High School with one its most famous graduates, Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel. But crime and mystery novel aficionados are more in tune with another of the school's alumni, David Black. The award-winning author, screenwriter and playwright will return to the site of the former high school on Nov. 6 at 2 p.m. to discuss his experiences researching and writing for print, television and film. "I know him from years ago - his father worked at the school. He was a young student at the time and graduated from Classical High School." said Teresa Regina, president of Historic Classical, Inc. "I think what he'll do is tell us about his research methods. He's had some interesting experiences. He said he would be bringing some clips from his movies," she said. Regina said that upon graduating from Classical High School in 1963, Black has gone on to become a prolific and critically-acclaimed author, including "Like Father" and "King of Fifth Avenue," both of which received accolades from the New York Times. A prominent crime and mystery author with nine books and more than 150 published articles, Black most notably was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for "The Plague Years," a book resulting from a two-part piece written for Rolling Stone magazine that would go on to win a National Magazine Award for reporting. Regina also said that Black would discuss the research methods behind his titles, which oftentimes found the author risking his life in locations ranging from New York's East Village, where he exposed a slave trade, to Haiti, where he was put under house arrest by secret police. In addition to his work as a mystery and crime novelist, the Classical High School graduate went on to achieve success writing for some of television's most renowned police dramas. "We're very happy to have him come, and I think he's happy to see his old school. He's very happy to come and he's excited," said Regina. As a writer for television series "Law And Order," Black received a Certificate of Merit from the American Bar Association Certificate for a controversial episode, "Nullification," about Militia groups. Black has also served as writer and producer on a number of television series, ranging from "Law & Order" to the short-lived "100 Centre Street" in 2001, wrote the screenplay for 1999's full-length film "The Confession" and theater production "An Impossible Life," starring Richard Dreyfuss. WORCESTER - Progressive metal band Dream Theater brought their Astonishing Live Tour to the Hanover Theatre on Tuesday. The tour follows the release of their 13th studio album "The Astonishing." The album, released in January of this year, is the band's third concept album. The album is set in a a dystopian future United States and follows the Ravenskill Rebel Militia in their efforts to defy the Great Northern Empire of the Americas using the magical power of music. Following the release of the album, the tour was announced, the premise being that the band would perform the full album in it's entirety for every show. Original critical reception predicted that the album would have trouble keeping up with listeners attention spans, somewhat righteously so, as the final track count comes in at just under 35 songs making the full album length more than 2 hours long. The live performance, however, proved otherwise. While the turn out could be considered "less than optimal", the band captured the soul of everyone in attendance, and it wasn't long before their unique story telling and visual effects had everyone entranced. This stop in Worcester is a coming home of sorts for the band, which formed in 1985 at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Students at the time John Petrucci, John Myung and Mike Portnoy agreed to form a band, originally starting by covering Rush and Iron Maiden songs in the Berklee rehearsal rooms. Since then, then band has gone on to become one of the world's top progressive metal bands. Guitarist John Petrucci is debated amongst peers to be one of, if not the best, guitarist in the world. Bassist John Myung was voted the greatest bass player of all time in a 2010 poll conducted by Music Radar. Original drummer Mike Portnoy is now a 26-time award winner from Modern Drummer Magazine, and the second youngest person to be inducted into the Rock Drummer Hall of Fame. Following his departure from the band in 2010, he founded the band Adrenaline Mob with Symphony X vocalist Russell Allen and guitarist Mike Orlando. The tour continues on Wednesday night at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, New Jersey and runs through early December where it comes to a close on Dec. 5 at the Durham Performing Arts Center in North Carolina. longmeadow adult center logo.jpg LONGMEADOW From French classes to jazz music, there are a number of events and activities planned at the Longmeadow Adult Center on 231 Maple Rd. this month. Check out what is coming up. French classes Each Wednesday from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., native French speaker Therese Eiff will teach classes on the French language. The class is offered at no charge. Winter car care With the winter season fast approaching, Mark Whitney will offer pointers on how to best maintain your car when temperatures drop and snow falls. During the class on Oct. 24 at 12:15 p.m., Whitney will provide a checklist so that attendees can gauge how much preparation they need to do. Journey to jazz Continuing a jazz listening series called "The Kings of Swing," a listening party with limited dancing will be held on Oct. 25 at 1 p.m. Bands on the playlist include Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, Harry James and Artie Shaw. Halloween lunch party Before the kids are out trick or treating, the Longmeadow Adult Center will host a Halloween lunch party on Oct. 31 beginning at 11:30 a.m. The lunch will be followed by Halloween bingo, as well as other games with prizes. Those who want to attend must sign up before by calling 413-565-4150. A $3 lunch donation is waved for seniors who show up in costume. Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri intends to endorse Michel Aoun for the country's vacant presidency, political sources said, though a leading member of Hariri's party was quoted as saying the decision was not yet final. The dramatic proposal would result in Aoun, a political ally of the Iranian-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah, becoming head of state and the Saudi-backed Hariri becoming prime minister for the second time, the senior political sources said. Political conflict has left the Lebanese presidency empty for 2 1/2 years. The post is reserved for a Maronite Christian in Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing arrangements. It was not immediately clear if Aoun's candidacy would enjoy enough support among other Lebanese politicians to secure the necessary two-thirds quorum for the vote in the 128-seat parliament. The next scheduled parliamentary session to elect a president is set for Oct. 31. Aoun's political opponents include the powerful politician Nabih Berri, who is parliament speaker and head of the Shi'ite Amal Movement. Two senior politicians told Reuters that Hariri had expressed his intention to nominate Aoun, who is in his 80s, for the presidency as part of the power-sharing deal. A third source, a member of Hariri's Future Movement, confirmed Hariri had expressed this intention, but members of his own parliamentary bloc opposed it. Fouad Siniora, a former prime minister and head of the Future Movement's parliamentary bloc, told the newspaper Daily Star that Hariri had told his MPs on Tuesday that he had decided to support Aoun's candidacy for the presidency, but added that there was "no final decision yet on this matter". Search Keywords: Short link: WILBRAHAM The Wilbraham Hiking Club will tackle Peaked Mountain, a 1,227-foot mountain located in Monson near the Hampden border, on Sunday, Oct. 30. Hikers will meet up in the Peaked Mountain parking lot at 138 Butler Road. The moderate excursion begins at 9 a.m. and will cover roughly 3 to 5 miles of terrain. The hike begins as an amble through the woods, but as hikers get higher, the trek gets tougher and the views get better. From the summit, participants will be rewarded with panoramic views of New Hampshire's Mount Mondnock to the north and Worcester County to the east and northeast, including Mount Wachusett, the highest peak in that county. They'll also glimpse parts of the Quabbin region to the extreme northwest and Connecticut's Shenipsit State Forest to the south. In between all these landmarks, however, is a sweeping view of pristine countryside, including forestland, fields, ponds, wetlands, valley farms, and small villages. On the west side of the mountain is the popular Valley View overlook, where a large rocky outcropping offers great western views of nearby Boulder Hill and the City of Springfield. Some sections of the hike traverse rocky areas, particularly near the peak. Participants are reminded to wear proper foot gear, dress in layers, and to bring water and snacks. More information is available by emailing or phoning Gerri Morgan at grm740@gmail.com or 413-896-5528. The Town of Wilbraham's website has a link to the Wilbraham Hiking Club's webpage, which includes a link to scheduled upcoming hikes. Peaked Mountain is managed by the nonprofit Trustees of Reservations. MAP showing approximate location of Peaked Mountain: BOSTON - Men kicked off their shoes and socks, women shed their sandals and kids jumped into large puddles of water as king tides rolled onto the Boston waterfront, flooding the Long Wharf area on a sunny Wednesday. According to Weather.com, "The king tide occurs when the earth, moon, and sun align. Gravity pulls the oceans to their highest tides." In Boston, that means water that rises two feet higher than average. Morrissey Boulevard, in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood, became a small lake, just in time for Vice President Joe Biden's visit to the Edward Kennedy Institute nearby. Researchers with MyCoast, a project of the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management, are seeking pictures people have taken of the tides. "Massachusetts needs your help to capture photographs of king tide events," MyCoast says on its website. "Your photographs will be used in the long-term analysis of coastal vulnerability and planning initiatives with municipalities." Smith poster (Courtesy Massachusetts State Police) Massachusetts State Police on Tuesday announced the addition of a 16-year-old murder suspect and alleged gang member to the state's Most Wanted Fugitive list. On July 11, Jayden W. Smith of Fall River, then 15, and another boy, Joel Lopez, 16, shot 29-year-old Jerrod Cohen multiple times on Plain Street in Fall River. Cohen later died of his injuries at the hospital. Police apprehended Lopez and charged him with murder and firearms offenses, but Smith has so far evaded custody. The search for Smith continues, with police warning the public not to approach the teenager. He is described as an African-American with medium complexion who stands 5-feet, 8-inches tall. The Bristol County District Attorney's Office and the Fall River Police Department have offered a $1,000 reward for information leading to Smith's arrest. Smith is suspected of being a member of the Gangster Disciples street gang and considered armed and dangerous. When apprehended, Smith will face charges of homicide, carrying a firearm without a license and carrying a loaded firearm in Bristol County Superior Court. (Beijing) The number of organ donations in China jumped 50%, to 2,950, in the first three quarters of 2016 compared with a year earlier. Li Bin, head of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, told an international conference on organ donations on Monday that authorities recorded 8,866 donations by the end of 2015, which contributed to 25,000 organs being used in transplant operations across China. China introduced a system to encourage donations in 2014 after the practice of harvesting organs from executed prisoners was banned amid persistent criticism from international rights groups. Since the government ban went into effect in January 2015, the number of voluntary donations has soared in what has become the only legitimate source of organs for transplants. China ranks first in Asia in organ donations, said Chen Zhu, director of the Red Cross Society of China. About 260 out of 100 million people in China have made an organ donation in the first nine months of the year, up from 3 people out of 100 million several years ago. There are no official statistics to indicate how severe the organ shortage in China is, but the state-run Xinhua News Service, quoting official statistics, said that surgeons performed 11,000 organ transplants in China last year. Contact reporter Li Rongde (rongdeli@caixin.com); editor Calum Gordon (calum@caixin.com) China's gross domestic product (GDP) growth was steady at 6.7% for the third quarter as the country shifted from an investment-driven economy to one that is consumption-focused. But the pace of growth was the slowest it has been since the second quarter of 2009, and economists said the trend is unlikely to improve by the end of the year. GDP growth might stabilize at 6.7% in the last quarter, but it will be hampered by a potentially softer property market, which has been restricted by a variety of cooling measures, Liu Liu and Yi Huan, economists at the macro research team of China International Capital Corp. (CICC), told Caixin. China's housing market contributed 8% to economic growth in the first nine months of the year, National Bureau of Statistics spokesman Sheng Laiyun said Wednesday at a news conference when releasing the GDP figures. The sector became frenzied as home prices have increased in some cities by as much as 40% in August from a year earlier. Reacting to surging prices, at least 20 cities have tightened home-purchases rules since the end of September with measures that include raising the minimum payment required for a down payment and not allowing residents to buy a second home. There is no overall data yet to reflect the effectiveness of the new constraints. But Sheng said that home sales in first-tier cities and some smaller ones have started to fall in the first half of October. Money that would have been spent on homes could go to other sectors, which might continue to support the economy, said Liu Wenqi, a CICC economist, in a written note. As the property market cools, the related industrial sectors, such as steel and cement, may decline in the near future, said Zhang Lu, an assistant analyst at CEBM Group, a subsidiary of Caixin Insight Group. She predicted that GDP growth might worsen from October to December. The future of the manufacturing industry is also clouded by a national strategy to trim excess production capacity and a slowdown in investments. In the first nine months, fixed asset investment grew by only 8.2%, with the manufacturing component growing at just 3.3%. As China shifts toward a consumption-based economy, the government is likely to increase economic stimuli to boost the economy that might be dragged by the property market, Yi said. The country's central bank has held its lending rate at a record-low 4.35 percent since October and cut its reserve requirement ratio for major banks, with the latest reduction to 17%. Contact reporter Coco Feng (renkefeng@caixin.com); editor Ken Howe (kennethhowe@caixin.com) 2016-10-19 12:00:00 Online Contact: Topic: Date: Wednesday, October 19 from 12:00-1:00 p.m., Mountain Time. Overview: Join experts from the field to hear how the definitions of "digital inclusion" and "digital equity" have evolved over time. While access to affordable robust broadband is important, people also need digital skills, access to computers and other Internet devices, and knowledge of useful applications and content in order to fully benefit from Internet access. Our presenters Emy Tseng, Broadband Program Specialist, BroadbandUSA and Dr. Roberto Gallardo Estrella, Associate Extension Professor & Leader, Intelligent Community Institute, Mississippi State University Extension will highlight some of their own digital inclusion work and discuss examples of digital inclusion programs. Roberto Gallardo is an associate Extension professor with the Mississippi State University Extension Service. Roberto spearheads the efforts of the Mississippi State University Extension Intelligent Community Institute that helps rural communities transition to, plan for, and prosper in the digital age. He work in local and regional community economic development, including use of technology. He holds an engineering degree from the University of the Americas in Mexico, a masters degree in economic development from the University of Southern Mississippi, and a PhD in public policy and administration from Mississippi State University. Emy Tseng is a Broadband Program Specialist with the BroadbandUSA program at NTIA. Emy provides technical assistance to communities to help further broadband access, adoption and digital inclusion throughout the U.S. Emy is also an Affiliate with the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University where she focuses on Inclusive Innovation how marginalized communities adopt, adapt and shape technology. Previous to NTIA, Emy was the Director of Digital Inclusion for the City of San Francisco. Emy has a math/physics degree from Brown University and a masters degree in Technology and Policy from MIT. Register now! https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/2578680599272392707 Prospera Business Network is the lead non-profit organization advancing and supporting community-centered economic development in southwest Montana. Our focus is helping people start and grow their business in turn strengthening our regions economy and communities. Oh, Canada. Youre making us blush. Our ever-friendly neighbors to the north have watched from afar a U.S. election cycle that has broken all norms for civility. Its created tremendous stress and surfaced deep tensions within our society. For many, its been disheartening and demoralizing to watch. But Canadians are here to offer a sympathetic message to lift Americans spirits. By Colby Itkowitz Full Story: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/inspired-life/wp/2016/10/17/leave-it-to-canada-to-remind-america-that-its-still-a-great-country/?tid=sm_fb Marriott International, Inc. has announced that it has signed an agreement to open a St. Regis in the New Administrative Capital of Egypt, just outside of Cairo. In the second quarter of this year, The St. Regis Almasa is expected to occupy an existing luxury hotel at the entrance of the up-and-coming city that is slated to become the administrative and financial hub of Egypt. We are delighted to be working with the National Authority for Management & Investment on this exceptional conversion opportunity to bring St. Regis to Egypts New Administrative Capital, said Jerome Briet, Chief Development Officer, Middle East and Africa, Marriott International. This signing further enhances the St. Regis brand portfolio in Middle East and Africa and underscores the tremendous momentum that our luxury brands have in the region. Speaking on the occasion, Colonel Waleed Samy Salama, CEO, National Authority for Management & Investment commented, The National Authority for Management and Investment is pleased to start a relationship with Marriott International. The St. Regis Almasa will be positioned as the luxury hospitality hub in the New Administrative Capital and with the largest state-of-the-art convention center in Egypt, the hotel will be the ideal host to the countrys largest events, conferences and summits. We are confident that this deal signing will play a vital role in the development of tourism in Egypt. Also present during the signing ceremony were General Mohamed Amin Ibrahim Nasr, Advisor to the President of Egypt for Financial Affairs and Liam Brown, Group President Europe, Middle East and Africa, Marriott International. With the population of greater Cairo expected to double in the next few decades, the government in Egypt announced plans to build the New Administrative Capital. Almasa Royal Palace, which the owner has operated for the past two years, is located adjacent to a 42,000-square-foot convention center that hosts official government conventions and events, as well as official foreign presidents visits. The hotel consists of 270 rooms, 90 suites, 60 apartments and 14 villas. Other facilities include outdoor and indoor swimming pools, a gym, spa, club house and 20 food and beverage outlets. When it opens, The St. Regis Almasa is expected to encompass the hallmarks of the brand such as its rich traditions and rituals, and signature St. Regis Butler Service. Through a phased approach, areas across the hotel will undergo a refresh to deliver an on-brand experience in New Cairo whilst remaining open to guests. Partager et informez vous aussi...... 0 shares Share Tweet LinkedIn Articles similaires (Beijing) Three securities firms have been criticized by regulators and ordered to improve the way they screen clients after they opened trading accounts for them on the "new third board" exchange without properly assessing their customers' ability to handle the high risk. This is the first set of regulatory warnings issued after the country's top securities regulatory body stepped up efforts in March to control entry requirements for investors on the Beijing-based National Equities Exchange and Quotations (NEEQ), also known as the new third board. The new third board contains shares in smaller technology companies that are considered to be of higher risk than those on the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges. Regulators now require securities firms to assess their clients to make sure they are knowledgeable about the risks of investing and can afford a certain degree of losses. In the first three months of 2016, a Shanghai branch of the Guizhou-based Hua Chuang Securities opened NEEQ trading accounts for 284 clients. In the self-inspection process ordered by the securities regulators in March and April, the securities firm did not disclose any violations. But Shanghai securities market regulators subsequently found that 96.8% of them were not eligible. Meanwhile, the Shanghai branch of Beijing-based Dongxing Securities had opened NEEQ trading accounts for 418 ineligible investors from May 15, 2015, through March 2016, according to regulators. The Shanghai Securities Regulatory Bureau has decided to suspend both security firms' right to open new NEEQ trading accounts for six months since Oct. 10. In Anhui province, the provincial Securities Regulatory Bureau demanded that Huaan Securities, based in Anhui's capital of Hefei, improve before Nov. 15 its procedures for opening NEEQ trading accounts due to the inadequate risk control in place. In March, the China Securities Regulatory Commission further clarified the entry barriers for investing on the new third board, requiring retail investors to not only own securities assets worth at least 5 million yuan ($742,000) on the previous trading day, but also have more than two years of investment experience in securities or a professional background related to accounting, investment and finance. A professional designation recognized by China such as certified public accountant (CPA) and chartered financial analyst (CFA) also count. For institutional investors, a 5 million yuan capital contribution from shareholders is required, evidenced by audited financial statements or capital verification reports made by accounting firms. Contact reporter Dong Tongjian (tongjiandong@caixin.com); editor Ken Howe (kennethhowe@caixin.com) Error 404 Not Found You may have mis-typed the URL. Or the page has been removed. Actually, there is nothing to see here... Click on the links below to do something, Thanks! Take Me our of here by Larissa Faw , October 19, 2016 Princess Yachts International is launching its first global brand campaign that features real people rather than professional models. Developed with agency BSUR Amsterdam, the campaign differs from traditional messaging where products mainly are displayed to instead focus on lifestyle. Images portray real people in normal situations heightened by the fact that they happen to be on a yacht. The scenes, photographed by Roger Neve in black and white are understated and were shot in an intimate way to make the viewer feel part of the moment. The campaign will appear in publications such as the Financial Times, Financial Times, Vanity Fair, Oracle, Mayfair Times, Wallpaper, Hole & Corner Magazine, Aston Martin Magazine and Royal Opera House. The images will also appear via out-of-home billboards around yacht shows, online and across social media. advertisement advertisement The media buy is targeting the U.S., North & South America, China, Russia Europe. Other targeted regions include Nord Africa, particularly Lebanon and Egypt and the Middle East with Qatar and Dubai. Asia countries include Singapore, Philippines and Taiwan. This is the first project between the two companies since BSUR was named global lead creative brand and communications agency in 2015. Since 2008 the Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH) group has owned the yacht company. by Steve McClellan @mp_mcclellan, October 19, 2016 TBWA\Worldwide announced that Brent Anderson, Chief Creative Officer of TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles, will be moving to TBWA\Media Arts Lab as Chief Creative Officer, leading the creative vision for TBWAs dedicated agency for Apple. Duncan Milner, who has served as Chief Creative Officer for TBWA\Media Arts Lab, will move into a new role as a Global Creative President, working on domestic and international accounts, as well as an ongoing role leading MAL\FOR GOOD, the collectives purpose-driven marketing arm, globally. The move comes less than a year after Grey Worldwide Chief Creative Officer Tor Myhren joined Apple as VP Marketing Communications. advertisement advertisement TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles will replace Andersons role in the coming weeks. The agency said that Andersons new role is a testament to his creative output and leadership during his tenure with the agency. In 2016, his work led to TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeless most successful Cannes performance in six years, with 10 Lions and 31 shortlists awarded in June across a wide array of categories including Mobile, Cyber, Innovation, PR, Outdoor and Film Craft. Among the winning work were initiatives for clients Airbnb, Gatorade, Nissan and The Grammys. Anderson also created the Gatorade Replay campaign, the most awarded campaign in Cannes 2010, which took home two Grand Prix and six Gold Lions at the festival. His work has been recognized in every major industry award show, and has been nominated for three Emmy awards. The brainchild of Media Arts Lab Chairman Lee Clow, MAL\FOR GOOD was launched in 2015 and is dedicated to cause-related work. The division focuses on clients and projects that help brands do good in the world including clients XQ from the Emerson Collective and Conservation International. by Erik Sass , Staff Writer @eriksass1, October 19, 2016 It is undoubtedly the most bizarre presidential election in recent memory and a top contender for all time. One of the many pieces of collateral weirdness is the number of publications that have abandoned their longstanding political neutrality to issue an official endorsement. The latest of these surprising partisan displays comes from Vogue, the iconic fashion publication, which has strayed from its usual haunt of haut couture to throw its bespoke hat in the ring for Hillary Clinton. Like the other first-time endorsers, in their unsigned letter to readers, Vogues editors were quick to note that the magazine doesnt usually do this kind of thing, but that unusual circumstances demanded it. Vogue has no history of political endorsements. Editors in chief have made their opinions known from time to time, but the magazine has never spoken in an election with a single voice. Given the profound stakes of this one, and the history that stands to be made, we feel that should change. Ticking off Clintons policy positions, Vogue acknowledged her issues, but argued that these are not disqualifying: We understand that Clinton has not always been a perfect candidate, yet her fierce intelligence and considerable experience are reflected in policies and positions that are clear, sound, and hopeful. With classy circumspection, the editors dont acknowledge the elephant in the room the only reason they would abandon the magazines traditional neutrality is how objectionable they find Donald Trump. At the same time, its worth noting that editor-in-chief Anna Wintour has openly supported Clinton long before this election, most recently serving as a fashion consultant to her presidential campaign, according to Politico. As noted, this is just the latest in a series of unusual endorsements from major publications. Previously, USA Today broke with tradition to argue in favor of, well, anyone but Trump, followed by The Atlantic Monthly, whose support for the Democratic candidate marks only the third endorsement in its history. (The previous ones were for Lincoln and LBJ. by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, October 19, 2016 Google has offered a survey product since 2012, but the latest version, announced Wednesday, integrates with its Analytics 360 Suite and adds a function that enables marketers to target specific surveys to groups of users who previously were exposed to certain content about products or services, according to the company. Think market research. Marketers could use the tool to help with product development or to judge the impact of branded content or a campaign. The data is tied in with performance and analytics data, Dylan Lorimer, product manager of Analytics Solutions and Measurement at Google, explains in a blog post. advertisement advertisement Available now in the U.S. and parts of Canada, the platform aims to help marketers with attribution and campaigns that extend across platforms. As mobile continues to change the consumer journey through the buying process, per Google, the shift affects the outcome of campaigns and projects. The idea is to provide rapid access to data and findings, design the survey and decide who should take it. Respondents answer questions in exchange for incentives. Google Surveys 360, previously called Google Consumer Surveys, supports a panel of more than 5 million online respondents and one million surveys fielded weekly that offers marketers access to a new layer of data and insights into consumer behavior. Marketers can use the platform to connect brand marketing to performance marketing and measure the integration of offline and online campaigns, such as the consumer response to TV ads. The platform can ask questions about TV ad recall during and after broadcasts, then follow up with questions on topics such as intent and favorability. The targeting is really the smarts. Google is helping marketers reach customers that were exposed to the TV ad. Demographics are provided--inferred on the Web and declared on app--tapping into Googles advertising technology, DoubleClick. Google says marketers can combine the TV recall data with modeling and analysis to gain a clear picture of marketing performance. During the 2016 Summer Olympics, Google executed this strategy to determine which ads were noticed by the audience, which ads drove interest, and which ads drove consumer responses. The results are available directly in the Survey 360s user interface and can be imported into the Google Analytics 360. A womans chances of pregnancy success with in vitro fertilization might be predicted through hormone levels in her hair. This is the finding of a new study published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology. Share on Pinterest The likelihood of pregnancy though IVF could be predicted through levels of cortisol in a womans hair, say researchers. Conducted by researchers from the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom, the study reveals that women with higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol in their hair were significantly less likely to conceive through in vitro fertilization (IVF) than women with lower levels. IVF is a form of assisted reproductive technology, whereby mature eggs are retrieved from the ovaries and fertilized by sperm in a laboratory. The fertilized eggs are then implanted into the uterus. According to Resolve: The National Fertility Association, the majority of women who undergo IVF have a pregnancy success rate of 25-30 percent per cycle, though this can vary widely. The chances of IVF success are influenced by a number of factors, including age, body mass index (BMI), reproductive history, and the presence of medical conditions. It has also been suggested that stress plays a role in the likelihood of pregnancy success with IVF. Cortisol and IVF success Stress is known to increase levels of the hormone cortisol; some studies have suggested that women with higher cortisol levels may have a lower chance of IVF success, though other studies have found no such link. Fast facts about infertility 1 in 8 couples in the United States have problems conceiving Approximately 11.9 percent of women in the U.S. have ever received some form of fertility treatment Most infertility cases can be treated with drug therapies or surgery; less than 3 percent of cases required assisted reproductive technology. Learn more about infertility Researchers have been interested in the role that cortisol may play in determining reproductive outcomes for some time now, not least because cortisol is typically elevated in relation to stress, says lead investigator Prof. Kavita Vedhara, of the School of Medicine at Nottingham. There has been ongoing debate within the scientific community about whether or not stress may influence fertility and pregnancy outcomes. The team points out that previous studies looking at the link between cortisol levels and IVF have solely relied on measures of the hormone in saliva, blood, and urine, which only provide short-term insight. For their study, Prof. Vedhara and colleagues added hair samples to the mix, which enabled them to measure womens cumulative cortisol levels over the past 3-6 months. The researchers enrolled 135 women of an average age of 35 who underwent IVF between December 2012 and April 2014. Of these women, 81 or 60 percent became pregnant. Over the course of 2 days, saliva samples were collected from the women. These were retrieved immediately after waking in the morning, 30 minutes after waking, and at 10 p.m. Additionally, 88 of the women provided hair samples. Both the saliva and hair samples were assessed for cortisol concentrations. A pilot study by researchers at Mayo Clinic has found that patients suffering from pain related to irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) may benefit from taking pregabalin, a neuro-pain inhibitor commonly used to treat fibromyalgia. The results of the study were presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in Las Vegas. "There currently are limited treatment options available to fight the abdominal pain associated with IBS," says Yuri Saito Loftus, M.D., the study's author. "We theorized that pregabalin could potentially be helpful." Dr. Saito-Loftus and her colleagues followed 85 patients with IBS who reported high levels of abdominal pain. These patients ranged in age from 18 to 70 years. The placebo-controlled study lasted 12 weeks. Patients who received pregabalin reported significant improvement in pain management, compared to those who received a placebo. Preliminary data also showed improvement in other IBS symptoms, including bloating and diarrhea. Dr. Saito Loftus cautions that, because the study is small, the results are not definitive. "Our study does provide preliminary evidence that pregabalin may be an additional treatment option for patients with IBS who have failed other treatment options, but more research is needed," Dr. Saito Loftus says. Previous academic research has found that having greater control over your job can help you manage work-related stress. But it's never suggested that it was a matter of life and death - until now. New research from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business finds that those in high-stress jobs with little control over their workflow die younger or are less healthy than those who have more flexibility and discretion in their jobs and are able to set their own goals as part of their employment. Using a longitudinal sample of 2,363 Wisconsin residents in their 60s over a seven-year period, they found that for individuals in low-control jobs, high job demands are associated with a 15.4 percent increase in the likelihood of death, compared to low job demands. For those in high-control jobs, high job demands are associated with a 34 percent decrease in the likelihood of death compared to low job demands. "We explored job demands, or the amount of work, time pressure and concentration demands of a job, and job control, or the amount of discretion one has over making decisions at work, as joint predictors of death," said Erik Gonzalez-Mule, assistant professor of organizational behavior and human resources at the Kelley School and the paper's lead author. "These findings suggest that stressful jobs have clear negative consequences for employee health when paired with low freedom in decision-making, while stressful jobs can actually be beneficial to employee health if also paired with freedom in decision-making." The paper, "Worked to Death: The Relationships of Job Demands and Job Control With Mortality," has been published in the journal Personnel Psychology. His co-author is Bethany Cockburn, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Iowa's Tippie College of Business. Studies exploring the work factors associated with death are largely absent from the organizational psychology and management literatures. The authors believe theirs is the first study in the management and applied psychology fields to examine the relationship between job characteristics and mortality. Gonzalez-Mule said the paper's results do not suggest that employers necessarily need to cut back on what is expected from employees. Rather, they demonstrate the value in restructuring some jobs to provide employees with more say about how the work gets done. "You can avoid the negative health consequences if you allow them to set their own goals, set their own schedules, prioritize their decision-making and the like," he said, also recommending that firms allow "employees to have a voice in the goal-setting process, so when you're telling someone what they're going to do ... it's more of a two-way conversation." Thus, micro-managing employees can have a public health impact. Among people in the study's sample, the researchers also found that the same set of causal relationships applied to their body mass index. People in high-demand jobs with low control were heavier than those in high-demand jobs with high control. "When you don't have the necessary resources to deal with a demanding job, you do this other stuff," Gonzalez-Mule said. "You might eat more, you might smoke, you might engage in some of these things to cope with it." Cancer research studies have found a correlation between eating poorly and developing the disease; at 55 percent, cancer was the leading cause of death of those in the paper's sample. Other leading causes of death were circulatory system ailments, 22 percent; and respiratory system ailments, 8 percent. The paper provides more reasons for those in stressful, dead-end jobs to refresh their resumes and look for other employment. Twenty-six percent of deaths occurred in people in frontline service jobs, and 32 percent of deaths occurred in people with manufacturing jobs who also reported high job demands and low control. "What we found is that those people that are in entry-level service jobs and construction jobs have pretty high death rates, more so than people in professional jobs and office positions," he said. "Interestingly, we found a really low rate of death among agricultural workers." Gonzalez-Mule said the new study highlights the benefits of job crafting, a relatively new process that enables employees to mold and redesign their job to make it more meaningful. Other research suggests that workers who engage in job crafting are happier and are more productive than co-workers who don't. "In some settings, it will be difficult to do this. For a construction worker, it's going to really hard to allow them autonomy; there's usually just one right way to do things. In jobs like that, it's more about just warning the employee of the risks that are here," he said. "But with some blue-collar jobs, you can. Some people have experimented with this in factory settings, using things like flex-time and paying people based on piece-rate ... showing employees what the outcome is of their work. "There's a lot research that shows that people who have a social connection with the beneficiaries of their work are much more satisfied and have less stress in their jobs, with no change in the job itself." Their study also found that people with a higher degree of control over their work tend to find stress to be useful. "Stressful jobs cause you to find ways to problem-solve and work through ways to get the work done. Having higher control gives you the resources you need to do that," Gonzalez-Mule said. "A stressful job then, instead of being something debilitating, can be something that's energizing. You're able to set your own goals, you're able to prioritize work. You can go about deciding how you're going to get it done. That stress then becomes something you enjoy." Data in the study was obtained from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study, which followed more than 10,000 people who graduated from Wisconsin high schools in 1957. They were interviewed at various time intervals over their lives, through 2011, to provide data on educational, occupational and emotional experiences. All participants in the study were employed but near the end of their careers. Gonzalez-Mule and Cockburn only included those who were not retired in 2004 and who responded to questions about job demands and job control, and then followed up on their responses to questions in 2011. They employed rigorous controls for factors such as demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status and affect. Gonzalez-Mule wonders if younger workers are better able to cope with demanding jobs, regardless of the level of control, than workers at the end of their careers. Future research could follow people at an earlier point in their careers to see if the Job Demands-Control Model accurately predicts strain over time. Advertisement "Through the understanding of how the antiviral protein viperin prohibits TBE virus, we were able to identify two new weaknesses of the TBE virus that will hopefully be utilized in the future to develop efficient ways of breaking TBE infection," says Kirstin Vonderstein, doctoral student at the Department of Clinical Microbiology and author of the dissertation.Since viruses use the cell building blocks to multiply and spread to other cells, the cells have developed mechanisms to recognise and defend themselves against viruses. A key component in the cell's early defense mechanism against viral infections is the signal protein interferon, which is submitted as a warning to adjacent cells. These cells are then able to produce proteins that protect themselves against viral attacks. One of the cell protecting proteins is viperin.Kirstin Vonderstein, together with research colleagues at the Unit for Virology, has studied how viperin is active in its defense against TBEV. Research shows that viperin prohibits viral multiplication inside the cells as well as limits the amount of functional viruses that can leave the cells. In addition, the researchers found that viperin does not act on its own, but needs other cell proteins to perform its function."The discovery provides us with an increased understanding of how this antiviral protein hampers the TBEV and what happens in the cells when the virus is being fought. Further research is required to elucidate the antiviral mechanisms of viperin in detail, but our hope is that this discovery will lead to an efficient drug against TBE in the long run," says Kirstin Vonderstein.Source: Eurekalert 'Ali Hamidi, a Syrian journalist opposed to the regime, called on regime opponents to abandon the political solution and ignite an all-out war in Syrian order to force the world to step in and end it. Writing on a Syrian opposition website, he said that the brutal offensive waged in recent weeks by the Assad regime and by Russia against the rebel-held eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo is nothing less than a holocaust and slaughter for its own sake. He leveled harsh criticism at the international community, headed by the U.S., for the situation in the city, saying that their failure to intervene does not stem from helplessness or a lack of influence but rather from a lack of willingness to stop Assad and Russia. The following are excerpts from his article:[1] Devastation in Aleppo (image: Aljazeera.com) "It would be absurd to write anything or make any comment about the all-out war of extermination currently being waged by Russia and the Assad regime against the 'besieged neighborhoods' of eastern Aleppo. This is [nothing less than] a holocaust; it is the ongoing indiscriminate killing of civilians without any military justification... Its objective was and is nothing but killing for its own sake. Many of us have made efforts to find definitions and reasons for this [military] action. We have heard, for example, that its objective is ethnic and sectarian cleansing; that it is an attempt to pressure the civilians in eastern Aleppo to leave or to disassociate themselves from the militants; that it is a holy war against the Sunnis, and many other analyses that are belied by the scenes of bombing and indiscriminate killing. At this point analyses and theories fail, and the main [insight] that emerges is that [it is nothing but] the killing of anyone opposed to the Assad regime... "Can we really say today that the world is helpless? I think that would be the greatest and falsest compliment we could bestow upon this world - for the international community was not, is not and will never be helpless. It has ability and influence, if it only wanted [to use them]. But the simple [truth is] that nobody wants to stop Assad and Russia - neither the U.S. nor Europe nor anyone else... "In the UN Security Council session on Aleppo [on September 25, 2016], UN envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura expressed concern about the firing of '[gas] canisters' from [rebel-held] eastern Aleppo into the [regime-held] western [parts of the city]. But he did not mention the kinds of missiles and mortars fired on the people [of the city], nor did he mention the over 300 victims [that are killed] every day as he delivered this miserable speech. Even more disturbing were the statements made by the representatives of the permanent Security Council members, who parrot hollow words of commiseration that are nothing but humiliating pleas [directed at] Russia, beseeching it to do its best to restrain Assad and restore the fragile ceasefire... "Are we not being naive when we wait for others to make their considerations, and hand them the keys to our cities [while we sit around,] waiting to be bombed? We wait for Barack Obama to [formulate] a policy [on Syria], when everyone is quite convinced that his departing administration will do nothing for those who are being killed in Aleppo and elsewhere, and that he and his team are not really doing anything to topple the Assad regime or to compete with Russia and Iran by supporting [the Syrian opposition]. If this is the position of the [world] leadership, there is no point in expecting anything from the countries it leads. "Eastern Aleppo is in flames and its people are dying, and the entire world is party to this crime. Therefore, all the efforts that are currently being invested in renewing the dialogue with the Assad regime must be diverted to starting a war - an all-out war that will burn everyone. Then the world will hurry to stop it. "The statements we hear, that only the political solution exists, are not realistic in the least. In fact, even the Assad regime does not accept them. Hence it would be folly to continue pinning our hopes on political [solutions] or on the 'friendly' countries. [Such suggestions] are tantamount to asking the people of Aleppo to surrender [just] in hope of being allowed to negotiating for the lives of those who still survive... "To those who ask what alternative exists, [I say]: Why shouldn't everyone who is dedicated to the cause [of saving syria] divert his efforts from the political channel to looking for weapons, even on the black market, so as to deliver them to the fighters in order to start an [all-out] war[?]" Endnote: No matter how much we criticize our Prime Minister Narendra Modi, one thing we must acknowledge is the fact that he is doing some incredible work. One such initiative was announced in his Himachal Pradesh visit, where he dedicated three hydro-electric projects (HEPs), with a generating capacity of 1,732 MW, to the nation. All these three power projects are equipped with generating equipment supplied and commissioned by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL). These power projects are Koldam HEP (4x200 MW) of NTPC, Parbati HEP Stage-III (4x130 MW) of NHPC and Rampur HEP (6x68.67 MW) of SJVN. wikimedia The event was graced by Acharya Devvrat, Governor of Himachal Pradesh, Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, J P Nadda Union Health Minister and Power Minister Piyush Goyal. When it comes to hydro-electric projects, BHEL is highly experienced and has contracted over 500 hydro generating sets with a cumulative capacity of nearly 29,000 MW of various ratings in India and abroad. This move is definitely going to be beneficial for the environment since the increasing number of hydroprojects would result in reduction of greenhouse gas emission. Reportedly the government is considering including the large hydro projects in the fold of renewable energy to kick-start these projects. wikimedia Its not for the first time that PM Modi has left us amazed with his initiatives. The recent surgical strikes are proof that he is not someone who will stay quiet when it comes to external threats. In fact, earlier when he was mocked by people for wearing a suit with his name monogrammed on it, lets not forget that he is also someone who got the BRICS leaders to wear Indian jackets, making it a proud moment for the whole nation. After all, its not every day that you see globally prominent leaders adorn desi clothes. Undoubtedly, this man is leaving no stone unturned in making India stand out in front of the world. Source: The Times Of India The resolution is not expected to have direct impact on Jerusalem itself, but it deepened tensions within UNESCO, which is also facing a diplomatic dispute between Japan and China that threatens funding. The board adopted the measure by consensus in its morning session at Paris-based UNESCO. A draft form of the resolution had already been approved by a commission last week. UNESCO's executive board on Tuesday approved a resolution that Israel says denies the deep historic Jewish connection to holy sites in Jerusalem -- and that has angered Israel's government and many Jews around the world. The resolution, titled "Occupied Palestine," is the latest of several measures at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization over decades that Israelis see as evidence of ingrained anti-Israel bias within the United Nations, where Israel and its allies are far outnumbered by Arab countries and their supporters. Israel's concern has mounted since UNESCO states admitted Palestine as a member in 2011. Israel last week suspended its ties with UNESCO over the draft resolution, which uses only the Islamic name for a hilltop compound sacred to both Jews and Muslims. The site includes the Western Wall, a remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where Jews can pray. Jews refer to the hilltop compound in Jerusalem's Old City as the Temple Mount. Muslims refer to it as al-Haram al-Sharif, Arabic for the Noble Sanctuary, and it includes the Al-Aqsa mosque and the golden Dome of the Rock. It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest in Islam, after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. Israel had already suspended its funding to UNESCO when Palestinian membership was approved, along with the United States, which used to provide 22 percent of the agency's budget. The longstanding dispute is also linked to Israel's refusal to grant visas to UNESCO experts to go in the country and assess the level of preservation of the holy sites in Jerusalem. And now Japan, UNESCO's second-biggest funder, is threatening to halt funding. Japan announced last week it has withheld its annual UNESCO dues, saying it wants to make sure the UN body properly functions to foster trust among member nations. The decision is believed linked to UNESCO's listing last year of Chinese Rape of Nanking documents as a memory of the world. The advanced age of taxi drivers in Seoul has recently become a hot issue after a number of them breathed their last behind the wheel. According to the Korea Transportation Safety Authority, 19.5 percent of all taxi drivers in the nation were 65 or older at the end of last year, and in Seoul 51 percent are over 60. According to a 2013 study by the KTSA, a whopping 73.1 percent of cab drivers over 65 who had driven taxis for more than 25 years were involved in car accidents in the previous three years, compared to only 7.5 percent who had driven taxis for less than five years. That means elderly drivers are 10 times more likely to get into accidents than younger ones. This is a current list of the top 250 companies by market capitalization on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Learn more . The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is one of the largest, and most recognizable, stock exchanges in the world. The NYSE is in New York City, New York at 11 Wall Street. The NYSE has been in existence since the earliest days of the United States becoming a nation, in 1792 and is primarily made up of blue-chip companies with large market capitalizations. In fact, many of the stocks that make up the Dow Jones Composite Index (i.e. The Dow) are listed on the NYSE. This article gives a brief history of the New York Stock Exchange. In addition, it covers topics such as what kind of stocks trade on the exchange, what are the listing requirements, how trading is performed, and what the daily price movement of the NYSE tells investors about investor sentiment. What Were the Origins of the NYSE? Today, the New York Stock Exchange is known as the center of the financial universe. However, the exchanges origin is far more humble. On May 17, 1792, 24 stockbrokers signed the Buttonwood Agreement creating a centralized exchange to help provide order to the securities market in what was still a young nation. The "Buttonwood Agreement comes from the tree of the same name under which the founders signed the agreement. An initial benefit of the exchange was how it removed the need for auctioneers when trading commodities like wheat and tobacco and to set a commission rate. The exchange initially focused on government bonds. However, the exchange had no formal home. Business was usually conducted informally in the local coffeehouses. In 1817, the exchange changed its name to the New York Stock & Exchange Board which later became the New York Stock Exchange. At this time, the exchange adopted a constitution that set the rules for trading. A group of stockbrokers met twice a day at 40 Wall Street to trade 30 stocks and bonds. Over time, the exchange moved became the financial hub of the country and moved to its current location in 1865. What Kind of Stocks Trade on the NYSE? As of June 2022, the NYSE includes approximately 2,400 companies with a market capitalization of over $28.2 trillion. Although the NYSE trades stocks of all market capitalizations, its best known for trading the stocks of large cap companies. These have the benefit of being mature companies in mature industries. And many of these companies reward shareholders with dividends. However, that also means that many of these companies are better suited for value investors as opposed to growth investors. In bear markets this stability can be a benefit for investors as these stocks tend to perform less bad than more volatile stocks. But in a bull market, these stocks are not likely to provide investors with the growth that they look for. An interesting fact about how the NYSE and NASDAQ operate is that the companies with the five largest market caps on the NYSE are also listed on the NASDAQ exchange. What Are the Listing Requirements For the NYSE? The NYSE has strict guidelines that govern the types of companies that can list on the exchange. Here are the major requirements that all companies must meet: The company must have at least 2,200 shareholders The company must trade over 100,000 shares per month The company must have a market valuation of over $100 million The company must generate more than $75 million in annual revenue However, there is at least one advantage of having such stringent requirements. That is the companies that meet the requirements generally find it easier to get more investors funds when they hold their initial public offering (IPO). Once a company begins trading on the NYSE, it must continue to meet these requirements. If it doesnt it can be delisted. In addition to these requirements, the stock must continue to trade above $1. If the price of a stock drops below $1 for more than 29 consecutive trading days, the stock receives an Initial Price Violation Notice. At that point, the company has 10 days to provide the exchange with a plan for bringing their shares above $1. How are Trades Executed on the NYSE? For over a century, the floor of the NYSE was the place for investors to be. This meant trades were conducted by traders who ran buy and sell orders across the trading floor looking to broker a deal for their clients. But with the birth of the NASDAQ exchange in 1971, the New York Stock Exchange began conducting electronic trading. However, the NYSE continues to conduct trades in an auction style. Brokers purchase stocks on behalf of their clients or firms. Every order features a broker who will enter the order electronically and a specialist who serves as the market maker for that stock. The specialist posts bid and ask prices and manages the actual execution of the trades. And there are still a handful of stockbrokers who still traffic buy and sell orders physically on the floor of the exchange. How Does the NYSE Signal Investor Sentiment? Like its counterpart, the NASDAQ, the NYSE measures the risk appetite of investors. When the NYSE is moving higher over a length of time, it signals that a risk on environment. Conversely when the NYSE moves lower over a significant period, it signals that investors are moving to a risk off position. Some Final Thoughts on the NYSE Financial news networks plan their programming schedule around the opening and closing bell of the New York Stock Exchange. Its still considered a distinguished honor when individuals or groups are invited to ring the opening bell. In fact, Warren Buffett is attributed with saying that in the short term, the stock market acts like a voting machine. A fact that many U.S. presidents will attest to. The NYSE is the oldest and most recognizable of all the stock exchanges. It also has the most stringent requirements for inclusion. And those requirements must be maintained even after a stock begins publicly trading on the exchange. Although the NYSE still has a small in-person Trading Floor, much of the trading is done electronically to provide traders with the speed to execute trades. The following companies are subsidiares of Procter & Gamble: "Petersburg Products International" LLC, "Procter & Gamble Services" LLC, "Procter & Gamble" LLC, 1837 LLC, Agile Pursuits Franchising Inc., Agile Pursuits Inc., Ambi Pur, Arbora & Ausonia, Arbora & Ausonia S.L.U., Avon - Giorgio Beverly Hills, Billie, Braun GmbH, Braun Shanghai Co. Ltd., Celtic Insurance Company Inc., Charlie Banana USA LLC, Corporativo Procter & Gamble S. de R.L. de C.V., DDFSkincare, Detergent Products B.V., Detergent Products SARL, Detergenti S.A., FPG Oleochemicals Sdn. Bhd., Fameccanica Data S.p.A., Fameccanica Industria e Comercio Do Brasil LTDA., Fameccanica Machinery Shanghai Co. Ltd., Fameccanica North America Inc., Farmacy Beauty, Fater Central Europe SRL, Fater Eastern Europe LLC, Fater Portugal Unipessoal Lda, Fater S.p.A., Fater Temizlik Urunleri Ltd STI, First Aid Beauty, First Aid Beauty Limited, Folgers Coffee, Fountain Square Music Publishing Co. Inc., Gillette Australia Pty. Ltd., Gillette China Limited, Gillette Commercial Operations North America, Gillette Diversified Operations Pvt. Ltd., Gillette Egypt S.A.E., Gillette Group UK Ltd, Gillette Holding Company LLC, Gillette Holding GmbH, Gillette India Limited, Gillette Industries Ltd., Gillette International B.V., Gillette Latin America Holding B.V., Gillette Management LLC, Gillette Pakistan Limited, Gillette Poland International Sp. z.o.o., Gillette Shanghai Ltd., Gillette U.K. Limited, Gillette del Uruguay S.A., Hyginett KFT, Industries Marocaines Modernes SA, Inversiones Plaza LLC, LLC "Procter & Gamble - Novomoskovsk", LLC "Procter & Gamble Distributorskaya Compania", LLC Procter & and Gamble Ukraine, Laboratoire Mediflor S.A.S., Laboratorios Vicks S.L.U., Lamberts Healthcare Ltd., Liberty Street Music Publishing Company Inc., Limited Liability Company 'Procter & Gamble Trading Ukraine', MDVIP, MERCK KGAA NPV, Marcvenca Inversiones C.A., Merck Consumer Healthcare, Modern Industries Company - Dammam, Modern Products Company - Jeddah, Native, Nature's Best Health Products Ltd., New Chapter Canada Inc., New Chapter Inc., Nioxin Research Laboratories, Noxell Corporation, OUAI, Olay LLC, Oral-B Laboratories, P&G Consumer Health Germany GmbH, P&G Distribution East Africa Limited, P&G Distribution Morocco SAS, P&G Hair Care Holding Inc., P&G Health Austria GmbH & Co. OG, P&G Health France S.A.S., P&G Health Germany GmbH, P&G Healthcare Zhejiang Limited, P&G Industrial Peru S.R.L., P&G Innovation Godo Kaisha, P&G Investment Management Ltd., P&G Israel M.D.O. Ltd., P&G Japan G.K., P&G K.K., P&G Northeast Asia Pte. Ltd., P&G Prestige Godo Kaisha, P&G South African Trading Pty. Ltd., P&G-Clairol, PG13 Launchpad Alpha Inc., PG13 Launchpad Beta Inc., PG13 Launchpad Gamma Inc., PGT Healthcare LLP, PT Procter & Gamble Home Products Indonesia, PT Procter & Gamble Operations Indonesia, Phase II Holdings Corporation, Pressbox, Procter & Gamble Algeria EURL, Procter & Gamble Amazon Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Amiens S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Argentina SRL, Procter & Gamble Asia Pte. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Australia Proprietary Limited, Procter & Gamble Azerbaijan Services LLC, Procter & Gamble Bangladesh Private Ltd., Procter & Gamble Blois S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Brazil Holdings B.V., Procter & Gamble Bulgaria EOOD, Procter & Gamble Business Services Canada Company, Procter & Gamble Canada Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Chengdu Ltd., Procter & Gamble Chile Limitada, Procter & Gamble China Ltd., Procter & Gamble China Sales Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Colombia Ltda., Procter & Gamble Commercial LLC, Procter & Gamble Czech Republic s.r.o., Procter & Gamble DS Polska Sp. z o.o., Procter & Gamble Danmark ApS, Procter & Gamble Detergent Beijing Ltd., Procter & Gamble Deutschland GmbH, Procter & Gamble Distributing New Zealand Limited, Procter & Gamble Distributing Philippines Inc., Procter & Gamble Distribution Company Europe BV, Procter & Gamble Distribution S.R.L., Procter & Gamble Eastern Europe LLC, Procter & Gamble Ecuador Cia. 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Inc., Rosemount LLC, SPD Development Company Limited, SPD Swiss Precision Diagnostics GmbH, Series Acquisition B.V., Seven Seas Limited, Shulton Inc., Snowberry, Snowberry New Zealand Limited, Sunflower Distributing LLC, TAOS - FL LLC, TAOS Retail LLC, THIS IS L, TULA, Tambrands, Tambrands Inc., Temple Trees Impex & Investment Private Limited, The Art of Shaving, The Art of Shaving - FL LLC, The Dover Wipes Company, The Gillette Company, The Gillette Company LLC, The Gillette co., The Iams Company Inc., The Procter & Gamble Distributing LLC, The Procter & Gamble Global Finance Company LLC, The Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Company, The Procter & Gamble Paper Products Company, The Procter & Gamble U.S. Business Services Company, This is L., This is L. Inc., Thomas Hedley Co, US CD LLC, Vidal Sassoon Shanghai Academy, VitaminHaus Pty Ltd, Walker & Co. Brands Inc., Walker & Company Brands, Wella AG, Zenlen Inc., Zirh, and iMFLUX Inc.. Read More The White House on Monday defended the decision to station a U.S. Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery in South Korea, citing North Korea's latest launch of medium-range ballistic missile and its threat to conduct another nuclear test. The U.S. "has worked with our partners and allies in the region to isolate North Korea and to apply pressure to them to try to persuade them not to engage in this kind of destabilizing behavior," White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said. "And the United States is prepared and has mobilized the appropriate military resources to defend our allies and ourselves." "And that is why [we have] been in discussions with our South Korean allies about deploying a THAAD battery, an anti-ballistic missile battery, to South Korea to protect South Korea from the ballistic missile threat emanating from North Korea," he added. The decision to station the THAAD battery here has angered China as well as North Korea and exacerbated tensions in the region. Earnest also commented on threats by North Korean Foreign Ministry official Ri Yong-pil of further nuclear tests and preparation for a preemptive strike on the U.S. in an interview with NBC the previous day. "We've been deeply concerned about the willingness of the North Korean regime to ignore or even flout their basic international obligations," Earnest said. "Both China and Russia have expressed concerns about this kind of destabilizing behavior from the North Koreans. And it's an indication of just how isolated the North Koreans are right now." The U.S. State Department also condemned the threat. State Department spokeswoman Anna Richey-Allen in an interview with VOA urged Pyongyang to refrain from behavior and rhetoric that heighten tensions in the region. Genesee & Wyoming Inc. owns and leases freight railroads. It operates through three segments: North American Operations, Australian Operations, and U.K./European Operations. The company transports various commodities, including agricultural products, autos and auto parts, chemicals and plastics, coal and coke, food and kindred products, lumber and forest products, metallic ores, metals, minerals and stone, petroleum products, pulp and paper, waste, and other commodities. It owns or leases 122 freight railroads, including 105 short line railroads and 2 regional freight railroads located in the United States, 8 short line railroads located in Canada, 3 railroads located in Australia, 1 railroad located in the United Kingdom, 1 railroad in Poland and Germany, and 2 railroads in the Netherlands with a total of approximately 16,200 miles of track. The company also operates 6,200 additional miles of track that is owned or leased by others. In addition, it operates deep sea maritime containers and provides bulk haulage, including coal, aggregates, cement, and infrastructure services. Further, the company provides rail service at approximately 40 ports; rail-ferry service in North America, Australia, and Europe; and contract coal loading and railcar switching for industrial customers. Genesee & Wyoming Inc. was founded in 1899 and is headquartered in Darien, Connecticut. Royal Bank of Canada operates as a diversified financial service company worldwide. The company's Personal & Commercial Banking segment offers checking and savings accounts, home equity financing, personal lending, private banking, indirect lending, including auto financing, mutual funds and self-directed brokerage accounts, guaranteed investment certificates, credit cards, and payment products and solutions; and lending, leasing, deposit, investment, foreign exchange, cash management, auto dealer financing, trade products, and services to small and medium-sized commercial businesses. This segment offers financial products and services through branches, automated teller machines, and mobile sales network. Its Wealth Management segment provides a suite of advice-based solutions and strategies to high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals, and institutional clients. The company's Insurance segment offers life, health, home, auto, travel, wealth, annuities, and reinsurance advice and solutions; and business insurance services to individual, business, and group clients through its advice centers, RBC insurance stores, and mobile advisors; digital, mobile, and social platforms; independent brokers; and travel partners. Its Investor & Treasury Services segment provides asset servicing, custody, payments, and treasury services to financial and other investors; and fund and investment administration, shareholder, private capital, performance measurement and compliance monitoring, distribution, transaction banking, cash and liquidity management, foreign exchange, and global securities finance services. The company's Capital Markets segment offers corporate and investment banking, as well as equity and debt origination, distribution, advisory services, sale, and trading services for corporations, institutional investors, asset managers, private equity firms, and governments. The company was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada. Seoul batted away a proposal by the U.S. for fighter jets from Japan, the U.S. and South Korea to fly in formation over South Korea in response to North Korea's nuclear tests, the Asahi Shimbun reported Tuesday. The U.S. sounded out the idea immediately after the North's latest nuclear test, but Seoul demurred, citing fierce resistance here to any renewed Japanese military presence, a source told the daily. Instead, a couple of the U.S.' B-1B bombers buzzed South Korean skies last month as a show of force. The U.S. had hoped to make the event a show of unity among its allies in the region, who are roughly pitted against an alliance between China and North Korea. Japan in turn refused South Korean F-15Ks fighters permission to pass through Japanese airspace en route to a multinational aerial exercise in Alaska earlier this month. Tokyo said it reserves permission to overfly for the U.S., which has a status of forces agreement with Japan, the newspaper added. South Korea's Defense Ministry denied the report. OPKO Health, Inc., a healthcare company, engages in the diagnostics and pharmaceuticals businesses in the United States, Ireland, Chile, Spain, Israel, Mexico, and internationally. The company's Diagnostics segment operates BioReference Laboratories that offers laboratory testing services for the detection, diagnosis, evaluation, monitoring, and treatment of diseases, including esoteric testing, molecular diagnostics, anatomical pathology, genetics, women's health, and correctional healthcare to physician offices, clinics, hospitals, employers and governmental units; and a novel diagnostic instrument system to provide blood test results in the point-of-care setting, as well as 4Kscore prostate cancer testing services. Its Pharmaceutical segment offers Rayaldee to treat secondary hyperparathyroidism in adults with stage 3 or 4 chronic kidney disease, and vitamin D insufficiency; OPK88004, an orally administered selective androgen receptor modulator; OPK88003, a once-weekly administered peptide for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and associated obesity that is in Phase IIb trials; and hGH-CTP, a once-weekly human growth hormone injection that completed Phase III clinical trial in partnership with Pfizer, Inc. This segment develops and commercializes longer-acting proprietary versions of already approved therapeutic proteins. The company also offers specialty APIs; develops, manufactures, markets, and sells pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, veterinary, and ophthalmic products; commercializes food supplements and over the counter products; manufactures and sells products primarily in the generics market; and imports, markets, distributes, and sells pharmaceutical products in a range of indications, including cardiovascular products, vaccines, antibiotics, gastro-intestinal products, hormones, and others. In addition, it operates pharmaceutical platforms in Ireland, Chile, Spain, and Mexico. The company was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Miami, Florida. The Marine Corps is quietly rolling out a new initiative aimed at building Marines who are fit spiritually as well as physically. In coming months, discussions about spiritual fitness and making moral choices will be part of the curriculum at the Corps' Officer Candidates School in Quantico, Virginia, and at corporals' and sergeants' courses around the service, Rear Adm. Brent Scott, chaplain of the Marine Corps, told Military.com in an interview. The service hasn't ruled out making spiritual fitness a part of boot camp as well, he said. Scott said he began planning this initiative when he arrived at his post two years ago, after reflection on the qualities that make a Marine resilient on the battlefield. "We're now at the tail end of what was a long war in Iraq and Afghanistan. We found that much of the resilience we saw was not necessarily attributed to something that somebody could do in the gym," he said. "A lot had to do with the heart and soul of the individual." Spiritual does not necessarily mean religious, Scott clarified. He breaks spiritual fitness into three parts: personal faith, personal values, and moral living and decision-making. "A moral compass doesn't just come from a faith foundation; it's not enough to make a decision based on what is legally right or wrong," Scott said. "Chaplains will help Marines discover that compass for themselves -- that center of gravity that comes from their own upbringing, personal experiences, and religious teaching." As a first line of effort, Scott said, his office is creating discussion guides around a book on the commandant's professional reading list: "What It Is Like to Go to War," by Navy Cross recipient Karl Marlantes, a Marine veteran of the Vietnam War. In the 2011 book, Marlantes describes in moving detail his journey to find spiritual absolution and peace, and his struggle with moral injury sustained in war, decades after returning home from Vietnam. He describes various ceremonies and rituals ancient cultures observed as they welcomed warriors back into society, acknowledging the transition from war to peace that must take place. "We should allow people to curse the dead for murdering their friends, and then, if the younger ones can't, the older ones, officers and NCOs, should be trained in conducting the rituals of forgiveness and healing," Marlantes writes. "Something like: 'Bless these dead our former enemies who have played out their part. Bless us who [live], whose parts are not yet done. Forgive us if we killed in anger or hatred. Forgive them if they did the same. Judgment is Yours, not ours. We are only human." Scott said two sets of discussion prompts are being designed with this book in mind: one for conversations between chaplains and Marines, and one for Marine leaders working directly with subordinate troops. Spiritual fitness elements of the OCS and NCO professional military education curricula are still being developed, Scott said, but they will emphasize "kneecap to kneecap" discussions, rather than classroom instruction. Close to the Marine Corps birthday on Nov. 10, the service will release a video featuring Scott, Commandant Gen. Robert Neller and Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Ronald Green talking about the importance of spiritual fitness. This initiative will be proved successful, Scott said, if Marines begin talking about spiritual fitness and maintaining spiritual health as openly as they discuss physical fitness and physical training. "If all you have to do is look within yourself, that runs kind of bankrupt over a period of time," Scott said. "Marines face mortality, life and death, and that's when those faith issues start to come up." -- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at@HopeSeck. Korea's exports of IT parts are suffering as China moves to reduce dependence on foreign suppliers for key components. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Tuesday said Korea's exports of industrial parts and materials to China fell 13.2 percent on-year in the first nine months of this year to US$60.4 billion. Industrial parts and materials account for 70 percent of Korea's total exports to China, and a failure by Korean manufacturers to find alternative markets or products could lead to disastrous results. Exports of electronics parts to China plunged 18.7 percent, the biggest decline. China is investing heavily to boost production of semiconductors and other IT components within its borders. Exports of chemical products to China fell 10.1 percent due to excess supply there. "We need to bolster research and development on industrial parts and materials to create products that are superior to those made in China," said Han Jae-jin at Hyundai Research Institute. "We also need to lower our dependence on exports of intermediate goods to China and boost sales of consumer goods there." Meanwhile, Korea's imports of Japanese industrial parts and materials, which had been declining until last year, have risen again. Japanese industrial parts and materials accounted for 16.5 percent of Korea's imports of such goods last year, a record low, but that has risen again to 17.6 percent this year. "Due to the economic slump, overall imports slowed, but imports of core Japanese industrial parts and components increased steadily because they're hard to replace," said Moon Byung-ki at the Korea International Trade Association. The U.S. Air Force's top officer said he expects the high pace of war-related operations to continue for decades to come. "We've been deploying now for 15 years," Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein said. "We've probably got 15, 20 years to go." His comments came Wednesday at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, during a spouse and family forum hosted by Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James. While fewer airmen are deploying, the time they spend away is increasing -- driven in part by missions related to the air war against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, a resurgent Russia and China's increased military activity in the Pacific. Rising Deployment Times On average, enlisted airmen deployed for 132 days and officers for 128 days in 2015, up from 110 days and 93 days, respectively, in 2013, according to an analysis by Air Force Times. Goldfein last month announced an initiative to deploy airmen in teams of three or more, rather than dispatching them individually. "I'm concerned that over the past 15 years, we have migrated into sending too many single airmen into combat," Goldfein said at the time. "While we will never be the service that says, if you want an airman, you get an entire squadron -- because that's not what the nation needs, we need to be a little more flexible than that -- I think the pendulum has swung a little too much to individual airmen." Continued deployment demands put pressure on the Air Force's goal of a 1:2 deploy-to-dwell time, or six months deployed and one year at home. In 2015, no career fields increased from the 1:2 mark, with all but six keeping rates of 1:3 or lower, according to Air Force Times. Family Programs Goldfein asked a panel of military family advocates how efforts such as the Exceptional Family Member Program are catering to families when loved ones are deployed. "Is there anything in our system that actually reaches out to a deployed spouse, or is a deployed spouse really looking at the exact same process as a couple that's together?" he said. Air Force Lt. Col. Andy Cruz, the 14th Medical Group deputy commander, responded, "I know from a base level that the key spouse program at the base I just came from works along with the airmen, family readiness center ... to develop different programs monthly. " Panel member Dr. Ed Tyner, deputy director of the Defense Department's special needs program, said, "At our level at OSD, we've done several trainings on doing warm handoffs," using the term to describe when a primary care provider personally introduces a patient to a behavioral health specialist. "But again, it's probably only going to be if the family member comes in and asks for it, because they won't always know [the program exists]," he said. -- Amy Bushatz contributed to this report. -- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @Oriana0214. The U.S. Army announced Wednesday it will deploy a heavy brigade from the 1st Infantry Division as part of the regular rotation to the Republic of Korea. Approximately 3,500 soldiers from the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, from Fort Riley, Kansas, will deploy this fall and replace the 1st Cavalry Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team to support the United States Forces-Korea's commitment to the Republic of Korea, according to an Oct. 19 Army press release. "I am exceptionally proud of the 1st Armored Brigade Combat team," Brig. Gen. Patrick D. Frank, deputy commanding general of the 1st Infantry Division, said in the release. "The Devil brigade has proven themselves while conducting rigorous training during Danger Focus at home station and at the National Training Center," the release states. "The leaders and soldiers of this great brigade are well-trained and fully prepared for this important mission to South Korea." The Army also announced recently that the Fort Riley-based 1st ID will deploy 500 soldiers to Iraq this fall to assume the role of Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command-Iraq support of Operation Inherent Resolve. The 1st Infantry Division Headquarters troops will replace soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), providing command and control of coalition troops training, advising and assisting Iraqi Security Forces. -- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com. Despite Flipping in Surf 4 Times in a Year, Marines Say New ACV Is the Future of Amphibious Warfare Some Marine veterans familiar with the vehicle and its operations have worried about the reliability of the ACV. U.S. Marine special operations forces recently chose the Glock 19 as their official sidearm, but this isn't the first time elite units have invested in the Austrian pistol maker. The U.S. Army's 75th Ranger Regiment decided to pure-fleet its battalions with the Glock 19 in September 2015, according to an Army source familiar with the decision who is not authorized to speak to the media. Four months later, U.S. Army Special Operations Command followed the Ranger Regiment's example and chose Glock 19 for the rest of its forces, including all Special Forces Groups and the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, the source said. Elite units had routinely authorized personnel to carry the Glock 9mm pistol instead of the standard-issue M9 9mm pistol. But this latest decision by Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, or MARSOC, to follow Army special operations forces in choosing to use only the Glock 19 speaks to Glock's standing in the world of military sidearms. "It came down to feedback from the field," MARSOC spokesman Maj. Nick Mannweiler told Military.com on Tuesday. "We determined that the Glock 19 met the requirements that we needed for a concealable, reliable pistol that fired a 9mm round." Army Special Operations Command has not agreed to Military.com's interview request, but the Army has paid more than $5 million to Glock Inc. since September 2015. The compact Model 19 is one of Glock's most popular handguns. The striker-fired, 9mm pistol features a four-inch barrel and has a standard capacity of 15 rounds, although 17-round magazines are available. The polymer frame features an accessory rail for mounting lights. MARSOC'S move follows a Marine Corps decision in February that authorized MARSOC operators to carry Glock pistols, since many of the elite outfit's members prefer the popular Glock 19 9mm handgun over the custom .45 pistols the service bought them in 2012. The Corps completed an exhaustive search for a new MARSOC pistol in 2012. The service awarded a $22.5 million contract to Colt Defense LLC for up to 10,000 Close Quarter Battle Pistols. But MARSOC officials decided it would be better to streamline its pistol inventory down to one sidearm, Mannweiler said, adding that the command has purchased 1,654 Glock 19s. "That is the standard-issue sidearm now that you will see," he said. "You are not going to see 9mm M9 Berettas; you are not going to see the Colt 1911. You are going to see Glock 19s as the issued sidearm." Army's Modular Handgun System Glock is also competing against a handful of well-known pistol makers for the chance to make the Army's Modular Handgun System. The Army launched its long-awaited XM17 MHS competition in late August to replace the service's Cold War-era M9 9mm pistol. Sig Sauer, Beretta and FN Herstal are also competing for the MHS contract. The Army recently notified Smith & Wesson that it would not be advancing to the next phase of the competition. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley has considered bypassing the multi-year MHS effort and following Army Special Operations Command's decision to buy Glock 19s. Earlier this spring, Milley publicly criticized the MHS program's 356-page requirement document and lengthy testing phase, slated to cost $17 million for technology that has existed for years. The chief also asked the Army Special Operations Command's G-8 office, which oversees fielding of equipment, if there was room for the Army to join the pistol contract to buy Glock 19s, according to the Army source. Milley has since backed off of his criticisms of MHS and in early October said the program was "on track." If Glock wins the MHS contract, it stands to replace the 400,000 M9 pistols in the Defense Department's inventory since the Army is the Pentagon's executive agent for small arms. For now, Glock is staying quiet. Company spokeswoman Brandi Collins declined to comment on its recent success in the special operations world. The results are obvious by the delivery numbers. Since September 2015, the Army has taken seven delivery orders from Glock, totaling $5.6 million. Notably, the Army paid Glock $1.7 million on Feb. 16 and $3.5 million on March 23. New Glock 19s retail for $500-$600 each, but the Glocks for U.S. Army Special Operations Command currently cost about $320, the source said. -- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com. A U.S. service member was killed and another was injured in an insider attack on Wednesday in Kabul, according to NATO. A U.S. civilian was also killed and two more American civilians were wounded in the incident in the capital of Afghanistan, according to a release Wednesday from NATO's Operation Resolute Support mission in the country. The slain individuals weren't immediately identified, pending notification of their family members, the release states. The injured service member and civilians are listed in stable condition, it states. An investigation into the attack is underway, according to NATO. The incident occurred while the Americans were training Afghan security forces near a coalition base, it reported. The unidentified assailant was killed, the release states. The individual was wearing an Afghan army uniform when he opened fire on the coalition forces around 11 a.m. local time, the website al-Jazeera reported. "Anytime we lose a member of our team, it is deeply painful," Gen. John W. Nicholson, commander of U.S. Forces-Afghanistan and Operation Resolute Support, said in a statement. "Our sympathies go out to the families, loved ones and the units of those involved in this incident," he added. "To those who continue to target coalition forces, ANDSF, and Afghan civilians, RS and USFOR-A will continue to pursue our Train, Advise, and Assist mission to help our partners create a better Afghanistan." The death marks the 10th fatality of a coalition member in Afghanistan in 2016 -- and the eighth of an American service member this year, according to the website icasualties.org, which tracks the information based on public records. Hundreds of coalition members have died or been wounded in so-called insider attacks in the country over the past several years, by some estimates. At least 150 troops since 2008 have been killed in insider attacks -- and in 2012 the incidents accounted for as many as 15 percent of coalition deaths, according to an analysis by the online The Long War Journal. -- Brendan McGarry can be reached at brendan.mcgarry@military.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Brendan_McGarry. The government and ruling Saenuri Party agreed on Tuesday to speed up the planned deployment of advanced weapons to respond to North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threats. The previous target was the mid-2020s, but the plans are to be brought forward by three or four years. They cover the development of various homegrown arms. Next year's budget will include the purchase of two more early-warning radar systems. They will be stationed in the southern part of the nation to detect North Korean submarine-launched ballistic missiles attacking from southern waters. Spy satellites could be rented from other countries until South Korea's indigenously produced surveillance satellite is deployed in orbit between 2021 and 2022. The government will also buy an additional 90 Taurus long-range air-to-ground missiles and add the acquisition of naval helicopters to next year's budget. The government and Saenuri Party also agreed to speed up the development of a 230 mm multiple launch rocket system to deal with North Korea's new 300 mm artillery, and to bolster cyber security. I seriously envy young couples in Surrey and Langley in this day and age, with great date night and dine out options available like the impressive new S+L Kitchen & Bar. In my early twenties, most of the date night options in my hometown suburb would have been a pub (with pull tabs), or the same casual chain restaurant I used to go to with my grade 7 volleyball team (with orders of chicken fingers and fries all around). When I heard two separate couples talking about S+L at an event I attended this summer, I knew John and I had to make the trip to Langley see what all the hype was about. S+L Kitchen & Bar is located just off Highway 1 on 200th St, as you exit towards Downtown Langley. Pruned, branded foliage greeted us out front as oversized doors were opened by a staff member to invite us into the radiantly warm and welcoming venue. I ordered an Old Fashioned to start the evening, a delightfully delicious version of my favourite cocktail that would inspire a return visit on its own, to be enjoyed again at the restaurants extended bar area. We decided on two small plates to begin our meal, the scallops (pan seared, served on a butternut squash puree with brown butter, hazelnuts, smoked bacon) and the gnudi (with brown butter and wild mushrooms). I suppose brown butter was the theme, realizing this now as I type out the ingredients, but the dishes were great for our seasonal early autumn supper. Whenever John sees a hearty pork chop on a menu, he orders it. Hes from Iowa where pork reigns supreme so he knows good chops. That was his choice for an entree, served bone-in with sweet potato puree and pickled shiitake. The dish got a lip-smacking seal of approval from the Midwest boy, although he did comment that the pickle on the mushrooms could have been toned down. I went with the feature entree that is showcased in several places on S+Ls menu card: Wagyu Beef. In partnership with Snake River Farms in Idaho, S+L offers a range of dishes featuring this unique cut. The intensely marbled steak I ordered was rich and silky, prepared sous vide and basted in butter again with the butter, I know! We topped off our decadent trio of courses with a dessert that was described as a sphere. When it arrived, I had to pull up my camera and film as our server drizzled warm creme anglaise over a white chocolate orb, which melted away to reveal a brownie dessert within. Our bellies were full and our minds were blown with this creamy coup de grace. Of course your experience at S+L doesnt need to be as indulgent as they offer a selection of lighter fare such as fresh oysters, a variety of crisp salads, sablefish, lobster pasta, eggplant parmesan, and more. They also have a full brunch menu, served Sundays from 10:00am to 2:00pm. New at S+L Since Our Visit Earlier this month, Joseph Richard Group announced that Chef Matthew Stowe joined the company as Director of Culinary Operations. Stowe, who won Top Chef Canada in 2013, is one of Canadas most talented chefs and comes to the company with 18 years of experience in some of the best known kitchens in North America. Stowe will work across all of JRGs operations, his immediate focus will be on refining the menu and leading the team at all S+L Kitchen & Bar locations, including the Langley location, which includes MasterChef Canada winner David Jorge, and the soon to be open locations in Abbotsford and South Surrey. Enter to Win S+L Kitchen & Bar has generously offered up a dinner experience for one lucky Miss604 reader and three guests! Enjoy an exclusive five course wine and food pairing experience created by JRG Director of Culinary Operations, Chef Matthew Stowe and JRG Corporate Chef, David Jorge. The meal will be prepared and served by S+L Kitchen & Bars own Chef and General Manager. Heres how you can enter to win: Leave a comment on this post (1 entry) Like, share, or comment on this post on Facebook (1 entry) Post the following on Twitter (1 entry) I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Tuesday, October 25, 2016. Must be 19+. Please enjoy responsibly. Prize is valid for S+L Kitchen & Bar in Langley at 8399 200 St. Reservation arrangements will be made for the winner and their guests for a mutually agreed upon date. Update The winner is Michelle Towstyka! Many customers are slow to return their Galaxy Note 7 smartphones to Samsung despite a spate of the phones catching fire. Korean telecoms started product exchanges or refunds last Thursday, but by Monday only 50,000 customers had turned them in, whereas an estimated 500,000 are in circulation. Of those who did, 70 percent accepted a Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge instead, and the rest Samsung Note 5, Apple iPhone 6S, LG V20 or other devices and were given the difference in cash. The vast majority seem to be waiting for the iPhone 7 or 7 Plus to hit stores so they can get a better deal. "Compared to the Note 7, the other smartphones available in the market now are outdated," one office worker said. "So I'm going to wait till the new iPhone comes out." 8th Annual Detroit Fall Beer Festival When: Oct. 21-22, 2016 Where: Eastern Market, Detroit Time/Tickets: 5-9 p.m. Friday; tickets $40 in advance, $45 at gate (if available); 1-6 p.m. Saturday; tickets sold out Contact: mibeer.com Complete beer list: mbgmash.org CHARLEVOIX, MI - Is there really "sunken treasure" at the bottom of Lake Charlevoix? Indeed, and it comes in the vessel of a stainless steel Firkin. Amy Sherman and I made a side trip to the Lake Charlevoix Brewing Company while on our recent search for Michigan's Best Pizza to ask reps about a Firkin aged at the bottom of an undisclosed location in Lake Charlevoix. This sunken treasure will be ready just in time for the Detroit Fall Beer Festival, which is Oct. 21-22, 2016 at Eastern Market. "The magical waters of Lake Charlevoix are something we can't even explain," said the brewery's co-owner Aaron Hagen, who said the beer was submerged 20 feet. "With the extra pressure and that magic water it will really strengthen the yeast and make for a really strong and potent product," said the brewery's marketing manager Andy Smith. "Potent" is the key word. The Firkin is a Belgian Quad -- "Shot the the Dome" -- that comes in at 11% ABV. It was named by head brewer Evan Keller. The Firkin will be tapped Friday on the first day of the Detroit Fall Beer Festival, but it also will be kegged and available both days at the event. Some might even make it to the Tap Room in Charlevoix, if supplies last. This weekend Lake Charlevoix Brewing Co. will also offer Up North Pale Ale; Pig Devil - Smoked Maple Bacon Porter; Double Cookie Stout; Pineapple Gose; and Acacia Amber. Overall, the fall festival will feature more than 100 breweries and 800 beers. (Complete beer list at mbgmash.org.) Lake Charlevoix Brewing Company is located at 111 Bridge Park Dr. More info at lakecharlevoixbrewing.com. GRAND RAPIDS, MI - Jim Foguth, president of True Value Builders of Wyoming, says he knows what it's like to be down and out. That's why he's promised to donate 5 percent of his company's sales to Mel Trotter Ministries, a Grand Rapids-based mission that helps troubled men and women get back on their feet. Foguth says he hopes to send Mel Trotter $200,000 by the end of 2017 from the windows, siding and roofing projects True Value Builders will install. With 24 employees at the company, Foguth said he just hired two Mel Trotter residents this month. He said he also plans to start a profit sharing and pension program for his workers. More significantly, Foguth said he also intends to hire and train Mel Trotter's residents and other disabled, homeless and mentally ill persons at a nonprofit window manufacturing plant he plans to start in 2017. Foguth, who admires American founding father Benjamin Franklin, said he plans to call his new company "Franklin's Finest Windows." "We're just extremely grateful for him and others in the community who see the value in people who are experiencing homelessness and are willing to go the extra mile and give them the opportunity to get back on their feet," said Dennis Van Kampen, CEO of Mel Trotter Ministries. "I want to employ as many people as I possibly can," said Foguth, who added he's motivated by the kindness other employers showed him 27 years ago, when he lost his home, his car and all his possessions in a messy marital breakup. After sleeping on a beach in Virginia for a month, Foguth said he was fortunate to be hired by Honeywell Corp. selling closed circuit video security systems on commission. That success led to a job selling replacement windows in Florida and eventually led him back to his hometown in West Michigan, where he started True Value Construction, which specializes in installing windows, siding and roofing systems. Besides donating to Mel Trotter, Foguth said he also is giving $25 gift certificates to his customers that can be redeemed at Mel Trotter's mission stores. "Our donation to Mel Trotter Ministries and the creation of our new nonprofit are very personal to me, because there but for the grace of God go I," Foguth said. Based in Grand Rapids' Heartside Neighborhood, Mel Trotter Ministries is a 116-year-old shelter for the homeless and hungry. The charity also operates thrift stores in Sparta and Jenison. Jessica Webster | MLive.com Ann Arbor is famous Jessica Webster | MLive.com October 19, 2016 Ann Arbor is only the sixth largest city in Michigan, but thanks to The University of Michigan and some of the city's more famous former residents, it has an outsized presence in popular culture. Inspired by a recent Saturday Night Live skit that had us snickering about a fictional - but awfully close to home - Ann Arbor Short Film Festival, we thought now would be a good time to look back at some of the other times Ann Arbor has hit the mainstream in popular culture, from Hitchcock classics to terrible "American Pie" spin-offs. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com SNL skewers the "Ann Arbor Short Film Festival" We'll start with the most recent mention. On the October 15 episode of NBC's "Saturday Night Live," host Emily Blunt and the SNL cast skewered the film festival culture - and perhaps Ann Arbor's annual film festival - with this humorous sketch. Was Alex Moffat's film festival host a take-off on Michigan Theater executive director Russ Collins? Don't Edit Jessica Webster | jessicawebster@mlive.com "Ann Arbor sounds disgusting" In the "Cones of Dunshire" episode of NBC's "Parks & Rec," Amy Poehler's Leslie Knope character is not happy to hear that her best friend is moving to Ann Arbor. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "Lost" On the hit television show "Lost," Ann Arbor was the location of the origin of the shadowy research organization called The Dharma Initiative. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com The Big Chill Michigan grad Lawrence Kasdan directed this movie about a group of University of Michigan grads who get together for a fellow grad's funeral. Michigan gear and references abound. Don't Edit Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "The FIve-Year Engagement" Shooting for the film "The Five-Year Engagement" took place over several months on the streets and in clubs and restaurants in Ann Arbor in 2011. Unlike several other movies filmed in Ann Arbor during that time, this one featured the city prominently in the movie's plot. Emily Blunt's character works at the University of Michigan in the movie, and Jason Segal's character works at a series of restaurants, including Zingerman's Deli. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "The Upside of Anger" In this preview of the 2005 movie "The Upside of Anger," Kevin Costner can be seen wearing a shirt from Ann Arbor's Mr. Stadium Coin Laundry and Dry Cleaner (1964 S. Industrial Hwy.). Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com Drake on Saturday Night Live Canadian pop star Drake plays Derek, a new Kinko's employee who grew up in Ann Arbor, went to Michigan and carries a Block M mug. The skit was cut from the broadcast but released online. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "Freaks & Geeks" In the final scene of the brilliant series "Freaks & Geeks," the Lindsay Weir character, played by Linda Cardellini, takes a bus to Ann Arbor from her home in the fictional Detroit suburb of Chippewa, ostensibly to attend an academic summit at the University of Michigan. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "House" On the Fox television show "House," the title character Gregory House and his love interest/boss Lisa Cuddy attended The University of Michigan. According to the show's backstory, Cuddy and House met in an Ann Arbor bookstore when they were both enrolled at the university. Don't Edit Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "Answer This" "Answer This" is a 2011 comedy about a Michigan grad student who enters a city-wide trivia contest. The movie was set and filmed in Ann Arbor, and bars across the campus area are featured prominently. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "American Pie Presents: The Naked Mile" In this spin-off from the popular "American Pie" movie series, a character heads to Ann Arbor to participate in the now-defunct end-of-semester Naked Mile run. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "The Men Who Stare At Goats" Ewan MacGregor stars as hapless Ann Arbor Daily Telegram reporter Bob Wilton, who investigates an American military special forces unit that has been trained in psychic warfare during the Iraq War. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "Jumper" Hayden Christensen plays an Ann Arbor high school student with special powers. Scenes from the movie were shot at Huron High School and Gallup Park. Don't Edit Jessica Webster | MLive.com "North By Northwest" Here's a classic for you. In the Alfred Hitchcock film "North By Northwest," we hear announcements for a train heading from Chicago's LaSalle Street Station to Detroit, with stops in Niles, Dowagiac, Lawton, Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Marshall, Albion, Jackson, Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. Don't Edit LANSING, MI - A group of area students traveled to Lansing on Tuesday, Oct. 18, to voice their support for proposed bills that would requires schools to consider alternatives to harsh disciplinary measures. Fourteen students and six adults from Ypsilanti and Jackson participated in a "capitol commencement" initiative on Tuesday, where they handed out cupcakes and postcards to state senators prior to their session. During the session, they presented graduation caps with a "diploma" of startling facts about harsh school discipline. The group is in favor of several house bills known as the "rethink discipline" bill packages. HB 5618 to 5621 would require schools to consider other factors and options before suspending or expelling a student, which could include restorative practices. HB 5693 to 5695 would incorporate changes made by HB 5618 to 5621 in other areas of the Revised School Code and define restorative practices as efforts that "emphasize repairing the harm to the victim and the school community caused by a student's misconduct." Advocates for the "rethink discipline" bills say they're needed to counteract zero-tolerance policies many schools adopted in the '90s - especially after the Columbine High School shooting - that offer no flexibility for school staff to consider a student's age, developmental abilities or intent when determining an appropriate disciplinary measure, according to an analysis by the House Fiscal Agency. "We want to get bills passed, for a better education," said DaQuann Harrison, a student in Ypsilanti, in a press release. The bill packages received support in the House in June, and on Tuesday, they were referred to the committee of the whole in the Senate. The students involved in the "capitol commencement" initiative are part of the Student Advocacy Center's Youth Action Michigan, a program that gives high school students skills and support to impact schools' policies that push out students. The Student Advocacy Center has been around since 1975 helping out-of-school and struggling youth find a learning path. The SAC's "capitol commencement" event is part of the national Week of Action, organized by the national Dignity In Schools Campaign. During this year's DSC Week of Action, more than 100 organizations in more than 40 cities across the country will hold rallies, marches, forums and workshops to raise awareness to end school pushout. This year's theme is: Lift Us Up! Don't Push Us Out. Nationally, groups are calling on their governments, districts and schools to: Shift funding from school police to counselors, peace builders and positive discipline. Fund and use transformative and restorative justice, mediation and positive interventions. Stop arresting and pushing out student of color, LGBTQ youth, students that are homeless and students with disabilities at higher rates. (Black students are pushed out at the highest rates nationally.) Make sure states and districts focus on school climate under the new federal Every Student Succeeds Act. End paddling and physical punishment in all schools. SAC Executive Director Peri Stone-Palmquist said it's exciting that Michigan has reached a critical stage with the "rethink discipline" bills at the very time organizations around the country are celebrating the Week of Action. "This proposed legislation represents an enormous step forward," Stone-Palmquist said. "These bills encourage second chances and give our districts more flexibility to respond in more restorative ways that truly teach and hold students accountable to their community." Sen. Rebekah Warren, D-Ann Arbor, said she wants to keep more students in the classroom by preventing "overly punitive expulsions and suspensions." "It is critical that we do everything possible to help at-risk youth become healthy, productive adults and contributors to their communities," Warren said. "Our current zero-tolerance policies give school districts too little flexibility to address non-weapon offenses on a case-by-case basis." Aysa Villanueva, a high school student from Jackson, said she doesn't understand why suspensions are used for certain infractions. "Suspensions for petty things like clothes shouldn't be necessary, because they're losing their education," she said. Villanueva and other students say they hope the bills, if passed, will send a clear message that education matters and reduce the number of out-of-school removals. YPSILANTI TOWNSHIP, MI - Police are investigating after a woman was robbed while trying to sell her wedding ring on a mobile app on Oct. 14. Police were called about 8 p.m. Oct. 14 to the 8700 block of Spinnaker Way in Ypsilanti Township for a reported robbery, according to the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office. A 35-year-old Canton woman told police she had posted her wedding ring for sale on the mobile app "Offer Up" and agreed to meet a potential buyer in a parking lot on Spinnaker Way to make the sale, said Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Keith Flores. Police said the suspect asked to look at the ring and the receipt for the ring before exchanging money. When the woman pulled out the ring and receipt, he grabbed both and fled. The ring is valued at $4,000, Flores said. The suspect was described as a black man, about 6 feet tall and 150 pounds wearing a red hoodie. Further description of the individual was not immediately available. Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office confidential tip line at 734-973-7711 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK UP. BAY CITY, MI -- A 28-year-old Reese man who drunkenly rolled his Jeep into a Bay County ditch on St. Patrick's Day is entering treatment court to tackle his alcohol issues. Spencer C. Palmreuter on Wednesday, Oct. 19, appeared before Bay County Chief District Judge Dawn A. Klida and pleaded guilty to one count of third-offense operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. The charge is a five-year felony. In exchange for his plea, Bay County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Nancy E. Borushko agreed to dismiss counts of driving while license suspended, denied, or revoked failure to report an accident, and failure to stop at the scene of a property damage accident. She also consented to him receiving a delayed sentence so he could enter into Bay County's sobriety court program. The sobriety court -- one of four treatment court programs in Bay County -- has four phases and takes participants 15 months to two years to complete. The first phase is the most intensive, with each subsequent phase decreasing in intensity. All participants must plead guilty to their third driving while intoxicated offense. If Palmreuter successfully completes the program, his conviction will be downgraded to second-offense driving while intoxicated, meaning he won't have a felony on his record. Klida told Palmreuter the final sentence won't be imposed until his time in treatment court has ended. If he ends up being terminated from the program, a Circuit Court judge will sentence him, she said. Klida did, however, order Palmreuter to pay $530 in court fines and costs and a $1,100 fee to participate in sobriety court. Palmreuter's case stems from Bay County sheriff's deputies on the afternoon of March 17 responding to a one-vehicle crash on East Kinney Road near Cotter Road in Merritt Township. A 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee had been reported in a ditch containing 2 feet of water, court records show. While deputies were on the way, Bay County Central Dispatch advised them the Jeep's lone occupant had escaped from the vehicle and was running eastbound from the scene, court records show. Before deputies arrived, a responding Hampton Township police officer nabbed the fleeing person, identified as Palmreuter, court records show. Deputies observed Palmreuter's eyes to be watery, glassy and bloodshot, that he smelled of alcohol, and that his clothes were wet and muddy, court records show. When they asked him why he fled, Palmreuter reportedly responded, "I ran?" Palmreuter went on to tell deputies he was at a friend's Bay City home and had consumed seven or eight beers. He said he was on his way home when he lost control of his Jeep and crashed it into the ditch, court records show. When deputies asked if he would be willing to attempt some field sobriety tests or breathe into a Breathalyzer, Palmreuter replied, "No, it's my right as a United States citizen to refuse any test." Palmreuter volunteered he was on probation in both Bay and Tuscola counties on drunken-driving charges. At 6:41 p.m., he ended up giving a breath sample to deputies' alcohol-testing Datamaster. The result indicated his blood alcohol level was 0.25 percent; two minutes later, a second test yielded a result of 0.24 percent, court records show. In Michigan, a person is legally intoxicated when their blood alcohol level reaches 0.08 percent. A person is considered super drunk at 0.17 percent. Before the Wednesday plea hearing ended, Judge Klida offered Palmreuter some words of encouragement. "You're a young man and this will be challenging for you," she said. "You'll get out of this program what you're willing to put into it. We want you to be successful." WINDSOR, ONTARIO -- One Canadian humane society is backpedaling on its attempts to capitalize on Donald Trump's controversial "grab her by the p****" statement. The Windsor/Essex County Humane Society put out an ad in which it joked "you don't have to be a star to grab a pussy ... cat." The advertisement was aimed at promoting the society's $50 cat adoption sale. The Windsor Star reports the ad garnered negative reaction from the public, with Windsor lawmaker Lisa Gretzky tweeting that she was "profoundly deeply disappointed" by it. I am profoundly deeply disappointed and disturbed by this advertisement. When it comes to sexual assault #itsneverok Lisa Gretzky (@LGretzky) October 19, 2016 We must ensure that demeaning behavior towards women is not perpetuated. Regardless of intent it is never acceptable #neverok #WomenMatter pic.twitter.com/tKC5FzXMG2 Lisa Gretzky (@LGretzky) October 19, 2016 The newspaper reports that Gretzky passed the advertisement around to other provincial parliament members, who were also irked enough by the advertisement to reach out to the society. Backlash from the ad resulted in a quick take-down, as it was reportedly pulled from all channels within three hours of hitting the internet. "Our intent was to poke fun at the U.S. election," the society's director, Melanie Coulter, told the Windsor Star. "We were thinking, 'Okay, we need to do an adoption program ... What can we do that will get people talking and people will share?' "We thought, 'Everybody's talking about the U.S. election.'" Korean fishermen's squid catch in the East Sea is plummeting as voracious Chinese trawler fleets decimate stocks. According to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries on Tuesday, the annual squid haul from the East Sea shrank from 88,581 tons in 2012 to 65,181 tons last year. Squid typically migrate toward South Korean waters from North Korea from July to September, but Chinese fishing boats who buy their fishing rights from North Korea catch them before they can make their way south. One source at a fisheries cooperative in Pohang said, "There are more than 1,000 Chinese trawlers estimated to be operation in North Korean waters. Squid hauls have been dropping for years now, which is a major concern." China signed a fishing pact with North Korea in 2004 that led to a huge increase in the number of Chinese trawlers in North Korean waters. According to Gangwon Province officials, Chinese fishermen have to pay US$60,000 to $80,000 for the fishing rights, and they fish in North Korean waters between June and August every year with each trawler hauling between 7 to 10 tons of fish. Yangon City Development Committee is paving the way for vendors to open stalls in a night market along Strand Road, with a plan formulated under the previous government set to take shape as soon as November. We had that plan since [the former government was in power] but we couldnt implement it, YCDCs Department of Administration deputy U Nyi Nyi told The Myanmar Times. We will soon have a night market like other countries do. The market will be in the car park on Strand Road, stretching from Ahlone Township to the intersection with Pansodan Road. Preparations include ensuring a water distribution system is in place and constructing an adequate number of public toilets. We have already constructed public toilets in two or three place on Strand Road, he said. YCDC will add facilities such as a garbage collection system, and supply electricity to the site. Select vendors selling products in the downtown area will be invited to open up a stall in the night market. We have already collected a list of vendors to open shops in the night market but right now we cant say how many stalls there will be, U Nyi Nyi said. YCDC has not released specific details of the plan. They say following this announcement of the development, they will seek to create a night market of international standard in order to attract foreigners. A draft list from the Department of Administration collected over the past few months indicates there are over 5000 street vendors in Lanma daw, Latha, Pabedan and Kyauktada Townships. Is this Yangon's future? YHT outlines ambitious vision Yangon Heritage Trust (YHT) has emphasised that street vendors are a crucial characteristic of Yangons urban landscape, and that YCDC must ensure the plan is to their benefit. It is difficult to relocate a market because it is a place for both vendors and buyers, said YHT director Daw Moe Moe Lwin. The governments plan for driving economic development is set to be unveiled in greater detail at a summit in Nay Pyi Taw at the end of the month, where officials will garner policy input from various industry leaders. When it comes to the agricultural sector, farmers and industry insiders say they expect the policy to cover all aspects of the value chain. Freedom of Farmers League president U Thein Aung said most in the agricultural sector are hoping the new policies will set a meaningful course for developing capital financing and infrastructure, and will seek greater access to foreign markets. If the policies do not seek to open up markets it can make it harder for farmers to be involved in the countrys economic growth, he said. At the same time, the policy [could help] farmers make direct connections with investors and markets. For farmers, hopes are high as are the stakes. Under the previous government, the policy remained unchanged, he said. I [hope] this governments economic policies work out or it will be like previous years where farmers are always indebted, he said. Many in the business community had expressed disappointment with the release of a mid-year economic policy outline, saying it lacked specific details. The July release of a 12-point policy outline included plans to support competition and build a stronger private sector, improve public financial management, tackle smuggling, provide more credit for farmers, promote foreign direct investment and reform state-owned enterprises. The NLDs economic committee confirmed last week that the event planned for October 22 would provide greater clarity on the 12-point plan, particularly in the area of foreign investment. But the finance and planning ministry said the event would not unveil in full detail the final economic policy. U Maung Maung Lay, a vice president at the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, previously told The Myanmar Times that senior UMFCCI representatives would be among those attending. Optimism over the US lifting of sanctions has been tempered by concerns that crucial economic issues must be addressed by a government policy in order for meaningful development to take place. Well discuss the grievances and challenges [of the business sector], U Maung Maung Lay said. Processes and strategies developed by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries were submitted to the Ministry of Planning and Finance in September. Deputy secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries U Myo Tint Htun said it was developed in consultation with sources in various departments and ministries. They focused on financing, infrastructure, milling, and processing for ease of sales and export, U Myo Tint Htun said. [We need] to have quality control after harvesting, and adaptive cultivation systems for climate change, and make things easier for getting certification and quarantine for export products, he said. It will take time to prepare a legal framework for foreign and local investors, U Myo Tint Htun conceded. However, he hoped that the new policy would have the way toward a value-added agro-based economy. The details are considered in context of the ministrys budget and the needs of stakeholders throughout the whole supply chain, he said. Yankin's Socialist-era public housing is targeted for demolition, with damaged and poorly maintained buildings set to be cleared in order to make way for modern housing developments. The Ministry of Construction announced the buildings put up by the Public Housing group under the Anti-Fascist Peoples Freedom League (AFPFL) and the Myanmar Socialist Program Party will be replaced by construction projects following a public tender. Between 1953 and 1972, 206 buildings were constructed in Ward 1 and 6. This includes 3604 rooms. The Yankin Housing Project is populated by civil servants, retired civil servants, ex-servicemen and their families. They currently rent from the Urban and Housing Development Department for a monthly fee of K12.50 per square foot. The places will be given to residents as well as [residents of] Lan Thit Avenue housing. Tenders will be invited, U Yu Khaing, director of urban housing and development under the Ministry of Construction, told The Myanmar Times yesterday. The master plan had already been written. The regional government and the Ministry of Construction will carry out this project. It is not yet known when the demolitions will begin. Over 16,000 rooms in nine state-owned housing complexes are managed by the construction ministrys Department of Urban and Housing Development. These include the Lan Thit housing project in Lanmadaw township, the Yankin township buildings, and the Hpa Sa Pa La (AFPLF) housing project in Mingalar Taung Nyunt township. These sites have been identified as the first priority. The Department of Urban and Housing Development announced an open tender on the Lan Thit site for domestic construction firms in state owned newspapers. Tenders on the Yankin and Kandawlay Hpa Sa Pa La sites will come next. Two state-owned buildings, 51st Street housing and Link Street, were demolished and replaced under the previous government. Original residents have been resettled into the new, upgraded housing. The construction company which won the tender worked in cooperation with the Department of Urban and Housing Development under a public private partnership agreement. During a the Yangon Region Hluttaw session on October 12 Yangon Region Minister for Electricity, Industry and Transportation Daw Nilar Kyaw said the apartments from Yankin Housing Project are deteriorating badly. She said the buildings are old, with roofs, windows, fences, ceilings, water and sewage pipes, as well as electricity cables, in desperate need of repair or replacement. Only a few apartments have been painted and repaired, and a lack of funding has hampered restoration efforts so far. Responding to a question from MP Daw Thidar Maung (Yankin 1), Minister Daw Nilar Kyaw said they were now at the stage of putting forward proposed architectural designs. Translation by San Layy and Win Thaw Tar Only the bravest festival goers dare to ride the human-powered Ferris wheels at Yae Kyaws Thadingyut festival each year in October. Ferris wheel workers call out to the crowd, coaxing both thrill-seekers and the faint of heart alike to take a spin, as a troupe of boys, dressed in the same monochromatic uniforms, physically turn the Ferris wheel until it reaches its top speed. Though the ride in itself is quite scary, whats more frightening is the startling lack of safety regulations as these boys protected only by their own wits scamper up and down rusting metal frames, perching themselves above the whirling seats all seemingly without any fear. The morning of October 18, following the last night of the full moon festival, the Ferris wheel troupe and construction workers dismantle the remaining pieces of the ride and get ready to clear out for the next carnival in Yuzana in Dagon Seikken township later this year. Fifteen year old Than Zaw said he has been operating Ferris wheels at carnivals and festivals across the country for the past four years. At first, I was scared, he says briefly, loading up the truck. But now I am used to it. Than Zaw is just one of the many boys working for the travelling troupes, plucked from their respective villages in all of Myanmars states and regions. As construction workers pass by carrying long metal poles, a former Ferris wheel worker turned troupe organiser, 22-year-old Ye Lin Mon, explains the employment process for these festivals. On our way down, the boys are trained before they work, Ye Lin Mon, who originally comes from Ayeyarwady Region, said. I am the organiser. I know which parts work and who has to do what job. The Myanmar Times asked him about the youngest age of his workers as the boys appear to be quite young. He claimed the youngest of his workers were 16 years old though Than Zaw, who spoke just before him, responded saying he is only 15 years old. According to the International Labour Organization, child labour is as any kind of labour that deprives children (any person under 18) of their childhood through work that requires them to leave school or puts them in physical danger. The operation of human-powered Ferris wheels by children under 18 can pose a risk to their safety and well-being, depending on the specific work they do, said Aaron Greenberg, chief of the child protection at UNICEF Myanmar. It is important that the hazardous forms of labour are clearly defined in Myanmar and awareness raising is conducted with the general public including those operating small and large businesses, Greenberg added. When asked if there are ever any accidents involved in this line of work, the organiser was curt. No one is injured in this. His seriousness is telling. These men dont have time to talk; they are hesitant to answer questions; they have to pack up and go to the next festival. This is how I make my living, how I earn my money. It is also kind of fun, Ye Lin Mon says with a half smile. Child labour is pervasive throughout Myanmar the situation is unlikely to change without a serious crackdown and enforcement of child labour laws. In an hours time, the Ferris wheel boys, the organiser, and their truck stacked with a disassembled wheel, much like the rest of the characters in Yae Kyaws festival, will be gone without a trace to the next destination. Additional reporting by Emoon A Thailand-based migrant rights group is suing senior figures from the Myanmar Overseas Employment Agencies Federation and the Ministry of Labour following accusations that the officials exploited the very workers they are meant to help. The Myanmar Association in Thailand has launched proceedings against the Ministry of Labours permanent secretary U Myo Aung, MOEAFs chair U Min Hlaing, its vice chair U Win Htun and general secretary U Kyaw Htin Kyaw for violations of Myanmars insurance and telecommunications laws. At least one of the accused has denied the allegations. U Kyaw Thaung, leader of the Thailand-based rights organisation, said the senior officials have illegally been selling Thai and Malaysian SIM cards and life insurance policies to workers travelling abroad. Each month, according to MOEAF figures, more than 7000 Myanmar citizens venture to either Malaysia or Thailand for work. There, many migrants suffer exploitation, unsafe working conditions and unfair treatment at the hands of employers and employment brokers. [These officials] are exploiting our migrant workers by cooperating with the brokers and abusing their authority. This is why I have to sue them, U Kyaw Thaung said, adding that he had sufficient evidence to support his claims. The lawsuits follow an initial complaint against the four men sent to Myanmars president as well as State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. This lawsuit is not a personal attack ... I just want to reveal the improper behaviour of officials who are meant to help workers instead of exploiting them, U Kyaw Thaung said. MOEAF chair U Min Hlaing has responded to the allegations, denying any wrongdoing. We are not selling SIM cards. We give them to the workers free of charge, he said. He added that this practice was intended to assist migrants who might face trouble abroad and need to call someone for help. He said the practice was followed since the previous government and is a protocol that was sanctioned by the Ministry of Labour. U Min Hlaing also stated that providing life insurance to migrant workers was legal and that it was based on a memorandum of understanding between the Myanmar and Thai governments under which the formers Ministry of Labour agreed to cover the cost of compensation for migrant workers injured in workplace accidents. The Myanmar Times was unsuccessful in its attempts to reach U Myo Aung, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Labour, for comment on the allegations. Activists formerly imprisoned under the Telecommunications Law are demanding an overhaul of the legislation in order to guarantee internet users freedom of expression. The Committee for Amending the Telecommunications Law was launched with 23 members at the end of September. The committee includes activists whose high-profile convictions under the law garnered national and international backlash as the legislation was wielded to suppress criticism and satire. The victims of this Telecommunications Law have gathered to discuss an amendment campaign. We are calling for the input of experts and will collect reactions and personal experiences from those who have suffered under this law, said campaign member and poet Ko Maung Saung Kha. He was convicted last year and sentenced to six months in prison after posting a poem on Facebook that included a reference to having then-president U Thein Seins image tattooed on the narrators penis. We will submit the material to the hluttaws and call for them to amend the law to include better definitions of the rules and regulations, he said. Like many of the other members of the committee, the poet was charged under section 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law, which prohibits actions that extort, threaten, obstruct, defame, disturb, inappropriately influence or intimidate and carries a maximum three-year prison term. The campaign committee hopes to have the section removed, or redefined. Under this section [66(d)] the defendant can be sentenced to up to three years in prison without bail, said lawyer U Robert San Aung. The main weakness of the law is the lack of by-laws providing the rules and regulations to guide its enforcement. Other defendants who served time under the law and are joining Ko Maung Saung Kha in the campaign include Ma Chaw Sandi Tun, also known as Chit Thami, Ko Zaw Myo Nyunt and Ko Patrick Kum Ja Lee. The Telecommunications Law was approved by the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw in 2013 in order to regulate a sector with increasing foreign investment, and to protect both service providers and users. But critics have said the law is too broad and too vague, points the campaign committee hopes to change. According to a 2015 report from the Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business, there is a clear risk that the Myanmar Government could use the 2013 Telecommunications Law to arbitrarily characterise legitimate expression as threats or an inappropriate influence, punishable as a criminal offense. The centre added that the law also allows for the government to selectively block or filter content if it is deemed in the interest of the public to do so. Ko Maung Saung Kha said if the law is truly aimed at protecting the public, it needs to be amended. [The law] is more about threatening online users rather than protecting them. And social media users are afraid, he said. They can be blackmailed like when police arrest someone whose name and face have been used for a fake account and then they cannot even get bail. Tourism authorities are planning a big shake-up in southern Shan State, cracking down on hotels and transportation companies offering tourism services without a licence. The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism in the state says it will take legal action against offenders. The ministry wants to develop tourism in Shan State, and has already announced that various fees for tourism-related licences will be halved. The state government is to launch an investigation on October 20 to identify erring companies. They delayed the operation until then so as not to clash with the Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda Festival in Inle, the ministrys assistant director, U Win Aung said on October 17. The state government had already agreed to investigate, starting October 20, in southern Shan State to see if companies offering tourism services hold one of the four types of licence required. Illegal hotels and tour transportation vehicles will be targeted. The point is to promote the long-term development of the tourist industry by ensuring that travel agencies run their businesses systematically. The investigation will cover hotels and lodging-houses, travel and tour companies both domestic and foreign, transportation, and guide qualifications. Those found to be operating without a licence will face action under the law. Tourist transportation vehicle number plates should come in red and blue, but some drivers do not possess the correct plates. Municipal guesthouses have been allowing foreign guests to stay, which is against the rules, said U Win Aung, adding that this was the first such wide-scale investigation to be launched. In May, the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism warned that tour guides found without a licence could end up behind bars for up to three years. The government cited complaints from licenced guides, who said their untrained counterparts were undercutting the profession and driving down profits. And, after a landmine blast in April at Kyaukme, Shan State, injured two foreign trekkers and an unofficial local guide, experts said the lack of training and licensing could be dangerous. The ministry said that as of August it had granted licences to 173 hotels, offering 4837 rooms, 581 regional guides and 96 international guides, and 1017 passenger motor boats, as well as issuing 15 blue number plates and 135 red plates in southern Shan State. Sai Win, chair of Myanmar Tourist Guide Association in Nyaungshwe, Shan State, welcomed the move, saying, Travel operations will be more systematic. Transportation in particular should be better regulated. The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism announced on September 21 that fees for the replacement or renewal of licences and registering a change of name or address would be reduced by half from October 1. Translation by San Layy Buses and trucks along the notorious Death Highway had better make sure they are hooked up to a Telematics system, which measures their speeds, according to police. We have a plan to ban vehicles that refuse to install the Telematics system from using the highway, Police Colonel Soe Myint Oo from the Highway Police Force said in a press conference. Buses driving along the Yangon-Nay Pyi Taw-Mandalay route have been required to have the Telematics system installed since last November, said Daw Myint Myint Shein, a spokesperson for B Smart, which won the National Road Safety Committee and Ministry of Constructions contract for their installation. Trucks needed to have the system in place by February, she said. B Smart has installed the device in about 1000 trucks and another 1000 buses, said the companys Supervisor U Aung Soe Oo. Vehicles are required to pay K25,000 monthly for the service. Trucks, defined as vehicles over 14 feet (4.25 metres) long, are allowed to use the highway if they have the system installed and are carrying items in need of quick transport: newspapers, fish, prawns, crabs, eggs, chicks, fruit and flowers, Highway Police Force officials said. Trucks, depending on their weight, are limited to 60 to 80 kilometers (37-50 miles) per hour while passenger express buses are limited to 100km an hour. After an educational period, which began in June, police began using the devices to take action against speeding drivers on September 1. Through October 5, they have charged 1424 vehicles, said Col Soe Myint Oo. Penalties carry a K50,000 fine, a one-month jail sentence or both. But the most common speeding offenders are private cars, records show. Between 2013 and 2014, traffic accidents involving private cars accounted for 85 percent of total traffic accidents, 75pc of the accidents involving a fatality and 80pc involving injuries, Col Soe Myint Oo said. Therefore, we have planned to extend the installation of Telematics to private cars travelling along the highway, he said. In September, police began monitoring the speed of private vehicles, said Highway Police Force Major Yan Naung Win. When drivers were pulled over, they were confused, noting that they had only been following the instructions of the signs on the highway. Those signs, said Yan Naung Win, were not meant to instruct drivers on the speed limit but were erected by the Ministry of Construction to measure the speed the drivers were traveling and inform the drivers of that speed. Police say their speed crackdown, which started in June, has led to a decline in accidents. Fourteen of 80 were speed-related in July, 25 of 70 were speed-related in August, and 14 of 50 were speed-related in September, said Maj Yan Naung Win. In monsoon season, cars always skid or collide with motorcycles and cattle, he said. Traffic accidents have been a major issue countrywide, as vehicle usage skyrockets while enforcement, driver training and road infrastructure lags far behind. Translation by Zar Zar Soe Schools in Maungdaw district, closed since October 10 in the aftermath of deadly attacks on border guard posts, will reopen next week, according to the district administrative department. U Ye Htut, head of the department, told The Myanmar Times that some schools in remote or conflict-sensitive areas may not resume right away but those that are able to would open their doors to students when schools elsewhere in the country do on October 25, following an extended holiday break for Thadingyut. There is not any plan yet for how to take action regarding [reopening] schools in remote areas, he said. The district encompasses the townships of Maungdaw and Buthidaung in northern Rakhine State, where 183 and 219 schools have been shuttered, respectively. U Khin Aung, head of the Maungdaw District Education Department, confirmed that classes would resume on October 25, with teachers already having been instructed to make sure they are back to school in time. The plan to reopen schools two weeks after the coordinated border guard post attacks on October 9 comes despite a persisting sense of insecurity in the region. The government announced on October 14 that the district has been designated a combat zone, and the Tatmadaw is heavily restricting access and movement in the area as security forces undertake a manhunt for the suspected attackers. A senior military official from the Kyikan Pyin Border Guard Police command post, where assailants killed six police officers in the first of three coordinated raids in the early hours of October 9, said civilians were being prevented from travelling beyond a gate there for security reasons. Police and Tatmadaw troops were still conducting clearance operations in the area and could not yet guarantee the villages safety, he said. Colonel Htin Lin, Rakhine States minister for security and border affairs, said Tatmadaw forces were systematically combing the area to root out suspected militants but had not yet completed the operation as of yesterday. According to an October 14 statement from the Presidents Office that identified perpetrators of the October 9 assault as belonging to a group called Aqa Mul Mujahidin, The attacks in Maungdaw township were systematically planned in advance over a long period of time, assisted by foreign funding and the support of members of foreign terrorist organisations. Nearly 400 militants could owe allegiance to Aqa Mul Mujahidin, said the statement, describing the attacks as intended to promote extremist violent ideology among the majority Muslim population in the area, a reference to self-identifying Rohingya Muslims. A manhunt for the perpetrators has since seen 30 attackers and five Tatmadaw personnel killed, according to an October 17 press conference featuring senior members of the cabinet. Rights groups have urged restraint as the crackdown continues. Officials at the press conference in Nay Pyi Taw on October 17, recently returned from a trip to Rakhine State, insisted that security forces conduct in the restive region including interrogation of detainees suspected of ties to Aqa Mul Mujahidin was in accordance with the law and police procedures. According to the Rakhine State government, more than 1000 people have fled the combat zone to safer locations, including many teachers. We are working to normalise the situation around the state, cooperating with the military and trying to allow fleeing ethnic people to return to their original villages, said U Min Aung, head of Rakhine States information department. Some residents expressed scepticism that a return to business as usual at schools in Maungdaw and Buthidaung townships would be possible as soon as next week, citing lingering concerns about the security situation. Daw Ni Ni, 67, from Phar Watt Chaung village, about 1 mile (1.6 kilometres) from Kyet Yoo Pyin village in Maungdaw township, told The Myanmar Times that nearly all the residents of her village had fled in the aftermath of the attacks, with just a few men staying behind to stand guard. Both of those villages are located near Pyaungpit village, where an attack by 300 armed assailants on October 11 killed four Tatmadaw soldiers. As a teacher, how to teach without students? So far, most of the villagers are still worried about returning to the village, she said. Ma Thida Soe, 24, a teacher from Ywet Nyo Taung village who also fled to Maungdaw town, said on October 15 that the village she teaches in is surrounded by Muslim villages. She added that she worried the security presence in the area was insufficient. If the government takes strong security [precautions] for us to go back to school, I will be back. If not, I am afraid to go back, she told The Myanmar Times. However, I am a [civil] servant. I have no choice when the government orders back the teachers. U Ye Htut, the department head, allowed for the possibility that the target date for reopening schools in the district might have to be pushed back if conditions were not right. If the security in place is not strong, we have to make contingency plans for school resuming and teaching, but no idea for that [has been proposed] yet, he said. Senior officials from the World Food Programme in Myanmar have said they are very, very concerned about the governments continued refusal to let them deliver food rations to thousands of people in trouble-hit northern Rakhine State. The organisation yesterday reinstated ration entitlements for over 6000 former IDPs across the state who were removed from the ration list in July. Representatives said the ration resumption aims to prevent an escalation in community tensions amid fears that recent violence in northern Rakhine State could spread across the state. But Arsen Sahakyan, WFP partnerships officer, said that despite repeated requests to government officials, their staff were being denied access to villages across northern Rakhine State, where around 70,000 are considered entitled to rations. We have asked from township level to Union level. The official explanation [for access being denied] is that security operations are ongoing, he said. Rakhine is one of Myanmars poorest states and malnourishment is endemic across both ethnic Rakhine and Muslim minority communities. Problems accessing food is exacerbated for around 1 million Rohingya Muslims. The mainly stateless group are a minority across the state but account for the majority of people living in northern Rakhine and are denied freedom of movement by authorities, restricting many from earning a livelihood. Mr Sahakyan said about 1200 people of ethnic Rakhine origin were known to have relocated from Maungdaw to Buthidaung township following the outbreak of violence on October 9. He added that local groups have said they were providing food to those people. However, he said he did not have information about displaced Rohingya people because his staff were not allowed to access affected areas. Mr Sahakyan said that while he understood government concerns about being unable to guarantee the safety of UN workers, WFP staff are used to working under difficult circumstances and being able to deliver services to those in need was a priority. He added that staff are on standby to move the moment permission is granted. However, it remained unclear when that would be. Are they starving? WFP slashes rations for Rakhine IDPs A statement issued by the Presidents Office following a press conference on October 17 indicated that authorities believe they have already brought the threat of unexpected attack in the region under control. The statement said, Tatmadaw-police-force combined troops met head-on attacks with violent attackers occasionally during the area clearance operations, but any separate armed attacks did not occurred [sic] in main camps, towns and villages, thus it can be said that the area security is under the control. The October delivery of food aid to northern Rakhine had just gotten under way when a series of deadly attacks were launched on police stations by people the government has described as Islamist terrorists, prompting a manhunt by the Tatmadaw that has left at least 30 alleged assailants dead. Ration deliveries to Buthidaung and Maungdaw townships were halted as the violence unfolded and WFP staff on the ground are now trying to ascertain how many people received their entitlement. Mr Sahakyan said a lot of people had not got the vital supplies. U Aung Kyaw Zan, state minister for electricity, industry and transportation, said he was not aware of the WFP entreaties. WFP has not come and negotiated with us about providing food. The state government is providing food to people displaced in Buthidaung and who remain in Maungdaw, sending supplies from Sittwe to Buthidaung via waterway then onward to Maungdaw by car, he said. On October 17, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said they also were unable to give assistance to those believed to have been displaced in the violence in northern Rakhine. The total number of displaced people and their needs have not been assessed yet due to a lack of access. Humanitarian response interventions are being coordinated but are hampered by movement restrictions, the organisation noted in its weekly update. Access to medical services has also been severely curtailed, according to sources on the ground. The northern part of the state has been placed under military control and an information blackout has effectively been imposed, with international observers and foreign journalists denied permission to enter the region and even local journalists restricted from accessing areas where Muslim villages are alleged to have been razed during the militarys clearance operations. Rights groups have also alleged that extra-judicial killings are being carried out against Muslim civilians following the lethal attacks on the border guard outposts. But the Tatmadaw, which admitted security personnel have killed 30 alleged attackers, has insisted the use of lethal force was necessary. The reinstatement of the rations to former IDPs across the state is expected to last until next month, when the advent of harvest time should reduce the need for seasonal rations. The controversial initiative to cut supplies to displaced people who had since been resettled or returned to their home villages was said by WFP at the time to be aimed at easing community tension between former IDPs who were still receiving rations and their neighbours who had never been displaced and had therefore never been entitled to rations. However, a number of major aid bodies condemned the move for placing people at risk of falling into food insecurity. Additional reporting by Yee Ywal Myint State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi returns to Yangon today after a three-day trip to India, where she attended meetings of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) and the economic grouping of five nations known as BRICS. According to the State Counsellors Office website, the BRICS and BIMSTEC leaders Outreach Summit was the first-ever meeting of its kind. BRICS is an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, a grouping of five large and emerging national economies that was formed in 2009 as BRIC, with South Africa joining one year later. BIMSTEC, meanwhile, was founded as BIST-EC, consisting of Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand, in June 1997, with Myanmar joining later that year and Bhutan and Nepal also gaining membership in 2004. The seven nations with a total population of 1.5 billion formed BIMSTEC to create an enabling environment for rapid economic development through identification and implementation of specific cooperation projects in the sectors of trade, investment and industry, technology, human recourse development, tourism, agriculture, energy, and infrastructure and transportation, according to its website. In addition to the region forums, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi travelled to India at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, her first trip to the neighbouring nation since her government took power earlier this year. Officially, she went to India to attend the BIMSTEC and BRICS meetings. But this is also her first trip to India as a state visit for [promoting] the bilateral friendship, said Daw Aye Aye Soe, a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry. The state counsellor, who also serves as foreign minister, was received by an honour guard yesterday in New Delhi at Rashtrapati Bhavan, the presidential residence, where she met with Mr Modi and Indian President Pranab Mukherjee. The state counsellor met with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena as well, in the Indian coastal state of Goa on October 16, when opportunities for bilateral cooperation were discussed, according to the State Counsellors Office website. This week also offered Daw Aung San Suu Kyi another opportunity to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, whose country was the first major power the state counsellor visited since she assumed power. According to state media, the two leaders discussed advancing agreements made on her August trip to China, as well as security along the two countries shared border and recent upheaval in northern Rakhine State, where an armed assault on border guard posts and an ongoing manhunt for the militants is proving a major early challenge to her government. In answer to the clarification of the peace process and the latest events in the northern part of Rakhine State by the State Counsellor, President Xi replied that he was well convinced of the matters and would provide constructive help, the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar reported of their October 17 meeting. The report made no mention of the Chinese-backed Myitsone mega-dam, a project in Kachin State that remains suspended and the fate of which could set the tone for bilateral relations with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at the helm. Though Myanmar shares a border and cultural and historical links with both India and China, geopolitical analysts have long noted Beijings far more extensive economic ties to the Southeast Asian nation. Pledges by New Delhi in recent years to look east in a concerted push to deepen engagement with fast-growing Southeast Asia have at times been criticised as more talk than action. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as the countrys de facto leader chose first to travel to Beijing, but she dispatched President U Htin Kyaw to India that same month. The state counsellors ties to India date back to her childhood, when her mother, Daw Khin Kyi, served as Myanmars ambassador in New Delhi. Mandalay's regional government has appealed to the Ministry of Education to assist in filling vacant teaching positions in primary schools across the regions rural and remote areas. U Khin Maung Myint, a deputy director of Mandalays education office, said 162 new teachers were needed to fill gaps in the regions primary schools. We assigned many teachers to primary schools in Mandalay in July this year but we have not been able to fill all the positions. Some teachers [who were initially assigned to schools in the region] have given reasons why they cannot fulfill their assignments. For example, some of them have other jobs, U Khin Maung Myint said. We have made a request for replacements to the Ministry of Education. We hope to fill the positions once the ministry responds to our request, he said. More than 900,000 students are enrolled across Mandalay Region this academic year, a number which has increased on previous years due to the introduction of free education, according to the regions education office. U Khin Maung Myint said that the vacancies were mostly in areas far from the relevant townships education office and that the replacement teachers would be sent to these areas. He added that there is a general need for more teachers across Mandalay, a problem exacerbated by high teacher turnover. There are enough teachers in the schools in the cities but there are not enough teachers in the places which are very far from the cities, said one female primary school teacher. Many female teachers find it hard to work in places which are remote. Translation by Win Thaw Tar Cameras will be installed at Mandalays busiest intersections in a bid to reduce the citys chronic traffic problems, Mandalay City Development Committee has announced. CCTV cameras have been installed since the first week of October. Traffic jams will now be managed with the help of CCTV, said Daw Hnin Thidar Ko, an engineer for MCDC. She added that in addition to monitoring traffic conditions, the cameras will be used to prosecute drivers who disregard road rules. The city already has installed 11 cameras on major roads. Mandalays residents are reserving judgement on the project, however, waiting to see whether it will yield results. I have never heard of problems of theft and traffic jams being solved through CCTV. If the technology does not solve these issues, it is not money well spent, said teacher U Soe Naing. The cost of installing the cameras and the accompanying laser-operated real-time traffic lights is estimated to be K110 million, which will be drawn from MCDCs 2016-17 budget. The project is being implemented by MCDC and Dream Light Technology Co Ltd and is expected to be complete by March 2017. Translation by Khine Thazin Han The government has launched a five-member team tasked with investigating the reason for the deadly sinking of the Aung Soe Moe Kyaw 2, a ferry that went under in Sagaing Region on October 15. The investigative team is scheduled to conduct a field investigation tomorrow, the Ministry of Transportation and Communication said yesterday. Survivors say the boat, which was headed to Monywa from Homalin township on the Chindwin River, had as many as 300 people on board, well over the legal limit, before it sunk in Kani township. The death toll has not yet been announced, but there were 158 survivors as of October 17 and dozens of bodies, Sagaing Region Water Transport Department head U Phyo Min Khin told The Myanmar Times yesterday. Early reports indicate the ferry struck a rock. We will attempt to determine who the responsible person is in this case, said U Thaung Kyine, deputy director general of the Yangon Department of Marine Administration and a member of the investigating team. Some members are going there now. We will send our findings to our director general. The rescue process is being led by the regional department in Kani township, said U Phyo Min Khin. Members of the Red Cross, the fire brigade, NGOs, and organisations like the Department of Relief and Resettlement are also participating in the rescue effort. We are undertaking the rescue processes and salvaging the dead bodies, he said. The Sagaing Region Water Transport Department is starting an investigation of its own, U Thaung Kyaing said. Though the 40-tonne ferry was called the Aung Soe Moe Kyaw 2, its licence refers to it as the Shwe Thiha, said Ministry of Transportation and Communication assistant secretary U Win Zaw. As of October 17, a crackdown on ferry operators had led to four arrests. Translation by Thiri Min Htun and Win Thaw Tar Police have permission to shoot if they are under attack, according to Yangon Region Minister for Security and Border Affairs Colonel Tin Aung Tun, who called for officers to be more fully armed. Speaking to the regional hluttaw yesterday he said police are combating increasingly violent crime, but have insufficient weaponry. He added that some officers have been killed or injured while on duty. In September 2015, two police officers were killed when trying to arrest a fugitive in Thanlyin township. The government gave all patrol officers taser guns for protection against criminals on September 24, 2015, said Col Tin Aung Tun. The government is trying to support the police by getting all officers fully equipped, he added. Officers assigned to zones controlled by ethnic armed groups are issued automatic firearms by the Tatmadaw, the Pyithu Hluttaw was told last year. The deputy home affairs minister said at the time that out of desperation some officers had taken to carrying swords to protect themselves. MPs approved a proposal from U Yan Aung (NLD; Mingalar Taung Nyunt), urging the appropriate departments to provide equipment, increase staff, and improve housing for the police, judiciary, and government lawyers. Additionally, the government wants to install closed circuit television cameras on every lamppost across the Yangon Region, he said. The government is implementing a security plan across eight townships at the moment but, Col Tin Aung Tun acknowledged, it has not been 100 percent successful in reducing criminal cases. MP U Kyaw Kyaw Tun (NLD; Hlaing) said that criminal cases are taking a long time to get through the courts, noting that each judge is handling 100 to 150 cases. The courts, law offices, and police stations are old and faded, he said. The government should plan for them in the budget. MP U Myint Lwin (NLD; North Okkalapa) advised the regional government to increase the number of police and build standard housing for the judges and law office staff. Col Tin Aung Tun and Attorney General U Han Htoo responded that they are still scheduled to build housing and repair courts and police stations through next fiscal year. Get ready for the blackouts. A regional minister has acknowledged that decayed powerlines and a surging demand for electricity will once again leave the commercial capital in the dark. Yangon Electricity Supply Corporation had hoped a handful of patchwork measures would help boost the supply but the lofty targets and mercurial promises of no more cuts have again evaporated in the face of the daunting task. Daw Nilar Kyaw, the regional minister for electricity, industry and transportation, said yesterday that while the regional government is trying to supply enough electricity, distribution is hampered by the governments budget. After rainy season ends, Yangon will confront its annual problem of insufficient electricity. And to make matters worse, the government is unable to guarantee enough power to avoid the annual hot season shortage, the minister told parliament yesterday. Daw Nilar Kyaw was responding in parliament to a question from lawmaker Daw Soe Pa Pa Hlaing (NLD; Pabedan) about the governments preparations for hot season. Last year, the onset of a spell of frequent blackouts in Yangon and other urban centres coincided with the swearing-in of the National League for Democracy government in late March, presenting one of the first of several legacy challenges to the fledgling leadership. The recurrent blackouts tested the patience of a public that has endured power shortages for decades. Last month, the Union minister for electricity and energy had pledged an end to the blackouts exacerbating Aprils blistering hear, and said that the total power generated in 2017 would exceed the demand before hot season kicks in. But regional minister Daw Nilar Kyaw backpedalled the boast, saying cuts would be forthcoming because of both transmission issues and a scrapped coal factory. Currently, Yangon is supplied 300 megawatts of power per day through a consortium consisting of local companies National Infrastructure Holdings and MCM Pacific, and US companies APR Energy and Ace Resources Group. Ten companies are responsible for distributing electricity to 15 of the regions townships. Although we have selected companies, we still need to improve infrastructure for electricity transmission and distribution. This infrastructure depends on our budget, Daw Nilar Kyaw said. She added that a coal factory that was slated to produce electricity for Kyauktan township has been cancelled after public backlash. The Yangon Region government wont build the coal factory after the people made their objection clear, she said. Read more: The truth behind the blackouts YESC officials announced in May that Yangon is responsible for half the countrys electricity use, with the region expected to consume between 1350 and 1400MW in the coming year. Yangon Region Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thin told parliament yesterday that there are 61 engines and turbines operating under state and privately owned companies in Yangon which can produce more than 400MW. The countrys total electricity consumption last summer exceeded 2730MW, while all power stations generated 2450MW combined, according to authorities. [October 18, 2016] Mobile Base Stations Report 2016 Ed 3 NEW YORK, Oct. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Mobile telephone networks are in transition. Network architecture must manage high data-traffic growth rates, and support new 4G services and the increased demand for broadband and Internet access. In the developed countries a high level of coverage has been achieved but capacity is inadequate as data traffic escalates beyond all expectations. In the developing countries both coverage and capacity are wanting. Macro base stations with towers cover large cells and long distances but they fail to reach effectively inside buildings, where 70-80% of mobile broadband traffic is generated. A new network concept has been launched - the HetNet, which combines large and small cell sites and different radio technologies like cellular and Wi-Fi. The first commercial HetNets are being rolled out. HetNets are the networks of the future with macro-micro coordination to improve Quality of Service. This report quantifies the macro infrastructure of today, of base stations, ground based and rooftop towers and poles, forecasts growth and $ value to 2020 in every country, with analysis of ownership and market shares of tower vendors. The report outlines tomorrow's new infrastructure, the HetNet, the macro-micro network. It outlines the technologies of macro and of micro cells and base stations, estimates current penetration and projects demand. We are in the first stage of a new wave of technology for mobile telephones - the HetNet. Network technology is evolving rapidly to meet exponential new demands. The focus is shifting from coverage to capacity, driven by the rise in data traffic. The answer is the HetNet/Heterogeneous network. Past networks were based almost entirely on macro cellular base stations mounted on towers, rooftops and poles. They were designed for volumes of voice mail which were small by today's standards. Data traffic has grown exponentially and is set to escalate by leaps and bounds, driven by the Internet, videos, and a plethora of 3G and 4G mobile devices. The HetNet is providing the solution; a network which combines all types of base station, each designed for a different purpose; macros on towers and rooftops, micro, metro, pico, DAS and Wi-Fi both inside buildings and outside. These issues are discussed and analysed in this report. Macro base stations (BTS) will remain the core of the networks, but the networks must develop more granular delivery. We have constructed a dtabase of macro base stations for every country, starting from the launch of mobile services in the 1980s. In an electricity network replacement happens when equipment is past its design life and risks failure, and the replacement may also be an up-grade. In a mobile network this is not the case. From 1G to 2G, 3G and 4G and LTE the technology of the networks must be up-dated to new generations of technology at more frequent intervals. A regional analysis of GBTs (ground based towers) and RTTs (rooftop towers) is provided. The total market is surveyed, macro and micro. Forecasts of base station capex, analysed by macro site additions, macro site upgrades and replacements, and new small cell sites with annual expenditure from 2015 to 2020. Total mobile traffic is analysed by cell site types: macro cell, in-building small cell, outdoor small cell, Wi-Fi hotspots, residential femtocell, DAS/RRH. The populations of GBTs and RTTs are analysed by region. The market for construction of new macro base stations (BTS), ground-based, rooftop and street poles, upgrades and replacement of aged assets is estimated and forecast in nominal $ from 2015 to 2020, for the world, for regions and is analysed by 213 countries. Market commentary is provide by regions and major countries. The steady growth of the macro cellular infrastructure does not fully reflect the real rate of expansion of the networks. With mobile data traffic expected to double annually, small cell base stations are set to play an important role in expanding the capacity of wireless networks. Small cells provide flexibility and increased QoS capabilities. Past development of small cells is analysed to help predict the future path. Shipments are analysed in units by cell type. The cost components of a small cell installation are analysed. Global expenditure on installing small cells with related costs and backhaul is estimated for 2015 and projected annually to 2020 for regions and 33 countries. Capex is analysed by residential/non-residential and by cell type. Tower sharing allows operators to cut down on capital expenditure. Infrastructure cost for operators is estimated to decline by 16% to 20%. Running and maintenance of tower infrastructure, form a significant portion of operator Opex. Divesting responsibility for infrastructure unlocks value. Site and/or tower sharing is the most common form of network sharing, but full network sharing is gaining traction. The various forms of infrastructure sharing are outlined and the towerco market is analysed by country. A breakdown of tower construction cost by component is given. Infrastructure and network sharing, either between operators or via independent tower owners, is growing rapidly but has a distinct regional pattern. MNOs share assets with jointly-owned infracos in Europe , Japan and many other regions. Independent towercos started in the United States and are also prevalent in India , in China since 2015, in Southeast Asia and are making headway rapidly in Sub-Saharan Africa. The incidence of sharing is given by regions and major countries with total numbers of macro towers and the numbers owned by towercos. Detailed market profiles are given for regions and leading countries. Energy accounts for 30% of the network operating costs of an MNO. 90% of sites have diesel base generators where towers are off-grid or as standby to grid supply when grid-connected. For cost and environmental reasons there is a growing trend towards renewables systems, mainly solar PV or hybrid systems of solar PV and wind power. Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p04230308-summary/view-report.html About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. http://www.reportlinker.com __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mobile-base-stations-report-2016-ed-3-300347249.html SOURCE Reportlinker [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Ghana Society, a UK-based event company, is set to make history with the first ever Batakari Festival in UK. The festival will celebrate the rich and beautiful culture of Africa during 2016 Black History Month, and is expected to gather thousands across the world to experience Ghana-made Batakari. Batakari, also known as smock, is a national dress of Ghanaians. It originated from the Northern Region of Ghana and used to be worn by kings in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions of Ghana, but now very popular across the country as well as Burkina Faso and other African countries. According to the CEO of Ghana Society, Maria Lovell, this years celebration of Batakari in the UK is to introduce the beautiful culture of Ghana to the world and also a means to create a platform for individuals and small companies from all over the world to come and showcase their unique products or services. We look forward to hosting this event every year as it is an important educational awareness of black history, she added. The Batakari Fair will take place from Monday, October 24 to Saturday, October 29, 11:00am to 5:00pm daily with cultural dance display and music. The fair will be climaxed with the prestigious 'Batakari Fundraising Dinner Dance' in Luton Lewsey Farm Learning Centre. The dinner dance is also supported by the Ghana High Commission UK, Ghana Union (London), Ghana Carnival Ambassador for Northern Region, Sherifa Gunu, D Cryme, amongst many distinguished guests and patrons. By Francis Addo (Twitter: @fdee50 Email: [email protected] ) 19.10.2016 LISTEN Fast rising rapper Fancy Gadam is set to rock the Gadam Nation concert scheduled for November 6, Sunday at the National Theatre. The young northern artiste burst onto the mainstream scene earlier this year after making headlines when he sold out his album launch at the Tamale stadium. Building on that momentum Fancy Gadam has performed alongside some of Ghana's biggest acts like Stonebwoy, VVIP and more. Fancy recently gave a spectacular performance at the just ended Stonebwoy Peace Concert held in Ashaiman. Since then, he has been steadily building on his success as he recently sealed a deal with Rush Energy Drink at an undisclosed amount as the brands Ambassador in the three Northern regions. Artistes billed for the night includes Ataaka, Nandos, Iwan and Saani among others. Gadam Nation concert is a show put together by 5PM and Gadam Nation, which is expected to be another night of thrilling music display. The show happening at the National Theatre promises to be another exciting Fancy Gadam show. Ticket for this event is selling for; GHC50 VIP and GHC30 Regular. Follow Fancy Gadam on Twitter @fancygadam2 and Fancy Gadam on Facebook or call 0509897093 for more information. The New Patriotic Party (NPP) is promising to build a large theatre for each region should they win power in the upcoming election. Speaking at a media briefing Member of Parliament for Anyaa South, Shirley Ayokor Botchwey said very little attention has been given to that creative industry but the party will reverse that trend. She announced new measures to be put in place for the industry when the party comes to power, one of which is a Creative Arts Council which will coordinate and harmonize the various interests and fragmented associations into a well functioning body to protect the interests of members. Her announcement is a follow up on the party's manifesto promises and what the party will do for the creative industry if it wins power. The manifesto said the NPP government will focus on transforming the country into a major Meeting, Incentive, Conference, & Exhibition (MICE) centre, as well as on expanding the tourism sector, through investment, innovation, the pursuit of service excellence and meaningful partnerships. This will enable tourism to become a major revenue- generating sector that provides safe, memorable and enjoyable experience for tourists. The party also promised to establish a Creative Arts Fund to make available funds to modernize and develop the creative Arts industry in Ghana. A division of the High Court will be tasked to focus on the Creative Arts and deal with all matters relating to intellectual property rights, and a dedicated enforcement unit. Below are the highlights of what the party will do under tourism, culture and creative arts We will: a. aggressively develop our tourist sites to bring them to world-class standards, complete with the requisite amenities and facilities b. pursue a deliberate marketing programme to promote our unique historical sites, flora and fauna, waterfalls and other cultural artefacts c. take the staffing of these tourist sites and our hospitality industry as a whole seriously. To improve professionalism in the sector, we will partner with the private sector to set up a state-of-the-art hospitality teaching facility, with an operational hotel, classrooms, kitchens, library, and dormitories d. encourage local communities to take ownership and be invested in the sustainability of tourist attractions in their localities, The NPP will champion a revenue- sharing programme to inject 5% of tourism revenues from fees of well-developed tourist attractions into local community projects e. promote domestic tourism, by making it an aggressive plank of our tourism strategy with a marketing drive centred on entrenching a tourism culture among Ghanaians f. review and actively implement the Culture Policy developed under the Kufuor-led NPP government to give our culture pride of place in our national development. g. build a detailed inventory of all our cultural assets, so the nation has a database of these assets. h. the Copyright Act 2005 (Act 690), among other provisions, provides for the protection of Adinkra symbols and the older Kente designs as expression of folklore. The NPP will ensure that the provisions regarding the protection of Kente and Adinkra designs are strictly enforced against illicit exploitation by foreign interests, to enable the country maximize revenue through the proper marketing of these heirlooms. i. establish a Creative Arts Fund to make available funds to modernize and develop the sector j. create a Division of the High Court, focusing on the Creative Arts to deal with all matters relating to intellectual property rights, complete with a dedicated enforcement unit k. establish a Creative Arts Council to coordinate and harmonize the various interests and fragmented associations into a well-functioning body to protect the interests of members. l. collaborate with private sector interests to acquire the technology and equipment needed to log creative works, in order to determine true and deserved royalties. m. promote regional and district literature, music, dance and drama competitions, particularly in schools and colleges, and n. pursue the construction of modern large seating theatres in every regional capital except Accra, beginning with Takoradi, Tamale and Kumasi, as well as setting up an additional Copyright Office in Tamale to cater for the northern sector in addition to the existing ones in Accra and Kumasi. Story by Ghana| Myjoyonline.com The Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ms Maite Nkoana-Mashabane Honourable Deputy Ministers of International Relations and Cooperation, Ms Nomaindia Mfeketo and Mr Luwellyn Landers, Your Excellencies Ambassadors and High Commissioners, DIRCO top management, Delegates, Distinguished guests, We welcome all our heads of mission back home for this important annual get together, where we share ideas and update you on issues and priorities to enable you to continue representing the country well. It is indeed momentous for us to meet in OR Tambo Building in the October month, which has been declared OR Tambo Month. I had a privilege to officially open this building in honour of OR in December 2011, recognising the outstanding contribution of this illustrious leader in the struggle for liberation and in shaping the South Africa we live in today. Also importantly, OR shaped the foreign policy of the democratic South Africa and laid a firm foundation as the foremost diplomat and face of the ANC during the most difficult time in our history. Former President Nelson Mandela reminded us that ORs ideals can never die when he said:- ".Oliver Tambo has not died because the ideals of freedom, human dignity and a colour-blind respect for every individual cannot perish. We urge you as our representatives abroad, to internalise the ideas of OR and build a South Africa that prioritises unity, justice and respect for democracy, equality and the human rights of all. Be inspired by OR as you make your contribution in building a prosperous South Africa, which makes meaningful progress in the fight against poverty, inequality and unemployment. We are building a South Africa where more of our people have jobs, especially the youth, and where people also have income generating opportunities through running successful small businesses and a booming township economy. It must be a South Africa where those in rural areas have land to grow their own food, and where they can also have opportunities to earn an income through a thriving rural economy. As our representative abroad you have a responsibility to build friendships and partnerships that will help us achieve these goals. The economy remains an apex priority for our country. The National Development Plan outlines what we are seeking to achieve. We want to achieve inclusive growth, jobs and a decent life for our people. South Africa remains an important investment destination in the continent, a destination of choice on many fronts, and the gateway for businesses into Africa. We have been able to draw more Foreign Direct Investment in the continent and want to continue doing so. Our infrastructure and institutions still present a competitive place to conduct business. We have a stable democracy, which was affirmed two months ago in our successful free and fair local government elections. Our exemplary leadership role on the international front has earned us widespread admiration, demonstrated in many leadership roles that we continue to play on the global stage. You are our foremost marketing and promotion officers. You need to continue to position our country positively and help us to grow the economy through global economic partnerships. Keep our country brand alive and visible everywhere. As said the economy is the apex priority. We say so mindful of the global economic meltdown and also some domestic economic constraints which are making it difficult to achieve the growth we seek. Despite the 3.3% growth in our GDP in the second quarter, our economy is still facing major challenges. The recent announcement by the Stats SA of the loss of 67 000 jobs means that we are not out of the woods yet; we need to redouble our efforts at rejuvenating and growing the economy. At about 23%, our unemployment rate remains at worrying levels, particularly among the youth. But we have plans in place to achieve our goals, especially to reignite growth. You need to familiarise yourselves more with these plans, in particular the Nine Point Plan that is our action plan to implement the NDP. The plan is aimed at promoting growth in sectors such as agriculture, energy, tourism, science and technology, industrialisation, infrastructure development amongst others. To contribute to success, it means economic diplomacy should be an apex priority. Our heads of mission need to promote various sectors of our economy to host countries. We have established good working relations with the business community, Business Unity SA and the Black Business Council. We also continue to work with Labour as part of a patriotic effort to boost inclusive growth. We had a report back meeting recently from CEOs who are part of the Presidential CEO Initiative led by the Minister of Finance, Mr Pravin Gordhan and the Chairman of Telkom Mr Jabu Mabuza. Considerable progress is being made. Business is establishing an SME fund and also engaging stakeholders in an initiative to create job opportunities for a million young people. We promoted these initiatives at the highly successful 8thBRICS Summit in India over the weekend. We urge you to take this spirit of cooperation forward in the missions you head and promote South Africa in every possible way to local business. Our efforts of revitalising the economy also include transforming our State Owned Companies, to advance inclusive economic growth. A lot of discussion is taking place in government on who to make the SOEs function better and not to be a drain on the national fiscus, but to be catalysts for development. I will be convening a Special Cabinet meeting on SOE reform, where Ministers will discuss nothing else on the agenda but SOEs, so that we can benefit from the collective wisdom. To grow the economy, we are also employing a host of other strategies including local procurement and growing black entrepreneurs and industrialists. In this regard, you have a responsibility to brief your host countries of our broad-based black economic empowerment programme. They need to understand our transformation imperatives well and know what to expect when they seek investment opportunities in the country. The de-racialisation of the ownership, control and management of the economy must be accelerated and all have a role to play to ensure success for the sake of achieving true reconciliation in our country. In my last meeting with the Presidential Broad-Based Black Economic Advisory Council, we agreed that more work must be done to ensure that transformation does not become just lip service. We believe the 500 billion rand buying power of the state must be utilised to achieve this noble and correct goal. In this regard, government is to produce a new procurement law which will replace the Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act or the PPPFA which is unpopular with black business. They say it hinders transformation. We are developing regulations that will make the PPPFA helpful while awaiting the finalisation of the new law. One of the key new measures in the regulations, which we hope to finalise soon, is the enactment of 30 per cent set asides, requiring of big companies subcontract 30 per cent to SMMEs. The National Treasury and the Department of Trade and Industry will be able to brief you further on these changes so that you are able to explain to investors abroad and in the continent. Supporting small business is critical because unless we grow our small business sector, we will not achieve our employment goals or successfully fight poverty. Your Excellencies As you aware, education remains a key priority of our government. We are making progress in promoting free education. For example, 80 percent of our schools are no-fee schools and the children of the poor and the working class do not pay fees. With regards to higher education, the Freedom Charter states as follows: Higher education and technical training shall be opened to all by means of state allowances and scholarships awarded on the basis of merit. The expansion of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme is part of efforts of ensuring that more children of the poor and the working class attend universities, universities of technology and technical and vocational training colleges. We have also gone beyond the call of the Freedom Charter to support students on the basis of merit, as well as the need. It is in this vein as well that in response to the call of students, government is to again carry the costs of fee increases for children of parents who cannot afford the increases, as announced by the Minister of Higher Education and Training. To look at long term funding and support for higher education, I established a judicial commission of inquiry chaired by Judge Heher. We urge all who have an interest in finding a solution to make presentations to the commission. The Higher Education Minister Nzimande will be here with you this week and I urge you to share with him helpful experiences from your host countries. I also urge you to explore more partnerships and new areas of cooperation that can broaden educational opportunities for our youth. This could be in the form of scholarships, exchange programmes and vocational skills training programmes, among others. We have had successful cooperative partnerships with countries such as Cuba. Other countries have offered us a large number of scholarships which we appreciate. I believe we can optimise the scientific and cultural exchanges that we often commit to in our bilateral relations. It is however worrying that genuine concerns regarding high tertiary education fees are hijacked for wrong ends, and involve particularly violence, arson and various forms of destruction of property. We have to ensure that universities complete the 2016 academic programme, while we are still finding medium to long-term solutions. The Minister in the Presidency Mr Jeff Radebe is leading efforts to support the Minister of Higher Education and Training and universities to stabilise universities and support students who want to write exams and ensure that the academic year is not lost. The police will also continue to ensure that those who use genuine grievances to promote criminal acts are arrested and face the full might of the law. We are a caring government. We are sympathetic to the message from the students because we share the understanding of the need to ensure that children of the poor and the working class obtain higher education. There is therefore no need for violence and the kind of protests we have seen, which give an impression that students think government is opposed to what they are asking for. We are not opposed to the call, we support it. It is a noble call. We also urge them to support the orderly processes of finding solutions to this important challenge. They must not break doors that are already open. Your Excellencies, We trust that missions work well with Brand SA, Tourism SA, dti and other departments and agencies aimed at promoting the country. Brand SA is conducting an Investor Perceptions Study in 16 countries, which will indicate what investors think about our country and will inform our strategies to attract investments. The outcomes of this study will be shared with you through DIRCO and Brand SA will be at your disposal to unpack it further. We are pleased with the progress cited in the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Index which was released at the end of September. It demonstrates the great strides that South Africa has made in various areas. The results show that South Africa improved by two places, following an improvement of seven places last year. More impressive however is that South Africa improved in 10 of the 12 areas assessed by the World Economic Forum (WEF). These include Goods and Market Efficiency, Labour Market Efficiency, Macro-economic environment, Infrastructure, Innovation, Higher Education, Health and Primary education, business sophistication, financial market development and technological readiness. Most noteworthy are growth by ten positions on Goods and Market Efficiency and labour Market and by six positions in macro-economic environment and higher education and training, out of 138 countries. All these will support our efforts to tell our good South African story, and we must tell it. Ladies and gentlemen Let me reiterate that as we work to reignite growth, our efforts are moderated by the challenging international economic climate. There is a sharp decline in commodity prices and shrinking revenues, Brexit ramifications in Europe, as well as security matters such as terrorism. Climate change is also taking its toll, with erratic rainfalls and the drastic drop in our water reserve levels. This is affecting our livestock and crops, thus slowing our economic growth and threatening food security. These challenges make the implementation of the Paris Agreement on climate change more urgent. Some of your host countries have technologies that we require to mitigate the effects of drought, such as drought resistant seeds, and technologies that convert ocean water. Let us explore all these possibilities and lastly, continue to work collectively with our partners for a peaceful and stable Africa, including silencing the guns by 2020 as envisaged in our 2063 vision. Your Excellencies, We welcome you back home indeed for this important interaction. We urge you to continue your good work in advancing the mission of building a truly united, non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous South Africa. I thank you! United Nations (United States) (AFP) - The United Nations is moving hundreds of peacekeepers from eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to Kinshasa to help deal with a possible outbreak of violence over the postponement of a presidential election, UN officials said Tuesday. About 300 soldiers and police from the MONUSCO force will be stationed in Kinshasa, where violent protests killed 49 last month, the officials said. "We are planning for all eventualities and have taken measures to strengthen our posture in Kinshasa," UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous said. However, the reinforcements would probably not be enough if the capital sees widespread violence, he cautioned. "It's important to keep in mind that Kinshasa is a city of almost 11 million people and MONUSCO has neither the manpower nor the mandate to provide security," he said. Political tension has been mounting over President Joseph Kabila's apparent bid to cling to power. An agreement was reached on Monday to push the presidential election, set for this year, back to April 2018. But opposition parties boycotted the deal, calling for a major protest on Wednesday. The UN envoy for the Democratic Republic of Congo, Maman Sambo Sidikou, warned last week that the country had entered a period of "extreme risk to its stability," saying "large-scale violence is all but inevitable" if nothing is done to address the crisis. The UN Security Council is considering a trip to the country next month to try to help find a way forward in the political crisis, diplomats said. One of Africa's biggest and most resource-rich countries, the DR Congo has been ruled by Kabila since 2001, when his father Laurent was assassinated. He was elected in 2006 to his first five-year term under a constitution that sets a two-term limit for presidents. 19.10.2016 LISTEN Three embattled members of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Northern Region who had wanted to contest in the December polls as independent candidates after losing the partys parliamentary race have rejoined the party. Joy News Northern Regional Correspondent, Hashmin Mohammed explained was made possible after the Employment Minister, Haruna Iddrisu intervened in what some political commentators labeled a dicey situation for the government. The Minister is reported to have facilitated the movement of the aggrieved NDC members out of town a day to the Electoral Commission (EC)s deadline for filing of nominations. The three namely Daniel Nsala Wakpal from the Kpandai Constituency, Tampi Acheampong Simon and Thomas Borempong Laten from the Sanguli Constituency confirmed to Joy News they reasoned with the party and decided against competing. They are motivated to support the party to reclaim all the parliamentary seats lost in the Northern Region during the 2012 election. Speaking to Joy News, one of the former independent parliamentary aspirants said the Employment Minister was candid to walk them through the ramifications that await the NDC had they filed their nominations. The Employment and labor Relations Minister has made us to understand that our candidature could worsen the party agenda of reclaiming lost seats in the Region, considering our respect for him we decide to step down, he said. However, there are some setbacks to the negotiation process. Key among them is the decision by one of the aggrieved NDC members to contest no matter what government say. Alhassan Iddrisu Bunglung who is running as an independent candidate in the Savelugu constituency would face the Municipal Chief Executive who is contesting on the ticket of the NDC in the December 7 election. Notwithstanding, a source close to Joy News has revealed negotiations are still ongoing and there is the likelihood Mr Bunglung would yield to the partys demand. As head of the Political and Strategy Team of the NDC's 15-Member Northern Regional Campaign Taskforce, Mr Iddrisu has a lot of work to do especially in addressing grievances of party members. The entire taskforce in the region is headed by Minister of Food and Agriculture, Alhaji Mohammed Muniru-Limuna. Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com A Circuit Court in Accra has ordered the arrest of Kwame Gyebi, the man who allegedly stated that President John Mahama will ''fall down'' during this years Independence Day parade. Gyebi, 33, who is being held on charges of threat of death and offensive conduct, failed to turn up in court, hence prosecuting Deputy Superintendent of Police George Amegah prayed for a bench warrant. The Court, presided by Mr. Aboagye Tandoh, obliged the prosecutions request and adjourned the matter to October 28. Gyebi has pleaded not guilty and he is currently on bail. Gyebi is alleged to have made the comment at a drinking spot at Dzworwulu, in Accra, and this was witnessed by some people. He was said to have boasted that he knew what he was referring to and dared anyone to mark his words. The matter was reported, consequently, to the Airport Police and he was put before the Court on March 1. President John Mahama has urged the Ghanaians to heed the warning of the former President Jerry John Rawlings urging them to be wary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and its traditions following its criticism of governments borrowing to undertake development projects. He said this as he rejected claims from the opposition NPP that his government is plunging the country into an economic crisis with excessive borrowing. At the National Democratic Congress (NDC) campaign launch in August, former President Rawlings warned the NDC not to underestimate the NPP as they have been in existence almost the entirety of Ghanas democratic existence pursuing their agenda. Speaking to residents of Nkwanta in the Volta Region, President Mahama asserted that he would not be discouraged by the criticism because the forbearers of the opposition NPP said similar things about the country's first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah. They are the same people who frustrated Dr. Nkrumah. They have been there for a very long time. They say we do not chew roads, we do not chew hospitals and we do not chew schools. During our campaign launch in Cape Coast, former President Rawlings warned us to beware of them. He said they had been there for a very long time. They tormented Dr. Kwame Nkrumah during his era. They have appeared again repeating the thing they did under Kwame Nkrumah. They are again downplaying the positive impact of the loans Ghana has contracted under my era. I do not use the monies on lavish things but for projects that will last. Developmental projects are providing jobs The NPPs agenda, should it win power, will be geared towards job creation per its 2016 manifesto but President Mahama has maintained that the the developmental projects undertaken by the governing NDC has also brought income and employment. When we were undertaking these projects, we employed Ghanaians as carpenters, masons, electricians and other artisans. All these people have had some form of employment I am sure their family members also benefited because they were catered for out of the income they got from being employed. The schools and hospitals we are building will also employ thousands of teachers from the various colleges of educations and thousands of graduates also from the nursing training colleges. While we are doing all these things, they are still saying we are wasting national resources. They are still saying we are wasting national resources, President Mahama stated. By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana The National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for Dome-Kwabenya, Mr Nurudeen Mohammed has said that his party is poised to take over the seat from opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP). According to him, the assertion that the constituency is the stronghold of the NPP hence he stands a very little chance of winning in the upcoming election is false. He said, The Dome-Kwabenya Constituency is not the stronghold of any single political party, the seat is winnable and the NPP can therefore not continue to claim ownership of it in the area. Mr Mohammed, who was launching his Campaign in the Constituency, said although the NPP had occupied the seat for so many years, the performance of President John Dramani Mahama in the country would catalyse many more people to opt for the NDC in the December polls. The launch attracted hundreds of party supporters amidst drumming and chanting of the party songs and slogans. It was also attended by party bigwigs including, Mr Ade Coker, the Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the Party, and other constituency executive members. Mr Nurudeen Mohammed, who is a Journalist by profession, said with his knowledge of the Constituency, he would work hard to create a better environment for the betterment of the vulnerable and marginalised in society. He said the incumbent Member of Parliament had nothing to offer the people, which had created the opportunity for the electorate to constantly call for a change to transform their living conditions in the coming days. The people have realised that they had been deceived all these years and are, therefore, yearning for a change, which I will offer in humility after the December Polls. He, however, cautioned his party supporters to remain calm and vigilant on the voting day to avoid election malpractices. He promised that a win for him and President Mahama in the Constituency would further step up the provision of development projects in the area and appealed to the electorate to demonstrate their solidarity with the party by voting massively. Mr Ade Coker, the Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the Party, urged the constituency executives to intensify their house-to house campaign programmes to retain the faith of their supporters. In doing that, however, the Regional Chairman tasked them to resist any measures that could undermine the peace and unity the country was enjoying. 19.10.2016 LISTEN Those without short memories can recollect that Dr. Bawumia was the least of choices for the position of the NPP's flagbearer running mate ahead of the 2008 elections. Most political analysts and pundits were expecting the NPP 2008 running mate to either be then MP for Salaga, Abubakar Boniface Siddiq or Hajia Halima Mahama. Others expected Messr MND Jawula taking the spot. But out of nowhere and to perhaps surprise a lot, Nana Addo picked a relatively unknown person in political cycles, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia. His choice of Dr. Bawumia didn't settle down well with all the party members and sympathisers. Nana Addo stood firm on his choice and the rest as they will always say, is history. In the 2008 elections, Dr. Bawumia wasn't attacked that much. Most of the NDC's propaganda was against Nana Addo. They accused him from being arrogant to him being a fake lawyer and many other unprintable lies and distortions. The worse of them was the one being led by Kofi Wayo saying Nana Addo indulges in drugs. All these allegations were levelled without any shred of evidence. They did it and it perhaps helped them to deceive a supposedly gullible public with "short memories" to win the 2008 elections. Then came the 2012 elections and again most of the lies and propaganda was against the personality of Nana Addo. This time though, the NDC had the added advantage of Professor Mills death which they capitalised on and used it to clamour for sympathy votes. The results of the elections tells us that it worked for the NDC. We are now in the 2016 elections and the dynamics this time are totally different. The NDC have realised that people are now so fed up with their incompetence, very corrupt, clueless, uncaring and indecisive administration. They have equally realised that Ghanaians have had enough of their lies, mischief, distortions and malicious propaganda against Nana Addo. Kofi Wayo can no longer be used to accuse Nana Addo, Hassan Ayariga true colours of being a NDC mole in PNC is known by all and Fiifi Kweetey and the other babies with sharp teeth are now known by their true lying and deceptive colours. The NDC needed to find a new and innocent target to defame. And they found, Dr. Bawumia. Dr . Bawumia have grown to endear himself to many people in the NPP and out of the NPP through his numerous lectures he has been organising. These consistent and honest lectures not only expose the weaknesses and failings of the current NDC administration but also propose feasible and simple solutions to the problems and challenges we face as a nation. A good government would have listened more to Dr. Bawumia. But unfortunately, the president Mahama led NDC government wouldn't take anything from him. Instead of the ruling NDC government consulting him the more in the spirit of all-inclusiveness, they rather decided to attack and rebuke him. They tried organising counter lectures and they all backfired. The Vice-President then realised it would be a shame on the NDC if they don't respond properly to Dr. Bawumia. To tame and silence Dr. Bawumia, the Vice-President raised our interest high by telling us that he is going to let Dr. Bawumia know that the economics he Dr. Bawumia has been lecturing is primary school economics. Little did we know that the Vice-President's statement was another NDC propaganda. Till date, neither the Vice-President nor the finance minister has come out to answer or debunk the 170 questions Dr. Bawumia asked them about the economy. Their attempt to use Fiifi Kweetey, Okudjeto Ablakwa, Felix Kwaakye and the other babies with sharp teeth to refute his lectures with propaganda, lies, mischief, distortions and defamations through the setting the records straight forum also backfired. Now losing focus and the debate on the best policy to rescue this collapsed economy, the NDC have decided to resort to the age-old tactics of slandering the truthful and honest person when you can't debate with him. This explains the insults and derogatory statements coming from the mouths of Koku Ayindoho and some of the NDC members. The NDC now don't know how to deal with Dr. Bawumia. Besides, the words of Asiedu Nketia against Dr Bawumia goes deeper. He's saying the NPP is only using Dr. Bawumia to win the 2016 elections and after that dump him. He cited the case of late Aliu Mahama losing the NPP primaries even though he was the sitting vice president. What a weird analysis? In fact some of these analysis or tribally-inspired politics beats my imaginations. The late Aliu Mahama was not abandoned by the NPP. If for nothing at all, he been Vice-President for 8 years was itself a good platform to serve his country. He campaigned against others during the NPP internal primaries and lost. The late Vice-President never complained to anyone he was maltreated or mishandled by the NPP. So why should the NDC think for us? Why must Asiedu Nketia try to always insult our intelligence? In any case, what did the NDC do to us from the three Northern regions after voting for them for 8 years? Is it the SADA create, loot and share or is it the taking away of fertiliser and fuel subsidies? Doesn't the NDC know we are mostly farmers? Why should the loving NDC, our beloved Northern brother and party, use our names as northerners to con, dupe and exploit the state? Why must they enrich themselves and their families leaving the three Northern regions underdeveloped and poor? Is this the NDC definition of love? Then that's a distorted and very wicked love!!! Let's in a way assume that Asiedu Nketia is right, does that mean that the NDC has an agenda against people of Northern descent especially the Muslims? Why didn't the NDC handover or chose Honourable Mahama Iddrisu to take over from former president Rawlings after he serving the P/NDC for more years than professor Mills? Wasn't he very loyal to the cause of the PNDC and NDC governments? Why didn't the same NDC vote for Mahama Iddrisu in the 2006 NDC presidential primaries? Is it because it falls in the NDC's agenda of using Muslims and dumping them like rubbish after elections? We can't forget that it's around this same period that Fiifi Kweetey told us that no Muslim can be a president in Ghana. The NDC must respect themselves and concentrate more on the policies they have to transform Ghana from its current hopelessness. We know it's not easy to see defeat staring you in the face and you'll be normal. That doesn't also mean that you must disrespect yourself by descending too low to make desperate and reckless tribally-inspired statements. That doesn't also mean you must descend so low and end up insulting people who have built respect for themselves. The NDC must think of our national unity and cohesion before and after the 2016 elections. The wind of change can't be stopped now by the NDC, In sha Allah. Nana Addo and Dr. Bawumia are clean and their positive and truthful vision for Ghana would, In sha Allah, come to fruition starting the 7th of January, 2017. No amount of lies, mischief, slander, malicious propaganda and distortions can prevent that.... I shall, In sha Allah, be back Fuseini Abdul-Fatawu Japan Motors Trading Company Limited (JMTC) has won the prestigious Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG) Motor Firm Award for the second consecutive year. JMTC, the leading distributor of Nissan vehicles and Yamaha motorbikes, outboard motors in the country, was again adjudged CIMG 'Motor Firm of the year 2015' for its strategic marketing in the areas of market insights, marketing strategy development and managing CSR programmes. The company's continuous research, which has become synonymous with its brand, was also acknowledged. Abdul-Somad Alhassan Musah, Assistant MD of Japan Motors, Imad Antoine Ghorayeb, General Manager, Sales & Marketing, Hilda Peasah, Marketing Manager and Wasim Deen Ahmed, Nissan Product Manager were present to receive the award on behalf of the company. Imad Antoine Ghorayeb thanked CIMG for acknowledging the companys hard work in the industry and dedicated the award to its customers, whose patronage has made JMTC a household name in Ghana. Joe Voyticky (9th left) welcoming members of the Advisory Council on stage during the celebration Max International Ghana Limited, a global producer of wellness and weight loss supplements, has celebrated its second anniversary in the country. Speaking at the ceremony held at the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC) on Saturday, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Max International Ghana Limited, Joe Voyticky, praised his outfit's performance in Ghana in the last two years. According to him, Max International has contributed a total of $6 million to the Ghanaian economy over the period. The company, he said, had also contributed significantly to job creation in the country and intends to further invest in the economy in the years ahead. Max International aims to empower people across the world to experience better health, success and significance, according to Mr. Voyticky. He seized the opportunity to announce the 2016/2017 Advisory Council of Max International Ghana Limited. Max International is an industry leader in the production of wellness and weight loss supplements and products headquartered in Utah, USA. Its branch in Ghana serves as the corporate office for Africa in the distribution of preventive health supplements. The vision of the institution is to empower people to significantly change their lives and that of others. By Melvin Tarlue Samuel Sallas Mensah 19.10.2016 LISTEN The Public Procurement Authority (PPA) has appealed to government to expedite action on the Cabinet memorandum for the approval of the public private partnership process that will assist it to own a permanent office. According to Samuel Sallas Mensah, Chief Executive of PPA, since his assumption of office, efforts have been made to secure a permanent office for the authority but that has not been easy. Our continuous operation in rented facilities is having a heavy financial toll on the authority's scarce resources and gradually becoming unsustainable. Speaking at the 8th annual public forum of the Authority in Accra recently, Mr Mensah also called on his successor to ensure that integrity and efficiency in public procurement were entrenched to strengthen PPA's appeals and complaints mechanism, and further encourage the use of PPA's procurement planning system, as well as support the electronic procurement initiative and other measures aimed at mainstreaming public procurement into the wider Public Financial Management Framework. My utmost concern about the numerous accusations that continue to dominate public discourse on the use of restricted and single-source methods of procurement, which are fully provided for in section 40 of the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663) is that many of these issues are debated from ill-informed positions and often given undue political slants just to dint the corporate image of the PPA and the ruling government. The irony of the issue is that in spite of all the arguments that have been raised against the use of these methods, at no point during the amendment process did we have even one Member of Parliament make a proposal for the introduction of stiffer measures for the use of these methods of procurements or even have them expunged from the law. A business desk report Accra, Oct. 18, GNA - Access Bank Ghana Limited has pledged to support the development of Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) as part of its corporate social responsibility effort to contribute to national growth. A statement copied to the Ghana News Agency said the Regulus CFO Forum, sponsored by the Bank, was to highlight opportunities for partnerships, strategic insights and business networking among top finance executives. Mr Anthony Mensah, the Head of Corporate Banking at Access Bank Ghana, said 'CFOs play key roles in our organisations hence the need to offer them the needed support to enhance their performance'. He said the hard work of CFOs made them the backbone of their organisations which enabled the companies to pay taxes and other contributions to national development. He said 'Access Bank is an African Bank committed to support projects that seek to promote national development. Our values play a vital role in our decision making processes. They are the bedrock of our culture and they form the keystone for all we do and accomplish. And Access Bank is proud to support such a cause'. Madam Mona Quartey, the Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, expressed delight at the efforts of CFOs improving their work performance, which also impacted national development. 'Regulus CFO Forum is a business professional group and their immense value cannot be overstated', she said, and urged the participants and members to stay focused in their activities. Mr Hitesh Makhija, the President and Founder of the group, (a Chief Financial Controller at Olam Ghana Limited), said 'the aim of the forum is to be the best CFO networking platform in Ghana with a membership of at least 20 percent of Ghana's GDP contributing companies across all sectors of the economy. Regulus CFO Forum is a new series of CFO fora that seeks to endow CFOs with immense value through training on business strategies; creating mentorship opportunities for new members; creating a platform to share best practices; giving CFOs advance information on valuable economic trends and activities; and providing high-value events for its members. The maiden session was on the theme: "The CFO's Role in Today's Digital Economy', with participants including CFOs and Financial Directors (FDs) from PZ Cussons Ghana, Allterrain Services, SBC Beverages (Pepsi Bottlers), Stallion Group and Beiersdorf Ghana Limited. Other participating companies included Mohinani Group, Japan Motors, Vodafone, Access Bank, Interplast Limited, Expro International Group, Focos Orthopedic Hospital, Right Holdings Limited, Predictive Excellence and Invest Corporation. GNA 19.10.2016 LISTEN By Laudia Sawer Old-Ningo (GAR), Oct 18, GNA - The National Commission on Civic Education (NCCE) has organized a community durbar at Old-Ningo in the Ningo-Prampram District to educate the electorate on the December 7 general elections. Mr Albert Odoi Anim, NCCE Greater Accra Regional Principal Civic Education Officer, addressing the durbar, called on stakeholders to play their roles properly to maintain peace before, during and after the elections. Mr Anim said it was not enough to cry for peace without all stakeholders playing their respective roles effectively. He added that institutions, political parties, the electorate, among others are duty bound to secure the country's democracy. He indicated that the transition of Ghana's true democracy from the past six elections under the fourth republic must be reflected in the 2016 elections. "It is incumbent on us to exercise our rights and freedoms in a responsible way through the ballot box", he stated. Mr Anim also advised the electorate to exercise tolerance to its elastic end when engaging each other on national and elections issues. He urged the citizens not to use the election period to demand for material things from politicians but should rather engage them on topical issues. Electorates, he said, must also desist from defacing and removing posters, posting over opponents' posters and posting bills on people's properties without permission. Mr Anim intimated that since there was no substitute for peace, the youth should not allow themselves to be incited into violence. Mr Sylvester Tetteh, Ningo-Prampram Parliamentary Candidate for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) pledged that he and his executive members would ensure that they organize their activities in a peaceful manner. Mr Tetteh however stated that if the elections were not organized freely and fairly, the NCCE's peace cry would amount to anything. According to him, "Our actions should depict peace more than our public talk of peace" adding that all must endeavour to play in accordance with the rules. Mr Frederick Martey, Parliamentary Candidate of the Convention People's Party (CPP) called on politicians and the electorates to abide by the electoral laws. Mr Martey reminded residents that elections were not war but rather an exercise to choose people to administer the resources of the country. Nene Narwotey Aklotia, Stool Father, Ningo Traditional Area, chairing the durbar, appealed to the Ningo-Prampram District Assembly (NIPDA) and government to properly resource the NCCE in the District to enable them carry out their mandates effectively. Miss Gifty Agyeiwaa Badu Ningo-Prampram, Ningo-Prampram District NCCE Director, said with the support of the European Union, her outfit organized the durbar to strengthen and deepen understanding of issues of governance among the electorates. Miss Badu added that it was a civic responsibility for every qualified Ghanaian voter to vote at elections to decide who should governs the nation. Participants at the durbar were drawn from political parties, women groups, disabled associations, the assembly among others. GNA 19.10.2016 LISTEN Accra, Oct.18, GNA - The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) has been commended for making progress in the implementation of a Financial Management Improvement Project, a donor initiative from the Japan International Cooperation Agency, (JICA). The project is aimed at safeguarding and ensuring the efficient use of government resources and assets. Since 2010, JICA has been supporting the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to enhance its fixed asset management system being the first Ministry to deploy the Ghana Integrated Financial Management and Information System (GIFMIS) on a pilot basis. The progress of the Ministry in implementing the project was announced by a Joint Coordinating Committee (JCC) set by JICA in Accra, a statement signed by Kojo Williams, the Public Relations Advisor of JICA, said. Mr Norihito Yonebayashi, Senior Representative at JICA, who commended the Ministry for its commitment, asked other government agencies to emulate the practice. "The Controller and Accountant General's Department should roll out the practice to be replicated by other government agencies. "This would help improve the asset management cycle utilising GIFMIS and to ensure the accountability and transparency in the efficient use and the safeguarding of government assets", Mr Yonebayashi said. Mr Joseph Boamah, the Chief Director of MoFA and the Project Director, commended JICA for the project saying it had helped to regularise some of the financial management practices at the Ministry and introduced a lot of efficiency". "Through the Project, the Accounting Guidebook of MoFA was developed to standardise the procedures of accounting and asset management, in line with the Public Financial Management reforms of the Government of Ghana', the statement said. GNA The Minerals Commission has given the strongest indication yet for illegal miners still occupying the Obuasi concession, of AngloGold Ashanti, to evacuate the site or suffer ejection. This comes on the back of the insistence of some of the informal miners not to relocate to the new site allocated by the Commission. I am not in the security service but eventually they will be moved. But unlike in those days that nobody was unsure whether they will be moved or not, I am sure they themselves know that they will definitely be moved, the CEO of the Minerals Commission, Dr. Toni Aubynn stated. The continuous stay of the informal miners has led to many altercations including the death of a Senior Manager, John Owusu and about 64 of the illegal miners. A latest directive for the illegal miners to leave expired on Monday, October 10, 2016 . Dr. Toni Aubynn also explained to Citi Business News the defaulting miners would be treading risky paths if they continue to defy the order. We want them to comply with the directive since we do not want to cause any serious damage like what happened some months ago, he stressed. AngloGold Ashanti has been compelled to take numerous actions both mild and stern ones to get rid of the illegal miners at the Obuasi concession. The recent involves a legal suit filed by the company at the World Bank's International Centre for Settlement of Investment Dispute (ICSID) to compel government to get the issue settled. Citi Business News understands the illegal miners amount to about 4000 while the new site being offered them can accommodate at least 9000 people. Commenting on the subsequent plan on guarding the mining site, the Minerals Commission boss assured of government's support where necessary. That site is for AngloGold Ashanti and we will take the necessary steps to protect the placein any case long before the illegal miners went there, government security personnel were there. It is a shared responsibility and I am sure the company will take charge of the security and government is also ready if they seek for government's support, Dr. Aubynn added. By: Pius Amihere Eduku/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana 19.10.2016 LISTEN Suddenly President John Dramani Mahama is not supposed to say certain things on the campaign trail. To the NPP people, it is outright abomination for President Mahama to utter certain words while campaigning. In fact, while the opposition NPP has the right to say anything including the political lies they daily spew on the campaign basket, President Mahama does not even have the luxury to tout his achievements. Otherwise how come that the NPP on radio, television, door-to-door campaign and Nana Akufo-Addos cherry picking campaign stops, confidently tell Ghanaians that they are going to win the 2016 Elections hands down, but President Mahama is barred from making same assertion. Indeed, to the NPP what is good for them is an abomination for the NDC. Or to put it bluntly, what Akufo-Addo says President Mahama dares not say same. Throughout the world, politicians running for office are allowed to make pronouncements to boost their campaigns, even if polls suggest that their campaigns are going nowhere. I can cite the disqualified Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, who before she was bounced by the Electoral Commission boldly stated that she was going to the win the Volta Region during the upcoming elections. But the law allows politicians to make such assertions. Which is why Nana Akufo-Addo who to date has not mounted one single political rally anywhere apart from greeting chiefs and opinion leaders, goes everywhere saying he would be the next President come January 7, 2017. Therefore, it is totally wacky and nonsense for this Shamolo Guy, who goes by the name Sammy Awuku, the so-called National Youth Organizer of the NPP, to state that if President Mahama boldly states that he would win the 2016 Presidential Elections, then he is out to steal votes. Another Donald Trump in Ghana? What a world do we find ourselves today? Sammy Awuku, the famous bed-wetting guy, in his days at the University of Ghana, Legon and other NPP guys are attempting to gag President Mahama for telling Ghanaians that he would win the Elections based on his record. Does Sammy Awuku and others want President Mahama to go out there waving a surrender handkerchief telling Ghanaians that he would lose the Elections? I mean, do they want Mahama to campaign for Akufo-Addo to win? Do they want to tell President Mahama what to say during campaign stops? We have heard on multiple times Nana Akufo-Addo, the septuagenarian who cannot even account to the NPP the millions of monies that have been pumped into his presidential campaigns since 2008, calling President Mahama incompetent. Akufo-Addo uses the word incompetent everywhere. Yet when President Mahama responded in equal measure by telling Ghanaians that Akufo-Addo is very divisive, dictatorial, a one-man knows it all, who does not entertain ideas and suggestions from his fellow NPP people, which has pushed the into tartars today, Nana Akufo-Addo and his cohorts cannot stand it. They first started condemning President Mahama for criticising Akufo-Addo, and when the NDC Communicators responded that President Mahama was only returning Akufo-Addos political favour, the NPP would nothing of that. The next thing Ghanaians saw was the NPP running to the Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) to advice President Mahama to desist from attacking Akufo-Addo. And strangely enough, the CCG, which behaves as if all its members are NPP people, jumped on the wagon and came out with a statement condemning the description of Akufo-Addo by President Mahama. Where was the CCG when Akufo-Addo was calling President Mahama incompetent? Where was the CCG when the NPP used various negative invectives to label President Mahama? Were they sleeping or simply playing politics? Is the CCG in bed with Akufo-Addo? Are the leaders of the CCG NPP supporters wearing the clerical garb? I would like to know if statements issued by the CCG are the total reflection of the views by churches under the CCG. Is the CCG leadership aware that not every single member under their umbrella is an NPP? Where are we heading to as a country? Some churches in Ghana and their notable pastors who have trooped behind Akufo-Addo and making false election predictions and have adopted preaching sound bites against the ruling NDC government must know that perhaps the silent majority of their members are NDC members or supporters. One may ask if Akufo-Addo has the right to say President Mahama is incompetent, who says President Mahama has no right to say that Akufo-Addo is divisive? And the truth is that Akufo-Addo is divisive. He is Ghanas most noted politician who does not accept criticism or correction from anyone. What he says is the bond of every NPP member. Its either Akufo-Addos way or the highway! Akufo-Addo is simply, he who must be obeyed. And this is a known fact in NPP circles. With this kind of mentality just imagine if Ghanaians send Akufo-Addo to the Flagstaff House. Imagine; just imagine if Americans vote to send Donald Trump, another bigot to the White House. Trump and Akufo-Addo have the same trade. They never apologize for anything. They think everybody is beneath them. Imagine if we have two of their kind as leaders of their countries. God forbid! Imagine how Ghana would be if these nation wreckers called the NPP return to power. They are even trying to gag a sitting President. They dont want President Mahama to tell the truth about their stock in trade. They dont want President Mahama to campaign freely. They want President Mahama to campaign according to their political dictate. So just imagine how Ghana would be if they win power. No one, I mean no one, would be safe from the NPP. This is what Im leaving with you for now! [email protected] http://majjacks80.blogspot.com Fadi Dobboussis recent sordid journalistic faux pas committed against the President of the Republic of Ghana, Mr. John Dramani Mahama was condemned by many social pundits. However, concerns were raised about the modus operandi of the Bureau of National Investigation (BNI) who invited Fadi to interrogate him. Fadi has revealed the death threat he is receiving from some individuals in Ghana. For example, according to him the message sent to him read, ''Take this from me, look for me when you get to Achimota Kingsby Roundabout, grateful to let you know your status. A Lebanese dog like you will remain so and be tamed. St**** f**l.'' (Source: ghanaweb.com, October 18, 2016). Begotten from a notorious womb, a lamb called death threat in Ghana must be a concern of all and sundry. The aim of this article is to reflect on the possible ways of dealing with an electronic message death threat in Ghana. Out of his frustrations about the French political and social systems in the 18th century, the philosophe Denis Diderot asserted that man will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest. Certainly Diderot was not happy about the French monarchy and the church concerning the social happenings of his era. We have leaders, pastors, public officers in Ghana and yet people continue to issue death threats with impunity. Serial murder is becoming a pattern in Ghana now. For example, in December, 2013, a staff of Stanbic Bank, Rosemond Nyampong was murdered in a cold blood. In March 2014, Fennec Okyere was murdered by unknown assailants. On May 23, 2015, Mr. Adams Mahama, the Upper East regional chairman of NPP was murdered. On February 9, 2016, the member of parliament of Abuakwa North constituency, Mr J.B Danquah Adu was murdered. On June 28, 2007, Mr. Rokko Frimpong, the deputy managing director of the Ghana Commercial Bank was murdered by unknown assailants. Death threat and serial killings are serious menace in our country. The urgent need to ferret out the causes of death threat and its attendant serial killings must not be shelved by all especially those in authority. Unemployment, corruption, excessive powers of the executive arm of government, lack of policing the police, individuals stress level and emotional misgivings are some of the motivations for issuing death threat. From my novice opinion, I think the following suggestions will help in the fight against death threat in Ghana. We must broaden the legal definition of death threat with a strong legal backing. An appropriate anger or stress management interventions. A very strong legal collaboration between the police and telecommunication companies. For example, the police must quickly get the cell phone number of an individual being threatened and take it to the telecommunication service providing companies involved. The companies will then provide the location and the number of the individual who issued the threat whether hidden or not? The company, say, MTN, must provide some of the favorite contacts of the number, some of whom must be invited by the police. Then police must compel such individuals to call that number. If the number is registered then that should be easier for the law enforcement. The office of Inspector General of Police (IGP), BNI boss must be made independent of executive to enable the police and the BNI be bold enough to prosecute government officials who engage or instigate others to issue death threat. The court must be given powers to receive complains from the public concerning death threat. The court must also be empowered to carry out its special investigations with telecommunication service providers along with the police. The court then will invite the police officers dealing with the case to provide details of investigation. The court must be given quasi executive powers to police the police Fellow countrymen, we must eradicate this nonsense called death threat from our country. If Ghana police service really want to arrest individuals who issue death threat, a simple collaboration with telecommunication companies will nip the menace of death threat in the bud. Serial killing and death threats are UNGHANAIAN. These political beasts issuing death threat must not be entertained in our country. God Bless Our Homeland Ghana. I know that I am intelligent because I know that I know nothing. (Socrates). Feedbacks must be directed to [email protected] Nana Yaw Osei (Padigo) is a PhD Candidate in Psychology at Arizona, USA. The Minister of Petroleum Emmanuel Kofi Buah has cut the sod for the construction of a building to facilitate the establishment of the School of Petroleum Studies in the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT) at Tarkwa in the Western Region to produce skilled graduates to work in the petroleum sector. He said the establishment of the school falls in line with the national framework for the training of Ghanaians in the petroleum sector to promote the country's policy on local content and participation. The government, about two years ago, announced its intention to establish a school of petroleum in one of the country's universities. The UMaT met the selection criteria, and during one of his visits to the University in Tarkwa, President John Mahama announced that the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) had agreed to collaborate with UMaT to upgrade its Petroleum Engineering Department into a centre of excellence. The GNPC subsequently presented a cheque for GH2 million to start the first phase of the construction of the building of the School of Petroleum Studies, which is estimated at GH5.5 million. At a brief ceremony to present the cheque to start the construction of the project, the Petroleum Minister commended the university for effectively training mining, petroleum engineers and other professionals in spite of the infrastructural challenges. He noted that the government has been focusing on the building of state-of-the-art laboratories and facilities in some tertiary institutions to building capacity in the oil and gas industry. The GNPC is also focusing on producing the best petroleum engineers in the country, he added. The Minister reiterated his commitment to establishing the new School of Petroleum Studies at UMaT. Carmen Bruce-Annan, Manager, Corporate Affairs of GNPC, stressed that the petroleum corporation had been mandated by law to develop the capacity of Ghanaians in petroleum related disciplines. Vice Chancellor of the UMaT, Professor Jerry Kumah, expressed gratitude to the stakeholders for the initiative and revealed that the university had been ranked the best in Mines and Technology in Africa. UMaT is the only mining university in West Africa and has the mandate through the Act of Parliament to train manpower for the minerals and oil and gas industry. He revealed that the Petroleum Engineering Department of the university had been offering undergraduate courses since 2009. The department has so far successfully churned out over 100 petroleum engineering graduates throughout the period, he added. He applauded the GNPC for fulfilling its promise of helping to transform the department into a centre of excellence. From Emmanuel Opoku, Tarkwa The Chairman for the National Hajj board Alhaji Rauf Tanko who doubles as the aspiring Member of Parliament on the ticket of the NDC for Yagaba-Kubori constituency in the Northern Region is optimistic that he would deliver the seat to the NDC come December 7. According to him, after losing the seat in 2012 to the incumbent Member of Parliament, Mr Yussif Mustapha of the NPP, he is seeking re-election to continue the works he had started in the area before his untimely removal from office. One of the duties of a Member of Parliament is to lobby for projects. During my administration, I was able to lobby for projects, I lobbied for Yagaba-Kubori to be given a Senior High School, I lobbied for us to be given a District. No one has been able to lobby to develop this area more than myself. Addressing party supporters at his campaign launch at Yagaba Kubori, he said Mr. Yussif's victory was based on lies propagated against him adding that he was not happy when he lost the seat but a couple of weeks later, he accepted the decision that the good people of Yagaba-Kubori had made. One of such claims was that, I was given GH5 billion every quarter of the year for roads and to pay the fees of students but I embezzled it, claiming that, I used the money to buy cars and to provide shelter for my family. The Chairman for the National Hajj board stated that it was time Ghana as a nation moved from ethnic politics and look at the bigger picture of national interest where the victory of any political party will not be victory for some ethnic tribes but the nation at large. No ethnic tribe can produce the 50+1 votes required by the Electoral Commission to declare victory for any individual. That stands to mean that, you will need the vote of other tribes to achieve victory. Alhaji Tanko pleaded with the people of Yagaba-Kubori to vote for him to go back to parliament as their MP and also vote massively for President John Dramani Mahama to retain power and continue delivering on his Better Ghana Agenda. FROM Eric Kombat, Yagaba Kubori Pupils of Gomoa Kweikrom D/A School in the Central Region have criticized government for failing to supply them with chalks. Owing to the development, we fetch firewood in the bush to sell in order to buy chalk for the school, the pupils told the media. They indicated that the development was negatively affecting their academic performance in the school since they fetch the firewood during learning hours. A teacher of the Gomoa Kweikrom D/A School collaborated the story of the pupils in an interview with the media. But immediately government heard about the assertions by the pupils, it accordingly rushed to the school with a box of chalk. Government's supply of some basic learning materials like textbooks, chalks and mathematical sets to some schools have not been regular across the country. However, the pupils have asked government to complete the school's six-unit classroom block project. According to the pupils, the construction of the classroom block, which started four years ago, had been abandoned by government. 2nd Lady drama Last year, Matilda Amissah-Arthur, the wife of the Vice President, was caught on tape refusing to supply pupils in Kukurantumi in the Eastern region with chalk. Headmistress of Kukurantumi Presby Primary School, Juliet Oppong, who was expressing gratitude to Mrs Amissah-Arthur for presenting five sets of computers to the school, appealed to her to urge government to provide some basic items like logbooks for teachers and chalks which she said were in short supply in the school. The elderly say if you want to communicate something to God, you say it to the wind. We are therefore requesting of you to tell government to try and come to our aide with these things which are in short supply in the school, Mrs Oppong said. However, the Second Lady became offended and scolded the headmistress for making the request. The head teacher has shocked meshe said you lack chalk and log booksI am very shocked that you are today asking me about chalk, how much is a box of chalkI won't give you chalk today, I won't give you chalk tomorrow. Mrs Amissah-Arthur is quoted as saying that Secondly, you talk about log books and school uniforms, I think we have spoilt you so parents don't want to even buy school uniformshead teacher find another means of helping yourself. I will even feel shy to go to Accra and call on the government to come and provide chalkit would be very difficult for me to do so. By Melvin Tarlue President John Mahama has been touring the Volta Region and visited Kpando today. While addressing us in Kpando, I was listening with apt attention to hear the messages His excellency had for us. I must say, that you did very well with communicating and spinning around the issues that really mattered to us. What you did very well was to engage in an "exercise of mediocrity" (to borrow your words). I was surprised when I heard you mention roads, school buildings, and water you turned on as an achievement while Campaigning for you and your Boss (Late Prof. Mills) in 2008 you made us tell the whole world that those were mediocre achievements. Well, I want to believe that it was politics as usual then and it is politics again this time round. But trust me, I will not vote for anybody who isn't bold enough to man up to his own words, because he cannot be trusted. Mr. President, you have lost my trust as an advent admirer. But Sir, as a person brought up in an African home with the values, there was something missing in all you said to the gathering. I do not know why you refused to apologise to the People of Kpando, the Volta Region and Ghana at large for lying about the state of the Kpando township roads. Or have you forgotten what you said? Well I won't be surprised because you have stated in the past that "Ghanaians have short memory", and you are a Ghanaian. A quick reminder, on page 34 of the 2016 State of the Nation's Address delivered to Parliament, you mentioned the Kpando township roads as having been constructed by your administration. So I am only asking that how come a road you claimed has been constructed is again being awarded for contract to First Sky Company? As a man popularly acclaimed as respectful by your party fanatics, I expected to hear you show that respect to my people by apologising for erring and deceiving the world about the state of the roads, but all you did was to praise yourself for doing everything and telling them what to think of you and your achievements. Do you really respect those of us in the Volta Region or you are just disrespectful, which is contrary to the accolades given you? Mr. President, why in God's name would you lose for humbly apologizing to the good people of the Volta who gave you over 80% of their votes to make you president? Gradually you are revealing your real self to us and we now know that John Mahama isn't the president we wanted. If you can lie to the world and not have the courage to apologize to us, then we are sorry, you are too big to serve us. Residents and traders of Ashtown in Kumasi of the Ashanti Region are blessed to receive transforming SME Banking to enhance their business and economic livelihood from Universal Merchant Bank (UMB). The viability and growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Ghana has been given a boost with the launch of the first UMB Centre for Businesses in Kumasi. Located on the Ashanti New Town road in Ashtown, this innovative Centre will set a new standard in the delivery of SME banking services and enhance the competitiveness of UMB Bank in the SME segment. UMB is a full-service financial institution specializing in customized banking products and services. It is a leading Ghanaian indigenous bank with considerable financial expertise. UMB is recognized for its entrepreneurial approach, innovative use of technology, and distinctive banking solutions. Speaking at the inauguration in Kumasi, the Chief Executive Officer of UMB Bank, Mr. John Awuah, recounted UMB Banks long and proud history of developing business in Ghana. He indicated that, "the bank is poised to restore its leadership position as the preeminent financial partner for businesses in Ghana". He further said another Centre will be opened in Accra before the end of the year and that in the next five years, the bank will open similar Centres in other parts of Ghana and the UMB Centre of Businesses will become a permanent and differentiated beacon in SME banking in Ghana. SMEs are unique and face peculiar challenges and that is why we have taken the bold step of setting up an operational infrastructure outside of our normal banking operations to cater exclusively to the needs of SMEs He stated. According to Mr. Awuah, the UMB Centre for Businesses is not a UMB bank branch, but the cradle for developing all categories of businesses and entrepreneurs from the woman who sells used clothing to the young technology entrepreneur who has the next billion cedi idea. The Head of Business Banking of UMB Bank, Mr. Ernest Tetteh also stated, At UMB, we take a more holistic approach to SME banking by providing both financial and non-financial solutions. According to Mr. Tetteh, we cannot grow SMEs by simply advancing loans to them and that is why the UMB Centre of Businesses will also provide world class advisory services in areas such as corporate governance, business strategy, internal controls, business development initiatives, marketing, and succession planning among others. Customers of the Centre will have access to dedicated and experienced relationship managers and credit analysts. They will also enjoy quick transactions and the utmost convenience and confidentiality. To us at UMB Bank, small businesses are big businesses and our Big on Small Business mantra is amply demonstrated by the establishment of this Centre. I encourage all business owners in Kumasi and beyond to take advantage of this Centre and they will be glad that they did he added. Amsterdam Child & Youth Finance International (CYFI) is delighted to announce the finalists for the Global Inclusion Awards 2016! Responses to this years call for nominees was outstanding, and more than 500 applications were received. With so many inspiring applications the jury had a difficult decision in choosing the impressive financial inclusion finalists narrowing down to just 54 contenders across the 6 awards categories . The Awards categories include: Child and Youth Friendly Banking Award, Civil Society Achievement Award, CYFI Country Award, Global Money Week Award, Global Youth Entrepreneur Award, Outstanding Youth Economic Citizenship Award. Winners will be announced at the Global Inclusion Awards ceremony, which are taking place on 28th November 2016 in Stockholm, Sweden. Held in collaboration with Finansinspektionen Financial Services Authority of Sweden and other partners, the Awards recognize and honor those that achieve greatness and demonstrate innovation in financial, social and livelihoods education, financial inclusion, and entrepreneurial support for children and youth at the national, regional and international level. From groups of active youth to financial institutions, government ministers to civil society organizations, CYFI and Finansinspektionen will be joined by representatives from all over the world to celebrate global efforts to economically empower young people. Celebrating youth empowerment As part of the event, interactive workshops will bring together a diverse range of experts, practitioners, researchers and educators. The workshops will provide the opportunity to share best practices, experiences and recommendations for economically empowering children and youth worldwide. Following this, a ceremony will be held in the Golden Hall at Stockholm City Hall to present the wonderful winners with their Awards. Key speakers will lead the audience in celebrating the tremendous work of inspiring members of CYFIs global network. Now in its 5th edition, the Global Inclusion Awards commend efforts to address poverty and support todays youth become the capable citizens and leaders of tomorrow. About Child & Youth Finance International Child & Youth Finance International (CYFI), an NGO based in Amsterdam, aims to develop a generation that will be able to prevent future financial crises by increasing the financial education, financial access, employability, and entrepreneurship skills of children and youth. Launched in April 2012 the Child and Youth Finance Movement has already expanded to 132 countries worldwide. Accra, GHANA On Monday, October 18, U.S. Charge dAffaires Melinda Tabler-Stone and other officials and dignitaries participated in the national launch of Rotary Family Health Days. The program is initiated and managed by Rotary International in partnership with governmental and non-governmental organizations to provide health screening services to vulnerable children, women, and men throughout Ghana. The United States Agency for International development (USAID) has supported Rotary Family Health Days in Ghana for the past three years. Rotary Family Health Days is taking place two days after the launch, from October 20-22. Fifty beneficiary communities in Greater Accra, Eastern, Western, Central, Ashanti, and Volta Regions will receive HIV counseling and testing; screenings for tuberculosis, diabetes and blood pressure; childhood vaccinations and vitamin A supplementation; deworming; family planning education; condom distribution; and eye health testing. The event has been taking place each year in Ghana since 2014, and last years event reached more than 37,000 people. This year, the event aims to reach 50,000 people. We could not be happier to support Rotary Family Health Days for the third year in a row, said Ms. Tabler-Stone at the launch. The U.S. government has a proud history of partnering with Rotary International in Ghana. Our partnerships have touched thousands of lives. Rotary International is a key partner of USAID. From 2009 to 2013, USAID and Rotary International cooperated to improve access to water and sanitation for more than 46,000 people. Last August, they signed a second partnership to scale up these results throughout the country. Nana Kweku Eyimah I, Gyaasehene of Assin Apimanim traditional council has stated categorically that president John Dramani Mahama and the ruling NDC deserve a second term to enable the government to build on the solid foundation he had built for the nation. Gyaasehene Kweku Eyimah I added that since 1992, Ghanaians have been voting for a change of government after a sitting president has ruled for eight years and therefore charged his subjects to ignore calls that the president should be changed in December. Nana Kweku Eyimah I stated this at Assin Apamanim palace yesterday when the vice president, Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur visited him as part of his four day campaign visit to the central region. Nana said, he has ruled for only four years so I am pleading with you to give him another term in office so that we can have our fair share of the developmental projects. He continued; we the people of Apimanim are solidly behind Mahama. He should win and come and continue his development agenda for us because he who performs must be supported. On the second day of his tour, the vice president, Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur commissioned a newly constructed market at Assin Ngrasi in the Assin South District. He was supported by the central regional minister, Mr. George Kweku Ricketts Hagan and the District Chief Executive of the Assin South District Assembly, Mr. Kwabena Adyei-Anoma . The new market has 40 lockable stores, 60 stalls and places of convenient for market men and women as well as the general public. Remarkable euphoria greeted the commissioning of the market by the local people amidst chanting and showering of praises on the vice president and the Assin South District Assembly. They joy stemmed from the fact that until the construction of the market, all forms of trading activities were done openly by the sides of the road. Traders, customers, pedestrians and vehicles always have to compete for space especially during market days in the town. It is now envisaged that a proper market day will be instituted in the town by the local authority to ensure that the new market becomes vibrant and serve as a third force in the area after Nyankomasi and Foso. The Ghana Police Service has transferred 38 senior police officers two months ahead of the December polls. IGP John Kudalor made 29 changes in November 2015, 61, 80 and 90 in January, May and August, 2016 respectively; making a total of 298 changes in one year. With the latest changes, the Ministries Commander in Accra, ACP Tiwaa Addo Danquah has been moved to the Police Intelligence and Professional Standards Bureau (PIPS) as the second in command. She was recently moved from the Police Staff College in Winneba to the Ministries Division some months ago. In other related transfers, Chief Superintendent Akwasi Kankam-Boadu who was the Donkorkrom Divisional Police Commander has been transferred to the Half Assini Divisonal Command in the Western Region. Chief Superintendent Cephas Kwofie of the Amasaman Division has been sent to Donkorkrom to Head the division. Donkorkrom and some surrounding towns were hit with violence after some residents in the Afram Plains South district clashed with police officers destroying some police properties. By: Franklin Badu Jnr/citifmonline.com/Ghana Kinshasa (AFP) - The Congolese capital Kinshasa was gripped by a strike Wednesday in a protest over plans by the president to stay in power beyond the end of his term in December, AFP journalists said. The opposition called for the action to protest a deal signed Tuesday which would keep President Joseph Kabila in power in the Democratic Republic of Congo until April 2018 by postponing this year's scheduled presidential vote. Kabila first took office in 2001, and in 2006 a new constitutional provision limited the presidency to a two-term limit which expires on December 20. The country's main opposition party, the UDPS, called the deal signed between authorities and fringe opposition groups a "flagrant violation" of the constitution and said the strike would show Kabila "the yellow card". At 9:00 am local time (0800 GMT), roads in northern parts of Kinshasa -- a city of 10 million people -- were totally deserted and most shops closed. They would typically have been bustling ahead of the work and school day. The upmarket Gombe district was also unusually quiet. And in Kasa-Vubu, a district in the south of the city, the only people on Victories Square were some 50 police officers. Officers were deployed in force at other locations including parliament and at several military bases. The only visible commercial activity taking place was women selling bread and petrol stations that were open but unused. Shared taxis had all but stopped and private traffic was nearly non-existent. Those public buses that were running were practically empty. Despite the widespread strike action in Kinshasa, the situation was normal in the second city Lubumbashi. Calls for a strike were also ignored in Bukavu, according to an AFP correspondent there. However in Goma, eastern Congo, the call to down tools was largely followed and most shops remained closed, according to two AFP journalists. The agreement to allow Kabila to serve into 2018 emerged after the EU threatened sanctions if the country did not hold elections in 2017. It was concluded at "national dialogue" talks aimed at reducing tensions triggered by disquiet that the president is seeking to remain indefinitely. But the main opposition coalition -- "Rassemblement" (Gathering) -- boycotted the talks, branding them a ploy by Kabila to stay in power beyond the end of his term. The Director of Communications at the Electricity of Ghana says the power outages experienced in some parts of Accra within the past 24 hours have nothing to do with load shedding. According to William Boateng , the interruption in power supply is due to an accident which led to a cable cut, tripping the system at its Mallam Bulk Supply Point (BSP). Several parts of Accra including Mallam, Weija, Dansoman, Kwashieman, Santa Maria were plunged into darkness on Tuesday evening. After about three years of a power crisis, yesterday's incident re-ignited anxiety about the country's power supply situation. When William Boateng was asked whether this indicates a possible re-lapse, he discounted it explaining that the power generating company, Volta River Authority(VRA) is currently producing enough power to meet the demand. Mr. Boateng said engineers at the ECG worked assiduously to restore power to some areas soon after the outage occurred in the western part of Accra. After apologising for any inconveniences caused, Mr Boateng said power supply will be restored to the affected parts by Wednesday evening. Story by Ghana| Myjoyonline.com | AA 19.10.2016 LISTEN From Ernest Best Anane, Kumasi Koku Anyidoho, Deputy General Secretary of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), has tasked student members of the party at the University of Education Winneba (Kumasi campus) to ignore media propaganda and send the message about the achievements of the government to the electorate. He said the electorate should be educated on the party's manifesto to ensure that the NDC party wins the upcoming generation elections by a landslide. Addressing the students union last Sunday, after the launch of the NDC regional campaign, Mr. Anyidoho entreated the students not to be discouraged about what the media publishes, and urged them to vigorously campaign to enable the party retain political power, come December 7. According to him, had it been media reports, the late President Atta Mills of the blessed memory and the sitting President John Dramani Mahama would not have won elections in this country. He stated that a greater part of the media would want the grounds to be fertile for the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), and would continue predicting elections in NPP's favour, when, in actual fact, it is not the case on the ground. The Deputy General Secretary called for an effective campaign, based on their achievements and manifesto, as a party in power and government. He said it is their (party members) collective responsibility to protect this years elections, as they have built a solid foundation, considering ongoing development projects, and entreated the students to venture into vigorous campaigns to help the NDC retain power. According to him, voting for Nana Akufo-Addo would be the worst mistake Ghanaians could make. Reacting to the accusations by the vice presidential candidate of the NPP, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, that the Mahama-led NDC administration had indulged in excessive borrowing, Mr. Anyidoho explained that Mahama is borrowing to create assets, and to use our own gas to power our thermal plants, which the NPP failed to do in their eight years in government. He underscored that the Bui Dam project, which was championed by the NPP, has added nothing to the power sector, as former President Kufuor refused to follow Thermal plant generation needs to improve on the power sector, and that the NPP has no moral right to complain over the erratic power supply. Mr. Brogya Genfi, NDC Regional Youth Organiser, who is also the parliamentary candidate for Suame constituency, tasked the students to campaign based on the partys manifesto and the achievements of the government in the region, and the country as a whole. The Suame parliamentary aspirant reminded them of the governments scraping of all the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) registration fees, as one of the efforts to give all children of school-going age access to basic education, and urged them to embark on clean campaigns for the party to win the elections. Felix Enam Wotodzor, President of TEIN branch at the Kumasi campus, also expressed the hope that looking at the euphoria on the campus and in Ashanti Region, the NDC would win this years elections, and charged the members embark on a vigorous campaign, in and outside campus, to ensure that the party wins the elections massively. The son of renowned Nigerian environmental activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, who was executed more than 20 years ago, has died in London. Ken Saro-Wiwa Jr, 47, passed away after suffering a stroke, his family say. He was a journalist who became an adviser to three presidents. The 1995 execution of his father by a military government for leading protests against environmental degradation caused by the oil industry sparked global outrage. Saro-Wiwa Sr led the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (Mosop), which accused oil multinational Shell of destroying the environment in his home region of Ogoniland in south-eastern Nigeria. His execution after a secret trial under Gen Sani Abacha led to Nigeria being suspended from the Commonwealth. Saro-Wiwa Jr's father was hanged with eight others after a secret trial Noo Saro-Wiwa, sister of the late journalist, told the BBC: "It is with great sadness that we announce that Ken Saro-Wiwa Jr passed away suddenly. His family are devastated and request privacy at this difficult time." Funeral arrangements are yet to be worked out, the family says. Ken Saro-Wiwa was first appointed in 2006 as a special adviser on peace and conflict resolution by former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo. He later served Mr Obasanjo's successor, President Umaru Yar'Adua, as an adviser on international affairs and stayed on under President Goodluck Jonathan until he lost last year's election. His willingness to work with the federal government marked him out as less militant than his father. But like his father, he was committed to the cause of the Ogoni people. In a 2015 opinion piece for the UK's Guardian newspaper , he wrote that the effects of the oil pollution on Ogoniland had still not been cleared up. "If my father were alive today he would be dismayed that Ogoniland still looks like the devastated region that spurred him to action. "There is little evidence to show that it sits on one of the world's richest deposits of oil and gas." A 2011 UN report said Nigeria's Ogoniland region could take 30 years to recover fully from the damage caused by years of oil spills. The study said complete restoration could entail the world's "most wide-ranging and long-term oil clean-up". It added that communities faced a severe health risk, with some families drinking water with high levels of carcinogens. Shell has accepted liability for two spills and said all oil spills were bad for Nigeria and the company. Prior to the Election Day, various political parties cling onto advertising schemes and strategies to carry across their party manifestoes and messages to the public. Most political parties in a bid to ensure the adverts have an impact on the electorates, spend huge sums of money in advertising on radio, TV, newspapers and on billboards among others. The Klottey Korley constituency Vice Chairman of the NPP, Alhaji Alui Kabey explains to Citi Business News that for every budget drawn by his political party; at least a quarter is attributed to media advertising. Because most of the time with politicians you know even if it is fifteen to thirty minutes, the radio stations will take five thousand to six thousand Ghana cedis. Citi Business News checks also reveal most political parties spend at least 60, 000 cedis monthly on advertising on media platforms alone. For example to advertise in a newspaper, a political party is likely to spend between GH5,000 to GH8,000 for a full page. But this amount may differ across newspapers depending on the size and number of pages used by the political party placing the order. With radio however, an advertisement could cost between GH10, 000 GH40, 000 depending on the duration and number of days the advert runs. While with television you will be slapped with GH50, 000 for an advertising slot running into a number of minutes. But these are usually slashed by some media houses. A Lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School and Political Marketing analyst, Dr Kobby Mensah also explained the massive influence these media advertisements by political parties, have on voters. We have categories of voters; there are some who are very much entrenched with their choices and therefore may not be influenced by these political media advertisements. However, even those who are entrenched in their choices would probably want to know that they have actually made the right decision, he said. In addition, there are others who are fairly new to the business of voting and therefore are seeking direction as to where to vote and therefore the advertising actually plays a role in their decision. It influences them and it influences their votes, Dr. Kobby Mensah added. But then again as these political parties prolifically compete for the attention of their audience via these media ads, one wonders if they truly make an impact on Ghanaians? An electorate, Adjei remarked,My mind is already decided I know who I'm going to vote for per what I want for my country and also from whoever is the president. So when it comes to election the mind is already decided from day one. Another, Isaac also intimated, I've already made up my mind to vote for the one I'm going to vote for. So far the three major parties have already brought their manifestoes and we have heard everything so I've chosen the one I'm going to vote for. Also, a driver at Adabraka, Kingsley,What is done on radio is just noise making. I've already made up my mind on who to vote for., he concluded. By: Jessica Ayorkor Aryee/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana A Deputy Minister of state, Sampson Ahi has defended the Mahama-led government for pegging the producer price of cocoa at 11.76 percent describing calls for a further increment as irrational. Cocoa prices are announced based on the world international price. It's just not that you wake up tomorrow and announce that I will pay cocoa farmers this amount; it is based on the prevailing cocoa price at the international level. It is just one factor but it is key because if a tonne of cocoa is $2950 then somebody says that pay the cocoa farmers GH600 it doesnt make sense. That is irrational, because it doesnt make sense that you call on government to pay GHc600, he added. Mr. Ahi who is the Deputy Minister of Water and Resources made the comment after a press conference held by the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) on the issue. Some cocoa farmers following the increment announced on October 1, 2016 complained that the GHc475 was too small . But speaking to Citi News, Mr. Ahi said the NDC government is only implementing a policy that was also used by the NPP in determining cocoa prices. If you multiply 600 by 16 bags that is a tonne, you are getting about GHc9600 but the world market price even if it is $2950 and even if the exchange rate is even GhC4, you are even going to get GHc11,000. But that is not how cocoa is calculated in this country. What we have done is the same format NPP adopted when they were in office. Over the years, cocoa farmers have been paid based on net FOB price. A tonne of cocoa at the international market is $2950 that is not the benchmark successive governments have used to pay cocoa farmers. Because of uncertainty in terms of price at the international level, what they do is that when the benchmark it below the international market price. So this year for instance they used $2470 and what happen is that they deduct certain support programmes to cocoa farmers before the price is announced. That is what NPP used. Farmers complaining are NPP people Sampson Ahi further accused the NPP of rallying its supporters to mount pressure on government saying it is not a representation of the cocoa farming population in the country. The farmers are aware that for cocoa roads, the amount is taken from the cocoa. President Kufuor started cocoa roads; he deducted certain amount from whatever he got at the international level before prices are announced. He also started mass spraying, they deducted it before the prices were announced, so we are not doing anything different. Afriyie-Akoto is just organizing some NPP people and they are talking because farmers are grateful that President Mahama has added GHc50. Don't blame Akufo-Addo The Minority Spokesperson on Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs, Dr. Owusu Akoto-Afriyie who addressed the press accused the NDC of spreading wicked lies in cocoa growing areas that government paid low producer price of GHc475 because Nana Akufo-Addo failed to sign an agreement with international banks for government to get money to enable them offer a high producer price. Dr. Akoto-Afriyie further entreated cocoa farmers to dismiss what he said was the vile propaganda against Akufo-Addo saying government wass using the propaganda to cover up its failures to cocoa farmers. government could not go beyond the GHc475; it has nothing to do with Nana Akufo-Addo. The executive wing of government is in charge of cocoa policy exclusively and no opposition member has any influence or whatsoever on that, not even us here as minority in Parliament, we have no influence on how much the government decides to give to producers for their produce. The [Kwaku] Ananse story is meant to throw dust into the eyes of our poor cocoa farmers. By: Godwin A.Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana Follow @AlloteyGodwin 19.10.2016 LISTEN From John Bediako, Tema The raging cement war seems unending, with the local manufacturers on the verge of losing grip of their territories. The manufacturers Ghacem and Diamond Cement recently protested against the presence of African business magnet Dangote and Fujian of China, accusing the two of unfair trade practices. As though the agitations had rather triggered the valve to open floodgates for the commodity to enter the country, information available to The Chronicle suggested that there are more shiploads of bagged cement at sea, navigating towards Ghana. The business community views this as a means to neutralise the monopoly local manufacturers have enjoyed over the years. The presence of Dangote and others has already forced down prices of local cement for the booming construction industry. Anchored at the Tema Port since the 11th of this month is a Hellenic flag liner, Motor Vessel (MV) Navios Achilles, being operated by KLEIMAR, and in her belly is 28,500 metric tonnes of bagged cement for discharge at Tema. The consignment, our checks indicate, is owned by Fouta General, but the paper could not establish whether the company has a license to import or not. Fujian, which is already into the same business, has duly obtained a license from the Ministry of Trade and Industry. Ghacem was the first to establish a cement manufacturing plant in the country, followed by Diamond Cement. They were later followed by Dangote, which set up a plant at Tema, producing cement, and, at the same time, importing bagged ones from Nigeria. The local manufacturers are, however, not happy with the importation of bagged cement, even though it has helped to beat down the price on the local market. A bird has, however, whispered into the ears of The Chronicle that Fouta General is exploring an Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) trade liberalisation protocol among member nations. More Anon! 19.10.2016 LISTEN From Michael Boateng, Sunyani When the official liquidators of DKM Micro Finance announced to agitated customers the table for the repayment of their locked up deposits, they received the news with joy, which later turned into a rather sour taste, when they went to the Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) in Sunyani to collect their monies yesterday. The reason is simple the amount promised them was slashed down, much to the surprise of the customers, who accused the authorities of not being transparent in the payment of the deposits. According to most of the affected customers, they were made to understand that the bank was going to pay 20% of the deposit of each customer. They were, again, told that any customer with a deposit above GH10,000, would be receiving GH3,500, while all customers with deposits below GH3,500 would receive full payment. However, shortly after some of the affected customers had returned from the banking hall of the GCB, their moods were unsatisfactory, as they claimed the amounts given them were insulting and very annoying. A customer, who had invested GH70,000, was given only GH3,500, while another customer, who had a deposit of GH40,000, was also given GH3,500. Meanwhile, some of the customers, who had a deposit of GH1,000, were paid in full. This decision annoyed the customers, who are asking whether they would be having access to another payment or not. The Spokesperson for Concerned Affected DKM Customers, Maxwell Mahama, told journalists that the entire process lacked transparency, because the customers did not know the amounts they were going to receive from the bank. He said the customers should have been made aware of the amount each was going to receive, based on his or her deposit. According to Maxwell Mahama, per the Official Liquidator, a total of about 73,000 customers were to be paid nationwide, however, currently, the number of names published is 4,000. He, therefore, wondered when the remaining customers would be receiving their monies. The process for the payment was, however, smooth as the authorities made sure security was tight. Special Tellers were picked to cater for the DKM customers. According to the Official Liquidator, eight GCB branches have been designated for the payments, and each of the branches is expected to attend up to 500 customers daily till all the payments were concluded. The Liquidator urged customers not to panic, since all the challenges encountered would be addressed later. The affected customers of DKM have been wailing in dismay for over a year after the operations of DKM Microfinance were suspended for flouting regulations in the financial sector. Most of the affected customers have died due to this, while others have had their marriages collapsed. Businesses of others have also collapsed, following the closure of the Micro Finance Company. The Monday payments process, coupled with the amount being received, has been met with threats of court injunctions, boycotts, and a demonstration by the aggrieved customers. 19.10.2016 LISTEN The Ashanti Regional Council of Ulamau and Imams has joined the campaign to keep the nation calm, as it talks the youth in the Zongo communities out of anything evil, reckless, and unlawful. Sheikh Abdul Mummin Haroun, Regional Imam, said they should be responsible and resist overtures by self-seeking politicians to foment trouble during political campaigns and voting day. In a speech read for him at a two-day workshop meant to deepen the participation of Muslims in the electoral process, he said it was important for all to uphold the peace. The programme was organised by the Islamic Foundation for Peace and Development (IFPAD), a civil society organisation, with support from the United Nations Development Fund (UNDP) and the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA). It was held under the theme: Strengthening the Islamic community's participation in the electoral process. In attendance were political party youth activists, Muslim scholars, youth associations, women groups, and opinion leaders in the Asawasi constituency. The programme is part of a nationwide project by the foundation to sensitise and assist people in the Zongo communities to show strong commitment towards peaceful polls. The Regional Imam reminded political leaders to accept to play by the rules of fair play to remove needless tension and nasty clashes in this year's elections. Mr. Garba Auwdu Talle, Executive-Secretary of IFPAD, took the participants through various topics, including 'Causes, effects and resolution of conflicts', 'Role of Muslim leaders in curbing violence', and 'Election 2016 and building democratic dispensation'. He appealed to Imams to continue to educate, counsel, and aid the youth to channel their enormous energy into productive ventures. Source: GNA 19.10.2016 LISTEN By William Nlanjerbor Jalulah, Sumbrungu. As the December 7 polls draw nearer, political bigwigs have intensified their campaign strategies with all manner of interesting descriptions of their opponents, which, they believe, will win them the crucial elections. One of such gurus is the outspoken General Secretary of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia. He has admonished supporters of his party not to vote 'skirt and blouse', because that is the theory of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP). 'Skirt and blouse' is a Ghanaian electoral parlance, which means voting, either for a presidential or parliamentary candidate of a particular party, and voting against the other of same party. In most instances, it is the parliamentary candidates who suffer this fate, because, during parliamentary primaries, those who lose are likely, sometimes, with pressure from their supporters, to vote against the victor in the main elections, and vote for the presidential nominee . But, speaking to supporters of the NDC at Sumbrungu in the Upper East Region during the campaign launch of Isaac Adongo, NDC parliamentary candidate for Bolgatanga Central constituency on Sunday October 16, 2016, Mr. Nketia, otherwise known as General Mosquito, was emphatic that this voting pattern is alien to the NDC, and, therefore, they should vote for President John Mahama and all NDC's parliamentary candidates. Skirt and blouse is NPP theory and not NDC theory. NDC knows how to support a single leader, and when we win, everybody comes on board, he said. He observed that the people of Bolgatanga, in the previous elections, voted massively for the NDC both presidential and parliamentary and, therefore, any attempt to vote 'skirt and blouse' in the approaching December 7 polls will be injurious to the party. According to him, it will be in the common interest of the constituents that President Mahama is retained, so he can do the development they so desire. He said: Let me tell you, this election is not about President Mahama or Adongo or Asiedu Nketia or anybody else. It's about your own. Economic Proposals in the New Patriotic Party (NPP) manifesto could leave Ghana with lost revenue and increased expenditure annually amounting to about GHc 27 billion, Vice President Kwesi Amissah Arthur has said. Addressing students at the Cape Coast Polytechnic, the Vice President indicated that eight out of the NPP's proposals on Economy in the NPPs manifesto are on revenue reduction and would cost the nation billions. In the manifesto that they have published, they have put in about 63 proposals. Eight of them are revenue proposal in which they will reduce revenue. When I calculate the cost and the revenue loss that their manifesto proposes, I get something like GHc 6.2 billion if they were running the government this year [2016] from the reduction in taxes and son on. The Veep also noted that in addition, they have also introduced GHc 21 billion of new expenditure. With the loss of revenue and the increase in expenditure, we are talking about an additional GHc 27 billion, he added. NPPs shift from taxation to production The NPPs economic strategy is anchored on a shift from taxation to production according to its running mate, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia. At the NPPs 2016 manifesto launch, Dr. Bawumia promised that an NPP government would lessen and abolish the tax burden on a number of sectors ranging from the ECOWAS common external tariff to levies on head porters, otherwise known as Kayayei. Dr. Bawumia blamed the mismanagement of the economy under this John Mahama led National Democratic Congress government for the increase in taxes on virtually everything taxable. Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia Taxes were imposed on even on condoms and cutlasses, The NPP running mate noted. Mentioning some of the taxes the party intends to reduce or scrap, he said corporate tax would be reduced from 25 percent to 20 percent. He also said an NPP government would remove import duties on raw materials and machinery from production within the contest of the ECOWAS common external tariff, along with a scrapping of the special import levy. To accompany the various tax scraps and reductions, Dr. Bawumia assured that the NPP would introduce tax incentives for businesses that hire fresh graduates from schools and we are going to reduce the VAT for micro and small enterprises from the 17.5 percent to the 3 percent flat rate. Follow the hashtag #GhElections on Social Media for election related stories By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana More than 100 million people, primarily children, have been treated for schistosomiasis since 2007 Merck provides WHO with around 10 million tablets for Ivory Coast for the first time Merck ( MerckGroup.com ), a leading science and technology company, today announced that it has donated to the World Health Organization (WHO) the 500 millionth tablet to treat the insidious worm disease schistosomiasis. At a school located roughly 25 km north-west of Abidjan, representatives from Merck, WHO and the Ministry of Health of Ivory Coast jointly announced the launch of the medicines distribution in Ivory Coast. Mercks engagement in fighting schistosomiasis dates back to 2007 and involves 35 countries in Africa. More than 100 million patients, primarily school children, have been treated to date. We are committed to further donating up to 250 million tablets annually until this devastating disease has been eliminated, explained Belen Garijo, member of the Merck Executive Board and CEO Healthcare. Donating the 500 millionth tablet of praziquantel today demonstrates our strong progress in achieving this objective, Garijo added. At a celebration held at the primary school of the village of Attinguie, representatives of the Ministry of Health of Ivory Coast and the British Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (SCI) administered the praziquantel tablets for the treatment of schistosomiasis to the children. Depending on their height, the children receive between one and five tablets. Furthermore, the teachers explained to them the causes of the tropical worm disease. For this purpose, Merck has donated a total of 20,000 educational booklets to WHO for Ivory Coast. According to WHO, almost 20% of the Ivory Coast population requires treatment. To date, the U.S. development agency USAID and the Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (SCI) have supported the government of Ivory Coast in its fight against schistosomiasis. As a member of the Global Schistosomiasis Alliance, Merck has been cooperating with both organizations since 2014. Within the scope of this cooperation, the company has donated to WHO at short notice 3.6 million tablets for 2016. Consequently, Ivory Coast is benefiting for the first time from the partnership between Merck and WHO. For 2017, Merck will provide WHO with 6.5 million tablets for the West African country. Schistosomiasis affects an estimated 260 million people worldwide. The infection rate is especially high among children, and the consequences are serious. The parasitic disease stunts growth, causes learning disabilities, and leads to anemia. Merck is donating praziquantel tablets to WHO as part of its responsibility for society and within Health, one of its corporate responsibility strategic activities. Praziquantel is well tolerated and the most effective treatment to date for schistosomiasis. In addition, Merck is supporting educational and awareness programs, researching schistosomiasis therapies for very young children and cooperating with partners in the Global Schistosomiasis Alliance. Amnesty International has published on 29th September a report titled Scorched Earth, Poisoned Air: Credible Evidence of children killed and maimed by horrific Chemical Weapons attacks in Darfur. In the report the organization alleges that it has gathered harrowing evidence strongly suggesting the repeated use of chemical weapons against civilians, including very young children in Jebel Marra One of the most remote parts of Darfur. Implausibility of the allegations: It should be recalled that the Sudanese Army fought one of the longest and most difficult wars in South Sudan, before signing the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005. Yet it had never resorted to the use of chemical weapons in the South, nor was it ever accused of this. Thus, why should chemical weapons be used in Darfur, at a time security and tranquility prevail in the region and the situation is almost completely under the control of the Sudanese Army? The report estimates the victims of the alleged chemical attacks as around 200 hundred people, while asserting that 171 villages in the area have been repeatedly attacked between January to September, 2016. Given that the said area is densely populated, and that Sudanese Armys soldiers do not use protective masks, is it logical that the number of victims would be around that figure, if there were repeated chemical attacks for a period of NINE MONTHS as the report alleges? The United Nation/African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) has permanent presence in the area since 2007 and holds regular meetings with representatives of the local communities and displaced people as well as with leaders of armed groups. At no time had the mission raised any concerns that chemical weapons might have been used in the area. Besides, the US Special Envoy to Sudan visited Jebel Marra in September 2016 for 5 days and had meetings with all concerned parties in the area. Nothing close to the accusation of use of chemical weapons by the Sudanese army has ever cropped up in his discussions with the Sudanese officials. The question is how Amnesty International, which does not have presence in the area or even gained legal access to it, obtained information and credible evidence that the 20,000strong UNAMID and the US Special Envoy failed to notice? On 9th October 2016 Mr. Martin Ihoeghian Uhomoibhi, Joint AU-UN Special Representative to Darfur, Head of UNAMID and Joint Chief Mediator, issued an elaborate press statement on peace in Darfur. Concerning the allegations by Amnesty International on use of chemical weapons in Darfur, Mr. Uhomoibhi points out the following: UNAMID has been requested to shed light on the claims in the Amnesty Internationals report and the facts are as follows: In spite of the almost 20,000 UNAMID personnel on the ground in Darfur, none of them has seen any Darfuri with impact of the use of chemical weapons as described by Amnesty Internationals report. Not one displaced person meeting such description has shown up at any UNAMID Team Site clinics where they would have naturally gone for help. Amnesty International claimed to have made calls into Jebel Marra but did not for once call any of the almost 20,000 UN personnel all over Darfur, including in places like Sortony and Nertiti within a stone throw from the places where chemical weapons were reported to have been used. Not one among the leadership of the Armed Movements in Darfur discussed use of chemical weapons with me or my Deputy during several meetings spanning January, April, May, July, August and September this year. Position of the OPCW: The Organization of Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is the only international implementing body of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) which entered into force in 1997, and aimed at preventing chemistry from ever again being used for warfare. Sudan is party to the CWC and member of the OPCW since 1998. Sudan is by no means in possession of any type of chemical weapons. Sudans Industrial facilities, military and civil, are all open to the verification of the OPWC at all times. In its latest report, June 2016, the OPCW confirmed that Sudan does not have or use chemical weapons. The OPCWs official response to Amnesty Internationals report, on 29th September 2016 reads: The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has examined the relevant parts of the Amnesty International report regarding allegations of the use of chemical weapons in the Darfur regions of Sudan. The OPCW has also noted the response of the Government of Sudan to the allegations. Without further information and evidence being made available, it is not possible at this stage to draw any conclusions based on the content of the report. This is in contrast with claim of Amnesty International that its report contains credible evidence of use of chemical weapons by the Sudanese Army. It is evident that Amnesty Internationals allegations are based on hearsay information. The ostensible testimonies cited by the report are by elements from the so-called Sudan Liberation Army/Abdul Wahid. This faction is the only Darfuri armed movement that has been persistently and adamantly rejecting all peace endeavors in Darfur and insisting on perpetuating strife and suffering in the region. Its Leader, Abdul Wahid Nour, based in Paris, has consistently failed on all his promises and commitments to join the peace process in Darfur since 2005. The latest attempt in this regards was by the Joint Special Representative of the UN AU to Darfur Head of UNAMID (JSR) when he met him in Paris on 11July 2016. He committed himself to hold meeting of his faction Leadership to consider joining the Peace Process. He further asked for UNAMIDs assistance toward that end, a request that was approved by the JSR provided that there is a formal written letter to process the request. Abdul-Wahid promised to send the letter immediately. However, according to the JSR, he failed to do so till the date in spite of the JSRs two reminders on that. That is why the JSR concludes that there is a need that the UN and respective Special Envoys of influential countries to exert necessary pressure on the Sudan Liberation Army / Abdul-Wahid to Join the Peace Process Apparently Abdul Wahid was aware of the contents of the report Amnesty had been working on, which would provide him with yet another excuse to continue his stubborn refusal of peace bids in Darfur. Amnesty Internationals said report is, therefore, little more than propaganda to serve Abdul Wahid war agenda. Disqualified All People's Congress (APC) Presidential candidate Hassan Ayariga says the Electoral Commission chairperson Charlotte Osei has demonstrated that she cannot be trusted to manage the 2016 general elections. According to him,the former Electoral Commissioner Dr. Kwadwo Afari Gyan conducted the affairs of the commission more credibily than his successor, Charlotte Osei. If I have to tell you the truth, I dont trust the EC. She is not straight in doing their things the 45-year old businessman said on Joy FMs Super Morning Show, Wednesday. Making his case for a reversal of his disqualification, Hassan Ayariga said the EC told the world a big lie when she claimed he could not properly fill his presidential nomination forms. Hassan Ayariga was the first of 12 presidential aspirants disqualified for their inability to meet a statutory requirement of getting 432 voters to endorse their nomination forms. Charlotte Osei at the press conference to announce the staggering list of disqualified politicians explained that two voters had endorse Hassan Ayariga and another candidate. It means he fell short of the statutory requirement to amass 432 endorsers. A tantrum-throwing Ayariga was incensed by the announcement and verbally abused the first female Electoral Commissioner. It was an action he later apologised for. He explained on Joy FMs Super Morning Show, the EC attacked my identity so I attacked her integrity. He explained he was in no position to verify if his endorsers had also endorsed other candidates. We dont have database to know whether you have subscribed to someone or not he said. As far as he is concerned he submitted 432 voters and that should be enough statement of his commitment to meet the requirements spelt out in C.1 94. If there are mistakes, made in ignorance, the EC should correct it. it is simple this is not a matter that you have to drag he dismissed. He also pointed to the mistakes that the EC also makes when an 18-year-old voter had a card that put his age at 140 years. The election petition hearing which challenged the EC declaration of John Mahama as the winner of the 2012 presidential elections also exposed the commission as prone to error, he said. He argued that the Supreme Court did not ban the EC from organising elections but instead it directed that the EC should take steps to improve the credibility of elections. If the Supreme Court could overlook the errors of the EC, why should Charlotte Osei have the mettle to disqualify a whole presidential candidate he argued. The EC thinks that she is hard but she is setting a bad precedent,undermines he said. He rejected criticisms that his laughable comments undermine the seriousness of his bid to be president. According to him he did not open 10 regional offices, 143 constituency offices and procure 30 APC-branded pick-ups all in one year if he was not serious about being president. At 20, I made my first million; at 22, I built my first house; at 44, I formed my own political party. If Ghanaians think Im not serious with all these, then by the time I get serious, I will buy the whole world he said. -Myjoyonline 19.10.2016 LISTEN By Philip Tengzu Mr. Mark M. N. Dagbee, Upper West Regional Director of the Centre for National Culture, has said the passage of the Creative Arts Bills would not benefit the people of the region, because it has no theatre or building to host arts, dances, drama and music. The challenge, he said, was undermining the centre's efforts towards developing the creative talents of the people. Mr. Dagbee announced this at the Regional Cultural and Arts Festival held in Wa, as part of preparations towards the National Cultural and Arts Festival next month. The event was under the theme: Promoting a culture of peace for national unity and socio-economic empowerment. It is aimed at ensuring unity among the people for sustainable socio-economic development. He appealed to the government, traditional rulers, and other stakeholders to act swiftly and provide the centre with a theatre complex. Mr. Dagbee observed that there was no better way of ensuring that the people lived in peace, than bringing them together to share their cultural values and beliefs. Every culture is characterised by unique beliefs and values, and there is the need to bring the people together to celebrate their cultures, to ensure unity in diversity, he said. May this festival reignite the flames of our dying cultures, because a group of people without a culture is one that is dying. Therefore, if we are not to die as a people, we must keep our culture alive. Mr. Dagbee appealed the people not to engage in any acts of innuendo, insults or composition of provocative songs against their political opponents, because that could mar the hard won peace Ghana was enjoying now. Dr. Mohammed Mushiebu Alfa, Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, appealed to the people to jealously safeguard the prevailing peace in the country, while reminding them that peace was the only ingredient that bound the people together. He said culture was one of the major definers of peace, and that sustained peace could not prevail in Ghana if there was no unity among the various cultures. If we all observe our cultural values and norms to the letter, Ghana will continue to enjoy the prevailing peace, which is a prerequisite for socio-economic development, Dr. Mushiebu noted. The Deputy Regional Minister urged the people to resort to the rule of law and the use of dialogue, as well as the law courts to settle electoral disputes. Dr. Mushiebu urged the public to patronise made in Ghana products, as well as tourist sites, such as the Wa Naa's Palace and Wichiau Hippo Sanctuary to promote local tourism for economic development. Traditional rulers, heads of departments, municipal and district chief executives, and students, as well as cultural troupes from all the 11 districts of the region, among other people, attended the forum. Source: GNA The final decision of honourable members of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly on a compromise to settle on Nana Adu Mensah Asare, the Amakomhene as the Presiding Member of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly is an indicator of how traditional authorities could be moderators of fracas contained in our traditional district assemblies which stalls the intentions of the framers of the 1992 Constitution that district assemblies should not be partisan and non-political. It has also triggered a questionable intent of the Constitution Review Commission on the proposition of electing District Chief Executive Officers and membership of the District Assemblies and effective working relationship of the central government and the district assembly in a region not being a strong hold of the ruling government. Laws that do not appease public for public good but serves as a brook to anything anarchical and indecorous to peace, serenity and political stability leads to political polarization. Entrenched and polarised position of the people of Ghana brought about by some Constitutional Provisions under the 1992 Constitution continue to serve as an enervate to Ghanas democratic progression which we seriously need to revisit to rekindle our stoke of one people, one nation and one destiny. Participatory democracy, a cornerstone of democratic altruism, shall thrive well and shall bring all hands on deck through arrogating of political offices to all sections of the Ghanaian societies against parading on the sharp-edges of oligarchy fused with political clientelism. In pursuit of nonpartisan political platform to serve as the highest political authority in the district that shall have deliberative, legislative and executive powers as provisioned under Article 241.3 of the 1992 Constitution, membership to the house needed be all inclusiveness of all interest groups within the district and that selection of members to the house must be independent of external influence and interference. In a nutshell, Safe Democracy Ghana proposes that 20% Membership to the house is allocated to the Traditional Council 10% to the Ghana Peace Council and representative of the Central Government Ministries representatives at the district, then the elected Honourable Members of the assemblies elected from government electoral areas keep the 70% among whom they shall elect the District Chief Executive officer. Traditional councils members shall elect from among them the Presiding member and the district executive council of the district assembly shall be made up of equal percentage shared among them the honourable members of the district assemblies. Paramount Chiefs so described under Article 295 of the 1992 Constitution and Act 759 Section 13 (1 and 2) as the President of Traditional Council, who by virtue of Article 36.8 and 267 serves as the fiduciary of the land under which seats the district assembly, and Article 11(2and3) customary law and usage and Act 759 that made the traditional authorities the custodians of our culture and tradition cannot be denied the position to become the head of the highest political authority of the district even if that position should be Ceremonial one. We must remember, in the case of the Kumasi Metropolis impasse, the intervention of the Kumasi Traditional Council worked the odds and not the bravado of the political parties. That is why in our humble opinion; we seek consolidating our culture and tradition in the main stream of political institutions by revisiting Article 242 (1992), local government Act 642 (1993) and the Chieftaincy Act 759 (2000) Article 241(3) provides that (3) Subjects to this Constitution, a District Assembly shall be the highest political authority in the district, and shall have deliberative, legislative and executive powers. Though recognisedby the constitution and considered for consultation on appointment of a fraction of membership into the District Assembly, Traditional Authorities before the Guggisberg 1925 Constitution have continued to be very influential in conducting communal affairs affecting their localities which has consequently affected the mindset and social reality of the Ghanaian positively and enticed the Ghanaian to cooperate in the administration and support of the chieftaincy institution. Furthermore, to effectuate Chapter Six of the 1992 into a proper working document for livelihood, all of us must reconsider our political history from birth, culture and tradition and how we weld it with western culture called democracy for sustainable democratic progression. Under Article 39.1 3 the 1992 Constitution states categorically that (1) Subject to clause (2) of this article, the State shall take steps to encourage the integration of appropriate customary values into the fabric of national life through formal and informal education and the conscious introduction of cultural dimensions to relevant aspects of national planning. (2) The State shall ensure that appropriate customary and cultural values are adapted and developed as an integral part of the growing needs of the society as a whole; and in particular that traditional practices which are injurious to the health and well-being of the person are abolished. (3) The State shall foster the development of Ghanaian languages and pride in Ghanaian culture. These directives are meant for Article 34.1 that The Directive Principles of State Policy contained in this Chapter shall guide all citizens, Parliament, the President, the Judiciary, the Council of State, the Cabinet, political parties and other bodies and persons in applying or interpreting this Constitution or any other law and in taking and implementing any policy decisions, for the establishment of a just and free society. Therefore the Constitution Review Commission must take note, that, the quest for electing district chief executive under their sleeves must consider the Kumasi impasse as a honker. Thank you very sincerely. Faithfully yours Munir |Saani Conveyor Safe Democracy Ghana 19.10.2016 LISTEN There is no question that illegal gold miners are a real threat to national security in our homeland Ghana. Ditto illegal loggers and illegal sand-winners. That is why the wealthy criminal syndicates that sponsor the activities of illegal gold miners - as well as illegal loggers and illegal sand-winners - across the country, need to be monitored closely, by the leaderships of all the security agencies. For example, if it is not checked, the pollution of the drinking-water sources of so many economically vulnerable communities, across vast swathes of the Ghanaian countryside, by illegal gold miners, could create humanitarian crises all over rural Ghana. That is a potentially dangerous situation, which will doubtless not bode well for the long-term stability of our nation - as it will directly affect the quality of life of millions of our people. Has the time not therefore come for all the political parties in Ghana, and members of our political class (from across the spectrum), to focus on the protection and preservation of what is left of our nation's natural heritage - particularly at a time when global climate change is negatively impacting Ghana and the rest of the nations in the African continent? The worst aspect of illegal gold mining, in Ghana, today, is that most of it is sponsored by super-wealthy criminals, who have become emboldened because they have errant members of the security agencies, dishonest officials from the regulatory bodies (both at district and national levels) and rogue politicians, all on their off-ledger-payrolls. Is that not dangerous for the long-term stability of our homeland Ghana, I ask? Every Ghanaian who cares about the well-being of this nation, and all its people - including present and future generations - must stand up against the rich criminals behind illegal gold mining, illegal logging and illegal sand-winning, across Ghana. We all need to clearly understand that the wealthy criminals profiting from unlawful and environmentally destructive activities such as illegal gold mining, illegal logging and illegal sand-winning, could eventually undermine Ghana's stability - if they are not dealt with effectively today. In light of that latent threat they pose to Ghana's long-term stability, our ruling elites need to learn valuable lessons from the civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone, before the situation here gets out of hand too. They must always remember that it was the rape of natural resources, such as diamonds and timber, by callous people driven by unfathomable greed, which fueled the brutal civil wars in those two sister West African nations of ours, for so many years. Anyone who has had the misfortune of seeing up-close, illegal gold miners destroying forestland that has evolved over millions of years, which provide valuable ecosystem services for many communities across the nation, will not hesitate to condemn the present regulatory system that grants permits to small-scale gold miners. How can so-called small-scale gold miners, be permitted to deploy 32-tonne excavators - which on the ground allow them to mine on an industrial scale - and still be expected to follow the rules and stick to mining just 25 acres, once they obtain permits from regulators? Amazing. Clearly, that is not realistic: Not when they simply bribe officials sent to monitor their activities at mining sites, when concerned opinion leaders in affected rural communities lodge official complaints against illegal gold miners at district police commands, and petition officials at district-level offices of the regulatory bodies, as and when infractions of the Mining Act occur. A case study that illustrates the point made above, perfectly, reveals the myraid of egregious infractions of the Mining Act by Hagnela Mining Company Limited, and its super-ruthless assigns, at Akyem Juaso. There, private freehold heavily-wooded forestland - which has not been given out officialy as a gold concession by the Minerals Commission and happens to be far away from the area officially designated a concession for small-scale gold miners - is being unlawfully destroyed with total impunity. The criminals destroying that incredibly beautiful forestland, boast openly, that no one in Ghana can stop them - because they are prepared to bribe every official sent to stop them from mining gold in what is part of my family's freehold 14 square mile forestland, which they apparently claim to have paid my cousin, Kwame Thompson, and our former overseer, John Awuku (aka "Red"), to mine gold on. What escapes those greedy fools, and all those they claim to have paid bribes to, is that the GPS coordinates of the area in question, exposes them, and points to the fact that the documents they have been bandying about and deceiving officialdom with, are all fake ones. Furtheremore, the Anyiman District Police Command ought to know - if it does not already know it - that no private landowner is allowed to give out his or her land to third parties to mine gold on in this country: as that power only lies with the Minerals Commission. Consequently, the mere fact that the dishonest Kwame Thompson has a stake as a beneficiary in what is actually still legally part of the estate of the late P. E. Thompson, to which he does not have individual title to, cannot, and should not be used as an excuse by the Ghana Police Service not to arrest and prosecute him, Red, Rasta of Hagnela Mining Company, and his arrogant assigns. In the meantime, as officialdom drags its feet, the brutal gang-rape of what is part of a designated Globally Significant Biodiversity Area (GDBA), which has been owned by my family as a registered freehold forestland in the name of P. E. Thompson, since 1921, from the British colonial era, goes on with impunity. Incredible. That abomination - made possible by the thoroughly dishonest Kwame Thompson and John Awuku "Red," who I gather have apparently taken money from the CEO of Hagnella Mining Company Limited, and that company's assigns - is simply intolerable. How can such lawlessness be allowed in a democratic nation in which the rule of law is said to prevail? What green investor will invest in a society in which rich criminals can get away with destroying forestland they want to turn into ecotourism destinations to give local people sustainable futures? Incredibly, as we speak, I have actually petitioned the head of the BNI, the Director General of the CID, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, and the head of the Minerals Commisson - all of whom have dutifully sent investigators to the area in question. Readers can better appreciate the magnitude of the travesty going on there, by looking at photographs of the area in question, if they google and visit the "Akyem Juaso Nature-Resource Reserve Facebook page". Unfortunately, it has not yet dawned on any of those officials sent to investigate the infractions of the Mining Act - despite my protestations - that on the ground, in the real world, the said illegalities are actually occuring outside the officially designated area, allotted (and indicated on the Minerals Commission's cadestral map) to small-scale gold miners as a concession. But I digress. The fact of the matter, is that their utter ruthlessness, total disregard for the laws of Ghana, and willingness to bribe public officials sent to stop their activities, have combined to make the wealthy criminal syndicates behind most of the illegal gold mining that goes on in this country, a law unto themselves. Literally. Yet, potentially, they could become allies of global terrorist organisations - which, as we are all aware, are always on the lookout for new sources of funds: to enable them extend their global footprint. If our nation's political class understood that illegal gold miners could easily evolve into allies of global terrorist organisations, perhaps they would take the security threat illegal gold miners pose to our nation, far more seriously, than they currently do. Above all, instead of throwing up their arms in despair, over their continued inability to stop those behind illegal gold mining in our country, the authorities should rather collaborate with local environmental activists, to stop all those in their communities who engage in illegal gold mining, illegal logging and illegal sand-winning. For the sake of future generations of our people, illegal gold mining needs to be tackled effectively now - lest we end up with a situation in which global terrorist groups co-opt the criminal syndicates behind most of the illegal gold mining in Ghana: to enable them generate cash to fund terrorism across West Africa. If current trends continue, this blog confidently predicts that the takeover of illegal gold mining in Ghana by terrorist organisations, will come to pass in the not too distant future, as sure as day follows night. Those in charge of the regulatory bodies overseeing gold mining in Ghana must sit up: today society may be contending with foreigners driven merely by unfathomable greed. But tomorrow those foreigners weill ve determined terrorists with an agenda of their own. What ought to dawn on officialdom is that the wealthy criminals behind most of the illegal gold mining in Ghana, today, who get away with defying officials on the ground, in illegal gold mining sites across the Ghanaian countryside, could actually evolve into local allies of global terrorist groups. Surely, all the relevant mining sector public officials who regulate mining in Ghana, have a moral obligation not to allow that to ever happen? Hmm, Ghana eyeasem o: asem kesie ebeba debi ankasa. llies Of Global Terrorist Organisations? By Kofi Thompson There is no question that illegal gold miners are a real threat to national security in our homeland Ghana. Ditto illegal loggers and illegal sand-winners. That is why the wealthy criminal syndicates that sponsor the activities of illegal gold miners - as well as illegal loggers and illegal sand-winners - across the country, need to be monitored closely, by the leaderships of all the security agencies. For example, if it is not checked, the pollution of the drinking-water sources of so many economically vulnerable communities, across vast swathes of the Ghanaian countryside, could potentially create humanitarian crises all over rural Ghana. That is a potentially dangerous situation, which will doubtless not bode well, for the long-term stability of our nation - as it will directly affect the quality of life of millions of our people. Has the time not therefore come for all the political parties in Ghana, and members of our political class, from across the spectrum, to focus on the protection and preservation, of what is left of our nation's natural heritage - particularly at a time when global climate change is negatively impacting Ghana and the rest of the nations in the African continent? The worst aspect of illegal gold mining in Ghana, today, is that most of it is sponsored by super-wealthy criminals, who have become emboldened, because they have errant members of the security agencies, dishonest officials from the regulatory bodies (both at district and national levels) and rogue politicians, all on their off-ledger-payrolls. Is that not dangerous for the long-term stability of our homeland Ghana, I ask? Every Ghanaian who cares about the well-being of this nation, and all its people - including this and future generations - must stand up against the rich criminals behind illegal gold mining, illegal logging and illegal sand-winning, across Ghana. We all need to clearly understand that the wealthy criminals profiting from unlawful and environmentally destructive activities such as illegal gold mining, illegal logging and illegal sand-winning, could eventually undermine Ghana's stability - if they are not dealt with effectively today. In light of that latent threat they pose to Ghana's long-term stability, our ruling elites need to learn valuable lessons from the civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone, before the situation here gets out of hand too. They must always remember that it was the rape of natural resources such as diamonds and timber, by callous people driven by unfathomable greed, which fueled the brutal civil wars in those two sister West African nations of ours for so many years. Anyone who has had the misfortune of seeing up-close, illegal gold miners destroying forestland that has evolved over millions of years, which provides valuable ecosystem services for millions across the nation, will not hesitate to condemn the present regulatory system that grants permits to small-scale gold miners. How can so-called small-scale gold miners, permitted to deploy even 32-tonne excavators - which on the ground allow them to mine on an industrial scale - be expected to follow the rules and stick to mining just 25 acres, once they obtain permits from regulators? Amazing. Clearly, that is not realistic: Not when they simply bribe officials sent to monitor their activities at mining sites, when concerned opinion leaders in affected rural communities lodge official complaints against illegal gold miners, at district police commands and petition district-level offices of the regulatory bodies, as and when infractions of the Mining Act occur. A case study that illustrates that point made above perfectly, are the myraid of egregious infractions of the Mining Act, by Hagnela Mining Company Limited, and its super-ruthless assigns, at Akyem Juaso. There, private freehold heavily-wooded forestland - which has not been given out officialy as a gold concession by the Minerals Commission and happens to be far away from an area officially designated a concession for small-scale gold miners - is being unlawfully destroyed with total impunity. The criminals destroying that incredibly beautiful forestland, boast openly, that no one in Ghana can stop them - because they are prepared to bribe every official sent to stop them from mining gold in what is part of my family's freehold 14 square mile forestland, which they apparently claim to have paid my cousin, Kwame Thompson, and our former overseer, John Awuku (aka "Red"), to mine gold on. What escapes those greedy fools, and all those they claim to have paid bribes to, is that the GPS coordinates of the area in question, exposes them, and points to the fact that the documents they have been bandying about and deceiving officialdom with are all fake ones. Furtheremore, the Anyiman District Police Command ought to know - if it does not already know it - that no private landowner is allowed to give out his or her land to third parties to mine gold on in this country: as that power only lies with the Minerals Commission. Therefore the fact that the dishonest Kwame Thompson has a stake as a beneficiary in what is actually still legally part of the estate of the late P. E. Thompson, to which he does not have individual title to, cannot, and should not be used as an excuse by the Ghana Police Service not to arrest and prosecute him, Red, Rasta of Hagnela Mining Company, and his arrogant assigns. In the meantime, as officialdom drags its feet, the brutal gang-rape of what is part of a designated Globally Significant Biodiversity Area (GDBA), which has been owned by my family as a registered freehold forestland in the name of P. E. Thompson, since 1921, from the British colonial era, goes on with impunity. Incredible. That abomination - made possible by the thoroughly dishonest Kwame Thompson and John Awuku "Red," who I gather have apparently taken money from the CEO of Hagnella Mining Company Limited, and that company's assigns - is simply intolerable. How can such lawlessness be allowed in a democratic nation in which the rule of law is said to prevail? Yet, as we speak, I have actually petitioned the head of the BNI, the Director General of the CID, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, and the head of the Minerals Commisson - all of whom have dutifully sent investigators to the area in question. Readers can better appreciate the magnitude of the travesty going on there, by looking at photographs of the area in question, if they google and visit the "Akyem Juaso Nature-Resource Reserve Facebook page". Unfortunately, it has not yet dawned on any of those officials sent to investigate the infractions of the Mining Act - despite my protestations - that on the ground, in the real world, the said illegalities are actually occuring outside the officially designated area, allotted on the Minerals Commission's cadestral map, to small-scale gold miners as a concession. But I digress. The fact of the matter, is that their utter ruthlessness, total disregard for the laws of Ghana, and willingness to bribe public officials sent to stop their activities, have combined to make the wealthy criminal syndicates behind most of the illegal gold mining that goes on in this country, a law unto themselves. Literally. Yet, potentially, they could become allies of global terrorist organisations - which, as we are all aware, are always on the lookout for new sources of funds: to enable them extend their global footprint. If our nation's political class understood that illegal gold miners could easily evolve into allies of global terrorist organisations, perhaps they would take the security threat illegal gold miners pose to our nation, far more seriously, than they currently do. Above all, instead of throwing up their arms in despair, over their continued inability to stop those behind illegal gold mining in our country, the authorities should rather collaborate with local environmental activists, to stop all those in their communities who engage in illegal gold mining, illegal logging and illegal sand-winning. For the sake of future generations of our people, illegal gold mining needs to be tackled effectively now - lest we end up with a situation in which global terrorist groups co-opt the criminal syndicates behind most of the illegal gold mining in Ghana: to enable them generate cash to fund terrorism across West Africa. If current trends continue, this blog confidently predicts that the takeover of illegal gold mining in Ghana by terrorist organisations, will come to pass in the not too distant future, as sure as day follows night. Those in charge of the regulatory bodies overseeing gold mining in Ghana must sit up: the wealthy criminals behind most of the illegal gold mining in Ghana, who get away with defying officials on the ground, in illegal gold mining sites across Ghana, could actually evolve into local allies of global terrorist groups. Surely, they have a moral obligation, not to allow that to ever happen? Hmm, Ghana eyeasem o: asem kesie ebeba debi ankasa. The governing NDC says President John Mahama's achievements in the Northern region is unmatched contrary to claims by the NPP that he has failed the North. Mounting a defence for the party, NDC Regional Secretary Abdul Rauf Khalid said the significant social infrastructure like schools, roads, health facilities were done under the NDC government dating back to President Jerry John Rawling's administration. "If not because of NDC there wouldn't have been any electricity or even TV in this part of the country", he praised government. Photo: One ardent supporter stole the show when she led a train of party supporters on a motorbike to welcome President John Mahama during his 'Accounting to the People' tour of the Northern Region. The party was responding to claims by the NPP Vice-Presidential candidate Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia that the NDC has failed the people of the region. At a rally in Tamale, the NPP campaign team, led by Dr. Bawumia said despite the cumulative 16-years in government, the NDC has failed to transform the North. The running mate of the New Patriotic Party argued that the NDC cannot claim to love northerners when it misappropriates funds meant to alleviate poverty in the north. But the NDC has challenged him to provide evidence of the NPP's record of development in the Northern region. "NPP should tell us for the eight years in governance what they did for the people of the north," he challenged. Abdul Rauf said it took the NDC to construct the 147-kilometre Fufulso-Sawla road in the Northern Region after the NPP abandoned it. "When Kufuor and Anane climbed on a bulldozer apparently in an attempt to construct the Fufulso-Sawla road, the chippings that was dumped there is still there," he said. He catalogued roads such as the the Yendi-Saboba-Chereponi and Yendi-Wampuli-Chereponi roads which have been awarded for construction. "The number of Secondary Schools that have been put up in this part of the country is highly monumental", he said and referred to a Community Day Senior High School that has also been cited in Wampuli. It is one of five schools under construction in the region He cited the establishment of some CHIPs Compounds in the region to improve health care delivery, the planned second phase of the expansion of the Tamale Teaching Hospital which is underway to back his claims. For the General Secretary, the latest evidence of the NDC's love for the region is the airlifting of Muslim pilgrims directly from the Northern region to Saudi Arabia for the annual Hajj. In previous years, all Muslims had to travel to the Kotoka International Airport to make the journey. "The NPP should tell us. What didn't Muslims go through at the Kotoka International Airport at the Hajj village even when the vice-president at that time was a Muslim" he continued. "If there is any political party that has the Northern region at heart, then that should be NDC and never NPP" he maintained. Story by Ghana|myjoyonline.com|[email protected] 19.10.2016 LISTEN IT IS getting increasingly clear that the former President and founder of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), Flt Lt. Jerry John Rawlings is on his own and no longer enjoys the loyalty and support that many members of the party had for him. The perception that the former President is being alienated from a party he founded through his own toil and blood is becoming apparent, following refusal by the NDC leadership and some personalities who at a point in time were ready to sacrifice their lives for him, to come to his aid in times of trouble. After the leader and flagbearer of the disqualified Great Consolidated Popular Party(GCPP) had mounted a witch-hunting campaign to get the former President indicted in the controversy surrounding a $2M 'gift' he was alleged to have received from the late Sani Abacha of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, one would have expected that the NDC would marshal all their arsenals to defend him and protect his integrity 1988, Accra, Ghana Ghanaian President Jerry Rawlings Image by George Steinmetz/Corbis Not even the cry by the former President that the decision by the GCPP leader to haul him before the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) has attracted sympathy from his hard core fans. Some foot soldiers of the ruling party do not sound amused by the outburst from the former President and are challenging him to make public the so-called officers he claimed were responsible for the attacks on his personality. Whilst some known ardent supporters of the former President have refused to go on record, claiming reasons of political expediency, others have poured cold water on the claims by Mr. Rawlings. One of such firebrand foot soldiers, Yakubu Tony Aidoo, says he doubts if any NDC leader or minister would hide behind people to denigrate the former President. According to him, former President Rawlings is highly regarded in the party and still commands respect as the founder of the NDC and, therefore, it will be very outrageous for him (Rawlings) to claim that someone has been paid to destroy him. I am surprised to hear this from President Rawlings; we all cherish and regard him as our father, but to come out and say that some members in the NDC are responsible for attacks on his personality is way overboard, Yakubu told The Chronicle in a telephone interview. He stated that he suspects political foul play, stressing that former President Rawlings could have dealt with this matter amicably by mentioning the names of the personalities involved in the hatched agenda. I dont think President Mahama himself will sit down and allow people to work against Mr Rawlings; he is our party founder and we respect him as such, Meanwhile William Nlanjerbor JALULAH also reports from Bolgatanga that some residents of Bolgatanga have expressed varied feelings about the $2million 'gift' former President Jerry John Rawlings was alleged to have received from the former Nigerian Military leader, General Sani Abacha. The leader of the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP) has dragged ex-president Rawlings before the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice over the $2 million gif t. In Bolgatanga, a cross section of residents whose views were sought by this reporter on Tuesday October 18, 2016, had varied views to share. Cecelia Kolog, a mobile phone credit vendor said: They should allow the old man to rest. Hasnt he done enough for this country? I think they are just doing this because his wife broke away from the NDC and formed her own party. I really believe what he has said; his own party people are the ones fueling this matter. Another resident who gave his name only as Paul, thought otherwise. He said: We are in a country governed by laws and if something like this happens and somebody is pursuing the matter, then we must allow the law to be applied. If Rawlings suspects people in his party are behind the leader of the GCPP, then he should come out with their names. But first of all, he must submit himself before CHRAJ. After all, we are all equal before the law. Ben Atia, a tricycle rider, had a different perspective. He wondered why the issue is being brought up now and blamed the media for being responsible for what he called confusion in Ghanaian politics. Why should these journaliss do something like this? Why didnt they say it long ago? Ah! Me I know nothing will happen to him. They are just making noise, he angrily reacted. Interestingly, most of the residents who were approached knew little or did not know anything about the gift allegation. One of such residents was Nsoh Adombire, a second-hand cloth seller. Massa, me I hear this matter small but I no get time take hear am well well. Meanwhile, Mr. DonatusAkamugri, Upper East Regional Secretary of the governing National Democratic Congress, in a response, alleged that the decision to haul Mr. Rawlings before CHRAJ was fueled by the opposition. When asked which opposition party could have done that, he said: I cant pin point any party but you know that every political party is formed to win power and so I cant name any party. He, however, said if the claim by Mr. Rawlings was anything to go by, then it could have been a personal issue he had with an individual or individuals within the NDC and not the entirety of the party. From Issah Alhassan, Kumasi. By Comfort Sena Fetrie, GNA Dalun Simli (N/R), Oct. 18, GNA - Ahaji Abdulai Baba, Vice Chairman of Ghana Developing Communities Association (GDCA), has called on the politicians to avoid using intemperate language during their campaigns. He said there is the need for the politicians to end insults and others forms of debasements to prevent conflicts and violence during and after the general election. Ahaji Baba said this during 23rd Denmark seminar at Dalun Simli in the Kumbungu District of the Northern Region. The seminar was on the theme: 'Ghana's electioneering and violence; Challenging the status quo'. The event organised by the GDCA in collaboration with Ghana Friendship Groups in Denmark was to deliberate on issues concerning this year general elections. Alhaji Baba called on traditional rulers to join hands to the fight against violence in the December elections. Madam Lone Benedicte Schroder, a member of Ghana Friendship Groups in Denmark, said migration is a very important issue which the two countries needed to address. She said development and education is very important to help reduce the migration situation. GNA 19.10.2016 LISTEN By Samuel Akapule, GNA Fumbisi (U/E), Oct. 18, GNA - The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), has commended the European Union for supporting the Commission to embark upon voter education in all the ten regions of the country. Mr Samuel Akuamoah, the Deputy Chairman of Operations of the Commission, said this at Sandema in the Builsa South District of the Upper East Region at a voters' education programme. He said through the EU's support, many Ghanaians were becoming conscious of the need to maintain and preserve peace in the country. He said through the activities organized by the Commission, many stakeholders including political parties, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organizations among others had pledged to ensure peaceful election in December. Mr Joseph Kwaku Yeboa, Deputy Regional Director of the Commission, who took the participants through Electoral Offenses, called on political parties to desist from destroying or defacing the materials of their opponents. He also cautioned them not to engage in abusive language, intimidation or violence, provocation, and carrying of arms as these could lead to the disruption of the electoral process. Mr Yeboa advised election officials not to take alcohol on Election Day and also called on drinking bar operators not to sell alcohol within 500 meters of any of the polling stations. 'Apart from the ballot don't put any foreign material into the ballot box and the display of party colors at polling centres are not also allowed. Any person who destroy any literature relating to registration is liable to a fine of GHC 100 or imprisonment of two years or both', the Deputy Director said. Mr Pontius Pilate Apaaby Baba, the Regional Director of the Commission, said the Commission has undertaken many activities in all the thirteen districts and educated various stakeholders including political parties, traditional and religious leaders. He impressed upon all the Political parties to remain committed to the respective agreement they had signed towards ensuring peace in the upcoming election. GNA By Fatima Anafu-Astanga, GNA Bolgatanga, Oct. 18, GNA - Reverend Eric Adjei, a member of the Upper Regional Media Advisory Council, has called on the media to show high professional standards in their reportage on political issues during this political season. Rev Adjei made the call at a seminar organized by the Upper East Regional Media Advisory Council for the press where he made a presentation on the topic: 'The Media's role in sustaining peace before, during and after elections'. He urged the media to avoid being used as conduit for intemperate language as this could lead to violence in the upcoming elections. Rev Adjei, who is also a member of the National Peace Council, said the council was prepared to ensure sanity prevails in the elections and asked the media to comply by ethical standards and give unbiased reportage. Mr Alfred Ndago, a retired educationist and member of the Advisory Council, said democracy in Ghana was progressing as expected and the media could either champion its cause or mar it. He urged the media to promote issue based campaigns and expose parties and candidates that foment trouble and or seek to intimidate the electorate. Mr Robert Ajene, Chairman of the Media Advisory Council, urged all journalists in the country to do their best to contribute to the success of the December General Elections. He said peaceful elections went beyond casting of votes as wrong reportage could create many problems. GNA 19.10.2016 LISTEN By Morkporkpor Anku, GNA Accra, Oct. 18, GNA - An Accra Circuit Court has granted bail in the sum of GH 25,000.00 with two sureties to Ntim Gyakari, a social worker, charged with dishonestly receiving. The accused person pleaded not guilty and he would reappear in court on November 1. Superintendent of Police (DSP) Kwaku Bempah, told the Court that the complainant in the case was a driver. He said on June 2, this year, the complainant, who was driving a taxi with registration number GR 6376-14, was hired from Akim Oda to Mile 7, a suburb of Accra, by a certain young man. He said on reaching Dansoman, another young man joined, from where they set off to Mile 7, under the pretext of meeting someone for money. The Prosecution said, however, on reaching a spot close to the Kumbaya Hotel at Mile 7, the two passengers and three other young men, including one in a police uniform, allegedly robbed the complainant of his taxi. A report was made to the Police at Mile 7 and investigations commenced to arrest the culprits. Supt Bempah said on August 23, the Akim Oda Police arrested one Richard Kwakye at Oda, with the said taxi, but a different registration number of GE 5029-15 and handed him over to the Mile 7 Police. He said the accused led the Police to arrest one Emmanuel Okyere Darko from whom he allegedly bought the taxi in Kumasi. He said the latter also pointed out that accused Ntim, who was being held in a similar case, as the one he allegedly bought the car from. The accused person admitted the offence in his caution statement, the Prosecution said, and mentioned one Rasmus Adama Nketia, a supposed National Security operative, as the one who allegedly sold the car to him at Sakumono in June. Efforts are underway to trace the suspects. GNA 19.10.2016 LISTEN Accra Oct. 19, GNA - A Commercial motor bike rider (Okadaman) who offered a 14 year- old girl a ride and ended up having sex with her has appeared before an Accra Circuit Court. Ben Alake charged with defilement pleaded guilty, pleaded with the court to forgive him. The court convicted Alake on his plea but deferred sentence to October 28. This is to enable him provide documents to ascertain his age on the next adjourned date. Prosecuting, Detective Inspector Kofi Atimbire said the complainant, the father of the victim, was a farmer residing at Katapor, near Amasaman. According to prosecution, the victim is a hairdresser apprentice living with the complainant. Accused person also resides at Katapor. Detective Inspector Atimbire said on October 10, this year, at about 10:00pm, the victim closed from work and the accused person offered her lift. When the victim reached her house, she told the accused person that she would alight but accused declined and sent her to his house and defiled her. The following day, prosecution said the complainant had information that accused person was seen carrying the victim on his motor bike so he proceeded to his house and found the victim lying on a mattress while the accused person had left for work. According to the prosecutor, the complainant took the victim to the Police Station and lodged complaint. He was issued with a medical form to send the victim to the hospital for examination. On October 11, this year, Alake was arrested, the prosecutor said. GNA Accra, Oct. 19, GNA - Vodafone Ghana's Healthline team has visited Veronica Kumako a middle-aged trader, who underwent a facial tumour surgery courtesy of Vodafone's Healthline programme. Healthline, a programme, which seeks to educate, inform and demystify various myths on health related conditions, went to the rescue of Kumako. Veronica expressed gratitude to the telecommunication giant, revealing that her life was more than beautiful now. Following a decade of misery, the cheerful Veronica said she is now empowered to socialize, laugh and work to provide for herself and her son. In a release in Accra, before the successful surgery, Veronica lived with a tumour that affected her eyes, disfigured her face and made breathing difficult. Her condition made her a liability to her immediate family, neighbours and customers alike. 'I started feeling some swelling in my nostrils at age 24, three years later, I couldn't breathe well and later a small boil appeared closer to my eye. 'I didn't approach it with seriousness until it became so big that I had to go to Battor, where I was transferred to Korle Bu' said Veronica, on the award-winning television show, Vodafone Healthline. 'When my condition didn't get better after five years, my husband absconded and left me to my fate.' According to the release Kumako said initially she couldn't do her business in the market because no one wanted to come close to her but now, everything had changed. 'Now my heart is at rest and I give Vodafone Ghana the credit,' she added. Healthline, since 2011, has catered for the full cost of surgeries for many financially challenged Ghanaians suffering from various health conditions. Season 6 of the 13-episode series airs on UTV at 9pm on Mondays, with a repeated version on TV3 on Saturdays at 6:30pm. GNA Wife of standard bearer of the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP,) Mrs. Yvonne Nduom, has urged all parents to endeavour to educate their children. According to Mrs. Nduom, education is the safest way that a parent can secure his or her pension and future. She was speaking at the rally held by partys parliamentary candidate for Komenda Edina Eguafo Abbirem (KEEA) constituency in Agona in the Central region. As I stand here, I am my mothers pension. I take care of her because she educated me to be able find a good job and open businesses with my husbandDont neglect your childs education for anything because when you are old, you will surely benefit from their success in life, she revealed. Mrs. Nduom believes people may have neglected the need to put wards through school and monitor their growth because they [parents] did not have any form of education hence did not understand the benefits. She added that some had the desire but are financially unstable to afford fees. Against this background, she said that the PPP knows these challenges and that is why it wants to ensure the enforcement of the Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE) provision in Ghanas constitution to enable Ghanaian children go to school from the creche to Senior High School (SHS). Mrs. Nduom explained that her party will enforce school going through a taskforce known as Education Guards. She said these Education Guards will ensure that no child of school going age stays at home or loiters about. For his part, Member of Parliament (MP) aspirant for the area who is also the junior brother of Mrs. Nduom, John Sterlin, charged the people who had defied the heavy downpour to listen to him to ignore Messrs. Nana Ato Arthur and Samuel Mills of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and National Democratic Congress (NDC) respectively and vote massively for him on December 7 to see the development they yearn for. Mr. Sterlin asked the people to look around and if their lives and town has seen developments since they voted for the NDC and NPP. Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom who accompanied his wife in a remark asked the people to observe a minute silence to honour the memory of the partys stalwart, Madam Eva Lokko. He urged the people to look at what he did for them when he was MP and what he is doing now and vote for Mr. Sterlin to enjoy even more. The business mogul highlighted some projects he has embarked upon in his private capacity for area and assured the people of jobs when elected. Dr. Nduom earlier had toured parts of northern Volta, Upper East and West and the Northern region where he conferred with chiefs and their people as well as held rallies in these areas. Kinshasa (AFP) - Congo's normally bustling capital Kinshasa was shut down Wednesday by a strike to protest plans to extend the president's stay in power beyond the end of his term in December, AFP journalists said. But there were few signs of any stoppage in the Democratic Republic of Congo's second largest city, southern Lubumbashi. But central Mbuji-Mayi, which is an opposition bastion, also came to a standstill. The opposition had called for a nationwide protest against a deal signed Tuesday which would keep President Joseph Kabila in power until April 2018 by effectively postponing the presidential vote scheduled for this year. The country's main opposition party, the UDPS, called the deal signed between the authorities and fringe opposition groups a "flagrant violation" of the constitution and said the strike would show Kabila "the yellow card". He first took office in 2001, and in 2006 a new constitutional provision limited the presidency to a two-term limit which expires on December 20. In Kinshasa -- a city of 10 million people -- roads remained totally deserted through the morning, with public transport running empty and no sign of the many privately-run shared taxis that normally ply the city's roads. Roads would typically have been bustling ahead of the work and school day. The only visible commercial activity taking place was women selling bread and petrol stations that were open but unused. The upmarket Gombe district was unusually quiet, and in Kasa-Vubu, a district in the south of the city, the only people on Victories Square were some 50 police officers. Heavy police presence Officers were deployed in force at other locations including parliament and at several military bases. Demonstrators gather in front of a burning car during an opposition rally in Kinshasa on September 19, 2016 Police reported several incidents of protesters stoning vehicles or burning to tyres. But the city remained mostly calm unlike the at last month's protests in which 49 civilians and four police were killed during violence, according to the UN. Despite the widespread strike action in Kinshasa, the situation was normal in the second city Lubumbashi. Authorities there had warned early this week that civil servants who failed to show up for work on Wednesday would face consequences. Calls for a strike were also ignored in Bukavu, according to an AFP correspondent there, as well as in northeastern Kisangani and in the country's sole deep water port, Matadi. However in Goma, eastern Congo, the call to down tools was followed to some extent, with most shops remaining closed though traffic appeared normal, according to two AFP journalists. In central Kananga, another big town, activity slowed in the morning while in the western town of Mbandaka people headed for work wearing yellow as a sign of protest. This week's controversial agreement to allow Kabila to serve into 2018 emerged after the EU threatened sanctions if the country did not hold elections in 2017. It was concluded at "national dialogue" talks aimed at reducing tensions triggered by disquiet that the president is seeking to remain indefinitely. But the main opposition coalition -- "Rassemblement" (Gathering) -- headed by veteran opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi boycotted the talks, branding them a ploy by Kabila to stay in power beyond the end of his term. Irate illegal miners in Obuasi in the Ashanti region are on rampage and have demolished the Obuasi municipal chief executive's office, Ultimate FM's Isaac Bediako Justice has reported. The miners have also vandalized the constituency office and billboards of the ruling National Democratic Congress. According to Bediako Justice, the operators are angry at the government's insistence not to allow them mine in their various mining centers. The Obuasi Police have reportedly called in more men to handle the rioting miners who are also burning tyres in the middle of the streets. No one has so far been reported hurt in the rampage. -Starrfmonline 19.10.2016 LISTEN Dr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, Minister of Trade and Industry, says maintaining the right standard in all spheres of life is key to promoting quality, efficiency and progress. Cutting corners in order to cut down on cost and maximise profit could be much more expensive, because of the unpleasant consequences that often go with such behaviour. The Minister, said this at the 47th World Standards Day Celebration, which was held in Accra on Friday, October, 14. This year's celebration was on the theme: Standards Build Trust, and seeks to throw light on the link between adherence to standard practice in all spheres of life, and the trust such practice inspires in publics, clients, and all other stakeholders who stand to gain or lose, depending on how well standards are maintained. Dr Spio-Garbrah, who officially launched the day, noted that it was a good thing that Ghana for example, had quite a good reputation as a dependable supplier of pharmaceutical products. Pharmaceutical products from Ghana are therefore in high demand all over the world, he noted. The Minister said this kind of trust could only be earned when one diligently stuck to standard practice, and became known and respected for that. He said besides serving the needs of prospective beneficiaries better, maintaining standard practice also ensured the growth and progress of individuals, businesses, organisations and nations. A country that is known for poor standards in the provision of goods and services, would definitely perform poorly in a world that has now become a global village. Dr Spio-Garbrah, urged the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) to continue in its bid to ensure adherence to the right standards as it had excellently done in the past. The government would continue to support the Ghana Standards Authority in all ways possible, to ensure that the authority effectively execute its mandate, which would ultimately promote socio-economic growth, said Dr Spio-Garbrah. The occasion was hosted by the GSA. The World Standards Day is celebrated every year, to re-enforce the need to live up to the right standards in all fields of endeavour, in order to ensure trust and dependability. Source: GNA 19.10.2016 LISTEN By John Bediako. The Guggisberg-built premises of the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs at Dodowa is likely to witness a bloodbath on Monday, 24th October, 2016, following the refusal of a group, calling itself COALITION OF GA-DANGME YOUTH, to distance itself from administrative matters of the Ministry of Chieftaincy and Traditional Affairs. The group, which has written to the police for a permit to demonstrate, swore fire and brimstone to storm the Regional House of Chiefs that day, and forcibly remove the Registrar, Harry Antony Attipoe, from his office, because he is not proceeding on transfer to the Volta Region. The revered chiefs, on their part, have assured the youth of an unprecedented showdown, besides the historic battle of Dodowa, should they throw caution to the winds and attack the premises. The traditional authorities, The Chronicle gathered, would marshal a force of warriors from Ada, in the east of the Greater Accra Region, through Ningo, Teshie, La, Osu, and Ga Mashie in the west. The Tema Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Paul Manly Awini, when contacted, opined that they were prevailing on the protagonists to exercise restraint and allow law and order to permeate. According to him, the Dodowa District Police Command was in a meeting with the leadership of the youth group, and that the next line of action would be determined after the engagement. According to DCOP Awini, peace was a very essential commodity, without which, there would be no meaningful development, and, therefore, appealed to all sides to be law-abiding. The Chieftaincy Minister, Dr. Henry Seidu Daana, recently urged the Coalition of Ga-Dangme Youth to stay off his Ministry's administrative issues, in order to bring about harmony in the traditional administration of the country. According to him, groups and persons who have problems with personnel of the Ministry should separate their issues from administrative transfers and postings. The Minister did not like the posture of a youth group, which is wading into administrative matters. The youth group is accusing the Registrar, Harry Attipoe, of allegedly taking possession of US$5 million from Sunon Asogli Power a claim the Chinese company has denied and selling lands at Kpone, which was equally rubbished by the Kpone Traditional Council as baseless. It is also being alleged that his presence at the House of Chiefs is preventing some groups from installing certain persons who do not qualify as chiefs in the region. A former Peoples National Convention (PNC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Bolgatanga, Mr David Apasera, is seething with rage over what he claims was an alleged role of the National Chairman of the party, Mr Bernard Mornah, towards his exclusion from the Electoral Commissions list of aspirants in the upcoming elections. After being offered huge sums of money and other inducements, Mr Mornah, the aggrieved candidate charged, was acting zealously in the interest of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) to see its parliamentary candidate emerge victorious. Narrating his ordeal, Mr Apasera noted that the party made it clear to its parliamentary candidates that it was in the position to pay their filing fees, an announcement which urged him to fill and deposit his forms with the Electoral Commission (EC). However, Mr Apasera indicated that even though the party paid the fees for 65 of the 275 candidates, he received the shock of his life when his name came up as one of those captured on the EC's list of disqualified candidates in the region, following an announcement. The former MP stated that: The party chairman had quietly struck out his name without drawing his attention to it, explaining further that the move was cleverly crafted so that, after the deadline, he would not be able to contest the coming parliamentary elections, a subversion from within. Having served as a Member of Parliament for eight years between 2000 and 2008 Mr Apasera was confident of winning this years election to shore up the strength of legislators the PNC would boast of. He was convinced that this time round after the electorates have had a feel of a number of MPs, I would have been given the nod, asking rhetorically that, why should the so-called chairman of the party deny me and the party the opportunity? To that question, he stated that, I had no answer than to say that, the so-called chairman was acting in the interest of another party, which has a candidate in my constituency, adding that, he must have been properly 'seen', to undertake such an (shameful) act. Touching on the disqualification of the PNCs presidential candidate by the EC last week, the former Bolgatanga legislator revealed that there was a deliberate arrangement between the General Secretary and Mr Mornah to foil Dr Edward Mahamas candidacy. In the case of Mr Bernard Mornah, the incensed former MP said information available to him revealed that: When at the party office, when it was all hands on deck to see the presidential candidates forms being properly filled, the so-called chairman was relaxed and sleeping in his office. For him, the care-free attitude of the chairman could mean nothing less than an act that could only be in the interest of another political party. Mr Apasera also expressed concern over vehicles and monies the party had raised to support its campaign, observing that since the beginning of this year's general elections, no one sees a car or van branded in PNC colours, yet cars have been given to the party by well-wishers. I am aware that monies have flowed into the party but no one has seen any significant party activity. And one would have a cause to believe that it is for the grabbing of these goodies that the conspiracy has been hatched to leave PNC without a flag bearer so that the demise of the party would be pronounced sooner than later, he remarked. Mr Apasera thus wants the supporters of the party to press for the removal of the National Chairman of the party from office. Meanwhile, Mr Bernard Monarh has told Joy FM that he was not aware his accuser was contesting the elections. According to him, Apasare tried to use the courts to invalidate results that won him the chairmanship but failed. Mr Monarh challenged Apasare to provide evidence that vehicles had been given to the party which he (Monarh) has sat on them. Citi Business News can confirm that the payment process for validated creditors of DKM Microfinance in Bolgatanga in the Upper East region has stalled, following a boycott by aggrieved creditors. The customers are angry over what they say are the paltry amounts being paid them. Some of the customers who spoke to Citi Business News complained that they are paid as little as 10 cedis after investing about 1000 or 1500 cedis. Citi News'Upper East regional correspondent, Frederick Awuni said activities have come to a halt due to the refusal of creditors to accept the payment. They try enquiring from the reps of the liquidator and they have since not had any better answer. Although some have cashed the GHc10.00 and GHc20.00, majority of them have refused those cheques and the process has been brought to a halt, Awuni reported He however said that the liquidator representative who was present at the scene at the time refused to comment on the situation. Meanwhile some of the affected customers have also threatened not to vote if their monies are not refunded to them in full. We feed our family and children, plus children's school fees. So what are you trying to tell us? President should sit up and look at how best to solve this issue. Otherwise, we will vote him out. If he is comfortable in his office and state, we are really suffering. We won't take that GHc10.00. DKM also better refund our monies to us one aggrieved customer stated. Another added that Because of this issue, people have lost their lives. And we come here only to be told that we are to receive only GHc10.00, what do we use GHc10.00 for? I will not vote for this government. How can I invest all my money and be given only GHc10.00? What do they mean? DKM customers lose investment Thousands of people lost their investment when DKM Microfinance Company misapplied deposits of the customers against the Bank of Ghana regulation. Customers lost millions of cedis leading to a panic withdrawal in all branches of the company. The BoG appointed the Registrar General's Department to oversee the liquidation process of DKM's assets to help refund customers. By: Jessica Ayorkor Aryee/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana The incumbent Member of Parliament for Odododiodoo in Accra, Edwin Nii Lantey Vanderpuije has said that he is ready to sponsor the education of his main contender in the upcoming parliamentary election, Nii Lantey Bannerman. He said the New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate had deceived constituents that he is a University graduate hence must be voted into power. According to him, he [Vanderpuije] had records that showed Mr Bannerman's highest level of education was Senior High School because he dropped out of a University. He told Citi News, Nii Lante Bannerman told all of us that he was a graduate and that he went to Cape Coast University and that he as a Banking and Finance but I have records that show that even the Senior High School, he didn't even do well to qualify him into a University and there is no course in UCC called Banking and Finance. Then he said he went to Regent University, we saw that he tried doing some courses at Regent University but his first semester was a failure. He added that I am going to spend time, if he makes himself available, I will sponsor him to school, get education so that he will stop insulting the elderly people and he will stop what he is not. Nii Lantey Vanderpuije said Nii Lante Bannerman stand no chance of winning in the Odododiodoo constituency since he lacked the capacity to unseat him. For now, I am giving him [Nii Lante Bannerman] 5 out of the 116 polling stations but even the 5 I am being very considerate, if he doesn't change his attitude, I will take the five away from him. Meanwhile, Nii Lante Bannerman has described as untruth Mr Vanderpuije's claims against him. In a sharp rebuttal on Citi Prime News on Wednesday, Nii Lante Bannerman said he was an accomplished banker and did not need Nii Lante Vanderpuije to sponsor his tuition if he decides to pursue higher education. By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana Calm has returned to Obuasi in the Ashanti Region after illegal miners went on rampage Wednesday morning attacking the Municipal Assembly and political parties offices among others. Rampaging miners who took to the streets smashed glasses and destroyed billboards of National Democratic Congress (NDC)and New Patriotic Party (npp) parliamentary candidates of Obuasi West and East before attacking the assembly offices with stones and clubs. Some of the miners carried placards some of which read No Galamsey No Vote marched from the offices of the Artisanal Small Miners office at Tutuka, a suburb of Obuasi. It took the military and police reinforcement from Kumasi to bring the situation under control after several warning shots were fired. The miners have been protesting against their relocation from AngloGold Gold Ashanti concessions following recommendations of a 15-member committee inaugurated by the Minerals Commission in August 2016. No one has been arrested in connection with what police describe as a spontaneous action of the illegal miners as police and military take over the streets. Obuasi Municipal Commander, ACP Afful Boakye Yiadom who led the police charges say police will continue to monitor the situation. Brong Ahafo Regional Youth Organizer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Kwame Baffoe says officials at the accounts office of the Electoral Commission (EC) are inefficient and unable to discharge their duties very well. Reacting to errors on the receipt issued by the EC to the leader of the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP), Papa Kwesi Nduom when filling his nomination forms, Kwame Baffoe wondered how these officials would be able to collate election results during the December polls. The PPP said it is dragging the EC to the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO), and the Auditor-General, to investigate the Electoral Commission for giving them a receipt riddled with mistakes. According to the party, they believe the EC is on a course of a possible fraudulent act because of the receipt which was issued for the payment of nomination fees for their presidential and parliamentary candidates. Do you know that the receipt EC gave us for the payment of the deposit had Gh1, 700.00 in figures but in words they wrote One Million Seven Hundred (r was placed after e instead of vice versa) Thousand Ghana cedis. Apart from this, on the same receipt, the EC wrote 'being payment of parliamentary candidate' (without s) as if payment was made for only one parliamentary candidate Director of Policy for the PPP, Kofi Asamoah Siaw, said at a press conference. The PPP's presidential nominee was among 13 persons disqualified from the race due to errors on their nomination forms. The Electoral Commission Chairperson, Charlotte Osei, who made the announcement at a news conference, said those disqualified failed to meet the necessary requirements for a presidential candidate. There were different reasons for which each of the parties was disqualified. However Mr Baffoe speaking on Adom FM's Morning Show Dwaso Nsem Wednesday could not fathom why the accounts office of the EC would make such an administrative errors while callenging the claim of infallibility the EC has cloaked itself with. Kwame Baffoe If we keep on talking about this disqualification without blaming the EC then we are not being fair to ourselves. The accountants at the EC office are inefficient. They call themselves accountants and then are making simple mistakes. Even a simple hundred, they are unable to spell and write on a receipt even when the amount of money was already written on a bankers draft. Even my 6 year old son, Julius, when I saw that mistake, I asked him to spell hundred and he was able to do it quickly and even write it for me. And so comparing my son to the accountant in that EC office, I think my son can perform far better than the EC staff. Given their (accountants) performance, can't he (my son) qualify to be presiding officer? Of course he can but Im sure they would even reject him because they will say he is my son but these EC officials who keep making mistakes are the ones who will collate election results on election day he bemoaned. adomonline 19.10.2016 LISTEN From Edmond Gyebi, Tamale THE MEMBER of Parliament (MP) for Asin North, Kennedy Agyapong has descended heavily on the current and past governments for failing to do the right investment in the Northern Sector of Ghana to end or reduce the overwhelming poverty situation in the area. He equally chastised all the rich and influential Northerners who are making huge investments outside the North for failing to go back home and take advantage of the vast but wasting lands, suitable for any agricultural or industrial purposes. Speaking on Adom TV's Badwam Show hosted by Omanhene Kwabena Asante on Tuesday, the outspoken MP could not hide his disappointment in all the governments for their gratuitous leadership blunder and lack of vision to discover the huge potentials that abound in the three Northern Regions. Mr Agyapong, who claimed to have visited some parts of the North recently, expressed the need for Ghana to redirect attention to the North and possibly move the national capital to the North, where lands are in abundance for heavy industrialisation, real estate development, solar energy facilities and most especially agricultural development of the nation. The three Northern Regions of Ghana (Upper East, Upper West and Northern Regions) have great human capital but are regarded as the poorest regions in Ghana. Several thousands of the energetic youth (male and female) consistently migrate to the southern part of Ghana and the neighbouring countries for menial jobs. They have no place to stay and the streets become their executive abode. They mingle with armed robbers and drug addicts. Some get rapped or defiled and others get unwanted pregnancies or contract diseases. Apart from developing smoking and drinking habits, others also become commercial sex workers and armed robbers just to earn a living. Successive governments have paid several lip services to repatriate these young people and establish them in gainful employments in their communities. However, the Asin North MP, Kennedy Agyapong, believes the poverty in the north could be blamed on the irresponsibility of governments and other rich and influential natives of the area, who were making huge investments in the Southern part of Ghana and internationally, instead of going back home. Mr Agyapong who claimed to have felt in love with the North assured of directing some substantial resources to invest heavily in the area. I could not believe the north has so much beautiful lands and water. The area is good for sugarcane, rice, maize, tomato, pepper and cashew and mango plantations among others. The MP, therefore, encouraged the Northerners to return home and give back to their people and reduce the rate of unemployment and poverty facing the people. The presidential candidate of the opposition New Patriotic Party, Nana Akufo-Addo has told Ghanaians to reject President John Mahama in the December 7 general elections because he does not feel the pain they are experiencing. The President claims all is moving on smoothly in Ghana, the reason why he is seeking a renewal of his mandate in office. President Mahama, clearly, does not feel your pain and suffering. He is impervious to the hardships Ghanaians are going through on a daily basis, in their efforts to make ends meet. I doubt he is living in Ghana with us, because if he was, he wouldn't be making such comments. Nana Addo who made the remark on Wednesday at Kramoase in the Atwima Kwanwoma constituency, during his campaign tour of the Ashanti Region said he cannot fathom why the President would make such comment in the wake of a declining economy, high unemployment rate, high cost of living among others. He further urged Ghanaians to give the NPP the chance on the election day to turn the fortunes of Ghana around. We have an opportunity this year to rid our nation of the suffering and hardship the Ghanaian is going through under the leadership of President Mahama. When we vote in a competent government in December, I assure you that Ghana will be put on the path of progress and prosperity once again. That is the task before us in Ghana in this year's election, Nana Akufo-Addo said. Only NPP can unseat Mahama Akufo-Addo also insinuated that the NPP is the only party in Ghana that can unseat the governing NDC from office. There is no other political party in Ghana that has the support and organization to remove the NDC from office, other than the NPPIf you are a Ghanaian who is fed up with the hardship under Mahama, please come and ride on the back of the elephant and let us go together to Jubilee House, so we can go and do a good job for Ghanaians. The NPP flagbearer urged residents of Kramoase to vote massively for the NPP in this year's elections, and increase the 80.83% margin of victory chalked by the party in the 2012 presidential election. He also admonished party faithful to vote for the NPP's parliamentary candidate for the constituency, Dr. Kwadwo Appiah Kubi. By: Godwin A. Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana Follow @AlloteyGodwin Government has today signed two separate contracts with Vamed Engineering group for the construction of five district hospitals and a polyclinic in the country. The District Hospitals will be situated at Buipe, Tolon, Sawla, Somanya and Vheta in the Volta Region and one Polyclinic will be placed in Bamboe. The other contract involves five separate Polyclinics in the Greater Accra, which would be situated in Adentan, Ashiaman, Botienor, Sege and Oduma. The Minister for Health, Alex Segbefia, said, this falls in line with President Mahamas vision to increase healthcare facilities an strengthen the existing ones in the country, based on the countrys infrastructure deficit. Thus to situate a number of polyclinics minimum of five in each region, this he said has gone through the process of government approvals. Mr Segbfia indicated that the sector has seen improvement in terms of infrastructural development across the country, as part of social interventions in health sector. Some he said are the numerous community-based Health Planning and Services, Regional and Teaching Hospitals being built by this government. He explained that Vamed Engineering Group had been one of the major stakeholders in the health Industry and were responsible for the construction of the Sogakope hospital in the Volta Region and other policlinics in the country. On his part, the Regional Director, Middle East and Africa, for Vamed Engineering Group, Mr Oliver Storzer, mentioned that the company is ready and will deliver these hospitals in two to three year period. Mr Storzer, assured the Ministry that the company would build on the 15 years trust it had earned with the country by delivery on the job and expressed the companys gratitude to government. Story by Ghana| Myjoyonline.com Young people from various countries across the world have made a fresh demand for concerted efforts from governments and ordinary members of the public to end global warming to ensure food security in developing countries. They note the problem of climate change is making it more difficult for farmers to grow enough food to feed themselves and earn good money from the farms. They have been speaking at a panel discussion organised by the New York State-based Cornell Universitys Alliance for Science Program in Ithaca USA. The discussion which was under the theme global agriculture in the face of climate change gave the opportunity to residents in the Ithaca community to ask young people from Ghana, China, Mexico, Uganda and Nigeria about the impact that climate change is having on agricultural production in their home countries and continents. Journalist with the Multimedia Group Limited Joseph Opoku Gakpo who was part of the five-member panel that participated in the discussion noted that climate change has resulted in poor rainfall patterns in Ghana, thus causing farmers huge yield losses and massive debts. We produced a documentary last year titled Lost Harvest and it highlighted how long periods of drought resulted in crop failures across the country It caused the price of maize to rise by about 70 percent, he explained. He advocated for the modernization of agricultural production procedures and the improvement of indigenous surviving techniques to help rural communities deal with the problem. Nassib Mugwanya who works at the Ugandan Biosciences Information Center expressed similar sentiments, saying smallholder farmers in Uganda have noticed changes in rainfall patterns. This is affecting their planting season. Modesta Abugu Nnedinso who works with the Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology in Nigeria noted the need for farmers to have access to improved seeds that can resist harsh weather conditions. She explained some work is already ongoing in her country to develop such seeds, but there was the need to scale up the efforts. Climate change refers to rise in the temperature of the atmosphere resulting in extreme weather conditions like drought. Various human activities including the heavy use of fossil fuels have led to the warming of the globe, resulting in this. It is estimated that the world loses more than US $1.2 trillion as a result of climate change. Yan Mi who is founder of Youth Lead, an environmental non-governmental organisation in China made a passionate appeal to all citizens of the world to play individual roles in dealing with the problem. We need to spread awareness and change people's minds. We need to save water, save food, and make an effort to move towards more sustainability, he said. Wildlife advocate and Conservation Practitioner from Mexico, Sol Guerrero Ortiz called for a return to the basic principles of environmental protection as a way to save the planet from further destruction. Reduce, reuse, recycle, That is so basic. It can be introduced in schools, offices, public sector and private sector. Even that small action can have some degree of impact, she appealed. Story by Ghana| Myjoyonline.com The Member of Parliament for Obuasi East is blaming government for the rampaging attacks by some galamsey miners, Wednesday. Edward Anim said the attacks were as a result of false hopes given to the miners by government representatives. Over hundred galamsey miners invaded the Obuasi Municipal Assembly and destroyed properties over there. Political parties were not spared either as the NDC and NPP constituency offices were attacked by the rampaging miners. The spontaneous attacks were to protest a takeover of a mining concession owned by Anglogold Ashanti. Military men were deployed to guard the concession and to prevent the illegal miners from mining on Wednesday. Convinced that their only source of livelihood have been taken away from them, the angry miners took the law into their own hands and went on a destruction spree. Speaking to Joy News' Parliamentary correspondent, Elton John Brobbey, the MP for Obuasi East said the attacks would not have happened if the galamsey miners had been told the truth. He explained that the concession in question is owned by Anglogold Ashanti and under no circumstance should the illegal miners be allowed to mine on that same concession. He said if a land has been acquired legally by a company, it is difficult to take it away from them and hand it over to illegal miners. He said the activities by the illegal miners are embarrassing and pose a great threat to foreign investment, adding, the matter came up when the president recently addressed the UN. "I will not blame the illegal miners," but will blame representatives of the president who have not been candid to the president and to the miners as well, the MP added. Story by Ghana|Myjoyonline.com|Nathan Gadugah Libreville (AFP) - Wilfried Bony's Ivory Coast will start their defence of the Africa Cup of Nations against Togo in January, according to the draw made Wednesday. Ivory Coast are in Group C against Togo, Morocco and Democratic Republic of Congo. Hosts Gabon will stage the opening match in Libreville on January 14 against Guinea Bissau who are making their first appearance in the 16-nation tournament. The other group favourites, Algeria and Ghana start against Zimbabwe and Uganda respectively. The final is in Libreville on February 5. 19.10.2016 LISTEN Accra, Oct 19, GNA - The Ghana Atomic Energy Commission in collaboration with the Keshe Foundation, a non-profit space Organisation, has opened a three-day space summit in Accra to explore new ways of solving Africa's health, environmental and developmental challenges. The summit is expected to provide a good overview of the applications of the Keshe technology and success stories that could ginger Ghanaians to work hard and also to pay much attention to challenges or cautions that comes with these facilities. Professor Benjamin J. B. Nyarko, the Director-General of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission at the opening ceremony on Monday, said the Commission had over the past year been familiarising, testing and affirming the Keshe technology and its applications, of which the outcomes have been very encouraging and promises a good future for Ghana and Africa as a whole. He said the Commission has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Keshe Foundation for further partnership and training on their ground-breaking technologies especially in the treatment of health conditions including cancer and HIV. He said the Keshe technology application involves a wide range of fields involving medicine, human health, agriculture and food production, space science and space travel, automobile and energy, which if well harnessed, would place the country at an advantageous position on the global front. Prof. Nyarko said the theme for the summit which is: 'The New Dawn: Africa's Meteoric Rise in Spaceship Technology', which was attended by Scientists, researchers, and Officers from the various security services including the military and police, was therefore well and truly captured, to reflect the situation of the Continent. He said breaking new grounds in science in the contemporary era was the way to go in order to propel Ghana's position in the world of high technology. He said science and technology has been the principal agents of social and economic change although they had their benefits and disadvantages, and they provide new scientific knowledge as well as new solutions to major global challenges such as famine, water shortage, lack of electric power supply, climate change as well as diseases. 'However, in the nutshell, with these technologies, we have come to accept that science has no limits and we can defend the position that the impact of technology on the society has far more positive sides than negative', he said. Prof. Nyarko said GAEC would set up a laboratory to begin production of the ground-breaking products made from the Keshe Foundation's plasma technology to solve pressing challenges in areas including health, and intends to further strengthen the partnership between the two institutions for human resource development. Mr Mehran Tavakoli Keshe, the Founder and Leader of Keshe Foundation, said over the next two days scientists gathered from around the world would showcase what they had done in their respective fields and would impact these knowledge to their Ghanaian counterparts for national development. He said the Keshe Foundation which currently operates in about 180 countries around the world, provides free education and training on simple application of physics and chemistry, and its partnership with GAEC would propel Ghana to become a sense of knowledge not only for the continent, but for the world at large. He urged that participants stayed open, to learn from the Keshe's new Plasma technology which uses mostly natural methods to arrive at natural outcomes. GNA By Christabel Addo-GNA 19.10.2016 LISTEN By Hafsa Obeng, GNA Accra, Oct. 19, GNA - A trader, Rebecca Brome, was on Thursday granted bail by an Accra Circuit Court when she appeared before it for defrauding two persons of various sums of money. Rebecca was granted a self-recognisance bail by the court presided over by Madam Mary N. A Aryee. She is to deposit an amount of GHa 13,000.00, with the court registrar, deposit her passport to the police and alert them anytime she intends to travel. She was said to have defrauded one Theophilus Anyan of GHa7,000.00 and Prosper Segbawu of GHa 6,250.00. Prosecuting Superintendent of Police, Kweku Bempah told the court that the complainant Theophilus is a trader living at Asamankese and Prosper is a carpenter living at Anloga, while the accused person is a pensioner living in the United Kingdom. He said in 2013, the accused person collected the above mentioned amounts from the complainants under the pretext of securing a United Kingdom visa for them at Odorkor. He told the court that the accused person on receipt of the money failed to honour her promise and went back to the United Kingdom. Superintendent Bempah said a report was made to the police. On September 30, the complainants spotted the accused in town and arrested her to the police. The prosecution told the court that in her caution statement, Rebecca stated that she used part of the money in processing the forms for the complainants. GNA Accra, Oct. 19, GNA - Madam Dzifa Gomashie, the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, has thrown a challenge to Ghanaian Book Publishers to improve on the quality of their works and to also forge ahead in unity. She said a united front would improve the quality of output from the local industry and enable them to compete favourably with their counterparts in the international arena. She said since a divided house can never achieve any meaningful progress or development, there is the urgent need for the renewal of minds and attitudes of local publishers, who pursue individualistic interests without thinking about its impact of the industry and the nation as a whole. Ghana would realise the anticipated growth and development over the next decade, if the book publishing industry was given the needed push to play its role actively in producing quality products that reflect the culture and heritage of the country, she said. She said it was only a paradigm shift that would change the present situation with respect to changing reading habits and improving upon local publications and enhancing the performance of the members of the industry. Ms Gomashie said this at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Ghana Book Publishers Association (GBPA) in Accra. She commended the leadership of the GBPA for ensuring that their members maintain their key roles in both human and national development over the years. The theme of the meeting: 'The Future of Textbook Publishing in Ghana: Can We Guarantee an Industry for the Next Generation?' was to review the performance of the Association over the previous year and strategise on ways to improve upon the past in the ensuing year. Ms Gomashie said in spite of the massive investments being made in educational sector, and the current high demands for quality textbooks and supplementary readers for schools, the local book publishing industry has not been able to cooperate to meet these demands. She blamed this on the lack of unity among publishers, unhealthy competition, selfishness, and the lack of self-appreciation on the part of Ghanaians, which has resulted in situations where some publishers after securing procurement contracts prefer to print their books outside the country, leaving the local industry to its current poor shape. She called for a paradigm shift and the renewal of the minds, saying no one individual could achieve national development unless these successes were linked to the contributions of others through strengthened partnerships. The Deputy Minster advised publishers to learn to collaborate and support each other in their respective works, and also to work hard to produce quality textbooks and other readers to improve upon the reading habits of Ghanaians. Mr Elliot Agyare, the President of the Ghana Book Publishers Association, said the industry was saddled with numerous challenges with the advent of technology and also the new procurement law. He said until the coming into being of this and other laws, members of the Association had worked in partnership with the Ministry of Education in the area of supplying textbooks and other supplementary readers to schools, but that relationship was currently being marred by the lack of transparency, suspicions and lack of trust from both sides. 'We need to recapture the spirit of restoring confidence in local publishers on the textbook policy', he said. Mr Ken Ashigbey, the Managing Director of the Graphic Communications Group Limited, said the country stands to benefit greatly if government gives much attention to the book publishing industry. He said although the challenges of the book publishing industry was numerous, they were not insurmountable, because they could be reversed if the needed investment were strategically made to change the attitudes of the public towards reading. He called for the total removal of taxes on all materials for textbook publication just like in other developed countries, which would not only affect the prices of books in a downward manner, also help in improving the reading habits of the public as well as enhance the performance of the local industry. He also urged the Association to set up a fund for improving the reading and to finance reading clubs in schools, which would go a long way to generate a competitive reading interest and attitudes among students at all levels. Mr Ashigbey said the contents of books usually portray the identity and cultural heritage of people and the local industry must be supported to maintain this responsibility. GNA you are here: If you ever happened to scout for budget stays across India in the last 18 months rarely you would find quality and cheaper rooms on any other site, cheaper than GoStays, a brand owned by Naspers-funded Ibibo Group. Earlier this year, one could find quality rooms on GoStays in most Central Business Districts of Indias major cities for as low as Rs 1500. Couple it with a 60 percent cashback discount that GoIbibo was offering, the booking amount came to as low as Rs 750, the cost of a lunch meal at a decent restaurant in any metro. OyoRooms was offering rooms starting Rs 999. In city centres, it cost about Rs 1200 for a decent room. MakeMyTrip launched its Value+ budget rooms segment, last year and it blocked smaller aggregators. However, it faced an onslaught of price war with GoStays, OyoRooms and the now defunct Zo Rooms. Heavy discount wars between OTAs For the same quality of rooms, priced higher on MakeMyTrip, a customer would often chose the Naspers funded Ibibo or the Softbank funded Oyo Rooms. However, with the Ibibo Group and MakeMyTrip merger, it has been announced that there would be rationalisation in the discounts and cash-backs being offered by the group. It is fair to imagine that there will be a rationalisation in marketing spend for both brands and in the kind of competitive scenario we have been seeing. It had led to competition by both brands, said Deep Kalra, MakeMyTrip Group founder and chairman. It is something fair to imagine that within the realms of keeping fast growth we will rationalise it, he added. However, GoIbibo founder and CEO Ashish Kashyap said that his consumers should be not be worried about the merger. "I can assure you that GoIbibo for now will run as a separate brand and the discounts including cash-backs will continue," he assured consumers through Moneycontrol. OyoRooms had further dropped prices further in last few months, to compete with GoStays. It is offering a 25 percent discount on current rooms pricing it at often equal or lower than GoStays for same properties. But how do the aggregators make money? The simple answer is - often they do not. Here is it how it works Hotel or guest house owners end up giving capacity to multiple Online Travel Aggregators. Often you would find the same property available for a higher price on one OTA but lower on the other. Thus the hotel room price is often subsidised by venture capital coffers of the OTAs. For listed companies such as Yatra and MakeMyTrip, its difficult to justify the bleeding price war. But as a consumer, it makes me happy when the service providers compete against each other, either for quality or on price. However, when consolidation takes place, cartels emerge which can move prices up or down, as per the whim of large businesses. This has started to happen in the online taxi aggregation space. The acquisition of TaxiForSure by Ola and the infusion of large capital by two big firms - namely Uber and Ola, have led to other VCs backing off. Smaller taxi aggregation startups have virtually died in the sector. Last weeks simultaneous increase of fares by both Ola and Uber are an example. While Deep Kalra said that the deal has got a clearance from Competition Commission of India. It is fair to say that governments across the developing world have not been able to control cartelisation in the online space. CCI had earlier exonerated Uber and Ola. Competition ensures choice Earlier the travel aggregation space in India was dominated by MakeMyTrip and Yatra. Then came GoIbibo, IxiGo, and other VC funded startups such as OyoRooms, FabHotels and Treebo. Other firms such as Stayzilla and Wudstay which earlier were doing aggregation business have now however shifted their focus towards alternate stay segment. While OYO runs more of an aggregation business along with few flagship properties, Treebo and Fab are based on franchise model wherein they lease a property, get it renovated and then sell them on their platform. These start-ups mostly target budget travelers. Interestingly, online travel agencies including MakeMyTrip, Yatra and Goibibo had delisted OYO last year. The companies went ahead and launched their own budget hotel business. This was good for the consumer who saw a variety of choices in the sector and prices which varied across spectrum. While MakeMyTrip plans to keep GoIbibo and MakeMyTrip as separate brands, ultimately the prices across the spectrum which a consumer pays will not vary. We have seen it in the airline or pharma space, where prices are regulated by the government. However in the sectors such as hospitality, when investors look for exits and consolidation takes place, its the consumer who loses. harsimran.julka@network18online.com This warm spell has spawned clouds of no-see-um, gnat-like pests that fill the air from the ground to way above the treetops. If I could roll all of them in our little plot into a ball, I could turn the tide because the ball would generate its own gravitational pull. Thats the way of nature, to take advantage of unusual weather. Warmth where there should be chill creates a flurry of activity, the insect version of make hay while the sun shines. When the Lord commanded Go ye forth and multiply, the insects didnt have to be told twice. Alas, there are good critters and pesky critters. At least we get to choose among the ones we allow closest to us well, some of the time. I know of no species that doesnt have obnoxious misfits among its population. I do believe that in trillions of years, when black holes have sucked almost everything out of our universe, if theres anybody left to zoom among the dross, a stinkbug will land on the windshield. Bear in mind this unseasonable warmth only compounds the misery of our Carolina coasts and flood-stricken inland areas. Help the people if you can. Sex has been part of politics for many generations. Its one of the traditions gleefully imported from the Old World when the United States was made. Benjamin Franklin had the reputation for being an amorous ambassador for the breakaway colonies, and its been said George Washington was the father of our nation in more ways than one. Much was made about the affairs of Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. The 1884 presidential campaign between Grover Cleveland and James Blaine was a bitter contest that included the slogan, Ma, Ma, wheres my Pa? in reference to the story of Taft fathering a child out of wedlock. When Taft won, the politics didnt end. Detractors added, Gone to the White House ha, ha, ha! Taft admitted the story was true, and the slogan is permanently attached to his legacy. Presidential candidates accused of sexual dalliances include Warren Harding, John Kennedy, Ted Kennedy, Gary Hart, Strom Thurmond and Newt Gingrich. The stories and their candidacies didnt necessarily coincide. Sometimes, those accused have paid a steep price with their political careers severely stunted and even ended (like Hart). For others, the results werent too bad. Gerry Studds, representing Massachusetts in the U.S. House, was censured by the House for an inappropriate sexual relationship with a 17-year-old male page. He was reelected six more times after the censure. Dan Crane U.S. House member from Illinois also was censured at the same time for an inappropriate sexual relationship with a 17-year-old female page. He was defeated in the next election and never returned to national politics. Daniel Webster, William O. Douglas, Robert Packwood, Henry Hyde, Pete Dominici, Gary Condit, Larry Craig and oh, yes Anthony Weiner are among a large group of political leaders who have tawdry reputations. And Victoria Woodhull, who got an astonishing amount of support for president, was not accused of being a prostitute, but a plain ol harlot. When a politician decides to grab the biggest headlines in the land, you can bet some tales will be bared. One thing everyone should at least consider is that when political opponents criticize each other for the way they voted, look up the bills in question. Single-issue legislation in Congress is almost unheard of, so there might be something hidden in these bills (those nasty riders) that might have affected the voting. And I think that whoever is elected president should present a carefully considered and thoroughly vetted nominee for the Supreme Court as soon as possible. Anyone who interferes with the process simply because the nominator is of the wrong party should be charged with treason. Supreme Court nominees should not be rubber-stamped, but the process must be held as sacred as our lives, liberty and honor and rise above sour-grapes politics which for all the good it does our nation is in the same general category as anarchy. Reach Larry Clark at wryturlc@yahoo.com. In the current environment it is increasingly difficult to get both income and growth from any one asset. As a result, private investor Aidan Clubley has tried to build up a diverse portfolio; including property, car parking spaces, direct shareholdings as well as more conventional managed funds. Its trying to get the balance right between income and growth. I want my investments to provide some yield, but also want to ensure that my capital grows over the longer term, he explained. Access to my money is also a factor. While I am prepared to tie up some of my savings for longer periods I dont want all of my money to be locked away. I want to be able to access some of my capital, should I need it. Clubley says this approach also means he has a very mixed risk profile: Some of my investments are far riskier than others. But where I have higher risk holdings I try to balance with investments that deliver steadier returns. Investments to Supplement Wage Income Clubley, who lives in Buckinghamshire, began his career by working in banking but retired from this at the age of 50. He then went on to own a number of restaurants and wine bars, as well as his own credit management and consultancy business. Although his business still provides an income, he is increasing looking to his investments to supplement this. In recent years property has been a mainstay of his portfolio. As well as owning his business premises he also owns a couple of local buy-to-let properties. More recently he has invested in Property Partner, a crowdfunding platform that allows investors to club together to buy UK residential property. He says: This enabled me to get a foothold in the London property market. It would be too expensive to buy a property there outright. Ive invested in a couple of new-build flats in areas which are to be connected by cross-rail so hopefully they will appreciate in value. Investors split rental income and the properties are typically sold after six years. However, Clubley says he likes the fact that there is second-hand market for investors to trade the stakes they own in these properties. While he says he gets a reasonable yield from these properties, his best income asset at present is an airport parking space in Glasgow. Here your money is locked away for five years, but I get an 8% income for the first two years, 10% income for the next two, then 12% for the final year. Typically, investors need to deposit a large lump sum to invest in such schemes. Investors should think very carefully before opting for these alternative investments as they are unregulated and should only ever make up a small part of a large diversified portfolio. Funds for Equity Exposure When it comes to equity investments, Clubley says he has made decent returns on a couple of Henderson funds. He invests in Henderson European Selected Opportunities, and Henderson Global Growth. As well as offering exposure to different geographical areas, Clubley feels the two funds complement each other in terms of risk profile. The European fund, is invested in larger blue chip companies, while the global fund is considered more high risk as its invested in slightly smaller companies, often at an early stage in their development. The European Selected Opportunities fund has a four-star performance rating from Morningstar, reflecting its strong returns in recent years. The manager John Bennett is described as an experienced and talented fund manager by Morningstar analysts, who have awarded him a coveted Silver Rating. Morningstar analysts say: One of Bennetts strengths is his continual assessment of the [investment] process and there have been enhancements over time. He pays close attention to macroeconomic trends, as he believes an understanding of global market and industry dynamics gives him a valuable insight into the behaviours of European stocks. Global Growth has a five-star performance rating from Morningstar showing it has outperformed the majority of peers in recent years. This global fund invests in a concentrated portfolio of innovation-focused stocks. In the last five years it has produced at least 10% a year the only exception being 2015, where it chalked up a 9.1% return. In four out of these five years its benchmark has produced returns of less than 1%. Speculative Stock Picking Aside from these funds he also has a number of direct shareholdings. But Clubley says: These are far more speculative. Hopefully I will make a good return on some of them, but I am not relying on these returns to fund day to day living costs. Its a bit more of a gamble, and more of a hobby really. He says he invests in some smaller company shares such as Fevertree Drinks (FEVR), as well as larger FTSE 100 companies like Experian (EXPN). Fevertree is a supplier of premium carbonated drinks and mixers, and in the past year has seen its share price rise by a staggering 122% according to Morningstar data. It mainly sells its drinks to hotels, restaurants, bars and off-licences. Experians core business is as a credit rating agency, and it is a major player in both the US and UK markets. It has a two-star rating from Morningstar, meaning its current share price is greater than Morningstar analysts fair value estimate for the firm. Morningstar says this company has a wide economic moat reflecting the fact it is hard for other competitors to move into the markets it dominates. Morningstar says: [Experian] has not been content to simply operate its existing businesses, instead expanding through acquisitions into new businesses and new countries. The company now generates about one fourth of its revenue outside North America and the U.K., which we think positions it well to increase revenue and shareholder value. For example, it is a leading player in the Brazilian market. At its May 2016 index review, MSCI completed the addition of a number of US-listed Chinese companies into its MSCI Global Investable Market Indexes. As a result, Chinas weighting has increased in a number of key indexes, and its role in global portfolios has also been amplified. In addition, we believe the indexes now better represent the underlying growth drivers of the Chinese economy, which has various implications for portfolio managers and investors. Chinas progressive financial market liberalisation has spurred numerous IPOs and the success of a number of Chinese companies, which has been reflected in their gigantic market capitalizations, such as Tencent. This has had a significant impact on the evolution of Chinas weighting in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. A decade ago, the index was dominated by Taiwan and South Korea, and China accounted for a meagre 3.69%. Fast forward to 30 June 2016, and, fuelled by the recent addition of a number of US-listed Chinese companies into the index, China has become the largest country weighting at 25.79%. China Set to Grab Even More of the Market The story does not end there. China will continue to gain global importance as it improves accessibility to its onshore A-share market, one that offers better liquidity and a more diversified opportunity set than the Hong Kong stock market, which is currently the most commonly used avenue to get Chinese exposure. Many asset managers believe it is only a matter of time before A-shares are included and have accordingly been beefing up their A-share research capabilities or even managing their portfolios against a custom benchmark that includes A-shares. Referencing to MSCIs Consultation on China A-Shares Index Inclusion Roadmap, a potential full inclusion of A-shares can raise Chinas weighting in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index to almost 40%. That said, this will require among other things, Chinas full liberalisation of its capital mobility restrictions, and it will likely take a long time to materialise. The inclusion of US-listed Chinese companies often referred to as American Depositary Receipts, or ADRs into the MSCI indexes has undoubtedly helped to better reflect the Chinese investment universe and provide more-relevant performance benchmarks for portfolio managers and investors alike. How the Chinese Stock Market is Diversifying Prior to the ADR inclusions, the Chinese exposure of various indexes predominantly came from the old economy, that is, the traditional state-ownership-heavy sectors such as banks, energy, and telecom services. To put this into context, we examine the MSCI China Index, a popular benchmark among Chinese equity managers, and one which had shown the most pronounced changes. Taking its 30 November 2015 portfolio and assuming that there were no ADR inclusions, the yellow bar in the graph below shows how the indexs sector allocations would look as at 30 June 2016, adjusted for stock price movements. The financial sector, which comprises banks, insurers, and property developers, until 30 August 2016, when MSCI adopted a new real estate sector in its global industry classification standard structure, was by far the most prominent sector and accounted for 40% of the hypothetical index. Other mature industries, such as the telecom services and the energy sectors, accounted for 11% and 9% of the index, respectively. MSCI added 14 ADRs to its indexes as a result of the index review. Many of these new constituents are privately owned new economy companies, particularly Internet-related companies. As a result, the MSCI China Indexs information technology exposure dramatically increased from 17% to 31% in Exhibit 2, where the orange bar depicts the MSCI China Indexs actual sector allocations as at 30 June 2016. Notably, Alibaba and Baidu became index giants and accounted for 8.15% and 4.64% of the index, respectively. The indexs consumer discretionary exposure also doubled from 4% to 8%. On the flip side, the once-overriding financial sector now shares its top position with the IT sector at around 30%. We think that these changes better align the index with the growth drivers of the Chinese economy, with an increased representation of the in-demand service industries, such as the IT and consumer sectors. These sectors are arguably more directly exposed to the Chinese domestic-consumption story, a popular long-term investment theme as China looks to transition away from an investment-led economy, than some of the traditional sectors such as oil and gas. From a quality perspective, the substantial increase in the more privately owned new-economy sector has indirectly diluted the exposure of state-owned-enterprise-heavy old-economy sectors such as banks, energy, and materials. This shift in ownership dynamics presents a differentiated opportunity set for portfolio managers, one that focuses on return-on-equity potential and the alignment of interests between management and shareholders. How Active Fund Managers May Benefit Investors in benchmark-aware strategies, that is, funds with relatively tight tracking-error budgets and not much leeway to deviate from the index, can expect increased exposure to the added index constituents, whether their portfolio managers believe those names have strong investment merits or not. For example, a few benchmark-conscious portfolio managers invested in Baidu despite their belief that the company has over-monetized its search results. Nonetheless, they bought the name to manage benchmark-relative risks and expressed their disflike through an underweight position. On the other hand, some have had the foresight to invest in select U.S-listed Chinese companies prior to the inclusion exercise and captured considerable upside before the huge buy-in from the market. The Chinese investment universe has continued to expand and evolve, and China is becoming an increasingly important part of global investors portfolios. Improving accessibility, such as the recent implementation of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect, provides another channel for offshore investors to invest in the domestic Chinese equity market. As one of the worlds largest economies with diversifying growth drivers, we believe China presents exciting investment opportunities to global investors. Maintaining independence and editorial freedom is essential to our mission of empowering investor success. We provide a platform for our authors to report on investments fairly, accurately, and from the investors point of view. We also respect individual opinionsthey represent the unvarnished thinking of our people and exacting analysis of our research processes. Our authors can publish views that we may or may not agree with, but they show their work, distinguish facts from opinions, and make sure their analysis is clear and in no way misleading or deceptive. To further protect the integrity of our editorial content, we keep a strict separation between our sales teams and authors to remove any pressure or influence on our analyses and research. Read our editorial policy to learn more about our process. Wells Fargo cant catch a break after revelations that it opened 2 million unauthorized customer accounts. States are falling over themselves to withdraw their business from the embattled bank. Its CEO, John Stumpf, was forced to step down. And now it has list its accreditation with the Better Business Bureau.The BBB stripped Wells Fargos accreditation following the banks settlement with regulators over the scandal, according to a Charlotte Observer report. The government penalties pushed the bank below the B rating the minimum required to retain accreditation. The bank currently has a C- rating, according to the Observer.Tom Bartholomy, president of the Better Business Bureau of the Southern Piedmont, told the Observer that Wells Fargos loss of accreditation was quite remarkable. He said that in his 34 years with the BBB, the bank is the largest company hes seen have its accreditation revoked.On its website, the BBB states that the banks accreditation was revoked due to government action(s) against the business, including the September settlement that included a $100 million fine from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.Bartholomy told the Observer that the governments actions will remain on the banks BBB record for three years.Theres nothing they can do to cure this, so theyre going to be out for at least a three-year period of time, he said.Wells Fargo said in a statement that it would continue to work hard to restore our customers trust. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate ODESSA Seeing strength in numbers, a conglomerate of 40 companies in Mexicos Chihuahua State banded together to form the Chihuahua Energy Initiative. Were a conglomerate of about 40 companies and we can do about anything, said Humberto Guglielmina with the initiative. The goal of the cluster is to bring together (different) companies, share costs and share synergies, he said. He explained that the member companies dont work in the oil and gas industry. Theres no oil in Chihuahua, he pointed out. But member companies manufacture tanks, well controls and pumping units and are specialists in heat treatment, among other items and services. What one company isnt capable of doing, one of the other companies most likely can, he said. All are based in Chihuahua State, primarily in the cities of Chihuahua City and Juarez. Guglielmina said that the companies have expertise in manufacturing products that are used in the oil fields. Member companies hope to supply components for area manufacturers to incorporate into their equipment, he said. Guglielmina, for example, is chief executive officer of Tanques Especializados de Chihuahua, which was founded in 1994 and designs and manufactures storage tanks for flammable liquids. These companies joined in the hope it would help them grow and become more successful, said Alejandro Casas, also with the inititive and director of economic development for the State of Chihuahua. This is the initiatives second time to exhibit at the Permian Basin Oil Show, and Casas said the group received interest from a Midland company that is looking at the initiative to build parts for the company. This particular cluster was formed three years ago, according to Casas, but business has been slow in large part because of the downturn in the energy industry. Both Casas and Guglielmina said members of the conglomerate are hopeful business will improve as oil and gas industry activity continues to increase amid rising commodity prices. Last October the group applauded the signing by Odessa Mayor David Turner of a symbolic tri-sister city agreement between Odessa, Chihuahua City and Los Mochis Sinaloa and the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sinaloa. We have independently selected these offers and products because we love them and we think you might like them at these prices. E! has affiliate relationships, so we may earn a commission if you buy something through our links. Items are Akufo-Addo should have apologised over hardship ... Statistics show the 2016 fire season has been quieter than recent years. According to the Associated Press, via information from the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, just under five million acres have burned this year, nationally, compared to over 10 million acres last year. 2016 is also below the 10-year average which has been closer to seven million acres charred. In California, the largest wildfire of 2016 has been the 132,100 acre Sobranes Fire in Monterey County. The largest fire in the Mother Lode this year has been the 1,080 acre Marshes Fire near Chinese Camp. By comparison, last years Butte Fire in Calaveras and Amador counties charred over 70,800 acres and the 2013 Rim Fire in Tuolumne and Mariposa counties burned over 257,000 acres. The lighter fire season across the entire West is being partially attributed to heavier precipitation last winter and early snow this Fall across portions of Northern California, Washington, Oregon, Montana and Wyoming. Areas of southern California still have a notably high fire risk entering the end of October due to dry conditions and heavy winds. A California man is calling three Bay area nurses heroes after they saved his life on board an airplane. Three nurses save man onboard plane The women were traveling back to Tampa from Los Angeles The man, Gregory Gam, 56, says he plans on traveling to Tampa to thank them Cassidy Orvik, Jessica Adey and Emily Goodyear were leaving Los Angeles Sunday when a male passenger had a medical emergency. All three jumped out of their seats to help. "There was no hesitation on any of our parts, Goodyear said. We knew this was what we were put here for, Adey said. Its what we are trained to do, Orvik added. The nurses gave the man, 56-year-old Gregory Gam, oxygen, started an IV and monitored his vitals for the next few hours. But just before the plane landed in Atlanta, Gam collapsed and didnt have a pulse. Orvik, Adey and Goodyear sprang into action again. "[Cassidy] held his head to stabilize it, Adey said. Emily and I somehow lifted him over, call it adrenaline, call it whatever you want. The two of them lifted a 250 pound man over the seat and into the aisle, Orvik said. They did CPR and got Gam breathing again until they were back on the ground. Gam was rushed to an Atlanta hospital where he stayed for three days. "They are angels and I was very lucky that they were on this flight, Gam said. But the nurses said they were just doing their jobs. "We are blessed just to be able to serve another person in those unconventional circumstances, but more importantly knowing he is going to wake up with his family another day, Adey said. Doctors have cleared Gam to fly back to his home in California on Thursday. He said he plans on coming to Tampa to thank the three nurses in person. While Donald Trump has been relentlessly attacking both Bill and Hillary Clinton as he campaigns for president including going after Bill Clinton's alleged infidelity he was filled with praise for both of them in an exclusive interview with NY1 in 2008. Donald Trump praised Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton in 2008 interview The interview aired on NY1 News after the 2008 presidential election Trump on Hillary Clinton: "Hillary is a very smart woman, very tough woman" "I think Bill Clinton was a great president," Trump said in the interview that was conducted shortly after the 2008 presidential election. "You know, you look at the country then. The economy was doing great. Look at what happened during the Clinton years. I mean we had no war, the economy was doing great, everybody was happy. A lot of people hated him because they were jealous as hell," Trump said. Asked about Hillary Clinton, Trump said: "Hillary is a very smart woman, very tough woman. That's fine. She's also a very nice person, and I know Hillary, and I know her husband very well. They're fine people." NY1 looked deeper into its archives Wednesday morning after a CNN reporter begain inquiring about the interview. Source: ny1.com The last presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton turned out to be perhaps the hottest and harshest yet. Third and final presidential debate in Las Vegas Debate moderator was Chris Wallace of Fox News Channel Third presidential debate: LIVE FACT-CHECKING Time on topics, interruptions Amid heated statements on foreign policy, Wikileaks, the treatment of women, the candidates' charities and taxes, the most shocking may be Trump saying that he would not commit to the result of the election. "I will look at it at the time. I'm not looking at anything now," Trump said. Post-debate, the Republican National Committee made it clear that it would respect the will of the American people. Trump has been telling supporters for weeks that the media and the Clinton campaign are rigging the election in her favor. Trump says the election is already rigged because Clinton is a criminal and shouldn't be allowed to run. Chris Wallace of Fox News Channel was the moderator of the third debate in Las Vegas. He used a format similar to the first debate -- six 15-minute segments, each focusing on a different topic: Debt and entitlements Immigration Economy Supreme Court Foreign hot spots Fitness to be president However Wallace had trouble stopping the candidates from interrupting each other and keeping time, a problem that continued from previous debates. Latest Updates (Associated Press contributed to this section) 11:15 p.m. The Republican National Committee will accept the results of the general election even if Donald Trump doesn't. That's according to RNC spokesman Sean Spicer. He says, "We're going to respect the will of the people." The answer was in response to Trump's refusal during the debate to say whether he would concede if he loses the general election. He said, "I'll keep you in suspense." He has been railing against the U.S. election system as "rigged" for weeks. Spicer addressed Trump's explosive comment after the debate. He says it likely won't be an issue because Trump will win. When pressed, Spicer said, "I cannot speak for what he thinks." ___ 11:10 p.m. Republican senators are saying Donald Trump should accept the results of the presidential election. The statements came after Trump refused to promise he'd accept defeat on Nov. 8 if Americans choose Hillary Clinton as president. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina says "Mr. Trump is doing the party and the country a great disservice" by suggesting the election is rigged. Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona says Trump's statements are "beyond the pale." Both senators have long been critical of Trump. ___ 10:40 p.m. Though it was not planned, moderator Chris Wallace gave each candidate a minute to give a closing argument. It gave each candidate a chance to reiterate their biggest talking points and make one last plea to the nation. Clinton emphasized her experience, talking about seeing the presidency up close and her work to strengthen children and families. She appealed to all Americans, saying everyone from all walks of life was needed to "make our country what it should be." "We need your talents, your skills, your commitment, your energy and your ambition," Clinton said. Trump, meanwhile, emphasized his signature campaign slogan, "make America great again," saying we needed to fix our military, take better care of our vets and our law enforcement, and saying he was a better candidate to help the inner cities and minorities. "We are going to make America strong again, and we are going to make America great. We can't take four more years of Barack Obama," Trump said. ___ 10:38 p.m. Donald Trump says Hillary Clinton is "such a nasty woman." Trump made the remark while Clinton was talking in the last presidential debate Wednesday about preserving Social Security and Medicare. She says her plan to save both programs would raise Social Security taxes on the wealthy, including her and Trump, "assuming he can't figure out how to get out of it." As she continued talking Trump interjected, "Such a nasty woman." Clinton did not react to the comment and instead completed her statement on her plans for Social Security and Medicare. ___ 10:37 p.m. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton agree: There'll be no "grand bargain" on entitlements. Both presidential candidates reject the idea of a bipartisan deal to raise taxes and cut benefits to avoid running out of money to fund Social Security and Medicaid in coming decades. Trump says he will make the economy grow and repeal President Obama's health care law. Clinton says she'll raise taxes on the wealthy to help fund Social Security. But she says she wants to expand benefits rather than cut them. ___ 10:35 p.m. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are sparring over who has the better plan to shrink the national debt and spur the U.S. economy. Trump is pushing back against a report from the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget that said his proposed economic policies would grow the national debt. Trump says he would hire experts, and not "political hacks," to negotiate more favorable trade deals. Trump says under his administration Americans would have more jobs that pay better. Clinton says Trump's economic plans are geared toward helping the rich while she is focused on helping the middle class, a difference she attributes to Trump's privileged upbringing. Clinton says she takes shrinking the national debt seriously, and none of her new proposals would add to it. ___ ___ While the segments may not necessarily be in this order, it may give the candidates a chance to really distinguish themselves on some issues that have not come up as much, including social security and medicare, domestic spending, immigration and the Supreme Court. "Fitness to be president" will likely be the place for the hot topics that have dominated the media in recent weeks -- from Clinton's Wikileaks and other email issues to Trump's numerous allegations of sexual misconduct. Also likely to come up in this segment is Trump's recent tactic of saying Democrats are rigging the election for a Clinton win. Wallace has already made it clear that he will not try to fact check the candidates during the debate. What is not clear is whether Wallace will make sure the candidates stick to answering the questions and keeping time, or whether he will let them go at each other. Moderators have had a difficult time reining in both candidates, but particularly Trump. The debate runs for 90 minutes without commercial interruption. Early and mail-in voting has already begun in many states, including Florida. An estimated 2.2 million people will have already voted by tonight. Previous Updates 10:30 p.m. Hillary Clinton says imposing a no-fly zone over Syria can save lives on the ground while speeding the end of the fighting in that country. She acknowledges in the third and final debate with Donald Trump that enforcing a no-fly zone "would take a lot of negotiation." Clinton says she thinks "we could strike a deal" and make it clear to Russian and Syrian leaders that "this was the best for people on the ground." Donald Trump is responding that Clinton would allow potential terrorists into the United States as refugees from Syria. Clinton counters that she wouldn't allow refugees to immigrate without being properly vetted, but says she also wouldn't close U.S. borders to women and children fleeing war. ___ 10:26 p.m. Donald Trump is again asserting that U.S. involvement in the war-torn city of Aleppo, Syria, is not a worthwhile cause. Aleppo is the center of the years-long Syrian civil war between President Bashar Assad and rebel forces. Russia is backing Assad. Trump says Aleppo is a "humanitarian nightmare" but suggests that keeping Assad in power may be better than replacing him, because Assad and Russia both oppose the Islamic State group. Trump says the United States would be in better shape if it had "done nothing" in Syria. The United States has protested Russia's bombardment of Aleppo. It says civilians are being slaughtered to prop up Assad's regime. ___ 10:25 p.m. Donald Trump is once again denying that he supported the invasion of Iraq. Trump said "Wrong" in Wednesday's final presidential debate when Hillary Clinton said he supported the invasion in 2002. Trump actually offered lukewarm support for invading Iraq before the war began. He's repeatedly and erroneously claimed to have come out against the war before it started, telling Howard Stern in September 2002: "Yeah I guess so," when asked if he would back an invasion. Clinton says in the debate that anyone questioning what Trump's position was could simply google it and find "dozens of sources" showing he was for it. Clinton says," He has not told the truth on that position." ___ 10:15 p.m. Donald Trump said a win in the Mosul offensive will be a wonderful thing, but it will be particularly wonderful for Iran, which is taking over Iraq. Trump says since America has announced its Mosul offensive, the ISIS operatives are gone, because there was no element of surprise. Clinton says going after the leadership is important but it's also important to take Mosul because of its position near Syria. "We need to go after the leadership, but we need to get rid of their fighters, their estimated thousands of fighters," Clinton said. "We need to take back Mosul and then we can take back Raqqa in Syria." ___ 10:10 p.m. Donald Trump is refusing to say whether he will respect the results of the election if he does not win. Instead, he said he will see when he sees the results. "I will look at it at the time. I'm not looking at anything now," Trump said. Trump has been telling supporters for weeks that the media and the Clinton campaign are rigging the election in her favor. Trump says the election is already rigged because Clinton is a criminal and shouldn't be allowed to run. Clinton said she was appalled by Trump's remarks, calling it part of Trump's pattern of complaining something is rigged when he doesn't win. "We've been around for 240 years, we've had free and fair elections. We've accepted the outcomes," Clinton said. ___ 10:09 p.m. Donald Trump says the Clinton Foundation is a "criminal enterprise" and is calling on Hillary Clinton to have the foundation return money it's received from countries with repressive human rights regimes. There is no evidence the Clinton Foundation has broken any laws. Trump also says the Clinton Foundation's work in Haiti was a "disgrace." Clinton says she is "thrilled" to discuss the foundation's work, and says it is a world-renowned charity that has helped millions of people. She also says there was no improper connection between the foundation's donors and those awarded contracts to help rebuild Haiti after it suffered a devastating earthquake. ___ 10:09 p.m. Donald Trump is suggesting that accusations of his inappropriate behavior with women over the years were started by Hillary Clinton and her "sleazy campaign." Asked about the many women who have come forward to accuse Trump, the Republican presidential nominee called the accusations "fiction" and blamed Clinton. But he then quickly pivoted. Trump accused Clinton of deleting her emails while serving as secretary of state to hide potentially disclosing classified information, saying "she's lied hundreds of times to the people, to Congress and to the FBI." Clinton responded that when Trump "is pushed" on any major issue, he immediately unleashes denials that are bullying and beside the point. Trump responded, "Wrong." ___ 10:08 p.m. Donald Trump says Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama paid people to incite violence ahead of his planned rally in Chicago earlier this year. There's no clear evidence of that. Trump was referencing secretly record, selectively edited video footage released this week by conservative activist James O'Keefe. Among the footage was a woman who says she was at the Chicago event in March, which Trump canceled because of safety concerns. The woman, identified as Zulema Rodriguez, has attended several Trump events as a protester. Rodriguez said on the O'Keefe recordings that she was paid to be in Chicago. Federally filed finance reports show she was paid about $1,600 by the campaign at the end of February, before the Chicago rally. ___ 10:08 p.m. Hillary Clinton says Donald Trump "thinks belittling women makes him bigger." And she's accusing him of going after women's "dignity" and "self-worth." Clinton is making the case against Trump's treatment of women, saying, "I don't think there's a woman anywhere who doesn't know what that feels like." Clinton's comments come in response to allegations from several women that Trump groped or kissed them without consent. He's denying the charges. But Clinton is noting that he brushed off the remarks by belittling several of the women's appearances. Trump is denying he suggested some of the women weren't attractive enough to win his attention. But he said of one recently, "believe me, she would not be my first choice." ___ 10:07 p.m. Donald Trump says claims by women who say he groped them have been largely debunked, even though they have not. Trump is also claiming in Wednesday's debate that he thinks Hillary Clinton's campaign is behind the women coming forward, even though there is no evidence of that, either. Trump says, "I believe she got these people to step forward." He calls the women's stories "lies and fiction." He says, "I don't know those people." Clinton says, "Donald thinks belittling women makes him bigger." She says Trump attacks women's dignity and self-worth and says: "That's who Donald is. I think it's up to us to demonstrate who we are." ___ 10:06 p.m. Donald Trump says Hillary Clinton may have more experience than he does, "but it's bad experience." He says, "The problem is, you talk, but you don't get anything done, Hillary." Clinton is responding by comparing her record over the decades to Trump's. She notes that on the day she was in the White House's situation room during the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, Trump was hosting the NBC show "Celebrity Apprentice." She says, "I'm happy to compare my 30 years of experience" to Trump's. ___ 10:05 p.m. Donald Trump is back to his usual bluster on the debate stage. The GOP nominee had largely held his tongue during the first half-hour of Wednesday's final debate, speaking only when called on and not interrupting. But Trump appears to be sliding back to his usual bluster as he and Hillary Clinton discuss Russia and nuclear weapons. "Wrong!" he declared at one point, interrupting Clinton. Later, Clinton said she would "translate" Trump's plan to reform the tax code. Trump interjected, "You can't." ___ 10:02 p.m. Donald Trump is making a misleading charge that Hillary Clinton will double "your taxes." Clinton's tax plan would only raise taxes on the wealthiest 1 percent. Even then it would only add 4 percent to the top rate, not double it. She would require people making more than $1 million annually to pay at least 30 percent in federal taxes. She'd also limit some tax deductions. So the only people whose taxes could be doubled are those making a large amount of money and paying very little in taxes. Trump has proposed a large across-the-board tax cut. Analysts say he'd actually raise taxes on some single parents because of the structure of the plan. ___ 10:02 p.m. Hillary Clinton is continuing to defend Democratic economic priorities as the way to help the most Americans. She insists her tax-and-spending priorities would "not add a penny to the debt," because she would raise taxes on top-income earners while investing in programs she says will benefit middle-class Americans and grow the economy. She says her philosophy is to "invest from the middle out and the ground up, not the top down." She says Republican Donald Trump proposes tax plans tilted toward the wealthiest Americans. Clinton is also defending President Barack Obama's economic record. ___ 10 p.m. Donald Trump says his plan to boost the economy is to make the United States' rich allies pay more for military support and to renegotiate trade deals. Trump also says he would cut taxes "massively." Trump is naming several allies he says could afford to pay the U.S. for its spending on defense. He says, "Saudi Arabia, nothing but money. We protect Saudi Arabia, why aren't they paying?" The Republican presidential nominee is also criticizing current trade deals, saying he would renegotiate them to get better terms for the U.S. or leave them. Trump says NAFTA, signed by former President Bill Clinton, was one of the "worst deals ever" and was causing U.S. jobs to flee to Mexico and other countries. ___ 9:55 p.m. Clinton dinged Trump on his use of Chinese steel and overseas production houses for some of his products, in response to his attacks on trade deals. Clinton accused Trump of "crocodile tears" over closed factories because he is part of the problem. Trump responded that if Clinton has a problem, she should have stopped him. "If you say I use steel or I use something else, make it impossible for me to do that, I wouldn't mind," Trump said. "The problem is you talk, but you don't get anything done, Hillary, you don't." ___ 9:50 p.m. The conversation has turned to the economy, with a question on why each candidate's economic growth plan is better than the opponent. Clinton ticked off a number of aspects to her plan, including a massive investment to expand on infrastructure and advanced manufacturing jobs, investing in clean energy, offering small business help, raising the minimum wage, investing in technical education and apprenticeships, and making public college tuition debt-free. She hopes to pay for it with a tax increase on the wealthy. "We are going to have the wealthy pay their fair share," Clinton said. "We are going to have corporations make a contribution than they are now to our country." Trump said his goal is to bring jobs back to the country. Trump said the trade deals we have are sucking jobs out. He said he is going to renegotiate and get much better trade deals. He is, however, avoiding questions about his tax plan, which many economists say would overwhelmingly helps the wealthy. ___ 9:45 p.m. Donald Trump says he "of course" condemns Russia or any other country interfering in the U.S. elections. Still, he says he doesn't necessarily believe Russia hacked emails from Hillary Clinton's campaign. U.S. intelligence officials believe Russia is behind the hacks. Trump says Russian President Vladimir Putin is not "my best friend," but says the Russian leader has "outsmarted" Clinton repeatedly. Democrats have slammed Trump for calling Putin a stronger leader than President Barack Obama. Trump is alleging Clinton has allowed Russia to expand its nuclear weapons. Clinton, in response, says Trump is "cavalier" about nuclear weapons, pointing to his past statements suggesting more countries should have nuclear power. The two have repeatedly sparred over Russia's role in the world, with Democrats alleging Trump would strengthen Moscow and Trump saying Clinton is too weak to take on Putin. ___ 9:43 p.m. Donald Trump is disagreeing with U.S. intelligence officials who have concluded that Russia has hacked political emails. Hillary Clinton notes that some of Donald Trump's foreign policies line up with Russia's and that he's called for Russian hackers to find her emails. She contends that Russia hacked her campaign's emails to help Trump. The emails were recently released through the web site WikiLeaks. Trump says Clinton has no idea if Russia or someone else was behind the hacks. Clinton counters that 17 U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia is the culprit. ___ 9:42 p.m. What is this that the presidential candidates have been talking about? Oh, it's policy! So far in this third debate, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are debating their very different approaches to some of the country's stickiest issues: gun rights, abortion and immigration. That's a striking turnabout from how the previous two debates have unfolded in their earliest moments. Last time the two met, in St. Louis, the debate moderators began by asking about the increasingly negative tone of the campaign, focusing on a 2005 video of Trump making predatory comments about women. This time, right off the top in Las Vegas, it was all policy. There are signs the issues focus may not last: Clinton and Trump have begun sniping at each other about ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. ___ 9:40 p.m. Hillary Clinton says Donald Trump "choked" during a meeting with the Mexican president when he failed to bring up his own plan to build a border wall and make Mexico pay for it. Clinton says she voted for border security and believes the U.S. is a country of laws, but also a nation of immigrants. She said she's against ripping families apart, noting that there are an estimated 11 million unauthorized immigrants in the country who have 4 million American-citizen children. She is portraying Trump's deportation plan as a logistical nightmare, saying it would force a "massive law enforcement presence" and require shipping people from the country in trains and buses. She says she would push for an immigration reform plan within her first 100 days of office. ___ 9:37 p.m. Hillary Clinton is accusing Donald Trump of employing immigrants in the country illegally. The Democratic presidential nominee charges that her Republican opponent "exploit(ed) undocumented workers." Trump is not refuting the charge. He is repeating his promise to deport millions of immigrants in the country illegally if elected. He notes that President Barack Obama has also deported millions of immigrants. Trump hired a contracting firm that employed immigrants in the country to help build Trump Tower in New York. He settled a related court case out of court. ___ 9:32 p.m. A much more disciplined and restrained Donald Trump is on stage at the third and final presidential debate in Las Vegas. Trump spent much of the first two debates constantly interrupting rival Hillary Clinton and drawing attention to himself as she spoke with his pacing and animated facial expressions. This time, Trump is largely waiting to speak until he's asked questions and declining to interrupt even when Clinton accused him of calling for women to be punished if abortions are outlawed. While Trump did say that during a town hall event, he later issued a statement clarifying that was not his stance. ___ 9:30 p.m. Wallace says immigration is one area where the two candidates could not be more different. He asked each candidate why their plan was right, and their opponent's was bad? Trump said Clinton's plans for amnesty were a disaster and unfair for the people who waited their chance. Trump pointed to the four mothers he had in the audience of children killed by criminals who were illegal immigrants. "We have no country if we have no border, Hillary wants open borders," Trump said. Clinton said she voted border security while in the U.S. Senate, but believes there is a better use for the money than the wall, which Trump reiterated that he wanted. She also condemned Trump's statements calling for mass deportation. "That is not in keeping with who we are as a nation," Clinton said. Clinton says it's not open borders that she wants, but she believes getting undocumented workers to come out in the open and put them on the path to citizenship. ___ 9:25 p.m. Donald Trump says he thinks Roe v. Wade will "automatically" be overturned if he is elected because he will appoint justices who oppose abortion rights. Trump says he is against abortion rights but did not give a straight answer on whether he personally thinks the landmark abortion case should be overturned. He is saying he will appoint justices who would likely do so. Trump says it would then be up to states to decide whether abortion should remain legal and what restrictions should be placed on it. Hillary Clinton says she'll strongly defend Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood. ___ 9:20 p.m. Hillary Clinton is criticizing one of the Supreme Court's biggest recent decisions. Clinton disagrees with the 2008 Heller decision that found the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to bear arms for self-defense. Clinton says she supports the Second Amendment but thinks the court prevented a reasonable attempt to make guns safer. It struck down the District of Columbia's requirements for a trigger lock on all guns. Republican Donald Trump says this is one of the reasons supporters of the Second Amendment don't trust Clinton. ___ 9:15 p.m. Donald Trump is opening the final presidential debate by promising to appoint justices to the Supreme Court who will uphold Second Amendment gun rights, saying it is "under such trauma." The first question in Wednesday's debate focused on what kind of justices Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton would appoint to the high court. Trump says he would appoint judges who are "pro-life," have a "conservative bent" and will protect gun ownership rights. Trump says, "The Supreme Court is what it's all about." He says it's "imperative that we have the right justices." Trump has released the name of 20 potential nominees to the Supreme Court and has emphasized the high number of potential appointments the next president may make. Trump also says the Constitution should be interpreted "the way the founders wanted it." ___ 9:10 p.m. Hillary Clinton says she supports a Supreme Court that stands "on the side of the American people" and not the "powerful corporations and the wealthy." The Democrat's comments were part of her first response in Wednesday night's third and final debate. The former secretary of state specifically said the nation's high court should not reverse its decisions on abortion rights and same-sex marriage. Clinton said it should, however, reverse its Citizens United decision that allows "dark" money into politics. She added that the Senate has a responsibility to act on a president's Supreme Court pick. ___ 9:05 p.m. The debate has begun. Chris Wallace of Fox News is making the introductions. One intro that is not happening is the introduction of the candidates' families. The Clinton campaign said it was put off by Trump's news conference with Bill Clinton's past accusers in the second debate. There was also no cordial greeting between Clinton and Trump when they took their podiums. ___ 8:17 p.m. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are preparing to face off on the debate stage for the final time. But before the showdown, Trump has issued an invitation to his Facebook page to join his team live at 8:30 p.m. EDT. Before the last debate, Trump appeared on the same platform with three women who have accused rival Hillary Clinton's husband, Bill Clinton, of sexual assault. The former president has denied the accusations. Trump then sat the women in the debate hall. At Wednesday's final debate, Trump was expected to bring a woman who has accused Bill Clinton of sexual harassment, the mother of a man who was killed in the attack on the U.S. compound in Benghazi and President Barack Obama's half-brother. Clinton guests include CEO Mark Cuban, basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta. For now, at least, Clinton has a significant lead in most polls. Trump's team says he's planning to be aggressive on the debate stage. ___ 8:02 p.m. Billionaire businessman and leading Donald Trump critic Mark Cuban is making the rounds at the third presidential debate in Las Vegas, and Hillary Clinton's campaign insists their high-profile guest is not here to troll the Republican nominee. Clinton's communications chief Jen Palmieri called Cuban "a very accomplished, serious business leader in our country." And she touted him as "one of our most effective advocates" who "makes a really strong case for why Hillary Clinton will be a great president." Palmieri says Clinton has no regrets about inviting Cuban to the first debate, and says it has nothing to do with Trump's invitation list for the second debate. Trump invited three women who have accused former president Bill Clinton of sexual harassment and other misdeeds. His guests in Las Vegas include President Barack Obama's half-brother. Palmieri says "however Donald Trump chooses to react is his choice," and she argues that the Trump campaign "telegraphed well in advance of the debates" their intention to take a "nasty turn" in the campaign. ___ 7:58 p.m. Donald Trump's spokesman says Hillary Clinton will have an opportunity during the debate to apologize to the mother of a man who was killed in the 2012 attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi. Trump spokesman Jason Miller says the Republican nominee will press the issue whether the debate moderator asks about it or not. Miller made the comments Wednesday in an interview shortly before the debate. Trump's campaign confirmed that its guests inside the debate hall would include Pat Smith, whose son was an IT consultant killed in the deadly Benghazi attacks. Smith has accused Clinton, who was secretary of state at the time, of lying to her about what sparked the violence. Information from the Associated Press was used in this story. Time on topics, interruptions &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;&amp;amp;lt;span _rtetemp=&amp;amp;quot;spchk&amp;amp;quot; style=&amp;amp;quot;background-color: #ffffaa;&amp;amp;quot; _rtespchksugg=&amp;amp;quot;tbsp&amp;amp;quot;&amp;amp;gt;nbsp&amp;amp;lt;/span&amp;amp;gt;; Here's the Central Florida weather forecast for Wednesday night and the weekend ahead: Cold front moving into the area Weekend temps down about 10 degrees Little, if any rain, over next 7 days SEE BELOW: See the 7-day forecast Tonight will become mostly clear and dry, with temperatures getting down into the mid 60s for most areas of Central Florida. Thursday will be quite nice, but warm. Highs will be above normal by a few degrees again, topping out in the mid 80s under a partly cloudy sky. Then, get ready for our first real taste of fall. A cold front will be pushing through the state from the north by Friday, sending our temperatures down by almost 10 degrees from where we have been lately. Until then, our temperatures will remain slightly above normal Thursday and Friday. Lows will be mostly in the mid to upper 60s with highs in the mid to upper 80s. Late Friday afternoon, dry air will begin to infiltrate, scouring out the clouds as the humidity falls. High temperatures this weekend are expected to be in the 70s, with lows dipping into the 50s. Little, if any, rain is in the forecast for the next seven days. We are still tracking a tropical wave, dubbed Invest 99, east of the Bahamas that could have formation in a couple of days. WEATHER ON THE GO: Download the News 13+ app and get StormTracker 13 & Safety Net alerts wherever you are. GET WEATHER ALERTS: Sign up to receive weather text alerts from News 13 . . STORM THREAT 2016: Check out News 13's Hurricane Center, from storm-tracking resources to supply-kit information. Surfing conditions are still set to be poor for Thursday with wave heights a bit lower, from 4-5 feet. The rip current threat is still high and is expected to stay high through the week. View LIVE Interactive StormTracker 13 Radar Map We want your pictures! Show us what the weather looks like in your neighborhood. Your photo could end up on News 13 and mynews13.com/weatherpics. LUBBOCK Good late-summer rains improved conditions for cotton in the Rolling and High Plains regions of Texas and likely mean an above-average crop for 2016, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service experts. Dr. Seth Byrd, AgriLife Extension cotton agronomist, Lubbock, said cotton harvests in two top cotton producing regions began on a small scale a few weeks ago but should ramp up soon. So far, the cotton fields there look better than expected. Producers had low expectations for dryland fields because of a hot, dry July, but they seem happy with where the crop is at this point, he said. Byrd said leaf grades, which are determined by the amount of plant material left in lint, was a big issue last year. With about 4,000 bales ginned, Byrd said this years small sampling of cotton showed leaf grades in the 2-3 range. Its pretty clean cotton so far, he said. Dr. Gaylon Morgan, AgriLife Extension state cotton specialist, College Station, visited the Rolling Plains last week and said overall, fields represented one of the better crops theyve had in quite some time. They caught some more timely rains than previous years and the dryland crop looks like it could be 25 percent better than average, especially in the Northern Rolling Plains. Not enough cotton had been harvested to give a good indication about fiber quality, Morgan said. He said there were issues with weather, pests and diseases. Hail storms led to substantial damage for isolated fields, and stink bugs surprised producers by the amount of damage they caused in some areas. Bacterial blight also impacted production in some of the northern tier counties of the Rolling Plains. Byrd and Morgan said irrigated fields looked very good and the rainfall also reduced irrigation costs. Morgan estimated 10-15 percent of dryland fields were defoliated, while irrigated and lateplanted fields still had a significant number of green bolls. Morgan said temperatures were at or above 90 degrees and were expected to remain in the region for a while before cooler temperatures return. Fields in the Rolling Plains were planted later than usual due to late May rains, and fields in the High Plains, which are typically harvested late, could be later than usual also. There remains some concern of frost for some late maturing cotton, Byrd said. Theyll be up against a freeze at some point but weather the past two weeks and the forecast for the near future is perfect for maturing cotton, he said. AgriLife Extension district reporters compiled the following summaries: SOUTH PLAINS: Conditions were warm and dry for most of the district. Some areas experienced cool damp conditions for a few days. Topsoil and subsoil moisture levels in Cochran County were still adequate. Peanut, corn and sorghum harvests continued. Cotton continued to mature. Producers were defoliating most area cotton fields. Cotton harvests were kicking off in some areas, and the moisture was enough to keep farmers out of the fields for a few days. The average yield for irrigated cotton was expected to be three to four bales per acre. Planting of winter wheat continued. Pastures and rangeland continued to improve with the recent moisture, and cattle were in good condition. Rain was received in some areas. Floyd County received anywhere from 0.3 to 0.8 inch of rain, and Lubbock County reported 0.4 inch to 1.7 inches. Corn and sorghum were still maturing. Wheat could use rain. PANHANDLE: The district reported above-average temperatures. Weather was very cool and windy. Some moisture was received. Measurements were from 0.5-1 inch of rain. Soil moisture was mostly adequate. Deaf Smith County producers were close to wrapping up corn harvests. Yield reports were all over the board. Some producers reported very low to average yields while some were above average. Producers blamed low yields on the July heat wave. Sugarcane aphids were still causing problems in area sorghum fields with many producers applying second and third applications of insecticides. Winter wheat planting was ongoing with some of the earlier plantings emerging. Some wheat was irrigated, and cattle were placed on some for grazing. Insect and disease pressures were plaguing some area wheat plantings. Producers will replant some fields. Silage harvests were wrapping up. Hansford County corn harvests were under way. Corn was making around 250 bushels per acre and under. Some late-planted corn could be very late maturing. Soybean harvests started, and yields were better than expected. A few milo fields were harvested, but some fields need a freeze to mature. Randall County was unseasonably warm with daytime temperatures in the lower 80s. Cattle remained in good to fair shape. Rangeland and pastures were mostly fair to good but continued to decline. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Although Halloween is still 12 days and Thanksgiving is more than a month away, the Plainview Chamber of Commerce is looking ahead to Christmas. To be specific, the Chamber is looking at kicking off the holiday season on the first Thursday of December, which is Dec. 1. Thats the date for the annual Christmas Parade of Lights, sponsored by the Chamber. At Tuesdays Chamber Board meeting, Chamber Executive Director Linda Morris reported that plans are moving forward for this years event, with a theme of A Texas Christmas. Were changing up the route a little, particularly where it starts in Broadway Park, Morris told directors. We always have a bottleneck there, with parents wanting to drive as close as they can to drop off children to ride on the floats, while at the same time we are trying to line up parade entries. Last year we had more than 60 entries, and we expect to have at least that many or more this year. In an attempt to ease traffic congestion, there will be designated areas for parents to drop off children to load onto floats before floats are brought into the parade staging area. Parking will be prohibited in staging area. We plan to block off entrances into the park since weve had problems in the past with people dropping children at the floats, then having trouble finding their way out, Morris said. Well need extra help to get that accomplished, but it should make getting the parade lined up much easier. Looking farther ahead, Vice President Tim Hardage, who presided Tuesday in the absence of President Bobby Hall, announced that the annual Chamber of Commerce Recognition Banquet is Feb. 23. During the banquet, Plainviews Man and Woman of the Year will be recognized. Nominations open Jan. 1. The program has not yet been announced. Shane Harrell, who serves as both program and curriculum director of Leadership Plainview, introduced members of the 33rd Leadership Plainview Class. There are 14 members. Morris reported that the Chamber ended its fiscal year on Sept. 30 with a net profit of $1,541 against a projected loss of $10,500. Actual expenses during 2015-16 for the non-profit was $131,384 against budgeted expenses of $135,643. Actual income was $132,925 against budgeted income of $125,144. Looking ahead, Morris reported that Express Employment agreed to be corporate sponsor of Lemonade Day, including the $2,500 franchise fee. Morris added that the cost of the 2017 fireworks show is unchanged from $14,000 in 2016. In 2017, it will be held Tuesday, July 4. Jordan Dunlap, a Leadership Plainview participant, is the newest member of the Chamber Ambassadors. That group is planning two upcoming ribbon cuttings, at the new Plainview Dodge in early January and at the new NAPA collision center, Texas Collision Worx, at 10th and I-27 in the former Willson & Son Lumber location. The next Business After Hours is Tuesday, Dec. 6, at Centennial Bank. Melinda Brown, Main Street manager, reported that her group will host the Texas Plains Trails quarterly meeting on Thursday at the Fair Theatre and is being considered to host the groups annual conference in August. The Texas Plains Trail promotes tourism in the upper 52 counties in the Texas Panhandle-South Plains. Brown added that the annual Downtown Trick or Treat event will be held Friday, Oct. 28, with Halloween-themed movies shown at the Fair Theatre on Saturday, Oct. 29. Main Street will help stage the Turkey Trot event on Nov. 11, and 12 Days of Christmas events are planned during December, beginning with the Christmas Parade on Dec. 1 and culminating with movie night on Dec. 23. Mike Fox, executive director of the Plainview/Hale County Economic Development Corporation, reported meeting recently with representatives of BNSF concerning a new wind energy prospect needing rail capacity. Fox also has met with a prospect seeking a site for a logistics center along the Ports to Plains corridor. He also is following up on an ag-related prospect forwarded by the High Ground of Texas. It also wants to be situated on the Ports to Plains Corridor and has a requirement for 100 acres of land with irrigation. The prospect would initially employ 80 to 100, eventually going to about 250. Fox said the Plainview Business Park Steering Committee has met with the consulting firm of Parkhill Smith and Cooper, and will soon tour other business parks before finalizing local development plans. PHCEDC has awarded a $10,000 grant for the development of a culinary program through the Plainview High School CTE Department. Fox added that the Hilton Hotel Project is on track to begin the process of converting the vacant structure into the Conrad Loft Apartments. MRE Capital, project developer, is now awaiting historic approvals before the work can begin. Earlier in the meeting, Wayland Baptist University junior Maddie Murphree of Friona was introduced as the Chamber Student of the Month for October and Area Community Hospice, Inc., was introduced as Business of the Month. Almost 50 years ago, from 1967 until at least 1971, two Plainview Herald staff members, David Bryant and Mike Wall, operated a photo studio Bryant-Wall Photography -- as a sideline business. Their studio was located at 300 N. Broadway, offering portrait and wedding services as well as colorization, enlargements and photofinishing. For a time Wall lived on the premises, literally sleeping in a box. Bryant was Herald news editor when he died April 15, 1973, as his Chevy Blazer suffered a direct hit from a killer tornado as the vortex churned across US Hwy 70 after knifing a wide path through the heart of Westridge. The savage storm continued its deadly course through the northwestern edge of Plainview, bouncing along both sides of Interstate 27. It claimed the life of another Plainview resident, a young boy, while injuring dozens more before lifting into the clouds. Bryant was just 30 years old when he died. Wall died 10 years later, in 1983, not long after suffering a major heart attack. Age 40 when he died, Wall was owner and publisher of the Hart Beat newspaper. His widow, Neoma Wall Williams, continues to edit and publish that newspaper, which now operates under the name of The Pulse. Recently, Neoma Williams located a large collection of negatives and proofs from the Bryant-Wall Photography studio long forgotten in the attic of the rural Hart residence she shares with her husband, retired Castro County Sheriffs Deputy Don Williams. Shes given some of the negatives to Hart area residents who were the subjects of those long-ago photo sessions, or those related to people shown in the ghostly negatives. She took other images to Llano Estacado Museum for historic preservation. Some she passed along to Gordon Zeigler for distribution. Zeigler, a Herald retiree, worked with both Bryant and Wall and shares their passion for photography. Last week, Neoma Williams -- Herald correspondent for Hart -- brought almost 50 packages of negatives to the Herald seeking the papers help in distributing the images and proofs to those pictured in the negatives or to their relatives. The negatives are available for pickup, free of charge, at The Herald. (None will be mailed.) A list of names, listed addresses, and date, when available, includes: --Bundy H. Campbell, Matador, 1969 --Andrea Day, 2309 Norma, 1969 --Buddy Harris, 2213 Independence, 1969 --Mrs. Claude Matney, Matador, 1967 --Mrs. A.J. Keenum, Hale Center, 1969 --Winnie Karrh --Royce Durhum, Kress, 1969 --Bill Davis, Hale Center, 1969 --Buck Meinzer, 1970 --Kemp --Mrs. A.H. Weiber, Kress, 1970 --Mrs. W.E. Thomas, Plainview, 1969 --Royce Durham, 1969 --Linda Dye, Plainview --A.H. Wieber, Kress, 1968 --Sheriffs Office (tire tracks) --Alexander --Miss Plainview, 1970 --Dyone Patridge, 1970 --Gary Jennings, 1305 W. 32nd, 1969 --Katie (Cecil) Turner, 1969 --James, 2013 W. 21st, 1969 --Kathy Urbank, 1969 --Linda Watson (Mrs. Joe Barton), 1970 --Erma Jordan, Mays Hall, Wayland, 1969 --Shelley Hegi, 210 W. Crestway, 1969 --Shirley Hudgins, 112 SE Ninth --Tommy Villanueva, 1003 Houston 1969 --R.E. McMinn, Hale Center, 1970 --Hortensia Martinez, 213 Austin, 1970 --Vickie Turner --Lita Goree, Olton Route --Bobbie Weekes c/o Melvin Weber, 1210 Zephyr, 1969 --Glenda Spoommau, 1969 --Roy Sherman, 2008 Independence, 1969 --Mary Ann Stephens --Bill Matsler c/o Ernest Matsler, 1318 Navajo, 1969 --Rainbow Girls c/o Mrs. Gay Shea, 1300 Floyudada, 1970 --Heritage Home (portraits of elderly residents), 1969 --Mary Soucy, Southwest 10th, 1969 --Chris Schimmels --Beth Jones, 124 SE Ninth, 1969 --Mrs. Betty Joe Crow (Judge Abernethy portrait), 1970 --Linda White, 2217 Joliet, 1970 --J.O. Vardy, 804 Joliet, 1969 --Sue Turvaville, 914 W. 26th, 1969 A man in a wheelchair detonated a pipe bomb inside an east Oakland health clinic Tuesday night, according to authorities, who believe his intent was to commit suicide. Oakland police said the explosion occurred at 6:26 p.m. inside the San Antonio Neighborhood Health Clinic, 1030 International Blvd. A divided Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to donate $100,000 to help Italy recover from the devastating earthquake there in August. Proponents said giving the money was part of a long and proud tradition of the city helping other cities and countries in need. Opponents said the money should be spent on San Francisco residents. The 7-4 vote largely split on political lines, with moderate Scott Wiener joining his progressive colleagues to support the donation. Central Italy was hit by a 6.4-magnitude earthquake on Aug. 24. More than 290 people died. Supervisor Aaron Peskin introduced the measure to send money to Italy. San Francisco has a proud tradition of being the beneficiary of largesse from other cities and countries during our times of need, Peskin said before the vote. Yesterday is the 27th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake and countries from all over the world came to San Franciscos rescue, including Italy. Since then we have from time to time come to the aid of cities throughout the world that have been devastated by earthquakes. But Supervisor Mark Farrell said the money should be spent at home. The city of San Francisco should not be in the business of providing financial relief for natural disasters around the world, Farrell said after the vote. What about the Syrian refugee crisis or the ISIS bombings in Europe over the summer? he asked. Its a slippery slope that has no end. Our focus should be on the residents and neighborhoods of San Francisco, plain and simple. San Francisco has a history of donating to countries and cities that have experienced natural disasters. Peskin said that in 1999 the city gave $250,000 to Taipei, Taiwan, following the earthquake there, and in 2001 donated $100,000 apiece to the Salvadorian Emergency Committee and the Indo-American Trade and Commerce Councils Gujarat Earthquake Relief Fund for earthquake relief efforts. Supervisor Malia Cohen, who voted against the $100,000 gift to Italy, said the city should develop guidelines for when to donate money and how much. Perhaps we develop a process for us to vet how much money and what type of natural disaster warrants a contribution from the city and county of San Francisco, Cohen said. Emily Green is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: egreen@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @emilytgreen Michael Bodley San Francisco police were searching Tuesday afternoon for a shooter in the city's Excelsior District near a high school campus after a person was injured by gunfire, officials said. One victim was hurt in the shooting near the City Arts and Technology High School and the June Jordan School for Equity, which share a campus, police said. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) Americans are apparently still hot for home-delivered pizza: Domino's Pizza posted a jump in sales in the last quarter, even as other fast-food companies have reported weaker sales growth. Domino's also reported better-than-expected third-quarter earnings and revenue, and its shares jumped to an all-time high Tuesday. Rivals McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King have blamed weaker-than-expected growth on cheaper groceries, political uncertainty and other factors, but Domino's didn't report any of those problems Tuesday. It said that sales at U.S. stores open at least a year considered an important measure of a retailer's health rose 13 percent in the last quarter from the year before. That's above the 8 percent rise analysts had expected, according to FactSet. The company's year-old loyalty program "significantly" increased orders, Domino's Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey Lawrence, said in a conference call with investors and Wall Street analysts. Customers earn a free pizza after they spend a certain amount on online orders. Easy online ordering may also be helping. Paul Westra, an analyst at Stifel, said in a note to clients that Domino's is in the "forefront" of how Americans want to order and pay for food. Beginning last month, for example, customers could order a pizza through Facebook's Messenger app. Before that, users could text or tweet a pizza emoji to Domino's to send in their order. In April, it launched a no-click smartphone app that automatically orders when the app is opened. For the quarter that ended Sept. 11, the company posted net profit of $47.2 million, or 96 cents per share, up from $37.8 million, or 67 cents per share, in the same quarter a year ago. Revenue rose 17 percent to $566.7 million in the period. Both earnings and revenue beat Wall Street expectations, according to Zacks. Shares of Domino's Pizza Inc., based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, rose $10.99, or 7.2 percent, to $163 in afternoon trading Tuesday. Earlier, the stock touched an all-time high of $163.73. _____ Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on DPZ at http://www.zacks.com/ap/DPZ _____ Keywords: Domino's Pizza, Earnings Report Two big announcements from Pugel's, the home of some of the city's best hot dogs: They're adding breakfast soon and bringing on hot dog auteur Kris Martinez of RockerDogz. We received the news from John Pugel, owner of his namesake restaurant on 3502 N. St Mary's St, and the Original San Antonio Hot Dog House, at 1218 W. Bitters Road. GREENWICH As a filmmaker who captured some of the most searing images of the 9/11 attacks on lower Manhattan, Jules Naudet has witnessed the ways in which people endure terrible mental trauma himself included. Some have moved on from that catastrophic date, mostly sound of mind, while others came away permanently scarred, he told a class of Greenwich High School students Tuesday morning. Naudet, a Stamford resident, shared his unique perspective on the capacity of the mind to cope with terrifying ordeals with Advanced Placement psychology students. His documentary, 9/11, which Naudet made with his brother Gedeon, riveted a national television audience when it aired in 2002. It was screened for the students in psychology teacher Neal Schopicks class prior to the filmmakers visit. Naudet recounted the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, as he followed firefighters from a lower Manhattan firehouse as they faced the worst disaster of their lives. He spoke in particular of the psychological impact that the disaster had on the men he observed that day, and in the period that followed it. The worst was not necessarily that day, but in the weeks and months after, said Naudet, a native of France who became a U.S. citizen. The time-honored tradition of the firehouse go to the basement with a bottle of whiskey and talk was eventually superseded by more sophisticated forms of therapy, in a sometimes haphazard process. Most of the guys are OK, some are not, said Naudet, who has stayed close with many of the firefighters he befriended while making the documentary about the New York City Fire Department in 2001. The ones who shut down, theyre the ones who did the worst. ... The ones who are more open, who took something out of it and moved forward, are the ones doing OK. Naudet spoke of the remorse many firefighters experienced after 9/11, the unsettling sensation that they had survived by often arbitrary and inexplicable twists of fate. Guilt comes in many forms: survivor guilt, thinking you did not do enough, or not being up to the standard, the filmmaker said. You obsess about it and analyze and over-analyze. It doesnt lead to good places. As to his own experience on 9/11, which he told in meticulous detail, Naudet recalled a whirlwind of emotions, from horror and disbelief, to sorrow, anger and relief. His work as a filmmaker kept him going. I came there for a job, and it gave me a defense mechanism. I was looking at a little screen (on the camera). It was a way to detach myself from the horrors that were going on around me, he recalled. As he continued to work on the 9/11 documentary, he was grounded by his work and a conviction to see the project completed. The job helped him keep depression and anguish away. A successful career as a documentary filmmaker has followed Naudets Sept. 11, which originated in a story about a rookie firefighters first months on the job before it turned into a much bigger subject. His films have included works on counter-terrorism, the lives of spiritual leaders and ongoing projects about firefighters who served on 9/11. Naudet still has some bad moments, as when he was leading a group of French firefighters around the 9/11 museum. In one room, audiotapes of firefighter communications were being broadcast, and Naudet heard a voice he recognized from the past. It brought me back to that day. The trauma never really goes away, he said. The filmmaker said the determination of the firefighters and others he witnessed that day also stayed with him, and gave him hope. One of the things that sticks with me the most even with evil incarnate, that makes you lose all faith in humanity I saw the best rise out of those shadows. I saw firefighters and civilians teaming up to help each other, I saw something amazing, the resiliency of the human spirit. When the worst comes, the best will rise up next to it, he said. Asked by a student about what people should learn from his traumatic experience, Naudet said, You find something positive from it, and cling to that. Not to dwell on the past, but take lessons for the future. Bad things will happen in life, you learn from them and grow from them. A junior whose father died in the Sept. 11, attacks, Joe Lenihan, approached Naudet after the class to thank him for the presentation. Its great that you did this, he said. Its a first-hand account. And the best in humanity, thats something you can take away from something like this. Lenihan, whose father Joseph A. Lenihan died at the age of 41, said he was appreciative that young people his age who have no memory of the 9/11 attacks could learn from Naudets words and films about the event in an immediate way. Schopick, the psychology teacher, called the lecture a success. It makes it real, what post traumatic stress is, what happened that day, it brings it to life, he said. Its so much more meaningful to hear it from them, people who were there. It allows us to know it on a more personal level. Robert.Marchant@scni.com DANBURY - Former Latin Kings gang member Alex Garcia was sentenced to 30 years in prison Wednesday for shooting a motorist in a case of mistaken identity on Interstate 84 more than 15 years ago. Mark Rebong was driving his Jeep Cherokee to work in January 2000 when he fell victim to a gang war that had erupted weeks earlier in the city between the Crips and the Latin Kings. Garcia was also in a car on Interstate 84 that night, along with a high-ranking official with the Latin Kings who mistook Rebong as a member of the Crips. The official ordered Garcia to shoot his rifle at Rebongs car. Rebong was shot in the head and died from the wound. The case had gone cold for more than a decade, but investigators with the State Police reopened the case about a year ago, interviewing former gang members in the hopes of turning up new evidence. Garcia, a former Latin King who was already serving a 40-year sentence for another shooting, eventually confessed to the crime after several interviews with investigators. (Rebong) was a completely innocent man who was tragically in the wrong place at the wrong time, court documents state. Marks parents spent the next 15 years heartbroken and without explanation as to why their son was murdered. U.S. Attorney Deirdre M. Daly noted during the sentencing hearing Wednesday that Rebong was not a member of either gang or involved in any criminal activity. In a reckless act of brutal violence, this defendant murdered an innocent young man who was driving to work, Daly said. I commend the investigators from the Danbury police, State Police and DEA who never stopped searching for Marks killer until he was finally brought to justice. Hopefully the Rebong family, who showed patience and courage and dignity throughout this ordeal, have found a measure of solace in this result. Garcia was given a 30 year prison sentence that will run concurrently to his existing sentence. dperrefort@newstimes.com This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate BRIDGEPORT Former Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch said his mother, along with his late father, taught him and his three siblings the meaning of hard work and sacrifice. Just that whole Greatest Generation ethic, Finch said Wednesday. Margaret Cole Finch, Marge, of Bridgeport, died Saturday at St. Vincent's Medical Center with her family by her side. She was 85. The ex-mayors father, William Bill Finch, a World War II veteran, died in July 2014 at 89. If it werent for those two, I never would have been mayor, Finch said. He served from 2007 until 2015, and now heads the New York State Thruway Authority and Canal Corp. Finchs parents adopted him when he was 4 months old. He was their first child. The couple went on to have three more children Elizabeth Berry, Edward Finch and Rosemary Yost. Finch said he was never treated any differently than his natural-born siblings. I was just one of the four, he said. But he added there is a special affection between an adopted child and his parents. They got you off the shelf and picked you out, Finch said, adding, She was very loyal to me. According to her death notice, Margaret Finch was born in New Haven on Oct. 19, 1930. She was a daughter of the late Edward F. Cole and Gertrude Enscoe Cole, and was a longtime resident of Trumbull and Bridgeport. Before her retirement, Margaret Finch was a teller at Fleet Bank. Finch recalled his mother being very frugal and carefully setting aside money in envelopes for certain expenses, like new shoes for her children. The family refrigerator was off limits without parental permission. One of the things that got me through tough budgets was asking people to do more with less, Finch said. Thats where that came from. He said the family was poor growing up, but the children never knew it because of how careful his mother was with money. Her death notice also said, Marge was well known for many years as a school volunteer, band parent and elected member of several school Parent Teacher Associations over many years of her children's education. She was active in civic affairs and encouraged her children to be involved. Besides Bill Finch and his sisters and brother, Margaret Finch left behind nine grandchildren, a great grandson, a sister, a brother and many nieces and nephews. Relatives and friends may greet the family on Friday from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Abriola Parkview Funeral Home, 419 White Plains Road, Trumbull. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Saturday at 10 a.m. in St. Stephen Church, 6948 Main St., Trumbull. Interment will follow in Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Trumbull. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Catholic Charities of Fairfield County. Finch said he is grateful his mother and father lived long lives. We had them for the better part of a century, Finch said. How lucky are we? GREENWICH The Greenwich Harbor Management Commission is meeting tonight at 7 p.m. in the Mazza Room in Town Hall, where they will have copies of the revised Harbor Management Plan to distribute to those in attendance. At the Sept. 21 meeting, the commission said they would bring copies of the plan complete with revisions done based on feedback from the state to this meeting, and those who wanted one would be able to get it. SCHENECTADY A jury took less than three hours Wednesday to reject the insanity defense of former mixed martial arts fighter James Hilton and convict him of brutally attacking a Schenectady police officer last year. The panel of nine women and three men convicted Hilton, 33, of Lake George of all counts, including felony assault-on-a-police-officer charges that carry up to 15 years in prison at his Dec. 2 sentencing by acting Supreme Court Justice Frank Milano. An Iraq war veteran and father of three young children, Hilton did not deny he attacked Patrolman Mark Weekes, striking him 28 times and fracturing his skull on Aug. 1, 2015. Hilton and his lawyer, Lincy Jacob, argued Hilton was not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect better known as the insanity defense during an "out-of-body experience." The defense needed to prove Hilton lacked substantial capacity to appreciate his actions and could not distinguish between right and wrong. The jury was unmoved, convicting Hilton of the assaulting a police officer charge, another felony assault charge, strangulation and disorderly conduct. "I'm glad that he's finally being held responsible for his actions," Weekes, 31, himself an Iraq war veteran, told the Times Union after the verdict. Weekes was in court for the trial, accompanied by his girlfriend. On Monday, Hilton, who served in the Marines, testified that he was in Iraq for 10 months and witnessed a soldier accidentally blow himself up and die. His defense was based on the argument that he suffers from episodic psychosis, bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. But Jacqueline Bashkoff, a forensic psychologist testifying for the prosecution earlier in the week, said: "He does not suffer from any type of psychiatric disorder which would mitigate or excuse his blameworthiness at the time of the commission of this crime. He understood his actions and the consequences and he understood that the behaviors he engaged in were wrong." On the night of the attack, Hilton was out with friends and drunk and was singing in a traffic cone when patrolman stopped him. Hilton testified he complied with the officer's attempt to arrest him but went into the "out-of-body experience" when the officer grabbed his wrist and tried to wrench his arm behind his back. Hilton attacked the officer, ran away and hid in a trash bin, where city police arrested him. Hilton later told a Schenectady detective: "Nobody puts their hands on me. I don't care who they are, even an officer of police." The interview was played for the jury. Assistant District Attorney Christina Tremante-Pelham discredited the testimony of defense expert witness Lawrence Avery, a local psychologist who examined Hilton and said he believes the defendant was "probably psychotic" at the time he assaulted the patrolman. Hilton has a past misdemeanor arson conviction. Jacob declined to comment after the verdict. Tremante-Pelham said a juror told her, after the verdict, that the jury appreciated how Weekes tried to "de-escalate the situation" when he approached Hilton. "Which I think was telling to Mark's character and I think that made a big impact with the jury," Tremante-Pelham said. "Mark gave (Hilton) a chance, tried to de-escalate ... the defendant was just not going to comply with his authority and literally took it to the next level and severely injured him." Weekes, when asked, said it was tough hearing parts of the testimony. But he said the good support he has received from fellow officers and the community at large has outweighed the bad. He thanked Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney's office. "The quick verdict shows that the jury didn't think much of the psychiatric evidence," Carney said. Borrowing a line that Tremante-Pelham used in her summation, the district attorney said, "Whether or not he has PTSD ... that's no license to commit assault." On this date in ... 1916: The police of Albany and Rensselaer were looking for $200 worth of brass parts of the fire apparatus belonging to the Citizen Hose Company of Clinton Heights that were stolen by a person or people with a key to the building. The missing parts included valves, a nozzle (that was cut from a hose), a compressed air whistle that was on the building and all the brass parts of the machine. 1966: Guilderland would cut speed limits on some town roads if it got voter approval to transfer to suburban town status in November, Supervisor Carl Walters said, explaining that it could not do so under the present town law. He also said the town would set up a reserve fund for capital projects, if the status change was voted upon. 1991: A downstate retailer said it was moving into the long-vacant Toys for Joy building in the Shoporama Shopping Center on Altamont Avenue in Rotterdam. US Factory Outlets Inc. of New York City signed a 10-year lease for 33,000 square feet of space a deal worth $2 million for the New Jersey-based owners of the 30-year-old shopping plaza. Shoporama was hit hard 21 months earlier when one of its largest tenants, Toys for Joy, closed its doors. The 120,000-square-foot shopping plaza at 1300 Altamont Ave. was also hit by the closure of Carl's in early 1991. Want to read more about the Capital Region's past? Have any memories or thoughts about how our history relates to today's events? See http://blog.timesunion.com/history/ For the latest events and activities happening in Greenwich, turn to For the Record. To have your event included, submit a description, date, time, price and contact information. Photos are welcome. Drop us an email about your latest goings-on at gtcitydesk@scni.com. Investment and Portfolio management workshop A series of workshops to build financial literacy and investment savvy continues at Greenwich Library, 101 West Putnam Ave. The remaining workshops are slated for 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday and Oct. 27. Open to all at no charge. For more information, visit www.greenwichlibrary.org/business or contact Assistant Business Librarian Yang Wang at ywan@greenwichlibrary.org. Special Evening of Hope YWCA Greenwich will host a Special Evening of Hope 6:30 p.m. Thursday to honor survivors of domestic violence and light candles of hope for the future. The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. 239 East Putnam Ave. For more information, visit www.ywcagreenwich.org/seminars-raising-awareness Library hosts job-seeking help Help is available for completing resumes and job applications at the Greenwich Library Technology Training Center. Drop in from 3 to 5 p.m. Friday at the library. For more information, contact Training Center staff at trainingcenter@greenwichlibrary.org, call 203-625-6508, or visit www.greenwichlibrary.org/training. Open skating dates The Old Greenwich Civic Center, 90 Hardig Road, Old Greenwich, is holding open roller skating from 7 to 9:30 p.m. Fridays. Admission is $10 and includes rental skates. Upcoming skating dates are: Oct. 21 and 28. CTPlaymakers to perform The CT Playmakers will present a musical revue, Callbacks, featuring Broadway, jazz and pop favorites on Oct. 21, 22, 28 and 29 at the Albertson Memorial Church, 293 Sound Beach Ave. Tickets are $25. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. To buy tickets, visit CTPlaymakers.org or call 203-561-5247. Oktoberfest at St. Lawrence Society Bratwurst, beer and other German delights will be featured at the St. Lawrence Societys Oktoberfest at 6:30 p.m. Friday at the club, 86 Valley Road. For tickets or to RSVP, call 203-918-9036. Free Pizza Steven Fox Jewelry will host a pop-up cafe with free pizza from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday in front of the store at 22 Lewis Street to raise awareness about Greenwich-based Kids in Crisis. Pizza will be provided by New Haven Pizza Truck. A raffle drawing for Pommelato earrings, valued at $6,000, will take place as part of the event. Artist exhibit The work of local artist Lindy Blanchard, Old World, New World, will be on display at the Greenwich Art Society gallery, 299 Greenwich Ave., second floor, through Saturday. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, noon to 4 p.m. weekends. Hazel Jarviss work exhibited Les Beaux Arts Gallery will display the paintings of Greenwich artist Hazel Jarvis from Sunday through Nov. 30 at the Round Hill Community Church, 395 Round Hill Road, Greenwich. Gallery hours: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday, closed Saturday, open 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sundays. For more information, visit roundhillcommunitychurch.org. Chabad holds barbeque and concert Chabad Lubavitch of Greenwich will host a Sukkot Concert and Barbeque, 11:30 a.m. Sunday at The Chabad Center for Jewish Life, 75 Mason St. The event will feature Bobby Doowah & Co. Band. Tickets are $20 a person, $72 per family and $360 for sponsors. For full details and tickets visit www.chabadgreenwich.org. Seminar on handling application process Greenwich Library will host Jennifer Burstiner, independent college counselor, and ACT/SAT tutor Valerie Erde for Navigating the College Process Without Driving Yourself Crazy from 3 to 5 p.m., Sunday at the library, 101 West Putnam Ave. For more information, contact Valerie Erde, at 203-918-4496. European ceramics lecture slated Thomas Michie, the Russell B. and Andree Beauchamp Stearns Senior Curator of Decorative Arts and Sculpture in the Art of Europe Department at Bostons Museum of Fine Arts will speak on Old Friends, New Directions: European Ceramics at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston at 1:15 p.m. Monday at First Congregational Church of Greenwich, 108 Sound Beach Road, Old Greenwich. Refreshments immediately following lecture. Admission for non-members of the Connecticut Ceramics Study Circle is $25. Space is limited. Reservations required for members and guests by Oct. 17. For reservations and information: rsvp@ctceramicscircle.org. YWCA screening domestic violence documentary The YWCA Greenwich, in support of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, will screen The Children Next Door at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Bow Tie Criterion Cinemas, Greenwich Plaza. An award-winning documentary, the film recounts the fear and pain of domestic violence through the eyes of children. A panel discussion led by Leslie Coplin, YWCA Greenwich Prevention and Outreach Coordinator, will follow. Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door. Tickets available at www.ywcagreenwichb.org/children-next-door. Greenwich Library workshop on grantmaking Tailoring foundation grant applications for the best results will be the topic of a workshop led by Judith Margolin, an independent consultant, scheduled for 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the Greenwich Library, 101 West Putnam Ave. To register, contact mmartin@greenwichlibrary.org or call 203-625-6533. Greenwich Chamber networking event The Greenwich Chamber of Commerce will host its October After Six networking event from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Granola Bar, 41 Greenwich Ave. Wine and appetizers in a meet-and-greet setting. Tickets $25 per member, $15 non-members. Register online at greenwichchamber.com or email greenwichchamber@greenwichchamber.com. Round Hill Community House Harvest Supper The Round Hill Community House will host a Harvest Supper including a turkey dinner with all the fixings 6:30 p.m. Wednesday . Reservations are required. Tickets are $15 per adult and $5 per student. Located at 395 Round Hill Road. For more information or reservations visit roundhillcommunitychurch.org or call 203-869-1091. BRYAN Spiraling cattle prices in recent weeks are not leaving much wiggle room when it comes to marketing calves and replacement females to fit current trends, according to cattle experts. The recent Brazos Valley Beef and Forage Expo held at the Brazos Valley Livestock Commission featured talks that included purchasing replacement heifers, evaluating feeder cattle and marketing the right type of cattle to achieve maximum profits. The program was sponsored by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service beef and forage committee. One of the traits we are looking for when purchasing replacement heifers is docility and temperament, said Dr. Joe Paschal, AgriLife Extension beef cattle specialist, Corpus Christi. I want my heifers to be calm and to protect her calf. I dont want her to run away from me or try to run over me as I approach. Paschal suggests talking to local sale barn operators to find out what buyers are wanting in calves marketed each week. That will give the beef producer key insight as to which breeds or crossbreeds of replacement heifers to consider when buying. After all, why not produce what the market wants? Paschal said. Ideally, Pascal said producers should be developing heifers to calve at 24 months. Most beef producers like to have crossbred heifers in their herd because of hybrid vigor. A popular option is a Brahman and Hereford cross or Brahman and Angus cross. Both these combinations have hybrid vigor, which Paschal said, is like having an insurance program giving you a greater chance of having them bred and calving at 24 months. Structural soundness is also important, he said. We want heifers that have good frame size and the ability to calve with ease. One thing to keep in mind is annual cow cost. Paschal said the average cow cost is $600 annually, which includes feed and taxes. One thing that drives up the cost of replacement heifers is hay and purchased feed, Paschal said. In some parts of Texas, you can get away with not feeding any hay at all. In my area in South Texas, I dont feed any hay at all. I stockpile forage and utilize rotational grazing. That helps keep my annual cow cost in line. But for those in South Central Texas, it can be cold, muddy and nasty during the winter, so you have to feed hay. Just keep in mind how expensive hay is to produce or purchase. There are feeding strategies that can be developed to keep those costs in check. Meanwhile, Pete Scarmardo, owner of Brazos Valley Livestock Commission, told attendees cattle prices have been very volatile. The futures market has been used more as a trading tool than a speculative tool, he said. Thats made things very difficult for the cattle market. Somewhere, we will reach a bottom. Through October, fed cattle prices continued to trend lower, he said. Weve got to get some equity back into these cattle, he said. We have no bargaining power in the cash market. Until we reach a peak in the cattle supply, the U.S. dollar gets weaker, our industry has some big problems. There are a lot of people who have lost money over the last 18 months. However, Scarmardo said the packing industry has continued to have strong processing margins of $150 to $200 a head. He said feedyards are being filled with specific types of cattle being bought. What they buy is dictated by corporate specifications, he said. There are more branded beef programs than ever, then youve got all the commodity beef (U.S. Department of Agriculture grades) that is not branded beef. Its not people buying cattle and taking a gamble. They are purchasing the type of cattle that fits their specifications. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate STAMFORD Phillip Balestriere first ran for office in the 148th House District a year before the current incumbent, Dan Fox, came on the scene. Balestriere, a Republican, first vied for a two-year seat on the state Legislature in 2010 against Democrat Carlo Leone. In 2011, when Leone ran and won in a special election for state Senate in the 27th District, voters elected Fox to his House seat, which the Democrat has since defended in two elections. Fox faced Balestriere in 2012 and won with about 66 percent of the vote in a majority Democratic district that covers Glenbrook and the Cove. Balestriere did not run in 2014, but is back this year to challenge Fox again. Both candidates said they have been canvassing the district to get their messages out to voters ahead of the Nov. 8 election. And despite coming from opposite ends of the aisle, both men say balancing the state budget is their priority if elected. I think the priority for everyone is the budget, said Fox, a 40-year-old attorney who stressed the importance of bipartisan decision making. We really need to pay attention to our fiscal responsibilities. There are some very difficult decisions that need to be made. Balestriere has a similar view. As a small business owner here in Stamford, my blood pressure rises every time I think of what theyre doing in Hartford, the 57-year-old property manager said. We have a lot of problems and its only a matter of time until we fall face-first. Were practically there. More Information 148th House District Dan Fox Incumbent - Yes Political party - Democrat Age - 40 Highest educational level - Graduate or professional degree Occupation - Attorney Employer - Curtis, Brinckerhoff & Barrett, PC Marital status and family - Married, three children Campaign website - DanFox2016.com What makes you the right choice for this seat? - "I have proven to be a responsive and effective legislator. Constituent service and outreach are essential to effective representation and addressing the needs of our immediate community will remain a priority. I have a track record of working with all my colleagues regardless of their party affiliation to find solutions. In light of the challenges facing our state, I believe that my temperament and grasp of the issues makes me the right choice for this seat." Phillip Balestriere Incumbent - No Political party - Republican Age - 57 Highest educational level - High school graduate Occupation - Property manager Employer - Self-employed Marital status and family - Divorced, three children, four grandchildren Campaign website - UnclePhil2016.com What makes you the right choice for this seat? - "I'm not an attorney or a politician. I'm a small-business owner that feels the pain of what our elected officials (Democrats) have done in the past 45 years of a one-party ruling, a Constitution state that is broke while our deficit keeps climbing each year with no budget, not to mention our unfunded mandates are at record highs of $73 to $90 billion. We need leadership that understands what it takes to drive an economy and bring jobs back to Connecticut." See More Collapse Balestriere who calls himself Uncle Phil and uses the slogan Make Connecticut Great Again would also support measures to help small businesses and stop corporations from leaving the state. He is also in favor of eliminating the Common Core education standards and leaving school curriculum to the states. Uncle Phil is looking out for you because obviously Uncle Sam is not, he explained. Changing his approach from previous races, Balestriere has been knocking on the doors of Democrats and sharing his platform. Balestriere said it bothers him when hes asked whether he supports Republican presidential nominee Donald J. Trump, which he does. Im not like these other Republicans who have pulled away from Trump. Theyre not united, he said last week, resenting the focus on Trumps relationship with women. But he added, Who I support should not really have an impact on what my accomplishments would be if Im elected. While Fox hopes to be re-elected, he said nothing is guaranteed. The mentality in elections is you run scared and hope it all comes together on Election Day, he said. The tone at the national level is really out of hand and people are really sick and tired of it. They appreciate when you stand on the front porch and talk to them. As part of his goals in office, Fox said he supports expanding hospice care and transit-oriented development. Fox serves on the Legislatures Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, Judiciary Committee and Planning and Development Committee. Fox was absent for much the 2015 legislative session after he contracted encephalitis lethargica, a rare disease that affected his speech, mobility and vision. While Fox is back to work full-time and says hes able to serve in office, hes still working to overcome speech issues caused by the disease. I have to thank the community for being so responsible and encouraging throughout this process, he said. Foxs ordeal has also inspired him to want to work on health care reform, saying patients should not have to deal with so much red tape when youre the most vulnerable youve ever been in your life. eskalka@scni.com Local advocates against domestic violence are hosting a screening of the documentary followed by a panel discussion to promote awareness of domestic violence in the community. The event is hosted by Family Services of Texas, the Southeast Texas Domestic Violence Task Force and the Lamar University Chapter of Alpha Chi Omega and is scheduled for Oct. 24 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. As Donald Trump continues to insult various groups of people, including women, veterans and members of his own party, many Republicans have dropped their support of him as the Republican nominee for president. However, two local elected officials, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette and U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Midland, have decided to stay the course, but have serious concerns about Trumps comments. Twenty20 chief coordinator Sabu M Jacob has said his party is against mixing politics with religion. More than 40 years ago, an angry wife who allegedly killed her husband with a pot of hot grease was able to slip away from authorities. The 76-year-old woman with an oxygen tank would go undetected for decades before being arrested last week in a small community in south Georgia, near Valdosta. Mary Ann Rivera had been living with one of her children in Lake Park, five miles north of the Florida state line. She was wanted in connection with the 1970 slaying of Cruz Rivera, the oldest unsolved case of the 637 being revisited by the Harris County District Attorney's fugitive unit, investigator Chuck Lowery said. Exactly how she was able to evade detection for 41 years came down to two major factors: A missing date of birth for Mary Ann Rivera, even though she was arrested in 1970 as a suspect in the death of Cruz Rivera, and a lack of resources to mount an intensive search for her in the years after she apparently bailed out of jail and disappeared, Lowery said. After her arrest last week, she was driven back to Houston because her dependence on the oxygen tank made her unable to fly. She was booked into Harris County jail on Wednesday on murder charges. No bail had been set Thursday. Lowery would not disclose details of the original incident that led to Cruz Rivera's death, but did say that his wife was angry with him on Oct. 14, 1970. She boiled a pot of grease, then threw it on him. Cruz Rivera died of his injuries three days later. When Lowery began work on the case in 2009, he found little information about Mary Ann Rivera. Her date of birth, a key identifier in modern law enforcement databases, was missing. And files did not specify what happened after she was arrested as a suspect in Cruz Rivera's death, leaving Lowery to surmise that she bailed out and disappeared. "Things were done a little bit different back then, I guess," Lowery said. Lowery was able to determine the names and birth dates of the couple's children, then found an address for one of them in Georgia in late 2009. After locating Mary Ann Rivera, he kept track of her while he worked to piece together evidence from the case, searching for witnesses and learning that many of them had died. "It wasn't just locating her," Lowery said. "It was trying to make sure that it was still a case." It was two years before he had enough for an arrest. He wouldn't comment on the evidence. Meanwhile, authorities in Georgia had kept track of Mary Ann Rivera, and Lowery had asked them to contact her and question her about the case. The arrest was one of two made in Georgia related to cold cases this month. On Wednesday, authorities in Gwinnett County, Ga., arrested Epifaneo Jaimes Arroyo, 55, suspected of beating and stabbing a man to death outside the La Chancla Club in north Houston on July 12, 1980. Lowery was the investigator on that case as well. "We're starting to find them here and there now, so it's a sense of accomplishment," he said. As for the Rivera case, Lowery said, "being the oldest, it was kind of unique, but they're all gratifying when I find them." That isn't always easy, he said, noting that cases can go unsolved for years because of the sheer number of crimes committed. With more than 10,000 outstanding felony arrest warrants out, and more than 30,000 arrest warrants overall, the detective said, it can be hard to stay focused on a case in which little progress has been made for years. "It's just a numbers thing," Lowery said. And for Rivera, "I think that kind of combined to make it somewhat easy for her to remain under the radar." zain.shauk@chron.com This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A central Texas woman is facing six separate charges after being accused of pimping a 16-year-old girl on Backpage.com. The Hays County Sheriff's Office has charged 43-year-old Nancy Cisneros of Kyle with three felony charges of trafficking a child and three charges of compelling prostitution as far back as June 2015. READ MORE: Police: Backpage ad leads to fatal stabbing at hotel Court documents obtained by news station KXAN read Cisneros trafficked the victim by posting online escort advertisements on Backpage.com. She then brought the victim to hotels to engage in prostitution, according to the documents. According to the news station, the teen met Cisneros through a friend who was a prostitute. Cisneros then sent the victim's name and phone number to a man known as Bernell Quillens. He and another man identified as Cameron White then picked up the victim at 1 a.m. June 29, 2015. The two men drove her to a hotel in San Marcos. They took pictures of her and posted them online. READ MORE: Life in prison for man who coerced girl into prostitution After the first encounter, the men would pick up the victim when her mother was at work or asleep, according to KXAN. The court documents state Quillens and White picked up the victim on an unknown date and drove her to a 7-11 in Kyle. The news station reports Cisneros met them at the 7-11 and told the men, "B*** better make me some money because I own her." KXAN states Quillens and Cisneros exchanged money. The victim told police the money she made went directly to Quillens. How and when the teen escaped was not reported by XKAN. According to the Hays County Clerk's Office, Quillens is charged with three felony counts of trafficking a child and three felony counts of compelling prostitution. READ MORE: 4 men accused of human trafficking, murder of Florida teen Backpage.com CEO Carl Ferrer was arrested on Oct. 6 at George Bush Intercontinental Airport on "charges of pimping a minor, pimping, and conspiracy to commit pimping," according to the California Department of Justice. Backpage hosts prostitution-related ads under its "adult services" section. On Friday, Ferrer, 55, posted a $500,000 bail. The site's controlling shareholders Michael Lacey, 68, and James Larkin, 67, posted $250,000 bail each. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SAN ANTONIO At least a dozen San Antonio Fire Department crews were battling a structure fire on the Northeast Side Wednesday morning. Firefighters were dispatched just before 9:40 a.m. to the 5800 block of Castle Lake, a neighborhood situated between Eisenhauer and Rittiman Roads just east of Interstate 35. SAFD Captain Mark Trevino said the house is not a total loss, but a lot of items inside the home were damaged. RELATED: FBI says San Antonio soldier killed wife and left baby in her arms Trevino said a woman was inside the home at the time of the fire and neighbors had to notify her of the fire. He said no one was injured in the home, but a cat at the home did die in the blaze. Trevino said the fire was likely caused by an electrical malfunction. Firefighters blocked off the intersection of Castle Lake and Castle Cross, but traffic did not appear to be affected by the closure. "We're going to return the house to as close as livable as possible," Trevino said. MORE: SAPD: 65-year-old woman shot by son on Southwest Side Text "NEWS" to 72727 to sign up for breaking news from mySA twhite@mysa.com Twitter: @tylerlwhite This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SEGUIN Guadalupe County Commissioners on Tuesday voted to deny a music festival permit for a "Float Fest" planned next July along the San Marcos River near Martindale. Citing past problems with littering, drunkeness, loud music and trespassing during events at the 220-acre Cool River Ranch, about a dozen public speakers opposed issuance of the permit sought by Marcus Federman of Current Events LLC for July 21, 22 and 23 there. "It's unbelievable the amount of trash on the bottom of the river," Martindale resident Mike McClabb said. "To allow this to happen to the San Marcos River is sinful." RELATED: Float Fest delivered weekend of tubing, music and dancing Last year, an estimated 10,000 festivalgoers showed up for the three-day event slated as "The raddest, loudest, floatest fest in Texas," to see a star-studded music line-up including Bone Thugs N Harmony, Bleachers, Chromeo, Rick Ross, Metric and about a dozen other artists. County Commissioner Jack Shanafelt noted that unlike a concert that's contained in one area, attendees at the Float Fest swarm the river and its banks, creating sanitary problems. "You've got folks and tubers doing their business on private property and in the river itself," he said. MORE: Float Fest 2015 surges through San Marcos this weekend with live concerts and fun Still, Federman said the event "will carry on as planned." "That hearing will not stop us from having the event. Any rumors you hear about the event being canceled or stopped from happening are not true," he said. County Judge Kyle Kutscher cited discrepancies in the Federman's application as justification for denying the permit, noting it said the property owners had granted Federman the right to use the property for the concert on July 15 and 16. He told Federman should do a better job controlling obscene language by performers, monitoring traffic problems and cleaning up afterward. "I'm here because I want to make it better and do the best I can to make it safe," responded Federman, noting he'd tendered a permit amendment in September about the date switch that he thought addressed the discrepancy. Dissenting on the motion to deny the permit was County Commissioner Greg Seidenberger, who noted that Federman could hold numerous events of less than 5,000 attendees without a permit or direct county oversight. RELATED: Popular Float Fest left hundreds of pounds of trash He said permitting the larger event would allow the county to regulate issues related to traffic, sanitation and security. Staff writer Kelsey Bradshaw contributed to this report. zeke@express-news.net Another case of Zika has been confirmed in San Antonio bringing the total up to 17, according to a press release from the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District. The health district, following CDC guidelines, does not report the gender or the pregnancy status of those infected. You wont need an invisibility cloak, parental permission, or a ticket to Hogsmeade, err Florida, to get a frosty glass of butterbeer, a staple of the Harry Potter universe, this week. You just need to make the trip to Temple, Texas. Peggys Coffee House, 3111 S. 31st St., is serving up the butterscotch-tasting drink that characters Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley sipped on during visits to Hogsmeade, a village Hogwarts students would visit on the weekend. In the fictional village, the trio would go to the two bars that sold the sweet drink: The Hogs Head and The Three Broomsticks. The city of Schertz will not be collecting license plate information on cars driving through the community at least, not right now. At its Oct. 11 meeting, City Council held a lengthy discussion on the topic that ranged from constitutional questions to the ethics of data mining to preserving the citys reputation. The issue was a proposal submitted late last year by California-based Vigilant Solutions to outfit two city warrant officers cars with scanning equipment at no cost. The mounted cameras would automatically scan all vehicle license plates within range, store the information digitally with time stamps and GPS information, and check the plates against databases of outstanding warrants. If they got an alert, officers would have the ability to immediately collect all outstanding fines using credit or debit cards and run them through a Vigilant collection service, which would assess a 25 percent surcharge on all fines as its fee. While he noted Schertzs police department and warrant division favors such a system as a law enforcement and investigative tool, Dudley Wait, executive director of operations, said city staff recommended to pass on the Vigilant system and possibly purchase its own license plate readers. One reason, he said, was recently issued federal guidelines on jailing violators unable to pay high fines. Federal officials noted some cities use high fines as tools of discrimination, as a means to lock up indigents, and as a way to raise revenue thats not used for public safety. Under its proposal, Vigilant would store all data, the city official said, but, whether that information was held by Vigilant or by Schertz, it could be subject to open records laws, Wait explained. So someone could come in and say Id like to know where my wifes car has been for the last 60 days within the city of Schertz, he told the council. Also what happens to that data that might be sold or given to somebody to use for marketing purposes that is beyond the public safety realm? In addition, Wait said, a decision has to be made whether Schertz would share its warrant information with other Texas cities, possibly leading to local officers having to travel hundreds of miles to collect small fines, or enforce warrants from other communities, which could entail additional time and manpower. Other nearby communities, including Guadalupe County constables, Seguin and Alamo Heights, are experimenting with license plate readers, but there is no consensus on their effectiveness yet, he said. Cibolo plans to purchase its own cameras and is working out legal details. Kyle signed up for the free Vigilant system, but canceled it, citing privacy concerns. Schertz currently has about 18,000 outstanding warrants, most for failure to appear dating back to 2000, with total outstanding fines of around $5 million, said warrant officer Deputy Sgt. Steve Pulaski. However, he estimated some 95 percent of those are for people living outside the city limits, beyond the reach of any city scanning equipment. Councilman Grumpy Azzoz pointed out Vigilants system was free to Schertz and could help capture child kidnappers and rapists. Several council members seemed wary of the system. I dont have an answer and Im just raising the question, said Councilman Robin Thompson, alluding to the collection of all nearby license plate data, but at what point do we want Schertz to be known as the city where big brother is constantly watching you? Council voted unanimously to return the issue to city staff for more research. No specific deadline was set. For nearly 30 years, the country has officially recognized the period of time from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 as National Hispanic Heritage Month. This is a time for all Americans to celebrate Hispanic culture and achievement and there is a lot to celebrate. From 1968 to 1988, the country only marked National Hispanic Heritage Week. But some elected officials successfully made the case that the celebration needed to be expanded in order to properly recognize the contributions of Hispanic citizens. We want the public to know that we share a legacy with the rest of the country, a legacy that includes artists, writers, Olympic champions, and leaders in business, government, cinema, and science, said U.S. Rep. Esteban Torres of California in 1987. 1925: The mayor said work would begin on the proposed Witte Museum as soon as the site had been cleared. 1940: Baylor University defeated Villanova, 7-0, in a game played at the new Alamo Stadium. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SAN ANTONIO The Texas Department of Public Safety is asking for assistance in solving a cold case from 1983, when a manager was left for dead in a walk-in cooler at a restaurant in Balcones Heights. Charles Alfred Bates, 51, was found stabbed to death on May 22, 1983 in the Po Folks restaurant at 4250 Fredericksburg Road where he worked as a general manager. DPS said an undisclosed amount of cash was also stolen from the restaurant, according to the news release. RELATED: SAPD: Drunk driver who critically injured 3 pedestrians, including man in wheelchair, has past DWI Around the time of his slaying, Bates had been in the restaurant business for several years and was engaged. According to an initial report around the time of the homicide, The San Antonio Express-News reported Bates was stabbed with a butcher knife in the chest, back and head. He was found lying in a pool of blood in a walk-in freezer by an employee who showed up reportedly minutes after the homicide occurred. Bates had only recently moved to the San Antonio area, a previous report said, citing that his identification information stated he was from Brick Town, New Jersey. RELATED: San Antonio firefighter suspended following public intoxication arrest in La Vernia Investigators believe Bates was killed by someone he knew, the news release said. DPS features one case each month from the Texas Rangers Unsolved Crimes Investigation Team with a goal of generating news investigative leads and bring added attention to unresolved or cold cases across the state, the release said. San Antonio Crime Stoppers is offering a reward for any information that helps solve this case. RELATED: BCSO: SUV carrying 2 children runs red light, collides with car Tips must be submitted by calling 210-224-STOP (7867) or visiting the San Antonio Crime Stoppers website here. Those with information may also send tips through the Texas Rangers Cold Case website or by contacting the Missing Persons Clearinghouse at 1-800-346-3243. News researcher Mike Knoop contributed to this report. Text "NEWS" to 72727 to sign up for breaking news from mySA twhite@mysa.com Twitter: @tylerlwhite This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Dusty Solis, 36, still has more questions than answers more than two months since her son was fatally shot in an alley on the West Side. He was just getting started, Solis said of her son Silvester Gregorio Garcia, 19. Garcia was fatally shot on Aug. 13 near West Commerce and Navidad streets, according to the San Antonio Police Department. According to police, Garcia had been with a friend and an acquaintance. At one point, Garcia accompanied the acquaintance to buy drugs on West Travis Street after they dropped off his friend at a residence. After the failed drug deal, a police officer was flagged down by the acquaintance who said that his friend, Garcia, had been shot, according to a police report. The whole thing doesn't make sense because the person driving the car was not his friend, it was his friends friend, Solis said of the acquaintance. According to a police report, the acquaintance said that when he arrived at the West Travis residence, one of the men listed as a suspect in the report told him they were no longer selling drugs out of that home. Instead, the suspect and an apparent accomplice led the man and Garica to an alley near West Commerce and Navidad. The man told investigators he pulled up behind the alleged suspects, who were driving a beige Buick from the 1990s. During the drug deal, the suspects held both Garcia and the man at gunpoint, ordering them to the ground, police said. At some point, one of the suspects hit the acquaintance on the side of his head before attempting to steal his vehicle, investigators said. Thats when one of the suspects shot Garcia, according to the police report. After the shooting the suspects fled the scene in their Buick, investigators said in the report. Moments later, the man realized Garica had been shot and was attempting to transport him for medical treatment, but didnt know where to go until he spotted the passing officer. When EMS arrived, Garica was taken to University Hospital. He was pronounced dead there at 2:33 a.m., according to the police report. As officers were investigating the scene, a third passenger was discovered to have been inside the vehicle with Garcia and the man. Investigators noted in their report that the man did not mention there was a third passenger. Solis said detectives told her they have attempted to reach out to the man who flagged down the officer, but he has since been unavailable. We don't know why they shot him (Garcia), Solis said. Why him and not the guy who actually went to buy the drugs? Garica is remembered by family as an outgoing teenager who loved spending time with family and friends. He had aspirations of joining the U.S. Marines and was hoping to start a family with his girlfriend, his mother Solis said. We just want to get justice for my son, she said. I dont feel like my sons resting knowing that person who shot him is out there still living their life. Authorities are urging people with information regarding the suspects identities or their whereabouts to call Crime Stoppers at 210-224-7867 Crime Stoppers will pay as much as $5,000 for information that leads to the arrest of the people responsible for this crime. Rounds One and Two are in the history books. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will debate for a third and final time Wednesday night at University of Nevada-Las Vegas. Fox News' Chris Wallace will moderate. With 20 days until Election Day, this will be the candidates' last chance to make their closing arguments before a national audience and possibly pull the race from the muck of the past three weeks. The format will be six timed segments of about 15 minutes each. President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, have been high-profile surrogates for Hillary Clinton on the campaign trail this year. But not all the Obamas are on board. The president's half-brother, Malik Obama, is expected to be Donald Trump's invited guest at Wednesday night's debate in Las Vegas. Donald Wilmoth Smith knew the value of being prepared. Raised during the Great Depression, and later surviving a direct hit to his aircraft during World War II, Smith believed that you have to live in the moment because you never know when life is going to get turned upside-down, his daughter Nona Jo May said. Smith raised his children with the same philosophy. Building their home on almost an acre in Castle Hills, Smith made sure his family could do all those things that might be necessary if the economy tanked again, including growing and preserving produce, May said. He never forgot what it was like not to have food. Smith died Oct. 7 at 94. Growing up with a schoolteacher aunt when his parents were unable support all of their children, Smith remained close to his family his whole life. He was attending what is now Rice University when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, prompting the U.S. to enter World War II. He was 17 and his mother signed his enlistment papers to join the Marine Corps, his daughter said. Becoming a pilot, Smith flew missions in the Solomon Islands, and was shot down during a mission over Rabaul. More Information Donald Wilmoth Smith Born: Aug. 14, 1922, San Antonio Died: Oct. 7, 2016, San Antonio Preceded by: Wife Sophie Hodges Smith; daughter Donna K. Smith; parents Van Calvin and Ivah Harvick Smith; a sister and a brother. Survived by: Daughter Nona Jo May, Lizanne Smith, and Suzette Smith; son Kern Stone Smith. Services: Burial at 2 p.m. Monday at Mission Park North Cemetery, 20900 I-10 West, followed by a memorial service at 3 p.m. at Covenant Presbyterian Church, 211 Roleto Drive. See More Collapse He was running out of gas flying low over the water, May said. He knew they would land close to the coast where the Australians looked for American pilots. Smith and his crew were in rafts for three days before they were rescued. He lost no one on the landing, May said. He just coasted in, softly settled. Becoming a pilot instructor in 1943, Smith served in several locations and was headed for the Mariana Islands when the Japanese surrendered, precipitating his return home to enroll at the University of Texas at Austin to study civil engineering. Marrying in 1950, Smith was recalled to fight in the Korean War just a few months later. A major in the Marine Reserve Squadron, Smith was flying over North Korea when his plane was hit by a Chinese shell which lodged itself in the bomb his plane was carrying, missing the triggering device. Flying the aircraft to safety, Smith later displayed the shell on his desk. Though he stayed in the Marine Reserves until 1971, Smith returned to civilian life, working for H.B. Zachry Construction all over the world. He was the start-up man, May said. He would look at the job, put the plans together, figure the cost, start it and move on to another job. mheidbrink@express-news.net Congratulations, Mayor Ivy Taylor, you have been Trumped. Republican presidential nominee Donald J. Trump recently griped about San Antonios mayor on the radio waves, telling talk show host Joe Pags Pagliarulo that Taylor should be ashamed that 23 police officers were reprimanded for donning Trump caps. The officers had escorted Trump during a fundraising visit here. They were disciplined because it violates city policy to promote such personal political views while on duty. Officers on duty are expected to be impartial regardless of the candidate or party affiliation. Taylor had said she was deeply disappointed by the officers conduct. That strikes us as a reasonable response from the mayor to a relatively small issue. It is disappointing that on-duty officers couldnt use better judgment. They should have known better. But since Trump graced Taylor with his fleeting attention span, we cant help but make an observation: She is imminently more qualified to be president than the Republican nominee. Taylor trumps the Trump by every important measure. A Yale graduate with a masters degree from the University of North Carolina, she is better educated. As mayor of the seventh-largest city in the nation, and a former city councilwoman, she has significant elected experience. He has none. She understands and thinks about policy. He really gets Twitter. We have no doubt evangelical voters would prefer her, and she has a history of bipartisan support. Trumps a bit shaky on those fronts. Were not saying you should print your Taylor 2020 bumper stickers. But what does it say about a presidential nominee who doesnt measure up to the local mayor? Sad! BROOKFIELD - A woman who authorities said almost hit a police cruiser after traveling the wrong way on Federal Road was arrested recently. According to a statement from police, Helene Piel faces several charges in connection to the incident including failure to drive in the proper lane and operating under the influence. Twitter screenshot The photographer whose image of a bowl of Skittles was used in controversial tweet by Donald Trump Jr. is reportedly suing the Trump presidential campaign for copyright infringement. The tweeted photo included the caption "If I had a bowl of skittles and I told you just three would kill you, would you take a handful? That's our Syrian refugee problem." The text included the Trump/Pence logo and campaign slogan "Make America great again!" at the bottom. San Antonio is widely known as one of the friendliest cities in the United States, a fact that is further emphasized by the San Antonio International Airport Ambassadors, a group of volunteers who greet the 8.5 million travelers passing through the airport every year. Dressed in white cowboy hats, Western denim vests, white shirts and nametags, there are currently 186 ambassadors who each donate at least four hours every week. They provide directions to airline check-in counters, ground transportation, San Antonio restaurants and other points of interest, as well as assist airport public relations with special events. As soon as you see them, you feel the hospitality, said Evelynn Bailey, senior public information officer for San Antonio International Airport. Whether directing passengers to a connecting flight, helping to reunite long-lost loves or families, or even taking snapshots for people, there is no task too challenging for our ambassadors. Armed with big smiles and a wealth of knowledge about the airport and San Antonio, the ambassadors all share a love of meeting people and helping visitors with whatever they need. There are always lost cellphones left on planes or foreign visitors who greet ambassadors with Howdy and ask to have photos taken with them. There also are unusual cases, such as the woman who arrived at the airport insisting that she had a speaking engagement at a local hotel which the ambassadors could not find listed in San Antonio. We figured out that she was supposed to have gone to Houston, laughed volunteer Billie May, who has been an ambassador for 15 years. May is one of 40 airport ambassadors who are Certified Tourism Ambassadors, a certification sponsored by the San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau that provides an extra level of training about San Antonio and the region. Barbara Garrow, an ambassador for nine years, said You can tell when someone is lost. They get this look on their face. The ambassadors have welcomed home hundreds of returning service members with Welcome Home Hero signs and flags. And theyve applauded World War II veterans traveling to Washington, D.C. as part of Honor Flight San Antonio. Pam Verschoyle, a volunteer since December, has fond memories of a man and his two daughters welcoming home their military mom. When needed, ambassadors also are ready with tissues for tear-jerker moments like those. Being an ambassador is all about meeting people, emphasized Al Russomano, who is almost 89 and has been an ambassador since the airport began the program in 2000. We look for volunteers with different personalities, said Alba Diaz, coordinator of the ambassador program. Everyone has something to give. Furry four-legged critters owned by ambassadors have even been drafted for the Pups and Planes program to greet visitors and help relieve stress as they navigate through the airport. The ambassador program recorded almost 3,000 hours of service in August while assisting 24,500 people. From January through August of this year, the group helped 197,000 people. Ambassadors do more than greet passengers and give directions, Bailey emphasized. They are the first impression our visitors have of San Antonio. Being an ambassador is a great way to share your gifts, meet new people and help your community. Applications are currently being accepted for anyone interested in becoming a San Antonio International Airport Ambassador. For more information, view the "Be an Airport Ambassador" video and call Alba Diaz at (210) 207-3546 or email alba.diaz@sanantonio.gov. Editors Note: This content is made possible by San Antonio International Airport. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of The San Antonio Express-News' or mySanAntonio.com's editorial staff. Learn more about our advertising products at www.hearstmediasanantonio.com. 1 Refugee shipwreck: After months of painstaking autopsies, Italian authorities in Sicily on Tuesday put the death toll in the April 2015 refugee shipwreck at between 750 and 800 people, confirming survivors initial estimates. With only 28 survivors, the April 18, 2015, shipwreck off the coast of Libya remains the deadliest known refugee tragedy. Two-thirds of the dead were between the ages of 20 and 30 and one-third were adolescents. There was one child, a 7-year-old boy. Most were from sub-Saharan African nations. 2 Mass arrests: The mayor of Sebeta just outside Ethiopias capital of Addis Ababa says 1,000 people have been arrested this month after violence that led to the burning of factories and vehicles. This East African country declared a state of emergency this month after sometimes deadly antigovernment protests demanding wider freedoms. Businesses have been a target over suspected government links, hurting Ethiopias reputation as one of Africas best-performing economies. The violence came shortly after more than 50 people were killed in a stampede when police tried to disperse protesters in the Oromia region. PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has skipped his first political rally since last months deadly military crackdown on protests so he could explain the unrest to fellow African leaders. Exiled rival and information minister Professor Jonathan Moyo immediately suggested that, the heat is on! Something is happening, or has happened. Mnangagwas administration has been under pressure amid reports of at least 12 people killed, hundreds wounded and some women raped. Spokesman George Charamba in a statement said the president spent his Saturday briefing regional leaders. Mnangagwa earlier in the week blamed Western countries for backing the unrest. However, according to Prof Moyo, there was more to the missed rally than Charamba was admitting in his statement. Said Moyo on Twitter; When you see #GeorgeCharamba running around like this on a Saturday, bet your last bond note hes managing an EMERGENCY. Something has happened or is happening. Mnangagwa might have been making EMERGENCY phone calls, but certainly not to heads of state or govt. Watch the space! https://twitter.com/ProfJNMoyo/status/1091701029157171200 The military remains in the streets, and human rights groups, witnesses and opposition figures continue to report abuses in poor and working-class suburbs. International condemnation continues over the crackdown on the protests over steep fuel price increases. The top US diplomat for Africa says the United States is deeply concerned. NewZimbabwe/Agencies Breaking News via Email This is Naked Capitalism fundraising week. 918 donors have already invested in our efforts to combat corruption and predatory conduct, particularly in financial realm. Please join us and participate via our Tip Jar, which shows how to give via check, credit card, debit card, or PayPal. Read about why were doing this fundraiser, what weve accomplished in the last year, and our fourth goal, burnout prevention By Maria Demertzis, a fellow at Bruegel and a visiting professor at the University of Amsterdam. She has previously worked at the European Commission and the research department of the Dutch Central Bank. Originally published at Bruegel The attempt to address the problem of non-performing loans in the EU should tackle both sides of credit creation at once. On the demand side, new credit is not picking up as long as the problem of the debt overhang, namely the disincentive of undertaking new investments and consumption while old debts are prohibitively high, remains. This, hinders the creation of new productive capacity, necessary to absorb factors formerly misallocated to sectors hit by the crisis. By implication, as long as private debts remain at high levels, economic activity will struggle to pick up. On the supply side of credit, progress has been slow in resolving impaired loans, which persist in banks balance sheets. This is problematic for both their overall health but also the creation of new credit. Figure 1: Gross non-performing debt instruments, % of total gross debt instruments Source: ECB, Note: peak year to 2016Q1 And while a number of countries (namely the Baltics) have managed to decisively resolve bad debts to the benefit of new credit creation, others have made less progress and some have even been unable to make any (Figure 1). The ECB recently issued draft guidelines in an attempt to pool resources and address the issue. I argue here that an important guiding principle in resolving NPLs should be to ensure that viable debt remains serviced, while non-viable debt gets resolved. But this is not the same as resolving non-performing debt while holding on to performing debt. It helps therefore to categorise loans in two dimensions: viability and ability to service themselves. Table 1 then provides four possible ways of classifying loans. Performing loans are those that are effectively being serviced and paid back. Viable loans are those for which the underlying assets generate sufficient value to cover funding costs. Good loans are then, productive loans that are being serviced. This is the only category where debt has a productive role. Bad loans by contrast are those that do not perform, but also those for which the activities they had financed do not generate enough value. Aiming to resolve these loans in a swift and timely way should be encouraged, as the only way of identifying losses and reducing uncertainty for creditors but also releasing debtors from unproductive activities (second chance). Unproductive loans are then those which may actually perform in the sense of servicing payments, but do not themselves generate value. Collateralised loans can provide indicative examples here. Consider a household in the following situation: the value of its house is smaller than the loan that financed it (negative equity); it is liable by law for that remaining difference, as is the case in European countries (full recourse), and has very little possibility of walking away from such obligation by declaring bankruptcy (say through strict insolvency rules). If the household chooses (or needs) to sell that house, additional resources would be needed to repay the loan in full. Also, since the possibility of walking away from such a liability is effectively not available, the household is left locked into servicing a loan which is economically unattractive, as it is larger than the value of the house. Protecting creditor rights is of course an important reason why insisting on servicing such debt may be a good idea. But when housing markets have gone through sharp corrections, followed typically by a downturn in the business cycle, such arguably unproductive loans may not be isolated cases, but rather wider spread. From a macroeconomic perspective, one ought to therefore at least consider whether the benefits of creative destruction outweigh the costs of violating creditors rights. The European Commission alludes to this in its last country report for the Netherlands. Finally, there is also a category of temporarily distressed loans or strategic defaults. This includes either debts that are temporarily in distress but could return to being performing or loans that are non-performing by choice. The latter are the result of moral hazard where debtors choose not to pay back debt even when economically feasible. Evidence shows that strategic defaults increase as negative equity on mortgages increases, and especially when there is no full recourse. However, households likelihood to default strategically is shown to be also associated with perceptions of fairness, but also decreasing with the perceived risk of negative consequences of doing so (stigma, negative credit ratings etc). In this respect, indiscriminate protection of debtors or the less than perfect ability to collect collateral may lead to more strategic defaults. Resolute action to remove non-performing loans from banks balance sheets should address both the supply and demand side of credit. Removing bad loans from banks balance sheet is important for their health and financial stability more generally. But removing them also from the debtors balance sheet is equally necessary if new credit is to be demanded. Given the four categories presented above, understanding debtors true ability to pay back debts and restructure appropriately is crucial in this process. But aligning incentives between the different parties involved, creditors, debtors and relevant institutions (supervisors, regulators but also tax authorities and courts) is equally important. The aim is to have as much debt fall in the good category. If loans are only temporarily distressed, they need to be identified as such and assisted in becoming productive again. Banks should be incentivized to deal with this in a timely manner. Unproductive loans could be reduced if, for example, the possibility of walking away from debts through bankruptcy was not protracted and/or unforgiving. But here, while banks do not have an immediate incentive to either identify or deal with such loans, macroeconomic policy makers do, in particular when their size is systemic to the economy. Data on debtors failing to make other payments, like taxes or health insurance contributions, could serve as important indicators of financial distress. Such loans should then be assisted in becoming bad, which in turn should be treated swiftly to help redirect resources to productive activities. Enforcement and the rule of law are important in identifying non-performance; aligned incentives and bank involvement are important in determining viability. This is Naked Capitalism fundraising week. 920 donors have already invested in our efforts to combat corruption and predatory conduct, particularly in financial realm. Please join us and participate via our Tip Jar, which shows how to give via check, credit card, debit card, or PayPal. Read about why were doing this fundraiser, what weve accomplished in the last year, and our fourth goal, burnout prevention Readers may recall that Bill Clinton planned to privatize Social Security in the second term of his Presidency. The Monica Lewinsky scandal derailed his plan. As the Clintons knew, only a Democrat can dismantle Social Security. Hillary looks to be picking up where Bill left off. As David Sirota describes in a must-read story, Hillary is planning to introduce mandatory retirement accounts, a scheme that Hillary has mentioned in high concept form earlier. As details emerge, this enrich Wall Street at the expense of everyone else program is even more attractive to pet Democratic party constituencies than the 1.0 version of going after Social Security directly. No one in the Clinton or George W. Bush administration was so audacious as to cut in private equity and hedge funds in the way this variant would. But Hillary, and her major advisor on the plan who is also on her short list of Treasury Secretary candidates, Blackstone CEO Tony James, are too adept to label these required savings accounts as a stealth replacement for Social Security.The plan, as described in Sirotas article parallels the way the contributions are made now to Social Security, with both employers and employees required to put aside a percentage of payrollbut not in the form of Social Security taxes, but in individual retirement accounts that in turn are put in pooled plans run by professional managers. If you look at James speech, what he is proposing sounds innocuous, a supposed additional 3% of worker savings. But that is a nearly 25% increase over what workers are paying into Social Security now. Moreover, most experts agree that to the extent that Social Security needs fixing (30 forecasts are fraught), some not very onerous tweaks would do the trick. First and foremost would be to eliminate the payroll tax ceiling. Its not hard to see the long-term game plan. Social Security will be cut due to purported need to keep the budget balanced while funding bombing runs in the Middle East. It will be turned from a universal social safety net more and more into a welfare program. That in turn makes it easier to make more cuts, since its core supporters will be further and further down the food chain. Moreover, the canard is the assumption that James makes: if these savings are invested correctly and earn a good return for the retiree. Tell me how this happens in a world of ZIRP, NIRP, low growth, high private debt levels, and equity prices increasingly dependent on unsustainable stock buybacks? There are fundamental problems with saving and investing for retirement as a mass solution, as opposed to for a relatively small group of high income individuals. One is that everyones financial asset is someone elses financial liability. Expecting a return over the long-term GDP growth level on average isnt attainable as the pool of financial claims keeps rising. Thats why, as Michael Hudson keeps pointing out, debt jubilees were a regular part of ancient civilization. The burden of outstanding claims became economically destructive and socially destabilizing. And as Keynes and others have pointed out in the more modern formulation, high savings rates produce the paradox of thrift: what seems virtuous on an individual level is destructive on a societal level. In fact, rather than more savings, what the US needs is higher worker incomes, which in turn would support more spending, more job creation, and more investment. Ultimately, the cost of supporting non-working members of society is a function of the size of the economy in the future, as in the quality of infrastructure, how many people are employed productively, the utility of inventions in the intervening decades (as in advances that lower the cost of treating cancer have vastly greater positive societal spill-overs than apps that generate the same amount of GDP). That is why having the Federal government be obligated to provide a retirement social safety net aligns incentives much better: the authorities should be concerned about how to produce long-term growth for the economy, not just get through the next quarter, um election. But neoliberalism remains dominant despite its abject failure here and in Europe, so policy-makers are still relying on the economic equivalent of snake oil. And despite the smooth talk, lets underscore the point: even if you buy into the false narrative that Social Security needs to come out of individual contributions, when it is in fact a pay as you go system, a 3% increase in employee contributions across the board now is well beyond what anyone is calling for in the way of fixes. Put it another way: this is just another form of looting. Obamacare was written by the health insurance lobby and look how well that has turned out. Just imagine what sort of cooking ordinary Americans will get from the kitchen of Tony James and his fellow private equity robber barons. From Sirotas story: The proposal would require workers and employers to put a percentage of payroll into individual retirement accounts to be invested well in pooled plans run by professional investment managers, as James put it. In other words, individual voluntary 401(k)s would be replaced by a single national system, and much of the mandated savings would flow to Wall Street, where companies like Blackstone could earn big fees off the assets. And because of a gap in federal anti-corruption rules, there would be little to prevent the biggest investment contracts from being awarded to the biggest presidential campaign donors. In other words, this is the worst of all possible worlds. You have an individual account, but you are not permitted to invest in stocks and bonds; you may not be permitted even to choose your asset allocation. Worse, James language suggests that the vehicles will be run by professional asset managers, as in many or perhaps all will be actively managed, as opposed to indexes. As any student of John Bogle will tell you, paying for active managers is a waste of money, but Hillary wants to go that route on an industrial scale so as to further enrich grifters like Tony James (let us not forget that the Blackstone has paid fines in an SEC settlement for charging fees it was not authorized to take, which in most walks of life would be called embezzlement). And of course, private equity is on the list of preferred investment. And even better: James holds up private equity as a solution, just as it supposedly is for public pension funds, even as Blackstone was one of the first private equity firms to warn that returns in the future would be paltry. Indeed, the valuations of the private equity firms that are public say that they expect none of them will be earning any carry fees over the next few years. Its perverse to see James praise public pension funds for their high allocations to alternative investments even when he and his private equity colleagues snigger privately about their lack of sophistications. Again from Sirota: In the blueprint of the plan, James lamented that 401(k) systems dont invest in longer-term, illiquid alternatives such as hedge funds, private equity and real estate, and said the new program could invest in high-yielding and risk-reducing alternative asset classes. In a CNBC interview, James said he wants the billions of dollars of new retiree savings to be invested like pension plans. He noted that in the average pension plan in America, about 25 percent is invested in stuff we do, in alternatives, in real estate and private equity and commodities and hedge funds. Unlike stock index funds and Treasury bills, those investments generate big fees for financial firms and critics say they do not generate returns that justify the costs. So James is looking for a way for Blackstone to unload its failed investment in single family rental homes, where it is struggling to find an exit strategy, on government-mandated investors? How sporting of him. And as for the other supposed virtues of this scheme, let us not forget that this story appeared a day after New Yorks pension overseer blasted the state comptroller for paying big fees for hedge fund underperformance, and for not knowing what private equity fees and costs were when the state has a clear duty to do so, and reason to be vigilant in light of SEC reports of widespread abuses. And there is another layer of this that is not pretty: the more money that is in the hands of mega-funds, the less corporate accountability. CEOs can regularly pay themselves well out of line with performance and get away with other governance failings by virtue of the fact that most institutional investors either cant be bothered to try to discipline them or have incentives not to (they want the 401 (k) or pension or Treasury funds management business). Mega-funds that are selected via a largely if not entirely political process have even less reason to push for good governance. I hope youll circulate this post and/or Sirotas story widely. This is what you can look forward to in a Clinton administration. Dont say you werent warned. This is Naked Capitalism fundraising week. 925 donors have already invested in our efforts to combat corruption and predatory conduct, particularly in financial realm. Please join us and participate via our Tip Jar, which shows how to give via check, credit card, debit card, or PayPal. Read about why were doing this fundraiser, what weve accomplished in the last year, and our fourth goal, burnout prevention Yves here. This post exemplifies why economists should not be in charge of anything important. Keynes was correct when he said, If economists could manage to get themselves thought of as humble, competent people on a level with dentists, that would be splendid. Mind you, I am not disputing that there are many area of life where people can and do engage in transactions that raise serious moral issues. But what is troubling about this post is that it appears completely pre-occupied with more efficiency, as in How do we get more kidney trades done despite public squeamishness about them? I have a well-off friend who had to have a kidney removed as a result of a bad infection. He is keenly aware of how the loss of that kidney increases his risk of mortality and takes steps to reduce his risk of impairing his remaining kidney, like giving up sushi and sashimi entirely due to hepatitis risk. Yet this article fails to acknowledge why selling ones kidney is morally dodgy: the donor is potentially lowering his lifespan and the existence of a market allows the wealthy to take advantage of the poor. Even though this article gives survey responders a scenario in which money is given on a priority basis (flattening one side of the rich are exploiting the poor scenario), it fails to address what is a fair price to the donor as in what data is there on the health and lifespan loss for people who give up a kidney at a young age. By Julio J. Elias, Professor, Department of Economics and Business School, University of CEMA, Argentina; Nicola Lacetera, Associate Professor, Institute for Management and Innovation, University of Toronto; and Mario Macis, Associate Professor of Economics and Management at the Carey Business School, Johns Hopkins University. Originally published at VoxEU Imagine that you or a loved one were suffering from kidney failure. Receiving a kidney from a donor would be a far better option than dialysis it would improve your life expectancy and the quality of your life, and it would also save money to you and the health system. Imagine that you cannot find any matches among your relatives, friends or acquaintances, or the donor registry an all too common scenario in the US and elsewhere. There is, however, someone who is willing to give you a kidney in exchange for monetary compensation. You are willing to pay the requested amount and as such, you will be better off if the transaction occurred, and so will the donor. However, unless you happen to live in Iran (Ghods and Savaj 2006) you would not be allowed to do so. Alvin Roth defines this transaction as repugnant because of moral concerns, individuals and societies oppose that such a transaction occur, even if the parties directly involved benefit from that trade (Roth 2007). There are many activities and trades toward which there is a feeling of moral repugnance, often translated into laws that prohibit or restrict these activities. Examples include prostitution, commercial surrogacy, selling human eggs or plasma, as well as the trade of certain types of meat, and pricing practices for certain products. Attitudes toward these as well as other repugnant transactions vary across countries and over time; for example, indentured servitude contracts were once permitted but they are now universally prohibited, and conversely life insurance contracts were considered immoral in the past. Repugnance considerations can therefore have important consequences on the types of markets and transactions that we observe, and pose challenges for policy and market design. The Kidney Market: Repugnance-Driven Regulations and Costs The market for kidney transplantation is one such example of the restrictions that repugnance imposes on the exchanges that are allowed to take place, as well as of the costs associated with these limitations. For example, although the US system allows kidney exchanges whereby pairs of living would-be donors and recipients who prove incompatible look for another pair or pairs of donors and recipients who would be compatible for transplants, cutting their wait time monetary compensation is prohibited by Federal law. The National Organ Transplant Act of 1984 prohibits transfers of human organs for valuable consideration for use in transplantation, and punishes violations with a fine of up to $50,000 or five years in prison, or both. To the extent that monetary compensations can increase the supply of kidneys and organs in general, as some scholars estimate (Becker and Elias 2007), prohibiting these transactions is costly. Each year in the US, approximately 35,000 new patients require a kidney transplant, but only about 17,000 obtain one (Held et al. 2016). Recent estimates indicate that each additional transplant leads to about $200,000 in direct savings; the social benefits rise to $1.1 million per kidney recipient if we add the value of the increased life expectancy and quality. The total cost of the kidney shortage in the US is estimated to be about $20 billion annually. If indeed the population shared this repugnance, and considered it a sacred value that is, a position that cannot be traded for other considerations then the prohibition and the ensuing costs would be justified. Cultural and moral beliefs are important factors in the cohesion of a society and, as such, can themselves enhance welfare; the respect of deeply held principles, in particular, may trump considerations about the potential efficiency gains from a payment system. There is, however, no evidence on the precise nature of the moral opposition to payments for organs, and in particular, on whether and how other factors, such as consideration for efficiency (the surplus created by these trades), enter individual positions about how kidney transactions should be organised: What drives the rejection toward payment to donors? How intransigent is the position of those against payment? Does information matter? Are there finite increases in the supply of kidneys for transplants generated by payments that would lead individuals to express a preference for a paid-donor system versus an unpaid-donor alternative, even if payments were considered morally problematic? Understanding Repugnance: An Experimental Approach We recently carried out a survey-based choice experiment to address these questions and quantify the trade-off between the morality and the efficiency of alternative kidney procurement systems. We found that although systems that allow for payments to donors do raise stronger moral concerns than a system with no payments, a majority of individuals would be willing to accept a more repugnant system provided that it produced a sufficiently large additional number of transplants. The Repugnance-Efficiency Trade-Off We recruited 2,918 US residents through Amazon Mechanical Turk. After providing an overview of the state of organ procurement and allocation in the US, we asked the participants to consider three alternative procurement systems to increase living undirected kidney donations: A system based on unpaid donors with allocation based on priority rules determined by the patients medical situation, age, time on the waiting list, etc. (corresponding to the current system). A system where donors would receive $20,000 from a public agency, with allocation based on the same priority algorithm. A system of individual, private transactions, where donors would receive $20,000 from the organ recipient (out of pocket or through privately purchased insurance, for example). After receiving this information, respondents expressed their opinion about these systems related to their morality in terms of ethical concerns emphasised in philosophy and bioethics studies (e.g. Delmonico et al. 2002). We asked the subjects how coercive, exploitative, unfair to the patients, unfair to the donors, and against human dignity they thought each system was, and an overall assessment of how much a system was in contrast with the respondents values Respondents were then asked to assume that each system would result in a given efficiency in terms of the kidneys for transplantation procured, and to choose their preferred system. The efficiency levels were randomly determined, and each participant was presented with three choice opportunities, in a sequential manner. The unpaid-donor system received low repugnance ratings that is, individuals, for the most part, did not express moral concerns about this system. The two paid-donor systems received, in general, higher repugnance ratings than the unpaid-donor system. However, there was a large difference according to whether the system contemplated payments by a public agency or by the recipients in private transactions, with the latter resulting as the most repugnant system. Looking at choices, the results show that the likelihood of respondents choosing a particular combination of repugnance and efficiency increased with the level of efficiency and decreased with repugnance. Respondents thus preferred options with higher efficiency and those considered less repugnant, but also acknowledged, through their choices, a general trade-off between these two characteristics. We estimated the size of these trade-offs employing discrete choice models. The median respondent would favour payments to organ donors made by a public agency if it increased the annual supply of kidneys by about 6 percentage points; this corresponds to about 2,000 additional kidneys, which would reduce the shortage by around 11% and would result in $250 million saved annually by taxpayers. However, to accept a system based on private transactions, the median respondent would require about a 30 percentage point increase in supply, corresponding to 10,000 extra kidneys procured (which would reduce the shortage by more than 50%), and $1.26 billion in savings for taxpayers. This difference in the estimated trade-offs appears to derive from the fact that the public agency paid-donor system was considered less repugnant than the private transactions system along all of the morality features that we included. In particular, participants rated the public agency system as being equally fair to the patients as the unpaid donor system (these two systems allocated organs to patients based on the same priority rules), whereas private transactions (in which the allocation is purely market-based) were considered highly unfair. There was heterogeneity in the population, ranging from respondents with deontological preferences who were not willing to allow payments, irrespective of the expected number of lives saved, to consequentialist individuals who placed a large weight on efficiency over moral concerns. This heterogeneity did not generally relate to the respondents socio-demographic characteristics, but was correlated to broader attitudes as measured by a set of moral dilemmas typically used in psychology, thus providing further evidence that ethical views in these choices are central. Conclusion Alvin Roth stresses that we need to understand better and engage more with the phenomenon of repugnant transactions, which often serves as an important constraint on markets and market design.[1] The prohibition on payments to kidney donors is one important example of this phenomenon. Our research suggests that individual choices based on repugnance considerations respond in a predictable ways to efficiency information, but also that ethical views play a crucial role in these preferences. Supplying evidence and promoting studies on such sensitive topics might therefore lead to greater awareness and improved policy design based on the actual preferences of a population. In the case of introducing regulated payments for organ donors and their families in particular, the evidence is particularly strong that informing society about the potential benefits of economic incentives does impact the acceptability of this transaction. Because individual preferences appear to depend on expected efficiency in addition to ethical considerations, pilot trials testing the outcomes of different arrangements may enhance the ability of a population to determine the preferred organ procurement and allocation system. See original post for references Eco-friendly fabrication of silicon nanowires (Nanowerk News) Scientists from the Faculty of Physics, the Lomonosov Moscow State University have worked out a new and more eco-friendly method of silicon nanowires obtaining, which allows to replace hydrofluoric acid (HF) by ammonium fluoride (NH 4 F) (Nanoscale Research Letters, "Optical Properties of Silicon Nanowires Fabricated by Environment-Friendly Chemistry"). These silicon nanowires were obtained with the help of new eco-friendly method developed by Russian scientists. Toxic hydrofluoric acid is replaced by harmless ammonium fluoride. (Image: Kirill Gonchar) Silicon nanowires are streamlined, almost parallel to each other nanostructures, looking like wires. Nanowires diameter varies from 50 to 200 nm, and the distance between structures - from 100 to 500 nm. Nanowires length, depending on etching time, could be from 100 nm and up to 10s of microns. Interest for silicon nanowires is caused by perspectives of their application in micro- and optoelectronics, photonics, PV, sensorics. They could be used even in biomedicine as silicon nanostructures are biodegradable materials, what means that they self-destruct in an organism after some period of time. Besides that, in limited concentrations nanostructures are not toxic for an organism. However, hydrofluoric acid (HF), used by conventional method in order to produce silicon nanowires, is extremely toxic. Obtaining of silicon nanowires with the help of metal-assisted etching becomes possible due to chemical etching of a silicon wafer, where metal nanoparticles (for instance, silver nanoparticles) activate etching. Kirill Gonchar, a Junior researcher in the Low Temperature Physics and Superconductivity Department, the Faculty of Physics, at the Lomonosov Moscow State University, describes the whole scheme of nanowires elaboration. He says: "We've used a two-step method of etching. At the first stage silver nanoparticles were deposited on the surface of a silicon wafer. But this deposition didn't produce a level layer but different island regions. At the second stage the silicon wafer was etched right in the places, covered with silver. Because of this, those silicone sheet places, which were uncovered with silver, turned into nanowires. Silver nanoparticles fell into the silicone sheet. And the more etching was lasting the longer nanowires were got at the output. At the end silver was removed with the help of nitric acid." Researchers from the Lomonosov Moscow State University have replaced dangerous and toxic hydrofluoric acid by ammonium fluoride at all stages of chemical etching. Moreover, they have studied optical properties of silicon nanowires, produced with the help of this method, and compared them with nanowires, received on the basis of conventional method, rested on hydrofluoric acid usage. Kirill Gonchar shares, how this idea to use ammonium fluoride in nanowires synthesis has emerged. He clarifies: "The idea of ammonium fluoride application wasn't new, it was borrowed from experiments of porous silicon obtaining, which took place 20 years ago. Ammonium fluoride was also used there instead of hydrofluoric acid. There were similar projects where nanowires were produced in ammonium fluoride, however, there was no replacement at all etching stages. We've studied optical properties of the nanowires we got and proved that they don't differ much from nanowires, obtained by conventional method." Silicon nanowires, produced by metal-assisted etching, could be used for creation of new photonic devices and silicon based sensors. Kirill Gonchar clarifies, that nanowires are promising as sensory elements of optical sensors for different substances. This happens due to, first of all, increase of Raman effect signal intensity, which is a "finger print" of a substance. And, secondly, due to sensitivity to different gases presence, for instance, oxygen (the relevant patent has been already registered). Ultra-short pulse lasers increase precision of diamond sculpting (Nanowerk News) Diamonds come top of Mohs scale of mineral hardness, which ranks materials according to their ability to scratch another one. Besides leading to brilliant gemstones, that property means they are ideal for cutting and drilling other materials. But it also means that sculpting the diamonds themselves into industrial tools presents a tricky problem. How do you cut one of the hardest materials in the world? The answer is lasers. Any mechanical tool has to be harder than the workpiece, explained Maximilian Warhanek, a manufacturing expert and project coordinator for the EU-funded DIPLAT project. Researchers are using lasers to manufacture more efficient industrial tools. (Image courtesy of DIPLAT) Researchers on the DIPLAT project, led by Switzerlands ETH Zurich university, are developing a method to cut diamond with ultra-short pulsed lasers, and have already produced several prototypes for milling, grinding, and drilling tools. The laser doesnt care at all about the hardness. It can cut through diamond at the same rate as any soft metal, said Warhanek. Thats due to the way lasers work versus conventional cutting. When a drill or grinder pushes into the surface of a workpiece, the material deforms around it under the intense pressure. Friction heat is produced and induces cracks, which eventually break the material in the form of a cut. For that to work, however, the drill needs to be harder than the object material to push its atoms out of the way. But lasers are different. They use powerful beams of light that heat up molecules in the target object to such an extent that atomic bonds are pulled apart, and material is vaporised. Yet that heating can also create problems. Diamonds arent forever The main difficulty the team needed to overcome was how to create a setup where lasers could move quickly enough that they didnt overheat and damage the diamond. At about 800 degrees Celsius, diamond decays to graphite, the material commonly used in pencils. Not very good for making drilling tools. They overcame that partly by using ultra-short pulses of 50-Watt lasers lasting just 10 picoseconds, or 10 trillionths of a second. We are able to remove material faster than heat can spread inside the material, which means if you do it right, the diamond stays cold, Warhanek said. The other way to avoid heat damage is by moving the laser around quickly. To do this, the researchers created a work surface capable of moving a tool around five mechanical directions, including twisting the object, along with a laser scan head that could move the laser beam another three directions. We are really doing pioneer work, Warhanek said. The scan head is mirrors that are actually moved very fast to move the laser up to three metres per second, with several thousand gs of acceleration, which is at least a factor of 100 faster than any mechanical axis could achieve. Ceramic materials The project is already selling its laser sculpting tools, and Warhanek has launched a startup, along with some other DIPLAT partners, to further use the technology to cut ceramic materials like zirconium dioxide, commonly used in medical implants. The researchers are also eager to make use of their Swiss location for future opportunities. Theres a huge trend in Switzerland for ceramic watches, Warhanek said. We are talking, for example, with one of the big Swiss watchmaking companies about a project next year to really find the limits of whats possible with these drill bits and milling tools. Right now, the design is limited by the current process which is mainly grinding, but if they have new tools which have new capabilities, then they could maybe reinvent some of their parts. Even after they are manufactured, overheating can create problems for tools. However, researchers on the EU-funded CONTEMP project have now come up with a way to help tools dissipate heat faster with an internal cooling system. When you take a look at the cutting process, currently the industry is injecting hazardous cooling lubricant from external nozzles right into the processing zone. In the CONTEMP project, we thought well take the cooling process and put it right into the tool, said project researcher Paul Furstmann from the Technical University of Berlin, Germany. While lubricants can be used to keep cutting tools cool, they are unable to avoid thermal shock - where different parts of the material expand by different amounts, causing stress - and can create industrial waste when they become contaminated. Engineers on the project designed a way to use a mixture of water and ethanol that the tool could regulate on its own using a self-learning system. That means the tool can save energy by pumping only when it needs extra cooling. Theatre graduate popularises musicals among VN audience VietNamNet Bridge A fresh theatre graduate of the University of New Hampshire, Vietnamese director Nguyen Phi Phi Anh, returned to his home country in April to prepare for his latest Broadway musical-inspired project entitled Hope. Alongside two revues, Goc Pho Danh Vong (LAvenue) and Dem He Sau Cuoi (A Mid-summer Night Murder), which were stage phenomenon in Viet Nam in 2012 and 2013, the project will also stage his new production, Mong Uoc Khong Xa Voi (A Not So Far-fetched Dream). Phi Anh, who acts as producer, stage director and scriptwriter, talks with Thuy Hang about his "offspring". What is the difference between this years shows and the previous ones? In the summer of 2012, LAvenue made its debut in Ha Noi, followed by A Mid-summer Night Murder in the summer of 2013. Audiences warmly welcomed both productions. This time, I am simply rerunning these two productions without any adjustments because they are already complete and interesting. Some people ask me if I have adjusted any details of those productions, and when I say No they seem to breathe a sigh of relief, because they were satisfied by the musicals and dont want them to be changed. Actually, those people also bought tickets for the show Hope. Anyone who knows me or has ever watched my shows believe in me and the quality of my shows, so they do not hesitate to purchase tickets for the new shows this year. The shows in 2012 and 2013 were to measure the local audiences enjoyment of a Western art genre not commonly popular among Vietnamese people. This years show is to target a mass audience with 35 shows of three plays. Over the months, my team and I also had to deal with a tough task -- how to draw a large enough audience to cover all 200 seats of the Lespace auditorium and how to sell out the tickets for all 35 shows. Can you reveal a bit about your newest musical, A Not So Far-fetched Dream? The story basically follows a car driver for a day. He gets to hear different stories told by the various people who step into his car. The scenario has been completed, but so far, we have not practised it yet, as we have to focus on the reruns of the first two musicals. We will stage this newest musical in the beginning of January. Unlike the two revues, that have some songs from famous musicals as well as contemporary international hits, A Not So Far-fetched Dream will feature famous Hongkongese and Japanese songs. I also wrote Vietnamese lyrics for these songs. Alongside highly-educated audiences, your Hope project also targets labourers by offering low-cost tickets (VND99,000). What will you do to reach your goal as the low price is not a strong factor to draw in that audience? I dont do charity by offering low-cost tickets. My wish is to see my audience, including both rich and poor people, sit together in a same venue to enjoy my shows because art is for everyone. Thats why I encourage my audience to take their housekeepers or any poor or disadvantaged person that they know together with them to the theatre. I believe that anyone who has watched my shows would say that musicals are not something too academic. By contrast, they are easy to understand, as the stories are inspired by normal life. In your productions, what is the more important factor -- fresh or interesting? For me, the interesting factor is more important. I was extremely serious when I worked on my first production LAvenue. I didnt want the audience to grant me the privilege of watching my show simply because I was a student. I wanted to attract them by my interesting script and a fresh amateur cast. I always tell myself that if I take two-and-a-half hours of my audiences time, I should never ever waste that time. It should be a really worthwhile two-and-a-half hours. That is why the biggest pressure on me is to make my shows as interesting as possible. When LAvenue made its debut in 2012, we couldnt sell all the tickets until the first show was staged. In the end we had to extend the show an extra night, as the audience was still eager to see the revue. The same thing also happened with my second production, A Mid-summer Night Murder, in 2013. After the first theatregoers enjoyed the show, they would talk about it to their friends, who then went on to talk to other friends. Like a circular water wave, the publics interest in musicals has expanded. I always devote myself totally whenever working on any production. In preparing for Hope, I suffered hair and weight loss, and developed acne caused by stress. You are always confident of the quality of your productions. Can you foresee the results of Hope? Actually, I dont dare say anything about this. It is better to wait until the 35th show has finished. Once we have staged all 35 shows successfully, then we can continue to present them to more audiences. If we still have audiences, of course, we dont have any reason to stop running the show. What is your next project? I am not sure that I will stay in Viet Nam for a long time. I need to travel or move to another place to become fresh, both spiritually and physically. I like travelling, that is why I cant stay in the same place for too long. So far, I dont yet know what I will do after Hope, but I know I will create movies that touch people. My thesis work -- a 90-minute film -- has received a positive evaluation from my faculty. Entitled, Arbitrary Fairytales, it is a dark and philosophical movie. I am the director, scriptwriter and cameraman for the movie. How do you describe yourself in five words? Candid, pragmatic, bold, inspired, ambitious. VNS NASCAR championship contenders have plenty of ARCA Menards Series experience The Championship 4 have been set for the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and the contenders in each series all have plenty of experience and in most cases success within the ARCA Menards Series platform. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau decried an appeals court ruling last week that found its single-director structure unconstitutional, saying the opinion was "wrongly decided" and had "no basis in the text of the Constitution or in Supreme Court case law." In a brief filed October 14 in an unrelated case, CFPB v. Intercept Corp., the agency said that a motion by the defendant to dismiss charges based on last week's ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit should be ignored because that ruling was erroneous and will be overturned on appeal. The ruling in PHH v. CFPB, the agency argued, relied on a novel and heretofore unconsidered reading of the Constitution that determined that independent commissions may not be headed by a single director. "This principle has no basis in the text of the Constitution or in Supreme Court case law," the CFPB said in its Intercept brief. "The panel decision was wrongly decided and is not likely to withstand further review." The agency said even if the PHH decision had more merit, it would not have bearing in the Intercept case since the CFPB has not yet had an opportunity to prepare an appeal to the D.C. Circuit en banc. Further, the case would not apply to the eighth circuit, where the Intercept case is being heard. The CFPB has thus far not made any public statements about whether it intends to appeal the PHH decision. During a public appearance in Philadelphia on Tuesday, CFPB Deputy Director of Enforcement Jeffrey Ehrlich reportedly declined to say whether the agency would appeal, saying the agency would make no advance notice of its decision. Nonetheless, the agency is widely expected to challenge the opinion, and the brief in the Intercept case appears to signal that such a move is all but inevitable. Stewart Information Services Corp. is reshaping its board by adding three independent directors and its chief executive officer to the panel as part of a settlement with its biggest shareholder, activist investor Starboard Value. Stewart CEO Matthew Morris and Clifford Press a former Morgan Stanley banker who founded his own investment companies will join the property-title insurer's board immediately, the company said in a statement Tuesday. They replace Malcolm Morris and Stewart Morris, who agreed to resign. Stewart is searching for two additional independent directors to replace Laurie Moore-Moore and Frank Keating, who will step down once replacements are found. The changes mean eight of Stewart's nine directors will be independent. Starboard disclosed a near 10% activist stake on Aug. 12 in Stewart, which had faced earlier pressure from other investors. Stewart also said Tuesday it reached a separate agreement with Foundation Asset Management to end efforts to call a special shareholder meeting. As part of Tuesday's pacts, Starboard and Foundation agreed to standstill and voting provisions. Title insurers like Stewart, which competes with First American Financial Corp. and No. 1 Fidelity National Financial Inc., use records and public documents to verify a seller is a property's true owner and that it's free from liens. The companies collect a premium at the closing of a purchase or a refinancing, and pay costs that may arise if there are disputes over ownership. Title insurance is typically required to finalize mortgages and property transactions. Stewart ended its dual-class share structure at its April annual meeting, opening up voting rights after being targeted by other activists. Phil Goldstein's Bulldog Investors went public with its grievances in 2015, urging a sale and seeking control of its board. In a settlement announced weeks later, Stewart agreed to add an independent director and Bulldog to a standstill. Under Stewart's now-defunct dual-class share structure, four directors were elected by the B holders, including members of the company's founding Morris family. Bulldog's campaign came a year after the third-largest U.S. title insurer settled a separate activist battle with hedge funds Foundation Asset Management and Engine Capital. To resolve that situation, Stewart agreed to add two directors, embark on a $70 million share buyback, deliver $25 million in annual cost cuts and begin holding earnings calls. NATO and the United Arab Emirates reinforced their partnership and set out their priorities for future cooperation by signing an Individual Partnership and Cooperation Programme (IPCP) on Wednesday (19 October 2016). During a signing ceremony with Dr. Anwar Mohammed Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, the Secretary General stressed the importance of NATOs cooperation with the UAE. He praised the UAE for its role as a valuable NATO partner in projecting international security and stability: from Kosovo, to Afghanistan to Libya. The Individual Partnership and Cooperation Programme takes NATO-UAE political and practical cooperation further, setting out in detail more areas for enhanced bilateral engagement, including through political dialogue and practical cooperation in NATO-led operations and missions, enhanced interoperability, crisis management, civil emergency planning, capacity building, counter-terrorism, education and training. Three projects aiming to build Moldovas defence capacities were launched on 6 October 2016. Two projects concern cyber defence and the third seeks to promote the role of women. Developed within the NATO Science for Peace and Security Programme, the projects support implementation of the Defence and Related Security Capacity Building Initiative for Moldova. Cyber defence laboratory The first project is related to the launch of the e-Research and Education Laboratory for Cyber Defence at the Moldova Technical University. The cyber environment provides us with great opportunities, but it is also connected with serious threats, emphasised Valentin Amariei, Vice Rector. Serghei Popovici, General Director of the Center for Special Telecommunications, added that the lab will have a major impact on the defence sector of Moldova as it represents a common space where participants can obtain capabilities to respond to current threats. The launch of this high-end laboratory will benefit both system administrators from the public sector as well as students from the Technical University of Moldova. The project is supported by NATO, the embassies of Estonia and the United States as well as national institutions involved in the project. Computer Emergency Response Team The second project relates to the creation of a Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) at the Moldovan Ministry of Defence, which will be an instrument for efficient counteracting of various cyber threats and vulnerabilities. The aim is to enhance the cyber defence capabilities and the protection of the military critical infrastructure, through the provision of equipment and software as well as by sharing best practices, capacity-building and policies. Ian Davies, Principal Scientist at the NATO Communications and Information Agency, explained that hundreds of millions attacks are detected every day in NATOs cyberspace. However, they can be drastically reduced using sophisticated technologies. It is the experience we have gained in building and operating the NATO Computer Incident Response Capability that we are sharing with the Moldovan MoD and General Staff to support the development of their computer incident response capability, he explained. Promoting the role of women in peace and security The third project focuses on assisting the Moldovan government and civil society to develop a National Strategy for the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 and related Resolutions on Women, Peace and Security. Such projects create platforms between the government and civil society, emphasised Elena Marzac, Executive Director of the Information and Documentation Centre on NATO in Moldova, which will support project implementation along the Ministry of Defence and the US-based Inclusive Security Institute (ISI). In the long run, the project is expected to strengthen the role of women in Moldovan society. Cooperation between Moldova and NATO The Moldovan government hosted an event to mark the launch of the three new projects. It was attended by senior officials from the State Chancellery, foreign diplomats, NATO delegates, representatives of national institutions and the Technical University of Moldova, as well as press and media. Roman Cazan, Deputy Secretary General of the Government of the Republic of Moldova, welcomed NATOs strengthened cooperation with Moldovan stakeholders. Michael Gaul, Senior Advisor in NATOs Emerging Security Challenges Division, underlined that these projects will further enhance the cooperation between Moldova and NATO, will be significant in strengthening Moldovas defence and security sectors and will have a value beyond defence by positively impacting capabilities of the young generation and the Moldovan society at large. Emil Druc, Head of Multilateral Cooperation Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration stressed that the launch of those three projects represents a practical advantage of cooperation between NATO and Moldova and is of national importance. (NaturalNews). The residents of Lower Slobovia have two choices when they are suffering from chronic pain:(Article by Charles Hugh Smith, republished from Charleshughsmith.blogspot.com 1. A natural, non-addictive medication that they can grow themselves that has never caused a single fatality due to overdose, adverse reactions or mixing with other drugs (polypharmacy), or2. synthetic opiates manufactured by pharmaceutical corporations that are highly addictive, trigger multiple adverse reactions, manifest dangerous polypharmaceutical attributes and have killed over 165,000 people in the past 15 years-- 28 times the nation's 5,790 combat deaths in recent military conflicts. [1]'You Want a Description of Hell?' Oxycontin's 12-Hour Problem (via John F.)The natural painkiller that never killed a single soul and can be grown at home is criminalized, while the drugs that have already killed 165,000 people (a number that grossly understates the total number of deaths at least partly attributable to synthetic opiates ) and addicted and/or harmed millions of other users is perfectly legal, declared "safe" by the pushers (oops, I mean pharmaceutical manufacturers) and the government, and distributed in the tens of millions of doses by the "healthcare" system.And the insane laws reversed so the killer corporate synthetic opiates are declared Schedule 1 and heavily criminalized, and the natural nobody-dies painkiller legalized and distributed, right?Yes, I realize cannabis and opiates are not apples to apples, but you get the point--the drugs that have killed more than 165,000 people and ruined the lives of hundreds of thousands of others should be on Lower Slobovia DEA's Schedule 1 of criminalized drugs instead of being passed out like candy by its "healthcare" system-- a distribtion that has reaped tens of billions of dollars in sales and profits for the pharmaceutical sector.Could Medical Cannabis Break the Painkiller Epidemic? (Scientific American, September 2016 issue) A body of research suggests yes, but scientists are having to fight red tape to study whether medical marijuana could substitute for opioid drugs. [3]the criminality of the pharmaceutical racketeers who hid the truth from doctors and patients, and the complicity of a "healthcare" industry that has been happy to pass out deadly drugs like candy--at a profit, of course.There is only the U.S.A., a nation "in the midst of an unprecedented opioid epidemic," a nation blind to the lethality of its Destruction Enforcement Agency (DEA), its corporate pushers and its government-funded and enforced "healthcare" system.Read more at Charleshughsmith.blogspot.com Sources:[1] Wikipedia.org [2] News.Doximity.com [3] ScientificAmerican.com Cause of HAE remains unknown, though experts say it's genetic (NaturalNews) Imagine going about your normal routine and suddenly feeling your body starting to inflate, in some cases to more than double its normal size. This is what sufferers of hereditary angioedema, or HAE, experience at random, with some incidences being so severe that the condition could be life-threatening without swift and proper treatment.Though rare, afflicting only about one in 50,000 people, HAE is extremely serious because those afflicted with it never really know when it's going to show up and cause problems. HAE seems to lie dormant for relatively long periods of time, sufferers say, only to turn up spontaneously when they least expect it.One of these folks is Linda Miller of Houston, Texas, who recounted towhat it's like to have an attack. The otherwise physically fit mother seems to have attacks mostly on her face, which cause her cheeks and lips to blow up like a balloon, almost like a patient who's recently undergone lip injections of Botox."The windpipe can swell shut and then you can't breathe," Miller says about what she typically experiences. Miller also gets HAE outbreaks on other parts of her body, and she describes it as some of the worst pain a person can possibly experience."It's about as big as it can get. I mean, as big as the skin can stretch, because the fluid just doesn't stop pouring in. When it occurs in the stomach, it is so excruciatingly painful, we have to be hospitalized. It's been described as having a child without medication."Many doctors don't know what to do with their HAE patients as there isn't currently a standardized treatment for the condition that works for everyone who suffers from it. Some patients respond positively to one type of antihistamine while others don't, which makes it a bit of a challenge to know what to do when an HAE sufferer shows up at an emergency room.Typically, allergy medications like Benadryl often don't work, experts say, which is why some drug companies are investigating new treatment options that they hope will offer improved efficacy. Research doctors and others are likewise looking into new ways to help people who suffer from HAE, as the condition can be quite scary.Dr. Paula Busse, an associate professor of medicine at Mount Sinai and allergist-immunologist who's been treating allergy and asthma patients for many years, is currently treating some 40 patients with HAE. She told the(NYDN) that, while progress is being made, nobody really knows what causes HAE.The swelling could be caused by exposure to reactive toxins , which for some people might respond positively to a natural detoxification protocol like chlorella . It could also be a factor of genetic mutation, which is mostly the direction towards which Dr. Busse leans."It's autosomal dominant, which means that if a parent has HAE, there's a 50% chance the child will have it," she told. "For about 25% of patients, it's a new mutation, in which case there's usually not a family history."Though HAE episodes seem to appear at random, some if its known triggers include anxiety and stress, trauma, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and pharmaceutical drugs like blood pressure medications."Other known triggers include surgical procedures or invasive dental work anything that involves manipulating the mucous membrane," says Dr. Busse, adding that many doctors who are unfamiliar with HAE misdiagnose it as a food allergy or bowel disorder, simply due to related symptoms like itching, swelling and the occasional bout of hives. 'Congress has not sent an environmental law to the president's desk in 18 years' Chemical contamination of the environment growing at an exponential rate, say scientists Minnesota Zumbro River laced with traces of prescription pills (NaturalNews) While it's true that Americans have been afforded the luxury of living in a modern day world, our natural resources, the fundamentals upon which human life began, continue to be destroyed and depleted. One must ask which is more important: convenience or sustainability?The so-called innovations of today's society are threatening the planet in which we live, say scientists, revealing that increasing number of pharmaceuticals and other forms of pollution are being deposited into our lakes, rivers and soil. Even more disturbing is that the effects of this phenomenon are widely unknown.For once, a lack of regulation on the government's part is largely to blame. The "environmental spread of pharmaceuticals" is totally ignored by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), allowing these man-made pills to end up everywhere, including in our drinking water The Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, which hasn't been updated since its creation, excludes drugs and pesticides. Under the law, the EPA is required to maintain a registry of industrial compounds that may be potentially toxic, but advanced safety testing of those materials is not required, according to a report byOnly a fraction of the estimated 84,000 compounds registered have been tested for their safety on humans, prompting scientists and environmental groups to call for a serious revision of how risk assessments of suspect compounds are performed."Our chemical safety net is more hole than net," said Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group. "Where does that leave us in terms of scientific understanding of what drugs to regulate?"Anne Womack Kolton, vice president for communications at the American Chemistry Council, which represents chemical manufacturers said, "Think about the world 40 years ago. It was a vastly different place. It's common sense to revise the law and make it consistent with what we know about chemicals today."The American Chemical Society maintains a database of chemical substance information containing more than 89 million organic and inorganic substances and 65 million sequences dating back to 1957. An estimated 15,000 new substances are added each day, many of which are poorly understood, scientists say.In an essay published in the journal, Dr. Jerald L. Schnoor, a University of Iowa professor of civil and environmental engineering, wrote about the way older compounds are altered in the environment Some substances become even more toxic after their breakdown by plants or animals.For example, polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs (which are banned in the U.S. but keep showing up in the environment), are broken down into even more "toxic metabolites," according toAnother example is chlorpyrifos, a highly toxic organophosphate insecticide that when ingested by animals become 3,000 times more potent, according toWhile investigating the chemistry of the Minnesota Zumbro River, environmental health scientists were surprised at the "sheer range and variety" of prescription drugs they found.Relatively high levels of acetaminophen an over-the-counter painkiller that causes liver damage in humans the antibiotic anti-convulsive carbamazepine, caffeine and pesticides were among the contaminants found."We don't know what these background levels mean in terms of environmental or public health," said Deborah Swackhamer, the investigation's lead scientist.The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) tracks chemicals in waterways , sediments, landfills and municipal sewage sludge, which are often converted to fertilizer. Steroid hormones and triclosan (an antibacterial agent banned in Minnesota) were found in sewage.The antidepressant Prozac has shown up in fish, causing them to be anxious, anti-social and even homicidal, reported the"We're looking at an increasingly diverse array of organic and inorganic chemicals that may have ecosystem health effects," said Edward Furlong, a USGS chemist. "Many of them are understudied and unrecognized." Arboreal: A Collection of New Woodland Writing Edited by: Adrian Cooper Little Toller: 2016. 9781908213419 | ISBN: 978-1-9082-1341-9 Edited by: For too many years, I have been one of the rats running frequently along the motorway from Oxford through the Chiltern Hills into London. On the capital's outskirts, my bus sweeps past a scrap of land wedged between the road and a London Underground line, where an increasingly decrepit sign proclaims the future home of gleaming corporate headquarters. In reality, the site has, over time, turned from rubbish-strewn concrete to a dense young wood dominated by birch trees, some more than 8 metres tall. The last time I went by, on a bright, blustery autumn day, their tens of thousands of leaves caught the sunlight in a vision of glory. Oliver Rackham analysed interactions between people and woodlands. Credit: East Anglian Daily Times This patch of self-willed wood might have raised a smile from botanist and historical ecologist Oliver Rackham. Over several decades until his death in 2015, Rackham probably did more than any other scientist to advance our understanding of the consequences of human interactions with woodlands and other landscapes in Britain. That contribution inspires and informs Arboreal, a beautiful, insightful anthology edited by nature writer Adrian Cooper. The more than 40 pieces by ecologists, educators, photographers, sculptors and writers, are highly diverse. Their common starting point is that the perceptions, memories and imagination of individuals matter, and that without wonder and reflection, research and action are blind and blundering. Rackham's insights remain compelling. With more than a dozen books, notably Ancient Woodland (Edward Arnold, 1980) and The History of the Countryside (J. M. Dent & Sons, 1986), he attracted and educated a large public. He showed that ancient woodland any wood in continuous existence since at least 1600 was frequently as much a human artefact as 'natural.' He helped to set in train significant changes to planning and conservation, fighting the Forestry Commission over the planting of uniform stands of conifers, and showing that large unmanaged populations of deer pose serious threats to woods. In his last years, he stressed the dangers of unregulated global trade in trees, a factor in the spread of pests and diseases. His final book, The Ash Tree (Little Toller, 2014), explored the place of the much-loved genus Fraxinus in culture, and explained Chalara ash dieback, caused by the fungus Hymenoscyphus fraxineus, which threatens to wipe out a large proportion of this hitherto abundant species. (In 2012, dieback was reported to have affected some 90% of ash trees in Denmark, but Rackham withheld judgement about the probable scale of UK devastation.) Above all, Rackham helped to create a vision of woodlands as complex, dynamic and potentially resilient places that for thousands of years have seldom been free from human intervention, and where the stories we tell and choices we make have significant consequences. Cooper calls this long relationship one of both estrangement and affection. Britain is among the most deforested countries in Europe: almost half the ancient woodland in the British Isles was either felled or poisoned between 1933 and 1983. Yet the country famously treasures its large ancient trees. The majority of us do not own woodlands nor earn our living by them, Cooper writes in the introduction, yet it seems that the trees and the woods still inhabit us. So George Peterken, a woodland ecologist of Rackham's generation, unfolds the surprises and paradoxes of what may be Britain's most 'natural' ancient wood, at Lady Park in the Wye Valley. Gabriel Hemery, forest scientist and author of The New Sylva (Bloomsbury, 2014; G. Hemery Nature 507, 166167; 2014),'looks back' from 2050 on the reforestation of Dartmoor in the face of climate change. Poet Kathleen Jamie brings the form and sensibility of classical Chinese poetry to the woodlands around Inshriach Bothy in Scotland's Cairngorms National Park. Jay Griffiths (author of Wild; Hamish Hamilton, 2007) unfolds the beauty in woodland birdsong, in prose of great energy and power. Sculptor David Nash explains how he created the extraordinary Ash Dome at Cae'n-y-Coed in Snowdonia, Wales. And in images such as one of leaf-fall through an opening in the New Forest canopy, photographer Ellie Davies creates a sense of immanence redolent of Andrei Tarkovsky's 1975 film The Mirror. Elsewhere, Tobias Jones co-founder of the Windsor Hill Wood project for young people with mental-health issues makes a powerful case for the therapeutic use of woodland. He explores the Japanese practice of shinrin yoku, or forest bathing, and its reputed beneficial effects on insomnia and anxiety. Deb Wilenski, a specialist in early-childhood education, shows how Spinney Wood in Cambridgeshire can fire the imaginations of the very young to produce maps and poems (B. Kiser et al. Nature 523, 286289; 2015). And music journalist Will Ashon recounts the social history of Epping Forest Britain's unofficial first national park and a Cockney Paradise. Outside the hall containing the posters and exhibits at last month's Geological Society of America meeting in Denver, Colorado, was a surprise. A travelling photography exhibition displayed large, black-and-white portraits of women wearing beards. To challenge perceptions of who is and is not a scientist, the Bearded Lady Project ( www.thebeardedladyproject.com ) has photographed more than 75 female Earth scientists; a documentary will be released in early 2017. Filmmaker and project mastermind Lexi Jamieson Marsh and palaeobotanist Ellen Currano of the University of Wyoming in Laramie, who inspired the project, talk about 'invisible women', communities of inclusivity and rocking a moustache. What prompted this project? Ellen Currano (left), Lexi Jamieson Marsh (centre) and photographer Kelsey Vance at a photoshoot. Credit: Draper White/The Bearded Lady Project LJM: Ellen and I have been friends for about eight years. We met in the small college town of Oxford, Ohio, where she told me she was a palaeontologist. I was really excited: I had never met one in real life. We were having dinner and Ellen said, I know how you see me, but I don't necessarily see myself in that light. As a female I'm either very uncomfortable with all eyes being on me for fixing the diversity problems, or I'm ignored, talked over and not paid attention to. There are days I wish I could walk into a room with a beard on my face and just do my work. EC: It was nothing I had spent a lot of time thinking about. Except that if I were male, my professional life would be easier, because people would listen to me. There's this celebration of the large grizzled or bearded man going out in the field and facing the elements and being tough and strong, having a large pickaxe and moving giant boulders. And I can't do that. We're not in the documentaries. We're not in National Geographic. LJM: That night, I e-mailed Ellen at 2 in the morning and asked her, what if you did wear a beard? What if we filmed you, and brought in a photographer? And we could nod to the history, that there are no pioneering women palaeontologists in the classic textbooks. We could make up for a lost legacy and do a tongue-in-cheek response: where are the women if this is the only image we see? How are you playing on the history of the bearded lady? LJM: We're walking a fine line, playing with gender identity. I don't expect everyone to understand it. It can be kind of uncomfortable to see a woman with facial hair. But it does nod to the discomfort that comes with women in power positions in science that they still aren't supposed to be there. The bearded lady is in this ambiguous state of masculine and feminine, which ties nicely in with the many cases of how women in science feel that they're there, but not really there. With the film, I wanted to challenge what is shown in mass media. It shows women being independent, being physical and scientifically minded. How did the women choose their facial hair? LJM: I did most of the facial hair. I have a background in theatre. The scientists choose where they're filmed, what they're photographed wearing, what tools they would like in the picture. The only thing we alter is the beard. We're not dressing them up like men, it's very much who they are and what they do. But if all that changes with the beard, and your mind can't figure out who this person is, that's the goal. Carole Hickman at the University of California, Berkeley, said she would like to participate, but would bring her own moustache. In the 1970s, she worked in the Australian outback and, as a young woman working alone, she was constantly approached by men. She got a moustache, threw it on and got her work done. So that is her moustache. How do you think you look in the photo? EC: I think my parents said it best I look like I should be on a wanted poster. I look tired and run-down, like I've been out in the field for a long time and I'm dirty. And I was. The beard I could do without, but I think I really rock that moustache. What do you hope people will get out of this project? EC: The community of inclusion. Making ties between scientists. And the knowledge that you can look however you want and do good science, and people shouldn't be judging you. This project is just one part of getting there. Deborah Jin invented ways to study a state of matter created in the mid-1990s: gases of strongly interacting atoms, cooled to near absolute zero. Her visionary and methodical approach made it possible to use these ultracold gases as model systems to tease out the quantum principles that lead to behaviours in real materials, such as superconductivity. Credit: GLENN ASAKAWA/UNIV. COLORADO Jin, who died of cancer on 15 September, aged only 47, was born in 1968 in Stanford, California. She grew up in Indian Harbour Beach, Florida; her father was a professor of physics at Florida Institute of Technology. Her mother and brother also trained as physicists. A studious child, Jin won many mathematics competitions in school. Jin completed an undergraduate degree in physics at Princeton University in New Jersey in 1990. She earned her PhD in 1995 from the at the University of Chicago in Illinois under Thomas Rosenbaum, studying unconventional superconductors that were cooled to millikelvin temperatures using liquid helium and similar traditional cryogenic techniques. Jin probed how the exotic superconductivity in these materials reacted to pressure, stress and magnetic fields. During this period, she met her husband, John Bohn, also a physics graduate student at Chicago. In the years that followed, they collaborated on several studies on the collisions of quantum particles. Next, Jin made the bold decision to change research areas. She moved to Boulder, Colorado, to do postdoctoral research with Eric Cornell at JILA, a joint institute between the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Colorado, previously known as the Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics. She worked on materials created with a new set of techniques quantum gases of atoms cooled with lasers to microkelvin temperatures and suspended in vacuum by magnetic fields. Jin quickly made key contributions to this new field, including measurements of the heat capacity and the excitation spectra of a BoseEinstein condensate, a quantum phase of matter that Cornell had created for the first time with a colleague in 1995. BoseEinstein condensates comprise bosons, particles that have either zero or integer values of spin, that are all in the same spin state. Remarkably, the behaviour of collections of quantum particles, whether in superfluids or neutron stars, is determined by whether they are made up of bosons or fermions, particles with half-integer spin. In 1997, Jin accepted a permanent position at JILA and took on one of the greatest challenges in atomic physics at the time creating a gas of ultracold fermions. Only bosonic gases had been thus cooled when Jin chose to work with the fermionic isotope potassium-40. She realized that trapping two nuclear states of this rare atom was key to producing the first quantum Fermi gas, which her team did in 1999 (B. DeMarco and D. S. Jin Science 285, 17031706; 1999). The usefulness of these gases lies in their ability to emulate other models, for example of high-temperature superconductors. The natural interactions between potassium-40 atoms are too weak to induce strong quantum correlations directly. So Jin and Bohn harnessed collisional resonances to strengthen the interaction between atoms using a magnetic field. They produced the first molecular Fermi condensate in 2003, and the first resonantly interacting Fermi gas in 2004. Jin's work marked a shift in how other branches of physics viewed and interacted with experimental atomic physics. The early work on dilute atomic BoseEinstein condensates could be understood using relatively simple and well-developed theoretical approaches. The achievement of strong interactions in the gas enabled experiments to connect with open and difficult physics questions, some of which still cannot be tackled using the most powerful supercomputers. This led to rich and varied exchanges between research areas, as exemplified by Jin's connections with nuclear and condensed-matter theorists. In 2008, expanding her work from atoms, Jin partnered with Jun Ye at JILA to create the first quantum gas of diatomic molecules that experience long-range inter-particle interactions. These interactions lead to correlated behaviours in many-body quantum systems. The collaboration also helped to launch the study of chemical reactions in the ultracold quantum realm. Despite a career cut tragically short, Jin's scientific legacy is broad and deep. Her research made textbook models a scientific reality, including ideal Fermi gases and the crossover between BoseEinstein condensation and the BardeenCooperSchrieffer theory of superconductivity. She developed the tools and techniques to tune these states and conduct precise measurements, unveiling new physics along the way. Debbie inspired a generation of young scientists who founded careers on the research directions she started. She was a warm, dedicated mentor and role model, and a champion of female physicists. She cared deeply about her students, colleagues and friends. Her laser-like focus and intellectual integrity could at times seem blunt, but her ex-students still ask themselves how Debbie would approach a problem. A few days ago, a resident gorilla in a London zoo named Kumbuka managed to escape his enclosure. United Press International said in a report that the 18-year-old endangered western lowland silverback gorilla was filmed smashing the glass window of his enclosure moments before he escaped. Eyewitnesses Hannah O'Donoghue-Hobbs and Charlotte Neild told BBC that the gorilla appeared to be "really angry" and was "banging on the cage." His escape resulted in a brief panic among the visitors who were in the area. A lockdown was immediately called as the visitors were ushered in a safe place. Meanwhile, zoo officials said Kumbuka did not break the glass wall, but rather escaped through an open door into a secure area accessible only by zookeepers and not by the public. Many concerned citizens feared that Kumbuka's fate might suffer the same fate of Harambe, a Cincinnati zoo endangered gorilla who was shot dead after a boy fell from its enclosure. READ: #RIPHarambe: Who Was Harambe? Facts About the Critically Endangered Animal Kumbuka is now back in his enclosure after the officials were able to tranquilize him. Terry Maple, an expert in animal's psychological responses to captivity and the former head of Zoo Atlanta told National Geographic that gorillas, who prefer to avoid people, are very powerful and they must be treated with respect. Appearing on "Good Morning Britain," Sir David Attenborough, a naturalist and broadcaster, said he felt sympathy and sorrow for the escaped gorilla and urged the people to be sensitive towards the animal. He added that the gorilla might have felt "fed up" from people watching him for ten hours outside the glass enclosure. "Sometimes visitors to zoos are not respectful and they start shrieking or waving their arms in order to get the poor gorilla to do something," Attenborough said. "You might think, oh they're just animals. They are not just animals. They are related to us. They value their privacy. Just imagine what it's like to be there. [...] That finally the alpha male, the big gorilla, got fed up with it, is hardly surprising." Just recently, Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) have detected strange 'strobe-like' bursts coming from 234 stars. Since then, astronomers have been investigating it. The latest to join the investigation is Stephen Hawking, through the Breakthrough Listen project, which is funded by himself and Russian billionaire Yuri Milner and run by the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Research Centre at the University of California Berkeley. The discovery of the mysterious lights was described in a paper entitled "Discovery of peculiar periodic spectral modulations in a small fraction of solar type stars," which was published in a pre-print website, arXiv.org. "We find that the detected signals have exactly the shape of an ETI signal predicted in the previous publication and are therefore in agreement with this hypothesis. The fact that they are only found in a very small fraction of stars within a narrow spectral range centered near the spectral type of the sun is also in agreement with the ETI hypothesis," the abstract read. The paper was authored by astronomers Ermanno Borra and Eric Trottier from Laval University in Canada. While Borra and Trottier said the signals could be coming from extraterrestrial life, it is yet to be formally peer-reviewed. Thus, further study in needed. Read: Aliens on Mars: NASA Captures Mysterious 'Ancient City' on the Red Planet In a statement, SETI, said Borra's and Trottier's study is worth a follow-up, "The one in 10,000 objects with unusual spectra seen by Borra and Trottier are certainly worthy of additional study. However, extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence." The statement added that careful work is needed and that the use of two or more independent telescopes is a must to confirm the extraterrestrial claim. Andrew Siemion, the director of the SETI Research Centre said he thinks the spectral patterns were likely caused by errors in calibration or data analysis because of some steps of analysis they did not think through. Nevertheless, Borra told New Scientist, that he is excited to see that others are taking the reins. "At this stage, the signal is so strange, that although our detailed analysis seems to indicate that it is a real signal, it has to be validated with more work," he said. Elon Musk and his commercial space flight company SpaceX is consistent in working for his dream of sending the first humans to Mars in 2025. But Musk found himself a competitor with Boeing, another commercial space flight company, who's CEO recently announced that he plans to beat Musk to Mars. The question now is, whose human-carrying rocket will make it to Mars first? "I'm convinced the first person to step foot on Mars will arrive there riding a Boeing rocket," Boeing CEO Deni Muilenburg said in a statement during a conference in Chicago. Not only Musk's SpaceX is targeting Mars, being the next frontier. Other organizations such as ESA, ISRO and the China Space Agency are also planning to reach Mars as soon as possible. But the forerunner in sending humans to Mars are NASA and its Journey to Mars mission that intends to send humans to Mars in 2030 and Musk's SpaceX mission to Mars in 2025. SpaceX made news when CEO Elon Musk announced that the first batch of humans to land on Mars would leave Earth on 2024 and reach the red planet by 2025. However, Boeing contested by saying that the first humans to reach the red planet will arrive there using a Boeing spacecraft. In order to send humans to Mars, these space flight companies need to build the most powerful rockets capable of deep space explorations. NASA is currently building its Space Launch System (SLS) with the help of Boeing while SpaceX takes pride in its Mars Interplanetary Transport System (ITS). NASA claims that the SLS will be the most powerful rocket ever built while the Mars ITS is threatening to take the title away from NASA's rocket. Boeing intends to become a vital player in colonizing Mars and with NASA's SLS, it might be possible. Elon Musk accepted Boeing's challenge and seems to welcome the competition. "I really don't have any other motivation for personally accumulating assets, except to be able to make the biggest contribution I can to making life multi-planetary," SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said in a statement. "I think it's actually much better for the world if there are multiple companies or organizations building these interplanetary spacecraft. You know, the more the better." Sending humans to Mars is not an easy feat, and the way the majority of the public and the scientific community see it, whoever built the most powerful rocket and whoever reach the red planet first, will make a mark in history; not only will their achievement be a win for the company but also a milestone for the human race. Six years ago, two Wells Fargo employees filed whistleblower complaints with the federal government. They sent their cases to the Department of Labors Whistleblower Protection Program, which is administered by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration. But an investigator who reviewed cases for the agency says no one actually investigated the complaints. This revelation comes as the nation reels from an enormous Wells Fargo banking scandal. The San Francisco-based company was fined $185 million last month after employees opened two million phony bank accounts and credit cards to meet sales goals. Now Darrell Whitman is breaking his silence to the NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit, claiming if his agency had done its job, the banks widespread practice of opening fraudulent customer accounts could have been exposed and fixed years ago. I think its pretty obvious they dont follow protocols, Whitman said of OSHA. You dont do the job, thats pretty close to dropping the ball, isnt it? Whitman worked in the agencys San Francisco office from 2010 to 2015. He says in May 2010, OSHA received two complaints from former Wells Fargo employees who claimed the company retaliated against them for raising red flags about the banks business practices. Whitman says instead of investigating, the agency held the complaints for six months. He says in November 2010, after the two complainants decided to file federal lawsuits against Wells Fargo, his supervisors assigned him the cases simply to close them. They assigned it to me only for the purpose of dismissing the complaint, he said. According to OSHA policy, the agency is relieved of pursuing whistleblower cases when complainants head to court. But, Whitman says the agency should have started and completed the investigations before the whistleblowers filed their lawsuits. Wells Fargo Employee Blows the Whistle in St. Helena Whitmans insights have frustrated Yesenia Guitron, one of the complainants. Now I know that nothing happened with my complaint. It just sat on someones desk, Guitron said. At the time, I didnt know. But I was certainly trusting that everyone was doing what they were supposed to do. And they didnt. Guitron turned to the Whistleblower Protection Program after Wells Fargo fired her in January 2010. She says she first noticed in 2008 that something wasnt right at the St. Helena branch where she worked as a personal banker. Guitron says customers would come in complaining of fees and collection calls for accounts they never opened. She says she notified her manager and human resources department and called the companys ethics hotline to report what she describes as a clear pattern of intentional fraud by other employees. Guitron believes she was terminated for speaking up about unethical business practices. Guitron says she expected OSHA to investigate her complaint. I think everyone files with the expectation that they are going to be investigated, she said, and not just dismissed after six months of sitting on someones desk. In the final investigation reports Whitman prepared for Guitrons case and the case of the second Wells Fargo whistleblower, he noted that the company declined to provide a defense to the allegations. He says that should have resulted in an automatic merit finding or win for the complainants. And a win, Whitman says, would have required OSHA to provide details about the complaints to banking regulators, which could have prompted them to take corrective action years ago. In September, six years after Guitron submitted her complaint to the government, Congress grilled former CEO John Stumpf about the companys sale practices. Lawmakers also raised questions about who knew what and when. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was formed in 2011 and says it learned of Wells Fargos sales practices in the summer of 2013. The Securities and Exchange Commission, which protects investors by regulating the securities industry, declined to comment on when it first found out about the fraudulent accounts. Judge Dismisses Guitrons Federal Lawsuit Guitrons retaliation lawsuit was dismissed in 2012. Her attorney says although the judge found some evidence of unlawful conduct at Wells Fargo, the judge decided there was justification for her termination. Guitron lost an appeal in 2015. Wells Fargo says it doesnt tolerate retaliation against employees who report their concerns, the company said in a statement. We regret and take full responsibility for the incidents in which customers received a product they did not request, as that is inconsistent with the values and culture we strive to live up to every day, the company wrote. The bank also says it is making fundamental changes to help ensure team members are not being pressured to sell products. As of Oct.1, Wells Fargo ended all product sales goals. OSHA Investigator Raised Red Flags Before This isnt the first time Whitman raised red flags about the OSHA Whistleblower Protection Program. In 2015, he spoke to the NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit, claiming supervisors ordered him to close cases without properly investigating them. Last year Whitman filed a retaliation complaint of his own after he was fired. The complaint is pending before the Office of Special Counsel, which reviews retaliation claims submitted by federal employees. OSHA says it cannot comment on internal personnel matters or on specific whistleblower cases, but the agency says its now taking a second look at whistleblower complaints involving Wells Fargo. In a Sep. 26 letter to U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who has emerged as a fervent critic of Wells Fargo, Labor Secretary Thomas Perez says OSHA is reviewing the entire docket of both closed and open Wells Fargo cases since 2010. Perez says the reviews include an examination of OSHAs coordination with other federal agencies. One of those complaints may involve Claudia Ponce de Leon, a former Wells Fargo branch manager in Pomona, Calif. She filed a whistleblower case with OSHA in 2011 after she was fired. Whitman says the complaint crossed his desk briefly, before it was transferred to another investigator. That complaint has been pending for five years. Ponce de Leons attorney, Yosef Peretz, says the agency finally contacted him last year to arrange an interview with his client. I gave them a date and a time that they requested, Peretz said. Never heard back. Guitron says Wells Fargo and many layers of government let down Wells Fargo whistleblowers. Now, she has a message for OSHA. I would tell them, do their job, she said. Its not fair just to ignore peoples cases like my case. If you have a tip for the Investigative Unit, email theunit@nbcbayarea.com or call 888-996-TIPS. Classes at a San Francisco high school are set to resume Wednesday after four students were shot just outside the campus, prompting a lockdown and sending waves of panic through local parents and students. Police continue to search for four suspects tied to the shooting reported Tuesday afternoon at the parking lot of June Jordan School for Equity, which is located in the city's Excelsior District. Police said at least three students were shot outside as school was dismissed for the day at around 3:15 p.m. A fourth victim, a male student, walked into the Bayview Police Station in San Francisco hours later with a gunshot wound. All four were students at the school. All four students are 15 years old.[[397631621, C]] Four male suspects, unaffiliated with the school, approached the campus on foot targeting a student for reasons that are currently unclear, police said. One of the suspects pulled out a gun and began shooting at two male students and a female student, who suffered a life-threatening injury. All three students ran back into the school after they were shot. They were transported to San Francisco General Hospital. San Francisco police search for suspects after four students were shot outisde a school Tuesday. The four suspects, who were all wearing black hoodies, were last seen running away on Brazil Avenue, police said. San Francisco Unified School District officials said the school immediately went on lockdown after the gunshots were fired because of fears of an active shooter. The lockdown was lifted after the scene was declared safe by police shortly after 4 p.m. Parents and grandparents came rushing to the school looking for their students after the scene was cleared.[[397547931, C]] During the initial response, a swarm of police squad cars responded to reports of shots fired at Brazil and La Grande avenues. Students were too shaken to speak on camera to NBC Bay Area, but said they heard what sounded like fireworks right when school was letting out. Dozens of students came running back into the school. Police said classes at June Jordan High School will resume Wednesday and counselors will be available for students. Extra security will also be on campus Wednesday, school officials said. The scene where the shooting took place, 325 La Grande Ave., is the address for the June Jordan High School as well as City Arts And Tech High School. There is a new push in San Francisco to end all business ties with its hometown bank, Wells Fargo. Two San Francisco supervisors are calling for the city to end its relationship with the bank due to a recent scandal involving unauthorized customer accounts. The push comes after the state treasurer severed its ties with Wells Fargo earlier this month. The supervisors also announced plans to investigate all banks after the Wells Fargo scandal. "The city of San Francisco can no longer afford to do business with the predatory culture of Wells Fargo," Supervisor John Avalos said. Charlie Batte, who lives in San Francisco's Bayview District, said she almost lost her home in foreclosure and claims Wells Fargo made it difficult to refinance her home. Batte said she wrote to the district attorney and supervisors to see if they can help. Avalos claims Wells Fargo has a history of loan discrimination against African Americans and Hispanics. "We're doing what we can, but it's going to take state and federal regulations to be held accountable," Avalos said. In response to Avalos, Wells Fargo released a statement saying it is committed to restoring public trust. "We have already provided full refunds to customers we identified as having accounts that could have been unauthorized," Wells Fargo said in a statement. More than 300 people flocked to a so-called Trump teach-in at the University of California, Berkeley on Tuesday. Berkeley is known as the birthplace of free speech, but some students are miffed. They have accused professors of violating the universitys policy about political activity on campus by participating in the event at Sproul Plaza. What is to be done about the problem that is Donald J. Trump? one professor asked the crowd. Professors talked about issues, including Islamophobia and immigration, while members of the student-run Berkeley College Republicans staged a counter-demonstration that featured signs criticizing Hillary Clinton. Our club feels it is a gross misuse of university resources for a professor to use the prestige of their university title to stage this event, said Claire Chiara of Berkeley College Republicans. On Oct. 10, university chancellor Nicholas Dirks sent an email to the campus community, reminding them that UC Berkeleys resources and that includes employees should not be used to campaign for or against presidential candidates during work hours. NBC Bay Area reached out UC Berkeley officials for a response on students allegations that professors violated university policy. The response was that they did not, as long as they were on their time and not supposed to be teaching or holding office hours. But teachers argue that Tuesdays sit-in was not a political rally. It was designed to shed light on some of the critical issues at stake in the Nov. 8 election. I would classify this as a Trump teach-in about the issues surrounding democracy, said professor Leigh Raiford, who chairs the African-American Studies Department. "People who don't have a platform like undocumented [immigrants] or Muslims or blacks we need to hear [their] issues." Student Kayleen Zamudio agreed. "It was a teach in about Trump but you made your own decision," she said. A Mexican judge who handled legal challenges from drug kingpins, including Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, was gunned down in front of his home in Mexico City on Monday, Reuters reported. Judge Vicente Bermudez was fatally shot in the head, authorities said, and President Enrique Pena Nieto quickly announced his attorney general is investigating the shooting. Bermudez has handled overseen trials and legal challenges in the state of Mexico, outside the capital, since March. Miguel Trevino, ex-leader of the Zetas cartel, is jailed in Mexico's maximum security Altiplano prison, and Guzman was housed there before being transferred to a prison near the U.S. border. While the presidential candidates debate in Las Vegas Wednesday, a fleet of taco trucks has lined up to create a "wall" outside the Trump International Las Vegas hotel, NBC News reported. It's a response to Donald Trump's pledge to build a wall separating the U.S. and Mexico, and a cheeky reaction to a Trump supporter's warning in early September that the unchecked expansion of Latino culture in the U.S. would lead to "taco trucks on every corner." (Many viewers welcomed that notion.) Over 35 taco trucks were already helping to register eligible voters on Tuesday, Nevada's voter registration deadline, according to American Bridge PAC. "We did not come up with the idea for the wall, Donald Trump came up with building the wall," said Yvanna Cancela, political director of the Culinary Workers Union 226 in Las Vegas. "We are all coming together to make sure that Donald Trump never becomes president." Former Late Show host David Letterman was in Chicago Tuesday to attend a fundraiser for Rep. Tammy Duckworths Senate campaign. Duckworth, Rep. Jan Schakowsky and former Illinois state Sen. Bill Marovitz were all in attendance for the event, which was held at Chicagos Carnivale restaurant. Marovitz co-owns the West Loop hotspot. Tickets for the event ranged in price from $100 per person to $5,000 for the VIP reception, according to the Chicago Sun-Times Lynn Sweet. Letterman has been especially critical of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump this campaign season. Trump was a frequent guest on Lettermans show before the host retired last year. In an interview with the New York Times earlier this month, Letterman referred to Trump as a big blowhard billionaire. If I had a show, I would have gone right after him, Letterman told the Times. I would have said something like, Hey, nice to see you. Now, let me ask you: what gives you the right to make fun of a human who is less fortunate, physically, than you are? And maybe thats where it would have ended. Because i dont know anything about politics, Letterman added. Duckworth faces Republican incumbent Sen. Mark Kirk in the November election. Kirk disavowed Trump in June, pulling his tacit endorsement of the divisive billionaire. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is in Chicago Wednesday to attend a pair of campaign events for Sen. Mark Kirk and Rep. Bob Dold. Romney, who was easily defeated by President Barack Obama in the 2012 presidential election, is headling a fundraiser for fellow Republican Kirk at the Chicago Club Wednesday. Kirk is locked in a tight Senate race with Democratic Rep. Tammy Duckworth. Tickets for the event range in price from $250 per individual to $2,700 to be a top sponsor, according to the Chicago Sun-Times Lynn Sweet. The former Republican presidential nominee will also attend a fundraiser for Rep. Bob Dold in Lake Forest Wednesday. Dold will face former Democratic Rep. Brad Schneider, who the congressman unseated in 2014. Three people are facing misdemeanor charges after a woman was stabbed during a domestic fight with her sister Monday night in the South Side Gresham neighborhood. Taijah McKinney, 21, was fighting with her sister, 25-year-old Jessica Foster, about 11:40 p.m. in the 7600 block of South May, when McKinney was stabbed in the left cheek, according to Chicago Police. She was taken in good condition to Holy Cross Hospital, police said. Foster, of the 6600 block of South Oakley, was charged with simple assault, and resisting or obstructing a peace officer, both misdemeanors, police said. McKinney, of the 7600 block of South May, was charged with two misdemeanor counts of battery causing bodily harm, police said. A third person, 46-year-old Marvin McKinney, was charged with one misdemeanor count of resisting or obstructing a peace officer. All three are next scheduled to appear in court Nov. 7. There's one moment the parents of twin boys who were once attached at the head can't wait for after their sons' historic separation surgery -- to see them in a bed side by side. Christian McDonald, the father of the boys, told CNN he's "so excited and anxious to see that moment." McDonald's 13-month-old sons, Jadon and Anias, were separated following 16 hours of surgery at New York's Montefiore Medical Center last week. The twins survived the critical 72 hours following the surgery and are now in stable condition. According to the report, Anias suffered a seizures over the weekend, but those have since been brought under control. Meanwhile, Jadon still has not moved his left side, something doctors predicted could happen following the surgery but say isn't concerning yet. Christian McDonald has yet to hold either of his sons post-surgery, saying they are too fragile, but reportedly said Jadon will "squeeze your fingers and not let go, on his right side." Nicole McDonald, the mother of the Illinois twins, has reluctantly documented her family's experience as her sons faced their most difficult surgery yet. But if supporters of her family read anything she hopes, it's her message to them and the doctors who saved her children. In a lengthy and emotional Facebook update on Saturday, the mother shared that as she and her husband "emerged from the depths of the hospital" last week, they were forced to face the fact that their family's private battle has quickly become a national story. "For those of you who don't know us, it might be interesting to note that we do not have TV or Internet access at home," she wrote. "We don't get to watch the news on a regular basis and we have literally spent the last 36 hours at the boys' bedside or waiting for updates from the doctors in the Caregiver Support Center at Montefiore." McDonald noted that at first, she didn't want to take her family's unique situation public, but agreed because they wanted to help show the medical miracle that would soon separate her sons. "Our biggest desire was to show how brilliant the team at Montefiore has been and to give the hospital the credit it deserves," she wrote. "The real heroes of this story are the people who have put countless hours, days and months into the success of today." McDonald had been sharing updates on the surgery as the boys returned to their room one by one. Hours later, McDonald wrote that the brothers had been "finally reunited." "How surreal. I now realize that I always saw you as separate because seeing you like this is really nothing different to me," McDonald wrote. "When I stand at your bedside, Jadon, it's almost as if Anias is still there. Anias, when I leaned over you I protected my hair from Jadon. But the view is still the same. This is how I always saw you. I love you so much. Now it's time to step forward into the new chapter of our life. I'm ready to fight and I know you are too." McDonald and her husband first found out they were having twins during a routine ultrasound when she was 17 weeks pregnant. But hours after learning the big news, the couple was called back for a repeat ultrasound, a call she said is "every pregnant mother's nightmare." "It was on that day, in that dark room, that our whole life changed," McDonald wrote in a GoFundMe page for the family. "I was informed that I was pregnant with craniopagus twins, which in normal language means twins who are joined at the head. I was given the option on many occasions to abort my precious babies. I kindly declined. I had heard their heart beats...they spent their life listening to mine. It was my job as their mother to give them life and I decided that I would give everything up, if need be, to do so. Miracles happen...and there is one (really, two :)) unfolding before our very eyes." McDonald went into labor on Sept. 9, 2015 and an emergency c-section was performed at Rush University Medical Center. While the babies started having some health problems shortly after birth, things quickly "went downhill" for the McDonald family. "Anias started having trouble breathing," McDonald wrote. "Because of the way he was positioned in my belly, his chin was against his chest and his jaw couldn't grow. His airway was also constricted. As he required more oxygen for day to day life, his breathing got worse and worse, until eventually he was back on oxygen." Months later, the couple met with a specialist in hopes of successfully separating the twins. Fast forward to October, the babies have undergone their final surgery, but their most difficult. The family's GoFundMe page had raised $161,161 as of Friday, exceeding their goal of $100,000 to aid with the babies' medical care. McDonald thanked those who helped her family during the trying time, saying "each and every one of you is a hero in your own way." Most recently, McDonald said the boys are stable, but "there are some things happening that I can't really find the words to explain or allow myself to dwell on." "Every thing changes from hour to hour and we just have to remember that the brain responds in crazy ways when it's been cut through," she wrote. "We still cannot hold the boys because they are intubated so we sit at their bedside and hold their hands, give them massages and kiss their faces. When I have a better understanding of their actual status, I will do my best to update. Thank you so much for your heartfelt support." Nearly 8,000 students will return to classes Wednesday after teachers at Chicagos largest charter school reached a deal to avert a strike. Negotiations lasted through the night Tuesday between teachers and support staff with UNO Charter School Network fighting for a new contract, finally reaching a tentative agreement after 3 a.m. Wednesday. Although classes will be remain in session at the charter networks 15 schools, UNOs CEO Richard Rodriguez said both sides still have more work to do, including a $1.5 million shortfall to address before finalizing a contract. "I appreciate the fact that they've come and they've worked with us to get through this and I look forward to working collectively with anyone who would like to help us ensure that educational funding is allocated appropriately," Rodriguez said. Rodriguez said they will be looking into getting some of the TIF funds that Chicago Public Schools agreed to in the Chicago Teachers Union contract last week. "After much discussion, we all agreed the most important thing is to keep schools open while we investigate ways to bridge that gap," Rodriguez said. In the meantime, the two-year deal that was agreed upon gives 3 percent raises to support staff and caps class size at 32 students. It also creates a shorter work day and shortens the school year by five days. Four people are in custody after a police pursuit of a stolen vehicle in New Haven Tuesday afternoon. According to New Haven police, a stolen Honda CRV out of West Hartford crashed into 904 Quinnipiac Ave. following a police pursuit. Three men were taken into custody, Officer David Hartman confirmed, but a fourth person fled from the scene. The U.S. Coast Guard assisted in searching for the fourth suspect, who police believed to have jumped into the Quinnipiac River Marsh. The fourth suspect is now in custody. None of the suspects have been identified at this time. Police were looking into the possibility that the vehicle was involved in a fatal shooting in the city around the same time, but the cases do not appear to be connected. Open enrollment for health-care is about to begin, and sorting through insurance benefits can be downright confusing with all those plans and options. It has gotten more complicated," said ConnectiCare Retail Operations Director Laurie Blier. Not everyone is comfortable getting answers over the phone or online, she added. Its very personal. If someones sick in your family, its your spouse, its your child, its yourself. So, you want to make sure you understand and you can make the right decisions," said Blier. Thats why the Connecticut-based insurance company ConnectiCare has opened up its first retail store, in Manchester. They really want to be able to have a face-to-face relationship with us," said ConnectiCare Senior Vice President David Gordon. However, its more than just a place to shop for health insurance. There's a multi-purpose room for meetings and group activities. We can have yoga classes, Tai Chi classes, sessions on how to eat healthy, how to cook healthy," explained ConnectiCare Retail Operations VP Gary Wolters. A sign saying "Be well," hangs on a wall near a health hallway, where starting next March a nurse will give voluntary personal health assessments to customers. Shell also get information from our equipment that shows their body mass index, blood pressure, cholesterol, and advise them if theres an issue and get them to make an appointment with their provide," Wolters explained. The store has gotten positive feedback since it opened last Friday. We had one customer that came in when we first opened that said I could hug you and cry right now," Blier said. "This is much easier because they understand the question you're asking and then they'll look it up for you," added new customer Doug Gravelle of South Windsor. A Cheshire elementary school dismissed early Wednesday morning after several students that fell ill tested high for carbon monoxide. School officials said they learned Tuesday that several students from Highland Elementary School fell ill on a field trip. Some students had elevated levels of carbon monoxide in their systems. Some also reported diarrhea, which is not a symptom of carbon monoxide exposure. The Cheshire fire department, police department, Cheshire Public Schools and Cheshire's school transportation company Chesprocott all began working to find the source of the carbon monoxide. The school building tested safe for occupancy with no carbon monoxide detected but as a precaution and to continue testing, the school dismissed students early Wednesday Officials determined that a malfunctioning boiler was releasing carbon monoxide through a chimney, which was then drawn into the building through rooftop air handling units. The boiler was shut down so it can be repaired. School officials said the boiler undergoes regular routine maintenance and was last serviced in November 2015. According to school officials, some of the students reported viral symptoms, so the school will also disinfect rooms those students were in to prevent the spread of any illness. The students that fell ill had been on a field trip around the time the symptoms began. The Institute for American Indian Studies in Washington, Conn. confirmed that Highland students visited their facility and that there were no reported issues during the trip. They had no further comment. Every member of our team is confident that the situation has been fully remedied and that the school is now safe for occupancy. Therefore, Highland School will be in session tomorrow. Moreover, we have inspected the bus which transported students and are certain that neither thebus, nor the location of the trip had anything to do with this outbreak. We have sent students to The Institute for American Indian Studies on school trips many times and fully intend to continue to do so. This includes the field trip we have scheduled to return there tomorrow, wrote Superintendent Jeff Solan in an email to parents. Students were dismissed at 10:55 a.m. Students that parents could not pick up were taken to the Dodd Middle School so officials can continue to test the Highland Elementary building. Plainville police have arrested a man accused of abusing his girlfriends 2-year-old son. According to Lt. Nicholas Mullins, Jacob Matthews, 20, of Maple Street in Plainville, faces charges of risk of injury to a minor, cruelty to persons, third-degree assault and disorderly conduct. Police said the childs mother told them on October 6 she was concerned Matthews, who lived in her home, may be physically abusing her son. Matthews is not the childs father. Officers reported the child had bruises on his face, head, hips, and genitalia. Connecticut Childrens Medical Center determined the injuries were consistent with child abuse, police said. Matthews was arrested Tuesday and is currently held on a $75,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear in Bristol Superior Court on October 19. The child is currently under Department of Children and Families care. At first glance, Farnam Courts, a public housing complex in New Haven, looks abandoned, but people do live there, despite garbage strewn around the property. As children play in the complex playground, they're careful to avoid the broken glass sprinkled throughout. "That is what they are doing, playing in the trash," Farnam Courts resident Michelle said. People said the trash has been a problem since 2015, when the Elm City Communities/New Haven Housing Authority - which runs the subsidized complex - started boarding up units and relocating people to new housing as they plan to build a new Farnam Courts. "I done seen weed baggies. I done seen needles before. Broken glass," said New Haven resident Dayshawna, whose family lives in the complex. Those still waiting to be moved to temporary housing said staff members rarely clean anymore and it can get worse than its current state. The NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters caught up with some Elm City Communities staffers hauling away furniture, but leaving the trash. The staffers wouldnt explain why they hadnt been cleaning, but advised getting an answer from the office located at the complex. An Elm City Communities employee inside the office onsite said they do clean, but told NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters to visit their main office for more explanation. NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters reached out to the executive offices of the Elm City Communities/New Haven Housing Authority and they responded in an email: "The grounds at Farnam Courts are maintained on a daily basis Monday through Friday," the statement says. But the piles of garbage scattered about told a different story, as did residents. NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters sent photos of the mounting garbage collecting about the grounds to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which funds the subsidized housing at Farnam Courts at 177 Franklin Street. An HUD spokeswoman responded within minutes and results were seen less than 24 hours later. "We do not want our residents to be subjected to living in those conditions," Rhonda Siciliano said. "That is why we took immediate action upon learning of the condition out there. To work with the housing authority to ensure that it was addressed." Siciliano said a crew worked overtime into the night to clean up the mess. However, when the NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters visited the property after it had been cleaned, a young man was observed breaking a bottle and leaving the glass on the ground near the playground. "Obviously not everyone thinks of home in the same way," Siciliano said. "We have maintenance staff there to ensure that properties are kept clean and safe for the residents there." However, some residents of Farnam Courts do their own cleaning. "We see trash, we are going to pick up," said a Farnam Courts resident, Larry. "We don't want to just leave it there. We found Larry, his 12-year-old son and 16-year old neighbor, cleaning the area in front of their home before Elm City Communities finally got around to it. Siciliano said she will continue to follow up and ensure that this community is cleaned regularly. She added that if a person lives in subsidized housing and their local Housing Authority isn't keeping the property clean, they can reach out to HUD directly on their website. The Elm City Communities/New Haven Housing Authority said its unclear when the remaining residents at the old Farnam Courts will be moved to interim housing. New Haven Mayor Toni Harp and officials with Elm City Communities had a ground breaking ceremony on Wednesday at the new Farnam Courts. Officials with the agency said residents of the old Farnam Courts will have an option to move to the newly built complex once it is completed, or they can use housing vouchers to live in other places. A Vernon police officer was injured while trying to take a person into custody on Tuesday night. Officers responded to the Walgreens at 188 Union Street around 7:30 p.m. to deal with a situation involving a mother and her adult son. The woman told officers that her 30-year-old son was mentally unstable and was off his medications. The pair were traveling from Natick, Massachusetts to Connecticut and had made a brief stop at the Walgreens when the son took his mother's car keys and cell phone, according to police. When police tried to detain the man, he threw one of the officers to the ground and ran across the street, police said. He was tasered and continued to fight with police, biting the same officer on the hand, according to police. The man was eventually taken into custody and charged with assault on a police officer and breach of peace. He was held on $50,000 bond and was scheduled to be in court on Wednesday. The officer was taken to Rockville General Hospital to be treated for his injuries and later released. Nine people were sent to the hospital early Wednesday morning, following a wrong-way car crash on I-84 in West Hartford. According to State Police, at around 1:15 a.m. a Toyota Corolla was travelling north in the southbound lanes of Route 9 from Kensington to I-84. Police say the car continued on to travel east in the westbound lanes of I-84 in West Hartford where it struck three vehicles near Exit 40. Nine people were involved in the crash and were sent to the hospital for evaluation, with some reporting minor injuries, according to Police. All four involved vehicles were towed away from the scene due to disabling damage. As a result of the crash, the area around Exit 40 was closed for about one hour with West Hartford Fire and Police assisting Connecticut State Police. The highway has since re-opened. Police say the accident remains under investigation. Donald Trump isnt letting up on his claims that a rigged system threatens his victory on Election Day, although repeated investigations have found no evidence of widespread fraud at the polls. As he and Hillary Clinton prepare for their last debate of the presidential race, he continues to tweet about fraud at polling places and about "a dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary." At a rally on Tuesday in Colorado, he again urged his supporters to watch the polls closely. "They even want to try and rig the election at the polling booths, where so many cities are corrupt, and voter fraud is all too common," Trump said. "And then they say, oh there's no voter fraud in our country, there's no voter fraud, no, no, there's no voter fraud. Take a look at St. Louis, take a look at Philadelphia, take a look at Chicago." The Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law the publisher of Justin Levitts widely quoted study, "The Truth About Voter Fraud" calls fraud at the polls "vanishingly rare," so unusual that it does not come close to what would be needed to rig an election. Levitt wrote in The Washington Post two years ago that he had found 31 allegations since 2000 of someone pretending to be someone else at the polls. More than 1 billion ballots were cast in that period in general and primary elections. The Carnegie-Knight News21 program -- made up of journalism students and graduates -- analyzed 2,068 alleged cases in 50 states in the decade before 2012 and could document only 10 instances of in-person voter impersonation. There were 491 cases of absentee ballot fraud and 400 cases of registration fraud out of 146 million registered voters. Another investigator, Lorraine Minnite, the author of the book "The Myth of Voter Fraud" and a professor of political science at Rutgers University in Camden, New Jersey, says the claim that voter fraud threatens American elections is "itself a fraud." "Its a rare occurrence," said Minnite, who has been studying voter fraud for 15 years. "I'm talking specifically about the kind of fraud that voters might commit, which really is mostly limited to misrepresenting their identity or misrepresenting their eligibility." President Barack Obama on Tuesday called Trump's attempt to discredit the election irresponsible. No serious person would suggest it was possible to rig U.S. presidential elections because they involve too many votes and are so decentralized, he said. "So I'd invite Mr. Trump to stop whining and go make his case to get votes," Obama said. Although Trump's running mate, Mike Pence, said on Tuesday that voter fraud was real in pockets of the country, other Republicans are refuting claims of a rigged election. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, a former Trump rival, said that there was no evidence for Trump's statements. "We have 67 counties in this state, each of which conduct their own elections," he said. "I promise you there is not a 67-county conspiracy to rig this election." Another Trump rival for the GOP nomination, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, strongly disagreed with Trump's claims. "To say that elections are rigged and all these votes are stolen, that's like saying we never landed on the moon, frankly, that's how silly it is," Kasich told CBS Wednesday. "No, I just, I don't think that's good for our country, for our democracy, and I don't believe that we have any massive fraud." Even Trump surrogate New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie pushed back, telling NBC News, "I'm convinced that the election will be a fair one and that the process will be one that will accepted by the American people." Here's a closer look at some allegations of voter fraud: Dead Man Voting Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, another Trump surrogate, said on CNN over the weekend that, "Dead people generally vote for Democrats rather than Republicans." In New York in 2002 and 2004, 2,600 dead voters were alleged to have cast ballots, based on a match of voter rolls to death records. No cases of fraud were substantiated, the Brennan Center says. Seven were found to be a result of a database mismatch or an accounting error. Even if all of the 2,593 remaining cases involved fraud, the rate would be 0.02 percent, the Brennan Center said. In New Jersey, Republican officials compared voter registration lists, Social Security death records and other public information to allege that 4,755 dead people had voted. "No follow-up investigation appears to document any substantiated cases, and no allegedly deceased voter voted in 2005," the Brennan Center says. And in Michigan, allegations of votes cast by 132 dead people in Detroit were challenged by the state's Republican secretary of state in 2006. The office said that 132 absentee ballots were mailed to voters who died in the weeks before Election Day, Minnite wrote in a 2007 study, "The Politics of Voter Fraud." Ninety-seven were never returned, 27 were returned before the voters' deaths a correction ignored by activists, Minnite said. Double Voting Allegations of double voting in New York can be found from elections in 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002 and possibly others, according to the Brennan Center. In 2004, between 400 and 1,000 voters were alleged to have voted both in New York and Florida, according to matches between New York and Florida voting rolls. The Brennan Center said it as aware of only two cases being substantiated. However, a 2013 New York City investigation of the city's Board of Election found systemic problems with accountability, transparency and dysfunction, including defects in the voters rolls, improper instructions that voters should "vote down the line" and a persistent failure to address ballot design issues. In New Jersey, 4,397 people were alleged to have voted twice and 6,572 who were registered in New Jersey and five other states: New York, Florida, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and South Carolina. The Brennan Center found that only eight cases were actually documented through signatures on poll books with at least five signatures appeared to match. If all eight cases were proved, the double voting rate would be 0.0002 percent, according to the Brennan Center. Other cases were alleged in New Hampshire in 2004 of voters listed multiple times on city rolls or of people voting from improper addresses. The Brennan Center says that of the 676,227 ballots cast in 2004 general election in New Hampshire, two invalid cases were substantiated and two others were still under investigation. Even of all four were substantiated, the rate would be 0.0006 percent. Voting by Non-citizens The Brennan Center says it found no documented cases in which non citizens intentionally registered to vote or voted knowing they were ineligible. In Washington state in 2004, documentation appears to show that two votes were cast by non citizens in King County, the center says. The rate: 0.0002 percent. Another example: In Hawaii in 2000, 553 apparent non citizens were alleged to have registered. Of those 144 documented that they had become citizens and at least 61 asked to cancel their registration. Others were stopped at the polls. The students participating in the Carnegie-Knight News21 program found 56 cases of non-citizens voting. Voter Impersonation The Carnegie-Knight News21 program, as part of an investigation into the need for photo IDs, found 10 cases of voter impersonations -- in Alabama, California, Colorado, Kansas, New Hampshire and Texas. There were 146 million registered voters in the United States at the time. "All were isolated and showed no coordinated efforts to change election results," the students wrote in 2012. Dogs at the polls The Brennan Center found two cases of ballots submitted in the name of a dog -- one from "Duncan MacDonald" in 2006 and 2007, although it notes that the ballot was labeled VOID and signed with a paw print; and one from "Raku Bowman" in 2003. The second was counted by volunteers in local elections in Venice, California. The NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters have learned that Gov. Dan Malloy is requesting that the Federal Emergency Management Agency get involved with the crumbling foundation problem in Hartford, Tolland and Windham counties. In a letter to FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate, Malloy asks the agency to establish a field office in northeastern Connecticut to conduct a preliminary damage assessment to determine the extent and impact of what he describes as approximately 34,000 homes in the area with foundations that could be at risk of crumbling and actually collapsing. The governor explains that potentially tens of thousands of Connecticut residents are at risk. He notes that while the state, municipalities and a coalition of insurance companies have been collaborating on a strategy to address this problem, federal assistance and the expertise of FEMA are critical. In April 2016, the state reached out to FEMA, but at the time the agency felt the crumbling foundation issue did not appear to constitute an emergency or major disaster. Since that time, a state investigation concluded what the NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters reported nearly a year earlier, that a chemical reaction involving a naturally-occurring mineral called pyrrhotite causes the in deterioration. Now the state believes this is a natural disaster which will require assistance from FEMA to solve what could be a $1 billion problem. Governor Malloy, in collaboration with Lt. Governor Nancy Wyman, who has undertaken a leading role on this issue on behalf of the administration, continues to work with the various stakeholders involved in this issue including homeowners, municipal and state officials, the states federal delegation, and the insurance industry on this problem. While none of us can fully grasp the full weight this disaster has placed upon these homeowners, it is vital that we all come together to assist them, Malloy wrote. Dallas County Schools announced Tuesday it has hired a new interim chief financial officer as the operation attempts to regain public trust in the wake of a school bus driver ticket scandal. An NBC 5 investigation revealed hundreds of bus drivers ran red lights, and district employees used $80,000 of taxpayer money to pay the tickets. The bus drivers were never punished until NBC 5 Investigates asked why. Now, 13 school bus drivers have been fired and 229 will be suspended at DCS, which transports students for about a dozen North Texas school districts, including the Dallas Independent School District. Tuesday, DCS said Alan King will serve as its interim CFO. King is a former chief auditor at Dallas ISD and served as interim superintendent there. In a statement, DCS said, "We could not have selected a better person for this job at this time." King was widely praised as a trustworthy watchdog at Dallas ISD. His job will be to help DCS put policies and procedures in place and strengthen financial reporting in the wake of the scandal. At a board meeting Tuesday DCS Superintendent Rick Sorrels outlined steps he's taken already to address concerns: demoting two senior managers, and requesting personal reports going forward when drivers are ticketed. For nearly three years DCS paid the tickets and never notified the bus drivers responsible. Some of the fired drivers argue the delay in notifying them robbed them of their right to challenge the tickets or change their driving behavior until it was too late. "Three years. That right there makes it wrong. Three years, you notify a man," said Vernon Johnson, who was fired after DCS told him last week he had accumulated three red light running tickets over three years. Johnson said his firing is unfair because he got no warning. DCS didn't follow its policy didn't tell him he was accumulating red light tickets until he had three, the number that results in firing. Johnson and other former bus drivers are filing grievances demanding their jobs back. "I'm not going to take this laying down at all. I'm going to fight it 'til the end," Johnson said. Two unions that represent DCS drivers are assisting drivers with the grievance process. "Something needs to happen because they were not notified. They did not have the opportunity for due process, because they didn't know. If you don't know you have a certain behavior, you can't correct it," said Angela Davis, president of the NEA-Dallas, which represents about 500 DCS drivers. More than 100 of the violations uncovered in the NBC 5 investigation involved one DCS bus running past the extended stop sign on another school bus. Tuesday, the DCS board formally approved a new policy to terminate any driver who does this after just the first offense. Late Tuesday, DCS released new video that appeared aimed at deflecting some attention from their own drivers. The video shows a Dallas Area Rapid Transit bus running the stop sign on a DCS school bus. DART responded, calling the driver's actions "unacceptable" and said the video will be used for driver training. An autopsy has confirmed that a student who died after a party at a Texas A&M University fraternity had an accidental drug overdose. A College Station Police Department statement issued Wednesday says 19-year-old Anton Gridnev of Frisco died of an accidental overdose of several different types of opiates after the Aug. 20 party at the Sigma Nu fraternity. Warrants on drug-related charges were issued for at least 10 A&M students, and national Sigma Nu officials suspended the fraternity's A&M chapter. Gridnev was reportedly found unresponsive and not breathing during an all-night party at the fraternity house. After someone noticed Gridnev's condition, police were called. Officers arrived at about 4:40 a.m. and noted the party was ongoing. CPR was performed and Gridnev was transported to College Station Medical Center where he was pronounced dead. After finding illegal narcotics at the home, College Station police obtained a search warrant and arrested four people for possession of illegal drugs and cited three others for possession of drug paraphernalia. Later, six other fraternity members were arrested on warrants ranging from possession of marijuana to the manufacture and delivery of a controlled substance. The Texas A&M chapter of Sigma Nu was founded in 1985. Gridnev graduated with honors from Heritage High School, said Frisco Independent School District administrators. He was a commended National Merit Scholar and competed on the academic decathalon team. In a statement to NBC 5, Heritage High School Principal Mark Mimms said, "Anton Gridnev was a 2015 honor graduate of Heritage High School. He was a valued member of our Academic Decathlon team and was an integral member of that team's success. Anton had a lasting impact on the teachers who worked with him and he had a bright future ahead of him. Our faculty and staff feels the loss of one of our Coyote family." Gladewater police Chief Robert Vine is among millions of classic car enthusiasts who dream of restoring an old ride to its former glory. The Tyler Morning Telegraph reports he knows many vintage vehicles are worth preserving, as they are well designed and carefully crafted with old school techniques and pride. So when the idea dawned that perhaps an old car could be repurposed to represent the department in public, the chief's mental wheels started spinning. Was it possible to transform an antique into a fully functioning patrol unit? "It had to be functional," Vine said. "Our goal was, for one Saturday a month, to have it downtown. We also wanted to have it in parades and at special events in our community." The police department's journey from brainstorming to buying could be described as both simple and complex. If a suitable retro ride could be located, it needed to offer more than just a pretty grill. Police hoped to find a car for downtown security and a fun conversation starter between cops and curious minds. But no tax dollars could be harmed in the process. Police started talking about the idea, and found that many people liked the idea of combining old and new. Gladewater is, after all, the antique capital of East Texas. McKaig Chevrolet Buick and private donors stepped up with offers of support, giving the department some cash flow, about $11,000, to do a little shopping. "We wanted something from the '40s or '50s," Vine said. "We started looking on line and saw a possibility it was out of Missouri and the owner only drove it occasionally." On the police radar: a reasonably priced, four-door, mostly original 1951 Chevy Deluxe, a monster of a car that offered an elegant style and top shelf comfort. It featured smooth lines, a pristine interior, a great engine and a solid body adorned with gleaming chrome. The exterior needed attention, but it was primarily cosmetic. Apparently, there was instant attraction. A deal was struck and the rest, as they say, is history. "It was exactly what we had been wanting," the chief said. "It's a great car. You just don't find them in this condition every day." Acquiring the unit was the first of many steps expected to unfold over the next few months. The car, dubbed Unit 53, has a new station to call home, but it still needs work. Police envision the faded gray-green former family car transformed into a spiffy, black and white, old school squad car, but that type of work can be expensive. Kilgore College auto body instructor Joel Laws admits he jumped at the opportunity to volunteer his services. He's a veteran paint and body expert, who recognizes the benefit of giving his students real world experience. And in this case, the fruits of their free labor will become a piece of Gladewater's history, to be enjoyed for generations to come. "It's in great condition," Laws said. "You're not going to find an original car any better than this one. This is a great project for our students." Police Capt. Michael Kirkwood volunteered for transport duty, driving the cruiser windows rolled down from Gladewater to Kilgore without issue. He gives the experience two thumbs up. "It floats," he said. "I'd never driven anything that old, but I really liked it. It's just a big tank, but it runs and drives really smooth." Kilgore auto body student Ethan McKamie, a resident of Gladewater, is among those assisting with the car's transformation. He and others appear eager to explore the rolling piece of history. "It feels pretty good to help because I get to see it around town and say, 'Hey, I worked on that,'" McKamie said. "I like the idea of working on a vehicle to help people out." Student Nick Flippo agreed, adding, "I think it's a gorgeous car. My uncle owned one, so I've seen them, but not a lot of people have them." Laws, the instructor, said his students are to spend the next several weeks dismantling, cleaning, repairing, painting and reassembling the car. Components that cannot be salvaged will be replaced, while others such as radios and siren will be added. Police already found a bubble strobe light, still in the box, to mount on the hood. Authorities hope to raise about $1,500 more to cover incidental costs associated with bringing the car into service. To learn more, contact the department at 903-845-2166. "I think this is something our community will be proud to have on display," Vine said. "Gladewater is known for our antiques." Recommendations from a special commission to fight homelessness in Dallas include $50 to $75 million spent over the next five years to add at least 1,000 units of permanent supportive housing. The commission was appointed by Mayor Mike Rawlings in May after a surge in homeless encampments in the city this year. "I have asked for this commission to give us a template to follow as elected officials to try to implement and fund against," Rawlings said. After five months of work, the commission met for the last time Tuesday before publishing a final report. It found about 10,000 people are homeless for at least a part of each year and 3,700 homeless students are enrolled in the Dallas Independent School District. The city has about 2,000 shelter beds and most of them are full each night. There are now at least 50 homeless encampments around Dallas, according to the commission's preliminary draft report. The recommendations include homeless prevention programs, mental health and substance abuse treatment and a substantial increase in permanent supportive housing to be available for short term occupancy by homeless people. "They came from the nationwide experts who have a track record of success on these issues," said commission member Anne M. Johnson. An additional 1,000 permanent supportive housing units are suggested within the next five years, 70 percent of them leased from existing landords, 30 percent new construction for the homeless. There's a goal of leasing at least 300 apartments in 2017. Members said most of the cost could be covered by federal housing money but up to $25 million could be sought from Dallas taxpayers in a future bond referendum. The idea of a Dallas restaurant tax for the homeless was also suggested. But the commission also found about 1,100 vouchers worth about $8 million are going unused in Dallas, at least partly because of uncooperative landlords. "Shame on us, for not figuring out how to use that $8 million the right way," Rawlings said. Ricky Redd, the only commission member who was previously homeless himself, said he has a friend with a voucher but landlords refuse to accept it. "He said he's tried 40 apartments and they have turned him down," said Redd. The former Dawson State Jail is being studied as a possible homeless shelter. Dallas County commissioners voted Tuesday to investigate the option of acquiring the building on Commerce Street from the state of Texas. Mayor Rawlings said another follow up from the homeless commission work should be a new management agency to better coordinate joint programs between the city of Dallas, Dallas County and social service agencies. "How do we create this entity? How do we then make sure that you as providers, you as citizens, you as neighbors, make sure that there's a voice in that, as well?" Rawlings said. Some homeless commission members have complained of too little focus on immediate solutions. After the final meeting Tuesday, member Jim Burton said he will continue researching other potential buildings that could be used as shelters and alternative locations that could be used as homeless camps right now. "We're looking to get a public encampment where we can provide restrooms, showers and safety for the people, and also help the community because there's a lot of effect on the community from the encampments," Burton said. "Not everybody wants to be inside and if we can provide a safe place for the city and for the homeless person, I think we've got a win on both sides." The city of Dallas plans to close the largest existing camp under Interstate 30 at Haskell Avenue by Oct. 25. Police said they need the public's help finding a man who fatally struck a pedestrian in Dallas Oct. 11 and fled the scene. [[397558231,C]] Dallas police said the man was speeding in the 2700 block of East Ledbetter Drive and failed to yield the right of way to a pedestrian in the crosswalk at 9:52 p.m. The victim was was lifted into the air and into the driver's windshield before coming to rest several feet away, according to police. The victim died at the scene. After the crash, police said the driver parked his car nearby and walked over to the victim. He then fled without providing aid. Police described the driver as black male, 21 to 24 years old and short with dread lock hair. His car was described as a white Ford Crown Victoria with damage to the front left headlight and a broken windshield. Dallas police asked that anyone with information about this incident call their Vehicle Crimes Unit at 214-670-5817. A Florida teenager severely beaten over the weekend was taken off life support and died Monday night, but police still don't know exactly how he died. Witnesses said the victim, identified as Roger Trindade, 15, was jumped by a group of teens. Winter Park Police Chief Michael Deal said Trindade was unconscious when officers found him. The boy was taken to a hospital, where he was put on life support. Authorities said Trindade was removed from life support Monday night. According to Deal, the boy showed little sign of trauma, and it's still unclear what caused his death. Police said they don't believe the incident was gang-related or racially-motivated. No arrests have been made, but police said they have identified multiple juvenile suspects, some of whom are students at Winter Park High School where the victim also attended. Read more on this story at WESH.com. President Barack Obama's half-brother says he doesn't agree with the decision by another half-brother to attend the final presidential debate as a guest of the Donald Trump campaign. Mark Obama Ndesandjo said, "I love my brothers, but no one member represents the Obamas." The Trump campaign said Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother Malik would be in the audience for the showdown Wednesday between Trump and Hillary Clinton. The three men share the same father but have different mothers. Ndesandjo is an American businessman who has lived in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen for about 15 years. In an email to The Associated Press, he said: "Others in my family and I do not support my brother Malik's position on Mr. Trump." Malik Obama supports Trump's candidacy. President Obama isn't losing sleep over Trump's plans. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Obama hasn't spent "a lot of time" considering whether Malik Obama will be in the audience Earnest said he hopes Malik Obama will do something "more fun" than just attend the debate in Las Vegas if he does show up. Earnest said Obama and his half-brother don't have much of a relationship. A manatee that was rescued off the coast of Cape Cod and later found to be pregnant has left Connecticut's Mystic Aquarium and got on a flight to move to SeaWorld Orlando in Florida. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service spokesman Charles Underwood told the Cape Cod Times the manatee will will undergo further rehabilitation before being released into the wild. The 800-pound pregnant female, dubbed "Washburn," was picked up in September in Nantucket Sound off Falmouth, Massachusetts, by the International Fund for Animal Welfare. The group said the animal was well out of its range and was rescued just before water temperatures dropped below 67 degrees -- too cold for it to survive. Underwood said the Manatee Rescue and Rehabilitation Partnership will decide where the animal will be released in Florida. A brush fire that began Tuesday night northwest of Los Angeles was 75-percent contained Wednesday morning as firefighters battled through the night. The fire burned about 28 acres near the San Fernando Valley community of Porter Ranch near the 12000 block of Tampa Avenue. The area burning was "very difficult" for ground crews to access, fire officials said. Helicopters were fighting the fire from overhead during the night. The fire was burning downhill due to 20-38 mph winds. Crews were making "great progress" and was expected to be fully contained by early Wednesday morning, according to the LA County Fire Department. However, Wednesday's low humidity, high daytime temperatures and northeast winds could be a disadvantage, said LAFD Capt. Daniel Curry. No structures were threatened and no injuries were reported. Firefighters were defending homes to the south and west of the fire. There were not reports of damage to residences. The Sesnon Fire was burning close to the site of a massive natural gas leak that was discovered by Southern California Gas employees last year. "We are aware of the fire at the Aliso Canyon storage facility. We are cooperating with first responders, including LAFD and LAPD, as they work to keep the community safe. The safety of first responders, the community and our employees is priority one," said SoCal Gas spokesman Chris Gilbridge. The cause of the fire was unknown. Two Jamaican nationals arrested in connection with a weekend mass shooting at a South Los Angeles party that left four people dead have been released from custody without charges being filed, authorities said Wednesday. Mowayne McKay, 33, and Deigo Reid, 25, were released from jail around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to sheriff's inmate records. The Los Angeles Police Department declined comment on the case. A spokeswoman for the District Attorney's Office called it an "ongoing investigation." The gunfire erupted about 12:30 a.m. Saturday in the area of Rimpau and Jefferson boulevards, where officers responded to a "shots fired" call at a birthday party attended by about 50 adults, said Lt. Chuck Springer of the LAPD's Southwest Station. The party was taking place at a private residence out of which the owner runs a catering business and, on Saturdays, operates an informal Jamaican eatery, authorities said. McKay and Reid were arrested Saturday morning by homicide detectives -- Reid at 2:50 a.m. and McKay at 4:50 a.m., according to sheriff's inmate records. They were found at area hospitals, where they had gone to be treated for gunshot wounds, and were booked on suspicion of murder at the Los Angeles Police Department's 77th Street Station. The men initially were held in lieu of $2 million bail each, but they were released with no bail posted, sheriff's inmate records show. Investigators said it appeared that a dispute -- possibly over a drug deal gone awry -- broke out between one man and two others, one of whom produced a handgun and fatally shot him. Immediately following the first shooting, shots were fired indiscriminately into the crowd, and there appeared to be some return fire from other party guests, according to police. A total of 15 people were shot -- nine males and six females. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics pronounced three victims dead at the scene. A fourth victim died at a hospital, said Los Angeles police Officer Irma Mota. The victims' names were being withheld by the coroner's office, which said there was a "security hold" on the case that prevented information from being released. Detectives from the LAPD's Criminal Gang Homicide Division have asked for the public's help in the investigation. Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call detectives David Dilkes or Isidro Soto at 323-786-5110. An 18-year-old reputed gang member who allegedly opened fire inside a burger restaurant in a Harbor City strip mall, killing the eatery's longtime owner and another man, is facing capital murder charges. Joey Alfred Mendoza is scheduled to be arraigned Nov. 16 at the Long Beach courthouse on two counts of murder stemming from the attack at Bob's Hamburgers last Wednesday morning that killed owner Charalambos Antonelos, 61, of San Pedro, and Louis Garcia, 23, of Wilmington. Detectives say Garcia was the target, and Antonelos was struck by stray gunfire. The murder charges, filed Monday, include the special circumstance allegations of multiple murders and murder carried out to further the activities of the defendant's "criminal street gang," along with an allegation that he personally and intentionally discharged a handgun. Prosecutors will decide later whether to seek the death penalty against Mendoza, who was arrested a day after the shooting. The defendant allegedly pulled out a handgun and fired several shots after approaching Garcia as he stood next to the restaurant's counter about 9:30 a.m. Garcia collapsed and died at the scene. Antonelos, who had been working behind the counter, was struck by a stray bullet and died at a hospital. Witnesses and police said the gunman's face was covered during the attack. "Harbor detectives identified the suspect through surveillance video, witness statements and gang intelligence,'' according to a statement released by the Los Angeles Police Department. Mendoza has remained behind bars since he was arrested about 1:45 a.m. last Thursday. An employee said Bob's Hamburgers had been operating for about 30 years, and distraught customers told reporters that the longtime owner was known for giving out free food to those in need. Police say a man bought a storage unit at an auction in New York City and found dozens of dead cats in two freezers. Officers responded to American Self Storage in the Queens neighborhood of Long Island City Monday evening. Police say one freezer had frozen cats stacked on top of each other. In the other, police say they were individually wrapped in paper and plastic bags. One cat had been skinned. About 40 cats were discovered. The nonprofit American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has taken the dead cats into its custody for necropsies. The tests can't be performed until the carcasses thaw out. Police are searching for an unidentified woman who originally rented the unit. The NYPD Animal Cruelty Squad is investigating. "Saddened deeply by the deaths of forty cats, American Self-Storage has made significant financial contributions to ASPCA shelters in Queens, Brooklyn, The Bronx, Staten Island and three NJ counties where American Self Storage facilities are located," the company said in a statement. "Self-storage companies do not examine the items which tenants store in their rented units, the way apartment landlords do not study each item which tenants bring into their rented rooms," the statement continued. "But we join in feeling the shock at the mistreatment of animals." What to Know Authorities arrested Shmurda in late 2014 after he left a recording studio near Radio City Music Hall An indictment charged him and more than 15 defendants with a variety of crimes including murder, attempted murder, assault and drug dealing If the case had gone to trial, Shmurda could have faced decades behind bars Bobby Shmurda, a rapper once on the rise thanks to a viral music video that popularized the "Shmoney dance," was sentenced to seven years in prison Wednesday after claiming he was railroaded into taking a guilty plea on charges he conspired with a violent drug gang. "I want to withdraw my plea," a defiant Shmurda said during his sentencing in a Manhattan courtroom. "I was forced by my attorney to take the plea. I was forced." New York state court Justice Abraham Clott denied the request and imposed the seven-year term that was agreed to as part of a plea deal that spared Shmurda from going to trial on multiple counts carrying penalties that could have put him behind bars for decades. The 22-year-old Shmurda, whose birth name is Ackquille Pollard, is best known for "Hot Boy," a gritty hit song with rhymes about gunplay. He and Chad "Rowdy Rebel" Marshall - another aspiring hip-hop artist who also pleaded guilty in the same case - gained notoriety with their performance in the "Shmoney dance" video, which has about 15 million YouTube views. Authorities arrested Shmurda in late 2014 after he left a recording studio near Radio City Music Hall, only days after he performed "Hot Boy" for a national television audience on "Jimmy Kimmel Live." Investigators found two handguns and a small amount of crack cocaine in a car in which he was riding, authorities said. An indictment charged Shmurda and more than 15 defendants with a variety of crimes including murder, attempted murder, assault and drug dealing. Shootings by the gang left one rival dead, injured an innocent bystander sitting on a folding chair outside a Brooklyn home and caused pandemonium outside a nightclub in Miami Beach, Florida, authorities said. The court papers alleged that Pollard once fired a gun toward a crowd of people outside a barbershop in Brooklyn. They also said he was present last year during a confrontation between rival drug gangs outside a Brooklyn courthouse where shots were fired. Authorities hope the convictions of Shmurda and others "bring greater security and stability to neighborhoods plagued by gun violence," Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget G. Brennan said Wednesday. "These individuals have acknowledged possessing guns and conspiring with others to possess and use guns against others. The 21 weapons seized during the investigation fueled violence at the heart of the case." In a jailhouse interview last year with The New York Times, Shmurda criticized his label, Epic Records, for not helping him pay his $2 million bail. Epic hasn't commented. He also claimed in another interview with the entertainment website Complex after his guilty plea in September that his case was a sham. "We had detectives lying, saying they seen us with guns in our hands, but when everything came back there was no DNA, no fingerprints, no nothing. ... We're black kids, these are white people with badges," he said. Shmurda's lawyer has said he could get enough credit for time served and good behavior "to be home in approximately 3 years and resume his remarkable career." A Wisconsin police officer's dashcam shows a very close call that was completely avoidable. Authorities say a pickup truck plowed into the back of a Hudson Police squad at highway speeds while it was on the side of the road. Luckily, the police officer was not in the vehicle at the time of impact. Police officer Hilary Lundberg was assisting a driver with a flat tire on the I-94 bridge Monday morning when the accident occurred. The squad was parked in the left lane when the pickup slammed into the back. Lundberg's dashcam video shows her backing away from her squad car, moments before the impact. The Ford Taurus squad flies past her at a high rate of speed, striking a concrete bridge railing just feet from the officer. The squad car then slides across four lanes of traffic before striking another concrete railing on the other side of the bridge. Read more from KARE.com here. With Halloween just days away, a swarm of bats could converge upon Miami Beach to help the city fight the spread of Zika. Commissioner Rosen Gonzalez has introduced a proposal that would use the winged mammals to eat the infected mosquitoes. The commission is set to vote on the plan Wednesday. Gonzalez says the move would be an environmentally friendly alternative to the controversial pesticide naled. She adds that "bats eat one thousand mosquitoes a day". "I'm not saying that it's the answer to Zika by any means, but it's a gesture of goodwill to the many people who were so upset about neurotoxins being sprayed in Miami Beach," said Gonzalez. The commissioner says after the city began its defense against Zika, many residents approached her and asked if the commission would consider using bats as a defense. The effort would lure bats to the city by building bat houses in the Zika zone. "There are not going to be bats flying all over the City of Miami Beach, but we might put a couple bat houses in some parks and some neighborhoods have already come to me and requested them," said Gonzalez. Miami-Dade County's decision to use naled stirred controversy in Miami Beach. Protesters rallied in front of City Hall for days. Even the city's mayor Phillip Levine said he was not comfortable with the use of naled. Commissioner Mike Greico said the aerial assault of mosquitoes could be a threat to everyone. With the mounting discontent over the use of naled, Gonzalez says she's optimistic and believes the bat proposal will be a popular project. Deputies say an Escambia County Sheriff's K-9, Alek, is recovering after an armed robbery suspect kicked, punched and choked the dog while fleeing authorities. The incident happened Sunday night near Pensacola. The sheriff's office posted to Facebook an update on Alek, saying that the K-9 is doing well. Investigators say 44-year-old Napoleon Bonapart Grandison now faces multiple charges, including battery on a law enforcement officer following the attack. Petr David Josek/AP An arrest report says Grandison was wearing a wig and bandanna mask when he robbed a Circle K at gunpoint. The Pensacola News Journal reports Alek the K-9 tracked Grandison to a nearby home. The arrest report says he pushed two deputies and attacked the dog. Grandison is being held on a $296,000 bond. Records don't indicate whether he has a lawyer. The former owner of two now-defunct South Florida "for profit" colleges is now facing charges for closing them without warning and leaving students and faculty with plenty of problems and questions. Ernesto Perez, 48, was charged with two misdemeanor counts of improper school closure after shutting down both Dade Medical College and the University of Southernmost Florida in October of 2015. Perez was booked into the Miami-Dade jail Wednesday, records showed. It was unknown if he's hired an attorney. Under state law, for profit schools must provide the states Commission for Independent Education at least 30 days in advance and provide a plan for students to finish their education or transfer records to another school. Students and faculty were sent an email one hour before Perez closed both schools informing them of the closure, authorities said. "Those students who placed their trust in Ernesto Perez and these two educational institutions, now have debts instead of degrees," Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement. "If the law had been followed and proper efforts taken to assist students, at least hope could remain alive. School employees, locked out of their work place without any advance notice, appear to have fared no better." Perez had run both schools since opening DMC and USMF in March and September of 2000, respectively. An armed thief who tried to rob some people in a Plantation park wound up dead when one of the would-be victims shot and killed him, police said. The incident happened around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday at Multi-Cultural Park on Northwest 43rd Avenue, Plantation Police officials said. According to police, three residents were sitting in the park when they were approached by two men who tried to rob them at gunpoint. One of the residents, who has a concealed weapons permit and was armed, shot one of the robbers, while the second suspect fled the scene, police said. The suspect who was shot died near the scene. His name wasn't released. Police said they're looking for the second suspect. Anyone with information is asked to call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. A man convicted of killing two 20-year-olds in 2002 is now working alongside the victims' families to drive home one message: never drink and drive. The mother of one of the victims, Renee Napier, shared the stage Tuesday with the man who took her daughter's life, Eric Smallridge. The pair are visiting schools in South Florida to talk to students about the irreversible consequences of drunk driving. They teamed up with Broward County Sheriff Fire Rescue to push the important message to students at Boyd Anderson High School. The presentation is part of the larger National Teen Driver Safety Week. Smallridge shared his story with teen students, "I had that Superman complex that's why I wear these t-shirts to every presentation I do because this was my mindset. I knew bad things happened to people, I just didn't think it was going to be me." Napier's daughter, Meagan, and her daughter's friend, Lisa, were killed when Smallridge, who was under the influence, crashed into the their car, causing them to plow into a tree. "If you're doing it, it can happen to you," said Smallridge. Napier started the Meagan Napier Foundation in honor of her daughter's life. Smallridge has traveled with Napier across the country touching the lives of students who know the pain drunk driving can cause. They bring with them the car Meagan and Lisa died in. "Nobody can win in this situation. The only way for us to win is for Meagan and Lisa to come back," said Napier. The partnership between Napier and her daughter's killer is a testament to the power of forgiveness and the positivity that can come from tragedy. "I've caused so much pain, so much strife by the bad choices I've made and I feel like this is an opportunity for me to help carry on Meagan and Lisa's legacy. One person died and multiple people were hurt after scaffolding fell from a high-rise building under construction in Miami's Brickell neighborhood Wednesday afternoon, officials said. The incident happened at a luxury high-rise near Southeast 14th Lane and Brickell Avenue. At least four people were injured, Miami police said. Miami Fire Rescue officials said there was a structural collapse at the Echo Brickell building, a 60-floor condominium. #BREAKING Pics sent to me where crews are responding to a structural collapse at Echo in Brickell. @nbc6 pic.twitter.com/dhrzijykkW Jamie Guirola (@jamieNBC6) October 19, 2016 Footage showed debris strewn across the road near the building and a heavily damaged car. Splintered wood and other construction material was still hanging from the top floor. People who worked nearby were stunned and some even ran to the scene to help. A witness described the rush to rescue a woman was in the driver's seat of a car hit by flying debris. "Some people started running up to help the lady who was in the driver's seat. They had to pull her out from the passenger side," Sheila Everett said. "I was in my office and saw a lot of things coming from the building. I just came to see if everything was ok and if I could help," said Ivan Clare. A construction worker also said he saw a man with a bloodied hand that appeared to be severed. A 50-year-old man died as a result of the incident. The man had a heart attack as he ran from the construction accident and later died, officials said. Five others were injured, including two construction workers. Two victims were treated and released. A family member at the hospital identified one of the injured as 34-year-old Quincy Williams. The relative said Williams is a construction worker at the job site and was wearing a helmet but suffered a gash to his head from falling debris. Michael Jacobs was on a conference call when he looked out of the window and saw the chaos. "I see all this debris coming flying down and everybody inside the pool area at the Four Seasons Hotel were scattered around," Jacobs said. Miami police said it appeared scaffolding fell from a construction site. Property Markets Group, the developer of Echo Brickell, released a statement on the incident. When a construction accident occurs, all you can hope for is the safety of everyone involved. Kevin, Michael Stern, myself, and everyone at PMG and JDS send our deepest sympathies and condolences to the family of the gentleman who passed. At this time we understand that everyone else injured has been released from the hospital. PMG, our general contractor (JMA) and city officials are working diligently to understand what happened with the form work connection, which has not been determined at this time. The site has been secured and is currently being reinspected to ensure proper safety measures are in place. Traffic was closed off from 14th to 15th streets on Brickell Avenue as a result of the incident. Miami Fire Rescue rushed to the scene of a building collapse Wednesday in the Brickell neighborhood. Ahead of the final presidential debate, one of Donald Trump's most vocal opponents went on a Twitter rampage targeting the Republican presidential nominee. U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren sent out a series of tweets in response to Trump's recent allegations that the election is rigged in favor of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. "Give me a break, @realDonaldTrump," Warren said in her first tweet Wednesday. "You're not losing because it's rigged. You're losing because we see through your creepy bullying." Warren went on to say that anyone with kids knows that whining about imaginary cheating is "the last refuge of the sore loser," echoing President Barack Obama's comments from Tuesday. She added that Trump can't expect to win when he is running a campaign based on hating women, African Americans, Muslims and immigrants. "It's not rigged, @realDonaldTrump. You're losing fair & square. Put on your big-boy pants because this is what accountability looks like." Give me a break, @realDonaldTrump. Youre not losing because its rigged. Youre losing because we see through your creepy bullying. Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) October 19, 2016 This election cycle, Trump has called Warren "goofy" and "Pocahantas," a skeptical reference to her Native American heritage. Trump and Clinton will debate at 9 p.m. Wednesday at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Warren is scheduled to campaign with Clinton in New Hampshire on Monday. Details of their visit have not yet been released. [NATL] Highlights From the 2016 Campaign Trail A court filing submitted Tuesday says Gov. Chris Christie will appear in a Bergen County courtroom next month to answer a citizen's criminal complaint related to the 2013 George Washington Bridge lane closures. But a source close to the case says such an appearance is unlikely, despite Christie's attorney having signed a stipulation Wednesday that the governor would appear in court on Nov. 23. Last week, Judge Roy McGeady ruled that there was probable cause for a complaint of official misconduct against the governor related to the George Washington Bridge lane closures in 2013. But the source said Wednesday that the judge's finding is being appealed. Additionally, even if the appeal is lost and the Bergen County prosecutor decides to pursue the case, Christie has the right waive a first appearance. A spokesman for the governor said last week that the complaint filed by activist Bill Brennan was a "dishonorable complaint filed by a serial complainant" and that Christie had no knowledge of the lane closures before or while they happened on Sept. 9, 2013. Brennan, meanwhile, has said that Christie "should spend seven years in jail" for his alleged role in the lane closures. Brennan's complaint alleged that Christie knew about the lane closures the day they happened and didn't require his subordinates to reopen the roadway. The complaint comes during a trial for two former Christie aids charged in the lane-closing scandal. Christie's approval ratings have hit an all-time low in recent months, according to a poll of registered voters conducted by Fairleigh Dickinson University. Just 21 percent of those polled approved of the job the governor was doing. Sixty-five percent of respondents also said they had an unfavorable view of Christie. What to Know Ahmad Khan Rahimi is accused of planting bombs in New York and New Jersey that wounded 31 people last month The 28-year-old Afghan native was captured after a shootout with police in New Jersey two days after the bombings He has been hospitalized since he was shot multiple times in the gun battle The man accused of setting off bombs in New Jersey and New York last month has been released from a New Jersey hospital and was transported to a hospital ward at a state prison, a senior law enforcement official told NBC 4 New York. Ahmad Rahimi had been kept under guard at University Hospital in Newark since he was wounded in a Sept. 19 shootout with police in Linden. But he was moved to a hospital wing of a state penitentiary in Trenton on Tuesday afternoon, the official said. It comes less than a week after Rahimi pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and weapons charges from his hospital bed in connection with the gun battle outside a bar in the northeastern New Jersey town. He is also accused of detonating a pipe bomb along the route of a Marine Corps charity race in the New Jersey shore town of Seaside Park and a pressure cooker bomb in New York City on Sept. 17. No one was injured in the New Jersey blast, and 31 people were hurt in the New York blast. A second pressure cooker bomb near the first in New York did not explode. Rahimi also faces federal charges in connection with the bombings, but he would have to be moved to New York before he can be arraigned on those charges. It's not clear when he would be transported to the Empire State. Rahimi's public defenders have a policy of not commenting on cases. What to Know The prosecution rested last week; former Port Authority official David Wildstein was the star witness Bill Baroni and Bridget Kelly, the defendants in the case, say Wildstein conceived and carried out the scheme Baroni and Kelly face 20 years in prison on the most serious charge A former ally of Republican Gov. Chris Christie charged in the George Washington Bridge lane-closing case finished three days of testimony Wednesday by telling jurors he was left alone to explain to legislators in 2013 the series of traffic jams that prosecutors contend were part of a political revenge plot against a mayor who wouldn't endorse Christie. Former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey executive Bill Baroni described how, in November 2013, "no one wanted anything to do with this issue," referring to the four days of gridlock in Fort Lee two months earlier. Prosecutors have characterized Baroni's testimony before a New Jersey legislative committee, in which he claimed the jams were part of a traffic study, as a fiction created to hide the plot's true intention. "Everyone was running away. I was the one out there," Baroni testified Wednesday. He added that two Port Authority police officials who he claimed had suggested studying the access lanes to the bridge told him days before his legislative testimony that they "wanted to stay out of it." That contradicted the two officials' testimony that Baroni had sought to use them as cover. Baroni and former Christie staffer Bridget Kelly are charged with causing gridlock at the bridge linking New Jersey and New York to punish Democratic Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich. Christie wasn't charged. Kelly is also expected to testify. Baroni and Kelly face nine counts, the most serious of which carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence. Baroni contended during testimony Monday that he was duped by Port Authority colleague David Wildstein, the self-styled architect of the scheme. Wildstein pleaded guilty last year and testified against Baroni and Kelly. Baroni also testified several upper-level officials in Christie's office and at the Port Authority either knew of his impending legislative testimony or helped him prepare for it. Those included former Port Authority Chairman David Samson, a Christie mentor who headed his transition team, as well as Christie's chief counsel. Prosecutors cast doubt Tuesday on Baroni's characterization of his relationship with Wildstein, a political blogger and former high school classmate of Christie's who was handed a Port Authority job in 2010 that was created especially for him. Baroni testified he was not close with Wildstein, but prosecutors introduced evidence that they had talked more than 2,700 times on the phone in 2013 alone. They also showed a picture of Baroni hoisting Wildstein into the air in a chair at Wildstein's son's bar mitzvah. Kelly's attorney, Michael Critchley, called Michael Drewniak, Christie's former press secretary, late Wednesday morning. A Saudi prince was executed on Tuesday after pleading guilty to killing a fellow Saudi after a brawl, official media reported, according to Reuters. Prince Turki bin Saud al-Kabir was found guilty by the court and serves as a rare example of a ruling family member subjected to execution. The statement made by the ministry of interior did not say how the prince was killed. Most people who face the death penalty in Saudi Arabia are beheaded with a sword. The ruling family is rarely faced with execution, one of the most prominent examples being Faisal bin Musaid al Saud, who assassinated his uncle, King Faisal, in 1975. While the ruling family is estimated to have several thousand members, only few hold nationally relevant government positions. Delaware State Police investigated a crash involving a school bus with several children on board and car they say ran a red light while making a left turn at a Newark intersection Wednesday morning. Police said in a statement that the crash happened just before 7 a.m. at the intersection of Old Baltimore Pike and Salem Church Road. None of the 37 Newark Charter School students on board the bus were hurt but the 55-year-old school bus driver suffered non-life-threatening injuries. A 13-year-old girl in Ahmad Abdullah's 1999 Toyota Corolla as well as 49-year-old Abdullah suffered non-life-threatening injuries, said police. The intersection was closed to traffic for about one hour as police asked commuters to find alternate routes. As SkyForce10 hovered over the scene about an hour after the wreck, a tow truck driver could be seen loading the Advanced Student Transportation bus to be towed away. Later Wednesday, police said that Abdullah ignored a red light while making a left turn onto Salem Church Road and caused the collision. The Wilmington man was cited for failing to stop at a red light. Advanced Student Technology, a division of Krapf School bus contracted out by a series of Delaware school districts, refused comment when reached by NBC10. A single-engine plane crashed in the backyard of a Camden County home Wednesday afternoon, trapping two people in the wreckage. The aircraft landed upside down in the backyard of a home along Linden Avenue in Lindenwold shortly before 1 p.m. after somehow missing houses. A small aircraft crashed into a yard in Camden County on Wednesday, injuring two people on board. NBC10s Ted Greenberg has the details. "It looks like it came between four homes kind of on a diagonal, struck some trees and then ended up on the ground," said Lindenwold Police Chief Tom Brennan. NBC10s Brandon Hudson reports live from Lindenwold, Camden County where a plane crashed into someones backyard. As SkyForce10 hovered overhead a short time later, you could see firefighters from Lindenwold and Cherry Hill working on the aircraft that crashed into some trees and split into two. "You could tell something wasn't right," said Willie Jones who heard the plane go down. "It was too low. The sound was too low." After more than 30 minutes, crews pulled two men, the 66-year-old pilot and a 72-year-old passenger, from the upside down cockpit. Medics medivaced one occupant and took the other by ambulance -- they were conscious and breathing -- to Cooper University Hospital, said investigators. Police said they are expected to survive and their injuries appeared to be non-life-threatening. No one on the ground was hurt. [PHOTOS] 2 Hurt as Aircraft Crashes Into NJ Backyard "It's kind of crazy," said Cydnei, who lives next door to the yard where the plane crashed. "There are so many houses and trees around here but somehow it managed to miss like everything." Officials say the plane took off from Flying W Airport in Medford, New Jersey but it's unclear where it was headed. A search of the FAA registry shows the plane is a 1946 Ercoupe 415-C registered to a man from Chesapeake City, Cecil County, Maryland. Investigators said 911 calls alerted them to the crash. Besides the wreckage, crews also needed to clean up a fuel leak, said investigators. [[397634391, C]] County hazardous materials crews and the Federal Aviation Administration were called to investigate the scene, said Camden County spokesman Dan Keeshen. Streets surrounding the crash were closed throughout the day but were later reopened late Wednesday afternoon. It had been about 45 years since the last time a plane went down in Lindenwold. A 4-year-old boy from Saudi Arabia who was visiting the U.S. for medical treatment has died after he fell from a seventh-floor apartment balcony in the Wynnefield Heights section of Philadelphia, said police. Officers and emergency responders were called to the Imperial Towers Apartments at 3801 Conshohocken Ave. around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday after the boy plunged 70 feet onto a parking lot, said police. He was declared dead less than an hour later at a hospital. The boy's identity wasn't immediately released. A window screen leading to the balcony was broken, said investigators. A 4-foot-tall railing surrounds the balcony. The boy's parents were home at the time, said investigators. His mother had given birth to another child several days ago. Witnesses told NBC10 that the boy's mother was looking for the child, searching the hallways and outside The investigation continued Wednesday. Officials said police don't yet know what treatment the boy was seeking. A man trying to break up a robbery in the heart of one of Philadelphia's toniest downtown neighborhoods, Rittenhouse Square, was shot Tuesday night, a police official said. And a day after the shooting, Philadelphia Police issued an arrest warrant for the suspected 17-year-old shooter. A Good Samaritan was shot trying to break up a robbery in Rittenhouse Square. NBC10s Cydney Long has new information about the incident. The victim, identified only as a 39-year-old man, was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition for four bullet wounds to the mid-section, Chief Inspector Scott Small said. He was expected to live, said Small. A 39-year old man tried to stop a robbery on Tuesday night in Rittenhouse Square, said Philadelphia Police. The search for suspects continued Wednesday morning. Small said he rode his bike up to a robbery in progress. Two gunmen were in the middle of robbing a group of people, he said. [[397540561, C]] Witnesses to the shooting, which occurred at the park along Walnut Street between 18th and 19th streets, took to social media to say gunshots could be heard from sidewalk cafes lining the park. Video from some passersby showed crowded dinner tables on the warm October night. Chaos in Rittenhouse Square. Apparent gunshots. I heard about 5 shots. People ran for their lives. @PhillyPolice showed up very quickly. Greg Berry (@gregmberry) October 19, 2016 On Wednesday, Philadelphia Police Lt. John Stanford said police issued a warrant for the arrest of a 17-year-old. Officials say the teen's parents are cooperating in the investigation. "We know who we're looking for," said Stanford. The suspect wasn't identified since he is a minor. Police also continued Wednesday to search for a second male who had a gun during the robbery but didn't open fire, said investigators. The robbery victims all know each other and cooperated with the investigation, said Stanford. A dashboard camera captured a fare named "James" stabbing a Philadelphia cabdriver in the middle of the day then jumping out of the moving taxi as the driver fought back. The incident played out inside an All Threes taxi as it rolled along Race Street near 58th Street in West Philadelphia around 12:45 p.m. Sunday, said Philadelphia Police. The driver had picked up a thin man in his 20s with a beard who was wearing a green hoodie and light-colored pants who identified himself as "James" after being dispatched to the 800 block of N Markoe street, said Philadelphia Police. After driving about 1.5 miles to Race Street, the passenger grabbed the driver by the neck in what police called a robbery attempt. The driver freed himself from the suspects grip but then the suspect began repeatedly stabbing the driver from behind. The driver continued to fight back and pushed his attacker onto the backseat. The suspect then darted out of the moving cab and fled north on 58th Street as the driver, appearing to be bloodied, got out of the cab and attempted to give chase. The driver suffered several cuts that required treatment at Presbyterian Hospital. Investigators asked anyone who recognizes "James" to contact Philly Police. Weeks after the search for a missing Bucks County woman closed a Pennsylvania state park, searchers returned to the park in hopes of uncovering clues about Lindsey Marie Piccone's whereabouts. Various state and local agencies planned to descend on Tyler State Park along Swamp Road in Newtown Thursday morning as they resumed the search for the missing Bensalem woman, said Bensalem Township Police Department Lt. William McVey. Piccone was reported missing on Sept. 6, said officials. Piccone, 21, did not have her cellphone with her or her beloved and was last seen two days earlier, according to investigators. Piccone, who stands around 5-feet, 3-inches tall and weighs about 120 pounds, was wearing a black tank top when she went missing, said Bensalem Police. [[392640601, C]] Family members said Piccones car was found at Tyler State Park where search groups scoured the 1,711-acre park for days in early September, causing closures and hassles for parkgoers. Police asked that any first responders (no general public) who wanted to join in the search for Piccone to report to the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources parking lot on Swamp Road, said police. [[392810801, C]] If you have any information on Piccones whereabouts, please call Bensalem Police at 215-633-3719 or Bucks County Emergency Services at 610-982-5411. Border Patrol agents discovered 30 illegal immigrants hidden inside a tractor-trailer at a checkpoint in Salton City on Monday, according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). A tractor trailer was stopped for an immigration check at approximately 9:15 p.m. at the Highway 86 checkpoint. When Border Patrol agents searched the trailer, they found 30 people hidden inside. According to the CBP, the illegal immigrants had been locked inside the trailer from the outsidewhich could be a danger to the individuals. The driver and the 30 people, whom are all Mexican citizens, were taken into custody. Border Patrol agents had discovered 19 illegal immigrants inside a tractor-trailer at the Highway 86 checkpoint on October 5. A 44-year old man and 18 people were Mexican citizens, one person was from Guatemala, according to CBP. They were all arrested and will be sent back to their country of origin. In that incident, CBP says the door to the trailer had also been locked from the outside, leaving no way for the 19 individuals to get out. A group of women who say they've had to grit their teeth and bear being sexually harassed are urging Congressman Darrell Issa to stand with them by withdrawing his support for Republican Presidential Nominee Donald Trump. The women, who represent various groups from across Southern California, held a news conference at UC San Diego Tuesday morning in a free speech zone on the campus. "Congressman Issa, do you endorse this war on women? Do you endorse the grabbing and groping? The hands up skirts? The unwanted kiss? The sexual assault?" Dale Kelly Bankhead, Secretary-Treasurer of the San Diego-Imperial Counties Labor Union, said. "If you do not, then you will withdraw your endorsement of Donald Trump." They say they're tired of being grabbed and groped by their bosses, teachers and coworkers, and then ridiculed for protesting. They want Congressman Issa to pull his endorsement of Donald Trump for president, like Republican leaders and other candidates have done. After the Access Hollywood tape came out, Issa told NBC7 he would not withdrawing support for Trump and referred NBC 7 to a Facebook post he made over the weekend condemning Trumps words. A statement from Issa's spokesperson said the Congressman has previously condemned Trump's behavior. "Congressman Issa has a been a leader on sexual assault reform, the President signing the Survivors Bill of Rights which he sponsored into law earlier this month. If candidate's treatment of women is going to become a litmus test in this election, then these groups should consider withdrawing their support for his opponent who the California Superior Court made clear has a harassing and inappropriate history of abusive behavior towards women so bad that a judge forced him to surrender his firearms to the police to protect them," a statement from his office read. Issa's 49th Congressional District stretches from Del Mar, all the way up through San Diego coastal suburbs through Oceanside, Camp Pendleton and into Orange Countys Dana Point. With a large presence of military voters, the district has traditionally had a strong Republican registration advantage. However, the 49th District has large populations of female, affluent, well-educated voters with whom Trump is unlikely to do well. Congressman Issa, do you endorse this war on women? Do you endorse the grabbing and groping? The hands up skirts? The unwanted kiss? The sexual assault? If you do not, then youy will withjdraw your endoresement of Donald Trump...Crowd cheers... Issas 49th district is becoming a battleground seat, and he's in a tight race with Democrat Doug Applegate, a retired Marine colonel. Border Patrol agents seized close to 100 pounds of cocaine and methamphetamine hidden inside the body panels of two cars on Sunday. The first seizure happened at about 9:30 a.m. when a white Nissan Versa approached a United States Customs and Border Protection checkpoint on Interstate 8 near Pine Valley. The vehicle was referred for a secondary inspection where K9 units alerted CBP agents to the rear of the car. After further inspection, agents discovered 15 wrapped bundles of cocaine stuffed in the cars rear-quarter panel. The 15 bundles totaled 38.03 pounds, carrying an estimated $456,360 street value. The driver, a 24-year-old male, and a 21-year-old female passenger were arrested and turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). [DONT CHANGE MAIN HEADLINE] San Diego's Border Busts Hours later at the same checkpoint, a white Nissan Altima approached and was sent for secondary inspection. K9 units alerted CBP agents to the inside of the car where they found tape-wrapped bundles of crystal methamphetamine hidden behind the panels of the rear doors. In total, agents discovered 40 bundles of meth weighing a total of 49.38 pounds. Agents estimate the meths street value at $197,520. CBP agents arrested the driver, a 28-year-old female, and a 29-year-old female passenger and turned them over to the DEA. Both vehicles were seized by the CBP. The City of San Diego is facing a new sexual harrasment lawsuitthis time against an assistant city attorney. The lawsuit, filed on Friday, claims that Assistant City Attorney Daniel Bamberg sent inappropriate text messages to San Diego Deputy City Attorney Molly Hoot, touched and asked her for sex three years ago. Hoot says the behavior continued for three years. The Office of the City Attorney is same office charged with defending former Mayor Bob Filner against multiple sexual harassment complaints in 2013. There is some emails, text messages, and there will be my client's testimony which will be very compelling, Hoots attorney, Josh Gruenberg told NBC 7. The claim states that for three years, Bamberg sexually harassed Hoot and advised her not to complain about Filner putting her in the now infamous headlock and asking her out for drinks. Hoot and Bamberg worked side by side in the City Attorney's office. Gruenberg says his client complained about the unwanted advances from Bamberg two years earlier to equal employment investigators. Nothing was done, no one interceded on her behalf there was no investigation, disciplinary action, no counseling, Gruenberg said. City Attorney spokesperson Gerry Braun emailed the following response to the claim: "At management's request, an investigative panel drawn from outside the office was convened to determine the facts. Mr. Bamberg was placed on administrative leave pending the investigation. These steps are required by law and do not reflect any prejudgment as to the facts." Gruenberg told NBC 7 that Hoot was reluctant to file the suit but did so only after she was allegedly passed over for a promotion for rejecting Bamberg. Her job was the most important thing to her in her life and she was friendly with this supervisor. He was a father figure to her so she had a lot of issues to balance, Gruenberg said. Gruenberg represented a Filner accuser and was awarded the largest settlement among those complaints against the former Mayor$667,000. Hoot is currently continuing to work at the city attorney's office. Despite a protest by parents of students at an elementary school, the Encinitas Unified School Board (EUSB) unanimously voted to approve the transfer of Principal Jodi Greenberger. A group of more than a hundred parents gathered at the board meeting on Tuesday to voice their anger and concerns over Greenberger's sudden transfer to a different school in the school district in the middle of the school year. Greenberger is the current principal of Park Dale Lane Elementary School. The parents told NBC 7 that the district has not been transparent and did not discuss the issue with them. "We are tired of being the school that's pushed to the bottom of the bunch out of the 9 schools in the district," said parent Nina Seibert. Seibert, like other parents, argued that they believe the district sees Park Dale Lane as a training ground for principals. Greenberger will be replaced by a teacher who does not have administrative experience, according to a parent who contacted NBC 7. EUSB Superintendent Timothy Baird said Greenberger's transfer was not forced. "This was a unique opportunity for Jodi" Baird said. "She loves Park Dale Lane but there are reasons, both personal and professional where this is appealing to her." Baird added that the district did not involve parents in the decision to transfer Greenberger because their would have been opposition to the idea. "No one wants to see their principal leave," Baird said. But the decision isn't just making parents unhappystudents are also voicing their frustration. "We think it's very disruptive in the middle of year to make her go to another school," a student told NBC 7. "It feels it was sprung on us. We feel it's a drastic move." At the end of Tuesday night's meeting, parents and some board members agreed that the District needs to improve communication with the community. Meanwhile, some parents are still demanding answers on the sudden transfer that involved the replacement of principals at two other schools within the district in the middle of the school year. Greenberger will transfer to Camino Creek Elementary School in January. There are plenty of places in San Diego to watch the third presidential debate Wednesday night as candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump face off for the final time before Election Day. Regal Cinemas, for instance, will host free, live screenings of the debate across 206 movie theaters nationwide, including two locations in San Diego County: Regal Oceanside Stadium 16 (401 Mission Ave.) and UA Horton Plaza 8 at Westfield Horton Plaza (475 Horton Plaza). The debate watch party at the theaters begins at 6 p.m. PT when Clinton and Trump take the podiums from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. Attendees who purchase popcorn during the screening session get a free small soft drink, Regal Cinemas says. The company hosted similar screenings of the last presidential debate at movie theaters across the nation. For a full list of participating Regal Cinemas airing Wednesday nights debate, click here. Some local Edwards theaters will also screen the debate, including Edwards Mira Mesa Stadium 18 (10733 Westview Parkway) and Edwards San Marcos Stadium 18 (1180 W. San Marcos Blvd.). Meanwhile, the Angelika Film Center in Carmel Mountain, located at 11620 Carmel Mountain Rd., will also screen the debate with a watch party from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the upstairs lounge and outdoor patio. Both the University of San Diego (USD) and San Diego Mesa College are also hosting debate watch events, urging students to closely study the civility of the candidates as Trump and Clinton go head-to-head, said Carl Luna, Ph.D, a professor of politican science at San Diego Mesa College. Immigrant and refugee groups will also gather for a 6 p.m. debate viewing party organized by Alliance San Diego at the Islamic Center of San Diego (ICSD) located at 7050 Eckstrom Ave. This event includes members of the ICSD, the San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium (SDIRC), the San Diego office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and MAS-PACE (Muslim American Society). After the debate, the group will host an informal discussion with community members centered on the topics of immigration and refugees, expected to be addressed during the debate between Trump and Clinton. A California media coordinator for the Donald Trump campaign says several restaurants will hold debate viewing parties hosting Trump supporters Wednesday night including Hooleys Irish Pub in La Mesa (5500 Grossmont Center Dr.), Round Table Pizza in Oceanside (3440 Marron Rd.) and the San Diego Country Club in Chula Vista (88 L. St.). The local chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans will also hold a viewing party for the debate at Uptown Tavern (1236 University Ave.). As you get ready for tonight's debate, here's a viewer's guide to the showdown. A former security guard accused of shooting and killing his longtime girlfriend while she held their baby was ordered held on $3 million bond Tuesday. Roderick Harris appeared in a blue jail uniform with his head lowered, his eyes focused on the floor in front of him. Harris, 32, is accused of killing his girlfriend, Vanessa Marie Bobo, 29, in the apartment they shared on Lake Arrowhead Drive. The couple dated for four years and had an 11-month old baby together. The hearing Tuesday was his first court appearance. When the judge addressed him, Harris looked up briefly and spoke softly. He pleaded not guilty to one charge of murder. Harris was arrested the day after San Diego Police officers found Bobo's body and her 5-year-old son and crying 11-month old inside the apartment. The children were not harmed, but were frightened. Investigators initially said the older child helped identify his mother's killer. When Harris was arrested in Chula Vista, he had several minor wounds on his body. A prosecutor described the wounds as self-inflicted and superficial. According to the complaint, Harris and Bobo argued the night of her death. Bobo allegedly attempted to shield her children from the violence, holding the younger child in her arms. Just before midnight, Harris allegedly fired two shots from a .357 revolver, the prosecutor claimed. One bullet went into a neighbor's wall but the other bullet struck Bobo's spinal cord, severing it, according to investigators. The young mother fell to the floor and dropped the baby, the prosecutor said. Man accused of killing girlfriend in front of her 5y/o son pleads not guilty. Roderick Harris' Bail set at $3m pic.twitter.com/jnGJWhH8yB Omari Fleming (@OmariNBCSD) October 18, 2016 Records indicate Harris has one prior domestic violence arrest, but no convictions. That prior incident was from a prior relationship and did not involve Bobo. Investigators searched the home and removed three rifles, a shotgun, another revolver and two semi-automatic handguns, according to the complaint. Prosecutors requested a $4 million bail saying that Harris, with his interest in weapons, posed a safety risk to the public. The judge approved bail at $3 million and approved a protective order for the children. According to police, Harris is the biological father of Bobo's younger child, who turns 1 on Oct. 21. The 5-year-old son is staying with his biological father while the infant is being cared for by family members, NBC 7 confirmed. The suspect was arrested Wednesday afternoon in Chula Vista at a relatives house. NBC 7s Wendy Fry has more on how authorities identified and located the man in such short time. Sprouts Farmers Market plans to host a hiring fair Thursday to fill a total of 65 jobs across three coastal stores in San Diegos North County. The company is looking to hire employees for its locations in Solana Beach (659 Lomas Santa Fe Dr.), Encinitas (1327 Encinitas Blvd.) and Carlsbad (2618 El Camino Real) for various positions including the bakery, meat, deli, grocery, produce, vitamin and cashier departments. Sprouts will host walk-in interviews Thursday at the Holiday Inn in Carlsbad, located at 2725 Palomar Airport Rd. Interviews will take place during two sessions: 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Applicants should bring a copy of their resume. The hiring event will be put on in partnership with the hourly job-finding website, Snagajob. The organization that runs the National Cherry Blossom Festival is suing a major paper company for trademark infringement. In a lawsuit filed in court in D.C., attorneys for the National Cherry Blossom Festival accuse the Florida-based Rifle Paper Company of unlawfully selling merchandise featuring the phrase National Cherry Blossom Festival and depictions of the Jefferson Memorial and colorful cherry blossoms. The National Cherry Blossom Festival, which draws more than 1 million visitors to D.C. during the spring bloom, also organizes an annual parade. The events are a celebration of the gift of blossoms from Japan and, according to the organizations website, the enduring friendship between the people of the United States and Japan. In court filings, the National Cherry Blossom Festival said Rifle Paper Company posted merchandise featuring the phrase National Cherry Blossom Festival on its website in June. According to the court filings, merchandise with the same phrase also was posted for sale at the Paper Source store at Union Market in D.C. The merchandise appeared on the Paper Source website Wednesday morning. The National Cherry Blossom Festival trademarked its name in 2009, the organization said in court filings. Attorneys for the organization did not immediately respond to requests for comment, nor did attorneys for the Rifle Paper Company. In the suit, the National Cherry Blossom Festival asks the court to award financial damages from the sale of the merchandise but does not specify a dollar amount. The court filings include a correspondence from an attorney for the Rifle Paper Company. In that correspondence, the paper company argues its merchandise included a fair use of the name of the festival. According to the Rifle Paper Company letter submitted to the court by the National Cherry Blossom Festival, the paper companys attorney said, It is difficult for our client to describe the festival without using the entirety of the mark. Moreover, no other terms, symbols or words are used to suggest a sponsorship or endorsement of our clients work by your client. The case has been assigned to a U.S. District Court judge in D.C. No hearing date is yet scheduled. Donald Trumps recent accusations of large scale voter fraud and rigged elections are highly unlikely, according to multiple campaign experts interviewed by the News4 I-Team. The National Association of Secretaries of State, made up of both Republican and Democratic election officials from all over the country, issued a response to Trumps claims stating they cannot allow unsubstantiated claims calling into question the systemic integrity of the election process to shake voter confidence or disrupt voting in the run-up to Election Day and state election chiefs want to assure Americans that our process is fairly administered and well-secured, with built-in structural safeguards to ensure honest outcomes and accurate results. The Districts Board of Elections released a document detailing cybersecurity precautions D.C. is taking to prevent hacking and cheating, which include beefed up firewalls, encryption software and monitoring systems to track internal IP addresses each time someone tries to access any of its databases. Maryland officials released similar documents detailing the different security procedures theyve put into place to prevent what happened in Illinois and Arizona after foreign hackers infiltrated their voter registration databases and how they plan to prevent voter fraud at the ballot box. Maryland will use paper ballots that will be scanned into removable USB memory drives, a spokeswoman explained. But theyve installed multilayered security procedures to prevent anyone from using a phony USB drive to alter the results, she explained. There are three parts to an election, spokeswoman Nikki Charlson said. Equipment, people and processes. The equipment was designed to protect the integrity of the system by ensuring the people and the processes cant change votes. We use people and the processes to make sure the equipment counted those votes properly. Its a checks and balances system. Both Maryland and Virginia stressed their ballot boxes are never connected to the internet, so no one could hack into their machines. The Districts Board of Elections said it hasnt received a single complaint of voter fraud since the last general election. When voter fraud really does happen, its been limited to single individuals, Marylands Board of Elections told the I-Team. Marylands most recent case involved a woman who pleaded guilty to voting twice in Frederick County once as herself and once using her mothers absentee ballot during the 2012 election. The presidential candidates are at each others' throats and data suggests there is more political animosity between Democrats and Republicans than there has been in more than 20 years. But there still may be hope for us after all. Before the final presidential debate and amid ample signs that America is growing more divided, News4 looked for examples of people working together across party lines. Here's what we found: 1) Democrats and Republicans Are Using an App to Bridge the Divide The "friendship app" Verona is connecting people across party lines. As Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have duked it out this year, thousands of people have used an app designed to help members of opposing groups unite. Laid out much like a dating app, Verona initially paired Israelis with Palestinians. In February, creator Matthew Nolan expanded the app to introduce Democrats and Republicans to each other. Verona bills itself as offering "World peace, one swipe at a time." Users create profiles, select the group they identify with and then browse profiles from users in the other group. The most common feedback Nolan said he hears from Verona users is that the Democrat a Republican met, or vice versa, was less extreme than they expected. "They were anticipating the divide being very left and very right, but they met someone who was very moderate that they had a lot in common with," he said. Verona Nolan declined to reveal the exact number of Verona users but said the group that uses the Democrat/Republican option breaks down about equally by party and between men and women. Users have made friends and even sparked a few romances. "We're really happy we're helping to foster real-life friendships with people [users] otherwise would not have met," said Nolan, a Detroit native who lives in New York. Verona He said that regardless of who wins the election, he believes Americans can unite across party lines. "I'm extremely hopeful," he said. "We're not as different as we think we are." 2) We Have Changes of Heart A Virginia mother says her views on LGBT people were transformed when her teenager came out as transgender. Hope Christina Hernandez said she was not raised to accept LGBT people. Like many Americans, the Woodbridge, Virginia, resident said she was taught that homosexuality and straying from conventional gender roles were wrong. "I was taught that it wasn't natural, that it's not what God intended, that it is a sin and that God punishes sinners," she said. Hernandez grew up with openly gay friends and came to doubt what she had been taught, but the biggest challenge to her beliefs about LGBT people came on June 26, 2015, the day the Supreme Court guaranteed the right to same-sex marriage in all 50 states. She and her 15-year-old daughter were watching the news and bickering about housework. "I asked, 'Why are you so sloppy?' or something like that. You're such a boy,'" Hernandez recalled. "Because I am a boy! I'm trans," the teen shouted in response. Courtesy of Hope Christina Hernandez Hernandez, who works as a social worker, said that at first she struggled with the disclosure that her child is transgender. She thought she just was being dramatic. But the teen insisted it was true. So, Hernandez decided to educate herself. "I looked up online, 'teen came out as trans now what,'" she said. Hernandez learned that her teen might want to start going by a new name and being referred to as "he." She registered him into a new high school as a boy, and started attending meetings of PFLAG, the national organization of family members, friends and allies of LGBT people. Hernandez said she knows she still has a lot to learn about how to support her son, who now is 17 and looking ahead to college. But she said she is willing to keep working to do it. "I know I don't have all the tools in my toolbox to help him," she said. 3) We Work Together on Behalf of Children D.C. Democrats and Republicans unite for the sake of kids, one leader says. In the neighborhood just east of the U.S. Capitol Building, Democrats and Republicans unite for the sake of their kids. Joe Weedon, who represents the Capitol Hill area for the D.C. State Board of Education, said he has seen supporters of both parties come together to modernize public schools and improve the meal service system. "Whichever candidate you're supporting, I think the quality of our schools has superseded any political candidate on a number of issues," he said. A Prince Georges County school bus driver who rescued 20 students from a burning bus was honored Wednesday. News4s Pat Collins reports. Parents agree on the need to put the education, health and safety of children first, said Weedon, who is the father of an 11-year-old and 9-year-old. "A lot of energy can be mobilized for the common good," he said. 4) We Still Agree on a Lot, Believe It or Not Data suggests that most Americans agree on many key issues. A majority of Americans agree on fundamental issues, recent polls find. Fifty-six percent of people included in a Pew Research Center poll conducted in March said they believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases. That poll included 2,254 people. In that same poll, 59 percent of respondents said they agreed that immigrants "strengthen our country because of their hard work and talents," 74 percent said they agreed that "this country should do whatever it takes to protect the environment" and 60 percent said they agreed that "Muslims living in the U.S. should not be subject to additional scrutiny solely because of their religion." A Gallup poll conducted in March found that 75 percent of respondents believe the U.S. government should spend more on infrastructure, and 91 percent said federal funds should be used to modernize the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. About 500 people participated. Another Pew poll found that a majority of Americans support making private gun sales and sales at gun shows subject to background checks. Eighty-five percent of the 2,002 people polled in July 2015 gave this response. Our agreement on many issues is the good news. The bad news is that some scholars think that our beliefs on issues are not what divide us anymore. "The parties now are less a collection of issues and more a collection of identities," Dr. Neil Malhotra, a political scientist at Stanford Graduate School of Business said. "Even if you don't have strong opinions on issues, you have strong opinions about identities." Malhotra said he sees hope in multiracial coalitions and other instances of people crossing typical party lines. "Maybe that's a potentially good sign," he said. 5) We Unite to Pray and Help People in Need Across from the White House, Democrats and Republicans attend church services together. Every president of the United States since James Madison has attended a service at Saint John's Church, in the yellow sanctuary across from the White House. Many people who work on Capitol Hill and at all levels of politics worship at the Episcopal church every Sunday, Rev. Andy Olivo said. NBC Washington Democrats and Republicans regularly come together at Saint John's to worship, collect clothing and books for people in need, and build Habitat for Humanity Homes, he said. "People who very likely disagree on things political can still go out into the community and help people," Olivo said. "All of our folks here, no matter where they fall [politically], want to be involved in serving their neighbor and helping others and making Washington D.C. and the surrounding area a better place to live." The reverend said he believes people are more united than we may seem during this bruising campaign season. "I think on a day-to-day basis, most people are trying to do good in their life and in their work. They're doing that not because they're a Republican or they're a Democrat, but because they're a person and they care about other people," he said. Olivo had this advice for people anxious now about the direction of the country: "Vote, pray, be involved in making the world a better place." A construction worker was seriously injured after a live wire fell on top of him at a construction site in Alexandria, Virginia, Wednesday morning. A crane operator at the construction site in the 700 block of Wythe Street hit an electrical wire just before 7:30 a.m., Crystal Nosal with the Alexandria Police Department said. The wire fell down to the street, striking 44-year-old construction worker who was nearby. The victim suffered electrical burns and has been taken to a local hospital. He is in critical but stable condition, according to police. Many traffic lights in the area were without power for a short time because of the accident. You can't bring your Samsung Galaxy Note7 on a plane -- but you can bring it to any of the D.C. area's major airports. The airports, including Reagan National, now feature have pop-up kiosks where Samsung reps are collecting the phones for trade-in. Samsung Galaxy Note7 phones have been recalled because some of them have been catching fire. The U.S. banned the devices from flights last week. "Honestly, I've wondered the last few times I was on the airplane why they would allow people on and then tell them to turn their phone off," said traveler Sherri Baker. "If it was too dangerous to be on the plane to begin with, I've always thought they shouldn't be on there." Galaxy Note7 owners can bring them to a Samsung table at D.C.'s major local airports to exchange their devices for another phone or to simply get a refund. "It's not just for your own personal safety, but also for the safety of everyone around you," said traveler Daniel Shai at Reagan National Airport on Tuesday. But what happens with all of your data? Samsung reps are uploading users' data to the cloud. Phones are supposed to be cleansed of all their data. "If they're going to just take your phone like that, you would hope that they'll wipe everything," Shai said of users' data. Shai owns a Samsung, but his model isn't a Note7. He said he made sure his phone wasn't a concern. "I've always had a Samsung phone so it was actually kind of sad that this big problem has happened," he said. Samsung sent News4 the following statement: "The U.S. Department of Transportation and FAA have banned all Note7 devices in carry-on and checked baggage on flights. If you are a Note7 owner and are traveling today, Samsung is at the airport to help you. Safety remains the top priority." The Transportation Security Administration is also on the lookout for Note7 phones to make sure they're kept off flights. An airport source says only a handful of Note7 phones have been turned in recently. But travelers said they're glad the phones aren't getting aboard flights, because it only takes one accident. Samsung has said it found a manufacturing defect in the phones' batteries. "Battery technology is changing all the time so I expect that Samsung is doing the right thing here," said traveler David Harnett at Reagan. "They are taking them away as soon as they can." What to Know The suspect and victim had an ongoing dispute that ignited when the victim stole the suspect's cellphone, the suspect told police. When a judge said Kyla Jones would be held without bond, Kaelia Minor's family burst into applause. The 18-year-old woman charged in the stabbing death of a 17-year-old girl told police the victim took her cellphone because she wanted to start a fight, charging documents reveal. Kyla Jones, 18, was charged Tuesday with second-degree murder while armed in the death of Kaelia Minor, a 17-year-old high school student. Jones appeared in court Wednesday afternoon. When a judge said she would be held without bond, Minor's family burst into applause. Jones told police she and the victim were involved in an ongoing dispute that ignited when Minor stole Jones' cellphone. According to charging documents, Jones got onto a Metrobus on Gallatin Street Monday and saw the victim sitting near the back of the bus. Jones told police she sat in the front to avoid a confrontation. But once she saw the victim walking toward the front of the bus, Jones said she put the knife she carries on her lap, charging documents say. Jones claims the victim told her to "put the knife down" and threatened to rob her if she didn't fight her. A witness was trying to separate the teens when the victim took the suspect's cellphone and ran off the bus, charging documents say. Still armed with the knife, Jones followed the victim, and the two teens began to fight near the intersection of Kansas Avenue and Emerson Street NW. Jones soon realized the victim had been stabbed, but told police she didn't think she was seriously injured. Jones and other witnesses say Jones then searched the victim for her phone as Minor lay on the ground. One witness reported hearing Jones say, "She took my phone" as she searched Minor's body. Another witness heard Jones say she didn't care what happened to the victim and that she just wanted her phone. Once she found her phone, Jones told police she left the scene and took an Uber to meet a friend in Southwest Washington to get marijuana to smoke. But once she found out Minor had died, Jones told her parents what happened and turned herself in to police, the documents say. Jones reportedly told police she threw the steak knife she used to stab Minor down a sewer, and investigators were able to recover it. Chenna Latta, the victim's cousin, said Tuesday that her family is relieved a suspect has been arrested. "We forgive you. But it hurt us. Because at the end of the day, God wants us to forgive," Latta said. "But it hurts so bad." Minor, a senior at Calvin Coolidge High, was just three blocks from home when she was stabbed. "It destroyed me," said Minor's mother, Docia Proctor. "It was just me and her, and she's gone." Minor was a good student and captain of the dance team, Proctor said. "She was beautiful and somebody took her from me," she said through tears. Minor's family said they are planning to hold a candlelight vigil for her Wednesday at 5 p.m. at Kansas Avenue and Emerson Street. Minor, who had recently been accepted into college, had "so much potential," neighbor Neil Arp said. "I just know that she could have really become someone," he said. A swimmer who went missing Tuesday off the coast of Ipswich, Massachusetts, has been rescued. The U.S. Coast Guard said a man and his son-in-law, both experienced swimmers familiar with the area, went off the coast where Crane Beach meets Steep Hill Beach around 5:30 p.m. When family members noticed they had been gone too long, they went to the scene, found their bikes and called 911. Police found the younger man in the water. He told them his father-in-law had gotten caught in a heavy fog and pulled out in a rip current. Later in the evening, the man was found treading water. He was taken back to land and on board an ambulance. The Coast Guard had been searching by air and boat, and Ipswich Police remained on the scene. One of the highest tides of the year brought out plenty of spectators to Long Wharf in Boston, but it also brought out concern among those who worry it could frequent problem in the future. King tide occurs when the sun, moon and earth align. Gravity increases when the earth and moon are closest together, which helps increase the tide. On Tuesday in Boston, the tide was roughly two feet higher than normal. King tide flooded streets near Long Wharf and left puddles along the Fort Point Channel. While some were busy taking it in or dipping their toes in, others were surveying which parts of Boston flood first. "What we're seeing here is what normal high tide is going to look like around or after mid-century," Julie Wormser of Boston Harbor Now said. Wormser said with the sea level rising each year, it will not take a King tide to flood streets in the future. She predicts it will happen a lot more often and so do several waterfront business owners. "In the future, we are quite certain there will be regular water days just as there are snow days in Boston because some streets will just not be passable," Ellen Watts said. It is why they say the infrastructure needs to start changing before the rare spectacle becomes a constant headache. "Chart House, Back Bay, the Innovation District, all of it is going to be underwater a few times of month if we don't take action," Daniel Benstein said. The moon is expected to be even closer to the earth in November, when the highest tide of the year is expected to occur. Waterfront business owners are hoping that does not coincide with a nor'easter because storm surges coupled with a King tide can be extremely damaging and dangerous. A convicted sex offender has been extradited from Massachusetts to Rhode Island, according to the Rhode Island Department of Corrections. Richard Gardner appeared in Kent County Superior Court today, after he was arrested at a Boston shelter Friday night on a fugitive from justice charge out of Rhode Island. Gardner is a Level 3 sex offender who was released from prison after nearly three decades behind bars for kidnapping and raping boys in the 1980s. Upon his release, Gardner went to Weymouth, Massachusetts where he was met with outrage from community members. The district attorney says Gardner was freed due to a human error. He is now charged with violating the terms and conditions of his release after he was kicked out of the Quincy Library for violating a local ordinance. According to court documents, Gardner, "entered and remained in a place frequented by children which is in violation of the no contact order issued." He was held without bail following his appearance in court and a judge accepted his waiver of extradition. His latest arrest comes after residents in his parent's Weymouth neighborhood filed a petition for GPS bracelets on sex offenders. Felt skunked by clouds and a stalled front today. Sure, I smelled a rat in the weather models yesterday, but I still thought the warm front would get out of Massachusetts today. Instead it stalled and limped north of the border after nightfall. Lot of good that did for the temps. Thankfully, we're able to wait this one out as highs soar tomorrow with increasing sun. Yes, we start with clouds again, but this time it's different. No really. A passing cool front will mix in mild air and kick the clouds offshore early on. As its name suggests, the cooler air will settle in for the final two days of the workweek. And that means we'll trade our near 80 degree temperatures in for 60s...and eventually 50s by the weekend. But I'm getting ahead of myself. How about a healthy dose of rain too? We're watching a developing tropical system northeast of the Bahamas today. No, I'm not thinking we'll see a direct hit from this (potentially Tropical Storm Otto in a few days), but like we saw with Matthew, a stream of tropical moisture may get caught in our flow off the ocean, and voila...heavy rain comes to our backyards and neighborhoods. It's more than mere fantasy at this point. It's actually a solid threat in the Friday time frame. Question is, does it sweep into Maine or first move into Massachusetts? As you might imagine, placement is an issue this far out. We're on it like puddles in a downpour. A suspect has been identified after another man was killed in a reported shooting Tuesday in Wardsboro, Vermont. State police confirm 42-year-old man Kirby Staib was found dead outside a home around 4:45 p.m. Troopers were responding to the report of a shooting. Another male, 57-year-old Kevin Parker, has been identified as the alleged shooter. However, he is not in custody and no charges have been announced pending results of the investigation, according to necn affiliate NBC 5. No other suspects are being sought, and police do not believe there is any threat to the public. The cause and manner of the victim's death will be determined by an autopsy. A man was rushed to Boston Medical Center after being shot in Dorchester and a search for the suspect is underway, police confirm. According to Boston Police, the 41-year-old victim was shot while working on his car on Dorchester Avenue, which was busy as families were returning home during the evening commute. A school is just two blocks away. Someone opened fire down the street with a high-capacity handgun, police said. Fifteen rounds were fired. One bullet hit the victim, going through his left arm and out his neck. The victim is undergoing surgery at Boston Medical Center. Police do not believe the incident to be related to a separate shooting that happened about three quarters of a mile away Monday. Prosecutors have filed a new murder charge against a Springfield, Massachusetts, man accused in the beating death of a 5-month-old baby. The Republican newspaper reports that 34-year-old Miguel Fonseca-Colon pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in Springfield District Court on Tuesday and was ordered held without bail. The new charge comes just days after a judge dismissed four indictments against Fonseca-Colon after ruling that prosecutors failed to present statements in 2014 to a grand jury from the baby's mother and aunt. Authorities said the baby, Jadamier Cintron, suffered 32 fractures and died from blunt force trauma. Defense attorney David Hoose has challenged the prosecution's claim that the baby was killed during the short time his client was baby-sitting, and says other potential suspects were not considered. For nearly three hours, the town of Epping, New Hampshire was swarming with police officers searching for a suspect who was considered armed and dangerous. The suspect - identified as Raul Natanero - was apprehended just before 4 p.m. Epping Police said he and two other men broke into a home in the Lamprey Village neighborhood. An officer on routine patrol saw a suspicious car and interrupted the robbery in progress. That officer was able to arrest two of the suspects, but Natanero took off, armed with a 9mm handgun. For the duration of the search, schools were put into lockdown and area residents were urged to stay inside and lock their doors as heavily armed officers and SWAT members combed through the neighborhood. The victim told necn that one of the suspects slammed him in the head with a gun, put him in a chokehold and pointed the gun at his face. He was eventually able to break free and ran outside. The victim is 21 years old and said he went to high school with one of the suspects but didn't know the other two. Police said the three men will be facing charges. A convicted sex offender denied a new allegation that he sexually assaulted a woman while armed with a gun. The Chittenden Unit for Special Investigations said Jeffrey North, 34, of Burlington, pointed a gun at a woman he didn't know on a sidewalk in the citys Old North End in mid-August. He then forced her into sexual contact, the sex crimes investigation unit said, allegedly telling her just enjoy it, baby before she shouted fire in an attempt to scare off the attacker. Late Monday, North entered a plea of not guilty to the aggravated sexual assault charge and was ordered held without bail. In a separate incident in September, police said North followed a different woman, who was also a stranger, and tried to force her into his car. He allegedly grabbed that womans upper thigh and pressed a knife or something else sharp against her neck, police said. North has not yet been charged with that alleged assault, police said. "We're definitely very glad to get him at this point, before there was another victim," said Det. Sgt. Chris Nadeau of the Chittenden Unit for Special Investigations. "Whether there would have been, I can't guess. I don't want to make a guess at that situation." Nadeau said DNA evidence taken from the woman in the August incident matched North, after her physical description of him closely resembled the one given by the woman in the September case. CUSI noted that North is a registered sex offender, adding that he was convicted for prohibited acts and lewd and lascivious conduct stemming from arrests in 1998 and 2002. Cathleen Barkley, who supports survivors of sexual violence and aims to end sexual violence through the non-profit HOPE Works, said the circumstances police described are unusual. "For the people that we serve, it's usually a very small percentage that are sexually assaulted by a stranger," Barkley told necn. "Most of the people that we serve are sexually assaulted by somebody that they already know. So that is unusual in this case, for Vermont." Barkley said that HOPE Works, where HOPE stands for healing, outreach, prevention, and empowerment, served nearly 1,000 survivors of sexual violence in Chittenden County last year. North is scheduled to be back in court next week, when he'll be charged with the September assault, Nadeau said. Police are still investigating the alleged use of the gun in the reported August assault. Investigators said North told them he merely carried a BB gun in case he needed to "scare people," but claimed he did not display it the night in question. A Norton, Massachusetts, woman is still in shock after giving birth to a baby boy over the weekend, claiming she never knew she was pregnant. Ileana Martinez was admitted to Sturdy Memorial Hospital Sunday after she came in with a bad stomachache. She assumed it was cramping, but later learned from the doctors she was 38 weeks along. "It was really, really bad abdominal pain," Martinez said. "Ive never felt like this in my life." A few hours after receiving news of her pregnancy, she gave birth to Jaxson Jean-Pierre. The 5 pound baby boy was early, but healthy. Martinez said she went to several routine doctor appointments during the time she was carrying the child, but no one noticed. She said she exhibited no symptoms. "I had no morning sickness, my period was normal, I had no cravings and no extreme weight gain. I gained five pounds and that is just from me not working out like I used to," Martinez said. She said she is thankful for her new son, but wishes she had more time to prepare for his arrival. They could not leave the hospital until they found a car seat to take him home. They do have a few diapers, outfits and a bassinet, but are looking for help. "I was just bombarded with this myself so anything does help even if its just telling me that Im not alone," Martinez said. Donations can be made through Martinezs sister by emailing madie07@icloud.com Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida warned his Republican colleagues not to discuss the WikiLeaks dump of emails stolen from Hillary Clinton's campaign chair John Podesta. "I will not discuss any issue that has become public solely on the basis of WikiLeaks," said Rubio in a statement to NBC News, breaking with Donald Trump's approach. "As our intelligence agencies have said, these leaks are an effort by a foreign government to interfere with our electoral process and I will not indulge it." Rubio did not mention Trump by name, but he is clearly departing from his former rival on the issue. Trump has repeatedly brought up the WikiLeaks' hack, accusing the media of ignoring the stolen emails in an effort to protect Clinton. "I want to warn my fellow Republicans who may want to capitalize politically on these leaks," Rubio said. "Today it is the Democrats. Tomorrow it could be us." In addition to picking the candidate they want for U.S. president and various federal and state offices, Bay State voters will have a chance to weigh in on four ballot questions. While a few questions are garnering a lot of attention, such as Question 4, which would legalize recreational marijuana, others are still largely unfamiliar to voters, such as Question 1, which would allow another slots parlor in Massachusetts. Check out our explainer below and the links to the campaigns for and against these ballot questions: QUESTION 1 Question 1 would allow the state's Gaming Commission to issue another slots parlor license, which is targeted for Suffolk Downs. The main supporters for Question 1, which was proposed by a developer, are the Horse Racing Jobs and Education Committee and the Yes to 1 campaign, while the main opponents to Question 1 are the Committee for Sustainable and Responsible Economic Development and Vote No on 1 campaign, along with Gov. Charlie Baker, the mayors of Somerville and Revere, and the chief operating officer of Suffolk Downs. QUESTION 2 The charter school expansion question has voters taking sides in Massachusetts. Question 2 asks voters if they would like to see at least 12 more charter schools in or increased enrollment in existing charter schools by the state's education board each year, with priority given to applicants who want to open a charter school in public school districts that have been performing poorly for two years. Supporters for the ballot question includes Great Schools Massachusetts, Gov. Charlie Baker and U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch. Opponents include Save Our Public Schools, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Mayor Marty Walsh and the entire Boston City Council. QUESTION 3 Massachusetts voters go to the polls in less than two weeks and one thing they will vote on is Question 3, which prohibits the sale of foods from animals confined to small cages. Opponents claim the proposal will end up costing consumers more money. Question 3 will have voters determine whether to ban certain methods of farm animal containment, including methods that prevent an animal "from lying down, standing up, fully extending its limbs, or turning around freely," and would apply to business owners who knowingly sell animal products from animals held in this way, even if the source is from out of state. Supporters for the ballot question include the MSPCA, ARL of Boston, the Sierra Club, Zoo New England and the Human Society of the United States. Lead by the No on Question 3 and Citizens Against Food Tax Injustice, opponents of Question 3 argue that these methods aren't typically practiced in Massachusetts, and include the National Association of Egg Farmers, the Massachusetts Farm Bureau, the New England Egg Council and the Retailers Association of Massachusetts. QUESTION 4 A group of doctors rallied Friday to show their support for Question 4, which would legalize marijuana recreationally in Massachusetts. If Question 4 passes, Massachusetts will join an increasing number of states to legalize recreational marijuana. The question would allow residents over the age of 21 to use, grow and possess certain quantities and would create a regulatory structure called the Cannabis Control Commission. Lead by the Yes on 4 campaign, supporters for the ballot question include former Gov. Bill Weld and various state senators and representatives, the ACLU of Massachusetts, Parents for Addiction Treatment & Healing and Moms United to End the War on Drugs. Lead by the Campaign for a Safe & Healthy Massachusetts, opponents of legalized recreational marijuana include Gov. Charlie Baker, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, Attorney General Maura Healey, various state lawmakers, Roman Catholic Bishops of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association. Sue OConnell takes Question 4 to the streets and gets Bostons response to the new ad in opposition to legalizing marijuana in Massachusetts. Quiet Waters Christian Retreat in Bungay is holding a gentle day retreat exploring healing in the Kingdom of God. Quiet Waters Christian Retreat in Bungay is holding a gentle day retreat exploring healing in the Kingdom of God. Latest Norfolk Christian community events Events of interest to the Norwich and Norfolk Christian community happening over the next few weeks are listed. Read more Norfolk ministry coaching duo are guest speakers Former church leaders and now freelance ministry coaches, Jonathan and Paige Squirrell, are the guest speakers at the next dinner of Norwich FGB on Monday, November 21. Read more Bringing light to Halloween Anna Price encourages Christians to engage positively with Halloween rather than hide away, on what many see as the darkest night of the year. Read more First service takes place at Norwich church site SOUL Church hosted around 400 people for a special service on the site of their new building on Heartsease Lane. Read more Dereham draws up list of warm places for winter As rising energy prices make it harder to heat homes, churches in Dereham are leading the way in creating warm spaces where people can go. Read more South Norfolk church scoops national award A medieval Anglican church in a tiny hamlet in South Norfolk has won a national award and a 10,000 boost. Read more Dereham churches help people to help themselves A group of churches in Dereham have launched an ambitious project which aims to meet needs in the town, including the provision of food and skills training. Read more Executive assistant and nursery manager jobs SOUL Church is a vibrant, welcoming and growing church in Norwich. They are seeking an organised and versatile Executive Assistant to provide key support to the churchs Senior Pastors, as well as a qualified Nursery Manager to head up SOUL Nursery. Read more Halloween light in Gorleston church On Halloween this year, St Mary Magdalene Church in Gorleston will be preparing to welcome around 200 families to experience their Light on a Dark Night event. Read more An opportunity for Norwich to pray for the nation Rev Nigel Fox, who has served as a Methodist Minister for 15 years in Norwich, shares an open invitation to pray for the nation at a crucial moment. Read more Norwich church seeks musicians Kingdom Ambassadors International Church is appealing for instrumentlists, keyboardists and guitarists to be part of their worship experience. Read more Please keep Rishi in your prayers Andy Bryant urges us to pray for our political leaders, especially the new Prime Minister, and avoid unhelpful judgementalism. Read more Emilys art boosts growing Yarmouth foodbank A pupil at a primary school in Bradwell has been selling her pictures in order to raise money for the Yarmouth and Magdalen Foodbank, which is expanding its capacity and is seeking more volunteers. Read more Patrick Regan helps Norwich to bounce forwards On Saturday St Stephens in Norwich hosted Bouncing Forwards as part of a national tour by the mental health charity Kintsugi Hope. Read more Painting and biblical feasting in Overstrand There will be opportunities to improve your painting skills and indulge in some biblical feasting next month at the Pleasaunce in Overstrand in North Norfolk. Read more National award for Dereham Christian bookshop The Green Pastures Christian bookshop in Dereham has won a national award for providing boxes of Christian books to 21 local schools. Read more Norma's care home jigsaw challenge complete A resident at Norwich-based care home Corton House has completed an incredible 70 jigsaw puzzles in celebration of the homes 70th anniversary this year. Read more The deal for Verizon to purchase struggling Yahoo became endangered thanks to reports of Yahoo spying on user email for the U.S. government, not to mention the lost data on 500 million accounts and a decline in revenue. Earlier this month, Verizon publicly declared it was looking for a $1 billion discount on the original $4.8 billion it offered to purchase Yahoo. Verizon sought the discount because of Yahoos enormous data breach and because of reports that Yahoo was under a court order to scan emails for terrorist chatter, according to the New York Post. Now it looks as though Verizon might be trying to back out of the deal completely. Reuters reports that the contract between the two companies has a clause in it that allows Verizon to cancel the deal if a new factor "reasonably can be expected to have a material adverse effect on the business, assets, properties, results of operation or financial condition of the business." This came from Verizon's general counsel Craig Silliman, who told reporters at a roundtable in Washington the data breach could trigger the clause. The Federal Trade Commission has approved the proposed acquisition, but it still needs approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the European Commission. There had also been concerns that Yahoo was going to have a very bad quarter, but that was shot down with better-than-expected revenue and earnings. The research firm eMarketer had predicted a double-digit decline in ad revenue, and last week CEO Marissa Mayer canceled the earnings call with analysts, citing "the pending transaction with Verizon." The company announced third-quarter earnings per share of 20 cents, adjusted, on revenue of $1.31 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected Yahoo to report earnings of about 14 cents a share on $1.31 billion in revenue. That may have saved the dealat least for now. Photographs of nearly half of all U.S. adults -- 117 million people -- are collected in police facial recognition databases across the country with little regulation over how the networks are searched and used, according to a new study. Along with a lack of regulation, critics question the accuracy of facial recognition algorithms. Meanwhile, state, city, and federal facial recognition databases include 48 percent of U.S. adults, said the report from the Center on Privacy & Technology at Georgetown Law. The search of facial recognition databases is largely unregulated, the report said. "A few agencies have instituted meaningful protections to prevent the misuse of the technology," its authors wrote. "In many more cases, it is out of control." About 20 states, including Texas, Florida, Illinois, Ohio, and Pennsylvania allow police to search drivers license photo databases. Police in a handful of other states and cities San Fransisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Chicago can search criminal mug shots, the report said. Police agencies don't need a search warrant to search facial recognition databases, the report said. "We are not aware of any agency that requires warrants for searches or limits them to serious crimes," the authors wrote. "This has consequences." The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office in Arizona has enrolled all of Honduras' driver's licenses and mug shots into its database. This was presumably related to the tough stance on immigration taken by County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who just this week was indicted for defying a judge's orders to stop targeting Latinos. Meanwhile, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office in Florida runs 8,000 monthly searches on 7 million Florida drivers, without requiring that officers have "even a reasonable suspicion," the report said. In addition to concerns about racial profiling, the growing use of facial recognition by police raises several other potential problems, said Clare Garvie, a co-author of the report and an associate at the Georgetown center. The facial recognition algorithms used to search the photo databases, sold by a handful of vendors, aren't perfect, she said by email. "The algorithms make mistakes," she added. "These mistakes happen at a higher rate when the systems are used to try and identify people in lower quality images," including surveillance camera images, or smartphone photos, and social media pictures. Most police facial recognition systems use pre-trained algorithms that identify distinct nodal points on the face for each person, then match those blueprints to known images. A second type of facial recognition technology uses neural networks to learn and update itself over time, but the report's authors aren't aware of any police agencies that use "this type of deep learning algorithm at the moment," Garvie said. The main companies that sell facial-recognition technology to U.S. law enforcement agencies are Cognitec, NEC, and MorphoTrust, Garvie said. These companies also license their face recognition algorithms to other value-added resellers, such as FaceFirst and Dynamic Imaging Systems. Limited testing has suggested that facial recognition technology makes more errors on African Americans, women, and young people, Garvie said. The search systems are also set up to return results, "regardless of whether the suspect being searched for is in the database," Garvie added. "This means that a system may return a list of 10 or 40 completely innocent people." With many police systems using drivers license photos, the list "may be of people who have never had any interaction with the police before," she added. "But if the algorithm says it has a high confidence that one or more of these people is a 'match,' the police may investigate. They may arrest a completely innocent person because the algorithm pointed them in that person's direction." Representatives of the FBI and the National Association of Police Organizations didn't immediately respond to requests for comments on the report. Police in the Czech Republic have arrested a Russian hacker suspected of targeting the U.S. for cyber crime. Czech police, working in collaboration with the FBI, arrested the Russian man at a hotel in central Prague. He is currently in custody and now faces possible extradition to the U.S., depending on what the local courts decide, according to a statement from the Czech police. The arrest comes as the U.S. has blamed Russian government for hacking U.S. officials and political groups in an effort to influence this year's upcoming election. However, a U.S. law enforcement official said the Russian hacker wasn't involved with the breach of the Democratic National Committee reported earlier this year. On Wednesday, the FBI would only confirm that the unnamed man had been arrested. "Due to the ongoing investigation, no additional details can be provided at this time," the agency said in an email. The Czech police said that the Russian citizen had been found traveling in a luxury car with his girlfriend. Upon his arrest, the man offered no resistance, but immediately collapsed and was later hospitalized. Czech police have released video of his arrest, and his name is reportedly Yevgeniy N, according to the Associated Press. Although the suspect may face extradition to the U.S., the Russian government reportedly is insisting that the man be returned to his home country. "We are in contact with his attorney," said Russian embassy spokesman Andrey Kolmakov, according to the country's state-run news agency Tass. "Russia repudiates Washingtons policy of imposing its extraterritorial jurisdiction on all countries." Russian and Eastern European cyber criminals are seen as possible culprits behind the data breaches involving LinkedIn and Yahoo, according to security experts. Those breaches stole details from hundreds of millions of user accounts, including hashed passwords, but the full scale of the intrusions have only recently come to light. Level 3 Threat Research has noted an uptick in activity by new IoT botnets that are backed by the Mirai malware, with some attacks enlisting 100,000 individual hijacked devices. A significant number of these zombie devices are enslaved by more than one botnet, according to the research described in the Level 3 Beyond Bandwidth blog, and some of these botnets use overlapping infrastructure. Source code for Mirai was released Sept. 30, which has inspired a significant number of new bad actors, all working to exploit similar pools of vulnerable devices, the Level 3 researchers write. They came across Mirai in mid-September, just days before it gained notoriety when it was used to launch one of the largest ever DDoS attacks, taking down the Krebs on Security Web site. Before that, they had been tracking a different IoT botnet malware called BASHLITE, which is still around and being used to run giant IoT botnets in competition with owners of Mirai-enabled IoT botnets. Level 3 continues to monitor both, which are used to support DDoS-for-hire businesses. Mirai is more sophisticated than BASHLITE, says Level 3 CTO Dale Drew, and since Mirai has been released, it is becoming still more sophisticated. For example, Mirai owners now rotate the IP addresses of the botnet command and control (C2) servers more frequently, every day or so, to avoid detection. Thats about three times as often as has been observed with other IoT botnets, the research says. Actors using MIrai sometimes use the same IP addresses for C2s but assign different domain names to them over time. Those C2s are mostly compromised servers in small and midsize businesses, Drew says, and Level 3 is reaching out to the victimized organizations so they can clean up their machines. Two of the Mirai C servers were attacked simultaneously at gigabit-per-second levels over a period of 24 hours stretching from Sept. 18 to Sept. 19. The attacker was BASHLITE. Three shorter, lower bandwidth attacks were subsequently noted on separate Mirai command and control servers on Sept. 20, 22 and 23. Those shorter attacks might have been attempts to take over control of the C2s to enlist them and the bots they controlled into BASHLITE, Drew says. Since the release of Mirai source code, the geographic distribution of hijacked IoT bots has changed. The code contains common and default user names and password, and these dictionaries have made attacks more effective in the U.S., so now a higher percentage of devices than with BAHSLITE are located here. The most are in the U.S. (29%), then Brazil (23%) and Colombia (8%). Level 3 has tracked the IP addresses that contact known command and control servers for both kinds of botnets, and track what devices reach out to them. Prior to Mirai code being released, Level 3 had discovered 213,000 IoT devices being used as bots. Afterwards, that number more than doubled to 493,000. Since Level 3 doesnt have a complete view of the bot infrastructure, the actual number is likely higher, the researchers say. The research found that individual hijacked IoT devices were used to scan the internet for other vulnerable IoT devices on TCP ports 23 and 2323 and send the IP addresses and credentials of vulnerable devices to a reporting server. Loader servers would then connect to the devices that had been designated as vulnerable and downloaded loaders to them. Then the infected machines connected to separate servers to download Mirai. Level 3 observed long-lasting connections between the reporting servers and the onion router (Tor) network, which the researchers concluded was the bot herder connecting to control the botnet. More than 80% of the bots were DVRs, with the rest being IoT routers, cameras, Linux servers and the like using default user names and passwords. The researchers found that 24% of the bots in the Mirai botnets had also been enslaved by BASHLITE. Such a high overlap indicates that multiple malware families are targeting the same pool of vulnerable IoT devices, they say. Police investigating after contractor was killed in a work based accident IKEA Reading is closed after a man died in a work based accident this morning (Wednesday). Deputy Retail Manager, IKEA UK and Ireland, Javier Quinones, said: We are very saddened to confirm that this morning, 19th October, a contractor died in an incident on our site in Reading. "The safety and security of everyone on our premises is always our highest priority and we are now supporting the Thames Valley Police with their investigation. "The store will remain closed this morning. Our thoughts are with the individuals family at this time." Staff are directing customers away from the store and signs informing drivers of the store's closure have been put in place. Police were called to the store at the Pincents Kiln Industrial Park, Calcot, at 2.33am by the South Central Ambulance Service. An investigation is ongoing however, an ambulance spokesman said that the contractor had died in a work based accident. Fire crews were also called to the scene. A spokesman for Thames Valley Police, Jack Abell, said: "We attended the scene, where sadly a man had died. No arrests have been made. "Officers remain at the site while an investigation is carried out, and the store is currently closed." By PTI NEW DELHI: Three persons, including two African nationals, have been arrested from south Delhi for allegedly duping people on the pretext of giving them jobs in the US. Last week, a complaint filed by a Faridabad resident at Vasant Vihar police station said the trio charged Rs 1.20 lakh on the pretext of a job in the US, said Ishwar Singh, DCP(south). Complainant Siddhant told police that he was in touch with some agencies in connection with a job and got a mail confirming him a job in the US. Later, he got a call from a person named Peter Coal on whose instruction he gave Rs 20,000 as visa fee to his alleged secretary Ruchi Batra at C Block market in Vasant Vihar, on October 11. In another call, Peter demanded Rs 2,08,500, as TOFEL certificate charge, the complainant gave Rs one lakh to Ruchi on October 15 and promised to pay remaining amount later. However, he got suspicious when he learned that TOFEL certificate was obtained after clearing a test, and approached the police. A police team laid a trap and apprehended Ruchi who came to collect remaining amount from the complainant on October 17, said the officer. During interrogation, Ruchi claimed her real name as Alisha Ali. She told police that she worked with two African nationals who used to interact with job seekers and promise them jobs in foreign countries. Police asked Alisha to keep on receiving calls from the duo and tell them that she had collected Rs one lakh from Siddhant. Meanwhile, a police team was dispatched to nab them. In the raid at a restaurant near Safdarjang hospital, the duo Boby Brown Francis and Abdel K Cooper, kingpin behind the racket was arrested, he said. Cooper is a native of Ghana while Francis is from Benin. Rs 20,000 cash and passport of the complainant were recovered from them, added the officer. NEW DELHI: Three persons, including two African nationals, have been arrested from south Delhi for allegedly duping people on the pretext of giving them jobs in the US. Last week, a complaint filed by a Faridabad resident at Vasant Vihar police station said the trio charged Rs 1.20 lakh on the pretext of a job in the US, said Ishwar Singh, DCP(south). Complainant Siddhant told police that he was in touch with some agencies in connection with a job and got a mail confirming him a job in the US. Later, he got a call from a person named Peter Coal on whose instruction he gave Rs 20,000 as visa fee to his alleged secretary Ruchi Batra at C Block market in Vasant Vihar, on October 11. In another call, Peter demanded Rs 2,08,500, as TOFEL certificate charge, the complainant gave Rs one lakh to Ruchi on October 15 and promised to pay remaining amount later. However, he got suspicious when he learned that TOFEL certificate was obtained after clearing a test, and approached the police. A police team laid a trap and apprehended Ruchi who came to collect remaining amount from the complainant on October 17, said the officer. During interrogation, Ruchi claimed her real name as Alisha Ali. She told police that she worked with two African nationals who used to interact with job seekers and promise them jobs in foreign countries. Police asked Alisha to keep on receiving calls from the duo and tell them that she had collected Rs one lakh from Siddhant. Meanwhile, a police team was dispatched to nab them. In the raid at a restaurant near Safdarjang hospital, the duo Boby Brown Francis and Abdel K Cooper, kingpin behind the racket was arrested, he said. Cooper is a native of Ghana while Francis is from Benin. Rs 20,000 cash and passport of the complainant were recovered from them, added the officer. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The National Zoological Park in Delhi has been temporarily shut down as a precautionary measure after a few birds which include Ducks, Rosy Pelicans and Painted Stork dying of H5N1 Avian Influenza. Free-ranging Rosy Pelicans, Painted Storks, and Ducks have been found dead in the Park, nine birds have died so far. Some of these birds have tested positive for H5 Avian Influenza virus. It has been decided to close the zoo temporarily for the safety of visitors the Zoo authorities said in an official statement. The Delhi Minister for Development Gopal Rai also visited the zoo to make an assessment of the situation. No need to worry, the government is taking necessary steps. Rai said after. These cases come a nearly month after India declared itself free from the highly contagious avian influenza (H5N1) or bird flu. According to sources, the samples of the birds have been sent to Bhopal and Jalandhar for testing, further teams from Central Zoo authority and state are visiting the site to examine the exact cause of the spread of the virus. The floating population of the migratory birds around 150 might be the cause of the highly contagious virus. The National Zoological Park has been battling with a spate of animal deaths since earlier this year. Around 46 spotted deer were found dead at its premises in January. Bird flu affects mainly the domestic poultry. The disease spreads from infected birds to other winged creatures through contact with nasal and respiratory secretions and also due to contamination of feed and water. NEW DELHI: The National Zoological Park in Delhi has been temporarily shut down as a precautionary measure after a few birds which include Ducks, Rosy Pelicans and Painted Stork dying of H5N1 Avian Influenza. Free-ranging Rosy Pelicans, Painted Storks, and Ducks have been found dead in the Park, nine birds have died so far. Some of these birds have tested positive for H5 Avian Influenza virus. It has been decided to close the zoo temporarily for the safety of visitors the Zoo authorities said in an official statement. The Delhi Minister for Development Gopal Rai also visited the zoo to make an assessment of the situation. No need to worry, the government is taking necessary steps. Rai said after. These cases come a nearly month after India declared itself free from the highly contagious avian influenza (H5N1) or bird flu. According to sources, the samples of the birds have been sent to Bhopal and Jalandhar for testing, further teams from Central Zoo authority and state are visiting the site to examine the exact cause of the spread of the virus. The floating population of the migratory birds around 150 might be the cause of the highly contagious virus. The National Zoological Park has been battling with a spate of animal deaths since earlier this year. Around 46 spotted deer were found dead at its premises in January. Bird flu affects mainly the domestic poultry. The disease spreads from infected birds to other winged creatures through contact with nasal and respiratory secretions and also due to contamination of feed and water. Aishik Chanda By Express News Service KOLKATA: It was a rude shock for 24-year-old Rajashree Chattopadhyay on the lazy Sunday morning of October 16 when she found her Facebook status displayed on a 5.5 ft by 4 ft hoarding near her house with the caption Dhikkaar (Shame) to the left of the billboard. The 'Citizens Forum' of Nagerbazaar in Dumdum locality of Kolkata had put up the M Tech first-year student's Facebook status of Oct. 14 in which she slammed chief minister Mamata Banerjee for organising a parade of 39 Durga Puja pandals that supposedly upheld and promoted the culture of Bengal on the global stage. Bhashane Horibol! Mananiya aapni chuloy jaan! the status read, with the hashtag #bhasanAtRedRoad. This was the Rajabazar Science College student literally asking the chief minister to go to hell for organising such a programme. She went on to explain in her comments that when the state is facing high unemployment and malnutrition rates, so much taxpayers money was being wasted on processions and that if the parade truly represented the entire state, Durga Puja pandals from all the backward regions of the state ought to have also gotten a place in it. In an interview with New Indian Express, Rajashree Chattopadhyay explained, As a citizen of the country, I have every right to protest under Section 19 (1) (A). There are no Citizens Forums in our locality. Women who saw me grow up and are now Trinamool supporters heckled and threatened me for putting up the status. The status had not gone viral, garnering only some 219 likes and 5 shares. So what made her detractors decide to shame her publicly? I am a local committee member of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), a communist youth organisation, and campaigned for CPM candidate Palash Das in Dumdum constituency in the Assembly elections by sporting a party T-shirt and distributing leaflets. Since then, I have been mapped. They were looking for an opportune time to malign me, she said. The banner has since been taken down on the insistence of the Dumdum MLA and IT minister Bratya Basu. Local councillor Avijit Mitra had earlier accused Rajashree of putting up the poster herself for propaganda. They did not even have courage to write that Trinamool Congress put up the poster in the guise of some non-existent Citizens Forum, Rajashree said. Facebook posts have a history of triggering the umbrage of Trinamool Congress leaders. back in 2012, Jadavpur University professor Ambikesh Mahapatra was arrested for circulating a cartoon of Mamata Banerjee on social media. KOLKATA: It was a rude shock for 24-year-old Rajashree Chattopadhyay on the lazy Sunday morning of October 16 when she found her Facebook status displayed on a 5.5 ft by 4 ft hoarding near her house with the caption Dhikkaar (Shame) to the left of the billboard. The 'Citizens Forum' of Nagerbazaar in Dumdum locality of Kolkata had put up the M Tech first-year student's Facebook status of Oct. 14 in which she slammed chief minister Mamata Banerjee for organising a parade of 39 Durga Puja pandals that supposedly upheld and promoted the culture of Bengal on the global stage. Bhashane Horibol! Mananiya aapni chuloy jaan! the status read, with the hashtag #bhasanAtRedRoad. This was the Rajabazar Science College student literally asking the chief minister to go to hell for organising such a programme. She went on to explain in her comments that when the state is facing high unemployment and malnutrition rates, so much taxpayers money was being wasted on processions and that if the parade truly represented the entire state, Durga Puja pandals from all the backward regions of the state ought to have also gotten a place in it. In an interview with New Indian Express, Rajashree Chattopadhyay explained, As a citizen of the country, I have every right to protest under Section 19 (1) (A). There are no Citizens Forums in our locality. Women who saw me grow up and are now Trinamool supporters heckled and threatened me for putting up the status. The status had not gone viral, garnering only some 219 likes and 5 shares. So what made her detractors decide to shame her publicly? I am a local committee member of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), a communist youth organisation, and campaigned for CPM candidate Palash Das in Dumdum constituency in the Assembly elections by sporting a party T-shirt and distributing leaflets. Since then, I have been mapped. They were looking for an opportune time to malign me, she said. The banner has since been taken down on the insistence of the Dumdum MLA and IT minister Bratya Basu. Local councillor Avijit Mitra had earlier accused Rajashree of putting up the poster herself for propaganda. They did not even have courage to write that Trinamool Congress put up the poster in the guise of some non-existent Citizens Forum, Rajashree said. Facebook posts have a history of triggering the umbrage of Trinamool Congress leaders. back in 2012, Jadavpur University professor Ambikesh Mahapatra was arrested for circulating a cartoon of Mamata Banerjee on social media. By PTI KOLKATA: Trinamool Congress MP and the party's youth wing president Abhishek Banerjee's health condition improved today, a day after he met with an accident on NH-2 near Singur, while returning to Kolkata from Murshidabad. "The condition of Abhishek Banerjee is much better. He is completely out of danger. The CT scan report was normal. An MRI has also been conducted today. We are waiting for the report and are planning to shift him to a normal cabin in a day or two," hospital CEO P Tandon said. Abhishek is presently in ITU, Tandon said. KOLKATA: Trinamool Congress MP and the party's youth wing president Abhishek Banerjee's health condition improved today, a day after he met with an accident on NH-2 near Singur, while returning to Kolkata from Murshidabad. "The condition of Abhishek Banerjee is much better. He is completely out of danger. The CT scan report was normal. An MRI has also been conducted today. We are waiting for the report and are planning to shift him to a normal cabin in a day or two," hospital CEO P Tandon said. Abhishek is presently in ITU, Tandon said. By IANS NEW DELHI: Filmmaker Shyam Benegal is saddened to see that director Karan Johar is being unnecessarily harassed for casting Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" (ADHM). Benegal wants the government to step in to protect the film industry which is particularly vulnerable. "I am very saddened by what he had to say because the poor chap (Karan) is being unnecessarily harassed in a way because after all, over Rs.50 crore is at stake. What do you expect him to say?," Benegal told IANS over phone from Mumbai. "Film industry is particularly vulnerable. They (film fraternity) need to be protected from people who will threaten them or attack them. We cannot avoid these things. Government has to protect us against these kind of attacks," added Benegal referring to several political outfits' threats to multiplexes who will screen ADHM soon. The filmmaker, who heads the government-appointed revamp panel of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), expressed his views to IANS after the latest turn of events when Karan broke his silence about the forthcoming film, which will release on October 28, two days before Diwali. In a two-minute long video, Karan said that he is hurt on being labelled "anti-national" ahead of the release of his directorial and production venture ADHM, and said he would not engage with talent from Pakistan "in the circumstance". Benegal feels the "government should protect people like that. It is the duty of the government to protect people against the kind of threats that he (Karan) probably has received or is likely to receive". Karan's film became the first target of those who are against inclusion of Pakistani artistes in Indian films after the September 18 Uri attack that killed 19 Indian soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir. The attack was followed by surgical strikes that India conducted on terror camps across the LoC. While the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) issued an ultimatum to Pakistani artistes to quit India, the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association passed a resolution asking producers to avoid working with talent from Pakistan. Last week, the Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association of India announced single screen theatres in Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat won't screen ADHM. The film, which also stars Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, is already facing threats from the MNS. Benegal asserts that no one is being unpatriotic. "Nobody has done anything unpatriotic. If you are born here, got education here, are working here, making your livelihood here and are voting every election, then why should you be constantly told to prove your credentials. What more credentials do you want? "If you are an Indian then you are an Indian and are proud to be an Indian. I don't have to say that every day and every morning from my terrace that 'I am an Indian, and I am proud Indian'," he said. What does he think about various groups demanding a ban on Pakistani talent working in India? The 81-year-old said: "The fact is when the relationship between the neighbours was happy and okay, we were taking people from Pakistan. In fact, our actors and directors were also going to the other side." "It was stopped because of the skirmishes on the border. This is a temporary thing." NEW DELHI: Filmmaker Shyam Benegal is saddened to see that director Karan Johar is being unnecessarily harassed for casting Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" (ADHM). Benegal wants the government to step in to protect the film industry which is particularly vulnerable. "I am very saddened by what he had to say because the poor chap (Karan) is being unnecessarily harassed in a way because after all, over Rs.50 crore is at stake. What do you expect him to say?," Benegal told IANS over phone from Mumbai. "Film industry is particularly vulnerable. They (film fraternity) need to be protected from people who will threaten them or attack them. We cannot avoid these things. Government has to protect us against these kind of attacks," added Benegal referring to several political outfits' threats to multiplexes who will screen ADHM soon. The filmmaker, who heads the government-appointed revamp panel of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), expressed his views to IANS after the latest turn of events when Karan broke his silence about the forthcoming film, which will release on October 28, two days before Diwali. In a two-minute long video, Karan said that he is hurt on being labelled "anti-national" ahead of the release of his directorial and production venture ADHM, and said he would not engage with talent from Pakistan "in the circumstance". Benegal feels the "government should protect people like that. It is the duty of the government to protect people against the kind of threats that he (Karan) probably has received or is likely to receive". Karan's film became the first target of those who are against inclusion of Pakistani artistes in Indian films after the September 18 Uri attack that killed 19 Indian soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir. The attack was followed by surgical strikes that India conducted on terror camps across the LoC. While the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) issued an ultimatum to Pakistani artistes to quit India, the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association passed a resolution asking producers to avoid working with talent from Pakistan. Last week, the Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association of India announced single screen theatres in Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat won't screen ADHM. The film, which also stars Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, is already facing threats from the MNS. Benegal asserts that no one is being unpatriotic. "Nobody has done anything unpatriotic. If you are born here, got education here, are working here, making your livelihood here and are voting every election, then why should you be constantly told to prove your credentials. What more credentials do you want? "If you are an Indian then you are an Indian and are proud to be an Indian. I don't have to say that every day and every morning from my terrace that 'I am an Indian, and I am proud Indian'," he said. What does he think about various groups demanding a ban on Pakistani talent working in India? The 81-year-old said: "The fact is when the relationship between the neighbours was happy and okay, we were taking people from Pakistan. In fact, our actors and directors were also going to the other side." "It was stopped because of the skirmishes on the border. This is a temporary thing." By Express News Service MUMBAI: In the inner circles of Bollywood, the real issue is not whether Pakistani artistes should be allowed to work in India, but how to reckon with the menace of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), which is threatening to take the fizz out of the two major productions lined up for Diwali release this year. Politically, the MNS is much sound and fury, having won only 28 seats (out of 228) in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Council and one seat in the Maharashtra Assembly. But its cadres are live threats to multiplex cinemas if the movies they show are not to their taste. Karan Johar knows what it is like to have an MNS threat hanging over his sugary sweet production. When he made My Name is Khan, starring Shah Rukh Khan, he had to reckon with an MNS threat. He resolved it, industry sources say, with a meeting with the party's boss, Raj Thackeray. The film came through unscathed then. And now, will his Ae Dil Hail Mushkil? Mushkil to say, what with this present cloud of patriotism hanging over Bollywood, and what with the BMC elections coming up early next year. The MNS needs to show itself as a party of reckoning at this juncture, and the Pakistani artistes in Bollywood is a nice issue to ride. As Bollywood biggies cowered in their Malabar Hill residences, MNS functionaries were making much of the menace they have worked up in recent days. The party has refused to accept Karan Johars abject viceo submision yesterday not to ever again work with Pakistani artistes. Whatever he has said or has promised to do in future is too little and has come too late, Ameya Khopkar of the MNS' movie wing told New Indian Express today. The MNS threat to their glass panes has already made single-screen theatres swear not to exhibit the two movies, Ae Dil... and Raees, that have Pakistani actors in their casts. But the multiplexes are still ambivalent about joining in on the patriotism plank. And it is multiplex cinema chains that hold the key to the forunes of Ae Dil and Raees. There are around 2200 multiplex screens across the country which are controlled by just a handful of key players like PVR, Inox, Carnival Cinemas, Big Cinemas, Broadway Cinema, Cinepolis etc. The multiplexes form a major component in any release strategy these days as they have presence even in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. The reach matters, said Nitin Vaidya, founder director of Dashmi Creations whose Marathi film Ghanta is to be released soon. Another film distributor, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the controversy has given a lot of publicity to the film. It's a cruel dig, but there are also those in the industry who say all this has served only to give publicity to MNS. One distributor pointed out that the MNS may only be looking for an issue to stay in the news till the elections next year, which are crucial for its existence. And then there are those like retired Supreme Court judge Justice Markandey Katju who on Wednesday dared the MNS and waved a danda at the party. On Twitter. Why does MNS attack helpless people? If u are brave, come to me. Ive a danda waiting for u and is getting impatient, Katju tweeted. Katju's support may be cold comfort to Karan Johar. The judge does not have crores riding on a film, which if it does not rake it in in three days over the Diwali holidays, is as good as a dud. MUMBAI: In the inner circles of Bollywood, the real issue is not whether Pakistani artistes should be allowed to work in India, but how to reckon with the menace of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), which is threatening to take the fizz out of the two major productions lined up for Diwali release this year. Politically, the MNS is much sound and fury, having won only 28 seats (out of 228) in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Council and one seat in the Maharashtra Assembly. But its cadres are live threats to multiplex cinemas if the movies they show are not to their taste. Karan Johar knows what it is like to have an MNS threat hanging over his sugary sweet production. When he made My Name is Khan, starring Shah Rukh Khan, he had to reckon with an MNS threat. He resolved it, industry sources say, with a meeting with the party's boss, Raj Thackeray. The film came through unscathed then. And now, will his Ae Dil Hail Mushkil? Mushkil to say, what with this present cloud of patriotism hanging over Bollywood, and what with the BMC elections coming up early next year. The MNS needs to show itself as a party of reckoning at this juncture, and the Pakistani artistes in Bollywood is a nice issue to ride. As Bollywood biggies cowered in their Malabar Hill residences, MNS functionaries were making much of the menace they have worked up in recent days. The party has refused to accept Karan Johars abject viceo submision yesterday not to ever again work with Pakistani artistes. Whatever he has said or has promised to do in future is too little and has come too late, Ameya Khopkar of the MNS' movie wing told New Indian Express today. The MNS threat to their glass panes has already made single-screen theatres swear not to exhibit the two movies, Ae Dil... and Raees, that have Pakistani actors in their casts. But the multiplexes are still ambivalent about joining in on the patriotism plank. And it is multiplex cinema chains that hold the key to the forunes of Ae Dil and Raees. There are around 2200 multiplex screens across the country which are controlled by just a handful of key players like PVR, Inox, Carnival Cinemas, Big Cinemas, Broadway Cinema, Cinepolis etc. The multiplexes form a major component in any release strategy these days as they have presence even in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. The reach matters, said Nitin Vaidya, founder director of Dashmi Creations whose Marathi film Ghanta is to be released soon. Another film distributor, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the controversy has given a lot of publicity to the film. It's a cruel dig, but there are also those in the industry who say all this has served only to give publicity to MNS. One distributor pointed out that the MNS may only be looking for an issue to stay in the news till the elections next year, which are crucial for its existence. And then there are those like retired Supreme Court judge Justice Markandey Katju who on Wednesday dared the MNS and waved a danda at the party. On Twitter. Why does MNS attack helpless people? If u are brave, come to me. Ive a danda waiting for u and is getting impatient, Katju tweeted. Katju's support may be cold comfort to Karan Johar. The judge does not have crores riding on a film, which if it does not rake it in in three days over the Diwali holidays, is as good as a dud. Ramananda Sengupta By Prime Minister Narendra Modis comparison of Indias surgical strikes with covert operations carried out by Israel comes at a time when defence cooperation and diplomatic ties between the two countries are at a high. Heres a look at how the bilateral relationship evolved and improved over time. Why cant we deal with terrorists the way Israelis do? That question is often raised in social and other media whenever there is a terrorist strike in India. Which perhaps explains why Prime Minister Narendra Modi drew a parallel between the special forces of the Indian Army and their counterparts in the Israeli Defence Forces while praising the surgical strikes across the LoC to avenge Uri. It also comes at a time when Indo-Israeli cooperation, particularly in defence, is at an all time high, and growing each day. The bilateral relationship with Israel, however, was not always this rosy. Even before Independence, the tone was set by the father of the Indian freedom movement, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who clearly articulated his opposition to the idea of Israel in an editorial in the November 11, 1938 issue of Harijan, a widely circulated weekly. My sympathies are with the Jews ... but my sympathy does not blind me to the requirements of justice. The cry for the national home for the Jews does not make much appeal to me ... Why should they not, like other peoples of the earth, make that country their home where they are born and where they earn their livelihood? Surely it would be a crime against humanity to reduce the proud Arabs so that Palestine can be restored to the Jews partly or wholly as their national home. Heres a quick timeline of Indo-Israeli relations to put things into perspective: August 15, 1947: India gets Independence from British colonial rule May 14, 1948: Israel is born, following the UN decision to partition British Mandate Palestine. India opposes this decision. May 1949: India votes in vain against admission of Israel to the UN. September 1950: India reluctantly and partially recognises Israel, allows it to set up immigration office in Mumbai. Indias main concern, apart from its endorsement of the Palestinian cause, was the fear that any overt relationship with Israel would alienate not just the Arab nationsIndias main source of oil and gas, and where a large number of Indians workbut also the Muslim population in India. 1961 Non-Aligned Movement, or NAM is born, with India, Yugoslavia and Egypt as founder members. Prime Minister Nehrus relationship with President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt and other Arab states, and the fact that Israel was clearly aligned with the United States, made it difficult for Nehru to formally reach out to Israel. However, the intelligence agencies of both nations started meeting discreetly to build a strategic relationship. 1962: Israel secretly ships artillery shells and other munitions to India after the latters border war with China, which ended when the Chinese unilaterally withdrew. 1965: Israel reportedly helps India with a modest cache of weapons, ammunition and intelligence during the war with Pakistan. 1971: Just before the brief war with Pakistan, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi okays a proposal by the Research and Analysis Wing, led by RN Kao, to initiate a discreet bid to secure Israeli weapons and training. These are eventually routed to India through Liechtenstein. When Bangladesh is born with Indian help, Israel is the first nation to recognise it. August 1977: Israeli foreign minister Moshe Dayan pays a secret visit to New Delhi (some say Kathmandu) to meet Indian officials, and shares intelligence about Pakistans secret nuclear plant in Kahuta. But both RAW and Israeli intelligence officials are startled when Prime Minister Morarji Desai call up Zia ul Haq, Pakistans military ruler at the time, and tells him that he knows about Kahuta, courtesy RAW. Their concern is their sources would be compromised. October 1985: Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi officially meets Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres at the UNGA in New York, the first such formal meeting. June 1991: Insurgents, backed by Pakistans ISI, attack Israeli tourists in Kashmir, suspecting them to be military and intelligence officers aiding counter-insurgency operations in the state. One is killed, another abducted. A week later, under intense US and UN pressure, the kidnapped Israeli is released. Several senior Israeli officials visit India during the negotiations for his release. 1992: Prime Minister Narasimha Rao formally announced full diplomatic relations with Israel, after reassuring Arab nations that this did not mean a dilution of Indian support for Palestine. In return, Rao wants the powerful Jewish lobby in the US to pressure Washington to declare Pakistan a terrorist state. Earlier in the year, Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao tells visiting Palestinian President Yasser Arafat that it would help Palestines cause if India establishes ties with Israel, and then uses its influence to push for a change in Israeli policy. Arafat agrees. India also becomes increasingly aware of the fact that despite Indias support for the Arab cause, the Organisation of Islamic Conference constantly endorsed the Pakistani position on Kashmir. Israel, on the other hand, steadfastly endorsed the Indian position that the 1972 Shimla agreement between India and Pakistan was the only basis for a final settlement of the Kashmir issue. December 1995: Ezer Weizmann, who served in Bangalore as part of the Royal Air Force in 1944, becomes the first Israeli president to visit India. May 1999: Israel rushes military aid including shells for the Bofors gun as well as intelligence inputs to India during the Kargil war. June 2000: Home Minister LK Advani visits Israel. Other visiting Indian leaders included West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu, and Najma Heptullah, senior Congress leader and deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. July 2000: Jaswant Singh became the first Indian Foreign Minister to visit Israel. January 2003: Israels arch rival Irans president Mohammed Khatami is the chief guest at Indias Republic Day celebrations. September 2003: Ariel Sharon becomes the first Israeli Prime Minister to visit India, but cuts short his visit due to a terrorist strike back home. The very reason that brought us to India is responsible for the cutting short of the visit: Terror, Deputy Prime Minister Yosef Lapid told journalists in Delhi. India announces the purchase of three Phalcon AWACS, to be fitted with Israeli radar equipment, on Russian IL-76 transport aircraft. This comes only after India assuages Israeli fears of transfer of defence technology to Iran. 2004: UPA government comes to power, and the relationship is taken underground again for a decade, mainly because the government believed overt ties with the country would alienate the domestic Muslim community. But intelligence, economic and defence cooperation continues discreetly. 2008: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh politely rejects Israels offer to send special forces to tackle the 26/11 attack on Mumbai. 2012: Minister of External Affairs S M Krishna visits Israel, but stresses on cooperation in science, technology, agriculture and commerce. However, he also quietly meets counter-terror and defence officials during the visit. 2010: President Prathibha Patil visits Damascus, and causes a stir in Israel when she reiterated Indias support for the full return of the Golan Heights to Syria, two-thirds of which it had lost to Israel in the six-day Arab-Israeli war in 1967. 2014: Within months of becoming Prime Minister, Narendra Modi meets his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the UNGA in September. In October, India and Israel sign a $519 million deal to buy 8,356 Spike anti-tank guided missiles and 321 missile launchers. According to the Jewish virtual library, Between Modis election in May 2014 and November 2014, Israel exported $662 million worth of Israeli weapons and defence items to India. This export number is greater than the total Israeli exports to India during the previous three years combined. 2015: Moshe Yaalon becomes the first Israeli Defence Minister to visit India. However, keeping the domestic implications in mind, New Delhi continues to express its support to the Palestinian cause, and PM Modi meets Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in September 2015 in New York. October 2015: President Pranab Mukherjee visits Palestine and Israel. Reports of Indo-Israeli military exercises surface, but without specifics. January 2016: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj visits Israel, and declares that the full development of positive Israel-India ties is of the highest importance to New Delhi. The visit was seen as a precursor to a visit by Prime Minister later in the year. However, that has now been tentatively scheduled for 2017. Today, although there are several critical agreements in agriculture and other sectors, India is Israels largest defence market, and Israeli intelligence inputs have helped prevent several terrorist attacks planned in Pakistan. More importantly, the government has no qualms about going public with the relationship. Prime Minister Narendra Modis comparison of Indias surgical strikes with covert operations carried out by Israel comes at a time when defence cooperation and diplomatic ties between the two countries are at a high. Heres a look at how the bilateral relationship evolved and improved over time. Why cant we deal with terrorists the way Israelis do? That question is often raised in social and other media whenever there is a terrorist strike in India. Which perhaps explains why Prime Minister Narendra Modi drew a parallel between the special forces of the Indian Army and their counterparts in the Israeli Defence Forces while praising the surgical strikes across the LoC to avenge Uri. It also comes at a time when Indo-Israeli cooperation, particularly in defence, is at an all time high, and growing each day. The bilateral relationship with Israel, however, was not always this rosy. Even before Independence, the tone was set by the father of the Indian freedom movement, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who clearly articulated his opposition to the idea of Israel in an editorial in the November 11, 1938 issue of Harijan, a widely circulated weekly. My sympathies are with the Jews ... but my sympathy does not blind me to the requirements of justice. The cry for the national home for the Jews does not make much appeal to me ... Why should they not, like other peoples of the earth, make that country their home where they are born and where they earn their livelihood? Surely it would be a crime against humanity to reduce the proud Arabs so that Palestine can be restored to the Jews partly or wholly as their national home. Heres a quick timeline of Indo-Israeli relations to put things into perspective: August 15, 1947: India gets Independence from British colonial rule May 14, 1948: Israel is born, following the UN decision to partition British Mandate Palestine. India opposes this decision. May 1949: India votes in vain against admission of Israel to the UN. September 1950: India reluctantly and partially recognises Israel, allows it to set up immigration office in Mumbai. Indias main concern, apart from its endorsement of the Palestinian cause, was the fear that any overt relationship with Israel would alienate not just the Arab nationsIndias main source of oil and gas, and where a large number of Indians workbut also the Muslim population in India. 1961 Non-Aligned Movement, or NAM is born, with India, Yugoslavia and Egypt as founder members. Prime Minister Nehrus relationship with President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt and other Arab states, and the fact that Israel was clearly aligned with the United States, made it difficult for Nehru to formally reach out to Israel. However, the intelligence agencies of both nations started meeting discreetly to build a strategic relationship. 1962: Israel secretly ships artillery shells and other munitions to India after the latters border war with China, which ended when the Chinese unilaterally withdrew. 1965: Israel reportedly helps India with a modest cache of weapons, ammunition and intelligence during the war with Pakistan. 1971: Just before the brief war with Pakistan, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi okays a proposal by the Research and Analysis Wing, led by RN Kao, to initiate a discreet bid to secure Israeli weapons and training. These are eventually routed to India through Liechtenstein. When Bangladesh is born with Indian help, Israel is the first nation to recognise it. August 1977: Israeli foreign minister Moshe Dayan pays a secret visit to New Delhi (some say Kathmandu) to meet Indian officials, and shares intelligence about Pakistans secret nuclear plant in Kahuta. But both RAW and Israeli intelligence officials are startled when Prime Minister Morarji Desai call up Zia ul Haq, Pakistans military ruler at the time, and tells him that he knows about Kahuta, courtesy RAW. Their concern is their sources would be compromised. October 1985: Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi officially meets Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres at the UNGA in New York, the first such formal meeting. June 1991: Insurgents, backed by Pakistans ISI, attack Israeli tourists in Kashmir, suspecting them to be military and intelligence officers aiding counter-insurgency operations in the state. One is killed, another abducted. A week later, under intense US and UN pressure, the kidnapped Israeli is released. Several senior Israeli officials visit India during the negotiations for his release. 1992: Prime Minister Narasimha Rao formally announced full diplomatic relations with Israel, after reassuring Arab nations that this did not mean a dilution of Indian support for Palestine. In return, Rao wants the powerful Jewish lobby in the US to pressure Washington to declare Pakistan a terrorist state. Earlier in the year, Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao tells visiting Palestinian President Yasser Arafat that it would help Palestines cause if India establishes ties with Israel, and then uses its influence to push for a change in Israeli policy. Arafat agrees. India also becomes increasingly aware of the fact that despite Indias support for the Arab cause, the Organisation of Islamic Conference constantly endorsed the Pakistani position on Kashmir. Israel, on the other hand, steadfastly endorsed the Indian position that the 1972 Shimla agreement between India and Pakistan was the only basis for a final settlement of the Kashmir issue. December 1995: Ezer Weizmann, who served in Bangalore as part of the Royal Air Force in 1944, becomes the first Israeli president to visit India. May 1999: Israel rushes military aid including shells for the Bofors gun as well as intelligence inputs to India during the Kargil war. June 2000: Home Minister LK Advani visits Israel. Other visiting Indian leaders included West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu, and Najma Heptullah, senior Congress leader and deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. July 2000: Jaswant Singh became the first Indian Foreign Minister to visit Israel. January 2003: Israels arch rival Irans president Mohammed Khatami is the chief guest at Indias Republic Day celebrations. September 2003: Ariel Sharon becomes the first Israeli Prime Minister to visit India, but cuts short his visit due to a terrorist strike back home. The very reason that brought us to India is responsible for the cutting short of the visit: Terror, Deputy Prime Minister Yosef Lapid told journalists in Delhi. India announces the purchase of three Phalcon AWACS, to be fitted with Israeli radar equipment, on Russian IL-76 transport aircraft. This comes only after India assuages Israeli fears of transfer of defence technology to Iran. 2004: UPA government comes to power, and the relationship is taken underground again for a decade, mainly because the government believed overt ties with the country would alienate the domestic Muslim community. But intelligence, economic and defence cooperation continues discreetly. 2008: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh politely rejects Israels offer to send special forces to tackle the 26/11 attack on Mumbai. 2012: Minister of External Affairs S M Krishna visits Israel, but stresses on cooperation in science, technology, agriculture and commerce. However, he also quietly meets counter-terror and defence officials during the visit. 2010: President Prathibha Patil visits Damascus, and causes a stir in Israel when she reiterated Indias support for the full return of the Golan Heights to Syria, two-thirds of which it had lost to Israel in the six-day Arab-Israeli war in 1967. 2014: Within months of becoming Prime Minister, Narendra Modi meets his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the UNGA in September. In October, India and Israel sign a $519 million deal to buy 8,356 Spike anti-tank guided missiles and 321 missile launchers. According to the Jewish virtual library, Between Modis election in May 2014 and November 2014, Israel exported $662 million worth of Israeli weapons and defence items to India. This export number is greater than the total Israeli exports to India during the previous three years combined. 2015: Moshe Yaalon becomes the first Israeli Defence Minister to visit India. However, keeping the domestic implications in mind, New Delhi continues to express its support to the Palestinian cause, and PM Modi meets Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in September 2015 in New York. October 2015: President Pranab Mukherjee visits Palestine and Israel. Reports of Indo-Israeli military exercises surface, but without specifics. January 2016: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj visits Israel, and declares that the full development of positive Israel-India ties is of the highest importance to New Delhi. The visit was seen as a precursor to a visit by Prime Minister later in the year. However, that has now been tentatively scheduled for 2017. Today, although there are several critical agreements in agriculture and other sectors, India is Israels largest defence market, and Israeli intelligence inputs have helped prevent several terrorist attacks planned in Pakistan. More importantly, the government has no qualms about going public with the relationship. NEW DELHI: On Wednesday, People Liberation Army of China landed in the state of Jammu and Kashmir for a day long military war games with Indian counterpart- the state whey had maintained as disputed. In 2010, China had denied visa to Northern Army Commander Lt. General BS Jamwal, because he was responsible for Jammu & Kashmir, a state that China maintained, was disputed. While canceling Lt. Gen Jamwals visa, Beijing had expressed its unwillingness to "welcome senior Indian Army commander because he "controlled" a disputed area, J&K. Indo-China military exercise was taken place in the backdrop of Beijings continuous support to Pakistan on Indias move to ban JeM chief Masood Azhar. According to army the exercise conducted under the provisions of the Border Defence Cooperation Agreement, 2013. As part of the ongoing initiative to enhance interaction and cooperation between India and China, the Indian and Chinese armies held Second Joint Exercise Sino-India Cooperation 2016. Army added that Wednesdays exercise was a sequel to the first joint exercise held on 6th February this year at Chushul Garrison of Eastern Ladakh, along with Chinese troops of Moldo Garrison. During the day-long exercise on Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR) a fictitious situation of earthquake striking an Indian Border village was painted. Thereafter joint teams carried out rescue operations, evacuation and rendering of medical assistance. While Indian side was led by Brigadier RS Raman, Chinese PLA was represented by Senior Colonel Fan Jun. The exercise was a great success and has not only refined the drills to provide succor to the border population in case of natural calamity but has also increased the level of trust and cooperation between the two border guarding forces along the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh, said Army spokesperson Colonel Rohan Anand here in Army headquarters. The joint exercise, compliments the Hand in Hand series of the India -China joint exercises and the effort of both the nations to enhance cooperation and maintain peace and tranquility along the border areas of India and China, according to army officials. NEW DELHI: On Wednesday, People Liberation Army of China landed in the state of Jammu and Kashmir for a day long military war games with Indian counterpart- the state whey had maintained as disputed. In 2010, China had denied visa to Northern Army Commander Lt. General BS Jamwal, because he was responsible for Jammu & Kashmir, a state that China maintained, was disputed. While canceling Lt. Gen Jamwals visa, Beijing had expressed its unwillingness to "welcome senior Indian Army commander because he "controlled" a disputed area, J&K. Indo-China military exercise was taken place in the backdrop of Beijings continuous support to Pakistan on Indias move to ban JeM chief Masood Azhar. According to army the exercise conducted under the provisions of the Border Defence Cooperation Agreement, 2013. As part of the ongoing initiative to enhance interaction and cooperation between India and China, the Indian and Chinese armies held Second Joint Exercise Sino-India Cooperation 2016. Army added that Wednesdays exercise was a sequel to the first joint exercise held on 6th February this year at Chushul Garrison of Eastern Ladakh, along with Chinese troops of Moldo Garrison. During the day-long exercise on Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR) a fictitious situation of earthquake striking an Indian Border village was painted. Thereafter joint teams carried out rescue operations, evacuation and rendering of medical assistance. While Indian side was led by Brigadier RS Raman, Chinese PLA was represented by Senior Colonel Fan Jun. The exercise was a great success and has not only refined the drills to provide succor to the border population in case of natural calamity but has also increased the level of trust and cooperation between the two border guarding forces along the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh, said Army spokesperson Colonel Rohan Anand here in Army headquarters. The joint exercise, compliments the Hand in Hand series of the India -China joint exercises and the effort of both the nations to enhance cooperation and maintain peace and tranquility along the border areas of India and China, according to army officials. Fayaz Wani By Express News Service SRINAGAR: Despite improvement in situation, there has been no let up in police crackdown on youth and separatists in Kashmir, which has been witnessing over three month long unrest triggered by killing of 21-year-old Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani. More than 100 people involved in disrupting public order in the Valley were arrested by police in last 24 hours, a police official told Express. He said police had arrested 122 people on Tuesday for involvement in stone pelting and disrupting public order. The official said police arrested 60 people, mostly youth on October 17, 62 on October 16, 48 on October 15, 63 on October 14, 52 on October 13 and 37 on October 12 during its continued crackdown on stone pelters and trouble mongers. Police alongwith other security agencies have launched a massive crackdown on youth and separatist leaders in the Valley to end the ongoing protests and unrest. Kashmir has been witnessing unrest and agitation since July 9, a day after killing of Burhan in an encounter with security forces. At least 91 people have been killed and over 13000 injured in the 103 days of unrest and agitation in the Valley. On the call of separatist leaders, who are spearheading the ongoing agitation, Kashmir has remained shut since July 8. The security agencies have compiled a list of stone pelters and trouble mongers across the Valley. All those, who are disrupting peace, would not be spared and put behind bars, the police official said. He said only after the police crackdown on youth and separatist leaders, there has been a semblance of normalcy in the Valley and number of anti-government protests and clashes have come down. The police, paramilitary forces and army on Monday launched massive 12-hour long search operation in in North Kashmirs Baramulla town to arrest the trouble mongers. It was the major crackdown conducted by Baramulla by security forces in over a decade and security personnel had sealed all the roads and bridges connecting to the town. During the 12-hour long operation, security forces searched over 700 houses. 44 persons involved in militancy related activities were apprehended during the operation. Large quantity of incriminating material including Chinese and Pakistan flags, petrol bombs, Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jasih-e-Mohammad letter head pads, unauthorized mobile phones and seditious anti-national publicity material were also seized during the operation, a defence spokesman said. According to police sources, over 7000 people including youth and separatist leaders and activists have been arrested in last three month of unrest to restore peace and normalcy in the Valley. They said of the over 7000 people arrested, more than 450 have been booked under stringent Public Safety Act (PSA). Barring 87-year-old hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani, who is under house arrest at his Hyderpora residence, other separatist leaders including Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Shabir Ahmad Shah, Mohammad Yasin Malik, Mohammad Ashraf Sehrai have been arrested and lodged in different jails and detention centres. The police official said crackdown will continue till normalcy and peace is fully restored in the Valley. SRINAGAR: Despite improvement in situation, there has been no let up in police crackdown on youth and separatists in Kashmir, which has been witnessing over three month long unrest triggered by killing of 21-year-old Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani. More than 100 people involved in disrupting public order in the Valley were arrested by police in last 24 hours, a police official told Express. He said police had arrested 122 people on Tuesday for involvement in stone pelting and disrupting public order. The official said police arrested 60 people, mostly youth on October 17, 62 on October 16, 48 on October 15, 63 on October 14, 52 on October 13 and 37 on October 12 during its continued crackdown on stone pelters and trouble mongers. Police alongwith other security agencies have launched a massive crackdown on youth and separatist leaders in the Valley to end the ongoing protests and unrest. Kashmir has been witnessing unrest and agitation since July 9, a day after killing of Burhan in an encounter with security forces. At least 91 people have been killed and over 13000 injured in the 103 days of unrest and agitation in the Valley. On the call of separatist leaders, who are spearheading the ongoing agitation, Kashmir has remained shut since July 8. The security agencies have compiled a list of stone pelters and trouble mongers across the Valley. All those, who are disrupting peace, would not be spared and put behind bars, the police official said. He said only after the police crackdown on youth and separatist leaders, there has been a semblance of normalcy in the Valley and number of anti-government protests and clashes have come down. The police, paramilitary forces and army on Monday launched massive 12-hour long search operation in in North Kashmirs Baramulla town to arrest the trouble mongers. It was the major crackdown conducted by Baramulla by security forces in over a decade and security personnel had sealed all the roads and bridges connecting to the town. During the 12-hour long operation, security forces searched over 700 houses. 44 persons involved in militancy related activities were apprehended during the operation. Large quantity of incriminating material including Chinese and Pakistan flags, petrol bombs, Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jasih-e-Mohammad letter head pads, unauthorized mobile phones and seditious anti-national publicity material were also seized during the operation, a defence spokesman said. According to police sources, over 7000 people including youth and separatist leaders and activists have been arrested in last three month of unrest to restore peace and normalcy in the Valley. They said of the over 7000 people arrested, more than 450 have been booked under stringent Public Safety Act (PSA). Barring 87-year-old hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani, who is under house arrest at his Hyderpora residence, other separatist leaders including Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Shabir Ahmad Shah, Mohammad Yasin Malik, Mohammad Ashraf Sehrai have been arrested and lodged in different jails and detention centres. The police official said crackdown will continue till normalcy and peace is fully restored in the Valley. By IANS NEW DELHI: India and Myanmar on Wednesday agreed to coordinate with each other on border security as Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaffirmed New Delhi's commitment to help develop Myanmar. "As close and friendly neighbours, the security interests of India and Myanmar are closely aligned," Modi said in the presence of Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi after delegation level talks between the two sides. "We have agreed that a close coordination to ensure security in the areas along our border, and sensitivity to each other's strategic interests, will serve the interests of both our countries," Modi said. India shares a 1,600-km border with Myanmar. Security has been an issue with insurgent groups from the northeast taking refuge in Myanmar territory. In August, the Indian Army reportedly carried out surgical strikes in Myanmar after National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K) militants fled to Myanmar from Mon in Nagaland after being attacked. Stating that India had a robust development cooperation programme with Myanmar, Modi mentioned the Kaladan multi-modal transport project linking Sittwe port in Myanmar with Mizoram and the trilateral highway connecting India, Myanmar and Thailand among others. "From the mega connectivity projects like Kaladan and trilateral highway, to projects in the fields of human resource development, healthcare, training and capacity building, we are sharing our resources and expertise with Myanmar. "India's nearly $1.75 billion of development assistance is centered on people and is in line with the priorities of Myanmar government and its people." The Prime Minister said that in Wednesday's talks, both sides agreed to enhance engagement in several areas including agriculture, power, renewable energy and power sector. India and Myanmar signed three MoUs following the talks - one on cooperation in power sector, another on banking supervision and a third on designing an academic and professional building programme for the insurance industry of Myanmar. "India will develop a varietal development and seed production centre in Yezin in Myanmar to enhance the quality of seeds," Modi said. "We will also work to develop a mutually beneficial arrangement for trade in pulses," he added. Modi said India had offered to scale up power supply from Moreh in Manipur to Tamu in Myanmar and also partner in a pilot LED electrification project at a site designated by Myanmar. According to the Prime Minister, the Archaeological Survey of India will soon begin work on restoring two old temples and inscriptions of King Mindon and King Baygyidaw at Bodh Gaya in Bihar. Commending Suu Kyi for her leadership and commitment to take Myanmar forward, he said, "As a reliable partner and friend, India stands shoulder to shoulder with you." On her part, Suu Kyi said Myanmar wanted to work with India not just for friendship "but for peace and stability in the region and beyond". She said Myanmar wanted a rule of just laws "and for this we look forward to the experiences of the Lok Sabha and other legislative bodies. "We believe India with its experience can help us in our endeavours," she added. Suu Kyi met Modi on the third and concluding day of her state visit to India. On Tuesday, she met president Pranab Mukherjee and external affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Though Suu Kyi is not the President as Myanmar's constitution bars her from holding the post, the Nobel peace laureate is effectively the de facto ruler of the country. This is the first official visit of Suu Kyi to New Delhi since her National League for Democracy assumed power in Myanmar in March this year. Before reaching New Delhi on Monday, she attended the BRICS-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa. NEW DELHI: India and Myanmar on Wednesday agreed to coordinate with each other on border security as Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaffirmed New Delhi's commitment to help develop Myanmar. "As close and friendly neighbours, the security interests of India and Myanmar are closely aligned," Modi said in the presence of Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi after delegation level talks between the two sides. "We have agreed that a close coordination to ensure security in the areas along our border, and sensitivity to each other's strategic interests, will serve the interests of both our countries," Modi said. India shares a 1,600-km border with Myanmar. Security has been an issue with insurgent groups from the northeast taking refuge in Myanmar territory. In August, the Indian Army reportedly carried out surgical strikes in Myanmar after National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K) militants fled to Myanmar from Mon in Nagaland after being attacked. Stating that India had a robust development cooperation programme with Myanmar, Modi mentioned the Kaladan multi-modal transport project linking Sittwe port in Myanmar with Mizoram and the trilateral highway connecting India, Myanmar and Thailand among others. "From the mega connectivity projects like Kaladan and trilateral highway, to projects in the fields of human resource development, healthcare, training and capacity building, we are sharing our resources and expertise with Myanmar. "India's nearly $1.75 billion of development assistance is centered on people and is in line with the priorities of Myanmar government and its people." The Prime Minister said that in Wednesday's talks, both sides agreed to enhance engagement in several areas including agriculture, power, renewable energy and power sector. India and Myanmar signed three MoUs following the talks - one on cooperation in power sector, another on banking supervision and a third on designing an academic and professional building programme for the insurance industry of Myanmar. "India will develop a varietal development and seed production centre in Yezin in Myanmar to enhance the quality of seeds," Modi said. "We will also work to develop a mutually beneficial arrangement for trade in pulses," he added. Modi said India had offered to scale up power supply from Moreh in Manipur to Tamu in Myanmar and also partner in a pilot LED electrification project at a site designated by Myanmar. According to the Prime Minister, the Archaeological Survey of India will soon begin work on restoring two old temples and inscriptions of King Mindon and King Baygyidaw at Bodh Gaya in Bihar. Commending Suu Kyi for her leadership and commitment to take Myanmar forward, he said, "As a reliable partner and friend, India stands shoulder to shoulder with you." On her part, Suu Kyi said Myanmar wanted to work with India not just for friendship "but for peace and stability in the region and beyond". She said Myanmar wanted a rule of just laws "and for this we look forward to the experiences of the Lok Sabha and other legislative bodies. "We believe India with its experience can help us in our endeavours," she added. Suu Kyi met Modi on the third and concluding day of her state visit to India. On Tuesday, she met president Pranab Mukherjee and external affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Though Suu Kyi is not the President as Myanmar's constitution bars her from holding the post, the Nobel peace laureate is effectively the de facto ruler of the country. This is the first official visit of Suu Kyi to New Delhi since her National League for Democracy assumed power in Myanmar in March this year. Before reaching New Delhi on Monday, she attended the BRICS-Bimstec Outreach Summit in Goa. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday welcomed Myanmars State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi to her second home India, which she is visiting after sweeping the Myanmars first democratic elections in half a century. Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Spokesperson Vikas Swarup desribed her as the old friend from the East, as Myanmars first Foreign Minister Suu Kyi began her maiden visit to India after her party came to power earlier this year. I welcome her Excellency to her second home. It is an honour for us to receive you in India, Prime Minister Modi said during a conference that followed his meeting with Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi has spent her early years in India as her mother was posted here as a diplomat. Invoking the centuries old cultural connect, Modi reiterated Indias commitment to the development of Myanmar. India has a robust development cooperation programme with MyanmarOur societies enjoy centuries old cultural connect. We offered assistance in restoring pagodas that were damaged in recent earthquake, Modi said. Sharing a 1600 km long border with Myanmar, India would want a strong and stable relation with Myanmar. Security and border management are also important issues between the two countries as Myanmar serves as the gateway for the geographically isolated north-eastern region of India with the South-East Asian countries. Suu Kyi, who as the first woman foreign minister of her country has been seeking to mend Myanmars ties with China, had chosen Beijing as her first destination for a foreign trip. In August External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had visited Myanmar with an invite for Suu Kyi to visit India. The 70-year-old Nobel Peace Laureate Suu Kyi in her meeting with Swaraj has sought Indias help for reconciliation in the country. In her address during the joint conference with the Prime Minister Modi she expressed her admiration for Indias democratic credentials. It is our ambition to bring peace and stability in our country and beyond because we have suffered from instability for a long time, Suu Kyi said. Suu Kyi has been known as the democratic icon of Myanmar. And she said that the Indian freedom fighters have been a source of inspiration for her. We are inspired by Gandhi, Nehru. We are confident that our countries can overcome challenges. The time has come for us to say that, yes we can do this. We have always admired India for being the greatest democracy in the world, she added. Among the issues of cooperation the ASI will begin working on the restoration of two old temples and inscriptions of King Mindon and King Baygyidaw in Bodh Gaya. Both the countries have agreed to enhance their engagement in several areas including agriculture, power, renewable energy and power sector. NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday welcomed Myanmars State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi to her second home India, which she is visiting after sweeping the Myanmars first democratic elections in half a century. Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Spokesperson Vikas Swarup desribed her as the old friend from the East, as Myanmars first Foreign Minister Suu Kyi began her maiden visit to India after her party came to power earlier this year. I welcome her Excellency to her second home. It is an honour for us to receive you in India, Prime Minister Modi said during a conference that followed his meeting with Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi has spent her early years in India as her mother was posted here as a diplomat. Invoking the centuries old cultural connect, Modi reiterated Indias commitment to the development of Myanmar. India has a robust development cooperation programme with MyanmarOur societies enjoy centuries old cultural connect. We offered assistance in restoring pagodas that were damaged in recent earthquake, Modi said. Sharing a 1600 km long border with Myanmar, India would want a strong and stable relation with Myanmar. Security and border management are also important issues between the two countries as Myanmar serves as the gateway for the geographically isolated north-eastern region of India with the South-East Asian countries. Suu Kyi, who as the first woman foreign minister of her country has been seeking to mend Myanmars ties with China, had chosen Beijing as her first destination for a foreign trip. In August External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had visited Myanmar with an invite for Suu Kyi to visit India. The 70-year-old Nobel Peace Laureate Suu Kyi in her meeting with Swaraj has sought Indias help for reconciliation in the country. In her address during the joint conference with the Prime Minister Modi she expressed her admiration for Indias democratic credentials. It is our ambition to bring peace and stability in our country and beyond because we have suffered from instability for a long time, Suu Kyi said. Suu Kyi has been known as the democratic icon of Myanmar. And she said that the Indian freedom fighters have been a source of inspiration for her. We are inspired by Gandhi, Nehru. We are confident that our countries can overcome challenges. The time has come for us to say that, yes we can do this. We have always admired India for being the greatest democracy in the world, she added. Among the issues of cooperation the ASI will begin working on the restoration of two old temples and inscriptions of King Mindon and King Baygyidaw in Bodh Gaya. Both the countries have agreed to enhance their engagement in several areas including agriculture, power, renewable energy and power sector. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The BJP appears upbeat to repeat the Assam electoral success in the poll-bound Manipur. Union Minister for Human Resources Development (HRD) Prakash Javdekar, who is also party in-charge for Manipur, claimed that like the former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi his Manipur counterpart Okram Ibobi Singh too is running into high anti-incumbency factor. The situations in Manipur are same as had been in Assam before the BJP wrested power from the Congress. Like Tarun Gogoi, Ibobi Singh too has been the chief minister of Manipur for almost 15 years after having come to power in 2002. The people there are keen for a change in the government, said Javdekar. The BJP is gearing up to launch a massive electoral campaign in Manipur, with a large number of Union Ministers set to visit the North-eastern state. The BJP currently has two MLAs, but has been successful in attracting two ministers and Congress leaders from the Ibobi Singh camp. Incidentally, the BJP had got a shot in the arms in the run up to the Assam polls after the senior state Congress leader Hemant Bisse Sharma joined the saffron party. Javdekar said that the BJP has been able to get leaders like Sharma in Manipur too, who can help the party come to power. The BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav has also been focussing on Manipur in the bid to further expand the party footprint in the North-east. Recent developments in Manipur have made people amenable to the BJP. Rice distributede through the public distribution system is now available at Rs 3 a kg, while the LPG cylinder are being delivered to the consumers at the normal price without any delay. These two developments have addressed the main concerns of the people there, added Javdekar. Manipur is heading to Assembly elections in January next year. NEW DELHI: The BJP appears upbeat to repeat the Assam electoral success in the poll-bound Manipur. Union Minister for Human Resources Development (HRD) Prakash Javdekar, who is also party in-charge for Manipur, claimed that like the former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi his Manipur counterpart Okram Ibobi Singh too is running into high anti-incumbency factor. The situations in Manipur are same as had been in Assam before the BJP wrested power from the Congress. Like Tarun Gogoi, Ibobi Singh too has been the chief minister of Manipur for almost 15 years after having come to power in 2002. The people there are keen for a change in the government, said Javdekar. The BJP is gearing up to launch a massive electoral campaign in Manipur, with a large number of Union Ministers set to visit the North-eastern state. The BJP currently has two MLAs, but has been successful in attracting two ministers and Congress leaders from the Ibobi Singh camp. Incidentally, the BJP had got a shot in the arms in the run up to the Assam polls after the senior state Congress leader Hemant Bisse Sharma joined the saffron party. Javdekar said that the BJP has been able to get leaders like Sharma in Manipur too, who can help the party come to power. The BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav has also been focussing on Manipur in the bid to further expand the party footprint in the North-east. Recent developments in Manipur have made people amenable to the BJP. Rice distributede through the public distribution system is now available at Rs 3 a kg, while the LPG cylinder are being delivered to the consumers at the normal price without any delay. These two developments have addressed the main concerns of the people there, added Javdekar. Manipur is heading to Assembly elections in January next year. By PTI NEW DELHI: Ahead of Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections polls due in 2017, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) senior leader Subramanian Swamy on Wednesday said the Ram temple is the part of BJP 2014 manifesto, added that it is the partys obligation to the people to deliver the promise. The Ram issue is a part of our manifesto in 2014, how can we run away from it? We have to deliver, Swamy told ANI. Swamy said that the matter cannot be resolved forcibly, but the Supreme Court needs to take some action as the matter is pending from past six years. Now its time for the matter to be heard and disposed off and the Muslim party is also agreeable for the hearing. I am filling an application on this main matter seeking the court to issue notice to the government, he said. Yesterday, the Congress Party accused the BJP for selling the name of Lord Ram to siphon off a victory in Uttar Pradesh. "The Congress has nothing to do with the BJP constructing a museum there (Ayodhya), or the Samajwadi party organising things for the Ramayana mela. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is selling the name of Ram in the wake of coming UP polls," said Congress leader D.P. Singh. Rajya Sabha MP Vinay Katiyar, on the other hand, asked the BJP-led Central government to intensify its efforts to construct Ram temple in Ayodhya instead of giving 'lollipop' (Ram museum) to please the people, who are demanding the construction of the temple. "It's a big mistake; effort should be made to construct the Ram Mandir (temple); this "lolipapi" (handing over Ramayana Museum as lollipop to please the people who are demanding the construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya) won't work. People ask when will be the Ram Temple constructed? This (Ramayana Museum) is a lollipop, it doesn't have much importance, and thus, they should make positive effort. I would have said this had I been there. It's good that I did not go there," Katiyar told ANI. NEW DELHI: Ahead of Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections polls due in 2017, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) senior leader Subramanian Swamy on Wednesday said the Ram temple is the part of BJP 2014 manifesto, added that it is the partys obligation to the people to deliver the promise. The Ram issue is a part of our manifesto in 2014, how can we run away from it? We have to deliver, Swamy told ANI. Swamy said that the matter cannot be resolved forcibly, but the Supreme Court needs to take some action as the matter is pending from past six years. Now its time for the matter to be heard and disposed off and the Muslim party is also agreeable for the hearing. I am filling an application on this main matter seeking the court to issue notice to the government, he said. Yesterday, the Congress Party accused the BJP for selling the name of Lord Ram to siphon off a victory in Uttar Pradesh. "The Congress has nothing to do with the BJP constructing a museum there (Ayodhya), or the Samajwadi party organising things for the Ramayana mela. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is selling the name of Ram in the wake of coming UP polls," said Congress leader D.P. Singh. Rajya Sabha MP Vinay Katiyar, on the other hand, asked the BJP-led Central government to intensify its efforts to construct Ram temple in Ayodhya instead of giving 'lollipop' (Ram museum) to please the people, who are demanding the construction of the temple. "It's a big mistake; effort should be made to construct the Ram Mandir (temple); this "lolipapi" (handing over Ramayana Museum as lollipop to please the people who are demanding the construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya) won't work. People ask when will be the Ram Temple constructed? This (Ramayana Museum) is a lollipop, it doesn't have much importance, and thus, they should make positive effort. I would have said this had I been there. It's good that I did not go there," Katiyar told ANI. Prasanta Mazumdar By Express News Service AZIMALIRCHAR (Nalbari): When Assams Director General of Police, Mukesh Sahay, beat the afternoon sun on Tuesday with a one hour drive and one-and-a-half-hour motorboat ride in the swirling water of the Brahmaputra to personally inspect a char (sandbar) Azimalirchar in the states Nalbari district, it was clear that there was something amiss. As India and Bangladesh are conducting a joint campaign against terror outfit Jamat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), the BJP-led coalition government in Assam is seeing the Brahmaputra sandbars with renewed suspicion. The chars are the integral parts of the state. The Chief Minister (Sarbananda Sonowal) desired that I meet the people living on the sandbars and see the ground and the problems and sensitise people of various things. There are more than 2,000 such chars in the state and I will personally visit as many of them as I can, Sahay told reporters. The chars, largely inhabited by Bengali-speaking Muslims, are perceived to have become the hotbeds of terror activities in the state. Over the past two years, the police arrested nearly 50 people for their alleged linkage with the JMB. Their activities were largely restricted to the chars where a section of the youths had been radicalized. A reason of my visit is to sensitise people against the jihadi elementsWe will try and get details of all people who frequent the chars and about those who go outside the state, Sahay said. There is a growing suspicion that the sandbars, which are remotely located and difficult to keep tabs on, are the safe havens of jihadi modules. The suspicion made the Sonowal government to bring the sandbars under its surveillance. "Another reason of the visit is to ensure that the names of genuine Indians are included in the ongoing updation of NRC (National Register of Citizens), Sahay said. Azimalirchar, located 60km west of Guwahati, is one of the 33 sandbars in Nalbari district. Some 2000 people, who live here, do not have access to drinking water, education and healthcare services. It is part of a sprawling char where two police outposts were set up six years ago but lack of manpower and motorboats to patrol the riverine stretch has virtually made them redundant. Meanwhile, Sahay and a team of senior police officials spent the night at a makeshift camp on the sandbar on Tuesday. AZIMALIRCHAR (Nalbari): When Assams Director General of Police, Mukesh Sahay, beat the afternoon sun on Tuesday with a one hour drive and one-and-a-half-hour motorboat ride in the swirling water of the Brahmaputra to personally inspect a char (sandbar) Azimalirchar in the states Nalbari district, it was clear that there was something amiss. As India and Bangladesh are conducting a joint campaign against terror outfit Jamat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), the BJP-led coalition government in Assam is seeing the Brahmaputra sandbars with renewed suspicion. The chars are the integral parts of the state. The Chief Minister (Sarbananda Sonowal) desired that I meet the people living on the sandbars and see the ground and the problems and sensitise people of various things. There are more than 2,000 such chars in the state and I will personally visit as many of them as I can, Sahay told reporters. The chars, largely inhabited by Bengali-speaking Muslims, are perceived to have become the hotbeds of terror activities in the state. Over the past two years, the police arrested nearly 50 people for their alleged linkage with the JMB. Their activities were largely restricted to the chars where a section of the youths had been radicalized. A reason of my visit is to sensitise people against the jihadi elementsWe will try and get details of all people who frequent the chars and about those who go outside the state, Sahay said. There is a growing suspicion that the sandbars, which are remotely located and difficult to keep tabs on, are the safe havens of jihadi modules. The suspicion made the Sonowal government to bring the sandbars under its surveillance. "Another reason of the visit is to ensure that the names of genuine Indians are included in the ongoing updation of NRC (National Register of Citizens), Sahay said. Azimalirchar, located 60km west of Guwahati, is one of the 33 sandbars in Nalbari district. Some 2000 people, who live here, do not have access to drinking water, education and healthcare services. It is part of a sprawling char where two police outposts were set up six years ago but lack of manpower and motorboats to patrol the riverine stretch has virtually made them redundant. Meanwhile, Sahay and a team of senior police officials spent the night at a makeshift camp on the sandbar on Tuesday. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Much more than the coming Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, the twists and turns in the Yadav family saga of Uttar Pradesh have become riveting. On Wednesday, chief minister Akhilesh Yadav was in a rebellious mood, about to embark upon a Vikas Rath Yatra to kick off his campaign all alone, skipping the Samajwadi Party's silver jubilee celebrations organised by his uncle and his father Mulayam Yadav's current favourite, Shivpal Yadav. Akhilesh had rescheduled his Vikas Yatra once, from October 3 to November 5, thanks to the ongoing family feud. Now, he's not ready to defer it no more. If in the process he is appearing a bit like a rebellious ward of the SP supremo Mulayam Singh and not quite the chief minister of the biggest state of India, that seems to be his own problem. The young CM's camp-followers, however, claim his determination to stick to his guns will "enhance'' his image among voters. "Akhilesh Yadav is our biggest USP,'' one of them told New Indian Express. Well, Akhilesh seems ready for a political gamble in order to wrest control of the party. By shooting off a letter to his father, Akhilesh let him know he was going off on his 'Vikas Rath Yatra' as per schedule. This would mean, he may not be available for the party's silver jubilee celebrations, slated to begin two days later. The letter to his father also points out that all political parties have already started their campaign for the Assembly polls and he cannot wait to start his any longer. The last time, he deferred his yatra thanks to the family feud fuelled by his uncle Shivpal. "I had decided to take out the Yatra from October 3 but it was cancelled due to some reasons. I will take out the Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra from November 3," Akhilesh wrote. The scheduling of the Yatra is what has resulted in speculation that Akhilesh might skip the SP silver jubilee celebrations which begin from November 5. The CM is said to be rather miffed over the sacking of a few youth leaders from the party, close to him, who would not be present at the event. In the ongoing turf war, Akhilesh's Yatra is seen as a move to truncate the influence of Shivpal, who was appointed the new state party president replacing him. Akhilesh, however, is said to have faxed the details of Yatra schedule to Shivpal as well as Ram Gopal Yadav, the party's national general secretary. According to sources, Mulayam tried to broker a truce between Akhilesh and Shivpal earler in the day at his residence. But Akhilesh's demands for revoking the expulsion of youth leaders and having his say in the ticket distribution may not have been met. The Yatra announcement came thereafter. NEW DELHI: Much more than the coming Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, the twists and turns in the Yadav family saga of Uttar Pradesh have become riveting. On Wednesday, chief minister Akhilesh Yadav was in a rebellious mood, about to embark upon a Vikas Rath Yatra to kick off his campaign all alone, skipping the Samajwadi Party's silver jubilee celebrations organised by his uncle and his father Mulayam Yadav's current favourite, Shivpal Yadav. Akhilesh had rescheduled his Vikas Yatra once, from October 3 to November 5, thanks to the ongoing family feud. Now, he's not ready to defer it no more. If in the process he is appearing a bit like a rebellious ward of the SP supremo Mulayam Singh and not quite the chief minister of the biggest state of India, that seems to be his own problem. The young CM's camp-followers, however, claim his determination to stick to his guns will "enhance'' his image among voters. "Akhilesh Yadav is our biggest USP,'' one of them told New Indian Express. Well, Akhilesh seems ready for a political gamble in order to wrest control of the party. By shooting off a letter to his father, Akhilesh let him know he was going off on his 'Vikas Rath Yatra' as per schedule. This would mean, he may not be available for the party's silver jubilee celebrations, slated to begin two days later. The letter to his father also points out that all political parties have already started their campaign for the Assembly polls and he cannot wait to start his any longer. The last time, he deferred his yatra thanks to the family feud fuelled by his uncle Shivpal. "I had decided to take out the Yatra from October 3 but it was cancelled due to some reasons. I will take out the Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra from November 3," Akhilesh wrote. The scheduling of the Yatra is what has resulted in speculation that Akhilesh might skip the SP silver jubilee celebrations which begin from November 5. The CM is said to be rather miffed over the sacking of a few youth leaders from the party, close to him, who would not be present at the event. In the ongoing turf war, Akhilesh's Yatra is seen as a move to truncate the influence of Shivpal, who was appointed the new state party president replacing him. Akhilesh, however, is said to have faxed the details of Yatra schedule to Shivpal as well as Ram Gopal Yadav, the party's national general secretary. According to sources, Mulayam tried to broker a truce between Akhilesh and Shivpal earler in the day at his residence. But Akhilesh's demands for revoking the expulsion of youth leaders and having his say in the ticket distribution may not have been met. The Yatra announcement came thereafter. John C Bersia By Which of the U.S. presidential candidates Democrat Hillary Clinton or Republican Donald Trump would be better to boost ties between the United States and India? To some people, it is a no-brainer. Clinton justifiably claims a hefty diplomatic portfolio, including a substantial record of engaging with India on a number of important mutual interests. Slipping into an effective working relationship with India would be easy for a Clinton administration. To others, though, it is essential to acknowledge Trumps global business dealings, which are evident in India from Mumbai to Pune. A Trump administration would offer the prospect of building on economic connections, among other areas. Unfortunately, detailed discussions about the possibilities for U.S.-India relations are not receiving the priority they deserve. Many analysts and news media following the candidates have diverted their attention to alleged inappropriate behavior on the part of Trump and Clintons mishandling of high-level, sensitive government email. The candidates, themselves, have spent a disproportionate amount of time on these matters. Make no mistake. Wrongdoing cannot be overlooked or condoned when deciding on a presidential candidate. Consider the reaction of Vivek Wadhwa, a distinguished academic, researcher, writer and entrepreneur. In a recent email message to his global network, he shares his thoughts on how the rise of Trump affects him. Wadhwa then references his upcoming book, Driver in the Driverless Car, in which he contemplates the choices he says we must make that will either point us toward a utopian Star Trek world or the dystopia of Mad Max. With Trump, Wadhwa suggests, Mad Max could come sooner rather than later. His concern is that Trump has made racism, bigotry, xenophobia and sexism acceptable, and opened the door to demagoguery that will never stop. Evidently, Trump is not Wadhwas choice in general or in terms of U.S.-India relations. What do others think about the two candidates? Lisa Curtis, a senior research fellow at the Asian Studies Center of The Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C., emphasizes that India has become a critical element in the U.S.-Asia rebalancing strategy. She adds that Washington and New Delhi are enhancing their cooperation in ways that will help balance Chinas rise, and contribute to a secure and peaceful democratic Asia with free and open seaways. Curtis applauds, for example, the recent U.S. designation of India as a Major Defense Partner, which basically places it among Americas closest allies in the area of technology transfer. Also, she welcomes the signing in August of an Indo-U.S. logistics-sharing agreement that allows the United States and India to access each others military bases for resupply and refueling. It is a testament to the importance the two countries attach to the partnership. Curtis notes that improving U.S.-India relations is one of those rare foreign-policy issues with bipartisan support. Therefore, in her estimation, either a Clinton or Trump presidency would almost certainly attach a high value to maintaining and growing Indo-U.S. ties. Why might a Clinton administration be favored by India? Curtis stresses that Clinton has a long history with India: traveling there as first lady in 1995; helping to establish the India Caucus when she was in the U.S. Senate; and launching and deepening a strategic dialogue between the two countries during her tenure as secretary of state. The bottom line is that Clinton is a known quantity in India. Polls show most Indian-Americans would welcome her election; I imagine most Indians would, as well. What about Trump? He is more of a wild card, according to Curtis, despite certain positive statements he has made about India on the campaign trail. Indians are likely concerned as to how his stance on immigration could impact the ability of highly skilled Indians to work on a temporary basis in the United States. However, some Indians might welcome a Trump election based on the belief that he would take a harder position toward terrorism and partner more closely with India in confronting terrorist threats emanating from Pakistan. Trump actually echoed such sentiments at an Indian-American rally in Edison, New Jersey a few days ago, declaring that the United States and India would be best friends under a Trump administration. There wont be any relationship more important to us, Trump said, and he added that we will stand shoulder to shoulder with India in sharing intelligence and keeping our people safe. I was also interested in the perspective of someone who has worked inside the U.S. Congress, so I turned to Shilpa Deshpande Finnerty, a lawyer and former congressional staffer. She believes Americans have long overlooked the importance of strong ties with India. Indeed, she says, India should be a natural ally in the region, given its strong democratic credentials, diverse population and history of dealing with terrorism. Her sense is that Indian-Americans have been waiting for the day the United States would raise India to the level of consideration it applies to some other Asian nations such as Japan. Finnerty is also disappointed that the current U.S. election cycle has not focused on many leading foreign-policy issues, let alone U.S.-India relations. Regarding Clinton and Trump, there is no debate for her. She emphatically indicates Clinton would be better for U.S.-India relations, pointing to the knowledge and perspective the former secretary of state has to continue the encouraging steps the Obama administration has begun in strengthening relations. Clinton also understands the Indian-American community and how it has contributed to the United States while maintaining strong ties to India, Finnerty says. On the other hand, in her conversations with many Indian-Americans, Finnerty detects what she calls a genuine fear of a Trump presidency and what it might do to encourage the profiling of South Asians, hate crimes and increased racial tensions in America actions that would inevitably impact U.S.-India relations in a negative way. Finally, I touched base with Pratyush S. Goberdhan, a young Indian-American who serves as the India Fellow at the University of Central Florida. He thinks Clinton would be the better candidate for president when one considers Indo-U.S. relations, given her history of working with the Indian government, serving as co-chair of the U.S. Senate India Caucus, supporting the U.S.-India nuclear deal and making many diplomatic trips to India. To him, these accomplishments are key to future positive and effective relations between the two countries. In the remaining weeks before the election, it is clearly up to Clinton and Trump to demonstrate their interest in U.S.-India relations, along with other significant international issues. Without such input, voters will have a more difficult time making an informed decision, and the world will be left largely guessing about the candidates intentions. John C. Bersia, who won a Pulitzer Prize in 2000, is the special assistant to the president for global perspectives at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. He also co-chairs The India Center at UCF. Email: John.Bersia@ucf.edu Which of the U.S. presidential candidates Democrat Hillary Clinton or Republican Donald Trump would be better to boost ties between the United States and India? To some people, it is a no-brainer. Clinton justifiably claims a hefty diplomatic portfolio, including a substantial record of engaging with India on a number of important mutual interests. Slipping into an effective working relationship with India would be easy for a Clinton administration. To others, though, it is essential to acknowledge Trumps global business dealings, which are evident in India from Mumbai to Pune. A Trump administration would offer the prospect of building on economic connections, among other areas. Unfortunately, detailed discussions about the possibilities for U.S.-India relations are not receiving the priority they deserve. Many analysts and news media following the candidates have diverted their attention to alleged inappropriate behavior on the part of Trump and Clintons mishandling of high-level, sensitive government email. The candidates, themselves, have spent a disproportionate amount of time on these matters. Make no mistake. Wrongdoing cannot be overlooked or condoned when deciding on a presidential candidate. Consider the reaction of Vivek Wadhwa, a distinguished academic, researcher, writer and entrepreneur. In a recent email message to his global network, he shares his thoughts on how the rise of Trump affects him. Wadhwa then references his upcoming book, Driver in the Driverless Car, in which he contemplates the choices he says we must make that will either point us toward a utopian Star Trek world or the dystopia of Mad Max. With Trump, Wadhwa suggests, Mad Max could come sooner rather than later. His concern is that Trump has made racism, bigotry, xenophobia and sexism acceptable, and opened the door to demagoguery that will never stop. Evidently, Trump is not Wadhwas choice in general or in terms of U.S.-India relations. What do others think about the two candidates? Lisa Curtis, a senior research fellow at the Asian Studies Center of The Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C., emphasizes that India has become a critical element in the U.S.-Asia rebalancing strategy. She adds that Washington and New Delhi are enhancing their cooperation in ways that will help balance Chinas rise, and contribute to a secure and peaceful democratic Asia with free and open seaways. Curtis applauds, for example, the recent U.S. designation of India as a Major Defense Partner, which basically places it among Americas closest allies in the area of technology transfer. Also, she welcomes the signing in August of an Indo-U.S. logistics-sharing agreement that allows the United States and India to access each others military bases for resupply and refueling. It is a testament to the importance the two countries attach to the partnership. Curtis notes that improving U.S.-India relations is one of those rare foreign-policy issues with bipartisan support. Therefore, in her estimation, either a Clinton or Trump presidency would almost certainly attach a high value to maintaining and growing Indo-U.S. ties. Why might a Clinton administration be favored by India? Curtis stresses that Clinton has a long history with India: traveling there as first lady in 1995; helping to establish the India Caucus when she was in the U.S. Senate; and launching and deepening a strategic dialogue between the two countries during her tenure as secretary of state. The bottom line is that Clinton is a known quantity in India. Polls show most Indian-Americans would welcome her election; I imagine most Indians would, as well. What about Trump? He is more of a wild card, according to Curtis, despite certain positive statements he has made about India on the campaign trail. Indians are likely concerned as to how his stance on immigration could impact the ability of highly skilled Indians to work on a temporary basis in the United States. However, some Indians might welcome a Trump election based on the belief that he would take a harder position toward terrorism and partner more closely with India in confronting terrorist threats emanating from Pakistan. Trump actually echoed such sentiments at an Indian-American rally in Edison, New Jersey a few days ago, declaring that the United States and India would be best friends under a Trump administration. There wont be any relationship more important to us, Trump said, and he added that we will stand shoulder to shoulder with India in sharing intelligence and keeping our people safe. I was also interested in the perspective of someone who has worked inside the U.S. Congress, so I turned to Shilpa Deshpande Finnerty, a lawyer and former congressional staffer. She believes Americans have long overlooked the importance of strong ties with India. Indeed, she says, India should be a natural ally in the region, given its strong democratic credentials, diverse population and history of dealing with terrorism. Her sense is that Indian-Americans have been waiting for the day the United States would raise India to the level of consideration it applies to some other Asian nations such as Japan. Finnerty is also disappointed that the current U.S. election cycle has not focused on many leading foreign-policy issues, let alone U.S.-India relations. Regarding Clinton and Trump, there is no debate for her. She emphatically indicates Clinton would be better for U.S.-India relations, pointing to the knowledge and perspective the former secretary of state has to continue the encouraging steps the Obama administration has begun in strengthening relations. Clinton also understands the Indian-American community and how it has contributed to the United States while maintaining strong ties to India, Finnerty says. On the other hand, in her conversations with many Indian-Americans, Finnerty detects what she calls a genuine fear of a Trump presidency and what it might do to encourage the profiling of South Asians, hate crimes and increased racial tensions in America actions that would inevitably impact U.S.-India relations in a negative way. Finally, I touched base with Pratyush S. Goberdhan, a young Indian-American who serves as the India Fellow at the University of Central Florida. He thinks Clinton would be the better candidate for president when one considers Indo-U.S. relations, given her history of working with the Indian government, serving as co-chair of the U.S. Senate India Caucus, supporting the U.S.-India nuclear deal and making many diplomatic trips to India. To him, these accomplishments are key to future positive and effective relations between the two countries. In the remaining weeks before the election, it is clearly up to Clinton and Trump to demonstrate their interest in U.S.-India relations, along with other significant international issues. Without such input, voters will have a more difficult time making an informed decision, and the world will be left largely guessing about the candidates intentions. John C. Bersia, who won a Pulitzer Prize in 2000, is the special assistant to the president for global perspectives at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. He also co-chairs The India Center at UCF. Email: John.Bersia@ucf.edu By Express News Service THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Hardly a couple of days after a heavy weight minister in the Pinarayi Cabinet was forced to step down, the Vigilance Director seeking to move him out of the post has put the Left government in a spot. Vigilance Director Jacob Thomas was appointed by the government soon after assuming office in an attempt to send out a strong message on its approach towards corruption. He had also initiated probe into many cases, thereby making many politicians and bureaucrats uncomfortable. His actions in controversial issues like the bar bribery case ratified the governments decision. However, things took a turn two days ago when allegations were raised against Jacob Thoams for his stint with the ports department. On Monday, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala came down heavily on Jacob Thomas in the Assembly, stating that the vigilance director had to prove his credibility. Referring to the caged parrot remark, Chennithala said the parrot had been circling inside the Cliff House for some days. Both Chennithala and V D Satheesan targeted the vigilance director for going to the Cliff House in a private vehicle when the nepotism row against E P Jayarajan was on. There is nothing wrong in the vigilance director meeting the chief minister. But why did he choose to go in a private vehicle? The vigilance director has to prove his integrity, Chennithala said. Referring to the finance departments recommendation to initiate action on the corruption charges against Thomas, Chennithala asked, Who will show red or yellow card to the vigilance director now? However, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told the Assembly that a crippled vigilance was not what the Left government aimed for. Refuting Opposition charges he said the Left was for giving freedom to the Vigilance to function independently. He also made it clear that the LDF had no intentions to cripple the Vigilance system in the state. But with Jacob Thomas expressing his wish to step down a day after, the Pinarayi government would find it hard to explain the reasons before the Opposition inside the Assembly on Wednesday. The issue is expected to be discussed in the Cabinet on Wednesday. THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Hardly a couple of days after a heavy weight minister in the Pinarayi Cabinet was forced to step down, the Vigilance Director seeking to move him out of the post has put the Left government in a spot. Vigilance Director Jacob Thomas was appointed by the government soon after assuming office in an attempt to send out a strong message on its approach towards corruption. He had also initiated probe into many cases, thereby making many politicians and bureaucrats uncomfortable. His actions in controversial issues like the bar bribery case ratified the governments decision. However, things took a turn two days ago when allegations were raised against Jacob Thoams for his stint with the ports department. On Monday, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala came down heavily on Jacob Thomas in the Assembly, stating that the vigilance director had to prove his credibility. Referring to the caged parrot remark, Chennithala said the parrot had been circling inside the Cliff House for some days. Both Chennithala and V D Satheesan targeted the vigilance director for going to the Cliff House in a private vehicle when the nepotism row against E P Jayarajan was on. There is nothing wrong in the vigilance director meeting the chief minister. But why did he choose to go in a private vehicle? The vigilance director has to prove his integrity, Chennithala said. Referring to the finance departments recommendation to initiate action on the corruption charges against Thomas, Chennithala asked, Who will show red or yellow card to the vigilance director now? However, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told the Assembly that a crippled vigilance was not what the Left government aimed for. Refuting Opposition charges he said the Left was for giving freedom to the Vigilance to function independently. He also made it clear that the LDF had no intentions to cripple the Vigilance system in the state. But with Jacob Thomas expressing his wish to step down a day after, the Pinarayi government would find it hard to explain the reasons before the Opposition inside the Assembly on Wednesday. The issue is expected to be discussed in the Cabinet on Wednesday. By Express News Service BHUBANESWAR: Here are the latest developments in the aftermath of the devastating fire at Bhubaneswar's SUM Hospital on Monday night, which swept the dialysis ward and took the state government's Fire Service off guard. 1. Bhubaneswar SUM Hospital's superintendent Pushparaj Samantasinghar, arrested yesterday, complained of chest pain while in police custody and has been admitted in the SCB Medical College and Hospital [SCBMCH] at Cuttack. 2.One more Bhubaneswar SUM fire victim, identified as Janaki Hui of Balasore, succumbed to burns at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar. The woman had earlier been admitted to Sum Hospital with lung cancer. She was taken to AIIMs with critical burns. 3. The toll in the tragedy climbed to 21 persons so far. About 105 patients shifted from SUM are receiving treatment in various hospitals in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. 4. Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik has announced ex-gratia payments of Rs 5 lakh to each of the 21 bereaved families. He also directed free treatment for the injured. 5. The Odisha state government has opened a control room to monitor the treatment of fire victims. The additional director of the National Health Mission [NHM] and the joint director of Medical Education and Training are monitoring the treatment of SUM fire victims. 6. The Odisha government has decided to conduct a fire audit at all government hospitals and healthcare facilities in the state. The decision was taken at a high-level meeting presided over by chief secretary A P Padhi and attended by secretaries of energy, health departments and the director-general of fire service Binay Behera. 7. In particular, electrical installations at hospitals will be reviewed. One month time has been given to the state's Energy and Works Department to submit their requirements after inspections, Padhi told reporters. 8. Fire chief Behera has submitted his report based on his prelim inspection. He said about 160 health facilities in the state capital, only three or four institutions, have availed fire safety permission. 9. The Congress has demanded Rs 25 lakh compensation for each of victim's family. "The state government should give Rs 10 lakh and the Centre needs to provide Rs 15 lakh," Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president Prasad Harichandan said. The CPI's national secretary D Raja also demanded adequate compensation 10. Union health minister J P Nadda is in Bhubaneswar and said he is not there to play the blame game. "Our priority is proper treatment of patients," he said upon arrival. He and oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan met the fire victims at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, AMRI Hospital and KIMS Hospital. The two ministers will visit Sum Hospital later in the day. BHUBANESWAR: Here are the latest developments in the aftermath of the devastating fire at Bhubaneswar's SUM Hospital on Monday night, which swept the dialysis ward and took the state government's Fire Service off guard. 1. Bhubaneswar SUM Hospital's superintendent Pushparaj Samantasinghar, arrested yesterday, complained of chest pain while in police custody and has been admitted in the SCB Medical College and Hospital [SCBMCH] at Cuttack. 2.One more Bhubaneswar SUM fire victim, identified as Janaki Hui of Balasore, succumbed to burns at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar. The woman had earlier been admitted to Sum Hospital with lung cancer. She was taken to AIIMs with critical burns. 3. The toll in the tragedy climbed to 21 persons so far. About 105 patients shifted from SUM are receiving treatment in various hospitals in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. 4. Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik has announced ex-gratia payments of Rs 5 lakh to each of the 21 bereaved families. He also directed free treatment for the injured. 5. The Odisha state government has opened a control room to monitor the treatment of fire victims. The additional director of the National Health Mission [NHM] and the joint director of Medical Education and Training are monitoring the treatment of SUM fire victims. 6. The Odisha government has decided to conduct a fire audit at all government hospitals and healthcare facilities in the state. The decision was taken at a high-level meeting presided over by chief secretary A P Padhi and attended by secretaries of energy, health departments and the director-general of fire service Binay Behera. 7. In particular, electrical installations at hospitals will be reviewed. One month time has been given to the state's Energy and Works Department to submit their requirements after inspections, Padhi told reporters. 8. Fire chief Behera has submitted his report based on his prelim inspection. He said about 160 health facilities in the state capital, only three or four institutions, have availed fire safety permission. 9. The Congress has demanded Rs 25 lakh compensation for each of victim's family. "The state government should give Rs 10 lakh and the Centre needs to provide Rs 15 lakh," Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president Prasad Harichandan said. The CPI's national secretary D Raja also demanded adequate compensation 10. Union health minister J P Nadda is in Bhubaneswar and said he is not there to play the blame game. "Our priority is proper treatment of patients," he said upon arrival. He and oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan met the fire victims at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, AMRI Hospital and KIMS Hospital. The two ministers will visit Sum Hospital later in the day. By Online Desk BHUBANESHWAR: The Odisha government has slammed SUM Hospital for negligence with regard to fire safety regulations, leading to culpable homicide. Despite suggestions given during an audit in 2013, the hospital had failed to implement essential fire safety measures. In fact, a recent media report also claimed that the hospital had not obtained a NOC (No-Objection Certificate) from the fire department and had already lost its accredition two months ago. There are several regulations and guidelines mentioned in the National Disaster Management Guidelines laid out by the Government of India for hospital safety. Here are five major fire safety norms that the SUM was found to be in violation of: Water sprinklers were non-functional on the second floor where the Intensive Care Unit is located, and where the fire broke out. No overhead water tank or water storage to douse fire in such mishaps. As per the guidelines, SUM was directed to set up a 25,000 - litre tank. Lack of emergency staircases for immediate fire exit. No system or sirens in place for automatic fire alert. Fire hydrants installed had no water connection Another news report from Chennai on Wednesday said a majority of both government and private hospitals in the city were in violation of various safety regulations, if not all. But what are the basic norms as per the National Disaster Management (NDM)? A Hospital Disaster Management Plan (HDMP) and frequent ICU & ward evacuation drills are deemed necessary amidst several other safety measures. The HDMP, formed by a set Disaster Management Committee of the hospital is also required to design floor maps, pointing at the designated exit ways for smooth evacuation in case of a mishap. Every hospital must not just have adequate resources like fire extinguishers and pre-stored water supply, but must also conduct regular training of hospital staff about evacuation procedures for patients. In fact, hospitals must also have a standardised colour code system like "Code Green: Evacuation/ rapid response team", "Code Black: Bomb threat/ suspicious object", "Code Blue: Medical emergency/cardiac arrest", in place to communicate in times of crisis. The SUM hospital management indeed has a lot to answer over Monday evening's blaze that claimed 20 lives and injured over a 100. After fire officer (Central Range) had lodged an FIR against the hospital management at Khandagiri Police Station citing negligence in installing fire safety measures in the hospital despite recommendations made in a 2013 audit, the hospital authorities are now facing charges including culpable homicide not amounting to murder and negligence in dealing with combustible substances. BHUBANESHWAR: The Odisha government has slammed SUM Hospital for negligence with regard to fire safety regulations, leading to culpable homicide. Despite suggestions given during an audit in 2013, the hospital had failed to implement essential fire safety measures. In fact, a recent media report also claimed that the hospital had not obtained a NOC (No-Objection Certificate) from the fire department and had already lost its accredition two months ago. There are several regulations and guidelines mentioned in the National Disaster Management Guidelines laid out by the Government of India for hospital safety. Here are five major fire safety norms that the SUM was found to be in violation of: Water sprinklers were non-functional on the second floor where the Intensive Care Unit is located, and where the fire broke out. No overhead water tank or water storage to douse fire in such mishaps. As per the guidelines, SUM was directed to set up a 25,000 - litre tank. Lack of emergency staircases for immediate fire exit. No system or sirens in place for automatic fire alert. Fire hydrants installed had no water connection Another news report from Chennai on Wednesday said a majority of both government and private hospitals in the city were in violation of various safety regulations, if not all. But what are the basic norms as per the National Disaster Management (NDM)? A Hospital Disaster Management Plan (HDMP) and frequent ICU & ward evacuation drills are deemed necessary amidst several other safety measures. The HDMP, formed by a set Disaster Management Committee of the hospital is also required to design floor maps, pointing at the designated exit ways for smooth evacuation in case of a mishap. Every hospital must not just have adequate resources like fire extinguishers and pre-stored water supply, but must also conduct regular training of hospital staff about evacuation procedures for patients. In fact, hospitals must also have a standardised colour code system like "Code Green: Evacuation/ rapid response team", "Code Black: Bomb threat/ suspicious object", "Code Blue: Medical emergency/cardiac arrest", in place to communicate in times of crisis. The SUM hospital management indeed has a lot to answer over Monday evening's blaze that claimed 20 lives and injured over a 100. After fire officer (Central Range) had lodged an FIR against the hospital management at Khandagiri Police Station citing negligence in installing fire safety measures in the hospital despite recommendations made in a 2013 audit, the hospital authorities are now facing charges including culpable homicide not amounting to murder and negligence in dealing with combustible substances. By Express News Service BHUBANESWAR: Here's a summary of all the developments in the aftermath of the fire tragedy at Bhubaneswar's SUM Hospital in which 21 people perished on Monday. 1. Bhubaneswar's Commissionerate of Police has issued a lookout circular [LOC] against Manojranjan Nayak and his wife Saswati Das, trustees of the Siksha O Anusandhan Charitable Trust which runs the hospital. 2. A clamour has gone up for action against the top management of SUM Hospital. 3. Police commissioner Khurania says Manojranjan Nayak and Saswati Das have not been cooperating with the investigation. They have not been named in the FIR registered in the case. Khurania said,"Nayak and his wife are required for the investigation but have not cooperated despite communications to them. Police teams went to Nayaks home and office today but to no avail." 4. The Ministry of Home Affairs has been informed about the LOC issued against Manojranjan Nayak and Saswati so that necessary intimation is made at all ports and airports to prevent their exit. 5. Union health minister J P Nadda arrived in Bhubaneswar on a stocktaking visit and said it is the Odisha government's responsibility if safety measures are not adequate in the state's hospitals. 6. Another patient perished to injuries suffered in the fire, taking the toll to 21. The deceased was identified as Janaki Hui from Balasore. As many as 105 patients are admitted in various hospitals in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, receiving treatment. 7. Police are studying the complex structure of the management of SUM Hospital in order to pin responsibility. Manojranjan Nayak's name does not figure on the website of SOA University, which is the holding company of the hospital. We are investigating the role of Manojranjan Nayak and other members of the management of SUM Hospital. We have secured official documents on the management structure and assessing their culpability basing on which action would be initiated, Khurania said. 8. Of the four persons arrested in the case so far, SUM Hospital medical superintendent Pushparaj Samanatsinghar complained of chest pain this morning and was moved to hospital. 9. Protestors are turning up at SUM Hospital demanding increased compensation for the kin of the victims and action against those responsible. 10. Trouble for ManojranjanNayak and his beleaguered hospital intensified as the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Black Money directed the Enforcement Directorate to probe the financial transactions of the group. The SIT has also asked DG Police K B Singh to ensure that documents and records of the institution are not tampered with in any manner. 11. Facing flak for the fire mishap which exposed the state of fire safety in health care centres, chief minister Naveen Patnaik announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the kin of each person who died in the blaze. 12. The State Government has opened a control room to monitor the treatment of the fire victims. An additional director of the National Health Mission (NHM) and a joint director of Medical Education and Training are monitoring the treatment of patients evacuated from SUM Hospital. BHUBANESWAR: Here's a summary of all the developments in the aftermath of the fire tragedy at Bhubaneswar's SUM Hospital in which 21 people perished on Monday. 1. Bhubaneswar's Commissionerate of Police has issued a lookout circular [LOC] against Manojranjan Nayak and his wife Saswati Das, trustees of the Siksha O Anusandhan Charitable Trust which runs the hospital. 2. A clamour has gone up for action against the top management of SUM Hospital. 3. Police commissioner Khurania says Manojranjan Nayak and Saswati Das have not been cooperating with the investigation. They have not been named in the FIR registered in the case. Khurania said,"Nayak and his wife are required for the investigation but have not cooperated despite communications to them. Police teams went to Nayaks home and office today but to no avail." 4. The Ministry of Home Affairs has been informed about the LOC issued against Manojranjan Nayak and Saswati so that necessary intimation is made at all ports and airports to prevent their exit. 5. Union health minister J P Nadda arrived in Bhubaneswar on a stocktaking visit and said it is the Odisha government's responsibility if safety measures are not adequate in the state's hospitals. 6. Another patient perished to injuries suffered in the fire, taking the toll to 21. The deceased was identified as Janaki Hui from Balasore. As many as 105 patients are admitted in various hospitals in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, receiving treatment. 7. Police are studying the complex structure of the management of SUM Hospital in order to pin responsibility. Manojranjan Nayak's name does not figure on the website of SOA University, which is the holding company of the hospital. We are investigating the role of Manojranjan Nayak and other members of the management of SUM Hospital. We have secured official documents on the management structure and assessing their culpability basing on which action would be initiated, Khurania said. 8. Of the four persons arrested in the case so far, SUM Hospital medical superintendent Pushparaj Samanatsinghar complained of chest pain this morning and was moved to hospital. 9. Protestors are turning up at SUM Hospital demanding increased compensation for the kin of the victims and action against those responsible. 10. Trouble for ManojranjanNayak and his beleaguered hospital intensified as the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Black Money directed the Enforcement Directorate to probe the financial transactions of the group. The SIT has also asked DG Police K B Singh to ensure that documents and records of the institution are not tampered with in any manner. 11. Facing flak for the fire mishap which exposed the state of fire safety in health care centres, chief minister Naveen Patnaik announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the kin of each person who died in the blaze. 12. The State Government has opened a control room to monitor the treatment of the fire victims. An additional director of the National Health Mission (NHM) and a joint director of Medical Education and Training are monitoring the treatment of patients evacuated from SUM Hospital. T Muruganandham By Express News Service CHENNAI: Yet to find its feet in the political landscape of Dravidian heartland, the BJPs State unit has decided to return to the basics: step 1 fine tuning its vocabulary. Senior leaders of the party, particularly those with roots in the Sangh Parivar, have asked leaders and cadre to shed the practice of suffixing ji and instead use vernacular terms that are more emotionally intimate to the local population Anna-Akka, Amma-Ayya. The matter consumed a significant amount of time during the partys executive committee meeting at Tirupur on Sunday and Monday. Addressing the functionaries, BJP joint general secretary (organisation), Kesava Vinayakam, asked them to avoid the use of ji which was not close to the hearts of the Tamil Nadu people. Speaking after him, veteran Sangh leader and newly-elected Rajya Sabha member L Ganesan recalled how he led a campaign on this decades ago while crisscrossing the State as a full-time pracharak. But the vocabulary, in use within the saffron party for years now, is not easy to give up at once. State president Tamilisai Soundararajan, for one, began her speech addressing Ganesanji before quickly correcting herself. Her addressing the leaders as Ganesan annan and H Raja annan evoked peals of laughter from the audience. Confirming the direction given to party functionaries, Ganesan added: It is a small but important step for the party in Tamil Nadu. Asked whether localising the vocabulary was due to the impact of the Dravidian movement, Ganesan recalled RSS founder KB Hedgewars advice to Sangh volunteers as to how they were part of society and not a secluded group. It is because I am an RSS worker. It is in my veins; it is an inborn thought, he said. CHENNAI: Yet to find its feet in the political landscape of Dravidian heartland, the BJPs State unit has decided to return to the basics: step 1 fine tuning its vocabulary. Senior leaders of the party, particularly those with roots in the Sangh Parivar, have asked leaders and cadre to shed the practice of suffixing ji and instead use vernacular terms that are more emotionally intimate to the local population Anna-Akka, Amma-Ayya. The matter consumed a significant amount of time during the partys executive committee meeting at Tirupur on Sunday and Monday. Addressing the functionaries, BJP joint general secretary (organisation), Kesava Vinayakam, asked them to avoid the use of ji which was not close to the hearts of the Tamil Nadu people. Speaking after him, veteran Sangh leader and newly-elected Rajya Sabha member L Ganesan recalled how he led a campaign on this decades ago while crisscrossing the State as a full-time pracharak. But the vocabulary, in use within the saffron party for years now, is not easy to give up at once. State president Tamilisai Soundararajan, for one, began her speech addressing Ganesanji before quickly correcting herself. Her addressing the leaders as Ganesan annan and H Raja annan evoked peals of laughter from the audience. Confirming the direction given to party functionaries, Ganesan added: It is a small but important step for the party in Tamil Nadu. Asked whether localising the vocabulary was due to the impact of the Dravidian movement, Ganesan recalled RSS founder KB Hedgewars advice to Sangh volunteers as to how they were part of society and not a secluded group. It is because I am an RSS worker. It is in my veins; it is an inborn thought, he said. By The Daily Telegraph Europe must prepare for a fresh influx of Isil jihadists fleeing Mosul as the Iraqi army moves in on their last stronghold in the country, the EU's security commissioner said yesterday (Tuesday). "The retaking of the [Isil] northern Iraq territory, Mosul, may lead to the return to Europe of violent [Isil] fighters," Julian King said. "This is a very serious threat and we must be prepared to face it." Some 2,500 EU nationals are currently fighting alongside Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, he added. He said that if even a handful return it would pose a "serious threat that we must prepare ourselves for". The warning came as the long-expected battle for Mosul entered its second day. Iraqi forces were advancing in an offensive aimed at retaking the city, dealing a death blow to the Isil group's "caliphate" in the spot where it was declared two years ago. A relatively small number of jihadists are putting up a fight against the Iraqi army and Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the villages leading up to the city, but there are reports that fighters are fleeing Mosul itself in growing numbers. Residents inside the city told The Daily Telegraph that scores of jihadists have escaped in recent weeks and more than 50 have fled since the start of the offensive on Monday. "They wait until night and leave by car. They are going to al-Ba'aj to the west of Mosul, then on to the Iraq-Syria border, where they continue to Syria and Turkey," said one 35-year-old resident, who gave his name as Ahmed. There had been reports last week that the US, which is supporting the Iraqi army on the ground and in the air, could decide not to completely encircle the city and allow fighters out through the western side in an attempt to avoid greater civilian casualties. Should that happen, the jihadists -with no major territory left in Iraq -could move across the border to Syria, where they may either join the fight against President Bashar al-Assad's forces or travel on to Turkey or Europe. There has been a growing backlash against Isil among Mosul's some 1.5?million residents. A small number of resistance fighters known as the Kataib al-Mosul group led a brief uprising in various parts of Mosul on the news the offensive had started, Iraq Oil Report said. At least 20 members were killed and their cars burned. They have vowed to fight Isil in support of the army once its forces enter the city. Steven Nabil, who has family inside Mosul, said that phone lines had been reestablished inside the city for the first time in months on Monday, by the Iraqi government, and residents were sending the coalition "hundreds of messages" with Isil fighters' locations. Isil has an estimated 4,000-8,000 fighters remaining in Mosul, but is increasingly recruiting children and other civilians for what has been called the "mother of all battles". Peter Cook, the US Pentagon spokesman, said late on Monday that the campaign was "ahead of schedule" but warned it was not yet known whether fighters would "stand and fight". Analysts say that even with the loss of its last-remaining stronghold in Iraq, it will not mark the end of the group. The group is "entering a new phase," said Chris Phillips, managing director of counter-terrorism consultancy Ippso, adding that as the group loses its "caliphate", "it would force them into more guerrilla or terrorist actions". With the retaking of Mosul, "I think we will see a growth of terrorist attacks across North Africa and the West," he said, adding that fighters could take cover among genuine refugees using established routes to slip in. Europe must prepare for a fresh influx of Isil jihadists fleeing Mosul as the Iraqi army moves in on their last stronghold in the country, the EU's security commissioner said yesterday (Tuesday). "The retaking of the [Isil] northern Iraq territory, Mosul, may lead to the return to Europe of violent [Isil] fighters," Julian King said. "This is a very serious threat and we must be prepared to face it." Some 2,500 EU nationals are currently fighting alongside Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, he added. He said that if even a handful return it would pose a "serious threat that we must prepare ourselves for". The warning came as the long-expected battle for Mosul entered its second day. Iraqi forces were advancing in an offensive aimed at retaking the city, dealing a death blow to the Isil group's "caliphate" in the spot where it was declared two years ago. A relatively small number of jihadists are putting up a fight against the Iraqi army and Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the villages leading up to the city, but there are reports that fighters are fleeing Mosul itself in growing numbers. Residents inside the city told The Daily Telegraph that scores of jihadists have escaped in recent weeks and more than 50 have fled since the start of the offensive on Monday. "They wait until night and leave by car. They are going to al-Ba'aj to the west of Mosul, then on to the Iraq-Syria border, where they continue to Syria and Turkey," said one 35-year-old resident, who gave his name as Ahmed. There had been reports last week that the US, which is supporting the Iraqi army on the ground and in the air, could decide not to completely encircle the city and allow fighters out through the western side in an attempt to avoid greater civilian casualties. Should that happen, the jihadists -with no major territory left in Iraq -could move across the border to Syria, where they may either join the fight against President Bashar al-Assad's forces or travel on to Turkey or Europe. There has been a growing backlash against Isil among Mosul's some 1.5?million residents. A small number of resistance fighters known as the Kataib al-Mosul group led a brief uprising in various parts of Mosul on the news the offensive had started, Iraq Oil Report said. At least 20 members were killed and their cars burned. They have vowed to fight Isil in support of the army once its forces enter the city. Steven Nabil, who has family inside Mosul, said that phone lines had been reestablished inside the city for the first time in months on Monday, by the Iraqi government, and residents were sending the coalition "hundreds of messages" with Isil fighters' locations. Isil has an estimated 4,000-8,000 fighters remaining in Mosul, but is increasingly recruiting children and other civilians for what has been called the "mother of all battles". Peter Cook, the US Pentagon spokesman, said late on Monday that the campaign was "ahead of schedule" but warned it was not yet known whether fighters would "stand and fight". Analysts say that even with the loss of its last-remaining stronghold in Iraq, it will not mark the end of the group. The group is "entering a new phase," said Chris Phillips, managing director of counter-terrorism consultancy Ippso, adding that as the group loses its "caliphate", "it would force them into more guerrilla or terrorist actions". With the retaking of Mosul, "I think we will see a growth of terrorist attacks across North Africa and the West," he said, adding that fighters could take cover among genuine refugees using established routes to slip in. By Associated Press BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel prepared to host a summit Wednesday with the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and France aimed at reviving the stalled peace process in eastern Ukraine. The conflict in Syria is also likely to be discussed. Prospects of significant progress on either front look poor, but Merkel said ahead of the meeting that she wanted to exhaust every possibility. Merkel and Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia, Francois Hollande of France and Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine have met sporadically to discuss eastern Ukraine. This is the first time the four have met in over a year. The 2015 Minsk agreement brokered by France and Germany has helped end large-scale battles between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russia separatists, but clashes have continued and efforts to reach a political settlement have stalled. The decision to hold the meeting Wednesday evening in Berlin follows a flurry of telephone diplomacy over the past week. Merkel told reporters Tuesday that the talks would be about "establishing where things stand" and stressed that Germany wouldn't refrain from blunt talk including on Syria. Merkel and Hollande have been sharply critical of Russia's support for Assad's forces, with Merkel suggesting Tuesday that Moscow was partly responsible for atrocities, citing "Syrian and Russian airstrikes on helpless people, hospitals and doctors." Merkel said the possibility of imposing sanctions against Russia for its actions in Syria remained on the table. "But the priority is that we look at lessening people's suffering in some way," she said. Speaking privately, European diplomats said any talks on Ukraine and Syria should be seen as a positive step, even if no concrete decisions are reached. Several groups were planning to stage protests outside the chancellery, where the meeting will be held. BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel prepared to host a summit Wednesday with the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and France aimed at reviving the stalled peace process in eastern Ukraine. The conflict in Syria is also likely to be discussed. Prospects of significant progress on either front look poor, but Merkel said ahead of the meeting that she wanted to exhaust every possibility. Merkel and Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia, Francois Hollande of France and Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine have met sporadically to discuss eastern Ukraine. This is the first time the four have met in over a year. The 2015 Minsk agreement brokered by France and Germany has helped end large-scale battles between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russia separatists, but clashes have continued and efforts to reach a political settlement have stalled. The decision to hold the meeting Wednesday evening in Berlin follows a flurry of telephone diplomacy over the past week. Merkel told reporters Tuesday that the talks would be about "establishing where things stand" and stressed that Germany wouldn't refrain from blunt talk including on Syria. Merkel and Hollande have been sharply critical of Russia's support for Assad's forces, with Merkel suggesting Tuesday that Moscow was partly responsible for atrocities, citing "Syrian and Russian airstrikes on helpless people, hospitals and doctors." Merkel said the possibility of imposing sanctions against Russia for its actions in Syria remained on the table. "But the priority is that we look at lessening people's suffering in some way," she said. Speaking privately, European diplomats said any talks on Ukraine and Syria should be seen as a positive step, even if no concrete decisions are reached. Several groups were planning to stage protests outside the chancellery, where the meeting will be held. By IANS VIENNA: The building where Adolf Hitler was born may be spared demolition, but emerge heavily disguised. On Monday, Austria's interior minister, Wolfgang Sobotka, told the daily Die Presse that "the Hitler house will be torn down." On Tuesday, he told reporters that the term "torn down" is debatable but the building, in the western town of Braunau, will be so thoroughly redesigned that it "will not be recognizable." The "house," a large, three-story Renaissance-era structure, contains the apartment where Hitler was born. Several members of a government-appointed commission on the future of the house said destroying it to end its attraction for admirers of the Nazi dictator would give an impression of trying erase part of Austria's history. VIENNA: The building where Adolf Hitler was born may be spared demolition, but emerge heavily disguised. On Monday, Austria's interior minister, Wolfgang Sobotka, told the daily Die Presse that "the Hitler house will be torn down." On Tuesday, he told reporters that the term "torn down" is debatable but the building, in the western town of Braunau, will be so thoroughly redesigned that it "will not be recognizable." The "house," a large, three-story Renaissance-era structure, contains the apartment where Hitler was born. Several members of a government-appointed commission on the future of the house said destroying it to end its attraction for admirers of the Nazi dictator would give an impression of trying erase part of Austria's history. By Associated Press KHAZER: A senior Iraqi general on Wednesday called on Iraqis fighting for the Islamic State group in Mosul to surrender as a wide-scale operation to retake the militant-held city entered its third day. Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati told reporters at a military base on Tuesday that up to 6,000 IS fighters are inside the city. He did not say how many of them are foreigners. IS captured Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, in a lightning advance in the summer of 2014. The extremist group has suffered a string of defeats over the past year, and Mosul is its last major urban bastion in Iraq. So far, the militants have put up fierce resistance in villages surrounding the city, where most of the fighting has been concentrated. IS has sent trucks loaded with explosives careening toward the front lines and fired mortars to slow the Iraqi forces' advance. An Iraqi officer from the 9th Division told The Associated Press that his troops were now around 1 kilometer (half mile) away from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul. Over the past day, IS sent 12 car bombs, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, he said, adding that Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds. The officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters, did not provide specific figures. The operation to retake Mosul is the largest launched by the Iraqi army since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. Some 25,000 troops, including Sunni tribal fighters, Kurdish forces known as the peshmerga and state-sanctioned Shiite militias known as the Popular Mobilization Units are approaching the city from different directions. The participation of the Shiite militias in the operation to retake the mainly Sunni Mosul has raised concerns that the campaign could inflame sectarian tensions. Rights groups have accused the Shiite militias of abuses in past campaigns against IS-held areas. In a bid to alleviate those concerns, Shiite militia leaders on Tuesday announced that they will only focus on capturing the mostly Shiite town of Tal Afar to the west of Mosul, and not enter the city itself. "The only troops who will enter Mosul are the army and police, not the Popular Mobilization Units or the peshmerga," said Hadi al-Amiri, the leader of the Badr Brigade, one of the largest Shiite militias. "This has been agreed upon," he said at a press conference in the Shiite holy city of Najaf. Amnesty International said in a report released Tuesday that Iraqi government and paramilitary forces detained, tortured or killed hundreds of Sunni Arab civilians fleeing IS-held areas during the operation to retake the Sunni city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, earlier this year. The Iraqi government has denied any systematic violations by security forces or the militias, and says individuals have been held accountable for occasional abuses. KHAZER: A senior Iraqi general on Wednesday called on Iraqis fighting for the Islamic State group in Mosul to surrender as a wide-scale operation to retake the militant-held city entered its third day. Lt. Gen. Talib Shaghati told reporters at a military base on Tuesday that up to 6,000 IS fighters are inside the city. He did not say how many of them are foreigners. IS captured Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, in a lightning advance in the summer of 2014. The extremist group has suffered a string of defeats over the past year, and Mosul is its last major urban bastion in Iraq. So far, the militants have put up fierce resistance in villages surrounding the city, where most of the fighting has been concentrated. IS has sent trucks loaded with explosives careening toward the front lines and fired mortars to slow the Iraqi forces' advance. An Iraqi officer from the 9th Division told The Associated Press that his troops were now around 1 kilometer (half mile) away from Hamdaniyah, a historically Christian town also known as Bakhdida, to the east of Mosul. Over the past day, IS sent 12 car bombs, all of which were blown up before reaching their targets, he said, adding that Iraqi troops suffered a small number of casualties from the mortar rounds. The officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters, did not provide specific figures. The operation to retake Mosul is the largest launched by the Iraqi army since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. Some 25,000 troops, including Sunni tribal fighters, Kurdish forces known as the peshmerga and state-sanctioned Shiite militias known as the Popular Mobilization Units are approaching the city from different directions. The participation of the Shiite militias in the operation to retake the mainly Sunni Mosul has raised concerns that the campaign could inflame sectarian tensions. Rights groups have accused the Shiite militias of abuses in past campaigns against IS-held areas. In a bid to alleviate those concerns, Shiite militia leaders on Tuesday announced that they will only focus on capturing the mostly Shiite town of Tal Afar to the west of Mosul, and not enter the city itself. "The only troops who will enter Mosul are the army and police, not the Popular Mobilization Units or the peshmerga," said Hadi al-Amiri, the leader of the Badr Brigade, one of the largest Shiite militias. "This has been agreed upon," he said at a press conference in the Shiite holy city of Najaf. Amnesty International said in a report released Tuesday that Iraqi government and paramilitary forces detained, tortured or killed hundreds of Sunni Arab civilians fleeing IS-held areas during the operation to retake the Sunni city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, earlier this year. The Iraqi government has denied any systematic violations by security forces or the militias, and says individuals have been held accountable for occasional abuses. By The Daily Telegraph Asma Al-Assad, the Syrian president's British-born wife, has said she turned down offers of financial security and safety for her children if she fled the war-torn country. Mrs Assad, a former investment banker who married Mr Assad in 2000, said the deals were "stupid" attempts "undermine" her husband, in rare public comments to a Russian broadcaster. "I've been here since the beginning and I never thought of being anywhere else at all," Mrs Assad, 41, told Russia's state-owned Rossiya 24 channel in an interview broadcast yesterday (Tuesday). She said: "Yes I was offered the opportunity to leave Syria or rather to run from Syria. These offers included guarantees of safety and protection for my children and even financial security. It doesn't take a genius to know what these people were really after. It was a deliberate attempt to shatter people's confidence in their president.". She said Western sanctions had impacted ordinary Syrians in a similar manner to those against Saddam Hussein's Iraq in the 1990s. She also praised Moscow's "noble" intervention and economic assistance to the country. "The situation would have been much much harder if it had not been Syria's true friends," she said. "Russia has been tremendous." Mrs Assad was born to Syrian parents in London and educated at Queens College, a private girls school, and Kings College London, where she graduated with a degree in computer science in 1996. She has largely kept out of the spotlight since the outbreak of war in 2011. She is subject to EU sanctions that make it illegal to render her economic assistance and ban her from travelling in the EU with the exception of the UK, because she holds British nationality. In her first television interview in eight years, the mother-of-three also hit out at the West for what she called double standards in coverage of the war, saying media coverage of child casualties differed "depending on the loyalties of their parents". Mrs Assad said she used her position as first lady to organise assistance for displaced people, wounded Syrian army soldiers, and the families of "martyrs" who have died in the war. "From my perspective it was never a question of preference. I stood by him because my conviction did not tell me otherwise," she said when asked why she had stayed in Damascus with Mr Assad. "Western organisations have chosen to solely focus on refugees and those in rebel-held areas, whereas the vast majority of people who have been displaced are spread across the rest of the country," she said. Meanwhile, Russian and Syrian regime aircraft halted their bombardment of Aleppo yesterday. The abrupt stop came ahead of an eight-hour ceasefire that Russia unilaterally announced for tomorrow (Thursday), saying that the pause would allow for civilians and rebel fighters to leave the city. But Western diplomats suggested it was designed to deflect criticism ahead of Vladimir Putin's visit to Berlin today. Gareth Bayley, the UK's special representative on Syria, said the proposed eight-hour ceasefire was "inadequate" and would not be enough time for the UN to deliver aid to the 275,000 people trapped by the regime's siege. Asma Al-Assad, the Syrian president's British-born wife, has said she turned down offers of financial security and safety for her children if she fled the war-torn country. Mrs Assad, a former investment banker who married Mr Assad in 2000, said the deals were "stupid" attempts "undermine" her husband, in rare public comments to a Russian broadcaster. "I've been here since the beginning and I never thought of being anywhere else at all," Mrs Assad, 41, told Russia's state-owned Rossiya 24 channel in an interview broadcast yesterday (Tuesday). She said: "Yes I was offered the opportunity to leave Syria or rather to run from Syria. These offers included guarantees of safety and protection for my children and even financial security. It doesn't take a genius to know what these people were really after. It was a deliberate attempt to shatter people's confidence in their president.". She said Western sanctions had impacted ordinary Syrians in a similar manner to those against Saddam Hussein's Iraq in the 1990s. She also praised Moscow's "noble" intervention and economic assistance to the country. "The situation would have been much much harder if it had not been Syria's true friends," she said. "Russia has been tremendous." Mrs Assad was born to Syrian parents in London and educated at Queens College, a private girls school, and Kings College London, where she graduated with a degree in computer science in 1996. She has largely kept out of the spotlight since the outbreak of war in 2011. She is subject to EU sanctions that make it illegal to render her economic assistance and ban her from travelling in the EU with the exception of the UK, because she holds British nationality. In her first television interview in eight years, the mother-of-three also hit out at the West for what she called double standards in coverage of the war, saying media coverage of child casualties differed "depending on the loyalties of their parents". Mrs Assad said she used her position as first lady to organise assistance for displaced people, wounded Syrian army soldiers, and the families of "martyrs" who have died in the war. "From my perspective it was never a question of preference. I stood by him because my conviction did not tell me otherwise," she said when asked why she had stayed in Damascus with Mr Assad. "Western organisations have chosen to solely focus on refugees and those in rebel-held areas, whereas the vast majority of people who have been displaced are spread across the rest of the country," she said. Meanwhile, Russian and Syrian regime aircraft halted their bombardment of Aleppo yesterday. The abrupt stop came ahead of an eight-hour ceasefire that Russia unilaterally announced for tomorrow (Thursday), saying that the pause would allow for civilians and rebel fighters to leave the city. But Western diplomats suggested it was designed to deflect criticism ahead of Vladimir Putin's visit to Berlin today. Gareth Bayley, the UK's special representative on Syria, said the proposed eight-hour ceasefire was "inadequate" and would not be enough time for the UN to deliver aid to the 275,000 people trapped by the regime's siege. By The Daily Telegraph Back in 2003, during the military campaign to overthrow Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, coalition commanders had 160,000 highly-trained American and British troops at their disposal, as well as contingents of Australians and Poles. The invasion of Iraq is now widely regarded as a political catastrophe, not least because of the controversy around the coalition's failure to find Saddam's stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction and the highly effective anti-war propaganda effort mounted by groups such as Jeremy Corbyn's Stop the War. Consequently, people tend to overlook the fact that the military campaign per se - or Operation Iraqi Freedom as the Pentagon dubbed it - was a brilliant success, managing to achieve its primary objective of overthrowing Saddam's regime within the space of just 21 days while incurring minimum casualties. Much of the military equipment used to depose Saddam can now be seen in action on the outskirts of Mosul, Iraq's second city, the long-awaited campaign to reclaim which from Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) the Iraqi government has just launched. US-made Abrams tanks and artillery pieces are pounding Isil positions in preparation for the ground offensive to dislodge an estimated 5,000 Isil fighters from their strongholds in the city centre. The big difference between the coalition's successful Iraq campaign in 2003 and today's planned offensive against Mosul is that, this time, the fighting on the ground will mainly be conducted by local troops, rather than forces deployed by Western countries. British and American troops may have fought with bravery and distinction during the recent conflicts in both Iraq and Afghanistan, but the eventual unpopularity of these conflicts in the eyes of the public on both sides of the Atlantic means that very few of today's politicians are prepared to consider deploying ground forces overseas. Thus, so far as the campaign to defeat Isil is concerned, Western involvement will be limited to providing air support, with RAF Typhoon and Tornado fighters making a significant contribution to the coalition's assault on Isil positions, as are Reaper drones, and elite special forces embedded within both Kurdish Peshmerga and conventional Iraqi army units. Meanwhile an estimated 10,000 American and British military advisers have been instrumental in developing Iraq's armed forces into an effective fighting machine after the humiliating rout they suffered two years ago when Isil first stormed into Iraq, and the majority of Iraqi troops simply abandoned their weapons and fled. It remains to be seen how effective these newly constituted Iraqi forces will be in tackling a determined and resourceful enemy like Isil. But the fact that it will be Iraqi, not Western, troops doing the lion's share of the fighting represents a significant change in our approach to fighting Islamist militants - one that could have a profound bearing on how we tackle other security challenges, such as targeting Isil in Syria and establishing political stability in Libya. If, as Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson remarked at the weekend, there is at present "a lack of political appetite in most European capitals" for military intervention, then it is vital that we find trusted proxies we can work with to achieve a common goal - in this case, liberating Mosul and destroying Isil's power base in Iraq. It is easy to understand the appeal this kind of military marriage of convenience has for most Western politicians. It enables them to claim they are taking effective action to deal with a given problem while relieving them from the obligation to commit their own ground forces to counter a possible threat to national security. But while the current political trend is to outsource the grunt work of military operations to regional allies like the Kurds and the Iraqis, ministers need to understand the price they pay is that they have less control over delivering the final outcome. From day one back in 2003, coalition commanders worked directly to their political masters in London and Washington and understood fully that it was their duty to achieve their government's stated objectives. Our attempts to work with proxies in countries like Libya and Syria, by contrast, have been less successful, not least because our so-called allies have been more interested in pursuing their own agendas. In Libya, many of the anti-Gaddafi militias we supported morphed into anti-Western Islamist factions, while in Syria Western-backed groups are more interested in fighting each other than Assad. And it is entirely feasible we could experience similar difficulties once the fighting for Mosul is over - for example, the Kurds make no secret of their desire to use land captured from Isil to create their own state. So we need to be clear. The fact that any Western military intervention is now seen as political suicide comes at a heavy price. It means we have no other option than to work with proxies, and simply hope they share the same goals of tackling our enemies. Back in 2003, during the military campaign to overthrow Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, coalition commanders had 160,000 highly-trained American and British troops at their disposal, as well as contingents of Australians and Poles. The invasion of Iraq is now widely regarded as a political catastrophe, not least because of the controversy around the coalition's failure to find Saddam's stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction and the highly effective anti-war propaganda effort mounted by groups such as Jeremy Corbyn's Stop the War. Consequently, people tend to overlook the fact that the military campaign per se - or Operation Iraqi Freedom as the Pentagon dubbed it - was a brilliant success, managing to achieve its primary objective of overthrowing Saddam's regime within the space of just 21 days while incurring minimum casualties. Much of the military equipment used to depose Saddam can now be seen in action on the outskirts of Mosul, Iraq's second city, the long-awaited campaign to reclaim which from Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) the Iraqi government has just launched. US-made Abrams tanks and artillery pieces are pounding Isil positions in preparation for the ground offensive to dislodge an estimated 5,000 Isil fighters from their strongholds in the city centre. The big difference between the coalition's successful Iraq campaign in 2003 and today's planned offensive against Mosul is that, this time, the fighting on the ground will mainly be conducted by local troops, rather than forces deployed by Western countries. British and American troops may have fought with bravery and distinction during the recent conflicts in both Iraq and Afghanistan, but the eventual unpopularity of these conflicts in the eyes of the public on both sides of the Atlantic means that very few of today's politicians are prepared to consider deploying ground forces overseas. Thus, so far as the campaign to defeat Isil is concerned, Western involvement will be limited to providing air support, with RAF Typhoon and Tornado fighters making a significant contribution to the coalition's assault on Isil positions, as are Reaper drones, and elite special forces embedded within both Kurdish Peshmerga and conventional Iraqi army units. Meanwhile an estimated 10,000 American and British military advisers have been instrumental in developing Iraq's armed forces into an effective fighting machine after the humiliating rout they suffered two years ago when Isil first stormed into Iraq, and the majority of Iraqi troops simply abandoned their weapons and fled. It remains to be seen how effective these newly constituted Iraqi forces will be in tackling a determined and resourceful enemy like Isil. But the fact that it will be Iraqi, not Western, troops doing the lion's share of the fighting represents a significant change in our approach to fighting Islamist militants - one that could have a profound bearing on how we tackle other security challenges, such as targeting Isil in Syria and establishing political stability in Libya. If, as Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson remarked at the weekend, there is at present "a lack of political appetite in most European capitals" for military intervention, then it is vital that we find trusted proxies we can work with to achieve a common goal - in this case, liberating Mosul and destroying Isil's power base in Iraq. It is easy to understand the appeal this kind of military marriage of convenience has for most Western politicians. It enables them to claim they are taking effective action to deal with a given problem while relieving them from the obligation to commit their own ground forces to counter a possible threat to national security. But while the current political trend is to outsource the grunt work of military operations to regional allies like the Kurds and the Iraqis, ministers need to understand the price they pay is that they have less control over delivering the final outcome. From day one back in 2003, coalition commanders worked directly to their political masters in London and Washington and understood fully that it was their duty to achieve their government's stated objectives. Our attempts to work with proxies in countries like Libya and Syria, by contrast, have been less successful, not least because our so-called allies have been more interested in pursuing their own agendas. In Libya, many of the anti-Gaddafi militias we supported morphed into anti-Western Islamist factions, while in Syria Western-backed groups are more interested in fighting each other than Assad. And it is entirely feasible we could experience similar difficulties once the fighting for Mosul is over - for example, the Kurds make no secret of their desire to use land captured from Isil to create their own state. So we need to be clear. The fact that any Western military intervention is now seen as political suicide comes at a heavy price. It means we have no other option than to work with proxies, and simply hope they share the same goals of tackling our enemies. October 21st is the feast day of Blessed Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria-Hungary; this year marks the centenary of his accession to the throne on November 21st. He was beatified by Pope St John Paul II in 2004; a second miracle has been attributed to his intercession, a miraculous healing which led to the conversion of the person healed. His feast day is kept not on the day of his death, April 1st, but rather, on the day of his marriage to Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma, which took place in 1911; her cause for canonization was introduced in December of 2009. It is well-known story about the Bl. Karl that he said to his wife on the day after their wedding, Now, we must help each other to get to Heaven. website has been created by the Emperor Karl League of Prayer (screen capture below), which has a great deal of useful information about the Blessed, his life and the cause for his canonization. It also has a section listing a number of Masses for his feast , including a Pontifical Mass which Bishop Athanasius Schneider will celebrate in Washington D.C., at church of St Mary Mother of God. The particular mission of the League is to pray for peace throughout the world, a mission of the greatest importance in these troubling times. Vote now! Who is The Daily News Athlete of the Week for Oct. 24-30? Champaign, IL (61820) Today A shower is possible early. Partly cloudy skies. Low 44F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight A shower is possible early. Partly cloudy skies. Low 44F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Reporter Tim Mitchell is a reporter at The News-Gazette. His email is tmitchel@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@mitchell6). Columnist Tom Kacich is a columnist and the author of Tom's Mailbag at The News-Gazette. His column appears Sundays. His email is tkacich@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@tkacich). MIT neuroscientists have discovered that brain cells called glial cells play a critical role in controlling appetite and feeding behavior. In a study of mice, the researchers found that activating these cells stimulates overeating, and that when the cells are suppressed, appetite is also suppressed. The findings could offer scientists a new target for developing drugs against obesity and other appetite-related disorders, the researchers say. The study is also the latest in recent years to implicate glial cells in important brain functions. Until about 10 years ago, glial cells were believed to play more of a supporting role for neurons. "In the last few years, abnormal glial cell activities have been strongly implicated in neurodegenerative disorders. There is more and more evidence to point to the importance of glial cells in modulating neuronal function and in mediating brain disorders," says Guoping Feng, the James W. and Patricia Poitras Professor of Neuroscience. Feng is also a member of MIT's McGovern Institute for Brain Research and the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research at the Broad Institute. Feng is one of the senior authors of the study, which appears in the Oct. 18 edition of the journal eLife. The other senior author is Weiping Han, head of the Laboratory of Metabolic Medicine at the Singapore Bioimaging Consortium in Singapore. Naiyan Chen, a postdoc at the Singapore Bioimaging Consortium and the McGovern Institute, is the lead author. Turning on appetite It has long been known that the hypothalamus, an almond-sized structure located deep within the brain, controls appetite as well as energy expenditure, body temperature, and circadian rhythms including sleep cycles. While performing studies on glial cells in other parts of the brain, Chen noticed that the hypothalamus also appeared to have a lot of glial cell activity. "I was very curious at that point what glial cells would be doing in the hypothalamus, since glial cells have been shown in other brain areas to have an influence on regulation of neuronal function," she says. Within the hypothalamus, scientists have identified two key groups of neurons that regulate appetite, known as AgRP neurons and POMC neurons. AgRP neurons stimulate feeding, while POMC neurons suppress appetite. Until recently it has been difficult to study the role of glial cells in controlling appetite or any other brain function, because scientists haven't developed many techniques for silencing or stimulating these cells, as they have for neurons. Glial cells, which make up about half of the cells in the brain, have many supporting roles, including cushioning neurons and helping them form connections with one another. Neuroscience eBook Compilation of the top interviews, articles, and news in the last year. Download a copy today In this study, the research team used a new technique developed at the University of North Carolina to study a type of glial cell known as an astrocyte. Using this strategy, researchers can engineer specific cells to produce a surface receptor that binds to a chemical compound known as CNO, a derivative of clozapine. Then, when CNO is given, it activates the glial cells. The MIT team found that turning on astrocyte activity with just a single dose of CNO had a significant effect on feeding behavior. "When we gave the compound that specifically activated the receptors, we saw a robust increase in feeding," Chen says. "Mice are not known to eat very much in the daytime, but when we gave drugs to these animals that express a particular receptor, they were eating a lot." The researchers also found that in the short term (three days), the mice did not gain extra weight, even though they were eating more. "This raises the possibility that glial cells may also be modulating neurons that control energy expenditures, to compensate for the increased food intake," Chen says. "They might have multiple neuronal partners and modulate multiple energy homeostasis functions all at the same time." When the researchers silenced activity in the astrocytes, they found that the mice ate less than normal. Unknown interactions Still unknown is how the astrocytes exert their effects on neurons. Some recent studies have suggested that glial cells can secrete chemical messengers such as glutamate and ATP; if so, these "gliotransmitters" could influence neuron activity. Another hypothesis is that instead of secreting chemicals, astrocytes exert their effects by controlling the uptake of neurotransmitters from the space surrounding neurons, thereby affecting neuron activity indirectly. Feng now plans to develop new research tools that could help scientists learn more about astrocyte-neuron interactions and how astrocytes contribute to modulation of appetite and feeding. He also hopes to learn more about whether there are different types of astrocytes that may contribute differently to feeding behavior, especially abnormal behavior. "We really know very little about how astrocytes contribute to the modulation of appetite, eating, and metabolism," he says. "In the future, dissecting out these functional difference will be critical for our understanding of these disorders." Most women who used an experimental vaginal ring for HIV prevention report that the physical act of sex was largely unaffected by using the product, which is inserted monthly for continuous wear. This finding is among several insights gleaned about experiences of women who used the ring during the ASPIRE study, also known as MTN-020, announced today at the HIV Research for Prevention (HIVR4P) meeting in Chicago. ASPIRE evaluated whether the ring, which continuously releases the anti-HIV drug dapivirine, could safely reduce HIV infection among 2,629 women aged 18-45 years living in Malawi, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Among participants randomized to receive the dapivirine ring, risk of HIV infection fell by 27 percent. A further analysis found that the ring reduced the risk of HIV infection by at least 56 percent among women who used it with greater frequency, and up to 75 percent or higher among those who used it consistently. Further exploration of the ring's clinical potential began in July 2016 through the large-scale HOPE (HIV Open-Label Prevention Extension) study, also known as MTN-025. ASPIRE, HOPE and their ancillary studies were primarily funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The nonprofit International Partnership for Microbicides developed the dapivirine ring and supplied it for the studies. "Women need an HIV prevention modality that offers safe, effective protection and is practical for use in their daily lives," said NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. "Women enrolled in the MTN-020/ASPIRE study reported that the experimental vaginal ring generally did not interfere with sexual intercourse, which is an encouraging sign that this product could appeal to a larger group of women at risk for HIV infection." The ASPIRE study staff interviewed 214 participants who used the ring to obtain qualitative data about their sexual experiences during the trial. A team led by Nicole Laborde, Ph.D., M.P.H., of RTI International in Research Triangle Park in North Carolina, analyzed the participant responses. While most of these women found that the ring did not negatively affect the physical act of sex, some women said they were continually preoccupied with how their partners would react if they felt or discovered the ring. To address this issue, some women removed the ring before sex, a practice not recommended by study investigators. Other women limited sexual activities that they believed might heighten their partners' awareness of the ring, such as certain sexual positions and receptive oral or digital sex. Some women reported greater sexual satisfaction partially due to perceived protection provided by the ring. Other women reported diminished sexual pleasure associated with the worry that their male partners would notice the ring during sex. Additional analyses of the ASPIRE data revealed other patterns of experience among study participants. Because women who face intimate partner violence and other social harms more often find it difficult to adhere to the clinically proven once-daily antiretroviral drug Truvada as pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, researchers investigated the connection between consistent use of the ring and these issues. While fewer than 5 percent of all ASPIRE study participants reported incidents of intimate partner-related violence or other social harms, women who did report violence or social harm within a month of the interview were nearly 2.5 times more likely to have low adherence to the ring. Younger age at enrollment, having a new primary partner and not disclosing study participation or ring use to the primary partner were significantly associated with reporting social harms. These findings, reported by a team led by Thesla Palanee-Phillips, M.Med.Sci, Ph.D., M.Sc., at the Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute in Johannesburg, South Africa, indicate that more research is needed to determine strategies to mitigate low adherence in the context of intimate partner violence and other social harms in future studies of female-controlled prevention methods. The potential for women to suffer social harm and violence by sexual partners, along with other qualitative data from HIV prevention studies, suggest that some women may prefer methods of HIV protection undetectable by sexual partners. Additional new data revealed that a majority of women--64 percent--disclosed the use of the ring to their male partners at the outset of the study, while 13 percent of study participants never revealed that they were using the ring. The investigators, led by Lulu Nair, M.B.Ch.B., M.P.H., of the Desmond Tutu HIV Centre at the University of Cape Town, found that neither disclosing nor concealing use of the ring affected women's adherence to the product. "Sub-Saharan African women have a broad range of sexual experiences and relationship dynamics, and we are learning more about how these diverse behaviors and circumstances influence the use of the ring," said Dr. Palanee-Phillips, director of Network trials at the Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute in Johannesburg, South Africa and protocol co-chair on the ASPIRE study. "While we have found that most women do disclose ring use to their primary partners, it is reassuring that adherence is not affected for the significant minority of women who choose to use it more discreetly." Researchers led by Ariane van der Straten, Ph.D., M.P.H., of RTI International also found that women's concerns about using an experimental vaginal ring for HIV prevention decreased significantly over the course of the study. At clinical visits, women were asked, "How worried are you about having a vaginal ring inside you every day for at least a year?" While 29 percent of women reported this concern at the start of the study, only 4 percent of participants did so at their final follow-up clinic visit. Specific concerns related to use, health, hygiene, sexual enjoyment and social approval also decreased significantly between the start and the end of the study. As research on the ring continues in the HOPE study, investigators will collect both quantitative and qualitative data from women at risk for HIV infection. All participants in HOPE will receive access to a package of HIV prevention services, including condoms, partner testing and counseling, and will be able to stay in the study regardless of whether or not they choose to accept the ring after their initial clinic visit. The study investigators believe this approach will shed light on the critical questions of whether participants like using the ring, and why. Launch of Hemostasis Clip Advances Innovation within the Field of Endoscopy Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX) today announced the launch of the Resolution 360 Clip, a novel technology designed to improve hemostatic clipping by providing physicians controlled rotation designed for more accurate clip placement. Boston Scientific will introduce the clip at the annual United European Gastroenterology Week (UEGW) in Vienna, Austria, and at the American College of Gastroenterology annual meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada. Hemostatic clipping is used in a number of endoscopy procedures of the upper and lower gastrointestinal (GI) tract to stop and help prevent bleeding associated with conditions including peptic ulcers, polyps removed during a colonoscopy and diverticulosis of the colon. There are more than 240,000 incidences of GI bleeding in the U.S. each year and worldwide a 10 percent mortality rate is associated with upper and lower GI bleeds. A retrospective study demonstrated that prophylactic clipping can reduce the risk of bleeding from a 9.8 percent to 1.7 percent leading to a reduction in adverse events associated with GI bleeding. The Resolution 360 Clip gives me the unique advantage of controlling the movement and placement of the clip while also maneuvering the scope during the clipping procedure, said David L. Carr-Locke, MD, FRCP, FASGE, chief, Division of Digestive Diseases, Mount Sinai Beth Israel Medical Center, New York, NY. The ability to have complete control can help improve the accuracy of clip placement and the speed of the procedure particularly in complex cases. The device is constructed using a multi-wire braided catheter that is designed to enable the healthcare professional to rotate the device in small, controlled movements in both clockwise and counterclockwise directions, enabling the clip to be maneuvered to the target area and more accurately placed at the site of a GI bleed or a potential GI bleed. Physicians at the two conferences will have the opportunity to use the Resolution 360 Clip in a simulator to experience the device first-hand. We are always striving to improve our technology so that physicians have the tools they need to diagnose and treat gastrointestinal disease more easily and effectively, said Art Butcher, senior vice president and president, endoscopy. Building on the legacy Resolution Clip and its clinically proven technology, the expanded portfolio now offers physicians more hemostatic clipping options to consider in different clinical situations and patient anatomies. Episona Inc., an epigenetics data company focused on improving outcomes in reproductive health, announced today the launch of Seed, an innovative new male fertility test, at the American Society for Reproductive Medicine Scientific Congress& Expo. Seedis the first product on the market to evaluate epigenetic changes on DNA to predict the risk for male factorinfertility and poor embryo development, offering physicians and their patients a valuable new tool for personalizing fertility treatment and increasing the chances of pregnancy sooner and more cost effectively. "Physicians have long relied on the traditional semen analysis as the sole option for determining the male's role in fertility," said Episona President and CEO Alan Horsager,Ph.D. "While semen analyses provide valuable information on sperm count, motility and morphology, they offer little insight into the more complex factors related to male fertility or into the male's role in embryo development. By combining the latest advances in science and technology, Seed provides patientswith previously missing information about their fertility and we believe this has the potential to transform fertility care." Seed is a physician-ordered test offered in a simple fertility kit for use at home or in a fertility clinic. Samples are sent to a CLIA-certified lab for analysis. Within two weeks physicians receive a detailed two-part interactive report on the patients risk of male factor infertility and poor embryo development. Male factor risk can help identify the severity of a patients case, helping both the physician and patient understand whether they should spend time and money pursing less invasive procedures such as intrauterine insemination (IUI) or move directly to in vitro fertilization (IVF). By analyzing sperms role in embryo development, Seed results can help identify problems that might occur with IVF and provide some answers if an IVF cycle fails or, in the case of seeking a donor, whether a male or female donor would be preferred. "Male factors contribute to about half of the cases of infertility in couples, yet testingoptions for men have been woefully lacking. What's more, about a quarter of infertility cases are unexplainable," said Dr. Richard T. Scott, Jr., a founding partner at Reproductive Medicine Associates of New Jersey, and an Episona scientific advisory board member. "Seed has the potential to provide my patients with the information needed to better guide their course of treatment. I look forward to bringing this new test to my practice and to helping my patients become pregnant sooner." Seed's novel approach is based on the science of epigenetics. Epigenetics examines external or environmental factors such as aging, smoking, obesity, environmental exposure or even exercise thatcan cause changes to the layer on top of the DNA known as the epigenome. These modifications to the DNA alter how genes are expressed, or read, which in turn can impact how genes function. Episona focuses specifically on DNA methylationon the epigenome by looking at the differences in methylation between known fertile sperm DNA and infertile sperm DNA. Using microarrays from Illumina Inc., Seed examines over 480,000 regions on sperm DNA for abnormal methylation at different gene sites important to fertility. A relative risk is then assigned to each abnormal location for either male factor infertility or poor embryo development. "The Seed test uses epigenetics, which allows us to look much more deeply at potential problems associated with impaired fertility in men,said Dr. Paul Turek, an internationally known leader in mens reproductive health and an Episona's scientific advisory board member. Episona has evaluated Seed in two clinical studies, with both demonstrating clear correlations between epigenetic abnormalities and male factor infertility. The first was a retrospective study involving 127 IVF patients and 36 known-fertile controls. The results of this study were published in Fertility & Sterility in August 2015. The second study was prospective and involved more than 200 patients from multiple clinical centers and 96 know-fertile controls. Episona intends to submit these study results for publication in a peer-reviewed journal early next year. Seed, Episona's first commercial product, is initially being launched in the United States as a laboratory-developed test. Episona estimates there are more than 1.2 million couples seeking fertility care each year in the United States alone. The worldwide fertility market is estimated at $30-40 billion by Harris Williams & Co. Source: https://www.episona.com/ An international group of population health experts is calling for sharing of health data to be the norm if precision health agendas are to succeed and build sustainable health systems. Key messages Health systems are failing citizens and need radical revamp Success of precision health agenda hinges on data and data sharing The silos between clinical and public health practice and between clinical practice and research must be broken down Health systems are not keeping up with technology The signatories from UK, Italy, Belgium, Hungary, Canada and the United States note that people and patients across the world are being let down by the slow, evolutionary pace of change in health systems that fails to keep pace with massive advances in digital and genome-based technologies. Genetics & Genomics eBook Compilation of the top interviews, articles, and news in the last year. Download a copy today In their statement Paths to precision health: act now published today, the signatories urge for active leadership to address this major obstacle to the success of precision health agendas and to harness new technologies to drive the publics participation in its health. Gathering in Cambridge, UK, at a summit hosted by Dr Ron Zimmern (Chairman, PHG Foundation), the signatories urged governments to take revolutionary and disruptive action that will make sharing personal health data an accepted civic responsibility for all citizens. Paths to precision health: act now The vision set out in the statement is for a new reciprocal model for health in which the silos between public health and clinical medicine are removed and the emphasis is on prevention and health over treatment and cure. In this model citizens will be expected to pay forward by contributing their genetic and medical data as an investment in the countrys path to health. Specifically, Paths to precision health: act now urges the freeing of data and engagement of citizens to make available to researchers and clinicians standardised, comprehensive and diverse health-related data as a matter of urgency. Dr Ron Zimmern, Chair, PHG Foundation said: Data and information will be critical to the development of precision healthcare. Sharing data as the norm and ensuring that the entire health system works together will require a radical reorganisation. Evolutionary change will not suffice. We must embrace a more radical agenda to make these changes happen. Source: http://www.phgfoundation.org/ It is thought that more than 28 million British people across the United Kingdom suffer with chronic pain, with 8 million of those reporting pain that is moderately to severely disabling. Despite this, many patients find themselves with pain that is not well-managed; many are prescribed high strength opioids, such as morphine, to combat the discomfort or reach out for over the counter painkillers, unaware that many are opioid-based. The Chronic Pain Policy Coalition (CPPC) have come together with John Cryer MP after the findings of a health survey in September confirmed that over 40% of British adults had consumed over-the-counter opioid painkillers for three consecutive days or longer, going against NICE guidelines. The study showed 64% of respondents have taken commonly available painkillers, but worryingly over half of them are unaware that these drugs contain potentially addictive opioids. This result is compounded by the fact that 41% did not know the signs or symptoms of opioid painkiller addiction. Mr Cryer said: I have recently met with the Chronic Pain Policy Coalition and discussed the vital need for improved education and awareness surrounding the risks of opioid painkiller addiction. I was concerned to learn that millions of people may not be following guidance on the use of over the counter painkillers and unaware that these drugs contain potentially addictive opioids. In light of this, the CPPC and TalkHealth, alongside John Cryer MPs campaign, are launching a new survey to investigate just how many people who suffer with chronic pain take pain management medications and are being reviewed by their doctor annually. Patients will be asked questions including what kinds of medication they are using, how their GP assists with managing their pain (if at all), and whether they are regularly checked. Mr Cryer added: There is a great deal of work to be done in order to ensure we as patients receive advice on our best treatment options, enabling us to return to a life no longer gripped by opioid addiction. I will be working with the CPPC to raise these serious concerns in Parliament and to work with local GPs, NICE, and Department of Health to improve patient education and awareness surrounding the risks of opioid addiction. With the aim to increase the number of people suffering from chronic pain who receive an annual check (both physical and mental), as well as a care plan to help combat the day-to-day problems they face. The Chronic Pain Policy Coalition brings together a wide range of professional bodies, patient organisations, parliamentarians and industry representatives, with one purpose - to work together to improve the lives of people living with pain and their families. A pioneering magnetic surgical device that eliminates exposure to radioactive materials and offers a less invasive, more flexible alternative for breast cancer surgery will be showcased in Texas next week (15th 21st October 2016)as part of a British Medtech mission. Co-invented by University of Houston physicist, Prof.AudriusBrazdeikis and British company,Endomag, the pioneering device is just one of a group of British healthcare technologies being highlighted in the State. Clinical leaders at the Baylor College of Medicine, Harris Country Hospital, Biomed SA and the US Military are amongstthe organisations that will welcome the British visitors, with the aim of developing long term relationships. It is hoped that the unique MedTech mission may result in cutting-edge British medical technologies being used byclinicians to improve patient care across Texas. The University of Houston physicist, Prof.Brazdeikis, said: The technology is a great example of Britain and Texas working together to improve patient care. The system is extremely innovative and can help surgeons locate breast cancer tumours before they can even be felt. The device received FDA approval in April this year and, with the support of this British mission, we expect it will be used by surgeons in Houston very soon. The visit has been arranged by the UKs medical technology industry body, the Association of British Healthcare Industries (ABHI) and the UKs Department for International Trade (DIT). The UK delegation is excited to know more about Texan world-class hospitalsand medical centres, whichcontain such strength and depth in the health and lifesciences sectors. They are keen to collaborate and foster new relationships. The visit is part of a longer term programme of engagement. Speaking about the visit,Baylor College of Medicines Stuart Corr, Director of Technology Development, said: Texas and the UK have a successful and collaborative history, sharing many core values and goals. We believe that by building strong relationships with the United Kingdom, whose expertise and reputation in health and life sciences is world class,together we canimprove patient outcomes, efficiency, and productivity across both of our health systems. These are essential elements of a successful, happy, and healthy society. From the ground-breaking invention of the hip replacement treatment and the use of ultrasound in modern medicine, to the development of the CT scanner and development of the first multi-articulated prosthetic hand, Britain has a well-deserved international reputation for turning innovative ideas into pioneering medical breakthroughs. Renowned for its creativity, research, and outstanding talent, Britain has come to Texas, to share, learn and find new partners. The delegation members include: Alesi Surgical Limited - have developed Ultravision that manages the surgical plume created by energy-based instruments during laparoscopic surgery. - have developed Ultravision that manages the surgical plume created by energy-based instruments during laparoscopic surgery. Endomag - pioneer in the use of magnetism for minimally invasive surgical guidance. - pioneer in the use of magnetism for minimally invasive surgical guidance. Forte Medical - delivers 98.5% accurate urine specimens. - delivers 98.5% accurate urine specimens. FutureNova Limited - specialises in Apple medical accessory design. - specialises in Apple medical accessory design. Griffiths and Nielson Ltd the UK market leader in DVT prevention. the UK market leader in DVT prevention. Lumeon Ltd a leadingdigital health company. a leadingdigital health company. Mediplus aninnovator in the areas of anaesthesia, urology, urodynamics, gynaecology and gastroenterology. aninnovator in the areas of anaesthesia, urology, urodynamics, gynaecology and gastroenterology. myrecovery - mobile application that improves patient experience and outcomes from elective orthopaedic surgery. - mobile application that improves patient experience and outcomes from elective orthopaedic surgery. OBS Medical Limited - develops predictive algorithms for identifying critical instabilities in acute settings. - develops predictive algorithms for identifying critical instabilities in acute settings. Owen Mumford Inc - global manufacturer with over 60 years expertise in the development of medical devices. - global manufacturer with over 60 years expertise in the development of medical devices. Timesco Healthcare Ltd a manufacturer of medical devices for anaesthesia, surgery, podiatry and primary care. a manufacturer of medical devices for anaesthesia, surgery, podiatry and primary care. The Association of British Healthcare Industries (ABHI) - the UKs medical technology industry body. - the UKs medical technology industry body. The British Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) - The FCO promotes the United Kingdom's interests overseas, supporting UK citizens and businesses around the globe. - The FCO promotes the United Kingdom's interests overseas, supporting UK citizens and businesses around the globe. Department for International Trade (DIT)-works with UK based businesses to ensure their success in international markets through exports. Source: http://www.abhi.org.uk/ An interview with Dr Rahul Kapur conducted by April Cashin-Garbutt, MA (Cantab) insights from industry Dr. Rahul Kapur Head of Medical Affairs, Novo Nordisk, UK and Ireland What are the main signs and symptoms of hypoglycemia (hypos)? Hypoglycemia, or hypos, are the result of blood glucose levels falling too low (less than 4mmol/l). The symptoms and severity of hypoglycemia can differ for each patient. The symptoms can range from headaches, dizziness, irritability, hunger to difficulty concentrating or blurred vision, and symptoms can escalate with the severity of hypoglycemia to disorientation, loss of consciousness and even, in the most extreme cases, death. Hypoglycemia can also happen at night (nocturnal hypos), these can be especially scary for patients as they may have symptoms such as intense nightmares, waking with cold sweats, or in very severe instances, not wake up at all. Why are the symptoms of a hypo often misinterpreted? For people with diabetes, some of the symptoms in relation to mild hypoglycemia, such as hunger, sweating, irritability or headaches for example, can often be misinterpreted as they can often manifest for many other reasons. There have been some more severe cases, whereby people with diabetes have become very disoriented, and have been mistaken by people for being drunk and stumbling in the street. It is important that people with diabetes regularly check their blood sugar levels to ensure that any time that they feel the symptoms, they can treat accordingly if it is an episode of hypoglycemia. This is one of the reasons behind the development of Hypo Hub; so that people with diabetes and those around them can better interpret the symptoms as being as a result of hypoglycemia and discuss this with their doctor or nurse. What can people with diabetes do to increase their ability to recognize hypos and better manage them? It is essential for patients to regularly measure their blood glucose, no matter what diabetes treatment they are on, but especially with insulin treatment where hypoglycemia is a common complication. Its also important to ensure you have quick access to treatment should you experience a hypo, such as a sugary drink or some other fast acting carbohydrate. If patients are experiencing hypoglycemia, it is also important to have a conversation with your doctor or nurse on your next visit. As part of Hypo Hub, we have developed a hypo journal for patients to download in order to do this as we believe its vital for patients and healthcare professionals to talk about hypos in every consultation. How can talking to a doctor or nurse about hypos help? Genetics & Genomics eBook Compilation of the top interviews, articles, and news in the last year. Download a copy today There has been a lot of research done that shows that hypos are still going unreported by patients. It is very important for both sides to discuss hypoglycemia at every appointment in order for patients to better recognize hypoglycemia, but also for the healthcare professional team to be able to advise and help the patient to better manage their hypos through lifestyle and treatment options. By using the hypo journal from the Novo Nordisk Hypo Hub, it provides a basis for that conversation with a journal that will allow patients to track hypos as they happen, and be able to remember them, and the circumstances around them in their appointment. What long term impact can hypos have? One of the more important complications is hypoglycemia (hypo) unawareness, which is when patients have repeated recurrent hypoglycemia and over time they stop experiencing the symptoms that inform them that they are having a hypo. This is very serious as patients could be experiencing dangerously low blood sugar which could lead to loss of consciousness or worse and they would not be aware this was happening. There has also been a lot of research looking at long term effects of hypoglycemia that look at the neurological and cardiovascular complications for patients. How common are hypos? Hypoglycemia is a very common complication of diabetes, but despite numerous pieces of research, patients do not always discuss their hypos with their healthcare professional team making it very difficult to quantify the frequency of hypos. Can you please give an overview of Hypo Hub? What resources does this provide? Hypo Hub is an online resource developed to provide practical information and guidance for people living with diabetes, and those around them, to better understand the often misunderstood signs and long term impact of hypoglycemia. Hosted on Novonordisk.co.uk, Hypo Hub resources include a Hypo Journal (a diary to track and monitor hypos) as well as tips on how to recognize and treat a hypo. Whats your vision for Hypo Hub? Our vision is that this becomes a valuable resource where people with diabetes can visit to get the information and resources they need in order to get a better handle on hypoglycemia, whether they have experienced one episode, or recurrent episodes. We want this site to be a tool to enable them to better manage their condition, by helping patients to monitor all episodes and to get patients and healthcare professionals to effectively discuss hypoglycemia in every appointment. What do you think the future holds for people with diabetes? This is a very interesting question to which there is no simple answer. There is a lot of focus on diabetes as we know this is a growing condition, with more and more people being diagnosed, partly because people are getting access to better healthcare across the world, but also because our lifestyles are changing. There is a lot of research constantly happening into better therapies, better ways of detecting and measuring blood glucose, better algorithms and ways of treating diabetes to improve the lives of patients. At Novo Nordisk, we put the patient at the center of everything we do and, we will continue driving change to defeat diabetes. Where can readers find more information? You can find more information at: and also through patient sites such as: Diabetes UK About Rahul Kapur Dr Rahul Kapur currently works as Head of Medical Affairs, for Novo Nordisk UK and Ireland, joining in 2015. Prior to this, he held other medical roles for Novo Nordisk, based in Copenhagen, more recently as Senior Global Medical Advisor at Novo Nordisk A/S, following his role as a Research Scientist for Novo Nordisk in the department of stem cell biology at the Hagedorn Research Institute. Dr Kapur has a specific research interest in hypoglycemia, stem cell biology and beta cell regeneration, for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. He has been the recipient of several awards and scholarships, including an Industrial PhD fellowship from the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation and has been lead or contributing author to articles on the genetics of type 2 diabetes and beta cell regeneration as well as hypoglycemia clinical research in diabetes. Dr Kapur is a licensed Medical Doctor from the St Johns Medical College in India. Trauma Innovation 2016 saw attendance figures nearly double as clinicians gathered to discuss future trauma care capabilities Trauma Innovation welcomed a record number of military and civil healthcare professionals to Birmingham from 27 28 September. Over 700 delegates from the UK and overseas gathered to discuss the latest advances in combat casualty care and how civilian medical services can learn from the military on vital aspects of trauma care delivery. Run in partnership with the Ministry of Defence department, Defence Medical Services, and Orthopaedic Research UK, the 2016 event brought the future of patient care to the fore, ensuring military and civil healthcare professionals are prepared for future incidents. The conference focused on understanding the complex nature of blast and gunshot injuries and how current research into these types of injuries is enabling clinicians to manage wounds more effectively and reduce the overall long term impact on victims lives. Conference delegates, including 95 VIPs from leading medical organisations in 14 countries, heard from military clinicians on topics such as vehicle blast mitigation strategies, virtual and augmented reality for simulated trauma care training and the development of body-worn sensors to provide real-time information on a soldiers condition. Delegates were also able to see some of the latest innovations in trauma care capability. 32 exhibitors, an increase of 39% on the previous event, showcased high-tech medical kit, including a sim-dummy with life-like organs used for surgical training, currently being developed by Nottingham Trent University. Mobile ultrasound imaging via a smart device, developed by Philips, also attracted a lot of attention from visitors. The events unprecedented attendance underpins a strong appetite within the healthcare sector to improve trauma care delivery, not only through developing capability, but through collaboration, education and integrating the military and civil medical communities where commonalities enable lessons to be learnt from each other. Commenting on the event Colonel KingOri, Lead Consultant Neuro Surgeon, Kenya Defence Force (KDF), said: Its an excellent event with very knowledgeable speakers. The presentations were clear and the exhibition highlighted a lot of great innovation. It was a fantastic event for us to attend and get an idea about the types of innovations we can take back to the KDF. Professor Kay Fawcett OBE, Royal College of Nursing, added: Events such as Trauma Innovation are invaluable as the integration of military and civilian trauma care is so important. Civilian care can learn from and apply the same principals as the military with both sides learning from one another. Surgeon Captain Sarah Stapley, Defence Professor of Trauma and Orthopaedics, DMS, who produced this years conference programme, said: The Defence Medical Services is thrilled with the recent success of the Trauma Innovation 2016 conference held in conjunction with Orthopaedic Research UK and Clarion Events. The conference maintained the momentum towards understanding and innovation in trauma care across all specialties, allowing cross-specialty, national and international networking, so that as a collective we may deliver improved outcomes for our Service personnel, carers and civilian population in the future. A spokesperson from Orthofix, which provides reconstructive and regenerative orthopedic and spine solutions and exhibited at the event, commented: Trauma Innovation 2016 was an excellent event that enabled us to have a number of valuable conversations with potential new customers. Were a leader in the NHS, but the military is a growth area for us. By exhibiting we have been given an excellent opportunity to meet key influencers in military healthcare, so from that perspective it was superb. Trauma Innovation will next take place at DSEI 2017, 11-15 September 2017 at ExCeL London, UK. The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) is proud to announce that its annual congress will be held in Paris at the end of August 2019. The ESC Congress is the world's premier cardiovascular congress, attracting more than 30,000 healthcare professionals from more than 140 countries during a five-day scientific programme. "We are delighted to be returning to Paris, a destination which contributed to one of the greatest successes of the ESC," said Chief Executive Officer of the ESC, Isabel Bardinet. "The ESC Congress 2011 that was held in 'The City of Light' will be remembered as one of the most productive and well attended ESC events. We hope that this future edition will encounter even greater success in this very attractive capital." Bernard Jomier, Deputy Mayor of Paris for Health, Disability and relations with the APHP, welcomed this good news for Paris: "After the success of the 2011 edition, Paris is very honoured to once again host the annual congress of the ESC. It is an excellent opportunity to increase the efforts undertaken by the City of Paris for the prevention of cardiovascular disease risks." This enthusiasm is also shared by Jean-Francois Martins, Deputy Mayor for Sport and Tourism, who added: "Paris will assure the best conditions to make this major event a success. Once again, Paris proves its capacity to host such world-class events and is going to intensify its work to attract more congresses in the years to come." Pierre Schapira, Chairman of the Paris Convention and Visitors Bureau, praises: "the daily work carried out by the Convention Bureau teams to increase the attractiveness of the destination, offering help and advice to planners of major events in the capital; work which has been crowned today with this good news." Michel Dessolain, CEO of Viparis, is delighted to host the ESC Congress at Paris Convention Centre: "We are proud to contribute to the international appeal of Paris. Paris Convention Centre will provide an optimal setting for major events such as this one. This represents a real vote of confidence for the future Convention Centre of the Parc des Expositions de la Porte de Versailles, which will be the biggest in Europe." A federal judge in San Francisco said he was "strongly inclined" to approve a record-setting $10.033 billion proposed buyback and compensation offer from Volkswagen AG for 475,000 owners of polluting 2.0-liter diesel vehicles. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer said he will issue a final decision in the matter, stemming from Volkswagen's use of illegal software to defeat U.S. emissions testing, by Oct. 25. Owners, lawyers and others appeared before Breyer during a hearing raising arguments about why they think Volkswagen has failed to offer enough money for buybacks or refunding for other out-of-pocket costs like extended warranties, maintenance and government licensing fees. Breyer said he would consider the objections before deciding whether to recommend any changes, but added that it was "imperative" to act quickly. VW has agreed to spend up to $16.7 billion to address its so-called U.S. "Dieselgate" costs. Elizabeth Cabraser, lead counsel for the owners, said that while the buyback settlement was not perfect, it represents the best efforts of the government, Volkswagen, court and plaintiffs to reach a settlement that is "fair, reasonable and adequate." Volkswagen lawyer Robert Giuffra defended the settlement, saying the goal was a deal that was "efficient and made sense." Breyer also granted preliminary approval during the three-hour hearing to a $1.21 billion settlement with VW's U.S. brand dealers. Jeannine Ginivan, a VW spokeswoman, said it welcomed Breyer's "positive comments" at the hearing. "We thank our customers for their continued patience as the approval process moves forward," she said. The German automaker has hired 900 people to handle the buybacks and will have a dedicated person in each dealership to oversee the repurchases that could begin next month if the judge approves the settlement. Volkswagen is also offering $5,100 to $10,000 in compensation in addition to the repurchase price. Volkswagen may also offer 2.0-liter vehicle fixes if regulators approve. Under a timetable announced this summer, regulators could approve a fix for some 2015 VW diesel vehicles as early as next month but talks are still ongoing. About 3,200 of the owners have opted out of the settlement, while nearly 340,000 have registered to take part. Volkswagen still faces billions of dollars in potential fines from the U.S. Justice Department due to a criminal probe into VW's cheating scandal. VW and U.S. regulators are in separate intense discussions over whether the automaker should agree to buy back 85,000 larger 3.0-liter Porsche, Audi and VW vehicles that also exceeded U.S. emission standards, and whether it should offer additional compensation to those owners. Breyer set a Nov. 3 hearing on the issue. In addition to other settlement costs, VW will pay more than $600 million to 44 U.S. states, spend $2 billion on zero-emission vehicle promotion and infrastructure, and another $2.7 billion to offset diesel pollution. Breyer must still approve those settlements. VW in September 2015 admitted using a sophisticated secret software in its cars to cheat exhaust emissions tests, with millions of vehicles worldwide affected. The cheating allowed VW's U.S. vehicles sold since 2009 to emit up to 40 times legally allowable pollution levels. Hyderabad: Former billiards champion Michael Ferreira and three others were taken into custody by the Hyderabad police in connection with the multi-crore rupee QNET scam and brought to Hyderabad from Mumbai. The Qnet scam is a Rs 400-crore alleged fraud by the multi-level-marketing company. An FIR was registered against the three on Monday based on a complaint by eight people who had lodged complaints with the Central Crime Station (CCS) in 2016 against the owners of Hong Kong based QNet, the multilevel marketing company. The complainants accused the four of duping them of several lakhs through various fraudulent investment schemes. A Hyderabad Police team had last week submitted an application seeking their custody in connection with the case registered by them. A Mumbai court then granted transit remand and the Hyderabad Police took them into custody. "The four directors of the company, including Michael Ferreira, have been brought to Hyderabad from Mumbai on warrant," a senior police official attached to Central Crime Station (CCS), a wing of Hyderabad Police, said on Tuesday. They have been brought here as part of further investigation and will be interrogated, he said. The Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) had taken them into custody on September 30 this year in connection with the QNet case. The EOW has so far arrested 19 persons in the case. QNet and its franchisee firms allegedly sold products such as magnetic disks with 'healing' properties, herbal medicines and holiday schemes. The company is accused of using the banned 'binary pyramid' model in its marketing schemes, apart from duping the investors. The FIR was registered in Mumbai in August 2013 under the Prize, Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978 and Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors Act. Special public prosecutor Pradeep Gharat had earlier told the court in Mumbai that Ferreira held 80 per cent shares in a franchisee of Hong Kong-based QNet. QNet ran a 'Ponzi scheme', seeking investments between Rs 30,000 to Rs 7.5 lakh, the prosecutor had said, adding the investors never got the high returns they were promised. The money earned by QNet was "laundered" and diverted out of the country, Gharat had told the court, adding that Ferreira's interrogation was necessary to find its "destination." (With PTI inputs) Bhubaneswar: Two days after the massive blaze at Institute of Medical Sciences and SUM Hospitals in Bhubaneswar that claimed at least 20 lives and left many injured, CNN News 18 has accessed the RTI copy that exposes the lax attitude of private hospitals across Bhubaneswar over issues of fire safety. Out of the 568 fully operational private hospitals and nursing homes in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Puri, only three corporate hospitals have statutory fire safety certificates, a note from the Director, Medical Education and Training (DMET), Odisha government read. The name of SUM hospital was among the 99 percent hospitals that did not have fire safety certificate, according to the RTI copy that exposed the safety flaws of the hospitals across the state. The FIR by the fire department revealed how some hospitals blatantly violated all possible safety norms, that form the prerequisite for the efficient functioning of any hospital. SUM Hospital in Bhubaneswar flouted safety norms on multiple levels thereby putting to risk the lives of all patients in the hospital. The hospital neither had a 25 thousand liter water tank nor a functional sprinkler system that could have been used to mitigate the disaster. Lack of fire detection system, faulty alarm and no fire escape staircase added to the violation of norms. Four officials, including the Superintendent, of a private hospital were arrested and four employees suspended on Tuesday, a day after the fire mishap. The arrests were made shortly after Odisha government filed two FIRs alleging negligence in conduct and safety against Sum Hospital. Sources also told CNN-News18 on Tuesday that the hospital owner Manoj Nayak could be arrested soon. Suspected to have started from a short circuit in the dialysis ward, fire spread quickly through the second floor of the SUM Medical College Hospital in Bhubaneswar, trapping people inside. Patna: The Patna High Court on Wednesday granted bail to Rocky Yadav, the son of a suspended JD(U) MLC, in a case of killing a youth in Gaya over road rage. Chief Justice Iqbal A Ansari granted bail to Rocky Yadav in the case in which Aditya Sachdeva, son of a Gaya businessman, was shot dead in May this year. Rocky Yadav is son of suspended JD-U MLC Manorma Devi and a history-sheeter Bindi Yadav. Rocky's lawyer YV Giri argued that there is no direct evidence of his client's involvement in the incident. Opposing the bail plea, government advocate Dilip Kumar Sinha told the court that Rocky Yadav was the main accused in the case. After hearing arguments the court granted bail to Rocky Yadav. Rocky is accused of shooting class XI student Aditya Sachdeva on May 7 following an altercation over overtaking. His parents, who were accused of sheltering him, were recently enlarged on bail. New York: Indian-American hotelier Vikram Chatwal has been charged with criminal mischief for allegedly trying to light two dogs on fire. Chatwal, 44 turned himself in to the police on Tuesday early morning at 7. He has been charged with criminal mischief, torture and injure animal, reckless endangerment and arson, a New York Police Department official told PTI. According to a report in local news website patch.com, the charges stem from an October 7 incident in which Chatwal allegedly got into an argument with a woman walking the dogs outside Chatwals home. Chatwal allegedly pulled out a lighter and aerosol can and used them to burn the two dogs, the report said. It cited the police to say that the dogs suffered minor burns in the incident. Chatwal is expected to make a court appearance in the case later on Tuesday. Bengaluru: Karnataka government on Wednesday said it would stick to the Supreme Court direction to the state to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu till further orders. "We will stick to the Supreme Court order. I want to say no more than that," Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister T B Jayachandra told reporters on the sidelines of a media briefing on cabinet meeting. The Supreme Court had on Tuesday retained its direction to Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs till further orders and asked the two states to ensure peace and harmony, saying citizens should not become law unto themselves. A three-judge bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra, which commenced the crucial hearing on various issues arising out of the dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over sharing of Cauvery waters, had said it first intended to adjudicate the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by both the states and Kerala against the Cauvery water dispute tribunal's 2013 award. "The interim order dated October 4 directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu will continue till further orders," the bench also comprising Justices Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar had said. A court-appointed Supervisory Committee has submitted its report on the ground situation in the basin region in both the states, which have locked horns over water release in recent months, escalating tension over the more than century-old dispute. The bench had also said yesterday it would first go into the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry against the award of tribunal and then hear the arguments on the report filed by the committee. : A day after Mumbai Police assured a smooth release of film-maker Karan Johar's Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (ADHM) on October 28 and Joha's own offer to not work with Pakistani artistes in the future, the Raj Thackeray led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) on Wednesday issued a fresh threat to multiplexes against the screening of the film.Amay Khopkar spokesperson for the party told CNN-News18 that they will beat up anyone who tries to stop them from protesting against the film or halt its screening.MNS leader Shalini Thackeray too had told CNN News18 that the makers of the film will know what the MNS can do in case the film releases in Maharashtra.Also read: Mumbai Police Assures Smooth Release of Ae Dil Hai Mushkil on October 28 On Tuesday filmmaker Director of the film Karan Johar had issued a statement through a video and vowed to avoid working with Pakistani actors till the current atmposphere in the nation improved."I have always felt that the best way to express your patriotism is through love. And that's what I have always tried to portray through my work and my cinema. When I shot my film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil from September to December last year, the climate was completely different. The circumstances were completely different. There were efforts made by our government for the peaceful relationship with the neighbouring country. And I respected those endeavours, those efforts then. I also respect the sentiment today. I understand the sentiment because I feel the same," Johar had said in the video."Going forward, I would like to say that of course, I will not engage with talent from the neighbouring country, given the circumstance. But with that same energy, I beseech you to know one thing- that over 300 people in my Indian crew have put their blood, sweat and tears into making my film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. I don't think it's fair to them to face any kind of turbulence on account of other fellow Indians," Johar added.Also read: Karan Johar Speaks Up On Ae Dil Hai Mushkil Row, Says Country Comes First Meanwhile Fox Star Studios - the distributors of Ae Dil Hai Mushkil - has also come out in support of Karan Johar."We unequivocally condemn the terror attacks on India and support the government of India in all its effort to bring safety and peace for Indians. Karan Johar is a proud, emotional and patriotic Indian, like all of us and his nationalism cannot be questioned," Fox Star studios said.Film-maker Mukesh Bhatt too had on Tuesday urged the MNS not to spoil Diwali for the many technicians who worked behind the scenes to make the film a reality.Bhatt had even met the Mumbai Police Commissioner and got an assurance for a smooth release of the film.In a press meet in the evening, Bhatt told the media that Pakistani actor Fawad Khan has just a four-minute appearance in Karan Johar's Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (ADHM) and requested the MNS to support the movie and protect a product made by Indians."This film has 150 technicians, only one Pakistani actor who has a four-minute scene. We have put in our money. It is a request to MNS, an appeal on the behalf of the whole film industry that we, all brothers, should come together and protect the investment made by Indians. Why should we spoil Diwali?" he told reporters here.The filmmaker, who is the President of Film and Television Producers Guild of India (Guild), addedpeople should understand Johar's situation as well.The Raj Thackeray-led MNS on Tuesday said it would intensify its opposition to Johar's film as it features a Pakistani actor and issued a veiled threat of vandalism to the multiplexes if they screened it."MNS can say whatever it wants to say. We are extending a hand of friendship, we have to accept peace. The filmmaker is helpless, he is caught. We should understand his pain," Bhatt said.Guild has said films like Ae Dil Hai Mushkil and Raees, featuring Pakistani artistes, should not be targeted as doing so will cause heavy losses to their producers. Bhatt added that the police are with them and the film will release worldwide on October 28."We are just requesting the theatre owners. We can't reverse the film ('Ae Dil...') which has been made. It should be allowed to release. In the future, we will obey the Government's decision."If there is some damage to the property by MNS, then there is property insurance. I am confident that 95 per cent screens will support us," he said.Cinema owners have announced they won't allow the screening of the movies with Pakistani artistes. Asked about his take on filmmaker Anurag Kashyap's tweet about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Lahore visitlast year,Bhatt said, "We can't bother the PM with these things. He has bigger issues to deal with. We should tackle this within us."The 64-year-old filmmaker maintained that the film industry should also not be targeted. "Don't penalise us for no fault of ours. Media is a responsible factor today. Please spread peace and harmony. If we will fight it will be a win for terrorists," he said.(With inputs from PTI) Chennai: For the eighth consecutive day, there has been no update on the health condition of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalaltihaa, admitted to Apollo Hospital in Chennai last month. Ever since Jayalalithaa was admitted to Apollo Hospitals on September 22, the hospital has been issuing a medical bulletin about her condition at intervals. The last time it issued a health bulletin was on October 10 in which it said that Jayalalithaa is being constantly monitored by intensivists and other consultants. On October 8, the hospital said: "The respiratory support is closely watched and adjusted. Lungs decongestion treatment is being continued. All other comprehensive measures, including nutrition, supportive therapy and passive physiotherapy, are under way." The 68-year-old Jayalalithaa was admitted to the hospital for fever and dehydration. The doctors later said she needed a longer stay at the hospital as she was suffering from infection and put her on respiratory support. However, several rumours about her health flew thick and fast during the initial days of her hospitalisation. Following that, Apollo Hospitals started issuing the medical bulletins at regular intervals. The state police started cracking down on the rumour mongers. Allahabad: A court has issued notice to retired Supreme Court judge Justice Markandey Katju on a petition accusing him of having made "objectionable" remarks with regard to consumption of beef in his blog posts. Additional Sessions Judge Shuchi Srivastava passed the order on the review petition of advocate Rakesh Nath Pandey, who alleged that Justice Katju has hurt the sentiments of a major section of the society by attacking the Hindu belief that the cow was sacred and seeking repeal of the laws whereby slaughtering cow has been banned in many states. The ADJ has asked Justice Katju to file his reply by the next date of hearing on November 18. The petition was filed by Pandey challenging an order of the Chief Judicial Magistrate whereby his prayer for directing the police to lodge an FIR against Justice Katju was turned down. Justice Katju, who is also a former Chairman of the Press Council of India, has made a series of controversial statements on the communally sensitive issue of cow slaughter and beef ever since possession and sale of beef were made punishable with fine and five years in jail in Maharashtra in January last year. In the wake of the Dadri lynching case of September last year wherein a 50-year-old man was beaten to death near Noida by a mob suspecting him of having slaughtered a cow and consumed its meat, Justice Katju came up with an outpouring of a number of scathing remarks. Recently, in a Facebook post, Justice Katju wrote that he had a "danda" (stick) with which he wished to hit those who made a fuss over the issue of cow slaughter and beef. Srinagar: Separatists called protest shutdown paralysed life for 103rd consecutive day in Kashmir Valley, however, authorities on Wednesday did not impose any curfew or restrictions anywhere. "No curfew or restrictions have been imposed anywhere today (Wednesday)," a senior police official said here. "Adequate deployment of security forces have been made to maintain law and order across the valley." Main markets, public transport and other businesses remain closed in the valley for 103rd consecutive day. The unprecedented 103-day-long closure of educational institutions has hit hard the students who have not been able to attend classes in schools, colleges and universities in the last more than three months. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and her cabinet colleague and Education Minister Naeem Akhtar have said that exams for class 10th and 12th will be held in November. The Chief Minister, however, said the state board of school education has been asked to work out "relaxation" for students while setting question papers. She has asked the board to ensure the examinees are asked to reply questions pertaining only to that part of the syllabus which has been taught in the schools till the end of June this year. Students have been protesting against holding of exams in November and want them to be postponed till March next year. There is a growing feeling in the valley that both the government as well as the separatists must stop doing politics in the name of education and all efforts should be made to secure the future of the valley's children. At least 91 people, majority of them youths, have been killed and over 12,000 injured in the ongoing unrest in Kashmir since July 9, a day after the killing of top militant Burhan Wani in a clash with security forces. Karva Chauth is a Hindu festival traditionally celebrated by married women in India. On this day, married women and girls fast for the day - from sunrise to moonrise - and pray for the longevity and wellness of their husbands or fiances. Women dress in bright ethnic wear and apply beautiful intricate henna designs on their hands.From wives waiting for the moon to rise to husbands feeding them the first bites of food; Bollywood has created a host of sequences and songs related to this festival.On this Karva Chauth, we bring 5 best scenes from Bollywood that capture the essence of this holy tradition perfectly.: One that inspired husbands to fast for their better halves: One that popularised the concept of feet-touching and also made the pre-wedding fasting fashionable: One that proved distance doesn't matter and depicted that husband-wife's love is eternalOne that made fasting fashionableOne that gave words to the agony of waiting for the moon to rise Bollywood star Salman Khan is facing fresh legal trouble as the Rajasthan Government has challenged the actor's acquittal in the 1998 Chinkara poaching case in the Supreme Court.Earlier The Rajasthan High Court on July 25 had acquitted Salman, who was accused of killing two chinkaras in separate incidents. But the High Court had observed that the statement of a key witness could not be considered as he had "disappeared" and the defence could not cross-examine him. Moreover the High Court also said that the pellets recovered from the chinkaras were not fired from Salman's gun.The actor was accused of killing endangered chinkara near Jodhpur back in 1998. In 2006, Salman was sentenced to one year in jail for hunting Chinkaras but the Rajasthan High Court had issued a stay order on the actor's sentence after appeal. In 2016, the actor was acquitted after witnesses disappeared pre-cross-examination. The High Court had recovered pellets from Chinkara that did not belong to Salman's gun. Bhubaneswar: Demanding a judicial probe into the fire tragedy which claimed 20 lives last night, opposition Congress and BJP on Wednesday demanded the resignation of Odisha Health Minister Atanu S Nayak, while CPI leader D Raja sought a high-level probe into the incident. The fire tragedy, in the backdrop of the death of over 50 children due to Japanese Encephalitis in Malkangiri district, has come as a major ammunition for the opposition which demanded Nayak's resignation. The Congress also demanded a compensation of Rs 25 lakh and a job to the kin of each of the deceased. Odisha Congress chief Prasad Harichandan said, "The state government has not learnt anything from the 2011 AMRI hospital (Kolkata) fire accident in which, at least 89 people were killed. "Apart from the hospital authorities, I will say that both the chief minister and the health minister are responsible for the tragedy. The state government must declare Rs 25 lakh as compensation and a job to the kin of each of the deceased." Raising questions over the no-objection certificate issued to Sum Hospital, Harichandan alleged that the fire tragedy was an outcome of "complete negligence" on part of the state government. "A judicial probe must be ordered into the incident and the culprits must be booked," he said. CPI national secretary D Raja, who visited several health institutions where the patients evacuated from Sum Hospital were undergoing treatment, said, "A neutral probe is required to find out the lapses in the fire safety management at the hospital. Rs 5 lakh ex-gratia is not adequate. Our party has demanded that the amount should be increased to Rs 20 lakh. "When such big corporate hospitals are built, there must be adequate medical infrastructure, including fire safety measures, and these must be monitored regularly. This is a case of complete negligence. All the lapses must be thoroughly analysed. 2/2 Hope FS Jaishankar won't get axed like Sujatha Singh for speaking the truth qua valour of Armed Forces & exposing BJP's deception. Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) October 19, 2016 Parrikar-'We made army realize its prowess'. Parrikar-'RSS teaching behind Surgical strikes'. Next-Godse was a freedom fighter? Randeep S Surjewala (@rssurjewala) October 18, 2016 The proceedings of the parliamentary panel on external affairs on Tuesday that discussed Indias surgical strikes in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir may remain a secret, but its now an open war between the Opposition and the government with the Congress expressing fear that Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar could get sacked for speaking the truth to the panel.At the core of the war-of-words is Jaishankars reported statement to the panel on a question whether India had carried out such strikes before. If you ask me whether there were strikes earlier across the LoC, I would say yes. But whether there were strikes across LoC which destroyed launch pads earlier I would say no, CNN-News18 had reported the foreign secretary as saying.Party sources told News18 that the foreign secretarys statements would be raised by Opposition in Parliament when it convenes on November 16.Curiously, even as Congress party seized the opportunity saying it was a vindication of the stand that India had carried out surgical strikes against Pakistan during the UPA dispensation, panel chairman and party leader Shashi Tharoor maintained silence.Among the more vocal was former home minister P Chidambaram. I agree with the Foreign Secretary and I thank him for setting the record straight, he told News18.In a series of early morning tweets, party spokesperson Randeep Surjewala sought to add fuel to the fire. The (Narendra) Modi government's rhetoric bravado and machismo exposed by FSAmit Shah and (Manohar) Parikkars lies exposedHope foreign secretary Jaishankar wont get axed like Sujatha Singh for speaking the truth, he tweeted.The Congress has been criticising the BJP and the Modi government for making the surgical strikes an election issue ahead of polls in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Congress in its defence has claimed that it too had done strikes, but as a policy preferred not to take political ownership or make it public.Over the past few days, the BJP had come under heavy criticism as Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar gave credit first to the Army, then the PM and then to the RSS for the surgical strikes.Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhis khoon ki dalaali statement in this context had sensationalised the issue. Faced with criticism over Rahuls comments, the Congress had seemed to be on backfoot but the party regained some of its mojo with the row over the parliamentary panel briefing.Sources told News18 that the Congress now hopes to corner the government by confronting it on what it calls "false claims" when Parliament session begins on October 16.Congress is already in touch with like minded parties such as the JD-U and the Left to issue a notice to ask government to come clean on the surgical strikes. The Opposition will demand of the government that it has to give a list of previous strikes and also why it was allowing its ministers to politicise the issue by giving credit to the PM and the RSS instead of the Army.Clearly, the political strikes are not yet over. Back in the year 2000, Akhilesh, in his mid-20s, was gearing up to test the political waters as a Samajwadi Party candidate in the Lok Sabha bypoll to the Kannauj seat. His father, party president Mulayam Singh, was accused of nepotism and questions were raised on Akhilesh's political acumen and understanding of socialism.Socialist icon Janeshwar Mishra, often known as 'Chote Lohiya', then stepped forward to bail out Akhilesh and silence his critics. Janeshwar had then said it was not politics of nepotism but the nepotism of struggle.For him, the Samajwadi Party was about the politics of struggle, and Akhilesh was there not to reap the fortunes but to carry forward the political struggle. How right Janeshwar was in his political understanding about Samajwadi Party and Mulayam Singh might be debatable. But for Akhilesh, from then on there would be no better political guide than the much respected socialist leader not just in Parliament, but also on the history of socialism.Senior journalist and socialist thinker Ambrish Kumar says, "Akhilesh's immense respect for the late leader had often been evident in his speeches and gestures. Setting up a park often described as the biggest in Asia in the name of Mishra is just one of his gestures of respect."It could be irony or coincidence that now, at a time the young chief minister is involved in a challenging leadership struggle against his own father and uncle, his team is operating out of the Janeshwar Mishra trust. In its office at the sprawling 7 Bandariya Bagh, a stone's throw from the SP office on Vikramaditya Marg, sit key members of team Akhilesh, some of whom had been unceremoniously shown the door by the party.The office of the Trust was inaugurated by Akhilesh on October 9, just days after his aides like MLC Sunil Sajan, Anand Bhadauri and Sanjay Lathar were sacked and barred from entering the party office premises. The absence of most of the senior party leaders, including Mulayam and Shivpal, at the inauguration had clearly exposed the rift. No doubt then that the Janeshwar Mishra Trust is almost a de facto address for Akhilesh's party.And it's not just the young brigade which works out of this new centre of power. Old guards and Mulayam loyalists, like Rajendra Chowdhry, who is a minister, and SRS Yadav, who served as office secretary for the party for over two decades have now shifted to the new address. Both were considered close to Akhilesh and hence had to face Shivpal's anger. While Rajendra was removed as chief spokesperson, SRS was sacked from the post of party office secretary.It was here at the Trust office, where a meeting of rebel youth leaders was held on Tuesday that an open call of support for Akhilesh and a boycott of the party's 25th anniversary programme was given.A visitor to Bandariya Bagh office now will definitely see many such faces which till recently were visible at 4, Vikramaditya Marg Party office. But the same faces are now busy playing a different political role. As a prominent youth face of team Akhilesh quotes Dr Lohiya: "Zinda qaume paanch saal intezar nahin karti (living people don't wait for five years). The problems of Samsung Electronics are far from over as disgruntled customers plan to file class action lawsuits in South Korea and the US over the company's exploding Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, media reports said on Wednesday. While three US customers from three different states -- Nevada, Pennsylvania and California -- have already complained about the fire-prone devices, 38 owners of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone in South Korea plan to file a class action lawsuit against Samsung for alleged inconvenience experienced after the discontinuation of the device. Each person in the South Korean suit, which is scheduled to be filed with the Seoul Central District Court next Monday, is seeking 300,000 won ($267) in damages, Harvest Law Office said on Wednesday. The proposed suit alleges that owners of the Note 7 were forced to visit stores several times for battery checks or to get replacements, Yonhap news agency reported. The complaint also states that the consumers experienced anxiety over safety while using the Note 7. Koh Young-il, an attorney at the law firm, said he expects the firm to win the suit, given precedents for faulty products. Last week, Samsung permanently halted sales and production of the fire-prone Note 7, about two months after the device's launch. The suit filed on Friday in the US District Court in Newark, New Jersey, and made public on Tuesday, accuses Samsung Electronics America of fraud and breach of warranty and good faith, NBC News reported. The suit -- whose class action status must still be approved by a judge before it can proceed -- seeks unspecified damages over what it alleges was Samsung's mistreatment of its customers because they had to keep paying on their contracts during the weeks after Samsung recalled the phones but before replacements were made widely available. The South Korean conglomerate began selling the phone on August 19 this year, but in September announced an unprecedented withdrawal following reports of more than thirty cases of combustion by terminals in multiple countries. In the recall affecting about 2.5 million phones, the company proceeded in mid-September to deliver replacement phones, but the new batch continued to suffer from battery overheating, ultimately resulting in the definitive withdrawal of the product. The South Korean tech giant last week estimated that it will lose $3 billion in operating profits over the next six months due to the withdrawal of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. This month marks 10 years since the small, cancerous lump in Kathi Morgans right breast was removed. She considers herself one of the lucky ones her cancer was found early, treated immediately and shes been free from the disease since. Cancers tendrils had wrapped around Morgans family for generations. Both of Morgans grandmothers were diagnosed with breast cancer in their 50s, when an awareness of, and effective treatments for, the disease were not as prevalent as today. Then there was her mother, diagnosed with carcinoid cancer in 2002, and the microscopic tumors eventually made their way into her back. Then in 2004, Morgans mother was diagnosed with massive breast cancer. Then came her older sisters diagnosis of breast cancer at age 50. She said, You girls, are you getting checked? I knew I had but my oldest sister hadnt, Morgan said. She went because of my mom. In March 2006, Morgans mother died, and her father died of cancer five years later. Just a few months after her mothers death, as her family gathered for Fathers Day, Morgan noticed a lump in her right breast. Her annual exam was set for August, so she wasnt concerned. Due to her family history, Morgan received her mammograms at the Breast Imaging Center at Virginia Baptist Hospital. As she sat down to do paperwork that August day, she wrote she had found a small lump. After a mammogram and an ultrasound, the doctor asked Morgan to point out the lump as it wasnt reflected in the scans. I almost felt a little foolish, but I said OK, this is fine because I have a hair appointment, Morgan said. The doctor repeated the ultrasound and told Morgan she found the lump and believed it to be malignant. I felt like at that moment in time the ground opened up beneath me, she said. Suddenly, there were many more technicians in the room. Someone asked her if she wanted to call a family member as they set up a needle biopsy. She asked them to cancel her hair appointment. She tried to reach her husband, but he was in a meeting. The following day, Kathi Morgan learned it was cancer, and it became a whirlwind. I was inundated with appointments. I remember thinking thats too many appointments, too fast. She turned 50 that year the second sister of four with breast cancer. Her husband, Bob Morgan, said one of the hardest parts for his wife was telling their two daughters, who were in their 20s at the time. When you are talking about that, in the back of your head is the concept of mortality, he said, adding his wife wanted to see life milestones for their daughters and grandchildren. Bob Morgan talked about the conversation, both spoken and unspoken, discussing what to do and how to face this. And in our own heads, we were having the what if conversations: What if I lose my best friend, the love of my life? What if this doesnt work? An MRI showed the cancer was confined to one breast, and a blood test showed Morgan had started menopause. So, of course, Im in menopause, she said. It was like a double whammy, almost like some weird trick of Mother Nature. You have to kind of laugh about it at that point. Morgans cancer, called ductal in situ, is the most common form of breast cancer and hers was estrogen positive, meaning the hormone could signal the cancer cells to grow. The cancer forms in the milk ducts of the breast, but has not spread to surrounding tissue, according to the American Cancer Society. The cancer is considered non-invasive because it cant spread outside the breast, but it can go on to become invasive so it requires treatment. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, with about one in eight women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer at some point in their lives, according to the American Cancer Society. About 40,450 American women will die from breast cancer in 2016. About 246,660 cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed this year, and another 61,000 will be diagnosed with carcinoma in situ, like Morgan, according to estimates from the American Cancer Society. Carcinoma in situ is the earliest form of breast cancer. Morgan opted for a lumpectomy to remove the cancerous tissue in September 2006 and seven weeks of radiation. In the final days of the radiation, Morgan had developed burns and was going through burn treatments as well. I didnt want to give it the presence to disrupt my life, Morgan said. I did fine up until the last week. Bob Morgan said his wife fought her way through the crushing fatigue to work every day, only calling in on the final day of her treatment. She knew what she wanted the destination to be, he said. If you think of it as a journey, you have in mind the destination picked out. You just dont know if there is a side turn. I think it wasnt something you would hide from one another, but you always try to mask the bad what if feelings, but we talked about it. Her treatments were completed just before Christmas 2006, and since that time, her younger sister was diagnosed, again at age 50. That sister opted for a total mastectomy and reconstructive surgery. But the pattern broke with her youngest sister who hit age 50 and has not been diagnosed with cancer. After her mother died, one of Morgans friends suggested she run an Angels Triathlon in her mothers memory, and the two had just started training when Morgan learned she had cancer. I was more disappointed in that than in anything else, she said. That was supposed to be me honoring my mom. When the treatment was done, I called my friend, and said We are doing it. So in April 2007, with her mothers name written on one arm and her grandmothers on the other and 62 names from friends and coworkers tucked in her hat, she completed the triathlon in Clemmons, North Carolina. Morgan now undergoes ultrasounds, mammograms and breast MRIs annually, and said she feels confident the cancer is gone, but if its not, it will be caught early. Despite all the bad parts, we had the best outcome Bob Morgan said. Kathi Morgan and her husband volunteer with the American Cancer Society, particularly with its annual Gala fundraiser each fall. For Morgan, discussing her journey is cathartic. For me, it was a monster, and to talk about the monster gets it out of the closet, she said. Cancer consumed me for a year. It consumed my entire life for a year, and then it just didnt. Riverviews to show PBS Hamilton documentary Riverviews Artspace will be showing PBSs Hamiltons America at 9 p.m. Friday. The behind-the-scenes documentary is about Lin-Manuel Mirandas Broadway musical Hamilton, which has become an international phenomenon and multiple Tony Award winner since its debut. A reception with actors portraying Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, both of whom will speak about their complex relationship with Alexander Hamilton, will precede the screening at 7:30 p.m.; theyll also watch the documentary and share final thoughts after its over. The screening is free, and the reception, which includes hors doeuvres, costs $10. There also will be a cash bar. Visit www.riverviews.net for more information. LSO holding fall concert in LU's new performance hall Lynchburg Symphony Orchestras fall concert, Hymn of Praise, will be held in the new Liberty University Performing Arts Concert Hall at 3 p.m. Sunday. LSO will play Mendelssohn's "Hymn of Praise" and Verdi's "Overture to Nabucco. The Liberty Symphony Orchestra and Liberty Choral Ensembles also will perform, as well as soloists Adelaide Trombetto, Samantha Miller, and John Hugo. Tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for students ages 16 to 22 and free for kids 16 and younger with an adult ticket holder. Call (434) 845-6604 or visit www.lynchburgsymphony.org. Ghosts of Historic Lynchburg tours coming this week The Lynchburg Historical Foundations annual Ghosts of Historic Lynchburg tours will be held Thursday, Friday and Saturday in Historic Federal Hill. The walks begin at the Federal Crest Inn B&B at 1101 Federal St. at 6:30 p.m. each night and run every 15 to 20 minutes until 8:30 p.m. Tickets, $10 for adults and $5 for children 11 and younger, are sold at 6 p.m. each night at the site. Group reservations for 10 or more can be made in advance by calling the Foundation office at (434) 528-5353. All proceeds from the event will go to the Federal Hill Historic District and the Lynchburg Historical Foundation. Bowen Jewelry Company holding Annual Estate Show Estate jewelry from celebrities like Elvis Presley, Joan Rivers, Greta Garbo and legendary guitarist Les Paul will be on display this weekend during Bowen Jewelry Companys Annual Estate Show, which runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Pieces, which will be for sale, include a gold pocket watch, worth more than $28,000, and E.P. lapel pins that belonged to Presley; a pair of Cartier rings once owned by Joan Collins; a diamond pin from the collection of Joan Rivers; and a pair of silver diamond earrings from Garbo. Other stars whose jewelry is included are Jerry Lee Lewis, Ringo Starr and Barbara Bach, Mary Pickford and Luise Rainer, among others. For more information, call (434) 845-3495 or visit http://bowenjewelry.com. Switchfoot, Relient K to perform at LU Switchfoot and Relient K will bring their Looking for America Tour to Liberty Universitys Vines Center at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Switchfoot, known for songs like Dare You To Move and Meant To Live, released its 10th studio album, Where The Light Shines Through, last July. Tickets to the concert range in price from $16 to $51. Visit www.liberty.edu/sa for more information. RVCC presents Robert Jospes World Beat Workshop Drummer Robert Jospe and percussionist Kevin Davis will lead the World Beat Workshop at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Rockfish Valley Community Center, 190 Rockfish School Lane in Afton. Using a map, percussion instruments and music charts, they will explore West African rhythms and their influence on current musical styles through an interactive program that includes clapping, dancing and singing to salsa, calypso, merengue, samba and hip-hop. Jospe, who was born in Manhattan to Belgian parents, began his formal training during a summer session at the Berklee College of Music. He eventually attended New York University and spent more than a decade playing in the New York jazz and rock scene. Since 1992, he has received an annual touring grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts for the World Beat Workshop. Admission is $10 for adults and free for children 12 and younger. For more information, visit www.robertjospe.com. LC Theatre opens season with Cole Porter classic Lynchburg College Theatre will kick off its new season with Cole Porters Anything Goes, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, with more shows at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Call (434) 544-8349 or visit www.lynchburg.edu/theatre. Wolfbanes Crawford Farm Ghost Tour returns for sixth year Wolfbane Productions annual Crawford Farm Ghost Tour, now in its sixth year, will be held at the Wolf Performing Arts Center in Appomattox on Thursday, with more tours on Friday and Saturday and Oct. 27, 28 and 29. Tours run from 7:30 to 11:30 p.m. each night on a first-come, first-served basis beginning at 6:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.wolfbane.org. Chili Cook-Off to be held this weekend The Sedalia Centers 20th Annual Chili Cook-Off runs from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday. As always, tasting begins at noon. Live music will be provided by The Chilly Brothers, Firecracker Jam and Relacksachian. Admission is $10 in advance or $15 at the gate; children 12 and younger get in free. Call (434) 299-5080 or visit www.sedaliacenter.org for more details. I have had high hopes for NBCs The Good Place from the moment I heard about it. With stars like Kristen Bell and Ted Danson on board and the creative mind of Mike Schur, who worked on both The Office and Parks and Recreation, at the helm, there was no way I wasnt going to like it. The first episode introduced us to the afterlife through the eyes of Bells Eleanor, who, upon her death, wrongly winds up in the titular, heaven-esque Good Place when she most definitely belongs in the Bad Place. In the show, heaven is basically a series of neighborhoods where each person lives in their own perfect, dream home; the woman Eleanor has been mistaken for was a humanitarian aid worker with a thing for clowns, and the materialistic Eleanor isnt exactly thrilled by her modest digs, which come complete with a collection of creepy clown portraits. She is initially guided through her new home by Ted Dansons Michael, the architect of her neighborhood, who also informs her that, in the Good Place, everyone has a soulmate with whom they are matched. Eleanors soul mate is the good-hearted Chidi (William Jackson Harper), an ethics professor from Senegal. She eventually confides in him that shes not supposed to be there and, after some debate, he decides to keep her secret and begins schooling her in how to be a better person. But Eleanors presence somehow throws the universe off-kilter and starts causing strange occurrences in the neighborhood. In the first episode, giant shrimp attacked the town (yes, it was as cheesy as it sounds), and an episode or two later, a giant sinkhole opened up in the middle of a restaurant. The irregularities usually are fixed once Eleanor does something good. The first three episodes were enjoyable but not exactly laugh-out-loud funny, favoring a more subtle, clever humor. But things really gelled at the end of that third episode, when it was revealed that Eleanor wasnt the only person to erroneously end up in the Good Place. Turns out her neighbor, supposed Buddhist monk Jianyu (Manny Jacinto) was really an aspiring EDM DJ named Jason Mendoza back on earth and somehow wound up in heaven. Having someone as bad, or worse, than Eleanor has allowed her to have a few bonding moments with Chidi and even feel a bit of superiority (Oh, wow, she says incredulously at one point. For the first time ever, Im the smartest kid in class.) Jacinto is hilarious as the completely oblivious Jason, whose soulmate is beautiful do-gooder Tahani (Jameela Jamil), a statuesque Brit with a sunny disposition that annoys Eleanor and charms Michael. Early episodes featured flashbacks to Eleanors life on earth, exhibiting some of the bad behavior that should have disqualified her from the Good Place. But recent installments have also used flashbacks to show us more about both Jianyu/Jason and Tahani, whose complicated relationship with her sister has left her struggling with her self-esteem even in heaven. As Eleanor, Bell is everything I expected. The role allows her to channel the sarcasm of one of her most indelible characters, Veronica Mars, while also having some good a ha moments as Chidis lessons sink in. Danson makes a welcome return to comedy here. We dont know much about Michael beyond the fact that hes thousands of years old and has a lot riding on this neighborhood, the first one hes designed. Hes constantly marveling at human behavior in ways that never fail to make me laugh; last weeks episode had a running gag about him watching all 10 seasons of Friends to learn about the concept of friendship and then dropping in random references to them. Danson also is adept at the spastic, physical comedy the role requires, whether Michael is excitedly donning suspenders for the first time or pushing imaginary clutter out of the air after noting that, unlike him, Eleanor cannot see in nine dimensions. Even more impressive is the roster of relative newcomers or, at least, new to me starring alongside them. If you like what Bell and Danson do, you know theyll be reliably funny in anything (if you dont like what they do, dont even talk to me). Jamil is perfect as the, well, perfect Tahani. You can see why she irks Eleanor, and she also hits just the right notes when Tahanis veneer is shaken. As Chidi, Harper is the breakout star here. Hes so charming and has a great comic delivery. The most recent episode suggested that perhaps he and Tahani, with whom he shares a love of art and French culture, might be the real soulmates, an intriguing concept that will be fun to explore. GamesRadar+ is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Heres why you can trust us. Opposition hits Garcia The clash came when the Lower House Standing Committee on Finance had resumed after a ten-minute suspension by Speaker Bridgid Annisette-George to quell a heated row on another matter. Caroni East MP Dr Tim Gopeesingh said MPs have each received a flood of complaints that pupils have not received textbooks, and his Opposition colleague, Tabaquite MP Dr Suruj Rambachan, concurred by listing 16 schools he knew that had not been supplied with textbooks. Gopeesingh supported his case by quoting Budget documents that showed that while the Government had initially allocated $35 million to buy books for fiscal 2016, only $6 million was actually spent, even as just $9 million is now being allocated for fiscal 2017. By contrast, the former Peoples Partnership (PP) government had spent $32 million on books, he said. Gopeesingh said, We have been besieged with calls by parents that their children have not received any new textbooks within the primary and secondary schools for the last 2015/16 and 2016/2017 academic year. Garcia replied, We have been visiting schools Minister Dr Francis and other officials of the Ministry of Education and every time we visit the schools we will take the opportunity to question students and teachers with respect to textbooks. I can safely say, as Ive been saying before all along, that there is an adequate supply of textbooks in our schools. It is not true to say that our students are going to school without books in their school bags. There is a surplus. Garcia said he had visited a school where the principal showed him a room with hundreds of textbooks. I want to repeat, as Ive been saying over and over, there is an adequate supply of books in our schools. Gopeesingh said that last year was the start of a new three-year cycle for book purchase, and asked the minister if he had bought any new books last year or this year. Garcia replied yes that a large number of books had been bought to fully replenish 100 percent of books for Infant One and Infant Two in primary schools. Those books are in the schools right now, he assured. Standards One to Five and Forms One to Six we are topping up by an average of ten percent, he said. Asked if he has done it yet, he replied, It is well on its way. The purchase has been done, the procurement has been done, and in some cases the books are in the schools already. Gopeesingh asked, Are you aware that during the Peoples Partnership administration, we purchased... He was cut off by Annisette-George, despite his protestations that his statement in fact qualified as falling within this line item of the Budget document on Recurrent Estimates of Expenditure. Rambachan listed 16 schools in his constituency for which very few if any books had been received, including Happy Hill Hindu, Brasso RC, Tabaquite RC and Tabaquite Presbyterian Primary Schools, all of which had been advised to use photocopies and last years textbooks. He said, Sixteen schools. I spoke to each one. And only very few books were received by the infant departments. Are you aware of this? This is information that came from the schools themselves, not something made up. Garcia replied, We have also done our action research. Our school supervisors were mandated to go to the schools and provide us with information. They have gone out to the schools and conferred with the principals and the teachers and that is why I can confidently say that there is an adequate supply of textbooks in our schools. Ive been saying that over and over and Im not taking that out of a hat. Its the result of the actual research that was done. Earlier the House suspension came when Gopeesingh and Couva South MP Rudy Indarsingh had hit Garcia over the functioning or non-functioning of school boards of management. Wetting for weeping Ian Alleyne Contacted for comment, Alleyne claimed that he does not at Rivulet Road in Couva. As fate would have it, while Alleyne was in Couva watching Court Marshals load his personal belongings onto a flat-bed truck, his name was being called in the Chaguanas Magistrates Court in an ongoing matter involving his former crime watch co-host Inspector Roger Alexander, who is now a co-host on the Beyond The Tape show on TV6. When Alleyne failed to appear in court, a warrant was issued for his arrest but subsequently recalled when he appeared later in the morning. Yesterday, in the presence of Sammy and his son and under the watchful eyes of armed police officers, workmen packed household appliances of value including a fridge and stove, electronics and gym equipment onto trucks. Alleynes attorney Gerald Ramdeen said an offer was made to the Sammys before yesterdays levy. Upon arrival at the premises of Mr Alleyne, an offer was made to Mr Shaun Sammy to liquidate or make arrangements to liquidate the debt that was owing at that time but it was indicated that was not an offer that Mr Sammy was willing to accept as he had come there armed with the officials from the High Court together with a bailiff in order to remove belongings of Mr Alleyne. When all attempts failed at trying to resolve the matter, without having to embark upon the execution (of the levy), the Marshals entered the premises and Mr Sammy pointed out items he considered for execution and those items were levied upon and removed from the premises of Mr Alleyne, Ramdeen said. Alleyne told Newsday that action at his home was meant to embarrass him and prove a point while noting he just happened to spend the night at the house since he and his family do not live at Rivulet Road. Alleyne said attorney Om Lalla, once my best friend, is representing the Sammys who took him to court in 2014 following statements made on his then Crime Watch programme which was aired on the cable network CNC3. When Alleyne failed to put in a defence, judgement was given to the Sammys and costs ordered to be assessed. The businessmen also secured an injunction against Alleyne which restrained him from speaking, broadcasting, publishing or uttering anything in relation to Sammy, who at the time, was before the magistrates court on a driving under the influence charge. Sammy had pleaded guilty and was given a conditional discharge and placed on a bond to keep the peace for three years. Sammy was represented by Lalla, Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj SC and Dereck Balliram. Alleyne was ordered to pay $630,000 in damages to Sammy and his son Shaun as well as the company Junior Sammy Contractors Ltd for defamation. The award was granted by High Court Master Marissa Robertson after her assessment of the damages to be awarded to the Sammys. He was also ordered to pay costs which reached $734,000. Further speaking to Newsday yesterday, Alleyne has since severed ties with CNC3 and now is in the process of building his own studio. He said his eight-year-old son Israel Ian Alleyne and wife Miranda Lorna Alleyne were all left traumatized while he was humiliated. After all, I am only human, he said. My son was asleep and woke up to see police with guns. The court case involving Insp Alexander was adjourned to May 2017. Costaatt responds to nursing students COSTAATTs Executive Management Team has taken note of the issues raised by protesting nursing students at its South Campus yesterday [on Monday] and while we regret that we were not afforded the opportunity to hear these students concerns directly before the public protest action was launched, we have no doubt that legitimate issues have been raised which warrant further investigation and these are already under way, Paul stated. Many of our nursing students are confronted by serious financial challenges on a day-to-day basis, and have come to depend heavily on the monthly stipend to meet their basic expenses. We therefore understand that these protests come from a place of real need. Unfortunately, during the period June to September 2016, the college was experiencing significant funding challenges linked to the mandatory budget cuts and its GATE reimbursements, and simply did not have sufficient funding to pay all its nursing students the monthly stipend as had obtained in previous years, Paul stated, adding that a decision had been taken to prioritise payments for students who had to go out to the health care facilities for their clinical experiences. We are resolved to address all legitimate claims for overdue stipend payments in the shortest possible time, she added. Regarding the length of the nursing programme, Paul noted that COSTAATT was established with a specific mandate to broaden access to tertiary education for many students who were not yet ready for college-level work but had the potential to succeed with the requisite bridging programmes and academic support. Some students may not be aware that the four-year completion time for the bachelors degree applies only to those students who come in fully prepared for college level work and who fail no courses whatsoever during their programme of study. In fact, following a curriculum review exercise in 2013, the current administration reduced the number of non-nursing courses that the nursing students had to complete to meet their graduation requirements, Paul stated. This resulted in a reduction of the duration of the nursing programme and not an extension of the programme as reported, she stated, adding that there was abundant evidence to show that management has been working assiduously over the last five years to improve the quality of the teaching-learning environment and experience for its nursing students. Last year, like all other publicly funded institutions, the college had to confront very severe funding challenges... School closed until further notice Under the advice of the public health officer and the district nurse, the school which is situated at Richmond Street in Portof- Spain, would remain closed due to fears of a chicken pox outbreak. A source yesterday said one child was observed with symptoms associated with the highly contagious chicken pox disease and his parents were called in and told to have him examined (and treated) by a medical doctor. Speaking under condition of anonymity, the source said that school officials were advised to keep students away until they were able to get the school sanitised. The source added that the issue of sanitising the school compound would have to be dealt with by the Education Ministry. Education Minister Anthony Garcia could not be reached yesterday for comment as he was attending a sitting at the Parliament chamber. Dow Just Had Its Best Month Since 1976 (Newser) Approximately 10,000 scrotum frogs are dead near Lake Titicaca. And there's nothing funny about that. Seeker reports thousands of the frogsscientific name Telmatobius culeushave been found dead and floating along 30 miles of Peru's Coata river, a Lake Titicaca tributary, in recent days. The scrotum frogs, so named because of the baggy skin that helps them breathe in the thin air of their natural habitat, are "critically endangered," according to CNN. Experts say the scrotum frog population has shrunk by 80% over the past 15 years due to habitat destruction, the introduction of North American trout into Lake Titicaca, and locals over-harvesting the frogs for food. But no one is quite sure what's behind the recent mass die-off. Environmentalists, who brought 100 dead scrotum frogs to the regional capital's town center in protest, blame sewage runoff from a town near the river. Sludge and solid waste have been seen where the frogs live. "They have no idea how major the pollution is," Seeker quotes the leader of the protest as saying. "The situation is maddening." The Committee Against the Pollution of the Coata River says the government has ignored residents' demands for a sewage treatment plant in the area, the BBC reports. According to CNET, the Peruvian National Forestry and Wildlife Service is investigating the recent deaths. It's important authorities find an answer, as scrotum frogs live only in the waters around Lake Titicaca. (Toughie the frog, likely the last of his species, has died.) (Newser) Ecuador's government has acknowledged that it has "temporarily restricted" WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's internet access at its embassy in London after the whistleblowing site published documents from Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, the AP reports. The foreign ministry in a statement Tuesday said that while it stands by its decision in 2012 to grant Assange asylum, it doesn't interfere in foreign elections. Leftist President Rafael Correa's government said it was acting on its own and not ceding to foreign pressures. The foreign ministry didn't specify the extent of the restrictions on Assange's access to the internet, saying only that the restrictions on his communications wouldn't affect WikiLeaks' ability to carry out its journalistic activities. (Read more Julian Assange stories.) (Newser) Some 150,000 gallons of water contaminated by toxic firefighting chemicals were discharged from a Colorado Air Force Base into a city sewer system, and authorities can't explain why. Peterson Air Force Base has confirmed that water containing perfluorinated chemicalsPFCsflowed through Colorado Springs Utilities wastewater treatment plant before ending up in Fountain Creek, which leads to the Arkansas River. PFCs, which have been linked to health problems such as liver and kidney damage, had already been found at up to 20 times safe limits in the area south of the base, the Denver Post reports. A base spokesman tells the Colorado Springs Gazette that the discharge, which was discovered Oct. 12. came from a tank that held outflow from training exercises from as far back as 2013. He says the tank is designed to be difficult to discharge, suggesting the release was an intentional act. The Air Force says it has stopped using firefighting foam containing PFCs, except in emergencies. The Post notes that PFCs have been found at levels deemed dangerous in 63 areas nationwide, with the area south of Colorado Springs among the worst. The Air Force, which has contributed $4.3 million to help area communities deal with the contamination, plans to put out a report on the issue next year. (Read more Colorado stories.) (Newser) The Texas veterinarian who outraged animal lovers nationwide by bragging about killing a cat with a bow and arrow is not going to lose her license permanently. CBS News reports that on Tuesday, the Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners decided that Kristen Lindsey's vet license should be suspended for a year, followed by four years of probation. Lindseywho was fired after posting a picture of herself with the dead cat online, saying "The only good feral tomcat is one with an arrow through it's head!"will also be required to have six hours of animal welfare education, the Austin American-Statesman reports. Last year, a grand jury decided not to charge Lindsey with a crime. Tuesday's hearing was attended by animal advocates from across America, along with a family who say the cat was their pet, not a feral tomcat as Lindsey claimed, KHOU reports. Her lawyer told the hearing that she believed the cat was feral, and feral animals are routinely killed in the rural area west of Houston where she lives. One of her former co-workers testified that she had heard Lindsey's boss and landlord tell her to "take care of the cat." Lindsey, who has been a vet since 2012, has 30 days to appeal the board's decision. (Read more veterinarian stories.) (Newser) A 13-year-old boy sent to an alternative school was thrown to the ground multiple times on his first day, injuring his right leg so badly that it had to be amputated, a lawyer for the boy and his mother says. Attorney Renee Tucker says the Columbus, Ga., teen was slammed to the floor twice by the teacher at Edgewood Student Services Center when he tried to leave the room to call his mother to pick him up, the News & Observer reports. She says that after the Sept. 12 incident, the boy told school officials that his leg was numb. They told him they would call an ambulance, Tucker says, but the teacher ended up carrying him to a school bus, without even calling his family. The boy's leg was amputated below the knee on Tuesday, reports the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer. According to a police report seen by the Ledger-Enquirer, Bryant Mosley, described as a "behavioral specialist," told officers he had to "physically restrain a student due to behavioral issues." The school district says Mosley is an outside contractor trained in "preventing and managing aggressive behavior." The district says there were "issues concerning the safety of the child and others in the room," though Tucker tells WTVM that the boy was the only student in the classroom at the time. She says his mother has lost her job because she spent so much time with her son at the Egleston Childrens Hospital in Atlanta, where the amputation took place. (Read more Georgia stories.) (Newser) What goes best with swanky beer? Swanky potato chips, apparently. For a measly $11.20 per chip, snackers can enjoy what Sweden's St. Eriks Brewery describes as "the world's most exclusive potato chips." Brewmasters were apparently unhappy with ordinary snacks alongside St. Eriks India Pale Ale and decided to enlist the Swedish National Culinary Team to create "a snack of the same status" as its "first-class beer," a brand manager tells Adweek. The result is 100 boxes containing just five potato chips each, made by hand using "some of the most exclusive ingredients available in the Nordics." The price: $56 per box. "It took a delicate touch, a finely honed sense of taste and time to ensure that each chip would achieve a perfect balance between the various ingredients," including matsutake mushrooms and truffle seaweed from the Faroe Islands, says chef Pi Le. "The taste is a very Scandinavian one." Since all 100 boxes are sold outthe proceeds went to charityyou'll have to settle for a chip with a more American taste. One option: Boulder Canyon Authentic Foods has returned with its Turkey & Gravy and Pumpkin Pie flavors at a far more reasonable cost of $2.99 per bag, just in time for Thanksgiving, according to a release. (They'd match well with pumpkin beer.) (Newser) Didn't this election smell bad enough already? A hazmat team had to be called on Tuesday when a Democratic National Committee bus dumped raw sewage in Georgia's Gwinnett County, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. A worker at an auto parts store called the cops when he saw the buswhich had images of Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine on the side and the slogan "Forward Together"dump sewage onto the roadway and into a storm drain, 11 Alive reports. The DNC apologized for "an honest mistake," saying it has spoken to the charter bus company involved and will work with state and local officials "to determine the best course of corrective action." (Read more Election 2016 stories.) (Newser) A Philippine police van rammed into protesters, leaving several bloodied, as an anti-US rally turned violent Wednesday at the American Embassy in Manila. At least three student activists had to be taken to a hospital after they were run over by the van driven by a police officer, protest leader Renato Reyes tells the AP. TV footage showed the van repeatedly ramming the protesters as it drove wildly back and forth after protesters had surrounded and started hitting the van with wooden batons they had seized from the police. Police later arrested 23 protesters, who broke into a line of riot police and hurled red paint at the policemen and a US government seal at the embassy. "There was absolutely no justification for it," Reyes says of the violent police dispersal of about 1,000 protesters. "Even as the president vowed an independent foreign policy, Philippine police forces still act as running dogs of the US." The violence happened as the protesters gathered to demand an end to the presence of US troops in the country and to support a call by President Rodrigo Duterte, who is on a state visit to China, for a foreign policy not dependent on the US. Duterte has tried to reach out to China and Russia, bringing uncertainty to his country's long alliance with America. (Earlier this month, Duterte said he is "breaking up" with the US and President Obama can "go to hell.") (Newser) Four teenage students were shot in the shared parking lot of two San Francisco high schools Tuesday, and one of the students is in critical condition, authorities say. A police spokesman says the shooting occurred as students were being let out of school for the day from the June Jordan School for Equity and City Arts and Technology High School, which share a campus, the AP reports. Three of the victims ran inside the June Jordan School, and police initially ordered students to stay in place until police searched each room and determined it was not an active shooter situation. A fourth victim hurt in the shooting went to the Bayview police station. "One female victim has life-threatening injuries to her upper torso," the police spokesman says. He notes four male suspects wearing dark hoodies and jeans were seen running away from the area. The shooters, who are not students at the school, seemed to have targeted the female student, officials say. "This was an isolated incident outside of the school building where one student was being targeted by outsiders," the San Francisco Unified School District said in a statement. The school says it plans to reopen Wednesday, but that may change if the shooters haven't been apprehended, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. (Read more school shooting stories.) (Newser) Chalk up one more health advantage for the rich over the poor: more sleep. Researchers in Colombia crunched data about the movement of residents in Medellin and Manizales and found some interesting patterns, they report in Royal Society Open Science. For instance, rich and poor people traveled longer distances to get to work than the middle class, but their journeys were much different. Poorer residents left their homes at 5 or 6am and followed indirect routeslikely because they're walking parts of the way and then taking public transportation, reports Ars Technica. Richer residents, on the other hand, left about 7am and traveled direct routes because they're driving cars (or being driven). The same applied on the return trip. The chart breaking down low-income commutes looks like a graph of "relatively poor wiring," write the researchers. But as wealth increases, so does travel efficiency, all of which "translates to substantially more sleep for the wealthy," notes a post at Boing Boing. In effect, the rich are able to buy more sleep than the poor, and the consequences go beyond the physical, writes Roheeni Saxena at Ars Technica: "This is sobering because it suggests that possessing wealth is a self-perpetuating state. The poor, who spend more time stuck in transit, have less opportunity to increase their income." She sees one potential remedy: Better public transit. (Your body will pay when you skimp on sleep.) (Newser) Recreational marijuana is legal in the state of Oregon, but what's not is trading a bunch of it for a recreational vehicleand it's extra likely to come to light if a cop is the one selling said vehicle. But Jason Owen allegedly tried to do just that after seeing a Craigslist ad hawking a snowmobile, per the Statesman Journal, putting out feelers to the seller to see if he or she would be willing to accept a pound of pot in exchange for the snowmobile. The seller, an Oregon State Police trooper, agreed, KPTV reports. When Owen showed up at a local gas station Saturday night to seal the dealcops say he had a pound and a half of pot, slightly more than what the original deal called forhe was greeted by a bunch of marked patrol cars, which conducted a traffic stop on Owen's car and reportedly found the pot. The Craigslist-frequenting trooper told Owen that even though pot is legal in the state, all pot transactions are required to go through the Oregon Liquor Control Commission or a medical marijuana dispensary registered with the Oregon Health Authority. Owen received a citation for marijuana delivery, and his car got taken away because he was driving with a suspended license. (Marijuana was the new crop featured at the Oregon State Fair this summer.) (Newser) It's a long way from SoHo to Syria, but somehow a New York City college student ended up dying there last fall fighting for ISIS, prosecutors say. Per court records, 24-year-old Samy Mohammed el-Goarany showed "an increased interest in militant forms of Islam" and headed to Syria in February 2015, the New York Daily News reports. He was killed in November, but not before penning a note that reportedly read: "If you're reading this, then know that I've been killed in battle and am now with our Lord." The court papers were filed Monday in Manhattan federal court in a case against Arizona man Ahmed Mohammed el-Gammal, accused of helping Goarany get to Syria, amNewYork reports. The two men apparently started messaging each other on Facebook in August 2014, after Goarany, a student at an unnamed Manhattan college, noticed Gammal posting pro-ISIS comments. Per court documents: By October, the two men had met in NYC, and Gammal started working with a Turkish man to expedite Goarany's journey overseas. By January 2015, Goarany was in Istanbul, and arrived in Syria the following month. Gammal was arrested in August 2015 on a slew of charges, including providing and conspiring to provide materials to support the militant group; he's pleaded not guilty ahead of his Dec. 5 trial. Goarany made a video in September 2015 after learning of Gammal's arrest, noting he went to Syria of his own accord. "I didn't come to this decision with anybody's influence or anybody's recruitment," he said in the video, per CNN. Gammal's lawyers say reports of Goarany's death are "unreliable," noting it's possible he wrote the note so he could fall off the radar of those monitoring his activity, ABC News notes. (Meanwhile, the "final battle" against ISIS for Mosul has started.) (Newser) Detectives in Ohio have closed a 24-year-old murder case, and the outcome isn't much of a surprise to them: One furniture salesman killed another. Sam Perone, now 68, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter Tuesday, admitting that he shot 41-year-old Richard Woods in 1992, reports the Dayton Daily News. Perone had been a suspect from the start, given that Woods had visited his store on the night he disappeared on Perone's request. His body was found a month later in a ravine near Perone's store in Lebanon. Blood stains found in the store were inconclusive at the time, but detectives used more modern techniques to ID Woods' blood in both the store and at Perone's home. Perone was arrested in Arizona last year and extradited to Ohio. It's a "small measure of justice," Woods' widow and the mother of his four children told the judge, per the AP. She called Perone a "bad man" who had threatened her husband before his murder. The judge sentenced Perone to 11 years in prison, with credit for the year he's been in custody. WCPO describes Woods as having been a successful salesman who'd made his name in the furniture industry, and authorities chalked up the motive to what the Washington Post calls "professional jealousy." The newspaper notes that Perone's wife was heard on a wiretap saying to her husband, "If you go down, I go down," but under Perone's plea agreement, she won't be prosecuted. (An ex-boyfriend who is now a paraplegic is accused in a woman's 33-year-old murder.) (Newser) Donald Trump may have suggested Natasha Stoynoff wasn't attractive enough to assault, but the People writer has half a dozen people backing up her account that he forced his tongue down her throat during a 2015 interview at his Florida estateincluding her old journalism professor. Paul McLaughlin, who taught Stoynoff at Ryerson University in Toronto, tells People his former student called him the day of the alleged attack asking for advice. "I advised her not to say anything, because I believed Trump would deny it and try to destroy her," he says. "Now [Trumps] got to say that I'm a liar, too, and I'm not. I'm telling the truth," he adds, per the Toronto Star. A friend also says she was with Stoynoff when she ran into Melania Trump in New York afterwarda claim Melania deniesand several colleagues say Stoynoff told them about the alleged assault when she returned from assignment. The encounter left Stoynoff shaken, the confidants say, though "it's possible [Trump] just doesn't remember it," adds Stoynoff. "It was over 10 years ago and I assume I am one of many, many women." She assumes right, according to Mark Cuban. He told CNN Tuesday that he's heard "second- and third-hand" accounts of at least two women assaulted by Trump in 2000 and 2014 who have yet to come forward and probably won't, per Fast Company. (Read more Donald Trump stories.) (Newser) What's in a name? In Malaysia, a heck of a lot when it comes to hot dogs. Per the BBC, the country's Islamic Development Department has told food vendors in the mostly Muslim nation that if they want a halal designation (meaning food items have been given the green light for consumption by Muslims), they can't use the word "dogs" in the meat product's namebecause the name might lead to "confusion." Sirajuddin Suhaimee, the department's director, elaborates: "In Islam, dogs are considered unclean, and the name cannot be related to halal certification." And that's even though the frankfurters themselves have already been given the OK as a halal item. "Even though the food sold at the outlet is halal, an inappropriate name is not suitable," the lead activist for the Malaysian Muslim Consumers Association says, per Free Malaysia Today. The Auntie Anne's pretzel franchise is one of the first outlets to be affected by the new rule, as one of its items is called a "Pretzel Dog" (it would be better to call it a "Pretzel Sausage," Suhaimee notes, per the BBC). It's not the first time wording has messed up a snack or drink's halal standing in Malaysia: Time notes that A&W root beer, as well as ginger beer, have been banned since 2009 because of the word "beer" (alcohol is forbidden in Islam)unless they're rebranded, such as when A&W renamed its drink "A&W Sarsaparilla," FMT reports. One person who thinks the mandate is ridiculous: Nazri Aziz, Malaysia's tourism and culture minister, who told reporters Wednesday the ruling makes the country look "stupid and backward," per FMT. "In fact, I think I want to eat a hot dog now," he said. (More important: Is a hot dog a sandwich?) (Newser) Anthony Russell allegedly violated a no-contact order and was due to appear in court in Indiana on a felony charge of stalking his estranged wife, Laura. Laura, 44, had reported to police multiple instances of finding Anthony, 51, waiting for her and following her, CBS reports. Prosecutors requested that a warrant be issued for his arrest, but on Oct. 6 Judge Michael Hensley declined to do so, choosing instead to simply issue a summons for Anthony Russell to appear in court days later, after a long holiday weekend. The day after that ruling, authorities found Anthony Russell dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound; when they went to the Russell home to inform Laura, they found her dead of multiple stab wounds. They believe Anthony killed her and then himself. On Monday, Hensley issued a statement acknowledging that "the most tragic result possible" came of his ruling, and explained why he made it, the Madison Courier reports. "My role is not to simply grant all warrants without review," Hensley said. "Certain legal standards must be met before I can issue a warrant. The reason I did not issue a warrant in this case is that there was not sufficient probable cause. Without probable cause I do not have the power to issue a warrant. I made what I thought to be the correct legal decision." He added that he fully understands the risks involved in domestic abuse situations, but still found "the fact that an elementary school teacher killed his wife and then himself" difficult to believe. In the future, he says, he will issue an order for a hearing on the same day as the warrant request if he can't find probable cause to grant the warrant request. "I am hopeful the new procedure prevents a similar tragedy in the future," he writes. "I feel horrible about her death and realize the regret I express and information I provide in this statement do not bring her back." (Read more domestic violence stories.) (Newser) It appears Europe's latest attempt to put a lander on the surface has Mars has once again resulted in failure. The BBC reports the European Space Agency lost communication with the Schiaparelli robot less than a minute before it was supposed to reach the Martian surface Wednesday. The lander's parachute definitely deployed, but it's unclear what happened after that, according to the New York Times. "These are not good signs," says the head of the mission operations department. And while it's possible the lander crashed and broke, the ESA isn't giving up yet. It could spend the next few days trying to figure out why it lost communication with the lander and how to get it back. The good news is the lander wasn't integral to the mission, which is centered around the Trace Gas Orbiter, currently circling above Mars and collecting information about its atmosphere. (Read more Mars stories.) Everyone loves to travel but making your travel planning especially this coming holiday season is stressful with the rapid changing prices of flight tickets and accommodation. Google, however just announced a new and improved "Google Flights". New features of Google flight-searching tool helps you in making your travel planning less stressful by finding the best deals and prices in booking your flights and/or accommodation at the best time by giving you an alert and new updates to mobile notification when flights are likely to increase in price, helping you find good hotel deals, and making travel planning easier on mobile or allow you to track flights by email to see how they fluctuate. As the Project Manager Nabil Naghdy explained in a release on Monday, "After selecting a specific flight, a notification may appear letting you know when the current fare is expected to expire and how much you can save if you book now. For example, this flight to San Diego is likely to cost more in eight hours - and you would likely save $87 if you book before then". If You Haven't Selected A Flight Yet For an example, Google used a trip from New York City to San Diego. Google Flights will show you a variety of possibilities to ensure a cheap travel, as you will see notification bar with multiple tips showing how to find the best price for this route including alternate airports and dates. You may also be given a new tip telling you about an expected price jump based on historic prices for that route. Tapping the notification will give you details about how likely the price rise is and by how much it will be. If you're not ready to book yet Google Flights will send you notifications via email to let you know when price are expected to change and that will help you choose to track your flight or route. Finding Hotel Deals Aside from best price for plane ticket, Google Flights is also offering more ways to find best hotel deals under the "Deals" section. It will show you when a hotel's price is lower than the usual pricing, and it also offers a neat filter for hotel discounts compared to the normal rate for those dates. Google will also notify users if there are deals for loyalty members on hotels' websites. What to expect more? We can expect over this coming weeks that the fare expiration and expected price jump notifications will be rolling everywhere Google Flights is available. "We're also making it easier to find flights on the go. Next time you visit Google Flights, you'll be able to track and manage saved flights seamlessly on your phone,"- by Nabil Naghdy Excitingly, this new and improved Google Flights could be a buddy in the hunt for the best fares, helping users find the best options. New research done by University of Florida researchers has uncovered the mystery of why hand-picked tomatoes often taste better compared to those found chilled at the grocery store. This research also explains why tomatoes placed in the fridge tend to lose their flavor. According to the report published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Monday, it was found that the fruits enzymes reduce in effectiveness upon chilling below 53.6 Fahrenheit, or 12degrees Celsius. Enzymes slow down when they go past their minimum working temperature. Because of this, they are less able at fusing volatile compounds which impart flavor to the tomato through a combination of sugars, acids and a set of 15 to 20 volatile compounds, with the possibility of there being more factors and compounds involved. The author of the study, Harry Klee (Horticultural Sciences Professor at Florida), wrote that this would explain why many consumers perceive commercial tomatoes to be relatively bland. He pointed to the after-harvest handling system as being a large part of the problem. Chilling fruits led to this. While storage at low temperatures decreases the rate at which the fruit decays and ripens, it also reduced the flavor quality of the fruit as the study discovered. This was because it affected significantly the volatile compounds rather than the sugars and the acids in the tomato. In order to carry out this research, the researchers grew tomatoes in a UoF campus greenhouse and sorted out the ripe red fruits from the unripe ones. They then divided the fruits into three groups. The tomatoes in group one were kept at 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celcius), at 92% humidity for 7 days. Afterwards, they were transferred to 68 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius) for one day of recovery. The tomatoes in group two were held for 8 days at 5 degrees Celsius and without recovery at room temperature. Tomatoes in group three were tested the next day after being picked, without any form of chilling. It was discovered that if tomatoes were exposed to the cold for about 7 day their volatility levels decreased by up to 65 percent. The volatiles in the fruit did not return to normal even after having been given short recovery periods, the study also noted. A panel made up of consumers (76 in total) was also created to judge the taste of the tomatoes that were chilled compared to the tomatoes that were not chilled. The tomatoes in the first group were judged by taste-testers to have less taste compared to the third group fruits that had been picked the previous day. Ultimately, Klee revealed that the research was being used to help in the making of a better-tasting tomato according to the teams research page on the website for the University. How they hoped to do this would be by isolating the key genes necessary for the synthesis of flavor-inducing volatile compounds. In other related news, tomatoes can have various beauty applications according to an article on the Huffington Post including as an acne remover, sunburn remedy, skin cleanser etc. This is due in part to the Lycopene in the tomato (key in age reversal) and its various vitamins. Huawei has released another Smartphone that is of great quality but is very cheap. Huawei Honor 8 also has a dual camera like the new iPhone 7 Plus and another Huawei phone, Huawei P9. Economic Times has reported that Huawei Honor 8 has a great camera for photography lovers. It has two 12 MP camera that is not protruding like the camera in the new iPhone7. The camera makes the pictures livelier with more vibrant colors and more detailed. Chinese Smartphone brand also has a 5.2-inch full-HD display and 2.5D glass on its sides that makes it look classy and shiny. It is powered by Kirin 950 processor paired up with 4GB of RAM. Its external memory can support up to 128GB. The 16-nanometer Kirin 950 chip helps the phone's battery life. It also improves the overall performance of the Smartphone. The battery used in this phone is 3,000mAh battery Live Mint stated that Huawei Honour 8 features 12MP dual lens main shooter and an 8MP front camera. It can work like an SLR with its depth that the user can define. It has a wide aperture mode that can make an illusion for your photo. It also lets the user regulate the focus of the picture and even blur the background of any picture. Furthermore, there is a professional mode to maximize the use of the camera. According to News18, Huawei Honor 8 Sapphire Blue has sold out in just 48 hours after its release. All online resellers, Flipkart, Amazon, and even in Honor store, they have announced that the phone is already out of stock. Moreover, there were 250,000 pre-orders of the Huawei Honour 8 made at the Honor store. Huawei phones are cheaper than many other famous Smartphone. If you do not care about the brand, you should check out Huawei's new phone, the Honor 8. New Delhi: The second day of Bigg Boss season 10 has very tactfully planned the task to create a wide rift between the celebrities and the India wales to see how much of a unity the team members within each teams show when pitted against the opponent. As she forced the Sevaks to follow her orders and Bani was her obvious target. So, what offended Priyanka? Well, it was Banis request to use the word please as a courtesy while ordering around. Also Read: (Bigg Boss 10, Day 2: Fight with Bani J leaves Priyanka Jagga in tears) Manveer, Priyanka, Naveen and Manu, who are now Maaliks of the house team up against the sevaks to criticize the food that is being served to them. Witnessed a cat-fight between Bani J and Priyanka Jagga. The spark of face-off between the two on Day 1 took no time to turn into a big fight on the second day, when both these bold and loud-mouthed female indulged in arguments and bad words. Lokesh communicates Om Swamis message to Bigg Boss. Later, the celebrities poke fun at Priyankas surname. In the evening, Salman Khan addresses the inmates about the first luxury task. Gaurav is asked to read a letter addressed by Big Boss to the inmates. Each of the India wales were asked to write a secret about them on a piece of paper before entering the house. The luxury budget task would require the celebrities to guess which secret belongs to whom. Among the India wale, Priyanka and Manu are the loudest, Om Swami- the most annoying inmate inside the house he ends up irking people, Navin and Manveer the observers while Lokesh and Nitibha - the quietest. Akanksha is balanced. On being asked by Gaurav, Akanksha speaks about her marriage. Om Swami warns Gaurav to keep away from Akanksha. He engages in character assassination of Akanksha by indirectly holding her responsible for her failed marriage. Om Swami tells Gaurav that he can bring his army to keep such unwanted people away. After listening to Om Swami, Gaurav responds to him by telling that Akanksha has no intentions of impressing him. New Delhi: Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar Tuesday said whether cross-LoC surgical strikes were undertaken by the army in the past only the military will know as no message about such assaults were conveyed. What FS said is that the key issue is that we went public after conducting the surgical strikes which conveyed a politico-military message. Whether any previous crossings had been done only the army would know. But it is irrelevant anyway because there was no message, sources in the government said. ALSO READ: (Army has carried out 'surgical strikes' across LOC in the past too, says Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar) The clarification about what transpired at a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on External Affairs, which was briefed on the strikes by Jaishankar, came after some opposition MPs quoted him having said the army had carried out target specific, limited-calibre, counter-terrorist operations across the LoC in the past too but this was for the first time the government had gone public about it. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Ayodhya: Lord Ram looked set to occupy political centrestage in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh despite BJPs claim of a temple to the deity not being on its agenda, with Union Minister Mahesh Sharma on Tuesday said that those who get to do Ram Ka Kaam (serve Ram) were fortunate. If anyone gets a chance to work for Bhagwan Ram he is most fortunate...it will be good fortune if Bhagwan Ram gives us a chance to do Ram ka kaam and this responsibility has been given to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by the people of the country, Sharma said during his visit to Aodhya to inspect the proposed site for setting up a Ramayana musuem. The proposed museum, to be built on a 25 acre plot given by the Uttar Pradesh government nearly 15 km from the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid complex, has reignited demands by BJP hardliners like Vinay Katiyar for building a Ram temple at the site where the Babri mosque stood before being pulled down in 1992. ALSO READ: (Ramayana Museum: Vinay Katiyar calls it mere 'lollipop'; Mahesh Sharma rules out 'political motive' behind his Ayodhya visit) Katiyar, who had yesterday demanded that a bill be brought in the Lok Sabha for creation of Ram temple, today said no positive efforts were being made for construction of the temple and only lollipop was being offered to the devotees of the deity. A race is on...somebody is building a museum, somebody else (the Akhilesh Yadav government) a Ramleela Theme Park. We welcome development of Ayodhya, but everything is useless without construction of Ram temple. We cannot compromise on that. No positive steps are being taken for building Ram temple, which is the core job that needs to be done. The Samajwadi Party government shot dead the Kar Sevaks and now it is offering lollipop in the form of a theme park, Katiyar, a BJP member of the Rajya Sabha who once represented Faizabad, the district where Ayodhya is located, in Parliament, said. Mann ban chuka hai, mahaul ban chuka hai (we have made up our mind, a conducive atmosphere has also been created). The beginning has been made and we have got the directives from Ram Lala, Sharma said, adding, We are the Lords children and so have to do his work of spreading education. Insisting that Ram temple was not on the Modi governments agenda, Sharma said Ayodhyas development will get a big push from the Rs 151 crore allotted for developing the proposed museum, which will present the life of the deity as portrayed in sage Valmikis epic. He said there was no politics behind the proposed museum being constructed as part of the Ramayana Circuit. Similarly Krishna Circuit and Buddhist Circuit were also being developed, Sharma said. He said Ram temple was an issue of faith for millions of people, but it was not on BJPs electoral agenda. The Minister said the government would try to have the museum inaugurated before Uttar Pradesh votes to elect a new government. The Modi government, however, came under attack from the Congress over the issue with party general secretary Digvijay Singh alleging the museum and Ram temple were being raked up with an eye on the assembly election in Uttar Pradesh due early next year. Come election, come Ram Mandir issue. This is what BJP has as a strategy. Nobody is against the temple. I am a practising Hindu, but even Lord Ram would not have wanted a temple in the atmosphere of dispute. BJP has been trying to fool all the people all the time, Singh said. Singh said Modis chant of Jai Shri Ram, Jai Jai Shri Ram at a Dussehra event in Lucknow was obviously intended to polarise Hindu votes in favour of the BJP. However, another Union Minister Sanjeev Balyan claimed there was no attempt at polarisation by constructing a Ramayana museum in Ayodhya. Lord Ram is not an issue linked with polls. Mahesh Sharma has been trying for Ramayana museum for the last year-and-a-half. If not a Ram musuem, will a Babur (Mughal emperor) museum come up there, Balyan, an accused in the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots case, said. About Katiyars demand for building a Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya, he said,The matter is pending with the court, nothing will happen without its verdict. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Los Angeles: Actress Kerry Washington and husband Nnamdi Asomugha have welcomed their second child together. The 39-year-old actress gave birth to baby boy, Caleb Kelechi Asomugha, on October 5, reported E! online. Washington's second pregnancy was confirmed in May, after her baby bump was on display while attending the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner in Washington, DC. The couple are already parents to daughter Isabelle. Washington hasn't posted about her new son on social media. For all the Latest Entertainment News, Hollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: With various film bodies imposing a ban on Pakistan actors after the Uri attack, government Wednesday said people-to-people contact would continue and there was no plan to stop it. This was conveyed by Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs during discussions on Indo-Pak relations with a specific reference to surgical strikes across the LoC on September 29. People-to-people contact would continue and there was no plan to stop it, he told the panel. ALSO READ: (Only military will know if the cross-LoC surgical strikes took place in the past: FS Jaishankar) In the aftermath of the Uri terror attack last month in which 19 Indian jawans were killed, the MNS issued an ultimatum to Pakistani artistes to leave India. They also threatened to stop the screening of films featuring artistes from Pakistan. Subsequently, Indian Motion Pictures Producers Association passed a motion to ban the artistes from the neighbouring country. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India recently decided not to screen the films with Pakistani actors in four statesMaharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Raipur: Chhattisgarh Congress on Wednesday suspended its rebel MLA R K Rai for "anti-party" activities but that did not deter him from making "derogatory" remarks against Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi. The decision to suspend Rai, considered a supporter of Chhattisgarh Janata Congress Party chief Ajit Jogi, was taken by Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee (CPCC) at a meeting of its Coordination Committee. Also Read: Nitish Kumar suitable to replace Narendra Modi as PM, says JD(U) leader KC Tyagi "With the unanimous decision of the members of Coordination Committee, Rai has been suspended from the party," AICC General Secretary in-charge of Chhattisgarh B KHariprasad told reporters after the meeting. The panel also recommended to the party's centraldisciplinary committee that the MLA from Gunderdehi be dismissed from Congress, he added. Hariprasad asserted Congress will fight the 2018 Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh under the leadership of the party's state chief Bhupesh Baghel and legislature party leader TSSinghdeo. Meanwhile, Rai welcomed the decision and said the action was taken against him for speaking against Rahul. "I was told the action has been taken against me for making comments against Rahul Gandhi (in the past). I can'tcall a donkey a horse. If the party feels my observation is wrong then either it is blind or (is) acting like a blind person," a defiant Rai said in a statement. "I am not at all sad with the move because I am a true and vocal tribal representative. I am free now," said the legislator, adding the decision has once again exposed the"anti-tribal" face of Congress. Chhattisgarh Congress had issued a show cause notice to Rai last week for "anti-party" activities and publicly making statements against the party. The police officer-turned-politician is said to be astaunch supporter of Jogi, who floated his own party after quitting Congress in June this year. Jogi had brought Rai into politics and helped him ingetting a ticket from Gunderdehi seat in the 2013 Assemblypolls. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Bhubaneswar: Four officials including the Superintendent of the private hospital, where a major fire claimed 20 lives, were arrested Wednesday after the Odisha government filed two FIRs alleging negligence in conduct and safety against the healthcare facility. Those arrested are Superintendent of Sum Hospital, Pushpraj Samantsinghar, Electrical Maintenance Engineer Amulya Sahu, Fire Safety Officer Santosh Das and Junior Electrical Engineer Malay Sahu, said Commissioner of Police Y B Khurania. Khurania said the officials were arrested on the basis of the preliminary inquiry report of the fire officer and the FIR filed by the Fire Services department at the Khandagiri police station where a case in this regard has been registered today. The four were booked under Sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 285 (negligent conduct with respect to fire and combustible materials) and 34 (common intent) of the IPC, Khurania said. Meanwhile, Director General of Fire Service, Binay Behera submitted a report to the state government on the fire that ravaged parts of the private hospital last night in which 20 people died and many were injured. Behera in his report has mentioned that fire safety norms as per the 2013 guidelines were not followed by the hospital authorities, an official said. A senior police official said more arrests in the case cannot be ruled out at this stage. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Chennai: Finance Minister O Panneerselvam, who has been allocated the portfolios held by ailing Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, will preside over a meeting of the Tamil Nadu cabinet Wednesday, government sources said Tuesday. Panneerselvam will chair the meeting as Jayalalithaa is undergoing medical treatment at the Apollo Hospital here since September 22. The meeting to be held Wednesday comes in the backdrop of the ongoing Cauvery water sharing row with Karnataka and demands by Opposition parties for an all-party meeting on the issue. Farmers bodies and political parties had staged state-wide rail blockade yesterday and today urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Management Board. Last week, Tamil Nadu Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao had allotted the portfolios held by Jayalalithaa including Home and Police, to Panneerselvam, till she could resume official duties. The Raj Bhavan had then, in a release, said Paneerselvam, who holds the Administrative reforms portfolio, in addition to Finance, will also preside over cabinet meetings. 68-year-old Jayalalithaa was admitted to the Apollo hospital on September 22 after she complained of fever and dehydration. A specialist from London besides three-member team of doctors from AIIMS, Delhi, had also examined Jayalalithaa, who is being treated for infection with respiratory support. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Johannesburg: South African struggle icon and husband of Mahatma Gandhi's grand daughter Mewa Ramgobin has died at the age of 83 after a prolonged illness. Ramgobin, the former president of the Natal Indian Congress which fought discrimination against Indians in South Africa, breathed his last at a Cape Town hospital on Monday. A family member said he was admitted to hospital on October 8 and was doing well until two days ago. Ramgobin was married to Ela Gandhi, a human rights activist and Mahatma Gandhi's granddaughter. A former African National Congress member of Parliament until 2009, he was among the first supporters of the Release Mandela campaign. He was charged for treason in 1985. The couple was involved in the activities of the Phoenix Settlement Trust that was established in 1904 by Gandhi near Durban during his tenure in South Africa. Just hours before Ramgobin's death, Ela had departed for Sweden with one of their daughters Asha who is due to receive an honorary degree there. Their son Kidar said family members were meeting to discuss funeral arrangements, as his mother and sister were due to return only on Sunday. Ramgobin's role in politics started in his teenage years,and continued when he enrolled at the University of Natal. He was among the first to join the Release Mandela Campaign after the infamous treason trial that sent Nelson Mandela to prison for 27 years before he became South Africa's first democratically-elected president. Ramgobin faced intense persecution from apartheid-erasecurity forces which banned him for 17 years, many of those under complete house arrest. He also faced high treason charges after riots broke out in 1994 near the Phoenix Settlement between Indians and the indigenous Zulu community which had lived peacefully side-by side for decades, but was acquitted a year later. Ramgobin's commitment to the Gandhian cause saw him establish a Gandhi museum and library, organising the Annual Gandhi Lecture and educate people from different race groupson Gandhian philosophies. An author of books 'Waiting To Live' and 'Prisms Of Light', he would have turned 84 on November 10. In 1983, Ramgobin made international headlines when he and five other members of the resistance movement United Democratic Front sought refuge in the British consulate. After Mandela's election, Ramgobin served for several years in the first Parliament of South Africa that was not exclusively white as in the apartheid years. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: In a whopping deal of around $2 billion, India is all set to acquire a second class Akula 2 nuclear-powered attack submarine from Russia. According to reports, the deal remains unannounced so far which was finalised and signed in Goa between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with other defence deals worth more than $5 billion which have been made public. The submarine will arrive in Indian waters by 2020-21. Our Indian Navy already operates an Akula 2 class nuclear submarine, INS Chakra (formerly known as K-152 Nerpa), which was leased from Russia. Earlier, there were reports that India was keen on leasing the much more advanced Project 885 Yasen Class nuclear attack submarine, the newest class of submarine in Russias arsenal. ALSO READ: (INS Arihant: All you need to know about India's indigenous nuclear submarine) About Akula class 2 #The Akula class 2 submarine is nuclear powered and considered one of the most advanced. Akula 2 is among the quietest submarines to have been built by Russia. #Akula is armed with torpedoes and cruise missiles, it can strike enemy ships, submarines and also targets on the land. #The second Akula submarine which is being leased from Russia is likely to be based in Visakhapatnam. #It will have two roles- defending India's fleet of nuclear powered ballistic missile submarines and to track Chinese nuclear powered attack submarines which are increasingly frequent visitors to the Indian Ocean. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: India would look to continue its winning spree when they take on New Zealand in the second match of the ODI series at Feroz Shah Kotla,Delhi on Thursday. The hosts would come into the match with a lot of confidence after their comprehensive win over the Kiwis in the opener at Dharamsala. Limited over captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni who has been under the scanner for his batting, shall be looking for yet another win from his team. Dhoni who quite relished his new role of playing high up the order in Dharamsala ODI shall look to contribute with the willow too. Meanwhile, Virat Kohli would eye another smashing knock at his home ground when favourites India lock horns with an hapless New Zealand in the second ODI. It may be just another ODI in a bilateral series, but there is lot at stake for Dhoni, who has been under pressure after Test skipper Virat Kohli led India to the number one ranking following a 3-0 whitewash. With India up 1-0 in the five-match series, Dhoni and his men would like to reassert themselves at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium in order to further consolidate their lead. It is expected that Dhoni would not tinker much with theplaying XI from last game with Suresh Raina, who missed theopening match, being ruled out of the second ODI as well afterfailing to recover from a bout of viral fever. At the face of it, there is apparently no danger toDhoni's captaincy since the team is still winning matches. Butif one digs deeper, Virat has slowly and surely been the maneveryone is looking forward to as a leader. A 'Clean Sweep' in Test series with a career-best doublehundred, followed by an effortless 85 Not out in first ODI,Kohli has time and again showed as to how it is done "leadingfrom the front." For Dhoni, it's now about showing the world that he isfar from being dubbed as a spent force in limited overs afterearning sobriquet of 'Best Finisher" some years back. While Kane Williamson's 'Black Caps' is struggling tostay afloat in the series, India's 'Captain Cool' is fightinga different battle to remain the 'supreme' commander' of 'MenIn Blue'. Dhoni is still supremely fit and agile behind the stumps.His captaincy acumen cannot be questioned. Testimony to thatis Hardik Pandya opening the bowling and Kedar Jadhav fillingin the role of a part time off-spinner. But then runs aren't exactly coming from his bat. The bighits aren't being executed with perfection that used to be hishallmark a few years ago. He was run out for 21 in the last game and although thatdidn't affect the outcome of the match in any way, but theskipper knows only too well that he has to play a few impact innings in coming weeks. No wonder Dhoni's intensity while batting at Kotla netsduring an optional session was there to be seen. For therecord, he needs another 61 runs to complete 9000 ODI runs.But there must be a lingering shadow of Virat standing rightbehind him. A 3-0 Test series victory has set a benchmark. Now Dhoniwould like to ideally win the series 5-0 against a New Zealand side. A blip here or a hiccup there would invite morecriticism as people take it for granted that India will winhands down against New Zealand. New Delhi: Indian auto major Tata Motors has increased prices of its passenger vehicles by up to Rs 12,000 across models to combat rising input costs. "We have hiked prices of our passenger vehicles by one per cent ranging between Rs 5,000 and Rs 12,000 due to rising input costs," Mayank Pareek, President, Passenger Vehicles Business Unit, Tata Motors, told PTI. He said prices of raw materials such as steel and zinc have gone up prompting the company to take such a step. Tata Motors sells a range of passenger vehicles, including the entry-level small car Nano, newly-launched hatchback Tiago and crossover vehicle Aria, which were priced at a range of Rs 2.15 lakh to Rs 16.3 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). Home-grown rival Mahindra & Mahindra has hiked prices of some of its passenger and small commercial vehicles by up to 1 per cent from this month. In August, Hyundai Motor India had hiked prices by up to Rs 20,000 across its models while Maruti Suzuki India had also done so for its various models by up to Rs 20,000. Bhubaneswar: With the fire incident at the Sum Hospital exposing the chinks in the system, the Odisha government has decided to conduct fire safety audit at all the government-run healthcare facilities across the state. The decision in this regard was taken at a high level meeting presided over by Chief Secretary A P Padhi and attended by secretaries of energy, health departments and director general of fire service Binay Behera. A total of 21 persons died and more than 100 others were injured in the fire that broke out at Sum Hospital on Monday evening. Fire safety audit at government hospitals in district, sub-divisional level and medical colleges would be conducted. The fire safety measures at places particularly with electrical installations will be reviewed. One month time has been given to Energy and Works department to submit their requirements after inspection, Padhi told reporters. Meanwhile, Behera has submitted his report based on an on-field investigation at Sum Hospital. He said that of about 160 health facilities in the state capital, only three or four institutions have availed fire safety permission. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Chennai: For the first time after the Tamil Nadu Governor re-allocated the portfolios of ailing Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, state Finance Minister O Panneerselvam Wednesday presided over a meeting of the state cabinet to discuss, among other matters, the vexed Cauvery issue. Although the government did not release details of the agenda of the meeting, the Cabinet is understood to have deliberated on the ongoing Cauvery water sharing dispute with Karnataka, besides other subjects. The meeting also comes ahead of the scheduled onset of north-east monsoon later this month. The rains in December last year had wreaked havoc, flooding Chennai and nearby districts. Last week, Tamil Nadu Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao had allotted the portfolios including Home held by Jayalalithaa to Panneerselvam, till the time she returned to resume official duties. The government released photographs of todays cabinet meeting, where Panneerselvam was seen seated with a picture of Jayalalithaa placed on his desk. The nearly hour-long meeting was held in the backdrop of the ongoing Cauvery water sharing row with Karnataka and demands by Opposition parties for an all-party meeting on the issue. Farmers bodies and political parties had staged a two-day state-wide rail blockade ending Tuesday, urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Management Board. The Raj Bhavan had last week in a release, said Paneerselvam, who holds the Administrative Reforms portfolio, in addition to Finance, will also preside over cabinet meetings. The last Cabinet meeting held by Jayalalithaa was in July this year to discuss the state budget. 68-year-old Jayalalithaa was admitted to the Apollo hospital on September 22 after she complained of fever and dehydration. A specialist from London besides three-member team of doctors from AIIMS, Delhi, had also examined Jayalalithaa, who is being treated for infection with respiratory support. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Washington: As ISIS sees its territory shrink to half its original size and its dreams of a caliphate evaporate, the extremist fighters are losing access to the sources of revenue that once gave them their power, prompting them to turn to extortion, kidnapping or foreign donations like their predecessors, the militant group al-Qaida. The Islamic State group had a unique ability to capitalize on the natural resources of its territory in Iraq and Syria and swiftly implement a system of taxation and governance that allowed it to rule an area that once was the size of Switzerland. As the battle gets underway to retake Mosul, the group's largest stronghold in Iraq, the Islamic State group is being denied access to revenue sources such as oil and gas and cash reserves that once amounted to more than USD 1 billion in 2014, said Daniel Glaser, the Treasury Department's assistant secretary for terrorist financing. With those resources slipping away, the Islamic State group is expected to revert to "traditional methods we see al-Qaida using whether it's deep-pocket donors, whether it's charities, whether it's NGOs, whether it's criminal activity," Glaser said in a recent discussion at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Beyond oil and gas sales, the Islamic State group also generated some USD 30 million per month in Iraq from taxation and extortion in 2015. Hisham al-Hashimi, an expert on IS who advises the Iraqi government, said the militant group currently makes about USD 4 million per month from taxes in Mosul alone. Al-Hashimi said the group charges a 4 per cent income tax on salaries less than USD 600 per month, and 5 per cent on monthly salaries between USD 600 and USD 1,000. Bank robberies made up the Islamic State group's third biggest source of revenue, mainly in Mosul, where there was more than USD 500 million in state-owned bank vaults when they captured the city in June 2014, but that was "a one-time take for them," Glaser noted, and they are quickly burning through that cash. Glaser says the Islamic State group is under financial duress. Fighter salaries have been cut in half in some areas, including in Raqqa, Syria, its de facto capital. The group also set up an internal corruption agency, suggesting corruption may be a factor, Glaser and al-Hashimi said. To compensate, there's been a noticeable spike in the IS group's revenue from criminal activity, such as extortion the Paris-based Center for the Analysis of Terrorism says extortion accounted for a third of its revenue in 2015, compared to 12 per cent in 2014. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New York: Indian-American hotelier Vikram Chatwal has been charged with criminal mischief for allegedly trying to light two dogs on fire, an allegation his lawyer has denied. Chatwal, 44, had turned himself to the police early yesterday morning and has been charged with criminal mischief, torture and injure animal, reckless endangerment and arson. The charges stem from an October 7 incident in which Chatwal allegedly got into an argument with a woman walking the dogs outside his home in the city. Chatwal, accused of allegedly pulling out a lighter and aerosol can to hurt the two dogs, pleaded not guilty to the charges during his appearance in a Manhattan court yesterday. Chatwals bail was set at USD 50,000 and the next hearing in the case is set for December 8. His attorney Arthur Aidala told PTI that Chatwal denies all the charges and proclaims his innocence. He said he is a non-violent person who would never injure an animal or human being. His personality and disposition in his 44 years is not of somebody who would injure another animal or another human being, Aidala said. He informed the judge that Chatwals personality and disposition is that of a calm, peaceful and non-violent person as Chatwal himself owns many dogs and even takes care of a horse. He is known as being an animal lover. We vehemently disagrees with the set of facts that the prosecutor put forth in court, Aidala said. Aidala said he also informed the judge that the dogs in this case were not hurt and were not even taken to the veterinarian until days after the alleged incident occurred. He said even the case the prosecutor puts forth says that some of the hair on the dogs back was burnt but none of the dogs were burned and neither did they suffer. It was among Chatwals priority to make sure that the dogs in question were unharmed and were well-treated and cared for, Aidala said. The big takeaway from this is that the dogs were never hurt, that was very important to Vikram and his whole family to make sure no one is accusing him of actually hurting the dogs. Even the prosecutor said the dogs were never hurt. What flies in the face of the charges is that Chatwal is just not the kind of person who is going to attack anybody, let alone the dogs walking down the street, he said. Aidala said he would meet with the prosecutors in the coming months and explain to them what really happened. We will try to work out some sort of disposition regarding case, he added. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Hyderabad: Padma Bhushan awardee Michael Ferreira and Former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira and three others have been arrested by Hyderabad Police in connection with an FIR registered against them, they were alleged in multi-crore rupee fraud involving themulti-level marketing company QNet. The Central Crime Station (CCS), a wing of Hyderabad Police, has made a break through in a case of cheating which involved QNet and its Indian subsidiary M/s Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, by arresting four directors of Vihaan,Deputy Commissioner of Police (Detective Department) Avinash Mohanty told reporters. Michael Joseph Ferreira (78), Malcom N Desai, M V Balajiand Srinivas Rao, all directors and shareholders of VihaanDirect Selling India Pvt Ltd who were earlier arrested in Mumbai by Maharashtra Police, have been brought to city on PT (production transit) warrants and arrested, the DCP said. On October 13 last year, a complaint was lodged by one Suman Ghosh, an assistant manager in a private bank,wherein he stated that he paid Rs 16 lakh (via DD) in the name of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, on the promise of getting business. But, they did not give him any business despite collecting the amount. Based on the complaint, a case under sections 406(criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating) of IPC, besides relevant sections of Prize, Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, Mohanty said. He said during the course of investigation into the case registered, on October 8 (this year) they received an information from the EOW wing of Mumbai Police that the four accused persons, who are directors of Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, were arrested and remanded in judicial custody. Subsequently, Hyderabad Police filed an application at a court in Mumbai seeking their custody in connection with the case registered by them. The Mumbai court then granted transit remand and the Hyderabad Police took Padma Bhushan recipient Ferreira and three others into custody and brought them to the city late last night. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Washington: A 37-year-old man, who ripped off a Muslim woman's hijab on a flight while shouting "this is America!", has been sentenced to a year of probation, including two months of home confinement. Gill Parker Payne was also fined USD 1,000 for the attack, according to a statement by the US Attorney's Office in the District of New Mexico. "You hurt me, you disrespected me you violated me," the victim, Khawla Abdel-Haq was quoted as saying in court by the Albuquerque Journal. "I was scared, and it shouldn't be like that," she said, adding that she did not leave her home for weeks out of fear after the in-flight attack last December. Payne, from North Carolina, was sentenced in US District Court yesterday to a year of probation, including two months of home confinement. US Magistrate Judge Steven Yarbrough also ordered Payne to pay a USD 1,000 fine, along with a nearly USD 4,000 fee. In May, Payne had pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of obstructing a person's free exercise of religious beliefs. Payne also apologised during yesterday's hearing and said he has taken online courses to familiarise himself with other religions and recently toured a mosque in hopes of learning more about Islam. "I'm embarrassed. I'm 100 per cent embarrassed," he was quoted as saying. Payne said he was drunk on the flight and "doesn't fully remember everything" that happened. But Abdel-Haq remembers. "I'm not gonna forget it. It's going to be with me every minute of every day of my life," she said. She was sitting in an aisle seat on the Southwest Airlines flight from Chicago to Albuquerque after a trip to Ohio when Payne approached her about 30 minutes before the flight landed, she said. "I was minding my own business. He went and he grabbed my scarf, my hijab, and he told me, 'Take it off... This is America,'" she said of the incident. A shaken Haq pulled the scarf back onto her head. She met with police after the flight landed, and the FBI launched an investigation. Before he announced the sentence, Yarbrough said he had taken into account Haq's willingness to forgive along with the public shaming Payne endured and his recent efforts to learn about world religions. "I hope that that has made an impact on the way you see the world," Yarbrough said. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Mumbai: Rejecting filmmaker Karan Johars statement that he will not engage with talent from Pakistan in future, the MNS on Wednesday protested outside a cinema hall while asserting that it will not allow Ae Dil Hai Mushkil to be screened in single theatres and multiplexes. Four MNS film wing workers were later detained by police after they protested outside the Metro cinema hall in South Mumbai, asking the management not to hold any show of movie Ae Dil Hai Mushkil which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. The MNS activists were raising slogans outside the Metro theatre for some time. The police asked them to carry it out peacefully but they were not in a mood to listen to us. We have detained four MNS workers so far, a police officer from Azad Maidan police station said. Seeking to assuage tempers over opposition to the release of his directorial venture, Johar had yesterday made a fervent appeal against stalling the release, saying he will not engage with talent from Pakistan. However, the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) today said reality has dawned late on Johar. MNS cine wing head Amey Khopkar, after a meeting with senior party leaders and Raj Thackeray, told PTI that they were firm on opposing the release. We will not allow the film to be screened in single screens and multiplexes. Reality has dawned late on the producer, Khopkar said. The MNS protested outside Metro cinema he said, adding that such protests will be held at all cinema halls. The MNS and some other political parties have opposed release of films with actors from Pakistan after the Uri terror attack, putting a question mark on the fate of Johars movie, slated for a pre-Diwali release on October 28. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India too decided not to screen films with Pakistani actors in four statesMaharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. Johars film starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is facing trouble for Pakistani actor Fawad Khans extended cameo. A team from Johars Dharma Productions along with filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt and Vijay Singh of Fox Star Studios had yesterday met Mumbais top police officials and sought protection for the theatres to screen the film. Assuring all help from their end, Deputy Commissioner of Police Ashok Dudhe had said, Mumbai police will provide adequate protection to cinema theatres as and when required." For all the Latest Entertainment News, Bollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Rajasthan government has filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the acquittal of actor Salman Khan in two poaching cases. They have requested SC to order Salman Khan to surrender in the poaching case. State government wants Salman to serve his remaining sentence, after being convicted for hunting and killing the chinkaras. Earlier in July, the high court overturned two trial court verdicts that handed the actor one and five years imprisonment and found him not guilty for killing an endangered species of gazelle or chinkara. Salman has spent 13 days behind bars. The actor was shooting for the film Hum Saath Saath Hain at that time. Two cases against Salman black-buck hunting and possessing illegal arms are still being tried at trial courts in the state. For all the Latest Entertainment News, Bollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav onA A written a letter to Samajwadi Party chief and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav and announced his decision to embark on 'Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra' alone from November 3. In a letter written to party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, the Chief Minister expressed disappointment over not starting aSamajwadi Vikas Rath Yatraa on its slated date.A The aYatraa is part of party campaign for the next assembly election in 2017.A #AkhileshYadav writes a letter to Samajwadi Party chief and his father #MulayamSinghYadav to embark on 'Samajwadi Vikas Rath Yatra' pic.twitter.com/GM88aHoKls a News Nation (@NewsNationTV) October 19, 2016 A The CM has mentioned that all the other parties have already started their election campaign. A He also said that the detailed itinerary will be sent to all the heads of districts and party workers at an appropriate time.A The announcement gave rise to speculation that Akhilesh might skip his party's silver jubilee celebrations which begins in Lucknow from November 5. Party insiders said any attempt to derail or stop him from going ahead with the Yatra could lead to another crisis in the party. Earlier in the day, Akhilesh Yadav and Shivpal Yadav held a closed-door meeting at Mulayam Singh Yadav's Vikramaditya Marg residence to discuss poll strategy. According to party sources, Akhilesh is adamant on his demands of revoking the expulsion of youth leaders, some of whom are MLCs, and having his say in the ticket distribution.A Akhilesh had earlier announced his decision to take out the yatra from October 3 through his twitter handle with a picture in which he was seen sitting inside a bus. It was seen as a move to counter uncle Shivpal, who had been appointed the new state party president in his place. Akhilesh hit back over his removal from the party post by stripping Shivpal of his key ministerial portfolios, bringing the family feud in the open. (With PTI inputs) For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Mumbai: Beverages major Coca Cola India has dropped Bollywood superstar Salman Khan as brand ambassador for its soft drink Thums Up after four years of association and the company is in talks with young star Ranveer Singh to replace him. The contract with Khan had expired last month and the company has chosen not to renew it, according to industry sources. When contacted, Coca Cola India declined to comment. The companys decision to not to renew the contract with the 50-year-old actor is more to do with the image of Coca Cola, which is seen as a young brand, a source said. That explains why Coca Cola is talking to a much younger star like Ranveer Singh, the source added. Khan has been among the top celebrity endorsers reportedly charging Rs 5 crore per year per brand. Recently, he had courted controversy when he supported Pakistani artists saying they were not terrorists in the wake of a debate on whether they should be allowed to work in Indian movies after the Uri attack. Coca Cola India had roped in Khan as its brand ambassador for the second time to endorse its Thums Up brand in October 2012 replacing another Bollywood star Akshay Kumar. He had earlier endorsed the brand in early 2000s. At that time, Coca-Cola India had also signed an agreement with Being HumanThe Salman Khan Foundationto jointly promote, conceive and execute charitable and social activities. For all the Latest Entertainment News, Bollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Sambhal: BSP national general secretary Naseemuddin Siddiqui on Wednesday cautioned the Muslims against SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav describing him as more dangerous than Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Muslims, you all need to be wary of Mulayam Singh Yadav...he is more dangerous than Narendra Modi...during Modis term as chief minister of Gujarat, 42 Muslims were killed in the Godhra riots, while 187 of them were killed in the Muzaffarnagar riots (in Uttar Pradesh) under the SP government, he said at the BSPs Bhaichara Committee meeting here. Muslims, if you dislike Modi so much, why dont you dislike Mulayam? Siddiqui asked, adding that the community had been voting for Mulayam for 25 years but what had he given to them in return. Mulayam remembers the minorities only at election times but after that, they are forgotten...all the parties, be it the Congress or the SP, have used Muslims as a vote-bank, alleged the BSP leader. Siddiqui said riots did not take place on their own but were instigated. Both the SP and the BJP instigate riots as part of a conspiracy for their political gains, he alleged. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Mumbai: R Madhavan and Dia Mirza, the much loved couple Maddy-Reena from "Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mei", meet for a special photo shoot on completion of 15 years of their hit romantic film. The duo recreated the film's official poster and Madhavan shared the new version on his Twitter page, much to the delight of the fans. "And a recreation of the poster.. how gorgeous does @deespeak still look..#15yearsofRHTDM," Madhavan tweeted. And a recreation of the poster.. how gorgeous does @deespeak still look..#15yearsofRHTDM . pic.twitter.com/UVMee2CYH3 a Ranganathan Madhavan (@ActorMadhavan) October 19, 2016 The picture showed Madhavan resting his face on Dia's head as the two pose for the photo, looking as dreamy as the original poster. Replying to his tweet, his co-star posted, "He is as charming as ever :) @ActorMadhavan Reena will always love Maddy. #15YearsOfRHTDM." "Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein", released in 2001, was written-directed by Gautham Menon and also starred Saif Ali Khan. It followed a Mumbai boy, Maddy, who does not believe inthe idea of love until he meets Reena. Soon, he learns that Reena is set to marry Rajeev Samra, an old friend who is now an NRI. After he gets to know that Reena doesn't know how her friend looks like now, Maddy pretends to be Rajeev to woo her. The love triangle was backed by melodious music. The film wasn't successful at the box-office but over the years made its place in the youth's heart for its endearing love story. R Madhavan and Dia Mirza, the much loved couple Maddy-Reena from "Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mei", meet for a special photo shoot on completion of 15 years of their hit romantic film. The duo recreated the film's official poster and Madhavan shared the new version on his Twitter page, much to the delight of the fans. "And a recreation of the poster.. how gorgeous does @deespeak still look..#15yearsofRHTDM," Madhavan tweeted. The picture showed Madhavan resting his face on Dia's head as the two pose for the photo, looking as dreamy as the original poster. Replying to his tweet, his co-star posted, "He is as charming as ever :) @ActorMadhavan Reena will always love Maddy. #15YearsOfRHTDM." "Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein", released in 2001, was written-directed by Gautham Menon and also starred Saif Ali Khan. It followed a Mumbai boy, Maddy, who does not believe inthe idea of love until he meets Reena. Soon, he learns that Reena is set to marry Rajeev Samra, an old friend who is now an NRI. After he gets to know that Reena doesn't know how her friend looks like now, Maddy pretends to be Rajeev to woo her. The love triangle was backed by melodious music. The film wasn't successful at the box-office but over the years made its place in the youth's heart for its endearing love story. For all the Latest Entertainment News, Bollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Government will soon bring a bill that seeks decriminalisation of beggary and aims to offer a life of dignity by rehabilitating beggars and homeless people. Social Justice Ministry has prepared a draft on 'The Persons in Destitution (Protection, Care and Rehabilitation) Model Bill, 2016' which aims to offer a life of dignity to the beggars and homeless and others who live in poverty or abandonment. The ministry on Wednesday organised a pre-legislative consultation meeting with representatives from states and UTs to seek their opinion. "The Bill will provide protection, care, support, shelter, training and other services to all persons in destitution. The approach of the Ministry towards addressing the problem of destitution and beggary is rehabilitative rather than punitive," Social Justice Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot said while chairing the meeting. Expressing concern on the rise in number of destitutes, Gehlot asked all stakeholders to share their views and suggestions for the eradication of poverty. The Ministry has drafted a model legislation for the persons in destitution on the basis of recommendations that emerged from the National Consultation Meetings held with state representatives, experts in the field of beggary, Social Justice Secretary Anita Agnihotri said. Objective of the Bill is to provide protection, care, support, training and other services to persons in destitution and for establishing agencies to further the objectives identified there under, she added. At present there is no law at the centre level for begging and destitutes. While most of the states have adopted Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, 1959 or modelled their law on it. Beggary is criminalized under Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, 1959. Its aim is to eradicating beggary. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Dhaka: A leading pro-left civil society group appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday to scrap a deal with Bangladesh for building a coal-fired power plant near the fragile Sundarbans even as UNESCO warned against the project it says threatens the worlds largest mangrove forest. We have sent the Indian premier an open letter reiterating our demand to scrap the Rampal power project to save the Sundarbans through the Indian High Commission in Dhaka, National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral, Resources, Power and Ports spokesman Anbu Mohammad said. He said the letter was sent as construction process of the plant being built with Indian assistance near the World Heritage Site of Sundarbans was underway despite widespread criticism and protest from national and international experts and general public. Witnesses said police allowed five representatives of the group to hand over their letter to the High Commission as over 200 activists marched towards the mission at upmarket Gulshan diplomatic enclave. The protesters submitted the letter a day after police stopped them on their way to the Indian mission. The UNs culture and science agency UNESCO, meanwhile, issued a second statement in the past month yesterday urging Bangladesh to halt construction of the huge coal-fired power plant reiterating its fears that it posed a serious threat to the delicate ecosystem of the Sundarbans forest. The Sundarbans in Bangladesh is part of the worlds largest mangrove forests, home to the famous Bengal Tiger and a hotspot for dolphins, turtles, and birds. Millions of people depend on this labyrinth of tidal rivers for food, homes, and flood protection, the UNESCO statement read. It added, The proposed Rampal power plant, a 1,320 megawatt super-thermal power plant located just 65 kilometres from the World Heritage property, poses a serious threat to the site. UNSECO identified pollution from coal ash by air, pollution from wastewater and waste ash, increased shipping and dredging, and the cumulative impact of industrial and related development infrastructure as four key concerns related to the plants construction. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina earlier denounced protests against the proposed coal-fired power plant. Let me tell you one thing, I would have been the first person to oppose the power plant had there been the slightest chance of damage to the Sundarbans, she had said. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Private sector Axis Bank on Wednesday said there was no loss to its customers from the recent cyber attack. The malware attack was detected in time and was duly informed to the regulator RBI, Axis Bank said in a statement. The bank's internal monitoring mechanism identified such a threat recently and all steps have been undertaken to neutralise the same, it said. "We stay committed to our customers and it is always been our endeavour to ensure that our customers' interests are always protected. There has been no loss to our customers," it added. As a responsible financial institution, it said, the bank proactively communicate potential threats to the regulator to maintain broader systemic integrity. Meanwhile, SBI and its subsidiary banks blocked about 6 lakh debit cards due to a malware-related security breach as part of precautionary measures after being informed of potential risks to those cards. In July, state-owned Union Bank of India was also hit by cyber attack but successfully averted the theft from USD Nostro account. Union Bank went for a cyber security forensic audit to identify and plug gaps, if any. Last month, in a meeting with head of public sector banks, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley discussed issues related with cyber security and measures to strengthening cyber security. With instances of cyber attack rising, the Reserve Bank also in its bi-monthly policy said it has decided to increase its supervisory coverage on IT risks for banks with an aim to eventually cover all the lenders. RBI had started a special supervision of banks cyber security last year on a pilot basis in which it had covered a few largest banks. The RBI is also in the process of setting up a dedicated IT subsidiary which may help with such issues. New Delhi: A Delhi Police team will be visiting Mumbai to arrest national-level kabaddi player Rohit Kumar, whose wife Lalita had allegedly committed suicide on October 17 accusing her husband and in-laws for mental and physical harassment in west Delhi's Nangloi area. "Rohit is in the naval services in Mumbai. Two teams have been formed to arrest Rohit and his parents. One team is heading to Mumbai to arrest Rohit, who represents Bengaluru Bulls in the Pro-Kabaddi League, while the other team is conducting raids at places where his parents are likely to be found," a senior police officer said. During investigation, it was found that Rohit's father, Vijay Singh, had worked in the Delhi Police as a sub-inspector and was dismissed from his service, police said. 27-year-old Lalita had left behind a two-hour long audio message and a 25-minute long video in which she claimed that her in-laws "harrased" her for minor issues. "In the video and audio messages she left behind on her phone, she said that her in-laws were quite conservative and would often taunt her for her "modern" outlook and things like 'pallu' falling from her head and other minor things. She also said that while Rohit was away in Mumbai, they kept her in Delhi," the officer said. In her suicide note and messages, she alleged that on October 15, Rohit told her that if she "goes away" from his life, he would be very happy. He dropped her halfway to her home and left, she alleged. She said the act of Rohit was traumatic for her, police said. Police is likely to arrest Rohit and his family soon, the officer said. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: The students of Jawaharlal Nehru University, led by the JNU Students' Union, blocked the entrances of the administrative block on Wednesday afternoon alleging that the administration has acted in insensitive manner regarding missing first year MSc student Najeeb Ahmed. We have been confined in a wrong manner. We have made all possible endeavors in searching the missing student Najeeb, said Vice Chancellor Jagdish Kumar. However, the president of JNU student council Mohit Pandey has denied the reports of VC being confined. We have not confined anybody. Instead, we have sent foods for them, he added. Meanwhile Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday spoke to Delhi Police Commissioner Alok Kumar Verma on JNU missing Student case. Earlier, due to violence at Mahi-Mandvi hostel on October 14, JNU administration summoned 12 students to depose before the proctorial committee. Najeeb Ahmad, pursuing MSc in Biotechnology from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student and an AISA activist had gone missing under mysterious circumstances, police said on Sunday. Najeeb Ahmad, was a resident of room 106 of Mahi/Mandavi hostel, has been missing since Sunday allegedly after an altercation with a few students on Saturday night, they added. A case under section 365 (kidnapping with intent secretly and wrong fully to confine person) of IPC has been registered at the Vasant Kunj North police station on the basis of a complaint by his parents, police said. An AISA activist said Najeeb, who joined the hostel a fortnight ago, had an altercation with some ABVP activists on Saturday night when they were holding a door-to-door campaign at the hostel for the mess committee election. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Patna: The Patna High Court on Wednesday granted bail to Rocky Yadav, the son of a suspended JD(U) MLC, in a case of killing a youth in Gaya over road rage. Chief iustice Iqbal A Ansari granted bail to Rocky Yadav in the case in which Aditya Sachdeva, son of a Gaya businessman, was shot dead in May this year. Rocky Yadav is son of suspended JD-U MLC Manorma Devi and a historysheeter Bindi Yadav. Rocky's lawyer Y V Giri argued that there is no direct evidence of his client's involvement in the incident. Opposing the bail plea, government advocate Dilip Kumar Sinha told the court that Rocky Yadav was the main accused in the case. After hearing arguments the court granted bail to Rocky Yadav. Rocky is accused of shooting class XI student Aditya Sachdeva on May 7 following an altercation over overtaking. His parents, who were accused of sheltering him, were recently enlarged on bail. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: In the wake of a major fire mishap at a private hospital in Bhubaneswar, AIIMS, which has witnessed two small fire incidents this year, today reviewed its fire safety measures and preparedness. Following a review meeting with all the officials of Delhi Fire Service, AIIMS Engineering Wing, Fire Supervisors and Security Personnel, the Deputy Director Administration of the AIIMS V Srinivas said, AIIMS fire preparedness is in accordance with the provisions of the Delhi Fire Services Act. The premier institute has witnessed two small electrical fires this year, both of which were due to UPS cables catching fire. The fires were extinguished and no major loss to property was reported, the AIIMS said in a statement. The recommendations made by the CISF in their Fire Preparedness Study of AIIMS have been fully implemented. There are 30 trained fire officers and supervisors deployed at the Main Hospital and various centres. Fire systems are well maintained and on auto-mode. All fire exists are fully operational. The fire supervisors have trained over 4,000 faculty, non-faculty and nursing personnel in 2016, the statement said. The Centre for Medical Education and Training AIIMS has conducted training programmes for 700 newly-recruited nurses on fire preparedness, it added. Monthly fire preparedness exercises are being held in the main hospital and centres. The main hospital and centres would also be undertaking evacuation drills in October to further enhance their preparedness, it said. To address the electrical fires at the institute and centres, Srinivas said thermal scanning and thermal imaging audits have been conducted. Cables where temperatures increase are immediately detected in the process. All panels having loose wires have been checked. Fire safety circulars have been issued to all faculty and laboratory in-charges, he said. Delhi Fire Service has advised some improvements in fire safety operations for the Jaiprkaash Narayan Apex Trauma Centre and Dr Rajendra Prasad Centre for Ophthalmic Studies with regard to installation of smoke management systems and sprinkler automisation, he said. These shortcomings would be rectified in the next 10 days. The institute also said that over 2,000 fire extinguishers installed in all patient care areas, teaching blocks, residential areas are well maintained, fully functional and available on auto-mode, it said. New Delhi: Bollywood actors are always excited to promote their films or shows. And why would they not be. They have done hard work and dedicated their days and months to the film. Actors have now left behind the age-old ways of promotions and have headed towards experimenting some new. Want to know which Bollywood actress has come up with a new way to promote her upcoming movie? Well Alia Bhatt posted a video to SRK on October 17, complaining about the Monday Blues, on Twitter. This unconventional way of indicating the release of teaser of Dear Zindagi on October 19, by Alia is being appreciated by the audience. Alia asked her mentor, the question almost everyone has been asking since student life, Why can Mondays never be happy? to which King Khan, who is currently shooting in Budapest for Imtiaz Alis The Ring said, Monday is the punishment for the good weekend that we had, but I promise you a wonderful Wednesday. And the questionnaire went on and Alia showing her impatience further asked for something she could get on Wednesday. And in a reply to Alia, Shah Rukh gave a sneak peek of Dear Zindagi poster. And so his Wednesdays gift came in as the first teaser of their Upcoming film Dear Zindagi For all the Latest Entertainment News, Bollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. #nuclear power plant S. Korea, Poland sign MOU on nuclear power plant project South Korea and Poland signed an agreement Monday to jointly push for a plan to build a nuclear power plant in the European nation, raising hopes for Seoul's first nuclear power pl... #KBO Battle of homegrown aces set in Korean Series opener Two of the best homegrown pitchers in South Korean baseball this season will go head-to-head to open the championship series Tuesday. The SSG Landers will host the Kiwoom Heroes... Turkey blocks major filesharing websites in attempt to control email leaks Hillary Clintons campaign manager may want to try stealing a page from the Turkish governments playbook. Censorship monitoring group Turkey Blocks has reported that cloud storage websites and applications, such as Google Drive and Dropbox, have been blocked in the country. The reason, Turkey Blocks surmises, is due to a recent email leak performed by the hacktivist group Redhack. The emails reportedly belong to Berat Albayrak, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources and son-in-law of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In total, there were over 57,623 emails contained in the 17 gigabyte hack. The emails reveal how Erdogan used his power to suppress and shape the media, particularly what is published in pro-government newspapers. If this sounds familiar, a similar tactic was used by top members of the Democratic National Convention to sabotage the Bernie Sanders campaign. An email leak earlier this year brought this to light and resulted in the resignations of four officials, including chairperson Debbie Wassermen Schultz. Redhack, a Marxist hacker collective, threatened to release the information contained in the emails if political prisoner allies were not released from pre-trial detention. In response, the Turkish government chose instead to ban all news coverage of the hack and asked Twitter to intervene on their behalf. Twitter almost immediately agreed and soon after users attempting to access the Redhack account were greeted with a message stating that the account had been suspended. It wasnt long after the Redhack deadline had passed that the information within in the emails began to drop. This has been a rather eventful year for Turkey. Earlier this year, a failed military coup resulted in the imprisonment or suspension of roughly 50,000 soldiers, police, judges and teachers. A week later, 294,548 emails from the Justice and Development Party that had been obtained by WikiLeaks prior to the coup were made public due to the governments reaction to the attempted coup. Going further back, Thomas White, an activist from the United Kingdom, obtained and distributed a large amount of personal information belonging to Turkish police officers. As has become the standard in situations such as this, White, who also goes by the handle The Cthulhu, had his site blocked by the Turkish government. In that incident Twitter did not comply with a request for content to be removed from Whites account, although as recent events have shown it doesnt take long for a government with too much power to bend any organization to their will. Sources: TheNextWeb.com TurkeyBlocks.org Submit a correction >> This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate BRIDGEWATER Town officials will ask the public on Saturday about plans to fix the Grange Hall, an old civic building that was donated to the town in disrepair. No vote will be taken at the 10 a.m. hearing at the Burnham School, 80 Main St. South. First Selectman Curtis Read said it will be informational, explaining several moving parts, including a possible sale of town land, the potential purchase of land behind the Grange for a septic system and the feasibility of renovating the Grange or building a new facility on the site. The Grange, built nearly a century ago and donated to the town in 1999, has several problems. It has lead paint throughout, rotten wooden doors, asbestos, slanted floors, and potentially a failing foundation. According to a structural engineer the town hired in 2015: The building is in very poor structural condition, fails to accommodate the handicapped, has non-code-compliant kitchens and several foundation problems. To further asses the structural integrity of the building, the town has hired architects and engineers from the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation with $4,200 which was matched by the trust to evaluate historical significance and concerns, Read said. In 2016, the town found more problems with the Grange. An oil tank, abandoned around 2000, had leaked. In April, the town removed pounds of oil-soaked soil. Read said he is unsure whether the town should renovate the building or just build a new one. He has heard expensive estimates for renovation, he said, so he leans toward just building new. Any changes to the Grange would create the need for a new septic system, Read said. And behind the Grange are two acres of empty land owned by St. Marks Church. The town has looked into buying that property with money it could make from the sale of four acres of town land along Lake Lillinonah. Read said he is looking forward to Saturdays hearing. I want some feedback from people, he said. I want to know if they think its a good or a bad idea to build new. Saturdays presentation from the town can be found here: http://www.bridgewatertownhall.org/Pages/bridgewaterct_webdocs/grange.pdf blytton@hearstmediact.com; 203-731-3411; @bglytton Rohingya Islamist group blamed for border attacks has Pakistan links Bangladesh,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Terrorism, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Dhaka, Oct 19 (IANS) Myanmar has blamed a little known Rohingya Islamist group with links with the Pakistan Taliban for the recent spate of attacks on outposts along the Myanmar-Bangladesh border, a media report said on Wednesday. A statement from the office of Myanmar's President Htin Kyaw has blamed the little-known "Aqa Mul Mujahideen" for the recent attacks around Maungdaw township, a mainly Muslim area near the border with Bangladesh. Nine Myanmar policemen were killed in the attack and eight attackers were gunned down on October 8 in Maungdaw. The AMM is headed by Hafiz Tohar, a 45-year-old Rohingya from Maungdaw's Kyauk Pyin Seik village in Myanmar, bdnews24 reported. According to Myanmar intelligence, Tohar was trained by the Pakistan Taliban for six months, after which he returned to the Rakhine state to recruit young Rohingyas. Bdnews24 quoted Indian intelligence agencies as saying that Tohar's group has grown out of the Harkat-ul-Jihad Islami-Arakaan (HUJI-A). The HUJI-A chief is Abdus Qadoos Burmi, a Pakistani national of Rohingya origin, who recruited Tohar, 45, and arranged for his training in Pakistan. Qadoos Burmi is reported to be close to the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) headed by Hafiz Sayeed. He developed the HUJI-A network in Bangladesh, using the remote hills on the border with Myanmar, where coverage by Bangladesh security forces was at best limited. After training a few promising recruits in Pakistan, they were sent to set up bases on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, where new Rohingya recruits were trained in combat techniques and use of explosives. Bdnews24 quoted senior Indian intelligence officials as saying that in July 2012, JuD and LeT started Difa-e-Musalman-e-Arakaan conference in Pakistan to highlight the Rohingya cause. Indian officials say Rohingya militants could be used to disturb the Myanmar-Bangladesh border zone not only by staging attacks inside Myanmar but also by forging close links with jihadi groups in both Bangladesh and India. --IANS sm/rn/vt 'Hitler's birth home to be made unrecognizable' United States,Politics, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Vienna, Oct 19 (IANS) The Austrian minister who announced on Monday that the home Adolf Hitler was born in would be demolished, appears to have backtracked somewhat, now saying the goal is merely to strip it of any recognition. Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka told the cabinet on Tuesday that the house in Braunau am Inn in the state of Upper Austria should have its exterior changed such that it is "not recognisable", Xinhua news agency reported. Whether this can be defined as "demolition" or not is open for discussion, he contended. An expert commission assembled for the purpose of deciding what to do with the building recommended it be used for either governmental administrative or charitable purposes, such as to provide services for disabled persons. It did not recommend the building itself be torn down, but rather undergo a "far-reaching architectural transformation" to remove its recognition value and "symbolic power". Sobotka thanked the commission for its input, and reiterated his stance that the building should not be used by Neo-Nazis as a memorial site or gathering point, or in any way show a connection to the Nazi leader. He said architectural firms would be able to put forth their proposals on redesigning the building, and that the final decision on its new purpose would be made together with the city of Braunau. --IANS py/vm Australia cleans oil spill as turtles head to lay eggs Australia,Environment/Wildlife, Wed, 19 Oct 2016 IANS Canberra, Oct 19 (IANS) Ahead of hundreds of female turtles making their way to Australia's world-heritage Fraser Island in a few weeks' time to lay eggs, the Queensland state government is working overtime to clean-up an oil spill that occurred earlier in the week. World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Head of Ocean Richard Leck told Xinhua news agency on Wednesday that it was unfortunate that an oil spill happened at the island so close before hundreds of turtles head to the area to lay their eggs. "It's about the biggest natural event in the year," Leck said referring to the female turtles. The rangers first discovered the "oil patties" scattered around the island shores late on Monday afternoon and authorities have been swift in taking remedial action to clean up the oil spill. Queensland State Minister for Main Roads and Ports Mark Bailey on Wednesday said Maritime Safety Queensland, Roadtek, Queensland Parks, Wildlife Service and the Queensland Police Service have been assessing the area since Tuesday with more help from relevant authorities underway. Meanwhile, Queensland State Environment Minister Steven Miles said the oil patties were dispersed mildly along about 60 km of high tide line from the wreck of the Maheno to Dilli Village. "Experience has shown the best way to clean-up the beach is to remove the patties by rake and shovel," Miles said. "This minimises the impact on the environment and reduces the amount of additional sand collected. "This can be a time-consuming and physically demanding process and we have ensured we have sufficient personnel to work on rotation to get the job done," Miles said, adding that there were no reports of wildlife being affected by the event. The last oil spillage incident occurred in July 2015, when 10 to 15 tonnes of oil was spilled off Cape Upstart, a National park in Queensland. --IANS ss/dg LONGUEUIL, QC, Oct. 18, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. (TSX: INE) ("Innergex" or the "Corporation") will release its results for the third quarter on Wednesday November 9, 2016 and will hold a conference call on: Date and time: Thursday November 10, 2016 9:00 a.m. ET Phone-in numbers: 1 888 231-8191 or 647 427-7450 The Corporation's results will be presented by Mr. Michel Letellier, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Mr. Jean Perron, Chief Financial Officer. A replay of the conference call will then be available on the Innergex website at www.innergex.com. The press release, the financial statements, and the management's discussion and analysis for the third quarter of 2016 will also be available in the Investors section of the Corporation's website as of November 10. About Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. (TSX: INE) is a leading Canadian independent renewable power producer. Active since 1990, the Corporation develops, owns, and operates run-of-river hydroelectric facilities, wind farms, and solar photovoltaic farms and carries out its operations in Quebec, Ontario, British Columbia, Idaho, USA, and France. Its portfolio of assets currently consists of: (i) interests in 43 operating facilities with an aggregate net installed capacity of 817 MW (gross 1,359 MW), including 29 hydroelectric operating facilities, 13 wind farms, and one solar photovoltaic farm; (ii) interests in three projects under development or under construction with an aggregate net installed capacity of 146 MW (gross 257 MW), for which power purchase agreements have been secured; and (iii) prospective projects with an aggregate net capacity totaling 3,280 MW (gross 3,530 MW). Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. is rated BBB- by S&P. The Corporation's strategy for building shareholder value is to develop or acquire high-quality facilities that generate sustainable cash flows and provide an attractive risk-adjusted return on invested capital, and to distribute a stable dividend. SOURCE Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. For further information: Martine Benmouyal, Senior Advisor - Communications, 450 928-2550, ext. 335, [email protected], www.innergex.com Canadian Cancer Society urges Canadians to get their children vaccinated against cancer-causing virus TORONTO, Oct. 19, 2016 /CNW/ - Cancers of the mouth and throat caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV) are rising dramatically among Canadian men and are poised to surpass the rate of cervical cancer in females, according to a special report released today by the Canadian Cancer Society. The report, Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016, was produced in partnership with the Public Health Agency of Canada and Statistics Canada. In 2016, nearly 4,400 Canadians will be diagnosed with an HPV cancer and about 1,200 Canadians will die from an HPV cancer. The incidence of HPV mouth and throat cancers increased a dramatic 56% in males and 17% in females between 1992 and 2012. Mouth and throat cancers now represent about one-third of all HPV cancers in Canada. The Society is urging Canadians to get the HPV vaccine a safe and effective way to prevent the cancer-causing infection. "This report shows us for the first time how many Canadians are being affected by HPV cancers," says Dr Robert Nuttall, Assistant Director, Health Policy, Canadian Cancer Society. "These cancers are largely preventable through vaccination. In the moment it takes to vaccinate your children, you are helping to protect them from cancer in the future." The HPV vaccine is widely available through publicly funded school-based programs. It is offered to girls in all provinces and territories, but to boys in only 6 provinces (Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, PEI and Quebec, but not in BC, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, or the territories). The Society is calling on the remaining 4 provinces and 3 territories to expand their programs to all boys. "The more boys and girls that get vaccinated, the more cases of cancer will be prevented. It's that simple," says Dr Nuttall. Today's report underscores how important it is to take preventive action to stop more cancers before they start. With the country facing a projected 40% increase in the number of cancer cases between 2015 and 2030, it's essential to reduce cancer risks across the board, from HPV to tobacco to obesity. It's estimated that almost half of all cancers can be prevented through healthy living and policies that protect the health of Canadians. More about HPV Most sexually active people will have an HPV infection at some point during their lifetime, making it the most common sexually transmitted disease in Canada and the world. Most people never even know they have it, as most infections clear within 2 years and cause no physical symptoms. However, some infections are serious and can lead to cancer. There are more than 100 different types of HPV, and around 25 types are known or suspected to cause cancer. HPV causes: all cases of cervical cancers 25%35% of oropharyngeal and oral cavity (mouth and throat) cancers 80%90% of anal cancers 40% of vaginal and vulvar cancers 40%50% of penile cancers While it's been known for decades that HPV causes cervical cancer, many people don't realize that it causes these other types of cancer too, and that it affects males as well as females. This report shows that only 35% of HPV cancers in Canada are cervical. In fact as many Canadians get an HPV mouth and throat cancer as get cervical cancer. And 1 in 3 HPV cancers occur in males. Two types (HPV16 and HPV18) are responsible for the majority of HPV cancers. These infections can be almost entirely prevented through vaccination. Quotes "The word eradicate has never been used in the context of a cancer," says Dr Eduardo Franco, world-renowned HPV expert and chairman of the department of oncology at McGill University's Faculty of Medicine. "But perhaps future historians will write about cervical cancer as a disease that only previous generations of Canadians had. In order to reach this goal, it is imperative that Canadians embrace the new public health advances that are significantly improving cancer control and prevention." "We now know that HPV is causing a significant burden of cancer in Canada," says Dr. Heather Bryant, Vice President, Cancer Control at the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer. "Vaccination is effective and we are already seeing benefits in Canada." Patient story Will Dove, 51, a web developer in Calgary, had just returned from vacation with his family in Mexico this spring when he began to experience pain and pressure in one ear. The initial diagnosis was an ear infection, but it turned out to be throat cancer caused by an HPV infection. The self-described "fitness nut" and body builder lost 30 pounds in just 5 weeks while undergoing treatment. "Imagine if we had a vaccine for cancer," says the father of 2 teens. "For HPV cancers, we do. If we vaccinate our kids, we can help make these cancers nothing more than a grim memory." More about HPV vaccinations Three HPV vaccines are available in Canada. They are all highly effective in protecting against the HPV types they target, which includes the common high-risk (cancer-causing) types 16 and 18. The vaccines are most effective when administered before the onset of sexual activity when the probability of prior infection is low, which is why publicly funded programs are for school-aged children. In addition, the immune system responds better when vaccination is given at a young age. Extensive research shows that the vaccines are safe, well tolerated and do not increase the risk of serious adverse events. The most common side effects are soreness, swelling, itching and redness at the injection site and fainting. While the vaccine is widely available to girls in Canada through school programs, not enough children are getting vaccinated. Coverage rates range from 43% to 91% across the country, and only 2 provinces have coverage rates over 80% (NL and PEI). The Society urges schools and health professionals to promote the vaccine as a safe and effective cancer prevention strategy, and urges parents to sign the vaccination permission forms that their children bring home from school. The Society is also calling on those provinces and territories that haven't already done so to expand free vaccination programs to boys. 5 yeas, he Canadian Cancer Society has General highlights Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016 Cancer continues to be the leading cause of death in Canada , causing 30% of all deaths. , causing 30% of all deaths. An estimated 2 in 5 Canadians are expected to be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes. And an estimated 1 in 4 Canadians will die from cancer. Over the past 30 years, the death rate for all cancers combined has been declining for males and females. There were no significant increases in death rates during the past decade for most types of cancer in men and women, with the exception of uterine cancer in females and liver cancer in both sexes. Today, over 60% of Canadians will survive at least 5 years after a cancer diagnosis (adjusted for other causes of death). However, this varies considerably by cancer type. An estimated 202,400 new cases of cancer (excluding non-melanoma skin cancer) and 78,800 deaths from cancer are expected to occur in Canada in 2016. in 2016. Rates of the disease are relatively stable for new cases and declining for deaths. However, the number of new cancer cases and cancer deaths continues to rise as the Canadian population grows and ages. Four types of cancer lung, breast, colorectal and prostate account for 50% of newly diagnosed cancers. Lung, colorectal, breast and pancreatic cancer are the most common causes of cancer death, with lung cancer accounting for more than 25% of all cancer deaths. All rates are age standardized to the 2011 Canadian population. About Canadian Cancer Statistics Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016 was prepared through a partnership of the Canadian Cancer Society, the Public Health Agency of Canada, Statistics Canada and provincial and territorial cancer registries. For more information about Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016, visit cancer.ca/statistics. Backgrounder: HPV Backgrounder: General cancer statistics 2016 More information about HPV and HPV vaccines. About the Canadian Cancer Society The Canadian Cancer Society is a national, community-based organization of volunteers whose mission is to eradicate cancer and enhance the quality of life of people living with cancer. Thanks to our donors and volunteers, the Society has the most impact, against the most cancers, in the most communities in Canada. For more information, visit cancer.ca or call our toll-free bilingual Cancer Information Service at 1-888-939-3333 (TTY 1-866-786-3934). Media backgrounder #1: Canadian Cancer Statistics Special topic: HPV-associated cancers (HPV cancers) Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016 was released today by the Canadian Cancer Society, in collaboration with the Public Health Agency of Canada and Statistics Canada. The report includes a special topic chapter on HPV-associated cancers in Canada. Overview The report shows the incidence rate of HPV mouth and throat cancers increased 56% in males and 17% in females over 20 years (1992-2012). Canadian men are more than 4 times more likely to get an HPV mouth or throat cancer than women. This may be because men are more likely to acquire an oral HPV infection and take longer to clear these infections than women. If recent trends continue, it is likely that the rate of HPV mouth and throat cancers in men will surpass the rate of cervical cancer in women in the near future. Almost 4,400 Canadians will be diagnosed with HPV cancers in 2016. It is estimated that about one-third of these are mouth and throat cancers. Another third are cervical cancers. Highlights HPV is associated with many types of cancer in both sexes In 2012, 3,760 Canadians were diagnosed with an HPV cancer. This number is expected to grow to almost 4,400 in 2016. Almost 1,200 will die from an HPV cancer this year. 35% of HPV cancers occurred in the cervix, while the remaining 65% of HPV cancers were in other areas. The number of new HPV mouth and throat cancers cases was about the same as cervical cancer cases. 1 in 3 HPV cancers was diagnosed in males The HPV vaccine plays a vital role in cancer prevention, a core priority of the Canadian Cancer Society 2 types of high-risk HPV (types 16 and 18) are responsible for 70% of cervical cancer cases, as well as a large proportion of cancers of HPV-associated cancers of the vagina, vulva, anus, penis and mouth and throat. HPV vaccines prevent these 2 high-risk HPV infections. Although the vaccines aren't currently approved for the prevention of mouth and throat cancers, HPV16 is present in approximately 90% of HPV-associated mouth and throat cancers, and there is recent clinical trial evidence that HPV vaccination prevents the vast majority of these infections. All 3 vaccines available in Canada are highly effective against the HPV types they target. They are most effective when administered before the onset of sexual activity when the probability of prior infection is low, which is why publicly funded programs are for young age groups. are highly effective against the HPV types they target. They are most effective when administered before the onset of sexual activity when the probability of prior infection is low, which is why publicly funded programs are for young age groups. Extensive research shows that the vaccines are safe and well tolerated. The most common side effects are soreness, swelling and redness at the injection site, as well as light-headedness, dizziness, nausea, headache, or fever. Studies have shown that HPV vaccination programs have already led to reductions in pre-cancerous cervical lesions in Canadian women. The Canadian Cancer Society urges HPV vaccination for both males and females to help protect them against cancer. Girls and boys aged 9 and older can be vaccinated against HPV to reduce their risk of HPV-associated cancers. We urge parents to have their daughters and sons vaccinated through free school-based vaccination programs, where available. The Society is calling for HPV vaccination programs to be expanded to boys in those provinces and territories that do not yet have a school-based program for boys (BC, Saskatchewan , New Brunswick , Newfoundland and Labrador , and the 3 territories). The Society will continue to play a key role in reducing the burden of HPV-associated cancers by: Funding more excellent research across Canada to find more answers about HPV-associated cancers, especially mouth and throat cancers. Over the last 15 years, we've invested $4 million into world-class research on HPV cancers. In the 1990s, Society-funded research Dr. Eduardo Franco ( McGill University ) played a key role in establishing the link between HPV and cancer. to find more answers about HPV-associated cancers, especially mouth and throat cancers. Over the last 15 years, we've invested into world-class research on HPV cancers. Advocating on behalf of Canadians to call for HPV vaccination programs to be expanded to boys in those provinces that do not yet have a school-based program for boys. Raising awareness of vaccination programs amongst parents and providing information for those who wish to have their children vaccinated. Encouraging those who are not eligible to receive publicly funded HPV vaccination to speak with their healthcare provider about whether the HPV vaccine is right for them. More about HPV In 2012, 3,760 Canadians were diagnosed with an HPV-associated cancer, and this number is expected to rise to 4,375 in 2016. More than 40 types of HPV can infect the anogenital tract, including the skin of the penis, vulva and anus, and the lining of the vagina, cervix and rectum. These types can also infect the lining of the mouth and throat, notably the oropharynx (including the base of the tongue and tonsils). In 2006, the first preventative HPV vaccine became available in Canada. Since then, there has been increased attention on HPV cancers and their prevention. However with the exception of cervical cancer, there was little data on HPV cancers in Canada. Measures of the population burden of HPV cancers are important for a number of reasons, including prevention planning and evaluation. About Canadian Cancer Statistics Canadian Cancer Statistics is an annual publication that provides estimates of the burden of cancer in Canada for the current year. This year marks the 30th edition of Canadian Cancer Statistics. It was prepared through a partnership of the Canadian Cancer Society, the Public Health Agency of Canada, Statistics Canada and provincial and territorial cancer registries. For more information about Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016, visit cancer.ca/statistics About the Canadian Cancer Society The Canadian Cancer Society is a national community-based organization of volunteers whose mission is the eradication of cancer and the enhancement of the quality of life of people living with cancer. When you want to know more about cancer, visit our website www.cancer.ca or call our toll-free, bilingual Cancer Information Service at 1 888 939-3333. Media backgrounder #2: Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016 Cancer in Canada: Fast facts Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016 was released today by the Canadian Cancer Society in collaboration with the Public Health Agency of Canada and Statistics Canada. Current estimates of new cases and deaths In 2016: An estimated 202,400 new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in Canada (excluding non-melanoma skin cancers). (excluding non-melanoma skin cancers). There will be an estimated 78,800 deaths from cancer. Every hour of every day, an average of 23 people will be diagnosed with some type of cancer, and about 9 people will die from the disease. Of the newly diagnosed cases, more than half (50%) will be prostate, breast, lung and colorectal cancers. Canadians aged 5079 will represent 70% of all new cancer cases and almost 62% of cancer deaths in 2016. The highest proportion of new cancer cases (56,400, or 28%) will occur in Canadians aged 6069, while the highest proportion of deaths from cancer (26,900 deaths, or 34%) is expected in those aged 80 and older. The number of new cancer cases and cancer deaths continues to rise steadily as the Canadian population grows and ages. Prostate cancer Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among Canadian men (21% of all new cases of cancer in men). In 2016, it is estimated that approximately 21,600 Canadian men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, and about 4,000 will die from the disease. The incidence and death rates have both been declining. The death rate has been declining significantly by 3.1% per year between 2003 and 2012, which likely reflects improved treatments for this cancer. Breast cancer Breast cancer continues to be the most commonly diagnosed cancer among Canadian women (26% of all new cases of cancer in women). In 2016, it is estimated that approximately 25,700 Canadian women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and about 4,900 will die from it. The death rate has declined 44% since peaking in 1987. In recent years (2003-2012), the death rate has decreased an average of 2.6% per year. The declines are attributed to earlier diagnosis through screening mammography and the availability of improved treatment. The breast cancer death rate is currently the lowest it has been since 1950. Between 1987 and 2012, it is estimated that over 32,000 breast cancer deaths were avoided due to improved treatments and greater uptake of mammography screening. Lung cancer Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death for both men and women. Lung cancer takes the lives of more Canadians than breast, prostate and colorectal cancers combined. In 2016, it is estimated that approximately 28,400 Canadians will be diagnosed with lung cancer, and about 20,800 will die from it. Tobacco use causes more than 85% of lung cancer cases. Other causes of lung cancer include radon and asbestos exposure, air pollution, certain lung diseases, a family history of lung cancer and exposure to certain occupational chemicals. In women: In 2016, it is estimated that approximately 14,000 Canadian women will be diagnosed with lung cancer, and about 9,800 will die from it. The lung cancer incidence rate had been increasing since at least the 1960s but has recently leveled off (2006 to 2010). Similarly, the death rate for women had been increasing but recently leveled off (2006 and 2012). In men: In 2016, it is estimated that approximately 14,400 Canadian men will be diagnosed with lung cancer, and about 10,900 will die from it. The lung cancer incidence and death rates began to level off in the mid to late 1980s after several decades of increase, and have been declining ever since. The incidence rates dropped by 1.7% per year between 2001 and 2010 and death rates by 2.3% per year between 2003 and 2012. The difference between the male and female trends reflects the drop in smoking that began for men in the early 1960s and much later for women in the 1980s. Between 1989 and 2012, it is estimated that more than 31,500 lung cancer deaths were avoided as a result of the decrease in death rate since 1988. Colorectal cancer In 2016, it is estimated that approximately 26,100 Canadians will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer, and about 9,300 will die from it. About 14,500 men will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer and about 5000 will die from it. About 11,600 women will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer and about 4300 will die from it. Between 2001 and 2010, the incidence rate for men decreased by 0.7% per year, and the incidence rate for women decreased by 0.6% per year. The death rates continued to decline for both men and women by 2.3% per year in men between 2004 and 2012 and 2.0% per year in women between 2003 and 2012. This is likely the result of improvements in treatment, such as chemotherapy, and increasing availability and uptake of screening. Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016 was prepared through a partnership of the Canadian Cancer Society, the Public Health Agency of Canada, Statistics Canada and provincial and territorial cancer registries. All incidence and death rates are age-adjusted to the 2011 Canadian population. For more information about Canadian Cancer Statistics 2016, visit cancer.ca/statistics The Canadian Cancer Society is a national, community-based organization of volunteers whose mission is to eradicate cancer and enhance the quality of life of people living with cancer. Thanks to our donors and volunteers, the Society has the most impact, against the most cancers, in the most communities in Canada. Building on our progress, we are working with Canadians to change cancer forever. For more information, visit cancer.ca or call our toll-free bilingual Cancer Information Service at 1-888-939-3333 (TTY 1-866-786-3934). SOURCE Canadian Cancer Society (National Office) For further information: Rosie Hales, Communications Specialist, Canadian Cancer Society, [email protected], 416-934-5338 CALGARY, Oct. 18, 2016 /CNW/ - Dr. Brad Thompson, President and CEO of Oncolytics Biotech Inc. (TSX: ONC) (OTCQX: ONCYF) (FRA: ONY), will present at the 2016 BIO Investor Forum in a session on Wednesday, October 19th, 2016 at 11:00 a.m. PT (2:00 p.m. ET). The conference takes place on October 18th and 19th at the Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco, CA. A live audio link to the webcast session will be available at: http://www.veracast.com/webcasts/bio/investorforum2016/38213260151.cfm. A link to the presentation will also be available on the company's website at: http://www.oncolyticsbiotech.com/investor-centre/presentations/. It is recommended that listeners log on 10 minutes in advance of a live presentation to register and download any necessary software. Links to the audio replays will be accessible following the presentation on the Oncolytics website. About Oncolytics Biotech Inc. Oncolytics is a Calgary-based biotechnology company focused on the development of oncolytic viruses as potential cancer therapeutics. Oncolytics' clinical program includes a variety of later-stage, randomized human trials in various indications using REOLYSIN, its proprietary formulation of the human reovirus. For further information about Oncolytics, please visit: www.oncolyticsbiotech.com. The session and webcast times are subject to change. This release and the presentation related thereto contain forward-looking statements which involve known and unknown risks, delays, uncertainties and other factors not under the Company's control and which may cause actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from the results, performance or expectations implied by these forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, among others, the efficacy of REOLYSIN as a cancer treatment, the success and timely completion of clinical studies and trials, uncertainties related to the research and development of pharmaceuticals and uncertainties related to the regulatory process. Investors should consult the Company's quarterly and annual filings with the Canadian and U.S. securities commissions for additional information on risks and uncertainties relating to the forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against placing undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable laws. SOURCE Oncolytics Biotech Inc. For further information: NATIONAL Equicom, Nick Hurst, 320 Front Street W, Suite 1600, Toronto, Ontario, M5V 3B6, Tel: 416.586.1942, [email protected]; NATIONAL Equicom, Michael Moore, San Diego, CA, Tel: 858.886.7813, [email protected]; Dian Griesel, Inc., Susan Forman, 335 West 38th Street, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10018, Tel: 212.825.3210, [email protected] TORONTO, Oct. 19, 2016 /CNW/ - Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. (TSX: CF) is scheduled to release its second quarter results and supplementary financial information on Tuesday, November 1, 2016 after TSX market close. Interested investors, the media and other stakeholders may review the earnings release and supplementary financial information at www.canaccordgenuitygroup.com . QUARTERLY CONFERENCE CALL AND WEBCAST: Interested parties are invited to listen to Canaccord Genuity's second quarter conference call, via live webcast or a toll free number. The conference call is scheduled for Wednesday, November 2, 2016 at 5:00 a.m. Pacific time, 8:00 a.m. Eastern time, 12:00 p.m. UK time, 8:00 p.m. China Standard Time, and 10:00 p.m. Australia EST. During the call, senior executives will comment on the results and respond to questions from analysts and institutional investors. The conference call may be accessed live and archived on a listen-only basis at: http://www.canaccordgenuitygroup.com/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/Events.aspx Analysts and institutional investors can call in via telephone at: 647-427-7450 (within Toronto ) ) 1-888-231-8191 (toll free outside Toronto ) ) 0-800-051-7107 (toll free from the United Kingdom ) ) 0-800-91-7449 (Toll free from France ) ) 10-800-714-1191 (toll free from Northern China ) ) 10-800-140-1195 (toll free from Southern China ) ) 1-800-287-011 (toll free from Australia ) ) 800-017-8071 (toll free from United Arab Emirates ) Please ask to participate in the Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. Q2/17 results call. If a passcode is requested, please use 70234186. A replay of the conference call will be available on November 2, 2016, after 8:00 a.m. (Pacific Time), 11:00 a.m. (Eastern Time) 3:00 p.m. (UK Time), 11:00 p.m. (China Standard Time), and on November 3, 2016, at 1:00 a.m. (Australia EST Time) until December 19, 2016 at 416-849-0833 or 1-855-859-2056 by entering passcode 70234186 followed by the pound (#) sign. ABOUT CANACCORD GENUITY GROUP INC.: Through its principal subsidiaries, Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. (the "Company") is a leading independent, full-service financial services firm, with operations in two principal segments of the securities industry: wealth management and capital markets. Since its establishment in 1950, the Company has been driven by an unwavering commitment to building lasting client relationships. We achieve this by generating value for our individual, institutional and corporate clients through comprehensive investment solutions, brokerage services and investment banking services. The Company has offices in 10 countries worldwide, including Wealth Management offices located in Canada, the UK, Guernsey, Jersey, the Isle of Man and Australia. Canaccord Genuity, the international capital markets division, operates in Canada, the US, the UK, France, Ireland, Hong Kong, China, Australia and Dubai. To us there are no foreign markets.TM Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. is publicly traded under the symbol CF on the TSX. SOURCE Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. Image with caption: "Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. (CNW Group/Canaccord Genuity Group Inc.)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20161019_C6664_PHOTO_EN_799117.jpg For further information: For investor and media relations inquiries: Christina Marinoff, Vice President, Investor Relations & Communications, Phone: 416-687-5507, email: [email protected], www.canaccordgenuitygroup.com Cancer Care Ontario releases 2016 Prevention System Quality Index TORONTO, Oct. 18, 2016 /CNW/ - Cancer continues to be the leading cause of death in the province. One in two Ontarians will develop cancer in their lifetime, and one in four will die from the disease, but as many as half of all cancers could be prevented by eliminating known lifestyle, occupational and environmental risk factors. According to a report released today by Cancer Care Ontario, more can be done across various sectors to improve the health of Ontarians so that fewer people develop cancer. The 2016 Prevention System Quality Index: Monitoring Ontario's Efforts in Cancer Prevention is the second report by Cancer Care Ontario focused on indicators of policies and programs that can reduce cancer risk factors and exposures in the population. The report identifies achievements and gaps in the prevention system and highlights opportunities to advance cancer prevention in Ontario. "Targeting specific risk factors and exposures is key to improving the overall health of Ontarians, and ultimately, reducing the burden of cancer," says Dr. Linda Rabeneck, Vice-President, Prevention and Cancer Control, Cancer Care Ontario. "While there are already policies and programs in place in Ontario, the Prevention System Quality Index shows that there are still many opportunities to work with our multi-sectorial partners to create healthier environments and supports that could prevent cancer." This year's Prevention System Quality Index reports on 21 policy and program indicators related to tobacco, alcohol, healthy eating, physical activity, ultraviolet radiation, environmental carcinogens (radon and fine particulate matter), occupational carcinogens (formaldehyde and nickel) and infectious agents (human papillomavirus and hepatitis B). Key findings and opportunities include: Approximately 30 per cent of cancer deaths are caused by tobacco smoking. To reduce smoking, the World Health Organization recommends a 75 per cent minimum tax on the total retail price of tobacco. As of April 2016 , tobacco taxes in Ontario were just 65 per cent of the average total tobacco retail price, which means that a substantial increase in tobacco taxes in the province is needed. Ontario has the second lowest tax rate on tobacco in Canada . , tobacco taxes in were just 65 per cent of the average total tobacco retail price, which means that a substantial increase in tobacco taxes in the province is needed. has the second lowest tax rate on tobacco in . Each year, an estimated 1,000 to 3,000 new cancer cases in Ontario are caused by alcohol consumption. Privatizing alcohol outlets and increasing the physical availability of alcohol may increase alcohol consumption in the population. Ongoing monitoring will be required to determine whether alcohol consumption will increase as a result of the Ontario government's recent decisions to offer the online sale of alcohol and allow up to 450 grocery stores to sell beer, wine and cider over the next few years. are caused by alcohol consumption. Privatizing alcohol outlets and increasing the physical availability of alcohol may increase alcohol consumption in the population. Ongoing monitoring will be required to determine whether alcohol consumption will increase as a result of the government's recent decisions to offer the online sale of alcohol and allow up to 450 grocery stores to sell beer, wine and cider over the next few years. There is evidence that increased consumption of foods containing dietary fibre reduces the risk of colorectal cancer, and that eating non-starchy vegetables and fruit probably reduces the risk of some cancers. Adults and some children who can't afford nutritious food tend to eat significantly fewer servings of vegetables and fruit than those who can afford nutritious food. In 2014, 11.9 per cent of households in Ontario had poor access to nutritious food due to a lack of financial resources (referred to as food insecurity), and access worsened for some households from 2005 to 2014. Increases in the general minimum wage, social assistance and the employment insurance benefit, as well as implementing other poverty reduction policies, could help increase access to nutritious food. had poor access to nutritious food due to a lack of financial resources (referred to as food insecurity), and access worsened for some households from 2005 to 2014. Increases in the general minimum wage, social assistance and the employment insurance benefit, as well as implementing other poverty reduction policies, could help increase access to nutritious food. Physical activity reduces the risk of colon cancer, and probably reduces the risk of post-menopausal breast cancer and endometrial cancer. Active transportation (walking and bicycling) is used in about one fifth of trips taken to or from work by adults in the Greater Golden Horseshoe regions. Most of these trips are taken to or from public transit, suggesting that public transit is an important contributor to physical activity. Radon exposure is an established cause of lung cancer, with the risk increasing at higher levels of exposure. Approximately one quarter of homes surveyed in Ontario have radon concentrations greater than or equal to 100 Bq/m, the average annual radon concentration at which the World Health Organization recommends remedial action. High radon concentrations in Ontario homes can be reduced by including radon prevention measures as part of a mandatory building code for new houses or major renovations, and by testing and undertaking remediation in existing homes. have radon concentrations greater than or equal to 100 Bq/m, the average annual radon concentration at which the World Health Organization recommends remedial action. High radon concentrations in homes can be reduced by including radon prevention measures as part of a mandatory building code for new houses or major renovations, and by testing and undertaking remediation in existing homes. Occupational cancer is the leading cause of work-related deaths in Ontario . Asbestos causes mesothelioma, as well as cancers of the lung, larynx and ovary. Approximately 52,000 workers in Ontario are exposed to asbestos in the workplace. The most common current occupational exposure to asbestos occurs through the construction industry. Ontario's asbestos register should be expanded to collect data on all workers who may have been exposed to this carcinogen and it should identify asbestos-containing public buildings. A full copy of the 2016 Prevention System Quality Index report is available at cancercare.on.ca/psqi. Click here to view the media backgrounder, which highlights key findings and opportunities. Path to Prevention Recommendations for Reducing Chronic Disease in First Nations, Inuit and Metis, a report recently published by Cancer Care Ontario, provides the Government of Ontario with evidence-based policy recommendations to reduce exposure to the four key chronic disease risk factors in Aboriginal communities: commercial tobacco use; alcohol consumption, physical inactivity and unhealthy eating. About Cancer Care Ontario: Cancer Care Ontario equips health professionals, organizations and policy-makers with the most up-to-date cancer knowledge and tools to prevent cancer and deliver high-quality patient care. It does this by collecting and analyzing data about cancer services and combining it with evidence and research that is shared with the healthcare community in the form of guidelines and standards. It also monitors and measures the performance of the cancer system, and oversees a funding and governance model that ties funding to performance, making healthcare providers more accountable and ensuring value for investments in the system. Cancer Care Ontario actively engages people with cancer and their families in the design, delivery and evaluation of Ontario's cancer system, and works to improve the performance of Ontario's cancer system by driving quality, accountability, innovation and value. Version francaise disponible. SOURCE Cancer Care Ontario For further information: Cancer Care Ontario, Phone: 1.855.460.2646, Email: [email protected] WICHITA, Kan., Oct. 18, 2016 /CNW/ -- Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. [NYSE: SPR] will release its third quarter 2016 financial results at 6:30 a.m. Central Time Tuesday, November 1, 2016. Spirit AeroSystems President and Chief Executive Officer Tom Gentile will be joined by Spirit's Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Sanjay Kapoor on a conference call presentation to securities analysts about third quarter 2016 results and company outlook at 10 a.m. Central Time. That presentation will be broadcast online. It will include charts and a question-and-answer session. The company's news release detailing the results will also be available. The live audio stream and slide presentation can be accessed November 01, 2016, at http://www.spiritaero.com/investor.aspx. Individuals are urged to check the web site in advance to ensure their computers are configured for the audio stream and slide presentation. On the web: http://www.spiritaero.com About Spirit AeroSystems, Inc. Spirit AeroSystems designs and builds aerostructures for both commercial and defense customers. With headquarters in Wichita, Kansas, Spirit operates sites in the U.S., U.K., France and Malaysia. The company's core products include fuselages, pylons, nacelles and wing components for the world's premier aircraft. Spirit AeroSystems focuses on affordable, innovative composite and aluminum manufacturing solutions to support customers around the globe. More information is available at www.SpiritAero.com. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130515/CG13652LOGO SOURCE Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. For further information: Ghassan Awwad, Investor Relations, (316) 523-7040, or Jarrod Bartlett, Corporate Communications, (316) 523-5649, http://www.spiritaero.com OTTAWA, Oct. 19, 2016 /CNW/ - Environment and Climate Change Minister, Catherine McKenna, and Mayor Don Iveson, City of Edmonton and Chair of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities' (FCM's) Big City Mayors' Caucus released this statement after a productive meeting in Ottawa. "Canada's big cities play a major role in addressing climate change: They are the centres of growth and innovation. In collaboration with businesses, the provinces, and the federal government, they will build healthy communities and dynamic economies for future generations. "During today's meeting, we reaffirmed our commitment to work together on climate change, including through leveraging local investment to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, such as those supported through joint federal-municipal programs like FCM's Green Municipal Fund, an initiative that will produce practical results on a local level. "It is estimated that municipalities can reduce emissions in Canada by 40 percent by 2020. Through things like energy-efficient buildings, improved public transport, district heating, and active transport infrastructure, cities can create thousands of good-paying, middle-class jobs, and they can be leaders in the clean growth economy. "Already on the forefront of combating climate change daily, we're excited that Canada's mayors welcome the ratification of the Paris Agreement. International collaboration helps strengthen the work we do domestically, and we look forward to working together to fulfill the commitments we made in Paris through real action here at home." SOURCE Environment and Climate Change Canada For further information: Caitlin Workman, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, 819-938-9436; Media Relations, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 819-938-3338 or 1-844-836-7799 (toll free) Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energys Ames Laboratory and partner institutions conducted a systematic investigation into the properties of the newest family of unconventional superconducting materials, iron-based compounds. The study may help the scientific community discover new superconducting materials with unique properties. Researchers combined innovative crystal growth, highly sensitive magnetic measurements, and the controlled introduction of disorder through electron bombardment to create and study an entire range of compositions within a class of iron-based superconductors. They found that the key fundamental propertiestransition temperature and magnetic field penetration depth of these complex superconductors were dependent on composition and the degree of disorder in the material structure. This was a systematic approach to more fully understand the behavior of unconventional superconductors, said Ruslan Prozorov, Ames Laboratory faculty scientist and professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Iowa State University. We found that some proposed models of unconventional superconductivity in these iron-based compounds were compatible with our results, and this study further limited the possible theoretical mechanisms of superconductivity. That information will also serve as a resource for future research into unconventional superconductors. A crystal sample of one of the iron-based unconventional superconductors studied by Ames Laboratory scientists. Their systematic investigation of this class of superconductors may lead to the creation of new materials with unique superconducting properties. Science Advances Energy gap evolution across the superconductivity dome in single crystals of (Ba1xKx)Fe2As2 This study fleshed out the knowledge of a class of materials more completely and in a way that will be helpful to the scientific community as they search for high temperature superconductors. Knowing how transition temperature is affected by composition, magnetic field and structural disorder gives science a better idea of where to digit contributes to the goal of discovery by design, creating materials that do exactly what we want them to do, said Prozorov. Abstract The mechanism of unconventional superconductivity in iron-based superconductors (IBSs) is one of the most intriguing questions in current materials research. Among non-oxide IBSs, (Ba1xKx)Fe2As2 has been intensively studied because of its high superconducting transition temperature and fascinating evolution of the superconducting gap structure from being fully isotropic at optimal doping (x 0.4) to becoming nodal at x greater than 0.8. Although this marked evolution was identified in several independent experiments, there are no details of the gap evolution to date because of the lack of high-quality single crystals covering the entire K-doping range of the superconducting dome. We conducted a systematic study of the London penetration depth, (T), across the full phase diagram for different concentrations of point-like defects introduced by 2.5-MeV electron irradiation. Fitting the low-temperature variation with the power law, ~ Tn, we find that the exponent n is the highest and the Tc suppression rate with disorder is the smallest at optimal doping, and they evolve with doping being away from optimal, which is consistent with increasing gap anisotropy, including an abrupt change around x 0.8, indicating the onset of nodal behavior. Our analysis using a self-consistent t-matrix approach suggests the ubiquitous and robust nature of s pairing in IBSs and argues against a previously suggested transition to a d-wave state near x = 1 in this system. SOURCES- Ames Lab, Science Advances The Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (CAC) is involved in preparation for some kind of aerial display involving the low-rate initial production (LRIP) J-20A. This included what was essentially a semiofficial presentation of the J-20A with a flurry of news reports and images issued between September 30 and October 1. Four pre-production aircraft two of them apparently in the new tactical light gray with low-visibility markings as well as two more in yellow primer performed a display over the factory at Chengdu on that occasion. Seven pre-production aircraft have already been built and the first two examples have reportedly been delivered to a flight test center at either Cangzhou, or more likely, Dingxin air base. The first front-line regiment is supposed to activate and receive aircraft by June 2017 and the J-20 is expected to be combat ready by 2018 or 2019. That milestone could be pushed forward, given the budget priority. The final requirement could be between 500 to 700. SOURCES- Combat Aircraft, Defense Update The Russian military is buying up jamming devices which it plans to mount on cell phone towers. The idea behind it is simple the Kremlin could switch on the jammers, known as Pole-21 to confuse American GPS guidance. Russia has about 250,000 cellular base stations. Russia is betting on disrupting a missiles receiver just enough to stop a direct hit. The transmission of an elementary signal from a satellite lies at the foundation of all satellite navigation systems, Russian military analyst Anton Lavrov told Izvestiya. Therefore, the slightest deviation from the designated frequency even for milliseconds will result in a loss of accuracy. O.E. Watch, a monthly newsletter published by the U.S. Armys Foreign Military Studies Office, noted that the devices appear to be part of a larger push by Russia to prepare itself for the possibility of major conflict. These initiatives coincide with other efforts to prepare Russia for large-scale conventional warfare, such as massive snap exercises, reformation of the reserve system, exercising wartime command and control relationships, and testing the nationalization of the industrial base in the event of a transition to a wartime footing, O.E. Watch stated. Russian Defense Ministry has adopted a system of jamming Pole-21 protecting Russian strategic facilities from enemy cruise missiles, guided bombs and drones are used for navigation and targeting GPS satellite system, Glonass, Galileo and Beidou. Latest jammers developed by JSC Scientific and Technical Center of electronic warfare (STC EW) is mounted on the cell tower and integrated with the transmit antennas station RFI P-340RP, combined into a single network, covering impervious to signal satellite navigation dome entire neighborhoods All four satellite navigation systems, the signals of which the Pole-21 must combat, use closely spaced frequencies, which end up in the interval from 1176.45 to 1575.42 MHz. The fact that even a transmitter with an output of a total of 20 watts in order to jam the radio signals in this range in a radius of 80 kilometers attests to the latest Russian systems capabilities to create an impenetrable jamming dome. At the same time, the system has one shortcoming. As is indicated in its description, The fact that this complex creates jamming both for the enemy, who is using the GPS radio navigation system, and also for domestic consumers of this GPS radio navigation system and also for its Russian GLONASS equivalent Russia is also looking at leveraging existing GSM cellular towers as a detection system for unmanned aerial vehicles, cruise missiles and light aircraft. SOURcEs- OE Watch, Izvestia Okon Umana The gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Akwa Ibom State in the 2015 elections, Okon Umana, on W... Okon Umana The gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Akwa Ibom State in the 2015 elections, Okon Umana, on Wednesday dismissed as baseless allegations by Justice Inyang Okoro that he and his party attempted to induce the judge to swing the ruling of the Supreme Court in their favour. Mr. Okoro, caught in the State Security Service crackdown on senior judicial officers after being accused of corruption and abuse of office, wrote to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Mahmud Mohammed, narrating how Mr. Umana visited him, along with the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, and a clergyman, Ebebe Ukpong, in an attempt to induce him to manipulate the ruling on the Akwa Ibom governorship election petition in their favour.The security operatives had visited Justice Okoros home in Abuja to conduct a search on October 7 and 8 as part of its investigation in the case of alleged corruption and abuse of office levelled against him.At the end of the operation, the SSS said they found $38,800 and N3.5 million in cash as well as other documents pertaining to its investigation.But Mr. Okoro accused the SSS of working for the government in power to harass and intimidate him apparently for resisting pressure to help influence the outcome of the Supreme Court ruling on Akwa Ibom gubernatorial election.Specifically, he accused Mr. Amaechi of being behind his ordeal, citing a verbal report he said he made to the Chief Justice on February 1, 2016 about the former Rivers State governors visit to his official residence.Mr. Okoro said Mr. Amaechi had approached him to say President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC wanted him to plead with the Supreme Court judges, to ensure the outcome of the election appeals in respect of Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Abia States were in their favour at all costs.Mr. Amaechi has since denied the allegations, describing it as baseless and spurious and blatant lies bereft of any iota of truth.However, Mr. Umana in his reaction on Wednesday accused Mr. Okoro of making the allegation without any evidence, saying the alleged meeting was fiction.No such meeting to discuss how to bribe judges took place between him, Mr Umana Okon Umana and Dr (Pastor) Ebebe Ukpong as alleged, Mr. Umana said in a statement by his spokesperson, Iboro Otongaran.If we assume, without conceding, such a meeting took place, for a man of Justice Okoros standing and knowledge of the law, he ought to have known the legal implications of such a visit, and should have reported to appropriate authorities immediately. He did not do that, but only reacting after the authorities have established a case against him, Mr. Otongaran argued.He said Justice Okoros claim in his letter to the Chief Justice of Nigeria was not only false, it is diversionary and an afterthought. Justice Okoro should address himself to the facts of the case, which is between him and the State, and leave Umana out of it.Contrary to Justice Okoros claim, Mr. Otongaran said, Mr. Umana had no appeal before the Supreme Court from any court judgment on the 2015 governorship election in Akwa Ibom State, having won his case at the tribunal and Court of Appeal.Mr. Umana was therefore confident of victory at the Supreme Court, because of the concurrent judgments of the lower courts. But, the Supreme Court judgment had ignored the concurrent judgments at both the tribunal and the Court of Appeal.It also totally disregarded the reports of the international observers, including those of the United States government and the European Union that the elections in Akwa Ibom and Rivers states were marred by widespread violence and irregularities.Mr. Umana had issued a statement expressing disappointment at the verdict, and has since moved on and left everything in the hands of God. Justice Okoro should therefore leave Mr. Umana alone, Mr. Otongaran said. A Justice of the Supreme Court, Inyang Okoro, has accused the Minister of Transport, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, of orchestrating his ordeal. A Justice of the Supreme Court, Inyang Okoro, has accused the Minister of Transport, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, of orchestrating his ordeal.In a letter dated October 17, 2016 and addressed to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, Okoro said, I strongly believe that my travail is not unconnected with the verbal report I made to you on 1st February, 2016 about the visit to my official residence by H/E Rotimi Amaechi, former Governor of Rivers State and now Minister of Transportation.In that report, I told you my Lord, that Mr. Amaechi said the President of Nigeria and the All Progressives Congress mandated him to inform me that they must win their election appeals in Rivers State, Akwa Ibom and Abia State at all costs.Justice Okoro said although he declined the request and ensured he was not on the Akwa Ibom tribunal, Amaechi and others in the APC believed his presence in the Supreme Court made the APC lose its challenge against the Akwa Ibom governorship election at the apex court.He urged the NJC to ignore all allegations against him as they were lies, insisting he legitimately earned the money found in his house. The currently detained former Minister of State (Defence) Musiliu Obanikoro has implicated Governor Ayodele Fayose in the probe of the N... The currently detained former Minister of State (Defence) Musiliu Obanikoro has implicated Governor Ayodele Fayose in the probe of the N4.745billion wired to a company by the Office of the National Security Adviser(ONSA).The cash was wired to Sylva Mcnamara, which has been linked to Obanikoro within seven months in 2014.Sen. Obanikoro said of the cash, N2.23billion was transferred to Fayose.He handed Fayose $5,377,000 in cash and N1.3billion was received by the governors associate, Mr. Abiodun Agbele.Obanikoro admitted that the N1.3billion was flown to Akure airport in two chartered flights for delivery to Agbele.The money was sourced from the $2.1billion meant for arms purchase at the ONSA.Obanikoro told Economic and Financial Crimes (EFCC) detectives that he is not the owner of Sylva Mcnamara that was used to transfer the funds to Fayose.But he defended why the money was remitted to Mcnamara. Part of the reason is the warding off of a plot by Boko Haram to attack Lagos, he claimed.Accompanied by his lawyer, Mr. James Onoja(SAN), the ex-minister was confronted with a petition from ONSA which was dated November 28, 2015.The petition is titled Payment to companies with no contract awards or approval.He said having gone through the petition, he discovered that Sylva Mcnamara was No. 78 on the list of firms being investigated, having collected the aggregate sum of N4,685,000,000 between April 4, 2014 and November 13, 2014.A source quoted Obanikoro as saying that N2.2billion was transferred to Sylva Mcnamara for onward transfer to Mr. Ayodele Fayose on the instruction of the National Security Adviser (NSA).The sum of N1.3billion cash was brought in a bullion van by Diamond Bank on the instruction of the NSA.In addition, the sum of N60million was converted to dollars at the rate of N168 per dollar and altogether the sum of $5,377,000 was handed over in cash by me to Mr. Fayose while the N1.3billion was received by Mr. Fayoses associate, Mr. Abiodun Agbele, in the presence of my Aide-de-Camp (ADC), Lt. Adewale, who also accompanied them to the bank along with the bank officials.I didnt interact with the bank officials. I called Fayose before the funds were handed over to Mr. Abiodun Agbele. I spoke to Fayose with my phone at Akure airport.On how the cash was transferred to Fayose, the source said Obanikoro told investigators that two flights were used to convey the money from Lagos.The ex-minister said he took off with the first flight with part of the money. The second flight brought the remaining funds to Akure airport and I directed that it should be handed over to the same person, he was quoted as saying.The source said Obanikoro however maintained that part of the cash was used to ward off Boko Haram aggression in Lagos and in the Southwest.The source added: He told us that he is not the owner of the company in question but introduced the owner, Mr. Kareem Taiwo, to the NSA, Mr. Sambo Dasuki, when the threat of Boko Haram became more visible in Lagos.He said the government wanted to incorporate local input into the intelligence gathering and prevention of terrorist attack on Lagos and the Southwest.The EFCC had discovered that Sylvan Mcnamara Limited, allegedly owned by Obanikoro and his sons, was used to launder the N4.745billion.The company, which was incorporated in November 2011, has the following as its directors: the ex-Ministers aide, Ikenna Ezekwe(700,000 shares) of 51 Simpson Street, Ebute-Metta; Idowu Oshodi(299,000 shares) of 8, Prince Tayo Adesanya Street, Park View Estate, Ikoyi; and Elizabeth Adebiyi(1,000 shares) of 3, Adedoyin Street, Ijeshatedo, Surulere. Cross section of the 21 Chibok Girls recently released from Boko Haram during a Presidential reception for them at the State House, Abu... Cross section of the 21 Chibok Girls recently released from Boko Haram during a Presidential reception for them at the State House, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi ADESHIDA Cross section of parents of the 21 Chibok Girls recently released from Boko Haram during a Presidential reception for them at the State House, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi ADESHIDA Cross section of the 21 Chibok Girls recently released from Boko Haram during a Presidential reception for them at the State House, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi ADESHIDA 19/10/2016 Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi has denied the allegation that he approached Justice of the Supreme Court, Inyang Okoro ove... Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi has denied the allegation that he approached Justice of the Supreme Court, Inyang Okoro over any case.Amaechi described the allegation by the judge as a figment of his imagination.Justice Inyang Okoro, who is among the seven judges arrested by the Department of State Service between October 7 and 8, pointed accusing finger to the former Rivers governor, as the one who instigated his ordeal.Mr. Amaechi, in a statement by his media office, asked the judge to respond to the corruption allegation levelled against him.The statement said, This accusation from Justice Okoro against Amaechi is a figment of his imagination, concocted to obfuscate and politicise the real issues for his arrest and DSS investigation of allegations of corruption against him.The claims by Justice Okoro against Amaechi are blatant lies, bereft of any iota of truth or even logic. Amaechi did not, and has never approached Justice Okoro in respect of the cases Okoro mentioned or any other case.This is a cheap attempt, albeit, political move to drag the name of Amaechi into something he knows nothing about.Justice Okoro should face his issues and leave Amaechi out of it. He will be hearing from our lawyers. The Kaduna State Government said on Wednesday that it had not placed any ban on Shia Muslims in the state. The Kaduna State Government said on Wednesday that it had not placed any ban on Shia Muslims in the state.Mr Samuel Aruwan, the government spokesman, said at a news briefing in Kaduna, that what the government did, was to declare the operation of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria illegal, as the group was not registered.Islamic Movement in Nigeria was never a registered organisation and it refuses to conduct itself with full adherence to the laws of Kaduna State.He added that the group had consistently blocked roads and inconvenienced road users.It occupies without permission, facilities that did not belong to it, and it has ignored the law and neglected the obligations of civility, he added.Aruwan said the IMN should follow due process and get the required government certificate for it to operate as an organisation.He noted that other groups that practice Shia Islam were not included in the ban.The government spokesman also dismissed insinuations that the state was trying to muzzle religious freedom, stressing that the restriction on the IMN had nothing to do with the right to worship.The government has a duty to uphold fundamental rights and security of everyone.This involves ensuring that nobody exercise their rights in ways that restrict the right of others or subject them to danger, distress or violation of their humanity, he said.According to him, all residents are free to practice whatever religion they profess, as guaranteed by the Constitution.He said government would only interfere if in the exercise of such rights, the person infringed on the rights of others and by putting danger to public order and safety.It is the fundamental obligation of the government to preserve the security and uphold the right of all citizens. Oscar Pistorius was secretly freed from prison to join his family for a memorial service for his grandmother - prison bosses have confirmed. The 29-year-old killer was allowed to travel to a boutique hotel under armed guard for four hours after being given 'compassionate leave'. But the move has sparked criticism in South Africa that the disgraced Olympian is being given special treatment due to 'white privilege'. Pistorius is serving a six-year jail term for the murdering girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in his home in Pretoria. The hotel security guard at the centre of the 8.5million Kardashian robbery has revealed how he tried to comfort petrified Kim as she was held bound in her room during the robbery.The traumatised Algerian father-of-one, who has asked to be identified by his first name; Abdulrahman, for safety purpose, revealed that he pleaded with the robbers not to harm Kim, but admitted that he let them in to her luxury Parisian hotel apartment and even acted as the gangs interpreter, because Kim was screaming and the robbers couldn't understand what she was saying.In an exclusive interview, Abdulrahman told MailOnline;Abdulrahman revealed that the robbers were French speakers in their 40s or 50s, and were very angry when Kim told them she only had a small amount of cash in the room to give to them.Abdulrahman said.Abdulrahman noted that he let the gunmen into the building because they were dressed 'perfectly' in police uniforms, but as soon as the robbers got inside; they forced him to the floor and handcuffed him.he said. Abdulrahman now badly shaken from the Paris incident, is returning to Algeria to his wife and four years old son, to repair himself psychologically. The United States, US, government has disclosed that it is no longer a major importer of crude oil from Nigeria, explaining that the comme... The United States, US, government has disclosed that it is no longer a major importer of crude oil from Nigeria, explaining that the commencement of the production of Shale oil and gas in the last ten years has changed the American economy such that its no longer a major importer of oil especially from Nigeria.The countrys Deputy Assistant Secretary, West Africa and Economic and Regional Affairs, Peter Barlerin, made this known in Abuja yesterday, stating that Nigeria is one of the most important countries for the U.S in sub-Saharan Africa.Acknowledging that Nigeria has the largest population on the continent and the second largest economy, he stated that the U.S was considering increasing Direct Investment in Nigeria.It (the commencement of Shale oil and gas production) impacted on the oil export from Nigeria, I think this gives an opportunity to Nigeria to diversify the economic and deep our economic relationship in other ways, he said.While noting that the decline in the oil price had significant impact on Nigerias economy, just like other countries, Barlerin commended Buharis efforts in trying to improve the economic conditions.He pointed out that ongoing efforts of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration in diversifying the Nigerian economy into non-oil export would make the nations export more attractive to America and the rest of the world.According to him, We believe that such efforts would be helpful for the economy because it will make Nigeria export more attractive to the region, the U.S. and the rest of world.It will help Nigerian economy as it would no longer depend on oil as it did in the past.A number of sectors in Nigeria are promising; there are lots of promising exports potentials in services industry, in fashion industry, agriculture and other sectors.The envoy said that U.S. would try to increase two-way trade and investments with Nigeria with a view to deepening the trade relations between both countries.So if we have a high level of trade here, we want to increase both U.S. export to Nigeria and U.S. import from Nigeria, so that we can have two ways trade. Also we think that increasing U.S. direct investment into Nigeria is very important.I think the Buharis Administrations efforts to improve easy doing business in Nigeria is very important.And we think that openness to U.S. investors into countrys economy will be very important for Nigerias economic growth, he said. Midori Tajiri-Byrd's tattoo is a symbol of her samurai family history that dates back almost two millennia. (Photo courtesy Midori Tajiri-Byrd) Authorities said Esperanza Jimenez Rojas, 25, was found stabbed to death in an Algiers townhouse on April 8, 2015. Terrance Jacques, 25, escaped from Municipal Court early Tuesday afternoon (Oct. 18, 2016), but surrendered to police at noon Wednesday, according to the Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office.(Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office) The federal government plans to pour $125 million into the fight against a mysterious disease that has ravaged corals in Florida and much of the Caribbean, and now poses a dire threat to the treasured reefs off the Louisiana and Texas coasts. 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. Community Its now easier than ever to connect and chat with others in your local area. You can connect with your community by asking general questions, give area updates and recommendations and even let your community know about local events that are taking place. Each of the two candidates claims the other doesnt really live in area LINCOLN Two Republicans seeking to represent the states wide-open Sandhills in the State Legislature differ on everything from raising gas taxes to granting drivers licenses to immigrants as well as whether either truly resides in the rural, ranching district. Incumbent State Sen. Al Davis is squaring off with retired Army Col. Tom Brewer to represent District 43. It is the states largest district geographically, including all or part of 13 counties. It is also heavily Republican, by a ratio of more than 3-to-1. So far much of the battle has been about who really lives in the district. And both candidates say theyre victims of mudslinging. Brewer, 58, has a home in Murdock, near Lincoln, but claims as his official residence a Gordon machine shed in which hes created three bedrooms, three bathrooms and a kitchen. Davis, 64, rents out his ranchland north of Hyannis in District 43 and still maintains a home there, but after being elected in 2012, he purchased a second house outside of Lincoln. Brewer switched his voter registration to Gordon prior to an unsuccessful run for Congress in 2014. He said that Davis spends most of his time in Lincoln and doesnt reflect the conservative views of his district. Hes seen as someone who comes back as needed, Brewer said. Al Davis would be a great representative for Omaha or Lincoln, but not for the 43rd District. Davis rejects that contention. He said he spends most of his time in Hyannis and is not unlike other outstate senators who have second residences in Lincoln. Davis cited work on legislation to maintain two-man crews on trains and to obtain a plane to battle wildfires in his district as examples of his accomplishments. Ive got guts, I work hard, I think Im respected at the Capitol, Davis said. And I have a lot of expertise and knowledge that a new senator wont have. Last week a formal complaint was filed with the Sheridan County assessor asking that Brewer be required to pay back taxes and penalties owed on the improvements made to the shed since 2011. The complaint cited a state law requiring a property owner to report improvements of more than $2,500 by the end of the year in which they were done. Davis said Brewer looks like a tax dodger to me because he has been paying taxes on a machine shed rather than the higher taxes that would be levied on a residence. Sheridan County Assessor Amanda Lane said Thursday that she hadnt had a chance to look at the complaint. Ive got more important things to do, she said. Earlier, former State Sen. LeRoy Louden contested Brewers residency in Gordon. But the Nebraska secretary of state ruled that the complaint had been filed too late. Brewer said that hes talked with the Sheridan County assessor since the machine shed issue first arose and that the improvements will be part of his tax bill next year. Its water under the bridge, Brewer said, adding that the controversy was an attempt by Davis supporters to poke me in the eye. Jordan McGrain, former state Republican Party executive director, an adviser to Brewer, said the criticism was part of a campaign to smear a veteran who served six combat tours of duty in Afghanistan and earned two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star. McGrain leveled his own accusation: that Davis is getting lots of support from Democrats, such as a July fundraiser in Omaha co-sponsored by several Democrats, including former Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey. Davis said that Fahey shares his commitment to lowering property taxes and providing adequate state aid to schools. Brewer is also getting help from outside the district. A new group called Your Vote Matters PAC sent out a postcard to District 43 constituents accusing Davis and his wife, Dottie, of living in Lincoln now. The card was mailed from the Crete, Nebraska, home of Matt Innis, the former chair of the Lancaster County Republican Party. Americans for Prosperity, an anti-tax group, attacked Davis in a recent mailing, criticizing his support for an increase of 6 cents per gallon in the state gas tax to fund new highway construction. Davis, who switched his registration from Democratic to Republican 19 years ago, said the mailings are part of a campaign to deflect attention away from Brewers machine-shed controversy. Davis has some ground to make up. Brewer out-polled him by 800 votes in the primary, even though Davis has a long list of groups endorsing him, including the Nebraska State Education Association, Nebraska Right to Life, the Nebraska Federation of Independent Business and the Nebraska Farm Bureau. Brewer said he better reflects the core values of the district. He cited his support of the death penalty and opposition to granting drivers licenses to young immigrants brought into the country illegally as children as part of the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. People are angry at a national level and theyre angry at a state level because they dont feel that their elected representatives are listening to them, Brewer said. To address that concern, Brewer rode a mule for 19 days and 500 miles across his district, talking to people along the way an effort Davis labeled a publicity stunt. Davis defended his vote for the gas-tax increase, saying projects across the state such as the Heartland Expressway in his district were not going to be completed without it. He said he voted to allow DACA participants to get drivers licenses because Nebraska was the only state that forbade it. He added that he opposed giving DACA participants professional and commercial licenses, such as those given to nurses and truck drivers. His vote to repeal the death penalty, Davis said, reflected his pro-life views as a Catholic and was the product of a tremendous amount of study, including looking at cases of wrongful convictions. I hope people have done their research, he said. Ill be surprised if the death penalty is ever used. Davis, according to state campaign reports, had outspent Brewer $114,288 to $29,269 through early October. Davis has loaned his campaign about $14,600. His top contributors are Associated General Contractors ($10,000) and the state teachers union ($6,300). Brewer has spent $4,600 of his own money on the campaign. His biggest donor is A.C. Musgrave, a Dallas, Texas, chemical company owner, who gave $15,000. One other controversy has emerged in the campaign: Brewers involvement in a flap surrounding a Montana-based group that offers horseback rides as therapy for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. The matter, involving the nonprofit group Heroes and Horses, prompted the Montana Attorney Generals Office to investigate. One major donor to the group, Rod Fraser, a steel company executive from Minnesota, accused Brewer, a member of the groups board, of trying to steal the organization from its founder and executive director, Micah Fink, and of holding secret meetings without notifying Fink. Fraser, who declined an interview request, expressed concerns to the attorney general in a letter that his donations to Heroes and Horses were being wasted. In a 12-page report issued in June, the Attorney Generals Office concluded that board members, including Brewer, had breached their duty of care in operating the nonprofit group. Brewer disputed the allegations, saying that he just didnt see eye to eye with Fink and the roles of those in Heroes and Horses needed to be more clearly defined. The matter was resolved when the Attorney Generals Office approved a settlement creating a second nonprofit group, headed by Brewer, called NewCo and transferring $140,000 to it. Brewer said hes still looking for a ranch to host a therapeutic equine program. Meanwhile, Heroes and Horses hosted 14 veterans this summer under new leadership. Davis has had his own controversy. In June he was fined $500 by the state sunshine commission for failing to disclose an investment in a Canadian mining company, NioCorp, that plans to mine rare-earth minerals in southeast Nebraska. Davis introduced a bill to impose a severance tax on such mining but failed to disclose that he had purchased stock in NioCorp. He has said that he did not intend to violate the reporting requirement. Sandra Sue "Sam" Patterson, 60, of North Platte, passed away Oct. 13, 2016, at Bryan Medical Center East in Lincoln. Sam was born on Oct. 22, 1955, in Sterling, Colorado, then adopted by James Alexander and Ione Magdeline Becky Beckley Patterson. The family lived in Lewellen for a while then moved to Ogallala, where Sam graduated from high school with the class of 1974. While in high school, she was recognized as Teen of the Month and Citizen of the Year for her work with the handicapped. After graduation, Sam moved to Lincoln, where she attended Nebraska Wesylan University and during the summers worked as a counselor at Norweska Methodist Church Camp. Sam received her Bachelor of Arts in English, then went on to teach in Kimball. Sam eventually earned her M.A.R. degree from Iliff School of Theology in Denver in 1985, then began her ministry with the Methodist Church. Pastor Sam was first assigned to the United Methodist Church in Neenah, Wisconsin, then moved to Windsor, Colorado, to work at Faith United Church of Christ. She went back to school at Iliff and graduated with a M.D.V. in 1993. Pastor Sam then became the associate pastor at First United Methodist Church in North Platte. After seven years, she was assigned to be pastor at the Methodist Churches in Shickley and Ong. Pastor Sam worked in the communities for the next two years before she had to take disability leave due to health concerns and return to North Platte. Pastor Sam had great faith in the Lord and enjoyed her ministry. She also loved the snow and was a talented musician. She played the clarinet from fourth grade through high school and continued playing in college with the marching band and concert band. When Sam moved to Wisconsin, she played in the Neenah Community Band, and they had the opportunity to tour and perform in Europe. She also learned to play bells both in a choir and solo. Along with her churches, Sam was a member of the Nebraska Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church and a board member with Habitat for Humanity, and she attended the UMC Monday Musicale. She was preceded in death by her grandparents and cousins, Larry Beckley, Merlin Orr and Shirley Flohr. Sam leaves behind her loving parents, Jim and Becky Patterson, of Oshkosh; and her many friends. In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to the First United Methodist Church, Bell Choir, Habitat for Humanity or the donors choice. Online condolences may be shared at odeanchapel.com. Services will be at 1 p.m. CDT on Tuesday, Oct. 18, at the First United Methodist Church with the Rev. Dr. Douglas A. Delp officiating. Cremation will follow. Inurnment will be at 1 p.m. MDT on Wednesday, Oct. 19, at Ash Hollow Cemetery in Lewellen. Visitation will be prior to services at the church. Odean Colonial Chapel at & Sycamore is in charge of arrangements. Public safety is one of my top priorities as your governor. One of the tools law enforcement needs to keep our families and communities safe is laws that are tough on crime. Criminal penalties like mandatory sentencing laws, three-strikes laws and the death penalty act as deterrents and provide justice. Last year, the Legislature passed Legislative Bill 268 to abolish the death penalty. There was an immediate effort to allow Nebraska voters to decide the issue on the ballot. During the summer of 2015, enough petition signatures were gathered not only to allow the people to vote, but also to prevent LB 268 from going into effect until after the vote of the people this November. Next month, voters will decide whether to abolish or keep the death penalty. The question on the ballot pertains to retaining or repealing the bill the Legislature passed. A vote to retain the bill passed by the Legislature will abolish the death penalty in Nebraska. A vote to repeal the bill passed by the Legislature will keep the death penalty in Nebraska. I am a strong advocate to keep the death penalty because it is a critical tool for law enforcement and criminal prosecutors to protect public safety. First, the death penalty protects our Corrections officers and law enforcement. Every week, numerous men and women go to work in our Corrections system. They risk their lives to provide security at our prisons as well as to deliver programming to help inmates become productive members of society upon release. In prison management, the death penalty is a safeguard against violent criminals who are already behind bars. Without the death penalty, an inmate sentenced to life in prison has nothing to lose by taking the life of a corrections officer. In fact, there have been a number of law enforcement and corrections officers who have thanked me for my support of the death penalty. The death penalty also helps protect our communities. Those working to abolish the death penalty argue that life in prison will protect our communities; however, consider the story of Laddie Dittrich. In 1973, Laddie Dittrich was convicted of burglary and first degree murder. He received a life sentence. Prior to my administration, the Pardons Board commuted the sentence of Dittrich from a life sentence to a sentence of 80 years to life. Subsequently, Dittrich was paroled in 2014. Later that year, Dittrich was arrested for third degree sexual assault involving a 10-year-old girl. A life in prison sentence does not guarantee an offender will stay in prison, and it did not protect the community from Laddie Dittrich. As we approach the vote, there is an increasing amount of misinformation. For example, out-of-state advocates are discussing wrongful convictions and the possibility of putting innocent people to death. This is an important conversation to have; however, nobody is claiming that any of Nebraskas 10 death row inmates are innocent. In fact, three of them are on video murdering five people in the attempted robbery of a Norfolk bank. Checks and balances in Nebraska ensure that the death penalty is used sparingly and applied justly, and rapid advancements in DNA technology will help to ensure accuracy in future cases. Anti-death penalty activists paid a researcher for a study that said the death penalty costs the state more money. The study relies on out-of-state data rather than Nebraska statistics. Attorney General Doug Peterson identified serious inaccuracies in the study, noting that the study suggests Nebraska incurs 20 times the costs realized by other states. In fact, the Appropriations Bill advanced from the Unicamerals independent legislative fiscal office found zero dollars in cost savings associated with abolishing the death penalty. In the next couple of weeks, Nebraskans will weigh the arguments to abolish or keep the death penalty, and its important people have the facts instead of bad information. Its also critical that you read the ballot language very carefully. A vote to retain LB 268 will abolish the death penalty in Nebraska. A vote to repeal LB 268 will keep the death penalty in Nebraska. INDIANAPOLIS Manufacturers in the Hoosier State remain confident about their future prospects even as profitability has diminished compared with recent years, according to a new study by Indiana Universitys Kelley School of Business. The 2016 Indiana Manufacturing Survey, released Wednesday, found leaders in the states largest industry believe they are in a maturing economic recovery with limited additional opportunities for growth, but not on the precipice of a recession. In short, the day may be sunny, but there are clouds on the horizon, said survey co-author Mark Frohlich, IU associate professor of operations management. Those clouds include reduced expectations for future product market expansion, shortages of skilled and unskilled production workers due to the states low unemployment rate, and continuing regulatory, tax and healthcare burdens. There are deep concerns about the future of Indianas manufacturing sector, particularly as it relates to workforce and regulatory concerns, said Jason Patch, partner-in-charge of Katz Sapper & Millers Manufacturing and Distribution Services Group, which sponsored the survey. As a result, just 3 percent of Hoosier manufacturers said they plan to open a new facility in Indiana over the next 12 months, down from 11 percent in 2015-16. Instead, 11 percent of Indiana manufacturers this year are looking to nearshore facilities in either Canada or Mexico, up from 7 percent last year. However, planned offshoring away from North America is down 3 percent. The survey found more than 8 in 10 manufacturers report their earnings are either stable or healthy, an improvement compared to last year. Though companies with healthy earnings are down 10 percent from 2012-13. Manufacturers are remaining profitable despite slow market growth by investing in advanced technologies, improving processes and recruiting and training quality workers, according to the survey. Other studies show Indiana remains a manufacturing powerhouse, with one out of five Hoosiers employed in the industry. Indianas manufacturing sector produced an estimated output of $93.61 billion in 2014, according to the National Manufacturing Association. Only California, Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio, and Texas manufactured more. But in the Indiana Manufacturing Survey, the states manufacturers identify Indianas corporate and property taxes as a growth impediment, believe many state and federal regulations make them less competitive, and claim not enough employees have the skills needed to immediately begin working. David Resnick, managing partner of Katz, Sapper & Miller, said most everyone in Indiana has a part to play in keeping the states manufacturers thriving. Lawmakers, industry leaders and educators can all shape a positive future for Indianas manufacturing industry, which serves as a tremendous economic engine and employer of hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers, Resnick said. The complete results of the 2016 Indiana Manufacturing Survey are available with the online version of this article at nwi.com. Steel imports fell by 7 percent to 2.8 million tons in September, down from 3 million tons in August, according to the U.S. Commerce Departments Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis data. The American Iron and Steel Institute reported imports for finished steel, which would not require any further processing in the United States, dropped 9 percent to 2 million in September, down from 2.3 million in August. Imports captured about 25 percent of the overall U.S. market share in September and year-to-date, down from the record 29 percent that caused thousands of layoffs and mill idlings nationwide last year. The use of recently passed trade laws are a way to deal with the results of overcapacity, which have resulted in a massive surge of dumped and subsidized steel in U.S. markets, AISI President and CEO Tom Gibson said in a conference call with reporters this week. In September, imports of sheets and strip galvanized electrolytic rose by 82 percent, oil country goods by 20 percent, and sheets and strip all other metallic coatings by 15 percent. Imports of reinforcing bars increased by 12 percent so far this year. The United States has imported 24.8 million net tons so far this year, down 20 percent as compared to the first nine months of 2015. Imports of finished steel products so far this year have fallen 22 percent to 19.6 million tons. South Korea has sent 2.9 million tons of steel to the United States so far this year, an 18 percent decline as compared to the same period in 2015. Imports from are down 14 percent from Japan and 9 percent from Turkey. In September, South Korea, Japan, Turkey, Germany and Vietnam sent the most steel to U.S. ports. Imports from all those countries declined except for Vietnam, which U.S. Steel and ArcelorMittal has accused of sending rerouted imports from China in order to avoid tariffs. Its been two years since The Joffrey Ballet brought Krzysztof Pastors Romeo and Juliet to the Windy City stage. The passionate production is back once again and continues through Sunday at Chicagos Auditorium Theatre. William Shakespeares story of the tragedy of love found and lost also showcases family and political tensions as well as communities unable to get along. Pastors take on the classic story is infused with much passion and is stamped with contemporary touches. The choreographer, who created the ballet in 2008 for The Scottish Ballet, celebrated the U.S. premiere of the piece in 2014 when The Joffrey first performed it. This production of Romeo and Juliet offers a blend of poignant, dramatic and exciting choreography. The Joffrey artists easily draw audience members into the story and action with their attention to dance excellence. Pastors Romeo and Juliet is set in three different decades: the 1930s, 1950s and 1990s. Dramatic footage and images on video screen backdrops are fascinating and greatly add to the appeal of the show. The tale of the Capulet and Montague families unfolds in a stunning way in The Joffreys capable hands. The ballet is set to Prokofievs score, which is lush, beautiful and also tragic. The Joffrey dancers portrayals of Shakespeares characters remain strong throughout. Christine Rocas, who performs as Juliet, mixes grace, heartbreaking passion, as well as whimsical moves, in her performance. Rocas and Rory Hohenstein, as an energetic Romeo, are the perfect Romeo and Juliet. Their performances are striking. Additional highlighted performances include Yoshihisa Arai as Mercutio, Fabrice Calmels as Lord Capulet, and Temur Suluashvili as Tybalt. Romeo and Juliet, which is the official opening show of The Joffrey Ballets new season, is part of the Shakespeare 400 festival in Chicago. FYI: The Joffrey Ballet performs Romeo and Juliet through Sunday at The Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Congress Parkway, Chicago. Tickets are $34 to $174. For tickets, call (312) 386-8905 or visit joffrey.org. Some new, distinct and smoky flavors are heating up the kitchen once again at Q-BBQ in Schererville. The restaurant, which opened its doors in Northwest Indiana in November 2015, recently introduced its new brunch menu. Known for rich, smoked flavors, interesting and tasty side dishes and various sauces, Q-BBQ debuted brunch at its Naperville location a couple of weeks ago. Schererville's brunch was available beginning Oct. 15. Within a month, all of the restaurant's locations will have brunch. Q-BBQ Brunch is offered from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays only. "We want to keep innovating with good food and different ingredients. It keeps people coming back," said Michael LaPidus, owner of Q-BBQ. The Schererville location of the eatery was the fourth Q-BBQ on the scene. In addition to Schererville and Naperville, other locations are in LaGrange and Oak Park. A Q-BBQ pop-up restaurant also will be featured in Willis Tower in Chicago from Oct. 24 to 28. Q-BBQ is the brainchild of LaPidus, who, in creating the eatery, wanted to pay tribute to classic roadside barbecue joints he visited while traveling around the country. LaPidus has described the food customers get at Q-BBQ as "authentic barbecue." He said he wanted to bring brunch to the masses because he's always loved "food, breakfast and barbecue," and wanted to include breakfast items on his menu. Q-BBQ features styles of barbecue from different regions of the country including everything from "dry rubbed meats of Memphis, the pulled pork from the Carolinas and the smoked briskets from Texas" LaPidus has said. Customers will find that same diversity in the brunch items. Restaurant Scene recently visited Q-BBQ to check out the new brunch offerings. The eatery's BBQ Brunch features Cornbread French Toast ($7.99); Alabama Benedict ($9.99); Chicken & Waffle ($10.99); Burnt End Hash ($13.99); Chicken Biscuit Sandwich ($9.99); and Portobello Hash ($12.99). For those who like a fresh take on an old favorite, definitely try the Cornbread French Toast. The dish is moist and has a savory/sweet flavor. The Burnt End Hash is also a must try as it features a mix of the smoked burnt ends, crispy Brussels sprouts, roasted corn, black beans and potatoes. It's served with two eggs on top. Besides the brunch items, diners also may order from the regular menu during brunch hours on Saturday and Sunday. The Rev. David J. Simonetti poured a thick, aromatic spaghetti sauce over pasta and meatballs as he put the finishing touches on a recent Italian meal at his home. On his dining room table sat four jars of special blends that star in Simonetti's line of Communio Sauces. Simonetti, associate pastor of St. James the Greater Church in Sauk Village, recently debuted his Communio Sauces, which are being sold for charity. The Communio line was introduced in the Chicago area and Northwest Indiana last March. The recipes for the various sauces were developed by Simonetti, who has enjoyed cooking since he was a child. He learned the culinary craft from his mother and grandfather. "The whole point of this is it's for charity," said Simonetti, about the nonprofit sauce company. He said the money goes to help organizations in the areas where the sauces are sold. Organizations include shelters, pantries and other groups. "This is a creative way for me to be charitable," he said. Communio Sauces are currently sold locally at The Shrine of Christ's Passion in St. John, Rob's Chop & Deli in Dyer, Walt's Foods in Dyer and Welch's Stop & Shop in St. John as well as various places in Illinois. The sauces also can be used for school fundraisers and other event fundraisers. Simonetti, who grew up in Chicago Heights, said cooking for others is something that definitely brings him much joy. "I like everything to be an event," said the priest, as he placed a large plate of spaghetti and a large platter of roasted chicken on the table for three guests, including this reporter. Paul Anderson, general manager of The Shrine of Christ's Passion, also joined Simonetti for lunch that day. Simonetti, who is a convivial host with a joking sense of humor, said he usually cooks to a musical soundtrack. One often will find him playing varied tunes from Pavarotti and Bocelli to Sinatra and Springsteen. The priest explained he named the product Communio, which, in Latin, is translated to "communion together in love." The term also relates to the act of Communion and the sharing of the body of Christ in the Catholic faith. "What I wanted to do with the Communio sauces is recreate an experience," Simonetti said. He calls the sauces "more than a meal, it's the way back home." "I want people to be able to go home again, and to (recall) being there at their grandparents' (or family's) table where they are loved and feel loved," he said. The recipes for the Communio Sauces have been perfected by Simonetti over the past year or two. He said he likes to experiment with different flavors and has fine-tuned his recipes. "The first ingredient is love," said the priest, as he pointed to the back of the jar and its list of ingredients. Sure enough, listed there is "love" in the No. 1 spot. Four different versions of sauce are now available. They are Rustic Home Spaghetti "Gravy" Sauce; Fresh Mushroom Spaghetti "Gravy" Sauce; Pizza, Parmesan & Sandwich Sauce; and Padre's Special Blend Vodka Sauce. A Creole Sauce and a Chunky and Spicy creation are also in the works. While the sauces are Simonetti's recipes, the product is manufactured in a plant in the Chicago area. He said he's always on hand to taste test the product before it's bottled. Simonetti also seeks out various stores and outlets to carry the sauces. He'll often do tastings and demos at the stores where Communio is carried. Communio, Simonetti explained, is made with high-quality ingredients, including San Marzano tomatoes, which are imported from Italy. His mother taught him the basics of cooking, and Simonetti said he also learned about "the love of cooking for others and the (importance) of being together" from his family. "When you eat together, it changes everyone. You go from a 'me' mentality to a 'we' mentality," he said. "And when people feel loved and eat together, that opens you up more to the love of God." Learn more about the product, prices, where it's available, and fundraising opportunities by visiting CommunioSauces.com. The following is a recipe for roast chicken from Simonetti. Padres Rustic Italian Roasted Chicken And Potatoes Ingredients: Whole Roasting Chicken Fresh garlic cloves, rosemary, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder, thyme, lemons, white dry wine, preferably a Sauterne if you can find it, celery, carrots, all to taste 1 red apple 1/2 cup chicken broth Butter, extra-virgin olive oil, cayenne pepper (optional), fresh mushrooms, all to taste 2-3 Russet potatoes, "holy" water DIRECTIONS: Wash and clean one whole roasting chicken, pat dry. Place in a roasting pan that leaves the top 3/4 of the chicken exposed. Season inside cavity with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, rosemary, thyme. Peel and slice garlic cloves and slide them generously UNDER THE SKIN of the chicken with your fingers front and back, moving the slices around into the thighs, breasts, back, etc. Be gentle as the skin is thinner than on a turkey and will break through if not careful. Take a few tablets of softened butter and slide under the skin over the breast meat. Cover the chicken in olive oil front and back then season with salt, pepper, rosemary leaves, garlic and onion powder, and thyme. If you like a little bite, add the cayenne pepper. Stuff the inside of the chicken cavity with carrots, celery, fresh parsley and rosemary branches, and 1/2 red apple. In the pan alongside the chicken, place celery and carrots along with a 1/2 cup of chicken broth. I like to cut the remaining red apple into slices, placing them in the pan as well. Peel and quarter the potatoes, scoring the sides for a rough grooved surface (allows for flavor to penetrate). In a mixing bowl, cover in melted butter, olive oil, and lemon juice then season with salt, pepper, and rosemary and place in pan. Lightly saute fresh cut rustic mushrooms in a cast iron skillet in olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, and onion seasoning. Set on side. Sprinkle "holy" water over this beautiful creation. Pre-heat oven to 475 degrees. Place pan on the middle rack uncovered so that the top of the chicken is about 6-8 inches from heat source on top. Cook at temp for 40 minutes, occasionally basting as chicken browns. Lower heat to 375 degrees. Take out of oven and pour wine and lemon generously over chicken, add mushrooms, then place back in oven for another 15 minutes. DO NOT TURN CHICKEN OVER AT ANY TIME. Take chicken out of oven, plating potatoes and mushrooms, cover chicken with tin foil and let stand to cool for cutting. Loosen your belt, pray, say an Act of Contrition (to cover all bases) and begin your feasting. From The Good Padre (Rev. David Simonetti) HAMMOND A former Lake County Jail officer pleaded guilty Monday to taking a $400 bribe to deliver a cellphone to an alleged Latin Kings member being held at the county lockup. David Victor, 23, of Merrillville, faces up to 15 years in prison. However, the U.S. attorneys office has agreed to recommend a minimum sentence in exchange for his plea. Victor was accused of meeting Elissa Salazar, 23, of Griffith, on Feb. 2 in the parking lot at Meijer in Merrillville and accepting the money and a white Motorola cellphone he planned to deliver to inmate Julian R. Rebeles, 25, of Hammond. Authorities followed Victors Chevrolet Spark to the Lake County Jail in Crown Point, where they conducted a traffic stop. Authorities found an envelope labeled with Salazars name containing $400 under the drivers seat and the cellphone in Victors lunchbox on the passenger seat, according to a complaint. Victor later admitted Rebeles had passed him several notes while he was at work in the jail offering him money in exchange for a cellphone, the complaint says. Salazar pleaded guilty Aug. 24 to attempting to provide an inmate with a prohibited object. Sentencing dates for Victor and Salazar had not been scheduled as of Wednesday morning. The indictment against Rebeles was dismissed in August, because the charges were added to another case in which Rebeles and 25 other alleged members and associates of the Latin Kings have now been indicted. Rebeles entered a not guilty plea Aug. 17 in that case, U.S. District Court records show. HAMMOND A Lake Station man pleaded guilty Monday to murder in connection with a botched 2013 home invasion and robbery on the citys West Side. Mark Knuckles Cherry, 24, faces no more than 30 years in prison if a U.S. District Court judge accepts his plea agreement. Cherry is the last of three defendants to plead guilty in the case, which was moved from state court to federal court earlier this year. James Dough Boy Landrum, 41, of New Chicago, pleaded guilty Oct. 4 to a murder charge. Bruce Casper Hendry, 30, of Hobart, pleaded guilty Sept. 23 to murder and conspiracy to distribute marijuana. A federal judge earlier this month dismissed an indictment against Brandon Pacific, 24, of Hammond, without prejudice, which means charges could be re-filed later. Rolando Correa Jr., 24, was fatally shot Dec. 1, 2013, when several men entered a home in the 6200 block of West 29th Avenue with guns and demanded marijuana, according to court records. Cherry was wounded during the home invasion and arrested later that day. He became the focus of a manhunt months later, after it was discovered he walked out of an Illinois hospital. Shortly after the home invasion, Andre J. Woods, 28, of Gary, was found dead from a gunshot wound to the head in a vehicle in the 2100 block of Georgia Street. Gary police previously said they believed Woods also was involved in the home invasion. A Valparaiso man facing charges of driving drunk and causing the death of another motorist is arguing before the Indiana Supreme Court that the case should be dismissed, in part, because he was not behind the wheel of his car when the fatal crash occurred. The crash in question occurred at 2 a.m. April 25, 2013, when Howard Gutenstein parked his car in the right-hand lane of Interstate 94 in Michigan City and walked to the side of the highway. A semi-trailer truck stopped to check on the driver and his vehicle was struck from behind by a second truck driver, who died at the scene, according to court records. The allegations against Gutenstein do not support the charges of reckless homicide or operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated causing death, according to an interlocutory appeal filed by his Portage-based attorneys John Vouga and Nicholas Barnes. Gutenstein is also asking the court to toss out the results of the blood draw taken following the accident, arguing that it was taken without a warrant and without a valid exception to that requirement, according to court documents. He claims the move violated his Constitutional rights. The Indiana Attorney Generals Office, which is handling the appeal on behalf of the prosecutor in LaPorte County where the crash occurred, has not yet filed a response to the most-recent interlocutory appeal. This type of appeal is used to challenge contentious issues while the overall criminal case is still pending. But when the appeal was presented earlier to the state appellate court, which upheld the lower courts denial, the attorney generals office argued that there is no requirement within the drunk driving statute that the driver operate his vehicle at the moment of collision. Rather, the statute requires only that he be intoxicated while operating his vehicle and that his conduct in operation of the vehicle be the cause of the death, according to court records. The attorney general also opposed tossing out the blood results, arguing Gutenstein was twice advised of his rights and implied consent law, and consented to the blood draw. Even if Defendant had not consented, police had both probable cause and exigent circumstances and could have taken the sample without consent, but they did not, the attorney general argued. Police said they read Gutenstein his rights, but an officer mistakenly signed the consent form rather than having it signed by Gutenstein, according to court documents. GARY A man was shot to death late Tuesday in a homicide in the citys East Glen Park section, officials said. The man, who has not yet been identified, was found shot in the 5000 block of Maryland Street, according to the Lake County coroners office. The man was pronounced dead about 9:40 p.m. at the scene from a gunshot wound. Gary police were not immediately available for comment early Wednesday. Anyone with information about the homicide is asked to call the Lake County/Gary Metro Homicide Unit at (219) 755-3852. The homicide occurred several blocks from the scene of a double homicide last week outside a convenience store on East 49th Avenue. Zantrell Collins and Koreena Ramos, both 18 and of Gary, were found shot to death in a vehicle. The man found Tuesday is the eighth person found dead in Gary this month and the citys 33rd homicide in 2016. The identity and manner of death for a 34th person found this month in the Little Calumet River in Gary remained pending. The city logged 50 homicides in 2015. ST. JOHN The competition with other school districts is heating up, and Lake Central School Corp.s board is wondering if it will need to ask the voters for additional funding to offer programs that will keep it from losing students to districts like Crown Point. Board President John DeVries said at Mondays board meeting the district needs to consider a general fund referendum because schools cant expect more money from the state and the only way to add new programs is to make cuts elsewhere or seek a referendum. *Superintendent Lawrence Veracco said a general fund referendum is different from a building referendum, which the district successfully sought a few years ago for improvements and expansion of its buildings. With the building referendum, the exact amount isnt known. The district sought about $19 million and the actual cost came in at about $14 million, but Veracco said it could just as easily have been $22 million. The district advertised an increase of 19.25 cents per $100 of Assessed Value but the actual increase was only 14.6 cents per $110 of AV. If the costs of construction required more than a 19-1/4 cent increase, the district would have had to cut parts of the project as they were limited to the advertised 19.25 cent increase. With a general fund request, the amount is set and thats what it is. Another difference, Veracco said, is it is easier to show the need for the building improvements, but the need for programs is tougher to sell. And, if it passes, it has to be renewed in seven years or the board will have to make cuts in existing programs if it wants to keep the new ones. The district used federal stimulus money to add programs a few years ago, and, when the money ran out, it had to decide which programs to cut, he said. Passing it requires the central office administration and the School Board to be enthusiastic supporters, Veracco said. Board member Don Bacso said he might support it but would like to wait until after the election to discuss it to see if the election produced any changes in the Indiana Legislature. Board member Howard Marshall said he brought up the issue for discussion in the past. The board is constantly looking for ways to increase programs to keep people from leaving, Marshall said. Im not one to say we need this now. Im not going to play that game. If someone comes forward with new programs, tell me how youre going to pay for it or what we are going to cut. Let the administration team bring forth the issue to us. DeVries said, if someone starts a charter school, the district could lose 300 students, which would force deep cuts due to the loss of state funding because of the lower pupil count. If there is a need and there is supporting data, we should be open to talking about it, board member Janice Malchow said. Ive been bringing up ideas, and I have some ideas for funding them that I will provide. Otherwise I go along with Mr. Bacso. DeVries said he didnt think the referendum proposal has to come from the administration but could originate with the people at these tables. This administrative team spent a lot of time pounding the pavement for the building referendum, and I didnt see a lot of support from teachers and others who would benefit, DeVries said. Im a lame duck and will be leaving in January, but I can bring this up. But, I will not support it without the support of the board and the administration. *This story has been corrected from its original version. *Superintendent Lawrence Veracco said a general fund referendum is different from a building referendum, which the district successfully sought a few years ago for improvements and expansion of its buildings. With the building referendum, the exact amount isnt known. The district sought about $19 million and the actual cost came in at about $14 million, but Veracco said it could just as easily have been $22 million. The district advertised an increase of 19.25 cents per $100 of Assessed Value but the actual increase was only 14.6 cents per $110 of AV. If the costs of construction required more than a 19-1/4 cent increase, the district would have had to cut parts of the project as they were limited to the advertised 19.25 cent increase. INDIANAPOLIS Purdue University President Mitch Daniels believes Indiana is on the right track. The former two-term Republican governor told Hoosier manufacturing leaders Wednesday that the state has made tremendous gains in business climate, disposable income relative to cost of living, infrastructure, education and environmental quality. I like what the future may hold for us if we can keep these trends continuing, Daniels said. We should not allow people to mislead us that somehow were in a position of relative disrepair. Daniels seemed to flirt with breaking his vow of political celibacy during his 30-minute address to the Indiana Manufacturers Association. But ultimately he refrained from directly endorsing the gubernatorial bid of his former top aide, Lt. Gov. Eric Holcomb. Instead, Daniels deployed his data-laden PowerPoint presentation to emphasize that Indiana today is in far better shape than it was when he took office in 2005 following 16 years of Democratic governors. Ive always said were going to try to build the best sandbox in America where people of enterprise will come here and invest and create jobs and create hope for other people, Daniels said. No matter who totes it up, no matter what criteria they use, a lot of headway has been made on this. Daniels said Indiana going forward needs to remain focused on attracting and growing manufacturing enterprises because their jobs and associated spending rippling through the economy are the single biggest driver of hope and opportunity in our country. I dont have patience for people who give big speeches and wring their hands about the middle class in this country, if theyre not prepared to support growth policies generally and specifically manufacturing which produces those middle-class jobs, he said. Daniels confessed that hes concerned about the effects of shrinking male workforce participation, reduced family formation, increased disability claims and high levels of drug abuse among Hoosiers, and what that may portend for the states economy. He suggested that in this bicentennial year Indiana could solve some of those problems, and might gain a leg up on other states, by refocusing on the values that Daniels said typify what it means to be a Hoosier: commitment to family, work ethic, honesty, self-reliance and diligence. If we can have a citizen-led effort to preserve some advantage culturally in our state, to go with everything else we have on the asset side of the ledger, Daniels said, I dont think there will be any stopping us. INDIANAPOLIS After being bombarded by some $30 million in television ads, mailers and billboards over the past few months, Hoosiers finally heard directly from the candidates for U.S. Senate on Tuesday during their only debate. For most of the hour, Republican U.S. Rep. Todd Young repeatedly attacked former U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh, accusing the Democrat of abandoning Hoosiers to become a lobbyist and operating under the spell of D.C. insiders, party leaders and special interests. No matter the question, Young found a way to tie it to Bayhs vote in favor of Obamacare, officially known as the 2010 Affordable Care Act, as Young insisted over and over that the health law has been an absolute job killer despite more Hoosiers working today than at any point in the states 200-year history. Bayh was prepared for the Obamacare onslaught. He pointed out that its repeal would eliminate the Healthy Indiana Plan that serves 350,000 Hoosiers, allow insurance companies to charge higher prices to women in pursuit of unlimited profits and raise rates for insured Hoosiers to cover the health costs of the uninsured. What we need to do is fix the parts of the law that need to be fixed and keep those that are working well, Bayh said. On foreign policy, Young spoke generally about the need to defeat ISIS, but only intervening directly if the United States has a clear mission. He also mentioned 11 times that he previously served in the U.S. Marine Corps. Bayh detailed the roles of U.S. allies in the Middle East, talked about which agencies should protect Americans at home and stressed the need to win the war of ideas by standing unabashedly for freedom. Both men said Russian President Vladimir Putin cannot be trusted and favor sanctions to punish Russias invasion of Ukraine. On domestic issues, Bayh said his top priority if elected to a third term in the Senate will be expanding business, creating good jobs and helping Hoosier wages rise at companies like Garys Edsal Manufacturing by enforcing trade rules and halting currency manipulation. He dinged Young for supporting a federal tax break for companies that move American jobs overseas. Young didnt respond to that issue, but said hes open to revisiting existing trade deals and called for the federal tax code to be simplified. Young and Bayh both declared themselves strong supporters of the 2nd Amendments right to bear arms. Though Bayh believes individuals on the No-Fly List shouldnt be allowed to purchase guns, while Young did not commit to any specific new gun purchase restrictions saying only, Every right has its limitations. In response to a question by Chesterton teacher Bryan Nallenweg, Bayh emphasized that hes prepared to work across party lines to get things done for Hoosiers and even spoke favorably of his past partnerships with Republican U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar and Gov. Mike Pence. Young said hes worked with Democrats to clarify that Obamacares definition of a work week is 40 hours, instead of 30. To which Bayh said hes fully on board with that proposed change to the health law. On climate change, Young said its not a Hoosier problem we dont want to wreck our economy trying to deal with it. Bayh endorsed an all-of-the-above energy strategy, including clean coal and ethanol, to preserve low-cost electricity for Indiana manufacturers. Debate moderator Ken Owen, a former television newsman and current DePauw University executive director of media relations, did not ask about the U.S. Supreme Court vacancy. But Young seemed to suggest that his preferred presidential candidate, Republican Donald Trump, will not win on Nov. 8 as Young warned that Bayh only would be a rubber stamp for Democrat Hillary Clintons policies and appointees, while he would stand up to the next president. The Libertarian candidate, Lucy Brenton, condemned both Young and Bayh as hopelessly beholden to special interests and suggested the election outcome could be rigged by voting machine companies. She pledged, if elected, to legalize hemp farming, restore sound money, keep the government out of the economy, stop bombing everybody and eliminate the Social Security Ponzi scheme. CROWN POINT Caseys General Store is looking to open shop in the city. Patrick Moone, an engineer with the Farnsworth Group, of Champaign, Illinois, represented Caseys during a workshop with the citys Plan Commission on Monday. Moone said Caseys plans to construct a 4,350-square-foot convenience store with fuel sales at the intersection of 101st Avenue and Broadway just east of the Gary Sportsmen Club. The store would not be Caseys standard building footprint, but more of a red brick Williamsburg style the city wants on Broadway. Moone said its more costly and usually done because of a community requirement. Theyll try to adapt as much as possible and still maintain the traditional Caseys building front, he said. Commission member Laura Sauerman requested windows that are more architecturally interesting, mixed masonry or a column-type aspect, limestone accents and rather than the stores outdoor modern LED lights, have fixtures of a more vintage period. Small details would accomplish a lot that were missing here, she said. The commission also said that any poles in the fueling station must be covered with a brick or stone wrap and the canopy covering the fuel stations cannot be flat, but instead a hip roof similar to what it requested of Speedway when that store opened on 109th Avenue and Broadway. Speedway did it although reluctantly, Commission President John Marshall said. Moone said a hip roof could be a structural problem, and an analysis of such a roof was done for a store in Illinois where it was determined to be a $150,000 to $200,000 add on. They would like to try to avoid that if at all possible, he said. But because of the community requirement, all I can do is take it back to them and let them make the decision. Sauerman said not having a hip roof could be a deal breaker. Because weve required it of others, she said. Marshall is also concerned about the ins and outs of traffic on Broadway. Moone said the Indiana Department of Transportation is only allowing them to build a right in/right out on Broadway. Marshall said that was supposed to be the plan for the Speedway but then that was gutted, making it more of a full access in/out, thus creating a traffic hazard. Although Moone said they will have the more restrictive island at Caseys compared to Speedway, Marshall said the first hour its open someone will pull out of there and make a left turn. Moone said it would it be extremely difficult, especially because there are four lanes so a vehicle would have an extra lane to try to get across. There is no way to prevent that if they really want to do it, Moone said. You cant prevent stupid. CROWN POINT Join the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra and Music Director/Conductor Kirk Muspratt for Mahlers transformative Symphony No. 5 at Mahler 5 at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 28 at The Auditorium at Bethel Church. Tickets for the concert range from $29 to $69 each, students are $10, concert season subscriptions are still available, and group sales are available at a discount beginning at 10 people. Call the symphony office at (219) 836-0525 or visit the website at www.NISOrchestra.org to order tickets for Mahler 5. HAMMOND Those who were fortunate enough to secure seats for the annual Trolley Tour of Terror embarking Friday night from downtown Hammond will learn details about some of the infamous history of Northwest Indiana. The tour, sponsored by the United Citizens Association, Inc., was created over a decade ago by Robertsdale resident David Dabertin, a local attorney and history buff. My wife and I travel a lot, so I get to go on a lot of tours in a lot of places and what really always irks me is that well be in some small town in Europe and its a bunch of Americans and theyre all oohing and aahing over some fairly insignificant history, Dabertin said. Dabertin believes people tend to ignore their own history. We look at our communities and we kind of just dismiss them as not being important, he said. And yet, a lot of the history here is really significant. The city of Hammond trolley that is used for the tour sits 28 people and fills up each year, this being no exception. A nominal fee had been charged in the past, but there was none this year. The goal of Dabertin, who narrates the tour, is simply to promote the community and its history. The three-hour excursion is expected to cover eight to 10 local sites, including downtown Hammond. You had the Pullman strike happen there, Dabertin said. You had all of the things that happened at State Line. You know, that whole Calumet City and West Hammond State Line district was filled with all kinds of outrageous tales. He said the Pullman railroad strike that occurred in 1894 saw the U.S. military fire on its own people. And I dont think anybody can imagine that, Dabertin said. The tour also covers gangster lore. I like to head out to North Hammond because there are some spots there that fit really well into Al Capones history, Dabertin said. A trip to Wolf Lake would not be complete without a discussion of Leopold and Loeb and their so-called crime of the century that involved the dumping of their victims body in the area. This years tour also likely will stop in Gary at the site of the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus train wreck of 1918 Thats the area that everyone always points to for hauntings, Dabertin said. He said a stop there allows for reflection upon the tragedy. You know, those people all burned alive in horrible circumstances, Dabertin said. The Dual Language Immersion Program (DLI) is underway at Parkview Elementary School. One of eight elementary schools in the Valparaiso School Corporation, Parkview is in its second year of DLI. The program began last year with native Spanish speaking, Kristin Nguyen, teaching Math in Spanish to Kindergarten students. Those students, now first graders, are continuing their Math in Spanish skills with Amelia Mota, also a native Spanish speaker. This years Kindergarten students are experiencing 50% of their day in Spanish. One goal of DLI is to give children the opportunity to become biliterate by the time they graduate from high school, which is very different that being bilingual. This program trains students to read, write, speak, and think in a different language. As young adults, they will have many more opportunities available to them because of these skills. We are preparing them for future possibilities we cant even image in this ever-changing world. Our little community in Valparaiso is thinking globally as we empower and equip these future members of society. My own daughter, Marie, is one of those students. As a first grade teacher at Parkview Elementary, I decided to bring Marie to Parkview with me for kindergarten because I could not pass up this incredible opportunity to have my daughter learn a second language! So far, I am amazed! At this very moment, as I write this article, my daughter is playing and singing in Spanish. She comes home from school with a few new Spanish words each day. She is constantly counting, reciting the days of the week, singing songs, and using Spanish vocabulary in her everyday language. I recently spoke with the parent of a first grader who is new to Parkview this year. After only one month of Spanish, his mom is very impressed that he is not only meeting the first grade state standard of counting to 100 (in Spanish), but he insists on her listening to him count to 200! This program is proving to be quite amazing as we not only watch the students who had Spanish last year build upon what they learned, but also watch the new students catch on so quickly. It is my hope that our corporation will continue this program so that Marie and her classmates will someday become biliterate. The pride and excitement I see in my first grade students when they are answering questions is Spanish gives me great hope for their future. Even if these students never use Spanish again in their lives, the confidence they have already gained makes this program so valuable to their education and overall well-being. WASHINGTON The Latest on the U.S. presidential campaign (all times EDT): Donald Trump's campaign manager says she doesn't believe there's widespread voter fraud in the United States. Kellyanne Conway said "it would not be for me to say" that there was widespread fraud absent overwhelming evidence. She says there's fraud "here and there" including past incidents of dead people on voter lists and people voting in multiple places. Conway's comments Wednesday on MSNBC appear to undercut Trump's unsubstantiated claim that massive fraud is rigging the election against him. Trump also says the media is rigging the election for Hillary Clinton. But Conway says that while some journalists are colluding with the Clinton campaign, it's "certainly not all, or even most." ___ 11:15 a.m. Tim Kaine says he wants Hillary Clinton to "win big" so that no one will believe rival Donald Trump's claims of a rigged election. The Democratic vice presidential candidate was urging supporters in Ohio to run up the score against Trump. The Republican presidential nominee who has made unsubstantiated claims that the election has been fixed in Clinton's favor. Kaine said that the bigger Clinton's margin of victory is, "the harder it is for him to whine and have anybody believe him." Kaine said Trump's claims of election rigging are an insult to American democracy. He said "it's shameful." Kaine said he hoped the moderator of Wednesday's presidential debate, Fox News host Chris Wallace, would challenge Trump and not let him simply lob insults at Clinton. ___ 10:10 a.m. No matter how persuasive Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are at Wednesday night's debate, it's already too late for either to win over millions of voters. Advance voting by mail or in person is now underway in more than 30 states. At least 2.1 million voters have already cast ballots. More than 45 million people are expected to vote before Election Day, Nov. 8. In Nevada, site of the debate, absentee ballots were being mailed out Wednesday. Early balloting so far has shown promise for Clinton in battlegrounds North Carolina and Florida while Trump has generally held ground in Iowa and Ohio. Early voting is traditionally favored by Democrats and is a key part of the Clinton campaign's strategy. Trump is counting on a stronger performance on Election Day itself. ___ 9:40 a.m. Donald Trump's campaign manager is acknowledging that the Republican presidential nominee needs a "comeback" in the final weeks of the campaign. Kellyanne Conway said that Trump has pulled off comebacks several times before. It's a rare acknowledgement by the confident billionaire's campaign that he could ultimately fall short. She spoke to Fox News on Wednesday ahead of the third and final presidential debate. Conway's comment comes amid a string of battleground state polls showing Clinton ahead. Conway said she doesn't understand why Hillary Clinton hasn't been able to "put him away" given her experience and her campaign's "endless amounts of money." She said, "What is her problem, already?" ___ 7:20 a.m. President Barack Obama's half-brother says he doesn't agree with the decision by another half-brother to attend the final presidential debate as a guest of the Donald Trump campaign. Mark Obama Ndesandjo said, "I love my brothers, but no one member represents the Obamas." The Trump campaign said Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother Malik would be in the audience for the showdown Wednesday between Trump and Hillary Clinton. The three men share the same father but have different mothers. Ndesandjo is an American businessman who has lived in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen for about 15 years. In an email to The Associated Press, he said: "Others in my family and I do not support my brother Malik's position on Mr. Trump." Malik Obama supports Trump's candidacy. ___ 3:25 a.m. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump's ugly and acrimonious battle for the White House is barreling toward the end, with the candidates taking the debate stage Wednesday night for one final primetime showdown. For Trump, the debate is perhaps his last opportunity to turn around a race that appears to be slipping away from him. His predatory comments about women and a flood of sexual assault accusations have deepened his unpopularity with women and limited his pathways to victory. Clinton takes the stage facing challenges of her own. While the electoral map currently leans in her favor, the Democrat is facing a new round of questions about her authenticity and trustworthiness, concerns that have trailed her throughout the campaign. When it comes to exciting elections, Indiana has it all this year. The Hoosier state settled the GOP nomination for president in the primary season and offered a vice presidential candidate in July. The races at the top of the ticket are close enough to be toss-ups. And to think just a year ago, we were worried about voter apathy. Indiana was dead last in the nation for voter turnout. Weve got three live-wire races (presidential, Senate and gubernatorial) at this point, according to political analyst Brian Howey, publisher of Howey Politics Indiana. Howey, along with Dan Carden, The Times Statehouse bureau chief, and Andrew Downs, director of the Mike Downs Center for Indiana Politics at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, were panelists last Friday at the Lake County Advancement Committees political outlook luncheon at the Radisson Hotel in Merrillville. I was the moderator. The big question this year seems to be, how toxic is Donald Trump, the highly controversial Republican presidential candidate? And if Democrat Hillary Clinton is elected president, as the polls suggest, what would that mean for Gov. Mike Pence? It could mean the end of his political career. Name me a losing vice presidential nominee who ever did anything politically. There are not many, Howey said. The Trump ick might stick, Downs said. But at this point, hes in a better position than he was before he accepted the nomination, Downs said. He has been the adult on that ticket. He has been the one that has been acting most presidential. Our governor has essentially checked out, Howey said. You havent seen him in East Chicago, where we have a humanitarian crisis a line that drew loud applause. We have a heroin epidemic that is sweeping the state that the governors office is ignoring. He has gone national. Hes nationwide. If Trump loses the election, the extent of that loss could be a big factor in Pences fate. If this turns into a Reagan vs. Mondale, a 49 states to 1 debacle, then I think anybody and anything associated with the Trump ticket could be tainted, Howey said. Dont forget the anti-Pence yard signs that popped up across the state. He was in a tight gubernatorial race long before he jumped ship from the gubernatorial race to seek the vice presidency. And now this evangelical Christian is defending a running mate whom several women have accused of unwelcome sexual advances and who publicly disagreed with Pence on a critical foreign policy issue during the last presidential debate. Its an awkward spot to be in. Carden said what I was thinking. If I was Mike Pence, and I just saw Evan Bayhs financials of where he was making $450,000 a year doing 10 minutes a week on Fox News, I would move to New York just to be on Fox News and give up all my dreams of ever winning public office again, because theyre probably not going to come true, Carden said. I was disappointed that District 19 Rep. Julie Olthoff, R-Crown Point, couldnt make time in her schedule to be part of the League of Women Voters program Wednesday night. Nor was she available for a debate proposed by the Crossroads Chamber. But two candidates did show up: Libertarian Evan Demaree and Democrat Shelli VanDenburgh. Shelli was particularly well spoken and well informed as she outlined her priorities. She will work with both parties to do what is best for Hoosier workers, students, seniors and veterans. Unlike so many representatives in Indy, she will not be locked into doing just what her party tells her to do. In addition, Shelli will be our full-time representative, responsive to her constituents, ready to answer questions. Im voting for the candidate who showed up, looked the voters in the eye and explained what she stood for Shelli VanDenburgh for District 19 Representative. Mary Certa, Crown Point Thousands of construction and other workers say they have been wrongfully arrested and prosecuted for carrying utility knives. Their arrests have touched off a legal battle in Albany. NY1 Criminal Justice Reporter Dean Meminger speaks exclusively with an NYPD expert about the controversial blades. The NYPD says state legislators are playing with danger trying to relax a decades-old law governing gravity knives. Thats a knife where the blade is in the handle, but opens quickly by the force of gravity. "Gravity knives or certain knives that can be deployed rapidly under certain circumstances can pose a risk to police and civilians," said NYPD Detective Patrick DeCanio with the Firearms and Tactics section. Problem is many workers carry utility knives that can quickly open with a flick of the wrist. The Legal Aid Society says those knives aren't the traditional gravity knives that are outlawed. But over the last 15 years, the civil rights organization claims, the NYPD has been treating utility knives that way, wrongly arresting tens of thousands of people for carrying them. Electrical worker Jason Ferguson says his utility knife was clipped on his pocket when he was arrested. "I had my Dewalt power tools in my left hand and these cops approached me for no reason and it is very clear I am coming from work," Ferguson said. He sued, and reached a settlement with the city. "I was locked up for two days," Ferguson said. "I feel like a criminal and I am not. I am an electrician." Joshua Fitch represents workers in a class action lawsuit who say the NYPD falsely arrested them for what they consider legal knives. Fitch says trained cops are snapping the knives open and then charging people with having gravity knives. "And their interpretation is that any knife that anyone can open by flicking their wrist is a gravity knife which is simply not the law," Fitch said. I practiced trying to open three different knives, one was pretty easy, the other two pretty hard to do, but after some practice and adjusting my technique, I was able to open it almost every time. Governor Cuomo is reviewing a bill passed by the legislature to legalize folding utility knives that tend to stay closed unless forced open. Gravity knives would remain illegal. The NYPD opposes the bill, saying it could increase the amount of people carrying knives. Police shot and killed an emotionally disturbed woman inside an apartment building in the Bronx Tuesday night. It happened just after 6 p.m. on Pugsley Avenue near Randall Avenue in Castle Hill. Police say officers responded to call of an emotionally disturbed woman acting erratically. When they got there they found a 66-year-old woman with scissors. They say a sergeant talked the woman into putting the scissors down, but then she grabbed a bat and tried to hit him with it. That's when he shot her twice. Neighbors say the woman appeared to be mentally ill and are questioning the cop's use of excessive force. "When you shoot somebody man it should be life or death you know, that's what you have stun guns and stuff like that for," said one neighbor. "From what I've seen of her, I'm not surprised, because she was mentally I'm sorry, mentally unbalanced," said another. "My neighbor told me 'cause she lives right next door to her, she said that lady be screaming and hollering, cursing and talking like she's battling, fighting somebody." Police say the sergeant involved was armed with a stun gun, but it is not clear why he did not use it. News of the shooting and the circumstances surrounding it caused some local officials to call for an investigation. "Tonight's shooting of a mentally disturbed, 66-year-old woman in the 43rd Precinct is an outrage, especially given the New York Police Department's knowledge of this woman's history and the police officer's possession of a stun gun," Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. said in a statement. "While I certainly understand the hard work that our police officers undertake to keep the streets of our city safe every single day, I also know what excessive force looks like," the statement continues. "This elderly woman was known to the police department, yet the officer involved in this shooting failed to use discretion to either talk her down from her episode or, barring that, to use his stun gun. "I call on Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and District Attorney Darcel Clark to begin an immediate investigation." Likewise, Public Advocate Letitia James also issued a statement Tuesday night. "I am deeply concerned about the police shooting that killed a Bronx woman in her sixties with apparent mental health issues," James said in the statement. "I am calling for a swift and thorough investigation into this tragic incident and for the findings to be released publicly. While we are still learning details about this evening's incident, I am renewing my call to expand the use of non-lethal use of force by the NYPD. I look forward to working with the NYPD toward common sense criminal justice measures that protect our police officers and the communities they serve." LAS VEGAS - Presidential nominees Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are getting ready to square off in their third and final debate tonight. The debate is being held on the campus of the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. Fox News anchor Chris Wallace will serve as moderator. This is the last time the two candidates will go face-to-face before the election on November 8. Trump arrived in Las Vegas yesterday after attending a rally in Colorado. During that event, he outlined a series of federal ethics reforms. They include a term limit of six years for members of the House, and 12 years for Senators. Trump also renewed his claim that the election is being rigged for Clinton, and played up his status as a Washington outsider. "Decades of failure in Washington and decades of special interest dealing must and will come to an end and remember by the time this ends, I will have spent over a hundred million dollars on my campaign," Trump said. President Barack Obama's Kenyan-born half-brother will be Trump's guest at the debate. Malik Obama tells the New York Post he is excited to attend, and that "Trump can make America great again." At the last debate, Trump invited three women who have accused former President Bill Clinton of sexually harassing or assaulting them. Hillary Clinton also arrived in Las Vegas yesterday. Clinton has spent the last few days away from the campaign trail in preparation for the debate. Her former rival, Bernie Sanders, made his case for her yesterday in Arizona. The state hasn't voted for a Democratic president since Bill Clinton's re-election in 1996. Sanders told Clinton's supporters that they have the power to turn Arizona from red to blue. "We can win here if voter turnout is high. If young people, if working people, if senior citizens come out to vote we can win here," Sanders said. Clinton's campaign says billionaire Mark Cuban and Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO Meg Whitman will be her guests at tonight's debate. Whitman is one of Clinton's biggest Republican supporters. A reminder that NY1 will bring you tonight's debate live. Our coverage begins at 7 p.m. with a special edition of Inside City Hall. We'll have a pre-debate show at 8 p.m., followed by the main event at 9 p.m. After that, we will have a special wrap-up show with highlights and analysis at 10:30 p.m. You're also invited to take part on our Facebook page and on Twitter using the hashtag #NYDebate. We'll also be blogging and fact-checking the debate here on our website. While Donald Trump has been relentlessly attacking both Bill and Hillary Clinton as he campaigns for president including going after Bill Clintons alleged infidelity he was filled with praise for both of them in an exclusive interview that first aired on NY1 on November 12, 2008. "I think Bill Clinton was a great president," Trump said in the interview that was conducted shortly after the 2008 presidential election on NY1's "Inside City Hall" program. "You know, you look at the country then. The economy was doing great. Look at what happened during the Clinton years. I mean we had no war, the economy was doing great, everybody was happy. A lot of people hated him because they were jealous as hell," Trump said. Asked about Hillary Clinton, Trump said: "I think she is going to go down at a minimum as a great senator. I think she is a great wife to a president." NY1 looked deeper into its archives Wednesday morning after a CNN reporter begain inquiring about the interview. You can watch an extended portion of the interview below. Watch NY1 News for reports from Josh Robin this evening and then watch NY1's coverage of tonight's final presidential debate starting at 7 p.m. NY1 will be fact-checking the debate online at http://ny1.com/factcheck. And I have a real plan to invest in creating jobs and building stronger economies in coal country. Americas coal communities have kept our lights on and our factories running for generations, and I wont let them be left in the dark. Finally, I believe the United States needs to continue to lead the global effort to combat climate change. I will fulfill the pledge President Obama made in the Paris Climate Agreement and seek to go further by cutting emissions up to 30 percent below 2005 levels by 2025. We need to implement the breakthrough we achieved just last week in the Montreal Protocol to phase down super-polluting HFCs and avoid as much as half a degree of warming. Not only does America need to lead, we need to do more to work with our neighbors. We trade more energy with Canada and Mexico than with the rest of the world combined. Thats why I want to negotiate a North American Climate Compact to cut emissions and accelerate the clean energy transition across the continent. I wont let the climate deniers stand in the way of progress, or let us give in to the climate defeatists who say this challenge is too big to solve. We can and will take on climate change, build a clean energy economy, and leave our kids and grandkids a safe and healthy worldbecause there is no Planet B. Donald Trump: Unlike Hillary Clinton, Mr. Trump does not believe global warming is the most serious threat we face as a nation. Hillary Clinton supports a climate plan that costs our economy $5 trillion, while Chinathe worlds largest polluteractually continues to increase its emissions for at least 14 more years. Because of policies like hers, our country has lost countless jobs to China, Mexico, and other nations. From an environmental standpoint, it is much better to manufacture products here in the U.S. where we care about the environment, as opposed to countries like China where environmental standards are very low. 2. What would you do to reduce the extreme income inequality in this country? Hillary Clinton: Too many hardworking Americans have the deck stacked against them. No one who works hard should have to raise their kids in poverty, or worry they wont be able to retire with dignity. The National Archives and Records Administration is the guardian of some of the nations most precious documents, like the parchment Declaration of Independence displayed under glass in its main building in Washington. But in recent weeks, its real breakout star has been a patriotic squirrel from a 1953 newsreel, which has been viewed more than three million times since it was posted online as part of a collection of GIFs made from the archives holdings. That cache, available at the website Giphy, includes some well-known curiosities, like an animated version of the 1970 Oval Office handshake between Elvis Presley and Richard Nixon. But we asked Darren Cole, the digital engagement specialist who created the GIFs, about the back stories to some of the quirkier items in the 164-item (and growing) collection. Hugh Laurie returns as a doctor this one even darker than before in Chance. Hillary Clinton and Donald J. Trump take on the issues, and each other, in their final presidential debate. And catch a glimpse of People of Earth, about a support group for alien abductees, before it runs this month. Whats Streaming CHANCE on Hulu. Hugh Laurie is back as a doctor this time, the forensic neuropsychiatrist Eldon Chance, who mines the psyches of those whose lives have been turned upside down by traumatic experiences, to the neglect of his own life. But all that changes when he tries rescue a beguiling patient (Gretchen Mol) from her abusive spouse and embarks on a thrill ride to self-actualization. With the help of a militaristic Yoda named D (Ethan Suplee), Chance taps into a vein of vigilantism and maybe his own mental illness in this adaptation of the Kem Nunn novel, with its San Francisco setting and undercurrent of Alfred Hitchcocks Vertigo. The incongruous fellowship of Chance and D has the advantage of being ridiculous and therefore entertaining in a show whose pacing and mood keep it tied down, Mike Hale wrote in The New York Times. But, he added, if the show gets a little less noir-heavy and a little more wacky, the progress of their beautiful friendship could be worth tracking. Whats on TV THE THIRD PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE 9 p.m. on ABC, Bloomberg, CBS, CNBC, CNN, C-Span, C-Span 2, Fox, Fox Business, Fox News, MSNBC, NBC, NY1, PBS, Telemundo and Univision. Hillary Clinton and Donald J. Trump face off one last time at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, with Chris Wallace of Fox News moderating. The topics include debt and entitlements, immigration, the economy, the Supreme Court, foreign hot spots and the candidates fitness to be president. SAN FRANCISCO A little-known investment bank catering to some of Silicon Valleys top private companies has hired some big names as it seeks to challenge more established competitors. The firm, Disruptive Technology Advisers, plans to announce on Wednesday that it has hired two veteran financial executives Greg Kennedy, most recently of UBS, and Robert J. Williams Jr., a onetime president of Washington Mutual as senior executives. The hires are meant to help the five-year-old firm grow as it competes in the business of buying and selling stock in privately held companies. As a merchant bank, Disruptive Technology Advisers helps companies find buyers for their shares and often invests as well. Among the companies it has worked for, according to news reports, are the data analysis provider Palantir Technologies, the file-sharing giant Dropbox and the genetic testing service 23andMe. The firm declined to comment on any of its clients, citing confidentiality. Big Oil is clawing its way back. After a heart-stopping plunge in the price of crude over the last two years, along with slashed dividends and the elimination of tens of thousands of jobs, the biggest oil companies are proving surprisingly adept at again pumping profits, as well as oil, out of the ground. Indeed, with oil trading in a range of $40 to $50 barrel for most of the 2016, experts say the biggest energy producers are poised to rebound if prices remain stable. Its a hunger games environment, but they are learning how to be more efficient, said Evan Calio, an equity analyst with Morgan Stanley. Two years ago, nobody thought costs could drop as quickly as they did. Its staggering, and theres no doubt this has surprised people. Not that it has been easy. Over the last 12 months, drillers have eliminated nearly 20,000 jobs in the United States, according to the Labor Department, and Morgan Stanley expects domestic oil production to finish 2016 half a million barrels below where it started. Deepwater drilling has been curtailed in places like the Gulf of Mexico, as have multibillion dollar projects around the world. SAN DONATO MILANESE, Italy A drilling ship working about 120 miles off the Egyptian coast for Eni, the Italian oil company based here, bored into a giant trove of natural gas in July 2015 that turned out to be the largest discovery ever in the Mediterranean Sea and by far the largest by the global petroleum industry that year. The find, called Zohr, meaning noon in Arabic, was the source of enormous relief and even elation at Eni, which had risked $70 million to drill a well in an area where Royal Dutch Shell, the Anglo-Dutch company, had previously drilled 10 without success. Enis chief executive, Claudio Descalzi, let the drilling go ahead despite serious misgivings inside the company because some of his geologists were convinced that Shell and other rivals might have missed something big. It was a very emotional moment, said Mr. Descalzi. We tried to look outside the box. In a series of recent interviews, Mr. Descalzi and other Eni executives reflected on the ramifications of the discovery, which has reignited the industrys flagging interest in Egypt and the entire eastern Mediterranean region. The Transocean Winner, a rig filled with more than 300 tons of diesel and weighing 18,740 tons, broke away in an August storm to drift onto the rocks on the Isle of Lewis, in far western Scotland. The huge semisubmersible oil rig detached in rough seas from a tug trying to bring it to Malta, and amid worries about pollution, it looked massive and forlorn as salvage crews tried to free it, and refloat it. But the Transocean Winner, both in its plight and in its journey away from the North Sea, is a symbol of Scotlands growing problem. At the same time as North Sea production slips and oil and gas become harder and more expensive to extract, the price of energy has fallen sharply. Cheap oil prices are making it uneconomical to produce oil and gas from the North Sea, so investment is postponed or canceled and rigs are shutting down or being transported elsewhere. And the drop in production from the mature field has meant a steep drop in tax revenues for Scotland, which in turn has put a big question mark over the prospects of Scottish independence from the United Kingdom. City officials and lawyers representing some of the subjects of the investigation, however, contend that it has focused on what they characterize as the traditional business of politics and government: donors supporting the mayor and later seeking what they said was his legitimate help on issues of interest to them. A spokesman for Mr. de Blasio said in a statement that the administration was absolutely confident that its members had acted appropriately at all times. We dont do pay-to-play, the statement said. Out of an interest of protecting the integrity of an ongoing review, we cant comment further at this stage. As for the issues still being scrutinized, several lawyers for subjects of, and witnesses in, the fund-raising inquiry and others with knowledge of it have said the Campaign for One New York has drawn increasing attention. All spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss what is being examined by the authorities. The nonprofit, which could take unlimited contributions because of its legal status, formed shortly before Mr. de Blasio took office, and raised more than $4 million to push his political agenda; much of it came from developers, unions, lobbyists and people and firms with business before the city. Watchdog groups complained that it amounted to a shadow government, allowing lobbyists, consultants and others to funnel money to the mayor unfettered by the citys strict campaign finance laws. The nonprofit shut down in March; Mr. de Blasio said it had served its purpose of pushing for passage of universal prekindergarten and an affordable housing plan. At the time, the group was the subject of an inquiry by the Joint Commission for Public Ethics, a state agency that enforces the lobbying law, and a formal complaint filed with the citys Campaign Finance Board. Some of the earliest and most generous donors to the Campaign for One New York are among those whose contributions along with their actions and those of the mayor and members of his administration and campaign staff are under scrutiny, several people with knowledge of the inquiry said. A former state senator, Mr. Baroni has portrayed himself as a dutiful public servant who trusted the wrong person: Mr. Wildstein, who pleaded guilty in a conspiracy to close the lanes and is now the prosecutions chief witness. Mr. Baroni has insisted he believed Mr. Wildstein when he said that the lanes had to be closed because of a traffic study important to the governor, and that Mr. Baroni would ruin it if he responded to messages from the mayor of Fort Lee, N.J., who repeatedly complained of the ensuing chaos. Mr. Wildstein, Mr. Baroni testified, was the Port Authoritys chief connection to Mr. Christie, a Republican, and his aggressive political operation. Mr. Baroni said he was left on the sidelines. He believed he was considered a wimp, he said, and was completely unaware of what he only later discovered was the punitive purpose behind the closings. But in the prosecutors telling, Mr. Baroni and Mr. Wildstein plotted together as closely as Randolph and Mortimer, gleefully using the public resources of the Port Authority for Mr. Christies political purposes. They spoke by phone nearly 3,000 times in 2013 alone, not to mention hundreds of emails, text messages and conversations at the agency, where they sat in adjoining offices. Mr. Baroni, prosecutors argued, was just as much a part of the governors inner circle, and eager to please Trenton a code word for Mr. Christie. John F. Good, who developed and directed the F.B.I.s Abscam investigation, resulting in grainy black-and-white videotapes on the evening news that showed elected officials accepting bags and envelopes of cash from what appeared to be an Arab sheikh, died on Sept. 28 at his home in Island Park, N.Y. He was 80. The death was confirmed by his brother, Kevin. Abscam was a two-year inquiry in the late 1970s and early 80s in which agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation posed as representatives of wealthy Arabs willing to pay bribes for influence. The idea evolved after Mr. Good, who was running the bureaus first Long Island office, in Hauppauge, saw a routine F.B.I. memo about Mel Weinberg, a reputed small-time con man operating in the vicinity. Mr. Goods bosses had been encouraging him to develop bigger, more important cases, and he thought Mr. Weinberg might be able to help ferret out wrongdoers, essentially by fooling a lot of people, a lot of the time. In the beginning, Mr. Weinberg pulled in people who were thought to be interested in selling high-priced stolen art. A bureau employee of Lebanese descent was recruited to pose as the potential buyer, a wealthy sheikh who was portrayed as owning a company called Abdul Enterprises (the source of the name Abscam). Proposals to enlarge P.S. 191s zone and to move P.S. 452 have stirred protest from a vocal contingent of parents. The loudest outcry has come from residents of two Lincoln Towers buildings, which under previous proposals presented by the Education Department would be zoned to P.S. 191. Currently Lincoln Towers is zoned to P.S. 199, which is mostly white and affluent, and residents have argued that the complex should not be divided. The department has appeared to vacillate. But in its letter, the parent group said that to ensure a sufficient zone size, not only those two buildings, but also a third, should be assigned to P.S. 191. Joe Fiordaliso, the president of the parent group, known as a community education council, said it made a tactical decision to make its position public to lay down the marker, so to speak. The council cannot present its own rezoning plan; the department must submit a plan for a council vote. Mr. Fiordaliso would not say whether the organization would reject any proposal that did not match its letter, but he said the group would stand firm in any negotiation. Our position is that this is the plan, and they can either stand with us or not, Mr. Fiordaliso said. Updated, 9:47 a.m. Good morning on this toasty Wednesday. In New York, preparing a home-cooked meal for one can often seem just as expensive as eating out. If thats the case, youre not doing it correctly, says Mark Erickson, the provost of the Culinary Institute of America, who wrote the book Cooking for One with his wife, Lisa. Cooking for just yourself can be healthful and cheap, he said: It all boils down to planning. To begin, Mr. Erickson recommends putting together a menu for the week, then cooking and storing large batches of food (like braised meat, tomato sauce and chili). But Monday nights roast chicken should never be served the same way twice, he said. Think of it as an ingredient for another dish, like chicken salad or a sandwich. And what about the pianos legs: Are they Queen Anne? Chippendale? You mean like Chippendales, the male strippers? said a man at the New York Lottery storefront near where the piano was wheeled in. Putting a piano in the biggest and busiest bus station in the world was the idea of Adrian Untermyer, who helped pay his way through college and graduate school as the keyboard player in a band on the Long Island wedding circuit and is now the deputy director of the Historic Districts Council, a preservation group. He said he hoped that live piano playing would serve as a rebuttal to the piped-in classical music that was introduced in the 1990s because, it was said at the time, homeless people would go somewhere else at the sound of Bach and Beethoven. (They havent.) But the first piece played on the piano was not a toccata and fugue or a sonata. It was a gospel-style song written by Mr. Untermyer himself. The piano seemed to want it it had this great gospely feel, Mr. Untermyer, 26, said. I love gospel because of its authenticity, and that piano felt so authentic and the space felt so authentic. He said the song was called Prospect Park and was the lament of the phone-obsessed millennials of our time. Donald J. Trump had already roiled the religious right, casting the Republican Partys most reliable voting bloc into an abyss of despair, recriminations and uncertainty about the future. Then the 2005 video surfaced of him boasting about his sexual predations and women began coming forward to accuse him of sexual assault. The world is getting a glimpse into the dark and rotting core of evangelicalism, an evangelical with deep roots in the movement told me recently. The divide or, more aptly, the crater between pro-Trump and anti-Trump evangelicals is a window into the future of the Republican Party. White evangelical voters are the heart of the partys base, the loyal foot soldiers who turn out for the partys presidential nominee every time. A poll by the Public Religion Research Institute taken in part after the videos release shows 65 percent of white evangelicals intending to vote for Mr. Trump. That is high enough to be significant, but is relatively low for evangelical voters and the Republican nominee. (For comparison, Mitt Romney, who was viewed with suspicion by many evangelicals because he is Mormon, won the votes of 79 percent of white evangelicals.) Most telling, though, is the significant gender gap: while 72 percent of white evangelical men said they intend to vote for Mr. Trump, only 58 percent of white evangelical women did. A defection by even 15 percent or 20 percent of Republican evangelicals from lock-step support for the party could be a major contributing factor to a collapse of its national electoral viability. But that is just one measure of the splintering of this devoted voting bloc. The movement is also being subjected to a very public display of division between the pro- and anti-Trump camps and open talk among evangelicals about pro-Trump leaders plummeting credibility. Tonight, like millions of Americans, I will be glued to my television, watching the third and last presidential debate. But unlike them, and millions of others, whatever I hear tonight, I wont be taking it with me into the ballot booth. I am a major in the United States Army, and I believe it is my professional duty and that of my fellow officers, in all branches not to vote. To be clear, I strongly believe that officers, like all citizens, should have the right to vote. But because military officers have a special responsibility to prevent politics from dividing our troops and separating us from society, it is all the more important for us to choose not to exercise that right (this is my belief, of course, and not necessarily that of the Department of Defense or the American government). Especially when our elected officials routinely make fateful decisions about where and how we are deployed, it is vital that we maintain the constitutional division between the civilians in charge and the men and women who execute their orders. Anything that erodes that division is a threat, however small, to our democracy. The militarys guidelines on voting are fuzzy. Officers, were instructed, are encouraged to carry out the obligations of citizenship, yet we are also strongly cautioned not to engage in partisan political activity. Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks founder, has lost some of his guest privileges at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London. After shielding the Australian anti-secrecy activist for more than four years from potential prosecution in Sweden, where he faces sexual assault charges, Ecuador cut off Mr. Assanges access to the internet over the weekend, according to WikiLeaks. In a tweet, WikiLeaks said Secretary of State John Kerry pressured Ecuadors foreign minister last month to prevent Mr. Assange from disclosing more emails involving Hillary Clinton. A State Department spokesman called the allegation simply untrue. The Ecuadorean government confirmed it had restricted internet access at the embassy, saying it respects the principle of nonintervention in the internal affairs of other states. It also said Mr. Assanges asylum status was unchanged. When Quito offered him refuge in June 2012, the government of President Rafael Correa saw an opportunity to rankle Washington, which he and other leftist leaders accuse of undermining their socialist governments. But relations between the United States and Ecuador have warmed up somewhat in recent years. A thorough moral and political indictment of Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Ariz., would spill far beyond this page. It would catalog the years of racial profiling, the tormenting of immigrants and Latinos, the physical mistreatment and humiliation of inmates and defendants, the beatings and neglect and deaths behind bars, the abuses of office withholding records, harassing and persecuting elected officials and journalists, failing to investigate hundreds of unsolved sex crimes, squandering taxpayer funds on crime sweeps and posses and looney-tune vendettas, like the mission to expose President Obamas supposedly forged birth certificate. The actual criminal indictment that he faces is a lot simpler. On Monday, federal officials charged him with contempt of court. If the sheriff is found guilty at a misdemeanor level, he could go to prison for six months. The federal judge in a long-running racial-profiling lawsuit had told Sheriff Arpaio and his chief deputy in 2011 to stop abusing Latinos by pulling them over on suspicion of being in the country illegally, in the absence of any other charges. That is, for the sheriff to stop acting as a federal immigration agency unto himself. This the sheriff did not do, according to the indictment. Sheriff Arpaio, who is running for a seventh term, says he is innocent. He insists he wont give up, wont take a plea deal, wont resign. In an unsurprising play at victimhood, he accused the feds of a blatant abuse of power, of applying a different standard of justice to a lonely lawman who, in his words, dares enforce the rule of law. Is it too late for Hillary Clinton to surrender to Donald Trumps demand that she take a drug test before this last presidential debate? I think she should if he agrees to a few tests of his own. He can choose any three of the following: CITIZENSHIP TEST This is what the immigrants he feels so warm and fuzzy about must master to become full-fledged Americans and, for example, vote in presidential elections against the likes of Trump. But would he himself pass one? Hed surely be able to say who the current speaker of the House of Representatives is, given that he spends much of his time sticking pins in his personal Paul Ryan voodoo doll. But the exact count of voting representatives in the House? Thats also on the test. We could give him hints: your number of wives plus 432. The amount of federal income taxes you paid in 1995 plus 435. Thank God for WikiLeaks. I confess, I was starting to wonder about what the real Hillary Clinton the one you never get to see behind closed doors really stood for. But now that, thanks to WikiLeaks, Ive had a chance to peruse her speeches to Goldman Sachs and other banks, I am more convinced than ever she can be the president America needs today. Seriously, those speeches are great! They show someone with a vision, a pragmatic approach to getting things done and a healthy instinct for balancing the need to strengthen our social safety nets with unleashing Americas business class to create the growth required to sustain social programs. So thank you, Vladimir Putin, for revealing how Hillary really hopes to govern. I just wish more of that Hillary were campaigning right now and building a mandate for what she really believes. WikiHillary? Im with her. Why? Lets start with what WikiLeaks says she said at Brazils Banco Itau event in May 2013: I think we have to have a concerted plan to increase trade ... and we have to resist protectionism, other kinds of barriers to market access and to trade. Pluto is hazy, with a chance of clouds. Scientists working with data from NASAs New Horizons spacecraft, which flew past Pluto last year, are presenting some of their latest results this week in Pasadena, Calif., at a meeting of the American Astronomical Societys Division for Planetary Sciences. The findings include images showing seven small, bright spots that might be clouds floating just above Plutos surface. Image More possible clouds above Plutos surface. Credit... NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute New Horizons had already discovered haze in Plutos tenuous atmosphere, rising more than 120 miles into the sky and separated into at least 24 distinct layers. The artist Emma Hart is not a fan of the glossy, filtered visions of life offered by Instagram, at least as most people use it. Though she has a background in photography, Hart has issues with the mediums tendency to make subjects look good and smooth, and favors instead a pursuit of the grubby and real. Her artworks draw on the vexations of modern life with mischievous humor, referencing ill-paid jobs in call centers, faceless bureaucracy, the travails of young motherhood and her own South London roots. Four years ago, while working on her Ph.D. in fine art, Hart started experimenting with clay as a sculptural medium, deploying ceramics skills garnered largely from the school of YouTube. I realized that clay could be an exciting way for me to talk about mess or chaos: all the stuff photography protects us from, she explains. What was immediately important was how personal it was. Theres a very raw, direct relationship between the clay and my hands. A series of attention-grabbing installations followed, in which Hart combined ceramic objects with video and sound. Earlier this year, Hart was awarded the biannual Max Mara Art Prize for Women. Over the last six months, a research residency in Italy has taken her from studying funerary monuments in Rome to observing family therapy sessions at a renowned psychotherapy school in Milan. Faenza a city that lent its name to richly decorated faience, or tin-glazed pottery is Harts final stop, and her months here have been spent alongside master ceramists, acquiring skills in shaping and decorating clay. Thirty miles inland from Ravenna, Faenza is calmly distant from Italys major tourist routes. Ceramics workshops such as La Vecchia Faenza use patterns and techniques that have been part of the regional repertoire since the 15th century, but this is no stagnant souvenir industry. Hart received much of her tutelage at the Museo Carlo Zauli, a teaching museum established within the postwar workshop of the eponymous sculptor, celebrated for his avant-garde work with ceramics. SAN FRANCISCO If Verizon Communications really wants to renegotiate its $4.8 billion deal to buy Yahoos internet operations, its probably going to have a fight on its hands. Yahoo said on Tuesday that it had actually gained a slight amount of traffic since its Sept. 22 disclosure that about 500 million accounts had been hacked. That appears to contradict Verizons assertion last week that the damage to Yahoos business from the breach could have been severe enough to set off a provision in the sale agreement that would allow Verizon to reopen the deal. We take deep responsibility in protecting our users and the security of their information, Yahoos chief executive, Marissa Mayer, said in a statement reporting the companys third-quarter financial results. Were working hard to retain their trust and are heartened by their continued loyalty as seen in our user engagement trends. Yahoos overall business in the quarter exceeded Wall Streets expectations, and the stock rose more than 1 percent in after-hours trading. The companys third-quarter revenue fell 15 percent compared with the previous year, after adjusting for an accounting change. But its profits rose as management cut capital spending and eliminated 300 jobs over the last three months. Given how the objectification and exploitation of women has become an ugly but central topic in the presidential campaign I trust I dont need to remind you of any details Sell/Buy/Date, the newest show from the gifted writer and performer Sarah Jones, seems eerily timely. In this absorbing solo show, a Manhattan Theater Club production that opened on Tuesday at City Center, Ms. Jones peers into the future to explore how a sociology professor examines the lives of sex workers in the first decades of the 21st century. More broadly, the show also discusses how women of our era are conditioned to conceive of themselves or how others conceive of them as sexual beings. As those who saw her Tony-winning show, Bridge & Tunnel, will recall, Ms. Jones seems to slip into the soul of another person with the casual ease that most of us use to slide into a pair of flip-flops. Although this remarkable actor uses minimal props and no costume changes in Sell/Buy/Date, she nevertheless brings to life more than a dozen characters with such distinctness that each seems to take over her voice, her mind, her very presence. The show is conceived as a lecture about sex work sometime in the future. (Once upon a time, prostitution was the term.) Our professor, Dr. Serene Campbell, speaks in crisp British tones once associated with the official BBC voice. She is addressing her students, but they are also here it gets a little confusing employing something called bio-empathetic resonant technology. This invention, new, we learn, in 2017, allows the students, once theyve plugged themselves in (or done something), to directly experience the emotions of the people interviewed for this class. Of course, not all of us have Mr. Andrewss reach on Twitter (182,000 followers at the moment). For us mere mortals, hashtags can again come to the rescue: Seek out users that specialize in the places you are researching, using search and hashtags. Ill usually get a few great recommendations either from locals that are excited to highlight something they love about their city or a traveler that had a great experience and wants to share it, Ms. Lucas said. And if you are willing to expand your Facebook circle, that can come in handy, too, especially if you ask friends who might have connections overseas. There may not be anyone within our Facebook circles traveling to Madrid on our given dates, but one of our friends tags their friends, their friends share the post with theirs, and the world becomes a lot smaller quite quickly, Ms. Jerrard said. 3. Trust the locals Need dinner plans? If youre willing to take some risks in the form of advice from strangers, you could end up with a memorable experience. Just make sure to be specific in your requests. Ill often ask my followers What cant I miss in Reykjavik? or Where can I find the best tapas in Barcelona? It almost always unearths something interesting I wouldnt have otherwise found, said Stephanie Yoder, who blogs at twenty-somethingtravel.com. 4. Service with an emoji Many airlines have been bolstering their customer service departments with social media specialists to respond to questions and complaints on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Posting about a travel problem may now be the fastest way to get it resolved. Good morning. (Want to get California Today by email? Sign up.) If you work for the University of California, dont count on having enough to eat. Thats according to a study released this week that found that 45 percent of the university systems full-time administrative workers sometimes go hungry. Its heartbreaking, said Peter Dreier, an author and politics professor at Occidental College. The survey, which drew responses from nearly 2,900 workers across a system that includes 10 campuses, was done in coordination with the Teamsters union that represents the clerical workers. These are not memories that you want to go over. Its been somewhat unnerving since Friday to be rehashing it so many times. You suppress it. Its not part of your active thinking every day. But you dont forget. Im Jessica Leeds. Im 74 years old. Ive had the privilege of living in New York City since 1981. It was over 35 years ago. I was hired by a newsprint company. I was a sales rep. I was traveling in the middle West. I was coming back into New York City. And it was on that flight that the stewardess asked me to would I like to move up to first class? I didnt need to be asked twice. And I sat down next to a young man blond, tall and he introduced himself as Donald Trump. I was not really aware of the real estate world of Trump. We just chatted back and forth. Nothing particular. It wasnt until they cleared the meal that somehow or another, the armrest in the seat disappeared. And it was a real shock when all of a sudden his hands were all over me. He started encroaching on my space. And I hesitate to use this expression, but Im going to. And that is, he was like an octopus. It was like he had six arms. He was all over the place. If he had stuck with the upper part of the body, I might not have gotten I might not have gotten that upset. But its when he started putting his hand up my skirt. And that was it. That was it. I I was out of there. And I dont think I said a word. During the late 60s, 70s and into the 80s The culture had instilled in us that somehow it was our fault, the attention that we received from men. That we were responsible for their behavior. You didnt complain to the authorities. You didnt complain to your boss. If something happened to you, you just bucked up and you went on. I thought to myself, Gee, I wish the stewardess would come and rescue me. And then I decided. I got up. I got my purse. And I said, Im going back to my seat in coach. I was so glad to get back to that seat. I started telling my story about a year and a half ago when it became apparent that Trump was actually running for president. And I started telling my friends: Let me tell you what this guys all about. I would like to think that sharing this story would make a difference, both in the election and in societys view of women. To change some of the behavior, the sexual behavior between men and women in both directions. And I I would like very much to feel like Ive been a part of that. I feel its a control issue. That if men could get past trying to control women Whatever we can do to get through to people that this is not the way it should be. It would be very important. WASHINGTON Before leading chants of Lock her up! and endorsing the extreme vetting of Muslim immigrants, Lt. Gen. Michael T. Flynn, a retired career intelligence officer and registered Democrat who is advising Donald J. Trump, was already denouncing what he saw as the Obama administrations failure to tackle Islamist militancy and the many faults of Hillary Clinton. But if few people were listening before this years presidential campaign, many are now. General Flynn, 57, took a star turn at the Republican convention in July, and no matter who wins in November, he appears likely to emerge from the campaign as the angry voice of what could best be described as the alternative right of the American national security establishment. For now, though, his focus is on getting Mr. Trump elected. General Flynn talks to his candidate multiple times a week, has sat in on the two intelligence briefings that the Republican nominee has received, and is part of the team that is helping to prepare Mr. Trump, as much as it can, for the third and final presidential debate on Wednesday, when national security is supposed to be one of the nights six topics. In an election year filled with strange and jarring turns, General Flynns entry into politics may be one of the most unusual. He has gone from being one of the most respected military officers of his generation to one of its most openly partisan, loudly inveighing against what he sees as a corrupt Washington elite that has left the United States weak and vulnerable. People magazine published an article on Tuesday that quoted six people who claimed to corroborate the sexual assault allegation made against Donald J. Trump by the magazine writer Natasha Stoynoff, which both Mr. Trump and his wife, Melania, have angrily denied. Ms. Stoynoff accused Mr. Trump of cornering her alone in 2005 and pushing me against the wall and forcing his tongue down my throat while she was at his Florida residence to interview him and his wife for an article on their first wedding anniversary. People published her claims on the same day that The New York Times published an article in which two women described what they said were their own encounters with a sexually aggressive Mr. Trump. The six people quoted in the latest article include two editors from People, Mary Green and Liz McNeil; a professor of journalism, Paul McLaughlin; a co-worker; and two personal friends of Ms. Stoynoff. All of them said Ms. Stoynoff told them about the episode around the time it occurred. The moderator cited estimates that both candidates plans would increase the national debt. Mr. Trump rejected that analysis, saying he could create tremendous jobs and construct an economic machine to power growth. Mrs. Clinton likewise said she would not add a penny to the national debt. Asked next about entitlement spending, Mr. Trump switched to a discussion of the Affordable Care Act, which he said he wanted to repeal. When Mrs. Clinton tweaked her opponent for evading taxes, Mr. Trump interjected: Such a nasty woman, he said. Mrs. Clinton, speaking about her support for some gun control measures, said she saw no conflict between saving peoples lives and defending the Second Amendment. She added that the National Rifle Association was running millions of dollars of ads against me. Mr. Trump said he was unsure if Mrs. Clinton had referenced the groups support for him in a sarcastic manner, but that he was very proud of it. Asked about the role of the Supreme Court, Mrs. Clinton said she expected the court to represent all of us, citing the importance of marriage equality and abortion rights. She added that she hoped that the Senate would do its job and confirm the nominee that President Obama has sent to them. Mr. Trump, answering the same question, said, The Supreme Court, thats what its all about, before suggesting Mrs. Clinton would hope to steer the court away from adherence to the Second Amendment. Mrs. Clinton focused attention on Mr. Trumps past comments that, if abortion were outlawed, there should be some form of punishment for the women involved. After Mrs. Clinton was pressed on her support for late-term abortions under certain circumstances she cited the health of prospective mothers Mr. Trump said he thought it was terrible. If you go with what Hillary is saying, in the ninth month you can take the baby and rip the baby out of the womb of the mother, he said. COLORADO SPRINGS Donald J. Trump called for congressional term limits during a swing out West on Tuesday, part of an effort to push a raw outsider message in the closing weeks of the presidential campaign. In a speech here that aides had hoped would focus his populist, anti-Washington appeal to drain the swamp of the nations capital, a phrase Mr. Trump repeated several times he turned only cursorily, near the middle of his remarks, to what was supposed to be the days new policy proposal. The time for congressional term limits has finally arrived, Mr. Trump said, after promising to push for a constitutional amendment to impose term limits on congressional lawmakers. Not only will it end our government corruption, but we will end the economic stagnation that we are in right now. At a second rally in Colorado, Mr. Trump added specificity, saying he would limit House lawmakers to three terms, or six years, and senators to two terms, or 12 years. Today, 10 months after Iraqs Shiite-led government proclaimed Ramadi liberated, parts of the city remain unlivable because of bombs and other dangerous remnants of war ensconced in the rubble or deliberately placed in vacant schools, homes and hospitals. The Iraqi prime ministers office estimated that 90 percent of Ramadi was contaminated with explosives when the Islamic State was defeated. The United Nations has estimated the cost of decontamination to be as much as $200 million, but others call this estimate unrealistically low. Rebuilding costs are estimated in the billions. Lise Grande, the top United Nations humanitarian aid coordinator in Iraq, said about 300,000 people had returned to Ramadi, but basic services had not been fully restored. Bickering between Sunni factions in the city and efforts to remove the provincial governor from his post have slowed rebuilding. Officials at the State Departments Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement, which has overseen American efforts to help decontaminate Iraq of explosives, said the priority in Ramadi has been to clear explosive remnants of war, known as ERW, from schools, hospitals and critical facilities like water treatment plants. Despite some progress, State Department officials said it would be premature to describe Ramadi as returning to normal. To clear Ramadi of every piece of ERW, youre talking about a yearslong effort, hundreds of millions of dollars, well beyond what we have, said Jerry Guilbert, the offices deputy director for programs. The hard work of dancing is too often undernoticed and underpaid. Enter the New York Dance and Performance Awards, better known as the Bessies, which bestow some much needed recognition and a touch of glamour on the profession once a year, if not a whole lot of money though this years ceremony, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on Tuesday, began with an announcement that all nominees would receive a $500 honorarium. (Its a start?) Returning to its original home after five years at the Apollo Theater, the shebang felt more subdued than usual, perhaps because of its proximity to the election (or the absence of a bar in the theater, one of the Apollos assets). The night opened with some words (on video) from the great ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov: America welcomed me, an immigrant, and that welcome has made my life possible. On that note, Lucy Sexton, the executive director of the Bessies, welcomed us to the academys Howard Gilman Opera House, before introducing our host, the choreographer, writer and comedian Adrienne Truscott, who talked politics mostly by way of her increasingly imaginative outfits. (Her cardboard-box skirt sporting the letters G.O.P., the O rendered as a hole over her crotch, was a work of art in itself.) They are just a pair of shoes, but what a pair of shoes. Possibly the most famous footwear in America, a pair of Dorothys ruby red slippers worn by Judy Garland in the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz are showing their age. So the Smithsonian Institution, home to the slippers for nearly 40 years, is raising money to save them at an eye-catching cost of $300,000. The money is being raised through a Kickstarter campaign, the online technique the Smithsonian has begun to use to expand its private fund-raising for objects that capture the public interest. Last year, in its first such online campaign, the institution attracted $719,779 from 9,477 individual donors to enable its National Air and Space Museum to conserve, digitize and display the spacesuit worn by Neil Armstrong during the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969 and Alan Shepards spacesuit from the first American manned spaceflight in 1961. But the writer and Palestinian diplomat Elias Sanbar gave a powerful rebuttal to Mr. Sattoufs critics in a New Yorker profile of the cartoonist last year. The problem isnt Sattouf, he said. Its the readers who think theyve understood a society as complex as Syria because theyve read a single comic book. Image A sequence from The Arab of the Future 2, a graphic memoir by Riad Sattouf. Credit... Riad Sattouf/Metropolitan Books By way of extension, I would add: People forget that The Arab of the Future is a story told from the point of the view of a very small child. Mr. Sattoufs cartoony style alone his characters have potatoes for noses and peas for eyes conveys a sense of both reality and unreality. Like the italicized commentary in Mary McCarthys Memories of a Catholic Girlhood, it says to the reader: What youre witnessing may be a caricature of memory. Also? The series is very funny. Particularly this second installment, which takes place over the course of a single year, 1984-85. So again, on the opening page of Volume 2, we meet the young author, ever adorable, just as we did on the opening page of Volume 1. His family still lives in the village of Ter Maaleh. Clementine, his mother, is still tolerating his fathers idealism. But now young Riad must go to school, an eventuality he feared. He makes a few friends its very sweet and takes great pleasure in learning to read and write Arabic. But some of the children are vicious, and so is his teacher, a hillock of a woman who speaks softly and does, in fact, carry a big stick that she regularly wields. Shes as suspicious of Mr. Sattoufs origins as his bully cousins. Are both your parents Syrian? My father is. My mothers from France. FRANCE! Who knows what is special about France? A childs hand goes up. Theyre Jews? Many of them are, yes. But not all. More poignantly, though, Riad develops a much keener sense of his fathers feelings of impotence. The garish home of a cousin a general fills Abdel-Razak with bitter envy. When he tries to enlist the cousins help in getting a better position at the university, the general, his eyes concealed by mirrored sunglasses, barely listens. When he asks another general, a friend of this cousin, for the dispensation to have his own rifle he says hes been using his bare hands to hunt the man blithely denies his request: Haha! Nooo! With your bare hands is better! HA HA! HE HUNTS WITH HIS BARE HANDS HA HA! Im cautiously optimistic that will happen, but its still a significant challenge to address public perception of G.M. food, said William S. Niebur, chief executive of Origin Agritech, a Chinese genetically modified seed developer and a partner with DuPont. He says that the public wants transparency, accessible information and choice, but where we are today, the emotions continue to be stronger than facts. In a country where dissent is roundly discouraged, a number of activists have publicly criticized the pending Syngenta deal. Hundreds of citizens, including Qin Zhongda, a 93-year-old former minister for Chinas chemical industry, signed letters to top leaders and the China National Chemical Corporation, Syngentas would-be buyer, saying that the Syngenta deal would lead to uncontrollable pollution of Chinas food crops. They also predicted severe damage to the health of Chinese consumers, the safety of the countrys food supply and the livelihoods of Chinese farmers. ChemChina must stop this suicidal acquisition that will destroy the country, one letter said. G.M.O. food has come under further scrutiny in recent weeks after state media reported that a testing center for modified animals at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences had faked inspection records and let unqualified people perform tests. The Ministry of Agriculture conducted an investigation into the academy after a former Ph.D. student made claims online last month about problems there. A spate of reports on illegally planted seeds prompted Lin Xiangmin, an official in charge of safety management and intellectual property rights of G.M.O.s at the Ministry of Agriculture, to tell The Beijing Times newspaper that the department was working to make illegal planting of G.M.O. seeds a criminal offense. For many opponents, China simply is not ready. Safety can be achieved only with regulation, said Cui Yongyuan, an anti-G.M.O. campaigner at the Communications University of China. Many Chinese scientists dont seem to understand this. They feel that safety is created in a laboratory. The roots of this skepticism run deep. Human tampering with food has been behind many of Chinas most shocking food scandals. The tainted milk that killed six babies and injured hundreds of thousands of others stemmed from milk producers adding a chemical to make the milk look protein-rich. Fruit has been spiked with chemicals to make it look fresh and to stimulate growth. Steven A. Cohen, a billionaire investor barred from managing money for others, is one step closer to making his return to the hedge fund industry. Mr. Cohen, whose former hedge fund pleaded guilty to insider trading charges, has confirmed that a new investment firm he opened this year will probably begin raising money from outside investors in early 2018. I think were leaning that way, Mr. Cohen, 60, said in a recent interview at his office in Stamford, Conn. But we havent made a final decision. Mr. Cohen, considered by many to be one of the most successful stock traders of his generation, said he expected to make that decision in the next three to four months. LOS ANGELES The former Fox News chairman Roger Ailes is coming back to television, but perhaps not in a way he will like. The writer-director Tom McCarthy, whose journalism drama Spotlight won multiple Academy Awards in February, including the one for best picture, has agreed to be the executive producer for a mini-series about Mr. Ailes, who was ousted from Fox News in July after multiple women accused him of sexual harassment. Producing the series will be Jason Blum, who is best known for horror movies like The Purge. Mr. Blum has also shepherded TV projects like HBOs Emmy Award-winning The Jinx, which chronicled the deaths or disappearance of three people close to the real estate scion Robert Durst. Mr. Durst was subsequently arrested, convicted and sentenced on gun charges and now faces a murder trial in California. Joining them in creating the still-untitled series: Gabriel Sherman, the journalist who doggedly pursued Mr. Ailes and his allies starting in 2011, when Mr. Sherman was working on a biography about the cable TV titan. Mr. Ailes, as reported by CNN, was so eager to discredit Mr. Sherman and silence his sources that a 400-page dossier was compiled on him. Obsessed fans of Star Wars have long enjoyed a tolerant relationship with owners of the pop culture empires copyrights and trademarks. But several companies that offer lightsaber combat and Jedi training classes for adults and children apparently went too far for Lucasfilm and its new owner, the Walt Disney Company, which has a reputation for zealously guarding intellectual property. Lucasfilm filed a lawsuit this month against New York Jedi and Lightsaber Academy, which teach classes on how to engage in Jedi battles, claiming that the businesses use of the words Jedi and lightsaber along with a logo of the Jedi Order are in violation of intellectual property laws. The lawsuit identifies Michael Brown, also known as Flynn Michael, as the man behind the businesses. It says that he had sought licensing permission from Lucasfilm and, having been denied it, continued to operate despite receiving multiple cease-and-desist letters. Among the luminaries assembled at Carnegie Hall on Monday to memorialize Bill Cunningham, who died on June 25 at age 87, was former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. Stepping briskly to the stage, Mr. Bloomberg reminded the gathering of more than 1,000 that few people knew better than Mr. Cunningham himself that the best runways are the streets of New York. That they are, an observation emphatically underscored by the scene outside the fabled concert hall. Thats where scores of friends, fans and New York City dignitaries had convened to unspool personal recollections and pay their respects to the ubiquitous blue-coated figure who had captured their best selves on film. It was a conclave of the elect, anointed by Mr. Cunningham for their singular, eye-catching style. Social figures, fashion magnates, models and actors, and rafts of the largely unsung fanned out their finery as they filed into the vaulted auditorium, transforming what might have been a melancholy hour into a certified social event the kind of gala affair, in short, that Mr. Cunningham might have relished himself. I almost expect him to come out now, just taking pictures of everybody, said Lauren Ezersky, a freelance journalist and former cable television host. Turned out for the occasion in a goth-tinctured Alexander McQueen ensemble, her white hair cascading over her black leather jacket, she surveyed the gathering expectantly. Even now, I feel like Bill could just jump out from somewhere, she said. I feel like he is here to capture us. On Tuesday night, at her final state dinner as first lady, Michelle Obama solidified her legacy as perhaps the most adept and successful practitioner of the art of political dressing that any administration has seen. Her choice of an Atelier Versace gown for the Italy state dinner was not only a nice bit of sartorial diplomacy Versace being an Italian success story, a company often touted as a candidate for a public offering but, coming less than a week after her magnetic speech in New Hampshire on women and respect, it went far beyond being simply an ambassadorial nod to a guest countrys talent and made a powerful subliminal statement. The dress, after all, was made of rose gold chain mail. As much as it was gracefully cut and draped, it also spoke of armor and female strength, of the need to gird yourself to fight for what you believe in. And it was designed by Donatella Versace, a woman who was famously thrust into one of the most difficult situations of all: having to take over and preserve the company founded by her brother after his murder in Miami. And who, despite a fair number of doubts, has ultimately triumphed in part by transforming the aesthetic of her company from one built on the power of sex to one built on the power of self. After all, Ms. Versace did describe her most recent womens wear collection, shown in Milan last month, as, all about a womans freedom: freedom of movement, freedom of activity, freedom to fight for their ideas, freedom to be whomever you want to be. And she set it to a soundtrack by the trance duo Violet + Photonz that featured the statement that it was time for women to take the leap. Sure, maybe. Or maybe not. Mr. Moore has basically made an earnest but not very entertaining pro-Clinton campaign film, occasionally funny, momentarily heartfelt when he takes up the subject of universal health care and the lives lost for lack of it. Against the rest of his work (Bowling for Columbine, Roger & Me) its fairly tepid stuff. (As of Tuesday night, it was booked for a run at the IFC Center and a theater in Los Angeles.) But if the film doesnt shock or enrage, it is accidentally revelatory. The performance in Wilmington was filmed just as the 2005 tape that captured Mr. Trump talking about groping women was hitting the news; Mr. Moores stage material contains no mention of that controversy, which has since consumed the presidential campaign. So at this juncture his film is, if nothing else, a stark contrast to all that has transpired in the last couple of weeks. Its surprising to hear someone extolling a candidates virtues rather than just harping on whats wrong with the opponent its surprising to hear, in other words, why we should elect someone rather than why we shouldnt. Michael Moore in TrumpLand is not rated. Running time: 1 hour 13 minutes. Mr. Pollard pleaded guilty last month to conspiracy and weapons possession in connection with what the police said was his leading role in the GS9 gang, an offshoot of the Crips, in the East Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn. Mr. Pollard was arrested in December 2014 outside Quad Recording Studios near Times Square. The police later arrested 14 other reputed members of the gang, which they said was responsible for one murder and multiple shootings. Unable to raise his $2 million bail, Mr. Pollard has remained incarcerated at Rikers Island for nearly two years. Mr. Pollards lawyer, Alex Spiro, told Justice Clott that his client wanted an adjournment because he was unable to see a probation officer before his sentencing, which Mr. Spiro said was his legal right. It does affect his liberty and I dont think its proper, Mr. Spiro said. My client was clearly frustrated. He said Mr. Pollard complained that his case was moved from his native Brooklyn to Manhattan, and that he could not get his bail reduced. A for-profit network of schools and the family behind it have agreed to pay New York State more than $4.3 million in a settlement after having spent state funds, intended to pay for special education preschool, on credit card bills, maintenance of a boat and a sons law school tuition, as well as claiming false tax deductions, the office of the state attorney general, Eric T. Schneiderman, said on Wednesday. The education company, K3 Learning Inc., is owned by Michael Koffler. His sons, Daniel and Brian Koffler, are its president and its chief technology officer. Michael Koffler also owns Sunshine Developmental School, a special education preschool program based in Queens. Federal law mandates that states provide special education preschool, and New York is one of a few states that do so by funding private contractors, many of them for-profit companies. Contractors are expected to track their expenses and submit reports to the State Education Department annually, seeking reimbursement. The cost of providing special education preschool has ballooned in recent years, particularly in New York City, where the city administers the reimbursements. Some companies have been found to have inflated expenses or diverted state money for their own private use. To the Editor: Re A Misguided Attack on Charter Schools (editorial, Oct. 13): The N.A.A.C.P. should be applauded for ratifying a resolution calling for a halt to the expansion of charter schools. You say charters give children in poor communities their only opportunity for a superior education. Actually, equity gives children an opportunity for excellent education. Here in Chicago, there are public schools that offer Mandarin, Arabic and Spanish and that support every teacher with a classroom aide. In the same city, same district, there are schools with one teacher aide in the entire building, no world language classes and no librarian. These schools are not failing: They have been failed. We are not anti-charter ideologues. We applaud the 20 percent of charters that outperform traditional public schools. We are not advocating the mass shutdown of charters, because closing schools harms children. LONDON The word Wahhabism has become a boogeyman in the West, deemed responsible for the radicalization of Muslims around the world. And since Wahhabism is a strain of Islam that has its origins in the Arabian Peninsula and is the dominant religious doctrine of Saudi Arabia, that country is often viewed as the prime culprit in the propagation of violent extremism. But blaming Wahhabism and Saudi Arabia for Islamist radicalism is a dangerous red herring. This single-cause explanation distracts from the complex political, economic and psychological reasons people join terrorist groups. In doing so, it impedes our ability to effectively fight terrorism. Wahhabism is, in fact, a loaded, anti-Saudi synonym for Salafism, a puritanical strain of Islam that encourages emulating the salaf, or predecessors, the first followers of the Prophet Muhammad. Salafism has historically been apolitical and the overwhelming majority of Salafis are not violent. Most Islamist militants have nothing to do with Saudi Wahhabism. The Taliban, for example, are Deobandis, a revivalist, anti-imperialist strain of Islam that emerged as a reaction to British colonialism in South Asia. Most members of Al Qaeda follow a radical current that emerged from the Muslim Brotherhood, a movement that defined itself largely in relation and opposition to the West and its values. While some terrorists do identify as Salafi, Islamic sects that are ideologically opposed to Salafism Naqshbandi Sufis and Shiites, among others have engaged in violent jihad in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria. On Election Day, voters in Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada will consider proposals to allow recreational use. In California, which approved medical use in 1996, polls show that the measure is likely to win. In Massachusetts, a recent poll showed 55 percent of likely voters supporting legalization. In Arkansas, Florida, Montana and North Dakota, residents will vote on medical marijuana. If Florida voters say yes, other Southern states that have been resistant to liberalizing drug laws could reconsider their prohibitions, too. Passage of these proposals should increase pressure on the federal government to change how it treats marijuana. The Obama administration has chosen not to enforce federal antimarijuana laws in states like Colorado and Washington. But this bizarre situation cant last even as more states legalize the drug, state-licensed marijuana businesses remain criminal operations under federal law. Even if they are not prosecuted by the federal government, this conflict in their legal status creates immense problems. Hillary Clinton has promised to move marijuana from Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substances Act (for drugs like heroin and LSD that have no accepted medical use) to Schedule 2, which includes opioid drugs that are medically useful but have a high potential for abuse. While that change would be an improvement, that classification would not eliminate contradictions between federal and state laws when it comes to recreational use of marijuana. Donald Trump has said he supports the medical use of marijuana, but has opposed full legalization. States are driving the change in marijuana policy because they see the damage created by draconian drug laws on communities, families and state budgets. Its time the federal government acknowledged these costs and got out of the way of states adopting more rational laws. Canadas modern-day love affair with immigration began in 1971, when the country, under Justin Trudeaus father, Pierre, became the first in the world to adopt multiculturalism as official policy. But despite Canadas reputation as a welcoming harbor for immigrants and refugees, the issue has always divided Canadians themselves, mainly on economic grounds, according to polls. In 1979, for example, the right wing think tank National Citizens Coalition reacted to Canadas acceptance of 50,000 Vietnamese refugees by predicting it would lead to at least 750,000 in the not too distant future. Today, there are roughly 190,000 Vietnamese in Canada, according to the most recent census numbers. The integration of Vietnamese refugees into Canadian society has served as a blueprint for the countrys welcoming of 31,000 Syrian refugees. (The United States, which is nearly nine times the size of Canadas population, has pledged to take in only 10,000.) The most recent obstacle has been terrorism on home soil. In 2014, in the space of two days, two members of the Canadian military were killed by Islamic terrorists in separate attacks in the military town of St.-Jean-Sur-Richelieu and on Ottawas Parliament Hill. That the perpetrators were self-radicalized Canadian-born men was seemingly immaterial, as fear trumped common sense. The arrival of Syrian refugees has only increased that fear. Stagnation and security fears have produced a closing of the Canadian mind when it comes to the three pillars of globalization: immigration, free trade and foreign direct investment, says Frank Graves, the president of the Ottawa-based EKOS Research Associates polling firm. We are not closed, but we are much less open than we were at the outset of the century. In Quebec, immigration has always raised tensions, in large part because it is often seen as a threat to the culture of the French-speaking province. In 2013, the province of Quebecs governing Parti Quebecois introduced the Quebec values charter, which sought to prohibit the wearing of any conspicuous religious garb by the provinces public service, in the interests of state secularism. Mars has a new visitor at least, in orbit. ExoMars 2016, a joint mission of the European and Russian space agencies that launched in March on a Russian rocket from Kazakhstan, consists of an orbiter and a lander that arrived at the red planet on Wednesday. The Trace Gas Orbiter pulled in around Mars as planned, to cheers and fist pumps at the missions center in Darmstadt, Germany. We have a good capture, Michel Denis, the ExoMars flight director, said shortly after the signal arrived at 12:35 p.m. Eastern. A couple of hours later, Mr. Denis confirmed that the orbiter was almost exactly in the targeted orbit and that everything appeared to be operating well. We have a mission around Mars, he said. Airbnb said on Wednesday that it was willing to crack down on individuals in New York City who rent out multiple homes, bowing to pressure from politicians and tenants rights groups who say the company has worsened affordable housing issues in the city. The company also said, in a proposal to city officials, that it was willing to create a registry of hosts to make it easier for the state to enforce housing rules and that it would create a hotline for neighbors complaints. It would bar hosts who violated local regulations three times, and it said it had already taken 3,000 commercial operators off its service. Airbnb has had an unusually contentious relationship with New York. The companys attempts to court local support have alienated a broad array of powerful interest groups, including hotel unions, landlord and tenant groups, affordable housing advocates, Republicans and Democrats. In June, state lawmakers voted to impose steep fines on anyone who rents out a whole apartment on Airbnb for fewer than 30 days. Such short-term rentals have been illegal since 2010. That bill was delivered to Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday. Mr. Cuomo now has 10 days to veto it or let it become law. KKR-backed Cofco Meat seeks up to $333 million in HK offering Updated: 2016-10-19 09:36 (China Daily) Cofco Meat Holdings Ltd, the Chinese mainland pork producer part-owned by KKR & Co, is seeking to raise as much as $333 million in a Hong Kong initial public offering. The State-backed company is offering 975.6 million shares at HK$2 (25 US cents) to HK$2.65 apiece, according to terms for the deal that were obtained by Bloomberg on Monday. Haier Group Corp agreed to buy $57.4 million of stock as the biggest cornerstone investor in the offering, the terms show. Investors are returning to the Chinese food industry after a series of safety scandals that shook consumer confidence. Shares of WH Group Ltd, the Chinese mainland owner of the Smithfield bacon brand, have risen 56 percent in Hong Kong trading this year, outpacing the 5.2 percent gain in the city's benchmark Hang Seng Index. KKR, Baring Private Equity Asia, Hopu Investment Management Co and Boyu Capital bought stakes in Cofco Meat in 2014, according to a pre-listing filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Hopu sold its interest in the company last year to Singapore state investment firm Temasek Holdings Pte, the filing shows. Cofco Meat follows Dali Foods Group Co, the maker of "Copico" brand potato chips, and seasoning producer Yihai International Holding Ltd in pursuing a Hong Kong listing to fund expansion. First-time share sales in the city have raised $19.1 billion this year, down from $21.1 billion during the same period in 2015, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Other cornerstone investors in the Cofco Meat offering include China Life Insurance Co, which agreed to purchase $20 million of shares, the terms show. China Life Franklin Asset Management Co will invest $10 million, according to the terms. Such stock buyers agree to keep their holdings for six months in return for early, guaranteed allocation. The company plans to price the offering on Oct 24 and begin trading on Nov 1, the terms show. BLOOMBERG In its glory days, Yahoo had a garish mock hotel sign in San Francisco that billed the service as a nice place to stay on the internet. It may be again but only after a fashion. As Vindu Goel reports, an increased number of people were drawn to Yahoo in September. The reason may have been Yahoos disclosure that month that hackers stole data on 500 million users in 2014. Yahoos chief executive, Marissa Mayer, did not give a reason for Yahoos traffic bump, which she described during a discussion of the companys third-quarter earnings. It may have been a greater awareness, as customers remembered that they had accounts there, or it may have been people checking on their accounts and changing their passwords. Image Neither of those scenarios suggests long-term loyalty or the kind of delight that draws new advertisers. The answer, of course, is that email is as tempting as it is inescapable, for Mrs. Clinton as well as for the rest of us. More than 50 years after its birth, email exerts an uncanny hold on all of our internal affairs. But everything must meet its maker, and for email, that time is nigh. The sudden exposure of the Clinton campaign email cache is perhaps the ultimate evidence that weve all overcommitted to email weve put too much in it, expected too much from it, and now, finally, were seeing the spectacular signs of its impending destruction. Email is simply not up to the rigors of modern political and business life. It lulls us into a sense of unguarded security that it never delivers. It entices us to spill our darkest secrets, and then makes those secrets available to any halfway decent hacker. There are several alternatives that could take its place, without the same pitfalls, and the Clinton cache shows why we would be wise to adopt one of them. Lets pour one out for email, which has had quite a run. Then lets move on to something else, and dance on emails grave. The latest Clinton emails come from the hacked Gmail account of John D. Podesta, Mrs. Clintons campaign chairman. I emailed the campaign to ask about the breach and email security practices, but I got no response. (Maybe theyve shied away from email?) The campaign has refused to confirm the authenticity of the messages, which speaks to one of the shortcomings of email: It can easily be forged, so theres no good way for anyone reading those messages to confirm that they really are the Clinton campaigns. I just took a shower right now, Mr. Mejia said, standing on his dusty street on the edge of a community where many homes, including his, have temporary water tanks perched on their lawns. Bullet Train to Nowhere : Construction of the California high-speed rail system, Americas most ambitious infrastructure project, Construction of the California high-speed rail system, Americas most ambitious infrastructure project, has become a multi-billion-dollar nightmare A Piece of Black History Destroyed: Lincoln Heights a historically Black community in a predominantly white, rural county in Northern California endured for decades. Lincoln Heights a historically Black community in a predominantly white, rural county in Northern California endured for decades. Then came the Mill fire Warehouse Moratorium: As warehouse construction balloons nationwide, residents in communities both rural and urban have pushed back. In Californias Inland Empire, As warehouse construction balloons nationwide, residents in communities both rural and urban have pushed back. In Californias Inland Empire, the anger has turned to widespread action A few miles away at the Drought Resource Center, no one was in line on a recent afternoon to use the temporary showers that were set up last year. But the drought shows no sign of ending. Meteorologists say it would take five years of normal to heavy rain to replenish depleted groundwater supplies and reservoirs. Last year, after forecasts of a heavy El Nino weather system that would soak the state, California ended up with average rainfall, concentrated in the north of the state. And a number of environmentalists say this is not a typical cyclical drought that is part of life here, but rather the beginning of a more arid era created by global warming. Weve had less than 39 inches of rain in five years in L.A. County, which is absolutely unprecedented in our history, said Mark Gold, an environmental professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. The timing of the rollback and the mixed message could have severe consequences. The public did their part in responding to the emergency. We are still under emergency conditions. Even in places like this community, improvement in the availability of water has been limited. Elva Beltran, who runs the Porterville Area Coordinating Council, which provides emergency water to families who run out, said that while the pace had slowed, people were still coming in for help. I never know from one day to the next when a family is going to come by and say, Mrs. Beltran, we are out of water. WASHINGTON The Obama administration said Wednesday that it expected monthly enrollment in the Affordable Care Act marketplace to average 11.4 million next year, up 9 percent from the monthly average this year, despite rising premiums and the departure of major insurers from the marketplace in many places. Sylvia Mathews Burwell, the secretary of Health and Human Services, also predicted at a news conference that 13.8 million people would sign up for coverage in the fourth annual open enrollment period, which starts Nov. 1 and runs through Jan. 31. That represents an increase of 1.1 million people, or 9 percent, over the number who signed up in the last open enrollment season. If enrollment increases as the Obama administration predicts, it would suggest that the marketplace is steadier than its critics contend. Federal officials say that subsidies will insulate many consumers from rate increases, and that the prospect of stiffer penalties will induce more people to sign up. In addition, they say they have refined their marketing strategy to attract young, healthy people. But some of the administrations previous forecasts have proved overly optimistic. Insurers say they have not seen a big influx of healthier consumers, as officials predicted last year. WASHINGTON Until just a few months ago, Evan Bayh was working for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Now the chamber is working as hard as it can against him. In a campaign twist with significance in the battle for the Senate, the nations leading business lobby is going all out to defeat Mr. Bayh, the former Democratic senator from Indiana trying to reclaim his old seat. The chamber is doing so despite the fact that Mr. Bayh, considered a business-friendly centrist, was on the chamber payroll as recently as June and made appearances on the organizations behalf after leaving the Senate in 2011. The chambers decision to attack its former ally has angered Senate Democrats to no end because capturing the Indiana seat is a crucial element of their plan to take back the Senate majority. Democrats efforts to persuade the chamber to stay out of the race as a demonstration of bipartisanship were rebuffed. The result has strained ties with Democrats, who might be chilly to future overtures from the chamber, particularly if they are running the Senate. The fact that the U.S. Chamber has spent millions against Evan Bayh, a pro-business candidate who has even served on some of their advisory boards, rips away any pretense of bipartisanship, Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, in line to be Democratic leader, said in a statement. The national headquarters is a totally partisan place and has dramatically hurt their ability to work with our caucus in 2017. WASHINGTON There were more cases of sexually transmitted diseases reported in the United States last year than ever before, according to new federal data. Rates of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis three of the most common S.T.D.s grew for the second consecutive year, with sharper increases in the West than other regions. And while all three diseases are treatable with antibiotics, most cases continue to go undiagnosed, potentially causing infertility and other problems. The syphilis rate rose most sharply, by 19 percent. Public health officials are particularly worried about an increase in the number of babies whose mothers are passing it to them in utero, which can cause stillbirths and infant deaths. Progress in the fight against S.T.D.s has unraveled, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Who is most affected by the rise in S.T.D.s? Young people, members of racial minorities and men who have sex with other men are at most risk of getting an S.T.D. Chlamydia rates are highest among 15-to 24-year-olds, who accounted for nearly two-thirds of diagnoses last year, and among blacks. While chlamydia disproportionately affects women, the rate of reported cases among men grew more sharply last year. Over all, the rate of reported cases grew by 5.9 percent. Gov. Peter Shumlin of Vermont on Wednesday announced proposed limits on the number of painkillers that could be prescribed, the latest measure his administration has taken to combat the opioid crisis that has ravaged the state in the last five years. At a news conference outside the Vermont Department of Health in Burlington, Mr. Shumlin and Dr. Harry Chen, the states health commissioner, spoke for about half an hour about proposed regulations, which they said represented a cutting-edge approach to combating the crisis. Under the proposal, the severity and duration of pain would be used to determine the specific limit for a prescription of opioids. For example, for a minor procedure producing moderate pain, a provider would be limited to prescribing nine to 12 opioid painkiller pills, depending on the medication. The limits would be higher for more complicated procedures, and there would be exceptions for the treatment of severe pain. The limits are proposed amendments to an existing rule and would be official in December if approved after a period of public comment and review by a state legislative committee, said Scott Coriell, a spokesman for the governor. Mr. Shumlin proposed the rule in his State of the State address in January, and he set its passage as one of the chief priorities in his final year in office. PESTEL, Haiti Guy Philippe is among the most feared men in Haiti, a nation with a rich history of men worthy of fear. The United States Drug Enforcement Administration wants him for narcotics trafficking; the Haitian government for killing police officers. He led an armed rebellion that ousted a president and has survived, by his count, seven attempts on his life. From his redoubt on the rocky shoreline of southwest Haiti, he has evaded capture for nearly a decade. Now, Hurricane Matthew has done what neither government nor armed forces have managed to accomplish: bring the outlaw commander to his knees. I dont like to beg, but this time I have to, Mr. Philippe said, touring the devastation wrought on his hometown, Pestel, an area of some 80,000 people ensconced in a natural fortress of rugged mountains. Its the first time in my life I feel I can do nothing for my people. They are starving. KABUL, Afghanistan An Afghan soldier opened fire on a group of Americans at a military depot near Kabul on Wednesday, killing two and wounding another three in the latest outbreak of green on blue insider violence, American and Afghan officials said. A statement from the United States military in Afghanistan said one of the people killed had been a service member and the other a civilian. One U.S. service member and two U.S. civilians also sustained wounds and are currently stable, the statement said. Gen. Dawlat Waziri, a spokesman for the Afghan defense ministry, said the Afghan soldier opened fire on a team of coalition forces around 11 a.m. at one of the Afghan Armys largest ammunition and food depots, southwest of Kabul. American officials said the attacker was killed. Green-on-blue attacks caused enormous strain between Americans and Afghans at its peak in 2012, when 44 such clashes caused about 15 percent of the total coalition deaths that year. HONG KONG Dozens of Hong Kong politicians loyal to the Chinese government prevented three newly elected lawmakers who support greater autonomy from Beijing from being sworn in to the local legislature on Wednesday. Hours earlier, the Hong Kong government, in a rare legal challenge, had tried to block two of the new representatives, who demand outright independence from the Chinese mainland, from taking their seats on the Legislative Council. Those lawmakers, Sixtus Leung and Yau Wai-ching, had been scheduled to be sworn in on Wednesday morning after the oaths they took last week were declared invalid. Both had declared allegiance to a Hong Kong nation and then replaced the word China with Shina, considered derogatory by some. The Fu Lei translation awards: Bridging French-Chinese literature Updated: 2016-10-19 13:40 By Li Ping(chinadaily.com.cn) The jury of the 8th Fu Lei Translation and Publishing Awards announces 12 finalists at the French Culture Center in Beijing, Oct 18, 2016. [Photo by Li Ping/chinadaily.com.cn] For eight years, the Fu Lei Translation and Publishing Awards, founded by the French Embassy in China in 2009, has been dedicated to honoring prominent Chinese translators who make efforts to introduce French literature to Chinese readers. The 8th Fu Lei Translation and Publishing Awards unveiled 12 finalists - six under the category of "social science" and six under "fiction" - at the French Culture Center in Beijing on Tuesday, selected from over 50 candidates who submitted applications before April this year. They will compete for three honors which will be announced at an awarding ceremony at the Temple Hotel in Beijing on Nov 26. Winners for fiction and social science will each get a bonus of 4,000 euros ($4,400) to share with their publishers, and a special prize of "best new translator" will come with 1,500 euros ($1,650). In the shortlist, there are a variety of books under different subjects, including The Consolations of the Forest from famed French adventurer and writer Sylvain Tesson, Distinction from sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, and Astragal - the 1965 semi-autobiographical novel by Albertine Sarrazin. The finalists are chosen based on criteria of both the importance of the books in French literature and the translators' language level, Sylvie Gentil, a jury member, said at Tuesday's news conference. HONG KONG More than a week after attacks on police officers began a wave of bloodshed in western Myanmar, a lockdown by security forces has prevented aid workers from operating in the area, and new videos of what appear to be local Muslims calling for resistance have raised fears of more violence. Maj. Gen. Aung Soe, the deputy minister for home affairs, told reporters on Monday in Naypyidaw, the capital, that 30 attackers had been killed in Rakhine State since the Oct. 9 assaults on three border posts that left nine police officers dead. Activists from the Rohingya ethnic group, a persecuted Muslim minority who number more than a million in Rakhine, have accused the security forces of waging a counterinsurgency campaign against civilians, and they have circulated photos that they say show security forces burning Rohingya homes. Neither the governments nor the activists version of events could be independently verified. But an advocacy group, Fortify Rights, recently said that it had interviewed witnesses who described what appeared to be extrajudicial killings by the military. President Rodrigo Duterte, on a state visit to China, said in Beijing that Filipinos in the storms path should heed the warnings of disaster officials. We only pray that we be spared destruction such as in the previous past which brought agony and suffering to our people, but we are ready, Mr. Duterte said Wednesday at a news conference, The Associated Press reported. BERLIN A policeman has died of injuries suffered when a 49-year-old supporter of a fringe group that rejects modern Germany opened fire on officers sent to his home to confiscate his weapons, the authorities said on Thursday. The gunman, who was not identified, was arrested and slightly wounded in the confrontation on Wednesday, said the police in the northern Bavarian region of Middle Franconia. On Wednesday evening, the police said the badly wounded officer had died, but it retracted that statement a few minutes later. Several hours later, they reversed themselves again, issuing a statement that the officer had died early Thursday of serious gunshot wounds. The officers identity was not released. PRAGUE A man identified as a Russian hacker suspected of pursuing targets in the United States has been arrested in the Czech Republic, the police announced Tuesday evening. The suspect was captured in a raid at a hotel in central Prague on Oct. 5, about 12 hours after the authorities heard that he was in the country, where he drove around in a luxury car with his girlfriend, according to the police. The man did not resist arrest, but he had medical problems and was briefly hospitalized, the police said in a statement. David Schon, a police spokesman, said on Wednesday that the arrest of the man, whose name has not been released, was not announced immediately for tactical reasons. The police statement said that the man was a Russian citizen suspected of hacking attacks on targets in the United States, and that the raid was conducted in collaboration with the F.B.I. after Interpol issued an arrest warrant for him. To focus attention on the issue, the United States has called for a rare meeting of the Special Verification Commission, a body that was established by the I.N.F. treaty to deal with compliance. What we consider before using anonymous sources. Do the sources know the information? Whats their motivation for telling us? Have they proved reliable in the past? Can we corroborate the information? Even with these questions satisfied, The Times uses anonymous sources as a last resort. The reporter and at least one editor know the identity of the source. Learn more about our process. Russia inherited the treaty obligations of the Soviet Union. Other former Soviet states that also are a party to the treaty Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan will also send representatives to the meeting of the commission, its first since 2003. The arms control dispute comes against the background of steadily deteriorating relations, which are already strained over Russian airstrikes on Aleppo, Syria, as well as its seizure of portions of Ukraine. A range of American officials also have accused Russia of meddling in the presidential election by hacking into the email accounts of Democratic Party figures. But the arms control issues are important in their own right. The I.N.F. treaty is regarded as one of the accords that brought an end to the Cold War. The question of Russian compliance threatens to tarnish the White Houses arms control legacy and President Obamas vision of a world in which there would be fewer nuclear weapons. Since the I.N.F. treaty was signed, some Russian officials appear to have had buyers remorse, arguing that Moscow needs more ways to respond to the potential array of threats around its periphery. During the George W. Bush administration, Russias defense minister suggested that the two sides drop the treaty. The Obama administration says that the treaty is in the overall interest of the United States even if some of its provisions are being violated. When the United States charged Russia with violating the accord two years ago, Mr. Obama sent a letter to President Vladimir V. Putin stressing his interest in a high-level dialogue to preserve the treaty and bring the Kremlin back into compliance. SOLONESHNOYE, Russia Wood smoke hangs like a mist over this town, nestled in a valley deep in Siberia. The log houses lean at jaunty angles, dogs bark in the yards and cows, their neck bells clanging, walk the dusty streets. At once picturesque and poor, Soloneshnoye, like so much of rural Russia, was passed over by the oil boom and bust of faraway Moscow. But for all its woes, the town may have found its ticket in another form of fossil fuel: human prehistory, linked to discoveries of ancient bones in the area. In an emerging model of evolution, widely supported by scientists, different types of early humans, including Neanderthals, interbred and left their genetic traces with many of us today. It is a theory known in the scientific literature as admixture between archaic and anatomically modern humans. KIEV, Ukraine With soldiers dying daily in Ukraine, the site of the only active war in Europe, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany hosted a meeting on Wednesday to see whether President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia was willing to cut a deal to end the conflict while he also faces pressure from the West over Moscows role in Syria. Mr. Putin and Ms. Merkel met with President Francois Hollande of France and President Petro O. Poroshenko of Ukraine to talk about the fighting as the Ukraine crisis returns to the diplomatic agenda and the leaders try to restart a cease-fire. Separately, Mr. Putin, who is often in the eye of the storm on international crises, met with Ms. Merkel and Mr. Hollande to discuss the civil war in Syria, where the Russian Air Force is backing the government. At a news conference late Wednesday, Ms. Merkel said that, as predicted, no miracles were achieved. But, she added, the value of meeting face to face was clear and that it is urgently necessary that high-level meetings continue as the foreign ministers of all four countries work on a new road map to resolve the conflict. Once college is over, however, we enter the realm of anecdotal evidence when it comes to first jobs. Parents worry that if their children take a gap year, they will appear wayward to employers, which may have more to do with the term than how that year was spent. It suggests a hole, said Abigail Falik, founder of Global Citizen Year, which has 115 people working in four countries. She prefers the term bridge year, with its implication of a deliberate connection between one stage of life and the next. In fact, logic would suggest that many people who take a gap year get better jobs after college than people who dont. If you were hiring entry-level employees, wouldnt you rather employ the risk-taking 23-year-olds who found their way in the world for a while than the 22-year-olds who have not done much besides going to school? There is no way to know for sure except by asking some of the people who have had the experience. Susie Steele took time off from the University of Vermont to teach disabled people to ski and eventually landed a plum full-time job at the Keystone Science School in Keystone, Colo. Now a middle-school biology teacher in Louisville, Colo., Ms. Steele, 44, figures her odds would have been quite long without the gap year. Akiima Price took a break from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore to work with the Student Conservation Association in Nevada. The organization eventually hired her full time, and she has forged a career in and around environmental education and community work. Now, looking back on my resume, all of the dots ended up connecting, said Ms. Price, 44, who lives in Washington. I would tell younger Akiima to trust the process. New York City Ballets fall season just ended, but the corps de ballet dancer Troy Schumacher isnt taking any breaks. Mr. Schumacher has been directing his own, much smaller company, BalletCollective, since 2010, and this spirited troupe returns to New York Universitys Skirball Center for the Performing Arts on Thursday, Oct. 27, and Friday with two new works. Mr. Schumacher, always interested in cross-genre collaboration, is teaming with two architects, James Ramsey (the designer of the Lowline, an underground park set to open on the Lower East Side in 2020) and Carlos Arnaiz. One premiere takes inspiration from Mr. Ramseys sketches, while the other deconstructs, through Mr. Arnaizs architectural lens, a shot by the former N.B.A. star Allen Iverson. The program also features last years Invisible Divide, to music by Ellis Ludwig-Leone, and a cast of Mr. Schumachers City Ballet colleagues, including the principal dancers Lauren Lovette and Anthony Huxley. (nyuskirball.org) Both men have noticed a change in tone in the conversation about immigrants during the last year. My nephew came to me the other day and said: Uncle, its bad to be Mexican. At school theyre saying this or that, Mr. Rivera-Barraza said. That really hurt. That really scared me. I dont want my niece and nephew to be ashamed because someone is saying theyre less than. For him, the need to provide role models in the creative industry for a younger generation of Latin American descent became a particularly important goal. A lot of these kids dont know where to look, Mr. Rivera-Barraza said. Theyre the first generation who are going to get educated. We want to tell them, Dont give up. Dr. Pomeroy of the Frost Museum noted that showing young people what they can aspire to is part of the work of an exhibition like the one about Mr. Rodriguez. It is imperative that children of Latin American descent living in the U.S. are exposed to a spectrum of futures through places like museums, she said. And what of the books subjects? Ms. Cornejo, a fashion designer whose story of leaving Chile when she was 11 as a political refugee, then moving to London, then Paris and finally New York appears in Nuevo New York, said she loved the sense of community participating in the book gave her. National library releases new WWII files Updated: 2016-10-19 15:31 By Wang Kaihao(chinadaily.com.cn) The National Library of China released new collections of files related to World War II on Tuesday. The collections are related to trials held in December 1949 in the Russian city of Khabarovsk bordering China of Japanese suspects of war crimes. The records of the court hearings for the Khabarovsk War Crime Trials are now available for public viewing at the Beijing library in Chinese, English, Russian, German and Japanese. The trials exposed the atrocities of the Japanese troops that used biological weapons in WWII. A separate 30-volume collection of files on Japanese armed forces' battle plans, which can function as crucial references in the study of the Chinese theater in that war, was also released. Since 2011, the library has published 58 sets of historical recordings (3,066 volumes in total) on WWII as part of a massive project collecting 2 million pages from libraries not only nationwide but also from institutions in Japan, North America and Europe. Related: National Library of China launches digital database of ancient books On a recent September evening in Washington, D.C., there wasnt a seat to be had at Fiola Mare (fiolamaredc.com), a seafood-centric Italian restaurant in Georgetown. Smartly dressed visitors in the spacious dining room and at the patio tables savored the piercing sunset while tucking into towers of cold seafood and sipping Champagne and white wine. All the while, three security men trolled the area, keeping a watchful eye on the crowd. Who were they there to protect? Was it Yousef al-Otaiba, the Emirati ambassador to Washington, seated at Table 65 along the back wall with three other men in suits, or the Portuguese ambassador, Domingos Fezas Vital, and his companion dining alfresco? They were working for neither, specifically, yet all of them at once, said Maria Trabocchi, who co-owns the two-and-a-half-year-old restaurant with her husband, Fabio, the chef. High-profile political people eat here often so we have our own security to make sure that theyre not bothered, she said. Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger III is best known for his successful landing of a US Airways plane on the Hudson River in 2009, an event depicted in the Clint Eastwood-directed film Sully, now in theaters. Captain Sullenberger is currently the aviation and safety expert for CBS News, and he travels around the world speaking on topics related to airline safety and standards. When flying for work, hes mostly in the passenger seat. I still fly myself privately on short-range business and family trips, but Im on the major airlines all the time, he said. Now retired from his job as a pilot with US Airways, when he flies commercial he has no particular favorite airline. I travel on whoever has a flight going where I want to go, when I want to go, nonstop, with the largest airplane I can get on. Thats my strategy. Bigger airplanes, with two aisles instead of one, provide a better experience overall, and I think its more comfortable. Captain Sullenberger has a couple of tips for travelers. To start with, dont take more than you need. That makes it easier for everyone. As an airline family weve been through Europe with one roll-aboard apiece for a week. You just have to pack intelligently and mix and match. He also recommends flying early in the day. Especially in the summer time before the thunderstorms develop and the weather becomes more of a factor. If you take one of the first flights out in the morning, typically the airplane and the crew have arrived the night before. When youre not waiting on an inbound flight, there are fewer delays. Food safety, salt price addressed Updated: 2016-10-19 07:15 By Wang Yiqing(China Daily) Departments and ministries under the State Council have responded to a series of public concerns in the past week, including food safety, salt prices, real estate market management, senior high school rankings and the safety of X-ray security inspection devices for airplane and train passengers. The China Food and Drug Administration has inspected 369 samples of fruit, meat products, liquor, pastries and biscuits and found seven substandard samples. Local food and drug administrations have urged food manufacturers responsible for the substandard samples to recall the products, analyze the problems and rectify them. The administration also called for halting sales of these substandard items, reporting the result of their investigation to the China Food and Drug Administration and publicizing the findings. Officials of the National Development and Reform Commission have recently responded to the liberalization of salt prices. The commission said that the government will take effective measures concerning salt distribution and delivery, stocking, market price supervision and market inspection to maintain the basic stabilization of salt prices. Meanwhile, relevant departments will provide subsidies to the salt industry and targeted low-income groups to ensure their consumption of salt will not be affected. The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development has recently reported cases of rumor spreading in the real estate market in Hangzhou and Shenzhen. The ministry called for local authorities to further strengthen management of the real estate market and strictly deal with "vicious rumors" that disturb the local market in order to protect potential and actual buyers' legal rights and interests, and promote the stable and healthy development of the real estate market nationwide. The Ministry of Education recently announced that the ministry has never carried out an evaluation of the so-called 100 best senior middle schools nationwide and has never published any national rankings of senior middle schools. The ministry said such evaluations go against the requirement of quality-based education and undermines the diversified development of senior middle schools. The Ministry of Civil Affairs has recently released the third batch of "offshore non-governmental organizations" and "fake non-governmental organizations". The batch includes 68 non-governmental organizations, such as international Chinese language teacher associations, among others. The ministry had previously released the names of 1,287 unqualified non-governmental organizations. wangyiqing@chinadaily.com.cn (China Daily 10/19/2016 page7) Call for departing minister to listen to educators - NZEI 18 October 2016 NZEI Te Riu Roa wishes Education Minister Hekia Parata well, following her announcement that she is leaving politics, and hopes her parting move will be to listen to the education sector and ditch her radical bulk funding proposal in favour of better funding for education. "Though we often disagree on the ways we want to achieve our goals - the best education for every child - it is clear that Hekia Parata has been passionate about her work in education," NZEI president Louise Green said. "Recently the combined membership of the NZEI and the PPTA voted almost unanimously to reject the Government's radical funding proposals, which would result in bulk funding of schools and risk driving down the quality of public education. "As a sign of genuine goodwill for the young people, parents, and educators who value public education, we'd ask the Minister to restore funding to early childhood education, and clearly rule out bulk funding before she leaves her role. "We believe New Zealand children deserve the best education in the world and that our country can afford to provide it. "Any replacement for Ms Parata must have the ability to convince Cabinet to significantly increase the funding of education, if they are serious about ensuring every child in New Zealand can access the best education possible," Ms Green said. For more information: A judge has denied former Alabama Speaker Mike Hubbards request for a new trial on the grounds of jury misconduct. Although Hubbards motion for a new trial technically was denied on Sept. 6 after the time limit for the court to respond to his motion elapsed, Judge Jacob Walker said in an order filed Tuesday the allegations of jury misconduct warranted a written response. Hubbard was convicted of 12 counts of felony ethics violations for using his office of Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives for personal gain. Hubbard was sentenced to four years in prison and eight years of probation. He also was ordered to pay $210,000 in fines. Hubbards lawyers filed an appeal with the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals on Oct. 5, and he remains out of jail pending the appeal. A juror came to Hubbards defense attorneys after the trial and said other jurors had made comments during the trial. During a post-trial hearing on Sept. 15, Walker asked attorneys if they wanted to hold a hearing on the juror misconduct allegations. Bill Baxley, Hubbards attorney, filed a motion for the Lee County sheriff to investigate the allegations. Walker denied the motion, but did call witnesses to testify about the juror misconduct. A juror had notified the court administrator, Patricia Campbell, about other jurors making comments. "I asked (the juror who complained) what the comments were, Campbell said at the Sept. 15 hearing. She said things like, Uh-huh, yes, now the truth is coming out. Campbell testified she told Walker about the complaint, and Walker had one of the bailiffs tell the juror not to make any more comments. The order filed Tuesday also included an affidavit from the unnamed juror who made the complaint. Based on what I was hearing from the beginning of trial until the end, several jurors had their mind made up to convict Mr. Hubbard before the trial even started, the juror said. The juror said the comments from other members of the jury continued throughout the trial in the jury room. I heard these jurors call Mr. Hubbard greedy and speculating as to why he needed all that money and he was just plain greedy, The juror came forward because the juror felt Hubbard didnt receive a fair trial, according to the affidavit, Walker in his order said the fact that Hubbard was found not guilty on the remaining 11 counts he was charged was evidence the jury considered each count based on the evidence. Because the defendant failed to make a showing that he was actually prejudiced, this court would not disturb the verdict of the trial jury, Walker said. Six weeks after many Alabama municipalities held elections, the town council of Loachapoka, population 186, reappointed itself to a new term without a citizen casting a ballot. In a meeting held before the regularly scheduled Oct. 4 council meeting, the council reappointed itself to four-year terms. Ed Packard, director of elections for the Alabama Secretary of States office, confirmed the office is investigating a complaint about the councils actions but couldnt comment on specifics of the investigation. No candidate qualified for the town council after failing to file statements of candidacy with the town clerk by the July 19 deadline. Ben McDaniel filed a statement of candidacy for mayor, but Mayor Jim Grout said McDaniel was disqualified because McDaniel didnt live in the town limits. McDaniel said he does live in the town and should be the new mayor. No election was held, and at the next town council meeting on Oct. 4 Grout announced the council had been reappointed to new terms. Id like to report that the town council has been self-reappointed, Grout said at the meeting. Loise Weathers, Jeannie ODonnell, Rex Dunham and Kenny Brown were reappointed to their positions on the council. Grout was appointed as a council member and Zach Holmes was appointed as the new mayor. The new term for the town council will start on Nov. 1. (The reappointment) doesnt seem to be consistent with state law the way we understand it, Packard said. The normal process for filling a vacancy after no candidate qualified for election would be for the newly elected members to fill the vacancy, Packard said. Of course, thats kind of a wrinkle in this case, Packard said. Whats been alleged is that no council members qualified and therefore when its time for the new council to be seated there would have been a vacancy in all the seats. Grout said at the Oct. 4 meeting the vote had been taken in an earlier meeting. I will refer all questions to our attorney, Grout said. Travis Wisdom, attorney for Loachapoka, said the council followed Alabama law in reappointing itself and no council member nominated themselves, and council members abstained from voting on someone within their own district. The town did not have anyone qualify to run for city council for the upcoming term, Wisdom said in an email to the Opelika-Auburn News. Pursuant to Alabama law, the council has both recognized and filled the vacancies under the authority granted to it by the Alabama Legislature under 11-44G-2 Ala. Code (1975) which gives the council the authority to fill vacancies for both Mayor and Council Districts In the event of a vacancy from any cause as long as that is done within 60 days. EU talking tough on trade ahead of talks with China Updated: 2016-10-18 17:06 By Fu Jing(China Daily) A worker checks steel product files at a cold rolling mill of Tangsteel Group Ltd in Tangshan, Hebei province. [Photo/China Daily] Soon after Chinese Vice-Premier Ma Kai took part in a high-level economic dialogue with European Union officials three years ago, Beijing and Brussels reached an amicable solution to end their dispute over China's solar panel exports to Europe that had almost frozen bilateral relations for a year. With that obstacle removed, they entered into talks on opening their markets to investments by the other. Soon after the dispute was settled, Xi Jinping made the first visit ever by a Chinese president to the European Union's Brussels headquarters. These developments established a solid foundation for Beijing and the EU to forge closer ties. But when Ma returned to Brussels to attend a new round of the high-level economic dialogue between the EU and China in Brussels on Tuesday, he faced the challenge that the problem-plagued EU is once again getting tough on access to its market. And this despite the fact that bilateral trade now stands at $1 billion dollars a day. As much trade is now done in seven hours with one EU country Belgium as it took a whole year to achieve 45 years ago. A number of issues are expected to be discussed during this week's talks. Both sides set an end of year deadline to come up with an agreed text after 12 rounds of negotiations. But, even with the best efforts of both sides, it will not be easy to find a compromise on the issue of market access within that timeframe. There is also the issue of over-capacity in the global steel industry. The EU position, reinforced by lobbyists and industry groups, is as tough as it was in the dispute over solar panels. This year, steelworkers from around the EU took to the streets of Brussels to demand greater protection for their ailing industry. Their complaints against foreign imports have to be set against the fact that expensively run European plants also bear a share of the blame for what is a global problem. Since China embarked on its economic miracle decades ago, much European capacity in steel-making has moved to China. Brussels should stop blaming Beijing for the problems, and work with it to find a solution. China has been making its contribution to solving the issue by reducing its steel capacity, which has led to a rising number of lay-offs in the domestic steel industry. Also at the conference table, the two sides will not be able to avoid the topic of China's market economy status as Dec 11 is very close. After that day, in line with a World Trade Organization agreement, Brussels should no longer charge anti-dumping duties against Chinese exports to the EU on the basis of China's non-market status, since the transitional period of 15 years since China joined the WTO is over. Beijing insists that the matter is non-negotiable, but so far Brussels has not offered a solution. Voices within the European institutions recently started commenting that the market economy issue is "not a technical but a political" one at a time when the EU is facing an existential crisis that challenges its political unity. Within the context of the rule-based international community, it is maybe time for Brussels to show political wisdom and respect the WTO agreement. Ideally, it would send such a message in the talks with Ma. And then, Brussels and Beijing could renew harmonious relations at a number of levels. The author is deputy chief of China Daily European Bureau. fujing@chinadaily.com.cn Philippine president arrives in Beijing for 'historic' visit Updated: 2016-10-19 09:15 (Xinhua) BEIJING -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte arrived in Beijing Tuesday evening, beginning his four-day visit to China. Choosing China as the first country outside the ASEAN since taking office in June, Duterte makes the visit amid a backdrop of deteriorating China-Philippines ties, due to the unilateral filing of the South China Sea arbitration case initiated by his predecessor Benigno Aquino III against China. Duterte will meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang, and top legislator Zhang Dejiang, according to China's Foreign Ministry. "This is a historic visit, and presents an opportunity for relations between China and the Philippines to restart on a fresh, more positive footing," said Foreign Minister Wang Yi earlier on Tuesday. Applauding Duterte's commitment to improving bilateral ties and voicing support for dialogue and cooperation between the two nations, Wang said the visit accords with the national interests of the Philippines and the wishes of its people. No foreign force can stand in the way of improvements to China-Philippines relations, Wang said, adding that China's arms are open and ready for friendship and cooperation. The upcoming meetings are expected to enhance cooperation in trade, infrastructure and drug control, said Ruan Zongze, executive deputy president of the China Institute of International Studies. Though the anticipated visit will not be able to wipe the slate clean, it is a "window of opportunity" that may ameliorate the situation, as long as the two sides agree to shelve their differences and get back to consensus through dialogue, Ruan said. SANTA ANA An Anaheim man was sentenced Wednesday to 30 years in prison for trying to aid a foreign terrorist group, with a federal judge determining that he aimed to recruit others and radicalized a friend who tried to travel overseas to join the Islamic State. After spending days torn over the role Muhanad Badawi played in his friend Nader Salem Elhuzayels alleged plot to travel to Syria and become an Islamic State fighter, U.S. District Judge David O. Carter decided late Wednesday morning that prosecutors were correct in describing Badawi as directly responsible for Elhuzayels actions. I believe you radicalized, Carter told Badawi. I believe you are a recruiter. and I believe you are extremely dangerous. You are just as dangerous, if not more so, than Elhuzayel. Badawi stared forward, his face blank and eyes slightly downcast, as Carter announced the sentence. His family and friends wept and consoled one another in the courthouse hallway following the hearing but declined to comment. The 30-year federal prison sentence, as well as a lifetime of supervision following release, is the same sentence Carter gave Elhuzayel, an Anaheim man the judge referred to in court as beyond redemption. Federal prosecutors, during the trial of Badawi and Elhuzayel, both 25, described Badawi as being a facilitator for Elhuzayel. Using his student financial aid, Badawi paid for Elhuzayels plane ticket to the Middle East. FBI agents had monitored the pair for at least a month. They arrested Elhuzayel as he attempted to board at Los Angeles International Airport discounting Elhuzayels claims that he was traveling to marry a woman he had met online. Badawi was arrested hours later. Prosecutors presented jurors with social-media transcripts and recordings of Badawi and Elhuzayel discussing their support for the Islamic State. They also showed jurors often-graphic photos and videos the two men had shared, including clips of the Islamic State beheading civilians. The pairs attorneys described their clients discussions as protected free speech and noted that the friends lacked the training and the connections to fight overseas. During Wednesdays sentencing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Judith Heinz focused on what she alleged was Badawis role in radicalizing Elhuzayel, and his attempt, she said, to recruit at least seven others for the Islamic State. If Elhuzayel is beyond redemption, it is Badawi who brought him there, Heinz told the judge. How many other Elhuzayels will we see because of Badawi? The prosecutor described Badawi as a focused and forceful speaker who used his knowledge of the Koran and of Islamic State rhetoric to be the learned one who can inspire other soldiers. Badawis attorney, Kate Corrigan, argued Wednesday that her client shouldnt spend more than 15 years in prison. She noted that he has no criminal record, is a member of a tight-knit family and that there was no indication that he kept in touch with his alleged recruits. Corrigan questioned why, if Badawi was indeed recruiting others as alleged by the government, none of those individuals are facing criminal charges. I think if he was really the recruiter the government has described him as being, we would have seen indictments, Corrigan said. Heinz said that there are several ongoing investigations related to the case. We do have to be resolute in our fight against ISIS, Corrigan said. But we also have to be resolute that our rights and the rights of my client arent trampled in the name of fear. Badawis sentencing was originally scheduled for Monday but was continued so that he could finish reading a probation report about his background. On Monday afternoon, Carter told Badawi that he was still unsure what to think about him. The judge said he wrestled with the case right up until Wednesdays hearing. The judge asked prosecutors to replay for him several recorded conversations. Among those recordings was a conversation between Badawi and Elhuzayel in the days leading up to Elhuzayels aborted trip overseas, in which Badawi is heard saying We are five now, I am going to convert more. The judge then said to Badawi: You continued right up to the day you were arrested to spread this evil gospel to the community. Despite hours of hearings, testimony, courtroom argument and voluminous evidence presented to the jury, it remains unclear what exactly drew Badawi to the Islamic State. As part of what both his attorney and the judge described as a loving, hard-working family, Badawi immigrated with his parents from the Sudan at the age of 16. He met Elhuzayel while the two attended Cypress College in 2012. Leading up to the trial, Badawi underwent a hunger strike. By December, the 6-foot-4 Badawis weight had plummeted from 140 pounds at the time of his arrest to a shockingly gaunt 105. Judge Carter ordered that Badawi be force fed. Badawis family also helped coax him back to eating and communicating. The sentencing of Badawi and Elhuzayel, as well as the recent sentencing of Orange resident Adam Dandach, ends a high-profile wave of cases involving local individuals attempting to join the Islamic State. Contact the writer: LONDON The strange tale of Julian Assange and Ecuador became a little odder Tuesday, as the Ecuadorean government restated its commitment to providing Assange political asylum at its embassy in London but refused to even acknowledge a charge by WikiLeaks that it had cut off his access to the internet. WikiLeaks, founded by Assange and known for its frequent release of confidential information about governments as well as private organizations and individuals, said on Twitter Monday that Ecuador had severed Assanges internet access Saturday afternoon. Assange, who sought refuge in the embassy four years ago and is wanted for questioning by Swedish authorities, lost internet access shortly after WikiLeaks published information about speeches that Hillary Clinton gave to Goldman Sachs, his organization said. Assange and WikiLeaks have recently posted emails hacked from the Democratic National Committee and from John D. Podesta, a senior official in Clintons presidential campaign, some of which have been highly embarrassing to the Democrats. WikiLeaks published more hacked emails from Podesta on Monday. Although Assange has said that he did not know the source of the WikiLeaks material, the U.S. government has suggested that the hacking was the work of Russia and that it was intended to help Clintons opponent, Donald Trump. On Tuesday, WikiLeaks accused Secretary of State John Kerry of pressuring Ecuador in September to cut off Assanges access to the internet to stop him from publishing further leaked documents from the Democrats. The group said that Kerry made the request on Sept. 26 during a private meeting on the sidelines of negotiations seeking peace in Colombia. The State Department immediately denied the accusation. While our concerns about WikiLeaks are longstanding, any suggestion that Secretary Kerry or the State Department were involved in shutting down WikiLeaks is false, the departments chief spokesman, John Kirby, said in a statement. Reports that Secretary Kerry had conversations with Ecuadorean officials about this are simply untrue. Period. The president of Ecuador, Rafael Correa, is a man of the left, and he recently told the Kremlin-backed broadcaster RT that he would support Clinton. At the same time, he suggested in the RT interview that a victory by Trump, who has made no secret of his admiration for the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, would be good for Latin America because it would, paradoxically, bolster left-wing parties. I sincerely believe that it would be better for Latin America if Trump won, Correa said. When did progressive governments come to power in Latin America? During the Bush administration. His primitive policies were rejected so much that it caused reaction in Latin America. Trump would do the same. Questions to the Ecuadorean Embassy on Tuesday were met with a polite reference to the missions website and to a brief statement. In view of recent speculations, the government of Ecuador reaffirms the validity of the asylum granted four years ago to Julian Assange, the statement said. We also ratify that the protection given by the Ecuadorean state will continue while the circumstances that led to the granting of asylum remain. There was no mention of internet access. Assange is the subject of an arrest warrant in Sweden, which wanted to question him about allegations of rape and sexual abuse dating to 2010, to decide whether or not to bring charges. Assange, saying that he feared extradition to the United States on espionage charges stemming from the publication by WikiLeaks of secret documents given to the website by Chelsea Manning, broke bail and took refuge in the Ecuadorean Embassy in June 2012. He has been in the tiny embassy since. Given the statute of limitations, the one allegation Assange still faces in Sweden is one of rape. He is wanted for questioning but has not been charged. After long negotiations, he was scheduled to be questioned on Monday by Swedish prosecutors in the presence of an Ecuadorean prosecutor. But Ecuador, at Assanges request, postponed that session until Nov. 14, after the U.S. presidential election. There is no public indictment in the United States of Assange; if Sweden chooses not to press charges, he would presumably be free to leave the embassy. Federal regulators are looking to set up new standards for big banks planning and testing for possible cyberattacks. The aim is to bolster the banking industrys defenses amid concern over periodic security breaches at U.S. banks. The move announced Wednesday by the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and a Treasury Department banking agency is designed to get banks senior executives and directors to pay closer attention to cybersecurity, agency officials said. Fed Chair Janet Yellen has said that cybercrime is a very significant threat. The proposal, open to public comment for three months, would apply to banks with $50 billion or more in assets. That would affect several dozen major banks and a few big insurance companies, all deemed to be so interconnected with the financial system that a cyberattack against one of them could shake the systems stability. In a stunning incident early this year, hackers diverted $101 million from the Bangladesh central banks account at the New York Federal Reserve. The theft amplified worries about the security of the SWIFT global money-transfer system, which is overseen by the Fed and other central banks. Belgium-based SWIFT, formally the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, is a cooperative that manages the international transfer system among banks. The hackers in the Bangladesh bank case apparently got the money by stealing the central banks SWIFT access codes. The rules proposed by the three agencies would pile on a second set of stricter standards for big banks computer systems that are considered critical to the functioning of the financial industry. The banks should establish goals for how long it would take them to recover from a cyberattack, and should assess the potential for malware or corrupted data to spread through connected computer systems, the regulators said. The proposal doesnt require the banks to submit their cybersecurity plans for approval or to notify the regulators if they suffer a data breach. Beyond their oversight of banks efforts, the agencies themselves have suffered some serious security breaches. Computers at the Fed were penetrated dozens of times between 2011 and 2015, according to House lawmakers. The breaches raised concerns about the Feds ability to safeguard sensitive financial information in its computer systems, the lawmakers said. The Chinese government, meanwhile, is believed to have hacked into computers at the FDIC in 2010, 2011 and 2013, including the workstation of then-FDIC Chair Sheila Bair, according to a congressional report. It cites a May 2013 memo from the FDIC inspector general to agency Chairman Martin Gruenberg, describing an advanced persistent threat said to have come from the Chinese government which compromised 12 computer workstations and 10 servers at the FDIC. The issue of suspected Chinese government hacking has been sensitive since the disclosure last year of a massive breach of the U.S. Office of Personnel Managements databases, which the U.S. believed was carried out by Chinese cyber spies. In one of the worst data breaches in U.S. history, the personal files of 21 million Americans were stolen. SACRAMENTO California regulators asked members of the public Wednesday what they think about proposed regulations that would eventually permit self-driving cars that lack a steering wheel or pedals on public roads. The states Department of Motor Vehicles hosted the workshop in the state Capitol. Among those planning to comment were representatives of companies developing these cars of the future and skeptics who worry regulators are being pushed to embrace the technology before it is ready for the masses. For now, self-driving cars are still in the prototype phase, and Californias roads and highways are their real-world testing grounds. The technologys most bullish supporters suggest the cars could be ready for market within a year or two. The regulations that department officials drafted will govern how everyday people can get and use the cars once companies and federal regulators conclude they are safe. The proposed rules were supposed to be in place by Jan. 1, 2015. They have taken several years to write, partly because the technology is so new and complex that regulators have struggled with how to ensure the cars are safe enough for widespread use. In permitting prototype testing, regulators required a trained driver behind the wheel, to take over just in case. Now the department is trying to balance safety with the interests of companies in a rapidly evolving industry which could transform how people get around. In December, the department released an initial draft of regulations that required a licensed driver in self-driving vehicles. Companies including Alphabet, where the pioneering Google self-driving car project is housed, reacted with great disappointment, as the ultimate vision of many companies is a car that has no wheel or pedals. In September, the department updated its proposal. The new language, the subject of Wednesdays hearing, pivoted regulators position from cautious to bullish. Gone was the requirement of a licensed driver; California was open to permitting cars which could drive around without a person inside at all, if the federal government gave its blessing that the make and model is safe. In an interview, California Secretary of Transportation Brian Kelly explained the pivot by citing a close collaboration between the Department of Motor Vehicles and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in developing a model framework for state regulators. That federal policy was released in late September. On Wednesday, in a show of unity the top federal authorities on self-driving cars were seated in the front row. T-Mobile US Inc. is to pay at least $48 million in penalties because it didnt clearly tell customers of limits to wireless data plans sold as unlimited. The Federal Communications Commission on Wednesday announced the sanctions, including a $7.5 million fine and $35.5 million worth of discounted gear or data for customers of T-Mobile and its MetroPCS unit. Some $5 million will go toward expanding access to the internet for poorer children. The company will provide free internet service on devices for children in low-income school districts. The children can take the devices home to help them do their homework. An investigation found that company policy allows T-Mobile to decrease data speeds when customers on plans sold as unlimited exceed a monthly data threshold, the FCC said in a news release. Consumers should not have to guess whether so-called unlimited data plans contain key restrictions, like speed constraints, data caps and other material limitations, said Travis LeBlanc, the FCCs enforcement bureau chief. When broadband providers are accurate, honest and upfront in their ads and disclosures, consumers arent surprised and they get what theyve paid for. T-Mobile failed to adequately inform its unlimited data plan customers that, under a top 3 percent policy, their data would be slowed at times if they used more than 17 gigabytes in a given month, the FCC said. It said the company had agreed to update its disclosures to better explain who may be affected. T-Mobile also is to spend at least $5 million dollars to help low-income school districts provide broadband service and equipment to students, the FCC said. The Associated Press contributed to this report. ABUJA, Nigeria Nigerias government is negotiating the release of another 83 of the Chibok schoolgirls taken in a mass abduction 21/2 years ago, but more than 100 others appear unwilling to leave their Boko Haram Islamic extremist captors, a community leader said Tuesday. The unwilling girls may have been radicalized by Boko Haram or are ashamed to return home because they were forced to marry extremists and have babies, chairman Pogu Bitrus of the Chibok Development Association told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. Bitrus said the 21 Chibok girls freed last week in the first negotiated release between Nigerias government and Boko Haram should be educated abroad, because they will probably face stigma in Nigeria. The girls and their parents were reunited Sunday and were expected to meet with Nigerias President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday or today, Bitrus said. Buhari said Monday that his government is prepared to talk with Boko Haram as long as the extremists agree to involve organizations like the International Committee of the Red Cross, which was an intermediary in last weeks release. Some 276 schoolgirls were kidnapped from a school in northeastern Chibok in April 2014. Dozens escaped early on and at least half a dozen have died in captivity, according to the newly freed girls, Bitrus said. All those who escaped on their own have left Chibok because, even though they were held only a few hours, they were labeled Boko Haram wives and taunted, he said. At least 20 of the girls are being educated in the United States. The freed girls have told their parents they were separated into two groups early on in their captivity, when Boko Haram commanders gave them the choice of joining the extremists and embracing Islam or becoming their slaves, Bitrus said. The girls freed and those whose release is being negotiated, numbering 104, are believed to be in the group that rejected Islam and Boko Haram, he explained. The freed girls said they never saw the other girls again. Bitrus said the freed girls were used as domestic workers and porters but were not sexually abused. He said that was why only one girl in the freed group is carrying a baby, and her parents have confirmed that she was pregnant when she was kidnapped. An aid worker had told The Associated Press that he had seen the girls on their release and that all but three carried babies. Bitrus said that report was incorrect. Description LEGENDARY, AWARD-WINNINGSONGWRITER CAROLE BAYER SAGER COMES TO LONG ISLAND OCTOBER 19th Its a rare Long Island appearance! Legendary songwriter Carole Bayer Sager talks about her new revealing memoir Theyre Playing Our Song (Simon & Schuster) on Wednesday, October 19th at 6:30 pm at The Madison Theatre at Molloy College in Rockville Centre. This is a LONG ISLAND LITFEST PRESENTS special author event. Admission is $35 and includes a copy of the book, provided by sponsor Turn of the Corkscrew Books & Wine. Audiences will have an opportunity to ask Carol Bayer Sager questions about her songs, her working and personal relationships with Marvin Hamlisch and Burt Bacharach, and her friendships with Peter Allen, Elizabeth Taylor and Michael Jackson. Book signings will follow the Q&A. Nobody Does It Better, A Groovy Kind of Love, Dont Cry Out Loud, The Best That You Can Do (theme from the movie Arthur), On My Own, Thats What Friends Are For Carole Bayer Sager has written more than four hundred songs. Nominated for over fifteen awards, she has won an Oscar, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Grammy for Song of the Year. She recorded three solo albums and with Marvin Hamlisch wrote the hit Broadway musical Theyre Playing Our Song. With Peter Allen she co-wrote half of the songs featured in in the Broadway musical The Boy From Oz, which starred Hugh Jackman and told the story of Peters life. She is a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame and was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Other upcoming author events this winter include LONG ISLAND LITFEST PRESENTS WALLY LAMB (Ill Take You There, Harper), Wednesday November 30, 2016 at 7:30 pm and LONG ISLAND LITFEST PRESENTS ALICE HOFFMAN (Faithful, Simon & Schuster), Wednesday December 7, 2016 at 8 pm. All events are held at The Madison Theater at Molloy College in Rockville Centre. Long Island LitFest is a day-long literary festival taking place each spring, with additional, special single-author events throughout the year. Tickets for Carole Bayer Sager are available here. For more information, visit www.LongIslandLitFest.com or cgc@ClaudiaCopquin.com, 516-810-7781. SANTA ANA A 56-year-old man slashed his throat Wednesday with a razor blade moments after jurors found him guilty of sexually assaulting a teenager in Huntington Beach. Jeffrey Scott Jones, who was out of custody on bail during the trial, cut his throat in C-28 on the courtrooms eighth floor just after the verdict had been read, authorities said. UPDATE: How did man who slit his throat sneak razor blade into court? Sheriffs review video footage Deputies rendered first aid and Jones, who was uncooperative, had to be handcuffed, sheriffs Lt. Mark Stichter said. Jones was transported by paramedics to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries, said Capt. Larry Kurtz of the Orange County Fire Authority. He remained under guard Wednesday afternoon by deputies. The Sheriffs Department is investigating how Jones managed to bring a razor through a security checkpoint at the court building, Stichter said. Ed Welbourn, who is Jones attorney, said he was stunned by the incident. It was totally unexpected and very unfortunate, he said. Welbourn said a courtroom clerk had just finished reading the jurys guilty verdict when Jones suddenly cut himself with a standard razor blade. I didnt see it happen, my attention was on the jury, but from what people tell me he had a blade somewhere in his clothing and he pulled it out when the verdicts were read, he said. Welbourn said Jones head hit the table and blood began pouring out of his neck. Courtroom bailiffs rushed to him and called for medical aid. He said his client didnt show any previous signs of mental distress during the trial: He was confident in his innocence. Jones, a Huntington Beach resident, previously taught Advanced Placement English at Libra Academy in Huntington Park. He sexually assaulted a girl between Sept. 1, 2012 and April 30, 2013, prosecutors said. The Register is not specifying her relationship with Jones to avoid identifying a sexual assault victim. Deputy District Attorney Heather Brown had told jurors that a sexual-assault test performed on the girl turned up Jones DNA. Since the abuse was reported, the girl has been in youth homes, juvenile hall and has lived on the streets, and at one point was arrested for stealing a bike while attempting to run away, the prosecutor added. The county is offering counseling services available to court employees and jurors who may have witnessed the incident, said Gwen Vieau, spokeswoman for Orange County Superior Court. For his conviction, Jones faces a maximum sentence of 68 years to life when he is sentenced on Nov. 4. Contact the writer: 714-796-7767 sschwebke@scng.com Twitter: @thechalkoutline The Schiaparelli lander, a small, saucer-shaped spacecraft equipped with an array of weather sensors, has already traveled farther than any meteorologist has ever gone. Seven months ago, it launched from a desert in Kazakhstan, and it has traveled 500 million miles to reach its current spot in the skies above Mars. On Monday, it successfully separated from its parent spacecraft, the Trace Gas Orbiter, which will relay signals from the surface and scan the red planets atmosphere for an important signature of life. And on Wednesday the intrepid spacecraft was set to attempt its most daring feat yet: Landing on a foreign planet, smack in the middle of a dust storm, to check out the weather up there. The orbiter and lander are part of the ExoMars mission, a joint project of the European Space Agency and the Russian Federal Space Agency aimed at assessing Marss habitability, investigating its geology and atmosphere, searching for biosignatures, and testing the technology that will get scientists closer to examining real samples from the surface. In 2020, using data from the Trace Gas Orbiter and Schiaparelli, the space agencies are scheduled to launch a rover capable of tracking down signs of past or present life on the planet if any life ever existed. But first, the orbiter and lander need to get there. Both spacecraft circled high above the planet, coasting toward the positions from which they were set to start their orbital insertions and landing. At 5:04 a.m., the TGO was set to begin a complex, two-hour series of engine burns to move it into orbit. For parts of this process, scientists on the ground will be completely out of touch with the orbiter. There is also a nine-minute time lag for communications between Earth and Mars. This means that the ExoMars team must trust in the programs it wrote for this maneuver more than a year ago. Once it has settled into orbit, the Trace Gas Orbiter will spend the next six years sniffing Marss atmosphere for gases that could tell us about conditions on the ground. Its main target is methane, a gas that has briefly, fleetingly been detected in the Martian air. This is important because there are only two known sources of methane gas: geothermal activity, like the kind that occurs at ocean vents on Earth, or life. Either source would be of great interest to planetary scientists, since we have no evidence of current volcanic or biologic activity on Mars. Shortly after the Trace Gas Orbiter begins its orbital insertion, Schiaparelli will start its descent toward Mars. Over the course of the six-minute landing, it will rely on its heat shield, thrusters, a parachute and a crushable landing structure to keep it intact. It will also take a series of 15 black and white photos as it plummets toward the surface, allowing scientists to reconstruct the landing process. The European Space Agency has produced a visualization of what Schiaparellis descent will look like. It was also set to broadcast a live stream of the orbital entry and landings starting at 5 a.m. If everything goes according to plan, Schiaparelli will be the first successful Mars landing for the European and Russian space agencies (previous attempts have failed to make it to the Red Planet or were unable to communicate once they got there). The lander lacks a rechargeable battery, so it has just a few days to collect all the data it needs. It will be touching down in the middle of the Martian dust-storm season, in a desolate plain marked by impact craters, volcanic rock and rare crystals of hematite that (on Earth, at least) usually form in the presence of liquid water. Schiaparellis primary goal is to demonstrate the technologies needed for landing, but it carries a small suite of scientific instruments that will study things like wind speed, temperature, dust and other weather-related phenomena that will be needed to plan the second round of ExoMars missions. The landing will be our own six minutes of terror, Francesca Ferri, a planetary scientist at the University of Padua in Italy, told Nature. She was referencing a phrase used to describe the landing of NASAs Curiosity rover in 2012. Around 50 percent of the landings on Mars havent succeeded, so its not easy, said Ferri, the principal investigator for an experiment that will study atmospheric data gathered during Schiaparellis descent. But Im feeling pretty confident. The Republican Party of Orange County has requested the resignation of Lake Forest City Councilman Adam Nick, saying he fraudulently called himself a certified public accountant on a SmartVoter website until August 2015. Fred Whitaker, partys county chairman, sent a release dated Oct. 3 asking for Nick to resign, alleging Nick misled the public by saying he was a CPA despite not being issued a license. The base of Whitakers claim is Nicks profile for his 2012 campaign for Lake Forest City Council on a candidate website called SmartVoter.org, where office-seekers supply information to be posted in a profile. Nick said he never provided information for the website and the information placed on the website was an error in data entry. He said Whitakers call for his resignation is an attempt to exploit the matter to benefit himself. That statement was manufactured, Nick said after the Oct. 4 City Council meeting. I stated, correctly, that I had aced the board exam. An archived version of Nicks profile shows Accountant/CPA under the category Biographical Highlights. The current profile shows a remark on the bottom of the page that says it was modified at the request of the candidate, Aug. 28, 2015. Ive used that for my own campaigns in the past, Whitaker said in an email. No one edits it but the candidate. He created it, he left it for everyone to be misled, he got caught, he took it down. Nick contends hes never claimed to be a CPA, but has said that hes passed the board exams necessary to obtain the CPA license. The California Board of Accountancy sent Nick a letter, addressed to City Hall on July 14, 2015, informing him that it had no record of issuing a license. The notice where Nick had asked for the modification on the SmartVoter profile page was dated more than a month later. I did not provide them such information nor did I enter the info myself, Nick said Tuesday. I think they misinterpreted what I had on my website. SUPERVISORS OFFICE BACKS ROBINSON Dwight Robinson, the second incumbent hoping to retain his seat in the 2016 election, has seen his candidate statement challenged by residents and Nick in recent weeks because of two lines in which Robinson said hell partner with two Orange County supervisors to end a Mello-Roos district in Foothill Ranch just like weve done in Portola Hills. In an Oct. 12 email, Supervisor Lisa Bartletts office said Robinsons statement is not misleading to voters. The email said Robinson, Mayor Andrew Hamilton and Mayor Pro Tem Scott Voigts had all been reaching out via phone or email to discuss Mello-Roos. Their advocacy on behalf of (Portola Hills) residents dates back to February 2015, the email said. Similarly, residents from the (Portola Hills) community who have worked with Supervisor Bartlett could credibly assert they worked to eliminate Mello-Roos districts as well. At the Oct. 4 City Council meeting, a proposal by Nick to discuss censuring Robinson at a future meeting died in a 3-2 vote, with Robinson, Voigts and Hamilton opposed. Robinson said he didnt claim to have eliminated Mello-Roos singlehandedly and referenced the chain of communication with Bartlett. Ive chosen to foster a relationship with (the supervisors) because at time, the residents of this city needed us to talk to those above us, Robinson said Oct. 4. Did I have sole decision authority? Clearly not. That was a Board of Supervisors decision that was made. The Board of Supervisors voted July 26 to dissolve the Mello Roos district in Portola Hills, county Auditor-Controller Eric Woolery said. The Mello Roos bonds for Portola Hills had been paid off entirely in August 2013, but the Community Facilities District had continued to collect taxes. Those residents will receive a tax refund. Foothill Ranchs debt is projected to be paid in full in August 2019. Once the debt is redeemed, supervisors could dissolve the Community Facilities District or retask it to provide additional capital projects and services for the district, Woolery said. But Bartletts office said factors could affect both the term and amount of the facilities district at any point, including projects being under budget, refinancing of bonds, private homeowners paying off obligations early, or developers footing the bill in order not to reduce the sales price of a new home. In contrast, the other option for the public agency to consider is whether there is a need for additional infrastracture, the email said. In that case, it is possible to extend the life or increase debt of a Mello Roos district for the purpose of providing public infrastructure. All of these actions require active management of public policymakers, the email from Bartletts office said. Local elected leaders and residents can influence the public policymaking process surrounding Mello Roos. COSTA MESA A woman and her two young sons were found stabbed Tuesday night, authorities said. UPDATE: The man suspected in the stabbing was found with several knives All three victims were taken to trauma centers in critical condition, according to Costa Mesa Fire Department Capt. Chris Coates. A male suspect was detained, Costa Mesa police Lt. Greg Scott said. Firefighters were called to an apartment complex in the 1900 block of Wallace Avenue around 7:30 p.m. At the scene, paramedics found the three with stab wounds and an injured police officer, Coates said. The oldest boy, 11, was stabbed several times in the torso and was undergoing exploratory surgery to determine the extent of his injuries at 10:45 p.m., Scott said. The suspects relationship to the mother and children was not immediately known, and the nature of the officers injury or injuries was not immediately released. Contact the writer: 714-796-7802 or jsudock@scng.com PALM SPRINGS All seems lost as thousands of hearts break and tears cascade Tuesday for two fallen police officers as the Tenors sing Hallelujah. But then you look around the Convention Center and realize that the men and women in uniform gathered here to honor the lives of Officer Jose Gil Vega and Officer Lesley Zerebny arent cowed. Instead, these cops are proud to simply be associated with people who are willing to give their all to keep the peace, to help those in need, to step forward when many of us step back. These peace officers who have buried dozens of their brothers and sisters this year across our nation find strength in their solidarity, their acceptance of the dangers they face, their love for one another. But far more significant on this day is that our men and women in blue are reminded at this double memorial service that it isnt just fellow officers who support the good fight. Hundreds of civilians are here to say thank you. Still, nothing is simple in an era in which internet babble does its best to spread fear. DIVERSITY IN UNIFORMITY Just when you think you can tell most everything about someone by their uniform, people like Orange County sheriffs Deputies Michelle Rodriguez and Brandon Mundy and Andrew Vega, nephew of Officer Vega, blow up your perceptions. Rodriguez is said to be a cops cop. Fourteen years on the force, shes worked patrol and now works the detail at John Wayne Airport. For a time as a single mother, she raised her first child, now a 19-year-old Fullerton College student. Today, she and her husband share raising their 5-year-old daughter. She doesnt suffer fools gladly or otherwise, believes in consequences rather than being a helicopter parent, and is careful with her money. Yet like so many officers I know, she has a heart soft enough to pay for her dogs cancer treatment. As the Tenors voices soar, Rodriguez sneaks a finger below her eye to wipe away a tear, then another. Mundy, a rookie who works the Orange County Jail, stands ramrod straight as the honor guard lines the way at the Convention Center for Vegas and Zerebnys families. As a cadre of bagpipers blow a soulful dirge, Mundy joins thousands of fellow officers who offer stiff salutes to the parents, nieces, nephews, spouses and children of those slain. Not for a second would you guess how deeply Mundy understands the pain of violence. Six years ago, his 24-year-old sister was raped and strangled. In a quiet side moment, Mundy shares that his sisters death is what brought him to police work. I dont want to let that happen to anybody else. Andrew Vega steps in front of dozens of white carnations and faces the vast auditorium. He confesses hes been in a police car twice. Once was the day before when he was greeted by Palm Springs police at the local airport. The other time was when he was sitting in the back of a police car getting chewed out by his uncle Gil Vega. Not even my parents know about that, he smiles, until today. Back then, the officer told his nephew, People will make assumptions about you. Prove them wrong. A grandson of farmworkers, Andrew Vega did just that. Today, he is a school principal in Boston. My uncle created a counter-narrative, the principal says, for Latinos to look up to. He was proud to be a Mexican and he was equally proud to be a police officer. Making a pointed reference to the Black Lives Matter movement, Andrew Vega concludes the life of his uncle mattered. His point isnt that blue is more important than black. His point is the need for movements to be inclusive, for this nation to come together. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH Palm Springs Police Chief Bryan Reyes takes the stage with purpose. The threat to law enforcement in our country is very real, Reyes declares. He calls for friends and family of troubled individuals to step up and report problems. Enough is enough. The suspect accused of gunning down Zerebny and Vega reportedly told others he was going to kill cops, that he was armed. Yet when police responded to a domestic call, no one offered that information. People need to start taking responsibility of their own households, Reyes says. They need to pay attention to red flags. The chief offers a litany of police who were killed by suspects who, essentially, waved rad flags. Dallas, Baton Rouge, the list goes on. These, Reyes says, were ticking time bombs. Keeping our community safe is a shared responsibility. Time and again, the chiefs speech is punctuated with waves of applause. Time and again, Reyes hammers home his theme that the country must unify in ending the killings. May you be blessed, Reyes says to his troops, for you are trying to keep the peace in the most difficult time in the nations history. A LEGACY OF SERVICE Vega, 63, a 35-year police veteran, left behind a wife, eight children including an 8-year-old daughter, 11 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Zerebny was a 27-year-old mother to a 4-month-old daughter, Cora. Toward the end of the memorial, the Tenors return to sing Angels Calling. Zerebny loved the group and they made a surprise visit to honor her. It is just one of many moments during a ceremony that reminds us that heroes are just regular people who are willing to do dangerous, difficult jobs under extraordinary circumstances. Still, some moments make you bite your quivering lip like when family members walk up the aisle toward the stage and when they return. The loss on their faces crushes. But police officers persevere by seeking out and recognizing the very best in humanity, even in death. After the service, Rodriguez points out that Zerebny at least lived long enough to become a mother, to care for her child. For what, four months? The officer explains that those four months were more than some get. Rodriguez also knows something many civilians dont. A cop like Zerebny passes along things to a daughter things like adventure, hope, service. Contact the writer: dwhiting@scng.com SANTA ANA A boy was shot in the leg during an apparent drive-by shooting Wednesday, police said. The minor, who was not identified, told police that the driver of a dark-colored vehicle confronted him for unknown reasons as he walked in the 500 block of South Pacific Avenue around noon, said Sgt. S. Gatt. The juvenile ran and hid, Gatt said. Then, he heard a gunshot and realized hed been hit in the leg. The vehicle speed off, Gatt said. The victim was not able to provide investigators with the make or model of the vehicle nor a detailed description of the driver. He didnt see much because he was hiding, Gatt said. The boy was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and was expected to fully recover. Anyone with information about this incident can call the Santa Ana Police Department at 714-245-8665. Anyone who wants to remain anonymous can call the Orange County Crime Stoppers at 855-TIP-OCCS (855-847-6227). Contact the writer: 714-796-7802 or jsudock@scng.com When cities close down street traffic lanes and paint experimental bicycle paths on pavement once used by cars, the so-called experiment almost never fails. The change virtually always becomes permanent. Even in Portland, Ore., where as an experiment officials early this year installed small sound-making bumps to let drivers know when they drift into a bike lane and resentful motorists responded by ripping out 70 percent of those bumps, the bumps are back. There was no serious consideration of removing either the once-experimental bicycle path or the humps. Its much the same with temporary taxes. California has seen only one temporary levy disappear on schedule, a one-time $7 billion surcharge on income taxes of the wealthy imposed by Republican Pete Wilson shortly after he became governor in early 1991. So its no surprise that the majority of new taxes imposed by the 2012 Proposition 30 are about to become all but permanent, lasting at least through 2030. This is what the current Proposition 55 is about. Gov. Jerry Brown pushed hard for Prop. 30 four years ago, spending liberally from his political war chest to get the measure passed. He promised at the time the increases would be temporary, petering out after 2018 and hes not actively supporting Prop. 55 now. None of the money behind it comes from Brown or any political action committee related to him. But hes not opposing it, either. Prop. 30 did work. Using the $6 billion-plus per year raised via its small sales tax increase and its income tax hikes for the wealthy, Brown and the Legislature kept Californias general fund solvent. The central question of Prop. 55: Can this continue without that money? A general belief the money would be vitally needed in even a slight economic turndown is the main reason there is no significant opposition to extending these tax hikes another 12 years. Much of the $50 million-plus behind Prop. 55 comes from public employee unions, notably the California Teachers Association and the Service Employees International Union. The California Hospital Association and the California Medical Association are also big contributors. All remember the years of belt-tightening before Prop. 30. They also know that voters are often happy to tax the rich, which is what Prop. 55 does. It would eliminate the sales tax portion of Prop. 30, while extending the tax surcharge for the top 1.5 percent of the states earners. Single people would pay nothing for this unless their adjusted gross income tops $263,000, or twice that for married couples. The top tax rate would be 13.3 percent for annual incomes above $1.1 million. Most voters have little sympathy for those folks, one reason polls all year have showed about two-thirds of voters support Prop. 55. Because the money is all earmarked for education and health care, this measure also dovetails neatly with polling that shows about 60 percent of voters believe California schools should spend much more than they do now. The 2014 average of $9,595 per student was well below the national average of $11,667, and placed this state 42nd in per-student education spending, even though it was in the top 10 for per-capita state taxes paid. While few voters can rattle off those numbers, they get the idea when they see peeling paint and leaky roofs in school buildings. So the idea of making near-permanent the Prop. 30 tax increase on the wealthy seems like a natural this year. But nothing in Prop. 55 would actually lead anyone to believe it would promote better education. Yes, districts may add a few more courses here and there. But even Browns 3-year-old system of giving more of the Prop. 30 money to schools with the most low-income and English-learner students has not discernibly improved education. Test scores in most places have been static. There is no doubt, then, that if and when it passes, Prop. 55 will be yet another example of a temporary tax made near-permanent. In fact, its take has already become part of the status quo, which means voters can expect more school-funding propositions down the line. FOUNTAIN VALLEY A man and woman were arrested for multiple offenses following a vehicle pursuit Sunday night. Police identified the suspects as German Gaytan 34, of Westminster and Sara Morales, 18, of Huntington Beach. Gaytan was booked into Orange County Jail on suspicion of evading police, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of methamphetamine, driving under the influence, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of a short-barreled shotgun, Fountain Valley police Sgt. Tony Luce in a statement. Morales was booked into jail on suspicion of possession of a short-barreled shotgun and destruction of evidence. Around 11:30 p.m. Sunday, Fountain Valley officers attempted to make a traffic stop of a 1996 Toyota Tercel in the area of Edinger Avenue and Los Gatos Street, Luce said. However, the vehicle didnt stop and a pursuit began. The pursuit ended near Brookhurst Street and Stilbite Avenue. Officers took Gaytan and Morales into custody and recovered a shotgun and other evidence that had been discarded from the car during the pursuit, Luce said. Contact the writer: 714-796-7767 sschwebke@scng.com Twitter: @thechalkoutline For a second straight year, the San Juan Capistrano City Council has turned back a rent increase sought by the owner of El Nido Mobile Estates under terms of the citys rent control ordinance. A year ago, the council ruled that a $641 rent increase sought by owner Richard Worley was not justified and instead allowed $37 per month. Monday, after a hearing at City Hall, the council rejected the owners proposed increase of $403 per month, allowing instead a rent increase of $4.75 per month plus a separate charge of $4.75 per month, for the next five years, to amortize legal and accounting fees. A roomful of senior-citizen occupants of the 152-unit park at 27703 Ortega Highway cheered the councils 4-0 vote to issue the decision. Mayor Pam Patterson was absent. Robert Coldren, Worleys attorney, said the City Council has unfairly kept the landowner from receiving a fair return on property adjacent to the Hunt Club, where homes sell for millions of dollars. No one with a straight face can argue that these people arent getting an incredible housing bargain, Coldren said. He suggested the city is forcing an aggrieved property to go to court. Bruce Stanton, attorney for park residents, said the park owner doesnt like rent stabilization, despite buying a park in a city with rent control, and wants to grab part of a premium allegedly obtained when some residents sell their homes and spaces. Stanton said that disagreement is no basis for determining a fair return under the ordinance. Contact the writer: fswegles@ocregister.com or 949-492-5127 SAN DIEGO A member of the U.S. Navy arrested after the pickup truck he was driving plunged 60 feet off a San Diego bridge, killing four people and injuring nine at a festival below, will likely be arraigned this week at a hospital, authorities said Tuesday. Richard Anthony Sepolio, 25, is expected to be arraigned Wednesday on charges including DUI and vehicular manslaughter, said district attorneys spokeswoman Tanya Sierra. Sepolio remained hospitalized three days after the GMC pickup crashed through a concrete retaining wall and crushed a vendors booth at Chicano Park, said California Highway Patrol Officer Jake Sanchez. He didnt know Sepolios condition. Sepolio had been stationed for about a year at the base on Coronado Island across the bay from San Diego, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported Monday (http://bit.ly/2eePzq6 ). He enlisted in September 2014 and went to boot camp at the Recruit Training Command Great Lakes in Illinois and also attended apprenticeship schools in Pensacola, Fla., and Norfolk, Va. Sepolio worked at Coronado as an aviation electronics technician, or a J130, and was assigned to Helicopter Combat Squadron 6. Aviation electronics technicians troubleshoot and repair a number of electronics in Navy aircraft. A military spokesman said it is too soon to say what next steps the Navy will take. The Navy is supporting the investigation as they can, and we cant speculate from there, said spokesman Brian ORourke. Blanca Sepolio, the mans mother, said family members didnt wish to comment on the crash when reached by the newspaper. Saturdays crash happened as a crowd gathered for La Raza Run, a motorcycle ride that begins in downtown Los Angeles and ends with a celebration at the park. The truck crashed into a both steps away from a stage where a rockabilly band was playing. The people who were killed were Cruz Elias Contreras, 52, and Annamarie Contreras, 50, of Chandler, Arizona; and Andre Christopher Banks, 49, and Francine Denise Jimenez, 46, both from Hacienda Heights, a suburb east of Los Angeles, the San Diego County Medical Examiner said. Four candidates for Tustin City Council shared their ideas about leadership at a public forum in the Council Chambers Monday night. Candidates exhibited nothing of the heated rhetoric of this falls presidential debates. However, members of the self-designated Team Tustin incumbents Allan Bernstein and Chuck Puckett and newcomer Austin Lumbard noted occasional differences in opinion with first-time candidate Letitia Clark. Moderator Jonathan Stone of the Tustin Chamber of Commerce, which sponsored the event, asked the questions, some of them submitted by audience members. Lumbard, an attorney, began by noting that the event was much better attended than the Planning Commission meetings he chairs. I havent seen this room this full in quite a while, he said. In responding to a question about dealing with homelessness, Clark, public affairs director for the Coast Community College District, said the problem is regional. There are 28,000 homeless children in Orange County, she said. We must work with our neighboring cities and look toward a countywide plan. Puckett, a retired food-service executive, used the moment to applaud the founder of Operation Warm Wishes. We need to find a way to clone TyRon Jackson, he said. If we had more people who have his heart, we wouldnt have a homeless problem. Regarding the promotion of businesses in the area, Lumbard said he wants to get rid of regulations that dont make sense. Bernstein, a podiatric physician, said that he hopes the citys increase in its transient occupancy tax for hotel guests from 6 percent to 10 percent will fund a tourism board. Asked about the potential for expanding public space, Puckett said he is keeping an eye on the development of a regional park around the north hangar approved in 2012 by the Orange County Parks Commission. We want to make sure that land doesnt go to revenue sources, he said. We can never have too many parks. When the topic turned to schools, Clark said she is proud that Tustin Unified School District competes well with Irvine in terms of test scores. But she expressed concern over the declining enrollment predicted in coming years as younger families are priced out of the housing market. Lumbard retorted that parents are more focused on the present than on a decade or two down the road. They care about where their kid goes to school tomorrow, he said. Puckett cited the improved relationship between the city and the school district which, when he ran four years ago, were embroiled in a lawsuit over the delayed opening of an elementary school at The Legacy. Its one of the things Im most proud of, he said. Also broached was the proposed 140-unit condominium complex in Old Town. Clark agreed that Tustin should bring in more high-density, affordable housing. Controversy over the project arose, she said, because residents didnt feel included in the process. Communication wasnt there. Bernstein countered, I havent heard one complaint about a lack of communication a comment that elicited chuckles from some audience members. All candidates took turns praising the Tustin Police Department. They have the hardest jobs, putting their lives on the line every day, Clark said. Given national events, its important to lift up and encourage our police. The forum concluded with a chance for each candidate to make an appeal for votes. Bernstein got the biggest laugh of the night, this one on purpose, when he quipped, If Im elected, I will build a wall and Irvine will pay for that wall. Lumbard summed up the evening saying, We have four great candidates who all care about the city. Contact the writer: sgoulding@scng.com Mohammed Bello Abubakar is one of the most controversial figures in Nigeria. Despite having no discernible income, the 92-year-old man somehow convinced 107 women to marry him throughout his life, 97 of which are still his wives. He claims that marrying as many women as possible is a divine assignment he has received from God. Mr Bello first shot to fame in 2008, when a series of articles revealed that he had 86 wives and around 150 children, either living with him on his compound in Bida, Niger state, or in his house in Lagos. Muslim clerics accused him of breaking religious rules, which most scholars agree allow a man to marry up to four women, as long as he can provide for all of them and treat them equally. He was given a very simple choice, either divorce 82 of his wives or face the consequences. He refused, arguing that there was no punishment stated in the Koran for having more than four wives, and that every man should be free to marry as many women as he can support. He was arrested at the request of the local Shariah Court, but subsequently released, on the condition that he only keep four of his wives. Not only did the superpolygamist ignore this requirement, but he has since married other women as well. In total, he married 107 women so far, divorced 10 of them, which brings the total wife count to a whopping 97. And despite his ripe old age, Abubakar says he plans on marrying even more. What I am doing is divine. It is an assignment and I will keep doing it till the end, he told Nigerian newspaper Vanguard. Photo: video screengrab My large number of wives? I only have 97 wives, he added in an interview with The Nation. I am still going to marry more. I will keep marrying them for as long I am alive. If it was up to me, I would have married maybe two wives, but what I am doing is divine. He advises men not to follow his example, as a normal husband could not even cope with 10 wives, let alone 97. Bello claims that he has been able to control all of them only with the power bestowed on him by Allah. Whats really strange about Mohammed Bello Abubakar and his incredibly large family is that none of them have an official income. He doesnt work and doesnt allow his wives to work either. Not even their neighbors in Bida know how they make ends meet. In a 2008 BBC article, some claimed that Bello sends some of the children to beg, but even if that turned out to be true, it wouldnt even be enough to cover the cost of the three 12-pound bags of rice they eat every day. When asked how he can afford to feed everyone, the Nigerian man simply said Its all from God. 92-year-old Mohammed Bello Abubakar has outlived most of his 185 children, and despite recent rumors that he had died following a swift illness, he told reporters he was alive and well. My dear, I am very much alive, hale and hearty, he told Vanguard. The rumor is baseless and can best be described as the work of my detractors because they envy what God has done and what He is still doing for me. I just want to advise those fighting against the number of my wives to stop because such people are waging war against God, their creator, Abubakar concluded. Robert Dilenschneider With less than 20 days before one of the most important elections in American history, I have prepared this note on executive privilege, executive orders and executive actions that may be of interest.Many wonder if either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump will be able to make much difference in office if, for example, the Democrat is faced with a Republican-led Congress or the Republican president must deal with a Democrat-controlled Congress.Be sure that either Clinton or Trump will invoke executive privilege, executive orders and executive actions to advance their agenda. Each of these is quite different, but all three are used by presidents to get their way when the path is firmly blocked on Capitol Hill or they are fighting legal action.Executive privilege is power claimed by the president to thwart interventions to the executive branch by Congress and the judiciary seeking to access sensitive information and personnel issues relating to the executive branch.Ironically, the concept of executive privilege is not mentioned in the Constitution. However, the Supreme Court has upheld the concept as part of the doctrine of separation of powers, especially in areas of national security.Please note that while executive privilege is often used to avoid abiding by subpoenas, the whole concept is far from settled law.Famously, President Truman issued a secrecy order to keep Congress from getting FBI and White House data on security problems. Truman had security files moved to the White House and ordered his team not to testify in Congress on anything involving security. During the McCarthy hearings into alleged Communist infiltration of government, President Eisenhower claimed executive privilege to keep internal conversations and meetings and notes (well before email) private. Likewise, Defense employees were not permitted to testify before McCarthy or provide any documents he sought.The most famous case is United States v. Nixon. In 1974 Watergate special prosecutor Archibald Cox ordered President Nixon to produce White House Oval Office audiotapes. Nixon invoked executive power to refuse. The Supreme Court noted that there is a valid need for protection of communications among government officials but said that certain procedures must be invoked to protect public interest with the courts put in the difficult position of deciding which branch of government prevails. The court said this is a difficult situation that is to be avoided as much as possible. Once executive privilege is asserted, coequal branches of the Government are set on a collision course.Bill Clinton in 1998 became the first president since Nixon to assert executive privilege and lose in court, when a federal judge ruled that Clinton aides could testify in the Monica Lewinsky case.Executive orders are directives issued to federal agencies, department heads and other federal employees by the president using his constitutional powers. They are similar to written orders or instructions issued by CEOs to department heads or directors. They have the force of law, although, of course, they can be challenged in the courts. They are published in the Federal Register and take effect 30 days later. They bypass Congress but may not be used to circumvent laws or direct agencies to do anything illegal.Two of the most famous executive orders came after the United States was attacked. After Pearl Harbor in 1941, President Roosevelt issued executive order 9066 (they are numbered historically) ordering the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans, although many were U.S. citizens. After 9/11, President Bush issued an executive order to combine more than 40 federal agencies into the Cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security.Although Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell famously decreed Republicans would do everything in their power to ensure President Obama would be a one-term president, Obama prevailed more than many expected he would by issuing executive orders. For example, in a 2012 order known as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, Obama decreed that people under 30 who came to the United States before the age of 16 could get a two-year deferral from deportation, under certain conditions.Executive orders are not immutable. The president may change or abolish an executive order at any time or supersede an existing order. Incoming presidents may keep or replace or revoke previous orders. Rarely, Congress may pass a law that alters an executive order. The Supreme Court may declare an executive order unconstitutional.Executive actions are even more common. Early in office Obama called a press conference and announced he was issuing 23 "executive actions" addressing gun violence. He called for universal background checks on anyone trying to buy a gun and restoring a ban on military-style assault weapons. But they carried no legal weight.There have been a number of myths about Obamas use of executive orders. He did not issue an order keeping his records (e.g., birth certificate) secret. In fact, he issued an order reversing a Bush order so that records of former presidents are no longer as secret as they were. Obama did not sign an order giving him a third term, contrary to Internet gossip. And he did not sign an order getting rid of super political action committees, which give huge amounts of money to the political process, although he dislikes them. He is urging Congress to pass a constitutional amendment outlawing them.Although President Obama has issued 252 orders so far in his presidency and undoubtedly will issue more, he is lagging behind his predecessors. George W. Bush had 291 executive orders in eight years, and Bill Clinton built up a total of 364 executive orders during his eight years. Obama actually has issued the fewest per year33since Chester Arthur. Franklin D. Roosevelt issued 3,721.The point: Expect the new president to use these three opportunities to advance their agenda and expect each to be challenged and to receive considerable attention from the news media.* * * Robert L. Dilenschneider is chairman and founder of the Dilenschneider Group, Inc. Loading... OilVoice will be with you shortly... Nebraska communities need more apartments, homes to rent and moderate-priced houses to buy, a shortage that makes it difficult to attract and keep middle-income workers. Thats a problem cited by a large majority of business owners, civic leaders and others about 940 people in all who have attended 24 meetings held across the state by the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce & Industry since late August. Of about 600 people who filed out survey sheets, more than 85 percent marked yes to a question asking whether their communities or businesses face a housing shortage. The biggest shortage, according to those surveyed, is moderate-priced housing for middle-income people, said Jamie Karl, the chambers vice president for public affairs and policy. People want more of it, he said. About the same share also said they face workforce shortages, and the two are related, Karl said. Qualified workers may leave the state or avoid Nebraska if they cant find the housing they want, even if jobs are available. The latest meeting, held to discuss state legislative issues, was Tuesday at the Goodwill Industries office near 72nd Street and Ames Avenue. Karl said the only attendees who didnt agree with the housing shortage question were those at the chambers Aug. 31 session in Sidney, the home of Cabelas Inc. Listings of homes for sale in Sidney have increased because a competitor is buying Cabelas and may eliminate jobs while consolidating the two companies. About 60 people attended Tuesdays meeting in Omaha. State senators and candidates for the Legislature talked about issues facing the 2017 Legislature, including the states coming two-year budget, tax policy, prisons, crime, education, health insurance and early childhood education. State Sen. Rick Kolowski, who is up for re-election in the Millard areas District 31, spoke along with candidates Lou Ann Linehan, District 39 in the Elkhorn area, and Omaha candidates Tony Vargas of District 7, Larry Roland of District 9 and Jill Brown and Justin Wayne of District 13. Senators at the meeting who are not up for re-election this year were Bill Kintner of Papillion, Merv Riepe of Ralston and Omaha Sens. Joni Craighead, Burke Harr, Robert Hilkemann and John McCollister. Kira Smith, a junior at Northwest High School, donned a welders black cap, black coat, safety mask and a pair of heat-resistant gloves. Under the tutelage of welding inspector Gene King, she laid down a weld on a steel practice piece as a group of high school students and officials at Distefano Technology and Manufacturing, an Omaha metal fabricating company, looked on. Wow that was fun! Smith said. I love the science of it how it heats up and how it looks, she said, referring to the waterfall of blue sparks emitted by the arc welder. More than 150 Omaha-area high school students toured one of four regional manufacturers Wednesday as part of Nebraskas annual Manufacturing Day. The event, coordinated by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Omaha Economic Development Partnership and the Partnerships Manufacturing Council, connects area high schools with local manufacturers, with the aim of introducing students to manufacturing careers. By engaging students, we hope to raise awareness about the importance of manufacturing to the state ... and generate some real excitement about the career opportunities that will be waiting when theyre ready to enter the workforce, said RJ Jerrick, the Omaha Chambers manager of business development. This year, Distefano, Owen Industries, Lozier and Airlite Plastics welcomed students, said Brian Turner, chair of the Partnerships Manufacturing Council and Distefanos general manager. Look around the room. Look around this building just about everything you see has been manufactured, Turner told a group of about a dozen high school students who toured the metal fabricator at 3838 S 108th St. in Omaha. Everything in this building from the sheet rock to the light bulbs to the machines was manufactured by men and women like yourselves, he said. Students who took part in a two-hour tour of the plant were given the opportunity to try their hand at arc welding, operating a welding robot, creating a materials order and even shrink-wrapping a 5,000-pound pallet of metal brackets. Haley Cox of Council Bluffs, one of Distefanos 87 employees, told students that she never envisioned herself pursuing a career in manufacturing. The 23-year-old has been working in Distefanos shipping and receiving division for eight months, and during that time she has earned her forklift license, learned to operate the manufacturing software the company uses and begun taking in-house classes to boost her business and financial skills, Turner said. We need IT people, civil engineers, mechanical engineers, accountants, welders, people who like to design and fix things, Turner said. No matter what your talent is, I bet there is a position within the manufacturing field that uses those talents. In the next decade, the U.S. manufacturing sector will need to fill nearly 3.5 million jobs, according to the National Association of Manufacturers. Nebraska Lt. Gov. Mike Foley, who joined Wednesdays tour of Distefano, told students that the state is home to about 2,000 manufacturing companies that contribute billions of dollars each year to the states economy. About one in 10 Nebraska workers is employed in the manufacturing sector, compared to 1 in 12 nationally, according to the 2016 Nebraska Manufacturing Report prepared by the Bureau of Business Research at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for the Nebraska Manufacturing Extension Partnership. The largest portion of manufacturing jobs, about 37 percent, was in food processing, followed by machinery manufacturing, fabricated metal product and transportation equipment production, the report said. A 30-year-old Houston man has been arrested in Grand Island, Nebraska, in connection with a fatal shooting in Texas. Authorities said the Metro Fugitive Task Force, in connection with local officials, arrested Jose Rivera on Tuesday night. Authorities said they learned that Rivera was at an address in Grand Island, where he was arrested without incident. Rivera was wanted in connection with the fatal shooting that occurred during a convenience store robbery in Houston in January 2015. The Metro Fugitive Task Force is made up of officers from the U.S. Marshals Service; the FBI; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Omaha, Bellevue, La Vista and Lincoln police; and the Sheriffs Offices from Douglas, Sarpy, Dodge, Lancaster, Saline, Saunders, Jefferson and Gage Counties. A 46-year-old Kearney, Nebraska, man was sentenced Monday to 11 months in a federal prison in a case involving the sale of misbranded drugs. U.S. Attorney Deborah Gilgs office said Paul Martin was sentenced in Omaha by U.S. District Judge Laurie Smith Camp over the sale of misbranded products containing ingredients that can increase the risk of cancer. Gilgs office said Martin was indicted after federal investigators learned that Martin continued to sell foreign products with banned ingredients after he was warned to stop. The sales occurred over the Internet and through the U.S. mail, Gilgs office said. Martin pleaded guilty to one count each of delivery of misbranded drugs, mail fraud and wire fraud, Gilgs office said. After serving his 11-month sentence, Martin will be required to serve two years of supervised release, Gilgs office said. COUNCIL BLUFFS The jury trial of a Council Bluffs man who works at a Nebraska jail started Tuesday with prosecutors laying out the case of a man allegedly hiding a secret. Shawn Beu is charged with 10 counts, including allegedly sexually abusing a child and recording other children in his own home. Beu was arrested March 3, originally charged with sexual exploitation of a minor. However, as more evidence was collected, he was eventually charged with sexual exploitation of a minor to promote film. In court, Pottawattamie County Assistant Attorney Shelly Sudmann told the jury of eight men and four women that Beu, a man with a family and a job as a sergeant at the Douglas County Corrections Department, held a secret. This case is about a secret he had, something he kept from everyone, Sudmann said. The prosecution said that in January the Department of Homeland Security received a tip from the National Center for Missing or Exploited Children of a video that was believed to have come from Beus cellphone. The video showed a man committing a sex act on a sleeping child while she lay next to another child in a bed. Investigators said the video showed the man, whos face couldnt be seen, dressed in a red jersey and wearing black sweatpants. A search warrant was obtained for Beus home and executed by the Department of Homeland Security and the Council Bluffs Police Department, which collected numerous electronics and other pieces of evidence for DNA testing. Sudmann said investigators found evidence on Beus computers that a portable hard drive existed that had yet to be discovered and a second search warrant was executed May 26, which found the hard drive next to a TV projector in Beus basement. The same video was found on the hard drive, Sudmann said, along with numerous photos and videos of other children who were filmed or photographed while partially nude. Some of the videos seemed to have originated from a hidden-clock-camera inside Beus bathroom, she said. Dave Sullivan, special agent with Homeland Security, was the prosecutions first witness. He said the cyber tip that began the investigation came from Google, which detected the explicit photo in Beus Google account. I was able to get from Google the entire contents of the account, Sullivan said. Thats where we found the video that concerned me of exploitation of a minor. The video, shot by a right hand shows an adult, white, heavy-set male that fits Beus description, Sullivan said. By using still frames of the video showing the child, photos of a similar-looking child wearing what appears to be the same pajamas were also found on Beus account as the children unwrap presents around a Christmas tree around the same date as the video was made. The childs mother was called as the second witness. She told the court she and Beu had dated in 2014 for about 8 months and broke up shortly after Christmas that year. She said her child and Beus child would often sleep in the same room together. She said Beu would often wear red jerseys during Nebraska Cornhusker or Kansas City Chiefs games. After the warrant was served, police asked her to identify the child in the video, which she said was hers because of the pink pajama shirt. Speaking through tears, the childs mother said she did not know about the photos before police talked to her. Michael Winter, Beus attorney, asked the mother if she noticed any odd behavior from Beu concerning children while they dated. Not till the end, no, she said. The mother said she found photos of younger girls on Beus Google account and confronted him about it. Winter said Beus response to the allegations at the time was that he did not know how the photos got on his account. The prosecutions third witness, Council Bluffs Police Detective Amber Kennedy, said they located several red jerseys and a pillow with DNA evidence in the home. One of the photos shown to the jury as evidence was of a Husker jersey with the lettering BIG DADDY 69 on it. What appears to be black dog hair shown in the video was also found at the home to be from a black Labrador named Shep, which is owned by Beu. Kennedy explained the computer thumb drive they found contained footage from a hidden camera in Beus bathroom of children using the toilet. Footage was also found of children playing outside in what appears to be the house next to Beus in swimsuits. There were 475 images of them swimming, and 600 more photos of the same child were deleted, Kennedy said. Winter delayed his opening statement in both cases against Beu for the exploitation and the filming of exploitation until after the prosecutions witnesses. Beus trial continues Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. COUNCIL BLUFFS Catholic Charities Phoenix House received 307 pairs of pajamas Tuesday for the women and children who stay at the Council Bluffs domestic violence shelter, which serves nine southwest Iowa counties. The brand-new nightclothes came from Helens Pajama Party to Protect Women, a nonprofit organization based in Des Moines. The timing of the donation was fitting, as October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. These pajamas will be used for all the victims we serve throughout the nine-county area, said Diane McKee, program manager at Phoenix House. Most women seeking refuge at a domestic violence shelter have only the clothes on their backs, according to Kelly Sargent, who founded Helens Pajama Party. Being able to pick out new clothes for themselves can help the women begin to recover their dignity and sense of self-worth. The women are very grateful, McKee said. Theyre surprised that theyre getting something new that they dont have to give back. The organization has been supplying Phoenix House with pajamas for about six years, McKee said. The jammies come from overstock at retail stores and donations from other parties. Whenever we need them, we give her a call, she said. Last year, we had 175 women and 99 children use our shelter services and a total of 1,465 use our programming. Sargent has been in contact with all of the states domestic violence shelters, McKee said. These PJs, and at least 900 other pairs designated for other Iowa shelters, were sorted, folded, tagged and packed by 80 officers-in-training at the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy, including Pottawattamie County Park Ranger Ryan Penney, at Des Moines Area Community College in Ankeny. They were transported to the shelter by Iowa Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal of Council Bluffs. Kelly tries to do things as efficiently as she can, and she knows Mike goes back and forth frequently, McKee said. When the shipments are publicized, the pajamas serve another purpose, too, McKee said: They remind the public that there is domestic violence in the community, hopefully starting a conversation about the problem. People in the community need to talk, not just victims, she said. A deer hunter accidentally shot himself in the thigh with a pistol as he walked Monday in southern Crawford County, authorities said. His condition was not clear Tuesday, but the Iowa Department of Natural Resources said he was stable. Daniel Gehling, 51, of Denison, was heading with a muzzleloader to a field about 5 p.m. when he adjusted a pistol in his waistband and it fired, the DNR said. Gehling was with his wife, Carolyn. She called for help and then applied pressure on the wound until rescue personnel arrived, the DNR said. Gehling was taken by ambulance to Crawford County Memorial Hospital and then by helicopter to an Omaha hospital for surgery. Three months after saying goodbye to friends and family in Lincoln, nearly 100 members of the Nebraska National Guards newest unit are bound for Iraq with the Armys 1st Infantry Division. A ceremony Tuesday at Fort Riley, Kansas, marked the casing of the Big Red Ones unit colors before the deployment to Iraq, where the division will take charge of the two-year-old coalition effort to dislodge the Islamic State from Iraq. The Nebraska Guards 1st Infantry Division Main Command Post-Operational Detachment was formed earlier this year to augment the Big Red Ones headquarters staff. It is the second unit of 16 similar ones being formed as a result of the budget-driven cuts to division headquarters staffs in the Army and National Guard. The Nebraska Guard contingent will make up about one-fifth of the division staff. The deployment comes at a critical time as Iraqi units trained and advised by the U.S. have just begun an offensive to retake the critical Iraqi city of Mosul. Also at Tuesdays event, Maj. Gen. Joseph Martin assumed command of the division. He replaces Maj. Gen. Wayne Grigsby, who was relieved as a result of loss of confidence in his ability to lead the division. GRAND ISLAND, Neb. The Hall County Board of Supervisors approved a $75,000 settlement with a former County Corrections Department employee, Sgt. Debb Rea, during its regular Tuesday meeting. Reas attorney filed a lawsuit in May, saying that Reas civil rights were violated by the jails former management team of Corrections Director Fred Ruiz and Assistant Director Jimmy Vann. The board fired both men in August 2015 after the county hired Omaha attorney Pam Bourne to investigate the jail. Rea submitted a letter to the board detailing management concerns after she was constructively discharged in 2015 after 30 years working at the jail. She was 59. Her letter prompted Bournes investigation. The lawsuit alleged that Hall County allowed the hostile work environment to exist. It stated that Ruiz and Vann subjected female employees to harsher discipline; referred to female employees in an offensive, unwelcome, discriminatory and derogatory manner; made false allegations against female employees; directed female employees to engage in conduct for Vanns and/or Ruizs sexual enjoyment; requested female employees to engage in demeaning conduct; denied promotions to qualified female employees; and promoted unqualified male employees. The lawsuit filed on Reas behalf was moved from Hall County District Court to U.S. District Court in late June. Reas lawsuit asked for her to be reinstated to her former position at the jail; along with back pay, an unspecified amount of compensatory damages for her pain and suffering; and an unspecified amount of punitive damages from Ruiz and Vann. A county response filed in federal court on June 20 stated that Rea was offered her job back shortly after Ruiz and Vann were fired, but she declined the offer. Rea then asked for a jury trial. The county maintained that she wasnt entitled to one based on her claims. After nearly an hourlong discussion with Reas attorney, the board approved Reas settlement of about $70,000. Hall County Attorney Jack Zitterkopf said the county will be paying Rea $4,487 of the total settlement for back wages. Another $45,000 will be paid to Rea by the Nebraska Intergovernmental Risk Management Association for alleged damages other than lost wages. Another $25,113 will be paid by NIRMA for Reas attorney fees. He said its also important to note that the settlement includes a nonadmission clause. This means that the county, Ruiz and Vann dont hold liability or admit wrongdoing just because the settlement was approved. Basically this agreement resolves all claims among those four parties (Rea, Hall County, Ruiz and Vann) up to the date that the agreement becomes effective, Zitterkopf said. LINCOLN A staffer at the Nebraska State Penitentiary was treated and released from a hospital on Tuesday after being punched by an inmate. Staff members were escorting an inmate at the prison when he struck a staff member in the face, according to a state Corrections spokeswoman. The incident is under investigation and the findings will be turned over to the Lancaster County Attorneys Office for possible prosecution. The names of the employee and inmate involved were not released. Our set of Nebraska Legislature recommendations today focuses on a particular theme: candidates, regardless of party or philosophy, who demonstrate a sound understanding of the legislative process and the need to keep it on track. That approach will be crucial during the 2017 session, given the revenue challenges, the push for major tax relief and the troubling attempt by some senators and activists to turn the Legislature into a congressional-style body where partisan enforcers dictate to senators how they should vote. Our recommendations: Mike Hilgers, District 21 (northwest section of Lancaster County). Hilgers demonstrates leadership qualities and intellectual heft that indicate he can be a highly capable state senator. He has talked to current and former senators to further his education of the Legislature and has worked to acquaint himself with its operations and rules. Hilgers, who heads a law firm specializing in intellectual property issues, ably describes ingredients for effectiveness. He says that while the Legislature should have a positive relationship with the Governors Office, it is an independent branch with important oversight duties. Hilgers is a level-headed Nebraskan with the potential to contribute in major ways to our Legislature and give strong representation to District 21. Suzanne Geist, District 25 (southeast Lincoln and Waverly). This candidate speaks thoughtfully in describing the legislative process. Geist is a firm social and fiscal conservative, but she makes clear that politics is the art of the possible, meaning that a responsible state senator needs to work with a range of colleagues, not just a small clique, and that the Legislature should be mindful not to fall into congressional-style rancor and dysfunction. Geist, who runs a Lincoln company that sells professional clothing, emphasizes the need to improve Nebraskas tax and business climate. Her observations to us indicate she would respect the legislative process and understands the need for responsible consensus-building. Anna Wishart, District 27 (portions of west and southwest Lincoln). Wisharts ability to work constructively and reach practical solutions is shown by her success during six years as a member of the Lincoln Airport Authority board. Wishart, a Democrat, is a past chairwoman of the board, and each of the Republicans who works with her on the board has endorsed her candidacy for the Legislature. As a former legislative aide to State Sen. Rick Kolowski, Wishart has a detailed knowledge of the Legislature and its processes. We appreciate her point that lawmakers should re-examine regulations on schools to see how much, if any, those are driving local spending and property taxes. She would like to join the Natural Resources Committee to make sure urban water quality issues receive proper attention. Sen. Kate Bolz, District 29 (a portion of south side of Lincoln). The challenger in this contest has refrained from campaigning, but her name will still appear on the Nov. 8 ballot. So, we offer some brief thoughts about the incumbent, Sen. Kate Bolz, whose energetic work as a lawmaker warrants her re-election. Bolz shows dedication on the budget-setting Appropriations Committee, which handles some of the Legislatures most complicated work. She is known for diving into detailed work on special committees focusing on childrens needs, the elderly and Nebraskas troubled prison system. She is right to underscore the consensus among Nebraska policy-makers for doing more to strengthen worker training. Gregg Neuhaus, District 35 (Grand Island). When we interview candidates at election time, its disappointing that so many resort to simplistic, bumper-sticker rhetoric. Neuhaus did not do that. When asked about Nebraska issues, he shows a strong analytical mind and commendable knowledge. To his credit, he also displays a solid understanding of the legislative process, having testified before the Judiciary Committee and been involved in development of legislation. Neuhaus, a lawyer with considerable volunteer experience in Grand Island, has the makings to be an engaged and energetic conservative-minded representative for District 35. We are impressed by these five candidates who display a commendable understanding of proper legislating: Mike Hilgers in District 21, Suzanne Geist in District 25, Anna Wishart in District 27, Sen. Kate Bolz in District 29 and Gregg Neuhaus, District 35. Great hunting opportunities are available for youth in Nebraska this weekend. Hunters ages 15 and younger can participate in special youth pheasant hunts during the Saturday and Sunday statewide youth pheasant, quail and partridge season. Rooster pheasants will be released at 14 wildlife management areas before the special youth hunt season. The special hunts are open to the public, and the number of participants is not limited. No registration or special permit is required. Special regulations posted at each of the 14 WMAs will apply to all portions of the designated areas normally open to hunting. All other current youth and regular hunting regulations also will be in effect at these designated areas. Pheasants will be released at the following WMAs: Pressey (Custer County), Sherman Reservoir (Sherman County), Oak Valley (Madison County), Branched Oak (Lancaster County), Twin Oaks (Johnson County), Hickory Ridge (Johnson County), Wilkinson (Platte County), Peru Bottoms (Nemaha County), Yankee Hill (Lancaster County), Cornhusker (Hall County), Arrowhead (Gage County), George Syas (Platte County), Randall W. Schilling (Cass County) and William Gilmour/Tobacco Island (Cass County). In other news: The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is seeking information about two cases involving the unlawful killing of big game animals in western and north-central Nebraska. One case involves the death of four buck pronghorns. The remains of the animals, minus three of the heads and some of the meat, were found Oct. 17 on private land south of Kimball. The other case involves the death of a cow elk believed to be shot either Oct. 14 or Oct. 15 and left to rot near the road to Smith Falls northeast of Valentine. Rewards of up to $1,000 are being offered for information leading to conviction of people responsible for the animals deaths. Informants may remain anonymous. People who wish to report information about these cases may contact conservation officers Scott Brandt of Gering at 308-631-0663 and Frank Miller of Valentine at 402-389-0444. DU's second list of seat allocation for UG courses out When is Dev Diwali 2022? November 7th or November 8th? Know timings, significance and more Instagram is down: No, your account isn't actually suspended Offline retailers offer freebies, see 50% sales jump this festive season Business oi-PTI New Delhi, Oct 19: Retailers at shopping malls are expecting about 45-50 per cent increase in sales this festive season as they are offering freebies and easy finance options to beat competition from e-commerce players, a study by industry body Assocham said. "Faced with heavy discounts from e-commerce, shopping mall owners in major cities are shaping back, going aggressive in the run up to Diwali, offering freebies and easy finance options, hoping to win back the footfalls and increase their business by at least 45-50 per cent in the ongoing festive season compared to similar period last year," Assocham said. It said that as per feedback received from retailers, malls in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Chennai have already started seeing increased activity. Malls have adopted a new sales strategy of giving a festive feel to the consumers, it added. "There is a better market experience this festive season, which is expected to give a leg-up to the consumer sentiment," Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat said. Assocham said its study is based on responses from 750 leasing managers, management representatives of malls, strategists, marketers and supervisors in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chandigarh and Dehradun. The study noted that most retailers and consumer durable goods makers were upbeat about brisk business during the third quarter and therefore increased their overall marketing budget by about 30 - 40 per cent for this period alone. They plan to conduct these promotional activities until early January, it added. Some malls in New Delhi reported record business on weekends as buyers rushed to get clothes, food, jewellery and cosmetics for Diwali celebrations. In value terms, the growth is 20 percent higher than the previous year, while in volume terms it could be around 10-15 percent higher, according to mall managers. PTI For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Wednesday, October 19, 2016, 8:43 [IST] As the countdown clock struck zero, rocket of Aakash BYJUS took off from Bandra Bandstand Vijay Mallya's villa, priced at Rs 85.3 crore, to be auctioned today Business oi-PTI Mumbai, Oct 19: The 17-lender consortium led by State Bank of India will auction the Kingfisher Villa, the sea-facing plush property once-owned by the beleaguered Vijay Mallya in Goa, on Wednesday The reserve price for the property, which once was used by Mallya to host lavish parties, has been set at Rs 85.29 crore. Lenders had taken the possession of the villa in May this year after a protracted legal battle with United Spirits over tenancy rights. The villa was owned by United Breweries Holdings, one of the Mallya group companies and was mortgaged by the now-grounded Kingfisher Airlines to the consortium of banks to obtain loans in 2010. Lenders had opened the villa for inspection to interested bidders in two slots--September 26-27 and October 5-6. In the four days during which the property was thrown open, around half-a-dozen entities had visited the palatial villa. "The response was good. Nearly six to seven parties from the hospitality industry and a media organisation have visited the villa," a source had earlier told PTI. SBICap Trustees, which is auctioning the property on behalf of the lenders, said the e-auction will include only the immovable part of the villa and not its movable assets. Mallya owes over Rs 9,000 crore to lenders like SBI, PNB, IDBI Bank, BoB, Allahabad Bank, Federal Bank and Axis Bank, among others. He had left the country in March and is currently said to be in Britain, having defied several court orders to return to India. The lenders efforts at selling other KFA properties including a luxe private jet and brand kingfisher as well the Kingfisher House in Mumbai all met with repeated failure. PTI For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Wednesday, October 19, 2016, 8:31 [IST] 12 MNS workers held for protesting against 'Ae Dil...' India oi-PTI Mumbai, Oct 19: A dozen workers of MNS were today arrested for protesting against the upcoming release of filmmaker Karan Johar's "Ae Dil Hain Muskhil" as the party rejected his statement that he will not "engage with talent" from Pakistan in future. The workers from MNS' film unit Maharashtra Navnirman Chitrapat Karmachari Sena were protesting and raising slogans outside Metro Cinema in South Mumbai. The Raj Thackeray-led party has asked the theatre management not to hold any show of "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. The MNS had given a written appeal to the theatre management urging them not to show the movie as it features a Pakistani actor. The party workers also raised slogans outside the theatre, police officials said. "We arrested 12 MNS activists and booked them under relevant sections of Maharashtra Police Act and also CrPC," Senior Inspector of Azad Maidan Police Station Vijay Kadam told PTI. MNS warns Mahesh Bhatt, Johar over working with Pak artists They were produced before a local court which granted them cash bail of Rs 5,000 each in the case (carrying out procession without permission) under the Police Act. The MNS activists were also booked under the CrPC section 151 (3) (arrest to prevent the commission of cognisable offences) in which they did not get any relief and sent to judicial custody till November 4. Seeking to calm tempers over opposition to the release of his directorial venture, Johar had yesterday made a fervent appeal against stalling the release, saying he will not engage with talent from Pakistan in future. However, MNS said reality has dawned late on Johar. MNS cine wing head Amey Khopkar, after a meeting with senior party leaders and Raj Thackeray, said they were firm on opposing the release. "We will not allow the film to be screened in single screens and multiplexes. Reality has dawned late on the producer," Khopkar said. The MNS and some other political parties have opposed release of films with actors from Pakistan after the Uri terror attack, putting a question mark on the fate of Johar's movie, slated for release on October 28. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India, too, decided not to screen films with Pakistani actors in four states -- Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. A team from Johar's Dharma Productions along with filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt and Vijay Singh of Fox Star Studios had yesterday met Mumbai's top police officials and sought protection for the theatres to screen the film. Deputy Commissioner of Police Ashok Dudhe had said, "Mumbai police will provide adequate protection to cinema theatres." PTI This is 21st century, where have we reached in name of religion: SC on hate speeches SC notice to Centre on plea against supply of electoral roll to candidates Special anti-corruption courts in every district: SC to take up plea next week SC frowns on two-finger test in rape case: Stop the practice immediately it says Cauvery: SC reserves verdict on maintainibilty of appeals filed by Kar, TN India oi-Vicky New Delhi, Oct 19: The Supreme Court today reserved its verdict on the maintainability of the appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala in connection with the Cauvery issue. The Bench comprising Justices Dipak Mishra, Amitava Roy and Khanwilkar heard all three parties and the centre at length and said it would decide on whether the appeals are maintainable or not. While reserving the verdict the Bench reiterated that Karnataka should continue releasing 2,000 cosecs of water daily to Tamil Nadu. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu had challenged the order of the Cauvery Waters Tribunal dated February 5 2007. The centre had opposed the appeals stating it is not maintainable. The tribunal in its final award had determined the usable quantum of water of the Cauvery at 740 tmcft. Karnataka is entitled to 270 tmcft, Tamil Nadu to 419 tmcft, Kerala 30 tmcft, Puducherry 7 tmcft and 14 tmcft is meant for environmental purposes, the tribunal had said. Karnataka, TN cannot challenge Cauvery Tribunal Order, says Centre On Tuesday the Supreme Court today directed Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of water daily to Tamil till maintainability of the appeals filed by Karnataka and Tamil Nadu is decided. The union government contended that the decision of an inter state water tribunal is considered as a decree passed by the Supreme Court. The tribunal had delivered its final award on February 5, 2007. The centre contends that once the tribunal's order is published it partakes the shape of a Supreme Court order. Under Article 262 (1) and (2) of the Constitution the power of the Supreme Court is eclipsed after the Tribunal formed under the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act,1956 has adjudicated over the issue. Such decisions cannot be challenged, the centre also contended. Karnataka however contended that it had challenged the award before the same was published on February 19 2013. The contention made by Karnataka was supported by Puducherry which has also challenged the award of the tribunal. Tamil Nadu said that Section 6(2) of the Inter State Waters Dispute Act of 1956 cannot oust the Supreme Court's constitutional appellate powers under Article 136 of the Indian Constitution. OneIndia News PM Narendra Modi chokes up as he talks about Morbi tragedy | Video Narendra Modi faces ire over price rise; Congress workers deface hoarding depicting PM India oi-PTI Ghaziabad, Oct 19: Several workers of the women Congress on Wednesday staged a protest against BJP here for failing to rein in the skyrocketing prices of consumer goods and defaced a hoarding depicting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "City chief of women wing of Congress Pooja Chaddha along with several women workers reached the petrol pump in Raj Nagar area and smeared Modi's face (on the hoarding) with black ink," said party's District president Harendra Kasana. Addressing the workers, Chaddha said the advertisement of BJP (in the hoarding) was "misleading". "People are suffering from soaring prices of petrol, diesel, pulses, vegetables and other basic commodities. Such protest will be staged in future at every place where such hoardings are installed," she said. "No FIR has been lodged by the BJP," SHO Avdhesh Yadav told. PTI For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Wednesday, October 19, 2016, 8:52 [IST] In a first, two inmates of Institute of Mental Health tie the knot In Pics: Amma's supporters camp outside hospital, pray for her health India oi-Oneindia By Oneindia Staff Writer Oct 19: With no medical bulletins for eight days now, Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa's supporters are getting anxious about their Amma's health. In the last medical bulletin, issued on Oct 10, it was stated that Jayalalithaa was being constantly monitored by intensivists and other consultants. While the Tamil Nadu CM continues to be in hospital, her supporters have been offering special prayers for her speedy recovery. Hundreds of her supporters continue to wait anxiously outside the Apollo Hospital in Greams Road, Chennai to hear about her health updates. The doctors have suggested that Jayalalithaa needs to be in the hospital for a longer time. Here are some pictures of Jayalalithaa's supporters offering special prayers for their beloved Amma: They burn but pray for Amma's health AIADMK supporters hold fire pots on their heads during a special prayer offered for the speedy recovery of Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa. Jayalalithaa's supporters offer special prayers Jayalalithaa's supporters offered special prayers in front of the Apollo hospital, where the Tamil Nadu chief minister is currently undergoing treatment. Muslim clerics pray for Jayalalithaa Muslim clerics seen here praying outside Apollo hospital for speedy recovery of Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa. Image courtesy-ANI. People line out outside Apollo hospital to hear about Jayalalithaa Several supporters of Jayalalithaa have been camping outside the Apollo hospital to hear updates about her health. However, there hasn't been a medical bulletin for eight days now. Image courtesy-ANI Special prayers offered for Jayalalithaa Jayalalithaa's supporters across Tamil Nadu have been praying for her speedy recovery. Several VIPs and politicians have visited the hospital in the past few days enquiring about the CM's health. AIADMK workers hope for a miracle With mass prayers being offered in the state, AIADMK workers hope for a miracle so that Jayalalithaa can resume work and lead the party from the front. OneIndia News Gujarat polls: These Kerala artists want the Amulya vote to be used against BJP Marathi film industry body backs ban on Pakistani artistes India oi-PTI Mumbai, Oct 19: A Marathi film industry body today backed calls for ban on Pakistani film artistes working in India and opposed release of films featuring them. In a statement here, the Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Chitrapat Mahamandal said it opposed release of films featuring Pakistani artistes till relation between the two countries improved. "If such films are released, there would be tension during the festive season and people would not be able to properly celebrate Diwali," said the Mahamandal, which is affiliated to the Film Federation of India. Cinema owners' body bans films with Pak artistes in 4 states The organisation said it supports the ban on Pakistani artistes and technicians imposed by the Indian Motion Pictures Producers Association and Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association of India, which has said it will not screen films featuring actors from the neighbouring country. PTI As the countdown clock struck zero, rocket of Aakash BYJUS took off from Bandra Bandstand Mumbai hawkers demand roll-out of Street Vendors Act India oi-PTI Mumbai, Oct 18 Hawkers today held a sit-in agitation in south Mumbai seeking speedy implementation of the Street Vendors Act, 2014. The protesters, who came together under the banner of 'Mumbai Hawkers Union', the leading union of hawkers in the city, gathered at the Azad Maidan urging the state government and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to act on their demand. "The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014 is for our betterment, but Maharashtra government is doing nothing on this issue, while BMC is acting against us. This is unacceptable and we want immediate implementation of the Act. We also demand that action against the livelihood of the street vendors should be immediately stopped," president of the Union Shashank Rao said. BMC is currently conducting a drive against the illegal street vendors, which the opposition Congress has opposed saying that the civic body was "flouting" the rules set by the Supreme Court. Azam Sheikh, a union leader representing suburban Chembur area, said the civic body and police must stop playing with the livelihood of the hawkers. "Although police and BMC officials do not harass hawkers in Chembur, in other parts of the city harassment of the vendors is quite common," he said. The Act, passed on March 3, 2014, allows issuing vending certificates/licenses up to a number equivalent to 2.5 per cent of a city's population. PTI Narendra Modi condemns atrocities on Dalits; promotes entrepreneurship among youngsters News oi-Oneindia By Oneindia Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday reached out to Dalits across the country by condemning atrocities against them. While addressing a gathering at the launch of a national SC/ST hub in Ludhiana, Punjab, the Prime Minister stressed on the need to promote entrepreneurship among the Dalit youngsters to empower them. At a time when Dalits are voicing their anger against discrimination meted out to them by the upper castes across the country, PM Modi's words could provide "healing touch" to the aggrieved community. The Prime Minister said his "head hangs in shame" over incidents of atrocities on Dalits that take place even after 70 years of Independence and called for more focused efforts to correct social anomalies. Citing the example of Guru Gobind Singh in raising his voice against casteism and untouchability, Modi said: "We know that due to our societal anomalies, hearing out some incidents targeting our Dalit brothers even today, my head hangs in shame. After 70 years of Independence, we cannot wait longer". Talking about the importance of entrepreneurship, Modi said the hub for scheduled castes and scheduled tribe would help Dalits and Adivasis become entrepreneurs so that they can provide jobs to others. "We will have to sharpen the focus of our direction. The aspirations of a Dalit or an Adivasi exceed those of other youth in the country. If they get an opportunity they will not lag behind in changing the fortunes of India," the Prime Minister added. This is what Modi tweeted about the importance of installing business acumen among the Dalits: Emphasised on the need to harness a spirit of entrepreneurship among Dalit youngsters so that they become job creators & innovators. October 18, 2016 At the programme in Ludhiana, spoke on the key role of MSME sector in the transformation of Indian economy. https://t.co/um1Qybj8Ri pic.twitter.com/RSxzIDaRu7 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 18, 2016 Modi also mentioned that under the Startup India, Standup India scheme, 1.25 lakh branches of nationalised banks in the country have been directed to sanction loans up to Rs 1 crore to at least one woman, and one person each belonging to scheduled caste and scheduled tribe categories, adding that the move can help create 3.75 lakh such entrepreneurs. "I have requested the state governments that 4 per cent should be procured from goods manufactured by Dalits to encourage them," Modi said. OneIndia News For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Wednesday, October 19, 2016, 12:28 [IST] As the countdown clock struck zero, rocket of Aakash BYJUS took off from Bandra Bandstand Former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira arrested by Hyderabad Police India oi-PTI Hyderabad, Oct 19 Former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira and three others accused in a case of Rs 400-crore alleged fraud involving the multi-level-marketing company QNet have been taken into custody by Hyderabad Police and brought here from Mumbai. A Hyderabad Police team had last week submitted an application seeking their custody in connection with the case registered by them. A Mumbai court then granted transit remand and the Hyderabad Police took them into custody. "The four directors of the company, including Michael Ferreira, have been brought to Hyderabad from Mumbai on warrant," a senior police official attached to Central Crime Station (CCS), a wing of Hyderabad Police, said today. They have been brought here as part of further investigation and will be interrogated, he said. The Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) had taken them into custody on September 30 this year in connection with the QNet case. The EOW has so far arrested 19 persons in the case. QNet and its franchisee firms allegedly sold products such as magnetic disks with 'healing' properties, herbal medicines and holiday schemes. The company is accused of using the banned 'binary pyramid' model in its marketing schemes, apart from duping the investors. The FIR was registered in Mumbai in August 2013 under the Prize, Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978 and Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors Act. Special public prosecutor Pradeep Gharat had earlier told the court in Mumbai that Ferreira held 80 per cent shares in a franchisee of Hong Kong-based QNet. QNet ran a 'Ponzi scheme', seeking investments between Rs 30,000 to Rs 7.5 lakh, the prosecutor had said, adding the investors never got the high returns they were promised. The money earned by QNet was "laundered" and diverted out of the country, Gharat had told the court, adding that Ferreira's interrogation was necessary to find its "destination". Here is the brief history of the case: Michael Ferreira was booked by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) for the QNET case. He had surrendered in a special Maharashtra Protection of Interests of Depositors Act court after his anticipatory bail was rejected by the Supreme Court. The FIR was registered in August 2013 under the Prize, Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978 and Maharashtra Protection Of Interest Of Depositors Act. Eight victims had lodged complaints with the Central Crime Sleuths against the Hong Kong-based QNET multilevel marketing company for duping them to the tune of several lakhs through various fraudulent investment schemes and by promising to provide e-commerce jobs. It has been reported that nearly five lakh investors from across India have been cheated in this scam. In an order on 6th of May 2016, Justice Mridula Bhatkar had said, "The motto of the company 'sell more, earn more' appears very attractive and innocuous. However, this motto is fully camouflaged. The company stands on a basic statement that people can be fooled. Thus, the true motto is 'sell more earn more' by fooling people. In fact it is a chain where a person is fooled and then he is trained to fool others to earn money. For that purpose, workshops are conducted where study and business material is provided with a jugglery of words, promises and dreams. Thus, the deceit and fraud is camouflaged under the name of e-marketing and business." In this case so far 17 people have been arrested. The bank accounts of QNet, its representatives and associates have also been frozen with assets worth Rs 110 crore. On Tuesday Enforcement Directorate for the same case also questioned Danesh Irani, son of actor Boman Irani. Danesh was asked to be present with his bank details and he was questioned for at least four hours as per the news details. PTI Tamil Nadu bandh over Cauvery issue today: All you need to know SC order on Cauvery: Helpess Siddaramaiah says no water in Karnatakas reservoirs News oi-PTI Bengaluru, Oct 19 Reacting to the Supreme Court order directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu till further orders, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said there was no water in the state's reservoirs. "There is no water in our reservoirs, I have not yet seen the order copy. I will speak to the advocates after going through the order copy," he told reporters here. The apex court today retained its direction to Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu till further orders and asked the two governments to ensure peace and harmony, saying citizens should not become law unto themselves. "We intend to first adjudicate the issue of maintainability of appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. At this juncture, the interim order dated October 4 directing Karnataka to release 2,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu will continue till further orders," the bench comprising of Justices Dipak Misra, Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar said. Made Gowda, President of Mandya Zilla Raitha Hitharakshana Samiti (MZRHS), which is spearheading the Cauvery agitation in Mandya, said, "We should maintain peace until tomorrow's hearing." "The court might have asked us to release 2,000 cusecs of water to test Karnataka government's patience....If they again ask us to release water tomorrow, we can reject it. There is no dharma in leaving water to them for crops, when we don't have it even for drinking," he added. PTI Lack of development in J&K for decades was one of the reasons behind rise of terrorism: Rajnath Singh 40 down and counting: Forces on the verge of wiping out Pakistani terrorists in Valley Zargar, the man who massacred 40 Kashmiri Pandits, being re-launched by ISI India oi-Vicky Ahmed Zargar of the Al-Umar-Mujaheedin may be a forgotten name in India today. Just to recall, he was one of the terrorists who was released in exchange during the Khandahar hijack incident along with Maulana Masood Azhar. While Azhar returned to Pakistan and launched the Jaish-e-Mohammad, Zargar was told to lie low. Today the man responsible for killing 40 Kashmiri Pandits is back in business after being told by the ISI to relaunch his activities in Jammu and Kashmir. The officials who are well-versed with terrorism in the Valley say that this man is dangerous. He may be a forgotten name today and that is why the ISI, with an intention of creating an element of surprise, is planning on activating him and his network. He is responsible for the killing of nearly 40 Kashmiri Pandits. After his arrest in 1992, he was released in 1999 in exchange for the hostages aboard the IC-814. Zargar's operations are well known in Jammu and Kashmir. He has been involved in large scale recruitment and had worked closely with the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front before splitting up. He formed the Al-Umar-Mujaheedin. He was also responsible for the abduction of Rubaiya Saeed, sister of Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti in 1989. Intelligence Bureau officials say that following his release, he was lying low. However now, he has been told to step up operations in Jammu and Kashmir. He has been trying to activate his old contacts in the Valley. Residing in Pakistan occupied Kashmir, Zargar was recently contacted by the ISI and told to relaunch the outfit and operations in the Valley. Further, the IB has also intimated security forces to be on the watch out for groups such as the Al-Badr, Ikhwan-ul-Mujahiddin and Al-Jihad. These are small groups that are present in PoK. They too would be launched into the Valley. This is being done as there is too much heat on the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad who are finding it difficult to operate in the Valley today. IB officials say that the ISI is known to launch unknown groups into India when the heat on their main proxies in very high. OneIndia News Christians celebrate as Iraq forces enter town near Mosul International oi-PTI Arbil (Iraq), Oct 19: Hundreds of displaced Iraqi Christians danced and sang to celebrate an Iraqi military operation to retake their community's main hub of Qaraqosh from jihadists. Iraqi Christian men, women and children -- some of them holding candles -- gathered at Mar Shimon church in the Kurdish capital of Arbil to pray and celebrate, an AFP correspondent reported yesterday. Iraqi federal forces on Tuesday moved deep into Qaraqosh, a town that lies around 15 kilometres (10 miles) southeast of Mosul and was seized by the Islamic State jihadist group in August 2014. "Today is a happy moment. There is no doubt our land will be liberated and we thank God, Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary," said Hazem Djedjou Cardomi, a journalist among the crowd. The evening gathering was organised in spite of what remained a fluid situation in Qaraqosh, with Iraqi forces taking position in several neighbourhoods but IS fighters potentially still holed up in others. Qaraqosh had a population of around 50,000 people prior to an August 2014 offensive across the Nineveh Plain east of Mosul that forced almost every resident to flee. The overwhelming majority of Qaraqosh residents were Christians, making it the largest Christian town in Iraq. "We have been through a lot of suffering and today we are looking forward to returning to our region as soon as possible," Cardomi said. Also present at the joyous gathering in Arbil, the nearby capital of the autonomous Iraqi Kurdish region to which most displaced Christians fled two years ago, was George Djahola, a Syriac father. "The people had this idea to celebrate when we heard this morning about the liberation... or at least the army's progress and entry into Qaraqosh, the first Christian town in the Nineveh Plain," he told AFP. "Over the past two years, people were alive but their joy was not complete. They want to return to their homes, their land -- even if they have been destroyed -- and live in peace in their town," he said. Kurdish peshmerga and Iraqi federal forces on Monday launched a major offensive aimed at retaking Mosul, the second city and last major remaining IS stronghold in the country. AFP Fact Check: Did Trump thank Musk for welcoming him back to Twitter Trump promises Hindu holocaust memorial in Washington DC if he wins Endorse Trump, Hillary on Facebook now International oi-IANS By Ians English New York, Oct 19: Facebook on Wednesday rolled out a new feature which lets users endorse US presidential candidates -- Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton and even third-party candidates like Jill Stein and Gary Johnson. To activate this feature, go to any candidate's Facebook page. Click "Endorsements" in the left-hand column and add your own endorsement. Facebook's Help Centre has detailed instructions on how to make endorsements, Tech Crunch reported. Users can choose to make endorsements public to everyone, who visits the candidate's page. "You can also make your endorsement (visible) only to your friends and family," the report added. Facebook also added an "Issues" tab to the candidates' pages. It allows candidates to list directly in search results their positions on a variety of issues. IANS Final Presidential Debate: Will Trump, Clinton, be able to set aside their personal grudges? International oi-Oneindia By Oneindia Washington, Oct 19 The stage is set for the final US presidential debate, the last opportunity for the Republican presidential nominee, Donald Trump, to save his "floundering" campaign. The third and final presidential debate is scheduled at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas on Wednesday evening (9PM US timing) A lot is at stake for Trump as the Democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, has managed to garner handsome leads in most of the national polls. Please have some policy discussion Echoing the sentiments of the voters of the United States, an article by CNBC wondered if the final debate will be different than the first two, where candidates were mostly engaged in personal attacks. This time everyone wants to see the two candidates engaging in some policy discussion. Details about the debate To know in depth about the debate, its format, timings and other vignettes read this article by the Mirror. "The final debate will have the same format as the first - with six fifteen-minute segments. The moderator will be Fox News Sunday anchor Chris Wallace," writes the Mirror. When will Trump stop whining? As Trump continued "grumbling" about "rigged" elections, President Barack Obama took a jibe at the Republican presidential nominee. Obama asked Trump to stop "whining" and trying to discredit the election", writes The New York Times. Trump continues attacking Who can stop Trump? Not even Obama, as Trump continued with his attack against Clinton. This is what he posted on Twitter: Hillary is the most corrupt person to ever run for the presidency of the United States. #DrainTheSwamp pic.twitter.com/xA3YO8YzCq Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 19, 2016 OneIndia News Video: Why Chinas former president was escorted out from stage India can only 'bark' about trade deficit: Chinese media International oi-IANS By Ians English Beijing, Oct 19 The call for boycott of Chinese goods on Indian social media is "rabble rousing" as Indian products cannot compete with those of China, the state-owned media said on Wednesday. In an acerbic op-ed, Global Times launched a blitzkrieg of sort against India, saying New Delhi can only "bark" and do nothing about the growing trade deficit between two countries. China's continued opposition to India's effort to declare Pakistan-based militants as international terrorists has angered many Indians who have called for a boycott of Chinese products. It described Prime Minster Narendra Modi's pet project "Make in India" as "impractical". The daily warned Chinese companies not to invest in India as it would be "suicidal" to put money in a country where corruption is high and the workforce is not hard working. "There has been a lot of talk recently in the Indian media as well as on social media about boycotting Chinese products. It's just rabble rousing," it said. "Indian manufacturing cannot compete at all with Chinese products, for various reasons." The daily said that India was to yet build roads and highways and had chronic shortage of power and water supply. "Worst of all, corruption is highly prevalent from top to bottom in every single government department." It slammed India for courting the US. "The US is no one's friend. The Americans are just indulging India in order to contain China, as the US is jealous of China's development and global power. "India has enough money but the majority of it is concentrated with politicians, bureaucrats and a few crony capitalists. Indian elites don't want to spend funds available in the country, which in reality is the taxpayers' money but is utilized by the Indian establishment for its own personal consumption. "Because of this, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has started impractical schemes like 'Make in India'. The reason is that the Indian establishment wants foreign companies to invest in the country. "It would be completely suicidal for Chinese companies to put their money in India by starting manufacturing projects there. The labour class in India is not very hard working or efficient," it argued. The daily said that instead of opening shops in India, Chinese companies should set up their manufacturing units in China. The world's third-largest smartphone maker, Huawei, opened its manufacturing unit in India last month. "In any case, Indian businessmen flock to China in large numbers to buy products from China and sell them in India. This model suits China, so why disturb it by going and wasting money setting up manufacturing facilities in India? "Let the Indian authorities bark about the growing trade deficit with China. The fact of the matter is they cannot do anything about it." IANS Prosecutions story may be attractive but should be backed by evidence IS leaders 'abandon' Mosul as Iraq forces close in International oi-PTI Qayyarah (Iraq), Oct 19: Jihadist leaders are fleeing Mosul, a top US general in the coalition battling the Islamic State group said today as Iraqi forces closed in on the northern city. Mosul was where IS supremo Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared his "caliphate" two years ago but is now the group's last major stronghold in Iraq. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who announced the launch of a broad offensive to retake the city on Monday, visited the front line today. In the biggest Iraqi military operation in years, forces have retaken dozens of villages, mostly south and east of Mosul, and are planning multiple assaults for Thursday. "We are telling Daesh (IS) that their leaders are abandoning them. We've seen a movement out of Mosul," said Major General Gary Volesky, who heads the anti-IS coalition's land component. He told reporters in a video briefing that the many foreigners among the 3,000 to 4,500 IS fighters would likely end up forming the core of the holdout jihadist force. Obama confident of driving ISIS out of Iraq's Mosul Volesky noted that the Iraqis would screen anyone leaving Mosul, and attempts by foreign fighters to blend in to an expected exodus of displaced people would be thwarted. "It's difficult for them to blend into the local population based on the number of different types of foreign fighters that there are," he said. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were still trapped in the city with dwindling supplies, many sheltering in basements as air strikes intensified on IS targets. "We couldn't sleep last night because of the air strikes. The explosions were huge," said Abu Saif, a 47-year-old resident contacted by AFP. "Many families are starting to run out of some basic food goods, there is no commercial activity in Mosul -- the city is cut off from the world," he said. East of Mosul, forces were poised for an assault on Qaraqosh, which lies about 15 kilometres away and was once Iraq's largest Christian town. News of the move to recapture Qaraqosh sparked jubilation among Christians who had fled the town, with many dancing and singing in the Iraqi Kurdish city of Arbil on Tuesday night. Units from Iraq's elite counter-terrorism service, which has done the heavy lifting in most recent operations against IS, were poised to flush jihadists out of the town, officers said. "We are surrounding Hamdaniya now," Lieutenant General Riyadh Tawfiq, commander of Iraq's ground forces, told AFP at the main staging base of Qayyarah, referring to the district that includes Qaraqosh. "There are some pockets (of resistance), some clashes, they send car bombs -- but it will not help them," he said. Qaraqosh was the largest of many Christian towns and villages seized by the jihadists who swept across the Nineveh plain east of Mosul in August 2014. AFP At UNSC, US calls on world to tell Russia to stop its nuclear threats US welcomes lifting of restrictions on NGOs by India International oi-PTI Washington, Oct 19: The United States has welcomed the Indian government's recent decision to lift the restrictions from some NGOs, saying the move will strengthen civil society in the country. "We certainly would welcome and do welcome any actions by government that support and strengthen civil society. I'd refer you to the Government of India with respect to any specific actions that have been taken regarding the NGOs in India," State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner said yesterday. "But we want to see a strong, healthy civil society throughout the world. And that certainly extends to India, which is a strong democracy," he said. "We believe that a strong and vibrant civil society only strengthens that democracy," he added. Toner said the US supports the very good work of many of these NGOs that they play in strengthening civil society. But it is a for the Government of India to work with them with regard to taxes and other regulations that te NGOs need to comply with on ground. "We are very clear not just with respect to India, but with many countries around the world, about our support for NGOs and the important role that they play in any democratic society. "And in so far as we push for a more welcoming environment for these NGOs to work in, that's just the way we work," the deputy spokesman said. PTI When is Dev Diwali 2022? November 7th or November 8th? Know timings, significance and more Seven-judge Supreme Court bench starts hearing on 'Hindutva' judegment New Delhi oi-PTI New Delhi, Oct 19: The Supreme Court on Tuesday commenced hearing to revisit its two-decade-old 'Hindutva' judgement for an authoritative pronouncement on electoral law categorising misuse of religion for electoral gains as "corrupt practice". A seven-judge bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur decided to go ahead with the hearing, ignoring the request of some parties in the matter to involve Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi for his assistance. "Are you saying that in every case which relates to interpretation of a legislation, assistance of the Attorney General is needed," the bench, also comprising justices Madan B Lokur, SA Bobde, AK Goel, UU Lalit, DY Chandrachud and L Nageswara Rao, asked the counsel who had raised the issue of assistance by the top law officer. The bench began the hearing grappling with issues which could be examined by it and wanted to know whether some of them can be remanded back to a smaller bench of five or three judges. Senior advocate Arvind Datar, who set the ball rolling at the crucial hearing, submitted that the case of his client BJP leader Abhiram Singh should be separated from this hearing as all the similarly situated people have already got relief from the apex court. He said the appeal filed in 1992 by Singh, whose election to 1990 Maharashtra Assembly was set aside in 1991 by the Bombay High Court, has wrongly been tagged to the main petition of Narayan Singh whose appeal by the five judge bench was referred to the seven judges. Datar submitted that the high court had set aside his election as it was alleged that other BJP leaders in their speeches had referred to religion to garner votes for him. The senior advocate said there were 10 such appeals against the high court order and, except in two, the election of others were restored by the apex court and therefore, Abhiram Singh should be treated on the same footing and his appeal should be remanded back to three-judge bench. He made reference to the similar relief secured by former Maharashtra Chief Minister Manohar Joshi contending that there was no conflict in that judgement. Datar said in 1990, two such speeches were made, one by late Shiv Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray and another by late Pramod Mahajan in which reference to 'Hindutva' was made to garner votes for the Shiv Sena and BJP candidates. PTI For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Wednesday, October 19, 2016, 7:42 [IST] Foreign Secretary Jaishankar has differed from Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on surgical strike. Jaishankar has said that the army had carried out target specific, limited-calibre, counter-terrorist operations across the LoC in the past too but this is for the first time the government has gone public about it. Accession Day: Valley lights up on this day when J&K became part of India Why gun snatching in J&K has become a routine affair Srinagar oi-Vicky Srinagar, Oct 19: Gun snatching incidents in Jammu and Kashmir have become a routine today. Fresh incidents of terrorists snatching guns from security personnel in the Valley have been on the rise following a video by the Hizbul Mujahideen. In the video, the Hizbul Mujahideen commander urges the youth to snatch weapons from government forces.The Indian army has expressed concern over such incidents. There have been at least three such incidents in the past two months. Officials while raising concern over such incidents say that the Hizbul Mujahideen has called for snatching of guns. During the unrest in the Valley, the recruitment of youth into the outfit had gone up three folds. Officials say that due to the sudden rise in the recruitments, there is a shortage of weapons in the outfit and hence such incidents of weapon snatching are taking place. Such incidents are also planned with a view of embarrassing the security personnel, officials also say. Also read: Valley unrest: With dreams in their eyes, Kashmiri students head to Jammu Since July, militants have so far decamped with more than 55 service rifles. The Indian army has expressed concern and says that it would be working closely with the local police who have been the targets of such incidents. General Officer Commanding, Chinar Corps Commander, Lt. General Satish Dua said, that the Army is working closely with the Jammu and Kashmir Police to bring normalcy in the State. However, the incidents of rifle-snatching are a cause of concern for the Army, he also said. OneIndia News euronews (in English) 31 Oct 2022 Luiz Ignacio Lula da Silva's supporters are celebrating his narrow election victory in Brazil but there is tension in the air over.. Rumble 29 Oct 2022 This video uses data gathered from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft to recreate some of the stunning views of the Moon.. 2008-2022 One News Page Ltd. All rights reserved. One News is a registered trademark of One News Page Ltd. SOHH 05 Aug 2022 Here we are with the newest sounds as we walk into August. Once youve successfully come down from the high from Beyonces.. Sydney Morning Herald 31 Oct 2022 There is only one policy area people think the Coalition is best placed to handle. When Mars first samples return to Earth, scientists should be on the lookout for ancient sleeping bacteria, a new study has.. Eurasia Review 25 Oct 2022 Rumble 23 Aug 2022 Yeah term limits across the board. Its needed, you know it, I know it. WorldNews 04 Nov 2020 It was the grand, carefully choreographed victory speech that Donald Trump never got to make in 2016. Hail to the Chief was playing.. Opalesque Industry Update - Jerseys finance industry facilitates almost 190bn of foreign investment into the European Union (excluding the UK), supporting in the order of 88,000 jobs across those same member States, according to an independent report launched today. Jersey also supports an estimated 250,000 British jobs. A Jersey Finance-commissioned report, entitled Jerseys Value to Europe, has been published by Capital Economics, and demonstrates the vital contribution the jurisdiction makes to the economies of the European Union. Meanwhile, a separate report, also launched today from Capital Economics and entitled Jerseys Value to Britain, builds on previous research undertaken in 2013 to outline the current value of Jersey to the UK. Taken together, they provide a comprehensive summary of Jerseys total value to the EU, be it in terms of jobs, investment or extra tax income. The reports main findings are: Jersey is a conduit for 188bn of foreign investment into the European Union (excluding the UK), equivalent to 4% of the blocs total net international investment That investment supports in the order of 88,000 European jobs, in addition to those created solely in the UK Around one third of all fund assets administered and managed in Jersey are located in EU countries other than the UK Looking at the UK, Jersey is estimated to be a conduit for almost 500 billion of foreign investment into the country, equivalent to 5% of the total stock of foreign owned assets in the country Jersey supports an estimated 250,000 British jobs, of which 190,000 are from foreign investment alone, and adds 14bn to the UK economy The reports also reinforce how Jerseys benefit to the UK and the rest of the EU far outweighs any potential costs in terms of foregone tax revenues to the continent. Geoff Cook, CEO of Jersey Finance, said: Jersey has the flexibility and freedom to provide the taxation, regulatory and supervisory regimes required by clients with cross-border asset portfolios. That is why Jersey has become a leading international financial centre. And even though its footprint is nowhere near as large as centres such as Luxembourg and Switzerland, the Island has attracted a mix of skills and financial businesses that account for a quarter of its 59,000 jobs and two-fifths of its economic activity. Mark Pragnell, Head of Commissioned Projects at Capital Economics, said: Jersey is unambiguously European, with unique relationships with the United Kingdom and the rest of the European Union. Jerseys freedom to legislate and govern, and determine its own taxes, has allowed it to become established as a leading centre for international financial services, one whose expertise benefits all the constituent countries of the EU. Jersey was also featured in an Opalesque Roundtable, which can be downloaded here: Article source - Opalesque is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Rolf Majcen with his trophy Rolf Majcen with his trophy The Shanghai World Financial Centreis 495 meters high. In this race, runners had to run up 100 floors, 2744 stairs and474 meters in elevation.Majcen finished the race in 18:17 miinutes. It was his 132nd stair climb all over the world and his 61st top 3 result. Over his (running) carreer, he was able to run up 83 different building on 4 continents. And he wont stop: already next Saturday he will compete again in another stair climb in Chongqing Rolf Majcen is theLegal & Compliance Officer of Austrian Alternative Investment Fund ManagerFTC Capital, which is specializedin Managed Futures Funds. Rolf Majcen is currently trying to open the UCITS directive to allow UCITS to invest in liquid AIFs. He says the EU commission read his legal opinion, which was published in Austrias media "Bankarchiv, with "great interest." Let's hope for the best...! Since my sister's brain injury eleven years ago I have spent more time in hospitals and emergency rooms than I care to remember. During that time I have noticed a frightening decline in the level of care my sister and other patients who are unable to speak for themselves receive. Perhaps a knee-jerk reaction to what I've observed would be to say that it's all due to "Obamacare"--but that doesn't jibe with my own experience. I began noticing the decline in hospital care long before the Obama administration passed its healthcare legislation. That is not to say that there aren't forces out there so hell-bent on seeing Obamacare fail that they'd have no problem seeing to it that care is withheld from those who need it most. It also would be easy to blame the problem on too few doctors to handle the patient load, or on staffing shortages for nurses or nurse assistants. While doctors with too many patients and nurse staffing shortages both contribute to the decline in patient care, the problem I am seeing goes well beyond those factors. It seems to reflect both a lack of training in how to care for and treat patients with disabilities and conditions like dementia, and also an outright lack of common sense. For example, you cannot expect someone who is not able to speak or to use their hands to push the call button to let you know they need to be changed or are in need of some other assistance. Only today, my sister found herself in just such jeopardy. Her mattress/bed malfunctioned, and she was pulled down into it. Her upper body was trapped down at the head of the mattress and her nasal tube pulled taut across her neck, while her legs were up at normal height. To say the least, this was a dangerous position for someone with a feeding tube or a high risk of aspiration. Other things are commonly neglected that are, or should be, common-sense patient care--from turning on the television or turning up the volume, to opening the blinds or turning on the room lights during the day, or even to equipping patients with their eye glasses. I have come into my sister's hospital room on an overcast day or just before sunset, and found her in a dark room without her glasses. No one had thought to open the blinds that morning or to turn on the room lights as the skies turned overcast. No one had bothered, either, to turn on her television, so she had had to sit in a dark room all day staring at the wall. Whenever I walk into my sister's hospital room and see the look on her face that says "They forgot me," it first breaks my heart and then makes me angry. When it comes to changing the dress of patients like my sister--those who are unable to move their limbs or who have contractures--I constantly see a lack of attention and common sense. In turning or moving a patient who is unable to actively assist you, it is imperative always to pay attention to the placement of their hands, arms, feet and face. As I've witnessed nursing technicians change and turn my sister, I've more than once had to call out to them to "Watch her foot!" "Watch her foot!" when her foot was caught between the bed and rail. Other times I've had to shout, "She can't breathe!" when her face was buried in the pillow. After every one of those episodes, I've been told, "Oh, its okay." No, it's not okay! A patient is crying out in pain, and no attendant bothers to check why she is crying out and why it was difficult to turn her!? And don't get me started on oral care--or should I say the lack thereof! I do understand that most hospitals are dealing with staffing shortages. However, most are using travel nurses to cover the shortfall, so there is no excuse. I in fact know of one northern Virginia hospital where about ninety-percent of the nursing staff consists of travel nurses. There are, however, problems with travel nurses. In my experience, they do not seem to have the same loyalty or buy-in to the hospitals they are contracted to as do permanent members of a hospital nursing staff. Perhaps that is because travel nurse contracts at a given hospital are usually for no longer than a year. Moreover, very few travel nurses demonstrate the same level of experience or training as the staff nurses at hospitals. That may be because, in many fields, workers contracted from the outside either do not have or get the ongoing mandatory training required of permanent employees at most institutions today. With all that said, it is urgent that doctors and nurses of all stripes up their game in patient care. Most people are not able, and should not have, to sit all day in the hospital with their loved ones in order to ensure that the room lights or the television are turned on for them. Yet, in my experience, it seems that more and more hospitals now almost expect them to do exactly that. Things have got to the point where technicians are leaving their duties without giving certain treatments if I am not there to assist them, or my sister is never moved out of her bed and into a chair unless I'm there to do it myself. The sad and most disturbing aspect of this decline in the level of care for the disabled is that it is just the tip of the iceberg. I have provided only a snapshot of the many ways in which hospitals and the healthcare industry are failing disabled patients, especially those on Medicare or Medicaid. Based on my experience, an increasing number of doctors and hospitals seem to no longer care about patients with disabilities, and have simply written them off. As two doctors at one hospital told me, "I don't understand why we are doing all these tests. Even if we find something we won't do anything [by way of treatment], because it won't cure her underlying brain injury." Here's a tip for those doctors and others who think like them. Patients with disabilities are people too and deserve to be treated as such. Disabled lives matter. God forbid that one of your own loved ones suffers a debilitating injury or illness and is then subject to the same kind of care I've described. It would behoove healthcare and medical professionals to (1) treat all patients as they would want their closest loved ones to be treated, and (2) remember karma is a b*****. When it comes to sexual predators, there should be no political bright line test to determine who gets a free pass and who goes to jail based on which candidate is better suited for office. Yet almost 20 years after Bill Clinton became the first and only sitting president to be sued for sexual harassment and impeached for lying under oath about his sexual escapades while in office, the Left and the Right are still playing politics with women's rights. I should know. As one of Paula Jones' lawyers in her sexual harassment lawsuit against Bill Clinton, I saw first-hand how quickly Hillary Clinton and the nation's leading women's rights groups demonized any woman who dared to accuse Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct while turning a blind eye to a long list of incidents involving groping, propositioning, and pressuring women for sexual favors. Trust me, it was a very long list. I also witnessed first-hand the hypocrisy of the Religious Right, which was eager to stand in judgment over Clinton for his marital infidelity, while at the same time turning a blind eye to the indiscretions of other conservative politicians in their midst. Fast forward 20 years, and the women's rights groups that were silent when Bill Clinton was being outed as a sexual predator have suddenly found their voice and their outrage in the face of accusations that Donald Trump groped and kissed women without their consent. Likewise, the religious groups that were aghast over Clinton's sexual immorality have somehow created a sliding scale of sin that allows them to absolve Trump of his own indiscretions. It's like being in the Twilight Zone. Only instead of Rod Serling's imaginary "land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas," we're trapped in an all-too-real land of politics and lies, where freedom and integrity play second fiddle to ambition and greed. Nothing is real. This year's presidential contest and its candidates have, through their double-talking and lies, pulled back the curtain to reveal that what we see is all part of an elaborate hoax, a cruel game where "we the people" are just pawns to be used, abused, discarded and demonized when convenient. All this talk about sexual predators is just so much political maneuvering to score points off one another. Neither Hillary Clinton nor Donald Trump care one whit about the victims of sexual harassment. Frankly, they don't seem to care much about the rest of the populace, either. For all intents and purposes, we're all victims of a perverse, perverted, psychotic mindset that views the citizenry as lesser beings: lacking in value, unworthy of respect, and completely undeserving of the legal rights and protections that should be afforded to all Americans. This is what happens when politics is allowed to trump principle: "we the people" lose. Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). From Media Matters Like everything else about Donald Trump's vitriolic campaign, his attacks on journalists, and the way those assaults are being fervently amplified by Trump's whipped-up supporters, have become genuinely frightening during the finals weeks of the Republican's faltering run. Fronting a nihilistic campaign that seeks to do lasting damage to our electoral and democratic process, Trump has shifted his all-encompassing war on the media onto more dangerous terrain this month. Graduating from his previous claims that reporters are "disgusting" and "horrible people," Trump now insists they're all part of the "rigged" infrastructure this election cycle that's conspiring against the former beauty pageant owner. Forget blaming the messenger -- Trump's now trying to bury the messenger. And his fans want to help. In addition to lobbing regular abuse at journalists on social media, Trump and his supporters have waged their vendetta at the candidate's rallies, where journalists are corralled behind metal barricades. And his fans have become increasingly unhinged. "The traveling press corps covering Donald Trump's rally in Cincinnati had to be escorted out the back door of the event to a heavily guarded motorcade after being greeted with boos, middle fingers and a seemingly 'arena-wide' chant of 'Tell the truth!' from a crowd of 15,000 people, according to a pool report," People recently reported. Meanwhile, journalists have been sharing disturbing rally snapshots on Twitter: From NBC News' Ali Vitali: CNN's Jim Acosta: Washington Post's Jose DelReal: None of this is new, unfortunately. On Monday, The New York Times published a piece headlined "Criticism of the News Media Takes on a More Sinister Tone," which raised concerns about "dangerous" anger targeted at reporters. Click Here to Read Whole Article On October 23, 2016 Lithuania will hold the second round of parliamentary elections, with 68 constituencies voting for a new parliament. As the results came in for the first round, it was clear that the situation in the country will change completely no matter who wins. The Centrist Homeland Union (the traditional opposition of the ruling Social Democrats) together with the Peasant/Greens Union have a chance to form a ruling coalition. Yet sociologists failed to predict the support of 21.64% of voters to Gabrielyus Landsbergis' Conservatives. Ramunas Karbauskis' Peasant/Green party took second place with 21.56% of votes. Some experts are sure that the Peasant/Greens Union will form a coalition with the Conservatives and the Liberals (S...judis liberals). However, despite the defeat of the Social Democrats (LSDP), that took third place with a score of 14.43% they still have a chance to convince the union's leadership to unite with them in a new coalition. Analysis of preliminary results shows not only the defeat of ruling parties: Lithuanians voted for changes in the political life of the country. They are sick and tired of politicians' promises that were no more than leaves without figs. That is why ordinary people voted for opposition parties, believing that they will do real things. But what can we expect from these political powers? First of all we should not write off the fact that they will try to achieve the goals they announced. For example, Lithuanians should be concerned by the call to reduce the number of teachers, a statement made by Gabrielius Landsbergis, who is convinced that Lithuania has too many teachers. The second shocking thing is the fact that Lithuanians voted for war parties. All the winning parties support increasing military expenditures and compulsory military service. Conservatives propose to enlist all people without exception immediately after graduation. Are young people ready for this? Such initiatives may lead to an increase in emigration. In other words, the political wind in Lithuania is certain to bring changes which could become controversial. The American criminal justice system, despite proclamations of it being the "greatest system in the world," is quite unforgiving. With 5% of the world's population, the US incarcerates 25% of the world's prisoners. Prosecutors, particularly in federal courts, are quite adept at criminalizing even seemingly inconsequential acts. As Donald Trump's past business practices come under increased scrutiny during this election cycle, a question emerging is how he has thus far escaped criminal prosecution. How can someone operate a scam "university" without criminal, most likely federal, charges ultimately being filed? The facts are not in dispute. Monies were obtained under false pretenses as it is not bona fide a university. Both the mails and internet were used to further the scheme. A first year law student could likely obtain an indictment for mail and wire fraud under such circumstance. Trump's operation of his foundation, purportedly a charity, presents another straightforward case of fraud. It is uncontroverted that Trump directed income to his "charity," and then used these purported donations for personal expenses. One need not be a federal prosecutor to recognize a prima facie case of tax fraud. But where are the federal prosecutors? Federal prisons are packed with people serving decades-long sentences for arguably far less egregious acts. Laws governing mail and wire fraud have been held to be interpreted as widely as possible, transforming them into all-encompassing catchalls. One aspect of Trump's life that has been underreported is his good fortune to have a sitting federal judge for an older sister. Maryanne Trump Barry was appointed to the federal bench in New Jersey by Ronald Regan in 1983. Bill Clinton elevated her to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in 1999. Donald Trump has been loath to admit aiding the effort to appoint his sister to the federal bench, but MaryanneTrump Barrie has acknowledged as much. The New York Times reported that: According to a person involved in the effort to appoint Ms. Barry, who discussed the clandestine strategy on the condition of anonymity, Mr. Trump had his lawyer, Roy M. Cohn, a politically connected former counsel to Senator Joseph R. McCarthy, lobby Edwin Meese III, then a senior White House aide, to put his sister on the bench. "I'm no different than any other brother that loves his sister," Mr. Trump said when asked about Mr. Cohn's pressure on the Reagan administration. "My sister got the appointment totally on her own merit." Ms. Barry herself has given her brother some of the credit for her appointment. "There's no question Donald helped me get on the bench," she was quoted as saying in Gwenda Blair's "The Trumps: Three Generations That Built an Empire. I was good, but not that good." So how can having a high-ranking federal judge as a sister be helpful in escaping the scrutiny of typically tenacious federal prosecutors? The Bridgegate scandal currently unfolding in a Newark, NJ federal court, the very same court in which Maryanne Trump Barrie began her judicial career, offers some insight into the discretionary power of federal judges and prosecutors. Governor Chris Christie has been identified as a co-conspirator by both the prosecution and defense, yet remains uncharged federally. Defense and prosecution witnesses have offered testimony about Christie's direct participation in the conspiracy to obstruct the George Washington Bridge. Prosecution witnesses in federal court are well-prepped before offering testimony, evidencing more confirmation that federal prosecutors are on-board with the assertion that Christie was an active participant in the scheme. Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Progressive Content Not Found Sometimes, authors delete their progressive content after publishing. To see if the progressive content was renamed or re-published, please click here. If you peruse our collection of Free Online History Courses, youll find plenty of enriching history courses from top-notch universities, all presented in a fairly conventional style. And certainly nothing like the short history lesson youll find above. Created by American musician and video blogger Bill Wurtz, this History of Japan walks idiosyncratically through 40,000 years of history in 9 minutes, covering the rise of technology and religion, the influence of China on Japans language and brand of buddhism, the rise of the samurai, the countrys vexed relationship with the West, the bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, and more. Released in February, the video has already clocked more than 17 million views on YouTubepretty good considering that Wurtz created the video as a prototype to see if I could do a long video in the first place. In a recent Q & A, Wurtz suggested that he may well try to revive another project hes been working ona History of the United States. Stay tuned for that. You can read a script for the History of Japan video here. Note: The Great Courses is now offering a 30-Day Free Trial, giving you access to a video library of great courses. If youre not familiar with them, The Great Courses travels across the US, recording great professors lecturing on topics that will appeal to any lifelong learner. If youre interested in streaming their courses onlinewhenever you want and however much you wantget details on their a 30-Day Free Trial here. Related Content: Free Online History Courses Early Japanese Animations: The Origins of Anime (1917-1931) 1850s Japan Comes to Life in 3D, Color Photos: See the Stereoscopic Photography of T. Enami Learn Japanese Free Smart Set-top Box And Dongle Market size and Key Trends in terms of volume and value 2016-2026 http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-1914 http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/toc/rep-gb-1914 http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/smart-set-top-box-and-dongle-market www.futuremarketinsights.com Smart set top box is a part of Internet of Things (IoT). Smart set top box enables the users to access online videos, photos and apps that are specifically optimised for TV. In addition, smart set top box has features that enables the users to store and display the content through connection of external storage devices.Benefits of Smart set top box:Online streaming of videos, music, photos, and other web content without any subscription of cable or satellite TV.Display quality of up to 4K.Provide access to DVR capabilities.Display of content through external storage like USB.Social connectivity through optimized apps.Access to weather updates, news and financial information through TV.Apart from set box, dongle can be directly plugged into TV to enable the content access from internet.Request Free Report Sample@Smart set top box & Dongle Market: Drivers and RestraintIncrease in the number of smart homes, growth in adoption rate of smart technologies, and rise in demand for video on demand services & video recording are the major drivers for smart set-top box & dongle market.Smart TV manufacturers are deploying different types of interface and software in their products, as there is lack of standard for software, operating system and interface implementation in TV. Most of the TVs are supporting popular services that includes Netflix, Hulu, Amazon video and Pandora, where as some manufacturers are supporting only some of the most popular apps such as Facebook. The absence of standard operating system and interface to run the online content on TV, are the major challenges for smart set-top box and dongle market.Smart set top box & Dongle market: SegmentationSmart set-top box & dongle market can be segmented on the basis of product and feature.On the basis of product, the smart set-top box and dongle market can be categorised in to smart set -top box and dongle. Dongle was the emerging market due to compatibility, price and other relatively more user friendly features of the device.On the basis of feature, the smart set-top box & dongle market can be classified in to operating system, video quality and memory. Operating system segment can be further bifurcated in to Android and Linux. On the basis of video quality, the smart set-top box & dongle market can be further categorised in to Full HD and UHD 4K. In 2015, Full HD was the dominant segment in overall smart set-top box & dongle market, where as UHD 4K was the emerging segment worldwide.Request For TOC@Segmentation on basis of regions:Smart set-top box & Dongle Market is sub-segmented into 7 key regions- North America, Latin America, East Europe, West Europe, Asia-Pacific excluding Japan, Japan and Middle East & Africa.Smart set top box & Dongle Market: Region wise outlookIn 2015, North America was dominating the overall smart set-top box & dongle market in terms of consumption. US was the leading market in the region as, major companies including Apple and Roku were launching the new generation devices in order to take maximum advantage of poor performance by Pay TV in the region.India and China were leading markets in Asia Pacific region. In 2015, Growth in china was driven by IPTV, where telecommunication companies were creating trend by pushing IPTV services in order to generate return on their investment in fibre to home.Europe was the emerging region for smart set-top box and dongle market as, the subscription of video on demand services had grown with the significant rate by end of 2014.Smart set top box & Dongle Market: Key PlayersApple Inc. (US), Google Inc. (US), Roku Inc.(US), Netflix (US), Amazon.com Inc.(US), Cisco Systems Inc. (US),NVIDIA Corporation (US), LG Corporation (South Korea), D-Link Corporation (Taiwan), Plex Inc. (US).Browse Full Report@ABOUT US:Future Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting firm. We deliver syndicated research reports, custom research reports and consulting services, which are personalized in nature. FMI delivers a complete packaged solution, which combines current market intelligence, statistical anecdotes, technology inputs, valuable growth insights, an aerial view of the competitive framework, and future market trends.CONTACT:Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, NY 10989,United StatesT: +1-347-918-3531F: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comPress: press@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite: Global Business Intelligence Market will grow at a CAGR of around 8.4% between 2016 and 2021 http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/sample/business-intelligence-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/inquiry/business-intelligence-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/report/business-intelligence-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com/buynow/su/business-intelligence-market http://www.zionmarketresearch.com Zion Research has published a new report titled Global Business Intelligence Market by Mobile BI, Cloud BI, and Other Applications: Global Industry Perspective, Comprehensive Analysis and Forecast, 2015-2021. According to the report, the global business intelligence market accounted USD 16.33 billion in 2015 and is expected to reach USD 26.50 billion by 2021, growing at a CAGR of around 8.4% between 2016 and 2021.Get a copy of free Sample Report @Business Intelligence defined as the process of analyzing huge volumes of enterprise data usually stored in large databases such as data warehouses. BI detects the hidden trends and patterns in data, track the business performance and assist the business users to make improved decisions based on real-time data. From a marketing stand point, Business Intelligence can be described as a strategic management tool that can support executives and business users to make improved decisions that are necessary for day to day operations, tactical and strategic planning.Applying BI to each of department like (Marketing, HR, Payroll, CRP etc) can provide ultimate flexible analysis of raw data. BI provides end to end approach to store and present data. For example, Companies can compare their respective revenues per quarter or month with peers, so that they can retrospect there strategic decisions or policies. Business intelligence helps companies understand their customers. This is possibly the most important reason for business intelligence.A good business intelligence tool will allow employees to gain imminent into key marketing questions such as who are best customers, how sales can be increased through new sell opportunities, or what products are trending. With business intelligence tool companies can plan marketing campaigns accordingly based on real data. Business Intelligence helps companies make better decisions. Other drivers are like the software will improve the visibility of processes and make it possible to identify any areas that need development.Know more before buying this report @By type segment, the mobile BI (MBI) segment accounted for more than 20% of the global Business Intelligence market in 2015. Mobile BI enables the mobile workforce to get business insights by analyzing data with the help of applications for mobile and smart devices. The growing smartphone adoption is likely to appear as a key driver for this segment during the forecast period. Mobile business intelligence is software that extends desktop business intelligence (BI) applications so that they can be used on a mobile device. MBI applications optimize traditional BI reports so they can be viewed easily on small screen. It is ideal for displaying key performance indicators (KPIs) and alerts on small screens with simple charts, graphs, and sparklines. An additional advantage of MBI is that it allows data that is captured by the mobile device to be incorporated on-the-fly so that reports are currents and mobile workers can make informed decisions in real time.By deployment segment, the on-premise segment accounted for 86% of the market share in 2015. However, this segment is projected to witness a decline in its shares by the end of the forecast period. In this segment, software is installed on the server of an enterprise. It requires more protection but is highly secure and easy to manage.North America is expected to be the largest market for BI due to major growth in the market. It accounted for around 56% of the markets share globally. Asia Pacific is expected to manifest high-growth over the foreseeable future due to rapid industrialization in the region and growing number of start-ups focusing on smartphone application development. Major industry participants in this include Microsoft, IBM, Oracle, Microstrategy, GoodData, Targit, SAS, SAP, and Tableau Software among others.Browse detail report with in-depth TOC @Business Intelligence Market: Technology Segment AnalysisMobile BICloud BISocial BIBusiness Intelligence Market: Deployment Segment AnalysisCloud BIOn-Premises BIBusiness Intelligence Market: Region Segment AnalysisNorth AmericaU.S.EuropeUKFranceGermanyAsia PacificChinaJapanIndiaLatin AmericaBrazilThe Middle East & AfricaPurchase a direct copy of report with TOC @About Us:Zion Market Research is an obligated company. We create futuristic, cutting edge, informative reports ranging from industry reports, company reports to country reports. We provide our clients not only with market statistics unveiled by avowed private publishers and public organizations but also with vogue and newest industry reports along with pre-eminent and niche company profiles. 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